Paw Prints, Hoof Tracks and Tales VI

Baby Luke has arrived, and is dreaming of running!

Here is this week’s Safari Email

Check out this week’s Texas Township Course

A $10,000 Reward has been offered for any information leading to the whereabouts of Injury Coach Carl Fried. Fried was last Saturday’s most wanted man in the jungle. After a thorough search of the savannah failed to turn up the missing physical therapist, there was some speculation the stork may have arrived. It turned out there was no special delivery on July 21, but Carl and LeAnne’s little bundle of joy did indeed arrive at 8:50 am on Thursday, July 26. Luke James Fried weighed 7 lbs 13 oz and was 21 inches long. Make sure you stop by and congratulate Carl next time you see him, or as he performs your personal gait analysis this coming Saturday!

Welcome to the new and very temporary Paw Prints Classifieds! This story is fact, not fiction, Giti Henrie found a beautiful stray Golden Retriever about 3 months ago. They named her Abigail (Abby for short) and had hoped that she would integrate into their household Unfortunately, their dog Annie has not been able to adjust to Abby's presence, and therefore, they must find Abby a home. If you know of anyone who might be interested in adding a Golden Retriever to their family, please contact Giti Henrie at ghenrie@charter.net. Abby is a spayed female and is approximately 3 years old. She is 85 pounds, excellent with kids and knows commands!

I spy? Every year it seems as though as though at least one of our Safari Stars encounters a brush with fame and this year is no exception as several of the herd attain celebrity status! Last week all of the 2007 Boston Marathon finishers received a 2007-2008 Commemorative Calendar in the mail. On the December 2008 page, we were delighted to discover we have our very own “Calendar Boy”! That’s right, Team Leader Pat Johnson has achieved immortality and can be found 3 runners back adorned in an orange cap and bright yellow jacket!

Camera shy Bonnie Sexton was caught trying to elude the press after Jennie McCafferty chased her down for an exclusive interview with Michigan Runner. Bonnie won the Masters division of the challenging road and trail 10k, leaping hay bales on the way and was filmed for Michigan Runner TV Well ok, the camera shy part might be fiction, but there really is Virtual TV covering running in Michigan! Stray jungle beast Steve Rice ran his first “Steve’s” run, in honor of his namesake.

Could she be emerging as the new Jennifer Shaffer? Nicole Lycan will be MIA this weekend as she travels to Maine to compete in the USAT&F National Age Group Championships and perhaps enjoy some Maine lobster while she’s at it. Nicole will be competing in the 2000 meter (not 3000 meter as originally reported) Steeplechase and expected to emerge as National Champ! Good luck Nicole!

OH, the things you learn on the run! This story came in from Frank Hui, but we refrain from naming names in this one because of one of those health related legal acronyms:

One of my training partners was missing for 3 weeks and I figured he must be on vacation. It turned out that he was on vacation with his wife’s family the first week he was gone. My partner was dying for some vegetables and alas, one night, they had boiled cabbage. He wolfed down a plateful of the yummy fibrous stuff and was quite happy. He awoke next day with a terrible stomach cramp (the cabbage building pressure while he was sleeping). He went to the bathroom and the next thing he knew, he woke up in his bed. He had a lump on his head and his knee was hurting badly. He passed out and fell and had face plant on the bathroom floor. Consequently he missed 2 weeks of training because of the bumped knee. Fortunately, the injury was not serious and he is now back on his training routine. Anyway, we were running with an internist who explained to us what really happened. What he had was called vasovagal syncope. In simple terms, he passed out due to a sudden drop of blood pressure and the stomach cramp must be the stimulus for it to happen. Also, she gave him some bad news: this kind of fainting can reoccur. I tell you, we learn a lot during our long runs.

Get well soon Carole Stevens, Marty Buffenbarger and Kelly Korf!!!

Carry on with Cross Training!

