Poudre Track and Field

Stand, leaning against a wall with both hands. Bend your front leg and point your toes under your back leg. With the back knee facing forward and your toes in line with your knee gently press the front of the back foot and ankle down toward the floor. HOLD. Feel the stretch on the front of the lower leg and ankle. Repeat the exercise first with your rear knee turned outward, and then with it turned inward. Switch to the other leg and repeat.

Sit with your feet flat on the floor with the heels and knees in a vertical line, and the knees in a horizontal line with the hips. Raise your arches, keeping the outside borders of the feet and toes on the floor. Press the outside of your feet down against the floor. Hold. Feel the stretch on the outside of your feet and lower legs. Then repeat the exercise, raising the outside borders of the feet and toes. Keeping the inside borders on the floor.

Put one foot on a wedge (a slant board at about 30 degrees) with your heel resting on the floor. Keep your toes straight and support yourself with your hands on the wall. With your leg straight, press your entire body forward and hold. Feel the stretch behind the knee and in the back of the lower leg. Repeat the stretch with the knee bent as shown. You’ll feel the stretch in the back of the lower leg closer to the hell. Switch and repeat with other leg.

Stand, leaning against the wall with both hands. Put one foot in front of the other. Keep the back foot pointing straight ahead, with the heel down and your knee straight. Shift your weight forward by bending the front knee. Hold. Feel the stretch behind the knee and down the back of the lower rear leg. Repeat, but this time with back knee bent as well, with the heel on the floor. Hold. You’ll feel the stretch lower down the back of the rear leg. Switch and repeat with the other leg.

Stand with the right side of your body facing the wall, supporting yourself against the wall. Cross the right leg behind the left leg. Lean your right hip toward the wall while bending the left knee and keep the right knee straight. Hold. Feel the stretch at the outside of the right hip and the right upper thigh. Repeat on the left side. For a variation of this stretch, cross the right leg in front of the left leg and repeat the exercise.

Lie on your back with your legs straight. Bend one knee and bring it toward the opposite shoulder, keeping your chest, shoulders and head down. Clasp your hands around the knee and gently press it towards the opposite shoulder, Hold. Feel the stretch in the buttocks and outside of the hip. Repeat with other leg.

Lying on your stomach, bend one knee and grasp the ankle with your hand or a towel looped around the ankle. Keeping your body straight , squeeze your buttocks and press your hips down against the floor. Gently pull your ankle toward the buttocks, lifting the knee up off the ground. Hold. Feel the stretch across the front of the thigh and the front of the hip. Repeat with other leg.

Stand straight with your legs together and support yourself with one hand on a sturdy table, chair, or wall. Bend one knee and grasp the ankle with your hand or a towel looped around the ankle. Without bending forward squeeze your buttocks and press your hips forward (don’t let your stomach sag forward). Gently pull your ankle toward your buttocks, pulling the knee back. Hold. You will feel the stretch across the front of the thigh, and the front of your hip. Repeat with other leg.

Kneel on a cushion and support yourself with both hands. Place on foot in front of you, keeping the foot flat on thefloor. Keep your back straight and your hips forward( do not twist your hips). Press your hips forward. Hold. Feel the stretch across the front of the hip of the leg that is behind you. Repeat with other leg.

Lie on your back with your legs straight. Then lift one leg up and bend the knee so that the hip and knee are both at 90-degree angles. Place one hand on the knee and the other hand on lower leg. Gently pull your foot and knee toward the shoulder, rotating at the hip. Hold. Feel the stretch at the outside of the hip. Repeat with other leg.

Lie on your back with your legs straight. Bring one knee toward your chest so the hip is at a 90-degree angle, clasp both hands behind the knee to keep the thigh stable, and straighten the knee as far as possible. Keep the ankle fixed toward the knee. Keep the opposite leg straight unless you experience back pain. Hold You’ll feel the stretch in the calf, behind the knee and in the lower part of the thigh. Repeat with other leg.

Repeat as Hamstring Stretch I, but bring the knee up to your chest. Clasp both hands behind your knee, keeping the thigh stabilized. Grasping your leg behind the ankle, straighten as far as possible. Hold. Feel the stretch in the upper part of the thigh as well as the calf. Repeat with other leg.

In a sitting position with your back erect, bend you knees and place the soles of your feet together. Place your elbows or hands on the inner knees and gently press your knees apart. Hold. Feel the stretch in your inner thighs.

Lie on your back with your knees bent, the soles of your feet close together and your feet off the floor. Put your hands on the inside of your knees and press your knees apart. Do not arch your back. Hold. Feel the stretch at your inner thighs.

