It is running season and yes signing up for a run is the best way to get motivated. I have listed some tips that might help as well as a link for those who want a training program for 5K, 10K, Half and Full Marathons. I'll speak from my experiences and through a personal trainer (that is what I am) haha.
Inside my head: Okay so Chicago Marathon is my 2nd marathon that I've been training for, the race is Oct. 7th 2012. I am freaking out here!!! No one tells you that your second marathon is SO much harder to train for! I ran my first marathon at the SF Nike Women's Marathon last year, my goal qualify for Boston.......simple enough right?!? Well no, its not, I miss it by 1 minute... really 1 minute come on body why did you break down on me, why in the heck am I having to train for another marathon to reach my goal?!?!
Personal Trainer: Being competitive with yourself is healthy and look at what great shape you are getting into. You are accomplishing doing an event that not many people can say they did. Stick to your program and you will reach your goal. Thats what training is for, training for a marathon is a second job of course but I told you that from the beginning, you will have to make sacrifices every weekend, during the week when you want to chill after work or a long business trip, nope you get out there and get that run in. But when you finish that race you will feel amazing, it will be an out of body experience that no one can take from you.
Inside my head: Right, I get it training is very important and I know I have to get these runs in but no one tells you that for your first marathon you are dedicated, determined, eager, excited.... you don't know what to expect you follow your program to a T and when race day comes you are so excited and nervous because you don't know what to expect. For your second marathon.....a whole different ball game... you know exactly what to expect, you don't want to train, its easier to justify missing a run, you know what that 20 and 22 miler is going to feel like in your training. You start to hate the people who get to wake up on Saturday and enjoy their day off breakfast, probably hung over from the friday night and you are getting up at 7am just to get a 3-4 hour run in before you waste your whole day!!!!!!!!!!!
Personal Trainer: You don't want to be lazy and waste your Saturday morning laying around in bed you are an active person and being outside and enjoying the weather is so much better than laying in bed wasting away your morning. Plus think of all the places you will see, all the nature that will rejuvenate your mind, body, and soul.
Haha ok reader's this is just a small sample of what goes on through my head every day and for the past 16 weeks. Welcome to my world. I am a motivator, I inspire people everyday, I know just what to do about training, nutrition, and staying motivated........but even us Trainers need help LOL!! All trainers benefit from having a trainer:) Anyways bottom line I'm having a hard time staying motivated for my second marathon, and most of the time I feel my goal slipping away from my fingers. But I remind myself of these 5 tips and it helps.
1. Trust your training program. This is huge, whichever training program you choice stick to it, and get the runs in. They are built on the simple fact that they work! A marathon is not a distance that you can't just wake up and say "yeah I think I'll do a marathon today". You will crush your body and chances of injuries is very high. So trust the program.
2. Take care of your body. This is not just stretching here and there, maybe icing once something starts to hurt, nope it's about taking ice baths, doing yoga, cross training, acupuncture, massage, getting enough sleep, and eating healthy to optimize performance. If you do these things throughout your training, come race day you will feel so much better.
3. Train with someone. This is huge especially if this is your second or third marathon. This is the best way to stick to your long runs or having a killer playlist. Training with someone not only holds you accountable but you are able to get lost in conversation, have someone else there that won't let you quit, someone to chase after when you are falling behind, someone who can call for help if something happens while out on the road for 3-4 hours haha just kidding :)!!!!
4. Eating proper nutrition. This is HUGE. So many people keep eating the same way they did before they started training or start to notice that they are losing weight and therefore they think that eating less will continue that decline. Its FALSE!!! Please please EAT, as our milage increases you need to eat more calories, and complex carbs is very important. You don't have to carb load (that's very old fashion) but having brown rice, sweet potatoes, quinoa, or whatever at dinner maybe at lunch is a great way to get energy for your runs. Eat plenty of fruits and veggies as well as lean meats. We are depleting all kinds of nutrients when we run that long that unless you properly fuel your body it WILL break down on you and you will NOT perform to your best. So promise me that you follow a good nutritional plan.
