Foot Traffic Flat & Finding Motivation

Hey Gang!

This blog has a couple of topics: 1) Getting a race on the calendar, and 2) battling the ebbs and flows of the new quarantine normal.

First, with all of the training we have completed so far in 2020, it’s important to continue some assemblance of training, even if it’s just a few days each week. To help with motivation, I have looked into a team/group registration for Whisper runners into the Foot Traffic Flat on Sauvie Island on July 4. The event offers four races: 5k, 10k, half marathon, and the full marathon. This opportunity provides us with something we can get onto the calendar and work towards, rather than paying the fun game of “what if…”

Second, the topic of “tired legs” came up on a run today, so I’ve addressed it in today’s video blog. Running, like life, has periods of ebbs and flows, and when we are at Whisper, most everything feels pretty darn good. The vibe is motivating, you see your friends, we work hard together, there’s loud music, and just a good spirit all around. But when you remove that, and you remove your school, your classes, your teachers, your friends, your regular patterns of life, and you strip it all down to the state we are in, then this could be the new norm for a while and we need to figure out new patterns of motivation and stimulation, at least for the short-term (1-2 months). This topic of motivation circles back to the discussion around the Foot Traffic Flat. We are presently in a state of flux, a state of in between, and a state of unknown. But having somethign on the calendar can really help provide that necessary stimulus our spirit is seeking.

Track 2020: What's the (new) plan?

Several people have reached out asking about the future of track given the state of our country with the COVID-19 pandemic, so I thought I would try to provide some answers over the next few weeks, and also some training suggestions moving forward.  If you have any questions or would like to hear about certain topics, be sure to let me know and I’ll do my best to respond to them.

Regarding the 2020 spring track season, at this point, it’s really too early to say if the seasons are over, or if the season is simply on an extended hiatus.  The WIAA director came out this week and said the state of Washington will try to salvage a spring season by offering an abbreviated season and post-season if school resumes on April 27.  However, the Washington state Superintendent has suggested that school may not resume until fall, meaning no spring sports at all. 

This is all I have to go off of.  The powers of the season are well beyond my capacity, as I am merely here to help get you prepared for your season, which is governed by factors beyond my control.  However, the optimist in me says we could very well have a club track season in May, as we are over six weeks away from what would be our third meet of the season.  Remember, our first meet came in early March at the Teddy Twilight, where we came away with some spectacular results.  Our second meet of the season on April 25 is likely out, but as we near May, I wouldn’t be surprised if citizens began seeking a heightened sense of normalcy.  We can only sit still for so long, and then we have to get busy living.

So what should your training plan look like?  If you know me, then you know I am a fan of speed.  The hardest system to train in your body, when it comes to performance based activities, is the neurological system.  Teaching your legs to turn over at a fast rate to make racing feel easy is what I’m all about.  Mileage is important, but quality trumps quantity in my world.  Another rule of thumb is that if you’re training slow and too comfortable, then you’ll likely race slow and comfortable.  Stressing the body a couple of times each week to work beyond what you though was possible is am important trait in training, and, the heightened intensities will give you something to focus before and throughout the workout, and something to feel proud about when you’re finished. 

Track and cross-country are truly different sports.  Cross is more about stamina, endurance, and mental fortitude, where as track is about speed, rhythm, and efficiency.  The two sports complement one another and truly emphasis the importance of taking a balanced training approach.  Working on speed in the shorter events (100m—800m) and speed endurance in the longer events (400m-2 mile), provides a season of speed training that will pay off six months down the road during the cross-country season.  Similarly, the endurance of the 3k or 5k in cross-country will pay off in the middle distance and distance events in track.  These sports complement one another, and it’s important to continue track training through the spring, no matter if there is an actual performance season or not. 

On a similarly related note, one fear of deciding to fold the tent on track and begin training for cross-country is the fear of burnout in the latter fall months.  Sure, putting in 30, 40, 50 miles a week or more sounds exciting, but to do that from March through mid-November, and for some into December, can make for an exceptionally long season.  Older athletes might be able to handle the longevity, but younger ones might struggle with this a bit, hence another reason to continue track training. 

There’s a lot here, so if you have any questions, please send me a quick message on my cell phone if you have any questions.  Perhaps your questions will make for a great topic on the Whisper Blog! 

Thanks for reading!

