Getting Back Up at the Bishop High Sierra 100k

Me and Race Director Marie Boyd (photo Larry Rich)

Falls on trail take many forms. One of the more common is the slow motion fall. These usually happen when you are feeling a sense of gravitas on the trail, a confidence you get from being out there for a few hours. One minute you are running along feeling like you're on top of the world. The next minute your foot strikes something other than the ground underneath you and your body begins falling like a giant sequoia. Timber! Your face, perched like a nest at the top of the tree, is now approaching the ground at an increasing rate.

Your arms begin to windmill desperately. As the nest gains momentum toward the ground your reptilian mind takes over and makes a split decision: either keep flailing your arms like an idiot fighting the law of gravity, or accept your fate and protect the nest. By the time you stop windmilling and position your arms to absorb the impact, you flashback to a time when you were the age of seven doing somersaults on the beach.

Just before slamming into the ground, your reptilian mind tells your body to tuck and roll like you used to do in when you were seven. But it is too late. You hit the ground like a sack of potatoes.  

It was 2:00 in the afternoon. I had been running for six hours. I wasn't sure which was hurting more, my body or my ego. I had fallen five times. Blood, seeping from my hands and knee a few hours earlier, had become a crusted black scab of dirt and sweat. Fortunately, trickling through my veins was a nice cocktail of endorphins and adrenalin.

As I climbed the steep fire road through the Tungston Hills, surrounded by the towering peaks of the Sierra Nevada’s, my eyes took stock in the scene before me. I was deep inside a canyon looking up to the blue sky above. Low in the sky was a half moon, rising.

This year’s Bishop High Sierra 100k was the first ultra I seriously considered cutting short, if not dropping out of all together. Early in the race, around mile 20, me knee was throbbing, my calf was cramping and a quad injury I sustained a few weeks before was starting to bark at me. I kept asking myself why not just drop out now?

But ultras work in mysterious ways. As the day progressed, I noticed another runner behind me who is running strong. He was wearing a dark blue shirt and a white cap. While everyone else seemed to be slowing down, this guy was speeding up and running away from people. I pushed a little harder, attempting to stay out in front of him. Eventually, I entered an aid station and he was right behind me. As I reached for some water I noticed he didn't stop and continued on running. I gave chase and followed him through a mine field of rocks, heat and sand. I finally relented and watched him run away from me, alone and into the hills.

Frustrated, I reminded myself not to get too excited and to remember to run my race at my pace. By now I'm in total solitude and was working my way through the final section of the 62 mile course. Across the Owens Valley I saw the White Mountains, home of the 4,000 year old Bristlecone Pine Forest, which I planned to visit the next day. With about 10 miles to go, I still had another 1,000 feet of climbing, then a long six mile decent to the finish line.  

Then I rounded a bend in the trail and saw a runner laying on the ground. He was wearing a dark blue shirt and white cap. Only now he was flat on his back. When I realized he wasn't moving I assumed the worst. I quickly approached him fumbling for my salt tabs and water. I asked him questions to see if he was conscious.  He responded, telling me he needed to rest because he was really hot. I offered my water and some electrolytes. He took both. I asked him if he was OK. He assured me he was. 

I proceeded to the Sage Summit aid station which was only a half  mile up the trial. I explained the situation to the crew and suggested someone drive up the hill and offer help. But before the crew could scramble a car I looked up the hill and saw him trotting along as if nothing had happened. Wow, I'm thinking to myself, this guy is the Terminator. I moved quickly out of the aid station on onto the trail.

I hustled down the 500 foot descent and out along the trail in the valley below to the turn-around point. Here, like everyone, I grabbed an obligatory poker chip from a bag to prove I had gone the distance. The "my race my pace" philosophy was quickly succumbing to my new found urge to stay ahead of the Terminator. I took a mental note of my time at the turn-around, and I knew that for each minute that passed before I crossed the Terminator on my way back would equal a two minute lead over him. We crossed at 7 minutes and 30 seconds, a fifteen minute lead.     

As I climbed the long switch backs I had just descended I kept an eye on the Terminator. He was was getting smaller as he headed toward the turn-around and I continued to gain elevation. Other runners were making their way down the switch backs and we exchanged words of encouragement. When I reached Sage Summit aid station for the second time I had another six miles of virtually all down running to go. It was then that I finally began to relax and absorb the moment.

Thanks to the Terminator, I reached the finish line with a new found respect for pushing the envelop. I don't know what more one can do than fall to the ground during a 100 kilometer race to show resolve. The Terminator went 120%. What would I have done without him?

I offer a hearty thanks to all the volunteers who provided exceptional support to us runners throughout the entire race, and especially to Marie Boyd for her twenty years of her volunteer service as race director. Marie is stepping down this year as RD and no replacement has been identified. There is talk that this might be the last year for the Bishop High Sierra Ultra Marathons which I hope doesn't become reality. Any takers?

