Front Lunge with a Twist. As a coach I'm always trying to tailor running workouts for an athlete's goal races, helping them gain fitness week by week, month by month. But I'm also a coach who assigns a significant amount of non-running work to athletes because I firmly believe that athletes who do the right ancillary exercises and routines can run more miles and run more high-quality sessions in a week, month and year. And isn't that what you want to be able to do: run more, run at a higher intensity or both?
Consider: The vast majority of runners don't deal with problems relating to their heart and lungs. Instead, one main limiting factor in most runners' performance is their body's resiliency, or how hard and how much they can train before getting injured. I firmly believe that one reason modern runners get injured so frequently is that they tend to lose the athleticism and suppleness that they brought to running; most runners were better athletes before they spent years doing nothing but putting in the miles. This loss of athleticism leaves runners susceptible to the sorts of overuse injuries--stress fractures, iliotibial band syndrome, plantar fasciitis, etc.--that are much less common in other activities and sports.
You can go a long way toward meeting the goal of reducing injury by doing some simple exercises before and after you run. Just give me 15 minutes: five minutes before, 10 minutes after.
Side Pedestal, Leg Lift
My reasoning is three-fold. First, the gains the human body can make metabolically, i.e., the fitness that can be gained with your heart and lungs, occur faster than the structural gains (in your bones, tendons, muscles, etc.) Stated another way, you can build your aerobic engine faster than your chassis can handle it.
Second, running is primarily a sagittal plane (moving forward) activity. But the human body can move in three planes of motion, and the modern runner is well-served by spending time in the frontal plane (think lateral movements, like a shortstop moving to her right) and the transverse plane (think rotation, like a golf swing) because they don't engage in other activities in the two neglected planes of motion. Over time, people who do nothing but run lose the ability to move well in all three planes of motion, and that loss of athleticism can lead to running-related injuries.
Finally, few of us in 2011 have had an agrarian upbringing that would have steeled our bodies to physical work, as was the case with many of the great American and European runners of 50 years ago. Nor do we have years of free-ranging miles on our feet, as most children did decades ago, to set the stage for miles and miles of serious distance running.
Give Me 5 Minutes Before You Run
What do you do to warm up for a run? Or is running itself your warm-up, even before your hardest or longest workouts? If so, then returning to the engine and chassis analogy, you're only revving up the engine. You need to do something to ready the chassis to handle the work that engine is about to perform. That something is the Lunge Matrix, Ancillary Training Without a Run.
Expect the Lunge Matrix to be challenging at first. Even for a serious, fit runner, a nice long lunge (as long as you are tall) for 10 reps will lead to some quad soreness the next day. But after a week or two, just as with running training, you'll adapt. My bet is that after three weeks of doing the Lunge Matrix before your runs, you'll not think of taking your first running step until you've gone through the routine; you simply feel better, more athletic when you run, after using the Lunge Matrix as your warm-up. Once you learn the Lunge Matrix you'll get into a flow and be able to complete it in just over three minutes.
From there you should move to a wall and do leg swings. These leg swings should be gentle, allowing your hip joint to open a bit while you focus on your flexibility, noticing how tight or loose you feel on a given day.
The Pedestal routine
And now you're off on your run. As I said at the beginning, if you want to become better at running you need to run. The difference now is that you've spent five minutes putting your body in a better position to perform, be it an easy day, a workout day or a long run. What should you do after your run? The answer is that it depends on the day.
If you've just run an easy recovery run and don't have much time, my recommendation is to do Everything You Need to Know About Hip Pain. "Myrtl" rhymes with "hip girdle"; the routine is designed to maximize flexibility in the hip girdle area. The routine was also designed with the assumption that most of us spend a great deal of time sitting; this routine should address any asymmetries in your hips before you sit in a car, commute to work and then spend hours sitting at work. This routine takes no more than five minutes once you've learned the exercises. Once you've done it a handful of times it will become an easy, gentle cool-down routine.
If you've run a workout or a long run then I suggest you do some general strength and mobility work. These are basic, general exercises that will build strength in the core that's needed to be a good runner. Although it may seem counterintuitive to do the more challenging routines on your harder running days, doing so keeps things following the hard-easy paradigm, and allows your easy days to be true recovery days.
