Brentano-Murphy's Adventures

MSM stands for Methylsulfonylmethane and    is an organic form of sulphur, found  in animals, humans, and many plants.  It is becoming a popular form of anti-inflammatory as it has little to no side effects. Why I take  THRESHHold MSM For the most part of 2018 I struggled with my right calf. It was in an odd place and no amount of foam rolling or stretching helped. In February, I saw an improvement after I rested for 2 weeks following servere gastro - the doctor had said my calf was in constant spasm as a result of my body fighting an illness.  Between April and July I was in the UK and I did a lot more resting than training, however my calf was still giving me issues. I put this down to the fact that I was doing a lot of walking, something my calves arent use to.  After getting back to SA, I started training a bit more, doing runs barefoot on the grass to try and build strength, but I think this made it worse. I got to a point where even at sitting my calf would hurt and sometime

It happens to everyone, diet is on track and then the weekend binge happens. For me, the last week or so I have been 'craving' something, or rather I just have a desire to eat anything and everything looking to feel satisfied. It's a rather tough situation where I don't want to deny my body but at the same time, I don't know what it is that I am craving or the reason behind this craving. I have been planning that the last weekend in a month is my scheduled 'treat' or 'cheat' meal. This past weekend the idea was to go to Fab! Gelato in Parkhurst for a nice breakfast of maybe a waffle and some ice cream. As it turned out, the whole weekend was filled with 'cheat' meals - at this stage I severely cheated on my eating plan. Friday: At work, I planned to have some date bread. High in carbs, but as a once off I figured it wouldn't be bad for fuel as I had a 45 minute run planned in the afternoon. The new call centre agents brought me cake

This last Saturday I went for my very first hot stone massage, with Dakota. We purchased a deal from Hyperli that included a steam facial at Bodyframe Wellness Boutique near Cresta. With my body being sore from the training and bodytec I was looking forward to a bit of relaxation, however I was a bit apprehensive on how hot the stones were going to be. We started off with the steam facial, which consisted of a cleanse, scrub and mask. For me personally, I love facials and head massages - I can probably book for 2 hours on this alone and walk out refreshed. Moving on to the hot stone massage and of course, being naive I thought that the stones were just placed on the back and left there and I did not know how a full body hot stone massage can be done. The ladies started on our backs first, warming up the skin and muscles through massage techniques. They then did the same massage movements, but with the hot stones. The first time the hot stone touched my back, it sent a bit of a sho

Last week I decided to buy a new pair of socks, advertised for Plantar Fasciitis Relief, from Feetures . I suffer quite badly on occasion with foot cramps, usually as a result of a fatigued plantar fascia. This worsens when the weather is cold or wet, like it was last week here in Joburg. I have also been using stability shoes for longer runs, as it seems my arch has been collapsing (rolling in), resulting in achilles and calf injuries and tarsal tunnel syndrome. I came across this product by chance on Facebook, on a post of someone asking what to do for Plantar Fasciitis. For a sock, it is on the expensive side, but if it works, then it is worth it. After I ordered, I was contacted by Head Office advising that the sock was dirty, due to some work being done at the warehouse. I was offered to be compensated with another pair of socks and a shirt, which I accepted. When I got home, the socks and shirt had been delivered - super happy with the service from Feetures. I took these s

17 February 2019 Orienteering Urban Event #3 at St David's Marist Inanda, Sandton I started my morning off with a 10km Club Run at Randburg Harriers, so my legs weren't 100%. It was also a pretty cold morning - the first blue skies and sun we have seen in a week, but there was a cold breeze in the air. We arrived pretty early to the event as we drove straight from the club run, and noticed that the organizers were only just starting to put controls out - this was now at about 7:45. Knowing that controls were still going out, I decided to put my start time as 9:30, just incase of anything. I went to the start at about 9:15 and saw that there was a 9 minute gap between me and the person ahead of me, so I changed the time to 9:21. Starts were then delayed as it was found that not all controls has been placed, despite people already out and running on the course.  Starting off I knew which direction to go as I saw all the women heading across the field, through

Having suffered with depression since high school, I can easily recognize the symptoms associated with depression and try to cope and adapt my lifestyle to accommodate and 'heal'. Unfortunately I have found that mental issues can only be resolved internally and there is no 'fix' that someone else can do - yes, it is good to talk to someone, a friend, family member or specialist, however it still comes down to you. You, yourself are ultimately responsible for your happiness, for your healing, for your attitude. No one can make you happy or change your situation except for yourself, but having the support and understanding of others helps in this process. So why am i speaking about mental health? The last few weeks have been quite a challenge for me, and without realizing it, the stress of the last month and working through December has built up and taken its toll upon me mentally and emotionally. There have been a few things to happen all at once - I have been waiting

As the famous saying goes "Fail to prepare, prepare to fail". This concept could not be more true when it comes to your eating. As humans, with ready-made meals, take-away and food delivery services becoming the norm, we have become lazy when it comes to thinking ahead to what we eating. We instead are choosing convenience and what we feel like having, or are craving, which is making for some bad meal choices. Meal planning does not have to be a daunting task, if done correctly. If you are an athlete, you can plan your meals around your training program, so that days where you have an intense training session, your meals are lighter to allow for digestion and on rest days, you consume fewer but more nutritious calories - the reason for this is that you still need to fuel your body, but you don't need excess 'fuel' that you won't be burning through activity. Planning snacks is just as important as your main meals, as this keeps you on track if you find y

As runners, not only are we looking at running further, we also want to be quicker. Whether it be on the track, at Parkrun or on a half marathon, we are all in search of achieving speed. The best way to improve speed is not only through speed work specific running sessions, but also various techniques and other training methods such as the Agility Ladder. Ladder drills are used to help increase foot speed, agility, and coordination thus making one faster in their sport. It also can be used during warm up to increase heart rate.  It improves the rate at which your muscles contract , improves your balance, and enhances your natural reflexes so you'll react with a renewed swiftness.   It's also good for co-ordination - getting the mind and the body to work in sync, at the same speed. I try to incorporate the agility ladder once a week, on my recovery days, so that I have only one purpose of the session in mind. For me personally, it 'wakes up' my muscles, encourag

3 January 2019 Orienteering Urban Event #2 at The Campus, Bryanston. The morning started a bit later than normal due to the MyRun that happens at the Campus every Sunday at 8am. Luckily the weather was cooler than normal, which made for some pleasant running. Mentally I was more ready for this event than St Johns, simply because I prefer the layout of the buildings and the detail is not as intricate - I battle with buildings simply because my mind can't seem to read ahead or plan quickly enough through technical legs. I started at 10am - I had the option of 9:56 but preferred to start a few minutes behind Heather and not just ahead of. I was 1 minute ahead of Michaela. Starting off, it was easy to see the direction to go to the first control, with some of the women like Jenny and Heather ahead of me. Also I saw Sarah Everett, Heather and Jenny coming back almost past the start shortly after they started, so I knew it was pretty much an out and back for the first control. I