Keeping the Achilles Tendon Loose

Weekly 50+ Training Thread on Let's Run.

I got in 32 miles this week. My progression over the past few weeks (from memory as I don't record anything) is 2 miles, 12 miles, 18miles 28 miles, 32 miles. I got the track workout in on Tuesday but not much else until the weekend. The last three days I got outside for an 8 miler each day. My achilles (or soleus) is still sore, but I can run on it just fine and I am enjoying my runs feeling so much more stable and strong in my hip and with a much smoother stride. I do this TP Massage routine on my lower leg to work out the kinks in my calf and soleus before running and it really loosens things up. I use these products, but you can do a similar thing with foam rollers and rubber balls.



I am also doing some Z-Health lateral ankle tilts that seem to keep me looser and more stable in the ankle joints. Here is a quick presentation of some of the Z-Health ankle drills from ultitraining.com.



Here is a depressing recent New York Times article called Vigor Quest by Tom  Dunkel on age-management and it is not the aging process as seen in this quote that is what is really depressing.

The human body is a symphonic masterpiece of flesh and blood, but it wears out like any clanking machine on the factory floor. The ruthless tick, tick, tick of time strips gears, nibbles at bushings. On a submicroscopic level, damage is done by free radicals, unstable atoms that have a toxic effect on cell membranes and DNA. In addition, telomeres, the protective tips on chromosomes, fray from the stress of continual regeneration, much as serial photocopies of an image lose their crispness.

What is troubling is what some aging athletes are injecting into thier bodies to find that fountain of youth.

For the third week in a row I did an intermittent fast for two seperate days. That is 3 weeks and 6 fasts, plus I usually go without breakfast on most days. This week I didn't eat until dinner time on Friday and Sunday (today). Both days I ran 8 miles before breaking the fast and both runs went just fine. Here is an audio interview of Brad Pilon of EatStopEat.com on fasting and exercise.

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