Wednesday, August 29, 2018

Saturday and Sunday session, On Tour Update

Can't say we don't offer options:

Saturday Session

When: Saturday 1st September

Time6am - 8:30am (earlier or later depending on your training schedule)

Where: Meet at JC Slaughter Falls Car Park, Sir Samuel Griffith Drive, Mt Coot-Tha

What:  Trail run in Mt Coot-Tha.  2.5 hours on our feet, distance doesn't matter.  I will try to incorporate some new trails, to keep it interesting, I have my eye on some killer hills.  If 2.5 hours is too long, or if it is too short, there will be options to reduce the time, or increase the time.

Cost: $2, refreshments after (we will need them)

And, of course coffee and breaky after.

Sunday Session

When: Sunday 2nd September

Time6:30am - 8am

Where: Meet at Southport Surf Club, MacArthur Parade, Southport.

What:  Nick and Clare will be taking a beach run along Main Beach.  This will be great practice for any of our "On Tourers" as there is some significant beach running in the Beach to Brother event.

There is parking available on MacArthur Parade out front of the Surf club.

Cost: Free

More breakfast to follow

On Tour Update

With only 4 weeks to go, it's getting really exciting now.

Road Trip options:
Image result for road trip cartoon imageLeaving on Thursday 27th September will be the first BRS on Tour Road trip.  Travelling 542km along the M1/A1 highway and return.  This epic journey will require a few stops.  Considering there will be children (and some small bladders) I was thinking of 3 stops on the way down, breaking it up into 4 legs of the journey.  The first leg being driving from home to the meeting point.

We have already posted in the "On Tour" message string asking for suggested stops, so keep them coming.  

Meeting point: Somewhere in Logan.  Needs to offer coffee and some food.  Please help with suggestions.  I was thinking Logan Hyperdome with a few options available, or McDonalds in Bryants Road, a few cafes near there also.

Meeting time: Early......maybe 7am ish.

I am open to all suggestions so keep them coming on the messenger string.

Happy Runnning

BRS Coaches

Thursday, August 23, 2018

Saturday Session

When: Saturday 4th August

Time6am - 7:30am

Where: Meet at the steps near South Beach Social (Previously Southbank Surf Club), Southbank

What:  It's Bridge to Brisbane on Sunday, so why not do a Bridges run.  Keep a theme for the weekend happening.  Why not see how many bridges you can run over. There are plenty in and around Southbank making up a nice loop to cater for all distances.

Cost: Free.  Dan will be there to co-ordinate, please bring own refreshments.

And, of course coffee and breaky after.

Running CEO's

Only 3 weeks to go until Brisbane's newest corporate running challenge, Running CEO's. Let's get the blue and white army out and about.

This is an official BRS event and is included in the lead up program for the Beach to Brother.  There is the option of a 21km, 10km, 5km or 1km, starting at 4:45pm on Saturday 8th September.  Its an afternoon event so you can sleep in on Saturday morning.

Join the team.  When entering join the team Planwell and help Darren Henry raise money to support the charity LIVIN www.livin.org.

To enter go to  www.runningceos.com.au

When: Saturday 8th September (Afternoon)
Where: Stockland's Pallara Community, Brookbent Rd, Pallara
Dates and Times: Saturday 5th September - Race pack collection Day 1 at Westside BMW                                           3:30pm - 7:30pm
                               Saturday 8th September - Racepack collection Day 2 at event 1:00pm -                                             5:00pm
                               Noon  Free parking in Pallara Park, Vied St.
                               First race start time - 4:00pm (1km)
                               4:40pm 10km start.
                               5:15pm Half marathon and 10km start 

Happy Running

BRS Coaches

Thursday, August 16, 2018

Saturday Session, Coops Corner and more

Saturday Session

When: Saturday 18th August

Time6am - 8am

Where: Regatta Hotel Carpark, 543 Corronation Dr, Toowong.

What: 2 hour multi-terrain run including roads, trails and of course hills.  Perfect lead up to the Beach to Brother event.

Followed by Breakfast and a coffee of course.

Cost: $2 (I will bring some refreshments)

Plus

Breaky, Babies, Banter

Our BRS Family has recently grown and we are well overdue for a Breaky Catch up! 

8am BREAKY - inside the Regatta Hotel
Order your breaky, coffee, and come for a catch up and cuddles. 

All current and former BRSers welcome, we would love to see you. 

No need to RSVP, but feel free to click going on the Facebook event.

Coops' Corner

Threshold: The comfortably uncomfortable!

