The holidays are definitely known more for great food and drinks than they are for lots of good training time. This chart is a little tongue-in-cheek way to plan out both your holiday food and your holiday mileage. Just to be clear, the goal here is to...
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Speed workouts are a tough, but necessary, part of any training program. But there is more to a successful speed workout than just "run really hard!" The steps to getting the most out of your speed workouts starts well before the workout begins, continues through the...
Read MoreThe marathon is a mental challenge as much as a physical challenge. And one of the best ways that you can prepare for the mental elements of the marathon is to have a proper goal and race plan in place during your taper. To really be...
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The long run is the most important training run no matter what distance event you're training for. But if you don't recover from it properly, you're not getting the full benefit of your hard work. Proper recovery from the long run is a multi-step process that...
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NOTE FROM COACH CARL: One of the things that I believe very strongly as a coach is that you can't be your best as a runner if you're always dealing with injury issues. That's why I think having a team of experts that you work with...
Read MoreThis is a stripped down version of a talk that I gave at the 2018 Nike Smoky Mountain Running Camp where I focus on the things that you SHOULD be trying to copy from elite runners as well as the things you should NOT be...
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I often hear runners talk about "the little things." Usually it's in the context of "I don't have time for the little things, but I'm getting my training in," or something similar -- which of course means that the "little" things are everything but the running. I'm...
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Lactate threshold workouts are the secret weapon of the distance runner. They're manageable enough to be done year-round, don't require the same recovery period as more intense speed work, they have benefits for every race distance from 5k to marathon, and improving your lactate threshold...
Read MoreIn this edition of "Coach Carl Q&A" I'm looking at issues related to training and preparing for fall marathons, including: -- Should you pick your goal race based on what year it would qualify you for Boston? -- What changes should you make in training for your...
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The idea of taking walk breaks can be a touchy topic. More than once I've suggested a client try walk breaks only to be told that they wanted to run "for real." I know in my younger days, I felt like walk breaks was cheating...
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