    

Burn Fat for Fuel? An Interview with Peter Defty of Vespa Power

I recently had the opportunity to talk on-line with Peter Defty, General Manager of Vespa Power Products, LLC, the manufacturer of the all natural Amino acid supplement Vespa CV - 25. Vespa supplements are made of naturally occurring ingredients that help tap the athlete's ability to burn fat for fuel and reduce the reliance carbohydrates during prolonged training and racing events. The objective of this fat burning approach is to provide athletes with steady energy levels, less bonking and intestinal issues and ultimately a competitive edge. Many elite and non-elite endurance athletes are reportedly experiencing strong training and race results by incorporating Vespa into their nutrition program.

Will: Peter, thanks for taking the time to do this interview. Before we get into the specifics about Vespa, can you tell us a little about your background and experience in the area of sports nutrition?

Peter: Thank you for the opportunity Will. I have a BS in Plant Science from UC Davis so I have the university level biology which gives me the science background necessary to read and objectively assess peer reviewed journal publications, human nutrition and physiology textbooks and all kinds of other related material.

I also have been fortunate enough to surround myself with people of varied science backgrounds not necessarily tied to human nutrition and sports nutrition. I have found it critically important to seek out really sharp people and information even if their perspective  or the information given is not aligned with your own and listen, really listen and consider what they have to say.

In conjunction with all the reading I do, as an empiricist, I work with several athletes, including myself. These athletes are mostly all endurance athletes and their ages and  performance levels go from the super elite athletes who are setting course records to back of the packers who are chasing the cutoffs.  This gives me a great amount of "real world" results and information I can utilize to help others consistently get the phenomenal benefits we are seeing.

Will: Many athletes still believe carbohydrates are the holy grail of sport nutrition. However, there is another school of thought that says fat, or the metabolism of fat, is a superior energy source. This “fat for fuel” concept is foreign to many athletes. Can you explain this concept?

Peter: Yes, but before I start discussing the scientific plausibility for the "Fat as your Fuel" concept, I would like your audience to consider a basic few facts which the sports nutrition "experts" have largely ignored and so many athletes have paid the consequences of  not heeding nature.

To start with the human body has VERY limited glycogen storage capacity yet has virtually unlimited stores of fat, more than enough for even the leanest athlete to run 100 miler, complete an Ironman or ride a double century.  So why shouldn't fat make up the vast majority of our aerobic energy source for physical activity?

This is intricately interwoven with the second thing I would like the audience to consider which I will go through below. This is that for most of human existence we ate concentrated sources of carbohydrates 3-5 times a year, NOT 3-5 time a day!, day after day, week after week, month after month, year after year, DECADE AFTER DECADE. So when fruit was ripe or berries were ripe or we came across honey, brief periods during the year where these food sources were available, we gorged ourselves on carbohydrates and went back to where the main source of calories were from animal fats (including grubs).

So, while we are uniquely adapted to being able to consume concentrated forms of carbohydrates in their various forms this adaptation was not necessarily meant to be utilized constantly because there are "unintended consequences."

We have been led to believe carbohydrates are the answer and eating loads of carbohydrates is necessary for performance and vital health. What the nutrition "experts" missed (or have failed to tell us) are some  basics of human physiology. Let's just start with diet and the complex interplay of carbohydrate ingestion and the hormone, insulin.

When you do the math regarding fasting blood sugar in a human this works out to amount to 1 teaspoon of sugar, as glucose, in circulation, one teaspoon! This is normal and this is where your body prefers your glucose levels to be. Blood sugar is VERY tightly regulated.  So, say someone eats a whole wheat bagel. Basically they just dumped 8-10 teaspoons of glucose into their blood stream when the body likes to have 1 teaspoon. The body deals with this by secreting insulin so this toxic level of glucose can get back down to fasting levels and do so quickly.

But, just as importantly, to help promote glucose use high levels of insulin suppress fat burn via beta-oxidation in the cells and production and use of ketone bodies for brain and nervous system function. On the receptor sites of adipose (fat) tissue insulin functions to promote fat storage and strongly inhibits the release of fat. These are the immediate "unintended consequences" of concentrated carbohydrate consumption. There are many other possible "unintended consequences" that can crop up over time like intestinal issues, insulin resistance, weight gain, energy swings, heart disease, cancer, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, metabolic syndrome etc.

The alternative is optimized fat metabolism, or OFM. By focusing on optimizing fat burning capacity (which is aerobic only) not only does the athlete tap into the virtually unlimited energy source but even the "strategic" use of carbohydrates becomes a much more powerful and sustainable part of the OFM equation.

Generally carbohydrate sources contain 3.5-4 calories / gram while fats, especially saturated fats can contain up to 9.6 calories / gram. But because the pathways to unleashing the tremendous energy stored in fat is so much more complex and not as well studied for sports nutrition, lipid metabolism has only been considered for low intensity physical activity for most athletes and, at best, moderate levels in well-trained endurance athletes.

Phil Maffetone was one of the pioneers in fat metabolism as a competitive tool with his Maffetone Method of HR training which happens to be an important part of the training component of OFM. Phil, via Mark Allen and others, demonstrated pretty clearly from a results/observational evidence perspective that fat does, indeed, play a vital role. If one follows Phil's writings you can see his shift more and more into the camp of carbohydrate restriction as another means to enhance this ability to tap into fat at higher and higher levels of physical activity.

