OK I Need To Start Training Smart Again
I haven't blogged in a long time. No reason other than I really am not a great writer and see so many good writers out there blogging away and I feel intimidated. I love putting my thoughts down and do so with hopes that it helps me or someone else now or down the road.
Since I last posted anything I have become an RRCA (Road Runners Club of America) certified running coach. I took 16 hours of classes which covered much needed information including physiology, how to build training plans, and how to train injury free. I also had to get certified in CPR and First Aid. I have a lot of years of experience running and that helped tremendously as well.
I thoroughly enjoyed the coaching classes. I am a person who loves to know 'why'. I have always read certain things about how to train properly, but to understand why is a major plus for me. The instructor kept apologizing for the 4 hours of physiology boredom but I loved that part the best. Now I understand why I should train at a certain pace, or supply my body with the right combination of nutrition.
OK, I really have to work on the injury free part. The instructor pointed out that the average runner gets two injuries per year. Guess how many I had in 2011? Two. That is unacceptable. Especially now that I am a coach, with real students. I have to set an example on what I am teaching or the message will be questioned and I will have a hard time getting my students to follow my instructions.
Injuries frustrate you. They set you back so far on your journey to reach continued growth in your training and results. Yet, most runners still train improperly which results in an average of two injuries per year. The main culprits? Running too fast on training runs, not enough rest, not strengthening your core muscles, and worn out or wrong type of shoes. These are very controllable causes.
The first cause, is mainly caused by our egos. We think that in order to race at a record time we have to train at a record pace every day. Not so. There are three distinct types of running workouts that will help us progress. A long run, a speed workout, and a run at or near the pace you wish to run in the race you are training for. Of those three only the long run should be done every week. The other two should be alternated so that you do one every other week. There are other running workouts in between, and those should just be recovery runs at a slower pace. Your long run should be done at an ever slower pace. Just go out and enjoy the run. Take it all in and think about the positive things that are going on around you as you run. Doing so helps the body adapt to using the fat in your body to fuel it instead of burning up the glycogen stores that once are gone, cause you to "hit the wall". If you always do your long run too fast, the body never learns this and you hit the wall sooner. The long run also helps strengthen the bones and helps build more mitochondria which gives you the ability to endure. The speed workout will condition the fast twitch muscles that allow you to run faster, and the "pace runs" do a little of everything for you. Incorporate those three key runs at the right times in your training and you will be setting yourself up for success.
There are other types of training that some people use, where you only run three days a week and all three are intense. That may work for you but I can tell you I tried it and it raises the risk of injury.
Increasing your mileage week to week very slowly is also critical. I would suggest 5%-10% per month (not per week as most coaches advise). I've done 5%-10% per week and it still ended up being almost a 50% increase for the month and that is when I got injured. Don't increase your mileage until you have a great base of running for at least 2 months at the same mileage. Then slowly start the increase.
In addition, other workouts are essential to staying injury free. Strength training, warm up and cool down, and stretching are vital to staying injury free. There are many warmup and cool down exercises that you can do, but they mainly are geared to slowly warm up the muscles that you will be using to run and raises your core body temperature so that you can make better use of your run. Cooling down brings the heart rate back down slowly so that your blood doesn't pool in your extremities among other things. Static stretching at the end of the cool down is important for me. Not everyone needs this but I have learned that if I do not spend 25 minutes doing 3 sets of every stretch of all of my core muscles I will eventually pull a a muscle to cause a strain somewhere.
Strength training, especially for the core muscles, helps stabilize the entire chain of motion that runners use. Most critical in my opinion are the glutes and hips. Those muscles are key to keeping the hamstrings, quads, knees, and calves going smoothly and not straining to make up for any weaknesses there. Strong hips and glutes also help improve your posture, which also helps you run more efficiently. I also have started upper body strengthening and find that it is helping me with my hill running. My upper body helps pull me up the hill with less strain on the legs.
Never do two intense running workouts on back to back days. Try to resist the urge to run fast on every workout. Other than the speed and pace runs, you should be running the long runs at around 2 minutes per mile slower than your last race pace. The pace workout should be at the pace for which you are training for on your next race, and the speed workout can be at 5K pace.
Important to realize is that realistically from one race to the next, assuming a full training program is done in between each race, you will only be able to improve your pace 1-10% with experienced runners being closer to the 1% and beginners have the potential for the 10% improvement. This, of course, is assuming that the races you run have very similar terrain and weather conditions. One big mistake runners make is to think they can knock off too much time from their most recent race to the next. This results in training too hard and injuries and frustration occur.
