It may seem cruel to do this to you again but I could not miss the opportunity to give you a hit of California dreaming when there are so many of us down here having walked Big Sur for another glorious year. Walking Big Sur always puts me in a spiritual state of mind. One might even call it a spiritual state of mindfulness. Mindfulness is the buzz word in the fitness and self-help industry right now. Truth is, at WoW Power Walking we’ve been hip to this trend for quite some time. We probably just forgot to tell you! Yes, all of these years, you’ve been thinking we just know how to train you hard but, in truth, it’s been mindful. Turn “WoW” upside down and it spells “MoM” which could stand for Mind over Matter. Yes, indeed, the matter of moving our arms and legs faster and with more power! Or, perhaps we should call it Mind on Mastery!

Seriously, we believe our program has been a stand-out for so many people because our thoughtful and progressive approach to improving walking technique and challenging workouts is accessible to anyone, no matter size, shape, body mechanics, or injury history. All it takes is a little mindfulness. If you’ve got the mind, we’ve got the way!

Stretch tip: Help for your hamstring. Too often I see people trying to stretch their hamstring muscles incorrectly. After a walking workout a lot of people place their foot on a bench, railing or some other elevated location and flop over the raised leg thinking they are stretching the hamstring group. Go ahead and place the foot on an elevated surface, but keep the spine straight and hinge from the hips, maintaining the straight spine until you feel the stretch in the back of the upper leg. You may not need to hinge forward more than an inch or two to feel the stretch, if you have tight hams. That’s OK, hold it there, breathe, and know that you are giving that muscle group an effective stretch.

Nutrition tip: I’m sitting here sipping my ginger tea made from fresh, grated ginger root steeped for 20 minutes in boiling water. Apparently, fresh ginger contains volatile oils (sounds dangerous!) that have “analgesic, sedative, antipyretic, antibacterial, and GI tract motility effects” according to Wikipedia. I had to look up antipyretic. In case you are wondering, an antipyretic agent reduces fever. On top of all this, ginger has long been said to have anti-inflammatory properties. WoW! Sounds like just what the doctor ordered given that it seems to be accepted wisdom that people preparing for challenging distance events, like power walking half marathons and marathons, should not be taking ibuprofen, Advil, Tylenol, or any similar drugs in the days leading up to the event or during the event. When a person is dehydrated, these drugs increase the risk of kidney problems which can lead to blood toxicity. So, finding a way to stay hydrated and minimize the typical, aches, pains, and swelling that we marathoners face before an event seems like a good idea. Pour me another mug of ginger tea, I say.

WoW Power Walking coaches are proud to wear New Balance shoes.

View from the Back :: A little walking poetry from our own Janet, the jack-rabbit, Cawley

Snugged up laces,
focus within.

The gun.

a drum at the start?
No. Thrum of my heart.

... pushing, pulsing, pacing...
This one's for me.

beginning meets ending,
a magical squeal:

My chip,

And certainly me.

Strength tip: Take that lunge outside your lane! Try placing your front landing foot forward and on the diagonal. You’ll feel the slight variation will challenge some muscles you might have forgotten, especially the adductors on the inner thigh. Be sure to let your back foot and knee comfortably follow this wider direction. Remember your back heel always lift off the ground when lunging and your body weight should be loaded over the heel of your front foot, not the ball of your front foot.

Race review: Here in southern Ontario, we could send you off to a great race almost every weekend from now until the summer. If you’re looking for a reason to get out of bed the next few Sundays, here are some within driving distance that we recommend for walkers. Place your cursor over the marathon, click and you’ll be on that race site ready for registration! Sporting Life 10k down Yonge Street in Toronto, May 6; Mississauga Marathon 10k on Saturday night May 12, half marathon and full marathon on Sunday May 13; Cleveland Marathon, Half Marathon and 10k, Sunday May 20; Ottawa Marathon Weekend May 25, 26, 27; Alfie Shrubb 8k in Whitby on June 3; Pride and Remembrance Run Saturday June 3; and the OTMH Classic 5 k on Father’s Day, May 17.

Words to walk and live by :

It is impossible to walk rapidly and be unhappy. – Mother Teresa of Calcutta

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