Summer Base - Week 3 - Gazelles
Printer-friendly versionSummer Base Week 3 - June 16th thru 22nd
House Keeping Notes
1. Weekly Schedules ARE NOT Password Protected
2. SUMMER Saturday Meeting time @ 7:30 am (for the 3 Weeks of Base)
3. Weekly Strength with Colleen @ 4:30 pm on Monday’s and Thursday’s via Zoom Virtual
personal meeting id #: 463-600-3626…password: 103802
cost = $50/month payable thru Venmo @ the beginning of each month…@Darren-DeReuck
4. Core/Strength with Darren on Zoom @ 11:00 am on Tuesday
Core/Abs with Darren on Zoom @ 11:00 am on Thursday
60 min on Tue & 30 min on Thu class - $10/$5 and payable thru Venmo (@Darren-DeReuck)
meeting #: 463-600-3626…password: 103802
5. Discount Code for Zealios Products (25%): ZupBOULDERSTRIDERS
Website: www.teamzealios.com
Monday 16th Cross Train Day
Lift Weights/Pilates (Mat or Reformer)/Yoga – 45 to 60 minutes
Tuesday 17th Easy/Light Run 40 minutes
Include 5 x 30 sec light strides…45 sec walk/run
do light strides after 20 minutes of running
Wednesday 18th Fartlek/Progression Workout
East Boulder Rec @ 6:30 am OR @ 5:30 pm
Warm Up 15 min/Stretch/4 x 30 sec light strides…45 sec walk/run
4 min @ half marathon effort…2 min walk/run
2 x 2 min @ 10 km effort...60 sec walk/run
take 2 min active rest after second 2 min
4 min @ half marathon effort…2 min walk/run
4 x 90 sec @ 10 km effort…60 sec walk/run
take 2 min active rest after fourth 90 sec
6 min progression...increase pace each 90 sec
(start @ half marathon effort…end @ 10 km effort)
active rest = walk/slow run recovery
Cool Down 5-10 minutes
Thursday 19th Cross Train Day
Lift Weights/Pilates (Mat or Reformer)/Yoga – 45 to 60 minutes
Friday 20th Shake-Out Run 40 minutes
Include 5 x 45 sec light strides…60 sec walk/run
Sat 21st Short/Long Hills Workout from Niwot Shopping Center @ 7:30 am
Warm Up 15 min/Stretch/4 x 30 sec strides (45 sec walk/run)
4 x 60 sec steady down…turn…60 sec steady up
take 60 sec walk/run after each 2 min set
after 4th 60 sec take 90 sec to get to the long hill
2 x 2 min steady up...turn…2 min steady down
take 90 sec active rest after each 4 min set
4 x 60 sec steady down…turn…60 sec steady up
take 60 sec walk/run after each 2 min set
after 4th 60 sec take 90 sec to get to the long hill
2 x 2 min steady up…turn…2 min steady down
take 90 sec active rest after each 4 min set
active rest = walk/slow run recovery
Cool Down 5-10 minutes
Plyo’s//Strength @ 9:30 am - Niwot Track
Sunday 22nd Easy Long Run – 80 minutes
Time on Legs/Relaxed Pace/Hydrate on the Run
5 min Walk Cool Down
Easy/Light/Recovery Run - Conversational Pace/Relaxed Effort
Long Run – 60-90 sec Slower than your Marathon Goal Pace
Tempo/Sustained - Run between 70-80% Effort of Max
Fartlek – Playing with Fast/Slow Speed
Hills - Work on Good Form (drive with arms/relax the shoulders/get up on toes/quick
turnover/mid-foot strike on the downs/look 5-10 feet in front of yourself)
Meeting Places
East Boulder Rec - follow Baseline east to 55th St. Take a right on 55th and follow the road until the sharp left turn and go past the 1st parking lot and tennis courts towards the Rec Center. Park on the West Side of the Rec Center Lot close to the tennis courts
Niwot Shopping Center - follow the Diagonal Highway to Niwot and take a right on Niwot Road. At the 3-way stop, take a right on 79th Street and the second left into the Shopping Center Parking Lot. Meet there for warm up to Niwot Loop Trail
Coach's Notes
Summer Base Week 3…schedules ARE NOT PASSWORD PROTECTED and Posted on the front page of the Website…Fartlek/Progress on Wednesday and Long/Short Hills on Saturday.
Have an EPIC Week Everyone!!!
If you want to Build Muscle…Running may help…but if you want to change your Body Composition…you have to look to your Diet and Strength Training.
If you want to be a successful runner you need to be a strong runner…and that means you need some muscle on your bones. It’s common for runners to shy away from building muscle mass and strength training…for that matter…which helps you build that mass…but doing so has many benefits. For example…research suggests that strength training and building muscle can improve your performance and help prevent injury. Building muscle can also help you live longer according to research…and one study found a link between runners with more lean muscle mass and better bone mineral density and content.
Here’s what you need to know about how runners can build muscle…how the sport of running aids in that process and why it’s helpful and necessary for runners to have lean muscle mass.
