Arms up - Face Forward

A recent article Healthy Running Comes from the Arms and Head Connection over at The Natural Running Center by Jae Gruenke gives two tips to improve your running posture that counter the notion that you tuck your chin in when running and keep your hands low. Her tips are based on the Feldenkrais Method of movement. One is to keep your hands close to your chest, and bring your knuckles to the midpoint of your breastbone on the forward swing as in the photo taken at the World Cross-Country Championships.

 Her other tip is on the face forward head position.

When you run and therefore lean, you still need your eyes and inner ears upright relative to gravity so they work properly for balance and orientation, which means you have to let the distance between your chin and your throat increase in a move we have nicknamed “face forward.” What actually happens is that your skull slides forward on your atlas vertebra (this is the top vertebrae that along with the axis forms the connection to the skull) the same way it does when you kiss someone or when you hunch up at your laptop. But in running you allow this forward movement of your head to cause your whole body to fall forward, rather than just caving in your chest and hunching your shoulders, and it leads you into a beautiful, free, and easy lean.

Jae can be found over at The Balanced Runner. I have enjoyed doing Jae's cds in the past as a method to warm-up for a run or in an attempt to move better. If anyone these cues on a run, let me know how it goes.

Here is a Runners World interview with 3 time Olympian Jenn Rhines who explains her work with Jae  Gruenke and the Feldenkrais Method.

Well, you mentioned earlier in this Chat that there had been some tweaking of your running form. What exactly did you do, and what was the reason a need for that was perceived?
JR: Last year, I was running some decent workouts. I couldn't put anything together in a race and felt like I was really struggling. I felt like my body couldn't do it anymore, so I figured I'm either done or I need to figure out a way to do it differently.  I've been working with Terrence; I also worked with a woman in New York. Her name is Jae Gruenke, doing a thing called Feldenkrais Lessons – basically, teaching your body there's an easier way to do things. Things are starting to stick now. It's starting to come around.
Can you explain a little bit what Feldenkrais Lessons re?
JR: They're called awareness through movement lessons. I was actually doing them with her over Skype. To me, the easiest way to explain it is just that you're doing simple movements and teaching yourself to use different muscles and to do things a little move easily than in the patterns you've been stuck in. For somebody like me who's been running for over 20 years, I was definitely stuck in some bad habits.
One thing I've learned about is how everything interacts together. I'll get a very tight upper body and my arms with be way up high and twisting when I get tired, and now I kind of understand you can't just force yourself to drop them and have it be perfect. I understand more how everything works together.  It's probably still subtle, because I know I don't look dramatically different, but I'm not overstriding quite as much and I'm using my glutes and hamstrings more so I have a little bit higher back kick. It's better for me;  I don't look like a gazelle yet.

Starting All Over Again

I had another successful week testing out my hip to see what I can do. For the second week in a row I did 12 miles of running, however last week I did no gym work. This week I also went back to the YMCA to work on the bikes, elliptical, and indoor track. I also went out mountain biking for the first time post surgery.
Monday: nothing
Tuesday: 5 miles run. I felt OK during the run, but my piriformis or glute medius got real tight after the run and into the next day. I decided to be careful of pushing too much.
Wednesday: 10 miles recumbent bike, 5 miles stationary bike, 2 miles elliptical
Thursday 5 miles stationary bike, 2 miles elliptical, 1 mile run
Friday: nothing
Saturday 10 miles mountain biking-felt great- only a bit of difficulty getting my leg over the crossbar, 1 mile run, 1 mile elliptical, 1 mile run, 1 mile elliptical, 1 mile run
Sunday: 5k run through Mine Falls Park

I am being careful to not hurt things, my hip feels fine, but the muscles around it can act up a bit. Last Monday, I called my doctor's' office to see if I really was OK to run. I was told it was find as long as it doesn't hurt. I called again today and asked for a referral for PT, just to make sure I know which exercises to do and which to avoid to speed things along.

I saw this video posted on two sites that I follow last week:  Better Movement and Conditioning Research. It shows one of the greatest explorers of all, a human baby, as she learns to move. Babies work hard to figure things out, we sometimes forget how to move and our bodies become rigid and locked. This leads to a lot of aches, pains, and improper movement patterns. The video reminded me to continue to practice Feldenkrais movements, particularly after surgery. I have written plenty on Feldenkrais before as it is a gentle and powerful way to get back in touch with how your body should move, just like the baby in this video. Despite having plenty of Feldenkrais audio lessons I decided to try out The Fundamentals of Better Movement as well as Becoming Bulletproof: An Uncommon Approach to Building a Resilient Body. I will review them later at another time as well as review Martha Peterson's The Essential Somatics Pain Relief Through Movement DVD. I found her website through this link on labral tears two days before heading to Kenya and learned a few of her Somatic exercises that literally kept me out of pain for the longest time in over 25 years (you have to explore more on her website- look for posts written in February on the hip). I was free from the pain that I normally get and can never fix the whole trip. Except for the day when we flew to Kenya, I was able to control all pain by doing less than 5 minutes of exercises that I found on her website. The whole flight to London, I was very uncomfortable because I did no exercises that day. When we stopped to change flights to Nairobi, I did the exercises and I was fine the rest of the way as well as the rest of the trip. Every time I felt like things were getting out of balance, I did the exercises and I was fine. Some of the exercises are similar, but presented in different way with the Feldenkrais movements on "The Fundamentals of Better Movement".

 

"Building Your Body Maintenance Routine" ebook

Leigh Boyle over at Athletes Treating Athletes has produced a free e-book called "Building Your Body Maintenance Routine" that you can sign up for on her website. This e-book can teach you how to remain injury free:

My big motivation in writing this guide was to show you how to use the resources on the A-T-A site when you are not hurt as a way to monitor common problem areas and prevent the bigger injuries from sneaking up on you. In doing so, I also wanted to dispel some of the common myths about how often and when you should be using this stuff. I think you’ll be surprised by how little it takes and how repeatable the whole process is. That is the guide’s ultimate goal- to help you build a plan that is specific to your injury history, your sport, your job, and your training schedule. Inside you’ll find a blank planning page so that you play along as your read. You’ll also find a filled in chart full off all the A-T-A links you’ll need.

It links to the videos that Leigh has produced to explain the different techniques. If you are injured and in the area, you might want to visit Leigh at Pinnacle Physical Therapy in Plaistow, NH.If not check out the Athletes treating Athletes website or Facebook page.

That is where I have been going for therapy the past two months. So how is it going? I am only running once or twice a week, but hope to build slowly. I wasn't too smart and did a very hard 4+ mile snowshoe run two weeks ago. I got the pinching back in my inner adductors after that. It went away after one day. I did a good 3 miler on the treadmill last week. My legs feel much more balanced, straight, and dare I say strong. I can push off with the left foot and my right shoulder and ribs are moving forward to be equal with my left side. I am out of shape, but my legs want to go faster than my conditioning allows! If I don't run at all, my hips and back feel real good and I don't even think about them during the day. I am able to do kettlebell swings much better than I ever could without the former hip problems and I have jumped from a 35 pound kettlebell to a 50 pound bell. Because of all the work, I have feel great, even when shoveling snow. That is an activity that used to kill my back. Now, I like attacking all the snow that this winter has brought. I think I got a little too vigorous after the last storm trying to throw the snow over my cars and snowbanks. I didn't feel it until, I ran on the treadmill after the shoveling and I got the pinch back in my adductor (probably from twisting movements). I have a new policy for myself. I will not run when feeling hurt or any discomfort, so I no longer push through pains. I am just being patient and careful.

I think I am getting all the gunk out of my muscles and stuff surrounding my left hip and inner hamstring. My knee is straightening out and my foot falls better. Sometimes my "bad" left side feels better than my normal right side! I have been going twice a week to PT but dropping it down to once a week now. 

My one concern is learning how to run correctly again and not returning to similar patterns in my running. I believe it is true what Carson Boddicker says  in a recent post called The Brain Maps Movement, not Muscle.

