Webmaster

4/19/11

This Saturday we will be having our exit blood tests at the Girls Club starting at 730am until around 930 or 10.  If you could email me a time you could be there it would be great. Valeri will try to have 2 machines this time to speed up the process. Remember no eating or drinking for 12 hours prior although you can drink water and take your regular medications.  Also, you should have received your postcard from Indy Mini with your bib number on it this week.  If you drop it off at my office or anytime you see me I will be glad to pick up your packet for you on Thursday before the race.  At 7pm May 5^th we will be having our packet pickup and carbo loading dinner at Mr Gattis sports room. They have graciously allowed us to meet there and are giving us a discount on the buffet (basically you pay for the buffet and get a drink free).  We are on the home stretch now and I’m extremely proud of all of you.  You should have on last long run this weekend and then you should have two weeks of taper.  Taper is very important. A lot of people at this point feel that they need more miles and that they haven’t done enough and the tendency is to want to run longer and faster.  The truth is there is nothing you can do in the last two weeks of training to improve your time and if you try to do too much you will show up  tired, sore or hurt and you will hurt your time.  If you don’t have a plan of decreasing your workouts let me know and I will help you.  Let me know if you have any questions.

Jim

4/9/11

The final race of the Let's Go Five race series was held today, and despite the recurrent challenges of the weather, almost everyone was able to complete the course before the storm hit. Sorry the results were delayed so long this evening (real life hit!). Here they are!

3/15/11

MAG7 7K race this Saturday 19 March. Pre-registration is closed but day of race registration starts at 0830. The race starts and finishes at Highland Village Elementary School (900 South Park Square Drive, Bloomington, IN). Race starts @ 10:00am.

Additionally, I have updated the LET'S GO RACES link on the left to reflect this year's schedule. Sorry about that one, a lot has been going on.

3/5/11

Another fine race day has come and gone (hah!), and once again the runners of the area have acquitted themselves well. The Annual Let's Go 10k went off without a hitch despite being slightly short-handed with help and overdone with rain. Everyone, workers, runners, and walkers alike did a great job - not a single problem was encountered. Thanks to everyone who made today possible!

Results!

3/2/11

Ok so back when you signed up May seemed a long way away but this cold snowy winter that has seemed to last so long has actually went fast and your training is a little behind. Ok let's say its a lot behind. THERE's STILL time. Here is an abbreviated schedule to get you to race day.
Wk
1. 3 3 3 3 3
2. 3 3 3 3 4
3. 3 3 3 3 5
4. 3 3 3 3 6
5. 3 3 4 3 6
6. 3 3 4 3 7
7. 3 3 4 3 8
8. 3 3 4 3 10
9. 3 3 3 3 8
10. 3 2 2 0 3 race
The key part of this schedule as you can tell is the long run. I'd also like to see the consistency of 5 days a week but if you can only get out there 3 or 4 days a week you can still finish the race!! Just gradually increase that long run. But beware, don't try to make up for lost time by running TOO many miles TOO soon. Try not to increase your mileage more than 10% per week. Let me know how your training is going.
Jim

Let's Go 10k

Hard to believe but our 10k is Saturday March 5^th at 9am.  Registration is from 730 until 850am at the Girls Club.  Remember all Lets Go members are pre-registered and only need to pick up your number at registration.  We will need a few extra volunteers this race so if anyone knows of someone that would like to help let me know.  For those of you that have never ran a 10K the pace should be a little slower than your 5K, that is unless you have improved, which I hope you have.  Don’t go too fast the first mile or that 6^th mile will not be fun.  Its too early to know about the weather so I will get back to you on that. If you have any questions let me know. Also if you know of someone that wants to run that is not a Lets Go member the cost is $15.

