After Rock 'n' Roll Madrid, I took some time off from running, mostly because I felt I'd been asking too much from my body with back-to-back-to-back marathons over the past two years. I didn't move a muscle for a week or two, and then I joined a gym and practiced weight training with John Romaniello and Adam Bornstein's Engineering the Alpha program. With two Fall marathons planned, it was soon time to pick up running again. I took advantage of all the free time I had after finishing my master's program requirements and did two-a-day workouts, running in the morning and lifting in the afternoons. (I have since learned that I'd probably have been better off lifting in the morning and running in the afternoons, but oh well. And besides, my arch-nemesis worked at the gyms in the mornings, so I'd have to wait till he left at 2:30 to go.)
Anyway, I've been running strong since. I've been working with Zach Bitter, who's been a great help so far. Not sure what sort of witchcraft he's been pulling, but I've been running more weekly miles than ever with no signs of injury. Last week I ran a half marathon in 1:49, which is faster than I've been able to run in quite some time. (And we haven't even gotten into speedwork yet!)
A smarter, less rigid training program is certainly part of the equation, but I'm sure my recent dialing in of my nutrition has had a lot to do with it also. I've been eating a high-fat diet for some time now, and this summer I began consciously carb and calorie cycling, meaning I eat more calories (and a higher percentage of carbs) on days I work out and less on days I don't. I've also begun supplementing with magnesium (topical and in the form of ZMA tablets) and CoQ10 in addition to my usuals, as well as taking extra care to get as many high-quality ingredients in my body as I can.
The Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon is the first weekend in October, so it's coming up quick and I'm really excited about it. I can feel a PR coming on. Not to mention it'll be my first point-to-point marathon, which is also exciting. After that I'll be running the Washington, DC, Marine Corps Marathon on October 27. I've got no races planned after that, but I do have the vague idea that I want to do an ultramarathon in 2014.
Sunday, September 1, 2013
Sunday, April 28, 2013
Rock 'n' Roll Madrid Maratón
I originally signed up for this marathon back in September or October thinking it'd be a PR marathon. I'd have a year to train well, and it'd be the first time I ran a marathon in the city I was living in at the time (meaning I would be acclimated to the weather).
Surprise! Ankle injury in the Fall that running the Goofy Challenge certainly didn't help. I felt fine a week after the marathon-and-a-half and began a new training program, but I apparently did too much too soon and injured myself again. This time it was the dreaded Achilles. Eventually, with daily eccentric stretching and some massage therapy, I got back into running shape, and I was more or less back on track. Fast forward to what was supposed to be my peak week, where instead of doing a 20-mile run I decided to do a 125-mile coastal walk on the Isle of Anglesey in Wales, in which I am pretty sure I gave myself a stress fracture. My left foot was about twice the size of my other one for a day... the swelling went down and the pain went away, but I didn't dare run more than a mile or two at a time. A week before the marathon, I attempted a 10-mile run but only made it 5 before my calves started getting dangerously tight. I didn't want to hurt them, so I walked the other 5 miles.
A reasonable Tim would have just foregone the marathon in favor of not risking serious damage, but luckily I'm kind of an idiot and can be very reckless. So this morning I KT taped my ankles for stability, donned my calf sleeves and lined up for my sixth marathon. It wouldn't be a PR, but hopefully I would finish. But even that was a bit iffy. This marathon had been the key stress point in my life for the past four months.
I was feeling good about the run, except for one thing: the forecast. It was supposed to rain. Light rain, whatever that means. I don't have any running shoes here besides my Original Luna sandals, which are pretty horrible in the rain (I didn't mention that I possibly sprained a toe earlier this semester by running in the rain in the slippery devils). So I put KT tape on the bottom of my forefoot and the top of the sandal where my forefoot rests to create some friction in case of rain. Hopefully it'd work. I also tightened my sandals a bit. As it turned out, it didn't rain at all. There were some threatening drizzles around mile 20, but it didn't get worse, luckily.
