Running Longevity with Jeff Korhan

This episode offers five tips for safely and successfully running marathons and other races that – as we all know -- are becoming increasingly crowded. The energy of these larger races is what makes them so much fun, but when you consider their cost and the training you’ve invested in them, it’s best to show up fully prepared to achieve your goals.  #1. Run Like A Pro If you’ve watched marathons or any other races, you’ll notice the pros keep their cool – and you should too. They may get tripped, drop their hydration bottle, but no matter what happens they keep going. #2. Pass Carefully and Decisively Corral crashing is a hotly debated topic nowadays because it's happening more frequently at the larger races. Slower runners are submitting fake qualifying to gain access to the earlier waves, a practice that creates chaos for the majority of runners who then have to pass them. Race organizers need to start addressing this, but until they do, we’ll all have to keep our cool. When you pass, choose your openings carefully and pass decisively to avoid unnecessary confrontations. If you must cross into someone’s path, wait until you have two strides on the runner you are passing. If someone does begin to cut you off, signal your presence with a light touch on their shoulder.  #3. Look Ahead For Turns and Stops Most automobile accidents happen at intersections, and the same is true with running. Look ahead during your race for upcoming turns and hydration stops to position yourself for them in advance. As we discussed in Episode 15 [https://www.runninglongevitylab.com/two-road-racing-tactics-for-saving-time-and-energy/], this practice, known as running the tangents, will efficiently connect the dots to those destinations and save valuable time.  #4. Use Pace Groups If They Work Many groups can be paced unevenly. So, use them for what you can get out of them. Most will be steady in the early miles, and that may be enough to get you off to a good start. Running with larger pace groups can be challenging because the group tries to pass as a single unit, and that’s just not possible with other runners on the course. So, expect a fair amount of stutter stepping to avoid runners as the pack repositions itself from time to time. #5. Watch Out for Spectators One of the hazards of running marathons is spectators unexpectedly crossing the streets. I’ve managed to avoid several near collisions by using a simple technique.  If you see someone who is trying to cross, get their attention by raising your hand with an open palm to signal them to stop. It works beautifully. Like everything else we discussed in this episode, it’s one way to take control of your safety and the outcome of your race. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe by going to runninglongevitylab.com [https://www.runninglongevitylab.com/] and clicking on the follow tab. If you have another minute, please consider leaving a review on Apple to help new listeners find the show. Just click the Rate Podcast tab at runninglongevitylab.com.  [https://www.runninglongevitylab.com/]

If you are familiar with Blue Zones, you may already know backward walking has been an accepted practice in Asia for hundreds of years. It’s part of the culture throughout the region, but not so much outside of it. You may feel uncomfortable at first, but you’ll get over that quickly as you realize its many accessible benefits. In this episode we focus on three key benefits.  #1. Enhanced Balance and Coordination You immediately notice something when you begin walking backward. You feel strange at first, but soon your body becomes more aware of how it moves and its relationship with the space around it. Our coordination, body balance and space awareness enable us to safely move and adapt in the moment. This proprioceptive awareness is a skill all elite runners share, and backward walking will help you enhance yours. #2. More Efficient Warmup and Recovery    Every runner knows the most common running injuries are plantar fasciitis, Runner’s Knee, and Achilles tendonitis. Backward walking greatly reduces the risk of these injuries, and helps you recover if you already have them. Practicing backward walking for 100 yards or so just before running is enough to realize these benefits. As you do this, be aware of extending your knees over the toes, as it’s from this movement that most of the gains are derived. 3. Increased Power and Mobility One of the cardinal rules of strength training is that you work opposing muscles to keep everything in balance. Just as a bench press counterbalances with rowing that works the opposing back muscles, backward walking counterbalances with forward walking and running. You can imagine that after a lifetime of walking and running forward, you have weaknesses in your glutes and hamstrings. If you really want to bulletproof your legs from potential injuries, there’s nothing that mirrors forward walking like backward walking. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe by going to runninglongevitylab.com [https://www.runninglongevitylab.com/] and clicking on the follow tab. If you have another minute, please consider leaving a review on Apple to help new listeners find the show. Just click the Rate Podcast tab at runninglongevitylab.com. [https://www.runninglongevitylab.com/]

