April 2018 Monthly Running Challenge

girlinahat · April 2018

April

1st - 6.5 mile walk with a friend
2nd - 3 mile walk to a friends for healthy salad, followed by chocolate, cake and cognac......
3rd - 2.2m morning run
4th - Yin Yoga - different teacher, too much downward facing dog for my liking!!
5th. Pi run - 3.14miles of lovelines. then in the evening - TRUMPET lesson!!!!!!! wow!, I made a noise! success!!! I CAN do this!
6th - Banff Mountain Film Festival for inspiration
8th - 5.5m run along the beach and jumping in the waves. Very wet feet as usual.
10th - 3.6m
11th - Yin yoga - usual teacher. Normal service is resumed.
12th - sprint intervals.

Notes
still sticking nicely to the plan, and my body seems to be thanking me for it. Probably need to start thinking about getting more miles in, but would rather do that by feel and keep my body healthy. If I have to walk most of my marathon in June so be it.

My first ever Sprint intervals this morning. 30seconds sprint followed by 2 minute walks. Did okay, was tempted to push a bit further but the minute I did I got out of breath. Had a brief pause while I stopped to talk to the Elderly Gentleman I see out walking - was concerned because he'd stopped for a bit (he had a stroke last year) but he told me he was fine and he usually had a short stop there.

Hoping to go to Running Club as well tonight (after getting everyone to leave work so I can get in some trumpet practice), so my body will be screaming. I had an email from my gym asking where I was too.......

Happy running folks!!

Races -
24th Feb - Back to Black Night Run 10k DNS
10th March - Larmer 10 (miles) DNS
18th March - Forest of Dean Spring Half Marathon Cancelled due to snow - deferred until 2019
23rd June - Giant's Head Marathon

greyparks206 · April 2018

@girlinahat I won’t run on ibuprofen. I took it last night. Feel back to normal this morning, thank goodness! I am about to do my morning yoga. I’ll see how I feel this afternoon. If my knees start hurting again, then I’ll abort my planned run. Such a weird thing that they hurt so bad out of nowhere yesterday and feel fine today!

polskagirl01 · April 2018

PastorVincent wrote: »

The one and only picture of me from the race:

Except for the shoes, EVERYTHING you can see I am wearing is Under Armour. Someday I need to be cool like @JessicaMcB . and get a sponsorship. I obviously own the brand

You look cold! I'm not sponsorship material, but I do like to race in shirts I got from other races - gives me confidence

Wen2Run · April 2018

midwesterner85 wrote: »

zdyb23456 wrote: »

Wen2Run wrote: »

Total - 27.5miles
Target - 40 miles
To Complete - 12.5 miles

1/4 - Rest
2/4 - Rest
3/4 - Rest
4/4 - 4.1 miles
5/4 - 4.9 miles
6/4 - 4 miles
7/4 - 3.1 miles. First park run with my daughter
7/4 - 5.22 miles. Evening run.
8/4 - 2.01 miles
9/4 - Rest
10/4 - 4.21 miles

Miles nicely ticking along at the moment. The hardest thing is that I am doing low heart rate training, which means my average pace is at least 4 minutes a mile slower than I would normally run! Means even 4 miles is a long run in terms of time!

Keep up the good work all.

Can I ask what the purpose is? I've seen people mentioning staying in certain heartrate zones, but I'm not entirely sure why.

@zdyb23456 I'm not sure if this is what @Wen2Run is doing, but there are some who follow Dr. Phil Maffetone's MAF (Maximal Aerobic Function) training techniques. It's a formula using 180-age and further adjusted for fitness level, medications, and medical conditions (maybe I'm missing something else). I haven't had patience to keep going for more than a couple months at such a slow pace, but I made good progress during that time even. I will probably go back to that at some point because as soon as I started going faster, progress definitely slowed down. The idea is to improve aerobic capacity by running at your MAF heart rate, which will seem slow for awhile (months).

