Coaching Archives - foultips.run

Building Your Aerobic Base

by Adolfo Salgueiro | Aug 27, 2024 | Article, Coaching, Reflection, Science

By Coach Adolfo Salgueiro

Let\’s start by stating something basic that even veteran runners tend to forget: The Marathon is a 99% aerobic event. Yes, even Ekiud Kipchoge and the East Africans who run around him run the marathon as an aerobic endeavor.

Having a solid aerobic base to sustain continuous action for 26.2 miles is one of the keys to a successful marathon. And when I state \”successful,\” I don\’t mean setting a PR; I mean finish. Sure, we all know someone who has finished a marathon without training, but those are outliers, and most of those go through a sufferfest during their race. So, don\’t take any cues from them.

Race at 100% but only train at 80% (Photo Pexels)

Your aerobic base is the cornerstone of your long-distance running journey. Think of it as a pyramid\’s broad, solid foundation, supporting the peak over which speed and performance are built.

Developing an aerobic base requires time, work, and patience. It covers hundreds, if not thousands, of miles and comes from years of engaging in activities that keep your heart rate elevated for long periods of time. Many runners achieve this base through previous activities in sports like soccer or swimming, while others have honed it just by running over the years. A strong aerobic base is essential to improving your speed and excelling in endurance events.

Running beyond the correct rate of perceived effort, performing all your long runs at race pace every single week or running your repetitions and intervals with all your might are not conducive to developing a solid aerobic base. It is counterproductive and not only won\’t make you faster in the long run, it may lead to injury.

The aerobic base can be developed by:
• Running consistently
• Learning where your conversational pace lies
• Accepting you must go slow to run fast
• Trusting the process

As your aerobic base develops, you will:
• Become a more efficient runner
• Become a faster runner
• Improve the rate of lactate removal
• Improve muscle and energy output

Train at 80%, Race at 100%

Running every rep at max effort is not conducive to sustainable running (Photo: Caique Araujo, Pexels)

I firmly believe you shouldn\’t go all out on your training runs, drills, and reps. Since your body needs to recover to realize the adaptations of your efforts and still keep the training moving forward, ending a rep or a training session on the verge of collapse is not the best practice. When you do so, you put your body through extreme stress, which will require a longer period of recovery. It would be best if you ended the rep knowing you could have gone even faster. Finish the workout knowing you could have gone an extra rep or two is a better strategy.

When you train for a race, that effort is in the future; you are working towards that goal. This means you train at today\’s fitness level, not at the level you expect to be at race time. Focus on the prize.

Once race day is here, after a tapering period during which you are recovered and ready to go, you give it your all on race day. You are not saving anything for tomorrow. You invested your mind, body, and resources through a test of fitness and will. Then, you cross the finish line at the edge of your endurance limit.

In Conclusion

Running slow is counterintuitive. It feels weird when you know you could be running faster. It takes practice to go slow. Anyone can run itself to the ground by sprinting every day and racing their training runs. There is no merit in that. What takes guts is to accept that you must be patient, play the long game, and be willing to defer your gratification so you can enjoy your running for a very long time.

Sure, these are fundamental concepts for most runners, but we all need to be reminded of the obvious at one point or another to remain grounded during a difficult training cycle.

Feel free to like this post or leave a comment in the box below.

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Thoughts from a Coaching Role Model

by Adolfo Salgueiro | Apr 23, 2024 | Article, Coaching, Opinion, Personal, Reflection

By Coach Adolfo Salgueiro

The way to grow as a coach is through experience, reading, listening to people who know more than you and asking them questions. Obtaining a coaching certification is important, but it is not what makes you a competent one. It is just a steppingstone into a fascinating world of learning and experimentation. Maintaining curiosity alive is what has made the coach I am today.

One of the most influential people in my coaching journey has been Steve Magness. He is knowledgeable, curious, experienced, science based, and a clear communicator. He is also generous, sharing his expertise and experience through many channels.

Steve Magness is one of the most influential people in my coaching journey

Magness is a globally recognized authority on performance and the author of influential books such as \”Do Hard Things\” and \”Peak Performance\”. His work delves into the intricacies of resilience and the science behind true toughness. Beyond his literary contributions, Magness has coached an array of clients ranging from professional sports teams to executives and artists, emphasizing a holistic approach to performance enhancement. His expertise has garnered attention from publications such as The New York Times and The Guardian, reflecting his profound impact on the realms of elite sport and mental performance.

