By Suzy Oglesby
With the City to Surf just around the corner its time to hit the pavement now and get yourself into training mode! While only a small percentage of entrants in the race suffer from adverse events, a good training program can help to ensure that you avoid any problems and can prepare those muscles for the strenuous third of a marathon race.
For those of you who have never competed in a distance event before and have not been a regular runner, it is best that you train either to walk the race or to combine intervals of running and jogging. The main training priorities for you will be working your way up to the distance – 14km is more than just a stroll around the block! The biggest challenge for most people is known as “heart break hill” which is as tough it sounds.
One of the best tools to help you map out some walking or running paths and find some good hills to attempt is an online website calledwww.mapmyrun.com. This interactive website will allow you to work out exact distances, pace and elevation for different routes. In addition you can also find paths in your local area that other people have used for given distances.
For those of you who run regularly (or have a bet going with friends), it is time to put in the hard yards now. One of the most essential components of an endurance runner’s program that is most often neglected is “anaerobic training”. This should be included in addition to your distance runs. Anaerobic training involves sprint work, namely interval training, where you perform repeated sprints with timed rest periods in between. The aim here is to build up your tolerance to fatigue and develop your body’s ability to recover quickly from these intense bursts.
I hear you asking why you would be including sprint work into a long distance running program? The answer is simple. Anaerobic training aims to improve your tolerance to lactic acid. Lactic acid is the limiting factor that determines the maximum pace you can maintain for long periods of time. Elite runners pace themselves at a speed that is just below what is known as their lactic threshold. Lactic threshold refers to the point at which your energy productions shifts from predominantly aerobic (involving oxygen) to predominantly anaerobic (without oxygen). You will notice that you can only maintain a sprinting pace for a short period of time as your body produces lactic acid which causes muscle pain! If you run at a slower pace, where the body is able to effectively buffer the lactic acid using available oxygen, you can run a lot longer.
On a final note make sure that your nutritional requirements are being met by considering the increase in training volume and intensity. So dust off those trainers and start your training program now to make sure you are properly prepared for the big race. Good luck!