The best advice I can give is to consult with a running coach or a running buddy who is very experienced and has shown the ability to stay injury free while still improving. There are lots of good coaches out there.
Happy running and stay safe and injury free!
Since I last posted anything I have become an RRCA (Road Runners Club of America) certified running coach. I took 16 hours of classes which covered much needed information including physiology, how to build training plans, and how to train injury free. I also had to get certified in CPR and First Aid. I have a lot of years of experience running and that helped tremendously as well.
I thoroughly enjoyed the coaching classes. I am a person who loves to know 'why'. I have always read certain things about how to train properly, but to understand why is a major plus for me. The instructor kept apologizing for the 4 hours of physiology boredom but I loved that part the best. Now I understand why I should train at a certain pace, or supply my body with the right combination of nutrition.
OK, I really have to work on the injury free part. The instructor pointed out that the average runner gets two injuries per year. Guess how many I had in 2011? Two. That is unacceptable. Especially now that I am a coach, with real students. I have to set an example on what I am teaching or the message will be questioned and I will have a hard time getting my students to follow my instructions.
Injuries frustrate you. They set you back so far on your journey to reach continued growth in your training and results. Yet, most runners still train improperly which results in an average of two injuries per year. The main culprits? Running too fast on training runs, not enough rest, not strengthening your core muscles, and worn out or wrong type of shoes. These are very controllable causes.
The first cause, is mainly caused by our egos. We think that in order to race at a record time we have to train at a record pace every day. Not so. There are three distinct types of running workouts that will help us progress. A long run, a speed workout, and a run at or near the pace you wish to run in the race you are training for. Of those three only the long run should be done every week. The other two should be alternated so that you do one every other week. There are other running workouts in between, and those should just be recovery runs at a slower pace. Your long run should be done at an ever slower pace. Just go out and enjoy the run. Take it all in and think about the positive things that are going on around you as you run. Doing so helps the body adapt to using the fat in your body to fuel it instead of burning up the glycogen stores that once are gone, cause you to "hit the wall". If you always do your long run too fast, the body never learns this and you hit the wall sooner. The long run also helps strengthen the bones and helps build more mitochondria which gives you the ability to endure. The speed workout will condition the fast twitch muscles that allow you to run faster, and the "pace runs" do a little of everything for you. Incorporate those three key runs at the right times in your training and you will be setting yourself up for success.
There are other types of training that some people use, where you only run three days a week and all three are intense. That may work for you but I can tell you I tried it and it raises the risk of injury.
Increasing your mileage week to week very slowly is also critical. I would suggest 5%-10% per month (not per week as most coaches advise). I've done 5%-10% per week and it still ended up being almost a 50% increase for the month and that is when I got injured. Don't increase your mileage until you have a great base of running for at least 2 months at the same mileage. Then slowly start the increase.
In addition, other workouts are essential to staying injury free. Strength training, warm up and cool down, and stretching are vital to staying injury free. There are many warmup and cool down exercises that you can do, but they mainly are geared to slowly warm up the muscles that you will be using to run and raises your core body temperature so that you can make better use of your run. Cooling down brings the heart rate back down slowly so that your blood doesn't pool in your extremities among other things. Static stretching at the end of the cool down is important for me. Not everyone needs this but I have learned that if I do not spend 25 minutes doing 3 sets of every stretch of all of my core muscles I will eventually pull a a muscle to cause a strain somewhere.
Strength training, especially for the core muscles, helps stabilize the entire chain of motion that runners use. Most critical in my opinion are the glutes and hips. Those muscles are key to keeping the hamstrings, quads, knees, and calves going smoothly and not straining to make up for any weaknesses there. Strong hips and glutes also help improve your posture, which also helps you run more efficiently. I also have started upper body strengthening and find that it is helping me with my hill running. My upper body helps pull me up the hill with less strain on the legs.
Never do two intense running workouts on back to back days. Try to resist the urge to run fast on every workout. Other than the speed and pace runs, you should be running the long runs at around 2 minutes per mile slower than your last race pace. The pace workout should be at the pace for which you are training for on your next race, and the speed workout can be at 5K pace.
Important to realize is that realistically from one race to the next, assuming a full training program is done in between each race, you will only be able to improve your pace 1-10% with experienced runners being closer to the 1% and beginners have the potential for the 10% improvement. This, of course, is assuming that the races you run have very similar terrain and weather conditions. One big mistake runners make is to think they can knock off too much time from their most recent race to the next. This results in training too hard and injuries and frustration occur.
The best advice I can give is to consult with a running coach or a running buddy who is very experienced and has shown the ability to stay injury free while still improving. There are lots of good coaches out there.
Happy running and stay safe and injury free!
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