New York Marathon - 12 weeks to go.

I ran just over 55km this week. It was another week of travel and two evening flights meant that I had to miss a couple of outdoor runs, but I did get on the treadmill in the gym a couple of times, had a fast 8.5km in the park at home and did a mammoth run in the mountains on Sunday morning which left me feeling exhilarated and motivated and absolutely spent.

Will and I went up to FRIM where we kicked out a strong 21km. On the way up one of the trails we passed a runner coming the opposite way in her Vibrams, looking strong and fit. She greeted us and asked if we were "going up Steroid Hill today?". "Sure are" we replied with big grins. Steroid hill is about 850m and it is STEEP. You hit it around the 10km mark and how you tackle is very much depends on how that 10km has gone. I have never managed to run all the way from rest stop at the bottom to the top without needing to slow to a walk to get over the toughest part, but the conditions  yesterday were perfect and I knew that it was my day.


Leaving will to tackle it as his pace, I took off. I immediatley spotted a couple of mountain bikers a couple of hundred metres in front of me, moving at a slow pace. I have just read an awesome book called Born to Run (a whole other blog!) and to take a line from the book, I mentally made them my deer and put my head down determined to catch them. Within 200 metres I passed them at a steady pace. Instinctively as they were on bikes they obviously decided the hunter was to become the hunted and they were determined to track me to the top. It served as just the motivation I needed to hammer on and make it to the top well in front of them, feeling great. My heart was accelerating, but I punched the air in triumph and realized that my training really is going well. Will arrived shortly after me and (I am pleased to note) before the mountain bikers who had stopped to rest just after I had left them behind. I munched my way through my new favourite running snack - a Carmen's muesli bar and we set off again feeling great. Even though it was shorter distance, it was a tough trail and I think counts as a longer road distance on my training plan.


12 weeks to go and I still have a lot work to do but am feeling great and really really looking forward to NY.



Clearly not the hill at FRIM, but the best picture of a steep hill that google had to offer!



BEER!

Last Sunday, some friends and I were talking about how much booze we drink and what impact, if any, it might have on our training. It was a Sunday afternoon and we were in the pub. As I sipped my cold beer, I tried to count how many beers I had in that past 7 days. It had been an unusual week and there had been more than usual, but how many is too many?

I was a sociable person when I was at University and the years that immediately followed. On occasions, I was known to drink to excess and as I was in the UK at the time, I was self-classified against a matrix published in a large National Newspaper as a 'binge drinker' and 'bordering on alcoholism'. If my friends and co-workers were any kind of yard-stick, I don’t think I was anything more than a moderate drinker and I certainly was not bordering on anything other than chubby!

For two to three years, particularly when I started running a little more seriously, I cut my alcohol intake down to no more than special occasions. It was driven a little by budget and lot by fitness/weight-loss. Over time, particularly as I was running more and more and could afford the empty calories, I started to have a few more beers here and there and realized that i enjoyed a few guilt-free drinks. Today, living where I live, working with the people I work with, socialsing with our friends here, all typically leads to a Margarita or two when you least expect it. A quick beer after work leads to three and a post-run lunch on a Sunday often leads to a sleepy afternoon.

So,last Sunday, as I sat in the bar drinking my 19th alcoholic drink of the week, I was shocked. I had one night when I had no alcohol, but social events, dinners with families and my wife being away meant I had a couple of beers on five other evenings that week. On no occasion did I end up with a hangover. On no occasion was I 'wasted'. On no occasion was I stuck with the car not being able to get home. Just some good old socially drinking. Our conversation that Sunday therefore centered around, whether that many drinks was ok, whether it was a lot (compared to the others - it was) and critically (for this Blog) whether it has an impact on my running.

A little internet research has told me that the jury is still out. In the US, 19 drinks in a week is high-moderate. In the UK, it is average (for my age group).

For a middle-of-the-pack social-runner however it seems by all consensus that it is "high". As I sat there, I thought to myself that it wasn’t really having an impact on my training. I had been out that morning and run 22km and i still felt pretty good.

However, 8 days and just 5 drinks later I have come to realize otherwise. I am still tired, but I sleep better. I am still dehydrated when I run longer than an hour in the equatorial heat, but I am able to rehydrated on the go, quicker. I don’t feel as sluggish in the morning, and seem to 'revive' quicker. So I guess beer does have an impact in a way that popular media has been telling me for years and I willfully (or naively) ignored. The lesson? Well, I am still going to enjoy a cold beer every now and then, but until after the marathon, there wont be any more margaritas and I will be trying to avoid the keg stands.

New York Training Update - 13 weeks to go

This weekend saw me complete a 23km run in fairly hot conditions, but with a steady strong pace, lots of water and energy in the tank at the finish. Thanks in part goes to my now 'official' training partner Will as he accompanied me for about 17km in the middle of the run and kept my pace steady and saved me from the pack of wild monkeys we passed at about the 10km mark.

