-OZ-
Footballguy
Combination
And then doing things outside your norm. At least for me, I usually get hurt playing sports I don't usually play. But cross training is important.I did mine playing tennis
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Ran a 10k - Official Thread (4 Viewers)
- Thread starter Ned
- Start date
ThreeThousand
Footballguy
Ironman Louisville RR
Loaded the wife and 3 kids up Friday morning, drove the 6 hours to Louisville from Atlanta. Arrived around 2pm to a short AWA line at check-in. Got all checked in and back to the hotel, Spaghetti Factory for dinner that night. Sunday went to the Louisville Mega Caverns for a tour (not what I was expecting, was thinking more of a cave. This was a mine) and then over to Evan Williams for a tour. Hit a local joint for dinner (Troll Under the Bridge) which was pretty good.
Race Morning - up at 5:00am, dressed/coffee/poop/Body Glide, headed down to transition around 6:00am. The race was switching from a FCFS start to a self-seeded start, so no real need to get there early any more. Got in line with the 1:10-1:20 swim group although I expected to swim on the low end of that. Killed 45 minutes or so chatting and getting ready to go.
Swim - For those not familiar, the first 1/3 of the swim is in the lee channel of Towhead Island. Water was cold when first jumping in, but not unreasonable with a wetsuit. Once you got out from behind the island, the chop picked up dramatically to 2-3 foot swells, and the water got even colder (not sure how this worked). The chop was bad all through the last 2/3 of the swim, but at least it was current-assisted. Not a ton of contact after passing the island, plenty of room to spread out. Swim time 1:08:26.
Bike - Lollipop course, about 20 miles out, 2x36 mile loops, 20 miles back. The first 10 and last 10 miles of the course are pretty flat, the rest is nonstop rollers. Every year I forget just how many hills there were. I was feeling pretty crummy with not much energy for about the first 60 miles, but once I hit Special Needs and got my Redbull, the ride became much better. After making the last turn back into town, it was a straight shot for about 32 miles. This is where the wind picked up dramatically. Bikers were leaning into the wind 15 degrees to account for the 35-45 mph winds (seriously). You haven't lived until you've bombed down a hill at 40mph with 45mph cross/head winds. The ride quickly changed from "get back to town as fast as possible" to "get on the hoods and try not to crash/die on the way back". Finished the bike in 6:07:22, first over-6hr bike I've had since my very first IM. Quite frankly, with the wind on the way back, I'm surprised it wasn't worse.
Run - Almost perfectly flat, about 60 degrees and cloudy. That's a little chilly for me, but it made for a nice run with very little sweating. I raced both Chattanooga and Louisville last year, but with awful (hot) weather in Chattanooga I did a ton of walking, which set up a nice run in Louisville last year. This year, Chattanooga was much cooler so my time was much better, but I was terrified that didn't leave much in my legs for a good Louisville run. Shockingly, though, I was able to keep up a nice pace until about mile 18, and even then just slowed down to about a 9 min/mile. Run time 3:58:46, only my second IM marathon under 4 hrs. Pretty proud of this, it's a slightly better run time than the race last year.
Overall results - 11:31:33, so about a minute slower than Chattanooga 3 weeks ago. That's very consistent, although with a 7 min slower swim, 20 min slower bike, and 30 min faster run (slightly longer transitions in Louisville). I'm looking forward to IM Florida in 3 weeks - a nice, flat bike ride will be a great changeup. Came in 493rd OA, 402 M, 83rd M35-39. Fast field this year.
Loaded the wife and 3 kids up Friday morning, drove the 6 hours to Louisville from Atlanta. Arrived around 2pm to a short AWA line at check-in. Got all checked in and back to the hotel, Spaghetti Factory for dinner that night. Sunday went to the Louisville Mega Caverns for a tour (not what I was expecting, was thinking more of a cave. This was a mine) and then over to Evan Williams for a tour. Hit a local joint for dinner (Troll Under the Bridge) which was pretty good.
Race Morning - up at 5:00am, dressed/coffee/poop/Body Glide, headed down to transition around 6:00am. The race was switching from a FCFS start to a self-seeded start, so no real need to get there early any more. Got in line with the 1:10-1:20 swim group although I expected to swim on the low end of that. Killed 45 minutes or so chatting and getting ready to go.
Swim - For those not familiar, the first 1/3 of the swim is in the lee channel of Towhead Island. Water was cold when first jumping in, but not unreasonable with a wetsuit. Once you got out from behind the island, the chop picked up dramatically to 2-3 foot swells, and the water got even colder (not sure how this worked). The chop was bad all through the last 2/3 of the swim, but at least it was current-assisted. Not a ton of contact after passing the island, plenty of room to spread out. Swim time 1:08:26.
