By Dr. Phil Maffetone Most runners intuitively know movement is necessary for a healthy body — nearly as necessary as air. But did you know it’s important for developing and maintaining a healthy brain, too? That’s because attached to our wiggling toes, bending knees, rotating spine and all moving muscles are nerve endings sending up to…
Category: Health
Kids Don’t Need to Sit All Day in School: It’s Bad for Their Health
Bernadine Somers and Morgan Academy will be the first school of our region in West Virginia, maybe even the entire East Coast, to experiment with stand-up desks for kids. Most adults and children spend their days engaged in a damaging and unhealthful activity: sitting. Parking ourselves in chairs for long periods results in a chronic…
Natural Foot Health vs. Shoe Industry
by Dr. Ray McClanahan. During a vacation with my family in Hawaii, we attended a Luau, where nearly every native Hawaiian had beautiful spread toes and strong healthy feet. That is not often the case on the mainland. I couldn’t help but wonder if it was related to the fact that they work and live barefoot…
Let’s Do Lunge: Dynamic Movements and Exercise Drills
Join me, my kids Leo and Lily, and my fellow movement teacher and Two Rivers Treads Education lead Paul Koczera, as we lead you through several exercise snacks that are demonstrated in these three videos. Do these simple dynamic movements and drills whenever and wherever you can. They can be done any time of day,…
Breathing Exercises for Runners: But First, Are You Able to Breathe Nasally?
We run primarily with our legs? So why is the Natural Running Center publishing a three-part video series (with accompanying text) on breathing? The answer is simple: Better breathing is the secret weapon to running better, feeling better, relaxing better, thinking better, being in better posture, sleeping better, and so on. Trust me here. Maybe…
Book Excerpt from “FARMACOLOGY”
Please enjoy this excerpt from a new book called “FARMACOLOGY:What Innovative Family Farming Can Teach Us About Health and Healing,” from my colleague Dr. Daphne Miller. Dr. Miller is a fellow Family Physician and we met a little over a year ago at an event promoting Nature Prescriptions. Dr. Miller is one of the nation’s…
Can Music Help You Run Faster? Dr. Phil Maffetone Says “Not” When You’re Actually Running
Many runners depend on their tunes to get through their workouts. Other runners never run with music, using the syncopated beats of their breathing or footstriking as their private cadence-like metronome to propel them forward. So, is there a right way or wrong way when it comes to music and running? …
One Small Step for Man…Proprioceptive Deception
Most of us during the course of the day seldom watch where we put our feet when we are out and about. Instead, we rely on our innate sense of balance and the neural-muscular connection between the brain and feet. It’s as if our body is on auto-pilot. For example, when you’re carrying a cup…
Running and Asthma: Getting Healthy is the Best, Natural Treatment
by Dr. Phil Maffetone. Many runners often experience asthma. Yes, asthma is a common condition found in endurance athletes, and even occurs at a higher incidence than the general population. Asthma is a chronic respiratory condition characterized by episodes or attacks of impaired breathing. Symptoms are caused by chronic inflammation and narrowing of the airways…
For Those Who Love to Run While on the Road….
Print out these (larger size), get them laminated, and you can have your very own personalized hotel-room doorknob cards. Source: www.facebook.com/runningquotes
Scientists Discover that “Exercise in Moderation is Beneficial!” Really?
by Dr. Phil Maffetone. I don’t keep track of which “health” lifestyle craze we’re in the midst of right now, but the odds are there’s at least one that’s grabbing a lot of current headlines. I don’t read newspapers or magazines, watch TV or listen to the radio. That includes almost all the same junk…
Got Stress? Then, Running More = Running Better?
Got Stress? We all have it enter our lives, some experiencing stress more frequently than others. How we deal with it has been the subject of countless books, magazine articles, and talk shows. Too many people, unfortunately, attempt to self-medicate their way past stress, ranging from the daily jolts of caffeine to doctor-prescribed pills. But…
All Runners: No Immunity from Heart Disease
The circumstances surrounding Micah True’s untimely death while he was out on a routine 12-mile trail run in the Gila wilderness area of New Mexico have caused many runners to look inward…to their own hearts. According to the Associated Press, “While medical examiners couldn’t point to the cause of the heart disease, they said True’s left…
Walk Right Before You Run (and Only in the Right Shoes)
Half of the customers who enter Two Rivers Treads in Shepherdstown, West Virginia have no interest in running or buying running shoes. That’s because we are not exclusively a “minimalist running store”. We also carry shoes for walkers and hikers. We want people moving and there is no safer, accessible, and natural movement than walking….
Health Risks of Drinking Too Much Water Before or During a Race: Beware of Intoxication and Hyponatremia
by Dr. Phil Maffetone. Drinking fluids during training and racing will soon be reaching a boiling point of controversy and not for reasons most runners might suspect. Dehydration, and how to keep it under control, is nothing new. What’s been bubbling up in the media for the past few years is hyperhydration—drinking too much and…
Boston Marathon 2012 — Meet the Heat
With the hot temperatures putting a distinctive stamp on the 2012 Boston Marathon, I wisely played it safe. I finished 10 minutes slower than last year’s time (2:37), yet came away with fourth in my age group (45-49). More importantly, I avoided the medical tent by following good racing practices. I wasn’t here to see…
Nature, Play, Running, and the Rebirth of Fartlek
*** Last week, I had the privilege of addressing an audience of local youth in a TEDx event that was hosted by National Conservation and Training Center in Shepherdstown , West Virginia. The topic was “Connection to Nature.” For those who have never heard of TED, it stands for “Technology, Entertainment, and Design”, and the…
Reducing Stress: Don’t Let the Workouts Control You
by Bill Katovsky. Research scientists love tormenting lab rats. The furry little rodents are starved, shocked, bullied, and even water-boarded. Their torture is encouraged under the rational aegis of science—to find out how stress affects the brain. Because rats provide a fairly reliable indicator of human behavior, scientists use them to examine how stress affects…
VivoBarefoot Aquas — Ideal for Everyday Use and Comfort
By Pete Larson. I’ve gotten a number of emails recently from readers asking about what type of shoe I wear to work. Given that I’ve spent most of the past 4 months either in sandals, barefoot, or in running shoes (i.e., summer attire for a college prof), none of those are likely the answer that…