Dave
360-989-0935

Need guidance for training over the coming weeks? Click here for the Corona Training Calendar and you’ll see two weeks worth of training that will take you to the end of March. Additional training suggestions will be provided in the coming days. Please text or email Coach Dave if you have any questions. Thanks!

And away we go!

Winter Training 2020 is underway, and the start of the 2020 track season is just around the corner!  For the new families, welcome to Whisper Running!  Whisper is a youth running organization offering year-round training in a safe, collaborative, dynamic, and engaging environment.   Thank you for enrolling your child into the 2020 Winter Training session, I am delighted to have you aboard! 

Wednesday, January 20 marks the start of something new at Whisper – a stretching/Yoga class.  I am thrilled to introduce the runners to Carmen Lafond, a local trainer who specializes in stretching.  This stretching class will be conducted every two weeks, with the in-between weeks being aqua jogging at the Propstra Aquatic Center.  The purpose of these two activities is to highlight the complete and well-rounded development of a runner.  This is truly exciting stuff! 

In just over five weeks is the inaugural meet of 2020, hosted by Roosevelt High School in Portland, Oregon. This meet begins at 5pm and runs until around 9pm and will host the following events:

• 4x800m Relay

• 3k

• 2k Steeplechase

• DMR (1200m, 400m, 800m, 1600m)

• 4x400m Relay

• 1 Mile

• 10k

Please note, if your child would like to participate, the athlete and their coach (Hillary, Hilary, or myself) will decide together which event(s) to participate in.

If your child would like to race in club events with Whisper, you may view our season schedule posted on the athletic.net page. You can find our team registration information posted on the Join the Team page. Please note that anyone participating with Whisper in club events must have an active Runcard after Winter Training (March 21). An “active Runcard” means they are attending practice 1-2 times a week, or as often as they are able (within reason).

As always, if you have any questions, please contact Coach Dave. Thank you!

Life is too dang short!

Breaking bread with friends is the best! Laura, Kristen and I have worked together for years and we make sure to have lunch together at least once a year.

As soon as the plane landed, I called Cohesive Therapy to schedule an appointment for a long overdue massage that was an early Christmas gift from my neighbor.  Not that I was in desperate need of self-care, but massages are fantastic and I had time to burn.  Upon arrival at the clinic, I was provided with forms to complete, which sought the basics – personal info, address, insurance – along with three very familiar questions:

What are your physical health goals?

What are your mental health goals?

What are your emotional health goals?

These three questions are similar to the question I ask my students at the start of each quarter - “What are your physical, mental, and emotional health goals and how can I help you?”  Though I haven’t asked myself these three questions in several years, I figured by the time I answered the question on physical health, the next two would come to me rather easily.  To the contrary, the answers were left blank.   It then dawned on me, that in my haste to complete the paperwork and get to the good stuff, it had been far too long since I sat with the questions:

What are your physical health goals?

What are your mental health goals?

What are your emotional health goals?

In fact, I can’t recall the last time that I did set Mental and Emotional Health goals.  Two very recent events impressed even more upon me the fact that I haven’t set many personal goals at all in recent years, and honestly, even the physical health goal isn’t that challenging at this present moment.

In addition to the neglected goals stated above, a recent podcast that I subscribe to centering around the many topics within the field of Health further impressed the importance of setting goals in many areas of our lives including Social Health (making friends, getting out more, engaging in social events, etc.), Environmental Health (reducing your carbon footprint, walking or riding your bike to work or anything less than two miles, etc.), Intellectual Health (reading books, taking a new class, etc.), or even Intimacy Health (closeness, being vulnerable, prioritizing time with your significant other, etc.).

Obviously, I am a huge fan of Goal Setting.  Goal Setting is a common practice at Whisper and is something we do on a regular basis.  But our performance goals are often for the coming season, which if you are an old like me, you known that seasons come and go rather quickly. 

So, here’s a thought: What are your goals for the coming decade?  What are the things you want to achieve before 2030?  What are your goals before you turn 40 or 50 or 60, etc.?  As your bucket list continues to increase in numbers and your time here on earth continues to shorten, how will you prioritize your life heading into 2020 so that you may right the ship and begin the pursuit to these ambitions? 

The saying “Live vicariously through yourself” never sounded so good.

Here’s to happy and healthy years and decades ahead!

An Inquisitive Mind

The brilliant, inquisitive minds of these runners will undoubtedly lead to their bright futures!

