Full Potential - Running / Coaching ..The Running Supplement..

Dermatherapy Sleepsac - a better nights sleep when on the move

2014-02-28T18:30:00.000-08:00

DermaTherapy are a company who specialise in creating specialist bedding to help you sleep. But why would this be of interest to you as a runner?

As an athlete, sleep is the ultimate recovery tool. During sleep, the body releases powerful growth hormones which are responsible for muscle repair and growth. Research shows that sleeping better and longer leads to improvements in athletic performance, including faster performance times, better endurance, lower heart rate and even improved mood and higher levels of energy during a workout.

When Team Sky are on the road, they actually go into the hotels they are staying in and their soigneurs change all the hotel bedding to their own official bedding! Whilst this sounds like a bit of overkill, they realise that their riders want the same feeling, no matter what bed they are in, but also they need good quality sheets.

It's this level of dedication that you should take to your sleep and it's now incredibly easy with The DermaTherapy Sleepsac.

The Sleepsac has been specially designed to surround the sleeper with a cocoon of silky smooth material. Excess heat and moisture are quickly wicked away using their unique micro-fibres within the DermaTherapy, ensuring a good night’s sleep wherever you are.

The design of the Sleepsac ensures that only the DermaTherapy fabric comes into contact with the sleeper, even the pillow slots into the underside of the Sleepsac!

The Sleepsac comes in its own little bag, which packs down to a small 25cm x 16cm x 6cm size. The bag is great to sleep in and incredibly comfortable. I've found that in some circumstances you don’t need to use a duvet over the top as it keeps you nice and warm, however if you do use a cover over the top you don’t overheat.

Having taken the bag on a number of trips over the last few months, the Sleepsac has been fantastic and allowed me to get some restful nights in some weird locations! The bag is light, easy to pack and well worth the £68.95 price tag. It can be purchased online on the Dermasilk website. It’ll definitely be in my bag this year for our training camp to Portugal

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How do you know you’ve recovered from you session and ready to train?....Understanding Heart Rate Variability and how to measure it

2014-02-27T08:00:00.000-08:00

Wouldn’t it be great if your body had a marker that you could use to determine how well recovered you are and if you're ready to trai? Well, luckily it does, your heart. Whilst resting heart rate was often thought of as the useful marker, science has moved forward and now it’s better to take a your heart rate variability.

Say your heart beats at 60 beats per minute, you may then conclude that it beats once every second. You’d be wrong! There's a gap between your heart beats and this varies as you breathe in and out.

This phenomenon is called Heart Rate Variability (HRV).

Over the last few years, more than 2000 published articles have been written about Heart Rate Variability and it's fast becoming a very important variable that we should all think about measuring.
I will try to briefly explain the physiological basics of HRV and then how it applies to athletes.
The heartbeat’s origin is located in the sino-atrial node of the heart. Here, a group of specialised cells generate an electrical impulse that spreads all over the heart muscle, creating a contraction. At rest, it will impulse 100-120 times a minute. However, as you may be aware, your resting heart rate would never be that high, because the autonomic nervous system has continuous control over the output of the sino-atrial node and the effect of this gives you your real heart rate, which will be closer to 60 at rest!

The autonomic nervous system is part of a nervous system that non-voluntarily controls all organs and systems of the body. There is a central component that’s nuclei is located in the brain and peripheral ones that access all internal organs. The autonomic nervous system has two branches, one to stimulate and the other to inhibit the function of the organs, they oppose each other!
The sympathetic nervous system stimulates an organ’s function. If there's an increase in sympathetic stimulation, your heart rate will increase. The thing about this system is that it is relatively slow to respond and can take around 5 seconds to start increasing heart rate after sympathetic stimulation, and 30 seconds to reach a peak steady level.

The parasympathetic system, in contrast, will inhibit the function of organs, so it will decrease heart rate. The response to this sort of stimulation is almost instant. At rest both systems are active, but the parasympathetic system is dominant.

Heart Rate Variability is all about the gap between the heart beats, which are controlled by all the factors above. We are able to gain a wealth of information on the health of your heart are nervous system by monitoring it. The more relaxed you are (i.e., free from fatigue), the more variation you’ll have between heart beats.

But what use is this data? Research has shown that a high Heart Rate Variability links to good health and fitness levels, whilst a decrease in HRV is linked to stress, fatigue and burnout. This is really important for an athlete, as you could be able to spot the onset of fatigue before it hits. However, you will need to monitor your Heart Rate Variability daily so you can see and note any small changes and make almost daily adjustments to your training.

The principle is simple, a small HRV drop is OK, as long as you are recovering, since all training is is stressing the body and allowing for adaptation. However, if you see a large drop in your HRV, it's a clear sign to back off.

How do you measure HRV?

There are a few options around but for the last month I have used a finger sensor and app from iThlete.

The app, available for iPhone and Andriod, is available to buy for £6.99 and is incredibly easy to use. You need a suitable sensor that will take connect to your phone. There are a few options available, but by far the easiest way is using the brand new Finger Sensor (available in Blue or Pink) that plugs into the headphone socket of your phone.

Each morning, you open the app, plug the finger sensor into the phone, put it on your finger and take the reading. It takes about 55 seconds to do this.

Each day you’ll then get a HRV score, and once you’ve done a few days, your number will be written in either green, amber or red. Green being good to train, amber for a low intensity day, and red for a rest day. It really is as simple as that.

The big question with anything like this is is it a gimmick or something you can really use in your training? The science certainly exists and, having used the device for the last month, I have found it incredibly accurate. On green days, I have found that i have been good to go and feeling up, on the amber days, when I have tried to put a full session in, it didn’t go as planned and I found that I had to pull back. Fortunately I only had one red day and that was a rest day anyway. What I’ve learnt with the app is that when it is an amber day, to either: back the planned session off or to not expect the session to go as well as when I am fully recovered.

Having hard data to back up your perception of how you are feeling has really made the decisions I’ve made each day as to how to train a lot easier. Often I’ll wake up, feel tired and not really feel like training, but if I’m getting a green HRV score, I know that there are no excuses and I need to get out there!

It has also allowed me to monitor the training load as a whole and see how it’s working, whether I’m doing too much or getting it spot on.

As a coach, it's a fantastic set of data to look at and help monitor athletes on a daily and weekly basis.

Until the end of February, take advantage of 10% off theiThlete website using FullPotential10 at checkout.

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Aqua Jogging - the ultimate form of cross training and recovery running for runners. Our handy guide on what to do.

2014-02-26T05:48:00.000-08:00

Aqua jogging is exactly what it sounds like, running in water. It’s a really undervalued and underused training tool, but hopefully our handy guide will encourage you to get off the road and into the water. It is the ultimate form of cross training, perfect for those getting back from injury or if you are looking for a bit of recovery session.

Aqua-jogging is best done in deep-water and the action closely mimics the movement of actual jogging. Your feet don’t touch the floor of the pool so there is zero impact and it's a perfect way to train hard if you have any sort of injury (except a hip flexor injury, which may be aggravated by the increased resistance of the water when you bring your leg up).

Mo Farah, who trains as part of the Oregon Project in the United Sates with Alberto Salazar, uses an underwater treadmill, which allows him to run up to and over 120 miles a week, but he does 20-30 of those miles ‘underwater’ to reduce the impact on his body. However, not many of us have $30,000 spare to install one in our garage so we’ll have to make do with the cheap version!

All you need to aqua-jog is a pool that you can’t stand up in and an aqua jogging belt/vest. These are available online and cost around £20. However, it is possible to aqua jog without the vest but in fact I find it much easier to use one.

