Now to choose another race before I leave for Fall recruitment travel at the end of August. Then in November, Route 66 in Tulsa.
Happy Trails!
Wednesday, June 8, 2016
The Scorcher Half Marathon
Sunday, June 5, 2016. Stillwater, OK. The Scorcher Half Marathon. Nice and cool start at 6:30 AM. The sun had come up and it was light. But still lots of shade from trees and houses. It stayed pretty cool for the first hour. After that the sun was more direct and and we all started warming up. As I didn't wear a GPS watch and didn't print out splits I could only guess at my pace. Had my watch recording the time. So I knew I was well under an 8 minute per mile pace. The runners ahead of me got further ahead and no one passed me over the last few miles, so I was running by myself for the last twenty minutes. I picked up the pace a bit over the last mile and made up some ground on the runners ahead of me. However I was unable to catch up with them at the finish. My time was 1:43:27. Would have loved to break 1:40. Think I needed some longer runs prior to the race. My longest was two weeks before, a 12 mile run. Finished fourth in my age group. 50 -55 men is the most competitive group. If I could have dropped down two groups younger I would placed in the top 3. And drop to the next younger group below I would have won. All in all though a nice race. Nice finisher medal. (see below)
Now to choose another race before I leave for Fall recruitment travel at the end of August. Then in November, Route 66 in Tulsa.
Happy Trails!
Now to choose another race before I leave for Fall recruitment travel at the end of August. Then in November, Route 66 in Tulsa.
Happy Trails!
Thursday, June 2, 2016
The Scorcher
The Scorcher
It has been years since I last posted. Ok, well at least one year. Did not do well in Green Bay. And have not run any marathons since. It's quite challenging to to be on the road for four weeks in the Spring and 8 or 9 weeks in the Fall. Really hard to find training time when you arrive in a city at night and have to be out on the road early in the morning. Sleep is always the priority. Running is second or third priority. My work comes before running. So I try to squeeze in a 30 minute or 40 minute run every few days. Maybe get an hour run in once a week.
So my next run is just a few days away. The Scorcher Half Marathon. Sunday at 6:30 AM in Stillwater. Weather should be really good for the first week of June. Low in the morning around 61 degrees. Hoping to come around 1:40. Would be my fastest half in a few years. Half marathons are easier to predict that full marathons.
My hamstrings are pretty tight. Had a massage today and found out how tight they are. So hoping to work on stretching over the next weeks and months.
So till next time...Happy Trails!
It has been years since I last posted. Ok, well at least one year. Did not do well in Green Bay. And have not run any marathons since. It's quite challenging to to be on the road for four weeks in the Spring and 8 or 9 weeks in the Fall. Really hard to find training time when you arrive in a city at night and have to be out on the road early in the morning. Sleep is always the priority. Running is second or third priority. My work comes before running. So I try to squeeze in a 30 minute or 40 minute run every few days. Maybe get an hour run in once a week.
So my next run is just a few days away. The Scorcher Half Marathon. Sunday at 6:30 AM in Stillwater. Weather should be really good for the first week of June. Low in the morning around 61 degrees. Hoping to come around 1:40. Would be my fastest half in a few years. Half marathons are easier to predict that full marathons.
My hamstrings are pretty tight. Had a massage today and found out how tight they are. So hoping to work on stretching over the next weeks and months.
So till next time...Happy Trails!
Thursday, April 23, 2015
Three Weeks, two days to Green Bay Marathon
Ran the longest run of my training this morning. Also the last really long run of my training. My plan was to run 23 miles at marathon pace. 7:50 per mile. Right at 3 hours. But seems I was not quite up to it. Ran 22 miles and just a few minutes less than 3 hours. Pace was 7:58. My longest previous run was 17 miles, so I think this was just a little too ambitious. But the time is short so I couldn't wait any longer. As my title says, 3 weeks and two days to my marathon. The race is on Sunday, May 17.
I wanted to make sure my 20 plus mile run took place more than 3 weeks before the marathon. A Dutch study a few years back showed that most runners had not fully recovered from their last long run. 3 weeks is not enough time. So rather than running on a Saturday, I took off work today, Thursday, to do my long run. The weather this morning was great. Cool but not cold. Mostly cloudy. Took it easy the first mile or so. Mostly uphill so my times were a bit slow. Hard to hear my splits due to the sound of traffic on the Creek Turnpike. Even with the trees and the wall it was still a bit difficult to hear my phone. Splits ranged from 7:27 to 8:33. 8 of my 22 miles splits were over 8 minutes per mile. One was my water break. Had a bottle of water under my car at about the halfway point. Mile 11. Another was at the turn around at 44th street. Walked about twenty yards. Then at mile 21, I walked another twenty yards or so. Mile splits 1, 2 and 4 were just over 8 minutes a mile. These were mostly uphill. Most others between 7:43 and 7:58.
Now with just a little over three weeks to go, it is time to start my taper. Same intensity but less distance.
3 hours 25 minutes seems like a bit of a long shot now. But it looks like 3 hours 30 minutes is still a possibility.
Happy trails...
I wanted to make sure my 20 plus mile run took place more than 3 weeks before the marathon. A Dutch study a few years back showed that most runners had not fully recovered from their last long run. 3 weeks is not enough time. So rather than running on a Saturday, I took off work today, Thursday, to do my long run. The weather this morning was great. Cool but not cold. Mostly cloudy. Took it easy the first mile or so. Mostly uphill so my times were a bit slow. Hard to hear my splits due to the sound of traffic on the Creek Turnpike. Even with the trees and the wall it was still a bit difficult to hear my phone. Splits ranged from 7:27 to 8:33. 8 of my 22 miles splits were over 8 minutes per mile. One was my water break. Had a bottle of water under my car at about the halfway point. Mile 11. Another was at the turn around at 44th street. Walked about twenty yards. Then at mile 21, I walked another twenty yards or so. Mile splits 1, 2 and 4 were just over 8 minutes a mile. These were mostly uphill. Most others between 7:43 and 7:58.
Now with just a little over three weeks to go, it is time to start my taper. Same intensity but less distance.
3 hours 25 minutes seems like a bit of a long shot now. But it looks like 3 hours 30 minutes is still a possibility.
Happy trails...
Tuesday, January 6, 2015
Training for Green Bay
A lot has happened over the last year. The Route 66 Marathon of 2013 did not go as planned. Extremely cold. Temperatures in the low 20s to start. The training that I thought would be sufficient was not sufficient. Apparently running sub marathon pace training runs three times a week was not enough to run a sub 3:30 marathon. Rather I crashed and burned (froze actually). 4:20. My slowest marathon ever.
Got married in November of 2014. A couple of weeks later I ran the Half Marathon at Route 66 in Tulsa. Managed a 1:37:49. Not quite as fast as a couple of years ago, but just a couple of minutes behind. (I was not going to train for a marathon and plan a wedding with my wife to be. So I chose the Half instead.) And so feeling hopeful once again I have signed up for the Green Bay Marathon in May. I think I will go with the Run Less schedule for a 3:25 marathon, though tweaked to match the lack of a track to do intervals on. I will try to do some mile intervals. And this time I will do some cross training rather than just resting on the non running days. Cycling.
I'll let you know how that goes. And later this month training while on the road.
Happy Trails!
