60 miles in a week

Las Vegas Sunset

I did reach my training goal for the end of January of 60 miles in a week, sort of.   I originally intended to measure the 60 miles from Monday to Sunday, but I had only reached 40 miles by the end of Saturday.  I had planned to put in a 20 mile run on Saturday, but I was really dogging it by the end of 13 miles so I decided to cut it short and make it up Sunday.  However, I still felt flat on Sunday and that didn't work out.  By the end of Sunday I had only reached 50 miles towards my goal of 60.  Then I remembered that I hadn't run the previous Monday, so if I did put in 10 more miles on this Monday, which I did, I would of actually completed 60 miles in a 7 day period - Yea!

The week's training runs went OK, but not fantastic.  I felt fine for my first run on Tuesday and I ran that at a comfortable 9:00/mi pace feeling I could have gone much harder.  Then after taking a day off on Wednesday, I felt totally flat on Thursday.  I had to push really hard the whole 10 miles just to run at a 10:00/mi pace.  Friday evening found me with more bounce in my legs and I clipped off 6 miles at a good pace and felt physiologically ready for my 20 miles long run on Saturday.  However, as I described above it didn't workout that way.  Much of my training right now is at a relatively slow pace for me.  By comparison, if I was training to for a PR in a marathon, my slow runs would be done at an 8:00/mi pace and I would be doing at least one tempo run per week at a sub 7:00/mi pace.  Ultra training is a different beast though.  Now, I am mostly running on tired legs in an attempted to build up my stamina for those latter portions of the ultra where I know that I will be running on tired legs.  Not only are my legs tired during much of my runs but also sore and part of the training is learning about pain management.  Really I am learning how I can become use to certain pain while running and keep moving forward and yet not be completely miserable.  Thank God for the beauty of music, because without that refreshing my mind as I run, I am not sure how I would handle it.  There are times when I will be struggling during a run, and a certain song will play and inspire me to move on to a different level and suddenly the run becomes easier.

As I am running and listening to songs at times I will be hit by certain inspirations as did happen this past week.  It was while listening to the these lyrics sung by Tracy Chapman:

"Hunger only for a taste of justice
Hunger only for a world of truth
'Cause all that you have is your soul"

Here is the part that struck me:  I am so thankful that I have turned 50 and I still am so idealistic.  I always assumed that as one grows older that one inherently would become more judgmental and rigid in ones ways.  Yet thankfully I am finding that does not have to be the case.  I don't think that lives blows which come to all of us is making me jaded.  In fact, I believe that opposite is happening.  As I get older I find myself having more faith in the goodness of humanity than I ever did.  I feel that I am still idealistic in the sense of how I felt idealism as an adolescent.  I still believe that there is truth and justice out there and not only I am looking for it but 99.9% of humanity is also seeking it and we are together on a journey towards it.

Learning the importance of posture

3 weeks into 2013.  I ran that 50k the first week, rested up a bit week 2 and put in 55 miles on week 3.  The goal for now is 60 miles for week 4.  Then I will keep adding 5 miles per week till I am at 100 miles per week by the end of March or mid April.

Last week's training went well and I was able to get in 55 miles. As I increase my weekly mileage, I am also running more trails.  Right now I am running about 50% on roads and 50% on trails.  I am lucky to have a huge empty track of desert land only one mile from the house where I cam make a 4 mile loop that includes some small hills and canyons.  I am running more trails as they are a little softer than roads, although I am not sure how much as our trails are not soft cushy forest floors or anything like that.  Our desert  trails are a mixture of hard packed sand at best to hard scrabble rock that you have to really watch your footing on.  I always where fingerless cycling gloves out here to protect my hands in case I fall which luckily doesn't happen every day.

