20 years of running

Through the years, a lot of people have asked me how I started out as a runner. Well here's my story:

It was 20 years ago this month, in September, that I ran my first competitive race as a middle school cross-country runner. I had always played little-kid soccer while in elementary school, where my dad was our coach and a lot of my grade school friends were on the team. It was actually because of soccer when I first heard about cross-country.

In the early 90's, my dad took the team to watch a high school soccer game at Maranacook Community School (my future high school) so we could watch the big kids play soccer and maybe learn something. It was during the game when a bunch of people ran out of the woods covered head to toe in mud. They didn't say a word while running to the top of the hill that overlooked the soccer field. There were whispers and chatters about who these people were and what they were doing. Come to find out it was the infamous Maranacook cross-country team, a team that would go on to win six state championships in the 90's after winning a bunch in the 80's. They were doing their traditional mud run, something I would come to learn all about years later.


Me, second from the left after winning the
1997 conference cross-country meet during
my sophomore year

Running was always enjoyable and seemed to come naturally to me, too. At age 10 or 11, I remember being bored at my babysitter's house one day so I decided to see how many times I could run around her house without stopping. It was a pretty big house with a hill in the front yard, so it provided a good challenge. I ran it 76 times (not sure why I remember that number) before calling it quits.

Another childhood memory of running was the 4th of July tradition we had at our house. My brother and I would light sparklers and then see how far we could run before the sparklers died out. There was always the added challenge of trying to outrun our dog too.

As middle school approached I decided I didn't want to play soccer. I wasn't all that good (the only goal I remember scoring was for the other team, although my dad disputes this to this day) and wanted to try something new. I thought about the cross-country team and, at the time, thought that cross-country literally meant running across the country. For some reason this absolutely fascinated me.

So I signed up for the middle school team, beginning what ultimately would turn into a true love of the sport. I ran two years in middle school and four years of high school. I can honestly say that being a part of that high school team was crucial to my growing up. Through running on that team I learned all about discipline, commitment, hard work, winning, and losing. Those are life lessons I'll carry with me until the day I die.

Class B XC State Championship, 1999

My high school career was good as I was captain of the cross-country and track teams my senior year. I had a decent senior year in cross-country but a non-existent senior year in track due to mono. This was devastating to me as I wasn't able to compete much at all, which was incredibly disappointing after coming off a solid junior track season that saw me running a personal best 4:48 1600 meters. There was some potential there, but I felt like I'd never see it through.

As my high school career came to a close, I was recruited to run by a couple of small colleges here in Maine. I opted not to run in college, deciding instead on a bigger school in UMaine Orono where I would undoubtedly meet a lot more people and have more of a social life than if I had decided on one of the smaller schools.

So I basically took the next seven years off from running. Sure I'd go for a run here and there in college and afterwards, but I never put in the kind of work or commitment it takes to be good at it. I had run a lot of miles in high school and figured my legs and body needed a break, even if it meant a permanent one.

After college, I had through hiked the Appalachian Trail in 2005 (not running, but hiking across the country...kind of), moved to Colorado in February 2006, then back to Maine in October 2006. After moving back to Maine, I was throwing a football around with some old high school buddies, Josh and Lincoln, when for some reason we started talking about the Boston Marathon. Still not sure why to this day, we decided then and there that the three of us would run Boston in 2007. We didn't know anything about the marathon other than it was 26.2 miles, it had a hill called Heartbreak Hill, it was in April, and it might be fun.

So my running career was reborn again, sort of. I trained, kind of, through that winter and early spring. I'd average 4-6 miles around Portland, with my longest training running being 9 miles on a treadmill at Planet Fitness. My weekly average might have been 25-30 miles, maybe.

Boston painfully came and painfully went. We weren't able to walk right for days after that debacle. However, I finished in a modestly unofficial 3:36:35, with Josh coming in around 4 hours and Lincoln, who didn't train at all by the way, around 4:30.

This sparked something in me. I started casually running again, then, in 2009, started running in local road races and trail races. I'd struggle mightily compared to where I had been, but I stuck with it and was back out there nonetheless.

Competing in the 5k at Corporate Nationals in July 2014

That was only five years ago. Through discipline, commitment, and hard work--the same things Maranacook cross-country had taught me all those years ago--I have started coaching cross-country and track and field at a local high school, joined Dirigo, which is Maine's elite running club, joined Unum's corporate track team, and continued to pound away on the pavement and trails. I've found new ways to challenge myself, such as running 30 miles on my 30th birthday, running 31 5ks during my 31st year of life, and by running everything from a 400 on the track to a marathon on the coast of Maine.

Most people slow down when they get older. I prefer the opposite. I'd rather speed up, get better, faster, and stronger. I want to be running PR's into my 40's and beyond.

Anyone can do this if they choose.

People have often asked me what I'm going to do for a "crazy" challenge to myself this year. Honestly, I don't know. 20 years since I first ran competitively is a big deal to me.

I may try to qualify for the 2016 Boston Marathon. Maybe I'll try to PR in the 10k and/or half marathon. Perhaps I'll competitively run a Spartan Race. Or maybe I'll be content on winning a State and National championship with Team Unum.

