3 Ways to Overcome Weaknesses in Competitive Runners
There comes a point in every runners race, even elite runners, where they encounter a weakness. The problem with average runners is that they tend to shy away from working on their weaknesses and stick to what they do best. This might be all fine and dandy in training but once you get into a race situation the weakness will still be there and will limit your performance. In this post we will determine the most common weak points and suggest some exercises you can do to get them up to par.
Weak Start
Many runners have a weak start. Some go out too fast, others too slow and get boxed into a bad position. The best way to overcome this weakness is to work on it in training. So at the beginning of every workout after you are good and warmed up you will want to start as if you were in a race. If you feel you start too slow then you will want to try and push yourself during the mock start, and if you feel that you take off too fast you can either continue to take off fast until you are used to it or slow down to a more manageable pace.
Weak Finish
Another common weakness is the finish. This can easily be corrected by sprinting at the end of all your workouts. I is a great routine to get into even on your long runs. You do not necessarily have to sprint to the finish every time but at least increase the pace so that if you find yourself in a situation where you need a final kick you will be confident in your abilities.
Racing Lulls
Even the best runners have a lull in their race at some point. Lets say for example you are training for a 10K and you find at about 5K you are feeling a little sluggish but then at 8K you regain your composure. This means you have a mid-race lull and it needs to be corrected if you plan on reaching your full potential. A great technique to work on this weakness is to structure your training sessions so that you have the most difficult aspect of your training at the 8K mark. One example could be to structure your run so that at the 8 kilometer mark you come to a local hill. From there you can do another 2 kilometers hard but uphill, this will make the 8 kilometer point in a flat race seem like a gift from heaven.
Whatever your weaknesses are make sure you are consciously trying to improve upon them. There is no sense in avoiding your weaknesses because when the time comes to demonstrate your fitness they will definitely limit your performance. It is better to suffer in training and have a good race then to have easy training but a bad race.
Biomedical Research Laboratories market scientifically based nutritional supplements for endurance athletes including supplements for cyclists, runners, triathletes, and mixed martial arts. Visit http://www.epoboost.com to learn more about how EPO-Boost can increase VO2 max, running economy and endurance.
Patent pending EPO-BOOST ingredients have been shown to increase VO2 max and running economy in college athletes.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=DS_Carroll
Try Fartlek Training for a Twist in Your Running Speed Work
Running Fartlek
Many runners are looking for new ways to spice up their workouts. One great way to add a twist to your longer runs is with a technique called fartlek. Fartlek is a Swedish word meaning “speed play.” In this post we’ll discuss what it means to fartlek run as well as provide a few sample workouts you can use in practice.
Fartlek running is quite simple but very effective. Basically what you do is run at a normal tempo for a set duration of time and then increase the pace to a speed where you’re close to your lactic threshold or even above it. Generally fartlek runs are longer, usually 30 minutes or more in length, and incorporate 8+ accelerations. The beauty of the fartlek run is that you don’t have to map out any distances, you can either go by time or by feel. If you decide to go with time then a great workout to start with is 40 minutes long and after every four minutes you go hard for one minute. The workout will look something like this:
| Total duration: | 5 minutes | 10 minutes | 15 minutes | 20 minutes | 25 minutes | 30 minutes | 35 minutes | 40 minutes |
| Intervals in minutes: | 4 light 1 hard | 4 hard 1 light | 4 hard 1 light | 4 hard 1 light | 4 hard 1 light | 4 hard 1 light | 4 hard 1 light | 4 hard 1 light |
If you decide to go by feel then you can run a familiar route and count telephone poles. Fartlek ran in this fashion will look something like 10 telephone poles light, 3 poles hard, 10 poles light, 5 hard, etc. And you don’t have to stop there, there’s a million different ways you can run fartlek, use your imagination and see if you can come up with something new each week. Not only will it spice up your training but doing a totally new workout each week causes you to use different muscles and stress your systems in various ways making your chances of improving that much greater.
Share with us your favorite fartlek training.
Visit http://www.epoboost.com to learn more about how EPO-Boost can increase VO2 max, running economy and endurance.
Patent pending EPO-BOOST ingredients have been shown to increase VO2 max and running economy in college athletes.
7 Top Tips For Running Your First Ironman
So you made the decision to race an ironman and you have been training hard for 20 weeks or so. Now its race day and you are waiting nervously at the start of the swim for the horn to go. Here are a few things to keep in mind throughout the race and to practice in training so that they are not a surprise when you finally get out there.
