Almost Race Day!

As I am sure you have heard, the high temperatures are expected to be warmer than usual for this time of the year.  Just remember that the race starts at 8:00.  Temps at that time will be comfortable and you will be done long before the high temperature in the afternoon.  Just listen to your body, take advantage of any shade or sprinklers along the course, and perhaps even reset your goals.  We all want to have the best race experience we can have, but it is good to have a backup plan so that when you are all done, you are left feeling satisfied and accomplished.  (See Week 10’s newsletter for tips for running in the heat.)

With less than 2 days to go until the Bellin Run, make sure you take the time and look back at where you started and appreciate all the work you have done to get you to this point.  If this isn’t your first rodeo, how do you feel compared to last year?  If this is your first road race, 12 weeks ago did you think you could really do this?  When you get ready on Saturday morning and head out the door, leave all the doubts you may have at home.  You are ready!

"You also need to look back, not just at the people who are running behind you but especially at those who don't run and never will... those who run but don't race...those who started training for a race but didn't carry through...those who got to the starting line but didn't to the finish line...those who once raced better than you but no longer run at all. You're still here. Take pride in wherever you finish. Look at all the people you've outlasted."
- Joe Henderson

"The spirit, the will to win, and the will to excel are the things that endure. These qualities are so much more important than the events that occur."
-Vince Lombardi

Lastly, just have fun!  Bring your entire family with you on Saturday morning and encourage them to cheer everyone on.  If you finish early, find some place to cheer people on for a bit while you are recovering.  If you see someone on the course struggling, strike up a conversation and run with them for a bit, you will no doubt help them.  And don’t forget to thank the volunteers.  Without them there would be no race.  A simple thank you as you grab that cup of water goes a long way.  Best of luck and have a great race!

Looking Beyond the Bellin

With the Bellin Run so close and now that we have 10 weeks of training under our belts, it’s time to start looking beyond the Bellin Run.  You are ready, you have put in the work, now it’s just time to show up and have a great morning.  Why look beyond the Bellin Run when we haven’t even run or walked it yet?  The answer goes back to the first week’s newsletter where I talked about the real purpose of the Bellin Run.  The event itself is a great milestone, but in reality, it shouldn’t be the goal. 

The goal from the beginning was to get off the couch and start moving (or stay off the couch).  The benefits of a regular exercise program and keeping yourself healthy can have ripple effects throughout your community.  As I have said before, you can encourage someone you know, or perhaps a complete stranger to change their lifestyle.  And when they do, they may do the same for someone else.  On race day around 20,000 people will line up and participate.  To put things in perspective, that is 1/5^th the population of Green Bay.  20,000 people living or starting to live a healthier lifestyle.  That is a big impact. 

For companies like Integrys, employee choices like this can help keep insurance costs down as people do things to prevent diseases rather than react to them when it is too late.  A lot of us are customers of WPS, and that helps keep costs down which help keep rates down.  When you have a large community of people that are demanding healthier food choices, costs can come down because the demand is greater.  More choices also become available.  Do you think eating “healthy” is more expensive?  In most cases it is not the case.  This morning I bought 2 bananas for breakfast with my morning coffee.  The bananas cost me 36 cents and left me just as satisfied that if I would have bought the breakfast pizza for $2.50.  That is just one simple example, if you just take the time, you will see how simple it is to make substitutions like this and maybe even save a few bucks.

And you thought you were just signing up for the Bellin Run.  You made a commitment to yourself, your family, your friends, and community that you will not be part of the problem, but a part of the solution.  So come June 9^th, when you get to the finish line, don’t stop, keep going.  Run or walk fast enough and long enough that your age will never catch up with you!

Running in the Heat

After an interesting race weekend, I thought I would give you some tips on running in the heat.  The weather will be fantastic for the Bellin Run, but since we will all be running and walking all summer long (right!! J), we will no doubt encounter some warm, humid weather.

1.       Wear as few clothes as possible.  Believe it or not, during this past weekend’s marathon (temps in the 80s) I saw people in long black running tights and long sleeves.  What you do wear make it light colored and loose.  Your body cools off by sweating and that sweat evaporating off of your skin, so the more surface area exposed, the more efficient this process will be.