Unfortunately the hamstring started tightening up a bit again this week, but again I believe I discovered the cause or causes.  One is that I slacked of on stretching when the hamstring was getting better so I am paying for that a bit now.  I need to become religious with the stretching.  The second problem I notice is related to posture.  On the roads my running posture is fairly good.  A good running posture is an upright posture, hips directly over you knees and feet as they land under you.  U.S. marathoner Meb K. says that he imagines an imaginary wire from the clouds to the top of his head pulling him up as he runs.  On the roads this is not so hard to do because you don't have to be constantly scouting for rocks that you might trip over.  What I need to do is learn how to maintain good running posture while running trails.  On the trails I consistently find myself bending forward looking down at the trail.  This is an inefficient way to run as it puts extra stress on your leg and back muscles to maintain balance.  When I catch myself and straighten up, I also notice that my hamstring starts to get some relief.

What I decided to do is mix up the trail and road running more in the same run.  Instead of going out and running 10 miles on the trails until I am exhausted and running with bad form, I will alternate between road and trail in the same run.  I think a combination of 1 mile on the road followed by 1 mile on the trail should work.  Hopefully this way I can translate the good running posture habits I have on he road to the trail.  I can't wait to try it out tomorrow.

Running observations - what I learned from my last run

Two days have passed since I finished the Red Rock 50k, I am still definitely quite sore, have also developed a bit of a sniffle probably because my immune systems was weakened and yet I am feeling really good about the run.  I fell that I have turned a corner or two in my ultrarunning experience and I am looking forward to some more good runs this year.  The next big race I will be preparing for will be my second attempt at completing the Bishop High Sierra 100k on May 18.. http://www.bhs50.com/

The first most immediate thing that I learned and I am happy for is the progress I have made with my hamstring injury.  At no time during the run did my hamstring tighten up and slow me down.  At the end of the race after I got lost for a bit then got back on the road I was still doing sub 12 minute miles up a grade which is awesome for me after running more than 30 miles already.  I fell that I can just continue the conditioning and treatments that I have been doing and slowly build up my mileage to get ready for Bishop.  Right now I am running 50 miles per week.  My mileage goal is to be running 60 miles a week by the end of January, 80 miles a week my the end of February and 100 miles a week by the end of March or mid April.  Included in that will be one long -long run of 30 or more miles every 3 weeks.  One thing that I enjoy about ultrarunning is that you can loosely put together a program like this and not worry too much about what days you are going to run what miles and what pace you will run them.  If I am running 6 miles or less it will probably be around and 8 minute per mile pace.  Anything from 6 to 12 miles will average a 9 - 10 minute pace.  20 or more miles will be done at over a 10 minute per mile pace.

The second thing I learned was more mental.  I learned that I could get myself into a mindset where I am toughing out a run and pushing myself to my limits, which will include pain, and at the same time I am deriving satisfaction from my accomplishments and enjoying what I am doing despite the pain.  I guess that is what most people would more simply call being a "bad ass."  At the same time, I have come to realize that these low points in an ultrarun can pass and when they do you have a chance to feel that you are totally in the zone.  The zone I am talking about is a feeling of having pushed yourself for all that you are worth and feel that you can freely keep doing so for as long as you need to.

I am sure there are more lessons that I will learn as I travel down this road and I am looking forward to them.  Any comments anyone?  I have kind of been pouring myself out here for awhile and it would be nice to hear what someone else has to say for a change.  :-)

Red Rock "Fat Ass" 50K

Calico Hills at Red Rock National Recreation Area

I ran the Red Rock "Fat Ass" 50K yesterday and had a great experience.  It was a chilly 25 degrees F when my friend An and I arrived at the visitor center at 7:30am.  We were eager to get moving and warm up so as soon as people arrived we asked them for directions to the trail head and a general course description.  We took that information and made an early start.  There wasn't any problem with that as every was keeping there own time anyways.  I started off wearing long sleeves, arm warmers over them,  gloves, a headband for my ears and a running cap.  To carry food and water I had my Nathan hip belt with two 24oz water bottles and 18 gel packs, 3 per hour for what I anticipated to be a 6 hour day.  Each gel pack has 100 calories which gives me 300 calories per hour which worked out great.  It's nice to have that part of the ultrarunning worked out.  Gels also seem to digest better for me while running that any other food.

