YCRC news

At Dickson training yesterday it was fine and cool and the grass was soft under foot. I ran long early then set up a session of two shuttle relays for Susan, Rod & Colin, who each totalled 20 runs over 120m in two ten minute bursts.

YCRC News
1. Dunrossil Drive Saturday 3rd August.
2. Women and Girls Jogalong Sunday 4th August.
3. YCRC Committee/Club future
4. Club race managers/helpers.
5. YMCA Canberra Administration
6. YMCA Of Canberra Half Marathon - Manager
7. Upcoming events
8. RUN Y'ASS OFF Saturday October 26 2013

Dunrossil Drive Saturday 3rd August
The club will conduct three events at Dunrossil Drive this weekend a 2.1k starting at 10am and a 4.2k at 10.15am as the junior point score and a senior point score of 4.2k at 11am
Dunrossil Drive is off the Cotter Road and the entrance road to the Governor Generals residence. There are major road works taking place in this area so make sure that you allow plenty of time to arrive. Please ensure when you park that you do not park on the course which is between the tree lined avenues. The course may differ slightly near the bottom due to some tree removals.
The 4.2k event is both a junior and senior point score.
Like the Runners Shop/New Balance Fun Run, Dunrossil Drive is one of our more popular events and a great area to run.

Jogalong Sunday 4th August – 9am
The monthly Jogalong will again be held at Grevillea Park East Basin.
The Jogalong is a 6k handicap for Women and Girls. Handicap meaning that walkers and slower runners start in the earlier groups, and the faster runners leave much later. A 3k none handicap event starts off with group 1 of the Jogalong. Shortly after the Jogalong gets underway at 9am we hold a 1.6k mini jog for young children.
The Jogalong is a great social gathering for women and girls, and great for those looking to start a fitness program for spring.

YCRC Committee/Club Future etc.
The club will be holding the annual general meeting in the coming months and we will be looking for some new committee members. If you would like to be involved with the club please feel free to nominate, when we call for nominations. A strong and healthy club needs a strong and vibrant committee and your assistance would be most appreciated. If you need any further details please contact one of our current committee or me at our events or via email. I can certainly put you in contact with someone on the committee who can explain or help. It must also be remembered that the YCRC has the backing of the YMCA Canberra, and received great assistance from CEO Jenny McCombe and her staff in everything that we do.

Club Race Managers/Helpers
Our club holds events almost weekly during winter on a Saturday and events on Tuesday evenings during spring and summer. To do this we need volunteers to either manage events or help officiate at the events. The tasks are not onerous and assistance will be provided. If you can help please provide your details to David Osmond
davo.osmond@gmail.com

YMCA Canberra Administration
YCRC Members should be aware that the YMCA Canberra has moved from Sports House, Hackett to the YMCA Sailing Club, Alexandrina Drive, Yarralumla Bay, Yarralumla.

YMCA Of Canberra Half Marathon – Manager
This event has been held in May for the past 30 years, before that it was held in September. I have managed the event for many years and I am now looking for someone to take it over. There is a lot of work involved in organising this event and I would be lying if I told you otherwise. Having said that, for someone younger, more tech savvy and keen this is a great opportunity to do an amazing job for your club and at the same time get some great knowledge on event management. I will provide all the help and guidance that I can. I have always said that one can get as much satisfaction from putting on a good event as from running a pb. If you think you would like to have a try or just find out what is involved, just let contact me and we can go from there.

Upcoming Events
The club has a few good events coming up in the next few months or so and they should not be missed. Many of you will be training for special events such as C2S, Blackmore’s, Canberra Times Fun Run and Melbourne Marathon/Half Marathon. A few sharp short races with our club could and should help your training and possibly get that Pb you really want.
For those over 30 years of age the ACT Veterans Half Marathon will be held on Sunday 18th August. For details www.actvac.org.au
The YCRC will conduct the Kingston Physio 10 Miler on Saturday 31st August from John Cardiff Close, Black Mountain Peninsula. The 10 Miler (16.1km) is a lap of the great West Basin Lake Burley Griffin. The 10 Miler starts at 8am and a 5km run will start from the same location shortly afterwards. Free to YCRC members and one day registrations for all others on the day for $10 and juniors $5. Must be over 16 years to run 10 miles.

