fitness first
Helping or Harming By Meghan Kennihan
T
he world of running is continually changing and the use of technology is just one of the areas that has made an impact on running in the modern day. We used to run in cotton t-shirts, shorts, and rubber shoes. Now we have sweatwicking tech shirts, compression shorts, and every type of shoe under the sun. Runners used to be lucky to go out with a watch that told them how long they were on the roads, now we have watches that track our runs, HR monitors that tell us how hard we are pushing ourselves and IPODs to distract us from the pain. While these devices allow us to train purposefully, they can also hinder the enjoyment of running and the awareness of our own bodies. Let’s review the pros and cons of some of the top technologies used by today’s runners: 36 fitness first
IPODS
Pros: Diversion: listening to music can pump you up and get you into a zone, breaking the monotony of the treadmill or long road Set the Pace: Playlists with up tempo songs can keep you going through a threshold run or a speed session Go Longer: Music can inject energy into you to push for that extra 2 miles. Motivation: Music is not the only thing you can listen to on your IPOD, motivational material can help keep your efforts high during your workout. Cons: Distraction: Running on the road or trail? Music can put you in serious danger when you cannot hear what is coming from behind or beside you. Dependency: If you rely too heavily on the noise from your IPOD it can become a crutch and with many races banning the use of iPods you could be setting yourself up for a poor performance. Slow Poke: If your music selection is slower it can hinder your tougher workouts as your body gets into rhythm with the slower tempo suburban family | subfam.com
Losing Touch: One of the best attributes of elite runners is their ability to tune into their bodies, to go easy when they need to and push it when they can. Music can distract you from your bodies natural signals leading to injury or burnout.
GPS Watches
Pros: Intensity: GPS provides you with pace per mile which allows you to train at the intensities you mean to train at, so you don’t overtrain or undertrain Mileage and Routes: GPS tracks your mileage and routes. This allows you to know how far you are going, need to go, and the breakdown of your splits. You can review where you may tire during a race and it keeps you honest with distances run. Race Execution: One of the biggest mistakes runners make is going out too fast in the beginning of the race, a GPS allows you the luxury of executing your race plan because you will know exactly how fast you go out, what pace you maintain throughout the race, and how far to the finish. Advanced Workouts: Many feature the ability to March/April 2017