December 2018 Monthly Running Challenge

eleanorhawkins wrote: »

dreamer12151 wrote: »

So I had a session with my trainer yesterday. She said she was "blown away" (her words) by how well I've been doing on my training and in the 2 years we have been working together, this is the most "in control" of myself she has seen me! I'm humbled.

Since my 15K is this weekend, I wanted to have another goal, something else go aim for so I don't just "whatever" it. I have done Gasparilla Distance Classic every year I have been running save 1 (recovery from surgery). So I'm DEFINITELY doing it in 2019. Was thinking of another 15k....but we decided that I'm going to do a half marathon! I'm nervous, but, like she said, I'm already doing 9 miles, I'll have 10 weeks to add another 4 onto it! She's excited, my BF is encouraging me, a couple friends at work are encouraging ("I've walked 2 halfs in 4 hours. I've seen you at races, you definitely got it! Go for it!") I have Hal Hidgon's HM novice plan in my calendar, as I've been using his 15K plan & it's been working well. When I started running, I NEVER thought I'd EVER say I'm going to do a HM, but here I am!

Awesome stuff, go for it! For the record Hal's HM novice 1 just got me through my first and if I can do it, you definitely can!!!

@MegaMooseEsq if you're bored, churros/wheelchair team and racket man are next to each other about half way down page 3 here: http://zurichmaratonmalaga.es/fotos/

• TriFitness is in the business of racing. They have a strong incentive to create a great race.
• This race has been going on since at least 2011 (oldest reference I could find)
• TriFitness put on 19 different race events in the last year, based on their FB page
• The 10K is only one lap, vs two laps for the other race
• It's 20 minutes closer to a random spot I picked on Calhoun, which I think is in your neighborhood, than the race in Elk River

7lenny7 wrote: »

@MegaMooseEsq I don't have any personal knowledge of either race or the groups holding them, but if I were to pick, I'd pick the Half Fast by TriFitness because:

• TriFitness is in the business of racing. They have a strong incentive to create a great race.
• This race has been going on since at least 2011 (oldest reference I could find)
• TriFitness put on 19 different race events in the last year, based on their FB page
• The 10K is only one lap, vs two laps for the other race
• It's 20 minutes closer to a random spot I picked on Calhoun, which I think is in your neighborhood, than the race in Elk River

There are two 5K races I run every year which could be comparable to the Elk River run. One is put on by our town, and one by our church. While I love the small crowds, the small town feel, and the community nature, they are not races I'd go out of my way for. I run these because they are just a couple miles from home, and put on by my town and my church.

The TriFitness race will likely be more competitive. The Elk River race will likely be more laid back and have more walkers, though with the 5K, most walkers will probably pick that one and with such a small field of runners, it's probably not an issue.

rheddmobile wrote: »

Juha-Pekka Kulmala at the University of Helsinki in Finland and his colleagues studied the biomechanics of 12 healthy men aged 22 to 32 as they ran in two shoe types – a regular sneaker with 33 millimetres of cushioning under the heel and 22 millimetres under the forefoot, and a highly-cushioned “maximalist” sneaker with a 43-millimetre heel and 37-millimetre forefoot height.

The participants ran at two different speeds – 10 and 15 kilometres per hour – along a 30-metre platform that measured how hard their feet hit the ground. They also wore reflective stickers that allowed video cameras to capture their motion.

At both speeds, the runners landed on their feet harder when they wore the maximalist sneakers than the regular kind. The peak impact force was 6 per cent higher on average at the slower running speed and 11 per cent higher at the faster speed.

Leg stiffness
The video analysis suggested this was because the runners bent their knees and ankles less when they wore the maximalist shoes, which caused their bodies to decelerate faster as they landed and placed extra stress on their legs.

Normally when we run, our legs act like springs that compress as the feet land and then release as they take off, says Kulmala. But because highly-cushioned shoes already compress under the feet, the legs don’t need to compress as much themselves, meaning they bend less at the knees and ankles, he says.

This extra leg stiffness and higher ground impact means that running in maximalist sneakers is likely to increase the risk of injuries, particularly stress fractures, says Kulmala. It also means that the common advice given to injury-prone runners to buy shoes with more padding may actually backfire, he says.