What Happens When You Take Time Off From Running?

Physiological effects of 2-4 weeks of detraining

VO2 max: down 4-10%
Blood volume: down 5-10%
Heart rate: up 5-10%
Stroke volume: down 6-12%
Flexibility: Decreases
Lactate threshold: Decreases
Muscle glycogen levels: down 20-30%
Aerobic enzyme activity: Decreases
Running economy: Unchanged

-Pete Pfitzinger

MY COMMENT: According to Pfitzinger, "most elements of your fitness go down at about the same rate at which they go up."

My theory, based on personal experience, is that after 3 or so days off, you need 3 days of training for every additional day you miss before regaining your original level of fitness. In other words, miss 10 days and you'll be back to normal in about 3 weeks.

A Long Lost Training Partner is Found!

I recently reconnected with Sean Dunlap, an old training partner from my days in Okinawa. In those days, Sean was an enlisted airman with a beautiful running style and decent speed that made me jealous. Looks like nowadays he has changed gears by moving up to some very serious long stuff.

Not only is Sean a good runner, as you'll see by reading incleanair he is also a very talented, entertaining writer.

Moving to South Korea!

Tomorrow I head off to S. Korea to do health promotion for the US Army. I've been there once before- I raced the DMZ half marathon in 2005 or so. I have to say of every place I've lived, Sequim Washington has been my favorite place to train- the combination of moderate climate and soft wooded trails has me completely spoiled. I will miss it dearly.

I jogged 3 miles in the woods today one last time- and my hamstring seemed to hold up. Maybe this time off for travel is just what I need to get healthy. I'll keep you posted!

Check out the running club at seoulflyers.com.

Racing and Ibuprofen

Those runners who’d popped over-the-counter ibuprofen pills before and during the race displayed significantly more inflammation and other markers of high immune system response afterward than the runners who hadn’t taken anti-inflammatories. The ibuprofen users also showed signs of mild kidney impairment and, both before and after the race, of low-level endotoxemia, a condition in which bacteria leak from the colon into the bloodstream. -nytimes

MY COMMENT: Clearly ibuprofen intake prior to and during marathons and ultras poses some serious health risks and no benefit in terms of reducing inflammation or pain (this study looked at Western States 100 competitors).

Some general rules on taking ibuprofen are:

1. Do not take ibuprofen before, during, or shortly after lengthy endurance exercise, especially when there is potential for dehydration.

2. Take ibuprofen with a full glass of water or milk, ideally with meals to avoid stomach irritation.

3. Do not combine ibuprofen with alcohol.

4. Do not take in combination with other medicines, supplements, or herbal products without first consulting with your physician or pharmacist.

5. Avoid if you have a history of any reaction or allergy from another anti-inflammatory medication.

6. Discontinue use immediately if you notice any of the following symptoms: urine that is cloudy or bloody, pain or burning in the stomach, diarrhea or black tarry stools, severe nausea, indigestion or heartburn, vomiting blood.

7. Do not use if you are pregnant or breast-feeding.

8. Talk to your doctor first if you have high blood pressure, liver or kidney disease, heart failure, ulcers or other stomach problems.

-Iburpofen- Friend of Foe (article I wrote a few years ago)

Running Without Shoes-Comparison

Watch the dramatic change in running style with and without shoes in the same runner! Some believe this is just one of many factors contributing to the dominance of African distance runners, many of whom reportedly do lots of barefoot running as youngsters.



Before you go off and try to convert to a mid or forefoot strker, read what The Science of Sport has to say.

Why would you want to change your foot landing to begin with? Science has little to offer you in support of this. And so my advice, having read this far (well done!), is to forget about the possibility that you're landing "wrongly", and just let your feet land where, and how they land, and worry about all the other things you can when you run!

If there is one thing you change in your running, don't focus on your footstrike, but rather on WHERE your feet land relative to your body

Frank Shorter Interview- 1980s

Entertaining 1980s interview with Olympic gold medal winner Frank Shorter as biomechanics expert Gideon Ariel analyzes Frank's running form. I like the point he made about the disadvantage of excessive head movement. Frank also points out the knowledge gap that existed in those days between research and runners.

Training Update

The news is not good. I've been trying to jog with this hamstring problem and realized that I am probably doing more harm than good. It's not getting any better and admittedly feels worse afterward. Against my better judgement, I jogged the 5K fun run last night but am paying for that now. I am shutting down the running until I feel it's completely healed.

The Myrtl Strength Routine for Runners

This is a nice exercise routine for runners by Jay Johnson. The focus is on improving general core strength in addition to hip range of motion, something that could benefit all runners, especially those who are over 40.

Running Times: Part 1 from CoachJayJohnson on Vimeo.

Ryan Hall Runs "slightly uphill" Mile 13 in 4:27 For The Win

Ryan Hall's final race prior to the 2009 ING New York City marathon was a successful won as hammered the final 1.1 miles to break away from three Kenyan competitors and win the ING Philadelphia Distance run in 61:52. letsrun.com

1. Ryan Hall 1:01:52
2. Samuel Ndereba 1:01:57
3. Benjamin Limo 1:02:02
4. Valentine Orare 1:02:22
5. Mike Sayenko 1:05:05
6. Josh Cox 1:05:10
7. Andrew Dumm 1:05:42
8. Lee Troop 1:05:43
9. Joel Mwaura 1:05:48

Geb Hits "The Wall" But Still Wins Berlin

Great analysis of Geb's world record attempt at The Science of Sport. 15:57 for the last 5K (his 5K splits between 25K and 35K were 4:35 each!) 2:06:08 was the winning time.