Any form of healthy physical adaptation will have a balance of appropriate stress, followed by a period of adequate rest.  In running science, these stress and rest periods are considered intervals – work intervals and rest intervals – and the length of the intervals will vary depending on the time of the season we are presently in.  Work and rest intervals are two foundational principles that guide the training at Whisper, and presently, our rest intervals are very, very long.  Well, not ridiculously long, but long enough for a youth runner.

Saturday’s practice, in preparation for the national Junior Olympic meet, included three 8-10 min rest intervals between sets of back-to-back longer intervals, and back-to-back shorter intervals.  It wasn’t until the final set of short intervals that a runner asked, “Can we just skip the next six minutes (of the rest interval) and start the next set (of work intervals)?”  This was the first time in 2019 that a runner had asked this specific question, which I was delighted to respond to.  She expressed the same characteristics – fatigue, heavy legs, etc. – that she will feel during the latter part of her 3k race at nationals, so it was briefly explained that in order to best prepare for the battle ahead, a training environment which simulates the racing environment must be created.  And since we can’t ship snow and freezing temperatures from Madison, Wisconsin to Vancouver, Washington, then we must aim to be as precise as possible when it comes to exertion and recovery levels.  Last Saturday, we were as close as we are going to get to these feelings and exertions, and it was awesome!

Final note on stress

The response to stress varies depending on the bodily system and organs targeted.  In youth, physical recovery happens quicker than in adulthood.  I’ve estimated that the trained athletes that I work with, their muscular system can adapt within 36-hours (or sometimes less) of rigorous work, and their nervous system adapts within 10-days of work.  These calculations, along with others considerations not mentioned, are even more important when factoring in the longevity of the season, the number of races in a season (and post-season), the change from school to club running, personalities within a team, potential stresses, life circumstances, or any other stressors, no matter how big, no matter how small. 

The short of it is this: healthy doses of appropriate stress is important for optimal growth.  Whether the stress is emotional or physical, derived from an abundance of homework or balancing sports, there is always potential for learning and for growth. 

Association Meet Reflection & Looking Ahead

REFLECTION: Thank you for supporting your children at the USATF PacNW Association Championships this past weekend.  Saturday was a great day, with so many amazing performances across the board!  They include:

• Team Whisper qualified 59 total runners for the Regional meet in Eugene this weekend.  To put that into perspective, last year we registered 43 total runners in the Association Race.  WOW!

• Teams Whisper!  We had 7 teams qualify for the Regional meet! Boys 11-12, Girls 11-12, Boys 13-14, Girls 13-14 (x2), Boys 15-18 and Girls 15-18! 

• Three individual champions in Sam, Katelyn, and Joseph – HUGE congrats, as they are also the first Whisper Association individual champions ever!

• Girls 11-12 had the lowest winning score for that age division as far back as I could find (2006?) for the Association race – 19 points.  This is also the second consecutive year Whisper has won this category at this race.

• Girls 13-14 qualified two teams for Regionals!  This is no easy fete.  We could have easily won if we stacked the race, but we took a risk and it paid off, advancing two teams.  These teams placed 2nd and 4th (last year, 3rd and 4th) and are running out of their minds!  In forming the team, do we have any number crunchers out there who can look into the Inland NW, Oregon and PacNW divisions, specifically the individuals within those teams and see if we can evenly divide up this group?  I’m no gambling man, but both Whisper teams are legit!  This is something I will be doing over the next 48-hours.

• Boys & Girls 15-18 Teams won their races!  Quick note: this girls’ team will be comprised of five of the eight girls from the 2017 team that made it to Nationals!  The 2017 team was the first time Whisper had taken part in the USATF JO experience.  All the teams are legendary, but this team holds a special place in my heart.

REGIONALS: Looking ahead to Saturday, if your child cannot participate, please let me know by Tuesday at midnight.  This is especially important if they are part of a qualifying team. If they cannot race, we can fill their spot with someone who is able to participate, and we need to notify their families as quickly as possible so they can make travel arrangements.  Thanks!

Here are the teams and individuals competing at the Regional meet at Lane Community College.

