Runner's Web Digest - April 16, 2004

The Original Runner's and Triathlete's Web was founded in January of 1997 as a
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The TRACK PROFILE Reader 2004, an in-depth review of the 2003 season by Bob
Ramsak, is now available. Selected from
hundreds of reports filed by the Track Profile News Service last year, The TRACK
PROFILE READER provides a unique look
back at the personalities, stories and events that defined track and field in
2003. With in depth profiles of the
sport's biggest stars and comprehensive on-site reports from major competitions,
this annual review takes the reader
beyond the results, providing a perfect companion for casual and diehard fans
alike. Check out the book at:
http://www.booksurge.com/author.php3?accountID=GPUB00341&affiliateID=A000497

Stop popups, find the best sites. Download the Alexa toolbar at:
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New Advertiser:
We are please to welcome Super Bites to our sponsor program.
"SuperBites are small doses of straight glucose and maltodextrin (chains of
glucose). Pure, ready-to-use energy. It's
the fuel that won't sit in your stomach. The fuel that your body can use
immediately. The fuel that tastes great and is
easy to eat on the fly. The fuel that comes in an easy-to-carry reusable
dispenser. The fuel that comes in small doses
so you can easily match the amount your body needs, when it needs it, to avoid
an energy roller-coaster ride".
Visit their website at:
http://www.superbitesenergy.com and read what triathlete Tony DeBoom has to say
about the product.


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Most references in the digest which do not have a specific URL listed here are
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New This Week:

How To Run and Enjoy the Marathon - (A Practical Guide To The 26.2-Mile
Journey) By James Raia
Chapter 9. 9. Night Moves: Exercisers Need A Visible Presence
http://www.runnersweb.com/running/news/rw_news_20040416_Raia_Marathon9.html

Webmasters:
Get our Syndicated headlines for you site.
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How To Run and Enjoy the Marathon - (A Practical Guide To The 26.2-Mile
Journey) By James Raia
Chapter 9. Chapter 9. Night Moves: Exercisers Need A Visible Presence
http://www.runnersweb.com/running/news/rw_news_20040416_Raia_Marathon9.html

We have NO personal postings this week.
Personal Postings, when available, are located after the Upcoming Section
towards the bottom of the newsletter.

Our latest column from Carmichael Training Systems is available:
Training: Getting Ready to Rumble; Written by: Kristen Dieffenbach. Check it out
at:
http://www.runnersweb.com/running/cts_columns.html


Digest Article Index:

1 .Linking the Lab with the Runner by Greg McMillan, M.S.
2. The Perfect Mile - The Chase by Neal Bascomb
3. Core strengthening - More than just a crunch
4. Nordic pole-walking: A sticky situation
Is Nordic pole-walking a new fitness craze or just plain crazy?
5. 2004 Spring Running Shoe Review
6. Does Hill Running Help?
7. A Tribute to Brian Maxwell: He Changed the Sport of Running
While to many runners the name Brian Maxwell may not be familiar, surely the
product he invented is known to all.
8. Food pyramid slated for makeover
9. From Runner's World
10. Triathlon Training - The Heart of the Matter II
Going from Base Training to Intensity Training
11. Judgment Days
Joe Henderson's Running Commentary
12. Iliotibial Band Syndrome by Marlene Cimons
Iliotibial band syndrome is relatively common, and it hurts. Help has arrived.
13. Viagra Finds Another Use, for Lung Disease
14. Getting faster with age
General manager of Dever Distributing Co. finds passion for running in 40s
15. Marathon Foto/Road Race Management Race Director of the Year
16. Can tai chi heal? Researchers try to find out
17. Explaining Blood Pressure Spikes During Exercise
18. Controlling Emotion and Thought:
From Lore of Running-4th Edition by Timothy Noakes
19. The weights debate
Which is better, machines or free weights? Progressive fitness trainers and
coaches see advantages to working both into
your regimen.
20. More Than 8 Hours Sleep Too Much of a Good Thing
21. Are runners' knees worse off than non-runners'?
22. Exercise for elders: It's never too late
23. Three ways to match your training to your stage of life
24. The Marathon Long Run
How I Prescribe Long Runs for Maximum Success by Greg McMillan, M.S.
25. News Scan


Runner's Web Weekly Poll:

This week's poll is: "What is your favourite drink after a race or hard
workout?"

Cast your vote at: http://www.runnersweb.com/running.html
Post your views in our Forum at:
http://www.runnersweb.com/running/runnersweb_forum.html
[Free Registration Required]

The previous poll was: "What is your 'coach' status?
*In person coach
*Internet coach
*Internet program
*Peer group
*Self coached
*Combination of above"

The results at publication time were:
Answers Votes Percent
1. In person coach 11 15%
2. Internet coach 2 3%
3. Internet program 2 3%
4. Peer group 3 4%
5. Self coached 45 60%
6. Combination of above 12 16%
Total Votes: 75

You can access the poll from our FrontPage as well as voting on and/or checking
the results of previous polls.