@Midwester I am currently following the Maffetone method of training

. Which means that all of my runs should be at a HR of (180-37) then an extra -10 because I take medication every day and have quite a history of injury.

As @Midwester said, the idea is that you train your aerobic system to be more efficient because that is the system which burns fat as a fuel source. In endurance running you are going to be relying on that for 99% of your fuel.

So currently, I'm running at a slow average pace of 14 minute miles to keep my HR below 133, but as my aerobic system improves, I will have to increase my pace to keep my HR at 133. Which then in turn means that I can go further, in the same time for the same over all energy output.

I'm currently training for back to back 37.5 milers, so speed isn't really my concern, what I want to be able to do is run for 6 or 7 hours non-stop without injury and without hitting the wall.

You will often hear people mention training in zones 1 to 6 for varying intensity but the Maffetone method, just uses two zones aerobic (MAF and below) and anaerobic (MAF+) All training should be done aerobic until you have done some serious base building and then you can work anaerobic training into it.

But it is hard, which sounds really strange but running slow when you know you can run faster is a killer. I have to remove all pace and speed info off my watch for training because seeing the slow paced annoyed me. It's a total ego killer, people will pass you all the time on a run. I clocked up a 2 hour 8 miler at the end of march, that was probably 40 minutes longer than it would normally take me.

Teerai · April 2018

Teresa502 · April 2018

kristinegift wrote: »

I definitely didn't expect to keep up with that tempo pace today, but it actually felt pretty maintainable. I think that going after work + with good company helped a lot. But I'm also very surprised how quickly my fitness is returning after so many mostly-sedentary months (ahem....5). In just a few weeks, everything from general ease of my runs to my heart rate to my daily energy level have all improved. Why on earth did I thumb my nose at running for so many (cold, dark, wintry) months?!

I'm that way with eating. I feel so much better when I'm eating healthy food (instead of having cake for dinner) but getting to that place is so hard some times! Refined sugar is my crack!

Teresa502 · April 2018

@juliet3455 – What amazing scenery at the Emperors Challenge. Loved the doggie running in the video clip!
@jele30 – Welcome! I love that you stepped out of your comfort zone and shared your story to help a total stranger. Doesn’t surprise me that you are a runner.

No run for me today other than the running in bootcamp this evening. It usually starts with at least a half mile jog to warm things up. If it isn't too strenuous today, I may go for a run afterwards.

ddmom0811 · April 2018

@jele30 - agree with Teresa502- thanks for helping a fellow runner! and Welcome!

Where did this amazing April weather come from for Orlando? It's so unusual and I am so thankful! A nice 60 degrees with no humidity (or hardly any!) Normally by now we have 95% humidity when I run at 4:30 am! So another 5 mile awesome run due to weather! Got to rest tomorrow so I don't suck at my Saturday cycling group.

4/1 - 3.65 miles to Buckingham Palace, + strength training W9-B
4/2 -Tabatas in the hotel gym
4/3 - 5 miles Hyde Park
4/4 - strength training + 1 mile treadmill
4/5 - 5 miles Hyde Park - last day in London
4/6 - rest/travel day
4/7 - 4 miles on treadmill
4/8 - 25 miles cycling + strength training W9-C
4/9 - 5 miles
4/10 - strength training w9-D
4/11 - 5 miles + strength training W10-A
4/12 - 5 miles
4/13 - rest day

cburke8909 · April 2018

just a 5 today

BruinsGal_91 · April 2018

Up to 24.2 miles so far this month which is a little bit behind schedule. Got a long run planned for this afternoon after I've been to the dentist. Then on Saturday it's a parkrun, and on Sunday I'll probably do my 10k loop which takes in Heartbreak Hill so I can have a look at the marathon course.

