And Now Crest

Okay, here’s a half marathon update. The morning started perfectly: two poops. This was very important considering I went to an Indian buffet for lunch the previous day and then ate empanadas along with an artichoke, fennel, and edamame salad for dinner. Saturday morning was chilly, low 40s. The sky was spitting a little sleet and then a little rain. These are conditions that make a runner hesitant about what to wear. I ended up deciding on short sleeves, shorts, and gloves. I settled into a pace of six minutes per mile. This was very comfortable. The 10k and the half marathon started at the same time and continued on the same course for about five miles. It’s strange not knowing who is running the half at first. When we separated from the 10k runners, I saw two runners just in front of me. After a while, I saw two more in the distance and I figured that was it – four people ahead of me. I thought maybe they would come back to me over time. This part of the course was an out and back, so I would get to see how they were looking. As I neared the turnaround point, I saw a fifth runner: the leader. He was far out in front and looking strong, looking like a St. Thomas All-American as it turns out. As he disappeared, three of us started to reel in the other two (second and third place). Now it was beginning to feel like a race and at mile ten I decided I wanted to race. I picked up the pace and it wasn’t too long before I realized the other guys were already maxed out. I was working hard at this point but I still felt relaxed and smooth. I felt great afterwards, with the exception of my calves. Ouch! I don’t know if I will be able to wear the New Balance Zero shoes for the marathon. It’s a shame, because they feel awesome during the race, but I can foresee them causing cramping. Anyway, it was a good run. I think a 2:41 may be within reach.

Marathon Pace

I never got comfortable during this weekend's 15-mile marathon pace workout. My goal was to run 6:45-6:50. Although I was on target for the overall time (1:42), my splits fluctuated between 6:30 and 7:00. I started out a little too quick (6:35 1st mile) and my splits were heading in the wrong direction toward the end (7:05 final mile). Marathon pace is tough to find. It's hard to strike the right balance between easy pace and threshold. Next time, I need to start out slower. Nice to be reminded of that now instead of in June. I also tried an energy gel at mile 14 just to see how it sat in the stomach. Not sure if I felt any immediate benefits, but it didn't do any harm. I am going to keep experimenting on the long runs.

Ben, looks like you found your running. Turns out it was on the Get in Gear half marathon course. Looking forward to the recap.

In other news, I am losing a toenail.

Where is my running

My running has been in a trough for the past week or so. My body is still a little stressed from the long run in California, I didn't hit my pace for the workout last Thursday, and the TLT-2 was brutal. I am doing a workout tomorrow and then I am running the Get in Gear half marathon (at marathon pace) on Saturday morning. There is no relief during this phase of training. When will things start to get easier? I was thinking back on my training for the first marathon. I remember it being incredibly difficult. I remember reaching the breaking point during several workouts. The marathon pace workouts tell the tale. The first, a 12-miler, was extremely challenging. The second, a 15-miler, I didn't finish because I fell off the pace. The third, another 15-miler was spectacular. I was fit. I remember all the training for Twin Cities 2006 being difficult. The run that shall not be spoken about. Oops, better stop here.

HGH

TLT-2

was hard.  Who's with me?

Feelin' It Again

I will reiterate the pleasant weekend that was had two weekends now goneby. Paul, one day you must and will join us in festivities on the South Shore. As Ben so ably described, the weekend was filled with substantial, scenic runs, fine cuisine, and enjoyable conversation (note on the map the satellite imagery of the gorgeous field and forest at the intersection of Summit and Whipperfurth Rds). One unpleasant byproduct of the weekend, however, was an evil sickness that infiltrated the immune systems of 6 out of the 9 weekend revelers. The sore throat and snot that arrived last Tuesday noon and still afflict me today are, quite frankly, unprecedented in my medical history. Fortunately, the aches and chills and cold sweats (meat sweats?) have passed, but in its wake can be found a highly destructive path through my running logbook. Last week's workout--gone. A weekend 19 miler--gone. Saturday, Sunday, and Monday I attempted 5, 6 and 7 miles, which were slow, with many stop walks, and filled with farmer snot launches and general cringing at the outside world. Yesterday I bagged it before going out the door.

Today, however, I attempted 10 miles and, feeling much better, I averaged 6:46/mile to assuage my fears of lost fitness. Bring on some tempo workouts, especially now that I have these. Snot rockets notwithstanding, I'm Feelin' It Again.

