| |
About
Millrose
Archive
Articles
Contacts
Letters
Links
Home
Pictures
Results
Running Courses
Upcoming
Races
|
|
Here is an article the might be of interest:
WHY I RUN/WALK by Priscilla Chin O’Carroll
I never thought I’d be a proponent of the Galloway method. Heck, I’d grown
to be quite proud of my ability to get a cup of water during a race, pinch it
and get my fluid intake without missing a step.
But first some background, I started running in March of 1990 for fitness only,
managing only 15 minutes my first time out. I was exhilarated. Gradually I added more
time and never even considered walking I even jogged in place while waiting for
traffic lights. After discovering the New York Road Runners Club and progressing
through the typical rites of passage 5 miler, 10k, 10 miler, Half Marathon, the
next goal seemed logical, if daunting. Could I really run 26.2?
I used the NYRRC training runs to prepare for the 1991 NYC Marathon,
and on race day I was ecstatic to finish in 4:36. I had run the whole way, except
for one pit stop and maybe a couple of seconds to get a PowerBar and kiss my
dad and boyfriend (now husband).
The next few years I ran three more marathons, inching closer to my sub-4:30 goal,
but twice winding up in physical therapy. I began to discover my body’s limitations
- leg-length discrepancy, hyper-extended knees and extreme overpronation. In 1996,
I had knee and hip problems and didn’t get beyond ten miles. Discouraged, I scheduled
bunion surgery so I’d have a forced four-month rest and hoped to come back strong in
the spring.
When spring finally rolled around, I came back as well as I’d hoped. However,
in the back of my mind loomed the fear that I’d be sidelined again. It was
at this time that I began looking into Jeff Galloway’s training method, which
alternates running with walk breaks. He was a well-regarded figure in the running
community, and his training method was supposed to keep you injury-free.
But walk breaks? It seemed to defy logic that you could do this but still come
out ahead in marathon finishing times. However, fearing reinjury, I decided to
give it a shot.
I first joined the group for the heat-plagued Bronx Half-Marathon, and it
was my slowest half ever (about 2:27). How was this going to make me run a
sub 4:30 marathon?
I concentrated on doing some speed and hill work during the week and was
rewarded with injury-free running in my THREE marathons that fall Dutchess
County in September, Hartford in October, and finally Philadelphia in November.
At Philly, while alternating six minutes of running with one of walking the
whole way, I did a 4:30:14 my fastest marathon to date. Thus, I discovered
that this new way of training, while not everyone’s cup of tea, did work for me.,
Not everyone can have the speed and resilience of the Tim Deckers of the
world (although I highly admire the guy). Not everyone understands the
Galloway method, nor would they even think of walking during a race. But it
can help novices reach goals they never thought possible without being depleted.
And this program, like the Pirogues commercial, makes people happy.
Simple as that.
The program does allow for variations. Elite runners have been known to
shuffle instead of walk, and may do this every mile or water stop instead of
every five minutes. While most of the NYC Galloway group averages 4:00-5:30
for a marathon, we do have some 3:30 types and nationally, even some Boston
qualifiers.
I’ve done a total of 10 marathons in 25 months with Jeff’s method and now
aim to join the 50 state + DC club (I’m over 1/5 of the way there!). And while
I’ve yet to break the 4:30 barrier, I know one day I will. In the meantime, if you
hear dozens of watches beeping on the roads at the same time, I’ll probably be
in the middle of this group with the smiling faces.
CAN LESS BE MORE?
Richard Garland
I joined Priscilla O’Carroll’s Galloway training
group one hot and humid Saturday morning this
June. Priscilla is the group’s coordinator for New
York City. The group consisted of about 50 enthusiastic
runners of widely varying abilities and experience,
from first-time marathoners to those with
many marathons under their belt. And this group
really had its collective act together: they have a
detailed training schedule laid out for every week-end
from early June up to the marathon. They
know it pays to start early and build gradually.
The group I ran with was about mid-pack and
averaged nine to ten minutes per mile just about
where I usually do my long runs, especially on hot,
humid days. We were on a five minute run/one minute
walk sequence, and as Priscilla says, all the
watches were set to beep first at five minutes then
again one minute later. I couldn’t figure out how to
set my watch that way, so I just went with the flow.
We ran up through Riverside Park to Grant’s
tomb and back, a welcome relief from the all-too-familiar
environs of Central Park. After three or
four sequences of run five/walk one it occurred to
me what we were doing an interval workout! I
had never heard it described as such, but that is
exactly what it was: run a bit harder than you might
normally for five minutes and then recover for one
minute. Although this was certainly not a speed
workout (too long and too slow), the principles of
interval training certainly were evident.
But can Less beMore? Yes it can, in many
ways. How often have we learned the hard way
that if we had only started a race at a slower pace,
we would have finished faster? How often have we
realized that if we just took a break, say at each
water stop, we would not have fallen completely
apart late in a race. I’m no expert on Galloway’s
method, but my own experience last fall, when I
qualified for Boston at the Niagara Falls Marathon,
illustrated that less can indeed be more. I had to
stop completely every mile or so from mile 10 to
20 to stretch and recover from hamstring pain. In-stead
of eroding my pace, this actually allowed me
to pick it up. There is no question in my mind that
if I hadn’t taken these breaks, I would never have
met my goal. Yes, very often less can be more!
One last thing yes there were plenty of smiles
in that group no small accomplishment during a
long run on a hot, humid Saturday.
|