The run started out great. I was feeling energetic and fluid, and I finished the first half in about 1:57. The bad news started around mile 15... strong fatigue. Shortly after, cramps. My thighs and calves were contracting in ways that made it impossible to do more than walk briskly. I took a short break to try and massage, stretch and actively release the tension, but that was largely fruitless. I swallowed an extra salt pill and went on my way, seriously contemplating dropping out. What was I thinking doing this without much training and after all those injuries, anyway?
I brooded for a few kilometers, trying to run every now and then but not making it over 40 seconds before succumbing to walking. After maybe a half hour, though, something miraculous happened: The cramping stopped. I was still dead tired, and my calves still felt precarious, but I could basically run with a modified form (more of a flat foot strike rather than my usual forefoot strike) here and there. But it was a struggle. Even so, I was delighted to be facing my own mostly-mental babiness rather than the physical limitations that have been so frustrating for the past few months.
It was a brutal finish, but it wasn't my worst marathon. I ended up around 4:45, just under an 11-minute mile, and I'll take it. I'm looking forward to taking some time off running to let my body recuperate, and then I'll start a nice, slow training program for my next marathons in October.
Shout out to my roommate Brigette for coming out to see me as I passed near our apartment and then cheering at kilometer 42 with our friend Vi. And of course my friends Emily and Niki, who ran this as their first marathon, beating me by 10 or 15 minutes.
Somehow I don't feel that sore. I remember my first couple of marathons had pretty brutal aftermath. I feel a bit uncomfortable maybe, but my feet and legs feel mostly normal. The only thing is I got a cut between my big toe and pointer toe on my left foot because I had tightened my sandal. Oh, and the stomacheache from all the crazy food I consumed today: beer, donuts, chocolate, chocolate, sandwiches, McFlurries, bacon cheeseburger...
Interesting things... Spaniards seem more serious about marathons. I don't think they sign up until they're better prepared as runners, meaning the average marathoner here is faster. They're also, in typical Spaniard fashion, a little pushy. There were aid people on roller blades giving out spray (I think for muscle pain relief?) and Vaseline. I thought the blades were cute and quirky at first but I quickly realized that these people are not skilled rollerbladers and got in the way A LOT. I saw two people running tied together, a man being pushed in a wheelchair along the course (with a bib on the wheelchair), and who knows what else.
Thursday, January 17, 2013
WDW Goofy Challenge (a.k.a. Florida again)
After a successful San Francisco Marathon, my mom, my brother and I decided to do the Walt Disney World Goofy Challenge in January: We'd pay more than the price of each event individually in order to run them both. If that didn't make us crazy, then surely running 40 miles in two days did. Even so, despite the logistical nightmare that was Disney, the WDW Marathon Weekend had all the makings of tradition to see our family friends.
This fall I made some changes to my training. I was running in Luna sandals instead of shoes. I decided to train in minutes instead of miles to focus on heart rate training (and also because my GPS is very sketchy in Madrid, where I now live, and because I prefer to run aimlessly in Casa de Campo than along a route with known mile markers). I also effectively eliminated speedwork—I had plans to do weekly tempo runs and monthly 5K trials, but somehow that only lasted a month. I also managed to swap out some of my shorter runs for yoga sessions, which may or may not have been a wise decision. Lastly, my new Madrileño lifestyle included more walking than I'd been used to (at least an hour on an average day), and much more traveling—I was gone many weekends, on which I skipped my long runs. I'm sure all that stuff impacted my training.
In order to focus fully on the Goofy Challenge, I decided not to run a marathon in October (I originally planned to run the Bilbao Night Marathon; instead I ran the half marathon at that event). Despite this precaution, I ended up getting injured in early November. After standing for a few minutes after a decent 10K, I found myself barely able to walk because of my right ankle. This was scary, because the 10K went perfectly fine and there was no pain to speak of (I finished in under 50 minutes). Later I remembered having felt some premonitions of pain in my right Achilles earlier that weekend walking around Barcelona, but I still have no idea what really caused it, or what it was. I decided the closest diagnosis was an impinged nerve, and I tried to do exercises to loosen it up. I had to give up running for a few weeks, so I tried to do yoga or walk for periods of time equivalent to my prescribed runs. I wasn't sure if I'd be able to do the marathons in January, and that was a major stress factor (pretty much the only one in my life).
