Andy DuBois

Dynamic Stretching - reduce your risk of injury and improve your flexibility, strength and performance

2011-12-22T21:41:00.000Z

I have discussed stretching in a number of blogs and in-particular the benefits of dynamic stretching. To most runners dynamic stretching consists of swinging your legs forward and back and side to side and kicking your bum with your heels. Whilst there is nothing wrong with this there are far more effective ways to go about it. This blog will go over the principles of dynamic stretching and show you how to dynamically stretch your hip flexors.

To read the rest of this article click here.

Jumping and Jopping for Runners

2011-12-22T21:35:00.000Z

Last week I wrote about the benefits of plyometric training for runners and why it should be done incorporating three planes of movement. I had a few requests for a video of the exercise routine to better understand how to do it. I hope this helps.

To read the rest of this article click here.

Hop , Skip and Jump your way to becoming a faster runner

2011-12-22T21:29:00.000Z

Most runners spend almost 100% of their training time actually running. This is based on the mistaken belief that if you want to become a better runner then you should simply run more.

The reason this is misguided is that our running technique and efficiency is dependant on the strength and flexibility of the muscles, tendons, ligaments and fascia of our body. If we take this as set in stone and unchangeable then running more is the only way to improve your ability to run. However this is not set in stone , we have the ability to change the strength and flexibility of our body and therefore change the way we run.

To read the rest of this article click here.

Are Hill Sprints the best workout ever?

2011-11-21T01:29:00.002Z

After getting slowly back into running over the last month I decided it was time to step it up a notch in today's run by sprinting up a hill a few times. Having done so I wish I had done it earlier. There can't be a better type of aerobic training to increase fitness, lose fat and tone up. One of the great things about hill sprints is that anybody from an Olympic athlete to a couch potato can do them. Whether you are training for a marathon, a hit of tennis, running around the football field or even just to get fit it's a great workout that gives fantastic results. If you want to get fit and shift some excess pounds quickly then hill sprints are tailor made for you.

To read the rest of this article click here.

6 Essentials for a healthy diet

2011-11-21T01:22:00.006Z

The health section of the Sunday paper is something I normally skip as the articles tend to be based on the latest fads rather than anything scientific. Last sunday however I happened to flick through it and was struck by two stories on nutrition which gave completely conflicting advice. I can understand why some people are confused about what they should be eating when magazines and newspapers are churning out a new diet almost every week.

To read the rest of this article click here.

Setting unrealistic goals

2011-11-21T01:18:00.004Z

We all know that the goals we set ourselves should follow the S.M.A.R.T principle . Specific, measurable, achievable , realistic and have a timeframe. We think of anyone who sets unrealistic goals as having a few screws loose in their head.

So imagine the response from an experienced Everest mountaineering guide when he was approached by a completely blind man who wanted a guide to help him climb Mt Everest.

To read the rest of this article click here.

Getting back into running after 6 months off!

2011-11-21T00:36:00.001Z

Today's topic is not something I have had to deal with on a personal basis very often, but after travelling for 6 months my fitness has dropped dramatically. As some of you are aware I am an ultra marathon runner so not running for 6 months was always going to have a big effect on me.

I’ve had many clients who have gone through a similar experience losing their fitness for all kinds of reasons; recovering from surgery, having a baby, a travel break similar to mine or they’ve simply fallen of the fitness wagon and decided it was time to get back on.

To read the rest of this blog click here.

Mile 27

2011-10-23T12:15:00.002+01:00

Hi All

I'm back after 7 months on the road and now relocated in Sydney. My new website is up and running at www.mile27.com.au. Blogging will be a weekly occurrence from now on so see www.mile27.com.au/blog for all the latest info on helath , fitness and ultramarathons.

Hitting the Road

2011-01-31T20:59:00.005Z

To all those reading this blog, thankyou for visiting, hopefully you found at least a few of the previous blogs helpful and informative.

The reason for this post is to let you know I am going offline for a while. Relocating myself from London to Sydney Australia via the long way home - Finland, Russia, Mongolia, China and India. Internet access will be scarce so I wont be posting much if anything until I arrive in Australia

If you want to follow my travels please see my wifes blog

I will be back on line in October sometime with a new website and tons more information and more regular blogging.

Improve your running efficiency and decrease your risk of injury

2011-01-12T12:26:00.006Z

If you are in the London area and interested in improving your running technique, decreasing your risk of injury and increasing your core and glute strength then this may be of interest.

Until Feb 22 I am offering my Running Assessment and Conditioning Training session for only £40. This normally costs between £60 and £120.

Unfortunately this offer is only available between 12 and 5 Monday to Friday. Session lasts for 75 minutes and is conducted out of LA Fitness at Kentish Town.

Here's what you get out of it

Improved running technique
Reduced risk of injury
Stronger core specific to running
Increased strength and flexibility in your feet, legs, hips specific to running

Here's is what happens in the 75 minute session

Running technique assessment and recommendations
Full 3- Dimensional Assessment of your feet, ankles ,knees, hips and spine
Areas of weakness or flexibility problems highlighted
Exercises prescribed to correct these weaknesses. (The exercises will involve very little, if any equipment and certainly nothing you wouldn't have lying around at home)

A chance to correct muscular imbalances, improve running technique and reduce your risk of injury for only £40.

For bookings pleae email me at andydubois@hotmail.co.uk

A bit about me.

I've been a personal trainer for over 14 years and specialise in Injury Rehabilitation and Endurance Performance Training. I use a 3 dimensional approach on assessment and exercise prescription that brings about changes to the body rapidly compared to conventional methods. If you thought squats and planks were all you needed to do to increase your core and leg strength then you might be suprised. For an insight into my training philosophy have a read of

Why to avoid Machines weight exercises at all costs

Crunching your way to a weaker core

Plank or crunches, which is the best core exercise for runners

How to improve your strength, speed, power, endurance specifically for running

A better way to strengthen Gluteus Medius

If you have any questions please dont hesitate to contact me at andydubois@hotmail.co.uk

Training Low and Racing High – Part 1

2011-01-02T21:49:00.008Z

The idea of training when the body is low in glycogen and then racing when glycogen stores are full is gaining popularity with endurance athletes particularly ultrarunners. The idea makes sense, training with low levels of glycogen teaches your body to burn fat more efficiently therefore preserve your very limited glycogen stores. Even a very lean athlete of 5% body fat and weighing 60kg will still have 3kg of fat which equates to 27000 calories compared with approx 2000 calories of glycogen.

Whilst this makes sense it doesn’t necessarily follow that this will improve our race times. The human body is extraordinarily complex and some questions need to be answered before we can determine if this concept actually improves performance in ultra distance racing

• Is running out of glycogen a limiting factor in ultra races or do most runners manage to consume enough glycogen during the race?
• Are there any benefits in being able to consume less glycogen during a race?
• Does training with low glycogen levels or in a fasted state have any positive or negative effects on performance?
• If it does improve our fat burning abilities and preserve our glycogen stores dose this allow us to run faster?
• Does an increased usage of fat mean that during competition less carbohydrate is necessary and if so could it decrease the chances of stomach problems during competition?
• Does consuming carbohydrates during a race negate the fat burning benefits gained in training when not consuming carbohydrates?
• Does training in a fasted or low glycogen state have any negative affects on the body?
• Are there other factors affecting performance more important than fat usage?
• Would training in a low glycogen or fasted state negatively affect these other factors?

There has been number of studies done trying to shed some light on the answers to these questions but before we get too in depth there are a few concepts to understand.

Low Glycogen vs Fasted State

Some studies test athletes in a fasted state , normally an overnight 12 hour fast whereas other studies use exercise to deplete glycogen stores and then perform an additional training session in a low glycogen state to see the effect.
Both tend to restrict the intake of carbohydrates during exercise, however there is a major difference between the two. Being in a fasted state doesn’t mean you have low glycogen levels, your muscle glycogen levels can be very high in a fasted state because if you haven’t exercised since your last meal then there is no need for the body to use any of its stored muscle glycogen. In a fasted state your blood glucose levels and liver glycogen levels will be low as this is what the brain uses for energy and even if you are asleep the brain still needs energy. A low glycogen state means your muscles don’t have much glycogen left in them.

Anecdotal Evidence

Supporters of the train low race high strategy point out that this technique is commonly used by Kenyan runners who apparently perform a lot of training in a fasted state. Remember being in a fasted state doesn’t mean your glycogen levels are low. In fact the Kenyans typically have a very high carbohydrate diet which would mean their glycogen levels are likely to be relatively full by the end of a day. First thing next morning when they train they will have low blood glucose levels and low liver glycogen levels not low muscle glycogen levels.

In fact since one of the adaptions to endurance training is the ability to store more glycogen in an athletes muscle it means highly trained athletes will have the ability to run 20 miles or so in a fasted state at a good pace quite comfortably. In fact the great Gebrselassie ran his first marathon in 2.05 without consuming any sports drink. (For his world record he did consume sports drink).Coincidentally it is thought that 2 hours is about the maximum an athlete can last without additional carbohydrates when running at that intensity.

So just because the Kenyans may train in a fasted state doesn’t mean you should. If you can run 20 miles or so at a comfortable pace in around 2 hours then training in a fasted state wont slow you down at all, otherwise you will struggle.

The question I can hear you asking is that in an ultra the pace is slower so therefore you should be able to run for longer in a fasted state. This is correct but then you have to ask is this of any benefit? Does training in a fasted state improve your ability to run an ultra. There is little doubt that your body will adapt and you will be able to run at a faster pace in a fasted state than when you first begin training like that. Once again you have to ask is this of any benefit for an ultra?

Research Limitations

When people like myself are trying to argue a point we often quote research that appears to support our viewpoint. Unfortunately in this case there is no specific research we can use. The longest exercise period in any of the studies I could find was 2 hours. Clearly running for 24 hours is very different to riding a bike or running for two.

The most commonly used technique used in research to put an athlete in a low glycogen state is to have them undergo two training sessions per day with no carbohydrate ingested either between or during the sessions. The second session is therefore completed in a low glycogen state.

In reality this doesn’t occur. Most athletes who train twice a day eat between the two sessions. Endurance athletes do perform low glycogen training when they do back to back long runs, eg 20 miles Friday evening and 20 miles Saturday morning. Researchers have not used this method in any of their studies though.

Most of the research looks at performing high intensity interval training in a low glycogen state whereas most ultrarunners perform a long run when in a low glycogen state.

Anybody who is using this research to say that the training low racing high will improve performance in ultrarunning is making a giant leap of faith.

Research Conclusions

For those of you who don’t like trawling through research papers here is a summary of what I have found. Those of you who would like to see the research part 2 of this blog will summarise a number of articles.

The main findings are as follows
• Training in a fasted or low glycogen state improves fat oxidation in exercise of up to 2 hours
• No research article has shown any performance benefits in running or cycling in exercise tests of up to 2 hours long
• Performing interval sessions in a low glycogen state reduces the intensity of the workout but appears not to reduce the benefit of the workout compared with using carbohydrates

Some conclusions made by authors include

• “The “train low, compete high” paradigm of glycogen levels has been challenged by a new study that shows no benefit of training in a low-glycogen state. Although some genes involved in training adaptations were enhanced after training in the low glycogen state, this does not mean athletes should adopt the practice. It could have deleterious effects on the ability to train hard and recovery from training, could be a possible risk factor for overtraining and could impact the immune system.” (1)

• “Training with low muscle glycogen reduced training intensity and, in performance, was no more effective than training with high muscle glycogen. However, fat oxidation was increased after training with low muscle glycogen, which may have been due to the enhanced metabolic adaptations in skeletal muscle.” (2)

• “training under conditions of reduced carbohydrate availability from both endogenous and exogenous sources provides an enhanced stimulus for inducing oxidative enzyme adaptations of skeletal muscle, although this does not translate to improved performance during high-intensity exercise." (3)

• “Although there was a decrease in exercise-induced glycogen breakdown and an increase in proteins involved in fat handling after fasting training, fat oxidation during exercise with carbohydrate intake was not changed.” (4)

• "The main findings of the present study were that: training in an overnight-fasted state enhances storage of muscle glycogen compared to training in the fed state;.. and peak VO2 and peak power improved more when training in the fasted state compared to the fed state."(5)

So where does that leave ultrarunners?

To put it simply we don’t know!

It appears that training in a low glucogen state improves the ability of the body to oxidise fat but this has no effect on high intensity exercise of up to 2 hours (although at least one study claims that once exercise is performed with carbohydrate there is no difference in fat oxidation(4) and another suggested that training in a fasted state improved peak VO2max and peak power (5)

Whether or not it has any effect on exercise lasting 10 or more hours is unproven and open to debate until any scientific study looks at this specifically

There appear to be few if any studies on the benefits of a low glycogen or fasted state training on exercising for longer than 2 hours. Extrapolating the results from a one or two hour time trial to a 24 hour Ultramarathon is not possible.
Some of you may be thinking that if it appears that there is very little difference between training in a low glycogen or fasted state compared with using carbohydrates then why not train that way.

Some researchers felt that immune function may be compromised training in a low glycogen or fasted state which could to leading to higher risk of illness and injury.
The question could be asked that instead of looking at how to conserve our carbohydrates by burning more fat why don’t we look and developing a bigger storage of carbohydrates. It is well documented that we can exercise at a higher intensity if we can burn carbohydrates and as the goal is to finish quicker not go for longer does this make more sense?

The body adapts to the specific training stimulus so whilst training in a low glycogen state does improve fat metabolism, training using carbohydates will increase the amount of glycogen that can be stored in the muscles.

Not enough Glycogen or too much?

One theory I have and I stress theory as there is no research to back me up (primarily because there has been so few studies done specific to ultrarunners) is that ultrarunners do suffer from low glycogen towards the end of a race but the answer to the problem is to consume less carbohydrates when racing not more.

Let me explain, I think that many ultrarunners consume too much food during a race. We simply do not have enough glycogen in our muscles to run an Ultramarathon, (you may be able to walk it) and if training can preserve our muscle glycogen and increase our ability to burn fat then that has to be a good thing. However given that we need to consume some carbohydrates in a race otherwise our performance will be impeded we need to determine the optimal amount.

If you are better at burning fat then obviously you will need less which has to be a good thing. Remember that high intensity interval training also improves the ability of the body to use fat for energy as does training in a fed state using carbohydrates but the research is showing that training low glycogen will promote more energy to be burnt from fat.

If we ingest too much carbohydrate during a race our stomachs cant digest it and deliver the glucose to our blood so in effect we are depleting our bodies glycogen levels. When this happens we start to feel weak so we ingest more carbohydrates which makes the problem worse until we are forced to walk. The reduced intensity gives the stomach a chance to digest all the carbs and deliver some much needed glucose to the muscles and off we go again.

Our bodies can only absorb approx 40-60 grams of carbohydrates per hour when we exercise, any more than that will slow down gastric emptying. This equates to 1.5 gels per hour. Food such as porridge, pasta, rice pudding, sandwiches etc that are often eaten during ultras can contain far more than 40-60 grams.

Limiting factors in an Ultra

Why do we slow done towards the end of an ultra? Without doubt running low in muscle glycogen is one factor but I believe a more important factor is muscular fatigue. Running stresses our muscles and causes small micro-tears in the fibres. The longer we run for the more damage occurs until eventually our legs are so sore that we slow down and eventually are forced to walk.

Looking at the ability of our body to burn fat and discussing train low race high strategies ignores this completely and no research I found even mentioned this ( primarily because very few articles mention ultramarathon runners).
Is it possible that any potential benefits gained in training low could be offset by negative affects on muscular resistance to damage it suffers when we run?

Quality of training in a low glycogen or fasted vs fed state

Research showed that when performing high intensity interval training in a fasted or low glycogen state intensity was less than training in a fed state however this did not reduce the training effect.

How that relates to ultras is open to interpretation. It appears that if you do perform high intensity interval training (and you should!) in a low glycogen or fasted state even though it will feel harder , you may not completed as many intervals and they will be slower it will still have the same training benefit in terms of a 1-2 hour time trial performance. Does this mean it will have the same benefit for an ultra?

I would argue that the ability to perform less repetitions of intervals would be detrimental to performance in an ultra in terms of the muscular overload to our legs. Even if the aerobic benefit is the same I question if the muscles themselves will have the same load put on them with less intervals. Increased tolerance to muscular damage is a big part of ultrarunning.

No studies looked at longer training sessions. It would have been very interesting to look at performing one run per week of 3 hours plus in a fasted , low glycogen and fed state with only the fed state consuming additional carbohydrates and seeing any chance in a 50-100k time trial.Unfortunately that hasn’t bed done yet so we need to decide for ourselves which approach to take.

Many athletes get fasted and low glycogen states mixed up , as mentioned earlier they are vastly different. I believe both have there merits but more benefit is gained when consuming additional carbohydrates when running. Here are my reasons why

Fasted State Training

Personally I believe that performing high quality long runs in a high glycogen state with additional carbohydrates has more benefits than in a low glycogen state ( whether you have breakfast or not doesn’t matter as your stores will be topped up from yesterdays eating).

It allows you to run faster for longer. For example you may be able to run for 3 hours at 9 minute mile pace in a low glycogen state. If you performed the training in a low glycogen state but consumed carbohydrates during your run you may be able to run for 4 hours at 9 minute miles and if your muscles weren’t low in glycogen and you used carbohydrates during your run you may manage 4 hours at 8.5 minute miles.
I believe the extra distance covered and faster speed puts more load on your legs making them more resistant to fatigue in an ultra.

Low Glycogen training

Many ultra runners perform back to back long runs and I am a big believer in this. Doing a long run Friday afternoon followed by another long run Saturday morning ensures that the Saturday run is done in a low glycogen state as it is hard to eat enough in one meal to top the stores up after a long run.

I prefer to use additional carbohydrates when doing the second run since once again it allows me to run further and faster than if I did it without carbohydrates. I believe the extra speed and miles puts better condition into my legs making them better able to handle the damage that running long distances does.

Whilst I would undoubtably improve my ability to run without additional carbohydrates if I trained that way I cant see a reason to do so. Why go through that process if there is no benefit other than the ability to run for longer without additional carbohydrates? It doesnt mean I’ll be a faster ultrarunner.

Conclusions

Training in a low glycogen state or fasted state does improve the bodys ability to metabolise fat in exercise lasting up to two hours (it may improve it for exercise lasting up to 24 hours but no research supports that either way) but whether that helps in performance is open to debate.

Personal Summary

I believe that consuming additional carbohydrates when we train allows us to run faster and for longer which although may reduce my fat burning potential it will improve the ability of my legs to resist the damage that occurs in an Ultramarathon.
As long as I am able to consume (and digest) sufficient carbohydrates on a regular basis when racing then I cant see any benefit in having to make do with less.

References

(1) Summary from IAAF 2nd International Consensus Conference on “Nutrition for Athletics“ held in Monaco from April 18-20, 2007.)

(2) Training with low muscle glycogen enhances fat metabolism in well-trained cyclists.
Hulston CJ, Venables MC, Mann CH, Martin C, Philp A, Baar K, Jeukendrup AE.
Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2010 Nov;42(11):2046-55.)

(3) Promoting Endurance Training Adaptations with Nutritional Interventions: The Potential Benefits of “Low Carbohydrate” Training. Drust B, Morton JP. Kinesiology 2009; 41: 19–24.

(4) Effect of training in the fasted state on metabolic responses during exercise with carbohydrate intake. De Bock K, Derave W, Eijnde BO, Hesselink MK, Koninckx E, Rose AJ, Schrauwen P, Bonen A, Richter EA, Hespel P J Appl Physiol. 2009 Jun;106(6):1757-8.

(5). Adaptations to skeletal muscle with endurance exercise training in the acutely fed versus overnight-fasted state. Stannard SR, Buckley AJ, Edge JA, Thompson MW.
J Sci Med Sport. 2010 Jul;13(4):465-9. Epub 2010 May 7.

Machine weights - to be avoided at all costs!

2010-12-08T19:02:00.012Z

I was recently reading a well known running magazine when I came across an article regarding Machine weights vs Free weights for running. The article gave a balanced argument for both but recommended that maybe beginners would be better off starting with machines.

I’d like to say that without doubt performing weights using a Machine should NEVER be done by any runner, beginners, intermediate or advance, and especially not for people with an injury. No if’s but’s , no exceptions at all. Not only are they not performance enhancing I would strongly argue they are performance dehancing. The machines I am referring to are Leg Press, Leg Extension, Leg Curl, Hip Adduction ( inner thigh), Hip Abduction (outer thigh)

Pretty strong words I know but I hope after you read this article you’ll understand where I am coming from.

Lets look at the common arguments put forward by the pro machine weight training camp and see if they make sense and how relevant it is to running.

Keep in mind I am talking about the use of machine weights to improve running performance. Just because someone becomes stronger on a machine doesn’t mean the have more strength as a runner.

There is one very important principle to keep in mind when assessing the benefit of a particular exercise will have to your ability to run more efficiently

The strength, endurance, power and flexibility gained in an exercise is only transferable to exercises that use similar loads, ranges of movement, joint angle, body position and speed of movement

This is a universally accepted law that all good coaches apply to their training. We’ll come back to it often as it underpins (or should) the rationale for every exercise a coach or trainer prescribes for their athletes.

Simply put it means if the exercise doesn’t look similar to, feel similar to, use similar speed of movements, have the body and joints in similar positions to running then it wont improve your running.

Looking at it another way the more similar the exercise is to the action you are training for the more the brain can take all it learnt doing one exercise and apply it to the other. Remember the brain controls the body.

Imagine if you learnt to drive in a Electrical Gee Whiz car and then tried to drive a Porsche. You’d be able to manage it wouldn’t you, yes they are different but the basics are the same. Now imagine instead of driving a car you then tried to fly a plane. My guess is you wouldn’t know where to start. The skill set is different and somebody who had never driven a car before would have just as much chance as you at flying the plane. Thats how similar machine weight exercise and running are. Read on and I’ll explain more.

Now what are the Machine weight advocates claiming......

Machine weights isolate the main muscles groups leading to greater strength. – True
Does this matter? No. Can it be detrimental to our running? Yes

The strength gained in an exercise is specific to the particular exercise. Thighs capable of lifting heavy weights in a leg extension machine wont make you a stronger or faster runner.

Why would machine weights be detrimental to me?

If the main muscles become stronger than the smaller stabilising muscles then injuries can occur. An example of this is imagine if you tried running over very unstable ground at the same pace you run on the track. Chances of being injured? Pretty high I would think. For true usable strength you need to train the smaller stabilising muscles at the same time you train the main muscles – ie in the same exercise – something that Machine weight exercises are incapable of doing.

You can do exercises on Machine weights that you cannot do with free weights - True

Does it matter? No Can it be detrimental to running ? Yes

A few examples are the leg curl, leg extension, hip adduction and hip abduction machines. No you cant do those exercises using free weights but why would you want to. None of them work the muscles in a way that is at all similar to running and in fact they train the muscles in a way that can set you up for an injury when you run. Lets look at a couple of these each of these and see why they should form no part of any runners training program

Leg Curl – an exercise that involves lying on your stomach or sitting down and bending your knee (flexing) such that your heel travels towards your rear. So the hamstring is flexing the knee joint with the foot off weight bearing and the hips and pelvis are relatively fixed. In running the hamstring pulls the pelvis forward on a fixed leg with the foot on the ground, as this happens the knee is straightening not bending. So if your hamstring has gained its strength from bending the knee whilst the hips are fixed what do you think will happen when we straighten the knee and extend the hip? At best it will have very little strength as it will find it difficult to co-ordinate the action at worst it wont be able to relax over the knee joint and will tear.

Hip Abduction ( Outer thigh) Machine – this involves you sitting down with your legs in a position like a gynaecologists chair and then pushing your legs as wide as possible increasing the angle between upper thigh and pelvis in an attempt to work the gluteal muscles.

In running the glute muscle works to control the inwards rotation of the leg as you land, control the drop of the non stance side hip as you land and propel your pelvis forward all whilst one leg is on the ground. So instead of working to increase the angle between pelvis and thigh it works to control the reduction of that angle ie how much leg upper thigh goes in.

In the hip abduction machine there is no rotation component or hip extension component , in fact because you are sitting on the machine your hips are flexed. They couldn’t be much more dissimilar if you tried.

Machine weights are far easier to learn to use – True but thats a bad thing!

Just because something is easier to use doesn’t mean it is worth doing in the first place. It is easier to use because it doesn’t involve any co-ordination or neuromusclar skill something that the Machine weight Advocates say is a good thing.
However running is an activity that requires very good co-ordination and neuromuscular skill so it makes no sense to start with an exercise that involves neither of these.

Machine weight advocates will argue that you can start with free weights and then build up to free weights.

If we followed that train of thought we would have stronger main muscles (one of the supposed benefits of machine weights) and therefore the balance between our stabiliser muscles and main muscles will be even worse than what it was when we started so co-ordination between the two will be even more difficult.

It’s like saying that a good way to learn to ski is start with sitting on a sled and coasting downhill because real skiing involves too much co-ordination and neuromuscular skill. Obviously you wouldn’t start of by going down a black run , you start by learning how to snow plough and do some basic drills but it still LOOKS like skiing.