• 9:00am 2k Girls U8 – Sofia Soto and Megan Garl

• 10:00am 3k Girls 9-10 – Aaliyah Narciso/Willson

• 10:30am 3k Boys 9-10 – Colin Robertson

• 11:00am 3k Girls 11-12 – Bethany, Abi G, Carly, Evelyn, Ava, Claire, Lyla, Maddy R (Alternate: Kaydie)

• 11:30am 3k Boys 11-12 – TEAM: Sam, Jayden, Tanner, Michael M, Treyton, Kardin, Jackson, Austin

• 12:00pm 4k Girls 13-14 – TEAMS: Sara, Alexis, Jamie, Elle, Phebe, Sydnee, Lauren, Avery, Hanna B, Charlotte, Maddie C, Alyson R, Amanda, Abi R, Callie C, Mikayla (Alternate: Olivia).  Team arrangements have not been made at this point.

• 12:30pm 4k Boys 13-14 – TEAM: Luke, Degenet, Jacob, Josh, Sam P, Michael O, Aiden, Dawson (Alternate: Grayson)

• 1:00pm 5k Girls 15-18 – TEAM: Katelyn, Ashley, Natalie/Talie, Callie, Maddy W, Chloe, Candi, Kira!!!

• 1:30pm 5k Boys 15-18 – TEAM: Nicholas, Joseph, Chris, Lorenzo, Sirak, Danny!!!

Friday Course Preview & Dinner:

If you plan to meet us for the course preview, there has been a slight change in plans to accommodate the masses.  The 2k & 3k course preview will be at 4pm, while the 4k & 5k course preview will be at 5pm.  Dinner for those racing in the 2k & 3k will be at 5:30pm at Ciao Pizza & Italian Food, and 7:00pm for the 4k and 5k runners.  Click here for the menu.  I’ve also updated the Whisper Calendar with all of this information.  Click here for directions to the restaurant from LCC.

Race Day – Saturday!

It’s time to play!  Same drill as at the Association meet.  Please arrive 90-minutes prior to the start of your child’s race.

Thanksgiving Week

Next week (Thanksgiving week), we will not have practice until Saturday, November 30 from 8:30-10:30am.  Between the Regional race on 11/23 and then, feel free to team up for runs with their teammates, and even partake in a local Turkey Trot!

October Updates

Here’s what’s going on at Whisper over the next couple of months.

• RESULTS: Click here for the Harvest Classic results.

• HOTELS AT JO's: We have 30 rooms booked at the Holiday Inn Express in Seattle and 20 at the HIE in Eugene. Please see the Calendar, specific dates 11/16 and 11/23, to book your rooms if you intend on traveling to the meet on the Friday before the JO races.

• PRACTICE DAYS: As we get into the fall months, practices are now 5:30-6:45pm on weekdays. Please pay attention to the mid-week practices on the WR Calendar. Because of MS and HS District races this month, we are having practices on Wednesday's or Thursday's. The change is due to the XC District races and Halloween.

• Headlamps: Sunset is now earlier than the end of our practices. Please have your child bring a reflective vest, belt, or anything that makes illuminates their torso. Also, please be sure they bring a headlamp. These items can be found at most running stores, athletic stores, or even Fred Meyer. They can also be purchased online.

• SPRINT PRACTICE ON HOLD: The start of practice will soon begin in the dark, making it impossible to work on sprint technique. Until Christmas break, when the kids have days off from school, we are placing Sprint workouts on hold. If a sprinter wishes to join us for the distance workouts, they are definitely welcome to do so (total distances at workouts will be roughly 1.25 mile warm-up, 2-3miles of interval work, .5-1 mile cool-down.

• SUNDAY EVENTS: WHY Racing GF's Run for a Cure on 10/13, Seton Catholic Open House on 10/20, and WHY Racing's Scary Run on 10/27. Whisper is a WHY Racing sponsor, meaning we don't run at these events. If your child (or you) would like to race in these events, you'll need to register him/her via the WHY website. For Whisper, these events are merely for the promotion of youth running and Winter Training.

If you have any questions, or text or call Coach Dave. 360-989-0935.

Sleep & Peformance

Gone are the days we jolt out of bed to hastily start our day.  The youthful days of yesteryear were just a moment ago, and we now envy our youth and their ability to speed through the house upon waking up prior to school.  Our age and memories have been replaced by a shuffling warm-up just to make it out of the bedroom, with fleeting thoughts of “this can’t possibly be how I’m going to live the rest of my life, is it?”

These are the trying times of runners as we age.  A colleague once said to me, “You can run into your 40’s, but you can’t run out!”  Gulp!

