Day 195 - Long Distance Running Tips

I have recently gained more interest in running which is surprising to me. Now I would never refer to myself as a seasoned distance runner that runs marathons all the time, but I have run 2 half marathons (21km) in September 2010 and October 2011, which gave me that "runner's high" and a new-found love for running. Not only that, but for those of you who don't follow my blog consistently, I competed in my first ever Tough Mudder event in August of this year (16km) and will be competing in the World's Toughest Mudder on November 17th.

I have always been a pretty decent runner. As a child, my parents tell me that all I would do is run laps of our street asking them to "time me, time me". I have also played soccer my entire life which, as many of you know, is very running-intensive.

The fascination or attraction to running, as runners will tell you, is that "high" you get during, and following a race, where your hormones and endorphins are flowing, giving you a very 'feel good' response in your body. On top of that, running long distances can give an amazing sense of accomplishment when you then think back to the distance that you just conquered!

Running and swimming are great ways to measure your overall fitness as well. I am a terrible swimmer, so alas, I run. It is great to run set distances and see your times come down over time as you get faster, stronger, and fitter.

At the end of the day though, running can become very repetitive, and that is why many people can't stick with it. As with any form of exercise though, I believe that the key to staying interested is variety. I have included a list below of different ways you can train for running, as well as some tips to improve and keep things varied and interesting.

Use an Efficient Stride - Elite runners have much more efficient strides. An efficient stride is great for many reasons including reducing risk of injury, as well as reserving energy for longer distances. First of all, shorten your stride. A long stride, especially with your leading leg landing too far out in front of you creates more of a braking effect of your forward momentum. Also, keep the mindset that you have a plate roughly 2 inches above your head that you do not want to touch. In other words, you want your momentum to be moving you forward, not bouncing up and down. With those in mind, also think of quick feet. You want your foot landing on the ground, and pulling back as quick as possible to propel you forward. Your feet should be touching the ground for as short amount of time as possible!

Speed Training - Marathon runners need speed training as well, not just sprinters! Long-distance runners benefit from strengthening their legs with fast bursts of speed. Not only that, but you burn more calories from sprinting as it requires more energy to accelerate and propel your body at a faster pace. Try adding some interval sprints into your longer runs. When I train, I would try and do interval sprints every so often. Try this; jog for 5 minutes at the beginning of your run as a bit of a warmup, then start your intervals. You will sprint (about 80-90% of your fastest speed) for 30 seconds, then jog for a minute. Alternate between these two time intervals until you are done your course. Intervals should not be run for too long of distances though, so I don't recommend anything over 5 kilometres total.

Run Downhill - Make sure that at least some of your training is running downhill. Your legs are under more force when running down hill which allows them to better prepare for the load and stress placed on them for long-distance runs. Plus, when you go to run a road race, you will most certainly hit points where you must run downhill so you will be better prepared to handle your speed. Just don't overdo it by running down hill too fast or too often. Downhill running is also a great way to practice increasing your stride speed.

Build Explosive Power - Try some cross training such as plyometrics (jump training) to train your muscles on how to be explosive. This is not only a great way to strengthen your legs, but it helps train them to give you much more coordinated and efficient strides when running long distances. The more elastic and forceful in nature your muscles are, the less energy they require for every stride, increasing your efficiency!

Mix Things Up - Try running on different road courses around your area so you are not always running the same pattern of uphills and downhills. Challenge yourself and choose courses that have more hills to improve strength and also mix up your effort output. For example, one day you may do a flat course and run at 50% pace for an hour, the next run you may want to run a hilly course at 70% pace for half an hour.

Variety is the spice of fitness!

Quote of the day:
"Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive and go do it. Because what the world needs is more people who have come alive."

– Howard Thurman
Check out my new Website: tylerrobbinsfitness.com



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Day 72 - Resistance Training for Runners

Research has shown that even endurance distance runners can improve their race times with a well-designed resistance training program in as little as 8 weeks.

Traditional wisdom would lead you to believe that distance or endurance runners need to be thin or streamlined, and therefore should avoid resistance training. This is simply not true!

First of all, we know that resistance training does not necessarily lead to an increase in body mass.

Secondly, a well-designed resistance training program (including plyometrics) can improve the strength and natural elasticity of the muscles and ligaments, improving what is known as "running economy".

Ideally, distance runners would benefit from 2 different training styles or repetition ranges. Resistance that targets a 6-12 rep range has been shown to be most beneficial in stimulating muscle hypertrophy (muscle cell growth) so you may want to bypass that rep range if you wish to keep your body slim.

Having said that, endurance runners, or any endurance athlete for that matter, would greatly benefit from a 12+ rep range. When training with higher repetition ranges, you are not only training your slow-twitch or "aerobic" muscle fibers, but you can actually cause your fast-twitch or "anaerobic" muscle fibers to transition to be more aerobic.

This can be beneficial to endurance athletes because your muscles become more suited to use oxygen as a preferential energy source. In other words, your muscles will increase their overall endurance!

