Springy Spring

It's starting to feel like we have turned the corner and are headed to some beautiful weather. I am completely ready to pack up a few layers of clothing and enjoy running out the door without full body coverage. This mild temperature the last few days enticed me to head out for a nice long bike ride and a quality long run, and while out on my adventures I decided to take some photos to celebrate the start of spring and enter the weekly photo challenge by magmilerunner. This weeks theme: Signs of spring.

I couldn't narrow it done to one picture, so here are a few taken on my bike ride.

Montrose Harbor. Someone lost a chair.

Beach anyone?

Cool pic of the sunset.

Easter morning run. The lakefront path was jamming this morning. Lot's of people getting the season started right and heading out for some running and biking and a few Easter egg hunts. The sun was out greeting everyone with some spring warmth.

One of the many Easter morning runners.

Find Zen Through Running | Runner's World

Find Zen Through Running | Runner's World

This is a fantastic article. I think anyone who has done some long runs can relate to finding this inner concentration that puts you in touch with yourself on a deeper level and the world around you. This is why I run and never find it boring. Each run is a chance to understand myself better and connect with nature. Run with a smile, always!!

Listen to your Body

The best teacher you have is yourself. You have a lot to learn just by listening to your body.

This time of year it makes me happy to see more and more runners heading outdoors to work up a sweat running a few miles. It is something almost anyone can do, is not very expensive to get started, and you see big improvements very quickly after some consistent training. The one thing that is alarming to me is the frequency of injuries, especially overuse injuries, that I hear about on a daily basis. It seems to me that most people think that it is just part of the running program. Stick it out through the pain and it will get better over time. This type of thinking is very dangerous. Anytime you are experiencing pain, it is the sign that something is wrong or out of balance, and that takes us right into the topic today. Listen to your body.

One of the most useful skills that my years of martial arts training has provided is body awareness. This "listening to the body" has crept over into all aspects of my life, especially my running and triathlon training, and this important skill can be used by everyone. Runners, who are consistently challenging themselves and taxing their body's, will benefit greatly from even a little bit of awareness.
This awareness is the first step to becoming the best runner, and person you can, and being able to enjoy you fitness for years to come.



You can't train if you are injured..

We are going to break this down into three sections: 1)Body Feel, 2)Smart Training, 3)Active Recovery.

Body Feel
First up is body feel. Seems simple enough. If something hurts or is feeling off, stop whatever is causing the pain. It is not always that simple, as any runner or athlete will tell you. We have all experienced some level of discomfort while training and it takes awhile to know what is just body soreness, or training induced pain, and what is the more serious overuse or injury pain. Both types should be treated carefully and with serious pain you should stop training until you figure out what is causing the pain and have a plan in place to remedy the injury. For most novice runners, your goal should be pain free training. All throughout your runs, you should be keeping tabs on what is feeling good and what is feeling off. Mentally check your body. Feet, calves, knees, quads, hamstrings, hips, back, stomach, shoulders, chest, and neck. Make a note of anything that is consistently tight, sore, or painful. Don't ignore the pain! This is a message from your body: Something is off with your form or you have some overactive or under-active muscles, or both. What you do with this information is what separates a smart runner with an injured runner.

Couple of pics from yesterday's bike ride.

Smart Training
Once you start to get the hang of listening to your body, you will be en gauged mentally on every run and constantly taking notes on how you feel. The next step is also simple. Run only what feels good for you. If the knees gets tight at 4 miles every run, keep it under 4 miles. Who cares if your program says 5. What is smarter? Your body, or the program you printed out of a running book? I think this is where a lot of people get tripped up. Us runners are a competitive bunch, and we like to push ourselves and reach goals that we once thought  were unattainable, which is fantastic, but remember, you can't train if you are injured. So what is better, a few more miles this week and no training for months because of an injury, or a few less and a body that keeps on giving for years to come. I think the answer is simple but not everyone chooses the same. Training programs are great at keeping you motivated and consistent, but at the end of the day, it is just a piece of paper with numbers on it, so if you are hurting yourself just to get X amount of miles this week, or X amount of races this year, you need to ask yourself why you are running in the first place. My personal reason has always been to be a healthier and stronger person which means no time on the sidelines.

