Live It Up Like It's (Still) the Weekend

Lace up your kicks and hit the trail - you'll be good to go with Wiz Khalifa's 'No Sleep' [WARNING: those with sensitive ears may need earmuffs for this one]

Wiz Khalifa - No Sleep

Let's party alright.

Combo Workouts

I get super giddy whenever my new issue of Runner's World arrives, and usually (like last night) end up staying awake way later than intended, ignoring the fact that it will still be there to read the next day. It gives me new ideas to vary training and work outs, and as an added bonus, breeds blog posts (which is helpful when I'm coming off basically a 2 week haitus and have writer's block).

In this issue there is an article on combo workouts and how these certain type of workouts can address specific training needs. The article states that "doubling up is great for targeting different systems in one workout-speed, strength, mental toughness and more-which makes you fitter and better prepared for race day."

Although I won't be trying any of these workouts this week while we're in the midst of tapering for our ten miler on Sunday, (the "government shut-down pending" 10 miler) I think tackling a few of these over the next month would be a good addition to our training and a way to mix things up.

The first one mentioned, and the most applicable to those training for a half or full marathon, is the long run + goal pace. To start, begin your long run at a pace about a minute slower than your race goal pace. Once you are two-thirds into your run, speed up to goal pace or even faster and maintain through the final miles. The benefits of this workout are that it allows you to practice race pace with less risk of injury since the faster portion is shorter, and gets your body accustomed to running harder on fatigued legs.

Run + Strength + Run is the workout I'll likely try first. Sandwich a lower body strength workout (squats/lunges/leg extensions and curls) between two easy two to three mile runs. In this workout you will create the "heavy leg" feeling and simulate race day muscle fatigue without having to put in the long mileage. The attraction here for me is that it breaks up two workouts that can sometimes feel monotonous to me, but I know are necessary.

Hills + 800s are great to improve form and fitness. Pulled straight from the article: "Combining a hilly route with half-mile repeats elevates your heart rate, which can improve your aerobic capacity. Plus on long slow runs we can get sloppy with our form; short, fast ones' clean up our form by teaching our bodies to find the most efficient way to run." Yes please. I often times worry that my form is lacking as my distance increases, hoping this can create some muscle memory for those longer runs.

The article (which can also be found online here) goes on to mention a few others that I won't continue to regurgitate here. I'm more interested to know if you've found success with any of these specifically mentioned, or perhaps you have some others to share that work for you? I'm coachable....even if I might not fully understand the lingo of "hill repeats" (pretty sure it just means you run up hill, rinse, repeat...)

Gladys the Gladyator

My Aunt Cindy (whose father recently completed 50 marathons in 50 states at 71 years young!) shared with me this story of Gladys the Gladyator... and consider me humbled. My only goal for age 92 was to be able to sit partially upright and watch a full episode of Golden Girls without falling asleep, but Gladys is putting me to shame... many times over. She ran her first marathon at age 86, and before that, she was a pilot, mountain climber, desert hiker and horseback rider.

I'm starting to feel bad about myself, so maybe I'll just let her story speak for itself...

'Gladyator' aged 92 breaks marathon record

A 92-year-old woman from Hawaii has broken a world record when she completed the Honolulu Marathon.

Gladys Burrill, nicknamed "the Gladyator", power-walked and jogged the length of the 26.2 mile route in a time of nine hours and 53 minutes to become the oldest person in the world to complete a marathon.

She undertook the feat in December, but Guinness World Records has finally confirmed her accomplishment and the Hawaii House of Representatives has honoured her with a certificate and lei at a special ceremony.

Ms Burrill ran her first marathon aged 86 and regularly walks 45 miles a week. A former pilot and mountain climber, she trained for the Honolulu Marathon by walking 2,600 miles.

Her achievement eclipsed the previous record held by Jenny Wood-Allen of Dundee, Scotland, who was 90 years old when she completed the 2002 London Marathon.

Burrill said the secret to longevity and fitness was to "get out there and walk or run.”

"It's so important to think positive. It's easy to get discouraged and be negative," she said.

"It makes such a difference in how you feel and your outlook on everything."

She has completed a total of five Honolulu Marathons.

On On!

"A drinking club with a running problem"...where do we sign up?

We're considering HHH, but we're feeling entirely too intimidated (and slightly under-qualified... if there even is such a thing in the world of running + drinking). Any veterans out there with some insight? Could this perhaps be a final jaunt of fun before serious marathon training begins?