Regardless, here's to at least 20 more years of running!

Corporate Track Nationals

As summer kinda sorta starts to slow down, I can't help but think what an amazing summer this has been. It all started off when my fiancé and I closed on our first house in mid-June. We were thrilled and nervous all at the same time as owning a house is a major responsibility. Were we actually becoming adults? Who knew?! Then, a few weeks later, I was promoted at the Y, moving from group exercise instructor and personal trainer at the Greater Portland YMCA to Wellness Director at the Northern York County YMCA in Biddeford, Maine. This truly was exciting in a bittersweet kind of way--as excited as I was for new challenges in my new position, I was really going to miss a lot of the good friends I had made in Portland. Nonetheless, the promotion was the right move during what was already a busy time with house-related things.

Of course, all this life excitement was happening during corporate track and field season. As some of you know, Tessa and I both compete for Team Unum. Before this year, Unum has had a rich track and field history with 5 national championships and 20+ state championships to its name. Although they have won many titles, they hadn't been to a national meet in quite some time...until this year.

Even though Unum is a Fortune 500 company, they don't give a dime to their track team. Funding, as I understand it, ended sometime around when the economy started going south. So it has been up to us as a track team to raise the money we need for the things we need. And this year we needed to go to Nationals because in its 37th year, it would be the events last year.

So, huge fundraising efforts lasting the better part of nine months included bulb/plant sales, a silent auction, a bowl-a-thon, and a garage sale. A lot of money was raised through a lot of hard work and generous people, and we were able to fund our trip to San Marcos, California for the 37th and final Nationals meet!

Recruiting people to take time off from work to fly across the country for four or so days was harder than expected. We ended up with only seventeen people, six men and eleven women, compared to twenty to thirty something for the other teams in our division. Nonetheless, the people who had committed were true rock stars: Nationals record holders and Hall of Famers, a just-out-of-college distance freak, team leaders, former college athletes, up-and-comers, and solid weekend warriors. Overall, you couldn't have asked for a better mix of people. Maybe, just maybe, we were the little team that could...

The meet was a two day event and started with a 5k on Saturday, July 12th. My specialty! The course was a fast cross-country style course that looped twice to make it a hair over a true 5k. Three men and three women ran this event, with the men taking 1st in the 0-29 age group, 1st in the 30-39 age group and 3rd in the 40-49 age group, respectively. The women took 1st in the 0-29 age group, 2nd in the 30-39 age group, and 1st in the 60-69 age group, respectively. These finishes, while seemingly impressive, netted us a 2nd place 5k win for both men and women. The scoring at Nationals is very bizarre; they score based on how you do against the best overall time or distance in your age group. Head-to-head relays were scored straight up based on finishing place. Each athlete was allowed to compete in only four events all weekend.

Not exactly the start we had hoped for but not a bad start either. As the day moved along, we lost one of our men to a lower leg injury. Our seventeen strong were now down to eleven women and five men. We collected a number of medals though and just as many laughs as we really began to gel together as a team.

The first day, July 12th, ended with us in great position. Our tallied the estimated points and said we had a decent lead on the field, which included defending champion SCVAL, which I believe stands for Southern California Valley Athletic League. They had some extremely impressive athletes on their team!

As the second day came, the weather remained So Cal hot with dry, blazing heat and not much shade. Eric, the guy we lost to a lower leg injury, carried the Olympic torch that was used in the 1984 Olympics partway around the track as part of the opening ceremony. That in itself was a really cool experience!

The second day, July 13th, started terribly with a third place finish and three fourth place finishes, and we lost two more men to hamstring injuries. Our six guys were down to three, but our eleven women were holding strong, albeit with a few bumps and bruises. Things were not looking good for Unum capturing its 6th national title.

Seeing that we needed some team adjustments due to the injuries, our coach did what he does best. He started moving people around, taking some out of certain events and plugging them into others. It was like watching someone put together a puzzle that just didn't want to fit. But somehow he made it fit.

What happened at the end of the day was truly awesome. Tom, our coach, had tried calculating the team scores with two events left. We had just won the crucial Women's Relay and were prepared to run our last two events; two events that I was in. Feeling pretty fresh from the previous day where I had run the 5K and a very slow 1600 meters as part of a relay (we were the only team to enter the event, so no need to go all out here), I was ready to roll.

I had told Tessa the day before that I was hoping for a challenge. I wanted to be tested. I wanted to be pushed. I wanted to have to work hard to achieve glory. I didn't want it to come easy. It shouldn't come easy.

Well, I got my wish. Tom had calculated that we needed to win the last two events in order to win the meet. No second place or third place finishes from either event. They were must wins.

The first event was one of my favorite relays: the Pyramid Relay. It consisted of a 400, an 800, a 1200, an 800, and a 400. The first 400 would be run by a woman, Shelby, the first 800 would be run by a woman, Lauren, against men from the other teams, the 1200 would be run by our just-out-of-college distance freak, Sam, I'd run the second 800, and the final 400 would be run by Regina, who was just coming off of another relay and who still had a final relay to run afterwards. The goal of the race was to win by getting Regina a huge lead that she could play with.

