NO SWEAT!

My wife has always been the ultimate cross trainer.

For nearly 40 years, I have been grinded out the miles through running, she has taken a much more practical approach to training.

She runs, lifts weights, practices yoga, power walks, and logs miles on the elliptical, usually cranking the machine to the steepest incline.

During most of these endeavors, she is bothered by sweat pouring down her face, or hair flying into her eyes.

Recently, she solved those problems by purchasing several headbands from the Ohio Fitness Garage, https://ohiofitnessgarage.com/collections/headbands, an American company that sells a variety of products, and has now designed a perfect, non-slip headband.

The Ohio Fitness Garage headbands are not your headbands of the last century. They come in widths of one-half or one inch, are made from a non-slip silicon that keeps the headband firmly in place, no matter what the activity. The headband holds hair back during workouts, preventing obstruction of vision.

After her first workout wearing her new Ohio Fitness  Garage headband, my wife was extremely pleased that the headband did not slip and her hair was held in place.

One size fits all, and the headbands are machine washable.

Ohio Fitness Garage headbands are sold in multipacks of two or four, depending on the width, and they are reasonably priced.

Visit the Ohio Fitness Garage, https://ohiofitnessgarage.com/collections/headbands, and check out these high quality headbands. With the Holiday season approaching, these headbands are an ideal gift for the active women in your life.

IYZER SOCKS

During my forty years of competitive running I always contended that socks were the second most important piece of equipment, following closely behind a good pair of running shoes.

Bad socks can make a workout very uncomfortable, and they can absolutely ruin a race. Many a runner has suffered a race collapse thanks to a blister that formed due to a cheap pair of socks.

A good pair of socks should be lightweight, cushioned, and most importantly, dry. Socks that retain moisture can be at best uncomfortable, and at worst can cause blisters, and even frostbite during winter months.

A few weeks ago, I tried Iyzer socks. https://runningsocks.iyzer.com

Without a doubt, these are the best workout socks I have ever worn.

 Iyzer Competitive running socks feature CoolMax technology and super thin breathable mesh, a moisture wicking toe guard, with extra cushioning at the ball of the foot, and compression in the arch that serves as a natural orthotic.

These days I'm doing quite a bit of cross training, and on a bike ride through the mountain last week, I drove through a massive mud puddle. My Izyer socks dried in a matter of minutes, leaving my feet comfortable for the remainder of the ride.

For running, walking, competition, or even if you are on your feet all day, you will find Iyzer socks to be a sound investment for your feet.

Go to https://runningsocks.iyzer.com, and check out their special offers on these incredible socks.

 

HISTORIC CHAMPIONSHIP SEASON

It was one year in the making.

At Norlo Park, near Chambersburg, the site of the Penn State University Athletic Conference championship meet on the last weekend of October 2016, Penn State Schuylkill’s women’s cross country team boarded the team bus with bitter disappointment. Much was within their grasp, but they left the race empty-handed.

Schuylkill’s top runner, freshman Alexis Luna, a Shenandoah Valley graduate, valiantly challenged the league’s top runner, Scranton’s Alicia Kasson, before falling short over the last half-mile to lose the race by a 5-second margin.

As a team, Schuylkill’s women fell to Mont Alto by a mere three points.

After avenging both defeats at the United States Collegiate Athletic Association National Championship in Virginia Beach, Virginia, two weeks later, Luna and teammates Casey Gregory and Justice Demitro vowed to exact revenge in the 2017 season.

They began their quest in early July by getting together for informal training sessions. Then, in early August, Luna texted me with an announcement that her friend and two-time PIAA Cross Country Championships qualifier Carly Teaschenko of Shenandoah Valley would be joining the team.

In addition, the team bolstered its talent by adding two local freshmen: Jennie Li from North Schuylkill and Kristen Lowe, a Minersville graduate.

The team went undefeated in PSUAC meets throughout the season, and Luna led the squad in all but one race. At the Brandywine Invitational, as she and Teaschenko paced each other, Luna announced that she, “Just didn’t have it” that day, and Teaschenko took the honors.

