My girlfriend is currently training for her first half marathon. She has not yet run past 8 miles – and only did this last weekend. She’s been asking for tips about long distance running, because as her miles increase she finds herself growing bored with the training.

I know that most people training for their first longer race face this same exact issue. If you are used to running 3 miles, then once you get up to 5 miles you may find you are growing bored with the training.

The funny thing is, once you get used to 5 and you are shooting for eight or ten, the next new  in-between milestones will seem boring.

Since training for two marathons, and now my third, I have learned some great trips that got me through those longer runs.

1. Music. I don’t use music until I get halfway through my run, or even more, regardless of the length. If I go 7 or under I don’t use it at all. If I go ten, I may start it at 6 or so. If I go 12, I may start it at mile 8. I use music as a motivator. “If I get to mile X, then I can listen to music for a while.”  This gives me something to look forward to by diverting attention when the runs get a bit longer, and this distraction keeps me going. Also, by not using it for the entire run I never get used to relying on it.
2. Food. Sorry, I’m not one of those runners who doesn’t eat on a longer run. If I’m going over 10 miles, then around mile 7 or so I begin chewing on something. I look forward to my bites of treats. I may not eat an entire Power Bar, but if I get in a few good bites here and there it fills up my stomach enough to keep me going and it gives me something to look forward to. During my first marathon training I ate goldfish; now I munch on powerbars. Any food will do!
3. Take different courses. If you are burning out, map out different courses so there is always something new to see. Unfortunately for me, I now live in an area where this is not possible unless I drive somewhere – and that would add another hour on my already long Sunday morning training run. However I went on vacation this past week and ran around a different town during my eleven miler. It really kept me going.
4. Run portions of your run with someone. If you are used to running solo, see if you can find someone with whom to run for a few miles. I prefer solo running, but on longer runs I generally hope to meet up with a few ladies in the neighborhood for at least several miles. Though they are slower runners and I have to adjust my pace, having conversation and a partner or two is worth it.

Much of long distance training is just simply getting used to the longer miles. When you become used to running a certain pace or certain mileage each run, then doing something different and new can seem impossible. By training your mind to get through this new phase, you’ll learn quickly to enjoy the longer time on your feet.

So I spent the long weekend at my mom’s house, and Sunday morning, after an eleven miler, came back all full of boundless energy, hope and anticipation to watch the Chicago Marathon – only to find that it COULD NOT be found on her television.

I get it to a wee little point – running is not as popular a sport as, say, football, which could be found all over the television.

Yes, I  understand more people watch football and therefore it is shown more, but my mom, who lives in a retirement community, has FOUR (not one, not two, not three, but FOUR!) ESPN channels on her television and guess how many carried the Chicago Marathon, even in parts?

NONE!

That’s right, notta. I had to continually check my cell phone for updates on the race since her low speed internet is soooo darn slow it makes me want to rip my fingernails out one at a time as I wait for a page to load.

I got very little about the race. What I did get came via my facebook running friends, who kept me posted.

I think this is a shame! Shame on ESPN! Why couldn’t they carry at least a portion of the race? There was other news on that day -  I heard about Tebow and the Gators numerous times, and yet no mention of one of the biggest marathons in the country!

Are you kidding me?

Now, runner friends, go out there and develop a running broadcast channel on which we can show the races. I will start one with you, if you want. We’ll show all those other people out there who refuse to mention running as a sport.

Off to the pool. I had 11 good miles yesterday and 6 good miles today with no knee pain. I think I’ll be doing Jacksonville December 20th. Anyone with me?!

Runners typically have rigid schedules. We say, “I run X number of miles on Monday, X number on Tuesday, Wednesday is an off day . . . ” and so on. Ask us what day it is and we will tell you by the number of miles we clocked. Did we do twenty? Must be a Saturday. Three? Tuesday.

Get in the way of our runs and we’re likely to rip your face off, right?

But, perhaps this isn’t the best way to be.

I learned this from experience.

When you are a parent you begin with pregnancy. During that time you believe that, miraculously, you will put everyone on a rigid schedule and they will stay that way.

Then the baby laughs in your face. You see, you are on baby’s schedule. And that never changes. If the baby is sick, you wake up all night. If the baby feels good, you get to sleep. If the toddler is teething, you’re up. If the toddler feels good, you sleep.

That is life in parenting.

Runners often believe they have to stick to this rigid schedule regardless of extenuating circumstances. Blizzard outside? Oh well, just bundle up more. Torrential downpour? Don’t go too far from home. Tornado? How fast can you run anyway?

