Running

10 Top Running Tips to train for a 10k

Have you booked in for the Norwich 10k in August?
Here are top tips from Ross Lenton to help you on your way....

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1.    Breathing

The human body is amazing, and your aerobic energy system will keep supplying oxygen to your muscles. My top tip to my clients is to focus on exhaling – the more air you get out of your lungs, the more air you will get in.

2.    Running environment

There are so amazing places to run in Norfolk. If you're looking for somewhere flat then Marriott’s way is a fantastic and quiet place to run, and for somewhere beautiful in the City try Whitlingham Lake in Trowse. For hill efforts then Gas Hill is a serious challenge!

3.    Run with others

To help with commitment then get a friend to go out running with you, or join a running club. Dynamic Fitness is starting a new Running Club at Redwell Brewing on 2nd May, you can book a space here:

4.     Feet

Listen to your feet. Keep them light and don't land too heavy.  Whether you are a heel or a mid-foot striker make sure you land underneath a flexed knee so you are not over-striding.

5.    Knees

Lift your knees, especially on the hills to keep a good posture. This is harder when you get tired so that is great time to focus on your knee lift.

6.    Heels

Flick your heels towards your backside. This will to give you that extra power. You can especially see the benefits with this when running downhill; it really gets the hill doing the work for you!

7.    Arms

It’s almost impossible to move your arms at a different speed to your legs, so if you find your legs are slowing down then use your arms to maintain your cadence – when your legs are tired your arms can be your secret weapon!

8.    Core

Keep your core tight when you are running to maintain good posture. Planks are a great way to strengthen your core, which will also protect your lower back from the impact of the running miles.

9.    Forward Lean

Have a very slight forward lean forward (from the hip not the shoulders). This will really help keep your momentum going.

10. Smile

Remember that running is a gift.  Smile and enjoy it :)

1000 mile Challenge (February)

Help us complete 1000 miles of Cardio in the Dynamic Studio in February....

In support of our incredible client, Becky Cooper, we are helping Becky raise awareness of her 1000 mile challenge, in aid of the Big C and the Lullaby trust.

The challenge in the Dynamic Studio is to complete 1000 miles with either:

- Rowing (instead of swimming)
- Cycling
- Walking or Running

We will be logging all of our Personal Training clients each session and also giving a prize for the fastest 1 mile in each discipline and for the client with the most miles over the month. The Personal Trainers are keen to get involved and it should be good cardio for us all! 

You can find details of Becky's challenge on the following link and see the map of her challenge below: https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fundraiser-display/showROFundraiserPage?userUrl=Trigirls&isTeam=true

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Changing my Running Style by Ross Lenton (Part 2)

I have now been back 5 weeks from my amazing Wedding and Honeymoon, and I've been back on the mission to change my Running Style. 

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One thing is clear: 4 weeks of paradise definitely makes you slower... For the first time I was running Parkrun in over 20 mins (20:20) and it's taken me a few weeks to get it back under (last week was 19:40). 

Using my new Newton running shoes I decided to structure in some forefoot running. I started running my 5k's with running the last 1k on my forefoot. It felt faster and easier! 

I'm lucky enough to train lots of amazing clients everyday so I started running on the forefoot with them too. One thing was clear, I had to be careful not to do too much like that, as my calves and achilles were getting tender. It's all about changing gradually. 

Last week I did the last 2k of the parkrun on my forefoot. For the first time my last 2kms were as fast as my first 2kms! 

So it looks good but the proof if this works better for me will be whether I can get to my parkrun PB - 19:05. I'll keep you all updated :) 

Interview with Runner Daniel Middleton

Today Ross caught up with Parkrun winner Daniel Middleton (35 yrs old) and asked him a few questions at the end, to find out the secret to his super speedy running...

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Did you win the race today and what was your time?

  • Yes, in 17 mins exactly

How many runs do you do a week? 

  • 5, consistently 

I always advise people training for a race that they do at least 3 varied runs per week, including a long one if they are training for distance, would you agree?

  • Yes, I always do 2 easier runs for recovery and 3 harder runs which include various harder efforts

What is your favourite set?

  • 2-4-2 (2 miles easy, 4 miles hard, 2 miles easy)

At Dynamic Fitness we do a lot of strength work with our clients, do you do strength exercises to improve for your running?

  • Yes, every week. A mixture of Squats, Lunges, Clams - all bodyweight exercises to increase my leg strength and help prevent injuries

What is your 5k Parkrun PB?

  • 16:24

Do you have a goal to still improve this?

