Carbon Plate Running Shoes (Yay or Nay?)

The following is not a running shoe review, it's just my objective 2-cents from a coaching perspective:

 

Back in February I picked up my 1st pair of the newest nerdy item in the running world: Carbon plated sneakers.  I was hesitant to try them, and the rationale is evident toward the end of this blog, but here we are.  Personally, I got the Saucony Endorphin Pro because I was a Saucony person forever, before I switched to Hokas and Altras.  These shoes were definitely the most money I've ever spent on a pair of shoes in my life!  I said at the time that the jury was still out as to whether they've actually "improved my pace while reducing energy demands," as most of these different shoe company ads claim to do.

 

After almost 3 months of running in these shoes (though not exclusively), I am inclined to give them a high grade, though I can't say what % of my increased paces is due to the shoes vs. my work ethic.  I view it as a pie chart, and I know that ultimately my training, not the shoes, is the biggest piece of the pie in determining my race times.  So how much do the shoes help?  I can't put a precise data-point on it, but they are certainly light and haven't given my lower legs/ feet any issues, so I like them.  They feel a bit odd at times because it occasionally feels like I'm running on a rail, given the central placement of the carbon sole, but that might also be due to my hyper-sensory proprioception (kinesthetic sense).  

 

My overall training the past 12 months is better than the previous 12 months, and so on; therefore, I should be fitter on the track.  However, with last week having been my first Tempo-pace workout of the year while on a track and wearing these particular shoes, I was not expecting to hit the paces that I did, so I was pleased!  And I am also hyper in-tune with pacing/exertion.  

 

The math tells me that these shoes improved my T-pace 3%.  That will equate a scale of 10 - 25 seconds per mile for those in the T-pace range of 6:00 - 9:00/ mile.  But similar to high-end cycling equipment, the assumption is that there aren't any other major variables hampering your performance.  So, if you are at the peak of your potential and are looking for a way to get over a hump and/or squeeze out some time, then yes, maybe the shoes are an answer.  But if you're still getting over an injury and/or haven't hit strength training 3-5x per week for 6+ months yet and/or are running over a 10:00/mile, then save your money for now, especially if budgeting is a factor.

 

In sum, I have only run in one type of carbon plated shoe (money is a factor), so the results are narrow, but it seems that the theory of the shoes is at least minimally supported by the claims of me and the runners I coach who use them.  I purchased the orange ones, and I haven't run in orange shoes in many years, so there's also that perk.  If I was paid money to promote the shoes, then yes, obviously "these shoes are guaranteed to give you a PR of your money back," and so goes the world of endorsements in all professional sports.  But for anyone reading this blog who is on a budget, the cost of these shoes is the same as 2-3 professional massages, which might do you better to alleviate the ailments that are hampering your progress.  Choose wisely, my friends!

 

Train hard!

 

Mike

Working and Working-Out From Home

Working from home is the world in which I've been living most of the past 10 years with DCRC.  I see that there are online articles floating around all over the place on "How to Adjust to a Work-From-Home Environment" and "6 Things You Can Do TODAY to Improve Your Productivity While Working From Home!"  It's all practical advice, so I won't belabor the point here.  Without having actually read those articles, my #1 tip is to find a place with the least amount of distractions, which might actually be outside your home.  For me, I've found that the UMD library is where I am the most productive, with a specific section of the specific floor that I go to.  With that shut down, I still have other backup options I've used over the years.  Yes, I'm sitting at my home desk 80-90% of the time when I'm working these days, but I also know it can be beneficial to go outside for a while to get other type of work done, like reading and/or less-consuming work.  

As it relates to training, some of you are now feeling "cooped up" because you don't have the separation of commute-work-gym-commute-home that you used to have.  So now you might not always have the usual peppy enthusiasm to do ST because now instead of doing it at the gym, you're doing it where you work and eat.  My advice on this is the same as it's always been, try doing your ST outside!  There has to be some small park or patch of grass near your home in which you can take your bag of ST goodies and knock it out.  

Either way, whether it's working at home or working-out at home, you have to flip a switch in your head that enables you to switch modes (see Link below).  One tactic here is to change your clothes when it's time to workout.  Maybe you've been lounging in workout clothes all day, and that's fine…you don't have to wear your business attire when working from home (I hope you don't!), but make it a point to change clothes, as in putting on a "uniform".  Uniforms have a special connotation in that it allows us to make those small yet meaningful identity changes, which enables us to "get in the right zone" prior to the workout.  Maybe you have a favorite workout T-shirt?  …special tights/shorts?  …headband!?  

Whatever it is, now more than ever is when you can use that to your advantage.  Switch clothes, put on your workout uniform and "go to work"…flip the switch in your head!  Thank you, Sly!

Train hard!

Mike

Social Distancing & Evolutionary Psychology (& Running)

Regarding the social distancing protocol that is in place, it certainly makes sense and is reasoned to be the 2nd best way to stop the spread of the pandemic, with the eventual mass vaccine/anecdote being 1st.  As it relates to being outside and being the social creatures that we are, in the past week I've seen more runners out-and-about in DC than usual.  DC is always crawling with runners, which I enjoy about my city, but I see more than usual these days, with people having extra time to workout if they're not at the office/commuting.  I see some of them running in the outside lanes on Connecticut Ave to attempt to keep distance between the folks on the sidewalk (and since they're are relatively few cars on the road).  The trail behind my apartment building is full of walkers and runners every time I peer out my window.  Hopefully everyone maintains this level activity when the world gets a full green light again, right?

