Hill Training……isnt just to run hills!

Recovering from Injury

One of the most difficult things a runner has to do is learn to “listen to your body”……seemingly simple but none the less has taken me all of 44 years to learn to do.  When i was younger i was simpily going to fast to listen to my body!  Later in life i was numb and couldnt feel my body.

Somehow during this journey over the past 18 monthes i have changed dramatically.  I spend hours a week, evaluating and adjusting my diet, sleep and training based on what my body is telling me.

When something isnt feeling quite right i do some serious evaluation and try and understand if its just a sore muscle from hard workouts or is it the beginning of a problem?

Normally a few quick rules will help with that.  If pain is localized and in a small concentrated area, then its probably the beginning of something which could become serious.  If its a sharper pain not a dull ache then again its probably something serious.

Once i identify that indeed i may have an injury looming i stop.  Now i need to evaluate if i can continue to train by either adjusting the intensity or type of training im doing or do i need to stop running completely and do other types of Cross Training?  Usually if you can catch a potential injury early on its a simple matter of rest and ice and you can be back at it in as little as a couple days or a week, instead of continuing and possibly missing months of training!

This week afteer Sundays long run, my ankle was swollen and sore.  i didnt run Monday, and iced and elevated.  Tuesday i tried a couple KM slow in the evening but it was tender so i took wed off.  Thursday it was feeling better but i went on tred mill and elyptical instead of the hard outside surfaces.  Friday i went out for a run which started slowly and i ramped up the pace as i went along taking care to concentrate on my foot falls to ensure i hit even surfaces as to not put lateral pressure on the ankle.  As soon as i got home i throughly iced again to be safe.

So now i can run today and if all is good i will go out for a hard trail run tomorrow.

I told a friend about my ankle and he said maybe you are over training and thats why you hurt it.  I said no, i just stepped in a hole and turned my ankle…..he being so wise said ” maybe you stepped in the hole because you are over training and therefore tired”…………….hmmmm.  Good point!  sigh!  so wise!

The rule about preventing a small injury from becoming a dehabilitating injury is RICE…………….Rest………..Ice……..Compress………….Elevate.

If we learn to listen to our bodies we can prevent little issues from sidelining us for monthes!  Happy Running

HILL training

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=capv_KBr0iw

Hill training is an important part of any Marathin or Ultra Marathin training regardless of the terrain you are planning to run during the race.

Hill training is not just to run hills better.  The big part of Hill training is alot like speed training on flat surfaces as it teaches the body to continue to function in oxygen depratvation to the muscles. 

I like to have a warmup of at least 20 minutes, 3-4 km at an even Steady Pace and then attack the hills.  generally it is best to start by doing 2-3 repeats, meaning you get to the base of the hill and run up it at the same effort you have been running.  Not the same speed but the same effort.  you will see your heart rate spike pretty quickly towards your maximum.  I generally get my heart rate to 85% of the maximum or so….158-170 beats per minute.  Turn at the top and jog down allowing the heart rate to slow.  you can also walk down if necessary and then do it again.  after your hill repeats jog back for a 2-3 km Steady Pace to cool down.  Do this weekly by increasing the number of hills  until you reach 10 hill repeats.  Make sure your next day is a recovery run at a steady but average pace so your body can heal from the workout from the hills.  I generally incorporate the hill training into weeks 7-14 of a 20 week training program with one day a week.

You will see results.  You will feel stronger on your regular runs and you will become faster.  You will be able to maintain faster speeds as you will have improved your VO2 Maximum.  you will have increased your lung capacity and your bodies efficiency in getting oxygen from the blood.

Another reason we do hills is that the down hill has a huge impact on our quadracep muscles in the front of our legs from absorbing the braking motion of our decent.  It is for this reason i mainly have incorporated them into my training.

My race will be in the Mountains of Grand Casche Alberta, so hills are inevitable.  For this particular schedule hill training will be a huge part of what i do.  I am approaching it a bit differantly as i am aiming for a differant goal.