This week’s Safari Clinic is on Injury Prevention, but what if you are already among the ranks of the injured? The notes and questions have started to trickle in from injured Safari participants with maladies ranging from foot pain to stress fractures, prompting us to name injury Coach Carl Fried the Safari’s “Most Valuable Player”. Nothing can be more frustrating than the appearance of the injury demons after weeks of training and preparation. Depending on the nature and prognosis of your injury, however, all does not have to be lost. Whether looking to prevent injury while building fitness, or maintain fitness (and sanity) while recovering from an injury, cross training is often the answer. No form of cross training is a perfect replacement for running because our bodies adapt very specifically to the demands of running. But there are times when running is not an option, and each of us has a different tolerance level for the amount of mileage and intensity and may find cross training as the answer to increasing or maintaining fitness while staying injury free.

One of the most frequently asked questions asked by those suffering from injury is how quickly they will detrain. At 5 -7 days of inactivity, there is no loss, and there most likely will even be some running improvement because of the rest! After that, however, deconditioning occurs at a rate of about 2 – 3% per week of inactivity. The good news, however, is that cross training can slow or even stop the loss in cardiovascular fitness.

What are the best forms of Cross Training for Runners? According to Ed Eyestone, a two-time Olympic marathoner and Exercise Physiologist, the Elliptical Trainer and Water Running are the most effective methods of cross training for a runner. Benefits can be reaped, however, from a wide variety of cross training techniques and the nature of the running injury may prevent some of these from being an option. Below is a brief summary of several of the most popular:

Elliptical Trainer
The elliptical trainer is the closest form of cross training to running in terms of muscles and aerobic systems used. You can do almost any workout on an elliptical that you can do while running; long runs, lactate threshold or VO2 max. When using the elliptical, to most closely simulate running, use a lower resistance and a faster turnover of 180 to 200 steps per minute. This will help maintain your leg turnover.

Water Running
Deep water running with a flotation vest or belt is one of the most effective methods of cross training for runners because it closely simulates land running, and it is safe for most running injuries. Most fitness centers with a pool make these available. Like the elliptical, you can perform almost any type of workout in the water that you can on land. It is difficult to maintain running form in the water; the most important factor is to be able to maintain proper intensity. Your stride rate will be slower in the water, and it will be even slower if you try to simulate land running exactly; try to concentrate on intensity to maintain fitness. Some runners move forward slowly in the water while others stay in place; either is ok. If you maintain a relatively upright posture, it will reduce the tendency to move forward. Also, if you heart rate train, be aware that your heart rate will be 8 – 11 beats per minute lower for the same level of oxygen uptake than it is when running on land.

Stair Climbing
Stair Climbing provides a great cardiovascular workout and also very closely approximates running. Because the stair climber stresses the body in a similar way to running, it often cannot be used as a cross training option for injury recovery. For a healthy runner, however, stair climbing makes a great substitute for recovery runs.

Cycling
Cycling is a great cross training option that works the cardiovascular system while eliminating the impact that causes most running injuries. There are many options; you can ride a bike outdoors, indoors on a bike trainer, or use at exercise bike at home or at the gym. If you ride outside, you get to cover ground much like you do in running, eliminating some of the monotony. The downside is the risk of colliding with a vehicle, and to get a good workout you have to travel at high speeds on a bike which requires some skill. Because cycling uses a limited range of motion, there is also the risk of shortening your stride. You can minimize this by walking and then running (if injury permits) and then stretching your hamstrings, quadriceps and hip flexors. The bike can be used to do long endurance workouts, or lactate threshold workouts. When using the bike, be sure to keep it in an easy gear with RPM’s of at least 90.

Swimming
Swimming is a great form of cross training that works the cardiovascular system with none of the stresses of running. It does require a bit of skill to get in a good workout, but with some instruction you can build up quickly. Swimming isn’t as similar to running as some of the other cross training methods, but if most of your training primarily consists of running, that doesn’t matter. It is a great way to increase your overall general fitness and helps to promote recovery at the same time. Feeling a bit sore? A good swim in place of a recovery run is a great solution!

Cross Country Skiing
Cross country skiing is the only form of exercise that provides cardiovascular benefits equal to or greater than running. Because it uses the entire body it works the cardiovascular system very hard: some of the highest VO2 Max values have been found in cross country skiers. The drawback is that it does require some skill (and snow!) and those without experience may not be able to go fast enough to get in a good workout. Cross Country ski machines are not as much fun, but make a great alternative.

