Q & A: How to Begin A Running Program

Q: "My son, a lacrosse player, would like to try out for High School Cross Country this upcoming Fall. Any suggestions on how he should prepare? He currently has very little endurance so I thought it would be best for him to get started before the actual season begins."A: Great question. While my recommendations will vary depending on the individual (injury history, running history, other sports they may be playing currently, how much time they have to prepare, are they an elf, dwarf, wizard, or human, etc.), here are some general guidelines for the healthy, human, individual:

1. Start NOW

You hit the nail on the head when you mentioned it would be best for your child to start now.

Too frequently I see people wait until the last minute to begin a running program, and then, one week before the season (or a race), they have a moment of "Oh crap I haven't been running but practice starts 5 days from now, how about I go jump into a thousand mile run to prepare" and then they jet off down the neighborhood.

This concept may work when applied to a procrastinating college student who crams for exams at the last minute (not that I would know anything about that), but not so much with regards to running. Attempting to shove in last-minute, high volume, running sessions one week before the season as a sure-fire way to accrue an injury (not that I know anything about that, either...), which obviously doesn't help your son's chances of making the cross country team.

Slow and steady really does fit the bill with regards to running (and lifting) programs. Don't delay any longer in getting started, and start with a very short distance. Resist the urge to do too much, too soon.

2. Begin with "Rectangle Sprints" on Grass

This is my all-time favorite way to ease people, including myself, into running. It's easier on the joints compared to running on concrete, it's not terribly taxing, and it sets the stage quite nicely for future training.

How ToDo It

Find a soccer field (roughly 100-110yds long), and "sprint" the straights, then walk the sides. The sprints should NOT be a maximal effort run, but around 85% top speed while focusing on good technique and steady breathing. After you walk the endline, you'll then run down the other sideline. Walk the endline, and.....congratulations, you've just discovered why these are called rectangle sprints.

If, upon walking the endline and arriving at the next corner, you find that your heart rate is still jacked up through the roof, take some time to let it slow down. Ideally it will be back to 140bpm before you initiate the next sprint.

Frequency: 2-3x/week

Repetitions: 4-12. Begin by performing no more than four total rectangles, which would be eight total sprints (not kidding, that's all you need for Day 1). Increase the total rectangles by one each session, capping it out at twelve.

3. Next, Add Hill Sprints

Hill sprinting has to be my favorite form of conditioning. Super easy on the joints, challenging, and won't leave you feeling too banged up.

You can typically find a good hill near a lake, reservoir, or school. Google Maps is your buddy in this department. Try your best to find a GRASS hill, and one that is relatively steep. Don't worry if it's a super long hill; you can always start partway up it if the hill is crazy long (you don't want the sprint to last longer than twelve seconds).

I actually wrote out my guidelines for hill sprinting HERE, so click the link for the "How To."

Begin these roughly 1-2 weeks after initiating the rectangle sprints, and start with a frequency of 1x/week, never exceeding 2x/week.

Also, of note: Just because hill sprints are easy on the joints and don't tend to affect recovery as much as other "cardio" modalities, they are downright brutal, and not for the faint of heart.

4. Begin Steady State Running, Following the Rule of 20%

Finally, add steady state running. There are so many strategies one can use here, but to keep it simple, start off with a 20-30 minute run. This can be done 3-5x/week, starting on the low end and carefully monitoring recovery.

The 20% rule is a MUST when it comes to designing and implementing conditioning programs.

Never increase the total time, or distance, by more than 20% each session. So, for example, if you run for 30 minutes on Day 1, don't run for more than 36 minutes on Day 2. Or, if you perform 750 total yards of shuttle runs on Day X, don't do more than 900 total yards of shuttles on Day "X+1." (How bout that algebra, hmmm?)

This will allow you to improve quite a bit while minimizing the risk of injury.

Closing Thoughts

• What about HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training)? This is a topic for an entire other post, but in the meantime, don't worry about it. HIIT certainly has its place, but, for now, stick to the three modalities listed above.
• Once you move into your steady state work, feel free take a break on the days you feel particularly "beat up" and do some rectangle sprints instead. Personally, I love them for "in-between" days and often find that they invigorate me for my subsequent sessions compared to taking the day off completely.
• You can still supplement your steady state running with hill sprints 1x/week to give the joints a break (in fact, I recommend this).
• Take at least two days off a week from running, during which you can......see the next point.
• Be sure you're involved in a quality resistance training program. Amongst the running world, this this has to be one the most underappreciated components of a quality running program.

