England Athletics and Virtual Training
In view of government guidance, England Athletics has suspended all athletics activity in England to the 31 May. [Initially this had been agreed to the end of April]. This suspension includes all organised athletics activity in the UK, including all competitions, formal club activities, running groups, and all Education activity (coach, official, teacher).
However, we are being encouraged to exercise and so the coaches at Ealing Eagles are putting some thought into ways to keep people motivated.
Social Distancing and Covid 19 Etiquette
Remember: stay safe when running. Maintain a 2m social distance, be courteous to other people who may be running, cycling or walking in the same area, and avoid places you know will be busy. Try to avoid running in the road and pay attention to road crossings!
Here’s a lighthearted video from Blackheath & Bromley Harriers about how to run when social distancing
- some ideas relate to the personal circumstances of the runner and so you will need to work out how they relate to you
- other ideas relate to how runners interact with the people around them and so count as good running etiquette (guidelines which control the way a responsible individual should behave in society)
Please do be responsible when you are out running, particularly if you are wearing your club vest #dontlettheclubdown
Yoga and Strength Sessions on Zoom
Abi Yoga (Club Sponsor)
I hope you’re all doing OK in these strange times. I’ve moved my yoga classes online for the foreseeable future and I’d love you to come along to a session.
Yoga is physically beneficial in terms of giving the body a good stretch and a bit of gentle strengthening. Now perhaps more than ever it can also benefit us mentally too, providing a few moments of stability and calm at a time when so much around us has changed and continues to do so.
I’m running several classes each week, many of which make a great double with Hannah’s S&C sessions.
Monday
08.00-08.30 Morning Movement and Meditation
Tuesday
18.00-19.00 Slow Flow
Wednesday
08.00-08.30 Morning Movement and Meditation
19.00-20.00 (new time) Vinyasa Flow
Thursday
18.00.19.00 Slow Flow
Friday
08.00-09.00 Slow Flow
All classes are on a suggested donation basis (max £10). Please don’t hesitate to get in touch if you’d like to join a session, for more information on anything that I’m offering, with feedback on sessions you’ve been to, or with any general queries: abibarber1@gmail.com
Hannah Copeland Abs / Core Zoom Sessions
Strong core- stronger running! Stay strong at home or work with regular bodyweight core/ S&C exercises to reinforce your running/other training, wherever you are! Also great if you’re injured / coming back from injury and can do some basic core/back strengthening exercises.
All you need is space to hold a plank, swing your arms, do a lunge.
I’ve tried to schedule sessions to meet people’s timetable needs as follows, many of which make a great combo with Abi Barber’s lovely yoga sessions.
Monday
07:30-8.00 Core/Abs
Tuesday
07.30-8.00 Core/ Abs/Glutes
Wednesday
07.00-08.00 Runners’ Strength & Conditioning
17.30-18.00 Abs
Thursday
07:30-08:00 Core blimey
17:30-18:00 Glutes/Abs
Friday
07:15-07:45 Early bird Core/abs
Saturday
10:30 -11.30 Runners’ Strength & Conditioning (combining upper/lower/core)
It’s easy to find video abs sessions but can be more fun and encouraging to train with your team buddies!
Most sessions are bodyweight only, but if you have a resistance band and light dumbbells / improvised weights (full water bottles/large tins/packets of rice /weighted cloth bags) then have them ready too.
All classes are on a suggested donation basis. At present I am doing weekly 5 minute Kenyan plank variations-nominate 5 for NHS charities
As Abi also says, please do email/DM me for more info/ if you’d like to join a session, with feedback on any sessions you’ve already been or with any general queries: hannahcfenzi@gmail.com
Facebook Challenges
Eagles coaches are co-ordinating a number of challenges which work best if Eagles can upload photos directly onto facebook.
Rainbow Running
The idea is that you raid your kit drawer for 7 tops, one in every colour of the rainbow - red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet (and yes, I do say 'Richard of York Gave Battle in Vain' to remember the order but that might just be because I'm from right near Bosworth Battlefield...!). Take a picture of yourself in each colour top to share with your fellow Eagles and by the end of your 7 runs you'll be able to make a lovely cheerful collage showing you resplendent as a beautiful rainbow!
