Are Runners Allergic to Sidewalks?

[dalesys]

We need to get Randy Newman to rewrite his hit to:

"Flat People" ...ain't got no reason for living...

[Zenova]

omg I have a pretty good story about a sucky runner...
Was at my friends house a couple weeks ago when I got a call from my dad reminding me that I was to be at a meeting of our village credit union (we're both on the committee)
I was about 15 miles away, and the meeting was in 20 mins, so I thought no problem (60MPH speed limit = 15 miles in 15 mins) and I headed off to the credit union.
On a really narrow, bendy piece of country road, in the dark, another car approaches so I dim my lights, pass the other car, turn a corner and then put my lights back on full.
As soon as I put the lights back on, I saw a terrified runner frozen right infront of the car. I was doing about 45MPH when I saw him, managed to swerve round him (he jumped out of the way too) and missed him by inches.
He was dressed in all black and grey.....

Very nearly a roadkill moment there. and I think he may need new running shorts.

[greek_jester]

Your joints can react better to the tilt than to an unforgiving surface.

When you walk, you get even force feedback, pound for pound, back to your joints. So, say you're 170 lbs, that's 170 lbs going to your joints when walking.

Running, you can get up to 4x your weight back in pressure. So the less force a surface absorbs, the more's going to be coming back to you. So in the case of our 170 lb person, that's 680 lbs going to their joints! Even if the road's uneven that still might be 170 lbs less than running on a concrete sidewalk.

Interesting fact. People run wrong. We evolved to run on the balls of our feet; the arches of our feet, our ankles, knees & hips are all designed as springs to ease the impact when we're running that way.

Since the advent of running shoes with all the technology to cushion impact, we've been taught to run from our heels to our toes, which means that our lower bodies can't cushion us the way they're designed to do.

Since I've started running on the balls of my feet (on the rare occasions when I do need to run, since my arches are collapsing) I've found it much less painful. It's not as fast, & you get some weird looks, but if you have joint problems (particularly knees) it's much less painful.

[KiaKat]

Interesting fact. People run wrong. We evolved to run on the balls of our feet; the arches of our feet, our ankles, knees & hips are all designed as springs to ease the impact when we're running that way.

Since the advent of running shoes with all the technology to cushion impact, we've been taught to run from our heels to our toes, which means that our lower bodies can't cushion us the way they're designed to do.

Cite your source? I'd be curious to see their logic. When sprinting, it makes sense to run on the balls of your feet, given that you're essentially just pistoning your legs. However, when running distance, that would put undue strain on the structures in your feet and ankles, because it would take weight off the Achilles Tendon and move it to some of the more fragile points in the metatarsals.

[Kheldarson]

Cite your source? I'd be curious to see their logic. When sprinting, it makes sense to run on the balls of your feet, given that you're essentially just pistoning your legs. However, when running distance, that would put undue strain on the structures in your feet and ankles, because it would take weight off the Achilles Tendon and move it to some of the more fragile points in the metatarsals.

Actually, he's right. I've been having to do a lot of research into it with all of the barefoot shoes we've been selling. Runner's World magazine from two (?) months ago did an interview of the guy who makes Newton shoes and they outline the biomechanics far better than I can.

And yes, initially, you'll feel a lot of tension in those areas you listed, but as you build up your strength and endurance, you're supposed to find that your body works better and goes faster (YMMV and I have not tried it myself yet).

ETA: Here's the article http://www.runnersworld.com/article/...4265-0,00.html

[blas]

I only run from spiders and men on one knee, but I tell ya what....I get a hell of a lot better work out walking on "real" terrain than on a treadmill.

[Zaiida]

The worst is when I'm driving home at night doing the speed limit and have to swerve to aviod some DUMBASS who thinks nothing of cycling/skateboarding/jogging in the middle of the road, against traffic, in all black, no safety gear, no lights with headphones in and they think it's FUNNY that I have to swerve so as not to kill them.

I am so surprised that there has not yet been a fatality though I have heard and paticipated in screaming matches. Luckily suicidal pedestrians have eased off now that winter has kicked in. It's awful in summer and spring though with groups of people spending the day by the river and coming home spread out all over the road at dusk, going into night.

How freaking hard is it NOT to wear black and a light tshirt if you are on foot at night and insist on travelling in the middle of the road?

[Sandman]

I am so surprised that there has not yet been a fatality though I have heard and paticipated in screaming matches. Luckily suicidal pedestrians have eased off now that winter has kicked in. It's awful in summer and spring though with groups of people spending the day by the river and coming home spread out all over the road at dusk, going into night.

We had that happen near where I live. Police didn't find the driver at fault one bit.

[morgana]

Yeah. Police found my first-ex-husband not-at-fault, as well. He never got over it, though.

He was 18, on his way from his small town to my small town, to see me. She was pushing her bike on the highway, dressed completely in dark clothes. He never saw her, didn't know anything was in his way until the bike hit the windshield.

He asked the cops to let me know why he wouldn't be coming; I got a cousin to drive me down to where he was. He said later if I hadn't showed up and needed a ride back, he'd never have been able to get behind the wheel again.

She died right there on the highway.

Damn, haven't thought about that in at least a decade. People, please don't be stupid . . .

[greek_jester]

Runner's World magazine from two (?) months ago did an interview of the guy who makes Newton shoes and they outline the biomechanics far better than I can.

And yes, initially, you'll feel a lot of tension in those areas you listed, but as you build up your strength and endurance, you're supposed to find that your body works better and goes faster (YMMV and I have not tried it myself yet).

ETA: Here's the article http://www.runnersworld.com/article/...4265-0,00.html

This is an excellent article, but I was remembering a mini-documentary on a (British) show called "The One Show" last year that was probably drawing from the same research; it followed an ex-runner who had hip & knee damage who couldn't run any more, & they were working with him since he could immediately tell if there was a difference in the damage the different running styles made.

The shoes are new to me, though; interesting, but probably out of my price range.

By the way, I'm a female. Why does everyone forget that?

[dalesys]

By the way, I'm a female. Why does everyone forget that?

Because there is no sex on the internet.




Only pr0n!

[Kheldarson]

The shoes are new to me, though; interesting, but probably out of my price range.

By the way, I'm a female. Why does everyone forget that?

Cheapest shoe I've seen is $125 so yeah...

And I'm not in enough threads with you, so I default if I forget, sorry!

[Jay 2K Winger]

Because there is no sex are no girls on the internet.

Fixed that for you.



please don't hit me I was only joking no put down the axe I'm sorry

[greek_jester]

please don't hit me I was only joking no put down the axe I'm sorry

Axe? What axe? *swings morningstar gently*

[Anglesmith]

I very nearly hit someone going to pick up my hubs from work. A stretch of the highway I normally took went from 40-55, and there were absolutely no lights. It was about 11pm and some guy all in black darted in front of my car to cross the highway.

Then there was the one morning on my way to work when I watched a group of joggers casually jog through the middle of a busy intersection. Just kept jogging. Didn't stop, slow down or anything. >_> I wasn't the only one honking at those jack-asses