With people feeling "cooped up" and/or isolated after x-amount of days/weeks in their homes, it's sensible that they want to get outside and at least see other humans (we are social creatures by nature), as well as to importantly enjoy fresh air.  I don't see any issue with doing workouts outside, just be smart and keep your distance.  The efficacy of face masks is debatable at the time of this post, but use them if that's what your gut tells you to do.  Bring hand sanitizer or thin gloves if you're using outdoor equipment, as it looks like most apartment/office gyms are shutting down too.  ST videos on Youtube can definitely shake up your routine and keep it fun!  There is no shortage of ST/PT vids online, have at it!  Whatever you're doing outside, I don't believe that you have to feel guilty about it.  If you know you have symptoms (fever, dry cough, abnormally low energy) then I assume you're self-quarantined already.  I receive university emails daily regarding virus updates, and I also keep checking the CDC website, and here is the most basic info about corona that I will repeat here:

"People may be sick with the virus for 1 to 14 days before developing symptoms. The most common symptoms of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) are fever, tiredness, and dry cough. Most people (about 80%) recover from the disease without needing special treatment.  More rarely, the disease can be serious and even fatal.  Older people, and people with other medical conditions (such as asthma, diabetes, or heart disease), may be more vulnerable to becoming severely ill."

We’re all in the same boat right now in terms of canceled races/events…things that were very important to us are now completely off the radar until at least July at this point.  Some of the bigger international races have postponed their date to the fall, in which it's nice to see that they're trying to salvage the experience for everyone involved.  I always say that I'm optimistic, but not blindly.  I'm hopeful for the miracle of modern science to put up a winning fight against Mother Nature with this new pandemic, but I obviously can't make any educated guesses beyond that of our true experts, to whom I've been listening as much as I can outside the usual news outlets.  In the meantime, and to reiterate from above, you are not a selfish individual for being outside in the fresh spring air right now.  You want to keep your momentum in terms of health/fitness, and there's a reason fit people are less affected by the virus.  Your athletic goals and events are a part of your identity and your psychological well-being, so you have my support, just don't be overzealous about it in the face of others.  One of the runners I coach was slated to run his first 50-miler this weekend, but it got canceled, yet he's possibly going to run 50M on his own this weekend and serve as his own support staff too.  No qualms from me (as long as he protects his immune system afterward and takes a full recovery week, right?).

Personally, I am still symptom-free and I've been doing relatively short runs most days.  Some people on the sidewalk appear to be almost jumping out of the way when they see me coming.  No doubt, you too have at least once had a stranger "dodge you", as if you're a weapon or a zombie.  I acknowledge that it's an eerie feeling to experience that, and despite how high our self-esteem might be, it can sting for a moment.  Don't fret or take it personally.  That's evolutionary psychology making it sting…the "need" to be accepted by the rest of the tribe, or to be affiliated with others (Maslow's hierarchy, see attached photo), or to at least not feel like an outcast, right?  To that last point, we have sensitivity ("sensors") built into our animal/primate brains to sense danger, which is not just physical threat, but also disease, germs, and the sick people around us.  Hence the great debate in psychology about whether altruism really exists, or if we help others merely to get rid of our own feelings of sympathy, pity, remorse, or disgust and/or to make ourselves feel good/noble for helping someone else (spoiler: altruism does exist).  

I begin the psych courses I teach with a reminder that to ignore evolutionary psychology is to miss out on the understanding of almost all of our modern behaviors too (as a species).  Everything is just more sophisticated now.  There's a reason people might unknowingly exaggerate their movements to avoid you while you're running, for the very same reason you feel uneasy when they do it.  The explanation is that we are, a) creatures designed for survival = "stay away from the bad stuff", and b) creatures designed to be social.  You can make the same jokes I have about how social distancing already began in 2010 with the advent of smart phones (haha), but I empathize with any of you who think it's odd when parents warn their kids, "no, honey, wait!!!" as you walk into your building at the same time as a family (as I did last night…I chuckled to myself…it was so damn eerie to be a part of that moment).  Or the one person I saw in the grocery store who nearly had a panic attack when someone walked past with a cart within 6 feet.  Luckily that's been the exception and not the norm.

I tend to be the odd-ball anyway who waives and smiles at people when I run around the city, so there's one way to keep the normalcy…go ahead and waive/smile/head-nod at some people you see out there.  Evolutionary psych tells us that one of the first "symbols" we recognize as newborns is a smiling face.  Keep the sense of community/friendliness going, just as I say thank you on-the-fly as often as I can to the race volunteers at the aid stations during my races.  Viva la happiness.  Don't feel guilty, don't feel shame, don't feel like a mutant.  Stay active, run outside, just don't annoy anyone.  Check the CDC site occasionally, please (please) don't stay glued to the news stations or online headlines/clickbait (life is not horrible).  Who knows when this will "flatten out".  I'll be optimistic for at least local races to occur in the fall.  Stay motivated…feed your momentum, your identity ("ego"), and keep me posted, I'm here to help you navigate.

Be Healthy,

Mike

Mike's Video Series on Run Form...Now Available!!!

 
Hello Everyone!

I hope that your 2020 is off to a great start!  My long-awaited video series on proper running form is now up on Youtube!  The brainchild was ~6 years ago, but it's finally done, whew!  Many of you reading this blog made a small investment in me when you signed-up for coaching.  Otherwise, I hope you find the video series beneficial.  Please feel free to share!

