Tue, 28 Aug 2007
Shoes for Pose?
Earlier in the spring, I went to the store to get some new running shoes
which I badly needed. At that time I was just getting interested in
the Pose technique. The salesman at the Running Center was very helpful
and was actually familiar with Pose running. But at the time I was
a little leery of purchasing a shoe that was recommended for Pose technique.
So I got a shoe which he suggested might kind of fit as an in between
for running Pose style and non-pose style. The
Asics Speedster
is actually a very nice shoe and quite comfortable. The heal is still sizable
but the shoe overall is very flexible and not as stiff as the Nike
that I used to have. But if you read Romanov's
article on shoes you can quickly see the problem. This
shoe still has way too much heal and padding for effective pose running.
The next shoe that I get will be more along the lines of a racing flat
like this one. But
I will probably not get one until next year. So for now I will make due with
what I have (which isn't that bad for learning).
[/cycling/training/2007] 0 comments permalink
Mon, 27 Aug 2007
The First Step is Critical
Take a look at this video of Dr. Romanov describing how you
start running in the Pose method. This is a good one to get started with.
There are several other good videos linked on this page to view also.
I have been telling several friends about adopting the Pose method of running. When I tell people that I have been running a lot more this year they typically ask me about injuries and if I am concerned about it. This question is a perfect segway into describing the Pose method. I do feel a difference compared to when I would run for 20 or 30 minutes in the past (pre Pose). My legs are not as tired. I'm sure I haven't implemented the technique perfectly and there are several aspects that I could improve. But I think I have it down well enough to notice some differences. If Romanov does a seminar anywhere close in the Midwest I would really like to go and see it.
A couple of my church friends have tried the technique and I have heard some complaints about calf soreness from them. Yes, this can be an issue. One thing to do is start jumping. Jumping jacks or just skipping or hoping on one leg, jumping rope, anything to get you going with switching weight to the balls of your feet. This will help the transition to Pose.
If anyone is close to downtown and would like to run with me during lunch, let me know. I can try to show you what I know about the Pose Method and we can run a little bit so you can get an idea of how it works. I typically run around the Arch grounds between 11:30 and 12:30.
[/cycling/training/2007] 0 comments permalink
Sun, 12 Aug 2007
Run Around the Park
Yesterday there was no 5k locally that I could find so Bret convinced
me to try running the 6 mile path around Forest Park. I have
never tried running this distance at one time before. It went pretty
well actually. I felt like we were running at a very leisurely pace. My
HRM stop watch suggested a time of around 51 minutes which I suppose is not
too bad. But I'm sure getting it down to the 45 minute range would
be quite challenging.
Saturday afternoon I took Jonathan ice skating. The Brentwood rink has cheap sessions for only two dollars on Saturday afternoon. I skated fairly hard at times and I was pretty tired out afterward. Even today I am still needing a bit of rest.
[/cycling/training/2007] 5 comments permalink
Wed, 08 Aug 2007
Early Morning Training Commute
Because of the heat predictions today (peak of 100), I made an extra
effort to get up early enough to get some good bike time in with
my commute to work. I was up at 5:30. I had almost everything prepared
last night so I wouldn't waste too much time. My paleo breakfast
consisted of some chicken salad over a bed of baby spinach. About
1/4 cup of blueberries, an avocado (nice and fresh), a few slices of cantaloupe,
some hot green tea and a few supplements (fish oil, multi, extra
vitamin C). Then get my backpack packed and get on the cycling clothes.
With the Tamm Ave. overpass down, it adds another 5 or 10 minutes for me to get to the park which is a real drag. But I try to make the most of the commute. There is a nice hill as I enter the Dogtown area. It leads up to Clayton Avenue. I try to hold close to 400 watts on this hill which only takes about 30 or 40 seconds to get up. When I got to the park I had enough time to do a good 6 minute interval at around 240 watts. Then do another 3 minute interval from the muny to the Science Center and then on to work. Only 15 miles but at least it's something. I will go easier on the way home as it will be pretty hot today.
I have to keep this up if I am going to avoid embarrassment in the cyclocross series which starts in October. Cyclocross training in Forest Park should be starting up pretty soon too. Got to start getting some time in on that cross bike soon!
