Geo-Runner

"The Van Aaken Method" vs. "The Lydiard Method"

2009-11-12T15:11:00.000-08:00

I just finished reading a book by Ernst van Aaken Called "Van Aaken Method". I am a huge proponent of long slow distance and started working towards the "Lydiard Method" way of training earlier this Spring. Van Aaken was experimenting with long slow distance before Lydiard, as early as the 40's. Though both methods are quite similar there are some slight differences. I experimented with both over the last bit and have merged the methods into a plan that works well for me, with my plan resembling Lydiard's method the closest. These endurance centered methods are the extreme opposite of the tempo or interval training methods that experienced popularity in the middle of the last Century, the premise of which is to run many anaerobic intervals (using more oxygen than you can breath causing lactic acid to form) without full recovery between intervals.

What is Long Slow Distance? In a nutshell the theory involves running every day and running as much mileage as possible at an aerobic pace that allows conversing if desired. Ultimately it is a running technique that focuses on converting the body into an efficient aerobic machine. Van Aaken believed that the limiting factor to performance was oxygen intake by the cells. His plan was to run at a heart rate (120-150) that allowed optimal breathing and oxygen uptake, for as long as possible each day. It is ultimately this long period of elevated oxygen that trains the body to perform the best. Lydiard came up with a set distance of roughly 100 miles a week as a minimum. Van Aaken said this mileage was actually more aimed towards allowing Lydiard's athlete Snell, who was a heavier runner, to cut weight and stay trim. Van Aaken thinks that this mileage is not necessary for lite, middle distance runner's. A side note though is that anyone running marathon or ultramarathon distances, regardless of weight, should be focusing on this sort of mileage and greater. It is theorized and also proven that these distances grow the maximum amount of capillaries to deliver oxygen to the maximum volume of the body. Second the distance helps to grow a large strong and efficient heart that does not have to work as hard to supply blood to the circulatory system while running. Lastly this method keeps your weight low making for a very high ratio of heart volume to body weight. Ultimately you want as large a heart (and VO2 Max) as possible with the least amount of mass. This fortuitous ratio seems to be crucial particularly in longer distances amongst the elites.

The key differences between EVA's pure endurance method and Lydiard's method are slight but worth mentioning. The EVA method prescribes rest breaks. I typically have way to big of an ego to ever walk in a run. To walk is to admit defeat. Curious, after reading the book, I played around with some walking. There were some interesting observations. My first 15 Km run I decided to throw in a 2 minute walking break every 8 minutes. It was difficult at first, but my body quickly craved the walking breaks. I saw this as a negative aspect of taking walking breaks. I would start running and then my mind was instantly looking forward to the next break. What was interesting though is my final time was only about 12 minutes slower than my previous day's 15km run, on the same course, even though I had taken well over 25 minutes of walking breaks. This seems to indicate when I was running, I was running faster to make up the distance, and because I was rested I was able to push harder during each running streak. I decided the 2 minute every 8 was the wrong ratio for me. I next tried a 1 minute break every 10. This ratio ended up costing me a total of 2 extra minutes on my 15 km route. The most interesting thing is that I was really rested after this run and felt really good and could have gone much further. My final experiment with the walking breaks is to just take the breaks when I feel lactic acid building such as on steep rocky hills or when my muscles were extremely tense. I found that this ends up being perhaps 2 or 3 breaks lasting 1-2 minutes for a 15 km run. Last night's run was 2 minutes faster than the night before when I just ran straight without a break. This appears to be the best break method for me. I don't find my mind becoming weak and looking forward to breaks, and in the end I feel the few short breaks allow me to recover after hard hills or when I am extremely tense, and then I can run 30+ minutes again harder without any problems.

The second major difference is that EVA's method requires little tempo work (less than 5% of total mileage) and no hill repeats. Because I am still working on my base I haven't really played with tempo too much or hill repeats. Lydiard incorporates the tempo and hills in his sharpening segment of training just before a big race. One thing I emphasize is that I only run terrain that I intend to race. Since I like endurance trails with extreme elevation differences I try to only run on challenging single track with hills. I feel that running everyday under the circumstances I expect to see in a race allows me to perform to the specifications the race requires. I do run some roads to get to my trails each day (a necessary evil) because I don't like driving to running spots if I can help it. So ultimately I have some experience on the roads as well. I have played with some hill repeats last spring. These were challenging and really taxed my quads going down and calves going up. I felt that they helped me out a ton but I was incorporating them in my base training and so ultimately they made me run faster earlier on in my training but may have stressed my body too much if I kept them up so that I would ultimately plateau sooner due to fatigue. My new goal is to incorporate hill repeats 12-8 weeks before a major race and after I have a very strong base at long slow distance. This should really sharpen me up and really peak my performance off from my existing high aerobic base platform. So I really lean towards Lydiard's method of training when it comes to hill's I feel they are essential for trail runners and probably road runners as well.

I have little input with tempo at this time, but I feel this will be something I will start playing with. I think that I will take Van Aaken's advice and run a short race distance speed every day <>

Ultimately I am using the theory behind both of these methods and experimenting with different aspects to try and come up with my secret formula.

So far I am aiming for around 100 miles a week including one run that is 30-50 km long each week (which both methods suggest for athletes interested in long distance). I am going to spend the majority of my time on rocky, steep, technical terrain since my long term goals like the Wasatch 100 are this type of run (this more closely resembles Lydiard's method). I am going to take short 1-2 minute walking breaks when I feel lactic acid building up or when my muscles are overly tense after running for a long time (this is more emphasized in the Van Aaken method). I am going to start incorporating some segments of race pace in each run so I can practice every pace, but I will insure it doesn't tax my body and send my into anaerobic running for too long (more Van Aaken method). Lastly I will use hill repeats and intervals 12-8 weeks before a big event to catapult a peak performance from an existing high mileage platform (definitely Lydiard method here).

Perhaps the biggest piece of advice I obtained from reading this book is to have fun. Van Aaken mentions the importance of running playfully and enjoying yourself. I like this and feel that there are tons of opportunities to run playfully each time you hit the trails. For instance incorporating small fartlek's on strategic beautiful sections of trails will be awesome. Cruising through the Douglas and Arbutus as fast as you can is a huge booster. Playing games and challenging myself each run like "lets see if I can do this segment of the trail faster than yesterday" first entertains me, and second it allows me to have small victories each run even if the run in general is not a high quality one.

Both these coaches were well above there times with the long slow distance methods. Both coaches saw their athletes outperform everyone. The methods are very similar but by incorporating small differences from each method that I find to work for me I hope to really grow as a runner this year and the years to come.

Enough with the thesis! Lets talk running! The Titans of Trail Running (Anton Krupicka edition)

2009-10-16T19:27:00.000-07:00

It is probably apparent from this title that I am burned out of thesis work and running has fought back my studies and crept back into my thoughts, and I hope as of tomorrow, I will be cleared to run. I did not get any running in this weekend like I had hoped in my previous blog entry. I did eat a lot of turkey and had a subsequent triptophan coma. This is my second Canadian Thanksgiving and it felt like Thanksgiving this year I had a great holiday. I am currently wearing my Holter heart monitor as I write this. I turn it in to be analyzed and then hit the treadmill first thing in the morning. Tomorrow will be my first time running since my incident. I am so anxious it feels like the night before a big race. My research has settled down a bit and a change in timing for committee meetings has altered my deadlines, so I will actually have some time to think about stuff other than rocks.

As my blog implies I would like to talk about several (of many) trail running heroes I have and why, over the next while. For major trail runner's these athletes are a shoe in, but for my friends who don't know much about endurance trail running this will be a brief introduction to some amazing athletes and individuals. All of this information comes from the runner's blogs or websites, articles written about them or anything I have scrounged up while surfing the net. If anything is incorrect I apologize, I am doing the best I can with the info that exists out there, and have put my own biased twist to many factoids.

First off is Anton Krupicka.