2.       Cover your head.  Wearing something like a vented white hat will help reflect the heat and keep the sun off of your face.

3.       Know your course.  Whether it is in a race or you are just going for a casual run, know where you are going so that you know where the shade spots and take advantage of them.

4.       At water stops during races take one cup to drink and another to dump down your back.  You may think that you will not like being wet like that, but it really helps keeping your body cooled down.

5.       Slow down.  In excessive heat, you are probably not going to set a personal best.  Especially in longer distances, start conservatively and see how your body is doing before you let loose and really go for it. 

6.       Be careful of what you are eating and/or drinking during the run.  Running in the heat doesn’t really mean that you will need a whole lot more calories than running in optimal temperatures.  Running in the heat just makes your body less efficient because it is overheated.  So rather than focusing on more calories, just focus on things that will help you cool down.  (See 1-4)

7.       Lastly and maybe most importantly, know when enough is enough.  Risking injury or heat related illness is just a risk not worth taking.

A Little Humor

We are now under 1 month until the Bellin Run, can you believe that we are 8 weeks into the training program!  Time flies when you are having fun.  You are having fun, right?  After a few weeks of some pretty serious messages, hopefully some of these “Funny” (adjective used loosely!) lines and quotes will remind you that this is all fun and games!

"Remember, the second most important thing to choosing the right shoe, is choosing the left one."
-- High school coach to his runners

"My doctor told me that jogging could add years to my life. I think he was right. I feel ten years older already."
--Milton Berle

"To a runner, a side stitch is like a car alarm. It signifies something is wrong, but you ignore it until it goes away."
-- Anonymous

"I don't think jogging is healthy, especially morning jogging. If morning joggers knew how tempting they looked to morning motorists, they would stay home and do sit-ups."
- Rita Rudner

"We can't all be heroes because someone has to sit on the curb and clap as they go by."
- Will Rogers

"I go running when I have to. When the ice cream truck is doing sixty."
- Wendy Liebman

A runner asks his wife: "What do you love most about me? My tremendous athletic ability or my superior intellect?" "What I love most about you," responded the man's wife, "is your enormous sense of humor."

Deciding to take up running, the man was astounded by the wide selection of running shoes available at the local sports shoe store. While trying on a basic pair of running shoe, he noticed a minor feature and asked the clerk: "What is this little pocket thing here on the side for?" And the clerk: "Oh, that's to carry spare change so you can call your wife to come pick you up when you've run too far."

The trouble with jogging is that by the time you realize you are not in shape for it, it is too far to walk back.

Now that our moods are hopefully a little brighter, get out there and make it a great day!

Believe

"The miracle isn't that I finished. The miracle is that I had the courage to start."
"Believe that you can run farther or faster. Believe that you're young enough, old enough, strong enough, and so on to accomplish everything you want to do. Don't let worn-out beliefs stop you from moving beyond yourself."

-John Bingham “The Penguin”

Ever hear that running is a great metaphor for life?  Well, at the risk of sounding a bit cliché, I will say it is.  You can find out a lot about yourself while pounding the pavement.

If you haven’t heard of John Bingham, look him up, it is a great story about courage.  John was leading a very unhealthy lifestyle and decided that wasn’t the life he was meant to lead.  But making a decision like that isn’t enough, he still had to follow through and get that foot out the door.  I talked about it a little bit a couple weeks ago, but even now, as we are in the middle of training, how hard do you find it to get your training in each week.  I love running, but it doesn’t take much to talk myself out of getting up in the morning, or strapping on my shoes after work.  We all lead busy and demanding lives but it is very important to make this time for yourself.  Sometimes you may feel guilty or a bit selfish, but in almost all cases, those feelings are yours only, and when they see what an impact your exercising has had on you, I have no doubt that your family and friends will support you. 