Bike - Lollipop course, about 20 miles out, 2x36 mile loops, 20 miles back. The first 10 and last 10 miles of the course are pretty flat, the rest is nonstop rollers. Every year I forget just how many hills there were. I was feeling pretty crummy with not much energy for about the first 60 miles, but once I hit Special Needs and got my Redbull, the ride became much better. After making the last turn back into town, it was a straight shot for about 32 miles. This is where the wind picked up dramatically. Bikers were leaning into the wind 15 degrees to account for the 35-45 mph winds (seriously). You haven't lived until you've bombed down a hill at 40mph with 45mph cross/head winds. The ride quickly changed from "get back to town as fast as possible" to "get on the hoods and try not to crash/die on the way back". Finished the bike in 6:07:22, first over-6hr bike I've had since my very first IM. Quite frankly, with the wind on the way back, I'm surprised it wasn't worse.
Run - Almost perfectly flat, about 60 degrees and cloudy. That's a little chilly for me, but it made for a nice run with very little sweating. I raced both Chattanooga and Louisville last year, but with awful (hot) weather in Chattanooga I did a ton of walking, which set up a nice run in Louisville last year. This year, Chattanooga was much cooler so my time was much better, but I was terrified that didn't leave much in my legs for a good Louisville run. Shockingly, though, I was able to keep up a nice pace until about mile 18, and even then just slowed down to about a 9 min/mile. Run time 3:58:46, only my second IM marathon under 4 hrs. Pretty proud of this, it's a slightly better run time than the race last year.
Overall results - 11:31:33, so about a minute slower than Chattanooga 3 weeks ago. That's very consistent, although with a 7 min slower swim, 20 min slower bike, and 30 min faster run (slightly longer transitions in Louisville). I'm looking forward to IM Florida in 3 weeks - a nice, flat bike ride will be a great changeup. Came in 493rd OA, 402 M, 83rd M35-39. Fast field this year.
ChiefD
Footballguy
Nice work @ThreeThousand. 
I just couldn't imagine running a sub 4:00 marathon - after all the other stuff!! Unreal.
I just couldn't imagine running a sub 4:00 marathon - after all the other stuff!! Unreal.
gianmarco
Footballguy
And then doing it again 3 weeks later. And then again 3 weeks later.Nice work @ThreeThousand.
I just couldn't imagine running a sub 4:00 marathon - after all the other stuff!! Unreal.
WTF.
tri-man 47
Footballguy
ThreeThousand
Footballguy
We'll see how the legs work in 2.5 weeks. Hopefully another good result on tap. One more on the march to 12.
Brony
Footballguy
SFBayDuck
Footballguy
Osaurus
Footballguy
Nothing to report here other than long days doing FEMA work in Houston. Found a running partner in another crew so maybe I can get out one of these nights. Great reading all the recaps and I am so looking forward to getting home and hitting my weekend races. I’ll check back in again soon. 
SFBayDuck
Footballguy
Sounds like a job for @tri-man 47's magic fingers.JShare87 said:
Seriously, hope it's just a tweak that heals up in a day or two. Sounds like it could be sciatica. That sometimes responds to stretching, if you didn't actually pull anything
SFBayDuck
Footballguy
About 260. Got into umstead and am going to actually train this year. Started around the beginning of the month. Benchmark mile time and 5k time were 10:16 and 37 min. The mile time has come down to 8:36 so that's progress. In the middle of a huge renovation so training will be challenging with two jobs. I moved 50 ft from my gym so no excuse for not walking across the street. Tonite was an hour walk at a 4.5 mph pace in low zone one followed by stretching and rolling. That aches and pains of being fat and inactive are starting to go away which is nice.
tri-man 47
Footballguy
Yeah, we need an epic BnB event.
ChiefD
Footballguy
Race day in two days.
Been a pretty disheartening week. Was sick and in bed from last Thursday through Sunday with a bad sinus infection. So I missed my final long run in what would have been beautiful 45 degree weather.
Finally feeling a little better Monday, and have been getting a little better each day. Running has been tough the last 3 days with breathing, as some of this cold made it into my chest. I've been on an antibiotic since last Friday, so hopefully in a couple of days everything is ok.
The bright side is I haven't had a beer in ten days, so I've lost 6 pounds.
Forecast for Saturday morning sucks - supposed to be 67 at race time at 7:30, which the temps creeping up all day leading into rain at some point. Looks like the rain will hold off, but the humidity should rise the whole run. Awesome.
This whole training cycle I can remember 1 run that was in chilly temps - 1! Just unreal how warm and humid the weather has been here. This race is normally about 40 degrees at the gun. Just can't escape it this year I guess.
So in the spring I ran that half in 1:55, which I was pleased with coming off of a sporadic training cycle because of all the health issues. So my goal coming into this one was try to get to 1:50. With favorable weather conditions I believe that was possible. Just not so sure now.
I think my plan is to go out and try to run 8:30's and see where we are. They also flipped the course this year, and after intensive study it looks like they made it more uphill, so there's another kick in the sack.
Should be an interesting race report either way.
On a positive front, I'm getting the itch to do another marathon again. That sub 4:00 milestone is sticking in my crawl. But I know I won't run another fall marathon. I simply can't train in this heat anymore for a distance like that.