You’ve heard it before. The brain doesn’t think about turning “on” individual muscles, but rather works in terms of movements. The brain... likewise does not speak in terms of “movement quality,” but rather cares only about movement success. The brain does not care how it gets from A to B only that it gets from A to B."

(note: I used to describe my running that way: just build up momentum and then try to maintain it any way possible! Form? what form?)

Regardless of whether or not you can move in a particular way or via a specific joint movement during a particular exercise does not necessarily mean that it’s good. It simply means that the brain will access plan B by stimulating a slightly different motor area to achieve the same or similar final posture.

With repeated activation, plan B simply becomes plan A due to impediment, and becomes “normal” and functionally dominant. Changes in the brain’s maps are implicated across a range of function and dysfunction. As is the case, remember, our number one target organ for all intervention is the brain. 

 I know I have faulty "brain maps"and my body follows these faulty movement patterns. The question is how to change my movement patterns so that I can run and move with greater efficiency and allow my muscles to move my bones and joints correctly. I have always run through therapies: maybe that is why rolfing and other things I have tried have never worked. I would start feeling good and immediately push things as hard as I could. I even did that this summer with new orthotics and ART therapy. I would just run with faulty patterns and never allowed my body to recover and learn new patterns and would just reinstall the old patterns on top of whatever therapy I tried.

How do you retrain your brain? I am not sure. I really liked the Feldenkrais movement work I did a couple of years ago. I was happy to see a new book published called The Art of Slowing Downby Edward Yu this month that brings Feldenkrais, Taichi, and something called Bagua together to relearn better movement patterns specifically to improve running. I only got the book yesterday, but I like a lot of the movement wisdom in the book and the Feldenkrais lessons. If you are not familiar with Feldenkrais, it uses non-stressful slow movements that help you feel and relearn how you move. The one problem that I have with the book is that it is only a book. I have followed through many Feldenkrais lessons and the best way to do them is when the are mp3 sound file. There are lessons in the book, but most runners will not do them properly. This is spelled out in the book, but still runners like to get places quickly and it is hard to understand slow. The book should  have come with the lessons on a cd or there should be a website where you can buy or download them. Other than that I will be delving into it daily. I like how the beginning movements tie the 1st MPT joint to hip movements. Well I have a left hip problem and a left toe problem (functional hallux limitis). It is amazing how everything is tied together. I also have a right shoulder problem and that too is tied to the left hip. If you have never participated in Feldenkrais, I have a lot of blog posts on it with links to free Feldenkrais ATMs. These are sound file lessons, some made specifically for runners. Here is one post with some links. Jae Gruenke of The Balanced Runner has a cd called "Loosening up to Run" that I have used an awful lot (directions for similar movements are in Edward Yu's book) but it is easier to listen to a cd (nice review on her site too!). I now notice she has a new mp3 called "A Leg to Stand on". I will have to try that one some day. She sent me another cd a while back called "Well-Armed" but I guess she has never released that one.

So hopefully it will all work out soon for me. I am getting my muscles and hip joint fixed and then I can relearn proper movement patterns. I just hope that is all that is wrong as that pinching feeling in the front of my leg makes me nervous. And if you don't want to be a messed up runner like me, then download Leigh's e-book and learn how to take care of yourself before you turn into a mess.

Lots of Ideas for Recovering My Stride

Running cross-country for Wheaton College back in the fall of 1980.

Besides the wonderful fall weather and beautiful foliage, it is also cross-country and marathon season. This is absolutely the best time of year to be a runner. Unfortunately this fall,  I do not feel like much of a runner at all. I got my new orthotics two weeks ago and at first they felt great. I thought I would get used to them slowly and on the second day did 4 miles. I felt real good and did 8 miles the next day feeling even better. I then thought, I might have a long shot at finishing the Baystate Marathon on Sunday, even with the limited training over the past month and 1/2. However, the next few days found my muscles getting stiffer and stiffer as I walked around in the orthotics trying to get my body to adapt to them. By race morning on Sunday, I found it hard to even walk comfortably to the starting line. I stood around waiting for the start and when the gun went off, I let my brain win this one over my will. I knew it was not going to be a good day to run and any running I did would not be helpful or fun at all. I ran for 3 minutes and 12 seconds and pulled out of the race.
It has not been easy sitting around for over a month and a half and not running, but I have realized that my body cannot handle it in a healthy manner anymore. Everything is out of whack and running this way just reinforces all my imbalances. But thank goodness the medical establishment is to the rescue, I think! The last doctor wanted me to set up an appointment with a physiatrist. I tried to research as much as I could, but could not find a sports related physiatrist in the local area. I finally chose one nearby, based on the qualification that he looked young and my hope is he is up on the latest sport injury rehabilitations. Getting an appointment is another matter. You have to have your records sent over to his office. After figuring out how to do that, I have to sit and wait for them to call me. I did call Friday and they still don't have my records. I have the feeling this could take a long time. Update: I got an appointment and the earliest I can go in is Nov. 30. Nothing like moving through the medical system at a breakneck speed!


I do have ideas of what I want to try if the physiatrist does not work, unfortunately all ideas might cost some money and I have a kid in college, so I have to be quite sure about what I might do. Here are my ideas:
Resistance Stretching:
Because my left hip is still unstable and pinching tight even while even walking around and my left adductors are tight and almost painful when running, I feel I need someone who can move and manipulate muscles and joints around. Unless it is a labral tear, the muscles around my hip need a lot of loosening up. The loosest my muscles ever got was when I went to a resistance stretcher, a couple of years ago and I could do that again. One thing I might try is to go down to Boston and get worked on by the originator of resistance stretching and author of the book,The Genius of Flexibility: The Smart Way to Stretch and Strengthen Your Body, Bob Cooley (mega expensive) or one of the other trained stretchers at his clinic (expensive). This would help the tightness in my muscles, but I am not sure if it would retrain the patterns of movement that I have. My hope would be that it loosens my muscles and allows my orthotics to work with the idea that I could then more easily generate new patterns of movement without the restrictions I now seem to have.
Rolfing:
I thought when I went through the entire rolfing series a few years ago that all my problems would be solved. It was an interesting process, however it did not last long. I never felt better than after a rolfing session. I had twelve. My thinking is that the rolfing fell apart for me because my feet, because of the hallux functional limitus, kept collapsing and I reverted back to my poor movement patterns as compensation. Now that I have orthotics to correct the FHL, maybe a rolfing tune-up would help my body heal and strengthen. I met a Gate City Strider this summer who goes to a rolfer about an hour away who is also a physical therapist. I was hoping that at the last doctor's visit, I would be allowed to pursue going to this PT, but the doctor wants me to see a physiatrist instead. I also noticed that the rolfer that I went to in the past is now a trained resistance stretcher. However, interesting that sounds, she never really fixed me in the first place, so it may be good to go to someone new for a fresh set of eyes. For those that don't know, rolfing is not really massage. Massage is for your muscles, rolfing is for your fascia, the covering around all your muscles and connective tissue. The goal is to give your body "space" so that it can go back to alignment.
Retrain My Muscles
Another option is related to a book that I started reading this week called Muscular Retraining for Pain-Free Living. I really enjoy the reading as it gets technical about muscles and functioning of the body, but it is written in an easy to understand way. What I like is that it talks about a kinesthetic sense to the body and how it moves. No matter how much therapy and things I have tried, I firmly believe that my mind has its own movement map of how to move, and that what it thinks is correct is actually incorrect patterns. This book explains all this and then offers a series of exercises to reteach your body for proper movement patterns. They exercises are simple enough and they seem like a mix of Egoscue and Feldenkrais movements. The descriptions of the exercise, what they hope to achieve, and the author's notes on what you should feel are all clearly written. This is something that is missing from many books I have seen. I have started doing some of these exercises and a few of them pull and loosen my muscles in all the right ways. If I think these have an impact, I could make an appointment with the author, Craig Williamson. It would be a bit of a drive as he is in Portland, Maine, but I am at the point where I really need to find the right expert to fix things.
Gait Analysis
Recently Running Times has been putting out a series of videos called "Fixing Broken Runners." There are two videos (video one and video two) of the UVA Center for Endurance Training. I found that there is gait analysis being done at the Boston Running Center in Boston. This sounds really interesting, but I would be worried that it shows me what I already know about my stride. I am not sure of the therapy to fix things. I need more than to just be told what I need to fix.
An Athletic Physical Therapist
Finally, last night I discovered some excellent videos from a website called Athletes Treating Athletes. The website has informative videos which they call the The A-Tx-A Self Treatment System. Currently, there are 13 videos in the self-muscle masssage section. I have only had a chance to preview a few of them, but I like the teaching style, the descriptions, and the techniques that are illustrated. I have a house full of trigger-point tools like regular foam rollers, The Grid, and most recently the RumbleRoller, and all sorts of other things I have tried. I also have some DVDs put out by Trigger-Point, but these videos look like they are the most thought-out and descriptive videos to learn self-massage techniques. It also seems that the Physical Therapist. Leigh Boyle, who is putting this website and videos together works out of Plaistow, NH. That is less than an hour away. She is also an athlete and Ironman triathlete, so she would know the endurance athlete's body. I also like the fact that she is sharing her knowlege and doing an excellent job at it.
Here is the video I spent time with last night and then tried out. It relieved a lot of tension in the front of my left lower leg. I am a slow learner at figuring out how to work with trigger points, although I have been trying for years. I really like this book, Trigger Point Therapy for Low Back Pain: A Self-treatment Workbook, and have been slowly reading it. I worked my calf and soleus trigger-points for a few night a couple weeks ago, and that worked real nice. I did overdue it because I could not find them again the night before the Baystate Marathon and I think that is some of why I felt a bit off. Maybe it was time to work on other muscles like these:

