Coach Amy’s Running Tips
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Get excited Roadrunners! We are going back to Cincinnati for the Flying Pig Marathon this spring. Race is May 1st. Hotel is Hyatt Regency. Registration is open and fees go up Oct 30th. The ONLY way to get a hotel for this race is to reserve through the marathon registration process. Register here.
Taper, taper, taper! We will do a few pick-ups and some race pace running on a hilly 1.5 mile course a couple of times and then we call it good! Meet at 5:30 p.m. at the hill!
Friend of Mo, Mo, Jen, Danille and Jamie. Not pictured Mary and Allison P. Thank you to Amy S. who came out early to take the group pic and cheer all the KC runners!
Whoa! RRKC represented this weekend at the races!
Brett PR'd at the Des Moines half in 1:44:07 and Danielle PR'd with a 1:55 at the KC half! All those dreaded speedwork sessions and your dedication paid off! Mo helped a friend take a minute off her half time for a PR. Allison P finished in 1:33. Mary enjoyed the KC half for a training run as did Jamie as she prepares for NYC marathon. And Jen - wow, she has overcome major obstacles to complete the full at KC - not an easy course!
I also want to shout out to a few of my patients and those who take running specific strength classes with me at S+S. They should be proud of all they have done to overcome injury and/or improve their success through strength training: Scott successfully paced runners to a sub 3:30 after breaking 2 hours in a marathon two weeks prior! Mike broke 2 hours and Amy L finished in 2:05! Monica took 12 minutes of her half. She says, "Thank you for all the laughs and help over these past few months. It's made a huge difference for me!"
Amy S. Chicago Marathon 2015
Congratulations to Amy S. and Mary A. Amy ran Chicago, her first marathon in several years. Her goal was to cross the finish line healthy and in under four hours. She did it! Mary ran the Run the Burg Half and placed fifth woman overall with a time of 1:51. Way to go ladies!
RRKC racers represented at KC and DesMoines this weekend as well. We are waiting on a few results...podium update to come!
Two happy ladies at intervals!
Whoa! It is time! KC is tomorrow! Good luck to Mike B, Jen K, Jamie, Mo, and Danielle. And to my friends and patients who don't train with us who are also racing the streets of KC Amy L, Greg F, Aaaron and Scott - who is pacing the 3:30 marathon! Also, wishing a great race for Brett who runs DesMoines half on Sunday. Go get it runners!
For those still in training, we are closing in! This weekend starts our taper in earnest. We are set up for 16 miles this weekend. Meet at Foos 6:30 AM. This is a KEY run. It is important for its distance but also it's quality. There is not ample time to recover from it if you run the full 16 at your goal race pace. The goal is to run the middle 8 miles at race pace and the rest 1 min - 1.5 min/mile slower.
IF you are nursing small little niggling injuries or you have not been getting in consistent 20's with us this fall, then you may consider running a slightly shorter distance of 14 miles. If you need help deciding, please touch base with Coach Amy.
The rest of the week we are enjoying a total weekly mileage decrease of about 75%. We have one more speed session on Tuesday night at 5:30 pm. This is also key to maintaining sharpness and keeping your body set on race pace.
Racers: It's taper time! Woohoo! You may have a few short, easy runs that feel a little slow or sluggish. That is normal. Don't worry. Trust the training and resist the urge to go for a hard or long run. You are ready! Focus this week on staying healthy - wash your hands, eat well and get adequate sleep.
Those still in training for upcoming races: As long as you are injury free, keep up with the training plan and its intensity. Running on tired legs is part of it, but you shouldn't have pain or a series of sluggish runs. Contact Coach Amy if you are having issues with either of these things or if you have questions. Focus on clean runs with good form this week!
Those who raced this weekend: First, congratulations. Stay tuned, we will post our podium news soon. Focus on recovering: good nutrition, keep moving and ROLL . You should have a post race recovery training schedule. If not, contact Coach Amy ASAP.