Active Recovery
So we are running smart and utilizing our body feel, but still have some aches and pains. Time for some active recovery. I'm surprised by how many runners I know that follow strict running programs, complete with hill sprints, track workouts, endurance runs, and cross training, and then I will ask about their recovery and stretching program and will get the same answer. "I try to stretch as much as I can", or a similar answer. It is no secret that running puts enormous stresses on the body, so without a proper recovery program, those stresses will add up overtime to become injuries. The workout is only half of the equation. Rest and recovery are the second half. You need to take time to stretch thoroughly after your workouts. Buy a foam roller and learn how to use it! The foam roller is great at getting a deep stretch/massage in the muscle groups that you can't stretch very well. ie low back, hips, glutes, IT band. Work your trouble spots on a daily basis and you will see a difference. Hydration and nutrition also play an important role in you recoveries. The more intense your training program gets the more focused your recovery program should be. If you feel like you aren't recovering very well from your workouts, you probably need more focus on either your stretching, hydration/nutrition, rest/sleep, or a combination of all of these.

Here is a good video to get you started with your foam roller:

Runners World Foam Roller Video

A little smart training will go a long way. Be kind to yourself and your body and you will be repaid with a lifetime of enjoying your fitness, and running injury free!!

Eating for life

Eat well and live well. Good food is the basis for a good life.

I strive each day to fuel my body with the best food that I can. I don't always succeed. I have a monster of a sweet tooth that has me reaching for chocolate, candy, and over sweetened "energy bars" to satisfy the cravings. There is one way to beat the sweet monster, and that is eating more fruits and vegetables. Easier said that done. The prepackaged fruit and veggie bowls at the convenience or grocery store are pretty expensive compared to the less healthy options, so I have taken to making my own at home. Here's what I did:

Healthy snack ready!

I purchased some small reusable ziplock screw top containers that are leak proof to start.

Fruit bowl
-Green seedless grapes
-Strawberrys (sliced)
-Raspberrys

Rinse everything, of course, and put a half paper towel in bottom of container to soak up any excess moisture, and there you go!

Veggie bowl
-Grape tomatoes
-Pea pods
-Baby carrots
-Radish (sliced)

Again, a good rinse and paper towel in place and you have yourself a great snack on the go.

Looks good enough to eat.

If you want to spice it up a bit, enjoy your veggie bowl with some hummus and your fruit bowl with a serving of greek yogurt. Feel free to add you own favorite fruits and veggies!!

What's your favorite healthy snack?

Lucky Run

I feel lucky every time that I run. Health is the true wealth, so get out there and get wealthy!

Patch O' Lucky Clovers

Happy St. Patricks Day! What a difference a year makes. I won't go into great detail about the weather, but last year on this day I was running at the lake front, past Ohio St. beach, and it was full of revilers drinking and being merry and soaking up the 70 degree sun. This year is a bit more what you would expect for this time of year, 30's and windy with a bit of snow left on the ground. The sun was shining bright today which was a nice plus. I didn't make it to Ohio St. beach, but I am guessing that it looked very similar to Foster St. beach today. Empty.

Foster St Beach

It felt really good to get some miles done in the sun, and towards the end of my run I saw the first sail boats of the season cutting through Belmont Harbor. With the birds chirping and the sailboats smoothing out the water today, I am longing for some warmer spring weather to begin thawing out this frozen city.

First spring sailboats!

I've been pondering what races that I would like to do this year, and so far I know that I for sure want to do an Olympic triathlon, a 10K, and a road marathon. Secondly, I would like to do my hometown sprint triathlon, and maybe a half marathon. I haven't gotten as far as actually picking out races or putting together a schedule. All in due time.

Base Miles

I'm not the fastest, but I'm getting faster. I'm not the strongest, but I'm getting stronger. I don't run the  furthest, but I'm running further. I'm trying to enjoy each mile as they come.

The garmin is ready.

