Our next handicap event will be Sunday September 15th at Princess Park on our 4.9km cross country course. The first runner will start at 8am. Entry is free and we will be having a BBQ afterwards. We also have 4 x $30 vouchers from our superstar sponsors Intersport Shepparton. Everyone is welcome to participate!

Register here: https://docs.google.com/…/1FAIpQLSdN5ygeBMIb17BNlI…/viewform

Tara’s post marathon training

This week has really been a week of relearning all the stuff I have forgotten since the last time I was training for something. Its pretty amazing what you forget when you are just going along with life…It’s the simple things like not having a spicy vindaloo and red wine the night before parkrun or a long run that strike you down. Also, just because you aren’t training for something don’t ignore your legs because they will be angry with you when you start building up time on them. Stretch, roll and massage….do it, don’t just pretend to or say you will do it!! I’ve been having some calf and quad tightness for the last few weeks, which has caused knee pain intermittently while I have been running…I stupidly assumed it would be fine and get better on its own…ignoring a niggle is not a solution to it. This has meant that my getting fit for marathon training has really started as trying to get my body back in working order. I have been reacquainting myself with my best friends “spiky ball”, “foam roller” and “hard massage ball” which seems to be helping. I also don’t think the extra kgs I have gained this year have really assisted me. This is also a good learning point – Don’t eat like you have run the Barkley Marathons when all you have done is watch the documentary.

I started the week pretty tired after the running festival weekend, but the body felt ok, so I probably went out a bit hard at training on Tuesday.  We did a series of out and backs and  my legs and lungs felt great for three of the four…on the fourth my knee suddenly felt like the patella was being surgically removed with no anaesthetic so I called it and walked the last one with Sam (who appears to have recovered from his marathon remarkably well). Hot yoga (a sweaty vinyasa series) and a butt strengthening session on Wednesday was my cross training for the week and things must have been going right as my Thursday run felt pretty good (and I could feel my glutes engage following Wednesdays session!!). I did however really take note of how bad my shoes were (another learning – if you can feel tiny stones through the bottom of your shoes you probably need new ones!), so I channeled Nat Hicks and purchased two new pairs of shoes on the way home. Having really tiny duck feet I am pretty restricted to shoe brands and I have discovered a love for Saucony. They are super sexy and yet to be tested. I can’t wait! Side note: I require a neutral shoe, size US4 with a wide toe…I am open to suggestions.

Parkrun was an easy run with Sam trying to keep him in check, it felt good and I was in an old pair of retired Under Armor shoes (it was like running in pillows…seriously don’t wear your shoes down that far!!). It was a lovely day and there were a few people running around the same pace, so it was pretty fun until Steve beat me!

Sunday’s long run was 11 km (in my retired Nike Pegasus 34s) and with Sam again. We decided to mix it up and get out of Tat and go into Shep and run at the lake. Running together only lasted 3 km but seeing him on occasion around the lake was nice and a bit of a mental boost getting me out of my head! I contemplated the big life questions during my run such as “if snoopy is a beagle, why isn’t he tri-coloured?” and “What sort of bird is Woodstock?”. I also had some gastrointestinal issues, probably also from leftover vindaloo that I had for Saturday lunch…I finished the run with no pain and another couple of km in me so that made me feel on top of things.

In general, I was pretty happy with the week, and the progress made towards returning the legs to normal. The weekly total was 32.5 km, and a mix of walking and running, but it’s a solid launching point to build on. Week one is done! Now I just need to keep it up for another 26! 

Annual awards for the Bendigo Athletics Club presentation night for Cross Country. Thanks to Amanda Heard. #sheppresent

Race winners:

Race 1: 5km: Josh Sait

Race 2: 6.5km: Gab Sait

Race 4: 8km: Tony Sait

Race 5: 6.5km: Amanda Heard

Race 8: 6.5km: Andrew Sait.

Club Champion: Josh Sait

Aggregate: Andrew Sait (2nd) and Tony Sait (3rd)

Running Hacks

Plan/vary Your Route

Training Peaks has assembled a list of running hacks

Over time we can become guilty of running the same loop/route/track week in and week out. Over time, this will not only become mentally repetitive but will wear down on your motivation levels. Be brave and explore, a change of scenery will refresh your running soul. Apps like MapMyRun can also help when in a foreign city or on holiday.

For your longer slow runs, you can also vary the terrain somewhat. Adding in some grass/cross country will train the stabilizer leg muscles that typically get overlooked when simply pounding the cement/tarmac routes.

Bonus tip: If training for a specific race, mirror that course in your key sessions – e.g. include hills or loops to try and replicate what you will be facing race day.

Know What You are Trying to Achieve

Before you lace up the runners, make sure you are clear on what the session is trying to do for your running. Is this a speed session, a tempo run or a recovery run? Be clear on what you are meant to do and how—this will help you eliminate junk miles from your training

Bonus tip: Also pick the right route for that session. If your workout involves running at race pace for 1km repeats, for example, try to find a flat route without traffic lights/obstacles that might require you to break out of your rhythm.