Got married in November of 2014. A couple of weeks later I ran the Half Marathon at Route 66 in Tulsa. Managed a 1:37:49. Not quite as fast as a couple of years ago, but just a couple of minutes behind. (I was not going to train for a marathon and plan a wedding with my wife to be. So I chose the Half instead.) And so feeling hopeful once again I have signed up for the Green Bay Marathon in May. I think I will go with the Run Less schedule for a 3:25 marathon, though tweaked to match the lack of a track to do intervals on. I will try to do some mile intervals. And this time I will do some cross training rather than just resting on the non running days. Cycling.
I'll let you know how that goes. And later this month training while on the road.
Happy Trails!
Monday, November 11, 2013
3 Runs A Week - Training for Tulsa's Route 66 Marathon
Less than two weeks until the Route 66 Marathon in Tulsa, Oklahoma! (Sunday, November 24) Six weeks of travel in Latin America and Asia messed up my training schedule. Too many late night arrivals and early morning departures. Found it hard to get in enough training runs. Some weeks just two runs, others three. My long runs on the weekend were never long enough.
 |
| Ran up Mt. Doi Suthep to Wat Doi Suthep |
I believe that I can run the Route 66 marathon in under 3:25 (3 hours 25 minutes). But my weekly mileage totals have topped 30 miles only the past two weeks. I have only one run of 20 miles. It seems unlikely that with only three runs a week and only one run of 20 miles that I could finish in less than 3 and a half hours. It also seems unlikely that I could break 3:25 when I have never run a marathon faster than 3:32. And finally I have never put in so few miles prior to a marathon before. Prior to Houston I ran just three times a week but had multiple 20 mile runs. (I finished in 3:34. My goal was a bit too lofty. Faded badly.) But if I can run 20.2 miles with an average pace of 7:47, surely I can run 26.2 with a 7:48 pace. 3:30:00 or less would qualify me for the 2015 Boston Marathon. 3:25:00 or less would greatly improve my chances of actually getting in. Beating the qualifying time by five minutes or more puts one into the third of four groups. The first group are those who finish 20 minutes faster than the qualifying standard. The second group are those who finish 10 minutes faster than the standard. The third group are those who finish 5 minutes faster than the standard. The fourth and final group are those who finish less than five minutes faster than the standard. Following the listing of each group on the Boston Athletic Association page are the words "if space remains"(starting with the second group).
Sic'em Bears!
Saturday, July 27, 2013
Is Too Much Running Bad for You?
"Can You Get Too Much Exercise?", asks Gretchen Reynolds in the New York Times on Wednesday. This question and other similar questions have been asked and debated extensively over the past year. Can you get too much exercise? Probably so, but it is clear is that exercise improves heart health
in most people and reduces the risk of developing heart disease or dying of heart
disease. The questions of too much and how much is too much, remain to be answered. Back in November of last year, Dr. James O'Keefe suggested that one should not run more than 25 miles a week and never faster than 8 minutes a mile.
http://indorgs.virginia.edu/MuscleClub/OKeefe_JH_article1%2B2.pdf
The graph above is from that article. The data, which was taken from a study published in The Lancet, appears to show that the benefit of vigorous exercise levels off after about 50 minutes of activity. In reality the data did not end at 50 minutes, it went on well beyond that point. Such that at 120 minutes the hazard ration for all-cause mortality reduction was at .55 noticeably better than at .48 or so at 50 minutes. For a more thorough discussion take a look at Alex Hutchison's column in the November 28, 2012 Runners World.
http://www.runnersworld.com/health/too-much-running-myth-rises-again
Wednesday's NYT article focuses on study involving athletes who can completed the Vasaloppet, a grueling 56-mile cross-country ski marathon held each March in northwestern Sweden. The study found that among male participants of a 90 km Vasaloppett, a faster finishing time and a high number of completed races were associated with higher risk of arrhythmia. This was mainly driven by a higher incidence of atrial fibrillation and brady arrhythmia. No association with supra-ventricular tachycardias or ventricular tachycardia/ventricular fibrillation/cardiac arrest was found. And while the risk of arrhythmia increased, the authors state that "participants in Vasaloppet have lower mortality than the general population and that mortality decreases with increasing number of races."
So your risk of arrhythmias increases slightly with very high levels of exercise. However your risk of dying goes down. Hmm. Guess that means I should keep on doing my long runs, my fast runs and my marathons. As Dr. Anderson says,"Carry on as usual, but remember to listen to your body and seek a doctor if you experience any symptoms from your heart."
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/07/24/can-you-get-too-much-exercise/?_r=0
http://indorgs.virginia.edu/MuscleClub/OKeefe_JH_article1%2B2.pdf
http://www.runnersworld.com/health/too-much-running-myth-rises-again
Wednesday's NYT article focuses on study involving athletes who can completed the Vasaloppet, a grueling 56-mile cross-country ski marathon held each March in northwestern Sweden. The study found that among male participants of a 90 km Vasaloppett, a faster finishing time and a high number of completed races were associated with higher risk of arrhythmia. This was mainly driven by a higher incidence of atrial fibrillation and brady arrhythmia. No association with supra-ventricular tachycardias or ventricular tachycardia/ventricular fibrillation/cardiac arrest was found. And while the risk of arrhythmia increased, the authors state that "participants in Vasaloppet have lower mortality than the general population and that mortality decreases with increasing number of races."
So your risk of arrhythmias increases slightly with very high levels of exercise. However your risk of dying goes down. Hmm. Guess that means I should keep on doing my long runs, my fast runs and my marathons. As Dr. Anderson says,"Carry on as usual, but remember to listen to your body and seek a doctor if you experience any symptoms from your heart."
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/07/24/can-you-get-too-much-exercise/?_r=0
Monday, January 14, 2013
Houston Marathon Review
Today is the day after the 2013 Houston Marathon. And boy am I sore. It's been over a year since my last marathon and forgot how sore I get after these.
The Houston Marathon is one of the larger marathons in the US. A total of over 25,000 people in the marathon and half marathon. The weather was not ideal, but the temperature was close to ideal (upper 40s). Standing in the starting corral with the rain coming down and winds blowing from the north was not too pleasant. Finally after the greetings, opening remarks, Star Spangled Banner, and prayer, we finally started. I was wearing a trash bag (with holes cut out for my head and arms) over my shorts, t-shirt and running singlet (tank top). On my head a wore a cheap ball cap that I had waterproofed. Shortly after the start we crossed a long overpass. Rather cold as the wind was really blowing. I ran the first few miles with my arms inside my trash bag. Finally after the first 30 to 45 minutes the rain stopped. A few sprinkles after that but nothing much. Also running through tree lined streets helped with the wind. The course is nice. Mostly homes, small businesses and shopping areas. The course also passes Rice University and goes through Memorial Park. A group of the Marching Owl Band was playing near the entrance to Rice. I yelled out to them as I passed, "The MOB rocks!". They seemed to appreciate the praise. Overall pretty good crowd support considering the cold, windy, rainy weather. Lots of cheering folks with signs, one garage band, a group of belly dancers and some Bolivian dancers as well. The course finishes downtown with a long straightaway toward the convention center. Downtown both sides were mostly full with a number of folks in interesting costumes. The finish area was nice with blue bleachers on each side. A large group of friendly volunteers gave out the medals. The medal design was attractive. Good size, not too small.
