RunAddicts FIT 2021 Training program insights (Behind the scenes)

Life throws surprises at you quiet often. Probably this is yet another opportunity for us to refocus (Hopefully!!)

Struggling to get back to running and losing numerous battles against discipline, consistency has been my favorite enemy. Sometimes you are not alone in your battles, there are some people fighting similar battles (But where?), is it possible to unite and fight together with discipline to become fitter? World is a small place and you will inevitably cross paths. However, there is a tiny effort required, you just need to open your eyes and embrace the positivity around you (Really!)

 

 

You are brave. We have found one another. You are one among us now.

 

 

 

Welcome to RunAddicts FIT 2021 challenge.

We were unfortunate to experience once in a lifetime catastrophic event. Calamities such as this, bring together the mankind for greater deeds.

Being part of one of the largest running groups in Bengaluru (maybe, India?) is a blessing for us. We have a crazy bunch of people keeping us engaged in fitness with numerous activities, even during these tough times. Hats off to your spirit, more power to you.

One such activity is the FIT 21 RunAddicts challenge. What we see in the whatsapp group is just an event information, like watching a movie. A lot more happens behind the scenes. Today, I want to thank these unsung heroes for the things they have done and the good things they will do in the future. We have a few running veterans and health experts debating the nuances of training programs and design a program to suit us, the amateurs. Well, rest assured, you are in the safe hands (however exercise discretion in your workouts).

With so many events happening around us.

Honestly, how many Event organizers’ train you?

Ok, maybe a few groups do train you?

Of all the groups, how many do it for free?

Our group motto is service. We encourage health and fitness in our community and support in social causes. We kickstarted the year 2021 with this challenge. Probably we are the first running group to organize a timed running event exclusively for their group members (Of course with a bib and timing chip!) and for free. Well! Yeah!! you heard it right, for free!!!

But………

You will have to earn it.

As you are aware, you need to meet the basic qualification criteria to be eligible for the event.

Let me first explain the science behind our training plan. As is the case with any runner, let us understand the important factors that makes you a better runner. I will leave out ethnicity and genetic factors to make our discussion simpler.

1. Body type (Fat, Muscle fibers, Bones etc)
2. Cardiovascular fitness (VO2 Maximum rate of oxygen consumption measured during a exercise)
3. Flexibility/ Balance (how well the different body parts co-ordinate?)
4. Strength/ Endurance (how long can you run before fatigue strikes?)
5. Motivation (Why did you take up running?)
6. Professional and family needs (Lack of time to train?)
7. Injuries (Are you pushing too hard, Have you recovered?)
8. Rest (Are you sleeping enough?)
9. Psychological well-being. (This is a vast topic, out of my scope)
10. Nutrition (Are you eating right?)

And many other God knows what factors. With limited time available and a desire to train, a few us decided to follow a structured training plan with due consideration to above factors. I do not want to go in detail about the importance of each workout, most of you are aware or information is easily available over the internet. Also, we often share important workout information in the whatsapp groups.

In order to facilitate runners, to meet these criteria and be ground ready for the event we have developed a training plan. There are thousands of training plans online and you are free to choose what works best for you. You may choose this one too 😜

In summary, we have designed this training program to enable a beginner to run a HM/ FM, A seasoned runner to improve timing or get back to his/her previous fitness levels.

Tuesday (Easy/ Aerobic run): this is to warm-up your body from the previous day rest. Remember, you are basically getting ready for a long week ahead.

Wednesday (Hill repeats): Hill workouts are often referred to as “speedwork in disguise”, because they offer many of the same benefits of a traditional speed workout, without having to run at top speed.  You are at the mid of the training week now. The type of hill workouts we have been doing, trying to keep your effort at 70-80% levels all through is targeting fatigue resistance. Running HM and beyond really can benefit from this type of training.

Thursday (Team Formation): It is about testing the unknown waters today. Trust the team and build your Endurance. Our primary focus is to make you do a progressive run and improve your Vo2 max. and by making you run on tired legs (did you forget yesterday’s dreaded hill workouts?), we are simulating race conditions (mostly the last quarter of your HM/FM).

Friday (Strength training): Our core strength keeps us running longer, legs are just the facilitators. We have experienced trainers to help us build strength and make our running smoother, better and injury free.

Saturday (Cycling/ Swimming/Cross training): Put your non running muscles to work.

Sunday (Long slow run): Join the group for a long run at your comfortable pace. At the peak of our training program, you will be on your legs for 2.5 to 3 hours (In case of FM). This is a perfect opportunity to train with the group for your long run. There are way too many benefits associated with a long run. Most predominant ones are: it helps your body burn fat at a higher efficiency, it makes you run faster at lower heart rate (larger stroke volume and lowers resting heart rate) and builds your endurance. And finally, one day you would say 16 kms, why so less for a long run?

Reason for 3 days of continuous running: We do not believe in making you run longer on a Sunday. Any run above 3 hours does more harm than good to your body. This will also impact the whole training schedule and is a top contributing factor to injuries. Keeping this in mind, we break down the long run into a series of 3 runs over 3 days, with harder workouts to simulate race conditions, this is a perfect recipe to make a stronger you.

Did you by any chance observe that there is no running for 2 days?

Well, we do understand the impact of 3 days of continuous running. Anything in abundance is not worth it, so you deserve the break to recover and be ready for a long run on Sunday.

Remember, what we had said: we will make you race ready. Repeat this week on week and you will feel the difference. What was once your best pace will become your warm-up pace. That brings to the end of our training program insights, thank you for your time. We hope this will make a difference to the way you train.

Any queries about the training plan or feedback, feel free to leave a comment below.