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Five Star Site of the Week: Nicole DeBoom, Professional Triathlete:
"I made my pro debut in 1999 by competing in the US Triathlon Series (USTS). It
was a great introduction to pro racing
because the start lists were small, but I still had the opportunity to race
against and learn from athletes like
Michellie Jones. I learned how to race every few weeks and formulate a training
program that could carry me through an
entire season (with Tim's help of course!).
In 2000, I decided I was ready for my first Ironman event. I'd been to Hawaii to
watch Tim compete for the past 4 years,
and it took that long to fuel my own Ironman desire! I had a great Ironman
debut, finishing 3rd in California after
leading for much of the day. It was a blast! For the rest of 2000 and 2001, I
focused on Ironman racing, and had some
good results, but more importantly, I learned a lot.
In 2002, I decided to return to short distance racing so that I could fit more
races into the season. I also hired Roch
Frey, the most accomplished coach in our sport, and I've had my most successful
season by far, challenging the top short
course women in the world."
Visit Nicole's site at:
http://www.nicoledeboom.com/


Send us your suggestions for our Five Star site. Please check our list of
previous Five Star Sites available from the
Five Star Window under
the link "Previous Five Star Sites" as we do not wish to repeat a site unless it
has undergone a major redesign.


If you feel you have something to say that is worthy of a Guest Column on the
Runner's Web, email us at
mailto:RunnersWeb@...
or leave your comments in one of our Forums at:
http://www.runnersweb.com/running/forum.html or from our FrontPage.

Our Photo Slideshow is updated on a random basis. Check it out from our
FrontPage.

Book of the Week: How To Train For And Run Your Best Marathon
From a national class marathoner who qualified for the Olympic Trials--valuable
coaching on gearing up for and finishing
a marathon. Bloch explains the benefits of cross-training for marathon runners,
offers winning strategies specific to
individual race courses, and more.
Buy the book at Amazon at:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0671797271/runnersweb/102-0182896-9006569\
?v=glance&s=books


Be sure to check out our Flash Page where we list all recent additions to the
Runner's Web. This page is updated before
Monday morning each week.


This Weeks News:

Articles:

1. Linking the Lab with the Runner by Greg McMillan, M.S.
As an exercise physiologist, I believe understanding sports science can help you
train smarter and achieve your best
performances. As a professional coach and full-time runner, I understand that
the scientific jargon can be like, well,
scientific jargon. There's often a "disconnect" between what the physiologists
say and what those in the real world of
training and racing say (and do!).
In this article (the first of many offered on this website), I present a simple
method to make the connection between
science and reality and show you how to use this connection to improve your
running. This way of looking at sports
science gives you an idea of the underlying tenants of my philosophy of
training. It would be presumptuous to say that
this philosophy is a new, "magical" method. It's essentially just the simple
process I've used to make sense of
physiology and how it relates to the time-proven methods of great runners and
coaches - which are our greatest teachers
of how to train and race. The result is as close to a foolproof way to plan your
training as I've found.
Graph 1: Making the Connection
The fundamental connection between the lab and your training/racing is
illustrated in Graph 1, below. (Click here to
have Graph 1 available in the background.) To fully understand this connection,
let's simulate an exercise test and I'll
describe how the variables measured relate to your training/racing.
More...from McMillan Running at:
http://www.mcmillanrunning.com/Running%20University/Article%201/training%201.htm


2. The Perfect Mile - The Chase:
by Neal Bascomb
By the beginning of 1954, Hillary and Norgay had reached the top of Mount
Everest. But the four-minute mile remained
untouchable. Until three remarkable runners from three different continents took
dead aim on it
"How did he know he would not die?" a Frenchman asked of the first runner to
break the four-minute mile. Half a century
ago, the ambition to achieve that goal equaled scaling Everest or sailing alone
around the world. Most people considered
running four laps of the track in four minutes to be beyond the limits of human
speed. It was foolhardy and possibly
dangerous to attempt. Some thought that rather than a lifetime of glory, honor,
and fortune, a hearse would be waiting
for the first person to accomplish the feat.
The four-minute mile: This was the barrier, both physical and psychological,
that begged to be broken. The number had a
certain mathematical elegance. As one writer explained, the figure "seemed so
perfectly round--four laps, four
quarter-miles, four-point-oh-oh minutes--that it seemed God himself had
established it as man's limit." Under four
minutes--the place had the mysterious and heroic resonance of reaching sport's
Valhalla. For decades the best
middle-distance runners had tried and failed. They had come to within two
seconds, but that was as close as they were
able to get. Attempt after spirited attempt had proved futile. Each effort was
like a stone added to a wall that looked
increasingly impossible to breach.
More...from Runner's World at:
http://www.runnersworld.com/home/0,1300,1-0-0-6403,FF.html
Buy the book at:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0618391126/runnersweb/102-0182896-9006569\
?v=glance&s=books