Photo by Brian Bailey Jan, 2007 Trail Running Mag

Apparently Krupicka really broke into the distance trail running scene in 2006 with his crazy first place win at Leadville with a 17:01:56. I don't think many people had heard of him up to this point. In the January 2007 edition of Trail Runner Mag they ran a story on Krupicka and his victory at Leadville http://www.trailrunnermag.com/digital_archive.php?issue=43 In the article they start out talking about how no one really knew who won the race, only that it was "some naked guy". This of course referring to Krupicka's minimalist running apparel that really sums him up in a nutshell and is one of the reasons I admire him the most. What was perhaps most inspiring to me about this 2006 victory was this was Tony's first 100 mile race and only his second ultra (his first being a first place win and a course record for the High Mountain 50 K about a month earlier). I am not going to go into gory detail about his race history and life story, please refer to his blog http://antonkrupicka.blogspot.com/ for this information, and the story in trail running mag is great. I think that this year's attempt by Krupicka to beat Matt Carpenter's brilliant course record at Leadville was perhaps one of the closest watched events in Ultradistance trail running history. Along with me, a large number of fellow runners were anxious to see if the record would fall this year. In the end Krupicka did not do it but his post run synopsis is fantastic.

Reasons I admire Krupicka and chose him to start my list of Trail Running Titans

Krupicka is a titan of long distance training. If Lydiard was really onto something suggesting 100 mile training weeks, than Krupicka took it to a whole new level, occasionally approaching or even crossing the 200 mile a week threshold. These are serious hard core trail miles at elevation not simple flat runs at sea level.

Krupicka is a minimalist. I myself have lived a relatively minimalistic life in comparison with many people I have graduated with. I decided early on what was important to me and decided to focus on those things, getting rid of any excess. Krupicka brings up a great point when he says that the less money he spends on frivolous garbage the more he will have to spend on truly meaningful experiences. He runs in light track shorts and shirtless (only wearing long sleeves in bad weather at high elevation). Often his fuel consists of a water bottle and a pocket full of gels. Krupicka logs many miles each week barefoot and mentions it has helped correct improper running technique and solved injuries. He modifies his shoes removing much of the midsole with a serrated kitchen knife. His example of focusing on meaningful experiences and avoiding the excess is sound wisdom. (I am going to get on a soapbox for a bit, sorry you can skim ahead when you have heard enough). I think that this world is full of glut and excess. I find that the happiest times in my life have been when I have had the least. It seems a backwards law but it is true. After my bachelor's degree I was working in industry and began to accrue things. The bills piled up and I was forced to work more. We were finally looking at even buying a home during the height of inflation (this would have been a disaster). In the end I got rid of all the excess and went back to school. I don't even have a cell phone anymore (I used to have two). I only have to worry about paying for rent, utilities, groceries and tuition. My life is very simple, I study hard, hang out with the fam, and run a lot. I only spend time on what is important to me and because I am not a slave to bills and a "starter castle" I am able to do what I enjoy every day. It is simple and yet I am as happy as I have ever been. I have less money to live off from in one year now than I used to clear in 4 months, but during that time in my life I was the most stressed and unhappy I had ever been. I feel everyone needs follow Krupicka's advice to strive for a simpler leaner life, I feel it would solve many problems.

It appears that Krupicka is very much into his education which is something very important to me obviously. When I saw that he has studied geology I was instantly sold. Being a long distance runner and a geologist is a unique experience few others can truly appreciate. I don't run over "rocks", I run over millions and sometimes billions of years of Earth history in single workouts. I run on ancient sea beds, over solidified magma chambers and violent volcanic eruptions, and over complex structural oddities few people can explain. Every foot strike has meaning whether I am running in Western Canada or the Wasatch Range in Utah I am intimately familiar with the complex story each rock whispers to me. I don't know if Krupicka honestly thinks this way about rocks and running but I hope he does because it breaths meaning into both geology and running and I find that they go quite well together.

Krupicka often discusses songs that play in his head on certain runs (many of these are great songs and introduce me to new music). I am obsessed with music and find that different runs have different moods and while running a particular song comes to mind and paints a backdrop or a soundscape in which the drama of my run can unfold. Many of my runs have taken on more meaning and have become more memorable because of the musical link between the run and a song playing in my mind.

Krupicka is a great writer. He is great with the English language. Reading his blogs are inspiring and entertaining and often I feel like I am there running beside him (perhaps the closest I will ever come to running next to him).

This is just a glimpse at Krupicka through my eyes. He is someone I look up to. I think he is inspiring, and as I read about his victories and accomplishments I want to improve and run further and try harder. Krupicka was the focus of a DVD by Negative Split. I haven't had the cash to purchase it yet (being a grad student leaves little cash for anything but school) but I have watched the trailer on youtube dozens of times. I hope to buy it in the near future.

What I love about Ultra Runners is they are humble. Long distance trail running has avoided much of the negative aspects that taint many other athletic events. There is little publicity, the race can't be followed by cameras or crowds. The only variables are the athlete and the environment. In the end each runner is trying to accomplish their own personal best and it becomes a battle of man vs. himself and man vs. nature. Anything can happen over 100 miles of distance. I am happier because I am an endurance trail runner!

Time to start running again!!

2009-10-10T01:24:00.000-07:00

Well this has been terrible to not be able to run for three weeks now. I don't know how people can stand to not be active. The sedentary life sucks! More than once I have thought about running against Doctors orders just because I would rather die running than rot away sitting around not achieving physical goals and potential. I have felt terrible as a result of not running. It is the least running I have done in years (other than a few injuries early in my running pursuits that put me out for 6 weeks). It has been traumatic to feel my fitness draining, at first slowly, and now exponentially. Perhaps most challenging is the fact that the weather here in Victoria has been brilliantly clear-cool fall weather. The perfect time to crank out some serious distance is during the vibrant colors of fall in brisk air from the ocean.

Following Thanksgiving on Monday, I will do the 24 hour Holter test and the day following I will do the treadmill test. I expect nothing more than both tests to reveal a healthy heart following suit from my two ECG and echo cardiogram tests. So far everything says I have a large healthy albeit slow (40 bpm) heart. My blood pressure is extremely low (90/50). As far as I can gather the syncope was possibly caused by a blood sugar crash due to poor fueling the morning of the run, impending flu, or possibly it was a result of stress, lack of sleep and a hard run starting cool and quickly heating up toward the end, and lastly slowing down to quickly after really cranking. I was also at the end of a strong week (100 km) and in the middle of a strong building phase to reach 160 km a week. In general not running has had a silver lining because I have been able to focus all my attention to school, and with my PhD proposal due date fast approaching I have needed the forced break in running desperately. I think I may try a few short (5-10 k) runs over this Thanksgiving weekend to help clear stress caused by solid writing. The point of this weekend is to crank out as much writing as possible, so I will have to run even though I haven't been fully cleared, just to keep sane. I will take it easy and pay close attention to how I feel. I imagine all will go smoothly and I can't wait to recover my fitness, I hope it isn't too far gone.

I will never be sedentary it just sucks. I love being on the trails, cranking up the mountains, and grinding down the rocks. I told my advisor that I will keep my running in balance with the other facets of my life; perhaps I was a bit out of balance towards the end of the Summer. I have felt my attention and effort of other pursuits slip because of the crappy mood I experienced from not being able to hit the trails each day. I don't care how many times I hear that distance running is bad for your knees, heart, and whatever else sedentary people say to make me feel guilty for my obsession, I would rather deal with the risks of running than live in a state of suspended animation not improving my health . The fact that I am not burning 5-7000 calories a week has resulted in a noticeable fat store in just three weeks. I can't wait to tap into those stores and crank out some serious distance. Once these tests come back negative and my PhD proposal is accepted by my committee I have a fantastic 25 Km run over 2 mountains twice overlooking the ocean. It is definitely time to start running again! Thanks to all those who have thought about me during my little fiasco.

Running Syncope (Losing consciousness after running)

2009-09-19T15:20:00.000-07:00

I went for my Saturday morning run today just like any other weekend run in the past. I had planned on running with a small group of people in the morning but thought I had missed them when I noticed their cars were at our meeting spot but no one was around, so I ran on by myself and thought I would see them along the run.

I felt pretty good this morning and had a really fast pace. I haven't been sick this week but I could tell I was just a bit off the last 3-4 days. I blamed it on stress from writing my PhD proposal but now I am wondering. I saw someone running quickly about a full Km ahead of me (it is a very straight and flat course). I thought I could catch them in the next 10 minutes so I pushed pretty hard. I met my goal on caught the runner about the time I veered off to run a different side trail. I hit my turn around point and decided to cruise back to my car. I was only running 6 km in the morning and was planning on a steep and technical 20 Km run in the evening. I was just doing the short morning run so I could run with friends, I typically never drive to a spot to run unless I have good reason.

