Balance

April 7, 2011

herb health, running, training , 7 Comments

Running has been pretty sparse lately. I think I’ve only done 4 miles since my last post. Those 4 miles went pretty well and the next day I was no worse off. I intended something like that every other day with a mandatory rest day in between. Yesterday would have been the 2nd run, but the rain and other things made it inconvenient. Rather than fight through my schedule to get the run in, I figured less is more at this point and took it as a sign holding off for another would be better.

Today it’s absolutely gorgeous, so I intend 5 in central park today while making sure to keep everything feeling good in the hamstrings as I run.

Over the weekend I was climbing the walls, really wanting to do something long. With lack of anything better to do I headed to the gym with my wife with no real plan or idea of what I’d be doing once I got there. Most cross training options I think would tend to aggravate my hamstrings just as much as running.

By chance, a yoga class was starting so we jumped in. Holy cow. I had no idea how f*cked up I really am. First off, I’m not surprised I’m a little tight in the legs in every way you might think someone could be tight, but it’s much more severe than I ever imagined. Hips, calves, shins, quads, everything. I couldn’t do some of the most simplest poses, say like um, …sitting. I couldn’t even sit cross-legged without my knees being in the air as high as my shoulders.

namaste

I’ve stopped stretching a while ago. I used to be very diligent about this. At one time in my life I could do a full split. Then I’ve come across studies that seemed to go against conventional wisdom and suggest that stretching doesn’t prevent injuries. I never enjoyed it so I bought into the belief and let myself go in that department. I got away with it for quite sometime. Probably longer than any study would have been conducted, but I’m convinced that had I kept stretching I wouldn’t be injured like I am now.

On top of that, some of the balancing poses that require standing on one leg showed me how injured my hamstrings really are. It wasn’t so much a lack of balance or strength, but my leg just buckled as soon as I would try to support my weight using my hamstrings. That was another surprise.

It became clear to me I could use this as a tool to detect problems I’m having that I might otherwise be tempted to dismiss. Looking back it’s obvious I’ve been too focused on certain aspects of my training that I’ve lost sight of a bigger picture. I need to balance things out a bit more. I guess figuratively and literally. Otherwise I’ll just be setting myself up for another injury to creep in.

Since then I’ve been adamant about stretching everyday. I plan to get in a routine that includes some sort of yoga on a regular basis. As of now I have no clue what I’m doing so I can’t realistically do anything on my own at this point. But, I’ll try to find a couple of classes to get familiar with the basics besides downward dog.

Googling images of downward dog is another way to learn

Planning ahead

December 14, 2010

herb running, training , , 4 Comments

Advanced Marathoning - 2nd Edition

Advanced Marathoning - 2nd Edition

It has occurred to me I might be able to reach my full potential sooner if I followed a plan devised by someone far more intelligent than myself. Up to this point I’ve been randomly, and almost arbitrarily, running whatever workout I felt made sense at the time. I think I have enough of a clue as to what I’m doing to be making progress, but I’d like to have a bit more structure in my running. So, I’ve ordered Pfitzinger’s Advanced Marathoning. It seems to be popular with those running sub 3 hour marathons on the message boards, and I’m looking forward to giving it a try.

We’ll see how it goes and if 2011 can be an even better year than 2010. As of now, I tentatively have Boston in mind for a sub-3. It’ll all depend on how training goes and I’ll won’t know more until I get closer to April.

In the meantime, I’m registered for Ted Corbit’s 15K this Sunday. When I registered, I very much wanted to run this race to see what I could do. I have a strong expectation of being able to break an hour, or at least come close.

But, with the brutal cold weather that just hit us recently (snow and 18 degrees), I’m having second thoughts about trekking down to Central Park in the wee hours of Sunday in the dark, and freezing my ass off at the starting line.

I normally don’t wimp out of races like this, and I haven’t made up my mind for sure what I will do, but I feel like I’ve done enough this year to justify not racing if I simply don’t want to. Afterall, that’s really what this should be about.

The kind of run I want to do

November 28, 2010

herb running, training Leave a comment

Today was one of those runs that make you feel on top of the world. It wasn’t because things were fast, or felt effortless. In fact, quite the opposite at times. It’s only been a week since Philadelphia, and I still feel last week’s race in my legs.