Eventually the pain went away enough for me to do a few long runs; in all of November I'm sure I ran less than 30 miles, and I maybe doubled that in December. I don't know how far I ran in my peak training runs for the Goofy, but it was only a 1.5-hour run on a Saturday and a 2.5-hour run on a Sunday, two weeks before the marathon. Luckily my ankle didn't complain about that, so I decided to taper down and hope for the best.
Because I knew I was severely undertrained, I focused on my nutrition and looked for any other edge I could get for myself. A few months ago I shifted from mostly-vegan to an Upgraded Paleo (Dave Asprey's Bulletproof Executive Diet) with a high intake of healthy fats and low carbs. I liked the scientific support for this diet and how it meshed with the athletic outlook of Dr. Maffetone (heart rate training). The other edge I was looking for came in the form of electrically grounding myself: I had heard about earthing from Dave Asprey's podcast, and I tried to walk barefoot outside as much as possible (though it isn't exactly easy in the glass-laden and poop-covered streets and parks of Madrid). I was able to order an earthing bed mat when I got home to Milwaukee on New Year's Eve, and I've been sleeping grounded every night since then.
I made one minor mistake in the week before the marathon: I ran barefoot on the treadmill. I'm not sure why—it wasn't even that cold outside. Regardless, though, it was a horrible idea... my feet were blistered and tender for a few days, and I hoped they'd be fine by the time the marathon came. (They were so-so.)
Race day came soon enough. The half marathon went just fine: I ran it at a nice, slow, comfortable pace and never really felt tired. It was about 10:15 miles. I ran in the grass sometimes to lessen the impact on my feet; I'm not sure it actually helped, but it surely did hurt: It increased the friction between my feet and the surface of the sandals, making the bottoms of my feet really tender... something that would prove extremely painful during the marathon the next day. My ankle threatened a bit during the run, and I decided to KT Tape it up later that day as a precaution for the next day's marathon. As soon as I put the tape on, there was no pain at all, so (again) I'm sure it was vital to me finishing. Somehow I felt pretty wiped out after running the half; I hadn't felt so tired after running just 13 miles in a very long time! I should also note how remarkably boring the course was: We ran through the Magic Kingdom and Epcot, but it was 10+ miles of running along freeways and through parking lots. Not so magical...
The full marathon was very miserable. I didn't feel like running: My feet weren't the best and my legs were tired. I had horrible expectations for the run, but it actually went okay for the first 8 miles or so. The highlight was probably stopping for a picture with Lilo and Stitch. The course was pretty cool this year; we ran through all four parks, took a lap on the Exotic Speedway and toured the ESPN Wide World of Sports facilities. If I didn't want to die it would have been a lot of fun. I was floundering, running each mile slower than the last, and the heat was climbing. Before I knew it, I was nauseous and apocalyptic and it was in the 80s. I put myself on a walk 5 minutes–run 5 minutes regimen that carried me to mile 23 or 24, at which time I had to change it to "run 1 minute." It helped a lot when I heard these two women, also struggling, go by me and one of them said, "Okay, ready? Just one minute. You can do anything for just one minute." That's so true.
I finished the full in 5 hours and 40-something minutes, making it my slowest marathon yet. But for good reason, I think! Of course it's extremely disappointing making a new record slow, but if I'm able to examine the points that led up to that race performance, then it was worthwhile. As it stands, though, I don't think I'll be doing the Goofy Challenge again any time soon.
My next marathon plans are the Rock n Roll Madrid Marathon on April 28, and the Marine Corps Marathon in D.C. in October. Not sure if I'll do one this summer; it depends when I get back to the States.
What went wrong:
- Not running sufficient long runs
- Ankle injury
Goals for next training season:
- Speedwork
- Switch back to miles from minutes (find variety of routes mapped online)
- Stability and power exercises for cross training
- Self-motivational tactics for on-the-run
- Learn more about mid-race eating and drinking
The road to BQ and all 50 states continues... slowly but surely.
