Our platform syncs with popular activity trackers, so that your physical activity will be automatically uploaded to your Runcoach or Movecoach log. We sync with Fitbit, Apple HealthKit (Apple Watch),* Garmin, Strava Garmin Wellness, Nike+, Jawbone, and Runkeeper.
If there is ever any interruption in the flow of data between your tracking service and your Movecoach or Runcoach log, a resync may resolve the issue.
Resync On Your ComputerResync on Your Mobile Device
Take the steps below to resync Movecoach or Runcoach with your favorite activity tracker on your mobile device:
Any questions? Contact Us.
We're 2 months into the New Year. Seems like a good time to revisit the goals we set on 1/1/15. Here's a look back at a great article by Dena Evans from 2010.
Goals seem like a good idea at the time. They motivate us to start, they provide good fodder for conversation, they keep us organized. However, if they are truly going to be accomplishments we look back on with pride, these goals must also include the risk that we might not pass the test.
Every runner or walker has a slightly different style. Each of us move a bit differently, but if you are looking for a few quick and subtle tips to start with as you begin to train for a goal race, or are an experienced athlete looking for reminders, here are a few key concepts to keep in mind when trying to move efficiently.
Relax and drop your shoulders
Hunched up shoulders are tense shoulders. Tense shoulders take energy away from where you need it and result in a fatigued feeling well before you have earned it. Try to keep your shoulders low enough that if your arms hang at about 90 degrees, your hands will brush your pockets (or where your pockets would be) when you swing your arms.
Keep your head neutral
As you run, ideally your body should stack up in a column leaning barely forward. If your head is tilted forward looking at the ground or your chin is up due to fatigue, it disrupts the efficiency of this line and quickens the onset of that achy, tired feeling many athletes get in their upper back toward the end of longer efforts. Keep your eyes on a spot around 15 yards ahead so your head sits in line with the rest of your spine, and avoid the distraction of an achy upper body for a few more precious miles.
Concentrate on a crisp stride cadence
Many athletes grow up assuming that longer strides will help an athlete cover more ground, faster. While it is true that while sprinting, you might cover more ground per stride, your stride rate is pretty quick. Concentrate on the rate aspect of the equation, rather than the distance. When you take long, bound-y strides, all that time in the air just results in a greater decrease in speed by the time the next foot hits the ground. Concentration on keeping a crisp stride rhythm can provide a welcome distraction when tired, and also helps keep your body in line.
Engage your core
The less your midsection vacillates or rotates per stride, the more efficiently your body can move forward. Drawing your navel to your spine (figuratively) and using that tightened core to help your posture can make it easier for your legs to cycle under you efficiently, your arms to swing front and back, instead of side to side, and for your body to get to the finish line with less strain and hopefully less time.
There are innumerable exercises to help athletes improve their efficiency while striding (try these suggestions from a previous blog post). Sometimes these can be intimidating to recreational athletes, but these small tweaks can make a difference without feeling the need to completely overhaul your form. Experiment and see if the suggestions above can make a difference.
Many of our runcoach trainees are in the middle of heavy training for their fall goal races. As some of the most challenging weeks of the year, this period can often seem like one step after another beyond the comfort zone. Experienced runners will recognize this as a normal part of the training cycle, but if experience is not yet on your side, here are a few tips for making it through the heavy load to the restful period of the taper.
Your full body of training is preparing you – not just the long runs
It is easy to get very caught up with your weekend long efforts, and if one goes poorly or has to be skipped due to an unforeseen circumstance, it can be scary to be even a bit off track. Don’t forget that the efforts you make throughout the week – harder ones as well as the key recovery days, are building a tapestry that provides your safety net. One snag doesn’t mean disaster, and staying confident despite a setback can be good practice in case your race plan doesn’t go absolutely smoothly on the day either.
It’s ok to “look down”
Heights can be scary, unless you are standing on a firm foundation. Your many weeks of work have stacked up, and now you are attempting very challenging tasks. The good news is, you are prepared! Don’t be afraid to look back at your training log to see where you’ve come from when you started. Be encouraged that if you have been able to ascend so far and are doing ok, you will be ok to keep it up just a few more weeks.
Plan for dessert
If your challenge is staying motivated as the training has become more difficult, consider planning something fun to look forward to at the end of your goal race. The planning and anticipation can be a bit of a healthy distraction to keep your mind off the hard parts to come and to keep the goal race day and its aftermath as a red letter day to look forward to rather than be fearful of.
