Joggling is truly an international sport. Here’s an amusing anecdote from our South African joggler Flurpy.

10 K Joggling Report

I did this 10k today in Grabouw, a small town near Cape Town, famous for it’s beef sausage (”boerewors”) and apples. The sponsor of this race is one of the apple farms, so all runners got bags of apples when they finished the race.

They had this competition for school children in the 5k where the school with the most entrants winning a huge cash prize, so there were kids all over competing for this prize.

I joggled the 10k (in 58mins), and as we started 30mins before the 5k kiddie / fun run, I finished with a lot of kids, who were more impressed with my juggling the 10k in 58mins than the guy that finished first in the 10k in 29 mins.

After the race, this one kid came to me asking me to show him how to juggle. Not wanting to make too much of a scene, I moved out of sight of the race finishing crowd, and showed him the basics of juggling cascade 3 and a few tricks with 3 balls. (showing off)

These kids mostly do not even have the luxury of electricity at home.

Soon I had an audience of about 100 kids, all enthusiastic about juggling, and many promising that next year, they will joggle the race.

In the end, most kids juggled the free apples handed out by the sponsors, with one or two actually managing a 3-ball cascade for 3 throws in 15-20mins, which makes me very jealous (it took me ages).

A lot of damaged apples later (all juggled with the apples handed out by the sponsor), I ended up being some kind of running hero, which my PB of 46mins on a 10 k never managed to achieve.

After doing 100 plus races, never competitive and always in the bottom 50% of the pack, I have in some magical sense managed to re-motivate myself to run, and actually be competitive in some kind of sense.

JOGGLING RULES.

If you have a joggling story you’d like to share leave a comment below or send an email to

thejoggler (at) gmail (dot) com

Replace the (at) with @ and the (dot) with .

Filed under: Inspiration, Joggling life | 3 Comments »

At 1:14 am I awoke frozen like a bronze street lounger in Santa Fe. The rigidity caused not by paralysis but by a forcefield of pain surrounding my body. Any movement breached the field and caused a throbbing pain to reverberate through my body. Even the minute motion caused by my contracting and expanding diaphragm was excruciating.

This is the life of a marathoning, joggler.

What was the soreness caused by.  I’m not sure.  60 min of basketball?  60 minutes volleyball?  20 minutes of joggling?  The retired 444 days of a running and juggling streak?  Maybe it’s just that I’m getting old.  Whatever the cause, I’d sure like to figure out a way to reduce the pain.

Sometimes it’s good to be sore

Of course, from a training standpoint, soreness is good.  According to experts, muscles only get stronger and gain more endurance when they are pushed to their limits.  Improvements are made through the process of stressing and recovery.  That means pain.  It also means you need to rest.

As Dr Mirkin says,

If you don’t run very fast in practice, you won’t be able to run very fast in races.

So, if you want to be a faster joggler, you’ve got to sometimes run faster.  And when you go faster, you’ll feel more pain the next day.

What causes muscle soreness?

According to the folks at The Final Sprint, when you work your muscles ’til they burn you damage them. The soreness felt the next day is your body’s way of telling you it’s healing so give it a break.  The soreness is caused by muscle fiber damage not lactic acid build-up as was once thought.  But you won’t usually feel it right away as it takes about 8 hours to feel the soreness.

What doesn’t work

Alright, so you know what caused the soreness and why you should want some.  But what should you do about it?  First, a couple of things that don’t work.

1. The cool-down. Doing a cool-down phase in your workout won’t affect the amount of soreness you feel.  You should still do one however because it will help speed recovery by removing lactic acid.  Unfortunately, lactic acid build-up is not the cause of soreness.

2. Stretching. Forget about the post-exercise stretch as a soreness reducer. It probably won’t help. Soreness is not due to contracted muscle fibers.

How to reduce soreness.

1.  Rest or take it easy until the soreness goes away.

2.  Take some pain killers.  They may also have the added benefit of increasing muscle mass and strength.

3.  Use the Stick.  Perhaps it’s psychological but I think this Stick thing really helps reduce next day soreness.  It increases blood flow to the stimulated muscles and helps speed recovery.

