Last night I had the chance to listen to and meet Jeff Galloway, the former Olympic marathoner and current running coach/entrepreneur, who was speaking at my local Road Runner Sports store. The session was a very informal Q&A in which Jeff answered general running questions as well as specific questions about his training programs. Unfortunately, I didn’t take notes, so the following won’t contain exact quotes from Jeff, but will (hopefully) capture the gist of his comments.

On Stretching

One of the audience members asked about stretching, and when they should be doing it. Galloway responded that he didn’t recommend stretching for runners, with the possible exception of an IT band (iliotibial band) stretch (explained here). He explained that there was no evidence that stretching was helpful to runners, and in fact, was often the source of injury. He also said that he believed the same was true of plyometrics and yoga – that there was no benefit to runners.

To me, this was the most radical statement that he made the entire night. I had previously heard and read from several sources that you shouldn’t stretch before running, but had never heard such a blanket statement that it was something to be avoided, and in fact, many if not most programs seem to recommended stretching after running.

On Weight Training

When I asked Jeff about what weight training he recommended for runners, he said that he didn’t recommend any type of leg weights, but he did recommend exercises to strengthen your shoulders and core.

One specific exercise he mentioned was what he called “arm running”, which he described as moving your arms in a running motion while holding weights and standing still. This exercise will strengthen your shoulders, back and arms, which should reduce the fatigue people sometimes get in those areas.

On Massage and Related Therapies

Jeff said that he was a proponent of deep tissue massage, and that he believed that it aided recovery. He also recommended using a foam roller as a home alternative to massage.

When I asked him about Active Release Therapy (ART), his opinion was mixed. He believed that it could be helpful for certain injuries, like plantar fasciitis, if you had a good therapist, but it could cause more harm than good if you put yourself in the wrong hands.

On Cross Training

Jeff said that the evidence showed that cross training would not help you improve your running, but that didn’t mean that he didn’t recommend it for other reasons. For example, he mentioned that studies showed that for every hour spent doing aerobic exercise, people gained two hours back in increased lifespan.

The only cross training exercise that he believed would actually help runners improve was pool running. For this, he recommended using either a ‘pool noodle’ or an AquaJogger belt for flotation.

On Ice Baths

I believe the exact words he used for this therapy was ‘cruel and unusual’. However, this doesn’t mean that he didn’t see the benefit of cooling your legs after a hard run, he just felt that an ice bath was too extreme.

Jeff said that the studies showed a benefit from cooling your legs down within the first 15 minutes after running, but that you only needed to immerse yourself in water that was about 20 degrees cooler than the temperature your legs were at, for example, a pool or a cool bath.

This was welcome news to me, as I am really cold-adverse and the thought of an ice bath just makes me cringe.

On His Run/Walk/Run Methodology

Jeff believes, and said that the results from those that have followed his program show, that using his run/walk/run method both during long training runs and races will produce faster times, at least at the longer distances. When asked specifically about the 5K, he indicated that the results were less positive, although some people had shown good results.

He gave several examples of significant improvements by runners who used this method, ranging from those who had been 6 hour + marathoners to those whose times had been under 3 hours and were trying to qualify for Boston. His explanation for these results was that the walk breaks keep your legs fresher, allowing you to recover faster and not tire at the end of the race.

The length of the breaks he recommends vary from 30 seconds running/1 minute walking for those running at a slower pace (16 minutes/mile) to 4 minutes running/35 seconds walking for those running at a faster (8 minutes/mile) training pace. He also mentioned that during a race, if you feel strong, you can skip the walk breaks during the final few miles.

My Thoughts

Galloway’s opinions definitely gave me something to think about. I’m not ready to wholeheartedly embrace his ideas on not stretching, but I will make sure that I stretch even more cautiously than I have been, and that I don’t push myself beyond my current capabilities when doing yoga. For me, the benefits I get from yoga, including improved core strength and increased calm, are too important to me to make me stop, even if I am increasing my risk of injury.

Regarding walk breaks: this is something I never have done in the past, and I am considering trying it out. I know a lot of people are proponents of this method, and it was interesting to hear that even people who are much faster than I am have improved their times using the run/walk/run method.

Regarding cross training: I will continue to incorporate cross training into my fitness plans, for calorie-burning reasons, variety, and for sheer enjoyment. One adjustment I will make it to include occasional pool running into my training schedule.

If you have any opinions or personal experience on anything mentioned here, especially his more controversial ideas (e.g. not stretching and the run/walk/run methodology), I’d love to hear about them, so please leave a comment.

In the words of Michael B., a fellow blogger/runner and a huge proponent of Galloway’s run/walk/run method, gotta run!

No related posts.

This book is the answer to all of those people that try to tell you that running is bad for you.

Born to Run is, simply stated, one of the best books about running that I’ve read in a long time. Part science, part story, part tips on how to improve your running, Born to Run kept me interested and entertained all the way through.

