Epic stories and good running tales by GreteHund and mo’pak! Inspirational! Thank you!
Epic stories and good running tales by GreteHund and mo’pak! Inspirational! Thank you!
Rtype wrote:Epic stories and good running tales by GreteHund and mo’pak! Inspirational! Thank you!
+1
Really great stuff this week. You guys really keep me motivated and focused on getting better. Thanks!
Mo'pak, even amongst your legendary adventure posts, this is one helluva story! Kudos!
Gretehund, I particularly want to thank you for sharing your progress towards running NYCM. Marathons are such a crap shoot. My one friend who has successfully learned how to negotiate the marathon says that every good marathon that he's run has been a negative split. Also, this week I read a nice article that was posted earlier this year on the competitor website; it might provide some insight.
http://running.competitor.com/2013/07/training/setting-a-realistic-marathon-goal-time_79229but then in September they followed up with this cautionary article:
http://running.competitor.com/2013/09/training/3-reasons-why-you-should-not-run-a-marathon_42291/2I had a productive PT session this week, and I'll talk about it more on Sunday. Only bad part is that he mentioned "sports hernia" for the first time, although he cautioned that he doesn't think we're at a point to consider it quite yet. Sure hope it ain't so. Also, been thinking an awful lot about ellipticals.....hmmmmm.
Cheers!
GreteHund, a few stats for you to think about while reflecting on your NY Marathon.
Male race winner G.Mutai ran 2.08.24.
His fastest marathon times are 2.03.02, 2.04.15, 2.04.55, 2.05.06 (NY CR), 2.05.10, 2.07.01.
2d placegetter T.Kabede ran 2.09.16.
His fastest times are 2.04.38, 2.05.18, 2.05.19, 2.05.20, 2.06.04, 2.06.10, 2.06.30, 2.06.40, 2.06.43, 2.06.52.
Wow, Mr. Consistency!
Female race winner P.Jeptoo ran 2.25.07.
Her fastest times are 2.20.14, 2.20.15 (this year).
This disparity of NY times to best marathon times is reflected through most of the elite field. For whatever reason running as fast a marathon as you might expect was unlikely to happen.
Your 3.27 would seem to be equal to perhaps 3.19-20 on another day and another course.
Who's making the journey to Bend OR for Club Nats XC Dec 14th? Great opportunity to connect before during after the 10k grind over genuine xc terrain. There will be no need for clocks.
KP - hopeful M50 BAC Teammate
Loved the stories of GreteHund and KP! Rock on.
I'm back down to just over 20 mpw after getting consistently over 30 for a few weeks.
The electrical heart/irreg beat problem has come back a bit. Gotta back off the darn coffee/sugar/alcohol.
1 cup coffee per day, maybe total 3 drinks (glass of wine) per week, and general avoidance of sweets and I have no problems.
It was Dia De Muertos in Oaxaca where I live, a three day festival, and I partied a bit.
It's also been 2 years since I've seen my cardiologist, time for a visit/check up.
John Tuttle, '84 Olympic marathoner and great masters runner has the same problem as I. He's had the minor surgical procedure to correct the electrical heart problem twice.
I'm trying to control it with Taurine and Magnesium which generally works.
I'm no John Tuttle, but with lifetime bests of 1:57 800 and 4:01 1500, I still hope for some good age group runs!
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Week 126
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Hello 50+ers. Well, another week, another set of exercises, no real changes in abdominal discomfort, and not seeing an horizon on the current trajectory (my perception, at any rate). As I mentioned mid-week, my PT guy uttered "Sports Hernia" ("athletic pubalgia" would be the term professionals prefer, because it's not a true hernia), but assured me that we're not there yet. However, the new set of exercises that he gave me this week suggests to me that we're about where we started, and nothing has really improved. He added single-leg squats, standard plank and side planks to my routine; but I also am to raise one leg 10x then switch, rest 30-s and repeat 2-3 times. The squats and side planks are fine and I complete 3 sets, but I only get through the first set of the standard plank before struggling to complete the second set, and it leaves my lower-right abdominal region sore for the next day. I think I might have to back off these and do them only every other day. Here's a couple of links to what I'm talking about regarding sports hernia:
http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topic=A00573
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3069511/
Some people improve by just PT, but that's not the norm. The good news about surgery, if we need to go that route, is that it is highly successful. We'll see how things evolve.
In the mean time, managed a meager 13-1/2 miles on three easy-to-moderate runs (OK, I busted loose for a 1/2 mile last Sunday). My running generally goes like this: feels tight and a little uncomfortable at the start; loosens up around mile 1; I make it a few more miles; then things start tightening up again. The PT guy says that this is fine and I can continue to engage in running so long as I finish my runs when things start to tighten up again. So I will muddle onward for now, knowing that there are options.
So I may sound a bit down, but truthfully, all things considered, I still consider myself pretty lucky in that if PT doesn't workout, there is still a highly successful second option....and it's not like any of this is life threatening, so I'm good.
That's all I've got. Best wishes wherever you're at.
Cheers!
