“Dwell on the beauty of life. Watch the stars and see yourself running with them.” – Marcus Aurelius

This week we are moving to intervals by time.

The work:

WARM UP: 3 x standing lung, standing lung with side sway, standing lung with calf pump.

5 minutes like jog.

MAIN SET: 3 x 7 minutes zone 4-5. 3 minutes recovery interval walk/light jog back to zone 1.

COOL DOWN: Standing quad stretch. Standing runner hamstring stretch. relaxed squat stretch.

CORE: 3 x 50 seconds plank, 25 seconds left side plank, 25 seconds right side plank.

“I always loved running…it was something you could do by yourself, and under your own power. You could go in any direction, fast or slow as you wanted, fighting the wind if you felt like it, seeking out new sights just on the strength of your feet and the courage of your lungs.” – Jesse Owens

This week we got:

warm up: 3 x 10 each leg of punters aka wooden soldiers, lateral leg swings and hip openers.

second warm up 5 minutes easy, zone 1 building into zone 2.

main set: 1,2,3,4,3,2,1 minutes zone 4-5. Rest is equal to work as walk/light jog: so 1 minutes hard, 1 minutes easy, 2 minutes hard, 2 minutes easy…and so on. We want equal rest for this to keep the fast TRULY fast. Think fast feet, good turn over and full recovery.

Cool down is 3 rounds of 40 seconds of downward dog in 4, 10 second parts as: downward dog, then calf pedals, leg up, hips stacked (leg over).

Core is the plank progression of 3 x (50 seconds this time with alternating foot lifts 3-5 inches and Side planks each side 25 seconds. with arm coming under and through. RI 10 seconds after planks and side planks.)

Alt workout: keep the intervals but bump up from zone 1 or 2 to zone 2 or 3 on the same intervals in the main set.

Goal setting in running is unique for our squad since it can relate to three different areas: First there is goals we set for stand alone running events. Maybe of the mightly BTC run the NYC Marathon or other races. Then there are the goals we set for running off the bike in our main sport, triathlon. And lastly it worth looking at run goals we can set for ourselves in training. 

Since so many of us do stand alone running events its helpful for us to look at these first and also this will help us see how running changes when we add two more disciplines in triathlon. One main goal for many is being able to complete an event of often long distances. This is often a first goal to completing the same distance in the run leg of a triathlon. For this you want to add 1-2 miles to your weekly long run. I suggest the following: 

For your first 5k: build up to 3 miles or more. 

For your first 10k: build up to 6 miles or more.

For your first half marathon: build up to 11 miles or more. 

For your first marathon buildto 18-20 miles. 

If you have already done this, the next step for goal setting would be improvement or setting a “personal best.” Increase your weekly mileage by about 10% each week, excluding recovery weeks. Work with a coach to set your top weekly mileage with your particular individual goal and how to divide those miles by various workouts.

As we move to triathlon setting a run goal is a bit different. Running is last, and it will validate or invalidate your bike performance. Simply put: if you went too hard on the bike you may find out that 26.2 miles is a VERY long way to walk in an ironman! (or any distance). But if you executed a sensible bike ride then you will reap the rewards and run as others falter. This has a strong mental aspect to it as well, since passing people is motivational and often increases your own ability to dig deepest when the race is at its hardest. So to set goals for running in a tri you need to read the prior to articles about bricks (bike-run) and cycling. Also make sure you do bike-run combined workouts as physiological adaptation is needed to run well after riding. Once you see how you run off the bike in training you can then set goals for both the run and the bike poritions of the event.

In terms of training goals there are two main ways to objectively set and measure goals. Since run power use is not yet wide spread, people tend to do the following:

Track or speed workouts: While not an exact science since conditions off change doing a similar workout a few times throughout the year will help you see progression in your training. Track workouts are good in that the surface and elevation are the same each times mitigating some of the factors that can effect your pace. Also these workouts are meant to be done at the same intensity which is close to race effort making them also similar and comparable. But be mindful that temperatures, wind and training fatigue will effect results. 30 degrees and 10 pounds of restrictive clothing in winter wind can be as much as 15% slower than a nice spring day in shorts. 

Another way to set goals and see improvement and if you want to have some fun, do a race series like the one in Prospect Park. Simply comparing your times over the same course will demonstrate improvement and since that series is several events it will give you multiple data points as you go so you can track and set your goals. 

While we can help you reach your goals, only you can set them. So aim high, dream big (or long) and enjoy the process.

First off, the video gets bombed by an 18 month old puppy…twice. AMAZING.

ok so the workout: Warm up: knee hugs, butt kicks, marching band. 5 minutes light jog.

Main set: 5 x 3 minutes RI 2 minutes.

Cool down: child’s pose, calf stretch, hip flexor stretch.

Core: plank progression to should taps and cross over knee to elbows. OUCH.

6/3/20

The Workout: (video version is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUSwWeMOtT8 )

WARM UP: Drills: lunges, skipping, 4 beat knee drive. 5 minutes light jog.

Main set 4 x 40 seconds sprint. 20 seconds recovery. 2 minutes light jog. Second round of 4 x 40 seconds sprint, 20 seconds recovery. 5 minutes light jog.

Cool down: 3 x 10 seconds of toe touches, should stretch, neck stretch.

Core: mountain climbers, break dancers.

ALT workout: do 1 round and do sprints at 70-90%.