Tag: Sharyn O’Halloran

Avoiding Injuries While Training for a Marathon

Sharyn O’Halloran serves as the George Blumenthal professor of political economy and a professor of international and public affairs at Columbia University. An avid runner in her free time, Sharyn O’Halloran has participated in several half-marathons and marathons.

Requiring more than just building up distance, training for long-distance races also involves avoiding and preventing injuries. Instead of increasing mileage rapidly over a short period, spread your training over a longer span and build up mileage gradually. On average, a 10 percent weekly increase is a safe guide. Additionally, focus on races of reasonable length. Although some individuals can go from never running to completing a marathon, they often emerge injured or burnt out from the experience.

Challenging workouts involving speed work and long runs are a necessary part of any marathon training plan, but doing them back-to-back increases your risk of injury. Interspersing hard workouts with easy ones reduces the risk of fatigue and injury. Although following a training plan is important, listening to your body and altering the plan as needed is significantly more important. Your body needs time to adapt to running regularly, and there is nothing wrong with taking a break for a week if you’re just too tired. Let your body recuperate during that time and be prepared to start training again.

Community Impact’s Emergency Services Programs

The George Blumenthal professor of political economy and a professor of international and public affairs at Columbia University, Sharyn O’Halloran teaches various undergraduate, graduate, and professional courses. In addition to teaching, Sharyn O’Halloran serves on the Board of Directors of Community Impact at Columbia University.

Committed to helping individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds, Community Impact maintains several programs with the assistance of students, faculty, and staff at Columbia University. Four of the organization’s programs, which are discussed below, focus on emergency services:

– Community Lunch. Located at the Broadway Presbyterian Church, Community Lunch provides home-cooked meals for up to 100 individuals with low-income backgrounds. Food is served family-style, and volunteers often organize holiday parties and fundraising events.

– Project for the Homeless. Responsible for maintaining two homeless shelters, Project for the Homeless consists of students from Barnard College and Columbia University. Student volunteers work as nightly supervisors at the shelters and ensure that they stay open for 120 nights.

– SHOUT. Dedicated to providing families and individuals without a home with fresh food and dry goods, SHOUT volunteers and coordinators run a weekly food pantry at Ford Hall. Open on Mondays and Thursdays, the pantry provides clients with warm clothes.

– Habitat for Humanity. Volunteers with the organization’s Habitat for Humanity branch work once or twice a month to renovate and construct affordable housing. The program has previously helped restore homes damaged by Hurricane Sandy and is currently exploring youth initiatives.

Charities Supported by the NYC Marathon

Sharyn O’Halloran serves Columbia University as the George Blumenthal Professor of Political Economics. Beyond her work as an educator, Sharyn O’Halloran pursues ways of giving back to the New York City community and staying in shape, ultimately combining the two by training for and running the New York City Marathon.

Individuals running in the TCS New York City Marathon have an opportunity to compete on behalf of numerous charities, including several philanthropic organizations with close community ties. Some of these community groups include area schools, the New York City Ballet, and local chapters of national charities like the Breast Cancer Research Foundation and the Boy Scouts of America.

Team for Kids is one of three Gold Charities supported by the NYC Marathon. Runners who contribute to Team for Kids not only enjoy automatic entry into the marathon, but also play an important role in raising funds for various New York Road Runners (NYRR) youth programs. Additional Gold Charities include NYRR Community Champions, which constitutes a near-$2,700 donation to NYRR community projects by each runner, and Fred’s Team, a group benefiting cancer research programs.

2016 APSA Teaching and Learning Conference Heads to Portland, Oregon

Teaching at Columbia University for more than two decades, Sharyn O’Halloran focuses on political economics. As a professor, Sharyn O’Halloran actively educates herself on the topic by participating in events hosted by the American Political Science Association (APSA).

February 12 marks the first day of the 2016 APSA Teaching and Learning Conference in Portland, Oregon. For three days, attendees will hear presentations and discuss trends related to the theme of “Rethinking the Way We Teach: High-Impact Methods in the Classroom” at the Marriott Portland Downtown Waterfront.

APSA aims to coordinate sessions on online education, simulations, civic engagement, and the inclusive classroom. In addition, courses on integrating technology into hybrid courses and teaching democratic theory in modern society may be included. To create an interactive experience, the association plans to host hands-on workshops as well, one of which will cover the 2016 elections.

For more information, interested parties can visit http://www.apsanet.org, where the official agenda will be made public in the future.

Preparing for an Ultramarathon

The George Blumenthal professor of political economics and a professor of international and public affairs at Columbia University, Dr. Sharyn O’Halloran has worked in the political science field for more than a quarter of a century. Outside of academia, Dr. Sharyn O’Halloran is an avid runner. She has completed several half and full marathons and recently ran a 60K ultramarathon.

Preparing for an ultramarathon takes time and dedication, especially if the race will be a runner’s first ultramarathon. Increasing running distance is an important part of training for an ultramarathon. While experienced marathoners may already be familiar with longer runs, new runners will need to gradually work their way up. Completing the full race length three to four times before the actual race is also important. Instead of doing the full length in a single day, however, it is best to complete two back-to-back long runs that add up to the total time. This gives runners a basic idea of where they need to improve without fully exhausting the body and mind.