If the co-ordination and neuromuscular skills required for an exercise are similar then the brain can use the skills gained in one exercise and transfer it to another if they are different then it cant do that.

Machine weights are safer – False

Yes they are safer to use in terms of doing the actual exercise , the worst that can happen is you let go and the weight stack falls and makes a large bang whereas if you are using free weights and drop a dumbbell you can injure yourself BUT are they safer in terms of the effect they have on your body afterwards? No

If your main muscles are stronger than your stabilising muscles can control then you simply set yourself up for an injury.If the pattern of muscle recruitment and co-ordination is different for the machine weight compared to running then injury will likely result.Machine weights are very good for developing muscular imbalances that eventually lead to injury.

Machines weights apply a more even resistance via the use of cams and pulleys which allow equal load to be put on the muscle throughout the exercise – True
Does it matter? No

If we want to improve the way we run then the loads should simulate the loads that occur in running. In running we have a landing force we have to deal with, we have to deal with the constant affect of gravity and the affects of momentum. None of these are simulated by a Machine. Who cares if the machine can give your muscles a nice even load throughout the movement, it certainly doesn’t happen when we run.

It is easier to perform Machine weights exercises slowly which will lead to greater strength – False

A slower speed of movement will lead to more hypertrophy (muscle growth) not strength. One thing most runners don’t need is big bulky muscles (sprinters possibly excepted)

Body builders like machines because they can perform slow controlled movements that are great for putting maximum stress on the muscles to stimulate maximum growth. (Thats another argument that I wont go into today!)
What do we mean by greater strength anyway? Does the ability to lift a heavier weight mean anything when applied to runners? When you consider that when running each foot hits the ground ninety times a minute or 5400 times an hour, the idea of improving your strength to lift a weight 10 or 15 times seems a bit pointless.

Studies show that runners having undergone a Machine weight training program have improved running performance – True

This is what the Machine weight advocates cling to, research that shows improved performance after a 12 week weight training program. All these studies used either free weights or a mixture of machine and free weights, so are inconclusive when comparing free weights to machine weights. Short term studies like this also ignore any long term negative affects that machine weight had on the athlete.

Since there are some short term studies saying that some use of Machine weights when combined with free weights improved running performance isn’t that good enough to keep using them?

No. In my opinion why use a training method that contradicts almost every known training principle? When the risk of a running injury is higher using machine weights and there are far better ways to improve running performance, using machines make no sense.

Some people will argue that machine weights would be good for building a particular muscle up since they believe that muscle may be weak and causing an injury problem.
If you are recommended to use the leg curl, leg extension, leg press, hip adduction and hip abduction machines by a health professional or trainer find another professional or trainer for they do not understand what they are talking about when it comes to exercise prescription. They may be great a diagnosing injuries but they aren’t in terms of prescribing exercises.

Muscles become weak because they are not activated properly in a particular action (in this case running), just because you increase the strength and size of a muscle on a machine doesn’t mean it will activate properly when you run. Muscles are activated by movement and if your body doesn’t move correctly then the correct muscles may not be activated. The key is to get the body moving correctly.

For example if you foot doesn’t pronate enough then your lower leg and then upper leg wont rotate inwards when you land which would normally switch on your inner quadriceps muscle and your gluteal muscles, the rotation of your upper leg combined with correct movement of the pelvis shouldl also switch on your gluteal muscles. No amount of repetitions on the Hip Abduction machine is going to make your foot pronate more .

If you are looking to increase you strength for running have a look at the following articles here and here

Strengthening your Gluteus Medius – do exercises like the Clam or a side lying leg lift actually do anything?

2010-12-08T17:50:00.011Z

The Gluteus medius is situated on the side of your hip and controls the movement of your pelvis in the frontal plane. In English that means it control how much your opposite side hip drops when you walk or run. To feel what I mean, stand on 1 leg and let your other hip drop towards the floor. Now lift it back up again – you have just worked your gluteus medius. To see what I mean simply watch any catwalk model walk and observe how the hips move from side to side and the pelvis tilts side to side when looking from behind.

Weakness in this muscle is very common and is responsible for a number of injuries including Iliotibial Band (ITB)Syndrome and knee pain.
One common exercise given by health or fitness professionals is to lie on your side and lift your top leg off your bottom leg and hold it there for up to 60 seconds. This does work the Gluteus medius but does it help stabilise the movement of your pelvis when you walk?

A study* I have just discovered confirms that strength in performing that exercise is completely independent on how much someone’s pelvis tilts from side to side. In other words performing that exercise had NO effect on Gluteus Medius strength in running.

Some people who were very weak in this exercise had very good pelvic control and some who were very strong in the exercise had very poor pelvic control.
The researchers concluded that a more dynamic test of Gluteus medius may be more appropriate.

The Clam and exercises like it – are you wasting your time?

The Clam is an exercise that is very similar, you lie on your side with your knees bent and keeping your feet together you raise the knee of the top leg , opening your legs up so that your legs make the shape of a clam, this is repeated many times. Side lying leg raises are similar except the leg is straighter and the whole of the top leg is lifted up and down.

These are recommended by many physiotherapists, doctors, personal trainers and coaches but it is my view that exercises like this are next to useless in improving gluteus medius (or gluteus maximus for that matter) strength in running or walking.
The only difference between the exercise used in the study mentioned above and clams or side lying leg lifts the angle of the knee is different and instead of holding the leg up you are moving it up and down. I don’t feel this makes the exercise any better hope to convince you to try and different approach to strengthening this muscle for running.

The rule of specificity

Remember that the strength, endurance, power and flexibility gained in an exercise is only transferable to exercises that use similar loads, ranges of movement, joint angle, body position and speed of movement. This is a universally accepted rule that no coach, trainer or physical therapist can argue with.

In simple terms it says that the strength gained in a particular exercise is only relevant to other exercises that look and feel similar to the original exercise. For example the strength gained in doing a bench press will make you better at push ups but wont improve your ability to throw a cricket ball, or the strength gained in doing small range squats will help skiing but wont help you to kick a ball further.
If the body positions, loads, speed of movement and range of movement aren’t similar then the body wont transfer the gains from one exercise to the next.

When you think about it it makes sense, someone who is good at tennis is often good at squash but may be hopeless at bowling a cricket ball. Someone who is good at surfing will pick up snow boarding easier than someone who has strong legs from doing squats in the gym.

So lets compare the two positions

Clam/ Side lying leg lifts

Body Position..............Lying on your side
Load........................Weight of one leg
Initial Movement........Lifting leg up- contacting muscle
Speed of Movement.....Slow and controlled
Range of Movement.....from slightly lower then hip to approx 45 degrees or more
Stimulation.............Consciously driven by exerciser

Running or Walking

Body Position..............Standing on one leg
Load........................Weight of body minus the weight of the stance leg
Initial Movement........Pelvis dropping down – stretching the muscle
Speed of Movement.......Fast – less than ½ a second
Range of Movement.......From pelvis tilted 5-15 degrees up to 5-15 degrees down
Stimulation...............Unconsciously driven by reaction to gravity

As you can see there are NO similarities at all. You may as well do bicep curls.

Proprioreceptors

One other important point to remember is that muscles react to feedback given to them by tiny cells called proprioreceptors that are found throughout the body.

These proprioreceptors tell the brain what is happening. For example if they feel that a muscle is getting stretched rather rapidly the brain will activate that muscle to protect itself. This is exactly what happens in the gluteus medius, the sudden impact of landing places a rapid dynamic stretch on the muscle, the proprioreceptors sense this and tell the brain which then activates the muscle to protect it. None of this happens consciously.

The idea that you can train a muscle by consciously contracting it and then hope that the brain can now apply that strength unconsciously in a completely different environment is dubious at best.

A waste of time?

So if the position of the body in side lying based exercises is so different to running and the load is different and the speed of movement is different and the range of movement is different and the mechanism that turns on the muscle is different you can begin to see why the clam or side lying leg raises are basically ineffective when it comes to strengthening the gluteus medius in relation to controlling the pelvis when we walk and run.

The justification of doing these types of exercises is that they are a starting point to gain strength and you will need to progress it from there. I disagree with this also as the exercise is so dissimilar from running I feel there is little if any carry over into running. It would be like teaching someone to ski by telling them they need to spend time on a sled first. Yes a sled involves sliding downhill on snow but, the way the muscles are used in skiing is so different to sitting on a sled you can spend all day everyday riding a sled and you’d never be a better skier.

Yes side lying exercises do work the glute muscle but in a way so different to running that you could do you side lying leg lifts every day and still have poor control of your pelvis when you run.

The next question is ok if they don’t work what exercise does?

Unfortunately this is not an easy question to answer and there is no universal exercise that will strengthen the gluteus medius of every body who does it. The reason for this lies in understanding that muscles react to stimulus provided by the proprioreceptors. If the proprioreceptors aren’t stimulated then the brain wont have any reason to activate the muscle. Alternatively the muscle may be trying to do too much due to weaknesses in other muscles. It makes no sense to train the muscle up to cope with the weaknesses in other areas, a better approach is to address the weak muscles first.

For example the glute medius can be overloaded if a persons foot pronates too much or can be understimulated if the opposite foot doesn’t pronate enough, or if the person lacks mobility in the spine or any number of other reasons.

The point is that no matter how good the glutes medius exercise you perform is if it doesn’t address the reason your gluteus medius isn’t working properly in the first place it wont help.

A better alternative to side lying glute exercises

Whilst I am reluctant to recommend any exercise as ideally you should be assessed to determine why you have the weakness in the first place I feel it would be remiss of me and frustrating for you to tell you that clams and side lying leg raises are a waste of time and not give you a better alternative.

So here’s two different exercise , one for people with tight hips ( usually men) and one for people with weak hips ( usually females). These aren’t necessarily the best exercises you can do but they are ones that are relatively easy to describe and perform by yourself. If you aren't sure which one is best for you since not all men have tight hips and not all women have weak hips then try both andwhichever you find hardest do that one!

Tight Hips

Stand back to a wall, feet about 2-3 inches away from the wall, feet together, shoulders against wall, hands joined together, arms above head with arms ideally against the wall also but if your arms aren’t that flexible don’t worry just have them above your head as much as possible.

Now all you need to do is take your hands and reach to the side as far as possible such that your body bends sideways. Ensure BOTH butt cheeks and BOTH shoulders remain touching the wall.

Your movements should be relatively quick and your aim is to increase movement without hips or shoulder coming away from the wall. If you hips feel like they are moving side to side , great!

Progression
Try the same but without the wall behind you ensuring your body moves from side to side and there is no rotation. Imagine the wall is still behind you. Next step is to try it with one foot forward of the other.

Weak Hips
Stand on 1 leg with the same side arm as stance leg above your head and the opposite side hand on your hip. Lets say you stand on your right leg then your right arm will be above your head and left hand on your hip. Now take your right hand and reach sideways to the left as far as you can and at the same time use your left hand to push your hips to the right and then return to starting position. The speed of movement should be relatively quick but slow enough that you can control it.

Progress the speed as you improve. Use you other non stance leg for balance if you have to.To make harder start with standing on two legs arms in the same position as before and then step forward with your right leg and at the same time perform the same arm action as before.

*Isometric gluteus medius muscle torque and frontal plane pelvic motion during running
Evie N. Burnet and Peter E. Pidcoe
Journal of Sports Science and Medicine (2009) 8, 284-288

2010-12-08T17:47:00.003Z

Part 2 and 3 of a post on training an endurance runner. This is aimed at Trainers not so much runners themselves but those of you with an interest in the scientific rationale and biomechanics that goes into designing a conditioning program should find it informative

Training to improve Strength, Power, Endurance and Flexibility for a marathon runner

2010-12-05T18:28:00.004Z

Part 1(of 3) of a post on training an endurance runner. This is aimed at Trainers not so much runners themselves but those of you with an interest in the scientific rationale and biomechanics that goes into designing a conditioning program should find it informative

Hardmoors 2010 lives up to its name

2010-10-06T20:54:00.006+01:00

Saturday approx 3am Guisborough Woods, 49 miles covered, race time approx 10 hours

The darkness envelopes me as I run silently through the forest, only the beam from my headtorch illuminating the trail. It is cold but not uncomfortably so, five layers of clothing, two beanies and a pair of gloves are doing their job insulating me from the chilly temperature. The forest shelters me from the gale force winds that battered me over the moors and it is a welcome relief. As the clouds part , the moon shines and lights up the path ahead of me and at this moment I can think of no other place I’d rather be. I feel totally encapsulated in the moment, there is no before and after, only now, me, the forest , the trail ,the moon, nothing else exists or matters. The silence of the forest magnifies the effect particularly after the deafening howl of the wind only hours ago. Even the sound of my own breath is faint as although the pace is quickish (around 7 minutes per mile) it feels very comfortable. It is a wonderful state to be in and I revel in it for as long as I can because I know that in an ultra incredible highs are often followed by equally incredible lows.

Eventually a steep descent brings me out of my meditative state and forces me to focus on where I place my feet. It was nice while it lasted, now back to the job at hand. I was 25 minutes down at the last checkpoint and I have to make up time in this section if I am to have a chance of catching the leader. I know I must have made up some time over the last few miles the question was how much time. As I descend the last section I notice a pain in my left knee. It’s one I’ve had before but not for a long time and I know what it means. It will slowly get worse and worse until it makes bending my knee painful and running downhill impossible. Not good. I’m almost half way, will it hold out enough to get me to the finish. The problem is the finish is still another 62 miles away....

Friday 24 September 4.30pm Helmsley

As 29 ultrarunners stand around listening to race Organiser Jon Steele’s final instructions I look outside and notice it is raining, again. The weather forecast is showers and gale force winds of approx 40miles per hour gusting up to 70 miles per hour. Temperatures should just make double digits during the day and drop down to 5 degrees overnight minus the wind chill factor (which is quite a bit when its blowing 40 miles an hour) It will be colder going over the moors. Mind you if you are prepared to do a bit of looking around on the internet you can find a much better forecast, I managed to find one forecast that didn’t mention rain and another had no mention of gale force winds! Still it could be worse, the previous night it was similar except it rained almost non stop!

It’s the beginning of autumn in northern England and I am lining up to run the Hardmoors 110 ( now 114 miles as Jon decided that the 2009 version wasn’t hard enough and added another 4 miles to the route). The route departs from Helmsley just north of York and runs 58 miles across the Yorkshire moors to Saltburn-by-the-Sea and then a further 56 miles down the coast to Filey. I’ve got 36 hours to finish but am hoping do it in less than 24. Almost 4.5 marathons, back to back with over 6000m of ascent and descent , why would anyone want to do this? If you are asking that then you’ll probably never understand the answer.

Friday 5.00pm Helmsley

Jon counts down from ten and we set off in light rain through Helmsley. The initial miles are relatively gentle and I settle into a rhythm with last years winner Neil Risdale. The first few miles in an ultra are always the worse for me. You expect your legs to feel fresh as a daisy but they never do and then you start to wonder if you did too much training or not enough training, or it’s just not your day today. All these thoughts run through my head but Neil’s strategy last year was to set off quickly and try and lose the opposition so I figured if I was keeping up with him I must be doing ok.

There are two ways to run the Hardmoors – supported or unsupported. Supported runners have their own support crew who can meet them whenever they want supplying food and drink, unsupported are able to fill their water containers up every10-20 miles but must carry everything else. You are able place a drop bag at the 45 mile checkpoint and 75 mile checkpoint with spare clothes, food etc. I am running unsupported and Neil supported.

I run into the first checkpoint below the White horse just ahead of Neil who stopped for a quick top up from his support crew. Ascending from the checkpoint back up to the cliff top Neil catches me and we run together chatting. I discover Neil is a talkative type when he runs and I’m definitely not. I add a few words now and then to be polite but to be honest I prefer run lost in my own thoughts or lack thereof!

One of the attractions of ultras for me is spending hours lost inside my own head. It’s a strange place at the best of times and running an ultra drives almost all the other distractions out of it. All I tend to think about for 24 hours or so is monitoring my body for signs that tell me to slow down, speed up, drink water, consume calories, take salt tablets, watch where I put my feet , monitor how hot or cold I am and adjusting clothing to suit. Not much else goes on to be honest. I try and take in and enjoy as much of the scenery as possible but as soon as you start doing too much of that you’ll find yourself flat on your face having tripped over a rockr. In between all those thoughts there are wonderful periods of nothing, where no thought is going through my head and I am just running. I imagine its how it feels to meditate and although I’ve tried that I find it very hard to stem the constant avalanche of thoughts in my brain whilst sitting still. I don’t have that problem on a really long run.

Friday approx 6.30pm Sutton Bank 12 miles covered, race time approx 90 minutes

The route runs along the cliff top overlooking North Yorkshire. There is the occasional brief shower and the wind is starting to pick up but as the sun sets there is a moment of sublime beauty. The thick clouds part enough to allow a thin stream over sunlight through the centre. The cloud refract’s the light and creates numerous other beams of light around the edge of the clouds illuminating the fields below us in that golden glow of the setting sun. Moments like these make it all worthwhile. We follow the escarpment around and I notice that I am faster on the descents. Something to remember for later

As we leave the escarpment and head out onto the Moors it is getting dark and I stop to put my head torch on. The moors are a bleak place at night, particularly with a howling wind and driving horizontal rain. Thankfully the rain comes in brief bursts and doesn’t persist for too long. Neil drops back behind me sheltering from the wind, I should have thought of that. Descending from the moors, Neil drops behind, I’m not sure if he’s stopped to put on warmer clothing or not comfortable with the pace. As I leave the moors to briefly join a road there is a collection of cars waiting for their runners which I presume Neil will be stopping at. I leave the road and descend steeply , at the bottom of a descent I look back to see how far behind he is and cant see him. I now have the lead, the question is how long can I keep it for. I push on enjoying running by myself. I reccied the route a while back and am hoping I can remember the way without having to look at my map. Neil has run it at least 4 times before and lives locally so I know he wont have to stop and look at the map. For a few miles I am fine, recognising where to turn to follow the trail but I then come out onto a road and cant remember whether to turn left or right, I get the map out but before I can even find the right page I see a headlight in the distance, Neil will catch me before I figure it out so I wait for him.

Friday approx 8.30pm Osmotherly 24 miles covered, race time approx 3 hours 30 mins

We arrive into Checkpoint 2 together and I stop to fill my water bottle up whilst he continues. Neil has the advantage of a support crew which means he can replenish his supplies more often so doesn’t have to carry as much, I don’t have that luxury and as the checkpoints are infrequent I have to spend more time at them to make sure my water supplies are as full as possible. As I set off again I look for his head torch but he is no-where to be seen. The path follows a farm track to a gate where there is three options, turn right up the hill, go through the gate, or go straight ahead to the left of the gate, I’m not sure which way but am confident it’s not turning right, so I guess and open the gate and then realise it’s tied with rope and the way it’s tied Neil wouldn’t have tied it back like that so decide to follow the other path, it goes through two more gates then follows a fence line up to a small path into the woods. As I enter the woods there are several options none of which look like the main trail. Looking at my map it says to turn right so I do, the path I follow becomes narrower and narrower until eventually it opens out and beneath me is what looks like a 30 foot drop. Thats probably not the way to go – shit!

Ok Back track, I run the half mile back to the gate and reassess. Checking the notes again I definitely followed the right track , maybe there’s another entrance to the woods. I follow the path again checking the fence line for any other entrances. No, Shit, shit. What now. Dont panic. I run back to the gate again and get out my more detailed map and have a look. It tells me the same thing, I run back up to the woods entrance and decide to try a different approach. I know that very shortly I should come to some TV Masts right by a stone wall. There is a stone wall right next to me so I jump over it and start to run along it hoping to see the TV masts, I cant see anything and really don’t like running off piste so I jump back over the wall and go back to the gate again. Stopping for a second to fight off the rising panic about losing so much time due to a navigational error I calm myself and reread the instructions. Heading back up to the woods I enter the woods and this time instead of taking what looked like the main path follow a smaller track that is covered with foliage. As soon as I break through the foliage a larger track appears to the right just as the map says. Finally I am back on track.

I set off realising that I’ve probably lost 30 minutes plus run an extra couple of miles. I know I’m not going to make up that much time quickly but with 90 miles to go anything can happen and if I can make up even 20 seconds per mile I can catch him.

I settle back into a rythym as I run along a forest trail which eventual climbs back onto the moors. The course now ascends and descends very steeply a number of times before levelling off. I know the ascents are too steep to run and the descents are steep and on very slippery rocks which make it almost impossible to run. There is little chance of making up much time here, yet in the distance I see a headlight. I cant have made up the time already surely, but it is almost inconceivable that anyone else apart from runners in the race would be out on the moors on a night like this. Puzzled I continue on closing the gap quickly.

It is dark by now and the rain has picked up again, as I reach the top of the first climb the wind is driving the rain horizontally into my left side. One hand and one side of my face is feeling very cold. I have another thermal top and another beanie in my backpack which I may need soon. The trail levels out at the top which allows me to run which I hope will start to warm me up again. Unfortunately the wind increases making it feel even colder. Just before I start the descent I approach the runner in front, as I near him I recognise that it isn’t Neil but Martin who was running not far behind us. I am totally mystified by how he managed to pass me without me seeing him. Must have been when I was on the other side of the large brick wall I wonder.

Descending is not much fun , the rocks are very slippery and great care must be taken not to fall. As I descend I see some lights by a road, it must be the cars of the support crews of the other runners. Approaching the bottom I hear Jons voice call out in encouragement. I stop briefly to put on my extra thermal top and beanie. Another runners support crew asks me if I have any support crew to which I answer no, Jon informs her that I am hardcore! It is another 15 miles or so to the first drop bag where I have even more warm clothes if I need it. I hope what I have on is enough to get me there.

There are two more steep ascents and descents before I reach the plateau of Hasty Bank and Bloworth Crossing. Once I reach there it is around 7 miles of very runnable tracks all the way to the checkpoint at Kildale. If I can progess quickly over this I am hoping I might be able to see Neil’s head torch in the distance. (I find out later that when the Moon came out Neil turned his head torch off so I wouldn’t be able to see him!)

The extra clothing has helped and I set off briskly up the next climb. It is getting colder and my breath is condensing. This is actually a problem as the large clouds of water vapour obscure my view of the ground making it hard to see where to put my feet. I’ve never had this problem in an Ultra before!

The ascent is relatively straight forward, the descent not so. It is even more slippery than the previous one and I take great care almost slipping several times. This is followed by the final ascent to Wainstones and a checkpoint. There’s still no sign of Neil ahead. (I find out later that when the Moon came out Neil turned his head torch off so I wouldn’t be able to see him!)

Friday approx 11.30pm Wainstones Checkpoint 32 Miles covered, race time approx 6hours 30 mins

The route is relatively straight forward but I stop every now and then to make sure I am on the correct path. At the top of the rock pinnacles known as Wainstones there is a marshall all set up with a small tent and lots of warm clothes. It is a very cold, wet and windy place to camp for the night and I thank him for helping out with the race.

Finally I can settle into a good running pace again. The only danger is the route is regularly broken up by open drains just waiting to trip someone up. Spraining an ankle up here would not be good. My legs feel relatively good for having covered 40 miles and I am starting to feel confident I am having a good day.

All of a sudden a bright light appears and I wonder if someone is catching me, I turn around and see the clouds have opened up and the moon is making a very bright appearance. It is still very cold and windy but the rain has temporarily stopped and the presence of the moon makes it a beautiful and surreal place to be.

A few miles on and the path takes a sharp left and heads to Kildale, a small town nestled at the bottom of the embankment. At the turn is another checkpoint and another person camped overnight in the middle of nowhere, I say a quick hello and a thankyou and push on straining my eyes to try and pick up signs of a head torch in the distance but with no luck . The next 6 miles are basically flat and then steeply downhill along a road so I push hard trying to make up some time. There’s a fine line between pushing hard and pushing too hard and as it’s a long way to go I err on the side of caution keeping the pace sensible ( around 8 min mile pace). The rain competes with the moon for space in the sky and the wind is consistently deafening, it will be a relief to drop down into Kildale to escape it for a while.

Kildale approx 2am. 45 miles covered, race time approx 9 hours

Kildale eventually appears and I head into the bright lights of the Village Hall, the first of the checkpoints where I can pick up a drop bag. I don’t ask how far Neil is ahead as I don’t want to know, I am happy running my own race. I spend a few minutes sipping some coke, topping up my water and fuel supplies before heading out again.

The next section involves a steep climb up to a monument for Captain Cook, a steep runable descent then another steep climb. At the top of this is a one mile out and back section to the top of Roseberry Topping, a hill with panoramic views overlooking Yorkshire ( not at 2 am in the morning though). I am hoping to catch sight of Neil on this section. The out and back bit takes around 30 minutes so if I see him heading back as I head out I’ll have some idea. As I approach the start of the out and back I am nervous since if I don’t see him he’s put time on me and my chances of winning start to drop considerably. No sign of him yet as I turn left onto the trail towards Roseberry Topping, almost as soon as I do though Neil appears ahead of me making his way back up the climb. We exchange greetings then get back to the job at hand. I reach the top of Roseberry and check-in with the Marshalls who inform me I’m 25 minutes down. I’ve no real idea if i’ve made or lost time on Neil as I don’t know how much time I spent lost but guess it has to be around 30 mins. I know Neil finished the second half very strong last year so figure I need to make some headway over the next 10 miles.