So,  if consuming lots of carbohydrates induces a strong insulin response, then sharply restricting them obviously brings insulin levels down and increases insulin sensitivity. When this happens at the level we are doing with the VESPA/OFM program the body makes a profound metabolic shift in which it prefers to burn fat aerobically, especially saturates. So now the saturated fats, the ones we have been told are harmful, become our most potent source of base energy.

This level of carbohydrate restriction is termed "Nutritional Ketosis" and the goal is to get an athlete at or near this level for a prolonged period during their base building or off season so this fundamental shift can get set. This is the foundation for the program. Once this occurs the hormones and enzymes necessary for the various pathways of fat metabolism are up-regulated and insulin levels get down and in metabolic balance only then can the true power potential of fat be truly realized.

Unfortunately almost all the studies done in the past 60 years utilize a diet which prevents fat metabolism to be fully expressed because there are too many carbohydrate calories in the baseline diet for an athlete to get themselves into nutritional ketosis or a "fat adapted" state. This, by definition means the athlete is going to get a carbohydrate response because the athlete is much more dependent upon carbohydrates for aerobic fuel no matter how much their training has helped them to burn fat.

There are several benefits to a high rate of fat metabolism. First, it is much more efficient from a standpoint of ATP production, producing 4 times the ATP per molecule. Due to this efficiency of oxidation the RQ is lower. When you make a shift toward higher fat oxidation then you have less oxidative stress and less lactate load. In real world terms this results in less muscle soreness and the much faster recovery VESPA/OFM athletes see.

More interesting is that VESPA appears to keep athletes in high levels of beta-oxidation / ketosis even when they take in carbohydrates, so the carbohydrates work even better because they are being used on top of the this huge aerobic fat burning base for threshold aerobic and anaerobic effort levels.

Will: Vespa is not a  fuel, an electrolyte replacement or an energy drink. What exactly is Vespa and how does it work?

Peter: While every ingredient is important the key fat burning ingredients are the Wasp Extract and Royal Jelly which are Peptides from the Asian giant wasp and European honey bee. You can think of VESPA as a fat-burning catalyst which triggers a significantly higher rate of beta-oxidation in the muscle and ketosis in the liver.

Will: What is Vespa made from? How does it differ from other branch chain amino acid supplements that can be purchased over the counter at your local pharmacy?

Peter: VESPA is a synergistic blend of naturally-occurring, minimally processed ingredients. VESPA is not just another Amino Acid supplement composed of a mixture of synthesized amino acids in their various forms. Naturally-occurring peptides and proteins are very different than a product composed of free branch-chain amino acids that are formulated to mimic the composition of the naturally-occurring substance. It would be like hydrolyzing meat and getting the amino acid profile of the proteins and then trying to make meat synthetically. It can't really be done. This makes the cost to produce VESPA ridiculously expensive compared to other products and there is no scalability in site.

Will: Do you recommend using Vespa in training? Or just in races? Please explain.

Peter: If the athlete is really serious about their performance and health then using VESPA in training is vital. Because of the lower oxidative stress and lactate load etc. the recovery is phenomenal which means the athlete can withstand a higher training load whether duration or intensity and be able to recover and adapt quicker and at a higher level.

A couple of caveats to make this work well: Always do a long slow warm-up to prime the muscles with oxygen so you can burn fat at a high rate. This takes patience and time but pays huge dividends. This includes and is especially important for fat adapted athletes before doing a workout that is high on intensity rather than cardio.

Use VESPA as directed for all training except for easy shorter recovery workouts.  The exception would be if you were doing a recovery run during the morning or day and you had to work after. Then I recommend you use it so you are not dragging yourself through the day and having to resort to caffeine, sugar etc. to get through.

Stretch out both your VESPA use to 3-4 hours along with trying to minimize caloric intake to help train your body to stretch itself in terms of fat burn for your long duration training.

Hydration: When you shift toward higher fat burn you need to be more on top of proper hydration. This means loads of water and electrolytes, mainly salt, while exercising.

In terms of cost, while VESPA seems very expensive on the shelf on a per unit basis, most long term VESPA users actually comment on the value and that it really does not cost that much more than the conventional approach (some believe using VESPA/OFM saves them money!) because when using VESPA you are dramatically reducing intake of calories of other supplements like gels or shot blocks and you are not needing to take a ton of supplements and not eating nearly as much. This is separate from how much better they feel, that they no longer bonk, get sick or are sore for days after an event.

Will: What other food/nutrition, if any, should be taken when using Vespa?

Peter: VESPA/OFM makes "Strategic" use of concentrated carbohydrate calories in the diet and fueling for that synergy translates into game-changing performance. So what we find for many is to sharply restrict carbohydrates in the weeks leading up to an event, especially in the taper then, depending upon the type of event, "sneaking" some carbohydrates in with the pre-race meals. This is what we call our "Carb sneak."   It is not a carbohydrate loading per se but enough to top off glycogen levels without wrecking your insulin sensitivity and fat burning capability. The night before a race many of us eat a medium rare ribeye, NY or T-bone steak with a baked potato buried in butter, sour cream and salt. The fat from the butter and sour cream not only serves to provide loads of fat calories but, more importantly serves to sharply blunt the glycemic load of the starch in the potato. This way you do not get a sharp and rapid increase in blood sugar thus no huge insulin response.

