This article is courtesy of McMillan Running, a recommended resource for distance coaches and runners.

By Greg McMillan, M.S.

Over the last few years, I think I’ve finally figured this peaking thing out. It took a while because, like many coaches, I fell into the standard “tapering” model we’ve all been taught. Problem was, tapering didn’t work consistently. The results were just as hit-or-miss as not tapering at all.

So, I threw “tapering” out of my vocabulary. I replaced it with “peaking.” Semantics? Maybe. But by studying peak performance research — both physiological as well as psychological — as opposed to just the tapering research, I’ve been able to dial in how to truly peak on race day. It works for all athletes no matter where you find yourself in the pack come race day.

Here are my secrets for your peaking phase — the last 14 days before your race:

1. Secret: Don’t change your weekly running routine

Our bodies and minds like routine. If you run four days per week, then run four days per week during your peaking phase. If you run six, then run six. You’ll feel flat if you suddenly run less frequently than normal. Exception: Runners who are nursing a sore muscle or niggling injury may take an extra day off each week during the peaking phase. But, don’t take it the day before the last long run or the race if you don’t normally rest the day before your long runs. This risks feeling flat on race morning.

2. Secret: Reduce weekly training volume, but not too much

Over the last 10-14 days before your race, you should progressively reduce the volume of your running. Two weeks out from the race, I like to reduce the daily volume by 10-20 minutes or so. The week of the race, reduce approximately 20-30 minutes. This, along with the normal reduction in your long run length as the race nears, will drop your overall running volume in line with what we know from research (and, more importantly, from practical experience) to the level that allows the body to get prepared for a peak performance. Don’t make the common mistake of dropping your volume too much. This takes your body out of its routine and can leave you stale on race day. My opinion is that more runners fail because of tapering too much rather than not enough.

3. Secret: Keep the engine revved

While we may want to reduce the volume of running, we do not want to reduce the intensity of our workouts. In fact, we may want the intensity to increase. You want to keep your engine revved, the pumps primed. Never race your workouts, but during the peaking phase, don’t back off in them either. I’ve found that some fast running in the peaking phase helps bring the body and the mind to tiptop condition on race day.

4. Secret: Plan your strategy and stick with it

Most distance runners have the same race strategy — start conservative, build into race pace, run as efficiently as possible and get as deep in the race as possible before you have to pull out your superman or superwoman powers to get you to the finish line. Yours may vary, depending on your strength and preferences. No matter what your strategy, however, stick with it. For most runners, their pre-race strategy is the best strategy. Be open to change if the conditions change, but for the most part, you know what you need to do so, just get out of your own way and let the race unfold as planned.

5. Secret: Reflect on training to build confidence

I like athletes to reflect on training in two ways. First, think back on a particularly tough workout, something where you didn’t feel great but you gutted it out. You were tough. This shows that you can do it. You are tough. You can handle the ups and downs of running and get to the finish line. After this retrospection, think back to your best workouts or races. Really re-live them in your mind. Bolster your confidence knowing that you are fit, fast and ready. Bring on the race! Get excited to go out there and perform like you know you can! Your training successes should build your confidence.

6. Secret: Have fun and smile

Let’s face it. Most of us aren’t going for an Olympic gold medal here. We are simply enjoying the challenge of doing our best. There is no real pressure, so quit putting so much on yourself. We run for fun, and you should remember that. Have fun! I encourage runners to smile a lot in the final days before a race. Smiling puts you in a better mood, and that can play a big role on race day.

It’s only through having a positive, happy mindset focused on doing your best, combined with a well-trained body that is rested but revved, fueled and hydrated that helps you race at your best.

 

This article is courtesy of McMillan Running, a recommended resource for distance coaches and runners.

By Greg McMillan, M.S.

A KINDER, GENTLER TRANSITION TO EARLY SUMMER SPEED WORK

In 2004, I helped a very talented runner build a solid aerobic base for the U.S. Olympic trials marathon, only to fail her during the race preparation phase of her training. I didn’t take into account her drive and tenacity, and when I put her on the track, she simply ran herself into the ground. Sound familiar?

As a competitive runner, you have a certain determination, a certain resolve that helps you accomplish high goals. Intellectually, you know you shouldn’t compare early season workout times to your peak season track times from previous years. Emotionally, however, you can’t help it as you drive yourself based on numbers on the watch and the times in your log book. My runner did just that and ended up limping through the trials marathon. The biggest lesson learned? Fartlek runs should be your best friend before the weather warms and races spring up like daisies.

FARTLEK FIRST, TRACK SECOND

This article is courtesy of McMillan Running, a recommended resource for distance coaches and runners.

By Greg McMillan, M.S.

I’m going to be honest. Tempo runs and I don’t get along. I always struggle with them and, while I know they’re good for me, I dread them.

