Part 6: Warm Up, Cool Down, Stretching, Racing, Closing Thoughts

Warning, long post (that's what she said).  I'm trying to cram it all in right here at the end (also what she said).

Before You Run

Here's another one of those places where lots of information gets tossed around, but very little actual research backs any of it up.  Always stretch before you run (it keeps you from getting hurt).  Never stretch a cold muscle (you'll develop micro tears).  Always warm up and stretch (full range of motion allows for more relaxed running).  Warm up but never stretch (static stretches destabilize your muscles).  What's a runner to do?

While there is research out there, few people read it, and fewer actually believe/follow it.  Most simply go on doing what they've always done - this is how I do it, it hasn't caused me any problems so far, why change?  Well it turns out, at least according to the latest research, that this is exactly correct.  The latest studies have shown no positive correlation between stretching or not stretching and injury prevention.  What they did find, however, is a higher incidence of injury among runners who suddenly started or stopped stretching as part of their warm up.  Most experts (by "most", I mean all that I've ever read) that a low intensity warm up before activity is beneficial.  It turns out that the rest doesn't matter, as long as you're consistent, and you take it slowly if you decide to make changes.

So what is a low intensity warm up?  To warm up for any activity, you should do that activity - but slower and gentler.  Your warm up really is about warming up - increasing your body temperature makes your blood and other fluids runnier (see what I did there, using that word?), easier for your body to move around.  It bumps your heart rate up to something between resting and working out, so that there is less of a jolt to all of the systems which rely on your heart (which would be all of them) when you start the actual run.  It gets you moving before you actually run, so you can asses any little aches and pains and try to figure out where they came from.


The warm up is a great example of how everyone who runs is different.  Just like a training schedule, what works best for one person doesn't for another.  Some people need long warm up.  Some need additional drills to help with their running form.  Some want a combination of fast and slow running as part of their warm up.  I personally like about a mile jog as a warm up, with 3 or 4 sections of about 50 or 60 yards at around race pace performed late in the mile.  The best way to determine what you need is to experiment - start with a long warm up, and systematically change things until you find what works best for you.

Racing

You've done all of the hard work, now the reward, the fun stuff, racing.  How does one go about this?  Some of it is obvious - get a good night's sleep, pack your bag the night before, plan way ahead, time your eating and drinking to correspond with what your body needs.  But some of it requires experience and judgment.  You're in shape to run X pace, should you start out at that pace, a little faster/slower, go out hard to get a good spot, go slow to avoid the early rabbits...?

I wish I could tell you to always run your race, ignoring what everyone else is doing.  The fastest races are run by an even pace the whole way - but things happen.  You get nervous, or you get boxed in, you feel better or worse during certain miles, etc.  Sometimes you want to run on your own, sometimes it is easier to run on someone else's shoulder.  The point to all of this is that you shouldn't go into a race with a plan - you should go in with 2 or 3 plans, and be prepared to scrap them all if the need arises.  Try to run your pace, but at regular intervals, evaluate how things are going.  How are you feeling?  Are you on pace, fast, or slow?  In contention to maybe get an award at the end?  After each evaluation, decide whether to stick to your guns, or try something else.  This is how I approach the first 95% of the race.  It takes experience to be good at the racing part of running.

The last 5% of the race is the kick.  That mad sprint to burn off all you have left, hopefully grabbing a few spots along the way and sneaking a few extra seconds off the clock.  How does one do this?  With guts, and with confidence.  You can do speed work to make sure you're fast.  You can condition hard to be in great shape.  None of that matters if you don't know in your heart that you can press forward, and have the strength and guts to do so.  Make Usain Bolt run 4900m with me, and we'll see who can run 100m faster.

Now you're done, walking towards a water station after crossing the line.  How did you do?  It doesn't matter right now, that's how you did.  The time to evaluate a race isn't right after it, when you're exhausted, out of balance, struggling just to stay on your feet.  Always give it a day, step back from the actual run before making judgments about the results.  Like anything else in life, treat failure to reach your goals as an opportunity to learn and grow, and success as a step towards something bigger (and of course, a reason to grab a beer and celebrate).

Winding Down

Back to our scenario - post run, you're exhausted, full of one or more emotions that are likely at an unreasonable level, you're resisting the urge to compare your time to your target time.  Or, you've just finished a grueling workout, you're tired, stinky, hungry and thirsty, what should you be doing?  More running, that's what.  Your cool down is almost as important as your warm up.  It allows your heart to slow down over a longer time period - giving your blood flow more time to remove wastes from your muscles (aided by the contractions of the muscles themselves).  By now you should notice a pattern here:  everything should be gradual, even things as simple as starting and stopping a run.

After your run is a great time to stretch.  Besides just feeling good, it helps with your cool down by aiding blood flow, and is a good opportunity to work on your flexibility since the muscles are already warmed up.

Sometime within the first half hour after a race or hard workout, you need to eat something.  It should have a combination of complex and simple carbs, as well as protein, so that your body can begin the process of recovery.  Several studies have pointed to low-fat chocolate milk as a recovery drink, since it has what you need.  If the thought of drinking milk after running in the summer sun turns your stomach sour, a sports drink and half peanut butter sandwich would do nicely as well. 

Closing Thoughts

The first thing that comes to mind is, thank you God that this is over.  I really expected that I'd have a better time preaching my running philosophy and detailing the minutiae of the different workouts I believe in.  And while this started out great, I feel like it took a turn for the boring real effing quick.

I'll sum things up with two statements.  The first is that my philosophy of running and training is essentially a holistic approach that mixes and matches different workouts to improve the individual parts of the whole.  Everything in your body is connected, so while the workouts I've discussed seem very specific in their intent, the cumulative effect makes the program work for improvement.  A complete program makes a complete runner.

The second statement speaks to my knowledge and intent.  Most of what I've learned as a runner comes from experience, experimentation, and a very healthy helping of reading.  I absolutely won't recommend anything I haven't personally tried.  I may not always understand everything behind the scenes of what I'm doing, and I may not even agree entirely with some of the information I give.  But before I tell anyone anything, I evaluate the potential that my advice could have for getting someone hurt, and I always err on the side of safety, even if it means holding something back that could potentially make someone a better runner until it is better understood.  Like a doctor, I endeavor to do no harm.



There you have it, my training philosophy (more or less).  Anything I've missed will hopefully come up in my future posts about my running.  On the training front, I managed my weekend long run (another 8 miles) for the 3rd straight weekend.  Now that I'm in the rhythm for this, I feel much more "on track" with my training.  I took the past 3 days off as a little mini-recharge, to give my legs a full break before heading into my next tempo phase next week.  With about 6 weeks to go, I am feeling much more confident about how much I can accomplish before my first race of the year.  Take it easy (again, that is what she said).