We started at 7:47am so we had about a 13 minute head start on everyone else.  We started on the Grand Circle loop at the trail head  just past the entrance gate to the left.  The first 4 miles of the trail passes between the roadway and the Calico Hills, and is quite rocky and rises steeply.  I was pleased that I was maintaining about a 12 minute/mile pace on this section without any overexertion or excessive stress on my recovering hamstring.  The trail was tricky and I did stumble and fall at the 2 mile mark but luckily I had gloves on so I was able to break my fall as I landed on a small bush (no thorns, thank God) and only sustained some small scraps on my leg.  Well I said to myself a little blood would only make me look a little more "bad ass" as I dusted my self off and continued.  This actually became my mantra throughout the day.  Whenever I would be going through a tough patch and start thinking of cutting it short and turning back, I would ask myself, "are you going to be a fat ass or a bad ass."

View from mile 4 looking back down into the canyon

At about the mile 3 mark the first runner passed me by than at mile 4 another group of 3 ran by.  For the next few miles runners continued to trickle by which was cool because it let me see the race unfolding and I was also able to follow them with my eye to see which way the course led.  At mile 6 we reached the White Rock loop and turned left to follow it clockwise.  By now it was warming up some and I had striped off my arm warmers and gloves.  (I still run with fingerless gloves to protect my hands in case of falls.)

White Rock loop

Three miles into the White Rock loop at mile 9, Britta was there waiting with water for us.  We would pass this spot 3 times in all giving us plenty of opportunities to refill our bottles.  I refilled just one bottle, enough for the 6 mile loop and continued on.  Up to this point the trail has been steadily rising and would continue to rise for another 2 miles to 5,500 feet.  We started at 3,400 feet and overall the 50k course had about 5000 feet of elevation gain, almost 1 mile, or approximately the depth of the Grand Canyon.  By this time I was really looking forward to going downhill although I was still maintaining a 13 to 14 min/mile pace alternating between a slow jog and a fast walk when the trail got too steep.  When I finllay started going down hill I was able to hit some 8 minute miles in open sections.  I couple more runners caugth up to me here as well and this gave me some inspiration to run as I attempted to keep up with them.  I did manage to keep pace with the second guy, Alex, and talked with him awhile which made those miles go by quick.  Alex is new to Las Vegas, having just moved from the East coast and is origanlly from Austria.

The back of White Rock loop

Alex and I arrived together at the water station after complementing theWhite Rock loop once.  I quickly refilled one bottle again and took off leaving Alex behind as he grabbed some food and snacks they had there.  We were exactly at the halfway point now and only needed to complete the loop one more time in the reverse direction and head back.  After climbing again for a couple of miles I realized I was going to be running short on water this time and should have filled both bottles.  I was reducing to only walking uphill now at about a 19 min/mi pace.  This was one of those low points were I needed to remind myself that I was there to be a "bad ass."  That seemed to help and as I passed a parking area, I asked some returning hikers if they had any water to spare.  Those nice people were happy to help and I scored two 12 oz bottles of water and wished them "Happy New Year" then started to feel the life coming back into my legs as I re-hydrated.  One more mile of climbing and then it would be primarily downhill all the way back to the start.  I was very please at how my legs were holding up as I was still able to running most of the time.  I did have a couple of sore spots on my feet though and suspected that I was geting some blisters but I wasn't going to let that slow me down.