Well, we did just that. Shelby ran a very good 400, Lauren didn't give a whole lot to the competition and held her own with a really strong 800, Sam blew the doors open in the 1200, I distanced the lead in the second 800, and Regina had a nice cushion to work with as she closed with the 400. Mission accomplished. Now we needed to win one more relay to maybe win Nationals (the points were so screwy that nothing was guaranteed at this point).

The next and final event was a little more out of my comfort zone. It was the sprint relay and who ever has seen me sprint knows that I'm not a sprinter. The 800 is one thing, but anything less made me a little uncomfortable. The relay was set up as 200-200-400-400-200-200. Lots of lots of speed, lots of baton exchanges, lots of things to go wrong. Gulp.

I was running the first of the two 400s. It was to go Laura, who was a little banged up but a gamer and former collegiate jumper and sprinter, followed by Lisa who had to run against the legendary Steve Scott, followed by me, then Sam, then Leo, who was more of a mid-distance guy who has shown great 200-5k range before, and finished off by Regina, who, by the way, was a former collegiate sprinter. We had a solid team, for sure, but there was no doubt, when looking at the competition, that I was going to get my way and have to WORK to achieve the dream.

We practiced a few handoffs prior to the race. Being a distance guy, we could get away with semi-good handoffs in pyramid relays or distance medleys. But not here. The incoming handoffs would be too quick and if any one of a number of things went wrong, well, I didn't want to think about that...

Laura lined up at the start and the gun went off. She burst off of the line and immediately got us into a great position. Next was Lisa, who had to fend off Steve Scott. As she received the baton on the far corner of the track, I took my position and waited for the hand off. I looked back at the guy who I'd be racing: About 6' 3", strong, athletic, and about 19 years old. "Don't run too fast," he said as I looked at him. I gulped. "You too," I replied.

Lisa came cruising down the homestretch and extended her arm. I took the baton and was off. One lap. 400 meters. Mike Martin, our leader who was down with a bum hammy had told me the night before that he wanted me to run a 54 second 400 in this race. I was not a sprinter. My legs and lungs and heart and shoulders were built for hills and distance and slow, torturous pain. Not fast, Band-Aid like pain.

As I passed through the first 100 I felt good. I felt like I was at 95%, wanting to run a negative split at the 200. But then I heard the cheering that wasn't for me. People on the outside track of the backstretch were cheering for the 6' 3" athletic guy. He was running me down. Laura and Lisa had given me a solid lead, and this guy had already cut into it significantly by 150 meters. He was going to toast me. I didn't know how the rest of the relay matched up, but it might not matter. If I gave way to this freak then I would let me team down. Simple as that.

As the 200 meter mark approached, I dropped the hammer. I heard Laura screaming something and Coach Tom yell, "This is your year, Nate! Make him work for it!" More people were screaming. I couldn't hear the guy behind me but I knew he was there. He was on my ass, no doubt about it. He was going to take me in the final 100 when my lame sprint form fell apart.

But that didn't happen because I ran, no doubt, the fastest 200 time of my life. Adrenaline took over and I felt like I was the roadrunner. There was no pain. There was no form to think about. There was just me, the straightaway, and the zebra-cheetah effect. I ran for my life, extending the baton out to a waiting Sam Seekins, hoping he, also a distance runner, would put some distance on these guys.

As Sam took the baton and made his way around the track, I watched as he was able to create a little separation. He came in with a slight lead and handed off to Leo, who showed how valuable he was to this team by running a 27-second 200. Not bad for a 40-something-year-old mid-distance runner. He handed to Regina who gave it her all as she came down the straightaway, giving us a 14 second win.

But was it enough?

Sprint Relay Team
L-R: Sam, Regina, Leo, Lisa, me, Laura

After the hugs and the high fives and the smiles, Sam and I took off for a cool down run as the officials tallied the points. We went through the race, detail for detail, reliving the excitement from minutes before. When we came back to our team, the results had been announced. Our team looked sad. Well, everyone looked sad except Eric, our Olympic torch bearer. He was grinning and holding his index finger out. #1. Sam and I looked at everyone. Then Coach Tom made the announcement.

WE HAD JUST WON CORPORATE TRACK NATIONALS!!!!!!

By 2 points. 450-448 over defending champ SCVAL.

We really were the little team that could.

Wow.

National Champs!
L-R, back row: Regina, me, Rylan, Leo, Sam Seekins, Coach Tom, Kasey, Sam Kane, Laura, Juliet, Judy
L-R, front row: Laura, Tessa, Shelby, Alice, Mike, Lisa, Eric

As we took our victory lap around the track, it hadn't really sunk in yet. I mean, we only had seventeen people, with three healthy guys. How could this be?

When I had time to actually sit down and think about what we had accomplished, and after talking with my teammates, it was completely evident that this was 100% a team win. If any one of us had not been able to go, we would have lost. Plain and simple. We had just the right number of people to be able to move people around to cover injuries. The people who did go had just the right skill sets, meaning we didn't have too many jumpers or too many throwers or too many of any one thing. We had the perfect amount of skill, the perfect number of people, and the perfect amount of chemistry.