The finisher t-shirt was ok. Nothing outstanding or unusual but nice. Plenty of food was available after the race. Eggs, sausage and biscuits as well as yoghurt, provided by HEB grocery stores. All complementary for the runners so no need to purchase anything. And as it was inside the convention center I didn't have to worry about staying warm.
Still trying to figure out what went wrong with my marathon plan. My training seemed to go well the last couple of months. Just didn't have it on Sunday. Lost my mojo. Something. Looking back at my last 20 mile training run that I did back on December 22nd, my last 3 mile splits that day were 7:41, 7:38, 7:31. Not bad at all. Maybe my goal was just a little too ambitious. Maybe I would have been ok with running 7:26 mile splits instead of 7:23 that I tried to run in Houston. The shoes I wore were the same model that I had trained in so no change there. Maybe I need just a little bit more padding underfoot. Anyway I struggled to the finish Sunday. Lots of periods of walking over the last few miles. My calf muscles kept threatening to cramp up, but they never did completely do so. After 20 miles, my feet and ankles were definitely beat as were my quads. Made running very difficult the final three or four miles and more so as I got closer to the end. Anyway finished 87th out of 593 in my age group. Not bad. Not good. But OK. I did manage to beat George Bush's Houston Marathon time of 3:44:52 (in 1993). He was two years younger and I beat him by more than 10 minutes. So maybe not so bad after all.
Till next time. Happy Trails!
The Houston Marathon is one of the larger marathons in the US. A total of over 25,000 people in the marathon and half marathon. The weather was not ideal, but the temperature was close to ideal (upper 40s). Standing in the starting corral with the rain coming down and winds blowing from the north was not too pleasant. Finally after the greetings, opening remarks, Star Spangled Banner, and prayer, we finally started. I was wearing a trash bag (with holes cut out for my head and arms) over my shorts, t-shirt and running singlet (tank top). On my head a wore a cheap ball cap that I had waterproofed. Shortly after the start we crossed a long overpass. Rather cold as the wind was really blowing. I ran the first few miles with my arms inside my trash bag. Finally after the first 30 to 45 minutes the rain stopped. A few sprinkles after that but nothing much. Also running through tree lined streets helped with the wind. The course is nice. Mostly homes, small businesses and shopping areas. The course also passes Rice University and goes through Memorial Park. A group of the Marching Owl Band was playing near the entrance to Rice. I yelled out to them as I passed, "The MOB rocks!". They seemed to appreciate the praise. Overall pretty good crowd support considering the cold, windy, rainy weather. Lots of cheering folks with signs, one garage band, a group of belly dancers and some Bolivian dancers as well. The course finishes downtown with a long straightaway toward the convention center. Downtown both sides were mostly full with a number of folks in interesting costumes. The finish area was nice with blue bleachers on each side. A large group of friendly volunteers gave out the medals. The medal design was attractive. Good size, not too small.
The finisher t-shirt was ok. Nothing outstanding or unusual but nice. Plenty of food was available after the race. Eggs, sausage and biscuits as well as yoghurt, provided by HEB grocery stores. All complementary for the runners so no need to purchase anything. And as it was inside the convention center I didn't have to worry about staying warm.
Still trying to figure out what went wrong with my marathon plan. My training seemed to go well the last couple of months. Just didn't have it on Sunday. Lost my mojo. Something. Looking back at my last 20 mile training run that I did back on December 22nd, my last 3 mile splits that day were 7:41, 7:38, 7:31. Not bad at all. Maybe my goal was just a little too ambitious. Maybe I would have been ok with running 7:26 mile splits instead of 7:23 that I tried to run in Houston. The shoes I wore were the same model that I had trained in so no change there. Maybe I need just a little bit more padding underfoot. Anyway I struggled to the finish Sunday. Lots of periods of walking over the last few miles. My calf muscles kept threatening to cramp up, but they never did completely do so. After 20 miles, my feet and ankles were definitely beat as were my quads. Made running very difficult the final three or four miles and more so as I got closer to the end. Anyway finished 87th out of 593 in my age group. Not bad. Not good. But OK. I did manage to beat George Bush's Houston Marathon time of 3:44:52 (in 1993). He was two years younger and I beat him by more than 10 minutes. So maybe not so bad after all.
Till next time. Happy Trails!
Saturday, December 15, 2012
Running and the Brain
One hour later, the participants were given a surprise recall test on the previously viewed images. Results showed a striking enhancement of memory by exercise in both the healthy and cognitively impaired adults, compared with subjects who did not ride the bike." From the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease - "Exercise significantly elevated endogenous norepinephrine in both aMCI patients and controls. (amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI))" Norepinephrine plays an important role in memory modulation.
The study on mice showed that the running mice showed significant increases in neural stem cells. "In this model of aging we found that the number of active neural stem cells dramatically declines with age, but exercise dramatically reversed this, increasing stem cell numbers." Professor Bartlett, the Director of QBI.
Queensland Brain Institute,The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia.
“Our findings suggest that moderate exercise, from early to late in life, can have a very positive effect,” Dr Blackmore said.
So not only does running help you maintain a healthy weight, http://www.dukehealth.org/health_library/news/aerobic-exercise-trumps-resistance-training-for-weight-and-fat-loss
it's also good for your brain!
Peace! Happy Trails and Merry Christmas!
Saturday, December 8, 2012
Three runs a week to Boston Qualifying
It's December and here in OKC it is about to turn cold. The low temperature Tuesday morning is forecast to be 19 degrees F. Brrrr! Tuesday morning is usually my first day to run during the week. So I am thinking that I may start a bit late that morning. (I'm scheduled a couple of hours of vacation this Tuesday morning, so maybe I can do my run at 8:30AM) Each week I run on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Saturday being the long run. Tuesday and Thursday are tempo runs. For the last month and half I have been following the schedule in the book, Run Less, Run Faster http://www.runlessrunfasterbook.com Created by the folks at Furman University, the FIRST plan calls for 3 runs a week with two days of cross training. More than just three runs a week, it is three intense runs a week. Long runs are not slow easy jogs, but rather they are run at pace closer to marathon goal pace. 15 to 30 seconds slower than planned marathon pace. The first few weeks were 30 to 45 seconds slower but now my long runs are within the range listed. Today's 20 mile run was about 15 to 20 seconds slower.
I read today that Ryan Hall, US Olympic Marathoner and US Half Marathon record holder, has made a coaching change. Hall will now be coached by world renowned Italian marathon coach, Renato Canova. http://www.runnersworld.com/elite-runners/canova-101?page=single It seems that much of the FIRST plan has many similarities to Canova's teaching. "Following the Golden Rule of Canova, to achieve your best race-day performance, you must practice running at or around goal race pace for long periods of time." "Perhaps no workout better represents Canova's system than 17-to 24-mile runs done at roughly 95 percent of marathon pace. These closely simulate the demands of the marathon race in terms of speed, distance and psychology."
I take comfort in knowing that what I am doing with my long runs lines up with what Canova teaches to his elite athletes. With just five weeks and a day till the Houston Marathon, I am confident that I can run a BQ time minus 10 minutes. And I 'm starting to think that maybe I could run 15 minutes under a BQ time. :-)
Peace and Joy in this season of Christmas!