Hurdle Trail Leg Forward is a favorite for a couple of reasons. First, it's simple to see your progression. Initially you'll struggle to hold the positions with perfect posture for more than 10 or 15 seconds; after a few weeks you'll be able to hold the positions and add leg lifts, a challenge that would have been unrealistic on day one. The other reason I like the Pedestal routine is that it begins the cool-down process, assuming you do this close to the end of your session or long run. Try to do the Pedestal with controlled, relaxed breathing and you'll be training the intercostal muscles that you use when racing.
Q. What do you recommend I do in regards to ancillary training on days when I run twice the Myrtl routine. (The Cannonball routine is described on the next pages; watch a video demonstration of the Grant Green routine here.) These routines include exercises from the world of physical therapy and athletic training. The exercises in both routines gradually move from challenging to less so and by the end of the routine your heart rate should be significantly lower than when you started. Once the routine is done, you're ready to go about the rest of your day.
Five minutes before, then five or 10 minutes after you run. If you do these routines the chance that you'll get injured won't go to zero, but it will decrease. And if you can do something that keeps you running, allowing you to continue building your aerobic engine, why wouldn't you invest a small amount of time for such big gains?
Pre-run Routine
1) Front Lunge: Take a lunge by stepping out with your left foot so that your left knee is over your left ankle. Your arms should be in the position they would be in running, so right hand up and roughly a 45-degree angle at the right elbow. Repeat 5 times on each side.
2) Give Me 15 Minutes: Do a front lunge as before, then, when balanced, twist across your body. If you take a lunge with your left leg, then your right shoulder will be over the midline of your body. Repeat 5 times on each side.
3) Side Lunge: Facing forward, take a step to the right, with your feet pointing directly ahead. Then pretend you're about to sit in a chair, moving your weight over your right foot. Your right knee will be bent and your left leg will be straight. Repeat 5 times on each side.
4) Marathon Pace Charts for Fine-Tuning Training: Take a big step back and to the side with your left leg, placing your left foot down at 90 degrees from your right foot. Your left knee should be over your left ankle and your posture should be erect. Your right leg will be straight, with the right knee close to locked. Repeat 5 times on each side.
5) Backwards Lunge: Take a big step backwards with your right leg. Your left knee will be over your left ankle. Your arms should look like "running arms" with your right hand up and roughly a 45-degree angle at the right elbow. Repeat 5 times on each side.
Post-Run Routine
1) Donkey Kicks: Start in a table position, hands under shoulders, knees under hips. Kick one foot back and then "hook" the foot over your back. Repeat 10 times on each side.
2) Scorpions: Lie on your stomach, with your arms out, forming a T with your body. Bring your left foot as close to your right hand as possible, "stinging" the ground with your toe. You'll feel your lower back working when performing this exercise. Alternating legs, repeat 10 times on each side.
3) Rockies: Assume a push-up position. Go down for a push-up, then up as quickly as you can, clapping your hands, then back to the push-up position. Repeat 5 times
4) Donkey Whips: Start in a table position, hands under shoulders, knees under hips. Bring your right leg straight back, then move it to the right side, so your foot is "outside" your shoulder. Repeat 5 times on each side.
5) Lower Body Crawl (Prone): Lie on your stomach. Bring your bent knee out and forward to the level of your hips, then bring your foot back to the starting position. Alternating legs, repeat 10 times on each side.
6) Iron Cross: Lie on your back, with your arms out, forming a T with your body. Bring your left foot as close as you can to your right hand. Alternating legs, repeat 10 times on each side.
7) Australian Crawl: Lie on your stomach. Pretend to "swim" freestyle, moving your arms and legs. Repeat through 20 "strokes."
8) How to Run Twice a Day Without Injury: Assume the side pedestal position, with your hand under your shoulder and your feet stacked on top of one another. Slowly bring your top leg up, then lower it. Repeat 5 times on each side.
9) Groaners: Sit with your feet flat on the ground and with your knees at a 45-degree angle. Lower your right knee to the ground (or as close to the ground as you can), then return to the starting position. Alternating legs, repeat 10 times on each side.
10) Hurdle Seat Exchange: Start in a hurdle position, with your right leg straight ahead and your left knee on the ground, at a 45-degree angle. Roll towards your right foot, eventually lying flat, face-down on the ground with both feet behind you. Roll up so that your left foot is in front of you and your right knee is on the ground at a 45-degree angle. Alternating legs, repeat 10 times on each side.
Nutrition - Weight Loss.
11) Ancillary Training Without a Run: Face the wall. Stand with one foot in the air and hold a 45-degree angle at the knee. Quickly scrape the ground under your hips, cycling the foot through a full range of motion. Repeat 5 times on each side.