[/cycling/training/2007] 0 comments permalink
Sun, 05 Aug 2007
Another Hard 5k
Did another 5k with Bret Yesterday morning. The course was
on pavement and didn't have a long killer hill like the course
in Queeny but the elevation changes were probably very similar.
There were a couple of good sized inclines with lots of rollers.
I have been upping my run times the last two weeks. Last week I did a couple of 2x13 followed by a 10. So I'm trying to get in the range of 35 to 40 minutes at a time. Monday I did a 2x15. The temperature was fairly hot and this was taxing. Tuesday I tried do some Tabata like sprints. These are 20 seconds on and 10 seconds off. I did 4 of these and then had to rest for a couple of minutes before I did a couple of more.
Anyway, back to the race. I missed any workouts Thursday and Friday so I was fresh but might have been a little stale. We were a little late getting to the start so we had to sprint from the parking lot to the line. That was the warmup. I felt very good at the start. There was a downhill section and then up what was probably the longest hill. I got up it fine but noticed my HR was right up to 95% max. But at the one mile mark, I had only 7 minutes which was a good sign. But I was skeptical that I could keep that pace. As I passed the second mile marker, I was tiring but my form was still in tact. I tried to take notice of what changes in my form as I fatigue. It's difficult to really sense exactly what it is. With pose technique, you are not extending your legs when you run, it seems so easy. But there is still a tiring feeling. I do notice that I seem to run more flat footed as I tire and there is a general sense of less spring and resiliency to my stride.
As we got well into the third mile, I was definitely feeling tired. But I had held of Bret for longer than usual. But he was sore from playing soccer Thursday night which might account for this. He caught me before the last hill which was sizable but not quite as difficult as the first one. But still it took it's tole on me and I was quite tired at the top. HR at 95% and I was really hurting. I had to walk for maybe 30 seconds. Bummer but that's all I could do. My time was well off my PB. Right at 25 minutes compared to 22 and some change which I have managed in the past.
It's hard to say if I am making any progress since the time is so different. In general I felt pretty strong in this race but it didn't really translate to a better time. We will have to see what happens next time.
[/cycling/training/2007] 0 comments permalink
Mon, 16 Jul 2007
A Hard 5k Race
Did the 5k at Queeny Park on Saturday. Bret and I went early so I
could register. The weather and temp was very nice. The course appeared
to be on mostly trail and bike path. We didn't really get a good look at
it but assumed that it would be rolling terrain. The semi-mild temp made
me think that I might have a shot at a PB. My old buddy Don K. (who gave me
the nick name Bobber) was there. He said he thought it was going to be hilly.
At the start Don showed his excellent form and immediately gaped me. There was no way I was going to follow at that pace. Congrats to Don on his excellent form. I got into a good grove but as usual started to fade a little as I got into the second mile. Still, I was on pace and felt like I was running my own race and staying within myself. Bret caught me somewhere in the middle or end of the 2nd mile and went ahead of me easily. But the real killer was soon to come in the form of a very steep hill. It must have been at least 50 or 60 yards long and maybe in the range of 15 to 18 percent grade. I made it up slowly but my HR was pegged and I had to walk for a bit in order to recover. After a half minute or so, I started running again and picked up the pace to almost a sprint for the last 100 meters or so. Not even close to a PB for me, I clocked in around 24 minutes.
My muscles were quite sore Sunday morning and still today. It feels a lot like a hard bike ride. Dr. Ferrari has mentioned that running uphill could be most beneficial for cycling since it involves a somewhat similar concentric muscle motion. Well it definitely feels like I did some hard climbing on my bike right now!