Anterior + Lower Leg from Leigh Boyle on Vimeo.
I will be spending time studying the rest of these videos and maybe I can get a referral to get some work done someday. So even though I no longer feel like a runner anymore, when the time is right, I have some new options to explore. Choosing the right option is going to be a tough decision.
The good news is that I only have my running idiosyncricies to complain about. This blog's purpose is to share ideas as well as to track my progress and ideas for myself. It is a lot of fun, but I would guess that someone reading it might think that I complain about running injuries a lot and that there is not much else going on in my life. I feel extremely fortunate that all that I have to complain about is running. It's not really complaining, but I enjoy the curiousity of trying to solve this running problem and I don't intend to give up. Otherwise, life is great: family, friends, and work are all great and so I have the energy and desire to figure this out. I would like nothing more to again feel the enjoyment of running fast, loose, and free.
Finally, I also have to look at the obvious. At the top of this page is a picture of me running cross-country in college. At the end of my senior year my right hip got really sore and I couldn't run without pain days before my final cross-country race. Almost too late, I figured out the problem. I carried my wallet in the right hip pocket of my jeans. This was causing the problem. I kept the wallet out but it was slow coming back to normal. I ended up being in last place in the midwest regional championships race at the one mile mark. At which point, my hip started relaxing. I turned it on and passed runners throughout the race and ended up with my fastest ever 5 mile race.
The obvious thing is my sitting posture. I sit a lot and this is not good. My computer chair is a horrible chair and I end up slouching and not sitting straight nor do I balance properly. The obvious is to find a better way to sit and a better seat. Duh! I better start working on that, too!

The Value of Play: No Matter Your Age

I wrote this post for my education blog Simply Teaching. I decided to also place it here as I believe movement and learning go hand in hand. Maybe someone will find it interesting or offer up some other ideas!

As a long time and "aging" athlete, I have been interested in the concept of "play" as part of sports. It started when I was involved in a discussion on LetsRun about "aging and feeling good while running". A bunch of competitive runners were offering up ideas on maintaining fitness and health as well as enjoying our sport to the levels we had when we were younger and doing so without injury or loss of interest. One thing that kept popping up was keeping running "playful.” The idea is that we should continue to act like the kids we were; running, jumping, climbing, crawling, and just doing things in the outdoors rather than running a set distance or time and returning home. In fact, the discussions are what first led me to create this blog.

I have not had enough time to study "play" as much as I would like, but I see the need for playfulness not only in our adult lives but in the lives of our children. I predict that in a few years fitness activities will move away from gyms and machines and we will see more activities being performed in the natural outdoor arena as adults learn to play as they used to when they were children. Some websites already promote this type of natural play and fitness, such as Erwin Le Corr's Movnat (Move Naturally) and Frank Forencich's The Exuberant Animal.


"All the science that we've come up with backs up what we used to do as kids."

As an athlete, I have been challenged to undo the effects of too much running and biking and having to spend years trying to unravel the damage, it has done to my body. I am learning that it is not strength training or stretches that is going to rebuild the balance in my body rather it is a retraining of the brain. I am doing this through Z-Health joint -mobility exercises that target the nervous system in order to produce movement that is more efficient and through Feldenkrais exercises that retrain neuromuscular patterns so that I can move more correctly and naturally. Interestingly enough both movement therapies deal with how the brain relates and controls movements. I am coming to understand how the brain, thinking, and movement are wonderfully connected.

And then we have school!

Students become mini-adults and sit in uncomfortable chairs and work on written assignments, many times quietly and by themselves without any movement or fun. Teachers often appreciate the “quieter” and "still" students over those with energy to spare. Then we notice the tendencies of children to act up or lose concentration in many ways as they become bored and restless. I have been challenging myself to find ways to bring play into the classroom as well as movement, without losing the goal of giving my students a superior education. Responsive Classroom activities, greetings, and games bring in some element of play, but it certainly is not enough. The question then is how do we allow and advocate for movement without losing control of a class, particularly when we know that it allows for thinking that is more creative and invigorated minds.

I am still looking. Brain Gym is a program I have heard about that integrates play, movement exercises, and learning. I have not taken the Brain Gym courses, but the movements remind me somewhat of some Z-Health exercises. These movements are supposed to stimulate learning through movement. There are many Brain Gym books such as Hands on: How to Use Brain Gym in the Classroom that I would like to order some day to explore the concept more closely.

I was investigating another Scholastic book earlier this week called Brain Breaks for the Classroom: Quick and Easy Breathing and Movement Activities That Help Students Reenergize, Refocus, and Boost Brain Power-Anytime of the Day! and I may order this one some day, as it seems to be a possible take-off of Brain Gym, but I am not sure. It looks like it may have some good ideas on helping children concentrate and learn better through play and short activity breaks. While I was looking at this book, I noticed another book that I did order and I received it yesterday.

The book, Silly Sports and Goofy Games, contains many games and activities that look like fun and would be useful mainly outdoors. We did play one game as a greeting this morning as we tossed imaginary objects like an egg, a very hot "hot" potato, a slimy snake, and even a Volkswagens at each other. However today was an end of month Fun Friday for the fifth grade at New Searles School so we went outside to a playing field and a group of students hung around with me and played many versions of tag that I found in the book as well as some balance games. My favorite of the balance games we played looks just like one of the games in the Exuberant Animal video above. It was a lot of fun trying out games and there was a lot of laughter and cooperation. I look forward to trying more ideas from this book and finding away to integrate play into the daily work of my 27 fifth graders.

Finally, here is a wonderful and thought provoking TedTalks video presented by a pioneer in research on play, Stuart Brown, called "Why Play is Vital, No Matter your Age." Have fun watching this and then get outside and play!

New York Times article on Minimalistic Running Shoes

Today's New York Times had another article (in the business section) on minimalistic running shoes called "Wiggling Their Toes at the Shoe Giants" by Amy Cortese. It gives mention to the Vibram Five Finger Shoes (the picture above is of their new model called the Moc, below is thier new trail shoe called the Trek), the Vivo (or Terra Plana) Barefoot shoes (I have to get another pair for school as I wear mine all the time because they feel so good) and of course it mentions the wonderful book "Born to Run" by Chris McDougall.

