Run4PRs

SETTING RACE DAY GOALS 💥

Podcast Episode #153

.

REFLECTION QUESTIONS:

✅ How many days were missed in your training block?

✅ Were you sick a lot?

✅ How long have you been running in total?

✅ What have your last few years of running look like?

✅ Running is a mental, physical and emotional sport

✅ Where is your head at?

✅ Are you EXCITED about the race and having goals?

✅ Have you had any injuries?

✅ Do you thrive off of pressure or get anxious with time goals?

✅ What was my last race at this distance like?

✅ What were my races like in the lead up to this race?

✅ What were my key workouts like in the training cycle?

.

Additionally, having multiple goals is important! You need more than one goal to push you through your race if you’re having an off day. We HOPE the stars align perfectly for you, but the reality is that won’t happen every time. Set yourself up for success by having four separate goals!

.

A GOAL:

⭐ If all the stars align

⭐ Best possible weather

⭐ Best possible pacing

⭐ No fueling issues

⭐ Realistic based on your training

.

B GOAL:

👍 A very good performance

👍 Keeps you focused even though it’s not your best day ever

👍 If you make a minor pacing error

👍 Weather is a little off

.

C GOAL:

👌 An alright performance

👌 Keeps you focused on an off-day

👌 If you make some pacing errors

👌 Weather is not good

.

D GOAL:

✅ An off-day

✅ Keeps you focused to get to the finish line as fast as possible

✅ Can be a non-time based goal like finishing strong, not walking, etc.

.

👉 Do you set up multiple goals for races? Need help figuring out a pacing plan and goals? We do FREE CONSULTATIONS! Head over to the link in our bio. www.run4prs.com

GET THE EXTRA EDGE ON RACE DAY

Improve Your Mental Toughness 💪

Podcast Episode #152 🎙

.

TOP 3 Ways to Improve 👇👇👇

FIGHTING NEGATIVE THOUGHTS

Have you ever thought:👉

❌"Should I really go “x” amount of miles today?”

❌ "It's just too hilly, too hot, too cold, etc."

❌ "What's the point of going out and doing this run?"

Thoughts can get out of control if you let them

Instead of allowing your thoughts to adjust your actions, let them just "be". See your thoughts as neutral rather than negative. You don’t even have to make your thoughts positive

Your thoughts are simply just thoughts that will come and go

.

LIMITING BELIEFS

The story that you tell yourself is so important

❌"I’m better at speed and not long distances."

❌"I can't run negative splits. My body doesn't work like that."

That will be true if you think it

Your body follows your mind. Your only fighting chance is if you believe you have one! 👊

.

GETTING UNCOMFORTABLE

Whatever is challenging for you in training: DO THAT!

✅Doing different types of training

✅Running in the rain if you don’t like running in the rain. Yes you can move your run but ask yourself why? Are you trying to make it easier for yourself? Rethink that decision!

✅You need the challenge to get better

Mental toughness in running translates into mental toughness in life 💪

.

Do you need help improving your mental toughness? We have an online course called Commit60 that focuses on this for 60 days! Check it out on our website

👉 www.run4prs.com

.

#teamrun4prs #run4prs #igrunner #commit60 #mentaltraining

Coach Meghan Roth! Meghan has been a coach with Run4Prs for 4 years. Before coaching with us, she was a personal trainer and coach for several years at a big box gym. She ran her first marathon 14 years ago and has since shaved a significant amount of time off and qualified for the Olympic Trails in the marathon. In this episode we will discuss her 2020 Olympic Trails Marathon experience, training during pregnancy during the 2020 pandemic and her recovery after a C-section delivery in December 2020. Meghan was in peak fitness going into the Boston 2021 marathon after crushing a 1:20 half marathon just 4 weeks before Boston. She suffered cardiac arrest during the 2021 Boston Marathon and stayed at a hospital in Boston for a week involving surgery implanting a medical device. Meghan shares her experience at Boston and what her recovery has been like. 6 months since the incident, Meghan is back to running cleared by her doctors and training again. Hear what she hopes for her future and CPR awareness in this episode

It’s not just the Newton Hills, the whole course has rolling hills! Try not to obsess over pacing too much and focusing more on effort. It is a crowded race so make sure you plan accordingly. We want to make sure to stay properly hydrated and fueling during the race. It can be shoulder to shoulder runners for several miles but don’t let that be an excuse to miss those first few aid stations. The Newton hills are about as hard as people make them out to be. However, there is also a lot of downhill and recovery in Newton between hills. Play to your strengths on the hills. You want to save something for those final 4 miles. The crowds will carry you home to the finish line regardless of how your day is going. Www.Run4prs.com

For a free 7 day trial you can fill out the form at www.run4prs.com 

Assessing your strengths and weaknesses is key for building self awareness and also knowing what you should work on! When we know where we could use a little work, we can channel our energy to that area of life. This is important for your personal life as well as for your running. You will be able to better reach your potential when you know what direction to go. We have 3 areas of runner traits we are going to address in this episode as well as ways to turn your weaknesses into your strengths. For more information on this we have a commit60 mental training toolkit on our website that goes into this in depth.

