Run4PRs

How the Heat Will Start to impact your training

It feels so great to be running outside again. So many runners are enjoying the nice warm weather, but soon it will become hot. Many athletes will experience a slow down in the upcoming months. We will be chatting today about the impacts of the heat on your training and what you can do to make the most out of your training this summer

Sun Impact: Most people don’t think of this one first. The impact on the sun is a huge energy drainer for most people

What are some ways you can avoid the sun?

Should you avoid out and back routes?

How to find shade? Is it important?

What is the best time to run & what time of day should you avoid?

Temp impact: Running in the heat is harder on your body. Your body has to work harder in the heat and humidity to run the same paces it would in cooler weather

The humidity/dew point is a huge factor

What temp do you start to see a slow down?

Should you modify paces?

Should you keep a journal?

Should you go time based vs mileage based?

Hydration: Hydration is now more important than ever before.  You may be able to get away with not hydrating in cooler temps but not now!

How often should you be drinking water?

What are your tips for carrying fuel

Should you do electrolytes?

Should you take salt pills?

At the end of the day, the heat impacts everyone differently. You need to slow down and do what works for you in the summer. Don’t compare because the heat barely effects some runners.

Weekly mileage can be a fun way to track training volume. This is often one of the first questions you are asked when starting a new training program or chatting with runners. How many miles per week do you typically run? As a running coach, we work with people who run 3 miles per week all the way up to 80 miles per week. Many elite runners run 100+ miles per week. Most competitive recreational runners who place in races on the weekend or qualify for boston run anywhere from 25-60 miles per week. This is a wide range of mileage. Today we will be chatting about how to build your mileage & how to know if you even should build your mileage!

How does an athlete decide it is the right time to increase mileage?

Looking for those under trained ‘diamonds in the rough’

What happens when they peak in HS/MS == is that a thing?

How do you approach those who have been overtrained

New to the sport

Not feeling challenged/feeling too easy

Same mileage for a while and staying around the same fitness

Responded well to increases in the past

No history of injury/bone issues

Fitness history indicates

Do athletes ever reach a point where they can no longer increase mileage?

As an athlete ages or has life stress, should they ever consider reducing volume in mileage?

Run less run faster approach? Why does this sometimes work?

The running less vs the high mileage approach are total opposites but they are both accepted: why?

Consistency is the most important part of training

Is it a risk to increase your mileage?

Why is more not always better?

Why is more sometimes better?

At the end of the day: it depends on the athlete!

When to start training for Fall Marathons/Races

Spring is here! We are approaching the summer months, and runners are getting excited for their fall races. Actually we are going to have a TON more fall marathons this year because races are postponed!! Did you know we are less than 6 months away from the Chicago Marathon?! 6 months may seem like a long time, but it will be here before you know it. It is important to start training and building your base now so that you can spend the bulk of your marathon training cycle crushing workouts and getting in the best shape possible.

What are some of the downfalls you see happen when athletes wait until June to start training for a marathon?

What sort of mileage or weekly plan should someone have now about 5.5 months away from Chicago?

Is there such a thing as ‘peaking too soon’ many athletes will put off training until

How should you feel in June/July because they don’t want to peak too soon? Is this generally because they overtrained in the past?

What are some ways people can prevent overtraining because I know this is very common?

What should the long run look like right now and how do we safely build it?

What are signs you may be doing too much?

Should athletes be looking for a time trial race or other races later in the year within their marathon build cycle?

How do you select the right training plan for you?

Suggestions for someone who is looking for a fall marathon or half: what are things to look for?

Transitioning Back to Outdoor Running

Spring is here! It is that amazing time of year where the days are getting longer, the sun is starting to shine, the snow is starting to melt, and the temperatures are rising just enough where we start to venture off our treadmills onto the roads again. Some athletes in the upper north will spend 2-4 months running 80% of their runs on the treadmill! We chatted earlier in the winter about the pros/cons of running on the treadmill. The biggest factor at play is that treadmill running is different than outside running. Making the transition to outdoor running again can be a tricky time for athletes, and we want to make sure we do it gradually to avoid injury.

How is the stride/gait on the treadmill different from on the road?

Hamstring use ‘keeping up with the belt’ vs pushing off the road

Lateral movement/no turns on the treadmill

Harder surface outside/ treadmill is cushioned

Wind/Hills/Sun

How should someone start the transition back into running more outside?

What is the best way to gradually transition off the treadmill?

What should someone do to ensure they don’t get injured outside?

If something feels off or harder - what should you do?

How long does it usually take to fully transition back to 100% outside running?

Will it feel harder outside running for some people?

Will the find/elements be a factor for awhile?

Any advice for people who will be racing shortly after making this transition?

