Smart Marathon Training

READER MAIL!

horowitzrun — Wed, 22 May 2013 20:39:57 +0000

Hi Jeff, Chris from Denver here. Wanted to drop you a quick line. I had an amazing race last weekend, finishing my first full with a 4:01, which I was thrilled about.

I feel stiff the next day, but uninjured and tired, and not completely burnt out.

Your book was an amazing resource, and helped lead me through a healthy, confident training season. To put things in perspective, last March was my first 10k – I was reluctant to sign up at first – didn’t think I could possibly pull off that kind of distance.

Thanks!!!

JOIN ME AT THE NORTH FACE ENDURANCE CHALLENGE DC!

horowitzrun — Tue, 21 May 2013 09:49:36 +0000

I’m returning to one of the DC area’s premier trail racing festivals, the North Face Endurance Challenge – are you?

Coming up this June 1-2, there are racing options for everyone, including a 5K, 10K, Half-Marathon, Marathon, and 50-miler.

The North Face Endurance Challenge will be held in beautiful Algonkian Regional Park, Great Falls Park and the Potomac Heritage Trail, keeping runners on their toes with ever-changing terrain. Overall, the race courses consist of 50% singletrack, 30% dirt or gravel double-track, 10% gravel carriage road and 10% paved road.

Send me an email at Jeffrey.Horowitz@msn.com for a chance to win a 50% discount on the 10k or 5K, or follow this link to register:

http://www.thenorthface.com/en_US/endurance-challenge/washington-dc/?stop_mobi=yes

READER QUESTION: HOW CAN I RACE BACK-TO-BACK-TO-BACK?

horowitzrun — Sun, 19 May 2013 21:04:09 +0000

Q: I am currently deployed to SW Asia, this fall I am running a hat trick (5K, 10K, and 1/2 Marathon in the same weekend) at the Air Force Marathon. The 5k is on Friday and the 10K starts an hour prior to the 1/2 on Saturday. My goal is to PR each event (19:48 5k, 48:20 10k, and 2:09:10 half) Can you help me with this?

Justin

A: Hey Justin, thanks for your email. You’ve set an ambitious goal for yourself – sounds interesting!

As I see it, the keys to succeeding will be twofold: first, to prepare your body as closely as possible for the specific demands you’ll be putting on it over the race weekend, and second, to have a good recovery plan to get you as ready as possible for each of the events following your first race.
For training, I would recommend that you incorporate a two-a-day workout into your training schedule at least once every other week. You wouldn’t necessarily have to do the actual race distance for the hard runs – two-thirds of that should be sufficient to acclimate the body without causing too much damage. You may also consider a slower-than-race-pace two-a-day workout of the full distances – or close to them – to build up your specific endurance. Similarly, you should practice running hard on consecutive days, which is something you will also have to get used to.

This kind of training is hard, and raises the risk of injury, so you’ll have to really monitor how your body is feeling as you go through your training cycle, and respond quickly to any signs of oncoming injury by icing and taking appropriate rest as needed.

For your recovery, you should experiment with different foods to see what works best for you. A carb-protein mix after each event should get you refueled for your next race, but getting to the start line with your food fully digested will be the trick; you’ll need to experiment with different protein drinks and foods. Again, working this out in training is key so that there will be no surprises on race day.

Good luck with your races!

PRODUCT REVIEW: HB TUNE HandBand

horowitzrun — Fri, 17 May 2013 13:55:01 +0000

It’s rare to have a product that does exactly what it claims to do. The HB Tune HandBand is one of those products. It’s goal is modest: to provide a simple, easy way to carry and use your smartphone while running. That’s all it aims to do, but it does it’s job extremely well.

The HB Tune HandBand is made of neoprene, and straps onto the palm of your hand, providing an effort-free way of taking your phone with you. For those if you, like myself, who don’t like armbands, this is a great product. The plastic screen allows you to continue to use your phone’s touchscreen while the phone is in the HandBand, which is particularly useful if you use a running app.

The only downside would be that if you trip and fall while wearing the HandBand, you would not be able to drop the phone, and might instead destroy your phone if you land on your palms. With that in mind, this might be more suitable for road running than trail running. Still, this is a small quibble with a great new product.

Visit their site at http://www.hbtune.com

FUNDRAISING MIXER FOR A YOUTH TRIATHLON CAMP IN DC

horowitzrun — Tue, 14 May 2013 16:16:13 +0000

Join Me At Meridian Pint This Thursday To Benefit ACHIEVE Kids Tri!

Let’s celebrate and support the great work of ACHIEVE Kids Tri, Inc. a non-profit organization that helps under-privileged and at-risk youth enjoy a healthy and active lifestyle! Come to Meridian Pint at 3400 11th Street NW this Thursday, May 16, at 6:30pm.

The ACHIEVE program allows athletes to learn from certiﬁed coaches on how to train for the swim, bike, run, and transitions of a triathlon in a free six-week non-proﬁt camp. At the end of every ACHIEVE camp, the athletes put all their hard work into action at a USA Triathlon sanctioned kids’ triathlon. As youth navigate the challenges of a triathlon, they also build essential life skills in ﬁtness, nutrition, discipline and self-conﬁdence. Come mingle with other local multi-sport swim, cycle, bike, and tri clubs while supporting ACHIEVE Kids Tri!

**DON’T MISS OUT ON THE RAFFLE AT 7:30PM!**
Prizes include:
-Free race entry to Nation’s Triathlon
-Wetsuit
-Local cycling shop gift cards
-Personal coaching training package by Meridian Performance
-Free race entries and workshops provided by OnPoint Fitness
And more!

Meet other local athletes from swim, cycle, run, triathlon, and other fitness clubs! Let’s mix!

http://achievekidstri.org/

https://www.facebook.com/events/446776348738128/?fref=ts