Fix My Running

Are you confused by Training Zones? Me too! There are many different systems out there that you can use to determine your training zones. These can be based on heart rate, pace, power, speed, effort. There are systems with 2 zones, 3 zones, 5 zones, 7 zones and even 11 zones! How are we to make sense of this? Well, we need to ask the question, what do all of these zones have in common? What are th...

Periodization is an idea that has been around since the middle of the 20th century. If you listen to other endurance-themed podcasts like this one, I'm sure you have come across it before. The basic concept revolves around structuring your annual training in such a way as to have you "peak" for a specific event or series of events. In order to achieve this, many great coaches have adopted styles o...

Hitting the wall is an experience most runners and triathletes are familiar with. Sometimes it's mild. Your energy feels totally drained and you want to stop. You may be able to continue but you have to slow your pace down drastically. Other times it can be a complete disaster. You crumple to the ground and wait for death. Sometime later, you seem to regain enough composure to stagger home or call...

Every runner gets injured at some point. Estimates on how often runners get injured vary, depending on which study you read. In any given year it is estimated that your risk of getting injured is somewhere between 20 and 80%. Many studies settle on an estimate somewhere in the middle, around 50-60%. Now, don't quote me on the math here as statistics are definitely not my thing, but doesn't that me...

In a previous episode , we examined the energy systems using a story about my cousin and I in a 5k race. Now, I don’t want to seem too self-centred, so in this story, I will not be the protagonist. Instead, we’ll invent a new runner…Carri. We’re going to examine Carri’s performance in the 10k and how it relates to her lactate threshold. Then we’ll discuss how Carri can alter her training in order...

So you love to run, but now you've got the news that you have knee osteoarthritis. You thought it was the end of your running career but you stumbled across a wonderful podcast that convinced you otherwise. After listening to episode 19 with Dr. Greg Lehman you are now feeling much more optimistic about your knee osteoarthritis. You're feeling that perhaps the diagnosis isn't a death sentence for...

A few years back my cousin, Adrian, invited me to do a Park Run . Park Runs are a popular event in the UK. Each weekend runners line up for a 5k race in parks all over the UK. It’s free to join in and a wonderful initiative that I hope finds its way to Red Deer someday. At the start line, Adrian said something like “I’m going to push it today, so I’ll just find you afterwards”. The clear implicati...

As runners, we don't think about the brain much. Running is really hard sometimes, but not in the way that quadratic equations are hard. So who the hell cares about the brain? Just keep the heart beating and the lungs breathing and let me get on with my race! Well, my guest today thinks that runners should be paying more attention to their brains. If they did, they may be able to enhance performan...

Osteitis Pubis is a relatively uncommon cause of pubic bone pain in runners. However, when it occurs it can be a real nightmare to get rid of it. A few months back I received a question about it from a listener... "Hi Matthew, I’ve been watching your podcasts on YouTube they’re really good. I can’t come to see you as live in England. I’m a 51 year old ________ trying for 5 years to beat 1hr45 for...

Shoulder pain with swimming is often referred to as Swimmer's Shoulder . It's a fairly common problem among swimmers and even some triathletes. So what is Swimmer's Shoulder? Well, it's kind of an "umbrella" term for a bunch of different shoulder conditions that may cause pain with swimming. One person with Swimmer's Shoulder could have a painful rotator cuff tear , whereas another may have subacr...

"Bad News Hun, the Doc says it's bone on bone..." Have you been told you should quit running because of hip or knee osteoarthritis (OA)? That it's bone on bone . All that running has caused too much wear and tear ? Well, these aren't very optimistic sentiments, are they? So is this an accurate depiction of the future for runners who develop knee osteoarthritis? My guest today doesn't think so. In...

Runner's knee refers to a bunch of different conditions that cause knee pain in runners. However, it is most commonly used in reference to patellofemoral pain . The patella is the kneecap and the femur is the thigh bone. The articulation (joint) between them is the patellofemoral joint. Pain coming from this joint is usually experienced as if the "back of the kneecap" is hurting or as a diffuse (g...