Goorooyaroo off Road Half Marathon – 7am Sat 19th Oct – more details later.

RUN Y'ASS OFF Saturday October 26 2013]
Yass Runners and Elite Energy (http://www.eliteenergy.com.au/) are hosting a 2km, 5km, 14km and Half Marathon on *Saturday October 26 2013.* Hope you can send a team and RUN Y’ASS OFF. Details at http://www.eliteenergy.com.au/runyass/index.html

Cheers,Ken Eynon
YCRC Committee

déjà vu

Monday training: It might sound like déjà vu, but we had the best conditions for training I can remember. There was no wind, not a drop of rain, good cloud cover which meant it was humid but not cold, with twilight and reflected light meaning that visibility was good, and the grass soft from the earlier rain but not slippery. However the earlier light shower did keep a few away. Training were Andy, Garry, me, Jen, Kelley, Susan & Warrick. We ran 15 intervals of a 333m loop on 2 minutes, the loop including one 100m climb. I skipped every fourth as I am still not 100%, but getting there.

Congratulations to Bronwyn, her team winning Saturday’s Adventure Race. See http://all-rounder.blogspot.com.au/2013/07/mountain-designs-adventure-race.html for every detail.

Warrick is training for the Perth city to Surf Marathon, 25 August http://events.sportsnewsfirst.com.au/Data/Article/00000249/42km.jpg. Part of it is flat!

I will run the Uluru Desert Marathon one year, it is on my bucket list. 2015 is the next window of opportunity.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-07-27/runners-embrace-australias-outback-marathon/4848076

Speedygeese race results
YCRC Runners Shop 5k Saturday 27 July
48. Geoff Moore M65 23:38
61 finishers

YCRC Runners Shop 10k Saturday 27 July
42. Jennifer Bright 43:59
49. Maria O'Reilly 45:14
55. Andrew Matthews 46:58
59. Geoff Moore 48:49
60. Elizabeth Mountbattan 48:57
61. Ewen Thompson 49:52
64. Kathy Sims 51:34
70. Caroline Campbell 55:38
83 finishers

Meanwhile, not far from Parliament House...

See you in August!

six weeks

I am almost over a terrible cold - had it for six weeks - and there is really not enough time to get fit for the Masters Games in October. But we are booked in and will go.

Song of the week: "Six Weeks" by Of Monsters and Men.
From http://youtu.be/9Ssxs-E9o6k

better late than never

Just to say that Warrick, Andrew & I ran at Stromlo this morning. I was recovering from Saturday and the others did 3 x 1k steadily.

I can't seem to find the YCRC website ... anyone know if it has moved or something?

Here are the speedygeese results from the Blewitts Pines ACTVAC handicap races this morning
Blewitts Pines 6.2k
22 Rod Lynch M50 25:06 84.2%
41 Caroline Campbell W70 38:12 80.8
46 Mick Charlton M60 39:08 58.2
69 Janene Kingston W45 56:09 41.1
73 Helen Larmour W50 32:54 73.6
87 finishers

Blewitts Pines 3.5k
24 Cathy Montalto W60 19:16 74.9%
25 Jill Pearson W55 18:28 72.0
40 finishers

I found some old photos today...

The boy is now 42 so it was a while ago,

rather be running

Customs 5k Friday 26 July
Jennifer Bright 21:01
Bronwyn Calver 22:45
Caroline Campbell 30:30
29 runners

Tuggeranong parkrun #23 Saturday 27 July
113 finishers

Ginninderra parkrun #66 Saturday 27 July
11 Craig DAVIS 21:28
41 Catherine MONTALTO 25:50 New PB!
99 finishers

I ran 17k today. I hope you ran too.

the sun's out but it is freezing cold!

.. or perhaps it is just the moon.

Canberra moon.

When you train after dark in winter, you get to know the phases of the moon pretty well. It was full moon on the 23rd and what amazing full moons we have had this week. (Picture not mine). Running last night at Kaleen with me were Rod, Clint, Kelley, and Jessie the dog. They did 3 x 1km with a short recovery. It was good to have the bright lights back on.

The Speedygeese have gone blue. Confusing, I know. I think I will keep red for "others".

pronounced "sincerity" without the "sin"

Percy Cerutty was heard to say in the 1960's that runners of the future would train while listening to music. I know he said that because I was there at the time. Now I unashamedly embrace music as part of my running experience, although I haven't gone as far as to make it part of my racing experience.