2018 races completed
1/21/18 Dreamfar 10k, Sharon MA (age-group 5/23)
2/10/18 Cupid's Chase 5k, Wakefield MA (age-group 4/24)
3/10/18 Medway Shamrock Shuffle 5k, Medway MA (age-group 3/25)
4/08/18 Holly Club Hustle 5k, Wrentham MA (4th overall, 2nd woman, 2nd in age group)

2018 registered races
5/13/18 Strivers Mothers' Day 5k, Natick MA
5/19/18 Martha's Vineyard Half Marathon, Oak Bluffs MA (everyone runs a half marathon on their wedding anniversary, right?)
6/21/18 J P Morgan Corporate Challenge 3.5m, Boston MA
9/29/18 Stride for Healthy Communities 5k, Wakefield MA

KatieJane83 · April 2018

A high of 60°F here today so all I have packed is a t-shirt and capris for my lunch run. So excited!!! Lol.

Delayed, but I re-saved my photos and finally got them to upload from Sunday's Cherry Blossom 10 Mile in D.C. Really did luck out with the blossoms!

Stoshew71 · April 2018

Date Miles today - Miles for April

4/1 10 miles - 10
4/2 REST DAY
4/3 6.2 miles - 16.2
4/4 REST DAY
4/5 4.5 miles - 20.7
4/6 REST DAY
4/7 13.1 miles - 33.8
4/8 REST DAY
4/9 REST DAY
4/10 7 miles - 40.8
4/11 REST DAY
4/12 7 miles - 47.8

Races this year
Oak Barrel Half Marathon - 4/7/18 -- 1:47:24

Upcoming races:
None at the moment

Stoshew71 · April 2018

Duck_Puddle wrote: »

5 today.

4/1-rest day (unscheduled)
4/2-rest day
4/3-5
4/4-3
4/5-4
4/6-rest day
4/7-9
4/8-3 (plus coach made me do weights)
4/9-coach made me do different weights
4/10-5

If it’s not obvious, I’m not a “weights” kind of a girl.

MTD 29

9/10 days according to plan.

I’m brand new here but I’ve loved all the race reports and am eagerly looking forward to the 100/50/Boston (and other) adventures coming up. Thank you all for sharing.

Hi @Duck_Puddle

Stoshew71 · April 2018

skippygirlsmom wrote: »

Good morning. I've missed you all. I'm not going to set any type of goal for this month I'm just going to run as I can. It's been I think 4 weeks since I broke my ribs, I'm not supposed to run until June, but for the most part they don't hurt anymore. They get sore depending on what I'm doing. I ran last night for the first time with my running group. I ran with the group training for a 5K since they were supposed to run for 25 minutes without stopping and the advanced group I'm in was doing half mile repeats at tempo pace (I'm not even sure I understood that at all) anyway, I ended up doing just over 2 miles. No pain. I did have a long talk with the speed bump I tripped over. Honestly I looked at it good, it's like 5" high. The church and the town are going back and forth over who is supposed to paint it since I tripped. I said tell them I'll come paint it. geesh.

Anyway, no way I can read the entire month of April. I'll try to keep up to date from here.

Hang in there @skippygirlsmom

TattooedDolphinGirl78 · April 2018

*hugs* @skippygirlsmom

Stoshew71 · April 2018

MNLittleFinn wrote: »

7lenny7 wrote: »

Last night Kody & I ran 7 miles and it was exactly what I need. I ran flat pavement, kept up a great pace, and felt invigorated at the end. After showering and eating I started watching Youtube videos of previous Zumbro races and it got me fired up again. Now I think my head is in a good place.

Sounds like you're ready to rock out on the course!

My para put on Eye of the Tiger on the speakers this morning... I was all like, now I need to run... Almost made me want to have music for the weekend. And now I have chariots fire theme playing

Da dah da dah dahhhhh ch ch ch ch ch ch..... lol

Anyone else do this in their head?

Purplebunnysarah · April 2018

Stoshew71 wrote: »

MNLittleFinn wrote: »

7lenny7 wrote: »

Last night Kody & I ran 7 miles and it was exactly what I need. I ran flat pavement, kept up a great pace, and felt invigorated at the end. After showering and eating I started watching Youtube videos of previous Zumbro races and it got me fired up again. Now I think my head is in a good place.

