|
Running along the beach at Treasure Island
By TERRY TOMALIN, Times Outdoors Writer
© St. Petersburg Times, published May 5, 2000
 |
[Times art: Earl Towery]
|
Sure, you can do speed workouts and long, slow marathon runs, but if you really want to work your heart and lungs, run on the beach. As any lifeguard will tell you, nothing makes your Achilles' tendons scream like a run in sugar sand.
Treasure Island is a great place to try your first beach run because it has both flat, "hard pack," and soft, loose sand. Start off on the flat top, and once you feel loose, move to the soft sand. Then, when your legs start to feel like sacks of potatos, move back to the hard pack. Twenty minutes of beach running is worth an hour of street work.
Be forewarned. One sure way to hurt yourself is to run in sand without warming up. Before you hit the beach running, walk a little. Once you feel warm and limber, hit the ground and start stretching. This will lengthen your muscles and improve your range of motion. Start off slow and don't bounce. Hold each stretch for 10 to 20 seconds. If one hurts, back off.
Target problem areas such as the hamstring and Achilles' tendon. Five to 10 minutes of warmups and stretching before a race may prevent a serious injury.
Back to Outdoors
© St. Petersburg Times. All rights reserved.
|
