in the LONG RUN

First of all, sorry for not posting for a couple of weeks. My dad has been sick, and while running is really important, that is more important.

Long Runs are long! 

The long run is one of the best things you can do. My dad taught me a lot about exercise physiology, and in talking about the long run, he went on about the benefits. I can remember being dropped off with some of my high school teammates 15 miles away from the school. After telling us to pay attention to all the turns as we road in the back of his pickup truck, we would jump out and run back to the school. Up hills, on dirt roads, running at a pace that spurred conversation (some of which caused us to go faster as the conversation became more intense.) Being the son of the coach, I always knew why we were doing what we were doing, but I always would ask for more...delaying the inevitable run was a certain goal!

Developing capillaries: 

One of the benefits I heard about was the development of capillaries, or new blood vessels, that would go through our muscles in our legs in order to better fuel our muscles with oxygen on our runs. We were told to never stop in the midst of a long run because that would lower our heart rate, and our body wouldn't develop those as well. This development would happen more efficiently during a long run than a normal easy run. Long runs "overloaded" the body and we need that to happen in order for our body to realize it needs to develop a more efficient pathway for the oxygen rich blood. 

Developing strength:

We don't think of strength as something you do over and over again, rather that is endurance. However, running for a long time develops strength; mental strength. Long runs, whether done at a pedestrian conversational pace or an up tempo pace, make you know how to persevere through pain as a race gets tough. Think about entering a 5k race knowing you can run it twice, there is nothing to fear. Think about that race knowing you can run it 5 times, now you know you can't go "too fast".

How long?

I have heard anything from 20 - 30% of your weekly run. If you run 4 times per week, it needs to be more than 25%, if you run 7 days a week, 20% could be good enough. The run is called a long run though, so it really should be longer than any of your other runs! 

If you are just starting out, I would say go out and run for as long as you feel like you can. If you get 35 minutes in or 6 miles or whatever, that's great! If you get a little further, or a little less, that's fine too, just find your first long run by trying. After that, try to go that far or a little further. Running a long run is something I would not want to do on a track, so find a good place to go run. Maybe the track or treadmill is right for you, either way, stick to it until you hit your distance/time goal. 

How often? 

I think a long run once every week is great, but for some that might be too much. If it is, shoot for every 10 days or every two weeks. I wouldn't go any longer than two weeks without a long run, and I wouldn't do more than 2 in any given week with one being likely still shorter than your true "long run." 

Where should you run?

I always made it back to my starting point...maybe that's why my dad dropped us off so far from the school? We never had the option to turn back or stop, we just ran. You can do a long run anywhere you want, trails, roads, grass, beach, etc. Running a loop or having a planned course sometimes helps when you're slightly less than half way through and you want to give up, you know you've got a plan and can stick to it. 

Finally, long runs have a great sense of accomplishment attached to them. When you finish, I know you'll feel amazing. Try it, you might love it!