Do you strategically plan your trail runs with bushes and trees along the route just in case you need to go pee?  Do you empty your bladder two to three times before you leave for a run?

If so, you are not alone.

Incontinence Among Female Runners

Urinary incontinence is defined as any involuntary loss of urine and is estimated to affect up to 55% of the female population. While this condition is extremely common, it is not normal and can be effectively treated.

It is a common misconception that only the elderly or women that have had children experience leakage of urine with activities such as coughing, sneezing and exercise. However, a study done by Nygaard found that even elite college varsity athletes complained of incontinence and 40% of these women first noticed symptoms while they were in high school. This dispels the notion that women who have given birth have trouble controling their bladder.

Unfortunately, the sports most likely to induce leakage were those that involved jumping and high impact landings such as gymnastics and running.

Incontinence may cause runners to feel too embarrassed or ashamed to run in a group or even give up running all together. If this is you, don’t despair! Physiotherapy is a proven effective treatment option for urinary incontinence.

Why Physiotherapy Alliviates Incontinence

As a physiotherapist that specializes in pelvic floor dysfunction, I commonly see women in my clinic who are frustrated because doing “old-school” Kegel exercises at home hasn’t cured their incontinence. One reason for this may be that studies have shown that up to half of women do Kegel exercise incorrectly.

The pelvic floor muscles are like a hammock deep in your pelvis that span lengthwise between your pubic bone and tailbone and spread horizontally between your sit bones. Their strength is necessary for optimal bowel/bladder control, sexual function and core strength. These muscles work in coordination with the deep abdominal and back muscles and with the diaphragm.

Exercises to Reduce Incontinence in Runners

Since Kegels alone cannot stop urinary leakage, an effective pelvic floor-strengthening program addresses all these muscle groups in coordination with one another. Many runners have tight hip flexors, tight hamstrings, weak buttocks and a tight diaphragm. This muscle imbalance puts the pelvic floor muscles at a significant mechanical disadvantage.

Pelvic Floor Strengthening Exercise Tips

• Don’t squeeze inner thigh, buttock/hip muscles or hold your breath while doing Kegels. 
• Isolate your pelvic floor by pulling up and in as though you are trying to stop the flow of urine on a toilet. Hold for 5-10 seconds, then fully relax for 10 seconds. Do 10 repetitions once or twice daily.li>
• More is not better. It is unhealthy to do hundreds of Kegels per day!
• Stretch tight hips and strengthen glutes by doing four to five deep squats daily.
• Do 10 deep, relaxing belly breaths each night before going to bed to improve function of diaphragm.
• Cross train with yoga/pilates to work on balanced core strength.

To find a specially trained physiotherapist in your area, go to: www.thesehands.ca in Canada and www.apta.org in the USA.

 About the author:

Corinne Wade is a registered physiotherapist who owns her own Women’s Health physiotherapy clinic in Kelowna, BC.  She has special postgraduate training in treating both men and women with pelvic floor dysfunction such as incontinence and pelvic pain.  She has worked as a physiotherapist in both the United States and in Canada. She is an avid runner. For more information check her website at:  www.karephysio.com

Last year, Endurance magazine’s Casey Saussy attended the Run Wild Trail Running and Wellness Retreat at Vagabond Ranch.

You can read about her experience in her story, published in the February issue of Endurance magazine, and posted here on the magazine’s website.

The story begins:

“On a warm Thursday night last August, I gathered with a group of women who were strangers to me in the homey living room of a lodge at Vagabond Ranch deep in the Colorado wilderness near the Continental Divide. We were to spend the next four days running in the woods, eating, doing yoga and learning other body-wise-trail-chick kinds of things at the Run Wild Trail Running and Wellness Retreat.

Unsure of what to expect, I wondered if I would make friends. Or would I completely embarrass myself and be left behind running on mountainous singletrack where the air is oh-so thin? Would our host, Elinor Fish, a Leadville Trail 100 Mile Race finisher and former editor of Trail Runner magazine, be Type-A intense and run us to exhaustion? 

All my fears turned out to be silly. Rather than being intimidating, Elinor was inviting, disarming, welcoming and inclusive. The Run Wild Retreat experience invoked all the best childhood memories of summer sleep-away camp – even making s’mores over a campfire.”

