Can running champs inspire more people to run?

As of this writing six of the gold medals won, by the Philippines in the 29th South East Asian Games in Malaysia came from athletics and triathlon. The first gold medal was from Mary Joy Tabal, who dominated women’s marathon at two hours and 48 minutes.

The face of Philippine triathlon, Nikko Huelgas, won another gold this year with a time of one hour 59 minutes and 30 seconds. He also won the triathlon gold in the 28th SEAG. Eric Cray won gold in the 400 meter hurdles at 50.03 seconds.

Anthony Beram is the first to win two gold medals from the Philippine delegation. His first was from the 200-meter sprint, which he finished in 20.84 seconds. He also lorded it over the 400-meter run with a time of 46.39 seconds. Aries Toledo also bagged the gold in decathlon.

Can these inspiring wins like these encourage more people to take up running? I asked international fitness educator and coach Jeremy Strom, an avid runner himself, his thoughts about the sport.

PHILIPPINE STAR: Can Filipinos be prominent in running and related sports? Do height and build have anything to do with it?

JEREMY STROM: Yes, Filipinos can absolutely be competitive and prominent on the world stage of running. While height certainly can play a role in elite running it does not define success. In fact the average height of elite runners, according to runnersworld.com continues to get shorter and shorter with the average male elite marathoner being 5’6”. The great Haile Gebrselassie (Ethiopia) is only 5’4”; and Tirunesh Dibaba (Ethiopia) clocked a 2:17:57 and 5th fastest women’s marathon ever is only 5’3”. Weight on the other hand absolutely plays a role in elite running. According to the Journal of Sports Science & Medicine, “acceleration of the body is proportional to the force produced but inversely proportional to the body mass, according to Newton’s second law. This implies an inverse relationship between height and performance in disciplines such as sprint running.” In other words, it’s hard to produce enough power to overcome the drag of a big body.

The different running sports have various requirements skill wise, right? How different are the skills sets if you want to win in a triathlon, marathon, or sprints?

 Yes different running disciplines require different skill sets as well as, muscular anatomy and the bodies ability to utilize oxygen and fat as energy. Distance running requires both training specific adaptations as well as muscle type and body structure. Distant runners would have a greater proportion of slow twitch muscle fiber which allows for slow utilized energy over a longer period of time or distance, while sprinters would have a greater density of fast twitch muscle tissue that allows them to produce the force necessary to run fast but only in short bursts.

If you want to be a champion or an Olympian, how young should you start training? Is there are age limit or an age that is considered too old to start the sport?

While very few runners actually become champions in the world or Olympic stages, it is never too early or too late start as a runner. The human body was actually designed to move faster than a walk and the definition of running is both feet off the ground at the same time.

How do you prepare your body physically to compete in the sport?

While the old rule stated that you must run to become a better runner we know today that there is a lot more to being a good runner. Nutrition, strength, mobility and recovery training all go into a good running program along with the miles on the road, track, or trail.

Can running alone make you fit?

This depends on your definition of fit. Most top coaches would tell you today that the simple answer is no, in order to be fit you need a combination of running, strength and power training along with recovery and regeneration methods. Running alone would certainly give you some increased muscle, greater cardio-respiratory health and general feeling of wellness but without the added benefits of “cross training” the runner is more susceptible to injury and skeletal tissue breakdown.

Give us a sample one week physical activity program for a runner.

Day 1 will be an easy run — 3k-5k with foundational body weight strength and mobility exercises.

Day 2 can be sprint training — 4 x 400 meter, 6 x 200 meter and 8 x100 meters or Hill Training 6 x 40 meter hill sprints with mobility exercises.

Day 3 can be medium distance of 5k-10k run with multiple 100 meter form runs at 60-70 percent intensity.

Day 4 is for cross training — Cycling, Swimming or weight training.

Day 5 Pool/Trail running — Soft surface running and form running in the pool or longer distance on the trail.

Day 6 Long run — 10k-30k with regeneration and recovery training.

Day 7 Recover — Yoga, easy swim, family time, etc... low stress, no impact activity.

And always get at least eight hours of sleep, soft tissue therapy, good nutrition, great hydration and minimize stress.

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Post me a note at mylene@goldsgym.com.ph or mylenedayrit@gmail.com.