Don’t Forget Form

One of my favorite pieces of advice is to “dance like no one is watching” (mainly because I have the coordination and rhythm of “that” drunk uncle at a wedding). However, as I was running along the coast and found myself puffing out my chest; correcting my stride; and lifting my head tall as I spotted some club mates running towards me—it occurred to me that we should run like EVERYONE is watching! In running, good form is important (in dancing, well, less so).

Bonus tip: If you find yourself slowing for no reason, do a quick head-to-toe self “diagnostic” to get your form back. Is your head looking at the floor? Are you slumped over? Are your feet falling where they should? A quick form check should help you refocus and regain your efficiency.

Monitor Your Progress

Do keep a training log, whether you use TrainingPeaks or an old notebook. This will help you see progress in terms of improved times/distance covered and understand when runs are not going as planned.

Bonus tip: As part of the monitoring – keep a log of which shoes you used  and for which run. This will help you keep track of when you should replace shoes with more than 500km in them. 

Getting the most out of your running just requires a little more planning (route and session objectives), improved execution (watching form and mixing things up to challenge yourself/muscle groups) and monitoring your progress to know when to push on or pull back!

Enjoy and remember to run like everyone is watching!

Advice from Steve Monaghetti

Four time Olympian and arguably one of Australia’s greatest long distance runners Steve Monaghetti knows a thing or two about running! He has attended many running events in Australia over the past 3 decades, often speaking at expos and pre/post race events and has offered plenty of pearls of running wisdom over the years. Here’s a few of Monaghetti’s top running tips:

“If you’re training for an endurance event, it’s not about distance necessarily; it’s about time on legs… you need to train when your legs are already fatigued. This can be done by having your long run in the morning, then a second much shorter run in the afternoon [at an elite level, Steve would do 35km on a Sunday morning, then 10km that afternoon].”

“Don’t try to work out your time for a long distance event using your usual 5km or 10km pace. You need to be running faster than your race pace as you’ll only get slower in a race when you get fatigued.”

“A percentage of all programs need to encompass speed training. Going faster than your race pace is the only way you are going to get faster in the race.”

“If you’re training for a marathon, make sure you run shorter events in the lead-up. If you have a bad marathon — and you’ve spent months of hard work to get there — you’ll be bitterly disappointed. But if you’re had a 10km PB along the way then it makes it all worth it.”

“When you’re running you need to be 100% focussed because you need to be able to put everything into that particular effort [Steve doesn’t train with music]”.

“Everyone should run on the track because it’s a measured 400m distance and flat — you can get an accurate measurement of your pace and what you can do without guessing.”

“There’s no way that the first marathon you run should be your fastest. You should be getting faster each time and — if you’re not — you need to revisit what you’re doing.”

“If you’re thinking about running a marathon you need to have the passion first. If you’re going to spend hours-upon-hours every week training and be very, very tired, you’d want to love it.”

“Hill training makes you super strong. It’s better to train on a hill course where you roll over the top and down over the other side, rather than getting to the top, stopping and walking back down [the same way] — there’s no race where that happens!”

“If you’ve trained on hills and they’re in your race then you’re ready, but if they’re not, you’re stronger anyway. So train on hills!”

“Prevention is the key — I ran for 15 years and hardly missed a race and was never injured. I had a massage twice a week and would take my physio with me wherever I went [Steve would take him as his “plus one” to races all over the world].”

“I never took a rest day because I felt like I didn’t need one, but everyone is different. [When I was competing], the way I looked at it was if the guy over the other side of the world wasn’t taking a rest day then I was already putting myself at a disadvantage.”

Up coming races

The Four Vines Experience

The Four Vines Running Festival experience is running and weaving through four working vineyards, it’s sprinting up the finish straight and sipping wine as you cross the finish line, it’s about spending an afternoon in the sun with family and friends at the Finish Line Festival. It’s more than a run and in 2019 we’re also raising funds for the local Nagambie and Bailieston CFA brigades.

The Shepparton Travel & Cruise Marathon starts at Fowles Wine and weaves its way through Box Grove Vineyard, Mitchelton Wines, some quiet country roads and finishes at Tahbilk Winery.

The Nokkon Half Marathon starts and finishes at Tahbilk Winery and loops through Mitchelton Wines, while The Top Pub 10km, 5km and 2km Kids Run all start and finish on Tahbilk Winery. Your day just starts when you cross the finish line with one of the heaviest medals you’ll wear around your neck, sipping on something sparkling. There’s a whole morning and afternoon of the Finish Line Festival with a food and wine festival (yes, there’s beer too), live bands, and kids activities.

We look forward to welcoming you to the Four Vines Family. To register head to runfourvines.com

Click here for a filtered link to Victorian runs in the next 8 weeks

Magpie swooping times

Male magpies only swoop during mating season in spring due to a huge increase in testosterone where they become over protective dads. The mating season can vary from state to state but generally is between late August to late October, with the occasional borderline case.

We occasionally hear that some people are continually plagued by a particular bird throughout the year but this is very rare. Dog walkers tend to be targeted and you could speculate that it’s most likely down to the magpies fearing the dogs rather than the walkers due to some previous experience.