Sounds like you're ready to rock out on the course!

My para put on Eye of the Tiger on the speakers this morning... I was all like, now I need to run... Almost made me want to have music for the weekend. And now I have chariots fire theme playing

Da dah da dah dahhhhh ch ch ch ch ch ch..... lol

Anyone else do this in their head?

Da... Da-da-da... Dah-da-daaaaaa...

Visions of running stairs in my head, personally.

@MNLittleFinn @7lenny7 You're going to be going the distance in a series of montages right?

Purplebunnysarah · April 2018

I brought running clothes to work and only brought a light jacket. Tempting fate that the wind will either be light or a tailwind.

Stoshew71 · April 2018

zdyb23456 wrote: »

Can I ask what the purpose is? I've seen people mentioning staying in certain heartrate zones, but I'm not entirely sure why.

PastorVincent wrote: »

It is an objective measure of how hard you are pushing yourselves. For some runners, they are good at telling how fast or slow to go based on feel, others use heart rate. So if you are supposed to be doing an "easy" run, then your HR should be in a lower zone, and if you are doing a harder workout your HR should be in a higher zone.

If I may add to what @PastorVincent said. It's to keep you from running with the wrong kind of energy production all the time.

Most people run a certain relatively fast pace till they are out of breath and struggle to stay "in that zone". That's not necessarily the correct way to run, at least not all the time.

When you run a pace that makes you out of breath, it's a sign that you are running in what is called an oxygen deficit mode. That means your running pace is requiring more of a demand for energy than what your normal aerobic fitness can handle (aerobic meaning creating energy with oxygen).

Your body has a capability to exceed your aerobic capability by making your anaerobic system (that's means creating energy without the need for oxygen) work even harder. While your body may be able to keep up that out of breath pace for a while with the additional help of your anaerobic system, it does so at a price. By-products like lactate and hydrogen ions and other chemicals and radicals are dumped into your blood system and muscle tissue and has side effects like raising the pH level of your body. While doing it a little bit is actually good, because it can trigger certain improvements in your body and overall fitness, running like this all the time will negatively impact your overall progress.

Somebody mentioned Maffetone, and he is one of many contemporary coaches that teach and have methods to address this. A good book to start with that a lot of people in this thread also read is 80/20 Running by Matt Fitzgerald. It basically says 80% of your running should be slowed down so you don't exceed your aerobic capability. And only 20% of your running should be something faster than this.

Measuring your heart rate as you run is one way to keep track if you're running in the right "zone". 60-65% of your maximum heart rate is about as hard you should be working to stay within your aerobic zone. People call this your Easy pace or E-workout. This is also the fastest running you can do and still be able to talk and carry on a normal conversation. Therefore, some call this "conversational running". 80% of your running is suggested to be like this.

The faster you run, the higher your heart rate goes. 85% of your max heart rate is about what they call your lactate threshold. That means it's the fastest running you can achieve where your body is able to clear lactate production and not allow it to sky rocket. You can race at this pace for no more than an hour. At this pace (and heart rate) your breathing would only allow you to say one or two words at a time. So some people call this "comfortably hard" running.

Run faster and all sorts of things start to happen.

Some people match ranges of heart rates to perceived effort and what metabolic system you are training at. They call it Zone 1, Zone 2, Zone 3, Zone 4, and Zone 5. Or Z1, Z2, Z3, Z4, Z5, for short. The table at the following link is one example:

http://www.martygaal.com/words/zones.html

7lenny7 · April 2018

@jele30 welcome! Awesome first post to the group!

@PastorVincent great photo! You look like a Ninja runner.

@KatieJane83 was the air full of the blossom scent? Looks beautiful.

@skippygirlsmom it's great to see you checking in. Don't be a stranger, even if you can't run. Praying those ribs heal up quick and strong.

