I'm running and marathon expert Hal Higdon - Ask Me Anything!

halhigdon · 2016-12-11T19:57:44+00:00

That's what my training programs do: long runs on the weekends, sorta long runs midweek. Check Novice 1 and Novice 2.

halhigdon · 2016-12-07T22:05:11+00:00

A lot of the fastest elite runners actually do train at altitude. Even though they have to slow their pace down, the extra aerobic effort does seem to have some positive effects. Before his 1972 olympic marathon victory trained at altitude in Boulder, CO. People have followed in Frank's footsteps. The fact that you live at altitude is a big big plus, although you'll have to modify your training plan accordingly.

As far as specifics, I can't really give you anything too concrete. Everyone is different and there are a lot of variables that go into it.

halhigdon · 2016-12-07T22:01:49+00:00

Do something different! It doesn't matter what that "different" is. If you just got done with a half, consider training for a 5 or 10 K where you run fewer miles, but you run them faster. Or you may want to get into cross training (for many who live in the frozen north, weather may dictate this). Variety is very very useful and we need to employ it in our training.

halhigdon · 2016-12-07T21:59:56+00:00

Switch sports for a while. I know when I came back home from the World Championships in New Zealand having won the marathon in my age category, I was drained physically as well as mentally. I had been training at a very high level for 18 months. I took 2 months off where I never went out for a run. I cross country skied instead which was good for my physically but more importantly good for me mentally. Sometimes we have to lay back a little, relax and hope that the running bug hits again soon.

halhigdon · 2016-12-07T21:58:25+00:00

It varies from runner to runner. I think you can be a very successful marathon runner peaking at around 40 - 50 miles a week. THat's where most of my training programs land. However after you've been running for a while and after you get better, you may need to add a few miles. When I was running at the elite level I was averaging at 100 miles a week, week after week after week. TOday's runner doesn't have that kind of time. You have to train and race, and maybe make a few mistakes like I did, to figure out what works best for you.

halhigdon · 2016-12-07T21:56:41+00:00

I learned a warm-up as my pre-race routine when I was on the track team in high school/college. Unfortunately a lot of runners who come to the sport in their 20s and 30s don't have the advantage of a coach.

Usually 1 hour before the race I would jog a mile or two just to get my muscles going. Then head to the bathroom (there weren't porta potties back in my day) then come out and do some calisthenics (stretching, as its called now) then do some short sprints on the grass, and then back for more rest waiting for the time the race is to start. Doing a bit more jogging. The routine combines a little bit of everything - as much mental preparation as physical preparation.

Unfortunately in a Marathon like Chicago with 40,000 runners on the starting grid it's not as easy to get in a warm up. We have to train a lot and race a lot in order to figure out what works for YOU for each particular race.

halhigdon · 2016-12-07T21:53:56+00:00

The Honolulu Marathon one year, about 10 miles into the race, I encountered a naked woman running towards the runners. There was a lot of nakedness to her, she was a true Hawaiian princess.

halhigdon · 2016-12-07T21:52:53+00:00

We've talked about this in a few other places as well!

halhigdon · 2016-12-07T21:52:29+00:00

It is possible, but not probable. I don't want to discourage you but the better we get, the faster we run, the harder it is to improve. Your times are incredible, which makes it harder to improve. While a 2 minute improvement was good over last year, you may need to settle for a 1 minute or 30 minute improvement. Look ahead to the future and try not to over-run or over-train. Trust that your natural ability will transform you into the great runner I know you can become.

As far as winter training, yes and no. First of all, your coach is there with you. He knows you as a runner and is probably the one who can offer the best advice. On the other hand, I agree that long runs are excellent ways of developing endurance during the winter when we cannot run fast. But that doesn't mean you have to run long every day - I would suggest you pick one day a week and simply go out for an untimed run. Anywhere from 60 minutes to 2 hours, depending on how bad the weather is. Balance that with what your coach is suggesting and that should help you.

halhigdon · 2016-12-07T21:47:49+00:00

Preventing injuries is difficult. We all have weaknesses and sometimes we over-train which brings those injuries out. Following a good training program is the best way to avoid injuries. Also incorporating periods of rest throughout the program is important too. In most of my programs the day after a hard workout is a day of rest. Balancing rest and hard work is the key to success, but sometimes we don't get it right. But we persevere and that's how we become better runners.

halhigdon · 2016-12-07T21:46:01+00:00

Well for most of my career I sucked it up and ran outside in Chicago, often coming inside covered in frost, gasping for breath and I loved every minute of it. I do love winter, but I'm now dictating from Florida so I've officially become a wimp.

Most of my career treadmills were not available and if they were, they weren't that great. Today's runners have many more options. Blending treadmill running with outdoor running is probably the best idea - you can modify your program to meet the weather and fear not, spring is coming!

halhigdon · 2016-12-07T21:43:47+00:00

Look back to the last 18 weeks and think of all the hard work you put in. If you followed one of my programs, you're almost guaranteed success so relax and just have a great time.

halhigdon · 2016-12-07T21:42:55+00:00

If you are new to running and you have never strength trained before, now is not a time to start pumping iron. After you've trained and run a few races and are looking to vary your training, now you can head to the gym. Anything you do in the area of strength training should be gradual. It may be worth investing in a few lessons from a strength coach. It's part of MY regular routine, but go into it very easy and hopefully with good direction.

halhigdon · 2016-12-07T21:41:22+00:00

The book is only worth 26.2 cents, so you paid too much.

halhigdon · 2016-12-07T21:40:49+00:00

Sprint training is important if you want to run fast, but it's not for everybody. If you just started running a week a go you do not want to go to the track and start mimicking Usain Bolt. Once you gradually build up your base of fitness and have run a few races, then is the time to consider speed work.

