Eblo

My running fuel plan, generally for runs between 10-20 miles

First off, this plan works FOR ME. It's based on an abstraction of all that I've read, been told, and experienced regarding running stupid distances which, compared to real experts, is minimal. I am NOT an expert. I am NOT suggesting this will be of any use to anyone. In the past, it seems to have worked OK for me. There might be a better plan, I'm just not smart enough to know what it is (yet). I'm a male with 14-22% body fat, depending on who you ask, am 5'-10", weigh around 174-184#, keep a pretty good baseline of hydration, and except for recently, keep caffeine consumption to an occasional weekend cup of coffee. If this sounds EXACTLY like you, a) woah, b) this is still probably not the best plan for you.

Secondly, what you eat DURING a run is simply supplemental fuel - it's an emergency stash to get you through this stupidly grueling and wonderful thing you're doing to your body. The ACTUAL fueling happens BEFORE the run - a light meal about an hour ahead, smart dinner the night(s) before, etc. - but that's beyond my scope here.This is what I do to make sure I get home with a smile (wry as it may be) on my face. Similarly, post-run food is of major importance and is well beyond me to advise on. I've just had several people ask me what I consume DURING runs, so here it is.

Total consumed - 1 package Shot Blocks, 1 gel (Power Bar Tangerine w/ 50mg caffeine for me, please), Gatorade Endurance (has more salt than regular) as needed (generally 4 x 10oz fuel belt bottles), 1 Clif Bar (optional).

I carry fluid and sip when I think at all about fluids. If I ask myself if I'm thirsty, I am a little, so I drink. The exception to this, of course, is if the thought is, "Oh my GOD, will my stomach stop sloshing!" That's only happened twice, I think, and I believe that was due to improper hydration BEFORE the run. Be reasonable.

The 'food' schedule works as follows. The Shot Bloks come 6 to a package. Each of my servings is 2 pieces (I think suggested is 3). Between the Bloks and the gel, that gives me 4 'fuelings.' I take 2 Bloks about 20-30 minutes before the run and then either Bloks or the gel at each quarter of the run (usually by mileage, but time would also work). For a 16 mile run, for example, I'd have my first Bloks before the run, a second serving of Bloks around 4 miles, the gel at 8, and the last Bloks around 12. If I feel actual hunger anywhere in there, I go to the Clif Bar, but that does not usually affect the main schedule and if I have eaten a proper meal BEFORE the run, I only need it on the walk home.

For mileage above 20, I generally divide the run into 5ths and just tack on another gel. In this case, that Clif Bar becomes much more of a given in the 16-20 mile neighborhood - usually a bite at a time.

This has served me well with minor variation over two Marathons and countless training runs. I have yet to feel like I just plain ran out of energy doing this. Desire? Strength? Sometimes, but not energy.

Let me know if you have any thoughts or suggestions on this.

BTW, the Bloks and gels were in your pocket or pouch or pinned to your shorts BEFORE the run - make sure your trash is not on the trail AFTER your run!I know you have room.

This is only a test . . . .

Snowboarding @ Sunburst

This is only a test of a Google Gadget

This may or my not be a race I may or may not have run with My Darling Rose.

Boo!

Yet again, it's been far too long since I've posted here. Oh well. Blame Twitter and/or Facebook if you must. Quick hit-and-run run-down:

A) Em's great. I love that little girl. Words and photos fall miles short of describing her awesomeness.

B) I ran a marathon in April and I'm supposedly training for the Chicago Marathon in October, but I haven't run in almost 2 full weeks due to a creeping illness which has taken away all of my energy. Need to shake it off soon.

C) I never wrote a proper Illinois Marathon wrap-up. I thought I had one well underway, but all I can find now is my 'notes' file. Here it is:

<Quote>
What went wrong:
Inconsistency in first 10 (and throughout). a) Should have had 1-mile paces. b) park route was slow and passing was impossible c) 2nd half was hillier than expected.
Calf cramp - pre-race stretching? Water/nutrition?
Hip fatigue - stride?
Wind/uphills = mental. 9MPH headwinds on the uphill stretch around Mile 18-19.
Tingling in last 2-3 miles.