As a business article it mentions the impact the minimalistic trend is having and could have on the fortunes of the companies making such shoes as well as the major running shoe companies. I was intrigued to find out that Vivo Barefoot is coming out with a performance model at the end of the year called the "Evo". I was also cracking up at the mention of a decidedly non-minimalistic running shoe from Adidas that retails for up to $500. It is called the Porsche Design Sport Bounce:S running shoe and it has metallic springs inspired by a car’s suspension system. Here is a picture of this futuristic shoe:


I thought the Nike Shox was a terrible shoe and this thing looks even worse for messing up your running.


I am always trying to find good minimalistic running shoes as I enjoy and feel better running in them as I have done so for a few years now. I have a new favorite. The Puma K street I bought last week have the fit and performance that I have been looking for in a running shoe.

I first used my new pair during track intervals Wednesday night. They fit quite different than the Puma H Street. They were a bit more roomy (I do like breathing space inside a shoe and buy them a bit big)because they have a toe box rather than the tight upper of the H Street. The sole of the shoe has some small waffle like nubs on the bottom that give it a bit more solid ride than the H Street. I wasn't sure if I would wear them off the track, but the Asics Hyper Speeds that I have been using were getting old and the little bit of cushioning in the midsole was getting getting depressed and I had the feeling it was throwing off my stride a bit so I wore the K Streets for an 8 miler on Thursday and then again Friday. They felt great on the roads. Today I took them for a 16 mile run and they were just fine. I never ran more than a 1/2 marathon in the H Streets and never used them as a daily running shoe. I think the K Street will be just fine for daily runs. I have to go back to the store and buy the rest of them in my size as they were on sale at less than $40.

Today's 16 mile run was wonderful. I am slowly learning to run differently as I learn proper movement patterns through Feldenkrais Method lessons. The past few days I have been going over a lesson before each run that I ordered from Jae Gruenke from The Balanced Runner. It is called "Loosening up to Run" and is a 30 minute audio lesson that is simple and subtle (which is what Feldenkrais Method lessons are). You don't strain like in stretching, but make small movements and explore how your body works and teach your brain the movement patterns. Here is the blurb from the website:

A brief introduction to the most fundamental coordination pattern for healthy, efficient running. This lesson is designed to give you the foundation for recovering from injury or just regular aches and pains, while teaching the mechanical principles of more economical running. Do it once to start learning the material, do it again the night before your next race or any time you start feeling somehow "off." A valuable tool for runners of any level. Safe for injured runners.

I was at first disappointed when I got the cd as it was similar to other movements and I expected to "do" more, but as I use the cd, I am finding the movements relax me and I get more range of motion, and then I have good runs as I concentrate on just using this lesson and it movements. This lesson is similar to a lesson in the "Run with the Whole Body" program and other lessons I have found online. It takes you through movement patterns until you get to the point where you work on the small twist that your torso makes as you run (the hip goes forward and the shoulders go back). This is where your power from running comes from. I am so used to muscling myself through runs by only using my legs that today's run was very enlightening. My brain and body is getting the concepts. The run today felt effortless. I did less work with my arms and shoulders on this run (not forcing things), but noticed I was starting to get that small movement in my torso. My legs were not straining at all, in fact they felt like they were floating and I felt no muscle soreness or tightness at all as I ran. I let my torso drive the running stride and when I got things right (my ribs are still not balanced correctly so I still am shifting around) I felt like a new runner. It was a great run on a perfect running day. I brought some money to buy a drink halfway through, but skipped that as I wasn't too thirsty. I did end up a tad thirsty by the end and started slowing a bit because of that as I was out there for a little over 2 hours without drinking anything. Other than that it was one of my better feeling runs in a long time. My feet were not beat up at all from running in the Puma K Streets. If only every run could be this easy!

Being Thankful for Health and Running

I know it is not Thanksgiving time yet, but two tragic circumstances has just made me feel a tiny bit thankful that I have good health and can enjoy running, but very sad for these two fine gentlemen. A friend of my son's and the camp director of the camp Andy worked at this summer was on a missions trip to Haiti at the beginning of the summer and was involved with a motorcycle crash. He suffered some brain damage (no helmet) and is still in a hospital in Boston. Last week a friend of mine was in a horrific car crash. He was just married this July and had just bought a new house up in Bedford. He crashed his car head on into a tree. He has multiple fractures in his leg, 5 ribs, face and worst of all in his back. Most likely he will be paralyzed from the chest down. He had to be revived three times and had to have a pacemaker inserted to keep him alive. My thoughts and prayers are with Dan and Sean for the long recoveries they face. It makes it very silly to worry about miles, seconds, and minutes in my running, but gives me pause to be very thankful for the health I do have. You never know what can happen to change the things we often take for granted.

Speaking of thanks. A big thanks to Mike Wade and the Gate City Striders for the Mine Falls Trail races that ended on Monday night. There are many Strider volunteers who show up week after week and help put on this race series and they deserve thanks too. It is a fun part of the week to be able to show up and put in a decent workout testing your legs on the trails of Mine Falls. This year I graduated away from the 5K races that I have always done and for the second half of the series participated in the 5 mile races. I won two nice aluminum water bottles for winning my age group in each half of the series. They will be great for school if my kids don't steal them from me (which I think they have already done!).

Tonight's track workout was my best so far this year. It was a killer: 2 miles, 1 mile, 3/4 mile, 1/2 mile, 400, and 400. I was feeling good. I did the two mile in 12:17, but I had no warm up. All the other intervals were under 6 minute mile pace as I tried to keep pace with Mike Wade and Steve Wolfe. I felt more balanced in my running then I have all year on the track. I was able to run relaxed and concentrate on trying to have good form. I attribute this to the Feldenkrais lessons I have been doing each day. I am working on my own to see how much I can figure out. The Feldenkrais teacher says my ribs and torso are very tight. He suggests that to get fixed I would need to take 6 months off of running. I am not sure I am ready to do that just yet.

I remember a massage therapist who used to tell me that the left side of my ribs were dropped 2 inches below my right side and then would attempt to push them back into place. On reflection, I always pay attention to my hips, but I do notice how my rib cage is tilted and rotated. Just because it didn't hurt, I didn't pay it too much attention. That is something that I am working on with the Feldenkrais movements.

I found an interesting article the other day that exactly describes my running form and posture, explains why it works that way, and offers a solution. If the article is correct, it will be the first time that someone has relayed to me (well in this case relayed in an article) exactly what is going on in my body. I have lightly tried the stretches the past two days and my runs have gone better and the hip misalignment and weaknesses I had Sunday and Monday in the races have cleared up.

The article is called "Corrective Methods For Common Postural Deviations: The Anterior Pelvic Tilt" written by Marc McDougal. I am just working on the anterior pelvic tilt in my left hip and leaving alone the other hip. First off the article gets right to something I have always overlooked and what Feldenkrais is teaching me. The article says:

"Your chest position effects your pelvic position. The Thoracic Cage is roughly the area from your shoulders to the bottom of your ribs, and movement here causes a muscular chain reaction all the way down to your pelvis."

Just what I am working on. Which leads to:

"Tightness or instability of any of these (muscles around the rib cage)can cause shifting of the Cage, which can then translate to a shift at the pelvis.
A pelvic tilt will most certainly cause the muscles of the lower limb to compensate. It’s not always easy to tell what caused what, but usually one will find an internally rotated femur accompanying a forward pelvic tilt. Simply put, this is when the knee starts to turn inward during standing, walking, squatting, etc."

That has been my complaint for many years. My left femur rotates in and makes the knee knock-kneed. Finally this is the first article I have ever seen (or doctor or therapist) that explains why my knee rotates in and my foot rotates out.

