In a 2006 study, runners were divided into two groups and observed over a period of eight weeks. All runners performed the same amount of distance training (mostly consisting of training runs), except that one group included strength training three times to week instead of running.

The strength training sessions lasted 30-60 minutes and consisted of: (1) jumping exercises (hurdle jumps, squat jumps, calf jumps, etc.), or (2) gym exercises with low weight, including half squats, knee extension, calf raises, abdominal curls, and back extensions (2-3 sets with 6-10 repetitions per set).

After the eight week observation period, the study’s authors tested the runners and found that the strength training group had comparably more improvement in anaerobic and neuromuscular performance. While there was no difference in running economy and endurance performance between the groups, the strength training group had no decrease in aerobic performance even though those runners had replaced distance training with weight training three times per week. In other words, engaging in strength training instead of endurance training three times per week did not hurt the group’s endurance.

The authors mention that the results of the study were in line with other studies that have found strength training to benefit neuromuscular and anaerobic performance without harming aerobic running capacity. The key take away is that strength training is an important part of any running program, even if the strength training may cause a slight decrease in the time you have to do traditional distance training.

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Predicting World Record Progression for Women

As explained in a 2005 article that appeared in the Sports Medicine journal, Nature’s mistaken prediction is the result of a misunderstanding of the history of women’s marathoning. In 1985, women participation in marathons was still a relatively new idea. The women marathon record, therefore, had been dropping at a very fast rate by the mid-1980′s. It was unclear how fast a woman could really run.

Now that the performance data is much more complete, we see that the female marathon world record has had the same kind of plateau as the men’s record. The once-rapid progression of the marathon world record for both men and women has reached almost a stand-still. The men’s record has gone down only 3 minutes since 1985, and the women’s record has gone down by only 6 minutes compared with the 1985 time. Obviously, both men and women have come pretty close to understanding the limits of their performance, but why are men still eleven minutes faster than women?

Biological Factors of Performance

Female runners work just as hard, if not harder, than male runners. However, they still have not caught up with the best men in the world. The gender difference in running performance is not related to work ethic – it is rooted in biology. The three main factors of running performance in humans are:

• Running Economy: A measure of how efficiently a person uses oxygen while running at a given pace. Runners who have the ability to consume less oxygen while running have better economy.
• Lactate threshold: The exercise intensity at which lactate starts to accumulate in the blood stream.
• Aerobic capacity: The maximum amount of oxygen the body can utilize

There appears to be very little gender difference in the running economy and lactate threshold level of men and women. However, research has found that women have a lower aerobic capacity than men. This appears to be primary gender difference that prevents a woman from running a 2:03:59 marathon like a man.

The lower aerobic capacity for women is due to a number of factors, including: (1) a woman has lower blood hemoglobin levels, (2) a woman’s arm and leg muscles have a lower oxygen extraction, and (3) the left ventricle in a woman’s heart has a smaller stroke volume than men.

These biological factors appear to be the reason why the female marathon world record prediction in the 1985 Nature article has not come true.

Photo courtesy of Ken Morrill

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Perfectionism

The general consensus is that the more perfectionist a person is, the more likely he or she will suffer burnout from an activity. Although demanding perfection can propel a runner to fast times quickly, the win at all costs attitude can also lead to over training, injuries, and a general lack of satisfaction with running. Perfectionists never seem to be happy with any race, no matter the time. Therefore, they never take any joy out of running and soon lose interest.

Running for Others

Another trait of burned-out runners is that they often run to please others. These runners are desperate to appear perfect for people around them and believes that their coaches, family, and friends expect nothing but perfection. The fear of letting down a coach or family member becomes overwhelming and causes running to be a stressful and dreary activity. Running only for others is such a dangerous attitude because it is not possible to win every race and impress every person. A runner who runs only to please other people will invariably fail and likely stop running because of the disappointment.

Running for Awards

Many runners love to brag about their high placings and awards. Some runners will only race in small local races because they know they can place high. However, focusing primarily on rewards as the reason for running will often lead to burnout. Instead of being so obsessed about winning a medal or award, runners will gain much more enjoyment by simply enjoying the feeling of racing.

The most effective motivational tool is the attitude of running solely to push our bodies and enjoying the feeling of health that running provides. With this attitude, awards and accolades becomes mere side effects of the more important to desire to run for personal enjoyment, health, and fun.

Conclusion

I urge you to take note of the following advice if you want to keep your motivation to run: (1) Train hard, but don’t be a perfectionist. Understand that no one is perfect and refrain from punishing yourself over a bad race. Instead, use it as a learning experience, (2) Run for your own personal enjoyment and not only to please others, and (3) Do not focus so much on awards and placing high in races. Rather, focus on the good feeling you get from running and the chance that running gives you to to push yourself and discover your potential. By utilizing these tips, you’ll be surprised how much easier running becomes.

Photo courtesy of tableatny

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A recent study analyzed a number of other studies on running injuries and divided risk factors into four categories: (1) systemic factors, (2) running-related factors, (3) health factors, and (4) lifestyle factors. In this post, I will cover the first two categories. Check back later for part 2 of this article.

Systemic Factors

Systemic factors are the toughest for runners to overcome because they can not be changed. For example, the study found that greater age was associated with front thigh injuries and that female runners were at greater risk of developing hip injuries.

Additionally, runners with leg length differences have a higher rate of lower leg problems and taller male runners had a greater risk of new injuries.

Although a runner can not do much to change his/her height or gender, it is important to understand and take preventative measures against these risk factors. For example, female runners should carefully stretch and strengthen the hip muscles. All runners with a history of injuries should determine whether they have a leg length difference and insert a heel lift if needed.

Running-Related Factors

Running more miles per week will get into better shape, but it also puts you at a greater risk of injury. Specifically, the rate of injuries increases when runners run more than 40 miles per week or more. Additionally, running longer races (i.e. half marathon or marathon) increases the risk of injuries.

The study found that female runners who train on concrete have a higher rate of injuries, but there is no increased risk of injuries from running on hilly terrain, running in the dark, or running in the morning. Also notable was that the pace of training runs was not a significant factor for running injuries. However, running too fast on daily runs can lead to over-training problems, include fatigue.

Please check back later for a discussion of the health factors and lifestyle factors that can contribute to running injuries.

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