I’m more of a speedster-type runner so I naturally gravitate toward intense, track-type workouts. Tempo runs (continuous runs at lactate threshold, near your one-hour race pace) are a weird effort for me. They’re fast but not too fast, and I find it difficult to ride this line between easy and hard. Other speedsters have told me they often struggle more with tempo runs than their endurance-monster friends, so I know I’m not alone.

It’s one thing to simply not like a workout, but it’s worse when you can’t execute one correctly, and that’s what happens with me during tempo runs. I just can’t seem to hold myself back enough, and I start pushing the pace in the second mile or so. This tendency to start going too fast (and believe me, I’ve worked on correcting this error) causes me to have to cut my tempo runs short, more often than not. The result is that I’m not getting in the volume at my lactate threshold that I want and desperately need.

But I’ve found a way to work around this, using a workout called “Minutes” that I learned from Gabriele Rosa, who coached the best marathoners of the 1990s and early 2000s. It’s similar to what Jack Daniels, elite coach and author of Daniels’ Running Formula, calls cruise intervals — where the runner breaks a tempo run into smaller chunks — but it’s even more extreme for runners like me who tend to run too fast at tempo pace.

TRICK THE TEMPO

In this workout, alternate running 1 minute at tempo run pace with 1 minute at easy run pace, for a total of 20 to 60 minutes. I typically start with 10 times 1 minute on, 1 minute off at the start of my stamina training phase and build to 25 to 30 times.

With this workout, I never get to the point where I start pushing too fast, because the minute is over quickly. This allows me to overcome the problem of turning the run into more of a race. But I’ve noticed over time (and this is what Rosa taught) that my “slow” minute gradually gets faster so that by the end of my tempo run phase, there really is little difference between my “on” and “off” minutes. In the end, I stay in my stamina training zone for more of the workout and am able to get in more training at my lactate threshold than I would if I just ran a tempo run.

Is a Minutes workout better than a tempo run? Probably not, but it’s better than constantly failing to execute my tempo runs. The best thing is, after leaning heavily on Minutes workouts in my stamina phase, by the end of this four-to eight-week period I can actually finish a proper tempo run. I just need a bit more lead-up than my endurance-oriented training partners.

COACH’S NOTES

1. When you run a Minutes workout, it’s important to remember that the “off” minute isn’t a slow jog but is run at your normal easy run pace. If you run too slowly on the “off” minute, you’ll end up running too fast on the “on” minute and change the session from a stamina workout to a speed workout. Over time, you’ll notice the pace stays pretty fast throughout with less variation between “on” and “off” minutes. That’s when you know you have it dialed in.
2. Always do a large volume of Minutes in order to keep the pace under control. I may start with 10 times 1 minute, but I must soon increase to 20-30 times 1 minute; otherwise, I’ll get carried away. Big volumes of Minutes are the only way to keep speedsters from going too fast.
3. Use Minutes as a great first workout in a training plan. It helps you regain your sense of effort and pace and gives you a quick boost of fitness without the worry of hitting splits.
4. One of the best things about a Minutes workout is that you can do it anywhere, anytime, as a fun, effective session. No marked course (or GPS watch)? No problem. Just do a Minutes workout. Pressed for time? Lace them up and start doing Minutes.

SAMPLE “MINUTES” PROGRESSION

(Run one workout every seven-14 days during your stamina phase)

Start with your usual warm-up

10 × 1 minute on / 1 minute off
15 × 1 minute on / 1 minute off
20 × 1 minute on / 1 minute off
25 × 1 minute on / 1 minute off
30 × 1 minute on / 1 minute off

End with your usual cool-down

WARNING: Don’t run too fast when “on” or too slow when “off.” Keep the “on” pace in your stamina zone, not your speed zone.

If you’re a speedster like me, I hope Minutes will help you boost your lactate threshold and become better at tempo runs. If you’re more of an endurance monster, I hope Minutes can add some fun to your stamina training phase.

Read more of our “Best of” Workouts.

Increasing daily calories can be a tricky sell with high school athletes. On the one hand, some will welcome it—seeing it as the solution to their struggles with building lean mass. Others will view it negatively, believing more calories will lead to unwanted weight gain.

But whether athletes are for or against upping their calorie count, there’s no denying the impact running on empty can have on performance. Few high school athletes know how many calories are required to fuel their activity, and when they don’t get enough, it leaves them sluggish for training. In the following case study, we examine a high school runner who needed an upgraded fueling plan.

FEELING DRAINED

Robin was a dedicated 15-year-old high school distance runner who came to see me after two weeks of poor performances during training. Her weekly mileage had increased from 30 to 40 miles, and she was feeling drained during practices. Concerned that she was no longer meeting her time goals, Robin’s coaches encouraged her to look more closely at her diet. They assumed she wasn’t eating enough to fuel her activity.

