Friday, September 19, 2008

Friday 16 miles.

Is it better to post once in a while rather than each day? I sit at my computer often and have a lot to say. I think this blog is a great outlet and it's therapeutic for me to put my thoughts (and this blog only touches on the basics of what's in my head) down rather than bug my wife about the mundane details of my workout. After 10 years her eyes glaze over and she nods and says "wow" in a monotone voice.. and I don't blame her at all. I think it's healthy that we have different interests.
Anyway-
am) 11 miles. I did a recovery session today that was out of the normal line of thinking. My legs and energy were great this morning with only mild underlying fatigue. Research has proven that "high" mileage- which is a different number for everyone- decreases a runner's economy. So I thought today I would do my running drills and diagonals, all of which have the purpose of increasing muscle activation and running economy. It is intuitive to assume that performing drills for economy would be the most beneficial when your economy is at it's lowest. Jack Daniels has long preached the benefits of fast strides at the end of a long run. Running at your near maximum speed for very short intervals (5"-20") increases running economy by activating a higher percentage of muscle fibers and muscles. Today I did a drill session that I learned in 1998 while in Bellingham Wa. and was running with a group. Reading "Brain Training for Runners" reminded me that these are quite beneficial. The point of the drills is to- once again- fire muscles that are fatigued and activate muscle groups that are not prime movers in running. Only a relatively small percentage of your muscles are used effectively in running and by getting a higher percentage to activate you increase running power and economy.
If I ever get time I would like to video a few of these- but no promises.
High knee kicks- like the Rockettes.
Butt kicks.
Walking lunges.
Running sideways.
Stadium steps up and down.
Single leg hops. This is more of a plyometric.
I finished with 10 X diagonals on the football field. I started each one jogging then built to a maximum effort for 30 yards (what the hell IS a yard by the way? Besides a great way to drink a lot of beer really quickly). By the 3rd one I felt great! Legs loosened up and my stride felt effortless.
Over-all this was a fairly taxing workout for a recovery run but I'm confident that this has a huge benefit.

N) At the gym- 35:00 on the AMT trainer + 30:00 weights + 30:00 dry sauna w/ massage. In our next house I will be building a sauna..

Random thought: Why do the Admirals and Captains on the Death Star sass Darth Vader? Every Star Wars movie there's an Admiral that back talks Darth and then he dies. I think I would be a suck up to a guy like that.

7 comments:

GZ said...

Well, my nickel is that I enjoy the daily show. I realize that reading a training blog for most on a daily basis is a bit of drudgery (probably true of reading my daily blog). That said, you bring enough good idea, controversy, discussion, etc on a daily basis that I find it fruitful.

Strides at the end ... good stuff. We did them 20+ years ago in HS. Coach did not describe muscle fibers but when we were done with a workout he'd have us do them. Why? Because you need to know how to run fast when you are tired. "See - see?! You can run fast even though you are tired. Remember that when you are tired!"

Dave said...

I do a lot of the things you mentions (high knees, leg kicks, butt kicks, etc.) with the athletes I coach for speed and agility as a warm up. I find this really gets their bodies and brain into FEELING the motions their going to perform before the workout begins. Obviously, their doing a lot more point to point sprinting as well as working on change of direction, but do you think that it would also be beneficial for us as runners to do a similar warmup? I can certainly see the value in doing these drills at the end of a run, but would it be good at the beginning too?
I do some of the ballistic stretches you posted a while back as part of my run prep, but I think the drills may help elevate the heartrate a little better as well.

wende said...

Probably some smart-ass, know-it-all admiral, or a new guy.

Anonymous said...

Randal: "There was something else going on in Jedi. I never noticed it 'til today. They build another Death Star, Right?"
Dante: "Yeah."
Randal: "Now, the first one was completed and fully operational before the rebels destroyed it."
Dante: "Luke blew it up. Give credit where credit's due."
Randal: "And the second one was still being built when they blew it up."
Dante: "Comliments of Lando Calrissian."
Randal: "Something just never sat right with me that second time around. I could never put my finger on it, but something just wasn't right."
Dante: "And you figured it out."
Randal: "The first Death Star was manned by the Imperial army. The only people on board were Storm troopers, Dignitaries, Imperialists."
Dante: "Basically."
Randal: "So when they blew it up, no problem. Evil's punished."
Dante: "And the second time around?"
Randal: "The second time around it wasn't even done beind built yet. It was still under construction."
Dante: "So?"
Randal: "So, a construction job of that magnitude would require a hell of lot more manpower than the Imperial army had to offer. I'll bet they brought independent contractors in on that thing. Plumbers, aluminum siders, roofers--"
Dante: "Not just Imperialists. Is that what you're getting at?"
Randal: "Exactly. In order to get it built quickly and quietly, they'd hire anybody that could do the job. You think the average Storm Trooper knows how to install a toilet main? All's they know is killing and white uniforms."
Dante: "Alright, so, they bring in independent contractors. Why are you so upset at it's destruction."
Randal: "All those innocent contractors brought in to do the job are killed, casualtios of a war they had nothing to do with. Alright, look, you a roofer. Some juicy government contract comes your way. You got a wife and kids, the two-story in suburbia. This is a government contract which means all sorts of benefits. Along come these left-wing militants who blast everything within a three-mile radius with their lasers. You didn't ask for that; you had no personal politics. You're just trying to scrape out a living."

Lucho said...

GZ- I think most of the great coaching from the 80's came from amazing intuition on the part of the coaches. Lydiard was possibly the greatest simply because he never had labs and science at his fingertips.

Dave- I would say to jog a mile easy before doing the plyometrics. The single leg jumps are quite violent. Also, things like walking lunges are quite severe in terms of stretching (hamstrings mostly). But yes- by including these before a session you would certainly get more muscle fibers firing during the workout.

Wende- It's always the NEW guy! But if it was my first day on the job and Darth Vader walked in and they said "meet your new boss".. I wouldn't back talk. I would transfer to the squad in charge of keeping an eye on the Ewoks.

Runcolo- What is that from!? That's hilarious. And Randal is spot on! "You think the average Storm Trooper knows how to install a toilet main?"... awesome.

FatDad said...

hahahah...new guy...that's classic.
"Hey guys. What's happening? Yeah, just transfered in from the Intergalactic Second squadron. Whoa, who's that guy think he is? Hey, nice helmet you doucheba....*gak*"

Anonymous said...

I think it's from Clerks. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0109445/