One Ultrarunning Problem, Solved for Good

Matthew Staver for The New York Times

Marshall Ulrich, left, and Mark Macy, long-distance runners, have found that permanent removal of toenails helps them in races.

BEAVERTON, Ore. (April 19, 2009) – Nike today introduced the Nike LunarGlide+, a new lightweight running shoe with an innovative mid-sole design architecture called Dynamic Support, a patent-pending system which adapts to a runner’s gait with each step, providing superior cushioning and as-needed stability.

“Runners traditionally had to choose between stability or cushioning shoes based on their running style,” said Leslie Lane, Global Vice President and General Manager for Nike Running. “For the first time a running shoe will respond to the runner’s gait throughout a run as it varies between neutral and over-pronation.”

Dynamic Support
The Dynamic Support system breaks the myth that runners must compromise their needs by selecting between two industry-standard categories of Stability or Cushioning. In fact, most runners’ foot strikes will vary between neutral and over-pronation throughout the course of a run, impacted by fatigue and the running surface.

The Nike LunarGlide+ is the first shoe to deliver lightweight, custom performance with both top-tier cushioning and stability.

The Dynamic Support system in the Nike LunarGlide+ mid-sole is comprised of a lightweight LunarLite foam core that sits within a firmer foam carriage. The LunarLite foam core is cut to fit into the carriage at an angle creating a deeper cushioned lateral side. The medial side of the Nike LunarGlide+ mid-sole features a rear-foot wedge that has been contoured into the firmer foam carriage which provides stability on an as-needed basis.

A neutral runner will not engage the wedge upon foot strike, but a runner who pronates, no matter to what degree, will engage the rear-foot wedge, receiving the stable platform they need upon foot strike. All runners will feel the deep, responsive cushioning of the LunarLite foam core.

“All runners are different and therefore need specific solutions,” said Phil McCartney, Global Footwear Category Director. ”The new Nike LunarGlide+ featuring the Dynamic Support system responds with cushioning and stability so runners will no longer have to compromise. Runners will experience a ride which is specific to them and how they run, even as their gait changes throughout a run.”

LunarLite Foam
Nike first introduced LunarLite foam in the summer of 2008 in Beijing as the mid-sole cushioning system of the Nike LunaRacer and Nike Lunar Trainer running shoes and in the Nike Hyperdunk basketball shoe. Traditional cushioning systems only absorb energy upon impact while LunarLite foam has proven to provide superior cushioning and significant energy return.

Flywire Technology
The Nike LunarGlide+ incorporates another Beijing innovation – Flywire technology. The integration of Flywire threads into the upper design of shoes from a variety of sports including running, basketball and tennis, has allowed designers to shed unprecedented amounts of weight without losing the necessary support and stability.

The use of LunarLite foam in the mid-sole and Flywire threads in the upper allowed designers to create the men’s Nike LunarGlide+ at a mere 10.6 oz., while the women’s weighs just 8.6 oz.

Women’s Specific Design
All runners are not......

Posted by Kelly Johnson, community blogger

Last weekend at the Race for the Roses I followed local photographer Evan Pilchik around to see what it's like to be a race photographer.

While I often take pictures at races and group runs (and wherever there might be friends of mine or cute dogs), I have no skill. Pilchik, on the other hand, manages to make even the most exhausted half-marathoner look like a champion.

On race days, the runners show up to pick up their packets, stretch, and warm up. About an hour before the early birds get to a race, Pilchik arrives and starts preparing for a busy day of work.

Photographing a race requires Pilchik to know the number of participants, the course, the weather, and the day's schedule. He has to assign other photographers course locations and provide them with information so they'll know when to be ready for runners and from which direction, so they can get the best possible shot.

A few minutes before the race start, Pilchik gives last-minute directions to his fellow photographers, double checks his equipment and gives his set up a last minute assessment. He then puts himself in prime position for a great shot: directly in the line of thousands of highly motivated people who can cover the distance between the starting line and him in about two seconds.

After the gun goes off, when any normal person would be either running away or protecting their vital organs, Pilchik stands his ground and takes a few pictures of the now fast-moving crowd. Then at the last second....

Being a runner for nearly half my life, the typical 5k race (3.1 miles) just wasn't cutting it for me anymore. I knew that my body wasn't quite ready for a full marathon, so back in October I determined that I would do a half marathon (13 miles). Researching races and dates, I carefully picked the Athens, Ohio, half marathon on Sunday, April 5. It was perfect; there was plenty of time to prepare.

Unfortunately for me, spring break was two weeks before the race, so my already low-mileage training was a little slack. The week before the race, I made sure to drink plenty of water and maintain a consistent number of miles.

Sunday morning rolled around, and my pre-race jitters were....

There aren’t too many people whom I ran with in high school and college, that I don’t see out still running today. It really is addictive and once you start running and learn to love it, it’s really hard to stop. Not only does it improve your general health and make you feel better, it is also a great stress reliever!

I have been running competitively since I was in sixth grade. Basketball just really wasn’t my thing so I went out for track and fell in love. I knew that with running, I was in control. If I wanted a spot on a relay team, then I had to be one of the four fastest — simple as that.

I am such a competitor in everything I do, so after I was done running cross country and track at Hutchinson Community College, I had to find something else to compete in. That’s where fun runs came into place.

A fun run is a run-race-walk usually 5 kilometers (3.1 miles) or 10 kilometers (6.2 miles). They are typically sponsored and are organized to help raise money for an event or to benefit different organizations. Running a 5K is an excellent goal for new runners. I promise you that....

