#2 The Weekly Pep Talk - December 3 - 9, 2007

Ask About Running
The Weekly Pep Talk
Second Issue
This week is dedicated to Jamila S. (who balances family, friends, & running with grace)
Monday, December 3 – Sunday, December 9, 2007
Week 48 in 2007
Send comments to: Stephanie@askaboutrunning.com

Hello to All!

I hope you enjoyed last week’s inaugural issue. The holidays are upon us in full force with rich food and increased social obligations. It becomes even more difficult to get exercise now with the short days in addition to holiday happenings yet, it is certainly important!

I’d like to talk about Cross Training a bit because it can help you get in your needed exercise while dealing with all the challenges to your time during the winter holiday season, even when running isn’t possible.

CROSS TRAINING
Cross training, for runners, refers to exercises that are different than running. This could be almost any form of conditioning that gets your heart pumping at a minimum level and duration. So, if you walk instead of run, you are cross training. If you swim, you are cross training. If you do yoga, you are cross training. The caveat here is that the activity needs to be done at a minimum heart rate level of 60% with continuous movement for at least 20 minutes or you are not replacing your running with another type of fitness training. You must have an equal or greater level of intensity to the exercise in order to replace running as your cardio-vascular training method.

STEPHANIE’S DEFINITION OF CROSS TRAINING FOR RUNNERS
Cross training, specific to runners, refers to exercise that compliments, but does not include, outdoor/distance running, AND increases the heart rate to 60% or more of maximum heart rate* for 20 minutes or longer.

Another factor to consider is that you will not start out at a 60% rate. Your heart begins exercise somewhere significantly below it. When I’m on the elliptical machine at the gym it usually takes about 10 minutes to get up to my 60% rate. So, give yourself a minimum of 5 minutes to warm up and another 5 minutes to cool down at the end. Your total workout will be a minimum of 30 minutes. This is why, in our track workouts, we always warm up a bit before getting into the meat of the workout.

This is not to say that activities like gentle yoga or easy walking lack merit. That is not the case. They are forms of movement that stretch and strengthen different muscle groups, but they are not increasing cardio-vascular strength or capacity. Stretching activities and other exercise, even if not rigorous, is important to runners for balance as we tend to have major muscle groups that get no attention while other groups (our quadriceps, for example) get REALLY STRONG. I’m differentiating here to clarify my definition.

More on cross training, stretching, and other exercise in future issues. I hope this was a good beginning for you.


UPCOMING EVENTS…
Christmas Classic and Miracle Mile, Sunday, December 23, 2007, Sponsored by Ohana Road Runners. This is a great time to get a PR on your mile! The course is DOWNHILL! If you’re up to it you can also run the 5K. I have run with this group before and always have a lot of fun. You May Run Or Walk. You may sign up on the day of the race (or in advance). All is well organized, low key and their races always benefit a local charity. http://www.ohanarrca.org/
Details are also listed on the AskStephanieAboutSports@yahoogroups.com Calendar.

As mentioned in the first issue, I offer training schedules for the runs listed below. To know when to start your training and to view the schedules go to AskStephanieAboutRunning@yahoogroups.com and look under Files. Presently the schedule for the Kaiser Permanente in February is listed for both the half marathon and the 5 K. Also look at the Calendar for upcoming events and the starting dates for these other runs.

The Kaiser Permanente Half Marathon & 5K February 3, 2008
xnet.kp.org/sanfrancisco/index.html
The London Marathon April 13, 2008
www.london-marathon.co.uk
The Boston Marathon April 21, 2008 http://www.bostonmarathon.org
The Bay to Breakers/San Francisco May 18, 2008
http://www.ingbaytobreakers.com/main.html
See Jane Run Women’s Half Marathon & 5K May 31, 2008
http://www.seejanerun.com/t-See-Jane-Run-Half-Marathon-and-5K.aspx
The San Francisco Half & Full Marathon & 5K August 3, 2008 http://www.runsfm.com/home.html
The Disneyland Half Marathon and 5K August 30/31, 2008 www.disneylandhalfmarathon.com
The Chicago Marathon October 12, 2008 http://www.chicagomarathon.com
The Nike Women’s Half and Full Marathon October? (couldn’t find)
www.nike.com
The New York City Marathon November 2008?
www.ingnycmarathon.org
The Honolulu Marathon December 14, 2008
www.honolulumarathon.org


Please send me information on other runs. I’ll check into them. I especially want to know if the runs are for women only and, if they are well organized!

How is the training going for the Kaiser? I know some of you are preparing for the half marathon. The 5K would be a great new year’s resolution to start working on now for you new runners or holiday partiers. You still need some motivation to get out there and run! Entry fee goes up after 1/11/08 and there is a limit to the number of participants. All race details are on the official website http://xnet.kp.org/sanfrancisco/index.html.

Send me your stories, comments, and questions about life and running. My E-mail is Stephanie@AskAboutRunning.com.

If you haven’t already joined the group website, please go to AskStephanieAboutSports@yahoogroups.com and join! I would love to have you as a part of this group of active, interesting women, who live a life style that includes giving themselves time for activity. The site offers articles, tools, and encouragement to keep up the good work!

The Sunday walking/running program will launch on January 6. Full details out soon!

Start thinking running tours. We’ll do one this summer and one in fall/winter. Details are coming soon…

Hold on for the official launch of the Ask About Running Website



*MAXIMUM HEART RATE
To calculate MHR with a simple formula try this:

Start with 220
Subtract your age from this amount
Subtract your resting pulse from this amount
Multiply this figure by 60%
Add in your resting pulse

This is your 60% heart rate, a standard percentage used to establish cardiovascular improvement with exercise.

Example

220
-40 (age)
180
-60 (resting pulse)
120
X.60
=72
+60 (resting pulse)
132 Minimum Training Level Heart Rate (60%)

Have a great week! Enjoy family, friends and your time for exercise. I’ll be back next Sunday.

Best,
Stephanie Atwood

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