I'll eventually add more videos to my Youtube page, like a "Coach's Corner", as in a series of short 1-5 minute videos where I discuss various topics (e.g., sections of my book), so subscribing to the DCRC Youtube Channel also helps.


Here are the quick links to the videos in the series:

Video Intro A - General points and philosophies:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cWT2wzm5Ct8

Video Intro B - Background info on Coach Mike:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2249fSqz90

Video #1 - Arm Swing:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lmb2KwMK6hs 

Video #2 - Posture:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q7FQ-3YdzNg

Video #3 - Stride Rate (cadence):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ySJQQaTI6KM

Video #4 - Stride Length:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6tHP1Zj4fsY

Video #5 - Foot Strike:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9yNhGHqNocg

Video #6 - Closing Thoughts:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9fxHrFpUuvU


Have a great 2020!

Mike

P.S.  As you'll see, the main 3 videos (the "main beef") on stride rate + stride length + foot strike are loooong, and that is intentional, as these 3 topics are the "main beef".  I elected not to break the longer videos up into even smaller ones because it would potentially scramble the order of them when someone was watching, so for simplicity's sake, I stacked the videos just as I present them during a Running 101 session.

Precision is Better Than Pushing

Here is an advanced tip for how to stay technically attuned during your workouts, especially when you get fatigued, whether it’s running or strength training (ST).  I hammer home this point in the ST chapter of my book when I discuss the priority of form/technique over mindlessly pushing yourself to simply do more reps ("more, more, more!").  There is an obvious connection here in how our form tends to break down when we go to the upper limits of our long runs and/or harder speed workouts.  This is all in itself a healthy reminder, but I'll take it a step further.  

As a coach, I want to make sure that my athletes and I have a similar definition of "pushing yourself", or at least have different ways of defining this phrase.  Yes, in general, pushing yourself means stepping out of your comfort zone and embracing the harder workouts, the jacked-up heart rate on occasion, the labored breathing, the muscle burn, etc; however, it can also mean choosing to do a workout vs.skipping it (I discuss this in more detail in a section of my book called "Aggressive Training"), and also maintaining proper focus when the going gets tough (i.e., composure and self-talk).  

Another section of my book is titled "Mental Toughness is Overrated" and it's relevant here. How do you know when you're pushing yourself?  Is it based on how many reps you do? …the #'s on your watch?  Or is it a subjective feeling?  …does it require extra mental effort in order to qualify as "pushing yourself"?  No matter how you cut it, "pushing yourself" might sometimes get in the way of optimum/maximum performance.  Wait, how is that possible, doesn't that sound counter-intuitive?  

I was at a 3-day sport psych nerd conference in Baltimore this past weekend, with lots and lots of presentations on cognitive elements of performance, motor development, motor control, team dynamics, identity/personality, and a bunch of other relevant topics.  Lots to learn.  As I already had this topic in my head, I caught a few glimpses of presentations that showed that the specific focal points someone has during endurance tasks and/or high-intensity tasks helps determine actual performance, which is nothing new, nor earth-shattering, but it does lend credence to the importance of making sure we all understand what "pushing yourself" could mean and/or should mean.  

For instance, there are internal focal points ("staying in your element" as I phrase it in my book), which are your breathing, technique/form, stride, perceived exertion, etc., and there are external focal points, such as the crowd, the competition, the trees, your pace, etc.  Side note: Some of you are wondering if pace is actually internal…keep it as external, this is the difference between Pace vs. Intensity.  Most studies show internal focus leads to better performance than external focus, and if you've read my book, then you understand the reasoning.  There's obviously room to bounce back and forth between the two, especially in relatively long events (it's natural and needed), and that in itself is a skill, in knowing when to do each, but now I'll bring this back to the main point.  

Precision is a better way to improve performance than simply grunting it out (pushing).  In fact, you can all think of examples, either personally or observed, when someone was so determined to push hard that their technique suffered as a result and they missed whatever mark they were aiming for.  This naturally is more evident in tasks with a cognitive component (running isn't very cognitive, or at least it's not supposed to be!), but it does apply to endurance sports too.  For example, cyclists were studied while they either focused on their pedal stroke (i.e., "smoothness" = internal) or were focused on "keep going!" (external).  The former group beat the latter group.  This should be logical.  If your pedal stroke remains smooth (i.e., efficient, just like running form) then you don't put as much strain/stress on your body (muscles, tendons, etc), thereby making it physically/physiologically easier to "keep going."  This is the essence of why mental toughness is overrated.  

Keep your precision when the going gets tough, it'll help you hit the target.  Braveheart and the Kevin Kostner Robin Hood both have scenes about this type of precision under pressure, and I learned it first-hand back in the day when I was doing shot put and playing rugby.  So, don't just close your eyes and plow through, you might screw up your form, and it's our form that carries us through!

Train hard!

Mike

Consistency (The Forgotten Variable)

I frequently use the word “consistency” in relation to winter off-season training.  I encourage everyone not to overlook consistency as an important variable in your training program.  The variables we usually think of are: distance, miles, pace, # of sets, # of reps, duration, rest intervals, and # of workouts in the week.  However, if you’ve been doing all of the above for several weeks in a row (putting recovery weeks on hold for a second), then isn’t the number of weeks also its own variable?  Yes, it is!  And that is the main reason I give DCRC athletes proactive recovery weeks as preventive medicine.  

