Mixed distance shuttle runs are a great way to improve your conditioning level.  If done properly, they can be much more efficient and effective than other kinds of cardiovascular training, and certainly are better than distance running, jogging or any kind of machine-based cardio.

Mixed distance shuttle runs should be an integral part of any team sport athlete’s training regimen, but the rest of us can benefit from utilizing this method of training, as well.  Rather than repeatedly running fixed distance shuttles, for instance a 60-yard shuttle utilizing a 15-yard course completed 4 times, a mixed distance shuttle workout consists of shuttles of different distances in the same workout.

A few weeks ago I posted an item about a 120-yard run.  Mixed distance shuttles are a great compliment to the 120-yard run workout.

Don’t try this workout if you haven’t been sprinting, running shuttles or doing agility drills, as it is a challenging high-intensity workout.  You have to be able to run at full effort for the duration of the shuttle, not just stroll or trot.  If you don’t run the shuttle at full – okay I’ll cut you a break – or near full effort, you won’t be getting the most out of the workout.  Now, I am prone to a bit of exaggeration and over-emphasize certain elements to get my point across, but it really is for your own good. I will admit that you can get a lot out of this workout if you start working at a substantially-less-than-full effort, but I admit to this only if you promise to progress and push yourself as you the workout gets easier.

Okay, so here’s your basic mixed distance shuttle run workout, 12 shuttles and a 1000-yard total distance.  Remember it’s a shuttle run, so you run the distance up and back to complete one shuttle. I’ve put the total yards run per shuttle in parenthesis for you.

• Run 10 (20y), 20 (40y), 30 (60y), 40 (80y) yards, for a total of 200 yards.
• Run 10 (20y), 15 (30y), 25 (50y), 40 (80y), 60 (120y) for a total of 300 yards.
• Run 70 (140y), 80 (160y) 100 (200y) for a total of 500 yards.

Just as important as working hard, it’s vital that you have proper rest periods in between shuttles.  In the business we call it the “work-to-rest ratio,” and we determine the appropriate rest in response to a given effort.  More precisely, for every second of work¸ there is an appropriate amount of rest.  For beginners trying the mixed distance shuttle run workout for the first time, the work to rest ratio should be as high as 1:8.

For the sports teams and competitive athletes that I work with the ratio can be as low as 1:3.  For regular folks like you and me, completing this workout with a 1:5 work-to-rest is great, providing the work is done at full to near-full effort.  Jogging 20-yards and back in 12 seconds and resting for a minute before continuing doesn’t cut it.

This workout can serve as the starting point for you and you can make up your own shuttle combinations.  Mix the distances up in any way you wish and even use a mixed work-to-rest ratio, as well.  For the shorter shuttle you can use a lower work-to-rest and use a higher ratio for the longer shuttles.  There is no limit to the ways you can used mixed distance shuttle runs to improve your fitness and capability level.

The weather is getting nicer, so get off the treadmill, Stair Master, stationary bike and elliptical trainer and get outside where you can actually move the human body the way it’s meant to move.  If your goal is to get in great shape so that you can give yourself the chance to look your best, give this sprinting/running routine a try.

Sprinting and agility drills can help you get into better, functional shape than performing any other kind of running drills. However, if you’ve spent a winter working out on cardiovascular equipment or have never really sprinted properly before, you can’t just go out on the first nice spring day and go 100%; you won’t get much out of the workout and could hurt yourself, to boot.

Follow this simple, but effective program and you will be taking a positive step towards turning yourself into a lean, mean, sprinting machine.  From a preparation standpoint, jog a lap, do some stretching and perform 4 or 5 30-yard stride outs.  Stride outs are a running drill where you utilize a slightly exaggerated running stride – it’s a sub-maximal speed sprint where you put a little extra bounce in your step.

I call this workout, “The 120-Yard Run.”  It’s about as simple as you can get.  Run 120-yards in 20-seconds and rest for 60-seconds and repeat pattern 5 times the first week, 7 times the second week and 8 times the third week.  This is a variation of a routine that I use to condition the teams I work with and is a very effective way to improve your fitness level.

When mixed with a shuttle-run and shorter distance sprint workout, “The 120-Yard Run” will get you in top shape quicker than any other kind of running routine.  And you will be functionally fit, as well.

“The 120-Yard Run” is just a part of an overall, sprint/shuttle run/agility program that will do much more to improve your conditioning in a fraction of the time it takes to complete a traditional, low-intensity/high-volume aerobic workout.   Sprinting also puts much less stress on your joints and connective tissue because you are literally taking a fraction of the strides in a sprint workout that are required to complete a jogging/distance running workout.  Running produces impact forces on your body equal to three times your body weight, and a jogger will take upwards of 120 strides per minute.  If you do the math – body weight x strides taken/per minute x total minutes – you will find jogging puts an astronomical amount of potentially damaging stress on the body.

