Running should feel natural

Running should feel natural

Sunday, November 18, 2012

Bones Heal Slowly

Rest Rest Rest


Its been awhile since my last post, just haven't had much to report.  As my injury heals I have been trying to crosstrain, bike, and lift weights to maintain fitness and mostly to keep myself from going crazy.  It seems to be working - I've been hovering right under 180 lbs for the last few months so my fears of getting fat while I can't run seem to be put to rest.

Its been 6 fulls weeks of rest (from running at least), on the plus side at least I am starting to finally feel like I am almost ready to start up again.  Although I feel like a caged animal who wants to go back out and hammer a race, I swore to myself I would take the smart approach to starting back up (when the time comes).  That means low miles, resting every-other-day, walk-running (at least to start with), and no hard tempos or track work.

"The Plan"


I put together a general training plan to meet my goals for Spring:

  • November: Rest, Cross-train, maybe a few small runs once I feel 100%
  • December:  Base building.  Easy mileage, work up to long runs of 10-12 miles.
  • January:  Speed training.  Cap my mileage at around 40-50 MPW, stick with the long runs of around 12-14 miles, but incorporate a lot of track work and tempos.
  • February and on: Get back into the long runs, ultra training, and mega trail runs.  Keep up a little speed work, maybe a track workout or tempo every other week.

Oh, and what are my Spring training goals?  Well, it would be nice to get a new 10k PR as I haven't run a 10k in ages and a nice 10k PR would look great on my ever expanding running resume'.  I am signed up for a couple of Marathons and I would like to get a 50k or 2 in there as well.  This is really all just training for my focus race - The North Face "Gore-Tex" 50 mile challenge (Washington D.C.).  Oh, and I'm running this race called The Boston Marathon in April. 

That thing called "The Gym"


So what exactly have I been doing to stay fit (and stay sane)?  A combination of weight training, spinning classes, using the elliptical, a few classes (I like Body Pump), and even some day hikes out in the mountains.

So what does a typical workout entail?  Usually a 55 minute spinning class with a little weights as well.  Maybe a Body Pump class and then 30 minutes on the elliptical.  Saturday I went with a buddy and just hammered the weights for over an hour, and then 35 minutes on the elliptical to get some pure cardio benefits.  I actually love to lift weights, I just need to be careful to do high reps of low weight to avoid putting on unneeded bulk.  Kind of hearkens back to my days of Rugby and trying to put on muscle, however now that my goal is to be a fast runner I try to stay lean.  Probably stick out like a sore thumb in my short running shorts and neon singlets, but at least I use good form when lifting (sorry gym rat dudes, bouncing it off your chest doesn't count - oh, and work on your legs more, they're puny!)

So what kind of weight routines would I do? I'll list a few sample workouts below (remember to do 30-40 minutes of cardio before or after the weight portion).  Weight amounts should always provide some resistance, enough to feel "hard" by your last repetition  but not so hard that your form falls apart and you should feel like you could do a few more if you needed to.

I always do 3 to 5 sets of each exercise, 12-14 repetitions   More sets (maybe even 6) for larger muscle groups (like the chest).

Sample Day 1:
 - Legs - Hamstrings, Quads, Calves: 3 to 4 sets of each muscle group, 12 to 14 repetitions per set.  Closer to 20 reps for the Calf muscles
 - Arms - Triceps pull down rope on cable tower, use this tower to also do bicep curls with a curly bar Switch back and forth between the 2.  Also, with tower, use curly bar between your legs and do basically front raises for deltoids
 - Back - reverse pec fly machine, lat pulldown, low rower
 - Core - abdominal crunch machine, twisting obliques machine

Sample Day 2:
 - Chest - Standard bench press, 4 sets, then inclined bench press (dumbells), 3 sets
 - Shoulders - military dumbell press, "Arnold" dumbell presses
 - Legs - Sit-down type squat machine, 5 to 6 sets, try for 20 fast (but controlled) reps
 - Core/ Abs - circuit of sit-ups, side crunches pilates poses, and balance drills on a matt
 - Forearms - front and rear "roll ups" with a full size bar while standing. 3 sets each side.
 - Hips - leg abductor and adductor machines

Been spending way to much time here...

Spinning - the only class I have found with any cardio benefits.
While its a nice compliment to a training schedule, I hardly
enjoy doing it multiple times a week.

And the mandatory rows of ellipticals,
 stationary bikes, and "dread"mills.


At least I got my sub 3 hour Marathon.  But man does it suck being injured.

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