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daniels-running-formula

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Daniels’ Running Formula

Understanding the Formula

Essentials of Running Success

  • Important Ingredients
    • Inherent Ability
    • Intrinsic Motivation
    • Opportunity
    • Direction

Daniel’s Basic Laws of Running

  • Every runner has specific individual abilities.
  • A runner’s focus must stay positive.
  • Expect ups and downs; some days are better than others.
  • Be flexible in training to allow for the unexpected.
  • Set intermediate goals.
  • Concentrate on the task at hand.
  • Most mistakes in races are made early in the race.
  • Training should be rewarding.
  • Eat and sleep well.
  • Don’t train when sick or injured.
  • Chronic health issues should be checked by a professional.
  • A good run or race is never a fluke.

Training Principles and Tips

  • Principle 1: The body reacts to stress
  • Principle 2: Specificity
  • Principle 3: Overstress
  • Principle 4: Training response
    • Workload
    • Intensity Factor
    • Recovery
    • Frequency
    • Adjust these factors one at a time
  • Principle 5: Personal limits
    • “Seasonal Limits”
  • Principle 6: Diminishing return
  • Principle 7: Accelerating setbacks
  • Principle 8: Maintenance

Purpose At all times you should be able to answer the question “What is

the purpose of this workout?

Always stay at a chosen degree of stress for 6 to 8 weeks before making

changes.

Stride Rate Try to run with a stride rate around 180 steps per minute

to minimize the landing shock.

  • Pretend you are rolling over the ground rather than bounding from foot to foot.
  • Try to avoid placing each foot out in front of yourself.
  • Try to have your feet land closer back, toward your center of gravity.

Feet Strike Try out different strike styles!

  • Front-foot landing often used in short events; heel or mid-foot landing often used in longer events.
  • If calf or shin discomfort is experienced, try mid- or rear-foot landing for a few weeks.
  • Avoid turning toes outward as you land. They should be straightforward.

Breathing The breathing discomfort is not due to lack of oxygen, but

rather, is caused by the increase of carbon dioxide.

  • Use 2-2 breath rhythm for any runs, so that it becomes natural.
  • Give 3-3 a try. If that works, then you are not working too hard.

Physiological and Personal Training Profiles

  • Training Goal: Improve all factors that affect running

    • VO2 = how much oxygen is consumed per kilogram per minute
    • VO2 max = maximum volume of VO2
    • vVO2 max = speed per VO2 max, aka the economy
    • BLa = Blood Lactate, related to endurance

  • Maximum Heart Rate

    • To use this value as a reference, you should have a relatively accurate measurement of it
    • Subtract age from 220
    • 2-minute uphill runs

  • Waking Heart Rate

    • Suggests the progress of your fitness
    • Abnormally high waking heart rate indicates overtraining

  • Hemoglobin (Hgb)

    • Ability to carry oxygen
    • To much Hgb increases blood viscosity and slows circulation

Types of Training and Intensities

EMTIR: Intensity and Types of Training

  • Easy running
  • Marathon-pace running
  • Threshold running
  • Inteval training
  • Repetition training
  • Easy Running
    • 59 to 74 percent of VO2max
    • 65 to 79 percent of max heart rate
    • Good for building a base
    • Good for strengthening heart muscle, as the max force of each stroke of the heart is reached when heart rate is about 60% of maximum.
    • Increases vascularization and the development of characteristics of muscles
    • 30 minutes as the minimum duration of E training is recommended. (otherwise you end up spending more time showering and changing clothes)
    • Maximum 150 minutes.
    • Stay at any amount of weekly time for at lease 3 or 4 weeks before increasing
    • Use E running to accumulate mileage
    • Increasing the duration of E runs helps building confidence

Get in the habit of using time rather than distance as the factor

limiting types of training.

  • Long runs

    • Typically are at E pace
    • Single long to < 30% of weekly mileage
    • 2 to 2.5 hours should be long enough

  • Marathon pace running

    • Use a long race to estimate M pace. Roughly 3 min slower than 10k run.
    • Typically 7584% of VO2max or 8089 of max HR.
    • Limit to 110 min or 29km, whichever comes first.

  • Threshold Running

    • Comfortably hard, but the pace is manageable for a relatively long run (20 ~ 30 min)
    • Purpose: improve endurance by training your body to remove blood lactate
    • 8588% of VO2max or 8892% max HR
    • The proper pace is comfortably hard and should be able to be maintained for 30 to 40 minutes.
    • Tempo run = maintain the T pace, 20min is enough for most trainer.
    • Cruise intervals = shorter-duration runs at T pace, short recoveries in between, 5-to-1 work-recovery time
    • Usual approach: 5-mile, 5min break, 4-mile, 4min break…
    • Mix T running in M runs

  • Interval Running

    • Purpose: Maximizing aerobic power by reaching VO2max
    • One can exercise at VO2max for no longer than 11 minutes.
    • 90 to 120 seconds needed to build up to VO2max
    • Running at I pace for 3 to 5 minutes is desired, then rest until you’re ready to go again.

  • Running Hard

    • I training can be achieved through H runs
    • 6 x 3 min H with 2 minutes of recovery jogging
    • H pace can be maintained for 10 to 12 minutes subjectively
    • Step-count workout: H for 10 right footfalls, followed by 10 jogging ones, then 20, 30,… 100, 90, 80,… 10
    • Recovery jogs cannot be longer than the H running part
    • On windy days: 20 x 200, in I pace, rest time should be half of I bouts

  • Repetition Training

    • Purpose: improve anaerobic power, speed, and economy of running
    • Recovery is important! After a fast bout, jog the same distance, walk the final meters.
    • Single fast bout should not last longer than 2 minutes

  • Tracking Training Intensities

    • E zone, .2 points, best for cardio (Zone 2)
    • M zone, .4 points
    • T zone, .6 points, best for endurance (Zone 3)
    • 10K zone, .8 points
    • I zone, 1 point, best for aerobic power (Zone 4)
    • R zone and FR, 1.5/2 points, best for anaerobic power and running economy (Zone 5)

VDOT System of Training

  • VO2 = V dot O2, a dot over the V indicating a per minute value
  • The higher VDOT value is associated with the better runner, regardless of age or sex.
  • Use your best performance to find the VDOT value, then determine proper training pace using table.
  • Daniel’s 6-second rule: T pace is typically 6 secs per 400 slower than I, and I is the the same slower than R.

Environment- and Altitude- Specific Training

  • Temperature
    • Best to train under the same condition as the race.
    • Don’t lose fitness while trying to train under poor conditions all the time.
    • Weigh before and after training to track loss.
    • In unusually hot conditions: moderate warm-up, cool down with a wet towel across shoulders.
    • Find a indoor track or treadmill when conditions are too extreme.
  • Altitude
    • Performance in low-speed endurance events is slower, in high-speed is faster.
    • Performance will improve after acclimatization, but will never reach that at sea level.
    • Sea-level performance improve as a result of altitude training.
    • Upon arrival at altitude, VO2max is reduced by 12 to 16 percent, but performance is affected by only about 6 to 8 percent.
    • No need to adjust training schedules. Recovery in R training can be increased. Speed will be slower naturally.
    • Racing at altitude: don’t start too fast.
    • Alternate between altitude and sea-level.

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