Keep reading the full story here: http://www.endurancemag.com/index.php/endurance-blog/event-preview-trail-running-retreat-no-experience-necessary.html

Review of “Running the Edge”
by Tim Catalano and Adam Goucher
$17.95, www.runtheedge.com

Enter to win one of three signed copies of Running the Edge–see below to enter!

Running the Edge does not offer a 10K training plan or tips for completing your first ultramarathon, but its sage advice from its co-authors, professional runner Adam Goucher and psychology teacher and coach Tim Catalano, can take your running to new heights.

From page one, Running the Edge differs from any other running book in your library. It opens with Goucher’s raw description of his broken childhood home, neglectful parents and the night he witnessed a boy shoot himself in the head.

Considering his rough start in life, it would be understandable for a kid like Goucher to end up a drug-numbed, high-school dropout. Rather, after that tragic night involving drunken teens and a loaded gun, Goucher committed to elevating himself above his circumstances and doing great things with his life. One of those great things was running, and he went on to become a national champion, a Nike-sponsored athlete and an Olympian.

How do some people manage to harness their energy and ambition into carving out a path of personal greatness while others passively accept life’s lot and let their dreams slip away?

Goucher and Catalano answer that question by exploring how running provides the tools for improving all aspects of life: “’Running the edge’ is a metaphor for using the energy and lessons found in running to make you successful in your other life stories. The edge represents your maximum potential and highest aspirations, whether they be in running or your education,  career, family, friendships or other passions.”

This exploration is centered around the concept of a “distance maven”, or someone who constantly chases an ideal in pursuit of perfection. They define a distance mavens those who “wish to test their limits and discover their maximum potential not only as runners but also as human beings.”

Weaving together examples from their own lives in professional running, teaching, coaching and fatherhood, Goucher and Catalano hold up six “mirrors” or character traits by which to identify your personal strengths and weaknesses. How would you rate yourself when it comes to taking initiative? Do you take responsibility for your actions? Are you a person of integrity? How determined are you to reach  goals? Do you adapt easily to new situations? Are you personable in your relationships?

Armed with a clearer picture of who you are versus who you’d like to be, the authors challenge you to apply the life lessons cultivated through running to other life areas. Just as the they dared one other to tests of endurance during their college days, Goucher and Catalano challenge you to take action today to improve the parts of your life that hold you back from reaching your full potential. Peppered throughout the book are testimonies from champion runners Paula Radcliffe, Kara Goucher, Dathan Ritzenhein and many others who took such action. 

However, unlike a race with a definitive finish line, the journey to becoming distance maven-like is a life-long process whose goal is greater self-awareness and understanding that you have the power to succeed–not only in running–but all areas of life.

I’m highly recommending this book to my friends–runners and non-runners alike–because of its relvant insights and entertaining stories. Check out what others are saying about this book at www.runtheedge.com and follow them on Facebook at www.facebook.com/runtheedge to get a daily dose of inspiration to keep you on the distance maven path.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The latest issue of Women magazine, an inspiring magazine about women’s wellness, health and happiness, features an article about Run Wild Retreats, including photos of last year’s event.

In the story, author Diana Price explains why trail running is growing in popularity, particularly among women. “In addition to providing a sense of accomplishment and the physical reward of increased fitness, trail running can function as an invaluable stress-management tool for women increasingly striving to balance career and family,” she wrote.

When she asks me about the principles behind Run Wild Retreats, I explain that my motivation was to introduce other women to the joys inherent in the sport. “For me, trail running gives an opportunity to to meditate, take a break from the day, spend time in nature and feel incredibly empowered. I wanted to introduce other women to the joy of running so they could feel the same things.”

You can download a PDF of the article here.

Interested in experiencing a Run Wild Retreat? Click here to learn more. I hope you’ll join us!

Registration for the 2012 Run Wild Trail Running and Wellness retreat is now open.

I hope you’ll join us August 16 -19, 2012 for our third annual retreat, this time held near Carbondale, Colorado, home of Trail Runner magazine and some of the best singletrack trails and most spectacular scenery the Colorado Rockies has to offer.

