Intro to Running

“What kind of crazy nut would spend two or three hours a day just running?” -Pre (This is how Steve reacted in Junior High when he saw the High School Cross country team running)

The cool thing about running is that all it takes is a pair of running shoes and a road. It’s not hard to start running, but what do you do when you don’t understand what all the other runners are talking about? What do PR and BQ stand for? And what in the world is a fartlek? That sounds nasty.
Hopefully, this is informative enough to help a beginning running be more confident when talking to other runners about running.

PR – Personal Record
BQ – Boston Qualifying time
WR – World Record
10% rule - Don't increase your daily or weekly mileage by more than 10% of the previous amount
Bandit – A runner who did not register/pay for the race and should not be running the course. Their time and place will not count.
Chip time – As most big races they’ll give you a chip to put on your shoe. This is to start your race time when you cross the finish line, not when the race gun sounds. Sometimes it can take up to 10 min to get to the starting line.
Cotton – Not what you want to wear when on long runs. Wear moisture wicking material
Clock time – Your race time based on when the race gun sounds.
Fartlek – Swedish word for speed play; includes faster running mixed with slower running
Intervals/Repeats – A workout where a set distance is run repeatedly with a recovery jog between; (ex- 6 x 400 m with a 400 m jog between)
LSD – Not lysergic acid diethylamide or Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds. It’s long, slow distance to improve endurance.
Glucosamine – A supplement to improve joint health.
Master – Runner over 40
Negative Splits – Running the second half of a race faster than the first.
Overpronation – The excessive inward roll of the foot before toe-off.
Pronation – The natural, inward roll of the foot; pronation begins when heel contacts the ground, the foot then rolls inward to absorb shock and transfer weight to the ball of the foot as it prepares to push off.
Supination/Underpronation – The lack of sufficient inward motion of the foot; highly cushioned, flexible shoes are recommended to absorb shock and allow the foot to pronate naturally
R.I.C.E. – Rest, Ice, Compress, Elevate. This is what you should do to help recover from minor injuries.
General rules to be a courteous runner:
At a road race (Especially at smaller races):
Listen to the announcer. Know the course. Don’t suddenly stop at the water station because another runner could run into you. As you’re coming into the chute, pull the tag off your bib number and hand it to the volunteer (unless your race is employing chip time).
Always remember: HAVE FUN!
Some info in this blog was taken from these sites:
http://www.howtobefit.com/glossary-of-running.htm
http://www.valleyforgestriders.com/training_corner/running_terminology.htm

Training:
M: 3 mi (on the treadmill), 25:10
W: 3 mi (on the dreadmill), 24:58
F: Studying for my test in Saturday morning
S: 5 mi after the test, 40:35

I've also started a new periodized weight program I found online (I'll try to find the website). I've completed the four weeks of core training and am now working on four weeks of total body strength. I'm pretty sore, but I'm looking forward to seeing how this helps with my overall running economy. I'll keep you posted.