Mix it up to stay sane and improve your running

It's getting darker, colder, wetter, and gloomy. Many of us are coming off a fall of cross country, some big road races, or just enjoying running in the delightful environment that season can provide. We are entering the winter, maybe the longest and most difficult season for running. This could be the perfect time to supplement your training with some cross training exercises.

Running can be a very monotonous exercise and even though many of us love it, it can be beneficial to try something different occasionally. Adding cross training to your routine could help improve your running as well.

Often times people only begin cross training when they are injured in order to stay in shape when they are unable to run. However if they had added cross training earlier, they could have potentially added more variety that could possibly relieve some stress from their training and keep things fresh.

My favorite Cross Training Routines:

Swim, Kick, Jog in the Pool

-15 minutes of free-style swimming

-15 minutes of kick boarding

- 20-30 minutes of Aqua Jogging alternating between hard and easy efforts

- Relays if working out with a group or team

I love getting in the pool to mix it up and get off my feet. I do this with the team I coach often to relieve the monotony of constantly running and to throw some fun variety into our schedule.

MINUTES workout on a Stationary Bike

- 15 minutes of warm-up

- Series of hard/easy intervals on the bike, example: 3 hard, 3 easy, 4 hard, 4 easy, 3 hard, 3 easy etc.

- 15 minutes of warm-down

The one complaint I usually have about cross training on a stationary bike or an elliptical machine is that it can become boring. I like to mix it up by throwing in surges of harder efforts followed by easier segments. This seems to really make the time go by much faster.

What are your favorite cross training exercises or workouts? Discuss it on the training section of our forum!

I apologize for the very long delay in the Nike Spikes series that I started at the beginning of the summer. It was a crazy summer, but I'm starting up the long over due return of these videos that preview Nike's spike line-up that will soon be available for retail and on the feet of runners across the country. Jonny "Wildhorse" Truax, James "Tonger" Tong, and Tom "Red Rocket" Redding give you insight on how these spikes are made and the inspiration behind them in a very entertaining fashion. Enjoy!

In case you missed the first two videos:

Part 1 - Cubicle Tour

Part 2 - The Process

Part 3- The Matumbo

Part 4 - The Victory

Part 5 - The Victory (cont.)

YAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!

OK, but seriously, where's the stuff for the very very beginners?  What if I know ABSOLUTELY NOTHING about running?

Fear, that emotion which has primed us all for survival, seems to be more of an accessory than the necessary sensation of pain, but is inherent in the stimulation of that self-defensive “fight or flight” reaction. You know, that one in which your heart nearly pounds through your chest, you’ve clearly pitted out your shirt, your blood pressure is off the charts, etc. Adrenaline, cortisol and the other hormones gushing out of your adrenal gland in this moment are meant only to sustain your (a) altercation or (b) flee. This rush, then, does not fuel a seven-mile steady state nor a progressive long run – nor does it supplement either a cocky elite runner or an oblivious jogger’s confidence.
Maybe if we could call on that surge only when we need just that, when we lack the mere second to call on fleet-of-foot Hermes. Maybe if we prepare and smarten up, we can train more assuredly, more relaxed and confidently. When we’re running through winter’s murkiness, smart companies provide tools we may or may not utilize - such as reflective vests and headlamps.


More essential, I think, is the tool of common sense. To what extent do we perceive our safety? I know my imagination flourishes with the sensationalized news stories and neighborhood lore about Where Not To Run. I know my rebellion against the caution to not respond to cat-call, and flipping a bird to a construction worker, does little to increase my athletic or spiritual strength. But I also know how some choices I make, such as blasting Radiohead on an iPod during a pre-dawn run, limit my ability to sense safety and respond to fear.

Considering fear in certain situations is essential – as exemplified by my experience being chased on the Portland To Coast by a lonely coyote while I welded a dying flashlight, and another experience last week nearly running head-on into a man in the pitch-black of Tryon Creek Park. However beneficial exercising caution is, especially in light of web-broadcasted, fear-laced forums, I find exercising more beneficial than not...especially in the dark.

I can run, prepared for darkness and doldrums, whether led by fear’s adrenaline rush. I find faith under stars that recede into the dark with the light of the day, and courage with missteps that test my certainty. Who is not scared to be tested? Whatever degree of fear is inevitable, unrational and excessive fear is harmful in itself. No one is holding our hands as we run through this or that; we get to advocate for ourselve, encourage our own confidence and seek patience with our own paths.

The last time that I wrote, you could tell that I am in the process of getting through a pretty nagging injury which has brought my season to a standstill more or less. I have some good news to report though! I have been working on my cardio on the bike, which is boring but necessary and also have been doing a more wide variety of stretches and my leg is feeling great! I have been running the past few days for only 20 minutes but it has been 20 minutes of pain free running which is the first time that has happened since I hurt my leg when I got back from break in early January!

I went out and got a stick from Eugene Running Company and it is great. I use it about two to three times a day and it really allows me to get into the muscle a little deeper than the foam roller does. I've been working on icing the knee but I don't really do it as much as I should be. I freeze water in a dixie cup and tear off the top and apply it like a rub on ointment or balm rather than using an icepack, which is also helping tremendously. I also have been staying away from heat. Before I was taking baths hoping that it would relax  the muscle when really it was inflaming it.

These next few weeks I will use towards getting myself back to where I need to be so I can open up sometime in early April outdoors somewhere. Let me tell you the last month has been hell not being able to run but all in all I am happy that this injury is coming to an end and I am able to hit the track and the trails again!

Hope everyone has a good Valentines day!

Ryan