Sports Are Healthy Right? by Tadashi Updegrove

Continuing from my last post about the do’s and don’ts of an intern, SAPT received someone who exemplified pretty much exactly what I felt a good intern should be.  For the past semester Tadashi has made an impact on SAPT through his knowledge, coaching, and ability to learn and apply.  In his brief time here he became a colleague and a good friend. Unfortunately, his time at SAPT has come to an end and he has decided to take his talents to South Beach and by South Beach I mean College Park, Maryland to pursue an internship with the S & C department.  With that said, here is Tadashi’s final task for completing his time at SAPT.... As a Kinesiology major, I was required to enroll in a “Senior Seminar” class this past semester, where we basically got in a big group and discussed health.  Most discussions were centered around the importance of health, how we can inspire others to be healthy, and the future of health in the United States and the world.  As many of my fellow classmates declared their own personal mission statements to become soldiers in the war against obesity, or how to combat the big tobacco companies, I sat quietly in the corner, hoping I didn’t get called on.  Then I got called on:

“Tadashi, why are you so interested in health?”

After stumbling over my words I finally managed to utter something like “err… I, um... I’m not.”  I went on to explain that health was not my primary interest.  What I was interested in was sports and sports performance.  I wanted to understand how the human body adapts so I could understand how to manipulate the applied stimuli to make someone stronger, jump higher, hit harder, and pick up heavier things.

Then I was approached with a follow up question:

“Well, sports are healthy right?”

I don’t know how I feel about that one.  Sure being physically active and exercising is healthy, but after looking through countless research articles it’s hard to ignore the high percentages of participant injury in sports.  Competitive lifting, both powerlifting and weightlifting, ranks at the low end of participant injury with something between 40%-50% (Yup, ½ of participants getting injured apparently is low compared to other sports).  The NFL is under scrutiny right now because of the concussion rates and the violent nature of the game.  I know the NFL is easy to hate on when discussing health and safety because… well it’s football, and the game involves Hulk-Smashing people against their will.

But football players aren’t the only ones getting hurt.  Even the concussion rates in girls’ lacrosse are high enough to raise concerns about helmet requirements.  Take a look at ACL injuries and you’ll find that the overwhelming majority of ACL tears occur because of non-contact situations.  ACLs tend to rupture during a sprint, a jump landing, decelerating, or change-of-direction task.  Athletes in sports that demand a high volume of these tasks are placed at a higher risk of injury.  Think soccer, volleyball, basketball, etc.

During my experience working with the SAPT coaches and athletes, I began to realize more and more that training for performance is training for health. Learning to squat with the knees out and the hips back makes you more of a beast because you get more recruitment of the glutes and your legs are placed in a structurally ideal position to produce force into the ground.  This also happens to be the healthiest position for your knee joint by reducing the load to the medial compartment.  Bracing the midsection during a lift will increase performance because of an improved transfer of force between the upper and lower body.  This ability to create a rigid torso also happens to be the best way to keep your spine from folding in half under load.  Similar performance and health benefits can be said about keeping the scapulae retracted during rows or tucking the elbows during a pushup.

I played lacrosse and ran track in high school, and now compete in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu/submission grappling, and like many athletes in other sports, have come to understand that injuries are just part of the game.  Most athletes can expect to get banged up here and there.  Sometimes, unfortunately, they’ll get hit with a more serious injury that takes them out for a length of time that really puts their patience (and sanity) to the test.  For me it was a back injury that occurred during a grappling session which required surgery last September.  Looking back it’s easy to say I should have done more soft tissue work, anterior core exercises, mobility drills, and gotten more rest but… hindsight’s always 20/20.  What is it going to take for me to get healthy?  Strengthening the right muscles, mobilizing the right joints, and training the neuromuscular system appropriately.  Sounds eerily like training for performance...

I realize now that I am interested in health (specifically musculoskeletal health), because it goes hand in hand in optimizing athletic performance, but I still have to disagree with a blanket statement like “sports are healthy.”

Even a sport like distance running boasts a participant injury rate upwards of 70%!  The next time you watch a baseball or softball game watch the pitcher’s shoulder as he/she pitches.  Try and convince me that they throw this way to improve their health.

However, despite the risk of injury there are many reasons why I believe sports are awesome, and most of these reasons are not necessarily health related.  Growing up my Dad always told me that I would learn more from playing sports than I would learn in the classroom, and I’m pretty sure he was right (but I went to class too…).  I learned what it meant to work hard towards a goal, work with others, and make sacrifices for the benefit of the team.  Not to mention it’s FUN, and I’ve had some of my most memorable moments on a lacrosse field or a grappling mat.