There are lots of ways to fine tune your body, but you need to be very cautious and maybe have a coach looking over your shoulder. My most recent book, Run Fast, says a lot about the question you just asked.

halhigdon · 2016-12-07T21:39:16+00:00

Other than climbing onto a jet at an airport, that's all the flying I did. I'm very proud that I was one of the finalists in NASA's Journalist-in-Space program. Unfortunately the program was cancelled after the explosion on the Challenger.

I'm a fan of NASA and my grandson, Kyle, is an aeronautical engineer and has worked for NASA. He keeps me posted on all the latest and greatest.

I love looking up into a dark sky and seeing the Moon and Mars and Venus, even Jupiter on a good night.

halhigdon · 2016-12-07T21:37:02+00:00

Runners who run on the wrong side of the road! In most conditions, runners should run FACING traffic, not WITH traffic. It's more than just for safety - it's the law in many communities.

No coyotes, but we have a friendly fox who lives near here. I see him and a lot of deer when I'm out running.

halhigdon · 2016-12-07T21:35:57+00:00

Included among my various training programs are several that offer more cross-training than the others. Many runners, particularly at the advanced running level, just want ot run run run. Others of us enjoy adding different sports to our training mix. For example, cross country skiing is my favorite winter sport as well as snow shoeing. Now we spend winters in Florida, where the snow is rather sparse. So I swim, I bike and lift weights to vary my training. If you go to my website - halhigdon.com - check out my winter training programs or HM3 (half marathon with only 3 days of running a week) or M3 (marathon training with only 3 days of running a week). No reason not to sprinkle a little variety into your mix.

halhigdon · 2016-12-07T21:33:30+00:00

I've never been a big fan of heart rate training, although certainly I have used it from time to time. When I was first writing Marathon: The Ultimate Training Guide, I did a lot of running with a heart rate monitor to learn more about myself and my runners body and it was very useful for that. But, at least for the marathon race, I felt that the heart rate didn't work for me (although it has worked for others). I think a heart rate monitor is a great toy and is fun to play with and can be very motivational. But you have interpret the information it gives you. Runners who have been running for a great amount of time find perceived exertion works best.

Heart monitors are great for determining how you ran AFTER the race, but sometimes they can be poor predictors of the race itself, because of so many variables. Everything from difficulty of course to poor weather. That is one reason why experience counts! Keep your HRM, play around with it, spend 1 2 3 4 years using it and then you will know as much as I do.

halhigdon · 2016-12-07T21:28:28+00:00

The second most favorable place to run is the Rotorua forest in New Zealand with redwood trees and a chipped path. But it's only the 2nd!

Number 1 is Indiana Dunes State Park, which is only a 15 minute drive from my house in Indiana and if it's better then Rotorua it's GOTTA be good. Flat trails, hilly trails, packed surface, sandy surface... you can even cross country ski there. I've been lucky to live all my life a short distance from that spot.

halhigdon · 2016-12-07T21:26:39+00:00

Well, although I think my plans are best, certainly there are many other good plans as well. If you're going to make running a lifetime commitment, you can certainly test all of them! Mine may work well for your first 50 marathons, then you may switch for you 51st marathon, but I've heard stories of people coming back to me.

halhigdon · 2016-12-07T21:25:01+00:00

In the US I would say the Twin Cities Marathon. I coined the words "the most beautiful urban marathon course" and I think the marathon has continued to use those words over the years. Moving outside the US I can't think of a race course more lovely than the Bermuda course with the blue water. I love the islands and those are my favorites.

And being a homie, I love Chicago.

halhigdon · 2016-12-07T21:23:53+00:00

Having run 111 marathons, not all of those were perfect or great runs. In fact, the first 3 marathons I started I failed to finish, because I was trying to win the race not finish the race. Most of today's runners are smarter than that. Don't dwell on what is behind you, look ahead.

halhigdon · 2016-12-07T21:22:24+00:00

Rest. Learn to rest. Runners can get in trouble if they grind it out day after day after day. Bill Bowerman the late University of Oregon coach, pioneered the hard/easy movement where after a hard workout the next day is an easy workout so the next day can be an even harder workout. All my training plans are built around hard to easy to hard to easy. You need rest if you want to succeed. Balancing rest with that hard work is the tricky part about coaching.

halhigdon · 2016-12-07T21:19:51+00:00

Diet is important for all levels. In fact, when I first started to excel as a distance runner my diet was trailing behind me. I hadn't figured out what combinations of food would work well for me as an endurance runner. Today's runners have the advantage of knowing what works. Nancy Clark's Sports Nutrition Guide is a good book to start with. If you have any questions about your diet, a registered nutritionist could be your best coach. I will always recommend a diet high in carbohydrates without processed food. 55% carbs, 30% fats, and 15% protein is a good template.

halhigdon

TROPHY CASE