Tag Archives: marathon

runner's road kill

Runner’s Road Kill! How This Mindset Can Improve Your Running

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runner's road kill

Road Kill Tallys Proudly displayed in a team relay

Road kill: n.  a runner left in your dust.

Traditionally Runner’s Road Kill counts are only kept when running 200 mile team relay races.  While you are running your leg of the race you tally in your head the number of runners you pass.

Once you have sufficiently fueled (with a sandwich and Coors Light of course, micro-brew if it’s your last leg!) you proudly get to add a tally to your teams total…Let’s be honest, if your like me it’s the very first thing you do when you get back to your car!

As you can tell, I’m a little competitive.

With spring coming out, I already see my running times improving and I will tell you my trick.  I don’t just keep road kill tallies on Relay Runs.  I keep a tally on all my runs.

In the winter when there are less runners on the road, it is easy for me to settle into a slower pace.  There are no runners to race.  With the arrival of spring and the sun comes the competition of more runners on my routes.

runner's road kill

Imagine how many Road Kill you could get in a race!

Focusing on passing someone ahead of you is much easier than pushing to maintain a speed.  When you aim to pass someone ahead of you, you keep your gaze forward.  You have better posture and a more efficient runner stride.

If your new to running don’t fret.  There are plenty of road kill for you too out there.  I see it completely acceptable to count walkers.  You are moving faster than they are.  If someone was walking in a Ragnar relay I would most certainly count them as Road Kill!

Once you move a comfortable distance ahead, there is no shame in slowly down…just remember road kill have a way of coming back to haunt you.   People don’t like to be passed 😉

running drills to improve running form

Running Drills to Improve Your Running Form

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running drills to improve running formYou know it is important to have good running form, but often it is developing that good running form that is hard.

The 3 main keys to good running form is:

  1. Mid Foot Strike
  2. Angles:  Dorsiflexed foot and knee to 90 degrees
  3. Forward Tilt

Here are some running drills to improve running form:

free gyms

Local Parks: The Free Gyms

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free gymsOne of the biggest excuses to avoid jump starting your fitness and healthy lifestyle is the cost.  I understand, gyms can be expensive!

One way to avoid high prices is to studio hop.  Many privately owned cross fit gyms, yoga studios, and barre method gyms offer specials for new comers.  During the winter you can try each one through the beginners specials.  Who knows you may find something new you love.  Worst case you will work your muscles differently, gaining maximum burn.

As the weather begins to improve though we can even cut those costs by getting out and exploring the local parks in your area.   They are the free gyms!!   When I lived in Seattle I loved Seward Park, Gasworks Park, Kerry Park, The Burke-Gilman Running Trail, Marymoor, and the UW Arboretum.

Shelby Park Nashville 02.jpgSince I’ve been in Nashville I’ve done laps and used the random steps and kid playgrounds for strength routines on the Downtown Riverfront, and at Centennial Park, Percy Warner Park, Shelby Park, and Fannie Mae Park.

Many local parks have either a long waterfront trail, or a running loop.  There are plenty of benches, Monkey Bars, bleachers, and bike racks to attach spri bands and do cross fit style workouts with your at home exercise equipment.  CHeck

Check out this youtube playlist: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLH9I3etWrhftr0O5KMGs3Y8DiDNswFjd1&feature=view_all

or below for inspiration on how to kick your own booty for free in your local parks!

No Equipment Needed:

 

Toe Touch

Leg Drives

Split Jumps

Diamond Pushup

Advances Single Leg Squat

Spri Band Need:

Spri Band Bicep Curl

Pushup Position Lat Pull

 

 

runner's strength workout

Runner’s Strength Workout: Stay Injury Free and Power Up Those Hills with These Moves!

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Often runners spend all their time running.–Sound Familiar??

Doing this, leads to overuse injuries as well as that “skinny fat” look none of us want to have.

It is important to do strength training a couple times a week, to keep you running injury free and keep your body looking toned and fit.

I developed this runner’s strength workout to do just that.  The exercises are designed to work your gluteus medius, obliques, and stability muscles to protect against overuse injuries such as runners’ knee, while also working your larger muscles such as your gluteus maximus, biceps, and triceps so you stay toned with a perky booty and can power up those hills!

 

Do each exercise 3x through for the perfect 15 min strength routine to complement your running!

 

strength workout for runners

5 min Strength Workout for Runners

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Check out this video for 5 min Strength Workout for Runners designed to work the entire body and strengthen to prevent injury!