SAPT Spring Sport All-Met Selections

I just wanted to take this time to give a HUGE shout out and congratulations to a few of our Spring sport athletes who made the All-Met selection for 2012: -Jessie Ferrari (Soccer, signed to University of Virginia) -Taylor Heasley (Softball, signed to Ohio Wesleyan) -Kent Blackstone (Baseball, signed to New Mexico State University) -Red Dowdell (Baseball, signed to VMI)

Not to mention, SAPT athletes Daniel Whitaker, CJ Herold, Kent Blackstone, Red Dowdell (baseball), and Taylor Heasley (softball) are in the Northern Virginia's Top 50 for home runs this past season! Soccer goalie Jessie Ferrari also ranked 13 in the entire region for number of saves (78 total).

This is an enormous accomplishment, and we're proud of each and every one of them, along with all of our other athletes who won All-Region and All-District selections, as well.

Getting Stronger In-Season

One of the coolest things for us coaches at SAPT is to see the athletes continue to arrive at our facility to get after it, even when in-season. We have the special privilege of working with a large group of HIGHLY motivated individuals.....those individuals that are willing to drive 30 minutes (and more) to SAPT to train late in the evening immediately after they get out of their sports practice. Sometimes they show up ready to kick down the doors of the gym, and other times they  arrive feeling pretty beat up, but the point is they understand that the season is a great opportunity to get a leg up on the competition. While many of their friends and rivals are going home to lie down on the couch after practice, they drive over to SAPT to get their trainification on (yeah, I suppose I made up that word....).

Similarly, when their practice/game is canceled because of bad weather, they schedule in a last-minute appointment at SAPT to become stronger, more powerful, and undergo recovery modalities while their competition takes the time off to sit on the couch and watch late-afternoon sitcoms.

I think it goes without saying that it's extremely motivating to us coaches to watch them remain consistent throughout the demands of in-season sport, and it certainly makes our long days worth it, to have an opportunity to help further the physical qualities of our athletes.

As an example, catcher Red Dowdell (recently selected to the *All-Met baseball team for 2012, and will be playing DI baseball at VMI next year), has been driving 30+ minutes, 3 days a week, out to SAPT to train late in the evening after practice. Just this week he hit a 405lb deadlift, a 80lb increase compared to what he was pulling before the season!

And who says you can't get stronger in-season? This showed on the field, too, as his poptime decreased from 1.95 to 1.88, the speed of his throws increased from 80mph to 86mph, on top of the fact that his doubles, triples, and RBIs shot up. Not too shabby if you ask me.

He is just one example of MANY of our athletes who has made enormous strength/power gains throughout this past season, and we couldn't be more proud of each and every one of them.

I say all this to drive home the point that it is certainly possible, and should be desired, to get stronger while in-season, be you a high school athlete or even an adult runner/triathlete (where the "season" tends to last 6+ months).

Many people assume that training will only make you sore and tired for your sport-specific practice, but this is only if you don't understand how to design+implement the training plan appropriately, and fail to manage the competing demands and training stressors throughout the week. If you have a qualified coach to walk you through the process (Wink wink, nudge nudge, click HERE), the sky is the limit with what can be accomplished. While your opponents strength gains are diminishing rapidly by the time playoffs arrive (assuming they haven't trained since pre-season), you're only stronger and more ready to go than ever.

*A pretty freaking huge deal, for those of you who live outside the Metro/DC area. SAPT is also extremely proud of our other athletes who made the highly coveted All-Met teams, to be announced next week

The Do's and Don'ts of Being an Intern

Internships are the bridges that lead into a career in strength and conditioning whether it’s at the collegiate level or the private sector.  If you want to pursue a career in this industry at some point you need to do an internship.  If you don’t then you won’t gain hands on knowledge and you won’t be able to learn from people more experienced and smarter than you.  Internships are almost a rite of passage.  They mean you paid your dues.  If you successfully completed an internship it means you worked hard every day, you cleaned equipment, you organized storage closets, you woke up at 4:00AM to be in the weight room for a 5:00AM team and then worked till 4:00PM, you read endlessly, you watched some of the most knowledgeable people you’ll ever meet coach, you got to ask those coaches questions, you got to listen to those coaches answer your questions, and if you were lucky those coaches threw you to the wolves and told you one morning “hey, I’m going to let you run women’s soccer today to see how you do” then they watched you fail miserably which gave you the opportunity to find out what your made of, then they showed you how to learn from your mistakes and how to do it better the next time!  And you did it all for no money, just for the experience, the knowledge, the pride and to see if you had what it takes.  It was all for the opportunity to gain the ability to help people and athletes become better versions of themselves.  Or at least this is what it should be about; sadly a lot of people just want to get by. You’d be amazed by the amount of people who want to say they put in the work rather than just putting in the work.  People who do the internship because they need the credit to graduate so they try to put in as little effort as possible instead of taking advantage of a great situation in which they can learn.