Over the next few weeks, as we enter spring and – hopefully – great weather, I will post details about the other elements in this program so you can get a head start on getting into great shape as we head into the summer.

Swimming is hands down the best form of cardiovascular exercise and getting into the pool is the single best change that you can make to your exercise routine.

Unlike jogging or any form of machine-based cardio exercise, swimming places no impact force on the joints and connective tissue, and is an incredibly efficient, total-body exercise.  You don’t need to spend hours in the pool every week in order to reap the benefits from swimming, as 20-minutes once or twice per week will do the trick.

The reason more people don’t swim is that it’s difficult, it takes effort.  Unlike the Stairmaster, treadmill or any of the most popular forms of cardiovascular exercise, swimming is tough.  Machine-based forms of cardio are popular because they are easy.  As a matter of fact, any exercise that is unpopular – especially in a big, open gym setting – is usually more difficult, and as a result more effective, than the less popular options.

For example, in most “big box” gyms there are literally tons of leg machines (leg press, leg extension, leg curl, etc.) but usually only a few squat racks, and these racks are rarely used for squats.  At the big box gym I belong to there are hundreds of treadmills and Stairmasters, but only 2 Concept 2 rowing machines.

It seems like everyone jogs and “climbs stairs” – even the people who wait to park their cars in the parking spaces closest to the entrance – but nobody sprints or does running and agility drills.

Translation; walking (except from their car) and stepping are easy, sprinting and rowing is tough.

I’ve written about my love/hate relationship with swimming, and it continues until this very moment (as I write this I’m about to head out for my weekly swim).  To sum up, I hate swimming, but love having swum.   On a winter’s day it takes an effort to get my butt off of my nice, comfy easy chair, out into the cold and into the pool, where there’s nothing to lean against or hold onto.  You can’t watch TV, although I can listen to music thanks to my waterproof IPod case.  But I swim because I love what it does for me.

So next time you’re wondering about what you can do to improve your workout routine, look no further than the pool and start swimming.

We’ve had some nice fall weather over the past few weeks here in New Jersey and that means joggers are out in force.  It’s very similar to what happens when spring springs and the first batch of 70 degree sunny days show up after a long, ugly winter; joggers take to the roadways and sidewalks en masse.

The problem is that most people are what I call, “Ugly Joggers.” Now don’t jump to conclusions – especially you, Marianne – as I’m not talking about a person’s looks, but rather their running “form,” and by using “form,” I’m being very kind.

Over the past week or so I’ve seen at least 40 joggers, but only 2 or 3 could be considered to be running with proper form.  The form breaks run the gamut; short stride length, no hip extension, improper (or no) arm swing, leg drag, valgus and varus, limp.  Think of a flaw and you’ll see it when Ugly Joggers are in season.

Do yourself a favor and stop jogging.  Get exercise, but leave the jogging and running to the real runners – no offense.  If you want to go out and pound your skeletal system into powder at least seek out an expert that can teach you how to run.

I find it funny when people ask me what they can do to improve their cardiovascular fitness and I tell them to swim, and they tell me, “Oh I don’t want to swim, what else can I do?” I get the same kind of response from folks who want to know how to improve their distance running, like they can’t be bothered to do the right thing.  As if it’s an insult to be told that they need to learn how to do something as simple as running.

Actually, running properly is difficult for most people, even athletes.  I spend a lot of time teaching high school and college athletes how to run properly and correcting their form.  Show me 100 high school athletes and I’ll show you 95 kids who don’t know how to run. And for adults the percentages would be even worse.

So if you aren’t jogging the right way, don’t do it at all. Go for a brisk walk, do calisthenics, or take a swim, but lay off the jogging.  When you consider that each step of running places a force on your joints up to 3 times body weight, your body will thank you for exploring low-intensity/low-impact options.

I’ll probably annoy some people by saying this – so what else is new? – but I think there are few things that are more destructive than long-distance running.  If you can stand the truth, keep reading.

The running/jogging craze was a major fitness phenomenon of the 20^th Century, and running is still “da bomb” for tons of people as we sit here in 2009.  As the jogging generation has aged and they have become hobbled and hamstrung by overuse/over-training injuries that result from the years of pounding.

Furthermore, running has created a whole bunch of people who are physically “one-dimensional.”

Check out the crew at any local track.  How many older, healthy joggers do you know?  When you do find an older jogger they usually look older than they are and run with an altered, ungainly gait brought.  These folks are the lucky ones, as they at least are still able to run.

I have extensive experience working with runners who have done nothing but run.  As a result I have coined a phrase to describe the hard-core runner, “functionally unfit” or an “FU.” People who do nothing but lift weights also fall into this category, but I’ll talk about them at a later date.

