Have you ever felt like you’ve hit a wall with your running?

You may be running on a hill, or a flat section of a course, but your mind is always telling your legs and arms to drive, pump and fire like pistons. As long as you are pushing yourself, your muscles will always be aching and crying out for mercy.

Push It

This is a sign that you are pushing your body to perform beyond its capacity. This signals that our body is not capable of supplying the necessary blood and oxygen, which our muscles require to meet our mind’s demands .

But have you asked yourself: do you incorporate regular and functional hill drills into your routine? Do you vary your workouts? How do you approach the hill?

The Huge Benefits of Hill Training

How well we perform on hill trainings depends on how we approach the hill. For most of us we see hill repeats as chance to conquer or attack the hill.

One tactic to approach the hill is to see it as a friend, rather than an enemy trying to defeat us. Look at it as an animate object providing a spring board to propel us forward; a friendly boost.

Another helpful metaphor is to imagine that there are strings attached to your hands and its ends are tied at the top of the hill.

Hill Running Technique

Pushing the knees, as well as toeing-off and slapping of the heel on the buttocks are some of the facets that one must focus on.

Specifically, when done at a slower pace, a runner can focus more on the technique, and in reality may feel more soreness than he or she expected.

As you pump your arms, thrusting your elbows behind you, imagine the strings are giving you leverage to pull yourself up more easily.

Many people ignore the importance of fine tuning, or addressing our bio mechanics, which is considered as one of the most manageable factors of training, and the key to improvement.

Work on your Bio Mechanics

As opposed to the popular belief, it is not the leg on the ground that is mainly responsible for generating the power to make forward velocity. Rather it is the non weight bearing leg, the leg in the swing phase, which generates the momentum by creating a tug on the runner’s center of gravity as it swings forward.

Levers and Propellers

The foot on the ground acts as a lever, and propels the runner forward. The muscles responsible for this powerful stroke in the hip flexors are the iliacus, psoas major and psoas minor. These are also the most important muscles for cyclists, as they are employed during the pulling up phase.

One way to strengthen your hip flexors and improve the power of your swing phase is to do hill repeats.

Hill Repeats

It often surprises people that running hills improves speed. But actually, running hills is in itself speed work in disguise.

Another benefit of hill running is that even if you reduce your pacing, your endurance will increase as you run up a hill. This is because moving your body up the hill requires more work than moving it along a flat surface. That is why hill running is equivalent to running in a sudden rush on a flat surface.

Race Application

So while racing, the best way to run up a hill is to maintain your stamina, and forget about the pace while on the hill. Consistent effort is the surest route to a faster time. Trying to maintain your pacing while on the hill is like rushing and changing the body’s apparent effort, which will only result in experiencing fatigue prematurely.

Incorporate Fartlek Training

Then how can one develop vigorous, aggressive, power strokes using hill workouts? One way to sustain endurance is hill Fartlek (Swedish for speed play).

Pick a hill and focus on rushing up  it.  Now if you’re doing strict hill repeats, try varying the paces.

For example, if you are doing four sets of three hills, do the first at 5k pace and the second at 10k pace. Focus on slow and exaggerated form on the third hill. So instead of varying the pace at which you run, you can vary the hill lengths themselves.

Group Work

If you are working in a group, pair up with someone and design the running style like a relay, so that your rest depends on how long it takes for your partner to get up and down the hill. If you decide to run hills by time (i.e. 90 seconds on 5 hills), mark laps with a rock or a little flag.

Try to beat your own record with each repeat. It is a good practice to surge ahead and reach the top of the hill. After all, who wants to be beaten out at the top of the hill just because they’ve slowed down?

Hip Flexors

As runners, triathletes need to recognize the importance of strengthening our hip flexor muscles. Strong flexors help us maintain a tough pace, attack a hill, kick with speed on the flats, and protect our body from injury. It is an integral part of training throughout the season. Through variation, it can help us to be more efficient runners, and cyclists.

So go ahead, be king of the hill!

Terry

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Foot Strike

When runners start talking about the foot meeting the ground, ‘heel strike’ is a term most of them use with disdain. We sometimes even hear discussion on acrobatic ideas of running on one’s toes.

The location where the foot hits the ground in relation to the hip is more important than the part of the foot that touches the ground first. There are many beneficial gains in shortening the stride length so that the foot will touch the ground just millimeters in front of the hip, along with greater efficiency, speed and a reduced possibility of getting injured.

Shorten Your Stride

Heel striking is disapproved by experts because it is usually associated with a longer stride length. A long stride usually happens when the foot is casted forward, and reaching well ahead the body’s center of gravity. This often results in a heel strike. The trouble with this length of stride is not that the heel touches the ground first but, rather, the heel actually crushes into the ground which results a jolt being sent up towards the ankle, knee and finally, the hip.