With all that said here are some do’s and don’ts to follow in order to get the best possible experience out of your internship…

1) Be Quiet

You are there to learn, not socialize.  The coaches don’t care about how “crazy” your weekend was.  Unless your asking questions there is no need for you to talk, until the coach states otherwise.

2) Understand That You Know Nothing/Be Open Minded

It’s important to grasp the concept that unless you have coaching experience your opinion doesn't hold much value. There’s nothing worse than someone who spouts off exercise science trivia but can’t goblet squat to save their life or teach it for that matter.  It doesn’t matter what your training methodology is because it’s over for the time being.  Take this time to step out of your comfort zone and learn something new.  Is your internship somewhere that is Olympic based? Well if it is guess what?  You are going to train the Olympic lifts for the next semester or year.  If you go into the whole thing thinking you know it all then then you’ve demonstrated that you truly know nothing.

3) Do as Your Asked and Do it with a Smile on Your Face

Your job is whatever the strength coach you’re working under deems it to be.  If they want you to go reorganize the whole storage closet then do it and whistle while you work, trust me it helps.  If they want you to observe a training session then you need watch intently and have questions ready to ask them when the session is done.  It’s a privilege that these coaches have taken you under their wing so show gratitude by performing each task no matter how minute it is to the best of your ability

4) Show Initiative

Sadly, this was my biggest problem during my internships.  If someone told me to do something I definitely did it to the best of my ability.  That was the problem though, most of the time I had to be told when to do something.  If you see plates unorganized then go organize them before someone tells you.  Is everything organized in the storage closet by the end of the day?  If not, take it upon yourself to organize it.  If the strength coach is running behind schedule and has a collegiate baseball team getting out of line then put your big boy/girl pants on and go lay down the law.  One of your jobs is to assist the strength coach so they can focus on their job.  If they have to stop what they’re doing in order to tell you what to do all the time then you’re just making things worse.  Taking initiative shows leadership qualities and that you can handle yourself in all different situations.

5) Have Fun

I know that sounds a little hard after all the things I just mentioned BUT I promise you that if you observe the other rules listed number 5 will come naturally.  If you can successfully observe the previous rules then the strength coach you work under will probably make your job a lot more enjoyable.  If you don’t heed the other rules you’re going to have a really angry strength coach as a boss.  Working under Sarah I learned this quick, that’s not a person you want angry at you; I have nightmares to this day…. joking…. But seriously.  In all seriousness though, depending on where you end up for your internship you have been given a great opportunity to change yourself for the better.  It’s important to do everything in your power to seize the opportunity.

Runners and Resistance Training

It's unfortunate, really, that distance runners - and endurance athletes, in general – could benefit more from a solid strength training program than nearly any other population.  I say this is unfortunate because the majority of distance runners tend to be more adamantly opposed to strength training than almost any other group of people I’ve witnessed.    I’ve heard it all:

• “But I’ll get slower if work out in the weight room”
• “I’ll become ‘big and bulky’ if I lift weights!”
• “Strength training will interfere with my running” (yes, it certainly could, but only if you don’t understand how to design the program appropriately)
• “Won’t I gain body fat if I cut back on running and replace it with lifting?”
• “Well, I get all the ‘strength training’ I need for my lower body through running!”
• “I don’t have time to strength train”

I can see why these concerns may arise in a distance runner, especially if he or she has never experienced the value of a professional designing his or her strength training program (p.s. most of those programs you read in the magazines don’t count).  However these qualms with strength training tend to be grounded upon emotion, misconceptions, a bad experience, and/or erroneous propaganda as opposed to reason and approaching the topic with no presuppositions.Now, I can’t necessarily blame them, as there are many factors outside their control constructing their belief of the relationship between resistance training and running.  However, understand that as a performance enhancement specialist, I write this series in an effort to help the endurance community – not deride them.

Why is it accepted - rather than vehemently challenged - that the majority of runners will experience an injury in the next year?  

Christopher McDougall, the author of Born to Run, cites multiple statistics claiming over 66% of runners will suffer a serious injury in a given YEAR.  Yet this is just shrugged off by the endurance community as the norm??!  Stress fractures, IT Band syndrome, plantar fasciitis, patellofemoral knee pain, low back pain, and tendonitis plague the bodies of distance runners and yet this seen as “the consequence of the sport??”