The next section through Gainsborough woods and into Skelton and Saltburn is very runnable with some good downhill trails where it might be possible to make up a bit of time. I decide I need to push on a bit more and see if I can eat into that lead before we hit the coast. After a few miles I reach Guisborough woods and a potentially tricky navigational section. I’ve studied this part of the route in detail as it was mentioned that it is an area where people got lost in previous years. There is a checkpoint at the end of the tricky section which I reach without difficulty. The next part of the course through the forest is a place to let the legs stride out and make up some time.

Saturday approx 3.30am Slapewath race time approx 10 hours 30 minutes

My knee sends me a warning sign that it is not liking this steep descent, I ignore it and run down to the a main road, crossing it near the deserted Fox and Hounds Pub before ascending around the back of a quarry on the other side. At the top of this ascent is a farm track which runs all the way into Skelton. I run steadily down trying to preserve my knee but notice it feels better running faster so keep the pace up. Passing through the town of Skelton quickly, I follow the trail through a wooded area all the while on the lookout for Neil, still no sign, maybe I haven’t made any progress on him after all. Some of the very steep sections really bother my knee and I am starting to really worry. Upon a moments reflection I decide that worrying about how it might feel hours from now is pointless , at the moment I can still run ok albeit with a bit of pain, but it isn’t affecting my running yet, so I put any other thoughts out of my mind.

Saturday September 25 approx 4am Saltburn 58 Miles covered. Race time approx 11hours

Finally I arrive at Saltburn and make my way down to the seafront where some poor guy has been sitting in a car for god knows how many hours waiting for runners to come along. The town is deserted as you would expect for this time of the morning and the wind is whipping the sea into a frenzy of white-capped waves. The checkpoint is located in a carpark which overlooks all of this and is not a great place to spend a night.

I say hi and he checks me in. As he does I glance at his clipboard and notice that Neil checked in at 4.07. I watch as he writes my arrival time in as 4.11. I’ve made up 21 minutes in the last 10 miles! The race is well and truly back on. The Marshall warns me that the winds are forecasted to INCREASE as I approach Filey, great!

The race follows the cliff top coastal path for the whole 56 miles to Filey. It drops down into various small towns and gullies along the way before regaining the height on the other side. The descents and ascents are on the very steep side and are often very steep wooden stairs built into the gully walls, completely impossible to run down or up. There are plenty of good running trails but also plenty of hills that are just too steep to run with 60+ miles in the legs. It is essential to preserve your legs on the steep ascents and descents so you are able to run as much as possible on the other sections. The key to finishing an ultra quickly is having the ability to be able to run despite having covered 60 or more miles. Even running slowly you’ll cover 6 or more miles an hour ( 9km/hr) whereas as soon as you start walking the speed drops to 4 miles an hour at most. My goal was to run everything that was possible to run. Even the uphills that weren’t ridiculously steep I aimed to be able to use a run/walk strategy, running parts until the effort level increased then walking till I recovered and then commence running again. I was really hoping my knee would let me do that.

Forgetting all about my knee I climb the path south from Saltburn and head along the coastal path. Before long I see a torch light ahead and know it can only be Neil. This is a massive physcological boost and the pain in my knee dwindles to almost nothing. I make time on him quickly and as I reach him he stops to let me go through, he knows I’m running faster than him and lets me go on my way without trying to stay with me. I turn around every now and then to see where he is and find that the distance between the two of us is slowly increasing.

Despite what it might sound like my goal isn’t to win races, merely to get the best performance out of myself on the day(s) that is possible, I’m enough of a realist to know that there are plenty of better runners out there than me to not get carried away with myself. In this race in knew that if I had a good day I’d be competitive at the front end of the field but I’d rather come third and put in a great performance than come 1st with a substandard one. Having said that I’ll use whatever I can to motivate me to push myself as hard as possible and having Neil to race against was certainly helping me push myself along. Neil was obviously going through a bad patch when I was going through a good patch. I know in races this long that can change very quickly.

Saturday Skinningrove approx 5am 60 miles covered Race time approx 12 hours

I reached the first little town of Skinningrove , passing through it around 5 in the morning, the sea battering the jetty and winds whipping the sea into a frenzy, it was a deserted and forlorn little place. I notice my knee doesn’t like running on the flat road through the town ( I say town but it must have had half a dozen houses at most and a collection of fishing boats). The flat road means that every step loads my knee in the same way as opposed to the trails where every step is slightly different. Fortunately there isn’t much flat road for the next 50 miles!.

I continue on up out of Skinningrove and along the path, the sun is making an attempt to rise which is very welcome. It doesn’t bring any warmth but does mean I can take my head torch of. Progress is slow as there is much ascent and seemingly little descent, some of the ascent is runnable and I push on whenever possible. I’ve realised that a very slow run is significantly quicker than a walk except for very steep or long ascents. So I try and keep a shuffle going uphill for as long as possible. I pass through the town of Staithes, so pretty in the summer sun of my recce, now it is a windy cold deserted fishing village.

I feel like I am the only person alive at times, the whole world is asleep, and in conditions like this who could blame them. It is a very surreal feeling running as the sun rises knowing that you’ve run throughout the whole night. Seeing and feeling the gradual changes that occur as the earth spins around it’s axis you gain a different viewpoint of day and night. Normally night brings the end of the day, you sleep and wake up and it is a new day. Running throughout the night doesn’t give you that break between days, one day rolls into the next and you are still running, the earth is still turning, nothing has changed. You begin to lose a sense for what it feels like not to run, as if your life started when you started running , nothing before existed, there was only you, running and with so long to go all you can see in the future is you, running. I almost feel like the earth is a giant treadmill and I am an insignificant ant on its surface trying to keep up, when I jumped on this treadmill and when I can jump off nobody knows.

Saturday approx 7am Runswick Bay 70 miles covered , Race time approx 14 hours

The next checkpoint is at Runswick Bay and I leave the cliff top to ascend to a road where the checkpoint is located. The marshalls there inform me that the sea is looking at little rough and the beach may not be passable. The route goes along the beach for a short section before heading up through a small break in the cliffs. I run down to the beach to see the sea in a white water frenzy crashing heavily against the cliffs. If my life depended on getting through I think I could have made it but the thought of getting saturated by freezing cold seawater and then running another 44miles didn’t appeal to me at all. Upon discussion with the marshalls it was decided that I will wait until the tide turns and it is safe to cross. The race instructions did mention that this was a possibility , I just didn’t think it would actually happen.

Around 20 minutes later Neil appears and being a local he decided instead of waiting he’d try and find a way through. I wasn’t keen and neither were the marshalls so I remained in the car whilst Neil pushed on ahead. The time I would spend in the car would be deducted from my race time anyway. Every half an hour we check the tide until finally 1 hour and 40 minutes later it looks safe to go. Now you might think that the situation is now in my favour – a nice rest doing me the world of good. Nothing could be further from the truth. I was now very cold, even standing outside the car for a minute reduced me to a shivering wreck. The marshalls had in their kindness switched the car on to turn the heaters on to warm me up. I had enough warm clothes to stay warm when running but sitting around doing nothing is different. I gingerly set off along the beach and immediately noticed my other knee ( the right one) is very sore. Thats the other problem of sitting cramped up in a car for that long , everything starts to seize up. I try to run a bit then the pain gets too much and I walk again hoping that it will improve as I warm up again.

I make my way past the cliffs and head up the small break in the cliffs ascending via the staircase before resuming the cliff top path. Running is possible but it really does hurt, the left knee seems the least of my worries now. Once again I try not to think how this will feel after another 44 miles. It’s 9 miles to the second major checkpoint at Whitby. I resolve to get myself there and hope that the knee pain will have settled down a bit so I can run the remaining 35 miles to the finish. By alternating running with walking 5-10 strides I find I can keep the pain to a manageable level without losing much time. This strategy keeps me going to Sandsend. From Sandsend the route follows the road for a mile and a half before turning off and heading along the cliff top walk into Whitby. I am running along the road up a slight incline feeling pretty ordinary, it’s the worst I have felt the entire race. I know it’s just a low point and I will eventually feel better but that doesn’t make me feel any better now. I feel like I am running on the spot.

Just at this moment a car pulls up beside me, I look to my right and there is Jon , head out the window telling me I am looking great. It couldn’t come at a better time. I know Jon’s probably just saying that, I probably do look like shit but praise is one of those things that no matter how unlikely the compliment is it still makes you feel better. I reason that Jon is an ultra runner himself and if he says I am looking good I cant be doing too bad. I continue on running a little bit extra before the pain in my knee forces me to walk again. The walking breaks are literally only seconds long, just enough to relieve my mind from dealing with the pain.

My legs (apart from my knees) are still keen to run which is great after having covered more than 70 miles, so my mind is having this internal dialogue – just keep running – but it hurts – just keep running – but it really hurts – just keep running – but it really hurts and I’m making you walk – no you aren’t lets get running again- but it hurts – just keep running etc etc

I make my way along the cliff top path into Whitby central hoping that the swing bridge that allows you to cross from one side of Whitby to the other is not up. It happens every half an hour when the tide is in to allow fishing boats access to the upper harbour. If it’s down I lose time standing around waiting for it to open again. I’m in luck, the bridge is down allowing me to cross over then ascend the 199 steps to Whitby Abbey. Jon meets me at the top of the steps and guides me in to the checkpoint in the Youth Hostel.

Saturday approx 10.30am, 79 miles covered, race time approx 16 hours

I discover Neil passed through about an hour ago – which means I’ve made up around 40 minutes in the last 9 miles, despite feeling horrible. It is a comforting thought. I am ahead in the race but because Neil didn’t wait at the checkpoint he is ahead on the road. The first thing I ask Jon for is pain killers , I normally carry some nurofen with me for just this sort of thing but somehow forgot this time. He hands me a packet of prescription strength codeine , fantastic! With any luck this will deaden the knee pain and I’ll be back in business. My drop bag contains a bottle of Coke which I throw down in an effort to boost my flagging energy levels. That stop at Runswick bay really didn’t do me any favours at all. I don’t rush at the checkpoint, grateful to be out of the cold and wind for a few minutes and spend the time composing myself, getting my head back together after the last 9 horrible miles and get focussed on the remaining 35 to the finish. With the coke finished it is time to go and I set of again with renewed determination to finish in a good time. I was hoping for under 24 hours but with these conditions and losing 30 minutes getting lost I’m not so sure anymore. All I can do is my best I think and decide not to try any time calculations until I reach Scarborough approx 14 miles from the finish.

It is 11 miles to the next checkpoint at Ravenscar, I set off in hope that the pain killers will kick in and I’ll be able to run without having to stop every half a mile or so and walk a few strides. Gradually I notice that I am running both faster and for longer before my knee starts to bother me. It still hurts make no mistake but its a pain that you can ignore without it consuming you. My mood starts to pick up and I feel like I’m making good time for several miles. Every now and then the knee yells at me and I have to walk a few strides but it is happening less frequently and is not slowing me down much. The left knee is competing with the right knee for attention and I cant decide which is worse. Neither is enough to stop me running , yet but with over 30 miles to go I’m still worried if they’ll hold out till the finish.

The weather is still very windy and but that has meant that the frequent showers come and go quite quickly. It is still very cold and I’m still wearing five layers, I occasionally take 1 beanie off and in a few rare moments both only for the wind to pick up again necessitating putting both back on again.

I arrive at Robin Hoods Bay and head down the 30 degree decline down to the sea, it is far to steep for my left knee to cope with ( my right knee doesn’t mind it all surprisingly) and I walk the steepest sections wondering what the bemused tourist are thinking of the sight of me.

Saturday approx 12.30 am, Ravenscar, 90 miles covered, Race time approx 18 hours.

Ravenscar is the next checkpoint , I arrive and check in to be told Neil is only a minute ahead of me. Somehow I’ve made up almost an hour in the last 11 miles. It fills me with confidence. I only have 24 miles to go which if I can do in less than 6 hours will get me a sub 24 hour finish.

I set off looking for any sign of Neil in the distance but despite running a fairly steady pace I cant see him. It doesn’t really matter as I know my lead is around an hour and 40 minutes and I figure that I’d have to lose 4 minutes a mile for him to have any chance of catching me.

As long as I can keep running at any kind of pace that wont happen. The focus now is on finishing in a quick a time as possible. The time it took me to calculate this can be measured in miles not minutes! My brain although normally good at maths is struggling after 90 miles of running to think about anything other than running!

The path goes down and up a series of very steep stepped descents and ascents that are hell on the knees and the average speed. At the top of one of these I spy Scarborough in the distance, it looks such a long way away yet I know it can only be 6 or 7 miles.

Still no Neil in sight and I wonder if he’s suddenly found a new set of legs. Further along the path I spy a box containing sports drink and various foods just off the path. Looking up I see a red Car parked at the end of a nearby road, it’s Neils sons car. I must have passed Neil somewhere along the trail. All I can guess is he stepped off the path to relieve himself and thats when I passed him.

Scarborough approx 2.30pm 101 miles covered, Race time approx 20 hours.

Finally I descend to the Scarborough foreshore. Its 4 miles around the headland on the main road to reach the final checkpoint. The promenade isn’t that busy , the wet and windy conditions put paid to that but the road around headland is closed off for the Yorkshire Rally. There are people everywhere having a look at the Rally Cars and none of them want to make way for me. It is very frustrating and after the peacefulness of running across the Moors at night or along the coast at dawn it comes as a rude shock. Finally I reach the end and start heading up to the final checkpoint.

The phone rings and it is Jon, wondering where I am. I tell him and he says a few things which I cant hear as the howling wind drowns out the sound. I reach the final checkpoint and the Marshall tells me that Jon told him to tell me “ to run my legs off”. If I had the energy I would have told him that it’s taking all I’ve got just to keep running let alone go any faster.

Its only 14 miles to go and I have around 4 hours to go to break 24 hours. Unfortunately there are more steep descents and ascents to take up valuable time. I make a quick phonecall to Catherine to tell her where I am and start getting a bit emotional. I know I am going to win but I want more than that, I want a fast time. It wont be a race record, the conditions and getting lost put paid to that but anything under 23 hours will be good. Inspired by talking to Jon and Catherine I push the pace for a while as the next section is quite runnable. This comes to an end as I descend an endless series of steps. It’s the last one I think and I gingerly make my way down eventually reaching the bottom. No more steps. I know there will be a climb back up but going up is better than going down.

I know that once I climb back up it wont be long before Filey will come into view. The climb back up is steeper than I remember and goes on for longer than I remember , thankfully it isn’t stairs this time just a very steep path. Upon reaching the top I look for Filey but with no luck, it cant be much further though. I continue climbing past a caravan park noticing that the wind which was very strong has picked up and is starting to make running difficult, every now and then it blows from behind and pushes me along which is great but it is mainly a very strong cross wind.

Jon calls again to ask where I am, I tell him but wonder why he’s calling. Finally the path levels out and I start running again, I remember when I did the recce thinking that the last few miles are very slightly downhill and should make for good running. This is true except where the trail narrows to a single track the wind is so strong that I am blown sideways out of the track and towards a fence, I put my hand out to stop myself falling and just in time realise it is a barb wire fence! A quick stumble and I regain balance and continue on cautiously. I learn to time my running in between the big gusts of wind slowing to a walk when the wind gusts. It’s ok when the track widens as I have a bit of room to play with but on the narrow tracks with barb wire fence it’s not much fun.

Cliff top near Filey , approx 4.20pm approx 110 miles covered, Race Time approx 21 hours 40 minutes

Eventually the fence ends and FIley comes into view. Finally after 110 miles of running I can see my destination. I haven’t dared think about Filey for it has always seemed such a long long way away and the thought of covering that distance is almost too much for the mind to comprehend but now I could see it not that far into the distance. I am inspired and try to pick up the pace without much success it has to be said.

I meet a walker coming along the other way who seems a little surprised to see me. He asks where Neil is, I reply he’s a bit behind, not sure how far though. Obviously a friend of Neils who thought Neil was leading. He is nice enough though – suggesting I run in the fields instead of the trail so I have room to be blown sideways without worrying about being blown over. There are barren fields about a metre or two off the path that make for easier running. I follow his suggestion and although anybody watching me who didn’t know it was windy would think I was drunk with the amount of weaving too and fro I was doing , it did allow me to continue running without having to walk every now and then for fear of being blown over.

I can see the end of the headland now and know that the turn off into Filey can only be half a mile or so away. I see a figure standing on the trail in the distance and as I approach I see it is Jon. He’s come out here and waited for me to get there so he can run the last few miles in with me. I am thrilled to see him and give him a big high five. We turn from the cliff and with the wind at our backs head into Filey. I give Catherine a quick call as we run to tell her I am only a few miles from the finish, and then set about enjoying the last few miles with Jon.

It is starting to seem real now, I will finish, I’ll finish in less than 24 hours and I’ll finish first. I hurt all over, both knees are really sore, my legs in general are trashed, even my abdominals are sore from trying to stabilise myself against the wind but you wont find too many happier people around. There are two more lots of stairs to go, bugger I’d forgotten about those. I’m running what feels like a pretty good pace with Jon ( it probably isn’t!) but as soon as we hit the stairs I slow to a crawl. I don’t care anymore the euphoria is starting to overwhelm everything else. Finally we reach the seafront and then turn up the main street.

Ealier that day there was a 10km fun run in Filey and as we run past a family the Mum tells one of the kids to watch out or they’ll be swept up by the 10k runners. I laugh and think “if only you knew”, Jon takes it one step further and goes back and tells them exactly how far I’ve come. I don’t get to see or hear their reaction unfortunately.

I cross the railway line thankful that the boom didn’t suddenly come down and make me wait for a train All that remains is the run up the road to the School Gymnasium where the race finishes. It is a cruel finish as there is no sign of the school until just a hundred yards or so from it and then once at the school you have to run to the far gate to enter the gym but finally I see two figures standing at the entrance, an official and Catherine, I cant control my emotion any more and pump my fists in the air, tears welling up in my eyes. I run past them and then into the Gym where my race is done.

Filey 5.10 pm 114 miles

There are a few people in the gym who applaud me and say congrats. It all seems a bit surreal, Catherine makes it into the gym and I am very happy she is able to share the finish with me. We sit and chat, she has a goody bag of food she’s prepared for me including a home baked banana cake but unfortunately my stomach isn’t up to much. I try a few Pringles and a cup of tea which goes down ok.

Almost as an afterthought I look at my watch and realise I’ve finished in 22hours and 28 minutes. It was a time I thought might be possible in good conditions if I didn’t get lost, to achieve it in atrocious conditions and losing 30 minutes to getting lost I almost don’t believe.

The next morning I find out that of the 29 starters only 11 made it to the finish, last year there were 23 starters and 21 finished. The conditions really took their toll.

I’ve now won two of these types of races both in appalling conditions , particularly for an antipodean who loves the hot conditions, yet it’s not about winning for me. The whole experience is the attraction of it. The moments of sublime natural beauty, the short periods of blissful meditative running, the ability to rise above physical pain and continue to push yourself, the total application of the mind to one all consuming goal, being out in the elements be they good or bad and finding ways to keep going despite them and of course the indescribable joy and emotion of crossing the finish line these are some of the reasons why I do these races.

How is it possible to run that far? It is possible because some people dare believe it is possible. Why would you want to? To have an adventure, to challenge yourself to do something that to many is inconceivable, to enjoy being out in nature and the feeling of being part of it rather than just watching from the outside, to see the sun set and then rise again and knowing that you’ve run the whole time in between, to be able to focus the mind so intensely that it can block out the thought of running another 50,60,70 miles and just focuses on the next mile, the ability to control your body in such a way that you are able to tell it what to do rather than the other way around and for so many other reasons that are so hard to explain.
They say that you experience life the fullest when you live on the edge, for me running an Ultramarathon is my edge!

Whats next? I don’t know but I feel like I’m only scratching the surface of what is possible. I’m looking forward to the next challenge already whatever it may be.

Crunching your way to a weaker core

2010-09-22T17:47:00.003+01:00

New post in my Personal Traing blog on how crunches can weaken your core. Have a read here

Barefoot Running – passing fad, valuable training tool or the only way to run?

2010-09-17T16:16:00.004+01:00

Barefoot Running – passing fad, valuable training tool or the only way to run?
Barefoot running was relatively unheard of until Chris McDougalls book “Born to Run” was published. Since then there has been an exponential increase in the number of runners shedding their shoes and experiencing running without the cushioning and support of shoes. Claims of miraculous cures of long term injuries, regaining the love of running and improved performance have been made from its converts.
The barefoot community is not without it’s critics though. Shoe companies and Podiatrists particularly have been quick to advise that it is not the cure for everything and must be approached with caution.

Understanding a few basic principles will help you decide whether ditching your shoes is a good idea for you.

What does the foot do?

The action of your foot arch collapsing is called pronation, lifting your foot arch back up again is supination. When we land our foot is meant to pronate. It does this to absorb the shock of landing and store energy in the structures of the arch of the foot and Achilles tendon. As we move towards pushing off our arch springs back up (supinating) using the energy it has stored and locks into a stable joint which gives our Achilles tendon and calf muscles a stable base from which to work as we push off the ground. The action of pronating and then supinating is critical to the function of the foot. Problems occur when we do either too much or not enough.

Your feet are also very dense with nerve endings and provide the brain with a large amount of information about what is happening to it when it hits the ground. This then allows the brain to give precise instructions to the other muscles in the body optimising movement. Think about how it feels walking in ski boots – your feet get very little feedback through the boot and therefore you are much less stable as the brain is unsure what is happening. What happens in your feet greatly affects what happens in your knees hips and even lower back. Many knee and hip problems have their origin in the foot.

What controls how much pronation and supination occurs at the foot?

There is an ideal structure to the foot. With this foot type the muscles supporting the foot have the optimal lengths and positions to control the pronation and supination of the foot. Some of us are lucky enough to have an ideal foot, unfortunately many of us aren’t.

Those that aren’t fall into two categories. Feet with a bony structural abnormality and feet that are affected by weak or tight muscles. Since you cant change your bone structure those with this problem will always have to compensate for that. Those with muscular problems may be able to train their muscles to restore proper foot function over time.

How does this relate to running barefoot?

If you have a normal foot then running barefoot will come relatively easy for you and as long as you slowly increase your mileage you should be able to handle it with few problems. Those with muscular problems should be able to run barefoot but will take a lot longer to adapt to it as the body needs time to strengthen the necessary muscles to cope with increased demand on them. Those with bony abnormalities will struggle to run barefoot but given time may be able to partially adapt.

How well your feet can adapt depends on how big the abnormality is and how much demand you place on your feet. If you have a small abnormality and you run 20 miles a week you may adapt quite well, if you have a large abnormality and run 100 miles a week you may never develop sufficient strength to compensate.

What are the benefits of barefoot running?

Barefoot means the foot gains more feedback from the ground which gives the brain more information from which it can determine the muscle activation at the knee and hip joints. This can improve performance and reduce injuries.

Barefoot runners gravitate to a mid to forefoot landing with the foot landing under the pelvis. Whilst there is debate over whether a mid to forefoot or heel strike landing is more effective there is no debate on the fact the foot should land under your pelvis.

Barefoot running improves the flexibility and strength of the foot and ankle muscles. With no support or heel lift from a shoe the muscles of the foot have to go through more of a stretch every time the foot lands and have to work harder to stabilise the foot.

The question is does any of this improve performance or decrease the risk of injury? In the next few years we should start to see some detail research to confirm or deny this but at the moment we don’t know. The initial studies are far from conclusive and both the barefoot and the running shoe groups are claiming it helps support their case.

What are the potential dangers in running barefoot?

If you change anything about the way you run without giving your body time to adapt you run a high risk of suffering an injury. Most of us need to wear in a new pair of shoes, this applies even more so with barefoot, if you do to much too soon you will become injured often trading one set of injuries with another.

The obvious dangers of running barefoot on broken glass etc can be overcome by wearing vibram five fingers or similar. Many people are concerned with running on concrete and you are likely to cause yourself an injury unless you give your body time to build up the natural cushioning in your feet first. Your body has fat pads under your feet specifically designed to cushion the blow of landing but when we wear shoes these pads reduce so you need to give it time to build back up first. Running on dirt paths or grass first before trying concrete gives the foot a chance to adapt.
If you have a bony abnormality it will take a long time for your foot to adapt and it may not be able to adapt well enough to run the mileages you want to run.

Why should I bother at all if there’s no conclusive evidence to support barefoot running?