Saturday, August 18, 2012
Recent 5K and Revelations
Last weekend we ran the Hank Aaron State Trail 5k. We hadn't done a 5k in a while and this was a lot of fun. I went with the completely unrealistic idea that I could finish in under 20 minutes (my best recorded time was 23:xx, and my suspicious personal best in training was 20:40 last summer). Anyway, I finished in 22:40, a cool 7:19/mile. I should be happy with that... it's been a while since I ran that fast. But as a consequence, I was extremely sore the next day. Haven't been so sore from such a short distance in quite some time.
I haven't been running much recently (until today, but that'll come later), but I have been doing body awareness exercises from Running with the Whole Body. I am loving the program, but I have yet to really "run faster with less effort" as it promises. But I am patient and I know that all comes in time. I do feel my form improving, though. I've also been perusing The Big Book of Endurance Training and Racing. It's really interesting, and really complete. I had a big revelation from it: carbo-loading is a lie. Especially for a properly aerobically trained athlete.
For long endurance runs (anything longer than a sprint, really), you're burning fat as fuel, not sugar. For runs over two hours, less than one percent of your energy expenditure will be from sugar. The less aerobic base (meaning the ability to run at satisfactory speeds with a heart rate of 180 minus your age, give or take), the more you'll rely on sugar to take you faster. So burning fat is the whole idea. I knew that, but I didn't know what it took to truly train your body to run on fat. Moreover, I didn't realize that eating a lot of sugar pre-run will actually discourage your body from burning fat. So even if you're well aerobically trained, it seems like too much sugar can actually sabotage your efforts. Wow. Meanwhile, here I was gobbling up pasta and slurping energy gels, just like a lot of other people.
I went out for a run at 4:40 this morning with a heart rate monitor, my new handheld water bottle and a bean–avocado burrito. I had it in my head that I'd go 30 miles, but there were a few reasons that didn't happen:
I haven't been running much recently (until today, but that'll come later), but I have been doing body awareness exercises from Running with the Whole Body. I am loving the program, but I have yet to really "run faster with less effort" as it promises. But I am patient and I know that all comes in time. I do feel my form improving, though. I've also been perusing The Big Book of Endurance Training and Racing. It's really interesting, and really complete. I had a big revelation from it: carbo-loading is a lie. Especially for a properly aerobically trained athlete.
For long endurance runs (anything longer than a sprint, really), you're burning fat as fuel, not sugar. For runs over two hours, less than one percent of your energy expenditure will be from sugar. The less aerobic base (meaning the ability to run at satisfactory speeds with a heart rate of 180 minus your age, give or take), the more you'll rely on sugar to take you faster. So burning fat is the whole idea. I knew that, but I didn't know what it took to truly train your body to run on fat. Moreover, I didn't realize that eating a lot of sugar pre-run will actually discourage your body from burning fat. So even if you're well aerobically trained, it seems like too much sugar can actually sabotage your efforts. Wow. Meanwhile, here I was gobbling up pasta and slurping energy gels, just like a lot of other people.
I went out for a run at 4:40 this morning with a heart rate monitor, my new handheld water bottle and a bean–avocado burrito. I had it in my head that I'd go 30 miles, but there were a few reasons that didn't happen:
- My ankles were starting to kill me
- I planned my route with a few passes by my house in case I'd have to get more food/water, change shoes, etc. One of those returns was at Mile 22.5.
- I hadn't run more than a few miles at a time since the marathon three weeks ago (does that matter? I'm unsure)
I gave it up at 22.5 miles because I didn't want to risk hurting my ankles, and because I felt my form starting to slip. Note to self: Do ankle strengthening exercises. BUT I was super impressed with myself because I did not feel exhausted like I usually did at that point in a marathon. I ended up doing it in 11-minute miles, staying within the aerobic HR zone of 145–155 is much as I could. I think for a lot of it I was actually closer to 140 because I was planning on going 30 miles and didn't want to get exhausted. Even so, I know now that my aerobic base needs some work. FINALLY some answers as to why my marathon performance was always a bit sour.