Some of the veterans who had been to Nationals before explained that forty-plus people would often go, but by the time the weekend was over you might not have had a chance to talk with them or even really see them. With seventeen people, the chemistry was just right.

Even though this is said to be the last Nationals, we at Team Unum are dedicated to bringing Corporate Nationals back to life in 2016, possibly in Maine. Until then, there is more hard work to put in, more races to run, and most importantly, more laughs to be had and memories to be made.

I can't think of a better group of people to do that with.

State Champ? There's no "maybe" about it.

For those of you who have been reading my blog for awhile, you may recall this post from almost three years ago. Well, I'd like to go ahead and update you.

I had the pleasure of coaching Zack during his 7th and 8th grade year and again this year, his 10th grade year. I was still coaching middle school track when he was a freshman, then moved up to high school when a job opening presented itself. I was responsible for coaching the jumpers this year, and of course Zack was a part of that group.

After having success as a 7th grader on the national scene in Kansas, Zack went on to win the Triple C Invitational his 8th grade year. The Triple C Invitational is essentially the middle school championship meet that includes all or most of the schools in Cumberland County in Maine. He won the meet that year with a jump of 5' 8", easily beating second place by 4". The kid clearly had a ton of potential when he entered high school the following fall.

I didn't have a chance to coach him that year but saw him jump in the state meet a week after he set a personal best 6' 0" in the Western Maine Conference (WMC) Championship Meet. He was definitely in the running for a state championship as a freshman.

Turns out he hurt his hip at the WMC Championship Meet and just couldn't do what he normally could do at the state meet -- compete at a high level in the high jump or the 100 and 200 meter dash. He still showed up and still did it, but the results just weren't there as he ended with a jump of 5' 8" (the kid who ended up winning, also from Gray-New Gloucester, jumped 5' 10").

So that brings us to this year: 2014. I was fortunate enough to move up to the high school from the middle school and was able to pick up working with Zack again. After going through 2013's state meet results, I told him during the first week of the season that Class B was going to be wide open this year. Whoever had the better day would win, plain and simple. Whoever worked the hardest during the season and peaked at the right time would take the crown. He immediately responded with, "I want to jump 6' 4" this year and win states."

So we went to work. He worked hard in practice as I pushed him through some different high jump drills. However, when it came to the meets the results just weren't there. He jumped 5' 6" his first meet, 5' 8" the second meet, 5' 8" the third meet, and closed the regular season with a measly 5' 4", and even that was a struggle. Needless to say, frustration was extremely high.

It was back to the drawing board before the WMC Championship Meet. I wracked my brain the weekend after the not-so-good 5' 4" jump...what the hell was going on?

When Monday came, I changed his entire approach. In the high jump, you run a certain amount of steps straight, then curve in a general "J" shape before taking a few more steps, then jump. So we lengthened the straight part of the "J" and shortened the short part of the "J" and had him approach the pit at a different angle. This would allow him to go over the bar more directly without spending so much time over it, reducing the time he had to knock the bar off. Increasing the straight or long part of the "J" allowed him to develop more speed in his approach. We also measured his distance from the the pit, something we had never done before, so he had an exact number he could put his mark at rather than just trying to find it by feel. His flexibility over the bar was still a work in progress but there wasn't much we could do about that with only a week to go before WMC.

Well, the results were instantaneous. He finished third at WMC with a jump of 5' 10" and said he felt way more comfortable and that his new approach was much better. On to States we go...

Saturday June 7, 2014 was a warm day without much wind. It was an ideal day for short, quick bursts such as the 100, 200, 400, long jump, triple jump, and high jump. It was not an ideal day for distance running, but that didn't matter to what Zack was trying to achieve.

I told Zack to do absolutely nothing between his events, and unlike a lot of kids his age, he actually listened. He layed under the team tent between events and just chilled in the shade. When it was time for high jump I went to get him, measure his mark out, and had him run only a couple of run throughs to make sure it was correct. He said his mark felt "great" and he was ready to go.

So the event started. Zack was seeded tied for third at 5' 10" with the number one seed at an impressive 6' 4." He cleared the first heights of 5' 4", 5' 6", 5' 8", and 5' 10" without missing a single jump (you get three attempts at each height). He was absolutely cruising. There were eight jumpers left when the bar was raised to 6' 0", with the number one seed being one of them.

Zack missed his first two jumps at 6' 0" and faced elimination with his last jump. Now, this kid is one cool customer. During the event he had been joking with me about how all he was thinking about was he couldn't wait to eat Chinese food later, or how warm water was better to drink than cold water when it's hot out, or how sunburned he'd be, or whatever. His mind was elsewhere and he was loose. This is usually a good sign in a high pressure situation when it comes to athletes...

Before he lined up for his final attempt at 6' 0" I told him to focus, to put every ounce of energy he had into that last jump, and to force himself over the bar if he had to. He took his mark, stood there looking off into space, and let it fly. He absolutely crushed the jump. It would have easily been a 6' 2" jump and maybe a 6' 4". I went nuts, the other Gray-New Gloucester coaches cheered, and Zack came off the pit with a huge smile on this face.