When you are recovering and ready to work your way back to running, the smart way is to work your way back up to running slowly, and perhaps through cross training options as you heal. You may only be able to do deep water running at first, graduate to the elliptical trainer, and then finally run easy on a treadmill.

References:

1. Pfitzinger, P., and S. Douglas. 2001. Advanced Marathoning. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.
2. Glover, B., and S. Glover. 1999. The Competitive Runner’s Handbook. New York, NY: Penguin Group.
3. http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,5033,s6-78-82-0-6039,00.html

Paw Prints, Hoof Tracks and Tales Vol. V!!!

Team Tiara roams the jungle!

Check out the map for the Plainwell Ice Cream Route

Here is this week’s Safari Email

Bon Voyage! Jennifer Shaffer left last weekend bound for her new home in Wisconsin, but promised to return August 4 to visit for a long run. Yes, that’s right! We have such a good thing going in the jungle it is worth a five hour drive! No sooner had we said farewell to Jennifer, when this note from Jahiro Quinos arrived:

“I just want to share that my company offered me a new position in Chicago to manage one of the plants we have there. I just started in Chicago last Wednesday and Saturday night I flew to Johannesburg in South Africa to finishing up my job in International Manufacturing, I will be back this Saturday in the evening, so I would not participate in the training. I have a mixture of happiness and sadness because of the great opportunity to live and work in Chicago and I will miss the team in the Safari Training for the Chicago Marathon. I hope to run with you in the next following month of my transition going and back from Kalamazoo to Chicago from Monday to Friday. I did not have the opportunity to make a good relationship with the runners but you have a friend in Chicago from now on.” Jahiro

Guess what…we erred again and omitted another Safari star off race results, but as it is in most cases, we find our scapegoat in the name! This time our technology victim was Jennifer Schmitz-Weber. “My name was inadvertently left off for the Firecracker 5 miler. I am assuming because it was listed as Jennifer Weber and not Jennifer Schmitz-Weber, but I took 3rd in the female 25-29 age group. Thanks!”
Sincere congratulations, Jennifer, on your age group award!!!

After a lengthy hiatus, Team Charmin has reconvened and is BACK! Patti Montilla, Mark Chicoinne, Rich Schau, and Susan Celestini found themselves banded together once again. Team Charmin is not a clique, by the way, but simply a silly name given to this fun-loving group of runners. Cliques were banished from jungle territories years ago. Mark Chicoinne did play up the silly misnomer a bit when he perched a toilet seat on top of his suburban at last year’s Dances With Dirt! Yes, this story really is fact, not fiction!

Natalie Dale wins this week’s Team Tiara Team Spirit honors for arriving adorned in a personalized purple crown. Who exactly makes up the Team Tiara Crew? Among their ranks you will find Shannon Aardema, Cathy Baldwin, Jennifer Barnard, Jeff Cavanaugh, Lisa Cavenaugh, Cynthia Chapin, Keith Deblock, Heather Francis, Kim Grindall, Sarah Harding, Jason Hendrick, Katy Jackson, Jennifer Kitchen, Erin Kucera, Nicci Lycan, Jackie Mitchell, Michelle O’Connell, Jennifer Opel, Kara Purcell, Megan Roschek, Terry Vuckovich, Sarah Willsea, Evie Linebaugh, Elsa Argyres, Jennifer Schmitz-Weber, Sandy Barry-Loken, Sheila Clothier, Erica McCulley and Laura McTavish. GO TEAM TIARA!

Every year we give special recognition to the Safari participant who travels the furthest to roam with the herds. This year’s “Safari Traveler” award goes to Melissa Greissing, who comes to us all the way from Georgia! Melissa is spending part of the summer in the Kalamazoo area and signed up for this year’s Safari adventure! Welcome Melissa! Welcome back to the jungle Jane Rolfe!

Practice Makes Perfect with Pace Runs!