1. During the swim you are going to want to go as hard as you can for at least 400 meters so that you get a decent position to swim the remaining 3.5 kilometers. There is nothing worse than being stuck in the middle of the pack for the first couple kilometers because by the time you finally get in a rhythm the swim is basically over.
2. Look up every 20 strokes or so. Do not trust that the person in front of you is swimming a straight line. There have been pro triathletes who failed to look up and found themselves a few hundred off the lead pack because they were swimming such a inefficient path.
3. Wear your bike clothes under your wet suit and clip your shoes to your bike pedals. This will save you a couple of minutes in transition and will allow you to concentrate on more important things like putting on sun screen and making sure you have your sunglasses and nutrition.
4. Do not draft! If you are caught drafting it is a hefty penalty at first and if you do it again you are out. Make sure when you go for a pass you do it swiftly and never remain in another riders slipstream. If it is too close to tell then it is better to back off, you are not going to save any time drafting for a few seconds but you definitely will lose time if you get caught.
5. Make sure to hydrate and take calories and salt throughout the bike. Its obvious that you need to hydrate but many athletes often forget that they need sodium as well. Most collapses and end of race muscle cramps are due to a lack of sodium. So before you compete in the race make sure you have been supplementing with salt in your training rides and make sure you have plenty on race day.
6. Do not unlatch your helmet at any point during the ride. If you are caught with your helmet undone at any point on the bike leg its an automatic disqualification.
7. During the run you may want to walk through every other aid station so that you get a chance to thoroughly hydrate and take a few gels. You are almost done so the last thing you would want to do is run out of energy to burn.
Finishing an ironman will probably be one of the greatest achievements of your life. You should visualize the race as much as possible in training and come up with a strategy for every situation you can think of. With hard work and determination there is no doubt that you will complete the race and you will likely catch the triathlon bug in the process.
Biomedical Research Laboratories market scientifically based nutritional supplements for endurance athletes including supplements for cyclists, runners, triathletes, and mixed martial arts. Visit http://www.epoboost.com to learn more about how EPO-Boost can increase VO2 max, running economy and endurance.
Patent pending EPO-BOOST ingredients have been shown to increase VO2 max and running economy in college athletes.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=DS_Carroll
4 Elements of Training for Runners to Master
Far too often people get caught in the trap of purposeless training. They go out each day and put in a run but with no idea what the run is improving or why they’re doing it. In order to train with a purpose you must first understand the different zones of training and why they cause you to improve. In this post we’ll discuss the different training zones, the systems they target, and provide a sample workout for each.
Natural Zone
First off is the easy zone or the “natural zone.” Basically this is the pace you fall into naturally when you go for an easy run. Running in this zone helps to build endurance and strengthen connective tissues and muscles associated with running but won’t help you to get much faster. Easy running is generally reserved for warm-ups, cool-downs, and long runs.
Tempo Zone
The next zone is called the threshold or tempo zone. Training in this zone causes you to improve endurance but helps your body get used to running at or above race pace. Generally these types of runs are between 20 and 30 minutes in length, and are run at about 75-90% intensity. Most people prefer to do temp runs by feel, so basically you want to be running at a pace where you feel considerably more stressed than your easy runs. A good gauge to differentiate between the two is that on an easy run you can hold a conversion with little effort, but on a tempo run you should only be able to speak in short sentences.
Interval Zone
Zone three is the interval zone. These types of runs are usually short intervals of up to 6 minutes and are run just below or at race pace, so 90-100% intensity. This zone of training will simulate racing conditions and is ideal if you want to improve your time in any race. In order to train in this zone you’ll want to know the pace you ran in a recent race and then run at that pace for short intervals of no more than six minutes. Then take a short break of only a few minutes and do it again as many times as you wish. In the beginning you may want to just do a few but as you gain experience you can extend the workout up to twenty or thirty intervals if you’d like.
Repetition Zone
The final zone is the repetition zone. This type of training is designed to run at or above race pace. So if you ran a 15 minute 5km in a race last week then your repetitions would be run at 3 minute per kilometer or faster. Repetitions are usually very short though and should never exceed two or three minutes. The point is to exceed your lactic threshold so that the next time you run at this pace your threshold will be slightly higher and you’ll be able to run slightly faster.
