Week Six

Last week you ran your first run without walking.  How did you do?  Do you feel ready for such a big step? 

This week is our last week where we will add walking between our running during the workouts.  Again, during your third workout this week, we will try running all the way through (after our warm up walk).  This will prepare you for your workouts next week, which will be running all the way through for all three workouts.

As usual, you should go at your own pace.  If you have to stop running for a walking break during that third workout, do it.  But try to go the whole way without stopping.  It may feel like a daunting task to run over two miles straight, but you're a runner now, and you can do it!  And two miles is two thirds of your way to your first 5k!  We're getting close to our first race.

Click below to expand the training plan for this week.

Musical Resources

A Running Debate
Runners Oppose USATF Headphone Ban
USATF Amends Headphone Rule
Headphones Allowed at Road Races
Running Music - Make your own playlist
Running Playlists
Running and Jogging Songs by BPM


Exercise of the Week:  Bicep Curl

Although you may not think about your arms being important when you're running, it's nearly impossible to run without moving your arms.  If you need to power up a hill or through a tough spot (like the end of a race), if you move your arms, your legs will follow.  Over the next four weeks we will start with some simple strength training exercises that are helpful for runners.  The four exercises (the bicep curl, tricep overhead press, row, and bench press) are all for the muscles in your arms.  In the fifth week we will put the four exercises together for a "tabata" workout.  This tabata workout is something that I generally do on my rest days when I'm training for a race.  It is a simple, yet effective, workout that can be done in 20 minutes.

Often times females are afraid of strength training. They fear that they will "bulk up" like men if they lift weights.  But strength training is important for females, especially as they get older and begin to lose bone density, leading to osteoporosis.  Strength training can reduce the risk of osteoporosis in women who do it consistently.  And don't worry, you won't bulk up like a man.  Instead, if you use less weight and do more repetitions or "reps" (the number of times you lift the weights), you will actually tone your muscles to look quite nice in those summer tank tops.

 
You can do the bicep curl either sitting or standing.  Start with a low amount of weight (3-5lbs in each hand).  To do the exercise sitting, sit in a chair, feet flat on the floor, stomach in, shoulders back, back straight, head up. Your elbows should be against your waist above your hips, your palms up holding the weights at about 90-degree angles.  Moving just your forearms, raise the weights to your shoulders, lowering slowly. Do two sets of 12 reps.  Between sets, you can do one of the stretching exercises that were taught in the previous blogs.

Running with Music

The topic of running with music is a pretty controversial one. In 2006, the USATF (USA Track & Field, one of the sports official groups) banned the use of headphones at races. This sparked huge debates among runners and race directors, so much so that the USATF amended its rule in 2008 to allow race directors to decide whether or not to allow headphones.

Like most topics in the running world, there are both pros and cons to running with music.

Music can be a motivation to many runners. The right music with the right beat can help you stay on pace or even increase your pace. It can distract you from pain or fatigue during a run making the run seem to go by faster and easier. It can also make the task of running more fun, especially if you are a big music fan or if you find running to normally be a pretty boring sport.

With all that being said, it's hard to imagine that there are downsides to running with music. However, when you run with music your safety may be at stake. The USATF's reasoning for the headphone ban was that runners with headphones are less likely to hear race instructions and emergency vehicles. Just like driving while using a cell phone can impair your reaction time and judgment, running with headphones can cause you to be less aware of your surroundings. I mentioned earlier that running with music can distract you from pain or fatigue. That can be a good thing or it could be a bad thing. You may be running through pain that you should actually stop for, such as a stress fracture.

That brings us to the TIP OF THE WEEK. If you choose to run with music, be smart about it. Run in a safe area, such as a park or on a trail, away from vehicles. Be consciously aware of your surroundings. Ensure that if your hearing is limited, you are using your other senses, such as sight and touch, in overdrive to keep yourself safe.

I choose to not run with music, but that's my own personal choice. I tried it a few times, but I couldn't get the headphones to stay in comfortably. Besides, I do my best thinking on runs. I'd rather not have music to distract me from that.

Week Five

Well, we've made it through four weeks, about a month, of the training plan. We still have a long way to go. This week we reach a major milestone. During your third workout this week, you will run the whole way, without stopping to walk. Does that sound like a daunting task? Remember, you've been at this for a month now. You can just about call yourself a runner. This will be the ultimate test.

Of course if you get too tired, you can always slow down or walk for a little bit. Don't overdo it. You don't want to get injured. But you can do it! Go as far as you can before stopping.