If you are running such that your foot lands under your pelvis, you rarely suffer injuries and you can wear lightweight racing shoes then you probably don’t have that much to gain. Most of us don’t fall into that category. If by adding one barefoot run a week or doing your warm ups in barefoot you can gain greater foot stability and strength which may allow you to race in lightweight shoes then it could make a big difference. Normal shoes weigh around 350grams so if you run for an hour taking 90 strides per minute it means each leg ends up lifting 1890kg! If you can wear a lightweight racing shoe that weighs 250g then you’ll end up carrying 500kg less.
If running barefoot changes you from a heel striker that lands with your foot forward of your pelvis to someone who lands with foot under your pelvis then you will certainly see an improvement in your times.

How do I know if I have a normal foot , a weak foot or one with a bony abnormality?
If you have a moderate foot arch, wear neutral shoes and suffer very few injuries then your foot structure is probably pretty good. If you have very low arches or high arches then you body has to compensate which can cause injuries. Determining if it is a bony abnormality or a muscle weakness is not easy and involves a detailed foot assessment but in either case you will need to approach barefoot running with caution and slowly build the mileage up.

Can everyone run barefoot?

Certain foot types will have a much harder job coping with the demands of barefoot. For example If your foot pronates excessively then this will place more load on the muscles that are attempting to control the pronation compared to a well functioning foot. Can the muscles adapt eventually? Is it too late after 20+ years of wearing shoes to retrain the foot to cope with running barefoot? If the same person had never worn shoes would they be able to cope with barefoot running?

All of these are unanswered at the moment. It would be interesting to have a look at the feet of people who have been barefoot all their lives compared to those who wear shoes. You cant change what you are born with but if we never wore shoes would our feet adapt. It makes sense that the majority would have to adapt to some degree. The question for those who have worn shoes is, is it too late for some feet to adapt? Hopefully more research will start to give us some answers.

What should you do?

My personal opinion is that barefoot running should be treated as another way of training, just like speed sessions, long slow runs, etc. Use it to improve technique and strengthen the feet and progress very slowly. If you find that you adapt quite quickly then you may consider doing more of your runs barefoot. If you find it is taking a while to get used to then proceed with caution and restrict running barefoot to 1-2 times per week. A recovery run or warm up is the ideal time to run barefoot.
As you adapt to running barefoot you may have a wider range of choice of shoes. If you can handle barefoot then you wont need highly supportive, cushioned running shoes. You can base your running shoe choice on other factors like weight, tread or even looks!

Is running with a hand held water bottle slowing you down?

2010-09-07T21:16:00.006+01:00

On my run today I noticed another runner carrying a water bottle in one hand and an ipod in the other. What struck me about this runner was the total lack of upper body movement as he run, no arm movement, no upper body rotation, nothing.

Once the runner had disappeared from sight I imitated how he ran to see what effect it would have on my running. I found it quite difficult and unnatural to completely immobilise my upper body and the effect on my lower body was dramatic. Immediately my stride length shortened significantly and my pace slowed to a shuffle, I had no push off, no knee lift, all feeling of fluidity disappeared. I felt like a poorly constructed robot.

Try it yourself and see the effect it has. If you run holding a water bottle notice if the arm you hold the water bottle in moves less than your other arm, if it does then it is affecting the way you run making you less efficient and setting up possible biomechanical asymmetries leading to injuries. Get a hip holder for your water bottle or a camel back.

Studies have shown the energy cost of running with a camel back is far less than running with a hand held water bottle.

For those of you who want to know why read on....

Keeping your upper body completely still you effectively turn off your core muscles and significantly reduce the load on your hip flexors and glutes.

Let me explain - as your leading leg travels forward (say right leg) and your left leg goes behind you your arms go the opposite direction - ie right arm goes backwards , left arm goes forward.

So now you have a diagonal stretch from your left hip to your right shoulder. This places a tension on your hip flexors and abdominals. This tension places a load on the muscles, tendons and fascia which when released acts like a rubber band pulling your left leg forward and right arm forward. As you drive the left leg and right arm forward your left arm and right leg travel backwards which loads the opposite diagonal ( right hip to left shoulder) and the cycle continues.

Your gluteal muscles are loaded by the rotation of your pelvis. As your right foot lands your pelvis rotates to the right placing a stretch or load on your right gluteals which when released helps you drive off the right leg.

So the rotation and arm movement of your upper body effectively loads the muscles in your lower body.

Notice that the faster you go the more arm swing you have - sprinters swing their arms a lot more than marathon runners. Sprinters use more force so the greater arm swing place a bigger stretch or tension on their muscles allowing them to generate more force.

Muscles work most effectively when they are placed under a tension first, if you dont do this then then amount of force the muscle can generate is greatly diminished . Take an extreme example - say you want to jump vertically as high as possible. TO load or place the muscles of the hip and leg under tension the first thing you do is squat down which is quickly followed by your vertical jump. Now imagine how high you could jump if you werent allowed to squat down at all - you'd be lucky to make it off the ground.

This is what happens if you dont move your arms when you run - you greatly reduce the force the glutes, hip flexors , core , hamstrings and quads can generate.

A Long Weekend

2010-08-11T15:21:00.004+01:00

When training for an ultra there's always that worry in the back of your mind that you haven't done enough. Your longest run in training is 50km so how the hell are you going to run 180km in a race? It's a very rational fear but running an ultra is not a particularly rational thing to do. I have been feeling good in training but still had a few niggles which seem to come and go quite randomly throughout a run. I was worried that although they might come and go in a 50km run they might come and not go once the distance increased.

A chance to recce the route of the Hardmoors 110 ( it's a 114 mile race along the Cleveland way - used to be 110 but the organiser felt it was a trifle too easy so added another steep hill and 4 miles to it!) came up and I thought it's about time I found out what kind of condition my body is in and see if it can handle a heavy mileage weekend. The plan was to run from Helmsley to Carlton Bank on Friday afternoon a distance of around 30 miles, then to Robin Hoods Bay on Saturday ( 53 miles) and then the remaining 27miles to Filey on Sunday morning and hopefully catch the 12.22 train back to London.

Unfortunately I had to carry all my stuff for weekend as I was by myself and staying in different accommodation each night so not only did I need enough fuel for 3 hard days of running I had to take some dry,clean clothes to wear at night and some toiletries which meant my running backpack was stretched to the brim and weighed a ton. Oh well - all good training!

The weekend went surprisingly well, only missed a few turn offs in the route costing my a couple of extra miles, it only rained heavily twice for around 10 minutes at a time and the sun even came out on the last day. Felt strong all the way to the finish and all the niggle's I was worrying about ended up fine , although picked up a different niggle on the last day - hopefully nothing major though. Scenery was beautiful - easily enough to take my mind of how long I had to go each day!

It took me around 6 hours friday, 12 on saturday and 5 on Sunday. Sunday morning was interesting - the day started with a steep climb which was walked, when I reached the top and it was time to start running again I set off gingerly wondering if the legs would obey but to my surprise they set off on command and maintained it all the way to the end. Kind of like going on a trip with an old car that looks as if it will break down any minute, you are surprised when it starts and even more surprised that it gets you to your destination with no problems at all!

(A niggle for those of you that are wondering is an awareness that something isn't quite right in your body but it's not enough to stop you running - ignore them and you can end up injured , manage them and usually you can continue to train)

Taking a week off this week to recover and hopefully back into training next week - 7 weeks to go till race day!

A Hard Weeks Training

2010-07-25T11:23:00.003+01:00

Well it’s been a while since my last blog. I’ve been very busy trying to get a website up and running which will hopefully be out in a few months.

For a change I thought I’d take my educational hat off and just tell you a bit about my training. I am often asked as to what kind of training I do, how many miles, intensity etc so I thought I’d share a fairly typical week with you. This is week 3 of a 4 week cycle. I base it on a 3 week increasing in mileage program with week 4 an easy recovery week. So for example I may do 50-60 miles (80-96km) in week 1, 70-80 miles(112-128km) miles in week 2, 80-100 ( 128-160km) in week 3 and then drop it down to 30-40 miles ( 48-64km) in week 4. The basic structure of each week is the same but I change the location and interval times to progressively harder each week.

Monday – Barefoot and Running Technique

30 minute barefoot run ( Vibram 5 fingers) including running drills and strides on grass. The barefoot running I’ve been doing for a while but I’ve just started doing the strides as a means of developing running technique and efficiency
Total 3-6 miles ( 5- 10km)

Tuesday – Hill Repeats
6 x 5minute hill repeats with 45 second recovery followed by easy run back down the hill. Total recovery is around 5 minutes. These are run as pretty much all out efforts with the aim of keeping the time consistent. My first repeat is usually the slowest and the next 5 are all within a few seconds of each other
Usually do 30 minute warm up and cool down so total session is 2 hours and around 16 miles ( 26km)
This week's hill was Highgate west hill which is 1km long.

Wednesday – Easy Run
2.5 hour run in Hampstead heath, sticking to trails, very easy pace but very hilly.
19 miles ( 30km)

Thursday – Plyometric and Core training
45 minutes of lunges , jump lunges and dynamic core work
Yoga Class - I try and do this every week but work has a habit of getting in the way and I'm managing about every second week.

Friday – Threshold Session
30 minute warm up followed by 40 minutes hard. An easy 30 minute run ( 15 out and 15 back) brings me back to where I finished the 40 minutes hard. The aim then is to get back to where I started the 40 minutes in less than 40 minutes. The pace for these runs is around 3.50min per km or 6.10 per mile. 30 min run followed by run home completes the session to a nice round 40km

Saturday - Long Hilly Run
This week was 50km in 4 hours 55 with 1600m of ascent descent. Run up and down the west side of the Heath from the athletics track to Jack Straws Castle 10 times. Here's the profile of the run. I try and run the uphills easy as possible and then make use of gravity and run the downhills a bit faster

Total Mileage for the week 144km or 90 miles.

Keep in mind not every week is like that the preceeding two weeks would be less and next week less and I'll only reach this kind of mileage in the 2-3 months before a race. My body cant handle that kind of mileage and intensity week in week out like some. I could of course reduce the intensity and therefore increase the miles but I feel there is more value in keeping the intensity and reducing the miles - even for an ultra runner.

Training in the Heat

2010-07-07T15:45:00.008+01:00

Here's an article on Top Tips for training in the Heat that I wrote for the July edition of Running Free Magazine. It's on page 26.

If the article on core training piques your interest take a look at
this

Barefoot, Shoes, heel strike, midfoot, forefoot , whats right for me?

2010-06-21T19:01:00.006+01:00

There is a lot of discussion about the merits of barefoot vs shoes, heel strike vs forefoot/midfoot going on at the moment and it’s getting very confusing for many people to work out what is right for them.

So with that in mind I’d like to separate the fact from the fiction for you and discuss some of the research out there in plain English so you can make an informed decision on what is best for you.

Before we start talking about barefoot or not there is one thing I want you to remember when you read about various studies proving a certain claim.

Fact: No study or research is 100% true
Although many researchers claim to have proved something the reality doesn’t support this. There is very little that is 100% true.

For example a study may “prove” that running with a certain shoe (or barefoot) improves running economy. Therefore we should all wear this shoe because surely improving running economy means we can run the same speed with less effort and therefore run faster with the same effort.

What you have to realise is this study may have been conducted using treadmills. Running on a treadmill isn’t the same as running on the road or trail or track. The study may have only looked at a 12 week training period so there is no proof that after 6 months or 1 year the effect will still be noticeable. The study may have been conducted on elite runners so there is no proof the same result will occur for age group runners. The study may have been conducted on 25-40 year old men so will the same result hold for women or older men. The participants may have been running 40 miles a week so will runners who run 20 miles or 80 miles a week still see a benefit. Just because running efficiency has improved over a certain time on a treadmill doesn’t mean that race performance in a marathon will result

It is very difficult to design a study to prove anything except under certain conditions . Using the example above we could say that the study shows that runners with runners with a VO2max of 60-70, male ,aged 25-40 ,running 40 miles per week using a certain shoe for a period of 12 weeks will see an improvement in running economy on a treadmill when running for 10 minutes at the fastest pace possible of on average 5%. Thats all it may proves.

That doesn’t mean we ignore it , we add it to all the other studies done and it gradually leads us to form an educated opinion on what may be the best type of training for runners.

With this in mind I have rated the following points as fact, fiction, fact? and fiction?. The question mark indicates there is still some debate going on or it is my opnion only.

So with that out of the way lets look at what people are saying about the barefoot, heel striking fore foot debate.

Fact : We have evolved to run landing on our mid/fore foot depending on the pace.

If we believe the theory of human evolution then it follows that we are designed to run landing on our mid/fore foot. Assuming that running was a necessary activity for humans to do then if running heel first was more efficient then we would have evolved in a way that made more biomechanical sense to land heel first. The foot is designed to absorb the load of running whereas by landing on our heel the shock goes straight into the knees and lower back. There is no argument from anybody that when you run barefoot you will tend towards landing on your mid/fore foot. Shoes have only been around for 40 years so it is very unlikely that we have evolved to run landing heel first. However this only applies to running barefoot, what happens when we run with shoes on may be different.

Fact : Landing on our mid- fore foot places more stress on our calves and less stress on the knees.

Whether we run barefoot or with shoes there is no denying that landing on our mid/forefoot increases the load on our calf muscles and Achilles tendons. These muscles absorb the landing forces instead of the knees

Tip: If you start running barefoot or trying to land more on your forefoot you will need to slowly introduce this to avoid overloading the calf muscles.

Fact: Elite runners all land with their foot under their centre of gravity (i.e hips)
There is some research that shows that 75% of elite runners land heel first (more on this later) but the thing all elite runners have in common is their foot placement is directly under their hips. Landing with your foot in front of your body applies a braking force with every step, placing more load on the whole body particularly the knees.

Fact: Shoes offer more support to the foot.
There is no argument that running shoes offer the foot more support. The argument is whether this is good for the foot or not.

Tip: If you move to a less supportive shoe or to barefoot , significantly reduce your mileage to give your foot muscles time to strengthen up and take over the load that the shoes were absorbing before.

Fiction: Running shoes decrease running injuries
There has been no study that proves running shoes decrease the risk of running injuries . In fact there have been several studies that say the opposite. This is not to say running shoes are the cause of injuries merely that the incidence of running injuries has been shown to be higher with people using more expensive running shoes.

Fiction: All runners should throw away their running shoes and start running barefoot.
The research suggests that running barefoot is the way we have evolved to run and that people who run this way have greater running efficiency and fewer injuries. However there is no proof of this yet. There is a big change on the demand on the body when you start running barefoot and unless you do this slowly to give yourself a chance to build up the necessary strength it is likely you’ll swap one set of injuries for another. Changing your running technique takes a long time and not many people are prepared to reduce their mileage for 3-12 months (or more) in order to give their bodies time to adjust.

Fiction We should ignore all this barefoot, landing on your forefoot talk
There is no doubt we have evolved to run landing on our mid/fore foot. By adding in some barefoot (or minimalist shoe) training you could benefit. The question is how much. The barefoot purists suggest you throw away your running shoes, drop your mileage to about 1 mile three times a week and slowly build back up. Many of us simply aren’t prepared to do this but that doesn’t mean we should ignore it totally. Incorporating some barefoot running as part of a warm up or adding 1 run per week barefoot and slowly building up the mileage is a good way to get some of the benefits of barefoot without dropping the mileage right down. Of course doing it this way the benefits will take longer to become apparent.

Fiction?: Everyone can run barefoot.
It is my belief that not everyone is biomechanically able to run barefoot. In evolutionary terms those whose feet where in such a condition as to prevent them from running properly would have died from lack of food. However we haven’t had to run after our food for many years so some people will have feet that biomechanically wont be able to handle running barefoot. If we didn’t put our feet in shoes from a young age the foot muscles may have developed as we aged but we cant go back and have those years again. We are stuck with where we are at so my belief is there are some people that for whatever reason their feet are in such a condition that it would take many years of barefoot for them to adapt if at all. These people are better of wearing shoes. How do you know if you are one of these people? That is a difficult question and one that needs to be addressed on an individual basis as it depends on how much running you are doing, what your foot problems are and the strength and flexibility of the rest of your body.

Fact? Landing on our mid- forefoot is a more efficient way to run.
If you watch Olympic level athletes on the track almost without exception they land on their forefoot regardless of distance. The situation gets a bit muddier when we start to look at distances longer than 10km. On study showed that 75% of elite half marathoners landed on their heel. This study is often quoted by the anti barefoot camp as it “proves” that the majority of elite runners land heel first. Unfortunately it isn’t that simple. All the study proves is that 75% of elite runners land heel first at the 15km mark ( this is where the video analysis was set up) of a half marathon. What the study didn’t measure was which part of the foot absorb the force of landing. As running shoes have a higher heel than forefoot it is possible that the heel did hit the ground first but the landing impact didn’t occur until the midfoot or forefoot hit the ground. Both sides have been debating this study for a while and until there is a study designed such that elite runners can run over a pressure pad under race conditions the argument will continue.

In the meantime it makes biomechanical sense to land midfoot-forefoot and anybody brought up without shoes runs in this way so it appears to be the way we were designed to run.

Tip: Increase your running cadence to 88-92 steps per minute. Doing this will shorten your stride length in front of you and teach you to land with your foot under your hips.

Fact?: Running barefoot will teach me to run landing on my mid-fore foot.
One of the benefits of barefoot running is the change to a mid/fore foot running style. Thats not to say you cant achieve this with running shoes, just that it happens almost automatically barefoot and requires conscious thought with running shoes.

Fact? Running shoes increase torsion loads in the knees, hips and lower back compared with barefoot running.
A study measured the torsion ( twisting effects) placed on the knee and hip during running and found running shoes place more torsion on the knee and hip. This is an expected result as the foot absorbs a lot of the torsion affect of landing ( as it is designed to do). If the foot is placed in a shoe then it takes away some of the movement of the foot meaning the torsion is transferred up the leg to knee and hip.

Fiction. Highly supportive running shoes are the best shoes to get
Studies have shown that the more expensive the shoe the more likely you are to become injured. The theory is that the more supportive the shoe the less work the foot has to do. Since the foot is the first part of the body to hit the ground it sends a lot of signals to the brain to tell it what is happening. If the foot is encased in a supportive shoe then these signals are distorted so the information the brain uses to activate the rest of the legs muscles is faulty which leads to injuries. There are studies being undertaken to prove or deny this theory at the moment but it makes sense from a biomechanical point of view.

Fiction The less supportive and more natural shoes are the best shoes to get.
A less supportive shoe like Vibram 5 fingers or the vivo barefoot terraplana shoes will offer no support for your feet placing them under a far greater load leading to potential calf problems unless mileage is dramatically reduced and you give your feet time to strengthen.

Summary
Although nothing has really been proven one way or the other there are some things we can base our decisions on.
Running with a heel strike appears to be the least optimal way to run. Research suggests that landing with the mid or forefoot is a more natural and more efficient way to run. Quickening your stride rate or running barefoot promote or more natural landing pattern.
If you want to run barefoot or with minimalist shoes ease into it very slowly or incorporate one or two very short runs per week into your training.

Top Tips on Training for an Ultramarathon

2010-06-07T19:43:00.006+01:00

Here's an article on Training for an Ultramarathon that I wrote for the June edition of Running Free Magazine. It's on page 26.

Does static stretching improve your flexibility?

2010-04-12T18:04:00.015+01:00

A while back I wrote a blog on stretching where I discussed the benefits of dynamic stretching in terms of warm up and injury prevention and the limitations of static stretching.

I have just discovered some new research that further condemns static stretching.

Before I discuss that I want you to think about why we stretch in the first place?

What is the point of stretching?

Most peoples reasons for stretching fall under three different categories. They stretch because they want to improve their flexibility, reduce or prevent injury or reduce post exercise soreness.

As mentioned in the previous blog on stretching there is no research at all that suggests stretching helps reduce post exercise soreness.

That leaves us with increasing flexibility and reducing preventing injury.

What do we mean when we say increase our flexibility? The answer will vary for everyone but in general we want to increase our flexibility so we can move more effectively and efficiently. We tend to notice our lack of flexibility when we go to pick something up off the floor or duck under something or twist around to reach for an object. Essentially we want to have more flexibility when we move.

Stretching to prevent injury is probably the number one reason for stretching. Often injuries can be caused a muscle becoming so tight that it starts to strain or tear.Other times a tight muscle can place strain on other muscles overloading them causing an injury. Either way if we can maintain or improve our range of movement when we move we can prevent either scenario from occurring.

Improving active range of movement is the primary motivation for most people to stretch.

What other range of movement is there you might ask?

Active and Passive range of movement

The opposite to active range of movement is passive. Passive range of movement is the range of movement you have when somebody or something is helping you create the movement. For example if you are lying on your back and you use your hands to try and lift one leg up off the ground as much as possible that is passive range. If you stand on 1 leg a kick your leg up as high as possible that is active range.

Unfortunately the two dont correspond. Your active range of movement can be far less than you passive range of movement as a study published in the Journal of Sport Rehabilitation, 18(4), November 2009 discovered.

The study measured the effect that static stretching of the calf had on the range of ankle dorsiflexion during walking. Dorsiflexion is what happens in your ankle when you stretch your calves.

The study compared two groups , one that stretched their calves regularly over a three week period and another did no stretching. At the end of the three week period the group that stretched their calves had no more dorsiflexion when they walked than the group than the group that didn't. They did improve their passive range of movement however.

So static stretching has no benefit if we want to improve the range of movement of a joint when we move. Obviously we can only infer from this study that a 3 week calf stretching program has no effect on dynamic flexibility of the calf muscle, it may have been different if they stretched for more than 3 weeks and other muscles may act differently but if it takes more than 3 weeks to produce ANY improvement in a active joint range of movement then it could take a very long time to see an appreciable difference.

So if static stretching has no effect on active range of movement what does?

You may also be asking yourself why if your passive range of movement increases doesnt your active range increase as well.

The answer to the first question is relatively straightforward. Dynamic stretching is not only a far better way to warm up compared with static stretching it is also a far better way to improve active range of movement.

As to why passive range doesnt equal active range, it comes down to safety. The body wont give you an increased range of movement unless it is confident it can control that increased range. In much the same way as the bigger the engine in a car the better the brakes need to be. The body will only give you whatever range of movement it feels it can control without risk of injury. To increase that range we need to give the body the strength to control that additional range. This is why dynamic stretching is so much more effective, dynamic stretches teach the body to both increase the range of movement and give it the strength to control the movement

Is static stretching a waste of time?

There are some situations where static stretching may still be useful. Recovering from injury is one. When muscles tear the body lays down scar tissue to repair the damage. This scar tissue is not laid down in the same direction as the muscle fibres and needs to be be gently stretched to reallign it with the muscle fibres.Static stretching is good for this but must be followed by a dynamic stretching program before returning to full function

Top Tips for fuelling on the run

2010-03-12T17:22:00.003Z

Here's a link to an article on top tip for fuelling on the run which I wrote for the March edition of Running Free Magazine. It's on page 26.

Ten Good Habits to get into to improve your running

2010-01-03T10:56:00.004Z

Here's a link to an article on ten good habits to get into this year to improve your running that I wrote for the January edition of Running Free Magazine. It's on page 26.

Running Free Magazine Article - Recovering From Injury

2010-01-02T19:23:00.007Z

Here's a link to an article on Ten Tips for Recovering From Injury that I wrote for the December ediion of Running Free Magazine. It's on page 26.

Plank or Crunches , which is the best core exercise for runners?

2009-12-08T14:55:00.014Z

It’s been a while since my last blog but I’ve got a very topical one for you today. It’s long but take your time and read through it because if you want to learn how to strengthen your core specifically for running you’ll find the answers. Some of you may disagree with me as I challenge some conventional beliefs but this is all derived from applied functional science and is the work of far greater minds than mine.

There has been a lot of importance placed on strengthening the core over the last 5-10 years and a strong core is now seen as a prerequisite for optimal performance. Despite the increased awareness there is lack of real knowledge as to what the core is, what it does and most importantly how to train it.

What is the core?

We often think of the core as simply our abdominal muscles but there is a lot more involved. All the muscles that attach to the pelvis, the abdominals , the spinal muscles, pelvic floor muscles , deep hip muscles, scapula and shoulder girdle muscles make up what we refer to as the core. These muscles are not one big group of muscles that all activate as “the core”. They act depending on the load placed on them.

What does the core do?

The core is responsible for providing the legs and arms a strong platform from which to work. Think of your arms or legs as the arm of a crane and your core as the cranes base. If the base is unstable then the lifting capacity of the crane will be affected.

How do we train it?

There are literally hundreds of different exercises that are claimed to strengthen the core. The problem is that some of them don’t train the core at all and many of them only train the core to be stronger in one particular position. This may or may not be helpful depending on what you need a strong core for.
In our case we are looking at increasing our core strength for when we run. The type of strength required in the core by an Olympic weight lifter, a rugby player, a rower and a runner is going to differ greatly. So it makes sense that certain exercises would suit one sport but not others. Surely if the demands on the core are so different then there should be different core exercises for each particular sport? Why then are core exercises like the plank universally prescribed no matter what the sport?

This would be like saying if you want to improve your running you should do 800m intervals. This might be great for middle distance runners but is of little relevance for rugby players or tennis players. Specific training for specific sports is a concept that all coaches follow but seem to ignore when it comes to core training.

How do we switch our core on and why has ours switched off.