If you understand the elements of training you’ll be able to purposefully structure your weekly workouts. It’s important to note that as the intensity of running increases the weekly volume of that type of running should decrease. So with the four zones listed above repetition running should make up the least of your weekly mileage and easy and tempo running should make up the largest part.
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Is Cross Training Important for Runners?
Many serious runners put in between 40 and 80 miles a week. This can be very taxing on the body and sometimes can lead to injury and burnout. A great way to prevent this is to switch up some of your longer less important runs with sports like cycling and swimming, which utilize the same muscles and systems but are low impact.
If you’re serious about running and want to reach your full potential then you don’t want to switch your speed workouts with cross training sessions. Speed work is important and targets muscle groups and systems that can only be improved by running fast. Instead, if you have two long runs or tempo runs a week you could replace one of those. Cycling is great if you want to get the heart rate up but reduce the pounding. Also, if you cycle at a high resistance or on hilly terrain it can greatly improve your strength. Since your main sport is running you’ll want to stay away from high intensity cycling, in other words speed work on a bicycle, because your muscles likely aren’t adapted to this kind of training and you’ll run a high risk of injury. In fact, it’s even recommended for people who are concentrating solely on cycling to bike for at least two years before getting into high intensity workouts.
Swimming is a viable cross training workout for runners as well. Swimming takes a lot of upper body strength, which is also necessary in running, so you might get a bit of a leg workout but more importantly you’ll build upper body strength. If you’re not keen on swimming then you could also try pool running. You’ll need a pool with a moderate depth in order to perform this correctly, but if you only have a lap pool then you can try it with weights in order to make it a bit more challenging.
Visit www.epoboost.com to learn more about how you can improve your endurance, speed and strength. You have nothing to lose with our 90 day money-back guarantee.
Boost your endurance with EPO-BOOST™ and you’ll run faster and farther, we guarantee it!
Identifying your Weaknesses as a Cyclist
If you’re new to the sport of cycling then you may not be very familiar with the terms limiter and weakness. In this post we’ll go over what each term means to the sport of cycling as well as why a weakness may not necessarily be a limiter. The reason will become apparent as we better define the terms.
Weakness
So first off, a weakness is pretty obvious, it’s something you’re not very good at or not as good as you are at something else. So for example, you may have exceptional endurance and be able to ride for five hours straight without any problem, but when it comes to the sprint you’re nothing to contend with.
Limiter
A limiter on the other hand is a weakness but is a weakness that you’re going to come up against in a planned race. For example, you may be a weak sprinter but if you’re doing a century ride or even a double century then it’s likely that the weakness won’t be much of a factor, therefore it’s not a limiter. But if you’re planning on doing a short time trail then not only is your sprinting a weakness but it’s going to be a limiter in your performance because a short time trial is basically an all out sprint.
Knowing your weaknesses is crucial if you want to improve as a cyclist, but you’ve also got to understand what your limiters are. Once you’ve determined your weaknesses you’ll then want to look at the most important races you plan on competing in and determine whether any of your weaknesses will be a limiter for that race. If so, you’ll want to concentrate a great deal of your training efforts on improving that limiter. If it turns out that your weakness is not a limiter for your most important race then it shouldn’t be much of a priority in training. Finding adequate time to train is difficult enough, there’s no point in dedicating a great deal of time to a weakness if it isn’t also a limiter.
Visit www.epoboost.com to learn more about how you can improve your endurance, speed and strength. You have nothing to lose with our 90 day money-back guarantee.
Boost your endurance with EPO-BOOST™ and you’ll run faster and farther, we guarantee it!
Improve Your Lactate Threshold and Swim Faster in Your Next Triathlon
Whether you are a runner, cyclist, triathlete, or an endurance athlete you need to train as fast as possible without hitting the wall from high levels of lactic acid in your blood. Elite athletes and coaches know that increasing lactate threshold is essential to success.
There are several factors that can be modified to improve performance and endurance in athletes. VO2max, exercise economy, and lactate threshold are all factors that can be improved with training and nutritional supplementation. If you can improve your lactate threshold your race speeds will improve. This article will focus on training to improve lactate threshold in swimmers.
If you are an amateur swimmer training for a local event like a triathlon then you need to understand the mechanics of a swim workout. A workout is basically comprised of two elements, endurance and threshold. Let us say you are training for a sprint triathlon with a 500 meter swim. What would be the point in swimming three miles continuously three times a week? Every time you hit the water you are swimming almost ten times your race distance. This kind of practice is known as swimming “junk miles” and many swimmers do it.
