Saturday, June 20, 2015

Jeff Galloway Blogger Tips - Training & Motivation #8

I've been asked before, "If you don't do the Run/Walk/Run method, why do you work with Jeff Galloway?" The answer is simple - because I've seen it work! (Oh, and the fact that he is one of the sweetest guys you will ever meet and an Olympian doesn't hurt either :) )

I had never done the Run/Walk/Run method until I did the WDW 10K and Marathon with my AMAZING friend Megan (wow, she is just getting shout out's right and left, huh?). She had worked with Jeff as a coach in the past (and also because she co-authored a book with a friend about runDisney events {I'm telling you, she's a BIG DEAL!}) and trained using the Run/Walk/Run system. Well, shoot, I am not going to get in anyone's way, so when another friend, Krissy, and I decided we would tackle the WDW Marathon as Huey, Dewey, and Louie, we knew we would be running and walking and running that beast!


The WDW Marathon was one of the most fun races I have done thus far! Don't get me wrong, it was a hard 27 miles (oh yeah, because of all the extra running for characters we accumulated an additional mile - OOPS!) filled with humidity, rain, cold, 28 character stops, a PR in fun, etc - BUT if I wasn't a believer before the race, I definitely was one afterwards!

Funny story - so Megan's watch was set to beep and tell us our walk breaks. Well, on a couple of them, spectators would look at us and say something along the lines of "You can do it!" as if we had given up or something. We would look at them and say, "Oh YES WE CAN! This is just our scheduled walk so we can finish strong!".

Giving yourself that little extra recovery during your run helps boost you like you wouldn't believe. Hubby has even said that if he ever trains for a full (I'm not holding my breath) that he would use the Run/Walk/Run method.



Jeff Introduces a New Run/Walk Strategy

The 30-second Walk Break

Jeff Galloway's Run/Walk/Run method was revolutionary for three reasons:
  1. Run/Walk/Runners felt better throughout the long run.
  2. Run/Walk/Runners recovered faster and got injured less often.
  3. Run/Walk/Runners went faster with the breaks than without.
Since his introduction of walk breaks in 1974, Jeff he has received feedback from hundreds of thousands of runners, allowing him to fine tune Run/Walk/Run to keep people feeling better, staying healthy, and running faster.

The greatest benefit of the walk break comes in the first 30 sec.

Our heart rates come down, the running muscles relax, we catch our breaths, and the fatigue melts away.

After 30 seconds of walking, we tend to slow down.

Here is a typical example of what happens with a 1-minute walk break:

A run/walk/runner averaging 10-minute pace in a marathon using 3 min/1min might walk at a 15-minute mile pace for the first part of the race.

As fatigue sets in, that walk gets slower, and by halfway, the runner may be walking at 18 min/mi.

This means faster running is needed to stay on pace, which creates more fatigue at the end of each running segment, so the walk will get slower, and so goes the downward spiral at the end of the race.

Avoiding the Slow-down

Compared to running constantly, the 1-minute walk break still results in runners feeling better, staying healthier, and going faster, but it can get even better! Limiting walk breaks to 30 seconds, or in some cases even less, while cutting the run time accordingly, gives all the same benefits, with even less fatigue and even faster times.

The Bottom Line

If you are in already using a 30-second walk break or less, you don't need to adjust. If you are using an interval that takes a 1-minute walk break, keep the same ratio but cut your walk and run times in half. For example, a 1-minute/1-minute interval now becomes a 30-sec./30-sec. interval. It's that simple.

Have you ever tried incorporating walk breaks into your runs?

1 comment:

Angie said...

My husband and I used it for the WDW marathon. He had it set at 1 minute walk intervals, and I was always antsy after 30 seconds. I use walk intervals if the weather is hot or I am pushing my kids in the stroller. I use a 2 minute run, 30 second walk ratio.