Matt Metzgar

Running Differently

In my current long commute, I see a number of slower runners/joggers out in the morning.  One thing that is apparent to me is that regardless of the fact that they are moving at slower paces, their form looks nothing like that of faster runners.  In essence, they are not slower because they have lower aerobic capacity, less training volume, etc., they are slower because their mechanics are poor. 

This is where I think interval training can end up being a negative factor in training.  If you take an inefficient running style and a person does intervals and speeds it up, are they better off?  All they've done is taken an inefficient gait and learned to do it faster.  They are still expending greater-than-needed effort to run, and therefore they won't be able to reach their true potential.

Watching the Olympics, it's easy to see that the athletes are not just running much faster than the average person, but they are running much differently in terms of thier form and mechanics.

I think some key factor drops off in adulthood that makes running more difficult than when a person was younger.  Maybe it's posture or flexibility, I'm not sure.  I read somewhere else that if a person takes up running for the first time after age 30, they are more likely to become injured and have difficulty. 

I know when I was younger, running definitely felt easier and more natural.  I remember in high school, a friend and I ran a 10k race with no training whatsoever.  I saw an article about it in the newspaper, I called him up, and we went down and ran the race.  We didn't set any speed records, but we managed through it okay.  I can't help but think that a key physical attribute was different back then (alignment, flexibility, something besides the fact that I was younger), that allowed me to run with much greater ease.

Squat Stance II

Following up on the comments in the previous post, I have also been more careful now about my alignment when I walk.  Just observing how others walk, I see many inefficient gaits.  Many people have their feet pointed out, instead of straight ahead, when they walk.  I would think this leads to a loss of forward momentum, and therefore would require more energy overall.  I also see some people with just one foot pointed out and the other foot straight ahead.  This might be even worse, because it would place uneven torque on the body.

I also see many people who do not have their feet directly underneath them, where one or both feet may be to the outside of the hips.  With this situation, the leg is no longer vertical and this could lead to additional alignment problems.

Why are so many people walking with poor biomechanics?  My guess is modern shoes and too much sitting.

Getting Crushed

I have started the new job, and have been insanely busy.  Currently, I'm driving two hours in, two hours back every day.  Meanwhile, I'm also still working part-time at my old job to help them make the transition.  

Things will be like this till I can relocate, and then hopefully all will be well.  Until then, I'll just have to make it work.

Trying to eat healthy during this period has been a challenge.  I've found that stopping at grocery stores is easier and healthier than any type of fast food place.  I can usually round up some pre-cooked chicken and vegetables, and take it with me on the road. 

Crossfit Endurance

Here's a new website for Crossfit Endurance.  It's approach is quite unique in the sense that it has no "long slow distance" component, whatsoever!  The site claims you can train for very long distances (even a triathlon) on just 6 - 8 hours per week of proper training.  Shorter races would require much less training.

The running technique is based on Pose Running, I believe, which is a solid system.  The general concept is that once proper technique is learned, intensity is more important than distance in terms of improving running.

New workouts are posted every day, so for someone looking for a training blueprint this could be a good site.

Fluoride

This all started off so innocently.  I just wanted to know what to mix with infant powdered formula, bottled water or tap water.  Tap water has fluoride, and fluoride is supposed to prevent cavities, right?  I didn't know, I had never really looked into it.  Once I looked into fluoride, I found such a mess that's hard to believe.

First, I saw this suspicious statement by the American Dental Association saying that for infants, fluoride-free water should be used to mix with powdered formula.  It also then goes on to say that young children should be protected against swallowing too much fluoride from toothpaste as well.  My first thought was, if fluoride is bad for infants and young children, how can it it possibly be good for older children and adults?

Though the American Dental Association warns against too much fluoride for infants, it supports the fluoridation of community water supplies.  Supporters of fluoridation usually present a graph like the one below, showing how the increase in water fluoridation in the U.S. corresponds with a decrease in dental problems.

One problem with this graph: the same decline in dental problems was happening in other countries without water fluoridation.

Honestly, I was shocked to know that many other countries do not have water fluoridation.  I just assumed it was a universal standard of sorts.