Jim

Here's the course.

http://www.mapmyrun.com/routes/view/1870976

2/26/11

Hard to believe but our 10k is Saturday March 5^th at 9am.  Registration is from 730 until 850am at the Girls Club.  Remember all Lets Go members are pre-registered and only need to pick up your number at registration.  We will need a few extra volunteers this race so if anyone knows of someone that would like to help let me know.  For those of you that have never ran a 10K the pace should be a little slower than your 5K, that is unless you have improved, which I hope you have.  Don’t go too fast the first mile or that 6^th mile will not be fun.  Its too early to know about the weather so I will get back to you on that. If you have any questions let me know. Also if you know of someone that wants to run that is not a Lets Go member the cost is $15.

Jim

Here is some additional information. We have been sent some information regarding a benefit for a sick young man. Check out the flyers and consider helping out!

Hello,

My sister & I are putting together a benefit for our nephew.  We need help getting the word out.  Could this be posted on the Let's Go site and maybe emailed to the Let's Go participants?

I've attached the entry form for a 5k, fun walk & kids races, a donation request, if you or anyone you know might be interested please pass on.  The third one is an informational flyer for people to put in their office break room, etc.  Please post what you feel should be posted.

Thanks!

Melissa

2/2/11

As we start going longer distances and time (longer than 60 minutes) it becomes important to start considering fueling our workouts.  In general our body has enough energy stored for us to workout 2 hours, but when we exercise over 60 minutes without adding fuel our performance starts to suffer.  So I recommend eating if you are going much longer than 60 minutes.  Part of the reason to start doing that now is to find out what works for you.  We all vary in what works for our stomach and what we like.  Packaged gels (Power Gels, Gu…) are convenient and should be considered taking evey 45 minutes or so.  Please read the article below by Nancy Clark.  Its geared more for the marathon but the information is good for the half marathon also.

Jim

Protein, Carbs & Endurance Running: Finding the Right Balance

by Nancy Clark MS RD CSSD

If you are curious about how to best fuel for endurance runs, here are some tips presented at the 27th Annual SCAN* Symposium, April 2010. The information was presented by Asker Jeukendrup PhD, Professor of Exercise Metabolism-Univ. Birmingham in England and Nancy Rodriquez RD PhD, Professor of Nutritional Sciences-Univ. Connecticut. (*SCAN is the Sports Nutrition group of the American Dietetic Assoc.; SCANdpg.org).

Carbohydrate Update

Mararhoners commonly wonder what’s best to eat during long runs that last more than 60 to 90 minutes. The answer depends on your personal tolerance. Some runners enjoy the convenience of engineered sports foods such as Clif Chomps, PowerGels, and Sports Beans. Others prefer the taste (and price) of standard supermarket foods, such as dried pineapple, twizzlers and gummy candy. All are equally effective. And because we're talking about “survival” more than “good nutrition” during endurance exercise, you need not tsk tsk yourself for enjoying candy. That's what your body wants—sugar! (FYI, gels and sports drinks are also “just sugar.”)

Does it matter if you get your energy from an energy bar as opposed to a sports drink?

No. Both solid foods and liquids (i.e., sports drinks) get burned at the same rate when you are exercising at a pace you can maintain for more than half an hour. Your job is to experiment during long training runs to learn—

1) what settles best in your intestinal tract, and

2) what tastes best to you during extended exercise.

Consuming enough calories is more important than the form of the calories. With endurance athletes, research suggests the faster finishers consume more calories than the slower finishers. (Ironman Champ Chrissie Wellington consumed about 335 calories/hour when she won at Hawaii.) The challenge is to train the intestinal tract to manage that much fuel. If you are a marathoner, part of your training program is to practice your fueling so you can train your intestinal tract as well as your heart, lungs and muscles.

How much should you eat to maintain good energy when you’re running for longer than 60 to 90 minutes?

The standard recommendation for fueling during endurance exercise has been to target 1 gram carbohydrate/minute of exercise (60 g carb per hour for a 150-lb person, the equivalent of 240 calories). The research, originally done with just glucose, indicated consuming more than 60 grams of glucose/hour offered no benefits. The body has a limited number of glucose transporters and can carry only 60 grams out of the intestines, into the blood and to the muscles.