"When your knee turns inward, your lower leg compensates by turning the foot outward to maintain balance and keep you from walking like you’re on a boat. This outward foot rotation then causes another host of problems, including a pattern change in the hamstring recruitment.

Specifically, because of the mechanical advantage, this results in an over-reliance of the medial hamstring muscles (semitendinosus and semimembranosus), and an under-recruitment of the biceps femoris group of the hamstrings; which can lead to eventual atrophy and further knee problems."

I really don't have knee problems, for some strange reason, however it always feels tight under my left kneecap when I am out of alignment. But my hamstrings and tight adductor muscles on my left side are always part of my problem. This is also addressed in the article.

There is a lot more in the article, including a very good presentation of remedial stretching and strengthening exercises. The directions for the stretching are a bit more precise than just "stretch your hip flexors." It tells you exactly how to target the muscles at the proper angle to affect change. Because the article precisely describes my postural conditions, I am going to keep working on these stretches while I loosen up my movement patterns with the Feldenkrias exercises.

That is something else to be thankful for, a means to fix problems within my own body and relearn good movement patterns for a healthier life. You just don't have to give up.



I ran with a new pair of shoes that I bought last weekend on the track tonight called the Puma K Street. I always liked running in the Puma H Street shoe, a very minimalistic shoe that is now hard to find. I went through about 5 pairs. The K Street doesn't have the fancy colors of the H Street and although minimalistic, it didn't seem to be built the same as the H Street. That being said, I absolutely enjoyed running the workout on the track in them. They are lightweight and have a wider toe box than the H Street. That is good for me. The sole was flexible, but not the same as the H Street. However on the soft spongy track, I actually like the nubs and feel of running in them better than the H Street. They will certainly make a great track shoe, I am not sure if I will take them on the roads.

Working on Improving Running Form and Efficiency

No that is not me, but wouldn't it be nice to have form like Kenenisa Bekele? For the past couple of weeks I have been learning about and playing around with the Feldenkrais Method to try to restore proper movement patterns to my body and to relearn how to run properly. I am very intrigued with the system having tried just about everything else out there to rebalance my body with only limited success.

On one hand I find the Feldenkrais routines easy to do and learn and on the other I have experienced some pretty positive results and an almost instant reawakening of more proper movements patterns. I have only had one visit so far with a Feldenkrais teacher, but there are a lot of ways to learn the movements patterns that you can do on your own. While the Feldenkrais Method is not a running technique (think POSE or Chi Running) it is a way to rethink or replay movement patterns that will positively effect your running. It is not stretching, but I feel much looser. It is not a strength training strategy either. As best I understand it, it seems to help repattern movement in your body. It also helps the brain take in the new patterns so that you can use them in your movements and running. Basically we get stuck in patterns that we think are correct, but may not be the most correct or efficient way to move. We get stuck in routines of movement and "forget" how we used to move. For years I knew I had bad movement patterns, but I didn't know how to change them because they feel "natural" to me.

Ir you are an efficient well balanced runner, than Feldenkrais may not be for you. However if your running form is impossible to fix, like mine than this may be a solution to relearning how to move. Here is what one Feldenkrais website suggests how Feldenkrais can help runners:

The connection of the shoulder and pelvis in rotation;
The ability of the lower back to lengthen as the leg comes forward, but also how all your back can share the work as the leg goes back (and so avoid back pain)
The connection of the foot pushing the ground away through the extension in the hip joint and the back (esp upper back) to the propulsion of the chest forward. Extension of the upper back also frees the lower back from doing all the work.
The mobility, alignment and passage of weight through the foot, ankle and hip for the safety of the knee, shock absorbency and propulsion
The ability to rotate freely and quickly in the spine
Differentiation, loosening and freeing of the chest and shoulder girdle.
Freer, easier breathing.
Greater awareness of running as a movement of the whole self and accompanying ease and power.

Here is what I have found to help me better understand using the technique. First you may want to get the book Running with the Whole Body: A 30-Day Program to Running Faster with Less Effort. I have had a copy of the book for over 10 years. When I first used it, I did not understand the concepts or how to do the routines. I did them in typical "runner" fashion, quickly going through the movements to hit the "payoff" last movements. I also pushed very hard to try to make them work better. While I had a great year of running the summer I used the book, I only now realize I really did not tap the potential of the routines. I learned so much more about how to do the movements when I bought the audio version of the book. You can get it on CD from Amazon or get an audio download of "Running With the Whole Body" like I did already in mp3 format.

I have gone through all of the audio lessons once, and will do so again. Some are in a different presentation than the book. The book includes additional lessons that are not on the audio version. However, in following the audio, you learn the pacing and simple efforts needed to do the lessons. It is hard to read a book and do the lessons. But it is much simpler doing the book lessons having practiced the audio lessons first.

There is also a website that has free audio Feldenkrais lessons, The Open ATM Project Feldenkrais® Awareness Through Movement® Lessons. Sharon Moyano, a runner and Feldenkrais teacher, has over 50 lessons there including 6 lessons from a runner's workshop. I tried the "freeing the hip joints" lesson from the runner's workshop last night and I found it simply amazing for helping my body and mind "see" new ways of moving from my hips. Whenever I do a lesson I feel extremely loose and free, a much different feeling than what I would get from a stretching routine, but strangely it is exactly how you would want to feel after stretching. I find that I walk and move different after a lesson. I feel it also is helping to change my running, but my running form is so messed up that I can only hold onto a proper movement pattern for a short time before losing it. I expect that my form will keep improving, but that it may take quite awhile to get every lesson to hold as my muscles have to adapt.

After a good week of running and dieting, I couldn't wait to see what would happen at tonight 5 mile trail race. For the first time all year I felt like I was racing when the gun went off. I had a great first mile (in the lead) until Mike Wade realised I was not doing the 5K. He passed at about 1.5 miles and I stayed close. Greg Indruk caught up at about 3 miles and Mike was still in view. He had to stop to deal with a loose dog and at about 4 miles I was only about 5 seconds behind Mike and Greg. Then it was the rough trails of the last mile. I took it easier in here not wanting to trip again and the other two guys raced ahead until they were out of sight. Despite the heat and humidity I only ran 5 seconds slower than my best time of the year on the course. I liked that I felt loose for a change. The terrain and twisting nature of the course is not the greatest course for someone trying to learn how to run smoothly again. The hills, roots, twists, and turns kept throwing off my stride pattern, it will be interesting to race on a smoother surface.

On a dieting note, I had to pig out a bit yesterday as I was losing too much weight too quickly. I had dropped about 5 pounds in three days and that was not good.

I hope to continue learning movement patterns through Feldenkrais lessons and when my rib is fully healed I hope to go visit Charlie, the Feldenkrais teacher again. Charlie also teaches a version of Feldenkrais called the Anat Baniel Method. So I have been reading her book called Move into Life: The Nine Essentials for Lifelong Vitality. It is very interesting and although not necessarily a book for athletes, the lessons can be applied throughout your life, including sports. I am also interested in the brain learning in the book as well as the Feldenkrais movement lessons that go with each chapter.

I am having a great time following and watching the World Championships in Berlin, both on the Internet and on TV. It is so much fun not having track and field conflicting with other sports on TV like during the Olympics! Kenensila Bekele won another championship medal with his 10,000 meter win today.

The Warrior-Paleo-Primal Diets

I have been learning to eat well! I have been a junk food eater my entire life. I ran so I could eat and I thought I could eat whatever I liked. Ice cream, cookies, cereals, and anything else I liked I dumped in my mouth. I counted on running it all off. I realized a few years back that this was not going to work as I got older. I tried a few types of diets, had some success a few years back, but kept returning to the junk food. I learned a few healthy things along the way, but nothing really stuck. During the winter I read The Warrior Diet and had some success eating less throughout the day and more at night and following the health guidelines, but I soon returned to my bad habits. Then I started reading more about the The Paleo Diet which is also similar to The Primal Blueprint . I am still learning how to eat correctly and am enjoying healthy foods in new ways.

