Hips Don't Lie

When it comes to running, the hips don't lie

Is running turning into a pain in the knees? It might actually be the hips that need your attention, according to a sports medicine expert at Baylor College of Medicine (www.bcm.edu).

"The knees are usually the victims of the biomechanics that people run with," said Dr. Joseph Chorley (www.bcm.edu/pediatrics/sportsmedicine/index. cfm?pmid=17579), associate professor of pediatrics-adolescent and sports medicine at BCM and Texas Children's Hospital (www.texaschildrens.com).

The Hammy has Healed

Long-awaited news. After somewhere around three months, 15 days, 21 hours and 17 minutes, I hereby proclaim my torn hamstring has healed.

It's not that I expect readers to give two figs about my health and fitness, but there's wisdom here for anyone who has ever soldiered through an extended recovery or might one day stumble onto this road.

Is the Best Shoe No Shoe at All?

UNTIL he met a reclusive tribe of near-mythical athletes at the bottom of a Mexican canyon, the late Micah True, aka Caballo Blanco, could never figure out why his running injuries got worse as his running shoes got better. Then, the Tarahumara Indians taught him a lesson that even Nike is now starting to embrace: the best shoe may be no shoe at all.

True wasn't the only one baffled by the injury mystery. For years kinesiology professors, physical therapists and athletic-shoe designers have been puzzling over the same paradox: if running shoe protection and cushioning have improved, why haven't injuries among joggers decreased?

Reflections on Running

This past weekend I ran a wonderful long run of about 15-16 miles, and by the end of it I was scared.

Not because of my usual inner demons, but because I finished the last 2 miles with pain in my right foot. I've read and heard enough stories about running injuries to worry not about the pain, but about not being able to run.

Home Remedies for Leg and Foot Injuries

A couple months back, I ramped up the mileage, increased my speed, and changed shoes.

Ooops.

That all was a bit more than my body could handle, at least my lower extremities.

I woke up one Monday morning and both my hips hurt, my IT bands were killing me, and the left side of my left foot was experiencing mild pain.  Two weeks later, I've tried just about every remedy I can find, and I must say, some of them actually work.

The Truth about Cross-Training

So what’s the truth about cross-training? Let’s bust the myths first. Let’s be honest: nothing can replace running for a runner; and running workouts are the best way to improve your running.

If you’re a running fanatic (as opposed to a triathlete or a recreational runner), you cross-train because you have to. You cross-train to avoid letting injuries get serious enough to ruin your racing season or even end your running career permanently. You cross-train to stay fit and to maintain your sanity when your body is used to exerting itself hard every day and suddenly that stress- and energy-release is cruelly snatched away.

Walking Anyone?

Five reasons to add walking to your running routine

Runners tend, for the most part, to share this view on walking: It is fine when conducted at church, the grocery store or after surgical procedures. Otherwise - nah.

Well, Runner's World editor Amby Burfoot has run about 100,000 miles in the last 35 years. He now uses walking as part of his training (heretofore referred to as R/W, as in run/walk). Here's why you should, too.

These are from the runners world.com newsletter:

Foam Rollers Can be a Godsend

Using a foam roller is a great way to get your muscles prepped for your new sporting season. Foam rollers are denser then pool noodles, six inches in diameter, one to three-feet long. Professional leagues such as the NHL incorporate foam rollers into workouts every day.

Running Shoes & Injury

There are several on-going, multi-year studies at Harvard, MIT and the University of Newcastle (AUS) that are looking at injury related to footwear. Harvard department of Anthropology is publishing a study that dissects unshod human running gait and injury (or lack thereof.)    If the only injury from running shoes is Achilles tendinitis, is the implication that the other “running related injuries” such as neuromas, plantar fascitis, blisters, bunions and joint problems would be present in if people didn’t run?

How Shoe Geometry Affects Running Gait

'Five Fingers' Shoes Sued Over Claims for Injury Risk

NEW ORLEANS, April 2 -- They have been spotted on some of the world's most famous feet such as those of Prince Harry, Kate Hudson and Shailene Woodley, according to the Daily Mail.

But Vibram USA Inc's Five Fingers running shoes, which are designed to simulate the sensation of running barefoot, have now received negative attention due to a class-action lawsuit against the company.Valerie Bezdek from Florida is suing the company for making misleading statements about the Five Fingers product.She claims that the shoes pose more risk to the wearer than regular running shoes, and even bare feet.Ms Bezdek, who purchased a pair of the Five Fingers footwear for $104.90 in April of last year, has made claims for damages and attorney's fees and costs on the behalf of 'thousands...the precise number is unknown.' daily times monitor Published by HT Syndication with permission from Daily Times.

Get Hip about Knee Care

A University of Calgary researcher says stronger hips mean less knee pain for runners.

Reed Ferber's team has published a study in the March/April edition of the Journal of Athletic Training that looks at whether runners with knee pain benefit from an intensive hip-strengthening program.

Evolution Running