Welcome back to this week's The Weekly Stride!  As I personally gear up to tackle the Marine Corps Marathon this weekend we wanted to bring you all some of my thoughts around finishing a training block and give you a review of a gel that I have been using and loving.  As always as we continue to load this newsletter with more content for all of you, please share all your thoughts or suggestions as we love to hear them.  Now let's dive in!

 

📧Mailbag 

 

-Nick K, Baltimore, MD

It's all about the post race blue's and how they can impact you from a mindset perspective after your goal race and how we can fight them off.  After a big goal race we are usually overwhelmed with some pretty big emotions.  From the loss of structure, to the adrenaline crash, or lack of identity that occurs from running less, the post race blues are real and can have a huge impact.  

 

Here’s how we can bounce back:

 

1️⃣ Let yourself recover.
You don’t have to “get back to it” right away. Move when it feels good not because your watch says so.

2️⃣ Reflect before you reset.
Write down what went well, what you learned, and what you’d do differently. That reflection builds your next block stronger.

3️⃣ Keep little rituals.
Still meet your training friends for coffee, volunteer at a race, or plan a fun run. Stay connected without pressure.

4️⃣ Reframe the off-season.
Think of this phase as base-building for life.  A time to rebuild, recharge, and rediscover why you love to run.

 

These feelings post race are normal, we all go through it but identifying it when it happens and being able to adapt and adjust is so important to helping flip that mindset and prepare for your next goal. (when you are ready of course)

 

— Nick K, Baltimore, MD

You guys voted and the question you want answered this week is: What's the biggest mistake runners make in the off-season?

 

The biggest mistake runners make in the off-season that I always see is coming back too soon. I don't mean just starting running again, I mean hopping back into specific goal race training without the adequate rest from your last one.  Obviously post race you should take some time off, but your goal in the off-season is to recover from your last training block and to lay down a solid base that will support you for your next goal race.  

 

Too often runners skip this step, instead they are worried that they need to keep the momentum going from their last race and so they don't lose their fitness.  But that's not the point after your goal race, you can't maintain peak fitness indefinitely and the longer you try and hold onto it the closer you are to going over that line and having an injury or go into overtraining.

 

If more runners took their offseasons as seriously as they did their training blocks they would enter each training phase primed to really grow and push their limits versus feeling like they are just barely holding on.  And if you need more proof look to the professionals in this sport, after their goal races they take significant time off and very slowly add back in their intensity and we can also apply the same thing to our training.

 

-Nick K, Baltimore, MD

I finally got to try the new Science in Sport Beta Fuel + Electrolyte Gels and I wanted to give a review of these.  I am a huge lover of the SiS Beta Fuel gels for their light consistency, taste and the fact that they can cram 40g Carbs into them has made fueling long runs and marathons a lot easier for me.  This new Electrolyte gel that was released a few months ago has also been a game changer for me and easy to work into my rotation and add in some much needed sodium to my fueling.  My favorite part is it again maintains the consistency of the normal Beta Gels but adds a flavor that still tastes great and doesn't taste super salty.  

 

This gel has absolutely found a place in my race day selection for my upcoming marathon at Marine Corps this weekend and I will absolutely continue to use this gel along with a variety of other gels for my fueling needs.  If you haven't checked out SiS Beta Gels or this electrolyte gel absolutely go try them out.  They might become your new favorite gel.

 

-Nick K, Baltimore, MD

What question do you want the Running Explained team to answer in next week's newsletter mailbag? You tell us!

 

— JoJo

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