I heart hills...Part 2

This evening we did hills again. The first time I did hills was 2 weeks ago and we did 4 x 600M. Tonight, we did 6 x 600M. (I skipped the previous week due to my back pain.) (We eventually work up to 10 x 600 over the next 4 weeks.)

Over the past week, I've been to massage, chiro and have been fitted for orthotics. I received my orthotics today and worked out in them and then did the hill training in them. Probably a bit much for just getting orthotics - but I want to get used to them for the big runs. I felt pretty good today other than a blister on the inside of each foot...from the new orthotics.

I have pain on the top of my right foot that sort of came out of nowhere. Someone said it may have to do with my laces being too tight - so I'm going to play with that a little bit.

Not much else new to report!

26K + Not enough fuel = BONK

Today we did a 26K run.. man am I happy that next week is 'only' 19K! Crazy that as the numbers keep getting bigger - the distances you once thought were super long become a relief.

Apparently I "Bonk'd" today. Official definition from Wikipedia "In endurance sports, particularly cycling and running, hitting the wall or the bonk describes the condition when an athlete suddenly loses energy and becomes fatigued, the result of glycogen stores in the liver and muscles becoming depleted.

The term can be used both as a noun ("hitting the bonk") and a verb ("to bonk halfway through the race"). The condition is also known to long-distance (marathon) runners, who usually refer to it as "hitting the wall"."

And, just for my own reminder..

"There are several approaches to prevent glycogen depletion:

1) Carbohydrate loading is used to ensure that the initial glycogen levels are maximized, thus prolonging the exercise. This technique amounts to increasing complex carbohydrate intake during the last few days before the event.

2) Consuming food or drinks containing carbohydrates during the exercise. This is an absolute must for very long distances; it is estimated that Tour de France competitors receive up to 50% of their daily caloric intake from on-the-bike supplements.

3) Lowering the intensity of the exercise to the so-called 'fat loss' level (heart rate of 130 bpm for a 30-year-old athlete) will lower both the energy requirements per unit of distance and the fraction of the energy that comes from glycogen."

Anyway, back to today's run. Pouring rain, 26K, approximately 40% further than I've run before. Everything went well until about 16K. I remember saying to Ali that there's 'only 10K' left...when I saw her at the 16K mark. Thanks to Ali, by the way, for today's mobile fuel station..I probably should have had more than water and nibs. Ali is one of the trainers at Innovative and was there with us in the rain biking from point to point to have energy ready for us.

At that 16K mark, my legs were feeling really, really heavy. (The good news is - my back didn't really bother me today and I continue to stretch out my hip flexors, etc.) And, in a way, like someone was doing active release on my calves. Not a great feeling. I felt like my legs were not moving properly. Once I got back to the Running Room and completed the 26K - my legs felt like concrete blocks. I didn't know what to do because they were in such pain - even stretching wasn't helping.
That's when someone from the Running Room said that it sounds like I "Bonk'd" What did you have for breakfast "Um, a power bar.." What did you have for dinner.. "Um, some ahi tuna and a salad.." Did you eat any carbs on the run.. "No.." NOT GOOD. I got home and while my lovely wife Suzanne was running me an epsom salt bath and I was groaning in the kitchen with my sore legs - I put a few spoonfuls of peanut butter on a whole wheat wrap and wolfed it down. Along with some more food, I started feeling better almost instantly.

Good learning lesson. Nutrition has always been my downfall - and I am becoming acutely aware of how important it is in this whole fitness thing.. Suzanne jumped on the computer and started searching out some of the best foods for marthon running and thanks to her we now have a fridge packed with my ammunition for my next runs. Thank you, Suzanne!

That brings me to another point about how much my training has affected not only me, but my wife as well. These long runs are always on Sundays and that means our Saturday nights are fairly mellow - and Sunday mornings come early. (Remember, we don't have kids..) As mentioned in a previous post, I've left weddings early to get rest, I've scheduled dinners earlier than normal, enjoyed less red wine than normal on a Saturday evening, stretched more in front of the TV, gotten up earlier on Sunday mornings...and Suzanne is always game. It definitely helps having a supportive partner helping you along the way.

This week it's more hill training and then a little 19K'er on Sunday.

Why I'm Running It...