We took a different route this time and climbed a very steep jungle stairs to get to a reservoir in Ampang, just outside of KL. When you get up there is a really great 1.2km trail in the jungle around (as the name suggests) a reservoir. The track is mostly shaded and very flat and really provides a nice contrast to the roads. We did four laps, which might seem a little repetitive, but there are so many shadows and roots to look out for that it could be a straight 6km path.

Unlike my last LSD with Will, i really made sure i took in enough fluids and drank about 3 liters in total. This made me feel strong and meant that by the end my legs were tired but not sore. The last couple of km got tough, particularly as the sun came out, but i was thinking about the fact that NY is only 13 weeks to go and my weekly totals is only up to around 45km and i need to do a LSD every week for the next 7 or 8.

All in all the run filled me with some confidence. It wasn't fast, but that was never the intention. I got through it, felt good and rewarded my self with a bagel, cheddar and sunny side eggs when I got home. Just the treat! 

Race Report: Shape Putrajay night race

On Saturday evening I joined five thousand other runners for the Men's Health Putrajaya Night Race which kicked off at 8:30pm in the new city of Putrajaya. Almost 3000 were in the 12.35km race with me and it was one i was looking forward to as nothing more than a good training run and a bit of fun.



I had a very relaxing day, snacked pretty well through out the day and drank loads of water and Gatorade. Getting out to the race site was easy, the traffic was perfect and parking was easy. I left the car and jogged a long way around to the start warming up and feeling good about my calf which had been tight and uncomfortable for a couple of weeks (since getting a bad dehydration cramp on a Saturday morning LSD). Funnily enough, none of my running friends had signed up for this, so i didnt see anyone i knew, but i wasnt going to let that spoil the day.



The atmosphere at the start line was cool, and the race seemed well organized and set up. I immediately moved into the race corral and waited patiently for the start. Unfortunately I was a little eager to get to the front and ended up packed in without a lot of room to keep moving or stretching for about 25 minutes, but it was a warm night and the music was pumping so it was ok. A nice little old lady kept interrupting the music to give instructions to no one in particular, which dampened the mood of some people around me, but then we were off.



When the gun went, I was very close to the front and had plenty of room. I set off at a about a 5:30 minute km knowing that I have gone off way too fast in the last couple of races I have done. Dozens and dozens of people were sprinting past me in the first km, which didn’t surprise me. By the end of the second km I had settled into a routine and felt pretty good. I was running on the shoulder of an older guy who was maintaining a pretty steady 5:25 minute per km pace and a couple of other guys jumped on my shoulder.



The bridge and convention centre both offered a bit of a hill that challenged the older guy so I left him and pumped my arms a bit to get to the top and realized I had left the whole group and was sitting comfortably in a very thin line of fairly spread out runners.



For the next 5-6km I kept a steady pace around 5:25, drank lots of plain water at both water stops and consistently picked off runners one by one. I think two people passed me in that section and I must have passed at least 100 people, most of whom I recognized as having sprinted past me at the start and had burned themselves out.

courtesy of blogger, Me, The Contradiction

At the 8km mark, with only 4.5 to go, I was feeling good but my heart rate was rising and I knew that I was just not fit enough to maintain the pace for the distance. I slowed down to about 5:50 mins per km for a couple of km until the 10km mark at which point the race flattened out. Feeling better and with my heart rate under control, I thought about the Chi running book I have been reading and straightened up my hips, leaned forward a couple of degrees and upped the pace to 5:29 for the next km and then 5:16 for the last. I crossed the line feeling great with some (but not heaps) of energy in the tank, but not feeling sore in anyway. I came in in just a smidge over 1:06 which was enough to place me in the top 150 in my age group (top 8%) and to get a medal to add to my collection.



The race organizers deserve credit for a well planned and fabulously executed event. The marshalling was good, the water stops (always my big concern) were properly spaced, manned and accessible and the after race service, goodies, water etc were all superb. It is by far the best stocked goodie bag I have ever gotten in any race in any country ever. Well done them!!



All in all, a fun race, a time I am happy with and a few lessons learned for my NY training plan.

NY Marathon: Training Update

A good friend of mine who is relatively new to running and has just finished his first half marathon is determined to do an endurance race at the end of the year. He is a big guy and was (six months ago) carrying a little bit of extra weight. It has been amazing to watch his progress since the start of the year. He could just about manage about 800m before running out of puff and now he has completed a half and is training diligently for bigger and longer. We have started to train together because we both kind of need each other. I need him to set a pace that is steadier and more consistent than I normally run (and a little slower) so that I safely build my miles and properly complete my LSD runs. He needs me to keep him going and ensure he doesn’t quit at 10k on a Saturday morning when his head is not in the game. We are a perfect match.