The current debate: Do I run an October marathon, or do I devote the next several months to training up my aerobic base and come in strong for Disney World this January? I'm opting for the latter, because I think it's smarter... but I really wanted to do Bilbao. Maybe I'll do the half marathon?
Monday, July 30, 2012
San Francisco Marathon
Yesterday was my fourth marathon. I was hoping this would be the one in which I finally broke four hours, but that was not to be the case. The jury isn't sure why—perhaps it was my lackadaisical training regimen this summer, Milwaukee's lack of any SF-caliber hills to train on, or maybe even the 10-mile hike we did the day before. (Although this blogger seems to suggest hiking the day before a marathon is a good thing. Maybe if you're used to it.)
In any case, this was perhaps the most grueling marathon yet for me... Worse than Green Bay wherein, even in 90-degree temperatures I was still feeling okay enough to power walk the second half. And maybe worse than Chicago wherein cramps physically prohibited my body from running more than a few feet at a time after the 15-mile mark. Yesterday was a new experience—I think it was "hitting the wall," something that hadn't happened to me. My whole upper body, especially my lower back, was sore, and my legs felt like bricks. It's one thing if that were to happen after the 20-mile mark, but in this case it happened at 14. Puke.
Let's back up. The day before the race, we took an amazing walk up the top of the Corona Heights hill. We checked out the expo again, went to a few restaurants and checked out some art galleries. My feet and legs were exhausted by halfway through the day—yes, that was a bit alarming—but we got some cool photos. Below is the foggy view from the hill.
We went to bed around 8 p.m. in preparation to wake up at 4, hoping that we would be able to ignore the sirens and hollering hobos that passed by throughout the night. Luckily, I felt well-rested at 4, and I was ready. We arrived at the start just a few moments before our wave took off, during which time we got to see part of a performance by Rock the Bike (seen below). Around 5:52 a.m., we were off.
My plan was to run the first half with 9:30 miles and the second half at 8:30 miles. I started out really well, running with my brother (his first marathon!) for the first 5 miles or so. We hit the 5k with a 9:21 pace, and I had brightened to a 9:19 pace by the time we hit the 7.4-mile mark. I hit the half marathon mark with a 9:18 pace. A little faster than I'd planned, actually, but the run was exhilarating. The downhills on the Golden Gate Bridge were especially fun.
But shortly after the half, things went sour. Unfortunately, right in the middle of Golden Gate Park and all its inclines... I kept telling myself I felt good, saying I'd be able to make it the whole way without walking (by Mile 14, I hadn't taken a walking break yet). But then, everything fell apart. My back was sore (that never happens), and my brain couldn't seem to will my legs to shuffle uphill. So I took on a strategy for the next X miles in which I would run the downhill parts only and make no promises about anything else. This was extremely frustrating because my heart rate was still low and my breath was constant (one breath per four steps) and relaxed... I should have been able to push it so much more, but my legs weren't on board.
We also saw buffalo.
My head was getting a little messed up... It felt as if I were getting dehydrated, but I had been taking a mouthful of water every 10 minutes. And since it was only 55 degrees out and misty, I didn't think it was possible. It also couldn't be the electrolytes, I thought, since I'd been taking salt tablets and gels like I usually had been doing in the 90-degree heat of Milwaukee. Nonetheless, I was getting that seasick feeling... My pace by Mile 20 had sickened to 10:17.
I didn't get another burst of energy until Mile 22 or 23, by which time I convinced myself I could run a little bit just for the sake of getting done with this horrible experience that much faster. I would run for two or three minutes and then peter out. It wasn't until Mile 25.5 where I was able to run straight for the rest of the race.
I finished in 4:44, nearly an hour later than I'd planned, and I think I was more exhausted than I'd ever been. Probably not, though; recency makes things seem more acute than they actually are. The familiar thoughts of being a horrible marathoner, non-athlete, failure to improve, "I'm never running again," etc., went through my head, but by the evening I resolved to figure out why I seemed to have gotten slower, and more importantly figure out what I could do about it.