3. Core strengthening - More than just a crunch:
By Mayo Clinic staff
When you walk or run, you're probably thinking more about putting one foot down
in front of the other than you are about
your core muscles. But did you know that your core is where all movement in your
body originates? Not only that, but
when you run — or walk, ride a bike or skip across a room — your core muscles
are hard at work, keeping you upright,
stabilizing your body as your weight shifts and absorbing impact from ground
forces.
Your body's "core" — the area around your trunk and pelvis — is where your
center of gravity is located. When you have
good core stability, the muscles in your pelvis, lower back, hips and abdomen
work in harmony. They provide support to
your spine for just about any activity.
Over time, a weak core can make you susceptible to poor posture and injury. For
instance, the weaker your core muscles,
the more likely you are to experience lower back pain. Strong core muscles keep
you protected from such injuries.
"The best brace you can give yourself is your muscle brace — the best corset is
your muscle corset," says Edward
Laskowski, M.D., a physical medicine and rehabilitation specialist and
co-director of the Sports Medicine Center at Mayo
Clinic, Rochester, Minn.
Learning how to identify and properly activate your core muscles is the first
step. Then you can practice this technique
while learning some basic exercises. By enhancing your core strength, you'll be
on your way to greater fitness.
More...MayoClinic.com at:
http://www.mayoclinic.com/invoke.cfm?objectid=2CEDAD10-1A8A-42F5-8A629A8DD15444F\
C


4. Nordic pole-walking: A sticky situation:
Is Nordic pole-walking a new fitness craze or just plain crazy?
On a patch of grass by a lake at Surrey University in Guildford a small group is
getting ready to test a new fitness
trend. We look a bit silly, to be honest. Though this bunch of students and
staff is dressed in ordinary clothes, what
draws odd looks from passers-by is the fact that everyone is clutching a pair of
carbon-fibre sticks — as though we’re
about to try skiing without snow or, indeed, skis.
Sally Edie, our instructor, shouts, “Come on, my lovelies!” and off we trek
towards the horizon, punting ourselves over
the tussocky ground with pole-thrusts that match each long stride. Push and push
and push..
Welcome to the curious world of Nordic pole-walking. It may sound like a bizarre
circus act, but it is claimed to be a
fat-burning, muscle-trimming regime that knocks spots off many of the more usual
calorie-consuming activities, such as
running or hiking.
As with cross-country skiing, on which it is based, Nordic pole-walking lets you
work the top half of your body as well
as your legs. The result, enthusiasts claim, is that you use 40 per cent more
energy than you would in ordinary walking.
More...from the Times Online at:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,8127-1067848,00.html


5. 2004 Spring Running Shoe Review:
When you are running and walking, the only thing that hits the ground is your
feet. Your feet are designed to absorb
shock, stabilize your legs and create power for the next stride. Your foot type
determines whether you are a better
shock absorber or a better stabilizer. If your foot is better at absorbing
shock, it tends to be more flexible, which
means you have problems with stability. If your foot is more stable, it will
have problems absorbing shock. If you’re
lucky, your foot will be a good blend of the two.
How can you tell what type of runner you are? A couple of signs determine
whether your feet are rigid, neutral or
flexible. One of the easiest ways is to measure your feet while you are sitting
and then when you are standing and note
the difference in the length of your foot. While sitting on a chair, put your
foot on a ruler and measure from your heel
to the tip of your toes. Next, stand up on your foot and see if your foot
changes length or not. If your foot remains
the same length, it is a rigid foot. If it grows by one-eighth of an inch, it is
neutral (a good blend of cushioning and
stability). If it grows by more than one-quarter of an inch, it is flexible
(absorbs shock well but isn’t stable).
More...from City Sports Magazine at:
http://www.citysportsmag.com/story.cfm?story_id=6008&departmentid=20&publication\
ID=14



6. Does Hill Running Help?
Running hard down hills has a bad reputation but this seems to be exaggerated,
according to a review by John Unger,
D.C., C.C.S.P., in Montrose, Colorado. Hill running is good training as long as
you begin cautiously and build up
conservatively.
Unger uncovered 12 studies of hill running and injuries, and focused on
discussions of downhill running. Reports mostly
during the 1980s tended to associate downhill hill running with injuries, but
there were several flaws in these studies'
designs.
More recent studies which were well designed, used controls, and evaluated
statistical significance found no association
between downhill or hill running and injury risk.
The experiences of the American Running Editorial Board Members tend to support
the value of hill running as long as it
is done cautiously. "Running hills is usually good training. The problem is the
need to be somewhat conservative in
early sessions (as you would be in any new type of training). It's probably
easier to overdo downhill running than
uphill running. In other words, easier to over-stress your landing shock systems
downhill, which is not a big problem in
uphill running," says Jack Daniels, Ph.D.
"My experience and personal beliefs are consistent with this," says Douglas
Lenz, C.S.C.S. "The biggest problem with
hill training is insufficient preparation, too much volume, and/or too little
recovery time," Lenz adds.
More...from American Running at:
http://www.americanrunning.org/displayindustryarticle.cfm?articlenbr=2124