What was great was that I could run with no mental pressure at all. The marathon’s over. Plus, it was a success, so that only adds to the relief.

It’s been a very long time, since before the leaves changed color, that I was able to run the way I wanted. I don’t remember a time when I didn’t feel like I had to maintain some sort pace or distance; even on my easy days.

Today, all the leaves are on the ground. The shadows were already long when I started since I didn’t bother leaving the house until after 1:00pm.

When I felt like going fast, I went fast. When I felt like slowing down, I slowed down. If the Garmin showed my overall pace dropping off, I made a point to slow down even more. If I decided to take a hill easy, I took it easy, and I put effort in only when I wanted, and only while it felt good. I went out with the intention of running something long, but with no specific distance in mind. And, when I got tired, I headed back and wrote 15 in my log when I got home.

Rockefeller Estates - Best place to run

Philly race report will follow.

My daily run

November 1, 2010

herb running, training 7 Comments

First off, I want to apologize to the two or three people who read this for what a bore the last bunch of posts have been. With October being the most important month in my training for Philly, its basically been all that has been on my mind. Getting my long run in and getting my tempo in and keeping the base miles up throughout the week. It almost feels like I did a 20 mile race every weekend this month. I figure if I put all this effort in now, it’ll pay me back on race day. We’ll find out. But, now that it’s over, and the pressure is gone, I think I might miss doing it come this weekend. When I miss it a lot, I know I’m ready to race.

Anyway, enough about that.

Meanwhile, everyday I get those base miles in during my lunch hour. I run from my office, about 1.2 miles up Broadway to Central Park, do a lap, and then run back. I do this almost everyday with a buddy from work. The total run is 8.5 miles. Its a crazy run along Broadway. At times we have to stop for lights, but generally sprint through traffic if theres enough space between the cars that are travelling cross town. Pedestrians and bicyclists present another challenge.

On Broadway, a bicycle lane and a pedestrian area has taken over two of the existing four lanes, leaving just two lanes for vehicular traffic. We follow this all the way through Times Square, and up to 59th street where we enter the park. The trip along Broadway can be split into about 4 sections. The part south of Times Square. The lower half of Times Square before crossing 7th ave. The portion of Times Square north of 7th ave. And the portion north of Times Square.

Broadway's bike path and pedestrian area first being added. This section is just south of Times Square

When starting out on the southern most portion, the pedestrian/bike path is tougher to run through than running against traffic in the street. The section is full of tables and chairs, but mainly pedestrians who just don’t look where they’re walking. There are challenges when in the street, as well, because those who come out into the street to cross Broadway will look north for cars, but not south which will be the direction we’re coming from. They often step out quickly without looking.

The start of our run to Central Park

The two portions of Times Square, both north and south of 7th ave, are strategically the same in terms of negotiating your way through it. The reason for splitting it into two sections has more to do with milestones than the logistics of navigation. The two parts are large pedestrian areas with the same, but many more, tables and chairs with only a small section to run around. On bad days, the whole section may be packed with people if some sort of event is occurring. On those days, we run west along 42nd street and the north on 7th ave to Broadway.

Entering Times Square at 42nd and Broadway

Running through Times Square

On most days, when running through, 7th ave is always the biggest challenge to get across. But, we have options to get across it on more than one street, so we rarely get caught waiting for a traffic light at 46th street.

Looking south at where Broadway crosses 7th ave running left to right

Once we’re at 49th street, the rest of Broadway is uphill, but easy to navigate to Central Park, with crossing 57th street being the biggest challenge. If we get stuck at a light there, we often have to wait for the green since 57th traffic runs both east and west, and running through 4 lanes of traffic against the light is nearly impossible with getting flattened by a cab.

From there, once we are across 57th street, we’re basically in the park. This is where the real run starts. Almost exactly 6 miles around. We do a lap, and then run back.

Central Park! End of the road. Now the running can begin.

Running south back down Broadway is always easier. For one, it’s all downhill. But the fact we now run in the direction with traffic also makes it easier when going through Times Square, and then further south. There, traffic normally doesn’t travel at speeds faster than 7 mph. I’ve often run between cars in the middle of the lanes passing cars.

