​We’re facing a new norm (or at least a temporary one), where courses are headed online.  Nonetheless, the opportunity to learn about Reflexive Performance Reset is one that I welcomed, especially as I write this from overseas. 

I heard about the course form a podcast that Charlie Weingroff did with J.L. Holdsworth, one of the founders of the system and formerly a record setting elite powerlifter. It is also a nice bonus that the online course now offers CEUs, which became extra important this year with opportunities for live education so limited.
 
What is RPR? RPR is a system of daily self care techniques that allows you to instantly feel better, move better and live a better life.

​Being able to practice on a wide range of body types is always welcomed in any sort of manual course, but for this, I’d say the wakeup drills are so dang simple that I don’t feel like I lost too much by not being able to experience this live.
 
One analogy that they use is of an electrical system. They say nervous system is the electricity of the body; the RPR system tells you where the switches are. (Very similar to the old FMS analogy of the body being a system of “Software” and “hardware.”)

​With races around the world on hold, most of us have been left to solo time trialing to satisfy our competitive impulses. Although time trials don’t carry quite the weight of a “real” race, we still want to do our best whenever we line up against the clock. And there is something about a true “test” such as a race or time trial to reveal the best estimate of our actual fitness, rather than trying to guess based of workouts.  
 
The first thing to determine is what is the purpose of the time trial? Is it just an extra hard tempo run or is it something more nuanced? In this Corona pandemic landscape, a time trial might be a literal substitute for a race. Basically, a race without all the fanfare and organization, but you’re still going all out as if it were a competition. In this case, you’re giving it everything you have and trying to run the absolute fastest possible time you can run on that given day. In the case of trail racers, this might not be much different than a typical race, as may events require runners to be self-supported and involve many solitary miles in the wilderness.
 
Just because there are no races doesn’t mean the time trial needs to be a literal race substitute. Although predicting race fitness from workouts is an inexact science, it doesn’t mean we need to run each and every time trial 100% effort to accurately gauge. There is still value in going CLOSE to 100%, making the time trial somewhere in between a workout and a race. On some level this is semantics, as what Lydiard referred to as “time trials” more likely resembled tempo runs in our current nomenclature, with the instructions to run approximately 3/4ths effort.

What’s your favorite fartlek workout? Fartleks have been a staple of my training for many years, for several reasons. I find them to be more mentally sustainable than having to “answer to the stopwatch” and hitting the track for all speedwork. This keeps me under control and reading by body’s messages rather than being a slave to time and pace. Fartleks are also outstanding for developing feel and self-awareness, two skills in running that are so often neglected these days with the advances in wrist and handheld technology for tracking data.
 
I’ve put together a list of some of my favorite fartlek workouts that I use both for myself and for my athletes. With so many races on hold until next year, this is a great time to use fartlek training to continue establishing that foundation not only of fitness but of healthy running for the long term. When you get ready to prep for specific events in the coming months, you’ll be in a much better position to start getting serious about hitting strict times in training. Always remember, we can’t be in peak form 12 months of the year!
 
Give these a shot and let me know how it goes! If you need a little motivation, here’s some footage of one of the famous Kenyan massive group fartlek sessions

​“But I don’t want to slow you down…”
Back in the day when people ran in groups pre-pandemic, I’d sometimes meet a new runner and the conversation would inevitably drift toward “we should run together sometime.” This was usually followed by the other person backtracking by saying “yeahhhh, but I don’t want to slow you down.” Then usually I’d try to convince them that we could always do an easy run together, it doesn’t have to be fast.
 
At first glance, you might think that running with people your exact speed would be ideal. The answer, like many things, is IT DEPENDS! In my experience, you can benefit from running with different types of runners…faster, slower and equal!
 
If running with people slower than you…Let the slower runner go at their normal pace and just tag along. This forces you to keep an easy day easy! I’ve used this on many occasions and it often results in enjoyable runs. You can also do fartlek runs where the faster runner circles back during the recovery jogs and both runners start the rep simultaneously. It’s the best of both worlds, as each runner does their own workout at their own pace, but starting each rep together avoids the isolation of a solo workout.