Bay Area Running

Last Thursday I left our rental house in Oakland at 6:30am and headed south on Broadway toward Lake Merritt. 3 mile tempo, 3 minutes easy, 3 mile tempo, 3 minutes easy, 2 mile tempo. I ran for the first time in my New Balance Minimus Zero shoes, pictured below in red. These are lightweight! I had been running in what I think are called the New Balance Minimus 10, pictured in blue below. On Saturday I wanted to get out for a long run in the afternoon and I decided it would be a great adventure to run through Redwood Regional Park. It was uphill all the way to the park, from 200’ to 1200’. I ran the east ridge trail first. Soon I was by myself, with no signs of civilization except for the washed out, sun-baked path in front of me. The rugged beauty of the mountains stretched in different shades toward the horizon. Eventually the undulating path spit me out onto a road and I quickly descended to Redwood Creek. I followed the creek back into the park, looking for the west ridge trail. I stopped at a park ranger station to ask for directions. At this point I was 11 miles out and I didn’t want to get lost. She asked me where I came from and if I wanted to go back to the parking lot on the west side of the park. I told her I came from Oakland. She said, “Oh! Then you’re a maniac” [laughing with consternation]. I soon felt like a maniac as I climbed from 500’ to 1200’ in about a mile. The west ridge trail was more shaded. The terrain was rocky in places and in others it was covered by a mixture of muddy eucalyptus hummus and wet clay. As I was speeding down a hill around mile 14, I stepped on a rock and bruised my foot between the heel and mid-foot. This was painful and made it more difficult to brake on the downhills. I exited the park and knew the rest of the way was downhill. This is what they call a downer. I began to compensate by putting more weight on my right leg. I thought about stealing a kid’s scooter. But then I remember that I was a dirty, salt-crusted maniac. I cruised home. It was an epic 21 mile run. We traveled back to MSP on Sunday and I took a day off running. Yesterday I decided it would be in my best interest to take another day off and get on the bike instead, work out the kinks. My left calf is sore and my right calf is a hurting unit. My quads are a little pounded. The run today helped but the bruise still needs ice. I wouldn’t be surprised if I feel better than this after the marathon. Still, I would do it all over again. Awesome.

Ashland Part II

On Saturday morning we did the marathon pace workout. The weather was perfect. Cool and calm. The route was spectacular. Ashland High School, the medical center, country roads, trails, mud, Prentice Park wetlands, lake front, Xcel power plant, historic oar dock, Toyota dealership, Walmart, scrap yard, wastewater treatment plant, tri-county corridor through town, and lots and lots of lactic acid. Jude and I hit our expected pace. Tim was well under his 6:45 target. After cleaning up, we went to city hall for the big Easter egg hunt, which, for Levi, turned into a great tribulation. Moving on. Next we ate brats on main street and played at a park. During nap time, we took a tour of Northland College. Nice campus, strange school motto: a highway shall be there. In case you are wondering, this highway shall be called the way to holiness. After nap time, we had another Easter egg hunt in the backyard. The evening was devoted to the feast. Ham, scalloped potatoes, more ham, creamy green beans with mushrooms, a little more ham, killer blackberry sorbet, cheesecake, ice-cream, and a ham plate. This ham was by far the best ham I have ever eaten. Definitely in the top five of best meats I have ever eaten. It was a wild ham and affectionately called Ham Rove. Sunday morning we went for an easy run, which was followed by an egg loaf for brunch. Mmmm. Then it was time for adieu.

Ashland Part I

Paul, this post is for you. When two or more of us gather in your name, you are present. But I'll do this brief recap anyway. We took the scenic Wisconsin route up to Ashland on Good Friday. Almost immediately upon entering the quiet town of Ashland we came across a heavily bearded man wearing short yellow shorts who was on the verge of launching into a series of profanities to express his ravenous hunger. Elizabeth and the rest of us accompanied Tim to the South Shore Brewery for replenishment. After that we stopped on the cold, wind-swept shore of Lake Superior to listen to the water, enjoy the view, throw sand, and play trucks. Then we drove the back roads up to a fire lookout. Beautiful. On the way back to Ashland we stopped in Washburn and ate at Da Lou's Bistro. Wood fired pizza. Grazie mille! The Henningsgaards - my fingers almost cramped typing that last name - arrived that evening. This concludes episode one.

Charlottesville Half Marathon

This was one of the toughest long-distance courses I have ever raced. It was cold and dark when the gun went off at 6:30 AM. The race started in the historic downtown and headed out toward the foothills of the Shenandoah Mountains. Miles 1-4 were a rolling climb, 4-6 were all downhill, then straight back up to the turnaround point. (Check out the elevation profile here.) The scenery at the halfway mark was gorgeous: the sunrise burning the mist off the farm fields and spring-green hills in distance. But the enjoyment was short lived. My quads took a pounding on the steep hill leading down to the 8-mile mark. Miles 8-11 were straight back uphill, followed by another painful dip-and-climb between 11 and 12, then (finally!) a mile-long downhill to the finish.