Slower Pace

The impact slows a runner down. The long stride can also cause vertical oscillation, which wastes energy by the up and down movement, rather than forward motion. As the rest of the body’s mass moves forward, the foot is forced to remain on the ground much longer, because of such a long stride length. A short stride on the other hand, results in less impact, less breaking and thus more efficiency. It also keeps your feet happier because they gets to spend less time on the ground.

More Steps, Less Work

You can check your stride length by counting how many times your feet touch the ground within 10 seconds. The normal number should be around 30. Try it again on your next run and see if you can come up with fewer than 30 steps while trying to shorten your stride. At first, it may feel very uncomfortable, and may require you to exert more effort than usual.

You may need to shorten your running distance for the next few weeks while you are still working on changing your length of stride. In no time, your body can adapt to this new style and even perform much better because of it. Always focus your mind on placing your foot on the ground almost under your hip as this will result in an increase in your turnover. While the foot is on the ground, for a short time only, your body should feel steady and smooth as your legs roll just like wheels beneath you.

Always remember that as long as your foot lands more or less under your hip, it will not matter that much whether it’s your heel, the mid-foot, or the ball that touches the ground first.

Happy striding!

Terry

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Dive in the pool and pedal down those roads

If you don’t balance your training, your legs might seem like rubber after a hard swim and a bike ride. Though training in the other two sporting events may reduce your running time, the more balanced approach of multi-sport training could rejuvenate your road-weary legs.

Do not concentrate on the distance covered

A lot of serious runners count the distance they run like they were balancing their checkbooks. You should be aware that as you add swimming and cycling to your schedule, your weekly distance will likely decrease. Don’t stress about it. The objective is balanced training – remember that.

Follow hard runs with easy bike rides or a swim

If you’re a performance oriented runner, doing hard workouts like intervals and hills (more on this later), you’ve probably been following those intense sessions with an easy run the following day.

After planning your triathlon training, in the event that you opt to keep doing these tough run exercises, make sure you don’t follow them up with a hard bike exercise. Apply the same hard/easy principle to triathlon training and go for a fairly short and easy ride, or better yet, a swim.

Watch Your Step

Most injuries that triathletes have are running injuries. Even though there are lots of reasons for this, the simplest explanation is that running is stressful on the body.

You put a lot of stress on your muscles each time you put in a hard run. You are tearing cell membranes on a physiological level. It may sound scientific, but the main point is the fact that pounding the pavement puts a pretty good wallop on your legs.

Train safe!

Terry

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Strides

In terms of running technique, perhaps two variables to consider are stride length and foot placement. The 10 kilometer running speed will be determined by the stride rate and the stride length.

There is no magic formula for stride length, each person’s stride length will vary with their turnover rate.   However, it should be long enough to not feel like a shuffle, and short enough not to feel like a bouncing ball.

Foot Placement

The optimal foot placement for a middle distance runner is to make the heel strike the ground first, roll the body weight on the outer length of the foot, then push off with the forces shifting from the small toe to the big toe.  These are very small technical details compared to those in the swimming and cycling events.

Train safe!

Terry

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One of the first things you have to do, if you are new to running, is to understand the fundamentals – from equipment, to training, to safety concerns. So let’s take a look at some beginners’ dos and don’ts:

Do run in decent running shoes

It may be basic, yet you could still probably observe novice runners wearing basketball high-tops, circling the one-hundreth-of-a-mile indoor running track in health clubs. Become an educated consumer.

First, accept that you must have a running shoe – your tennis or aerobics shoe is not made for the high-impact and stable rear foot control that you’ll need. Then, try to find the kind of running shoe that’s most effective for you.

Don’t run with earphones

Having to run while listening to your favorite music may be enjoyable, however it may not be a good idea for safety reasons. It’s alright to use your headphones if you are treadmill running at home, or in the health club. However, when outdoors, you may not hear approaching traffic, cyclists, dogs, as well as other dangers on the road.

Do wear comfortable running clothes

Wear something breathable. The body has a built-in air conditioning system known as sweating. Help your body do the work it has been designed for by wearing light shorts, singlets (sleeveless T-shirts), and socks designed to wick sweat away from your body.

The wetter your feet, the much more likely you will experience friction-related injuries such as blisters and black toes. It’s also a good idea to wear light-colored running clothes that do not absorb heat.