A race provides an excellent venue for a pace run if you can hold to your goal marathon or half marathon pace. Here Cecilia Mallet sets the pace.

Time to get the hooves grooving and the paws moving!!! Over the coming weeks Pace (P) runs are inserted into the Saturday morning schedules. Why you ask? Long runs at marathon or half marathon pace are an effective way to prepare you for the demands of the actual event and offer a great physiological and psychological boost. Most of our long runs are done at endurance/easy (E) pace because running too far and too often at marathon or half marathon pace is very demanding on the body. The recovery time required would negate the benefits of the workout and would soon lead to the dreaded land of overtraining. In jungle terminology, overtraining is kind of like getting stuck in quicksand; you don’t want to tread there.

Instead, occasional shorter Pace Runs of 8 – 15 miles are often used to simulate marathon or half marathon pace, and have been inserted into the Safari training schedules sporadically. The intention of these is to stress your body in a similar way as a marathon or half marathon, but to limit the duration of the run to minimize recovery time….and circumvent the quick sand.

For the marathon, pace runs are performed at approximately 20 – 30 seconds slower than lactate threshold pace or .45 – 1:30 faster than endurance/easy runs.
For the half marathon, they are run about 1:00 – 2:00 faster than endurance/easy runs or just slightly below lactate threshold pace.

Pace runs provide an excellent opportunity to practice drinking and taking energy gels at race pace. They should be done on a measured course so you can obtain feedback on your pace. If you can exercise restraint and stick to marathon or half marathon pace, a race of the appropriate distance is an ideal venue for a pace run. The course is marked, there are plenty of aid stations and other runners to help you along. A marked bike trail is also a suitable place for a pace run.

It is also recommended that the course simulate your marathon or half marathon topography. If you are running a flat course such as Chicago, Grand Rapids, Toronto or Detroit, it is beneficial to run some of your pace runs on level terrain. Pancake flat courses, especially in a marathon, are not always necessarily easier as you use the same muscles in the exactly way for the entire duration of the race. By the same token, if you are running a hilly marathon such as Akron or Boston, you want to perform some of your pace runs on hilly terrain.

Reference: Pfitzinger, P., and S. Douglas. 2001. Advanced Marathoning. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.

Paw Prints, Hoof Tracks and Tales!!!

Nicci Lycan sets new course record at Steve's Raider Stomp 10k!

Here is this week’s Safari Email

Check out the Course Map

It is human to err....did we ever tell you we sometimes make mistakes....this note arrived from Terri Kunkel this week and due to our blunder, we gave her the headline!

"Not that it's any big deal but I just read the blog for this past week and my name was eliminated from the Lindsey's Run! I really did get 2nd place in my age group!! Thanks! Terri" Yes, it is true, Terri finished an awesome 2nd place in her age division in the Lindsey’s Run 10k! Congratulations Terri!

It has never happened before in Safari history, but there is a always a first time for everything! Nine Safari participated in Steve’s Raider Stomp 10k and 5k, and every single one brought home an overall or age group award. Not only that, several rounded up family members, each also placing in their respective age group.

Safari Ladies continue to dominate local racing action with overall wins at most recent events. Jen Shaffer wasn’t present at "The Raider Stomp," but her back-up Safari team came through to take both the women’s 10k and 5k runs! Nicci Lycan easily won the women’s 10k, and not only that, she earned professional status by shattering the course record with a 42:13. The event provided a cash incentive for this astounding feat. Bonnie Sexton won the 5k race, but just missed out on breaking her own record (and the cash) set at the inaugural event the year before.

The 5k run was a run full of family fun! In the 5k 35-39 division, Track Coach Steve Downard and his wife Trish took 1st place in the 35-39 age division before scooting off to a little league All-Star game starring Kyle Downard. Kyle did not run this race as he was resting up for the big game. Track Coach Joe Hulsebus took 1st place in his age division, while wife Lana took 3rd in hers. Brenda Stoddard won her age group, and eleven year old son Trevor Stoddard finished 3rd place overall.