Back To Top

Now that I’ve scared you with all of the bad things that can happen when pain is ignored, lets talk about inconveniences that you can work through. After all, you can’t go running to a doctor every time something feels a little weird. If you rested every time you had the slightest ache or pain you might spend more time reading running injury books than you do running.

In your quest for better performance, you will sometimes feel pain that appears first as muscle soreness after an extra-long or extra-fast workout. Instead of either ignoring this soreness or fighting it, accept it as an invitation to ease off until the discomfort subsides. Hard training is essential if you are to improve, but equally critical is the recovery period between these bouts of work. Without the rebuilding phase, temporary pains can grow into full-fledged injuries. (I define “normal” pain as mild discomfort that disappears within a few days: pain that lasts longer I call an injury.)

It isn’t uncommon to experience soreness in certain muscle groups after a particularly hard or fast run. Generally, this occurs in one of three areas: the quadriceps, the muscles in front of your thigh, the peroneal muscles and tendons on the lateral (outside) part of you lower leg, and your foot. There are specific reasons of these areas becoming sore.

Quadriceps: As a group, the quadriceps are a team of work-horses --- the largest muscle group in your body, and the one you call upon most to propel you forward. Despite their large size, the quadriceps can be overused just like any other muscles.

At one time, the San Diego Marathon had its finish line in the huge stadium where the Chargers football team and the Padres baseball team play. Race organizers put all the T-shirts and souvenirs in the upper rows of the stadium. After the race, the marathoners had to walk up the numerous flights of stairs in the stadium to get their finishing T-shirts. It was a tough climb after a 26.2-mile race, but walking back down was the real problem.

As the runners started down, they placed a tremendous strain on their quadriceps, which were already crying for relief. I wondered what uninformed observers might have thought if they’d seen these normally healthy people being led, carried or otherwise helped downstairs.Time---and little or no additional training---heals this problem rather quickly. Within a few days, these same people were walking, and running, normally again.

Peroneals: The peroneal muscles and tendons run down the lateral side (outside) of your leg, attach to your foot and work to keep it firmly on the ground. This muscle group helps stabilize your foot. As soon as your foot strikes the ground, your peroneal muscles contract so that your foot will pronate (roll forward) and stay flat on the ground. The peroneals protect against your foot turning outward, which can cause an ankle sprain.

The faster or longer you run, the more these muscles have to work. That is why soreness of the peroneals is a common complaint after races. Again, time and little or no training are the cures for this complaint.

Feet: Most runners initially strike the ground on the outside of the foot. When you stand, you can see that the distance between your feet and the ground (call your base of gait) is narrower than the width of your hips. That is why your leg and foot make contact with the ground at an angle. This means the initial force of impact is on the outside of your foot. Repetitive impact can cause bruising and pain along the outer edge of the foot, especially as you start to run longer distances or increase your speed.

Abrupt changes in running surface can overwhelm you ability to absorb shock, as shown by one runner who trained exclusively on grass and soft dirt trails. He told me, “I ran on these surfaces in order to avoid injuries, especially stressfractures.” But when he entered a half-marathon that was run entirely on asphalt and concrete, he experiences so much post race pain on the outside of his foot that I suspected a stress fracture. Fortunately, this wasn’t the case. But it struck home the lesson that you have to prepare your foot and leg muscles to take the pounding of a 13.1-mile race.

Short-term muscle soreness is a normal part of most runners’ lives as they push their limits of distance or speed. They must do this from time to time or they never improve---but they shouldn’t ignore what the soreness is telling them.

I knew a physical education instructor, Diane, who complained to me, “Whether the race distance is a 5-K or a marathon, I always run an eight-minute-per-mile pace.” I asked her what her training pace was. “Around eight-minutes per mile” she answered, which didn’t surprise me.

When Diane started doing speed workouts to decrease her pace, she made the mistake of keeping her mileage high at the same time. She soon developed her first injury, a pain on the outside of her foot. She eased back her training until that cleared up, and then resumed with a combination of lower mileage and some speed work. The injury never returned and her racing pace improved.

The lesson here is that both speed training and distance running are stressful. Never increase both at the same time. In fact, if you increase one factor, decrease the other---at least temporarily. And don’t run extra-long distances or perform speed work while you’re experiencing this normal soreness. Wait it out for a day or so to avoid triggering a serious injury.

Function:
Perhaps only an elite athlete would value the subtle improvements in performance that dietary changes can provide. There is a large body of evidence showing a relationship between food consumption and athletic performance. A poor diet will almost certainly have a negative effect on the performance of even the most casual athlete. A good diet, providing adequate calories, vitamins, minerals, and protein will help provide the energy required to finish a race or simply enjoy a recreational sport or activity.

