Boston Marathon Weekend Finds 162 Maine Finishers!

Okay! Have we ever had a better stretch of weather during Boston Marathon week? Thursday night, with the last American male winner of Boston, Greg Meyer, proved to be a treat to the 70+ who stayed for his take on running your 1st Marathon. Though, not as specific regarding training tables, Greg's advice on strength, specifity of training and "Don't overthink things" was both insightful and entertaining.

At the Boston Sports & Fitness Expo on Friday, I made the rounds with our vendor partners. The Brooks booth with "Karl & Carl" AKA the the Underwood Brothers, were eager to "Tape Your Nipples" and provided comic relief. Marathon Sports owner and my old Beacon Hill neighbor, Colin Pedie was all smiles as he racked up sales from most of the booths....I only have one word for Colin....."Share!" Of course....who can blame the "King" of Running Retailers in New England.

The 80th Patriot's Day Race to benefit the Boys and Girls Club of Portland, ran on Sunday with Curtis Wheeler (25:25 Mens) and Carrie Butterbaugh (30:04 Womens) besting the field of 400+. Hopefully, no one showed up on Monday to race, as race day was held for the 1st time in the history of Maine's oldest road race, the day prior to "Patriot's Day".

Marathon Monday weather with a NE headwind seemed to slow times a bit, but with beautiful sunshine and temps in the high 40's/low 50's, runners really didn't have much to complain about. American's had their best showing in years with 3rd place finishes in both the open Men (Ryan Hall 2:09:40) and open women (Kara Goucher 2:32:25). Goucher's race proved the more exciting as she ran toe to toe with eventual winner, Salina Kosgei (2:32:16) for 25.5 miles, even throwing her white gloves to ready for the final kick. Her gutsy move of pressing the pace for the final 5 miles, probably sapped her kick, but she was a beacon of hope for American runner's and gave notice American's are serious about competing with the rest of the world, again. She will be back, as will Hall.

Maine's own Sheri Piers, 37, finished in a PR 2:37:04, the third fastest Maine Female time ever, finishing 11th overall among open women and 9th in the 18-39 age group. After a sporadic Spring and nursing hamstring injuries, she put it all together and had, as she said "one of those days where you feel like your running on water." Evan Graves, 27, from Caribou was the 1st Maine male in 2:26:11 and 32 overall, respectfully.

Maine Running Company Training Group members had strong days as well. Coreen Lauren 3:39:31, Cindy Hilton 4:01:00, Susan Shepard 4:01:58, Martha Lippa 4:05:13, Janet Britton 4:14:12 and Renee Leclair 4:19:37. Maine men finishers included Dirigo RC members Dan Franek 2:51:36 and Dr. Wayne Piers 2:57:05, MTC's Floyd Lavery 3:15:21, James Toulouse 3:17:26, Paul Toohey 3:27:57 and Francis Bauer 3:28:16 and PR Racing's Scott Brown 3:14:51. For full Maine results go here!

Congrats to all 162 Maine Finishers! and Remember.....Run Happy!

Running Better, From Head To Toe!

Every week we try and do coaching tips with our training group, from proper breathing technique to running hills. Running Form is always at the top of the list. Below are tips written by Jane Unger Hahn from "Running Better, From Head To Toe" on proper running form. Enjoy!

Head Tilt - How you hold your head is key to overall posture, which determines how efficiently you run. Let your gaze guide you. Look ahead naturally, not down at your feet, and scan the horizon. This will straighten your neck and back, and bring them into alignment. Don't allow your chin to jut out.

Shoulders - Shoulders play an important role in keeping your upper body relaxed while you run, which is critical to maintaining efficient running posture. For optimum performance, your shoulders should be low and loose, not high and tight. As you tire on a run, don't let them creep up toward your ears. If they do, shake them out to release the tension. Your shoulders also need to remain level and shouldn't dip from side to side with each stride.

Arms - Even though running is primarily a lower-body activity, your arms aren't just along for the ride. Your hands control the tension in your upper body, while your arm swing works in conjunction with your leg stride to drive you forward. Keep your hands in an unclenched fist, with your fingers lightly touching your palms. Imagine yourself trying to carry a potato chip in each hand without crushing it. Your arms should swing mostly forward and back, not across your body,between waist and lower-chest level. Your elbows should be bent at about a 90-degree angle. When you feel your fists clenching or your forearms tensing, drop your arms to your sides and shake them out for a few seconds to release the tension.