Secondly, and the rep range that many endurance runners (or endurance athletes) may skip over, is the 5 and under rep range. For most endurance athletes, upper body training is not nearly as important as training for the legs, so when I speak of 5 and under rep training, I am mostly referring to heavy squats, lunges, deadlifts, etc.

Strength or power training (5 and under repetitions), combined with plyometric exercise can improve the strength, power, and overall natural elasticity of the muscles and ligaments in the lower body. When the muscles and ligaments retain more of their natural elasticity, your body will expend less energy traveling over comparable distances.

Also known as "running economy", by quickly collecting and releasing stored kinetic energy, your muscles expend less energy because they allow the elasticity to do most of the work for them.

Although a bit of a bad analogy, think of things this way: If you were to jump up and down in place, your legs would tire out fairly quickly. However, if you were to be jumping on a trampoline, you would not only be able to jump higher, but you would be able to jump up and down for a longer duration. This is because you are allowing the springs of the trampoline to do much of the work for you!

Distance runners, or endurance athletes in general can benefit just as much from resistance training as anyone else, just begin your strength and conditioning program as anyone else would - by focusing on your goals in mind!

Quote of the day:

"It is better to travel well than to arrive."
~ Buddha

Day 52 - Warrior Training Revised: Part 3

I guess I just felt like making these revisions to my training into a trilogy in honor of The Dark Knight Rises. No, actually, I seem to have picked up an injury along the way, so I will be altering my schedule (yet again). The injury I have picked up is in my left elbow. I am not sure if it is tendonitis or some other similar injury, but I have a bit of inflammation and it gets sore/achy whenever I do an exercise where my triceps are involved (pushups/extensions/etc.).

So, I am giving my upper body a rest for the rest of this week, and then I will jump right into my "Performance Phase" or Phase 3 starting this upcoming Sunday (June 17th). The benefits to this schedule change is that I am giving myself over a week of extra time in my Performance Phase, which will allow me to be on top of my game for Warrior Dash. Not only that, but I have been able to add in a few more distance runs to improve my endurance as well which should translate well come race time.

For the rest of this week I plan on doing some more running in my Vibram Five Fingers to get used to running in them, as well as some stretching and recovery stretch work with foam rolling. I am only skipping out on one week of my "Strength Phase" but to be honest, after coming off of my previous Mass Phase, as well as the other total-body conditioning and strength work that I have been doing, I have hit a lot of personal bests for resistance and reps during this strength phase, so I know my body is strong and ready to take the next step.

The idea of performance training is to take strong muscles to the next level. 

What does this mean? 

Muscles go through adaptation when you resistance train, and although they have been trained to be stronger, I must now train them to be explosive, powerful, and more efficient. 

How will this help my performance at events like Warrior Dash and Tough Mudder?

Since both of these events involve running, and other total-body movements, the more powerful and efficient you make your muscles, the less effort they must exert to perform tasks. What I mean by this is that when my muscles become 'springier' (more plyometric in nature), things like running, for example, become less strenuous, which can improve my running economy, and therefore have greater endurance.

The schedule is below. Keep in mind that when I have "Run Training" listed, that will be running intervals for set periods of time near my house. There is a high school nearby that has a track with some great hills for sprints. The Warrior Dash is being held at a ski resort, and remember from last year how much my hill sprinting lacked at the time.

Also, when you see "LSD", I am not referring to running while spaced-out on some hallucinogen, I am referring to "Long, Slow, Distance" which is a distance run, not necessarily for speed, but to improve my aerobic energy systems and increase my distance endurance. This, coupled with my interval runs will allow me to hone both types of energy systems which will translate into better race performance.

The schedule:

June

17 - P.A.P. Lower

18 - AM: P.A.P. Upper   PM: Hockey

19 - Yoga/Recovery

20 - P.A.P. Lower

21 - P.A.P. Upper   PM: Run Training (20 mins)

22 - Yoga/Recovery

23 - 5.5km Run

24 - P.A.P. Lower

25 - AM: P.A.P. Upper   PM: Hockey

26 - Yoga/Recovery

27 - P.A.P. Lower

28 - P.A.P. Upper   PM: Run Training (25 mins)

29 - Yoga/Recovery

30 - 8km Run (LSD)

July

1 - P.A.P. Lower

2 - AM: P.A.P. Upper   PM: Run Training (30 mins)

3 - Yoga/Recovery

4 - P.A.P. Lower

5 - P.A.P. Upper   PM: Run Training (35 mins)

6 - Yoga/Recovery

7 - 8km Run (LSD)

8 - P.A.P. Lower

9 - AM: P.A.P. Upper   PM: Hockey

10 - Yoga/Recovery

11 - P.A.P. Lower

12 - P.A.P. Upper   PM: Run Training (40 mins)

13 - Yoga/Recovery

14 - 5.5km Run

15 - Yoga/Recovery

16 - AM: 5.5km Run   PM: Hockey

17 - Yoga/Recovery

18 - Light Run

19 - Yoga/Recovery

20 - Yoga/Recovery

21 - Warrior Dash

My bridge program between Warrior Dash and Tough Mudder will remain the same, you can view it here.

