100th POST

SNAPSHOT

100 Freedom to Run Blog Posts Later…

DIGGING DEEPER

Legs Follow Arms was published 3 years ago in March of 2016. And yesterday as I was running to four town parks covering 16 miles, I noticed how the restricted mobility of my right shoulder was causing my right IT band to voice pain. The truth that your arms impact your legs while running still rings true.

Many of the opinions in my past blog posts I still agree with. Some I don’t. Either new information has emerged or I have found another better option to tackle the situation. However the overall direction and emphasis within the posts still stand true.

Now my writing abilities have thankfully improved. Surprise, specific practice causes improvement. On average a blog post takes 3 hours to write, edit, layout, and publish. Three hundred hours later, it comes a bit easier with a little less fear of critics while sharing my thoughts, life, and knowledge. The ten published articles in Adirondack Sports, Saratoga Mama, and Run Minnesota have stretched my skills and commanded endurance in writing longer pieces and for a broader audience. So if you use the search bar below to find my take on your curiosity, exhibit grace when reading the earlier posts.

When comparing to the vast online world, I am quite small (very, very small) and simple. Nothing much. But when I attempt to identify anyone I know personally that has written 100 blog posts or even regularly posts, I know NO ONE.

That is, there is no one I am Facebook friends with or send Christmas cards to, or have their text number… that has ventured out into this blogging world.

My point it is that we often compare ourselves to the huge wide world of loud strong voices and feel small and useless.

Yet, when I need advice, my favorite person to ask is someone I personally know, someone only a text away.

The people within my circle are the valuable advice givers. We have equally invested in each other and have no alternative motive.

These blog posts have no alternative motive, just me expressing my thoughts, often bursting out of me, searching for a listening ear.

Upon viewing my Squarespace website analytics of daily page views, I am thankful for the dozen or the one audience when seeking running advice found my blog and felt heard, supported, and encouraged.

I am a fan of making a difference in one person’s life, causing a ripple effect and hopefully inspiring the world.

SOLUTION

To you, my reader, I write for JUST YOU. Thanks to my friends for listening. And thanks to the Google searchers, I hope you are encouraged to run free.

When Running is MORE than Running: Running for Stress Relief

SNAPSHOT

Running is my SANITY

DIGGING DEEPER

I have taken the first step on many of the runs this winter not just for exercise but for relief. Mounting mental stress crests to the level that it turns into physical anticipation for the movement of running. I must move. I must run. I need freedom. When so overwhelmed and with no other outlet, running becomes my hour of escape.

I have thought of many other reasons that very well could be the cause for my internal drive to run. And each take their turn to keep me stepping forward. However, these last two months, I have turned to running to escape stress. I know for at least that one hour I can forget problems and annoyances and be productive with accomplishments.

Being able to pick my pace, elevation, end time or distance gives me the freedom that stress won’t. To be swept away into another world, where all I need to do is take another step. And spending time with my running friends and hearing of their days helps me put into perspective my stress load.

All of this combined helps to relax my mind and body. I feel renewed and ready to venture forward into the rest of the day.

Running to reduce stress is a real strategy says John J. Ratey author of Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain (a MUST read)

“We can literally run ourselves out of that frenzy. Just as the mind can affect the body, the body can affect the mind.” Spark (p. 63). Little, Brown and Company. Kindle Edition.

“Regular aerobic activity calms the body, so that it can handle more stress before the serious response involving heart rate and stress hormones kicks in. It raises the trigger point of the physical reaction. In the brain, the mild stress of exercise fortifies the infrastructure of our nerve cells by activating genes to produce certain proteins that protect the cells against damage and disease.” Spark (p. 71). Little, Brown and Company. Kindle Edition.

Most likely you are runner who uses the sport in order to relieve stress and refresh yourself. Don’t be afraid to say, “Life is hard and running helps me along the way.”

SOLUTION

So lace up those running shoes and hit the road because running can be your stress relief.

Runners Heart Beats

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My take on heart rates and running training

DIGGING DEEPER

Since so many training watches are now monitoring our heart rates, I am sure the awareness of your beats have spiked. Here are my quick thoughts on why and what you should pay attention to when it comes to your beats per minute.

RESTING Heart Rate

early morning measurement, before your body stirs and awakes

Avoid overtraining and get a heads up if your body is fighting a sickness by watching for a spike that lasts more than a day. My other favorite about Resting Heart Rate is the data behind fitness. The more fit I am the lower my resting heart rate.

On a run several years ago with Joan Benoit Samuelson, I got to ask her one question. Mine question was: What is your resting heart rate? Answer: 35! Even in her 60’s she is SUPER FIT!