If it sounds crazy it is. But it beats taking the subway to the park. It saves us $5 each, and it get us there faster. Plus we get to log an extra 2.4 miles.

The Taper Begins

October 31, 2010

herb running, training 1 Comment

October is done and so am I. Stick a fork in me. I’m so glad it’s over.

This was a tough month, but I’m finishing it off with the highest monthly mileage for the year; 258 miles. And most miles were at a fast pace. I also lost 5 pounds in the process without intending to.

I’m happy I was able to complete all of the four long runs that I planned at marathon pace. The first was tough, but the second was much worse. I was going to bail and go easy on the third, but decided when I saw what my pace was after the first few miles that I would try to hold it. It was torture by the time I was done.

The last one was somewhat easier, and it was for 22 miles. The pace was as fast as the others, 7:00. There were a few things different about this though. For starters, I intentionally began by running slower than the pace I ended. Plus, I ran this on a different route, and listened to a different playlist on my iPod. Just the thought of starting out on the same route as the other three times made me cringe in fear

I know this type of training is somewhat unorthodox. But, I’ve always been the guy to go against conventional wisdom or say the things that go against the grain. It doesn’t make sense to me how you can expect to race at a pace for a certain distance if you don’t train at that pace over a comparable distance.

Now the insanity starts as I begin my taper. The first week or two will actually be nice. I need a break. But, I know by the last week I’ll begin to feel I’m losing all the fitness I’ve worked so hard for.

I’m curious how this will all turn out. I’ve done enough of these marathons now to know that bombing on race day will be meaningless in the big scheme of things. This season’s training will just add to the next no matter what happens on November 21st.

I might go out with a gamble in mind in terms of effort. If I hit a goal, great! If not, I’ll get the PR next time.

Oh yeah, Happy Halloween. Hopefully, I can now start posting about stuff other than my training.

Packing the last hay in the barn

October 26, 2010

herb mindless dribble, running, training Leave a comment

I’m in the last week of hard training before tapering for the Philly marathon. I’ve been keeping my thoughts to myself lately and off the blog, mainly because they’ve been somewhat negative in regards to my motivation.

What defines this as “hard” training for me is simply one tempo run of 9 miles on Wednesdays, and a long run of 20 miles at marathon pace. I promised myself to do this for the entire month of October. In between are easy days with just Tuesdays off. But it’s the long runs that are kind of adding up and taking their toll. More mental than anything else.

Surprisingly, all is well on the physical front with the exception on my right achilles a bit tight at times, but I have enough experience with it to know it’s not near anything like tendonitis or tendinosis. I’ve been taking some precautionary measures as well with the heating pad at nights (that’s right, NOT ice). After my long runs, I’m very diligent about getting carbs and protein in the form of tart cherry juice and 2 hard-boiled eggs (usually without the yolks). The cherry juice also has an added benefit of keeping inflammation at bay and might be why I’ve been able to recover better than usual. If it sounds gross, well, it is. But I’m a sucker for placebos like these, and these seem to work great.

Tart Cherry Juice - Liquid Aspirin


Tastes great when washed down with a glass of tart cherry juice - NOT

For October, I’ve done 60 miles for each of the past three weeks. Each week ended with a long run that left me completely hurting. Each one hurt more than the one before. I’ve done three so far. Here, here, and here. If I do all my planned miles for the rest of the month, I’ll finish off with 260 miles total. This has been the toughest month I’ve every put myself through.

For the long run I just did last Saturday, I originally planned to do it easier. And, I started with that intention, but it’s like I forgot how to run these slower. When I covered the first 10 miles, and my garmin reported an average pace faster than what I would need for a sub 3:00 marathon, I naively hoped I could hold it for 20 just to see.

Lo and behold, I could not. At least, not on that day. I slowed down enough to average a 6:59 pace by the end. And although its not a faster pace on average than the one I did in the prior week, it was probably the most painful 20 miles I’ve ever pushed through. And it was done on a day where I really could have used a long run with a finish that left me feeling great. I had a few of those back in the spring. With the last two, all I could think of was how the hell am I going to get through the next one?

