LVRS NEWSLETTER
Earlier in the year I started a weekly newsletter here at LV Running Scene. Each Thursday an email arrives in your inbox with  information and news updates that you won’t find on the website or Facebook page. This is a perfect way for you to keep up-to-date with local running happenings, especially when you might not make it over to the website on a regular basis. To see an example of one of these newsletters click this link. In the future there will be special deals available only to those on the mailing list so be sure to sign up today.

GROUP RUNS
Making Strides, Tues. 5:30 pm
Finish Line Group Run, Tues. 6:00 pm
Aardvark After Dark, Wed. 5:30 pm
Bear Creek Trail Run, Thurs. 6:30 pm
LVRR Thursday Run, Thurs. 6:30 pm
Breakfast Club Runners, Sat. 7:30 am
LVRR Saturday Run, Sat. 7:00 am
Run the Stairs, Sat. 9:00 am
LVRR Sunday Run, Sun, 7:00 am

Visit the Where To Run page for more info and locations of group runs.

WEEKEND RACES
Saturday
ODDyssey Half Marathon – Less than 90 spots remain!
5k for Education & Fitness – Lehighton
Together for Derek 5k – Nazareth
Run for Their Lives 5k – Souderton

Sunday
Charlie Horse Half Marathon

Monday
Tortoise & Hare 5k – Wind Gap

Have a safe Memorial Weekend and enjoy your runs!

A couple days later I wrote an article (“Is Breaking The Rules Really That Important?“) about race bandits in which I outline reasons why officially registering for a race is important and offer suggestions to help put an end to race bandits. A couple of you comment with excellent points.

Back-pedal to May 14th, 2010: Virginia. Robert Fecteau bandits the Filthy 5k Mud Run and becomes injured while working his way through one of the mud pits. He is now partially paralyzed from his chest down and has minimal use of his arms. He is currently litigating against race officials as well as Road Runners Club of America for negligence for the sum of $30 million.

Thoughts?

Volunteers are needed to assist with:
-Parking
-Registration
-Course Marshalls
-Water Stations
-Food Tent
-Set up and Tear down

Please follow this link to register as a NON-RUNNING volunteer: https://gotr.diakon.org/Lehigh_5k_Volunteer.asp. All volunteers receive a t-shirt and post race snacks. Please consider joining us!

Help us spread the word! Please share this email with your co-workers, friends and family.

Girls on the Run of Lehigh County
www.diakon.org/gotr
888-499-2699

You’ve read about speed workouts and understand that adding speed to your regular running routine
can boost more than just your performance. Speed can help with efficiency, confidence, form, and
calories burned. But the right approach is necessary in order to stay injury free. Keep these 7 rules in
mind when adding speed into your routine.

1. Make sure you have enough miles under your belt before adding in speed. You should be
running consistently 3-4 times per week for at least 2 months. Adding speed too quickly
may result in injury if you don’t establish a good running base.

2. Determine your course. Speed training takes some preparation. Your usual running route
may be an option, but think about things like sidewalk cracks, traffic, pot holes, uneven
grassy surfaces, etc. Running slower allows you to be in control of avoiding a trip or fall, but
when concentrating on a faster pace you may not see one of these “obstacles” and may be
at risk for stumbling.

3. Warm up. Your body needs some time to get ready to move quicker. Your muscles are
going to use more oxygen during speed workouts. If you start too quickly too soon, your
body will be done before you start! Ease into your speed and prepare your mind and body
to go faster.

4. Don’t start too fast. Add one speed workout per week for a while until your body is ready
to do two speed workouts per week. Also, you should probably cap speed workouts to 3 per
week if you’re running 6 days per week. Your body won’t respond to more than that.

5. Focus on form. Sometimes your mind is focused on running fast and your arms start to flail
and your legs start to shuffle. If you feel that your running is getting too “sloppy”, then slow
down just enough to be able to maintain proper form.

6. Cool down. After you’ve done some speed, make sure you do some slow running or walking
before calling it a day. You’ll find that if you don’t cool down, getting out of the car after
your speed sessions will be difficult. The body needs to cool down just as much as needs to
warm up.

7. Take a rest day! When you begin adding speed into your routine, your body will need
adequate rest a day or two after your first few sessions. You’re more likely to stay injury
free when you listen to your body and take rest days.

