Your personal running journal

normally run with 1-1 start with 15 seconds run/45 seconds walk or 20 sec run/40 sec walk.
Get into your usual run-walk-run strategy for 6-10 minutes
Do 4-8 acceleration-gliders. Gradually increase speed to that you will be running that day. No sprinting!
Walk for three minutes and start the workout, race, etc.

14 Troubleshooting Performance
Times are slowing down at end
Your long runs aren’t long enough
You are running too fast at the beginning of the race
You may benefit from walk breaks that are taken more frequently
You may be overtrained – put more rest between speed repetitions for a week or two
In speed workouts, run easier in the first third and hardest at the end (but no sprinting)
Temperature and/or humidity may be to blame – try slowing down from the beginning
    Note: usual slowdown in a marathon or long run is 30 sec/mi slower for every 5 degrees above 60F (20 sec/kilometer for every 2C above 14C)
Slowing down in the middle of the race
You may be running too hard at the beginning – slow down by a few seconds each mile
You may benefit from more frequent walk breaks
In speedworkouts, work the hardest in the middle of the workout
Nauseous at the end
You ran too fast at the beginning or the middle
Temperature is above 65F/17C
You ate too much (or drank too much) before the race or workout – even hours before
You ate the wrong foods before the workout – most commonly, fat, fried foods, milk products, fibrous foods
Tired during workouts
Low in B vitamins
Low in iron – have a serum ferritin test, cook food in an iron skillet
Not eating enough protein
Blood sugar is low before exercise
Not eating within 30 min of the finish of a run
Eating too much fat – especially before or right after a run
Running too many days per week
Running too hard on long runs
Running too hard on all running days
Not taking enough walk breaks from the beginning of your runs
Insufficient rest days between hard workouts

15 Injury Troubleshooting – from One Runner to Another
    Note: For more information see the book ”Running Injuries”, by Hannaford and Galloway, available at www.jeffgalloway.com
Quick Treatment Tips
For all injuries:
Take 3 days off from running or any activity that could aggravate the area
Avoid any activity that could aggravate the injury
As you return to running, stay below the threshold of further irritation with much more liberal walking
Don’t stretch unless you have ilio-tibial band injury. Stretching keeps most injuries from healing.
Muscle injuries:
Call your doctor’s office and see if you can take prescription strength anti inflammatory medication
See a sports massage therapist who has worked successfully on many runners
Tendon and foot injuries
Rub a chunk of ice directly on the area for 15 minutes every night (keep rubbing until the area gets numb—about 15 minutes)
    Note: ice bags, or gel ice don’t seem to do any good at all
Foot injuries sometimes are helped by a “boot” cast at first to start the healing process.
Knee injuries
Call your doctor’s office to see if you can take prescription strength antiinflammatory medication
See if you can do a little gentle walking, sometimes this helps
Sometimes the knee straps can relieve pain, ask your doctor, or experienced running store specialist
Get a shoe check to see if you are in the right shoe (if you over-pronate, a motion control shoe may help)
If you over-pronate, an orthotic may help.
If you have internal knee pain, glucosamine supplement, may help.
Knee pain
    If you stop running at the first sign of a knee problem, it is common that it will go way after 3-5 days off. Try to pinpoint the causes. Make sure that your running courses don’t have a slant or canter. Look at the most worn pair of shoes you have, even walking shoes. If there is wear on the inside of the forefoot, you probably overpronate. If you have repeat issues with knee pain, you may need a foot support or orthotic. Ask your doctor whether prescription-strength anti-inflammatory medication could help.
Outside of the knee pain – Iliotibial Band Syndrome
    This band of fascia acts as a tendon, going down the outside of the leg from the hip to just below the knee. The pain is most commonly felt on the outside of the knee, but can be felt anywhere along the I-T band. I believe this to be a “wobble injury.” When the running muscles get tired, the leg motion becomes sloppy. The I-T band tries to