I started feeling a bit fatigued on the way back to my car. I thought it could be the warming Fall sun or it was because I didn't have a good breakfast. I still felt surges of speed so I would push when I felt good. The last half Km I saw the group I was supposed be running with just starting their run (apparently they had been doing a small warm-up and I had just missed them in the morning so they hadn't even started their run yet). My typical running partner was waiting for me to finish my lap thinking I would want to go again and crank out another 6 Km run. As I got near him I felt extremely tired and fatigued and told him that I feel really tired. It came on pretty fast. I started slowing (a bit fast).

The next think I know I was loosing my vision and my legs were completely collapsing. That was the last thing I remember. Over the next minute I was experiencing what felt like a really realistic dream. In the background I could hear my running partner Rob, who happens to be a Doctor, repeating my name and asking me if I was alright. He sounded very distant and distorted and I can't quite explain the weirdness of the experience. Suddenly his voice and my consciousness began to surface like when you emerge from a pool after a high dive. I opened my eyes and for one split second thought I was still running. I quickly realized I was on the ground when I looked over and saw Rob hunched down to talk to me. I was really confused and then I could tell I was pretty messed up from the fall.

Apparently my chin broke my fall as I face planted onto the asphalt. Somehow my right arm really got twisted up under me and was pretty injured. Both knees were scraped. My Jaw is super skinned and just extremely sore and swollen. What a horrible experience to realize that I completely passed out on my run.

I am very glad it didn't occur until I was near Rob who as a doctor was able to check me out for any major injuries. I was fine just a bit confused and sore from the face plant onto the pavement.

Since coming home and researching the subject I realize there are some concerns I need to address before I shrug this experience off as a fluke. Apparently it could have to do with your heart, or hormones like histamines, or even neurological processes. My main concern is I have a history of light-headedness and "brown outs", or near faints, from getting up too fast, being in too warm a room, and surgery related experiences. This seems to point at an underlying persistent problem. The heart issue is perhaps the most concerning because of the risk of death with athletes who had undiagnosed heart conditions. I have had a ECG that returned abnormal results before so that is also a concern.

Overall this could potentially lead to an extremely depressing and challenging situation. I am going to stay optimistic and jump through the gauntlet of tests to see if there is a problem. Even if I can't diagnose a problem I will have to take care to properly cool down and ensure I stay hydrated and have proper electrolytes during future runs. This could effect how I train and run ultra marathon races. As long as there is no huge increase with my potential of dying I will continue to run and train, as planned, after I get the go ahead from the Doctors. One thing is certain I am not going to risk shortening my life for anything, my family needs me for as long as possible so I will do what ever is necessary to make sure I am not taking any unnecessary risks. The thought of not being able to train, run, and be as active as I have been the last while is completely disheartening. I have worked very hard to train my body to run long distances and I have come a long way since my intestinal surgeries in 2005. I hope everything works for the best but I am depressed about the possibilities.

Hopefully I get into the proper Doctors and quickly so I can plan my running future. Wish me luck!

A little over a month of serious training!

2009-08-28T16:03:00.000-07:00

I just passed my month mark (20th) of seriously training. In the past I have yo-yo'd in mileage from almost no running to about 50 miles. This last month was the first time I have ever tried hitting weekly distance/time goals. I am using a training program that running coach phenom Aurthur Lydiard came up with through experimenting on himself, and used the techniques on his athletes. The gist of it is to obtain as high an aerobic threshold as possible through maximum mileage bombardment week after week. His suggestion is 100 miles a week. He calls this phase "conditioning". The goal is simply to: grow new capillaries, strengthen the heart, improve running form and efficiency, burn fat efficiently, and improve pulmonary O2 uptake. By running this kind of weekly distance your speed and times slowly increase as your body slowly makes the changes necessary to maintain the distance. As you run as hard as your aerobic ability allows you to each week you improve and you raise your aerobic threshold. You now start your more specialized training such as hills and interval work once the proper base is laid. I won't go into the details of these following steps because I hope to limit my anaerobic training until late winter and early spring.

This week saw me extending my weekend run by 4Km which is small but I do not want to risk injury at this point. Ultimately I would like to be running two marathons a week. This will occur some time in November. Perhaps I will run a marathon or even a 50 Km run on Wednesday and Saturday. The other day's will see the distance spread over easy recovery runs and hard aerobic capacity runs and I will have to run several times a day a few days a week and no breaks except on a rest week every three weeks. My rest weeks will perhaps be 50-75 Km and will be more for psychological reasons but perhaps I will not even do them.

I feel that these distances are manageable. I just rounded the horn and am half way to my weekly mileage. This distance came fairly easily with little trouble I saw my speeds increase as well. I must admit by the end of the week I was noticing my muscles (hamstrings, shins and lower calves) breaking down a bit and getting sore. Today (Monday) will be a rest day to help recover for the upcoming 90 Km week.

Calories are getting harder to keep up with. I burned over 5300 calories last week which basically means, I need to eat about 2.6 extra days worth of food (calories) a week, to keep up my weight. So far I am doing well and only get really hungry a few times a week. I worry about our grocery bill come November when I will most likely be burning 12,000 calories a week or 6 days worth of Calories on top of the weekly 14,000 to maintain weight. A lot of these Calories will come in a liquid form on my long runs. I will start experimenting with nutrition as my long runs approach 3 hours.

I have some great trails I would like to run on this winter and I am really anxious to start nailing 3-6 hour runs. This is the aspect of ultra that is most enticing to me. I look forward to long stretches of solitary running on single track, through some of the most "Rave Run Friendly" territory in the world with just my thoughts. I have found that it is during these long runs that I really relieve stress, solve problems, work on my thesis and research ideas, I plan my future and think about strategies for running 100 milers.

I must admit as I am writing this I want to run I am finding it more and more challenging to take rest days and the week is fast approaching where I won't be able to take a rest day and still achieve my goals. Distance trail running is amazing and has completely solved some of my problems with stress, insomnia, and it has improved my overall outlook on life and has added a very exciting facet of adventure to my already adventurous life.

Monthly Highlights

Total Distance = 261.5 Km or 162.5 Miles

Total Run Time = 24 hours +/- an hour

Total Calories burned = 17,258

Avg. Starting Weight = 143.2 (144.8 Max)

Avg. Finishing Weight = 140.4 (139.0 Min)

Avg. Sleep Duration = 5.9 Hours

Avg. Time since last meal = 1.7 Hours

Avg. Pre-run fluids = 770 ml

Avg. Post-run fluids = 600 ml

Weekly Highlights

Total Distance = 81.02 Km or 50.5 Miles

Total Time ran = 7:19:45 Hours

Total Calories = 5321

Avg. Pace Kms = 5:43

Avg. Pace Miles = 9:11

Positives this week

I ran a PR on my 14.48 Km loop in spite of running through a patch of stinging nettle, to circumnavigate some old dog walkers who were clogging the trail. They are hard of hearing and walk side by side making a pass impossible, and if you are trying to make a good time your only option is to bushwhack. They always say sorry as you run past. The stinging nettle actually gave me a little pep towards the end of the run. The stinging skin was easy to focus on taking the spotlight off my tired legs. Perhaps I will start hitting myself with nettle whenever I need a little extra kick.
I ran a 19 Km run on Saturday, it was tiring but not too bad and I recovered fast running 15 Km'sthe following day.
I stayed injury free and felt fairly fresh most of the week.
Met and surpassed my weekly mileage goal.

No challenges to report, it was a smooth week!

My pace slowed down a bit, but I am only interested in improving my time on my feet and not getting injured. All the durations of my runs were long (+14 km) with the exception of a 4 K I did with Vye and the kids Friday.

Week # 3 It is great to run Mt. Doug again

2009-08-12T15:00:00.001-07:00

This last week was a great week for running. I cranked out some great mileage and started running on Mount Doug again. Mount Doug is an amazing chunk of rock to run on. It has over 15 miles of single track trails. The trails are varied from soft, wide, and flat to rocky, rooty and steep. I think I can do just about any work out I'd wish on the mountain, from speed work and intervals to hills and long distance. Since I have moved to UVic it is a bit further away. It takes 2.5 miles or about 4 km of running just to get to the trails. Once I run to the mountain from my house, I have been running a very simple trail that circum-navigates the base of the mountain for now. It is a simple route with little elevation and steepness but it is just right while I am building my base. In a couple of weeks I will start incorporating the full 11 km Mount Doug gutbuster route (almost 20Km total distance round trip from my house) once a week and then twice etc. It is a nice way to snag 20 Km on, and has everything I need to build my endurance and increase my trail running skills. There is something about running there that gives me extra incentive and enjoyment out of each workout.

