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Our health and exercise experts answer your questions
Southern Cross University exercise scientist Luke del Vecchio and nutrition expert Holly Muggleston answer questions sent in by keen runners about training, avoiding injury and what to eat while you're training for a marathon or endurance running event. Hosted by student Emily.
Emily: Hey everyone, I'm Emily, studying my Masters in Exercise Physiology at Southern Cross University on the Gold Coast campus.
Today I'll be chatting with some of the health and exercise experts who will be answering all your questions and how best to prepare for your running event.
I'm here at Southern Cross University with Dr Luke Del Vecchio. He is an Accredited Exercise Physiologist. Luke is an expert in running preparation, injury prevention and recovery.
So, Luke our first question for you today is from Jen from the Gold Coast. Her question is: Hi I'm a beginner runner I'm in my 40s. Can you suggest me some training and diet requirements? I really need some motivation.
Luke: Sure, I think the best thing we can do here is make sure we start gradually and carefully so we don't overdo it. What we don't want to do is you end up injured not being able to do the run at all.
So, in this instance I would highly recommend a graded and graduated program like the ‘Couch to 5k’ for example. Why I recommend this program is simply because it will allow you to slowly but carefully build up your tolerance to running, because if you don't have a plan it's likely you might go out and try and run maybe three or four k's and that might be just too much for your body and you wake up the next day sore. If that keeps happening all you do is get sorer and sorer until you get injured. So, it's really important you have a structured training program that's gradually progressed so it gives you a chance to build up your tolerance slowly and carefully.
Emily: Yep perfect thank you Luke. Our next question is from Chloe from Brisbane – a bit more specific – I'm training for the 10k run. I was wondering what tips you had for reducing knee pain. Would a knee brace be beneficial or not? I have had a few problems with my knees in the past during my runs I feel pain is holding me back. Any advice or tips are best appreciated.
Luke: Well there's a lot in that question. Firstly, if your knee pain is actually getting painful – quite painful – you should go and see a physiotherapist, someone who can actually make a diagnosis on the pain to make sure it's nothing more sinister. But to work around it, again it comes back to a graduated training program. Most people don't follow a graduated training program and without that structure where you slowly but carefully build up the amount of running you do you expose your body to too much flow too quickly. The result is that your tissues like your muscles tendons and ligaments they're not quite ready for all this load and that's why things start to hurt and ache. So, first thing is, get your knee looked at. Second thing is, like I answered before, get a structured training program that gradually progresses the amount of running you're going to do and then thirdly – and probably equally importantly – is make sure you look at your footwear because if your footwear aren't right and your foot isn't landing in the right position that's going to exaggerate the loads all the way back up the body and definitely towards the knee and the hips.
Download the remaining and complete video transcript here.
How to keep your running routine over the summer period
Southern Cross University senior lecturer in Sport and Exercise Science Dr Chris Stevens gives expert advice on how to prioritise your running routine despite the heat..
With the festive season behind us, now is a great time to prioritise your running.
Running in the summer when it’s hot can be an obstacle for runners to overcome. Run in the early morning or evening to beat the heat when you can. If the hot weather is unavoidable, reduce the duration and intensity of your run and take cold water to drink and pour on yourself. After a week of running in the heat, you will gain some adaptations that will make you feel more comfortable, and then you can increase your running duration first and then intensity. Take a hat, sunscreen and wear light coloured, loose fitting clothing when running outdoors. If it’s a hot, humid, cloudless and wind-still day be very careful; these are the toughest conditions to run in. If you’re using the treadmill, set up a fan in front of you to help your sweat evaporate and keep you cool.
If you’re in a slump with your running, try mixing up your routine. Run a new route, try a trail run or a beach run. Jumping in the ocean at the end of a hot run is an amazing feeling! If you usually run on your own, organise a friend to run with, or reach out to your local club or coach to join their sessions. If you usually run threshold and long slow distance sessions, try an interval session with repeats of 4-5 min of fast running interspersed with 1-2 min of walking. A bit of variety could help you to find your passion for running again.
If you’re going travelling or taking a break it can be easy to fall out of your running routine. It can be helpful to run at the same time of day no matter where you are or what you’re doing. Tell your family in advance about your running schedule and get their support, and even better, get them running too! Keep your running gear in the car (and a towel) so you’re always ready to go.
Make your running a priority this summer and find your fitness again.
Dr Chris Stevens
Senior Lecturer in Sport and Exercise Science
Southern Cross University
My name is Dr Chris Stevens and I'm a senior lecturer in Sport and Exercise Science at Southern Cross University.
Runners should be doing three types of training sessions, these include long slow distance sessions where the aim is to be able to run for a long duration at a slow pace without fatigue. These sessions increase the lactate threshold which allows a runner to be able to run at a higher intensity for a longer period without fatigue.
Another type of session that runners should be doing are interval training sessions where the aim is to run faster than usual by alternating periods of fast running with periods of rest. These sessions allow a runner to increase their maximum aerobic running pace so that the race pace is now a lower percentage of the runner's maximum running capacity.
Runners should progress their training over time, this usually means increasing the amount of training that is done each week. For an inexperienced marathon runner it's important to progress a long slow distance session every week as well as the total running duration or the kilometres completed each week.
A useful rule is that the amount of training should not increase by more than 10% per week. Progressing every training session every week would be far too much so runners should pick out only a couple of training sessions to progress in their plan each week.
Pacing is an important consideration for any runner but especially a marathon runner. Often runners will start a race too fast and then they are forced to slow down and run at a slower speed than their potential. The goal for a runner is to try and run at an even pace throughout a marathon.
Less experienced runners should start their race a little bit slower than what feels comfortable and aim to increase their pace in the second half of the run if they can.