Personally, I always furrowed my eyebrows at the notion that Skechers Shape-ups could actually tone your legs simply by wearing them around town. I mean, I have put in a lot of hours and miles to get my legs into shape. I’m sure you have, too.

So it didn’t surprise me much when I read a recent article that Skechers agreed to pay $40 million to settle allegations by federal officials for false advertising. Skechers mislead consumers about the health benefits of their Shape-ups, promising more weight loss and toner legs than when regular fitness shoes were worn.

Consumers who bought the shoes should go to www.ftc.gov/skechers. Besides Shape-ups, Skechers also made deceptive claims about its Resistance Runner, Toners, and Tone-ups shoes, the FTC argues, and. Consumers who bought these “toning” shoes will likewise be eligible for refunds either directly from the FTC or through a court-approved class action lawsuit.

Skechers will continue to produce their shoes which have sold for between $60-100 a pair.

Reebok was fined less than a year ago for a similar reason.

More than 7 million women finished road races in 2011. This is a record high according to Running USA. This huge number makes it nearly unfathomable to imagine that things have ever been different, especially for younger females who have no memory of NOW marches or the women’s movement of the 60′s and especially 70′s. 40 years ago running was not considered appropriate for women. They were told their their uterus would fall out, women running were viewed as a public spectacle and the physical exhaustion wasn’t good for them.

The longest distance women were allowed to run (allowed!) was 800 meters. After the 1928 Olympics even that was taken away until the 1960 Olympics in Rome. It wasn’t until 1984 that women were granted permission to compete in the marathon distance at the Los Angeles Olympic Games.

How different today looks! Women are fast, strong, and offer some fierce competition even to men. There is a reason why the term “chicked” is commonly thrown around. Women the world over turn out to running events from roads to trails, and do well.

What does this growth of women in running mean to the industry? According to Running USA’s 2012 Women’s National Runner Survey, 65% of the female respondents spent more than $90 on running shoes last year and 80% spent $100 or greater on running apparel in the last 12 months. In both cases, these female core runners were more apt to buy from the local running store.

The growth of women-only running events is astounding. Here in the Lehigh Valley we have the Women’s 5k Classic, which last year saw it’s largest participation yet with over 5400 entrants. Elsewhere around the country popular women-exclusive races include the Disney Princess Half Marathon, More/Fitness Women’s Magazine Half Marathon, and the Nike Women’s Marathon & Half Marathon. Of course, there are many more out there as well.

I’d be remiss if I failed to include Girls on the Run, an organization that encourages young girls to develop self-respect and a healthy lifestyle through running.

The 2012 State of the Sport – Part I: Growth of Women’s Running examines the statistics and trends on women’s running today in the United States. The survey measures: Demographics, Sports Participation, Running History & Routine, Shoes, Events, Community Resources, Sports Apparel, Sponsor Recall, Health & Diet, Technology, Sports & Fitness Products, Food & Drink, and Travel. The full report will be available after June 1, 2012.

Good luck to all of you who have races scheduled this weekend! Run strong!!
Pocono Marathon
Dirty German
Dark and Dirty
Ambulance Chase 5k
Ironton Rail Trail 10k
Miles for Macri

CLINICS/SEMINARS
Newton Running Shoes & Natural Running Clinic
Location: Aardvark Sports Shop, Bethlehem
When: 6:00 pm Thursday, May 17

GROUP RUNS
Making Strides, Tues. 5:30 pm
Finish Line Group Run, Tues. 6:00 pm
Aardvark After Dark, Wed. 5:30 pm
LVRR Thursday Run, Thurs. 6:30 pm
Breakfast Club Runners, Sat. 7:30 am
LVRR Saturday Run, Sat. 7:00 am
Run the Stairs, Sat. 9:00 am
Bear Creek Trail Run, Thurs. 6:30 pm (5/24)

YOUTH RACES
Kids Summer Series hosted by Lehigh Valley Road Runners
Free bi-monthly running events for children ages 3-14, distances are based on age.
Where: LVRR Clubhouse, Lehigh Parkway
Starts: Saturday, May 19 at 10 am
Details: lvrr.org

NATIONAL BIKE TO WORK DAY: May 18, 2012
National Bike to Work Day started in 1956 by the League of American Bicyclists. May happens to be National Bike Month, and this week is National Bike Week. Bike Week/Bike Month celebrates the reasons we love to bike, whether that means physical fitness, being kind to the environment, or a combination of the two.