At its heart, the book is the story of one man’s quest to be able to run consistently without getting injured, and the people, including the Tarahumara Indians of Mexico, he encounters along the way. The Tarahumara Indians are a reclusive tribe of people that are known for their ability to run ultramarathon distances at the drop of a hat, through the incredibly tough terrain of the Copper Canyon, with sandals as their only footwear. The highlights of the book include:

• A race organized by an American who calls himself ‘Caballo Blanco’, pitting the Tarahumara against some impressive American ultramarathoners, including Scott Jurek
• The story of the Tarahumara’s running of the Leadville 100
• An anthropological explanation of how and why humans evolved to run over long distances
• A brief history of the evolution of the running shoe, and an explanation of what is wrong with our present-day footwear

As someone that loves to run, and is always looking for ways to improve, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. My only complaint with it is that it ended somewhat abruptly, but maybe that’s just because the story was so fascinating that I didn’t want it to end.

No related posts.

For those who haven’t already seen me prattle endlessly about this over at Twitter, here are my race results from yesterday’s Colfax Half Marathon:

• Time: 1:56:12 (net)
• Overall Place: 534/2294
• Gender Place: 204/1448
• Division Place: 26/300 (F 40-49)

You may or may not recall from my previous post about my goals for Colfax that I wanted to:

1. Run a negative-split or even-split race
2. Set a course PR (beat last year’s 1:59:19 finish)
3. Finish in under 1:55

I’m happy to claim that I met goals #1 and #2, and was not all that far from also meeting goal #3. I say ‘claim’ only because there were no split times given for the half-marathon (although they did have them for the marathon, which is run mostly on a different route). However, according to may Garmin, I was running at about an 8:53 pace through mile 7, and my final time puts me at about an 8:52 overall pace.

I had a brief moment of hope after the race that I had actually also met goal #3, because my Garmin time was under 1:55. However, after thinking about it, I heard my Garmin lose signal a few times in the last several miles, which I think explains the time discrepancy between it and my official net time.

In any case, my time was a full 3 minutes better than I ran at last year’s race, so I’m pleased about that.

Next up: an attempt at the Tweet 5K.

No related posts.

Well, the big day is almost here…my first half marathon of the year, the Colfax Half Marathon, is this Sunday, May 17. This will be my second year in a row running this race.

Last year at this time, I had just recovered from a bout of plantar fasciitis, so I wasn’t feeling that optimistic about running a great race. Despite that, I ran fairly well, and met all of my goals. This year, I’ve had no injuries, and my training has gone reasonably well, so my goals are a bit tougher:

1. To run a negative-split or at least an even-paced race. This is the minimum I like to try to achieve in all of my distance races.
2. To set a course PR. My time last year was 1:59:19, and I think beating this time is very realistic for me.
3. To come in under 1:55. This wouldn’t be a PR for me, and it might be a bit of a stretch given my paces on some of my long runs, but it’s doable if I have a good day.

I made a small purchase to help keep me on pace for this race – a PaceTat. In case you haven’t heard of them, PaceTats are temporary tattoos that list the mile split times you should be hitting to reach your goal time. This will be the first time I’m trying one out, but I think it’s going to be a great alternative for me to the typical paper pace bands you find at expos, just because it won’t move around on me or accidentally rip.

Hope everyone’s training is going well, and to everyone else that’s racing this weekend, good luck and run strong!

Related posts:

1. Colfax Half Marathon Registration
2. Race Day Magic at the Colfax Half

Who doesn’t like discounts?! ING Bay to Breakers 12k has a special offer for my blog’s readers! You can get an additional 5% off the early registration price for this year’s race. Don’t miss this opportunity to join (and support!) one of the most original and zany road races in the county.

• Visit www.ingbaytobreakers.com for details about the race
• Register online by midnight on April 30th, 2009 to receive the early registration price with an additional 5% discount http://tinyurl.com/cy3vkw
• Enter this coupon code 5RUNFAST09 (case sensitive) and click ‘redeem’ before completing your registration
• This offer is limited to the first 100 registrants, so make sure to register as soon as possible!

Please direct any questions to info (at) ingbaytobreakers (dot) com

The Fine Print:

• This is an online offer only
• Discount is valid only for the registration fee. It is not applied to optional purchases such as the MUNI pass or packet mailing fee

No related posts.

Today’s run, during which I had a really poor attitude. Watch the crabbiness and ranting if you dare.

No related posts.

I took it kind of easy on my long run today, stopping along the way to video blog it. It’s my first, so be kind!

No related posts.

I’m not quite sure what’s up with me, but I feel like I’m having more ‘down’ running days than ‘up’ running days lately. Anyone else having that problem?

