You went to a running camp!? What the heck is that??

Finn Melanson [00:00:09]: Hello, fellow runners. I'm your host, Fin Malanson, and this is the run to the top podcast. the podcast dedicated to making you a better runner with each and every episode. We are created and produced by the expert team of coaches at runnersconnect.net, where you can find the best running information on the internet, as well as training plans to fit every runner and every budget.

Finn Melanson [00:00:42]: For those that have been long time listeners of the show, you know that the runners connect team hosts 2 to 3 in person running retreats each year. I know from hearing the other coaches on the team speak about them, attending the retreats is one of the favorite things they do each year. I haven't personally been to one yet, but I'm hoping to this year. And that's why I'm excited that for today's episode, Coach Jeff is gonna detail his latest trip to Flagstaff, Arizona, you can get an inside look on what it's really like. Plus, he's gonna discuss some of the lessons he's personally took from the retreats. Coach Jeff is gonna discuss why you shouldn't be afraid of altitude and how to conquer it, how to get over your fear of being slow or, quote, not good enough, why lifting heavy is essential for masters runners, even though most are scared of it, plus more little lessons he's learned throughout the weekend. This is a really unique look inside one of our retreats, and I know most of you won't be able to attend one of our retreats, but we're still eager to help you learn and get value from everything we do. Enjoy, and let's hand it over to coach Jeff. If you're looking for a better energy gel that contains no sugar and instead uses a revolutionary, slow burning carbohydrate, then you should check out you can. I'll tell you more about the science later, but you can get a free sample pack by going to runnersconnect.net forward slash you can. That's u c a n. heal from a MENO company is a combination of way amino acids and creatine to help your muscles repair faster as you enter the final push of your training. Later in the episode, We will tell you more about heal and how it can help you with your post workout recovery, or you can check out the research at aminoco.comforward/r

Finn Melanson [00:02:31]: t t t.

