Hello Everyone,

I know my blogs have been far and few between, but since I have gone from 50 States to 7 Continents, travel planning has gotten much more complicated and the trips require much more travel time.  My feeling at this point is if I am going to go that far I want to take the time to explore the Continent, rather than a quick 36-hour trip to a state.  So, I have decided to write short blogs more often on topics about why I run marathons and how I have been able to keep running them for 22 years.

So, with all of that said, Maria and I have set our sights on Rio for the next Marathon and to check South America off the list.  The Marathon is June 18^th, 2017.  We will spend a week there, and it will be just around the time of their winter solstice.  The temperature should be in the mid 70’s for a high and the course will mock the same course the Olympians used last summer.  So, unlike the training for the last two continents – Antarctica and Switzerland (Europe) – there really won’t be much special training. 

The hard part will be the fact that it will have been 11 months since my last marathon and it will be the first time in 10 years that I have not run multiple marathons in a year.  Even though I run almost every day, there was nothing like being in “marathon shape” all year round.  So, starting in March I will pick up the lengths of my runs and add to my weekly mileage so that I will be back in Marathon shape by June. 

I remember after completing my first marathon on October 15, 1995.  The bathrooms and bag check were up on the second floor of the Lowell Technical High School Stadium.  After the marathon, I went upstairs to get my bag…going up the stairs was not a problem.  However, when I went to go down the stairs, my legs would not bend.  I positioned myself so I had a handrail and proceeded to go down the stairs backwards.  Over the years, and lots of advice received and many books and magazines read, I believe the key is stretching.

When I first started running I ran marathons just on strength and determination, and as I got older and more experienced I ran marathons on conditioning and training.  The more time I spend at the end of a run tapering down and then stretching not just my legs but my arms, back, and sides the better I feel then, that night, and the next day.  I hate to admit that this year I will be 60 years old, and the only time that I ache or hurt is when I don’t exercise for a few days.  The tapering allows your blood to continue to flow and gradually slow down so that there is no pooling of lactic acid in any of the muscles or joints.   The stretching allows the muscles to expand and contract and therefore stay more pliable which hinders tension and once again the pooling of lactic acid in the muscles.

I see so many runners cross the finish line and not even continue to walk it off after the run let alone do any stretching.  I wonder if that afternoon or the next morning they are going down their stairs…backwards.

I would like to ask anyone that reads this blog that has questions or ideas to let me know and I will write an answer on the blog and my goal will be to write one every two weeks.

My next two topics with be orthotics and vitamin D3.