Tag Archives: ChiRunning

Tips for Running Downhill

Posted on by by Lisa Pozzoni

….and My Story Runs On….

I can’t believe it’s been almost a month!  There have been so many opportunities to blog but not enough time to sit down and do it.  There has been a theme in my running life for the last few weeks though so I’m picking that as an opportunity to share some tips about it:  DOWNHILL RUNNING!

The best kind, right?!  So many people are afraid to let go or concerned about getting injured when running downhill but there are a few secrets to getting around it.  When I’m flying down a hill, I feel like a little kid, free as a bird, especially on a trail!  But trust me, it takes practice!

Here are a few ChiRunning tips for running downhill on road and trail (not a steep hill but an easy downhill):

  • Core must be engaged to hold you up.  Keep your upper body ahead of your foot strike.
  • Relax everything from the waist down, especially your quads and calves.  Let gravity pull you down the hill.
  • Let your pelvis rotate more. Feel the road bringing your leg back and feel your leg bringing your hip back.
  • Relax your ankles so you don’t land on your heel.  You may want to try pointing your toes as your leg swings forward to avoid heel striking.
  • Relax your mind. This is probably the hardest thing to do because most people tense up and are ‘afraid’ to let go in fear of falling. That tension is what causes more issues.  If you have control issues, this will require more work.  This is great practice in letting go physically (by relaxing as mentioned above) but more importantly, letting go mentally by not trying to control it but allowing the downhill to just take you. Trust it!

A few weeks ago I had the honor of doing at 10 mile trail run with Danny Dreyer (founder of ChiRunning) while he was teaching here in Phoenix.  He coached me a bit on my downhill technique (I basically need to learn to relax more!) but gave me one piece of advice that I love:

Be the water.  Think about next time you are going a trail.  If water were flowing down it, which way would gravity and energy take it?

Be the water flow

Be the water

And check out this 16 second video clip of Danny running down these boulders like they were not even there!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EtH9IqwPKFE&feature=youtu.be

What are you tips for running downhill?  Please share below!

This is one of my favorite DVDs from ChiRunning 😉

From My Running Story to Yours….
(if you feel inspired to share your comments, do so below…I want to hear your story too!)

You had me at pumpkin pie….and Coke (1st 50K recap)

Posted on by by Lisa Pozzoni

….and My Story Runs On….

WOW!  Where do I even begin? Another major goal achieved in My Running Story:  my first 50K. The most exciting part about this is that I feel like a baby learning a bunch of new things about trail and ultra running….it Continue Reading →


How I shaved 13 minutes off my marathon time…

Posted on by by Lisa Pozzoni

….and My Story Runs On….

I’m on cloud 9 right now!  I can’t believe my time for the Sedona marathon.  I’m not a bragger and this is a bit uncomfortable for me but feeling pretty proud of myself considering the difficulty of this course! Continue Reading →


Execution plan for marathon #5

Posted on by by Lisa Pozzoni

….and My Story Runs On….

Saturday 2/1, I will run my 5th marathon.  Remember, I swore that I would never run a half marathon but apparently I’m addicted to running now.

I did the Pf Changs Rock N Roll marathon a few weeks ago with my friends and blogged about it here.

Saturday’s Sedona Marathon is for me, so to speak.  Ironically it’s just another training run before my first 50K race on 2/22.  I already had it in my head that it might take me 6 hours to complete it due to the hills. I remember when I did the half last year, it was longer than my “regular” time.

But today, I looked up my half marathon time from last year (2:30) and my PR on my last full marathon was 5:12 (The Lost Dutchman last year which is also hilly but doesn’t have the elevation of Sedona).

So now I’m trying to come up with a game plan for Sunday and here it goes:

  • I’ve already been carbing up and drinking lots of water to get hydrated.
  • I’m taking the 2 days before the race off of running to rest my legs and body for Sunday.
  • I’ve been doing a little extra stretching, foam rolling and leg drains.
  • I’ll listen to my new hypnosis session from Dr. John at Peak Performance Online a few times.
  • My new goal now (after reviewing my stats from last year) is have a PR at this race, which means at least 5:11.  I hesitate to put this in writing however between all the trail running and conditioning I’ve been doing in the last year, I feel it’s a realistic goal.  I also found out that half the course is dirt which I’m very excited about it!
  • Last but not least, even though I have that goal, I’m detached from the outcome. This is a skill I learned through my 7 Laws of Spiritual Success meditations.  The Law of Detachment basically means that I’m not attached to this goal. I want to achieve it but by allowing myself to accept uncertainty in this situation, I won’t “worry” about it and have that negative energy weighing me down.

So, I’m heading up to Sedona with my friends and boyfriend today.

Tomorrow I’ll focus on my ChiRunning technique (use my app if I need some help so I don’t have to think about my Form Focuses), and have music available if necessary but I know the gorgeous views will keep me occupied.