So I'm eyeing that Carmel, IN marathon that grue linked to before. The timing is perfect, and the winters here are actually pretty pleasant to train in. I've always had my best successes in the spring, so maybe this is the last try. It would also be my 15th race, and that seems like a nice round number to end on. Not gonna commit just yet - there is no limit on runners for that race so you can sign up late if you want. But right now my mind says 90% sure I'm gonna do it.
Been a pretty disheartening week. Was sick and in bed from last Thursday through Sunday with a bad sinus infection. So I missed my final long run in what would have been beautiful 45 degree weather.
Finally feeling a little better Monday, and have been getting a little better each day. Running has been tough the last 3 days with breathing, as some of this cold made it into my chest. I've been on an antibiotic since last Friday, so hopefully in a couple of days everything is ok.
The bright side is I haven't had a beer in ten days, so I've lost 6 pounds.
Forecast for Saturday morning sucks - supposed to be 67 at race time at 7:30, which the temps creeping up all day leading into rain at some point. Looks like the rain will hold off, but the humidity should rise the whole run. Awesome.
This whole training cycle I can remember 1 run that was in chilly temps - 1! Just unreal how warm and humid the weather has been here. This race is normally about 40 degrees at the gun. Just can't escape it this year I guess.
So in the spring I ran that half in 1:55, which I was pleased with coming off of a sporadic training cycle because of all the health issues. So my goal coming into this one was try to get to 1:50. With favorable weather conditions I believe that was possible. Just not so sure now.
I think my plan is to go out and try to run 8:30's and see where we are. They also flipped the course this year, and after intensive study it looks like they made it more uphill, so there's another kick in the sack.
Should be an interesting race report either way.
On a positive front, I'm getting the itch to do another marathon again. That sub 4:00 milestone is sticking in my crawl. But I know I won't run another fall marathon. I simply can't train in this heat anymore for a distance like that.
So I'm eyeing that Carmel, IN marathon that grue linked to before. The timing is perfect, and the winters here are actually pretty pleasant to train in. I've always had my best successes in the spring, so maybe this is the last try. It would also be my 15th race, and that seems like a nice round number to end on. Not gonna commit just yet - there is no limit on runners for that race so you can sign up late if you want. But right now my mind says 90% sure I'm gonna do it.
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ThreeThousand
Footballguy
Not much to explain (in case you weren't kidding). The goal is to get to race in the World Championships in Kona. To do that I've got to finish 12 IM, and I'd like to accomplish that before I'm 50 or broke. So, I'm doing every IM I can reasonably do within a reasonable drive time (all of the 3 are within 6 hrs driving) to get to 12 finishes. I'm at 8, Florida in 2.5 weeks will be 9. 3 more next year (looking like Boulder, Chattanooga, Florida next year) to get me to 12.
Then I'll get to toe the line at Kona.
gianmarco
Footballguy
SFBayDuck
Footballguy
Nice! So we've got @SayWhat? running 100 in a couple weeks, you in April, me in August. @-OZ-, you going to join the party in 2018? @gruecd, I'll just leave this right here. Who else?
-OZ-
Footballguy
I want to, really. Just don't think I'll have the time to train for a few years. Maybe when our youngest goes to school, which is probably in 3 years. Or I retire again...
bushdocda
Footballguy
Goals for Sunday time as I’m taking a walk and work focus is slipping.
Pace Strategy has been elusive and I’ve decided to roll out slower for first 5k in the crowd and the only hilly portion, next 20m in 8:40s and last 5k throw out everything I’ve got left. Should add up to +/- 3:50 and a finish. Want under 3:50. Shift in lower temps has my MAF pace improving but I’ve done almost all training in heat/humidity so I haven’t gone long at paces faster than 8:40s and this weekend is not the place to try it in my first go at the distance.
Stoked for this experience and I’ll have some fam in the crowd for the first race ever which is cool. The size of race and crowd are unknowns as well as how my emotions go. My Marine father is wrapping up radiation treatment tomorrow and will be down for the weekend so that’s pretty awesome and also heavy man. I had this race planned before the diagnosis but did target the qualifying race in March and this as my first marathon as a shout out to my dad. So it’s picked up some more importance as training and treatment progressed and we’ve both had to HTFU.
Bib 3050 and gun is 0755est Sunday. I’ll hit the course at some point afterwards when the 4 hour corral crew makes it to the starting line amidst the crowd at the start.
Pace Strategy has been elusive and I’ve decided to roll out slower for first 5k in the crowd and the only hilly portion, next 20m in 8:40s and last 5k throw out everything I’ve got left. Should add up to +/- 3:50 and a finish. Want under 3:50. Shift in lower temps has my MAF pace improving but I’ve done almost all training in heat/humidity so I haven’t gone long at paces faster than 8:40s and this weekend is not the place to try it in my first go at the distance.