My garmin watch has made its first appearances of the year, and that can only mean one thing: it is time to start getting my base miles in for this season. Don't get me wrong, I have been running pretty consistently for the last few months, but I have kept all my runs "by feel". That means that I just run without a solid plan of how far to run or how fast that I'm going. Getting back to enjoying the experience of running. As we all know, sometime it can be a chore to follow a training program, so I always take time to pull back a bit and just let my feet take me where they want to go. The winter is a good time to take off the technology and soak in the feeling of a quality run.

Brisk morning equals a nice hot bowl of oatmeal with raisins and a banana, and then layer up the gear and head out to the lakefront. The wind was a bit chilly, but the sun was shining bright, so anytime that I was not in the breeze, I was breaking a bit of a sweat. There is still some snow on the ground, but the sunshine is making me long for some nice cool spring runs. Soon enough.

Brisk morning at the lake.

You're Crazy!!

I hear this a lot this time of year. It's usually right after someone finds out that I ride my bike all year round. Yes, even in the snow. It can be more of a challenge riding in rough weather, but as long as you are prepared it is not to bad. I wanted to make this post of the necessities of winter riding for those who are thinking about taking it up or those who are just curious. The gear is essential and here is a list of what is needed:

>Water-proof pants. These are used year round, so light ones are fine. Another layer goes underneath in cold weather.
>Rain Jacket. Again, layers go underneath, so light is fine.
>Hat. Something that covers your ears and will fit nicely under your helmet.
>Gloves. I have two pair. Light ones that are good to about 40degrees, and some nice snowboarding mittens for colder. I have tried many different gloves, and mittens are the only thing that really keep your hands warm in the bitter cold and wind. It's worth the trade of being a bit awkward with the brake grip.
>Goggles. Ski goggles work great to not only keep the rain and snow out of your eyes, but keep your face warm.
>Helmet. Come on, you are on your bike in the city in the snow. Protect the brain.
>Water-proof boots/shoes. Wet feet equals cold feet. Keep them dry.

These are all of what you need to get you where you are going comfortably. Here are a few other items that will help you ride safe.
>Bike lights. At least one in front and one in back. They are pretty cheap now, so get some.
>Wide/studded tires. If you have a road bike with slick tires, you can find some with tread to help with traction.
>Good brakes. Most brakes don't work as well in wet/snowy weather, so decent or new brakes will keep you safe.

So get out there and have some fun in the snow!! It's not as tough as you would think.

Building your Perfect Training Plan. Part 2

So far we have decided on a race, figured out a basic training regiment, and calculated our long run distance build up for our training plan. The next step is to get more specific about the rest of our training runs to fill out the program. This is where you have to look at your personal schedule and see how much time you can realistically dedicate to your training program. Can you only run two times per week? Three? Are some weeks busier than others? Take time to study your schedule and see what is going to work best for you. If you just tell yourself "I'm going to run every Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday" that is fine if you can get it done, but what happens when you are traveling, or busier at work, or are attending a soccer game. Life has a way of getting in the way of our plans. The best thing to do is try to plan around the things that you can and then adjust for the rest.

For the sake of our example, let's say we will have time for one additional run per week for the first three weeks then two more for the remainder of the program. The additional runs will be shorter than our weekly long run and should be at a distance you are already comfortable with. Here is a breakdown of our example schedule filled out with our new run distances.

Week             Long run             Run 1             Run 2
 1                   3.1 mi                 2 mi
 2                   3.5 mi                 2 mi
 3                   3.9 mi                 2.5 mi
 4                   4.3 mi                 2 mi               2 mi
 5                   4.8 mi                 2.5 mi            2 mi
 6                   5.4 mi                 3 mi               2 mi
 7                   6 mi                   3 mi               2.5 mi
 8          Race Week                  3 mi               2 mi 

As you can see the distances are slowly increased with many of the additional runs at the same distance. The reason for this is consistency  When we are focused on increasing distance, the long run for the week is the most important, with the added runs keeping us in running form and ready for the next long run. These shorter runs are also a good opportunity to start adding speed work to increase your cardiovascular fitness and train those legs to go faster than you every though possible.