There certainly are remedies that can offset the post-exercise soreness related to running.  Those aching Achilles, the tight glutes, can be alleviated through the same energy and discipline that it takes to actually head out for the run itself.  In fact, at the moment, I, Coach Dave, am enrolled in a 7-week stretching class at Boomer Fitness, which has provided the necessary relief as I head into the Winter Cave of training (see the September newsletter).  As therapeutic as the class is, it will only serve its purpose if I cultivate the necessary self-discipline of post-run stretching on a consistent basis - a heavy task in itself.  That, as well as sufficient hydration and proper nutrition.  In addition to stretching, hydration, and healthy foods, the main variable that I find equally as important is sleep.

There are few things in ones youth that lay the foundation for discipline within adulthood. Spiritual health, healthy eating patterns, and sleep are likely at the top of any list when it comes to proper long-term Physical Health and Wellness - and healing, too! A study, albeit small, produced by the ScienceDaily titled “Sleep Extension Improves Athletic Performance and Mood” noted improvements in power output and faster speeds when performing drills for those who extended their sleep to 10 hours each night . The study also reports a greater overall mood, which if you have a teenager in the house, this might resonate a bit more.

Another study, Sleepy Runners: Measuring Sleep, Performance, and Injuries Among Runners from Anderson University, found an association between “poor sleep quality and injury among consistency training recreational runners.”

Teaching in the field of health and having may online discussions in Health classes report on the topic of sleep, I am left believing without a doubt that sleep has a direct impact on recovery and performance. A consistent bedtime routine prepares the mind and body that it is time to rest. A restful 8-10 hours of sleep, particularly in a dark and cool room, with your phone in another room, heals the microtrauma created by the previous days running load, ultimately preparing you for the next day ahead.

In summary, having a consistent bedtime ritual, along with consistency leading up to that ritual, helps prime the body for optimal sleep. It is even more important for young student-athletes, who expend 15-20% of their daily caloric needs merely learning and processing information, to sleep beyond the general 8-hour suggestion, perhaps up to 10-hours per night for optimal recovery and rejuvenation.

Happy sleeping!

The Chase for Junior Olympics

Footage taken from various practices and races in the early fall of 2019.

Into the Cave

As fall nears, the days are getting shorter and the weather will soon be turning cooler and wetter.  In these times, it’s important to embrace the right mindset so that we may sustain our fitness, or even improve our fitness, over the next eight months.  Annually, I like to think of the fall and winter months as the most opportune time to get into the best shape of my life.  Okay, being in my mid-40’s, perhaps that’s not realistic, but at least I can set the goal to become the fittest I’ve ever been in my racing age group of 40-44 – although I will be 45 in December. 

Setting long-term goals and having a vision of the end result is paramount when in pursuit of things that truly matter.  Whether your goals are centered around your career, your educational, your running, or something else, visualizing to level of intensity that you can emotionally and mentally feel the results before they happen is a key step in successful goal attainment. 

As I begin the eight-month trek, I imagine myself venturing into a dark cave of majestic wonder and optimism centered around the vision I have for the goals I’ve set.  The time in this cave is somewhat familiar – it’s a place I venture into each fall, only to come out the following spring in better or worse shape than the previous year.  The end result is merely a byproduct of the work that was done in the cave.

What’s most important to know prior to heading into this cave is two things – your goal(s) and your level of commitment.  You know right now, at this very moment, whether or not you will incessantly pursue your goals, baring something unforeseen of course.  Perhaps from past experiences, you have set goals to do great things, only to then place those goals in a box, high up on a shelf, which you will reach for at a later time.  So how much later?  At what point will you say, “Enough is enough!” and begin to truly work on yourself and your goals?  This cave is one you will wake up in every day for the next eight months, and the outcome will be entirely up to you and the level of devotion you put forth.

Step 1: Set a goal and see it like its right there in front of you!

Visualize your goals to the point that if they were right there in front of you, they’d slap you in the face!  Create your own cave by setting a long-term, eight-month goal, so when spring arrives you can accomplish something once unfathomable.  Set daily goals to ensure you get your ass up and out of bed, so that when the day is done and everything else has gone to shit, at least you’ve accomplished your goal of the day that, in the end, will be worth the investment.

Admittedly, I stole that last line from a colleague of mine who when I asked if she exercises in the morning or afternoon, she said morning – that was her reason why.

The truth is the truth.  Set your goals and for the next eight months, live vicariously through yourself and get things done that will advance you every day in the direction of the successful attainment of your goal. 

Enjoy the process!