Innholdsfortegnelse for Issue 5 2022 i Runner's World

KAMRAN TALATTOF RW+ Member, P.34 I ran out of water during a hot 50K run and happened upon a petite pond by a farm. I knew the water was not drinkable, but I thought I could wash my face and head to cool down. Bad thinking: The water had too much cow poo and pee, adding nausea to my dehydration with more than 12 miles to go. ALSO: There is indeed only “one thing” I wish I knew. I wish I had known much earlier how body strengthening could benefit my running as I aged. MORGAN PETRUNY Shoes, P.61 It can be in the high 90s and humid, and I’ll still want a hot coffee before a run. After-ward, I’m eating ice cream—even if it’s subzero and snowing. And a…

IF YOU’VE EVER found yourself mid–long run debating whether you should cut it short, you’re not alone. Fatigue has a way of inducing an internal discussion about the fate of your miles. Making the decision that’s right for you can be tricky. On the one hand, you’re already really tired, and you have several miles to go. Won’t mindlessly sticking it out put you in a hole and compromise your upcoming training and racing? On the other hand, isn’t one of the main points of long runs to get used to “keep on keeping on” when the desire to stop strikes? The best answer is “it depends.” Here are five things to consider to help you decide what to do. Do you have a specific bodily pain? Discomfort—mild muscular fatigue…

AS HE APPROACHED the 25th hour of the race, Kamran Talattof tried not to think about it. The remaining miles of frozen Indiana trails didn’t bother him. He welcomed the pain ahead. He wished the race demanded all of his attention. But Talattof couldn’t keep the intrusive thoughts from creeping into his head—the harrowing memories of his home country of Iran that had haunted him for so long. For years, desert heat, sandy singletrack, and high altitude had partially distracted Talattof during the grueling ultramarathons he’d grown to love. The conditions helped him temporarily forget about the trauma of his twenties, when he was an aspiring professor who became trapped in Iran. But the flashbacks always returned. They had once again invaded his headspace during the 2013 Indiana Trail 100…

Puma Deviate Nitro 2 PRICE: $160 WEIGHT: 9.1 oz (M), 7.4 oz (W) DROP: 8 mm → Back in 2018, Puma offered a puzzling assortment of running options—men’s trainers weighing over 12 ounces, spiderweb-like lacing systems split between a shoe’s lateral and medial sides, and blocky, three-piece midsoles. But the numbers from mechanical testing in our lab told an interesting story. The shoes’ energy return was among the highest available at the time. Puma had the technology—it just needed more time to get the packaging right. The brand’s 2021 running line relaunch signaled that the wait was over. We gave the Deviate an Editors’ Choice award, and pros like Molly Seidel, Dakota Lindwurm, Aisha Praught-Leer, and Annie Frisbie have joined Usain Bolt as Puma athletes who’ve raced—and medaled—in the company’s…

Saucony Endorphin Edge PRICE: $200 WEIGHT: 9.1 oz (M), 7.5 oz (W) DROP: 6 mm → Last year’s Endorphin Trail was a lot to take in, its high stack underfoot a result of the thick slab of Pwrrun PB foam and Speedroll design. (Speedroll is Saucony’s rocker technology meant to propel you forward.) Our Endo-Trail wear-testers gave favorable reviews, however, saying the shoe had “excellent tread” and felt “decently comfortable” over long distances. What did it lack? A carbon-fiber plate, which the new Endorphin Edge has inside its Pwrrun PB foam. I’m no stranger to carbon fiber, having previously spoken with Carbitex founder Junus Khan about super shoes’ secret sauce, for the previous issue of this magazine. I had also raced this year’s Boston Marathon in the Altra Vanish Carbon,…

