On October 10, 2009 Peter Curtin was approaching the 25 mile-marker in the Baltimore marathon, when he suddenly collapsed and died. On October 18, 2009, three runners – men aged 26,36,65 died within a 16 minute span during the Detroit half marathon. The highly acclaimed New York City marathon, even had two men die during the race. Why do the hearts of such highly conditioned men fail during exercise designed to make their hearts stronger? Is there something wrong with endurance exercises as a healthy activity? In essence, yes and no.

1. Physician: If an individual wants to participate in an endurance activity or an endurance race, he/she must consult their local physician. Although your friend or family member can handle the exercise, it does not mean your body can. Each body is different and varies with the amount of intensity it can handle.

2. Dehydration: This is the main catalyst for injury during an endurance race. Although 26.2 or 13.1 miles sounds like a long distance; trust me it is even longer than you think. Hydrate. Hydrate. Hydrate. It is imperative to an individual’s body that it remain hydrated. Our muscles and organ system work in the way that a camel’s hump does (merely an analogy). If we consume copious amounts of water, it will aid our bodies for hours.

3. Inflammation: The constant pounding of running on concrete can cause an inflammation in an individual’s knees or lower back. Individuals who suffer from pre-existing knee or back ailments, consult your local physician.

4. Cardiac System: Doctors theorize that the reason individuals die during endurance races, is because of a malfunction in the cardiac system. As with joint ailments, any individual experiencing pre-existing ailments must consult a doctor before participation.

Upon the doctors approval, the individual must consult seasoned endurance runners. Once you have contacted them, ask them how to breathe. “But, I know how to do that”. You know how to unconsciously breathe, but every breath is extremely important in an endurance race. Since, every breath is important, there is a form to the action, which will best aid your health.

5. Form: In order to protect your lower back, knees, and other joints an individual must perfect his form. This can be done in several different ways (i.e. practice, the Road Runners store’s technical breakdown, mirroring).

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