Weaknesses

1- impatient- you want results right away, you speed up at the end of runs

Make yourself wait

Meditation/mindfulness

Deep breathing

Yoga

Read

Do a puzzle

Accept what you cannot change & practice empathy

2- Too negatives/self critical- you beat yourself up, perfectionist tendencies, unable to see positives, can lead to black or white thinking

Mindfulness

Recognize your triggers

Come up with neutral statements instead

Try a gratitude journal

3- inconsistent- lacking organization or discipline

Routine

Run streak

Accountability buddy

Building a habit/habit stacking

4-insecure- doesn’t believe in themselves, races workouts, pushing it on easy days

Practice self care: nutrition, sleep, boundaries

Maybe you always wanted a coach or to buy a certain pair of shoes: do it!

Step away from toxic people, spend time with people who make you feel good

Write down a list of things you are good at

5- Lack of experience- pacing, grows with time, technical

Get experience

Sign up for races

Hire a coach

Try new workouts

6-over analyzing- focusing too much on the details

What do you over analyze?

Weekly mileage (run 49.5 miles one week)

Paces (don’t hit your paces)

Run streaks (break it)

Certain workouts (eliminate something you think is super important- IE yassos 800)

How many 20 milers (run 18-19 milers)

Focus on trusting the big picture

We are doing a little different format today interviewing a Run4prs coach! Many of our coaches were interviewed back in the beginning episodes of this podcast and we wanted to bring it back! Kat talks about her journey into running from 10+ min pace half marathon to 3:16 debut marathon. We also chatted about navigating a major life change in careers while continuing to train at a high level. Www.Run4prs.com for a free 7 day trial

www.run4prs.com free 7 day trial! Podcast #147: ALL ABOUT RUNNING SHOES 👟

✅ How to Find the Perfect Shoe

✅ How to Begin a Shoe Rotation

✅ Carbon-Plated Shoes: Should You Wear Them?

.

There are three categories of running shoes:👇

✅ Neutral: Good for little to no ankle rotation inward (pronation)

✅ Stability: Good for mild to moderate pronation

✅ Motion Control: Bulkier stability shoe for pronators

.

There are also different stack heights and heel to toe drops in shoes that can make a difference depending on if you’re injury-prone in the hips and glutes or calves and ankles (more posts on that later this week!) 🤩

.

THE BOTTOM LINE IS:👇

You want your shoe to maximize your body’s mechanics and help you stay healthy

.

HOW TO FIND THE PERFECT SHOE:

✅ Going to a local running store is a great option to figure out the right shoe for you. They will have you do a series of tests and learn more about your running history to figure out what shoe is best for you. A step up from this would be a true gait analysis done with a physical therapist

.

Now that you have your perfect shoe, should you have MULTIPLE shoes for different runs?

Many runners will have:

✅ Faster, lighter weight racing shoe for workouts and races

✅ More cushioned, forgiving shoe on easy recovery runs

.

WHAT SHOE FOR WORKOUTS AND RACES?

✅ Lighter weight shoes/carbon-plated shoes

✅ 6-9 oz for carbon-plated shoes no matter the brand. They are all very lightweight

✅ High stack height to help propel you forward

✅ More cushioning on many of the carbon-plated shoes that help decrease fatigue especially for longer races

.

THE FACT IS:👇

You still have to do the training. Faster racing shoes don’t work unless you do

.

More posts to come this week all about shoes! Stay tuned 👂

.

⭐️ Listen to our podcast anywhere you listen to podcasts

⭐️ Want to try out coaching? Head to the link in our bio! FREE 7 DAY TRIAL www.run4prs.com

⭐️ Follow us for more training tips & motivation @run4prs

.

AEROBIC VS. ANAEROBIC:

BY RACE DISTANCE 🏃🏽

Podcast Episode #146🎙

.

If you're training for the 1 mile all the way up to the marathon and beyond (which is most of us amateur runners!), you should (in most cases) be training your AEROBIC system more than your ANAEROBIC system 👊

.

✅ AEROBIC SYSTEM: This is the predominant system used for races longer than 3 minutes. This system produces energy via OXYGEN. The aerobic system doesn’t create nearly as much power as other systems, but its capacity is virtually endless

👉 WORKOUTS FOR THIS SYSTEM = progression runs, tempo runs, long runs, cross training

.

