Mojo For Running

Wow! I would never have guessed I’d be doing a podcast on this topic, but here I am. This is not normal, nowhere near normal, not by ay stretch of the imagination. We are all living through this, one day at a time, finding our way, figuring out how to cope. We have no other choice; however, fortunately, ‘we’ have running to ease our trip through this difficult time. Every single runner of every level is struggling right now, stressed, some more than others, but living during this pandemic has shaken us all. We need our running more than ever; it’s our therapy, right? Our running behavior has been extremely restricted and may continue to be restricted for months. Our races have been cancelled, and we don’t know when they will happen. Sure, many have been rescheduled, but experts are saying things may be worse rather than better in the fall. That is not the focus of this podcast; this podcast is about how you should and can train, right now. I talk about your options, ways to maintain your running fitness und

It’s that time again, time to carefully consider what we should do in 2020 to take our running and our lives to the next level. Since the options for running resolutions are almost infinite, I thought I’d provide some insight into the advantages of some types of resolutions and the pitfalls of others. In this episode of the Mojo for Running Podcast, I discuss goal of more miles than you’ve done before, the goal of a longer distance than you’ve ever run before, the goal of maintaining a running streak, and the goal of aiming for a PR.  Beyond that, we’ll look at other kinds of goals I recommend you pursue, non-running goals. Above all else, you need to set a meaningful goal. Some will plan to do 2,020 miles. But, why? Seriously, it’s just a number that happens to be the year, but what would be your reason for wanting to do that number of miles?  Please give this some thought. Besides being meaningful, your goal should be reasonable, achievable. Then, you should start thinking about the process goals you’ll n

No time of the year challenges your commitment to running more than the holidays, the weeks between Thanksgiving and the new year. For that reason, I thought I’d share some my perspective in the hope that it will motivate you to stay the course. You, of course, may not run ‘all the miles,’ and I sure get that, as I explain, but you don’t want to let go of too many of your planned miles.  Let’s talk about that. To help with accountability, to give you just a little bit more of a nudge to stay the course, in this episode, I explain the Holiday Running Challenge I have planned for you. It starts, today. Are you in? The post MFR 142: The Challenge of the Holidays and a Challenge for the Holidays appeared first on Mojo for Running.

Whether you are new to running or you’ve been running for years, there will be times when you stop running weeks or even months. Matybe you have a health issue, and maybe you had an injury. My runners miss long periods, sometimes, maybe due to caring for elderly parents, maybe due their own medical problems, and sometimes a running injury or some other injury that requires a long recovery period. Sometimes, it’s weeks of overtime or school. Three of my runners in the last half dozen years, have missed more than a year when working on their doctorates. All came back, but it wasn’t easy. And then, there’s the more common situation that I liken to falling off a diet. You know how, sometimes you’re being very careful with sticking to eating reasonable portions of healthy food, but then Thanksgiving rolls around, and you decide to let yourself go a bit for the holiday weekend, thinking that you’ll return to your healthy ways right after the weekend, but then Monday rolls around, and you find it’s too easy to jus

Recently, Hubby and I actually went to a theater, which we hadn’t done in over a year, to see the movie, Brittany Runs a Marathon. In this episode I discuss that film, and, knowing that it will inspire many, that leads to the topic of running goals and running your first marathon. No worries, I don’t give away the plot. I hope you’ll listen, and in this episode, since I talk about running ‘your’ first marathon, I also suggest that you listen to the four-part series I did on running your first marathon. Yes, it took four episodes of this podcast to sufficiently cover that topic. They are episodes 55, 56, 57, and 59. In this episode, I also invite you to my race, the Run Tampa Tinsel Run, on December 21st, at Al Lopez park, right here in Tampa. I would love to have my listeners participate. The race will be gnome-themed this year, and besides finisher medals, we’ll have age group awards, three deep in 5-year increments, and those awards will be gnome figurines. You’ll love them. The finisher medals will be, a

Even before you were a runner, you had probably heard the oft repeated line, “Running is 90% mental.” I don’t think I’ve ever heard any long-time runner argue against this, because you realize pretty quickly that this is true. iF your mind wills it, if your heart is in it, if you have the necessary grit, the you will become a runner, and you will achieve the goals you set. It may take time, and it will certain require more mental tenacity than physical. This is what non-runners do not understand. In this podcast, I pick apart the reasons why it is so mentally difficult, sometimes more than others, of course. You may not always realize the true cause of your mental struggle. I hope that understanding the root cause will help you deal with the mental side of running, and that will lead to greater success in every area of your running journey. In this episode, I mention The Human Race, and Velma Radloff, in particular. I hope, if you haven’t seen the documentary yet, you will. Here are a couple of photos of Ve

How is your running base coming along? This is one of the most critical considerations for any runner’s success, but in my experience, the great majority of recreational runners ignore it. With this episode of the Mojo for Running Podcast, I hope to raise awareness to motivate every listener to give this area of their running life the attention it deserves. A great percentage of your running success – or failure – will be due to a properly executed training, but if you miss a key area of training, no amount of effort to the remainder of your training will make up for the gap. It’s that important.  By base, I mean the number of miles you run per week. If you keep a record of your miles – and most runners do – then go to your log book, right now, and see how many miles you were averagjng, per week, at the start of your last training cycle.  This episode is likely to change your attitude about this often neglected factor that plays a critical role in your running success as regards the effectiveness of speed w