More recent research indicates consuming as variety of sugars (that is, more than just glucose) allows more fuel to become available per hour. That's because different types of sugars (carbs) use different transporters. Generally, runners consume more than just glucose. (Sports drinks, for example, tend to be glucose+fructose.) Let's say you eat a banana that consists of many different types of sugars and uses many different transporters. Your muscles will have access to more fuel (up to 90 g carb/hour; 360 calories) than if you consume just one kind of sugar. Variety is a wise idea!

In general, the recommendations for fueling during exercise are:

• If you are exercising for less than 45 minutes, no need for fuel during exercise. (As always, enjoy a pre-exercise snack.)

• For 1-2 hours of exercise, target ~30 g carb/hour (120 calories).

• For 2 to 3 hours of exercise, target ~60 g carb/hr (240 calories).

• For more than 2.5 hours of exercise, target ~90 g mixed carbs (i.e., (360 calories of sports drink, candy, dried fruit, pretzels).

Some serious marathoners wonder if they should train first thing in the morning without having eating before or during exercise. Doing this from time to time may teach the body to burn more fat and spare limited glycogen stores (glycogen depeletion is associated with fatigue). But it’s grueling and the verdict is unclear if this will enhance competitive performance because an athlete cannot train as hard when underfed. Stay tuned!

What happens if fueling during long runs creates intestinal distress?

You might want to “swish and spit.” When research subjects just swished and then spat out a sports drink, they improved their performance as compared to swishing and spitting just plain water. How could that be? Receptors in the mouth are linked to the brain. When the mouth gets a swish of sports drink, the brain gets the signal energy is on the way; it's OK to work harder.

Protein Update

Protein requirements are hard to define because the amount of protein your body needs depends on how many calories you consume. That is, if you are restricting calories to lose undesired body fat, you require more protein than when you eat adequate calories; the protein gets burned for fuel. Dieting runners should target at least 1 g protein/lb (2 g pro/kg).

Note: If you are dieting to lose undesired body fat, you are unlikely to lose only body fat and build muscle simultaneously. Building muscle takes energy; dieting restricts energy.

The protein recommendations for non-dieters who consume adequate calories are:

Healthy adults: 0.4 g Pro/lb 0.8 gm Protein/kg

Strength athletes: 0.5 to 0.8 g Pro/lb 1.2 to 1.7 g Pro/kg

Endurance athletes: 0.5 to 0.6 g Pro/lb 1.2 to 1.4 g Pro/kg.

Because the typical runner’s diet contains more than enough protein, most runners do not need protein supplements. A protein-rich food with each meal and snack can do the job.

During long runs, should you choose a sports drink with protein?

Not unless you prefer the taste; it does not offer performance advantages over a standard sports drink. The better time to consume protein is after exercise. That is, carbs+protein (as in chocolate milk, fruit yogurt, or spaghetti & meatballs) enhances muscle repair.

Consuming some carbs+protein before you workout, as a part of your pre-run meal (such as cereal+milk, fruit+yogurt) is another option to bolster the supply of protein that will be available both during and after exercise for recovery. Note: Athletes generally don’t burn much protein for fuel during exercise unless their glycogen (carb) stores are depleted.

The bottom line: Meals and snacks with carbs as the foundation and protein on the side offer the right balance for endurance performance.

Nancy Clark, MS, RD, CSSD (Board Certified Specialist in Sports Dietetics) counsels both casual and competitive athletes in her practice at Healthworks, the premier fitness center in Chestnut Hill MA (617-383-6100). Her Sports Nutrition Guidebook and food guides for new runners, marathoners and cyclists are available via nancyclarkrd.com.See also sportsnutritionworkshop.com.