End of this week, I might do my last long run a little easier. But, I’ll probably stretch it out for an extra two miles and make it 22. Then I’m done. I’ll do plenty of marathon pace runs during the taper.

I want to feel a 20 mile run at marathon pace will be easy on race day. These runs aren’t really doing that for me. In fact, I’ve been dreading my long run. That is quite the opposite of how I normally feel, since I’ always looked forward to running long on the weekend.

But, it did prove to me one thing. I could do 20 miles at marathon pace, even on a bad day. An extra 6.2? Dunno yet.

Will all the extra effort pay off? Hard to tell, regardless of the outcome. If I bomb it could be for a slew of unrelated reasons. You can’t prove a negative. And if I do great, it doesn’t necessarily prove running 20 miles at marathon pace four times was the sole reason either.

Some progress

October 16, 2010

herb running, training Leave a comment

I just ran 20 miles on a measured course in 2:19:11. That’s a 6:57 pace.

Two more of these long runs and then I being my taper.

I’m trying to figure out what pace I should target when I run Philly.

Beeturia

October 14, 2010

herb health, mindless dribble, running, training , , 8 Comments

I’ve always been a big fan of juicing or blending vegetables. Actually, I tend to blend more often than I juice. For one thing, there are more benefits to consuming the whole vegetable instead of just its juice. But more importantly, the blender is a hell of a lot easier to clean than the juicer.

There are 6 vegetables I juice and/or blend on a regular basis. Each of these were selected for a particular reason to fit my specific needs.

  1. Kale (blend)
  2. Celery (blend)
  3. Cabbage (juice)
  4. Carrots (blend or juice)
  5. Broccoli (blend or juice)
  6. Banana (blend) ok, it’s a fruit.

From there I tend to throw in additional vegetables or fruits based on whatever is available. Beets has been one of them on occasion.

Then I read this article on how beet juice and nitric oxide can help performance. Afterwards, I decided beets should be added to the list above as a regular addition to my regimen.

Beets! - the new Perpetuem

It took a couple of tries, but I came up with my own recipe for a delicious beet smoothie

In a blender I put the following :

  • 1 whole raw beet about the size of a baseball
  • 3 stalks of celery
  • 2 carrots
  • a glass of ice and some water
  • a squeeze of agave syrup for a couple of seconds

Blend until smooth and viola.

It's actually tastes as good as it looks. ....And I meant it tastes good if that wasn't clear.

If you’re curious what the bowl of green stuff is, it’s my yogurt

  • 2/3 a cup of zero fat fage total greek yogurt
  • 4 or 5 big leaves of kale
  • 1 banana
  • a handful of chia seeds
  • a handful steel cut oatmeal

Blend until smooth.
Add almonds on top

Ok, so that’s all fun and good.

A couple of days later I went out for a pretty good marathon paced run during my lunch hour. I wound up doing about 20 seconds faster per mile than marathon pace. Things were good and easy but I was pushing the effort.

Back at work, after I took my first piss, I almost fainted in fear as I looked at what seemed to be a bright red stream of blood. I almost screamed in horror. What is it that is bleeding inside me? My kidneys? My testicles? But nothing hurts!!! What’s different? Oh right… the beets? Did the beets do that?

I ran back to my desk to google beets urine red. To my relief I have something called Beeturia. Digging deeper, I was curious to find out why all of a sudden? It wasn’t my first time consuming the beets like this. I learned this is sometimes related to an iron deficiency for unknown reasons. I know I’m not anemic. I dismissed this.

It didn’t happen again for a few days.

Then it did.

And it was worse. Much much worse. It was a bright red cherry colored stream with a flourescent hue.

And it was after running a 6 mile tempo is Central Park. That tempo was much more strenuous than the 6 mile marathon pace from before. The days in between I only ran easy. I was beginning to notice a pattern here.

Because I’m fascinated with this I dug a little deeper and I found another article.

…suggests that beeturia is more likely to occur at a time of “iron hunger” perhaps via the pathway for iron absorption. Because beeturia can appear and disappear in individuals, at least some of the 14% incidence may be due to the fluctuating nature of iron absorption in normal individuals.

