Hanson Marathon Method.........Half way there.

Eighteen weeks, four and a half months, just over one third of a year. It's not that long when you look back in time, but can seem long when your looking forward to it.

For me it represents the training block for an attempt at running a sub three marathon, I'm half way through and it's gone in the blink of an eye. It's a little scary that in the same amount of time again I'll be toeing the line. Following a new plan for the first time has been interesting. Of course I'm well aware that a generic plan which is not tailored precisely to my strengths and needs is not perfect but it's a good base.

The reason I was drawn to the Hanson marathon method was the focus on marathon paced miles every week. It's an area where I've neglected to focus on in the past. Those sessions have been a challenge but I also feel they are a great way to layer fitness, especially when done on the back of accumulated training miles.

The plan got off to a less than ideal start. I was carrying a bit of a head cold, two days into the plan I was wiped out with a chest infection, sick for the first time in two years! Not happy. I missed the first week of the eighteen week plan but didn't feel too bad as I'd been doing preplan tempos and reps to get myself used to the paces and effort, in effect I'd started the plan early in case such a scenario would arise.

My return to training coincided with long haul travel which also wasn't ideal, but I eased myself back into things with easy runs around one of my favourite running locations in the world, Central Park, NYC, which was a joy as usual. I then decamped to the heat and humidity of Florida for the Christmas period. I got stuck back into the plan as the first scheduled tempo kicked in....all good, no damage done to the integrity of the plan.

I've managed to hit every session since at the required pace, I'd love to say it was easy but I guess it's not supposed to be or else my target is soft. My heart hate on tempo runs is testament to the fact that the target is far from soft. In fact I've been left fighting the daemons of doubt telling me that the target is too lofty, that it's outside my ability. That my well turn out to be true but there was a reason for me starting this blog- I believed there are many different small gains that I can be made along the way that will get me close enough to give it a good bash on race day, I'm determined to continue to leave no stone unturned, to eek out every last percentage of improvement over the second half of the plan, both through the training and a complimentary lifestyle, trying to adopt the mindset of a professional athlete even though I'm a hobby jogger! Every decision in relation to food, drink, sleep will be made with my goal in mind. When I look in the mirror in the morning I'll ask myself what I can do today to get me closer to my goals. That might be deciding not to have a few beers on a Friday night or putting the phone down and getting an early night instead of scrolling through garbage that adds nothing to my life.

Looking for X percent improvement....not these type of X's!

Back on track for January

Finding the X percent I need isn't only about running and training, it's about the lifestyle that compliments that training and enables the body to absorb it and move on to higher training peaks.

The four pillars of optimum training which I hope will help me improve:

1. Quality of Running:

The quality comes from knowing your strengths and weaknesses and where you need to improve. For me this means Tempos. The Hanson plan has a very good spread of speed and endurance build fitness evenly. I've also learned some lessons for the future, chiefly that I need to place training cycles for shorter races into my longer term training as simply training for marathons doesn't optimise speed and Vo2 max. Having a year to year plan that gives focus to shorter distance races will ultimately help improve all distances.

2. Nutrition and Hydration:

In the past I've only been a runner when I've been out running. In other words my diet choices were not complementary to the training, I'd be hungry after long runs but would eat a bag of Doritos or chocolate. This is a mindset I've tried to change. Try to fuel for hard sessions like you would for a race and remembering to drink plenty of fluids will allow the body to handle the training load. In the past I've gone into sessions dehydrated or under fuelled and then wondered why the session went badly. Treat every day during a training cycle like your in the final weeks of taper for a goal race.

3. Strength and Conditioning

Just like the nutrition and hydration I've neglected this in the past: only a runner when running. This time I've tried to incorporate core workouts and leg strengthening workouts as well as regular sports massages and foam rolling. I tend to do these on the days of the hard sessions so that easy days can be just that.....easy. I had considered doing a class but being stuck to somebody else's timetable wasn't appealing. I got several workouts from google and have build a routine around this. This has made a big difference when the going gets tough in a session, I feel I can rely on increased leg strength to get me through.

4. Rest and Recovery

The only reason this is placed last is because it comes after the actual training. It's importance can not be overlooked. The strength and conditioning can aid recovery by keeping the blood flowing through the muscles especially if done in the hours after a session. Other aids I use are- recovery boots, foam rolling, regular sports massage, protein drink immediately after sessions and trying to get a good nights sleep every night to allow the body to recover and absorb the training load.

Trying to keep these four pillars strong can hold everything together, if one is neglected it can have a knock on effect on everything else.

