Part 2: Long Runs and No Runs

Long Runs

The weekly long run is generally considered a staple of middle and long distance running.  Finally, a topic where conventional wisdom and I see eye-to-eye.  If you're going to run a marathon, you need to get out to near marathon distances sometime during training.  Even for a race as short as a 5k, however, the long run has many benefits - benefits which start in the mileage buildup phase, and continue throughout a training cycle.

Here's the part where I get vague with the science - X causes Y, I may not understand why X causes Y, but sciencey types in labs do and many of them seem to agree that this is the case.  When you do long runs, they are mostly aerobic.  You shouldn't be pushing yourself out of breath, then struggling with your breathing for an hour or more.  This long, sustained aerobic effort stimulates changes in your body at the cellular level - the body adapts to use oxygen and energy more efficiently.  At the whole body level, you feel this as improvement.  It feels easier to run a certain distance or pace aerobically after a few weeks of training.  You get tiny bits of this stimulation from your junk miles, but the bulk of your aerobic improvement typically comes from the long run.  The long run is also a crucial time to practice race strategy for longer races, like half and full marathons (as any of you seasoned marathoners know).

This will be the general theme in my description of how a workout works - the workout stimulates something at the cellular level, then you experience the change in a definable way at the whole body level.  See, that was reasonably painless - almost no science at all!


Off Days

"Everyone should take at least one day per week completely off from running".  This is one of the common things parroted by runners to other runners (especially to beginners) on a regular basis, a statement as common as "always stretch before you run" or "runners should drink lots of water".  And just like these other timeless paradigms of endurance running, it has almost no foundation on solid science.  We're told many things in our lives, and we tend to blindly trust them simply because the person telling us is either A) someone we trust, or B) someone speaking from a position of authority on the matter.  If there isn't any real information out there about something, how can a person be an authority on it?

One paradox of running is that it both is, and is not, a one size fits all sport.  Running can help most people be healthier, most people can get better at it, and most people need some combination of a core group of workout types to improve.  But, no two runners can run the same plan and expect the same results.  To believe that any two runners, even twins, can reach their full potential by following identical training schedules, is asinine (which is a word that smart people tend to use to call something stupid when they're trying to sound smart - one which I tend to use like this:  "I'd say her legs are a 7, but I'd give her asinine!").

Some runners need a day off every week.  Some need 2 or 3.  Some may be able to run 10 or 15 days in a row before they have to have a break.  We're all different, and that's one of the most important reasons for keeping flexibility in your schedule.  Some days, you're just better off staying home and licking your wounds than going out and punishing your legs further just because the plan says so.  And rules of thumb are like any other rules - they aren't laws, they are made to be broken.  A big part of the journey of becoming a runner is getting in tune with your body, learning to listen to the messages it sends you, and learning when to push and when to back off.  We really are made for this running thing, but it is all too easy to let your brain get in the way instead of just trusting your body to do the things it is designed to do.

As I said before, rest is one of the reasons the Kenyans are so good.  When they take easy days, they are really easy.  When they rest, they really rest - no cross training or short workouts just to stay sharp, just relaxing and allowing their bodies to mend while they prepare to break them again.  Everyone needs down time, whether yours comes twice a week or twice a month.  Listen to those legs, they won't steer you wrong.


Appropriate Timing

I finally managed a weekend long run yesterday!  Only 8 miles, but if felt good to run for longer than an hour.  I ran easy, but the pace ended up being much faster than I had intended.  My legs were even a little sore this morning when I headed out into the 70 DEGREE WEATHER for some easy miles.  My motivation could have came from the knowledge that I was heading out to each Chinese at lunch, and felt the need to preempt the buffet, but I'll take it.  10x400m coming up tomorrow...