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Them Feet

May 20, 2013 by Leave a Comment
My babies.

My babies.

Let’s face it, runners rely on their feet for a lot. I remember once having nice, pedicured, lovely feet. Ah, those were the days.

It’s been years since I’ve rocked a french pedicure, or one that laster very long. These days I wear shoes for comfort and support, not for cuteness. The amount of sexy heels I have that spend most of their time in my closet instead of on my feet is probably a sin to most girls. But runners know: your feet are necessary to do what we do. We try to be “kind” to them, but at the end of the day we beat the crap out of them.

There are a few things we can do to protect and pamper those pavement-pounding puppies. First, let’s prioritize our shoes. Buying shoes because they are cute or on sale is a bad idea. Your poor feet don’t care what color or price the shoes you lace up is, but they do care about aches and pains. Buy shoes that are correct for your feet. Just because one brand works for your friend doesn’t mean they’ll work for you. Your feet are unique to you.

Keep track of your mileage, so you have a rough idea of when you should be replacing shoes. Most good shoes (not racing flats, btw), last 400-500 miles. Personally, I’m a fan of having 2-4 pairs of running shoes in rotation at all times, so that my body never “settles” and forms habits based on one shoe style.

When traveling and remaining stationary, compression socks may help your feet and ankles. My ankles and feet swell on long car rides and flights, thanks to very low blood pressure.

Ladies, avoid those cute shoes that have zero arch support. If you have plantar issues, it may be due to the shoes you are wearing when not running. High heels don’t do your feet or calf muscles any favors either.

Soaking your tootsies in warm water and/or Epsom salts can also help.

Keep your toe nails short. If they get too long, they can actually cut into your toes on long runs.

And, for God’s sake, do NOT run in cotton socks. Blisters are painful, and can cause infection. If you run under 30 minutes at a time, you might get away with cotton socks. Try cotton socks on a 15 miler in summer, and you will be in trouble. Am I clear on my view of cotton socks? Good.

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Mental Meltdown

April 13, 2013 by Leave a Comment

img_7084-editYou don’t have to be training for a marathon to have one of those days: you have some sort of fitness goal, perhaps even start it – and then everything falls apart. For me, it’s often a run (cause that’s what I do every day). There is something extremely defeating about this mental meltdown, and you can quickly go from feeling okay with calling the workout quits to questioning your entire training plan, goals, and potential. Are there ways to avoid this moment, or at least to cope with it?

Sometimes, we need to push through the rest of the junk from the day and give ourselves that time to sweat out stress. Getting out to run or to lift weights can completely fix a rotten day. Other times, it’s just best to let the run go and to treat yourself to a day off – as long as you don’t beat yourself up over taking said time off!

Have you also been partly through a workout, and to suddenly feel like everything is going to shit? The worst feeling ever. It can be hydration, fatigue, mental focus, a wonky muscle. Whatever the reason, it seriously sucks. Learning to cope with these terrible moments helps prepare you for marathon day. If you aren’t training for a marathon, the benefit to pushing through is simply to give you the satisfaction that you can push through when the going gets tough. Is it worth it? Sometimes.

If you have a day where you cannot push through, learn from it. What were the contributing factors? When I tackle my own marathon training, I hope that all of my long runs go great. That isn’t to say that they always feel awesome or that I am laughing and smiling at mile 22, but that I succeed in my pace goal, not feeling injured, and feeling accomplished. However, experience has taught me to expect a few long training runs to go poorly. Why? Cause I am human. Yes, I have cut 20-milers short in the past. Yes, I have dropped my speed down so much that I question how in the world I can possibly hold my goal pace come race day. And you know what? I have also PRed in seasons where I have had those bonked long runs. I’m sure you have too.

So, if you just are not feeling it out there remember this: you are human, not a machine. There are things you can and should push through. There are other times where calling it quits is the right call. Learn how to determine the difference. Come race day, you will be prepared. Even if your training isn’t perfect. Sometimes a terrible dress rehearsal makes for a fantastic performance.

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Bouncing Back

April 11, 2013 by Leave a Comment

Liz Corkum 322Most runners and athletes will experience injury. Statistically, over 50% of runners deal with injuries every year. Injuries are hard to deal with, perhaps harder mentally than physically. Most runners don’t want to take time off, and will find pretty much any excuse to continue training. Coming back from time off is tough, but often time off is the answer.

Personally, I can relate to struggles with injuries. Taking time off mentally is hard. I find myself in fear of how much fitness I’ll lose, how hard it will be to come back, and often questioning whether I can be as strong as I was before the injury.

Once getting the green light to train again, the journey back is slow. What used to feel incredibly easy is suddenly extremely difficult. Have faith, it will get better. The key is to be patient with the process, and to remember that your body and mind need time to adapt after time off.

If you are like me, you will find the process of coming back extremely frustrating. However, when I feel angry, I remind myself that without the hard work, I can’t magically get back to peak performance. So, if you are also struggling to get back into peak performance, remind yourself to be patient, work hard, but also rebuild your training wisely.

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Lying Machine

March 28, 2013 by Leave a Comment

_MG_9072_finalIf you have been watching your calories, sweating hard at the gym, and left scratching your head because of little improvements, here’s something to consider: the machines at the gyms are lying.

Cardio equipment make us feel good as we see how many calories we have burned as we sweat away and watch tv at the gym. Here’s the problem: cardio equipment doesn’t give you an accurate count of calories burned. If you are taking the number on the machine as your factual calories burned, I have bad news.

When hopping on cardio equipment, you can enter your age and weight on the machine. Here’s the problem: there are a lot of factors that machine ISN’T asking you. Your sex, hight, body fat, fitness level – those are factors that the machine doesn’t consider. Even the heart rate monitor can be wrong.

Don’t lose faith. You can find tools to more accurately calculate your cardio burn. Remember, knowledge is power. If you don’t know your numbers, you may be consuming more calories than desired. Still confused? Contact your coach or personal trainer.

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Reaching

March 19, 2013 by Leave a Comment

img_6627-editsmallEvery person I know is reaching to be better. A better human being, better at their job, better at their hobbies, better at their sport. This desire to work to the next level and reach to a new achievement is something that drives us.

As someone reaching towards a fitness goal, the goals often change and grow as soon as the previous goal was achieved. Searching for excellence in ourselves makes us want to work harder, and test our personal best.

Whether your goal is to run a 2:30 marathon or to climb a flight of stairs without gasping for air, you need to be realistic about your goals (within reason), so that you don’t injure yourself. However, in order to achieve our best, we often need to push outside of our comfort zone.

Everyone’s goals will be different, and everyone has different naturally abilities and potential. Try to focus on you, and your potential, instead of comparing yourself to the girl at the office, the man at the starting line, or Olympians. You are competing and comparing yourself against yourself from the past. Don’t let anyone else intimidate you or talk you out of your potential and your dreams.

I encourage you to set big goals for yourself, and to find safe, exciting ways to potentially achieve those goals. Life is short, so why not start on that bucket list event or goal now? You are stronger than you think you are. Let’s get you there.

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