Hereโs your free but abridged version of this weekโs โRun Long, Run Healthyโ newsletter. Subscribe below to receive the complete, full-text edition with the newest and most authoritative scientific articles on training, nutrition, shoes, injury prevention, and motivation.
Rethink Your Week: Benefits Of A Non-7-Day Training Cycle

Itโs hard not to live your life by the calendar. After all, we mostly work on certain days of the week, skip the job on certain days, follow our religious beliefs on specified days, and so forth.
On the other hand, itโs not written anywhere that the perfect training week is exactly seven days long. In fact, a short training cycle might tempt you to cram in too much.
Letโs see: Gotta go long. Gotta do a tempo day. Gotta set aside a day for speedwork.
In a 7-day cycle, that doesnโt leave much time for recovery, adaptation, cross-training, strength training, and, oh, yeah, having a life.
At the Reddit โAdvanced Runningโ forum, several members discussed their personal explorations of non-7-day cycles. โItโs beneficial if you feel like you’re not bouncing back fast enough between workouts and long runs,โ noted one.
Another wrote: โFourteen days has been a life changer for me at 41 years old. Every two weeks, I do a long run, a tempo run, a short interval run, and a longer interval run.โ Thatโs a powerful training diet that works out to two hard days per week on a 14-day rotation.
A third commenter pointed out the harmonious rhythm of a 9-day cycle. โEasy, Easy, Workout, Easy, Easy, Workout, Easy, Easy, Long Run. Repeat.โ
Iโm unaware of any scientific research on this important โcycleโ question. But Iโm sure itโs worth trying different plans, especially if you often feel overly fatigued on your current training cycle. More at Reddit Advanced Running.โ
RELATED ARTICLE: Reverse Periodization For Improving Sports Performance
The Truth About Exercise & Weight Loss
This remains a key question because overweight and obesity are still persistent health issues in the U.S. and around the globe. Sure, you read new stories every day about people losing significant weight with the help of those amazing new GLP-1 drugs (that often cost $1000/month or more.) Still, in the U.S. about 70 percent of the adult population is overweight or obese.โ
We all know too many people, including family and friends, in this category. Theyโd be better off carrying fewer pounds, and many are already trying.
But losing weight and keeping it off is incredibly difficult. We live in an โobesogenic environmentโ surrounded by food, and there are all sorts of โcompensationโ mechanisms that need to be overcome.
Here Dr. Scott Lear reviews the evidence and argues for โa combination of both diet and exerciseโ to lose weight.
A key point: Even if you donโt lose as much weight as youโd like, โExercising and being active has so many other benefits to reduce your risk for diabetes, cancer, heart disease, osteoporosis, stress and improve your mental well-being.โ
We should view exercise as its own reward. The bathroom scale isnโt the only important gauge. Exercise will make you feel better, look better, and improve your health. If it also helps you lose a few pounds, thatโs a nice bonus. More at Dr. Scott Lear. โ
A recent โBrief Communicationโ in Nature makes many similar points. It argues that โrecognizing the broad value of physical activity/exercise in improving health and quality of life of people with obesity is a crucial perspective shift.โ More at Nature.โ
RELATED ARTICLE:ย Do Runners Live Longer? Up To 12 Years, According to New Research
Masters Runners: Beware Of โHidden Hypertensionโ
Regular aerobic exercise like running lowers your risk of heart disease but provides no bullet-proof guarantees. The same is true about hypertension (high blood pressure), a health concern many runners overlook.
This paper observes that โArterial hypertension, defined as a blood pressure valueโฅ 140/90 mmHg, is one of the most common chronic diseases in the general population and also in master athletes.โ
The article also argues that masters athletes need to become more aware of โhidden hypertensionโ and how to โprevent its consequences.โ Early detection is critical. Hidden hypertension is high blood pressure that doesnโt show up in the doctorโs office but perhaps at home, at work, or during workouts when stress levels increase.
The first step: โLifestyle changes such as healthy diet and body mass reduction.โ Increasing the antioxidant foods (fruits and veggies) in your diet can lower blood pressure. But avoid anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), as they may increase blood pressure.
If your blood pressure registers higher than 160/100 on several occasions, itโs time for prescription medical treatment. Fortunately, several common meds reduce blood pressure without affecting athletic performance.
Conclusion: โRaising awareness of the [hypertension] risk factors is essential in preventing an increasing number of hypertensive patients.โ
More at Reviews inย Cardiovascular Medicineย with free full text.โ
SHORT STUFF You Donโt Want To Miss
HEREโS WHAT ELSE YOU WOULD HAVE RECEIVED this week if you were a subscriber to the complete, full-text edition of โRun Long, Run Healthy.โ SUBSCRIBE HERE.
- The Best New Racing Shoes This Fall
- Is Ashwagandha The Next Big Performance-Enhancing Supplement?
- Leaning Forward: Itโs Good At Times, Bad At Others
- Keto Diet Has โNo Disadvantagesโ For Runners; Could Help, Says David Roche
- New Squat Technique Boosts Quad Strength
- How Henry Rueden Has Managed To Finish 2000 Marathons
- Is Running Bad For Your Skin? (Could Be, So Take Protective Steps)
- A Motivational Quote From Eliud Kipchoge: The Power Of A Morning Run
Thatโs all for now. Thanks for reading. See you again next week. Amby