One significant difference between marathon training and ultra marathon training is the nutrition needed for training runs. Most marathoners will complete two runs of about 20 miles prior to race day. Training for the Fall 50 in October calls for back to back weekend runs, and those runs have been in the range of 4-5 hours for weeks. That translates to 23-30 miles.
At that distance, I go through a lot of nutrition while training. This weekend I used nine gels and a packet of Clif Shot Bloks (more on that, later). I'm grateful for various Online sources that help save on the cost, because a case of Gu is lasting barely two weeks.
For this weekend's runs, I tested out some freebies. Both the health expo and actual race for the Fox Cities Marathon allowed me to stock up on CarBoom gels, and I also picked up a sample of Clif Shot Bloks. And the rule is to not RACE with new things. Though they were both the distance of a marathon, neither training run was a race.
On Saturday, I went with four Strawberry Kiwi CarBoom gels. My very first impression was "Holy insulin reaction, Batman!" I'll have to test others, but I feel safe in saying the Strawberry Kiwi flavor is sickly sweet. It says a lot that the Gatorade chaser tasted bland.
That said, I finished all four gels and suffered no GI distress. Of course, I've never had any distress from any gel, so I might be a bad example. Gu, Power Gel, Hammer, whatever. And at 110 calories instead of the 90 Gu provides, CarBoom might have a place in my arsenal.
Sunday, I went with two Triberry Gu, two more Strawberry Kiwi CarBoom, and a package of cola Shot Bloks. I used the Gu first, followed by the CarBoom, and finished with the Bloks. Interestingly, the CarBoom seemed less sweet after the Gu. For future races, I might consider alternating Gu with CarBoom. It's a few extra calories and provides a greater variety of flavors.
For the most part, I liked the Shot Bloks very much. They provided a bit of solid food without being overwhelming. Since they are in caramel size pieces, portion control is easy, and each piece is about 10 calories. As a note, in addition to being the same size as a caramel, they are equally sticky and chewy.
Update: Co-worker and commentor John pointed out that I may have misread the nutrition information on the package of Shot Bloks. We looked it up On-line and determined a package of six pieces has 200 calories, making three pieces comparable to a single packet of gel. Thanks to John for pointing this out. It makes me more comfortable with the idea of using them.
The biggest concern with the Shot Bloks is that a package of six pieces is only 60 calories. Those six pieces take up far more room than a couple of gels, for a fraction of the energy. Anyone looking for "bang for the buck" would be better off going with gels. But for someone looking for variety and "solid food," Shot Bloks might be the answer.
Finally, a bit more feedback on Hammer Endurolytes powder. I've been using this in my primary drinking bottles for several long runs, now. The results have been completely positive. I'm now completing 30 mile runs in warm weather without serious dehydration. In the past, runs of 10-15 miles often resulted in dehydration. Depending on the individual's tolerance for the "salty" taste of increased electrolytes, there is a great deal of flexibility in dosage.
My final test will be to use Endurolytes powder with Gatorade Endurance. That is what will be used on the course of the Fall 50, and I have a couple sample packs for tests during training. I believe it will be fine, and continue to recommend this product as an option for those struggling with hydration issues.
As you consider alternative nutrition ideas, please remember to test them in training. As you become more comfortable with what your body can and cannot take, you'll have a better idea what might work during a race. I've found I can grab just about any gel being offered on the course and use it without worry. Others I know have to always carry their very specific nutrition as just about anything else will take them out of the race.
A safe bet, though, is that if you DON'T test it, it will cause problems.
 "Do, or do not. There is no try."
At first glance, this seems perfect advice for aspiring endurance athletes. Get out there and do it. Remove all hints of negativity, and forget about "trying to finish." Just get out there and finish.
I'm not sure Yoda and I see eye to eye on this one, though. Then again, I'm not sure Yoda was entirely sold on his own comment.
If you recall, the setting is the swamp planet Dagobah and Luke Skywalker really wants to get his X-Wing fighter out of the water. Yoda tells him to use the force, and Luke says he'll "try." Yoda isn't very keen on the idea of "trying." Luke does try, and obviously fails.
