Good Morning, everybody ! My name is Aleks Spalvins and I am honoured to be one of the three people in Canada selected by iRun Magazien to take part in their “experiment”  to help me to run better, faster, higher, longer …ohhh…you get the idea. 

Truth to tell, I am SO excited but a bit terrified, too !  By the time I run my first marathon, I will only have been running for 2 years…yep..that’s all and I feel like a real newbie. In fact, it has taken me all of this time to even call myself a runner and for the first year, I felt like an imposter; what am I doing here with these people ? They are probably alot better runners than me etc.  But, I persevered, and realize now that runners come in all shapes and sizes, all ages, all demographics and all educational backgrounds but they all seem to share one thing : the love of running ! I had no idea that running could be so gratifying – it’s my sanity; my connection to my physical self and my stress reliever.  Now, I’m hooked and thinking that I have gone as far as I can on my own and needing  some help to “take it to the next level”.  That is where Tania Jones and iRun Magazine come in and I can’t wait to see what unfolds on this journey that we are embarking upon together. 

So far, I have gleefully accepted my new shoes and clothes from Adidas Canada (thanks, Adidas!) and also their miCoach, too.  I am set in the gear department.  I also speak to or e-mail Tania Jones on a regular basis – every day – are you sick of me yet, Tania ? – and I am SO glad that she is in my corner. The most important thing to me right now at the beginning of this training is that I know that she supports me and thinks that my running goals are attainable.  I cannot emphasize enough how much of an impact that has upon a new runner – knowing that someone is backing you and they are NOT your friend/ husband/ wife/ sister/ family etc – they are a professional that has been running their whole life and have seen many many other runners and see the potential in me. Wow ! It makes me want to train even harder. 

While the weather in Toronto has been pretty bad lately (snow, rain, warm, cold, wet, slush) all in the space of seven days, I know that springtime is around the corner and that there will be lots of time to run in good weather. So far, I am running four times per week and will go to five times per week very soon.  Watch out, Danforth ! Get outta the way ! Aleks is running ! LOL

Stay tuned for the next update…..

It seems to me that fear plays a big role in running and why some people don’t do it.  Fear of looking like an idiot, fear of being the last one to finish, fear of hurting yourself, fear that you can’t do it, fear that the spandex pants have a big hole in the ass or even worse, that your behind is not capable of sporting spandex at all.  For some, it’s a fear of being alone with your own thoughts and the longer you run, the more alone with your thoughts you are.

My conclusion is that fear should also be a big motivator to run.  Fear of gaining weight, fear that I might not be able to go for a bike ride in a few years or if I do I won’t enjoy it because I might have a heart attack, fear of health problems from lack of activity, fear that I might get too stressed out if I don’t take a little “me” time.  Fear that I won’t have any alone time to sort through my thoughts.

So those of us who are not the fastest or the best, and who fear running to some degree or another, perhaps we should make fear a motivator and use it.  I feel a bit like Yoda from Star Wars telling you to “Use the force” but perhaps he was right.  Make fear a motivator not a paralyzer.

However,  I will still fear icy roads and falling on them.  That is just plain smart.  I have the bruises to prove it too.

The streets of Edmonton are much more suited to downhill skiing than running today, there’s about 5cm of fresh powder covering every trail, sidewalk and path but I just got home from my Long Slow Distance run as prescribed by our awesome Make-Over Coach Tania Jones. 22km in all (well ok, 21.46 according to the lovely voice in the Adidas miCoach) through the wind, snow and cold. Luckily 7.25km of it was spent leading my Team in Training group on their 3rd “Group Training Session” – these kinds of runs are always more pleasant in a group.

A few weeks ago I was laying in bed, checking my email on my phone wishing someone would bring me a coffee when I saw I had an email from Tania Jones. The name rang a loud bell but I wasn’t sure why. A quick Google search later and I was out of bed, giggling like a schoolboy, getting my wits together before I replied.

I had a vague memory of submitting a paragraph to something about a marathon make-over but had figured it was long over and gone so hadn’t thought of it in a while. Plus I never win anything… ever.

When I got off the phone with Tania, being the social media internet nerd I am, I immediately jumped on FaceBook and Twitter to spread my exciting news. That was quickly reeled in. I wasn’t to talk about the contest until the February issue of iRun was published. It was an excruciating time. Not as excruciating as the workouts I was soon to embark on… but I will save that for another post.