Jeff Gaudette [00:02:37]: Hey, REMS Connect listeners. I'm just getting back from my normal work week after an amazing running retreat to Flagstaff last week. The runs were amazing, and the Grand Canyon was spectacular as always. but the best thing was getting to meet all of those who attended. Despite being from all different backgrounds and parts of the country, The synergy of the group was palpable, and I was really sad to say goodbye on Sunday. I also learned a lot myself, both from the athletes and from some of the speakers. In fact, it gave me quite a bit to think about, and I'm really excited to make some more in-depth articles podcasts and videos about the whole experience and everything that I learned. While I get to working on those topics, I figured I'd share with you what our week was like. since a lot of people give us curious looks when we say we're going to a running camp. And I'm gonna give you a brief snapshot of some of the lessons I took away from the experience. Fin already mentioned the outline of what I'm gonna talk about, so let's dig in. Obviously, the first day is a lot of logistics, getting people picked up from the airport, checking into the hotel and just getting everyone their swag. A special thanks to our this year's sponsors, tannery sunscreen, Element electrolytes, and local sports for the t shirts, gift bags, bottles, notebooks, and more. After we had everything, everyone picked up from the airport, The first event on our calendar is always the Wednesday afternoon run. For Flagstaff, this is usually at Buffalo Park. a famous and beautiful trail system under the shadow of 2 beautiful mountains. Honestly, this park alone makes me wanna move the flagstaff and just train. and I've been told to connecting trails all over the city are even in a better reason. I just love the landscape, the mostly flat terrain, and awesome soft footing. Anyway, this is where we learn our first lesson. Elthitude really isn't that bad, or it's at least nothing to be afraid of if you're just running easy. I know a lot of our attendees who come to Flagstaff are nervous about the altitude, and I know many runners who have thought about coming but skipped out due to a fear of running at the higher elevations. But as our attendees will attest, it's really not that bad if you're just running easy. you simply slow down your normal easy pace by anywhere from 60 to 90 seconds, or you can just throw your way a watch, completely, and you're gonna barely feel the difference. Now, don't get me wrong. Doing workouts like tempo runs and speed workouts or even races, obviously, at altitude is definitely gonna be tough and it's a little tricky. But as for flat easy runs, it's really not all that bad. In fact, some of the attendees from Texas and other scorching hot places since the cooler Flagstaff air actually contributes to the run feeling easier than running back home despite the altitude. Personally, I think this leads into a bigger discussion and an understated goal of ours with these retreats. Don't let fear or nervousness keep you from amazing experiences. This will be a theme that we conquered throughout the long weekend. After the first run, we headed back to the hotel for a K to dinner. Tonight, it was an awesome selection of vegan curry dishes and ache from a little great place in flagstaff. One big reason I love to travel is experiencing new foods and restaurants. and Flagstaff definitely doesn't disappoint. Once dinner is over, we do a light informal meet and greet where we quickly learn our group had quite the array of musical talent and theatrical talents. After getting a bit early, Thursday morning starts off with another run. This time, we had the option of a short, hill to tempo workout, or more easy miles, whichever fit for each person's training schedule. We do our best at all other trades to make sure we can fit every run around your schedule. If you're training for a race, or your ability level if you're just getting started coming back from injury or if you really wanna just push your boundaries. Now, one of the big fears and questions I get from first time attendees to our retreats is am I gonna be the slowest person there? Without fail, I always get a couple of emails before people sign up, and it always comes up the first van right up the mountain from the airport. In fact, I bet it's a fear that keeps many people from even attending. But as this workout day proves, it never matters how fast or slow you are. We as runners really do appreciate anyone who's putting in the work. whether they're running sub 20 minute five case or just pushing through a run walk. The beauty of running is the internal battle with yourself to push your limits and test your physical and mental capabilities. During this run, it's awesome to see the camaraderie between the group continue to build. no one really cares who's faster and who's slower. It's just a group of runners pushing themselves and happy to see others pushing alongside them. Again, this goes back to the overall lesson of not letting yourself doubts limit what you can do or your experiences. Take a leap once in a while and you'll be thrilled with the experiences you can have. Now after all that, we've recovered from the run, had some lunch. It's time for strength work. First, we start with a great overall body weight strength, core, and hip routine, which was led by Coach Michael. Not only do we try to get everyone a great workout with this, but we try to take, give them take home lessons about how to integrate strength into their busy routines. After we get some practical strength training work ourselves, We're off to hear a talk from doctor Wes Greg on strength training injury prevention. Doctor Greg and his staff work with many of the elite athletes who trained in Flagstaff. Now the biggest lesson I learned from Doctor Greg's talk was how important heavy lifting can be even for and actually especially for master's runners. So many runners are scared of lifting heavy weights, but the science is very clear on just how much it can improve not only our running performance, but our overall health. especially as we age. The big takeaway was the progression and how to get started, especially if you've never listed before. The outline Doctor Greg presented on how this looks and how to do it was fantastic, and I'm gonna make a full podcast on this soon. But to give you a sneak peek, basically, Doctor Greg broke things down into two steps. First, you need to start wherever you're at. And second, you're always working on progression. So the two big lifts that doctor Gray mentioned were the squat and the deadlift. In terms of starting where you're at, if you're not able to or comfortably able to perform these movements, then you break them down and start with each piece of the movement individually or simply just bodyweight. Once each piece of the movement is mastered or you're comfortable doing bodyweight, Then you can move on doing with squat with the bar and itself and the deadlift with the bar, obviously. This progression is at your own pace. It could be a week or 2, or it could be a month or 2. Doctor Greg talked a lot about the goal of lifting here is not to be sore. So you perform a few sets and reps that you know you can handle and then increase gradually so you never actually soar. Then it's simply about progression from here, slowly adding reps or weight over time. And again, it doesn't have to be a week, a week to week by a week jump. It could be something like you're starting with 3 sets of 6 reps. Each week, you add one rep to your first set. So once you're at 8, you can add reps to the second set. Once you're now at 3 sets of 8, Then you can either start adding weight like 5 to £10, or you can start you can add another set. So do four sets of 6 reps. thereby adding a set. My other big takeaway is that this doesn't need to be complicated. The elite athletes they work with, some of the best runners in the world, do these 2 simple exercise heavy, and then they have their ancillary work like core hip, etcetera. Again, I'm gonna make a full podcast on how this should look and you can integrate it into your training, but I wanted to get a little bit more in-depth than just telling you we had a great talk.

