It was great. The mornings have been fresh and crisp around here lately and it’s such a nice time to walk. Plus, it makes me feel better knowing I have walked my little buddy a good distance, and have worked my own heart, too.

It’s funny; when I walk at a brisk pace, lately I have felt more aware of my body than I do when I run. I can’t quite explain what I mean, but it’s almost like my body talks to me more when I walk for exercise. I think it’s a function of running more for exercise than walking and that I’m honestly probably more cognizant runner than I am walker.

What a thing to think about! I walk all the time, every day, but when I walk for exercise, with the intention of raising my heart rate for a period of time, the whole scene changes for me. I am able to Gather chi by enjoying the vista and the sounds of birds and water running. I feel less able to issue that chi back through my body back into nature.

I still need to work a lot on my core engagement. And my upper body posture and alignment. Often I catch myself slouching (even as I sit and write this now) and constantly have to remind myself to get tall again.

So when I walk I want to think more about leading with my shoulders and really letting my legs lead. I am going to try using a visualization when I walk for the next week or so (whether it be to the printer or around the park) that my shoulders and eyes are what lead my body rather than my legs (the second one is Y’chi). So when I get out of my chair next (in 20 minutes when I leave, for example) I will imagine that my shoulders are the driving force behind my movement, rather than my legs.

I’ll let you know how it goes: core engaged, leading with the shoulders and eyes, legs relaxed and cooperating with the floor/road.

Well this is it…the week I’ve been waiting for. The USATF National Trail Championships are this Saturday. I’ve booked my hotel room and downloaded a map of the course and I’m ready to roll. Last Saturday I did a Time Trial on my practice course. It’s roughly 6 miles long and very hilly trail running, so I figured it would be a reasonable mock-up of the actual race course (most likely easier than the real course which has 1300′ of vertical gain… and, of course, another 1300′ of loss as well). Three months ago best time on my practice course was just under an hour…58 minutes and some change. Last Saturday my training partner, Billy Jonas, and I ran it in 47:10 which tells me that all of my conditioning work is paying off. Since I haven’t been on the actual course, I’m not making any predictions on how I expect to do.

Here’s my race strategy. What I do plan to do is focus for the entire race on all the ChiRunning hill focuses I’ve been practicing… lots of upper body and arm swing on the uphills and as much speed as I can ask of these old legs on the downhills. As is traditional for me, I don’t plan to push the uphills much since that’s the place where most runners burn through their stored glycogen too quickly. I’ll be racing in a pair of La Sportiva Crosslite trail shoes designed for fell running. They’ve got incredible traction and they’re flexible, flat and lightweight…couldn’t ask for a better shoe for this event.

I’m taking it a little easier for the rest of this week…stoking up on my carbs and spending as little time sitting in my office chair as I can get away with (it’s deadly on my hamstrings and back). You’ll be the first to know how I do.

Happy trails,
Danny

I’ve been really practicing keeping my feet loose when I walk, around the office or at the grocery or wherever. I’ve also really been trying to work on my posture and make sure I’m not slouching or jutting my chin out.

I’ve felt quite good and proper posture really makes me more alert when I write emails or sit during meetings or drive in the car. It’s all about this daily effort to practice focuses so that when I go run it’s easier to access those Body Senses.

Running today was great. It wasn’t a lot of mileage, but that doesn’t matter to me so much right now. I’m just happy to be healthy, to get out and be active, to feel my heart pumping and to spend time with my dog. I am trying to focus on these things in alternating intervals: tall crown/ level pelvis, no shoulder movement (elbows to the rear), and not stepping past my hip (allowing pelvic rotation).  They’re a nice combination of things that I’ve found really help me avoid knee pain and maintain a healthy stride length.

I suppose finding a race to train for would be a good idea, but I’ve been really working on shorter distances to keep working on my form. I’ve also been working with other people on their form, which is always so satisfying and full of “ah-hah” moments, both for me and for clients.

Hope you are all enjoying these later days of summer, and for those of you are back-to-school, don’t forget to take a moment for yourself.

Ironically, it has also been one of NB’s most successful models ever, spanning the range of uses from a colorful, casual/style shoe to an all out trail racing flat. There are lots of other great midfoot strike shoes out there, but for whatever reason, this one hit the nail on the head.

