LISTEN
In this episode of the A to Z Running Podcast, Andi and Zach talk once again about injury prevention, this time in the context of training. How can runners train to AVOID INJURY? Tune in!
INTRO
- Follow and Subscribe (on YouTube or your favorite podcast platform)
- Listener question from Anne @margsandmarathons.
- Anne asks how to know what pace group to lead as a pace setter.
- We answer Anne’s question and give even more racing tips in, Tips for Pacing in a Race.
- You can also listen to our conversation about pacing with 40x race pacer Andrew Buikema HERE.
- Have you signed up for Rivertown Races in Grand Rapids, MI? It’s not too late.
- Use the code atoz_2021 for 10% off.
- GIVEAWAY- We have (2) entries to Rivertown Races events in Grand Rapids to give away.
- How to enter:
- Subscribe to A to Z Running HERE
- Message or post telling us about a time someone helped you during a race. (If you post on instagram and tag us, we will share in our stories.)
- Win an entry of your choice to Rivertown Races half marathon, 10k, or 5k.
- How to enter:
World of Running
Sat Mar 27, 2021 Myrtle Beach, S.C.
NSAF USA Meet of Champions (Runnerspace)
Boys 2 Mile
- Hobbs Kessler 8:39.04
- No. 4 performance of all-time outdoors
- 55-second final lap
Sat March 27, 2021 Chesapeake, VA
The Strider BQ Marathon Invitational
- Team Logan ran a PR and Boston Qualifying mark of 3:25:40 at The Strider BQ Marathon Invitational in Chesapeake, Va.
- You’ll remember Dr. Johncock from our episode about Father-Son Teams as well as our episode about foot health. He and his son Logan together ran under the qualifying mark.
Running hero, Dick Hoyt died at 80
- Speaking of father-son teams, The Johncocks completed their Boston Qualifer in honor of Dick Hoyt who recently passed away at age 80 and is a hero to many.
- He and his son, Rick who is quadriplegic competed as a duo team in more than 1,000 competitions, including dozens of marathons and multiple triathlons.
- Though Mr. Hoyt and Rick posted a best time of 2:40:47 in the Marine Corps Marathon — a pace many marathoners will never touch running alone — the teaming of father and son was, for both, more important than all else.
- “When we’re out there,” Mr. Hoyt told the Globe in 1990, “there’s nothing I feel I can’t do with Rick.”
- Our condolences to the running community and the Hoyt family.
Sun March 21, 2021 London
British Olympic Trials (BBC)
- The men’s champion is Christopher Thompson who ran a time of 2:10:52.
- Thompson had a big week, according to reports he became a father earlier in the same week.
- Thompson will also become a masters runner by time the Olympics take place this summer.
- His time of two hours, 10 minutes and 50 seconds shattered his personal best from seven years ago and, more importantly, was well inside the Olympic qualifying time of 2:11.30.
- Can you say, dad strength?
- Ben Connor finishes second to also guarantee selection
- “I just entered my own little mind palace and thought ‘this is the rhythm I need’. I feel like someone is going to tell me this didn’t happen.”
- Back in 2010, Thompson won silver over 10,000 metres at the European Athletics Championships, behind Mo Farah.
- Ben Connor, who already had the qualifying standard from last year’s London Marathon, finished second in 2:12.06 to also punch his Tokyo ticket, alongside Callum Hawkins, pre-selected, who acted as a pacemaker.
- The women’s champion is Stephanie Davis who ran a time of 2:27:16.
- Stephanie Davis ran her first marathon 3 years ago.
- Davis was the only woman to finish inside the qualifying time with a PB of 2.27.16, remarkably she only ran her first marathon just over two years ago.
Upcoming:
USATF Grand Prix on the newly renovated Hayward Field Track
- April 24, 2021
- University of Oregon’s Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon
- (A FULL LIST OF “GOLD” EVENTS)
MAIN TOPIC: HOW CAN RUNNERS TRAIN TO AVOID INJURY?
Talking about how to train to avoid injury… and be sure to listen for the 3 things:
- Easy running
- Transitions
- Neuromuscularity (Zach made up that word, think Neuromuscular work)
EASY RUNS
Trending these days is talk about easy runs… for good reason! Keep the easy runs easy. In order to maintain health with some volume healthily. You are able to recover faster and better when we are running modest efforts and not pushing the pace on our easy days. Far more aerobic fitness can be gained by longer and slower easy runs than shorter and faster, assuming you are also doing harder efforts other days (steady, tempo, intervals, etc.). It is especially important to focus on easy running as you are starting and building because this is the time the body tends to be most prone to injury.
TRANSITIONS
Speaking of frail moments in running, you’ll recall Adam in ep 75 mentioned that transitions/changes are instances that see high injury rates. In training, this means those are NOT the times to go crazy. For instance if you are moving from running a lot of tempo work to some faster intervals- Ease into it! How about your first race effort in a while? Be conservative. Starting a new program or building up still? Keep it relaxed and don’t push any envelopes. You may need to take breaks from running, or require a 6 day week of running instead of 7. In addition you can reduce risk of injury by choosing a variety of terrain to train on can help reduce risk of injury because you are strengthening all the little muscles in your ankles and feet as well as your stabilizer muscles. But has it been 6 months since your last trail run? Don’t go try to hammer an hour on a mountain bike trail.
NEUROMUSCULAR WORK
Neuromuscular work is not just for shorter distance runners or for only the fine tuning period of training. Attend to your mind and body connection through neuromuscular work all year! Do strides in training before you get to your faster workouts.
HAVE A PLAN
We’ve mentioned before on the podcast, and we will say it again, fire and ice with random training will get you injured. If you have a broad picture of where you are going you can do the proper training. We spoke about periodization in running with Jed Christiansen on the A to Z Running Podcast. Train for where you ARE to help you get where you WANT to be. You cannot skip the process. (train don’t strain)
If you need help, we can coach you! We still have spots left. Shoot us a message. HERE IS INFO ON COACHING.
There are many components to help us avoid injury, check out these episodes:
Prehab (with Adam Homolka)
Mobility (with Phil Wharton)
Nutrition (with Meghann Featherstun)
Foot and Ankle Health (with Dr. Johncock)
KEEP LISTENING
Hey guys! Loved this episode! And while I 100% buy into the easy run philosophy, I have to ask…if I’m in a phase of training where I’m just building easy base miles….and don’t need to preserve myself for hard workout days…It’s OK to raise the floor a bit on my basic easy mileage pace, right?
Secondly…have to share a story with you so bear with me….earlier this week I was doing a 4:30am treadmill run in our basement. B/c our boys had done a “campout night” in the basement last weekend, we had an old baby monitor that we had left down there just so we could hear them since our bedroom is upstairs. WELL we forgot about that baby monitor, and left it down there all week (and turned on….not too far from where our treadmill is). So at 4:30am when I went down to knock out my run, my husband upstairs woke up in a panic, hearing voices. He knew it was coming from the baby monitor in the basement, but, forgetting that I might be running down there, just started panicking and thinking we had intruders. He told me he heard a man’s voice, and then a woman’s voice, and then he heard them say something about “track” which is when he realized it was just me downstairs, listening to “one of my running podcasts.” I’m sharing this b/c it was THIS episode of your podcast, and it was your voices that woke him up! Haha!!