Achilles tendon pain is one of the most common and persistent running injuries. Many runners experience Achilles tendon pain after particularly long or hard runs. It usually hurts as you start running and then warms up and starts to feel better, only to feel more painful the next day. Achilles tendon pain can often persist for years and years. In response, many runners gradually reduce their runni...

"If I keep running, will I be causing more damage?" I think all runners have asked themselves this question at some point. If you have knee pain, and your x-ray shows that you have arthritis, we think that makes sense right? What if your x-ray shows that you have arthritis, but you have no pain at all and you can run as much as you want? This kind of thing happens all the time. People with scans s...

None of us want to be fragile . Especially not when it comes to running. So what's the opposite of fragile ? "If a glass is fragile, give me an example of something that is not fragile". When Dr Travers asked me I replied "a diamond". If you drop a diamond on the ground, it won't break, but it won't be any stronger for the experience. It's strong , or resilient . However, when we train, we stress...

The Nike Vaporfly and its descendants, the Next% and Alphafly, have revolutionized the running landscape. In recent years we have seen new world records set in the men's and women's 10k, half-marathon and marathon. Many other elite runners have set personal bests in the now-dubbed "super-shoes". We have multiple independent studies showing improvements in running economy of around 4% on average. W...

What do you consider when buying running shoes? Research shows that most runners think getting the "correct shoe" is important for avoiding injuries. But how do you know if you're in the "correct shoes"? Dr Codi Ramsey is an expert on running shoes and has been investigating the relationship between shoes and running injuries. Dr Ramsey is the Academic Lead for the Masters of Applied Science progr...

Is a High-Fat Low-Carb diet a good idea for an endurance athlete? What about vegan, keto or paleo? Are gels and sports drinks a good idea for runners who are trying to lose weight? Registered Dietician and Sports Nutrition expert, Harrison Blizzard, joins me on the show to answer my many, many nutrition-related questions. Check out the full show notes here Would you like your running or triathlon...

"Tendons hurt when they are not strong enough to do their job" Tendon pain usually affects runners in the Achilles tendon at the heel or the patellar tendon at the knee. It also commonly affects swimmers in the rotator cuff at the shoulder. If you have pain in one of these areas during or after running/swimming you may have "tendinopathy". In this episode, we're going to learn how to fix it. Click...

Tendon pain (aka tendonitis ) is really common among runners, swimmers and cyclists. Runners are often affected at the Achilles tendon in the heel or the patellar tendon in the knee. Swimmers get tendon pain in the rotator cuff of the shoulder and cyclists in the hamstring tendon just by the sit bones. Today we're going to talk about the structural changes that occur within the tendon that often l...

Triathlon clubs help you learn all those little things that you would never think of. "Bring two pairs of goggles to a race" "Squeeze all your gels into a flask" "Invest in clip-in pedals before aero bars" They also help you understand triathlon training. How to set you intensity on the bike, how to swim efficiently, how to structure your brick workouts. Teresa Harrison is an NCCP comp intro certi...

Run Clubs are an awesome way for newbie runners to stay accountable and motivated while making friends and learning the dos and don'ts of running. Matthew David is a coach at The Red Deer Run Collective and joins me today to talk all things Run Clubs. Click here to read the full show notes Would you like your running or triathlon questions featured in a future episode? Just click here to leave me...

Hey Matthew hope all is well! I was wondering where do you find groups to bike and swim with to help teach techniques? Questions this week from Shayne Click here to read the full show notes Would you like your running or triathlon questions featured in a future episode? Just click here to leave me a voicemail Cool stuff mentioned in the Episode Candace is a Physiotherapist at Collegiate Sports Med...

Another friend of mine has started running again after 6 months off. He is struggling a bit with shin splints. How much running can he do to help him improve his fitness, without the risk of overdoing it and causing more serious damage? What advice would you have for him? Warren Click here to read the full show notes Would you like your running or triathlon questions featured in a future episode?...

A question from Warren... When analyzing the heart rate of my one friend, I see that her heart rate shoots up to Zone 5 within minutes at the start of her runs. She stays in zone 5 for the duration of her runs unless she starts walking. This is despite running at a slower (fairly comfortable) pace. In February she completed a half marathon and she spent 90% of the run in zone 5 with an average hea...