Pain and injuries are part of life for active people. The true goal is maximizing mobility.  This is what prevents injuries and makes pain an infrequent visitor. There are two components to mobility: Flexibility and the strength to control it through a full range of motion. If you are over 40 years old, many experts will tell you it’s impossible to regain 100% mobility. However, I’ve experienced it myself in my 60s and promise you can too. Years of physical therapy helped, but old injuries kept resurfacing until I developed the protocol I’m about to share.  #1. Assess The Situation #2. Gradually Restore Mobility #3. Strengthen Supporting Tissues When you experience pain, tightness or any kind of reduced mobility, the first thing you want to do is introduce gentle movements. Move the body to increase blood flow to the affected areas. This also activates synovial fluids to lubricate joints. These systems bring nutrients to the injured area and remove waste products. Every injury involves some degree of swelling. It will subside when its job is complete, and you can help it by moving the muscles, tendons, ligaments and associated tissues that support joints. Your issue may not directly involve a joint, an ankle, knee or hip, but it’s nearly 100% likely that it’s connected to one or more of them. A joint that regularly experiences a full range of motion is a healthy joint. When our joints don’t move properly, the body compensates by recruiting muscles and ligaments in a way for which it wasn’t designed. We call this a workaround.  As you continue down the road to recovery, you want to challenge the joints to build the supporting tissues. You can accomplish this by practicing only one exercise. It’s the squat – but I’m going to give you three versions for variety.  Why the squat, you may wonder? It’s the one movement that challenges your feet, ankles, knees, hips, core, lower and upper back, and everything in between. Everyone should practice the deep resting squat daily to promote longevity for running and general living.  Here are the most essential squats, from basic to more advanced. #1. Split Squats [https://youtu.be/Vb4Pn-zsFGc?si=PNNSvj0gNeRPiTok] (image below) #2. Deep Resting Squats [https://youtu.be/965Fwq2aVIo?si=4AqYcI4IwnTMGbkV] #3. Cossack Squats [https://youtu.be/dhDjKmTX8tU?si=eWokLHvI4Jt1YGLp] If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe by going to runninglongevitylab.com [https://www.runninglongevitylab.com/] and clicking on the follow tab. If you have another minute, please consider leaving a review on Apple to help new listeners find the show. Just click the Rate Podcast tab.

