3 Things to Care about More than Race Performance

As runners, we love striving for PRs, putting all of our eggs in one race basket.

The feeling of hitting a PR is unmatched - you’re on top of the world.

But when you don’t hit it, it can be devastating.

Here are some things to care about more than your race performance: enjoyment, longevity and how you feel.

I love when my athletes hit their race day goals, but I love it more when they enjoy the process before and after getting there.

One day, the PRs will stop coming. Will you still want to run then?

Click here for more info!

By Kelly Lutz

#running #training #runner #kelly lutz #race

Considerations When Choosing a Race

Whether you already have your races planned out or you’re still deciding, here are some things to take into consideration when choosing which races to run (especially if it’s an ultra!).​​​​​​​​
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1. Time of year​​​​​​​​
This goes for when the actual race is and when you’d be training leading up to the race. Spring races sound awesome for lots of people until they realize that means they need to train through the winter.​​​​​​​​
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2. Location​​​​​​​​
Where is the race and where are you training? Will you be able to train on similar terrain (not a requirement but does help)? How does the climate differ between locations?​​​​​​​​
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3. Your excitement​​​​​​​​
This one is arguably the most important. I’m not going to tell you not to choose a race, but if the race you want to run doesn’t excite you, it might be worth reevaluating whether you really want to do it.​​​​​​​​
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4. Race logistics​​​​​​​​
Does the race require you to travel to a different destination? How will you travel? Where will you stay? Or if it’s more local, will you drive there on race morning or in days prior? How much will the traveling be? Will traveling add more stress than you want?​​​​​​​​
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5. Life commitments​​​​​​​​
During the time leading up to the race, what is going on in other aspects of your life that would affect training? Will you have enough time and energy to train safely for this race?​​​​​​​​
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Choosing a race is highly individual, so these questions are just some to ask yourself when thinking of signing up for a race.​​​​​​​​

By Kelly Lutz

#running #training #runner #kelly lutz #race

Training for an Ultra

Where are our runners at?! Watch this video to hear Kelly explain how much training is needed for an ultra.

Here are the general minimum guidelines for training for an ultra depending on the distance:

50k/50M: 6 hours per week for 3 weeks starting 6 weeks from your race (usually the 3 weeks prior to a 3 week taper)

100k/100M: 9 hours per week for 6 weeks starting 9 weeks from your race (usually the 6 weeks prior to a 3 week taper)

There will be individual variance (as always), as you could get by with less or you may need more, but this is a great place to start if you’re wondering how much time you’ll need to dedicate to ultra training.

By Kelly Lutz

#running #training #runner #kelly lutz #ultra

Are you ready to sign up for an ultra?

Many have asked me how to know if they’re ready to sign up for an ultra.

In my opinion, it boils down to 2 things: desire and time.

Do you want to run an ultra? If the answer is no….. then I’m not really sure why you’re asking the question. So then it becomes do you have the time (both weekly and overall) to dedicate to training for an ultra?

If the answer to both of these questions is YES, then (generally speaking) there’s no reason you aren’t ready to sign up for an ultra.

By Kelly Lutz

#running #training #runner #kelly lutz #ultra

Big Toe Mobility

Can you isolate your big toe? (And what the heck does that have to do with running?)

First, try the exercise: plant your big toe on the ground and lift the rest of your toes. If your big toe curls, you’re primarily using your shin muscles rather than isolating the muscles in your foot.

Your big toe is used the entire time your foot is on the ground while running and provides ~85% of your foot control. The less you’re able to isolate and coordinate movements of the big toe, the less your foot is controlled while running. When your foot lands and your foot moves inward, the big toe stabilizes the twisting of the rear foot on the forefoot. When your foot is pushing off the ground, the big toe locks out the foot to create a rigid lever.

Basically, the big toe is really freakin important.

Do you need to work on isolating your big toe? Try doing some "toe yoga" (like this assessment) for 1 minute daily!

Info from: Anatomy for Runners by Jay Dicharry.

By Kelly Lutz

#running #mobility #training #runner #kelly lutz

Being a Multi-Sport Athlete

This episode is a follow-up from my episode with Chelsea Murn. On this solo podcast, I dive into questions around running and climbing, including how to schedule both in one week, how to maintain one while focusing on the other and my thoughts on rest day activities.

I mainly talk about running and climbing, but these concepts and advice can apply to any two sports that you're trying to plan into your training weeks and cycles.

By Kelly Lutz

#running #podcast #training #runner #athlete #kelly lutz #climbing

Balancing Running + Climbing

In this episode, Chelsea of Lady Beta Coaching interviewed me about the parallels between running and climbing, training for a 50k, the importance of food & rest, and much more. Enjoy!

By Kelly Lutz

#running #training #runner #kelly lutz #climbing

5 Ways to Improve in the Off Season

Whether or not you're a competitive athlete, we all go through seasons of training more or less. Click here for 5 ways you can improve during your "off season"!

By Megan Flanagan

#running #training #runner #megan flanagan

Training for an Ultra

I recently saw a post about how to know if you're ready to train for specific distances and got FIRED UP. This post insinuated that you had to be able to run a certain distance in order to train for another distance. Specifically, this post said you should "definitely run a marathon first" before running an ultra.

Let's talk about the issues with this advice and how to actually know if you're ready to train for a 50k.

By Kelly Lutz

#running #training #runner #kelly lutz

Should beginners run on trails?

This podcast episode is inspired by my newest program READY TO RUN and some questions that my friend Wendy had while reviewing the content!

Wendy was wondering if it's okay for newer runners to run on trails from the start, if trails are considered more advanced, when I would recommend running on trail vs road, how to know if a trail is technical, and the difference between surfaces for running.

By Kelly Lutz

#running #training #runner #kelly lutz