Thank you to all of you that have joined! We are up to 17 athletes representing Total Health Systems! We had 3 runners come ou
t
for our first Saturday group training run! What troopers to battle the wind. Stefanie said sometimes it felt like you were running in place as the wind tried to push you back. It is days like that when you just have be tough and battle the elements together. It only makes you stronger!
Half Marathon Group Runs on Sundays!
Marisa Hubinger, one of our Massage Therapists, will be doing the half marathon. She has offered to lead some group runs on Sunday’s for our half marathoners. Having some company during some of those longer runs is really nice. Don’t worry about your pace, keeping up or being slow. Everyone will run their own pace. Even if just run a few miles with someone it really helps make the time go.
Meet up with some other runners this Sunday at 9:00 am at Stony Creek. Park in the boat launch parking lot. Meet near the picnic table that is by the 0 mile mark on the trail. Email Marisa and let her know you will be coming and for more details. marisa_elaine@yahoo.com
Weekly Running Tip
Belly Breathing for Runners
Many of you think about strength training your legs or core to help your running performance but what about your diaphragm. Your diaphragm is the muscle we use when we breathe. By strengthening your diaphragm you can improve your endurance and be less fatigued. Many runners are chest breathers, only using the part of your lung capacity. Try running a mile at a pace that forces you to into some labored breathing. When you stop put your hand on your belly and one hand on your chest. The hand on your belly should be
moving. If you find that you are breathing in your chest, your shoulders can get tense, move up and down and you can be wasting energy.
A few ways to work on this include:
- Keep your mouth open while you are running. Your mouth can take in more oxygen than your nostrils. This also keeps your face more relaxed (making for better races pics)
- You can also try Breathing in patterns. Coordinate your inhales and exhales with your foot steps. Start with a 2-2 pattern. Breath in while stepping left, right, breath out stepping left, right. Then try advancing to 3-3. (breathe in step left, right, left, breath out step right, left, right) then try 4-4 patter.
- Another way to try train yourself to belly breathe, try pilates. Pilates is great for opening up your intercostals, increasing flexibility.
For more information about belly breathing. Check out the article from Runners World.
http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-238-267–12989-0,00.html
“Running should be a lifelong activity. Approach it patiently and intelligently,
and it will reward you for a long, long time.”
-Michael Sargent