Copyright: December 2009

1/26/11

February 5^th at 9am will be our first race, a 5K.  All current Lets Go members are preregistered and only need to show up to pick up your race number.  Registration opens at 730am and you will want to show up at least by 8am to pick up your number and shirt and to get warmed up.  Speaking of warming up, its important to warm up before a race.  For a 5K you want to run/walk 10-15 minutes followed by some easy stretching.  Part of your warm up should include some stride outs.  Stride outs are short spurts where you gradually accelerate your speed and then slow back down to an easy stride.  These should last 20 to 20 strides.  Try to get a good nights sleep the night before the race.  Bring some extra clothes to change into after the race.  Remember you want to dress like the temperature is 20 degrees warmer than the actual air temperature, because you will warm up during the race.  If you have any questions let me know.

If you follow the links below you will find the possible courses that we will run on February 5^th at 9am.  The reason there are 2 courses is the weather. If there is snow/ice on Parkview track we will use the bad weather course. If there is no snow and ice on the track we will use the good weather course. Thanks to Jo Cobb for mapping these out for us.

Jim

Good Weather - http://www.mapmyrun.com/routes/view/1656028

Bad Weather - http://www.mapmyrun.com/routes/view/1754808

1/23/11

We had a good turnout for the Injury Prevention Workshop provided by Penny Clark and Leah Terry from Westview West.  I have a limited number of packets available at my office for those of you that were not able to attend.  I’ll try to summarize the information here, but please feel free to stop by and pick up a packet.

Most Common Problems for Runners/Walkers

1.        Muscle pull, tear or strain—occurs in hamstrings, quads and groin.  Can be from muscle imbalances, decreased flexibility, poor body mechanics, overtraining or trauma.  Of course a tear is the most serious and needs medical treatment, but treatment for the others include ice and anti-inflammatory meds.  After improvement, increased warm-ups and stretching and lessen the risk of reoccurrence.

2.       Knee pain—Runners knee and patellofemoral syndrome are common injuries of the knee.  Possible causes can by weak middle quadriceps muscle or not wearing the proper shoes.  Treatment usually involves ice and anti-inflammatories, followed later by a proper strengthening program and proper footwear.

3.       Shin Splints—Generalized pain that occurs in the front of the lower leg along the tibia (shin) bone.  This is usually a cumulative  stress injury caused by increasing your mileage too quickly, increasing your speed workouts too quickly or increasing your hill workouts too quickly.  Treatment again includes ice, anti-inflammatory medication and cutting back on your mileage/speed.  A good rule of thumb is to back off your workouts by 10% for a couple of weeks.  If the pain improves, stay at that mileage for a couple of weeks and then gradually increase by 10%.  Other treatments can include changing shoes to the proper type for your feet and increasing gastroc and soleus stretches and cross training.

4.       Achilles Tendonitis—Occurs frequently because of abnormal foot strike in the push off phase of the running cycle,  usually due to overpronating causing stress and inflammation in the tendon.  Tight calf muscles can be a factor.  Treatment includes gastroc and soleus stretches, ice and anti-inflammatory meds, and in serious cases orthotics and/or professional medical advice. 

5.       Iliotibial Band Syndrome (ITB)—this is generally a result of increasing mileage too quickly, inadequate warm up and cool down, lack of muscle balance in the core muscles or in the quadriceps muscles.  Treatment includes proper warm up and cool down, avoiding overtraining or increasing your training too quickly, anti-inflammatory meds, ice, cross training and rest.  If the pain persists seek medical help.

6.       Overtraining Syndrome—90% of running injuries are due to overtraining.  Sometimes the injuries that occur from overtraining do not show up immediately, but can occur weeks later.  Use the 10% rule, ie only increase your training by 10% of the previous weeks total. For example if you ran 3, 3, 3, 3 and 4 miles last week for a total of 16 miles, you should only increase your total for the next week by 1.6 miles. Penny recommends that you do not run over 45 miles a week, citing a study that shows there was no increased performance with competitive runners after 45 miles, but a definite increase in injuries.  I believe high mileage running (over 50 Miles a week) should only be attempted by experienced runners knowing that above that level injury risk increased dramatically.  Try to run on even surfaces, preferably soft terrain if possible.  Do not run through pain.  If pain persists past a week then you should seek medical advice.   Follow hard training days with days off or easy days.  Change your running shoes every 350 to 500 miles or every six months.  Keep track of when you buy your shoes and how many miles you have on them and only use your shoes for running/walking and not for shopping or mowing the grass. 