Click below to get this week's training plan:

Piriformis Stretch

There are a lot of resources and articles out there about proper running form.
Hill Running
This Way Up
Does Form Matter?
The Perfect Form
Improve Your Form
Tips for Proper Running Form
Good Form Running
Running Form for Distance Runners

Exercise of the Week: Piriformis Stretch
Runners, bicyclists and other athletes engaging in forward-moving activities are especially susceptible to developing piriformis syndrome if they don’t make sure they stretch and strengthen their muscles properly. I didn't start to have soreness in my piriformis muscle (or even know that it was there) until I started running longer distances.




The piriformis muscle is a muscle along the back of your butt responsible for lateral rotation of the hip. There are several ways to stretch this muscle. If you are able to lie down on the floor, lie with your knees bent. Cross one leg over your other with your ankle resting on your opposite knee. Reach around the leg that is planted on the ground and clasp your hands. Pull your leg toward you. You should feel the stretch in the side of your butt going to your hip.



You can also do this stretch standing up. Grasp a stationary object (such as a pole). Place your ankle right above your opposite knee. Lean backwards into a single-leg squat so that your leg is bent at a 90 degree angle, knee directly above your ankle. The leg that is off the ground should be parallel to the ground.

The History of the World

For those that don't know about history ... Here is a condensed version:

Humans originally existed as members of small bands of nomadic hunters/gatherers. They lived on deer in the mountains during the summer and would go to the coast and live on fish and lobster in the winter.

The two most important events in all of history were the invention of beer and the invention of the wheel. The wheel was invented to get man to the beer. These were the foundation of modern civilization and together were the catalyst for the splitting of humanity into two distinct subgroups:

1 . Liberals
2. Conservatives.

Once beer was discovered, it required grain and that was the beginning of agriculture. Neither the glass bottle nor aluminum can were invented yet, so while our early humans were sitting around waiting for them to be invented, they just stayed close to the brewery. That's how villages were formed.

Some men spent their days tracking and killing animals to BBQ at night while they were drinking beer. This was the beginning of what is known as the Conservative movement...

Other men who were weaker and less skilled at hunting learned to live off the conservatives by showing up for the nightly BBQ's and doing the sewing, fetching, and hair dressing. This was the beginning of the Liberal movement.
Some of these liberal men eventually evolved into women. They became known as girlie-men. Some noteworthy liberal achievements include the domestication of cats, the invention of group therapy, group hugs, and the concept of Democratic voting to decide how to divide the meat and beer that conservatives provided

Over the years conservatives came to be symbolized by the largest, most powerful land animal on earth, the elephant. Liberals are symbolized by the jackass for obvious reasons.

Modern liberals like imported beer (with lime added), but most prefer white wine or imported bottled water. They eat raw fish but like their beef well done. Sushi, tofu, and French food are standard liberal fare.. Another interesting evolutionary side note: most of their women have higher testosterone levels than their men. Most social workers, personal injury attorneys, journalists, dreamers inHollywood and group therapists are liberals. Liberals invented the designated hitter rule because it wasn't fair to make the pitcher also bat.

Conservatives drink domestic beer, mostly Bud or Miller. They eat red meat and still provide for their women. Conservatives are big game hunters, rodeo cowboys, lumberjacks, construction workers, firemen, medical doctors, police officers, engineers, corporate executives, athletes, members of the military, airline pilots and generally anyone who works productively.

Conservatives who own companies hire other conservatives who want to work for a living.

Liberals produce little or nothing. They like to govern the producers and decide what to do with the production. Liberals believe Europeans are more enlightened than Americans. That is why most of the liberals remained in Europe when conservatives were coming to America .. They crept in after the Wild West was tamed and created a business of trying to get more for nothing.

Here ends today's lesson in world history.

Proper Running Form

Running takes a lot of energy out of you and is a great way to burn calories. However, if you have poor running form, you could be using too much energy, causing you to tire early.

Today's TIP OF THE WEEK is that if you are getting tired too soon in your runs and aren't able to finish, consider that you might need to alter your running form.

As a beginner, it is much easier to train yourself to run properly than if you try to alter your running form after you've been running for a long time. So, what is proper form?

When you are running on a flat surface, your back should be straight, chin up, and arms swinging (at 90 degree angles) like pendulums at your sides. Don't cross your arms or hands in front of your body when you run. If you do, you will be using extra energy causing you to tire. Look ahead, naturally, instead of down at your feet. Your legs should have a slight knee lift as you run, and your stride (distance from step to step) should be short. Your feet should land directly underneath your body and your knee should be slightly flexed as you land so that it can bend naturally on impact. If your lower leg (below the knee) extends out in front of your body, your stride is too long. Don't clench your fists, as that causes tension. Instead keep your hands loose with fingers slightly touching your palms.

