Doing Long Runs To Increase Stamina And Mental Fortitude
- Date: 2010-05-31 - Word Count: 344
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Every experienced runner knows that if you desire the faculty to endure long term physical stress while maintain high levels of energy, you have to do a long session once every week.
How do longer runs help increase your endurance and overall performance? On the biochemical level, a long run trains your body to transport and utilize oxygen efficiently. It also drains your muscles of their glycogen stores, carbohydrate reserves which your body uses for energy. With proper post workout nutrition, it is during the recovery phase after the long run that your body will store more glyocgen than it previously could hold, enabling you to take on longer and longer runs.
Longer runs also build mental toughness, discipline, and confidence. You set a goal and you start plugging away until you reach it. In the sport of running, often times it's not about physical ability, but guts.
So, here are a couple long run routines that you can do on your weekends. They are listed from easy to hard, but you always want to mix things up so you always keep your body "on its toes."
First Routine: Run twice as long as your average run. For example, if your average run is 5 miles during the week, your weekend long run will be 10 miles. This should be a slow and easy run. The emphasis here is not the amount of miles you can run in a certain amount of time, but to get you mentally trained to spend long amounts of time on your feet.
Second Routine: Run ten miles at your marathon pace. At this stage, you should be experienced enough to hold a slightly faster pace, and this routine is designed to do exactly that.
Third Routine: Complete 75% of your long run at an easy pace, then complete the last 25% at your 5k race pace. For example, a 16 mile long run would consist of the first 12 miles being easy, and the last 4 miles being hard. The ideal here is to finish strong after you've taxed your body for several miles.
How do longer runs help increase your endurance and overall performance? On the biochemical level, a long run trains your body to transport and utilize oxygen efficiently. It also drains your muscles of their glycogen stores, carbohydrate reserves which your body uses for energy. With proper post workout nutrition, it is during the recovery phase after the long run that your body will store more glyocgen than it previously could hold, enabling you to take on longer and longer runs.
Longer runs also build mental toughness, discipline, and confidence. You set a goal and you start plugging away until you reach it. In the sport of running, often times it's not about physical ability, but guts.
So, here are a couple long run routines that you can do on your weekends. They are listed from easy to hard, but you always want to mix things up so you always keep your body "on its toes."
First Routine: Run twice as long as your average run. For example, if your average run is 5 miles during the week, your weekend long run will be 10 miles. This should be a slow and easy run. The emphasis here is not the amount of miles you can run in a certain amount of time, but to get you mentally trained to spend long amounts of time on your feet.
Second Routine: Run ten miles at your marathon pace. At this stage, you should be experienced enough to hold a slightly faster pace, and this routine is designed to do exactly that.
Third Routine: Complete 75% of your long run at an easy pace, then complete the last 25% at your 5k race pace. For example, a 16 mile long run would consist of the first 12 miles being easy, and the last 4 miles being hard. The ideal here is to finish strong after you've taxed your body for several miles.
Related Tags: endurance, running tips
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