As the season went on, Luna earned the PSUAC Runner of the Week honor three times and Teaschenko won the award once.

Last Saturday, in the rematch at Norlo Park for the 2017 PSUAC championship, a year of hard work and determination paid off.

Luna capped a magnificent season by winning the race, with Teaschenko placing second, only six seconds behind. Throughout the race, the two teammates and friends paced each other, leaving the competition behind.

Sophomore Casey Gregory ran her fastest time of the year, placing seventh and earning first-team All-Conference honors along with Luna and Teaschenko. Team captain Justice Demitro ran her fastest 6K ever and placed 11th, while Li finished 14th. They both earned second-team All-PSUAC honors. Lowe captured 16th place.

Penn State Schuylkill won the team title and avenged last year’s narrow defeat. This is the first team in Penn State Schuylkill’s history to win a PSUAC cross country championship.

The conference champions will now compete against more than 50 teams from small colleges across the country at the USCAA National Championships in Virginia Beach on Nov. 10. Last year Penn State Schuylkill placed 16th. The Lions are aiming for a top-10 finish this year.

Stoner wins ACC

Speaking of champions, Pottsville Area’s Paige Stoner is the 2017 Atlantic Coast Conference cross country champion.

Running for Syracuse University, Stoner won the conference championship last Friday, covering the 6-kilometer course in a sizzling time of 19:52. Congratulations to Paige on this remarkable championship run.

(Muldowney is an avid runner and head coach of the Penn State Schuylkill cross country teams)

FAITH, FAMILY, FORTITUDE

Following is my column from the Republican Herald newspaper, which was published today.
Paige Stoner is a very talented, dedicated runner. The sky's the limit for this young  athlete.

Faith, family and fortitude.

Pottsville’s Paige Stoner has been guided by these beliefs throughout her stellar running career.

Stoner began running at the Hershey Youth Track and Field competition at the age of 10. By the time she reached eighth grade, she had won the state championship in both the 800- and 1,600-meter races. At Pottsville Area she won the Schuylkill League Cross Country championship all four years, earned the District 11 championship twice, and placed second at states as a freshman.

Her high school track credentials include league championships in the 1,600- and 3,200-meter races from freshman to senior year, a 3,200-meter relay team championship at the District 11 meet as a sophomore, and a 1,600- and 3,200-meter first-place medal as a senior.

At states, she placed third in the 3,200 as a senior with a time of 10:41. In her senior year at leagues she ran her personal-best 1,600-meter time of 4:56.

She credits the high level of competition in Pennsylvania as excellent preparation for collegiate running.

Stoner began her college career at Lipscomb University, a private Christian college in Nashville, Tennessee, where she competed for a year and a half. During that time, after turning in grueling months of high mileage training, she placed second in the Atlantic Sun Conference Cross Country Championships, as well as second in the 5K and steeplechase at the conference track and field championships. Unfortunately the mega-miles took their toll, and she suffered a stress fracture of her foot during her sophomore year.

Stoner decided to transfer to Syracuse University. Today, however, she still maintains friendships with many of her Lipscomb teammates, who share her deep Christian faith.

Syracuse head track and cross country coach Chris Fox knows a little something about running. He has run a 2:13 marathon and enjoyed a very successful 18-year professional running career.

Stoner credits the rigorous but sensible coaching of Fox and assistant coach Brien Bell as the reason for her success and her good running health at Syracuse. Intense six-mile hilly tempo runs, workouts that simulate the steady pace of racing, speedy track interval sessions and weekly long runs, as well as easy rest days, comprise her 60- to 65-mile training weeks.

During the 2016 cross country season, Stoner earned All-Atlantic Coast Conference honors, placing 17th in the ACC and 11th at regionals. She achieved a personal best of 20:32 in the 6K and missed nationals by a mere .02 of a second.

After a successful indoor track season in which she ran a personal best time of 16:05 in the 5K — good enough to place third in the ACC Indoor Championships — she set her sights on outdoor track.

Her 2017 outdoor track achievements include a personal-best time of 33:55 in the 10K and qualifying times for nationals in the 5K, 10K and the steeplechase.