Basically I am eating fruits, nuts, and vegetables during the day. I am also learning to make awesome salads. For dinner I am learning to eat good meats and salmon along with another big salad full of all sorts of fruits and veggies. I am steering clear of processed foods, dairy, and grains (as well as breads). For the past three weeks I have noticed the lack of desire to eat junk foods. I have indulged a little here or there but it does not satisfy me as it did before. I do not feel hungry during the day (cravings are gone) and I feel ready to run at a moments notice. I don't get that heavy sleepy feeling after eating.

I have also noticed that I am losing weight. I have lost about 10 pounds in about three weeks. Today I weighed in a at just a few pounds more then I was a couple of years ago (my lightest weight in years) when I started to have some good races.

I have a lot to learn still about good nutrition and what works best for me, but I feel real good about the type of eating I am doing now. I will still like ice cream and cookies, but a bowl a week and a cookie or two a week is so much less that what I used to eat in one day alone!

I don't seem to be at a loss of energy for running either. I ran 8 miles on Wednesday (fastest time since last fall), and on the same loop the next day ran less than a minute slower. Today I went out in the heat and did 11 miles. I am putting the Feldenkrais lessons to work and feeling looser and stronger as I run. I can't get that full body balance for more that a few strides, but I think it will take a long time to undue the multiple imbalances that are so ingrained in my muscle memories.

I have a lot of work to do, but things are going in the right direction for a change.

And then I was looking at the Cigna 5K results and fellow 50 year old Mike Merra pops an 18:05 time and Cathy Merra blasts an 18:49. That's two people in the same family and the same age as me that are way ahead of where I am. Those are great results. Heck, I am no longer even the fastest person on my street, Karen Long ran an 18:55 at the same race. There were quite a few other fast times from teammates and friends. It is good to see people running so well.

My ribs are still sore when turning and getting up or lying down, however I stopped taking pain medicine and I only get an occasional jolt in the rib when running and that is a lot better than what I was told would happen just last week.

Crawling Like a Lizard

This morning I finished the fourth lesson on the Feldenkrais based audio of "Running With the Whole Body". I was expecting the lesson to go along with my earlier edition of the book with work on the hips. However, something completely different than my edition of the book was introduced (I don't know if the rest of the lessons in the newer edition match the audio lessons). Anyhow, I was told I was going to learn how to crawl like a lizard. The next two lessons are about moving like an animal and then moving like a human. Well, seeing I am trying to follow a Primal-Paleo diet (lost 5-7 pounds in two weeks- which means I am losing too much and have to eat more)I guess I can learn to move in a more primal sort of manner (actually it is how we all started to move when we started crawling as a baby). Watch how the hips and spine of this baby moves as he creeps across the floor.



I guess Feldenkrais reawakens some of these movement patterns from our past. Interestingly in cultures like Bali where babies are not allowed to crawl they develop movements pattern problems when they mature: they cannot hop from one leg to the other.

Of course—no Balinese baby is allowed to touch the ground for the first ‘rice year’ (seven months), so they never have the opportunity to creep. Creeping (how you motivate when lying on your belly) is substantially different from crawling (how you get about on all fours) and involves—try it—that very shifting from hip to hip which is a precursor for hopping. Because they miss that stage, the Balinese—able dancers and sportsmen—are unable to organize a simple foot-to-foot hop.

According to "the World's Fittest Man" Erwan Le Corre quadrupedal movement is one of the 12 key movements of Movnat (Move Naturally). By the end of the lesson I was indeed feeling like I was moving like a lizard. It was fun as well as revealing as the lessons help me perceive how I move and how movements connects throughout my body as it works as a unit.

I just love the audio version of "Running with the Whole Body". I was ready to call it quits knowing that it was movement patterns, that I could not seem to fix, that was hindering my stride and this is what the program is all about. The lessons awaken an awareness of how we move and more importantly how I should be moving. My running is changing, slowly. Last week I could hardly move. Yesterday I went for a 7 mile run and then kept increasing what I was doing because it felt so good for a change. Eventually I hit 13 miles. I notice a definite change in how my body, hips, and shoulders move and find that more power and balance is coming from my torso and not just my feet and legs (like what I used to concentrate on). Hopefully things will keep improving and I will not have to give up the sport of running.

I find the the audio lessons, although not hard, leave me feeling refreshed, aware, loose, and moving in a new manner that I can't wait to try out when running. The funny things is I am doing them despite a rib injury; I got kneed by mistake on Wednesday by my daughter in my right lower rib. The muscle down there is sore when I lay down and it hurts to roll over in bed and get comfortable. I have had to limit some of the movement exercise and I hope that by Tuesday when I go to see a Feldenkrais practitioner that it won't be so sore anymore.

Running Economy: From your Heels to Your Arms

Two interesting studies caught my attention today (from posts on Letsrun.com) One study comes from 2008 and claims that the shorter your heel is the more competitive you will be at distance running. In the study by Melanie Scholz, of the VU University Amsterdam in the Netherlands, heel length was measured as the average of the horizontal distance between the ankle bone and the Achilles tendon on the inside and outside of the leg. The shorter the distance, the more energy your Achilles tendon can store. The stored energy gets released as you lift your foot off the ground. The study monitored 15 professional runners as they ran on a treadmill. Those with shorter heels had lower oxygen intake, indicating greater running efficiency. Now there is something else us slow guys can blame our parents for: thick heel lengths! By the way, when looking at the guy in the picture above, I should be faster than he is!

Well there is not much we can do to improve on things in our heels, but another study I saw relates to arm swing in walking. Steven Collins, of the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, headed a study that shows that arm swinging is an integral part of the energy economy of human gait. The study which came out on Wednesday explains why we swing our arms when we walk, even when it takes more energy to do so. They looked at volunteers who were asked to walk with a normal swing, an opposite-to-normal swing, with their arms folded or their arms held by their sides.

The science is interesting, but I found this study most interesting in the light of some of the Feldenkrais exercises I have been doing this week based on the book "Running with the Whole Body". I learned that when I walk, I swing my right shoulder opposite of the right hip like I should, however my left shoulder seems to move in sync with my left hip (the opposite to normal swing-walk normally and see what your shoulder does, then walk with your arm straight down holding onto your thigh-notice what your shoulder does here-that is what my shoulder seems to do on the left side when I walk and run). This might be one pattern throwing off my running stride; creating imbalances, falls, and injuries. Besides the metabolic savings that I can gain when I straighten things out, I hope to find that I gain more coordination and balance as well as a greater ease in running. Who knows I may even get some speed back to make up for having thick heels

Learning about "Running With the Whole Body"

I am looking forward to trying the Feldenkrais Method to try to get proper movement and running patterns back and to learn to run with my whole body. What is the Feldenkrais Method? (from their faq)

The Feldenkrais Method is named after its originator, Dr. Moshe Feldenkrais, D.Sc. (1904-1984) [about], a Russian born physicist, judo expert, mechanical engineer and educator.

The Feldenkrais Method is a form of somatic education that uses gentle movement and directed attention to improve movement and enhance human functioning. Through this Method, you can increase your ease and range of motion, improve your flexibility and coordination, and rediscover your innate capacity for graceful, efficient movement. These improvements will often generalize to enhance functioning in other aspects of your life.

The Feldenkrais Method is based on principles of physics, biomechanics and an empirical understanding of learning and human development. By expanding the self-image through movement sequences that bring attention to the parts of the self that are out of awareness, the Method enables you to include more of yourself in your functioning movements. Students become more aware of their habitual neuromuscular patterns and rigidities and expand options for new ways of moving. By increasing sensitivity the Feldenkrais Method assists you to live your life more fully, efficiently and comfortably.

From what I have learned there are two branches to learning movement through Feldenkrais. You can go to Awareness Through Movement® classes where you explore movement in a group setting or you can go to Functional Integration® lessons with a practitioner who guides you through a more hands on form of movement lessons.

