This is the workout I use to help runners get ready for their best short race like a 5K. It can be performed anytime in the training plan and as close to 5 days before the race. It is a fitness-refining workout that helps an athlete get race ready. It’s fun to feel “light and…
Coach Joe Vigil is arguably the best running coach the US has ever had. He’s a blend of tough, no nonsense “get the work done” kind of coaching paired with a knowledge that while he’s pushing you to your limits, he cares deeply about your success. He demands your best and you want to give…
Being a runner with celiac disease makes fueling properly a little more time consuming than those who do eat wheat and gluten. My biggest concern is making sure I am getting all of the proper nutrients to sustain my training and help my body recover. When I first took gluten out of my diet I struggled to…
Do you have a 5K or 10K coming up? Here are my top 3 favorite types of workouts that will get you ready. They challenge you in slightly different ways, but all three are great at preparing you for the physical and mental rigors of 5K/10K racing. Keep in mind that it is always a good…
This is a classic Frank Horwill (a famed British coach who formulated the Five Pace Training Theory used by many great athletes such as Sebastian Coe and Said Aouita) workout which I’ve found very useful in simulating the deep gut, lactic pain of a 5K. It’s not so much the pace that makes you have…
This is one of my favorite workouts because it has a wide range of paces throughout and it’s great for working towards distances from 3K to half marathon. The tempo run is the easy part of the workout. I added this to the workout to get the legs a little tired first before hitting the…
Today, there are many ways to monitor and evaluate the quality of your training. Any number of devices are available to give you real-time feedback on your pace, cadence, heart rate and calories burned. But, you don’t need to spend a lot of money on gadgets or have a PhD in physiology to effectively gauge…
Recently, I wrote about the benefits of bad workouts and races. I suggested that instead of dwelling on them, why not learn from them? But what about good races? Can you learn from them too? You can, but maybe in ways that are slightly less obvious than you think. In more than 20 years of…
Masters runners must work hard to maintain their speed, stride length, flexibility, and strength if they want to stay competitive. Most runners who’ve been training and racing competitively for a number of years know that at some point mainlining the miles like you did in your 20s doesn’t work anymore. You need more recovery after…
Laboring and delivering my two daughters was by far the most physically challenging thing I have ever willed my way through. I say willed because like running, there were times during the process that I wanted to stop and just be done. Also like running, I had moments where I felt empowered and unstoppable. For…