Aqua-jogging is the only form of cross training as it provides a neuromuscular workout that keeps your running-specific muscles active. Think of biking, swimming or rowing, they use some muscles in a similar way as you do when running, but not all of them. The cross trainer / elliptical machine that you see in gyms is the next closest thing to running, but if you want to run without the impact of running outside, then you need to go into a pool and aqua jog.

The big difference from running is that you’ll have a straighter upper body, so reduce the forward lean that you usually see from a runner. This will stop you from bunching up into a little ball and restricting movement.

Important with aqua jogging, as it should be with running, is that you need good form

Body Angle

The Checklist for vertical body alignment:

Head Up

Chest Lifted

Shoulders positioned directly above hips

Abdominals tight (don’t hold your breath!)

Buttocks squeezed together and slightly tucked under (pelvic tilt)

Arms:

Like running, you’ll want to swing from the shoulder in a relaxed, pendulum-like action. Avoid breaking the water line when swinging the arms and also remember to swing the arms straight, not across the body.

Legs

Getting the leg action right is probably the most difficult part of the aqua jogging experience.

The leg driving forward needs to have about 70-80 degrees of hip flexion (so more than usual), the knee should be at right angles (90 degrees) with the foot below the knee in a flat position, so that it can push the water down.

Once the leg is fully extended, it should swing a little behind your body, but then quickly lift the heel towards your buttocks (so a bit more compact than you’d have when running outside) as you bend the knee and rotate it forward and up into the position to push down again.

The key is to start off slowly, just practice the movements and try and get the form right the first few times rather than focusing on getting in a full workout.

It's harder underwater

Trying to raise your heart rate underwater is more difficult than on dry land. The reason for this is simple - our cells are mainly water and so, when submerged, blood flows better, so you heart rate doesn’t needs to go as high in order to pump oxygen around. Instead, to get the most out of an aqua jogging session, you need to do it at a constant steady effort, or for longer intervals.

Some example workouts
1. Easy workout - 30 minutes at an easy effort. Ideal as a recovery session between longer efforts
2. Long Run - up to 2 hours at an easy effort. Ideal to replace the long run in your week if you can’t do this outside
3. Threshold Session - after a good warm up, try 4 x 5 minutes at a steady effort with a 90 second recovery between the reps, have a good cool down afterwards.
4. Mixing it up - after a good warm up, alternate between 1 minute at threshold effort, 1 minute easy and 30 seconds hard, 30 seconds easy for 4 times, take a break for a couple of minutes and then try again.
5. The lung buster - 1 minute easy, 2 minutes at threshold effort, 1 minute Sprint, 1 minute res - repeat that 10 times

To make the sprint harder, use a bungee cord attached to the end of the pool. Make sure this is attached to one part of the pool and the aqua jogging belt, and try as hard as you can to see how far you can pull the bungee. This turns what is normally a very boring activity (aqua jogging) into a really fun game!

Aqua jogging is the closest you’ll get to running but not actually being outside pounding the pavement. You might get funny looks from other pool users, but there is no better way to maintain fitness for up to 6 weeks when you can’t run. It can be interesting, especially if you get some underwater headphones and protective case for your phone, you can take your music in with you and give you something else to focus on.

Like this? Want some more. Take a look on Full Potential for coaching advice, training plans and support.

Absolute 360 Clothing Review - far infrared technology

2014-02-26T05:07:00.000-08:00

Recovery is the forgotten training principle and I’ve written about how important it is previously. So, in what ways can we improve the recovery process?

One way is the clothing that we wear after a session. Absolute 360 is a clothing and apparel company who are at the cutting edge of technology in textile innovation. They're using a unique and exciting fibre that is emitting 'far infrared'! The fabric absorbs infrared radiation emitted by the human body and re-emits the absorbed radiation as a far infrared (FIR) wave, which interacts with the human body, promoting body stimulation.

Absolute 360 offer a wide range of clothing, from socks, to underwear and t-shirts. They also sell supports for knees, ankles, elbows, wrists and your back. Their website is full of all their options, but there really is something for everyone.

What does the clothing do?

Well, there are a few benefits of the clothing

•Improved micro-circulation - increasing the blood flow means better recovery

•Improved cell metabolism - to help cells recover quicker by having their performance stimulated

•improved thermo-regulation - by optimising the body’s blood flow, it’s able to maintain it’s ideal temperature

What is this Infrared?

Infrared light is a naturally occurring wavelength just outside the visible light spectrum. Far infrared rays have the longest wavelength and are felt as heat. Far Infrared is widely recognised for having positive effects on the body and is being used in medical applications. The waves interact with the human body by the strong interaction with water molecules which represent, on average, 70% of human body m

ass. Far infrared is absorbed by molecules when they change their rotational-vibrational movements. This, in turn, narrows the shape and cluster of the water molecules and increases their hydration capacity. Combined with the heat expanded blood vessels, the result is thinned body fluids (blood, lymph, fat) and increased circulation and toxin removal.

What’s the clothing like?

I tried out their men’s Long Socks (£15.95) and Neck Tube (£27.95) over a few months and really enjoyed wearing them. It's really difficult to objectively test out the recovery process, but I do feel better wearing the clothing than when I don’t. I guess that's the most important thing and whether the effect is physiological or psychological, I can’t say.

They are very comfortable to wear, fit nicely and wash easily. The socks are easy to sleep in and don’t cause any overheating, which some leggings can. The socks aren’t as tight as some traditional compression clothing, but I like that.

What i’d love to see are some full length men's leggings and, fingers cross, Absolute 360 will be able to bring some out in the future.

Like this? Want some more. Take a look on Full Potential for coaching advice, training plans and support.

TomTom Runner review

2014-02-10T05:26:00.000-08:00

Over the summer, TomTom entered the sports GPS market with their Runner and Multisport GPS watches. TomTom previously helped to create the Nike Sports Watch and this unit sees them take the plunge on their own with a very good running watch.

The watch itself is slim and fits well. TomTom have done something very clever and the watch comes in two parts, the watch module and the strap. The strap is available in various options and sizes, so the unit can be refreshed with a new strap if you get bored, or you can buy a small strap if you have a slimmer wrist. I was worried initially that the unit would possibly slip out, but can confirm it works really well.

To go running, you just navigate on the joystick pad to the activities menu. You can then either do a treadmill run or an outdoor one. Each time you upload your workouts online, the unit downloads the GPS satellite data for the next 7 days. This means that finding satellites is very quick, wherever you are in the world.

Using the watch on a run is really easy, and the display can be customised but you have to have 3 pieces of data, one really big, and two on the top that are a bit smaller.

The watch is capable of doing intervals via its lap mode which is very useful, and there is a Goal mode, which is fun but I haven't seen much use for it, but could see that some people would be interested in this. You set up a goal, either distance, time or calories and the watch will give you a pie chart of how far into your goal you are. Whilst it may look cool, i don’t think it is that relevant, because out isn’t that difficult to work out how far you have left of a 10 mile run if you’ve done 4 miles!

Zones can be set up and used to keep you at a set pace or heart rate zone, and you can give yourself a window to work in. This is really useful when going out and you want to run in a set heart rate zone.

One other feature that the watch has is called 'race', where you can run against a set time and you’llsee how you are doing on a little roadway compared to the set pace. A fun feature but one that should be avoided during a race as the GPS is not 100% accurate and if you track yourself against the GPS, don't be upset if you don't hit your goal time.

Indoor Running is possible on the TomTom Runner with the internal accelerometer that it has. However, whilst it tracks really well at slower speeds, once you speed up to a speed over 6 minutes a mile the TomTom doesn’t seem to track the speed very well at all. There is an option to calibrate the unit to try and fix this issue which is a good sign, but unfortunately I haven't been able to test this out properly yet, I try to avoid treadmills at all costs!

