by Nick Carling

By now if you have been doing everything properly, you should find yourself starting to run a little faster despite still using the same heart rate or effort level.

This is a great sign your aerobic (endurance) abilities are improving. As you train at this level, the body looks for better ways to burn fat. As it achieves this, energy production improves along with performance resulting in you running faster at the same heart rate.

For those who aren’t, don’t stress, there are many reasons why this may not occur.

Stress and diet play a huge role in our life. As an athlete, recovery is crucial and the best form of recovery is sleep, especially prior to 2am. For those who work long hours or don’t get a good 8-9 hours of sleep a night, stress hormones rise altering performance.

Diet also plays a big part in providing the energy we need for performance. Most important is a hormone known as insulin. Insulin converts the carbohydrate, or sugar, you eat into energy for use and into fat for later use. High insulin levels create fatigue and decrease performance.

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Likewise, a healthy supply of vitamins and minerals is essential for energy development. Minerals such as iron, iodine and magnesium and vitamins such as B5 are the cornerstone of energy production.

To obtain this we need a diet high in vegetables, fruits and healthy quality protein. Foods such as Kale, Spinach and broccoli are great sources of vital minerals whilst proteins such as eggs, grass fed beef and sweetener free whey protein are fantastic sources of protein.

Be cautious of refined sugars and alcohols that can deplete the system of these important vitamins and minerals and raise your insulin levels. Keep these substances as treats and limit their intake to once or twice a week at moderate levels.