Training, injuries, coaching, and more
Since my mission to write a set of comprehensive articles detailing the most common running injuries (the “Injury Series” here on RunningWritings) has morphed into a colossal undertaking, I’ve decided to break things up a bit with a new occasional, hopefully weekly series entitled “Brief Thoughts,” which I intend to be shorter, less-scientific musings on ... Read more
Most runners are familiar with threshold training. It's been the chief contribution to real-world training from the field of exercise physiology. In principle, it's simple: there is a "tipping point," physiologically speaking, when incremental increases in speed become progressively more difficult. Training right at this sweet spot should raise the threshold, moving that "tipping point" ... Read more
I've had injuries on the brain lately. Why do they happen? My high school's training room had a sign outside that said "Running injury? TOO MUCH, TOO FAR, TOO SOON." Needless to say, the trainer wasn't very helpful. But the medical/scientific consensus isn't much more helpful than that. Overuse injuries are "tissue damage that results ... Read more
The New York Times has a nasty habit of writing poorly-researched exercise science articles. They go something like this: A new study by professor so-and-so at such-and-such university upends some widely-accepted fact about exercise, and we're darn luck to have these scientists (and the clever journalist) telling us that common sense is wrong. You have ... Read more
Renato Canova is a world-famous coach who instructs many of the best athletes in the world. He has worked with the Italian national team in the past, but today, he works mainly with athletes in Kenya, Ethiopia, and Uganda. His athletes have won Olympic and World Championship medals, as well as setting national and world ... Read more