Stoked for this experience and I’ll have some fam in the crowd for the first race ever which is cool. The size of race and crowd are unknowns as well as how my emotions go. My Marine father is wrapping up radiation treatment tomorrow and will be down for the weekend so that’s pretty awesome and also heavy man. I had this race planned before the diagnosis but did target the qualifying race in March and this as my first marathon as a shout out to my dad. So it’s picked up some more importance as training and treatment progressed and we’ve both had to HTFU.
Bib 3050 and gun is 0755est Sunday. I’ll hit the course at some point afterwards when the 4 hour corral crew makes it to the starting line amidst the crowd at the start.
ChiefD
Footballguy
What's the name of the race again?Goals for Sunday time as I’m taking a walk and work focus is slipping.
Pace Strategy has been elusive and I’ve decided to roll out slower for first 5k in the crowd and the only hilly portion, next 20m in 8:40s and last 5k throw out everything I’ve got left. Should add up to +/- 3:50 and a finish. Want under 3:50. Shift in lower temps has my MAF pace improving but I’ve done almost all training in heat/humidity so I haven’t gone long at paces faster than 8:40s and this weekend is not the place to try it in my first go at the distance.
Stoked for this experience and I’ll have some fam in the crowd for the first race ever which is cool. The size of race and crowd are unknowns as well as how my emotions go. My Marine father is wrapping up radiation treatment tomorrow and will be down for the weekend so that’s pretty awesome and also heavy man. I had this race planned before the diagnosis but did target the qualifying race in March and this as my first marathon as a shout out to my dad. So it’s picked up some more importance as training and treatment progressed and we’ve both had to HTFU.
Bib 3050 and gun is 0755est Sunday. I’ll hit the course at some point afterwards when the 4 hour corral crew makes it to the starting line amidst the crowd at the start.
stalkers want to know
You are gonna rock this race. If the temps are cooler, you should gain pace at the same effort as when you were running in the heat and humidity.
mr. furley
Footballguy
i can't really fathom the paces so i don't know if i can call them "fast"
it's more like an abstract concept to me than anything
i'm a mudder, my fodder was a mudder, my mudder was a mudder
gruecd
Footballguy
100? No, thanks. The start/finish for both Kettle and tBunk is only 45 minutes away from me (and I've run the trails many times), but I have zero desire to run that far. I'll maybe do another 50-miler at some point, but I don't see myself going beyond that.
gruecd
Footballguy
Boom! See you there, homie. I'm 90% sure that I'm doing it, too. Already booked a room at the Renaissance (one of the host hotels). You should do the same.
MAC_32
Footballguy
ChiefD
Footballguy
Had a marathon training calendar up on the computer last night, and the wife looks over.Boom! See you there, homie. I'm 90% sure that I'm doing it, too. Already booked a room at the Renaissance (one of the host hotels). You should do the same.
Her: What are you looking at?
Me: Nothing.
Her: That's not what I think it is, is it?
Me:
-OZ-
Footballguy
Had a marathon training calendar up on the computer last night, and the wife looks over.
Her: What are you looking at?
Me: Nothing.
Her: That's not what I think it is, is it?
Me:
marathon training plans - wives would rather you look at porn.
MAC_32
Footballguy
My wife finally got hit with that reality yesterday. There was other stuff going on, but the look on her face when I said I probably won't be home until close to 8. Pure fear. Because she knows at least 1-2 nights per week for the next 24 weeks she is fighting those wild beasts solo.
Well I feel the need to weigh in just a bit on the @-OZ- and @MAC_32 comments above. IMO, you don't have to run 50+ miles a week to run a 100. Speaking from admittedly minimal experience, I think focused training emphasizing consistent weekend long runs can get you there. My embarrassment at the mileage I run is one component as to why I don't post about my training.
The primary reason behind my minimal miles (well, actually secondary to a lack of @SteelCurtain-esque commitment) is exactly what's referenced above. Children. Family. We've got 2 and 6 year old girls, and it's simply tough justifying daily runs that eat into that time. But I think if you can get a run or two in during the week to keep the legs turning / maintain fitness, and stay true to your weekend long runs, then it's absolutely realistic to run a 100 on ~30-40 miles per week. But your body needs those 4+ hour outings to learn how to process fat stores as energy, and to get your legs used to grinding out the vertical changes present in most 100's. Mixing in a few back-to-back long runs during a weekend throughout your training really aids in learning how to run on tired legs. And more often than not, the sacrifice in terms of time spent with your family can be minimized by doing things like starting your long runs at 4am on a weekend morning or starting them at 8pm as your kids go to bed. You can also incorporate your kids into part of your long run on the weekends as they ride in a stroller with you for an hour, bike next to you, hike with you at a park, etc.
I guess my point is, the time commitment to run a 100 doesn't have to be forbidding. It can be done. And it can be done without a massive impact to the things that are most important to you. So give it a go. The worst thing that'll happen is that you'll get to mile 78, have raw nuts, decide to take a DNF, and think about it nonstop for months to come.
