With Coach Kelvin, offering Online Running Coaching for We Run and the We Run Virtual Running Club, and 1:1 Running Coach for Leeds and surrounding areas
A Simpler Way to Track Your Running
In this little video, I’m going to talk about a slightly different way of tracking your training.
Sometimes, for some runners, at certain times in their training – for whatever reason – it could be that someone’s just going through a base-building phase and we’re keeping things quite general. Or it could be that a runner’s going through a particularly tough time in their life and they don’t want to be overwhelmed with all the data.
Using Training Themes Instead of Specific Workouts
So here’s something that you can do.
It’s not uncommon for me to set themes for runners rather than specific workouts. Instead of saying “Week one has these workouts, week two has those workouts,” I might say:
“For the next four weeks, I want you to try to run three times a week if possible – but no worries if not – and really just go enjoy running.”
Another theme might be similar to that, but with a bit of direction:
“Push a little bit on the uphills and run the downs to a relaxed feel.”
That theme might run for a whole training block.
Reducing Data and Noise
During these times, the runner can track data if they want to – but sometimes we don’t want all the stats and the noise around running, social media, and what Garmin tells us.
So what you can do as a runner is set one screen on your watch to just show the time of day – nothing else. That way, it doesn’t show any pace, heart rate, or other metrics.
I would still advise runners to wear their heart rate chest strap or optical armband if they’re training to heart rate, but you’re not going to see that data – and you don’t have to upload it either.
Most modern watches have a reasonable-sized memory. I think mine has something like 32GB, which is more than my first computer! So you can upload the data in a few weeks or even a month later.
Why I Use Training Peaks
One of the reasons I like Training Peaks to track my runners is that I’ll still be able to see the data.
When I send my weekly message to that runner, I can just guide with my tone a little bit. These are usually times where we don’t want to be too prescriptive, but I can still keep an eye on what the runner’s doing. And the runner knows that I’m doing that too.
I can add notes to their training, and again, just guide gently with messages, which is really useful.
When Running Without Data Makes Sense
I’m sure you can think of times when it might be a benefit to go almost blind on the data for a month. But knowing someone is still keeping an eye on things – that can be really useful too.
If you’ve got any questions on that, please pop them in the comments below.
And for now, happy running!
