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How to Repeat a Great Race Performance?
Good morning!
This week: What to do after a great race, why you keep getting injured and how to avoid muscle cramps.
Happy running,😁
INJURIES
Why do you keep getting injured?
Injuries are, unfortunately, a part of running. Every runner has to learn how to manage and prevent them, or they will never reach their potential.
If you feel like you're constantly dealing with injury troubles, here are a few reasons why that might be:
You increase running frequency, volume and or intensity too aggressively. Runners are usually not known for their patience. We want to be better and faster . . . yesterday. But if you try adding too much to your routine, you can cause an overuse injury. Be patient.
You lack consistency. Being consistent with your training is one of the best ways to reduce your injury risk and improve your performance. If you're someone who stops running during the winter, or you run randomly whenever you feel like it, this inconsistency can cause injury troubles.
You don't strength train. This is especially important if you are a masters runner, as sarcopenia happens as we get older (even in our 40s!) Sarcopenia is a loss of muscle mass. But you can build it back or prevent the loss by strength training!
You don't prioritize or even consider recovery. Many runners are so focused on their running they forget that to see improvements, they need to recover properly from their training sessions. Do you eat enough to meet the demands of your training? Do you get at least 7 hours/night of sleep (8+ after big long runs or high intensity sessions?) Do you feel like you have good stress management skills? A no to any or all of these questions can seriously ramp up your injury risk.
Are you making one of the mistakes above? Try to change one variable at a time and see what works and what does not.
TRAINING
How to Avoid Muscle Cramps
Every year, muscle cramps affect 70% of runners. I would know; I’ve been a victim of them mid-marathon.
Why do muscle cramps occur?
“There’s a couple of opposing theories; nobody really knows which one is accurate,” says Shawn Kane, M.D., editor-in-chief of Current Sports Medicine Reports.
The two theories are:
Cramps are related to the loss of water and salt via sweat.
When you’re fatigued, a short-circuit occurs on your spinal cord.
And sadly, today, there is no definite answer as to why muscle cramps occur and how to prevent them.
Many researchers now recognize that multiple factors can cause cramping:
Over-or undertraining
Sleep quality
Nutrition & fluid imbalances
Hot or cold weather
Limited range of motion
Weak muscles
With this in mind, if you regularly suffer from muscle cramps, there are 4 things you can do to avoid them in the future:
Drink a sports beverage. Some researchers strongly believe that electrolyte imbalances cause cramps.
Journal. Keep a record of when cramps happen, then create a list of suspects, including heat and humidity, exercise type and intensity, liquid and food intake, mental state, and sleep.
Strength Training. The best way to fix weak muscles and to minimize your chances of a muscle cramp.
Stretch. If you cramp, the science is unequivocal: “The fastest, safest way to relieve a cramp is to stretch it until it goes away.”
RACING
How to Repeat a Great Race Performance?
After months of hard training, you just nailed your race, achieved a new PR and felt outstanding. The million-dollar question becomes: How do I repeat or improve that?
It's really smart to make a recap of your race weekend. You might think you'll remember, but sometimes you won't race again for a few months. And often, it's what you did in the days/hours leading up to your race that made it go so well.
I just ran a new half-marathon PR, and this is what I recorded:
Supper the night before: Blackened chicken with rice and broccoli
Breakfast pre-race: 2.5 hours before race --> Plain oatmeal with maple syrup.
Gels: 1 caffeinated salted caramel gu 15 minutes before the race. 1 Maurten gel on the course at km 10.
Shakeout run: Nope. Took two days off before the race. The last run was 8km easy on Thursday.
Taper: 2 weeks ago did 23km. 1 week ago did 16km. Did a mini speed session Tuesday (for 6km: 200m on, 400m off)
Shoes: Nike Air Zoom Alphafly.
I'm not saying every time I do this, I will have a fantastic race, but the probability that I do increases.
Some people might do better with a shakeout run the day before.
Some people may need 3 hours between breakfast and their run.
Some may hate gels and need to eat actual food before/during the race.
My point is to experiment with yourself and record what does (and doesn't) work. Eventually, you'll get it right!
PODCAST
Top Recovery Tips for Runners
In the latest episode of the podcast, we talk about the top recovery tips for runners.
Meme of the Week
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