For today’s newsletter, Coach Sandi Nypaver gives you a few of her favorite active release techniques!
Ideally, these active release techniques should be the first part of your warm-up; whether you’re headed out for a run, about to do a strength session, or even just before you do some mobility or static stretching. If you jump right into mobility or stretching, you may not actually release your tight muscles. Doing active release first will loosen up your muscles so you can then fully benefit from mobility exercises and get the range of motion you need for your best running form!
I know this may just seem like another thing you should do but don’t really want to do. My advice is to make it a goal to do this for only a month and see if it helps! Notice if you feel better on your runs, especially that first mile. Sometimes one tight muscle can screw up your entire stride.
Also, know that a little is better than nothing. I think a longer, fully body active release session once a week is a good idea, but most days a couple of minutes is more than enough. Personally, I feel that listening to upbeat music and doing the active release is a great way to get both my mind and body ready for my run. Finally, for each exercise, there’s no “right” amount of time, but I usually find myself doing 30 seconds per exercise, per side. If you feel like you need to do a longer amount of time on a certain side or muscle, go for it. However, you shouldn’t go longer than a minute. If the muscle doesn’t release in a minute’s time, it probably won’t release today.
Before we start off, you’ll want to have on you a lacrosse ball, a tennis ball, and a chair. Or, you can also use a foam roller for any of these exercises. Alright, so here are a few of my favorite exercises:
Exercise #1: Feet Active Release
I start by rolling around to check for any tight spots. If I find one, whether it be in the arch of my foot or near my big toe, I’ll focus on that area. The goal is to activate the muscles on the way up, then fully relax as I bring my foot back down. I’m just rolling gently here. You can use a tennis ball or lacrosse ball, or you could even use a golf ball if you prefer. Just remember to do both sides!
Exercise #2: Calf Active Release
When I focus on my calves, staying in one place and breathing through it might be enough, or you can move to the side-to-side to find another spot. You may feel tighter on the inside of your calf. The key is to make sure you can fully relax your muscle. If you’re using a lacrosse ball but can’t relax, try switching to a tennis ball.
Exercise #3: Quadricep Active Release
This is a big one for a lot of runners — the quads. I’m starting right in the middle of my quad. You can move up, to the side, or to the inside if that’s where you feel tightness. Remember to take deep breaths and relax.
Exercise #4: Hamstring Active Release
For this exercise, you’ll need a chair. I take a tennis ball and sandwich it in between the seat of the chair and my hamstring. This might be too intense for some people, so you may want to start with a foam roller on the ground and ease into it. I don’t typically have tight hamstrings, so I can handle this, but for others, it might be a bit painful — and that’s not what we’re aiming for.
I hope this gives you a few ideas on ways to work on some tight muscles. There’s even more muscle groups and exercises I didn’t get into today, but starting with just a few of these is a great start!
Form breakdown during long run efforts or races is inevitable.
But how do you know when you’re causing harm to yourself and should stop? Alternatively, when is it okay to push through and keep going? In today’s newsletter, Coach Sandi Nypaver gives you some of her tips to know the difference.
An athlete once approached me with the following question:
“When you (or any runner) start to feel your form fall apart, how do you know if you can keep going or if you should stop to avoid injury? I’m asking because in the few 50K races I’ve done, I’ve felt my form deteriorate between miles 20 and 22. If it were a shorter race, like a 50K, would you continue at that point? Fatigue seems inevitable in such long distances. I want to ensure I’m not causing damage by pushing through. Can you speak to the specifics of that?“
During an ultra or even a marathon, especially an ultra, there will be form breakdown. Expect it to happen! Often, at the end of these long ultras, you’re running quite differently than at the beginning due to muscle damage and form breakdown. If you’re running a 50K and feel your form starting to break down, it can be very normal and something you may want to push through, depending on the severity. If it’s primarily muscular fatigue rather than pain, it’s generally okay to continue.
There’s a difference between your legs feeling beat up and experiencing pain that might indicate an injury. Knowing what muscle fatigue versus pain feels like is crucial! You’ll have to listen to your body to know which one you’re experiencing, but here’s a good rule of thumb:
Fatigue
• More of a general, widespread sensation of tiredness and heaviness in the muscles.
