Training

This article was originally posted by Ryan at the original HillRunner.com Blogs.

As this post appears, I’m on vacation. I’m on a trip that involves a lot of bike riding and a lot of walking.

Don’t worry, I’m still running. I love running while on vacation because I get to explore new areas in ways I find I just can’t by any other means.

As of the time I’m writing this, I’m also planning to place a focus on stretching. Why? Because what I call "auxiliary training" matters that much.

Sure, I won’t be doing my full strength training routine while on vacation, though I hope I’ll get a short routine in at least once while away. However, personally, the stretching matters enough that it will be made a priority.

Last time I returned from vacation, I was pretty sore after a lot of just what I’m doing on this vacation, bike riding and walking. I jumped right back into my training pretty well but, for a few days, my paces were off and I was feeling stiff and sluggish.

This time, I’m devoting 5-10 minutes a day to avoid that. It’s a little commitment that will go a long way toward ensuring I can jump right back into my training without any setbacks.

I always advise runners to bring their running shoes with on their vacations. I’m going to start adding another piece of advice: keep up at least a rudimentary version of your auxiliary training. It will help you transition back to full training when the vacation is over.

Photo credit: Athletic Woman – Stretches by thestrongwoman.bootcamp, on Flickr

This article was originally posted by Ryan at the original HillRunner.com Blogs.

Following my "Ask me anything" post, I received a great question that essentially boils down to balance of training.

To summarize the questioner’s dilemma, she was increasing her running training over the summer. During that time, she was reducing her strength training. She wanted to know if this was a problem. I’d like to explore that topic a bit here.

As I’ve found myself stating often recently, we can only handle so much stress in our lives. Whether it’s running, strength training, or even work or family matters, our bodies and minds can only take so much. Go beyond what you can take and bad things begin happening.

Obviously, one of the goals of training is to increase our capacity to handle stress. However, that doesn’t happen overnight. It’s a slow, gradual process. In the more short term, if you are already at or near your maximal ability to handle stress and you add more in one area, you’re going to have to reduce it in another area.

When it comes to running and physical training, this often means we need to find the right balance in our training. Whether we’re balancing workouts, easy runs, and long runs or we’re balance our running with other types of training such as strength training.

This is why many runners will reduce their training volume in the late stages of a training plan as intensity increases. More intensity is more stress, one of the places we can reduce stress in order to remain in balance is the number of miles we’re running.

Likewise, if you’re increasing your running load, you can reduce your physical training load in other areas. This may mean less strength training or, if you cross train, reducing the amount or intensity of your cross training.

So yes, it is perfectly fine if you’re increasing your running to reduce your strength training. In fact, it’s the smart thing to do. I would prefer that you keep at least a base routine in so you maintain your strength but you don’t always have to do the same amount. I’d even argue that you shouldn’t.

This article was originally posted by Ryan at the original HillRunner.com Blogs.

For as long as I can remember, taking some form of NSAID was a popular thing with runners. An ibuprofen late in a marathon to dull the pain or as an anti-inflammatory after a run was pretty much a given. I even admit that, before I knew better, I’d at least occasionally take some ibuprofen, thinking the anti-inflammatory affects might help me recover from races faster.

Some time during my college years, I read an article about anti-inflammatories and how harmful they can be to the kidneys. This article featured a runner who died from kidney failure and, as I recall, included the words of at least a couple medical professionals who explained how harmful ibuprofen and, really, all NSAIDs can be to the kidneys. I went off ibuprofen cold turkey after reading that article.

Over the years, as the evidence grew, I became more vocal in my quest to convince runners that the risks far outweigh the benefits. Sure, an occasional ibuprofen might not be harmful to the kidneys but, if you habitually consume them the way some runners unfortunately do, you could be causing serious harm.

And now, we have reason to believe you may also be harming your running performances.

Actually, this isn’t all new. In recent years, we’ve seen that many "recovery aids" that reduce inflammation actually affect the training response we’re all looking for, the response that builds us up stronger after we break ourselves down with workouts. In short, they sabotage our training. NSAIDs have been a part of this discussion.

But this is just more in what is a growing body of evidence for two different reasons that runners should avoid habitual use of NSAIDs. First, the harm they could be causing to your kidneys. Second, the possibility that they are actually harming your body’s response to training.

