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a little inspiration for your training.....

What Mud on Your Calves Really Means for Your Form Four form flaws you can recognize by yourself.

Martin`s running
Dear all, Well done to those who ran a distance at the Bonaqua marathon today! An excellent training run for Comrades!
Please note that from 1 May all HAC evening runs start at 17.15, not 17.30.

Mon and Wed : OG's 17.15 for an 8km
Wed Pizzaz 5.00am 15km
This run will end at the end of May, and restart in September.
Thur : Fitness Training OG's 17.15
Friday OG's 8km Time Trial 17.15
Registration for HAC Challenge 21km 6 May
Saturday 6.00am gentle 12-15km from 10 Palm Springs.
Sunday : HAC challenge. Start 6.00am Old Georgians

Have a good week everyone!
regards
Martin

Advice for your Comrades long run by Bruce Fordyce

"they stumble that run fast"
“Wisely and slow, they stumble that run fast.”
Friar Lawrence, Romeo And Juliet (Shakespeare).

William Shakespeare might have made a good Comrades coach, because his words perfectly sum up the correct approach to the Comrades marathon. Every single Comrades training run requires wise thinking and careful planning, none more so than the long run.

Every Comrades runner knows what 'the long run' means. It’s that extra-long training run, usually about 60 kilometres, run towards the end of April or in early May. These long runs are hosted by a number of clubs and, usually, it is possible to join in even if you are not a club member. As long as you pay the club long-run fee.

Some runners enter 50 kilometres races such as the Loskop, and then add on a few extra kilometres at the end. For many, the long run is the single most important training run they will complete in their entire training programme. Its main purpose is supposed to be to build extra endurance and strength, but It also serves as a dress rehearsal and a reassuring pat on the back that all is going well. Though there is still much training to be completed, the long run is considered by most runners to be the pinnacle. Everest has been summitted and now it’s downhill to the Comrades start, knowing you are fully prepared for those 90 race-day kilometres.

60 kilometres appears to be the popular distance for the long run, though there are some who run 65 kilometres or further. In my better days, I rarely made it beyond 60 kilometres, and I always believed that I had probably run too far. I'm not certain runners even need to cover that distance in one session. My opinion has been supported by Leonid Shvetsov, who has two spectacularly fast Comrades wins to his name and who never runs beyond 35 kilometres in one single training session. But the long run has become something of a ritual, a rite of passage, and who am I to argue against tradition.

The popular weekends for the long run appear to be the last weekend of April or the first weekend of May. The popular wisdom being that there is sufficient time after the long run to recover and continue training into early June. However, the critical question about the long run appears to be what running pace is best.

Readers of my blogs and columns will know that I always favour the cautious, conservative training approach. I believe the emphasis in the long run should not be on the speed, but rather on 'time on the legs'. The important thing is to spend as long as possible in a moving, vertical position in order to closely emulate race conditions.

The running pace of the long run is not that important. Consider the incredible challenge that confronts the Comrades runner hoping just to beat that final dreadful 12-hour cut-off gun. That runner will have to remain vertical and keep moving for half a day. But, in reality, the time spent standing in a vertical position for a 12-hour runner is actually closer to 13 hours when we consider that, on race morning, he or she will have been standing at the start enduring Pietermaritzburg’s winter cold for up to an hour while nervously waiting for Max Trimborn’s cockerel crow.So, nice and slowly it is.

I always liked to treat the long run rather as I would a long hike. I recommend that runners jog slowly along, watching the late autumn dawn approach. Chat to new running friends and stop at the seconding cars’ open boots for a drink. Importantly, do not sit down. Stay vertical and get used to coaxing shuffling, stiffening legs to keep moving.

Write off the day. Write off some of the afternoon. Get sunburnt out there. Most importantly, do not try and get answers from the long run. Too many Comrades hopefuls hope that, like a soothsayer or a fortune teller, the long run will tell them that they are ready to run a great Comrades. They want to feel good; strong all the way. They want to float through the long run.

Well, back in 1980 one of South Africa's greatest ever distance runners, who shall remain nameless, floated through a 90-kilometre training run. Yes, you read that correctly, he ran a solo 90-kilometre training long run in a little over 6 hours and publicly declared, “I can't say I'm going to win, but for anyone to beat me they are going to have to run the race of their lives”.

Unsurprisingly, every one of us who finished the 1980 Comrades ran the race of our lives. Broken and stricken with flu, that runner dropped out of the 1980 Comrades at Kloof. I was surprised he got that far. He had left his Comrades marathon on the training road, on his solo long-run odyssey. Coach Shakespeare would have admonished him for not running “wisely and slow”,

The long run has to fit smoothly and seamlessly into the training week..Its impact must be minimal. It should be possible to train the very next day. At the very least, it should be possible to train with perhaps one day’s rest. There should be no collateral damage, no bad sniffle or cold, no niggling injury. There should only be the satisfaction of a milestone training run completed, along with the knowledge that there is still much work to be done.