In a social media world filled with shallowness and stupidity, Magness\’ feeds stand out as an oasis of enlightenment. I\’ve curated three of his posts that encapsulate concise running wisdom. May they prove as beneficial to you as they have been to me.

On Greatness

What does it take to be great?

A relentless drive, a fiery competitiveness?

Yes, but the same thing that makes you great can be your downfall.

The greats balance it out:

– Caring deeply but being able to let go

– Harnessing aggression but in a controlled way

– A desire to win, to achieve, but with enough intrinsic motivation to keep them from chasing.

Learn how to become great without falling apart.

Steve Magness

My take: You have a running goal? Great! Focus and work for it. Work hard. Give it the best chance to become reality. It is OK to want it badly. Nothing wrong with it. But you can’t let it rule your life. Especially if running is not your profession. Don’t let a running goal ruin your life. Your family will still love you if you are not a Sub-2 half marathoner. If your friends don’t value you unless you are a Sub-3 marathoner, it is time to change friends. Maintain perspective.

On the training process:

The 5 Rules of Training:

1. The boring stuff is your foundation. Do that consistently for a long time.

2. Let it Come, Don’t Force it.

3. Take the Next Logical Step. Don\’t skip many steps.

4. You lose what you don’t train. You are either building or maintaining something.

5. Train the individual, not the system.

Steve Magness

My take: Endurance training is a journey that demands trust and patience. While the allure of speed may be captivating, it\’s the establishment of a solid foundation what truly matters. Constructing this base entails a methodical yet sometimes monotonous progression through various training stages. Each one is an essential step for improvement. Your coach is not hiding the shortcuts.

On Competitiveness

We’re used to thinking of competitiveness as either you got it, or you don’t.

But research paints a different picture. It depends where that competitiveness comes from.

Hyper-competitiveness is when we try to maintain our sense of self through winning. We seek validation through the external.

Self-developmental competitiveness occurs when the internal matters more than the external. It’s about growing through competing, discovering who we are, what we’re capable of & how to improve.

Steve Magness

My take: We all know that runner whose self-worth is linked to his/her PRs. Most likely you know someone who rather end up assisted by paramedics than not make it to the podium. Unless you are in the Olympics, it is not worth missing your kids’ wedding. It is not about not making sacrifices for what you want, it is about not neglecting your life, health, and family in exchange for a PR.

If you have any thoughts, please share them in the comment box below.

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The Cardinal Sin for the Novice Runner

by Adolfo Salgueiro | Mar 12, 2024 | Article, Coaching, Reflection, Science

By Coach Adolfo Salgueiro

While the mistakes a novice runner makes as he/she breaks into the fascinating and addictive world or running are plentiful, there is only one, as a coach, I consider the Cardinal Sin. The one that will lead you to breakdown, overtraining and injury. This sin is comprised of three elements, which when combined become a dangerous cocktail: Too much, too fast, too soon.

If you don’t allow your tissues to recover before you do it again, they will break down and you will get injured (Image by Copilot for Windows)

And, before you think: ”I am a seasoned runner, so it doesn’t apply to me”, know that this sin also applies to coming back from injury. And you know that unless you hit the genetic lottery, you will eventually injure something.

As a novice you are so excited about the sport and your progress that you feel invincible. You can’t be stopped. It is a wonderful feeling. But there is so much to learn about shoes, science, mechanics, and the latest tech gear that something will go awry.

You might end up with the wrong shoes. You might forget strength or cross training because you’re focused on racking up more miles. You may succumb to bad mechanics. You might start comparing yourself to your friends, your neighbors or even the world elites. Each issue will bring its own set of consequences.

Too much, too fast, too soon is the cardinal sin of the novice runner because it will affect their recovery and thus, their adaptation to training. It will negate the gains. It will get them overtrained, burned out and could lead to overuse injuries. Do I need to say more?

Let’s break down the elements of this “Cardinal Sin”:

Too Much: The progress curve for the novice runner is very steep. The more you run, the easier it becomes. You feel you can run longer, faster, and more frequently. While this is true, your body is not ready for the wear and tear of the constant pounding, so it needs more time to recover and adapt. Recovering so you can do it again is what “being fit” means. Running is a journey that may last a lifetime as long as you manage it properly. It requires patience and wise execution. If you don’t, your running life will be painful and short.

