Archives for January 2010

Barefoot and Minimalist Running: An Opinion from Marathon Sports

Daniel Lieberman’s (and colleagues) new article about barefoot running in Nature has stirred the pot once again about the pros/cons of minimalist running.  While many of the popular media articles that have come out read similarly, a member of my local running club passed along a newsletter article from Marathon Sports that was quite thoughtful, […]

NPR News Story on Daniel Lieberman’s Barefoot/Minimalist Running Research

NPR weighed in yesterday on the new article in Nature on barefoot/minimalist running published by Daniel Lieberman and his research team.  Here is the link to the text version of the story:  http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=123031997 Below is audio from their news story: And here is counterpoint to the results of Lieberman et al.’s work.

Barefoot and Minimalist Running: Science Weighs In

Today saw the publication of new scientific research looking at the biomechanics of running in a barefoot vs. shod condition. The article, titled “Foot strike patterns and collision forces in habitually barefoot versus shod runners,” was written by Dr. Daniel Lieberman from Harvard University and several colleagues at other institutions.  Here is the abstract of […]

Runblogger Runcast #8 – Avoiding "The Wall" at the 2010 Disney Marathon

A few weeks ago I ran the 2010 Disney Marathon in a PR time of 3:24:49 (read my Disney Race Report here), and it was the first of my five marathons in which I managed to avoid bonking (check out these split charts from my five marathons). Runblogger Runcast #8 discusses the reasons that I […]

Gear Review: La Sportiva Wildcat GTX Trail Running Shoe

A few months ago I received a package of winter running gear from Backbone Media, which is a marketing company that represents a number of outdoor gear manufacturers.  Included in that package was a pair of La Sportiva Wildcat GTX trail shoes.  Before I get into my review, here is the “formal” description of the […]

Brooks Mach 12 XC Flat – Now Available

The Running Warehouse Blog just put up a very nice post about Brooks Running’s 2010 running shoe lineup.  While the entire post is worth a read, given my more minimalist running shoe tendencies, I was excited to see the details on the forthcoming Brooks Mach 12 cross-country racing flat.  Here’s what Running Warehouse has to […]

Guidelines for Weight Loss Monday’s (#WLMon) on Twitter

Image via Wikipedia A lot of so-called Twitter “experts” have published “do’s and don’ts” guides for the on-line social networking service.  Among the things I frequently see listed as a “don’t” is posting of your workout data (here’s an example from The Oatmeal). Quite to the contrary, I use Twitter almost exclusively to connect with […]

Exercise Science Podcast

Exercise Science, Exercise Physiology, Biology of Sports and Exercise – regardless of what you call it, this podcast is all about the relationship between exercise and the human body. Mostly, it consists of lectures given in my Biology of Sports and Exercise Class at Saint Anselm College, but I may add article commentary, student content, […]

Vibram Fivefingers Posts

Over the past 6-8 months or so I’ve become a big fan of running at least once a week in the Vibram Fivefingers shoes. Given their minimalist style (i.e., no cushioning), I have found them to be a phenomenal tool to use for strenghtening of the lower legs and feet, as well as for helping […]

Brooks DNA: Cool Commercials

Brooks Running recently announced the launch of Brooks DNA, “an innovative, first-of-its-kind cushioning system that adapts to the unique needs of each runner.” The intention of this post is not so much to highlight the details of this new technology, but rather to post a couple of cool commercials that Brooks has released regarding DNA.  […]

Running Abe’s to Burn Donuts: How On-Line Silliness Translates into Real-World Motivation Thanks to dailymile

I’ve blogged on several occasions about my love for Twitter and dailymile as on-line sites that provide phenomenal motivation to keep me running. That motivation takes many forms, from the direct support of fellow runners, to the self-inspired desire to put in extra miles or a harder workout to live up to the bar set […]

The Cylmb – Great Deals on Outdoor Gear

Quick post here – I recently joined a site called The Clymb, which is a member-only site that offers some pretty great deals on outdoor/active gear.  I haven’t purchased anything from them yet, but they have several day sales focused on only a single brand/product.  For example, they are currently selling Camelbak hydration products at […]

Runblogger Runcast #7: The Evolution of Distance Running in Humans

Runblogger Runcast #7 is an audio podcast of a lecture I gave to my Exercise Physiology class on the evolution of distance running in humans. In this lecture I outline the hypothesis recently put forth by researchers Dennis Bramble and Daniel Lieberman that humans beings have evolved anatomical and physiological characteristics that make us outstanding […]

Brooks Green Silence Now Available at Brooksrunning.com

Update 2/23/2010: I have now own and have posted a full review of the Brooks Green Silence. Just a quick post to announce that the Brooks Green Silence racing shoe is now available for purchase on the Brooks Running website. Here’s the description from Brooks: “Make an eco-statement with the Green Silence racing flat. Each […]

2010 Disney Half-Marathon: Race Report from Team in Training Runner Matt Allen

A few months ago I posted about one of my running friends on Twitter, Matt Allen (@mattallenphoto), who was preparing to run the 2010 Disney Marathon with Team in Training, a fundraising group that is part of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. His goal was to raise $4000 to contribute to the efforts of the […]