the end of superstition

I checked the shoes I used for marathon training. Riders. I found the other shoe of my current pair of Riders -the ones I thought hurt my knees. (Odie hadn't stolen it - I stuffed it in my closet and forgot). I ran in them tonight 6km, easy. No pain. They feel a year old, which they are, but they're fine.  I think I'll keep the new pair and buy another pair of Ultimas, and rotate them.

Problem solved.

So for accountability, I'm logging my food again. I'm trying  going to lose the last 15 lbs. by my birthday, 1 December. I have a public journal so one of my trainers can check up on me. I did feel sheepish recording the cookies and the very small serving of ice cream I enjoyed tonight. I have to explain myself tomorrow when we meet.

So, back to my Paleo roots and avoiding inflammatory foods.  The race to Lean is on.

up next.

I'm still feeling quite satisfied after the half-ironman. I have no burning desire to race. Or do any more tri's this year.

I'm just starting to want to get back to a regular training routine. Just after the race, I went sailing for a couple days on a large brackish lake in Holland. I enjoyed swimming in the salty water.  Then we camped in Switzerland under the Jungfrau for almost a week.

Mountain biking and very long, high altitude hikes drained whatever was left of my legs. By the fourth day, though, the soreness was gone.

Odie loved camping and hiking.

I took Odie down to the beach today for a run. It took a little convincing before he would follow me. I'm not entirely sure he wanted to run. But we did.  Summer runs on the beach have been uneventful. But this time a very polite policeman in an off-road truck told me I was lucky to be running south with the dog. That meant I hadn't seen the sign restricting dogs from being on the beach. He let me go without a fine, only to come back a few minutes later to tell me to take Odie into the dunes, pointing over to a trail. Fair enough, except I was barefoot.  The dunes running trails are either brick or crushed shells. We made it alright. I had to stop a couple times to pick pieces of shells out of the sole of my foot, but nothing of any important.  We then took another trail  back down to the part of the beach that is dog-legal year round and made our way home.    My left hamstring was a little tender sometimes on the run, so I kept it slow and walked regularly.

Total run 12 km. Long & slow. I had intended 16 km but apparently my luck was to turn back soon enough to avoid the ticket I would have surely received had I tried to go a few more km north (and thus presumptively would have been able to read the sign saying no dog). The policeman explained that while dogs can't read, humans can. 

I've looked at my running races that are lining up for the fall and need to decide between two that six days apart. I ran them both last year and was too tired (and cold) to finish the 25 km race after running an easy 15 km the weekend before. The 15 km is a well-run, well-attended hilly race out of town.  My friend who injured herself has offered to give me her bib (and the shirt she ordered). I already registered myself for the 25 km. That one's close to home - just out my front door.  Choices choices.  I figure I could drop out again this year after 10 km, but I was harassed by club-mates last year - better to be last than a drop out. This one is an intimate race of about 400 people that includes a t-shirt and apple pie with coffee afterwards.  I registered early to avoid being shut out.

So as I move into the fall, I've come up with some goals. 

My goals: shorter term: kick some more weight to the curb; maintain my fitness; longer term: increase my ability to ride hilly/mountainous terrain; run a little faster; improve my swimming technique. continue to enjoy training & racing.

How to get there: 

Weight-loss: No sugar/no starch. Except during long exercise or immediately afterwards.
Swimming, I will resume swimming 1-2x with my club and continue to drill  Total Immersion techniques on Sundays.  

Cycling: I have group rides easily available to me with my club and with friends, plus lots of inexpensive organised tours around Holland. And the indoor TACX trainer.

Running - I enjoy 3x a week. I'll work some speed work into my training as the running races approach, so long as I get no complaints from my hamstring.

Get back into the gym 2x for core strength etc.

Racing next year. Nearly immediately I wanted to do Antwerp again, but faster. But I will have "home leave" next year, which means travelling for 4 weeks in July/early August in the US.  That means I could conceivably pick a US race and bring my bike (which would be a pain for my family). Regardless of when I decide to race, I will have to work my racing/training plans around this trip - kind of like last year. (I'm planning to summit the Grand Teton with my older son, so it won't be a "total loss.")  I also realised that I need to work on my power for cycling in the mountains. That, or abandon any hope of racing anywhere else in Europe. 

My blueprint for success in 2010

The 80/20 rule means that what I eat produces the greatest effect on my body composition. I can't outtrain a crappy diet.  I am adapting the principles outlined at Mark's Daily Apple. I ordered Mark's book and look forward to reading it.