The other more important point I wanted to make here is that you don’t always need to extend your weekend long runs, nor do more total miles or days per week as we progress along.  The simple fact you’ve done it x-amount of weeks in a row is enough stress on the body already.  This is why a chunk(s) of your program will often look similar over a few weeks at a time.  And this is where a coach and an athlete might have different perspectives on training, right?  Sometimes I’m controlling all the variables in a program (within reason) and allowing the fact that it’s being done week after week (after week) be the important variable in the mix.  

This approach (and reminder) is especially important for those of you who are either getting back into running/training for the first time ever, or the first time in a long time, and/or if you’ve always had nagging injuries in the past, and/or been sidelined by injury.  This approach does not mean your training is stagnant!  No way!  That is a fallacy that keeps the PT/chiro offices in business!  If you’ve been training consistently for 6-8 weeks in a row then you better believe you’re putting in work.  This level of commitment and consistency is new for some of you, either mentally or in terms of being injury-free.  

Let your consistency be a variable in itself and be patient if your program doesn’t resemble cannon fire.  Some of the programs I create for athletes accelerate faster than others, yet that is based on myriad factors.  The above points also reinforce the notion, "Train smarter, not harder," and now you know another tactic to put that into action via your program.

Train Smart!

Mike

Hammer Time

We have 2 full weeks of January 2018 under our belts, and with that we should be clear of the lingering holiday bugs/illnesses, family time (family-in-law time, too), travel, and reasons and excuses (there’s a difference between those last two).  Now it's time to start hammering!

Whatever transpired in 2017 (for better or worse) is behind us, and we’re moving forward.  Like a dream catcher, take what you need to from 2017, filter out the rest, digest it, believe in what you digested (don’t lie to yourself), and move forward.  Part of moving forward is to get your PT visits!  PT will offer you much insight into new ST exercises, or where to focus your ST.  We can’t use race schedules as an excuse right now because we don’t need to be racing Jan-Feb.  

I’ve written many times that your off-season goal is to look and feel like a different athlete on March 1st, as compared to November 1st, so with 2 weeks of 2018 already gone by, keep hammering!  Retool, rebuild, reload, repeat.  Every week of Jan - Feb you should be focused on strengthening your body, changing your body, trying new things, and shaking up your routine.  Signing on with DCRC is a huge first step for many athletes and so it’s happening naturally.  Others who have been with me a while and/or long-time avid runners might have to dig a little deeper to see what new elements they can introduce, and perhaps that simply means pushing themselves more than they did last winter!  

We have 6 weeks until March 1st (plus the St. Patty’s 5k on March 4th), so get moving!  If you didn’t start hammering ST in November because that was still peak race month, then that’s fine, but if December was also a recovery period + busy time, then that’s behind us now.  

“Be the change you want to see in yourself”  —Ghandi’s personal trainer.

Train hard!

Mike

A Winning Vocabulary

When considering how you feel about your last week of training (or life), be sure not to limit your vocabulary to simply “good or bad”.  I understand that there is otherwise a potentially utility to keeping the language that simple, and I admit that I sometimes remind my athletes to think of their training program as keeping a scorecard for each week in terms of whether the week was a “win or a loss,” and so I recognize the potential contradiction I just offered. However, my point in encouraging athletes to think about their training in terms of a win-loss record is related to zooming out and looking at the week as a whole, instead of focusing on the one or two aspects that didn’t go 100% according to plan.  

When you consider the entirety of the week, using both objective and subjective data points, then the overwhelming majority of your weeks should be "good weeks”…a win!  You could even use a word other than “good,” as in reporting that the week went “great!”  If you don’t believe that it was a great week, or even a good week, then why not?  To take it a step further, just because it wasn’t a good week, does that automatically imply it was a bad week?  Probably not. 

Even if you don’t think it was a great/good week of training, expanding your vocabulary in that regard means you’ll have many more words to choose from that have a positive connotation from which you can label your week.  The practical application of the bigger vocabulary is that you won’t be so quick to label a training week negatively, and then you get to score one in the Win category!

Our thoughts are framed by the exact words we use.  “We think in terms of language”—George Carlin.  Elite athletes who frequently use mental imagery and develop such “scripts” for races demonstrate this element of psychological skills training.  Specifically, they practice the exact words/phrases (cue words) they want to say at various points in the game/race/course to keep the self-talk positive and task-specific.  It is a skill that takes deliberate practice to develop.  Bottom line: Develop a bigger vocabulary.

Train hard!

Mike

Fall Running - Faster & Safer

With the fall season coming at the end of a yearly training cycle, it's likely that most runners are feeling their fittest.  Therefore, you might find that your regular/easy pace is significantly faster than it was back in the winter.  First, this is certainly due to your work ethic paying off.  Second, the weather is best at this time of year (minus some warm weekends we had for key races, like Army 10-miler).  Third, you’ve likely been doing more speed work in the fall and have probably been racing more often, so subconsciously you have been primed/triggered to pick up the pace.  In any case, as you set out for a regular jog you might notice that you’re running “fast,” even though you’re not mentally in “workout mode.”  Should you slow down?  Nope!  I say go with it!  As long as you’re not beating yourself up out there and the legs feel fine, then go with the flow and let it ride.  

