Shanks' kicking mentor thread! - Full...maybe (Page 2)

I wasn't sure if you saw this last question/post. So I am going to resend it.

Question on running form. I was reading a post on another site about foot striking the ground

Heel Strike vs forefoot 

what are the advantages and disadvantages of each one. Does one help reduce injuries, cause less fatigue have a more consistent pace.

Is there a video clip of the different foot strikes to help me understand them

Also would it be better to pm you rather than using the forum reply or just continuing what we are doing.

 Zac!!! Welcome my man! I think that's totally awesome that out of no-where you just got this dedication to start losing the weight. You've made a lot of progress thus far so keep on being dedicated. Riding that mountain bike is a great way to increase overall exercise time in a low impact manner. So keep that up!

Where in PA are you? I can help you out to find a sweet local race for you to get started! A good idea to would be to do a few local 5k's to practice pacing and to get that distance under you belt. 

Let me know Zac and I'll do my best to get you to that finish line! 

Shanks

Hey Amanda, Congrats on the engagement!!! You'll have a full plate, hopefully the future hubby likes to do some wedding planning so you can go out running :-). But you've got a good head on your shoulders and a competitive background so that'll help you with dedication.

What sport did you play in college? Are you still lifting a lot or just doing the swim/bike/run thing? How is the no drinking going? I commend you for being able to go that long. Once the training starts to get serious I won't go to massive parties (unless planned or special occasions) because waking up and training is no fun when you're hung over. I'll go out for a social drink or two but not much past that. 

How is that training plan working out for you? What are you going to start doing when it ends? 

Shanks

 Could you please post the link or exerts of that article/convo to display what they thought?

I'd say that Heel Striking is an awful idea, it usually means you're over striding aka kicking your legs forward too much and it can cause shin splints. 

Forefoot striking is the way to go! It lessens the impact on your legs and keeps your body going forward at a more efficient rate.  It allows for quicker turnover and a better bounce back from your muscles.

Shanks

That program looks cool for starting off. The only thing that sucks is that you do the same workout for a week, not much variety. But if you're cool with that then this will help you out!! 

It's pretty hard for people to pick up the swimming part if they don't have some sort of background there. I've gotten a few swimming books from Velo Press on amazon.com that helps me mix up my swim workouts. Check that jazz out! You can pick what workout you like and just change the distance according to where you're at stage wise. 

Hello All!

Thank you for being a part of this thread! I would appreciate if you keep posting here and not through PM's. Because you may pose a question that another member of the group could have or didn't even know anything about.

Sorry that there has been a few day gaps between my postings but I will get to all of your questions and answer them in the order I get them. Rock on!!!

It was one of the runners world forums that I was reading. Most of them were for the forefoot landing rather than the heel.

Yesterday 1/16/09 I went for a run finally able to go after trying to get my ankle healed a week ago. I eneded up running for 5.76 miles body just didn't seem to want to stop. Was a little sore after not running consistantly for several weeks due to nagging injuries.

Today 01/17/09 I went for a shorter run  about 3.54 miles. I noticed today my stride was shorter and quicker than normal I wasn't as exhausted as normal and felt easier than really striding out didn't feel the jarring I normaly do.

Is this what they are talking about? And if it is then I want to try to keep up with that stride.

Yep that covers it quite well. By having a fast cadence aka high foot turnover it lessens the impact on your feet and makes you move faster!! 

Hello All,

I had an athlete who was lacking a bit of motivation today... so I sent him this video. He went right to the pool and rocked his swim. Hopefully it will incourage you all too. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EokseUskyDI

 I posted this on the blog, too, but I thought I'd hit here as well... 

OK, I am a bit confused as to how I GAINED WEIGHT last week.    What gives, man?!? I am up at least 2 pounds this week, and the same the week before, and I am noticeable softer in the belt area.  In fact, that is what inspired me to get on the scale in the first place, I saw my reflection and thought, "Whoa, that isn't the direction I was hoping for".  I feel like every time I get around 170 my body rebels against me, and packs some fat on inspite of my best efforts to blast it off with a proper diet and lots of excercise.  It seems like my diet is in order, right? Am I missing something there?  This is very frustrating. Any suggestions out there would be gladly received.

What I am thinking of at this point to do doubles for a week or two and see what happens, so spin or run every morning as well as my usuall workout later in the day (or flip that, lift in the morning, spin in the evening) and maybe shock my system into finally releasing the extra 2 inches off my waist that really need to go.

 It is time for an all out assault on my navel!!! 

Tim

Hey!

I was actually a javelin thrower....I've taken about a year - a year 1/2 off from lifting but since dropped 25lbs. I'm going to start doing a full body circuit twice a week mainly because I just miss it...nothing heavy nothing to straining.... I like the training plan I'm on right now and run my first 5k AHHHHH in a little over a week and a half. After that I'm going to up the swim training to 3x a week. I have found the Y I swim at is actually less croweded after 5 then it is from 3-5 so it works out with coaching now.

Are we "able" to talk between ourselves in this thread or is it just a Q & A mentor program

hmmm doing doubles of everything is probably a bad idea haha. You just need to keep your eye on the prize. If you're limiting certain things from your diet (such as fats), then whenever your eat some your body will hold onto it. Honestly don't worry about 2 pounds. When I'm getting into race weight my body will flux 2-4 pounds in a given week. Many things play factor into this... diet, muscle weight, water weight, body fat %. All of those things can flux your weight the 2 pounds. So just shrugg it off and keep your eye on the prize!! 

