Born to Run

I'm back from Hawaii! It was a wonderful vacation, full of sun, sand, and surf. Actually, I didn't go surfing, but spent plenty of time snorkeling. My foot feels much better and I am starting to test its limits by wearing heels for a bit during the day and walking for 30 minutes. I'm proud to say both were pain-free!

I must admit that the first two weeks of no running were pretty easy to swallow. The pain and extra-strength tylenols drove home the message that I was in no way, shape, or form, was I ready to run again. Now that the pain's gone, I want to run again. I head to the sports medicine clinic tomorrow for a follow-up. Hopefully I'll get some good news.

I spent a good deal of my vacation time reading. One of the books I'm currently polishing off is Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen by Christopher MacDougall.

The main argument in the book is that modern running inventions and gadgets may have improved running times, but that running shoes cause more injuries than they prevent. Running shoes disconnect our brains from our bodies and that by interrupting this vital communication, runners get injured because they are unaware of their body's limits. Now he's not saying that everyone should throw their shoes out the window and prance down the street in bare feet (though that'd be pretty hilarious). But he does say that trying to follow the Tarahumara (the Hidden Tribe reference in the title) way of running and living can pay off if you can do it. He also debunks the claim that humans weren't mean to run long distances.

It's been a very interesting and informative read. The book does a great job of giving the reader an overview of the history behind ultrarunning (50K+ races) and how the sport has evolved over the past 20 years. The author chronicles his own adventures and his evolution from injured runner to ultrarunner. His journey is convincing evidence that the Tarahumaran lessons can pay dividends if you apply them correctly to your running and way of life.

Favourite Running-Related Books

I mentioned in my last post that one of my favourite running books is Running for Mortals by John Bingham. It's a great introduction to running! He (and his co-author, Coach Jenny) write in a very approachable way. The programs they suggest are great for beginners (run/walk method) and they provide lots of motivation and advice. Much of what I learned from them formed the basis of my whole approach to running. It took me some time—and some injuries—to get there. But, I'd have to say that Bingham gives great, foundational advice for runners at all levels.

While I love his book, I find I'm at the point where I need a new running book. I'm looking for one with reliable training plans for 10Ks through to marathons, as well as training advice and ideas. I've taken quite a few out from the library, but haven't found any I like.

Suggestions?

Training safely

My one friend took up running earlier this year. I was pretty excited because I wanted to share my love of running with my girlfriends.

My friend's now running 10K+ each time she runs. She doesn't follow a plan nor does she follow any of the mileage increase rules for running. I have no idea how fast, how often or hard she's running, but I hope she's running really slow and not over-doing it. Beginners are a very enthusiastic bunch: it's that awesome time where the runner's high comes easily, your training pays huge dividends and the PRs come quick and easy.

What worried me the most was her latest comment: she said needed to run further than her boyfriend so she could beat his distance. His last run was 15K.

It's great to be competitive, but in running, you only compete against yourself. It's a normal new runner mistake. It took me a really long time to realize this and I felt so much better about my running when I came to terms with my competitive streak. That's not to say I don't feel a twinge of competitiveness when a really fast woman blows by me on the path, but I push it down and continue on my run.

It's pretty obvious that she hasn't read anything about running or how to do it safely. Maybe I'm the weird one, since I love to overdose on running books and magazines. I hope I'm just overreacting and that I don't know the full story, but I have to admit that I'm worried she's going to end up hurt.

Maybe I should send her a copy of my favourite running book, Running for Mortals, for Christmas.