Swiggies

Wrist Water Bottles That Keep Your Hands Free While Exercising!

Swiggies were invented as an alternative to fanny packs and having to carry water bottles while exercising. This new hands-free approach is simple and easy to use. You just fill them up with water and go! They also make a great unique gift for anyone on your shopping list.

Swiggies holds 11 ounces of water or sports drink for adults and 8 ounces for kids. They can also be frozen to lower body temperature in the heat.

Swiggies is now donating a portion of their net proceeds to The Doggie Food Bank, a registered 501 (C) (3) in Los Angeles, CA

Why Runners Need Yoga

Every time I end up with a running injury I’m reminded that I really need to stretch. Not just that perfunctory stretch I pretend to do that probably just makes things worse, but a long, range of motion, stabilize the body type of stretch. I can almost feel the muscle tightness, but never take the time after a run to really get those muscles back in shape.

Though it may be hard for type A runners to slow down long enough to maintain a downward dog, it makes good sense to incorporate yoga into your running routine if you want to improve your running technique.

Here are 3 reasons why runners need yoga:

Yoga strengthens your core

A stronger core helps keep your body stable while you’re running and decreases your chances of being injured. Yoga is a complete, total body workout that works the outer body and inner body at the same time, protecting your internal organs. It works both the large muscles in the body and the smaller ones, targeting the respiratory, skeletal, and cardiovascular systems. Yoga uses your own body weight to make you stronger. It also stabilizes your back and neck.

Improves breathing

Runners who do yoga ensure more oxygen is circulating throughout the body. Yoga targets the upper, middle and lower portions of the lungs, something running doesn’t incorporate. Yoga gives you increased lung capacity, which improves both endurance and running performance.

Increases flexibility

There are several ways runners can increase their flexibility, and yoga is one of those. Yoga is great at increasing your range of motion and helping to prevent injuries. Yoga stretching allows you to extend your muscles through their full range of motion, actually making it easier to run. And what runner doesn’t want that?!

I’ve always resisted yoga as being too slow and boring, but if it can help make my running faster and easier, I’m ready to give it a try. What about you? Are you a runner who swears by yoga?

Earth Day and Reusable Water Bottles

Every year Americans drink about 29 billion bottles of bottled water. Even though bottled water can cost thousands of times more than tap water, we seem to be addicted to it. In fact Americans spend about 11 billion dollars a year on bottled water. Sometimes it makes sense to use single use water bottles, like in disaster relief or for outdoor events, but most of the time we can help to cut down on the use of single use water bottles by carrying our own reusable water bottles.

Reusable water bottles

The recycling rate for the single use plastic water bottles is quite low. Over 2 million tons of single use plastic water bottles will end up in the landfill. That’s about four out of five single use water bottles that will end up in landfills. And the plastic single use water bottles can take up to 1,000 years to completely decompose.

The water bottles that are recycled will be turned into new products such as playground equipment, carpeting, fleece clothing, and new containers and bottles. So, if you do use the single use bottles, recycle them and put them to good use.

Many parks and events are now providing filling stations for people who bring their own reusable water bottles to fill up. This will definitely save you plenty of money as single use water bottles at events, vending machines and parks can become quite costly.

There are also many restaurants that have stopped serving bottled water and instead have opted for filtered tap water.

Since Earth Day is coming up this week it’s time for us to be reminded again that we can all make a small difference by using reusable water bottles. If you don’t want to do it for the planet, then at least do it for your wallet. Think about the amount of money you’ll be saving by using reusable water bottles.

 

 

Running Shoes for a Cause

Running is one sport that is almost entirely free to participate in for most people. We take for granted that a pair of running shoes can be bought for less than $50, depending on where you buy them.

Running shoes for a cause

But for some people in the world even that amount isn’t possible. Shoes for Africa was started after Mike Sandrock, a sports journalist, came back from a coaching and racing trip to Cameroon, West Africa. He noticed that a lot of the runners ran barefoot. And still beat him, by the way.

The Shoes for Africa project started with a group of runners in Boulder, Colorado, who began shipping new and nearly new running shoes to runners to needy children and athletes around the world.

The non profit has since become One World Running and continues to grow. They’ve also added tee shirts and running shorts to their packages. The group is now a 100% volunteer organization that has begun expanding globally to continue the mission Sandrock set out to accomplish years ago.

In 2001 the organization started putting on races to raise money for the charity. They continue to add more races every year with the money going to One World Running charities. They’ve also recently added soccer cleats and baseball equipment.

Most of the shoes come from donations from individuals and from running clubs and organizations such as the Girl Scouts. Many people have shoe drives to collect new and nearly new shoes for One World. Most of the shoes are in usable condition, and those are the ones shipped to Africa. But even the running shoes that are not in good condition can still be recycled. Those are shipped to NIKE to be ground up and made into running tracks and playgrounds. This is done through Boulder’s Eco-Cycle program and the running shoes for a cause, Reuse-a-Shoe program.

 

 

How Runners Can Be More Eco-Friendly

Being eco-friendly means doing minimal harm to the environment. By buying more eco-friendly products and utilizing methods that will save energy and lessen pollution you can become a better steward of the planet. So exactly how can runners do their part to be more eco-friendly?

Runners eco-friendly

For a runner to be more eco-friendly they have to take into account everything from the clothes they wear to run in to the distance they have to go to for a race to the type of water bottle they use. This may take a little planning, but it can be done and the planet will thank you for it.

Choose local races

Yes, it can be more fun to travel to the Boston Marathon or the New York Marathon, or even to an international race, but it will also increase your carbon footprint. Whenever you can, choose to run in as many local races as you can. To find them contact local running stores and local running clubs. Both will have a good handle on what’s going on in the neighborhood when it comes to races.

Find eco-friendly marathons

If you scour the Internet you can find races that have made it a point to be more eco-friendly. They are using green materials, local produce, and instead of throwing away food, they are donating it to help feed the homeless. Runners also donate some of their slightly used shoes and clothes to Goodwill.

Don’t drive

Runners are being encouraged to either take public transportation or to carpool with other runners. You not only will be saving the planet, but you’ll be saving money on gas.

Bring your own water bottle

Many marathons are cutting down on the costly and wasteful paper cups that end up littering the race path. Some marathons are setting up huge drinking fountains where runners can fill up their water bottles and be on their way without wasting paper cups.

Eco-friendly clothes

Many runners are trading their synthetic running fabrics for more organic and green fabrics.

The trend towards more eco-friendly marathons will help educate runners about different ways they can be more eco-friendly .