Hendrick Ramaala - The Self-Coached Marathoner

Marathon training can take up to 12 weeks to complete. You need a buildup (base) training phase and then a specific marathon training phase. I go 200 kilometers (124 miles) a week or more when I get ready for a marathon. At the end of this heavy training, you will need a tapering period of two to three weeks. I do a minimum of 10 to 12 long runs in that period. Four to six of those will be around 40 kilometers (24.8 miles), the rest between 25 and 30 kilometers (15 to 18 miles).

I also include interval sessions on the track (two times a week); some hill runs (once a week); tempo runs (twice a week) and recovery runs. Four or three weeks before my marathon race, I normally race a half-marathon to test myself. When doing marathon training you need to take lots of rest, get sports massages, consume lots of liquids, eat lots of good food and focus more as the load of training is taxing on the body. -nytimes

MY COMMENT: Hendrick Ramaala is a self-coached S. African that won the NYC Marathon in 2004.

Lydiard Training Methods Explained

You'll see, for example, how to use sessions of long slow distance therapeutically, to help recover form. Keith has also done a great job of providing the missing science; although Arthur has been hailed as the greatest running coach of all time, Keith reminds us that Arthur was actually a milkman; he worked things out by experimenting on himself and then with trial and error plus intuition. 30 years on, and with the benefit of the latest research, we can see why Arthur's system works so well -- and also what we need to tweak to make it even more effective. -customer review on Amazon.com


MY COMMENT: Looks like a good book detailing the training system used so successfully by New Zealand's Arthur Lydiard. I am ordering this one today!

Marathon Training Advice

So essentially there are two ways to get to these type 2x fibers. One is by doing interval training, and one is by doing long-distance running at a moderate, at least moderate, pace. Now, if you’re doing it like these very long distance runners who run somewhere between 8 and 9 minutes a mile pace forever, then they probably never get to those fibers because they’re able to do their exercise utilizing fat as a fuel to a large extent. When you exercise at a higher level, i.e., 7 minutes a mile and faster, then you just can’t do that on fat. Glycogen has to be used, and eventually it becomes depleted in the fibers that are being used. And when that happens, others get called in to take over. -Peter Snell

MY COMMENTS: Find a way to recruit ALL of your muscle fibers- forcing them to deplete of glycogen. This is one reason why hard interval sessions are important in preparing for marathons.

Great Training Advice By an Olympic Champion- A Must Read!

I just recently was at a conference in Las Vegas where USA Track & Field got together and said, we’re disturbed about the fact that we’re not getting any medals in middle-distance and distance running at the Olympics, and why is this? And someone concluded, when they looked at the Olympics, American runners are getting buried in the last lap. Therefore, we need to teach them how to sprint. So that’s unbelievable. [laughs] There’s not a lack of speed – they’re just running out of gas,and so everyone else is cruising because of the superior endurance, is what that boils down to. - excellent interview with Peter Snell, Olympic gold medal winner and PhD Exercise Physiologist. fitnessintuition.com

MY COMMENT: This is a MUST READ for any aspiring distance runner, especially if you are over 40!

This is Not the Same Lance!

Intervals: 8 x 400

Good workout today- I felt a little quad soreness in the morning but did not notice it running. Have to be careful with those- once in a while they can become chronic. I'll have to start using the foam roller again.


More good news is I hit 2 of the reps in 76.



80
78
78
76
79
77
78
76

Are Cramps Related to Overdrinking?

The pace didn’t feel bad at all and I had the energy,” said Ritzenhein, who completed his fourth marathon. “I felt like everything was going great until 20 miles. My calves and hamstrings started twitching every couple of seconds or so and I felt like they were going to cramp up. I would shift my weight back and waddle along at about 5:15 pace. If I went any faster I thought they would go again.”

