Born to Run

Okay, Bruce Springsteen was talking about some Runaway American Dream in his lyrics “Born to Run,” not running 26.2 miles. But, I needed a title. Sooo…let’s talk about the Marathon.

I’ll start with the obvious. If I can start and finish a Marathon, anyone with the desire can do the same. The word “desire” is the keyword here. I recently watched a Netflix series called Lucifer, and the main character Tom Ellis plays the handsomely English accented devil helping a detective named Chloe solve homicides in Los Angeles.

One of his powers is to gaze into the suspect’s eyes and asks: “what is it that you truly desire,” and the responses, as you could imagine, are pretty funny. But, it’s the same question that we all need to look into the mirror and ask ourselves before we begin the Marathon training journey. It’s an honest question that deserves the same accurate response as an answer.

It’s a big commitment physically, mentally, and time constraints. Let's face it, not many of us have the genetic gifts of Meb, Galen Rupp, Paula Radcliffe, or Desi but, "I'll run through a Hurricane," Linden to win Boston.

It's a serious commitment that not only protects you physically but mentally too. We never want to set ourselves up for failure at anything that we set out to do. And preparing and running a Marathon needs 100% effort. So deep down, there is always a motivator, external or internal, pushing our challenge buttons. Once you make that commitment to yourself, the training becomes so much easier to manage.

So here are a few tips and mistakes that I had made along the way that is probably worthy of sharing.

The first tip is don't be concerned about your finishing time. Because it doesn't matter. The most important thing is that you finish healthy. We'll talk about qualifying for Boston a bit later when times do matter.

The second tip is nutrition; we will be logging a lot of miles on your training journey. Make confident you're eating enough quality calories. It might seem obvious, but often it's a drastic change to our current sedentary life caloric intake. I've experienced this often early in my training especially when long weekend runs and monthly miles have accumulated. You don't want to bonk during training sessions. That will hurt our race time Marathon effort.

Also, when we're on the subject of nutrition, let's talk about that during a training run since it's critically essential. During your daily training runs, long, short, and medium runs, don't bother to use those race day Gels or sugar-loaded treats. Instead, save them for race day. Instead, sip Gatorade diluted with water during your long training runs if it's hot as needed. This strategy of not using gels and other supplements will help teach your body to use fat as energy after your body's fuel sources become depleted naturally during your runs. This strategy will also pay off during race day at mile 22 when you can use those gels or Gatorade to help fuel you to the finish line.

The third tip would be not to overtrain. It's better to step up to the starting line a bit undertrained and fresh than overtrained and tired; sometimes, we don't realize all the effort we put into training weeks and months to catch up to us and hurt our effort. In other words, train hard but train smart. Don't put all-out effort into all of your training runs. Sometimes running slow and steady does win the race.

If you are injured, don't try and run through it, even if it's a week or two from your big event. Rest and physical therapist help will be the correct way to go. Even if you decide to run the event still injured, you will not lose much fitness that you banked from your previous training. Most likely less than 2%,

This advice comes from my own experience. I tore my MCL Before I started to train for the New York City Marathon seriously. I trained for six weeks for the Marathon by taking intense spin classes, weight training, and minimal slow runs with a knee brace. It was, without a doubt, the best strategy. It allowed me to finish in with the least discomfort.

Lastly. If you decide to try and qualify for Boston, it's time to focus on speed work. What I mean by that is build up your high-mileage long runs earlier in your Marathon training and start adding 1/4 -1/2 and full one mile all-out efforts during your medium and short training run. Also, start doing some hill work like the post on this site describes: "So many hills...So little time."

This type of effort will prove worthy, especially at mile 22, where things start to get a bit hazy. Make sure that your fast efforts include slight variations in height: incline and decline. I should add that speed work is probably best to use during your last 4-6 weeks of a training module. It’s easy to get burned out by doing too much for too long.

And remember Bruce said it the best we’re all "Born to Run." or was that Bob Seger about "Running Against the Wind," I guess, in a way they’re both true...

