Run Training Terminology

As a newbie to the sport of running, I am suddenly inundated with all these terminologies I for sure as hell do not understand.  A tempo what? Far-sheek? What's a Far-far...whatever! Oh Fartlek.  Is that some kind of new fart sound? Wait! Don't throw your running shoes at me... be kind ... I'm just a newbie.

Oh Mr. Google, can you help me? Ah yes, so many articles explaining... and I still don't get it all.  Until I came across this article at For Beginners Only of Runnersworld.com by Susan Paul, MS (Click here for the actual article) which actually shed light on these terminologies and truly helped a beginner understand.

This was excerpted from that article:

An easy run refers to the pace or the intensity of the run rather than the distance. You should be able to carry on a conversation throughout an “easy” run. If you measure your heart rate, you would be at the very low end of your aerobic zone (60-70% of max HR).

Fartlek runs are a free-form version of speedwork done off the track. The term “fartlek” is a Swedish word that means “speed play.” Runners use landmarks, like a tree, a mailbox, or a lightpost to pick up the pace from one landmark to another. In between designated landmarks, runners slow the pace to recover between the harder efforts. Some runners use a timed interval to simulate this technique. For example, run hard for 2 minutes, then easy for 1 minute. These runs are multi-purpose and help teach runners to shift gears by recruiting different muscle fibers and recovering after hard exertions.

Hill workouts involve running up an incline quickly and jogging down; repeating this process the prescribed number of times. Hills increase resistance and therefore build muscular strength and increase cardiovascular conditioning. Depending where you live, hills can be easy or difficult to find. Flatlanders must rely on bridges or running repeats up and down small rises to simulate hill training. Look for hills that are about a quarter-mile in length with a grade of about 8%, which is steep enough to look like a hill, but not so steep that it is impossible to run up it.

Intervals refer to a designated distance run repeatedly at a fast pace with recovery jogs in between each repeat, most often done on a track. The length and the pace of the interval varies based on the distance and time goals of the runner.

A long run is the highest mileage run of any given week; it is usually done on the weekend because it requires more time to complete. The actual mileage is relative. For someone training for a 5K, a long run might be 6 miles; for a marathoner, a long run might be 20 miles. The training pace for a long run is relatively easy; usually run at about 70-75% of max HR, but should not be considered an easy run. Long runs help increase endurance by training the body to use fat as fuel, running with depleted glycogen supplies, increasing the number of energy-producing mitochondria within the muscle cells, and simply getting you used to being on your feet for long periods of time

A split refers to the time it takes to run a specified portion of a run. In races, splits are most often given at the mile marks. On a track, a splits are frequently measured every lap, equivalent to a quarter mile. Knowing your splits or times for these shorter segments of a longer distance helps keep you on pace. A negative split is the term applied when a runner runs faster on subsequent intervals. For example, negative splitting a 5K means each mile was run faster than the previous mile. Negative splitting a marathon means the second half of the marathon was run faster than the first half.

A tempo run refers to a comfortably hard run that increases lactate threshold—the point at which the body dramatically increases its production of lactic acid and fatigue occurs. Tempo runs train your body to process larger amounts of lactic acid thus allowing you to run faster for longer periods of time. Tempo runs are done at 85-90% of your max heart rate, for runners who have heart rate monitors. Runners using “The Talk Test” as a pace guide would be able to speak in one or two-word responses but would not want to carry on a conversation.

Thank you Susan for explaining this to me in a manner I could understand.

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It's 4:30 A.M.

Ugh! Do I have to wake up at this ungodly hour and even more so get out of bed?  What time is it? But it's only 4:30 AM!  Alright, yes I will go running. 

That is what I feel like most mornings when I have to get up to go run.  This morning in particular, even after a good eight hour sleep.  I will.  I won't.  I will.  I won't.  Oh, all right I will.  Even if I want to say I won't and just crawl back into bed for another hour or two of sleep.

I wonder if I'll ever get the hang of this? By nature, I love to sleep.  But that hasn't been something I have been doing a lot of lately, with the exception of my Sunday naps which I love.  I actually am normally up by 5:30 AM because the kids have to be up and ready for school and even if I don't have to wake them up my body clock just sets off and I'm usually awake at that time.  It didn't of course used to be that way, which goes to show that the body CAN be trained. 

So does that mean it will get easier for me to get up an hour earlier for my runs?  Will I stop struggling and just get up one day and say "yay! let's go, I can't wait to run."  I would like to think so. 

In the meantime, I'm glad to be pushed.  Because after each and every run I commit myself to, whether it be a good run or a bad one - I am thankful I still ran and that leaves me feeling amazing...I logged in more kilometers...I did something to improve myself...

...I whisper to myself...small steps...

it will get better. 

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Slow and steady

My personal goal at the moment is to run a 5k.  I won't get too caught up measuring my speed, right now I admit I am a slow runner.  But slow and steady will help me reach that goal.  I have got to work on my endurance and then work on my pace.