Day to day the watch works well, it has a good backlight and alarm feature, plus won't look too out of place.

The good thing about the TomTom is that the data it creates can be exported to be use on pretty much all online systems, the bad thing is that TomTom’s current online software isn’t the greatest. Whilst it is being worked on, it isn't as polished as other offerings. Everyone has their own requirements for online software and i find that Garmin Connect provides the best overview for your training currently.

TomTom have been excellent at releasing new firmware to update the watch and add new features. They really have addressed and added a lot since the watch first came out a few months ago so you can buy this watch knowing it is being looked after.

Recently, TomTom released a mobile app that allows you upload workouts to the TomTom website and also download the latest satellite information. You can also see your workouts and have a look at them on the app (although at the moment this just shows you the webpage inside the app, which isn’t as neat as having it shown natively inside the app)

The TomTom is also unique in that it just uses Bluetooth to connect to sensors, so you can’t use any ANT sensors you may already have, so you might need to buy a new Heart Rate monitor to use with the TomTom runner if you don't have any bluetooth sensors.

One of the various watch strap options

Conclusion:

The TomTom runner represents an excellent first step into the GPS market for TomTom. At £149.99, it isn’t an entry level unit by any means, but has enough features to be worth the money. The fast satellite acquisition is a great feature, it has vibration alters and an interface that is exceptionally easy to use, plus it doesn't look too bad on the eye.

One of the updates that appeared is the ability to do basic intervals. You can set the length of interval, cool down and number of reps. This is a really useful feature and one that makes the TomTom an ideal training partner. Set the intervals up and away you go. These basic intervals are perfect for simple workouts, however, if you want to do something more complex, then the TomTom unfortunately doesn't allow that. This is the only are where the Garmin 220 has the TomTom runner beat, but other than that it is just as good.

As a first move into the busy running GPS market, TomTom have pulled off a really good unit, and a few minor tweaks it could be exceptional. That said, you can buy this watch and know you've got a fantastic unit.

Nike Flyknit Free Review

2013-08-09T06:40:00.003-07:00

A few weeks ago, Nike announced a few new shoes and on August 1st, the Nike Flyknit Free was released. A combination of their nike free philosophy and flyknit upper sounds like a dream, but how do they stack up in reality.

First, I'll explain the Nike Free concept and then all about flyknit. Once we've got that over and done with, it'll be time to talk about the Flyknit Free.

The Nike Free was first introduced in 2004 after Nike reps saw sponsored track athletes training barefoot, and decided that they wanted some of that action! There is a number system, from 10 to 0. 0 being a barefoot shoe and 10 being a 'normal' trainer.

The idea behind the Free is that is allows the muscles in the foot to strengthen by being made to work harder as they aren't being supported. Whilst there are many 'barefoot' shoes available, I really like the Nike Free as an easy run shoe, and they are also great to do Strength and Conditioning circuits in, as you are encouraging all the little muscles in the foot to work to keep you stable.

Nike Flyknit was announced in February 2012. Using new techniques, yarns and fabric variations are precisely engineered only where they are needed. This allows for featherweight, formfitting and virtually seamless uppers.

Flyknit reduces weight of the shoe, it also fits like a 'second skin' and it is environmentally beneficial as it reduces waste because the one-piece upper does not use the multiple materials and material cuts used in traditional sports footwear manufacture.

So what happens when you put these two together?

The upper is very different to any way Nike have released Flyknit before. It very much fits like a sock. They slip on without any hassle at all but you instantly feel secured inside the trainer. The laces don't really do anything on the trainer, i think they are more their for aesthetics. It's a very odd shoe because they are very easy to slip on but as soon as you are in them, you feel secure and your heel won't slip about. There is plenty of room in the forefoot so your feet can really spread out so you aren't cramped for room. In terms of sizes, you probably want your usual running shoe size. I have found that the smaller models are a little bit tight around the midfoot.

Without any stitching there is no rubbing going on with the upper so you could easily wear these shoes with no socks on.

Once you go for a run in the shoes, the Free outsole comes into its own. It is very flexible, there is some cushioning going on but you still feel like you are getting a fairly natural ride.

They are very enjoyable to run in and the combination of the free outsole and Flyknit upper was a delight.

When would you use the shoes?

This is a very personal question and very much depends on what sort of a runner you are. Personally I will use this shoe for my shorter easier run, running to and from the track, warm ups, drills, plyometrics and strength and conditioning work. I will use something a bit chunkier for my longer runs, and a more performance shoe for my speed work, so the adios boost, Flyknit racer or the New Balance RC5000.

If you've used a shoe like this before, it would be advisable to trickle it into your training gently, so learning to walk around in the shoe first, then doing some shorter runs and strength training. You may find it the perfect shoe to do all your running in, but it is just a bit too flexible for some of my running.

Price and availability

This is the scary part, the Flyknit free is £130! That is a lot for a pair of trainers that you might not be able to use for all your running.

Are they worth £130. I would question whether any pair of shoes is worth that much but with the prices of shoes just going up and up at the moment it isn't out of the ordinary. Nike will say that they need to recoup the cost of developing the shoe but how much recouping are they doing with the Flyknit free? Whether you by this shoe is up to you, but it is a good shoe.

They can be bought from the nike website or from a few running specialist stores. The colour-ways available are fantastic. The neon yellow is great, and the currently US only Electric Green/White/Bright Crimson is amazing!

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Recovery is the forgotten training principle - not any more

2013-08-06T17:08:00.000-07:00

Recovery is the key

Recovery is probably the most forgotten about and underrated training principle. After training, you’ll naturally feel fatigued. A period of recovery is required to allow the body to repair the muscle damage and improve performance.

If we train for 10 hours a week (which is a really good amount, by the way) this leaves 158 other hours. Now, some of these hours will be spent sleeping, which is the holy grail of recovery (and to find out more about sleep, see our other article on this important topic). But what we do in those other hours is key to our adaptation from the stress of training, however I'm sure many of us just get on with our daily lives and don’t give recovery too much thought. One of the reasons why professional athletes are so good is because they spend their time in between sessions resting - there are repots of many Kenyans getting over 14 hours of sleep a day, once you also take into account their naps!

When we train, there's a stimulus that's caused, which leads to fatigue (this causes a temporary reduction in performance and muscle function). A period of recovery allows for the body to adapt to the training stimulus to improve performance by Super-Compensating, and this is where we get an improved response to training stimulus above baseline fitness. This is why we can’t train hard every day and why there are easier weeks built into a Full Potential training plan. It allows for the body to adapt and get fitter. If you just trained hard everyday you’d break down very quickly!

image thanks to FireFly™

What can you do to maximise your recovery?

After each run, especially a big session (by this we mean any threshold, speed work or a long run) you should have a good recovery protocol that you aim to follow as closely as possible. Here are our top tips for recovery:

1. Sleep is king, make sure you're getting a good number of hours sleeping each night
2. Have a well balanced and timely nutrition strategy
3. Have an effective warm up and and active recovery
4. Have a regular sports massage or include some self-massage
5. Maintain flexibility

A Basic recovery protocol

As a minimum, after a key session you should be doing the following

Make sure you spend some time cooling down, doing some easy jogging and some light stretches, just to realign muscle fibres, perhaps for 5 minutes or so.