At the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon, in June, Stoner placed fourth in her heat in the steeplechase and 15th overall with a Syracuse school record time of 10:02. She missed qualifying for the finals by two seconds.

Stoner’s immediate goals include placing in the top three at the ACC Cross Country Championships and advancing to Nationals. In track, she is not sure if she will run the steeplechase or the 5K, but she would like to place in the top 10 at nationals.

For the long term, she would like to compete as a professional runner and earn a spot on the U.S. Olympic team.

Although they are extremely proud of their daughter, Stoner says her parents “never pressured me.” Her deceased grandfather, Bob Stoner, a member of the Pottsville Area High School Football Hall of Fame and a track runner, was, according to Paige, “her biggest fan.”

Paige Stoner is a humble champion. Faith, family and fortitude will always be the keys to her success.

HELLO AGAIN

It's been a while, and my fingers have atrophied a bit, but I have had a few great weeks coaching a cross country team of which I am very proud.

Following is an article I wrote about the team, which appeared in the Republican Herald newspaper, in Pottsville, Pennsylvania, last week. And, at the end, are the results from the team's journey to USCAA Nationals last Friday.

Although long distance running and racing is an individual endeavor, simply the art of placing one foot in front of the other and going as fast as you can for as long as you can, competitors on a cross country team participate in the ultimate team sport.

Scoring a cross country meet is like scoring a golf match. In both sports, the lowest score wins. A cross country team may have as its top runner, a world-record holder, but securing a place near the front of the pack is the way a cross country meet is won. Five runners are required for scoring. If team A’s runners place 1^st, 3^rd, 4^th, 6^th, and 8^th, the slots are added up and the team score is 22. Team B’s runners finish in 2^nd, 5^th, 7^th, 9^th, and 10^th, for a score of 33. Therefore, team A wins the meet.

It has always been my contention that running races reflect the ideals of a democracy. All people begin at the same starting line. And, in a cross country meet, as in a democracy, the unique contribution of all the participants will affect the final outcome. In cross country, a team’s fifth runner is as valuable as the team’s fastest runner. Successful cross country teams need to produce at least five runners that place high, thus keeping the team score low.

During the past eight years I have been fortunate enough to coach several outstanding individual runners at Penn State Schuylkill. In 2013, Pottsville’s Haylee Burnhauser won the Penn State University Athletic Conference state championship, and went on to place 7^th at the United States Collegiate Athletic Association national meet, earning All-American status.

This year, with a men’s and women’s team comprised primarily of local athletes, Schuylkill’s runners made history by winning the Penn State Worthington Scranton Invitational meet on both the men’s and women’s side. The victory earned the teams an invitation to participate at USCAA Nationals, held in Virginia Beach, on November 11.

The women are led by Alexis Luna, a freshman from Shenandoah Valley. Alexis placed 2^nd at the PSUAC state meet, earning All-Conference status. Sophomore team captain Casey Renninger, a Schuylkill Haven Area graduate, finished 6^th at States in 2015 and 5^th this year, also earning All-Conference honors. Casey Gregory, a sophomore from Pottsville, placed 9^th at States, attaining 2^nd team All-Conference status. Sophomore, and Pottsville Area graduate, Justice Dimitro and Jodi Francis round out the team.

For the men, Freshman Hunter Firing, from Blue Mountain, led the team, and earned 2^nd team All-Conference honors. Nico Granito, a sophomore and team captain, is also a Blue Mountain graduate. Brett Rushannon, from Nativity, distinguished himself as a fine freshman runner. Josh White, a freshman from Shenandoah Valley splits his time between cross country and basketball. Tristan Dickey, a high school state qualifier in the 800-meter run, from Blue Mountain, is a sophomore. Matthew Renninger, from Schuylkill Haven Area, rounds out the top six runners who will compete at Nationals.

Max Figuerudo, and Vincent May, veterans who have served our country, and Augie Torres, are also members of the team.

From the sweltering days of August until the cool of November, these young men and women have logged hundreds of training miles, on the roads, trails, and the track. For their efforts, they will have the opportunity to run against other small college runners from 42 schools from across the country at Na

Virginia Beach-Penn State Schuylkill's Men's and Women's cross country teams participated at the United States Collegiate Athletic Association's national cross country championship meet on Friday.


