Thirsty (for knowledge) Thursday: Endurance Links

Here are 4 interesting running, recovery, and triathlon-related links:

• A few dynamic warm-ups to try before you run. Trainer Laurie (at my gym and on my running team) swears by things like this.

• Someone who really didn't foam roll much tried it 2x each day to see how her body reacted. Not sound science by any means, but an interesting quick read (says this religious foam roller).

• An interview with top Ironman age-grouper Christine Hoff. It's interesting to see that a lot of her training is done in her house. (The parts of her training that were most interesting to me are in the last 1/3 of the article.) Lots of 2-a-days that aren't SUPER far - she's a "quality over quantity" kind of trainer.

• And just for curiosity's sake, here's the 10 most popular (and FAST) running segments on Strava in the US for 2017. Holy smokes... that's a lot of fast people. (But one has a woman who did 800 meters in 41 seconds... so that was probably on a bike. Or motorized vehicle. PROBABLY not on foot...)

For more "Thirsty Thursday" posts that highlight workouts, body science, and all kinds of interesting information, CLICK HERE. As always, back with some "Friday Funnies" tomorrow.

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Thirsty (for knowledge) Thursday: Self-Massage Tips for Runners

This is a topic that I'm always interested in. I'm never sure how much, how "deep," or what exactly I should be doing with my tight muscles. Luckily, I recently came across this article. Here's some of what I learned (as written by a running coach, massage therapist, and a [female] 17:47 5K runner). Here are 6 key areas to target:

Fascia
First and foremost, address the muscle fascia (the saran-wrap-like tissue around our muscles and organs). By rolling with a foam roller, we are able to break up muscular knots that have developed from repetitive tear and repair of muscular micro-tears. The muscle can stretch more easily once we roll it to help release the grip of the muscle fascia. A wrinkle in the muscle fascia can tug on neighboring areas and create pain elsewhere. Consider the calf (gastrocnemius and soleus). If the fascia around the calf is bound up due to tightness, the fascia is going to tug on the plantar fascia and create issues that may get your attention first (thus throwing you off the initial culprit: tight calves). Those wrinkles with their strength of 2,000 psi can pull bones out of alignment, trap nerves and reduce muscle function length. Thus, rolling out the fascia can result in greater runner efficiency.

I learned 2 things a few years ago: (1) pain/tightness in one spot doesn't always mean that the issue is at THAT spot, and (2) when something is out-of-whack in one area, the rest of my body suffers. That's a lot along the lines of what is being said in the 2nd half of that last paragraph. (And what's being said in the middle of this next paragraph.)

Glutes
As the saying goes, “Don’t get your panties in a wad.” The butt muscles are an intricate weave of key hip stabilizing muscles that, if allowed to get too tight, can make a mess of your hips. By sitting on a tennis or lacrosse ball (or using a foam roller or stick) and rolling over sensitive areas, you can help unlock areas that might be creating pain for you elsewhere. For example, if your piriformis muscle is tight, it can entrap the sciatic nerve. This entrapment can lead to pain and tingling (maybe numbness) down the hamstring or shooting pain in the pelvic floor. When rolling, be sure to work not only the soft tissue, but also along the edge of the sacrum and tailbone where muscles attach.

Calves
As stated earlier, tight calf muscles (gastroc and soleus) can lead to pain in the sole of the foot (plantar fasciitis). Using a stick or foam roller can be helpful in ironing out these muscles. In a relaxed position, try skin rolling the tissue to help loosen the fascial fabric in the area. Grab the skin loosely between your thumb and pointer and middle finger and roll.

I just tried that. I don't have a lot of skin to "roll" - it kinda hurt.

Shins
Tightness in the peroneal muscles (connecting the lower outside calf muscles to the outside of the foot) can result in pain in the sole of the foot. A tight tibialis anterior (the fleshy part to the outside of the shin bone) can be attributed to shin splint pain. Rolling these out with a stick or iced paper cups can help decrease inflammation. A tight tib-anterior can create knee pain so be sure to roll or use cross-fiber friction at its insertion point just medial to the outside of the knee.