You can do whatever you want in this thread!! haha so talk amongst yourselfs! 

I rock the full body circuit x2 a week, check out my log if you're curious for ideas. Hooray for finding times that the pool isn't too crowded!!  Let me know if you need any sweet swim workouts!

Wow...Thanks for the video.  That really helped me out today.    

To answer your earlier question about where in PA I am, I live just south of York and work on the east side of Lancaster.   So if you know of any good events/ route for the true newbie, I'd appreciate them.

Does anyone on here have any tricks they do to combat soreness?  I seem to always have 1 or more muscle groups sore at a time, and even though I know it's a good pain, it would still be nice to make sure I'm doing everything I can to shorten it's duration.

Zac

Hey Shanks,

curious but dumb question maybe, I have seen people say this as well, "look at my log or I can see in your log you have been..." how do I do this, look at your log?

Hey zwest,

as for soreness, I was always sore and I was never a stretcher. Well I have been streching lots more in the last 6 months and it seems to really help. At the gym I go to they have these new really cool vibrating machines (Power plate vibrating machine) I go on this 2* a week after a treadmill run or spin class and man does it lossen up and help with joint and muscle fatigue Really cool here is a link to a site with some info

Dave

http://www.realtechnews.com/posts/3286

Zac,

The best thing I do is to put down a recovery drink within 30mins of finishing the workout. As you can see from my tag line I'm a huge fan of Fluid Recovery Drink. The stuff works great and I'm hardly sore even after hard workouts. They don't sell it anywhere in Philly yet so you've got to hit it up online but it's totally worth it. 

Shanks

When you're looking at your log, on the left there is a calendar for the current month. To the right of that there are some "quick links" click on the first one which is the "control panel." In there you'll find a "friends" tab, you can add people's BT names in there and be able to check out their blogs... if that's what you were asking for?

for a person that lives in the lowest spot in the state city wise and soesn't get a lot of high altitude alot what are some training methods you can use to help with a high elevation.

there is a 1/2 Mararthon in Goergetown, Co June 27 that I am working for.

Now last fall I was up in Aurora, took my bike rode the hills there which they felt great actually knowing I was riding up hill instead of the false flats in Lamar. The altitude didn't bother me so much, but have yet to get up in the mountains.

any suggestions

Unfortunately it is hard to adapt for altitude unless you're hanging out in an altitude tent. I would try controlled breathing exercises that will help to expand your lungs. Also when swimming take an extra stroke before you breath to help get your HR up and expand the lungs... do this in moderation though, not all the time.

Breathing exercise...

Amount of time holding your breath/amount of time breathing 
30/30
35/25
40/20
45/15
50/10
55/5
60, and you're done.

Just ran a 5k time trial with my h.s team completely forgot about it till about 10 minutes before when one of my asst. called me to remind me. I ran 29:25 in a low effort. My legs were heavy and tired from the 90 minute bike ride last night. I'm running about 5-6 5ks this spring and hoping to break 27 for atleast one hahaha.

 The really cool thing that I've been seeing lately in my body is it changing both physically & physiologically from a extreme fast twitch to more of a slow twitch type form. BTW even though I have a Masters I am possibly the worst speller ever

hahaha don't worry I suck at spelling too! 

You could totally go sub 27! Just be consistent in your training (aka don't be like me and the only time you run this week is in a 7.2 mile trail run! haha)  also throwing in some shorter workouts that are speedy will help you out. Make sure you warm up and cool down properly. I like to do this workout I call the iPod Surprise for my speed work. I make a 3 hour playlist and will start on a slow song so I can warm up then whatever song comes up next I'll run however it makes me feel, aka heavy metal is me throwing down some sub 7 stuff!

Try it, it's fun and you never know what's coming up next. 

When you run a 5k, do you start of slow and the build up speed, therefore incorporating a warm up period?  Or do you warm up somehow before hand and then go all out from the start?   I've been looking at a race in April as my starting point, and thinking about it has made me realise that I know nothing about running on anything but the track around my neighborhood or a treadmill. 

Thanks,

Zac

Zac,

You'll want to do some sort of warm up before the start of the 5K. I'll usually do a warm up mile and stretch out to get the legs and heart ready. I have a tendancy of starting out way too fast because I'm so excited! So start off a bit easier then crush the end! 

Hey Shanks

question on my training program starting next week,

I am doing the 20 wek Oly, I have been pretty consistent in my winter training , swimming 3 times a week and running and cycling(trainer) 2-3 times as well with long runs and medium rides on the weekend. My fitness is pretty good right now, better than I thought it would be. Question I have is,

The first few weeks the swim and run are alot less than I am doing now, it is calling for only 750-1000yds and 20 to 30 minutes running. I am doing 1000-1500 yds and 30 -45 minutes run with sometimes 70-90 minutes on the weekend, I feel good after all my workouts so I' don't feel I'm over doing it.. Should I back off and stick to the program or maybe do some more interval stuff during the week. I'm afraid to lose what I've done so far if I back off completely. I could use some work on the bike tough so the programs bike sessions should be fine. Should I change my program or stick with it and adjust it.

Dave