And I promote my "song of the week" because of my belief that running and music are inseparable.

There is an excellent Scientific American article on running and music. See http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=psychology-workout-music

I will list what I think are the main reasons that music goes together with running, but refer to the article above for more.

1. Distraction. This is particularly important in training, or perhaps in a long race where the goal is just to finish. There is a role for dissociative running, days when the running itself is painful and keeping ones mind on the company, the scenery, or the music, reduces ones attention on the pain, the tiredness, the stresses of work, family, and other pressures. when I go on a long run by myself, that is when I find music a most pleasant distraction.

2. Motivation. My playlist contains all my favourite songs - of course! - so I really look forward to listening to some of them on the run. It adds to the sense of anticipation before running. What usually motivates me to run is knowing it is making me fitter, knowing it is preparation for my next race; hoping it is keeping illness at bay, and looking forward to meeting up with my running partners. If there are to be no running partners on the day, music is a good substitute.

3. Enjoyment. Music is intrinsically enjoyable; as is running (once you're out there). Put the two together, and wow.

4. Pacing. I don't necessarily run at the pace of a song; some do. But the occasional song on the playlist will help pick up the pace, and a five minute burst during a long run is an excellent training strategy. There is plenty of BPM software if you want to pre-plan your running rate. See http://lifehacker.com/5622382/creating-the-ultimate-exercise-playlist, except you want the pace much faster than their proposed 120 to 140.

Detractors usually instance distraction as a bad thing. Well then, use your brains, run where it is safe to be distracted. And running in company, chatting, is just as distracting. Maybe you just don't like music? Well, again, I do!

Percy was well ahead of his time. He knew that the rhythms and flows of music would reinforce the rhythms and flows of running. Can another visionary see how we can marry the two and attract more people to the very natural sport of running? Gyms do it, how about running tracks?

As I understand it, music will be of little help when you are racing flat out. That is because racing is an associative activity, because you need to "welcome pain" when racing, and because it is difficult to lift above what is already a 100% effort. But music as part of training will help you train better, achieving the increased fitness levels needed for faster race times.

Observation of athletes here in Canberra seems to bear all this out; those runners who train with music seem highly dedicated and are darn good runners; those athletes who race with music seem to be going along well within themselves. But of course, there might be some very good reasons why you would not want to bust a gut every time you race. So, load up your iPod or smartphone and enjoy your running!

Coming event this Saturday - 10k road race

The Canberra Runners Shop/New Balance Fun Runs – Saturday 27 July 2013 -
Grevillea Park – East Basin- Lake Burley Griffin
The YMCA of Canberra Runners Club will be conducting the Canberra Runners Shop/New Balance 2k/5k and 10k Fun Runs on from the beach area at Grevillea Park, East Basin. The events are free to club members and just $5 for juniors and concessions and $10 for those over 20 years.
The Canberra Runners Shop/New Balance will provide a range of gift vouchers as prizes.
The 2k run commences at 10am with the 5k at 10.15am and the 10k at 11am.
All courses are accurately measured and these events give runners a great chance to assess their fitness prior to the major spring funs runs in Canberra and around the country.

Courses
2k Course 10am start. - 1k out and back from Grevillea Park along the lake edge west to a point just a few hundred metres the western side of Kings Avenue Bridge.
5k Course 10.15am start. – 2.5k out and back east (towards the airport) along the lake and river edge with the exception of that area under construction and where the current share path is on Morsehead Drive. The 2.5k turn is some 100 metres after going under the bridge (Monaro Highway) at Molonglo Reach.
10k Course 11am start – This course is the same as the 5k course except runners go a further 500m east and turn after going under the second bridge and run back to the start for 6k. Runners then run a 2k out and back leg west, going under Kings Avenue Bridge and running on the R.G. Menzies walk to a point approximately 50 metres onto the red gravelled area at Rond Terraces, where they turn and come back to the finish line.

