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The Fine Line Between Positive Body Image and Fitness

This is a very difficult topic to dance around, and I had real reservations about posting it, because like the title implies, there is a delicate balancing act here, and it could go either way. Ultimately I decided that it was better to post this and then, if there was a discussion, facilitate it. I hope that the article is taken in the vain that it is meant and that if a discussion ensues, it is a compassionate and adult one. Peace. Joe the Runner.

As a father trying to raise four young women in this world, I understand how hard it is to instill confidence in them. I want them all to be strong, pursue their dreams, and above all else, love themselves and be happy. You try and do what you can. You tell them how beautiful and amazing they are; support them unconditionally in sports, dance, academics, and whatever else comes up. But the world we live in today makes it a very difficult job. Media highlights unrealistic body images that are airbrushed and enhanced, and it is way too easy for people to treat each other disgracefully behind the anonymity of a keyboard. It’s all very frustrating at times!

So I understand when I see people who applaud others for showing off their bodies regardless of the size or the shape. People come in different sizes, and we should never shame or abuse other people, but as a father I also have to look at the other side of the coin. In other words, yes I want my daughters to love themselves despite any flaws they may have, but I also need to have a conversation with them about living a healthy life style.

What I am trying to say is that there are consequences to obesity, and while we should always approach people with love and caring, it is irresponsible to not discuss the fact that obesity can lead to heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, and many other medical calamities that you would not want someone you love to have to deal with. I believe that we need to shift the topic of body image to living a healthy lifestyle. I don’t want my girls to be thin so that they look good, I want them to eat healthy and exercise and let their bodies respond. If that means that some of my girls are a little curvy, or a little thin, or a little whatever, as long as they are healthy and happy, then I am happy. I know thin people who are unhealthy due to poor lifestyle choices and slightly overweight people who are healthy due to good lifestyle choices.

We have gotten to a point where we are so politically correct that we are afraid to discuss topics like adults and that has virtually eliminated the “pragmatic middle”. Society shouldn’t be focused on thigh gaps and rib cages and in an attempt to highlight that, embrace a lifestyle that may be equally unhealthy, such as being overweight. It seems that it is always the two extremes. The conversation that we should be having is this. “Life is a journey and no one is perfect. Be kind to yourself and love yourself, and constantly try to improve. Don’t obsess over your weight and your looks, but don’t ignore them either. Not for the superficial reason of looking good in a bathing suit, but for the physical reason of living a healthy life style and feeling good.”

My girls, and all of their friends, are beautiful, strong, young women. I wouldn’t want any of them to ever be ridiculed or bullied by anyone; ever. In a way, I feel like I’ve been a father to all of them at one point or another. What I’d like to see for all of them, is that they eat REAL food, not processed, and get some exercise four to five times a week, so they can minimize the risk of diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease. Be happy, and love yourselves as much as we parents love you… You’re perfect just the way you are.

I hope that this post and this blog helps you achieve your dreams! To receive new post notifications, newsletters, and post previews, please SUBSCRIBE!

For behind the scenes photos and comments on my training and personal life, follow me on Instagram: joe_the_runner  Strava: Joe Randene

Questions, comments, feedback? Please leave them in the comments section BELOW and we can have a discussion!

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Recovery from the 100000 Step Project

First a quick recap of what took place Sunday, I walked/hiked/ran 100000 steps and 56 miles so that I could help people understand what was required to pull off such a feat. Click here to see the 100000 Step Project and related posts.

It is now Thursday, so three days have passed since I finished with the project and my recovery has gone surprisingly well. I want to put some context on this though because I believe that my fitness level for the project was very high as I am training for the Triple Lakes Trail 40 miler. In the nine weeks leading up to this project I had run 346 miles, climbed 31755 feet, and done 8600 push-ups for core work. From that base level of fitness, I believe that my recovery has been aided quite a bit.

To detail the recovery, when I woke up Monday morning, I had tired legs, and both quads were sore, but no worse then I feel after a marathon. On my schedule for the day was NO RUNNING. My preference is always “active” recovery, so I decided to get some walking in throughout the day. I actually finished Monday with 12339 steps and my legs were still tired, but the soreness was subsiding. I also focused on getting fluids in and eating pretty clean. Fruits, vegetables, and lean meats. The types of foods our bodies need to recover; nothing special really.

Tuesday I went for a 5k shakeout run, just to see how it would feel, and to my surprise, I actually had a little zip in my stride. I knocked out the 5k in 24 minutes and 9 seconds feeling pretty good. Then I went downtown to visit with friends and decided to walk the whole time. I finished Tuesday with 28291 steps still feeling pretty good. Again, nutrition was clean eating mostly, nothing special.

Wednesday I wanted to add a little distance and a little vertical climbing, so I did 10k at an easy pace with about 800 feet of climbing. The run went well and I felt comfortable but slow. I clicked off the 10k in 56 minutes and 52 seconds on tired legs. Again, I went downtown in the evening and decided to walk resulting in 30291 steps for the day. Regardless, I feel really good about where I am right now, no pain, slowly starting my running back up, and tired legs. All to be expected after Sunday’s huge day.

That’s it. You have all the posts in regards to the 100000 Step Project. The plan, the details of the day, the nutrition, and the recovery. If any one still believes that people are just pushing out 60000 to 100000 steps a day after they get home from work, read all of this again. It is not a realistic and sustainable goal for normal people and it borders on dangerous! Work your plan and improve on yourself. If you want to work your ways up to ultra marathon distances, take the time to learn and do it safely. Broken record time, 10000 to 15000 steps is achievable and sustainable for normal folks and will greatly improve your fitness. For us crazy runners, 20000 to 30000 are achievable and sustainable. If you are a little obsessive, I’ll even give you 30000 to 40000 steps a day. Above that… it starts to get very fishy!

