Follow Meghan’s training @ http://www.strands.com/nutmegrunner

Meghan’s tip of the week…get regular massage therapy.  Massage is a great tool to keep you healthy and running faster than ever.  Massage therapy keeps your muscles supple and strong by promoting blood circulation, elasticity, flexibility and relieving stress from both workouts and everyday life.  And did I mention; it feels great!

A quick note: after your first session of massage you may not feel like normal, your legs may feel “heavier” than usual. However, with continued therapy you will see the results you are looking for, namely an increase in work capacity and faster times.

Think massage therapy would be too much of a burden on your wallet?  Think again. Search online or the phone book for a local college offering massage therapy.  Students are always looking for volunteers on which to hone their skills.  And it is great for you because you get a person who is enthusiastic about what they are doing and usually at a deeply discounted price. I personally have tried many different massage therapists and can say without a doubt that Suzie, a student at St. Paul College, gives the best massages.  In an hour’s time my legs go from tired and sore to feeling refreshed and ready for my next workout.

Massage is just one little piece in the puzzle of becoming the best runner you can be.  People often emphasize the importance of a great workout, but you shouldn’t forget that recovery from workouts is equally as important.

Follow Nick’s training @ http://www.strands.com/nsymm800

2008 Olympic Trials 800m champion; Two-time USA Outdoor runner-up (’06, ’07); 2007 USA Indoor champion; Seven-time NCAA Div. III Outdoor champion (800m, 1,500m)

I can still remember my first season of high school cross country with stunning clarity.  It was an exciting time as I embarked on a new chapter of my life.  I recall how those first few weeks of conditioning were brutal and I would go home every afternoon barely able to lift my fork at dinner.  However, each day after school I would throw on my beat up trainers and head to the track to meet the coach and find out what new form of torture he thought up for us.  At the time, I hated everything about running (except maybe the fact that the men’s and women’s team practiced together).  I hated the pain; I hated the way my body was always drained of energy and I didn’t like the coach telling me when to go to bed and what to eat.  But, the thing I remember hating most was the t-shirts we were given the first week of practice.  Now, I certainly don’t claim to be any kind of creative genius, but these shirts were the worst.  They were relatively standard issue: white, cotton and our school’s letters on the front.  But it was the quote on the back of these shirts that really rubbed me the wrong way. It read, “Our sport is your sport’s punishment.”  It was seeing these words and understanding their truth that made me realize how masochistic our daily endeavor really was.

To understand my feelings you have to know what led me to the cross-country team in the first place.  In the fall of 1998 I stood just over 5′0″ and weighed in at a whopping 95 lbs.  Up to that point, my sport and passion in life had always been soccer.  I dreamed of playing on the high school varsity team and perhaps one day in college.  However, there was very little interest from the head soccer coach in putting a pre-pubescent fourteen year old anywhere near the playing field when there was a good chance he would be obliterated by fully developed juniors and seniors.  Instead, it was suggested that I spend a season with the cross country team and work on my fitness so that when I returned a year later I would be more developed in my cardiovascular fitness and muscular strength.  This was tough for me to hear because I loved everything about soccer.  I loved the team, the games, even the practices.  In fact, I would say that the only part I did not enjoy were the times when we would mess up a drill or show up late to practice and the coach would actually PUNISH us by making us run laps.  So, imagine my utter disgust when I was asked to wear shirt advertising the fact that we were, as the coach put it, “running for fun!”  I thanked the team captains for my shirt and as soon as I was home tossed it in the bottom of my closet.

I continued to push my body to its limits each day at cross country practice and found myself growing stronger and faster and, of all things, winning races.  At first it was the winning part that kept me going.  I loved crossing the finish line in first, knowing that on that particular day I defeated an entire field of people in a physical challenge.  Of course, as a late bloomer, the cross country course was one of the few places where I could actually achieve such a feat.  For years it was the pure desire to win competitions that fueled my training.  Though I would dread the countless miles that I would have to log day in and day out to be great, knowing that the next competition was only a few weeks away would keep me going.

Then, somewhere along the line, everything changed.  I learned to love the training as much, if not more than the competitions. There was something incredible about going for a ten mile run and knowing that I had seen and accomplished so much, usually before noon!  Whenever I ran in a foreign city I would return to my hotel room knowing that few tourists saw the sights and places I had been; those out-of-the-way bike paths and trails that we runners eagerly search for the second we touch down in a new place.  Running a workout no longer felt like a punishment of any kind, but rather more of a challenge to surpass my prior achievements.  I got to the point where training had become so much a part of my life that my eating and sleeping cycles completely revolved around my workouts.  To this day, I live my life the same way.  I love to race and feel the rush that competition provides, but I have learned to appreciate the process and cherish the journey.

On August 28th over 12,000 runners will embark on the largest relay race in the World — 197 miles from majestic Mt. Hood to the beautiful Pacific Ocean in Seaside, the Nike Hood To Coast Relay is truly “the mother of all relays”.

Strands is sponsoring two teams of up to 12 runners each to participate in the 28th Annual Hood To Coast Relay, and we are inviting specialty running stores and individuals from across the nation to compete for 12 all-expense paid trips to Oregon to participate in this incredible adventure!

Stores can win by creating an account on Strands.com and inviting their customers and friends to join them, and individuals can win by creating a video about “Why I Run” and posting it on Strands.

Full contest details can be found at http://contest.strands.com.

There are many people involved in the planning, organization, and execution of a road race for thousands of runners, and we are excited to announce our partnership with AA Sports Limited, a race timing and management company based in Beaverton, Oregon. AA Sports has been timing and managing races for over 20 years, and is currently involved with over 50 races across the U.S.

“So, what’s the big deal?”

Strands has been able to support AA Sports’ races by sponsoring disposable ChampionChip timing chips, allowing users of Strands Online Training Logs to receive LIVE race results as soon as they cross a timing mat!

Within 5 seconds of crossing a timing mat, results are saved directly to Strands.com for fans and family to view from the web and the Strands iPhone App.

So far we’ve been able to provide live results for the Salt Lake City Marathon, Eugene Marathon, and Lake Run 12k; and are excited to offer live race timing for the upcoming Coeur d’Alene Marathon, 10Cane 10k, and Pacific Crest Sports Festival, with many more to come.

If you are a Race Organizer or Coordinator and would like to bring Strands LIVE timing to your race, be sure to let us know!