Photo credit: Advil by Mike Mozart, on Flickr

This article was originally posted by Ryan at the original HillRunner.com Blogs.

I find myself repeatedly talking about the importance of running your easy days slow enough. There’s a two part reason for that.

1) It really is that important.

2) Most runners don’t run slow enough on their easy days.

Why is it really that important? Let’s think about building your running fitness like building an engine. You want both a big engine that can produce a lot of power (aerobic capacity) and one that is fine tuned so it performs at its best (fine tuning for speed).

You build your running engine by running a lot. To an extent, the more running, the better. How do you run more? By slowing down so you don’t break down. The cool thing is that the aerobic engine is built just as well at slower paces as it is at faster paces. Time matters more than intensity.

Next, you fine tune the engine for speed on the hard days. Faster/higher volume at speed is better. Any guess how you maximize the speed and volume of those hard days? That’s right, by going slower on your easy days so you can recover more completely.

So what does this add up to? Building and fine tuning that engine requires making sure you’re not running too hard on your easy days.

Photo credit: Training by Running Across Borders, on Flickr

This article was originally posted by Ryan at the original HillRunner.com Blogs.

Summer is here! School is out, family vacations are planned, and the summer racing season is firing up!

The summer racing season is a fun time. All runners, from high schoolers to masters, come together at the same races. We’re all out of season as the younger runners are thinking of the upcoming cross country season and the older runners are planning out their fall marathons or other fall plans. However, we’re all together giving it all we have in the summer.

I love that aspect! One of the drawbacks of the spring and fall road racing season is that you see very few runners younger than about 22 at these events. Not that there is any problem with older runners. I am one of them after all but I for one enjoy seeing those younger runners out there.

This is a fun time of the year but it can also be challenging. The heat and humidity that comes with the summer racing season can take its toll on us. So how do we prepare for this?

Step 1: Training

In training, embrace the heat. Don’t shy away from it. If it’s hot on race day, you don’t get to hit the treadmill to run the race. While sometimes it might make sense to do so in training, if you do this all the time, you’re not going to be prepared for the heat. Generally, it’s going to be best to get out there and face and even embrace the heat. There are physiological changes that will help you handle the heat and the psychological benefit of knowing you’ve faced that in training can’t be overlooked.

Throughout the summer, as you should ideally be doing all year, make sure you’re staying well hydrated. Hydration isn’t something you can do part time. To be properly hydrated, you need to be consistent. That means throughout the day, every day. Develop the habit.

Step 2: Pre-race

Even before race day starts, you need to ensure your hydration is where it should be. Again, this isn’t something you can just do a crash course for. You can’t properly hydrate starting a few hours or even a day before a race. It’s a long term thing.

On race day, you may want to rethink your warmup. Especially if the race is longer, ask yourself whether you really need to spend as much time warming up as you do when it’s cooler. In some cases, the answer may be yes. In others, you may come to the conclusion that it’s better to not extend yourself in the heat before the race even starts.

Step 3: Race

In my opinion, the most important thing to keep in mind during the race is that you will be slower. Accept and embrace it. This is where running by effort, which I’m a big fan of, comes into play. If you are running by effort, your pace will automatically adjust to the conditions. If you insist on checking your splits, I can’t tell you how much to adjust because we all handle the heat differently. However, make sure you do adjust. If you don’t, you will pay the price later and, in the heat, it can be a hefty price to pay.

Don’t be shy about grabbing some water at aid stations. Even in short races, I do this when it’s warm but I don’t drink the water. I pour it over my head. I’m sure you’ve seen runners doing this when racing in the heat. It feels good. Some research also says it is beneficial, potentially more beneficial in cooling than drinking it (and, if you’re running fast, you don’t have to worry about actually getting it down or choking on it). Also, if sprinklers are out, use them. The same for shade. It may even be beneficial to run a little farther to get shade rather than running a shorter path but in the sun if those are your choices.

Step 4: Reap the benefits

So what does all of this get you? Well, beyond the thrill of competition, there are actually benefits to running in the heat. You’ll be a faster runner when fall comes around (and not just because you kept your training up).

So get out there and race this summer! Just make sure you’re well prepared and you have a race day plan.

Photo credit: Castlepollard 5KM 2014 -The race start by Peter Mooney, on Flickr