Pain
• A sharp, stabbing sensation that will probably be more localized to a specific area in your body.
Ultimately, you’re going to have to listen to your body to know if you’re doing long-term damage or if you’ll need general rest and recovery from the big effort.
Understanding the importance of distinguishing between muscle fatigue and pain is just the first step towards maintaining your health. Equally crucial is knowing how to respond after completing a grueling race. Post-race recovery is not only about giving your muscles time to rest but also about ensuring that any form breakdown that occurred during the race doesn’t lead to long-term issues.
I emphasize the following to all of my athletes: after a race, yes, you want to recover, but in the next week or two, focus on technique work. What often happens after ultras is that people get injured a couple of weeks later because their form broke down, and they don’t take the time to ensure their stride returns to normal. They end up running with the poor patterns they picked up at the end of an ultra.
So, here’s a tip: in the week or two, or even three weeks, after an ultra or a marathon that really beat you up, take some time to focus on technique and form work. This way, you can avoid the “ultra shuffle” or any other weird changes to your stride. Spending a little time on technique after a race can go a long way! I have a variety of form-related videos on my YouTube Channel, or you can check out Higher Running’s resource webpage.
Remember, listening to your body and prioritizing both immediate recovery and long-term form maintenance is key to sustaining a successful and healthy running journey.
Marathon training isn’t rocket science, but there’s a few things to keep in mind.
Today, Coach Sage Canaday is discussing key components for marathon training!
Aerobic Base:
I see significant improvements in athletes who start running 30-40 miles (50-60 km) per week and gradually increase to 50-60 miles (80-100 km) per week without injury. This involves mainly easy pace mileage, about 80%, which is manageable but depends on several factors such as age, training history, and background in the sport.
Consistent, gradual mileage increase, proper nutrition, and lifestyle balance are also crucial. Most people benefit from running more frequently, transitioning from four days a week to five or six, and sometimes even seven days a week or twice a day. However, running twice a day usually applies to those running over 70 miles per week.
More Isn’t Always Better
I ran a marathon in 2:16, with a PR of 2:16:52. One lesson I learned is that more training isn’t always better. I ran 130-140 miles a week for years, but sometimes I overtrained, which actually left me tired and slower! I ran several minutes faster with less mileage, more targeted workouts, and by not overextending myself.
Effective marathon training involves several key components. After building your aerobic base with consistent, high mileage over months, you need variations in your long run workouts. It’s not just about hitting mileage numbers like an 18-mile long run, but about incorporating different intensities.
In our Higher Running Boston Qualifying Marathon Plan or BQ plan, available at Higher Running, long run workouts include segments at marathon goal race pace or even faster in the second half. These runs teach you to speed up when tired, mimicking race conditions where you enter with tired legs and low glycogen stores, even on a high-carb diet. It also helps with adaptations in fat burning and practicing your hydration and nutrition strategy during the run. Long runs aren’t just to “get in the miles”, there are times when they become demanding workouts that involve speeding up or running steady paces close to your marathon race pace when tired to mimic race-day.
The 80/20 Rule:
An 80-20 split between easy and hard runs has been recommended by coaches for decades. While recovery runs and easy pace runs are essential, incorporating quality workouts is crucial to reaching your marathon potential. Additionally, having a good nutrition and hydration strategy during the race optimizes performance and speed.
Intensity should be included in small amounts. From my experience running professionally post-college and training with an Olympic development group, it’s clear that interval workouts and faster workouts than your goal marathon pace are necessary. Many runners come from 5k, 10k, and half marathon backgrounds, which helps in preparing for the marathon.
Workouts around 10k and 5k pace should be used sparingly. For example, if your marathon goal is to break three hours (6:52 per mile pace), you should do some workouts closer to six-minute mile pace or threshold workouts faster than half marathon pace. These can include 800-meter repeats, kilometer repeats, or mile repeats at around 6:20 per mile pace.
