Next Workout:  Saturday, Feb. 27, meet at 8:45 AM, workout at 9:00 AM
Temporary Location:  Sidewalk of South Hayes Street, in front of
Nordstrom, Arlington VA


Walk-to-Run Trainees:


Welcome to the eighth week of our program.


1)  Temporary Alternate Meeting Location for Sat. Feb. 27, 2010


We're going to meet again for another Saturday on the sidewalk of South 
Hayes Street, in front of the Fashion Center in Pentagon City.   [Right 
in front of Nordstrom's.]   This is the same place we met last Saturday.


I drove down to the Marina (our "normal" meeting location) yesterday.
The snow and ice are mostly gone from the trails leading out from the
parking lot.   But LBJ Memorial Grove, which we run through en route to
the footbridge, really took a hit in the blizzards earlier this month.
I counted at least a dozen large pine trees uprooted and laying on the
ground, with scores of tree limbs and branches both dangling above, and
on the ground.   Three large trees totally blocked the curving path to
that bridge, our walking/running route from the parking lot to the rest 
of the world.


While the Park Service did have a chipper/shredder at work clearing up
the debris, the high winds forecast for the next two days could bring
other partial or whole trees down.   Rather than teach you high hurdles 
, we'll meet at least one more time at Pentagon City.


Again, our temporary location is about one block South of the west-side 
exit of Pentagon City Metro (the exit for the Mall, not the one for 
Costco), since some of you still might find Metrorail easier
than driving.


But there is also ample parking for the Fashion Center (parking garage
behind the Mall - $1.50 for up to 2 hours, $2.00 for up to 10 hours on
Saturdays), and also, surface and underground parking for the adjacent
Pentagon Row shopping center.  For driving directions, please cf:


http://www.yelp.com/biz/pentagon-city-mall-arlington
http://www.pentagonrow.com/directions/


As we found previously, the distance around that large block just
*happens* to be very close to an even 1.0 mile[!]:


http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=3469946


So this Saturday, we'll meet in front of Nordstrom's on South Hayes, and
circle the block on the sidewalk four times (3 minutes walking for every
2 minuted running) for our 4-mile workout.


I will ask Coach Bev to lead out the group this week, with Coach Humaira
following up at the back.  I will be somewhere in between, and will be
trying to walk and run a bit with most of the trainees in the middle.



2)  Transition to 3 minutes walking, two minutes running


This Saturday, and for the next three weeks, we will be walking for only 
three minutes, and running for two minutes, during every five-minute 
cycle.   Please do this interval scheme on all your Saturday and midweek 
workouts.


You may find that it's a bit tougher to do two minutes of continuous 
running than the single minute we had been doing up to now.  Well, it's 
supposed to be tougher.  We're now running twice as much as
we used to.  But like any training progression, the new step will
always seem hard until your body adapts to it.


That's why we do the same 3 minutes of walking/2 minutes of running in 
your midweek workouts.  Repetition of the task will slowly adapt your 
body, so in another few weeks, running two minutes won't seem such a 
chore.  That's when you're ready to step it up another notch.


Once you can run two (2) minutes continuously on a regular basis, you
are half-way through our training program.  The most I will ask you to
run in this program (in the latter part of April) is 4 minutes 
continuously, with a 1-minute walk break, which is a modality you could 
keep up the rest of your life.  You are already half-way there.


If you find the two minutes of running particularly difficult, please
make sure you aren't doing them too fast.  The running pace you should
strive for is a "conversational" pace, one in which you can communicate
with another person using complete sentences.  If you are too winded
from your running to gasp more than a word or two, you're doing those
running intervals way too fast.


Remember, this is an intro/rehab training program.  Speedwork is NOT in
the equation, until you have more running experience under your belt,
when your body is fit to take it.  Repetition of the workout, and 
consistency, will train your body to be able to do it comfortably, with 
less risk of injury than speedwork.


Slow down your running segments (for now), and work on increasing the 
length of continuous runs, and the total distance you can run/walk in 
each workout, as our schedule provides.  Don't workout faster or longer 
than the schedule dictates - your body still needs to adapt to each new 
plateau, before you can move to the next.



3)  Preventing Running Injuries


And if you have any aches or pains that are more than transient, please
let Bev, Humaira or me know. We will first cross-examine the usual
suspects (wrong shoes, skipping the midweek runs, running too fast,
etc.) and if necessary, refer you to medical professionals.


As I mentioned earlier, we often go through life compensating for a
physical imperfection. [Those of us who are bio-mechanically perfect
are either current or retired professional athletes.] We do the
compensation so much, we don't notice either the imperfection or our
body's compensation for it.


But when you add the stress of 2.5 times your body weight on your foot 
with each running stride, the compensation sometimes breaks down, and 
that's when we may need help.


ANY sudden increase in stress on your body (too much faster, too much 
longer a running interval, too much longer a total workout distance, 
hills,  extreme heat/humidity, extreme cold, etc.) can tax your joints, 
tendons, ligaments, working muscles, or even your bones.   To minimize 
chance of injury, you must slow down whenever you exercise under any 
added stress, e.g. new longer running interval, or too little sleep the 
night before.


If speed, duration of interval, duration of workout, etc., etc. are all 
independent variables, increase only one variable at a time - never 
increase two or more simultaneously.   For example, don't try to run 
HILLS, FASTER, LONGER, in HIGH HEAT AND HUMIDITY.  Pick just one of 
those stresses, or if you have to run on a hot,humid day, do a faster 
pace, OR a longer distance, OR hills - but not more than one of those 
options.


Or if it's a really windy day (or a really cold, rainy day) you may have 
to dial down the pace as well.   The "ideal" running weather is 
(supposedly) 54 degrees F., with no wind and a slight overcast.   You 
need to compensate for any temp higher or lower.


Run faster over shorter distances, slower over longer distances.   One 
stress at a time.


But if you do all that, and still need help for an injury, doesn't 
necessarily mean your running days are over. Not by a long shot.


There are many of us (your coaches included) who use orthotics, braces, 
different types of running shoes, cross-training, physical therapy, and 
other medical interventions, and keep on running. Why? Because the cost 
and inconvenience of the help we receive is small potatoes compared to 
the physical and mental benefits of continued physical exercise.


In a future article, I will review treatment of minor (and not so minor) 
running injuries.


But until then, if you notice more than temporary aches and pains as we 
increase the length of running segments, please let one of the coaches 
know, and we will try to help you.



4)   Saturday March 6


Next Saturday, March 6, Coach Bev will lead the workout.  Laura and I
are moving into our new home, and while I hope to get in some running
amidst the running around, I won't be able to join you in the morning.


But I will write that week's newsletter, and I will be working with Bev
to assess the conditions at the Marina.  Hopefully, by March 6, the ice 
and tree carnage will be gone, and you'll be able to enjoy a workout on 
the trails from the Marina.


Until then, your midweek workouts become even more important the more 
running we do.


And if you have any questions or concerns, I will have email access at 
least through Friday, March 5, so please write.  Thank you!




Again, we're meeting this Saturday, Feb. 27, at 9 AM in front of 
Nordstrom's at Pentagon City, to do four (4) laps of the block around 
the Shopping Malls as our workout.  If you get turned around, please 
call me at 703-371-5171.


Happy trails!



Coach John


John H. Steitz
RRCA Certified Running Coach
USATF Level 1 Certified Track and Field Coach
Marathon Charity Cooperation
703-371-5171
http://www.mc-coop.org/walktorun/