Sometimes a surfer will wait for half an hour, just paddling around, hanging out and waiting for the right wave. When it finally comes, everything feels right, and that's the time to go for it, and ride the wave. Hang in for as long as you can and ride the wave: don't let the wave ride you!

The closest we come to that in running is fartlek. I'm told this means “speed play” in Swedish, and it's the nearest we get to playing when running. But we are playing with a purpose – to improv...

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I have missed a few days running lately, for various reasons, but went for a pleasant, easy run this morning. As I was running, I found myself reflecting on a fascinating video I watched the other evening. In this video, Frank Kern was talking to a group of network marketers about Core Influence.

Now I had never heard this concept before, so it was all new to me, but when I listened to what he had to say I found that it struck a number of chords for me. What he is looking at is why we do wh...

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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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Achilles Stretch

I don't generally disagree with Runner's World, but I take exception to the article Stretch Your Calves Correctly. The article recommends runners to use the active-isolated toe lift for stretching the calf, rather than what I call the Achilles stretch. The authors claim that this gives a better stretch for the gastrocnemius (the outer calf muscle).

As you know, I recommend two stretches for the calf muscles – the Achilles stretch for the gastrocnemius and the calf stretch...

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Last week I was suffering from allergies, so between that and the Thanksgiving Holiday I found myself not running from Tuesday until Saturday. I got back to an easy run Saturday, and really enjoyed a long run on Sunday. Today, I did another PACE run as part of my speed training.

On the long run, I found I started off for the warmup with my old slow loping pace. After 10 minutes, I was fully warmed up, but found it was too difficult to adjust to a fast turnover, so I kept a slow stride rat...

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Running the 5K in the Huntsville Half Marathon - Oct 17, 2009

I'm writing this after my first run using the running tips mentioned in the previous article to help me run faster. To refresh your memory, the initial objective is to increase stride rate until it's 90 strides per minute or better. (For clarity, one stride is from point of contact of one foot to the next point of contact of the same foot, so a stride rate of 90 means that your left foot hits the ground 90 times in one minute.)

O...

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So far, I never met a runner who wanted to run slower – everyone wants to know how to run faster! As a permanent back-of-the-pack runner, I accept the fact that most runners run faster than me. I look in envy at the elite runners streaming in to the finish while I'm still getting started.

I just read a great article by Steven Bentley of Bentley Coaching on Running Efficiently. In a nutshell, he points out that to run faster you need to improve your running efficiency. Most of this artic...

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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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Nutrition is one of the major components of fitness. Unfortunately, we get so much misleading and conflicting information that is tough to know what we need to consume for optimum fitness.

Good nutrition facts abound in the sports literature (Runners' World, for example, carries several excellent articles each month), but we still see plenty of bad information being reported.

Every month, it seems, someone announces a new diet, each one claiming to correct all the errors of the previous die...

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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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The past few weeks we have been running a contest. Sign up as a member to enter and win a free copy of my eBook "Your Half Training Schedule".  This offer will be withdrawn after Labor day and is open to the first ten contestants - we already have several winners, so you'll need to be quick to get in on it!


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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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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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The contest is still on!

In the members' newsletter last month, I announced a contest, and we already have some winners!  While I was wasting away in Roatan (yes - I'm back now!), I thought it would be a great opportunity to get your views on what you would like to read from me. And, to make it more interesting for you, I've run a contest!  The first ten people to respond get a free copy of my eBook "Your Half Training Schedule" (value $17.95).  If you are not already signed up as a member, he...
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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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You know about the obvious dangers of running: (being run over by a Mack truck, being attacked by dogs or hornets, breaking an ankle) but did you know there are also hidden dangers?

When you run regularly, your body undergoes changes. Of course: isn't that why you do it? Many of these changes are obvious - less fat, more lean muscle, more energy - but some you may not be aware of.

Generally, that's not a problem, but there are times when these changes can be d...

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Capitol 10K in Austin, March 29, 2009

Thousands of people have asked me why I have a site called halftrainingschedule.com No, not thousands, a few hundred, maybe. Well, perhaps a few ...

(Actually, I'm almost sure someone asked me once.)

The answer is quite simple. I enjoy running, and wanted to create a site for others who might be interested in starting. I already had two sites (beginning-running.com and gettingstartedrunning.com), but neither one was what I wanted.

Searching for suita...

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If you run on the roads, what do you need to do to avoid running accidents?

I just got back from a 6 mile training run and noticed that, despite the recession, the traffic seems to keep increasing. I am aware of two fatal accidents to runners in the past year, caused by vehicles whose drivers evidently did not see the runners until too late. The most dangerous time to run is when the light is just changing (at twilight) to or from dark: this is the time when it is most difficult for a dri...

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(This article is reprinted from RNCentral.com)

Runners who own iPhones are in luck. There are tons of great apps to help track, train, and cross-train or find out about nutrition, weight management, or health and safety issues. Check out these 50 apps--some are free and some are available for a small fee--to find high-tech help to support your running passion.

Apps for Running

These apps provide tracking information, help you prepare for specific runs, work as pedometers, and even help y...

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This article is taken from the eBook Your Half Training Schedule available here.

Runners get injured. It's not a question of whether you'll get injured, but when, how often and how badly. Even when we do everything right, we get injured sometimes.

Running related injuries are generally not life-threatening, but they can wreak havoc with our schedules. For this reason, it's a good idea to allow more time than you need to train for a race. If you can, give yourself 3-6 weeks more time tha...

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Today would normally be my long run day but I'm injured again.  Actually, it's probably still, rather than again.  I ignored my pain in running for too long, and it caught up with me.

According to Runner's World, Dr. Jeffrey Brown (author of The Competitive Edge) says that over time every runner is going to get injured: it's a part of running.  It's important to keep perspective: my pulled hamstring is not like losing a job, for example.  Being chronologically gifted, though (read "old"!) I am...
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Of all sports, running is probably the simplest.  If you ever studied the rule book for baseball, football, basketball or almost any other sport, it's far more complicated than running.  For running, the rules are simple: put one foot in front of the other and keep going until it's time to stop.

Just because it's simple, though, doesn't mean that there is nothing to learn.  I find, as I'm sure you do, that the longer I run the more I learn about running.  Take GPS training, for example.

On my l...
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Today was beautiful -- cool, calm and bright sunshine.  I was due for interval workouts today, so I decided to substitute fartlek training rather than running set intervals.  The beauty of that is that I can just break into speed whenever I feel like it and I do not need to keep checking my watch.

I chose to make all my speed breaks downhill.  This has several benefits:

1. It's easier, if you have hilly conditions like I do
2. I can go faster in my training intervals
   
3. I can concentrate on my form and pr...

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