As a second point with fall running, stay alert out there on the wooded trails that are littered with leaves on the ground.  The underbelly of some of the leaves are moist and can cause you to slip, and some patches of leaves are covering up little potholes or oddly shaped tree roots.  Autumn is a gorgeous season and a fun time of year to run through the woods and I encourage it, but for safety's sake, make sure you’re not spacing out too much on these runs.  Most of the time, you know the trail like the back of your hand and you’re strong enough and athletic enough to be perfectly fine in terms of it being uneventful.  But since I also want to encourage you right now to add some adventurous running into your mix and get off the beaten path, you have to keep your eyes alternating between the ground immediately underneath you and 10-15 feet in front of you.  If you're running through a place like Rock Creek Park, then stay alert and plan your footing in advance.

A small percentage of runners are timid when it comes to running on these natural trails.  My short answer is this: Strength training (ST) is a major guardian against a rolled ankle, so continue to do your ST shoes-off for improved foot and ankle strength.  Make your ST dynamic and functional and you’ll have increased confidence on the trails, allowing you to enjoy the gorgeous autumn scenery.

Train hard and enjoy the foliage!

Mike

"Be Water, My Friend."

The main coaching points I’ve been giving my athletes this summer have been reminding all of them to continually adapt and adjust to the weather conditions.  Rather than fighting against Mother Nature’s undefeated streak, adapt and adjust to what the conditions allow you to do that day.  This requires much self-awareness in terms of being in-tune with your body (in the moment), as well as the phrase we’ve been using recently, “managing expectations,” which sometimes means, “managing your personality." 

The more weeks, months, and years you train, the quicker you should be able to identify the conditions around you and know how to adjust accordingly.  Bruce Lee left an enduring message that is very much akin to this idea of adaptation to your immediate environment (see short video link below).  Water works with the shape and contours its given and always finds its natural balance, and so must you work with the heat, humidity, wind, hills, etc., and find the appropriate balance for that day’s workout.  I’m aware of how overly commonsensical this Tip sounds, so (collectively) let’s prove it! 

Rise up to the level of Master during your workouts so that you can report success, optimism, and confidence in your recaps, rather than letting summer weather conditions kick you around.  Kick back Bruce Lee style by adapting and finding a natural balance on that day.  Just as the drop in temperatures did this past weekend, the fall weather will reveal your fitness, so keep your mental fortitude.  Overall, the athletes I train are doing well as a group in this regard, so I want them to view this as healthy reinforcement, not as negative feedback.  We’re on the same team.

A final note on this topic would be to also see the occasional OPEN days in your program as a “let the water find its own natural balance day.”  What this means is that your OPEN days allow you to do whatever you need to do to reset/balance your mind or training for that day or week.  It’s a catch-up, get-ahead, or OFF day.  Listen to your inner Lee and use sound judgment.

Spoken by the legend Himself, “Be water, my friend.”

Mike

The Sound of Two Hands Clapping

Does anyone else ever finish a run with a handclap or mini fist pump in the air?  I do that quite often and it puts a fabulous exclamation point on any run, and makes the lasting impression of the run as one of confidence.  Cognitive psychology can teach us many tactics and tricks about how to put a positive touch on any situation, so the handclap is an example you can try, and it might be especially meaningful in the face of summer heat/humidity that could otherwise sabotage your feelings of progress.  More importantly, what makes the handclap work is that I believe it to be true. 

As I shared in the final chapter of my book on run training, virtually every run I’ve ever done has had a positive element to it, and that’s far from lying to myself.  It’s the truth.  I don’t have negative experiences when I run.  When you finish a run in 90-degree temps with high humidity and every square inch of you is drenched in sweat, you better believe a run like that gets a “WOOHOO!” <CLAP> at the end of it.  SUCCESS!

Moreover, make sure you are proactively adjusting your workouts to account for the summer weather.  Proactively adjusting means “sit down before you fall down” and prevents negative self-talk from entering the picture and then having to pick yourself up mentally post-workout.  Some runners don’t adjust by their own volition; rather, they run slower and slower as the workout goes on because their body is slowly shutting down.  One of my favorite coaching expressions is: "Foresight is a more powerful tool than hindsight."

With more heat and humidity coming our way, be sure you are still fine-tuning your mental skills to stay optimistic and confident.  Here is what one of my runners wrote to me regarding his recent weekend long run: "Long run went great.  Went out with the [running store] weekend group and did the first half with a few folks, second half on my own with headphones.  You would have been very proud of my pacing decisions if you saw me and others at the end of the run.  Despite the heat, I finished with a big smile on my face, only to meet up with a bunch of others in the parking lot complaining about how their runs were terrible.  I found myself repeating your advice, that it's all about perceived exertion and managed expectations in the heat!”

Anyone can fool him/herself at the beginning of a workout in hot/humid conditions, but the cumulative effects don’t take very long to reveal themselves and spike your heart rate too high, too soon.  Remember that summer running is about perceived exertion/ intensity, and not pace.  For instance, the average runner doing a tempo workout on the track might have to adjust the pace by as much as 30-40 seconds per mile!  If you’re a data-driven runner, then that workout has the ability to “suck” in your mind because the numbers are your focal point.  We don’t want that.  We want a superb feeling of accomplishment when we’re done.  Perhaps solidified by a handclap as you cross the finish line on that final rep (or arriving back at your front doorstep).

Yes, I know, it feels weird for your legs to move at a pace much slower than you’re used to, but “train smarter, not harder” is one of our mantras.  Remind yourself that you hit other process goals that day, and again, you’ll be likely to honestly believe the positivity that you throw at yourself.