What went right:
Tim, Chris, Dennis.
Had gas left to sprint the end.
Weather (other than wind).
CROWD/VOLUNTEER SUPPORT!!!

Other points:
The Champaign Country Club mile SUCKED! My slowest mile.
Garmin was good, but it disagrees with reality. It gave me about 0.01 mile extra per course mile. At the end of the race, that added up to over a quarter mile of difference. It's minor, but noteworthy. Also, for whatever reason, my watch time differs from the official chip time but nearly a minute. I'm not sure how to resolve that.
<EndQuote>

My photos from the event.
Tim Borbely's photos from the event.

Oh and here, listen to this PODCAST about the Illinois Marathon: 061_2009IllinoisMarathonPodcast.mp3

D) Motorcycling:
i) Not ONLY motorcycling related, but everyone who drives should visit The Black Nail Brigade web site and in particular, read The Black Nail Brigade Manifesto. This is no joke. This is not a fashion statement. This is about life and death and the preservation and prevention thereof. Go. Read. Now. I'll wait for you.

ii) Been doing a bit of riding. Not much on the dual sport, but some here and there.

iii) Got waylaid by a minor accident in May when an ignorant woman pulled in front of me. You can search out details in my Flickr photo stream. I am well or at least really close to it, the bike is well, damage insurance has been settled, injusry insurance is still outstanding.

iv) Just bought tickets to the Moto GP races in Indianapolis at the end of August. This will be my first race experience ever, believe it or not - car, motorcycle, whatever. Should be a blast.

E) Computers - I've been burned out on technology lately in part because a seriese of hardware failures have just beaten the crap out of me both at home and at work. But I've lately heard about some interesting projects which have rekindled a bit of a spark. I no particular order of usefulness to my life, examples are: Xen, eyeOS, Evernote (used it before, using it more now), a cheap analog to digital video capture device from Woot!, some stuff with MythTV, and a few other things I've forgotten already. OLPC or something like it for Emily? Anyway, yeah, tech = cool.

F) Pets: Harrison died back in November. Not sure if I ever posted that. Also, a few months back we got fish. Now we have a TON of them. And a snail. I love watching them.

G) Flying. Have done NONE in a long, LONG time. Doesn't even look like I'll make it to Oshkosh this year. A bummer, but oh well. *sigh*

Ok, I'm running out of steam on this latest hit-and-run. As I always say, I'll try not to be such a stranger. Yeah, right.

Later.

Running Other Than When Chased

An interweb friend just asked me about getting started running. The question was:
I'd like to start running. Do I really need to do a walking plan first like i keep reading? I do yoga & spinning now and some walking 5/wk.

I thought I'd post my response here in case anyone else cared.

First off, I am by no means an expert. I'm still trying to figure a lot of this stuff out myself and rely heavily on google, pre-established *conservative* running programs, and listening to my body.

I did not start with a walking routine per se. I actually started with bicycling and gradually added in running, but my initial running - even just a mile - had a lot of walk breaks sprinkled in - pretty much out of necessity. The key, I think, is to NOT overdo it. It takes a while for the knees, ankles, feet, and even bones to get used to the impacts and motions of running even if your heart and lungs have a good base (mine didn't). It's vastly different from riding a bike. So if you overdo it, it'll suck, and you'll never want to do it again. That's what kept me from running before - the classic folly of waking up one morning, deciding I needed to get into shape, running 2 blocks all-out, dying, and crawling back to the couch.

So, yes, there will be, and should be, some walking involved I would say. But how much depends on the feedback from your body. Even now, there are some 'runs' where I just don't have it and end up walking a good third or more. But that gets into the mental side of running a bit, too. :)

I know you're not starting from 'the couch,' but if you google "couch to 5k," you'll find a lot of good beginner advice. Again, I suggest starting conservative. The forums at RunnersWorld.com are pretty good, too, though I haven't been over there in a while myself.

One thing I find invaluable in training is my heart rate monitor. Training by one properly takes a whole new set of google searches, and again I make no claims of being an expert, but once I got the basics down, it really helped keep me from over exerting and burning out.

I hope this helps in some way. If you've got more questions, shoot, but remember, I don't know what I'm talking about!

Good luck. Get going!