-OZ-
Footballguy
Yep
I had to run at 530 this morning and missed yesterday because this week is nuts. My wife texted thanking me for running this morning because I'm happier when I run (I'm a little bit of an ### when I don't)
-OZ-
Footballguy
Sure, and I do those things. But I know if I go 4 hours on a Saturday starting at 4, I'm not going to be as good a dad the rest of the day. I also know if I do run a hundred, I'm going to want to do it as well as I possibly can.Well I feel the need to weigh in just a bit on the @-OZ- and @MAC_32 comments above. IMO, you don't have to run 50+ miles a week to run a 100. Speaking from admittedly minimal experience, I think focused training emphasizing consistent weekend long runs can get you there. My embarrassment at the mileage I run is one component as to why I don't post about my training.
The primary reason behind my minimal miles (well, actually secondary to a lack of @SteelCurtain-esque commitment) is exactly what's referenced above. Children. Family. We've got 2 and 6 year old girls, and it's simply tough justifying daily runs that eat into that time. But I think if you can get a run or two in during the week to keep the legs turning / maintain fitness, and stay true to your weekend long runs, then it's absolutely realistic to run a 100 on ~30-40 miles per week. But your body needs those 4+ hour outings to learn how to process fat stores as energy, and to get your legs used to grinding out the vertical changes present in most 100's. Mixing in a few back-to-back long runs during a weekend throughout your training really aids in learning how to run on tired legs. And more often than not, the sacrifice in terms of time spent with your family can be minimized by doing things like starting your long runs at 4am on a weekend morning or starting them at 8pm as your kids go to bed. You can also incorporate your kids into part of your long run on the weekends as they ride in a stroller with you for an hour, bike next to you, hike with you at a park, etc.
I guess my point is, the time commitment to run a 100 doesn't have to be forbidding. It can be done. And it can be done without a massive impact to the things that are most important to you. So give it a go. The worst thing that'll happen is that you'll get to mile 78, have raw nuts, decide to take a DNF, and think about it nonstop for months to come.
Then there's the prospect that my wife and daughter are leaving for 3.5 months in the next year as she goes through chemo and a bone marrow transplant. No word on that yet but I'm mentally preparing for that which includes being a single dad for 4 boys and working a full time job. Manageable, friends of ours do it longer and she did it a few years ago when I was in Afghanistan. But not exactly the best circumstance to train for an ultra.
As I typed that post, I completely forgot the bolded. Obviously your situation is entirely different. And you're 100% correct in your call that now would not be the right time to train for a 100. T&P with you and your family as you work through this Oz.
gianmarco
Footballguy
So, like I said, I don't understand how you guys do these long distances and I don't ever have any interest in doing that.
Of course, I did mention the Jack n Jill to my wife and how we could train together next year when our youngest goes back to daycare and make a trip of it. As she's never had an interest to do a full marathon, she initially looked at me like I was crazy and then started thinking about it.
We went on a long run this morning. Pushing the stroller on the sidewalks by us SUCKS. So the first 3 miles of the run were awful until we decided to just run in the park. As she had run 5 miles last night as well and hadn't done a long run since her half, she actually started to really fatigue even at a slow pace. I ended up pushing the stroller for the 2nd half of the run. I did realize that if I held it with my right hand and ran toward the left side of it so that my right arm was in its normal position when I run, my hip didn't hurt. So, I did fine with it and ended up doing most of the hills too.
I felt great and would have liked to run closer to 10 but she had to stop at 8. Either way, it felt good as my longest run to date and really without any difficulty on my end. I even had to slow down a good bit the last couple miles for her. The 2+ mile walk home from where we stopped was much worse than the run. I'm learning about new chafing that I haven't ever dealt with. Time to start using body glide in certain areas when I'm going over 6 miles.
I think my overall speed and endurance has gone up significantly in just the last 2 weeks. Crazy because after the first couple weeks, my progress felt very slow and hard to tell.
Of course, I did mention the Jack n Jill to my wife and how we could train together next year when our youngest goes back to daycare and make a trip of it. As she's never had an interest to do a full marathon, she initially looked at me like I was crazy and then started thinking about it.
We went on a long run this morning. Pushing the stroller on the sidewalks by us SUCKS. So the first 3 miles of the run were awful until we decided to just run in the park. As she had run 5 miles last night as well and hadn't done a long run since her half, she actually started to really fatigue even at a slow pace. I ended up pushing the stroller for the 2nd half of the run. I did realize that if I held it with my right hand and ran toward the left side of it so that my right arm was in its normal position when I run, my hip didn't hurt. So, I did fine with it and ended up doing most of the hills too.
I felt great and would have liked to run closer to 10 but she had to stop at 8. Either way, it felt good as my longest run to date and really without any difficulty on my end. I even had to slow down a good bit the last couple miles for her. The 2+ mile walk home from where we stopped was much worse than the run. I'm learning about new chafing that I haven't ever dealt with. Time to start using body glide in certain areas when I'm going over 6 miles.