Bottom line: Consider implementing the McGill Big 3 for your core training as a runner

​Runners often ask what’s the best core exercise? I’ll start with my usual disclaimer that everyone is different, but if you are looking for a broadly generalizable routine, The McGill Big 3 is a great place to start, especially if you have a history of low back instability.
 
Background: the McGill Big 3 includes three exercises based on Professor Stuart McGill’s spine research. After studying probably more exercises than we can count, his research revealed three exercises that stood above the rest for core stabilization.
 
The three exercises are the McGill curl up, side plank and bird dog, which check three key boxes in core functional demands for runners

​“What’s harder..Road marathon or trail ultramarathon?”
 
I’ll start by saying neither is “harder” than the other; both are more challenging in their own right. I will say that marathon is a more intense pain but that’s only one metric of “harder.”
 
The marathon inflicts the punishment of repetitive strain being on the road for 26.2 miles, basically using the same muscles in the same way for hours. Some mild hills can create some variety, but that can also make the course slower (we’re assuming that the goal is to compete the courses in your fastest possible time). If the hills get too big, they can punish your quads on the downhills. But regardless, you can expect your legs to be VERY sore after a full effort road marathon, especially if part of the course takes you to concrete. The intensity of the road race is also higher as most competitive runners are working toward the upper half of their aerobic energy system.
 
In the ultra, I was sore but not nearly as sore as after road marathons. To an extent, this shouldn’t be surprising because the ultra included bouts of walking during some uphills when I caught up to people on a single track and also when going through the later aid stations. Additionally, most ultras are contested mainly on soft surfaces, which inflicts less pounding. Add in the technical nature of many ultra courses and you have a recipe to spare your legs a bit…even though you have more ground to cover than on the road.

Some notes for a Zoom Q&A session where I was a guest of Run Tucson and The Workout Group

1. Why is adding some strength into your routine helpful for running? 

Strength makes more adaptable as human beings. We are constantly exposed to stressors, some good, some not so good, and improving the physical as well as mental quality of strength provides a better internal ecosystem within our body to make appropriate adaptations to those stressors…the stress of pounding the pavement the skill of making corrections on the trail, reversing the pulls of office life, the natural biological processes that occur with aging (loss of muscle, loss of tissue elasticity) counteracting the catabolic (tissue wasting) processes that accompany moderate to high volume aerobic training
 
Historical evidence: the clusters of populations that have been successful over time have all had some basis in strength training practice. "Old school" Americans came from active lifestyle and many worked manual jobs at some point in their lives; many of the the African runners work in agriculture and have minimal access to motorized vehicles; Japanese runners enjoy very robust physical education programs in their youth

2.  Are activation and stability exercises considered strength training? 

Yes, but for most people in the same way that mashed potatoes and asparagus fit into a meal with a steak. They’re food but they are side dishes. You can still get an adequate meal by ordering off the appetizer and sides menus and that might be all you need at the time.(Or its like a Clif Bar or gel pack aren't the same as a complete meal but in the right time and place they’re more appropriate for the situation than a giant steak.) So yes activation fits under that broad umbrella category of strength but it’s important to appreciate their proper context and limit yourself at activation exercises when you can still benefit from taking it a step further into strength training.
 
Ultimately, activation and stabilization are prerequisites for quality movement. When we’re assessing the strength of an individual muscle, the scale runs from simply asking whether the muscle can actually activate all the way up to can it move our body against gravity and external resistance. Its all the same scale, just all part of a continuum.
For a lot of things where we are highly proficient, something in the realm of activation or stability might not be an adequate load or stimulus to improve strength. But for some areas where we might be less developed or proficient, such as lateral movements, simply activating or stabilizing against a modest load might be all the stimulus you need to be challenged. But in the end its all part of the same neurological processes
 
 
3.  How should someone start adding strength into their routine?
 
Conduct a needs analysis – are you historically injured and maybe have done some strength associated with rehab but just never stuck with it? Are you historically healthy and just want make sure your bases are covered? The answers to these types of questions will help guide you to YOUR best starting point. 