Now, on to the controversy.  I found a lot of good information (including the above graphs) at fluoridealert.org.  It raises many good points such as:

• Why are many individual communties across the U.S. removing fluoride from their water systems?
• Why is the E.P.A. Headquarters Union of Scientists opposed to water fluoridation?
• What about this new study that connects water fluoridation with bone cancer in boys?
• Why does the co-winner of the 2000 Nobel Prize in Medicine oppose fluoridation?

It makes you wonder.  Needless to say, I will be sticking to bottled water for now.  I will continue on with this issue in a future post.  Any comments from readers, especially those in countries without water fluoridation, are welcome.

Ramadan Fasting II

Martin was kind enough to send me the full-text of the Ramadan fasting study I recently wrote about.  It turns out the subjects did lose lean mass, though the difference didn't turn out to be statistically significant.  What I don't like though, is how they played with the numbers to make the fat loss significant.  Here's a table from the study:

Total weight went down by 1.8 kgs, and lean mass dropped by 1.1 kgs.  However, they chose to measure the change in fat mass by a percentage rather than in absolute numbers, and this percentage decrease turned out to be significant.  If they would have assessed changes in fat mass the same as they did lean mass, then I suspect the change in fat mass would be insignificant as well.

I am a little skeptical of this study now, after reading through the full-text.  Yes, the fasting did not alter the hormonal axis (which is good), but there was a loss in lean mass (which is never a good thing).  Calorie intake dropped by over 1,000 calories a day during Ramadan, and protein was faily low during this stage with an average of 83 grams per day.  Perhaps a higher protein intake could have prevented the drop in lean mass that occurred.

Back to Teaching!

I am pleased to announce that I will be returning to academics.  I have accepted a position as an economics professor at a local college.  To celebrate, I decided to take this "Breakfast Club"-style photo at a local football field.  The original scene is below for reference.

It will be good to teach again.  I've missed it, and I've missed being in a college environment.  It seems to keep you young.  I start next week!

 

Resistance Stretching

I saw a couple of reports on Olympian Dara Torres' stretching routine.  It is based on the work of Bob Cooley, which I wrote about a couple of years ago.  The idea is to perform a stretch against some type of resistance, rather than just a passive-type stretch.

Here's a New York Times feature on her stretching routine, and here's a website that has more information on the method.  I never really put in consistent practice with this method, so I don't have any personal opinion as to how effective it is.  Torres did end up with a silver medal at age 41, so that is at least one case study showing it could be effective.

Squat Stance

I am now waffling on what is the correct barbell squat stance.  For a few months, I have been following the technique laid out by Mark Rippetoe: wider stance, feet angled out at 45 degrees, and pushing from the heels.  Yet in the Egoscue method, it is emphasized to have everything in alignment, and for the squat I'm wondering if this means the feet should be parallel to each other facing directly forward.

I experimented with some various squat stances at the gym today.  Whenever I pointed my feet directly forward, It became much tougher to get any real depth on the squat.  However, this just could be do to a lack of hip flexibility on my part. 

I would imagine that many people have inflexible hips from all the sitting in modern society.  It could be that for a person with tight hip muscles, pointing the feet outward allows for a better squat depth.  But this doesn't make it correct.  It may turn out that pointing the feet out causes other problems.  If this is the case, then correcting the original problem, hip flexibility, may allow for the natural stance of feet facing forward and better biomechanics for the squat.

Ramadan Fasting

Ramadan fasting could be thought of as a version of intermittent fasting.  In Ramadan fasting, no food is consumed during the daylight hours followed by a normal dinner.  A meal is also supposed to be eaten before dawn, but I've read that many people end up skipping this meal in practice during Ramadan.

This new study shows the impact of Ramadan fasting on hormones and body composition.  It shows that over a four-week period there was a significant decrease in weight and body fat.  It also shows that the main hormonal axis (GH/IGF-1) was not disturbed.

I wish I had access to the full-text of this study to look at a few things.  First, how large was the decrease in weight in absolute numbers?  Second, though we know there was a decrease in body fat, the abstract does not mention any impacts on lean mass.  It's possible that lean mass could have decreased as well.

Regardless, this study at least shows the potential of intermittent fasting as a way to lower body fat without disturbing the hormonal system.