You need to get some fluids and fuel into your body to replace the, sweat, carbohydrates and protein that you've just burnt off. You should have a recovery drink like Rego Rapid Recovery from SIS prepared and ready in the fridge. Milk has been touted as a good recovery product and, whilst it's good to help rehydrate you, the type of carbohydrate and protein is not likely suitable to stimulate maximal recovery. For more on this read SiS Senior Sports Nutritionist Dr James Morton’s article here. The drink is a perfect blend of carbohydrates, protein and electrolytes to rehydrate you and fuel your body of all the nutrients that it is craving.

Once you’ve warmed down, had your recovery drink and taken a shower it is now that the recovery process will take a back seat. If you’ve trained in the morning or at lunch time, you’ve got work to get on with, if you’ve trained in the evening you have dinner to make and possibly family commitments. So, with this in mind, you need products and ways of helping recovery that will fit in with your lifestyle and time available.

What else can you do to help maximise recovery?

Compression products are good at increasing the blood flow to the areas that you are wearing them on, ideally this will be your calf muscles or your legs, and if you use a product from 110% Compression then there's the chance to add some ice in to improve recovery.

If you have more time, then a recovery pump system, like the Normatec MVP is fantastic for providing the legs with some active compression. It's a big favourite of athletes in the USA and Ben really enjoyed using the product (you can read his review here).

Set aside time to do some proper stretching and foam rolling. This will keep you supple, flexible and mobile. Spend time finding the sore points on your legs and generally around your body and work on them. A product like the GRID is fantastic as a foam roller, available from sweatshop for £40.

There's also a brand new product out called Firefly™, it has been used by elite teams and athletes over the last year and has just gone into mass production (we plan to have a full review on the product soon). It works using revolutionary OnPulse™ neuromuscular elector stimulation (NMES) technology to increase blood circulation. Our Initial testing suggests that it really does work and it's ideal because it works whilst you're sitting at a desk in the office and can be worn under your clothes.

The problem with all of these things is that it takes time. This is why you’ll find your long run and/or a harder training session on the weekend (or whenever your days off are). By doing the long hard work on these days, not only do you have more time to fit them in, but you have the rest of the day to recover properly, instead of spending you day stuck in the car, at work on your feet or hunched over a computer in the office. Whether you are going out for a light walk, enjoying some relaxing time on the sofa or giving yourself 60 minutes to properly stretch later in the day, it all helps get the body ready for the next tough session. There are also physiological benefits of training hard on a Saturday and doing an easy long run on a Sunday, especially when you are marathon training, as we can put some fatigue into the legs before the long run to mimic some of what your legs will go through on marathon day, but I want you to focus on recovery after reading this article, or at least think about it more.

Recovery is a huge topic and it isn’t something you can cherry pick the parts that you want to do and still see results. You have to be managing your body by warming up well, stretching and getting regular massage as well. You need to be sleeping well. You need to be on top of your nutrition and hydration. Only once you've got these three areas sorted can you add in products like compression, the FireFly™ and using ice.

If you aren’t recovering properly, you're short changing yourself after training and won’t be seeing the improvements that you deserve after all the time, energy and money that you put into your running in the first place. Good recovery could be the difference between that PB in your next big race, or just missing out.

Over the next few weeks we’ll look closer and some of the other areas of the recovery process (nutrition, body management) and have some reviews on the products you can be using to help maximise your recovery.

Article written by Ben Barwick for Full Potential

Why a coach is better than a plan

2013-07-30T10:30:00.000-07:00

Having a plan for your running is vital, having a running coach is even better, but why?

A plan doesn't know you!

A plan isn't created over many weeks with email's, telephone conversations and hours spent tinkering and thinking about it

A plan won't drop you a text or email during the week to see how you training is or how your race went?

A plan doesn't keep notes on you, what works for you and what doesn't

A plan doesn't know when you have a busy week at work or a holiday coming up

A plan doesn't know when you need a rest

A plan isn't built for you, it's generic but you are anything but generic.

Just because a plan is on the internet and it says sub 3 hour marathon doesn't mean that you can go and follow it and run a sub 3 hour marathon. Even if you do, what do you do afterwards? Is there a plan for that? A coach knows when to get you back running and how to build you up for your next race.

Having a plan is vital, but having a coach oversee you and the plan is even better, after all, a plan doesn't care about your welfare and long term athletic development.

Have a plan, get a coach.

Six Pack Bags Review - The Ultimate Meal Management System

2013-07-29T03:30:00.000-07:00

Six Pack bags have created the ultimate meal management system. Bags designed to keep your food organised and well presented on the go. We are really excited about the bags and have got a review on the Innovator 300 online here

Heart Rate Variability. Vartiations in your heart beat, that can't be right? Can it……..

2013-07-27T00:03:00.001-07:00

Heart Rate Variability

Say your heart beats at 60 beats per minute, you may then conclude that it beats once every second. You’d be wrong! There's a gap between your heart beats and this varies as you breathe in and out. This phenomenon is called Heart Rate Variability (HRV).

Over the last few years, more than 2000 published articles have been written about Heart Rate Variability and it's fast becoming a very important variable that we should all think about measuring.

I will try to briefly explain the physiological basics of HRV and then how it applies to athletes.

The heartbeat’s origin is located in the sino-atrial node of the heart. Here, a group of specialised cells generate an electrical impulse that spreads all over the heart muscle, creating a contraction. At rest, it will impulse 100-120 times a minute. H owever, as you may be aware, your resting heart rate would never be that high, because the autonomic nervous system has continuous control over the output of the sino-atrial node, and the effect of this gives you your real heart rate, which will be closer to 60 at rest!

The autonomic nervous system is part of a nervous system that non-voluntarily controls all organs and systems of the body. There is a central component that’s nuclei is located in the brain and peripheral ones that access all internal organs. The autonomic nervous system has two branches, one to stimulate and the other to inhibit the function of the organs, they oppose each other!

The sympathetic nervous system stimulates an organ’s function. If there's an increase in sympathetic stimulation, your heart rate will increase. The thing about this system is that it is relatively slow to respond and can take around 5 seconds to start increasing heart rate after sympathetic stimulation, and 30 seconds to reach a peak steady level.

The parasympathetic system, in contrast, will inhibit the function of organs, so it will decrease heart rate. The response to this sort of stimulation is almost instant. At rest both systems are active, but the parasympathetic system is dominant.

Heart Rate Variability is all about the gap between the heart beats, which are controlled by all the factors above. We are able to gain a wealth of information on the health of your heart are nervous system by monitoring it. The more relaxed you are (free from fatigue), the more variation you’ll have between heart beats.

But what use is this data? Research has shown that a high Heart Rate Variability links to good health and fitness levels, whilst a decrease in HRV is linked to stress, fatigue and burnout. This is really important for an athlete, as you could be able to spot the onset of fatigue before it hits. However, you will need to monitor your Heart Rate Variability daily so you can see and note any small changes and make almost daily adjustments to your training.

The principle is simple, a small HRV drop is OK, as long as you are recovering, since all training is is stressing the body and allowing for adaptation. However, if you see a large drop in your HRV, it's a clear sign to back off.
How do you measure HRV?

You’ll need a heart rate monitor, but also a way of analysing the results. This is where a British company called ithelte come in. They have created an iOS and Android app that will measure your HRV and provide a simple traffic light system as to whether you should train or not! Over the next few weeks, we’ll have a full review on the products and app that they have out to explain how it works and how you can use it in your training, but hopefully meantime you’ve got more of an idea about your heart.