I read Graham's post and it got me thinking. Thinking way back to when I first started with Innovative...35lbs heavier, though only a fraction of who I am today. I remember working out with Curtis...almost dying from the exertion (a little bit of drama perhaps), and then, during stretching, Curtis raised the topic of setting some fitness goals. It was November 2006, and he said..."How about a marathon....New York in 2008?" At the time, I must have looked pretty terrified, because Curtis, in his infinite wisdom, changed his suggestion to the Sun Run in April of 2007. I remember thinking..."Me...a marathon?...No way!!" The Sun Run, though still scary, seemed less so compared to a marathon...it was what I could handle in that moment.
Well, life has taken some pretty amazing turns since then, and I was one of the people that Graham supported at the Honolulu Marathon. Graham is somebody very special and it was so great having him there for us.
So why am I running New York? Well, partly because, thanks to Curtis and his team, I now know I can do things like marathons, but mainly because of the wonderful group of people who are also doing it.
It's going to be so great to be with Graham after he completes...no...after he ROCKS his first marathon...I won't be able to film him like he did me, but I'm sure going to give him a big hug.

Only 72 days left!

Wow, time is flying. It seems it was just yesterday that I asked Curtis at Innovative if there was any room left for me to register for the New York Marathon. Innovative had encouraged me to go for a Marathon - if you don't know much about Innovative Fitness - they're all about goal setting.

Anyhow, I had gone with them to the Honolulu Marathon in early December 2007. I went as a spectator / cheerleader / what-is-this-all-about / finish-line-beer-opener. When I was there, it was such an emotional event to watch - I thought it might be something I want to do myself. Then, as I was vacationing back in Hawaii with my family in early January 2008, I started to think about what fitness goals I wanted to accomplish this year. I guess I had a Coronoa or two and got my BlackBerry out and sent this off to Curtis -


from GB Robins
to Curtis Christopherson

date Mon, Jan 7, 2008 at 11:17 AM
subject New York...

If I wanted to run this marathon - am I 'able' to? Is there room?

Here is the rest of the exchange -

from Curtis Christopherson
to GB Robins

will find out today.

from Curtis Christopherson
to GB Robins

I can get you in...if you want to do it. need your info today however.

from Curtis Christopherson
to GB Robins

you get this?

from GB Robins
to Curtis Christopherson

Let's do it.

from Curtis Christopherson
to GB Robins

Ahhh shit.

do you want to use your mc on file for $180 deposit?

And now we're 72 days away from the big event!

Here's a video from YouTube showing a bit of what we can expect -

Thank you, Tania!

I went for a deep tissue / sports massage last night at Spa Aqua Vitae. According to Tania, 'we've got some work to do..' on my stretching, knots, flexibility, etc.

She also observed that, along with my hamstrings being very tight, my hips seem out of alignment a bit (could be contributing to my back pain).

I have only had 1 other deep tissue / sports massage before and they aren't quite the same as a "resort massage" where you're on vacation and you fall asleep and they gently wake you up when it's all done.. It's more like digging, grinding, tenderizing - sort of like what you do to a steak before putting it on the barbecue so it's nice and tender.. In a good way, though!

I really enjoyed it and felt relaxed afterwards. I also have a new focus on my 'problem areas' and need to do a better job of stretching after workouts and runs.

I'm looking forward to more sessions!

Back hurts - not running today -

I'm a little disappointed that I'm not running today. This morning we are supposed to be running 23K.

However, even though I was at a wedding last night and didn't drink and left early in anticipation for this morning's run - I have some pain in my lower back and I don't want to aggravate it.

With all of this training - one of my main concerns is getting a life long injury. I think I said it at the beginning of this blog that my doctor told me not to run a marathon. He said "It's not the marathon, it's all the training that will get you.."

It was a tough call to pass on today's run - but I felt it was better to have this pain go away than to aggravate it even more and miss a couple of future sessions. I was looking forward to the run and to make sure I kept up my mileage.

I'm not really sure where the pain came from. It could be the hill training that we did last week. It could be the hike that Suzanne and I did yesterday. (We went to Deep Cove yesterday and did a hike for about an hour and a half or so.) However, I have had this pain before and it feels like my whole spine is out of joint with some clicking and clacking when I move in certain ways.

So, I am going to concentrate on fixing this pain so I can do more hill training this week and the long run again next weekend.

I heart hills...

So, today we did hills..

This is the firs time I've done hill training. We ran for about 2.5K to the hill location and then did 4 times up, 3 times down.

Here's a picture of my heart rate monitor readout along with the elevation. You can see 4 distinct peaks - that's when I was running up the hill...



It was definitely challenging - and I am looking forward to getting stronger on the hills.

I really can't say enough about the great group of people that I am running with. The encouragement, camaraderie - it makes the training so much better.

Apparently we do more and more hills as time goes on - 4 times up today, then 6, 8, 10, 12... lots of fun! But this is where we get stronger.