[/cycling/training/2007] 0 comments permalink
Mon, 02 Jul 2007
Caught One
Just a couple of days before the event of the summer that I was
planning on, the Hillsboro Biathlon, and I have managed to
catch a nice head cold this weekend. I did some pretty hard
workouts last week and by Friday I was well pooped. I went
out at Lunch and did a very mild 2x10 run. Friday night we started
reading the last few chapters of the 2nd Harry Potter book. We
were so excited that I ended up reading about 4 or 5 chapters out
loud to my wife in order to finish the book. It was about midnight and my
throat was dry and a little swollen. Saturday when I woke up I could feel
something was coming on. So I layed low and tried to hit it
hard with the vitamin C as well as vitamin D. No dice, by Sunday
the cold was a little bit worse although perhaps not as bad as it
could have been. And today I feel well blocked in the head with
some chest action starting to show. Needless to say, I have
not done any biking or running all weekend. If I feel better tomorrow
it's still possible I will give it a try so we will have to see.
[/cycling/training/2007] 0 comments permalink
Thu, 21 Jun 2007
Pose Technique Video
In this video, you can get a good
look at Dr. Romanov running along with another Pose advocate in Australia.
Romanov looks very smooth in these shots and you can get a sense of how
the technique involves short strides and shifting of weight from one
leg to another. I have been working on this technique quite a bit and
to the detriment of cycling. I went out to do a 2x20 set of intervals on
my bike last Saturday with Mark (2 old 2 go slow) and my power output
was anemic! I can see how difficult it must be for multisport athletes
to train. I need to put more time back into biking.
[/cycling/training/2007] 0 comments permalink
Tue, 12 Jun 2007
Doubling Up
I road the bike in to work today going through the park and doing a short 6 minute workout.
About 16 miles total. I had my running gear here from yesterday because I didn't run due to
some work issues taking up time. So I put in about 13 minutes of running at lunch.
So far so good. It would probably be a good idea for me to do some more of this so
I can get more used to the two disciplines for the biathlons coming up in July.
I did another 5k run Saturday with Bret. Looks like I'm stuck around 22 minutes. The course was somewhat more hilly than the other two I did. But the down hill sections also probably help counteract the slow uphill sections. I haven't been able to do any sprints in over month and adding in more intensity would probably help me break the 22 minute barrier.
[/cycling/training/2007] 0 comments permalink
Sun, 03 Jun 2007
Taste of Tilles 5k Run
Another 5k run. Not quite as good as last time as I was about
one minute behind my last time. My buddy Bret ran with me to try
and pace things a bit. Well he did better than me and finished
almost a minute ahead. This effort felt quite a bit harder than
last time. A bit warmer temperature accounted for this I'm sure.
I also had a pretty rough month of May training wise. The problems
at work added lots of stress and inconsistent training. At least, these
are my excuses.
The Hillsboro Biathlon is coming up on July 4th. I don't know if I can make much progress by that time but I really want to try one of these so I'm going to give it a shot. It's a 5 mile run and 20 mile bike. If I can just get some time on the bike now and keep up with running I think I can at least finish it with some satisfaction.
[/cycling/training/2007] 6 comments permalink
Sat, 05 May 2007
First 5k
I did the 5k run at SLU put on by the students for life group
this morning. The course was basically around the quadrangle of
the campus. We crossed Grand Ave. at one point and when
I got there, I was held up by traffic for maybe 15 to 20 seconds.
I don't know what effect this short break had. I crossed the
finish line at 23 minutes and 12 seconds so, subtracting a little for the
break, let's just call it an even 23 minutes. Not too bad for my first
run I guess. So at least I have something to shoot for next time
I try this.
I talked with a guy at the start line who was a track coach visiting from Wisconsin. I asked him if he knew about the POSE method. He was familiar with it but he said with his athletes he mainly just tried to teach them very basic form. He told me he was just going to do training pace for the run. I staid ahead of him until around the 10 minute mark. He passed me on an uphill section and I tried to hang with him but couldn't keep it up for long. I did notice that he ran with great economy. Feet stayed close to the ground and he didn't appear to be striking his heals. His shoes were Asics without much heal. They looked like racing flats actually. His stride was also on the short side.
I kept my stride as short as I felt was comfortable and I think my cadence was faster than most. But by half way, I wasn't thinking a whole lot about form. I just tried to keep on going. That little voice started talking to me a bit at around 14 minutes suggesting that I could quit then and it wouldn't be too bad. But I kept on going and even raised my pace quite a bit for the last 100 meters or so.