When the bar was raised to 6' 2", there were only four jumpers left. The number one seed was still in but he had missed more attempts than Zack at this point, which put Zack in the lead. I knew it, he thought he knew it, but we didn't really talk about it. I didn't want him to tense up or focus on that. All he had to do was hit another jump like the one he just had and he was in the driver's seat for a championship.

Zack was first of the four to attempt 6' 2" and he missed. It just wasn't a great jump. He may have been tense or maybe he was just maxed out. Either way, the number one seed missed his first jump as did the other two guys.

Zack lined up for his second attempt at the height. His mind appeared to go to "that place" as he focused on the task at hand. I don't usually yell when jumpers are focusing, but I just had to let out a quick and amplified, "Here we go, Zack!"

He took off for the mat, hit the turn in the "J" perfectly, and crushed the jump. I went nuts again and there were hugs and high fives from the coaching staff that was there. Absolutely incredible! All three of the guys attempted the height but all three missed. Zack was in command and everyone knew it.

The two non-number one seeds attempted and missed for the third time (one actually slipped and fell into the mat, which counted as a missed jump), and the number one seed took his mark. The crowd started clapping for him as he made his approach then cheered when he cleared the bar. The height was going to 6' 4".

Zack still had fewer total misses at this point so he was still in the lead. If the other guy cleared 6' 4" and Zack didn't then the other guy would win. He had cleared 6' 4" once this year, and Zack had never been above 6' 0" in his life. If neither cleared the height then Zack would win.

My nerves started going haywire.

Both guys took turns attempting 6' 4" but neither was even all that close. Zack had won but I told him to check with the official to make absolutely 100% sure. He ran up, checked with the official, shook the other guy's hand, and turned around with his arms in the air in victory. The kid had done it.

I've run a ton of races in my life, have set a ton of personal bests, won a few races here and there, won some awards along the way...but I can honestly say that I've never been happier or more proud at a sporting event in my life. Never.

To "discover" Zack's high jump potential partway through his 7th grade year, to watching him win the Triple C Championship his 8th grade year, to watching him struggle through his sophomore year only to end it with a state title...Wow.

His mother told me at the state meet that this would be Zack's last year at GNG because they were moving to Windham (the next town over from Gray). She said Zack didn't want to go and that he had asked her if he could stay with friends and continue to go to GNG. She said to me, "Who knows? Maybe he'll hate it there and will be back at GNG." I didn't ask why but I was crushed when she told me this news.

If this is the case -- and I'm still clinging to whatever shred of hope that it's not and something will change -- then he sure went out in style. Truly awesome.

Lap Around the Lake

The Patriot 5k: The "Lap Around the Lake." Of all the races I've ever run, this one might just be my absolute favorite. Taking place on Saturday, May 17th this year, this race has everything. The majority of the course takes place on a quiet, camp-like road in Gray, Maine and loops you around Crystal Lake, only to finish right where it starts at a church/campground/ball field at the southern end of the lake. The course is about as flat as they come, and has a very fast finish.


The race started in 2010 and had 256 finishers. In 2013, in it's fourth year, the race had 776 finishers, including some of the best recreational runners in Maine. In an attempt to lure big-time runners, the race organizers have started to offer up some pretty nice cash prizes to the top runners, including $500 to the top male and female, $400 for second place, $300 for third place, $200 for fourth place, and $100 for 5th place. Age group winner receive $50 and the top 5 masters runners all receive cash prizes. $250 is given for a course record, and this year they've added a $1000 prize for a new state record. Not to mention other age group placers can walk away with a brick of cheese from local Pineland Farms. Talk about dishing out some money!

While the cash prizes will be enjoyed by only a few, the food spread at the end of the race is enjoyed by all. Never have I seen a spread like this before. Subway comes in and gives away sandwiches, while a local pizza joint will give away pizza. They also have all kinds of snacks, ranging far beyond the normal-but-always-appreciated bananas, bagels, and granola bars. There are mascots and kid games and music and a lot of energy. It's the closest thing to a real race party that you'll ever see!

Of all the frivolous things that are so good and fun about this race, my favorite part is the people who take part in it. A lot of kids I coach at Gray-New Gloucester High School and Middle School run the race (even if it's against their coaches asks), as do parents, teachers, and other community members I have gotten to know over the last few years. Kids who hate running still run this race because it has become such a community event. "Hey, you running the Patriot 5k this weekend?" is a common question you'll hear kids ask each other or the coaches during the week leading up to the race.

If this blog post isn't enough to at least get you thinking about the Patriot 5k, then check out this write-up from the Portland Press Herald.

Whether you're a runner or simply like to exercise or just enjoy some community spirit, then this race is definitely for you.

Is it May 17th yet????

What massage can do for you

Is it safe to assume that anyone who has ever had a massage has loved it? Sure, anyone who visits a massage parlor on a regular basis has probably had a massage that wasn't "deep" enough, or was too rough, or may not have hit the "spots" that you were hoping would get worked on. If you find a massage therapist who you really like, then I highly recommend sticking with them and to pay them a visit on a somewhat regular basis. Let's take a quick look at a few types of massages and what kind of benefits you might enjoy from them.

Deep Tissue Massage
This type of massage targets deep, chronically tight muscles and connective tissue. If you are generally tight, have postural issues, or are in recovery from an injury, then this could be the massage for you.