And Sic'em Bears!
 |
| Renato Canova |
 |
| Ryan Hall |
I read today that Ryan Hall, US Olympic Marathoner and US Half Marathon record holder, has made a coaching change. Hall will now be coached by world renowned Italian marathon coach, Renato Canova. http://www.runnersworld.com/elite-runners/canova-101?page=single It seems that much of the FIRST plan has many similarities to Canova's teaching. "Following the Golden Rule of Canova, to achieve your best race-day performance, you must practice running at or around goal race pace for long periods of time." "Perhaps no workout better represents Canova's system than 17-to 24-mile runs done at roughly 95 percent of marathon pace. These closely simulate the demands of the marathon race in terms of speed, distance and psychology."
I take comfort in knowing that what I am doing with my long runs lines up with what Canova teaches to his elite athletes. With just five weeks and a day till the Houston Marathon, I am confident that I can run a BQ time minus 10 minutes. And I 'm starting to think that maybe I could run 15 minutes under a BQ time. :-)
Peace and Joy in this season of Christmas!
And Sic'em Bears!
Thursday, November 29, 2012
Can too much running kill you?
That seems to be what some recent medical studies and one story in the Wall Street Journal seem to be asking. In the article "One Running Shoe in the Grave" http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323330604578145462264024472.html?mod=e2fb the following quote from the British journal Heart appears,"Running too fast, too far and for too many years may speed one's
progress toward the finish line of life." The study indicates that while runners have a significantly lower death rate than non runners, as one gets older, running more than 20 to 25 miles a week erases the benefit that runners have. The source article is at http://heart.bmj.com/content/early/2012/11/21/heartjnl-2012-302886.extract.jpg (I could only read the first page.) The editorial is entitled "Run for your life...at a comfortable speed and not too far" The authors, James O'Keefe and Carl Lavie, also state that running vs non running provides great benefits health wise, running at a pace faster than 8 minutes per mile provides no additional benefit.
Beyond this guidance is a warning. Studies they cite show damage to the heart occurs from high intensity exercise sessions greater than one to two hours. These can cause "acute volume overload of the atria and right ventricle, which can bring about overstretching and micro-tearing of the myocardium." These are evidenced by a rise in cardiac bio-markers. Usually after a week these markers return to baseline. However "after years and decades of "excessive exercise" and repetitive injury" these can lead to "patchy myocardial fibrosis". The fibrosis and scarring can potentially create a potential substrate for arrhythmias.
In a video from Dr. O'Keefe's talk at TED http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6U728AZnV0 he shows slides showing veteran marathoners (those who had run more than 25 marathons) had increased levels of plaque in their arteries. Dr. O'Keefe then talks of Cardiomyopathy. He cites the case of Micah True, the ultramarathoner mentioned in the book, Born to Run. Micah died in March of this year while on a relatively short training run in the mountains of New Mexico. His autopsy showed a thickened heart with scar tissue. The coroner indicated cardiomyopathy as the cause of death.
My question is after how many marathons does fibrosis and scarring occur? Dr, O'Keefe says one marathon won't hurt. But if I train for and run one marathon a year does that put me at risk? Should I stop running marathons after age 50? What of 90 year Michael Freemont, who recently set an American age group record for the marathon? And what about the rat study? The marathon rats..http://circ.ahajournals.org/content/123/1/13.abstract After 16 weeks of intense exercise the rats showed cardiac fibrosis and increased arrhythmia inducibility. However the study also stated the following, "The fibrotic changes caused by 16 weeks of intensive exercise were reversed after an 8-week exercise cessation." So if I take 8 weeks off after my marathon does that mean I am OK and that my heart is fully recovered?
I have run two marathons over three years time and am currently training to run a third in January. My training run this morning was one hour and 15 minutes, a bit more than needed to gain full benefit in terms of postponing my mortality. ;-) Saturday's run will be closer to two hours. So maybe I'm still ok according to Dr. O'Keefe. Just a couple of runs greater than two hours these next few weeks. I am thinking if I qualify for Boston and if I run that in 2014, I may just run half marathons and less for a few years. Something to think about. Maybe by 2014 we will some new research to evaluate.
Feel free to comment if you have any thoughts or questions.
Merry Christmas to you and Sic'em Bears!
Beyond this guidance is a warning. Studies they cite show damage to the heart occurs from high intensity exercise sessions greater than one to two hours. These can cause "acute volume overload of the atria and right ventricle, which can bring about overstretching and micro-tearing of the myocardium." These are evidenced by a rise in cardiac bio-markers. Usually after a week these markers return to baseline. However "after years and decades of "excessive exercise" and repetitive injury" these can lead to "patchy myocardial fibrosis". The fibrosis and scarring can potentially create a potential substrate for arrhythmias.
My question is after how many marathons does fibrosis and scarring occur? Dr, O'Keefe says one marathon won't hurt. But if I train for and run one marathon a year does that put me at risk? Should I stop running marathons after age 50? What of 90 year Michael Freemont, who recently set an American age group record for the marathon? And what about the rat study? The marathon rats..http://circ.ahajournals.org/content/123/1/13.abstract After 16 weeks of intense exercise the rats showed cardiac fibrosis and increased arrhythmia inducibility. However the study also stated the following, "The fibrotic changes caused by 16 weeks of intensive exercise were reversed after an 8-week exercise cessation." So if I take 8 weeks off after my marathon does that mean I am OK and that my heart is fully recovered?
I have run two marathons over three years time and am currently training to run a third in January. My training run this morning was one hour and 15 minutes, a bit more than needed to gain full benefit in terms of postponing my mortality. ;-) Saturday's run will be closer to two hours. So maybe I'm still ok according to Dr. O'Keefe. Just a couple of runs greater than two hours these next few weeks. I am thinking if I qualify for Boston and if I run that in 2014, I may just run half marathons and less for a few years. Something to think about. Maybe by 2014 we will some new research to evaluate.
Feel free to comment if you have any thoughts or questions.
Merry Christmas to you and Sic'em Bears!
Monday, November 19, 2012
Route 66 Marathon 2012 - Review
It's the week of Thanksgiving and that means that yesterday, Sunday, was the Route 66 Marathon & Half Marathon in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It was a nice day for running. The first hour or so at least. The wind seemed to pick up as the day wore on. But it was nice at 8 AM. The sun had just risen and was shining on us we started out on the course. It was chilly, the temperature being about 40 degrees Fahrenheit. And it did slowly warm into the mid 40s over the next hour. The clouds moved in not long after the start and kept the temperatures down. It never did get very warm. Once we finished the wind was quite chilling.(I ran the half marathon.) The bands along the course were great. Crowd support was nice. Water stops were well placed and stocked with Gatorade and water at each. Plenty of volunteers. GU gels were available at the 8 mile water stop. The finish was nice. Again plenty of cheerful volunteers. They had a plethora of drinks available including water, Gatorade and Muscle Milk. Snacks were orange slices, bananas and what looked to be bread sticks. Beer was available out on the lawn of Veteran's Park along with a number of food trucks/ trailers. I didn't buy any of the food from the venders. Prices were reasonable I guess. I did get a massage. There was a group from OU Health Science with tables set up in one of the tents. I had a young lady work on my calves and ankles. A little painful but my legs felt so much better afterwards. At another tent there volunteers provided race results. You just gave them your number and they would look up your info and hand you a print out with your time, division, splits and your place. That was nice.
Now for the negative. What happened to the finisher shirts? This year if you wanted a finisher shirt you had to pay $24 for it. Don't think so. The participant shirt this year was a technical shirt. It seemed to me a little nicer than the finisher shirt. This year's Finisher shirt is blue with white and grey text. No detailed multicolor logo as in past years. Just a very plain, very simple design. Rather boring.
