Training

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  • KathleenKP
    KathleenKP Posts: 580 Member
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    I don't think I could ever look at that track again. Were you involved in the running club?

    I had a major league swim coach when I was in high school. I heard that he was "really good", but didn't know why. Now that I know who he is, I wish I had appreciated him more at the time. He's the one who "discovered" my hidden butterfly talent, so I suppose that I do always carry a piece of him in my heart and think of him nearly every swim. I love, love swimming butterfly. Was your physics teacher for you like this coach was for me?
  • likitisplit
    likitisplit Posts: 9,420 Member
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    I had my first day of run club with a coach (my regular trainer, who is a marathon runner). I was the second slowest person. Everyone else has done at least a half-marathon already...even the slowest person, although she walked half of it.

    I ran a 9:33 mile. She said I went out way too fast (how could I not, with all those other runners to keep up with??), and that if I had gone slower, I would have had a much faster mile time. So I need to work on that. I did the first 1/4 mile in 2:02, and it felt like a good pace, I just got wiped out. And nevermind that I desperately needed a bathroom. And Ex-Lax. I need to take that before running club, I guess. Nothing like stirring up the bowels while you are pushing yourself to keep running.

    She also got a cadence rate, and mine was 82 (or 164 counting both legs). By the end of training today, I was up to 89. Everyone said my stride is ultra-long, even before we got to the cadence part. Which is funny, because I had the shortest legs there.

    I'm excited because even during training, I could tell that this is going to make a vast improvement in my running. I had no idea what to expect before I got there.

    That sounds sooo exciting. I've read that there is little correlation between leg length and stride rate. Good job on getting your cadence up.

    On my Tuesday run, I kind of had to pee, so I ran toward a park with a bathroom. And got lost. It's amazing how much I ADORE some of the grungiest facilities in my area.
  • romyhorse
    romyhorse Posts: 694 Member
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    I wasn't interested in running back then, I was a cyclist, I didn't think I was a very good one but looking back at my times I was actually pretty good! It's funny how we don't appreciate these things at the time.
  • likitisplit
    likitisplit Posts: 9,420 Member
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    It always makes me ask what there is in my life *now* that I'll wonder why I didn't appreciate it more in 10 years.
  • KathleenKP
    KathleenKP Posts: 580 Member
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    I was all ready to agree excitedly with Romyhorse, and then Varda piped up. Now I am somber trying to reflect on my current life.
  • bttrthanevr
    bttrthanevr Posts: 615 Member
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    It always makes me ask what there is in my life *now* that I'll wonder why I didn't appreciate it more in 10 years.

    I am trying to be more mindful of my blessings. It is far, far too easy to take things for granted. (Especially when life is proceeding at a dizzying pace!). But I can tell you that I was so in the moment finishing up my run today, and thanking God for my legs, my heart, and my lungs. (And the husband that supports this all consuming habit!)

    Romy, I had a brief bout with my MCL. But I rested it a good three days, still walking a bit, and was able to slowly pick back up gentle brief running after 4 days. I have since been very diligent about warming up with a walk and then stretching, and walking and stretching after. I am also focusing on my running posture. I think it happened because I was slouching as I got tired at the end of my runs. Good luck to you! I am thinking of you and hope it gets sorted out quickly!
  • bttrthanevr
    bttrthanevr Posts: 615 Member
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    I had my first day of run club with a coach ...

    Kathleen! That is so exciting! I can't wait for February to come around again so I can run with a club again!
  • KathleenKP
    KathleenKP Posts: 580 Member
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    And that is the magic of running. I NEVER realized that I was this capable or it was this easy. (I don't mean easy-lazy...well, you know what I mean).

    So right....
  • KathleenKP
    KathleenKP Posts: 580 Member
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    Where is that link for the calculator where you put in a time and it projects out different intervals? I can't find it again.
  • KathleenKP
    KathleenKP Posts: 580 Member
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    I had my first day of run club with a coach ...

    Kathleen! That is so exciting! I can't wait for February to come around again so I can run with a club again!

    I don't know why I didn't realize you had run with a club already? Why did you stop?

    I was really surprised by how excited I was to be there, and by how obvious it was that this is going to help me a lot. You just don't know what you need until you have an opportunity to experience it. I get butterflies thinking about next practice.

    Well, off to run my butterflies away...
  • KathleenKP
    KathleenKP Posts: 580 Member
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    Perfect day to run. Everything was perfect. The weather. I felt strong. I didn´t stop, even when I took sips of water. Or on the hills. There were so many people out this morning, I felt like we were having our own race. Everything was perfect.


    Except my stopwatch.

    WHY, when everything is perfect, did I take FOUR (4!!) minutes longer to run my five mile route.

    Side noteÑ , U´ve messed up my keyboard. It wants me to write in some other language, and all the non'alphabet keys do something different than they are labelled to do. Except the (.), and I figured out where some of them are now located like these ( )

    Oh, just found the ?
  • bttrthanevr
    bttrthanevr Posts: 615 Member
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    I had my first day of run club with a coach ...

    Kathleen! That is so exciting! I can't wait for February to come around again so I can run with a club again!

    I don't know why I didn't realize you had run with a club already? Why did you stop?

    I was really surprised by how excited I was to be there, and by how obvious it was that this is going to help me a lot. You just don't know what you need until you have an opportunity to experience it. I get butterflies thinking about next practice.

    Well, off to run my butterflies away...

