After Oliver went to school I had a tidy up through the house and went out for a run. I came back and sorted some new music out for my Ipod, had lunch, a bath then a walk to work. Im going to do my strength workout after work tonight.
Running: 7.23 miles 8.06/ mile 58 minutes
I set out into the sunshine for my easy recovery route around Walney. I took it easy and settled into a pace that I found comfortable and a pleasant pace to run at. My Garmin was on watch mode so I was running to feel today. As I made my way around the island, I focussed my attention inwards for the run and processed a systems diagnostic. I concentrated on the following areas:
Breathing: I breath in a rhythm when I run and walk, drawing breath in for four steps and exhaling for four breaths. I find I can keep this up even when Im running fast. I think Im right in saying the more energy you need to run, the more oxygen you need to deliver it to the muscles (VO2 max) so Ive trained myself to take longer breaths deep into my stomach, let it fill and my body can take maximum amount of oxygen from my lungs. Today was lovely to run, the breeze on the beach was fresh and cool, filling my lungs with pure air as I ran along. I was only keeping a steady pace today so my breathing was easy and light.
Cadence: Its been proved that the most efficient cadence (amount of steps taken per minute) is one of 180. Obviously its 3 per second so this is something I concentrated on today, counting the steps every few minutes, keeping my cadence high even though I wasn't moving fast.
Footstrike: I thought about keeping my foot strike under my body, light and springy. Im a good mid -forefoot striker bringing my foot down on the padded section of my foot - the natural shock absorber. A good way to tell is check your trainers, I knew mine were getting old as they ve warn in that exact spot. I also listened to the sound of my feet hitting the ground and was pleased they were nearly silent (Gareth calls it "Running like a Ninja") as I felt the ground under my feet. I don't like too much sole under my feet, I prefer to feel the terrain, especially off road.
Body Position: It sound silly but I always watch my shadow for a slightly skewed view of my form. I have a "reset" that I do if Im tired, lifting my arms straight up, it straightens my back, lifts my head and opens my chest. I tried it today and relaxed my shoulders on their return to my sides. My view was about 5 or 6 mtrs infront of me, picking a path for me to run on, my shoulders soft, chest fully open to maximise breaths, all the time leaning ever so slightly forward. After all running is just controlled falling!! My arm swing was gentle today because of the pace (did you know if your struggling up a hill, pump your arms really strong and your knees are automatically driven higher, making hill running more efficient) and I made sure the elbow was roughly 90 degrees and swinging forwards and backwards with not much sideways swing.
Overall body: I concentrated on several muscle groups today, feeling them as I ran, letting the muscle move and understanding how it operates under running conditions. For example think about your quads, what they do when you lift your leg, feel when they contract and what part of the connective tissue they operate. I find it fascinating and it can really help with your form and knowing where to pinpoint weaknesses in your frame.
And that was it! Id been in a semi meditative state whilst I was examining my run and didn't notice the route. It was a lovely run, the sun was warm on my tired legs and Id run to feel throughout. When I got home I saw that Id been running at an average of 8 min miles. A bit fast for a recovery, bit it didn't feel it in the slightest, in fact I thought I was running much slower. I hope this means my fitness is improving and the higher speeds are less of a toll on my body. I will slow it down from next week though and get ready for race pace, 8 min mile pace wont get me far in an ultra!!
Food Diary:
Breakfast:Mini Shredded Wheat with Blueberries honey and Skimmed milk
Recovery drink:
I normally only have a protein shake after LSRs or tempo sets, but I just fancied a glass of ice cold milk on my return. Ice cold milk got me thinking and I combined milk, ice, greek yoghurt and a drop of honey in my nutribullet. WOW, what a drink, it was smooth, light, refreshing and really tasty. MMMMMM
Lunch:
Goats cheese and Vegetable Frittata with salad leaves
Dinner:
Turkey cottage pie with vegetables (I made double last night as I knew I was working)
Snacks:
9 bar, 2x apples, banana, dried fruit, nuts and seed mix, red grapes.
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