Now when using VESPA and being OFM fat adapted athletes are advised to use concentrated forms of carbohydrates during their competitions and hard workouts which simulate race conditions. Since the athlete generally takes in significantly less calories using VESPA and being fat adapted and  we want to make this as  easy as possible we recommend the athlete use whatever calorie sources work best for them whether it is gels, shot blocks, fruit, potatoes, aid station foods, etc.

The only thing we do say is to never take in a large slug of food at a time when exerting significant physical activity. This keeps the digestive tract working despite down regulation of blood flow to the internal organs during exercise and prevents any significant spike in blood sugar. During exercise there is an insulin "muting" response so insulin sensitivity is higher and less insulin is secreted.

When hot we recommend focusing on hydration and restricting calories to simpler sugars and as a "sugar drip." This is because at high temps the body sharply down regulates blood flow to the internal organs and sharply increases blood flow from the muscles to the skin surface to sweat to cool the body.  The capacity for digestion is simply not there.

During the cool temps we advise higher intake, especially if cold and wet to maintain core body temps. The athlete is also able to process/digest more complex foods that would have higher levels of fat and protein under these conditions.

Will: Who are some of your more notable athletes that are using Vespa? How has Vespa helped them achieve success?

Peter: Naoko Takahashi put VESPA on the map in 2000 when she won the Sydney Olympic Marathon and set the world record at the time in Berlin. She then got sponsored by a Japanese company who made a synthetic version and never did do anything after. VESPA has had several athletes win Olympic gold medals and other world class events that get a lot more press than ultra-endurance. Sammy Wanjiru used VESPA. In the last 2 years of Pro Cycling VESPA can compete because the policing for banned substances has really gone up. Tour du France leader in 2011 and "King of the Mountains" Winner in 2012, Thomas Voeckler uses VESPA. These big name athletes do not say anything because it is their competitive advantage and we do not pay big money sponsorships because we cannot afford to due to the cost to make the product and keep the price point where it is.

In ultra-endurance there are several notable athletes / performances from VESPA/OFM athletes. These include last year's (2012) winner and course record setter of Western States; 2012 USATF 50 Mile Champion, 2012 Mad City 50K Champion, 2012 Ice Age 50 Mile Champion, Zach Bitter. More recently, Mike Morton did the unthinkable and ran weekend to weekend back to back 100 milers, won both and set a CR on the second. Mike started on the VESPA/OFM program in December and has noticed the difference. Jon Olsen and his performance at the World 100K (Second US Male) and winning North Coast 24 hour 13 days later coming within 7 miles of the US record at that time. Elite Women like Nikki Kimball, Devon Yanko (formerly Crosby-Helms), Caren Spore, Jennifer Benna and Jenny Capel are all on the program

But, just as important as elite level performances there are VESPA/OFM athletes who are doing equally phenomenal performances. Betty Smith, age 61, finished The Bear 100 Miler in under 30 hours. She was the first female over 60 to ever finish The Bear.  If you look at the finish times you can see that finishing The Bear under 30 hours is quite an achievement. Bill McCarty, age 65, finishing weekend back to back 100 Milers (Razorback 100 & Beyond Limits 100) this past March. Compared to Mike Morton's back to back 100's Bill took twice as long for each. Bill is set to run Keys 100 in early May and has 6 100 Milers on his schedule for 2013.

Our goal is to get people of all ages and abilities back to burning "Fat as your Fuel." Not only for optimal performance but, more importantly, for optimal health. VESPA/OFM is a fully integrated, cutting-edge program which, observationally, is getting those results. VESPA is one crucial component of the larger OFM picture.

Will: Peter, you have provided some very thoughtful responses and have given my readers an important perspective when it comes to nutrition and ultra running and endurance sports in general. Thank for sharing your insights here and for taking the time for this interview.  

Running and Hypothyroidism

Imagine this. You go to the doctor for a physical. You tell him you are feeling really tired. Worn out. Beat down. The energy that you once relied on to get you through your tough training periods is MIA. You’re confused and a little worried.

So the doc says “lets take a look at your hormones.” More specifically your TSH, or thyroid stimulating hormone. He explains that TSH triggers the release of thyroxine (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3) which, in turn, stimulate the metabolism of almost every tissue in the body. When TSH is abnormally high it usually means something is wrong with the pituitary gland, the little gland just below your neck that is responsible for secreting these powerful hormones.

I don’t have to imagine this, because this was my world several years ago. My doctor sent me to get my blood tested for TSH level. The news that came back wasn’t good. My TSH level were off the charts. I don’t think I will ever forget the voice mail the nurse left me. It went something like this: “your pituitary gland is in bad shape, but don’t worry because if you take a pill everyday for the rest of your life everything is going to be OK!” Wait a minute. A-pill-everyday-for-the-rest-of-my-life? Everything-is-going-to-be-OK? Delivered by voice mail no less. Bedside manner at its best.

After listening to the message for the 7th or 8th time, reality started to rear its ugly head. For me, the thought of being dependent on a prescription drug made by a multinational pharmaceutical company was, well, a little revolting. I researched my options. What I learned wasn’t pretty.

