Jeff Galloway pioneered the popular run-walk-run training method and brought his workshop to Oro Valley in October, just before the Mt. Lemmon Marathon. All About Running and Walking hosted an open house with Galloway that allowed everyday runners to ask him questions. Looking relaxed and fit, he explains his theory and makes surprising recommendations about stretching.
“The average marathon improvement time is 13 minutes,” says Galloway of runners who have switched to his method. But his main goal is for everyone to enjoy the benefits of running, without pain and injury. That’s where the walking breaks come in. Runners run a certain time, then walk for a certain time. For example, the Galloway Group here in Tucson is using a run 1 minute/walk 30 seconds routine. For marathon pace based on minutes per mile, he provides a table on his website. For example, to run a nine minute mile pace, he recommends four minutes of running followed by one minute of walking. “Walk breaks early in the race help your legs conserve resources,” Galloway explains. “By shifting back and forth between walking and running muscles, you distribute the workload among a variety of muscles, increasing your overall performance.” Late in a race, walking breaks help reduce muscle breakdown from overuse.
Asked about the Mt. Lemmon Marathon, Galloway says it’s perfect for taking walking breaks. He calls the altitude and elevation gains “cruel and unusual,” but there’s hope. “The walk breaks give you resiliency, and let your muscles recover. If you use walk breaks in the beginning, you’ll be passing them in droves by the end,” he promises.
Peter Trefren of Oro Valley incorporated walk breaks into his run in the Mt. Lemmon Half-Marathon. It was his first ever race at this distance—13.1 miles. “By switching between running and walking I felt I was getting an invigorating workout without being overwhelmed,” Trefren explains. “Also I never felt the kinds of muscle tightening issues you typically get with distance events.” He credits the Galloway method for allowing him to complete this distance injury free and recover quickly. He recovered so quickly that he proclaims: “I now consider myself a distance runner and I'm looking forward more events.”
Bertha Rischar began running three years ago to get back into shape, she joined the local Galloway Group because she was new to the area. “It’s a wonderful way to meet new friends,” she says about the Saturday morning runs. She uses the Galloway method for injury prevention. She and other members of the group are training for Phoenix’s Rock-n-Roll Marathon in January. “We started in June, and we increase our Saturday long run mileage each week,” says Rischar. “In December, we’ll be running up to 26 miles on Saturday to get ready for the marathon distance.” Her goal: to finish her first marathon. In preparation, she ran Oro Valley’s Valley of Gold Half-marathon this past spring.
Galloway has other tips for runners: don’t run barefoot and don’t stretch. Galloway says barefoot running is a trend that “comes and goes once every ten years. In the ‘70s, it was Zola Budd, now it’s that Born to Run book.” He’s been running for 52 years, and thinks it’s dangerous for people to run long distances without running shoes, “It’s a demolition derby for your feet.” Not a surprising view coming from a man outfitted from head to toe in Mizuno-brand shoes and clothing. Even his laptop has a sticker from his sponsor.
More surprisingly, he doesn’t think stretching helps anyone. He had an attorney friend, who often testifies in athletic injury cases, search all medical and legal databases for evidence to support stretching. He learned that stretching is not proven to help running performance. In fact, Galloway claims, “it may increase the risk of injury for runners.” A recent report confirms Galloway’s theory; orthopedic surgeon Dan Pereles studied 3, 000 runners and found that static stretching does not prevent running injuries. National Public Radio recently featured these findings.
A frequent contributor to Runner’s World magazine, Jeff Galloway has trained both Olympians and beginners. The Oro Valley Galloway Group is just one of the 90 training groups in the U.S.; he also has two in Italy, and one in Japan. His best-selling books include Galloway’s Book on Running and Running and Fat Burning for Women. Check out his blog to ask him questions. You’ll be among the 100 or so people a day who seek his advice.
The Oro Valley Galloway Group runs every Saturday morning at River Front Park and welcomes newcomers. Check out their website that has the run schedule and training plans available for various distances.
Comments