Foot Care Tips For Runners

May 11, 2012 1:55 pm
Whether you’re a serious runner, occasional jogger, or complete beginner, you need to take good care of you feet so that they hold up when you hit the track, road, or trail. Here are some tips to help you keep your feet as healthy and pain-free as possible so that you can enjoy every stride along the way:
 
Wear the Proper Shoes
If you’re going to run on any sort of regular basis, it’s important to invest in a good pair of running shoes. Don’t throw on a pair of casual non-running-specific sneakers and hope for the best. Do some online research to learn about running shoes that might be particularly well-suited to your needs. Then go to a store that specializes in athletic and running gear and work with a salesperson that will be able to help you find the right shoe for you. Don’t be afraid to try on several pairs, run around the store a bit while wearing them, and take your time deciding. A salesperson knowledgeable about running shoes will be able to identify your gait (whether your roll your feet inward or outward) and guide you toward the best running shoes for your particular feet.
 
Protect Against Blisters 
Painful blisters and feet sore from strain will put a major damper in your running plans. There are a variety socks on the market that are designed especially for the purpose of wicking away moisture and keeping blisters at bay, so invest in at least a few pairs of those. You can also rub some anti-chaffing balm on blister-prone areas, with “Bodyglide” being a particularly popular and effective productive for that purpose. If you do start to develop a blister, make sure you have some padded blister-specific bandages at hand to put on the sore spots when you’re running and also when you’re walking around in normal shoes. In addition, make sure that you air your bare feet out as much possible when you’re not running or walking around because exposing the blister-prone areas to fresh air will help them dry out and heal faster. 
 
Know When To Stop
One of the biggest causes of chronic foot problems in runners is that people don’t always listen sufficiently to their bodies. If you have a mildly painful issue with your foot (such as a mild case of sesamoiditis, a common runners’ condition), it’s not always a good idea to push through it. Foot issues will often get worse and go from small to significant if you don’t give your feet a rest. So it’s important to make sure you temper your running schedule to allow for foot issues to heal before they go from minor to worse to potentially chronic. While you’re taking a break from running, you can find other lower-impact, more foot-friendly ways of getting a workout that will benefit your cardiovascular system (such as the elliptical machine, spin bike, recumbent bike, or regular road bike). 
 
Consider Shoe Inserts
If you want an extremely comfortable and form-fitting shoe that will specifically accommodate your unique feet, consider investing in orthotic inserts. You can get orthotics over the counter or have them prescribed and specially made for you by a podiatrist. Orthotics are often used to treat many forms of running-related injury, including heel pain, shin splints, and chronic blisters. They work by balancing and reducing the amount of stress that your feet experience upon impact. They are also effective at correcting imbalances in your gait, such as a tendency toward overpronation or underpronation – essentially, they help your foot achieve proper alignment, which can be a major preventative measure when it comes to a variety of running-related foot issues. 
 
Avoid Athlete’s Foot
Athlete’s Foot is one of the most common foot issues that occur for a runner. It is a fungal condition of the feet and toes that can flare up as a result of running in sweaty socks and shoes. Luckily, though Athlete’s Foot can be pretty uncomfortable, it’s also one of the least chronic and most easily treatable foot issues that a runner can face. Since the fungus thrives and grows in wet conditions, some preventative measures you can take include washing and drying your feet soon after a run and alternating running shoes and socks so the accumulated sweat has time to dry out.  If you do develop a case of athlete’s foot, there are several over-the-counter antifungal creams that can help and your doctor can also prescribe oral antifungal medications if the condition doesn’t clear up within a few weeks. 
 

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Great Travel Writing

May 8, 2012 12:03 pm

An incredible piece of travel writing is not just about destinations and locations, it’s also about the traveller's experience. A meditation on travel reveals more than a locale’s beauty and culture, instead illuminating how the journey changes people in powerful ways.

A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson
With his trademark wit, Bill Bryson scales the Appalachian Trail between Georgia and Maine. Along with sharing general history and ecology of the area, Bryson waxes poetic on his personal journey of mountains, hikers, and bears.

The Great Railway Bazaar by Paul Theroux
Now a well-known travel writer, Theroux cut his teeth early on with this 1975 account of traveling through Asia by train. He meets many memorable characters and encounters uncommon destinations along the way.

In Patagonia by Bruce Chatwin
Attempting to establish new norms of travel writing, Chatwin weaves a strange tale documenting the interesting characters he meets while living in a barren, disjointed region of South America. A healthy dose of the region's unique history only adds to the weirdness.

A Week at the Airport by Alain de Botton
This short book takes the adage "the journey is the destination" to an extreme. Written over a week de Botton spent at London's Heathrow Airport, A Week at the Airport considers how the airport concentrates beginnings and endings in a starkly visible way.

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Best TV Shows About Food

May 4, 2012 12:00 pm

We love to eat, but of course we can't do it all the time! Thankfully, a number of awesome TV shows exist about food that you can enjoy even with a full stomach. From cooking shows to eating documentaries, here are five must-see TV shows about food.

Chopped
One of our favorite cooking competitions, this show pits a quartet of chefs against each other, tasking them to make meals from mystery ingredients that range from the delicious to the ridiculous. This is a real pressure cooker of a show, and it’s amazing to see what  they come up with.

Kitchen Nightmares
Gordon Ramsay is the most foul-mouthed chef in the business, and his insanely addictive show has him visiting struggling restaurants and working to turn them around before they go out of business. An incredibly addictive look at what happens behind the scenes in kitchens.

Good Eats
Alton Brown’s enthusiasm for food translates perfectly to the screen in his long-running show that explores the ins and outs of food from myriad perspectives – chef, diner, even scientist. You’re guaranteed to learn something every week.

Bizarre Foods With Andrew Zimmern
Notorious food writer Zimmern stakes out territory on the very edge of edibility, traveling the globe to consume things that make our stomachs turn. If you’re an adventurous eater, this is the show for you.

Top Chef
The granddaddy of cooking competitions, Bravo’s long-running show gets the best and the brightest of the food world together and lets them shine with some truly incredible food.

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