Speedygeese results (We are now red! instead of yellow)
BBQ Stakes 6k Wednesday 10 July
5. Mark Murphy 31:27
17. Jennifer Bright 26:01
22. Andrew Matthews 28:10
30. Caroline Campbell 38:00
52 finishers

BBQ Stakes 6k Wednesday 17 July
16. Mark Murphy 31:09
33. Caroline Campbell 38:30
54 finishers

Tuesday night training at Dickson oval: "the girls are back". Good to see Kelley and Susan at training despite having raced the Bush Capital events over the weekend. No excuse for others then! They and the boys, Clint, Colin, Rod and Roden, ran 10 to 12 laps of straights with bend recoveries. We will see you on Thursday back at Kaleen for long intervals, good luck for your racing on the weekend either the 10k on Saturday or the Vets handicap on Sunday, then it is back to Parliament House Monday for more easy hills. There is also a 5k on Saturday at 10:15am which may appeal, the course is reasonably fast, or you may like to run either Parkrun at 9:00am instead. And on Sunday I will be at Stromlo as usual. So many options! Pick the ones you like, but the important thing is to be somewhere other than the couch!

we few we happy few we band of brothers

Bush Capital Bush Marathon
speedygeese results
16km Bush Run Male 23 Paul Foley 28 1.20.07
16km Bush Run Male 33 Andrew Simpson 46 1.22.40
16km Bush Run Male 49 Ewen Thompson 56 1.28.13

16km Bush Run Female 4 Kelley Horan 52 1.20.46
16km Bush Run Female 12 Susan Sturgeon 39 1.27.08
16km Bush Run Female 17 Lucia Pietropaoli 31 1.28.26
16km Bush Run Female 49 Caroline Campbell 70 1.43.03

Half Marathon (21.1km) Male 26 Mick Horan 54 1.51.32
Half Marathon (21.1km) Male 36 Kristian Pithie 40 1.57.56
Half Marathon (21.1km) Male 44 Geoff Moore 65 2.04.00

Half Marathon (21.1km) Female 6 Kelley Horan 52 1.50.09
Half Marathon (21.1km) Female 18 Bronwyn Calver 43 2.01.57

Just checked - in the half marathon, the oldest person in front of me was 64 years old so I achieved a goal of having no-one older than me in front of me. On the other hand, the 64 year old was ten minutes in front of me and was in fact Susan Archer! I won't retire yet, but it was a near thing.

Congratulations to 52 year old Kelley who was 4th in Saturday's 16k then 6th in Sunday's half marathon. Fancy coming back for a second dose of punishment!

In total, 10 finished the 63.3k, 28 the 42.2k, 107 the 21.1k, 175 the 16k, 31 the 10k, 23 the 5k, and 17 the 2k.

Congratulations go to John Harding for another brilliantly organised event.

Before. Charlie and I.

During. Kelley and I. Beanie and gloves.

Finish. No beanie no gloves.

Kelley finishing the 21.1k.

Kelley in the 16k.

Ewen in the 16k

Two races in two days ... done!

In other news, a baby was born yesterday. Penelope Ruth Caskie, grand-daughter of Ruth Baussmann, arrived in Sydney. At the Prince of Wales hospital, no less. She has a name and a jolly good name at that. There is even a photograph at this link, so the Women's Weekly should be happy.

Also today is the birthday of one of my grandsons. Congratulations Josiah Hall, 13 years old today!

In other results, another grandson, 9 year old Jackson Moore from Melbourne, went in his first gym comp and was overall winner. That's the seven gymnasts, so far, among my descendants, including two daughters, four grand-daughters, and now one grandson! Must be the good genes.

On Friday Bronwyn ran the Customs 5k in 23:16, a good warm-up run for an excellent 21.1k on Sunday. Well I couldn't keep up with her after 5k of it!

On Saturday no speedygeese ran in the parkruns given that the Bush Capital events were on. Ginninderra #65 had 83 runners, the winner being my mate Scott McTaggart in 15:50, and Tuggeranong #22 had another 100 runners. Remarkably high numbers in these events.

Monday night training was the boys' night out. Andrew, Andy, Craig, Garry & Warrick ran 15 x 100m hills on 2 minutes, with a 230m recovery jog between each. Of the girls, only Cathy showed and that was for the early run. I jogged early too and managed 11.5k in total, a pleasing recovery session given that my cold feels no better. But no worse either. By the way, it wasn't cold. Not on Monday. Not like Sunday.

young and free

Song of the week: "Alive", the first single release by new group Hillsong Young & Free
from http://youtu.be/L2EjYnjKkMw

unscathed

Not fit, not well, and not entirely uninjured, but on 6 weeks of 40k per week or less, I managed to shuffle around the Bush Capital 21k today. Would you believe though the time was only one minute faster than last year's disastrous Goorooyaroo run when I had a serious hamstring and walked lots. So Goal A achieved, just, but will I have to wait until next year to knock 20 minutes off?