Retreat overview:

-Spend three nights at Avalanche Ranch
-Run premier singletrack trails near Aspen, Colorado (no experience necessary!)
-Lengthen and strengthen your body with yoga classes for runners
-Learn about optimal nutrition for your active lifestyle
-Receive a personalized running-form evaluation and feedback
-Improve your running efficiency and learn how to reach your fitness goals
-Relax in on-site natural hot springs in a stunning mountain setting
-Massaes available upon request.

Quick Links:

Official Run Wild Retreat Information Page

Register Now! (Register before April 1 to receive the early bird discount of $75!)

Frequently Asked Questions

Retreat Itinerary

About Avalanche Ranch

I had the pleasure of meeting Kandice Marks when she attended the Run Wild Trail Running and Wellness Retreat in Colorado in August 2011. In fact, the retreat was a birthday gift from her husband (what a guy!).

During the retreat, Kandice, a stay-at-home-mom, spoke about her dreams of starting a business that let her be home with her young son, work part-time with a flexible schedule and run daily. A few months after the retreat, Kandice had made her dream come true by starting Run Champ, a dog-exercise business in her home town of Las Vegas, Nevada. Here’s how she did it:

Kandice Marks: Run Champ is a business I started a few months ago to address the problem of dog obesity. The idea came to me one day while watching TV when I saw a commercial for a dog diet package, sort of a “Jenny Craig for dogs.” Discovering that dog obesity was a big problem inspired the idea that I could run with dogs.

Knowing how well running helps people lose weight, I figured it must help dogs lose weight, too! My two dogs run with me regularly and my vet often compliments me on their great condition.

RWR: Do you take dog owners running as well?

KM: For dog owners who also want to start running, Run Champ offers a fantastic eight-week Mutts & Masters program, in which we train you and your dog to be lifetime running partners and to get healthy together.

We encourage people to run with their own dogs, but many people are just too busy or are unable due to handicaps or age, in which case, we take their pooch for a 30-minute to one-hour run.

RWR: Why did you start your own business?

KM: I used to work in human resources before I became a stay-at-home mom (my son is now 4). I want to always be home when my son is home, but very few companies offer the flexibility and part-time schedule I would want. Besides, the prospect of going back into an office for eight hours a day made me miserable. I wanted to do something active involving fitness and thought that personal training would be the right career for me.

RWR: What does running mean to you?

KM: When I need time to think, I go out for a long run, and when I’m upset I run fast and hard. I love to run and couldn’t imagine my life without it.

Speaking to everyone got me so excited about my idea that I went into my room, closed the door, got out a paper and pen and emerged hours later with a business plan.

If it wasn’t for going to this retreat and meeting all these incredible people, I would still be trying to figure out if starting Run Champ was something I could even do.

I recently caught up with Eoin Finn, one of Canada’s top yoga instructors, to discuss his works with competitive and professional athletes. He is the founder of Blissology Yoga, a style of yoga that is designed to build a foundation for movement during sports by resisting gravity.

This way of moving reduces the compression of joints and develops better energy flow for healing injuries, re-establishes neuromuscular patterns, clearer thinking under pressure and helps with recovery from the stress of sport and everyday life.

Here, Eoin shares his insights on how yoga can benefit runners of all levels.

Run Wild Retreats: Why should runners do yoga?

Eoin Finn: Yoga corrects body imbalances that are exacerbated by repetitive, high-impact activities like running. Running tightens and strengthens particular muscles groups (such as the quadriceps) while leaving others disproportionately weaker (such as the hamstrings). This is akin to a tree that is trying to grow straight, but cannot because it is constantly hammered by a strong prevailing wind. The tree will continue to grow lopsided, even when the wind is not blowing.

I focus on posts that benefit skeletal alignment by lengthening the overly tense muscles tighten and strengthening any muscles that become disproportionately weak.

RWR: Can you give me an example of applied Intelligent Yoga?

EF: All the activities we engage in affect the soft tissues (muscles and fascia), which in turn affect the skeleton. When running causes tight hamstrings and calf muscles, those muscles tug on the sit bones, which can shorten the back body and cause stress to the lower back. 