Yoda then demonstrates what he REALLY wanted Luke to learn. There is no such thing as "can't." With very few exceptions, the force makes all things possible. With little effort at all, Yoda does what Luke failed to do. When Luke responded with, "I don't believe it," Yoda's response is, "That is why you failed."
I'm becoming a big believer in "There is no Can't." And I disagree with Yoda. "Try" is a huge part of "can." In life, we sometimes fail. That is often the springboard to success. Instead of Star Wars, think Meet the Robinsons. Sometimes failure should be celebrated as the foundation for future success.
A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away...
Okay, eight years ago in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, I was encouraged to run 1.5 miles two or three times a week. My first thought and immediate response was that I could barely run 1.5 miles twice a year. Doing that twice a week was out of the question. I knew I didn't WANT to do it, and questioned whether I COULD do it.
Through the years, many things have changed. More important than any physical change is the mental change. Faced with some new physical challenge, the question is no longer, "Can I do this?" The question is, "What would be required to do it?" and, "Do I want to tackle this challenge."
Failure is always a possibility. But I'd rather fail to succeed then fail to try.
The question that we (endurance athletes) must ask ourselves is, "How do we share this belief system with others?"
As part of the answer for myself, I'm looking at ways to develop the "There is no Can't" philosophy. I will share it with the 8th graders I mentor at the Boys' and Girls' Brigade and use it to expand our youth triathlon club. Together with the Brigade I will pursue grants to allow us to reach more youth in the community. The youth in the program will learn what they CAN do, rather than be told what they aren't allowed to do.
Co-workers are aware of what CAN be done after watching me run 40 miles. Now, our goal is to encourage others to get out and think about what they can accomplish. Rather than focus on, "I can't run 40 miles," we'll focus on, "I can walk for 15 minutes" or, "I can run 3.1 miles."
It's been said that a person who can complete an Ironman can accomplish anything. What is sometimes forgotten is the long road to that achievement. As endurance athletes, we will always remember. Others around us might forget, or be altogether unaware of the long journey. Helping them to see that goes a long way toward removing "can't" from the picture.
So, Master Yoda, I'm sorry to disagree, but there is "try." But rest easy knowing I believe in the real lesson. "Long you must train if an Ironman you will be. Remove from your thoughts "can't" you must do." Along the way, there might be some failures, kind of like Luke and that X-Wing fighter.
After running 40-miles, it might make sense to detail how difficult it was. Then again, I doubt that would be news to anyone. So a different approach seems to make sense.
Everything leading up to the start of the run was fairly normal. Big pasta dinner on Friday. Rest and more carbs on Saturday. Kids fighting going to sleep keeping me up way later than planned. Waking up at 3 a.m. for breakfast and stretching.
When I got to the park where the race ends, there were already several people getting out of cars. As I headed to the actual finish line, a couple of them pointed out that the shuttles were "over there." I let them know I had my own plans for getting to the start.
The first song that came on my MP3 player was "The Black Parade" by My Chemical Romance. Given I was started a very long route and it was quite dark, it fit well. It was very surreal starting a race without thousands of others around me. I quickly settled into a routine of run, walk, look for arrows on the road (there were no route markers for the "first" five miles or so.
From there, with the limited exception of the 13 minute break between finishing the first half-marathon and the start of the official race, it was just a run. Long and arduous, yes, but still just a run. The roughest part was probably from miles 31 to 33. The coolest part was around mile 23 when a fellow Tri Fox cheering the runners ran alongside me yelling, "This man is running FORTY miles, today."
Here's a few things I took away from the day:
First, starting a 40-mile run on my own caused none of the pre-race excitement/jitters commonly felt. I did, however, experience them at the start of the actual marathon.
When you are running an ultra-marathon as part of a race, there's a great deal of anonymity. Other than a few aid-station workers who might have wondered what I was doing, only those familar with me knew what was happening. To anyone at the start of the race, the end of my 13.8 mile run looked amazingly like a pre-race warmup.