Last week’s data, the spike was after losing 3 hours of sleep due to an early morning airport drop off

Aerobic Threshold Heart Rate

measures the highest beats your body can effectively use and not become overwhelmed by lactate

Last month I had by lactate threshold tested in the St. Cloud Human Performance Lab. It included lactate blood tests and heart rate monitoring while running faster and faster on a treadmill. The heart rate in which my lactate levels spiked paired with my heart rate data gave me my threshold. I use this heart rate number to train my body to endure at a faster pace with out lactate accumulation. Hovering just above 164 beats will improve not only my threshold but also my overall running.

A tempo (just above the aerobic threshold) paced workout can be seen in the Zone 4, orange bar.

AVERAGE HEART RATE

measures my heart rate throughout the entire run and calculates the average

When reviewing my past run, I grab a quick look at the average beats. This information usually supports my feelings about how hard or easy the run felt. If they don’t line up I know I need to dive into the data a bit more and see if there is a reason. The average heart rate can also tell me if my body is getting the sleep, nutrition, and recovery I need.

Seen below are two averages, easy paced run (left), difficult workout (right), both within a few weeks of each other.

Year to Year Race Comparison

Favorite races often get repeated year after year. Through viewing my average heart rate data for each race I can see how my fitness has progressed or changed. Sometimes the weather and road conditions need to be taken into account when I am deciphering the data.

SOLUTION

Count your beats, but don’t let them hold you back!

My Winter Week of Running

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Opening up my Garmin Data

DIGGING DEEPER

Want to peek into another runner’s training log?

Well, this week I am opening up my pages to show you where and what I logged this week.

Since winter in Minnesota has descended on our roads and trails, I have sheltered in my local YMCA’s cardio room for use of the treadmill. The bonuses of treadmills, within a community of runners, are that we can each go our own pace and show up for partial runs together. Most of my runs were with conversations but others needed a Kindle or virtual terrain to keep my mind occupied. Then afterward I am more likely to stretch a little longer and add a few more strengthening exercises because I am not distracted by the home and kid needs.

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So this is a fairly common winter week for the month of February. I start to get my mileage up near 40 miles a week in preparation for the spring when I can run more long runs and speed workouts outdoors.

The skiing has increased this year as I am gaining in my endurance and technique. Plus my 10-year-old can last longer on the trails. I like to ski 2-3 times a week. With one of them being close to 20K. My arms and legs have become so much stronger this season. I love that I will have strong arms even before tank top season begins!

So here is the breakdown!

Monday

18K Nordic Skiing - Skate style— I was able to sneak this in before and during my sons’ JV conference ski meet at Elm Creek Park Reserve. I circled the lake twice by covering the Lake trail which joined up with the Northern Lights trail.

6 miles including 5 quarter mile hills on the treadmill — I was eager to feel the surge of endorphins since I had to take the previous days off due to illness so grabbed an hour at my local Y to run. I keep forgetting to set the minutes on the treadmill for more than the 30 preset limit and end up restarting the treadmill in order to finish out my run. This mistake instead got me thinking about mixing up elevation. I threw in five quarter mile repeats (2% incline at 7:30 pace) in the last 3 miles of the run. For recovery between the repeats, I returned back to zero elevation but kept the 7:30 pace. The result of 2% elevation and 7:30 pace put my body at an effort level above my lactate threshold and training the threshold to increase to a higher level. After pushups and downward dog, I rushed off to pick up my daughter from swimming!

Tuesday

3 miles outdoors with a friend were followed by the rest of the miles on the treadmill to reach 6 miles— Whenever a friend asks to run, I try really hard to make it happen. So out onto the snowy roads, we went. I tried my trail shoes in order to get more grab on the roads but my muscles noticed. Since three miles was all that could fit into her schedule, I drove right to the Y to finish up the run, reaching a calculated average for the day. Hint: 2019 divided by 365

Wednesday

5K Nordic Skate Skiing — A relaxing tour around our local ski trails with my kids. Incredible beauty lays awaits for you to discover within the woods. Go for a walk, run, snowshoe, or ski to be filled up.

1 hour of treadmill miles adding 7.3 miles — I have this favorite winter training duration. It is the hour-long run. An hour of running is long enough to aerobically and structurally challenge the body, yet it is low enough stress that it can be repeated day after day. My favorite is when I can hit exactly 7.0 miles at 1:00:00 without purposely altering my speed. I have only done it only two times in my life. On this run, I didn’t think I would make it past a daily 6 miles but small goals helped me to hit my mark.

