April 21, Group Effort and Tech Support

Hello WOW 5Kers!

Group Effort Details

For this Saturday's group effort, we will meet at 7:45 AM at the pavilions at Elaine T. Valencia Park (E 104th Ave. and the Platte River) for a warm up and head out at 8:00 AM. This will provide our group the most flexibility for distance and/or duration. You can either go on an out-n-back, a loop or a combo of the two. If you would like a map, you can print one from the April 7 post.

This Saturday wraps up another two week training period, so please have your updates turned in as soon as you can! The next two weeks will consist of one week of intensity and one week of taper, with no long effort on April 28 to start the taper (time to let your body recover, rest and get ready for the 5K). If your goal event is not the 5K, please be sure to remind me of that and I will build your plan accordingly.

Technical Support

Does your plan include intervals or circuits? Have you noticed that you miss your 1, 2 or 3 minute mark? Well... This little gadget might be helpful. Not only will it time your fast/easy intervals, it will work for timing your strength training circuits or any heart rate zone work you do.

The GYMBOSS

http://www.gymboss.com/ 

April 14, Group Effort

Hello WOW 5Kers!!

Let's meet up at E. 120th Ave. x Quebec St. at 7:45 am for a warm up and then head out on our walk/run at 8:00 am.  Look forward to seeing you all there tomorrow!

April 7, Saturday Group Effort

Hello WOW 5kers!

 

This weekend we will meet at the same place, at the same time... Hwy 85 x Platte River, 7:45 AM for warm up and head out at 8:00 AM.  There will be two options this weekend. 

Option one - repeat the south route, for an out-n-back at your distance or duration. Your base mile markers are the first road crossing at 1.5 miles (3 miles round trip) and the second road crossing at 3.5 miles (7 miles round trip). 

Option two - is a dual loop to the north. The outer loop is 1.2 miles and inner loop is .6 miles. These loops can be repeated in any order to match your training plan. They also provide a great format to practice pacing.  

Here is a map of the loops.

 

See you Saturday!!

 

March 30, Group Effort - E. 104th Ave x Platte River

Hello WOW 5Kers!

This Saturday, March 30, we will be meeting at 7:45 AM at the fishing pavilion on E. 104th Ave., just west of the Platte River and Hwy 85.  After warming up, we will head out for our group effort at 8:00 AM.  This trail is smooth and flat and is great for distance or duration, which ever your plan calls for.  The trail will be marked with a 1 mile turn-around (at the .5 mile mark), 2 mile turn-around (at the 1 mile mark) and so on. There are restrooms at the start and mile 3.5, but there are no water fountains. Be sure to bring your water bottle for the outing and one for re-hydration afterwards.

Meet in the parking lot on the north side of E. 104th Ave.

Route mapped with MapMyRun

http://www.mapmyrun.com/routes/view/78515364

If you have the MapMyRun app on your phone, this will load automatically.

See you Saturday morning!

Saturday, March 24 - Group Effort

Hello WOW 5Kers!

This Saturday, March 24, we will be meeting at Benedict Park off of Skeel St. at 7:45 AM.  We will warm up and then head out on our walk/run at 8:00 AM.  This time, the group will head north on the trail system for a 3 mile out-n-back.  If you were planning to go farther or longer, you can add the loop to the south (2.1 miles) for a total of 5.1 miles.  You can keep adding additional loops and out-n-backs to increase the distance and time.  Please use the maps posted on the blog from last Saturday's group effort.

We will be looking for areas to explore on our Saturday morning outings, expanding our options of terrain and trail locations.  If you have any suggestions, or an area that you love and would like to meet at, post a comment and let us know!

See you all this Saturday!

Happy laces and trails!

March 17 - Group Effort in Brighton!

Hello WOW 5Kers! 
We are going to try a group effort in Brighton this weekend. Meet at Benedict Park at 7:45 AM for an 8:00 AM start. All speeds and distances welcome!! The route has distances that can range from .5 miles to 5 miles.

Let your team mates know if you'll be there by emailing wow5k@unitedpower.com. Families welcome, too! The more the merrier.

Meet up Location:
There is parking at Benedict Park. Access the park from Skeel St. or Eggbert.

