The Wrong Advice

So I will first start by saying, I by no means am an expert in running.  I have been running now, and enjoying it, for the last four years.  What makes up for my lack in running knowledge I make up in my obsessive compulsiveness in doing research.  Even from the onset of my running journey with my wife, we wanted to do it right.


This meant I was always reading and Googling everything from what shoes to wear, how to train for a marathon, nutrition, how to run certain types of terrain, etc.  I would ask people I knew who had run a while tips of the trade. I follow different bloggers (check the blog role to the left). We subscribed to both Runners World and Trail Runner magazines.  I have now even jumped into listen to podcasts, like Endurance Planet, UltraRunnerPodcast, and Trail Runner Nation for psuedo mentors.

Lately I have discovered Reddit and LinkedIn (my favorite groups being Bay Area Trail Runners, Run Lovers, Running In Business, and Marathon Runners) as sources for tips. For the most part, the tips and information is pretty reliable.  Advice broken down by:

• Terrain specific
• Running method specific (trail, sprinters, marathon, etc.)
• School of hard knocks (do what I say and not copy what I did)
• Equipment and Nutrition 

Maybe its because I am getting cynical in my old age (in my prime for a trail or ultra runner), but it amazes me when people don't take the time to get answers to nagging problems or ways to improve. And it irks me when someone gives inacccurate or just plan wrong.   In fact, when looking for tips or advice it is easy to also find a rehash of old and outdated advice, or tips that, if someone would apply a level of thinking ability, make no common sense.  It is typically from runners (or any athletes) that are still learning from the school of hard knocks and haven't graduated.

For example, my wife and I have some friends that have been running for years.  They frequently get injured; however, have never looked into why.  However, they are also the first to jump into the latest running fad.  They have never asked why they can't walk a week because they tore up their quads going down hill. Or if you decide to go minimalist, do your research so that if the change is for you, you make the switchover without injury.

Dinner for the Napa Marathon.  Source: Winterjade.com

I learned the hard way early in my running about accepting wrong advice.  For me it was carb loading before my first half marathon.  More specifically the pasta dinner the night before.  Don't get me wrong, I understand the importance of glycogen stores and the purpose of carb loading.  The problem is that I (and many others who are tempted by the pasta feed the night before) is how much is enough without overloading.   I in fact repeated this error at my first, third, and fourth marathon and ended up in the porta-potty at mile 18 (pretty much at all three).  

The key here is not accepting advice on face value.  Evaluate it against other research you have done.  Ask questions and learn.  If the advise you are given doesn't add up, move on.   Find what works for you.

Another example, when we began running I was 265 pounds.  That was March 2008.  By February 2009, I was 195 pounds running the Surf City Half -Marathon, and by October 2009, I was 177 and running my first marathon in Long Beach.  Eating wise, I subscribed to a ratio of 46% carb, 30% protein, 24% fat diet.  My weight had stabilized at Long Beach and wasn't bonking on runs.  I actually felt the best since high school. 

I wanted to get a bit more serious about running and did a lot more reading.  I surmised from what I read and the advise given,  that my ratios were wrong!  My carb and fat intake was too low and my protein to high.  SO, I started messing with a good thing.  Now I was finding that, while maintaining my calories at the same level, I was gaining weight.  I also noticed that my blood sugar was swinging.  So for me, a traditional "runners diet" was not good for me.  It wasn't until I started paying attention to more of the nuances of the advice that I understood what would be better.

Keep in mind, every bit of advice you will get may be due to that runners experience.  That said, a sprint runner's advice will be completely different than a 10K, a sub-3 hour marathoner to a 100 mile distance ultra runner.  It means discernment on your part.

So next time you get wrong advice, smile, and move on.

Using a Heartmonitor to Mitigate Over-training

I’ve lately begun running with a heart monitor to see where I am from an aerobic/anaerobic standpoint.  Being analytical by nature, I have always been interested in trying to improve my speed as well as while working on a balanced training regimen.

Source: dcrainmaker.com

I am now learning, though, that I am not balanced between the two.  For example, I do cycle between home and work and log and average of 16 miles a day.  With the exception of a couple decent hills on the way home, it is pretty flat.  When I run during lunch, I have found using the heart monitor, I run an average 9:12 pace and an average 133 beats per minute, well within an my optimum aerobic range.  So it was a bit of a surprise when I came across some of the warning signs that I had been over-training aerobically.   I came across the Soc-Doc website which discussed aerobically over-training. The Soc-Doc outlines these signs in his blog here.

So when I look back to July and September, the months when I had huge insomnia and anxiety issues, were preceded by huge mile increases in June and August. That, combined with the added stress of getting used to a new job in a new industry, was a deadly combination.

Aerobic over-training is different from anaerobic over-training.  According to the Soc-Doc, when you over-train aerobically, you increase your cortisol (the stress hormone).  The affect causes the above warning signs.  Anaerobic over-training affects how your body metabolizes glycogen.  This affects how your muscles are feed and rebuild which causes things to break, like tissue and ligaments.

Took a wrong turn, need balance here!