I continued to inquire about the cause of the condition. My doctors responded like the well trained lab rats they had become: we don’t know what caused this, but it doesn’t matter because we have a treatment for it. A pill. In other words, forget what caused your condition, and just swallow a pill everyday for the rest of your life and we can treat the symptoms. God I love western medicine!

I chose to write this post because the Wall Street Journal recently published an article on elite runners with hypothyroidism. The jest of that article, unfortunately, is doping. The author alleges that many elite athletes that have been given thyroid medication to improve their athletic performance.

The message in the article conflicts with the fact that there is no evidence that thyroid medication enhances athletic performance. These medications are not banned by the World Anti Doping Agency (WADA) . According to Dr.Borenstein, an endocrinologist who works with hundreds of thyroid patients, the article misses a key factor - that “thyroid medication replaces  something natural to the body that's missing, something that is essential for basic functioning."

I’ve spent years of asking doctors and health experts what causes hypothyroidism, and I’ve never been given a logical answer, until now. Borenstein is saying something I have suspected all along - that intense endurance training could be a contributor. According to Borenstein, “endurance training can cause adrenal depletion and weaken adrenal function, and this in turn can inhibit thyroid function."

Despite having to take a pill once per day to treat my hypothyroidism, I still live a normal life. I've continued to train for and run ultra marathons for the last 8 years, and I get to go on bike rides and hikes with my daughters. I even go skiing and ride a skateboard once in a while. I'm pleased to know physicians are looking beyond just treating the symptoms of the hypothyroidism with drugs and are now talking about potential causes of the disease. But whatever the cause, I'm thankful for my health today. 

JFK 50 Mile - I'm In!

There was no internet posting. No email. Just a self addressed envelop with a generic message inside. My "entry into the...JFK 50 Mile to be held on November 23, 2013 has been accepted." So there you have it! There is old school. And then there is Old School. The JFK 50 Mile is OLD SCHOOL. Not surprising given its status as the OLDEST ultra marathon in the United States. The first running? 1963, or the first year I saw daylight. A 50 year old race meets a 50 year old runner. I'm pretty excited to be a part of it and looking forward to establishing a 50 mile PR at the ripe old age of 50!   

Just Fool Yourself

When the sun sets, colors fill the sky. Colors we don't usually see.  If you take a few minutes and stop - to really watch what happens - you will notice subtle changes in the horizon. Every few minutes colors changing hue.

Last night when I was driving to the start of a nine mile run, I started thinking about how tired I was. How I really didn't need to do this run. How I could really use a day off. I pulled into the parking lot, turned off the car, and fell asleep. When I woke 30 minutes later I knew this run wasn't going to happen. So I talked myself into just walking up the hill a ways. It was a relief, once I decided it was ok not to run, and that just getting out and walking would be fine for today.

I put my shoes and shorts on and started moving. I could feel the cold air on my skin. I moved for no other reason now than to stay warm. My gait gradually quickened to a slow jog. I felt the fatigue in my legs from all the miles I'd run the last several weeks. My body was tired, confirming these miles would have to be another day.

I made it to the top of the small hill, then turned down a bike trial with a gentle descent. I'll just go around the block and call it a day, I thought. Then I crossed the road and turned toward the drinking fountain another half mile away. Sure, I need some water I thought, so I'll just jog up to the fountain and then turn back. That would give me three miles. After taking a few micro sips I just continued up the trail, lost somewhere between a day off and a run with no known destination or distance. I just kept ambling along, noticing the sky changing colors as the sun began to set.

When I looked at my watch 90 minutes later it told me I had gone nine miles. I just shook my head. I started this knowing I wouldn't run at all, and I finished not knowing how I ran 9 miles. I guess, sometimes, you just have to fool yourself. 

Managing My Weight: 5 Tricks

Like it or not, your weight has a lot to do with your health. And even more to do with your running. If you are overweight, you run slower, put more stress on your body and ultimately are more prone to injury.

What constitutes being an overweight runner? I believe the answer to this is directly tied to your objectives. For example, do you want to run just to be healthy? To be competitive in your age group? To achieve a personal best? 

If you're running just to be healthy, is suggest reviewing the BMI calculations. But if you're running to achieve more than just health, you need to be more precise. My experience (which, of course, can and will differ from others') when it comes to my ideal running weight is that I need to be as close to the weight I was when I was 18 years old, or when I graduated from high school. Yes, a long time ago. For me that number is around 160 lbs. I have found that I'm usually in my best shape when I'm within 3% to 5% of that number.

Getting there and staying there is another story. Over the years I've learned to a few tricks that have helped. Do I get off track? Of course. When this happens I have to rely on these tricks more than usual. Here's a sampling of these in no particular order: 

1. Don't eat breakfast. "What??! That's blasphemy," yelled the hoards. Yes, I've read all the books, magazines and listened to all the seminars. Breakfast is the most important meal! I know. I get it. However, this is why I put "my" in italics above. It works for me. Why? maybe because I'm usually not hungry in the morning. Maybe its because most of my training is in the evenings during the week. Maybe its because I don't want to interrupt the caffeine induced fat burning zone I enjoy in the mornings. The fact is if I don't eat breakfast I'm not consuming 200, 300 or 400 calories as a result.