5. Make sure to taper and take the week before the race off. This is very important, I know you will feel like you have forgotten how to run and you will be anxious with nerves as well as feeling like if you stop running that you will not finish the race. YOU WILL FINISH!!! You need to go back to tip #1 and trust your program, you are about to put your body through one of the hardest things it will have to do willingly. You need to recover from all the training in order to have peak performance on race day. Trust me if you do not take a break from running the week of the race you will feel it in your race and not in a good way. You will do your shake out run the day before this is when you can reassure your body that you know how to still run. Believe me I know how it feels and when you are sitting at home or at work and its Tuesday before your race, you are going to be bitting at the bit to get out and run, take a yoga class or get in the pool or take a spin class, but rest your body from running.
Good luck to all my marathon runner's it is an amazing accomplishment and when you are done its ok to cry, laugh, smile, hate the world, feel like you are on could nine.... you will probably feel all of this and when you feel like you want to break down and cry at mile 21-23 its ok! I did and most people do, once you have run your first run let me know if that happened to you, I know it did me :)
The link with my training programs, for the distances above.
http://www.facebook.com/nikerunning/app_269581749815664
Monday 17 September 2012
Wednesday 2 May 2012
Training or Running Shoe?!?
I've been a trainer for a long time now and I have worked with Nike for awhile and it still kills me to see people training in a running shoe. I know, I know some training shoes are not as cool or you might have just gone for a run and don't want to change shoes or it might be too expensive to buy 2 pairs of shoes but its worth it I promise you that:)! Plus if you are thinking a training shoe isn't as comfortable as a running shoe or I don't have as much support in a training shoe then go back to the store bc there are all kinds of training shoe so no more excuses, time to invest friends:)!
I was at the Filex Convention in Sydney AU, and the amount of trainers and fitness professionals I saw in running shoes was unreal. I was driving me crazy!! haha I just wonder if people know the difference between a training shoe and running shoe, I ask myself this all the time. I understand that I don't know where people are coming from, they may have gone for a run in the morning and don't want to change their shoes... I get that but come on peeps we should know the benefits and be rockin the right shoes:) Plus if you are a sneaker head like me then you would want to sport different shoes right?!? haha.
I'm a sucker for wearing the right shoe when you are doing different types of training. If you are training doing classes like Nike Training Club or weight training or even a group fitness class like boot camp or Body pump you should be in a training shoe. There are reasons you should be in a training shoe and that's to make the foot work more, you have more lateral support, support in the right places of the shoe to help when you are doing plyo work (jumping) and you are lower to the ground so your center of gravity is where it should be. If you are training in a running shoe you might notice that you have less balance, less control of your body, when you are doing lateral movements that you might twist your ankle more, this is because a running shoe is made for linear movement not changing directions.
I do wear two different pairs of shoes when I workout, I wear my running shoes when I'm running then I pack another pair of training shoes for my weight training or NTC sessions. So please please just take a look at what you are wearing and get in a training shoe. You will get so much more out of your session I promise!!
I was at the Filex Convention in Sydney AU, and the amount of trainers and fitness professionals I saw in running shoes was unreal. I was driving me crazy!! haha I just wonder if people know the difference between a training shoe and running shoe, I ask myself this all the time. I understand that I don't know where people are coming from, they may have gone for a run in the morning and don't want to change their shoes... I get that but come on peeps we should know the benefits and be rockin the right shoes:) Plus if you are a sneaker head like me then you would want to sport different shoes right?!? haha.
I'm a sucker for wearing the right shoe when you are doing different types of training. If you are training doing classes like Nike Training Club or weight training or even a group fitness class like boot camp or Body pump you should be in a training shoe. There are reasons you should be in a training shoe and that's to make the foot work more, you have more lateral support, support in the right places of the shoe to help when you are doing plyo work (jumping) and you are lower to the ground so your center of gravity is where it should be. If you are training in a running shoe you might notice that you have less balance, less control of your body, when you are doing lateral movements that you might twist your ankle more, this is because a running shoe is made for linear movement not changing directions.