You can alter your form slightly as you run up or down hills. As you run up a hill, keep looking straight ahead (at the ground in front of you) instead of at the top of the hill. Keep your back straight, but lean slightly forward, bending at the hips. Shorten your stride and swing your elbows back high behind you. Again be sure not to cross your arms in front of your body. Your arms should still swing by your side.

When you run downhill the tendency is to work against gravity and slow yourself down. This puts a lot of strain on your quads. Instead, work with gravity. Lengthen your stride and keep your back straight (instead of leaning backwards in a braking motion). Tilt your elbows slightly away from your body to help maintain balance and let your weight pull you forward.

9 months

Everyone said that it took nine months to look the way I did after having the baby, so it will take nine months to get back to what I looked like before the baby. Well, nine months is here, officially, today. And I still look like I'm four months pregnant. :( So much for that theory.

A lot has happened in the past nine months. Heck, a lot has happened in the past month! Alan has gone from sitting unassisted (albiet unsteadily, as was demonstrated when he fell backwards and hit his head on the concrete floor of a pavilion we were at when some other mommas and babies) to walking while holding our hands to crawling and pulling up...everywhere! Life is no longer safe for this little one.

Alan has also gotten four teeth so far. He got his first tooth at six and a half months and is currently cutting his fourth today. He has two more coming in on top too, but they haven't broken through yet.

Alan has always been a babbler. He's talking like crazy these days, although he hasn't really said his first word yet. He says "mama" and "dada", but doesn't know what he's saying. He did try to say "gold" while playing with the gold trim of the daybed in our office. He can't quite get that 'O' sound though, so it comes out more like "gld." That's as close to his first word as we have gotten.

At his appointment today, he got two more vaccines and measurements. He weighs 18lbs and 14oz (36th percentile) and is 29 and a quarter inches tall (85th percentile). His head is big too at the 86th percentile. No wonder his clothes don't fit over his head. He's a healthy, growing, moving, wild child!

As for me, I don't feel like I can really get back into shape until I've stopped nursing. Once I stop nursing, I will actually get some decent sleep (because I won't be getting up in the middle of the night to pump), I can get my hormones back to normal (and not be starving all the time), and start really exercising. Three more months until Alan turns one!!! I can't wait!

Week Four

It's week four of our Couch to Marathon training program. By the end of this week, you'll have been on the program for a whole month! Are you starting to feel like a runner yet?

With week four comes more distance-based running, but this week it should be easier to calculate the distances. You'll be running in 1/4 mile increments. Many trails (such as the Cochran Shoals trail mentioned last week in the Running Terrain article) are marked off by the quarter mile.

You can still run by time, if you don't have distances marked off. Remember to go at your own pace and do the three key stretching exercises that were introduced over the past three weeks (Calf, Quad, and Hamstring).

Click below to see this week's trainig plan.



Curious as to what lies ahead? The next four weeks will take us up to our first race week. You're almost half-way to a 5k! See a preview of weeks 5 through 8 below.

Hamstring Stretch

Here are some resources about running terrain:
Ground Forces
Running Review
Jogging Tips: What’s The Best Terrain To Run On?


Exercise of the Week: Hamstring Stretch
This week's exercise is the hamstring stretch. Your hamstring is the muscle located on the back of your leg, from your knee to your butt. This is the muscle that is most commonly injured as a result of running.

There are several ways to stretch your hamstring. The best way, according to my sports massage therapist, is shown in the picture above. Lay on your back bending one leg at the knee with your foot flat on the ground. Loop a jump rope or elastic band around the ball of your other foot. Straighten your leg and pull it up as far as it will go without causing the trunk of your body to move. Hold the stretch for ten seconds, then switch legs. Do the stretch on each leg five times for a total of ten stretches.

Often times you will not have a jump rope available to do this stretch and/or the ground may not be condusive to laying down. Typically, you will find me stretching more like the picture below. Rest your ankle on a stationary object around waist level. Lean down toward your toes, making sure to keep your back straight.

The Best Running Terrain

When I trained for my first half marathon, I did all my training on a packed gravel trail. Not once did I run on the road before my race. By the end of the race, my joints were hurting and my muscles were sore. If I had trained some on the surface that I was going to race on, I would have been much better prepared.

Today's TIP OF THE WEEK is to vary your terrain when you run.

