Tuesday, April 7, 2015

Get Fast & My New Fave Pasta

This is what I did.  All day long on Monday.  


Actually, I was getting a facial (and survived my very first chemical peel!) in this picture, but other than walking the four blocks to and from the salon, my booty was in BED.  Doing nothing but watching "30 Rock" and stalking you guys.


My fantastic freaking salad for lunch.  I see a repeat of this happening today, tomorrow, the next day, etc.


And since the only thing that happened between lunch and dinner was more "30 Rock" and more lazy, I'll just go straight to dinner.

Now pasta usually isn't anything to write home about, unless this guy made it for you.


But this stuff...oh my gooses.  I really hope that we can afford to continue to get this pasta, because it was ABSOLUTELY DELISH.


I'm totally counting this as my #TriedItTuesday, because I want you to grab some!  It was perfect pasta, and my new favorite of all time (for realsies).


My plate.  We had a tiny bit of broccoli left (Harry wasn't heartbroken that there wasn't enough for him), so I threw it into my bowl.  Might as well get some green in where I can.


After all that rest I got all day, I was super tired.  I don't know how I ever stayed up past midnight before.

Oh right, I was in my 20s.
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Let's discuss how to get faster, at practically anything.  Whatever you wanna get faster at, there's a simple answer for it:  Overload and Specificity.  

What it boils down to:  Exercising your running muscles and cardiorespiratory system at a harder intensity for a shorter amount of time helps even out your overall pace.  (I'm trying very hard to keep this simple -- my Physiology-geared brain hurts from the restraint right now.)  Here are some ways to get fast!

1.  Intervals - Hit up the track or run your favorite route noticing various landmarks (i.e. telephone poles, parking meters [do those still exist?], end of the blocks, etc.) and get in some harder distances..  Some very simple, popular examples of interval speedwork training are broken down to distance.


One workout that I love to do after a long break from speedwork is sets of 400m.  This will be the theme for the entire workout.  I.e.

1 mile warm-up
4 sets of 400m at your goal 5K pace -- 400m recovery jogging between each set
1 mile cooldown

You can gradually work up the sets of the 400s, or move on to longer distance sets, such as 800s.  A good rule of thumb for recoveries is to not exceed half of the (hard) set.  So if you were running 800s at a certain pace (such as your goal 10K pace), then you wouldn't want to recovery longer than 400m between these sets.  Remember to cooldown -- it's just as imperative as your warm-up.

2.  Tempo - Tempo runs to me are more about time at a harder pace.  I love tempo runs because it can be a little bit of a harder pace than your "easy" pace, and it can be such a fun challenge.  One of my most favorite runs to my memory was a seven miler, where I hit my goal pace every mile for an hour.  Obviously I worked up to that, though.

Start off trying this workout:

1 mile warm-up
10-20 minutes at harder pace
1 mile cooldown

Gradually increase that "harder pace" time as much as you see fit, but try not to increase by too much; stick to around a five to ten minute increase each week.  Make sure it's gradual, or all that will do is get you tired and frustrated (I'm speaking from personal experience here).  You can do this workout once or twice a week.

3.  Staying Flexible - Dynamic stretching and drills keep your muscles, ligaments, and tendons more flexible, thereby allowing them to be more efficient when a demand of power is placed.  Do Yoga, stretch after your run (never before, thank you very much!), and keep some drills in your regular routine.

The usual suspects:






Static Stretches (post-run or workout):


A side note to this would be Cross-Training.

4.  HILLS - You love to hate them!  

From Competitor.com


And speaking of hills, let's compare some famous race courses, mmmkay?

 

Don't knock Chicago for being flat -- it's actually tougher than you think to run without several inclines.

And that reminds me...

5.  Race more often!


I seriously hope these tips were a little helpful.  Try to do one or two speed sessions a week (I stick with one -- either a tempo run or intervals, with hills somewhere in the mix), keep those drills in your routine, cross-train, and you'll be faster in no time!  Please e-mail me if you have ANY questions or would like more examples of workouts.  I'm all about giving that stuff away.:)
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Runner friends:  Favorite way to gain speed?

What's your favorite Yoga pose?  Child's Pose totally counts.
-Half Moon is my fave!

FAVORITE RACE ever?!
-It might still be the Chicago Marathon for me.:)



6 comments:

  1. You forgot to add eat crap loads of sugar. That make you REAL fast.

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  2. I'm so glad you did linkup for Tried it Tuesday! That pasta sounds interesting. I am intrigued.

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  3. I live by one rule...to get fast you have to run fast! I've been adding all sorts of speedwork (intervals, tempo, hills, etc) to my training this time around...so hopefully my rule is correct :)

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  4. Great info Tiffany.

    Chicago for me too! #awesomememeories I love love track work for getting faster. Short bursts of speed! My favorite yoga pose? I have 2 because I just mastered them, side crow and forearm stand. Boom!

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  5. That salad looks like it was freaking amazing! I've never had a facial but I really should try getting one. And thanks for the awesome speed training tips!! :D

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  6. Love that picture comparing the various marathon courses. Wow, Boston!!!

    I love fartleks! I dislike tempo runs but it is because I cannot keep a consistent pace for that long. I know it is something I need to work on.

    ReplyDelete

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