A long and successful career in running is in your hand. Manege it properly (Image by Copilot for Windows)

Too Fast: Running slow so you can run fast is a counter intuitive thought. But the concept has been proven repeatedly. The era of GPS watches and social media oversharing have pushed us to thinking that recovery runs, or God forbid a bad run, are shameful elements in our training. That taking a day off is a sign of weakness. What will our followers think? So, we refuse to slow down. Inevitably, the progress curve will flatten. If it didn’t, we would all eventually break a world record. And that’s not going to happen. So, take it easy on easy days. That’s the exact reason they’re labeled as “easy”.

Too Soon: Ligaments, tendons, cartilage, bones, and muscles must adapt to the pounding of running. This means they need to repair themselves from all the micro-tears caused by the constant percussion. Setting up our bodies to become an effective auto-repair shop needs time and purposeful effort. If you are planning to check an item off your bucket list and move on, you might be able to get away with it. If you plan to run for a lifetime, you don’t need to run all your distances and PRs in the first week, month or season. Give it time. You have it.

My running experience of several decades allows me to insist that you understand that accomplishing your running goals takes time. A lot of time. The old clichés “it is not a sprint; it is a marathon”, or “it is a journey, not a destination” fit in perfectly into this narrative.

Trust the process, be patient, keep it easy on easy days and be constant. While running injuries will affect most runners during our careers, the better prepared we are to confront them, the faster they’ll heal. Especially if we set up a solid base from the start.

Any personal stories you would like to share with the readership? Please do so in the box below.

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Overcoming Runners Data Overload

by Adolfo Salgueiro | Nov 28, 2023 | Article, Coaching, Opinion, Reflection

By Coach Adolfo Salgueiro

I originally published this blog post about three years ago under the title “The Trap of Information Overload”. I have coached many new runners since and one of the constants I’ve observed is how they get sucked into the need to track irrelevant parameters just because their watches display them. This is regardless of whether they understand what such parameters are actually measuring. Thus, I have decided to rerun this post, with a few updates. I hope you find it useful.

\"\" — Is this you while checking your watch during or after every run?

Let’s start by stating that I see nothing wrong with being on Strava, having an Instagram account to share your runs, or checking Facebook every so often to see what your running buddies are up to. It is great to live in an era where we can be in contact with people we haven’t seen in decades, stay connected with that cousin who moved to another country, or your buddies from elementary school you rarely have the chance to see anymore.

It is great to make social media acquaintances with people you\’ve never met in person. I follow a Dutch runner named @mistermarathon on Instagram, who follows me back. When I visited Amsterdam a few years back, he took me for a running tour of the city; we had coffee at the Rijksmuseum and had a great talk. A few years later, he visited Florida, and even though I was injured and couldn’t run, we met for coffee and had another enjoyable conversation. It was great!

But there must be a limit. The data overload from social media, from our watches, from WhatsApp groups, and from measuring up to every stranger who follows our social channels is stealing the joy from many a runner. We should run because we like it. So, if something is stealing our bliss, it must go; or at least, its presence must be adjusted.

Yes, a pre-run picture with your buddies is cool, but if you missed it, you could still run. Skipping the recording of one run because your watch has no battery is not an excuse to miss a scheduled training. Checking your favorite elite runner on Strava and matching their training is a recipe for injury. Thinking that an ultrarunner in Germany, Australia, or Argentina is your buddy because he likes your posts on a regular basis is the prelude for a letdown. Wanting to run from New York to Los Angeles because so-and-so did it, is insanity.

Unless you know what a parameter is measuring, let it go!

It all starts with regulating the consumption of information we get from our GPS watches. It is wonderful to have all the information we could possibly need at a wrist flip. But, with certain exceptions dictated by a specific segment of your training program, the usefulness of such information is relatively innocuous. It is just a reflection of what you are doing, not what you are doing. It is not your worth as an athlete or as a human being. You don’t have to pause the watch because you hit a red light, or because you stopped at the water fountain. You don’t have to check your cadence or vertical oscillation every mile unless you are specifically working on it. And don’t get me started on VO2Max: If you don’t know what it measures, don’t dwell on it. You get the point.

I am amazed by the data that the watch keeps track of. NASA didn’t have such access to astronauts on the Moon. Most of it is great for the analysis of my training, for measuring my progress, or for keeping historical data. But your watch should just serve as a recorder of your performance, not direct it.

The more I use Strava or Garmin Connect, the more I’m impressed by what they can do, but I don’t follow or stalk people I don’t know. If I want to know what a friend is doing, I call him or text her. I don’t need to know what Kelvin Kiptum is doing every day, let alone compare his progress to mine. I don’t need kudos from 50 strangers to validate my run.