I highly suggest that if we’d like to see NB continue producing this shoe, we should make a lot of noise about its “decommissioning” and email them to express our desire to see it continued.  Unfortunately, NB makes it very difficult to give feedback to them directly so I will give you the email address of a friend in their wear test department who is willing to gather your input. Please send your letters to: Ryan.Miller@newbalance.com

I’ll be reviewing other great shoes in future blogs, but I wanted to get the ball rolling on this one first.

BTW, these shoes are still available on most online running shoe sites and they range in price from $49-$79…a great deal.

Danny

I stayed with a friend in Boulder for a couple of days and was blessed to be able to run some of my favorite trails again. The familiar sights and the beauty of the foothills of the Rockies brought back many fond memories of the years I spent running and exploring the canyons and meadows with fellow runners. I realized that some of the most peaceful and deeply nourishing times of my life been spent while being immersed in Nature, and I’m eternally thankful for the lessons, insights and ideas that have come to me during my “running meditations.”

On the recommendation of a friend I went for a trail run in the hills just south of Boulder in the Eldorado Canyon area. I borrowed his bike to ride to the trail head, about three miles away. It was a nice way to warm up for the run. The first part of the run was a steady 3-mile climb which led me up to the base of some of the huge sandstone formations that Boulder is famous for. At the top of the ascent the trail turned north and meandered through meadows filled with Bee Balm flowers so thick that at times they completely obscured the trail. I could see Boulder way off in the distance and the Front Range mountains extended north like the spine of an endless dragon.

The best part of the run was when the trail abruptly spat me out into a breathtaking view of Eldorado Canyon…world-renowned for its thousand foot rock-climbing walls. I stopped dead in my tracks, totally awed by the immensity and striking beauty of what I was looking at, feeling that I could easily spend the rest of the day right where I was. I didn’t follow my impulse, but I did shift into a more effortless running gear as I left the spot. I spent the remainder of my run with my eyes wide open and running with the sense that I didn’t want to miss any part of the beauty that was being presented to me. And then the question came up in my mind…what would it be like if I were able to allow myself to experience every moment of every day with the same sense of wonder and awe that I was momentarily swept into?

We all get so caught up in the details of our everyday lives, that we need experiences like this to remind us of how blessed we are to partake in this thing called Life. I finished my run feeling a deep sense of well-being and gratitude and got back to the trail head to find my bike with a flat tire.

Just as I was beginning to feel jerked out of my bliss I spotted a man in the parking lot who had just finished a trail ride with his daughter. He gave me a lift back in to Boulder and I was once again reminded that all is well.

Issuing is precisely what it sounds like. It' happens when you apply your available energy, whether going up a hill or finishing a race with strength, speed and confidence. Whenever you're running at a steady pace for an extended period of time, you can practice gathering and issuing alternatively; gathering in when you are feeling tired, issuing when it feels good. This puts you in control of your energy management at all times.

The disadvantage many people have is not knowing when to gather and when to issue. Once you can Body Sense what it feels like to gather and issue, you can then learn when to apply one or the other at the most ideal time in your workout. This allows you to rest and recover energy during your workout. You can devote entire workouts to gathering energy, and then use that energy for your work, family or projects.

Runners and walkers "hit the wall" in races or workouts when they issue too much at the beginning and neglect the gathering aspect. Overall, we Western folk seem to focus more on issuing energy and less on gathering in. The result is injury, exhaustion or burn out.

When you are walking or running, the “C” Shape – lengthening the back of your neck, dropping your chin, and leveling your pelvis – creates a container in your pelvic area and in your torso. Even when issuing, if you keep the “C” Shape, you will not issue beyond your capacity. Maintain your “C” Shape even when issuing at top speed.

To issue your energy, focus on your legs going out the back. This will create a strong, healthy twist of your spine which, when released, will generate a lot of power … an issuing of energy. The rotation of the pelvis is another place where energy can be issued, when the time is right. At first, you want to allow your pelvis rotate from pure relaxation (while maintaining a level pelvis – that is crucial). Once you have a natural rotation, you can begin to encourage the rotation when it is time to issue energy. We'll cover this technique in a future article.

The real key to gathering and issuing is the focus of your mind. Mentally focus on gathering your energy in toward your center, toward your spine. Then focus on feeling that energy issuing that energy out your arms and legs and Body Sense how it feels.

There are many times I've come back from a run with more energy than I left with, and you might find that you can gain more energy from running and walking than by resting and recuperating on the sofa.