At our first consultation, Robin measured 5 feet 7 inches tall and weighed 130 pounds. Her lean mass was 109 pounds, fat mass was 21 pounds, and body composition was 16 percent body fat. I learned she followed a lacto-ovo vegetarian diet, meaning she ate milk products and eggs, and that she had agility and strength workouts three mornings a week in addition to daily after-school practices.

To get a better sense for what could be causing Robin’s low energy during training, I asked her to compile a sample daily menu. A typical day’s intake for Robin included:

Breakfast: Two slices of whole wheat toast with peanut butter and eight ounces of orange juice (400 calories)

Post-workout (on morning workout days): 10 ounces of lowfat chocolate milk (150 calories)

Lunch: Hummus sandwich on a pita with veggies, an orange, an apple, and baked chips with water (500 calories)

Pre-practice snack: Granola bar (100 calories)

During practice: Water

Post-practice dinner: Pasta with pesto, broccoli, yogurt with strawberries, and water (600 calories)

Snack: A bowl of whole grain cereal with milk (300 calories).

ANALYZING HER INTAKE

My first thought upon looking at Robin’s rundown was that her calorie intake of about 2,050 per day was way too low. Based on her bodyweight, training plan, history of fatigue, and difficulty getting through workouts, she required between 3,000 and 3,200 calories per day.

Robin’s protein and carbohydrate intakes were low, as well. Although she ate high-quality sources of protein like dairy products, eggs, and soy, she was only consuming about 80 grams daily. At Robin’s training level, her protein needs were at least 0.7 to 0.8 grams per pound of bodyweight per day, or around 90 to 105 grams.

For carbohydrates, Robin was consuming a little more than half of what she needed to fuel performance—about 300 grams per day. An ideal range would be as much as four to five grams of carbohydrate per pound of bodyweight per day, or 520 to 650 grams.

Besides the eating log, I recommended some lab work, which found Robin had low ferritin levels. The combination of low iron stores and low energy intake can spell trouble for distance runners. Because iron stores help the body utilize oxygen, and thus aid in enhancing endurance training and performance, optimizing them is critical.

NEW PLAN

Once I knew what was causing Robin’s performance issues, I could revamp her fueling plan accordingly. I wanted to increase her energy intake throughout the day, add protein to breakfast and before bed to optimize utilization, and spread carbohydrate fueling more evenly.

However, Robin wasn’t keen on some of these ideas at first. While she knew she needed to consume more calories, she was hesitant to eat more. Like many athletes in sports where a lower bodyweight can be beneficial to performance, Robin wanted to stay lean.

To address these concerns, I highlighted the benefits of fueling her body more fully, which would include increased energy, a boost in training, and enhanced performance. I also focused on making minor tweaks to Robin’s existing meal plan.

For example, she could increase 220 grams of carbohydrate (880 calories) per day simply by switching to 100 percent juice with meals instead of water, eating more fruits, and drinking smoothies. Because she was drinking a lot of water anyway, switching to higher-calorie fluids did not make her feel overly full. Adding more eggs, cheese, yogurt, and milk were also good options for upping her calories and protein.

Here’s what Robin’s new performance plan looked like:

Breakfast: Two scrambled eggs with cheese, two slices of whole wheat toast, and a smoothie with eight ounces of orange juice, one banana, and half a cup of Greek yogurt on non-workout days (600 calories) and two slices of whole grain toast with peanut butter and eight ounces of orange juice on workout days

Post-workout (on morning workout days): Nut and seed bar and 20 ounces of lowfat chocolate milk (400 calories)

Lunch: Hummus sandwich on a pita with veggies, an orange, an apple, baked chips, and 16 ounces of 100 percent cranberry juice (750 calories)

Pre-practice snack: Homemade trail mix and eight ounces of apple juice (300 calories)

During practice: 20-ounce sports drink and water (100 calories)

Post-practice dinner: Pasta with pesto, broccoli, yogurt with strawberries, and 16 ounces of orange juice (700 calories)

Snack: One cup of Greek vanilla yogurt with one-third of a cup of granola and one sliced banana (400 calories).

To increase Robin’s iron intake, she began taking iron supplements (65 milligrams of iron as ferrous sulfate) with 500 milligrams of vitamin C daily to enhance absorption. She also focused on eating more eggs, greens, legumes, and other iron-fortified foods. Altogether, Robin’s new meal plan had her consuming approximately 3,250 calories, 110 grams of protein, and 520 grams of carbohydrate per day.

For Robin, adding more calories to her diet took some getting used to. However, by making small, gradual changes and connecting them to her improved performance, she became more comfortable with the plan over the course of a month. She found she had more energy, got through workouts better, and recovered faster—all of which helped get her race times back on track.