For a short race like a 500 meters you are basically going to be sprinting the entire way; endurance should be of very little concern. Instead, your preparation should be geared towards increasing your lactic threshold. All world and Olympic endurance athletes incorporate lactate threshold training into their workouts.
To increase your lactate threshold you are going to want to swim at or even faster than race pace in training. So let us say you do five 50 meter repeats. If your goal is to swim the 500 in 6:25 then you would want to shoot for somewhere in the neighborhood of 40 seconds for your 50 meters. Perhaps the first couple of times you will need to have a few minutes break between each 50 meters in order to repeat the time, but as you progress in your training you should decrease the rest period until you are basically swimming ten – 50 meters at around 40 seconds a piece.
This same sort of practice can be used with just about any swim distance; lactic threshold expansion is an integral part in your training program.
Of course, if you are training for an iron man swim of 2.4 miles then endurance is going to be a factor. But once you feel comfortable swimming the distance in order to get faster you will have to do the same kinds of workouts as the person training for the 500 just on a bit larger scale, 100 or 200 meter repeats for instance.
Designing a swim workout is that simple. There is no need to look for a long fancy training plan that is difficult to follow. If you want to improve your times then you have got to swim faster in practice, it is that simple.
Your training program will be difficult in the beginning, but if you stay determined to improve then you will see astronomical gains in a very short time. Combining this training workout with nutritional supplementation to increase VO2 max and exercise economy and increase your speed and endurance.
DS Carroll is a consultant for Biomedical Research Laboratories. Biomedical Research Laboratories market scientifically based nutritional supplements for endurance athletes including supplements for cyclists, runners, triathletes, and mixed martial arts. Visit http://www.epoboost.com to learn more about how EPO-Boost can increase VO2 max, running economy and endurance.
Patent pending EPO-BOOST ingredients have been shown to increase VO2 max and running economy in college athletes.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=DS_Carroll
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Visit www.epoboost.com to learn more about how you can improve your endurance, speed and strength. You have nothing to lose with our 90 day money-back guarantee.
Boost your endurance with EPO-BOOST™ and you’ll run faster and farther, we guarantee it!
Training Tips for Open Water Swim in Triathlons
If you’ve been swimming in a pool all season and your priority race is an open water swim then there are a few things you’re going to want to keep in mind before race day. Of course, it’s ideal if you can get in some open water training sessions before the race, but for many that’s not an option. Whether or not you can get into open water before the race it would still be wise to consider the tips listed below so that you can practice them in the pool, and when you do finally hit open water it won’t be as big of a shock.
1. Swimming the shortest distance. When swimming in open water you’re obviously going to want to swim the least possible distance as you can. If it’s an ironman distance then it would be nothing to swim an extra 400 meters just by taking an irregular path. In order to prevent this you’re going to want to get into the habit of turning your head and eyes when you breathe in order to see what’s in front of you. Now you don’t want to do this every breath as it will lead to inefficient swimming, but you definitely want to get in the habit of checking every 50 to 100 meters. It should be a smooth motion, not jerky, and should be barely visible from an outsider’s perspective. Many of the best swimmers have develop the technique so well that they don’t even need to turn their heads they can just turn their eyes as they submerge their face after taking a breath and see everything that’s going on in front of them.
2. Another important technique to get comfortable with is taking a breath on both sides. You never know where the wind is going to be coming from in an open water swim. If you can only breathe on the right then you’re going to have big problems if the waves are coming from that direction. It’s not hard to learn to breathe from both sides; it just takes patience and effort. If you make a vow to improve breathing on your weak side then there’s no reason why you can’t get it up to par within a month.
These are the most important aspects to keep in mind when open water swimming.
3. Sprinting workouts. One final tip you might implement in the training sessions leading up to the race is getting into the habit of sprinting for a few hundred meters at the beginning of the workout. This is a great way to simulate the commotion at the beginning of a race and if you do it enough times it shouldn’t be a problem for you to break away from the main pack and get out front. This will make the swim much more enjoyable and allow you to get into your rhythm much quicker than those jockeying for position in the back.
Visit www.epoboost.com to learn more about how you can improve your endurance, speed and strength. You have nothing to lose with our 90 day money-back guarantee.
Boost your endurance with EPO-BOOST™ and you’ll run faster and farther, we guarantee it!
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