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2008 Boston Marathon

Coach's Corner with Coach Brett Schumacher

Hello runners!

First of all, let me introduce myself. My name is Brett Schumacher, and I do quite a bit of work in the running industry. I help coordinate elite athletes at a variety of events from the NYC Marathon, to The Millrose Games, to the US Marathon Olympic Trials. In addition, I do some coaching as well. I have worked with athletes of all ability levels, from Susan Loken, three time US Champion, to our very own Shonda Schilling whom I have coached and run the Boston Marathon with each year as a part of SHADE's charity fundraising program. This year I will be putting up weekly tips to help you prepare for the 2008 Boston Marathon. And of course if you ever have any individual questions, please do not hesitate to contact me at runningbrett@yahoo.com. Best of luck with your training and I look forward to seeing you at the start line in April

Tip #1

Hello runners! Hope everyone has started their march towards the Boston Marathon. This week I am going to talk about the long run.

The long run is the key to your success in the marathon. It allows to cover the 26.2 miles of the famed Boston Marathon course. But many often ask how far should my long run be? How many should I do? Unfortunately, there is no one answer--each runner will have his/her own plan. However, as a general rule you will want to have at least two 20 mile OR two 3 hour runs under your belt before starting the marathon. Sure, more CAN be better, but it is best to error on the conservative side and show up slightly undertrained and healthy VS overtrained and fighting a bunch of nagging injuries (or worst case not be able to make it to the starting line at all due to injury!).

I like a "two to three week up one week down" schedule of the long run, meaning increase the length of your long for two or three weeks in a row, and follow that with a week of no long run. Although workouts and longs are important, rest and recovery are just as crucial--and this is why you would not want to increase your long run every single weekend. Your body needs a break! Sample build up as follows--long run on Saturday: 90 minutes week one, 100 minutes week two, 2 hours week three, and back down to an 80 minute long run on week four. Then on week five build again with a 2 hour and 15 minute long run and so on.

Remember during your long runs practice your drinking and energy replacement. Practice makes perfect. If you can be comfortable with your routine during long runs, then you'll be that much more confident and comfortable on race day.

Happy running, Coach Brett

Tip 2
Boston Course

The famed Boston Marathon course is unique is many ways. And although it can be a challenge, proper prep will make the famed Heartbreak Hill feel like just a small bump on your road to success!

First of all, keep in mind most of the marathon course is a downhill course. The first 16 miles are gently rolling with a net elevation lost--To help prepare your body for the extra pounding of the downhills, a few long runs or even a few easy runs on a course that feature some downhill grades will help your quads get used to all that pounding. In fact, this downhill pounding is what usually makes the newton hills so difficult. Your legs, and your quads in particular are quite beat up from the downhills, and when its time to shift to some uphills, they just don't have anything left! Practice those downhills!

After the downhills of the course you make a right turn at the newton firehouse and soon you'll hit the famed newton hills. The hills themselves are not all that difficult when looked at individually. It is the combination of the long downhill prior, then a series of hills, and of course all of this approaching mile 20 of the course--yes, you'll be tired at this point! The key? Doing some hill work will of course help. However,
a much better tatic is to do some hill work at the end of a longer run. A perfect example would be 75 minutes easy, then 3 or 4 hills (either repeats of the same hill, or hit a rolling course at the end of your run).

Good luck with your training this week....and don't forget the hills! The ups AND the downs!

Cheers
Coach Brett

Tip #3

Hello runners! This week's tip is not so much about training, but more about how to be able to keep training---staying healthy is the key to any training program. As many of you are aware, your running surface can make a big difference in your running health. Concrete and asphalt are by far the hardest surfaces to run on. They have very little shock absorbtion and often beat up the legs. One of the other risks of running on the roads is the typical camber of road itself. Most streets and roads have a slight "tilt" to allow water to drain--and this causes an abnormal strain on your legs. IT band and lower leg injuries are common for those who run on roads with the same tilt. If you have to run on a road with a definite tilt, try running an out and back route to even out your time on the tilted road (only if you can safely do so--always be aware of traffic!). The most severe injuries I have encountered are from athletes that have to run on the same tilted road, running the same way every single day. Your best option are dirt paths, trails, and even grass which are considerably softer than concrete and asphalt, but also they vary your footstrike enough which helps avoid overuse injuries. Ideally, a mixture of surfaces is best. A little bit of asphalt and concrete--say 10 to 15 percent of your mileage, will help prepare your body for the pounding of the marathon (a flat road, or even a traffic free bike path is best) but keep in mind, half of your battle is GETTING to the starting line, and soft surfaces are the best way to ensure you'll get there.

What else can you do? Icing goes a long way in keeping your aches and pains in check. Many elite athletes take ice baths after every workout. But even a few jumbo bags of frozen peas on your knees, shins, foot, etc goes a long way in keeping you healthy. 10 to 15 minutes of icing is all you need to reap the huge benefits that icing provides. And schedule it as part of your workout--75 minute run? Make it 90 minutes total.....75 minutes running and 15 minutes icing those aches and pains.

Stretching? Massage? All great ways to work out the aches and pains. Stretching CAN be helpful--but don't over do it. Too much stretching and cause more harm than good--and always use proper technique. Check with a physical therapist, athletic trainer or even google some stretching ideas to ensure you are stretching properly. And a massage therapist can work wonders--they can find those knots and "read your body" to find the cause of some of your aches and pains.

And of course, if something gets so bad that you can not run without a limp or severe pain, do see a sports medicine doctor as soon as possible. If caught early, many running injuries are quickly solved and you'll be back at your training in no time at all!