For the women, Schuylkill's Alexis Luna was the top finisher among Penn State University Athletic Conference runners at the meet. Schuylkill's women's team also topped all the PSUAC schools. Luna placed 55th in the 198-runner field, with a time of 26:42 on the 6K course. Casey Renninger placed 87th in 28:30. Coral Kreiser finished 104th, with a time of 29:29, followed by Casey Gregory, who placed 126th, in 32:01. Justice Demitro placed 147th, with a time of 35:51. Schuylkilll finished 16th in a 36-team field.


For the men, Hunter Firing led Schuylkill's squad by placing 103rd, with a time of 31:43 on the 8K course. Nico Granito placed 117th, in 32:55. Brett Rushannon ran a 34:36 to place 133rd. Tristan Dickey finished 143rd, in 35:55, followed by Josh White, who ran 37:57 and placed 151st. Vince May covered the course in 41:20 and finished 163rd.


Virginia Beach-Penn State Schuylkill's Men's and Women's cross country teams participated at the United States Collegiate Athletic Association's national cross country championship meet on Friday.


For the women, Schuylkill's Alexis Luna was the top finisher among Penn State University Athletic Conference runners at the meet. Schuylkill's women's team also topped all the PSUAC schools. Luna placed 55th in the 198-runner field, with a time of 26:42 on the 6K course. Casey Renninger placed 87th in 28:30. Coral Kreiser finished 104th, with a time of 29:29, followed by Casey Gregory, who placed 126th, in 32:01. Justice Demitro placed 147th, with a time of 35:51. Schuylkilll finished 16th in a 36-team field.


For the men, Hunter Firing led Schuylkill's squad by placing 103rd, with a time of 31:43 on the 8K course. Nico Granito placed 117th, in 32:55. Brett Rushannon ran a 34:36 to place 133rd. Tristan Dickey finished 143rd, in 35:55, followed by Josh White, who ran 37:57 and placed 151st. Vince May covered the course in 41:20 and finished 163rd.


Schuylkill men placed 21st in a 32 team field.

 

RUN WITH ZEAL

Most of us love to train.

Our daily workout, whether it be running, walking, cycling, or swimming, is an essential component of our day.

We stress our bodies in ways most other people cannot imagine, because we want to achieve our personal best during our competitive endeavors.

We try to consume healthy foods, but sometimes that just isn't enough. As we seek a competitive edge, we search for a wellness product that is all natural, containing no stimulants. A product that helps fight inflammation, high blood pressure, and one that can increase our endurance and performance. A product that is vegan, non-GMO and gluten free. 

Check out Zeal. https://m.facebook.com/healthy-with-zeal-1740615302892158, or at: https://www.zurvita.com.

Zeal is a terrific product that is an all-in-one nutritional formula that shortens recovery time, thus enhancing training efforts. It increases endurance and stamina, which will improve race times. Zeal decreases inflammation and pain, which aids in recovery, and it lowers blood pressure, sugar and cholesterol levels.

I highly recommend Zeal as a product that will give you a competitive edge, in a safe, natural way.

                    

 

GO TO THE "NET"

Ah, this modern cyber world in which we live.

This morning I received a request to write a training program for a runner in Singapore, yet, when my website went down ten days ago, my requests, then demands to the webhost went virtually unheeded.

Can't these web geeks fix the problem with a couple of clicks?

Anyhow, my apologies to anyone who has attempted to visit my website, www.muldowneyrunning.com, as it is still down for "repair."

You should now go to www.muldowneyrunning.net for great Holiday deals on my books and my personalized training program that WILL improve your race times.

I'm off now to "repair" a leaky faucet.

A SEASON OF PRIDE

In August I began my eighth season as head Men's and Women's cross country coach at Penn State Schuylkill, a satellite campus of the Pennsylvania State University,

The campus is nestled in a cozy, rural area, and the annual enrollment hovers around 1,800 students.