I want to thank EVERYONE for all of the love and support during this process; it has been overwhelming and humbling! Peace. Joe the Runner

I hope that this post and this blog helps you achieve your dreams! To receive new post notifications, newsletters, and post previews, please SUBSCRIBE!

For behind the scenes photos and comments on my training and personal life, follow me on Instagram: joe_the_runner  Strava: Joe Randene

Questions, comments, feedback? Please leave them in the comments section BELOW and we can have a discussion!

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Hell Yes it’s Embarrassing to Be a New Runner!

“Everything you ever wanted is on the other side of fear.” George Addair

I read a comment the other day “I have never been a runner but I am thinking that I might want to start. However, I feel a little awkward and silly. Does anyone else feel this way?” Man, when I saw this it hit me right in the heart! YES!!! I would bet that almost all new runners feel this way. I mean, think about it, most adults that start the sport do it as part of a weight loss program, so if you are like me, then you probably started running in whatever clothes you had laying around that were comfortable, no REAL running shoes, slow as a turtle, stopping to walk, AND huffing and puffing… loudly with snot everywhere! YES!!! I have been there. BUT, so have a lot of runners that you pass and I’ll tell you what, when I see someone who is obviously new to the sport and out there struggling, I always smile at them and tell them “Great job!”

My personal experience has been that the running community is one of the most supportive and positive communities out there. When I am at a race or meet a fellow runner somewhere, there is that instant connection. What we do is not easy, but the rewards are AMAZING, so we all need that support. I have not experienced a negative comment, from another runner, ever. We are all in this together and we are all here to help.

I promise you that if you stick with it and be patient and kind with yourself, it will slowly get easier and easier. If you are getting out there and running very slowly four or five times a week, your body will adjust. Your heart will get stronger and your breathing will get easier. If you start to make small changes to your nutrition, you will lose weight, and the next thing you know, you’ll be buying stuff made of lycra! Crazy! I know. I own way too much lycra, it’s not pretty…

Believe me, I understand that you are pushing yourself way outside your comfort zone, but if you can push past your fears the rewards that you are looking for are right there! If the person who wrote that comment reads this, you know that I am here to cheer for you and provide you support. I am proud of you! If you are asking me, yes, start running. It just may change your life. God knows it changed mine completely.

I hope that this post and this blog helps you achieve your dreams! To receive new post notifications, newsletters, and post previews, please SUBSCRIBE!

For behind the scenes photos and comments on my training and personal life, follow me on Instagram: joe_the_runner  Strava: Joe Randene

Questions, comments, feedback? Please leave them in the comments section BELOW and we can have a discussion!

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THE Magic Bullet for Leg Cramps

Even before I started running, I’ve always had issues with cramps, particularly in my calves, hamstrings, and quads. I have very muscular legs and it has just always been an issue. There have been many nights where I wake up screaming in pain because of a leg cramp, scaring the crap out of my wife and obviously disturbing our rest.

When I was preparing for my first half marathon, a friend that I work with who is also a runner and has a lot more experience then I do, offered me some advice on preventing cramps. He knew that I was suffering later in my long runs and he also had similar issues. His advice was to start taking a magnesium supplement. A running friend of his offered him the same advice, and he told me that for all intents and purposes, his cramping issues had been resolved.

If you have cramp issues like I do, then you know you’re willing to try anything. I consulted the pharmacist and they started me out with 200 mg’s of magnesium a day and it made a world of difference! I was amazed. Almost immediately my cramping issues improved. Since I am always increasing my distance, I needed to keep tweaking the dosage until I found the right amount that basically stopped my cramping issues altogether. For me, that is 375 mg’s every day. Basically up to marathon distance, I no longer have cramping issues! Past 26 miles, I am still experimenting with doses, but give it a try.

If I am having a big week of training, I might supplement the 375 mg’s with another 50 to 100 mg’s or try increasing my food intake with magnesium rich foods. Foods that have worked well for me are dark green leafy vegetables, dates, figs, nuts and seeds, and bananas; if you google magnesium rich foods, there are a ton of suggestions.

Other fundamental nutritional aspects that you need to make sure you are taking care of in order for the magnesium to help are hydration and sleep. If you stay properly hydrated by drinking plenty of water and make sure that you are getting plenty of sleep, I suggest at least 7 hours per night if you can get it, then the magnesium can do its job. A thumb rule in regards to how much water to drink is that the color of your urine should be like pale wheat. Darker then that and you are dehydrated and lighter then that and you are drinking too much water.

A couple of other things that have helped me are foam rolling and compression socks. I try and get two sessions a week on the foam roller for my legs and I wear compression socks during my runs and for 30 minutes to an hour after. I am no doctor, so what I’ll say about the compression socks is that I feel supported and I feel like they make a difference. And like so many things in our sport, sometimes it really comes down to if you think it helps; then it helps.

If you increase your magnesium and it solves your cramping issues, I would love to hear about it! Post it in the comments section below!

I hope that this post and this blog helps! To receive new post notifications, newsletters, and post previews, please SUBSCRIBE!

For behind the scenes photos and comments on my training and personal life, follow me on Instagram: joe_the_runner  Strava: Joe Randene

Questions, comments, feedback? Please leave them in the comments section BELOW and we can have a discussion!