Running: How to be Faster Than Yourself. A Little About Cadence

First off, let me say again, why I love running:

Yup. So... I have talked lots about healthy eating, and I totally believe in it. I believe in REAL food... and when I talk about treats, this is where it's at! Home made muffins, topped with home made smoked salmon, eggs from our friends chickens, hollandaise from scratch, and parsley and tomatoes from the garden. OMG. Hello Sunday long run, you were SO worth it!

I digress. My lunch was just too awesome not to talk about!

Running has something in it for everyone! The ultimate competitive/non-competitive sport where you can do your best to pretend you don't care what everyone else is doing, and yet race them at the same time. Every finish line is an accomplishment where you have managed to overcome yourself, and meet your goals- whether they be distance, speed, or just getting out the door.

I love running, for all that goes on in my mind. The thoughts about my family,  the clarity I need to face day to day problems, and the high I get after the first couple of miles (which leaves me to this imaginary scenario I often visualize where when I hop off the sidewalk, do a roundhouse kick like Jackie Chan, and people crash their cars because I look soo cool). I thank runner's high for leaving me with this distorted amazing self image!  In real life, I kind of trudge when I run and I am pretty sure that at times, I people wonder if it's actually a speed walk, but at least I am out there! You can read my previous blog post about Runner's High and why I think it's pretty special stuff.

Ok already: To the point! With running, there is always this part about speed. It's nice to think we don't care about how fast we are, but I think a good number of us are always looking to speed up. Not as fast as others, just faster than ourselves. Again, I love running because the competition can be against myself; no one has to know if I didn't succeed.

How DO we get faster? It's hard!! Small changes don't always add up they way that you hope they will. I wear my Garmin,  stalking my average pace all_the_time, and it's not always enough to light the fire under my butt I desire to quicken my stride just a little.

Currently training for a half marathon brings in all sorts of practical solutions you will hear in most running programs:

Tempo running  (check out the link for how it helps)

My personal favourite: Rocking with the Running Cadence!  (check out the link for what the heck it is)

Quick version (because I can read your mind, and you likely don't feel like clicking on the link): Cadence, is how many steps per minute you take while running. The neat thing about cadence, is we all have a similar optimal cadence, (if you believe the research), of 180 steps per minute. Crazy huh? It doesn't mean we'll all go the same pace, as your stride will be a different length than mine, but our feet will be pounding in unison. And pretty quickly too! Takes some getting used to.

I actually LOVE running this way. It's purpose helps achieve optimal stride length and ultimately get a little faster. Amazing stuff really. It's pretty cool to feel your feet going so quickly beneath you. Makes me feel light!

There is also some hidden motivation in Cadence running: MUSIC!

If you know me personally, and know me well, you probably just rolled your eyes because most of the music I listen to is NOT on your playlist. I am a bit of a music nut. Inside my mom-ly, plain, pretty even keel exterior lives a bit of a rock and roll (ok, heavy rock and roll) loving 80's girl.  Ask my husband... here is a picture of the last concert we attended together! My cadence playlist is loaded with Metallica, Clutch, and others that fall under the same heading.

Regardless, Cadence does not require you to like any particular genre of music, it just means you might build a kick ass playlist that will help you to stick to a running pace and shorten/lengthen your stride to improve your running technique and maybe even your time.

I encourage you to try it and tell me what you think! How you feel! Try a short run this way and see what happens.

Here is a fancy little article that tells you how it works, and why 180 bpm may be the magic number.

I run at 180 bmp (or a 90bpm if you count just one foot) and LOVE some of my music. Here are a few places you can find music sorted by BPM. There are many more to be had by doing an internet search. If you want, I will even personally go to the effort of typing up my playlist if someone wants to be lazy!
Look here to get started:

Rock my Run
JogTunes

It does take some time. I feel bodily differences in my knees and back, and (*gasp*).. I'm reaching for a goal time that I haven't seen in a half marathon since I was 23. At this point I am not sure I'll get there... but I'm going to be close, and it's exciting!
Maybe it will also have you doing kung fu as you cruise down the sidewalk! If nothing else, it gives you some good entertainment on your run and something else to focus on for a while. No harm in giving it a shot.
If you are thinking about taking up running, or kicking it up a notch, let me give you a little piece of friendly motivation: