Run (and walk!) your way to better health and performance

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Good morning everyone,

Today’s edition has one of my all-time favorite training tips - the run/walk method! Although I won’t always incorporate run/walk into my training, having it as another tool in my training toolbox has been key to keeping me injury-free for many years.

• And once I recover from my recently broken toe, it will feature heavily in my return-to-run program!

If you want to learn more about run/walk, and how to integrate it into your training, just reply to this email!

In today’s edition:

• 🚶‍♀️ Could walking lead to your next performance breakthrough?

• 😬 The reason you might be getting muscle cramps.

• 🧁 And how to nail your carbohydrate intake!

Thanks for being here.

-Matt Sharpe, newsletter editor

Have a triathlete in your life who can't stop swimming, biking, or running? Fire this off to them. Forwarded from a friend? Sign-up for free.

TRAINING THOUGHT

Run (and walk!) your way to better health and performance

What may seem to some athletes as compromising performance, the reality is incorporating walking into your run training can help improve your endurance, keep you injury-free, and might lead to your next PB!

What is it: The run/walk method is simply switching between running and walking at specific intervals. For example, instead of running for 45 minutes straight, you can break it up into chunks - like 4 minutes run/1 minute walk, 5/1, or 14/1.

• It was popularized by marathoner Jeff Galloway, who, after dealing with chronic injuries started incorporating walking into his training. He eventually went on to run a 2:16 marathon - while still taking walk breaks!

Key Benefits of the run/walk method include:

😃 Lower risk of injury - Alternating between running and walking distributes the workload across different muscle groups.

• This reduces the repetitive stress on specific joints and muscles and lowers the risk of overuse injuries.

💡 Reduced mental fatigue - Knowing you’ll be walking in a few minutes can provide a positive mental break and an opportunity to reset your focus and keep motivated.

🏃 Improved endurance - Run-walking can help you sustain a given pace for a longer period and help you extend the length of your runs - improving your endurance!

• By taking walk breaks, your body has the opportunity to clear metabolic waste which helps reduce fatigue and muscle soreness

🏇 It can improve race performance - Walking in a race might not sound right, but up steep hills, and during aid stations, it can actually be a performance enhancer, as explained in this video.

For beginners: For a beginner triathlete, incorporating the run/walk method can be an absolute game-changer for injury prevention and enjoyment. Beginning with a ratio of 2’/1’ as run/walk is a fine starting point. 

• You can then adjust based on how your body is feeling on that specific day. Feeling good? Run longer. Body not loving it? Run less!

A tool of the pros: It can be hard for the ego to allow us to stop and walk mid-run. But it’s a tool that pros have used for years to help them compete at the highest level!

• Here at the Tempo, we know Olympians, and World Triathlon Championship medalists, who’ve consistently incorporated walking into their training plans - with 8’ run/1’ walk being a weekly staple.

• But 4’/1’ and 14’/1’ also make appearances depending on where they are at in the training cycle!

TEMPO TALKS PODCAST

Should You Stop Doing Strength Training?!?

Has RaceRanger defeated Age Group drafting?

And the surprising demographic fueling the growth of Triathlon!

All this and more in episode two of the Tempo Talks podcast. 

Together with The TriDoc, we’ll bring you the biggest stories in Triathlon,

• Training tips to make you faster,

• And breakdowns of the latest in sports science and performance!

Don’t miss a moment, listen to Tempo Talks here!

FAVORITES

🧁 Your carb intake: It’s the critical nutrition question of our time. How many grams of carbs per hour do you need to perform your best? The answer isn’t simple. But this article does a great job breaking down how much you actually need based on YOUR training! [Precision Fuel & Hydration]

👗 Incredible gear, incredible deal: Remember paying way too much for triathlon and cycling gear? Sadly, yes. But thanks to Mauna Apparel and their incredible $250 Club trisuit/cycling kit combo, those days are long gone! Get your team incredible gear for a great price at mauna.com!*

🤔 The best training metric? Volume vs intensity - and how to balance both - is the art of delivering a successful training plan. But is one more important than the other? According to pro triathlete Sam Long, one is clearly superior to the other, and in this video, he explains how it can lead to your next breakthrough race! [Sam Long/YouTube]

😬 Cramping your style: Do you get muscle cramps because of dehydration? Electrolyte imbalance? Muscle fatigue? Or something else? This list of muscle cramp risk factors explains why you might be dealing with pesky cramps, and how to avoid them! [My Sports Science]

*Sponsored post

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REEL TIME

From Siberia to Saudi Arabia - all in one ride! 🥶🥵🤣

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QUICK NEWS

Inspiring athlete: After losing his arms and legs due to a freak infection, Jay Scher could have given up. But instead, this Ironman triathlete sees his life as a gift that he continues to celebrate each and every day. [Khaleej Times]

Seoul show: Registrations are now open for Seoul’s My Pace Hangang Triathlon Festival. Organizers are expecting up to 20,000 contestants. The entry fee? 30,000 Won ($21). [Korea Joongang Daily]

CAF approved: La Jolla Shores has approved Challenged Athletes Foundation’s annual San Diego Triathlon Challenge to take place the weekend of October 24-26. [San Diego Tribune]

Subic Bay stars: TV hosts, muscicians, and other celebrities are all part of the show at the Subic Bay Triathlon! [Phil Star]

RACE WEEKEND

World Triathlon World Cup Napier

Women’s race: Desirae Ridenour (CAN) took her first-ever World Cup win after an exceptional three-way sprint finish with Emma Jeffcoat (AUS) and Ainsley Thorpe (NZ)

• 🥇 Desirae Ridenour (CAN)

• 🥈 Emma Jeffcoat (AUS)

• 🥉 Ainsley Thorpe (NZ)

Full women’s results

Men’s race: A small breakaway out of the water showed promise, but it was quickly clawed back setting the stage for a big group on the run. And no one could touch David Castro (ESP) as he powered to the win.

• 🥇 David Castro (ESP)

• 🥈 Brayden Mercer (AUS)

• 🥉 Callum McClusky (AUS)

Full men’s results

TEMPO EXCLUSIVE ARCHIVE

• Are you making the four most-common nutrition mistakes?

• After recent deaths, how safe are triathlons?

• Build it, but will they come? The crazy story of the Triterium. 

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