Finn Melanson [00:10:13]: View can is once again changing the game when it comes to endurance nutrition. Their revolutionary lives steady technology is now available in easy to use in great tasting energy gel format. What makes these gels different though? Well, contain no sugar and instead utilize their super starch technology, which independent peer reviewed studies have shown is absorbed quickly through the stomach to reduce gy distress. It is also released into the bloodstream slowly to provide sustained fueling without the spikes and the crashes typically associated with traditional gels. By avoiding the sugar spikes, you can can help us be less reliant on frequent feedings of sugar based fuels during the run. And all this data means using you can can help you avoid hitting the dreaded wall during the half full and ultra marathon distance. You can is also gentle on the stomach and used by American record holders in Olympians such as Kira Damato, Emma Bates, Sarah Hall, Emily Sissen, and countless other elite runners. And because we know you love your science based products, we've got a special deal for you to try you can yourself. Head to runners connect dot net forward slash you can. That's ucan to get 6 edge energy gels for free. All you pay is shipping. You can also save 20% on your entire order at ucan.co with code runners connect. As your training ramps up for the big summer and fall races, it's important to make sure you are properly recovering from all those long runs and tough workouts. One of the most effective ways to speed up recovery is by optimizing your nutrition. For you to recover faster, you must provide the body with the nutrients it needs to accelerate muscle repair. Heel from the immuno company does this better than any other recovery drinks and proteins on the market. Heel is designed to reduce recovery times after training by accelerating muscle repair while helping maintain a healthy inflammatory response. It does this through the unique blend of way amino acids and creatine. In fact, a recent clinical trial compared the use of heal with high quality whey protein, heal showed a three times larger response to whole body protein synthesis and breakdown, which led to reduced muscle protein breakdown and an increased muscle protein synthesis compared to way. In layman's terms, this means participants had less muscle breakdown and faster muscle repair when using heal. So in looking for a nutritional advantage when it comes to recovering from your running injury or your daily training, check out heal. We've even got a special offer for you where you can save 30% by using the code rc30. Just head to aminoco.comforward/ rttt.that's aminoc0.comforward/rttt and use the code RC30 at checkout to save 30%.

