The Running Man: Coaching

Showing posts with label Coaching. Show all posts

Thursday, May 11, 2017

Want to Get In Shape as a Runner? Here's Step 1.

One of the athletes I'm coaching has experienced a full 4-minute drop in his average Maffetone Test pace since February. What's Maffetone? Keep reading!

Yiannis Kouros said that, "you must be patient and then do
solid training. Without patience (read: aerobic base building),
you will never conquer endurance."

He went into his training for the Leadville Trail 100-Mile Run having not trained consistently but having tried his hand at the 50K distance, where it took him 7+ hours to finish. When he came to me for coaching services back in January, I asked him a bunch of questions and out of that experience came the realization that this was an athlete who had the desire but required at least 3-4 months of nothing but aerobic base training. So we created a program that revolved around the Maffetone Method. For him, based on his age, this meant all runs were in the 145-155 beats-per-minute range (never going over!), as I'd determined exclusive aerobic training was a fundamental area of need early in his development.

Essentially, the Maffetone Method is a personalized program, using the 180 Formula, for developing a solid aerobic base and optimizing the athlete's health and well-being. It's what made Mark Allen into...Mark Allen the Ironman legend. But I believe the Maffetone Method, while brilliant, will get an athlete training for a mountain race only so far. So my approach is to then build on the aerobic base, after it's been carefully developed over the course of months of consistent running, with some specific types of workouts that achieve specific things. For this runner, because he's training for the Leadville 100, we started to gradually introduce fartleks, intervals and then hill repeats and 20-25-minute tempo running, in addition to long runs on trails and roads, after he'd put in 3+ solid months of MAF. He was ready for this.

What is so great about this athlete's progress isn't just the steady improvement in his MAF Test results. To be sure, that's very exciting! But what's so gratifying at this stage is the fact that he's steadily increased his weekly mileage (now at 55 per week) and increased his long runs, while also gradually implementing quality workouts and staying healthy, injury-free and mentally engaged. He is now ready for the peak period of his Leadville training. And I think this all goes back to the aerobic base he built for those first three months. Without a solid aerobic base, an endurance athlete has built his or her castle on sand and not rock. If the former, the castle will crumble come race day (if not sooner). If the latter, the athlete will have what it takes to cover the distance--he has the requisite aerobic engine to more than cover the distance.

What's next for this athlete? The buildup for Leadville will continue with increasingly longer runs, many of which will be on mountainous trails, tempo runs to countinue building strength, hill repeats to continually develop speed and efficiency, and nothing but MAF pace on easy days.

If you, too, are an athlete looking to get in shape and maybe try your hand at the marathon or even ultramarathon distance, consider the Maffetone Method! It works!

Monday, April 7, 2014

Quality

I just wrapped up my first week of training for Leadville under the tutelage of my new coach. This is my eleventh year of running, so it’s a little humbling to basically follow a (personalized) plan set by someone else. Fortunately for me, that someone else happens to be a runner I really respect and admire and a coach who’s gotten some impressive results, making it easier to do what I’m asked to do.

I can already see that my coach is going to ask a lot of me in the way of quality, which is a good thing. On Saturday, I joined AJ, Chuck and Jon for a little over 20 miles with 2,000 feet of vertical in the Castle Pines/Castle Rock area. Then the next day I did a 10-mile tempo run with a thousand feet of vertical (12 miles total if you count warm-up and cool-down) that had me working as hard as I’ve worked in a long time. My coach has emphasized the importance of these Sunday tempo runs, also mentioning that I’ll have a break from them every now and then in order to help keep me fresh, healthy and responsive to the work.

The average weeks looks to include hill repeats, tempo running, intervals and long stuff, with easy days in between the “hard” workouts with the exception of Saturdays and Sundays. I’ll have more rest weeks than I ever would have allowed myself—again, I see that as a good thing since rest weeks are when our bodies repair and get stronger. It’s easy to say you’re going to rest more; it’s hard to truly back that up with actual R&R.

One thing I’ve quickly come to see: I love the structure of this training regimen. It’s nice to know what the plan is every day, even if the plan is just 8 miles at super easy pace. And oh yeah: It used to be that my easy pace was around 7:50-8-minute miles. This morning I did 9-minute miles and it felt great! My new guiding principle is to go hard on my hard days and really easy on my easy days. I’m trying not to get too bogged down on numbers, but I will admit that I was eye-balling 72 miles this past week and I got it. When I’m running 70+ a week, it’s because I’m starting to get serious.

The regimen I’m on now is so different from what I did last summer. Last summer, I had a blast running every day in the mountains. The average week would consist of about 90-100 miles and 15,000-17,000 feet of vertical. But almost all of it was at easy pace. It’s no wonder I got so slow. I feel like the cobwebs are starting to get knocked off as I implement more and more quality. I know that this quality will help me run strong especially on the Hope Pass section and in those final 30-40 miles at Leadville. The key is to recover as best as I can between quality workouts, listen to my body, and take advantage of my rest weeks. The good news is that I’m going to be pushed hard enough on my big weeks/training blocks that I’ll actually want to rest on my rest weeks—they’ll be rewards for working hard.

