All too often, the streets of Philadelphia can be marked by homeless individuals whose inspiration stereotypically seem to have been lost in bad decisions, unfortunate circumstances or what some critics unwarrantably call pure laziness. But in the “city of brotherly love,” the homeless are stomping on the stereotypes… with their running shoes. That’s right—they’re joining together to overcome life’s challenges through one of the most self-disciplining sports out there—running.
Back on My Feet is non-profit organization that promotes the self-sufficiency of Philadelphia’s homeless population by engaging them in running as a means to build confidence, strength and self-esteem.
Read the rest of this entry at our partner site: HesFit.com
Welcome to the official blog of rising U.S. track & field star Jon Rankin; the inaugural member of The Final Sprint’s Elite Athlete Blog Series. Be sure to check back every other Wednesday for Jon’s latest entry at http://jonrankin.thefinalsprint.com/
“Certainty? In this world nothing is certain but death and taxes.”
- Benjamin Franklin
I really don’t know how to interpret the above quote from Benjamin Franklin. Without a doubt it’s tax time. Yikes!! Honestly, I think that it’s kind of funny because it would be a very dreary life if death and taxes were the only things truly certain in life. What about love? What about running? What about the sweet smell of freshly cut grass in the early morning hours prior to a cross country race? If death and taxes are the only things certain I thank God for every day that I do get to run because I’ve been injured way too many times not to realize how lucky I am to be where I’m at today, just a few months away from make one of my biggest dreams a more certain part of my reality.
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If you don’t run very fast in practice, you won’t be able to run very fast in races. The following article is written by Dr. Gabe Mirkin, MD, who explains that jogging will decrease your chances for injury, but will not improve your run time.
At the University of Copenhagen, Danish scientists studied experienced runners who had been running 60 miles a week at a fast pace. One group was told to cut their mileage in half to only 30 miles a week, but to run a series of around 50 to 100 yard dashes as fast as they could. The other group continued running 60 miles a week at a fast pace. Runners who ran fewer miles at a faster pace had a 7 percent improvement in their body’s maximal ability to take in and use oxygen.
To read the full entry, visit our partner publication: HesFit.com
Although often perceived as the healthiest of us all, elite athletes may not be as good as fighting off common illnesses as we would think.
Tests among the saliva levels of high level athletes are proving useful in helping scientists understand more about the immune system.
To read more, visit ScienceDaily.com.
NOTE: The following statement was released to major sports, health and fitness publications by the National Athletic Trainers’ Association (NATA). This press release is NOT in reference to any article, editorial, or other content published by TheFinalSprint.com or the TFS Media Network. Conversely, it is intended as a universal statement, clarification and request to the media at large on behalf of the NATA membership.
NATA has followed news of Roger Clemens’ admittance this week to receiving B12 and lidocaine from personal trainer Brian McNamee. NATA has read this information with interest and caution since some media have incorrectly reported that Brian McNamee is an athletic trainer.
McNamee is not, nor has he ever been an athletic trainer, as confirmed by NATA and Board of Certification (BOC) records and the New York Yankees. He is in fact a PERSONAL TRAINER and should be referred to as such and not as a “TRAINER” which can add to reader confusion. You should be aware that the term “athletic trainer” is a title-protected term by statute in 43 states.
In your coverage of this very timely sports and health issue, we appreciate any references to McNamee to be accurate. The original Mitchell Report correctly identifies McNamee as a personal trainer, and we hope media will continue to refer to him by his correct profession - PERSONAL training. An accurate description of McNamee is vitally important to the reputation and credibility of the 35,000 athletic trainers working with sports medicine patients and clients.
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With the low temperatures and adverse weather, it’s no wonder that many exercisers choose to hibernate and sweat in the gym instead of going out in the elements. But a great debate among all those fit is one of determining which is better: the treadmill or the pavement. When it comes to the winter season, research points positives and negatives in both directions.
The reason the treadmill feels “easier” on the body is because the ground is actually being pulled underneath your feet (meaning, your feet are not pulling your body forward, as they would if you were running outside), AND there are no other factors such as wind resistance.