The way i am doing hills now at week 1 of my final 19 weeks training is to incorporate them into a longer run.  I currently run about 3 km to warm-up and then do 3 hills within the next 2 km, then run 2 km and incorporate 2-3 hills and so on until i get 18 km in then i run back 2-3 km to cool down.

Yesterday i incorporated 7 hills in my 22 km run.  These hills were short, from 100 M to 350M on side paths of gravel up the bank from the river im running.  My quads were screaming and my body completely fatigued.

I am doing hills this way as i am trying to let my body understand that during the Death Race i will not only have to climb massive hills in the race but i ll need to be able to climb and decend them and then keep going, for many more miles.

While running such a long race, 125 km, i am aiming to keep my heart rate way down to 65% of maximum.  these hills ( we call them mountains back East) will drive my heart rate up to its Maximum, and tehn the down hills are so harsh that it will batter my quads and knees.  My body will need to learn to recover quickly and my heart rate drop back to that 65% as soon as possible or i will deplete my gycogen stores in my body.

Over the next 8-10 weeks as the race approaches i will be increasing this hill training, to get to 20-30 hill repeats on this 21 km mid week run.  I will also be training every couple weeks on just hills.  up and down as many BIG hills as possible.  Not only do i want the VO2 increases but i want my quads to get use to the heavy pounding those 2000-3000 foot decents will give me.

In order to condition my quads i will be incorporating at least 1 session a week of Squats and Lunges in the gym.

Do hills!  You will be very thankfull, as you go steadily past others during the race who are struggling up these hills!

The importance of having a training schedule

 

There are two types of runners ( well thats a pretty narrow statement but bear with me)  

 The runner who has and will for a long time go for that same 5-6km run every morning or evening like clock work.  they are usually in decent condition and running has become a big part of thier life.

The runner ( or even non runner up until this point) who has decided to run to specifically alter their level of fitness.  To this later group this discussion is aimed.

Although going for a 5-6 km run over and over is definately better than sitting on the couch watching TV, you will see your level of fitness plateau and even eventually decrease without a plan.  I know tonnes of runners who are grossly over wieght after years of training.

You have to  think SMART  , Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-related.  Specificly decide whay you are training, and measure your progress by keeping a journal or log of your activities.  Dont wake up tomorrow and think you’ll run a marathon next week without training!  The goal has to be achievable.  It has to be relevant to how you are training, and there has to be a date by which you can measure your progress.  a race is a good date.  19 or 20 weeks from now is an excellant date.

I swear by John Stantons Running Room, training programs.  I think if you read his book you will not only discover how to train but what level you are at in your personal fitness and ensure you pick an achievable goal.

Over the next few weeks i will post my previous weeks trining schedule and share comments on how each run went.  I will discuss why i do each particular training session.  The program i have is simply the 4 hour  Running Room program with alot more miles on each day

I have attended several Running Room programs and several other clinics.  i constantly ask others advice on a variety of topics and read everything i can find about the subject of running.

I have a precise plan to which i remain focused.  I have been training for 13 monthes with 4 monthes to go for the biggest challange of my life.  To run 126 km in the mountains of northern Alberta in an aptly named race called http://www.thecanadiandeathrace.com .  This is 1 day after my 45th birthday.  So essentially it is the first thing i will do in my 45th year.  I think its a hell of a way to start a year.

Ultra Training-Not every runs a great run 137 days left!!!!

They cant always be good runs.  Well perhaps if running is all you did, but my reality is sometimes my professional schedule is heavy, too heavy to have the energy to run well.  Alot of times we work late at night and always get up early, so there is definate sleep deprevation.

Well yestarday was one of those days.  I was low on energy from lack of sleep.  I hadnt really eaten properly for two days,and had some pretty big miles the past few days ( 107 over a 7 day period),so i had expected to start stiff and slow.  After 750 meters i knew it was going to be a tough run!  I started to run a complete diagnostic on all moving parts.  Ankles ?  Fatigued and sore but not injured. Feet ? definately sore but not injured. Calves, legs, ok everything is fatigued or sore from lactic acid, but not pre-injury……so im just tired, lets see what i can do.  At 3 km i run up a steep 500 meter path on the side of the path and back to try and jump start the legs…..heart rate jumped, as expected, but it didnt comeback down to where it should have.  A sure sign of over training is an increased heart beat at a speed where it should be lower.  Every 2-3 km i found a 500 meter trail off the main path climbing about 300-400 meters steeply, and id run up it and down.  By 10 km i was feeling a bit better so i tried a new route to loop back for 14.  Instead got lost, ended up on the wrong side of the river,and ended up at the Lake shore. 