MAF method - I essentially followed this last year while training for my 50K. My target was 130bpm and I was usually able to keep it around 135. I felt it worked very well for me and I greatly increased my speed. It does take patience.

@Duck_Puddle now you have me considering signing up for the race in Bemidji! It certainl is a beautiful part of the state.

I washed all my running clothes and finally started packing last night. It's hard to plan when the weather forecast is going crazy. A big storm system is moving in and since temps will be straddling the freezing point, it could be rain, it could be snow, but will likely be a lot of both. This is the earliest, and the most that I've watched a forecast for a race and it only reinforces my opinion that there's no sense believing it until a day before.

I've seen rain totals as high as 1.25" on Friday and snow totals as high as 14" on Saturday. Winds around 20mph, gusting to 40mph, along with lightning. Those are the extremes though. I'm mostly concerned about the drive home Saturday than I am with running in it. I do have a 4x4 truck but that doesn't do much good on ice.

Since I have the space in my truck, I'm over packing and bringing a complete change of clothing, including shoes, for each lap. I should probably buy some seat covers before I head down.

I think this is going to make my February mud fest seem like a easy run.

See you down there, @MNLittleFinn

lporter229 · April 2018

4/1-14.5 miles
4/2 Rest Day
4/3 5.7 miles (4 on dreadmill, 1.7 with Stella)
4/4-30 minute elliptical and 30 minute strength
4/5-8 miles
4/6-Yoga and rest
4/7-11.6 miles (10+1.6 with Stella)
4/8-16 miles
4/9-Rest day with yoga
4/10-5.8 miles+yoga
4/11-8 miles w/ 6 @ tempo

69.6/180

Yesterday evening was the first warm and dry day we have had in ages. People were flocking to the bike path in full force. It made me kind of miss the solitude I have had running for the past several months. I did 8 miles with 6 at tempo pace of 7:45-8:00. This is slightly slower than half marathon pace, but I was surprised to see that my heart rate stayed pretty comfortably below thresh hold. I feel like maybe I am still making some gains in cardio fitness. If only my hamstrings would get the memo.

This evening will be the first day when temps will be above the comfort range, around 70F. It's probably a good thing because it's likely to get up there on race day in May and it's been quite a while since I have been able to run in those conditions. We are also supposed to have 20-30 mph winds, so tonight's 10 easy miles might not be as easy as I am used to. Looking forward to it nonetheless.

@MNLittleFinn and @7lenny7 - If I don't get a chance to post again, I just wanted to say good luck tomorrow/Saturday. I can't wait to hear your race reports!

@skippygirlsmom - So glad to see you back and hear that you are feeling a lot better, even if you are not following doctor's orders! Take it slow and easy. And go show that speed bump who is boss!

Stoshew71 · April 2018

greyparks206 wrote: »

Today was a very, very bad running day. My plan was to run a quick-ish 1.5 miles. My hamstrings were still sore from whatever I did to myself on Monday, but I expected to work out of it the way I did yesterday. WRONG. I haven’t hurt this bad during a run since I first started my c25k program back in December. I looked and whimpered my way through 1.5 miles in about 20 minutes. My knees are hurting so badly that I was nearly in tears by the time I finished. Maybe I altered my gait in response to my stiff hamstrings and put too much stress on my knees? I don’t know. I’ll do ice and ibuprofen tonight. Fingers crossed that tomorrow goes better. My very first 5k is in only 10 days. Have any of you ever experienced something like this before?

Goal: 40 miles
Today: 1.5 miles
Total: 13.5 miles

Very good example of why you need to be very flexible in your training plans. Let your body dictate what you do for the day, not some piece of paper.

Another lesson, learn to run with a good gait and always strive to maintain it. If your body is so weak (illness, injury, soreness, ect) that you cannot maintain a good running gait, then it's better to take a rest day or just walk, than to force your body to do something wrong and cause further injury.

