Race Report: Rock 'n' Roll Philadelphia Half-Marathon

A year ago, I was just starting up chiropractic school, and I was in the beginning of the training cycle building up to the Philadelphia Marathon, a race that I felt I had executed well and signaled a successful return from surgery. A year later, I've returned to Philly and run...an okay race. Not bad, but certainly not good...just okay. But it's only a complete failure if you don't take anything away from the experience, so here goes!

Gear Review: Brooks Mach 15 and Mach 15 Spikeless

Early last year, I picked up a nifty little pair of spikeless cross-country flats, the Brooks Mach 13 Spikeless. They were a neat shoe...light, nimble, fun. Sure, they weren't very versatile, but whatever, they were cheap, so it's not like they had to be the only shoes in my closet. So I bought a bunch of them...enough that I completely missed out on the Mach 14 because I was too busy going through a pile of Speed Dragons. By the time I had exhausted my stash, Brooks had moved on to the Mach 14's successor, the Mach 15.

Active Release Techniques (A.R.T.)

In case you've wondered where I've disappeared to, I just finished finals and then almost immediately went to Boston for the lower extremity Active Release Techniques seminar. In case you're not familiar with A.R.T., it is a soft tissue technique that treats problems with muscles, tendons, ligaments, fascia, and nerves by applying tension and getting them moving relative to each other. Many of you have probably heard the term "scar tissue adhesion" being thrown around by your friends who have had body work done. These adherences can limit range of motion, cause muscles to shorten and weaken, cause pain, and entrap nerves. Breaking down these adhesions is a large part of A.R.T. But Dr. Leahy explains it better than I, so check the site for a full explanation.

The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner

I've been a bit of an emotional mess the past couple of days for a number of reasons (non-running related), and reading Molly's post pushed me towards penning one of my own, one from the perspective of someone who was never quite good enough to actually make a career out of running, yet still feels compelled to, well, train like it's my job anyway.

Homecoming Weekend at New York Chiropractic College

This weekend (well, all of last week, really) was homecoming at New York Chiropractic College, and seeing as we have no football team, it was a week for networking, continuing education for alumni, and getting current students thinking about their professional career. So here's the deal: This is my brand-new LinkedIn account. You can also click on the picture below. I want to make a career out of treating athletes...people like you guys. I want to help you squeeze every last bit of performance possible out of your body, and I want to help you keep your body running like a fine-tuned machine so you can keep doing the things you love, whether it's competing at a high level, getting that new PR, finishing your first 5K, or getting back out there after a tough injury. I've been that person who was told that my running was done, yet I just ran 101 miles last week. I want to help you do that too. So I want to network with you.

Second order of business is a question for you. This weekend, I talked to a lot of people about different treatments available for both prehabilitation and rehabilitation for patients (athletes in particular!). Many of them are working off of similar principles, though obviously there are small differences to differentiate each of them. I want to know how important a name is to you. For example, I use both Graston Technique and Active Release Technique (A.R.T.) as part of my prehab. Are you loyal towards a specific technique, or are you eager and willing to try new treatments that are based off of similar principles? Put another way, if you've had Graston work for you in the past, are you more likely to search for Graston providers in your area, or are you more likely to get recommendations for good healthcare providers, and then utilize whatever their treatment of choice (assuming it does the same job, like ConnecTX or FAKTR?). Please let me know in the comments. Thank you!

One final order of business: my friend Brendan maintains a blog that actually talks about what goes on in chiropractic school, if this post piqued your interest and you're curious about that aspect of my life (since this blog tends to focus mainly on running and running gear).

Mizuno Wave Sayonara giveaway winner!

Congratulations Zach! I've emailed you, so please get back to me with your contact information.

Gear Review: Mizuno Wave Sayonara and GIVEAWAY!

Up until now, Mizuno has offered two performance trainers: the neutral Wave Precision and mild stability Wave Elixir. However, with everyday trainers getting lighter and lighter, there was increasing overlap between the 9.9oz Wave Rider and 9.6oz Wave Precision (I'm not sure whether Mizuno felt the 10.1oz Wave Inspire was encroaching on the 8.8oz Wave Elixir or if they just wanted to streamline their line). So instead of slimming down its current performance trainers, Mizuno went back to the drawing board, seeking to create a new neutral performance trainer that still had enough inherent stability as to not disappoint Elixir fans. The new shoe is the Wave Sayonara, a lightweight shoe with a clever name that gives a nod to the old Wave Goodbye racing flat of the early 2000s (interestingly enough, today's Wave Sayonara performance trainer is lighter than yesterday's 8.7oz Wave Goodbye racing flat).