We’re Crushing on Buff’s Packable Speed Cap TESTED: BUFF’S PACK SPEED CAP, $30 Packable and Machine Washable | UPF 50 | Ultra Light-weight | Sizes: S/M & L/XL | 5 colors → Heavy, soggy, and stinky trucker hats no longer have to be your choice of running headwear. Caps now are breathable, fashionable, and lightweight. Sure, you can rely on a headband to keep hair out of your eyes or a visor to keep the sun off your face. But hats offer better coverage. They won’t slip over your ears, unlike headbands, and they won’t tempt fellow runners to ask if you’re hitting the tennis court. A prime example of what headwear for runners should be like is Buff’s Speed Cap. It checks off what I look for in a…

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RUNNER’S WORLD+ MEMBER TRISTAN WRIGHT, 36 SIGN LANGUAGE INTERPRETER / CHICAGO RUN THE MILE YOU’RE IN. RUNNERS+ Uphill or Downhill? In general, I prefer downhill—it usually comes after uphill, and I can let gravity do the work for a little while! RUNNING IS FOR EVERY BODY As a transgender person, I often feel disconnected from my own body, even to the point of struggling with disordered eating. But when I run, I’m 100 percent connected with myself. Learning to run well, under the guidance of a good dietitian and attentive coaches, helped me start to heal my food struggles and find a real peace with my physical form and all the things it’s capable of doing. FAVORITE PRERUN FUEL I almost always have an English muffin with peanut butter and…

WHETHER YOU’RE A parent of children or pets, it can be tough to find the time to take care of yourself when you’re used to juggling plenty of responsibilities for others. But your parental duties and your commitment to health and fitness don’t have to come at each other’s expense. Especially in a world where the concept of screen-free outdoor play seems to be slowly disappearing, I love to hear stories about parents running with their kids and pets—it makes our sport that much more inclusive! Still, there are a few things to remember when you run with your loved ones. Stick to these simple strategies to make the miles enjoyable for everyone. Be responsible // Whether you’re pushing a stroller, bringing along your child who loves to run, or…

Asics MetaSpeed Sky+ and Edge+ PRICE: $250 WEIGHT: 7.1 oz (M), 5.8 oz (W) drop: 5 mm (Sky+), 8 mm (Edge+) → Building a super shoe is more complicated than just sticking a piece of carbon in a tall stack of foam and calling it a day. The interplay of foams’ and plates’ specific densities and geometries needs careful tuning to provide a tangible benefit. And even then, some runners will benefit more than others. For example, biomechanical testing of the Vaporfly 4% shows that certain runners speed up only a single percentage point while others see boosts of up to six. There are many reasons why some runners respond better than others to super shoes—some “non-responders” don’t see any significant difference. Running speed, foot strike, experience, age, body size,…

Hoka Mafate Speed 4 PRICE: $185 WEIGHT: 10.4 oz (M), 8.4 oz (W) DROP: 4 mm → The Speedgoat might be more popular, but we’re going to claim the overhauled Mafate Speed is Hoka’s best trail shoe right now—especially if your trails require comfort and versatility. We found this out firsthand by using the shoe to race up and down Whiteface Mountain. With a wide range of trail options to pick from, the Mafate was the race day choice for both myself and video producer Pat Heine-Holmberg to tackle the Olympic ski hill in New York’s Adirondack Park. I found it had more than enough bite on black diamond runs so I could claw my way uphill, but the cushioning protected my body when I had to dash back down…

Kenny Ames, 45, of Silver Spring, MD, runs his sons to daycare with his BOB stroller. “I do look forward to the day when my boys are both in grade school, and I can give the stroller to another runner to enjoy time with their kids,” he says. Adam Tills, 53, of St. Anthony, MN, loves creating playlists for long runs. “I sprinkle in songs that remind me of those who inspire me,” he says. “For my last marathon, I asked friends to give me a song for the playlist, so each song was a little cheer from everyone.” Leah Britton, 27, of Georgetown, KY, will always remember the first time she experienced runner’s high. “I had an absolutely horrible day and had just heard some bad news,” she says.…

