Effective training methods
“Aging” implies irreversible decline in ability, but this need not be the case. With effective training methods, we can discover that slower times, more injuries, and less enjoyment from our running are not inevitable as time goes by.
Then what can we do so that in ten years time we are still running as well as, or even better than, we are now? It all comes down to effective training.
To maintain our speed, we must continue to train hard. Hills, intervals, fartlek, tempo runs, and frequent races, will all help us stay fast.
To maintain our endurance, we must run, run, run! We can increase endurance as we age, but only if we keep training! Whereas sitting at home resting on our laurels will not keep us at our accustomed levels of fitness.
Injuries can be more of a problem as we age, but there are strategies we can employ to reduce the frequency of injuries, and recover from them more effectively. First of all, we need to change our running venues, and get off the roads and run on soft surfaces. This will lessen impact, and lessen the chance of injury from high impact running. We are no longer the resilient persons we were when we were young; pounding the pavements is no longer a sensible option.
We can also assist recovery by reducing stress on the body on our recovery days. And how is that achieved? We should be slowing down our recovery runs. We will not lose form by doing this, in fact we will benefit more by reducing stress on our body as we allow it to recover more effectively from our harder training days and give it the time it needs to bring us to a higher level of fitness. It is the recovery time when fitness is enhanced, not the training time!
Training in the gym with low weights/high repetitions is a must, for it is important that we keep working on building some muscle bulk. Two sessions a week are enough, each session with a ten minute warm-up, thirty minutes of light weight work, and twenty minutes of stretching. This further helps recovery, and is an ideal, low-impact, insurance against further injury. And gives us the muscles we must have in order to do the hard running we wish to do.
One exercise I have just started doing is a balancing exercise. I have felt shaky on uneven surfaces, especially down hills, and have realised that my ability to balance has been imperceptibly deteriorating. And what is a good balancing exercise? Standing on one leg for minutes at a time!
Along the same lines of “not moving but getting fitter” is “the plank”, also known as “the hover”. The core strength needed to do this exercise, and developed by it, is essential for maintaining good running posture. And a good running posture means we can run further, run faster, tire less easily, and reduce the likelihood of injury. Recommended!
Other essentials for maintaining fitness and health include nutrition, rest, and a healthy social life where relaxation and fun are as much part of life as are training stresses and challenges.
Cheers!
Jodie will drink to that too.
“Aging” implies irreversible decline in ability, but this need not be the case. With effective training methods, we can discover that slower times, more injuries, and less enjoyment from our running are not inevitable as time goes by.
Then what can we do so that in ten years time we are still running as well as, or even better than, we are now? It all comes down to effective training.
To maintain our speed, we must continue to train hard. Hills, intervals, fartlek, tempo runs, and frequent races, will all help us stay fast.
To maintain our endurance, we must run, run, run! We can increase endurance as we age, but only if we keep training! Whereas sitting at home resting on our laurels will not keep us at our accustomed levels of fitness.
Injuries can be more of a problem as we age, but there are strategies we can employ to reduce the frequency of injuries, and recover from them more effectively. First of all, we need to change our running venues, and get off the roads and run on soft surfaces. This will lessen impact, and lessen the chance of injury from high impact running. We are no longer the resilient persons we were when we were young; pounding the pavements is no longer a sensible option.
We can also assist recovery by reducing stress on the body on our recovery days. And how is that achieved? We should be slowing down our recovery runs. We will not lose form by doing this, in fact we will benefit more by reducing stress on our body as we allow it to recover more effectively from our harder training days and give it the time it needs to bring us to a higher level of fitness. It is the recovery time when fitness is enhanced, not the training time!
Training in the gym with low weights/high repetitions is a must, for it is important that we keep working on building some muscle bulk. Two sessions a week are enough, each session with a ten minute warm-up, thirty minutes of light weight work, and twenty minutes of stretching. This further helps recovery, and is an ideal, low-impact, insurance against further injury. And gives us the muscles we must have in order to do the hard running we wish to do.
One exercise I have just started doing is a balancing exercise. I have felt shaky on uneven surfaces, especially down hills, and have realised that my ability to balance has been imperceptibly deteriorating. And what is a good balancing exercise? Standing on one leg for minutes at a time!
Along the same lines of “not moving but getting fitter” is “the plank”, also known as “the hover”. The core strength needed to do this exercise, and developed by it, is essential for maintaining good running posture. And a good running posture means we can run further, run faster, tire less easily, and reduce the likelihood of injury. Recommended!
Other essentials for maintaining fitness and health include nutrition, rest, and a healthy social life where relaxation and fun are as much part of life as are training stresses and challenges.
Cheers!
