Music as doping

After a fabulous summerly weekend followed by a less summerly, but quie active week. I had a break from running on Sunday, continuing on Monday and Tuesday, did 2 hours Aqua sports on Thursday night. Here are my trackings:

Monday, 23.10.12:

http://runkeeper.com/user/Quissel/activity/126832291

Tuesday, 24.10.12:

http://runkeeper.com/user/Quissel/activity/126832665

But what I’d like to write about today is music and running. Why’s that?

When I started my run on Tuesday and wanted to switch on my ipod, I had to assess that I forgot to recharge my battery. “Oh no”, I thought, “running alone and no music is not my favourite thing to do.” Well on one hand it can be nice from time to time, because you concentrate more on your breath, running style and body. Besides, you pay more attention to the surroundings, the track, the nature, you hear the birds, the traffic – and the ringing cyclists I miss hearing due to the music in my ears, oops ;-)

Well, on the other hand without music a run can be long, veeeryy loooong. Especially on days when you are not in the best running mood anyway. Fortunately I was highly motivated on Tuesday and it was a lovely afternoon, the leaves shining golden in the sun.

But there’s more to music than just being a driving factor: Running experts and sports physicians did find out that the rhythm and the sound of a song can influence your training effects. Depending on your training goals, a rather aggressive or techno-ish song brings you to high performance, whereas a more slow and calm song is perfect for a regenerative run or on days when you feel like taking things easy.

I found a quite interesting article on runnersworld.de (it’s in German), which deals with the best music for running. They quote Kostas Karageorghis, psychology professor at the Brunel University in London: “When runners listen to the right music, they can improve their running performance.” 
There are many discussions throughout the running scene searching for the perfect playlist. In my opinion it’s a very individual thing, but it’s good to keep in mind that the rhythm and the speed of sound may influence your performance - and you may experience it yourself!

I prefer slower songs at the beginning of my run. At the final spurt, according to the increasing speed, I need something more rocking :-P

These are songs that keep me going…

….on the first metres:

Triggerfinger – I Follow Rivers

The Nakes & Famous – Young Blood

The Fray – How To Safe A Life & Over My Head

Bag Raiders – Way Back Home

….on the final spurt: 

Powderfinger – Baby I’ve got you on my mind

Keane – Spiralling

The Ian Carey Project – Bet Shaky

The Dandy Warhols – Bohemian Like You

White Stripes – Seven Nation Army

Korn – Word Up

Well, maybe you’ll try one of these songs and experience which effect they have on your pace and feel when running. Enjoy!

Preview: Now that the temperatures have dropped, I’ll write about running in winter next week as there are a few important things to consider!

Enjoy your weekend,

Kristin

Cycling for regeneration

Hi everybody!

After having my first run after almost two weeks of not-running, I got up the next day feeling every single muscle of my body. But anyway, the weather this weekend was too good to stay inside or not being active. But running was definitely no good idea as your body needs at least 24 hours of regeneration between two runs. Well I do not always comply to this rule, but I could hardly get out of bed because my thighs were so sore. So I decided to go out for a 24km cycling tour. By the way, you can track more sporting activities with runkeeper, not only running. Checkout my bycicle tour:
http://runkeeper.com/user/Quissel/activity/126397262 

Cheers, Kristin

Starting from zero

I spent my semester holidays this summer in Hamburg doing an internship in the field of corporate communications. I had a great time and experienced Hamburg as a runner’s paradise – you’ve got plenty of parks, the River Elbe, the Alster as well as out-of-town forests. As my apartment was only in 10 minutes walking distance to the bank of the River Elbe, I went out running almost daily. It was just so much fun and the track I used to run was 10km along the waterfront, watching the big containerships coming into the harbour or watching the sun dawning over the water – I simply loved it. 