Route

This long effort will include a 5 mile route and a 2 mile route (see below, or click here.) Use one of these routes, or visit the site to use this tool to map out a route for your distance.



Running Tech

Garmin

Are you interested in some cool exercise gadgets?  Were you impressed with Coach Karen’s Garmin?  Well, look no further…  They are on sale at Costco!!  Check it out at

http://www.costco.com/Browse/ProductSet.aspx?Prodid=11748783&search=garmin&Mo=5&cm_re=1_en-_-Top_Left_Nav-_-Top_search&lang=en-US&Nr=P_CatalogName:BC&Sp=S&N=5000043&whse=BC&Dx=mode+matchallpartial&Ntk=Text_Search&Dr=P_CatalogName:BC&Ne=4000000&D=garmin&Ntt=garmin&No=2&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial&Nty=1&topnav=&s=1

Exercise Logs

Now that you know how far you went and for how long, including your pace and heart rate, you need a place to log it.  Some people use an exercise log, noting what they did and how they felt, an exercise journal, if you will.  Others use an on-line tool that can graph and track your efforts.  Some sites include mapping features to plan your next outing AND some of these sites will sync with your new Garmin or iPhone.  Look out kids of today, I’m getting tech savvy!

The following is a list of a few sites you can use:

Map My Run

http://www.mapmyrun.com/routes/

USATF

http://www.usatf.org/routes/map/index.asp

Running Map

http://www.runningmap.com/

Runner’s World Route Finder – to find routes near your home that have already been mapped.

http://www.runnersworld.com/route/routefinder.html

Or, if want to create an account at Runner’s World, go to this web site and create a free users-account.

https://member.rodale.com/cas/login?service=http%3A%2F%2Fsso.runnersworld.com%2Frwsso%2Fj_acegi_cas_security_check&returnUrl=http://www.runnersworld.com/0,7904,,00.html

There are a lot of tools you can use; like a training log or route mapper, shoe mileage tracker, etc…

Running Ahead – after joining and creating a user-account, also has a training log, analysis tools and route planner.

http://www.runningahead.com/maps

March 3 Long Effort

Saturday's Long Effort, March 3, 8:00 a.m.

This is just a reminder that the WOW 5K Group will meet up with the Runners Roost Louisville Walk/Run Club at Bittersweet Coffee on Main St. by 8:00 a.m. for our exercise!  This group accommodates many different distances and times, and is a great fit for all ability levels.

Were you planning on working out a little closer to home or in Brighton?  Post it on the blog as a comment to this notice or in the community Q&A window.

Or, have you been wondering if there is a free run group closer to you?  Try one of these web sites to search for a group that fits your time and location...

Run Colo

http://www.runcolo.com/content/denver-group-runs-238/

Meet Ups

http://running.meetup.com/cities/us/co/denver/

Sportsvite

http://denver.sportsvite.com/cities/denver-co/Running

... or just Google 'run groups near where you live' and quite a list will pop up!

Wednesday Review

Wednesday Review


At our last motivational lunch, on Wednesday 02/22/12, we talked about the importance of the warm up and warm up routines, dynamic stretching, and static stretching that would be good for us.  We also discussed core strength exercises and about a few videos, created by Coach Jay Johnson from CU Boulder.  Below is an outline and review, including the links to Coach Jay Johnson videos and blog site.


Dynamic Stretching Routine
  (Remember, all of these steps are small and 8-10 steps per exercise.)

1)      Tip Toe (forward and backward)

2)      Heel (forward and backward)

3)      Tip Toe Side Step (left and right)

4)      Heel Side Step (left and right)

5)      Duck Walk – Toes In (forward and backward)

6)      Duck Walk – Toes Out (forward and backward)

7)      Skip with Arm Swing (forward and backward)

8)      Side Skip with Arm Swing (left and right)

Static Stretching Routine
  (Before exercise, hold each stretch for 8-10 sec.  After exercise, hold each stretch for 20 sec.)