Don’t be afraid to walk

If you’ve never run before, the best way to start is to run for a couple of minutes at time, and then walk, and then run again as your current fitness permits. There’s no reason to feel ashamed about it, since everyone started out by doing this. Even seasoned runners who are training for a marathon include walking breaks during long runs to enable their legs to recover.

Do stick to the rules of the road

Just like drivers and cyclists, runners have their own rules of the road. Novices often disobey these rules at the expense of their own safety. The best possible scenario would be to avoid running near or around traffic.

But when you’re forced to hit the roadways, use common sense-run against traffic, not with it. The explanation is simple. You can’t see what exactly is going on behind you when you run with traffic. If a car is weaving all over the road behind you, you’ve got no chance to react.

Don’t run in dark, isolated areas

We may not wish to think of crime when we run, but it is a reality, so for that reason we have to take safety measures. We’ve all heard the horror stories, and instead of becoming one of them, it’s best to follow running routes which do not put you in danger. After the sun goes down, avoid secluded parks or trails that may prove dangerous, especially if you live in a high-crime area.

Criminals utilize the cover of dark and seclusion to set their traps, and you shouldn’t be the mouse. So run in well-lit, populated areas. If you cannot avoid a dark stretch or secluded area, at least have your wits about you and try to foresee any possible surprises.

Pace your swim and bike

An effective way to avoid the tired triathlon shuffle is by appropriate pacing through the swim and the bike ride. Setting a maniacal pace through the swim and the bike ride is a typical error of the first-time triathlete, especially one who has achieved a certain degree of competency (and arrogance) with swimming and biking (remember this during your next triathlon race).

Good luck!

Terry

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Time, not Distance. Do not be too concerned with the distance covered, follow the time. It is easier to keep track of your progress using time as your measuring stick and not distance. Don’t be concerned about whether or not you’ve put in adequate distance for your race and measuring your running routes (this has always been a subject of debate, anyway).

Just set your sports watch on the countdown timer mode for the ideal time of your run. Set your watch to beep at the halfway point if you have an out-and-back course. Tracking time is also not as distracting as counting miles or kilometers, and usually helps to avoid excessive distance that can bring about over-training, or injury. The sample programs you’ll find in this article follow this rule to help you simplify your training.

Follow the 10 percent rule. Professionals say that you shouldn’t increase your weekly distance by over 10 percent. For example, if you’ve run 3 times this week for twenty minutes each, for a total of 60 minutes, the following week’s running time should not exceed over 66 minutes. You may increase your running time to 73 minutes the week after that (ten percent of 66 rounded off to the nearest digit gives you 7 additional minutes).

Another thing to keep in mind concerning this rule, is that you should back off by 10 percent every 3rd or fourth week of training, depending on your recovery and how long your running time is. That means you must reduce your running time for one week, and then continue increasing your time again by ten percent, beginning where you left off.

This decrease gives the body a bit of a chance to catch its breath from the increases in training and the cumulative stress you’ve put your legs through for three or four weeks.

If some of this confuses you, or you aren’t very good with figures, don’t sweat it. You just need to keep in mind to gradually increase your distance and put in an easier week of running exercises once a month.

Plan your exercises appropriately. Plan your harder running exercises for days that aren’t very close to other hard exercises. As an example, if you do a hard cycling ride on Wednesday that leaves your legs feeling like spaghetti, Thursday would not be a good day to put in a long run. Allow yourself an easy day both prior to, and after, hard runs. You will just risk injury if you do not.

Go for consistency. One of the most frequent mistake new runners make when training, is going out too hard, and then blowing up after the first couple of minutes. In order that your body adapts to prolonged hard efforts, like for example in a race, make your goal consistency for every run.

You do not teach your body and your mind good pacing by having erratic running exercises that, if you charted the pace, would seem like the stock market taking off. Maintain an even pace during your runs.

Focus on your form. Though form isn’t as crucial in running than in swimming or even cycling, it can help you to avoid injury. Focusing on form teaches your body to hone in on bio-mechanical improvements, and to run more efficiently.

If you’re a newbie, don’t obsess with it too much. Just focus yourself on running relaxed, smoothly and naturally, without any unusual jarring foot strikes. Everyone has a different running style; try to get a sense for yours, while focusing on possible improvements that may reduce unnecessary stress on knees, hips, and even the upper body muscles.

Use these quick tips below to help you find your form.

Tip 1. Minimize excessive bouncing motion.
Tip 2. Relax your upper body, especially the shoulders.
Tip 3. Find the stride length and cadence (number of steps you take to cover a distance) that you feel comfortable with.
Tip 4. Keep your arms and hands loose, letting them swing forward and back with the momentum, propelling you forward naturally.

Good luck, and train safe!

Terry

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