Also what's up with the shrinking medals? The designs are great. Very cool in fact. But, the 2012 medal, is smaller than the 2011 medal and the 2011 medal is smaller than the 2009 medal. (I didn't run Tulsa in 2010, so I can't tell about that year's medal.) My 2012 medal looks tiny next to the 2009 medal. I'm afraid at this rate I'll need a magnifying glass to read the text on next year's medal. Haven't decided if I will run Route 66 next year.
Anyway I had a good time. Rode up with my buddy Mark, who was kind enough to drive. Arrived in downtown Tulsa with a little over half an hour to spare. Another friend, Dr. Brown, had driven up the night before and had our packets. Took off my sweats and put on my number and my shoe tag. All the way up to Tulsa I wore my Baylor hat. Seems now that the night before the Route 66 marathon is the time for my Baylor Bears to knock off a ranked opponent. Last year we beat OU. This year we knocked off top ranked Kansas State. Anyway standing outside the car I had couple of folks congratulate me on my teams victory. Almost chose to wear my hat to the race, but decided not to. Didn't want to get it dirty. Had on a long sleeve Old Navy t-shirt that I had picked up at a thrift store. I wore that over my 2009 finisher shirt. Also wore some cheap brown cotton gloves. I wore my $15 sunglasses that I had bought at Walmart. Had on a pair of dark blue Nike running shorts, some Features running socks and my Brooks Green Silence shoes (Blue uppers with yellow sole and trim). After four miles I got warm enough to throw off my Old Navy shirt. I forgot my watch but did have my mile splits on a strip of paper around my wrist. Worked out fine as there were large digital clocks at each mile marker. I stayed pretty much on my target pace through the first nine or 10 miles. I had selected 7:25 as my mile pace. I chose this as it was one second under the mile pace I would need to run a sub 3:15:00 marathon. Anyway managed to stay with this the first 10 miles. Started to get a little ahead of pace toward the end and as I approached the 12 mile marker I picked up my pace. And with a hundred yards or so left I sprinted to the finish. The last 3 miles averaged out to somewhere around 7:03/mile. Anyway I was pleased with my time. This being my first half marathon. I managed to get 4th in my age group and with more than a hundred in my division I am very content.
As I was running south I saw Camille Herron streaking northward on Riverside Drive in her pink Spiderman (Woman) costume. Congratulations to Camille for setting the world record for the fastest marathon time in a superhero costume! I'm curious to find out how the costume was for running. Guess I'll check out her latest blog post. http://camilleherron.com/
Just eight weeks until the Houston Marathon. Hard to believe that it is getting that close. I've got a 20 mile run scheduled for Saturday. We'll see how that goes. Just my second 20 mile run this year. I'll actually get more than 40 miles in this week with the half on Sunday and a 20 mile run on Saturday ( two shorter runs on Tuesday and Thursday). The weather should be nice. I'll try to get enough sleep in this week, though with Black Friday coming up I may be getting up very early.
Well, happy trails and Sic'em Bears!
Now for the negative. What happened to the finisher shirts? This year if you wanted a finisher shirt you had to pay $24 for it. Don't think so. The participant shirt this year was a technical shirt. It seemed to me a little nicer than the finisher shirt. This year's Finisher shirt is blue with white and grey text. No detailed multicolor logo as in past years. Just a very plain, very simple design. Rather boring.
Also what's up with the shrinking medals? The designs are great. Very cool in fact. But, the 2012 medal, is smaller than the 2011 medal and the 2011 medal is smaller than the 2009 medal. (I didn't run Tulsa in 2010, so I can't tell about that year's medal.) My 2012 medal looks tiny next to the 2009 medal. I'm afraid at this rate I'll need a magnifying glass to read the text on next year's medal. Haven't decided if I will run Route 66 next year.
Anyway I had a good time. Rode up with my buddy Mark, who was kind enough to drive. Arrived in downtown Tulsa with a little over half an hour to spare. Another friend, Dr. Brown, had driven up the night before and had our packets. Took off my sweats and put on my number and my shoe tag. All the way up to Tulsa I wore my Baylor hat. Seems now that the night before the Route 66 marathon is the time for my Baylor Bears to knock off a ranked opponent. Last year we beat OU. This year we knocked off top ranked Kansas State. Anyway standing outside the car I had couple of folks congratulate me on my teams victory. Almost chose to wear my hat to the race, but decided not to. Didn't want to get it dirty. Had on a long sleeve Old Navy t-shirt that I had picked up at a thrift store. I wore that over my 2009 finisher shirt. Also wore some cheap brown cotton gloves. I wore my $15 sunglasses that I had bought at Walmart. Had on a pair of dark blue Nike running shorts, some Features running socks and my Brooks Green Silence shoes (Blue uppers with yellow sole and trim). After four miles I got warm enough to throw off my Old Navy shirt. I forgot my watch but did have my mile splits on a strip of paper around my wrist. Worked out fine as there were large digital clocks at each mile marker. I stayed pretty much on my target pace through the first nine or 10 miles. I had selected 7:25 as my mile pace. I chose this as it was one second under the mile pace I would need to run a sub 3:15:00 marathon. Anyway managed to stay with this the first 10 miles. Started to get a little ahead of pace toward the end and as I approached the 12 mile marker I picked up my pace. And with a hundred yards or so left I sprinted to the finish. The last 3 miles averaged out to somewhere around 7:03/mile. Anyway I was pleased with my time. This being my first half marathon. I managed to get 4th in my age group and with more than a hundred in my division I am very content.
As I was running south I saw Camille Herron streaking northward on Riverside Drive in her pink Spiderman (Woman) costume. Congratulations to Camille for setting the world record for the fastest marathon time in a superhero costume! I'm curious to find out how the costume was for running. Guess I'll check out her latest blog post. http://camilleherron.com/
Just eight weeks until the Houston Marathon. Hard to believe that it is getting that close. I've got a 20 mile run scheduled for Saturday. We'll see how that goes. Just my second 20 mile run this year. I'll actually get more than 40 miles in this week with the half on Sunday and a 20 mile run on Saturday ( two shorter runs on Tuesday and Thursday). The weather should be nice. I'll try to get enough sleep in this week, though with Black Friday coming up I may be getting up very early.
Well, happy trails and Sic'em Bears!
Saturday, November 10, 2012
9 Weeks Till Houston, Route 66 next weekend
Just a little over two months till my marathon. The last couple of weeks seem to have gone OK. Managed to get a 20 mile run in last Saturday. Pleased that I was able to finish it without pain or injury to cut my run short. 20 miles with an average pace of just over 8 minutes per mile. So all is good. Shortened one of my runs this week due to some discomfort, but today seemed to be relatively pain free. A little discomfort on the inside of one knee but nothing major. Did 14 miles at 7:41 pace. Right on target for my schedule. I've been going by the 3:15 Boston Marathon Training Plan in the book, Run Less Run Faster .books.google.com/books?isbn=1609618025 As I mentioned in my last post I haven't been doing the cross training except for my pushups and pullups. Also I don't have easy access to a track so I have not been doing the track repeats. Instead I just do two tempo runs in addition to my long run on Saturdays. I seem to be able to do the distances at the paces listed, so I think it is working for me. One other thing I don't do in my tempo runs, is that I don't do a slow cool down for the final mile. I have never seen any research that shows any benefit from a cool down jog after a workout, or in this case a tempo run. See the following: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/15/health/nutrition/15best.html (Is the Exercise Cool-Down Really Necessary?) After my run I walk up the drive way, up the sidewalk and into my house. I make my chocolate milk. Drink that. Drink a little water. Write down my time. Then it's time to shower and get ready for work. Seems to be an adequate cool down. 