Generation Fitness

It seems like every generation has its own identity of competitive fitness. There was a running craze of the 70's bodybuilding and Tennis in the '80s. Cycling and golf in the '90s that's still going strong today, mixed with stronger triathlons than ever. Try signing up for an Ironman; most are sold out within a few hours.

Where does it all begin?

Exercise has always been a big part of my life for as long as I can remember. The very day my mom opened the door and said, “I’m so tired of looking at and hearing you,” “go out and play.” I guess that’s the moment in most kids' lives where the athlete begins. Even if your friends weren't playing sports and just causing mischief, you were running from something or someone.

I think being competitive drives us to be our best selves in many ways. It gives us a chance to create goals and drives us to challenge ourselves in ways that we never thought possible.

Not everyone is designed to be an Olympic athlete. Being healthy is often more about having a healthy mind and spirit than having big muscles and slow-twitch muscle fibers.

That's why being fit and healthy is critically important. It's our mental well-being that's the essence of our best selves. When we were young, our commitments to work and higher responsibilities were limited. We had time to play. Being that kid again is what we are all after, in a way. We all heard the expression 50 is the new 30, etc., even if it's only for 45 minutes a day.

Crossing the Finish Line.

Marathons and 5ks got us moving pre-pandemic. It was brilliant. The events often helped raise money for needed causes and got us moving in the right direction. In addition, running events allowed us to set personal goals outside of our ordinarily sedentary and busy lives.

Let's not forget that you felt like a kid again getting one of those medals put around your neck after crossing the finish line. Even for a moment, you did indeed feel a sense of great accomplishment and some momentary nostalgia like when you received your first pee-wee league trophy for something.

The pandemic is hopefully winding down. So, it's time to get out of the house with the kids and cause some exercise mischief.

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Chicken Legs

A lot of younger guys in my gym often ask: what do you do for your quads? How do you get your legs to grow?

The not so simple answer is to get "uncomfortable" when you train them.

We often start our weight lifting journey doing bench presses and bicep curls. The squat rack is often invisible or something we hang our sweatshirt on. When starting, I was guilty of the same. Leg workouts were nonexistent. Besides, who is going to see them anyway?

What I mean by "uncomfortable" is to push yourself past the ten rep limit. A limit that we often count as the best number of reps for each set.

I'm referring to a strategy called strip sets. I was reducing the weight and keeping the same set going. Most avid gym people know what I'm referring to, but not to the point of getting uncomfortable.

I spent continuous training sessions on the hack squat machine, and after multiple warm-up sets, with 4-5 45 lb plates on each side to achieve a max sets of 6 -8 reps 3 -4 sets complete. On my last set, I would start having someone assist me by stripping a plate off each side and completing six reps. repeated until a single 45 lb plate was on either side and repping for 20 -25 reps.

Side note: You can do this strategy on the leg press machine on alternate days as the hack squat workout. In other words, pick one exercise that you will do, the strip set system for that workout. Don't do multiple strip sets on the same day on different machines starting.
Give that a try for a month in your leg workouts and see if you get the "uncomfortable" feeling that I had mentioned earlier.

Rambles

I created this blog as an outlet to ramble on about anything fitness, health, and nutrition-related. I made another website that has blog posts that are more structured and scientific. This format allows me to write more freely with brief unstructured paragraphs.

The majority of my blog posts will not be posted in any uniform order. It will be whatever comes to mind at that particular time of writing. As time goes by and the posts start to accumulate, I most likely will add some formality to the order and create sections with headings.

So, if you have more time and are looking for structured blog posts on injuries, for example, you can visit: https://robertfronjian.com/blog/ here might find to be more suitable for your needs.

Eating to win

Nutrition is probably 85 % of the better mind and body composition.

Let me say it another way, you can work out until the cows come home, but your fitness will never be complete without a proper nutrition plan.

There is so much diet advice on the internet, some good, some not so much. I'm in the nutrition camp that whatever works for you, stick with it. What I mean by that is everyone's body composition falls into different categories.

Yes, I'm referring to the ectomorph vs. endomorph vs. mesomorph body types that we often read about in fitness and nutrition books and, of course, posts on the internet. So, I'll save everyone the agony of explaining the different body types and get to my main point.

