Category: Training

Recently, I’ve been dealing with an ankle/lower shin issue. I’m on the road to recovery, in large part because I think I found the primary cause of the issue and have corrected it.

However, the primary cause wasn’t where I was expecting it to be and it was where most runners don’t tend to look. It had to do with what I was doing in my leisure time, not when I was running or, for that matter, doing anything physically demanding.

Minimal shoes. Maximal shoes.

Low volume. High volume. HIIT.

Low fat. Low carb.

Regardless of the topic, it seems like there are trends that will take you on a pendulum. It can be easy to get swept up in these trends. Avoid this temptation.

Did you do your goal setting for 2021? To be honest, I wouldn’t blame you for not doing so yet as we’re not totally sure what the year will look like yet.

However, I do want to address an issue that I see with some people who are going through goal setting. They don’t differentiate between goals and targets.

I have an admission to make. When I’m writing training plans for the runners I coach, I don’t even look at the weekly mileage I have them running. As I know can frustrate some, especially as we are just starting together, I very infrequently talk about specific paces to target.

Why don’t I do these things? Because your body doesn’t know numbers. It knows effort and duration.

It seems too early for this but winter is on its way. Here in Wisconsin, we’ve already seen snow on the ground in October and the past couple of mornings have felt very winter like.

That means it’s time for your annual reminder: winter running can be safe and, dare I say, even enjoyable with a few precautions.

When a runner gets injured, we all instantly think about rehab. What are you doing to recover? Strength? Stretching? Maybe some massage or self massage with something like a foam roller?

Instead of being reactive, why not be proactive? Before the injury happens, do some of that same work in order to avoid it in the first place.

Last week, I posted about the importance of consistency.

But last month, I posted about the importance of taking time off when your health is at risk.

How do these ideas reconcile? Let’s use me as an example.

What does it take to be your best?

So many people think the answer is that you need to be great every day, that you need to be at your best day in and day out.

Right now, with very few races on the schedule and some people completely bypassing the fall racing season, we all have an important decision to make. What to do with our training?

After giving yourself some recovery time, I’d like to suggest you train to get yourself more ready to train to race next year (as we hope racing will return then).

Taking a little break from the usual training posts. I’m not sure what to think of this but I’m apparently feeling a little philosophical.

This year, we’ve had a lot of bad moments to get through. However, largely due to at least some of what’s been going on, I’ve also found some very special moments I’ve been able to enjoy, nothing more so than running with my daughter.