Theodore Roosevelt, the 26th President of the United States, once said: “Comparison is the thief of joy”, and I agree 100% with him. Equaling it is part of human nature, and the right dosage of it may be healthy. But if we want to enjoy OUR running, we need to concentrate on what WE are doing and what WE can control. WE must center OUR running life on OUR progress, OUR failures, OUR injuries, and OUR parameters.

Most of the data is useless at the time we are running, anyway. It is afterward that we can learn something from it and make the necessary adjustments. If you list the top 100 reasons why you run, I bet that “to show up Alex in Strava”, “to have more Instagram followers than Maria,” or “to improve my likes on Facebook” won’t make the list. So, get back to basics and take advantage of the exciting tech tools available to you, but don’t become a slave to them.

Let me know your thoughts in the box below.

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From Zero to Marathoner in One Year

by Adolfo Salgueiro | Nov 14, 2023 | Article, Coaching, Reflection

By Coach Adolfo Salgueiro

A year ago, Grace P. had never run before. I am sure she tried to catch a bus or get refuge from the rain at some point, but never what we picture when we think of a runner.

She is friends with my wife and on a fateful October day of last year, we were invited to a small gathering at her house. I wasn’t too keen on spending a Saturday afternoon with people I don’t know but there are certain sacrifices a husband must make. Grace’s husband was wearing Brooks shoes, so to make small chitchat I asked if he was a runner. “I only run when Grace wants to hit me”, he joked back.

Still looking strong and happy at mile 18 of the Marine Corps Marathon.

Then my wife stated that I was a running coach and Grace jumped in saying something along the lines of: “I’ve always wanted to run, but I can’t get very far without getting tired. I see my neighbor running all the time, but I can’t run like her”. So, I told her I was the head coach for the City of Tamarac Run Club. “If you are at X park at X time on X day, I will get you running”. And she showed up. And kept on showing up. Last October 29th, she became a marathoner.

Three or 4 weeks into the training, on a cold and rainy night, everyone bowed out of the run through our chat. Except Grace. So, I showed up. She was scheduled to run three miles and at two, in the midst of a downpour, I told her it was OK to cut it short. With a huge smile, she told me she was completing her workout. And she did.

That was the specific moment when I realized that she caught the running bug and that she had the talent and drive necessary to achieve great things in this sport. Her training improved so fast that in less than two months of running, she skipped the 5K and went straight to a 10K race, in which she ran 1:00:13. A month later she ran her first 10 miler and another month later her first half marathon in 2:18. Within another month she set two more PRs in the distance, finishing the season with 2:05. That is a minute per mile faster than six weeks earlier. Now she wanted a marathon.

The story escalated quickly from there. As her coach, I wanted to make sure she recovered properly. That she took the necessary time off, that she began a strengthening program, that she learned about nutrition, hydration, recovery, etc. She even took to learn about the story of women in running by reading Marathon Woman, by Kathrine Switzer, who she learned to admire.

While in DC, Grace had the chance to meet and mingle with the one and only Kathrine Switzer

Then, as the hottest month of July in recorded history dawned in South Florida, Grace and her training partner Luis D. started their marathon preparation. It was brutal. More than once they had to take to the streets at 5 AM under 85-degree temperature and 100% humidity. Yet, they persevered. They kept going until one day… Voila!!! It all kicked in and new distances beyond 13.1 became not only possible but she thrived on them. I can recall her finishing her first 15-miler hooting and jumping with a big smile. Yes, I know. Totally crazy!

Sure, there were setbacks. And those were important, too. There was one time she hit the wall and had to finish walking. In the midst of her disappointment, I taught her to learn from it. To take it as an opportunity. She had progressed so fast she hadn’t experienced much failure. Another time she tried a new gel and it backfired badly. She had to use one of her lifelines and phone a friend to pick her up. She was upset but I told her it was important to learn that this brand doesn’t work for her, now, instead of at mile 22 on race day. And she persevered.

Marathon day arrived on October 29. Grace was ready and excited. But the weather wasn’t as cool as expected. Her training partner was dealing with a leg issue and dropped off the pace from the very beginning. There was a ton of traffic at the start and her first 5k was off by over a minute-per-mile slower than planned. So, she adjusted to her circumstances, picked up the pace to what she trained for and maintained it until Km35 (Mile 22), where she slowed down a little bit. The last mile was very tough, yet she persevered and did not walk at all, finishing in a solid 4:39:07. This, I remind you again, was someone who told me a year ago she wanted to run without tiring, like her neighbor.