7. A Tribute to Brian Maxwell: He Changed the Sport of Running
While to many runners the name Brian Maxwell may not be familiar, surely the
product he invented is known to all.
By Don Allison, Cool Running
For me at least, it was definitely not “love at first bite.” Some 15 years ago,
a co-worker in the office in which I
worked introduced me to a new kind of “candy bar,” one I was assured was
actually “good for you.” It sounded great, but
there was just a small problem: the tough texture and bland flavor. I simply
could not acquire a taste for these
so-called “Powerbars.” Thanks, but no thanks, I told my co-worker, politely
rebuffing the suggestion to regularly eat
those healthy snacks.
But some weeks later, I decided to give the contents within the shiny wrapper
another try. “Not quite as bad” was my
thought. Before I knew it, I was searching out where I could buy Powerbars
myself. As difficult as it is to imagine now,
at the time it was almost impossible to find them in stores; the only way to buy
them was through mail order.
Coincidentally, at about that time I was training for my first ultramarathon.
When the race rolled around, I had
received a shipment of bars and packed them with my gear for race day. With a
low fat content and thus being easily
digestible, I found I could eat them close to or during a race without worrying
about the stomach upset that resulted
from other solid food. And the vitamins! Just looking at the lengthy list of
health benefits in one small 220-calorie
snack was enough to make you feel better. And miracle of miracles, over time I
actually acquired a taste for these
little treats. Chocolate and malt nut were staples, with an occasional peanut
butter. Berry was not a favorite, but good
for a change of pace.
More...from Cool Running at:
http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/6/6_1/a-tribute-to-brian-maxwel.shtml


8. Food pyramid slated for makeover:
The suggestions range from wacky to reasonable, but plenty of people have ideas
about how to revamp the federal Food
Guide Pyramid, that iconic graphic that supposedly guides how people eat.
An artist wants the pyramid redrawn as a heart pumping iron. A North Carolina
man wants it to warn of the "poisons" in
vegetables. A Virginia man seems to suggest dumping leafy greens -- his nephew
doesn't like them. And just about
everyone thinks it should be more specific.
Over 600 pages of letters, e-mails and drawings provide a snapshot of what a
nation obsessed with diet really thinks.
The revised pyramid is expected to be released in early 2005.
For a month and half last fall, 254 responses from citizens and special interest
groups poured in to the U.S. Department
of Agriculture.
"The science has evolved and yet most Americans are health illiterate," wrote
Caile Spear of Boise, Idaho. "They do not
understand how to make good choices based on the best science."
More...from CNN at:
http://www.cnn.com/2004/HEALTH/diet.fitness/04/06/food.pyramid.ap/index.html


9. From Runner's World:
*Be Patient. When you run even splits, the early part of a race should feel
comfortable. So try to avoid the temptation
to push the pace when you feel good in the early miles. By holding back, you
conserve energy that you'll be happy to
spend late in the race.

*Good Old Fashion Push-ups: Same as they ever were, and just as effective.
Slowing them way down turns the humble
push-ups into a world-class triceps, shoulder and chest workout. And all these
muscle groups come into serious play
during running, especially at the end of workouts or races, when you really need
to pump your arms. To isolate the
chest, spread your hands 6 to 12 inches past shoulder width. To emphasize the
triceps, bring your hands close together.

*Chicken Soup for the Runner's Soul: Hot liquids such as chicken soup increase
the flow of nasal secretions, which
reduces the penetration of cold viruses. And many broth-based soups, such as
chicken and vegetable, are low in calories
and high in carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals.

*If you suffer from chafing during a long run or race, you need to reduce
friction. So, before you head out apply a
lubricating product to all chafe-prone areas and avoid cotton clothing since it
increases friction by staying wet
longer."
-David Willey, RW editor-in-chief



10. Triathlon Training - The Heart of the Matter II
Source: Mike Ricci
Going from Base Training to Intensity Training
By now you've built your base and you want to move into some interval training.
These workouts are hard but not so hard
that you can't walk the next day. Only hard enough that you work close to your
LT (lactate threshold) zone. Most studies
have shown that working at or below your LT will raise LT and you will recover
quicker then training above LT. Since we
are triathletes, we do have three sports to train for and a quick recovery is a
good thing. Following is sample workout
for LT training for running and biking.
For running, the time should be anywhere from three to five minutes with short
periods of rest. It is not recommend that
you do more then 20-30 minutes of LT training in a single session. An example
workout would be 3 minutes at LT with
ninety seconds of rest. The rest interval should be fifty percent of the
interval to start out, and working your way
down to twenty five percent. In our example say we run for three minutes at LT,
we should then rest about ninety
seconds. As we get fit we will see our heart rate come down to a comfortable
level quicker, and therefore we will lower
our resting interval to forty-five seconds (25%). The session should start out
by doing three to five of these, and then
add two additional reps each week. I would do up to 10 of repeats at most. So in
reality, if you follow this program it
would take you from four to five weeks. After that, it's on to speed and that
will be a topic for next issue.
More...from TriFuel.com at:
http://www.trifuel.com/triathlon/triathlon_training/000462.php


