Running coach Mary-Katherine Fleming of the Denver, Colo.-based Fitness Protection Program joins us today for our live discussion thread to answer any and all questions you have about running now, including:
How to stay motivated
How to set goals (and what goals should I think about)
Heart-rate training, cross-training, etc.
Anything else that’s on your mind!
We’ll start at 1:30 p.m. ET/10:30 a.m. PT, so feel free to post your questions now and MK will start answering in just a moment.
Hello and thank you so much for taking all these questions!! I'm an average runner who before injury did 25-30 miles/week when not training for a specific goal. Earlier this month I re-injured an old soleus strain that the sports medicine specialist says I should not run on for six weeks. They prescribed physical therapy, but it's $400/session at 2-3 days per week which is not affordable for me. SO I am resting it as best I can, but worry constantly that I am losing fitness with every passing day. I'm doing a lot of walking on the treadmill on an incline, hiking, biking, and also focusing on strength doing lots of squats with a medicine ball, lots of planks, etc.
How slowly do you think I need to ease back into full mileage? To make life easy, I use the Hal Higdon app for tracking mileage.
SLOWLY!!!! I have a program called ReBuild for this very purpose! Coming back too soon will set you back physically and even more so psychologically. We need to avoid that!!!
1. time on your feet is all that matters- endurance running is a game of tendon joint and ligament adaptation. Time on your feet whether running walking or stair-climbing, does that. muscles have memory, tendons joints and ligaments do NOT. What you are doing now has value, even if you hate it!!!
2. muscles have memory- any lost fitness will be made up quickly. As much as you can, focus on injury lost!!! You're not losing fitness right now you are LOSING INJURY! HOOORAY!!!! You're not behind anything!!!!!
3. sounds like you are doing all the right things strength-wise, even more reason to check #2 above!
It is HARD to stay motivated in a global pandemic with the air thick of ash from fires. First off, give yourself some credit: the pressures of these past 3 months are REAL. These are not normal months so NOT running says NOTHING negative about you. Frankly, it says you are adulting like a BOSS and your priorities are in order since running doesn't pay your bills!
What I tell my clients: focus on what you CAN do, and do it whenever you can. Put it in your calendar and treat it like a meeting with Shakira: ain't NO WAY you gonna miss your spot! Too many of us treat our 'me-time' or our fitness time as luxury items and treat them as optional, they are the first things to go when we are overscheduled. Now, more than ever, you gotta prioritize YOU and celebrate your choices. You are no less a runner for not running these past three months. You are a Runner, Interrupted (that's why I named one of my programs after you!)
Hi! I'd love to get your opinion on resistance bands for activating hips and glutes (been seeing a lot of ads recently for the Crossover Symmetry product). Small exercises like side lunges, hurdles, and squats with the bands seem to suggest they will help immensely with running, but I'm struggling with whether or not to do these exercises before a run, after, or on a day of no running?
This brings to mind one other question, if that's allowed! I have incorporated a lot more (virtual) classes on top of running during quarantine. I am running 5x/week (20-25 miles/week) and doing strength/cardio classes 45 mins-1 hour each 5x/week. Is that okay? Will it ever hinder my running? Especially as I start to increase mileage when temps cool down?
it depends on heart rate, how much time you're spending in those higher working zones above 160 and how recovered you feel. on the surface it sounds fine though! overtrained and overtired hinders everything.
OMG YES!!! I assign 3 minutes of these every day as pre-hab! loops are amazing for isometric exercises targeting little stabilizing muscles like your glute min and glute med. Work the resistance, slower is better, control is everything, but YES these are amazing!
Oh great I was hoping to incorporate it into my warmup routine. It's crazy how just a few reps can exhaust my glutes, so just wanted to make sure I wasn't overdoing it before a 60 min run.
How much improvement are runners capable of, and at what age? I consider myself a middle of the pack runner but I would love to be a very good runner. I know I will never be elite or anything near that, but I would love to get my race times :30-1:00/mile faster. Is that a realistic goal? And what are the keys to achieving it?
TOTALLY realistic!!!! Keys are strength and consistency, which is facilitate by making your easy days TRULY an easy effort. This is how you can run more frequently, get all those delicious benefits, and not beat your body up! Most of the things we do for the sake of performance can be detrimental to our health, so I always tell runners to start by trying to run easy effort (HR under 140bpm) for 30 minutes 5 days per week (Take Thursday off!)
I hate belts personally, but have come to LOVE vests!!!! I like Nathan for the no-slosh water container, and lullemon for the vest itself. It fits snugly like a bra, no chafing!!!!
Hello. Im living in Seattle and the air quality is dangerous due to fires...on top of covid. Im having a hard time finding a way to stay fit and train as I don't have home exercise equipment. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you
OMG SAME!!!!! I bought a mini indoor stairstepper a few Christmases ago and it is a lifesaver! Stairs most closely mimics the strain running puts on your cardiovascular system so if you can afford/have space this is a terrific option!
Oh my gosh! Just go out now! It's raining and the temps are beautiful! Just came in from 5 miles on the Redmond Connector Trail. What ever did humans do before we had all this digital technology and metrics? :) Have fun!
Welcome everyone! (And welcome, MK!) I'll start us off with a question for you -- how have you been training through the summer, how are runners you work with training right now? What kinds of goals are they aiming for?
Thanks again for an amazing day!!!!
Hello and thank you so much for taking all these questions!! I'm an average runner who before injury did 25-30 miles/week when not training for a specific goal. Earlier this month I re-injured an old soleus strain that the sports medicine specialist says I should not run on for six weeks. They prescribed physical therapy, but it's $400/session at 2-3 days per week which is not affordable for me. SO I am resting it as best I can, but worry constantly that I am losing fitness with every passing day. I'm doing a lot of walking on the treadmill on an incline, hiking, biking, and also focusing on strength doing lots of squats with a medicine ball, lots of planks, etc.
