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Run to Stay Young

well.blogs.nytimes.com

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Re: Run to Stay Young

#71

Post by cha5e »

nicklaf wrote: post #48
melling wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I tried jogging over the summer for the first time in years, but my feet started hurting. It would take days to recover. I gave up after 2 months. It feels good but I seem prone to injury.

According to Wikipedia, 10% of all people get what's called "Plantar Fasciitis" at some point. In my late teens, I began to have very bad bouts of this syndrome, whenever I sprinted. The more I ignored the pain, the longer it would take to heal. In my early 20's, I suddenly took up running--eventually ratcheting up my route to 7 miles--after being somewhat sedentary for a couple years. The result of this was perhaps…

Plantar Fasciitis is actually a fairly simple thing to fix if you're on top of things early. It's very possible you were wearing sprinting spikes that had a negative heel-to-toe drop and lengthened the fascia more than you were ready for.

For me just changing shoes with a 6mm difference in heel-to-toe drop was enough to create the same problem. I woke up one morning with a pain that felt like a nail being driven up into my heel. I spent about an hour doing deep tissue massage on my arch and calves - did a workout the same day and didn't have any issues the next morning.

You probably don't need quite as much support as you might think if you were willing to slowly remove support which would strengthen/stretch the muscles around the heel.

Re: Run to Stay Young

#72

Post by imanaccount247 »

cdoxsey wrote: post #65

In 1977 Jim Fixx published the best-selling book "The Complete Book of Running" which popularized running for sport, and purported to demonstrate its health benefits - including increased longevity. 7 years later he died of a heart attack while jogging at the age of 52. His death doesn't mean running is a bad idea - a single anecdote is statistically insignificant - but perhaps it can remind us that nothing we do can…

>How much of the received wisdom about healthy lifestyles that you were taught has been shown to be completely wrong?

Virtually none of it.

>I don't doubt that in 3 years there will be another New York times article, demonstrating why running is actually terrible for you, and you should never do it no matter what age you are.

I do doubt that. I doubt it very much.

>Is eating an organic strawberry in the hopes of living longer really any different than performing a ritualistic dance in the hopes of bringing rain?

That seems like really desperately grasping at ways to dismiss things you don't like. Exercise is good, even if you don't want it to be.

Re: Run to Stay Young

#73

Post by seanmcdirmid »

cha5e wrote: post #70
seanmcdirmid wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not on your knees. Downhill running (and hiking) is also more anaerobic (stopping your self from falling) than aerobic (working to move up).

You may have just misspoken but it'd be almost impossible to get any anaerobic training out of downhill running. You might be doing some muscle strengthening though.

You can definitely get an anaerobic workout from downhill hiking. Running on pavement not so much, but you do use muscles to keep from falling down.

Re: Run to Stay Young

#74

Post by imanaccount247 »

nicklaf wrote: post #48
melling wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I tried jogging over the summer for the first time in years, but my feet started hurting. It would take days to recover. I gave up after 2 months. It feels good but I seem prone to injury.

According to Wikipedia, 10% of all people get what's called "Plantar Fasciitis" at some point. In my late teens, I began to have very bad bouts of this syndrome, whenever I sprinted. The more I ignored the pain, the longer it would take to heal. In my early 20's, I suddenly took up running--eventually ratcheting up my route to 7 miles--after being somewhat sedentary for a couple years. The result of this was perhaps…

I had the exact opposite experience. I have no idea what model my asics were, but some super awesome gel nonsense. And I was in constant pain and kept giving up. Someone convinced me to try minimalist shoes and in two weeks everything was better.

>since it is often when I am outside, running, when I come up with the best ideas.

There's quite a lot of support for the idea that walking helps people think better.

Re: Run to Stay Young

#75

Post by cscurmudgeon »

cdoxsey wrote: post #65

In 1977 Jim Fixx published the best-selling book "The Complete Book of Running" which popularized running for sport, and purported to demonstrate its health benefits - including increased longevity. 7 years later he died of a heart attack while jogging at the age of 52. His death doesn't mean running is a bad idea - a single anecdote is statistically insignificant - but perhaps it can remind us that nothing we do can…

A little bit of searching shows that "healthiness" does in fact lead to longer lives.

Also, not all religious people do ritualistic rain dances. Newton, Godel etc were all completely rational creatures.

I have a feeling that you are just saying "these grapes are sour".

No matter how sore you feel things like yoga, meditation, good living and exercise contribute to better quality of life and longer lifespans. Just go to scholar.google.com and spend some time researching.