NormaTec (@NTRecovery) MVP Review

2013-07-27T00:03:00.000-07:00

Good recovery is really important, and the NormaTec Recovery Pump allows for just that. It is like wearing a giant pair of space boots that help flush all the waste products you get after training by providing dynamic compression. They really have to be seen to be believed. Ben is a a very big fan of the NormaTec MVP system. It has made a massive difference to my recovery process, which allows me to train harder and better the next day. I really can't recommend the system enough. It is a really big investment to make, but there is a reason why professional athletes all over America are using it, because it makes a difference.
Why not check out the full review here and see what all fuss is about.

A race report for the National Lottery (@TNLAR) Anniversary Run - Sunday 21st July 2013

2013-07-21T11:35:00.000-07:00

Running the National Lottery BackToTheStadium race

Today saw the National Lottery Anniversary Run, with the hashtag BackToTheStadium, the premise was simple, you ran around Newham and ended up on track at the Olympic Stadium, where the likes of Mo Farah and Jess Ennis created memories that will stick in this runners mind for the rest of his life.

The race is 5 miles long, and you run around the some of the iconic sites of East London, including the Copper Box, the Arcelor Mittal Orbit, Lee Valley VeloPark and the stadium itself. With 12,000 runners and the weather set to be pleasant, it really was a good day to run.

I’m going to start this review of the race with a few unfortunate negatives:

•The start - a mess would be a nice way of putting this. A number of selfish runners had placed themselves far to far forward, and with a narrow course at the start it was dangerous for faster runners trying to get through. At one point I completely stopped running and stood there. It was lucky that someone was serious hurt.

•The course - there were a few issues with this, there were at least three 180 degree switchbacks, which are not fun to run, especially when you are coming in fast to them. We were also subjected to sand, tarmac and grit over the course, and parts really did resemble a building site. Considering they were doing building work over most of the run that isn’t a surprise but you weren’t really told about this before hand.

These two things would be really easy to overcome.
1. Make the course a bit wider at the start

2. Segregate the runners more. There is a big difference between the runners in the “fast” pen, and this should be recognised. By having a barrier for Sub 30 minute runners, a set between 30 and 40 mins, and 40 to 50, you’d make a huge difference to everyone’s time.

3. I am sure once all the work is done round the area the route would be a lot nicer to runner on and we’d have less sand!

Perhaps part of my problem was that i came into the race wanting to run fast. However, I think the race is more geared up to runners looking to enjoy themselves. There is no reason why these two categories should be mutually exclusive so hopefully next year they’ll improve this.

That is my gripes out the way, now onto the best bits

1. The Stadium. This was beyond incredible. Running into that Olympic Stadium with a few of the stands full of supporters, and to hear them shouting, it sent shivers down my rather sweaty spine! What an experience! Before you get out onto the track, you have to run around the bowels to get to the 300m point, then you join the track. As you go through this underground area, they had speakers every 10 metres which were playing the commentary from the Olympic games (I was hearing the commentary from the 10,000m final). This was beyond cool, it definitely made me pick up my pace and prepared me for the noise that was to come.

2. The T-shirt - a really nice and good quality technical top. All the runners were invited to run in them and most of the 12,000 wore them, so it was quite a spectacle.

My race didn't unfold as i wanted. the first mile too a lot longer than I wanted, it was a real stop start affair as I couldn't get into a rhythm with my running until the second mile because of the volume of people in from to me, and the course was really narrow in places. When racing a 5 mile race, you need to get into your running as quick as possible. I ended up running too fast for part of the mile when i could run, and I am sure that cost me some time.

The rest of the race was ok, the course was certainly not flat, and I was in and around where i wanted to be (although the 4th mile was slow and ruined my sub 30 minute plan). I didn't go into the race in great shape, I've run faster over 5 miles during my half marathon this year, so it was by no means fantastic. I was able to enjoy the atmosphere a bit and did a few Mo Bots when going over the line (I'll try and get some pictures soon.) I ran 30:12 and finished 105th overall.

Congratulations to Alex Cornwell for winning in 25:40.

Today also saw me take the scalp of Paula Radcliffe (another Endurance Great beaten this year, after I beat Mo at the London Marathon!)!

Here is the Garmin Connect map of the route - it's a bit messy because I had this on for my warm up and cool down, and I lost satellites whilst I was underneath the stadium.

Would I do the race next year? I definitely would and my friend who came to watch wants to run also!

Overall, the fact that I got to run inside the Olympic Stadium was beyond a dream come true, and the race was fine once it spread out. I hope that make a few adjustments next year to really entice some fast times, after all the Olympics is about participation but also about sporting excellence. It was also great to support the National Lottery, who've ploughed a lot of money into British Sport and the Olympic Games.

Core Strength Training the Salazar Way

2013-07-21T07:54:00.000-07:00

Alberto Salazar has famously said that Mo Farah was "the weakest runner he has ever seen" when he was presented to him back in 2011. Now, Farah is really ripped and that's why, Salazar now says that he is able to kick so fast, it's just body strength. He is a double Olympic Champion, defending world champion over 10,000m and has his sights firmly set on wining the double over 5,000 and 10,000 at the World Championships in Moscow this year.

If this new found strength is partly to blame for Farah's meteoric rise, and the fantastic performances on other runners in Salazar's training group then maybe there is something her to learn for us mere mortals.

What is really interesting is that all of Farah and Galen Rupp's (training partner, and Olympic 10,000m SIlver Medalist) training is geared around them being runners. Rupp, Farah and the rest of the Oregon Project runners do lunges on unbalanced barbells to strengthen their hips and more traditional lifts are done on one leg. They aren't just doing press-ups and sit-ups.

That's not to say that we all need to be doing these advanced workouts. You need to build your body up over a long period of time. To begin with, Farah was doing no where near the same amount of lifting as Galen Rupp because he wasn't ready. If Farah had gone full throttle at the start he would have ended up injured.

Recently, Runnersworld were able to talk to David McHenry, the man behind the Stability Routine for the Oregon Project. He provided them with 8 exercises that you'd be able to do at home, with very little need for gym equipment. They are available as a downloadable PDF from our website here.

A few points to note:

•Make sure your form is good, either by getting someone to spot you and know exactly what you are supposed to be doing, or do the exercises in front of a mirror.

•If you can't do the exercise because it's too difficult, change the exercise so that it's easier and don't struggle through with bad form.

Want to learn more about a day in the life of Mo Farah and Galen Rupp? Then check out this fantastic article from Oregon Live.

Kreyos Smartwatch

2013-07-04T03:03:00.000-07:00

There is a new smartwatch on the way and we are really excited about it.

The Kreyos Smartwatch looks incredible - It'll ease your tech aches and pains.

The Kreyos Meteor is a hands-free, two-way communication system that you wear on your wrist. On your belt. On your bike. Or even on a lanyard around your neck.

Because it is light and portable, it’s easy to wear while on the move – whether you’re on a long bike ride or a short-trip to the grocery store.

For the first time ever, you now will have hands-free control over the powerhouse mini-computer that sits in your pocket.

So far, the only way to get one of these watches is to sponsor them via Indiegogo ( a crowdsourcing website) - you can see more information and put up the money for a watch here -http://igg.me/p/435159/twtr/3600350

The watch looks really exciting, and could have huge implications for the sports world if it all goes well! It's fitness tracking features could be really impressive if the right companies get behind it.

According to the website,

Kreyos Meteor WILL WORK directly with bluetooth or ANT+ sensors without being connected to the smartphone. Meteor WILL BE ABLE to receive data directly from the sensors WITHOUT a smartphone connected and populate it on the watch.

Kreyos Meteor itself has a sports mode for people who wants to track when they start and stop activities like, Walking, Running & Cycling. It has a 3,4,5 grid data option, customisable in any way you prefer .