Remember: you don't become a better runner from running. You become a better runner from the rest and recovery after you run.

PastorVincent · April 2018

7lenny7 wrote: »

@PastorVincent great photo! You look like a Ninja runner.

I do have a black belt in American Freestyle Karate, am 2nd Green in Aikido, and ... well, you get the point.

jine1989 · April 2018

Hey y'all! I'm back on MFP after a three year "hiatus". I'm not exactly *new* to running, but I got lazy and stopped about three years ago. Not quite sure how much weekly mileage I plan to take on, but I'm ready to do this challenge!

Purplebunnysarah · April 2018

Welcome @jine1989!

AmyOutOfControl · April 2018

4/1 = rest day...sort of (moving day)
4/2 = 9.5 miles
4/3 = Vinyasa yoga class and 3.5 miles
4/4 = 3 dreadmill Miles and 20 minutes strength training
4/5 = travel for work
4/6 = travel for work
4/7 = 13 miles (Outlaw 1/2 Race)
4/8 = rest day
4/9 = 7 miles and strength training
4/10 = yoga class
4/11 = 10 miles
4/12 = 3.5 miles

215 posts behind - gesh. Life has just been too crazy to keep up this month.

April mileage goal = 125 miles / April miles complete = 49.5 miles

kgirlhart · April 2018

April Goal: 110 miles

4/1: 6.2 miles
4/3: 4.6 miles
4/4: 4.0 miles (intervals)
4/5: 4.2 miles
4/8: 11.5 miles
4/10: 4.3 miles (tempo?)
4/11: 5.1 miles
4/12: 5.5 miles

45.4/110 miles completed

I ran before work again this morning and got my scheduled 5.5 miles in. Today's run was much better than yesterday's. I did have some coffee and drank a little more water too so I was more awake, better hydrated and not totally fasted (I use cream and sugar so not a ton of calories, but some). I was able to keep the first 4 miles under 12 min/mile so I felt good about that. I was a little frustrated because my watch shows that my overall pace was 11:59, but when it went over to Garmin Connect and Strava it show 12:00. Either way, if I can hold that pace I will be able to easily finish my HM in May under the 3:30 cutoff and I am hoping that I will be able to improve my pace to closer to 11:00 before then. I'm still not a morning person, but it was a nice 66F and the wind wasn't too bad. It is supposed to be 95-97F this afternoon with 22+ mph winds, so I am really glad I ran early. I didn't have time for yoga this morning when I got home, but I am planning on some lunchtime yoga in place of my usual morning yoga.

Good luck this weekend to @MNLittleFinn , @7lenny7 and @garygse and anyone else racing that I may have missed. I can't wait to read the race reports.

fitoverfortymom · April 2018

4/01 - REST
4/02 - 5.19 (trail)
4/03 - 3.39
4/04 - 5.38 (trail)
4/05 - 4
4/06 - 3
4/07 - 10.62
4/08 - REST
4/09 - 5.13 (trail)
4/10 - 4.9
4/11 - 4.1 (trail)

Took it easy on the trail last night. I'll probably do a light 3 later today. I might do it again Friday or maybe rest Friday depending on how twitchy I am.

TWO SLEEPS TO RACE DAY.

kgirlhart · April 2018

Good luck on your race @fitoverfortymom !

Stoshew71 · April 2018

Wen2Run wrote: »

midwesterner85 wrote: »

zdyb23456 wrote: »

Wen2Run wrote: »

Total - 27.5miles
Target - 40 miles
To Complete - 12.5 miles

1/4 - Rest
2/4 - Rest
3/4 - Rest
4/4 - 4.1 miles
5/4 - 4.9 miles
6/4 - 4 miles
7/4 - 3.1 miles. First park run with my daughter
7/4 - 5.22 miles. Evening run.
8/4 - 2.01 miles
9/4 - Rest
10/4 - 4.21 miles

Miles nicely ticking along at the moment. The hardest thing is that I am doing low heart rate training, which means my average pace is at least 4 minutes a mile slower than I would normally run! Means even 4 miles is a long run in terms of time!