Just because my body type works well with a reduced carbohydrate supplemented by a higher fat diet doesn't mean it will work well for you. When I say reduced carbohydrates, it's not referring to a " keto" type diet where carbs are not part of the daily nutrition. That, to me, is unsustainable and most likely unhealthy in the long run.

I'm a firm believer in the Mediterranean diet that we often read about as being one of the best nutrition strategies that you can follow. I always ate this way and found that it complimented all of my competitive and everyday nutritional needs.

Of course, before a fitness competition or endurance event, weeks or sometimes days, I might make adjustments to increase or reduce proteins, fats, and carbs.

But, for the remainder of the time, it stayed the same.

In summary, a low-starch well-balanced diet of fresh vegetables, nuts, lean meats, and fish with plenty of olive oil is my go-to nutrition plan.

I should add that I eliminated eating any red meat many years ago, and my vegetables mostly come from leafy greens such as kale, spinach, and arugula mixes. I find them easier to digest and convenient to prepare.

Whatever your daily plan might be, stick with it, or if your due for a change, check out the Mediterranean diet. You'll most likely be glad that you did.

Skip the Weights

All things fitness, especially if your a beginner, starts with making a commitment to yourself and keeping it. It's simple enough to join Health Club and create a routine. But, understandably, it's just as easy to skip days that often turn into weeks and months.

There are life commitments that get in the way. But, in my opinion, fitness should be viewed the same way as eating and sleeping. We need it in our lives to sustain not only our physical but mental well-being.

It doesn't necessarily mean you need to train like a fitness competitor, but catching a spin class or a body sculpt class for 45 minutes a few times per week is going to pay dividends by year's end. If the health club is not your thing, there are plenty of ways to get some fitness. Full-body workouts without weights at home, your local park, or school football field are an excellent alternative.

When I wrestled in high school & college, both of my coaches didn't use the weight room as part of our season fitness regiment. It was all about bodyweight exercises, Marine Squat thrusts, burpees, push-ups, and let's not forget mountain climbers Och, just thinking about it. Bodyweight exercises work well when performed with a timer for each set, rather than counting reps. Start 30 seconds to 2-minute sets; the idea is to keep it moving. A total of 25-30 minute workout should do the trick.

These types of bodyweight exercise routines will get your heart rate up and kick your metabolism into high gear to help burn calories long after you finished. A few times a week of a disciplined routine will also break up the monotony of working out on machines and free weights. The overall changes in your appearance and mind will be highly noticeable.

Please give it a go. You'll be happy that you did.

So Many Hills…So Little Time

The following workout recommendation is for the Runners that don't like to run. It's not an easy workout but very effective for conditioning, muscle building, and body fat loss. No gym needed.

Find a pleasant Hill close to where you live, let's say within a mile. Thirty -five to Forty-five degrees is just about right. Jog there to warm -up—Mark a quarter-mile or so from your starting point. No timer is needed; count the number of times that you run hard to the top. Eight to ten trips to the top should do the trick.

The key to this workout is to walk down the hill; it allows you to recover so that the next effort will be challenging.

The idea is to complete the workout in its entirety, not exhaust yourself after three runs to the top. Of course, the slow walk down will help. But that's the point.

Full recovery will allow max effort on the next run to the top. However, it will take a few of these workouts to gauge the proper attempt to complete it in full.

The mile back home can be used to jog or walk to calm down.

This workout is low stress on the knees and joints since your effort is uphill. I often ride my bike to this workout as an alternative warm-up; this allows me to add extra after-the-hill effort.

It's a workout that works well once or twice a week. It's not a daily workout. But, again, the key is to work into the effort, so you're consistently sprinting up the hill and slowly walking down for full recovery.

Ballerina Calves

Is it a genetic gift to have a great set of calves, or can we train them into Arnold-type Cannonballs? Disclaimer: For all of you former and current Ballerina's there's no reason to read any further.