Ritzenhein took three salt tablets during the last 10K to help alleviate the problem. “I didn’t think I was dehydrated,” he said. “My fitness felt great. The last 10K wasn’t even hard.” -universal sports



I met with a nutritionist on it and I think there are definitely some things that I can change, some overhydration problems that I've done in the weeks and days leading up to the race. You wash out the sodium and things like that that are necessary. It's a matter of drinking too much straight water until a couple of days beforehand. It takes a few days for your body to catch up. If you drink only water for two weeks and then you switch to sports drinks a couple of days before the race, it still doesn't have the desired effect runnersworld.

-comments by Dathan Ritzenhein on a mistake he believes he made by drinking too much water in the days leading up to the London Marathon where he cramped and still ran 2 hr 10. (Ritz also experienced muscle cramps in the Olympic marathon)

MY COMMENT: I wonder how much water he was actually drinking in the days leading up to those races? Here is another reason not to overdrink before a big race.

Training Update- July 8,9

I did back to back identical workouts- 3 x 5K loops in Robin Hill, so 9 miles plus. Just putting in some miles all on trail. Tomorrow I hope to hit the 400s and feel good!

Fresh Air Fund

The Fresh Air Fund looks like a good cause.- Since 1877, The Fresh Air Fund, a not-for-profit agency, has provided free summer experiences in the country to more than 1.7 million New York City children from disadvantaged communities. Each year, thousands of children visit volunteer host families in 13 states and Canada through the Friendly Town Program or attend one of five Fresh Air Fund camps.

The half marathon fund raiser in NYC is Aug 16.

How can you fall in a 600 and still win?

MY COMMENT: The video tells all. Heather would have absolutely crushed this field had she not fallen.

Trail Interval Workout

MY COMMENT: I run these trails almost every day- love it! This is an 800 meter loop that the high school cc team uses. A little short but who cares?

Vary Your Key Workouts

"Within four weeks [the body] has probably made all the adaptations it's going to do. I never understand why people train every day the same way and expect to improve. Within a few weeks, or certainly a month or two, you're going to hit a plateau, and the only way you can break out is to change your training in some way." (runningtimes.com)

-Tim Noakes

MY COMMENT: Food for thought. I am probably guilty of spending too much time doing the same workouts.

19 Year Old Kenyan Runs 3:49 Mile

William Biwott Tanui, a 19 year old (reportedly) Kenyan, just ran 3:49 for the mile in Olso, Norway (Bislett Games). OK so maybe he's 20.

10 x 800 Interval Workout Comparison

Robin Hill 800 meter loop - no signficant difference compared to last week. I felt kind of flat today, probably still feeling the effects of a 2 hr very slow trail run on Sunday. Not used to that! Today, my legs were tired and definitely the primary limiting factor.

..June 29.........July 7
1..... 2:58..........2:57
2..... 2:56..........2:54
3.. ...2:54..........2:52
4..... 2:52..........2:53
5..... 2:55..........2:53
6..... 2:55..........2:55
7..... 2:55..........2:55
8..... 2:55..........2:56
9..... 2:56..........2:54
10.....2:55..........2:54

Training Log from Gelindo Bordin (1988 Olympic Marathon Champ)

Check out Bordin's log here. Lots of 60-80 min steady runs recorded but nothing about what pace he ran them.

12 Year Old Girl Runs 2:06 for 800

Raevyn Rogers, age 12, ran 2:06.9 at the USA Youth Outdoor National Championships held in Ypsilanti, Michigan June 30-July 5. usatf.org

"Yes, I want to keep running," she said, "God gave me this talent and I am not going to waste it." Raevyn continues to get better by pushing herself in practice and being okay with having to hit faster times than her teammates. She said, "It's what makes me better." Raevyn is enjoying her first time competing at the USA Youth Championships and is ready to run hard again tomorrow.

How Fast Will Solinsky Run?