11. Judgment Days
RUNNING COMMENTARY 514
One lesson I've learned from teaching running classes is that you can't trust
your first impression of a new runner. One
who starts the slowest could become the longest-lasting. One who doesn't look
like you think a runner "should" could go
the fastest.
Natalie Provost was new to the University of Oregon last fall. She wrote her age
as 18 on the info sheet but could have
passed as a high school freshman.
She looked frail even by the slim standards of distance runners. Her running
form was... let's just say it was far from
fluid. Runners in my class who didn't know her by name identified her by that
form.
Natalie fooled me. She had talents that became visible only when compared with
the other runners who looked older and
stronger, but weren't faster. She had invisible traits of mind that would
separate her from her classmates.
I never tried to change Natalie's form. If she had asked, I might have made
suggestions. But if the quirks didn't
trouble her, they shouldn't bother me.
More...from Joe Henderson at:
http://www.joehenderson.com/archive/429.html


12. Iliotibial Band Syndrome by Marlene Cimons:
Iliotibial band syndrome is relatively common, and it hurts. Help has arrived.
Laura Kennelly had been running for several years before the pain hit. Two days
after finishing her first marathon, she
went off with her regular running group for an easy 5-miler. But after 2 miles,
the outside of her leg began to hurt --
big-time. "My leg just blew out. I stopped running and could barely walk," she
recalls. "I hobbled home in pain."
Kennelly, a writer from Berea, Ohio, was suffering from iliotibial band
syndrome, one of the most common overuse
injuries among runners. Because the most notable symptom typically is swelling
and pain on the outside of the knee, many
runners mistakenly think they have a knee injury.
But it's not the knee, it's the ligament that runs down the outside of the thigh
from the hip to the shin. "When the
band comes near the knee, it becomes narrow, and rubbing can occur between the
band and the bone. This causes
inflammation," says Freddie H. Fu, M.D., a Pittsburgh orthopedic surgeon and
chairman of the board of the Pittsburgh
Marathon.
More...from Runner's World at:
http://www.runnersworld.com/home/0,1300,1-78-79-2861,FF.html?site=RunnersWorld


13. Viagra Finds Another Use, for Lung Disease:
Viagra can do more than help with erections. The drug is basically a
blood-vessel dilator, and this has proven
beneficial to people with pulmonary hypertension -- a condition in which
pressure buildup in the lungs' circulation can
ultimately cause the heart to fail.
Viagra significantly improved exercise capacity, the pumping strength of the
heart, and quality of life for patients
with pulmonary hypertension, according to the results of the first strictly
scientific study to examine the drug's
effect on the condition.
Previous reports of Viagra's benefits for such patients came from clinical
observations and small uncontrolled studies.
Viagra is a "very effective medication" for people with pulmonary hypertension,
Dr. B. K. S. Sastry who led the study
told Reuters Health. "It relieves their symptoms ... and, compared to previously
available medications, it is a simple
medication without many side effects."
Dr. Sastry and colleagues from the CARE Hospital in Hyderabad, India, randomly
assigned 22 patients with pulmonary
hypertension to either Viagra at various doses three times daily depending on
body weight, or to treatment with an
inactive placebo. After six weeks, patients crossed over to the other treatment
for the next six weeks.
More...from Yahoo at:
http://health.yahoo.com/search/healthnews?lb=s&p=id%3A56270


14. Getting faster with age:
General manager of Dever Distributing Co. finds passion for running in 40s.
Tom Dever started running one day and just kept running and running and running.
Dever has run in Houston, Texas, Columbus, Ohio, Chicago and Memphis, Tenn. No,
he's not running across country Forrest
Gump style, but he might as well be with the miles he's logging.
He hopes to be able to see many more cities, as does his family. Dever's wife
Laura travels with Tom, usually walking in
the 5K event. She also doesn't mind the travel because of the opportunity to do
some shopping, he said.
At age 44, the Terre Haute resident started running just to get in shape in
2002. The slim 47-year-old ended up running
in the Indy mini-marathon (13.1 miles) in May 2002 and now staying in shape is
only a nice perk. The driving force that
keeps Dever rising at 5 a.m. for a 6-mile jaunt and accumulating 90 miles by the
end of a week ... the thrill of the
race.
More...from the Tribune Star at:
http://www.tribstar.com/articles/2004/04/12/sports/features/sfeature01.txt