I do wear two different pairs of shoes when I workout, I wear my running shoes when I'm running then I pack another pair of training shoes for my weight training or NTC sessions. So please please just take a look at what you are wearing and get in a training shoe. You will get so much more out of your session I promise!!
Wednesday 25 April 2012
How did I get here today?
Everyone asks me how I got to where I am today so I decided to share this with you all. Its really a story of working hard and allowing the journey to happen.
I grew up in Denver Co, in a family that wasn't really active, I mean we did the family bike rides, and camping with hiking and all that but my parents weren't the all around athletes. I fell in love with sport, I loved the competition and the social aspect of it and I also loved challenging my body. I loved training for something and it show through directly through my performance.
When I went to college I didn't know what I wanted to do, I was your typical freshman college girl who was taking all general ed trying to figure out what the heck to do with my life. Then I found myself sitting in a Human Biology class loving every second of it, wanting to study and learn more I couldn't get enough. That's when I knew that I would be doing something with Anatomy and Physiology. My school had a great nursing program so naturally I thought that's what I would do. I was on track to do just that, until one day I had the opportunity to move to Portland Or. There's something you have to know about me, I will try anything once, and if it doesn't work out its not the end of the world for me. I love to be spontaneous and go on adventures, even if you don't know the outcome. Sometimes you find an amazing surprise.
That being said, I ended up in Portland in 2002 and that's where I live now. I had a really hard time getting started there, I had no friends or family or job. I started working at a restaurant, and going back to school. I graduated from PSU, and did my internship at a local Health Club that I belonged to and that's where it all started. I worked at a personal trainer there and then also got a job as a Sports Performance coach at Velocity Sports Performance. This is where I worked under one of the best guys I know. I learned so much from him and I contribute a lot of who I am today to him. So now I'm working 3 jobs, trying to build my clientele and build relationships with people because at the end of the day its all about who you know and how you interact with people. My dad always said "work really hard, never burn bridges, always treat people with respect, and never settle" So that's what I did.....
Then my boss at Velocity referred me to Nike and that's when my life changed.. I have been with Nike for 4 and half years and man oh man has my life changed for the better. I still pinch myself to see if this is all real. Nike then came to me and asked me what girls want from training? Which lead me to Nike Training Club, becoming an ambassador for Women's Training and being able to help people better their lives and get in shape on a much larger scope.
Now its April of 2012 and I'm traveling the world for work, I get to help millions of people achieve their goals and build confidence, I get to educate people on fitness, train amazing trainers around the world, and be a part of something that I am extremely passionate about. I found my path and what I am suppose to do in life and that's here with Nike and spreading health and fitness around the world.
This is it in a nut shell, I could ramble on but I don't want to bore you too much haha!
Never doubt yourself, always walk through the door in front of you, work hard, treat people good, and always always be true to yourself and know that anything is possible.
I grew up in Denver Co, in a family that wasn't really active, I mean we did the family bike rides, and camping with hiking and all that but my parents weren't the all around athletes. I fell in love with sport, I loved the competition and the social aspect of it and I also loved challenging my body. I loved training for something and it show through directly through my performance.
When I went to college I didn't know what I wanted to do, I was your typical freshman college girl who was taking all general ed trying to figure out what the heck to do with my life. Then I found myself sitting in a Human Biology class loving every second of it, wanting to study and learn more I couldn't get enough. That's when I knew that I would be doing something with Anatomy and Physiology. My school had a great nursing program so naturally I thought that's what I would do. I was on track to do just that, until one day I had the opportunity to move to Portland Or. There's something you have to know about me, I will try anything once, and if it doesn't work out its not the end of the world for me. I love to be spontaneous and go on adventures, even if you don't know the outcome. Sometimes you find an amazing surprise.
