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From Couch to 5Ks to Ultra Champ

By on February 21, 2015 in Guest Perspective, Ultramarathon

Nathan_ultraThe busy father of five balances his commitments to family, work and of course running — as he teaches his children about exercise, wellness and perseverance.

By Henry Howard

Like many runners, Nathan Maxwell started the sport to get in shape. He ran a few 5Ks and was hooked. So he went up in distance, again like many runners, to see if he could do a half-marathon.

That was 2012.

Since then, Maxwell has charted his own path though he deviated from the natural path. The next step was not a full marathon. Instead, the Augusta, Georgia, resident went right to ultra distances, where he found his passion and excelled at those long races. Continue Reading →

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Steve Yee -Call him Mr. Marathon Maniac

By on February 11, 2015 in Guest Perspective, Interview

Marathon Maniac founders Steve Yee, Chris Warren and Tony Phillippi [click to enlarge]

Marathon Maniac founders Steve Yee, Chris Warren and Tony Phillippi [click to enlarge]

Steve Yee coined the term with his marathon friends and has presided over the growth of the popular group of yellow-clad runners since 2003.

By Henry Howard

Steve Yee’s running passion started innocently enough. In 1983, Yee learned of the Seattle Mariners Fun Run, an 8-mile run that included four tickets to a ball game.

“With a few weeks training I was able to complete it without stopping so I got really excited, started training more and signed up for races every single weekend after that,” he says. “With each race more challenges emerged, I started running half marathons and finally took the plunge with my first marathon six months after the Mariners Fun Run.”

Turn the clock ahead 20 years and many marathons later, Yee was having lunch with Chris Warren, Tony Phillippi, Sue Fauerbach and Terry Watanabe after — of course — a marathon. The runners talked about how many marathons they ran throughout the year. Friendly oneupsmanship took over as the runners started throwing out race after race that they would do.

At one point, Yee said,

“I feel like I’m amongst a bunch of Marathon Maniacs.”

The name stuck, and Yee, Warren and Phillippi became the original founders and co-presidents of the most popular marathon group active today. Continue Reading →

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Two Simple Steps to Analyze Your Last Tempo Run

By on February 10, 2015 in Guest Perspective, Speedwork

1-4-1ZoneBy Philip Miller, creator of GraphMyRun

Runners whose goal is just to finish a marathon only need a very simple training tool. It’s a check list.

“Did I do my long run this weekend, yes or no?”

But if you’re training for a marathon with a different goal in mind – like qualifying for Boston – your training plan will be more complex. And that means you’ll need better analysis tools, too. Continue Reading →

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Dozen Runners Crossing USA for Charity

By on February 3, 2015 in Guest Perspective, Ultramarathon

RaceAcrossUSACoast-to-coast event spans 140 days, allows participants to break through boundaries and raises money for 100 Mile Club.

By Henry Howard

For some, finishing a marathon is the ultimate achievement in running. It’s a worthy goal and one that less than 1 percent of the adult population achieves.

Right now, a dozen runners are going on an epic multi-marathon challenge across the United States. They are participating in the Race Across USA, which is literally what they are doing — from California through the southern part of the United States to Washington, D.C.

It’s a 140-day journey, with 120 planned days of running and 3,080 miles. They will run 112 marathons during that time.

Darren Van Soye is the creator and organizer of Race Across USA, along with his wife, Sandy. He is running the entire race so she is taking on the primary role of race director, handling logistics and everything else that comes up along the way. Continue Reading →

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Toughness, Faith Fuel Ultra Runner

By on January 26, 2015 in Guest Perspective, Interview, Ultramarathon

BryanBurkAir Force veteran uses lessons learned from high school football, military career and his religion to bring him to the finish line of endurance races.

By Henry Howard

In high school, Brian Burk played running back and safety on the football team. He had grown up playing a variety of sports but did not fashion himself as a runner.

Burk — aka “CleDawg,” a nickname stemming from his passion for the Cleveland Browns — readily admits that back in those days he lacked discipline and any knowledge about conditioning. Instead, he just wanted to play the game he loved.

That all changed one day when the coach made the team run a mile after practice. Continue Reading →

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Six Steps to Filling out Your Race Calendar

By on January 14, 2015 in Guest Perspective

5374200948_539b10fb1c_mRunners face the daunting challenge of plotting out a to-do list of races that won’t break the bank or bust up their body.

By Henry Howard

Right now I have no fewer than 21 races on my race calendar for 2015.

That’s about triple the number I have averaged in the past four years since I began my running journey.