Last night, I was thumbing through some of my old training logs. It hit me that back in 2008 and 2009 I did a lot of quality—intervals, tempos, hill repeats and long stuff every week. On Saturdays, I'd go long (20+) and then on Sundays a bunch of us in the club I ran with at the time would race to the water stop and beyond (if you're in SERC and reading this, you know what I'm talking about!), making for a great tempo effort within a long run. I didn’t rest nearly enough but I did tons of quality, got results and seemed to recover fast. Yeah, the fact that I was 35 or 36 had something to do with it, but I also think all the quality paid off.

It’s good that I spent the first three months of this year doing mostly MAF running. That solid base I laid is now ready to be built on.

Wednesday, April 2, 2014

New Coach / MAF Test

I have hired a coach to help me prepare for the Leadville 100 on August 16. This will be my fifth Leadville, and it’s fair to say the race has vexed me every year. Results from my past four Leadvilles:

2010: 24:47 – Overcame hypothermia, vomiting and dehydration at Mayqueen inbound (86.5), as well as a two-mile excursion off-course (missed a turn), to eke out a sub-25.
2011: 22:35 – Fell asleep while running between Mayqueen and the finish, fighting off hypothermia. The final 13.5 miles were an epic slog and, yes, included some chunk blowing (as always).
2012: DNF – Knee injury, blown up legs, whatever.
2013: 22:40 – After a horrible first 65 miles that included a 7-hour Hope Pass double-crossing and puking attack at Hopeless inbound (gotta love barfing 15+ times at 12,000 feet), I came alive and finished super strong. And, yep, Mayqueen inbound once again featured an impressive barfing attack (thank goodness for that aluminum baking dish).

While I’m proud of those results (except 2012), I know I can do better. That is why I’ve hired a coach who really gets this 100-mile racing thing—a runner who has put up impressive results for many years, including a strong finish at Leadville a few years ago. He’s one of those runners who has a knack for showing up for his A race in peak form. He delivers on the big day because of his training, his passion, his great attitude, his good instincts and what’s between his ears. I want to learn from him. Even though I’ve been doing ultras for a few years now, I know I can always learn and improve.

Tuesday of this week was day one of my training under my new coach’s tutelage. We’re starting gradually—this morning I did a few hill repeats and on Thursday I’m at the track for some intervals (though the forecasted 1-3 inches of slush might say otherwise). The weekends will see long runs and tempo efforts, and on a periodic basis I’ll have rest weeks--which I'm really bad at including in my training blocks. I’m really excited to see where this all goes.

One thing I’ve asked him to do is reign me in—I’m one of those runners who tends to chase numbers and put a lot of stock in weekly volume. And while this program will include some good volume, I know that at this stage in my running life, with a big base already laid, what I most need are specific workouts that provide the stimulus to reach my potential at Leadville—whatever it may be. He believes I can run a sub-20. I tend to look more at sub-21. We’ll see where this all goes. I don’t want to load expectations on my back—racing 100 miles at Leadville is hard enough.

***

As for what’s next, I’m now a little over four weeks from the Colorado Marathon. This will be my fourth consecutive week of 70+ miles. On Sunday, I ran 19 miles, including a MAF test at the local high school track. I just wanted to see where I am with my aerobic fitness. For my MAF test, which came after five easy miles with my dog, I ran 5 miles at 146 beats per minute (even though technically my MAF is 135-145 now) and averaged 6:43/mile. Last August, before Leadville, I averaged 6:38/mile in a MAF test. I like where I am right now—somewhat fit but not too fit four months from Leadville. My goal for the Colorado Marathon is to qualify for Boston.

After the marathon, I’ll take a rest week and then resume my Leadville training, emphasizing longer runs on mountain trails. By then, many of the trails will be ice-free. That’s when the real fun begins.

Tuesday, June 11, 2013

Lots of Vertical (For Me), Freelance Writing and Maybe Even Coaching

I just wrapped up one of my better weeks in a long time. For the week of June 2-9, I hit 92 miles, 14 hours and 14,400 feet of vertical. Obviously the mileage, total time and vertical are super solid. Where I think I fell short was in the long run. My longest run of the week came on Sunday, when I ran 19 miles and climbed 4,100 feet in a little over three hours at Deer Creek Canyon. I need to start working in some longer runs of 4-6 hours. I think runs beyond six hours can be problematic in terms of recovery.

It's incredible how far my climbing has come in the past few weeks. Climbs on rocky trails in Colorado are almost never easy, but with practice they become more physically and mentally manageable. Some days you're on, and some days you're in a bad way. For example, on Friday I ventured down to Colorado Springs to run the Barr Trail--the trail that takes you all the way to the summit of Pikes Peak. My plan was to at least get to Barr Camp and then hammer it back to my car, for a total of about 14 miles and 4,000 feet of climbing. Well, I struggled from the start, particularly in the "W's." The W's involve a lot of switchbacks. If you run the W's too aggressively, you'll be cooked in no time and eventually find yourself in oxygen debt. I ran the W's too hard and paid for it mid-way to Barr Camp when I was out of gas. The lesson here is that successful climbing is about patience and experience.

