Pregunta
Bonk on long run question 3/30/2012 12:27PM Reply | Return to Index | Report Post
So i am 5 weeks out from my goal marathon now. Shooting run around 2:45.

I could not run my long run over the weekend because i was busy, so i ended up running it on Monday night after work. I was shooting for my longest run of 22 miles that night, but i bonked and only could complete 18.

Anyway, when i do my long runs in the morning i usually do not eat anything before them or during in order to work on glycogen depletion. for instance last week i did a 20 mile run with 10 miles at MP no problem. I did not eat anything beforehand and i was good to go.

So i wanted to simulate this eating experience in the after work setting so i had my last thing to eat around 2:00 PM and then i did my long run at 6 PM.

By mile 12 i was starving, and the water i had drank at mile 10 apparently was not going to hold me for the next 10 miles either because i was extremely thirsty.

By mile 15 i was starting to feel out of it. THe last two miles felt like my last marathon even. I started feeling a little dizzy. my legs were cramping. my quads were almost cramping. i was so out of fuel. luckily i could end at mile 18.

My splits were not terrible. i had been aiming to run about 80 to 85 percent of MP the whole time. 7:12 pace was about 80 percent. my last mile when i completely tanked was 7:20.

So for others who practice glycogen depletion by not eating much before long runs, what do you do when the long run is at the end of the day?

I don't the exact science of it, but obviously going into a run hungry and going in without food left to digest are prob two different things. Otherwise people could practice depletion on a 10 mile run by just not eating anything all day. but i guess the point is just not to have anything left to digest that could be turned into glycogen during the process of running?

also, with this type of bonk, how long does it take to recover?

is it an ok thing to bonk like this? in my marathon training this year, part of me wanted to try to address some of the depletion and cramping i faced during the last two miles of my marathon last year. does reaching this point open up new stresses and adaptations for me? or is the bonk completely negative.
jimjamesrunner
RE: Bonk on long run question 3/30/2012 12:50PM - in reply to Pregunta Reply | Return to Index | Report Post
It's fine if you bonk. I wouldn't worry so much about it. Just go out there feeling light. I would suggest eating something small a couple of hours before (granola bar, gummy bears). Your long run is supposed to deplete glycogen, but you're not supposed to help it do that by focusing on what your eating (or not eating) beforehand. Just eat healthy, nutritious food day in and day out and don't eat too close to the run. A combination of controllable and uncontrollable things can make different days better or worse running wise. You're over thinking this whole thing. Relax, enjoy your running, and have confidence in yourself.
Raptured
RE: Bonk on long run question 3/30/2012 1:01PM - in reply to jimjamesrunner Reply | Return to Index | Report Post
If you really have a lot of bonking/cramping issues, try fixing it with an extra gel or 2 in your marathon and even a couple salt capsules (salt is usually the main factor in cramping, assuming that you're fit enough to be racing the distance). I think there is some merit to riding the line of bonking in long runs as forcing your body to metabolize fat in training will make it more efficient with metabolizing fat during the race, but it sounds like you're trying to go way beyond that. IMO, you'd be better off just eating normally before your run, getting your runs in properly, and taking a little more during the race.
Pregunta
RE: Bonk on long run question 3/30/2012 1:11PM - in reply to Raptured Reply | Return to Index | Report Post
Yeah. i have not had issues before besides in my previous (my first) marathon. I've done many long runs between 19 and 21 miles without any problems. this was the first time i simulated the feeling of my bonk in my first marathon.

i can understand that actually bonking might not be the best thing. the day after my legs were gone as if i had raced, even though the pace was very moderate.
ajh
RE: Bonk on long run question 3/30/2012 1:24PM - in reply to Pregunta Reply | Return to Index | Report Post
You are looking for someone to tell you what you want to hear, instead of realizing you are running to fast to complete the run.
Pregunta
RE: Bonk on long run question 3/30/2012 1:34PM - in reply to ajh Reply | Return to Index | Report Post

ajh wrote:

You are looking for someone to tell you what you want to hear, instead of realizing you are running to fast to complete the run.


I ran this 18 mile run at an averago of 7:12. It was supposed to be a 22 mile run. My first mile was around 7:45 and then i ran the rest right around 7:00.

Last week i ran a 20 mile run at 6:40 pace average. same route. felt fine. my first 10 miles were around 6:55 pace and my last 10 miles were between 6:05 and 6:10 (MP). 7:12 pace was not "too fast" for me. it was a fueling issue.
this week was supposed to be a longer but easier pace.
redux
RE: Bonk on long run question 3/30/2012 1:40PM - in reply to Pregunta Reply | Return to Index | Report Post
Not going to bother reading any of this, but yes. I'd bonk on a long run. She'd have to be cute though.
lalalala
RE: Bonk on long run question 3/30/2012 1:46PM - in reply to redux Reply | Return to Index | Report Post

redux wrote:

Not going to bother reading any of this, but yes. I'd bonk on a long run. She'd have to be cute though.


What country are you from that "bonk" is a euphemism for having sexual relations. If there are no previous examples of people actually using this word in that way, you had no place in "cleverly" abstracting this word from the title.
redux
RE: Bonk on long run question 3/30/2012 1:49PM - in reply to lalalala Reply | Return to Index | Report Post
BONK! I thought it said BOINK! Hahahahahaha! Oh, Friday! The games you play on the mind.
lalalala
RE: Bonk on long run question 3/30/2012 1:53PM - in reply to redux Reply | Return to Index | Report Post
Ah fock it. I was being a hardass. Bonk works well enough. It sounds funny
redux
RE: Bonk on long run question 3/30/2012 1:57PM - in reply to lalalala Reply | Return to Index | Report Post
*high five*
Been There Ate the Dirt
RE: Bonk on long run question 3/30/2012 1:59PM - in reply to Pregunta Reply | Return to Index | Report Post
Falling 8 seconds off your pace is hardly bonking. Sometimes you feel worse than you actually are. You should have kept going until you really bonked, when you were 30 or 45 seconds off pace and were another 2-3 miles down the road.

On the other hand, don't sweat it. Occasionally, for no obvious reason, your body will rebel and you simply will not be able to get out of it what you wanted. On those days, take what it'll give, then soften your training over the next few days to allow some recovery.
Junk Master
RE: Bonk on long run question 3/30/2012 2:05PM - in reply to Been There Ate the Dirt Reply | Return to Index | Report Post
BTW I don't believe salt is the main reason for cramping, muscular fatigue is.
Pregunta
RE: Bonk on long run question 3/30/2012 2:06PM - in reply to Been There Ate the Dirt Reply | Return to Index | Report Post

Been There Ate the Dirt wrote:

Falling 8 seconds off your pace is hardly bonking. Sometimes you feel worse than you actually are. You should have kept going until you really bonked, when you were 30 or 45 seconds off pace and were another 2-3 miles down the road.

On the other hand, don't sweat it. Occasionally, for no obvious reason, your body will rebel and you simply will not be able to get out of it what you wanted. On those days, take what it'll give, then soften your training over the next few days to allow some recovery.


True. I guess I had been running closer to 6:55 or 7 flat in the miles right before that though so 7:20 seemed like it was heading the wrong way fast. But true, it's not that far off. Something to consider.
Still, the next day i had to cut my run short after 1.5 miles because my quads were wasted from the long run.

In any case, I see what you are saying and agree. I'll take it as a positive as i move forward and recover.