With two miles to go I could see the visitor center.  At this point the trail joins and leaves the road a couple of times and I was on the road looking for the trail again.  I could have just stayed on the road all the way to the visitor center, but I wanted to do the full race legitimatley on the trail.  I looked down the canyon to my left and saw what I believed to be the trail.  I angled my way down the canyon to that trail and continued on.  One and a half miles later I began to doubt that I was on the corrrect trail as I should have only been 1/2 mile from the visitor center which was nowhere in sight.  Drat!  I stopped to check my GPS watch and yes I was off course and I was able to confirm this by the sight of  houses to my left.  I turned right and headed back up the canyon but when I got to the top  there was another canyon ahead and then yet another after that.  I could see the main highway now so I headed there and then made my way back to the entrance where we started.  In all I  had added about 2 miles to my trip.  My final time was 7 hours and 37 minutes for a total 33 miles, an average pace of 13:51 per mile, but that included a lot of walking and standing around at the end when I got lost.  I was getting exhausted and  discouraged now quipping to myself that I had gone from "fat ass" to "bad ass" to "dumb ass."  Oh well its all just part of the experience as occasionally all runners and hikers lose the trail at times.  At 50k my time was 6 hours and 21 minutes, just 21 minutes more than I predicted so not a  bad day at all especially for the first ultra of the year and coming of an injury.  I doesn't seem that I have strained my hamstring any worse and I look I am looking forward to running more miles in the coming weeks.  All in all,  I was very please with my run  as most of the  day went really smooth and I was even able to capture that feeling I am always looking for as I run - that feeling that you get when you have pushed yourself to your limit and you become totally focused on the activity you are in and feel a sense of connection between yourself and all that surrounds you.

The result, some minor blisters

Stretching, Strengthening and Massage Routine

Happy New Year everyone!

I will be kicking of the New Year with a 50K "Fat Ass" Ultra-trail run up in the Red Rock Conservation area tomorrow.  "Fat Ass" means there is no official entry, entry fees and only minimal support for the runners.  Really its just a bunch of people getting together to run and deciding to call in a race.  I am still recovering from that hamstring knot that I have in the lower part of the biceps femoris of my right leg.  I was finally able to pinpoint the problem area with the help of my massage thearapist, Scott, Proactive Health Therapeutic, and although I am not 100% yet (are we ever?), I am starting to run longer distance already and I am really looking forward to tomorrow.

I thought it would be a good time to also post some of the other conditioning routines that I use that help me run those longer distances.  I have broken them down into three areas: stretching, strengthening and massage, and created the following videos to describe and demonstrate them.

Self-massage Routines 

Strengthening Routines

Stretching Routines

Hamstring Stretch

 

Recovery/ Injury report report

I have been slowly working my way back into my running grove after I sustained that hamstring injury in my right leg this summer.  I am happy that I finally found a good deep tissue massage therapist.  He found a lump of tissue deep in my right hamstring that even surprised him.  He said that the tissue seems "to have morphed into something very different than anything he has ever seen before."  That was not very reassuring, but he has been slowly working it out for me.  I have seen him three times already and I totally recommend him.  His name is Scott and this is his web page.  Proactive Health Therapeutic  If you mention his facebook add you will get the 1st two sesions for the price of one so what have you got to lose.

I also designed and put together my own self deep tissue hamstring massager which I am using on a daily basis.  I use it right before I go out for a run and man does it ever help.  I am running 8 to 10 miles with ease now though not at a very aggressive pace yet and averaging about 40 or so miles a week.  I keep looking at those mountains that surround the Vegas valley and I really long to get back up there.  There must be some way to circumnavigate all those ridges.  I wonder how many miles that would be?  Probably at least a couple of hundred.  Below is a picture of my new machine.  I am seriously thinking of getting a patent for it.

A fairly simply design.  I have ordered stainless steel wheels to replace those plastic plumbing caps that keep falling apart.  I need to changer the dimensions a bit, but otherwise it is very easy to use and best of all it works.

   

John Muir Trail Video on U-tube

I published a video on U-tube chronicling my JMT hike last July.http://youtu.be/6ee_bmNEXHk 
 It's rather long, almost 45 minutes.