Rest Rooms

Maybe I should just get out and run more. Not time for a rest, really.

Congratulations to Kelley, Mick H, Kristian and Bronwyn for getting round unscathed too.

Some people ran two laps (42.2k) and three laps (63.3k). Why?
There were some undulations.

Bush Capital 16k photos

These photos are quite large - maybe right click - open in new tab to view a larger version.

before the race - Paul & Susan & Lucia & Andrew

before the race - Caroline & Susan & Kelley

the start - Paul & Susan

the start - Lucia & Ewen

the start - Ewen

the finish - Paul at 10:20am

at this point 40 seconds later - Kelley

2 minutes back from Kelley - Andrew

4:40 behind Andrew- Susan

1 minute later - Ewen

5 seconds back - Lucia

Another 17 minutes to Caroline

wet and cold

As predicted, and with the big Bush Capital Bush Marathon festival on this weekend, it has turned wet, cold and miserable here in Canberra.

The program of events is
Saturday 20 July
9.00am *16km bush run and 16km bush walk
11.00am 5km and 10km walks
12.00pm Under 13 years 2km children’s run
12.30pm 10km run
12.35pm 5km run

Sunday 21 July
AMRA Bush Capital Bush Marathon events
7.30am 63.3km ultra run and relay (triple half marathon)
8.30am 42.2km bush marathon run, walk and relay; half marathon walk
9.30am *21.1km bush half marathon run

I have entered Sunday's Half Marathon and have the option of dropping back to the 16k (or shorter) on the Saturday. I am not certain of competing at all but I plan to come out and watch if I don't have a run. Coughing while running does not appeal. And then there is this message from John Harding:

Dear half marathon run and walk entrants

1. WEATHER
The weather forecast for Sunday is now quite dismal: windy, cold, showers, maybe even snow, with a range of 1 to 7 degrees.
It is therefore imperative that you come prepared with the right gear: gloves, beanie, waterproof wind jacket, and back up clothes to change into when you finish.
You may also wish to consider whether to reduce your race distance to , say, the 16k or 10k on Saturday, and save yourself for better weather on another day.

The conditions are a high risk for hypothermia (a drop in body temperature), which is very dangerous. The symptoms include shivering, loss of muscle coordination, stumbling pace and mild confusion, although the person may appear alert. Surface blood vessels contract further as the body focuses its remaining resources on keeping the vital organs warm. The victim becomes pale. Lips, ears, fingers and toes may become blue. Course marshals and drink station attendants have been instructed to watch out for any runner or walker who appears to be suffering from any of these symptoms and that they must insist on the runner or walker withdrawing on safety and health grounds.

2. DRINK STATIONS
All of the drink stations will have water, sports drink and lollies in a covered tray.

3. TENT
We are going to put up an extra tent so you can keep gear dry while you are running or walking.

4. CREEK CROSSING
Following forecast heavy rain on Friday, a small water course flowing into a dam just after the 6km mark may be overflowing across the 4WD trail. You may or may not be able to cross it without getting your shoes, socks and feet wet.

5. PRESENTATIONS
If conditions are raining and cold, the first 3 males and females in each race will be presented with their trophies very soon after crossing the finish line so they do not have to wait around cold and wet.

ACTVAC Half Marathon coming soon

I have been adding to the links available from the category menus above. (In the green banner below the slide show). I am happy to include any links and any categories you'd like added. Redundancy not a problem.

Vets news: The 32nd ACT Veterans’ Half Marathon is on Sunday, August 18, 2013 at Stage 88.
There are three start times.
8:00AM (Race Time > 120 min);
8:30AM (Race Time between 100 and 120min);
9:00AM (Race Time < 100min).