1)      Forward Fold

2)      Forward Fold (right leg cross over left)

3)      Forward Fold (left leg cross over right)

4)      Wide Leg Straddle (forward fold)

5)      Wide Leg Straddle (reach toward right leg)

6)      Wide Leg Straddle (reach toward left leg)

7)      Left Calf Stretch with Back Stretch (reaching arms forward, clasped hands)

8)      Right Calf Stretch with Chest Stretch (reaching arms behind, clasped hands)

9)      Achilles’ Stretch (left and right)

Core Strength


Eight Week General Strength Progression
http://www.coachjayjohnson.com/2011/11/eight-week-general-strength-progression/


The Lunge Matrix
http://www.coachjayjohnson.com/2010/04/lunge-matrix-as-warm-up/


Myrtl
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GLrKr54yA0&feature=youtu.be


Please visit Coach Jay Johnson’s blog at http://www.coachjayjohnson.com/.

Saturday Run Details

Hey Team!

SO, the run club will actually meet at a coffee shop at 8a.m. SO, we have a couple of options: If you want to meet the regular run club group and have some amazing coffee, then I will meet you at the Dragon Fly Coffee/ tea house at 8 a.m. (1075 E South Boulder Rd · Louisville).

From there we will walk/run and then go back to the coffee shop for some warm treats. The Shoe Petting Zoo will be at the store at 10:00 a.m. when the staff return from their run.

For anyone else that would rather meet later, I will be at the store at 9:30 to laucnh the run/walk and then we will return at 10 for the Shoe Petting Zoo and HoneyMilk!

Sorry about the change.... Please bring your old shoes. It gives the staff an idea about your "wear pattern" which can give them clues about what you need in a running shoe.

Wear layers that you can take off as you get warmer!!

Can't wait to see everyone there!!!!

Karen

Welcome to the WOW 5K training program. From this point on, this blog page will be the best place to come for answers to your questions, support and encouragement. Look around and you will find Coach Karen’s contact info right on the home page, a calendar of WOW 5K activities and a place where you can share your stories and reach out to your teammates.

Training Plans Training plans will be released in two week intervals. Your first training plan will be sent to you via email this Sunday, February 12. From then on, training plans will be available the Friday before your next two week interval.

Long-Run or Long-Effort Don’t be intimidated by the term Long-Run. Think of it as your longest effort of the week (typically Saturday). If you are a walker, this will be the day when you walk the longest, or the fastest, or a combination. If you are a jogger/runner, this will be your longest run of the week. Your Long-Effort is usually followed by a day of recovery—something to look forward to!

February 18: The first group Long-Effort will be held in conjunction with the Running Shoe Petting Zoo at the Runner’s Roost in Louisville starting at 8 a.m.

Tracking Your Progress is Vital In order for Coach Karen to provide you with a plan that challenges you and keeps you going, you must provide feedback to her. One suggestion is to track your progress on your training plan spreadsheet and then send that back to Karen. You could also track your progress in a FREE WOW tracker—available in External Affairs. Find a system that works for you, but whatever you do—track your progress so you can report it to Coach Karen.

Check-In Day Coach Karen will use the feedback and notes from your tracker to help develop your next two weeks of training. In order to receive your training plan by Friday, feedback is due on Check-In Day. The first Check-In Day is February 22. Send your feedback via email directly to Coach Karen.

Motivation Meetings Starting on February 22, bi-weekly lunchtime meetings will be held at noon in the Civic Room. The meetings will be educational and motivational—and they coincide with Check-In Day.

Running Shoe Petting Zoo & Discounts at Runner’s Roost On Saturday, February 18 a Running Shoe Petting Zoo event at the Runner’s Roost in Louisville will help you find the right pair of running (or walking) shoes. A 20% discount is available to the group at this Runner’s Roost location starting this day and running through the training program. Just mention Coach Karen’s WOW 5K to receive your discount. If you can’t attend on this day, the shoe experts at the store are always available to assist you. As a WOW 5k Team Member, you can get the 20% discount by attending their group runs on Saturdays (on other days, our discount likely will not work...)

Welcome!

Hey Team! Coach Karen here, just letting you know how pumped and excited I am to be on this venture with you. We will use this blog format to: share training updates, ask the group and coach questions and share success stories!

Let me know if you have anything that you want to add regarding pictures/content etc.

Weekly, there will be a mini-seminar full of training tips and motivational quips to help you on your way.

Please feel free to ask questions in this forum as well! Your question will likely help another teammate...

Looking forward to our training together!

Karen