Till next time, happy trails and Sic'em Bears!
Saturday, October 27, 2012
Marathon -Eleven weeks to go; San Juan, Puerto Rico report
Well eleven weeks from tomorrow is the Houston Marathon. Finally today I managed a long run without having to cut it short due to leg, foot, or ankle discomfort. It has been eight weeks since I tweaked my right Achilles tendon. Very pleased to have run 17 miles and to do it in under 8 minutes a mile with no significant pain. I have yet to run a 20 miler this year. Lord willing next Saturday I will run 20 miles. I am confidant that right now I could run a 3:30 marathon if conditions were right. Hopefully with good workouts the next several weeks I can get myself in shape to run a 3:15.
Last week I was in San Juan, Puerto Rico for a conference. Weather was nice. Rather warm and humid. A few brief rain showers. Highs in the mid eighties. Ran twice in San Juan. From the conference hotel across the bridge to Old San Juan and around the island. The north edge of the island is really nice. The sea, the architecture of the old buildings, the old cemetery, old fort and old lighthouse made it a really scenic run. A few steep hills as well. Really have to get up early there as the sun rises just after 6 AM. Eastern edge of the eastern time zone. I'd love to go back someday and visit some of the sights I didn't have time to see. Certainly missed the warm temperatures this morning. Just barely above freezing this morning when I started my run. Wore my running tights, long sleeve polyester shirt, knit cap, cotton gloves and a 180s light weight vented jacket. Seemed to be just enough. Had to take my hat off once as my head was getting a little warm. Had trouble keeping my fingers warm enough though. Had to ball up my fists inside my gloves much of the time to keep my fingers from going numb. My right ankle was giving me a little discomfort all throughout the first ten miles. But finally over the last several miles it started feeling better. The two previous Saturdays I cut my run short as the pain seemed to increase. So today's result was most reassuring.
I haven't managed to much in the way of cross training. Just doing my pushups every third day or so (3 x 50). And I haven't done any track work. So far just tempo runs of around five or six miles twice a week. After a slow first mile the remainder are run at about a 6:55 to 7:25 minute pace. Not real even pacing but I seem to be pretty close to the tempo paces listed for the 3:15 marathon training plan in the book Run Less, Run Faster. Maybe next week I can drag myself over to the Wellness Center on the university campus to do some work on the rowing machine. Not totally sold on the necessity of cross training. I think the pushups and pullups I do benefit my running somewhat (strengthen core muscles). Perhaps that will suffice for cross training. Well till next time.
Happy Trails! And Sic'em Bears!
 |
Last week I was in San Juan, Puerto Rico for a conference. Weather was nice. Rather warm and humid. A few brief rain showers. Highs in the mid eighties. Ran twice in San Juan. From the conference hotel across the bridge to Old San Juan and around the island. The north edge of the island is really nice. The sea, the architecture of the old buildings, the old cemetery, old fort and old lighthouse made it a really scenic run. A few steep hills as well. Really have to get up early there as the sun rises just after 6 AM. Eastern edge of the eastern time zone. I'd love to go back someday and visit some of the sights I didn't have time to see. Certainly missed the warm temperatures this morning. Just barely above freezing this morning when I started my run. Wore my running tights, long sleeve polyester shirt, knit cap, cotton gloves and a 180s light weight vented jacket. Seemed to be just enough. Had to take my hat off once as my head was getting a little warm. Had trouble keeping my fingers warm enough though. Had to ball up my fists inside my gloves much of the time to keep my fingers from going numb. My right ankle was giving me a little discomfort all throughout the first ten miles. But finally over the last several miles it started feeling better. The two previous Saturdays I cut my run short as the pain seemed to increase. So today's result was most reassuring.
I haven't managed to much in the way of cross training. Just doing my pushups every third day or so (3 x 50). And I haven't done any track work. So far just tempo runs of around five or six miles twice a week. After a slow first mile the remainder are run at about a 6:55 to 7:25 minute pace. Not real even pacing but I seem to be pretty close to the tempo paces listed for the 3:15 marathon training plan in the book Run Less, Run Faster. Maybe next week I can drag myself over to the Wellness Center on the university campus to do some work on the rowing machine. Not totally sold on the necessity of cross training. I think the pushups and pullups I do benefit my running somewhat (strengthen core muscles). Perhaps that will suffice for cross training. Well till next time.
Happy Trails! And Sic'em Bears!
Friday, October 5, 2012
5 weeks since injury, 100 days to marathon
Tomorrow morning will mark five weeks since I tweaked by right Achilles tendon. I think I am pretty well recovered. Now to get back on the path to my marathon goal. Over the last two weeks I have set new PRs for 5K and 10K. (Personal records for the past three and half years, I'm not counting the times I ran during cross country my sophomore year of high school. I can't remember those times anyway.) I still think I could better both of those times this month if the opportunity came along. That said I feel like I have a good chance of running a Boston Qualifying time at the Houston Marathon. In fact I think I may still have a shot at running a 3:15 in Houston. Now to just figure out how best to train. And more specifically how to gradually increase my mileage without re-injuring myself. I have basically said goodbye to the Pfitzinger 18/70 plan. Too many days of running and not enough time to recover. I am looking at the FIRST training program and am easing into that this week and next. I ran 6.3 miles on Tuesday as a tempo run. First mile 7:55, succeeding miles were run between 7:03 and 6:31 per mile. Wednesday rest, plus a brief orientation to some of the equipment at the Wellness Center. Thursday another tempo run. This time just 5 miles. First mile 7:46, the successive miles were between 7:09 and 6:45 per mile. Next week I'll try doing the rowing machine at the Wellness Center on Monday and Wednesday. Guessing around 25 minutes after looking at my book, Run Less Run Faster. http://www.amazon.com/Runners-World-Less-Faster-Revolutionary/dp/159486649X Hopefully next week I can get up early and try the track repeats on Tuesday. The FIRST plan has three basic runs: 1) track repeats, 2) tempo run, and 3) long run. And at least two cross training exercise periods per week. Tomorrow morning will be my first true long run since the day I hurt my Achilles. A bit chilly so I'll be wearing long sleeves, gloves and a hat. Not looking forward to running in the cold these next couple of months. But that's what I get for signing up for a January marathon. Well time to get to bed so I can get up early tomorrow.
Happy trails.....
Happy trails.....
Sunday, September 23, 2012
3 Weeks from Achilles injury...on the mend
Yesterday marked three weeks since I "tweaked" my right Achilles tendon. Still not completely sure what I did to my Achilles, just recall the sharp pain when it happened and the continued pain over the next several miles. That and the pain and discomfort over the next few days after that. Anyway from all reports, Achilles tendon injuries, as far as those where the tendon does not rupture, take a fair amount of time to heal. The pain is gone now but the right calf muscles and the tendon feel tight after a run. This last week I ran on Tuesday and Thursday. Two and half miles each time. Thursday I ran it pretty fast, about 16:36. Fast for me anyway. I was going to run Saturday morning but ended up sleeping in. Had to mow the lawn Saturday evening, so I decided to run the Aids Walk 5K in Bricktown on Sunday morning. The weather was ideal. Temperature in the mid to upper 50s with a nice breeze. A bit cloudy at the start, though the sun came out just a little later. I had it in mind to run a 21:45. Figured out my kilometer splits and jotted them down on the back of my hand. Course was out and back. From the Bricktown Ballpark, east on Reno then a long uphill trek to the Presbyterian Research Park. Needless to say with the long uphill I was a bit behind my splits at 1K and 2K and at the halfway point. Almost caught up by the 3K point and a couple seconds ahead or maybe behind at 4K. Not sure exactly. Anyway I picked up the pace a bit on the downhill and kept it going at the bottom and around the turn on to Reno. With the finish in sight, I saw that I could catch another runner so I sprinted in and passed him just before the line. Beat my goal by three seconds and won my age group! Very satisfying. Got to church before the singing started. Great sermon by Brother Ben.
So with three weeks and a day since the injury and no noticeable pain I think I need to get back on schedule. Well not the Pfitz 18/70. That's pretty much out for now. But this week I think I should be good for a Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday run. With 5M, 5M and a 10K for Saturday. 16 miles is about a third of what I was running the week that ended with the injury. Then maybe the next week I can run Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday. I spoke after the run today with a gentleman who finished ten seconds ahead of me. This man is 11 years older. Originally from Zambia. He lives in Edmond and is an excellent runner. He has run a number of marathons and has qualified for Boston at least once. He told me that he runs 3 to 4 times a week. He advised me not to focus on the number of days I run. So I think I will take his advice and focus on quality over quantity. No six day weeks for me. And at least at this point no five day weeks either. A good long run on Saturday and good quality runs on two or three weekdays should work. I should still be up to about 40 miles a week once I get going. I don't think I will be able to break 3:15 in the marathon this January, but I'll just have to see where I am two weeks from now and make a new schedule. Who knows?
Well hope everyone is enjoying the change of seasons. A lovely Autumn day today.
Peace
So with three weeks and a day since the injury and no noticeable pain I think I need to get back on schedule. Well not the Pfitz 18/70. That's pretty much out for now. But this week I think I should be good for a Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday run. With 5M, 5M and a 10K for Saturday. 16 miles is about a third of what I was running the week that ended with the injury. Then maybe the next week I can run Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday. I spoke after the run today with a gentleman who finished ten seconds ahead of me. This man is 11 years older. Originally from Zambia. He lives in Edmond and is an excellent runner. He has run a number of marathons and has qualified for Boston at least once. He told me that he runs 3 to 4 times a week. He advised me not to focus on the number of days I run. So I think I will take his advice and focus on quality over quantity. No six day weeks for me. And at least at this point no five day weeks either. A good long run on Saturday and good quality runs on two or three weekdays should work. I should still be up to about 40 miles a week once I get going. I don't think I will be able to break 3:15 in the marathon this January, but I'll just have to see where I am two weeks from now and make a new schedule. Who knows?
Well hope everyone is enjoying the change of seasons. A lovely Autumn day today.
Peace
Friday, September 14, 2012
Time and the Tendon, Achilles
Well, come tomorrow morning it will be two weeks since I injured my Achilles tendon (right leg). Over the last 13 days I have gone running just once. Last Saturday I went to Erick, Oklahoma for the Do-Wacka-Do Trail Run. The weather was beautiful. Mid 60s at the start. The run was held in the Sandy Sanders Wildlife Management Area. I originally signed up to do the 25 K but decided it would be best not to stress my Achilles too much, so I switched to the 5 mile run. About 20 people were there to run the 5 mile run. The 50 K and the 25 K runs started 30 minutes earlier so I didn't see how many people participated in those. The terrain was rugged but not too rough. The trails were ranch roads. Lots of short scrub mesquite bushes, with a few scattered wild flowers. A bit hilly but not too extreme. A few hundred feet from bottom to the mesa tops. After the first half mile I found myself in the lead. Just cruising along at a comfortable pace. My Achilles was bothering me but not nearly as bad as the week before. I reached the half way point in good time and got a cup of water from the volunteers. One fellow asked me where everyone else was. I told them they were about a quarter mile back. Well after a few more miles I began to doubt I was going the right way. Eventually I backtracked before meeting another runner. Turned out about six runners missed a turn and got off course. So each of us ended up running between 8 and 9 miles. I was rather disappointed to be in the lead the whole way and not even place. I received no apologies from the race officials. So took my banana, my shirt, and a bottle of water and made the long drive home. Don't think I will run this race again.
Well in each of the discussions about Achilles tendon injuries that I read over the past couple of weeks, the runners all stated that the recovery is a long slow process. So, this week again no running. But tomorrow morning I will head to Seminole for the Seminole Nation Days 5K. http://sno-nsn.gov/index.php/culture/seminole-nation-days Test out my legs. Hopefully next week I can ease back into my marathon training. A BQ time may still be a possibility for Houston.
Well in each of the discussions about Achilles tendon injuries that I read over the past couple of weeks, the runners all stated that the recovery is a long slow process. So, this week again no running. But tomorrow morning I will head to Seminole for the Seminole Nation Days 5K. http://sno-nsn.gov/index.php/culture/seminole-nation-days Test out my legs. Hopefully next week I can ease back into my marathon training. A BQ time may still be a possibility for Houston.
Saturday, September 1, 2012
Achilles Tendon
Had a couple of weeks of good running since my last post. Missed a couple of days here and there however. Sunday night the day after Saturday's orientation had to pick up my son at the airport just before midnight. That the day after getting up at 4:55 AM was pretty tough. Really tired. So the next morning I slept in till 7:30 and skipped my morning run. Rest of the week was pretty much to schedule. 43 total miles with 14.5 coming on my Saturday long run. (Was going to do a little more but had to take my son to the airport for his morning flight to Pittsburgh.) I was looking forward to this week as I was scheduled to run over 50 miles. ( I would have last week except I didn't run my 7.5 mile run on Monday.) So 7.5 Monday and 10 on Tuesday. First mile is always about 8:30 pace with succeeding miles under 8:00 and usually under 7:00 toward the end. Feeling a bit stiff I decided to take Wednesday as a rest day and not to the 5 "recovery" miles. Thursday another 10 miles and Friday an easy 5. This morning headed out for my long run hoping to do about 17.5 miles. As I started out felt a little faint discomfort in my right ankle but no big deal. I often have these minor discomforts. But about 1.5 miles or so in, I had a sharp pain in my right Achilles tendon. So sudden and painful that I hopped on my other leg for a step. The pain lessened considerably but was still there as I continued running. Kept hoping that it would go away or fade to something barely noticeable but it remained. Didn't get noticeably worse so I kept going. Made it home for my half way point pit stop in my driveway. Had a glass of water and some Accel gel. Back on the road all was well. But the pain was still there. After a few miles it seemed to be just a little more noticeable. Not a good sign. Kept going for another mile then decided to shorten my route. Cut a few miles off and ran home. So just a little over 14 miles total. But wish I had done less. Seems the pain is some sort of Achilles Tendonitis. Resting a little but had a few chores to do. Took a couple of ibuprofen earlier today. Did a fair amount of reading online about Achilles injuries. Seems I am going to need to rest and not just a couple of days this time. Darn. Right now I am hopeful that I can give it a try next Saturday as that day is the Do Wacka Do Trail Run near Erick, Oklahoma http://www.dowackadotrailrun.com/ I signed up a few weeks back to do the 25K. Sure hope I can go. But if I'm still feeling discomfort then I will have to cancel. Better a little temporary disappointment, than multiple weeks of injury and recovery. The ibuprofen is not recommended as it can slow healing of injuries. http://myrunningdoc.blogspot.com/2010/05/nsaids-why-runners-should-think-twice.html So guess the two I had this morning will be all for the day. In hindsight I should have taken Friday as a rest day. I was feeling pretty stiff and achy the evening before, having run 10 miles with an increasing pace that morning. I'm starting to think that at my age perhaps the recovery miles are not really helping and that I would be better off just resting on those days. That would have me running about 4 to 5 days a week. A lot closer to what the FIRST training program teaches. http://www2.furman.edu/sites/first/Pages/default.aspx
Their program is 3 intensive runs per week. Maybe 4 per week would work best for me. We'll see if I can adapt my Pfitzinger 18/70 schedule to a 4 run per week plan. ( I was planning to start that a week from now.)
