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19 19 January Note

January 19, 2013March 20, 2016

Hello Beginner Runners,

Wow! We had such a good run last week! There is something huge about running 70+ minutes without stopping. You are all amazing! Everyone did so well. We are perfectly on track for the March half-marathon (actually we’re a bit ahead of schedule). I imagine you won’t believe this, but the hardest part is behind us. Once someone can run an hour, bumping up a session 10 minutes each week is not a significant jump in terms of fitness/cardio requirement. The hard part is learning how to run and building a base. It’s tough to move from walking/jogging intervals to non-stop running. We’ve done that hard work and are more than ready to start extending our mileage. I can’t tell you how many of our runners have made passing comments about “only” running 45 minutes on Tuesday, or expressing that they felt they could have keep running at the end of a run, or asking if it’s really worthwhile to go out on the weekend for a bit over a half hour. Think about that if you dare to look at our schedule over the next few weeks. I appreciate that the lengths of upcoming runs could seem daunting, but I promise that you can do it. When we started running together, our longest jogging interval was one minute. You are now doing 60-70 times that rather comfortably. From now until our longest training run on 14 March, we’ll be doubling our run time. Hopefully thinking about it that way will keep it in perspective, you can certainly double your training run time if you’ve been able to increase it 60-70 fold. The coaches are here for you. Let us if know if you’re having trouble. Each of our coaches have a lot of running experience and they truly understand the psychology of the half-marathon distance. At this point in our training, our hardest work is convincing ourselves that we can run 13.1 miles. It’s a mind game and the mind is a powerful thing! Try to start playing the tape over in your head that says “I can do this”. When doubts creep in, turn off that negative feed. Over the years some of our trainees have told me they repeat in their minds “Paula/Bonnie/Syma/Betsy thinks I can do this” because they truly won’t believe it when they tell themselves “I can do this”. Whatever it takes, go for it! In summary, I do believe you can do this. Part of my job is to be honest with our runners. If I don’t think someone is capable of running a half-marathon (due to anything - injury, schedule problems, lack of desire, etc), I tell them. It wouldn’t be fair for me to encourage someone when I knew success was unlikely. We are down to our core group now and I believe in each and every one of you. The next few weeks should be a lot of fun!

A few notes about training over the coming weeks..... it’s very important to get in the following long runs between now and race day (80, 90, 100, 110, 120, 130 minutes). It is also important to not steadily increase your time every week. It is best to lengthen your session for 3-4 weeks then drop back for one week to allow your body to recover/rest. Some of you have obligations where you will be missing Thursday long runs. Do everything possible to get it done but pay attention that you are not always increasing your mileage without allowing for some recovery time. Please continue to group up when you have scheduling conflicts - that’s a great way to train. I’ve created a Google Doc detailing the runs for the next 2 months. I put x’s in all the weeks that I’ll definitely be running with the group. If you want, you can put x’s in the weeks you will be running with the group. When you know you have a conflict, put a note in the box. There may be other people who already know they have a conflict on the same day. The Google doc may help us identify weeks where I need to offer another long run day/time option. The mass emailing is also great - so don’t stop doing that!!! The Google Doc will help us plan longer term instead of just the week ahead. Click here for the link to our Google Doc.

This week we are running an interesting route through the Brompton Cemetery to finish at Whole Foods in Kensington (see the map to the right). We’ll head down to Hyde Park in the normal fashion via Lisson Grove/Seymour. As we near Wellington Arch, we’ll veer to the right (or west) staying along the inside edge of the park. There is an exit leading out to Knightsbridge after about .3 of a mile. We’ll take that exit then head out Brompton Rd. then Fulham Rd to the cemetery. After exiting the cemetery, we’ll run Fulham Rd to Earls Court Rd to Cromwell Rd then wind our way up to Whole Foods. Whole Foods is a great place to finish. There is plenty of room for everyone to sit together for coffee after the run (if you have time). To get back to SJW, some people may decide to share cabs or you can tube home from Kensington High Street station (Circle Line). I will have gels at Starbucks before the run. Ladies, I understand the “push-back” on gels but it’s time to try them (either this week or next week). Let me try another angle on why I’m so adamant about it..... I understand the science behind why runners need to top up carbs during a race. I understand what happens once the body starts to burn through the last bit of glycogen reserves - it’s ugly. If one of our beginner runners refuses to top up carbs (through gels, or sports drink, or any carb source), they will suffer big-time (probably around mile 10-11) and most likely will not be able to complete the run. It also causes a problem for our coaches. Each coach will be responsible for a group of beginner runners. If all of their efforts are focused on one runner due to a preventable condition, it’s not really fair to the other runners in that group. I realize I sound a bit like Lance Armstrong forcing drugs on teammates! Yikes! You may see me on Oprah after the race. Just kidding - gels are legal and harmless. One last note and then I’ll be quiet.... most diabetics or borderline diabetics use GU gels but ask your doctor for confirmation. Thanks for listening - that’s the end of the speech!!!!

Bratislava Half-Marathon
Here’s the latest on the hotel for the Bratislava trip.... we now will pay €100 per room per night for either a single or a double (so the single price hasn’t changed and the double price has been reduced by €10 per room per night). We still are going to be committed to the hotel with quite strict cancellation terms. I will be re-opening the Bratislava spreadsheet through the end of January so that you may update your information. If you’ve decided to join us on the trip, please input your travel information in the document (if it’s not already there). If you’ve decided against the trip, it would be best if I knew that by the end of January so I can cancel your hotel room without penalty. Thanks everyone!!!

Happy Running,
Paula

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19 January Note

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