Runners Illustrated by Alix Shutello

By Alix Shutello On Saturday morning I eagerly toed the line of the Gulf Beach Half Marathon in Milford, CT.  I knew I’d finish the race, and while I wanted to run the marathon in a sub 2-hour time, I knew that on this day, it would not be a reality. Last year I developed … Continue reading →

I was very excited when this issue ended up being full of top-notch women from the fields of Olympic and professional racing. I made an executive decision this time, after interviewing two amazing women who compete at the top of their fields to change my definition of endurance distances racing.  Why? Because Lisa Buohler (Team … Continue reading →

David Heckman and Marshall Ulrich will walk the perimeter of Death Valley after the 2012 Badwater Ultramarathon By Alix Shutello Tomorrow, as 96 competitors line up at the start of the Adventure Corps Badwater Ultramarathon competition, one of them will not be leaving Death Valley and going home to family friends. Similarly, of the support crews, medics … Continue reading →

Five pre-ride checks every cyclist should learn during National Bike Month Former elite racer says small issues can result in big problems when left unattended    Champaign, IL–May is National Bike Month. A month celebrated with bike-to-work weeks, bike-walk weeks and activities to encourage people to start cycling. But of the over 44.7 million people in … Continue reading →

Badwater. If you are unfamiliar with this 135-mile race through Death Valley, you won’t be by the time you are done with this issue. I had the extreme pleasure of working with some very big celebrities in the ultra running community to get this issue completed. Let’s see, I interviewed Frank McKinney over the phone … Continue reading →

Frank McKinney qualified for Badwater in 2004 and has never looked back. Continue reading →

Welcome to ERM! Magazines take a ton of work. There’s getting the stories that interest readers, interviewing key athletes, shopping around for advertisers, figuring out design, making key decisions…to print or not to print? And the list goes on. But before I go on, I want to thank my editor and good friend, Renee Dexter … Continue reading →

Training for the Soapstone Mountain Trail Race 24km Continue reading →

Double and Triple IRON races occur globally, but only a handful occur in the United States, and one of them is the Lake Anna double and triple IRON competition which takes place in Lake Anna, Virginia. Most of the other races included in the International Ultra Triathlon Association (IUTA) are mainly held in Europe with the big year end finale in Monterrey Mexico with the Quintuple, Deca and Double Deca Iron triathlons. Continue reading →

Sunday evening Mechanics of Running class with Potomac River Running. Continue reading →

January 17th-22nd  Teton Valley, Idaho Come embrace the beautiful winter training opportunities in the Teton Mountains with Dreamchasers.  This camp is a great way to take your off-season training to another level while enjoying the majestic beauty of winter in Teton Valley. This camp would make a great Christmas gift for the endurance athlete in … Continue reading →

Winter Wonderland Running and Fitness Camp January 17th-22nd  Teton Valley, Idaho Come embrace the beautiful winter training opportunities in the Teton Mountains with Dreamchasers.  This camp is a great way to take your off-season training to another level while enjoying the majestic beauty of winter in Teton Valley. This camp would make a great Christmas … Continue reading →

Deaths at endurance events are becoming prevalent in the news. http://ow.ly/7AUyJ @RI_Magazine @bartyasso #marathon

By Alix Shutello February 28, 2011 Many of you know I rarely talk about my running on a personal level….but when I can use myself as an example, I’ll do it.  And besides, that is what the blog portion of Runners Illustrated is for…..right? On Sunday I looked at the calendar and my heart sank. It’s … Continue reading →

By Alix Shutello Runners who manage to finish marathons sometimes to on to finish a multitude of marathons and decide to step things up a bit. That very next step past that 26.2 mile mark puts you into the ultra distance category (at least in running).  Why do more and more of us take the … Continue reading →

Do We Need To Be Shoe-Brand Loyal? How I switched the type and brand of shoe I use By Alix Shutello Up until recently, I would walk into my neighborhood running store (I am fortunate to have a Potomac River Running Store and Road Runner Sports literally about 10 minutes from my house) and tell them to … Continue reading →

No matter what you do, the rules of adaption apply By Alix Shutello For some reason, I happen to have an 18-month day planner from when I was in graduate school at the State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry.  The calendar goes from September 1991 to December 1991. I have … Continue reading →

Chasing the Runner’s High, by Ray Charbonneau Book Review by Alix J. Shutello  In Chasing the Runner’s High, ultra distance runner, Ray Charbonneau, tells us a story about not only himself, but about the sport of running and how a race can be a nemesis. He engages the reader not only in his personal goals but also … Continue reading →

By Alix Shutello I continue to be amazed by the women out there who are moving to distances beyond the marathon. While it’s unfathomable to think that I even have time to run a half or full marathon I often wonder about how much time I’d need to train for races 50 miles and beyond. Some women just … Continue reading →

Have you ever seen a marathon pacer? They are those selfless people who help you get through your marathon so that you can claim the glory for your PR or better yet, help you achieve a qualifying time for Boston (and if that also happens to be a PR then AWESOME for you!!!!!) If you … Continue reading →

I want to thank everyone who has made my blog a hit. Here are some stats that WordPress automatically sent to me. I hope for this amount to double for next year. Thank you and happy reading The stats helper monkeys at WordPress.com mulled over how this blog did in 2010, and here’s a high … Continue reading →

By Alix J. Shutello Are you inflexible? Do you know if you are? Here are some signs. It really hurts when you try to stretch your hamstrings past the ninety degree mark when you are on your back. You cannot touch your toes. Yoga to you is a four letter word. You could be inflexbile. … Continue reading →

By Alix Shutello Yesterday as I was driving to work I noticed a few crazy souls running in the 20-degree cold. One of them wasn’t even wearing a hat, the other was so bundled up he was barely moving! Now I am dedicated to running as you know, but even I will shun the cold … Continue reading →

Take a few months to enjoy fewer miles and see some Spring PRs! Guess what? You don’t need to log 100-mile weeks in order to run fast and hard – that’s unless you are a ultra marathoner or marathoner, but even then, you need to give your body some time off. You cannot train 365 … Continue reading →

If you run faster, you’ll get faster. This summer, a gentleman called me to ask for training advice.  He mentioned that he ran really slowly and never seemed to improve. He was having some knee problems and was concerned that he was going to really injur himself. After listening to him and his training habits … Continue reading →

I won’t be the only one who tells you that you can run twice a day and potentially double your fitness. Many runners do this to increase aerobic capacity – but doing so requires good planning so that you can recover properly. Training once a day is difficult enough; especially for working parents – especially … Continue reading →

This weekend will be the first inaugural Wilson Bridge Half Marathon spanning from Mt. Vernon, VA over the Potomac River and down to the National Harbor, MD. Race organizers just learned that there will be some star power at the race, as Catherine Ndereba will be among the 4,000 participants on race day. Ndereba, a … Continue reading →

Ok I admit it. I didn’t want to do my 8 mile run on Saturday but decided instead to do some hard core cardio. I did one of my tapes that combines yoga, plyometrics, jumping, squating, core work and a warm down. The tape isn’t long (45 minutes) but you get a good work out. … Continue reading →

We cannot allow ourselves to run another mile without thinking about the people who make our shoes. Shame on us for not being more proactive to help ensure the people who make our athletic shoes share the same rights and freedoms we do. Continue reading →

I spent this last couple of weeks testing four products on the market: two types of energy gel products, energy jelly beans and shot blocks. In my reviews of the four products below, I refer to reviews by other runners and athletes on http://www.amazon.com.  If you have not gone to Amazon to look at these products, consider it … Continue reading →