Entries available at https://www.registernow.com.au/secure/Register.aspx?ID=9454

More Vets news: Chuck Wagon
The handicap Sub-Committee is seeking interest from any Vet’s member who would be interested in taking on the tasks of ensuring that the refreshments provided from the chuck wagon are present at the monthly handicaps. The Committee has an offer to park the chuck wagon but would like someone to take on the responsibility of bringing the chuck wagon to and from the handicap venues, ensuring the water containers and gas bottles are filled and setting up the urns. An associated task which could be done by somebody else, is to bring the supplies (milk, biscuits, tea, coffee, milo, sugar). Further enquiries can be made to Bernie Millett (62999065) or John Alcock (62863213).

Blame the teddy

cull free zone

Dickson last night - a good night for training, mild and still, the track firm for the most part, only a little soft on the top bend. Just two turned up, Andrew and Rod, and after a good warm-up they ran straights and bends for 20 minutes plus. I jogged around supervising as usual.

Andrew & Rod coasting around the top bend

A friendly kangaroo, safe here from being "culled"

It is a tragedy that we cull our kangaroos, and such large numbers of them too. And don't kangaroos immediately reproduce again to fill the newly vacated niches? That's my understanding.

And the damage that excessive numbers of kangaroos do to the environment cannot be anything like the damage done by the extensive clearing going on to build new suburbs.

Methinks there is more to this than meets the eye.

made to last

A palindrome contest winner:
"An igloo costs a lot, Ed.
Amen.
One made to last.
So cool.
Gina."

While I am away in Queensland I will launch a few more palindromes to keep you entertained.

Parliament House last night: I went early for a run but haven't fought off this cold yet, so ended up jogging just 4k. I sent off the main bunch at 5:30pm to run about six loops of ~450m which would include a 100m hill for them to sprint up. Not sure I would head home early again in future; the traffic was horrendous and there were three separate car accidents on the way, luckily not involving me. Canberra drivers have no idea at the best of times let alone at the worst of times.
Doing the training were Craig, Garry, Jen, Mark, Susan & Warrick.

Today it is raining so I will have to check later whether ACT sports fields are open. I expect they will be but this is hard to predict.

I really enjoy driving - but my worst nightmare is other drivers

let's disappear until tomorrow

Song of the week: "Olympic Airways", by The Foals
from http://youtu.be/SK9iyQJuFGg

until tomorrow

Speedygeese results YCRC 8k at Black Mountain Peninsula on Saturday 13 July
15. Ewen Thompson M55 44:04
16. Caroline Campbell W70 47:27
17. Geoff Moore M65 47:29
17 finishers.

The YCRC course was out to Scrivener Dam and back. Not so brilliant a run, I kept pace with Ewen for 6k but had to stop owing to a cold. Seems I am setting some new course PBs that are going to be easy to beat in 2014 if and when the courses are used a second time. Still not too well, I didn't run at Stromlo this morning but I am hoping to make it to Parliament House for the earlier 8k run tomorrow.

Time for some light cat relief.

Do or do not

Speedygeese results King of Mountain Sunday 7 July
75 Kelley Flood 3:02.41
76. Michael Horan 3:02.41
102 finishers

Speedygeese results Jogalong Sunday 7 July
There were about 71 more finishers in Sunday’s Jogalong than in Saturday’s Longstaff trophy race
34. Marilyn Banfield W60 35:38
52. Cathy Montalto W60 33:22
71 finishers

Speedygeese results Customs 5k Friday 12 July
Jen Bright 20:30
Bronwyn Calver 22:39
Ewen Thompson 25:15
Thea Zimpel 25:22
Caroline Campbell 30:50

Speedygeese results Ginninderra parkrun #64 Saturday 13 July
23 Craig DAVIS 21:25 M40 First Timer!
54 Thea ZIMPEL 24:34 W30
59 Jill PEARSON 25:13 W55
82 Margaret MCSPADDEN 28:37 W65 New PB!
115 finishers

Tuggeranong Parkrun #21 Saturday 13 July
102 finishers

Today Ewen, Caroline & I had a run in the YCRC 8k at Black Mountain Peninsula. We all made the top 20! I think there were 17 finishers, or at least that was the number given me at the finish line. No sign of my health recovering, not yet, but at least I jogged 6k before having to walk.

... or a goose.

Flexibility and Strength.

One thing I have learnt about flexibility is that it goes hand in hand with strength. The bottom line is, stretching muscles which you never attempt to strengthen is a waste of time.

