He's on a run with 2009 resolution

From the January 20, 2009 edition of The Oklahoman
By Stephen Prescott, M.D.

Adam’s training journal

I don’t want to brag or anything, but my New Year’s resolution is still intact 20 days into 2009.

That’s the good news. The bad news is that I have 345 consecutive days of running ahead of me.

For 2009, I’ve pledged to run every day of the year. Come rain, shine, sickness, work, kids’ sporting events — you name it.

This is pretty new territory for me. A few years back, I did resolve to run 2,000 miles. I made it, but only by throwing in a three-miler at 11:30 p.m. New Year’s Eve.

Since then, I’ve evolved into somebody who runs every day. Occasionally, an injury, illness or everyday life lays waste to my good intentions. But this year, I want to see whether I can be a “streaker,” that rare breed for whom a day does not pass without a run — period, no asterisk.

Am I crazy?

Dr. Prescott prescribes

On the temple of Apollo at Delphi, ancient philosophers inscribed the maxim “Everything in moderation.” You’ve clearly never been to Delphi.

A dose of moderation — let’s call it a day or two off a week — gives your body a chance to repair itself from the rigors of vigorous exercise. And for 99.9 percent of us, that’s the path I’d recommend.

Yet, if you insist on traveling the road less (or is it more?) traveled, a 2006 study out of Stanford University should give you some comfort. When researchers followed runners and nonrunners over 21 years, they found — somewhat surprisingly — that nonrunners had an osteoarthritis-related disability level twice that of the runners.

The runners in that study averaged about 60 minutes of running five days a week, but even higher-mileage runners don’t seem to risk bad knees.

A study at Germany’s University of Heidelberg found that elite marathoners, who routinely put in 100-mile weeks, did not have a higher risk of osteoarthritis of the knee than nonrunners.

So, at least from a musculoskeletal perspective, “streaking” for a year likely will not pose any dangers.

For the best chance of making good on your resolution, get plenty of sleep, wash your hands thoroughly and often, and monitor your diet carefully. Run as much as possible on soft surfaces (such as grass and treadmills) to minimize the chances of injury.

Oh, and keep your fingers crossed, because even with precautions, you’re going to need a lot of luck to stay healthy for 365 days.

Prescott, a physician and medical researcher, is president of the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation. Cohen is a marathoner and the foundation’s senior vice president and general counsel.

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