The Warm Up Lap | 10.1.12 - Racing to Train, Heel-Toe Drop, and Honor

Let the Madness Begin | Beyond Fatigue, Pain, and ACTN3

[T]here is a certain madness to my training, which is simply to complete as many races as my schedule allows before January 19th, 2013. Between my work and family commitments, signing up for marathons and ultramarathons is the only way to motivate me to "train" as I pretty much utilize them as training runs.

I've found training only happens for me when I've got a race to target and train for. Even now, with a 50 mile ultra looming, my training hasn't been going well. I can't imagine how it goes for those who run 100 milers and the like. Luckily, some insight is available.

How to Measure Heel-Toe Drop in a Running Shoe | Runblogger

Heel-toe drop has become a fairly relevant shoe metric as of late. But what exactly does it mean, and how does one make the measurement? Luckily, we've got Pete.

The Honorable Clan of the Long-Distance Runner | NYTimes.com

There are no shortcuts to marathon success where race performances are sacred, and fibbing about distances and times is unacceptable to most runners.

Amby Burfoot and George Hirsch wrote an editorial in the NY Times. It's absolutely worth reading and thinking about.

Runner's High From Medium But Not Hard Exercise | Sweat Science

So the basic conclusion (subject to various caveats, including the fact that they measured endocannabinoid levels in the blood not the brain) is that walking and sprinting don't cut it for runner's high: it's only a certain range of medium intensities that hits the sweet spot.

The long, slow run may be our best bet for the runner's high based on endocannabinoids so that's a good sign let's all go out and run far.