Hot Stone Massage
Just as it sounds, smooth, heated stones are placed on the body in way to help relax and comfort a person. You might seek this type of massage if you have tension but prefer a lighter-touch massage, or have poor circulation and are generally a cold person.

Swedish Massage
Otherwise known as the classic massage, Swedish massage uses five different strokes to help relax and energize you. It's been shown that Swedish massage can increase the amount of oxygen in the blood, decrease toxins, and decrease the stress hormone known as cortisol.

Sports Massage
Sports massage is just that -- a sports specific massage. Whether you're a weekend warrior or a professional athlete, any athlete can benefit from a sports massage. Specifically designed sports massage has been shown to promote flexibility, reduce fatigue, and reduce recovery time within athletes.

Trigger Point Therapy
This type of massage can help deactivate trigger points that cause localized pain, such as headaches, by releasing distal pain that may be occurring in other parts of the body. For instance, your headache may be caused by neck pain. By alleviating any knots in your neck, your headache may also disappear as a result.

Obviously this is a short list of all the many types of massages that are out there. My point is to go schedule yourself a massage with your local spa or massage parlor and to take care of yourself! Groupon often has massages at reduced rates, so that could be a good place to start. Personally, I enjoy Hara here in Portland, Maine. I try to visit Kellie at Hara a couple of times a year, especially after long training cycles for a sports/Swedish combo-type massage. It's simply an essential part of my training, like hitting the reset button for my legs and lower back.

Resistance training, cardio training, flexibility training -- it's all absolutely necessary, but sometimes the body requires just a little more. Don't be afraid to pamper yourself!

Exploding shins!

Exploding shins everywhere! The indoor track high school triple jumpers and long jumpers I coach, some of the sprinters on the team, a client of mine at the Y… they all have exploding shins! What is going on? I’ve been fortunate throughout my running “career” to never have had shin splints, and have had to deal with them on a one-on-one basis with clients and athletes only a few times. But why did it seem like so many shin splint injuries were happening all of a sudden? I am certainly not an expert in the area, so it was time to look into what might be happening here…

As anyone who is reading this may know, shin splints are a lower leg injury that is fairly common in runners. You may also know that shin splints are more likely to occur when excess stress is put on the legs – such as going from being a couch potato to doing a fair amount of running or higher intensity-higher impact training. They may also be caused by muscle imbalances in the lower extremities, or tightness in the gastrocnemius, soleus, and plantar muscles. While shin splints themselves are very painful, they can lead to stress fractures if ignored. This actually happened to a member at the Y: while training for the 2013 Boston Marathon, she developed shin splints. She ignored them, kept on running high mileage, and eventually was diagnosed with a stress fracture in the early spring of 2013. She ended up missing the 2013 Boston Marathon (maybe not the worst thing in the world) and is still rehabbing it to this day.

That was one incident and one person, however. Why did it seem like everyone but the distance runners on the track team were developing shin splints?

Well, the indoor track season started with about three weeks of general conditioning. Then the kids went on Christmas vacation, which ended up being extended due to snow storms and ice storms and wintery northeastern things like that. After two weeks off, which very few of the jumpers did anything during, they came back to the hard-surfaced runway of the indoor track and went right back into practicing something they may not have been quite ready for. Running and jumping on the hard surface is probably what caused their shin splints, along with many of the kids wearing improper or broken down footwear, which will contribute to shin splints as well. Other causes of shin splints could be pronation of the heal joint (subtalar joint), tight calf muscles, and flat feet, which is certainly possible with any of these kids.

As for my client whose shins seem to hurt every time she increases the speed on the treadmill, well, after examining her and talking with her I am led to believe that her calves are probably causing the problem. She has had the flu so she has been out a while, but when she returns I plan on assessing her with an overhead squat assessment to see if I can find any muscle imbalances in her legs.

The most basic and age-old ways to treat shin splints are as follows: ice, rest, and good footwear. However, while those treatments can help, strengthening the tibialis anterior is possibly the best thing to do to make sure shin splints go away and stay away.

One of the best and most simple exercises you can do for shin splints is heel walks. This is just as it sounds... Walk on your heels until fatigue sets in. This exercise can also be done while sitting in a chair by keeping your heels on the floor and raising your toes up. We've included this exercise in the dynamic warm-up part of practices, but don't do it as a true strengthening exercise. Maybe it's time to reconsider that...

Tight calf muscles can be corrected with static stretching and foam rolling, which is something we have been focusing on moreso this year than perhaps any other year. And of course proper footwear is a must. One of the jumpers had awful footwear...shoes that wear completely broken down and several years old. I recommended he somehow invest in a new pair and he (suprisingly!) listened. Time will tell if that makes any kind of difference...

So, proper footwear, strengthening, and stretching should alleviate any shin problems you may have. And of course, resting doesn't hurt either. Hopefully we as coaches can get the kids' shins healthy again. 

2013: A year of running in review

2013, you have been AWESOME. This has honestly been one of the best years of my life. There have been so many good things that have happened throughout the year that it would take days of typing to capture it all. So let's keep it relatively simple by highlighting one of my favorite subjects: running.