How the Body Builds Muscle
Simply put…muscle hypertrophy…the building of muscle is the response to the muscle being overloaded through an activity such as strength training. The muscle fibers are ‘damaged’ by the stress of resistance training creating micro tears in the muscle fibers and the body’s natural repair process includes increasing the size of the muscle fibers and thus the size of the muscle itself. But the body can’t just rebuild alone…muscle is made of protein. We need an adequate amount of protein in our diet to aid in muscle building. Muscle is developed by a positive protein balance which means that the body is synthesizing more muscle proteins than it is degrading. That means you need enough protein to help your body rebuild after a workout when muscles need the macronutrient to repair themselves.
Why Muscle is Important for Runners
It may seem counterintuitive as a runner to have a lot of muscle on your body…the more muscle you have the more you must carry around when running. But it’s more important than you might think and runners need muscle for a variety of reasons. According to a review in the journal Sports Medicine… strength training which you need to do to actually build muscle…can help improve sprint performance and running economy. Generally speaking…sprinters need muscle to go faster and endurance runners need it to go farther. Muscles can also store energy, they can improve running economy, they stabilize and protect the joints and they help prevent injury allowing you to train harder and run longer. While all exercise puts stress on the body and therefore forces the body to build more muscle some types of training can help you build muscle more efficiently than others.
How Running Aids in Muscle Building
It is a common myth that running ‘eats’ muscle tissue…but that isn’t the case. Running in fact can help you build muscle. Running is a weight-bearing form of cardiovascular exercise involving forces of two-and-a-half to three times your bodyweight with each stride. This will help build the muscles of the lower body including the glutes, quadriceps, hamstrings and calves. However, running may not be the best form of exercise if your number one goal is building muscle. Muscle-building is predicated on progressive overload of muscle tissue and this is not readily achieved by aerobic-type exercise. There can be some mild increases in muscle size in the early stages of a running program for those who were previously sedentary but these gains will rapidly plateau within a few months. If runners are really looking to gain or build muscle…the best way to do it is outside of their sport.
How Runners Can Build Muscle Outside of the Sport
According to research…aerobic training doesn’t promote the same skeletal muscle hypertrophy as resistance or strength training. Resistance training is the primary interventional strategy for increasing muscle size. To maximize the muscle-building benefits of strength training another study from the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health breaks down the specifics. It found that hypertrophy-oriented resistance training was most effective when performed at a moderate intensity of about 60%-80% of your one-rep max or how much weight you can lift for just one rep. That means the weight should feel challenging and fatigue the muscles. As for volume…aim for 3 to 6 sets including 6 to 12 repetitions per set and short rest periods of about 60 seconds between those sets. The study also says that muscle growth takes about six to 10 weeks to occur so even if you start strength training today know that it takes consistent practice and a decent amount of time to see muscle gain.
Why Your Diet Matters for Building Muscle
While resistance training is important for building muscle you can’t ignore your diet particularly as someone who’s constantly burning calories. When you’re running upwards of 50 miles a week you need to make sure you’re also consuming enough to support what your body is burning. Muscle is built primarily via resistance training with a secondary contribution of diet particularly consuming sufficient dietary protein. Protein takes longer to break down as a fuel source which means it won’t necessarily fuel your runs but it is the main fuel for muscle building. The essential amino acids are used to build muscle proteins and consumption of these essential amino acids through the diet is obligatory for maximizing muscle gains. The most important factor is consuming adequate daily protein. Recent research indicates that the estimated average requirement for protein in endurance athletes is approximately 2.1 grams per kilogram of body weight per day which is substantially higher than the recommended daily allowance. For a 150-pound person…that’s about 143 grams of protein per day. While timing of eating might not be as important it’s also a good idea to make sure you’re spreading protein intake out throughout the day. The more evenly you eat it rather than minimal amounts early in the day and large amounts at night the better. The body’s preferred energy source when it comes to running…however…is carbohydrates and then fat. Carbohydrates are important because in the absence of adequate carbs the body needs to break down protein to provide energy to the exercising muscles…so if you’re trying to increase muscle mass minimizing carb intake is not ideal.
The Importance of Recovery in Muscle Building
Another big component in building muscle is the time the body takes to repair the micro-tears made in the tissue…and that happens during another important part of your training plan: your recovery. Recovery is very important…if a person is under recovered then their performance will suffer and over time they may become overtrained which has several negative consequences…including risk of injury and messing with your muscle-building capacity. That’s why it’s important to incorporate recovery runs in your training and to make sure you’re getting adequate sleep. Sleep is a means for your body to recuperate so proper sleep is important to maximizing recovery. You might be wondering if things like consuming protein before bed might aid in a better or faster recovery, too. The evidence that pre-sleep protein provides benefits is limited to a higher versus lower-protein intake. There is not sufficient evidence to indicate that consuming protein before sleep is superior when daily protein intake is equated, but if a protein snack before bed helps hit your daily quota for the muscle-building macro then have the bite.
The Bottom Line on How to Build Muscle
Yes there is a lot to consider when building muscle as a runner…it doesn’t happen overnight and takes time but consistency is key. If you consume a balanced diet with adequate daily protein and engage in a consistent full-body strength training program…you will achieve your genetically best-body…with muscle.
Check out our Strength Classes Colleen and I offer on Zoom during the Week.
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