Run Happy!

Mike

Relativity

As Einstein once said, “Whether or not a race course or trail in the DC area is ‘hilly’ is relative to the individual.”  This is your reminder to have your own rating scale for hills and courses based on your own running experiences and perceived fitness.  

As I remind the runners I coach each year that head up to Boston for the marathon, Heartbreak Hill is overrated if you’re a DMV area runner.  Relative to us (DMV area residents), that hill isn’t too daunting. Relative to someone from most parts of Florida, then sure, it’s a doozy.  I address this topic in my book “The Art of Run Training” in a few sections; most notably the section titled “The DC Advantage for Runners,” as well as the section “Long Hills Don’t Exist.”  For more advice, you can click those links and check out the respective Blogs for both of those points.  

Additionally, make sure you reserve the word “hilly” for courses that deserve it.  The fitter you become, the less effect the smaller inclines have on you, so don’t do them the favor of considering them hills any more.  Use that word sparingly.  You can make distinctions between “hilly” vs. “rolling” vs. “incline" vs. “gently rolling.”  

The same approach applies to the weather.  “Hot” is 90-degree weather; it hasn’t been hot yet.  “Warm” is a better word to use, or “fair.”  Hilly and hot conditions might set you up for an adverse mental state going into your run, whereas, “scenic” or “sunny” have a positive connotation that frames the run differently.  So, with the exception of perhaps your run coach, don’t let other people’s perspectives of what constitutes a hilly course change your opinion too much, or at least as it pertains to strangers.  Trusted run friends and race directors certainly have valid opinions, but either way, make sure your own perspective of your own fitness is the guiding light.  

E = mc² would have been an impossible riddle for all of us to solve, but to Einstein it was (eventually) relatively easy.  ‘Twas not a Heartbreak-Hill-esque problem for him, just a “roller.”  Choose your own vocabulary and make it work for you.  Use some words only sparingly.

Train hard!

Mike

The Relationship Between Sleep & Athletic Performance

I recently read a 2015 review article published in Sports Medicine, titled "Sleep and Athletic Performance: The Effects of Sleep Loss on Exercise Performance, and Physiological and Cognitive Responses to Exercise.”  

Below I provide a summary of the authors’ main points, followed by my 2 cents (interpretation of the results) from a coach’s perspective.

Authors’ main points:

Although sleep is considered critical to optimal performance, many athletes appear to lose sleep prior to competition for various reasons, including noise, light, anxiety, and nervousness.  While there appears sufficient evidence to imply complete sleep deprivation can have significant negative effects on athletic performance, the effects of sleep restriction (partial disturbance of the sleep–wake cycle) are more conflicting; a concerning issue given that athletes are more likely to experience this mode of sleep loss.  The detrimental effect of sleep loss on most aspects of cognitive function remains unequivocal, with only minor conflicting findings present for the extent of the effects of mild sleep restriction, findings that would predictably suggest negative consequences for athletes requiring high neurocognitive reliance.

Much of the previous research has reported that exercise performance is negatively affected following sleep loss; however, conflicting findings mean that the extent, influence, and mechanisms of sleep loss affecting exercise performance remain uncertain. For instance, research indicates some maximal physical efforts and gross motor performances can be maintained. In comparison, the few published studies investigating the effect of sleep loss on performance in athletes report a reduction in sport-specific performance. The effects of sleep loss on physiological responses to exercise also remain equivocal; however, it appears a reduction in sleep quality and quantity could result in an autonomic nervous system imbalance, simulating symptoms of the overtraining syndrome. Additionally, increases in pro-inflammatory cytokines following sleep loss could promote immune system dysfunction.

My 2 cents:

For those who read the fine print of this review article and saw that the several studies that showed a decrease in performance were mostly in maximal power output (i.e., 30-sec Wingate/cycling test), I would ask them to raise their hand if that is a meaningful carryover into their own training (answer: most likely not).  Sleep deprivation (SD) vs. sleep restriction (SR) is where the other significant findings of the article are contained, but I also don’t think any of local amateur athletes are facing actual sleep deprivation.  In short, if it’s the night before a race and you don’t get much sleep, then don’t worry about it, especially since there are very little (if at all) cognitive aspects of endurance events, whereas team-sport athletes might have other considerations depending on their position/demands, but even then the results are mixed with no need to sound an alarm.  

It’s important to note that the article points out that physiological measures don’t always show adverse effects from SR, so the authors postulate that central fatigue (as in central nervous system fatigue/ self-talk) is most likely the mechanism, especially if you factor that perceived exertion (effort) was diminished in some studies.  In other words, if the athlete believes that the sleep restriction is going to have an adverse effect, then he/she might be likely to create a self-fulfilling prophecy!  Get the idea out of your head, and do so with confidence, as the empirical evidence supports that short-term SR likely won’t affect your endurance the following day.  

Chronic sleep restriction is a separate issue not addressed by this article, and I think we would all agree that at that point there are going to be performance detriments (even with just a few days), along with an increased chance for injury (i.e., relationship between chronic muscular fatigue and injury).  I can empathize with any athlete who doesn't get a solid night of sleep the night before a big game/race, but what’s probably more important is the sleep you get two and three nights before a significant effort.

Train hard!

Mike

Nutrition & Happiness

How did nutrition and happiness end up in the title of the same blog?  Let's find out together.

