Take a Run on the Beach

Today’s post will be taking a bit of a vacation based off of my own life this weekend. As anyone growing up in Philly knows, it can get damn hot here in the summer. The heat saps your energy and exercise starts to look a lot less appealing when its a choice between your cool air conditioning and beating your feet on the hot pavement of the city.

So a annual rite of passage, and one that is often made weekly, is a trip to the Jersey Shore. This weekend I took a vacation to beautiful Long Beach Island (which is, thankfully, still more surfer dude than MTV Guido wanna bes). Although it was a vaction there’s no reason why you should take a day off from keepig your body in shape. Instead of lying on the beach, take a swim, or go rafting on the bay (my body still hurts, what a great workout!).

But perhaps the single best thing you can do is to take a run on the sand.

Benefits

Taking a break from your trashy beach novel and hitting the sand running can get you plenty of benefits even in just the short weekend you’re at the beach.

Running on sand can actually burn 1.6 times the calories that running on asphalt can as you’re using more muscles more often to compensate for the shifting sands. Also, the impact of you’re feet on sand is much more diffused than on other surfaces, meaning that it will put less force strain on your legs and reduce the chance of stress injuries.

Because of the shifting and the change in forces, you can build up lower leg muscles much quicker than running on anything else. There’s a reason that the Navy SEALs take their runs on the beach.

Getting Ready

There are some major differences between running on sand and a track though. Bad traction and soft sand will cause a runner to press more on the balls of their feet. To compensate, lean the body forward and drive your knees and arms higher.

Also, running on the sand can be particularly dangerous for ankles. A bad shift in the sand can lead to a sprained or even broken ankle. Although running barefoot is great, a good pair of running shoes with supports can help your ankles but being careful is also just as good. Also, running on sand will take a little time to get used to so be prepared to take longer warm up laps to lessen the chance of injuries.

Have Fun
Taking a fun run on your vacation is mostly to have fun. Take some time, show off and run in great weather.

Most importantly though, you’re on vacation, have some fun.

Gonna Fly Now - Steps as exercise

It’s an iconic piece of Philadelphia legend. The Rocky Steps (alright, the Art Museum steps) are a must see attraction for anyone visiting the city. The run to the top has come to signify conquering an athletic challenge and being the underdog who becomes a champion. If you grew up in Philly you’ve done the run at least once.

But perhaps it’s time to do it a few more time.

Steps as Exercise

Running up stairs can be some of the greatest exercises possible. Football coaches have known this for years as they routinely have their players charge up the stadium steps after practice.

Researchers in Canada actually looked into the idea of using stairs as exercise and found that stairs were the most demanding when compared to level walking or weight lifting. In fact the study concluded that stair walking was twice as demanding as a brisk walk over flat ground and fifty percent more demanding than walking up a steep incline of lifting weights.

The researchers included a warming, however, that since stairs are so demanding the exercise should only be attempted by the already physically fit if you’re going to do it often.

Is it really effective?

Although it varies for your age and weight, climbing up a stair burns about 0.11 calories per stair and 0.05 calories down. There are 72 stone steps leading up to the front entrance of the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

  That works out to a grand total of, um, well 11.2 calories burned for one trip up and down, excluding the calories you burn doing the Rocky pose at the top, of course. Although not amazing you can do that multiple times to get your heart rate going.  Besides, this exercise isn’t really about the calories anyway, it’s about the motivation of using an amazing Philadelphia landmark and working the city into your exercise routine.

And, as a little extra motivation, I’ll leave you with this:

Running Your Ass Off Philadelphia Style

Running.

For some it is the supreme and ultimate exercise. It provides a runner's high as endorphins pulse through your body and it is a great and natural exercise.

For others, it is absolutely dreaded and each step is loathingly taken against ones will.

But everyone can agree that running is an essential part of any work out routine and luckily Philadelphia is the perfect city to take a run.

Getting Started

Running alone can be accomplished almost anywhere in the city. The Fairmount park system, one of the largest in the nation, has a multitude of trails and paths that run through large swaths of the city. For beginners, the run along Kelly Drive provides a wonderfully maintained, popular, safe, and gorgeous path to exercise along. In the Northeast, paths along start behind the Philadelphia Correctional Facility and provide a surprisingly nice run (importantly, running near a prison is much safer than you’d expect, and brightly lit too).

For those who want to get the extra motivation and safety of running with a group, there are plenty of running clubs in the city that provide tips and tricks for running in the city. One of the best are the Philly Runners. The group has many runs, both competitive and free, that will push the apathetic runner into a better routine.

The group also provides suggestions for runs to join outside of the city along with a great fun run that leaves the Art Museum steps at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesdays.

Tips and Safety

It’s been a hot summer in Philly and that brings extra dangers to running. Hot weather running can bring on heat exhaustion and severe dehydration that will bring on headaches, spins, and possible collapse.

Some tips:

• Hydrate, hydrate, and hydrate. Although sports drinks may work for you, nothing beats a cool glass of water.
• Wear proper clothing. Go out and spend the few extra dollars on breathable sports clothing and keep the skin breathing.
• Be smart and quit your run if you start to feel the effects of heat. Know your body and don’t push it beyond limits, this is exercise but it can also be dangerous.

Running with buddies or in a popular area can also never be a bad idea. So grab a friend and hit the streets and paths of Philadelphia.

Happy running!