Last weekend we set off for an 20km run that allowed us (on a hot day) to pass by his house in the middle and refill our water bottles. Stupidly, I had a bad week in terms of diet and hydration and I got a nasty cramp in my right calf after about 6km and thought about packing it in. Having Will there was great because I stretched it out, drank about a liter of fluid, (mostly Nuun) and when it started to relieve, we set off again and ran a nice steady 20 km’s. My calf started to niggle at the end, but it was a really nice morning, we chatted a lot and we both felt awesome afterwards.



The longer slower distances are really important for me and my prep for NY. The half a few weeks ago showed me that I am in good shape but I am just not fit enough yet to finish a full in a reasonable time. Will and I are going to run lots together over the next of months and I am really excited to have a training partner who is as keen as I am !!

Now, a few days later, my calf is tight from the after-effects of the cramp and i trying to rest it, but it is nothing serious or long term so i am not too concerned!

Will and I both have wives and busy jobs and other commitments but we are determined to get ready for other respective races and i am feeling pumped for the next few months. What a great feeling.

KL (half) Marathon

Last Sunday was the KL marathon (full and half distances). It has been an important milestone fixture on my calendar events for the year and one in which I was hoping to notch up a PB.


Leading up to the race, preparation was going ok. I am definitely starting to get back to my fitness levels of 2009, but I have not yet started my speed training and have not yet notched up my weekly miles to where they need to be for a strong half or full marathon.

I spent a few days in Perth in Australia earlier that week and did some core strength training, but no running. I simply didn’t have the time. I know that tapering means slowing down, but I don’t think that means stopping altogether. The trip, whilst not that far, does involve a five and a half hour flight each way and resulted in me being pretty tired by the end of the week.

The night before the race, a group of friends got together for a pasta party and I drank lots of water and ate lots of carbs and went to bed feeling pretty good. Waking up on race day though, I felt sluggish. It is hard to put your finger on what that feels like or looks like, but I knew that I was not on my A Game.

Going through my normal early morning routine, I ate, showered, made it to the start area, warmed up and started to feel a little better.

The first 5km of the race was tough. I was running strong, but the heat, humidity and traffic fumes on a busy road meant that I hadn’t settled even at that point. I looked at my watch and I had been doing 5:10 minute km’s; so I decided to slow down and see if that helped.

I passed the 10km mark in just over 53 minutes which means I had slowed down my second 5km to 5:30minute km’s. But I still wasn’t settled. I was still feeling sluggish. I had taken a gel at about 40 minutes and that helped a little, but not enough.

Things started to go wrong from there. The next couple of km’s slowly started to take 5 to 10 seconds longer each km. I took lots of water, I had another gel, but by the 15km mark, I was hovering around the 6 minute per km mark and slowing. I felt so out of rhythym that I even stopped and sat on a curb for about 90 seconds to “have a word with myself”

I crossed the finish line in 2 hours and 30-odd seconds. Not a PB. A real disappointment. With retrospect, I put it down to three things:

· Fitness – I started too fast for my level of fitness and simply ran out of juice

· Over-thinking, over-preparing and not having the right mental game for the day. All of my PB’s over the last couple of years have come on the days that I least expect them. I must remember to go out to enjoy myself, and celebrate a PB if it comes. Not the other way round!

· Just a bad day. I didn’t sleep great, I was tired from the travel in the week. Of all of the reasons that I didn’t do well, this is probably the smallest contributing factor.

Next race is in a couple of weeks and I will put all of this behind me and simply go out and run. Looking forward to it!

The race itself was a credit to the organizers and to Standard Chartered Bank. It was very well run, loads of well-manned water stops. Lots of good signage and marshalling. Plenty of clean-ish port-a-potties. Perfectly organized water, fruit, refreshments and medal-station at the end. All round great demonstration of how a race should be organized!

Two (other) continents

Lauren and I just got back from a great, but short trip to the UK, where we went to attend a wedding. We took the opportunity whilst there to have a run together along the canal near Walton On Thames in Surrey. We ran down the tow path to Hampton Court and back which is little over 15km in total. Three great things about this were
A) Lauren and I never really run together - neither of us really has the patience... But we made it, we didn't want to kill each other and we actually enjoyed it!
B) running in the UK climate is really amazing after the humidity of Asia and it made me feel a little more confident about New York in November. Interestingly enough, it tooK my legs almost 4km to really warm up.
C) the route was amazing and Hampton Court is one of the most spectacular buildings you will ever see. It is great to get out and run new routes, especially on holiday... You get to see so many fabulous things.

This posting is called 2 Continents for a reason. A little while back I was in Australia for a week for work and got a chance to run a couple of times. Once in Perth and a couple of times in Brisbane. Again the climate helped, but I was consistently running sub 50 minute 10km's along some pretty great routes. I guess my job (and all the travel) does have some perks. I am off to Perth again Monday so I shall see what the even cooler weather brings!