We have managed to map a 2.5km lap around a memorial park near where I live and I try to run the course twice.  Yup! a memorial park, you read right. ;) What I love about that place for our runs is that a) it is very accessible to our home.  b) there are a lot of recreational and serious runners who do their training there, but not too many that it is over crowded.  c) the roads are asphalt which means it won't be as punishing on my knees or ankles, considering the weight they are carrying, hahaha! or that my knees were prone to inflammation and that I broke my ankle real bad some years ago.  d) it is not creepy at all, even at 5:00 or 5:30 in the morning.  e) I love that there are so many trees and you are surrounded by green grass wherever you run.  f) the terrain is not so flat all the time, there are gentle slopes all throughout which makes for a good workout.  g) you hardly have to worry about traffic.

The last three runs this week were very trying, always falling short of my 5km goal. It is quite frustrating since my running partners can now do 10km.  But again, I tell myself that I will get there eventually - lets concentrate first on that 5km goal.  Each day inching closer to that goal, each day walking less and less.  The first 3km is a breeze, then I hit that mostly uphill slope - not steep at all but maybe because I know that the gradient is slightly up and not level that my mind starts playing games with me.  My breathing becomes labored and I just want to stop and walk.  Which is exactly what I did the first time I attempted that 5km route.  Boo me!  The 2nd time I attempted it, I was able to go past that block but then again did a lot of walking after.

Today was a whole lot better.  Still difficult but I was able to manage the whole 5k with only just a minute of walking (up and down the small bridge and a little bit after).  I time my walks now and forced myself to run after that one minute break (gawd, that is so hard to do, I just wanted to keep walking!).  I'm glad I forced myself, I pretended that I was at a race and told myself  "go go Indy, you can see the finish line, its almost there, cross it running!"  And crossed it running I did.

Do you know what helped take my mind away from thinking I could not possibly make it? Prayer.  I decided to pray the rosary while doing my run.  It was nice to be praying and running at the same time.  Prayer distracted me from most of the difficult areas of the lap except for that last kilometer when mind and body overcame the distraction and I almost gave up to the temptation to just take that one minute walk break and turn it into three, then five, then just totally give up.  So happy I did not give in.  Pat myself on the back, it should only get better.  And if not, I shall just keep trying till it does.

Something to ponder on: We can compare the experience of praying while running, with prayer being a good distraction to overcoming the difficult areas of the lap I ran in, to that of our lives.  I find that it is true that when you are in a difficult situation in your life, prayer uplifts you, gives you hope, distracts you from further thinking of those difficulties.  And temptations do come, to sway you, to tell your spirit you will not make it, to give up.  DON'T.  Keep on going, pick yourself up after you fail, keep on trying, keep your eye on the goal and stay centered on what you know is true - God only challenges us to test our faith.  And we shall come out stronger, better honed, able to stand again because we believed.

Have a good Sunday and Keep the Faith!

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The Reluctant Runner

I'm creating this blog just to record how I'm getting back into running, whether I'd be any good at it and whether I can continue to sustain this for the rest of my life!  Mostly, I need to write this down so I can push myself, even when there are days that I just don't want to get up and run (yes, there are still a lot of those days)....you see, I'm still a reluctant runner - excited by the idea, poring voraciously over anything related to improving my run, learning the lingo, and yet still not 100% in love with it....not yet.

The main reason I run is to lose weight...yeah, yeah, ain't that the reason most of us start any sort of physical activity?  I haven't hit the scale below 140 lbs in about 4 years, even after endless diets and failed attempts at exercise.  I hate getting dressed, I can spend about an hour in front of my closet looking at clothes that don't fit well and sometimes end up throwing a fit, not wanting to leave home because nothing....well....fits.  Another reason for the sudden attempt at fitness was an invitation to join an organized reunion climb of Batch '93 of the Ayala Mountaineering Club.  They will be climbing Mt. Pulag (which is the 2nd highest mountain peak in the Philippines) this May.  I haven't been actively hiking up mountains since '95, so do the math, haha!  Well, lets just say I am not hiking up any mountain unless I'm fit enough to do so and if memory serves me right, we used to train for climbs by running, climbing up flights of stairs (I even used to bring my pack with me and climb up and down the 19 flights of stairs in the office building I used to work in).  Even after my hiking heydays, I used to run for an hour every other day just to maintain my level of fitness because who knows, I might chance upon a mountain to hike on.  Not only did I use to be a mountaineer, I also got into Dragonboat rowing with the PDRT and was privileged to compete in Hong Kong and Taipei with the team.  Well, those were the days...

Zoom to today, the reason I try to remember those times is remind myself I can still do it.  If I could have the discipline of being out in Manila Bay at 5:00 in the morning, rowing until my heart is ready to burst...hiking up Mt. Giting-Giting and climbing over razor edged peaks....then maybe, that strong, determined girl//woman is still in me and I just need to coax her out of her 15 year sleep.  Hard but doable.  Yes doable. 

Remind me of this when I won't get up to run, when I complain my heart will burst, my breathing labored and my head in a spin.

"Kaya mo yan!"

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