7.       Piriformis Syndrome—Pain in the hip or buttock area when the piriformis muscle becomes tight can put pressure on the sciatic nerve.  Treatment includes proper stretches to the hip and gluteal region.  If the pain persists, worsens or continues to radiate down the leg, seek medical advice.

8.       Plantars Fasciitis—the most common cause of pain on the bottom of the heel/foot and usually defined by pain during the first steps of the morning.  Can be caused by tight calf muscles or excessive pronation of the foot.  Treatment may include gastroc and soleus stretches, orthotics and proper footwear, ice (rolling a frozen bottle of water under the foot), anti-inflammatory meds and cross training to rest the area. 

9.       Stress Fractures—can be the result of overuse or repeated impacts on a hard surface.  Can be caused by increasing your mileage too quickly or bad posture/body mechanics.  Most commonly occur in the tibia, femur, sacrum, hip or metatarsal bones of the feet.  The treatment for a stress fracture is rest, typically 6-8 weeks of no running.  Cross training is important to maintain fitness with a stress fracture.

10.   Blisters—are the result of friction  moisture.  Wearing synthetic socks that wick away moisture and wearing proper fitting shoes helps.  Do not wear your shoes too tight or too small.

Stretching

-

Stretching before exercise does not prevent muscle soreness.  A minimum 3-5 minute warm up before stretching helps prevent injury and increase range of motion.  A 5 minute cool down post workout followed by stretching helps muscle balance and injury prevention.

Proper Stretching technique is important

1.        Perform balanced stretching by stretching muscles on both sides of the body evenly and don’t stretch one side more than the other.

2.       Avoid over stretching.  Never stretch to the point of pain or discomfort.  You should feel slight tension or a pull on the muscle at the peak of the stretch.

3.       Go Slow.  Stretch slowly and evenly.  Hold the stretch for at least 15 seconds and release it slowly as well.  One minute per area on large muscle groups is recommended.

4.       DO NOT BOUNCE or jerk while stretching, this can cause injury, keep it smooth and slow.

5.       BREATHE! Flexibility exercises should be relaxing.  Deep easy, even breathing is the key to relaxation.  Do not hold your breath while stretching, try counting out loud if you find yourself holding your breath.

RECOMMENDED  STRETCHES  (diagrams of stretches are in the handout)

1.       Hamstring stretch

2.       Hip flexor-psoas stretch

3.       Low back stretch

4.       Quad stretch

5.       Gastroc stretch

6.       Soleus stretch

7.       ITB stretch

8.       Hip rotators

9.       Piriformis/glut stretch

Cross Training

Cross training improves fitness and reduces injury .  Cross training refers to a training routine that involves several different forms of exercise.  It reduces the chance of overuse injury and limits the stress on a specific muscle group by using them in different ways.  It helps to improve your overall fitness level.

Cross Training Ideas

cardio

1.       Aquatics

2.       Cycling

3.       Rowing

4.       Stair climbing

5.       Jump rope

6.       Skating or skiing

7.       Court sports

8.       Zumba

Strength training

9.       Calisthenics

10.   Free weights

11.   Machines

12.   Bands

flexibility

13.   Stretching

14.   Tai chi

15.   Pilates

Core Program

The core is the area in your trunk that is comprised of your abdominal, back hip and pelvic muscles.  Research shows that a good core program incorporated with a sport specific training program not only reduces the risk of injury but helps to improve sport specific performance levels also.

