Running Revive starter kit - Run Wild Retreats · extreme hot or cold weather or weather events such as blizzards, floods or tornados that throw a wrench into your running routine

MAKE STRESS WORK FOR YOU INSTEAD OF AGAINST YOU

©2014 ELINOR FISH, WWW.ELINORFISH.COM

Running Revivestarter kit

3 INTRODUCTION

4 PART ONE

REVIVING YOUR RUNNING

7 PART TWO

USING THIS TRAINING LOG

10 PART THREE

MEASURING STRESS SOURCES

14 PART FOUR

EVALUATING YOUR RESULTS


WHAT DOES RUNNING MEAN TO YOU?

Running means a lot more to you than a PR or finisher’s medal. It feeds your soul, elevates your mood and recharges your energy. So when you lack the time, energy, motivation or ability to run, the impacts are far-reaching. More than a log book, the Running Revive Training Log is a feedback system that cultivates awareness of your total stress load so that you can stop losing days, weeks or even months of unproductive training—or not being able to run at all—and make running a healthy par t of your life .

This training log will give context to your training so you can recognize stress and energy patterns that influence your running quality. You’ll be able to make informed adjustments to your training to keep your running sustainable.

The result will be a smar ter training approach that allows you to get more from every run. Whether your goal is to manage life stress, run a half marathon PR, lose 25 pounds or complete an ultramarathon, this feedback mechanism will ensure that you get more from every run while preserving your health, happiness and sanity.


part oneREVIVING YOUR RUNNING

STRESS IS BAD. OR IS IT?

Running can be a form of “good” stress because it stimulates physiological adaptations that make you fitter, stronger and faster. I call this type of stress productive stress because of the positive results it creates.The problem many runners encounter is that running has become UNPRODUCTIVE, meaning is just makes them tired, worn out, injured or causes pain.

It turns out that the stress from other life areas can gradually and imperceptibly erode the body’s ability to recover from running. Worry, anxiety, pressure at work and feelings of overwhelm are just a few types of the unproductive stress that over time causes fatigue, illness, sleep problems, irr itability and makes consistent running challenging.

WHY YOUR TRAINING IS DECLININGWhen unproductive stress is chronically high, you’re not able to assimilate the physiological changes that make you fitter and faster. Instead of recovering from running, you just get more tired, ill and injured.

Whether you’re experiencing stress from worry about how to pay the bills or a really hard hill workout, your body responds the same way.

How? It raises levels of the stress hormone cor tisol, which, along with testosterone and adrenaline, are key components of the endocrine system’s response to stress by preparing you to fight or flee from danger. The problem is that modern lifestyle exposes us to stress constantly.

The result is an over taxed body and mind that are no longer able to recover from the stress of running. Instead, you experience a gradual accumulation of fatigue that slows or stops the natural adaptive processes that would otherwise make you fitter.


THE REVIVE YOUR RUNNING FORMULA

PRODUCTIVE STRESS

gives you energy

supports sleep

makes you fitter

cultivates health

makes you happy

UNPRODUCTIVE STRESS

saps energy

disturbs sleep

raises stress hormones

causes inflammation

reduces motivation


MAKING STRESS WORK FOR YOU

Understandably, runners view illness, injury, lack of motivation, exhaustion or burnout as running roadblocks. However, I offer an alternate view; one in which these symptoms are helpful feedback mechanisms about the quality of your training.

Cultivating this type of self-knowledge is an ar t in that requires continuous refinement. Life stress—and our ability to process its effects—is constantly in flux.

Viewing your stress response as a feedback mechanism and adjusting your training accordingly eventually becomes second nature.

This training log lets you track your total stress load and recognize how it influences patterns in your training quality. Use it to identify your unique stress patterns and what lifestyle and training changes get your health and running back on track.

Once you’ve sufficiently reduced your unproductive stress load, you can reintroduce running as a form of productive stress (one that creates fitness gains).

“By paying attention to how your mind and body feel, you are empowering both yourself and your running. Developing this respect for mind and body changes running from simple exercise to a journey of discovery and growth. Respecting how you feel during your run allows you to appreciate who you are in the very life you are leading.”Sakyong Mipham, spiritual teacher and author, Running with the Mind of Meditation


part t woUSING THIS TRAINING LOG

STEP 1 READRead through this entire booklet to understand the sources of stress in your life and how they impact your running and health. Par t three explains the five key areas you score in the training log and how to rate them.