Hmm. That actually made a lot of sense to me in my layman brain.

It seems, every time I run hard, I piss red now. Kind of funny.

I love the fall

September 14, 2010

herb racing, running, training , , 2 Comments

I went for a run tonight. No real goal other than to get some mileage in the log. I’ve been keeping things easy because I’ll be racing something to some degree this Sunday. I haven’t decided yet between the 18 mile tune up race in Central Park or the Yonkers marathon, but both are on the same day.

I’ve done Yonkers almost every year as a tune up and have only done the 18 mile race once. I feel one should be able to race 18 miles at a full effort without having it interfere with preparation for targeting a marathon 2 months later. Meanwhile, racing Yonkers just wouldn’t be practical. Nonetheless, despite what I just said, and even though it’s a notoriously tough course, I’m considering going out with a target time in mind. Something I never did before at this race. And, it’s for all the wrong reasons too. But, nonetheless, I’m curious to see if I can do 3:15:59. Mainly because it’s my BQ time. I kind of feel like I could do this if it’s a good day. It would be fun to try in fact.

Meanwhile, the thought of 3 laps around Central Park at race pace just seems a bit unbearable at the moment. Ironic somehow. The one other time I did this race was in 2007 and I averaged a 7:03 pace. I’m faster nowadays, but because I’ve ran so many training runs in the park lately, 7:03 seems hard for 3 laps around the park. Ironic that a marathon feels more doable.

Nonetheless, I’ve been taking things easy in preparation for Sunday, regardless of what I choose. Plus the fact I’ve been having some minor aches in my left hip, which has been improving thankfully, is even more of a reason to be going easy.

So heading out, in cooler temps, things just felt great. It’s almost as if I forgot I was running at times. I intended 4 miles, but did 8 1/2 just because I wanted to stay outdoors. I wish I could describe the feeling you get from running at dusk in weather like this. But I guess if you’re someone interested enough to be reading this, then you already know what I’m talking about. It all just flows and feels right.

It’s quite reassuring to see all the suckage with running that has been going on during the heat of the summer is easily erased when that heat is gone. I know I’m not alone in that either :)

Badwater and Ultras

July 29, 2010

herb mindless dribble, racing, running, training , , , 5 Comments

Running on the Sun


I remember when first watching Running on the Sun, how fascinated I was about Badwater. The thought of running (or travelling by foot) over 135 miles through some of the toughest extremes on earth was mind blowing. It sort of opened my eyes to how far people can really take their ability to run long distances. To me, at the time, Badwater represented a type of epitome of long distance running.

I remember describing the documentary to my wife, who has no interest in anything running related. While trying to pique her interest enough to get her to watch the documentary with me, she interrupted me mid sentence and asked “Herb, you’re not planning to do this are you?”

I laughed. My immediate thought and response to her was, “Are you crazy? No way! I have absolutely no desire.” And I meant it. The thought was ridiculous. This type of thing is not for me. The training would be more than what I would be willing to do, nor could I afford the time needed for this. Plus, I the monetary costs are ridiculous. Nearly $900 just to enter, plus there are costs for yourself and your support crew regarding travel, lodging, meals, and equipment for carrying out the race.

Nah, no way! What the hell for? I promised her never.

When I found Tony, who has already done Badwater once by the time I met him, I was somewhat in awe that someone who lived right in my neighborhood has done this race. Eventually, this led to an opportunity for me to crew for him on his second attempt. The three of you or so who read my blog on a regular basis already know that I’ve just recently returned from this adventure and have not yet fully wrote about the details. And I won’t yet be delving into them in this post either, but I’ll probably spread it over a series of posts as soon as I figure out what to focus on.

Well, what’s the point of this post then? I’ll get to that shortly.

Whenever I made mention of the fact I would be crewing Badwater, people joked about how I would be running it next. I always dismissed it. Others who were crewing alongside me were mostly crewing because they had plans to do the race in the future. It is well known that crewing increases your chances of getting accepted when applying. I repeated many times out there when asked by others that I had no plans to do the race.

Jack Deness and his better half.
I want to be like him when I grow up.