Muscles are “switched on” when the resting tension in a muscle increases. Effective muscle function involves a loading action just as you would load a rubber band by stretching it before releasing it. The more force put through the muscle in the loading phase the more force the muscles can produce. Think of what happens when you want to jump. Your first action is to squat down to load the muscles before you spring back up. The higher you wanted to jump the lower you would go and the faster your movement would be.

Core muscles work the same way. If they are put under load they will switch on. If there is no change in tension then there is no reason for them to activate. No movement equals no demand on the core, so sitting at a desk all day is a great way to switch off our core muscles!

How do we put the core muscle under load?

To put a muscle under load we need to place it under tension. The best way to do that is to take it through a dynamic stretch. For example if you are playing tennis and you want to play a forehand shot, your first action is to rotate your body backwards, this places the oblique abdominal muscles under tension so they can spring back and rotate your body forwards providing the power for your forehand shot.

How does this relate to running?

In running the core muscles are switched on by the loads placed on it by the legs and arms. As your right foot lands your left leg is behind you and your right arm behind you. This places a diagonal load or tension from your left leg to your right arm through your core which “activates” the core muscles.

The gains from any particular exercises are specific to the load, speed, joint position and energy system.

What this means is if we train our legs for example on a leg press machine then the strength we gain will be help us whenever we are lying on our backs pushing a weight away from us with our legs. Whilst this may be of use for a rower it isn’t of any use at all to a runner. The best exercises for a runner will involve standing or landing on 1 leg with the other leg behind us.

Because of this if we want a core exercise that will help us to run better then we need to look at exercises that use the arms and legs to place a load on the core that is similar to the load we experience when we run.

So enough of this theory which exercise is best – crunches or plank?

Hopefully you can now start to realise that neither exercise is very good at all. Crunches involve you lying on your back and lifting your upper body up against gravity. The plank involves supporting your body weight against gravity whilst resting on your arms and legs.

When we run the biggest movement of our torso is rotation which is driven by our arms and legs. Why then, do all the core exercises we do involve very little or no rotation? If thats what our torso does when we run surely we need to train our core to be better at that movement as that is what happens when we run.

So neither are very good – surely they cant hurt?

Unfortunately not only are these exercises not relevant for runners they will actually make the core WEAKER! Performing lots of crunches will tighten the front abdominal muscles creating a more hunched over posture which will reduce the amount of movement in your middle back which will reduce the load on your rotational and lateral core muscles making them weaker.

The plank is an exercise in which people need to use their rectus abdominus (six pack) muscles to stop their back from arching. This overloads the muscle to the detriment of the more internal muscles of the core. You end up with a strong six pack but completely dysfunctional core. Great if you want to lie on a beach and do nothing but not much good for running.

But I really feel my core work when I do these exercises

Unfortunately you are feeling your rectus abdominus work which makes up a very small part of the core. The problem is that this muscle is often recruited by the body at the expense of the other core muscles. So it gets stronger and the other muscles due to lack of work become weaker.

So what exercises are good for the core?

Exercises that involve standing up, preferably with one foot in front of the other and then using the arms or legs to place the core under load are the most beneficial for runners.

What does that mean?

For example standing in a lunge position and then holding a medicine ball and rotating arms from left to right, either at chest height or starting at knee height and rotating around to shoulder height or vice versa. See the end of this article for a video to show you how it's done.

Why should you believe me when everyone else is saying the plank is a great exercise?

Good question.

There is a universal law of training that every exercise professional will agree with.

The law of specific adaptation to imposed demand.

What this means is the strength gained from an exercise is specific to the load, joint position, speed of movement, energy system and range of the movement of that exercise.

When you think about that it makes intuitive sense. We all understand that even though bike riding and running both use our legs if we want to run faster then bike riding is a poor choice compared with running. Ok, there is some benefit as your heart and lungs have to work in both but obviously running would be a better way to use your time. The action of the legs is different in riding a bike compared to running. Take Lance Armstrong – surely the fittest man to ever ride a bike. When he did the New York Marathon he just broke 3 hours, a time that many decent club runners can achieve.

Imagine if all the exercise professionals were saying that the best exercise to help runners in the gym is to ride a bike. You’d be thinking surely there must be something a bit more useful than that. Yet this is exactly what is happening with the core.

The strength gained in the abdominals by performing the plank is applicable when the body needs to support its weight against gravity with both hands and feet on the ground and needs to hold that contraction for a period of time. This makes it an ideal exercise to strengthen your abdominals for when you do push ups but it bears no relation at all to the strength you need in your abdominals when you run.

Let’s analyse what happens to our core when we run. Our feet land 90 times a minute and every time we land our spine and pelvis undergo a rotational stress (among others) which our core must control.

So an exercise that has one leg forward, one leg back and involves rotating our body rapidly would closely resemble what happens when we run. If we hold a medicine ball with our arms to add some resistance then that load will be greater than when we run. The body will adapt this and find it easier to control that rotation when we run in future.

There are some variations of a plank that involve lifting a leg and or arm of the ground and apply different stresses to the core and these are certainly an improvement. But thats like saying riding a bike standing up is better for helping runners. Yes it probably is but it’s still no where near as good as running.

I hear you still asking “Surely it can’t hurt, there must be some benefit?”

Well maybe, maybe not. If you are overloading the already strong muscles in your core and teaching them to hold a static position then it is certainly not going to help the weaker muscles of the core learn to contract and relax 90 times a minute when you run. The more the stronger muscles work the less the weaker muscles have to do so the weaker they become. Net result: weaker core for running.

If you want to do an exercise to help your running it must place a similar load on it that running does and in a similar position.

Give up the crunch and the plank and try these three running specific core exercises.

1. Lunge position with rotation

a. Holding a weight with both arms rotate your arms around horizontally
b. Rotating from a waist high position to a shoulder high position

2. Lunge position with sideways overhead reach

Holding a weight overhead with both arms reach to one side as far as possible and then the other side

3. Lunge position with overhead reach

Holding weight with both arms swing arms upwards over head.

See the video below for a demonstration of these exercises.

These exercises are designed for people with no injury problems so if you have any please seek advice before attempting these.

For those of you that read my blog on resistance training for runners you will recognise that these exercises sound very familiar. The only difference is that instead of lunging forward with the legs the legs remain fixed. This puts the emphasis less on the legs and more on the core.

There are many other exercises that work the core and for my clients I design specific ones based on their requirements and their specific strengths and weaknesses but these ones are great exercises to train the core in three different planes of motion.

But I don’t feel my core as much as when I do the plank!

You may not but what is the purpose of the exercise – to feel your abdominals work or strengthen them so they are stronger for running? Feeling something work is irrelevant particularly if its the wrong muscle! The muscles of the core only need to activate at around 10-15% of their maximum strength to provide adequate support to the body. The idea is they can continue to maintain this level of activation for a long period of time. Much like an endurance runner can run for a long period of time but not as fast as a sprinter. As runners we need to train our core to have enough endurance to support us throughout our races. For this reason your core exercises should be done at a lower intensity but longer duration.
.

Should you do your long runs without sports drink?

2009-11-05T17:23:00.006Z

Does training in a fasted state without using sports drinks or gels improve endurance performance?

I am often asked if sports drinks and gels are worthwhile. Are they necessary on a long run? Running on an empty stomach has got to improve the ability of the body to burn fat doesn't it?

The research from a number of studies on this is fairly conclusive.

The good news

Training on an empty stomach without additional carbohydrates WILL increase fat oxidation.

The bad news

If however before your race you have a pre-race meal and drink sports drink or consume gels or bars during the race then your ability to oxidise fat is no better than someone who drank sports drink during their training runs.

More bad news

Training in a fasted state and without consuming additional carbohydrate's means you won't be able to run as fast in training. To break down fat you require more oxygen and it takes longer to break down so therefore you have to run slower. Admittedly your pace will improve as your body becomes more efficient at breaking down fat but you would still be able to run faster using sports drink or at least having breakfast.

Your training should reflect your race

Your body adapts to the specific demands placed on it in training. So if your race involves competing on an empty stomach with no possibility of additional carbohydrates then training in a fasted state is very beneficial. If your race allows you to have some form of breakfast and has the means of providing you with sports drinks, gels or other food during the race why would you train to become more efficient at not having this?

What about if I run out of energy between aid stations? Will training fasted help then?

If you start to run low in energy and it's a few miles till the next aid station to top up your supplies will all that training in a fasted state help you know? I wasn't able to find any studies at all on this scenario and it's quite possible that it may help. But if this happens it means you didn't plan your nutrition very well during the race and you'd be better off giving more thought to organising your nutritional strategy.

Surely it can't hurt to run in a fasted state?

Remember that running in a fasted state means you have to run slower than if you consumed carbohydrates. All of us instinctively know this which is why we'd never fast before a big race and avoid sports drinks and gels during the race (I'm sure there are some notable exceptions to the rule but thats all they are – exceptions).

So lets say you can run your long run of say 20 miles at 9 min mile pace in a fasted state and when you have breakfast and have gels you can manage 8.45 min miles . Assuming you did this long run each weekend for around 3 months before your race. That means you would have run 260 miles of long runs. So you've run 260 miles at a pace 15 seconds per mile slower than you could have run if you'd consumed carbohydrates. Thats a lot of miles running at a slower pace. Yes your long run is meant to be easy but running at 8.45 min mile would feel no harder than running 9 min miles if you've eaten.

Of course this is a made up example and there are no studies I've seen that prove there is this much difference between the two but the fact is you cannot run as fast in a fasted state compared with ingesting a steady stream of carbohydrates.

What about if I need to drop a few pounds to reach optimal race weight?

Exercising at a low intensity for a long period of time is sometimes recommended to lose fat as it burns the biggest percentage of energy from your fat stores. Percentages don't really matter though as the overall energy cost is low so a large percentage of a low amount doesn't add up to much.

What is important is what is going to boost your metabolism. Since you can only exercise for so many hours per week surely it makes more sense to see if you can boost your metabolism during the hours you are not exercising. Even if you exercise for 2 hours a day that still leaves 22 hours a day you aren't.

Best way to boost your metabolism?

High intensity interval training is a proven way to not only boost your metabolism but also improve your endurance . Interval training improves lactate tolerance, increases aerobic endurance, boosts your metabolism and increases running efficiency. It should be a part of every runners routine.

The Verdict

Many years ago it was thought that you could train yourself to cope without water during a run by practising not drinking in training. That has long since been disregarded. Now we've moved to practising not drinking sports drinks. Hopefully people will realise that their training and consequently their racing would be much improved if they had a small breakfast and consumed some carbohydrates during their long run.

People will argue that they have never had sports drink and they run a very fast marathon and in fact Haile Gebrselassie apparently drank nothing but water in one of his marathons. Just because someone can perform well without sports drink doesn't mean they cant perform better with sports drink! In Gebrselassie's case an elite athlete can store enough carbohydrates for around 2 hours of running at around 85% of maximum heart rate. Running a marathon in 2 hours and 4 minutes allows him to get away with only drinking water. The rest of us aren't so lucky!

Now as far as the type of sports drink and the amount to consume well thats another question all together. Not all sports drinks and gels are the same. I'll cover this topic in another blog.

Running Free Magazine November

2009-11-04T14:33:00.008Z

Here's a link to an article on Ten Tips for Strength Training for Runners that I wrote for Running Free Magazine. It's on page 30.

Running Free Magazine October 2009

2009-10-15T20:54:00.007+01:00

Here's a link to download an article on Ten Tips to staying injury free that I wrote for Running Free Magazine. It's on page 40.

Resistance Training For runners Part 2

2009-09-22T16:40:00.008+01:00

Hopefully you've read part 1 and are ready to take your training to the next level. This article gets a bit technical at the start whilst it explains a few important concepts but will leave you with a few ideas of how to change your exercise routine to give you the greatest benefit to your running.

Before I go on any further I just want to clarify that both part 1 and part 2 of these articles is referring to the general conditioning of runners. The aim is to make you a better runner. If you want stronger legs for squatting or bike riding or anything else then this article isn't for you. I am presuming running is something you do as a habit and that you don't have any injuries that affect your running.

If you have any injuries please see the article here

Most of us think of running as primarily a straight line orientated activity so we perform exercises like lunges in a straight line. Although the net result of all our body's efforts is forward movement, each individual joint in the body actually goes through movement in 3 different directions at the same time. Now I appreciate this may not make a lot of sense at first but stay with me and I'll try and explain. There are three important principles to get your head around. The first one is that every joint moves in three different planes of motion at the same time. The second is that we need the strength to control that motion in all three planes and finally; the movement or strength, or the lack of movement or strength at a particular joint will affect every other joint in the body.

Every joint moves in three different planes of motion at the same time.

Each and every joint in our body can move in 3 different planes and therefore 6 different directions. If we analyse the hip joint for example you can easily see that you have the ability to swing your thigh forward and back, (for the technically minded this is known as the sagittal plane) side to side ( frontal plane) and turn your thigh in and turn your thigh out ( transverse plane). So we have three different planes and within each plane we can move in two opposite directions.

When we run our hips moves in three different directions. When we land on our right foot our right thigh has swung forward – direction 1. The action of our foot landing causes our foot to pronate ( roll in), this causes the lower leg to rotate inwards which in turn causes the upper thigh to rotate in – direction 2. The pronation of the foot also means the knee travels inwards which causes the thigh to move inwards. So the upper thigh has moved in three different directions at the same time! How much movement we have and how well we control it greatly affects the way we run.

The amount of movement that occurs in each of these directions is dependant on how flexible we are and how strong we are. Some people lack the flexibility, other people are very flexible but lack the strength to control that flexibility. Someone who runs with knock knees often cant control the inwards rotation of the thigh properly and people whose knees turn out when they run typically lack flexibility in the sideways movement of the thigh.

This 3 dimensional movement occurs not only at the hips but also at the knees, feet, ankles, spine and shoulder joints. Some joints will have a very small range of movement but just because they don't move much doesn't mean that it's not important. The brake pads on a push-bike only move a few millimetres but if they don't move then you are in real trouble!

The body often tries to make up for a lack of movement in one direction by obtaining the missing movement in one of the other directions. For example you often notice runners whose feet turn out as they push off. This can be because their calf muscles don't give the ankle enough forward movement so the body gets that missing movement by making the foot turn out more.

Determining whether you have too much movement or not enough is beyond the scope of this article but what I hope to give you is some exercises that develop both strength and flexibility. Someone who specialises in assessing the functional movements of the body will be able to determine your specific strengths and weaknesses. (Contact me for more information)

We need the strength to control this three dimensional movement

The range of movement is only one part of the equation. The strength to control that movement is just as important. If we lack this strength then the joint can go through too much movement and the energy which is stored in the muscle is lost. Much like pulling a rubber band back too far and breaking it. This doesn't mean we will tear a muscle ( although that can happen), it means all the energy that was being stored in the muscle is lost so it is much harder to propel ourselves forward. Using the rubber band analogy if you break the rubber band the only way for it to travel forward is for you to throw it which obviously uses up much more energy than just flinging it forward if it hadn't broken.

The ability to load in three different planes and then explode out of that position is how muscles work most effectively. If the resistance training exercises you perform don't load the joints in all three directions then you are not training the muscles efficiently.

The key to a good resistance training program is to make the exercises harder than the task we are training for , in this case running. When we perform a lunge for example we often use a weight to increase the load and we take our knees and hips through a greater range of movement than when we run. This is great for the forwards and backwards motion of our joints but we've completely ignored the sideways motion and the rotational motion. By modifying a lunge to include components of the sideways movement and rotational movement we can create a much more effective exercise. The same can be done for jump lunges, jumps, hops etc.

The movement or strength or lack of movement or strength at a particular joint will affect every other joint in the body.

Most of you will remember the song “ the foot bone is connected to the ankle bone ...”. This idea that everything is connected all the way from the foot to the head is a concept that has been ignored until recently. Latest research shows that what happens at the foot can have a dramatic effect on what happens at the knee, hip, spine and even shoulder.

To give you some example of this try standing up and getting a sense of awareness of what kind of curve you have in your lower back. Now turn your feet so your toes point towards each other as much as possible and notice how your lower back feels. Next turn your toes out as much as possible and again notice how your lower back feels. What you probably noticed is that when your toes pointed in the curve in your lower back increased and when they turned out the curve flattened. Even if you didn't notice this you will have seen that when your toes pointed in your knees pointed in and your upper thighs pointed inwards and vice versa when your toes pointed out. Remember I didn't ask you to move your back or knees or thighs, just your feet.

Hopefully you can see that just by moving our feet we can effect the curve in our lower back. What you may not have noticed is that if the curve of your lower back changed then the curve in your upper back will have changed also. If the curve in your upper back changed then the way your shoulder blades connect with your upper back will have changed. This will have affected how the muscles that connect your arms to your shoulder blade act. So just by changing your foot position you have affected how your arms work!

By training only one part of the body in isolation to the rest of the body we ignore the effect the rest of the body has on that joint. By sitting on a machine lifting our legs we ignore the effect the movements of the feet and pelvis have on the activation of the hip, thigh and pelvic muscles.

Training for running must involve the use of the feet, knees, hips, pelvis and arms at the same time to activate the leg, hip, core, shoulder, back and arm muscles most effectively.

The Exercises

Okay enough theory, hope that made sense and you understand the basic principles. Here are some ways to load the body in all three dimensions that relate to running.

Taking the basic lunge and then adding in different arm movements we can load the body in each of the three planes.

Forward and back Plane ( Sagittal)

1. Lunge forward and with both arms reach towards the ground in front of your foot, touching the ground if you can.

2. Lunge forward and with both arms reach back over and behind your head.

Sideways Plane ( Frontal)

Place both arms in the air above your head.

1. Lunge forward and lean to one side, reaching your arms sideways

2. Lunge forward and lean to the other side , reaching your arms sideways

Rotational Plane ( Transverse)

Hold both arms out in front of you at shoulder height.

1. Lunge forward and swing your arms over your front leg

2. Lunge forward and swing your arms away from your front leg.

Training Tips

Each of these different arm movements will load the joints and muscles of the body in different ways. If you find one particular movement more difficult than the others then it most likely indicates your body doesn't like that movement because it lacks either the strength or flexibility to perform it well. Meaning thats the one you should do more than the others.

If you find a difference between left and right your first priority is to achieve equality between left and right.

Once you have this then you can start to add load to the exercises by holding a weight or medicine ball in your hands.

The speed of the movement will affect the difficulty. If any of you remember your high school physics you'll remember Force = mass x acceleration. So if we have a low mass ( light weight) but move it quickly ( high acceleration) then we will have a high force applied to our joints. We can also achieve the same thing by using a heavy mass and slow acceleration but which one do you think is more applicable to running?

As far as sets and repetitions go I would suggest starting of with around 5-10reps and 1-2 sets of each different movement. As you get used to the movements you can increase the reps to increase your endurance or weight to increase strength. Which one depends on what you goal is. If you are an ultrarunner then obviously endurance is the priority, if you are trying to improve your 5k time then strength may be of some benefit.

You can add these arm movements into any of the legs exercises listed in part 1 of this article.

If those descriptions don't quite make sense I will endeavor to put a link on to youtube with a video of me doing them so you can see what it looks like.

Running Free Magazine September 2009

2009-09-09T15:07:00.017+01:00

Here's a link to download an article on Ten Tips to Running Faster that I wrote for Running Free Magazine. It's on page 40.

Resistance training for runners Part 1.

2009-08-26T20:25:00.005+01:00

If you are looking for a simple list of the best exercises that you should do then stop reading now. If you want to understand in more detail the loads the legs are placed under when we run and how different exercises have different affects on the body and through that learn the types of exercises that will best improve your running performance then read on.

Resistance training for runners can have many benefits. Increased leg strength and endurance means our legs can tolerate more load ( running either faster or for longer), tolerate the demands of running downhill more effectively, increase power to run uphills, decrease our risk of injuries, strengthen our tendons and ligaments and improve our running efficiency to name a few.

To get the most out of resistance training the exercises performed should place the body under similar loads as running does. One of the key principles to resistance training is the SAID principle. - Specific Adaptation to Imposed Demands. What this means is the body will adapt to whatever training load ( imposed demand) you put on it by becoming more efficient at performing that particular task (specific adaptation). Each exercise we perform in the gym involves a complex series of muscular contractions throughout the whole body. Every exercise is different and the brain remembers what combination of muscles it has to activate and what forces it has produce to perform the exercise more efficiently next time. If we are training for a specific function i.e. running then it makes sense that we should ensure that the exercises we select place the body under as similar load to running as possible.

I often hear people say that certain exercises really burn their thighs so it must be a good for runners. Unfortunately this is far from the truth. Resistance exercises work the legs without doubt but that's where the similarities with running end for many of them. I know what you are thinking. “Surely resistance training which uses leg muscles must help our legs become stronger for running? They are not that different activities?” This depends on the type of resistance training and sometimes it can actually make you weaker for running not stronger.

Another key principle to consider is the difference between movement type muscles and stabiliser muscles. Some muscles in our body are designed to make us move and others are designed to keep our joints stable whilst we move. If our movement type muscles place our joints under more load than the stabilising muscles of our joints can handle then we end up injured. The brain tries to prevent this by decreasing the amount of force our movement muscles can produce. An easy way to understand this is think about how fast you can run on the track compared with running on a rocky undulating surface. On the rocky surface our brain knows our ankles are struggling to remain stable so it will decrease the amount of force the movement type muscles in our legs can produce which means we run slower.

If the stabilising muscles are weak then often the brain will try and make the movement type muscles try and act more as a stabiliser . So now you have the muscles that are responsible for moving you as quickly as possible as trying to stabilise you as well. The result is you tire more easily. If you can increase the strength of the stabilising muscles you allow the movement muscles to get on with the task of moving your limbs as fast as possible.

To understand which exercises are best for running we first need to understand the loads placed on our body when we run. We can then select particular exercises that emphasise these loads. There are three main points to consider.

1.Running is a one legged activity.

Running by definition involves one foot being off the ground at all times. What this means is that when we land we have to stabilise the foot, knee, hip, pelvis and spine against the landing forces of with one leg not two. We also have to stabilise the non landing side of the body against the forces of gravity. For example when we land on one leg, gravity continues to act on the other side of the body causing it to drop. The muscles on the landing side of the body have to control that drop so you don't end up swaying side to side.

So you can immediately see that any exercises done with two feet on the ground ( or machine) is not going to place the body under a similar load to running. The muscles that control the gravitational force on the other side of the body wont have to perform any work at all as there is no force on that side since the leg is already on the ground. So what do you think will happen to those particular muscles? Well if they are not being placed under any load then there is no stimulus to become stronger and if they are not needed then they will become weaker.

Let me be very clear on this point so there is no confusion. Doing 2 legged exercises will make the muscles that stabilise your body when on one leg WEAKER.

2.Running involves landing on one leg.

The biggest load on the body when running is the one that occurs when we land. This seems obvious but how many exercises in the gym do you see involving landing on one leg? Standing on one leg and squatting up and down is not the same as the foot is already on the ground.

3.Muscles have more strength when they are lengthened and loaded first.

To illustrate this point try this simple test. Stand up and then jump. Now try and and jump a little higher. What you will have noticed is the first movement you made to jump up was to squat down. When you tried to jump higher you would have squatted lower. Why would you squat lower when the aim is to jump higher?

By squatting lower you increase the length and load on the big muscles of the hip which are responsible for jumping, allowing you to jump higher.

Think of trying to fling a rubber band , the further back you pull the band the further forward it flys. The tendons and ligaments in your legs operate in much the same way. The more they are stretched under load the more power they have when released. The good news for runners is gravity can provide this load so we effectively recieve energy for free.

A good example of this is the Achilles tendon. As we land our lower leg continues to travel forward which places a stretch and load on the calf muscles and Achilles tendon. The Achilles stores this energy which is then released as our calf muscles contract and we push off the ground.

All the muscles in our legs operate in the same manner. As we land our leg muscles have to prevent our leg from collapsing into the ground. The muscles act as a breaking force against gravity. This obviously happens at speed and takes less than 0.5 of a second. During this process muscles are loaded and lengthened which is then released as we drive off the leg.

This is why good runners make running look effortless. They are actually putting in less effort than slower runners because they have become very efficient at loading and unloading their muscles..

Hopefully you can now understand that running is the process of landing on one leg, decelerating that movement by loading and lengthening the muscles in the leg and then pushing off again.

Lets now look at the different types of leg exercises commonly used in the gym and see if they are of any use to the runner.

Leg Press, Leg Curl , Leg Extension

Exercises such as leg press ( lying on your back pushing a weight with your legs) , leg curl (lying or seated curling your legs behind you) and leg extensions, (sitting straightening your legs in front of you) are all of very little value as they are all in a seated or lying position. This means all the hip, knee,foot and core muscles that are involved in supporting you when you stand on one leg don't have to work at all.

Yes these exercises might make your legs stronger and you might feel it burn in all the right places but that's not the point. Does it load your muscles in a similar way to running? The answer I hope you can see by now is a resounding NO. The likely result from doing these type of exercises is stronger movement based muscles and weaker stabilising muscles. This translates into weaker legs for running as your movement based muscles now have to take on the role of stabiliser muscles as well. A job they are not designed to do.

