35 Best Costumes At The 2010 London Marathon

Here's another humor post from Buzzfeed. In a typical marathon event (or any event, for that matter), you can't help but notice some sideshow reels. These people, though haven't got the slightest of a chance to win, will do the darnest to get attention. Here, you got the best of many worlds. It's like a virtual zoo out there, with the parade of tiger, giraffe, or camel costume. Even the blue man AND the blue toilet man is in the picture. But what gives me the happies is the hippie Darth Vader. Oh, BTW, what's up with the Angel of the North Thingie, dude? I would go for the Predator look, instead, to complete this Holloween Party on the road.

25th Big Sur Int'l Marathon Wraps Up

With 4,600 registered marathoners, a total of 8,254 runners joining different events crossing the finished under a perfect spring day, the 25th offing of the Big Sur International Marathon was a resounding success.

It was also a big day for 23-year old Castroville native Daniel Tapia, a neophyte runner who clocked in at 2:26:09 to become the first Monterey Champion to win the event. "I didn't know what to expect," said Tapia. "It was amazing. It's a very emotional win for me. I couldn't ask for more."

In the women's division, 28-year old Veronica Clemens of New York finished first with 2:55:17 while fellow New Yorker Melinda Schwartz, 32, of Buffalo finished 13 minutes behind. “It was a really good run. All I’d heard coming in was how hard the course is,” said Clemens. She admitted that she started hurting at the 16th and 17th mile, "but otherwise I felt good," she said.

In all, the BSIM got runners from all 50 states and 29 countries. For the Boston 2 Big Sur Challenge (special division for runners who competed in the Boston Marathon and traveled to compete in the Big Sur event), more than 300 showed up.

Time's 10 Cool Ways to Get in Shape

I have always been contented with having comfortable, light but tough shoes suited up for running. Little did I know that the onslaught of technology has paved the way for a slew of technologies and web site catering to fitness. Man, what do you call this? TMI (too much information)?

For one, not only does it measure loads upon loads of data regarding your pursuit for fitness, it also serves as some sort of an online fitness trainer of a gizmo alert to be more focused and strategical to be fit. Nike's NIke+ and Adidas MiCoach Pacer are just a few of the gadgets that offer new technology in fitness and running. Web sites let you keep track of the route you have gone through while measureing the calories you burned (Gmap Pedometer) or eggs you like a real fitness trainer (Social Workout).

But what I can't take form the list is having to take you weight online and flaunt it via Twitter (Withing Wifi Scale). Now, that's PRESSURE to get fit. Read more here.

Nike's Lunar Technology

Shoe technologies come and go. Today, they are the future for comfortable, improved and safe running. Couple of months later, they become obsolete. But it doesn't mean they are not as effective though. For as long as it still works, then I guess that technology is tailor-fit to your running needs.

As in the case of Nike's Lunarlite Technology, it was long time coming. Something like, 36 years.

Nike's earliest employees, Geoff Hollister, never had said it better in 1971. Strapping on one of the first prototypes of Bill Bowerman's iconic Waffle sole, Hollister said "It was like running on pillows." And in 2004, Nike designer Kevin Hoffer became inspired by the cushioning quote and thought about the Waffle outsole's earliest incarnation in the Moon Shoe at the 1972 marathon trials. Hoffer turned to the actual lunar landing, downloading images of astronauts bouncing around the moon, like marshmallows. And the rest was history.

It started back in 1971 with a quote from Geoff Hollister, one of Nike’s earliest employees. He strapped on the first prototypes of Bill Bowerman’s iconic Waffle sole and said, “It was like running on pillows.” Nike designer Kevin Hoffer read the quote in 2004, kicking off his search for cushioning that would recreate that sensation, which would be that revolutionary. With the quote guiding him, he thought about the Waffle outsole’s earliest incarnation in the Moon Shoe at the 1972 marathon trials. From there, Kevin turned to the actual lunar landing and soon was downloading images of astronauts bouncing around the moon as if on marshmallows. Then, he knew exactly what he wanted the cushioning to feel like.

Today, there has been a lot of variation of the Lunar Technology. This super light, space age Lunar foam released LunarLite Racer and LunarLite Trainer two years ago. The lunarGlilde+, a modification of the earlier Lunar models, was released last year.

This fall, Nike introduces a complete Bowerman line: the Vomero+5, the Equalon+4, the Structure Triax+ 13 and the Air Pegasus+ 27 . More details at Runningwarehouse.

Preparing for Race

With the Boston and London Marathon fast approaching, participants are now in full gear hitting the gym and conditioning through the different trails they run. But working out tends to be one-dimensional. This kind of conditioning is prone to injury. Instead, have a variety of workout regimens. It would be more fun to mix your running days with swimming and biking.

Aside from being the valves and springs that bring you to the finish line, your muscles are the ones responsible for absorbing shocks along the way. With resistance training, you can strengthen and refine your muscle system. Lifting the proper weight training will give more resistance against injury-prone shocks.

You thought that running everyday will bring you to top form. Well, you're dead wrong. Instead, you are more prone to injury. Give yourself some rest. Resting will lower the chance of injury,
allowing your joits to recuperate and help repair and strengthen your muscle fibers.

There you have it. Remember, having a proper training without overdoing it will bring you to the finish line in no time. Enjoy!

History of the Running Shoes

Running barefoot is as agonizing as being tortured in a hazing rite. Imagine the blisters, bruises or even lacerations caused by gravels, loose branches and sharp objects. But thank God for shoes, running has literally gone the distance. Tracing back during our forefathers, I admire them for their persistence and determination for doing such activity without the aid of this apparel. Dead tired with an aching feet, they must run for long distances to hunt for food or get their job done.

Reading the beginnings of the athletic shoe via Runtheplanet gives a trip down memory lane. Interesting to know that the word 'sneakers' came from the croquet shoe developed in the 1860s which movement in the shoes was noiseless and quickly worn by sneak thieves. Also, competitive sports at that time were only for the rich dudes. I guess the masses were busy tilling the fields and making steel at the factory then to make ends meet.

The 1900s saw the inception of Keds, Chucks, Adidas and Puma. New Balance was the first scientifically-tested shoe. In the 1976 Montreal Olympics, it is where the commercial potential of the shoe was realized as it was endorsed. Soon after, the Mexico Olympics was flooded with shoe advertisements. And the rest, as they say, is history.

Running: When Did it Start?

If today's popular belief on running is based on our quest to stay fit, ward of sickness and be active with our work, historic studies show that the nature of running was borne out of hunting for food a predators or chasing carcasses for food. There's a nice read I've chanced recently about the evolution of human running. Runtheplanet's article on the origins of running and how it shaped human beings as they indicate that the activity became instrumental in shaping the anatomical features of humans and their quest for survival. this was based on the conclusion of a study by University of Utah biologist Dennis Bramble and Harvard University anthropologist Daniel Lieberman. In short, the "natural selection" of humans able to run for long distance favored them to live longer.

Another point taken are the anatomical features that help humans run effectively, from the skull features that help prevent overheating during running to the proper stance and proportional limbs appropriate for running.

And as the study by Bramble and Lieberman concludes: "Today, endurance running is primarily a form of exercise and recreation, but its roots may be as ancient as the origin of the human genus, and its demands a major contributing factor to the human body form".

I guess you would imagine how fit people were at that time, since their survival solely depend on running. Read on the article for more details.