In the 10k Run, Erica McCulley and Travis McCulley shared 2nd place honors in their age groups. Erin Kucera, encouraged in her running by friend Nicci Lycan took 1st in her age group. Ron Reid took 3rd in his age division, and Nancy Vendeville placed 2nd in hers!

Congratulations all Safari "Raider Stomp" Participants! And kudos to Race Director Bob Smola who once again put on a first class act, not to mention putting all the winners on a podium!

The July 14 Kindleberger 5k drew a record crowd and provided the perfect forum for Jen Shaffer’s final of many local race victories. That’s right! Kalamazoo’s elite, Jen Shaffer is moving to Wisconsin at the end of this week to get settled before starting her new job as a middle school teacher this fall. Jen has promised, however, to drive the 5 hours to Kalamazoo to share some of her long runs with the Safari...the Kalamazoo running community is one of a kind! Speaking of Jen, it took Jen, Bonnie Sexton and Jon Williard 3 hours to complete a 13 mile run. The trio managed to sandwich a 5k race, post race social, cool down, awards ceremony, and a "parade" run into the morning. That’s right, the trio found themselves caught in the middle of the Kindleberger Summerfest parade!

Cristi Dedoes made a 5k appearance as a tune up for the Crim. Joel Shaffer arrived with daughter Kailey while mom Amy stayed in Safari school. Lisa and Jeff Cavanaugh both took 3rd in their age divisions, as did Sheila Clothier. Carl Fried took 3rd in his competitive age division. Joe Hulsebus is coming back strong after breaking 19 minutes and placing 2nd in his. Stephanie Sabin set a new 5k PR and won her age division. Kailey Shaffer and Jon Willard both placed 1st in theirs. Congratulations all Safari Kindlerberger 5k finishers!

Oops, we almost erred again, team Leader Brian Dobbie also won his age division at Kindleberger. Actually, the reason we listed Brian separately is because his son Will, who worked at Gazelle Sports, is involved with the Blue Plant Run. This excerpt is taken from their website, http://www.blueplanetrun.org/

The Blue Planet Run will cover 15,200 miles, across 16 countries and 4 continents, 24 hours a day for 95 days to deliver an extremely urgent and important message: we can and must begin today to alleviate the catastrophic burden placed on over a billion people who, every day, must drink unsafe local water, or travel long distances on foot to search for safe water for themselves and their families.

Starting in New York City on June 1, 2007, a team of "20 ordinary male and female athletes doing extraordinary things" will run around the clock along a route that includes the U.S., Ireland, the U.K., France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, the Czech Republic, Poland, Belarus, Russia, Mongolia, China, Japan and Canada. Each runner will sprint 10 miles a day. Batons will be passed at over 1,500 exchange points. The Run will end back in New York City, on September 4, 2007. Each exchange point and heartfelt moment will be captured in the media, fueled by well-organized events in major cities and an international PR campaign.

The event will spare no expense to be Earth- and people -friendly. We imagine an event that comes to be known as "The Race without a Trace." We are committed to partnering with corporations that have similar beliefs and goals.

The Safari Beat on Heart Rate Training: Maximum Heart Rate or Heart Rate Reserve?

Stacie Kryszek from The Studio will provide the full low down on heart rate training at the July 19th clinic, 7:00 pm at Gazelle Sports, but here’s an article to get you started!

The Studio (Personal Training) by the way, is hosting two open houses for KAR (which includes Safari) members. The first one is Saturday July 14th from 9:30 to 10:30 and the second one is Tuesday, July 17th, from 5 pm to 6 pm. The Studio is located at 161 East Michigan Avenue on the lower level. This is the building where Food Dance Café use to be at, they have since moved down the street.

Today’s technology makes heart rate training easier than ever…..now there are even GPS systems available with a built in heart rate monitor feature. Heart rate monitors are the most effective way to measure your heart rate while running. They are accurate and you can check your heart rate without having to stop. As you may have discovered, it is difficult to obtain an accurate reading by checking pulse. It is easy to miss beats and your heart rate begins to slow quickly when you stop. Your heart rate is an important tool in your training arsenal: it provides valuable feedback on your training intensity because it determines how hard your heart is working while exercising.