I really enjoy all the tales of racing, training, and travel. Please keep them going! I benefited greatly from the encouraging posts during my long spell of injury and inactivity; thanks for those as well. LucKY, you have the right mindset. I'm glad there are options for you that have optimistic outcomes.
As for me, more of the same type of training. I'm definitely getting stronger and faster. I did a brutal workout yesterday in that my legs were cement blocks when I slowly walked out of the gym. 1 mile warmup, dynamic drills, plyos, 8x50m with the last 4 @ 100% effort, then a set of crunches, planks, pushups, and weighted lunges. Then I headed to the stretching area and collapsed...well, not quite, but I thankfully flopped down onto the mat and relaxed into my static stretches. The guy next to me had been running laps while I was doing my sprints, and he looked at me, shook his head, and said, "My god, you are fast!" That was sooooo nice to hear, and the cherry on top was waking up this morning and walking normally with no Achilles limp or tightness.
I am coaching my HS kids this afternoon and I plan to try a hurdle or two. You have to be able to sprint before you can hurdle; happily, I'm ready to hurdle.
Have a great week!
Decent week. I felt a little tired, runs were slower or harder than I thought they should be, sure enough, small drop in RBCs & hemoglobin. I'll find out the new % brother vs. me next week. Otherwise, feel fine except for wrist, I think I may have messed up the ligaments. If that's the case I'd have taken a broken wrist. X-ray and then maybe an MRI later this week to confirm.
Research side, this study came out about a week ago:
Effects of exercise training on tumor hypoxia and vascular function in the rodent pre-clinical orthotopic prostate cancer model.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24177690
Good stuff, supporting my exercise approach to cancer treatments. Now for some human studies!
I've been lurking but didn't feel I had much to offer. The Edgewood house has been gloomy for the past few weeks. I'm still not up to speed and my HS daughter had a stress fracture that kept her out of the state championship meet yesterday. Maybe a Foot Locker regionals trip is in order to finish her high school XC career. Good news is the boys team repeated the title going 1, 5, 6, 8, 12 while the girls squad finished 4th.
I still have discomfort but no pain from the lower back injury that kicked me to the curb in July. The soreness moves around from L hip/ leg to R shoulder and to the R quad. Guess I'm just a twisted guy. Still doing PT, yoga and massage. Changed up my weight routine to include leg extensions in all 4 quadrants done on a lat pull down machine and a velcro strap around the ankle. I am back to running 5x a week 2-4 miles at a time. I'm beginning to feel fluid again so just maybe...
I'm coming back around ya'll!
Edgewood
Did a nice faceplant while running downhill on a rocky trail in the Gorge. Mild concussion where you kind of slowly realize what just happened.Got my hands out pretty good(reflex) but took some impact force on the chin. Did finish the run pretty good.
I was trying out my GoRun Trails big mistake. Great traction too much protection which kept me from feeling that my right big toe was caught on a rock. Back to the original GoRuns I would rather slip and slide than lose the ground feedback. Too bad they did not just put a traction sole on the GoRun...hmmmm
Otherwise had a great week of training.
Even though I feel really good,taking an ez week just to be careful.
A modest 16 miles this week for me consisting of easy 4 mile runs for the last 4 days after just using my rowing machine the first 3 days of the week. My calf strain from my race last Saturday has felt noticeably better each day. This morning's run the leg felt pretty normal at about 9:00 mile pace. Yesterday, I ran the 2 middle miles of my 4 miler at 7:30 pace with my son, who showed me a bit of mercy because he had picked up a cold on his business trip at the beginning of the week. I expect the leg to feel at least 95% healthy by next week's XC series championship race.
Mon = 3 miles easy running
Tue = (25 push-ups/crunches + 15 reps with 15 lb dumbbells on 9 different exercises) X 2
Wed = 3 miles slow but felt hard due to catching a cold
Thr = Cold symptoms, rest
Fri = 3 miles running slowly, still sick
Sat = (25 push-ups/crunches + 15 reps with 15 lb dumbbells on 9 different exercises) X 2
Sun = 3 miles hard on mountain trails, cold easing up
12 miles running
Had a cold most of the week so all running felt hard. Still, continuing to improve my fitness and, thankfully, run pain-free. This morning, for the first time in a very long time, I could run as hard as I could stand it up the mountain. Nearly tossed my cookies and that actually made me happy!
lucKY2b wrote:
I think I might have to back off these and do them only every other day. ...
Some people improve by just PT, but that's not the norm. The good news about surgery, if we need to go that route, is that it is highly successful. We'll see how things evolve.
I think you need more time. If you go the non-surgical route, you shouldn't expect complete recovery for about a year(!!). And in the very short term, rest might be better than PT.
I had one with a visible bulge, got it trying to sprint into a 50mph headwind. I did self treatment as usual. Four weeks completely OFF, then easy running and elliptical for two months with gradually less elliptical. Ran my first marathon at six months based on one long run per week and the others just recovery runs. Later my beginner's marathon coach said it was painful just watching me try to run that first season.
My brother-in-law got his hernia playing volleyball, he's been competing at 2-man all his adult life but he wrecked it one night. This was a couple years before mine. I don't have the details of his PT, but he did not have the surgery and did not play volleyball again for about a year. So I had the benefit of knowing not to expect a quick recovery.