Boston. That word inspires emotion in every runner, as it does with me. I’ve always been a word person, which is just part of the reason I was an English teacher for 15 years. I think about words. Those six letters move me. They have for years but much more, now. Six letters that, to me, carry a level of emotion just below the word, family, and that is saying a lot. Whether you’ve only watched the race on TV, been one of the thousands lining the race course on marathon race day, or you’re working toward a BQ right now, the word has the power of few others. I hope you enjoy this podcast about my Boston Marathon race a couple of months ago, the first time I have ever qualified to run it. Whether you ever get to do that race or not, I highly recommend you travel to Boston and do one of the many races there that you can get into every year. I took my Run Tampa group to Boston to do the Boston Run to Remember Half and 5 mile in May of 2018, a fantastic trip. The course is different, but we went out and ran the l

If you just do one exercise for your core, this should be it. Planks have many benefits for runners. In this episode, I explain the various ways of modifying the standard plank for even more benefit.  Adding this exercise to your cross training, will, I guarantee, impact your running performance and go a long way toward preventing injuries.  With publication of this episode, I’m launching a Plank Challenge. Instructions in the podcast. I hope you’ll participate. It starts on Sunday, May 26th. Become a Patron! The post MFR 136: Three Reasons to do a Plank Every Day appeared first on Mojo for Running.

I know very few runners not focused on getting better, improving their running performance, scoring PR’s, but sometimes there are ways to improve, even quite basic ways, that never become common knowledge to non-elite runners, certainly not common knowledge to people who aren’t working with a coach. One of the most basic concepts is periodization, which means, in case you didn’t listen to Episode 134, the period of training, usually several months, leading up to your goal race, and that period of time is broken into three segments or microcycles. In this episode I explain what those three segments should look like and why. Become a Patron! The post MFR 135: How to Crush Your Goal Race With Microcycles appeared first on Mojo for Running.

Most runners run because they know it keeps them fit and because it’s a great hobby. For some, it’s mainly the camaraderie. Others are attracted by the endorphin rush, but virtually all runners also want to get faster.  Is that you? Even if you only do the occasional race, you may want to keep improving, […] The post MFR 134: How to Optimize Performance with Periodization appeared first on Mojo for Running.

The topic of Episode #132 was dreadful runs. This is a followup that, I hope, will always help you put those runs in perspective. But more than that, it shows you what can happen later in your running career. No matter where you are, now, in your running journey. You can still set lofty running […] The post MFR 133: From Brutal to Boston appeared first on Mojo for Running.

If you have never had a bad run, then you haven’t been running long.  Truth. Every runner of every level has bad runs now and then. Now if you have them often, that is, of course, a problem, but as a rule, if you haven’t had a lousy run in a while, I’d say you […] The post MFR 132: Explaining Dreadful Runs appeared first on Mojo for Running.

One of the things I appreciate most about running is that it’s such a simple sport. You can do it anywhere, and the only equipment you need is a pair of shoes.  That said, everybody loves running gear and most of the runners I know love gadgets as well. So, since it’s the holiday season, […] The post MFR 131: Gifts for Runners appeared first on Mojo for Running.

Of the 52 weeks in every year, most runners find the ones between Thanksgiving and New Year’s to be the most challenging from a running perspective. There are just too many things competing for your precious time. I get that. In this episode, I help you with putting it in perspective and managing to do […] The post MFR 130: Running Through the Holidays appeared first on Mojo for Running.

Not all electrolyte replacement products are the same, not even close.  Jen has been running a while, but she hasn’t ever trained for marathons. Now, she’s often running for two hours, and she’s finding that she really starts to feel fatigued. She assumes it’s that she’s not eating correctly or that her training hasn’t been […] The post MFR 129: Electrolytes Part 2 appeared first on Mojo for Running.

Have you ever had a dreadful race but were unable to put your finger on the cause? Of course, there could be many causes, but one of the first places to look is at your electrolyte replacement regimen. What? You don’t have an electrolyte plan? Well, that’s okay if you’re not running farther than 90 […] The post MFR 128: Electrolytes appeared first on Mojo for Running.

Have you ever been in the predicament of not knowing how to compensate for a day when you ended up missing the training on your schedule? Have you ever planned our own training schedule but wondered if the way you were doing it was optimal? Whether a new runner or a runner with years of […] The post MFR 127: Training Fundamentals appeared first on Mojo for Running.

Yes, I’m back. I know, you probably thought you’d never hear another episode, but surprise, I’ve just finished three, and I have plans for at least another nine. After the main topic of this podcast, the documentary film I helped to make, I’ll explain more about the future of this podcast. It’s in your hands. […] The post MFR 126: Running Documentary The Human Race and Much More appeared first on Mojo for Running.

At any given time, a percentage of runners will be suffering from a not so uncommon running malady, loss of their running mojo, the state of being without motivation, of feeling more like sitting than running. This is serious but not uncommon. I’ll tell you this:  As a longtime coach, I’ve seen this many times. […] The post MFR 125: When You Lose Your Mojo appeared first on Mojo for Running.