I realized that i really hadnt been eating properly.  i take a couple gels, im hydrated pretty good.  Big toe is killing me, last day with these shoes………at 18 km i feel like its been 30.  Its a real struggle.  one thing about my personality is once i am headed towards home i can bear just about any level of pain.  5.75 km left.  I m in high park.  i know every step of this trail.  I know down to a couple meters how far home it is.  3 km.  im on Bloor st.  I just focus and its a few hundred meters left.  This is a nasty part of any run, even the good ones, its a 350 meter hill to my doorstep.  I always kicks my butt.  Home.  heart rates way to high!  I am dead tired.  i couldnt have run another 2 km!  I dont even stop at the gym downstairs to stretch.  Up stairs and sit down and submerge my foot into ice water to the knee.  That was a bad run!  But………it was 22km.  Thats a decent mid week run.  So this week, 3 x 1/2 marathons and 1 full, with a couple 10 km runs.

So that was a tough run!  my own doing.  Lesson learned, again. 

How not to train!

Today i bought new shoes!  🙂    feet were so happy.  17 C out and sunny.  Diana and i ran a slow 10km through the park.  Slow but nice.  Felt good.  No icing tonight.

Two a days

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GRzTiAeQ-pY

Running two a days can increase your mileage drastically while it seems relatively easy.  It also keeps your metabolism very high for the day.  The downside?  It really kicks your butt to train twice in 12 hours!

The Recovery Run

Part of my preperation for this huge race in August  http://www.thecanadiandeathrace.com   is to carefully follow my program.

Sundays i run my Long Slow Distance run which puts a huge amount of stress on my body so i take mondays off to allow recovery.  The LSD run is a very very slow pace for me about  a 6:15/km pace which is 10-20% below my marathon pace and this keeps my heart rate in the 60-65% of maximum.

Tuesdays i try and do a “twice a day” which means i run in the morning and again at night.  Tuesday mornings i try and run a Recovery Run which is a Steady Run pace which is about a 5:45/km pace and keeps my heart rate at a 65-75% of maximum pace.  This run is meant to stretch out the tired muscles and prepare me for the rest of the week. I also use this run to evaluate my body.  I go through a bit of a check list of my mechanics: “how are the knees?” “how are the ankles/, the back?, the hams, quads, IT Band?  Gluts, calves, shins?”   I run slowly increasing the speed slightly every 5 minutes.

 I generally use this time to run the tredmill and get in a good strength training day, a long stretching session and a good swim ( 250 meters to 500 meters)   If my body mechanics feel good at this point then i set my sights on another 6-8 km run with my group at the Running Room at 630 pm.   This is very good for the mental aspect as well as physical.  I have a good run in and know in my mind all day that i will run again in 12 hours.  I had better be able to deal with this seeing as i ll be running for 18 hours or more on the Death Race.

This is an excellant way for me to start my week.  It also doesnt fatigue my legs too much and allows me to be ready for my wed run which i find the most difficult run of the week.  15 – 20 km at tempo OR Hill training!

Remember eat well.  eat often.  never feel hungry and never feel full.  thats the secrete to good nutrition and to avoid gorging on unhealthy choises through the day.

