Training, injuries, coaching, and more
I try to avoid anecdotes and personal histories when dealing with running injuries. They're fraught with the dangers of recall and confirmation bias, and worse, people seem hardwired to give more credence to a personal story than reams of scientific data. But in the case of loss of leg coordination, I don't really have a ... Read more
Loss of leg coordination while running as a task-specific focal dystonia distinct from runner's dystonia An executive summary of findings on loss of leg coordination while running John Davis For the full article, click here. This article is also available as a downloadable PDF Loss of leg coordination while running is the working term for ... Read more
This is an extremely long article. For a shorter executive summary, click here to read in your browser, or click here for a printable PDF version. This article is also available as a printable PDF for easier reading Most of the injury articles on this website are long, detailed, and rigorously cited, with their claims ... Read more
As my bio states, one of my areas of interest as a coach and writer is long-term development for young athletes: what is the best way to take a talented young runner and maximize his or her ability, both in high school and college/beyond? I've been thinking a lot recently about the idea of specialization—at ... Read more
Quick update! Through Amazon's KDP Select program, I'm able to run limited-time free promotional campaigns for my e-books. At 12:01am PST on Monday, June 29th, my first booklet, Basic Training Principles for Middle and Long-Distance Running will be FREE to download and share forever for the next 48 hours! Get your copy while you can! ... Read more
Exciting news! My first full-length book, Modern Training and Physiology for Middle and Long-Distance Runners, is now available on Kindle! It took a bit longer than expected to convert the book to a Kindle-friendly format, but it's finally done. The paperback version of Modern Training is still available on Amazon if you want a hard ... Read more
In my upcoming book on preventing and managing running injuries (which, I'm sorry to say, is still very much a work in progress), one chapter discusses the roles various medical professionals can fulfill in the prevention, evaluation, and treatment of running injuries. In many cases, a particular discipline is best-suited for one particular role: a ... Read more
2015 TC 1 Mile Champions Garrett Heath and Heather Kampf The Medtronic Twin Cities 1 Mile is one of the premier road miles in the United States. It has hosted Olympic medalists and has borne witness to several sub-four-minute miles. In addition to a top-flight pro race, the TC 1 Mile features several "open" waves, ... Read more
Have you ever run on an AlterG? Once firmly in the realm of space-age gadgetry only available to professional athletes, AlterG anti-gravity treadmills seem to be cropping up everywhere nowadays. College athletic departments, physical therapy offices, and even the occasional high school are purchasing AlterGs for their widely lauded ability to allow runners and other ... Read more
An MRI reveals a tibial stress fracture Traditionally, overuse injuries to the bone in distance runners are divided into two distinct categories: stress reactions and stress fractures. Runners who develop pain along one of their bones hope desperately that they have the former and not the latter, since the usual prescription for stress fracture recovery ... Read more