"Hills are terrific for running.” Bill Rodgers

Running slows down the aging process: study

A good reason to keep running? :-)

Running slows down the aging process: study
Updated Mon. Aug. 11 2008 10:27 PM ET

CTV.ca News Staff

Regular running slows down the body's aging process, according to a new study out of Stanford University that tracked more than 500 older runners over 20 years.

The study says that runners develop disabilities in life a full 16 years later than non-runners, and runners are half as likely to die early deaths.

Twenty years into the study, 34 per cent of the non-runners had died, compared to only 15 per cent of the runners.

The report confirms what many runners have already known, that despite many non-runner's fears that pounding the pavement will hurt a person's joints and body later in life, the exercise actually does the opposite.

"One of the arguments against exercise is that it could be hard on my joints, (that) I am going to become crippled in my old age (and) that my knees are going to have worn out and that is just not true," the study's senior author, Dr. James Fries, said.

John Stanton, running guru and president of the Running Room, told CTV Newsnet that he wasn't surprised by the study's results.

"Over the past 20 years we've seen the benefit of remaining active and running really does engage us to improve our overall wellness," he said.

Stanton said that running fights against osteoporosis, improves bone density and posture and that people who run don't show the aging that non-runners do.

"The one race we all do at the same pace is aging but where we can be an Olympian in life is to make sure you stay active and enjoy your longevity more," he said.

Larry Rich turns 71 this week and has been running for more than 45 years.

"I enjoy the running because it allows me the ability to enjoy the fresh air, clear my head (and) feel better physically, emotionally and mentally," he told CTV News.

He said that some friends and family members tell him he shouldn't be running at his age, but that doesn't dissuade him.

"(What) I am saying is that you are never too old and you are never too sick to start running."

Stanton had some advice for running beginners:

Talk to your doctor before starting to exercise.
Walk before you run.
Run with a group to make it more enjoyable.
Keep it fun and diverse. Try different routes and speeds.
Rest is not a dirty four-letter word.
Wear good footwear.
"Even for those with couch potato status now, you too can become an athlete if you approach it with intelligence," Stanton said.

For those still not convinced running is right for them, researchers says that a number of other activities can provide the same benefits, such as swimming, biking and walking.

"As long as you get your heart rate up several times during the week to where you are sweating . . . it seems (that) will provide the benefits," Dr. Mark Tarnopolsky of McMaster University told CTV News.

The Running Room has 92 stores throughout Canada and the U.S.

With a report from CTV's medical specialist Avis Favaro

The Fundraising Page is up and running!

Thanks to my friends at the BC Children's Hospital, we have our very own page for fundraising for the New York Marathon. There are many people from B.C. running this event, and the hope is that they will join together and encourage family and friends to donate in support of running the marathon.

The page can be found here - http://www.bcchf.net/nym/index.cfm

On that page, you can do two things -

1) Join the team! If you are running the New York Marathon - click on the "Join now" link to join the fundraising effort. Then you can send the link to your family and friends, co-workers, etc., and they will be able to click and donate in support of this event.

2) Donate! If you aren't running but would like to support someone who is - click on the "Team Listing" link to find the person you would like to support. Click on their name and it will take you to a donation screen.

It's that simple.

This is a new donation system with the BC Children's Hospital and I am very excited for us to be among the first to get set up with it.

If you have any questions, please post them in the comments of this post, and I will reply to them.

Thank you,
Graham

19.11K this morning

I really enjoyed the run this morning. It was a great route - we ran down to the beach and along the promenade. My mom used to walk along the promenade with her friend Vic - so it was a little bit emotional for me, actually. Very deep in thought and thinking about how much she would have enjoyed the sun and the nice breeze coming off the ocean.

Izzy was out in full force again today - she was a mobile fuel station, on her mountain bike providing us with water and treats to stay energized throughout the run. I felt a little bad for her because she had my water and Curtis's water with her and Curt was at the front of the pack and I was at the back - so she biked the route about 5 times!

This was the longest distance I've run and each of the next few weeks will get increasingly longer. 23K, then 26K, back down to 19K, then 29K, then 29K again, then 32K...it looks a little crazy actually. I just added up all the Sunday runs for this program and it adds up to 368K in total distance (not to mention the weekday runs.) That's equal to 8.76 marathons! My doctor once told me to not run a Marathon - he said it's not the race that will get you - it's all the training for the race... Hmmm.. Well, I am doing my best to listen to my body and if there are pains or kinks, etc., I will pay attention to them.

That's it for now - next week is 23K!