2. Minimize Carbs in my Diet.  Again, "blasphemy!" screamed the running hoards! What about the age old notion that carbs are the most important part of a runners diet. If you still believe this you need to put down your Runners World Magazine and pick some of Phil Maffetone writings. Do this and you'll know what I mean. 

3. Weigh Myself Everyday. Call me OCD, a freak, whatever you want. But when I'm not weighing myself I'm usually gaining weight, not losing it. 

4. Increase my miles. Seems this should be as straight forward as it gets. But there is a catch, because increased miles also means an increased appetite. So if I'm not watching my calories, I can easily pack on more pounds when I'm increasing my miles from 40 to 50, 60 or 70 per week. Which leads me to the next gadget related trick...

5. Counting my calories. Now we are into the bowels of weight loss. But with technology, it really isn't that hard. When I need to, I use the app Lose It on my phone and track just about any food or drink I come in contact with. It's amazing how quickly the numbers add up!

I think this quote sums it up well...

"If you wish to grow thinner, diminish your dinner."

Henry Sambrooke Leigh      

    

  

Relevance

Relevance is when you send a message to your body, and it responds with an affirmative. This week was good. I put sixty miles of running in the book, added seven miles of hiking and many hours stretching and core. What is best is that I'm feeling good after running 25 miles in the mountains at 7500'.  I will accept this as a relevant sign that my body is slowly accepting the "envelop" I'm pushing its way.

Some stills from the trail...

PCT Trail Head at Highway 18 

Weird Fort Hidden in the trees where PCT passes Big Bear 

Overlooking the Lucerne Valley

Reportedly the road to Butler Peak

Powder is a Waiting! 

The Long Snow Road

The Mountain Is a Great Motivator

So Cal? Ain't So Bad...

I know some of you are stuck somewhere in a cold, dark place in the world, so I thought it would be nice to share some So Cal stills. Don't worry, spring is almost here! These were taken today on a mountain bike ride with my daughter. I don't know of much I would rather do than to cruise from place to place with my daughters in search of amazing things. Keep exploring my friends....   

New Routes. Favorite Songs

I’ve written that one must find new routes everyday to keep running real. I still believe this, but I need to qualify it.

This week I was on my way to completing a ten mile run, much of it at night. As I was moving through a section of the run I stopped for minute and looked around. I realized that I’d been running on this same trail for 20 years.

The trail felt familiar, but something about it was different. It was like a favorite song that I haven’t listened to in a while. I hear its familiar sound, but then I notice something new about it. The voices, the melody...I’m not sure what.

Like Daron and Serj from System of a Down and their cat and mouse harmony in the song Radio Video. I’ve listened to this song dozens of times, but I never really heard their nuanced vocals intertwine like they do. Or Stevie Nick’s haunting vocal in Silver Springs. Again, I’ve heard it many times, and didn't used to call it a favorite. But then I heard how much she just lays her self out there in the live version of the song. It takes some time to build, but is worth the wait.

I look across the creek next to where I’m standing, I notice the lights reflecting off the still water. There is something new about it...but I’m not sure what.

50 Years. And Into the Unknown

As I ponder the thought of "getting old" on my 50th birthday, my mind flashes back in time. To a moment in my early 20s, at an office birthday party for me. I was turning 23...and I was horrified. I remember thinking I was only two years away from 25...which is half way to 50! Boy did I feel old that day.   

I'm pretty sure that was the moment I lost my fear of growing older. It must have been a cathartic event, turning 23. For some reason, I have no idea why, growing older no longer was a step closer to the grave, but rather step closer to something I had yet to accomplish. Maybe that year was my coming of age. After all, it was the year I got my first office job, my first case of the hemorrhoids from sitting at a desk all day, my first apartment, and my first live-in girlfriend. It was also my first year to experience running. I hadn't run a marathon yet, but I do remember thinking how difficult it would be. The thought lingered, and eventually it turned into inspiration.  

Some call it dreaming. For me it is more about visualizing. Dreams happen in my sleep. Visualizing occurs when I'm sitting at a conference and I realize I haven't heard a word the speaker has said. I try to listen, but I can't focus. I look at my watch. I look around the room. I start to feel like a caged animal.      

The next thing I know I'm training for a marathon, running through the streets at night. From somewhere, maybe above the misty street lights overhead, comes this strange feeling in the back of my neck. It's vaguely familiar, like a tingle of warmth from a smoldering fire. Slowly, it moves down my back, into my hips, then down to my legs. This tingle is now a surge of energy, and it washes the fatigue flowing through my veins right out of my body. Now I'm moving effortlessly over the cold, black asphalt. But the source of this energy isn't from the misty lights above. It's locked up somewhere inside of me. Then it occurs to me that, when running, I'm holding the keys.

I keep running. Through the pain which I determine is just a facade to be crushed under the weight of my ambition. I push into new realms, an exploration of self, a discovery of the undiscovered.  With marathon's behind me, I move up to fifty, then one hundred mile races. My hobby turns into a passion, then boarders on obsession. When months turn into years, an unwelcome truth slowly emerges from the ashes of reality. My body sends messages, but my mind isn't listening. 