When choosing leg exercises ELIMINATE any that involve lying or sitting down using a machine. Remember by doing these types of exercises you are likely to make your muscles LESS able to handle the demands of running.

Squat

There are many different versions of the squat and done correctly even a two legged squat can be of some benefit. Particularly using it as an initial exercise to build strength for the more useful running exercises.

The obvious problem is squats are normally performed on 2 legs which negates the use of all the stabiliser muscles in the hip, feet knees and core.

The second problem is that when squatting we control the descent, typically taking 1-2 seconds. When we run the descent takes less than 0.5 of a second.

The third problem is when we squat our feet are already on the ground so we don't have to deal with the landing forces that occur 90 times a minute on each leg when we run. Whether squatting is done with a bar, dumbbells, bodyweight or ball behind your back it should only ever be done as a means of developing initial strength in your legs and hips. If you've been running for a while you'll have this already and should choose a more relevant running exercise.

One legged squats are obviously are better option than two legged as at least we have to involve the stabilising muscles of the hip, knee, foot and core. But even 1 legged squats miss out a crucial ingredient of a good running exercise. There are no landing forces involved as our feet are already on the ground.

Lunge

The lunge is a much better option. For starters it looks similar to running with one leg forward and one leg back. If we start with feet together and step forward landing on one foot we have to deal with the landing forces as our foot hits the ground. The landing is relatively quick so simulates a similar load to running. The foot, knee, hip and core muscles all have to work to stabilise the body as we land. One of the down sides is the action of pushing back to the start position. During running we push forward not back.

Walking Lunge

This is the same as a normal lunge except instead of pushing back we continue forward. This is resembles running even more so but it still has it's limitations. The landing force is on one leg but the other leg is still on the ground so the landing forces and the stabilisation load on the opposite side of the body aren't as high as it would be during running. Another problem is when we land we typically land on our heel when we lunge ( or walk) whereas when we run we should land on the mid foot or toes ( see http://andydubois.blogspot.com/2009/06/running-heel-to-toe-in-supportive.html)

Jump Lunges

This involves starting in a lunge position and then jumping in the air and swapping legs over so you land on your other foot. This is a more dynamic exercise that increases the speed of the landing and therefore increases the landing forces. It also allows you to land on your toes so makes for an excellent exercise for runners. The deeper you go when you land the more the muscles of the hips and thighs are loaded.

Skipping and Jumping

Skipping and jumping are particularly useful for training the calves and the Achilles tendon. Deeper jumps can also effectively load the big muscles of the hips. Although landing on two legs there is still significant landing forces ( particularly when jumping higher and or longer distances) involved . Jumping and skipping make an excelletn introduction into one of the best exercises for runners.

Bounding

Bounding is basically running but with REALLY long strides. The longer stride means increased landing forces and therefore greater demand on the leg hip and core muscles. Very effective exercise for runners.

Hopping.

Hopping is even more difficult than bounding as you hop from one leg to the same leg rather than landing on the other leg as you do when you run or bound. Landing forces are higher than for running. This is the ideal scenario. To be able to replicate running in the gym with an increased load so when you run outside it feels easier.

I have listed these exercises from easiest to most challenging and I would recommend most people start with Lunges and progress to walking lunges, jump lunges, jumping, bounding and finally hopping.

In part two of this article I will discuss running as a three dimensional activity. We think of running as a one directional activity ie. We run in a straight line. Our body direction might be in a straight line but every joint in our body is moving in three different directions at once. By adapting our exercises to load in each of these directions we can make our resistance training exercises even more effective.

Why we get injured and is rest the best treatment?

2009-08-24T15:13:00.007+01:00

Bit of a long post today but hopefully a very informative one.

Injuries have plagued me for many years and I have suffered almost every running injury there is. I also develop rehabilitation programs for many of my clients suffering injuries, so I've got a keen interest into why the body becomes injured and what the best approach is to recover from the injury. Over the last year or so I have turned my attention to how to prevent them in the first place.

We tend not to think about injuries until we sustain one and then we restart the stretching routine we've been neglecting. This is obviously not the smartest way to approach the problem. If we could somehow prevent them before they happened we'd save a lot of time. Injury prevention to most people means warm up and cool down properly and stretch. Pretty boring really which is why we tend to skip it. Well new training techniques have been developed that not only prevent injuries they also improve performance. Read on and I'll tell you all about it.

Why injuries occur.

Injuries occur because a joint, muscle, tendon or ligament is placed under more load than it can handle. This can be a progressive load that gradually overloads the structure over time or a sudden load which damages the structure immediately. Either way the load is more than the structure can tolerate.

Injuries suffered from a progressive load are initially felt as a minor discomfort that disappears after warm up. The progressive load continues to wear down the structures and the minor discomfort increases to the point where it is present all the time and exercise is compromised.

What to do when we are injured

The goal of injury recovery should be to return the body to a condition that if it was placed under the same load that brought about the initial injury it would be able to handle that load. Unfortunately most injury recovery programs aim to return the body to it's pre-injury state , i.e. the same state that was unable to handle the training load placed on it

The first advice given when suffering an injury is rest. Unfortunately rest is often thought of as the magic cure for all injuries. If you start training again and you are still injured then you simply didn't rest for long enough. Rest is of course beneficial in many situations but what does rest actually mean? Doing no exercise at all is most peoples definition of rest and unfortunately rest alone doesn't often solve the problem.

If you have strained a muscle then rest will give your body a chance to repair damaged tissues. The body repairs muscle tissue by depositing collagen fibres in the muscle. These fibres are aligned randomly over the torn muscle fibres. Without further stretching, massage and exercise these new fibres won't align themselves to the same direction as the muscle fibres and become known as scar tissue. Scar tissue is weaker and less elastic than muscle tissue so your chances of becoming injured in the future are greatly increased. So although a period of rest is required, a period of active recovery is also required before the body is ready to resume normal exercise.

When the injury doesn't involve a torn muscle such as knee pain, tendinitis, lower back pain, shin pain etc. rest has very little affect on the injury. To understand why think of what you would do if your car is making a horrible noise and not firing on all cylinders. The approach you are least likely to take is to not drive it for a week, then try it again a week later and hope that magically the problem has been fixed. You may argue that the body unlike a car is an organic organism and therefore has the ability to repair itself. This thought is valid in the case of a torn muscle but if faulty biomechanics are the cause of pain then resting for a week isn't going to change the biomechanics and consequently the pain will be the same. The site of the injury may feel improved initially as the weeks rest has given the body a chance to reduce any inflammation present but the cause of the inflammation has not been addressed.

To truly recover from an injury the actual cause of the injury must be addressed. Often we are told the cause of an injury is a tight muscle. For example Iliotibial band syndrome is often “caused” by a tight Tensor Fasciae Latae muscle. Stretching this muscle will solve all our problems apparently. However have you ever asked yourself why that muscle is tight in the first place? Often it is because part of your Gluteal muscles are weak. Why aren't they working like they should? Identifying the root cause or causes of the problem is the key to overcoming injury. Once this has been discovered then corrective exercises can be used to stretch, strengthen, activate, stabilise and mobilise the appropriate muscles, joints, tendons, ligaments.

Once we are injury free how can we prevent any further injury?

Common advice is to make sure we increase our training mileage gradually, make sure we run in good shoes, introduce speed and hill work in small amounts and slowly build it up, take recovery weeks and recovery training sessions regularly, get regular massage and stretch before and after training sessions. This is all very good advice that should be followed by everyone, but, many of us who follow this advice still get injured. Why?

Almost all injuries happen unilaterally. We strain a muscle on one side of our body but the same muscle on the other side is fine. We blame the increase in mileage or speed work, shoes that are to old or stretching that we didn't do after the session yet we never think to consider why the other side didn't become injured as well? If increasing the mileage too quickly was the “cause” of the injury why did one side become injured whilst the other side coped ? If the extra speed session we introduced is the reason we became injured how was it that one side coped without any problems?

The truth is that particular muscles and joints on one side of the body could cope with the demand placed on it whereas the other side of the body couldn't. If both left and right joints had the same strength, flexibility, mobility and stability as each other then it makes sense that the body would have coped with the training demands placed on it. Think about all the injuries you've ever had. Have you ever been injured in both your left and right leg or arm in the same spot at the same time? No, thought not. So if we really want to prevent injuries then we need to ensure the strength ,flexibility, mobility and stability in the joints and muscles on our left side are the same as the right side.

Obviously there are some loads which no matter how balanced , strong and flexible the body is it wont be able to cope with. You will however receive plenty of warning signs from your body before this happens and if you listen to these will be able to avoid injury.

How to determine if your body is balanced, strong, flexible and mobile?

Many of us will already realise we have one muscle tighter than another. Unfortunately the solution is not as simple as stretching out the tight muscle. You need to discover why that muscle is tighter. If you stretch it you will only temporarily increase muscle length because the reason it became tight in the first place hasn't been addressed.

To fully understand your joints and muscles strengths and weaknesses relative to your activity you need to assess the movement of every joint in the body as it performs that activity. For example the demands placed on your musculoskeletal system during tennis are far different to that during long distance running.

We think of an activity like distance running as a fairly one directional activity. We run in a straight line after all so how many other directions of movement can be involved. Although we do run in a straight line all of our joints and muscles move in three different directions or planes. Take your hip for example. During running when your front leg hits the ground your hip goes through internal rotation, adduction and flexion. In plain english that means your upper thigh rotates in relative to your pelvis, moves closer to the midline of the body and your upper thigh lifts. Every joint goes through the 3 dimensional movement in varying different degrees.

The foot bone is connected to the ankle bone ....

Another factor that is often ignored is that the body works as one complete unit. What happens in one part of the body affects what happens in another part. If you've injured your foot then it affects the way your whole leg, pelvis spine and even the other leg function. No joint works in isolation. Take the knee , it's function is connected to and dependant on what happens at the foot and what happens at the hip, not to mention the spine. To truly recover from and prevent injury the whole body needs to be assessed because your knee problem might be stemming from a lack of movement in your foot or a tight muscle in your hip and have very little to do with "tight" or "weak" muscles around the knee.

An assessment that takes every joint in the body through three different planes of movement in relation to your chosen activity will very quickly highlight problem areas. Once identified these can be corrected through specific exercises. Once any deficiencies have been corrected then exercises can be progressed to develop overall strength, flexibility, stability and mobility in relation to your specific activity. This will not only improve your movement efficiency it will also allow you to withstand a greater training load and therefore improve performance.

If you would like to be assessed and are based in London I am offering free functional assessments for the first 5 people to contact me which will highlight any deficiencies in your feet, ankles, knees, hips, lumbar spine, thoracic spine and shoulder joint relative to your sport. Please contact me on andydubois@hotmail.co.uk for more information.

World Trail Championships 2009 Serre Chevalier

2009-07-16T15:30:00.024+01:00

On returning from a two week holiday in Morocco I received an email confirming I had been selected for the Australian team for the World Trail Challenge. To be accurate I was the only member of the team and the only person who put in a nomination for the event, but I was told that my previous performance's where of a sufficiently high standard to warrant selection. So having just turned 40 I had achieved something that for many years thought would only ever be a dream – to represent my country in my chosen sport. This thrill was tempered by the fact I only had 6 weeks to train for the event and in the middle of that 6 weeks I had the 100km World Championships. Not exactly much time to prepare for an event that involved 68km of running up and down highly technical mountain trails with 3500m of ascent and descent. This is the same ascent/descent as climbing Mt Everest from base camp! However the chance to represent your country doesn't come around very often so I couldn't refuse

I wasn't as well prepared as I have been for other mountainous ultra's. Normally I spend a lot of time running up and down trails, getting my legs used to the extra load that comes with running downhill. Having the confidence to run down hills fast involves training the legs to be able to react quickly to changes of direction, having the ability to slow down quickly to avoid overshooting a bend, having the strength in your feet and ankles to cope with rocky, uneven tracks and be able to leap over rocks, tree roots etc with the confidence that you'll clear the obstacle and land safely.

Even doing all this I still lack the essential ingredient to become a really good downhill runner on technical trails – being fearless. All the good fell runners have no fear, they can switch off the brain and trust the legs. It's like downhill mountain bikers, they love the adrenaline that comes with pushing the descent right to the edge of their capabilities without the constant thought that if they fall they could break several bones. My mind always says if you fall now you could tumble down that slope for several hundred metres and surely injure yourself. Despite this I managed to remain competitive in mountainous ultras as I may not be great a running down very technical slopes but I am good at running down slopes that aren't so steep , so I usually manage to make up any ground lost when the slope levels off a bit.

Going into the race I had no idea what kind of time I should aim for and I find aiming for a position is always counterproductive as you can never control what other people do so I had to think about what kind of goals to set for the race.

What criteria do we use to decide if we have had a good race or not? How do we know if we should be pleased with our performance or disappointed? For some it is the position they finish or the time they do, for some it might be just to finish but for many it's a bit more complicated than that especially for the ultra-runner..

I have several criteria . If I can finish a race without injury affecting my performance is one factor. This might seem strange to any of you reading this who run shorter races but in an ultra a little niggle or sore spot that wouldn't affect you in a half marathon or marathon can force you to a painful limp after 50 miles. Next is having control over my body for the whole of the race. During an ultra the body starts making very obvious signs it wants to slow down or stop, if I can control and override these signs making my body do what I want it to do not what it feels like doing is very rewarding.

I also derive a great sense of satisfaction in finishing races strongly. If I can push hard right till the end of a race rather than have to really struggle and slow to a shuffle or worse still a walk means that I've raced the whole course. Sometimes in a race you go into “just get to the finish” mode rather than trying to get to the finish as fast as possible. If the aim was just to finish then speed wouldn't matter, but it is a race after all so finishing strongly and racing the whole course is always a goal.

During any race you always have good and bad patches, how I deal with those bad patches often decides if it's been a good race or not. Sometimes the bad patches can overwhelm you and you lose the sense of racing for a while and go into survival mode. If I can get through the bad patches by staying strong mentally and continue to race throughout these patches then I know I'm doing ok.

Last of all and certainly not least is did I enjoy the whole experience , whether that's because of the scenery, the atmosphere, support along the race, other competitors camaraderie or just the challenge of the race itself, if I don't enjoy it then whats the point.

So with those thoughts in mind I arrive in the Serre Chevalier Valley in the French Alps near the Italian border at the town of Le Monetier les Bains . As it is the World Championships an opening ceremony complete with a parade of nations was organised. Being from Australia and as there was nobody representing Antiga, Andorra, Angola or any other country with letters starting before Au I was first in line. So carrying the Aussie flag with a great sense of pride I lead the other nations through the small town to the presentation area, watched mainly by athletes friends and family and a few bemused locals. I can only imagine what it must feel like to do this at an Olympic games!
A few speeches follow and then I head back to the hotel for an early night.

Rising at the ungodly hour of 3.20 am I have my liquid breakfast and get myself ready. I am a little nervous as to how my body will cope. After the 100km race 3 weeks ago one of my groin muscles has been a bit sore, it felt ok in my last training run but that was only an hour so I'm not sure if it will hold up for 68km and my knee had been a little sore after doing a stairs session. A sore knee wasn't a good thing to have when the race involved 3500m of downhill. It feel ok warming up so I hope it will get me through the race.

It is still dark when we set off at 5am. The first section of the race is a “gentle” 11km path which follows the valley floor rising approx 400m . Usually my legs feel great at the start of a race but today they feel like they would be happier lying on a couch. I feel like I am working much harder than I should be for a race this long and am worried if I feel this bad at the start how am I going to feel at the finish. I am getting passed by quite a few people which doesn't fill me with confidence either. I take a mental time out and tell myself to forget everyone else just focus on running my own race. Slowing the pace just slightly I gradually start to find a rhythm. A quick check of my body reveals my knee feels ok as does my groin so all good so far. My biggest fear is if either of these become so bad during the race that it forces me to walk or even worse pull out. I am representing my country and I want to give a good account of myself.

After the first “gentle” section finished the climb to Galibier at 2579 metres begins. It is a steady climb that gradually reveals the most magnificent views along the valley. The sun is still hidden behind the mountains behind me but the intial darkness has turned into a pale blue light. It is going to be a nice day by the looks of it.

It is too steep a climb for much running to be done so power walking is the go. I am starting to feel better and better as the climb continues. After a hour or so the refuge de Galibier comes into view at which the first aid station is situated. A quick drink and off I go again. Here is where the climb gets interesting, it goes from being steep to almost vertical. It follows a narrow “path” which is steep enough in places to warrant using your arms to help pull you up!

At the top of this climb the summit is reached and the views are breathtaking. The sun has risen above the mountain range and illuminated the valley and rows of mountain peaks in a 360 degree panorama. A truly stunning sight. I have a quick stop here to get my sunglasses out of my backpack and whilst I do take the opportunity to take a few photo's. I had debated with myself whether to take a camera or not. I knew the scenery was meant to be superb but this was a race. In the end I decided to take it and if an opportunity arose where I was stopping for another reason such as getting sunglasses, clothes, etc out of my pack then I'd take a photo. I wasn't going for first place so 15 seconds lost in taking a photo won't matter.

As the old saying goes – what comes up must come down. The first descent and the first real test of my knee. I set off nervously downhill. Just 5 days ago my knee was still sore running down the hills in Hampstead heath which dont even compare to this. Will it cope?

The first descent is ridiculously steep on a very narrow path that changes direction frequently. I am slow and am passed a lot. I have no confidence in my ability to run quickly and safely down this and don't want to risk falling. I carefully make my way down until finally the path evens out a bit and I can start striding out, I begin overtaking some of those who passed me earlier. My knee feels ok and I am starting to feel more confident about the challenge ahead.

The descent is long and very steep and I am quite happy to get to the bottom of it in one piece. I run hard when I can and take it carefully when I have to. Running along another valley the course heads towards the next climb. It is a narrow path that is strewn with randomly placed rocks just waiting for the opportunity to trip me up. Sure enough it does. One minute I'm running along, next minute I'm lying flat on the ground. I pick myself up quickly and begin running again before the person behind me even has a chance to overtake. Checking my injuries as I run I noticed a chunk of skin missing on my right palm , no problems there – you don't run with your hands, there is also some blood running down my shin and my knee is sore. Not so good. Still there's knee pain and there's knee pain, time would tell if it would stop me from running or merely be an annoyance.

The path gradually climbs as it follows the valley. I am running along a very narrow track that is surrounded by high grass that makes it difficult to see where your feet are landing and even more difficult to see any rocks to avoid. I narrowly avoid being tripped over at least half a dozen times as I run along here. I'd done a lot of road running in preparation for the 100km race 3 weeks ago and when you run on roads there are no obstacles to lift your feet over so I'd developed a low foot lift which is very efficient running on roads but not so good running on rocky paths. My toes would catch on a rock and I'd go stumbling forward, getting the leg through just in time to stop me falling over only for it to happen 50 metres further on. I am very glad to finish this section. The route follows a popular trekking route and as I run by a few popular bivouac site a few heads peakd out of tents to see what the hell is going on.

The next climb begins and looks like it is a series of switchbacks on a well made path. Unfortunately the route avoids the well made path and switch backs and takes the more direct route - straight up. I start to struggle as I reach the top of the climb, feeling very lethargic and heavy but notice no-one else looks any better. A few people are passing me but I also pass a few people so I cant be going that badly. It is the altitude having an affect. I am breathing a lot heavier than I should be for the speed I am going and by the sound of everyone around me so are they.

Finally the summit is reached and a glorious blue alpine lake comes into a view. It is a magnificent sight and I have to stop and take a photo. Not strictly in the rules I'd set myself but it was so beautiful I can't help it. Running around the lake and heading downhill I am feeling pretty pleased with myself. Two mountains down only one to go and the knee feels ok despite the fall.

The sun is warming up and I am drinking plenty. I didn't refill my water bladder at the last aid station so I hope I have enough to make it to the next one. There are only three on the whole course so they are well spread out. At the top an official calls out something in french about the next aid station and I think he says another 10 minutes but my French is poor at the best of times. The descent is runable , just , and I do my best to maintain a good pace. Treading that fine line between out of control and in control. After what is a lot more than 10 minutes the course reaches a plateau and the next aid station finally comes into view. I refill my water supplies and have a couple of cups of coke and head off.

Before long I start climbing again. I thought there was a fair bit more descent to go but obviously I am wrong. This climb is similar to the last, just as steep and just as long. I keep looking ahead to see where it finishes and it takes a long time before the top finally comes into view. The day is quite warm by now and when I cross any streams I dip my hat in it and cool myself down. I love these conditions, to be in the mountains and have a beautiful blue sky, sun beating down on you and be cooled by the crystal clear icy cold mountain streams is a perfect day out for me. I may have been suffering on this climb but I was really enjoying myself also. You cant complain too much when you have scenery like this all around you.

At the top is another gorgeous alpine lake view. This is offset of the sight of the path climbing high off in the distance. I grab a gel from my backpack to give me a bit of a boost for this final part of the climb, take a quick photo and set off again. The route is very narrow and contours around the lake on a very steep slope crossing snow in several places. It is essential to watch where I am going because a slip whilst wouldn't prove fatal would probably end my chances of finishing.

( Look closely on the left hand side you'll see a few runners crossing the snow. The pass is high up on the left)

After what seems like hours I can hear the sound of music and people. Must be the top., but where? I scan the horizon and can see no break in the mountain wall in front of me. As I get closer I can see the path start to be enclosed by rocks and a tiny gap appears at the top, that must be the pass. Sure enough it is. I am very glad to reach the top and amazed that are where spectators and officials at this isolated location, the Col des Beraudes at 2899m.

Now comes the descent. The first part is so steep that there is a rope bolted into the cliff face for people to hold onto to help descend safely. After that it is not much better and I am concentrating intensely to make sure I don't fall. Finally the slope evens off slightly and I can relax a little and get back to some decent running. My knee and groin still feels ok so I set off as hard as I can on the gradual descents. It is a long descent, rocky and steep in places so is hard to get into a good rhythm. I want to look up and take in the surrounds but every time I do a stumble on a rock so unfortunately I have to focus on the ground just in front of me.

(That faint path heading down from left to right is the "easy" part of the descent)

One thing is puzzling me, I know there a three big climbs and three aid stations and I thought the last aid station was before the last climb but I've done three climbs and only had two aid stations. I couldn't have missed an aid station so does that mean there is still another climb to go? Time will tell.

The path eventually drops out of the stark alpine environment through trees and pastures and I hear people clapping , either it's the finish or another aid station. Deep down I know which one it is. Sure enough the last aid station comes into view. Maybe the last aid station is after the last climb. I think it is 10km to go from the aid station or was it 15?

Filling up again I set off on a nice undulating path along a river, pushing a good pace and still feeling strong. My knee is sore but not more sore than the rest of my body so it is not effecting me. This is the flattest section of the whole course but it doesn't last long and before long we are heading up again. “Last climb before the finish” someone yells out encouragingly . Does that mean it's a big climb or last small climb followed by an undulating run to the finish? The climb leaves the river , ascends through a forest, then onto the high pastures to the refuge. Great all down hill from here I think. Wrong! It keeps ascending and ascending all the way back up to 2427m! I really struggle up the last bit, the combination of being on the go for 8 hours and the altitude affecting me. The good news is that despite this I am passing people and no-one is passing me. Everyone is suffering.

Finally the top is reached as someone yells out “8km, all downhill to the finish”. The path is steep at first but gradually levels out slightly and I am able to stride out and pick the pace up. Knowing it is all downhill and how far it is to go means I can really push the pace now. Just when I'm starting to enjoy myself again the path gets more technical, steeper, and more rocks which slows me down.

Rounding a bend I see the path heading uphill again. I thought it was all downhill! Fortunately it doesn't last long and a well paved 4wd track appears. Perfect! I can stride out without fear of falling down a steep slope or tripping over a rock. I set off and pick the pace up. My knee hurts now but it doesnt matter. It's not going to stop me this close to the finish. I start catching and passing people. As soon as I've caught one person and look ahead and set after the next one. I look down the valley and try and spot the town where we finish. It still looks a long way down.

The path narrows and descend a steep switchback through a forested area. It is still ok to run down I just have to watch the corners. I descend below the tree line and still cant see the town and the valley floor still looks a long way off. The enjoyment of running at a good pace is starting to wear off and I'm looking forward to the finish line now. With the excitement of picking the pace up I haven't had any of my carbohydrate drink for a while and feel myself starting to run low in energy. It cant be far to the finish now surely?

After what seems like ages I reach a path that looks vaguely familiar . It's the same path we set off on this morning. The question is how far along the path am I? I'm really starting to run low now and the desire to walk is increasing exponentially. Really should have had another gel and I wouldn't feel like this. I know I cant be too far away so tell myself that regardless of how far away the finish is you're running hard all the way to the finish no matter what.

The path follows the river and I know just after a bridge crossing the river the finish is barely 100 yards away. I see a bridge with the sponsors banners on it, maybe that's it? No , different bridge. Not far ahead is another bridge, maybe this is it? Again no. Finally I recognise the right bridge and I know the finish is just around the corner.