As a result of the elevation, splits were meaningless. My fastest mile was 5:58 and my slowest was 7:13. I eventually stopped paying attention. Despite the punishing downhills (they were far worse than the uphills), I felt the effects of all the recent threshold training. I was able to pick up the pace over the last 5K and maintain a quick turnover through the finish. Final time: 1:24:49.

After the race, Mary and I ate breakfast at a diner (huevos rancheros with sausage links), toured the University of Virginia campus (designed by Thomas Jefferson), had lunch (giant slice of pizza) and listened to the street musicians downtown, visited Monticello, ate BBQ (half a slab of ribs, coleslaw, fries and baked beans), and drove home (which included an ice cream cone pit stop).

Besides running and eating, I gained a new appreciation for Jefferson while in Charlottesville. He seemed like a intellectuality curious man, as evidenced by the experimental devices and design elements he included in Monticello.

Quote of the trip: two guys standing next to me at the starting line were discussing their goals for the race. The first guy mentioned his target time. The second guy said, "my only goal is not to crap my pants." I turned to him and said, "that is my goal every day." We all agreed that running or not, it is good to keep that goal in mind.

Also, I met a guy at the start who was running 50 marathons in 50 weeks. (The half and full marathons started together.) He is raising money for the Wounded Warrior program. This was week 14. Good luck!

Splits for Jude

Alright, Jude. Here are my splits from this morning's threshold workout (mile repeats with 1 minute rest). Based on this, it looks like my threshold pace is right around 6:20.

6:38
6:21
6:21
6:19
(5 minute rest)
6:18
6:16
6:17

Cuantas Millas

What are people doing for maximum weekly mileage? 70?

Recipe for Recovery To Be Loved by All

An Ashland friend forwarded this article to me the other day. Source: Men's Health, written by Markham Heid.

Hoping to bounce back quickly after your next big race? Stock your fridge, not your medicine cabinet.

Wheat beer reduces post-marathon muscle inflammation and respiratory illness, according to a new study from a group of German and American researchers. And no, we’re not messing with you.

Researchers recruited 277 marathoners, and asked each to drink 34 to 50 ounces of either non-alcoholic wheat beer or a specially designed placebo drink with the same amount of calories and carbs. The participants drank the test liquids every day for 3 weeks leading up to last year’s Munich Marathon (where else would scientists perform beer tests?), and for two weeks following the race.

After the marathon, the researchers measured the participants’ levels of muscle inflammation. They also kept track of whether the marathoners were experiencing signs of respiratory illness, a common post-race condition.

The results: The beer drinkers were more than three times less likely to experience upper-respiratory infection, and their markers for inflammation were 20 to 32 percent lower than the placebo group’s.

So what’s the explanation for this sudsy miracle? “Polyphenols,” according to David Nieman, Dr.P.H., a professor at Appalachian State University and one of the Munich Marathon researchers.

Polyphenols are an antioxidant chemical found in many plants and fruits. “Polyphenols have antiviral properties, they help regulate the immune system, and they help to down-regulate genes that are related to turning on inflammation and stress,” Nieman explains. “And beer has a lot of polyphenols.”

There’s a growing body of research that shows polyphenols can act as a more-effective substitute for non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) like ibuprofen, which Nieman says is many marathoner’s post-race “drug of choice.”

Nieman says polyphenols are most effective when ingested in combinations. That’s why wheat beer, which contains many different types of polyphenols, was perfect for the study.

And here’s the best news: Regular, alcoholic wheat beer includes double the polyphenols of non-alcoholic wheat beer. So, Nieman explains, you could theoretically get the same benefit from drinking half the amount prescribed by the study—or about one pint per day for three weeks leading up to your next race. Cheers!

Not a beer guy? Fresh fruits, vegetables, whole wheat, and legumes are also good sources of polyphenols.

The Grind

Amid all this talk of fast paces, anyone else feeling the grind from the 100% week? I was reduced to a shuffle during yesterday's easy 8 miler. It was a total system failure. I ended up bagging it early and walking up the hill out of Rock Creek Park. Some days, it's a good day to die. Other days, it's a good day to eat breakfast.

Today's workout was also a slow killer, although I rebounded somewhat in time for the final 20 minute threshold. Maybe I need a rest day...