That being said, I ended up in Portland in 2002 and that's where I live now. I had a really hard time getting started there, I had no friends or family or job. I started working at a restaurant, and going back to school. I graduated from PSU, and did my internship at a local Health Club that I belonged to and that's where it all started. I worked at a personal trainer there and then also got a job as a Sports Performance coach at Velocity Sports Performance. This is where I worked under one of the best guys I know. I learned so much from him and I contribute a lot of who I am today to him. So now I'm working 3 jobs, trying to build my clientele and build relationships with people because at the end of the day its all about who you know and how you interact with people. My dad always said "work really hard, never burn bridges, always treat people with respect, and never settle" So that's what I did.....
Then my boss at Velocity referred me to Nike and that's when my life changed.. I have been with Nike for 4 and half years and man oh man has my life changed for the better. I still pinch myself to see if this is all real. Nike then came to me and asked me what girls want from training? Which lead me to Nike Training Club, becoming an ambassador for Women's Training and being able to help people better their lives and get in shape on a much larger scope.
Now its April of 2012 and I'm traveling the world for work, I get to help millions of people achieve their goals and build confidence, I get to educate people on fitness, train amazing trainers around the world, and be a part of something that I am extremely passionate about. I found my path and what I am suppose to do in life and that's here with Nike and spreading health and fitness around the world.
This is it in a nut shell, I could ramble on but I don't want to bore you too much haha!
Never doubt yourself, always walk through the door in front of you, work hard, treat people good, and always always be true to yourself and know that anything is possible.
Tips for Training for a Marathon
There are all different ways to train for a marathon, here are some simple tips that will make everything a bit easier.
1. Stay hydrated, this means you should be drinking at least 1/2 your body weight in ounces of water per day. I prefer you do more but that's just me. Get ready to have a bathroom near by, but it worth it:)
2. Map out your runs before you take off, use devices like the Nike+ to help with that no matter where you are.
3. Never run two days in a row, make sure to take that recovery day. This of course doesn't mean that you run only 2 times a week and say you are recovering:) Stay active by taking a yoga class or hiking.
4. Do at least one track workout per week to change up the variation in your speed, don't want to settle always strive for better so improve that time and this is how you do it:)
5. Night before the race, spend little time on your feet and spend at least 1 hour with your feet evaluated, this helps with blood flow and circulation plus lets your feet relax.
6. Misconception: Load up on carbs before race day...what day is it, this is such an old fashion tip, (drives me crazy haha) just make sure to have a balanced meal that consists of protein, complex carbs and veggies. My favorite meal is grilled chicken with sweet potato and steamed asparagus.
7. Have fun!!! This is the most important part, you already signed up for the race and are committed you have spent the time training now have fun!!!
1. Stay hydrated, this means you should be drinking at least 1/2 your body weight in ounces of water per day. I prefer you do more but that's just me. Get ready to have a bathroom near by, but it worth it:)
2. Map out your runs before you take off, use devices like the Nike+ to help with that no matter where you are.
3. Never run two days in a row, make sure to take that recovery day. This of course doesn't mean that you run only 2 times a week and say you are recovering:) Stay active by taking a yoga class or hiking.
4. Do at least one track workout per week to change up the variation in your speed, don't want to settle always strive for better so improve that time and this is how you do it:)
5. Night before the race, spend little time on your feet and spend at least 1 hour with your feet evaluated, this helps with blood flow and circulation plus lets your feet relax.
6. Misconception: Load up on carbs before race day...what day is it, this is such an old fashion tip, (drives me crazy haha) just make sure to have a balanced meal that consists of protein, complex carbs and veggies. My favorite meal is grilled chicken with sweet potato and steamed asparagus.
7. Have fun!!! This is the most important part, you already signed up for the race and are committed you have spent the time training now have fun!!!
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