“I can’t” is almost always just down the block from “I will”
Oftentimes the hardest part of a training cycle or race is closer to the end than the beginning. You are a bit tired and have been stretched, maybe mentally and physically. You might be wondering if you have what it takes to go all the way. These thoughts are completely common, but experienced racers know that often the time between these thoughts and the time when the finish line feels absolutely within reach are almost always pretty close together. If you have been training for 12 weeks and you only have four to go, consider that 2-3 of those weeks will have a decreased demand as you taper and doing the math, you only have about one week of tough stuff to endure. If you have made it through 12 weeks, the fact is that you can definitely make it through one more. Take one day at a time and look forward to the moment when you can sniff the finish and you can rejoice in getting through the forest of heavy training. You’ll deserve some congratulations not only for the training itself, but staying calm and confident despite the occasional storm. Savor the feeling!
Most of us are well acquainted with the need to hydrate during long workouts. If you need a refresher, check out what we’ve written before on some basic rules for hydrating effectively. Once you are committed to the plan of periodic hydration during your workouts, you will need a strategy for how to transport that fluid along the way. There are many different ways of doing this, one for every personality and preference. Check out a few great options, and find out which one will work best so that fluid planning is less a chore, and more a pre-requisite for heading out on the door.
Old School Bottle
There are some folks for whom this article is hardly necessary. Grabbing a water bottle tchotchke from your last corporate retreat, the one the kids won’t need for soccer until the afternoon, or a fresh bottle of your favorite sports drink from the corner store, you can set off on an 18 mile jaunt with a basic water bottle in your hand and hardly notice it is there. Benefits: If you bought fluid from the 7-11, you can just toss the bottle when you are done at the nearest trash can. If you brought a bottle from home, this is probably the cheapest option out there. Drawback: If you like your hands free, this route is not for you.
Hand strapped bottle
If you are unafraid to have weight at the end of your arm, but don’t want to think about gripping the bottle, this option might just be for you. Often, these curve to mold your hand, and allow your mind to wander without worrying about dropping the goods. Benefits: Reusable bottle is an environmentally sound choice, feels a bit more comfortable than a basic bottle. Drawback: These types of bottles are not typically very large. You might need a couple or won’t have enough for an extra long route.
Backpack with straw
Popular with ultrarunners and those who like their hands free, this is a solution that allows a runner or walker to have a ready source of fluids while not needing to grip the goods with a hand or feel the weight around the waist. Benefits: Hands Free, keeps weight of fluid distributed evenly across the back. Drawbacks: Not everyone likes drinking out of a straw, and these systems are not nearly as cheap as a basic water bottle.
Fluid belt
This is a very popular option, but some athletes find the extra weight around the waist is a distraction if time is the primary objective. Small bottles are secured at places around a belt, worn throughout the workout. Benefits: Hands free, can add more bottles for some models and increase the amount of fluids you have on hand. Drawbacks: If you are sensitive to extra weight around the middle or a bit of bouncing, this isn’t for you. Also, the individual bottles can be fairly small, requiring multiple for extra long efforts.
Water fountain
Although ideally, your long efforts will include some calorie replacement as well as water consumption, an option always remains to plan your route where you know you can enjoy regular interactions with water fountains. Benefits: Hand free, no weight, water is often cold. Drawbacks: Risky as you never know if maintenance/ construction, or other unforeseen issues might scotch your plans, requires some additional source of calories – bar, gel, etc. Also this method requires you to stop moving for at least a few seconds.
As fluid replacement is such a crucial aspect of your longer training, it is well worthwhile experimenting with a solution you will stick with as your training will greatly benefit with a solid plan in place. Whether one of the solutions above fits the bill or another one is more your style, it is worth the effort to become consistent in this practice and reap the fitness benefits.
Your weekly schedule has just appeared in your email inbox and it is time to sit down to consider the week’s training tasks. What track workout or tempo run is planned? When and where will that workout take place?
We know that the actual intervals of the workout will require our greatest expenditure of energy, so naturally we psych ourselves up for those. Far less often do we consider the importance of the warm up. This month, we will shed some light on this crucial aspect of your training and give the warm up its due.
Most workouts include varying amounts and variations on four very important aspects: Easy running, LIGHT stretching, running drills, and strides.
Easy running
It is not uncommon for an easy warm-up jog to be described as a way to “get the blood flowing.” Although that phrase is often uttered with a figurative meaning, the reality is, the easy jogging at the beginning of your warm up does exactly that. Easy running provides a bridge for your body to move from a static situation (sleeping in bed, driving the car, watching TV), to a place where your core body temperature has been raised. This prepares your muscles to accommodate increased blood flow, allows for more strenuous contractions as required by a hard workout, and starts the processes you’ll need to use your body’s stored energy effectively throughout the session.
