Sunday, April 18, 2010

SDofS completed

Well .. I can check this objective off my list!

I swam for seven days in a row. I swam twice on three days (Tues, Weds and Thurs).

The shortest swim was 15 minutes, the average about 45 mins and the longest was an hour.

That short swim was the result of overcrowding at the pool and a decision I made to stop rather than dodge four others moving at variable speed in the one 'free' lane. It was a good decision.

The end result: PB's for 50m (38-39 sec) and 100m (1.23-.24).

*Times based on watching the clock on the pool deck

I must admit that I lose count far too easily so the exact distance covered, in total each swim, is unknown.

I am estimating conservatively that I swam 1.5km in 30mins and 2km in 45mins and 3k in the hour.

So I'm estimating that I covered 20km through the week.

And in a 25m pool that's 800 laps, which I think is a good reason why I lost count from time to time.

But the week - despite what the note suggests - wasn't about numbers.

It was about reinforcing a few simple changes in how I swim. I focused on three things every time I hit the water.

First, pulling all the way through and feeling strong throughout the pull.

Second, tilting my head up just a bit and looking ahead rather than down. This needs a bit more work as when I'm doing the 100m sprints I tend to be 'head down and in fourth gear'.

Third, kicking - because I've not been using my legs enough to help me go forward. I kicked 200m today. I can't recall ever having used a kickboard for 200m. And while I am kicking while using the pull buoy, I haven't been kicking enough. Though I don't believe that I'm 'over' kicking, just kicking more judiciously.

It was a great week. Thanks for the input. Every piece of advice I've received has been a help.

Sunday, April 11, 2010

Margreet runs through Rotterdam

Yes, she's done it again - her 13th marathon.

Rotterdam was held earlier today and Margreet "cruised" to a 3:11.51. That placed her 8th in her age group - which was won with a 2:39 clocking. Talk about a competitive field - in the age group ahead of Margreet, 21 women finished Sub Three.

Back to Margreet the Marathoner.

She has now run all eight of her latest marathons in 3 hours and 15 minutes, and change, or faster.

2009

NODM 3:10:39 *course record

Vancouver 3:10:19

2008

Victoria 3:07:10

Vancouver 3:12:26

2007

Canberra 3:08:48

Gold Coast 3:15:13

2006

Gold Coast 3:13:01


Rotterdam was her first marathon in her home country and it sets the stage for the next one - yes, she's already looking where she will run next.

Charlotte's take on Born to Run

A post from Charlotte Paul's blog on 'Born to Run'.

Like most people I know- I’ve just finished reading “Born to Run” by Christopher McDougall. The main feeling I got from it was a renewed passion for running, just wanting to run free! Just running for the sake of running, with no agenda, for the love of it. For that reason alone I would recommend this book to anyone who would like some fresh inspiration.

I loved one character, Jenn, and her approach to racing. Basically flat out until she couldn’t go anymore. It sounds exhilarating. However I’m not sure about her pre-race drinking:)

The book throws up a lot of controversial topics, ranging from shoes, injury management and causes, even diet. I do like a book that makes you think, and isn’t instantly forgettable. McDougall mentions studies that show a surprising correlation between cost of shoe and rate of injury! As cost increases, injuries rise rather than fall. The book throws up the questions, are we in shoes to make the shoe companies money? What about orthotics?

McDougall suggests that some medical professionals are a bit too quick to blame running for injuries, rather than the shoes- and hence the run technique. I think it’s a crying shame that people are told to stop running altogether when they get injuries that are in fact simple to fix.

My shoes have progressively been getting lighter and lighter, and less built up over the last 2 years, whilst I have been injury free. I’ve moved gradually over the last 2 years from training in “lightweight trainers” like the Nike Zoom Elite, to now shoes that are considered racing flats like the Nike Marathoner, Lunar Racer, Speed Spider and the Free 3.0. So for me, book confirms what Kristian and I have been thinking and doing, and that we’re moving in the right direction.

I’ve been making the move gradually, allowing my feet to adjust and get stronger. In January this year I finally threw out my orthotics. That was a fantastically liberating feeling. A pretty similar feeling to getting rid of the heart rate monitor! I didn’t like the idea of being dependent on them- like a crutch. I can’t tell if my lighter shoes have made me faster- there are simply too many other variables. They certainly have not slowed me down and it’s my longest spell injury-free. But I do agree that a lighter shoe puts you in a better position. One that is more upright with your feet landing underneath you, preventing the heel-strike.

A friend of mine tuned in on the diet aspect of the book. To be honest this part of the book washed right over me.

My take home message was to continue my gradual shift into lighter and lighter shoes. That the Trigger Point Performance Therapy approach to injury prevention and rehabilitation is the correct one. And that we are in fact “Born to Run”.

OOhh, and I do love a good quote…

“You don’t stop running because you get old.
You get old because you stop running.
” Jack Kirk

The best runner leaves no tracks” Tao Te Ching

So as the barefoot phenomenon gathers speed … pick up a copy of “Born to Run” by Christopher McDougall and see what all the fuss is all about.

Charlotte

Born to Run

I had seen a mention of the book along the way, I can't recall exactly where. And then we saw it in a bookstore near Pioneer Square in Seattle in late November.

However it wasn't until prompted by two friends did I look it up at the library and brought it home.

It's interesting, I think, how a book says different things to different people.

I found the book a bit tough to get into.

It's the story of Christopher McDougall's journey into the world of ultrarunning. Within the story is his search for the reason why his foot hurts?

He mixes comments from doctors, research by a range of academics and explores the world of the Tarahumara Indians who live in Mexico's remote Copper Canyon.

He challenges us to rethink what we eat, how much we eat, how we run, the shoes we run in and why running is as innate to humans as breathing.

It's a good read.

One passage that caught my attention was the basic running advice from the guy who had befriended the Tarahumara.

"Think Easy, Light, Smooth and Fast. You start with easy, because if that's all you get, that's not so bad. Then work on light. Make it effortless, like you don't give a sh.. how high the hill is or how far you've got to go. When you've practiced that so long that you forget you're practicing, you work on making it smooooooth. You won't have to worry about the last one - you get those three, and you'll be fast."

I'll stop there - time for a run.

Spinning

I spun on the trainer five of the last seven days. Eight hours in all. It's a start.

I also tweaked my position a bike - lowering the seat a tad and shifting my cleats so that my knees track more straight.

Today I didn't spin. However I did a solid hour on the treadmill with eight repeats of 3 mins hard and two mins recovery. Then I fell into the pool for half an hour with the paddles and pull buoy.

Starting tomorrow is my Seven Days of Swimming (I didn't count today but perhaps I will reverse that decision when Saturday rolls around. One must be able to adapt.)