STEP 2 WRITEIn the accompanying 16-week training log, describe today’s workout, including how far you went, amount of time, type of terrain, weather and how you felt, etc. Include your pace-per-mile if you track that data, or rate your perceived exer tion level (PE) between 1 (easy) and 10 (really hard), which is explained more on page 17. Also rate the run by coloring in the stars: one star means it was a sluggish, not-so-inspired run, or five stars if you felt like a superstar.

STEP 3 MEASUREIn the accompanying training log, use the Unproductive Stress Scorecard to rate your weekly stress score for each of the five columns (sleep quality, food choices, environmental stress, life stress and motivation) on a scale of 1 to 5. Note your weekly stress score in the box provided each Sunday of the training log. Note that final score from the top right-hand corner of the training log.Then look up the meaning of your weekly unproductive stress score, which is assigned a numerical value between 5 (low stress) and 25 (high stress), using the key on page 15.

STEP 4 EVALUATELook back on the week’s training in the context of what else was happening in your life , represented by the week’s unproductive stress score. It’s impossible to thr ive in one area (like running) if you’re struggling in other areas (eating well, getting enough sleep, etc .). But reducing unproductive stress in other areas of your life will help you thr ive in the ones that matter most to you. Look back on the week’s training in the context of what else was happening in your life , represented by the unproductive stress score in the top-r ight corner of the weekly log. Having this information together in one place paints a more complete picture of your total stress load and how it’s impacting your running. Example on following page.


STEP 5 RECALIBRATE After gaining a clear idea of why your running is going well—or not so well—it’s time to take action. But that may not mean working harder ; in fact, it may mean just the opposite. For example, if you had a lot of one or two-star and your unproductive stress score is above 20, then don’t just wave it off saying, “Next week I’ll make up for it and train twice as hard.” t The first step is to express compassion for yourself and what you did accomplish, given how much life was throwing at you outside of running. t The second is to focus on making incremental changes in one of the life stress areas that feels most manageable to you. What could you do today that immediately reduce your unproductive stress? Maybe it’s going to bed ear lier. Or making a really healthy dinner. Or sticking with your physical therapy exercises. Only once you’ve taken some time to lower that unproductive stress score should you think about upping your training again.

STEP 6 CELEBRATEYou deserve a pat on the back! Record your accomplishments and milestones on the final page. This could be completing a race, setting a new PR or running a trail you’ve long wanted to complete. Whatever constitutes your achievements, this is the place to write them down, remember them, and recognize how far you’ve come since you began using this log.

EXAMPLEYou have a chronic running injur y that’s making consistent training impossible. You want to resume running, but how much of your energy is suppor ting the healing process? Healing will be slow while your unproductive stress score is high. Once it’s in the Green Zone, healing can occur and you’ll be able to resume running sooner.


part t hreeMEASURING STRESS SOURCES

RATE YOUR STRESS SOURCES

On the Unproductive Stress Scorecard, rate your stress sources on a scale of 1 to 5 each week.

SLEEP QUALITY Runners of all levels—from recreational to elite—need plenty of sleep in order to recover from the effects of running. There’s no way around it: eight hours every night is the ideal for fully healing from the effects of daily stress. Rate the week’s sleep quality based on average how much and how well you slept.

FOOD CHOICES Runners spend a lot of time considering their macronutrient intake (carbohydrate, fat and protein), which, while impor tant fuel sources, often overshadows attention to micronutrient consumption. Eating nutrient-dense food is the best way to supply the body with the vitamins and minerals essential to repairing daily tissue damage and reducing inflammation. Rate how you feel in general about the week’s food choices based on what you already know about making healthy food choices.

1 2 3 4 5

8+ hours per night

Don’t wake at night

Fall asleep easily

Feel rested upon waking

Sleep less than 7 hours

Wake up in middle of night

Difficulty falling asleep

Rise feeling tired

1 2 3 4 5

Feel great about food choices

10+ servings a day of veg and fruit

Mostly whole foods

Whole grains

Omega3, 6 oils

Feel badly about food choices

Processed foods

Fried foods

Sugary food and drinks

Alcohol, caffeine

Hydrogenated oils


ENVIRONMENTAL STRESS Environmental sources of stress include irritants like pollen or pollution, extreme hot or cold weather or weather events such as blizzards, floods or tornados that throw a wrench into your running routine as well as daily life . Rate these types of stress as high (5) when they prevent you from running altogether or severely impact how you feel during and/or after running. Or, rate them as low (1) when environmental factors have no impact on your running.