When you run outside, you have a variety of different options on which to run. A typical neighborhood will have the options of either concrete sidewalks or asphalt roads. Many parks have packed gravel or dirt trails. You could also choose to run on grass or even sand if you are near a beach. And of course, there is always the outdoor track or indoor treadmill options. There are both benefits and drawbacks to most of these terrains.

Concrete sidewalks can be very convenient and safe when running outside. However, they are the hardest surface on which to run, causing stress to joints and increasing the possibility of overuse injuries.

Asphalt roads are possibly the best surface for training for a race. Most races are run on the road, and the saying "practice how you will perform" applies also to running. However, running on the road can be dangerous. Many a runner have been hit by cars while running on the road. I certainly don't want that to happen to any of my blog followers. When running on the road, be sure to run against traffic so that you are aware of approaching vehicles. Be defensive runners and yield to any oncoming traffic. If you can, find a paved bike trail to run on instead of running on the road.

Dirt trails and grass are two good running surfaces. They are softer than concrete or asphalt and give to absorb the shock of pounding the pavement. Additionally, trail running burns more calories than road running because you are maneuvering to avoid obstacles. However, with those uneven surfaces, roots, and other hazardous obstacles come the risk of twisting an ankle or landing wrong while navigating the trails. If you chose to run on trails watch your footing carefully.



Sand is another good option that is soft and absorbs shock. Again with sand you burn more calories because of the extra effort to push off from the uneven surface. But again, with any uneven surface there is risk of injury, so be careful.




Tracks offer a great running surface. In reality, it is probably the best running surface for your body. However, running around in circles can get quite boring. It can also be difficult to find a local track that is open to the public and not being used by the students.

Treadmills are a great, convenient option for those who can't get outside. With the treadmill, the surface is soft and absorbs some of the shock of running. However, on the treadmill you are not propelling yourself forward as you do while running on the road. If all you do is treadmill running, you may find running more difficult during a race because you haven't had to do all the work of running on a stationary surface. [Watch for a future blog on treadmill running.]

In my opinion, the best running terrain is a packed gravel trail, even after the rough first half marathon experience. Most packed gravel trails are free from roots and other potential hazards. The surface gives a little under your feet to absorb some of the shock, giving your joints a break. The only drawback I see to this terrain is that it isn't readily available. My favorite packed gravel trail is the Cochran Shoals River Trail. It is marked off by the quarter of a mile and is a 5k loop trail. This is the trail that I trained on for my first half marathon. What I didn't know at the time is that there is a nice road (Columns Drive) attached to it with a wide bike lane for asphalt running. If I had taken advantage of that feature I would have been much better prepared for my race.

Week Three

This is week three of the Couch to Marathon training plan. How are you doing? Have you been keeping up? I'd love to get your feedback on the program.

This week gets a little more complicated than in the past two weeks. We are going to run some set distances! In the previous two weeks you have run based on time. This week you have the option to either run based on time or run based on distance.

Yards and meters aren't exactly the same thing, but they are close. The training plan calls for yards. To give you an idea of how far that is, a high school track is 400 meters around. 400 yards is about 366 meters. If you ran around a high school track you would be going a little farther than the training plan calls during for the second repetition.

If you don't have a track available to you, the best thing to do would be to go by time. Run the minute and a half for the first repetition and the three minutes for the second repetition.

Remember to rest in between training days. You don't want to overexert yourself and end up injured.



Have the training sessions been too hard? Remember to go at your own pace. If they seem too difficult, slow down. You don't have to sprint through the running portion of the workout.

Are they too easy? You can either increase your speed during the running portion or increase your time by half a minute. If you already have a running base and would like a modified training plan, I can provide that for you via email. Just let me know!

Shoe Resources

Here are a list of good running specialty stores:
Fleet Feet
Big Peach Running Company (Atlanta area)
Phidippides (Atlanta area)
Runners World list of specialty running stores

How to know what shoe is best for you:
How to Choose a Running Shoe
13 Shoe Buying Tips from WebMD
Runners World - The Best Running Shoe for YOU
Dicks Guide to buying running shoes

Exercise of the Week : Quadriceps Stretch

The quadriceps is the muscle in the front of the thigh, important for lifting your knees and increasing your speed. They are often call the "quads."

To do this exercise while standing, simply grab hold of a stationary object for balance with one hand and use your hand opposite the leg you are stretching to grasp the leg around the ankle to pull your leg toward your buttocks. For example, if you are stretching your right quad, use your left hand. Keep your back straight and don't allow the knee to drift forward ahead of the standing leg or pull your foot too far back. Your thighs and knees should be right next to each other.

