Matt Metzgar

Barefoot Running Technique II

With the weather turning warmer, I have been running outside a bit.  Initially, I noticed my stamina running outside was much lower than when I run inside at the track.  I thought about it, and realized there was one major difference: when I run indoors, I run barefoot (in socks only).

Apparently, even with wearing minimal shoes when running outside, my form disintegrates and I run less efficiently.  I don't plan on running barefoot outside on the streets, so I need to come up with an alternative.  I may buy a pair of Vibram Five Fingers, which have received some positive reviews from runners.  Other than that, I may just have to practice more barefoot running indoors, and try to transfer the same technique to when I'm outside running in shoes.

Strangest Workout of the Year

I've been meaning to post about this funny incident I had at the gym recently.  I was doing some squats and I ended up working in with a few athletes from the local university.  I think they are on the basketball team, though I'm not sure.

They had brought along a friend who was obviously new to lifting - he wasn't in shape and didn't really seem to know what was going on.  When it was his turn to squat, one guy loaded up the bar with weight for him, then said, "don't fall down," and walked away.  That was the sum of his guidance.

Of course, this new guy almost bit the dust on the first rep.  I thought I'd have to step in and bail this guy out, because his friends weren't even paying attention to what was happening.  The new guy managed a few reps with minimal depth and then racked the bar.

I don't think these friends will win any "personal trainer of the year" awards!

Health Campaigns

I saw in this article the other day that breastfeeding rates are the highest they've been in 20 years.  All I can say to this is: great!  Science is just beginning to discover the many benefits of breastfeeding.  Breastfeeding has been the norm for millions of years of human evolution - it should be the default method for feeding an infant in my opinion.

The increase in breastfeeding rates was attributable to health campaigns designed to highlight the benefits of breastfeeding.  This is also good news because it shows people's perceptions and habits can be influenced for the better.  It doesn't seem like any health campaigns about better eating have made much of a dent in the overweight/obesity problem, but maybe it takes some time to get traction.

Green Works II

I was at the store earlier, so I decided to look at the Green Works brand versus typical cleaners.  As you can see in the picture, the Green Works cleaner costs $2.99 a bottle, while "409" (also made by Clorox) costs $2.29.  I don't know if this price differential is based on higher costs for the Green Works product, or if they are just trying to charge a premium for a health-conscious product.

I looked on the back of the "409" bottle, and it had listed: "Precautionary statement: Harmful to humans and animals".  So they are telling you right on the label that the product is probably toxic.  For me, I'd rather spend the extra 70 cents for a healthier product.

I have actually emailed Clorox to ask them why they sell both a toxic and non-toxic line of cleaners.  It wil be interesting to see if or what type of response I'll receive.

More Than A Website

Sometimes I wonder how far you can go with a website.  I enjoy blogging and hopefully others enjoy the site, but it seems limited at times.  For myself, I really only check a few other websites on a regular basis.  So I shouldn't somehow expect that everyone is going to always drop what they're doing and race to my website.

Part of the issue is content.  You can post information, and that's all well and good, but that doesn't always drive interest.  I can provide lots of information about eating Paleo and exercising, but again I'm just not sure if that's the highest thing on a reader's priorities list.

So what do people want the most?  Inspiration?  Motivation?  Pictures and videos are always more exciting than just plain text, so that can help things.  But it seems like there should be a way to turn a website into something bigger, something more valuable.  How to do this, I haven't quite figured out yet.

Pose Running

I noticed that the Pose running group recently had this article published in a scientific journal.  I am not fully convinced about Pose, but I do think it has value.  At the very least, it is helping some people run better and injury-free, and it is generating more discussion about proper running technique.

Pose would probably do a lot better without the language barrier that Romanov faces.  If you look at Chi Running, it is very similar in substance but it is packaged in a much more clever way.  When I go to the local bookstore, I always see Chi Running on the shelf.  I don't see the Pose book.

I came across this interesting link about Chi versus Pose versus other techniques.  It's done by a couple of Ph.D.'s in Exercise Science, and it makes for a good read.

Green Works

After throwing out my toxic cleaning products last year, I have experimented with different brands to find suitable replacements.  Recently, Green Works products (from Clorox) have entered the marketplace.  I bought some the other week to give it a try.

The products seem to work as well as any typical cleaner.  And they are available at the local grocery store, so I don't have to make any extra effort to seek them out.  They are worth a try in my book.

I've started to wonder how Clorox can maintain their integrity by offering two lines of cleaners: a toxic version and a non-toxic version.  Why don't they just quit selling the old line and convert everything to Green Works?  Are any customers really going to get upset if they can't purchase their old toxic cleaners?  If so, maybe Clorox shouldn't want these people as customers.

Perhaps Clorox is in the process of changing their business model to focus on more environmentally-friendly products, I don't know. It's probably just a matter of time until these chemicals get (rightfully) banned in various places anyhow.  In the meantime, Green Works is at least a step in the right direction.

   

You Walk Wrong

Chris noted this article, "You Walk Wrong", that was recently published.  It discusses how most modern shoes impair our natural gait.  The article also discusses the development of various shoes that attempt to mimic barefoot walking.

I came to this same conclusion a few years ago.  The dress shoes I was wearing to work had the usual thick heel to them.  I noticed my knees began to hurt whenever I would wear these shoes.  I ditched them for a pair of flat, moccasin-type dress shoes and have never looked back.

Insulin Resistance and Breast Cancer

Here's a link to another new study showing the harmful effects of insulin resistance.  The study shows that early stage breast cancer patients have high levels of insulin and varying degrees of insulin resistance.  It is suggested that treatments focused on lowering insulin levels could be beneficial for breast cancer patients.

High-Intensity Training and Detraining

I found this neat study(pdf) that compared low and high-intensity strength training in older men.  The low intensity group used repetitions of 14 to 16, while the high-intensity group used repetitions of 6 to 8.  A 24 week training program was followed by a year of detraining.

Amazingly, after a year of detraining, the high-intensity group still maintained some benefits of the strength training.  For example, their performance on the leg press and chest press was still above baseline measures.  In the low-intensity group, most values returned to the baseline measures.

To me, this shows that high-intensity strength training is powerful medicine.  It also shows that it may not have to be performed as often as some people think.  High-intensity training leads to structural remodeling in the body, and these changes won't fade in a week or two.