Spring is here! But this year is weird! Almost all races have been cancelled. Your training plans may have been derailed. Many parents have had to switch their schedules with schools being out of school. Our lives have had to change a lot in these past few weeks, and sometimes that means our training changes too. Today we are chatting about ways to stay fit and continue to stay motivated to exercise during this time of change

Special Podcast: "What to do when races get cancelled due to COVID-19"

Typically March is an exciting time of year, it usually marks the start of spring marathon season and the racing season for most. This year everything is different due to the CoronaVirus pandemic. Races everywhere have been postponed or cancelled. Even the Boston Marathon, America’s oldest marathon has announced they are moving it’s race to September 14th. We’ve never seen anything like this in terms of so many races being cancelled. We hope this is a once in a lifetime dilemma. Today we’d like to discuss how to handle the disappointment of your race being cancelled as well as provide some tips for what to do next in terms of your own training and future races.

Easy running is difficult for many runners to grasp the concept. Running 2-3 min per mile slower than your 5k race pace can feel very ‘slow’ for runners. It is hard to trust that slowing down is the best way to get faster. There is always an equation of stress + rest = growth. Easy running targets the aerobic system which is the system we want to improve on because it is what is used during 99.9% of the marathon race. We want to make sure we stress the right systems to improve.

What if your HR is not high?

What if HR is lower on easy days?

Tapering or in recovery can I go faster?

How many miles per week do elite runners typically run

What pace are the bulk of their miles ran at in comparison to their marathon pace?

Why is it important to not run too fast on your easy days?

What if your marathon pace feels easy?

How come it feels like anything from Threshold to recovery pace is ‘easy’?

Do you think people often think anything that isn’t using the anaerobic zone is easy?

How can you calculate your easy zone?

Is there such a thing as going too slow on your easy days?

How can you ensure you are going slow enough?

How often do you see this as something that holds athletes back from reaching their potential?

Running is an aerobic sport. Any athlete who has a previous background in aerobic sports like distance swimming, biking, or soccer will have an aerobic base already established more than someone who was inactive. Speed and endurance are two pieces to the distance running puzzle. Some athletes can crush out a super fast mile time but then struggle with longer distance events like the half marathon or full marathon. Today we will be chatting about training specifically to gain endurance and carry your speed across a longer distance

Are people who have been running or playing sports for longer at an advantage when it comes to training for longer distance running?

How long does it typically take to build up to the half marathon distance?

How long does it typically take to build up to the full marathon distance?

Do you think it may take longer if someone tries to go ‘race pace’ on their long runs?

What if it feels weird to slow down?

What are your tips for slowing down on your easy/long runs and not losing your mind?

What are the best workouts for someone who is trying to build endurance?

What would the ideal athlete week of training look like for someone who is building into a half marathon training cycle

How do you know you are training at the right paces?

How do you learn how to trust the process?

How long does it take to full develop your aerobic abilities?

Is mileage building important?

45. Stress variables in training & how to balance them

When developing a plan it is important to keep in mind the variables of stress at play. There is an art to building a training plan for each athlete. It is like a puzzle you must solve. You cannot have too much stress, but you want to stress the right variables at the right time to lead to a specific outcome. The variables at play are long runs, mileage, workouts, racing, and so many more. In addition to the training stress variables each athlete also has different life stressors that will impact their training cycle like work, school, kids, health issues. Today we are doing a deep dive into the stress variables and advice for getting the most out of your training

How do you assess an athlete’s stress variables when they first start training?

How much stress can you add on a new athlete at once?

Should you increase more than one variable at a time?

Does your background in the sport play a difference? New vs experienced runner?

How often do you increase the stress variables?

What is the most important one?

Are there sometimes you break rules like the 10% mileage increase? Why?

If someone misses a workout, does it impact the rest of the training stress for the week? How do you manage missing days?

How do you balance the stress variables in training with the life stress athletes may have?

Long runs, mileage, workouts: what are the more important ones when you first develop an athletes plan for a marathon?

We are often asked what workouts are best or what is the best weekly mileage to run. The answer is simple: use the progressive overload principle! What is that? The idea that you are starting where you are at with mileage and workouts then slowly building micro stress over a period of time to lead your body to have specific adaptations. Each training plan should be different because each athlete has a unique starting point. You need to assess your background and goals before you jump into training training plan

Have you ever jumped into a training plan because you liked the way it looked because it looked super hard? What happened?

Have you ever been given a training plan that looked pretty basic/boring but been amazing at how much improvement you had?

Why does the progressive overload principle work on our bodies?

Why is it a bad idea to jump all in on a super challenging training plan?

Will you see results from massive overload?

What will happen overtime from progressive approach vs a massive overload?

When people refer to training smarter not harder is this apart of this approach?

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