Tips from Barry Magee Ten Commandments for Champions The Power of the Dream  Mileage  Improve your running  Pursuit of Excellence Warming Up Vitamins & Minerals  Mind Power   The Power of the Dream Question: Do you have a dream? At the Atlanta Olympics, there was a theme song called "The Power of the Dream" I still get goose bumps when I play that song. It is inspirational, to say the least. The following are some of the words. Deep inside each heart, there lies a magic spark, That lights the fire of our imagination. Since the dawn of man, the strength of just "I Can" Has brought together the people of all nations. Feel the flame forever burn teaching lessons we must learn, To bring us closer to the Power of the Dream. Yes friends, today's question is - Do you have a dream? - because we all need a dream! Runners need a dream! The good book says, "Without a vision the people perish". I say - "Without a dream, we fade away". Some of us I believe have lost the spark that allows us to dream. Through life's hard times we have closed down to avoid disappointments from previous failures or other reasons and when we do that something dies within. Runners can and do give up and lose the ability to dream, to train and strive for personal achievements. To set the goals and go for them, however small or large they may be. My challenge to you is to find within you that spark to ignite the power to dream, to train, to fly. Some of you have heard the story of Bob Whelan, the American who has completed 2 marathons. Bob Whelan has NO legs! He does it on his hands. Bob says - "You've got to have a dream, and a good support team (Coach & helpers - Barry's definition). At the finish of the New York Marathon, Bob took off his gloves and his hands were red and blistered. A reporter asked "How did you stand the pain?" Bob replied - "My hands only hurt when I took my eye of the Finish Line". Bob had a dream. Even no legs could not stop him achieving it. Start dreaming what sort of a season you can have for yourself, your club, your country. GO TO IT! Get a coach. Get a support team. Go to Top Mileage Question: How important is "MILEAGE" in the whole scheme of things? Answer It is 50% of the road to success! Particularly at this time of the year when the summer season is soon to be beckoning or half and full marathons are on the horizon, or something like the "Kepler" challenge. The other 50% of the equation is EFFORT. Whether conditioning for the summer or going for the longer races, mileage is crucial at this stage. I have found there are 3 levels of fitness with mileage that can be achieved. I will call them Level 1, 2 & 3. Social and enjoyable running can be obtained on levels 1&2 but serious runners must go to Level 3 to obtain maximum results. Level 1 is 50km per week or about 4 hours of running Level 2 is 100km per week or about 7.8 hrs Level 3 is 150km per week or about 12-14 hours. This would apply to runners of the male variety, 18yrs and over. Women can achieve the same result with 80% of the distance and time. The difference comes in the fat/muscle ratio. For younger runners, they need good advice. Remember it takes 8 weeks to condition the body for track and 10 weeks for marathons and ultra. With conditioning, once a day training of the above distances is needed although experienced runners can do an extra run most days if they can fit it in. About 10k or 45 mins is ideal. They can lift to 200K Also remember you do not mix aerobic and anaerobic training in conditioning. Aerobic builds up but anaerobic breaks down. We don't have to re-invent the wheel. The system is proven. The system works, if we follow the balance of speed and distance advocated by A.L.Lydiard. . Even 800 metre and 1500 metre runners need to condition with 150km per week. P.G. SNELL, our greatest ever 800-metre runner won the NZXC title one-year and ran a 2:41 marathon. He was on 2 hrs 30 min till 5km to go. You are trying to build stamina to its highest possible point and if it is done properly, you could even do PB's before doing any track work. Ideal build up: Mon 1 hour 80% aerobic Tues 1.5hrs 70% aerobic Weds 1.25 hrs fartlek Thurs 2 hrs 70% aerobic Fri 1 hour 90% aerobic Sat 1.5 hrs 70% aerobic Sun 2.5 - 3hrs 70% aerobic Best wishes. Barry Go to Top Improve your running Questions · How can I improve my running? · How can I get faster? · How can I get stronger? · Why are Kiwis not up there in World Rankings? · What do I have to do to fulfil my potential? Answer Use a balanced programme of training where you run faster in training than you previously have. I believe most runners train too easy and too slow. Yes too easy and too slow. "the body can only do what the body is regularly accustomed to doing" That is a famous quote by your coach. So how do you expect to race at a pace that you do not do regularly in training? To get faster and