Jeff Gaudette [00:13:15]: So after all these talks, On Thursday, next up was our Friday trip to the Grand Canyon. For those that have never been, and even for those that have been multiple times, the experience that the Grand Canyon is truly breathtaking. The best part is we're a running group, so we also get to run. We were alive early before most of the crowds and had the self rim trail mostly to ourselves. This was definitely one of those runs where you're stopping and taking pictures more than breathing heavy and pushing yourself. The group went anywhere from 30 to 90 minutes, and then we filled up and got ready for our short hike. For a hike, we chose what's called south Kaibab Trail, which is an awesome 1.5 mile round trip hike down into the canyon. So the trail is the perfect because it's really only about three quarters of a mile down, but you're going down almost straight down. So it's pretty steep, but it's really not long, and it's really not as arduous as it makes out makes it out to be. To be honest, though, at 1 at about a 3 quarters a mile, you hit this outlook that's called point, and it's just absolutely amazing. It juts out almost into the canyon, so you feel like you're at an overhang and you can see almost the entire canyon and you're about halfway down. It's truly spectacular. Honestly, I think for many attendees, the run-in the hike at the Grand Canyon are really the highlight of the trip. So in the afternoon, once we get back, It's time to learn some nutrition. First up, we actually had one of our attendees, doctor Rich and Rosenfield, present on supplements for distance runners. Having an attendee talk was one of our first during our treats, but it was definitely well worth it. Doctor Rich has been researching and practicing lifestyle medicine for many years, So we brought a lot of knowledge to the table about overall health, longevity, and, of course, improving your running performance. Personally, my biggest takeaway was the research he presented on just how much diet and even slight modifications to your diet can have on your longevity. To be honest, I've been eating mostly for performance over the last 20 years, But as I get older, the idea of longevity is becoming increasingly important. Next up for our nutrition talks was Ultra runner and registered dietitian calling Lingley. She went in-depth on a lot of things we often don't think about when it comes to our diet, such as antioxidants, amino acids, and choline. Plus, you talked a lot about recipes and how to better integrate all of these into your current diet. So with the long run on tap for tomorrow, we ended our day with an assortment of pastas, lasagna, and delicious salads, and it was off the bed to catch some recovery and sleep. Our long run took us to a one mountain road, which is actually far less intimidating than it sounds. It's a mostly flat forest road that winds through short pine forest and open meadows and is a favorite long run destination for many of you lead runners that train in Flagstaff. I mentioned that this was our long run day, but the goal of our retreats is never to force any specific distance on anyone, and we have modifications for all the runs you can get in the distance and paces that you need to feel comfortable. Because it's a mostly out and back route, we set up support vans along the way to refill drinks and have a chance to get some food and energy. And we also get to pick everyone up as soon as they finish. However, most of our attendees this year found that spot was so beautiful. They just wanted to walk a few mile extra miles just to soak in all the views. After we'd all finish our long runs, we would refuel some delicious luntz and had some time to rest and recover before our next session for the weekend, the game analysis. This is by far one of the most popular sessions we do each year. One unique thing that we do during this talk is actually go over everyone's form as a group. Now I know this sounds pretty intimidating, but it's actually an awesome way to get a master's level of education in running form. You see, when you only look at your own running form, you can only see the things that you need to correct. or the issues that you have so you don't get to learn about other parts of the gate cycle or running mechanics that you don't really struggle with. When you have the opportunity here, an expert explain other concept of the gate cycle using actual examples, you learn so much more. As everyone experiences as soon as we get started, it's a really fun way to get specific help for your own form and also learn a ton about running mechanics overall. Perhaps the best part is that each attendee receives a complete fourteen page PDF breakdown of every aspect of their form that we can measure. including what looked great and what they need to work on. After the gate analysis, it's time for a little downtime to explore downtown Flagstaff. and also time to get in some one on one coaching sessions. Both the time to explore and the one on one coaching sessions are highlighted the trip for me personally. Obviously, the one on one is a time where us coaches get to really get to know each athlete better. And as a coach, I always love talking training and helping athletes. especially when it comes to finding solutions to whatever struggles they're facing. I take it as a personal challenge, and that's a lot of fun. Saturday night, we celebrate by going out to eat. After a hard I hard 3 days of training, it's really great to see everyone unwind. Plus, after 3 days together, we actually are getting to know each other pretty well, and the inside joke starts flying. Now, Sunday is our travel day, but before we leave, I always like to schedule a restorative yoga session. The studio and teacher that we use is amazing, and she really understands the needs of the runners and also that we're coming off a tough week of training. Some runners have a negative connotation with yoga, but this is a truly relaxing and restorative session. My lesson to run learn from this is always to tailor things outside your comfort zone to what you're looking for. So as an example for our yoga session, there's a lot of forms of yoga and each has its merits and can be helpful depending on what you're looking for. But we wanted something specific, and I searched around until I found just the right class and just the right teacher. So I recommend you do the same when it comes to your strength routine, a gym, pilates, yoga stretching, or whatever you wanna try out. Don't count out something until you've seen how it can be tailored exactly to what you're looking for. Now, sadly, Sunday morning is the end of our retreat. We all started on Wednesday as complete strangers, but I'm always really sad when we have to say goodbye. Luckily, I know many of the attendants continue to keep in touch and make even stronger friendships when they're really connected and found new running friends. And lucky for us coaches, we often have runners attend multiple retreats. So we'll get to see them again. I hope you enjoyed looking inside this year's Flagstaff retreat. And while I know most of you won't be able to attend one of our treats, I do hope that you can use some of these lessons to improve your training this year. If you are interested in attending, our next retreat is actually gonna be in Orlando, Florida, February 1st through 4th. It's an opportunity to get out of the cold for those that train the northeast or Midwest, and it's the perfect training jump shot for your spring races like Boston, London, and more. Plus, this year is gonna be extra special because our treat will coincide with the 2024 Olympic Marathon trials being held at Orlando. we'll be organizing as much as we can to meet and greet some of the best runners in the US as well as help you improve your own running. And, of course, if you wanna join us in Flagstaff next year, for some of the best running trails in the US, plus a trip to the Grand Canyon will be returning for 4 days, July 17th through 21st,

Finn Melanson [00:20:19]: 2024.

Jeff Gaudette [00:20:20]: You can learn about both retreats at runnersconnect.net/retreats. So again, thank you guys for listening today, and I hope you have a great run. Thanks for listening to the run to the top pod

Finn Melanson [00:20:45]: guest. I'm your host, Finn Malansen. As always, our mission here is to help you become a better runner with every episode. please consider connecting with me on Instagram at Wasatchfin and the rest of our team at Runners Connect. Also, consider supporting our show for free with a rating on the Spotify and Apple podcast players. And lastly, if you love to show and want bonus content behind the scenes variances with our guests and premier access to contests and giveaways, then subscribe to our newsletter by going to runnersconnect.netback/pod until next time. I'd be training.