The 16th PZU CM: Training in the Wolski Forest on the 29th of January. This winter we are going for POWER!
Join us for another training session aimed at helping you with preparations for running the 16th PZU Cracovia Marathon. This time we are going for a training trip to the Wolski Forest. On Sunday, the 29th of January we are going to meet at 10:00 a.m. in the car park at the end of Aleja Waszyngtona near the Kościuszko Mound.
The plan: We are going to run to the Wolski Forest via Sikornik, then train on a loop around the zoological garden and return through Sikornik to the Kościuszko Mound.
The winter’s still chilly, and we have only three months until the great run. It might seem like a lot of time, but in fact it is the last moment to start preparing for the race.
Maybe you do not like running in snow, fight against cold, wind and ice. Training in the winter is hard, especially in the city covered in smog which hinders and discourages you from getting out.
However, winter also has its advantages – it naturally slows everyone down!
There is nothing worse than running too fast in the winter. From our observations, it seems that the majority of amateur runners run too fast. Yes, you read that right – too fast during training for a marathon! If you have a heart rate monitor, the majority of the marathon running should be done at the lowest – aerobic – intensity levels.
What does it mean for an amateur? Basically, that during your training runs, your heart rate should be relatively low, 130-140 beats per minute at most!
You are probably going to say – it’s low, it’s very low. But that’s how you do it. Keep that in mind, even if you consider it strange.
Harder, better, faster and stronger is not really the best way to achieve success in a marathon.
It is supposed to be slow and long.
However, during that period we should also keep training for POWER. In the winter – apart from loading kilometres – we should keep working on our strength. February will be dedicated to just that.
Next Sunday, we will use the possibilities offered by the Wolski Forest to work on our strength. The training session will charge you up – if you do it according to our advice and guidelines. It is going to be interesting.
In February, we are going to make your strength level increase significantly.
And now, let us move on to theory – we live in a university city, after all...
THEORY:
Every runner needs strength if they want to compete in all kinds of endurance runs. Thus, the elements of the so-called strength should be included in every training plan, regardless of age, experience or the distance we are preparing for. The newest research shows that the level of strength should increase along with the distance, so the marathon runners should have relatively high levels. That is of course not in absolute figures, but in relation to the body weight.
This – in short – is the famous “POWER”.
To make it even more clear, a marathon runner should be slim and strong.
The success in endurance runs is decided by three basic characteristics: the main one – endurance, as well as – which might seem strange for long-distance runners – strength and speed. Yes, indeed. STRENGTH or, as the leading physiologists refer to it, POWER. The power level – which in this case is the ratio of strength to body weight of the runner is vital for achieving success. Without this very important motor skill, even the exceptional abilities and endurance cannot ensure the optimal use of the body.
How to combine these antagonistic characteristics in order to achieve the desired levels for each of them? It’s definitely hard. We agree.
That's what we are doing during the training sessions for the 16th PZU Cracovia Marathon.
After all, it is the proper strength level and – what is the most important – its good ratio to the main characteristic, endurance, where the secret of the highest performance comes from. If you forget about getting stronger and shaping that characteristic, even the most advanced effort focused just on our endurance will not bring the proper results.
That’s not that easy, though! To be frank, it is one of the greatest secrets of the leading trainers who work with long-distance runners. Despite the fact that they readily share various plans with the amount and quality of the kilometres ran, they aren’t so willing to share any details about their strength training, because it is more of an art, and those who learn it start off with great advantage.
Strength training should be included at every stage of our preparations, as well as when we are competing in order to maintain the already achieved strength. There are dozens of methods for maintaining and shaping the strength component in our training. The easiest and the most widely used one – partly because of its great safety – is the popular running strength. Almost every trainer and coach uses various training methods, such as jogs, jumps, various skips and specialised strength exercises (such as running with weights) in their routines. You will find the so-called running strength exercises in almost all recommended training systems, just take a look at the plans by our expert Jerzy Skarżyński, Grzegorz Gajdus – coach of our national team, as well as any other tried and proven system, and you will find elements of running strength there.
This makes one (and at times even two) strength sessions in a week a must for every runner, regardless of their level!
However, we need to warn you about jumping into running strength willy-nilly, without consideration. It is worth consulting in with an expert or at least an experienced runner beforehand, because by training running strength improperly you might do yourself more harm than good, starting from unnecessary injuries or destroying your running technique. Despite the fact that it looks seemingly easy, what is important in running strength is the quality and correctness of the exercises, and it is actually easy to do even the simplest of them in a wrong way. It is no accident that only the most experienced runners go for running strength exercises during their individual training sessions. Although even in their case it is always good to have someone take a look at their technique and quality. Sometimes a basic advice can do wonders when it comes to correctness.
IN PRACTICE:
It’s very simple – just come to our training sessions preparing you for the 16th PZU Cracovia Marathon.
Throughout February we are going to work on our POWER before the marathon.
The upcoming training will feature the Wolski Forest, the zoological garden, hills and natural running strength included in a marathon run.
If you do everything right, you will be rewarded by Krakow’s lions with a deep guttural roar of victory. If you screw it up, the laughing of hyenas will echo throughout the city for a long time.
It’s worth training with us!
SIMB & AZS AWF Kraków Masters