Playing with Intervals

I think I found my "sweet spot" as far as intervals go.  Today I ran 1:45 mins, walked 1:00 min.  And it cut 2 mins off my overall pace.  It's within "finishing" pace for my first marathon.

Early this year I decided that I would run my first marathon.  The half marathon distance had become "comfortable".  A few runner buddies decided to run the Rock N Roll San Diego Full.  It was time to face up to the challenge of 26.2 miles.

I've always used the Jeff Galloway Run/Walk/Run method.  In the beginning it helped me face the increasing distances with a plan.  I found that the active recovery of walk intervals helped me with fatigue and prevented injury.  I could do back to back half marathons with this method.  So I've turned to Jeff Galloway to train for the Marathon as well.  I chose the California International Marathon in Sacramento, CA for several reasons.  I needed a challenge and the 6 hour time limit is scary.  I DO want to FINISH, so I WILL push myself to be better.

The training method suggested that I run 1 min, walk 1 min.  But I was finding that I was SOOOO slow.  I'd NEVER finish the marathon at the 15:45 pace that I was ending up with.  So I've slowly increased the running interval over the last few weeks.

I also found an EXCELLENT walk/run pace calculator at Endocrinology Online.  I could put in my desired finish time,  my walk pace, my chosen intervals and it told me the pace that my run intervals needed to be.  I applied that info to the intervals today and I was faster!!!  And it didn't feel like that much more effort.

Math is a REALLY great tool when you are frustrated with your running results.  

Paleo and Running: what has it done for me?

"You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you stop to look fear in the face."

                                          --Eleanor Roosevelt

My 6th half marathon was the Silver Strand Half marathon.  It was also my second half marathon that I've run paleo.  I've been asked what being Paleo has done for my running.  I initially chose to start paleo for weight loss and to help with recovery.  I had heard that there were elite runners, like Dean Karnazes, who also run Paleo.  So for more than 90 days now, I've followed the restrictions of the Paleo diet: No soy, dairy, legumes, processed grains or sugars or oils.  And I have seen a difference.  

My legs felt incredibly strong on race day.  I had also included hillwork in the last 3 weeks (after half marathon 5, the San Jose Rock N Roll) so I'm sure that training helped build muscle in my legs.  I attribute the quick recovery and increase muscle growth to paleo though.  Its difficult to NOT be high protein on a diet based on fat burning.  

The high fiber, high water content that comes with eating a diet of whole foods, ensured that I was also well-hydrated on race day.  Dehydration can be such a huge factor in race day performance.

Knowing that my diet was well-balanced and HEALTHY led to a confidence that makes the biggest difference.  I didn't wonder if what I had eaten in the days before would lead to GI distress on race day.  Poor diet mixed with nerves can be a terrible combination when you're trying to run your best race.  You don't want to be stopping at every single port-a-potty on the course.  The paleo diet purposely eliminates all foods that can cause irritation and bloating.

Today is the second day after the race and I feel great.  I do have muscle soreness, but my legs feel STRONG.  This is in direct opposition to the halfs that I've run where my muscles are literally DYING because they were consumed in the effort.

I hope that my experience allows anyone who is considering to run paleo to feel confident that others have had positive experiences.

You're crazy if you like hillwork

I love a flat course just as much as I love breaking a Personal Record.  And usually they go hand-in-hand.  But I've hit a speed bump in my pace.  I'm slow, and probably always will be.  I'm asian, our people aren't known for breaking world records in the running community.  But I want to get faster.  I've trained for endurance the last 6 months, and I've changed my diet to help with recovery.  Now it's time to face the fact that without speedwork, I'm not going to get any PRs anytime soon.  And as Legendary Runner Frank Shorter once said, "Hills are Speedwork in Disguise".

I've never focused on getting faster, just finishing.  It was enough to cross that finish line and get my medal.  I did earn some PRs along the way, but I want to beat my current PR of 2:48 earned at the Inaugural San Diego Half Marathon in 2012.  So adding hillwork is new to me, and I've had to do a bit of research.

Two great articles on hillwork can be found at:

• Active.com : Speedwork in Disguise.  To paraphrase a portion of the article, speed doesn't come from the foot pushing off the ground.  It comes from the ability to bring the opposite leg forward FASTER.  Hillwork is resistance training and makes the hip flexors STRONGER and able to react FASTER.  
• Running Times Magazine: Hit the Hills.  Besides having great descriptions of different types of hill workouts, this article addresses an additional benefit of hillwork: Improved form.  Running hills will tire you out and mimic the fatigue that comes with the end of a race.  If you practice maintaining proper running form during these workouts, you're working towards running injury free, running faster and having a GREAT finish line photo.

As for my race training, I plan to add Hill Sprints at the end of one of my weekly short runs and my distance runs will be Hilly Up-Tempo Runs.  I'm not looking forward to the WORK but I am looking forward to the RESULTS.

Faster then Lightning . . . I wish

Video rights belong to DJ Steve Porter

Usain Bolt may not run more than 200 m for his medals, but all runners share his drive to be faster.  Runner's World Magazine had a great article on "Finish Strong: Ending workouts and races faster than you start them for a physical and mental boost".  The article coaches runners to try for a negative split in their workouts and races.  Negative Splits are where you end your race at a faster pace than you started.  You start at a slow pace and gradually over the miles build up to a faster pace.  This is such great advice!  Nothing makes you feel better than crossing the finish line sooner than you expected.  My personal advice to make this easier: create your running playlist for your ipod/mp3 player with songs that increase in beats per minute (bpm).  Start with songs that you can easily jog too, then continue to add songs that make your stride faster.  If you just stick to the beat and maintain good form while running, you'll be on your way to negative splits and new Personal Records!  I recommend using a bpm analyzer like Mixmeister BPM Analyzer to find the bpm of your favorite running songs.  Then you can rearrange them to fit the needs of your race plan.

Just as a side note: I'm running the San Jose Rock n Roll Half Marathon the same day this post goes live.  My race playlist starts with the song in the video above.  PUMP PUMP GET LOUD and wish me luck!