So the journey continues. Hopefully all the little details come together to give me the X percent I need to get from a 3:07 PB down to 2:5X PB. The news is filled with talk of Vaporflys and rival shoe companies iterations of them. They promise % gains which I feel I'd be foolish not to avail of. I couldn't contemplate running under the finish line clock with 3:00:05 on in is pair of lesser shoes because of some sort of moral high ground or ethical reasons, I would be kicking myself.

When I said I was looking for every % gain I meant every single one........bouncy shoes included!

No pain, no gain.

People who know me know I run. I bump into people on the school run: 'Hey I saw you out running last night'. I go to a family event: 'How's the running going', or a favourite of my father-in-law: 'How's the knees? They ever give you trouble?'

Which of course is code for 'you'd want to mind yourself with all that running'. 

I've noticed a lot of the people that mention running to me are not runners themselves. Runners of course have a reputation of always wanting to talk about running, especially with other runners, so it surprises me when non-runners broach the subject as I always assume they think they'll be bored to death if they get me started.

The tone of my runner-non-runner conversations often feels to me to be one of questioning the why. Why do you run so much? Why pay money to run X distances as fast as you can? Why put your body through the pain?

These questions are not direct although I have been asked similar in the past, I always wonder how those people would feel if they knew just how painful running and racing in particular can be.

Of course I'm not speaking of physical pain and soreness from the act of running, I'm taking of entering the pain cave type of feeling from pushing hard in training and races. Personally I've always struggled with this. I came to running relatively late in life at 36, I was entering middle age and wasn't exactly looking to step outside my comfort zone, that happened slowly by my own ego and it's desire to improve- the gain that can't be made without the pain. 

As I started training for races and learning about the distances and paces I should be striving for to reach my evolving goals I started to face the discomfort of training and racing more. Because I had not practiced this all my life through pushing myself physically it was a shock to the system. My brain and inner voice often overpowered me in hard situations. 

I'd find myself in the middle of a speed work session and my brain would be shouting in protest: 'WTF, you don't need this shit!'  'Slow down, take it easy.'

I'd be in a race struggling to hold pace and the same voices would be there, 'what difference does it make if you finish 3 minutes faster, slow down enjoy it.' 

This was my first introduction to type A and B enjoyment.

Type A is something we do that's simply enjoyable: sitting in the garden on a warm summers evening with your favourite drink, eating your favourite food. It's something you really enjoy while your doing it. Type B enjoyment is a different beast altogether, this is something that is achievement orientated- a race is a perfect example, when your doing it it's hard....unenjoyable even, but when it's over and you have achieved what you set out to or know you gave everything you had, there is an after glow, an enjoyment that is retrospective. 

Type B enjoyment feeds the ego, gives us pride and lasts much longer than type A which is usually gone when it's finished. But it has to be earned, whether it's a race goal or a college degree, the work has to be put in. When it comes to races and PBs that means hard yards.

I've felt that glow of achievement in putting together a 3 - 4 month training block and executing a good race plan to hit a time goal, it's the addictive feeling the fuels a runner's ability and desire to embrace the pain and discomfort of running at or near the red line, because we know to improve is to push harder.

I now find myself on another quest to sip from the fountain of success. Pain is just part of the process to get there that has to be accepted. Not accepting the pain of training and racing is not an option. If we don't accept it and let the inner voices shout and complain, pain quickly turns to suffering. When the inner dialogue is dictated by the emotional side of our brain we dwell on pain and discomfort. It becomes a bigger deal and can inflate like a ballon. It can eventually eat away and corrode confidence and desire to breaking point. I've been there too, racing with demons weighing me down until those three letters that no marathon runner wants to face.......DNF. Did Not Finish.

Of course there are is a time and place when it's no shame to drop out of a race- injuries and health issues need to be respected. But as somebody who has dropped out because they couldn't embrace the pain and therefore spiralled into a world of suffering I can honestly say this: If the glow and enjoyment of striving and succeeding are long lasting, so is the shadow and disappointment that comes from quitting on yourself and not being mentally tough. 

I've read many training books and looked at many more online, they are often full of numbers and stats. There is often a small section on race strategy that covers mental attitude toward the end of the book. In my opinion it should be in the first chapter because it's a key to success. You need to practise  an open attitude to pain in training. To know when it hurts you can still push harder. To know it doesn't last. To learn not to ignore but rather acknowledge and know that pain is part of the process, a necessary side effect of the journey to success. 