I will argue both sides briefly and give you some tips that I've used my whole training life. For one, if we look at Elite distance runners, their calves often look as thick as pencils. They are putting in 100-mile weeks with a lot of that running uphill. But, they probably avoid the donkey calf machine at the local Gold's Gym. On the other hand, I see a few heavy-set people with excellent calves. So, what's the answer? Skinny people don't have big calves unless you're a dancer? I think not.

In my opinion, you can train your calves with weighted machines to see a significant improvement, regardless of your body type or bodyweight, for that matter. The key to training your calves is to be consistent, especially if they're not your most substantial body part.
What I mean by consistent is to work them at least five times per week—mixing high reps 20 -25 with moderate rep schemes of 8-12 rep count completing a minimum of 4-6 sets at least five times per week; working a few of those days using drop sets to failure.

There are at least three weighted calve machines in my gym without using other equipment, barbells, and dumbells that can be adapted to work your calve muscles. And most are weight rack-style machines that are designed for the ideal drop set.

For example, On the standing calve machine, I will rep with my max to 15, drop two weight racks and do another five reps, drop one more weight rack, and do another five reps. Repeat three times.

On other training days, I might do three sets of seated calve raises for eight to twelve reps, three sets total, and three sets of 20 reps on the standing calve machine without drop sets.

Mix things up for best results, sometimes training calves as your first body part after your warm-up when getting to the gym a few times a week. Training them when you feel your strongest is a good thing that I would often use as part of my plan.

The stretch routine described below between sets will help to improve your calves significantly and add some intensity to each set:

After each complete set, stretch your calves on a block or the back edge of another machine allowing one leg to drop on each, side holding the stretch for a full 15-30 seconds. And do a quick set of weightless toe raises on both calves for a high rep set of 15-20 reps and immediately back on the standing calve machine or the equipment you are using. Your next set should be a challenge. You might need to use less weight for each set starting out.

The key to any body part that is not your most developed is to train it first, stretch it between sets and work it often, even if it's only performing three sets at the start or end of your regular daily routine.

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Not just for Bulgarians

I've always performed lunges as far back in my training as I can remember. The barbell draped across my back, standing in front of a squat rack. Alternatively, I started using the smith machine after my balance was challenged after a torn MCL. Again, alternating each leg for high reps of 20.

I would typically perform my lunges after completing basic staple movement in my leg workout. Leg Presses, Hack Squats Front, and back squats. I felt this would pre-exhaust my quads and hamstrings and allow me to be challenged during my lunge sets. And that always seemed to work.

Fast forward to my high-end Health Club on a typical packed Monday evening. I noticed that all of the flat benches lined up in front of the dumbbell racks were all being used, But not by people using the dumbbells.
Instead, the benches were occupied by young ladies holding dumbbells in each hand with one leg draped over the bench. They lunged each leg at a time for high reps or alternated between legs.

Of course, the first thing that came to my mind was that it doesn't look that challenging, and of course, when are they going to finish so I can use a bench. But, this was not a one-night fling. This bench lunge thing went on night after night. All the young ladies in the gym seemed to be obsessed with this exercise.

I had enough of being a spectator and decided to join the club after weeks of observing. I decided to take on the challenge. I grabbed a set of 25 lb dumbells and stapled over to free-bench, draped a leg over, and started to lung, allowing the dumbells to pull me down and help keep my balance after a set of 15 reps each leg.

Then, I realized what all the fuss was about. This was not only a glute buster, but my respiratory system was surprisingly challenged.

I did make some adjustments to the leg draped over the bench. I chose to keep my toes pressed against the edge of the bench instead of having my ankle lay flat across the bench. Either way will achieve the same glute-busting result. I added another perk to the exercise that I have always used on all of my lunge exercises. I push off on my heel on the way up with the leg that is extended forward. This action really emphasizes the glute muscle being worked and gives the overall movement another dimension of isolation.

This was a great example of always learning something new or, better yet, never judge a book by its cover. Fitness never gets repetitive and stale if you open your mind to trying different workouts and changing things up. For example, I later learned that the correct name for the exercise is the Bulgarian Split Squat. It's now an added staple in my leg routine every few workouts.