I used to work as a Physical Therapist Aid, and an astonishing percentage of non-surgical patients in therapy were runners!  And you know what the advice of the physical therapist was (on top of rest, ice, and soft tissue work)? 

STRENGTH TRAINING. 

Now, I’m aware that when you hear the words “strength training” the first image that comes to mind is a bunch of college boys bench pressing every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and incessantly bicep curling away in front of the mirror.  I can’t blame you.

But understand that a good training plan incorporates movement preparation, corrective exercise, dynamic flexibility, resistance training, core work, cardiovascular work, and recovery/regeneration.  This can be accomplished in as little as two, 75-minute sessions a week (even less if you’re really pressed for time).

Most distance runners tend to approach their training by punching the accelerator while the emergency brake is on.

As Alwyn Cosgrove says:

“All of us in the fitness industry, trainers and trainees alike, have been brainwashed into thinking that the only way to improve results is to push harder. If you aren’t making gains, it’s because you aren’t training hard enough or often enough…The answer to every problem is to punch down harder on the accelerator. 

But think of a car with the parking brake on. If you push harder on the gas pedal, you’ll only run out of fuel quicker, right? But if you take off the brake, the car will go farther and faster, and probably use less fuel in the process."

With runners, this couldn't be more true.  Most runners assume that the answer to faster times, enhancing cardiovascular capacity, and improving running economy is to run more, more, and some more.

Need to improve my 5k, 10k, or marathon time?  Add more miles each week!

How do I lose that extra five pounds to make me faster?  Increase my weekly running frequency!

This will keep going.  More miles.  More days per week.  Just continuing to press down on that accelerator while your body is trying to tell you that there is a parking brake lifted and you need to release the brakes before you continue to burn fuel and eventually sustain an injury.  Maybe not even accrue an injury.  Maybe just continue to go about your training in a sub-par manner, requiring your body to do more work than is actually necessary to achieve your goals.

As Mike Boyle says:

"In endurance training, the emphasis is usually high on the quantity side and low on the quality side.  This is the main mistake of endurance athletes in training."

Well, what are the "parking breaks" in endurance athletes, you ask?  The list includes, but is not limited to:

• Stiff/immobile ankles.  Poor ankle mobility and ROM is strongly correlated with ankle sprains, tendonitis, and pain/deficiencies further up the kinetic chain (think knees and hips).  Everything starts from the ground up, so don't ignore this area.
• Unstable knees and hips.  Honestly, I want to cringe when I drive by people jogging on the side of the road.  Knees and feet flailing about since they don't have the hip stabilizers required to keep everything in line and move proficiently.  Knees landing way out of alignment with their feet.  It's terrible.  Not because they look goofy, but because I wonder how long it will be before they need to schedule a visit with the physical therapist.
• Weak/dormant Glutes.  I'm sad to say we live in a society plagued with "gluteal amnesia."  Steady state running does absolutely nothing to strengthen the glutes, which is a death sentence to running efficiency, low back health, proper knee tracking, and overall structural enhancement (in more ways than one :) ).
• Terrible thoracic mobility.  Think range of motion about your spine in the upper back region.  Have problems with the low back, shoulder joint or neck?  Look at what's going on at the thoracic spine.
• Poor Running Form. Every mile you run requires roughly 1,500 plyometric repetitions with forces of 2-4 times bodyweight. Better make sure each of those reps is done correctly.

The list goes on, but my point is you have to release the breaks.  And you can't release them by just tacking on those miles to your training weeks.

You need a solid resistance training program.  The tricky part is ensuring that the program addresses your needs and, does so with the appropriate frequency, intensity, and volume so that it

enhances

your body as a running machine as opposed to hindering your training sessions.  Unfortunately the professionals that know how to do this are few and far between.

I've been there.  

I want to make sure you're aware that

I have personally competed in endurance races in the past

.  So I'm not just preaching at runners from a completely removed standpoint.  My training weeks frequently entailed NO MORE than 2-3 running sessions a week.  How did I do this?  I released the breaks through appropriate strength training, followed the 80-20 rule, and ran

smart

, not hard.

I can also tell you that every runner that has trained with us at SAPT has seen a DROP in their running times, along with decreased (sometimes eliminated) pain associated with all the "nagging injuries" they had when they first walked in our doors.  Something is working.

To any endurance athletes in the crowd that need that extra boost to their training, click

HERE

to get started, whether it be in our training facility, or, should you live across the country, through our distance coaching program!