running

Erik's Weekly Fitness Tip | Captain Obvious

 

Update

I’m 6 weeks into running again. My body has responded to the old training stimulus {which is now new again} fairly quickly. Besides tripping on a tree root, I would say the transition from heavy strength training to running intervals has been pretty seamless. 

Captain Obvious

I’ve set the goal of running the Village Runner 4th of July 5k!  The last time I ran a race competitively was at the turn of the century and I was 24. {That seems like a lifetime ago.}  So I thought I would call my old coach to get his opinion on my training. 

Long story short, he told me I’m not 22 anymore and that I need to tweak my program. Now I should have figured this out on my own as being a very obvious fact, but it never donned on me until I spoke with him.  Sometimes we need our very own Captain Obvious to point us in the right direction.

I put a lot of value into his ideas because not only was he a coach but he also competed as a Master’s runner.  Who better to talk to than someone who has been there before? 

Who Is Your Captain Obvious?

Do you want to get results? Start asking questions from people who have been there!  Get a coach, a mentor, read books, or talk to people who have walked the walk and succeeded.  Their insight, experience and pitfalls {yes, they made plenty of mistakes along the way} are incredibly valuable to your weight loss, training, or performance goals.  Another set of eyes seeing things from another perspective can be the difference of getting there or not.

Wanna pick my brain regarding fitness, weight loss, or sports performance? Send me your question & I will answer via email & some questions may be featured on my YouTube Channel

Image Credit: Molly Taylor

Sign up below and every week we'll send you one short but effective idea that can help you improve your performance.

 

Erik's Weekly Fitness Tip | Issues With Your Tissue

 

Soft Tissue

I am one month into running consistently and I’ve noticed some changes in my body.  I don’t feel old, but my soft tissue is tighter than I can ever remember.  I have neglected my soft tissue for years.  Your soft tissue is made up of tendons, ligaments, skin, and fascia.  It’s job is to support, connect, and surround the structures of the body.  Taking care of it, without a doubt, is the weak point in my training.  As far as programming, sleep, strength training, and nutrition go, I can check the “Yes” boxes.  But, to be honest with you, I find foam rolling and stretching boring and always manage to find an excuse not to get it done.

 

Commitment

Now I know better, but no one is perfect, right?  Here lies the problem.  Running is a repetitive sport, which means the soft tissue in my feet and legs can end up being a hot mess.  That hot mess can turn into injuries pretty damn quickly.  So I’ve committed myself to doing at least something every day, whether it’s foam rolling, rolling my feet out on a lacrosse ball, or stretching.  It is not exciting or glamorous, but there is absolute return on the investment.  Healthier soft tissue equals a decrease in injury. 

 

The Takeaway

It’s hard to be perfect, unless you are part of the chosen few who are paid professional athletes.  But doing the little things can make such a difference on the end product.  No short cuts! 

 

 

Need help with your tissue issues? CALL ME TO SET UP AN IN-PERSON OR ONLINE APPOINTMENT 310.251.7420

Image credit: 2009 04 11 - 4118 - Altoona - Easter Rubber Band - Bossi by Bossi

Sign up below and every week we'll send you one short but effective idea that can help you improve your performance.

 

Erik's Weekly Fitness Tip | The Hill

 

History Repeats Itself

I’m running again! I hit 20 miles last week.  20 miles is a long way from what I was doing in college, but it’s not a bad start. 

An Affair Of The Heart

I’ve spent the better part of the last 4 years under a bar {not inside a bar}.  A barbell to be exact.  My relationship with the barbell is mostly one of love and adoration, but as it goes with all affairs of the heart, we have had our issues.  My strength is by far the best it’s ever been, all due to the barbell.  For conditioning work I pushed the sled or ran 1 minute sprints on the treadmill.  So I had convinced myself that getting back into running would be super easy. 

The Hill

2 miles from the house there is this beautiful trail where the view is quite spectacular: the ocean, snow capped mountains and the smell of eucalyptus trees…it doesn’t get any better than this.  So off I went thinking, “Hey, I’m in great shape, this shouldn’t be a problem.”  Um, yeah I was wrong.  To say this trail got the best of me would be an understatement, it handed me my butt on a shiny platter.  Specifically this one long, steep, dirt hill.  I wanted to walk up it, but my stubbornness got the best of me, so I was reduced to a very slow plod… it was embarrassing. 

If only the embarrassment had stopped there!  But no, I still had 2 miles to get back to my truck.  Most of it was descending, rolling hills. Fatigue had set in and thankfully gravity was on my side, or so I thought.  In the last quarter mile there was a young couple walking up as I was letting physics help drag my 200 lb. frame down this hill.  As I passed them and said hi I proceeded to trip on a tree root, fell and rolled twice before coming to a stop.  The look on their faces was awesome, part shock and part wanting to laugh.  They asked if I was okay…yup just a bruised ego.  I was a hot mess covered in dirt from head to toe.  Welcome back to running!

Lessons Learned

There were some important lessons and reminders that day.  One, it was the first time I’ve run that hill in almost 4 years.  I needed to lower my expectations of my running fitness level.  Second, I reminded myself it’s always a process.  One day builds on the next.  And third, there was no way in hell this hill was going to get the best of me. 

2 times a week since that first day the hill and I have a date.  It has not been a pretty site: heavy heavy breathing, lungs on fire, and cottonmouth {which drives me crazy}.  There has been marginal improvement in the last 3 weeks, I think it’s safe to say I’m no longer looking like a dumpster fire. My current status with this hill is pretty much hate.  But I suspect it will fall in line like it did with the barbell, and I will mostly love it, save for a few issues. 

Don't Give Up

Hills come into our lives in many forms. Whatever hill you face in life, please don’t get discouraged, it does get easier!  And make sure you watch out for those tree roots, they get me every time.

Want help with your running? Call me to set up an appointment 310.251.7420

Image Credit: Erik Taylor

Sign up below and every week we'll send you one short but effective idea that can help you improve your performance.