Video Course Preview

by P.F. Chang's Rock 'n' Roll Arizona

• January 16, 2010

Preview the Marathon and 1/2 Marathon courses as they run through the streets of Phoenix, Scottsdale and Tempe!

P.F. Chang’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Arizona Half Marathon Replay

by Sean McKeon

• March 10, 2010

Watch Competitor.com coverage of Deena Kastor’s impressive performance at the 2010 P.F. Chang’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Arizona 1/2 Marathon, including a special interview with Senator John McCain! Hosted by Olympic Gold Medalist Frank Shorter and Olympian Juli (Henner) Benson.

Nutrilite Offers New Ways To Keep Runners Healthy

by Sean McKeon

• February 27, 2010

Competitor.com’s Sean McKeon took a tour of the Nutrilite expo truck to learn more about the growing nutrition company. With new product offerings for endurance athletes, Nutrilite looks to continue helping runners get to the finish line fit and healthy. Check out this preview of Nutrilite’s traveling show and be sure check it out at any of the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon expos around the country.

Eat And Run: Are Organic Foods Really Better For You?

by Nutrition

• February 17, 2010

Dr. John Berardi gives a great description of the overall value of organic foods versus commonly grown foods. Understanding the needs of your diet and the benefits of choosing organic foods can help you decide if organic foods are best for your active diet.

Become A Fat-Burning Machine

by Nutrition

• February 09, 2010

Your key to getting leaner and racing better may be metabolic efficiency training.

Written by: Bob Seebohar, MS, RD, CSSD, CSCS

Now is the time of the year when thoughts of dropping weight and body fat become extremely popular among runners.  But what about planning your race-day nutrition to eliminate the demon of GI distress that rears its ugly head during your races?  Attaining metabolic efficiency will have a significant impact on your body composition and GI comfort during races and will also reduce your need for simple sugars when racing.

“Efficiency” is a term that is typically associated with sport. From a nutrition perspective, being metabolically efficient simply means being able to use the proper nutrients that are stored in the body at the right times.

Speed Training For Beginners

by Training

• January 28, 2010

You don’t have to run fast in training–unless you want to run faster in races.

Written by: Mario Fraioli

If you’re a new runner and you’ve recently caught the racing bug, finishing a 5K is likely no longer an issue; finishing it faster is the new challenge. Time to add speed work to your training.

As a new runner, you’re probably running over the same roads or on the same treadmill at the same speed every day. You’re using the same muscles in the same manner every time you lace up your sneaks. Then, when it comes time to race, you find yourself stuck in second gear from start to finish. In order to shift into overdrive, you need to give your muscles some new stimulation.

Kastor, Bairu, And Naser Set Course Records At P.F. Chang’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Arizona

by Dan Cruz

• January 17, 2010

Three Course Records Broken At Seventh Annual Road Race

Written By: Dan Cruz

American record holder and Olympic Bronze medalist Deena Kastor returned to the winner’s circle for the first time in ten months today at the seventh annual P.F. Chang’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Arizona Half Marathon. Kastor set a new Arizona state record with a time of 1:09:43, ending the longest dry spell of her now-legendary career.

Deena Kastor’s 2010 Race Plans

by Sean McKeon

• January 15, 2010

American record holder Deena Kastor will toe the line at the 2010 P.F. Chang’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Arizona Half Marathon. We caught up with Deena and talked to her about her plans for the race and what she has on the docket for 2010.

Ryan Hall Talks Charity Running

by Sean McKeon

• January 15, 2010

We caught up with Ryan Hall before the P.F. Chang’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Arizona Half Marathon. He talked about his goals for the race and about his charity The Hall Steps Foundation.

The Art of Peaking

by Training

• January 15, 2010

Being truly race-ready on race day is trickier than you might think.

Written by: Mario Fraioli

In the final weeks leading up to his goal marathon, Ricky Runlong did everything right, or so he thought. He cut his mileage in half, started taking more days off to rest, and ran workouts so much faster than his target race pace, he was positive a huge PR was waiting in the wings.

The Heart of Rock ‘n’ Roll

by John Bingham

• January 12, 2010

Before you even ask, yes, that’s my real hair. I can’t tell you how many times someone tried to pull the wig off my head only to discover that the hair was connected to my scalp. OUCH.

I don’t know for sure, but my best guess is that this was taken in 1968 or 69. I know that it was taken at the Kappa Sigma fraternity house at Millikin University. The group was called “The Power Company” and we were – I say modestly – the hottest rock and roll band in Macon County, Illinois. We had a great singer who was a cross between Lou Rawls and Ike Turner backed up by a bunch of college kids that – for the most part – had never heard of Sam and Dave, let alone Buddy Miles. But the work was steady and the gigs fun. At 19 I didn’t need much else.

How To Celebrate In The Valley Of The Sun

by Competitor.com

• January 11, 2010

You’ve just finished P.F. Chang’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon (or Half Marathon). Now what are you going to do?

Written by: John Mendelsohn

To be anywhere in Arizona — the whole Southwest, for that matter! — and fail to visit the Grand Canyon would be like — but a trillion times worse than — being taken to the best restaurant in the world by someone who’s going to pick up the tab, and filling up on breadsticks and ginger ale before the appetizers arrive. To say that all else in the state pales in comparison isn’t to disparage Arizona, for few things in the world compare to this humbling spectacle of beauty and wonder. And the views from the two rims, South and North, is different enough to preclude anyone who’s been only to the much more easily accessed South Rim saying, “Been there, done that.”

Marathon Recycling Program, powered by SRP

by P.F. Chang's Rock 'n' Roll Arizona

• January 11, 2010

Powered by SRP EarthWise Energy

Salt River Project (SRP) is helping make the P.F. Chang’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Arizona Marathon & 1/2 Marathon more green.  From the Expo the Finish Line, SRP is committed to maximizing recycling efforts throughout the marathon weekend.

Sports Science Update: New Superfood Enhances Running Performance

by Matt Fitzgerald

• January 06, 2010

Algae superfood is shown to increase fat burning and antioxidant protection during prolonged running.

Spirulina is microalgae, powdery and brilliantly green, that is touted as a “superfood” because of its nutrient profile, which includes a lot of protein, vitamin B-12, the essential fatty acid GLA, beta-carotene, iron, and other vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals. It is sold in powder and capsule forms as a nutritional supplement to be added to smoothies and such.

Anaerobic Training For Runners

by Matt Fitzgerald

• January 01, 2010

Adding anaerobic training to your regimen will keep you healthy.

Written By: Matt Fitzgerald

Some runners have funny ideas about the meaning of the word “anaerobic”. It’s not their fault, though, because even many exercise physiologists harbor an outdated understanding of aerobic and anaerobic metabolism. Often I hear athletes talk about “going anaerobic” when their running intensity exceeds the anaerobic or lactate threshold, which is a moderately high but not extremely high intensity—one that most fit individuals can sustain for a full hour. This expression—“going anaerobic”—reflects an incorrect belief that the working muscles get their energy either entirely aerobically or entirely anaerobically, whereas in fact they almost always get their energy from both systems simultaneously, with the balance shifting gradually from aerobic toward anaerobic as exercise intensity increases. And indeed, exercise intensity must increase far above the lactate threshold before the muscles even get a majority of their energy anaerobically. If you were to run as far as you could in two minutes (in other words, as hard as you could for two minutes), your muscles would get about half of their energy aerobically during that effort.