So what does running teach us about ourselves?  Well think about this.  When someone has lost a bunch of weight, or maybe is recovering from an injury, often what is something they set their sights on?  Running a race.  Whether it is a 5K, 10K, or even a marathon, there is something very rewarding about setting out to finish that race.  The sport is physically demanding, but we don’t have to depend on someone else to see us through.  The will to finish is all our own and when we do, there is a satisfaction that few other experiences can match.  When you push your body to new limits, it isn’t just physical barriers we push through, but maybe even more importantly it is also all the mental hurdles that in the past keep us on the couch.  When your mind is telling you to stop, but you continue on, that is what this is all about.  Sometimes in a race, the belief in yourself might be all you have left, so training that, just as you do your body, will help you get to the finish! 

Don’t Stop Believing!  (If you prefer, you can sing to yourself the chorus of the Journey Song!)

John Bingham's Website

Impact

Obviously training for the Bellin Run has had some positive impacts on you, from both a physical and mental standpoint.  If you don’t feel like it has, take a look back from where we started and look how far you have come.  Like I have mentioned before, make sure you are enjoying the journey, the race itself is just one more step along the way to a healthier lifestyle.  But have you ever thought about how your training has had an impact on those around you, whether it is a co-worker, spouse, child, or other friends and family?

In general, when you tell someone you are training for a race of any distance, 5K to a marathon, you will get one of two reactions.  “Good for you, that’s great” or “You are nuts, why would you want to do that?”  The first reaction could seem very positive, but they could be thinking sarcastically something like, “You will never follow through” or “I will believe it when I see it.”  In the second reaction, maybe they are really thinking, “I wish I had that sort of motivation” or “Maybe I should try something like that”.  Or maybe they just really do think you are nuts.  No matter what they are really thinking you have made an impact on them and whether they will admit it or not, will likely get them thinking about their own health.  The best thing you can do for that person is to follow through, walk the talk, and show them what a difference it has made in your life.

If you are the type of person that just wants to go out and do this on your own and not tell anyone about it, you can do that if you choose, but think about the injustice you are doing to your friends and family.  You never know who is out there looking for someone to give them a little motivation for a healthier lifestyle.  Further you never know who is watching, so by publically living a healthier lifestyle, you may be helping or motivating someone you don’t even know.  The potential for impact is enormous, so take advantage of every opportunity.

Earlier this week, after a long day at work, I was at home and my two girls (3.5 & 1.5 years old) were running around the house.  After about 10 minutes of them making laps around the kitchen and living room, they finally stopped for a rest and I asked the older one what she and her sister were doing.  “Daddy we are doing our exercises, just like you.”  With a smile on my face, I told her I thought that was great.  Then she adds in “And Daddy, I am so sweaty…But I am not smelly like you!”  So in one moment I am feeling great, followed by a bit of self consciousness, but the point is if a 3 year old can figure out that what we are doing is good for us, just imagine the impact you can make on your peers!

Happy Training!

Staying Motivated

A running and/or walking program can be taxing physically, especially when pushing yourself to new distances or a faster pace.  The physical discomfort can be remedied by things like icing aches and pains, stretching, or perhaps seeing some sort of specialist like a chiropractor.  But what can we do when we feel mentally tired and drained?  In other words, how can we get ourselves moving when we just don’t feel like it?  Here are some tips:

1.       Each day, make sure that your workout gear is ready to go, that way if you are in a pinch for time, you won’t spend valuable minutes searching around for your gear.  Maybe keep your running shoes in a visible place, so you are reminded to get out there. 

2.       The hardest part of getting moving is simply getting out the door.  Since your gear and clothes are ready to go already, even if your plan has a longer distance, tell yourself that you will at least do a mile.  In your mind, you know you can handle that and you won’t focus what you might feel like after a longer run.  Once you get going, it is likely that you can do a little more than you thought you could. 

3.       Follow a plan.  When you have goals and you have them written out, you are more likely to stick to them.

4.       Be flexible.  This can be interpreted in a few ways.  If you usually do a morning run, and just can’t get out of bed that day, have a backup plan and run after work.  It could also mean, watching the weather report for the week.  If you have a long run scheduled on Saturday, but it looks like rain, switch it around so you get that in.  Even though in #3 I said to have a plan, don’t be so inflexible that it becomes more of a chore than an enjoyable experience.

