Monday, April 18, 2011

Longevity---Yours & Mine.......


The circumference of the Earth at the equator is 24, 902 miles. As of today I have run/cycled over 58, 998 miles. Twice done….working on the third.

My very 1st step took place in February, 1979. My very next step will be tomorrow…..somewhere in California. As I write these words I am in North Carolina.

I ran my very 1st marathon, the 4th Annual Marine Corps Marathon in November, 1979. I ran my last marathon on July 14, 2007…the Grandfather Mountain Marathon in Boone, NC. In between my 1st & my last I ran & completed 48 other marathons.

My marathon PR is: 2:58:17…..2nd Annual Twin Cities Marathon in Minneapolis, MN. I ran the very 1st TCM as well as the next 19 in a row.

Having stated all of the above, my point is that I have been blessed with a fair amount of running longevity. However, all of that was not by accident.

I weigh 215 pounds. I run in the Clydesdale divisions. I am over 6 feet tall. I am not a small & svelte 145 pounder. I pound….I plod….as I move forward with great effort. Gravity is not my friend.

I have worn sport orthotics to correct a natural leg imbalance. Yet that in itself was not the remedy that has allowed me to cincture plodding along all these years.

The sport podiatrist I saw many years ago suggested that the good majority of all leg injuries emanate from an unstable ankle and cause not only ankle injuries but knee as well as hip problems. He suggested that a stable ankle was the most effective way to run injury free. I have over 20 different pairs off running shoes. The same doctor suggested that we should not run on the same platform day-after-day. Not good--reinforces injuries! We also should not run exactly the same training course day in and day out. But we do as we are, for the most part, creatures of habit. Not good.

My feet do not see the same pair of shoes for at least two weeks time. I normally run six days a week. I also have a several pairs of shoes that I wear to work. Again, same concept. None of my shoes are high heeled shoes. My good friend the doctor again suggested that women did great harm to their Achilles tendons through wearing high heel shoes on a regular basis. Studies have shown that Achilles tendon shrinks & contracts when high heels are worn on a regular basis.

Bottom line on high heels: only wear for show & not go! Stop being a slave to fashionable trends.

After each of my runs I religiously stretch for at least 5 minutes. I stretch my hamstrings and Achilles tendons. Stretch while they are warm and they will not shrink & shorten. Good common sense.

Remember: you are what you eat. I read some good research a long time ago that suggested that eating a good portion of yogurt at breakfast each day made your bones stronger & increased longevity.


I prepare my cup with sliced fresh fruit, a topping of wheat germ and local honey on top. Local honey helps with your allergies. Think about that. What do bees do: pollinate. Gotta be local honey from local bees. It works. Tastes good too!


I also drink red wine in the evening as I believe that helps with longevity as well. Plus you tend to forget how hard your workout was after the second glass.

So there, in just over 500 words I shared a few things that have kept this very large model moving mile-after-mile for a long time now. Might work for you & might not. Point is that it might be worth a try if what you are doing now isn’t going so well.

With that I must end…..as it is time to visit with my good friend Dr. Zinfandel.


Run well my friends.... Runners Make Dust.....