In reality, we need to begin to understand that some flexibility in running is key. Flexible schedules can:

• Reduce our risks of injury
• Keep us healthy
• Ease our minds
• Add more to our running

If we run when we don’t feel well, chances are we are going to either get hurt or feel worse. Just a cold, no problem – run when we have a fever, potential issue. If our legs hurt and we run we may end up hurting them more. Yet we still feel we have to go. Ease back some, skip a day, and you will probably have a better run than if you tried to run through the pain.

If we are constantly punishing ourselves for not following our running pattern – we didn’t get in ten when we wanted, or we did not get to run on Saturday because the kids were sick – we’re going to be aggravated with running, our family, and ourselves.

Instead, if we ease up just a bit we may find that changing our schedule actually enhances our running performance. In the past few weeks I’ve had to skip several long runs and I’ve had to run half runs in morning, half in the evening. I’ve actually enjoyed this change of pace. I miss the long runs, but I can usually make them up – at least most of them – the following day. Or, if I can only get in 5 miles when I want to do 7, then I make up those other miles the next day.

My best friend is training for her first half marathon. She’s only run three miles up to this training point – when she got in seven and a half on Saturday. She’s asked for advice for a while now, and the one thing I tell her is this: Don’t be too hard on yourself. Do what you can, when you can. Don’t think so much about the schedule. If you can’t get the run in early in the morning, run at night. We sometimes think, “I’m not a day/night/outside/inside runner.” That’s not  true. We are runners! We can do anything! We  can switch to nights if we have to because our schedule wont’ allow for mornings that day. We can do a treadmill if it is raining outside. We can run outside if the gym is closed or we can’t get there. All you have to do is put on your shoes and give up this idea that we can only run if the stars are aligned and all is right with the world.

Face it, most days all is not right with the world – and we still get up and go.

As Nike says, just do it – regardless of when your ’schedule’ says you should.

During Disney marathon last year, I was running along happily enjoying the sites of Animal Kingdom when BAM! A shot of pain in my knee put me down, literally. I had to hobble the remaining six miles to the finish line afterwards, and I did so with tears in my eyes.

Believe me, when you train and train and train and then get injured on race day, there’s no way to be happy.

I spent a lot of time trying to determine the problem. Should I have gone to the doctor? Probably. Did I? No. Why? I was afraid I’d be told not to run.

Sigh.

I began with a foam roller and numerous hours of stretching after each run. And it helped.  After cutting back mileage along with these therapies I felt much better, and my knee did, too.

For a while.

Then, when I would get higher into mileage, it would start to ache, even when taking it slowly.

Over time, doing a lot of reading, I realized this: My hamstrings and quads, the muslces in the tops of my legs, were weak.

I joined the Y and one day while there had my friend show me how to use the machines in the machine room. I’ve never been a machine girl. I’m a runner, right? I scoffed at machines (imagine my face scoffing here).

But think of it this way:

Your legs have a variety of muscles.

They use certain of these muscles when running.

Others, not so much.

These muscles being used become the alpha males. They think they are king. They rule.

The little muscles: Not so much. There they are, all docile, just watching and trying to keep up.

Have you ever tried to keep up with a runner that was stronger or faster than you? For a long time? What happens at the end of that run, or several hours later? You feel like you want to die.

Your stronger muscles overtake your littler muscles, and in the meantime they pull things in wrong directions.

My hamstrings were so weak I could barely lift ten pounds with one foot! Ten!

My hamstrings were pulling my knee out of whack, creating pain all the way down my leg.

How do I know this? Trial and error. I started using the machines and the pain in my knee went away, even with increased distances.

A few weeks ago, I stopped going to the gym. My schedule got crazy and I didn’t go. Guess what? A five miler wound up with me in some pain in my hamstring and, ta da, my knee.

My friend, they are all related. You don’t have to build up huge muscles when running, but you should make sure that your muscles are balanced.

It is all about balance, isn’t it?

Keeping this in mind, work out both front and back leg muscles, not just one or the other. Again, it’s not about making them huge, it is about keeping them in balance. You want them to be able to work together when you run, not work against you.

A few great gym exercises to try to build up the hamstrings and quads include the following. I have tried lunges and squats at home, but they hurt my knee. I know this is because i am not doing them correctly. If you can do them correctly, they may help as well.

You can also speak with a sports doctor, physical therapist or a personal trainer to determine exercises that might help strengthen the leg muscles and improve any imbalances your muscles might have due to a running-only type schedule.

Good luck!

When you are running.

Or not.

Or not writing.

It has been ages since I have posted.

I don’t know why. I love my running blog. I like writing about running, and running, and running while writing, or writing while running . . . okay, maybe not, but you get my drift.