Before strapping on the sophisticated hardware and taking off, it is important to understand how to determine the appropriate heart rate for you, and for a particular training intensity. How do you determine the appropriate heart rate for a particular workout? Training can be based on a percentage of one of 2 different methods:

A percentage of your maximum heart rate (MHR) OR
A percentage of your heart-rate reserve (HHR)

Heart-rate reserve is a little more accurate than maximum heart rate, but it requires a little more arithmetic. HHR is your maximal heart rate minus your resting heart rate. It estimates the percentage of your VO2 Max at which you are working and shows how much your heart rate can increase with exercise. For example, if Bill’s maximal heart rate is 200 and his resting heart rate is 45, his heart rate reserve will be 155.

There are several age-based formulas available for determining maximal heart rate, but these only estimate an average for persons of a given age and are fairly inaccurate. Your actual maximal heart rate could be as many as 20 beats below or above the average for your age. Unless you fall right in the middle of the bell curve, if you base your training on this, you could be training far too easy or too hard.

Fortunately, there still is a simple, yet much more effective way of determining your maximal heart rate. Do a good warm up then run several striders. After you have warmed up thoroughly, run very hard for 2 minutes using a heart rate monitor. If you have run as hard as you can, you will be within 2 or 3 beats per minute of your maximal heart rate by the end of the run. If you aren’t sure if you gave an all out effort, jog 10 minutes then repeat the test to see if the results are similar. You may find you get a slightly higher heart rate if you perform the test uphill.

Once you have your maximal heart rate, you can determine what the target heart rate should be for a given workout using the chart below. For example, if Bill wants to do a long endurance (E) run he will want to keep his heart rate below 75% of maximal heart rate. Since his maximal heart rate is 200, his goal will be to keep his training heart rate below 150 (.75 x 200) when applying the maximal heart rate method of calculation. Likewise, when performing a lactate threshold (LT) run, Bill will want to keep his heart rate between 80 – 92% of maximum.

The slightly more accurate heart-rate reserve method is calculated using the following formula:

Heart-rate reserve (HRR) = maximal heart rate – resting heart rate
Target Heart-rate = resting heart rate + heart rate reserve (HRR) x appropriate percentage of HRR.

Your resting heart rate is your heart rate when you first wake up in the morning. In order to get your resting heart rate, take your pulse over the course of a few days and take an average to get the most accurate result. If you normally use an alarm clock to wake, take your pulse during days when you can wake naturally. The alarm clock startles you into waking up with a higher heart rate.

Once you have both maximal heart rate and resting heart rate, you can calculate the appropriate target heart rate for a particular training intensity using the chart below. For Example, Bill has a maximal heart rate of 200 and a resting heart rate of 50. If he wants to perform a VO2 max workout at 95% of Heart-rate reserve, his target heart rate will be calculated as follows:

200 (maximal heart rate) – 50 (resting heart rate) = 150 (heart-rate reserve)
50 (resting heart rate) + 150 (heart-rate reserve) * .95 (appropriate percentage for VO2Max = 193. Bill’s target heart rate for a VO2 Max workout is 193.

Target Heart-Rate Training Intensities:

Numbers Order is: VO2 Max Percent HRR Percent Max Percent Max Heart Rate

Speed Faster than VO2 Max Not Applicable Not Applicable

VO2 Max

95-100%, 95-98%, 95-98%

Lactate Threshold

75-90%, 75-90%, 80-92%

Endurance

65-80% 65-80% 75-85%

Recovery

<70%>

Heart rate can be affected by factors other than exercise including caffeine, dehydration and running in the heat. If you are running on a hot day, your heart rate will increase several beats per minute as you progress because your blood volume decreases and more blood is being sent to the skin for cooling purposes. This increases your heart rate to supply enough oxygen to your working muscles. You will need to take this into consideration on a very hot day. If your target heart rate is 145 normally, you may want to allow an increase of 5 beats per minute or 150. Beyond this, however, it is wise to slow your pace to stay within the adjusted range.

Reference: Pfitzinger, P., and S. Douglas. 1999. Road Racing for Serious Runners. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics