Tag Archives: evergreen

5 Science-Backed Ways To Speed Up Your Running Pace

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I was a relatively normal person before I started running, but now, I accost my friends with topics like my VO2 max and “Jeffing”.

I can’t help it. Every runner I know wants to run a little faster and a little longer than their current PB.

So, we thought we’d share some science-backed ways to boost your pace:

1) Try tempo runs, like Fartlek sessions

The Swedish “speed play” method is a kind of interval training. It involves running at a slower pace for a set period, then sprinting for another preset interval.

There are no set rules as to what those intervals are.

“Fartlek and other types of tempo runs are a great way of getting your body used to small and frequent changes in pace, whether that be during hilly terrain or because you’re struggling during a particular section of the race,” Nuffield Health’s personal training lead, Nuffield Health, previously said.

One paper found that six sessions of sprint interval training improved the pace of seasoned athletes.

This doesn’t strictly have to be Fartlek training; it can be something like “Jeffing”, or the “run-walk-run” method, too.

2) Follow the 80/20 rule

According to Angela Ruskin University, “elite runners spend around 80% of their time training at what’s termed zone 2 running – a running pace which raises your heart rate, but is still slow enough that you can hold a conversation”.

Only about 20% of the time is spent at race pace, they added.

Zone 2 training happens below the lactate threshold, which means your muscles don’t get as tired after long distances.

That means you can build up a better aerobic base, which can really help you run faster for longer.

3) Try a “pyramid” running plan and get your miles in

One paper, which looked at 119,452 marathon runners in the 16 weeks preceding their races, found that “The fastest runners in this dataset featured large training volumes”.

In other words, the more kilometres under your belt, the faster you’ll probably run.

And among the fastest runners, a “pyramidal” running programme was more common.

That is another form of interval training which sees you ramp up from shorter, faster intervals to longer, slower parts, and then returning to smaller, speedier runs again at the end.

4) Don’t neglect strength training

A meta-analysis of 31 studies found that “strength training with high loads, plyometric training, and a combination of strength training methods may improve running economy in middle- and long-distance runners”.

And the better your running economy, the faster and longer you’ll be able to go.

But in this research, high-load strength training – working with heavy weights – might be especially helpful for those with a high VO2 max and faster running speeds.

5) Try plyometrics

Plyometrics, or exercises which lengthen, then rapidly shorten, your muscles, have been linked to improved explosive power.

One paper found that three plyometric sessions a week can reduce the “cost of running” (or energy used running) in athletes by about 6%. And another found that it increases stride length, too; both of which can improve your pace.

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Think Crushed Eggshells Stop Slugs? Science Says You’re Probably Just Feeding Them

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If you’re a gardener, chances are you have a tense relationship with slugs.

Even though only nine of the 44 species in the UK actually eat your veggies. , and while they’re key to feeding our dwindling bird population, it can be hard to give unwanted visitors grace if they’re making your garden suffer.

Still, there are lots of reasons – like the fact that biodiverse gardens fare better – not to kill them. Some turn to repellants over pesticides, some of which are illegal in the UK anyway.

That can include placing “barriers,” like crushed eggshells, around your plants. But that might not work.

There’s not much evidence to suggest eggshells repel slugs

The idea is simple: when you place crushed eggshells on the ground, the theory goes, it makes an uncomfortable carpet for slugs.

So, they turn away from your budding blooms rather than face the sharp, stabbing sensations of crawling over broken shells.

But McGill University’s (MU) Office for Science and Society, as well as the staff at the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) put that theory to the test, and both of them found the same thing.

The MU team placed crushed eggshells around some lettuce (which slugs love), and found it didn’t stop them at all.

And the RHS research, which took place over six weeks, found that plants “protected” by crushed eggshells didn’t fare any better than those with the smashed-up shells.

Side note – in the RHS investigation, no “barrier” methods, including copper tape, pine bark mulch, sharp horticultural grit, and wool pellets, worked.

So, how should I keep slugs away from my garden?

Speaking to HuffPost UK previously, the RHS’ senior wildlife specialist, Helen Bostock, said: “A vibrant garden ecosystem is one that requires [fewer] inputs from gardeners,” including sprays, because “natural predators” will help yo manage slugs, aphids, snails, and more.

So, trying to attract more birds to your garden can be a great first step.

And when you water your garden matters, too.

In one study, researchers found that watering your garden in the morning, rather than later on, is “as good as metaldehyde pellets” for keeping slugs away (metaldehyde pellets were banned in the UK in 2022).

Ferric phosphate pellets are still allowed, but, the RHS said, “slug pellets (even organic ones) have been shown to have negative effects on wildlife in the garden”.

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The Issues Straight Women Bring Up Most In Sex Therapy

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Sexologist comment provided by licensed sexologist, relationship therapist, and author at Passionerad, Sofie Roos.

Last week, sexologist and therapist Sofie Roos shared the issues straight men most often brought up in sex therapy.

And this week, she spoke to us about straight women.

Here, she shared the topics she hears about most frequently:

1) Having a lower sex drive than their partner

“The single most common problem straight women bring up with me is that their sex drive has decreased or is overall low, while their partner is way more interested in being intimate, leading to worries and tension in the relationship,” Roos told us.

She added that women may be more likely to compare their lust levels to their partner’s, and feel their lower desire poses an “issue”.

2) Pain during penetrative sex

Experiencing pain during sex thanks to conditions like vulvodynia, vaginal dryness, or pelvic floor issues is “extremely common” among this group, said Roos.

“What most don’t know is that there’s both a physical and mental part… pain leads to fear, and fear leads to deeper problems,” leaving some in a vicious cycle.

3) Not orgasming during partnered sex

Straight women have long suffered from “the orgasm gap”. The sexologist said this doesn’t seem to be going away.

“Many straight women are having a very hard time orgasming during intimacy with their partner, and they don’t know how to solve it,” she said.

4) Body image issues

“I’ve met countless straight women that are extremely aware of how their own bodies look, smell and feel… they think so much about age, weight and how they are seen that it becomes difficult to just let go and be in the moment,” Roos added.

5) Losing desire thanks to the mental load

In straight relationships, the mental load – or having to think about, keep track of, and remember the endless tasks that keep a household going – still predominantly falls on women’s shoulders.

And the sexologist said that can have a knock-on effect in the bedroom. Doing “all the planning… as well as all the emotional work in the relationship” can “lead to higher stress levels, which makes the body de-prioritise desire”.

6) Not putting their own pleasure first

“I often meet women who describe themselves as having a hard time with setting their sexual needs and boundaries first, as they’ve been taught to be accommodating rather than prioritise what they want and don’t want,” she stated.

So, uh, any advice?

Yes. The sexologist said that accepting shifts in your levels of lust and trying alternative forms of intimacy, like “oral sex, massage, kisses, caresses and more mentally-focused pleasure, such as roleplaying or dirty talk,” may help.

Explore your own desires, perhaps through masturbation, and communicate them with your partner. “As a majority of women can only reach all the way via clitoral stimulation, I also advise focusing more on that, either with your hands, mouth or a sex toy,” the sexologist said.

Remember also that “pain during sex isn’t normal”, so it’s important to seek professional help if you experience it.

And keep in mind that “your sex life isn’t isolated from the rest of the way you live, so try to look at your diet, sleep schedule, exercise habits, how you drink, how you deal with stress and how your relationships are,” she concluded.

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The Giant Container Ship Stuck In The Suez Canal Is Finally Free

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The Ever Given, the massive container ship that had blocked the Suez Canal for more than five days, is once again on the move.

The ship has finally been dislodged from both banks of the global trade route after it ran aground last Tuesday, setting off a frantic effort to free it before the world plunged too deeply into an international supply chain crisis.

“She’s free,” an official involved in the salvage operation said.

Tugboats were pulling the Ever Given toward the Great Bitter Lake, a wide stretch of water in the middle of the Suez Canal, for a technical inspection.

The Suez Canal, one of the world’s busiest trade routes, became blocked when the ship’s operators said it was blown off-course by strong winds during a sandstorm. Shipping experts also suggested human error may have caused the behemoth to shift sideways, lodging both the bow and stern in the sandy banks on either side of the canal.

The Ever Given is one of the largest container ships in existence, nearly as long as the Empire State Building is tall. It’s loaded with some 18,000 containers and weighs 220,000 tons, and dislodging it from both banks represented a complex and fraught engineering challenge.

The severing of the shipping artery had near-immediate impacts on global trade. Syria said it would begin rationing the use of fuel until the canal was once again open and analysts estimated the blockage was holding up almost £7.2bn in trade every day, The New York Times reported.

MAHMOUD KHALED via Getty Images

An aerial view taken on March 27, 2021 from the porthole of a commercial plane shows stranded ships waiting in line in the Gulf of Suez to cross the Suez Canal at its southern entrance.

Early Monday, the chair of the Suez Canal Authority announced the 1,300-foot ship had been dislodged from the eastern bank of the canal and tug boats were shepherding it back on course. 

“It is good news,” Osama Rabie, the chair of the canal, told The Wall Street Journal.

Traffic could begin coursing through the Suez Canal soon, although there are currently more than 450 ships stuck in a logjam and it’s unclear how long it will take to clear the backlog.

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