Compare this to a couple of runner friends I have.  They are the ones that do very little if any training.  While running for years, when training for a marathon, they are haphazard in when and how long they run.  Their longest long run may be 12 to 15 miles.  Now you know why it is frustrating to my wife and I when they run a sub-4 marathon.  However, their lack of training comes with a cost.  They tend to catch every bug that comes around and are very injury prone.  They typify anaerobic over-training.

Really balanced training requires balance in both anaerobic and aerobic work. 

To improve your endurance, long runs (not at race day speed) are important; this requires building up your cardiovascular system through the long hours of Aerobic exercise. Using a heart monitor will help you slow down and keep within a healthy range so that you are maximizing the oxygen you are receiving while economizing your glycogen.  Typically you want to be between 70% and 80% of your maximum heart rate..

Speed work is also very important to build up your V02Max as well as increase your lactic threshold and adding speed work also helps to improve the efficiency of your run. This can be done in many ways: 

This is just part of the over 400 Filbert Street Steps

• Running hills or steps. (love the hills and of course the Filbert St. steps!)
• Sprinting 20 or 30 seconds, with 60 to 90 seconds of recovery, 4 or 5 times. 
• Running Yasso 800
• Or other high intensity intervals, plyometric exercises. 

However, this is where a heart monitor really comes in handy.  To properly know if you are running anaerobically and to best test your V02Max you need to sustain running at 80% to 90% of your maximum heart rate for 20 seconds to 2 minutes.

To calculate my maximum heart rate, I used the following trusty calculation: 220 minus my age.  While it is pretty easy to calculate your thresholds, I found the following calculator helpful in getting my exact range.  

Now I will say, I am still getting used to the heart monitor.  Tricks like making sure the sensors are wet (by licking them I might add) at the start of the run, where to place the monitor so I don’t feel it when I run, etc. have been challenging.  However, I am learning a lot.  I also can better understand as my pace increases if I am keeping the balance or beginning to over-train.  Hopefully I can use this information to really fine-tune my running going forward and reduce my efficiency.

That said, while I am not a doctor, sports medicine specialist, or even a trainer, the above information I have found useful and am now adding to my training regimen.  I highly recommend anyone reading this to do their own research and  if have questions to contact their health care professional.

So do you use a heart monitor when you train?  And when did you realize you had over-trained?

Endurance Running and Pheidippides

Perhaps its because a good friend of mine ran the Tahoe Rim Trail 100M, his first 100 miler, or because I am in reflective mode since this will be the first time in three years that my wife and I won't be running the SF Wipro Marathon. But, when I came across this blog on PLOS, it really made me think about endurance running  in general.

photo:empower-sports.com

Some of the time, when I mention that my wife and I do endurance runs or mention when my buddy runs ultras, I find that I get the usual responses like "You will blow out your knees or ankles" or that "running long distances damages your  heart," Typically this is followed by an example like Micah True dieing from heart disease, or the latest runner who died at  marathon (not very many from a percentage of those who run).  The one I like the most is that Pheidippides died after running the first Marathon.  Who is Pheidippides?  You can find out in more detail here; however, he is supposedly the first person to run the 25 miles from the battle of Marathon to Athens to let the Greek Senate know that the Persians had been defeated.  Once he arrived and delivered his message he promptly died.  Now, what people miss in the story, and what is brought out in the PLOS blog, is that Pheidippides had run a combined 160 miles, over mountainous terrain, as well as fought in the battle in under 3 days BEFORE running 25 miles to his demise.

The greatest challenge faced when discussing endurance sports is that people generally judge the sport by their own context.  And lets face it, when you compare today's system of things to that of someone who lived 60 years ago, people really do not tax their bodies to the level that they were created.  For most, their time is spent sitting at work, sitting in a car coming home, and sitting relaxing in front of the TV or computer before going to bed.  Imagine, if you you exercise the recommended 30 minutes a day, you are only exercising your muscles 2%, an hour a day and you are only taxing your muscles 4% of the day.  Compare that to how people worked prior to the invention of the TV and the car and you can see that from a context standpoint why people question endurance sports.

It really comes down to conditioning. Basically we condition our bodies with the activities we do.  So, done in measured amounts, an increased level of activity over time improves the endurance of a person.  Back in the day, when people had to walk from village to village to get anywhere, or like the Kenyans who run from village to village, people had conditioned there bodies to cover those distances without any trouble. So to properly condition yourself requires measured and balanced training. A good way to do this is by downloading a running schedule, such as the one found on Hal Higdon's site or Marathon Rookie. If followed, you will condition your body to run an endurance run without over-training or under-training.

Now I am not saying that there is no limits to what our imperfect bodies can do, there are.  However, most of us set those limits, either by the choices we make with our time or nutrition we take in. If we are married or have families, there are additional limitations with our time to balance.  We want to be healthy for them but we do not want to take time away from them either. We also may have medical issues that we have to deal with and be realistic of what those are.  However, if we self-limit ourselves, we will never know what we can do.

So as I look back at my buddy's accomplishment with his first 100 miler, I look in awe at that accomplishment.  This is something I will not try because I have limited myself to no more than 50K's, but that is just me.  I also know, and am amazed at folks who you would not characteristically consider the endurance running type; however, continue tirelessly and successfully at it.

So instead of using Pheidippides as an excuse not to run an endurance run, why not set it a goal, pick a good half or full marathon training schedule, and give it a try.  See what good conditioning can do.