Last Tuesday I was running the base loop around Doug. It is awesome when you experience those runs where everything seems to click. You feel like you got enough sleep, you are hydrated and have plenty of carbs to draw off from. Starting this run I knew it was going to be a strong run, I just had a rest day prior to the run. I started out with a nice pace and every step came easily. I flew through the road section (always my least favorite part of my runs, in my opinion roads are a necessary evil to get to the trails), I reached the trail and my body took off. This seems to happen to me about once a month when I am running hard and consistent. I will experience what I term a "perpetual run". This can be defined by the fact that you experience tremendous output from your legs, lungs and heart, with very little effort or input. It is like you are being pulled through the course, or your legs are like wheels rolling down an undulating slope. It is really hard to explain but always accompanies a runner's high. Perhaps it has to do with the release of endorphins and other chemicals, but it also has to do with an absolute adoration of the current run. The conditions were perfect. It was sunset and a perfect 18C (65 degrees). The packed soil was parched from the dry Summer, but still felt spongy underfoot due to the accumulation of organic debris. The August sun was a flaming orb hovering just above the horizon, only visible through the occasional break in the canopy. The sun cast ochre and crimson stripes across the path while the Douglas Firs and Garey Oaks stretched their elongate shadowseastward. My feet seemed to dance over blisters of diorite breaking the organic rich soil, and tiptoed over the thousands of rope-like roots strewn across the trail. I reached the highest point of the run and then felt the welcome pull of gravity speeding up my already rapid pace. The Earth now spun herself between me and the sun and the welcome dusk took hold of the peaceful mountain. My only spectators were the white tail deer that frequent the mountain, trails and road during the magical hours at twilight. They seemed particularly unaffected by my presence that night. I was really cruising and my legs felt awesome. I almost felt like I was floating with my feet barely making contact with the trail. Before I knew it my trail run was finished. I gave a strong effort on the road run home and made good time. I felt amazing. It was great to be back on my favorite trails.

Since that run I have made 4 attempts at the time I made that night and I couldn't get within 3 minutes of it. Last night (Tuesday 12th) I finally smashed my previous time by two minutes. There was a major difference from last nights P.R. and the previous one. Last night every second and every meter was hard earned and took crazy amounts of effort. I never felt good the whole run but I was really pushing. Lastly I didn't get a runner's high until I saw my watch at the end of the run and realized I had broke my previous record by over a minute!

My first track event is on Friday. I am going to take the next two days off and go into the run with fresh legs. It should be a ton of fun. I will be last, no doubt in my mind. I am not a 5000 meter track runner, I will be wearing trail shoes, and I just finished a 3 week building session from 50 to 70 km. I hope to run it next year and blow this year's time out of the water at that point I should be peaking for my Ultra Event and have thousands of training miles under my belt. That being said it will be a ton of fun and I am excited for my family to see me run. Once I get lapped a few times you won't even be able to tell I am last place. It should be a good time a fun way to grab 5Km and exciting to be competing with great runners.

Here are some stats from the last week.

Stats

Total Distance = 66.12 Km (41.08 miles)

Total Running time = 6:23:10 hrs

Avg Pace Km = 5:45 min

Avg Pace Miles = 8:56 min

Total Calorie burn = 4351

Avg Starting weight = 143.0

Avg Post-run weight = 140.4

Highlights

Without a doubt running on Mount Doug again
The run in my above description
My mileage

Challenges

My toe blisters are pretty bad
some shin splint issues/tight calves (They are doing better now)
Bad sleep schedule

What a great week. I am very happy with my progress and look forward to this rest week and race on Friday, but then get right back at my increased mileage next week.

A nice run with a negative split!

2009-08-03T12:32:00.001-07:00

Since today is a holiday (BC day) I slept in a bit had a good breakfast and hit the trails at 10:00 am. I was just going to run a slow 8.2 Km or two laps around the university. I felt really heavy at first and my speed felt much slower than the effort I was putting into it. It was considerably cooler today than the past two weeks but I was still feeling a bit slow. I decided to crank up my effort from my average 5 (on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being race day effort), to about 8 or 80% of race day effort. So I really began to crank. I finished my first lap and hit my split button on my watch and kept going. I was pretty tired but was still giving a good effort. I checked my split time and realized I had finished lap one less than 22 minutes which is a first since starting my intense training schedule. I decided not to stop at lap one but to keep my effort up around 8. I saw quite a few people on the run so I began to use them as an excuse to really crank, you know, so I could try to look cooler than I really am. Finally on the last Km I saw a strong runner in front of me about 100 meters and I noticed I was catching him. So I just really pushed. I used some top secret visualization techniques (I can't divulge since I will be relying on the strategies to give me a leg up during my races this year) and began to close the gap. With 100 meters to go I had closed the gap to less than 10 meters and then the guy veered off the trail and I finished my lap and hit stop on my watch. I was super stoked I had improved my time from my previous lap by 4 seconds, a negative split, my first since this bout of training! I was pumped. I came home showered and filled out my log, browsed some running sites, and wrote this blog. I think I am going to take the fam to check out some new trails I will be running on soon for my long weekend runs. I love running what a great facet of my life.

Training week # 2 Mileage is pileing up

2009-08-02T17:35:00.000-07:00

Another 7 days have gone by and I have now completed week two of my 58 week training schedule. I am feeling it. The miles this week piled up like a derailed freight train. I have ran 12 of the last 14 days. So I have only had two days to rest. The reality of adding another 100 km to what I ran this week is starting to set in. This is not going to be easy. Last nights run was my first run that my times actually didn't improve. This indicates that I am completely knackered. On Friday night I had insomnia until 4:00 AM another classic sign of over training. I am going to stay consistent and slow my runs down a hair rather than try to improve my times every day. It may be the speed not the duration that is burning me out. I am really happy that I have stuck to my training schedule for two weeks now. I have met my goals. I did have to change up my distance for each loop I have been running. Last week I was calling one loop 4.6 km and after thinking about it I realized I had overestimated the distance. I recalculated it based on a close guesstimation from map my run and some other peoples distances and I concluded my route is 4.1 km so 0.5 km shorter than previously thought. The repercussions are that my last week's distance of 51 km was wrong and I only ran 47. So this week I jumped from 47 (29 miles) t0 56 km (34 miles). A five mile jump in a week at these lower distances is significant and that has added to my tiredness. That also added time to my average pace. My running partner and his wife have been running with the youth so I started to join them on Saturday mornings along with Vye and the kids. We "jogged the bog" this Saturday which is a small 2.8 km loop around a swamp. It was a nice little jog with some walking and faster pace running. Overall it made for a slow run taking over 18 minutes to run the 2.8 km loop. This takes my average pace down quite a bit for the week. If you throw those times out though my average pace really improved this week by 12 seconds per Km and 30 seconds per mile. Here are some points about this week.

Week 2 Review

Stats

Total Distance = 56.1 Km (35 miles)
Total Time = 5:23:39 (47 minutes longer than last week)
Avg pace in mins per Km = 5:41 (5:53 last week)
Avg pace in mins per Mile = 8:59 (9:28 last week)
Total Calorie burn = 3728 (3110 last week and 3500 = 1 lb of fat)

Highlights

Obtaining my goal distance of 56 km.
I ran with Vye and the kids twice this week.
I got a runner's high last night for the first time in months.
Improved my pace.
I could feel my body settling into the running routine and each run felt like it was not as difficult as last weeks.
My cough is just about gone.

Challenges

I didn't wear my nylon base layer one day and obtained toe blisters and have had them since.
I got insomnia on Friday night and my times slowed this weekend indicating I am over trained.
I didn't run in the morning once this week.
THE HEAT! (It was fun though and a welcome challenge).
A tight or torn hamstring/glute that has hindered me since Feb, I really need to see a masseuse/physiotherapist.