Set up your environment for success – we’re in a unique situation right now where involving the family in a fitness routine is a very positive development, both for enjoyment and accountability

Start with your running schedule and work backward from there

Easy victories – Don’t have to be on some elaborate plan, especially if you’re starting from basically scratch
 

4.  If you could pinpoint 5 strength exercises that are the most helpful for runners, what would they be?
Strive to include an exercise from each of these categories. The specific exercises will be different for everyone, but these are the key movements to focus on. The examples provided are some of my preferences, but there are many options to choose from.
Pull - pull ups, rows
Push - overhead pressing, push ups
Hinge - single leg deadlift, glute bridge
Squat - split squat, goblet squat
Core - plank, Turkish getup
 
5.  Can runners over-do it when it comes to strength training?
 
Absolutely! But the effects are typically subtle and the effect can be be delayed for several days or weeks
 
Biggest problem I see isn't overdoing it in an absolute sense, but in a relative sense. Most of the time when runners overdo it, the overdone program wouldn't be too much if they weren't also serious about running. Usually, the error is failing to protect quality run days from interference of lower body strength work. 
 
The magic, the essence of any training approach isn’t what we decide to do or what the coach decides to do…its what we choose to NOT do…
 
6.  Is there anything we should stay away from?
 
Compressing or cutting out the rest periods. Shortening the rest sounds like a good idea and feels natural for an endurance athlete.... "lets save time and be efficient" or "it really feels like I’m getting after it because my heart rate is up" or "I can't stand waiting around between exercises for a couple minutes." This thinking also drives many commercial models based on HIIT training or some form of circuit training. There can be value in these when presented a certain way, but the more we shorten the rests, the more we deviate from actual strength training. If you need more endurance, then look to your running program, don’t try to create something in the gym.

This is hardly an exhaustive list, but these are just a few of my favorites. Please share your favorites in the comments if not covered in here. And feel free to share your own perspective on any that I did cover!

Reid Park – Definitely the most popular run spot in town. The main loop is the nearly three mile loop around the golf courses, which is marked every quarter mile and has the full three mile mark shortly past the “Start.” Definitely a good spot for all types of workouts, both measured as well as fartleks. Overall fairly flat, with a slight incline from mile 0.5 to 1.0 and 2.0 to 2.5-ish. Generally is well guarded from the wind compared to other flattish trails in town. No bathrooms right at the start of the main loop but plenty of bathrooms scattered throughout the park. Along with the main loop, there is an additional paved loop that continues around the baseball/zoo/park areas. You can also make a grass/dirt run through the middle of the park. During cross country season, there’s actually a marked course that you can follow. Finally, although the track is locked to the public outside of organized training groups, the 800m loop around the baseball field warning tracks is one of the best “tracks” you’ll find for workouts! Throughout the year you can find several races that utilize part of the path and the surrounding area. 

Here's a very simple movement assessment that I often recommend to people that you can complete on your own. This five part assessment has been around since the 1990s and is something I've used remotely with athletes for years. But with the shift of more training and treatment into the virtual space, this assessment and others like it are becoming more integral pieces of the training process. 

Originally appearing in Gray Cook's Athletic Body in Balance, this assessment looks at five movement patterns: an overhead deep squat, hurdle step, inline lunge, active straight leg raise and trunk rotation. You may recognize a form of these from the Functional Movement Screen. Other than some small details in execution, the main difference is these are graded on a PASS/FAIL basis. 

The purpose here is not to dissect movement into minute details but instead to have a way to quickly determine if someone has major gaps that we need to identify before exploring heavier loads (which can take the form of additional weight, speed or complexity). There are plenty of different ways to assess remotely, but I have found this one to seamlessly transition into the next phase of the training process. 

You might wonder," only five PASS/FAIL moves, how can that be of any value?" Remember this is simply a starting point that guides us to the next step, whether that is getting after it in training or doing more detailed assessments of particular results (that might otherwise be unneeded in some individuals). 

Throwback Thursday!....This month marks the ten year anniversary of my marathon PR run at the Eugene Marathon in Eugene, Oregon (aka Tracktown USA). The place oooozes with running history and even if this had not been a PR performance the trip still would have been a massive success. What follows is a recap of the race itself and my training leading up to it...