Today is the “National Day of Running”. I assisted in getting a couple of my friends/relatives running several years ago, and we helped found a local American Indian running group called The Smoking Moccasins. Some highly motivated individuals then created a youth running group for local Native Youth called The Mini Mocs.
I miss running. So I try to run a little bit with Shelby now. I have to accommodate my hip arthritis by changing my stride and my foot strike. Where I once had a mid-foot strike, I now have to focus on a fore-foot strike, so that my feet and ankles will absorb most of the impact. Then I have to shorten my stride to accommodate the new fore-foot strike and also to keep myself low to the ground. I can’t bound like I used to, again in an effort to minimize what impact I can on my hip joints. So I’m running. It’s not pretty and it’s not fast…it’s not even continuous. I feel like an agitated turtle at times. But I am running.
I had some thoughts on running yesterday and updated my FaceBook status. I decided to turn that update into a blog entry since it coincides with today’s running holiday. 🙂
I remember dancing at Prairie Island Wacipi in 2007, the year after I had Sara. We had to contest Sunday afternoon in the blistering heat. It was so hot the heat from the ground just burned right through the bottoms of our moccasins. Our brother Clay Crawford said to me, “Do you and Joe run outside in that Kansas heat? It really must help. Everyone else looks like the heat is getting to them except for you two.” Lol.
What I remember from my running days is that yes, training in the heat (not in the hottest part of the day, but when the heat was still high) helped with my powwow conditioning. Also running outside on the cross country trail. The combination of running outside and on grass or gravel was very effective. When you run on an uncontrolled surface, it strengthens all the little helper muscles in your feet, ankles, and knees in order to keep your joints stable. Ideal training for shawl dancers and fancy dancers to prepare to dance on grass. It kept my ankles from rolling as much they used to even after I had my kids.
I’m seeing videos and snaps of young powwow dancers running on treadmills. My strong advice: If you have a safe place to do so, get outside and find some grass or gravel to run on. If you live somewhere blistering hot then run early in the morning or in the evening before dark. If you run races and train on grass, you will be able to fly when you race on a controlled surface. I noticed the difference when I started to rely more on treadmill runs than cross country trail runs. One of the first times my sister ever beat me in a 5K was because she trained on grass while I ran on pavement or on a treadmill. When we got onto a controlled surface, she was just fast.
Running on grass or gravel is better for your joints that running on concrete or a treadmill, (unless you have existing knee issues, then running on an uncontrolled surface may not feel so great). But if you don’t have access to a safe place to run on a soft surface, running on any surface is better than doing nothing.
That’s my public health PSA for today. Thank you. Lol.
Wozani Was'te 