The diet recommended for an athlete differs little in composition from the diet suggested for any healthy individual. The Food Guide Pyramid is an excellent guide, however, the amount of each food group needed will depend on the type of sport, the amount of training and the time in relation to activity or exercise. Calorie needs vary with the size, age, sex and physical activity performed by the individual so the number of servings a person requires will vary.

Complex carbohydrates are a diet staple. They are found in foods such as pasta, bagels, whole grain breads and rice. They provide energy, fiber, vitamins, and minerals and are low in fat. Carbohydrate loading (a concerted diet/training regimen) will increase the body’s energy stores of carbohydrate (called glycogen). It has been shown to improve performance in endurance-type activities lasting more than one hour. The classical method of carbohydrate loading has been abandoned and replaced by a modified method which is safer and equally effective at increasing muscle glycogen. The most important factor influencing glycogen stores is to consume 50 to 60% of the calories from carbohydrates on a daily basis.

Simple sugars such as soft drinks, jams and jellies, and candy provide few nutrients but a lot of calories. They may actually decrease performance when consumed directly before an athletic event as they may cause hypoglycemia.

Protein’s most important functions in the body are to support growth and to repair body tissues. Many people feel athletes need a high protein diet to support muscle growth despite the fact that researchers have repeatedly proven this false. It is also a myth that high protein diet will promote muscle growth. Only strength training and exercise will promote changes in muscle. Athletes, even body builders, require only small increases over normal needs in order to support muscle growth. Athletes easily meet this increased need by simply consuming more total calories (eating more food). Americans already eat more protein than they need, almost two-fold, so protein needs for muscle development are being met before strength training begins. Excess protein is used as energy and can be stored as body fat. Amino acid supplements and excessive high intakes of protein are not recommended. They can increase calcium loss, and put added burden on the kidneys which are required to filter the excess nitrogen protein provides.

Water is the most important, yet over-looked, nutrient by athletes. Water and fluids are essential to maintaining good hydration and body temperature. Sweat losses to keep the body cool can exceed several liters in a 1-hour period. Adolescents and adults should replace any body fluids lost during an exercise with equal amounts of fluids. A good indication that you have fully re-hydrated is to check to see if your urine is clear. Cool water is the best choice.

Some suggestions for maintaining adequate hydration are:

Drink plenty of water, juice and milk.
Avoid caffeine containing beverages. Caffeine is a diuretic and promotes fluid loss.
Drink plenty of fluid before, during, and after exercise.
Offer children water frequently during sports activities; they do not respond to thirst as readily as adults.

Changing body weight to improve performance must be done safely and effectively or it may do more harm than good. Maintaining an unrealistically low body weight, rapid weight loss, and unnaturally suppression weight gain can have negative health effects so it is important to set realistic body weight goals.

Young athletes attempting to lose weight will benefit from a consultation with a Registered Dietitian; eating disorders and poor dietary habits may result form experimentation with diets. The Food Guide Pyramid is an excellent resource to ensure adequate food intake to meet vitamin and mineral needs while safely achieving body composition goals.

Make sure that you speak with a health care professional to discuss a diet appropriate for your sport, age, gender and amount of training.

What is the best diet for an athlete? Ask a dozen athletes and you’ll get a dozen different answers. Some swear by the latest “wonder foods,” such as bee pollen, algae extract, soybean powder or even barley juice. Others feel that deprivation is the key---it’s not what you eat; it’s what you don’t. These athletes adopt strict rules for themselves, solemnly swearing never again to touch a french fry or a cupcake. Trainers and coaches, too, have their opinions, sometimes based on out-of-date traditions or the sensationalized advertisements of muscle magazines.

With so many answers to the question of what an athlete should eat, how does one know what to tell student or clients to put on the table?

Athletes require more calories than sedentary people: 2,500 to 4,000 per day, with some long-distance runners requiring up to 6,000 calories daily. Individual caloric need can be determined by multiplying body weight (in pounds) by 13, then adding this figure to the number of calories burned. This formula uses “basal calories”---the number of calories needed to maintain internal functions without activity. (See “Calories Burned During Exercise” chart.)

Example: Roger Runner weighs 163 pounds and runs a 6-minute-mile pace for 45 minutes six days a week.

Carbohydrate supplies about 35 to 40 percent of the body’s energy when at rest. But a much higher percentage of carbohydrate is needed during exercise. A sprinter or weight lifter engaged in anaerobic activity will rely almost entirely on carbohydrate for fuel. A marathoner will use carbohydrate primarily but can also burn fat and, if necessary, protein.