My nephew got his hernia doing splits as his practice for Tai Chi. This was last summer. He opted for the surgery a couple of months later and AFAIK he's doing fine. My sister is a little upset that he has a piece of plastic in his abdomen, but I think he was a good candidate for the surgery based on the damage he did.
The other thing you need is to figure out why you got this. The three examples I gave were acute injuries, very obvious why they happened. If yours is a chronic injury then you need to be extra cautious.
Week **127**: 6 hours 27 minutes in 7 runs.
A little jealous of Spikez and Rtype who seem to have done a better job with their recovery. I'm still having a nagging issue but have decided to train through it anyway. Will recover properly next summer.
This last week saw surprising steps forward for me. Reading this thread I realize that I am very lucky right now compared to some. Keep the faith, injured ones! Your time will come!! :)
M-20min jog + 4x30sec strides + 37sec push + 10min jog.
T-15min jog + 4x45sec strides + 3min surge + 10min jog.
W-16min jog + 4x60sec strides + 17:36 tempo + 10min jog.
T-no running.
F-20min jog + 6 short strides + 22sec push + 10min jog.
S-25min jog + 4x150m strides + 600m in 1:58 + 10min jog.
S-3k jog (16:24) + 4x60sec strides + 3k brisk tempo (11:06) + 2k jog (10:00).
I still dream of a 10min 3k next year. That pace felt good for 600m this week. I will try that pace for 800m soon. The Sunday 3k was a surprise, as I felt it was a similar effort to last week's 11:28!!
Happy Veterans Day (in a few short hours) to all of you posters/lurkers who have served the US in the armed forces.
A very nice recovery week for me. Lots of walking all over NYC and two easy 2 mile jog/walks in Prospect Park in Brooklyn. Plus, ate my way through NYC. So much great food...so little time! Back home and will follow Pfitzinger recovery plan which is a 5 week recovery buildup. Legs are fine. I just prefer to follow the recommended buildup plan and take some time to do non-running things for a few weeks.
Thanks again for all the words of post-race encouragement. I think the Pfitzinger 85 mile training plan was fine for me and would likely repeat this Spring and try again. I believe that the problem with tanking at mile 23 was food related. I was supposed to eat a minimum of 4 Gu's and drink Gatorade and I only had 2 Gu's and drank Gatorade once. I tend to reach for water. Also, I worked with a sports nutritionist this summer and worked out my pre-race meal for NYC and timing on eating it. I ended up only eating about half of what I was supposed to eat - excitement, nerves, etc.
Decided I will try again in April 2014 timeframe. So training will start again late Dec/early Jan.
Appreciated reading about other's events and training progress this week.
Congratulations to mo'pak on times posted on the 4 day mountain run event. Very fun read for this flat-landers! Your analysis on the other NYC runners times took a bit of the sting out of my finish time. Maybe the wind did affect me more than I think it did.
alan - my "Alan says I've got this" mantra worked great through 23!
Hope all the rehabing is working and injuries are fading. Enjoying reading the postings related to strength building workouts that people are doing. So much to learn from all of you!
mo'pak - would you have any recommendation on kayak wheels? I have an inexpensive plastic one-seater kayak and would like to be able to walk it down to the river launch area which is around a mile from my front steps. There is a pretty wide range in pricing - from $25 to $225 (US $) - so curious if you have any recommendations.
much thanks
Sorry GreteHund I don't use wheels as access points are all drive up and toss it in. One of my work colleagues is a high level paddler, I'll hit her up for some info on wheels when I catch up with her next.
GreteHund wrote:
mo'pak - would you have any recommendation on kayak wheels? I have an inexpensive plastic one-seater kayak and would like to be able to walk it down to the river launch area which is around a mile from my front steps. There is a pretty wide range in pricing - from $25 to $225 (US $) - so curious if you have any recommendations.
much thanks
I have a tandem kayak, which comes close to exceeding my weight carrying capacity. (My wife has some misaligned vertebrae, so I yell at her that I will turn her in to her orthopedist if she tries to carry anything heavy.) So I made my own set of wheels for the kayak. They are just an H-shaped frame where the two upper legs stick into the drain holes at the bottom of the kayak and the wheels on an axle at the bottom. I usually have to roll it a good distance to get to the beach with beach parking in my area. If you just are rolling on pavement, then almost any wheels will do. If you have to roll across soft ground, then wider wheels work much better than narrow wheels. Bigger diameter wheels work better than smaller diameter wheels. I would think that you should be able to get reasonably good quality wheels for less than $75.
GreteHund wrote:
There is a pretty wide range in pricing - from $25 to $225 (US $)
The most expensive wheels are least likely to still be there when you finish your paddle. :(
RIP: D3 All-American Frank Csorba - who ran 13:56 in March - dead
RENATO can you talk about the preparation of Emile Cairess 2:06
Rest in Peace Adrian Lehmann - 2:11 Swiss marathoner. Dies of heart attack.
I think Letesenbet Gidey might be trying to break 14 this Saturday
Running for Bowerman Track Club used to be cool now its embarrassing