These high-intensity workouts improve mechanical efficiency, increase aerobic capacity (VO2 max), and make marathon pace feel easier. They should be incorporated mainly in the last eight weeks before the marathon but can also be included early in the training cycle. Our training plans at Higher Running follow this approach, starting with shorter intervals to build efficiency, improve running form, and enhance aerobic capacity.
Race Day (and a quick note on nutrition)
A final note on marathon success is the importance of race day pacing. Conservatively pace yourself in the first 10K, relax, and warm up into the race. The goal is to maintain a steady pace in the last 10K. The key to a successful marathon is not falling apart in the final stretch. If you can speed up significantly in the last 10K, you likely paced yourself too conservatively. Most runners struggle in the last 10K, so it’s crucial to reach the 20-mile mark (32 kilometers) and maintain your pace.
Even if you slow down by 10-15 seconds per mile (or 8-10 seconds per kilometer), you can still run a good marathon. The real issue arises when you slow down by 30-40 seconds per mile (or 20 seconds per kilometer) in the last 10K, leading to significant time loss. Effective pacing involves running at a manageable, consistent pace with even splits. If you’ve raced a half marathon, use it as a benchmark. For example, to break three hours in a marathon, you should ideally have a half marathon time of at least 1:25-1:26 to aim for two 1:30 splits.
Nutrition is also crucial. Taking in carbs every 8K or 5 miles, either in gel or liquid form, helps maintain energy levels. Relying solely on fat burning without consuming calories during the race can hinder your performance. Hydration and regular intake of carbs can prevent hitting the wall and ensure you run to your potential.
In summary, successful marathon running involves balanced pacing, effective nutrition, and hydration strategies. Learning from past experiences, both successes, and failures, helps in achieving better results! I hope you find this helpful. Be sure to forward this email to a friend who you think would find these tips interesting!
Coach Sandi Nypaver is going to explore how setting an intention can make your runs more effective. Having the mindset of “getting in the miles” is only going to take your running so far. Setting an intention is actually quite simple, and if you’re looking for the “TLDR” of today’s newsletter, this is it:
Think about how you want to think, act and feel.
What could your intentions be for an easy run, a speed workout, or a long run be? What if you’re injured?
Taking a moment to set an intention can help program your mind in a positive way. If you repeatedly think thoughts that don’t serve you, this is one step you can take in claiming your power and making a shift.
If you’re intrigued to learn more, keep reading as Coach Sandi elaborates:
So what does it really look like to set an intention? Here are a few examples: For an easy run, your intention might be to focus on recovery and take it super easy. It could be a “stop and smell the flowers” type of run, where you enjoy the scenery in front of you and appreciate your body. Any of these would be a good intention for an easy run.
For a speed workout day, maybe your intention is to support yourself in a positive way no matter what happens, or to pace it well so you finish strong. Just take a moment to set an intention, whether it’s something like that or anything else that feels right for you.
If you’re injured, you could set the intention to appreciate your body for what it can do that day. You could also set the intention to appreciate that your body can heal and is giving you proof that it can heal, like every time you’ve gotten a cut and it has healed. This shows your body’s ability to recover.
My Challenge To You:
If you’re up for a challenge, let’s take this intention-setting practice a little bit further. And don’t tell me that you’re a runner who races and you’re not up for a challenge.
You’re doing this, okay?
The challenge is to start setting intentions for other aspects of your life. For instance, you can set an intention for how you want to act or think at work. Then, after work, take a moment before you get out of your car to think about what kind of person you want to be with your family. How do you want to respond to your family?
Consider the various aspects of your life where you can bring this practice. I want to make sure you remember this because often we hear things like this, think it’s nice, and then forget about it by the next day.
So, here’s what I want you to do right now: imagine yourself waking up in the morning, going to the bathroom, looking in the mirror, and writing down the word “intention” on the mirror.
The reason for writing “intention” on the mirror is that when we set intentions, our life often starts to look a little bit different, or our life starts to reflect back to us a little bit differently. We begin to look and act a little bit differently. That’s why the mirror is a good symbol here. Just setting that image of you writing “intention” on the mirror can help you remember this. Hopefully, tomorrow morning when you wake up and look in the mirror, you’ll remember this.
