Posts by stevemagness
Why timing matters
Why timing matters Knowing what to do or what supplement to take doesn’t cut it anymore. Knowing what and why is great but there’s another dimension that is often neglected and that is to ask the question of when. While it is easy to get lost in the minutia that is increased knowledge of genetic…
Read MoreStress, Caffeine, recovery, and the immune system
I just started writing articles for Competitor.com and the first one went up today. In it I take a look at the negative side of taking Caffeine pre-race or workout. Caffeine is generally thought of as only a performance enhancer, which it does well, but there are drawbacks if you chronically use it. In the article…
Read MoreMeasuring Galvanic Skin Response….say what?
Galvanic Skin Response….say what? If you read letsrun.com and look up anything about me I’ll be branded as some science only nut who relies on too much science and forgets the “old school” way. If you were at my coaching presentation the Distance Summit put on at Queens University, after my “science” presentation you would…
Read MoreCrossfit endurance, Tabata sprints, and why people just don’t get it
Crossfit endurance, Tabata sprints, and why people just don’t get it Not terribly long ago, I stopped dating a girl because she did crossfit. Okay, it wasn’t the only reason, but it was a major factor. I mention this not to show how messed up my dating life/requirements may be, but to show how strongly…
Read MoreAltitude babies, Rats, and Epigenetics
New born rats, altitude, and epigenetics: Over the past few years, the term epigenetics has kind of exploded in the popular science world. I’ve discussed it at length in this blog and how it might have implications with a wide range of topics from obesity to African running dominance to how we adapt to altitude.…
Read MoreA few weeks ago I was fortunate enough to be at the Canadian athletics coaching symposium to speak with Alberto Salazar on a couple of different topics. It was a great experience and I picked up a lot of interesting ideas from other presenters and those in the audience who I chatted afterwards with. While…
Read MoreLessons from outside the running world
This is going to be an interesting attempt at a blog. One that takes seemingly unrelated subjects and ties them into my main focus, running. If you were to flip through any of the myriad of books I’ve read on some pretty random subjects, you’d see the margins littered up and down with notes. If…
Read MoreThe Sole of the Shoe: Looking at inside the midsole
The sole of the shoe: With this whole barefoot/minimalist/running mechanics thing exploding right now, one fo the more productive outcomes in science is the realization that the body is smarter than we give it credit for. All those old biomechanical models that presented the body as rigid mechanical body don’t quite accurately reflect what’s going…
Read MoreTraining to Kick
How to train a kick: In the last post, we took a look at the physiology behind the kick. That’s all well and good but it’s pretty much useless unless we can translate that knowledge into something practical. So let’s give that a go based on theory and practical experience. Here’s my guide to creating…
Read MoreThe Science of the finishing kick
Kicking it into gear. I’ve explored the phenomenon of the kick a little before but with recent research and with the fact worlds has just happened, let’s explore the kick phenomenon a bit more. First, let’s look at what actually happens physiologically, and then what we can do about it. The Physiology of the Kick…
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