I came home two weeks ago and have been ill since then. That’s why I haven’t been out for a run since 6th October. But today I woke up, the sun was shining and the temperatures are summerly warm. Perfect weather to go out for a first run after almost two weeks. The annoying part? When you haven’t run for a while and some nasty virus has weakened you, your first run is like starting from zero. You feel like you have never run before. Your muscles are sore, you’re short of breath, your pulse is higher than usual and every kilometre seems to be twice as long. 
But running on a day like today is uplifting and spurring: the sun is shining, it’s nice and warm, it smells of autumn and leaves have started to change colours. 
So here you go, my run of the day:  
http://runkeeper.com/user/Quissel/activity/125850994 

Average pulse rate: 166 
That’s quite high. Usually I run at a rate of (+/-) 150. I’m using the POLAR RS 100 as a pulse watch to stop the time, watching my heart rate and how many calories I’ve burnt. The watch calculates your ideal pulse training zone and defines – according to your weight, age, sex and height – a max and min limit. My limits are 129 to 168. The watch files how long you have stayed in your zone and how many minutes or seconds you’ve been above or below. Today I was only 00:25:25 hrs of total 00:48:49.03 hrs within my ideal training zone. For me this proves that I haven’t run for a while. Usually I stay the whole duration within my limits. Well I’ll get back there soon. 

I didn’t do a best time, but I ran quite slowly on purpose to watch my body and to take things slowly. I felt great afterwards and feel ready to boost performance again. That’s another thing: The first run after pausing a while feels tough, but if you’re a frequent runner you’ll get back to your normal fitness quickly. By the way, below you’ll find a picture of the “Stausee” in Haltern am See. Circuing it (depending on which track you choose) takes you about 1 hour. It’s one of my favourite running tracks.

I'll keep you posted.
Kristin

The "Stausee" in Haltern am See

Ironman Hawaii – German Andreas Raelert 2nd best after Australian

Idyllic beaches, tanned women in hula skirts and a paradise for surfers – that’s our perception of Hawaii. Probably for most of us. But once a year it becomes a place of pain, sweat and exhaust. That’s when the Ironman Hawaii, the “world’s hardest triathlon”, takes place in Kailua-Kona. Like it did last Saturday, October 13^th.

The Ironman Hawaii is the oldest and most spectacular Ironman and has been held every year since 1978. Due to the special climate conditions, only the fittest athletes face up to this challenging torture. The athletes start swimming 3,86 kilometres through the bay of Kailua. After that they cycle 180,2 km from Kona to Hawi and back, followed by running 42,2 km (marathon distance!) in humid heat up to 40 degrees and facing partly strong upwinds.

Kailua-Kona, Hawaii (US):

Größere Kartenansicht

Why do people go to these extremes?

Andreas Raelert from Rostock (GER), 2^nd best of this years Ironman contest said to Spiegel Online: “The feeling that you have by crossing the finish line is indescribable. Before that you blank out everything, you focus on the race, the head is your crucial driving factor.”

The 36-year old is currently Germany’s best triathlete of the Ironman-distance. After two third place nominations (2009 and 2011) and being ranked second in 2010, this year’s 2^nd place on the podium is the fourth title in a row for Raelert. But still he could not make his dream come true “to see the name Raelert on top of the results list”. This time only Pete Jacobs from Australia was faster than him. Jacobs made it to the finishing line after 8:18:37 hrs, only 5:03 minutes after him Raelert crossed the line.

But after all the German participants did well and impressed with four placements under the Top Ten!

And what about Iron”women”?

Leanda Cave (GB) won in 09:15:54 hrs. Sonja Tajsich from Regensburg (GER) missed the third place on the podium only by a minute.

Taking part in a Ironman Championship will probably never be a realistic target for me to aim for, but to train for a marathon is definitely on my list. It requires a lot of discipline, time and fitness - but I’ll get there someday!

Andreas Raelert - source:

http://bit.ly/RtbsBg

Sonja Tajsich - source:

http://bit.ly/RqQW0U

Sources: Spiegel Online, Süddeutsche.de, FAZ.net

A Runner's Blog

Hello runners, non-runners, beginners and those who are just interested in running!

This is my new blog where I’d like to share my passion for running, my experiences, news and trends on running with you, as well as using it as platform for exchanging experiences, to swap ideas on great running tracks, dietary advice or to exchange views about running techniques and training. The blog is not finished yet, e.g. I’m still trying to work out how to track my runs and share them with you. If you know how to fix this and know of any gadget or possibility how to implement some kind of “running tracker gadget” let me know! I’m usually using runkeeper.com. But maybe there’s another program I can use.

What to tell about myself?

I started running about five years ago and can't get enough ever since. I run as much as possible (and healthy), at any time, anywhere and any weather conditions. After trying different sports and gyms, I always ended up going for a run outside, breathing fresh air and enjoying the nature around me. To me it's the best way of keeping me fit - It's cheap, it's fun: run!

Happy reading, sharing and commenting!

Cheers, Kristin