I was struggling along on a run fighting off peripheral arterial disease claudication using the methods in my book, plus another couple of tricks, when I thought of penguin feet. I'm a life-long scientist, and my mind is always doing stuff like that. "Penguin feet?" you might be thinking. The connection is readily apparent, if you have an interest in countercurrent flow systems, and a desire to encourage blood ... Read more
You can use your fingers to help your toes, as you train for aging and fight peripheral arterial disease. Aging is truly the toughest endurance sport. For me it has become a way of life, even though we train for aging our whole lives. Most importantly, it's never too late to start. I qualified for the 2023 World Half Ironman Championships this year by the skin of my teeth. On race day in August I will have just ... Read more
Question from JW, Perth, Australia: "I have been doing the yoga toes stretch after reading your blog on how it helps in get rid of toes numb pain during claudication exercise. The pain normally comes after about 5km mostly on the big & 2nd toe. I normally do 3 sets x 30s of yoga toes exercises daily with little improvement. I am currently on 4E width ... Read more
Treadmills have their place, but they are no substitute for the road or the track, when growing collaterals using Peripheral Arterial Disease Training. I recently published a book on fighting peripheral arterial disease, but I wanted to emphasize several observations that are helping my battle, as I train for a couple of half Ironman races that are coming up. (1) When doing peripheral arterial disease training ... Read more
Spreading my toes, to spread my metatarsals, in order to improve blood and tissue fluid flow through my feet has been one of the best ways to improve my run, as I fight peripheral arterial disease, while attempting to continue Ironman training. "Loss of blood supply due to atherosclerosis can lead to life-threatening gangrene. Thank goodness for claudication. I see pain as my teacher and while running as my coach. ... Read more
During my routine AAA stent assessment, the EVAR resident was unable to find a pulse in my right foot. But the foot looks fine, as I struggle to run with peripheral arterial disease, fighting claudication and numb feet. Image source. My running, and Ironman training, continue, as I adapt to my sport with peripheral arterial disease. This is all described on this blog, along with the six or seven modifications I've ... Read more
This might not look like much of a pace, for a runner, but with PAD it feels like a miracle. Took me a few of years to pull this off, as I've added one variable after another, to improve blood flow to my feet and calves. In November, 2019, I published a book, "How to Train for Aging: The Ultimate Endurance Sport," in which I described my struggle to run with peripheral arterial disease (PAD). At the track, I ... Read more
My toes (still have 10) are nice and pink, and there is excellent nail refill if I push on them. If I stop my training, especially running, my toe nails start to go blue, refill is slower. It's not easy, but I'm still doing Ironman training with no detectable foot pulse in the right leg, using ultrasound. About six years ago, four years after running the Boston Marathon, I noticed problems with running in longer ... Read more
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