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properly execute speed training workout

How to Properly Execute Your Speed Training Workout

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Check out this video to make sure you know how to properly execute your speed training workout!

[vsw id=”tt9pkI4wg0Q” source=”youtube” width=”425″ height=”344″ autoplay=”no”]

 

Key Tips:

  • Finish your last interval fastest.
  • Workout on breathing.
  • Think about your form
easy runs will get you back in shape

Easy Runs Will Get You Back In Shape

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Have you ever taken a period of time off from running?easy runs will get you back in shape

Or maybe you didn’t mean to take time off, but when all was said and done you ran so infrequently you couldn’t keep up with your old pace.

Getting back into running shape is probably the most frustrating thing!

It is even worse than when you first started running.  At least back then you didn’t have expectations for yourself.  As a beginner, no one expects you to be fast.  Once you been a runner you have an expectation of what your “normal” pace should be.  After a month or 2 without our normal training routine that pace falters because our body can’t keep up with our legs.  We still want to run that fast, because that’s what we remember being normal, but the adaptations we developed have gone away.

We don’t deliver oxygen as efficiently as we did while we were in shape.  

Runners, however, are stubborn.  We will try to push ourselves to our normal pace and this will lead to one of 2 situations.

  1. We either run as hard as we think we should be able to and only run 1-2 miles rather than the planned 4-5.   OR
  2. We run and then stop to walk.  Run then stop to walk.

Neither one of these situations is going to get you back to the shape you were in.  Easy runs will get you back in shape!  Now don’t get me wrong, if you are looking to lose weight or just running to burn calories you will accomplish that goal.  If you are looking to regain your runner’s stride though YOU NEED TO RUN SLOW!

EMBRACE IT!  That’s what you’ve got to do.

Running slow is when your body begins to make adaptations.

  • We begin to expand our capillary beds so we can better deliver oxygen through our blood and remove CO2!
  • We increase our stroke volume so we can pump more blood with each heartbeat!  More stroke volume=lower heart rate at any given intensity!
  • We stimulate the production of more and larger mitochondria.  (The Bacteria that live in our muscles and produce more ATP!)
  • We train our slow twitch fibers to be more resistant to fatigue.

If you continue to try to push speed you won’t run long enough to stimulate these adaptations.  

Slow down your pace for a couple weeks.–Grind out the miles.

You’ll be running fast again soon!

run a marathon

2013 is the year you will run a marathon!

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run a marathonNow before you start thinking to yourself, “I can’t run a marathon.”  Think about this:

“Anyone can run a marathon.  Oprah Winfrey did it.  Senators, presidents, and movie stars do it all the time.  The hit reality show The Biggest Loser even culminated in a marathon for the contestants who have lost the most weight–as if to make the point that anyone, even the morbidly obese, can become an athlete with enough grit and determination…It’s been said that the marathon has become the ‘everyman’s Everest’.” –The Runner’s World Big Book of Marathon and Half-Marathon Training

If you aren’t currently a runner, you probably think you can’t run a marathon.  You are wrong.  I wouldn’t recommend running one today, but you can run one by the end of the year.

If you are a runner and you say you can’t run a marathon, you say this out of fear.

Anyone can run a marathon and if anyone can run a marathon, even the busiest person can run a half marathon.  Think about it.  The only thing stopping you is your mind.  So make up your mind that this will be your year!  You can do it!

What races are you running this year?

Comment below!  Maybe I’ll see you there!!

Need a training program?

I can help you come up with a customized training program that fits your life and work schedule.  Skype with me and we’ll make the best plan for you!

2013 goals

2013 Goals

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2013 goals

What are your goals for 2013?

I ask about your “2013 goals”, because I’m sure quite possibly you want to improve more than one thing in your life.  Maybe you want to learn to cook, lose weight, make money, etc, etc.  Whatever your goals are, I suggest you also add a physical goal to your list.  A physical goal can’t be to lose weight.  That would be a secondary goal.  I recommend setting a physical goal because when we set physical goals, activity becomes a part of our life.

Weight loss has an end point.  Once you reach your goal, you stop trying to be fit and will most likely end up where you started.  If you set a physical goal there is a much better chance that you will learn to love this activity, making it a part of your life.  This is a lifestyle change that will keep you healthy.

A physical goal could be to take up yoga, climb a mountain, something simple like starting each day with a run, or it could even be taking your running to the next level by running a marathon or half marathon.

 

What will your physical goal be this year?

Seriously I want to know!  Comment below!  I’d love to hear what you plan to do to stay healthy and fit in 2013 and beyond!!