October 16, 2016
While waiting for a red light this evening on run number 14 for the week I couldn’t help but smile while thinking of one of those motivational quotes about Joggers stretching and jogging on the spot while they wait for the lights while runners just stand there pi**ed off they had to stop, this sums up the attitude of runners. We run and that is what we do. None of this jogging on the spot rubbish, we move forward, if we can’t we wait patiently until we can. Up and down jogging on the spot is not running, also I suspect gains no forward motion with Strava ( http://www.strava.com ) so a complete waste of time and effort.
So how did run number 14 feel the week.? It actually felt good and dare I say even relaxing. It seems my body is getting use to running twice a day but unfortunately with summer coming these opportunities will start to disappear with the onset of Perth’s 40 degree days. After the Masters marathon it’ll be time for the bike to come out of it’s 9 month hibernation and after an early morning run it’ll be bike time as I commute to work. Will one run and two rides a week equate to two runs a day ? We’ll find out early next year when I start racing. I hope I can keep this new level of fitness but if I do drop off a tad I’ll be making a big effort to return to this current level of running fitness.
This morning we were discussing the amount of injuries that occur at the end of a training block pre-race. In my opinion if you don’t keep a good level of fitness and each time you train is like starting new you run the risk of injury each time you come near to completing your training block. My new Sports Doctor friend backed up my opinion about starting fresh each time for a new event. He also mentioned he sees a lot of injuries in triathletes who train for one race, say an Ironman, as a bucket list item. They start from scratch and push themselves for this one race. After the bucket list item is ticked it’s back to the bar with a shiny new Ironman tattoo never to be seen in lycra again. The same goes for the marathon bucket list chasers. It’s all or nothing but unfortunately without the foundation you run the injury tightrope. So when you near the end of your training block is when you are most likely to get injured, just basically pushing yourself too hard.
I believe if you keep a good foundation there is no need for that step-up in fitness levels needed by adding so much extra workload. As I race bi-weekly I’m always ready and so really the step up needed is negligible. I mentioned linear of non linear periodisation in a post earlier in the week.
This weekend was about running my last long run pre-Masters ( http://www.perth2016.com ) and also put in a big week. 180k is a pretty big week and more importantly no real niggles or issues. This week I have 4 more days of training before a weekend off pre-Rottnest half marathon, then the Masters 5k track the following Saturday before the Masters in November 6th. Three races in 3 weeks, the final part of my 5 races in 6 weeks. Can’t wait, what else is there ?
Last week we all ran the Fremantle half and afterwards it was back to City beach and the best pancakes we can find in Perth at the moment. If you follow this blog you’ll know we run for pancakes. The bling, kudos, wellness, fitness etc is all well and good but the bottom line is the pancakes after the Sunday long run. Running magazines even talk up pancakes as recovery food so it must be good. (Please no one write anything to the contrary as you will be banned from this site and all access blocked. I only have pancakes in my life bar running. I hope the Wife and kids don’t read that!)
I digress , as always. So this morning we all meet at 6am outside Clancys ( http://clancysfishpub.com.au/city-beach.html ) and off we go on another ( and the last pre-Masters marathon) long run. The obligatory 30k out and back with no stops. I believe this method of training teaches your body to use fat as fuel and not substitute this fat burning with Gu’s etc. helps on race day. My view anyhow. So the six of us start and even pick up another runner on the way, a Sports Doctor no less who of course is invited to be part of the group moving forward. We all make the 15k turn around together and pick up the pace for the return leg. (as is the way off most running groups globally).
Once we finish we notice one of our group seems to have be left behind and the last two runners return and put in an order for pancakes and a flat white coffee as Mark L., has been passed and put in his order as he knows he’s in trouble. The image below shows what a considerate guy I am, you’ll notice Mark’s pancakes and coffee eating for him.
So eventually Mark turns up and he’d hit the wall at about 25k in the 30k run and went from feeling fine to ‘finished’ in a short period of time. Heart rate was fine just he had nothing in his legs. Must admit when he staggered in he’d looked better. The pancakes, coffee, a shake and water helped and he soon regains his composure. Compare this to last week when Mark ran a great PB without pushing himself. This was due to a block of training that had pushed his average distance well beyond his norm.
So the point of this post is sometimes the run kicks your backside when you least expect it. Everybody has bad days but you must realise when your training you’re running on tired legs continuously and sometimes you just push too hard and it’s time to ‘pay the piper’, today Mark paid in full.
It’s important to also realise that when you eventually face your goal race you’re normally rested, carbo-loaded and hydrated. Add this to the extra incentive to do well and sometimes those last long runs are harder than the race itself.
If you have a bad run and hit the wall that’s ok. You’ve found a tipping point which you can use as a baseline for your next block of training and move past it. Sometimes you learn more from these runs that constant easy runs that don’t test you. Of course it helps when you know you got probably the best pancakes in Perth and a decent coffee waiting for you.