LIFE STRESS Almost every day we face a problem, situation or inter-personal interaction that causes some degree of stress. While you can’t insulate yourself from all potentially stressful situations, you can determine your internal responses. Poor athletic performance can be an ear ly warning sign that your stress response is stuck in the “ON” mode. For the sake of this training log, “life stress” encompasses any type of anxiety, worr y, fear or overwhelm you’re experiencing in any of these areas: • Family and Relationships • Social Obligations/Organizations • Work/Employment • Chronic Health Condition • Financial • Domestic Duties (housework/chores) • Travel

1 2 3 4 5

No worries, anxietiesHigh energyPlay, socializeTake time to relaxMeditatePractice yoga

1 2 3 4 5

No respiratory distressIdeal running weather

Severe allergiesAsthma

Blizzards, rainExtreme heat and cold

Un-runnable weather

OverwhelmNo time to run

Exhaustion, burn outAnxiety, fear, worries

Chronic health conditionEmergency situationsWorking long hours


MOTIVATIONYour motivation is a good reflection of how cumulative stress is affecting you and how you feel about your running from week to week. If you look forward to your next run and gladly slip on your running shoes before the sun comes up, then your motivation rates a 1. On the other hand, if you skip workouts, come up with excuses or just “don’t feel like it,” then your motivation score is more like 4, or even a 5 if a lack of motivation prevents you from running altogether.

1 2 3 4 5

Look forward to runningMotivation is strongNever skip workoutsRunning is easyConfidence is highSee running as play

Lack motivationSkip workouts

Running is hardRunning is a chore

Lack confidence

“Stress is like fire: When controlled andused for a purpose, it serves us well. Left unbridled, it can consume us.”Brendan Brazier, tr iathlete, founder of Vega Nutrition


part f ourEVALUATING YOUR RESULTS

After rating the week’s stress sources (as instructed in Part II), the Unproductive Stress Scorecard tallies a total stress score between 5 and 25. To find out what your week’s score means, refer to this chart:

GREEN LIGHT UNPRODUCTIVE STRESS SCORE OF 1-6Congratulations! This score means that you are experiencing relatively low unproductive or “bad” stress. You make self-care a priority and are conscientious of how your lifestyle choices impact your overall well-being.

BLUE SECTOR UNPRODUCTIVE STRESS SCORE OF 7-12Well done! This score means you have developed awareness of your stress level and take steps to manage it. Running is probably going well most of the time and you have a good sense of how to manage your training load with life’s other demands. However, a little more self-care could even help bring your score down a notch so that you can get even more quality from your workouts.

CAUTION UNPRODUCTIVE STRESS SCORE OF 13-18Proceed carefully! You have a very full plate and your unproductive stress level needs your attention. A stress load at this level may feel “manageable” most of the time, but in truth, isn’t far from becoming overwhelming. Take some extra time to tune in to your body’s signals and heed any hints of pain or exhaustion seriously. An extra day of rest or a little more play time may be all you need to lower that stress.

RED ZONE UNPRODUCTIVE STRESS SCORE OF 19-25Slow down! This score means that you may burning the candle at both ends and are likely in an unsustainable situation. With this much unproductive stress in your life, you’re risking total burnout.

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“Do more of what you enjoy most and less of what you enjoy least in training. The feeling of enjoyment is your body’s way of telling you that your training is working.”Matt Fitzgerald, running coach and author of Run: The Mind-Body Method of Running by Feel

PERCEIVED EXERTION CHARTNUMERICAL VALUE DESCRIPTION

10All-out sprint over short distances and/or very steep hills at which you reach your maximum heart rate. You are so exhausted at the end you can barely stand or speak.

9This high effort level involves very intense training or racing that leaves you feeling very depleted, such as an arduous ultramarathon or very high-intensity mountain/hill run.

7-8This is a moderately high effort that makes speaking difficult because breathing rate is high. This run may include medium-fast intervals, hills fartleks or race effort.

5-6 Moderate training zone. At this pace, running feels sustainable for a long period of time, and requires some effort, but is manageable.

2-3 Relaxed running that requires little effort and talking is easy, such as a very slow recovery run on flat terrain.

1 This pace is very easy and sustainable; such as a brisk walk on relatively easy terrain.

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Running Revive starter kit - Run Wild Retreats · extreme hot or cold weather or weather events such as blizzards, floods or tornados that throw a wrench into your running routine