On strength, how much should I work on this? If you are a long distance runner, you want lean muscle strength, not bulk. And you need active, dynamic strength, the strength which allows you to fly up and down hills with ease at pace. But it’s simple - any distance runner wanting to get strong and stay strong can get away with just a few basic exercises. It would be sufficient to focus on push-ups, sit-ups/sit-backs, dips, chin-ups/pull-ups, and core exercises such as planks.

On flexibility, what are some good stretches for runners? When do runners need to stretch? Why do some runners never stretch? If some flexibility is good, is more flexibility better? Can stretching cause injury?

1. What are some good stretches for runners? An injury-prevention program will include proper warm-ups and cool-downs, care with shoes, awareness of recovery principles, training on varying surfaces at varying pace, as well as using gentle stretches appropriate to the training being undertaken. The simple stretches we see runners do are in fact the best: the popular stretches for hamstring, quad, calf, glute, ITB etc are all useful as part of a warm-up and cool-down procedure and can be a combination of static and dynamic stretches.

2. When do runners need to stretch? I recommend a good warm-up first before doing any stretching, and to do a few gentle stretches before any speed-work or racing. Focus on problem areas: I have a stiff lower back these days so I like to do back exercises and mobility work before attempting a quick run. But stretching becomes more important when recovering from injury. Your sports physiotherapist is likely to prescribe stretching when muscle tissue is being rebuilt. Targeted stretching, along with ice, heat, massage, strengthening as advised by your physiotherapist, will all help with healing of injuries.

3. Why do some runners never stretch? I think it is because they have run for years without getting injured and without ever stretching. To a great extent, stretching is over-rated. But later in a running career stretching and mobility work and massage become more beneficial and useful and necessary than earlier on.

4. If some flexibility is good, is more flexibility better? Flexibility for its own sake should not be your goal. Not many ballet dancers or gymnasts can run well. Core strength and stability should be the goal of the runner. A certain level of flexibility should be maintained, but too much flexibility can cause problems, which is why many runners seem to get away without stretching at all; they manage to stay within a range of flexibility which keeps them out of trouble.

5. Can stretching cause injury? Indeed it can. All stretching should be gentle, and dynamic stretching should be within a comfortable range of motion. Definitely warm up the muscles before stretching them. Can stretching prevent injury? Possibly but you need to be strong too. I emphasise these two points again, because they are so important.

Make flexibility and strength part of your daily routine and you will have an excellent foundation for staying fit and healthy indefinitely.

photographic evidence

Speedygeese results BBQ Stakes 6k Wednesday 3 July
7. Jennifer Bright 25:52
32. Andrew Matthews 28:00
55 finishers

Speedygeese results Customs 5k Friday 5 July
Jennifer Bright 22:02 after "getting lost".
Bronwyn Calver 23:00

Pictures from the Mount Ainslie Vets Handicap

 Cathy

 Ewen pursuing Robyn

 Janene

 Margaret

Ruth

Photographic evidence that Ruth did walk the 10k. A couple more like this and she should have a good handicap, eh?

designated deriver

Training at Dickson - last week in my absence, Roden, Susan, Colin & Rod trained, pyramids up to 400m. This week I came along and supervised, with Roden, Rod, Susan and Thea running a double pyramid, 30, 60, 90, 60, 30, 60, 90, 60, 30 seconds, each one on 2:30.

Thursday training at Kaleen is on again tomorrow. Last week at Kaleen, Rod and Colin ran km intervals. This week we will do something similar, although possibly half the ovals won't be lit.

Maxwell

Moderators of the intention-behaviour relationship in the physical activity domain

Monday training at Parliament House - Cathy, Ewen & I ran early, then Andy, Craig, Jen, Mick C, Rae, Susan, Warrick, Garry & Mark (new) participated in the main training session, which was 4 sets of 2 mins (1 min jog), 1 min (30 Seconds jog), 30 seconds, with a 2 minute recovery between each of the sets. Next week we plan to return to the hills.

The more days you skip training, the harder it is to start again.
Obvious? But if you have some niggles and need to take time off, how long should you take off?

Studies in 2011 of circus performers (!) showed that two-day breaks between performances lessened injury rates, but the rates rose again if performers rested for three days or more.

Keeping a tight schedule with exercise matters because when you skip a lot of days in a row the health benefits start to dissipate. At first, this is just a decrease in the positive metabolic aspects, but eventually skipping exercise affects motivation, endurance, and can increase injury.