There is a collective theme emerging this winter from the runners I coach in that they are proactively taking control of their own healthy eating and fueling habits.  Some of them have purchased books on the topic, and whether or not it’s a run-specific nutrition book is irrelevant at this point.  They’re setting specific goals in this category, with tangible action plans.  Much of that starts at the grocery store (e.g., reading labels), and then carries over into their choices when dining out (e.g., no alcohol).  Quick side note: Alcohol affects your sleep, and then lack of sleep, especially over an entire week or month, will affect your performance and increase your risk for inflammation injuries (overuse injuries).

Some of you have a body type that doesn’t have much room to improve, whether that’s in terms of body weight (you’re already as low as you’re going to get) or body composition (lean vs. fatty tissue), but your goal with proper diet can still be to be energetic day-in, day-out, and to get good sleep (I have a separate Blog on BodyTypes, which also appears in the Nutrition chapter of my book).  

The off-season is the best time for experimentation and to attack all the off-the-field elements of your training.  Yes, we incorporate all aspects of training during the entire year (a holistic approach), but we mentally prioritize (key word) things like, ST, PT, XT, and nutrition in the off-season.  To mentally prioritize everything all the time means you’re going to drive yourself crazy.  The key to “finding balance,” like your hippie yoga friends preach, is not to reduce everything to the same level (same amount of priority) throughout the day, week, month, or year, but instead to focus/prioritize certain aspects more than others for a while (however long that needs to be) before switching focus/prioritization to something else, so that at the end of a month or year, the overall weight of everything has balance.

To use run training as a quick example (explained in greater length and depth in the Periodization chapter of my book), racing is the lowest priority in the winter, with ST at the highest.  Then that slowly but surely shifts in the opposite direction as we hit the fall season, which is peak race season.  Monitoring exact paces for workouts follows suit (low priority now, high priority later).  You should be able to apply this same mental approach to all aspects of your life: professional, athletic, social, and family/friends, with further breakdowns within each of those major categories.  I’m sure some of you already do this with elaborate color coding on your monthly planners or through journaling, or though meditation, but if not, then give it a whirl.  Take an hour to dissect your life on paper...your schedule, your priorities, your goals, and your happiness.  As an athlete in the Mid-Atlantic region, this is the perfect time of year to do it (winter off-season).

So, as you focus on nutrition now (here in the off-season), you are adhering to a key component of happiness, which is to the Purpose and Pleasure Pendulum, for which I have a separate Blog, and reading that will explain how nutrition and happiness ended up in the same title of this Blog :)

Train hard!

Mike

Be Your Own Color Commentator

 

As part of your longer runs, a strategy you can use to practice positive self-talk and keep it fun is to play the role of being your own color commentator, treating the run as if you’re out there with imaginary opponents!  Bear with me here :)  You’re already talking to yourself in some way, shape or form when you’re running, right?  So why not spice it up!  I first started doing this with my friend Brian many years ago when we did 3-5 hour bike rides together out in the middle of nowhere VA/MD.  The invention of iPods has changed the game since then, but when cycling with someone else, you tend not to bring your music with you.  So I would entertain us both by doing my best impersonations of the Tour de France commentators as we had to pass the time somehow while climbing all of those hills, staring at trees, and inevitably getting lost on occasion. 

The commentary kept the training fun, but I also started to see common themes emerge once I kept this up on occasion during my solo run training.  I noticed that it helped keep me positive, as I could create positive self-talk at any point in the workout to help me push through to the end.  When training each week can otherwise become monotonous, this is a way to generate some excitement.  Even on the days I wasn’t feeling my A-game, I could still pretend that “everyone else on the course is suffering too, but I’m still in command and winning.”  Therefore, I mostly used this fun tactic toward the end of my workouts, when I was more likely to need a mental boost.

Give it a shot.  Be creative, have fun, give it your own flavor, add an accent too if you like.  Any time you pass a runner who is going either direction, you can make them part of the story.  You can even turn it into the overly (overly) melodramatic NBC-style coverage we are bombarded with during the Olympics.  It’ll also allow you to be brutally honest with yourself (if you’re not already), as you can remind yourself of the obstacles you’ve overcome, that you are probably fitter than you’re giving yourself credit for, and so you can soul search in the midst of all this commentary.  It’s a good way to get to know yourself as an athlete.  It’s also a great way to get in the habit of envisioning success, whether it’s actually winning a race or hitting a goal time or PR.  At the end of the run, who the hell is there to say otherwise!?  Nobody.   

I have separate sections on Self-talk and Imagery in Chapter 6 of my book “The Art of Run Training.”  Chapter 7 offers many other strategies for different race distances, but I really like this one even though I didn’t put it into the book.

Train hard!

Mike

Thanksgiving Week for Runners

 

Regardless of how much you actually celebrate this holiday (or the next big one coming up), it can also simply serve as a time to gather with family and friends.  With these two holidays comes extra time to yourself (I hope!) and time to relax your mind and decompress…and eat Mom’s world famous mashed potatoes.  Enjoy yourself this week.  Allow yourself time to do some soul searching over the next 5 weeks in total. 