An Intelligent Yoga practice addresses this problem by loosening the tight back body and strengthening the front body. A simple pose like downward dog is great for this.

RWR: How does yoga help the runner’s mind?

EF: Running is definitely a mind game and the runners we work with always comment on the affects of yoga on the mind and breath. Just like running, yoga is enjoyable, but each pose presents a challenge.

When we resist such challenges (either during a 10K race or intense yoga practice) and starting thinking things like, “Oh god, I am only 1K into this run and I have nine to go,” our muscles tense and breathing becomes uneven or restricted.

Yoga teaches us to remain physically relaxed when facing a challenge or stressful situation. When the body relaxes, we also relax mentally and open ourselves to positive thoughts that carry us through a 10K with far less effort.

RWR: How does yogic breathing help that?

EF: The technique I teach is called LSD breathing, which stands for Long Slow and Deep. The goal is to focus on the quality of breath rather than the quantity (number of breaths per minute). Doing LSD breathing while running sends a stream of relaxation-inducing signals to the nervous system and muscles.

One of Canada’s most well-known and well-loved yoga instructors, last year Eoin Finn released his fifth DVD promoting yoga as an integral part of athletic cross-training. The Pursuit of Happy Hips was designed with beginner and advanced yogis in mind, and features a series of alignment-based yoga sequences that will benefit everyone, from professional athletes to weekend warriors and desk jockeys. The Pursuit of Happy Hips is available for purchase at Lululemon stores across Canada and online at http://www.blissology.com.

Last week the Outdoor Industries Women’s Coalition (OIWC) hosted a webinar with Ironman champion and SkirtSports founder Nicole DeBoom who is currently pregnant with her first child. 

I had met Nicole at industry tradeshows and at trail races here in Colorado and she always has a magnetic personality that probably has a lot to do with her success as a pro triathlete and now, business owner. No matter what she’s doing, Nicole seems to be having a lot of fun–and being CEO of her own athletic apparel brand is no expception.

In this interview, Nicole DeBoom shares some great advice for women in business or aspiring entrepeneurs, often drawing from her career as a professional triathlete to explain her approach to business.

What advice do you have for women thinking about start a business?

When you have an idea for a new business, the question to ask yourself is, does your idea address a problem or void in the marketplace? What about your idea is special or different that what’s already available? What problem does your idea solve? For me, the problem was a lack of athletic wear that let me feel feminine.

The next step is research. I bounced my idea of starting a women’s athletic apparel company off every person who could contribute a valuable opinion. I had coffee dates with retailers, other runners, attorneys, accountants, you name it. My goal was to walk away from each meeting with at least one action item I could follow up on.

We tend to only tell people we love about our big ideas, but we need to speak to people who will give us realistic answers and tell us what it takes to get something off the ground.

What are your strengths when it comes to business?

I’m good and turning a negative into a positive. You have to develop pretty tough skin in business, which includes being able to take criticism and learn from it.

What other qualities does a successful entrepreneur need?

1. Flexibility. You’ll learn a lot on the fly, so you may end up going in a direction you didn’t anticipate in the beginning.

2. Tenacity. You can’t be weak willed because you’ll encounter plenty of reasons why something can’t be done. You have to be prepared to find the solutions to every problem that comes along.  

3. Unwavering belief you will succeed. Any doubt that won’t succeed will make it impossible to deal with the problems. Pure will is only way to get through them.

4. Be a good listener. Listen to your customers and employees because they will give you the best feedback about how to do things better.

5. Collaborate with others. Leverage business partnerships that are a good match with yours to build your brand.

6. Keep your ego out of it. Your business will be better off if you don’t make it about you.

Well, that’s tough because experience has shown that a business plan is like a birth plan—you can plan all you want, but the reality will be totally different from what you anticipated.

Do you believe it’s possible to have it all (family, life, career and sanity)?

No! Having it all is a scary concept because it implies that there’s a perfect result or finish line. Like in triathlon, you never perform all three sport perfectly at the same time, rather, when you do well at two, the third will invariably suffer.

