If I knew then, what I know now!

Runner's Lounge "take it and run Thursday"

This is the list of the top 5 things I wish I knew back then that I know now.

1. REST! I would have rested more often. In my early years of running, I really didn't understand the fine line between training to improve and over training. I became obsessed with my weekly mileage and taking to many days off. I even ran over a year without a rest day! I felt that I was a machine. Guess what? We aren't machines. We need rest. One of the most over looked aspect of training is rest. Training breaks our bodies down. In order to get stronger and to improve our performance we need to allow for recovery. I now follow the plan of 2 weeks with higher mileage or effort followed by 1 week down. In my down week, I allow for more rest, decrease quality, cross training and I lower my mileage. This allows my body to recover from the previous 2 weeks of training. A rest day is not a cross training day!

2. I would have competed in shorter race distances when I was younger rather than the half marathon and marathon.
Please refer to our posts on 2-8-08. http://inmotion2.blogspot.com/2008/02/half-marathon.html

3. I would have worked on functional strength and mobility and avoided aggressive stretching. See previous posts of 1-20-08 and 1-22-08. http://inmotion2.blogspot.com/2008/01/got-strength.html
http://inmotion2.blogspot.com/2008/01/you-dont-have-squat.html

4. PLAN AHEAD for the day before a race. Plan ahead on how much time you spend at the expo. Plan ahead and make a early reservation for dinner. If you have to share a hotel room, make sure they share similar views about running. I made all of the mistakes before the 1996 (100th) Boston Marathon. I spent too much time at a crowded expo trying to get all the cool gear. I didn't make plans for dinner and settled for a really lousy meal. I shared a hotel room with non-runners who insisted on staying up late and reading. Needless to say, I woke up tired and ran a poor race with GI issues.

5. I would have gone out slower in the first half of the 1983, 1984 and the 1996 Boston Marathon! The first several miles are cumulatively downhill, it is easy to get tricked into a pace that is faster than you would normally attempt. At Boston, this is a much more costly mistake. The wall will hit much earlier which makes for a miserable last 6-8 miles.