Angel's Landing in Mt. Zion and a good week of running

I really enjoyed running this week.  Those anti-inflammatories the doctor prescribed got me going again and I am cutting back on them already.  I ran a total of 37 miles all at a modest easy pace with 3 runs of 9 - 10 miles.  I should be able to keep that up now and slowly increase the weekly mileage again.  My next major race that I am considering isn't until next May when I would like to enter the Bishop High Sierra 100K again.  My training goal for that one is to build up to the point where I am putting in 100 mile weeks in March and April.  The key will be building up to it gradually, eating and staying healthy.

On Tuesday I went to see a physical therapist and he showed me some exercises and stretches that I already knew and a couple of new ones too.  It was good to see because it reminded me about some exercises using rubber bands placed between the knees that I hadn't been doing for awhile. He also did his best to work out some of the knots and trigger points in my hamstring. Some day soon I will need to add to this blog the core training that I do.

Last Saturday Amy and I made it to the top of Angel's Landing in Mt. Zion.  Although it is not one of the most difficult hikes in terms of vertical height or distance it requires some steady nerves as some precarious parts are fairly steep and a slip could mean falling of a cliff.  Six people have actually died on this hike since 2004, though I can only imagine that they were being reckless when they fell.  Well Amy is a real trouper and I am quite proud of the fact that she made it to the top.

On our way up

Looking straight down the 1500 foot cliff

Top of Angel's Landing

Sitting on top of the biscuit.  Nothing but space around from up there.

Cables have been erected to assist in the climb.

Hamstring strain and recuperation

    A week had passed since I completed the St. George Marathon and my right hamstring was still extremely sore so I decided to see a doctor about it to see if I could get some physical therapy.  Even after a week of rest, ice, stretching, massage stick, and taking Ibuprofen, I was unable to even run more than a 1/2 mile without hobbling.  I am still waiting for the PT to call, but the anti-inflammatory,Vimovo, the doctor prescribed seems to be doing the job.  I took one, waited an hour and after feeling considerable relieve I tried going for a run.  The first day I was able to run 3 miles, the next two days 6 miles each and today I completed 9 miles all relatively pain free. (Vimovo contains a combination of esomeprazole and naproxen. Naproxen is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID). It works by reducing substances in the body that cause inflammation, pain, and fever. Esomeprazole is a proton pump inhibitor. It decreases the amount of acid produced in the stomach.)

     At the same time I happen to catch a TV show of Dr. Oz where he was interviewing one of my favorites, Dr. Andrew Weil and they were talking about inflammation and pain. “Following an anti-inflammatory diet can help counteract the chronic inflammation that is a root cause of many serious diseases. It is a way of selecting and preparing foods based on science that can help people achieve and maintain optimum health over their lifetime.”  (Dr. Weil)  Look under march 2011 of his Balanced living anual for more information on as anti-inflammatory diet tips.  http://www.drweil.com/drw/ecs/downloads/BalancedLivingAnnual_2011.pdf . Dr. Weil explains that inflammation is our bodies reaction to injury.  Injured parts of the body become inflamed and therefore receive increased blood supply for healing.  When that inflammation becomes prolonged, chronic pain can result.  http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/dr-andrew-weil-anti-inflammatory-diet . We have been enjoying the curried cauliflower soup made with cahsew milk here the past few days

     Dr. OZ also has a few good tips for reducing pain. http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/7-natural-pain-solutions.  I hadn't heard of Capsaicin before, so I tried it on a couple of sore spots I have been having simultaneously on my quads and it seems to help.  It could be the my hamstring and quad pains are related as weakness in one area causes pain in the opposing muscle. 

Anyways, I am just glad that I am making progress and running better again.

Day 19 - Guitar Lake to Mt. Whitney

Mt. Whitney summit video

Guitar Lake

Wednesday, July  18

                I saw the headlamps of some hikers getting an early start this morning at 4:00am.  An and I though spent the most of the morning fishing in Guitar Lake.  An finally had some luck and kept two of the Golden Trout that he caught for lunch today.  It must have been around 10:00am before we even started up the trail.  We had about 2000 feet of elevation and 5 miles of trail to get to the top of Mt. Whitney.  