See tomorrow s video on Hill running at 530 AM

Stefan’s 30km run – Sunday Feb 26th, 2010

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0czrZkZzo8

<object width=”425″ height=”344″><param name=”movie” value=”http://www.youtube.com/v/d0czrZkZzo8&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&fs=1″></param><param name=”allowFullScreen” value=”true”></param><param name=”allowScriptAccess” value=”always”></param><embed src=”http://www.youtube.com/v/d0czrZkZzo8&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&fs=1” type=”application/x-shockwave-flash” allowfullscreen=”true” allowScriptAccess=”always” width=”425″ height=”344″></embed></object>

LSD……..Long Slow Distance

 

My favorite day of the week is Sunday.   I worked many Sundays for years in the restaurant days.   Now most Sundays can find me waking up early.  having a coffee and oatmeal and going out for a long run.  I generally take fridays off, and run a 6 km Steady Run on saturdays so Sunday mornings my legs feel good. 

The trick to LSD runs is to run them as slow as possible.  These runs are meant to teach the body to take its fuel from fat instead of the more readily accessible but in far less supply, energy from the muscles.  More importantly, this run conditions the body to endure the long time speant onyour feet in  a Marathon or Distance race.

For me i found it difficult to slow down my pace.  especially after the first 8-10 km when i am fully warmed up and i want to fall into my natural 5:15 to 5:30 distance pace.  What i had to do instead of focusing on the speed is to focus on my heart rate.  I found it much easier to watch my heart rate and keep it under 65-70% of its maximum.  When i run a t a heart rate of 135 – 140 i can continue running for an extremely long period.  it also gives me a cusion for the accent of a hill where my heartrate will spike.  Instead of spiking from 150-172, it will spike from 135-155. 

When i run a quality Sunday run it sets me up for the remainder of the week to be successful.

I try and focus on all of the necessary types of runs in my training where as before i would just run.  I try and have a mix every week of tempo runs, hills, steady runs, recovery runs and a longslow distance run.

I try and remain focused on to what is the purpose of each run or training session, so that i get the maximum benefit from it.

Tonight i have an inflamed ankle so ive been icing and i’ll have to evaluate how much distamce i can put on it tomorrow.   I hope i can at least put in a 28-30. 

For me the Long Slow Distance run on Sundays is the most important run of the week. 

Tomorrow we will video several legs of the run and discuss caloric intake and hydration

Know how to listen to your body

The hardest lessons for me were to listen to my body and learn when to slow down.  The difficulty is knowing if you truly have a possible injury developing, or are you just not feeling up to it as you’re a bit sore and tired.  Is it the Truth or is it an excuse?

This was the beginning.  Looking for an excuse to take and extra break or day off.

Now its the opposite.  I’m always trying to downplay a potential injury or signs of over training so i can “get a few miles in”  When i have to take a day off i think several times during that day how great it’d be to get out for a run.  Like tonight for example.  I ran a 6 km this morning on the tread mill and hit the Abs after a good stretching session, by the time i did a few sets of biceps i was empty……..the 45KM Sunday was showing it had an impact on my body……….I did 250 m in the pool and called it a morning.  Now that may seem like a good work out and it would be if i wasnt scheduled to do “Two a Day” once a week to get used to the muscles working when fatigued later in the day.

So tonight I thought I would go to the running room and run with the group for a fast 6km.  By 430 I just didn’t feel up to it.  I was running on empty and have to be up at 5AM so i said no.

So the question is………….is this an excuse or is it a valid interpretation of what my body’s saying?  I believe the latter.  I made the right decision.  Only 5 hours sleep.  huge miles last week and the previous 3 weeks.  Upcoming travel.

In the past I would have barely thought about it and id just have been there.  in the past i missed ALOT of training time with injuries.  I’m training for an amazing run! 

The Canadian Death Race!    I’ve read about it.  Studied the course.  Asked questions.  Developed a plan.  Im acting S.M.A.R.T.

Think SMART whenever you structure your important goals.  Always make them Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-related. 

The first time I thought of trying to run the Ultra Marathon i trained hard all the time without listening to what my body was trying to say and this  brought  injury.

 This time I allowed an 18 month program which gradually increased, peaked, decreased a bit and now increases a gradual 5-10% a week in mileage.  This time I am allowing myself to get proper rest and nutrition. 

Above all this time I am listening to my body in an honest evaluation as to whether or not I train or not.  At what intensity and for how long.

Im currently reaping the benefit of a healthy training program.