stronger you have to really move 3 times a week. A 6/7 days a week trainer needs 3 days a week with heaps of speed, effort and stamina running. This is usually done with perhaps Day 1 being time trial run over 45-60 mins, Day 3 perhaps 1 hour of fartlek type running, then Day 5 or 6 another time trial run over 45-60mins, the other days should be varied from easy to good aerobic running depending on how you are, including 1 run of 2.5 hrs or more. Quite often, Day 5/6 can be changed to a race day. Are you getting the picture? For the 4 days per week trainer, you also need 3 effort days and 1 slow day. You can do either 3 time-trial runs over 45-60 mins or 2 T/T's and 1 fartlek- 15mins warm down. You will be amazed at your improvement with this combination and some of you will do times in training that used to be race only times. This is the sort of base that you then can go on to other training such as hill springing, repetitions, shorter time trials, leg speed etc. Speak to Barry for individual guidance.(WebEd) Go to Top Pursuit of Excellence A few weeks ago a radio sports reporter asked me why NZ's great feats in distance running had disappeared. I could not answer his question fully as there could be many reasons but in the last week, after asking for some divine guidance, I have come to the following conclusion. There is something missing and it could be the lack of real distance runs. Arthurs Boys for starters, did 3*30 mile (50km) runs each year. Usually in the build up for the summer season, over the last 3 weeks, there also was relays like the 2 man Auckland Hamilton Relay, later changed to the 2 man Auckland-Huntly relay. There were ultra runs on all the time over 50 miles (80km)- 100 miles (160km)- 24hrs and we were encouraged to run as far as possible in them. They were great for training and did wonderful things for the mind and body. At other times Halberg ran from Mt Albert to Stanmore Bay. I ran from Mt Roskill to past Pokeno- 4 hrs. Julian ran 2 Waiataruas back to back with no stop in between (44 miles). Ivan Keats in 1963 finished 3rd in the New Brighton 50 mile (80km) in 6hrs- 38mins and ran a 2hrs 19mins marathon in 1964. Are you getting the message? During his term as President of the USA John F. Kennedy became concerned at the general lack of fitness of the average American and claimed they should be able to walk 50 miles (80kms) in less than 12 hrs. that year a Canterbury university student took up the challenge and without any distance training did the 50mile in 6hrs 45mins. A running friend of mine heard about his feat so the next day went out to see how far he could run and did 90 miles in 13hrs 7 mins. Ten days later he lined up for the Kennet Cup steeplechase in Christchurch and finished 5th for a career best. The best relay leg I have ever run was 1 week after the Auckland Marathon Championship. This was about August in the Waipu to Whangarei. Some of the ultra runners of the 70's would pass through the marathon distance in 2hrs 40mins in a 50 mile race. Not bad eh! So you guys and gals, how tough are we these days? Does this ring a bell or two with you? I hope so. Could "Real Distance" bring a real breakthrough with some of our members? So start looking at where some of the ultras are and when they are on. Try the odd long run. They are more mental than anything. You may be surprised! Go for it! Go to Top Warming Up Question: Does warming up and cooling down work? Answer: It does for most, so there is no reason it would not for you. You may be surprised at the improvement in your race performance, if you do it properly. The main reason you should warm up is to increase blood circulation to a pulse rate of 130-140 beats per minute so that you do not have to go through the gears in the race. Secondly it raises the body temperature and warms the muscles so they function more efficiently. This reduces the risk of pulling a muscle or tendon. The risk of injury is greater in cold weather, so warming up in winter should take longer. If it is hot you do not need as much. Wear clothing that is appropriate for the day. The main thing is to get your pulse rate up and keep it up till the race starts. 