Well I am happy with my training it is fun to start to finally get some data and I can start to watch my times improve and can compare various aspects of my 65 column spreadsheet. I feel I am walking that knife's edge between over trained and the safe maximum amount. Next week will really let me know if I am over trained or not. If my run times for the same distance increase and it is much harder to obtain the same distance and times, or my sleep is too disrupted I may need to back of for a few days and take a lower mileage rest week. I hope it doesn't come to that I have 61 glorious km to run next week.

Friday and 30 km to go before Monday

2009-07-31T09:33:00.000-07:00

I really have to start cranking out some serious mileage this weekend to make my goals. I am only at 27 km currently and want to end up with 55. The last two runs have felt bad but my times indicate I am still improving so I will just keep cranking out the distance. I have a long run tonight and most likely a couple of runs on Saturday followed up by 10km on Sunday so that should keep me fairly busy this weekend. It has been HOT!!! With the humidex it has been nearing 40 degrees. I have decided to run in the evenings as a result. I love it though and I am starting to feel myself settle into the running routine with only one day off this week I am beginning to realize what the next year is going to feel like.

Fad diets and killer six pack gimmicks

2009-07-28T19:14:00.000-07:00

As I browse the net perhaps one of the number one adds on the sides of various sites is the scheme to learn the secret to get an incredible six pack in weeks. Or the secret to loose 25 lbs of fat with little or no work. These adds always show some sort of grotesque before shot (you know the one with white blubber rolls and cellulite) and then a comparison photo that we are meant to believe is the same person with a tight body and bronzed skin, just weeks after following these three easy steps or this one simple rule was obeyed. I am amazed that people buy into this. I find this very troubling.

First it is scary how many people are suffering from obesity. America leads the charge followed by Canada and England right behind. I feel that part of the problem can be traced back to school lunch. I can't tell you how many hot ham and cheese I dipped into a gallon of frysauce at school lunch. Or how many lunch lady butter fingers I downed. I must have devoured hundreds of pounds of french fries. It seems that my average veggie intake at public school lunch was less than one scoop of canned veggies per meal or no more than 10 % of the food I ate while in school. The healthy options were limited and being a high school boy with a great metabolism I just ate what tasted the best. This is one of many problems I thought I would bring up. The terrible thing is that the capitalists have gotten a hold of the diet industry and are coming up with schemes and gimmicks daily. These schemes take basic knowledge like diet and exercise and present this information in a slightly different way and try to make money off from people who want that movie star appearance. The sad thing is how many people fall for these adds and pay money with hopes of gaining those chiseled abs. I wonder what the actual success rate of any of these gimmicks really is. I have a suspicion that the drop-off rate is ridiculous.

The first point I want to make about diet is that genetics play an important role. I used to think that weight loss was a simple equation of if kcalories in < kcalories out = weight loss. Some studies that show this is not the case include a study by Miller and Parsonage (1975) in which 29 volunteers were incarcerated in a country home and given the same starvation diet of 1500 kcalories per day for three weeks. 19 lost weight but 9 failed to change their weight at all. The shocking thing was two individuals gained weight on a starvation diet. I think that overweight individuals are often viewed as having little control of their eating and that is why they gain weight. There is no scientific evidence that the obese eat more than lean individuals (Rothwell and Stock, 1981). There is plenty more on this subject but it can be observed from the science that weight gain is a complex problem and that there is not a miracle diet that works universally.

The second point is that weight and health is quite relative. It is funny as far as ultra distance runners go I am actually a sumo at 141 lbs. My ideal race weight is closer to perhaps 136lbs. Yet most sedentary people view me as too thin. There are many endurance runners who run consistent high mileage (100 miles a week) and still maintain a certain base level of fat that won't decrease even though they are elite long distance runners. The human machine is incredibly efficient and wants to burn the least amount of calories to get the job done. If you do the exact same exercise without variance the body will often plateau and burn just enough to get the job done. To combat this there needs to be a lot of variance in the type, intensity and duration of exercise.

My diet over the last 27 years has been shameful. I am blessed with a metabolism that allows me a little bit of wiggle room as far as being able to eat white flour and refined sugars and not instantly gain but this has started to slow significantly since about 25 years old. It has only been in the last two years that I began to watch what I ate (after I reached a whopping 173 lbs in 2007). I wonder how much of my digestive woes which ended in the removal of 4 major organs was a direct response to a very unhealthy diet for a long time or perhaps led to the immune system turning on my own body. It is amazing to see how a diet with tons of veggies and fruits leads to increased levels of energy and weight loss. I am toying with a few different experiments to see how diet effects athletic performance and energy during the day. I will most likely try the vegetarian 30 day diet just to see how my body reacts. This also appeals to me morally.

It appears that to get that killer six pack or that stunning body, you need to have some sort of genes that predispose you for that type of body (just like I will never have large beefy muscles, I have way too much type 1 muscle). Secondly you have to eat better. This includes eating mostly veggies and fruits and healthy carbs. Last you need to exercise a lot. I think the only way to get rid of belly fat is crazy amounts of cardio and endurance work which is conducive to fat burning. I know that the muscles and liver have enough stores of carbs to work out for up to 90 minutes, it is only after these are burned up that the true fat burning occurs. It is important to work your abs so they are defined but it doesn't do any good if there is a thick layer of fluff covering them. I think that the coveted six pack is not something that can be obtained following three simple steps or obeying one rule, or even through a pill. I feel some people are set up to obtain the flat stomach with minimal effort but for the rest of us who don't enjoy the same hand dealt us by nature it is a battle against genetics, careful choice of diet, and long bouts of exercises like running, rowing, and swimming etc. that will finally allow us to see the vague outline of a six pack if the lighting is just right (or a five pack in my case).

Well now that I got that off my chest I think I am going to go eat a big piece of cake and drink some soda. My main reason for this rant is just to point out that weight and the coveted six pack are much more complex than these fad diets let on. I am really bothered by the claims that it is simple and easy to obtain the flat stomach or lose all this weight but it is an issue that takes tons of dedication and work. Each person has a preprogrammed base weight level that their bodies want to be at and we should be happy with this base level whether it is considered too heavy or too thin as long as we are eating right and exercising we are healthy.

Monday July 27 training, and a 5000 meter event approaching

2009-07-27T21:36:00.000-07:00

Well today was too hot. It was high 20's (80's) and the humidity was through the roof. This morning my legs were absolutely knackered so I decided to push my run into the evening. I ran at 8:00 PM and it was still unbearably hot and humid. Within the first quarter lap of my 5 km loop I knew that one lap was all my legs had in them tonight. So I decided to push the cadence a bit and shoot for a pace below 8 mins a mile. It wasn't bad at all and I was able to finish the lap and I think I should be fresh enough to get 10 km in the morning. I still have this cough lingering on and on but it has improved a bit. I did the full loop in 22:31 which isn't bad for this early in the first ramp of my high mileage increase, and considering I ran nearly 30 Km over the weekend. I am entered to run a 5000 meter open invitational track meet in just over two weeks. This may not be the best idea considering that will be right at the tail end of my first 3-4 week ramp. I am really just running it for fun and fully excpect to finish last by minutes considering I am a beginning endurace trail runner, not a middle distance track athlete. It will be fun and I am hoping to race every possible race I can before my big ultra.

Training week 1 in review July 20 - 26th

2009-07-26T18:41:00.001-07:00

Well I completed week 1 of my 58 week training schedule today. This was plain and simply a painful week. My whole goal was to get 50 Km under my belt at a very slow pace, and that is exactly what I accomplished. What made this painful was the fact that the end of June and most of July were devoid of any physical activity. During this period of time I ate unhealthy and came down with a terrible cough. So this entire week was ran while I was sick. It definitely had a negative effect on my week but because I am not too concerned about anything but distance at this point in my training schedule it wasn't a big deal.

Highlights

Some highlights included consistent improvements in my split times each day. This is the great part about the early stages of training is that improvement comes easily. Later on small improvements are hard won.

I improved my diet, and switched closer to my 90% veg diet again.

Last night's 15Km run in the rain was definitely a highlight. The entire sky was ablaze from the sunset, it was pouring rain, lightning was streaking across the entire sky, and there was a double rainbow all at the same time. The sky was just riddled with drama. Great run.

I ran my first loop of the chip trail ever while pushing both my kids in the double wide stroller, and ran with Vye for the first time ever. I thought that I did really well considering I was pushing a 3.5 and a 2 year old over a trail and through deep gravel. This lap did effect my average pace for the week but I am not concerned because I am only worried about distance and time on my feet at the moment, speed will come later this year and early next.

