I have a confession to make: I love my Fitbit. I’m actually a little bit addicted to it. The little guy does a good job letting me know when I’ve been a sedentary slob – a run-less day sitting at my computer will typically net me only a few thousand steps, which is my indicator […]
Archives for February 2014
How Running Saved the Life of an Olympian: Lynn Jennings’ Story
February 19, 2014 By 28 Comments
I met Lynn Jennings for the first time last summer. She had emailed me out-of-the-blue earlier in the year to ask if I might be interested in coming to Craftsbury, VT in July to be a coach/speaker at one of the annual adult running camps. It’s not every day that you get an email from […]
B2R Trail Performance Shoe: Guest Review by Christian Messerschmidt
February 18, 2014 By 18 Comments
I am writing this review of the brand new B2R Trail Performance shoe as I recover from a 50K trail race last weekend. In that race I broke two paramount rules of long-distance running: 1. “Do not go out too fast”- I did, hung with the lead pack for a while, and crashed and burned […]
Maximalist Running Shoes: Some Thoughts on the New “Trend” in Running
February 17, 2014 By 84 Comments
The new trend in running shoes is maximalism: beefed up shoes with lots of cushion. Maximalism was triggered by the growing popularity of shoes made by the brand Hoka One One. Hoka started as a niche brand within the trail ultrarunning community, and has expanded its line to include road shoes as well. I’ve posted […]
Unbroken Movie Preview: The Story of Louis Zamperini
February 17, 2014 By 6 Comments
My wife has been on my case for months to read Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption. The book, by Laura Hillenbrand (author of Seabiscuit), tells the story of Louis Zamperini, a runner who competed in the 5000m at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. The book tells the story of […]
Asics Super J33: How A Running Shoe Changes Barefoot Gait Mechanics
February 16, 2014 By 33 Comments
Runblogger Forum member Michael recently posted a video from Asics that features the Asics Super J33 running shoe. The Super J33 is kind of the stability version of the Gel Lyte33, a shoe that I like a lot. I bought the Super J33 as well for a review, but have not had a chance to […]
Rotating Running Shoes: Thoughts From Saucony
February 13, 2014 By 36 Comments
The concept of rotating shoes is one that I have written about many times, as have others in the running blogosphere. Yesterday I posted about how foot strike changes with running speed, and I touched on the fact that different shoes might thus be appropriate for different workouts. I’ve also written about a study that […]
Thou Shalt Not Laugh at a Fellow Runner
February 13, 2014 By 11 Comments
This week a video of a runner wiping out on a snowy street went viral – if you haven’t seen it yet have a look: I couldn’t help but laugh at the irony of the situation. I’ve been lucky so far this winter. Given the cold, we’ve had snow and ice on the sidewalks for […]
Effects of Running Speed on Foot Strike Patterns and Identification of Multiple Heel Strike Types
February 12, 2014 By 17 Comments
It’s becoming more and more clear based on existing research (and research coming soon) that foot strike patterns in running are influenced by a wide variety of factors. It’s not simply the case that humans use a single foot strike type under all conditions – factors like footwear, surface hardness, speed, and experience all seem […]
Magellan Echo Running Watch + iSmoothRun App Review: A Brilliant Combination
February 11, 2014 By 70 Comments
A few months ago my friend Sam stopped by the clinic for a run. Sam and I share a love for experimenting with running shoes, but I discovered that day that we also share a fascination with tech gadgets and iPhone apps. Sam had brought along a new watch that he was playing with, the […]
Brooks PureConnect 3 Review
February 10, 2014 By 30 Comments
When Brooks first announced their PureProject line of shoes back in 2011, I expected that the PureConnect would be my favorite shoe in the collection. It was the lightest of the bunch, and was billed as the maximal “feel” shoe among it’s PureProject brethren. I ordered a pair of the original PureConnects as soon as […]
Finding the Most Comfortable Running Shoe for You
February 7, 2014 By 35 Comments
It seems that one of the almost universally accepted maxims about finding the best running shoe for you is to choose the one that feels most comfortable on your feet for the type of running you intend to use it for. Another way this is often phrased is to choose the shoe that disappears on […]
Mizuno Wave Rider 17: Guest Review by Tyler Mathews
February 6, 2014 By 16 Comments
I have a shoe rotation that includes minimalist, performance, racing flats, and traditional trainers. Of these, I put the bulk of my mileage on traditional trainers – I use them on all of those long, slow, boring runs that nobody really cares to hear about. I typically put in around 80 miles a week, with only about 20-30 […]
Scott Trail Rocket: Guest Review by George Harris
February 5, 2014 By 9 Comments
The Trail Rocket is a new racing trail shoe from Scott running. For those of you who don’t know about Scott, they are an outdoor sports company (skiing, mountain biking, motorsports) company that has been in the running business since 2006. Their shoes have evolved considerably (in a good way!) over the past few years, […]
If You Run With a Dog, Watch This!
February 5, 2014 By 19 Comments
My most frequent running partner is a black lab named Jack. He loves to run. Our mileage together has been slowly creeping back up over the past few weeks, and just as happens to me, his craving for the run seems to grow the more frequently he gets out. The moment I grab a pair […]