Grid Options include the below:

a) Total Workout time
b) Time of the day
c) Total Distance
d) Altitude
e) Elevation Gain
f) Speed
g) Average Speed
h) Top Speed
i) Pace
j) Average Pace
k) Calories Burned
l) Current Heart Rate
m) Average Heart Rate
n) Max Heart Rate
o) Current Lap Time
p) Average Lap Time
q) Best Lap Time

The watch will be waterproof, have a three-axis gyro, an accelerometer and internal motion sensors to detect wrist movement, and along with its microphone I am not sure what it wont do!

Imagine being able to control your phone by talking into your watch, this is a star trek fanboys dream come true (well, apart from a night with Uhura!)

They have already exceeded their fundraising target by $400,000 but you can still get in and order a watch for $119. Delivery is promised for November, and they are keen to get orders out on time but with all these projects, take this estimate with a pinch of salt.

I would still suggest getting an order in today, because the watch looks awesome! http://igg.me/p/435159/twtr/3600350

Win a pair of Mo Farah's signed and worn spikes

2013-06-10T09:19:00.000-07:00

Full Potential have a fantastic opportunity for you to not only help those less fortunate than ourselves, but to win a pair of running spikes that Mo Farah has worn and signed!

They have been supporters of the Mo Farah Foundation for some time now. The foundation's work in the horn of Africa and at home with local communities is essential for so many reasons. We need to do everything we can to support the Foundation so they can continue to support these communities to have basic amenities and better opportunities to enjoy a happy life.

Each person who kindly donates to the Mo Farah Foundation via their Just Giving page, will be entered into our prize draw to win to win a pair of spikes signed by as worn by the double Olympic Champion himself, Mo Farah.

The competition closes at 1700 GMT 31st July 2013. To enter the competition simply donate any amount you can.

Good luck and thank you very much for supporting the Mo Farah Foundation.

To donate, simply visit justgiving.com/FullPotential

Without much fanfare, Garmin (@garminuk) release a new Heart Rate Monitor Strap

2013-05-29T07:00:00.000-07:00

Perhaps not the thing many people get excited about, but Garmin have released a new Premium Heart Rate Monitor Strap. They did it with such little fanfare the the picture of the strap on the website is still the same as the old one.

The strap itself is different. It looks different, feels different and is nicer to run with.

You even get handy Left and Right directions to make sure your putting it on the right way round!

Here is a comparison shot between the new one and the old one.

Thoughts: Garmin released a new heart rate monitor to try and alleviate the issues people were having with bad heart rate information being provided to them by their heart rate monitor. Perhaps I am in the minority here, but i rarely have any issue with my heart rate monitor (maybe I sweat a lot and that's why!) but as long as its on securely and you get a reading before you start exercising, its been fine for me. That said, I hear of issues of people not getting data for ages, random spikes and the like. I think the moist important thing is that you don't start running until you have data coming from the heart rate monitor (much like you don't go off running without a GPS signal!).

The strap itself feels sturdier than previous models, and the biggest difference that they have made is to try and get the strap to stick to your chest better, they've added some sticky type of material near the electrodes (the electrodes are the same size but look bigger) and a contact patch underneath the Garmin Logo. I think it feels like the strap fits better. The rather detailed instruction book also offers many ways to avoid erratic heart rate data.

I think the strap is an improvement of older models, but at £50.00, I'd only buy a new one if your old Heart Rate monitor is really annoying you, you don't have a heart rate monitor or you just want it because its new!

Powerbreathe (@POWERbreatheUK) have released a mac app

2013-05-09T02:08:00.000-07:00

As readers of this site may know, we are big fans of the POWERbreathe products, especially the K5 and the Breathe-Link software. We have got a review on the product here and Ben (@bennyFP) kept a blog going of when he used the product. The only issue with the Breathe-Link software when we reviewed the product was that we had to have a Virtual Machine installed, running windows, so that we could use the app. Now, fear not, there is a mac app availble. Its free to download and available here. The app works perfectly and looks great. It's now even easier to train with the K5 on a mac.

We haven't tried importing data from the windows version to the mac one, it might be possible but otherwise you can just go and create a new profile for yourself and starting breathing!

Minimalism

2013-05-01T04:45:00.000-07:00

There are a lot of titles I could use for this article, minimalism, running form, mid-foot running,barefoot or even just a title of running! I went with minimalism because the focus of the article is going to be on shoes that are "minimal" and how you can incorporate them into running.
….

More here

Garmin Fenix Review

2013-04-30T04:26:00.000-07:00

Finally a review of the Garmin Fenix on the running supplement

The Garmin Fenix is the ultimate out door watch, but how will it stack up for runners. Well, our review should let you know, hopefully some more pics will follow but for now read away.

Altitude....

2013-02-22T02:36:00.000-08:00

This article is a first in a series that I will be doing on altitude, what it does to endurance athletes, how to take advantage of it and what it is like.

This article will cover some of the science behind altitude and some theory behind training at altitude.

Altitude

The Mexico City Olympics in 1968 were a real watershed moment for track and field. The Games were the first to use a synthetic track and drugs test athletes but, more importantly, they were held at an elevation of 2,240m (7,350 ft) above sea level, which in turn has a huge affect on performance. The endurance athletes suffered massively, whereas the events that required explosive power had a significant advantage. Bob Beamon set at Olympic Record in the Long Jump of 8.90m, a mark that stood as the World Record for 22 years and is still the Olympic record.

Athletes that were record holders in the longer distance endurance events were being beaten by runners native to high altitudes and this got scientists intrigued, who began searching for physiological explanations for these wins.

What happens at altitude?

The atmosphere that we live under is several miles deep. At sea level, the weight of all the air above it compresses the air (because air is compressible) at sea level, making it denser. The higher we go up a mountain, the less air there is above the air we are breathing, which means the air has less above it to compress it, so the air therefore becomes thinner.

The important effect of this decompression is that for a given volume of air, there are fewer molecules present. Air contains 21% oxygen, so 21% of the molecules we breathe in are oxygen ones. However, if there are less molecules present overall, there are less oxygen molecules to breathe in (although the ratios stay the same).

This means that at altitude there is less oxygen to breathe and the body needs to make changes in order to cope with this lack of oxygen.

The theory behind altitude training is that if you can get the body to become good at coping with less oxygen, then you should have an advantage when you come down to sea level.

How does the body acclimatise?

Ventilation - this term describes how well oxygen from the atmosphere diffuses into the bloodstream. At altitude, the red blood cell volume, which enables higher volumes of oxygen to reach cells during exercise, increases. This is the same affect that Erythropoietin (EPO) stimulates (the production of red blood cells). As oxygen is used to produce energy for endurance athletes, the better the body can get oxygen to the muscles during exercise the better we will be able to perform.

Whilst this is the main benefit of being at altitude, there are other benefits also such as an increase in the buffering capacity (the ability to manage the build-up of waste acid), an increases in the number of small blood vessels and changes in the microscopic structure and functions of the muscles themselves.

Is it all good?

Whilst this all sounds fantastic, there are some side affects…..

If your red blood cell count increases too much, the blood will become thick and blood flow will be sluggish. This makes it harder to pump around your body and can actually decrease the amount of oxygen getting to where you need it.

Weight loss becomes an issue at very high altitude (4,500 meters) due to dehydration and hyperventilation. The intestines also absorb food as well, so it's difficult to replenish what you have lost.

Intense exercise at altitude is also harder. The reason those Olympians couldn't go hard in Mexico City was the reduction in oxygen and this issue will still hamper athletes whether they are acclimatised or not. The adaptation process doesn't happen overnight, studies aren't conclusive on this as for the optimum location, but you need at least 2 weeks at altitude to really benefit.