I feel I was less grumpy, was more ambitious, and I accomplished more this week than the past weeks when I didn't run.

Some Weekly Stats

Weekly Distance: 51.4 Km (32 miles)

Total Run Time: 4:36:50

Weekly Calorie Burn (running only): 3409 (35oo = 1 lb of fat)

Average Pace: a slow 5:22 mins per Km or 8:29 mins per mile

Challenges

Any time I exceed 15 Km runs my right hamstring flares up. I have a chronic tear and I need to sort that out before the big dance. I really need some massage therapy to help relieve the trigger spots but it is pricey so I will probably just sit on a tennis ball and roll around a bit.

Coughing my lungs out.

Getting used to early morning runs.

Today's run, I was low on fluids and carbs and was getting used to running 5 or more days a week again.

Next Week's Goals

Simply to add 5 Km to the weekly distance (55 Km total). I am really going to increase my mileage slow this fall.

Shave a few seconds off each of my splits.

Kick this cough.

Stretch.

Conclusion

Well I am very happy with this week and though I have a dauntingly ginormous elephant to eat, I can now say I took my first bite and I look forward to my next. I love training because it allows me to have an outlet for my obsessive compulsive disorder to run its course. I have a crazy training log with 30 columns of data and I am able to compare and obsess over every detail of my training regime. I am able to compare my times with climatic conditions, food, fluid intake, sleep and dozens of other variables, and search for subtle patterns and go crazy with the details. I don't know that OCD is a disorder, on the contrary, I think it is a blessing.

I worked my core three separate times this week and I enjoyed the improvements. I hope to run better as my core is improved. I currently weigh 141.2 lbs and hope to gain some weight this month since I will really struggle to keep my weight healthy come fall. The extra pounds are needed at this point in the game just to get me through my training runs.

I am officially training for my first 100 miler!

2009-07-16T22:54:00.000-07:00

I am starting my first leg of the training for my 100 mile race. I now have a good base down from the last year of running, and I now know I can handle the training distances, so now begins my journey to conquer a difficult ultra-distance trail race for 2010. My hopes are for the Wasatch 100 miler, but I will need to register soon and make it through the entry process. Some other options are the Stormy 100 near Squamish, BC, and the Cascade Crest in Washington.

I have been fighting a nasty cough for two weeks and I finally decided that I needed to start running regardless of this cough. I definitely feel the effects that my health and our vacation and all the crappy food I ate has had on my performance. Just a month ago I was cranking out my fastest half marathon ever, now today I struggled to nail my 10 Km in a reasonable time.

I have a strategy for how I will tackle my training. My first main objective is to obtain a consistent and high mileage base. Some time in November I would like to reach my major cruising distance of somewhere between 120-160 Kms a week (75-100 miles) it all depends on how I hold up at these distances. If I can handle more than 120 I will go further. For the first few weeks of this leg of my training I am purely running a simple loop trail around the University just to get back to where I was before the illness and vacation. Come the middle of August I will start shifting my runs to the tougher terrain and nastier trails. The last few months (October and November) will be a good mixture of smooth trails and challenging trails. My distance will be acquired through early morning runs and long weekend runs. I will place more and more focus on the long runs and really begin shifting my mileage to those. It will be these extended runs that will allow me to experiment with shoes, hydration, nutrition etc. The goal is to by the end of November to have a strong base but also have a working knowledge of what works best for my body, so it will be an experimental stage with observations and interpretations. A key point is I am not laying out a set weekly schedule of how to obtain this mileage. I dislike regiments in running because they can cause you to train when you should be resting and thus injuring yourself but they also can hold you back when you feel good and can do so much more, I think a key of being a great distance runner is knowing when to rest and knowing when to really crank it, getting them both right is the challenge. I am a proponent of listening to your body so that is the stance I will take. All cross training during this period is going to purely be core work. I noticed that it was my core that gave out in distances beyond 30 Km the last few months of running. So I will really focus on building a strong core, I have a great core workout I modified from some elite distance runners.

The second arm of my training is going to be from December to March. This will be a phase of running that now incorporates fartleks, hill repeats (not just running the hills on the trails I am running), and tempo work (most likely fast 1 mile laps or 5 km loops with a 1/2 mile break between repeats). I will wait to do the hills, fartleks and tempo runs until I have a very good base down and I will slowly introduce them into my workouts once a week and go from there. This will be a strength building phase and hopefully a time to increase my overall cruising speed and a phase that I can maintain the cruising speed. I will not do too much x-training during this phase because it is going to be challenging enough on its own. My legs will be fairly knackered as is, I will maintain my core and perhaps focus a bit on my arms and chest.

The third phase is going to take me up until where I begin to peak, which will occur about 10 or 12 weeks prior to the event I choose. This phase will be a quality phase that incorporates everything from the prior two training phases including the high mileage, hills, tempo, and fartleks but will focus on technique and quality long runs. This phase will really shift my weekly mileage to the two back to back long weekend runs and will focus on getting me used to running on extremely tired legs for a long time. I hope to hone in my hydration and nutrition strategy during this period. I will make sure I am comfortable with all my apparel and gear I will use for my event. This will also be a time to work closely with my support crew and figure out how they can best help me at aid stations. I hope to run many 30 km runs, a handful of 40 km runs, and one or two 50 km runs during this phase, I doubt I will run longer than 60Km. I will run these long ones back to back so I will achieve perhaps 60-70 km of my weekly mileage in two days. The remaining days will be speed and quality work plus hills. Depending on the race I run I will tailor my training to match the course. This might include tons of down hill punishment if I am running the Wasatch since that is one of the major issues with people on that course. I am also going to really focus on going out of the gate slow and keeping an even pace. I will start a peak training schedule and then a taper just before the event to hopefully elevate me to my best possible performance for the event. If I can peak at the right moment and force a nice taper and everything works out in my favor, I hope to finish above the cut-off time and not die in the process. This is my goal for my first 100 miler. I have no pipe dreams of finishing in a crazy fast time. I am only interested in finishing and being able to smile or smile-grimace at the finish line.

To make this happen I am going to have to sleep less and do most of my runs in the morning. It is essential that my PhD work doesn't suffer and I have made a promise that if my training has a major negative effect on my studies I will have to throw in the towel and just maintain a healthy base distance until my life is more conducive for competition. My family is even more of a priority and so my wife will have to be a voice of reason and let me know if she is going to divorce me if I keep up my shenanigans. Like I said most of this will be carved out of my sleep and I will most likely become quite accustomed to running with a head torch, and functioning on little sleep and major physical fatigue. By taking a year to ramp up to where I want to with a year of pretty high mileage under my belt I feel that I can be gradual enough to ward off over training.

I am extremely nervous and excited. This past year has given me a small glimpse of what I am up against. I think that an event in 2010 is very reachable and if all goes to plan I will run the Wasatch Front 100 or the Stormy 100. A major advantage to the Wasatch is that it would be much easier for me to assemble a support crew and to obtain pacers. Also it is a qualifier for other races like the Hardrock 100. I hope to get on the roster for 2010. The Stormy is close and would be a much cheaper option. It seems like a lovely course. I would most likely rely on Vye and friends from up here for support and it would allow me to take a few trips earlier in the year to familiarize myself with the course. These are great options and I am anxious to get the ball rolling. Well I can't focus too much on the large picture right now because it is overwhelming, so I will only focus on the immediate goals in front of me. First off I have another 10 Km to run in the morning, and some core work so that will be focus for tomorrow. The next step is achieving the distance I need this week to be on course to up my mileage next week. For now that is all I need to focus on. If I stay focused on these small goals I will soon find myself in April running 140 Km a week and killing hill repeats and nailing 40 Km tough trail runs on the weekend.

I hope to stay on course and motivated and feel that as long as nothing unforeseeable such as injury etc. doesn't creep up I will finish my first 100 miler next summer.

50 Mile Week

2009-05-23T13:33:00.000-07:00

Well I finally have pushed my weekly training distances back up into the 50 mile range. I am quite happy with my training and I hope to be nearer to 80-100 miles a week by August. I am going to do several competitive trail runs this summer including 3 races of the Frontrunners Gutbuster series. I am also going to do a marathon. I am deciding between the Park City in August on Oakley's birthday or the Victoria in October. I have to make a decision soon which one I am going to do. October would definately get me a better time since I will have more time to train. I would like to run something in Utah while we are down there though.