15-20mins is long enough for distance races. You should begin with 7-8 minutes of good aerobic speed followed by some 50-100m windsprints. About 3 or 4 is enough. Then keep moving till the race starts. Don't lie around, or rest, between warm up and race or you will lose all the benefit. Cooling downor warming down is equally important 15-20 minutes of jogging will stimulate the circulation of the blood to replace the acid nature of the blood, caused by racing, which we call "lactic acid". This helps to prevent sore muscles the next day. The warm down also allows the body temperature to return to normal slowly and lessens the possibility of colds and chills. Think about warm-ups and warm-downs seriously. You may be surprised at their results. World records have been set by athletes who have got it right, as many runners take too long and run poorly for it. Go for it! Go to Top Vitamins & Minerals Question : Do you know your ABC?? In vitamins and minerals that is! And are you replacing the 90 required? Answer: Probably not for most of us. Question : Can we get enough vitamins and minerals out of our daily food intake Answer : According to the world's leading sports and health nutritionists the answer is a definite NO. More so if you are an athlete who needs much more than normal people. We are different and need more. Question: Which vitamins and minerals do athletes need most. Answer: 1) Calcium. Does so many things that it would take pages on it alone but here are a few problems of taking too little. (a) Irritability, Insomnia, mental disorders, arthritis (b) Brittle bones, osteoporosis, osteoarthritis, kidney stones (c) Irregular heartbeat, muscle cramps, numbness, blood pressure. It is absolutely essential for correct muscle and nerve action and relaxation. Drink milk if you can. Cal/Mag recommended in tablet form for economy or with vitamin D for absorbtion. 2) Vitamin C. Could be best described as an anti poison, anti-infection vitamin, along with vitamin A, Vitamin E and selenium. Helps the body to recover in half the normal recovery time from strenuous training and racing, particularly in association with calcium and electrolytes. 500mg min recommended per day. If getting cold or flu then 4000mg per day 3) B Vitamins 1-2-3-6-+12 are energy producing vitamin and B12 really gives athletes a lift. But we need them all. Unfortunately the B Vitamins are largely lost when foods are refined. I don't think any athlete can take the risk of not taking B vitamins. B Complex is the best way for most. 4) Iron assists in forming of red blood cells Assists in providing energy for muscles. Helps build muscle tissue. Helps our bodies absorb and utilise protein. Fatigue is the most common symptom of lacking iron and itchy skin is a sign we are deficient. It is good to have a blood check done annually for haemoglobin and ferratin readings. Slow release iron tablets are generally acceptable. Ferro Graduate does the job. Will tell about the benefits of antioxidants some other time. They combat injuries and diseases. Go to Top Mind Power Question: How important is your "mind" to your performances and success? Answer: According to Mike Ryan, the NZ marathoner of the century, it is the secret of achievement in running. Some of us were privileged to hear Mike a few weeks ago talking on the "power of the mind". He described how he used his most effectively in training and racing to achieve what most runners can only dream about. We know the mind is a funny thing. What we programme in sows the crop that comes out. If we sow worry, problems and negatives we reap depression. On the other hand if we sow joy laughter and positives we reap a healthy mind that brightens up our world as well as other peoples. Did you know that "worry" is the misuse of the imagination? Did you know that your attitude determines your altitude? Did you know that laughter is 200 times more powerful than morphine? Athletes need to feed in the right words to make them dream and to make them fly. Champions abound in positive thinking. They follow their dreams and make them come true. They train more. They train smarter and harder. They train when it is hot, cold, wet or dry. They set the goals and go for them. Mike Ryan told us that he trained faster than his opposition. He found out about his opponents before races and learnt their weaknesses, playing mind games with them so he knew how to defeat them. He took his body to the edge of exhaustion in training and then would take a day off every 5 weeks to restore himself. He told us that it is about 80% mental and 20% physical to do great things in running. Many runners have similar natural abilities and physical shapes but it is the mind that makes the difference in the end. Are you training the right way? Some years ago I put together "12 Commandments for Champions" that I based on the men I have coached who achieved Olympic and Commonwealth games status. They won NZ championships and broke NZ records. They were winners. They never knew they were beaten and were champions in every sense of the word. They were an inspiration to others. They helped others to think positive and achieve. Yes sometimes it is a matter of mind over mattress. Particularly on cold wet winter mornings, when you would love to stay in bed instead of doing that extra 10k. So go for it you guys and gals. Show 'em that you can DO IT. Fulfil your potential and surprise the world. Remember when the going gets tough most give up! You do the opposite! Life is not for whining and worrying. Life is for Living! God bless you.