After some reading, I have decided:
I planned for my next marathon to be the Bilbao Night Marathon in mid-October, but now I'm wondering if that's too soon. After all, I have no idea what my lifestyle in Spain will be like. Maybe I would just wait and make my next marathon something in the U.S. over Christmas and New Years when I'm home. Well, we'll see how I feel in a few days.
In any case, this was perhaps the most grueling marathon yet for me... Worse than Green Bay wherein, even in 90-degree temperatures I was still feeling okay enough to power walk the second half. And maybe worse than Chicago wherein cramps physically prohibited my body from running more than a few feet at a time after the 15-mile mark. Yesterday was a new experience—I think it was "hitting the wall," something that hadn't happened to me. My whole upper body, especially my lower back, was sore, and my legs felt like bricks. It's one thing if that were to happen after the 20-mile mark, but in this case it happened at 14. Puke.
Let's back up. The day before the race, we took an amazing walk up the top of the Corona Heights hill. We checked out the expo again, went to a few restaurants and checked out some art galleries. My feet and legs were exhausted by halfway through the day—yes, that was a bit alarming—but we got some cool photos. Below is the foggy view from the hill.
My plan was to run the first half with 9:30 miles and the second half at 8:30 miles. I started out really well, running with my brother (his first marathon!) for the first 5 miles or so. We hit the 5k with a 9:21 pace, and I had brightened to a 9:19 pace by the time we hit the 7.4-mile mark. I hit the half marathon mark with a 9:18 pace. A little faster than I'd planned, actually, but the run was exhilarating. The downhills on the Golden Gate Bridge were especially fun.
But shortly after the half, things went sour. Unfortunately, right in the middle of Golden Gate Park and all its inclines... I kept telling myself I felt good, saying I'd be able to make it the whole way without walking (by Mile 14, I hadn't taken a walking break yet). But then, everything fell apart. My back was sore (that never happens), and my brain couldn't seem to will my legs to shuffle uphill. So I took on a strategy for the next X miles in which I would run the downhill parts only and make no promises about anything else. This was extremely frustrating because my heart rate was still low and my breath was constant (one breath per four steps) and relaxed... I should have been able to push it so much more, but my legs weren't on board.
We also saw buffalo.
My head was getting a little messed up... It felt as if I were getting dehydrated, but I had been taking a mouthful of water every 10 minutes. And since it was only 55 degrees out and misty, I didn't think it was possible. It also couldn't be the electrolytes, I thought, since I'd been taking salt tablets and gels like I usually had been doing in the 90-degree heat of Milwaukee. Nonetheless, I was getting that seasick feeling... My pace by Mile 20 had sickened to 10:17.
I didn't get another burst of energy until Mile 22 or 23, by which time I convinced myself I could run a little bit just for the sake of getting done with this horrible experience that much faster. I would run for two or three minutes and then peter out. It wasn't until Mile 25.5 where I was able to run straight for the rest of the race.
I finished in 4:44, nearly an hour later than I'd planned, and I think I was more exhausted than I'd ever been. Probably not, though; recency makes things seem more acute than they actually are. The familiar thoughts of being a horrible marathoner, non-athlete, failure to improve, "I'm never running again," etc., went through my head, but by the evening I resolved to figure out why I seemed to have gotten slower, and more importantly figure out what I could do about it.
After some reading, I have decided:
- I need to do strength training. I regularly lifted weights in college, before I started running, and I haven't done much since then. Every so often I'll do a few pushups, and I do a 20-minute yoga flow maybe once every two weeks. But it seems that my lack of strength training might actually be hindering my running performance (way worse than just not helping it!). A strong core, arms and back are apparently vital to running... not to mention legs.
- I need to do speedwork. I haven't done any this summer. I'm not sure why, now that I think about it. I did a lot leading up to the Green Bay Marathon, which gave me a 1:43 half marathon time, but I haven't done any this summer. I guess it makes sense that this is another cause of my slowness.
- I need to plan my workouts better. A good workout program should have some easy days, some hard days, and some rest days. I've had all those pieces, but there's no telling how they were distributed. I'll pay more attention to that in my next training period.