I have stretched, strengthened, mobilized, massaged, and done everything possible to try to get myself to run correctly and without misalignments. I just can't get the correct movement patterns down anymore. Running poorly with bad rotations and movements seem normal to me. I am hoping that this type of movement will help bring back an awareness so that I can run and function more smoothly and effortlessly. I intend to work with a practitioner: Charlie Murdach at 4seasonsfitness in Portsmouth. Charlie is a Feldenkrais practioner but also a marathoner, an Ironman, and an Ultramarathoner (Western States 100) so I am happy that a runner will be working with me. I also intend to study up on my own.

The way I am going about this is by going back to a book I used a few years back called "Running with the Whole Body" by Jack Heggie. The lessons in this book are based on the Feldenkrais Method. I first tried using this book in 1996. I remember doing some of the exercises at the time I put up one of my best races ever as a Strider (59:46 for 10 miles at the Yankee Homecoming). It was one of my best summers of racing. Of course I was younger, but maybe the book helped contribute.

I took out the book a month ago and did one lesson. Yesterday I took it out again and did the ninth lesson on the feet. A couple of things jumped out at me. First was the recall of doing these before. Second, it was hard to do the lessons and find your place in the book. Third, the movements are very similar to Z-Health but on a different level. I found some links suggesting the resemblance to Z-Health. Both are mobility (or movement) programs, but also both work on retraining neuromuscular patterns. Finally, the repeating of proper movement patterns reminded me of the SAID principle used in Z-Health. The acronym SAID stands for "Specific Adaptation to Imposed Demands". In Z-Health it is defined as, "The body always adapts to exactly what it does." In school, I use the term, "Perfect practice makes perfect" with my students. If you practice something the wrong way, you are just training yourself to do that in the same way. I am continually practicing running wrong.

When I teach vocabulary at school, I don't just give my students a word and tell them to look it up in a dictionary and write down the definition and put it in a sentence. I know many teachers do this, however the students don't "learn" vocabulary this way. I use and define the word in as many ways as I can. The general rule is that a person has to be exposed to a word over 30 times before they "own" it. During the week my students and I will try to use the vocabulary words as often as we can (we even keep tallies at times) to reach that goal of getting them to own the word. It takes my guidance and their practice. I noticed that there was a lot of practice of the movements when doing the lessons in the book. I think the guidance and the "perfect" practice are pretty important.

Here are some links that mention Z-Health and Feldenkrais:
"A Year of Feldenkrais Training" Mike T. Nelson is mentioned here. I read his blog (see over on left). I would like to know more of his thinking on this.
"To Go Harder, Go Easier"
"Movement Precision"
"Learning Feldenkrais Exercises at Home"
Interesting comments on understanding joint mobility and joint coordination.

I think Z-Health has a lot of potential. I have all the Z-Health DVDs, but I have yet to visit a practitioner. A lot of the Z-Health exercises are done (particularly in the beginning levels) with the person standing with a straight posture. I know when it gets up in levels there is more movement involved, however as far as I can tell, Z-Health for the distance runner has not been done yet. I am talking about the coordination of movements, not just the movements around a joint. I am seeing that Feldenkrais seems more focused on the coordination of movements around full body movements. I think this coordination is exactly what I need. Maybe a Z-Health practitioner can teach you similar things, but it is not just one joint, or one muscle, or isolated movement that is my problem, it is how all the movements relate to each other.

Anyhow, I didn't like looking constantly at the book (I have an earlier version than the one Amazon sells). So I went online to see if I could find a video or audio lessons from the book. There was no video but I found you can buy the CD at Amazon: Running With The Whole Body™: Your Guide to Running Faster and Farther — Based on the work of Dr. Moshe Feldenkrais. I wasn't sure if it was just a rereading of the book or if it was the actual lessons, but I downloaded the lessons onto my iPod. I did one lesson yesterday and one today. This is the way to do it! It is perfect! A video would take your concentration off what you are doing and you don't need it. The audio, particularly now with iPods, allows you do do the lessons in private (my family couldn't figure out why I kept walking around the house). These are lessons and the tone and pacing are perfect. You "are the video" in a sense as Jack Heggie gets you to pinpoint in your body what you are supposed to be looking for, feeling, or doing. When reading the book you tend to rush through the examples and exercises trying to get to the "payoff" moves. On the audio, there is no rushing and you become very aware of what you are usually not very aware of. I was surprised at some of the things that I noticed. There are 7 lessons that are about 40 minutes each. I have done two. The audio is defininitely the best way to follow the movements. I still read the book for additional thoughts before and after each lesson, but it just doesn't flow as well when you try out the movements as you read.

The first lesson was on the feet, the hips, and shoulders. You do a lot of walking around noticing what your hips and shoulders do as you walk. My right side wasn't bad except my hip did not do much. However on my left side, I could feel the hip twisting (I knew it did that) but strangely enough my shoulder moved the wrong direction. Instead of moving opposite of the left hip, it moved forward when the leg and hip moved forward. Weird! This helps explains how my left side always feels rotated forward of my right side. Then I was guided through exaggerated motions of walking with the legs, hips, and shoulders working in the proper way. It was very revealing and I also flashed back to doing these exercises (although not understanding the precision so well) thirteen years ago.

I did not do any running yesterday as I was banged up from my tumble during the race on Monday. Today I did the second lesson on connections in the back. This concentrates on the lower back (where I am very tight and stiff). By doing slow and gentle movements and explorations, I was able to get a better understanding on how movement of the legs and arms come from the torso. My back also loosened up an awful lot. It was a couple inches closer to the floor when laying flat after the exercises than before.

I wanted to try out what running would feel like so at exactly 12:00 on this very hot day I went out for a run. I tried to put some of the learning into place. I noticed a lot of things. My left side needed a whole lot of concentration, and I was running very differently trying to engage that shoulder. I felt very fluid (but not my normal) when I got things closer to correct. When I did, my stride became longer and more balanced. My hips were sitting completely different in their sockets (or it felt that way). I wasn't collapsing on my left side, in fact it felt like it was elevating. It was hard to keep this form and it took some concentration. If I didn't get things right with the left shoulder I could feel the pinching in my inner hip flexor against the bones of my hip. When I was done, I looked at my watch and I had my fastest time on this (my normal 8 mile loop) in the past couple months (and it was the hottest weather I have run in this year- getting all sweated up felt great!).

It looks like I may be on to some positive ways to get my stride back. It will take a long time I am sure, to relearn what I have forgot, but it makes more sense to work on how I run than just working on specific muscles, pains, or movements in isolation. I guess this is why it is called "running with the whole body".

What I want to picture is a straight backbone with arms and shoulder coordinated and the legs, torso, and arms rotated around that backbone. There is a tall and balanced posture that I know can be much more efficient. Strangely enough my posture has improved when I am standing or sitting. My parents used to be all over me because of my poor posture years ago. Last week they told me I need to teach one of my kids better posture like I have learned. So I guess it is noticeable to at least my mom and dad. But that is a standing static posture. I need to get the coordinated posture for running.

Speaking of which, I always watch the great European track meets (and American meets) when they are on TV or the internet (where you find them most often-at least until the World Championships). American women's middle distance running has been the revelation this summer. Maggie Vessey has been the biggest surprise (out of many). It was fun watching her win the Prefontaine classic 800m and then this "nobody" won her first major European race. But she was still chasing the A Standard to make the World Championship team. Yesterday, with two days to spare, she ran the fastest women's 800m in the world this year. Watch how tall she is when she runs and how straight, tall, and still her head is. She is a kicker who magically appears on the inside behind Christine Wurth-Thomas near the end of the race. That is some fine running and a super time of 1:57.84 (7th fastest American ever).