Coach Adolfo, Grace and Norvin (Grace’s husband), on our way to the startng line of the MCM races

If this wasn’t enough of a story, her husband caught the running bug, too. He started walking, then run/walking, and then pursued loftier goals as he felt better and stronger. He lost over 20 Lbs. and started fitting into clothes he hadn’t worn in years. And if that wasn’t enough, he ran the Marine Corps 10K without stopping in a time of 1:16. Now he is eyeing his first half.

From the coaching side, not only it has been a treat to coach a runner as talented and dedicated as Grace P., but she has also become an integral part of our Saturday running group. Moreover, she and her husband have become close friends with my wife and I, which has been a great addition to our lives. Running is the gift that keeps on giving.

Not everyone possesses the hidden talent and drive that Grace demonstrated. Not everyone aspires to become a marathoner. However, everyone has the potential to make the most of their physical capabilities. Just like Grace, it begins with showing up at the park on the appointed date and time, embarking on a personal journey whose destination remains unknown. Who knows where it may lead you?

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Balancing Running and Life: Finding Perspective

by Adolfo Salgueiro | Oct 31, 2023 | Article, Coaching, Reflection

By Coach Adolfo Salgueiro

A few days ago, I received a phone call from one of my athletes. She’s training for her second marathon, which is fast approaching. My concerns exploded right away, as the first words out of her mouth were: “I have a problem!”. Possibilities such as injury, illness, unexplained pains, job loss, etc., started rushing through my mind. In this blog post, we\’ll explore the art of balancing running and life, especially when facing unexpected life dilemmas.

“What’s happening?”, I asked as I tried to contain my uneasiness so I could keep her calm.

“My husband bought tickets to a comedy show on Friday night, and I won’t be able to do my Saturday long run?”. She explained.

Multiple aspects of your life must be juggled around so your running doesn’t become the ruler of your schedule (Photo Michael Judkins, Pexels)

As the color returned to my face, I told her with the best sarcastic tone I could muster: “What an inconsiderate man! Wanting to go out on a Friday night, with his wife, to have fun? That is awful. If you could only move that long run to Sunday.”

Then I explained that as important as her marathon is, and as much as she is invested in her running, keeping a balanced life between family, work, and running is essential. This was not the night before her marathon, and it doesn’t happen every Friday night. If she doesn’t allow the necessary flexibility to move some workouts around, then her husband, her kids, and eventually her, will resent her running. That would be disastrous for all the parties involved.

“Thank you for the perspective”, she said. And hung up two seconds later”.

I guarantee this incident is not an isolated one. I bet every single reader of this blog post has a personal version of this story. I certainly do. More than one. At one time or another, we had to confront this reality. “I want to train. But my—insert relationship here—wants to—insert activity here— What should I do?”

Most likely you are not qualifying for the Olympics, lining up side-by-side with Eliud Kipchoge at the Berlin Marathon start, or even considered the favorite to win your local 5K. So, moving things around in your training schedule, or God forbid, skipping a workout, are feasible arrangements to fit in running around your life.

What to do if you score World Series tickets for the night before your marathon?

In my experience, both personally and as a coach, the newer you are in the sport, the tougher it becomes to keep running in perspective. As you get started on your journey, the improvement curve is so steep that you want to keep the progress for as long as possible. You may not understand the benefits of a day off, or that not one particular session is going to make or break your race or your running career. This is the time when you must check in with your coach or your more experienced running buddies to help you put it into perspective.

Just like the runner at the start of this post, you may be taken aback by tickets to an event at an inconvenient time. It happens. Hopefully, you shared your goal race with your significant other and he/she will time well the invitations. But it could also happen that you get your hands on tickets to something like the World Series when your team is playing but is happening the night before your New York City Marathon. Then it is time to choose between a once-in-a-lifetime event and what you’ve trained for but may certainly do again, later.

My son got married on a Friday night in November. That’s high training season for local racing where I live. Asking my son to get married another day because I run long on Saturdays was not right. Missing his wedding was out of the question. So, what do you do? You attend your son’s wedding, you have fun and you forget about running on behalf of a momentous occasion in the life of an important person in your life. That’s what you do.

Sure, sacrifices must be made. But it is never about having to choose between your running and your spouse, your significant other, your kids, your family, friends, or work. It is about understanding that in life, there are more important things than a rack full of medals.

Have you ever had a dilemma between running and life? Please share your experience in the comment box, below.

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