"Crazy" is a relative term. Most people look at marathoners as quite remarkable. Increase the distance to 40-miles, and those truly remarkable marathoners become the ones talking about "crazy" feats. And I think that someone who would run 100 miles in a single workout is the lunatic.
All along the race course I found myself ready to help anyone who looked distressed. Whether it was a gel, a bit of moral support, or someone to walk with, the desire to see everyone succeed outweighed any need to break the anonymity of the day. Many were completing their first full distance marathon, and that was more important than anything I was doing.
Talking about your goals with others can have amazing results. One of my co-workers was talking with an editor at the local paper about the race, and shared that I would be running the marathon as part of my 40 mile day. The results of that discussion can be found here. (When I get a chance, I'll scan the actual article and picture).
At the end of the day, I was successful. I completed the 40 mile run, and was extraordinarily close to my target of 10-minute miles. Using a 5-minute run, 2-minute walk interval, I finished in a total time of 6 hours 42 minutes. And two minutes difference over 40 miles is pretty minor.
And just for the record, the rest of the day was more challenging then the actual race. We took the kids to a local church picnic, and I spent the afternoon chasing them around. When I finally sat down, my feet wanted to give me a kiss.
 For months I have eagerly awaited the official release of the Chevy Volt. Today, marking the 100th anniversary of GM, the production version of the vehicle was introduced. GM is determined to make the car a success, and their future as a company is at least modestly tied to that factor.
The concept behind the car is actually fairly elegant. Simply put, it is an electric car with an onboard generator. "Traditional" hybrids combine a gas engine and battery assist to power the drivetrain. In the Volt, the battery powers the drivetrain and the gas engine powers a generator that charges the battery.
For trips less than about 40 miles, the battery is sufficient and the car uses no gas. As the distance between charges increases, fuel economy decreases. After the car is fully dependent upon the generator to charge the battery, it becomes similar to other hybrids, with a fuel economy of about 50 mpg.
My excitement over the potential of the vehicle was tempered by the unknown cost. Reasonably priced, the Volt could catapult GM back into a lead position in the automotive industry. If the price was out of the reach of most Americans or resulted in a long pay-back time, teh Volt's potential would quickly fizzle to nothing.
Unfortunately, it appears the latter will be the case. The current intent is to price the Volt at about $40,000. At that price, most interest will come from people more interested in "saving the world" than saving actual money.
Assuming someone puts on roughly 80 miles between charges (100 mpg), gas costs $4.50/gallon, and a 30 mpg vehicle is available for $25,000, the payback period for the Volt would be 10 years. Even at $7/gallon, the payback is well over six years, longer than most Americans own a car.
Locate a 30 mpg vehicle for $18,000 and you can buy gas at $4.50 for nearly 14 years before the Volt would have been a better purchase.
GM has the potential to electrify the country with the Volt. Based on the news, today, they may find the battery dead before it even hits the market. Time will tell, though, and I will be keeping both eyes open as the vehicle gets closer to full production. Perhaps they'll find ways to drop the price and reenergize prospective customers.
A wide range of well known celebrities competed in the Nautica Malibu Triathlon, this past weekend. Though Jennifer Lopez and Matthew McConaughey received the most attention, other Hollywood icons raced with them. Some of my favorites? William H. Macy, Mark-Paul Gosselar, and Anna Kournikova.
The extensive publicity surrounding their success at the race is sure to invite the standard responses. Some will ooh and aah over famous actors and actresses competing in the event. Others will decry the attention pointing to the thousands of "average joes" who compete in a wide variety of races without so much as a peep out of the media. Still others will wonder what all the fuss is about.
I, for one, am glad to see articles about well known people pursuing endurance events. First, they have a much larger audience than I have. While I might be able to motivate several, even dozens of people to pursue a running race or triathlon. Jennifer Lopez completing a triathlon has the potential to motivate tens of thousands, particularly young ladies. The combined "star power" of those competing in Malibu this past weekend vastly increases that potential. And anything that helps grow the sport is wonderful.