Running nutrition may seem complicated, but it doesn’t have to be.
In recent years, the conversation around optimal race day fueling strategies for runners has intensified, focusing particularly on the ideal carbohydrate intake per hour to enhance performance and endurance. Should you consume 50 grams per hour? 100 grams? 1000 grams?! (okay, don’t try that last one…)
Today, Coach Sandi Nypaver will take you through the latest science on exactly how you should be fueling for your next race. This evidence-based approach aims to maximize glycogen stores, sustain energy levels, and prevent the dreaded “bonk” or energy crash that can derail even the best-prepared athletes. As you seek to fine-tune your running nutrition strategy, understanding the science behind nutritional requirements becomes essential for achieving peak performance on race day.
Here we go:
You could have just had the best training cycle of your entire life, but if you don’t execute on the things I’m about to talk about, you could underperform; or worse, you could have a total disaster of a race. But I’m here to help, and we’re going to start with one of the things that I see runners get wrong all the time…
Dehydration
One important piece of nutrition that is often overlooked is hydration, and research has repeatedly shown that dehydration significantly impairs performance. One primary reason is that blood volume decreases, leading to an elevated heart rate as the body compensates. Additionally, electrolytes, especially sodium, are crucial for maintaining fluid balance and supporting metabolic activities, such as muscle function.
In other words, when we’re dehydrated, our muscles fatigue faster and muscle contractions weaken. Many people confuse bonking with dehydration. While bonking can often come on suddenly and feels like hitting a wall, dehydration tends to develop more gradually. It manifests as a progressive increase in fatigue, with heavy legs and an overall sense of tiredness. Recognizing these symptoms in past races or during current training can help identify the onset of dehydration.
Sodium Needs (to combat dehydration)
For fluids, aim for 12-24oz per hour, or more in hot conditions, keeping in mind that your body can only absorb so much at a time and over-drinking can cause serious problems. For sodium, most people need between 300-600mg per hour on average, though some may need less and others closer to 1000+mg per hour. Keep in mind that the fueling plan you use on cool days at low altitude may not work during hot conditions or at higher altitudes. When possible, test your plan in potential race conditions and have backup options, such as switching to a sports drink that provides both electrolytes and calories.
When I started applying this to my own training, the biggest change I noticed was that I felt stronger at the end of the run. My energy levels were better not only during the run but also afterward. I see this with many people, especially in the summer when they often finish a run feeling exhausted and wiped out for hours. Even though running can naturally tire you out, a significant part of that fatigue is due to dehydration. It’s crucial to pay attention to fluid consumption and how much water you mix with electrolytes.
Race Day Carb Needs
When looking at the latest research (and still recognizing that fueling can be highly individual), here are some general guidelines:
For a race lasting 1-2.5 hours, aim to consume around 30-60g of carbs per hour.
For races over 2.5 hours, increase your intake to around 60-90g of carbs per hour. Some runners may even be able to consume up to 120g per hour.
However, even 60-90g per hour requires practice during most long runs to ensure your gut can handle it during a race. It’s important to stay flexible and adjust your intake if your stomach starts to feel unsettled.
To reiterate, it’s important to recognize that not everyone has the same needs. Some products might work for you, whereas others may not. For instance, people with fructose malabsorption cannot tolerate high amounts of fructose, as it can upset their stomachs. Experiment with different products and find what works for you. If you rely on aid stations, research what they offer and practice using those products during your long runs.
For more detailed coaching on pacing, nutrition, and mindset, consider exploring our Ultimate Running Course, “Coach Yourself to Your Highest Potential.” More on that below.
To Recap…
Optimal race day fueling and hydration are individualized and require careful experimentation and planning. Understanding your body’s needs, practicing with different products, and adjusting based on conditions and personal tolerance can significantly enhance performance and comfort during a race. By integrating these strategies into your training routine and being mindful of your nutrition and hydration, you can set yourself up for success and achieve your highest potential on race day.
Think about how you want to think, act and feel.
What could your intentions be for an easy run, a speed workout, or a long run be? What if you’re injured?
