Many men go fishing all their lives not knowing it is not fish they are after –Henry David Thoreau Specialisation nowadays is a necessity. Modern exponents have raised the standard to such a height that nothing but intensive specialisation can put a fellow anywhere near the top. Before the 1914 to 1918 war, the marathon was considered an event for only the favoured few who had unusual toughness and stamina. It takes anything from 18 months to 3 years to turn a novice into a first class athlete. You will have to drop the bulk of your present recreations and spend the time in training; anything from 2 to 3 hours a day will have to be set aside. Athletics must be your major engagement for at least two years on end, your business or means of … [Read more...]
Law 7: Don’t Race When in Training or Run at Race Pace for distances Above 16 kilometres (10 miles)
I decry such things as time trials..I am convinced that they are nothing more than a senseless waste of time and energy. They can't tell you any more than the race itself could...Racing then, should be the only time-trials and should be run every two or preferably three weeks apart....six weeks between events would be more suitable for a marathon runner, but once every two months is probably better. Newton is clearing stating that it is impossible to give your best effort every day - whether through racing or time trials. He also raises a couple of issues - time trials, yes or no and how often should you race? Time trials Time trials are efforts over a specific time or distances to assess the runner's level of fitness during training. … [Read more...]
Law 6: Achieve As much As Possible on a Minimum of Training
This is another law that has been included by Noakes although it wasn’t one of the original laws set out by Newton. I remember having a very animated debate in a running forum over exactly this point. I am strongly in favour of what Noakes is saying however unpopular it may be among some members of the running community. When Newton was running, there was little or no information about how other runners trained. Nowadays, there is a huge amount of information – how accurate it is can be a matter of debate. Recreational runners see the schedules, and more particularly the mileage, that elite runners are covering and think that this is the best way for them to train too. There are several crucial factors they have … [Read more...]
Law 5: Alternate Hard and Easy Training
This was not one of Newton’s laws but has been introduced by Noakes. There is the temptation just to pile on the mileage and that fitness will increase as mileage does. Even those runners with perfect running form who are remarkably resilient to injury will find that there diminishing returns with this approach. The point at which this occurs will be different for each runner but it is safe the say that once past a certain point, each additional mile run will not accrue the same fitness benefits. By alternating hard and easy training, it is possible to keep pushing fitness limits during the hard sessions. The danger with this law though is in the interpretation. There is a tendency to interpret it as 1 hard day, 1 easy day and so on ad … [Read more...]
Law 4: Don’t Set Your Daily Training Schedule In Stone
Don’t set yourself a daily schedule; it is far more sensible to run a weekly one, because you can’t tell what the temperature, the weather or your own condition will be on any given day. You don’t know what the weather will be like on race day. You don’t know how you’ll feel. You don’t know what the temperature will do. If every time you encounter anything inclement, you fail to train then you are depriving yourself of many opportunities to develop mental and physical toughness. There are some runners I know (and I had a tendency towards this too!!) who will grab any excuse to postpone a training session. This is a charter for doing so!! However, there is also a sensible side to the law. There are runners I know who become so … [Read more...]