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Running Training Guide One size fits all? Before we get started it’s important

Running Training Guide One size fits all? Before we get started it’s important to point out that there is no such thing as a training plan that is right for everybody. Your age, current fitness levels, performance aspirations and available time will all have an impact on when and how you should train – so the best approach is for us to give you some general guidelines and sample training plans and then let you adapt things to suit your own specific requirements. We are going to start with some basic training concepts which all training plans should adhere to so that when you start modifying the example training plans you know what you are doing! Rule #1 – warm up, stretch, run, warm down, stretch If you haven’t already read the doitforcharity.com stretching guide then please do so – it is reprinted at the end of this training guide for your convenience. It will tell you that before doing any exercise you should stretch – and that before doing any stretching you should do a light warm-up. You should NEVER stretch cold muscles and you should NEVER run without warming up and stretching. If you are short for time and eager to get out on the road just consider how much lost time an injury is going to cost you! Not only will you have to wait weeks to recover from the injury you will have gone backwards during this time due to not being able to train. Additionally, after your run if you stop running abruptly waste products will build up in your muscles leading to stiffness and discomfort. So after your run you should warm down (with a light jog) and stretch once more. This simple ‘boring’ advice will keep you on the road and training towards your goals and reward you with a much more pleasant and injury-free training experience. Rule #2 – take rest days Question: Which of the following achieves the most in terms of improving your performance levels: a 5 mile training run or the rest day after a 5 mile training run? Answer: The rest day after a 5 mile training run Simply put, you receive the benefit from any physical exercise in the recovery period after that exercise. As evolution has shown us, our bodies adapt to our environment and therefore when you place a strain on your body (lifting weights, going for a run etc) your body will adapt to that strain by becoming stronger in anticipation of being placed under the same strain again. But your body needs rest to repair tiny muscle tears and make the muscles stronger – and therefore one of the most important parts of your training plan is going to be regular rest days. On these days you should always take the opportunity to do a light warm up and stretch so that you stay supple in preparation for the next phase of your training plan. Rule #3 – hard then easy This rule is related to the one above as it is derived form the idea of giving the body time to recover. Let’s say you want to run a marathon and your training aim is to be able to run 26 miles in 6 months time. You could just run 1 mile per day this week, then 2 miles per day in the second week, all the way through until you are running 26 miles a day in week 26. By now you should be able to guess that this is NOT an effective training plan as you are not giving your body sufficient time to recover. You therefore need to vary the distances you run and also the intensity of your runs – both on a daily and weekly basis. A sample training plan which followed this rule might look like this Week Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun TOTAL 1 (Hard) 3 miles Rest Day 3 miles 5 miles 3 miles Rest Day 7 miles 21 miles 2 (Easy) 2 miles Rest Day 2 miles 4 miles 2 miles Rest Day 5 miles 15 miles 3 (Hard) 3 miles Rest Day 4 miles 6 miles 4 miles Rest Day 9 miles 26 miles 4 (Easy) 3 miles Rest Day 3 miles 5 miles 2 miles Rest Day 6 miles 19 miles As you can see, both at daily and weekly level we are alternating between hard and easy days and also giving ourselves regular rest days – and in just 4 weeks we have grown to make our easy week almost as hard as our hard week in week 1! This programme is purposefully simplified to get the hard/easy point across – a realistic training plan would also consider the intensity of each run Rule #4 – keep it varied The other reason for alternating hard and easy days/weeks is to keep your training programme varied – boredom and/or burnout are often the cause of people stopping their training plans. By keeping your runs varied you will be able to use different routes, continually improve your times, often have runs which are enjoyable rather than hard work and generally keep your training plan fresh. Rule #5 – tapering down The majority of your training schedule will see you gradually increasing your mileage over time. However, when training for longer distances (eg: 1/2 marathon and Marathon) you will actually reduce your mileage in the last few weeks leading up to the event so that you are as fresh as possible for the event itself – this is yet another implementation of the principle of giving your body recovery time. This process is called ‘tapering down’ and is a feature of our sample training schedules in this training guide Runs aren’t all the same you know! Question: Which is more difficult – running 2 miles in 14 minutes (7 minute miles) or running 10 miles in 100 minutes (10 minute miles) Answer: Well there isn’t any one correct answer as it depends on your fitness levels, muscle composition, previous training and probably what you were doing the day before as well! The purpose of the question however is to point out that running training is not as simple as just ‘going for a run’ – and that different types of run have different training benefits. This section will show you some of the different types of run available and will also point out how you might want to use them in your training Run #1 - Steady state runs These will be the staple of your training plan. They will be run at a reasonably comfortable pace and over a reasonably comfortable distance – and since your fitness levels will rise during your training plan you can expect both of these factors to increase over time. You will find yourself doing these types of run 60% of the time as they have excellent physical and mental training benefits. Your breathing will become more efficient, your muscles will become stronger, your endurance will improve and mentally you will be training yourself to run ‘at pace’ for reasonably long periods of time. All-in-all steady state runs will become your number one training method to reach your running goals Run #2 – The long run These runs are normally done once a week and usually on a Saturday or Sunday so that you don’t miss them due to the pressures of work. Over time these runs will become longer and longer until a few weeks before race day you are running almost (but not quiet) the distance you are intending to run on the day. This often surprises people that they will purposefully not be running a marathon in training before race day. But if you think about it you are training to run one marathon in 18 weeks not 2 marathons and hence the longest training run you will do in preparation for a marathon is between 20 and 22 miles. Run #3 – The recovery run We’ve put this directly after the long run because, well, it’s the run that should be done directly after the long run – in fact the day after! The recovery run is what it says – a chance to recover – and should be run over a short distance at a much slower pace than you are used to. You might also consider ‘cross training’ on this day which means doing a light exercise other than running such as swimming, cycling or walking. This will exercise the muscles lightly but in a different way than if you went for a run. Whatever you decide to do just make sure it is light exercise which will help you to recover – don’t be tempted to push yourself on these days Run #4 – The shorter faster run Let’s start by saying that you should only perform this run once you have at least 4 weeks of steady state runs under your belt. The first time you do uploads/Voyage/ running-training-guide.pdf