Before I started this blog, I googled quotes on “execution”.  Love this one from Dr. Wayne Dyer; it’s perfect for Saturday and really any other situation in life as he says:

Great quote to apply to anything in life!

Great quote to apply to anything in life!

 

What do you do when you are getting ready for a race?  How do you prepare mentally?

From My Running Story to Yours….
(if you feel inspired to share your comments, do so below…I want to hear your story too!)

My Slowest Marathon ever….

Posted on by by Lisa Pozzoni

….yet one of my most momentous.

As a runner (or coach) have you ever been in the situation where you had to make a choice on how to run a race:

Do I run this race for me?  
OR
Do I run this race with my friends?

Let me preface this blog by saying I really would love to get your comments below if you’ve been in this situation. I believe it’s a hard choice to make and I’d like to know how you’ve made your decisions in the past so we can learn from each other.

I originally signed up for the Pf Changs Rock N Roll Marathon to run it with a friend who was planning on doing her first marathon.  My plan was to run the Sedona Marathon on 2/1/14 so it would be another training run (along with my 50K on 2/22 now).  My friend realized she was not ready for it and decided to do the half instead (which I told her was a great call on her part, so long as she was making that choice consciously and would not be mad at herself for changing her plan).

In the mean time, I had 5 of my friends/students running their first marathon at this event.  So here I was faced with “dilemma” of what to do?  Do I run this race for me or do I run it with friends?   As I deliberated, here were the questions that ran through my head:

Q.  Why are you running this marathon?  Honestly, for me it was another training run.  It’s marathon #4 and since I’am working on 2 other distance events, my reason was to get a long run in at a race.  I try to plan it this way if it works with the training schedule. Even if I’m paying for this training run/race, I get a new t-shirt, a medal and race experience.

Q.  Do you care how fast you complete this marathon?  Speed is rarely a concern for me.  Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy pushing myself and beating my own personal records (PR) but sometimes it’s just not about speed but the experience. The Women’s Half marathon for example is usually my PR race for a half so that decision is always made to run it for myself.

Q. Do I care that the official records will show my marathon results and everyone else will know my speed?  Hell no….Again, there are times where this is just not relevant, especially as a coach.  And personally I’ve worked a lot on not caring what other people think 😉 (It’s very liberating…of course I value other people’s opinion but learning to detach from their opinion is another story…)

So as I pondered over this, one of my friends asked me if I would run the marathon with them.  I knew this was going to be my slowest group but also the group that “needed” me the most.  Based on the responses above that of course I would love to run with them as they complete their first marathon (a coach’s dream would be to cross the finish line with all their students but that can’t always be possible either).

So we start the race together and one of my friends starts having some serious pain in her hip.  The others wanted to keep moving so I decided to stay with her and help her get through it.  My heart ached for her.  The pain was persistent.   She was such a trooper. We walked as fast as her hip would allow her…at one point we turned around and realized we were the last 2 people in the race…sag wagon right behind us….As much as I knew I could mentally get her to the end, I know her hip was not going to make it and I didn’t want her to push her body to the point of not being able to run ever again.  We talked and pondered and she finally made the decision to get in the sag wagon.  After months of training and excitement to complete her first marathon, I can’t even imagine how hard of a decision that was for her. I have a huge amount of respect for her determination and perseverance and I would’ve made the same call if I were in her shoes.

At this point I thought I would start running and find the rest of the group. I selfishly admit that I loved every minute of the run.  My other friend called me and asked me where I was and we realized that I was about a quarter of a mile away from them so I sped up to catch up.

Let me preface that this friend was pretty much coerced into running the marathon. She was planning on the half but just started training with our group and before you know it, she’s sucked into doing a full marathon. When I reached the two of them, one wanted to run and the other was not feeling too hot and just wanted to walk.  At that point, I knew who needed me the most (we were half way done so still 13 more miles to go).

I did the same things that I did for my other friend: remind them of their ChiRunning/ChiWalking form focuses, stay positive, gather energy from nature and all the spectators cheering, and talk about things to keep their mind off the time.

We pretty much walked that last 13 miles and my official time was 6:17:10.  My best time was a 5:12:01.

Do I care that I was over an hour longer than my first one?  HELL NO!  

Was experiencing two amazing women give it all they had in their heart and their body worth it?  HELL YES!

So how have you dealt with this dilemma? If the answers to my question above were different, I would’ve had no problem running the race for me either.  My friends felt “bad” because they knew I could run faster.  I told them it was an absolute conscious choice and that if I wanted to PR the race and run, I would’ve made that decision.

Looking back to yesterday, I wouldn’t change a thing….

Here we go...

Here we go…

6:17 finish and Ann completes her first marathon

6:17 finish and Ann completes her first marathon

26.2 miles done!

26.2 miles done!