Learn more at www.bikeleague.org

Sounds like a great reason to hop on that bike this week!

Bike Workshops Coming Up!
June 1st

Traffic Skills 101
Basic Bike Education
Bicycle Commuter Support

Bethlehem Bicycle Cooperative, 14 W Raspberry St, Bethlehem

Classes by Scott Slingerland at Bethlehem Bicycle Cooperative in Bethlehem

You have each won an Icy Feet ice pack.

This drawing was held by Jill Forsythe in a fair and unbiased manner, using RANDOM.ORG’s Third-Party Draw Service. For details, please see the drawing’s records: Icy Feet GiveawayContest.

Sore feet? Do you suffer from plantar fasciitis, heel spurs, achey muscles in your feet?

Enter to win a free Icy Feet ice pack
from the makers of Icy Feet

Not sure what Icy Feet is? Go read my recent product review.

To be eligible to win you must enter a comment below. Each entrant may leave one comment only. All other comments from the same email or IP address will be removed.

Contest runs from May 14, 8:00 am through May 18, 5:00 pm.

Two winners will be selected to receive one Icy Feet ice pack.
Winner will be announced Monday, May 21.

No purchase necessary to enter or win this sweepstakes. One entry per person. Prizes are non-negotiable. Void where prohibited. All entries must be received by 4:59 p.m., May 18, 2012. Must be 18 years of age to enter. Winner will be selected at random using a third party draw service. Click here for the Official Rules. Lehigh Valley Running Scene is the operator of this sweepstake.

For more information about Icy Feet visit the website today, www.icyfeet.com.

I’ve been using frozen bags of corn and peas to ice those hard-to-get spots on my ankles and feet; someone has finally created a great foot-specific ice pack for us runners! Enter, Craig Snyder.

Craig had suffered from plantar fasciitis for far too long. Tired of messy substitutes he thought there must be a better way. He set about designing and manufacturing a product specific to feet to help relieve foot-related pains such as tendinitis, heel spurs, muscle strains, cramping, and of course, plantar fasciitis.

Icy Feet is now sold to 750 distributors nation-wide and it’s easy to see how this nifty foot-designed ice pack can catch on, especially for runners. I’ve been testing this product out thanks to Craig, and I would highly recommend you giving Icy Feet a try, especially if you suffer from any of the above mentioned ailments.

I can also foresee this product as an extremely useful recovery tool for anyone who has finished a marathon, or especially an ultra-marathon. It’s well-known that ultra-runners suffer from post-race foot swelling and this product could be an excellent solution for quieting down those screaming feet!

Preparing the Icy Feet cooling pack is very easy. Simply place it in the freezer, top-side down, for several hours until fully frozen.

There are two velcro straps which help secure this to your foot. It’s important to wear socks while icing your foot, failure to do so could cause frost-bitten feet and toes and you certainly wouldn’t want that, would you?

Concurrent with the R.I.C.E. method , prop your foot up on some pillows and ice for no more than 20 minutes at a time.

Cautions: Consult with a doctor prior to cryotherapy treatments. Do not walk or stand while Icy Feet is attached to your foot.

Icy Feet is sold individually, right or left foot.

Retail Price: $34.95 for 1 left or right foot ice pack; $59.95 for two

Visit www.icyfeet.com for more information or to order.

Icy Feet are also available for purchase at The Finish Line Running Store and Aardvark Sports Shop.

• Beets, as well as rhubarb and arugula, are rich sources of dietary nitrates, a compound that gets converted into nitric oxide (NO). Nitric oxide dilates blood vessels, lowers blood pressure, and allows a person to exercise using less oxygen. In a study, cyclists consumed beets pre-ride and then three hours later (when NO peaks), they rode in a time trial. Every cyclist improved (on average, 2.8%) as compared to the time trial with no beets. Impressive! The amount of nitrates in 7 ounces (200 grams) beets is an effective dose. How about enjoying  beets—or a bowl of borscht—before your next hard training session? (Experiment during training, not an event!)