Core exercises can be done with or without equipment.  Some exercises that can be done without equipment include:

-planks and side plank

-abdominal bracing

-pushup and advanced pushup

-v-sits

-squats

-bridging

-hip lifts

-waiters bow

-oblique twists

-lunges

-superman

Some equipment you can use and do most of the above exercises include

-medicine balls

-kettle balls

-stability balls

-dumb bells

-balance products

-exercise bands.

Remember, although we are training for a specific running event, our other goal is to improve our fitness and therefore our lifestyle.  By improving our flexibility and core body strength, we not only will improve our running/walking and total fitness we will also reduce our risk of injury. 

1/13/11

I know the weather has been challenging at the start of the year and many of you are running on treadmills, which is ok, but some of us are still out there plugging away outside.  I’d have to say that on Tuesday night in the cold wind blowing mini blizzard we had a group of us had a great 5 mile run.  We started at Parkview and took the back roads down to Hillcrest Circle and back.  Now, the wind was howling and the snow was blowing, but what made this an enjoyable run was that the wind was almost directly out of the west and 90% of our run was north and south.  So if you have the option, look at the wind direction and try to avoid it if at all possible.  If it is not possible, try to run the first have of the run against the wind, if you are running an out and back, so that as you start to sweat when you turn around the wind will be at your back and you won’t get chilled.  On really cold days, if you have two cars and a friend, you can drive out against the wind, park the car and run back to the other car with the wind to your back.  That being said, I will be out of the country for 10 days (yes warm weather), but Bill and Kathy will still be meeting on Saturday’s and Tuesday’s at the regular times.  The 5K is coming soon, February 5^th at 9am at the Girls Club, so Lets Get Going.  Also, remember the Injury Prevention Workshop at the Girls Club at 230 on January 23^rd.  I will be back for that.

Lets Go Farther,

Jim

12/18/2010

Welcome to all of the new members of Lets Go.  We are about to start on another  great year.  On Christmas Eve we will have our annual Santa Hat Run.  It starts at 8 AM at Parkview Track, you choose the pace and distance and of course wear your best Santa hat.  At 8 AM on New Year's Day we will kick off the official training series with an 8 AM run starting at the square.  On January 8^th starting at 730 AM we will be offering blood tests.  You need fast for 12 hours prior to this test, which will include blood sugar and a lipid profile.  We will be having time slots for the blood tests to make it go smoother so send me an email with the approximate time you would like from 7:30 on, time slots will be assigned first e-mail, first serve.  On January 23^rd at 2:30 PM (Sunday) we will be having  the Injury Prevention Workshop at The Limestone Girls Club.  We have already started meeting on Tuesdays at 5:15 PM and Saturdays at 8:00 AM at Parkview Track. Today we had 18 people on a cold, icy day.  If you need a customized training schedule, send me an e-mail with your current training and your goals. Actually, I’d like for all of you to e-mail your goals and what you are currently doing.  Hope to see everyone on Christmas Eve.

Jim

12/12/2010

Here are a couple of dates to put on your schedule, Saturday January 8^th starting at 730 AM we will be having blood tests performed for blood sugar and cholesterol.  We may also have our body measurements that day if Johnathan is available.  They now have a new machine for total cholesterol, so you won't have to have a blood draw, just a stick.  I will take about 8 minutes to get the results.  I will let you know where we are going to have this done a little closer to the day of the tests.  On Sunday January 23^rd we will have an injury prevention workshop at 2:30 PM at the Girls Club.  Penny Clark, who is an experienced physical therapist and has treated numerous people in our group, will lead this workshop.  On December 24^th, that’s right, Christmas Eve, we will have our traditional Santa Hat Run, starting at 8 AM from Parkview. You determine the distance and pace, the only requirement is that you wear a Santa Hat (if you want to).  And yes, on New Years Day at 8 AM we will start off our training series with the Annual New Year's Day Run, again pace and distance is up to you. The New Year's Day Run starts at the square downtown.

Happy Holidays,

Jim