Building a friendship with each passing mile.

       Much has been written about the benefits of running with friends but I have to admit, I never totally bought into it. I was always content in the fact that running was my solace for the demands of everyday life. What I did when I needed me time. After years of running occasionally with groups and sporadically with friends it has finally hit me.It was not just about how many miles I ran or what pace I was at for each distance but the sharing of the experience. I am not speaking about race day; that can be a different story. I am referring to training and general fitness running.

I had begun to wean in my running schedule and found my runs far less fulfilling. Then a cyclist friend came to me and expressed interest in triathlons but they had not run, in there words, in years. Suddenly, I found myself more focused during our runs and developing greater motivation. There were runs where we spent the entire run decompressing, other had fewer words but the sound of our footsteps. I not only increase my mileage, boosted my running enjoyment but I built a deeper, and invaluable friendship that has extended past the pavement.

5 tips to protect your knees

Have you had an achy feeling in your knees? Do you find it difficult to walk long distances, go down stairs, or sit for long periods of time without having pain in your knees? You may be suffering from Patella Femoral Syndrome. This is an umbrella term, that describes a dysfunction between the patella, cartilage, tibia, femur, ligaments, and muscles around the knee. Since there is so much involve, it is hard to pinpoint what is really wrong. Here are my 5 top tips to "protect your knees":

1. Stretch-  flexibility is a key role in improving general range of motion of the knee and other body parts.

2. Improve your balance- wobbly ankles can cause poor mechanics of the knee.

3. Decrease compression- doing activites that cause you to do alot of jumping (volleyball), or hitting a hard surface (running on concrete vs. treadmill),
                                            may cause wear and tear on on the cartilage in your knees.

4. Wear proper shoes- even though 9" heels look nice, they are touture on your knees. They may put the joint in hyperextension and causes excessive
                                       wear and tear of the knee joint.

5. Exercise- doing bodyweight exercises improve your strength, and biomechanics of your joints. If you are in pain, get clearance from your physician
                    before engaging in any execises.