- And maybe I even need to lose weight. Gaining a few seconds per mile per pound lost is certainly alluring. I haven't weighed myself in a while, but I think my weight has been hovering around 200 for the past year or so. That's bound to come down with my new plant-centric diet, but maybe I'll even have to make a conscious effort to lose weight. Is losing 20+ pounds the secret for me to breaking six-minute miles?
I planned for my next marathon to be the Bilbao Night Marathon in mid-October, but now I'm wondering if that's too soon. After all, I have no idea what my lifestyle in Spain will be like. Maybe I would just wait and make my next marathon something in the U.S. over Christmas and New Years when I'm home. Well, we'll see how I feel in a few days.
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
A Quest!
I started this blog to chronicle my quest to complete the 2011 Chicago Marathon. Little did I know, the running wouldn't stop at the finish line. I went on to run the 2012 Walt Disney World Marathon in January and then the Green Bay Marathon in May. And, in just a few days, I'll be running the San Francisco Marathon. I've decided to run a marathon in all 50 states. And who cares about why—I'm going to just do it.
From now on, I won't treat this as a training diary, but rather a place to leave accounts of each of my marathons, as well as random running/health-related thoughts and research.
Since you last heard from me, I've committed to minimalist footwear and good running form, and I've decided to power myself from a 90+% plant-based diet. Here's a list of books and movies that have inspired these decisions:
Minimalist Footwear
Plant-Based Diet
From now on, I won't treat this as a training diary, but rather a place to leave accounts of each of my marathons, as well as random running/health-related thoughts and research.
Since you last heard from me, I've committed to minimalist footwear and good running form, and I've decided to power myself from a 90+% plant-based diet. Here's a list of books and movies that have inspired these decisions:
Minimalist Footwear
- Natural Running, by Danny Abshire
- ChiRunning, by Danny Dreyer
- Running Fast and Injury-Free, by Gordon Pirie
- Born to Run, by Chris McDougall
Plant-Based Diet
- No Meat Athlete (blog)
- Eat & Run, by Scott Jurek
- Forks Over Knives (movie)
- Fresh (movie)
Running will ruin your feet and knees? Rubbish.
Started reading a short book called Running Fast and Injury-Free by Gordon Pirie. From my perspective, it's a lot of the same stuff I've been reading for the past several months, but it must have been pretty revolutionary when it was first written! Here's a snippet:
People are advised not to run because it will ruin their feet and knees. In 45 years, I have run more than 240,000 miles without any major problems, and with more than half that distance covered on so-called hard pavement. Have I been lucky? No. I have merely employed correct technique, as described, and have been careful about the shoes I wear.
There are few accidents in athletics if a runner is successful (whether in terms of Olympic medals or just years of injury-free running), and there is a reason for this success. The most significant element is correct technique (made possible by good shoes). There is a lot more to running correctly than just getting your feet and legs working properly, however. What you do with your hands and arms is equally important. I have heard a number of well-known coaches tell runners that it doesn't matter what they do with their arms. My response is to ask them if it is okay if I run with one arm behind my back and the other between my legs. They look at me as if I've lost my marbles. Then I put both hands over my head and ask: "Is this okay?". Or, I'll put my hands on my ears and ask: "How about this?" If none of these methods of carrying your arms is correct, and if we eliminate all the incorrect ways of using your upper body and arms (reductio ad absurdum in mathematics), we logically should arrive at something that works very well indeed.
The best way to get a clear idea of how to use your hands and arms is to watch what the best runners in the world are doing with theirs. You will not find sloppy technique among the vast majority of the best runners. In any sport, the athletes we most admire are those who have the capacity to make everything they do look easy. The champions have an appearance of economy of movement which gives an illusion of ease. Those who are at the top are making maximum use of their bodies with powerful action. The way the human body is designed and put together demands that certain criteria be met for it to function the way it is supposed to. While it is important to take into account individual differences, the basic biomechanics required for maximum speed and efficiency will be the same for every runner. All humans have joints which bend the same way, and similar muscle elasticity and blood viscosity.
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