Being aware of pain and discomfort also allows us to develop coping skills. For years I tried to take my mind off it by thinking of something more appealing but that didn't work for me. Instead I learned to accept and acknowledge. When the pain came I told myself that this was part of the plan, I didn't wish it away but took it as a sign I was working as hard as planned having already mentally given myself permission to hurt pre race/session knowing and accepting that it would only be temporary. For times when I'm starting to feel overwhelmed and approaching the red line I've developed distraction tools. These are tasks I give my brain so it can't dwell on the emotion of the high effort levels. One of these methods is counting. If the brain is busy on a task like counting it offers rest bite from dwelling on discomfort. I also sometimes use thumb tapping for times of extreme discomfort. By simply tapping the thumb and index finger together and counting in a liner fashion or in sets of 6, 8 or 10 etc it acts as a cognitive distraction until the effort levels have receded. 

We often make the mistake of thinking pain and suffering are unique to ourselves, that everybody around us in a race has it easier. That simply isn't the case, in fact I'd go as far as to say that one of the big things, besides talent, that separates champions and medal winners is the ability to hurt themselves. It isn't a case that the day somebody wins everything is easy for them, it's the case that on the day they dealt with the pain and pushed themselves on to achieve and win.

When it comes to making breakthroughs and improvements from the utilisation of the hidden potential improvement gains, we don't always need new products like faster shoes or supplements. Sometimes the biggest potential for finding X percent improvement is far closer than we think......between our ears.

@TheXPercent

Resolution dissolution

In my part of the northern hemisphere the third Monday of January each year has been dubbed 'Blue Monday'. It's officially the unofficial 'most depressing day of the year.' Why? because the fun and festivities of the holiday period is over, winter is usually only getting started and money is tight after the Christmas period. People have taken up new years resolutions that are becoming hard to keep, easy to break making people feel unhappy.

Personally I don't buy into the notion of this time of year being depressing. Although my birthday is in the middle of January, when you've had a certain amount of those it can become a reason to feel a little bit blue!

Late last year I decided that 2020 would be the year I'd go all in for an attempt at my long desired marathon personal best of sub three hours. I honestly think having that target in mind over the Christmas period kept me focused and therefore less likely to get caught up in the boom and bust cycle that December/January can bring. More balance in decisions of diet and training means I feel less of the effects of withdrawal that I've felt in the past from allowing myself to go nuts on food and drink because the christmas decorations were up.

It's not that I lived like a monk, or more appropriately an Olympian. I still enjoyed myself although admittedly the fact I spent two weeks over Christmas in the tropical climate of southern Florida probably excludes me from being qualified to have an opinion on weather this time of year is in fact blue. Being able to top up the vitamin D and run in warm weather was certainly a real tonic for the phycological effects of winter on a northern atlantic island!

So now the dust has settled and I've been able to try 2020 on for size, I'm chomping on the bit to take on the challenge that lies ahead. I find myself reviewing my old years resolution when I started this blog. The aim then was to keep me honest. To help me log and document the many ways I could train better and harder to achieve the goal. To explore all the other marginal gains that I may be able harness through better diet, recovery and running aids.

Now six weeks into an eighteen week plan for my sub 3 attempt I've had the hiccup of illness to deal with and have managed to get back on track after that. So what you might ask have I been doing to gain the X Percent improvement I need?

The biggest thing has been recovery. Every time I finished a hard session in the past I'd allow myself to celebrate it, that could mean eating or drinking something in front of the tv that evening which doesn't sound too unreasonable. The small change I've made is to not dwell on the session just completed but rather focus on the next one-

Recovery steps after hard sessions:

• Immediate intake of quality protein to kick start muscle repair.
• Use of compassion boots to aid blood flow.
• Stretching and foam rolling to keep muscles in good condition.
• Hydrating properly.
• Taking epsom salt baths to sooth tied legs.
• Getting quality sleep.

The result has been been noticeable. I feel my legs are fresher from session to session compared to previous training cycles.

Other ways I've been seeking gains has been through trying to improve my strength and conditioning. I have a regular core routine I try to do a couple of times a week as well as some glute and hamstring work, which are both areas that I've had problems with in the past. Like the new recovery protocols the extra focus on strength and conditioning is starting to feel noticeable.

I've also been diligent with supplements to try and stay healthy. One of the supplements I now take is Turmeric which is widely regarded as a natural anti-inflammatory. Of course it's hard to say what if any effect this has but I suppose thats the nature of trying lots of different things- it's hard to say what works and what doesn't! I'll continue to take them anyway along with my daily apple cider vinegar. What ever about improved performance or recovery I'll definitely have a strong stomach after this!

As for the actual running part of training, that has gone quite well. Choosing a target time and training paces can be tricky given we're basing that decision on where we want to be rather than were we are fitness wise. The Hanson marathon method I'm following is refreshingly simple to follow. It's basically speed/strength reps on Tuesday, Tempo runs (marathon race pace) from 6 miles working up to 10 on Thursdays and long run up to 16 miles @ MP + 30 seconds on Sundays with easy running in-between. The harder runs come pretty thick and fast so hopefully I can hit the target paces as the milage increases meaning a sub 3 attempt is a realistic goal come April.