Keep up the good work all.

Can I ask what the purpose is? I've seen people mentioning staying in certain heartrate zones, but I'm not entirely sure why.

@zdyb23456 I'm not sure if this is what @Wen2Run is doing, but there are some who follow Dr. Phil Maffetone's MAF (Maximal Aerobic Function) training techniques. It's a formula using 180-age and further adjusted for fitness level, medications, and medical conditions (maybe I'm missing something else). I haven't had patience to keep going for more than a couple months at such a slow pace, but I made good progress during that time even. I will probably go back to that at some point because as soon as I started going faster, progress definitely slowed down. The idea is to improve aerobic capacity by running at your MAF heart rate, which will seem slow for awhile (months).

@Midwester I am currently following the Maffetone method of training . Which means that all of my runs should be at a HR of (180-37) then an extra -10 because I take medication every day and have quite a history of injury.

As @Midwester said, the idea is that you train your aerobic system to be more efficient because that is the system which burns fat as a fuel source. In endurance running you are going to be relying on that for 99% of your fuel.

So currently, I'm running at a slow average pace of 14 minute miles to keep my HR below 133, but as my aerobic system improves, I will have to increase my pace to keep my HR at 133. Which then in turn means that I can go further, in the same time for the same over all energy output.

I'm currently training for back to back 37.5 milers, so speed isn't really my concern, what I want to be able to do is run for 6 or 7 hours non-stop without injury and without hitting the wall.

You will often hear people mention training in zones 1 to 6 for varying intensity but the Maffetone method, just uses two zones aerobic (MAF and below) and anaerobic (MAF+) All training should be done aerobic until you have done some serious base building and then you can work anaerobic training into it.

But it is hard, which sounds really strange but running slow when you know you can run faster is a killer. I have to remove all pace and speed info off my watch for training because seeing the slow paced annoyed me. It's a total ego killer, people will pass you all the time on a run. I clocked up a 2 hour 8 miler at the end of march, that was probably 40 minutes longer than it would normally take me.

A lot of good stuff here. I wanted to address the bolded part tho. There is a little more to it than just pace and heart rate for "fat based running".

So at rest, your body prefers to use carbohydrates (or sugar) as a fuel source. But as carbohydrate stores are lowered, as long as you are within your aerobic zone, your body is forced to rely more on fat stores than your carbohydrate stores. So the 2 best methods to address this is either running longer or begin your running in a "carbohydrate deficit" (or fasted) state.

Long runs in your aerobic zone that last for 90-150 minutes target your body to train to use more of a fat percentage. You begin your run relying more on sugar as the source of fuel, then as you get past 60 minutes to 90 minutes, your body is relying more on fat.

The other way, is to start in a fasted state. In other words, don't eat anything for 6 or 8 hours, then run. And don't refuel with carbs during the run. This is known as carbohydrate deficit training.

For the benefit of others reading this, let me explain something. So earlier I said that aerobic running is "creating energy with oxygen". You are creating energy from one fuel source into another. The energy you muscles need in order to contract is a chemical called andenosine tri-phosphate (or ATP for short). Your body uses different systems (Glycolysis, Krebs Cycle, Electron Transport Chain) to break down sugar and fat to smaller chemicals that are used to form ATP. Some things like Krebs and ETC requires oxygen to achieve this. Systems like Glycolysis do not require oxygen. So some systems are dubbed "aerobic" cause they require oxygen while others are dubbed "anaerobic" because they do not require oxygen. Some systems are used to break down sugar so ATP are formed. Other systems can do the same ATP production but with fat as the fuel source. However, only sugar can be broken down and converted into ATP without oxygen. Therefore, in order to use fat as a fuel source, you cannot run at a pace faster than what your aerobic fitness can handle.

April 2018 Monthly Running Challenge

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