5.       If you run after work, but often feel drained after the day, eat an energy rich, nutritious snack at the end of the work day so you have the fuel to get through your workout.

6.       Call a friend, running or walking with a buddy can keep you accountable and get your mind off the workout itself and into some friendly conversation.

7.       Listen to some music during your run or walk.  Music helps relax you and takes your mind off of the task.

8.       Find a new route.  By mixing it up in where you run, each run will feel a little different and refreshing.

9.       Since exercise is a great way to beat stress, think of the workout as a stress reliever instead of workout, the change in mindset may just be enough.  Sitting there thinking about how stressed you are, is only going to make you more stressed!

Some days you may feel like you just don’t have it in you and that is ok, but don’t let 1 day turn into a string of 3 days or longer.  And just remember that you may regret skipping a workout, but it is unlikely that you will ever regret getting out there for a run or walk.  No excuses, no regrets!

Nutrition

Running means all carbs all the time, right?  Not so fast!

Many of you have heard of carbohydrate loading before a training session or race, but you should also know that over doing it can actually have some negative side effects.  First off, overeating anything can leave you feeling sluggish and bloated.  The last thing you want to do as you train and eventually run or walk the race is have a lack of energy.  Choosing too many carbs and especially the wrong type of carbs can also cause weight gain.  The real important thing here is to make sure that we are choosing the right kind of carbs to eat.  As a general rule of thumb, the more processes a food choice is, the less nutritious it is.  For example, you will get a far greater benefit from eating a baked potato (Skipping the bacon, cheese and sour cream of course) than eating a snack size bag of potato chips. 

Choosing carbs that are high in fiber like oatmeal, fruit, and vegetables should make up the greatest percentage of your carb intake as they are slowly digested and give you longer lasting energy and leave you feeling fuller, longer.  Before a work out, however it is okay to reach for lower fiber carbs, such as white rice and pasta that can process quicker in your body giving you the energy you need now.  I find eating a bagel with a little peanut butter is a good pre-workout snack as it provides those fast carbs along with some protein and healthy fats.  Swapping out things like white bread and white pasta with the whole grain varieties that contain more nutrients will have positive effects on your heath.  Afraid you won’t like the taste, try using whole grain pasta for a time and then go back to white pasta, I bet you would find that the whole grain pasta actually tastes better.  Small changes like this are easy to do and can have some amazing benefits in controlling your health. 

Carbs shouldn’t be the only thing on your plate, don’t forget about lean proteins and even fats.  Lean proteins help rebuild those muscle fibers that we are constantly damaging during our training (running, walking and cross training).  Examples of lean proteins include chicken, fish, lean red meat such as tenderloin, nuts and seeds.  Eggs are also a great source of protein. 

Fats play an important role as well.  Besides being a good source of energy, fats also provide nutrients such as vitamin A, D, E, & K.  We want to make sure though that we are limiting the amount of saturated fats and focusing our intake of fats on the unsaturated varieties.  Food choices like olive oil, avocados, nuts and even some fish (Omega-3) are good choices of fats.  Note also here that food preparation can add unhealthy fats to your diet.  Avoid this hidden fat by choosing to have your food baked for example rather than fried. 

Bottom line is that just because you are in a full blown training schedule that doesn’t give you the excuse to eat whatever you want.  Make every piece of food you put in your mouth count and choose those foods that give you the best nutritional value.  It’s okay to have that bowl of ice cream, but don’t treat food as a reward for your hard work.  Choose a reward that will enhance this experience like a new pair of running shoes. 

Have a great week!

What Should Your Training Look Like

So we have been encouraging you to start training, but what does training really look like.  I have actually been asked that question a few times this week so I thought I would share my thoughts on subject.  I apologize in advance to the walkers, if this seems weighted a little more on the running side.

The Bellin Run Training schedule calls for 4 running sessions a week and 1 cross training session.  If you look at the schedule you will notice that activity for each of the days is different.  Right off the bat we should understand this to mean that each session should not be the same and that every time we hit the road or treadmill, we shouldn’t be going the same speed for the same distance.  More importantly, not every training run should be at the pace at which you hope to run the Bellin at (you are training, not racing!).