Since ultramarathons are so long, runners must learn to keep themselves comfortable and hydrated during the run. Although there are aid stations set up along ultramarathon courses, they may not be interspersed enough throughout the course for runners to stay strong. Bringing a hydration pack can be extremely helpful for this. Further, runners may place drop bags along the race that contain food and other nutrition items, and they should practice going through these packs quickly and efficiently to ensure valuable time is not wasted. Additionally, certain clothing items may not be as comfortable during the longer run, so testing out different garments while training can be helpful.

MPSA Promotes Political Science Advancement through AJPS

A political science thought leader, Sharyn O’Halloran, PhD, has written a number of publications and won several awards throughout her nearly three-decade-long career. Currently serving as the George Blumenthal professor of political economics at Columbia University, Sharyn O’Halloran, PhD, belongs to such professional organizations as the Midwest Political Science Association (MPSA).

Since its founding in 1939, MPSA has been committed to advancing all areas of political science. To this end, the organization hosts one of the field’s largest annual conferences and offers a variety of scholarships. Additionally, MPSA publishes the American Journal of Political Science (AJPS). The journal is a general-interest publication available to all members and all disciplines of political science.

Supported by the Michigan State University (MSU) College of Social Science and the MSU Department of Political Science, the AJPS is a quarterly journal that is published every January, April, July, and October. The journal includes the newest research from all political science areas, including international relations, comparative politics, and political theory. Its mission is dedicated to advancing knowledge of politics and citizenship and sharing the value of field research.

How Runners Can Prevent Blisters

Sharyn O’Halloran, PhD, is a well-known political scientist and economist currently serving as the George Blumenthal Professor of Political Economics at Columbia University. In her free time, Dr. Sharyn O’Halloran is an avid runner. She has run several marathons and half marathons and also completed a 60K ultra marathon.

Runners face a wide variety of injuries, but blisters are one of the most common and, arguably, most annoying problems. Friction is the primary cause of blisters, but wearing shoes that fit properly can greatly decrease the risk of blisters. Running shoes are meant to have some space between the end of the shoe and the longest toe, but should not be too loose. Loose shoes increase friction, as do shoes that are too small. If a shoe fits in some areas but not others, insole or padding may be required to fill in the empty areas and reduce friction.

Socks can also play a role in preventing blisters. Not only do they help decrease moisture, another cause of blisters, they also decrease friction between the shoes and feet. Nylon and polypropylene socks are typically best because they get rid of moisture and stay breathable unlike wool and cotton, which soak up moisture. Doubling up on socks may also provide extra support and keep the skin farther away from the shoe. In addition, there are several waterproof seals and friction powders that may help prevent blisters.

New York Road Runners Offer Entrance to City’s Marathon

Currently working the George Blumenthal professor of political economy and professor of international and public affairs at Columbia University, Sharyn O’Halloran covers areas of trade and finance, political economy of regulation, minority representation, and democratic institutions. Prior to this endeavor, she worked at Stanford University School of Business as a visiting professor of public policy. When not instructing students, Sharyn O’Halloran enjoys running and belongs to the New York Road Runners (NYRR).

Established in 1958, the NYRR grew from a local running club into one of the world’s premier community running organizations. The nonprofit NYRR encourages individuals to become inspired while running, and it gains funds through supporters, participants, members, and partners.

Known for its world-class events, including the TCS New York City Marathon, the NYRR has 55,000 members participate. For the 2015 marathon event, scheduled for November 1, runners can receive guaranteed entry when they register with a charity. There are four levels of charity partners, all with different benefits and perks. Gold-level charities include the featured charity Team for Kids as well as NYRR Community Champions and Memorial Sloan Kettering Fred’s Team. The silver level provides race-day transportation and a tented start area. The bronze level and community level provide entry to the race once individuals meet their fundraising goal.

Community Impact Offers Student Health Outreach

A longtime political science researcher at Columbia University in New York City, Sharyn O’Halloran currently serves as the George Blumenthal Professor of Political Economy and Professor of International and Public Affairs. Sharyn O’Halloran also belongs to the board of directors of Community Impact, a nonprofit organization dedicated to serving disadvantaged populations in the Morningside Heights, Washington Heights, and Harlem communities. As part of its work with local residents, Community Impact sponsors a number of health and wellness programs, including the Student Health Outreach Program (SHOUT).

Participants in the SHOUT program work closely with families to educate them about government benefits and health insurance opportunities. Together with the nonprofits Children’s Defense Fund and SeedCo, the SHOUT program provides outreach with the help of a number of community organizations. Two days per week, the SHOUT program manages a food pantry and distributes fresh produce to members of the community.

To learn more about the SHOUT program at Community Impact, visit the official website at communityimpact.columbia.edu.

What to Eat the Night Before a Marathon

Throughout her career in the field of political science and international relations, Sharyn O’Halloran has established herself as an academic leader at Columbia University. In her free time, Sharyn O’Halloran enjoys running marathons and half-marathons.

When it comes to long-distance running, it’s no secret that nutrition plays an important role in performance. In particular, the topic of what to eat the night before a long run has been debated extensively for years.

At the most basic level, carbohydrates provide the fuel necessary to rebuild glycogen stores in muscles. As such, dinner the night before a race should ideally include a relatively large number of carbohydrates from pasta, rice, potatoes, and grains such as couscous and quinoa. On the other hand, high-fiber foods can lead to digestive discomfort during the race. Fats also take longer to digest than carbohydrates, making them much less useful in short-term preparation for a race.

At the end of the day, however, runners should stick with what they know. If a certain diet has produced good results during past runs, there is no reason to make any significant changes.