4.  Ice bath. All the running pros are using this technique to help reduce next day pain.  But according to this Running Times article, you don’t need to submerge in Arctic Ocean water temperatures.  Ideal is between 54-60F (12 - 15C).

Muscle soreness is the number one problem that’s keeping me from becoming a world-class joggler.  Hopefully, I’ll figure this one out and eventually qualify for that Boston Marathon.

How do you deal with soreness?  Leave a comment and let the rest of us know.

Filed under: Training Tips | 4 Comments »

After last year’s troubles for organizers of the Chicago Marathon, you would think they would be extra careful about running this year’s. So, imagine my surprise when I received this email yesterday.

The e-newsletter that was distributed yesterday contained an error in stating that the Bank of America Chicago Marathon is six months away. Please note that the race is actually five months away and will be held on October 12, 2008. We apologize for the error.

They missed by an entire month. I hope they have the right permits. Yikes!

Hopefully, this was just a minor screw-up but it does not instill confidence. You add to that the fact that LaSalle was acquired by another company and you just don’t know what you’re going to get.

I have to say that despite last year’s problems the Chicago Marathon has always been one of the best organized marathons I’ve done.  I’m joggling it again this year so let’s hope that continues to be true.

Filed under: Training Tips | No Comments »

It’s the time of year again when you get to spend more hours joggling outdoors. Yeah!!

Of course, that also means your lungs will be filled up with much more unfiltered outdoor air. Not a problem if you live in the country and don’t suffer from allergies. But if you live in an urban environment, the air will be full of pollutants which are particularly bad for your health. It’s even worse for people who do outdoor aerobic exercises like joggling.

We’ve previously wrote about joggling in pollution but this press release from the NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center serves as a good reminder of risks and action steps you can take to reduce them.

Problem Pollutants

The primary pollutants that urban jogglers need to worry about are ozone, carbon monoxide and fine particulate matter.

Ozone
As I learned in an Air Chemistry course I took circa 1991, urban ozone is produced by a reaction between sunlight and car exhaust. It also has the unfortunate effect of making it harder to take deep breaths and increasing breathing speed. That makes working out much tougher.

What to do - Run in early morning or evening because ozone levels will be at their lowest.

————

Carbon Monoxide
This stuff comes right out of car exhaust and is also a major component of cigarette smoke. Inhale enough of it and you could die. However, that’s not likely to be a real problem if your just getting whiffs of it from outdoor air. What you will more likely experience is headaches, dizziness, and confusion. Which explains a lot about the way my head feels after finishing a 15 mile joggle.

What to do - Run on side streets or on running paths in parks instead of main streets. There will be less car and people traffic.

———-

Fine particulate matter

These are little bits of carbon and other pollutants that come from diesel trucks and buses. When you breath them in they’ll irritate and inflame your lungs. This leads to more mucus production which makes breathing harder which reduces oxygen in your blood which ultimately makes it harder to run.

What to do - Run indoors. Can’t beat the fine filtered air of a fitness center.

Joggling is great exercise and summer is one of the most enjoyable times to do it. Just be careful not to make hazardous to your health.

Filed under: Health, Running life | No Comments »

What are you doing this July?

Well, if you have an interest in joggling than the place to be is Lexington, Kentucky for the International Jugglers Association (IJA) Joggling Races. Jogglers from around the world will be competing in the 28th annual event.

Last year, David Ferman dominated winning gold in three events. His dad Len didn’t do too bad either winning 2 gold medals in the middle distance events.

This year promises to be a fun and exciting event and it will be the first one that in which this Average Joggler will participate. I’m really looking forward to doing a race where I’m not the only one in my division. I’ve only lost 1 joggling race in my entire career. Unfortunately, for most of them I was the only joggler. At these races I will be able to see how I stack up in the world of high speed joggling. Am I really just an Average Joggler? We’ll find out.

Since these races are much shorter than my typical marathon distance, my training will be a bit different. Less weekly miles and more track work. I really want to joggle well and hopefully, can actually win a race or two. Based on last year’s times, I’ll be competitive. Although the last time I’ve done a sprinting race was in 2003 in the parking lot after a White Sox game against a couple of drunk fans. There was one guy I just couldn’t beat!

I’m going to be racing in as many events as possible. But certainly, I’ll want to do the 5K. The winning time last year was 22:27. Just a couple of weekends ago I did 21:20. At those races, I’d hope to break 20 minutes.