Quote of the day:

"Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work."
-Thomas Edison

Day 44 - Exercise...but not too much!

I came across this story in the news this morning. It details a research study that was done regarding long bouts of exercise, most notably, marathon running.

Marathon runners, triathletes and long-distance cyclists could be doing harm to their hearts in the long term, cardiologists say.

The June issue of the Mayo Clinic Proceedings includes a review of how excessive endurance exercise is thought to cause damage to the heart.

The study's authors say that based on both animal and human data, the cardiovascular benefits of vigorous aerobic exercise build up over about one hour, "beyond which further exertion produces diminishing returns and may even cause adverse cardiovascular event effects in some individuals."

I have discussed a similar topic in the past, detailing a "more is better" feeling many humans carry. Whenever a topic such as exercise, or a specific dietary item, comes along, many people feel as though, "If a little bit is good for me, then a lot must be better!"

I have participated in half-marathons, myself, and although I enjoyed the journey to a new fitness goal, it should be noted that these types of long-duration exercise bouts can be extremely taxing on the body.

I know some people, however, can withstand the rigors of long-duration exercise, but most people can and should not partake in bouts of exercise that last so long.

I think if you are an individual who has grown up performing well in long-duration aerobic exercise, and has no ill-effects, then more power to you! I think there are individuals who crave, want, and need to run, bike, and/or swim tons of miles a week to feel like they have accomplished something.

On the other hand, if you are an individual who is looking to 'get in shape' and lose a few pounds, do not feel as though hours and hours of exercise is the way to go.

Instead, look into short-duration, intense exercise (High Intensity Interval Training or HIIT), as interval training has been shown to mimic the benefits of aerobic exercise in half the time!

This is also a classic example of sport-specificity training. If you are wishing to run (bike or swim) a 5, 10, 21, or 42km race, long bouts of exercise are needed to meet your goal. On the other hand, if you are just looking to get in shape, then keep things short but intense!

O'Keefe wants people to understand that the lion's share of benefits come at a relatively modest level. No further benefits are obtained beyond 30 to 60 minutes a day of vigorous activity. 

Quote of the day:

"All our dreams can come true - if we have the courage to pursue them."
~Walt Disney

Types of Aerobic Endurance Training Programs

When training for an aerobic endurance event, it is important to add variety to your training. Not only does variety prevent training from getting stale, but it is also crucial to allow multiple energy systems to be trained and optimized to increase performance.

Long, Slow Distance Training (LSD)

Long, slow distance training is when an individual trains at 70% VO2 Max or 80% of max heart rate (MHR). The allotted time for LSD training should be anywhere from 30 mins to 2 hours which can be the same distance or more distance than the event being trained for. This is also known as "conversation training" as the individual should be able to carry on a fairly easy conversation without feeling like they are gasping for air.

The benefits gained from LSD training are generally aerobic in nature. What this means is that an individual becomes more efficient at removing lactate, increases mitochondrial energy production and oxidative capacity of skeletal muscle, as well as become more efficient at using body fat stores as a fuel source. The increase in efficiency of using fat stores as a fuel source also spares muscle glycogen stores for more intense bouts of energy such as a hill sprint or end-of-race sprint.

Pace/Tempo Training

Pace/Tempo training is at or exceeds an intensity that will be used in a race competition. This type of training is also known as "threshold training" as it is intended to push an individual to their lactate threshold (LT) throughout their entire session. Pace/Tempo training can either be steady or intermittent. In other words, either an entire 20-30 minute session is geared towards pushing the LT or shorter bouts or intervals can be used to push the LT.

The goal with Pace/Tempo training is to increase the efficiency of both aerobic and anaerobic energy systems to improve overall stamina and performance.

Interval Training

Intervals involve intense exercise that is close to an individual's VO2 Max that can last anywhere from 30 secs/interval to 5 minutes. Any intervals that last in the 3-5min range should have equal rest periods (1:1), also known as a work to rest ratio. Interval training is intended to increase an athlete's VO2 Max as well as anaerobic metabolism.

Repetition Training

Similar to interval training, "REPS" are conducted at intensities greater than VO2 Max in work to rest ratios of 1:5. REPS work intervals should be in the 30-90 second time range, but due to their immense metabolic strain on the body, that is why longer rest periods need to be followed. The benefits here include faster speeds and enhanced exercise economy. This is the type of training an individual should use in order to improve their final leg of a race.

Fartlek Training

This is essentially a combination of all of the different types of training modes listed above. The idea here is to remove monotony associated with regular training, as well as creating race-like variables into a training session that would mimic the conditions found in a race such as hills, sprints, etc.

-Tyler Robbins
B.Sc. PTS