Glycogen is the storage form of carbohydrate in the muscles and liver. Most athletes store enough glycogen for a 90 to 120-minute workout. The better physical condition and athlete is in, the more glycogen she/he can store.

Carbohydrate loading is a term popular among athletes, and many runners flock religiously to spaghetti suppers and pancake breakfasts often held before a race. What these athletes actually are doing is glycogen loading.

Athletes should routinely follow a carbohydrate diet (60 to 70 percent of total calories). However, before competitive events, such as marathons and triathlons, athletes can increase their glycogen stores by using the following method:

Three days before an event, increase carbohydrate intake to 70 to 80 percent of calories (500 to 600 grams per day) and do little or no exercise. This technique will boost glycogen stores by 20 to 40 percent. (See “High-Carbohydrate Foods” chart for listing.)

Glycogen loading is most effective with complex carbohydrates such as whole grain cereals and breads, potatoes, pasta and legumes. Simple carbohydrates (sugars, fruits, fruit juices) will also be converted to glycogen, but at a less efficient rate. Because the athlete wants to maximize glycogen stores, the emphasis should be on complex carbohydrates, with simple sugars included in moderate levels. Fruits, although simple carbohydrates are packed with vitamins, minerals and fiber, so athletes should include them regularly in their diets.

During aerobic exercise, fat is used as a source of fuel. The amount used depends on the athlete’s level of fitness and the intensity and duration of the exercise. A highly trained athlete will tend to use more fat than one who is less fit because her/his energy factory burns fat more efficiently. Using fat as an energy source helps preserve muscle glycogen stores and, therefore, increases endurance.

Should athletes load up on butter, cream and fatty meats before events? No. Fats tend to be digested slowly, so they stay in the stomach a long time and can cause discomfort if eaten immediately before exercise. Also, filling up on fatty foods leaves less room for carbohydrates in the stomach, limiting the capacity for glycogen storage. Finally, high-fat diets are associated with a n increased risk of heart disease.

Athletes should keep their fat intake between 15 and 25 percent of total calories consumed. So advise students to keep fat on the training table, but in limited amounts.

Some bodybuilders and other athletes will consume a dozen egg whites, four cans of tuna and a protein powder shake in a single day and still think they’re not getting enough protein. What they don’t know is that too much protein can actually reduce muscle gain for two reasons:

High protein intake means less energy for workouts because carbohydrate (not protein) is what fuels the muscles for vigorous training and muscle growth.
Protein not used for energy will be converted to fat and stored. That’s the last thing an athlete wants!

Some experts, however, believe that athletes may have a slightly greater need for protein than inactive people---possibly to repair torn muscle fibers and to act as an additional fuel source-but not as much more as many athletes think. Athletes who participate in either aerobic or anaerobic activities should consume adequate calories for their energy needs, with only 12 to 15 percent of total calories coming from protein. Since athletes generally consume more calories than sedentary individuals anyway, they automatically get more protein. For instance, a runner who consumes 3,500 calories per day would get 525 calories from protein (131 grams), whereas an inactive person consuming 2,000 calories would get only 300 calories from protein (75 grams)--- yet both would be taking in the recommended allowance of protein: 15 percent of total calories.

The general rule is to consume two cups of low-fat/skim milk or yogurt per day and small portions of lean meat, poultry or seafood at lunch and dinner (totaling 3 to 6 ounces per day). The balance of calories should come from starches, vegetables and fruits.

In their desire to gain a competitive edge, some athletes consume mega doses of vitamins and minerals (ten times the Recommended Dietary Allowances or RDA), which can have a toxic effect on the body. Excessive amounts of fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E and K) can accumulate to dangerous levels in the fatty tissues, and too much of the water-soluble vitamins can cause burning of the skin, diarrhea and nausea. The fact is, extra vitamin and mineral supplements beyond the RDAs do not enhance exercise performance; they only give the athlete very expensive urine!

Female athletes who avoid red meat or who consume reduced calories may be low in iron, an important nutrient in athletic performance because it brings oxygen to the cells. They should have a health practitioner check their iron status periodically. Iron-rich foods, such as lean meats, poultry, seafood, dried beans, whole grains, green leafy vegetables, raisins and prunes can increase iron levels. If iron levels are still low, a moderate iron supplement supplying the RDA of 15 milligrams may be recommended.

In this highly competitive sporting world, the difference between first and second place is often what the athlete had for lunch. Proper training a the table can give your students that winning edge.