This is how I would break out my four training sessions during the week:

1.       Presumably early in the week this run should be a shorter run, Starting between 1 and 2 miles and probably peaking not more than 2.5 miles.  This should be at a very easy pace, as much as 1.5-2 minutes above your race pace.  Because this run is likely either Sunday or Monday after your long run for the week, this should be treated as a “recovery” session. 

2.       This is a medium distance run.  As a rule of thumb for a 10K training program, you could say that this distance is 2/3rds of the distance of that week’s long run.  So if your long run is 4.5 miles for the week, make this run about 3 miles.  Run this one at race pace.  You want to get your body used to running at your desired speed and learn what that feels like.

3.       This can be 1 of 2 things depending on your goals. 

a.       The first option is that this is another medium distance run, but at a comfortable pace, not as slow as recovery run, but this doesn’t have to be at race pace either.  This option is focused on conditioning and getting in the miles.

b.      The second option is to do some sort of interval training.  The goal here is to help increase your speed.  Some people like to do this on the treadmill, because it is easy to control speeding up and slowing down and the distance, but it can also be done outside by using fixed distances like utility poles for example, or setting your GPS watch for interval training.  Basically, after you have warmed up, for a certain distance or time, run at a speed that is faster than your race pace, followed by a period of “recovery”.  As your conditioning gets better you can increase the distance of your hard interval compared to the recovery interval.  Repeat this cycle until you have reached your desired total distance for the day.  For a 10K, this workout, should peak at no more than 3-4 miles in total.

4.       Finally you have your weekend long run.  This is a medium pace, in other words, not a race pace, but not a slow recovery type pace either.  This run is geared to getting your body to understand what it is like to cover the required distance.  Look to the Bellin Run Training Plan for long run distances.

This is just one example of a typical week.  You can find many other training plans online at websites like Runner’s World, or just by typing in 10K training plan into Google.  Most importantly if you take nothing else away from this, just remember that every training session is not going to be “Great.”  Some will make you feel like you are a world champion and some will leave you thinking “why did I ever sign up for this?”  Just know that this is natural and everyone has good and bad workouts.  Even more importantly than that is just to make sure you are listening to your body and if you need to take a step back, do just that.  Make this an enjoyable experience and get in great shape while doing so!

What Does a Runner Look Like

How did your first week of training go?  Don’t let the slightly cooler temperatures get you down.  Just remind yourself that we are finally experiencing “normal” temps and start getting all those excuses out of your head.  If you haven’t started training yet, no better time than the present, so get out there today!  And again, remember that June 9^th may be the main event, but there are many milestones and small wins along the way.  The journey is yours to define!

So what does a runner look like?

LOOK IN THE MIRROR!

Besides training for my 5^th Bellin Run, I am also training for my second Full Marathon which will take place a few weeks before the Bellin Run.  When I am running, in my head, my form and physic look just like great American Runner Ryan Hall, but in reality I am 6ft and run around 200 lbs.  Far from Ryan’s 5’10’’ 130 lbs frame, but you know what, it doesn’t matter.  It doesn’t matter because the average runner doesn’t look anything like Ryan and that is what makes this sport so great.  Anyone who has any sort of motivation can get up off the couch and begin a running or walking program and significantly change their life. 

I started running as a way to help me lose weight and even though I had done the Bellin Run prior to losing the weight, thanks to encouragement from Team Captains like George, I had never envisioned myself to be a runner.  As I mentioned, no one is going to see me on the street and accuse me of being a runner even now and it was even less likely then.  But as soon as my feet started hitting the pavement on a regular basis, I was and always will be a runner.

 If training for this year’s Bellin Run is your starting point, don’t ever feel like you are alone in the process, if you go looking you will find that the running community is very inviting and extremely motivating.  The running boom over the last decade and company’s focus on employee wellness has prompted literally millions of people just like you and I to make healthier life styles choices and we are all out there to support each other in that journey.  Joining a site like Daily Mile (Look me up if you need a buddy), My Fitness Pal, or countless others helps people stay accountable and provide for a place for people to ask questions and get some great feedback.  If you are veteran runner, make yourself available to the newbie’s and remember what it was like when you just started out.