In Running with the Buffaloes it talks about Wetmore being quite concerned with his athlete's weights and wanted them to be very skinny, and often skipping lunch. How did these guys apparently not eat that much but run so much. I'm interested because at 5 9 140lbs I'm not super skinny or that big, but wouldn't mind losing a few. Like Viren said "I want to look like a plucked chicken". Any insight?
Get some rice cakes fat ass.
As a Type A runner myself who at 5'10" has gotten as low as 125 lbs, I can say that it is one of those methods that is highly effective in the short run, particularly the longer the distance. However, in the long run your body inevitably breaks down, either through injury or chronic fatigue. You simply cannot keep cranking out 100+ mile weeks with a daily caloric deficit indefinitely. That said, the "short term" can carry you for a good while, so it is perhaps not surprising that someone operating on a collegiate calendar might advocate some degree of calorie restriction.
I do not follow college XC that much, so I cannot comment on current and former CU runners, but it would be interesting to see if the physical breakdown(s) witnessed by the likes of Ritzenhein and Goucher are fairly common Buff alums. Just a thought.
I recall Wetmore talking about weight back in the mid 90s ... basically talking about how many calories we eat, vs how many we need to survive vs how many calories an elite African runner eats, etc. I was 6'2" / 145lbs at the time and was getting hungry just listening to his talk. In all honesty, it seemed a bit extreme then and now.
If you think Wetmore's ideas can cause problems with the guys, imagine the horrors it causes with his female runners. Talk to any woman who's run at CU and you'll hear tales that will make you want the guy to be locked up.
Are you a fatty?
I give Wetmore credit for saying what he truly feels will make his athletes the most successfull. Like if if you were a race horse trainer I am sure you would keep your horses lean and mean.
I'm a fatty, 5'6', 140lbs, 10% body fat. If I was 125 pounds I'd be dead..:)
Alan
Runningart2004 wrote:I'm a fatty, 5'6', 140lbs, 10% body fat. If I was 125 pounds I'd be dead..:)
Alan
I'm kinda fat just like you, at 5'7" and 147 lbs.
I've often toyed with the idea of dropping a few pounds to see if I could run faster, but this is the weight my body wants to be. Hasn't varied more than a pound or two for about 15 years.
Also, I like food too much to be able to lose much weight.
CO-Runner wrote:
I recall Wetmore talking about weight back in the mid 90s ... basically talking about how many calories we eat, vs how many we need to survive vs how many calories an elite African runner eats, etc. I was 6'2" / 145lbs at the time and was getting hungry just listening to his talk. In all honesty, it seemed a bit extreme then and now.
I have to agree with you. I used to diet and try to eat/look like African runners (didn't really work out!) The thing is though, the African runners are used to getting by on what we would deem lower calorie diets for their entire lives, so they are better able to hard physical labor (i.e. running) with less calories. American kids tend to grow up eating more calories than African kids do at the same activity level. So when you get to 20 years old and try to reduce your calories and eat like an African and still train hard, your body cannot handle it longer term.
I ran for CU in 1999, I came from HS and was about 6'4, 150 lbs. when I left the team, I was 6'4 and 170lbs and lean, about 5-6% body fat. I ran in the low 14s and 29s. my 800 pr was 1:53:xx.
Vigil is also concerned about the weight of his runners. I don't know what he says to them, but when I saw him speak at a clinic once, he made a comment to the effect that a day you don't run is a day you don't eat.
I don't think the Africans really starve themselves. In "Train Hard, Win Easy" Tanser notes that the Kenyans eat huge portions, and sometimes several of them at most meals. He also mentions that many of their stews were very oily.
It's more genetics than anything, some people just have naturally quick metabolism. Probably due to greater pysical activity at a young age.
Another factor in the "Kenyan vs CU look" issue is the actual calories one eats.
Kenyans eat (or at least claim they eat) ugali at every meal. This is corn flour paste, almost like polenta but vicous.
Nutrition is brushed off in most athletic discussion, but the type of calories your average US athelte consumes are much higher in sugar, salt, oil and fat.
Eat less processed foods and you will naturally lose a few pounds, no matter how thin you are.
Start reading labels - you will gain a lot of insight into what you are eating, and can make better choices.
Buffs wrote:
In Running with the Buffaloes it talks about Wetmore being quite concerned with his athlete's weights and wanted them to be very skinny, and often skipping lunch. How did these guys apparently not eat that much but run so much. I'm interested because at 5 9 140lbs I'm not super skinny or that big, but wouldn't mind losing a few. Like Viren said "I want to look like a plucked chicken". Any insight?
Funny how my perspective has changed since I backed off and became a casual runner.
At 5'11" I had 4.75% body fat (dexa scan) at 145 lbs. My face was hollow and my wife, friends, parents (especially), etc. thought I looked sickly.
I am now 165, and still skinnier than nearly everyone I meet. Trust me, at 5'9" and 140 you ARE super skinny.
i had a friend who was 5' 11" and 118 pounds at one point in his running career. He was a stick. Very fast though.
"...like a skeleton with a condom stretched over it," is about as vivid as Wetmore could get.
Ernst Van Aaken was even more extreme.
i'm 6'4 and 155... i'd say that im skinnier than all of you bastards
CO-Runner, what were your PR's then as opposed to now?
When I was 5'10/5'11 and weighed 138-142, I was in the best shape of my life. Now I weigh more than 10 pounds more than that and I am still fast, but I just don't float like I used to. Running when I was 140 just seemed effortless and smooth; now I feel a little awkward, despite the miles I'm putting in.
im 5'10 / 135 and think it would help to get down to 130