1. Eat lots of plants and animals

Focus on quality sources of protein (all forms of meat, fowl, fish), lots of colorful vegetables, some select fruits (mostly berries), and healthy fats (nuts, avocados, olive oil). Observe portion control (calorie distribution) week to week more than meal to meal. Eliminate grains, sugars, trans- and hydrogenated fats from my diet.
Start with Protein.  I need nearly one gram per pound of lean body weight. For me, that means between 90 and 110 grams/day.
Add some healthy carbs. My goal is to control insulin and avoid inflammation. I want to use body fat or dietary fat for fuel. To lose body fat, I need to keep carbs under 80 grams per day.
Heavy work out days? eat more.  Add up to 100 grams per hour of heavy exercise. When I reach my ideal body composition, increase to 100-150 grams per day.
The point is to keep good records and analyse the results. 
Eat lots of colorful vegetables. No sugars or grains. A few starchy veg.
Fats. Fill out the rest of my daily caloric requirement with fats. Keep protein and carbs constant. Fats are the variable.
If I feel like I need more fuel (and I’ve already covered my ases with protein and carbs)? Reach for something with fat. Nuts, avocados, coconut, eggs, butter, olive oil, fish, chicken, lamb, beef, the list is a long one.
100 grams of fats per day would only add 900 calories to my daily average.

Example:

Protein: 320-440 calories
Carbs: 400-600 calories
Fats: 900 calories
Total: between 1620 and 1940 calories a day.
Even if the model averages somewhere between 1400 and 2200 calories per day over a few weeks, as long as she pays attention to protein and carbs, her body composition will shift to lower body fat and more desirable lean mass. If she decides to do some walking, a few brief intense weight sessions and a sprint day here and there, that process would accelerate greatly. If she gets to a point where she’s content with her body fat, she can even add in a little more fat to provide energy that she previously got from her stored fat.
2. Move around a lot with pleasure.

Do some form of low level aerobic activity 2-5 hours a week, whether it is walking, hiking, easy bike riding or swimming. Ideally, and when possible, find time to go barefoot or wear as little foot support as possible. Low-level activity is necessary (especially if you find yourself chained to a desk every day). The combined effect will be an increase in capillary perfusion, fat-burning and overall integration of muscle strength and flexibility. Medicine for the mind.
3. Lift heavy things

Go to the gym and lift weights for 30-45 minutes, 2-3 times a week. Focus on movements that involve the entire body and in wider ranges of motion – not just on isolating body parts. Emulate the movements of our ancestors: jumping, squatting, lunging, pushing, pulling, twisting, etc. This will stimulate your genes to increase muscle strength and power, increase bone density, improve insulin sensitivity, stimulate growth hormone secretion, and consume stored body fat.

4. Run really fast every a couple times a week
Do some form of intense anaerobic sprint bursts several times a week. This could be as simple as six or eight (or more) short sprints up a hill, on the grass, at the beach… or repeated intense sessions on a bicycle (stationary, road or mountain bike). These short bursts also increase HGH release (HGH is actually released in proportion to the intensity (not the duration) of the exercise).

5. Get Enough Sleep.
6. Play
7. Get some sunlight every day.
8. Avoid trauma.
Eliminate self-destructive behaviours. Solve problems.
9. Avoid poisonous things.
Chemicals, bad foods, sugar, processed food, mercury.
10. Use my mind.
Be inventive, creative, read, write, play a musical instrument.  Be sociable.   Learn something. Work with my hands.   Happy at home. Happy at work.

back in the groove

1. Distance: assigned 6k ran 7.5k

2. Pace Assigned: none ran: average 9:40 min/km total time: 70 min

3. Walk breaks assigned: none ran: typically 4min run:1min walk. sometimes the breaks were further apart

4. Speed work: none.

5. Aches & Pains: no. Bought new shoes on Saturday - mizuno wave riders. they seem like they'll be nice for longer distances. they were a little squishy on the beach.

6. questions: I finished my lower calorie food plan after losing 9 lbs. over the last month. Back to maintenance/training level eating. I felt pretty frozen by grief over my friend's death. I didn't run at all the last two weeks. Today I felt pretty good, although my heart rate was higher than usual for this pace. I assume things will come back to normal soon enough. Should I skip the race next week? My plan is to just take it easy. It's an informal race on the beach. The following week assignment is 27k.

7. Next week: 16k race in Scheveningen


So I finally broke the deep freeze of grief from my friend's death. My last run was two weeks ago, just after she was killed. I ended up crying at the end of the run. *sigh* I went out on the beach for 7.5k at a very leisurely pace (about 8:30 min/k). The weather was clear and cold and sunny. My dog enjoyed the run with me. He lost his tennis ball fairly early in the run and spent the rest of the time trying to steal from other dogs. Sometimes it was funny. Sometimes it slowed me down. Then he lost sight of me and ran off the other way, looking to "catch up." *grumph* I stopped my timer and hollered for him. And he found me.


Yesterday I bought a new pair of running shoes - mizuno wave. I liked running in them today. They were a little squishy on the beach, but they'll be nice on the concrete and pavement where I race. Vibram comes out with a racing/running model in the Spring. I saw them in Amsterdam at the Marathon expo - they were sweet. Of course, the gal at the running store (which sells shoes....) pronounced them impractical since most folks don't have the committment it takes to rehab their feet. I prefer them, but my feet have been getting cold when I run.

I was glad to get moving again today.