If you’re going to be at this year’s races, leave a comment below and let the rest of the joggling community know. I’d love to meet fellow jogglers and blog readers.

Filed under: Joggling, Races | 1 Comment »

Yesterday, I opened my mail and saw the white USP package for which I’d been waiting. I was hoping it would get here before Saturday and it did. Who says the United States Post Office is unreliable?

The package was from tthe good folks over at Gballz. They sent me three new joggling bags for my upcoming TV appearance. (More on that later). While I love my current set of Ultraleather Elite bags, they have been through a lot in the last year and were starting to look a little weathered.

They were dropped in mud, dropped under a running treadmill, and water-logged in the London marathon. They even briefly developed a strange stain reminiscent of those visions of spiritual beings in weird places.  I never did figure out what caused the marks or why they disappeared.

My new set is the ultra suede series. They are a colorful shade of orange and have a light, soft feel. Unlike many bean-filled, suede bags these are not over stuffed to make them feel hard as a rock. They are smooshie but feel solid when you catch them. A true joy to juggle. I haven’t tried joggling with them yet but I’m looking forward to doing that tomorrow during my next big race, the Quarryman 10 miler.  I’ll let you know how it goes.

Filed under: Equipment Review, Races | 4 Comments »

We first learned of Timothy Perram from the joggler forum run by the IJA. This is a place where lots of jogglers talk about some of their latest races. We asked him to tell his story here on JYAJ and he happily obliged. Tim is a 26 year old joggler living in San Diego. He has a degree in Physics from UCSD.

JYAJ: What is the story of how you learned to juggle?

PERRAM: I learned to juggle when I was in elementary school, probably 3rd or 4th grade. My dad had a grocery bag full of tennis balls. He kept tossing tennis balls to me until I was able to juggle 3 ball cascade. Then in sixth grade PE class we had a circus unit. That is when I learned to juggle 4 balls, clubs, use devil sticks, diablo, and ride a unicycle.

JYAJ: When did you start joggling?

PERRAM: I started joggling this past November (2007). I had seen a blurb on the morning news about a joggler.

JYAJ: Why did you start joggling?

PERRAM: When I saw the blurb on the morning news I said “Hey, I bet I can do that! I like to run, and I like to juggle. That is a sport for me!” I figured it was right up my alley. I have always liked being unique and competing in alternative sports. Other sports I have been into have been Ultimate Disc, Footbag (hacky sack) and Girevoy Sport (www.usgsf.com for more info). I also competed in cross country and track and field in high school.

JYAJ: How many races have you done while joggling?

PERRAM: I have competed in 3 races while joggling: two 5Ks and a 4 mile race. One of the 5Ks was dropless.

JYAJ: What are some of your favorites?

PERRAM: Each of these races was my favorite! The Saint Patrick’s Day 4 mile was my favorite because it was the first race I joggled. This was awesome because I got so much attention and respect from other runners. After the race they were all coming up to me and asking about the juggling. The Great Race of Agoura 5K was my favorite because it is run in my home town of Agoura Hills. I run this race every year, but this is the first time I joggled it. I ran this race with my brother, which was rockin’. The La Jolla Shores 5K was also my favorite because it was my first dropless race.

JYAJ: What is your best story about joggling?

PERRAM: I went out for a run on my usual route about town. This day I did not bring along my juggling balls. I saw a woman standing out in front of her house. She asked me, “Where are your juggling balls? My kids love that.” I sure wished that I had brought my juggling balls that day! I decided that I ought to bring them along on all my runs, so as not to further disappoint the public.

JYAJ: What kind of training do you do? How fast do you run?

PERRAM: I joggle a 3.1 mile loop around my neighborhood about 3 times a week. Other days I train with Kettlebells, swim, or ride my road bike. I train at probably about 9-minute mile pace. My joggling times for races are 23:00 and 23:47 for 5Ks and 30:45 for a 4 mile race. I recently ran a 5K in 20:45 on very flat course. When I was in high school I ran a 3 mile cross country race in 16:29. In high school track I ran a 2:00 for 800m and 4:47 for 1600m.

JYAJ: How long do you think you will keep joggling?

