Weekend Outlook

Here's this weekend's lineup:

• Run at the Rock (Sat @ 9AM, Burlington)
• Get Fit NC 10k/5k (Sat @ 9AM, Wake Forest)
• Jingle Bell Run/Walk (Sat @ 10:30AM, Raleigh)
• Reindeer Dash for Cash (Sun @ 1PM, Greenville)
• Triangle Expressway Trot (Sun @ 2PM, Apex)

And, if you didn't think that Hostess going out of business would affect runners, you're wrong. There is/was apparently a KrispyKreme-esque style run in Ann Arbor, known as the April Fool's Day Twinkie Run, that raises money for ALS. Guess they'll have to switch to Cloud Cakes this year.

Water Stops

I joked during my last marathon that we should have "water stop practice". Actually, I was only half-joking. I don't think this is necessarily a bad idea, especially if it's someone's first race. Maybe incorporated into a longer pace run... that also features consuming an energy product of choice to get used to that...

Anyways, I can really only manage to drink water effectively at marathon pace (until I get too tired and end up dumping the water on myself in a half-hearted attempt to get the cup all the way to my mouth), and I can throw it somewhere near my mouth and choke some down at half marathon pace. So, the people at Running Times suggested carrying your own water. In fact, they say that this is a good way to PR. To me, this seems weird. I mean, you don't see any of the elite athletes carrying water bottles, people hand them theirs just like everyone else. I have to think that there is a reason for this. They address some of my "concerns" at the bottom of the article (for example that 21oz of water is only 1.3lbs, which is nothing). And, I do see their point about drinking when you want to, as well being able to drink what you want (especially if you have a sensitive stomach).

Having said that, I'm still not sold... I think I'll stick to drinking the water on the course!  

Embrace the winter

 Training in "adverse" conditions actually makes you a stronger runner. I mean, we all knew this after the 100 degree, 100% humidity summer we all suffered through. But the same also holds true for the winter. Running on icy roads in the wind and cold builds running and core strength, flexibility, total body awareness, and mental toughness. While this is good for base training, and even maybe a little bit of tempo work, it's hard to keep any sort of pace on a dark, slippery road. So, although many of us hate it, running on a treadmill for hard workouts every once and a while isn't the worst idea in the world. Other cross-training options such as spinning, swimming, cross country skiing, and snow shoeing are also good for mixing it up.  

How to race a race

Different race distances require different strategies. However, as the article points out, there is a fine line between too fast and too slow (aka stick to whatever plan you come up with and don't try and "bank" time).

• 5k-10k: run the first mile 3-6% faster than your goal pace (I'm guessing closer to 3% for a 10k and 6% for a 5k), settle in during the middle miles, and kick the last 800m
• 10M-13.1M: hold back a little at the start (5-15sec slower for your first mile or two) and try and stay below your lactate threshold as long as possible to have the "energy" to finish strong
• 26.2M: DON'T BANK TIME!!! There are two acceptable strategies- (1) run the first half a little bit faster than goal pace (2-3%) or (2) run the first 3-5miles a little bit slower than goal pace, maintain goal pace through 20-22miles, and then pick it up for the rest.

The end of the article has some example workouts for how to develop your sense of pace (some of those sound a little too familiar!)

Race Reports

Team RRO/FASTcoaching had a busy Thanksgiving! At the Ridgewood Turkey Trot, Elaine L. was 3rd female, and Rita B., Chris G., and Roger W. were 1st in their age groups, Keith F. and Mike C. were 2nd in theirs, and Jonathan W. was 3rd in his (results). Dan H. (3rd Master's + sub-19), Jacci P., and Colby M. (1st 5k) represented the team well, battling the hills of Wake Forest (results) and Dave M. is officially back to his old self, placing 1st in his age group in The Streets at Southpoint Turkey Trot (results). 

Five days earlier, Team RRO/FASTcoaching scored big at the Goose Creek Trail Races (results). Rita B. and Jennifer C. went 1-2 in the 10-miler (and beat a former Olympian), and Marissa B. was 1st in the 7k and Sarah C. was 1st in her age group. Brian F. was 2nd overall, Sean K. was 1st masters, Gavin C. was 1st in his age group, and Mike C. was 4th in his. Win B. and David O. went 2-3 in the Raven Rock 5-miler (results) and Chris G. was 1st in his age group at the Apex Turkey Trot (results). I know Andrew W. and Rusty and the runner he was guiding did well in the Raising Cane 5k, but I can't find results for that race.

And, in the final major November marathon, Jim M., Cody C. (sub-3), Robb H., Jason P. (PR'd), Greg J., and our friend Brad B. (PR'd) ran great (results)!

CONGRATS EVERYONE!

I got nothing...

The Fitbit One

aka the most expensive pedometer ever...

The FitBit One has bluetooth, syncs to the iPhone, and has a "silent" vibrating alarm to wake you up in the morning.  So what data does this $100 device give you?

"it counts steps, flights climbed, calories burned and tracks your total mileage. And, of course, the device syncs with a personalized website, where you can log your meals and view all your stats in easy-to-read graphs."

Oh and it is also splash-resistant, not water-proof, so you can't take it swimming (why you would want to, I'm not quite sure, maybe water running?).  I really think anyone considering getting this should look into a standard $7 pedometer, or if you really want to track it with your iPhone you could try this free app.  So get to walking.