Monthly Archives: November 2022

5 Ways to Stay Fit When You Travel

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Are you traveling over these upcoming holidays?  Yes?  That means time on the road, possibly in airports and definitely away from home.  It can be very easy to get away from your home based training plan when you travel and that might spell trouble for your spring goal.  Luckily, there are five simple things you can do to stay on track no matter where you are.travel

Pack for activity.  With on demand workouts available 24-7 there’s no reason you can’t train where ever, whenever.  Resistance bands and tubes are small enough to fit in any carry on so there go your excuses.  If your bulky running shoes won’t fit in that carry on, wear them.  Same goes for a heavy cold weather coat.

Schedule activities.  Find out what there is to do in your destination.  Being in a new place is the perfect time to try something new.  You might check out a barre class in vibrant New York City, go for a horseback ride in Wyoming, walk through wine country in Napa or scuba dive in Honolulu.  Canoeing, skiing, dancing and even a long sight seeing walk will keep you moving forward.  Even if it’s not your preferred mode of working on your fitness, any athletic activity will help you prevent a loss of fitness.

Use your hotel.  Yes, they’re usually small, but hotel gyms give you a little space to move around.  Most hold stationary bikes, treadmills, ellipticals and weight machines and some have quite modern, state of the art facilities.  If there’s a pool big enough for laps or pool running, dive in.  Any hotel that’s more than one story features a set of stairs, don’t be afraid to use them.

Keep a food journal.  Remember the 80-20 rule and find healthy choices while you travel.  There’s nothing wrong with an indulgence now and then, we’re only human after all, but remember that too much can set your training back.  Keeping a diary of what you’re eating can help you realize if you’ve gone too far off track simply by bringing awareness.

Expect to have a tough first few days back.  Your body might still be recovering from jet lag or overindulging in food and drink.  Your muscles need a chance to get back in gear, too.  Stay hydrated, especially if you’re flying (8 ounces of water for every hour in the air) and try to plan for a recovery day once you’ve arrived back at home.

Coach Meredith

Workout of the Month: Hill Work

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Every runner loves hills. Maybe. Love them or hate them, every runner needs hill work. If you’re racing a hilly course, like New York or Boston, practice and skill running hills is key to race day success. If you want to get faster, stronger and fitter, hills will help.

hill work

Why to do it: Hill work makes you durable. It makes you fast. And it improves your form. The extra power required run maintain your pace running uphill also makes you strong.

Your feet are landing higher then where they started. As a result, that means extra knee drive and generating power from your forefoot. It makes muscles work harder by firing more fibers in a faster sequence than flat ground. That promotes good form and helps muscles remember it. Good form plus strong legs means faster race times.

When to do it: Hill work is useful in every phase of a training cycle because there are short hills, long hills, steep hills and gradual hills. This makes hill work greatly variable and useful at all points in a cycle. Working on specific endurance? Steady long hills. Speed and strength? Short, hard hills. Beginners should start low and slow while more advanced runners can go steeper, longer and harder.

How to do it: Step one is finding the right kind of hill. It might not be what you expect, either. Maybe surprisingly, bridges, parking garages and treadmills can all serve as places to practice climbing. Consequently, if it’s just been raining and you don’t have spikes, a big grassy hill might not be the best choice. Make sure your footwear matches the location and conditions of your hill work.

Finally, if you’re looking to add hills to your training program, seek help from a qualified professional before hitting them too hard. They can wear out fast twitch muscles and leave your next workout lacking.

Coach Meredith

What Did You Say? Running Terms for the Non-Runner

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Lots of runners have friends who aren’t.  In spite of the fact that one of us might be hanging out with people who could care less about your latest long run, there’s only one thing we like more than actually running.  Talking about running.  To make sure your friends can stick with you, give them Team ECRP‘s basic list of running terms to guide them.

Race Pace – This is the pace at which a runner tackles a race.  It varies with race distances since we run faster for a 5k than we do for a marathon but the idea is always the same.running terms

LSD – This does not reference the narcotic and there’s no hallucinating here.  It stands for Long Slow Distance run and is a staple of all training plans. The one your runner friends stay in on a Friday night for.  Longest run of the week, the LSD is a weekend staple.

Fartlek – Swedish for speed play, fartleks aren’t only fun to say, they’re fun to do.  Used by the best runners in the world, these constantly varied outings are an important part of training at any level.

Bonk – Also known as hitting the wall, it typically happens around Mile 20 of the marathon.  Bonking is the moment your body starts to quit on you.  You’re out of fuel, energy and the final 10k is pure willpower.  It is possible to avoid, however, through proper mental and physical training.

PR/PB – Personal Record in the US and Personal Best both here and abroad this stat is a runner’s most prized.  It’s their fastest time a given race distance. A runner’s PR is different for every race length so make sure you know them all.

Foot Strike – Runners don’t strike like unions, they strike the ground with every step.  It’s also been hot topic of debate lately. Often equated with another running error known as over striding, foot strike is not the concern it was once thought to be.

DNF/DFL – Did Not Finish or Dead F*****G Last.  There are a million reasons you might DNF a race.  It could be an injury during the last few weeks of training.  Bad weather popping up before you’re finished.  Digestive issues from the pasta dinner has been a culprit.  The truth is most runners have had one.  DFL, however, is less common.  Since someone has to be last, races usually have a sweeper.  To make sure no one is left behind the sweeper stays behind the final runner for the duration of the race.

BQ – The ultimate, bucket list goal for many runners.  BQ is one of the most hallowed running terms.  Short for Boston Qualify, it means you’ve earned the right to run in America’s most famous Patriot’s Day race.  Achieving a BQ is an incredible accomplishment and often a dream come true for any marathon runner.

And this just covers the basics.  There are a ton of running terms out there to learn if you want to.  Luckily, if you take these with you next time you go support a friend or family member at a race no one will know you’re a newbie!

Coach Meredith