  • I would love to get under 16 mins but I know that would take a 5 month block of training to do so and at the moment I am training for distance

What is your next race then?

  • The Peterborough Half next weekend; my aim is to get under 1:15:00 to get my qualifying time for the London Marathon next year

Finally, what about nutrition?

  • It’s the same before every race - a glass of water, a banana and some cereal. I just vary the amount depending on the distance. If I am doing a marathon I even treat myself to a Mars Bar at the start line - it seems to work for me!

If you are looking at improving your running speed then come along to Ross' Running Club on Tuesday nights - meeting at 6pm at Dynamic Fitness

Click here to book: http://www.getdynamic.co.uk/classes/

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Changing Running Style by Ross Lenton (Part 1)

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Hello and welcome to a blog I am doing about changing my running style.

To give you a bit of background...

Last year I completed IRONMAN Canada and it was a great achievement of discipline, determination and cardio fitness. Obviously the training hours for this were huge, so this year I decided I am going to focus on improving my 5k time instead. 

I thought for a while about how I would improve and I guess I put it down to 3 main areas:

1) Increase Frequency

2) Increase Intensity 

3) Improve Technique

As I don't have the time this year (I am getting married!) and I like doing too many other activities other than running (swimming, cycling, Korfball) I don't want to increase the frequency.

For those of you that know me know that whenever I train, I train hard!, so I don't think I have a problem with the intensity.

So then it comes down to Technique.....

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Day 1

I did my usual 5k run on the treadmill but I tried out the forefoot running.

The 5k was done as; 5 x 500m my usual style, and 5 x 500m striking further forwards.
I have to say the 500m's running further forward felt more powerful and more efficient! It was however uncomfortable on my feet and now I have the start of a blister, and tight calves.

So the next step is finding some running shoes to help. Luckily I know some good people in the business...

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The Steeplechase 2016

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Thank you for everyone that Sponsored us for the Steeplechase. We have raised over £250 for the Big C and we are almost at our target for £300. So, if you are feeling generous please sponsor us here: https://www.justgiving.com/account/your-pages/TeamDynamic2

Dynamic Summer League 2016 (Results)

Well done to everyone taking part in this year's Dynamic Summer League. We had some great results again this year!

Men's competition

John Dye led the way in the Bench Press challenge this year. John has shown fantastic focus and determination every week on this exercise and is looking really strong in the chest and arms.

One of our returning clients, Bobby Burrage, has been firing on all cylinders and it was great to see Bobby fly up Horns Lane for our fastest single time. Great sprinting Bobby!

Last year's Plank challenge winner, Robert Pyke, took the Clean/Burpee/Row challenge in the quickest time for the final challenge on week 6. 

A special mention as well goes to Nick Norman and Paul Barrett for completing each week and giving it a good shot every time!

However, it was Will Howell who dominated the men's league overall, winning 4 of the 6 challenges. Will retains the title for the 2nd year in a Row! Great work!! 

Top 5 Males (17 entrants)

Will Howell

Bobby Burrage

Paul Barrett

Nick Norman

John Dye

 

Female's Challenge

It is great to have some challenges when the ladies can beat the men!, and Paula McGrath showed how her Ultra Marathon training has given her some super strong legs! Paula got the top score overall with 82 Barbell Squats in 2 mins!

It was great to see lots of ladies giving the challenges a go for the first time, including new client Anna Catlin with an amazing score on the final challenge on week 6 :) 

A special mention goes to Alison Middleton for her determination to finish the challenge each week, whatever it took!

Late entry, Olivia Findlay, was back from Uni for the summer and looked like a very strong candidate for the title. Amazing speed up Horns Lane Olivia!

In the end the the race for the ladies title went all the way....

On week 4, Katrina Speirs (last year's winner) and Jane Blackwell were on equal points! So, it was down to the last 2 weeks so see who would take it. Katrina posted some solid times up Horns Lane to pip Jane on week 5, but Jane came back even stronger on week 6 posting the best time overall (including the men!) on the final challenge. 

The title is therefore shared this year - both female athletes will keep the Trophy for 6 months each :)

Top 5 Females (18 entrants)

Katrina Speirs / Jane Blackwell 

Olivia Findlay

Paula McGrath 

Alison Middleton

All results have been posted on the Hall of Fame: http://www.getdynamic.co.uk/hall-of-fame/. The Hall of Fame goes until the end of the year, so plenty of time to try any of the challenges....

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Team Dynamic Success @ SR2016

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