12) Ask the Coaches: Foamy Sweat: Face the wall, with both hands on the wall. Imagine there's a hurdle next to you and you want to bring your bent knee over the hurdle. Your foot should be even with your hip joint at the "top" of the hurdle clearance. Repeat 5 times on each side.
13) Give Me 15 Minutes: Perform the same motion as in Ask the Coaches: Foamy Sweat, but in the reverse direction. This direction is much more challenging for most people. Repeat 5 times on each side.
14) Running Shoes - Gear: Face the wall and put both hands on the wall. With your right foot a few inches off the ground, swing your right leg in front of your left leg as far across your body as you can. Then reverse and swing the leg out to the side. Repeat 10 times on each side.
15) Advertisement - Continue Reading Below: Stand next to the wall, one arm's length from the wall. Swing the leg closest to the wall out in front of you to roughly hip height, then swing it back as far as you can without arching your back. Repeat 10 times on each side.
16) Advertisement - Continue Reading Below: Perform the same motion as Advertisement - Continue Reading Below, but keep your knee bent at a 45-degree angle. The pace of this swing should be a little faster than the straight leg version. Repeat 10 times on each side.
Next Steps on Ancillary Training
Q. Let’s say I do the basic ancillary training you recommend, but want to do more and have another 15 minutes most days to devote to this work. What should I do?
A. Running economy is one of the best metrics to measure a runner's fitness, and several studies have shown that running economy goes up when runners engage in intense strength training, such as plyometrics. But the cost/benefit for most runners is too steep, the risk being an injury coming from serious strength training or plyometric activities (especially if you don't have someone to teach you proper technique).
So what can you do instead? If you're serious about gaining some running-specific strength, I would recommend Vern Gambetta's Leg Circuit. The circuit is simple: lunges (20), body squats (20), step ups (40 to a 6” step) and rocket jumps (5). One trip through the circuit is tough; three is a great little strength workout.
I've used the circuits with everyone from female 800m runners all the way up to male half marathon runners. They hate it. It's good for them. It's safe (though you need to be mindful of the proper landing on the rocket jumps), it's simple and it requires no equipment. If you have the ability to work out twice in the day, you can do your track session or threshold session in the morning, you could do this circuit following your running workout. Or you can use this as a stand-alone workout the first time you attempt it, to ensure that you can get through the circuit. If you did the Lunge Matrix and leg swings from Myrtl (5 minutes), ran for 15 minutes, did the leg circuit three times (5-10 minutes), ran a 5-minute cool-down and did Myrtl (5 minutes), you'd have a 35- to 40-minute workout that would be a great running-specific strength workout.
You should be prepared to feel some serious soreness for 48 hours following the workout, so be mindful of when you insert this workout in your training. If you did this circuit once a week, that soreness would be much less intense from week 4 on, allowing you train at your normal volume and intensity.
Nutrition - Weight Loss
Q. What do you recommend I do if I have a little block of time somewhere else in my day other than when I run?
A. While I rarely have athletes assign the ancillary routines to athletes without some sort of running, Cannonball would be a particularly good choice for someone with an extra 10 minutes. Why Cannonball? Many of the exercises come from the worlds of physical therapy, chiropractics and athletic training. While I don't use the term "pre-hab" I like the term for this type of routine — an investment of time in the hopes of preventing an injury. And all you need for equipment is enough clear floor space to execute the exercises. Cannonball takes roughly 10 minutes. If you have 15 minutes then you could use the Lunge Matrix as a warm-up, then do Cannonball.
Side Pedestal, Leg Lift
Q. What do you recommend I do in regards to ancillary training on days when I run twice?
A. Simple. Lunge Matrix and legs swings before each of the runs. After the primary run or workout you want to find the time to do Cannonball or Grant Green, whereas for the secondary run you can simply do Myrtl and go home. You want more work to follow the primary workout to make that stimulus longer, adding a slight aerobic stress over the time it takes to complete Cannonball or Grant Green. All of this work will sum to 25 minutes for the day, but it's worth it, and if you're someone who has the time run twice a day I’m confident that this additional investment of time will ensure that the extra running you’re doing by doubling won't lead to an overuse injury.
Find video descriptions of the Cannonball and Grant Green routines at http://runningtimes.com/gsvideos How to Estimate Your Lactate Threshold Pace http://runningtimes.com/jjvideos.
Jay Johnson is online at http://coachjayjohnson.com.