Yet i have not posted.

I hit a down turn this summer. Maybe it is the humidity – i hate it. Maybe I just needed to cut back mileage and stop being so damn, well, strict with my schedule.

So that is what I did.

I became more flexible. Less rigid.

And my running has vastly improved.

I will be writing again . . . and my next post will be about rigidity in scheduling – the ugliness of it all. Yes, there are good things about having a running schedule; but, quite honestly, sometimes it is best to just run when you want to run – or even if it is just when you can.

With two young kids, sometimes that is at night, sometimes in the morning. Sometimes that is running 10 miles hwen you thought three and three when you thought ten.

WIth young kids and running you learn one important lesson – running is good no matter when you get to it. You just have to get to it.

(Edit: Written on the 3rd, posted on the 4th)

Today I headed to the Y bright and early with the young ones. I couldn’t make it out of bed at 5 and slept until 6:15, which was too late to get in a good 4 to 5 miler, abs and arms workout before the kids woke up.

I am not one to get overly excited about a treadmill workout. This is my third or fourth since joining the gym and I’ve noticed a few things:

1. I get bored quickly and easily when running inside
2. I run too fast too soon when running inside
3. I burn out quickly . . . when running inside

I’m happy to report that today’s run was totally different. My plans: 4 miles. The end result: 5! And, I have to say, they were perfect! I started out at a good pace, then cranked it up the last few miles and finished strong. I also did ab and arm work in the weight room after the run.

I’m glad to see that the dreaded treadmill doesn’t have to be dreaded. The workout was so good I realized that it’s probably a great thing to mix up running outside and inside. Inside I can work on my pace better, because I am focused on the machine and what it says. Outside, though I have a Garmin on and I can see my pace and time, I tend to ‘drift’ mentally.

I like both of these – drifting and focusing – and I’m guessing that mixing workouts up this way is a great way to become stronger on runs.

There are times we need to drift, particularly on longer runs when we have nothing but time on our hands, or, well, our feet!

There are times we need to focus, like when we are racing. I also believe the treadmill can be a great way to condition the body. It shows us how to run a certain pace for a certain length of time. Outside we run varying speeds throughout the run – on a treadmill, you run what it is moving or you fall off, end of story.

If you aren’t mixing up your workouts between indoor and outdoor running, maybe you should try it out. If you dread the treadmill – try it a few times and see if you don’t find a bit of enjoyment in the different way it makes the body feel during a run.

Today I decided to swim laps in my pool during ‘quiet time’ since hubby was home and could watch over the kids as they rested.

I headed down around one and began lap swimming. Our pool is not huge, so I get about nine to ten strokes and have to turn around. It’s functional, though, and works out well in a bind when I don’t want to head over to the gym for a workout.

As I was resting between several laps, I heard this faint knock, knock, knock. I looked up at my bedroom window and saw there my oldest daughter, tapping lightly on the glass, holding up her thumb in a “Way to go mom!” salute.

At five, she understands the importance of exercise, and my need to do so on a pretty daily basis. She’s cheered me on at the finish line of several small races and one marathon, and she’s talked to me about running and her desire to do so when she’s older. We even ran a half mile race together last fourth of July.

And today there she was, cheering me on again. My biggest littlest fan. I love that kid. When I got in from laps she said, “Did you see me holding up my finger? I was saying, Way to go mom!”

I hope that she is always at the finish line to watch me cross, and I can’t wait until she is old enough to cross her own!

My workouts have been off this week. My husband is off work doing some renovations around the house so we’ve been staying up late and doing things together, like taking the kids to the movie one particularly sweltering day to escape the heat. I got in a twenty five minute swim today, I missed my biking yesterday, but my runs have been okay. Back to the gym in the morning, unless I get up early and run here. I think I may do that since I want to get in at least 5 and I hate the thought of 5 on the dreadmill! Though I’m getting more used to it, and enjoying it more, I certainly don’t want to have to do it for 45-50 minutes.

Basically I’m missing one biking this week and yoga last night; the biking I may try to make up tomorrow at some point since he  will be home again, and I need to continue my yoga each night, though that, too, has been off this week. I am considering myself on vacation and not being too hard on myself for missing these things. Life does go on, I see, when you don’t get in those workouts. It’s not the end of the world, right?

In non running news, I’m back to work. I just designed a unique wordpress themed site for a celebrity interviewer at www.intriguedshow.com. We are putting the finishing touches on the site this week, and I can’t wait to hear some of her interviews. I’ll reveal the name when the site goes live; I’m not sure she is ready for that just yet.

Happy Friday running! I’m hoping for a great 5 miler tomorrow AM.