Light stretching
The purpose of the warm up is to execute a string of activities that will conclude when your body is prepared to begin the hard work at hand. Taking a timeout to stretch for 20 minutes will certainly disrupt the progression of that process. However, taking a few moments to check in with the major muscle groups after (and only after) you have been able to light the fire with easy running can provide a helpful transition to the increasingly dynamic activities in the warm up routine. Hamstrings, quadriceps, calves, glutes, and iliotibial (IT) bands can be lightly stretched (finding a cozy position for 2x8-10 seconds without any strain or hint of pain) from a standing or supine position without taking more than 5-7 minutes away from the remainder of activities on tap.
Running drills
Running drills are exercises that mimic or closely resemble some of the types of repetitive demands harder running will make on your body. The intention of running drills are to help ensure your body has been prepared to handle these, and to also reinforce the type of angles and form habits practiced by efficient runners. Runcoach has outlined and created short videos for a basic canon of seven running drills. Each drill is meant to be practiced for the distance indicated immediately after which the athlete should run with good form at 1500 meter pace effort for the balance of 100 meters.
Strides
Consider the last time you observed the start line of a competitive road race or track race. Many times the athletes involved take complete repeated short running bouts of 30, 50, or even 100 meters just before the competition begins. These final preparations are called strides. These strides listed on your warm up are most definitely related (as their lower-key cousin) to these pre race sprints. A chance to concentrate on good form for 20-30 seconds and provide the body a few more sustained efforts that keep the body warm and prepared to work hard are the final touches on your warm up routine. If you have ever done a workout with a short warm up and felt rusty on the first effort, only to find yourself feeling markedly better on the second bout, then you know firsthand the importance of strides. Please see our video description of strides here.
While warm up is a crucial physical preparation process, it can also be an invaluable time to review the mental elements you’ll need to employ during the workout and distance yourself from the everyday cares that will be waiting when you return through your front door. Let your warm up free you of the world’s gravity and transport you to the weightless state of focus on your workout. Complete each step with care and you’ll find your workouts will benefit.
When post-goal race elation subsides and the physical recovery period is well underway, many runners have a difficult time turning the corner toward the next horizon. Some athletes come away from a goal race so hungry for the next one that they over-enthusiastically barrel down the road toward the next goal without giving their bodies ample time to rest. Instead, for many runners, a huge bucket list item is a hard act to follow, even if we know that goal setting has finally allowed us to move the needle on long sought hopes.
The knowledge that the physical challenge of a long race can be described as a “how” rather than the “if” it was the first time is a powerful tool. Addressing the “how” requires a bit of work above the shoulders, both before and during the races ahead. We’ve written about a few of these topics on the blog, including the areas listed below:
At runcoach, we love to see runners break through and achieve their goals week after week, but we know sometimes the immediate road ahead has a focus on general fitness rather than a big goal race. We are here for you either way, and your individualized program can adjust to meet your needs for the run tomorrow as well as your destination goal race in 2014!
Running can be a life-changing activity, a passion, an outlet, sometimes (hopefully not often), it can even feel like a chore. As many long-time runners can attest, running can also teach many lessons that are readily transferable to a wide array of life situations. Some of these examples are encapsulated in the encouragement runcoach (like many other running coaches through history) gives you along your training journey.
Run through the Line
Running, belief, commitment, and a willingness to see the task to completion are crucial components to success. Many times a premature decision to evaluate a project or a race midway through eliminates the chance to enjoy the fruits of your labor, or a change of fortune in the late stages of the race. Marathoners go through rough patches, and can weather them and find success if belief and commitment are strong. Many a start-up or a long term project has also gone through a dark season or two before things finally look up. Commit to running the race until completion, and earn yourself the chance to enjoy the good that might still be possible.
Plan your rest days into the schedule
Although not every runner keeps the same schedule of rest vs. training days, every runner has a better chance of avoiding injury and training interruptions when they are able to plan regular rest into their schedule. Try to push through when rundown, or ignore a nagging sore spot, and an unplanned, and much less convenient rest period might be just around the corner. Similarly, a non-stop schedule of work and stress can often adversely affect our health. Although we don’t always have control over our schedules, most would agree a balanced life includes times of planned relaxation and recharging for the next challenge.