Cheers and happy running, Coach Brett

Tip #4

Hello runners.....about a month of training to go. Here are a few quick tips and prep guidelines on the last month of training.

Tip 1
Now is the time to figure out which energy product you plan on using. There are too many to count, but find that right gel, jelly bean, snack combo that will settle well in your stomach, and allow you to keep pushing in those later miles. Get comfortable with it in your long runs and you'll feel that much more confident on raceday.

Tip 2
Time to check out the shoes....you should know which shoes you plan on racing in. And if you suspect that they may be breaking down or have too many miles on them, order a new pair now so you can get a few miles in them to have them broken in. The general rule of them is no big changes on raceday, and your shoes are no exception. Tried and true is the only way to go!

Tip 3
Time to prepare your raceday routine.....find out what works well for breakfast--yes you'll need to eat a good sized breakfast on race morning, try a couple of long runs that mimic the Boston Marathon start time. It can be a tad difficult to get your body used to a slightly later than usual start time, and lastly find out how much you need to hydrate in the morning. Too little or too much are both performance killers....and find if gatorade or water works best. In most cases you want to stop drinking large amounts of fluids about an hour prior to the start so your body can process the fluids, and you can hit that porta-potty one last time!

Best of luck with your runs this week, but practice makes perfect. From the downhill and uphill runs, to finding that right gel....all are crucial to you feeling confident and prepared on raceday.

Happy running, Coach Brett

Tip #5

Hello runners!

Ok, its crunch time.....a month to go! Time to talk taper. Being rested and recovered is the only way to run a marathon.....and keep in mind, there is no such thing as "cramming" for a marathon. Always best to show up a tad undertrained vs having squeezed in one last 20 miler one week prior---bad idea! Some guidelines:

Two to three weeks.....that is your last long run should be two to three weeks prior to Boston. There is no right answer--but if in doubt, go with the three week rule for your last long long run and then do a two hour run two weeks prior.

Volume down....keep some intensity. As you start the taper, decrease the overall volume. Normally doing 1 hour recovery runs? Cut it down to 35 to 50 minutes. But still doing some harder runs, keep them in your program....but just cutback on the overall distance. The intensity keeps your fitness, but the overall cutback in volume will freshen up those legs.

Less volume means less calories burned.....don't freak out about your weight, but if you cutback 50 percent of your training you also cutback 50 percent of your calories burned. Eating too much during the taper will leave you feeling lethargic---good calories, and a higher percentage of carbs (NOT more carbs!) But the higher percentage of carbs will ensure your glycogen stores are topped off and ready for the big day. Massage....good idea throughout your training. However no DEEP massage during the week prior to the race....might leave you too sore.

Sleep? Though it goes without saying, sleep is crucial! Schedule sleep just like the workouts.....the only way to feel fully recovered and rested is through proper sleep. If in doubt, skip an early am workout to catch up on your sleep. Once the taper has begun, 95 percent of your fitness is already in place, skipping a workout or two to ensure you are rested will only have a positive effect on your training--squeezing in that one extra run on a tired body will only do more harm than good. If in doubt, rest rest rest.

That's it! Enjoy the last couple of harder workouts and soon rest will be your focus. Hurray! Cheers. Coach Brett

Tip #6

Hello runners!

Hope you are having a good week of training. As mentioned, the hard work is almost all over. A few last minute tips on enjoying the Boston experience!

1). Watch the Women's Olympic Marathon Trials on Sunday. This "special marathon" held once every four years determines the Women's Olympic Team for China. A multiple loop course running through the finish line area and over into Cambridge, it is very easy to watch the runners pass by multiple times. Go out and cheer for America's best ladies! (And what a great motivator for your own race the next day!). Check www.baa.org for all the latest and greatest news about all the races!

2). Hit the Expo.....the Boston Marathon expo is perhaps the best fitness expo in the country. Featuring every vendor you can imagine, its a great place to find the latest and greatest shoes and workout clothing--just make sure you don't wear them on raceday! Some highlights--- check out some of the treadmill biomechanical analysis to ensure you are running in the right shoe for you, stop by the multiple Adidas booths for a great Boston Marathon shirt or jacket, and look for many of the marathon legends--both current and past, signing autographs at the various shoe booths. Keep in mind, its best to get to the expo early....the crowds are much smaller, the line to pick up your race packet is manageable, and all the booths still have plenty of sizes available. And don't forget to check out some of the other race booths as well.....its a great place to find out where your next goal race might
be!

3). Hit the some of great historic sites in and around Boston. The Freedom Trail is an easy to follow trail that showcases many of Boston's historic sites. Easily followed by its distinct red paint, it takes you past churches, cemeteries, and historic landmarks that were all a part of this country's early beginnings. This is a great way to stretch out the legs post-marathon....and catch some great US history in the process.

4). Eat some famed Boston seafood. From fresh fish to famed Boston "chowda" Boston is one of the best places in the country to eat fresh seafood. Of course, don't forget Coach's "no big changes" till raceday tip....this maybe best sampled after the race.

5). And of course, don't forget those Red Sox! No sports trip to Boston is complete without a visit to the Fenway Park area. Easily accessible by the "T", Fenway Park and its surrounding areas are a sportsfan's dream. Even if you do not go in to catch a game, the area around the park with its streetside vendor carts, local pubs, and Red Sox energy is a once in a lifetime experience. Stop in the pub and have a pint of Sam Adams, watch the game on TV, and sing along to Neil Diamond for a true Red Sox experience.

And lastly.....don't forget to relax! You do have a marathon to run!

: - )

Happy Running
Coach