Well, perhaps when I grow up, I might want to be like Jack. He was doing Badwater for the 12th time when I was there. Maybe when I’m his age I’ll give it some consideration.

Since I’ve returned, I learned Badwater is different from what I imagined.

Not necessarily better, not necessarily worse. Just different and not quite what the documentaries capture. The best way I can sum it up is the fact that the event is even more bizarre than I imagined. There are things I learned about some of the people doing the race, and what they’re doing in addition to the race that blows me away. It’s also a lot of work and a lot of suffering for everyone involved. In some ways, I was truly turned off by it. In other ways, I’m left in awe and admiration. I’ll save these details for another time when I can truly delve into them.

Since returning, I’ve also found myself thinking more and more about Badwater. I’ve imagined myself running parts of the course that I covered pacing, as if I was racing it. I’ve caught myself fantasizing about this and fantasizing about returning to Death Valley. Thinking about it while doing my long run. Imagining what I would have to do to prepare if I were running Badwater. I’m convinced I am capable of running this race and I almost want to try.

But, I really don’t.

In fact, I’m quite conflicted about ultras in general at the moment. Right now, I have no desire to go beyond 50 miles. I know I could go past 50. I know if I wanted to, I could do a 100. Sure, it’s easier said than done, but to simply cover the distance, I’m confident I can do that.

But, I learned something during my first and only attempt at running 50 miles. I learned I don’t want to walk these races. I learned this when I was forced to walk because I went out too fast and hit the wall after 30 miles. Most of all, I learned there’s a difference between being able to cover 50, or 100, or 135 miles, and being trained to run over these distances. If I do this, I’m going to be doing the latter.

I also felt this way about running the marathon before I did one.

Currently, the marathon is a distance I love. For me it’s the furthest distance I’m currently trained to race right now. It happens to be and oddball arbitrary distance – 26.2 miles, but it’s also a standard race distance. With the marathon, I can feel the adrenaline pumping as I think about it. It’s the same adrenaline rush I get when I think about other race distances from the 5K to a half marathon. A 50K, however, could fulfill the same joys and self-satisfaction for me as the marathon does. I feel I could prepare myself to race a 50K.

Is that mile 50?


Meanwhile, thoughts of a 50 mile dredges up the thoughts of a tortoise. Slow and steady. This is because I’m not capable of doing a 50 miler any other way right now. And this isn’t a slight against those who run slower than I do. Actual speed is relative to the person who’s doing the running.

Weston the Pedestrian
The Father of Modern Pedestrianism


Ultramarathons and Pedestrianism have close ties. I realize there is a lot of walking that is done in this genre. I don’t judge anyone who walks in a race, but I figure, if I am going to say I am running a race, regardless of the distance, the majority of the distance should be covered by running.

When I am walking, or when I’m forced to walk, I don’t get that same rush and feelings of exertion that I crave which I get from running. I know I will be alienating other’s who are part of the ultra genre, and I don’t mean to. But, walking it is just not for me. It becomes almost a different sport.

When trying to discuss this with someone at Badwater, who just did his first and only 100, with a couple of 50’s sprinkled in, he explained to me with a smile on his face that I just didn’t have enough patience for an ultra. He walked the majority of his miles in his ultras, and I have no doubt he’ll walk his Badwater race if he ever does it.

What he doesn’t realize, and what I saw no point in explaining to him, is that there’s much more to be accomplished than just completing a distance. He seemed too satisfied with himself for me to bother.

Jumping into a 100 before I feel I know how to run a 50 is just not enough of an accomplishment for me. Going further than 50 right now would be premature. It would be faking it for me. Sure, I could do it and get away with it. But, what would I be proving?

So, my desire to shy away from ultras is not about my lack of patience for the longer distances. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. For me, it’s a deeper exercise in patience to truly learn the shorter distance(s) and how to pace it right to get my best time running, rather than slogging through it at a walking pace to just complete it. It’s just the kind of runner I am. The way I want to run. Again, I don’t judge him for how he chooses to run his ultras, or anyone else, but I’d rather not walk before learning to run.

So, I’ll do a 100 one day. Hell, I might actually even do Badwater for real. But first I want to race a 50. But not before I get tired of my love affair with the marathon. Sub 3 first!

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