I think my overall speed and endurance has gone up significantly in just the last 2 weeks. Crazy because after the first couple weeks, my progress felt very slow and hard to tell.
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MAC_32
Footballguy
Words cannot describe how unappealing the sound of a 4 hour run at 4 am or 8 pm is right now.Well I feel the need to weigh in just a bit on the @-OZ- and @MAC_32 comments above. IMO, you don't have to run 50+ miles a week to run a 100. Speaking from admittedly minimal experience, I think focused training emphasizing consistent weekend long runs can get you there. My embarrassment at the mileage I run is one component as to why I don't post about my training.
The primary reason behind my minimal miles (well, actually secondary to a lack of @SteelCurtain-esque commitment) is exactly what's referenced above. Children. Family. We've got 2 and 6 year old girls, and it's simply tough justifying daily runs that eat into that time. But I think if you can get a run or two in during the week to keep the legs turning / maintain fitness, and stay true to your weekend long runs, then it's absolutely realistic to run a 100 on ~30-40 miles per week. But your body needs those 4+ hour outings to learn how to process fat stores as energy, and to get your legs used to grinding out the vertical changes present in most 100's. Mixing in a few back-to-back long runs during a weekend throughout your training really aids in learning how to run on tired legs. And more often than not, the sacrifice in terms of time spent with your family can be minimized by doing things like starting your long runs at 4am on a weekend morning or starting them at 8pm as your kids go to bed. You can also incorporate your kids into part of your long run on the weekends as they ride in a stroller with you for an hour, bike next to you, hike with you at a park, etc.
I guess my point is, the time commitment to run a 100 doesn't have to be forbidding. It can be done. And it can be done without a massive impact to the things that are most important to you. So give it a go. The worst thing that'll happen is that you'll get to mile 78, have raw nuts, decide to take a DNF, and think about it nonstop for months to come.
bushdocda
Footballguy
Once my runs got longer my wife started likening it to when i’d leave early to golf on weekends. I countered that at least I don’t come home drunk at noon so I’ve got that going for me which is nice.
But I still will occasionally fall asleep post long run laying on the floor as my kids trash the place around me so her point isn’t completely without merit.
But I still will occasionally fall asleep post long run laying on the floor as my kids trash the place around me so her point isn’t completely without merit.
Brony
Footballguy
tri-man 47
Footballguy
FWIW, I never considered distance running (more than a 10 mile race) until after the kids were grown. I was perfectly happy doing 5Ks and focusing on year-round training for an annual Olympic tri. And this was while working at universities within a mile of my house (=no commute). IMO, nothing wrong with a short-race, speed focus. Of course, most of that life was pre-internet. I didn't know how well I compared to others in the broader running community, I didn't realize my 5K splits translated to about a 3:00 marathon, and I certainly hadn't succumbed to the influence of all you nuts. 
@gruecd, I still have thoughts of the Fall 50 (mile) ultra in Door County. Let's just not tell @SFBayDuck it's a road ultra. Word.
@gruecd, I still have thoughts of the Fall 50 (mile) ultra in Door County. Let's just not tell @SFBayDuck it's a road ultra. Word.
gruecd
Footballguy
As in, you have thoughts of doing the Fall 50 solo? If you do, I'll totally come and crew for you!tri-man 47 said:FWIW, I never considered distance running (more than a 10 mile race) until after the kids were grown. I was perfectly happy doing 5Ks and focusing on year-round training for an annual Olympic tri. And this was while working at universities within a mile of my house (=no commute). IMO, nothing wrong with a short-race, speed focus. Of course, most of that life was pre-internet. I didn't know how well I compared to others in the broader running community, I didn't realize my 5K splits translated to about a 3:00 marathon, and I certainly hadn't succumbed to the influence of all you nuts.
@gruecd, I still have thoughts of the Fall 50 (mile) ultra in Door County. Let's just not tell @SFBayDuck it's a road ultra. Word.
tri-man 47
Footballguy
Yes, those are the thoughts. I suppose it'd have to be next fall if I do it. Fall'19 is likely to be a BQ marathon for Spring'21. We'll see! And thanks!!!
gianmarco
Footballguy
Repeat labs a couple weeks ago for life insurance underwriting:
Total cholesterol: 208
HDL: 44
LDL: 127
ChiefD
Footballguy
Up and at em. 64 degrees and a stiff 17 mph breeze out of the south. Dew point is 58, with humidity at 79 right now. :X A normal temp for this race is about 45 degrees.
The good news is my downhill portion of this race goes north to south, and at least on the last uphill section the breeze will be at the back.
Should be a rough day today for the marathoners. Glad I'm not in that category today.
The good news is my downhill portion of this race goes north to south, and at least on the last uphill section the breeze will be at the back.
Should be a rough day today for the marathoners. Glad I'm not in that category today.
-OZ-
Footballguy
Sounds perfect. Go get em tiger!Up and at em. 64 degrees and a stiff 17 mph breeze out of the south. Dew point is 58, with humidity at 79 right now. :X A normal temp for this race is about 45 degrees.