15. Marathon Foto/Road Race Management Race Director of the Year:
Road Race Management Newsletter, MarathonFoto and Running Times will again honor
the outstanding race director of the
year. The 2004 award winner will be announced at the Road Race Management Race
Directors' Meeting in October. Our goals
are to recognize excellence (not perfection) and to make race directors a more
appreciated, albeit weary, species before
they become an extinct species.
Eligible: Any Race Director, Coordinator or Chief Executive or Chief Operating
Officer of a race. You may nominate
yourself. Previous winners are not eligible.
Criteria for Selection: Nominations must be received by September 2, 2004.
Nominees will be judged on several factors,
including overall ability, reputation of race, sponsor relations, creativity,
and organizational ability. Please be as
specific as possible in filling out the form. If you wish to, you may submit
additional attachments (limit is 3). YOU
MUST PROVIDE 11 COPIES OF THE ATTACHMENTS for Committee review.
Fee: A $14.00 processing fee is required for each nomination.
More...from Running Times at:
http://www.rrm.com/meeting/04meetrdy.htm


16. Can tai chi heal? Researchers try to find out:
MIAMI BEACH On a languid March evening, Jeff Morris, a lean, muscular man with a
calm smile and shaved head, led a class
of three men and two women with slow, fluid, continuous movements through the
formalized postures of tai chi, the
centuries-old Chinese Taoist martial art.
For 75 minutes, the participants focused their attention on controlling the
positions of their arms, legs, torsos and
spines, guiding them in concert repeatedly through their poses with varying
degrees of gracefulness.
Told in 1986 that he had AIDS and just a year to live, Morris turned to tai chi,
its companion discipline qigong, and
later a cocktail of antiviral drugs. Now, HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, is
virtually undetectable in his blood, and
he teaches tai chi at various locations in Miami-Dade County. Morris is not
alone in attributing healing value to what
is often called meditation in motion. But as with acupuncture and other
non-Western healing arts, determining how well
this ancient discipline works challenges researchers.
More...from IHT at:
http://www.iht.com/articles/514674.html


17. Explaining Blood Pressure Spikes During Exercise:
Researchers at Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions say they may have identified
what causes "exercise hypertension," an
abnormally high spike in blood pressure that can occur in normally healthy
people when they exercise.
Exercise hypertension is a known risk factor for permanent and serious high
blood pressure at rest. But the cause of
exercise hypertension has been unclear.
This new study suggests it may be caused by the failure of endothelial cells
that line the blood vessels to let the
arteries expand to accommodate the increased blood flow that occurs when a
person exercises.
"Our study shows that this impaired ability of the endothelial cells, which
control large blood vessel relaxation, is a
potential cause of exercise hypertension," study author Kerry J. Stewart,
director of clinical exercise physiology, said
in a prepared statement.
"Because as many as 90 percent of adults are at risk for developing high blood
pressure, knowing this may point to a
cellular target for preventive therapies," Stewart said.
The study appears in the April issue of the American Journal of Hypertension.
More...from Yahoo at:
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=97&e=4&u=/hsn/20040415/hl_hsn/ex\
plainingbloodpressurespikesduringexercis
e
[Long URL]


18. Controlling Emotion and Thought:
From Lore of Running-4th Edition by Timothy Noakes
Controlling Emotion
It is well documented in psychology texts that there are seven basic emotions:
joy, sadness, anger, love, fear, shame,
and surprise. Other emotions are regarded as combinations of these basic seven.
The emotions you feel in any situation
and how you respond to them will depend on four factors: your basic personality,
how much control you have over your
emotions, your emotional reactivity, and your flexibility. Control of these
emotions is achieved by controlling the
thoughts that cause them.
Renowned sport psychologist Thomas Tutko, formerly a professor of psychology at
San Jose State University, has developed
a technique to identify a person’s emotional profile and to indicate how that
person will react according to seven
separate psychological traits—desire, assertiveness, sensitivity, tension
control, confidence, personal accountability,
and self-discipline (Tutko and Tosi 1976).
Desire is the measure of your intent to be the best or to do your best. Those
with low desire express an “I don’t care”
attitude; those with high levels of desire are perfectionists. Both extremes are
problematic, but it is the
perfectionist who is more likely to persist in sport. Because perfectionists set
goals that are unattainable, they live
with a constant anxiety. Since they never achieve their goals, they are never
content with their performances. To
overcome this, perfectionists need to reassess their (unrealistic) goals and to
realize that they are the cause of their
anxiety. In turn, they need to focus on short-term goals, not the final results.
More...from the Human Kinetics at:
http://www.humankinetics.com/products/showexcerpt.cfm?excerpt_id=3357&associate=\
880
Buy the book at:
http://www.humankinetics.com/products/showproduct.cfm?associate=880&isbn=0873229\
592