The other issue with altitude is the cost involved. Getting to altitude either involves doing it by travelling to a suitable location or purchasing equipment to allow you to do this. Neither of these options are cheap, and many of us have jobs which won't allow us to go off altitude training for 2 weeks.

How to train at altitude

There are 4 schools of thought as to altitude exposure techniques:

Live High - Train High
This method provides the maximum exposure to altitude. However, experts are becoming less fond of this method because there is a debate as to the amount of effect it'll have on athletes at sea level. It also means a relocation is necessary to achieve best results.

Live Low - Train High
The idea behind this concept is that you train in an environment that is low in oxygen and rest and recover in an environment that is full of oxygen. Whilst findings have shown that the technique may work, it is short of studies that prove this method makes any difference to performance at sea level. The other issue with this is that athletes can't train as hard at altitude, so training intensity drops and you may actually loose fitness!

Live High - Train Low
Your body acclimatises to altitude whilst living there, but training intensity is maintained by training at sea level. There are conflicting reports about the amount of time you need to spend at altitude to benefit from this method, but you need at to spend at least 2 weeks of at least 8 hours a day at altitude to see any benefit.

Intermittent Hypoxic Training
This is a newer method of altitude exposure and works by alternating between breathing in air that is from very high altitude for a few minutes, then breathing in air from sea level. This needs to happen for about 90 minutes a day. There are conflicting studies as to the effectiveness of Intermittent Hypoxic Training.

The next stage of this series on Altitude is to go into further detail about the ways to train at altitude and I'll be testing out some systems and discussing how they work, looking at what scientist have found out with studies, interviewing athletes that have trained at altitude and also see how the worlds best use altitude to train.

Review of SiS (@scienceinsport) Rego + Fruitflow Gel

2013-02-20T06:49:00.000-08:00

I have previously written about Rego Rapid Recovery from SiS and how great the product is for taking after a session. Now, SiS have come out with a gel that is to be taken BEFORE training, but actually aids your recovery after the session!
When I first heard about the product I was certainly skeptical and a little bit confused. How could what I take before training have any affect on the process afterwards? When I read that it contained tomato I was sure that a con was afoot.
However, the team at Science in Sport promised me that this wasn't the case and I took ownership of a box of gels a few weeks ago and have been putting them through their paces ever since.
The Science
First, the science bit.... REGO + Fruitflow ® helps to reduce over stimulation of blood platelets, which can reduce inflammation, and thus shortening recovery time. Fruitflow ® helps maintain normal platelet aggregation which can contribute to healthy blood flow.
What does that actually mean in the real world? The better we can recover from a session, the better we can train later on in the week. If it takes you 6 days to recover from a hard session, you aren't going to get much improvement (and probably need to evaluate how hard you are working in that session!)
Don't forget, that some post-workout inflammation is good, as it is the body adapting to the training. That's why ice baths and taking ibuprofen is a bad thing to do after training. However, I can't imagine that the post-workout benefit from Fruitflow ® is significant enough to negate the training affect.
Taste
Currently the Rego + Fruitflow ® is only available in a banana & mango flavour. Even though it contains tomato extract, it's very palatable. It doesn't taste as exotic as banana & mango and, whilst I wouldn't go as far to say that it's delicious, I have no problem in taking it. It's nowhere near as viscous as their Go Gel, and that isn't that thick anyway, so in fact it's a very thin liquid to take.
They advise to take it 1.5 to 3 hours before exercise, however, I train in the morning so getting up at 4 to take a gel was not an option, so I had the gel an hour before my session and didn't have any adverse stomach reactions; if anything it helped a bit to have something in my stomach (I usually train without any food).
Post session, any difference?
It's really difficult to say whether the gel had any affect on my recovery, because it's a bit of a subjective thing. I didn't feel significantly better after the session, but equally I felt no worse than I do usually. That doesn't mean much as it's one man's opinion. I think it made me feel mentally better, knowing I had started the recovery process before the session and you can never discount any placebo affect, because no matter how small the difference it's making, any positive difference has got to good.
Buying the gels
One gel retails for £2.39, a pack of 6 will set you back £11.99, whilst 30 will cost £56.99.
Whilst the gels aren't cheap, as a runner the most I would use during a week would be four, but more likely twice (before the long run and before my long threshold session), as those are my two big sessions. I still took Rego Rapid Recovery afterwards, because the Rego+Fruitflow ® should be seen as a compliment to the main Rego, not a replacement.
Any good?
Would I recommend the gels? I would certainly give them a go and see what you think. I will certainly be using them before my bigger sessions, because as one stallion loving supermarket says "every little helps"!
The Rego+Fruitflow ® is available from the SiS website. Use the special Full Potential discount code FPRUN2012 for 20% off at checkout.

Ben's (@bennyFP) reivew of Garmin Heart Rate Day via @full_potential

2013-02-18T05:08:00.000-08:00

On Saturday 9th February we held our first ever Garmin Heart Rate Training Day and eight hardy souls joined us at Stars Gym, in Battersea, for this pioneering training day.
The idea of the day was to:

Explain the benefits of training to heart rate
Explain how to train to heart rate
Get accurate Heart Rate Zones
Get more of an understanding of Garmin watches, Garmin Connect and using the heart rate data with the Garmin
Briefly experience these training zones later on in the day

How we managed to cover all those things and more is still a cause of intrigue for me, but we did and everyone who came along thoroughly enjoyed themselves and learnt so much.
The Heart Rate testing was done by a team from Winchester University, led by James Wright. Everyone's heart is different, and using the sum of 220 - age to work out maximum heart rate is as accurate as randomly plucking a number out of the air. It might work for a few people, but the vast majority of us will be completely out. Unless you have accurate heart rate data, there is no point using it to train with.
The test that was done was a lactate threshold test. This is a sub maximal test (so you don't run until you can't any more!), without any masks or harnesses to wear. All that happens is that you take a blood sample from your finger after 3 minutes of running. This is then repeated at a number of different speeds and heart rate data is recorded, along with the levels of lactate in the blood. With these values, we can give you incredibly accurate zones to train in that will improve your running no end.
The testing took 45 minutes per person, and whilst this was going on, I was involved in explaining the Garmin units we had with us to everyone, explaining the great features that users had on their watches and finally showing everyone the features of Garmin Connect, (Garmin's online training portal), especially some of the great social features of Garmin Connect, which allow a coach to see exactly what sort of running you have or haven't done!
In the afternoon, after a well earned lunch, 2.17 Marathon runner Keith Anderson explained how he used Heart Rate to train with. Keith was one of the first runners in the UK to be coached properly with Heart Rate, and his coach, the late Dr. Tony Trowbridge, used to get Keith to take blood samples after sets of exercises and send them back to the lab for analysis. Using this data, Tony was able to make training recommendations that took Keith from running 31:30 for 10k to around 28 minutes. It was fascinating to see some of the reports that Tony produced, and they showed that before he got hold of Keith, he was running far too fast, building up far too much lactate and not achieving much from the session. The key thing Keith was getting across was that harder isn't necessarily better, and you could see that from his training reports. We even had a quick look at some of my training results over the last 18 months using heart rate!
After this was over, we went down to Battersea track and did some practice running at the various heart rate zones that had just been prescribed. The idea of this mini session was to show everyone how very small changes in Heart Rate values can make a big difference to how you are feeling on the track, and also the pace and distance that you can cover in 5 minutes.
With that done, we headed back to the gym for a warm shower and some well deserved recovery time.
The day was great fun to put on (I loved it because I got to talk about Garmin's and technology all day!) and the feedback has been incredibly positive.
We will be putting more of these days on in the future, but to register your interest now, just send us a quick email and we will let you know when we have a date announced.