Thursday

Lactate Threshold testing in St. Cloud in the morning — Googled and found! I was reading the Science of Running book by Magness about Fast Twitch and Slow Twitch muscles and how to find your body’s natural dominance. And so I googled and found a nearby university that would do Lactate Threshold testing. I was hoping for a bit of a different test than I received but am overall glad for the information and experience gained. I will leave the detailed description of my testing for another blog post. However, the testing of my blood lactate level along with my heart rate gave me the same data that I can feel when I am running. Interesting that my Monday workout happened to put me right at the correct level of training to push my lactate level higher. Experience can be as good as data! Listen to your body well and add up your experiences. And yes, I do plan to get retested from the FT and ST fiber levels and an updated lactate level in May.

6.2 miles in the treadmill in the evening — Well 2 miles in the morning was not enough running and a friend could do her run workout beside me so I jumped back onto the treadmill in the evening for a 10K. This winter I have set my watch to read metrically instead of imperially because well, that is what skiers do. I figure changing up my thought patterns and seeing my running distance from a new angle is advantageous, so kilometers it is! Just for the winter season though.

Friday

6 treadmill miles - A high heart rate and a tired body still made it to 6 miles on the treadmill with a friend to keep me company. After this run, I knew I needed a day off tomorrow.

Saturday

Family Skiing for 17K (daughters new record) and no running — Seriously LOVE the beauty of Nordic skiing sights!

Sunday

Wondering around with the youth ski club for 3K classic skiing — Warms the heart to teach children

7 miles on the treadmill — Reached the 40 miles a week mark with this final run. I don’t like running on Sunday because I usually want to spend all the time with family but the kids wanted to swim play at our YMCA so I got 7 miles of guilt-free running! I didn’t have to hit 40 miles this week, but it worked out well. I did notice my heart rate back down to normal and the fatigue of the week’s training all gone. Rest days are valuable. Added extra stretch and strengthening after the run.

SOLUTION

Throughout the winter, each of my weeks looks different but usually consist of 5-6 days of running with 30-40 miles covered. I just feel right with daily runs. No long run this week but I did challenge my body twice with speed. In the spring I will mix in more race distance specific training but for the winter I just need to maintain a good base. I do wish I could have done more runs outdoors this week but the snowy roads and negative degree weather made the treadmill a better option. The sunny skis were helpful in accumulating more vitamin D from the sun!

TELL ME about YOUR training last week! What cross training do you do, are you a winter treadmill runner, what is your ideal winter weekly mileage? Comment below…

MISSION COMPLETE: How to Become a Better Runner in 30 Days Series

#30 Mission Complete

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I must be honest, 30 days of writing in a row contained some struggles but after completion, just like training and racing, I am a changed person, more experienced and I hope a better writer. It was a positive experience and I feel a sense of accomplishment. I set out a challenge, stuck with it, and had fun along the way.

DIGGING DEEPER

At first, it was easy to find topics to write about. Oh, course I had to cover female training, sleeping, shoes (part 1 and 2), winter running, gear (including watches), treadmills, training plans, and sitting. But then came the inspirations day by day, like listing my runner’s phone uses, and when to stop or start running. The polar freeze brought topics of training partners, motivation, Minnesota play, and strength training. I love reading so I naturally shared favorite authors and books, as in Fatigue Tolerance, Fast or Slow, Older Runners, Runners Stretch. Topics close to my heart crept into the blog with Run Like a Kid, No Pretty Runners, A Runner’s Will, and Rest Days. My training partners brainstormed and uncovered a few gems like Runners Vacation and Running Friends.

Through all of these posts I shared knowledge and experiences along with links to articles and shopping. I hope this 30 day series is a resource for you and your training partners for many years. An added SEARCH BAR at the bottom of the page will aid you in finding the information you seek. Please share the posts in order to help others find joy in running.

Although my 30 days are up, I am not powering down the computer, since I have plans for weekly blog posts. And I am excited to bring into the discussion guest bloggers whose experience and viewpoint can enlighten us all. I am hoping to find another blog that will give me the chance to share my love for running with their community as a guest blogger. Perhaps these first ventures into select topics can continue to mature into published articles.

SOLUTION

Tomorrow when I wake up and don’t need to complete a blog, I will be sad, for I will miss our time together.

I am a learner, wanting to grow and grow. If you have ANY feedback for me as a writer and coach, please contact me. I value your thoughts. Thanks, friends!

LAST POST — This 30-day series is a quest for me as a writer, coach, and runner. I promise to write about running for 30 days in a row. In doing so I intend to gain in knowledge and expression of running and daily life. My hope is that we all grow together.