Schuylkill boasts a unique, diverse blend of local young men and women, most of whom commute to campus, as well as many inner-city youth.

Every year, my runners include veteran runners, those who have run cross country or track in high school, as well as those who have very little knowledge or experience in the area of distance running.

This year's team featured two local runners, who distinguished themselves in high school, followed by a group of runners who were, for the most part, novices to the sport.

One such novice was Muhmod Shabazz, from Brooklyn, New York.

Muhmod, a quiet, personable young man, had never run a step in his life, and on August 24, the first day of practice, looked at me with disbelief when I informed him that he would be running 5-mile races before the season ended.

For his first workout, he ran a little over a quarter mile.

At the state championship meet on Saturday, he crossed the finish line at the end of a 5.2-mile race, on a very challenging course.

He did so through incredible hard work and dedication. He vows to continue running

As a group, this year's runners made me very proud.

 

Three  runners earned All Conference honors at the PSUAC State Meet at the Penn State Nationals on Saturday.

 

Casey Renninger earned first team All-Conference honors by placing 6th on the 6K course, with a time of 29:28. Lauren Howell, a graduate of Pottsville Area, made second team All Conference, placing 11th, in 31:17. Justice Dimitro finished 14th, with a time of 36:06, followed by Maria Naradko, 15th, in 36:20, and Jodi Francis finished 16th, with a time of 36:59.

 

Schuylkill finished 3rd in the team competition.

For the men, Blue Mountain graduate, Nico Granito earned second team All-Conference honors, by placing 10th, with a time of 34:08, on the 5.2 mile course. Julian Seawright ran 48:14, placing 31st. Muhmod Shabazz placed 34th in 55:50. Richie Dawson ran 1:02:32, to place 35th, and Adam Wimmer ran 1:05:19. to finish 36th.

Schuylkill Boys placed 6th in the team competition.

 Running and competing is fun. Passing it on is fulfilling

www.muldowneyrunning.com

                                                                     Nico Granito

                                                                     Schuylkill Girls
 

COACH

The importance of paying it forward in our sport can never be overemphasized. I have written about it on several occasions.

It is gratifying to me to receive a text message or read a Facebook post from someone I've interacted with who has now become a runner and is participating in races, working toward reaching running goals.

A good friend and former colleague dropped over 100 pounds in a little over a year. He now runs his 5K races in the 22s, and recently completed his first marathon.

But, if you really want to pay it forward, using your running wisdom and experience to lead others down the running path, you should try coaching.

In August I began my 8th year as head coach of Penn State Schuylkill's Men's and Women's cross country teams.

Penn State Schuylkill is a branch campus of the Pennsylvania State University, nestled in the hills of east-central Pennsylvania. Only about 1,600 students attend classes at the campus. Many students are local, and they commute back and forth from classes daily. Other students reside on campus, and many of those young men and women are from the inner-city.

This year's team, consisting of 10 men and 7 women is a unique blend of urban and rural students, as well as a contrast of experienced and novice runners.

Several of my team members participated on local track and cross country teams; while others have never run a step.

We have participated in three invitational meets thus far, and have one more invitational and the state championship meet remaining. For the state championship, we will travel to Penn State's main campus, at University Park, and will compete against all the other campuses within our Penn State University Athletic Conference.

At yesterday's meet at Penn State Wilkes Barre, two of my runners, Nico Granito, and Casey Renninger, earned awards, as they placed 5th in their respective races.

It was, however, Keon Major, Muhammad Brown, and Muhmod Shabazz, who truly distinguished themselves at yesterday's meet. On August 24, at our first practice, these young men had never run a distance event.

Yesterday, they all completed a 5-mile race.

They are fine young men, and now they are long distance runners.

Makes a coach proud.

www.muldowneyrunning.com

THE FUTURE IS NOW!

Tomorrow marks the official start of Autumn in the Northern Hemisphere. Clearly, however, judging by the chill in the early morning air here in Pennsylvania, the season arrived a day early.

And, for runners, what a glorious season it is. Arguably, the best running weather of the year will greet us for at least the next eight weeks. Mornings will be crisp and cool. Many days will feature warm afternoon sun that's not too warm, as the sun moves farther away from us.