Running with Deer

2009-05-17T23:14:00.000-07:00

Tonight I cranked out a Mount Doug gutbuster trail run. It was dusk when I left and a balmy Victoria 17 degrees (Celsius). My new shoes felt great and I pushed pretty hard. Early on my twilight trek I became aware of a shadow in the Douglas Firs bounding along side of me. The small white tail doe was on my same trajectory and seemed to say not only am I faster but I don't need trails either (it proves that no matter how hard you train there is always someone or something that can run further, faster, and in hairyer terrain). Not 10 minutes later I spooked two lazy does rounding up large mouthfuls of lush spring rain fed grass. The deer hardly raised their heads as I tore past. I began to push up the backside of Doug (north) when a small yearling started at my poky approach. That was 4 deer in less than 20 minutes of running. The only wildlife observed over the next half hour were the sedentary bipedal mammals who drove to the summit of Doug to observe the transformation of day to night. I often see interesting expressions on peoples face as they see me run by. I can't quite figure out what is going through their minds, it must be something since they definitely react to my presence. Perhaps it is my musty shirt that doesn't see enough time in the washing machine. I didn't see any more deer until I was about to pop out of the trail onto the road for my last leg of the run. In the middle of the trail broadside to me was a large buck in full velvet. I was quickly approaching and he could care less. As the gap was quickly diminishing I wondered if this buck was going to move or if he was going to attack me. Finally with only a few meters remaining between him and me he rotating his back end just enough to let me past. I was almost tempted to reach out and touch his back with my finger tips. I wimped out last second but he was close enough. I never experienced a deer so fearless. Perhaps generations of limited predators on the island and cohabitation with us hairless creatures have nurtured a healthy population of deer that know they are safe from all but cars and the occasional stray cougar. I love running the trails of Vancouver Island. By the way my new shoes handled the terrain with ease. There was one close call with an ankle roll but it mainly dealt with a poor foot placement as a result of the shrowd of darkness descending over the forest.

Virgin Voyage of the Brooks Cascadia 4's

2009-05-16T11:52:00.000-07:00

I recieved my new shoes in the mail yesterday from Running Warehouse. I busted them in this morning on a flat 20 km mixed surface run. They felt awesome. It is amazing to crank out 12 miles in a new pair of shoes and experience absolutely zero problems with blisters, hotspots, or rubbing of any sort. I had no issues with chin splints and knees which I was struggling with as a result of my last pairs midsole breaking down. I still need to take them on a Mount Doug Gutbuster training run and really push their limits to see how they handle the nasty terrain. So far so good, and I am thinking they are the shoe for me. They don't quite wrap my ankle as well as my asics, and so my only concern is ankle support from the upper. They are a very stable shoe and most likely will lessen the ammount of ankle rolls anyway. I will really push them on the slopes ofDoug next run to see how they handle the slick rocks, mud, steep desents, tricky side slopes, and loose gravel. I can't wait. The final test will come in the form of a 30 or 40 km on Elk Lake this week or early next. I will have a good idea what to expect from these babies by then.

R.I.P. Asics Trail Trabucos Jan 8, 2009 - April 24, 2009 (800 Km)

2009-04-25T10:58:00.000-07:00

My shoes have finally bit the dust. I have ran about 800 hard core trail Km's in them and have decided it is time to retire them. They have been a good shoe but I feel that they didn't fit my foot exactly right. Following is my review of these shoes.

Sole:

Advantages - The tread on this sole has a nice bite and seldom slipped. The sole was also extremely rigid and I never felt any sharp rocks through the sole.

Disadvantages - The tread would sometimes hold onto pea and marble size gravel and then they would slide on harder surfaces. I feel that a larger further spread out lug may be the better tread design.

Mid sole:

Advantages - I felt that the mid sole had plenty of cushion and the Gel was nice. I only have started to feel problems from the cushioning breaking down.

Disadvantages - The arch support would rub on the inside of my arch where it transitions into the ball of my foot. This is more of a problem having to do with my foot not fitting right and not the shoe.

Toe Box:

Advantages - The toe box had plenty of space. The toe box was perhaps the best feature of the shoes and how they fit.

Disadvantages - After 10 miles I would begin to develop blisters on the tips of my toes. This was later remedied with women's nylon "not-socks". Ultra and blistered toes are synonymous regardless of shoes, but I will do my darnedest to cut down on them.

Overlays, Uppers and Laces:

Advantages - There was never a shortage of support for this shoe. The overlays gave good support around the arch and top of the foot. I am constantly running side slope on slick rocks at steep angles and have found my foot to never slide laterally.

Disadvantages - I had a problem right at the beginning with the laces becoming too tight across the bridge of my foot that really caused some pain. When I loosened the laces they were too loose. After a couple of weeks this was no longer an issue. I also had a hard time keeping the fore foot tight and the ankle tight independent of each other. A two-lace-per-shoe set up would have remedied this problem. The uppers on the shoe were not cut low enough for my ankle bones and I would get some rubbing on the outside of my ankle bones of my down-slope foot especially when side-sloping.

Weight, Ventilation, Water resistance:

I felt these shoes were a nice weight, I never felt they were too heavy. They had the right amount of ventilation and breathed nicely. They were not that water resistant but they drained and dried quickly. Water would come in through the sides when running in deep mud or water (common in BC). I feel an extra 2 cm of water resitance such as sprayed-on teflon would do the trick without increasing the weight or the breathabillity. They are a nice shoe for running on wet trails in warmer weather when goretex might be too warm causing excess sweat.

Overall Grade and Recommendation:

I would grade these shoes at about a 6.5/10. This has more to do with the shoe not quite fitting my foot, than because of problems with the design or quality of the shoe. If I were to grade the overall quality and support and versatillity of the shoe they would be closer to an 8.5/10 but those problem areas just caused a pain that wouldn't have been there on a better fitting shoe. It is hard to tell that the shoe doesn't fit that well until you test drive them for a while. I also have slightly different sized feet.

I would recommend this shoe to anyone with a neutral stance who runs extremely rocky (especially sharp rocks) and challenging trails. This shoe would actually run the Wasatch 100, knee knacker or bonneville shoreline nicely. I feel that the blisters on my toes, arch and rubbing on outer ankle bones wouldn't be a problem for someone who has a better fit with this shoe. They never had any lack of ankle support and saved me from having bad ankle rolls as well. I also got quite a bit of road use out of the shoes with no problems. I would recommend this shoe based on quality and support, but make sure it fits well and feels good from day one. I probably will not buy it again because of the afore mentioned issues with fit.

What is my next shoe going to be?

I am going for the Brooks Cascadia 4's. I am way pumped to try this shoe out. It fits like a glove and has widely-spaced large lugs. It seems to have a wide base and looks very stable. I am interested to see how the overlays and ankle support compares. I will let you know in about 800 Km.

A good week for training

2009-04-17T22:20:00.000-07:00

This week began my new semester and saw more time available to devote to my running. How did it go, considering the last month has been pitiful?

Friday and Saturday were comprised of two horrendous runs of 15 kms each, where I almost died because of my decreased fitness from the wussy previous mileage. I huffed and puffed, even walked up a few portions of the climbs. I felt awful and I was sad because I was so excited to run after my nasty semester, but my body said to chill. I took Sunday off to recoup from those painful and slow runs.

Monday was cool and rainy, and I decided to do some back-2-back-2-back-2-back summits of Doug (4 total). I love hill repeats. I ran these babies right up until I was about to puke. Immediately following my speedy descent I would turn around and crank back up the mountain as fast as I could. I feel that the hill repeats are huge for several reasons. I think many runners have fear of hills and dread them. I am no different but I have found that the more you do something that intimidates you the less intimidating it becomes. I have found that summiting 2 or three times in a longer run is not that big of a deal after comparing to the hill repeats on Monday. This Monday I will add another repeat and make it an even 5. It took about 1.5 hours to do the 4 repeats on the course I chose. It was pretty rough but fantastic. I also think besides the psychological boost from running hill repeats you also get added VO2 max and lactic acid tolerance. Really hills are speed work or sprints in disguise. I will definitely make hill repeats a standard staple in my training repertoire.

