Thursday, June 18, 2009

Lesson two – applying the body glide

For the naïve and inexperienced runner, a lot of things can go wrong during the run if you are not prepared. Now most people take it for granted – and it is fairly obvious – that in order to run any distances you need the appropriate running attire. Generally this means a pair of good quality running shoes. You can run in whatever clothes you want, however one must take into consideration the general comfort level. If you are living in a hot and humid climate, short and a sleeveless running shirt should suffice. So we have shorts, shirt and shoes. The three 'SH'! The fourth 'SH' comes when you realize that now you have to actually run…. #@IT!!

I found out the hard way a few weeks back that there is more to this running thing than just putting on your shorts, shirt and shoes and heading out to pound endless miles on the pavement. After completing the second of two long runs I came limping home with severe chafing on my thighs and some minor chafing under my arms from the rubbing on the shirt. So Lesson One was "use Body Glide to stop chafing". This was an obvious solution – passed onto me by fellow runners from my Saturday morning run group and also as detailed in several running books and magazines that I have since read.

Hmmmm, Body Glide. Good, Body Glide.

Lesson Two – "apply the Body Glide liberally to all areas that are prone to chafe". This conclusion came half way into a 4 mile run (in 87F heat, and yes it was hot) as the thighs started to chafe again. Thankfully it wasn't to the extent of previous experiences; there was no bleeding this time. But, it still hurt. What had happened was that I applied the Body Glide and missed a bit on one thigh. It was only a smidgen of a bit, but that smidgen was enough for me to stand up and take notice. Ouch!

8 miles on Saturday! Body Glide will be applied correctly! I can't wait to see what Lesson Three will be!