Recovering From Running

This is not the post I really want to make. I am finding it harder and harder to run. I believe I have to adjust the way I look at running. On reflection, I cannot get my body to do the serious training that I would like to do. In fact, I can't get it to accept mediocre training anymore, either. More to the point, I can't even get a successful run in much any more. My mind tells me what I would like to do as a runner, however my body is firmly telling me, "No more!"

I have not been able to run on any schedule this year, as I keep going through cycles of injury. I have had three times where I have missed about a week of running due to spasms in my left mid back. I have had a calf injury. I have also had the aches and pains of running through constant misalignment.

Strangely enough, I have also had the best year for having my back feeling healthy as I have had more "good" days where I have no pains as I go through my daily life then I have had in about 25 years. That is what I should really be focusing in on, if I were smart! I figure that is due to my working so hard on various things to try to get control and keep running. It has been a very successful year in that regard, except the "good" running days are far and few between. Running seems to stress things more.

I felt great overall when my calf was hurt (except I couldn't run) last week. Sunday night my hips went off again, and I couldn't sleep at all. I did the Mine Falls Trail 5 miler, but my whole left side was not working right and I was very unbalanced. That night I couldn't sleep again as I spent most of the night trying to work out the kinks that I get when the hip is "stuck". They go from head to toe and everything feels pinched or something on one side so that I can't be comfortable at all. That night I tried everything again. Nothing worked. Finally, I tried a move that seemed to work. I stood up straight and pushed one leg into the ground, and pulled the other leg straight up into the hip and lower back. When I tilted to the side a bit, all the kinks went away, and I was fine. However, the lower back, next to the backbone felt weak. I am not sure, whether I just activated a muscle or maybe "shifted" a vertebra back into position. It somewhat "felt" like that is what happened. My pains were gone, but my lower back felt "gimpy", almost like it might go into spasms again. It was a worrisome feeling.

I had come to a decision earlier in the week that I am unable to "healthily" get the miles in anymore and so I established, in my mind, that for now I would keep my runs short and not worry about missing so many days. Maybe I would have to work on what I could get out of the sport of running. I am not sure how, but somehow I will have to "act my age" and realize I can't run as much any more if I want my body to feel good and be healthy.

I went down to the Cape for a few days with my family. Feeling good from the back "move" I went for a 4 mile run. It felt good and I ran hard. Later that night I was out of sorts again. The next day I tried to run again and it was very unpleasant. My hips got worse and I was unable to run the next two days.

So how do you exit from being a runner after 35+ years of running?

I guess I have to agree with the physical therapist that told me about 10 years ago that, "You are so made for running, and yet you are so not made for running." I have tried all sorts of therapies, stretching routines, mobility exercises, strength exercises, and have read everything I can trying to get my body in balance.



While in Falmouth this week, I rode my kickbike while my family cycled on the "Shining Sea" bike paths in Falmouth. I saw hundreds of cyclists and quite a few runners. I saw most runners plodding along in all sorts of degrees of bad posture and form. Most of it was not pretty. I don't want to become one of those runners, barely making it down the road in a shuffling sort of run. I recall seeing another runner last year on the same paths, shuffling at a snail's pace on the bike paths. I could have walked faster without trying. He was barely moving. I remembered that runner from back almost 30 years ago, when he was a decent local runner who could run quite effortlessly all around town. That is not what I want to become!

Heck I was even having a rough time walking comfortably through the woods out to the "Knob" off of Quisset Harbor. It was only about 1/4 mile of walking but I could not even get comfortable doing that.



I guess I have to adjust. I am trying to look at my running now as something to do when I can without overdoing it. I hope to keep running races and track workouts, but will have to rethink about marathons and even half marathons (what to do about Applefest this year?). If I don't feel like running, I should bike, do some kettlebells, or something else to get rid of energy. Trying to run 3-4 days a week maybe better than trying to run every day (particularly when I have been unable to run that much anyhow this year!).

I need to run on the dirt trails more rather than the road. I need to run faster (I usually feel better) than run farther.

I do envy other runners who seem to only get the basic injuries. At least you know with a bad knee or other injury what it it and after a time it should heal. I think my body is just too "adaptable": rather than getting an overuse injury, it would shift and change balance to keep out of pain. It is just that my body had adapted to all these weird compensations and I can't get it back to the free and natural way of running. There is no connection between my shoulders, arms, back, hips, knees, ankles, and feet. It seems everything works independently instead of together. Particularly one side works different than the other. No amount of foam rolling, stretching, strengthening, or other techniques seems to be able to "retrain" my brain and body back to a smoother running form. Basically, I guess my body has "forgot" how to run. Sure some people think I can go fast for my age, but that is more will power and just getting my body in any way possible to the finish line. So I keep running with these weird movements and patterns that are just running down my body.

So I need to slow down! but I am not sure how.

And then Matt Metzger writes about something he is trying on his blog called Feldenkrais. I have heard about this "movement" therapy before. It is used as the basis for the movement in the book "Running with the Whole Body" by Jack Heggie that I have used to some improvement in the past.

I found an interesting article from a Feldenkrais teacher named Steve Hamlin called "Running and Skeletal Alignment". He writes:

Repetitive, forceful-shearing-pounding on all the weight bearing joints - when alignment is faulty - is a great stress on the body, the brain and the psyche. It can certainly be considered a form of self-abuse if is long continued, using lots of will power and determination to heroically push through injuries.

Yeah that is me. I think it is those "shearing" forces that I am constantly battling. He talks about the breakdown in alignment for many people today. Of course, he recommends using Feldenkrais to learn how to move naturally again, which will help with alignment. For a quick fix, he recommends "The Malalignment Syndrome" DVDs (these are not Feldenkrais). I have found these on my own earlier in the year. I found them helpful, but I think I tend to overdue the movements and push too hard. I would need someone to show me how to do these properly and where can you go for that?

He then predicts that if you run through your malalignments that:

If you ignore this and in spite of malalignment push ahead with will power to run at any cost - (as I did for many years) to lose weight, or get fit, or to get the "runner's high" - I think I can predict how it will be for you:
•You'll be puzzled why some other people seem to run much faster, easier, with apparently no effort.

•You'll begin to get "down" on yourself since you'll think your will power is insufficient, your technique is flawed, or something else must be wrong with you (actually you'll be right, there).

•You'll find that it continually takes will power to make yourself run. You won't ever fully come to a place where you really enjoy it, and enthusiastically want to do it. That's because an innate wisdom in your body knows you are hurting yourself.

•If you compete, your times will be mostly mediocre. You may have a few bright moments, good days. You can easily develop an inferiority complex from this.

•The more you increase your workouts, the harder you try, the more you will be disabled by "setbacks" - various inexplicable injuries.
•You and/or your coach will think you are injury prone.
•It may seem that your ligaments and tendons are prone to injury - while actually they may be fine, it just that the structural malalignment puts a tremendous stress upon them.
•The "runner's high" will be mostly why you run. That nice feeling after a long run, all those endorphins, let you feel very comfortable in your body - for awhile. It's something you don't have at any other time, so it is natural you'd become addicted to it. Then you have to run again. This is a particularly vicious syndrome, partly because it is usually unconscious. Feldenkrais work will quickly (or, it may take some years, to be realistic) show you how to create amazing comfort in your body, without running. Then, if you do run, you can do it for the right reasons.

OK! Lots of those predictions are so true of me. I am not sure if there is an answer, except to be smart for a change. Maybe I will look into Feldenkrais, but I have the feeling that I would be a long term case, and I don't have the money to do a big program like this. Whether it works or not, I am not sure. I know from what I read, that it matches my feelings about my body not knowing how to move properly anymore.

Everything I have tried has not really worked. My body innate pattern of running is just not changing. This is last July's Ultimate Runner.


Rich Blake took this photo this year and things have not changed much.


The left femur still rotates in, the left foot twists out and my shoulders and hips are not aligned. I don't know if anything can fix it any more. If I had assurances that Feldenkrais or any other method could permanently get back my old running form, I would certainly give it a try.