A few days later I seemed to regroup quite well, nailing those 19 miles and 4,100 feet of climbing at Deer Creek Canyon. I ran every step and hit every climb I could find.

There are two major needs with my training over the next seven weeks:

More high-altitude running--preferably above 10,000 feet. Most of my trail runs up until now have been in the 7,000-8,000-foot range--still pretty good but I need to get higher. Next week I may do the Hope Pass double crossing.
Longer runs of 4-6 hours. I've done quite a few runs of 3-4 hours and my daily consistency is awesome, but I need to get out for some really long jaunts. It would be ideal if these really long jaunts were also at high altitude.

In short, my training right now is exactly where I want it to be, which I credit to my commitment to the Maffetone Method earlier this year. I'm getting in super shape and I'm feeling good. My weight is down to a lean 162-163, even as I'm eating quite well. Honestly, there's not much fat on my body right now. I need to keep progressing over the next seven weeks and make sure I don't go stale or get injured. Some planned recovery days/weeks will be critical. I will probably take the week after the Leadville Trail Marathon on June 29 pretty easy and then hit it hard for the last three weeks of July.

***

The job search is what it is. I have a lot of applications out and last week I interviewed with an organization that really interests me on many levels. We'll see how things go. I think searching for a job is just a really long, tedious process that requires a ton of patience and faith.

In the meantime, I've decided to do some contract/freelance writing work, particularly work that involves grant-writing and PR. I've helped raise almost $50 million over my career through grants and proposals. Writing would appear to be a strength of mine. I've also done some cool stuff with PR and media relations. So, I'm creating an LLC and building out a website with the hopes of developing a successful business focusing on grant-writing and PR/communications. If you have writing needs, let me know!

Additionally, I continue to consider starting a coaching business for ultrarunners and those aspiring to get into the sport. For years, people have been e-mailing me with questions about training, races, shoes, diet, etc. Obviously, there are folks out there who think I know what I'm doing (yeah, kind of scary). Plus, with the growth of the sport (almost every hundred-miler is selling out early), I see a big demand for good coaches.

I love helping ultrarunners and I would really enjoy working with athletes on a more formal basis. My running resume is pretty solid, and over the years I've learned a lot through personal successes and failures. I've done a lot of things right, and I've also done a lot of things wrong. That's what you want in a coach--someone who's learned through trial and error and has developed various approaches that can work for athletes of all abilities and experience levels.

Anyway, if I start a coaching business, I would use a very customized, personalized and holistic approach, meaning my athletes would benefit from:

FLEXIBILITY: A flexible training program that aligns with the athlete's lifestyle and helps him/her achieve personal goals. It's critical that a training program take into account how the athlete is feeling and progressing and what other life demands and pressures (family, job, etc.) he/she may be facing. It's equally important for a training program to allow the athlete to have fun with running.
PERSONAL CONTACT: Lots of contact via phone, e-mail and (ideally) in-person meetings/runs. The goal of the check-ins would be to assess and discuss progress, make training program tweaks, address questions and concerns, etc. I do not believe in training programs that are built out way in advance and don't involve regular check-ins, adjustments and listening to the mind, body and spirit. And I'm even more suspect of cookie-cutter programs like those offered in popular running magazines.
MOTIVATION: Tons of motivation and, when necessary, constructive feedback. I love to motivate and inspire runners, mostly because I have a deep passion for running. But I won't be a Pollyanna; I'll expect and demand 100% commitment from my athletes and I will let them know when I think they're not giving it their all. That said, during training there are times when you simply have to take your foot off the gas pedal, like when you have a sudden family or work commitment (e.g., sick child, deadlines at the office, illness, etc.).
HEALTHY EATING: What you eat can profoundly influence your development as a runner. As someone who's lost nearly 60 pounds and kept it all off for over a decade, I can help runners achieve their optimal body weight and eat the right foods.
WORK/LIFE BALANCE: I totally understand what it's like to run high mileage and have big goals while also fulfilling your responsibilities as a full-time employee, spouse, parent and homeowner. Balancing it all, while also getting proper sleep, can be very difficult. I can help runners find the right balance.

I think my focus would be ultrarunners and creating programs that help them successfully train for and complete races from 50K-24 hours. I've never really nailed the marathon so I wouldn't be too comfortable helping athletes run a fast PR at the 26.2-mile distance, though I could certainly help athletes finish their first marathon or maybe even qualify for Boston. I think my expertise is mostly with ultra distances, especially hundred-milers.

It's just a question of whether anyone would even hire me! If you're interested, e-mail me.

***

A final note. As previously stated, the Maffetone Method has transformed the way I train. You can learn more about MAF at Dr. Maffetone's website, but I also encourage you to check out this podcast interview Dr. Maffetone did with Endurance Planet (note: it's available for free on iTunes). It's incredibly educational, helpful and engaging. Highly, highly recommended.