29 Aug 09 weekly update & living in the now

I'm changing my weigh & measure to Sat mornings before I run or do other crazy weekend stunts. My body retains a couple pounds of water to recover from these activities and it skews the curves, literally!I'm seeing 163 regularly on the morning scale these days, which is quite exciting. At the beginning of August, my weight hovered around 167. I'm down 1.5 lbs since last week.

Back in May I wanted to see a dramatic drop like I saw in April - 2lbs+ per week. I've relaxed my expectations on that front - changing my goal to adjusting composition not gross weight, and appreciating that slow changes are more likely to be permanent and that as I get closer to goal each pound represents a larger percent of change - meaning the last 10 are the hardest to burn. I don't even know if these are the last ten. During the last four months I got tired of thinking of myself as "not measuring up" to where I wanted to be.

Right now, I am appreciating where I am right now as being just right and that change will happen in response to right daily actions. These thoughts produce a different feeling - a focus on what's in my control right now, rather than depositing my focus on the future - outside my control and creating disappointment and disatisfaction with my body as-is. I mean, God forbid I got horribly sick in six months and never reached my "ideal body composition" because of a life-threatening turn of events - I would have completely missed out on the joy of my healthy body right now!

I read a memoir of this woman who struggled with anorexia - poignant and insightful writing. What stuck with me though was the awful futility of her struggle. The back cover of the book disclosed that she died of lung cancer in her mid-40s. If she knew her candle was so short, would she have been able to live differently? I don't mean to invite a debate on eating disorders - maybe anorexia is a brain chemistry disorder - but my take-away point is, live in the now. But track your progress! (is that totally inconsistent??)

So, charts - then I'm going to go out for a little 12k run.

First Long Training Run 11 April 2009

I ran 13 or 14k Saturday. It was fun. Only thing was I ran 5k on Friday since my mid-week runs got off by a day - so my knees were still a little sore even this morning - just going up the stairs. They were fine when I took a spin with a friend who hadn't been on her bike since Oct. Easy 27k. Earn those chocolates! Odie slept a lot today. He ran both Fri & Saturday and was, well, dog-tired.


Weekend Workout Assigned: 10k
Actual: ~13.5k
Time 1:47 HRM 148 average; 168 max
Pace: ~ 10k/60 min. I took walk breaks when I felt like it. First one after about 15 minutes. More frequent after the first hour. I stopped to chat with my husband and son, who had camped on the beach overnight to get a good storage spot for the Hobie Cat at the sailing club. Stopped at the end to chat goodbye to running buddy. I subtracted chatting time to arrive at the estimate, using a pace of 10k/60min (my last race pace - probably a bit generous); actual time minus ~20 minutes standing around talking. A lot of walking towards the very end.

Comments
I estimated the distance because I ran on the beach, without obvious landmarks. I based my estimate on a comparable pace on other runs where I know the distance. I realized Saturday morning that the GPS I wanted to carry lacked fresh batteries. I commit to better prep & planning for next week.

Weather & Temperature: clear and sunny; 20C - probably cooler when I started out.

Aches & Pains? My knees were a little sore immediately afterwards. They were tender climbing stairs on Sunday morning. Took 200mg advil & extra dose of fish oil. Felt fine during & after my bike ride on Sunday. My mid-week training schedule was off by a day due to family committments. So I ended up running my second mid-week run on Friday morning, rather than on Thursday. Next week I won't run the day before the weekend run.

Questions for the Coach:
1. I do not know how to pace myself using a time/distance metric. I have always trained with a heart rate monitor and by adapting to my current physical condition - perception of effort, breathing, fatigue, etc. Do I need to carry a GPS? Run somewhere else on a pre-measured route?

2. I want to increase my pace. The woman I am running with on Saturdays can run faster, but has been satisfied with my pace so far. I'd like to try to speed up. When/how do I work on this? Once a week on my mid-week run, I have been adding high intensity intervals - short sprints followed by walk recovery.

3. The Paris race features a huge hill. How should I prepare for it, considering I live in "the low country"? I have been running up a hill near my house and running up a long flight of stairs in the Dunes. Is this enough? Add in treadmill with incline?

Next Week's Planned Workouts

Sunday - 26K bike ride (done)
Monday - easy row - weights (when I get done with this post!) (DONE - skipped the weights)
Tuesday - 30 - 45 minute run (at least 5 K) HIIT - Swim laps
Wednesday - easy row & weights
Thursday - 30 - 45 minute run (at least 5 K)
Friday - easy row & sauna (rest before run)
Saturday - assigned training run - 5k

Begin with the end in mind

I've decided to run my first half-marathon. I had so much fun running my first 10k in March, the City-Pier-City in The Hague, that I immediately started looking for my next goal. A half-marathon seemed impossible. So I picked a 16 K race, La Grande Classique in Paris in September. Then some of my colleagues at work talked up the Amsterdam Half-Marathon. So I set a new goal and will use the Paris race as a training tool.

I am using these goals to help me achieve my ideal body weight. I will use this blog to share my training plans, my progress, and my trip across the finish line. To help me meet my goals, I've enrolled in e-coaching with Jeff Galloway.