by Thad McLaurin

Runners tend to think it’s all about their lungs and their legs and while those are major aspects of running, that’s not all there is to running. A strong core and upper body is also needed to ensure powerful movement in the legs and in maintaining good running form. Youngsters in their 20s and early 30s tend to be involved in multiple activities–golf, tennis, soccer, softball, Frisbee football, volleyball, working out at the gym, etc. Because of this variety of activity, the upper body gets a good workout without the individual realizing they’re strengtheing their upper body and core. Then somewhere in our late 30s, 40s and 50s, due to work, family, just life in general, many of the activities fall by the wayside. Somehow many manage to hang-on to running. Maybe it’s because we can fit it in whenever. Maybe it keeps us sane. Maybe it’s because it’s cheap. But, over the years, that core and upper body fitness begin to wane. Don’t use it; you lose it. Probably wasn’t that obvious because as runners we tend to be lean. But lean doesn’t always mean fit. (Click more to see the video.)

A runner needs muscular endurance in the upper body and core just as much as in their legs. You’re swinging your arms just as much as your legs are moving forward. There’s no resistance to your arm movement other than some air, but they’re still moving. If your upper body doesn’t have muscular endurance then a domino effect can begin to happen. First the arms fatigue causing you to round your shoulders and slump. This puts more stress on your core. If your core is not strong, then it will begin to fatigue as well, causing even further decline of your running form. By now your legs are taking the full brunt of the domino effect. Not only has the core stopped providing a strong support and power system for the legs, now the legs are having to deal with poor running form and soon fatigue will consume the legs as well. What’s that I see? Could it be? Yep! The dreaded WALL! You’re about to smack right into it.

Not only can you hit that dreaded wall, you can begin to suffer from injuries like calf pulls or strains, issues with your Achilles heel, IT band problems, pulled hamstrings, muscle cramps…the list goes on. Sound familiar? Are you beginning to have issues in your legs that you never experienced when you were younger? Could be specific to your legs, but it could very well be related to something higher up–a weak core and/or upper body.

So, what’s an older runner to do? Invest a little money in an exercise mat, a medicine ball (or a set of dumbbells or weight plates) and work that core! Whatever the resistance form you choose, it doesn’t need to be very heavy. An 8lbs, 10lbs, or 12lbs medball will do fine. 10lb, 15lb, or 20lb dumbbells will work nicely too. Use the core workout and your new toys to work that core. If you don’t have a medball most of the exercises can be done with just body weight, a dumbbell, or a weight plate). Do the workout 2 or 3 times a week and you’ll be well on your way to a much stronger mid-section.

As a runner, the focus of the upper-body workout should be to gain muscular endurance. So, go with lighter weights and higher repetitions. 10lbs to 15lbs dumbbells are sufficient for this workout. You can also use light or medium resistance bands or resistance tubes instead of dumbbells.

The workout consists of a 7-exercise circuit. Do each exercise (10-15 reps) one right after the other without taking a break. Once you’ve completed all 7 exercises, take a 1- to 2-minute rest; then repeat the circuit a second time. If you’re new to upper-body exercises, then begin with 10 repetitions. Each day add an additional rep until you get to 15 repetitions. Also, if upper-body exercise is new to you, begin with one cycle of the circuit for the first week. During Week 2, complete two cycles of the circuit. If you’re advanced, try three cycles of the circuit.

It’s fine to pair the upper-body circuit with the core workout on the same day. Try doing the core workout in the morning and the upper-body circuit in the evening. You can also rotate days. For example you could do the upper-body workout on M,W,F and do the core workout on T,TH,S. The great thing about circuit workouts is that they’re quick. You’ll have a strong core and upper body before you know it and you’ll start to see the benefits in your long runs too!

Congratulations Dionne Reichman from HealthStyles Exercise Equipment! You’ve won a $50 Visa Gift Card for playing our Dealer Scavenger Hunt!

This is our final question in our Dealer Scavenger Hunt and your final chance to play!

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What features does the High-Tech Entertainment Center offer?

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Counting down the days…just 2 left!

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List the five treadmill options.

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What ElliptiMills come stardard with AccuTrack contact heart-rate monitoring system?

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What two consoles have user profiles and how many do they have?

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Congratulations to all our winners from last week, including our newest winner, Chuck Herman from Health and Fitness Equipment Centers!  Each of these individuals has won a $50 Visa Gift Card for participating in our Dealer Scavenger Hunt!

One more week to play, 5 more chances to win!

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How heavy is the ElliptiMill Flywheel?

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Name the five body-specific training programs in the Executive Trainer ElliptiMill.

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How thick is the ElliptiMill Frame?

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by Dave Smith

Well, I apologize for being out of the Landice blog loop for a little while. My wife and I made the move back to northern Michigan a couple of weeks ago as that is where we are originally from and both our families reside up there. We both were very fortunate to find jobs and couldn’t turn down the opportunity to be back closer to family. We are finally all settled in and I have had a blast searching out the different lakes, roads and trails for swimming, riding, and running. There are hills after hills and they are already making me stronger!

Before we left for Michigan, I blogged a couple of times about different aspects of mental conditioning.  I’m going to continue on that path for the next few blogs.  Today we’ll cover hormones/how feelings dictate actions, emotional manipulation through action and attitude, and finally distraction, and selective attention.

We are all aware that feelings, for the most part, dictate our behaviors. When an athlete is feeling well, it is due to a hormonal balance, and the needs of the “real self” are met. When an athlete is not doing well, it wants to show on the outside. Unfortunately, this often times reveals potential weaknesses. More importantly, bad feelings can spawn a downward spiral of negative thinking and affect performance.  When I read this I think of splits in a race. If you are hitting your goal splits mile after mile you will likely stay motivated and encouraged to keep pushing the pace. You may even have a big breakout performance because seeing those splits may really excite you and allow you to do something you didn’t think you were capable of. The problem is, the direct opposite can happen. If you get a bad split of two you may allow it to get to your head and suddenly your race is over because your head and heart are no longer into it. This is one of the reasons I advocate not being overly concerned with always knowing your splits, and focusing more on how you feel and staying in the moment. I rarely ever race with a watch anymore as it tends to limit me more than anything.

Emotional manipulation can be done through actions and attitude.  Many athletes never learn that actions can actually influence feelings. An athlete, through practice, can influence positive feelings by forcing positive behaviors on the outside. It’s not just about hiding weaknesses from the opponents, but actually causing positive feelings by acting positive, acting motivated, and motivating others.  Team sports really come to mind here, but individual endurance sports fall into this as well. Surround yourself with people who you like to train with and those that bring the best out of you. Put yourself in a good, positive environment that more times than not brings success to you. Sign up for races that take place somewhere that suits you and interests you.

Distractions come up in every sport. The best athletes are those that can take those distractions for what they are and refocus quickly. You cannot let distractions bother you. In endurance sports there are always distractions that arise in a race. You have to be able to block those things out and focus on the task at hand.

An athlete must recognize the different types of focus that contribute to overall performance, and plan for them. Some more common types of focus that require development through training include association, and disassociation. Association represents keeping the mind focused on the task at hand. Disassociation represents the shifting of focus from the task at hand. To use one method or the other is personal preference. They both require a high degree of competence. Either can be difficult at times of feelings discomfort induced by the activity. The difficulty with disassociation lies in the ability to 1) shift focus in an organized and concentrated fashion, and 2) stay attuned to the positive feedback necessary to maintain a high level of performance while 3) not allowing boredom or self-consciousness to set in.

Next time, we’ll venture more into focus and then also visualization. Thanks for reading.