From most of the conversations I have has with BRSers over the years, I honestly believe Threshold (or tempo) runs are the area that is either over-looked, or unknown. I won’t go into the science of it all (as I don’t know it) but threshold is a term that refers to a ‘zone’ of running that is harder than aerobic running (where energy is purely supplied by oxygen) and anaerobic running (when our friend lactic acid starts to build).

The good thing is this ‘limit’ is flexible. The more you train in this zone, the longer you can be in the zone and handle it. Most articles refer to it being a pace somewhere between 10k and half marathon pace. A pace you can hold for only a while. A pace where you PROBABLY don’t talk ;-)
I have a few favourite runs that are a variation of a threshold runs which I will share.

1     Tempo run:
Training for a 10K: Warm up for 1 – 2km. Then run 3km at your 10km pace (or just under). Cool down at easy pace for 1 – 2km. Each week increase the tempo part by half a km till you get up to distance where you can no longer maintain that pace (probably 6k). If training for a half marathon try the same idea, but you will want to stretch out the distance of your tempo effort (at half marathon pace or just under of course). Most research points to 30minutes being the longest length MOST people can run at threshold before the anaerobic system kicks in and you start to fatigue. But if this pace is practised, the time can be pushed out.

2      Kenyan Run:
This is a great morning run! Run out 20 minutes at easy pace. I suggest you don’t even look at your watch or check your pace. At the 20 minute mark (Ok, you have to look at your watch now) turn around and run back hard. The beauty is if you don’t feel great on the way out, or aren’t moving to well, then you are doing yourself a favour as you won’t have as far to get back. If you are feeling good on the way out… well then you are just setting yourself a good challenge!! When you get back to where you started, do a 5 minute easy jog to cool down.

     Michael Shelly session:
We have done this one at BRS before, and it is one of Nick’s favourites. 8 to 10 x 3 minute efforts with 1 minute jog recovery. Is it fartlek? Is it interval work? Technically, it is a threshold session as the change between the pace of the effort and the recovery should not be as drastic as interval work, and the structured element of it means it’s not really fartlek. But the outcome is definitely a good work out.

Next edition we will look at how mere mortals can and include all the elements into a sensible, sustainable running program.

Yours in Blue and White

Coops

Free Pilates

What!!! Did you say free???  

" Please join us at Praxis Physiotherapy and Pilates for a FREE Pilates for Runners reformer class. The class will be designed in conjunction with our Physios to address exercises, muscles and biomechanics related to running. We are running two free classes for any runners interested in trying it out. I would then love some feedback as to what you liked, didn't like, etc. It is a great opportunity to try our reformer Pilates, particularly if you haven't ever tried it at all!

The classes will run: Thursday 23rd August at 7am and Monday 27th August at 6:45pm and will go for approximately 45mins.

We are located at 54 Amelia St, Fortitude Valley and have parking on site. Our maximum class capacity is 5 people per class which makes for a great session in terms of allowing correct technique and being able to cater to different abilities. 

If you are interested or would like more information please email: karen@praxisphysio.com.au or call 0402 079 270. " 

Happy Running

BRS Coaches

Thursday, August 9, 2018

Saturday Session & The next exciting installment of Coops'Corner

Saturday Session

When: Saturday 11th August

Time6am - 8am

Where: Meet at JC Slaughter Falls Car Park, Sir Samuel Griffith Drive, Mt Coot-Tha

What:  2 hour trail run.  Led by Matt L, following some of the new and improved trails at Mt Coot-Tha.  No-one will be left behind, we will be using the loop back technique.

Followed by Breakfast and a coffee of course.

Cost: $2 (I will bring some refreshments)

ALSO IF YOUR UP FOR IT

Time: 8am - 8:30am

Where:  Where we finish the run

What: 30 mins of Strong Man training with Matt L on the grassed area near the toilets.

Cost: Your soul

Coop's Corner

Last week I explored three different elements to a successful training program. This week let’s have a look at what happens when the road goes up. And why we should go up with it.


Hills: Some runners do gym work. Some runners (me) can’t stand the gym. But strength work is a very important element of a running program. Hills are a runner’s natural gym. The way you use hills varies in the same way interval work does.
There are short and sharp hill reps; designed at building raw power and explosive strength. Great for a 5km training program but less appropriate when you head towards the 21.1 or longer. Longer hill reps, 1 minute or longer are a great way to build leg strength. These can also been done as progressive sets, or pyramids.
If up and down x 10 doesn’t sound like your bag, find a run that has consistent hills in it (trail running anyone?) and tackle it for 30 – 40 minutes. Don’t worry about you’re average pace, that will take a hit on a hilly run. For a rough gauge, the recovery between the hill efforts should be roughly 2 – 3 the time of the hill effort.