✅ ANAEROBIC SYSTEM: This is the predominant system used for races less than 3 minutes. This system does NOT need oxygen to produce energy. It uses energy stored in the cells. There are limited amounts of stored energy in the cells, which is why you can only use this system for very short periods of time

👉 WORKOUTS FOR THIS SYSTEM = interval/rep workouts, short fartleks, hill workouts

.

➖ 1 Mile: 80% aerobic, 20% anaerobic

➖ 5k: 84% aerobic , 16% anaerobic

➖ 10k: 90% aerobic, 10% anaerobic

➖ Half Marathon: 97.5% aerobic, 2.5% anaerobic

➖ Marathon: 97.5% aerobic, 2.5% anaerobic

.

You can see why it is more helpful to train your AEROBIC system for the 1 mile to the marathon and up 💪 while also doing SOME anaerobic workouts to improve power and speed!

.

(**This research was done by Paul Gastin in 2001 → “Energy System Interaction and Relative Contribution During Maximal Exercise”**)

.

BENEFITS OF HILL WORKOUTS 🏔

Podcast episode #145 🎙

.

Hill workouts will help build you into the runner you want to be! Everyone wants great form, strength, and confidence, so add some hill workouts to your training routine for big improvements:

.

✅ Improves form: It’s difficult to run uphill with bad form! Running hills naturally gets you up on your forefeet, forces you to lean forward, and requires you to use your arms efficiently and effectively. They also force you to shorten your stride and increase your cadence, which is a big part of ideal running form. Running hills, and therefore using proper form, will improve your neuromuscular connections so your body remembers what good form is and feels like!

.

✅ Increases your power: When you run hills, you’re fighting gravity and the grade of the hill which builds up strength

.

✅ Easier on your body with similar benefits of speedwork: Hill repeats are easier on your body than speedwork on flat terrain because you aren’t able to reach top speeds going uphill, and faster running is hard on your body. But you are able to practice the same fundamentals of speedwork during hill workouts (i.e. hill workouts and speedwork require similar efforts). This is easier on your joints, connective tissue, and muscles because you’re going slower!

.

✅ Allows you to tackle any racecourse with confidence: You often hear people describe certain runners as “strength” runners, which basically just means they are able to run well on any terrain and hills don’t beat them up as much as the more “metronome” type runners who do really well on flat courses. Become a STRENGTH runner by adding hills into your runs! You’ll also become better at pacing any course with hill training under your belt

.

HOW TO ADD HILLS TO YOUR TRAINING:

✅ Add them into your easy, long, and tempo runs

-Rolling terrain, bridges, etc.

-Focus on keeping an even effort rather than even pace

✅ Do hill-specific workouts in addition to adding them into your other runs

-30 seconds-5 min hill repeats

-Can use steep hills

-Can use stairs

-Can use treadmill 6% grade or higher

.

Want to reach your potential as a runner? Click the link in our bio. www.run4prs.com ⭐️

.

MOBILITY, STABILITY & BREATHWORK FOR RUNNERS

Podcast Episode #144 🎙

.

DID YOU KNOW: Mobility and balance decline naturally as we age. It’s important to incorporate mobility & stability exercises into our routine to counterbalance the natural decline we will inevitably face. We know, we know– it’s not the most FUN topic and it’s hard to add another thing to our training plate. But these exercises don’t need to take a ton of time! You can get the benefits with just a few minutes a few times per week 👍

.

MOBILITY DRILLS:👇

Dynamic warm-up before a run. Takes 3 minutes to do! 15 seconds per exercise

Examples: Marching leg lifts, scoops, walking lunges, quick feet/quick foot strikes, A skips, B skips, high knee carioca

(for visuals of this, please see our YouTube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5lrOCSUoR9o)

.

YOGA FOR STABILITY:👇

Many yoga poses require you to be on unequal footing. Yoga also requires you to hold different positions that you aren’t typically in. By working through yoga poses, you may be able to improve your stability overall

.

YOGA FOR BREATHWORK:👇

The breathwork needed for yoga acts as a nervous system reset. Races and hard workouts can induce some level of the “fight or flight” response and it can take a few days to come down from that, thus limiting your recovery. Through breathwork & yoga, you can calm your body down after hard workouts and races and get back into “rest and digest” mode

.

REMINDER: While these types of exercises can help prevent and eliminate pain while running/injuries, if you are currently injured: Please see a physical therapist or sports medicine doctor 👩🏾‍⚕️

.

Follow us for more training tips @run4prs

.

#teamrun4prs #run4prs #igrunner #instarunner #runnersofig #womensrunningcommunity #yogaforrunners #mobilityforrunners #mobilitydrills