Second, I believe actions speak louder than words. J-Lo made a comment that it might be neat to do a triathlon. That got some attention. Her training might have garnered a bit more coverage. Actually starting and finishing the race was the real news. Rather than blathering on to the news media about things outside her control or expertise, Lopez put in the training she needed to succeed. And while we can't all be famous in Hollywood or the music industry, we can all succeed in pursuit of a healthier lifestyle.
Finally, I celebrate the personal achievements of anyone who decides to pursue any endurance event. J-Lo's celebrity status in no way diminishes her accomplishments. Her situation might make certain aspects of the journey easier. Then again, I've never tried to train for a race while juggling a family, a singing and acting career, and all the demands that go with it. She deserves a great deal of credit and recognition, as do all of the others who finished the race, celebrity or not.
It's been said before that one of the great things about the sport of triathlon is the way it brings people together. Very rarely in the rest of life will you find yourself competing toe-to-toe with the top performers in the sport. Now, we also find celebrities racing in our midst.
Lopez is like us in at least two ways. First, the swim is her biggest fear and worst discipline. Second, she is a triathlete.
 Certain events in history have helped define and shape our country as we know it, today. They are usually easy to identify because they are those moments that seem frozen in time. They are forever etched in our minds. Years, even decades later, we find ourselves going, "I remember it like it was yesterday. I was..."
In my life thus far, the single most remarkable event is that which occurred on September 11, 2001. It turned the very simple act of looking for supplies at the UW Oshkosh school store into a surreal image that will remain with me to the day I die. James Nachtwey and Time Magazine provide the image shown here. I think it is a good representation of how many felt, that day.
The world as known crumbled around our ears. We stood in the rubble, looking on in horror as events unfolded. And then we mourned.
In a way, our country is still mourning. We continue the struggle that started that day, and we have no way our knowing how or when it will end. All we can do is fight for what we believe to be right.
So today, remember. Remember those who gave their lives without even knowing the reason. Remember those who died trying to save others. Remember those who lived and face the pain of the past.
And remember those who lay their lives on the line every day that we might continue to live free. Those who serve in harm's way in places far from home. They do so for little recognition, less money, and well aware of the risks.
Most importantly, REMEMBER.
Okay, I know the saying is usually "WHERE'S a cop when you need one?" Things just worked out differently, this weekend. And it all became clear when I was pulled over while running. (Man am I getting fast!)
On Saturday's long run (a personal record 29 miles), I was crossing a controlled intersection, and I had the green. A lady making a right turn on red went through the all-to-familiar process of "Look left and look right through the runner, look right, gun it," nearly running me down as I ran in the crosswalk. I yelled, slammed my hand on her hood, and jumped so that my feet wouldn't be planted when she hit me. Then she laid on her horn at me.
I managed to avoid getting hit and must have looked like a Hamm brother on the pommel horse. I glanced back in disgust as the women yelled out her window to ask if I was alright. I muttered something and kept running.
A couple miles later, I was stopped by a police officer who asked if I was the guy that got hit by the car at such-and-such an intersection. I told him I was, pointing out that I wasn't actually hit. He told me he had pulled the driver over. While he didn't indicate the outcome of that stop, I was pleased with just the traffic stop. After dealing with the driver, he tracked me down because he was concerned with the way I bounced off the car.
I let him know I had jumped and avoided getting hit, and thanked him for both talking to the driver and for following up with me.
I've said it before and I'll repeat myself here. Drivers just aren't looking for runners, particularly when they are making right turns. If you aren't to their left, they'll never see you. Remember to "drive" for them and remain on the defensive.
I broke my own rule and ran in front of the first car at the intersection. I tend to go behind them. If you do pass in front, always keep your eyes on the vehicle, not the driver. It's more important to see what the car is doing than seek eye contact with the driver. They can look right at you and hit the gas.
 Now, for your viewing pleasure, Iron Pol after the second long run of the weekend. To be fair, we wrote the "50 miles" before actually mapping out the course. It was only 48.6 miles. I did 29 miles on Saturday in 4:55 (with 10 minutes in pit stops). That was followed up on Sunday with another 19.6 miles in about 3:45. My son was supposed to be offering me Gatorade. It looks more like he's trying to pour water on my head.
That would have helped, too.
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