My Next Adventure

This blog originally was meant to have a cool Inov8 video showing running over iced up rocks, snowed under trails and mountains fit for skiing rather than running. But upon reflection my next big adventure is not Snow Trail in September, it's the lead up to the event, all the training and preparation that needs to occur in order to perform at the level that I expect.

The level I have been falling well short of lately.

Yep my feelings towards September are that of excitement, eagerness and intrigue. I am super keen to take part in a snow race and it being at Falls Creek in the Aussie Alps is freaking rad. But I am also keen if not keener to put to bed the endless flow of ups and downs I have been suffering since 2014. 

I won't go back too far, looking more at the last little while but I figure if I'm going to run well again and get that buzz, we all know that feeling of a PB or a solid race, then I have to be completely frank and honest with myself, holding nothing back in review.

1) I took things for granted: my commitment hasn't been perfect. Don't get me wrong I train hard, sacrifice and so on but excellence requires total commitment, it requires total belief and it requires immersing yourself in the moment to achieve what is desired.

2) I became too focused on the events rather than the training required to do them: in short I wanted the cake without baking it first. Yes events are fun, the expo's, friends, celebrations, etc. but it's in the preparation where the real character is developed. I have the mind for this now and while my results are a ways off what I'd like I have also eliminated the DNF from my results sheet of late. I have been working on the mental aspect of my training and with more time and energy expended in preparation before the event the I would hope finishes will turn into solid results.

3) The fundamentals were being glossed over: I need to get back to basics. My running is getting back towards the simple philosophy of developing overall efficiency. Nothing beats time on feet and I probably spent a little too much time worrying about strength work, sacrificing running. I am still including strength in my program but my focus is improving my running for now and the max deadlift is being benched for the time being.

4) My schedule was a mess: routine is key to success. Due to circumstances in work and life in general that were not always within my control, I too easily adjusted things here and there, doing this run today not tomorrow or shaving 10min so I could squeeze it in after lunch. This approach to training will get me through races, but it won't give me the competitive edge on race day. I always tell my athletes to believe in the process, it's time for me to have patience and faith that the consistency of sticking with a training program will return results. I have seen this with my clients and now its my turn to put this into practice to get back to my best.

My year so far has been a great learning curve and I feel that looking towards the back end of 2016 I can implement the required changes to be running more consistently. I don't want a good performance followed by a bad one, I want a steady flow of solid running and from that I will move into races performing well, knowing what to expect of my body. I have been very unpredictable in my big events thus far in 2016, both Buffalo and UTA had good moments that were derailed by clear conditioning issues leading to substandard performances. I expect better of myself than this but I got what I deserved and now it's time to act rather than let things continue to flow along.

I need to be more hungry, motivated, determined, focused and competitive with my myself. It's time to have a break from racing, focus on quality training and get things right, not for anyone else but for myself. I need to be true to myself and with a winter of training ahead it is time to get excited about just running again.

Below is a photo journey of my last few months.

Buffalo Stampede 2016 - The Skymarathon money shot by Steve Harris.
I'd love to feel great racing up the big walk one day.

STS Manly Dam - things were looking far better....

than at Knapsack a few weeks later!

Orange Volcanic Mtn Challenge 2016 - another performance well off my best
but it's always good to get on the trails around Mt Canobolas again and
 as usual I wasn't disappointed.

Bathurst Half Marathon 2016 - my slowest half since Mudgee in 2012 but a rad shot
showing the joy of getting a high five from dad. I was just as happy post high five too.

Buffalo Stampede - finishing on Mt Buffalo was made a bit sweeter by having my family there
to share the moment. I struggled getting up the mountain but the gallery loop was a race highlight.

Ultra Trail Australia 2016 - another not so good result but
a finish and rad weekend away in the mountains.
Photo Bomb Credit - Kerry Suter.

Lithgow King of the Mountain 2016 - 3 wins on the trot, although a win my performance was sub-standard after
coming back from injury just 9 days earlier. As you can see the Force is Strong in my Boys.

The Build Phase

The Build Phase

This time last year I had read a lot into running, trying to source as much knowledge as I could to improve my own running. From journals to texts to magazines to blogs to websites, everything that stood out I read it, some in more detail, others just a glance. From there I felt ready to approach my training with knowledge to burn, a program loaded of macro-cycles, micro-cycles, phases of training, target races, key runs and so on, it looked very pretty on paper. But I got injured and it all went wrong.

Knapsack - my only focus race for
the Summer

So I dropped it all and ran to feel aiming to build my fitness by listening to my body’s response to the load and allowing enough recovery to get the adaptations. I still was planning and programming but not like earlier, I targeted a fortnight at a time based upon what was coming up and it was working for me. I made some good choices and some bad ones in 2014 and had a year that reflected this. I wanted 2015 to be better, I had knowledge and experience in my programming and the realistic attitude to approach running as both a runner and coach with my views and theories.

I have been helping Brendan Davies with his new business UP Coaching and have been fortunate to be able to coach people individually and in a group. I was lucky when Brendan decided to help me in 2012 and now working alongside him has been brilliant. It is great to be able to continue to be associated with such a great athlete who with time will continue to succeed as a coach if he has the same attitude and focus for his coaching as his running.