DISCOVER THE BEST WAY TO TRACK YOUR RUNS Whether you’re a beginner or a seasoned pro, you could probably use the extra push or gentle accountability to run on days when you don’t feel like lacing up. Running apps can provide such support. Besides tracking your miles, these programs can also offer coaching, provide music to motivate you, or virtually connect you to other runners. Each app offers different tools to help you get better—you just need to figure out what works for you. For inspiration, here’s a closer look at how RW staffers like to track their runs. Which option do you prefer? FIND AN APP THAT FITS YOUR ACTIVITIES I love the ease of the Garmin Fenix 6S Pro Solar watch. It instantly tracks and uploads everything I…

AS RUNNERS, WE have a way of imposing negative pressure on ourselves when we go into a race of any distance, especially one like a marathon. Here’s what I want you to do instead: Trust your training. Remember that the hard part is done. And don’t forget to have fun. You may have heard such advice before, but how do you actually apply it? I connected with RW+ member Sierra Corvin, 24, of Farwell, Texas, who recently completed the Missoula Half Marathon and wanted to know how to manage her prerace jitters. Have a race on the horizon that’s tying up your stomach in knots? Practice these pointers. The week before your race: Be present SIERRA //How can I keep from working myself too hard during race week? PJ //Settle…

IT’S AN EARLY SPRING Saturday afternoon in Midlothian, Virginia, and in a backyard buzzing with activity—kids on a zipline, flying baseballs, careening scooters—a race is afoot. The challenger: a freckled 7-year-old boy, wearing the head-to-toe maroon of Virginia Tech. Accepting that challenge: a mom in black running tights, long blond hair pulled into a loose bun, smile incandescent. At the boy’s call, they scrabble down the wooden stairs of the back porch, dodge family members, and sprint up the driveway. There’s a few seconds of silence as the pair disappears around the front of the house, and then the boy rounds the corner again, yelling, “I beat Aunt Kiki running! I beat Aunt Kiki running!” The loser pretends to breathe hard, hands on knees, then protests teasingly, “Hey, I wasn’t…

Skechers GOrun Razor 4 PRICE: $130 WEIGHT: 8.4 oz (M), 6.5 oz (W) DROP: 4 mm → We loved the Razor 3 and gave it awards. Skechers knew it was on to something great because it left the shoe largely untouched for four years. That’s unheard of in an industry that tweaks the recipe annually. The Razor 4, though, is almost an entirely new beast. And you can feel that on foot and underfoot. First, let’s talk weight: Skechers has always made its shoes as light as possible. The Razor was in racing-flat territory before. But this new version is nearly 30 percent heavier, putting it more in the “performance trainer” class of shoes. It’s not heavy, but it is heavier. And that’s okay, because the new materials here make…

DURING A ROUND of tights testing, one of our testers was completely won over by a pair—with the exception of one glaring flaw: “LACK OF POCKETS! These leggings would be PERFECT if they had side pockets.” Pockets can make or break a run. We hear it all the time from our wear-testers; bottoms with good pockets always get more positive responses. The same goes for nearly every other piece of running apparel—shorts, bra, joggers, rain jacket—and I couldn’t agree more: Give us pockets. Good news: There’s a variety of options out there to stow what-ever your little beating runner heart can’t run without—smartphone, ID, or midrun snack—if you know where to look. MORE POCKETS, PLEASE The pocket seems to be a relatively new concept in activewear. I can still recall…

BEING AN ADDICT took me to prison and almost took my life several times. The worst of my overdoses was in 2015—three heroin ODs in a week. I was found unresponsive with a needle in my arm and put on a ventilator. After nine days in the ICU, by the grace of God, I woke up. I had a decision to make: either run away, or run toward my failures and take responsibility for my life. My wife was pregnant with our first child—I decided to get help. By the end of rehab, I was running five miles a day, five days a week. I kept running and fell in love with it. LATEST ACCOMPLISHMENT → PUSHED MY LIMITS AND COMPLETED IRONMAN CHATTANOOGA IN 2022 → EARNED A P.R. AT…