we always want to come prepared to the races we intend to join mainly because of 2 reasons. first, we want to make sure that we are going to finish the race and second, we want to finish as fast as we can. training and preparation play a very vital part on how we will fare in the race.
since i signed up for the 21k event of Run United 2 this coming june 17, i have been asking for help from coaches and marathon veterans and learn as much as i can from them. i have been following their advice and doing the exercises and training they told me to do and boy do they make my legs sore and my lungs take most air as it can.
so far, i have been training my cardio, endurance, balance and strength. the strengthening exercises i do are focused on my leg muscles, obviously. the following are the exercises i do.
cardio:
m100 - this is composed of squat thrust, mountain climber and squat jump. beware, though, because this is a very intense cardio workout/exercise. be sure to ease into it and don't force yourself to complete the sets if you feel nauseous in the middle of the workout. this exercise made me see stars without me getting hit on the head. so here how it is done.
squat thrust - from standing position, you put your hands in front of your feet. throw your feet backwards and then back in the front then back to starting position. an advance option is to jump before getting back to starting position. that will make 1 repetition. do 10 repetitions.
mountain climber - get on all four as the starting position. then, pull your leg as close to your chest as you can alternately but don't put down your foot while doing so. this means that you can only put your foot down when it is at the back. do a 4 counts 10 repetitions. 1-2-3-1 (1 rep) 1-2-3-2 (2 reps) and so on.
squat jump - while standing, bend both your knees. straighten your legs then bend back then jump. that would make 1 repetition. do 10 repetitions.
(check this for a demonstration)
doing all of it will make up one full cycle. do four cycles. as your body gets used to this exercise, increase your pace to increase the intensity of the workout.
hill/vertical running - running uphill or stairs greatly exercises your cardio. plus, it also strengthens your quadriceps so this is a very good exercise.
how is it done:
find a road with at least 30 degrees elevation. or if an uphill road is not available, stairs will do. a grandstand in a sports complex is highly recommended. run as fast as you can going up then jog or walk down. repetitions depend on the length of the road or stairs. if the road is more than 200m, it's better to do an easy run up and down.
strengthening:
squats - from standing position, put your feet at shoulder length. bend your legs by pulling your buttocks back while putting your arms forward. note that your knees shouldn't bend forward beyond your toes. do 10 counts then hold very shortly.
from squat position, pull your buttocks down without pulling your knees forward and back up to squat position. knees should not go beyond toes. after 10 reps, hold squat position for 10 seconds then stand up very slowly.
static squat - assume a squat position while leaning your back on a wall. your lower leg should be perpendicular to the floor and your upper leg should be perpendicular to the wall. reach both arms upward palms facing each other. hold for 1 minute. hold weight on your hands when the exercise gets effortless.
balance:
leg raise - lift your left leg an inch or two from the ground then hold the position for one minute. after that, lift your right leg an inch or two from the ground then hold the position for one minute. repeat. on the third rep, do the exercise with your eyes closed.
asterisk leg raise - lift your left leg an inch or two from the ground then point it at 12 o'clock position then hold for 10 seconds. pull your left leg back but don't put it down. put your leg forward to 11 o'clock then hold for 10 seconds. do the same for 10, 9, 8, 7 and 6 o'clock however, make sure that your toes are pointing forward and not down for 8, 7 and 6 o'clock. do the same for right leg pointing to 12, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 o'clock and point your toes forward not down for 4, 5 and 6 o'clock. after that, repeat the exercise with your eyes closed.
endurance:
this is the easiest exercise but the most mentally draining. in order to improve your endurance, set the length of time you want to run. it should be at least an hour. distance and speed is not important. just run to finish the time set running. avoid taking walk breaks as much as possible.
except for the endurance exercise, you can run before and after doing the exercise.
these exercises could really be hard especially for newbies so it's better to aim for quality in performing these exercises. getting better takes time and patience. don't be too hard on yourself especially if you're failing to finish the exercises.
one more thing before i end this post, don't try to do all the exercises mentioned above in one go.
as always, do stretching and warm ups before doing the exercises and running.
strengthening:
squats - from standing position, put your feet at shoulder length. bend your legs by pulling your buttocks back while putting your arms forward. note that your knees shouldn't bend forward beyond your toes. do 10 counts then hold very shortly.
from squat position, pull your buttocks down without pulling your knees forward and back up to squat position. knees should not go beyond toes. after 10 reps, hold squat position for 10 seconds then stand up very slowly.
static squat - assume a squat position while leaning your back on a wall. your lower leg should be perpendicular to the floor and your upper leg should be perpendicular to the wall. reach both arms upward palms facing each other. hold for 1 minute. hold weight on your hands when the exercise gets effortless.
balance:
leg raise - lift your left leg an inch or two from the ground then hold the position for one minute. after that, lift your right leg an inch or two from the ground then hold the position for one minute. repeat. on the third rep, do the exercise with your eyes closed.
asterisk leg raise - lift your left leg an inch or two from the ground then point it at 12 o'clock position then hold for 10 seconds. pull your left leg back but don't put it down. put your leg forward to 11 o'clock then hold for 10 seconds. do the same for 10, 9, 8, 7 and 6 o'clock however, make sure that your toes are pointing forward and not down for 8, 7 and 6 o'clock. do the same for right leg pointing to 12, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 o'clock and point your toes forward not down for 4, 5 and 6 o'clock. after that, repeat the exercise with your eyes closed.
endurance:
this is the easiest exercise but the most mentally draining. in order to improve your endurance, set the length of time you want to run. it should be at least an hour. distance and speed is not important. just run to finish the time set running. avoid taking walk breaks as much as possible.
except for the endurance exercise, you can run before and after doing the exercise.
these exercises could really be hard especially for newbies so it's better to aim for quality in performing these exercises. getting better takes time and patience. don't be too hard on yourself especially if you're failing to finish the exercises.
one more thing before i end this post, don't try to do all the exercises mentioned above in one go.
as always, do stretching and warm ups before doing the exercises and running.
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