As you may recall, I challenged myself to run 31 5k races this year. I really dedicated myself to running this year because I wanted to see what kind of success I could have if I focused just on running. Let's take a peek back at the action.

Scarborough Frozen 5k

January (1)
#1: Scarborough Frozen 5k. It was the first month of the year, so that must mean there was plenty of time to spare. I only needed to average 2.5 races per month throughout the year, so what's the hurry? It was January, and it was cold. So really there was no hurry.

February (0)
My January attitude trickled into February. There was plenty of time, so why freeze my ass off running when I could freeze my ass off while ice fishing with friends? Or better yet, why not just stay inside? I'm not really sure what I did, but running races wasn't it.

March (2)
With the weather warming a bit and 5ks becoming a little more plentiful, I decided to get running. I also started marathon training towards the end of the month. 
#2: The Irish Road Rover 5k: The first race I'd done in awhile that had a decent hill. The run up Munjoy Hill crushed me as I felt heavy and slow. Other people must have felt the same way because I still won my age group. Definitely wasn't pretty.
#3: The Great Scot Trot 5k: A 5k to support the Bonny Eagle High School cross-country team. Flat out-and-back course that saw me beating the brother of an old high school nemesis. Also got the age group win. Take the victories when you can get 'em.

April (1)
#4: Save Our Swinging Bridge 5k: This was a fun race in Topsham, Maine. We ran over a historic swinging bridge and looped through some neighborhoods. The prizes consisted of gift cards to local places which was really nice.

May (5)

Patriot 5k. On the right, with cheese.

This is where things start to pick up. I'm in the middle of marathon training so my fitness is getting much better. Tessa also started working for a new company that conveniently had a corporate track team, which would allow me to relive the glory days of old. The track meets started in June, but there was a fundraiser 5k in May.
#5: ERA for MDA 5k: A fundraiser for the Muscular Dystrophy Association put on by my Dad's company. Nice and flat out and back course along the Kennebec River in Augusta, Maine.

#6: Sea Dog Mother's Day 5k: The first race of the year that had plenty of excellent competition. Pleased with my 17:09 as it was closer to the 17-minute barrier.
#7: Patriot 5k: One of my all-time favorite races. It takes place in Gray, Maine right in the middle of
track season. There is always a great turnout of kids I coach, their parents, and people from the Gray community. The course is relatively flat and loops around Crystal Lake. Good stuff.
#8: Maine Corporate Track Association 5k: The fundraiser for the corporate track program. Got to meet my coach and future teammates while running a 17:03, which was my fastest time to date.
#9: Back Cove Series, Week 1: During the summer, there is a weekly race around the Back Cove in Portland. It runs 14 weeks and only costs $20 for the entire series. Definitely a no-brainer as I try to run 31 5ks this year.

June (2)
#10: Back Cove Series, Week 2: Never fast on the dirt path, but a good way to "practice."
#11: Sea Dog Father's Day 5k: Same course as the Mother's Day race in May but for prostate cancer instead. These are fun races as you finish inside the Portland Sea Dog's Stadium.

July (4)
#12: Back Cove Series, Week 6: The one and only of these weekly races I won this summer, in large part due to all the "studs" taking the day off for the following day's Fourth of July races.
#13: Back Cove Series, Week 9: Not much to report here. Same ole' same ole.
#14: Maine Corporate Track Association State Meet: The 5k was the first event of the day, and I intended to run it relatively easy. But I was challenged so the effort was a good one in the early morning heat. I finished the day running the 800m, 1600m, and various distance medley relays. Maybe the most fun I've ever had racing as the team was incredible in so many ways. Not to mention we took home the corporate state championship!
#15 Back Cove Series, Week 10: Four days after the state meet, this was more of a recovery run of sorts.

August (4)
#16: Back Cove Series, Week 11: Not much to report other than the Back Bay was getting a little boring.
#17: Back Cove Series, Week 12: A tempo-paced run getting me ready for the next 5k...
#18: Breakaway 5k: You can read the race report here, but this was the race I finally broke the 17-minute barrier in 16:58. Just an awesome race.
#19: Back Cove Series, Week 14: The last week of the Back Cove Series. I finished 5th overall in the standings, meaning I had the 5th fastest average time (minimum 6 races). Glad that this was the last one of these races for awhile, but it also meant summer was soon over.

September (3)

Susan G. Komen 5k. Bibbed and ready to go

#20: Susan G. Komen 5k: I was very fortunate to run a few free races this year, and this was one of
them. Tessa's work paid my entrance fee (how did that work, anyways?) and I was very grateful. This was an extremely flat and fast and 5k that saw me run the first mile in 5:03, which was wayyyyy too fast. I managed the second mile okay but died during the third mile. Got a little carried away during that pancake-flat first mile. Tessa also ran it and ran a PR!
#21: Mustang 5k: This was to support the Massabesic High School cross-country team. It was also the day before the Trail to Ale 10k, so I decided as we went through the first mile that the effort wouldn't be all out.
#22: Tim's Run: This was on a beautiful and sunny late September day on a course that was flat and fast. Problem was, according to my Garmin, the course was 3.2 and not 3.1. Didn't help that the Sebago Brewfest was the day before, so pizza and beer were still kinda fresh in the belly...