Feet
Roll your foot fascia out with a golf ball, a frozen water bottle, or a sock with marbles knotted on the end. You can obviously also use your fingers to dig into the tissue, or if you want more pressure, consider using a small knob for a dresser or the back of a small kitchen melon scooper.

Many evenings, you'll find me rolling the bottom of my feet with a golf ball. It feels good!

Quads/IT-Band/Hamstrings
The upper leg area is probably the area we remember best to self-massage. Be sure when rolling out the IT band to roll to its attachments: top of hip bone to outside of knee. When rolling out the hamstring, be sure to roll and even pause at the top where it attaches to your sit bone (ischial tuberosity).

How Much Pressure?
We all know too much of a good thing can be bad for you. The same goes for self-massage. You may think that since you are in charge, you can withstand more pressure and for a longer period of time. It’s recommended, however, to self-massage an area for no more than 2 minutes at a time. Read the tissue: if it becomes red and warm, it’s time to stop. Be sure to stretch after massaging/rolling the area to reap the benefits of a loosened muscle. For example, after rolling out the IT band, stretch the quads. Familiarize yourself with your muscle weaknesses and be sure to do simple exercises to engage those muscles; while you may have ironed out the tight tissue, you shouldn’t neglect the (potentially opposing) muscles that need to be reminded to fire.

See some related tips in these 3 posts:
- The proper way to foam roll
- Alberto Salazar's "10 running rules"
- Strength training for endurance athletes

For more "Thirsty Thursday" posts that highlight workouts, body science, and all kinds of interesting information, CLICK HERE.

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A New Recovery Tool

With all my heel issues, I've been looking for advice. Fellow St. Paulie and pro triathlete Heather recently gave me some horrible sounding advice:

So I did it. I went to the hardware store and spent $4 on a 2' section of 3" pvc:

For my calves / achilles, it's pretty great! Sure, there's no "softness" at all to it, so it's pretty intense, but it's great for that deep massage. (Technically, it's "myofascial release," right?)

I'm officially RESTING now for a few weeks. More thoughts on that soon. In the meantime, I'll be hanging out with these 2 monsters:

Happy Fall!

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Semi-Wordless Wednesday: Meet My New Foam Roller

We got our old foam roller, Cynthia, years ago. Probably 2006 or 2007. Recently, if I used it just a little to roll my calves, it would "dent:"

So allow me to introduce you to Phyllis, my shorter but more intense foam roller:

Related:

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Thirsty (for knowledge) Thursday: Foam Rolling Advice

I recently came across this article that lists the 5 biggest mistakes people make when foam rolling. This was written by Chris Howard, who's a NSCA Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist, and a Licensed Massage Therapist. I'm not ready to take this as ABSOLUTE FACT, but he's got some interesting points. Here they are:

Mistake #1: You roll directly where you feel pain.

When we feel pain, our first inclination is to massage that spot directly. However, this might be a big mistake. “Areas of pain are the victims that result from tension imbalances in other areas of the body,” says Sue Hitzmann, MS, CST, NMT, manual therapist, creator, and author of The MELT Method.

Let’s take the IT band, for example. Foam rolling is a commonly prescribed remedy for iliotibial band syndrome (ITBS). While religiously rolling out your IT band might feel good, “the idea that you are going to relax or release the IT band is a misconception,” Hitzmann says. The phrase roll out your IT band itself makes it sound like you are rolling out a piece of dough, but your IT band is anything but pliable. It’s a remarkably strong piece of connective tissue, and research has shown that it cannot be released or manipulated by manual techniques such as foam rolling. “If you iron out areas of inflammation, you can increase inflammation. And if you are in pain, your body will be too stressed to repair itself,” says Hitzmann.

A lot of people in the comments of the article disagree with this point, and I KINDA do too. There are times I go in hard where it hurts (like on my calves), but there are other areas that refer pain other places (like my current hip/sacrum issues). I've always been told to roll my calves when they hurt. I don't really buy into this point.

Mistake #2: You roll too fast.