Read the rest of this entry at our partner site: HerActiveLife.com
If you weigh yourself before and after an hour or two of exercise, the difference is likely to be fluid loss. However, in events lasting several hours or even several days, measurable fat loss can occur. At a competitive 12-hour indoor stationary bicycle marathon, one athlete took fluids and food throughout the entire competition, and still lost 2.64 pounds (Schweizerische Rundschau für Medizin Praxis, July 2007).
Of this weight loss, 1.98 pounds was due to loss of fat. His calculated muscle weight increased by 1.46 pounds due to damage to the muscle cells, which results in fluid retention in the cells.
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One concern that some individuals have when it comes to their supplement routine is making sure that what they are taking is being absorbed effectively. You’ve likely heard that getting your nutrition from real foods is often better than taking it in pill form, and this is a big reason why. Generally the body will absorb nutrients slightly better when it comes from food because this is how mother nature intended it.
Read the rest of this entry at our partner site: HesFit.com
Sleep - it’s one of our nation’s favorite pastimes. Sometimes nothing feels better than throwing a blanket over yourself, burying your face in your pillow, and settling down for a nice, long slumber. But as enjoyable as this nocturnal activity is, millions of Americans are seriously missing out on the fun.
Over 60 million individuals in our society suffer from some type of sleeping disorder, and more than half of these people are men. Unfortunately, lack of sleep can have a myriad of consequences on our minds and bodies.
Read the rest of this entry at our partner site: HesFit.com
Anytime you place an overloading stimulus on the muscle tissue (such as when you lift heavy weights), you are going to create tiny little tears in the muscle that basically are breaking down the fibres. When given rest, the muscles will rebuild themselves, growing back stronger so they can be more resilient in the future.
Along with this muscle tearing process, one thing that is often experienced by individuals is a tendency to feel some muscular soreness about a day or so after heavy lifting or strong cardio workouts. While you do not need to feel muscular soreness in order for it to have been a good workout, the two are often experienced together.
Read the rest of this entry at our partner site: HesFit.com
One question that some endurance runners ask themselves is how much of their training they should be dedicating towards higher intensity runs and how much of their training is better off at low intensity. The common thought would be that since they are training for endurance, they should train in a similar manner. […]
HesFit.com, our men’s health and fitness partner site, recently reported that runner’s high was largely caused by the presence and production of endorphins in the human body. Interestingly enough, it turns out this issue isn’t as cut and dry as it may seem. Recent research questions the role of endorphins in the onset […]
Ever feel unusually cheerful after hitting the gym or increasingly confident after finishing up laps at the track? You’re not alone. This state of happiness after exercise is known as “runner’s high,” and has been a point of interest for researchers and athletes for years.The question is, what exactly causes runner’s high? […]
The following post was submitted by Emily Fischer. Emily is blogging about her quest to finish her first marathon (Chicago), and her determination to raise money for the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation (her pledge page can be found by clicking here.)
Emily’s race for research, and, ultimately a cure, was propelled by the death […]
One of the worst things that can happen to you during a workout is to be halfway through and then get a terrible muscle cramp. This is a regular occurrence for some however, particularly runners who try and exercise after eating a meal.
By paying attention to the foods you are eating before this […]
Proper breathing is essential for every athlete. As anyone involved in athletics knows, without the correct breathing technique, you are greatly compromising your ability to perform up to your potential.
Unfortunately, thanks to a condition called asthma, not every person has control over their ability to breathe. Asthma is a chronic condition […]
As every athlete knows, properly functioning knees are a critical aspect of virtually any form of exercise. Walking, running, lifting, kicking - seems obvious to say, but without your knees your body would be at a severe loss. So what do you do when you sustain an injury to your knee?
Though accidents and injuries […]
One of the most critical aspects of your workout is your recovery. While you definitely do need to be putting in the effort at the gym to provide an overloading stimulus on the muscles to keep challenging them, if you aren’t giving your muscles enough time to recover and grow back stronger you will […]
I have always owned the identity of an athlete. Practice schedules, conditioning, training-these have been ingrained in my person as the standard routine of every day. This all started coming to a jolting halt, however, as I neared the end of my college years, and strode into the ‘real world’, as the elders […]
The Blue Planet Run will cover 15,200 miles, across 16 countries and 4 continents, 24 hours a day for 95 days to deliver an extremely urgent and important message:
We can and must begin today to alleviate the catastrophic burden placed on over a billion people who, every day, must drink unsafe local water, or […]
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