Six Minute Mile
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Why solo runs are not super effective at extending your lifespan

Why solo runs are not super effective at extending your lifespan

Also today: Fixed time events work for runners of all ages and abilities

June 18, 2024

Minute 1: Outdoor group exercise could expand your lifespan

Strong social bonds and a supportive community are two of the most important characteristics found in the Blue Zones – those areas of the globe where life expectancy is remarkably high. As much as you may like to tell your boss or your significant other that your life depends on moving to an idyllic island in Greece or Japan, that’s probably not necessary, according to: “The Surprising Element You Need To Add To Your Exercise Routine for a Longer Life.” Researchers at the Mayo Clinic sought to understand the effect of combining socialization with exercise, and what they found was that group activity improved longevity far more than solo exercise. Those who played tennis regularly, for example, saw a 9.7 year increase in lifespan compared to sedentary peers, while solo joggers only increased lifespan by 2.3 years. When we exercise with others, it improves our accountability, increases our enjoyment, and provides opportunities to learn how to train better. If you’ve been a lone wolf in training, consider joining a run club or team sport to see just how much your physical and mental health improves. Speaking of mental health hacks, we’ve got to share this one: “You Don't Need To Hug A Tree To Benefit From Nature — Looking at One Is Enough.” In a recent study, researchers instructed participants to focus on either man-made or natural elements as they walked around outside. By recording their focus with eye-tracking equipment, they determined that focusing on green elements like trees and foliage experienced a significant improvement in mood and anxiety levels. In other words, a group run in a park or trail just might be the one-two punch you need to transform your wellness for the better.

#GroupTherapy

How To Avoid Running Overuse Injuries

Minute 2: Adapt to any marathon challenge with this guide

In this episode of How I Met Your Mother, Barney Stinson famously argued there’s only one step to running a marathon: start running. Anybody who’s actually completed the full 26.2 knows that while the first step is perhaps the most important, it certainly isn’t the “only” step. Even if you execute the perfect training plan, unexpected race-day hurdles will come your way. And if your training plan was not executed perfectly (our hand is up), you may have even more hurdles to clear. For solutions to this dilemma, check out the useful tips in this new story from Outside: “Underprepared for a Marathon? We’ve Got You.” Running Coach Amanda Nurse says that if you realize late in your training that the course will be hilly, don’t try to force several hill workouts into your final days of training. Likewise, don't attack the hills too aggressively during your race. Both of those strategies will probably burn you out. Instead, focus on maintaining a consistent effort, allowing your pace to drop so you don’t run out of energy early on. Next is heat, which can set fire to your racing strategy if you aren’t careful. If the weather is far hotter than you’re used to, plan to stop at additional aid stations for water, and consider lowering your target pace at the start of the race until you’re acclimated. The original article covers a few more strategies to consider, but there are some challenges you can’t foresee until you’ve got marathon racing experience, and you can read about that in “Four things I, an experienced runner, learned from my first marathon.” This piece of advice resonated with us: “Don’t get too excited at the half-way point.”

#PreparationH-elp

Minute 3: These melatonin-rich foods can improve your sleep, eyesight, and more

As much as we appreciate the convenience of health supplements, it’s important to remember their benefits can almost always be replicated with real food. That’s why they’re called supplements, not substitutes. Ideally, you should be adding them to an already well-rounded diet that is based on foods that are varied and dense in nutritional value. If you’ve been relying only on supplements to get your melatonin, for example, you may want to consider eating: “The 7 Best Foods with Melatonin, Recommended by Dietitians.” As you may know, melatonin is a hormone that signals our body to fall asleep. Although it’s produced naturally in your brain, there is strong evidence to suggest consuming additional melatonin can improve total sleep time, according to: “What Does Melatonin Do, and How Does It Work?” Natural sources include pistachios, cherries, eggs and salmon. The benefits don’t stop there, however, because a recent “Study Suggests Melatonin Can Reduce Aging-Related Vision Loss.” After reviewing 15 years worth of records, researchers found that those who reported taking melatonin were 58% less likely to be diagnosed with age-related macular degeneration. Experts suspect that’s thanks to melatonin’s surprisingly effective antioxidative effects, and to learn more about that, you can read a study entitled: “Melatonin as an antioxidant: under promises but over delivers.”