While it might feel great to roll back and forth on a foam roller quickly, you’re not actually eliminating any adhesions that way. “You need to give your brain enough time to tell your muscles to relax,” says Monica Vazquez, NASM certified personal trainer and USA Track and Field Running Coach.

YES. Coaches/Docs have always told me to go slow over tender areas. And that leads to the next point...

Mistake #3: You spend too much time on those knots.

We’re often told that if you feel a knot, spend time working that spot with the foam roller. However, some people will spend five to 10 minutes or more on the same area and attempt to place their entire body weight onto the foam roller. If you place sustained pressure on one body part, you might actually hit a nerve or damage the tissue, which can cause bruising, according to Vazquez.

My go-to ART Doc whom I'd trust with every part of my body (don't take that TOO far, people...) has always told me to do 10-12 slow reps on my IT band or my calves, and then call it quits for a couple of hours. Really work that area, but then take it easy and let it rest.

Mistake #4: You have bad posture.

Wait, what does your posture have to do with foam rolling? A lot. “You have to hold your body in certain positions over the roller,” says Howard, and that requires a lot of strength. “When rolling out the IT band, you are supporting your upper body weight with one arm.” When you roll out the quads, you are essentially holding a plank position. If you don’t pay attention to your form or posture, you may exacerbate pre-existing postural deviations and cause more harm.

This seems pretty random to me. Sure, I can see it as a point, but it's not the most important. Again, don't roll for too long (point #3), and you shouldn't be throwing something off by rolling with potentially imperfect posture.

Mistake #5: You use the foam roller on your lower back.

“The thing that makes me cringe is when people foam roll their lower back. You should never ever do that,” say Vazquez. Hitzmann agrees. “Your spine will freak out and all the spinal muscles will contract and protect the spine.”

The fix: According to Vazquez, you can use the foam roller on your upper back because the shoulder blades and muscles protect the spine. “Once you hit the end of the rib cage, stop.” If you want to release your lower back, try child’s pose or foam roll the muscles that connect to your lower back — the piriformis (a muscle located deep within the glutes), hip flexors and rectus femoris (one of the main muscles in your quads).

People in the comments section of the article seem to be unsure of this last one as well. Some people are like "oh yeah, don't do that," while others are like "hey, I roll my lower back and it's helped a lot!" What Howard and Vazquez say SEEMS to make sense, but I don't have a big opinion on this either way.

But what I can "second" from this article are these reminders:
- ROLL SLOW.
- DON'T ROLL OVER THE AREA FOR TOO LONG.

That article makes foam rolling come across as kinda scary and something you could screw up. Buy give it a try if you haven't. Follow the 2 "big" rules above, and try to rub out those legs!

CLICK HERE for all posts tagged with "Thirsty Thursday," which contain training tips, info on training gadgets, etc, etc.

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Vegas Workouts (2 of 2)

In my last post, I showed fun photos of Pharmie and I in Vegas, and I shared our "Vegas tips." (Lots of readers chimed in with their tips too!) In this post, I'll be showing photos from our 2 big outings.

I forgot one big piece of Vegas advice in my last post: ask your friends (IRL, FB, Twitter, etc) what's good to do! You probably know people who are into things that you're into, and they'll have some ideas. D.J. gave us a TON of advice on FB, and she's the one who recommended the Pinball Hall of Fame along with the 2 things we did below in this post. THANKS D.J.!!!

Sunday afternoon, we rented a car and drove west out of the city to Red Rock Canyon. Here was our first view after starting the 13-mile scenic drive through the park:

At the 2nd hiking trail.


For a sense of scale, can you see the 2 people on the white rock near the lower-left?

We drove through about half the park to get to a hike that was recommended by DJ. Here's Pharmie on the gravel road on the way to start the hike:

Pharmie wanted a photo of me and this hill behind me because
it reminded her of Red Lobster's cheesy-garlic biscuits.


Enjoying the views heading through a dry river bed.




Getting higher...


And higher...


And higher... Notice how close she is to that
mountain compared to the photo of her on gravel road at the start.