I am smiling both on the inside and out. It's been a long day – ten hours and 24 minutes to be exact , I have no idea what position I'm in and I don't really care. I've had a great race. It's been more difficult than I imagined and more enjoyable. Stunning mountain scenery and a course that took me well outside my comfort zone has made for a very rewarding day. I couldn't be happier. I know I could have gone a lot faster if I'd had 6 months to train specifically for it but I didn't so there is no point thinking about what could have happened.

I savor the run up the finish straight, enjoying the applause of the crowd and the thrill of the achievement and finally cross the finish line.

World 100km Championships

2009-06-21T16:45:00.005+01:00

Five weeks ago I was in some of the best running from of my life. A typical training week was a 2 hour run Tuesday including an hour of sprinting up and down hills, Wednesday a marathon in under 3 hours, Friday 45-60km hilly run and Saturday 30km in just over 2 hours. My legs although tired weren’t sore at all from all this mileage and I felt great. Unfortunately that was five weeks ago and the race was yesterday.
Since then I’ve been on a 2 week holiday in Morocco where I had planned to run but a combination of a trek that was far more difficult than first thought, a stomach bug that meant eating very little for 4 days and then 3 days in Marrakesh where running was as practical as running down Oxford street during the Xmas sales meant I didn’t manage to run at all.

Once back from Morocco I went out for my usual runs on Tuesday and Wednesday hoping I hadn’t lost too much and was surprised by two things. First of all my times for my hill sprints were if anything quicker than before which I took some confidence from and secondly how sore my legs were after the two days which was not so good. Legs were too sore run on Friday, Saturdays run felt horrible, my calves felt like they were going to tear with every step and my right thigh was significantly tighter than my left and also felt is was about to tear with every stride. I had a couple of days off and tried again on Tuesday and was surprised that I actually felt ok to begin with but this didn’t last long so I cut that run short and left it till Friday to run again. Fridays 2 hour run felt good from a speed point of view but calves and thigh still very tight and only a week to go until the race. Decided any further runs weren’t going to achieve much so spent the week massaging and stretching.

So it was a little nervously I lined up at the starting line in Torhout, Belgium. Would my legs still have sufficient conditioning from all the miles before Morocco to run a good time? Would my right thigh and calves hold out and allow me to even finish?

Torhout is a small, pretty Belgium town that had come to life for the event. At the same time as the 100km run there was a 100km walk , a marathon run and a 10km run involving over 1000 people and the two towns that the runs passed through were geared up for a big night. The races started at 8pm and so would finish till the next morning. To keep the spectators entertained bands, DJ’s and beer tents had been organised meaning everyone was in the mood to party ( except for the runners of course, although I did see quite a few people who were obviously planning on running one of the events indulging in a few beers only hours before the race!)
The gun went off and we set off. I was keen to settle into a very comfortable pace and not get caught up with everybody else. Marathon and 100km runners set of at the same time but you could tell who was who as Marathon runners had 4 digit numbers, 100km runners had 3. As I passed the 5km mark a checked my watch and saw I was on for around 7.40 pace which I felt was very realistic based on times five weeks ago, now, I wasn’t sure.

I caught up with a fellow Serpentine runner Ian and we chatted for a while, both of us focussed on maintaining “conversation pace”. I dropped behind Ian as we came to an aid station as I had decided to walk the aid stations. This was based on a purely practical reason. The cups they were giving out were tiny and when I ran through the first aid station I managed to get enough water from the cup to almost wet my lips and tongue. I had decided to carry a special sports drink on me but rely on the aid stations for water. You can’t run 100km without water so I decided any time lost walking for 10 seconds whilst drinking would be made up by not dehydrating later on. I’d had a bad experience during my first marathon with the same sized cups so didn’t want to repeat the experience.

The race consisted of 5 laps of approximately 20km (one slightly longer the rest slightly shorter) on traffic free roads through rural Belgium countryside. It was pleasant rather than pretty although the smell of cow manure in some stretches was a bit overpowering. Lots of spectators lined the route initially but as night came on the spectators became less and less and the ones that were around seemed more concerned with drinking and partying than clapping and supporting runners.

I finished the first lap feeling good and on time for 7.40 still. So far so good, the second lap started off much the same as the first, my legs felt keen to run,no sore spots in calves or thighs and feeling comfortable. Towards the end of the second lap although feeling comfortable my legs were starting to hurt more than they should have. I finished the second lap which was exactly a marathon in 3.14 and my legs felt sorer than they did when I was running sub 3 hours in training. Not a good sign. Still, I was on track for 7.40 and my main aim was to break 8 hours which still gave me 20 minutes leeway. The third lap felt a lot different as all the marathon runners had finished so there was a lot less runners around and it was now dark, very dark in some places.

I was focussing on running from aid station to aid station where I would walk just long enough to have what I wanted to drink again. The organiser’s had placed km markers every 5km so these helped measure my progress. I reached the 50km mark in 3.52 which is 7.44 pace if, I could keep the same pace up for the second half. Considering I had run 50km in training in under 3.40 several times and felt comfortable enough to run again the next day, 3.52 should have felt very comfortable which theoretically should allow me to push hard on the last 50 and run either a negative split or at least the same time. Well that was the plan 5 weeks ago. Based on how my legs were feeling now I knew that running a negative split was very unlikely and survival was the name of the game. The question was how much time I was going to lose in the last half. My 5km splits were declining quickly and my legs really starting to hurt.

Somewhere between 55 and 60km my legs decided they needed some relief. Well actually that’s not true, my mind is what needed some relief, the thought of dealing with the pain in my legs for another 40+ km was more than it could handle so I stopped to walk. Feeling disappointed that I was now walking I started running again almost immediately only for a few minutes down the line to find myself shuffling and then walking again. I knew straight away that if continued to do this it was going to take a long time to finish the race and I would be very disappointed in myself.

Dealing with pain in ultra’s is obviously a very mental thing and for me it comes down to confidence. Confidence that your legs can handle the damage you are inflicting on them. Five weeks ago I had that confidence, now I didn’t. I didn’t know if they would last the distance, I didn’t know if I had bitten off more than I could chew, I’d only run 5 times in the last five weeks, was that enough to maintain the great form and condition I had back then. I was worried about my right thigh and both calves, if one of them went then it’s a long limp home. I pride myself on my mental strength but now it was letting me down. I was crumbling when things got tough whereas in previous races I revelled in it, actually looked forward to the point where things become difficult, looked forward to testing myself. How strong mentally and physically was I? Only when you get to those points in a race do you find out and that’s why many of us do these races.

I quickly snapped out of this mental low patch and set myself some new targets and rules. Walking was allowed at aid stations whilst I was drinking and every ten minutes for one minute only. I accepted I just didn’t have the mental strength to face the thought of running non stop for another 45km with legs that felt that every step was tearing more and more muscle fibres before finally something gives way. I set of for my ten minute run and felt immediately better. I noticed my pace actually felt ok, my legs were still killing me but I could still run a decent pace. I counted down the minutes until ten and then walked for one, being very strict with the one minute. If I went through an aid station I reset the ten minutes from when I left the aid station. Bit by bit I saw the 60km 65km and 70km marks go by. Time wise I wasn’t sure what time I would be heading for, I did some initial calculations in my head and came up with 8.15 which wasn’t so bad and gave me a bit of a mental lift until I realised I’d calculated wrong. I decided to forget about it and just keep running.

About half way through the fourth lap I noticed my 5km split times were starting to speed up, somehow I was getting faster. Not a lot but it was a couple of minutes over 5km which adds up after a while. I also noticed if a lent forward slightly as I was running my speed would increase without any extra effort. The downside to this was it made my legs hurt more. I was starting to believe that my legs would get to the finish, my claves hadn’t torn yet and my right thigh felt no worse than my left. With only 30km to go I passed through the small village at the other end of the course as the band were playing “Born to be wild”. Lifted by the music and with my confidence and mental strength steadily growing I lifted the pace and decided to try and go longer before I walked. Unfortunately lifting the pace and increasing the time until the next walk was not a great idea and ten minutes later I was walking again. Ok lets try that again, without the adrenaline that was flowing due to loud music and a few kind spectators cheering me along. This time, with a more sensible pace I managed to keep running past the ten minutes until I reached the next aid station. Ok from now on aid stations only, my legs weren’t going to tear in two, I was going to finish so lets finish it as quickly as possible.

I ran through the town for the last time and headed out for the last lap. If I could run the last lap there’s a chance I could break 8.30 which although is a lot slower than my initial target is still a reasonable time. The stretch out of town was the most difficult for me. It is very dark , no aid stations to break it up until you almost reach the other village and very few spectators. I almost made it to the aid station without walking but after rounding a corner expecting to see some lights and people I saw another stretch of road ahead of me. I crumbled and walked. Come one I said to myself get running again, so after barely ten seconds I set off again and made it to the next aid station.

Just as I left the aid station I noticed someone just ahead in an Aussie top so I took off and caught him and said G’day. We chatted for a while and then got serious. We had 15km to go and 1 hour 20 left to beat 8.30. We ran side by side trying to keep the pace up, conversation revolved around splits, speed and aid stations. Idle chat disappeared as we concentrated on the job at hand. Both of us were using each other to keep us going, I’m sure he was doing it easier than me as it felt like he was setting the pace but I’d caught up to him at the station so he must have been going slower than me for a while for me to catch him.

Initially the km’s ticked away very slowly and the desire to walk was extremely strong but I had resolved to try and not walk at the start of the lap and now that I was running with someone the same pace as me I really didn’t want to stop now. After what seemed an eternity the 90km sign came into view. Only 10km to go. I really didn’t know if I could stay with him till the finish but every time I slowed even slightly he yelled out something encouraging. I tried to do the same for him but I was concentrating so hard on making my legs work I couldn’t offer much. Occasionally if he slowed and I had a momentary good patch I’d pick the pace up but I couldn’t do any more.

Eventually the we reached 95km. Only 5km to go. I’d resolved myself to the fact that it was going to hurt like hell but there would be no more walking except at the next aid station. Only 5km and we still had 35 minutes to do it in. Bit by bit, urging each other along we kept pushing the pace. I was dangerously close to blowing up, I couldn’t keep this up for much longer but I didn’t have much longer to go. We could see the lights in the town get closer and could even hear the party that was still raging at 4am in the morning. My Aussie mate (Michael I found out afterwards – we didn’t exchange names during the race) was keen to really push it hard for the last little bit but I knew I had nothing left. I still wasn’t sure if I could maintain this pace to the finish so I told him if he had anything left to go for it. He just kept encouraging me to stay with him. We passed the 40km sign which meant there was exactly 2.195 kilometres to go (as it was a lapped course you constantly passed signs that were for other laps). I knew that just before you enter the town you pass under a railway bridge and from there it is only around 800m to go. Mentally I knew as soon as I reached that I would make it.

We both realised we were going to break 8 and a half hours and as 2nd and 3rd placed Australians had a chance of qualifying for the Commonwealth Championships in September. The railway line came into view and I told Michael again to go for it, I’d be just behind him and would see him at the finish. He picked up the pace a tiny amount and I just couldn’t keep up. It didn’t matter though, we’d helped each other out and managed to run faster than we would have alone. (in fact my last lap was almost 10 minutes quicker than my 4th). I ran through the town feeling both exhausted, relieved and pretty pleased with myself. Ok it hadn’t been the best race of my career but I’d managed to hold it together (just!) and finish strongly.
Crossing the finish line in 8.25, Michael ( who had put 15 seconds on me in the last 800metres) was waiting for me, we shook hands then hugged realising how much support we had given each other and what a difference it had made.

So I’ve finished my first 100km race. Will it be my last. There’s a small chance I’ll make the Aussie team for the Commonwealths so will have a chance to run another 100km in September if not I would like to have another go just so I can see that kind of time I can do when fully fit.

What else did I learn? Well I’ve always thought of physical and mental strength as separate and maybe for some people they are but for me they are intrinsically linked. If I’ve trained well, I gain a lot of mental strength and belief in myself which carries into a race if I don’t then mentally I’m not as strong.

Today my legs are very sore but I can walk ok as long as I don’t have to go up or down! I’ll take this week of, selection is announced next Saturday so will wait till then to decide what my next race is.

Running heel to toe in supportive cushioned shoes. Have we got it all wrong?

2009-06-05T16:48:00.002+01:00

Here’s a few controversial ideas to get you thinking. Some of these I have been pondering over for a while and some are derived from Christopher McDougalls fascinating new book “Born to Run”.

Why are we told to run heel toe when all the fast runners over any distance land on their toes?

Why do we constantly suffer from foot and knee injuries even though running shoe technology has improved exponentially over the last few decades?
Why has a large study shown that people with more expensive running shoes suffer from more injuries?

Why do we accept our feet for the way they are and give no thought to training them when any other part of the body we look at ways of strengthening and stretching to improve performance?

Running Heel toe

Every podiatrist and physio I have every seen has despaired at my habit of landing on my toes when I run. “You should land on your heel first and rock forward onto your toes..”. I was never really explained why I should do this except that the reason my calves were so tight is that I always land on my toes.

I have always ignored the advice as I felt running on my toes was a more efficient and faster way to run. When I moved into ultra-marathons I was told I couldn’t possibly run that far on my toes but once again I ignored them and kept landing on my toes and managed to do this for up to 100miles.

As a spectator at several half marathons and 20 mile races I took a keen interest in the running styles of the various athletes. What I noticed was all the faster runners ran by landing on their forefoot and all the slower runners landed on their heels.

So why are we being told to run heel toe if all the faster runners are landing on their toes? Are the faster runners simply blessed with good genetics and are therefore able to run on their toes and everybody else less fortunate has to be content with landing on their heels.

How were we designed to run in the first place? Back before running shoes even existed, how did we evolve to be able to run and what did our running style look like. For a fascinating insight into the evolution of early mankind and the ability to run, read “Born to Run” As far as how the human body is mechanically designed to run all it takes is a simple understanding of basic anatomy and it becomes obvious.
Let’s look at the two different running styles and see which one makes more sense in terms of anatomy. If we land on our forefoot, because we actually land on the outside of the forefoot our foot rolls in (or pronates) once we land. This movement allows us to absorb the shock of slamming our foot down into the ground. Once our foot has rolled in our body moves forward over our foot and our foot starts to roll back out or supinate. It eventually locks and gives a stable platform for the Achilles tendon to help propel us forward.

If we land on our heel, all the shock of landing is transmitted up through our shin bone to our knee and then up through our thigh bone up to our hips and lower back. To reduce this shock or trauma caused by landing on our heel cushioned running shoes become essential. The reason running shoes are designed the way they are is that in the early 70’s it was thought you could run faster if you increased your stride length so that you landed on your heel instead of landing on your forefoot. Because your heel doesn’t provide any shock absorption a shoe had to be designed had shock absorption built in. So basically the running shoe is designed to change the way humans have run for thousands of years.

Now it is obvious that the human body didn’t evolve with the thought that it could land on it’s heel since in 60,000 years time mankind would invent cushioned running shoes!

What about my problem of tight calves caused by landing on my toes? Well the interesting thing is if I didn’t wear running shoes I wouldn’t have that problem. When I land (or any person who lands on their forefoot) my heel does travel down towards the ground but it is stopped by my running shoe. This effectively limits the range my calf goes through therefore causing my calves muscles to tighten up. The same thing happens to women (or men for that matter) who wear high heels. Because the calf never gets fully stretched it tightens up. This was made extremely evident in my first Ultramarathon. I wore a pair of shoes that I hadn’t worn in properly and unbeknown to me the heel on them was slightly lower than my normal shoes. Because of this my heel travelled a few mm lower to the ground with every stride. After 40 miles my calves were screaming at me and after 90 miles I was barely able to walk. The extra stretch placed on them was more than they could handle. So if I had run all the thousands of miles over the last twenty years with shoes that had a lower heel my calves wouldn’t be as tight. Running on my toes hasn’t made me a less efficient, more injury prone runner, it’s made me a faster runner. It’s made my calves tighter only because I’ve run in highly supportive running shoes which if you keep reading will discover they may not be the best thing for your feet.

So dispense any notion of running heel toe as being a faster, more effective and less injury prone technique of running.

The easiest way of retraining yourself to run more effectively is run barefoot. Try running 100yards barefoot and see how long you manage running heel toe before you automatically start landing more on your toes.

Are running shoes any good?
A large study of over 4000 runners competing in the 9.6 mile race showed that those with more expensive running shoes were twice as likely to suffer from an injury in teh previuos year as those with cheap shoes. How on earth can this be possible? Running shoes have been around since the early 70’s, surely by now running shoes should be able to prevent running injures and the more expensive the shoe surely the better the protection against injuries. Sadly this is not the case.

The human body is very good at conserving energy. If something else is providing the support it normally provides then it may as well stop providing that support. If for example a muscle needs to exert 10 units of pressure to stabilise a joint, if you place a support in the form of a bandage or strap that supplies 8 units of pressure then the muscles will relax and decrease the pressure they supply to 2 units of pressure. If you continue to do this the muscle gets used to only providing 2 units of pressure and as a consequence become weaker.

This is what running shoes do to your feet, because they provide the foot with a lot of support the actual muscles and ligaments in the foot don’t need provide much support at all so they become progressively weaker. The more expensive the shoe the more support the shoe provides and the less work the foot has to do. You might think that it doesn’t matter as long as your shoes provide enough support. Unfortunately it is not as simple as that. What happens in the foot paves the way for what happens in the rest of the body. For example as the foot pronates it causes the lower leg to rotate in which causes the upper thigh to rotate in which switches on the gluteus(bum) muscles to control that movement. So without that foot pronation the gluteus muscles won’t activate properly which can overload the knee, ITB, lower back, hips or shins not to mention decrease the forward propulsive force the gluteal muscles can generate.

Surely I’m not suggesting we throw away our running shoes and run barefoot?
Not quite! Running barefoot is impractical in a lot of conditions, shoes protect our feet from the cold, the heat, glass, thorns and we didn’t evolve to run on concrete or bitumen. Having said that I think running barefoot or nearly barefoot can form an important part of your running routine. By nearly barefoot I mean wearing shoes that allow the foot almost as much freedom of movement that barefoot does. There are two types of shoes on the market that I know of that provide this. Nike make a shoe called the Nike Free which looks like a normal shoe but is designed to allow the foot as much movement as possible. The strangely named fivefinger shoes by Vibram are basically a rubber glove for your feet, they look a bit strange but are basically like having thick rubber skin on your feet. As a third more practical but not quite as good option is wearing old trainers.

Now don’t ditch your new running shoes just yet. If you go straight from highly supportive running shoes to barefoot straight away you are asking for trouble. You need to give your foot muscles a chance to strengthen up so my suggestion is to try is running twice a week for initially only 10-15 minutes barefoot or nearly barefoot and gradually build that time up until you can handle 45 minutes or so with no problems. Once you reach this level add some speed training to your barefoot running and then add some uphill and downhill running.

Will exercises for the foot make any difference at all?

I used to think they wouldn’t. As we spend so long on our feet I thought that 10 minutes of foot exercises per day is not going to be able to undo the hours of standing walking and running with poor foot biomechanics. However my thoughts have now changed for a number of reasons.

The exercises I have been shown for the feet always seemed a bit of a waste of time. They didn’t really seem to be relevant to what the foot actually does when you run. You had to concentrate on doing it correctly and when you run there is obviously no time to think about making the foot do something specific. We can’t consciously control what our feet do when we run.

Fortunately there is a new method of training the feet that works on training the feet subconsciously. It makes the foot do what it should do without you having to think about it. Combining these types of exercises with barefoot running I believe will be the next big breakthrough in reducing injuries in runners and improving running performance.

What are these exercises? Well unfortunately, every foot is different and the exercises that make one foot better could make another foot worse so if your currently living in London you can contact me and I can assess your feet and your running style and prescribe a series of exercises for you.

If not you need to find someone who specialises in Functional Movement Training preferably trained in the Gary Gray methodology. Gary is the world recognised leading expert in the field of Functional Training.

What running shoes should you wear?

No need to throw away your expensive pair and buy a really cheap pair just yet. Your feet will need time to strengthen so add some barefoot running to your program and start changing your shoes less frequently. Depending on how much barefoot running and exercises you do and how often you run you should eventually be able to start buying cheaper less supportive and lighter footwear.

Do we have a limited number of heart beats and if so am I using them up in a hurry?

2009-05-15T19:35:00.010+01:00

One theory I've heard mentioned to me is the concept that we all have a limited number of heart beats after which we die. The people espousing this thoery to me claim I am very quickly using up all my available heart beats and will come to a grinding halt well before my time. I thought about this for a while and decided I should look into it a bit more just to reassure myself that I'm not heading for an early grave. The results are very interesting

If we compare three people - me, someone who is moderately fit and trains for 3 hours per week and someone who does no exercise at all.

First of all lets consider the resting heart rate which is basically your heart rate when you are asleep. Mine is around 32( I've heard Lance Armstrongs is 28), an average fit male of 40 years of age is 60 and unfit would be 80.

Looking at exercise - I exercise an average of 12 hours per week, an average person 3 hours and obviuosly 0 for the unfit person. For the sake of comparison I'm assuming that for most of the day our heart rates are fairly constant and around 20 beats higher than resting and I'm assuming heart rate is another 20 beats higher than that when we walk to the tube, argue with our boss, get stressed driving in the car etc etc. I'm also assuming an average heart rate of 145 during exercise.

Here's the figures for a week.

Total hours = 168
Sleeping assuming 7 hours sleep = 7 x 7 = 49 hours
Exercise - me 12, average 3, unfit 0.
Time at 40 beats above resting - 2 hours per day = 14
Time at 20 beats above resting is whatever is left over.

Here is the total hear beats per week for each of the categorie
.......................................Me.......Average.....Unfit
Asleep ..............................94080...147000....176400
Exercising..........................121800....26100...........0
time at 20 above resting ......273000...428400....567000
time at 40 above resting.......67200....84000.....92400
Total heart beats per week...556080...685500....835800

Result is my heart beats 129,400 less times per week than an averagely fit person and 279,720 less times than someone unfit.

This means my heart takes 8.6 days to beat the same number of times as someone of moderate fitness beats in a week and 10.5 days to beat the same as someone who is unfit.

If we assume a lifespan of 75 for an unfit male, this equates to 3,259,620,000 heart beats. The average fit person will take 91 years to use this number of heart beats up and I will live to the grand old age of 112! So if anybody is around in the year 2081 come and look me up to see if my thoery is correct!

Obviously I have made some rather big assumptions for these figures but I think it illustrates the point that even if there is some truth to the theory of a finite number of heart beats then the fitter you are the better your chances of living longer!

Want to get away from it all?

2009-05-11T15:46:00.002+01:00

It seems at the moment that there is no escape. We are either going to go bankrupt or lose our jobs because of the recession, will die of swine flu or be flooded out due to global warming. Every day there is another headline in the papers that if you believed was 100% accurate you may as well slit you wrists now rather than wait for the inevitable to happen.

No matter how much of an optimist you are it is difficult to ignore the constant bombardment of negative messages we are exposed to every day. What can we do about it? Well apart form the obvious i.e wash your hands regularly, cut down your spending and recycle I think running offers a fantastic way to get away from it all. Not just any old run however.

Our lives are run by routine – we wake up the same time at least five days a week, go to work, do essentially the same thing every day, see the same people, eat the same kinds of foods, go to the gym and do the same kinds of exercises or go for a run along the same route we always do. Obviously each day is different and you don’t have exactly the same thing to eat every day, each day at work is a little different and you don’t run exactly the same route but when was the last time you ate something you’ve never had before? How often a day at work is so different that you come home shocked at what happened at that day? How often do you do something completely different at the gym? How often do you go for a run somewhere completely different? The answer I am guessing is not very often.

You might argue we are all creatures of habit and we function better when we do the same thing all the time. If that is the case why do so many of us want to go on holidays and get away from it all. The truth is most of us, although spending most of our time doing the same activities, actually crave something different. We love to do things that really excite us and no matter how much you love doing something if you do the same thing every day you will soon tire of it.

So where am I heading with all this and what has it got to do with running? Well having moved house recently my regular running routes have changed and I haven’t enjoyed running so much for a long time. Not that I wasn’t enjoying running before but I have been looking forward to my runs more than usual. The amazing thing is, it is not as if I have moved to a totally different environment. I’ve moved approximately 2 miles away so am still well and truly in the middle of London. But just that small change has forced me to change some of my regular routes and made me explore different ones and even to see the same routes but in a different light. That hill seems a little harder when its 10 miles into my run instead of 3 for example.

Running somewhere different is a feast for the senses. You’ll see, hear, smell and touch different things and some of them might not be that great but at least they are different and every now and then you’ll discover a hidden gem which will leave you with a big smile on your face.

Recently I followed a path I hadn’t run along for well over a year and found myself running through fields and parks with no-one else around, no traffic noises, the sun was out and the sky a perfect blue. I was enjoying myself so much, instead of turning around after 90 minutes I added another 30 minutes onto an already long run just so I could enjoy the experience longer.