October (3)

Reiche International 5k

October was probably the greatest month of running I have ever had in my life. First, and most importantly, the Gray-New Gloucester boys cross-country team I help coach qualified for the state meet for the first time since 1994. They went on to finish 5th in the state in Class B in what was just a remarkable season. Second, each 5k I ran this month I won. And third, I ran the third and fifth fastest times I've ever run 
#23: Bug Light 5k: The final event of the Maine corporate track season. Took home the win for Team Unum and ran a personal third-best 16:59. Couldn't have asked for a better race in South Portland.
#24: Reiche International 5k: Put on by some amazing people and friends at the YMCA. They asked
if I would run it if they covered the cost. I argued that I'd be happy to pay but they went ahead and registered me. A modest course with a nice climb at the 2 mile mark. Not only did I win the race, but took home some unbelievable prizes. Definitely will do this one again.
#25: Spooky 5k: A lot of people dressed up for this casual 5k, but I did not. This race was also the day after the boys qualified for states. Quite a weekend!

November (4)

Bayside Trail 5k. Hair dyed blonde from states!

#26: Bayside Trail 5k: The first race I ever ran with my dog, Lucy. I do a fair amount of fall, winter,
and spring running with her, but had never done a race with her before. I figured what the hell and signed us up. She usually bonks around mile 2 of our runs, but she managed to gut out the dog-victory and won herself and Tessa's dog a gift card to Planet Dog.
#27: Billerica Turkey Trot for Education 5k: I had every intention of keeping the 5ks in Maine, but this particular weekend just didn't have much to offer and it was starting to get down to the wire, so Tessa and I headed to Billerica for my first out-of-state race since high school. I nabbed 4th overall on the Garmin-read 3.2 mile course. If it wasn't for the extra .1 mile, I have little doubt my PR of 16:58 would have fallen.
#28: Maine Track Club Turkey Trot: One of the coldest races I've ever run. The wind was absolutely brutal. Every time we crested a hill it was like running into an icy wind tunnel. Not fun.
#29: Gasping Gobbler 5k: On Thanksgiving, I have to give thanks to a new PR! Who knew you could PR after sitting in a tree stand for a week while deer hunting. I came through in a surprising 16:57 and won an apple pie in the process. November is a great month for racing.

December (2)

Portland Brewer's Holiday Dash. It was snowy!

#30: Portland Brewer's 5k Holiday Dash: Well, this was certainly one I'll never forget. I spent the
prior week vacationing in 85-degree Cancun only to return home to 10-degree weather and a snowstorm. The race was held without fail as Maine endured its first snowstorm of the winter. We "raced" along an unplowed Eastern Trail in Portland, running most of the way through shin-deep snow and the occasional knee-deep snow drift. I didn't even wear a watch because, well, it really wouldn't have mattered. I slipped and skated my way to a 5th place finish in 28-something minutes. Brutal.
#31: Polar Bear Dip and Dash: Here it is, 31 out of 31. This was a

Polar Bear Dip and Dash. 31 down, 0 to go.

cold, icy, slippery run around Back Cove in Portland that finished at the East End Beach where the truly hearty could jump into the ocean after finishing. Race-time temp was right around 5 degrees, so I graciously passed on the "dip" part of this race. My number one fan Tessa came to watch, freeze, and get some great pictures of #31.

What a crazy year! Thinking back to all the races I ran this year, I can't help but think of how much I've learned about running and racing. I met a lot of people and made some new friends along the way, and learned some tricks of the trade that I can't wait to work on in 2014.

As for the challenge itself, I couldn't be happier I did it. There was a time in mid-July, while racing the Back Cove Series, that I started thinking how I didn't want to do this anymore. I wasn't even halfway through the challenge, meaning I was going to have to do what I had already done plus some if I was to complete this by the end of the year. But I stuck it out and got a huge boost during the Breakaway 5k in August, when I broke the 17-minute barrier for the first time ever. It was game on after that!

Here are a few stats:
-Total races this year: 31 5ks, a marathon, a half marathon, and a 10k, along with various shorter distances during track season.
-Fastest and slowest 5k: 16:57 at the Gasping Gobbler and 28:17 at the Portland Brewers Holiday Dash.
-Total money spent on 5ks: $404.68 (a far cry from the $800 I had predicted)
-Total in prizes (gift cards, money, etc): $345+. The "+" would be food and other goods such as the baguette and calendar I won at the Reiche International 5k. Came fairly close to breaking even...not bad!
-Most expensive 5k: $35 for the Polar Bear Dip and Dash.
-Least expensive 5k: Other than the very generous "free" entries and the one-time $20 Back Cove Series payment, it was the $10 MECTA 5k in May.

Well there ya have it. The next planned race is the Irish Road Rover in March of 2014. Until then, I plan to get lots of rest, get stronger, and enjoy some downtime from running. As for goals for 2014, I'd like to run 16:45 or better in the 5k, run sub 4:40 in the mile during track season, and build a stronger core.

What are your goals for 2014?

Happy New Year!