We technically took a wrong turn on this hike, so we ended up going much higher than the trail was labeled. Still a good hike! Then we turned around and headed down:

Notice we were walking into shadows. It was 4:30 pm, and it got chilly QUICKLY once the sun ducked behind the mountains. It went from around 50 to the mid-30s pretty quick (and the warmth from the sun was gone).

Hiking in the shade.






Back to the gravel road heading to the car.

I wore my Garmin (started it a bit late), and this is what it showed for our pace and elevation:

Ran a bit near the turn-around in the middle.


1,000 feet up, 1,000 feet down!

The next morning, we got up and drove to the other side of Vegas. We went south-east to Boulder City. We drove just a block past the Lake Mead Visitor Center (which we knew was closed for renovation), and we parked in a lot near the River Mountains Trail. As I noted in my last post, the final 4 miles of the 30+ River Mountains trail system is called the Historic Railroad Tunnel Trail. It's a trail that was built in the 1930s so railcars could access the Hoover Dam construction site. In 1964 the rail lines were tore up, and it was nominated to the National Register of Historic Places in the 1980s. We hopped on the trail to head towards the Hoover Dam.

Starting the trail.






The rising sun's behind Pharmie.

When I turned around after taking that photo above, THIS was the view in the other direction:

400 feet above Lake Mead (and the marina).

Just ahead was the big draw of this trail system: the 5 tunnels carved through the mountain for the trains working on the construction of the Hoover Dam:

Tunnels #1 and #2.


Outside of Tunnel #1.

Oh, did I not mention that I wore my "Pinky and the Brain" shorts?!?

Well I DID! :)

Heading into Tunnel #1.


Tunnel #1.


Tunnel #3 in the distance.

The entire time, we had great views of Lake Mead down that steep hill to the left. It was beautiful in the morning light!

Tunnel #4.


Out of Tunnel #4 and heading to the fifth (and final) tunnel.


Tunnel #5 curved in the middle, so it was DARK as we ran into it.
It was the widest one in the middle because of the space the train cars needed to turn.

Coming through on the other side was the FIRST time we saw another human being! We had 2.5 miles of slow, picture-taking trail running before we saw anyone else. It was great! And this 60+ year old man with a hiking staff was the only person we saw on our way to the dam.

Now our views of Lake Mead were gone as we started heading down into the canyon between rocky hills. But we soon had a different view: BIG HORN SHEEP!

Starting to descend.


A short, steep little hill.


Down and down some more.

Soon the trail turned into paved sidewalks and twisted and turned through the rock:

Pharmie running down the back-and-forth ramps.


It spit us out on top of the Hoover Dam parking ramp. We made it!
(Notice all the steps behind Pharmie to the right.)


It was pretty flat through the 5 tunnels, then it was DOWNHILL!

We were there in time for the 1-hour tour at 9:30, but it was sold out. So we took the 30-minute tour at 10 because we couldn't stick around much longer. Here's Pharmie 55 stories below the top of the dam:

The 7 turbines on the Nevada side.


Back up top.


Me and the Pinky and the Brain shorts at Hoover!


We didn't have time to hike all the way up to Hoover Dam Bypass Bridge,
but THAT would have been a view!


Looking out over Lake Mead (the white line is where the
water level SHOULD be - they're in a 15-year drought).

It was time to get back to Vegas. We had 400+ feet to climb before we were back on the flat Railroad Tunnel Trail:

Back up all the stairs / ramps.




Our view of Lake Mead once we got back to the Railroad Tunnel Trail.


Pharmie heading back through Tunnel #4.


Tunnel #3.


Tunnels #2 and #1.


Nearly done. That's the edge of Boulder City to the right.


Pace graph on the way back from the dam. I left Pharmie shortly
after taking that last photo so I could get back to the car and stretch for a minute.


Pharmie heading towards me as I'm stretching by the car.

We got back to Vegas easily. The fitness center at The Bellagio actually had a foam roller! So once we got back, I loosened up the legs a bit:

My right foot as I rolled through my left IT band.

So check out my post from Saturday with some more Vegas trip photos and our "Vegas advice," and big thanks to D.J. for the good ideas of things to do in Vegas!

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