by Dr. Nick Campitelli. The debate continues amongst medical professionals, podiatrists, runners, and the media as to “Should we be running with supportive shoes with motion control?” For years the norm has been to support the arch with a custom or rigid orthotic to prevent overuse injury. This device was added to a cushioned running…
Author: MarkC
Why Isn’t Cross-Country Running in the Olympics?
by Bill Katovsky. The 3,000-meter steeplechase is always a fun event to watch at the Olympics. Runners must leap over 28 hurdles and 7 water jumps. The Kenyans usually dominate. The race’s origin dates back to 19th century England. Runners hoofed it from one town’s church steeple to the next. The steeples were used as…
Bill Bowerman, His Wife’s Waffle Iron, Nike’s Early Days and Birth of the Modern Running Shoe
The following is excerpted from the chapter, “The Running Shoe” in the new book, Tread Lightly: Form, Footwear, and the Quest for Injury-Free Running, by Peter Larson and Bill Katovsky — NRC *** Man spent several million years evolving as a runner. The athletic shoe has a much shorter history—about 180 years. But the modern…
Aerobic Training — What About Strength Workouts? (Part 3)
In the two previous parts of Principles of Aerobic Training, Dr. Steve Gangemi, aka Sock Doc, reviewed the critical components of building a healthy aerobic base that can lead to enhanced performance for all runners. In this part, Sock Doc turns his attention to strength training.– NRC We all can agree (hopefully) that strength is…
Facts on Foot Strike– Does It Matter If You Run with a Heel or Forefoot Strike?
The minimalist movement of the last few years has gotten runners focused on their feet. Many now know what research has shown: Foot-strike patterns are variable, and the specific interaction between the foot and the ground is influenced by multiple factors like speed, surface and footwear. So it shouldn’t come as a surprise that there’s…
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…
Some “Photo” Finishes: A Gallery of a Few Favorites
Dr. Phil Maffetone’s Music and Wellness Tour
My small town of Shepherdstown, West Virginia is privileged to be one of about dozen towns to have a special visit from Dr. Phil Maffetone who is a best-selling author of health and fitness books, the former coach to countless world-class and recreational athletes for decades, and a member of the Natural Running Center’s Advisory Board. …
How to Run the Boston Marathon: Race Day Strategies
In just over a week, I will be running in the 2012 Boston Marathon. This will be my nineteenth time there, with a current string of 10 consecutive races. My only misses were for military and work duties, and a foot surgery. I had five races under 2:30, six between 2:30 and 2:35; three between…
Micah True, aka Caballo Blanco…Gone, but Fondly Remembered
It wasn’t supposed to end this way for ultrarunning legend Micah True. Certainly not during a routine 12-mile trail run in the Gila Wilderness of New Mexico. But when he didn’t return from his morning run, and then when search and rescue teams, including a plane, helicopter, and dogs later got involved in the operation…
The Great Running Shoe Debate/Agreement
I have had the pleasure of several recent across-the-world exchanges with Brian Martin of Australia, whose website, Running Technique Tips should be bookmarked by runners interested in improving their form. Brian is a fitness coach who has been extensively home-schooled by the experts and his own body, and in the end has come out with…
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…
What Can We Learn from Watching Children Run?
The Natural Running Center is privileged to republish this article, “What Can We Learn from Watching Children Run?”, by Dr. Irene Davis, which originally appeared in the Fall 2011 Journal of the American Medical Athletic Association. Dr. Davis is one of the world’s leading experts on running mechanics, running injury, and research. Dr. Davis and…
Learning Good Barefoot Running Style
Mark Cucuzzella, MD, and director of the Natural Running Center regularly runs unshod as a way to strengthen his feet and legs, as well as improve form, cadence, and posture. This short training segment was filmed on location at the Antietam National Park.
Enhancing Natural Pronation Control: Your Feet Were Designed to Do Just That!
When customers enter Two Rivers Treads, questions always arise about pronation. Many of them in the past have been labeled pronators by well-meaning employees at other running stores. Some claim that they have classified as supinators. They want shoes that fit. They want to run injury-free. Yet it’s not something as simple as asking them…
Sh*t Runners Say to Barefoot Runners
Comic mastermind Steven Sashen has hit LOL-paydirt again with his follow-up video to “Sh*t Barefoot Runners Say.” In this sequel, the founder of Invisible Shoes examines “Sh*t Runners Say to Barefoot Runners.” The NRC gives this really, really funny video Two Big Toes Up!
Natural Running Fun Run & Clinic Central Park NYC
Come join me for a Natural Running Fun Run and Form Clinic sponsored by Newton Running in New York City’s Central Park. For the clinic in NYC this is what we will cover Understand the principles of walking and running movement and how running form, proper strength and mobility, and footwear can contribute to injuries…
Ask the Experts: What Are the Pros and Cons of Trigger-Point Therapy?
Patrick writes: After looking at some of the Sock-Doc’s videos on the Natural Running Center site and trying to find out how to deal with some pains on both the inside and the outside of my right knee, it appears to me that there is similarity between Dr Gangemi’s methods and Trigger-Point Therapy. Is this accurate?…
New Study Examined Forefoot Striking vs. Heel Striking (Guess Which Runners Get Injured More Often?)
On a regular basis, health and fitness journalist Gretchen Reynolds, who contributes to the Well Blog of the New York Times, has done a stellar job writing about the information, studies, and reports emerging rom the frontlines of exercise research. The topics are timely, and she is able to expertly highlight the salient facts. Best…
Podiatrist Addresses the 10 Myths of Barefoot Running
In the following essay, which appears in the current issue of Podiatry Today, Dr. Nick Campitelli, a health and medical advisor to the Natural Running Center, who is board-certified by the American Board of Podiatric Surgery, addresses a hotly debated topic in professional foot-treatment circles. Tackling The 10 Myths Of Barefoot Running by Nicholas A….
Dr. Mark Hits One Outta the Park in Trail Runner Nation Podcast
Trail Runner Nation is a community-centric website that’s supported by aficionados of the off-road. Their motto is “Run Strong and Run Long. They recently invited Dr. Mark Cucuzzella, our fearless leader of the Natural Running Center, to share his views in a podcast. It’s a fun, informative and doozy of an interview. Listen here if…
How I Became a Minimalist and Went from Average Runner to Elite Marathoner (2:37)
Camille Herron, who placed 26th at the 2012 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials with a PR of 2:37, has an interesting personal story. Years ago, she was a self-described “hobby jogger” with a top time of 19 minutes for the 5K. Then she got serious, really serious about running. She went minimalist. Camille writes on her…
Sh*t Barefoot Runners Say
Stability and Mobility Video for Healthier Natural Running
I’ve often heard it said that you can’t fire a cannon from a canoe. The phrase seemingly dates to naval warfare from the 1800s, but the expression has been popular with fitness instructors and personal trainers who maintain that to “fire a cannon” (build strong arms and legs) you can’t do it from “a canoe…
Say “Yech” to PECH (Pronation Elevated Cushioned Heel) Shoes
Blaise Dubois, the great running maestro from the Great North and founder of The Running Clinic, is never shy when it comes to expressing his well-researched, expert opinions about form, footwear, and function. The following essay by Blaise, “10 Good Reasons to Run in PECH shoes (Pronation control and/or Elevated Cushioned Heel)”, recently appeared on…