Happy Trails y'all!
Their program is 3 intensive runs per week. Maybe 4 per week would work best for me. We'll see if I can adapt my Pfitzinger 18/70 schedule to a 4 run per week plan. ( I was planning to start that a week from now.)
Happy Trails y'all!
Saturday, August 18, 2012
Building up the miles
Back to school time! Orientation was this morning at my university so I had to get up extra early to do my long run. So a little after 5 AM I was on the road. Not a bad time to run. Quiet. Hardly any cars and few people. If I could get to bed earlier I might do this more often.
Well last Saturday night, (August 11), I ran the Midnight Streak at the Oklahoma City fairgrounds (5k). Weather was a little cooler than I expected, but still pretty warm, probably around 80 degrees by the time the gun went off. Tried to stay on my kilometer splits but at times it was hard to read my watch. So think I was few seconds behind my target pace at the 4 KM marker. Anyway picked up the pace as I headed toward the space needle. Then after the space needle I kicked it in to high gear, made the turn to the finish and sprinted it in. Crossed the finish line in 21:55. Woohoo! Finally broke 22:00 in the 5k. Best time so far in the 3 years that I have been running regularly. Still have a ways to go to be in the kind of shape I need to be to run a 3:10 marathon. But feels good to be making progress. Less than five months to go till Houston.
The Extensor Tendonitus seems to be pretty much gone. Still being cautious however. Wore my Saucony Grid Type A4s on the shorter runs and the Brooks Green Silence on the longer runs. Haven't worn my Adidas Adizeros in over two weeks now. And I didn't wear my black dress shoes all week as I wore khaki pants everyday.
This week I ran 48 miles. Just a couple of miles short of 50 miles a week. Need to have a four weeks of 50 plus miles before I try the Pfitz 18/70. Looks like I will have just three but guess I can count this 48 mile week as one to fill out the four weeks. (September 10 is the first day of the 18 week schedule that ends with the Houston marathon on January 13, 2013.) Takes time to build up to 50 miles a week. Little bit longer than I planned. Little injuries along the way,(extensor tendonitus), slowed the progress but now I am almost to the start of my marathon plan. I can always make a few small adjustments to the marathon plan if needed.
Cooler weather has arrived. It was cooler this afternoon than it was a 5:30 this morning while I as running. Guess I will need to wear a shirt in the mornings from here on out. Hope everyone is enjoying the cool air.
Peace.
Well last Saturday night, (August 11), I ran the Midnight Streak at the Oklahoma City fairgrounds (5k). Weather was a little cooler than I expected, but still pretty warm, probably around 80 degrees by the time the gun went off. Tried to stay on my kilometer splits but at times it was hard to read my watch. So think I was few seconds behind my target pace at the 4 KM marker. Anyway picked up the pace as I headed toward the space needle. Then after the space needle I kicked it in to high gear, made the turn to the finish and sprinted it in. Crossed the finish line in 21:55. Woohoo! Finally broke 22:00 in the 5k. Best time so far in the 3 years that I have been running regularly. Still have a ways to go to be in the kind of shape I need to be to run a 3:10 marathon. But feels good to be making progress. Less than five months to go till Houston.
The Extensor Tendonitus seems to be pretty much gone. Still being cautious however. Wore my Saucony Grid Type A4s on the shorter runs and the Brooks Green Silence on the longer runs. Haven't worn my Adidas Adizeros in over two weeks now. And I didn't wear my black dress shoes all week as I wore khaki pants everyday.
This week I ran 48 miles. Just a couple of miles short of 50 miles a week. Need to have a four weeks of 50 plus miles before I try the Pfitz 18/70. Looks like I will have just three but guess I can count this 48 mile week as one to fill out the four weeks. (September 10 is the first day of the 18 week schedule that ends with the Houston marathon on January 13, 2013.) Takes time to build up to 50 miles a week. Little bit longer than I planned. Little injuries along the way,(extensor tendonitus), slowed the progress but now I am almost to the start of my marathon plan. I can always make a few small adjustments to the marathon plan if needed.
Cooler weather has arrived. It was cooler this afternoon than it was a 5:30 this morning while I as running. Guess I will need to wear a shirt in the mornings from here on out. Hope everyone is enjoying the cool air.
Peace.
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
Foot pain, getting better
Well it has been a week and half since my last post. My right foot seems to be getting better but feeling a little discomfort this evening. My black dress shoes, (Oxfords), seem to cause me a little discomfort by the end of the day even when they are tied loosely. Anyway, prior to today all seemed to be going well. Been somewhat regular in stretching my calf muscles and exercising my extendors. http://www.wayne.k12.in.us/athletictraining/pdf/PDF%20Rehab%20Files/Ben%20Davis%20Student%20Handout-Medial%20Tibilial%20Stress%20Syndrome.pdf Try to do these in the evenings while watching the Olympics. Last Saturday did a long run of 15 miles with no noticeable discomfort, at least related to my extendors. Ran in my blue Brooks Green Silences. Monday ran 7.5 miles in my Saucony Grid Type A4s. Then Tuesday 10 miles in the Green Silences. Today being a rest day I slept in just a little. Tomorrow I'll do 9.2 miles, probably wear the Brooks GS. Then Friday an easy 5.0 miles in the Saucony(s). Saturday night is the Midnight Streak at the Fairgrounds in OKC. http://cityartscenter.org/Web_v2/events/midnight-streak/ Actually starts at 11 PM. I'm planning to be on the way home by midnight.
Hoping and planning to run under 22 minutes. Seems I can run a faster pace in my neighborhood after running a few miles, than I have been able to manage in any of my previous 5Ks this year. I've only run 2 so far this year. But based on my goal marathon time I should be able to run a 20 minute 5K. (See calculator at http://www.mcmillanrunning.com/index.php/site/index )With the hot weather Saturday night (mid 80s) I don't expect to make that much of an improvement, but I should be able to run 21:45. I'll try and stop by 7 Eleven on the way there to get me an Icy drink (Slurpee for those in other states). http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/27/health/nutrition/27best.html?_r=1
Saturday, July 28, 2012
Foot pain - Extensor Tendonitus
 |
| Adidas Adizero Adios |
 |
| Saucony Grid Type A4 |
 |
| Brooks Green Silence |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)