Tip:  When you start to feel fast, calm down.

I don't know about you, but each year I gain a few pounds in the month of December. Winter weather means more missed days of running, so come January 1st, I'm usually a bit overweight and a bit out of shape. 2011 has gone the same thus far, though I gained even more weight than usual.

The good news is that on my run today I started to feel normal again. I've been eating modestly the past few weeks, following a protein and vegetable rich diet. I've also had a chance to run more than normal - sometimes as a workout partner for a woman I coach who has broken 4:30 for the mile. Anyway, roughly 50 minutes into today's 70 minute run I was feeling good and thought, "I should do some strides." WRONG! I had done a slow 100 minute long run the day before. The day before the long run, I ran part of a track workout with the female miler. If anything, I should have run easy today and run less than 70 minutes, but I had to catch myself before I sped up down the street to run a stride.

So that's the problem, when you feel you good, you want to speed up, you want to do a stride, or you want to run 10 more minutes. Don't Do It! Be smart and calm down - you have plenty of time to get fit, be it for a spring race or a summer series of races. Prudence now will lead to fun, fast racing later in 2011.

Jay Johnson

*Coach Jay's advice is provided as general training information. Use at your own risk. Always consult with your own heath care provider for questions relating to your specific training and nutrition.

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