For now, I just want to thank iRun for this amazing opportunity, Adidas for all the wicked gear (it fits perfectly and makes me look FAST), and most of all Tania for all her guidance and encouragement. It’s only been a few weeks but I can literally measure the progress I have made.

I can’t wait for the weeks to come.

Hi,

I happily posted my first blog, which I then accidentally deleted it.  So much for my technical proficiency!

My name is Chrystal and I am the privileged recipient of  the iRun makeover contest.  My goal is to run a 10K in less than a hour, which is easy for most but seems to elude me.  As my first post said, I am a tortoise in a world full of hares (at least from a running perspective.)

Today I went out from my run in my new Adidas gear, and it was wonderful to have real running apparel, not just cotton and old sweat pants.  I may be a convert to paying a bit more for this stuff.  I also used the MiCoach today for the first time, and really found it helpful as I always thought I was way slower than what I actually was.  Exciting.

As part of this make over process, iRun is asking us to blog.  I will endeavour to think of interesting things to write about, but right now I have to fold laundry and get ready for a new job next week.  Fitting running during times of change can be really hard, so I will let you know how it goes.

I’m planning a 23k run for tomorrow morning amidst some pretty serious wind and rain. (SIGH.) This will be my first long run since the half a few weeks ago, and I really feel like it’s time to get back at it. Also, due to my fairly constricting schedule, I can’t do this run on a different day. So, a-running I will go, in cold February rain. (Blerg.)

Anyway, now that my long run distances are above 21k (which always feels a little momentous to me since it’s an ominous halfway point), I’m really starting to concentrate on injury avoidance. I’ve been meaning to do doing some yoga once a week and have revamped my strength training to include more squats and lunges and this weird hamstring thing on the ball that I can’t explain.

This week, I stumbled across an article on ice baths (that I can no longer find). They sound… horrifying, yet are apparently really effective. I take the day after a long run off, but will be running 6k on Sunday. And I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t anticipating any pain or stiffness on Saturday.

Do you guys have any experience with ice baths? Do they cure day-after aches and speed up recovery? Or could I reap the same benefit from a hot Epsom salt bath (please say yes!)?

L-o-n-g Training Time for Beginners
& Casual Runners

24-week (6-month) Half Marathon Schedule for a 2:15 – 2:30 finish time. Download program details >>
Use this schedule if running 0-12 km/wk (0-8 mi/wk) per week by week 1. It starts you from scratch and gives you a long time to gradually build endurance and fitness. If this seems difficult, start with the Run-Walk Schedule to build running endurance and later move into this schedule.

24-week (6-month) Half Marathon Schedule for a 2-hour – 2:15 finish time.
Download program details >>
Use this schedule if running 13-20 km (8-12 mi) per week by week 1. It gives you a long time to gradually build endurance and fitness.

Run-Walk Schedule for Beginners
who do no exercise

16-week Half Marathon Run-Walk Schedule for 2:30+ finish time.
Download program details >>
Use this schedule if currently walking and doing little to no running. Read the notes on Why Run-Walk to learn how helpful this can be to get you started. If you find yourself handling this schedule easily, consider moving into one of the running schedules.

Short Training Schedules for 10k & 5k Runners and gym-goers who workout a fair bit

17-week Half Marathon Schedule for a 2:15 – 2:30 finish time.
Download program details >>
Use this schedule if running 0-9 km/wk (0-6 mi/wk) per week by week 1.

17-week Half Marathon Schedule for a 2-hour – 2:15 finish time.
Download program details >>
Use this schedule if running 10-19 km (6-12 mi) per week by week 1.

Short Training Schedules for Faster Runners experienced in the Half, 10k & 5k

17-week Half Marathon Schedule for a 1:45 – 2-hour finish time.
Download program details >>
Use this schedule if running 22-30km (13-18 miles) per week by week 1. Includes a speed workout each week.

17-week Half Marathon Schedule for a 1:30 – 1:45 finish time.
Download program details >>
Use this schedule if running 28-36km (18-23 miles) per week by week 1. Includes a speed workout each week.

5K Programs

8 week training program for those aiming to finish within 30 minutes

16 week Run/walk program for new runners