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Law 11: Train With a Coach

November 27, 2009 By Leave a Comment
Bill Bowerman, legendary US coach

This is another law that is proposed by Noakes but was not one of Newton's original laws. To summarise, Noakes lists the benefits of having a coach as: - to provide inspiration and support for the athlete - to provide an objective analysis of when the athlete is doing too much - knowing the athlete and providing the appropriate mental and physiological stimulus Of course I am going to strongly support this law. For many recreational runners, it is difficult if not impossible to have a relationship with a coach on an individual basis. The danger then is that the runner picks up bits and pieces from books, magazines, other runners and the Internet and applies ALL of it!! As I've previously posted, my coaching ethos is to train Smart. In … [Read more...]

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Law 8 : Specialise

October 16, 2009 By Leave a Comment

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...]

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Law 6: Achieve As much As Possible on a Minimum of Training

September 17, 2009 By Leave a Comment

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...]

Filed Under: 15 Laws of training, Run Smart, Training plan Tagged With: , , , ,

Law 3: Train First For Distance Only Later For Speed

September 3, 2009 By Leave a Comment
marathon training, running coaching

If you are going to contest a 26-mile event, you must at least be used to 100 miles a week...As it is always the speed, never the distance, that kills, so is it the distance not the speed that has to be acquired. In the early days of training, you must endeavour only to manage as great a distance on each practice outing as you can cover without being abnormally tired..Your aim throughout should be to avoid all maximum effort while you work wit one purpose only and that is to achieve a definite and sustained rise in average speed at which you practice, for that is the secret of ultimate achievement....You must never, except for short temporary bursts, practice at racing speed. Newton’s ideas in this law are very close to the hugely … [Read more...]

Filed Under: 15 Laws of training, Marathon training Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

To finish first, you must first finish – Rick Mears

July 20, 2009 By Leave a Comment
marathon training, running coaching

Of all the sessions I’ve written about this one is probably my favourite. Olga Bondarenko was a Russian athlete competing over 10,000m on the track in the infancy of the event for women. However, she lacked finishing speed so, working with her coach, she created this session. Run 400m @ 5k pace Recovery 400m@ marathon pace Run 300m @ 1500m pace Recovery 300m @ marathon pace Run 200m @ 800m pace Recovery 200m @ marathon pace Run 100 sprint Recovery 100m @ marathon pace. That is one set consisting of 2k of quality running – even the recovery periods are at marathon pace. Prior to winning the Olympic gold medal in 1988, Bondarenko completed 3 sets back to back, 3 mins recovery, 2 sets back to back, 3 minutes recovery, 1 set. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: 10k training, Run Smart, Speedwork Tagged With: , ,
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