When I was younger, my body was always ready and waiting. Poised and strong, ready for every command. Knowing this, my mind knew few boundaries, for its partner was always there, pushing the limits. My ego took center stage. But nothing lasts forever, even the sun and the moon. It wasn't long before my ego started to take my body for granted.                        

Subtle at first, the messages kept coming. Of course these were just part of being a runner, I thought. Injury, fatigue, general malaise, all classic signs of pushing too hard. Then, finally, I started to listen to the messages. My body was teaching me a lot, helping me understand its limits, so I could work with it, not against it. Consistency before duration, duration before intensity. Run within myself. Build the base. Now my body takes center stage. With a new found respect, my body talks and my mind listens, without prejudice. And my ego? It's a mere bystander. 

The same thought that lingered when I was 23 still lingers today. Difficulty remains my calling card. But now that I'm listening, my body has taught me that I have experience and knowledge on my side. These are my successes and failures, my strengths and weaknesses.  These are the keys that I now hold, and they accompany me on every mile, on every trail, and, now that I'm 50, into the unknown. 

Asics GT 1000 - A Review

The Taco Test

It has been written that finding the perfect running shoe is a lot like finding a perfect partner. It can take years, even a lifetime. Some would say the perfect “one” doesn’t exist. Others say you have to go through a lot of them to get to the right one.

Onlineshoes.com recently contacted me to do a review of a particular running shoe. I was reluctant, at first, since I haven’t “strayed” from my Hoka One One’s in a while. Mainly I just don’t do a lot of reviews when asked by product sponsors or distributors. I’ve always felt there is a bit of a conflict of interest when a company gives away its product in exchange for a review.

But I decided to do this one anyway. Why? First, I’ve used onlineshoes.com in the past and found their service to be very good. Second, they asked me to review a pair of Asics GT 1000s. Cool, I thought. I’ve run more miles in Asics than any other shoe made. 10ks, half marathons, marathons, 50 mile and 100 mile races. I’ve run them all in Asics. But I haven’t run in Asics for a couple years, so I thought it would be interesting to see how they compare to my latest quiver of shoes. 

My first test was to weigh the shoes. I’m a little anal about shoe weight and I’m always interested to see the variance in the advertised weight of a shoe compared to what my shoe actually weighs. Manufactures use smaller shoe sizes (lighter) for advertising the weight of a shoe. Consequently, I’ve always found my shoes to be a little heavier than what is advertised. Sure enough my 10.5 size GT 1000s weighed in at a 11.6 oz, or 1.2 oz more than the 10.4 oz advertised on onlineshoes.com. 

My second test was to bend the GT 1000 from heel to toe. Whenever I walk into a running store and look at a shoe the first thing I do is fold the shoe like a taco. The purpose is to see where the shoe bends. If it bends near the ball of the foot, like the GT 1000 does, it passes my test. If it bends in the middle of the shoe, at mid foot, it fails my test

The reason? If a shoe bends near the ball of the foot then it will bend naturally through the running gait from foot strike through toe-off. If the shoe bends in the middle it will put much more stress on the planter fascia, the last thing a runner wants. I have run in shoes that bend at the midfoot and the result is searing pain in my planter fascia within a few miles. I've returned dozens of shoes over the years for this reason. Once I started doing this taco test I stopped returning so many shoes.

While running in the GT 1000 I discovered the shoes are a relatively stable, firm ride on the road. Not too much cushion, but with gel in the heel and forefoot, enough to give you the protection you need. I like what Asics calls their Trusstic System which is a plastic midfoot unit built into the shoe to increase torsional rigidity. It is this system that prevents the bend in the midfoot.

I have pretty high arch and over the years I have found Asics tend to fit my foot well. The GT 1000 in no exception. The overall fit of the shoe is snug, particularly in the heel and midsole. The forefoot is also snug, but I would prefer a bit more room in this section of the shoe.

Since I started running in Asics some 25 years ago the company has used a DuoMax Support System which is a dual-density material in the midsole that is designed to reduce over pronation. I don’t pronate but I have found this system to enhance shoe durability. DuoMax is basically a harder material that is used on inner half the midsole.

ASICS stands for “Anima Sana in Corpore Sano,” Latin for a sound mind in a sound body. Whether you are a serious runner gunning for a local, state or national title, or a novice simply seeking to get in shape, ASICS has the goods for you. The GT 1000 is a solid road trainer for those of you with the commitment and resolve to meet your running goals.

V Formations

The last few weeks has brought millions of visitors to Southern California. Not the normal Disney/beach seeking human form, rather the feather/flocking migratory form.

Just last week I was out on a hike with my daughter in the upper newport bay. Overhead came drove and drove of these v-shaped flying formations. There must have been 10,000 in these flocks that flew over our head in less than 5 minutes. And they kept coming! As I watched I could only wonder, where are they all going? Do they sleep? I just new they were headed toward the ocean.

Two days later is was out for a rare run on the beach. It was about the same time of day, just before the sunset. Then over the sand they came. Thousands. Swooping down from their v-formations several hundred feet over head to just inches above the surf. They continued flying, so close to the water they disappeared into the choppy sea.

It's good to be in the presence of nature.

