Newsletter

A collection of 83 posts

Newsletter

You have the time, but do you have the motivation?

"I love to run. It is one of the few things that I do not need to look for motivation. I don't look outside and say, 'Oh gee, I have to go out and run.' I look outside and say, 'I can't wait to get out there.' " --

Newsletter

Personal records can be had whether the starting gun fires or not

"Stryder" Lukáš didn't let the disappointment of a cancelled race day stop him from running a personal best at 5K and 10K today: === 10k time trial today Even though my race was canceled/postponed, I've planned to do a 10k time trial today (2 weeks before my half marathon). Having

Newsletter

You should practice a runner's most important skill every day

“In life our first job is this, to divide and distinguish things into two categories: externals I cannot control, but the choices I make with regard to them I do control. Where will I find good and bad? In me, in my choices. ” — Epictetus This quote embodies the runner's most

Newsletter

The stars align for one perfect race day per year

If your early season races have been cancelled already... You only have one chance at a good race performance this year. This may be an uncomfortable truth for some of you, but it shouldn't be. You should be comfortable with this fact because this is actually true most years. Between

Newsletter

How to figure out if the latest training fad works for you

Every few years there is a news cycle that trumpets the performance benefits of high intensity interval training (HIIT) or some other flashy magic workout. The running media picks up on the cycle and, all of a sudden, everyone online can't help but chat about when their next HIIT session

Newsletter

The entirely free method that fast runners use to recycle more energy

The running industry is on an endless hunt for shoes that recycle more and more energy. And we, as runners, are more than happy to bust out our wallets to buy the latest shoes. It is a no brainer purchase because the benefit of the shoes are pretty straightforward: strap

Newsletter

A way to tell if you are racing on "cold" legs

How important is mastery of your warm up routine? If you follow some of the fitness gurus that I follow, they would argue that warming up is useless. They argue that you would never be able to warm up if you ever were in an urgent scenario. i.e. If

Newsletter

One way to know if you will hit the wall before race day rolls around

Here is an all-too-common but entirely preventable problem that I used to encounter over and over again in my training: Missed warning signs Now that I look at so much running data and talk to so many runners, I realize that it was not just a problem I faced. I

Newsletter

How to stop struggling to understand the data your GPS watch is spitting out

One of the biggest fears that runners express to me is that they are afraid to collect even more data. They cannot manage the data they have already so the idea of "more" is terrifying! If this sounds like you, read closely. I am about to tell you why you

Newsletter

How runners without a creative bone in their body can create beautiful works of "art"

For all the bored runners out there that believe they have already mastered how to structure their training, prepare for races, and generally think they have nothing "new" to explore training-wise, some of them have gone to some extreme lengths to spice up their running routines. These runners have begun

Newsletter

The mistake of the fastest runner who never won a race

One of my favorite ever running quips is: The fastest runner rarely wins on race day. I can't remember where I first heard it and it is impossible to count how many times this statement ever becomes true. On the surface, this line is so counterintuitive because race day is

Newsletter

A pacing lesson from a race that will talked about for the next 100 years

There is one race that will be talked about for at least the next 100 years and is guaranteed to be talked about long into the future as long as humans keep running. That race was the Boston Marathon in 2018. A lot of worry fills the air in Boston

Newsletter

How some Olympic Trials marathoners came prepared for one of the hardest races of the year

The Olympic Trials were this past weekend and all I could think about was how a lot of athletes could have had a better day if they had paced their race better. The course was specifically designed to be hilly and, even with that knowledge, a lot of athletes underestimated

Newsletter

Demystifying running metrics to turn you from a data skeptic into a a data addict

Which category of data-driven runner do you fall into? 1. The Data Addicted Runner The data addicted runner is strapping every gadget on their body as possible and enabling as many features as those gadgets allow. They are pooling all their data into their training platform and, with a few

Newsletter

You don't need to lead a race from start to finish to place highly

"Stryder" Kevin showed that you don't have to lead the race from start to finish to still place highly: === I had my first 1st race recently with Stryd after only a few months of winter training with it. It was a hilly course with 430 meters of climbing over the

Newsletter

The problem with sticking in the pack

Whenever I watch an elite marathon race or any endurance race, I often see all the top runners sticking together in a single pack. This is a smart strategy for short races like a 5K or 10K or at a windy race, because air resistance plays a significant role so

PowerCenter

The trick fast runners use to consistently defy father time with "youthful" performances

Aging is not all that big of an impediment to your goals as a runner. If you look at results at just about any race, you will find runners of all ages running fast times. For example, there are a handful of 60+ year olds running sub-3 hours at the

PowerCenter

What kind of runner will you be a year from now?

A runner's secret weapon is long term thinking. Long term thinking is necessary because running fitness is built about as slow and as gradual as any kind of fitness you can build up. While it may take a long time to build up fitness, that can be viewed as a

PowerCenter

If you want to run but don't know what workout to do, Stryd will help

When you have an unexpected urge to run on a rest day, what workout do you choose to do? Often, the go-to pick is an easy run. This is a great choice as it is a low stress way to satisfy your urge, without disrupting your structured training. However, an

PowerCenter

Fear the runner who has practiced one skill 10,000 times

"I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times." - Bruce Lee Here is an old quote from a famous martial artist, Bruce Lee. Bruce advocates for the mastery of a single skill through

PowerCenter

Give us 3 runs and we'll show you how hard you can push your next workout

Many runners believe that their primary challenge to getting faster is not working hard enough. They have been conditioned to blame their work ethic for their failures and decide to double down their efforts. This tactic pays off in the short term. But, there is always a limit on how

Newsletter

Eliminating boredom from the easy miles of early season training

Here is one thing that used to get on my nerves... Early Season Training The ease and monotony of early season training always seemed to be a necessary evil that I had to get through to earn the opportunity for harder and longer workouts. I would patiently obey the plan

Newsletter

The one running skill you never think you need... until you do

Here is an "anxiety inducing" race day situation I have been in more often than I would ever like to. It happens nearly every time I make the final turn into the last straight away towards the finish line. I get that "long-distance, looking-down-the-tunnel" view on the timing clock ticking

PowerCenter

Solving the problem of pride vs bravado with the Power Duration Chart

Here is a tough question to answer that involves a choice of personal pride vs bravado. What would you rather have? Option #1: Better Time You just had an admittedly mediocre performance on a sunny and cool day on a fast course that surprisingly still resulted in a personal record

PowerCenter

Why is nobody talking about the new Running Stress Balance feature?

When we released the Running Stress Balance chart to our iOS app last year, we were a bit skeptical that it even worked. Why? We usually hear Stryders singing from the rooftop about how and if our new features are working. That didn't happen with this launch. Instead, the customer