Endurance also fades if you skip exercising for too many days in a row. The same is true with motivation. In study after study, researchers have found that one of the primary reasons people continue exercising is that they enjoyed yesterday’s exercise or the exertions of the day before; they felt healthier and more physically masterful afterward and wish to relive that sensation. Longer periods between exercise sessions potentially could dull that enthusiasm.

Everybody is familiar with  "motivational flux". If you want to check the research, go to http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22278998. Loving all the long words.

dancing in silence

Song of the week: Dancing in Silence, by Sydney group "The Former Love".
from http://youtu.be/obRDaNC_dN4

graceful entrance

That feeling when you know you shouldn't be there, but just don't know how to make a graceful exit:

None of you are like that I know.

Speedygeese results
BBQ Stakes 6k Wednesday 26 June
20. Andrew Matthews 28:26
23. Joel Pearson 30:05
34. Jennifer Bright 27:34
58 finishers

Customs 5k Friday 28 June
Andrew Simpson 20:05
Jen Bright 22:02
Bronwyn Calver 22:13

ACTVAC Mount Ainslie 9.3k Sunday 30 June
21 Bronwyn Calver W40 46:16 70.2%
26 Kelley Flood W50 45:07 80.2
29 Rod Lynch M50 37:43 84.2
41 Marilyn Banfield W60 62:55 66.0
46 Andrew Matthews M50 46:34 68.6
55 Maria O'Reilly W55 46:13 83.5
56 Ewen Thompson M55 57:19 56.9
60 Mick Horan M50 48:24 65.6
64 Janene Kingston W45 52:11 66.8
71 Margaret McSpadden W65 61:47 69.6
76 Ruth Baussmann W60 80:16 51.0
85 finishers

Mount Ainslie 4.5k Sunday 30 June
9 Cathy Montalto W60 24:07 74.8% **Bronze**
46 finishers

Training at Parliament House Monday 1 July
Early: Ewen, Cathy
Hill session: Garry, Rae, Susan, Kelley, Andy, Warrick, Jen, Craig

Tuggeranong parkrun #20 Saturday 6 July
98 finishers

Ginninderra parkrun #63 Saturday 6 July
51 Jill PEARSON 25:06 W55
87 Ruth BAUSSMANN 29:23 W60
116 finishers

Longstaff 8k Saturday 6 July
5. Ewen Thompson M55 39:20
6 finishers

I love this Canberra weather. Crisp and clear mornings, just right for putting on the beanie and gloves and going for a run. This morning I ran at Stromlo, three 1 kilometre intervals with a similar jog. The first two were with long sleeves, beanie and gloves, all of which I shed for the third. Times were 4:53, 4:33 and 4:18. That's 20 seconds faster in total than last week. What this all means is (a) I am more disciplined than I was, I can run intervals by myself, and (b) I am not waiting to get fast before I start trying to train fast, as it usually works the other way round.

I am looking forward to seeing today's Gold Coast Marathon and Half Marathon times, and also today's King of the Mountain results, in case any of the speedygeese ran. I hope you did well.

I am also looking forward to meeting up with everyone again on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, and hopefully a few of you next Sunday too.

Very speedy goose

... so stay tuned

(back tomorrow). In the meantime

more posts coming soon....

run slower run further?

"Ultramarathons are an up and coming sport where participants run for multiple days straight, covering hundreds of kilometers, climbing up to 40 m high over the terrain. At first glance, this might sound like an excruciating way to tear up your body all weekend, but results from a study showed that participants were taxing their bodies up to 30% less at the 200 mile mark than at the 100. Exhaustion plays a big role in this. Participants that went the full distance were about 4 minutes per mile slower than their counterparts who did half the distance. It appears that “slow and steady” really does have advantages in a race setting."

... see http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/health/breakthroughs/when-running-200-miles-is-easier-on-your-body-than-running-100-15632972

Check my mirrors, indicate, blindspot and....we're good to merge.

...from http://youtu.be/7RZBcvB9Q7Y

It doesn't look too bad

Clubbing baby seals - what's so bad about that?

We'll live a long life

Song of the Week: Mumford and Sons "Ghosts That We Knew"
from http://youtu.be/VurfjgJqyFY