Great caption from the ChiMarathon book

Great caption from the ChiMarathon book

Another medal for the collection...

Another medal for the collection…

Adventures of my 50KM training

Posted on by by Lisa Pozzoni

….and My Story Runs On….

I never thought My Running Story would take me this route….remember, I said I would never do a half marathon and now I’m tackling my first 50Km on trail.  Scared yet really excited at the same time.  I decided to do this 50KM now because I already have marathon #4 on 1/19 (Pf Changs Rock and Roll) and marathon #5 on 2/1 (Sedona Marathon)…..seems like the right time to add a few more miles while I’m training for these….ironically now these marathons have become training runs for my 50KM.

This last weekend I did an 11 mile training run on the Sedona Marathon course (hills and elevation training) and then did the XTerra 20K race at White Tanks on Sunday (ChiRunning hills and trails training).   The scenery was gorgeous on both (pics below).

Here are a few of my AHA moments:

  • I’m learning to enjoy the recovery process as part of my journey.  Usually I don’t like to take the time to foam roll, do leg drains (more on these in another post), hot baths, etc.  It used to feel like a chore.  Recently I’ve discovered how important this process is, especially when doing these distances and back to back long runs.  I can feel a noticeable difference when I do these and since I prefer not to be sore, I realized this is just part of the training process now.
  • The reason for back to back long runs is to get used to running on tired legs.  I’ve been feeling this the last few weekends for sure.  I described it to my boyfriend: “It’s like my legs are heavy and just dangling from my hips.”  But since I was doing hills all weekend, I felt my core as well;  I’ve never felt my core this fatigued.  In ChiRunning, core muscles do most of the work so legs don’t have to.  I do feel it on long runs but it felt like I had done an ab workout and feeling the effects the next day.
  • Upper body, mainly neck area was sorer than normal too. I try hard to focus on using my eyes to look ahead rather than looking down at the trail (which puts pressure on your cervical spine when constantly looking down).  This is clearly why the training is important so I can be aware of what my body wants to do but also work on improving my form in these areas.
  • Last but not least, I realize that nutrition is going to be a bigger piece of the pie.  I follow my intuition when fueling and I’m kind of anal about electrolytes (I don’t like Gatorade or any products that have high sugar content, or chemicals like red dye #40 , etc).  I love the Honey Stinger products and recently started using salt pills as well.  Now I’m on a mission to learn how to fuel the week and days before my longer runs.  I’m looking forward to learning some more hear. One of my friends recommended these 2 books which I’m planning on purchasing: The Feed Zone Cookbook and Feed Zone Portables.

Any advice or feedback to share based on your experience?  Comment below and let me know…

Here are a few photos from the weekend along with my training plan 😉 (click on them to increase size)

White rows are plan, blue is my actual mileage and the green are miles on trails. Having to make some adjustments as I approach PF Changs marathon weekend.

White rows are plan, blue is my actual mileage and the green are miles on trails. Having to make some adjustments as I approach PF Changs marathon weekend.

Training run in Sedona...GORGEOUS views...and elevation and hills ;)

Training run in Sedona…GORGEOUS views…and elevation and hills 😉

6 miles of grueling uphill...not sure if you can see the little people on the switchbacks...

6 miles of grueling uphill…not sure if you can see the little people on the switchbacks…

At least when there is an uphill, there is a downhill too!

At least when there is an uphill, there is a downhill too! (White Tanks XTerra 20K)

From My Running Story to Yours….
(if you feel inspired to share your comments, do so below…I want to hear your story too!)

Until death do us part?!

Posted on by by Lisa Pozzoni

….and My Story Runs On….

I, Lisa Pozzoni, take you, THE TRAIL, to be my partner. I promise to be true to you in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health. I will love you and honor you all the days of my life.

OK, so this might be a bit of an exaggeration but I had one of those weekends of “soul” growth (as I call it) and needed a few days to put my thoughts into words….it still amazes me that I hated running and swore I would never do a half marathon and now….I’m entering an entire new realm in the running world.

Due to my 50KM training plan, I ran a total of 28.5 miles in 2 days. Although I have AHA moments all the time, several things happened in these few days that created a shift in my soul that I just had to share with you.

1.  I continue to discover how running, more specifically ChiRunning, is an art.  Due to my practicing of this “art”, I have accomplished things I never thought possible.  Learning is also an art.  Sadly, I’ve met some people that think they know everything about a subject and are not open to other possibilities.  Keep learning, keep practicing and be vulnerable.  Which brings me to bullet point #2….

