Maybe It's Actually Possible

After last weeks horrendous attempt a a 30Km Marathon training run we finally conquered it today..it was 10C cooler, cloudy, 1 hour earlier and quite abit flatter....also we stashed water along the route last night which really helped...

The route took us along Penno Road to Hornsby, then along the old Highway to Mt Kuringhai and back...both me and my running partner found it pretty smooth and easy until the last five k's which hurt a fair bit....what a great feeling to finish strong after a degree of self doubt and see that the Marathon is something that is possible...

Sweat Rates?

After a fairly traumatic attempt at my first 30km run this weekend, hampered and eventually smashed by 32C we are planning to get back on the horse again, depending on the weather, before we have to reach for 34 in a few weeks. No more walking, no more stopping at supermarkets and back gardens, no more finishing at a run pace that was actually slower than my walk pace!

Ive been researching hydration, trying to figure out how much i need to drink to avoid bonking like that again..this table from Australian Institute of Sport is interesting although i plan to do the before and after weight tests to make it more accurate...either way it seems like a litre an hour when it's over 20C is about right....

RUNNING

Exercise type	Sex	Intensity	Sweat rate (L/h)	Ambient temperature (°C)	Relative humidity (%)
10 km	f	12.8 km/h	1.49	19-24	-
	m	14.6 km/h	1.83	19-24	-
30 km	-	-	1.25	9-17	30-90
2 hours	m	63% VO2max	1.41	22	40-45
42.2 km	-	9.3-15.5 kg/h	1.1	21-26	50-60
	f	9-12 km/h	0.54	6-24	45-85
	m	9-12 km/h	0.81	7	45-85
	m	8.7-16.1 km/h	0.96	10-12	73
	m	15.9 km/h	1.52	20	37
	-	9.8-15 km/h	0.69-1.27	12-23	-
56 km	-	10.4-14.8 km/h	0.96-1.00	11.3-25.8	-
80 min	m	70% VO2max	1.43	20

Smashed !

Today was officially the toughest run Ive ever done...a 30km Marathon training run planned but when we got to the start at 6am it was already bloody 26C....first 15kms went smoothly....ate some Shotbloks and then killed off another 7 without too much trouble....then the sun came out and i started to feel tingly, stomach ache......definitely dehydrated, despite 1.5litres gatorade, 1 litre water and lots of drinking the day before...

I noticed on Wikipedia.... Symptoms of mild dehydration include thirst, decreased urine volume, abnormally dark urine, unexplained tiredness, irritability, lack of tears when crying, headache, dry mouth, dizziness when standing due to orthostatic hypotension, and in some cases can cause insomnia

Lack of tears while crying? Thats pretty much how I felt as the temperature rose from 26C to 28C and 30C near the end...

I confess to actually walk/running the last 5kms (which I have never done before)...my Garmin was telling me they were both at the same speed!!!

Finished and went straight in the supermarket for a bottle of real Coke (never do that either), followed at home by protein drink, sprite, coffee, four ice blocks and more...

If thats what the wall feels like it bloody hurts!

Balancing Act: Run to the Edge of Injury But Not Over It

Feeling a slight twinge in my ankle this avo..not sharp but dull, thank god, but it's a reminder that I need to take care, especially when having a run around the Basketball court in between my 4 runs a week...Basketball spells danger unless I'm careful given my previous ankle trouble

I like this quote:

Marathon training is very much a balancing act of pushing yourself close to --but not over --the edge of injury.

http://www.valleyofthegeeks.com/About/Marathon.html

I think Ill desist from the b-ball for a while, except for coaching, and make sure I dont do a long-ish run (12kms) right after a long one (21km) which I did today...there's no way Im going to let anything get in the way of the marathon..

Ive also been thinking about what a second Marathon would entail...Im keen not to go through anti-climax after the first one...Ive watched friends do this and a few even stop running and relapse into old ways...Im keen to make it just like any other run (well..plus alot of pain and suffering), one where I finish, recover and then head into the next goal....

My plan

1. Canberra Marathon 2011: Just finish

2. Sydney Blackmoore's Marathon 2011: Just finish

3. Gold Coast Marathon 2012: PR

4. Trail Marathon 2011: Just Finish

5. Blackmoore's Marathon 2012: PR

Then take stock and see how I'm set for the 45km Six Foot Track

Im aiming for a gradual improvement over the years...hopefully without disastrous injuries and certainly while avoiding burnout and maintaining the joy of running..

I am also wondering if Ill keep running 10km run's with the Warriors and 13-14km runs like City and Pub2Pub..not sure at this point..

8 Weeks to Go!

Only 8 weeks to go until the Canberra marathon, exactly at the halfway point since training began late last year. So far it's been a pretty good ride with zero injury...running slower than normal seems to take the edge of the distance, plus we've selected many flat courses, which is also a welcome change.....

Psychologically I have no real fear of the distance any more, I know it'll hurt but not anymore than trying to run at 5mins/km over 10k's....I can here experienced runners saying "he's naive", maybe your right, but so far with speeds of 6.5mins/km its been great...Ill save faster times for the second Marathon and just aim to finish..here is the schedule...at least 4 opportunities to eat more carbs than normal!

