Her Trails 10km

Week 6

OBJECTIVE

The food you eat can play a significant role in how you perform, recover and how you feel mentally. To put it simply, you are an ATHLETE and food is your fuel. Nutrition is something that often slips behind because we’re putting other people’s needs first or we just aren’t prioritising it! Here are some tips that might help as you continue on this program, including some things to consider in tune with your menstrual cycle! 1. Prepare some nutrition ahead of time: Meal prep can feel like a huge chore but it really will save you time and more importantly make sure that you have the building blocks you need on hand. You might also find it’s the catalyst to free up time and help you get out the door for an extra session too. 2. In the Low Hormonal Phase (estimated day 1-14) During this phase, you are more insulin sensitive, your blood sugar levels more stable and you may be less hungry. You will be training more intensely during this phase, so also focus on enough protein and carbohydrates straight after your session. Carbohydrate intake pre and post-training will help fuel performance and replenish muscle glycogen stores. 3. In the High Hormonal Phase (estimated day 14-28) your body will experience some shifts that affect how you metabolise (break down) food for fuel, regulate body temp, what foods you crave and how you recover. This phase provides a critical window for nutrition and hydration support to help reduce PMS symptoms and make sure you're giving your body (and mind!) the nourishment it needs. During the days before you start bleeding, you burn up to 200 extra calories. So, if you're training, you need to add more carbs during this phase. Muscle breakdown may be increased during this phase, so focus on consuming a small amount of protein (7-10g protein/hour) before and ~20-30g within 30 minutes of finishing your session.

TRAINING LEVEL CHART

Reference this training level chart to help you understand your efforts for each training session.

LEVEL 1- 3

EASY RUNS/RECOVERY

LEVEL 4-5

MODERATE

LEVEL 6

GOAL RACE EFFORT
[aka HALF MARATHON PACE]

LEVEL 7-8

THRESHOLD
[aka 5KM/10KM PACE]

LEVEL 9-10

STRONG SPEED
[AKA 1 MILE – 400M PACE]

DAY ONE

BASE MILE RUN with Strides

15-20 minutes @ Level 1-3

with 4 x 30 second strides during the base mile run

What are strides? They’re a 30 second acceleration where you start at a jog (level 4), build to about 95% of your max speed (level 9), and then gradually slow to a stop or easy pace.

FORM is a huge focus point whilst doing strides – Keep your torso tall, shoulders back and down, core engaged and relaxed.

Intention: lightness

As you start to get tired on a run it’s common to start pounding the pavement with heavy footsteps, or perhaps you notice that you are scuffing your feet? This can add additional load through our joint, disrupt our form and lead to injury. For this run, try to grow tall and use lighter footsteps. See if you can notice the sound your feet make as you run, can you make them any quieter?

DAY TWO

DAY 2 - WEEK 1 STENGTH PHOTO (LANDSCAPE)

STRENGTH

For the next three weeks we will be completing a sharpening strength sessions. These sessions will focus on mobility, stability, and core work. Enjoy 🙂

DAY THREE

BASE MILE RUN

15-20 minutes @ Level 1-3

DAY FOUR

SPEED PLAY + BAND WORK

AM session: Speed Play

10 minute warm up @ level 2

3 minutes @ level 6

THEN

2 minutes easy @ level 3

3-4 rounds

10 minute cool down @ level 2

Notes if you’re new to running, you might start this workout by walking the 2 minute recoveries to lower your heart rate faster. When you are at LEVEL 6 for 3 minutes, that pace should feel faster than your normal easy run pace, but slower than your 5km time trial pace. Ask yourself… could I sustain this pace for 30 minutes. If you couldn’t, slow it down slightly!

New to running: We recommend that you walk/jog the “2 minute easy” when recovering during your efforts.

PM session: Band work (22 minutes)

Activation and band work for the ‘steering wheel’ (your hip region and gluteal muscles) is an easy way to strengthen your hips and weak glutes. This video is designed to activate and strengthen your ‘steering wheel’ doing all your movements multi-directional – back, forward, in, and out. ENJOY 🙂

DAY FIVE

MOBILITY

DAY SIX

LONG RUN (60-70 minutes)

20 minutes @ level 3

20 minutes @ level 4

10-20 minutes @ level 5

10 minutes @ level 3

New to running: For minutes at level 5 & 6 you can use the walk/run method; 1 minute walk/ 4 minutes @ level 4/5 for 30-40 minutes.

DAY SEVEN

REST DAY 🙂