"The marathon can humble you." Bill Rodgers

I'm Inspired

I'm a couple of days late with this post, but I need to tell you all about Mark. I went running with the Running Room group on Tuesday evening and had a great time running with Mark. This was my first weeknight run with this group so I really didn't know what to expect. I didn't realize that nobody runs alone. When I figured that out, I admit that I had a fleeting moment of fear that I would slow somebody down. It turns out that Mark, an extremely fit middle-aged man runs at my pace, which is that of a 5 1/2 hour marathon. On Tuesday night, he taught me that it is not important how fast you run, but that you just do it. Two years ago, Mark, an overweight smoker and heavy drinker, had quadruple bypass surgery and his "pace" was a slow shuffle just to make it across his living room. He decided he wanted to change his life and wanted to run...not just run, but run marathons and his doctors told him he was crazy and that it would never happen. Let me restate, on Tuesday night, I ran an awesome tempo run with a guy who, only two years ago had quadruple bypass surgery!!! Oh ya, he ran the Kelowna half marathon a year ago, and, just last May, ran the Vancouver Marathon!!!
What an incredible, inspirational individual. What is his secret? An unwaivering belief that he can do whatever he sets his mind to. Now he lives a healthy, active, vegan lifestyle and radiates the most amazing positive energy. His doctors are in awe of him...he doesn't even need to take heart medication...he has completely rewritten the book on how to LIVE after major heart surgery. I'm excited to run with Mark again and hope all of you get the chance to talk to him because you, too, will be inspired!!!

The history of the Marathon

A lot of people ask me "How long is the Marathon?" "How far is the Marathon?"
What I learned awhile ago is that a Marathon is a Marathon is a Marathon - and all Marathon's are 42.195 Kilometers or 26 Miles, 385 Yards.

To put that into perspective, here is a little map of a 40.4 Kilometer route from Innovative Fitness in White Rock, B.C. to Science World in Vancouver, B.C.


View Larger Map

It is a 39 minute car ride or an 8 and a half hour walk. The average marathon is completed in about 4 hours and 30 minutes. Of running. Or jogging. Or running and walking - or many combinations thereof.

This information is taken from a Wikipedia post on Marathon -

The name marathon comes from the legend of Pheidippides, a Greek messenger. The legend states that he was sent from the town of Marathon to Athens to announce that the Persians had been defeated in the Battle of Marathon.[2] It is said that he ran the entire distance without stopping and burst into the Senate, exclaiming "Νενικήκαμεν" (Nenikékamen, 'We have won') before collapsing and dying.[3] The account of the run from Marathon to Athens first appears in Plutarch's On the Glory of Athens in the 1st century AD who quotes from Heraclides Ponticus's lost work, giving the runner's name as either Thersipus of Erchius or Eucles.[4] Lucian of Samosata (2nd century AD) also gives the story but names the runner Philippides (not Pheidippides).[5]

The "10 and 1's" are messing with my head!

Today I ran 10K with The Running Room group after my IF workout.
I am toning down my workouts because I am feeling a bit 'flat' or, tired.

So, no running during my IF workouts if possible. Otherwise, all this running is going to drive me a bit crazy.

Back to the 10 and 1's messing with my head...I didn't run during the week at all last week - but I ran two Sunday's ago and that was a 10 and 1 run - Run for 10 minutes, walk for 1 minute. Then, because I missed the runs during the week last week, I ran another longer distance (17K) on Sunday and did 10 and 1 again.

Today, when we ran the 10K - my body kept telling me to stop running around the 10 minute or 12 minute mark. It was strange - I have run a 10K without stopping but today for some reason, I kept wanting to walk for a minute or so. Pretty strange and actually a little frustrating. I knew I could do it but it felt like I didn't want to.

The lesson? The tempo runs, the steady runs, the 6K's, 8K's, 10K's, etc., are a very important part of the overall training - so I must fit them in!

16.9K this morning

This morning, I did another "16K" run. It was a beautiful day for a run. I'm glad The Running Room starts these runs at 8:30 AM so that it doesn't get too warm by the time we are finished. (Although in October I may be singing a different tune.)

The run was a bit of a different route than last time - and I like the change up. The group was quite a bit smaller today - a lot of people were out of town for the long weekend.

We ran 10 and 1's again today. I like the rhythym that we get into with these runs. It keeps your sanity knowing that you 'only' have to run for 10 minutes at a time.

I didn't do any runs this week so I was a little concerned how I would do - but I felt pretty good. I did some extra stretching this week to work on the areas that felt tight.

I have to admit that I feel a little 'flat' or fatigued with the mix of running and going to the gym. I am considering scaling back on the gym to 2 times per week - we'll see what happens.

That's about it for now. The runs start getting a bit longer from here on in and then we get into some hill training... yaay!