 

  

The Great Curve

It's been a rather slow blogging period for me these last few months. Sorry folks. The number of posts I've written are at an all time low. I just haven't been motivated to write. Such is life. I think it has something to do with my overall fitness and training. I've written a couple of posts but just can't see the value in publishing them. One was on whether elite runners dope like cyclists. But I realized there is just too much negativity surrounding doping. I would rather write to inspire myself and anyone reading my blog, not dwell on negative energy like that topic does.

As I write this, I realize there is nothing that creates more motivation to write than running itself. If figures, because my running has been lacking as of late. Maybe it's due to my chronic sore groin, or maybe its simply the ebb and flow of my own motivation. One thing I've come to realize is that I can reach out and grab motivation, but I can't always hold on to it. This conversation with myself reminds me of the great Talking Heads song the Great Curve. If motivation where my "world", this song says it all. "the world is near...but it's out of reach...some people touch it, but they can't hold on". I love that song. I used to listen to it really loud in my car.      

In any event, I'm signed up for Vermont 100 and Leadville 100 in July and August. Wooohoo! I'm looking forward to both, but not in the way I used to look forward to 100 milers. In previous years the mere thought of training for and attempting a 100 mile race would send a surge of energy through my veins. I would rush out the door and pile mile upon mile into my training. Then my body would simply break down. Maybe I've finally learned more about my body. About my own feeble limitations. My weaknesses. 

"...A world of light...she's gonna open our eyes up...A world of light...she's gonna open our eyes up

She's gonna hold it move it hold it move it...Hold it move it hold it move it

A world of light...she's gonna open our eyes up..." 

Yes, when my motivation comes around, I'm going to open my eyes up. 

The Lance Armstrong Saga Continues...

Just when I thought the doping scandal of Lance Armstrong had become yesterday's news, I read this. A confession! Really? What? When? Why? Of course...bring it on Lance! As I said in my letter to you in October, you have so much to gain with a confession. It could be your mea culpa. Your coming out. As long, that is, as you admit you did the wrong thing, and behaved the wrong way...for most of your career. As long as you apologize to the countless people and organizations you berated, bullied and sued to prop up your now-disgraced and pummeled anti-doping image.

Lance, do the right thing. Confess. We know it will cost you a lot of money. But what is the value of a clean conscience? What is the value of looking someone straight in the eye and telling them the real truth? What is the value of being capable of openly talking about your own weaknesses? At this stage, we don't care about why you did it, we care about why you now believe it was wrong. We don't care if you want to compete again in triathlons and confessing is your only option to do this. We care that you, after all these years, want to do the right thing. Now, stand in front of the microphone...and do the right thing.

Saltwater 2012 - The Final Assault

Santiago Peak 5'600 feet at 2:47 pm Sat. December 29

This was a hard one to write. Not because the topic isn't meaningful. No. On the contrary, the final assault was freaking awesome. I think it was hard because it's hard to cram 11.5 hours of so much into so little.

Our first attempt from the ocean to the top of Santiago two weeks ago ended in mixed emotions. Naive about the possibility of the access road closing, we had to turn back with only 2 miles to go to the top. But we weren't prepared. No crew access and eleven runners without water or warm clothes in what would have been 12 more miles and a 45 mile run.  

So why attempt it again? It seems absurd. It was one of the coldest days of the year with rain starting at 9 am and snow starting at 4'500 feet. No vehicles to meet us on top. It was absurd, I think...which I guess is why we did it. But what ensued was really why we did it. 11.5 hours of joking, gasping, sweating, shivering, posing, falling, slipping, sliding, drinking, pissing, eating, crapping, hiking, climbing, worrying, flailing, kneeling, laughing and....oh yea...running. What else are you going to do on a cold winter day in Orange County? Yes, we made it from the ocean to the top of Santiago peak and back down the mountain without vehicles. It wasn't pretty. It wasn't easy. I was just really cold.   

Leading up to the 11.5 hours was, of course, the fact that we haven't failed to reach the summit of Santiago in 9 years. Why let this be the year of infamy? I couldn't bear the thought. 

Thanks Rob M, Bino, and Chris "Cracker" C for sharing my sentiments about this tradition, and for spending those 11.5 hours with me. It was worth every wet, freezing minute. There simply wasn't enough time to coordinate schedules and rally all eleven runners and required crew and transportation for this one. I hope you guys and gals understand. And thanks Jen C and Trina M for dropping and fetching us.        

Pacific Ocean at 5:25 am Saturday Dec 29

"Don't those pants come with big red shoes?"

"Wake up turtles"

"I just texted Padilla...asked him if he's in the mood"

"Smile numb nuts"

My Original Running Family!

Lemon toss tradition....

Jack and the Box. A new tradition? 

Rain Begins at 9 am. Weatherman said 6 pm!

Guys...what else would you be doing today?

Near Old Camp

"I can't feel my fingers!"

"This is colder than I thought it would be"

"Why did we do this?"

"Holy crap, are your lips stuck?"

"Now....both hands on my shoulders..."

"What time did you say we'd be at Cooks Corner?"

"Lets see....I've fallen 5 times and I still have to run down the mountain"

Finally down the mountain. 5:01 pm.