If you are not on facebook, you could still do this challenge yourself. If you want something to be uploaded into facebook to show your fellow Eagles that you are still running, please wait until you have completed the challenge and then email the completed collage of seven colours to coaching@ealingeagles.com
Strava art (also works on other platforms)
Strava Art is simply the route that your run 'draws' on Strava or other run logging platforms such as garmin or mapmyrun. We hope to set a new challenge each week and this section will be updated with each new challenge.
Top tips:
Go big, it matters less if you go slightly off track.
Either plan beforehand on a street map OR attempt it in a big open field.
Don't run under trees; you may lose your signal.
Challenges set so far
#RunForTheNHS. You've voted, you've clapped, now spell out your support for the NHS during these dark times!
Week one (w/c 19 Apr 20 - Draw any letter from the words EALING EAGLES
Week two (w/c 26 Apr 20) - Draw a mountain range
Week three (w/c 3 May 20) - Draw a cake (any cake of your choosing)
If you’re not on facebook but are making use of Strava or other run logging platforms, please do join in by drawing the routes as well.
1 Mile Lockdown Challenge for A Mile in Her Shoes – 2-9 May
Next Saturday 2 May would have been the 10th Ealing Eagles 10k race. But while you’re stuck indoors, lamenting the loss of yet another race in the calendar, spare a thought for people with nowhere safe or permanent to stay during the Coronavirus lockdown.
As well as runners missing out on the race itself, its cancellation means that women’s homelessness charity A Mile in Her Shoes – the club’s chosen charity for the year – will miss out on vital income that would have been donated from the race’s proceeds.
So, the club is challenging its members to get behind a very special event to support A Mile in Her Shoes: the 1 Mile Lockdown Challenge!
For more information, please go to the 10k page https://www.ealingeagles.com/10k or directly to the justgiving page https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/1milelockdownchallenge
Virtual Relays
England Athletics have been very helpful in providing Clubs with ideas of what other Clubs have successfully done in executing some Virtual Running Events to make Social Distance Running fun and help Runners to run with a little more of a sense of purpose whilst being virtually connected to other Runners in the Club.
So we would like to introduce a couple of Virtual Relay Events during May that will hopefully bring a bit of Fun to your running whilst also encouraging a little team spirit and providing a bit of purpose for your run. These events are set up so that Eagles not on facebook can take part if you are happy to supply your email address for the coaching co-ordinator, the event co-ordinator and the team captain.
For more information, please see the Virtual Relays article at https://www.ealingeagles.com/news/2020/4/24/virtual-relays
The Virtual Baton Relay co-ordinated by Michael Limpert will take place between 4th May – 14th May. The deadline for entering is Thursday 30th April (using the link in the Virtual Relays article) and we aim to post details of the Teams by Sunday 3rd May.
Not the Green Belt Relay co-ordinated by Rhiannon Williams will take place over the weekend of 16th and 17th May. Runners must express their interest by end of 9 May by completing a short form (see link in Virtual Relays article). Slots will be announced by 13 May at the latest.
Eagles Reboot
Not run for a while for whatever reason
- because of or even before lockdown?
Wondering how to get back into running again?
Eagles Reboot will be an opportunity for Eagles to encourage one another to get back to running starting from a very basic level and is for people who want to increase their running from 1k to 6k in 11 weeks.
Eagles Reset
Eagles Reset is for people who can't or don't want to run very far at the moment (perhaps the thought of covering more than one mile in reps around the garden feels a bit much) and aims simply to monitor and improve activity.
Piers’ Picture Trail Challenge
Piers Keenleyside has put together a picture trail challenge of 27 locations which can be taken as one challenge, two shorter challenges east and west of Ealing Broadway or a picture bingo concept for anyone who wants several outings to visit all the different locations. For more information, please see the article at https://www.ealingeagles.com/news/2020/5/3/piers-picture-trail-challenge
Piers’ Post Box Challenge
Piers Keenleyside has put together a challenge involving various post boxes around Ealing and all within a mile of Ealing Green. There are 38 boxes in total each worth 1 or 2 points. https://www.ealingeagles.com/news/2020/5/14/piers-post-box-challenge