Practice

2.  Be open to learning.  On Sunday, I ran 18 miles with my friends in the morning for marathon/50KM training. That night I decided to go visit some friends who were part of the Across The Years race.  Have you heard of this?  I thought it was completely insane!  You can sign up for 24 hours, 48, 72 or 6 days and complete a 1 mile course as many times as you can or want to in that time frame (you have tent or RV, can you can some and go as you please on the course. You can take breaks, hang out with friends, etc. Basically you against the clock.)  After walking a few miles with my friends, watching an 80 year old and 8 year old completing as many miles as they could/wanted to to reach a personal goal, it all made sense to me.  This type of footrace was completely foreign to me and even though I was so tired that evening after the 18 miles, I drove across town to see my friends and find out what this race was all about.  So glad I made that choice because it just confirmed that everyone has their own Running Story and can write it anyway they choose.  I thought these people were crazy until I literally walked a few miles in their shoes….and who knows?  maybe My Running Story will take me to this race some day.

3.  The teacher is also the student.  I’ve always known this because I love to learn so I can be a better teacher.  Because of this,  My Running Story is taking a turn in 2014 and I’m ready to be a student.  I love this feeling of being in new territory…of being the “baby” and eager to learn this new realm of trail running but more specifically ultra running. There is such a big world out there and no matter how much you know, always be open to learning from others and yourself.

learn forever

What are your 2014 running goals?  Are you embarking in any new territory next year?

From My Running Story to Yours….
(if you feel inspired to share your comments, do so below…I want to hear your story too!)

Hello, my name is Lisa and I’m an addict….

Posted on by by Lisa Pozzoni

….and My Story Runs On….

I remember several years ago when I was an avid hiker and I’d see people running on the trails and  I’d think: “Are these people crazy? What’s wrong with them?  They’re going to freakin’ hurt themselves!   Continue Reading →


“Free your mind….

Posted on by by Lisa Pozzoni

….and My Story Runs On….

and the rest will follow.”  Anyone remember that En Vogue song from 1992?  This post has nothing to do with the song other than the fact that when I freed my mind about this race, everything really did just follow…. Continue Reading →


The Youngest ChiRunners I’ve ever met!

Posted on by by Lisa Pozzoni

….and My Story Runs On….

Happy Runner Girls!

Happy Runner Girls!

Last weekend I had the amazing opportunity to assist Danny Dreyer, the creator of ChiRunning, at his workshop in Houston. As much as I want to rave about that experience, I need to talk about the fastest,  youngest and cutest endurance runners in the county:  Kaytlynn and Heather Welsch.

I was registering participants as they were arriving at the workshop and these 2 little girls appear before me with their Dad.  A guy behind them immediately said, “Oh, I know these girls, they are famous.”  I asked if they were twins and they said no.  But quickly told me that they shared the same birthday, just not the same year.  They immediately took their seats and I was amazed that a 11 and 13 year old could not only follow the material (some of the ChiRunning concepts are hard for adults to follow!), but you can tell they were totally into it.

At one point, Danny said: “let’s go outside and start practicing”.  I happened to be looking over at them and they had huge smiles on their faces, like someone just told them they would get free chocolate for the rest of their life.  It was OBVIOUS to me that these girls love to run.  Watching them run was an enlightening experience.  We always say that children have natural running form because they haven’t had the posture issues that we get as adults, and although they have a few things to work on from a ChiRunning technique perspective, they had a beautiful gait and form.  It was OBVIOUS again by the smiles on their faces that they were eager to learn but enjoyed running.  They were just gliding around the tennis court lapping the adults, happy as can be.

Of course, when I arrived home, I had to google their names to see what I could find on them.  And lo and behold, there is quite a bit of controversy around them.

These girls are amazing athletes.  They’ve both completed over 100 endurance races, mainly half- and full- marathon distance trail runs at an average pace of 6:23/mile!  Last year, Kaytlynn won the XTerra won the women’s field to become the youngest ever champion of an XTERRA trail half-marathon, placing 11th overall with a time of 1:39:31 (only 10 men were ahead of her!).

I do not have children, only nieces and a nephew so I was interested in reading the various controversial blog posts that were out there:

Of course the controversy is about their age and whether it’s appropriate they are racing this hard at their age. I also found this great video clip from Rock Center with Brian Williams: http://rockcenter.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/02/07/16883813-too-fast-tween-sisters-log-miles-in-endurance-runs that I really enjoyed.

So what’s my opinion? Well, for starters, since they are clearly using the ChiRunning technique which promotes injury-free running, they are on the right path!

After watching the video and reading the blogs,  it seems to me that their parents are doing the right things for them and taking all the right precautions by getting them regular check ups with doctors.  I imagine that parents know their own children more than anyone.

Bottom line for me?

They love to run, they are enjoying it, they are using an injury-free technique and are supervised by their doctors….so who am I to judge them?  Run free and happy and I’m sure we’ll see these girls in the Olympics some day!  I’m just honored to have met them and be inspired by their passion for running.

What are your thoughts?

From My Running Story to Yours…. (if you feel inspired to share your comments, do so below…I want to hear your story too!)