FitSugar

Fit Tip: Massage Your Feet and Lower Legs Before a Run

FitSugar — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 12:00:00 PDT

As you may well know, running is really tough on your feet and the muscles in your lower legs. These often neglected body parts do a lot of the work and absorb most of the shock of your run. Ignore them and you can end up with cramped, achy, throbbing, or even numb feet, shins, or calves from running, which not only sucks due to the pain, but can prevent you from getting in a good workout.

So before you slip on your socks and sneakers, give your feet and lower legs a good rub down. Spend a few minutes on each leg's foot, shin, and calf. Knead your fingertips and the heel of your palm firmly into your muscles to bring blood to those areas, which will warm the muscles up. If the muscles are warmed up, they'll be less likely to ache or get injured while running.

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RX For Shin Splints: Ice Massage

Susi May — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 11:39:21 PST

Shin splints are the bane of many new runners. The tight calves that accompany mileage increases can spell pain for the lower leg. If running causes any discomfort, take time off to allow your shin splints to heal. But you need not sit idle on the sidelines while you recuperate: ice massages help, too. A serious runner, my Equinox trainer reminded me of the healing combo of ice and massage to decrease the inflammation around the tibia (anatomy speak for shin), caused by this overuse injury. The technique is simple, but first you need to make the ultimate tool: the icing cup!

Make Your Own Icing Cup
Used in gyms and physical therapy clinics, an icing cup protects your fingers from freezing and provides a perfectly sized contact point for massaging troubled spots. Take six Dixie cups, fill them with water, and freeze. When it comes time to ice, peel back the paper and begin the massage.

The Massage
Starting by your foot, place your icing cup on the outside of your shin, on the tibialis anterior muscle. Making long strokes toward your knee, massage the muscle with an amount of pressure that feels good. Mix up your massage strokes and try small circular patterns, once again starting at the ankle and working up toward the knee. After five minutes of massaging, finish your 20-minute icing cycle with 15 minutes of static icing by placing an ice pack (or frozen peas or corn) on your shin. Aim to massage and ice twice a day.

If you're not up for an ice massage, you can always show your shins some foam roller love. Do keep stretching your calf muscles, and once the pain diminishes try these easy exercises to strengthen the tibialis anterior.

No More Pudge! 5 Tips For Rocking That Cropped Top

Self — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 05:10:01 PDT

If you're anything like me, back in the day - before exercise seemed like an issue - you rocked cropped tops everywhere. Circa 1994, was there something else worth wearing? In recent years, though, I've generally kept a little fabric between my belly and the world. Until now. Cropped tops are a must wear again. Luckily, Pilates instructor Natalie Ridley of The Sports Club/LA (where the likes of Katie Holmes, Victoria Beckham, Britney Spears and Nicole Kidman have been known to work out) offered up these toning tips, so we can bare (at least a tasteful bit of) our bellies without fear.

SELF's style team loves this American Apparel ($26.90) top. Get their picks for classy, not trashy cropped tops.

If exposing your stomach sends shivers down your spine, don't let the above picture scare you. To rock this style, there's no need to wear skirts this low or show your entire stomach. But, should a little tummy be revealed above high-waisted pants, skirts, or
shorts, you don't want to have to feel embarrassed by pudge either. According to Ridley, these five Pilates moves will tone your mid-section:

1. Roll Up:
"This exercise is intended to strengthen abdominal muscles and inner thighs. Begin lying on your back with the arms straight up toward the ceiling, legs sealed together, and feet stretched forward. Engage your belly and use your arms to pull yourself forward. Roll up. To advance this exercise, you can roll up with a straight single leg (then change to the second leg)."

See the rest of this ab-centric workout after the break!

Common Running Injuries and How to Avoid Them

Susi May — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 12:10:03 PDT

Even with the longer days of the Summer months, I sometimes feel like there is so much training to do and so little time to pack it in. Upping your mileage certainly brings increased stamina, so you can "bring it" at your races, but it can also mean increased injury risk. Overuse injuries are the bane of any runner's well-laid training plans. And that is where some prehab comes into play. You can strengthen areas prone to injury, hopefully bypassing nasty and nagging injuries that can often follow you as you log mile after mile. Here are four common running issues and how you can hopefully prevent them.

Shin Splints

Symptoms: Pain in the lower leg starting below the knee. It can be either on the outside of the shin (called anterior shin splint) or the inside of the bone (referred to as medial shin splint).
Causes: Shin splints are small tears in the area where the lower leg muscle attaches to the tibia, aka the shin bone. The tears are caused from overuse, especially after periods of inactivity. In runners, shin splints often occur because the calf muscle becomes stronger than the tibialis anterior, the muscle on the outside of the shin.
Prevention: Stretch your calves regularly, even on days you don't run. And when running, think about lifting your heels toward your pelvis to activate the hamstring rather than propelling yourself forward by pushing off with your feet, which activates the calves. As for strength training, a series of toe and heel walks help to balance the muscles of the lower leg.

Unfortunately there are more injuries, so keep on reading.