A positive attitude makes an enormous difference
Life and running have their fair share of challenges and unanticipated roadblocks. Depending on your perspective, many of these are temporary, and loom frighteningly large or completely manageable. When you retain a fundamental belief that a viable path exists out of your current bind, and when you attack a problem with the belief that the problem has a knowable and doable solution, you have a much greater chance of success than when a defeatist attitude emerges first. Get through that mid-race rough patch by reminding yourself of your training and the strength it has given you. Pick your way through a tricky professional patch by relying on the skills that have brought you to that point. Stay positive, and it will soon take the idea of giving up off the table.
Pace yourself
Life is a marathon, and not a sprint. We say this because we understand that a marathon takes a great deal of patience, training, and learning to succeed. We also understand that if you start out with a pace that throws caution to the wind, then your end result might be a bit unpleasant. A life a thousand miles begins with a single step. Stick to your plan, keep a steady, confident tempo, and arrive on time and in one piece, both in life and in the race.
Practice Makes Perfect
This saying, along with its cousin, “Perfect Practice Makes Perfect,” reminds us that it pays to consider our goals and to make sure we have rehearsed the requirements of the day as much as is possible beforehand. Just like that important presentation or pitch, rehearsing your fueling patterns during your long run or embarking on routes similar in topography to your goal race will teach you how to flesh out the tricky parts and handle them more confidently. We perform better when we can eliminate unknowns and focus on executing our plan. Running long distances can be a great incubator for us to reinforce that habit.
There are many other sayings and phrases out there that encapsulate the similar challenges and successes we go through as runners in and out of our training shoes. As runners, we are fortunate to have a great laboratory every day, and hopefully our lives are better for it even after we slip off our shoes.
Day Before
Whenever possible, pick up your bib number, timing chip, and goody bag the day before the race. This way, you won't have to worry about rushing to get it on the morning of the race. (Added bonus - you will be more likely to get your desired race T-shirt size if you pick it up early!)
Once you have your bib number, pin it to the front of the shirt you will wear on race day. (Don't pin it to the back). Most races will have boxes of safety pins for your use. Take four so that you can fasten all 4 corners.
Dressing The Part
For race attire, consider some "throw away" warmups for the start. These will protect you from the elements if it is cold or rainy. Old socks can come in handy for keeping your hands warm. Some runners will even wear the t-shirt for the first couple miles of the race until they warm up and then pull it off and throw it away. This is a good strategy to prepare for all temperatures.
Once the race starts, you WILL warm up. Be prepared by wearing lighter clothes underneath your "thow away" sweats. A good rule of thumb: Dress as if the weather is 15 degrees warmer than it is. That's how much you'll warm up once you start running.
Hydration
Drink Gatorade (or any sports drink that doesn’t include protein) and/or water frequently to assure you are hydrated before the race. Clear urine is a good sign. At some point (usually 10-20 minutes) prior to the race stop drinking so you can empty your bladder before the start.
Breakfast
We always recommend eating breakfast and an essential, light breakfast is important on race day. 2-3 hours before the race, try to consume 200-400 calories of food you are accustomed to and can easily digest. Your body will need that fuel in the latter stages of the race.
Don't try a new food the morning of the race. Instead, experiment with different foods beforehand or stick to things that have worked for you in the past. The best breakfast foods contain both complex and simple carbohydrates and high-quality protein (in small amounts). Your breakfast should include some healthy fats, but also in small amounts.
Heading to the Start Line
There will often be race day traffic so allow plenty of time to get to the starting area. You will need time to stretch out, do a warm up jog, and use the bathroom. (Warning: The lines for the bathrooms at road races are always long. Don't wait until the last minute to go!)
Pace
Remember this is an endurance race and the key to success is pace. As soon as the gun goes off remind yourself that you have a long race ahead of you. Check your breathing, body tension and other physical markers to gauge your pace. If you are running faster than a pace you can maintain throughout the whole distance, slow down immediately. The goal of any successful race is to run every mile within 10% of your average pace.
Remember the 3 ‘C’s’
Confidence: Have confidence in your ability and your training. Remember all those hard workouts you did. Remember those early mornings, late nights, sore calves, tight hamstrings etc. - they weren’t in jest.
Control: Feel comfortable with the pace for the first 1-2 miles. Stay relaxed and controlled.
Collection: Keep your thoughts collected and on your objective. In the typical big city race there will be thousands of distractions along the way. The further you get in this race the more you need to focus on yourself, goals and race strategy. Don’t let the fans and competitors into your zone.
You Always Have One Cup Left
That’s right – you always have one cup of energy left. The difference is that some people find it and some don’t. Remember what normal, untrained people do when they feel discomfort – they slow down and feel better. You are not a normal un-trained person.
You are a running machine!
As a machine you will have to dig down at the end to determine if you will have a good effort that you can be satisfied with or not.
Go get that last cup!