Re: Run to Stay Young

#76

Post by justrudd »

swah wrote: post #37
justrudd wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If anyone wants a quick mobility routine... http://phraktured.net/molding-mobility.html I do a full round of the mobility work (15 reps and not the warmup section) every morning within 15 minutes of getting out of bed. It has done wonders for my mobility, and my attitude in the morning (not a morning person and doing this makes me less grumpy).

Another exercise that is in vogue these days is foam rolling. I'm trying to see how it helps, but I'm not sure what kinds of changes I'd notice and after how many sessions.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myofascial_release

I always stretched after every workout, but it was half-hearted because I was tired.

Only in the past 3 months have I gotten serious about it. And part of my stretching routine is foam rolling. I'll stretch, feel some tightness, roll the area, and re-stretch. Usually on the second stretch, I can go deeper into the stretch.

but it is the most painful part of my workout. I've probably cursed a little more than I should when I roll my IT bands.

Re: Run to Stay Young

#77

Post by GigabyteCoin »

cdoxsey wrote: post #65

In 1977 Jim Fixx published the best-selling book "The Complete Book of Running" which popularized running for sport, and purported to demonstrate its health benefits - including increased longevity. 7 years later he died of a heart attack while jogging at the age of 52. His death doesn't mean running is a bad idea - a single anecdote is statistically insignificant - but perhaps it can remind us that nothing we do can…

>nothing we do can guarantee a long and healthy life.

I don't think anybody who works out is under the assumption that they will live to be 130+ years old.

We're all very well aware of babies with Cancer these days. Anything can happen.

But one thing's for certain, being active certainly prolongs life. That much I think we can all be sure of at this point.

How many true couch potatoes do you know that have made it past the ripe old age of 90? 80 even?

Re: Run to Stay Young

#78

Post by ams6110 »

soperj wrote: post #16
TulliusCicero wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It seems like the distinguishing factor is intensity, so it's likely you could substitute in some other higher-intensity workout that may be easier on the joints, like swimming.

For my money, skating is easily the easiest on joints for high intensity exercise.

Falling on the ice is pretty rough though. If you're starting out, wear hockey pants and elbow pads. And maybe a helmet.

Re: Run to Stay Young

#79

Post by kaitai »

cdoxsey wrote: post #65

In 1977 Jim Fixx published the best-selling book "The Complete Book of Running" which popularized running for sport, and purported to demonstrate its health benefits - including increased longevity. 7 years later he died of a heart attack while jogging at the age of 52. His death doesn't mean running is a bad idea - a single anecdote is statistically insignificant - but perhaps it can remind us that nothing we do can…

Eat your organic strawberry because it tastes good, and because you don't have to envision farm workers being sprayed by pesticides from planes when you take a nice big bite. Run because you enjoy it (and maybe it's good for you). Use that handwavy statistic for dinner-party justification of things you like anyway, like red wine, chocolate, butter, and broccoli.

You're right that nothing we can do will guarantee a long and healthy life. If nothing else, we could be hit by a drunk or texting driver while crossing the street. So enjoy the strawberry for the taste.

Re: Run to Stay Young

#80

Post by ronjouch »

cdoxsey wrote: post #65

In 1977 Jim Fixx published the best-selling book "The Complete Book of Running" which popularized running for sport, and purported to demonstrate its health benefits - including increased longevity. 7 years later he died of a heart attack while jogging at the age of 52. His death doesn't mean running is a bad idea - a single anecdote is statistically insignificant - but perhaps it can remind us that nothing we do can…

"Nothing we do can guarantee a long and healthy life" it true, and shit happens. But running (or swimming, hiking or ) are not just a fad, and none made this promise. Their only promise is to exercise some vital functions, in a form of body maintenance, and maybe/even pleasure. You without a doubt believe exercising your brain (through reading, coding, etc.) is a sound occupation, why not your body?

Truth is, you aren't much without it. Stephen Hawkins might be able to think and write wonderful essays while occupying a severely diminished body, but you might not. I've seen people sinking into their growing disabilities due to lack of exercise, and I myself suffered from physical traumas (severe back pain, hernia), which seriously impacted my psychological stability and self-confidence.

Take care of your body, it will take care of you. Haruki Murakami has a wonderful book about body and mind, and their equilibrium, called What I Talk About When I Talk About Running [1], I very much recommend it.

[1] http://www.amazon.ca/What-Talk-About-When-Running/dp/0385681...

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