Tapering is gradually reducing training volume while maintaining intensity in the final weeks before a race. This allows the body to recover from fatigue and stress while retaining fitness and sharpness for race day. Most experts agree on a taper period of 3 weeks for a marathon, and proportionately less for shorter races.  This is a how-to episode that addresses three tapering secrets in the order one would typically focus on them. However, my recommendation is to keep all three in mind throughout your taper. #1. Maintain Intensity and Reduce Volume You want to reduce your mileage by 20-25% during the taper. For many runners, this would be something like 40-50 miles at three weeks out, then 30-40 the following week, and 20-30 for race week. Then, and this is important, make those reduced miles quality miles by maintaining intensity. The overall taper effort should be enjoyable. Make this a playful period, a celebration of your hard work, and a preview of how you will perform on race day. The intensity keeps your mind and muscle fibers fresh. The reduced mileage allows muscles, joints, and connective tissues to fully recover. Examples of reducing volume but maintaining intensity are trimming your marathon pace tempo run from 6 to 4 miles, or possibly a pair of 2-mile tempo segments with a 1-mile jog between them. The goal is to lock in the feeling of running at the tempo pace without taxing the body more than necessary. #2. Replenish and Refresh Your Body and Mind The body and mind work together as one. You cannot be sharp on race day if you are mentally fatigued. Since a marathon is more mental than physical, be intentional about relaxing your mind during the taper. Get to bed earlier and take naps. Practice some yoga and meditation. Race anticipation can create anxiety, but that anxiety can be managed by giving your mind and body what they need, hydration, nutrition, rest and sleep. Focus on those functions and protect your mental state by doing what gives you confidence. Finally, be sure to practice easy body movements to lubricate tissues and encourage blood flow that circulates nutrients and flushes out metabolic wastes. For more on this, check out this podcast’s Episode #11 [https://www.runninglongevitylab.com/returning-to-running-after-50-what-you-need-to-know-about-blood-flow-and-body-awareness/]. #3. Visualize and Rehearse Race Strategy and Readiness This is the ultimate secret to your racing success. The months of training are nothing more than potential gains. You must take the additional steps of translating them into real gains with planning. This is what professional runners do. They practice daily visualization to put their minds at ease, imagining different scenarios and how they may play out. The science is clear about this – our minds don’t distinguish between visualization and direct experience. So, if more experience is valuable, you can get it with visualization. How do you want to feel on race day, strong, fresh, and confident? One way to practice this is to view your taper workouts as sections of your race. For example, slow miles reflect the beginning of the race, tempo miles the middle, and faster intervals the closing stretch.  If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe by going to runninglongevitylab.com [https://www.runninglongevitylab.com/] and clicking on the follow tab. If you have another minute, please consider leaving a review on Apple to help new listeners find the show. Just click the Rate Podcast tab.

Nutrition is a sensitive topic, and I respect that. We all have our beliefs, habits, and food preferences. My purpose is not to change your diet, but to help you make the best choices for your desired lifestyle as it relates to running and longevity.  So, let’s discuss a couple of foods with unique properties. One is a food that most of us wouldn’t even consider a food. The other is a category of vegetables with unique longevity properties. Let’s start with the category because you know these vegetables, but the seldom discussed category is what sets them apart. #1. Cruciferous Vegetables Cruciferous vegetables are a category that includes broccoli, brussels sprouts, cauliflower, cabbage, and kale. They are all composed of glucosinolates, sulfur-containing compounds unique to this family of plants. When consumed, glucosinolates are broken down into cancer-fighting properties. So, if you plan to age long and well, these foods should interest you. #2. Flaxseed Flaxseed is not what most people would consider a food, but that should change once you understand its nutritional profile. You should purchase flaxseed crushed, in a meal form, to readily access its benefits.  a. Rich Source of Omega-3 Fatty Acids  Flaxseed is one of the richest plant sources of Omega-3s. These are the essential fatty acids that the body cannot produce on its own, so they must be obtained from the diet.  Omega-3 fatty acids have been shown to reduce inflammation and muscle and joint pain, while speeding up recovery time. That alone should be enough for runners to consider adding it to their daily diet. b. Plant-Based Source of Good Fats  Flaxseed replenishes the good fats that are vitally important for endurance. These good fats also contribute to our HDL cholesterol – that’s the good cholesterol that maintains healthy blood pressure, and lowers triglyceride levels. c. Source of Cancer-Fighting Lignans  Flaxseed is one of the best sources of lignans, which are cancer-fighting plant compounds with antioxidant properties. Lignans have proved beneficial for reducing, and more importantly, reversing both breast and prostate cancer.  Flaxseed is high in all but one of the nine essential amino acids our bodies need for protein synthesis.  The effects of nutrition are cumulative, and higher value foods matter. For example, research proves that eating healthy foods such as broccoli side by side with less than healthy foods will negate some of thier negative effects [https://nutritionfacts.org/video/flashback-friday-1-anticancer-vegetable/].  If you would like to study flaxseed and cruciferous vegetables further, you’ll find more resources than you can imagine at nutritionfacts.org [https://nutritionfacts.org/]. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe by going to runninglongevitylab.com [https://www.runninglongevitylab.com/] and clicking on the Follow tab. If you have another minute, please consider leaving a review on Apple to help new listeners find the show. Just click the Rate Podcast tab.