____________________________

Weather

When you run in the heat, your body sends more blood to your skin to cool you via evaporation. As a result, less blood, which carries oxygen, goes to your leg muscles, and they have to work harder just to maintain your usual pace. Also, the warmer it is, the more you sweat. This is good, because sweating helps to cool you as your perspiration evaporates. But it’s also bad, because your blood volume decreases. With less blood retuning to your heart, your heart has to pump more often to keep the same amount of blood circulating throughout your body. And when your heart rate increases, you’re working harder.

Running is even tougher on humid days. You generate all that sweat, and it’s supposed to cool you down, but the air is so moist that it can’t absorb much more water. So your sweat stays on your skin rather than evaporating, and your body just keeps producing more and more sweat, and you just keep getting more and more tired. That’s why it’s a lot tougher to run on a 90- degree-day in the humid Northeast part of the country.

The upshot of all this dripping sweat is a dropping in pace. One study found that for each one percent of body weight that you lose because of dehydration, your running performance falls be three percent. Bear in mind that one percent of body weight isn’t much if you weigh 150 pounds, that’s only 1.5 pounds, or 24 ounces. It’s not unusual to lose three or four pounds of water in an hour of running on a hot day. This loss causes your performance to sag by more than five percent, which can be as much as a minute slower per mile.

Cumulative dehydration is what happens when it’s hot for several days in a row, and you don’t replace all the fluid you lost after each run. Suppose that during a hot week, a 150- pound runner doesn’t re-hydrate himself completely each day. By the end of the week, he has a cumulative loss of two pounds of water- that’s more than one percent of his weight. As a result his performance is off by more than three percent by week’s end.

Many runners go through most summers chronically dehydrated, and then their running suffers.

Weigh yourself before and after runs in hot weather. However much lighter you are at the end of the run, drink at least that amount of water within the first two hours of your run.

Replacing water doesn’t have anything to do with how many calories you burn during a run.

Not only is it important to drink water before, after, and between runs, it’s important to drink during them as well.

Studies have shown that sports drinks that are four to eight percent carbohydrate are absorbed as quickly as water. They have added plus of providing energy. Fruit juices aren’t absorbed as quickly; dilute them by half with water. Carbonated beverages aren’t a great idea because they might upset your stomach and because they make you feel full. If you drink a carbonated drink you might think that you are more hydrated than you really are.

When you run can make a big difference in how much the heat takes out of you. Avoid the hottest times of the day. Still be careful the humidity is highest in the morning, and it can still be pretty oppressive at 7 p.m. in some places in the summer. When in doubt slow your pace from the start, rather than having your dehydrated body slow it for you near the end.

One of the main reasons running the winter can be so nice is because running in the summer can be so tough. With all of the heat that you generate after a few minutes of running, you can be warmer running outside in 40-degree weather than inside your 68- degree home. So stay warm enough to stay comfortable, but don’t get so hot that you get really dehydrated.

Your lungs will never really freeze, as the air you breathe works it’s way into your lungs, it’s warmed more than enough to keep it from freezing anything.

Running in the winter involves a much bigger mental aspect to it than running during the rest of the year. You just have to stay focused on your goals. After a while you learn how to get out the door through those tough first few minutes until you get warmed up.

Lack of light, not the potential freezing of your lungs, is the biggest threat to your well-being when you run in the winter. Watch your footing. Try to run on level surfaces that you’re familiar with and choose the most well- lit routes. Be extra careful after snow or ice storms. Snow on the ground can often help your night vision, because it reflects what light there is. But under that snow may be patches of ice.

Also, Watch traffic even more than you usually do. Don’t assume that cars can see you or that, if they do, they can get out of the way quickly. Just as snow and ice can make you slip around during your runs, they also can cause cars to careen out of control. Fortunately, most good winter running apparel made these days has reflective features.

You have to be extra careful in the rain, especially if you are running near a lot of traffic. Cars aren’t going to be able to see you as well. Most of the time just by running in the right gear and a baseball or painter cap will help.

Freezing rain, sleet, hail- when the weather is that bad, it’s usually time to reconsider. Shorten your fun, sticking close to home so that you can end the run quickly if conditions deteriorate. Or if the nasty stuff is only going to be around for a day don’t be afraid to take the day off.

_______________________________

Lifting

Lift at least two days a week—FAST! We are training muscles to MOVE FAST!
Exercises (in addition to CORE every day):

Upper body:
-Running arms with dumbbells
-Push-ups on stability ball with leg pull
-Finger push-ups
-Bench press
-Tricep pull down with rope
-Lat pull downs
-Medicine ball twist exchange

Lower body:
-Single leg squats on box
-Good mornings
-Lunges with dumbbells
-Toe raises
-Step-ups on bench or box
-Hip flexor raises
-Abdominal leg lift

Find a lifting partner you can depend on to be as dedicated as you are! Lift on lighter workout days.