Story Time: In our previous lives as triathletes (well runners that tried to swim and ride), Liss and I would often ride with a group friends and teachers from school. One of the guys from school came from a family of cyclists. His dad (65 years young) would often join us on long rides, and put me to shame. When chatting to him on the way back one day I remember him clearly saying (through his strong Finnish accent) “I look for hills.” In his daily cycling he made a deliberate effort to go find any hills on the course. I would usually do the opposite.
When I am out on long runs now, or out in the trails, his words still ring true. So now I look for hills. Knowing that while they hurt, and my average pace won’t look as good on Strava, the long term gains are totally worth it.

See ya next week for my favorite type of training, and probably the most over looked by a lot of us… THRESHOLD!!

Happy Running

BRS Coaches

Thursday, August 2, 2018

Saturday Session, Brisbane Marathon Festival and Coop's Corner

Saturday Session

When: Saturday 4th August

Time6:30am - 8:00am [NOTE later start]

Where: Meet at the steps near South Beach Social (Previously Southbank Surf Club), Southbank

What:  Run, followed by Parkrun, just a long Run, or whatever you like.  Take it easy if you are competing in the Brisbane Marathon Festival on Sunday.

Followed by Breakfast and a coffee of course.

Cost: Free

Brisbane Marathon Festival

This Sunday 5th August is the McDonalds Brisbane Marathon Festival.  We have a strong representation of the Blue and White army competing in everything from the marathon to the kids 2km races.

Marathon and Half Marathon: Those competing in these events can meet from 5:30am inside the big gates of the Botanical Gardens on corner of Alice and Albert St.  Race starts at 6am.

10km: Meet inside the big gates of Botanical gardens on corner of Albert and Alice st at 6am.  Race starts at 6:30am, plus you guys can cheer on the marathon and half marathon if you get there on time.

5km: Starts at 10:30am

2km: Starts at 11:15am

Spectators: I (Matt and the boys) will be standing on the Southbank side of the Goodwill Games Bridge from about 6:30am ish. After the 10kers finish, we will move down closer to 
Epicurus to cheer on 1/2 and fulls.  Look for the cool dude with the well behaved kids. 

Coop's Corner

Welcome to the first edition of Coop's Corner. Matty Cooper, BRS Coach, Run Leader, Running guru and all round top bloke is sharing is words of wisdom and learnings from years of running experience. 

"They say variety is the spice of life. I don't know who ‘they' are, but the concept of doing the same thing too much and getting stuck in a rut is very true. The same theory applies to a good running program. Running, at face value is a simple sport. One foot in front of the other. The more you run, the further you run, the better you get. And while this is true to a certain extent, a time will come where you will hit and inevitable plateau and possibly even see a decline in your performances. If you are running purely for leisure or fitness, then getting out the door 3 times a week is great. Mix up the scenery and you are sweet. 

But if you are after improvement, there are different ways to approach your run that all have a different purpose. We will look at a few each week and look at how they can be worked into a program that can bring back some spice to your running!

1.    1.  Interval work: Interval work (or reps as it can also be referred to) is something that we are all familiar with. This element of training is what the majority of BRS sessions consist of. A series of repetitions with passive or active recovery. The distance or speed of the session depends on where the session sits in relation to events. The purpose is to get to your body used to running at a faster pace and building aerobic and anaerobic capacity.

2.     2.Long Run: Another easy one. Literally, it is supposed to be easy. The goal of a long run is simply time on feet. While it is ok to have an idea of the average pace you want to maintain or a distance goal, it is best to run based on time. If the goal is 2hours, then whether you are having a good day or a shocker, sticking to a time means you are not struggling through to an end distance risking burn out or injury. It also means you can tackle some hilly terrain or some trails without worrying about your 28k taking an hour longer than it would if you just stuck to Southbank!

3.     3. Fartlek: This term translates to speed play. From German I think. But don't quote me! Basically you take a normal run from home; anything from 30min to an hour, and instead of running the same pace the whole way you throw in efforts of varying distance. The beauty of fartlek is that the length of the efforts don't matter. I've read suggestions of using light poles for example. It can be more structured with specific time (such as the famous Mona fartlek) but unlike interval work; you don't stop running. It's just about bursts of intensity. The best fartlek session I did this year I didn't worry about the speed of the hard efforts, but focused on keeping my recovery time at a certain pace. Great way to think about it. If you can train your body to recover at a faster pace... that's gotta mean good things come race day.

That's it in a nutshell this week. Next time, I will explore some other key sessions including the many types of Tempo (or threshold) runs, hill work and the all important recovery runs.

Yours in blue and white"
Coops

Happy Running
BRS Coaches