It's the off-season. There's not a race on your calendar in sight. You're in the upside down. Stay calm. One of the great joys in running is working out without having to think about how it's going to impact that race you have three months from now. Take this time to explore different types of runs and ways to engage in the scene. Lean into your learner mentality and have fun with it.
Here's some of our favorite off-season activities to maintain:
1. Hills, Hills, Hills - Run them fast or run them slow, either way, get em' into your running arsenal. Find a hilly running route (may we suggest loops of Prospect Park?), 6-8x at 15 seconds... or any hill up a steep incline. Or just get creative with it and build your own workout. Swiftly conquering an incline demands a full range of motion, strong knee drive and grit all of which will help you unlock greater speed, strength and durability.
2. Shorter and Faster Intervals - Similar to hills, play around with interval options to explore your individual speed and power ceiling. Mileage may be low but low mileage does not mean low intentionality in training. Once a week try 8x 150m or 6x 300m on a nearby track or 8x 20 sec or 6x 45 sec on a soft surface path and you might surprise yourself.
3. Post Run Strides - If you are just getting into running or returning from an extended time off, start with some post run strides. Strides are essentially 10-20 sec accelerations at a good pace, but not sprinting. Feel how your body moves and explore your coordination at faster and faster paces. Do this a couple week's straight and you'll see some fast improvement in all of your running workouts.
4. Training Partners - Find them, value them. The best thing you can do as a runner with a goal is find someone else with that same goal and hold each other accountable. This manifests in that friend who forces their other friends to sign up for races, don't let them fool you, it's for their benefit AND yours. If you're that person, keep the pressure up... if you're the other person, take the leap and sign up.
5. Find an Indoor Track Race - Finally, nothing will bring more terror or clarity to your training than lining up for a race on the track. If you are feeling particularly inspired this winter do yourself a huge favor and sign up for an indoor track all-comers race. These are a traditional winter activity at the NYC Armory in Washington Heights and if you can find one I guarantee you it will be worth the pre race existential dread.
