Hope you had a nice weekend. Here is another widely anticipated My Dogs are Barking 5K training tip! Whether the My Dogs are Barking 5K is your first race or one of many you will do in 2013, we should start to think about what comes next…

 

Next week is the big day. Saturday September 21^st 2013 will be the My Dogs are Barking 5K followed by the fun-tastic Pet Fair. All to benefit one of the greatest causes, animals! But surely you cannot just stop there. You have (hopefully) been training for some weeks by now, and while the 5K next week is a great way to reward yourself for all your hard work, or a great way to test the waters in a friendly, local race; there is more. More running, more races and more fun! Aside from planning for the 2014 My Dogs are Barking 5K, we don’t want you to stop running. Ever J.

One of the things that both new and experienced runners have in common (and believe me, you would be surprised how many other things you share in common) are the benefits gained from keeping a running log. Why keep a running log? You don’t think we will soon forget the day you felt like you could fly you were running so well. And none of us feel we will ever forget the day our legs felt like we were dragging tree trunks. So why write it down? That’s simple. Keeping a training or running log is the best way to keep track of times, distances, favorite routes. What works best for you, and, not so much. We have so much else to keep track of in our lives, trust me, you may think you will remember a distance or a loop or some other detail. But you might not. If it’s written (or typed) in one place, you will always have it to refer back to. It will actually help make you a better runner. And the training log is older than you would believe. Ever hear of a man named Alfred Shrubb? Probably not. There are no cool Nike ads depicting him, there is no shoe brand named the Shrubb (although there should be, how cool!) and we never saw him on a box of Wheaties. But Alfred Shrubb was a running phenom from England in the late 1890’s-early 1900’s. He even went on to coach cross country at Harvard University. But one of his claims to fame was the detailed training logs he kept. This valuable information helped him write a couple of books on training. We aren’t expecting everyone to write a book on running, but keeping a training log, where you can be completely honest is going to give you such an advantage to just running and trying to remember it all. Know what Alfred Shrubb and the My Dogs are Barking 5K have in common? Cross Country. Well, kind of…Alfred Shrubb’s greatest love was cross country running. Our start and finish for the 5K as well as the Pet Fair location is the famed Derryfield Park in Manchester. For the born and raised NH runner, you know Derryfield Park. It’s known to have one of the most grueling cross country running courses in New England. People travel far and wide to race here each fall. Fortunately our 5K isn’t going to be on the grueling sections, but you can say that not only did you start and finish a 5K road race, you did it in an area rich with running history. Now get up, out the door, and run!

We hope you enjoyed a nice, long holiday weekend. Did you get a chance to get out and run? The correct answer is yes! J. What do you do before you run…

 

Back in the day (before cell phones and the internet even) we were encouraged to stretch really well before running. Coaches would frown upon you if you didn’t properly stretch. But guess what? Stretching before you warm up can actually CAUSE injuries, rather than preventing them. It’s important to warm up before starting your run. A fast paced walk, some careful lunges or high leg kicks. If you need to stretch out a particular muscle, warm up a bit and then stretch. Even more beneficial is stretching after the run. At that point your muscles are nice and warmed up and more flexible and it’s a safe point to stretch them out.

Have you been running all along, or did you start after signing up for this year’s My Dogs are Barking 5K? Either way, how about an easy workout? It’s a four letter word really; H-I-L-L. Running uphill may not be your favorite or easiest thing, but a hill work out does some amazing things for your running. It’s probably the one workout that has so many benefits. Turns out the best things in life aren’t free. If you want the rewards, you have to hit the hills.

But for our beginner runners (congratulations again! yay you!!!) before even starting your first hill workout, try taking your next run to a hillier course. Imagine a roller coaster of sorts, some up some down some up some down, this is an excellent way to prepare a beginner runner for a hill workout.

How do you run a hill workout? How the heck do you get up a hill? Well, here is another plug for running with your dog. I have a dog that will help me up a hill from time to time. Man’s/Women’s best friend indeed!

But if your dog looks to you for encouragement, or they stayed home all together, remember this;

·         Keep your back straight. Try not to bend over. I know it can be a struggle sometimes…

·         Head up. Keep your eyes focused up and ahead on the goal (the top of the hill).

·         Shorten your stride. No one is sprinting all out here, no need for a nice long stride. Keep them short and simple.

Mostly importantly, remember everything that goes up must come down. Hurray for downhill's.