Torso - The position of your torso while running is affected by the position of your head and shoulders. With your head up and looking ahead and your shoulders low and loose, your torso and back naturally straighten to allow you to run in an efficient, upright position that promotes optimal lung capacity and stride length. Many track coaches describe this ideal torso position as "running tall" and it means you need to stretch yourself up to your full height with your back comfortably straight. If you start to slouch during a run take a deep breath and feel yourself naturally straighten. As you exhale simply maintain that upright position.

Hips - Your hips are your center of gravity, so they're key to good running posture. The proper position of your torso while running helps to ensure your hips will also be in the ideal position. With your torso and back comfortably upright and straight, your hips naturally fall into proper alignment--pointing you straight ahead. If you allow your torso to hunch over or lean too far forward during a run, your pelvis will tilt forward as well, which can put pressure on your lower back and throw the rest of your lower body out of alignment. When trying to gauge the position of your hips, think of your pelvis as a bowl filled with marbles, then try not to spill the marbles by tilting the bowl.

Legs/Stride - While sprinters need to lift their knees high to achieve maximum leg power, distance runners don't need such an exaggerated knee lift--it's simply too hard to sustain for any length of time. Instead, efficient endurance running requires just a slight knee lift, a quick leg turnover, and a short stride. Together, these will facilitate fluid forward movement instead of diverting (and wasting) energy. When running with the proper stride length, your feet should land directly underneath your body. As your foot strikes the ground, your knee should be slightly flexed so that it can bend naturally on impact. If your lower leg (below the knee) extends out in front of your body, your stride is too long.

Ankles/Feet - To run well, you need to push off the ground with maximum force. With each step, your foot should hit the ground lightly--landing between your heel and midfoot--then quickly roll forward. Keep your ankle flexed as your foot rolls forward to create more force for push-off. As you roll onto your toes, try to spring off the ground. You should feel your calf muscles propelling you forward on each step. Your feet should not slap loudly as they hit the ground. Good running is springy and quiet.

Remember....Run Happy!

Spring Cleaning!

The Training Group season is in high gear now and our "Reach The Beacon" training group continues to fill up with over 100 participants. Big beginner's group this year and Kathy Bowe who was just named Maine Runnings Success of The Year", has volunteered to help me with this group. We always accept folks who want to join and pro-rate the registration fee.

Additionally, our Ladies Night "Train For A Cure" Run/Walk Tuesday night group continues to fill, with over 50 registrants. We'll be cutting a check for over $1,200 to the Maine Cancer Foundation, as 25% of all registration fees are donated. Maine Running also continues hosting two weekend Morning Runs open to anyone, both NOW originating from MRC. One on Saturday morning at 8:30am and another group meets at Maine Running Company on Sunday mornings at 9am.

The Maine Track Club will continue to have Maine Running Co. provide coaching services this Spring. April 16 will kick off the season. After our run that evening we will host a clinic lead by special guest, Greg Meyer, 1983 Boston Marathon Champion and last American to win. Greg will discuss " Running your first marathon & ½ Marathon…What To Expect." This has signicance as this could be the year an American finally wins Boston, led by Olympian, Ryan Hall.

The traditional and 80th annual Boys & Girls Club Patriots Day 5 miler has moved to Sunday, April 19th, 12 noon. Packet pick up will be on Saturday, April 18, 12 noon - 5pm at Maine Running Company.

It's been a year since I've actually run. After surviving two knee surgeries in the past two years, I'm ready to start getting back to it. With the help of Greg Knapton, Riverview Physical Therapy and Dr. Jamie Raymond, Raymond Chiropractic, plus Dr's Lincoln Avery and Wayne Piers (lot's of expertise) I'm finally ready to roll. Also, I've been running for over 30 years, so it's been a great ride and now my goals are to stay fit. If I can "crunch gravel" 3 days a week that will be fine with me. If not, I've recently purchased an elliptical machine and will utilze that to maintain my fitness. I'll report on the progress occassionally, but we'll see how adept I am at following my own advice.

Portland was just named most livable city in America by Forbes Magazine. Portland's fantastic fitness community and lifestyle has always played a signficant role here...congratulations PORTLAND!

It's been a busy Spring and it's about to get busier…. Look for our new location, opening late Spring, in Brunswick. We'll be opening at the old Midcoast Multi Sport location at 89 Maine Street around June 1. We want to wish Jim Favreau continued success and look forward to consulting with him on supporting the Brunswick Fitness community.

Remember….Run Happy!