As it relates to Turkey Trots, your goal there is probably an all or none mentality, right?  Meaning, you’re either still riding high on the coattails of peak fall season and you’ll therefore shoot for a 5k/10k PR, or you are in your recovery period with a mellow approach to fitness/training and you’ll jog the course with friends/family.  There’s probably not much grey area, nor would I encourage anything in between at this point.  Pick one: Go for the PR or jog it to enjoy the festivities.  For those pushing the pace that day, then yes, you should absolutely stick to your normal (healthy) routine on Wed so that you feel right on Thurs morning.  This message is not in conflict with the previous paragraph; both messages can coexist.  For the folks I’ve been coaching for at least a year, they also know that this mentality of embracing a recovery week is part of our normal training plan anyway.  You also know that this time of year (for most runners) is an extended, planned Recovery Phase.  I discuss this time of year in more detail in its own section in Chapter 2 of my book, The Art of Run Training. 

From microlevel to mesolevel to macrolevel, we have off/rest days (in a week) + recovery weeks (every 6 - 9 weeks) + a Recovery Phase (2 - 5 weeks at 1 – 2 times per year), respectively.  All 3 levels should be built into a yearly program.  If you believe that an rest day can benefit you, and if you also believe that recovery weeks are a good idea, then you must believe that a Recovery Phase is a fabulous idea.  The latter is typically 2 - 5 weeks following your peak race, and/or before your off-season, and/or during the holidays.  Fortunately for those of us in the Mid-Atlantic region, we have actual winter weather that is separated 2 - 5 weeks from peak race season.  The timing is perfect for a recovery week and a Recovery Phase. 

As we change seasons, we change the type of training we do and simultaneously change the “mental approach to training and racing” (the main service of DCRC).  Recovery weeks/phases don’t mean couch potato, nor does the off-season mean less training.  The former is an intentional recharge period; the latter is the intentional rebuild period.  The Art of Run Training outlines this whole process in more detail.

Train hard (and rest hard)!

Mike

Purpose and Pleasure

Purpose and Pleasure are the two points on the pendulum of happiness.  Remember that both exist and each has its own time and place on a daily, weekly and monthly basis.  This reminder allows you to work your butt off, either professionally or with training, and not think "I'm working my life away," and it also allows you to unwind, do nothing, maybe even engage in some debauchery without thinking, "I need to get my act together."  Do both.  "Keeping the balance" doesn't mean trying to have purpose and pleasure at all times throughout a day, week or month (that's impossible).  You have to let that pendulum swing to both sides and stay there for extended periods of time.  However you choose to define "extended" is up to you...hourly, daily, weekly, etc.  Just be sure that pendulum swings back the other way at some point!  

The same is true for healthy interpersonal relationships.  Meaning, a relationship of any sort, whether it’s with siblings, coworkers, lovers or close friends, is rarely going to have a 50-50 split of responsibility, effort and energy.  Sometimes you’ll be carrying 80% of the load and other times the other people in your life will be carrying more than half the share.  What’s important is that at the end of the year there’s a mutually perceived balance in the aspects of the relationship that matter most.  As long as you know this in advance, then you’re better able to surf the ebb and flow of the different waves that enter the relationship.  Once again, we’re reminded that “knowledge is power” and “foresight is more powerful than hindsight”.  So, “keeping the balance” among any facets of your life should not involve constantly trying to ensure an equal share/split among those facets at all times, because to do so is what drives many people bonkers.  Let the ebb and flow happen.  

As it relates to training, this is why I love the periodization model of training theory (chapter 2 of my book) because it allows for this ebb and flow to occur over a period of many weeks, months or even the entire year.  We don’t need to, nor should we, try to focus on all elements of training in one week or one season.  Otherwise, overtraining and mental burnout are inevitable.  This is the main service I offer with DCRC: The mental approach to training and racing, as in knowing when to prioritize certain types of training and workouts and when to back off in favor of other activities.  All the while, periodization is geared to keeping you injury free, happy and reaching a peak level of fitness in the fall, which is racing season (running season).  You can’t be all things, all the time in relation to your training.  The body can’t handle it and/or you’ll mentally burn out.

I read a fascinating research article a few months ago about the experience of a midlife crisis.  Why it happens, who it happens to, how intense it becomes, and how long it lasts (if at all).  It was a very good empirical review of the topic.  Regret is often what rests at the base of a midlife crisis (if someone is to have one), and it’s found that those with less regret tend to fly right past any such crisis, and that makes logical sense to me.  So, to come full circle in talking about purpose and pleasure, make sure you’re not living with any regrets.  Avoid feeling regretful or guilty when highly engaged in either purpose or pleasure.

Additionally, don’t dwell on past mistakes or past negativity.  Learn from those experiences if/when you recall them, but don’t dwell…there’s a big difference between those two different ways of recalling the past.  Similarly, don’t get caught up on not having accomplished something that was once a goal.  If you still think you can achieve it, then sure, “never give up on your hopes and dreams.”  But if another reality quite simply states (objectively) that you can’t achieve it or get it back, then that’s a bit harder to move past, but you must move past it.  I always thought I’d compete in the Olympic Games, but so much for that.  At least I have 8 more lives to try again.  There’s lots of clichés and sappy songs about how to "move on,” and I can dig it.  

Allow yourself a pleasurable life and don’t feel guilty about it.  Being selfish is very highly correlated with happiness, but the key there is to change the definition of the word "selfish."  As long as you’re not harming others or detracting from their happiness to gain your own, then this display of selfishness may actually be needed for your own happiness.  Otherwise, how often are you needlessly depriving yourself of pleasure and happiness!?  Keep the pendulum on both ends of the spectrum at various points.  As a coach, I don’t want a healthy, active lifestyle to detract from your purpose or your pleasure; rather, my aim is for your training to contribute a little bit to your purpose and your pleasure.

Train hard!

Mike