I hear from people all the time that they would like to run or do something but just can't seem to find the time. Here's my answer...Nobody has the time- it is making something a priority and sticking with a plan.
Here's my typical day- wake up at 5 or earlier if my two year old decides we need to party
Drop off kid #1 at daycare, get kid #2 on bus.
Go to work.
Get done with work and do random errand.
Get kid #2 off bus, head into city to get kid #1 from daycare.
Go to gym and run
Get home, Cook dinner, wrangle children/dogs/husband
Get kids to bed
Do school work
Go to bed.
Seem crazy? Maybe. However, I know what my goals are and I adjust my life and training accordingly. Anyone can run, it is all about putting in the effort to RUN WELL.
One of my favorite quickie workouts is as follows...(I do this on the treadmill since I am usually pressed for time...)
Warm up .25 miles, .25 mile hill
Crank up speed to a 'fast' run or approximately 10k pace for .5 miles
Repeat- .25 easy, .25 easy with incline, .5 fast pace until you hit 5 miles or more. Then do a cool down of whatever you need- I typically do at least 1/2 mile.
That's it. Nothing too exciting, but a good way to get in a workout if you are pressed for time. The miles will click by pretty quickly because you're constantly doing different things.
Enjoy and Happy Running
Monday, October 26, 2015
Thursday, October 15, 2015
What is next....
What happens when you are at the end of racing season, but OF COURSE you NEED to keep running? Well, that is sometimes a tough one.
Here's the deal, even though you may not have a plan for quite a few months, it is a great time to try some new stuff. During the winter I am typically banished to the infinite abyss of treadmill miles, which I hate, but I have also grown to love. On a typical week, my workouts scale back to about 5 runs, with 1-2 being something with effort- by this I mean something that is a little more difficult they just straight runnin'.
Here's a pretty good example of an indoor workout week....
Sunday- outside long run 6-10 miles
Monday- treadmill easy 4-5 miles
Tuesday- treadmill workout or track workout- .25 miles easy, .25 miles at easy pace with incline or hill, .5 miles hard- repeat for 5 miles and include 1 mile warm up and 1 mile cool down
Wednesday- easy 4-5, or cross train
Thursday- 4-5
Friday- off or easy
Saturday- Cross train
The idea behind this is that during the non-racing season you are still building or hanging on to your base, but with a little bit of quickness. Then when you are about 30 days out from an important race (typically not the first race, use that one as a test of fitness) you can ramp back up to two workouts per week and 5-6 running days without the fear on injury. Also, the treadmill and winter running is certainly more difficult, so take into account that you will inevitably miss days due to illness or snow (gross....) without stressing about what's coming next.
Happy Running :)
Here's the deal, even though you may not have a plan for quite a few months, it is a great time to try some new stuff. During the winter I am typically banished to the infinite abyss of treadmill miles, which I hate, but I have also grown to love. On a typical week, my workouts scale back to about 5 runs, with 1-2 being something with effort- by this I mean something that is a little more difficult they just straight runnin'.
Here's a pretty good example of an indoor workout week....
Sunday- outside long run 6-10 miles
Monday- treadmill easy 4-5 miles
Tuesday- treadmill workout or track workout- .25 miles easy, .25 miles at easy pace with incline or hill, .5 miles hard- repeat for 5 miles and include 1 mile warm up and 1 mile cool down
Wednesday- easy 4-5, or cross train
Thursday- 4-5
Friday- off or easy
Saturday- Cross train
The idea behind this is that during the non-racing season you are still building or hanging on to your base, but with a little bit of quickness. Then when you are about 30 days out from an important race (typically not the first race, use that one as a test of fitness) you can ramp back up to two workouts per week and 5-6 running days without the fear on injury. Also, the treadmill and winter running is certainly more difficult, so take into account that you will inevitably miss days due to illness or snow (gross....) without stressing about what's coming next.
Happy Running :)
Thursday, October 8, 2015
Tempo Thursday
This Thursday is Tempo Thursday. Sorry to change things up a bit, but here goes nothing...
The tempo run is something that is talked about in running and suggested in training plans for all distances, but it's an elusive creature to most runners. The run down of the tempo is that it is a kind of 'race simulation' and it is supposed to make you feel as though you are working at a pace that will be close to what your goal for a given race is. The tempo is particularly great for longer races (10k plus) because those races require running at a certain pace for a long period of time, while in 5k's you tend to run more of an 'all-out' kind of race. This is not to say that you don't 'pace' yourself for a 5k or 5 miler, however, there is essentially less time at pace and more time at the initial 'get off the line' and 'finishing kick'.
So here's how to do a tempo-style workout for let's say a half marathon at 8:00 pace...
Run 1 mile warm up (or 2 miles, or whatever you need to get yourself going)
Run at approximately 8:05-8:15 pace for at least 6.5 miles (approximately half of the distance of the actual race) while trying to more to keep the miles at a consistent time rather than digging a hole with early fast miles and them slacking on the later miles. It is better to run the first few at 8:05 and then if you have to slow down to do so on the back half of the workout. The idea behind the tempo is to make the goal speed (or slightly slower) your 'natural' pace rather than struggling for the entire race.
If you are able to, do another set of about 3.25 (or half-ish) of what you did before with maybe a mile jog/active rest in between. Try again, to keep the same pace of 8:05-8:15. These last few miles should be difficult. I always try to end a workout like this with some striders, 100m easy sprints, or hill sprints (find a hill that is about 50 meters and run up and down about 10-15 times).
The tempo run is something that is talked about in running and suggested in training plans for all distances, but it's an elusive creature to most runners. The run down of the tempo is that it is a kind of 'race simulation' and it is supposed to make you feel as though you are working at a pace that will be close to what your goal for a given race is. The tempo is particularly great for longer races (10k plus) because those races require running at a certain pace for a long period of time, while in 5k's you tend to run more of an 'all-out' kind of race. This is not to say that you don't 'pace' yourself for a 5k or 5 miler, however, there is essentially less time at pace and more time at the initial 'get off the line' and 'finishing kick'.
So here's how to do a tempo-style workout for let's say a half marathon at 8:00 pace...
Run 1 mile warm up (or 2 miles, or whatever you need to get yourself going)
Run at approximately 8:05-8:15 pace for at least 6.5 miles (approximately half of the distance of the actual race) while trying to more to keep the miles at a consistent time rather than digging a hole with early fast miles and them slacking on the later miles. It is better to run the first few at 8:05 and then if you have to slow down to do so on the back half of the workout. The idea behind the tempo is to make the goal speed (or slightly slower) your 'natural' pace rather than struggling for the entire race.
If you are able to, do another set of about 3.25 (or half-ish) of what you did before with maybe a mile jog/active rest in between. Try again, to keep the same pace of 8:05-8:15. These last few miles should be difficult. I always try to end a workout like this with some striders, 100m easy sprints, or hill sprints (find a hill that is about 50 meters and run up and down about 10-15 times).
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