Instead, I think of work/life balance as a teeter-totter. You go back and forth between too much of one thing, not enough of the other, but it’s never totally balanced. I strive to reduce the teetering as much as possible.

1. Cut out the junk. As I learned as a triathlete, a good training program is designed to cutting out the junk, which is any training that doesn’t improve your fitness and only makes you more tired.

This principle applies to work effectiveness as well. Email can be a major time suck. For every one you answer, three more come in! If you spend all day at your computer, set aside certain times to check your email, say, morning, midday and afternoon.

2. Schedule time to work out. I work out in the morning because if I don’t, my head is not in the right place during the day. Running, biking and swimming helps me arrive at work with a clear mind, which makes me more effective.  

At SkirtSports, we have a program called Kick it Forward that helps women with barriers to fitness complete their first 5K. A woman who went through the program and became a Kick It Forward mentor recently told me, “The last thing I have time for is running, but when I do run, I have more time.”

For more about Nicole DeBoom, follow her entertaining blog at: http://www.skirtsports.com/blog/

NOTE: this is a synopsis of the interview, not a precise transcript.

Lead King Basin, Marble, Colorado

Come autumn, there’s no where I’d rather be that in the Rocky Mountains, where aspen trees are golden, fresh snow dusts the 14ers and blue skies are guaranteed.

The best way I know to celebrate this spectacular time of year is to run trails with some great friends. A few weeks ago I went to Marble, Colorado with friends Sari, Joy and Wendy to run the Lead King Loop, a 16-mile race on dirt roads through the Lead King Basin.

This year’s race also served as USATF Colorado 25K Trail Championships, which drew out some speedy racers, though our focus was on merely enjoying the day. We all had low expectation as far as “race performance” was concerned for various reasons: I was battling a head cold, Joy had just given birth 7 weeks earlier, Sari was tired from a heavy week of training for the Adventure Racing World Championship in Tasmania and Wendy is an avid hiker and cyclist who runs only occasionally.

Elinor, Sari, Joy and Wendy

But nevertheless, we all had a great day, with Sari even scoring 5th against a stacked women’s field. I was just happy to finally be at a race–only my second this year–after a busy summer spent traveling for work or family activities.

Since being competitive is less of a priority these days, I could really just enjoy this run–and stop along the way to snap a few photos.

Groovin’ on Aspen’s Government Trail

The Aspens of Aspen, Colorado

Last weekend, Sari Anderson and I joined Trail Runner magazine associate editor Ashley Arnold for a run from Snowmass to Aspen, Colorado along the famous Government Trail (home of the Golden Leaf Half Marathon).

Sari had placed second at this year’s Golden Leaf race, but was happy to return so soon for a “fun run” at an enjoy-the-view type of pace.

The opening miles were a slog up the ski hill from Snowmass Village, but once we got on the rolling singletrack that is the Government Trail proper, we found ourselves in a golden, glittering hallway of aspen trees.

We three have vastly different running strengths, race different events train very differently, and yet we still had so much in common. We spoke about Ashley and Sari’s upcoming races, training strategies and our common issues with eating a healthy diet. It seems we all have a particular vice–whether it’s cereal for dinner, ice cream for dessert or a pastry every morning–we all have something we could do better.  

And what about abs? Does the post-pregnancy flab ever disappear? Ashley, a cross-fit enthusiast as well as kick-ass trail runner, told Sari and me some of her favorite ab-busting drills that should do the trick.
 
Upon reaching the run’s end in downtown Aspen, we found our husbands ready to hand off the kids and take their turn on the trails. Having ticked off yet another stunning day in the mountains with great women, I was relaxed and free to enjoy the rest of the day’s activities.

 Thanks to all who attended the 2011 Trail Running and Wellness Retreat at Vagabond Ranch. This brief video recaps some of the event’s great moments. More photos still to come!

(note: video may not display properly in the Google Chrome browser)

I’d like to thank Run Like a Mother Authors, Sarah Bowen Shea and Dimity McDowell for presenting the 2011 Trail Running and Wellness Retreat, and for New Age Athlete Rachel Cieselwicz for teaching the yoga classes.

And thank you to our generous sponsors who helped make this event happen and contributed generous gifts and prizes to all the attendees!