Wednesday was a long run and consisted of 4 laps around the base of Doug. I avoided hills on this run and just went for distance on the fairly level perimeter trails (Norn and Whitaker). It was a nice 2 + hour run on a very warm sunny day. I used my sweet duct tape bottle holders and was well hydrated and rested. I have also solved my previous blister problem (for distances less than 15 miles anyways). I purchased a couple of pairs of well....ladies nylon stockings (I know, ridiculous, but it is a small price to pay for blister prevention). They are the ones that only cover the sole of your foot. I put those beauties on, and then my socks and have not had any hot spots or blisters since. We will see how they work when I start hitting the 5 and 6 hour runs.

Thursday (yesterday) was my fastest time of the Mount Doug gutbuster course so far. I believe it may have been my strongest run of my life even. I was possessed. I couldn't be slowed, I just tore up all the hills and nearly sprinted the flats. I shaved 10 minutes of my PR for the course. That is so awesome considering I had such a tough start this week. I think I had just kept my fitness up enough that I just had to push through this first week and then I was right where I left off. I was even forced off the trail by two other runners and I flew into the brush off the steep side of Doug. I was able to save my joints and legs and grabbed branches to prevent myself from rolling. I just got back on the trail and pushed even harder, I just flew through the next two miles of trails. I even had huge scratches on my legs that were bleeding and I just thought they looked sweet. It began to rain and I cooked home the rest of the way. I must throw in a learning experience. After running for a hard hour I was nearly done with my run and was experiencing that warm glow we all call the runners high. Well there was a large log about a meter tall across the trail. I usually run around it, but the warm fuzzy state I was in made me decide to hurdle it instead. I don't know what got into me but I leaped off from my left leg and was instantly gripped by a severe Charley horse. I am talking one of those where your entire calve is a big knot. I quickly dorsi-flexed and was able to run it off, but I easily could have injured myself. I will not leap logs on extremely tired legs ever again. I decided to take today off as well just so I don't over do it where I have lost a lot of my previous base mileage. I finished the week out at approximately 40 miles. I will pass 50 next.

Friday 9 Miler - SPRING IS HERE!

2009-04-03T20:46:00.001-07:00

This morning started like the last few have, cold and overcast. The last few days it has really dumped buckets of rain over Victoria. I went to school and continued to work on my projects that are due on Wednesday. It was the official last day of classes so the beginning of the Summer Semester or break, depending on how you look at it. On my way out from some seminars in the afternoon, I realized that the sun was out and it was warm. Students had set up volley ball nets and were throwing frisbees. There was music blaring and everyone was in shorts. It was amazing the difference from the cold morning to the springy afternoon. I absolutely loved it.

Well I had to take advantage of the beautiful weather so I planned on running a 'shorty' 9 mile loop around the Mount Doug Gutbuster course + another quarter lap. It had been a few days since I have ran due to my intense schedule. I was amazed, it was as if the entire mountain sprang to life. The wild flowers were blooming, all of the undergrowth had big bright green leaves. I was amazed. Just days ago, my little microcosm of Mount Doug was still in a silent slumber. What an amazing sight to see life literally springing out of every sunny corner on the mountain.

The tragedy is that my running has taken a passive role in my life while I wrapped up these papers. So the run was a little painful and I can notice the first signs of my wimpy milage. I am just dieing to start running 50+ mile weeks again. I crave it all day long. I have lost much of my fitness as a result. I will have to battle hard to get it back, come the middle of next week. That being said, I still had an absolute enjoyable run. Just cruising in the warm sun, as the afternoon sun stretched the cool shadows of the Douglas Firs across my path was inspiring.

Now time to get to my training blog and discuss some observations and lessons learned from this run. I did the full 9 miles in 1:30:26 - slow, I know, but remember I am coming off from three low mileage weeks in a row and am under some serious pressure. Excuses aside, there were some other unique challenges as well. The trails were completely waterlogged. I mean it was wet. Some observations I have made from a day of running in the 'soup slop' is that it really tweaks a lot of your ligaments and stabilizer muscles. I found my legs and muscles consistently having to strain or adjust to keep my balance. Most of trails were small streams. My strategy was not to skirt around the edges of the muck like many people do, but to run right through the middle. This strategy offered several advantages. First I dislike the fact the trails become wider and wider as people circumnavigate soggy areas, and second I found that the shoulders of the trail were quite gummy and slick, whereas the center, where the water was flowing, washed the mud away and left a nice gravely surface (all be it a wet one) for traction. I love a good romp in the mud! the biggest negative aspect of my strategy was that I got hot spots and some blisters starting due to soaked feet. If I had lubed up my feet with non-petroleum jelly or body glide before the run, and had a nylon or polypropylene base sock, I would have had no problems. This will be something I will consider in the future. Overall it was a nice run, and I learned a bit more about running in the slop.

Why I Run

2009-04-02T20:04:00.000-07:00

I needed to write about something other than my studies today, and so I decided to finally start a post on my postless running blog. This will be a short post to kick-off my running blog, and will only discuss a brief reason or two with more to come on this subject in the future (I am writing this post instead of an important paper that is quickly nearing its dead line).

Running and I sort of found each other. I can't think of the exact moment that I wanted to start running. One thing I can say for certain is I knew that when I began to run there would be two important aspects that would dictate what kind of runner I would be.

First off, I knew I would prefer trail running. I have always been an obsessed outdoors man and have had a deep love and respect for the wild places of this marvelous planet. I am a very solitary border line-hermit when it comes to many things. The solitude offered by trail running was very enticing. I love adventure and challenge. I think that running technical rocky, steep, muddy, circuitous trails seemed to be more challenging and rewarding for me personally, because of the demands and variability. I found that the best way I can communicate with nature is by connecting on a literal level with my feet connecting with the earth. I love the impact and connection each foot makes as it strikes the moist soil or rocky ground. I love scenery whether it is a panoramic view from a wind-swept peak or a obstructed densely-forested valley, I enjoy engulfing great gulps of every breath-taking scene. Trails offer me a wonderful array of beauty. There are many other reasons for my preference of trail running that will pop up in future posts.

The second aspect that seemed to dictate what type of runner I would be was distance. I always knew that I was going to be a distance runner. I haven't completely figured out what it is about the far side of 26.2 that is so tempting, but there is definitely a strong attraction. I have never been tremendously interested in the arbitrary distance of the marathon. Don't get me wrong it is an impressive distance and requires ridiculous training and strategy to run it well. I just have a relentless desire or even a need to go further. I really like the idea of pushing my personal limits to the extreme edge. I find that when I am operating on the edge of my limits that life becomes more delicious, clear, and simplified. There are some very important reasons that these long distances also attract me. I think that I have a very bad case of obsessive compulsive behaviour. This is manifested in the way I grab hold of something I find pleasure in, and then squeeze it until I get every last drop of enjoyment out of it. This has happened with many passions in my life. I enjoy the steep-end of the learning curve. It is during these difficult times that the most growth and subsequent joy occurs. I really like the idea of covering amazing distances and seeing places that few people have the ability to see. I can't picture myself as anything but an endurance runner. I find that training runs less than 2 hours often lack the little extra something that only appears with the onset of fatigue. There is truly a remarkable award at the end of each run, a little treasure that is only meant for me and if earned it the prize is brilliant. This prize is also directly proportional to the effort put in to obtain it. I strive to make each and every run feel epic. This is very much a part of the mental game and I find it helps me to push myself even when there is no reason to. Ultra marathons require a strong base of many many miles to draw from. They also demand a sense of body and an understanding of yourself that is hard to accomplish without the rigors drawn-out performance and extreme fatigue. I love the strategy that is involved with proper fueling and hydration, and smart efficient forward movement throughout the course. All of these things make endurance trail running my thing.

I always was a bit uncomfortable with athletics and never felt like I quite "fit in". I struggled with team sports and even in my younger years found running the mile was unable to do it for me. I think I have always been an endurance trail runner I just hadn't realized it yet. Though I can't recall the exact 'light bulb' moment that I decided I was an endurance trail runner, it sure has been a perfect fit for me. I have found so much joy out of it. I can run when I want and where I want, and for as long as I want, what a sense of freedom. I am the only variable in the equation. It is a competition with myself and all else fades away. I look forward to entering more events. I have signed up for some races and have several more in mind. I also have many long runs planned that will consist of myself pushing my personal limits and simply learning. That is all I have time for now but I will post more as time comes availible.