• Fuel up while cooling down is a wise mantra for runners who exercise intensely. Immediate replenishment of carbohydrates and protein can decrease muscle soreness and inflammation, plus enhance muscle repair. What you eat before you compete can also effectively reduce post-exercise recovery. In a study, trained athletes consumed two 10.5-oz. bottles per day of tart cherry juice the week before an excruciating exercise test. They recovered faster and lost only 4% of their pre-test strength, compared with 22% loss in the group without cherry juice.

Tart cherries can help not only runners but also individuals who suffer from the pain and inflammation associated with fibromyalgia and osteoarthritis. Consuming tart cherry juice (two 10.5-ounce bottles/day for 10 days) reduced the muscle soreness associated with “fibro-flares” and enhanced recovery rate. Similar findings occurred in people suffering from osteoarthritis; drinking tart cherry juice for three weeks reduced arthritis pain.

Tart cherries (the kind used in baking pies, not the sweet cherries enjoyed as snacks) have both antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Other foods that have high antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity include raspberries, blackberries, and strawberries. Fruit smoothies, anyone?!

Research to date has studied the effects of drinking 21 ounces of tart cherry juice per day for 1 to 3 weeks. (That’s the equivalent of eating 90 tart cherries/day). More research will determine the most effective dose and time-course. Because 21 ounces of tart cherry juice adds 260 calories to one’s energy intake, runners will need to reduce other fruits or foods to make space for this addition to their daily intake.

• While sleeping used to be our most common “activity,” today it is sitting. The average person sits for 9 hours a day. Prolonged sitting is a risk factor for heart disease and creates health problems, including deep vein thrombosis  (as can happen on planes and during long computer games). Runners who exercise for one or two hours  each day still need do more daily activity and not just sit in front of a screen all day. How about a treadmill desk or “desk-ercycle”?

• While we may be sitting more than in past years, we’re sleeping less: 80% of teens report getting less than the recommended nine hours of sleep; nearly 30% of adults report sleeping less than 6 hours each day. Not good. Sleep is a biological necessity. It is restorative and helps align our circadian rhythms.

Sleep deprivation (less than five hours/night) erodes well being, has detrimental effects on health, and contributes to fat gain. When we become tired, ghrelin, a hormone that makes us feel hungry, becomes more active and we can easily overeat. Sleep deprivation is also linked with Type II diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease.

Sleep deprivation is common among athletes who travel through time zones. This can impact performance by disrupting their circadian rhythms and causing undue fatigue and reduced motivation. In comparison, extending sleep can enhance performance. A study involving basketball players indicates they shot more baskets and completed more free throws when they were well rested versus sleep deprived. For top performance, make sleep a priority!

• In a few communities in the world, an usually high number of people live to be older than 100 years. What happens in those communities that contributes to the longer life? Some factors include choosing a plant-based diet, rarely overeating, having a life filled with purpose and meaning, connecting with others in the community, moving naturally and/or socially (as in bike commuting and walking with family and friends), enjoying alcohol socially, in moderation, and not smoking. If you want to join the centenarians, take steps to re-create those life-enhancing practices!

Creating that life-extending culture has been done, to a certain extent, in Albert Lea, MN. The “Blue Zone” project included improving sidewalks and building walking paths around a lake. Restaurants supported the program by not bringing a bread basket automatically to customers, and not serving French fries (unless requested) with meals. These and many other environmental changes contributed to a healthier lifestyle that resulted in a 40% drop in the city employee healthcare costs over two years. Impressive, eh?

• Runners, as well as obese people, commonly struggle with the belief their body is not “good enough.” This struggle gets too little attention from health care providers who focus more on the medical concerns of heart disease, cancer, and hypertension.  Yet, whether you are lean or obese, having poor body image often coincides with having low self-esteem. This combination generates poor self-care.

In a five-year study with teens, low body satisfaction stimulated extreme and destructive dieting behaviors that led to weight gain, not weight loss. The same pattern is typical among many seemingly “healthy” runners. If you want help finding peace with your body, please seek help from a sports dietitian. Use SCAN’s referral network—www.SCANdpg.org—to help you find someone local. What are you waiting for?

Nancy Clark, MS, RD, CSSD (Board Certified Specialist in Sports Dietetics) counsels both casual and competitive athletes at her office in Newton, MA (617-795-1875). Her Sports Nutrition Guidebook and food guides for cyclists, new runners, and marathoners offer additional information. They are available at www.nancyclarkrd.com and sportsnutritionworkshop.com.