Like the Calf Stretch from last week, hold the stretch for ten seconds. Then switch legs and hold that leg for ten seconds. Continue alternating legs ten times (five stretches on each leg).

There are three stretches that I do most often after running. The calf stretch introduced last week and the quad stretch above are two of the three standard stretches that I do.

The Right Equipment

One of the best things about running is that it doesn't take much equipment to get started. All you need are some comfortable clothes and a good pair of shoes and off you go! But not just any shoes will do.

When I first started running, I went to a specialty running shoe store and had them watch me run. They showed me two pairs of shoes that worked best for my feet. One was a Mizuno brand shoe and the other was an Asics brand. The shoes were pretty expensive, so when I went to get my second pair, I just went to a regular shoe store and picked up a pair of Mizunos that looked the same. Little did I know that the model of shoe made a difference also. When I started running, I got an aching pain in the top of my foot near where the laces are after about two miles. I come to find out that I should have been using a cushioning shoe, but instead I had bought a stability shoe.


This week's TIP OF THE WEEK is that the right shoes can make or break your running experience. If you just throw on your old lawn-cutting sneakers and go for a run, you can end up with unwanted injuries. So how do you pick the right shoe?

To a beginning runner, going to purchase a pair of running shoes can be an overwhelming experience. There are all kinds of shoes out there for working out: running, walking, cross-training, tennis, yoga, etc. Shoes range from $40 to $150 in price and have various different "bells and whistles."

There are three major types of running shoes: cushioning, motion control/stability, and neutral. Your arch and the way you run will determine which type of shoe is best for you. If you have a high arch, you will generally need a cushioning shoe because your foot is more rigid. If you have a low arch, you will likely need a motion control shoe because your foot is more flexible. Those that don't fall into either of the above categories will be in a neutral shoe.

My favorite shoe is the Asics Gel Cumulus, which runs about $90. It is a neutral shoe, which works for my foot. I have a moderate to high arch.

There are other types of running shoes, such as racing shoes, performance shoes, and trail shoes. But for a beginner, you can probably find your best fit in one of the major three categories.

The best thing to do is go to a specialty running store where they can fit you with the right shoe. The good stores will watch you run (some will even video the run) to see how your foot hits the ground and pushes off. They will look at your foot, measure the size (sometimes both sitting and standing), and determine what kind of arch you have.

Recently, there have been some debates on the amount of support and cushioning that goes into the traditional running shoes. There are some people, called "minimalists," who prefer running barefoot or using the new five-finger running shoes (which are basically a glove for your foot with minimal support). I haven't bought into this concept yet. I think all the research that has gone into making quality running shoes points more toward the traditional, more cushioned shoes. It's up to you to decide for yourself.

Water for the World 10k

Last Saturday, I ran a 10k. It was my first 10k since Alan was born eight months ago. I set a goal for myself. I used Runners World's Training Calculator to determine what my 10k time should be if I could run a 3:58 marathon (my marathon PR, which I set the weekend before I became pregnant). It calculated that I should run a 10k in 51:47. That's an average of 8:20 minute miles. So that was my target.

I trained well, doing speed sessions and running consistently, until the last two weeks. Now typically, you taper some before a race, although for a 10k, you wouldn't tapering much. I got so busy at work that by last Wednesday, I had only run twice in the two weeks prior. I tried to catch up by running Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday before the race, but I could tell that my slacking had affected my running. My lungs were feeling it.

I figured I wouldn't be able to meet my goal, but I went with a glimmer of hope anyway. I ran hard. There were some crazy hills - some downhills that gave me a 7:40 mile, and some uphills that killed my time.

Toward the end, I always pick a runner that is close to my pace, but slightly faster, and try to catch up to them. This time, unbeknown to me, I picked one of my coworkers to try to catch (I didn't find out she was a coworker until Monday). She was strong at the end, and I wasn't able to catch her. I ended up finishing in 51:49, just two seconds after my goal time.

Although I didn't meet my goal, I was pretty close. This gives me hope that I will be able to run a sub-4 hour marathon again someday. Maybe even as soon as November.



Me at the start line. I'm on the left side wearing a pink visor and purple shirt.

Week Two

Again this week, we are building slowly. This second week, you will run/jog for a minute and a half, then walk for two minutes. Alternate jogging and walking until you get to 20 minutes.






Click below to see this week's plan. Add rest days in between your workout days.



Be sure to add rest days in between your training days to allow your body to build those muscles back up.