How slowly do you think I need to ease back into full mileage? To make life easy, I use the Hal Higdon app for tracking mileage.
Thank you again!
SLOWLY!!!! I have a program called ReBuild for this very purpose! Coming back too soon will set you back physically and even more so psychologically. We need to avoid that!!!
1. time on your feet is all that matters- endurance running is a game of tendon joint and ligament adaptation. Time on your feet whether running walking or stair-climbing, does that. muscles have memory, tendons joints and ligaments do NOT. What you are doing now has value, even if you hate it!!!
2. muscles have memory- any lost fitness will be made up quickly. As much as you can, focus on injury lost!!! You're not losing fitness right now you are LOSING INJURY! HOOORAY!!!! You're not behind anything!!!!!
3. sounds like you are doing all the right things strength-wise, even more reason to check #2 above!
HOORAY FOR GOOD DECISIONS! You are doing GREAT!
Thank you so much :) :) You really put my mind at ease!
I have a question, hope I'm not too late to the party.
I guess this falls under Motivation. I'm an average runner with a few half's and a few full marathons under my belt.
I ran over 100 miles in April, but then nearly nothing for 3 months.
How do I keep training consistently?
It is HARD to stay motivated in a global pandemic with the air thick of ash from fires. First off, give yourself some credit: the pressures of these past 3 months are REAL. These are not normal months so NOT running says NOTHING negative about you. Frankly, it says you are adulting like a BOSS and your priorities are in order since running doesn't pay your bills!
What I tell my clients: focus on what you CAN do, and do it whenever you can. Put it in your calendar and treat it like a meeting with Shakira: ain't NO WAY you gonna miss your spot! Too many of us treat our 'me-time' or our fitness time as luxury items and treat them as optional, they are the first things to go when we are overscheduled. Now, more than ever, you gotta prioritize YOU and celebrate your choices. You are no less a runner for not running these past three months. You are a Runner, Interrupted (that's why I named one of my programs after you!)
Well said, MK!
Not at all!!! I'm still here!!!!
ALL THESE GOOD QUESTIONS! I LOVE IT!
Hi! I'd love to get your opinion on resistance bands for activating hips and glutes (been seeing a lot of ads recently for the Crossover Symmetry product). Small exercises like side lunges, hurdles, and squats with the bands seem to suggest they will help immensely with running, but I'm struggling with whether or not to do these exercises before a run, after, or on a day of no running?
This brings to mind one other question, if that's allowed! I have incorporated a lot more (virtual) classes on top of running during quarantine. I am running 5x/week (20-25 miles/week) and doing strength/cardio classes 45 mins-1 hour each 5x/week. Is that okay? Will it ever hinder my running? Especially as I start to increase mileage when temps cool down?
it depends on heart rate, how much time you're spending in those higher working zones above 160 and how recovered you feel. on the surface it sounds fine though! overtrained and overtired hinders everything.
It's definitely allowed! 😃
OMG YES!!! I assign 3 minutes of these every day as pre-hab! loops are amazing for isometric exercises targeting little stabilizing muscles like your glute min and glute med. Work the resistance, slower is better, control is everything, but YES these are amazing!
Oh great I was hoping to incorporate it into my warmup routine. It's crazy how just a few reps can exhaust my glutes, so just wanted to make sure I wasn't overdoing it before a 60 min run.
3 minutes is plenty!!!
How much improvement are runners capable of, and at what age? I consider myself a middle of the pack runner but I would love to be a very good runner. I know I will never be elite or anything near that, but I would love to get my race times :30-1:00/mile faster. Is that a realistic goal? And what are the keys to achieving it?
TOTALLY realistic!!!! Keys are strength and consistency, which is facilitate by making your easy days TRULY an easy effort. This is how you can run more frequently, get all those delicious benefits, and not beat your body up! Most of the things we do for the sake of performance can be detrimental to our health, so I always tell runners to start by trying to run easy effort (HR under 140bpm) for 30 minutes 5 days per week (Take Thursday off!)
I am very bad at that. :) I know it's something I need to work on. Thank you!
Great question, Tamara!
I use a running belt. Do you use one or a vest? If so any recommendations for either/or? Brands? What to look for in either?
I hate belts personally, but have come to LOVE vests!!!! I like Nathan for the no-slosh water container, and lullemon for the vest itself. It fits snugly like a bra, no chafing!!!!
Thanks!
Hello. Im living in Seattle and the air quality is dangerous due to fires...on top of covid. Im having a hard time finding a way to stay fit and train as I don't have home exercise equipment. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you
OMG SAME!!!!! I bought a mini indoor stairstepper a few Christmases ago and it is a lifesaver! Stairs most closely mimics the strain running puts on your cardiovascular system so if you can afford/have space this is a terrific option!
Oh my gosh! Just go out now! It's raining and the temps are beautiful! Just came in from 5 miles on the Redmond Connector Trail. What ever did humans do before we had all this digital technology and metrics? :) Have fun!
I'm definitely going out today..the rain has been amazing and has helped clear the air. Yaaay
Good for you! I love running in the rain. . . and the air quality is back to moderate if you worry about that sort of thing! ;)
Welcome everyone! (And welcome, MK!) I'll start us off with a question for you -- how have you been training through the summer, how are runners you work with training right now? What kinds of goals are they aiming for?
I'm trying to survive this TERRIBLE AIR QUALITY!!!!!!!!!!!
Is it bad where you are too?
SO BAD I haven't run in 5 days.