I’ll probably end up doing about 10 races and have already committed and signed up for two, the Phoenix Marathon and the Indianapolis Monumental. I’ll run the full 26.2 in each race but will flush out my race calendar with shorter distances.

Or maybe try an ultra. Continue Reading →

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Athlete-Foodie Combines Two Passions

By on January 7, 2015 in Guest Perspective

07_04_12_Giro_06_Stage6_066Endurance cyclist was looking for a healthy, nutritious energy bar portable enough for long bike rides, runs or hikes. She found it in her kitchen.

By Henry Howard

Ally Stacher, who grew up in a small town in California, says she has always been a foodie. “My family and friends were always making great meals and I fell in love with the process of making food with the best ingredients and from the ground up.”  Continue Reading →

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Athlete Overcomes Back Surgery to Run Half Marathon

By on December 30, 2014 in Guest Perspective, Health and Wellness

Alex_Johnson_blogrunA cold race day in Indianapolis gave way to a series of heart-warming moments for Louisville man and his girlfriend.

By Henry Howard

When Alex Johnson arrived in Indianapolis for the Monumental Marathon on Nov. 1 of last year, he was greeted by an unusually cool fall evening. Race-time wind chills were around 20 degrees for Johnson, who was running his first half marathon, and his girlfriend, Taryn Scampoli, who was running the full.

“I’m not a cold weather runner, or cold weather anything, so I was not in a great mood the morning of the race,” admits Johnson, who lives in Louisville, Ky. “However, I also kept in mind that the previous three months had all led to this morning, and that there was one goal to the day, and that being to cross the finish line. As the race started, I turned my music up loud, latched on to each next fastest runner I could find in the pack, and leaned forward.”

While Johnson trained three months for his first 13.1-mile race, his quest was actually years in the making. Continue Reading →

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Top Running Stories of 2014

By on December 26, 2014 in Guest Perspective

2014It’s been quite a year for the running community — from glory in Boston to disbelief in South Africa.

By Henry Howard

With 2014 winding to a close, many news organizations look back with “top 10” lists of the best, worst or some other categorization.

As runners, we have our own personal top achievements from the past year. Maybe it was a PR, finishing a new race distance or winning an age group. Or perhaps pushing through or recovering from an injury.

But as I reflected on the past year, there seemed to be quite a few running related stories that carried impact that will last beyond 2014. The resilience of the Boston Marathon community to host a terrific race one year after the terrorist bombing. The death of a beloved Olympic athlete and war hero. And Deena Kastor’s half marathon record.

These aren’t in any particular order — I’ll let history decide on the significance of each. But to me, these are the top running stories from the past year. Continue Reading →

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Review: Swiftwick Socks Help Runners Recover

By on December 15, 2014 in Gear, Guest Perspective, Review

aspire-zero-black-compression-socks-9652larCompany’s compression socks and sleeves offer athletes comfort during activity and recovery afterward, in many styles and colors.

By Henry Howard

I’m a guy so it’s no surprise that I lack the shopping gene.

When I became a runner, I had no idea there were so many options for shoes, socks, shirts, shorts, headwear, gloves and the list goes on. I knew I wanted a good pair of running sneakers and running clothes that wouldn’t chafe me. And I knew better than to wear a cotton T-shirt while running. Continue Reading →

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Home Gyms: Are They Worth It?

By on December 12, 2014 in Guest Perspective, Sponsored Post

Posted December 8th 2021.

Health and fitness should be simple and practical. From moving with meaning to lifting the weights with efficiency and perfect form, that is how improving your physical fitness should be. On the other hand, packing your stuff in a bag, climbing in your car, and traveling for miles just to go to your gym is not. Continue Reading →

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Runner Sportsmanship

By on December 9, 2014 in Guest Perspective, Uncategorized

postracefoodfrenzyThe recent display of greed at a Cincinnati road race shouldn’t indict all runners. We have our issues but good sportsmanship regularly prevails.

By Henry Howard

I was appalled to learn of the food looting perpetrated by some of the 15,000 runners in the recent Thanksgiving Day Race in Cincinnati. There seemed to be plenty of energy bars, fruit, drinks and other recovery fuel on hand.

But that wasn’t enough for some of the runners who readily ignored giving thanks for the day, and instead greedily filled their boxes with food. Not only did a local food bank not receive an influx of leftovers, many of the runners were left without snacks after the 10K race.

“There were people jumping in dumpsters to find bigger boxes,” race director Julie Isphording told the Cincinnati Enquirer. “I couldn’t believe it. People brought bags of their own just so they could stuff them full.” Continue Reading →

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