Last year, I'd say I was definitely heavier. I've lost right around 10 pounds from last year, and I can tell. I feel a lot better. But obviously I'm a little bit bigger than my competitors, but in no way does that ever affect the way I approach the race. I kind of joked when I ran 13:12 a couple of years ago "yeah, I probably have the weight class world record -Chris Solinsky who attended Stevens Point Area High School in Stevens Point, Wisconsin runnersworld.com

MY COMMENT: I am guessing, but let's say Chris weighed 175 last season, and now he weighs 165. Running a 13:12 the prior season, his maximal oxygen consumption must have been around 80 ml/kg. Doing the math, at 175 he was able to process 6.36 liters of oxygen (80 ml x 79.5 kg). At 165 (75 kg), assuming he can process the same amount of oxygen (6360 ml), his VO2 (ml/kg) jumps to 84.8 ml/kg (6360/75). There are other factors involved such as running economy, environment, hydation, nutrition, etc. but a 6% increase in V02 is more than enough to improve a 5K by several seconds. If he has, in fact, lost 10 pounds, even if a couple of those are muscle, watch for a breakthrough.

Elger Archives- I beat a Kenyan! (in 1995)

Strands Training Log- FREE!

I have not signed up yet but met these people when I was in Eugene last weekend. Looks like it has some nice features- I like the fact that you can join a network or follow the elite runners they have signed up. Swimming, cycling, triathlon, or just fitness. All free! strands.com

Follow Lance Armstrong and the Tour de France

Get an inside look at Lance's comeback Tour at livestrong.com

I'm amazed that an athlete such as Lance, who has a legitimate chance to win his 8th, would be tweeting regular updates, e.t.c. as he attempts to win his 8th, but I guess he does not feel it's a distraction.

10 x 400 Interval Workout

Last week I did 10 x 400 on the Olympic Discovery Trail in hopes of improving my leg speed, and hit the last 5 under 80 seconds.

Friday my times averaged about the same, although the slowest was 80 compared to 82.

The goal? 10 in 75. Since this is a workout designed to improve speed, next time I'll consider taking longer than 1 min recovery.

80
80
80
78
79
78
79
79
80
78

Competitive Cyclists Found to Have Low Bone Density

...the bone density of 32 male, competitive bike riders, most in their late 20s and early 30s, was compared to that of age-matched controls, men who were active but not competitive athletes. Bone scans showed that almost all of the cyclists had significantly less bone density in the spine than the control group. Some of the racers, young men in their 20s, had osteopenia in their spines, a medical condition only one step below full-blown osteoporosis. -nytimes

MY COMMENT: The studies to date point out this potential problem in serious, competitive racers, not recreational cyclists.

Can You Run After Hip Replacement?

Check out this interesting thread on letsrun.com. I was surprised!

Workouts from Australia

I received this email from my buddy Nick that I met in Bali-he was a soccer nut back then but has since converted to a serious runner.

Ok. I have been doing long runs of 30k. 20k per day around that. with no speed. Just 5 min ks. Base work or in periodisation terms preparation phase. I have been amazed at how fast i have ran in this phase (ie, the 74 min half) The next phase is precompetition phase. So that = injecting some speed into the week via an interval session 1k repeats. and lowering the weekly mileage. (ie, 100k) Probably keep going between track and road/xc and leave the marathon for 3-4yrs time. I have a 5 yr plan and i am about 13 months into it :) My week will now look like this.

Monday 5-10k easy.

Tuesday 1k repeats 15-20k total session

Wednesday 10k easy

Thursday 30k long run or 20k threshold run

Friday easy 10k

Saturday 10k easy

Sunday 30k long run or 20k threshold run or race.

The three sessions in bold are the important ones. Recovery from these is also going to be a factor.

Any feedback.

MY COMMENT: I love the plan- Curious how long you spend on precompetition doing 2 x 30 K runs per week. When you introduce those long intervals, I'd not worry so much about running them too fast- focus on short recovery, number (how many?), and running form. What's the final goal?

(Note: I'll look into adding a forum here- I would love to get some discussions going).

USATF 5K Runners Thank Bill Dellinger!!

I absolutely love this clip! Give credit to Pat Tyson for anticipating the opportunity for Dellinger to meet these guys following a great effort. I'm sure it's a moment Bill and the athletes will not forget anytime soon.

You can watch Bill Dellinger's run for the bronze at the 1964 Olympic 5,000 meter final here. At 30 years of age, Bill still had a great kick!