Looking down on Guitar Lake

at about 14,000 feet now

After 3 miles of hiking and a ton of switch backs we made it to the T in the trail at 13,658 feet.  Eventually we will go straight here which will take us off the mountain down to Whitney Portal.  For now, we dropped our packs as we would be returning to this spot after we summit Whitney.  It would be a 4 mile round trip so I took only 1 bottle of water and a couple of trail bars with me.  It was good to be hiking without the pack for a change as I charged up the mountain.  An and I were both passing a lot of day hikers that were not acclimatized to the altitude as we were.  On young man who was resting halfway down from the top said that it would take me at least another two hours to make it to the top, because that’s how long it took him.  I bet him that I could make it in less than an hour and he looked at me shocked and said I better get moving.  I looked at my watch, took off, and 45 minutes later I was at the summit.  

100 yards from the summit (Emergency shelter and weather equipment room built by the Sierra Club)

View east from the summit of Mt. Whitney

View north from the summit of Mt. Whitney

View west from the summit of Mt. Whitney

It was exhilarating to be on top of the peak of the highest mountain in the lower 48 and to be at the terminus of the JMT.  I was thankful thinking back to all that I had been allowed to accomplish, to experience and how well it all went.  I had also met many wonderful people along the way and was grateful for what each one had brought to my life.  These journeys always add to my appreciation of how beautifully complex and interconnected this Earth that God created is and I am overwhelmingly thankful for these opportunities to learn more about it all and share with others what I find.   

Out here and in life ... 

every day is the best day.

   The End

We are in the book!  Look at entry #21; Danny Westgrand, Badwater finisher.

Sunset from Trail Camp on the way back down (Those colors were not exaggerated or altered with Photoshop)

Day 18 - Tyndal Creek to Guitar Lake

 Guitar Lake

Trail Map

Tyndal Creek at Sunrise

Breakfast on Tyndal Creek

Tuesday, July  17

I believe that this was the coldest morning we had yet.  Water formed a thin layer of ice in just a couple of minutes after I poured it into a pan.  So, wearing every layer of clothing I had carried, and glad that I had it, I heated the water for my coffee and cereal.  I then carried them down to the creek and found I rock in the middle of it I could sit on.  I ate breakfast there watching the morning sun as it poured its colors and warmth onto the water.  

View facing east on JMT towards Timberline and Gutiar Lake

The original plan for the day was to camp at Timberline Lake but that was closed to any camping as the NFS was in the process of a restoration project there.  We stopped anyways and tried our luck fishing.  In a little over an hour we had 5 fish that we kept for tonight’s dinner.  An took a couple of cracks at throwing the line out too, but he couldn’t get anything for some reason.  I tried his line and immediately I had another one.  I had coached him and it looked like he was doing everything right, but somehow the fish seemed to know that it was his first time fishing.  Tomorrow we would get them.  

Timberline Lake

We hiked a couple of miles more up the mountain and ended up camping at Guitar Lake.  From Guitar Lake the summit of Mt. Whitney and the official end of the JMT is only 5 miles away.  The scout troop was camped at Guitar Lake that night too, but the lake was big enough that we were able to get far enough away not to be bother by their noise.  One of the leaders pointed out Mt. Whitney to me.  There it was our final goal plainly in sight now about 2000 feet above us.   That evening and the following morning I climb all over the cliffs of the lake trying to get pictures of that peak.  In the evening I set up my sleeping bag on a granite shelf facing the peak and set up my camera on the tripod.  Whenever I awoke at night, I took pictures of the night sky as the starts circled Mt. Whitney

Mt. Whitney

Mt. Whitney at Sunset

Mt. Whitney reflecting at sunrise

Our camp by Guitar Lake

 

Stars circling Mt. Whitney from sunset to sunrise

Photoshop drybrush artistic rendition