The good news is my downhill portion of this race goes north to south, and at least on the last uphill section the breeze will be at the back.
Should be a rough day today for the marathoners. Glad I'm not in that category today.
ChiefD
Footballguy
2017 Snot Run.......Errrr.......KC 1/2 Marathon Race Report
So this was supposed to be just another race in the next step of my racing career. I had in the back of my mind a spring marathon to give it one more go. So for this race, the goal this cycle was just to build back up after a rough batch of training since my marathon last October.
This year has been tough on me and my body. My stomach issues are well documented around here, but the truth is it HAS affected me. I just didn't know (or didn't want to accept) the reality of what's been going on.
The last few weeks I've actually had some decent runs, but I got sick last Thursday. Just a simple sinus infection, that in the past is treated with a simple anti-biotic and I feel better in a few days. This one knocked me on my ### (similar to one I had in the spring). I was in bed for three days, and after a week on this medicine I still have stuff in my chest and a runny nose. So I'm not quite clear yet. This is a side effect of my stomach stuff - my immune system is out of wack and it is just tougher to recover from things. In the spring in took me 3 rounds of anti-biotics to clear that sinus infection.
I tell you all this because today it really became relevant. The morning was warm as I posted above - it was sticky at the starting line at 7:00 am. The good news is I had an outstanding poop this morning, and got to the race in plenty of time. A pretty uneventful morning.
The corral set up for this race was horrible. They closed off the front and there was only one way in - from the back. Consequently people were jammed in with all different pace strategies. Lots of frustration from many in there. But the gun goes off, and here we go. I'm going to break this course into segments, because this race was a failure. So I'm going to try and paint an accurate picture of what was going on with me, the course, and the race.
Mile 1: 9:16 pace, 159HR
Mile 2: 8:02 pace, 172HR
Mile 1 was a pain in the ####. I had to weave through a lot of pace groups to get to where I could run a comfortable pace. My plan was to try and stick around an 8:30 pace. Based on training and how I ran my race in the spring on a lot less miles, I thought I could be here. Or as least close to it. I got into mile two and this was a downhill segment, so I wanted to push the pace here. My heart rate jumped fast into the 170's, and it would stay there the most of the day.
Mile 3: 8:57 pace, 173HR
Mile 4: 9:19 pace, 174HR
Mile 5: 10:12 pace, 173 HR
This segment was basically uphill. For three ####### miles. I knew this going in, so I knew I had to conserve some energy here because after mile 5 it hits a downhill stretch for about 4 miles where I thought I could make some hay. I'm working hard here - this is where I start to see the effects of my sinus infection. I'm got spit and #### coming up my throat, so I'm spitting every 10 steps. This is also where we turned into that south wind. The wind was brutal - 17 to 20mph into my chest. So this segment was tough. My heart rate is staying steady though, so I thought I had some for the downhill.
Mile 6: 8:54 pace, 173HR
Mile 7: 8:34 pace, 172HR
Mile 8: 9:23 pace, 172HR
Mile 9: 9:09 pace, 172HR
This segment was ok, but I was expending a lot of energy. My heart rate wasn't coming down, which it usually does when I'm rolling downhill. At the bottom of this section the course starts to go uphill again for a long stretch. I'm in trouble here and I know it - I'm still spitting up crap and my body is just aching badly.
Mile 10: 10:22 pace, 168HR
Mile 11: 10:48 pace, 165HR
Mile 12: 11:00 pace, 163HR
It's over. I'm walking some at this point because my body is shutting down. Starting to feel some cramping in my calves, which surprised me because my nutrition and hydration was on point this week. But it's in this segment where I start to do some real soul searching and trying to figure out my future to be honest. This entire segment for basically three miles is uphill. Once again, I knew this was coming, but by now it didn't matter anyway. I #### you not - this section from mile 9 to mile 12.5 was all uphill. A brutal course.
Mile 13.1: 9:50 pace, 158HR
I ran it in at least. Final chip time of 2:06:38. My worst time ever, even going back to my first race ever in 2013. I'm wiped - my body is thoroughly wiped. So is my mind.
In Summary
So I mentioned earlier I had a lot of time to think about things during the back half of this race. And everything over the last year came flooding into my brain. The diagnosis of my stomach stuff, that bout of sickness in the spring, how I have felt going on a year now. And it's all related and at the same time my new reality.
My body is different now. I can't get to where I could before in terms of fitness. My body is exhausted daily - every run I do is extremely frustrating because I rarely feel good. And when I get sick, I can't recover in time to get back on the saddle and build on my base. This sinus infection I have now will probably require at least another bout of medicine.
And it sucks. It's over for me as a distance runner. My heart is heavy and I'm bordering on tears writing this right now. There will not be another marathon. There will more than likely never be another half marathon. I can't keep doing this knowing I'm getting slower and slower and there doesn't seem to be much I can do about it.