One of the things I've been thinking about since placing all my eggs in the sub 3 spring marathon basket is the danger of doing just that. Deciding you want to run a certain time is all well and good, as is putting the structure in place to try and do so. But we can't control everything. I've run enough marathons to know things don't always go as planned- weather, injuries, illness etc can trip you up at the final hurdle. With this in mind I'm starting to turn my attention to what lies beyond the goal race. Having somewhere to go afterwards is vital for long term success. In the past I've had disappointing results in a race for reasons outside my control and I've wallowed a bit with no plan for where I should go next. As part of my plan to find the X-Percent I need I intend to work out a plan for post marathon recovery, a gradual transition to speed work over the summer before an Autumn marathon block for  second assault on a sub 3. Of course if I succeed in April and cross the line with 2:59:xx on the clock I may just celebrate for the rest of the year!!

Woes of winter running.

The decorations are back in the attic and the only vestiges of christmas are broken plastic toys and perhaps a few extra pounds on the weighing scales. The same marketeers that were encouraging us to indulge ourselves a few weeks ago are now telling us to get fit......new year, new you.

I've always hated the boom and bust nature of this time of year, the de-tox of January to counter the tox of Christmas, but I suppose it's unavoidable. The turning of the calendar to a new year naturally brings a certain amount of renewal and refocusing.

When it comes to running it's a time of year when I see new faces on my daily run routes as people embrace their resolutions which can only be a good thing. Unfortunately it's a time of year that brings it's own challenges that can make becoming a regular runner difficult- dark, wet, cold weather coupled with seasonal cold and flu's can be challenging for even seasoned runners let alone those who are trying to embrace a healthier new them and form a running habit.

Over the years I've learned to embrace running in winter. As the saying goes 'there is no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothes'. It's a case of controlling the controllable. That said it took many wrong choices to learn which attire was good and which was not but eventually I learned what suited me best. The thing that is less controllable but equally if not more annoying than bad weather is illness.

Last autumn when I decided 2020 was going to be the year I would try everything in my power to find that extra improvement to run a sub three hour marathon, one of the things I decided to focus on was staying healthy through the training period which would run through prime flu season.
As most marathon runners will be aware, there is a period during a marathon taper when everybody lives in fear of getting sick. Washing hands, eating clean and taking supplements become the order of the day. I decided I was going to take this approach from the beginning of the training cycle to avoid missing a chuck of training through illness. I started to take Echinacea, Turmeric, and a multivitamin as well as making sure to wash my hands regularly and generally paid attention to illness avoidance. The result- I got a head cold a week into the training plan.
I continued to train as it didn't break the 'Above the neck rule' . It didn't improve on it's own and and I ended up on antibiotics but still tried to stick to the training plan before eventually ended up having to take ten days off and a stronger antibiotic.

Regardless of how much we plan and try to control things, mother nature and fate often have a different script and things rarely go as planned. The only thing we can do is understand that no matter what the woes of winter running bring, it's up to us to make the best of the hand we're dealt.

With that in mind I'm back on track,  glad to be out running and healthy again regardless of the weather. Last Tuesday the training plan had me down for 4 x 1200 meters. I only had a small window to get the session done. Unfortunately that window coincided with high winds and a status yellow weather alert.

I was not looking forward to it one bit as I drove to a regular running spot. Sideways wind and rain meant I needed two firm hands on the stirring wheel.....the thoughts of reps had the inner voices at war. 

Got changed in the car. Anybody seeing me shirtless with the wind rocking the car definitely got the wrong idea. 

Opened the door and the wind nearly took it clean off the hinges, heaved it closed and braced myself against the tempest. It was like being on the deck of a Deadliest Catch crabbing trawler. I struggled to open my eyes, how the hell was I going to do reps in this............ I got back in the car. 

I was about to drive off as the negative voices raged in my head, when I just said screw it, I needed to use the only running window I had. I got back out, leaned into the wind and shuffled off still debating doing an easy run and moving the session to another day. 

I had the session programmed into my garmin so selected it while the inner voices continued to debate the pros and cons........cons were well ahead on points. A mile and a half miles into the warm up and the watch beeped to indicate the start of the first rep, now or never......f**k it, lets go.

first 1200m rep started at the bottom of a hill into a head wind! What doesn't kill you makes you stronger can still really hurt. 

Got through the session and was never as glad to get back in the car. Had that nice post session feeling of achievement for toughing it out on the way home as the rain lashed off the windscreen. 

Little victories add up.