#SupplementalReading

Real Recovery for Runners. In as little as 30 minutes.

Minute 4: Fixed time events work for runners of all ages and abilities

Since our first schoolyard competition, we’ve been taught that a running race means covering a certain distance as fast as possible. That’s how it’s done in virtually every level and event of track & field and XC, after all. We came across a good story this week, however, that reminded us that there is another approach to racing that can be a lot more fun: “The Virtues of Fixed Time Events.” Rather than running a course from start to finish, fixed time events typically set competitors off on a loop. From there, you’ve got a set number of hours to cover as much distance as possible, and whoever covers the most ground is the winner. One of the great things about this approach is that there is no cutoff time or DNF. As long as you’ve stepped onto the course, you’re already considered a finisher, and it’s up to you how far you’d like to run. The flexibility provided by fixed time events makes them one of the most accessible ways to get into ultrarunning, as you can see in: “Timed vs Distance Events: A Beginner’s Guide.” Choosing a fixed time event as your first ultra running competition can allow you to discover the unique challenges that type of running offers without the risk of setting an overambitious goal. In a 12-hour race, you may discover you need to rethink your whole fueling strategy, and unlike a 50-mile ultramarathon, you’ll have the freedom to stop, eat, and recover without worrying about facing a cutoff time. If that sounds good to you, then check out this list of “Upcoming 6H to 24H Classic Races in the USA.”

#OnMyOwnTime

Minute 5: Quick Intervals

As a general rule, nutrition experts recommend consuming as few processed foods as possible. However, there are exceptions to every rule, and one writer says we should be careful about jumping on a recent TikTok trend promoting raw milk. That’s milk which hasn’t undergone the process of pasteurization, and while proponents of the drink say it can have beneficial effects on digestion and gut bacteria, the evidence isn’t so clear. Take a look at the: “TikTok Myth of the Week: Raw Milk Is Good For You.” BTW, whether it’s raw milk or pasteurized milk, it’s probably a bad idea to consume much of it within 24 hours of a race or hard workout, according to this story from Women’s Running: “5 Types of Food to Never Eat Before a Run (And What to Eat Instead).”
Celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay is well acquainted with the dangers of a fast-paced kitchen. Hot pans, sharp knives and slick floors abound, and you’ve got to take safety precautions if you want to finish your shift in one piece. Lucky for him, Gordon takes that same approach into other areas of his life, including cycling. Last week, he had a serious accident on his bike, leaving his body with a severe bruise, but Gordon says he managed to escape a far more damaging injury thanks to his helmet. He took the opportunity to remind us that we should wear helmets every time we get on the bike, and if you want to see his moving plea, check out: “Gordon Ramsay Shared Shocking Before And After Photos Following A Devastating Cycling Accident.”
Being healthy typically doesn’t require extreme changes in your lifestyle. For most of us, a restrictive diet or over-the-top workout schedule could provide short term benefits, but it's not something most of us can sustain. One writer thinks that the key is small, subtle changes to your daily habits that add up to major benefits over time. If you want to learn his tricks, check out: “My 7 Healthiest Habits as a Wellness Writer.” Hacks include always making his own lunch and reading before bed rather than doom scrolling on his phone.

Minute 6: Daily Inspiration

Typically, when we hear about muscle or joint stiffness, we start to think about stretches or foam rolling techniques to address the problem. Well, what if we told you that a little ankle stiffness can actually improve your running performance? @804sportsperformance explains why that’s true, according to his observations of elite sprinters’ ankles. He demonstrated that if you want to be explosive, fast, and efficient, your ankle has to be stiff enough to absorb a lot of force, and that’s why runners of all kinds can improve their speed by performing the ankle strength drills and plyometric exercises he mentions in the clip below.