19. The weights debate
Which is better, machines or free weights? Progressive fitness trainers and
coaches see advantages to working both into
your regimen.
In the beginning were free weights. Then, in the 1970s, Arthur Jones invented
the Nautilus weight machine. For years
afterward, the question of which is better — free weights or machine weights —
was hotly debated among strength coaches
and bodybuilders. Today, most exercise experts agree that both free weights and
machines have their place.
The stubborn few who still hold that one system is better than the other may be
missing out on the best possible
workout.
"Anyone who tells you that working out only with free weights or only with
machines is better is lying," says Mark
Wateska, director of athletic performance for Indiana University and former head
strength and conditioning coach for
Stanford University. "Today, most progressive coaches see a place for both."
Free weights usually take the form of barbells or dumbbells and can be moved
freely through space. Machines guide
weights on a preordained track. To the muscle, which can't see where the
resistance is coming from, both types of
equipment feel like work. When used correctly, both can produce a great result,
says Wateska, who oversees strength and
training regimens for 24 sports.
More...from the LA Times at:
http://www.latimes.com/features/health/fitness/la-he-weights12apr12,1,4342927.st\
ory?coll=la-health-fitness-news


20. More Than 8 Hours Sleep Too Much of a Good Thing:
Although the dangers of too little sleep are widely known, new research suggests
that people who sleep too much may also
suffer the consequences.
Specifically, investigators at the University of California in San Diego found
that people who clock up 9 or 10 hours
each weeknight appear to have more trouble falling and staying asleep, as well
as a host of other sleep problems, than
people who sleep 8 hours a night.
People who slept only 7 hours each night also said they had more trouble falling
asleep and feeling refreshed after a
night's sleep than 8-hour sleepers.
These findings, reported in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine, demonstrate that
people who want to get a good night's
rest may not need to set aside more than 8 hours a night, study author Dr.
Daniel Kripke told Reuters Health.
More...from Reuters at:
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=healthNews&storyID=4841922&section\
=news


21. Are runners' knees worse off than non-runners'?
It's a common question thrust at runners: "Don't your knees hurt?" Well, yeah,
if I had a hard workout yesterday, but
after an easy day or two, I'm ready to fly.
And despite running half a century with my main event the high-impact
3,000-meter steeplechase, my knees are probably in
better shape than yours.
But the questioner doesn't want that answer. He wants to hear how badly runners
suffer each time we run. That gives him
an excuse not to exercise in any form.
"People often tell me my knees are going to be bad because of my running," sighs
Lori Hauswirth of Merrill, Wisc. "I
hear it most often from my mother."
Do runners suffer from knee problems as much as non-runners think? Curious, I
used the InterActive Training Forum I
manage online to question more than 300 runners about their knee problems.
Among those responding, more than half suggested they suffered knee pain
"infrequently." Another quarter of respondents
reported knee pain "occasionally," while an equal number reported no knee pain.
More...from Active.com at:
http://www.active.com/story.cfm?story_id=10561&sidebar=13&category=running


22. Exercise for elders: It's never too late:
Older Americans need more motivation to exercise regularly, say a series of
studies published in the American Journal of
Preventive Medicine.
Already, 98 percent of Americans over 50 say that "getting exercise is important
to staying healthy," according to an
AARP survey. But just knowing what's good for them isn't enough.
"Messages must move beyond conveying basic health benefits to focus on
encouraging and inspiring audience members to get
moving, while being careful not to alienate or turn them off," say Marcia Ory,
Ph.D., M.P.H., of the Texas A&M
University System School of Rural Public Health and colleagues.
Ignoring clichés about older people and exercise might help, the researchers
note. Being old does not mean life is over,
Ory says, adding that elderly people receive as much benefit from exercising or
any healthy behavior as younger people
do. Stereotypes of old age as a time of poor health is a simplistic
generalization, she adds, not an accurate
description of the status of individuals.
More...from ScienceBlog at:
http://www.scienceblog.com/community/older/2003/D/20031591.html


23. Three ways to match your training to your stage of life:
As our bodies change and age, our exercise outlook must change too.
Jessica Seaton, D.C., an orthopedic chiropractor and chair of the United States
Masters Swimming (USMS) sports medicine
committee, suggests that athletes hone their workouts for what they can do now
-- not what they once did.
"Athletes show certain patterns as they age," Seaton said. "In their early 20s,
athletes can train irregularly, train
hard, injure themselves and bounce back pretty quickly. By their late 30s,
irregular training, training too hard or
training too little make a bigger difference than it did 10 years earlier. By
the time athletes reach 40, they're not
spring chickens anymore.
"Irregular training has more dire consequences, often leading more quickly to
injury, and often of a more serious
nature. As the years go on, all of this gets more pronounced."
More...from Active.com at:
http://www.active.com/story.cfm?story_id=10555&sidebar=575&category=keep_fit