Thanks all for your help and support - trust me - a large part of my disappointment is that you've all helped so much - and that a part of me feels like I've let you all down. But in all honesty:
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
So this was supposed to be just another race in the next step of my racing career. I had in the back of my mind a spring marathon to give it one more go. So for this race, the goal this cycle was just to build back up after a rough batch of training since my marathon last October.
This year has been tough on me and my body. My stomach issues are well documented around here, but the truth is it HAS affected me. I just didn't know (or didn't want to accept) the reality of what's been going on.
The last few weeks I've actually had some decent runs, but I got sick last Thursday. Just a simple sinus infection, that in the past is treated with a simple anti-biotic and I feel better in a few days. This one knocked me on my ### (similar to one I had in the spring). I was in bed for three days, and after a week on this medicine I still have stuff in my chest and a runny nose. So I'm not quite clear yet. This is a side effect of my stomach stuff - my immune system is out of wack and it is just tougher to recover from things. In the spring in took me 3 rounds of anti-biotics to clear that sinus infection.
I tell you all this because today it really became relevant. The morning was warm as I posted above - it was sticky at the starting line at 7:00 am. The good news is I had an outstanding poop this morning, and got to the race in plenty of time. A pretty uneventful morning.
The corral set up for this race was horrible. They closed off the front and there was only one way in - from the back. Consequently people were jammed in with all different pace strategies. Lots of frustration from many in there. But the gun goes off, and here we go. I'm going to break this course into segments, because this race was a failure. So I'm going to try and paint an accurate picture of what was going on with me, the course, and the race.
Mile 1: 9:16 pace, 159HR
Mile 2: 8:02 pace, 172HR
Mile 1 was a pain in the ####. I had to weave through a lot of pace groups to get to where I could run a comfortable pace. My plan was to try and stick around an 8:30 pace. Based on training and how I ran my race in the spring on a lot less miles, I thought I could be here. Or as least close to it. I got into mile two and this was a downhill segment, so I wanted to push the pace here. My heart rate jumped fast into the 170's, and it would stay there the most of the day.
Mile 3: 8:57 pace, 173HR
Mile 4: 9:19 pace, 174HR
Mile 5: 10:12 pace, 173 HR
This segment was basically uphill. For three ####### miles. I knew this going in, so I knew I had to conserve some energy here because after mile 5 it hits a downhill stretch for about 4 miles where I thought I could make some hay. I'm working hard here - this is where I start to see the effects of my sinus infection. I'm got spit and #### coming up my throat, so I'm spitting every 10 steps. This is also where we turned into that south wind. The wind was brutal - 17 to 20mph into my chest. So this segment was tough. My heart rate is staying steady though, so I thought I had some for the downhill.
Mile 6: 8:54 pace, 173HR
Mile 7: 8:34 pace, 172HR
Mile 8: 9:23 pace, 172HR
Mile 9: 9:09 pace, 172HR
This segment was ok, but I was expending a lot of energy. My heart rate wasn't coming down, which it usually does when I'm rolling downhill. At the bottom of this section the course starts to go uphill again for a long stretch. I'm in trouble here and I know it - I'm still spitting up crap and my body is just aching badly.
Mile 10: 10:22 pace, 168HR
Mile 11: 10:48 pace, 165HR
Mile 12: 11:00 pace, 163HR
It's over. I'm walking some at this point because my body is shutting down. Starting to feel some cramping in my calves, which surprised me because my nutrition and hydration was on point this week. But it's in this segment where I start to do some real soul searching and trying to figure out my future to be honest. This entire segment for basically three miles is uphill. Once again, I knew this was coming, but by now it didn't matter anyway. I #### you not - this section from mile 9 to mile 12.5 was all uphill. A brutal course.
Mile 13.1: 9:50 pace, 158HR
I ran it in at least. Final chip time of 2:06:38. My worst time ever, even going back to my first race ever in 2013. I'm wiped - my body is thoroughly wiped. So is my mind.
In Summary
So I mentioned earlier I had a lot of time to think about things during the back half of this race. And everything over the last year came flooding into my brain. The diagnosis of my stomach stuff, that bout of sickness in the spring, how I have felt going on a year now. And it's all related and at the same time my new reality.
My body is different now. I can't get to where I could before in terms of fitness. My body is exhausted daily - every run I do is extremely frustrating because I rarely feel good. And when I get sick, I can't recover in time to get back on the saddle and build on my base. This sinus infection I have now will probably require at least another bout of medicine.
And it sucks. It's over for me as a distance runner. My heart is heavy and I'm bordering on tears writing this right now. There will not be another marathon. There will more than likely never be another half marathon. I can't keep doing this knowing I'm getting slower and slower and there doesn't seem to be much I can do about it.
Thanks all for your help and support - trust me - a large part of my disappointment is that you've all helped so much - and that a part of me feels like I've let you all down. But in all honesty:
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
Last edited by a moderator:
AAABatteries
Footballguy
I liked that post just to let you know we are with you brother - hope you get your health stuff straightened out - that’s most important.