This run felt quite a bit like a Cyclocross race. The thing that was different was, of course, no coasting on the downhills and no real letting up at all. Of course, my HR went down a couple beats on the downward sections but that's about it. Well, you don't really let up much in a cross race either. There might be a kind of lull in the battle at points but that's about it. And there's not the grinding kind of hurt that you get in a cross race when you stand and go up those 20 or 30 yard uphill sections of a typical cross course. But the steady increase in fatigue and discomfort felt very similar.
[/cycling/training/2007] 7 comments permalink
Wed, 25 Apr 2007
Pose Running Update
Monday I commuted in on the bike, didn't have enough time to do a workout
in the park but I rode through and I pretty much hammered both going
in to work and coming home. About 25 miles total for the day. Then
yesterday I went out at lunch and did a 3x10 running session. I have
tried to implement pose technique as much as I am able with my current
understanding of it. I think it's easy to over react to
a new technique like this so I am just trying to keep in mind a couple
of simple ideas. First off, try to avoid a hard heal strike and
think more of landing on the ball of the foot. Since my shoes still
have a bit of heal to them, I end up running more flat footed. Also
think of gravity more. Think of just putting your leg out to stop
falling, not so much of a muscular grab to pull your body forward.
And of course, try to be very relaxed.
Yesterday's run felt really good compared to the past when I have run that length. I think my legs and feet were not nearly as stressed as in the past and today my legs feel very well. Well enough in fact, that I'm going to run again today. I think the run at SLU is a good goal so I am going to focus on getting in some good runs both this week and next.
Comments are open on this topic, sorry for the inconvenience before. I didn't realize they were closed. But that is fixed now so feel free to add any thoughts.
[/cycling/training/2007] 3 comments permalink
Sun, 15 Apr 2007
Pose Running, Training Top and Bottom
I have been running the past couple of weeks. I must be getting like
my teammate Bugman who despises trainers and runs when he can't
ride his bike. I have known about the Pose Technique for some time. I started looking
at it a bit closer and it is interesting. One thing I am wondering is
if this method might be less disruptive of cycling technique if one
is to do a fair amount of cross training through the regular season.
Here's a video of a guy who has it down pretty good.
You can see it is a very fluid motion.
I picked up some new running shoes last week at the Running Center. This is a great store if you are looking for experienced and expert advice (there are similar stores in other parts of the area) and it happens to be located pretty close to me. I asked one of the guys if he was familiar with the Pose Technique and he was. Nike actually makes a shoe which is kind of like a slipper. It has hardly any heal. This shoe is supposed to help you learn this technique and you can gradually break into it by just supplementing wearing it along with your regular shoes. He also told me that running barefoot in a field would also help you to learn this technique. Apparently many of the African long distance runners have excellent technique due simply to the fact that they run bare foot most of their lives. I opted to get an Asics shoe which is kind of a comprise between the normal type of shoe and one that would be more useful for the Pose Technique. It is not as stiff and has a lower heal. I tried it once already and it seems to work fine.
What I mean by training top and bottom is simply to incorporate more intensity earlier in the season. With running this means doing 20 or 30 second (or 100 meter) all out sprints (or close to all out). The main thing about this is that I believe it is healthier. Art Devany is an advocate of Paleo nutrition as well as what he calls Evolutionary fitness (pdf doc). The thinking here is simply that humans are adapted to sprinting and walking and not so much running long distances. This entry by Devany discusses this idea a little bit and also goes into sprinting technique. Last week I did sprints a couple of days mixed with jogs of about 10 to 12 minutes. I don't want to completely ignore threshold workouts, these still need to make up a lot of my training if I want to be any good at the races I do. But mixing in more short intensity sprints (both on the bike and running) I think will be healthier.
So I ran just about every day last week and my legs and feet are a bit sore. So I didn't do much this weekend so that I could recover a bit. The weather is looking better so I will probably do some commuting this week. I might try a multi sport event like a biathlon or duathlon. There's a nice duathlon next weekend in Columbia but I don't think I'm quite ready for it yet. Maybe I will take in a 5k run first to see how that feels and then look for a biathlon.
[/cycling/training/2007] 1 comment permalink
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