So if you want to get away from it all but your next holiday isn’t for a while simply try running somewhere different. You will see whole different neighbourhoods, or the same neighbourhood in a different light, discovers parks you didn’t know existed, find new hills to run down instead of up or vice versa and if you’re lucky you’ll discover a place that makes you leave the world behind and has you enjoying just being right where you are!

The best laid plans .......

2009-03-30T18:43:00.005+01:00

The jab of pain in my left knee is not good. I hope it will be one of those aches that goes within a few minutes but deep down I know it won't. I've felt this pain before, a while ago now but it is familiar. I stop and stretch in the vain hope it will relieve it. With a momentary release it feels ok for a while and I complete another lap. I'm 48km into the race. Twenty four 2km laps down, twenty six to go! I completed the marathon in 3.04 and was feeling ok until this.

I push on hoping it will fade but it just gets worse. I stop again and stretch and it gets me through another lap, half way in 3.43. If I could keep this up I could break 7.30. I've run this pace in training on tired legs so I know that it's possible but I also know I can't do it with this pain in my knee. I finish another lap and sit down, much to Catherine's concern. I stretch and massage, hoping for a miracle and after more than 5 minutes try again. I make another lap but half way around the next lap it comes back with another sharp jab of pain that forces me to walk.

All sorts of emotions and thoughts run through my head. From disappointment, frustration, a sense of failure, to relief that if I quit the pain will stop. Just to make sure that I can't go on I finish the lap, stopping to walk several times due to the pain. Reaching the end I sit down and my day is done.

I didn't even consider trying to finish the race but it is something I have thought about a lot since. I've never not finished a race and it was something I was very proud of. That record has finished now, like a boxer who can no longer claim to be undefeated when he finally loses a fight.

Why didn't I try and finish? Well for me this race was about one thing only - finishing in less than eight hours and qaulifying for the Australian team. I never thought about finishing or not finishing it was always about the time. With other Ultra's and Ironmans it has been about finishing first of all and then worrying about the time. I've finished both Ultra's and Ironmans having to walk large portions due to getting injured and I've proven to myself that I can endure lots of pain for long periods of time to finish a race. I don't need to prove that to myself again.

I knew the knee pain I was feeling was due to my ITB flaring up and I knew the longer I continued the longer the recovery would be. Although I wish I could have kept my dnf record intact I didnt want to put myself through that much pain and have 4-8 weeks off running afterwards just for that.

Now I can take an easy week and get back into training for the next race, whatever that might be.

Why did it happen? Well I'd had no indication of ITB problems in training at all. In fact since doing the Edinburgh marathon in 2005 when my ITB flared up very badly I've worked hard at making sure it wouldn't be a problem again. In training for the UTMB and P100 which involved large amounts of hills my ITB never gave me any grief.

The problem (for those interested, if not just skip this paragraph) lies in a tight and weak left hip flexor. When it fatigues it forces another muscle called the TFL to overwork. The TFL connects into the ITB so overworking the TFL flares up the ITB. ITB problems commonly occur due to weak glutes and is worse going downhill. Well there wasn't any hills on saturday so it wasn't that. I slightly strained that hip flexor a week before the race. Very minor and I though it wouldn't affect me. However I felt it tighten up around the 40km mark and that sent a few warning bells off in my head. Hoping it would ease but infortunately it didn't.

I sat down at the finish feeling a little sorry for myself while Catherine went and got me a coke. I felt more sorry for letting her down and friends and family and although I know they would never think like that and I know thats not a rational thought as I race for myself not for anyone else, it was still hard to put those emotions out of my head.

Heading back to the hotel I decided I may as well enjoy the rest of the weekend. Galway is a lovely spot and although I couldn't quite come at watching the rest of the race I did manage to enjoy the rest of the weekend.

Life doesn't go to plan sometimes and we have a choice on how we deal with it. We can mull over it and dwell in our misery or deal with it and move on. I'm a big beliver in things happen for a reason so I'm looking at the positives for the weeekend. I had a great first 40km, felt like my pacing was about spot on. My nutrition strategy needs fine tuning as I think I didnt have enough in the first hour or two. My mental approach worked really well, I ran my own pace, letting people pass me if they were running faster and just stuck to my own pace.

Training wise I think my taper wasn't quite right. My legs didnt feel as fresh in the final week as before other races so will look at what I did wrong there. I also think I need to keep up the hill training as although the race was totally flat the hills are so good for training your legs to cope with the ache in the quads that comes from a lot of miles.

So all in all lots of positives, lots of lessons learnt which can all be put in practice for the next race. I did contemplate giving up the 100k races and going back to trails for a moment but I feel like I've put a lot of work into training over the last 6 months and learnt so much it would be a shame not to use that and do at least one 100km race.

The countdown begins

2009-03-08T16:30:00.007Z

With only three weeks to go until the Celtic 100km the countdown has well and truly begun. Now is when I start to look back and wonder if I have done enough training (not that anything can be done about it now) and look ahead at what I should do for the next three weeks.

Looking back I am fairly confident with the training I've done. I did my last really long run last weekend - 51km. Felt very sluggish to start with but got quicker as I went without trying to and ran the last half 5 minutes quicker than the first, finishing in 3 hours 38 minutes, which if I could keep that pace up would give me a time for the 100km of around 7 hours 8min! Would be stoked with that! However running 51km in training when you can stop , fill up the water bottle, have a little rest at the traffic lights etc is different to a race and running 51km is very different to running 100km so I'm not getting carried away just yet. I will still be very happy with anything under 7 hours 45 and delighted with anything under 7.5hours. Checking through the records I noticed that only a couple of Aussies have run faster than 7.5 hours over the last few years so it is obviously not an easy thing to do.

So what do I do over the last three weeks to fully prepare myself?

The task of the next three weeks is to manage both the physical and mental aspects to get me into the best shape possible for the race.

Physically my endurance has reached is peak and will remain there for at least a month. Endurance training takes a lot out of the legs and time is needed to let them fully recover so I can derive the full benefit of all those long miles. This means no more really long runs and a decrease in overall mileage. When we run on tired legs they dont function as efficiently as if they were fully rested so it is important to make sure you start a race with legs as fresh and recovered as possible.

The problem is if you rest them by doing nothing they very quickly start losing the conditioning you have worked so hard to put into them. The trick is to reduce the overall mileage but increase the speed of the runs so you still achieve a training effect but without the damage to the muscles the long runs cause.

With this in mind I have already dropped my weekly mileage down to 65 this week from 80 last week, next weeks will be 50-60, the week after 40-50 and the final week around 10.

I already do one speed session at the track but I will include two other sessions where I perform intervals of around 10-15 mins running sub 4min k's. I've managed to run all my long runs at or faster than 7 hour 30 min 100km pace. The idea being that doing so many miles at that pace conditions the legs to be able to run at that pace no matter how tired they are. The idea of increasing the speed work now is if I spend the next thre weeks running around 4mins per km then running 4mins 30 per km will seem very easy. It is impossible to do this with high mileage as the legs are just too tired but with the decreased mileage it now becomes possible.

The other factor to pay careful attention to is any litte niggles, aches, strains etc. A small niggle that doesn't really bother you in a 22 mile run may turn into something major after 40 miles so every little ache needs to be addressed. This means more stretching, hot/cold treatments, massage and functional movement exercises to ensure every muscle is ready to go come March 28. It also means really listening to your body and not sticking rigidly to a training plan. I was supposed to go out for a run today but tight calves from yesterdays run meant I have erred on the side of caution and will have a day off and stretch, apply ice/heat and massage instead. It is not worth the risk of injury now.

It is a nervous time when every little niggle can feel like a disaster and so many what/ifs go through your mind. I know if I can stick to a regular massage, stretching and exercise routine I can get myself into the best possible state and give myself a great chance of a good race.

The mental preparation becomes even more important and I'll share a few of my tips on the next blog.

A few more jelly beans for the jar.

2009-01-31T17:24:00.006Z

My brother used to refer to training sessions as putting jelly beans in a jar. The harder the training sessions the more jelly beans you put in the jar. The more jelly beans you had in the jar the more reserves you had to call upon come race day. I deposited quite a few jelly beans in that jar today!

My plan for training for the celtic 100km is based on the principle that running 50km in 3hours 45 minutes is easy, it's running the next 50km in that time is the hard bit. What I wanted to do is get used to running that pace when my legs are already tired. So this weeks plan was to tire the legs out as much as possible during the week then do a 45km run on Saturday.

So the week included weights on monday including lots of plyometric work ;jump lunges and hops. Tuesday 10 miles including a solid session at the track, Wednesday was 19 miles in 2 hours 15 including a couple of big hills, weights again on Thursday, then just to make sure the legs were really tired, 2 hours of hills on Friday evening.

So I headed off on Saturday morning with legs that were giving me all the signs that they really didn't want to be running today. The plan was run to Regents Park ( 2.5 miles) and then do 8 laps of the 4.4km Regents Park circumference with a 2 minute rest after each lap. I chose to rest after each lap because I wanted the pace up - under 4minutes 15 seconds per km (6.48 per mile)if possible.

As I set off for the first lap my legs still weren't too happy with the thought of running so I decided that if I couldn't run quicker than 4.30 per km or 7.12 per mile I'd run home and have an easy day. No point running lot's of slow km when the aim is to get used to running faster ones when tired.

First lap 18.40 or 4.15 pace - that's ok I thought , although it didn't feel very easy.

Second lap 18.33 (4.10 pace). Wasn't sure if I'd make 8 laps of this as I felt like I was working pretty hard.

Third lap 18.27 (4.09 pace).Still not easy but holding the pace so thought I'd push on until the pace dropped below 4.30 pace.

Fourth lap 18.34 (4.11 pace). Halfway. Felt completely stuffed and still had another 23km to go.

Fifth lap 18.23 (4.10 pace).Mentally felt stronger as three more laps seemed achievable

Sixth lap 18.30 (4.12 pace). Only two laps to go!

Seventh lap 18.27 (4.09 pace). In a world of pain but only 1 lap to go.

Last lap. I was lucky with the last lap as a runner went past me just before I started the last lap so I set off in pursuit. Half way round I noticed we'd been sitting under 4 min k's. I was working very hard and legs were screaming to slow down but couldn't let him get away from me. Outsprinted him at the end to finish the lap in 17.35 ( 3.56 pace) He probably thought I was a bit of a tosser outsprinting him over the last 400m especially as he kept on running but I consoled myself with the fact that he probably hadn't run 42km up to that point.

Ran back up the hill to home feeling very satisfied with the days run, legs sore but not destroyed. Big confidence builder for the 100km.

Goals for the year.

2009-01-21T15:33:00.005Z

On my personal training blog recently I've written about the importance of goals, and of the importance of making these goals known to people as a means of holding yourself accountable to them. Well in the interests of practicing what I preach here's my major goals for the year.

Qaulify for the Australian Team to run in the 100km Commonwealth Championships being held in the Lake District in September. In communication with the selectors from Australia I've been informed that if I can run the distance in a time of less than 8 hours it should be sufficient for me to make the team. I am targeting the Celtic 100km as the race in which to do that. Held in Galway on March 28th it also doubles as the UK and Irish 100km Championships.

I am aiming for 7 hours 45 minutes just to be sure but deep down I think if all goes well I can sneak under 7 hours 30. This would mean running 4 mins 30 sec per kilometre for 100km, equivalent to running a marathon in 3hours 10minutes, then doing it again and doing almost half of it again. The UK Champion Jez Bragg (see blogs) has a pb of 7.02 so I wont be challenging for the win with a time that quick but hopefully will make the Australian team.

Some of you have already asked if that will be easy since I've already run 100 miles. Well the big difference is the speed. During an off road 100miler you get to walk the hills and the up and down nature of the course breaks up the pace quite a lot. The 100km is dead flat so it's a matter of finding a pace and trying to maintain it as long as possible.

The scenery will be a bit different - it is a 2.5km out and back course which means 20 laps! Not exactly exciting stuff and a far cry from the Alps or english countryside of the Peak District. Normally I'd stay right away from this type of race but the chance to represent your country doesn't come around very often and only for a small select group of people so I felt I had to seize the oppurtunity whilst I can.

So training for the next couple of months will focus on back to back runs friday and saturday running 35-45km at 4min 30 pace or quicker to get the legs used to running that pace for a long time when they are already tired.

So that's my goal - what about yours? Love to hear about peoples goals so let me know.

Is weight training any good for runners?

2009-01-21T12:47:00.001Z

I am often asked this question and the answer is very much dependant on the type of exercises you do. A good weight training program can increase endurance, improve running technique, increase flexibility, decrease risk of injury, balance any muscular asymmetries throughout the body allowing your body to function more effectively, increase the strength of the body for going up and more importantly down hills, increase lactate tolerance,increase strength of tendons and ligaments, not to mention general health benefits such as increasing bone density, maintain muscle mass, increase metabolic rate, decrease blood pressure and having a positive effect on insulin resistance.

It is relatively easy to come up with a program to obtain the general health benefits but a lot more thought has to go into designing a program with the running benefits. It is not as simple as thinking that running works your thighs so any exercise that works you thighs must help.

There are a few basic principles to keep in mind. The first is the body's response to exercise is specific to the actual exercise performed. What this means is if you perform a squat for example then you will become better at squatting but just because it works the legs doesnt mean any of the benefit you gained squatting will transfer into running. If you want to get better at running then you need to pick exercises that challenge the body in a similar way to running.

A common exercise I am asked about is the leg extension ( sitting down, starting with bent legs and straightening your legs with a weight on your shins). If we look at this in a bit of detail I'm sure you'll understand what I mean. The leg extension works both legs at once, you are seated, your feet aren't touching the ground, your thigh muscles ( quadriceps) work to extend the leg. When you run, you land on 1 leg, and as your foot hits the ground it has to absorb all the weight of the body , your quadriceps work to slow the rate at which your knee bends. If they didn't work your knee would keep bending until you colapsed on the ground.

So one exercise starightens your leg in a seated position and the other slows down the rate at which your knee bends in a standing position. Those two desciptions sound very different.Consequently doing leg extension will have very little effect or carry over benefit to your running.

The second point to consider is that the body moves in three planes of movement. The three planes are forward/backward, sideways, and rotational. To understand this a little better think of a tennis player, when he runs forward he is moving in what we call the sagittal plane, when he goes sideways he is moving in the frontal plane and when he hits the ball his arm, raquet and upper body are moving in the transverse(rotational )plane.

On a smaller scale, every bone in your body moves in all three planes. Take running - as our foot lands our arch rolls in which causes our shin bone to rotate in, which causes our thigh bone to rotate in, our hip also drops on the opposite to our landing foot, this movements happen all the way up to our head. If we aren't able to control these forces then we lose power and efficiency and it leads to injuries. For example the inability of the lower leg and foot muscles to control the inward roll of the foot can cause shin splints.

When was the last time you ever did any lower leg rotational exercises to strengthen those mucles? When did you do any upper thigh rotational exercises to control the inwards rotation of the thigh bone?, what about any exercises to control the movement of the pelvis as it drops on one side when the other foot lands? Lack of strength in this area commonly leads to ITB problems.

The final point I want you to consider is the type of muscle contractions that running primarily uses. There are two main types of muscles contractions - concentric and eccentric. Concentric means the muscle is shortening as it is working eg as it does in when you straighten your leg in the Leg Extension exercise, eccentric means the muscle is lengthening whilst trying to work. This happens in almost every muscle in the body when you run. For example after your foot hits the ground your knee starts to travel forward and your calf muscles help slow this movement down so you can power off for the next stride.

Your exercises should emphasise the eccentric part of the movement as much as possible. You might be thinking well what happens when I push off onto the other leg, isn't that concentric? Yes it is but concentric action becomes a lot stronger when you begin with an eccentric action first. For example if you are standing up and I told you to jump as high as you can the first thing you would do is squat down (try it if you don't believe me). Why do you squat down when you goal is to jump up? Squatting down loads up the muscles eccentrically so now they have more strength concentrically. Think of it as stretching a rubber band. If you want to fire a rubber band across the room the more you stretch it first the further it will go. Our muscles work in the same way.

So when you are designing your next weight training program to help your running ask yourself - does this exercise look similar to running, does it challenge me in all thre planes of movement and am I loading the eccentric part of the movement first.

A testing week

2008-12-14T12:22:00.001Z

Training has been a bit inconsistent of a late. An annoying calf injury from months ago combined with the occasional twinge hasn't given me much confidence in the muscle. I've had some good runs but then pulled up sore the next day and needed a few days off which has been very frustrating. In previous years I've tried to put in a fairly big mileage week just before Xmas to see where my training is at and despite the niggles I thought I'd try it again this year. I'd either break down completely or hopefully get through it ok and give me some confidence going into the new year. The idea was to get in over 130km and finish with a 40km+ run on saturday. A little ambitious perhaps considering the last few weeks were around 80km but I needed to know where I was at to formulate some plans with confidence next year.

The week wasn't looking to good when the calf stirred up again last week and meant taking four days off. So it was with nervous trepidation I headed of for the first run of the week on monday - an easy 13k run on the trails in Hampstead Heath Suprisingly I felt great, didn't notice the calf at all and really enjoyed the run despite the cold and the dark which necessitated wearing a head torch. Running through the heath in the dark with no-one else around is quite a surreal experience. As you cant see anything trails that are as familiar as the back of my hand in the daylight take on a completely different quality in the dark.
One run down four to go.

Tuesday's run was meant to be a track session but as the coach had scheduled a very short session and because last weeks track session was moved to the grass on the inside of the track beacause it was so cold the track was covered in ice I decided to do my own session - one of my favourites - five repeats up Highgate West Hill. Its just over 1km up an incline which starts around 8% and then gets steeper and steeper as you ascend. Now you might be wondering whether someone with a suspect calf should be sprinting up a steep incline and you would be right but sometimes you have to take a bit of a chance in training and somehow I felt I would be ok. So after a good 8km warm up I reached the hill and away I went. A bit gingerly at first wondering if this was very silly but with each repeat gaining confidence and by the last two was posting some reasonable times ( around 4.45) which although not my fastest wasn't too far off the pace. Running home the calf felt a little tight but I hoped ok.

Wednesday's run was a 5.5km run to the club followed by a steady paced 24km and then the 5.5k run home. I set off gingerly again waiting for the calf to complain but felt nothing so was greatly encouraged. The run was around the major parks in London - Regents, St James, Green and Hyde Park. We averaged around 4min 15 pace (7min miles)for most of the run with some faster paced miles in the middle. By the time I got home 2.5 hours later and 35km covered I was feeling pretty pleased with myself.

Thursday was a day off. So I spent an hour stretching and did a 90 minute Yoga class. Something I've added to my schedule recently in an effort to increase my flexibility. I'm not getting any younger and I've always said I want to be running when I'm 100 so figure I need to focus a bit more on the flexibilty side of things as you tend to lose this the older you get.

Friday's plan is an easy 2 hour - 25km run in the heath on the trails. The trails tend to be more forgiving on the legs despite the frequent up and down so I try to do as much running on them as I can. It was so cold today all the paths that are usually completely muddy were frozen as was one of the main ponds in the heath. It made running a much easier experience as I wasn't struggling for grip sliding all over the place on the mud and also allowed me to run on the minor trails that are normally too muddy to run on. I like getting off the main trails away from all the dog walkers and mums with prams as I can just ejoy the run without having to dodge small children and unpredictable dogs. Actually the small children are more unpredictable than the dogs! It's not a fast run but there is a lot of hills and the trails twist and turn so I am not really worried about the distance or speed. Just an easy very enjoyable run.

Saturday is the big day - a 40km + run. So far so good, the calf has held up well as have the legs but today is the real test - a marathon distance run on very tired legs. I am thinking of running 100km next year and wanted to do a long run on tired legs and see what kind of pace I can comfortably do to give me some idea what I can run 100km in. Todays run is a run to Regents park then eight laps around the park of 4.4km per lap and then run home. A bit boring you might think but I didn't want to think about where I ran I just wanted to get into a rythym and hold it for as long as possible. I set off in freezing conditions and pouring rain, not really ideal but nothing I could do about it. The first lap felt hard on the legs - under 20 minutes but only just - around 4.30min km or 7.15 per mile and I was wondering if I could keep this up or was I going to get slower and slower and be reduced to a pathetic shuffle. Second lap was faster and I felt a little better and by the third lap my legs were now warmed up although the rest of me was still freezing. Laps 4 and 5 are always the hardest as I was getting tired but still had a long way to go. By the time lap 6 came around and my speed was still getting faster without any real effort and I was feeling confident I could finish the run comfortably. Laps seven and eight were the fastest of the lot and I even managed to run back home which is predominantly all uphill a minute quicker than I ran down. It was still pouring with rain and I was getting colder and colder so I was very glad to knock off 44km in 3hours 16 minutes and feel like I could have kept running for another hour without too many problems. I was pretty happy with that.

Sunday is a well deserved rest day and I woke up expecting to be a bit stiff and sore and was pleasantly suprised to not feel any more tiredess in the legs than normal. A good solid week of training in the legs leaves me with a lot of confidence for the upcoming year. Still to decide which races I will do but will have a good think over the Xmas break and set the plans for 2009.

Why - Part 1

2008-12-03T14:18:00.001Z

Running through the delights of Hampstead Heath on a brisk autumn day transported me back to some of the races I've done. I could have been anywhere, I couldn't hear any traffic, there was no-one else around and all I could hear was the sound of my feet hitting the ground. At times like this my mind wanders and every now and then I have a moment of complete clarity about something. In this case it was about why I run ultra's. We all get a thrill when we see or do something that is out of the ordinary, a great concert puts a smile on our face and a buzz inside us for hours, a good film similarly so, watching someone score an impossible goal or run a world record leaves us feeling amazed and in awe of the athlete. This is why we are attracted to going to the concert or watching sport in the first place; that potential to see something incredible which will lift our spirits above the ordinary of every day life. It gives us a moment of escape as we are drawn into the game, race , concert or film. Why do we desire this escape in the first place? Are our lives that depressing that any chance we get we try and escape from it? I dont think so, I think it's just that our daily lives don't come with the extreme's of emotion that watching sport or entertainment can bring about. Obviously occasions like weddings or a new born baby are experiences that are unrivalled by anything but they are few and far between in our lives.
But it's at these extremes of emotions that most of us feel truly alive. On our wedding day we feel more love than at any other time in our lives, not just the love of our partner but the love of everyone who attends, at a funeral we also feel the intense love of a person departed or at the birth of a new born baby we are filled with joy for the parents and it fills us with hope of a wonderful life for the newborn. In between these occasions our normal lives dont have any of the same joy, love ,happiness, excitement as these occasions provide so we go seeking them elsewhere.

Unfortunately to bring about these extremes of emotions it almost always revolves around someone else - it's someone else scoring the goal, or running the world record and you can only experience them if your team is the one scoring the goal or if you actually enjoy the film. Sometimes our team will lose, our favourite athlete wont make it to the final or the tube will break down after the concert and all the positive emotions and feelings we experienced are frustrated away sitting on a tube . What if you could get that same feeling but it was you doing the something amazing rather than you being the observer. Then you would be in control of what happened, you wouldn't have to wait until your favourite band started a world tour, or the olympic games came around to get that buzz inside.

Ultramarathons give you that chance. Finishing something that to most people seems impossible gives me that same buzz of watching someone else do the impossible only a million times more intense. It heightens all of my emotions, both good and bad throughout the race. The pain of running for that long, the joy of realising the finish is near and the feeling of total and utter contentment and peace after finishing is something that is rarely felt in normal life. Ultra's also ask many questions of yourself - how bad do you want to finish? how much pain are you prepared to handle? how far are you prepared to push yourself? why dont you stop running and walk? .. no-one will know. Sometimes the answers to those can be not what you think or hope , other times they can suprise you in ways you never thought possible. Regardless of what the answers are you learn a little more about yourself.

Granted you cant do as many ultramarathons as you can watch games of football but every training session is a journey towards something incredible. So four, five, six days of the week you are doing something that will make the impossible a reality. Although the buzz after a training session is nowhere as intense as after a race, there is still a real feeling of well being and contentment after you've completed another session that will bring you to the achievement of finishing the race. For me thats one of the reasons why I love doing what I do.
And here is the rest of it.

The Pennine 100 Challenge 2008

2008-11-06T12:50:00.001Z

From a race with 2300 competitors in 2007 in the UTMB, things were a little different on a wet windy weekend in the Peak District for this tough 100 miler.

http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/United-Kingdom/England/Derbyshire/Glossop/blog-292066.html

The Ultra Trail du Mt Blanc 2007

2008-11-06T12:47:00.000Z

Having not been put of by my experiences in the West Highland Way I entered the UTMB in 2007. For a write up of this amazing race clink the link below

http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/France/Rh-ne-Alpes/Chamonix/blog-199031.html

The West Highland Way 2006

2008-11-06T12:43:00.000Z

Back in June 2006 I dived head first into the world of Ultramarathons by attempting the 95 mile West Highland Way Ultramarathon. Clink on the link to read all about it

http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/United-Kingdom/Scotland/Fort-William/blog-70155.html