20.2.11	27.2.11	6.3.11	13.3.11	20.3.11	27.3.11	3.4.11	10.4.11
xtrain	xtrain	xtrain	xtrain	xtrain	xtrain	xtrain	xtrain
6km	6km	6km	6km	6km	10km	6km	6km
12km	12km	12km	10km	10km	8km	rest	rest
8km	8km	8km	8km	8km	6km	6km	5km
rest	rest	rest	rest	rest	rest	rest	rest
xtrain	xtrain	xtrain	xtrain	xtrain	xtrain	rest	rest
30kms	20kms	34kms	18kms	22kms	16kms	10km	MARATHON
56kms	46kms	60kms	42kms	46kms	40kms	22kms	53kms

Couch to Coach in Two Years

Today marks another milestone in my journey from sloth to fit person...two years ago I was busy watching TV, smoking and patting my belly..today will be my first session coaching my daughters Basketball team...Ok, might not seem momentous to many but it has symbolic meaning to me being yet another advantage of being fit and active...I played basketball during my fat years..40 minutes of being out of breath once a week was the only exercise i got.....I found some pretty good quotes that will represent my attitude towards it..Positive coaching and hard work

"Do your best to make each person associated with your program feel special... People want and need to be appreciated."

"Leadership is a matter of having people look at you and gain confidence by seeing how you react. If you are in control, they are in control." -- Tom Landry

"Leadership is the ability to lift and inspire."
-- Paul Dietzel

"Continuous effort -- not strength or intelligence -- is the key to unlocking our potential."
Liane Cardes

Weighing in on Protein?

I bought some protein powder today as im getting abit fed up of constantly trying to balance it every day

I know protein is an essential part of the diet for weight maitenance (plus needed for long runs over an hour, muscle repair and cross training weights sessions), but is powder a good idea? I fear not ?

In this article from Runner's World Weighing In On Protein they detail a diet with enough protein for a runner.....every meal has protein which i know your supposed to do but Im certainly not achieving this...

Breakfast Egg pocket: 2 eggs (or 4 ounces liquid egg substitute) scrambled and stuffed in a whole-wheat pita; 1 cup fruit salad; 6 ounces tomato juice

Snack 2 ounces of pretzel sticks dipped in 6 ounces low-fat vanilla yogurt

Lunch 1 black-bean burrito (1 cup beans, 2 tablespoons salsa, 1 ounce soy cheese, chopped tomatoes, and cilantro on whole-wheat tortilla); 1 banana; two 2-inch oatmeal cookies; 8 ounces cranberry juice

Snack 11/2 ounces soy nuts, dried papaya, and pumpkin seeds; 1 pear; 8 ounces sports drink

Dinner 31/2 ounces grilled salmon over 11/2 cups risotto; 1 cup steamed green beans tossed with lemon juice and herbs; 2 cups red and Napa cabbage salad (with snow peas and grated carrots) with 1 tablespoon rice-vinegar and oil dressing

Daily Total: Calories 2500; Protein 102 grams; Carbohydrates 410 grams; Fat 59 grams.

what do you guys do?

27Km Long Run After The Heat Wave

Gee whiz, the weather has been atrocious in Sydney with a massive heat wave with temp above 40 for 4-5 days in a row...when the winds hit yesterday avo the temp dropped a massive 23 degrees and me and my running partner were off on our long run...27kms....3 more than ever before...

We ran from Westleigh to Mt Kuringai and back, reasonably flat, nice sprinkle of rain, much easier than the last 4 long runs which have been really hot..by the time we hit half way we still felt strong and kept this way until about 20km..then it got abit harder and we stopped talking and were in our own thoughts for the rest, coping mode....great to finish and realise that we can do 2/3rds of a marathon distance already!

New Horizons (Again): Time for 0.639 of a Marathon

Marathon training continues and after a 40 km week and a 15km long run it's time to climb the mountain again for a 27km long run this Sunday...3kms further than I have ever run before...two days ago the forecast was for wet and 18, thats now been revised to a scorcher, 34C top and 27C at 5am when we plan to start.....blimey!

My plan stays pretty much the same as for the past 21 and 24km runs...carry enough Gatorade (2 bottles worth) plus pack $5 to buy water if neccesary, eat shotblocks, listen to podcasts if neccesary and only save the music to the end if needed (it makes me run to fast)....mentally ive taken to visualising a slow happy plod there and back beforehand which for some reason works a treat (I really dont believe in this stuff!).......also my mantra of choice has turned out paradoxically to be "stand still" which I think is my way of talking to my mind, persuading it not to count the kms left but run 'in the moment'...again garbage I dont believe in which works incredibly well!

Pace-wise Im happy with a 6.5min/km..I dont really care about time for this one...just keep moving.....

Too Hot

Tonites run in 29C or so was too much...tingling, dizziness, abit of nausea...clearly i hadn't hydrated enough and a normally easy 11kms turned out to be a sluggish torture session with a pace of 6.08mins/km compared with a normal 5.2 or 5.3...it reminded me of how tough it was when I first started running two years ago, especially up the hills....

....this weekend heralds my longest training run yet, 27kms, but thank god its forecast to be 21C....I cant imagine what it's like for trail runners who regularly seem to run in 30C plus during the day....imagine Badwater!!

Running as Psychotherapy?

Im my professional life I confess to being a Psychology academic and even though my research is in child and adolescent family therapy Im thinking of branching out into research on the role of running in adult mental health....Ive done a brief literature review and it seems well supported as one aspect of treatment for moderate and mild depression.....makes sense and seems to effect the brain. mood, thinking, ect.....lots more reading and talking to colleagues to do given I have had very little experience with adult mental health

In my own life running has changed my mood and oulook enormously; I feel so much more energetic and get stuck into life generally in a much more positive fashion.....was i depressed before I started? Maybe....

What are your experiences?