But this has also worked on my views on coaching, programming and training, views that I plan on developing over time with further study, training and practice. These views take time to develop and like my own running I must be patient and allow the experience to come, not go chasing after it.

So my build phase over summer is now in transition with this week a shift occurring towards the month of March and in line with my racing plans a much different month of training awaits in the lead up to the Buffalo Stampede in April. I have been able to meet all key objectives over the build period and having seen others in the same mode of training. I have been learning so much more than through just reading. Both the theory and practice have been beneficial to me on many levels and this with a real effort to try and achieve a better training, family and work balance. I am feeling fit and ready for the year ahead.

The build phase is a vital component of any distance runner and from reading (Lore of Running, Little et al. 2010) there are many approaches towards this model of training. My experience has led me towards the view that the build phase is vital for the following reasons;

• It allows long and gradual conditioning of the cardiovascular, muscular and skeletal systems. These adaptations take time and can not be rushed, so the view for development aerobically should be over years not months, with the build phase being the ground work for this each year.
• By operating at a lower intensity there is greater requirement for additional time to be focused upon strength and conditioning as well as lowering the likelihood of injury.
• The training completed in this phase should not only build the athlete physically but also allow gains in mental development. It is a good opportunity to run your longest distance, longest time or biggest climb without the pressure of doing it quickly.

The phase also has its negative or danger points. These are purely from my experience and only limited reading (Lore of Running);

• You can lose track of time-spent training. I had a moment where I reflected upon waking feeling particularly ordinary, I checked my 7 day progress and I had trained for a total of 21.5hr with big kms (167km) and 6100m elevation included in that. It was there I decided that in the build phase I needed to be more aware of my training log and listen to the body, so yes I took the day off.
• There is definitely room for too much similar training, too many long slow hills, too many easy paced runs and so on. I have been making a point of including a weekly interval session that is fartlek based for 30min and with this some middle paced runs to keep the muscles guessing and gaining.
• The timing of the build phase is tough, how long is enough? When to change and transition? And what to do? These are questions we all have. I have been running with fortnightly blocks checking off set runs in that period with a gradual build for 3 weeks followed by a de-load week, it has helped but is it right?

So the build phase is something that we all do as distance runners. Some are more planned and prepared, others more ad-lib or ad hock. Some of us run more and some run less. I have looked towards other coaches’ methods and they all have their particular way of training athletes, this I am sure has come from time, experience and practice. I feel that we all are different and no person should do the same thing in training, we can complete similar training but it must be specific to the individual, their goals and their ability.

My own views on my training and coaching are definitely growing as I push myself further into running. I am by no means close to being ready as a ultra runner or running coach, I’m still very new to this area and understand that what I wish to do in the long term is still a long way away. What I know is that I am willing to learn, listen, evolve, adapt and grow, with this I can continue to grow and hopefully assist others with their growth as well.

My thoughts re my latest phase are simple – be consistent, be prepared, be committed and be reactive.

References

Lore of Running 4th Edition, T. Noakes, 2003

Run For Your Life Magazine, Various issues/articles/authors 2013/14/15.

Billat, L.V. 2001. Interval training for performance: A scientific and empirical practice. Special recommendations for middle- and long-distance running. Part I: aerobic interval training. Sports Medicine, 31 (1), 13-31.

Daussin, F.N., et al. 2008. Effect of interval versus continuous training on cardiorespiratory and mitochondrial functions: relationship to aerobic performance improvements in sedentary subjects. American Journal of Physiology: Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology, 295, R264-72.

Helgerud, J., et al. 2007. Aerobic high-intensity intervals improve VO2max more than moderate training. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 39 (4), 665-71.

Joyner, M.J. 1991. Modeling: Optimal marathon performance on the basis of physiological factors. Journal of Applied Physiology, 70 (2), 683-87.

Joyner, M.J., & Coyle, E.F. 2008. Endurance exercise performance: The physiology of champions. Journal of Physiology, 586 (1), 35-44.

Kubukeli, Z.N., Noakes, T.D., & Dennis, S.C. 2002. Training techniques to improve endurance exercise performances. Sports Medicine, 32 (8), 489-509.

Laursen, P.B. 2010. Training for intense exercise performance: High-intensity or high-volume training? Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports, 20 (Suppl. 2), 1-10.

www.ultra168.com

home.trainingpeaks.com

Coaches of Influences

Brendan Davies - UP Coaching, www.upcoaching.com.au

He has mentored and coached me since December 2012. I have learnt so much from him and value his input and feedback on both my running and coaching.

Andy DuBois - Mile 27, www.mile27.com.au

I have had limited interaction with Andy but I value everything he has to offer.

Hanny Allston - Find Your Feet, www.findyourfeet.com.au

Similar to Andy, Hanny offers a unique and educated approach to coaching.

Others that have had an influence;

Sean Williams - Sweat
Matty Abel - DBA Project
Charlie, Dan and Jess - Believe Bootcamps Bathurst

For those interested in my build data it is below, I began 17th December and finished 27 February.

Quality Elevation was a focus.

More time based than distance based training.