    It is a women's running group...runrev.org...that only lasts for 10 weeks each spring culminating in a Cinco de Mayo Race with 1.5mile, 5K, 5 mile,13.1 and 26.2 mile options. Each week starts with a speaker/presentation and then we break into groups according to ability and goals and run! So much fun! Incredible support and sisterhood. I wish it was year round! I look forward to hearing more about your group and all the cool stuff that you are sure to learn.
  • bttrthanevr
    bttrthanevr Posts: 615 Member
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    Perfect day to run. Everything was perfect. The weather. I felt strong. I didn´t stop, even when I took sips of water. Or on the hills. There were so many people out this morning, I felt like we were having our own race. Everything was perfect.


    Except my stopwatch.

    WHY, when everything is perfect, did I take FOUR (4!!) minutes longer to run my five mile route.

    Side noteÑ , U´ve messed up my keyboard. It wants me to write in some other language, and all the non'alphabet keys do something different than they are labelled to do. Except the (.), and I figured out where some of them are now located like these ( )

    Oh, just found the ?

    You must have been running at your optimal 70-80% VO2 max. Just enjoy the fact that the run felt so good and that you are so cardio vascularly (sp) fit! How many people can say that 5 miles feels easy?! You can push harder next time.
  • KathleenKP
    KathleenKP Posts: 580 Member
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    I had my first day of run club with a coach ...

    Kathleen! That is so exciting! I can't wait for February to come around again so I can run with a club again!

    I don't know why I didn't realize you had run with a club already? Why did you stop?

    I was really surprised by how excited I was to be there, and by how obvious it was that this is going to help me a lot. You just don't know what you need until you have an opportunity to experience it. I get butterflies thinking about next practice.

    Well, off to run my butterflies away...

    It is a women's running group...runrev.org...that only lasts for 10 weeks each spring culminating in a Cinco de Mayo Race with 1.5mile, 5K, 5 mile,13.1 and 26.2 mile options. Each week starts with a speaker/presentation and then we break into groups according to ability and goals and run! So much fun! Incredible support and sisterhood. I wish it was year round! I look forward to hearing more about your group and all the cool stuff that you are sure to learn.

    That does sound fun! The speaker part would be GREAT! It will be interesting to see how much you've changed when you go back next February.

    My running group is all sister-hood, too. I love working out with my guy work-out partners (well, all two of them), but it's great to be with a group of *just* women. Like the day in spin class when none of the guys showed up and we were able to discuss our jello-shaking thighs as they were spinning around and around...and the *really* good looking guy who kept disctracting me from the outdoor pool (except he had bad swimming form) that then got us all distracted...
  • likitisplit
    likitisplit Posts: 9,420 Member
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    Perfect day to run. Everything was perfect. The weather. I felt strong. I didn´t stop, even when I took sips of water. Or on the hills. There were so many people out this morning, I felt like we were having our own race. Everything was perfect.


    Except my stopwatch.

    WHY, when everything is perfect, did I take FOUR (4!!) minutes longer to run my five mile route.

    Side noteÑ , U´ve messed up my keyboard. It wants me to write in some other language, and all the non'alphabet keys do something different than they are labelled to do. Except the (.), and I figured out where some of them are now located like these ( )

    Oh, just found the ?

    There's a reason Jeff Galloway trains marathoners to walk at set times. There is a trade-off between speed and stamina - meaning, it's possible to go faster walk/running that it is to just run at a steady pace (at non-elite levels). However, building up your stamina by doing the easy long runs is going to pay off down the road. Also, running easy instead of always pushing will also pay off. Your body naturally judges exercise intensity by level of effort. Running easy teaches your body to feel good at faster speeds. You had a great run.

    Kristin Armstrong wrote "MileMarkers" and also blogs on Runner's World. That "Lean In" aspect of running is a major theme of hers. Love. It.
  • KathleenKP
    KathleenKP Posts: 580 Member
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    I guess I'm a heel striker. Today in our running group, we did 2 x 400's. 100 each - butt kicks, skips, grapevine, then backwards. The backwards run was to be only on our toes, but I still hit my heels. (Though it didn't feel like it.) How we run backwards - she said that is how our form should be when we go forwards.

    I'm loving meeting with the other ladies. I just love my gym. Everything about it. Including the people. I can't believe the difference a gym can make.
  • romyhorse
    romyhorse Posts: 694 Member
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    You're making me jealous Kathleen, wish there was a running club near me. Glad you are enjoying it.
  • KathleenKP
    KathleenKP Posts: 580 Member
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    I don't want you to be jealous!! I thought I'd share some of the drills we do in case anyone else wanted to try them. I'm such a newbie that I only know how to run out my front door, so the drills are helpful.

    The other thing we are supposed to be doing on our own is running hills once during the week. So, for example - run a mile, then hill repeats (pick a hill that takes about 60-90 seconds to run up, then jog or walk back down - do that 5-8 times or so), then another mile or so cool down. She said the hill repeats are especially good to do with someone when you are different speeds because you can hang out on the hill together, but go at your own paces.
  • bttrthanevr
    bttrthanevr Posts: 615 Member
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    Interesting tip on the hill repeats, Kathleen. I have people asking to run with me, but that is hard to do when you have different speed / levels of fitness. The hill repeats are a good solution to that problem. The running backwards is hard to imagine. I think it would be a disaster for me! ( unfortunately my vertigo is back, so running forward without falling is hard enough, LOL!
  • likitisplit
    likitisplit Posts: 9,420 Member
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    Track workouts are also good for running together without having to keep up/lag behind.