A “functionally unfit” jogger is someone who has regularly participated in road races, consistently logs heavy-duty weekly mileage, has little if any flexibility and little strength to boot.

An “FU” can’t do a calisthenics circuit, sprints, shuttle runs or agility drills.  When I get my hands on a jogger who claims to be in great shape because they run 3 miles, but can’t complete ten body weight squats, ten push-ups and/or a pull-up, I tell them “FU.”

To a runner who suffers from stress fractures, tendonitis, feet problems, back ailments, joint issues and/or shin splints, I say “FU.”

To serve as a contrast to “the runner,” I submit “the swimmer.”  The hardcore swimmer of the same age will look healthier, have less in the way of nagging ailments, and will be able to do what they do longer and better.

The swimmers that I have encountered are hearty, have great muscle tone, posture and endurance.  They are lean, not gaunt.  They are capable and not frail.  They are quicker to improve with resistance training, since the swimmer doesn’t have the litany of nagging ailments to deal with and work around.

With the “blame everyone else” mentality that has given us the suits against fast-food providers, will it be long before the anti-running movement picks up steam and lawsuits are filed against sneaker makers?  Will those who have had joints replaced because they ran countless miles sue Nike and Brooks and New Balance?  Will shoemakers be blamed for promoting an activity that undoubtedly led to countless, painful injuries?  How many people have been motivated to run, and run a lot, by the Nike advertising campaigns?  You may laugh and think that I am exaggerating, but stranger things have happened.

Don’t agree with me?  FU!

If you make exercise a regular part of your daily routine it’s only natural that you’d want to continue to do so. However, use the occasion of getting away from home as an opportunity to change your exercise routine.

When you spend a lot of time exercising – at a gym, at home, distance running or biking – use vacation as a time to throw yourself a change up and do something different.  Our bodies adapt to stimulus quite easily, so to use a completely different exercise program for a week or two is a great way to avoid mental and physical training plateaus.

At the beach, leave your sneakers and distance running mentality at home, and do sprints and/or shuttle runs barefoot in the sand.  Throw in some calisthenics and you have an almost endless supply of vacation workout options.  If possible, take a pair of dumbbells or two, a Kettlebell or other piece of training gear and mix a few basic exercises in with sprint/agility drills on the sand, and you’ll probably get a better workout than you are used to.

The key is to stay out of the gym, whether you’re going to a rental house or resort, take a break from the indoor, traditional structured workouts whenever possible.  Certainly there’s nothing wrong with exercising while on vacation, and looking forward to doing so, but don’t let exercise dominate your plans while vacationing.

Taking time off from regular exercise when healthy is a good thing and in the long run helps progress and is important for recovery.  Time off from exercise because of an illness or injury does not offer the same benefits.  If you don’t take a break from training a couple of times per year you’ll have a greater chance of suffering from overtraining syndrome, mental burn-out or injury, which sets you back.

Well-timed breaks from your regular exercise routine will not set you back, but will help you progress.  So next time you go on vacation, give your regular workout routine a vacation, as well.

Shuttle runs are a great method of high-intensity cardiovascular exercise and are the most efficient and effective way to improve your fitness level.

For years athletes have been using shuttle runs to improve their conditioning level, as this kind of conditioning reproduces conditions that athletes contend with during competition.  Regardless of what sport you play, and especially if you aren’t active in athletics, shuttle runs give you the most bang for your exercise buck.

Shuttle runs can be performed just about anyplace providing you have at least a 10-12 yard area of relatively flat, even space.  These conditioning drills can be done inside, in your yard, at the beach, on a basketball court and – of course – on a lined field.  I’ve done them in hallways in schools, at the water’s edge by the ocean, on tennis courts and in my backyard, driveway and the street in front of my house.

The set-up is simple; pace of 8-15-yards and mark the area so you are aware of the start and finish line.  You don’t need to use cones, especially if you are doing the shuttles on a lined field, but can use anything from sticks, to disposable drinking cups and lines in the sand.

To perform the shuttles you sprint to each line, making sure one of your feet gets to the “line,” and use a side-shuffle step to change directions. Complete 4 “laps” of this course.  So if you’ve paced off 15-yards, run this course 4 times and you will have covered 60-yards. You don’t want to run past the line, slow down too early or get to the line and have to stop and completely turn around in order to change directions.

For as long as it takes you to complete the shuttle, your rest period should be 3 times as long.  So if it takes you 15-seconds to complete a 60-yard shuttle (a pretty good time if you’ve never done this before) you can rest for 45-seconds before starting your next set.  Following this formula, you can get a complete cardiovascular workout completed in 8-10 minutes.

Shuttle runs are a versatile, effective and efficient method of cardiovascular training that everyone can take advantage of.