24. The Marathon Long Run:
How I Prescribe Long Runs for Maximum Success by Greg McMillan, M.S.
Ahh, the marathon long run. What a worrisome thing for most runners. And for
good reason, the long run is such a crucial
part of marathon training. I don't think there's any other race distance where
one single workout plays such a large
part in the success or failure of the race. As a result, you're often left with
many questions: How far should I run? Do
I run for time or distance? What about pace? Should I eat and drink? The list
goes on and on.
In this article, I'll answer these questions for you as I describe my thoughts
on the marathon long run and how I
utilize long runs for the marathoners I coach. As I like to do, I'm not only
going to give you the "how-to" but I'm
going to provide you with the rationale for why I think this plan works. This
way, you can take the information and
incorporate it into your specific training plan.
Two Types of Marathon Long Runs You Should Use
With long runs during a marathon program, you are trying to accomplish two
distinct purposes. On the one hand, you are
trying to maximize your ability to burn fat and spare your limited muscle
carbohydrate (glycogen) stores as well as
improving your leg strength and resistance to fatigue (both physical fatigue and
mental fatigue). On the other hand, you
are trying to become more economical at your marathon race pace (learning to
burn less fuel for a given pace) along with
testing out your race equipment and nutritional plan. You also want to give the
mind a taste of the focus and
determination that will be required in the latter stages of the marathon itself.
More...from McMillan Running at:
http://www.mcmillanrunning.com/Running%20University/Article%204/marathonlongrun.\
htm


25. News Scan:
Dr. Gabe Mirkin's E-Zine
How to Train for a Marathon
Many runners have the mistaken impression that they have to run a lot of miles
every week to be able to run fast in a
marathon. Most will find that running too many miles slows them down. To run
fast in races, you have to run very fast in
practice. However, on the day after you run very fast, your muscles will feel
sore and if you run fast when your muscles
feel sore, you will injure yourself and not be able to run at all. Take easy
workouts until your muscles feel fresh
again. Most competitive runners set up their programs so that they run fast on
Tuesdays and Thursdays and longer on
Sundays. The rest of the time they run slowly or not at all.
Before you increase the intensity of your running program or any other exercise,
check with your doctor. Once you are
in good shape, your goal on your fast days should be to run repeat intervals
with short rests between each. For example,
on Tuesdays try to run four half-mile repeats at a very fast pace with a quarter
mile jog between each. If you can run a
mile flat out in six minutes, you probably will try to run each half mile
repeat in about three minutes and 15 seconds. On Thursdays, try to run eight to
12 repeat quarter miles at close to the
same pace of about 90 seconds each. On Sunday, try to run briskly for 90
minutes. The rest of the time, jog slowly,
being careful not to run so much that it interferes with your two fast days and
one long day each week.
Copyright 2004 The Sportsmedicine Institute, Inc. www.DrMirkin.com




This Weeks Events:
*Please verify event dates with the event websites*

Coming Up:

April 16 - 18, 2004:
Mt SAC relays - Walnut, CA
http://vm.mtsac.edu/relays/


April 17, 2004:
Charlottesville Marathon - Charlottesville, VA
http://www.charlottesvillemarathon.com/

Earth Day Half Marathon - St. Cloud, MN
http://www.earthdayhalfmarathon.org/

Moabmarathon - Moab, UT
http://www.trailrun.com/moab/

Texas Round-Up 10K - Austin, TX
http://www.texasroundup.org/ClubPortal/clubstatic.cfm?clubID=107&pubmenuoptID=40\
0

Tyler Azalea 10K - Tyler, TX
http://www.tylerazalea10k.com/

Xterra Saipan - Micro Beach, Saipan
http://www.xterraplanet.com/race/saipan.html

April 18, 2004:
Canberra Marathon - Australia
http://www.canberramarathon.com.au/

Grande Coure de Montreal 1/2 Marathon - PQ
http://www.canadarunningseries.com/monthalf/index.htm

Hartwell Challenge Half-Marathon - Aurora, ON
http://www.hartwellchallenge.org/

Honolulu Triathlon - Hawaii
http://www.honolulutriathlon.com/

London Marathon - UK
http://www.london-marathon.co.uk/

Run for Reach - Ottawa, ON
http://www.reach.ca/run/index_g.html

Vancouver Sun Run - BC
http://www.canada.com/vancouver/specials/sunrun/index.html

April 19, 2004:
Boston Marathon - MA
http://www.bostonmarathon.org/
Boston. COM
http://www.boston.com/marathon/
BostonChannel.com
http://www.thebostonchannel.com/bostonmarathon/index.html
Boston Herald
http://sports.bostonherald.com/marathon/
Runner's World
http://www.runnersworld.com/events/boston04/
TV Coverage - ESPN2 and WCVB 5 11:00 AM

For more complete race listings check out our Upcoming Races Check the Runner's
Web on Sunday and Monday for race
reports on these events at:
http://www.runnersweb.com/running.html

This Weeks Personal Postings/Releases:

We have NO personal postings this week.

Television and Online Coverage:
[Check local listings as event times are subject to change]

Check out our new Runner's Web Television Links page at:
http://www.runnersweb.com/running/rw_television.html

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Have a good week of training and/or racing.

Ken Parker
Runner's Web
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http://www.runnersweb.com/running.html