A negative split marathon

2013-01-08T08:08:00.000-08:00

A negative Split Marathon

Running a negative split for the marathon is widely regarded as the best way to run the race, but how easy is it to actually do?
Well, of the 36,746 runners who finished the Virgin London Marathon in 2012, only 1,387 actually ran a negative split. That's only 3.77% of runners! Of the Top 10 men, only the winner ran close to an even split. Wilson Kipsang ran his first half 20 seconds faster than his second. Runners 2 - 10 ran between 1minute 21 seconds and 3minutes 45 seconds slower for their second half than their first. That's a big difference.

Why is running a negative split or an even paced marathon the way to go? Well, just ask anyone who has run a positive split (second half slower than the first) how hard it was. Also, ask anyone who has run a negative split how much easier it was.

Most elite level athletes will always aim to run even pace or negative split races. Just take a look at the following stats of some of the world's best marathon runners:

Lets take a look at Haile Gebrselassie's Marathon World Record time from 2008. His time to half way was 1:02:03 … his finish time was an amazing 2:03:59. He ran almost identical splits.
When Paula Radcliffe ran her amazing world record in 2003 in London she hit halfway in 1:08:02. She finished in an incredible time of 2:15:25. Faster over the second half of her race.
Geoffrey Mutai, when he ran the fastest ever marathon at Boston in 2011, he hit half way in 1:01:56 and finished in a time of 2:03:02. Again he ran the second half quicker than the first. If this method is good enough for world record holders then it should be good enough for us mere mortals!

It's much better to speed up during a race than it is to slow down. Don't just believe me….try it for yourself. Next time you go for a run, start off easy and pick your pace up during the run. Or, go to a park run and look to pick up the pace for each kilometre of the 5K run. It's surprising how much you'll enjoy it!
Why is it so difficult to run a negative split?

Well, for the faster runners at the front of the race, they can't really afford not to go with the pace, even if it's too fast for them, as they're running to win. However, how many of them would benefit from easing their pace a bit and looking to move through the runners in the race?

That brings us to one of the major causes of not being able to run a negative split … trying to run too fast. Runners set themselves up for too quick a finish time, go off too fast and end up paying the price. This generally happens because people don't pay enough respect to the marathon distance, often deciding what time they will run on the basis of very little evidence and go from there. As a rule of thumb, to work out your marathon finish time, take your half marathon time, double it and add about 20 minutes (however that number decreases the faster you get, from around the 3.30 finish time and below). I also think that even taking all this into account, and even if you have got a realistic marathon time, there are a few reasons why people go off too fast.

There is certainly a psychological motivation as to why this could happen. Runners want to get time in the bank. Going 5 to 10 minutes quicker than you need to, because you feel so good at the start of the marathon, feels like the right thing to do. You know you will slow down later on, so why not set yourself up and make sure when you do slow down you won't miss your target time. We don't trust ourselves to keep the pace up. Perhaps we just don't trust our training or our fitness?

Why is that?

I think there are a couple of reasons. We aren't experienced enough, haven't raced enough and just don't believe that it's possible to maintain our pace over 26.2 miles. We also go into the marathon feeling so fresh, because of the taper, with so much nervous energy and excitement, there's TV cameras and thousands of other runners around that it all boils over and comes out during those first 10 miles. The problem is that the pace feels so easy, because it isn't flat out running and you allow yourself to get fooled into thinking somehow you can run 15 minutes faster today that you should.

What to take from this? Well, learn how to run even pace or negative split yourself and trust that it is possible… and stay calm on the big day. This comes through experience, so get yourself into some races, low key ones that don't matter and experiment with different race plans. For instance, deliberately try going off too fast and see how it feels. Or try setting off too slow - I guarantee that you probably won't, but why not give it a go and really feel the difference. This will take some time to do, as you can't race every weekend, but it will help. Secondly, practice running an even or negative split on some of your long runs. Experience what it's like to speed up during the long run, so start maybe 15 seconds a mile slower than you want to run for the first half of your run and end up 15 seconds a mile quicker for the second half . If you get this right, your average pace will be spot on what you're looking for and, importantly, you'll find it so much easier. Having a good GPS watch is essential for this sort of work and Garmin's are excellent for this sort of training.

If you have any experience of running a negative split or, indeed, a horror story of running a positive one then get in touch, via email, facebook or twitter. We'd love to feature your comments and thoughts in a follow up article.

So why not put this into practice in your training right away…. focus on speeding up and not slowing down.

Christmas Gps Guide for Full Potential

2012-12-05T08:06:00.000-08:00

Christmas GPS Guide
for fullpotential.co.uk

With Christmas just around the corner, runners everywhere looking forward to opening their presents come Christmas morning! Well, they would be looking forward to that, except each year runners are usually presented with socks for loved ones - because a runner always needs socks.

The Beginner

For the beginner on a budget, look now further than that Garmin 10. This sub £100 GPS watch packs an awful big punch, with motivational tools, the ability to transfer workouts to Garmin Connect and a range of colours to choose from, you won't disappoint any runner this Christmas if they wake up to this.

A word of warning, with no Heart Rate support, you aren't getting a complete unit here, but what more do you want for £99!

The Improver

For this runner, the Forerunner 110 is the perfect device, with the addition of a heart rate monitor, you can really get the most out of your workouts without breaking the piggy bank

The Serious Runner

The serious runner should look no further than the Garmin 210. It is built on the same hardware as the Forerunner 110, but the 210 has some cool addition features, including automated workouts and footpod support for indoor workout support. It is now available in a limited edition colour way, it is the perfect gift for all runners.

The Geek

The geek in your life will love the Garmin Forerunner 610. With a touchscreen that works seamlessly, Virtual Partner™ to keep you on track and Virtual Racer ™ to race against previous workouts, along with advanced workouts delivered straight to the device from Garmin Connect you really are getting a lot of watch for your buck. Available in black or a special edition white with teal and a splash of green, which will be the colour of all your friends at the running club when you rock up with a Forerunner 610.

The Mulitsport Athlete

The multi sport athlete in your life will fall head over heels for the Garmin 910XT. Designed for running, cycling and swimming, it is the perfect device. With a huge screen, impressive features and a completely revamped swimming mode makes this a real investment piece.

The Outdoorsman

For the runner that spends hours outside, enjoys mountaineering, trekking and exploring unchartered territories the Garmin Fenix is the only watch they need this winter. This watch has a built in altimeter and compass, a big screen and wonderful navigation abilities, it is for the runner who prefers the wilderness.

Garmin Fenix

2012-11-23T10:12:00.000-08:00

The Garmin Fenix is the ultimate out door watch, but how will it stack up for runners. Well, our review (coming soon) should let you know, but until then, take a look at some pics…….

fēnix GPS Watch performer bundle. FOR WHAT YOU’RE ABOUT TO ACHIEVE
Developed and designed together with professional mountain guides and perfected for alpine athletes such as trail runners and back country skiers, Garmin fēnix provides new and advanced training features and real-time performance monitoring whilst keeping its comprehensive navigation skills. With lap and auto-lap function and important performance data including ascent, vertical speed & pace, alpine athletes can track and improve their performance during their outdoor training or other fitness adventures. With ANT+ connect wirelessly with your Heart Rate Monitor, Speed/Cadence Sensor and Tempe™ (external) Temperature Gauge. The performer bundle adds a premium heart rate strap and an additional orange wrist band. Feel 100% confident and stronger with every step and climb you master