Maybe it’s that Spring is just a tease at this point–in the 60s one weekend and over a foot of snow a few days later–or maybe I just haven’t quite found the right paces for my tempo and interval runs. Whatever it is, I’d like to snap out of it soon, since I’ve only got 7 weeks until my first goal race of the year, the Colfax Half Marathon.

One thing that I hope is going to help is that my running group’s track workouts start on Wednesday. I always find it hard to do track workouts on my own; there’s something about the group camaraderie that makes it a lot easier, even if I end up being the slowest person on the track!

Another thing I’m going to try is to do a better job of tapping into some of the wonderful online running communities. I’m a member of several that I like a lot, although I haven’t participated much in some:

• The Daily Mile, a social training site which I’ve mentioned previously
• Runcast.tv, ‘A video community for runners by runners’. I think you need to create an account and sign in before you can view videos, but here are two recent ones from my online friends:
  • gchance’s 18 miler, also available on his blog
  • cewto’s Denver snow storm video, which gives you a glimpse of what those of us in the Denver area were dealing with on Thursday.
• Just Finish, where you can blog, participate in forums, and view videos, photos and posts about fellow runners’ training.

I hope I see you soon at some of these fun running communities! Meanwhile, I’d love to hear your favorite tricks for getting your running mojo back.

No related posts.

Thanks to runcolo.com for bringing this race to my attention: The Colorado Rockies Home Run 5K!

This 5K race is scheduled for May 3, 2009. The course runs through the downtown Denver area, and includes a lap around the warning track at Coors field! The entry price is $30, and includes both a t-shirt and a voucher redeemable for two free tickes to a Monday though Thursday Colorado Rockies Value or Premium home game from May 6 through August 13. Sounds like a really good deal–assuming you like baseball, anyway.

I’m not sure yet if I can fit this race into my schedule, but as a baseball fan, I think it would be a huge kick to get to run around the warning track at Coors Field. That alone would make it worth the entry fee to me.

No related posts.

The other day, I noticed that I was just about to hit the 500 mile mark on one of the pairs of New Balance shoes in my current rotation, and you know what that means–time to shop for a new pair! This time, even though my New Balance shoes generally work pretty well for me, I thought it might be time to try something new.

I’ve been interested in the Newton running shoes for quite a while, since the technology sounds interesting and quite a bit different from most of the other shoes currently on the market:

The genius behind the Newton running shoes is the patented Action/Reaction Technology™. When using the ultra-efficient Land-Lever-Lift midfoot or forefoot running gait, the technology absorbs and then returns your own energy back to you.

Fortunately, a store not too far from me–Active Imprints in Boulder, Colorado–carries the Newton brand so I went there to try them out.

Active Imprints is a small, independent store. It’s a wonderful place to shop for shoes because it’s the kind of place where they are actually runners so they really know how to make sure you’re going to get the right pair. When I walked in and said I was interested in the Newtons, the store owner asked me a couple of questions about the wear patterns in my shoes, had me do a quick test to see if I under or over-pronated, and based on that, steered me towards the ‘Gravity’ model, which is a neutral training shoe.

Once I got them on, I walked around a bit and immediately noticed how different they feel than most shoes. Walking in them is a bit odd because the shoes really do seem to want to move you more away from your heel and onto your forefoot, which isn’t necessarily ideal for walking but is good for running. They are also fairly light for a training shoe at about 8.2 ounces (for the women’s size seven, anyway, which is a bit smaller than mine!).

Then I went outside and took them for a short trial run. They felt good; very responsive, quite comfortable and not at all awkward to run in. After being told that they had a 30-day satisfaction guarantee return policy, I was sold.

So far, I’ve only taken them out for one run–the tempo run I did on Thursday, and I felt pretty good in them. And maybe it’s at least partially psychological, but it was my fastest tempo run in weeks. To sum up my thoughts on the Newtons so far:

Pros:

• Lightweight and comfortable
• Promotes a more efficient running style (less heel-striking, more midfoot/forefoot running)
• 30-day satisfaction guaranteed return policy

Cons:

• Expense. At $155-175 depending on the model, these are some of the most expensive running shoes on the market.
• Adjustment time. Although based on the way I already feel in the shoes I don’t think this is going to be much of an issue for me, Newton does say on their web site that many people will require some time to adjust to the shoes since they promote changes in your running form.

Other notes:

• The mesh over the toes is quite open, which makes them an exceptionally well-ventilated shoe. Although this is going to be great in the summer, it might not be the best thing when it’s cold or wet outside. Edited to add: Newton does make an all-weather trainer which sounds like it would be much better for cold, wet weather.
• They seem to run slightly smaller than some shoes; the size I ended up with was about 1/2 size larger than my normal shoe.

Here’s a link to the Newton web site in case you’d like some more information or a list of retailers that carry the shoes.

Related posts:

1. New Shoe Will Help Us Run Faster?