PERRAM: I will keep joggling indefinitely. If I get bored or burned out with it, I will take a break, but likely pick it up again at a later time.

JYAJ: Do you eat a special diet?

PERRAM: During the week I eat very healthy, with lots of fruits and vegetables. Breakfast is oatmeal and a banana. Lunch is a turkey and cheese sandwich on wheat bread, an apple, carrots, and potato chips. Dinner is a giant vegetable salad usually served with whole wheat tortillas or pitas. Sometimes dinner is vegetable and bean soup or vegetable stir fry served over brown rice. Another favorite healthy dish of mine is a grilled Portobello mushroom on wheat bread. On the weekends I cheat and go out to eat several times. Burgers are my favorite food.

JYAJ: Do you have any advice for would-be jogglers?

PERRAM: If you know how to juggle, you will be able to learn to joggle. Practice juggling until you can juggle with your peripheral vision (not actually focusing on the balls). That said, how fast a joggler you are simply will be depend on how fast a runner you are.

JYAJ: Where do you see the sport of joggling in 10 years?

PERRAM: Gosh, I do not see this sport growing too much, nor do I want it to. It is cool to be involved with an “underground” sport. Jogglers are unique individuals. If joggling were a popular sport, I probably would not be doing it.

JYAJ: What juggling equipment do you use?

PERRAM: For races I use a set of juggling balls that I got 15 years ago on a family trip. We were passing through San Francisco, and we stopped into a juggling shop. They are soft, cushy type balls. For training I use similar balls, but they are a bit stiffer. I got these ones earlier this year at a cirque-du-soleil gift shop.

If there are any other jogglers out there in San Diego, it would be run to go for a joggle together. Email me at timothyperram(at)yahoo.com

Well, Tim the next time I’m out in San Diego (I know a couple of people out there) I’ll be sure to look you up for a joggle.

Just follow this link if you want to see interviews with other jogglers.

Filed under: Inspiration, Interviews, Joggling | No Comments »

Last weekend was the 10th annual Flying Pig Marathon in Cincinnati. A great marathon if you like hills, heat and a 23rd mile that takes you out of the state! Actually, it’s well organized and joggler friendly as I had a fabulous time doing it about 5 years ago.

Turns out, it was also a fortunate marathon for 55-year-old Bobby Edwards. In the 10th mile of the race, he collapsed suffering a heart attack.

Of course, the heart attack isn’t the fortunate part. That was the fact that he was running in front of a group of paramedics and firefighters. They saw him collapse and immediately started CPR. He was stabilized, brought to the hospital and is now on the road to recovery.

And while Edwards didn’t finish the race, Patrick Conrey and the other paramedics that helped did. Now those are dedicated runners!

Filed under: Training Tips | 5 Comments »

The good folks at Gatorade just sent me a link to their latest commercial for Propel Fit Water. You can see the short 30 second clip here.

I’ve actually tried Propel water and it’s pretty good. At 25 calories per bottle, it’s significantly lower than regular sports drinks and many vitamin water products. That means you get all the vitamins and electrolytes from this stuff, without having to joggle an extra 2 miles to burn it off.

That’s right. Joggling burns about 130 calories per mile and one bottle of most sports drinks is about 250 calories.

So, why not just drink water? Well, you can but that gets a bit boring because there is no flavor plus a few extra water-soluble vitamins may make running (or recovery) easier.

Go ahead and try Propel. I’m curious what you think.

Filed under: Training Tips | 6 Comments »

Last year the Chicago marathon sold out in mid-April. This year it happened again even though they were accepting 5000 more runners. At 45,000 applicants this race is going to be huge.

I never mind a huge race for two reasons.

1. It means there will be a big crowd watching (which is great for joggling).

2. If you’re in a corral up front the crowd doesn’t affect you much.

But part of me thinks it’s not right for the race to fill to capacity by April. There are going to be a ton of runners who drop out and the Chicago marathon doesn’t allow you to sell or refund your application money. What a racket!

Oh well, I’m happy I got in. I’m also happy that last year’s weather debacle didn’t hurt interest in the race this year.

So, I’m in for the Chicago marathon. Who else is in? And when do you think a marathon is too big?

Filed under: Training Tips | 2 Comments »