And, by the way, it isn't the long run that acts as a fortune teller and reads the favourable cards for Comrades runners. It is our speed in late May, over a distance far shorter than the long run, that predicts the future. A speedy or personal best time at the club time trial or a 10 km road race is the perfect answer. But that auspicious answer will only come if runners treat the long run with respect.

Bruce Fordyce advice for the long run.....

Bruce Fordyce | runners training ebooks | 9 x Comrades Marathon winner Download runners ebooks packed with running plans, training tips and insights from 9 x winner of the Comrades Marathon, plus many other World ultra-marathons.

Martin`s running
Dear all
Amazing turnout at the 7 Hills this morning with over 370 entries. The first time I ran 7 hills I think there were 30 of us!
It was a lovely morning and everyone I spoke to enjoyed their run!

Runs this week:
Mon, Wed and Fri : OG's 17.30 8km
Wed: 5.00am 15km hills from Pizzaz.
I am not sure if the 4.45am bus is running?
Thu : Fitness training at OG's 17.15.
Bring 5 metres of rope.
Fri : Registration for the Bonaqua run, 6,10, 21 and 42.2km.
Last chance to enter a qualifying time for Comrades.
The Bonaqua marathon replaces the long run on the HAC calendar for Saturday.
Sat : 12km gentle, 10 Palm Springs 7.00am.
Sun : Bonaqua run 6.00am start, OG's

Have a good week everyone!
regards,
Martin

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This is an inspiring read.

How Cheering on Others Can Make You a Better Runner Rooting for other runners can actually boost your spirits and performance.

Coach Parry.
Hi there, how far is a marathon? You're probably thinking "Duh...what a stupid question" The same question could apply to a 10km or a 21km or even an ultra like the Comrades Marathon.

As standard as those distances are, the distance is not the distance.We all hurt at some stage in a race. It's how we react to the discomfort that dictates whether we succeed or fail.Mental strength is vital in order to achieve your running goals.

Managing the 6 inches between your ears is what REALLY matters. If you struggle in the last quarter of a race, you'll get a lot out of this. (The principles are the same no matter what distance your run) Staying on the mental trip, if you're running Comrades, this is how to wrap your head around running 90km.

IMPORTANT: We're recording another round of podcasts and videos tomorrow. If there is something you need help with, get your question in here --->>> Ask a question We've also been getting quite a few injury related questions through the website lately. This one keeps popping up. If you have a ni**le, simply use the search function (The little magnifying glass) on the top of website to find the answer you're looking for

We're looking forward to catching up with you on Facebook.

Regards,

Coach Parry

PS. We've been working really hard behind the scenes putting a few time specific training programs together. I think you'll love these if you're training for a 10k, half marathon (21k) or full marathon (42k).

Martin`s Running
Dear all,
Some would say that running a marathon on the 4th March when the Two Oceans 56km Marathon is only 3 weeks and 6 days later does not give you sufficient time to recover! My own view is that unless you are setting out to break records at both events, running the Ecosure Peter Gradwell 42km is more beneficial than not running it! This event is too late to use as a qualifier for Two Oceans, therefore it is an ideal training run to test your kit, get your nutrition right and get your head around the big 56km on 31 March! Everything that works for you at this run, should be used again at Two Oceans, right down to using the same running socks (re-washed of course!)! For those of you that want to run 50km as a confidence builder for the 56km, Dot Graham is organising an 8km run prior to the 6.00am start. Please contact Dot (0772 389 038) for details. Those with borderline qualifying times and novices could find the extra distance useful.
To all of you running Two Oceans, enjoy the marathon experience on the 4th March,take it easy, and, above all have fun!

Runs this week:
Mon, Wed and Friday: OG's 17.30 8km.
Wed: Pizzaz Slow Bus starts at 4.45, Faster bus at 5.00am.
15km Hills.
Thu : Fitness Training OG's 17.15
Friday : Registration for the Ecosure Peter Gradwell Marathon 17.30-19.00
HAC runs are becoming over subscribed so do register on the Friday!
Sunday : 6.00am from OG's Ecosure Peter Gradwell Marathon (and supporting distances).

Two Oceans deadline for substitutions, posting your qualifying time, submitting medical clearances (if you have been asked for one) is midnight 28th Feb.
If you are not entered and cleared to run, DO NOT MISS this deadline.

Have a good week everyone!
regards
Martin