I just read a great post on Understanding Your Natural Running Pace by Matt Fitzgerald.  He writes about how we all have a natural running pace, and what we can do to improve it.

Here is a link to the article:

http://running.competitor.com/2009/12/training/understanding-your-natural-running-pace_7280

Read and enjoy!


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With winter here, most of us are turning more and more to treadmills for our running.  If you are used to running on hilly terrain, you will find that running on a treadmill without incline gets boring!  So you might find yourself adjusting the incline to get some uphill sections into your run.

That's fine, but what about downhill running?  Running downhill creates what is known as an eccentric exercise for your legs.  Surprisingly, more injuries occur when running downhill than when running u...
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If you have been running for a while, you have almost certainly heard that it is essential to remain well hydrated. Dehydration has been blamed for premature fatigue, pulled muscles, cramps, dizziness, nausea and heat exhaustion. But what are the facts?

I have recently been reading The Runner's Body by Tucker and Dugas , and it is interesting to read their view on this subject. They note that runners who finish marathons in the fastest times are those who lose the mo...

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When it's cold and rainy, it's time to unfold the treadmill and enjoy running in the great indoors! Normally, I hate the treadmill, but by looking at the weather outside the window I find I can take pleasure in it. Also, it is a great opportunity to try something different.

Yesterday I had scheduled intervals. With the bad weather, I decided to run my intervals on the treadmill. However, I also wanted to make them part of my “running faster” program, so I did a variation on the usual ...

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I just finished my first tempo run workout since I started the “run faster” program. The idea behind this program is to increase stride rate, or turnover. So today, instead of working on running pace in the intervals I worked on turnover.

I ran the first 10 minutes as a warmup at an easy, comfortable pace and stride rate. Then I cut into a 5 minute interval running at a comfortably fast stride rate. I followed this with 5 minutes running at the fastest stride rate I could manage.

The ...

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After all the rain we have had lately, yesterday and today have been beautiful again, with temperatures ranging from 50F to 75F, dry and sunny with light winds. I was able to really enjoy my long run yesterday: it started cool, but was quite warm enough by the end. However, at the end I felt quite tired and was feeling a little pain.

Pain at the end of a run is always a warning sign, and an indication to figure out what caused it. When I did an easy run today, the pain was still there, but ...

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One of the benefits of being a writer about running is that occasionally I receive samples of running clothing to try. Early in the summer, I was asked to test a pair of Opedix® running tights. I selected the coolest tights they carry, recognizing that it would probably be too hot to test them in the summer in Texas.

With summer temperatures ranging from 85ºF to 105ºF and high humidity, I don't find running tights very comfortable. Even shorts get wet with sweat very quickly under those c...

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I just spent a week in California.  Most of the time I didn't run, but one day I ran along the trail in Ventura.  The weather was perfect and the trail was flat -- I felt like I should really be running fast!

Wrong.

I missed the hills!  I did not realize until I started running here again that the hills give me a chance to relax a bit on the downgrade.  When it's flat all the time, there is no relief except by slowing down.  Similarly, I don't get the chance to really work at it without speedin...
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I just found out the secret to pain free running! You might find it hard to believe that after all the years I've been running it took me this long to find it, but it's true. Once you know it, the secret is really quite simple: I'll write about in detail in my next members' newsletter, so if you're interested in pain free running this would be a great time to register (at no cost). I promise I won't spam you or sell your e-mail address!

Meanwhile, there is other exciting news. They say ...

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Now that I'm back to running again, I find that I can jog along quite happily and comfortably, but I'm REALLY slow! That's OK, except that I'd like to enter for another race (maybe a 5K this time), so I need to learn to run faster. This means working some other types of runs into my program.

You may already know about pace runs, intervals, tempo runs and so on, but do you know how to enjoy them, rather than looking on them as punishment? I'll describe what works for me: you are free to a...

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If you have been following me for a while, you know that I just took a six-week break from running. Sometimes you might take a break from necessity, and sometimes from choice, but you will always have the same issue: how to get back into a running program without injury. You might be interested to know how I am doing it.

Last Monday, I started out by walking 10 minutes, jogging 10 minutes and walking another 10 minutes. This gave me a chance to warm up slowly, get back into the feeling of m...

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I just found out that I can get paid to buy running shoes online!  Even my favorite running store (Road Runner Sports) will pay me back 5.85% in cash.  Right now, this is available only in the U.S. and the U.K., so if you live somewhere else you may have to wait a while before you can get paid to buy running shoes.

This works not just for running shoes, but for anything at all you buy online, and a large number of great online stores and outlets participate.  You get paid different amou...
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Yesterday afternoon, we received a call from a friend who had two front row seats available for a Merle Haggard concert that evening. The venue was about 75 miles from home, so, of course, we decided to go! A great show, and as we were leaving we ran into my brother-in-law with his family and neighbors. By the time we got away from there, we were hungry, so stopped at a fast food place to grab some really unsuitable food ... finally got to bed about 1:00 AM.

Somehow, the idea of running thi...

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I used to be a smoker. In fact, I smoked for about 35 years, starting in the days when it was cool to smoke. The days of Bogart and Bacall, amongst others.

I smoked cigarettes, cigars and a pipe. Not all at once, you understand, but almost. In my pipe smoking days, I was a chain smoker: I would be smoking one pipe, cleaning and filling another, while the third was cooling down from the last smoke – I'm not kidding! I had to quit that, because I had no time to do anything else with m...

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Was it really a week ago? Here are the elite runners starting:

What about the race? People I spoke to afterwards said it was the toughest half marathon they had run. A hilly course (one hill was about 3 miles long!) and hot weather (record temperature for the day in Nashville). About 80-85, but there was a breeze. With the lower humidity (compared to here in the Houston area) it didn't seem all that bad, but there was a long dry section in the middle where I got dehydrated. I started to feel ...

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At the bigger races of 10K or more they have massage tents after the finish, usually free. This was certainly true at the Capitol 10K last Sunday. I believe in taking advantage of them, as a good massage, especially for the legs, helps to relieve soreness and stiffness after the run.

Waiting in line for the massage, I got to talking to another runner. When discussing half marathons, he came up with some useful tips for race day and the period immediately before and after. I thought you ...

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I came across this post and decided the advice is good enough to share with everybody.  It refers to a race in South Africa, so the details need to be changed, but the ideas are good anywhere!

Norrie's final training tip for the Postnet Half-Marathon
13 Mar 2009
Tomorrow morning will see you lining up for the Postnet Weekend witness Half Marathon and Marathon, what you do in the final 24 hours will impact on your result tomorrow.

The course is one of the f...
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I finally got the photos from the 5K I ran with my daughter Sally in Conroe last month.  They gave me my age as my race number!  (Coincidence? Maybe!)  We were running in honor of her mother, who died of cancer.  Over 300 contestants came out for this, the first annual Remission Run, to celebrate people in remission from cancer (me) and to honor those who had died of cancer (my late wife.)


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