In addition, runners, perhaps more than any other athletes, will not only witness, but will actually be a part of nature's amazing transformation, as leaves change colors and we run through the magnificent foliage.

Races will abound throughout the next few weeks, and blazing summer heat will no longer slow us down. Yes, we are going to be forced to 'layer up' our clothing, but the effort will be well worth it as we see our race times tumble.

Don't squander these coming weeks. Select a couple of race distances you'd like to attack, and peak for those events. Don't fall victim to 'overracing,' rather, concentrate on the twin pillars of success: a weekly long run and a weekly speed workout during the weeks you don't race. Both workouts become much more pleasant during the fall months.

And, when we reach the end of this season and the Winter Solstice raises it's icy head?

Then it's time to reward yourself as you look back and contemplate your successes and setbacks of 2015.

Use the holidays to take a break for a couple of weeks, ready to rededicate yourself for the new year.

But, I'm getting ahead of myself.

Enjoy this magnificent fall season. Train and race well. When you do, each day will be your personal best.

 www.muldowneyrunning.com

LAST CALL

Not everyone can afford a personal coach...or can they?

Visit my website: www.muldowneyrunning.com, and I'll personally coach you...FOR FREE!

You can also buy my books at Amazon: www.amazon.com and at Lulu: www.lulu.com. No free workout plan there, but you can check out my gigs at Fiverr. www.fiverr.com

Ok, what's the catch? There's always a catch.

The catch is that you purchase some great summer reading material, in the form of one of my books: Running Shorts, or Personal Best. Both offer a great deal of running advice in their own right, but when you purchase a book, which I'll personally sign for you, I'll design a six-week personalized training program, just for you.

Here's how it works.

Buy one of my books, at: www.muldowneyrunning.com, then scroll down to the 'Contact' form.

Tell me your racing or training goal. Give me a short description, including your age, approximate weight and fitness level, and we can get started. Then I'll create a six-week training plan just for you.

It doesn't matter if you want to train to lose weight, to return to running, to run your first 5K, half marathon, marathon, or anything in between. I'll write a program that will get you there.

Believe me, I've been there. I've been at this for 39 years. I've run a 2:22:54 marathon, and I've gone back to square one after tearing my hamstring in 2013.

So, don't wait. This promotion ends tomorrow, September 10.

Now you can run YOUR personal best...for free.

IT'S THE 'SEASON'

Ever notice that many races these days are woefully represented in the 20-25 age division?

How about how the football or soccer teams receive the adoring adulation of the high school student body and the fans?

And, how many people even know how a cross country meet is scored?

One final question.

Who needs to change these situations?

The answer is easy.

We do!

We need to pay it forward, promote our sport, and support the young athletes and coaches who participate in the sport of long distance running at the junior high and high school level.

Chances are, if they have a positive experience with our sport at that level, they will continue to run throughout their lifetime.

There are several ways we, veteran runners, can help.

First, gather you and your running partners and attend a high school cross country meet. Other than parents, support for the hard-working runners is practically non-existent. Runners know other runners. The young men and women will be honored if they notice a group of local runners along the course at a home meet.

And be sure to encourage EVERY runner. The beauty of a cross country team is that, where scoring is concerned, the fifth runner is as important as the first runner.

Volunteer, either as a coach or as a course monitor. I'll bet there are few of us who haven't run a race where well-intentioned volunteers pointed runners in the wrong direction or failed to provide any direction at all to the participants. And coaches can always use some help, especially if the roster is large.

Cross country teams are rarely on top of the equipment list, so if you can organize or participate in a fund raising event for the team, that would be beneficial.

Finally, you are role models to these youngsters. You may be in your 30s or well beyond, so when the kids see "That old guy" out there on the road, in all kinds of weather, they become inspired.

So, instead of 'Friday Night Lights,' let's celebrate the season of Wednesday afternoon meets and Saturday afternoon invitationals in a sport where there are no time outs, and where the clock is unforgiving,

It's the season of the boys and girls of September, October, and November.

Let's show them our appreciation.