The Economics of Big City Marathons

SEATTLE - (September 9, 2009) - The summer's inaugural Rock 'n' Roll Seattle Marathon and Half Marathon, a signature event in partnership with Seafair, produced an economic impact of $30.8 million, according to a third party study conducted by San Diego State University (SDSU) study.

Visiting runners alone brought over $18.9 million in direct spending from outside the region, including expenditures on food, travel, lodging and entertainment -runningusa

MY COMMENT: Very impressive for a sport that doesn't include touchdowns or home runs. Can we run our way out of a recession?

10 x 800 Interval Workout - Ryan Hall

Ryan Hall leads the workout- 10 x 800 meters with 60 seconds recovery- at 7,700' elevation! Forgetting the corny warm-up drills, this is a workout that I've been doing the last several years and consider an essential component of marathon training- right up there with long runs. Watch a video of Ryan's workout on flotrack.

By the way, what is Josh Cox training for next anyway? Another guy that seldom races.

High School Cross Country Individual Rankings

Check out the top 25 high school cross country runners in the US- according to www.dyestat.com. Then get out and watch a meet! High school cross country, in most if not all areas of the country, could use all the support it can get. Dyestat is the place on the web to follow high school cross country, regionally and nationally. You'll be amazed at the level of young talent out there!

boys rankings

girls rankings

2 Fastest Marathons of All Time Go Head to Head in Berlin This Weekend!

Marathon world record holder Haile Gebrselassie (2:03:59) is facing a stiff challenge Sunday in Berlin. Not only will Gebrelassie be attempting to break his record once again, he'll be facing Kenyan Duncan Kibet, who has run the 2nd fastest marathon all-time with his 2:04:27 at Rotterdam.

Gebrselassie thinks that he can at least slice off another 30 seconds from
his present marathon record. "If everything fits together perfectly then
may be even 2:02:59 would be possible," says the Ethiopian, who is going
for a record fourth consecutive victory at the real,- BERLIN-MARATHON -marathonguide.com

You can watch this one live at universalsports.com starting at 2:50 am EST.

ING Philadelphia Distance Classic

This half marathon is shaping up to be a very good one that I'll want to watch. American record holder Ryan Hall (59:43), who only races 4 or 5 times a year, will get an opportunity to gauge his fitness leading up to the New York Marathon. A couple of other guys I'll be interested to watch:

Simon Bairu, who is making his half marathon debut. As a Wisconsin Badger, Bairu was a 2 time NCAA cross country champion, and currently trains with "the Schumacher group" in Portland. He is also racing in New York.

Josh Rohatinsky, also an NCAA cross country champion for Brigham Young (coached by Ed Eyestone). I saw Rohatinsky racing quite a bit last year during the indoor season, clearly attempting to improve his speed over shorter distances. Rohatinsky got 9th in the US Olympic Trials marathon and 7th in the 2008 New York Marathon. He is also a member of the Nike "Schumacher group".

You can watch a podcast live at competitor.com. The race kicks off Sunday at 7:35 am EST.

Running With Injury

When can you run with an injury? You can sum up the answer to that question with the following: Listen to your body!

As I mentioned in the previous post, I developed some kind of hamstring strain on Tuesday. On Wednesday, I could tell there was no way that I could run, but the bike felt ok. Today, I went out for a very slow 50 minutes- and I mean not much faster than brisk walking.

I can feel discomfort with every step, however it didn't feel any worse the longer I went and I wasn't favoring it or limping. Unless it feels worse tomorrow, I will try to extend the distance. One fact is clear: it will be several days before I think about pushing the pace or any kind of interval workout.

I've always felt that complete rest until all symptoms or levels of discomfort are gone is not necessary, especially when soft tissue injury is involved. You do what you can, even it means walking, and then add cross training. Go for time and forget distance. The longer the better.

When should you NOT run?
- in the presence of sharp, uncomfortable pain
- when significant swelling is present
- when pain causes limping
- when pain becomes worse during or following a run

Icing the area afterward is also a good idea.

Hamstrung!

I've had tightness in my right hamstring for years. It's something that I just learned to live and run with. No pain, just tightness that on occasion feels tight enough that it throws off my bio mechanics on that side during hard running.

Recently I decided to attempt some electrical stimulation, heat, and stretching to loosen it up. Last night I had to shut down just short of 2 miles during a 5K time trial due to hamstring pain. It is still bothering me today but I was able to get in a 90 minute bike.

I don't think it's anything serious, but you never know. I probably overdid the stretching and have some micro tears in the muscle. I'll see how it feels tomorrow, but realistically I hope to be back running by Friday. The lesson? Don't do anything too extreme when it comes to stretching! Work into it gradually and don't force.

Running Shoes Under $50

Today I decided it was time to order some new running shoes. Sticking to my policy of not paying more than $50, I eventually ordered 2 pair from Amazon- one for racing and one for training.

Men's Adidas Supernova CHS 7- $37.76



.... Brooks Mach 9 Spikeless -$34.95-












I also ordered a 3 pack of New Balance socks for $12

Training Update

Monday Sept 14: easy 30 min jog followed by 8 x 75 meter strides. I've been making it a point to include these strides on a regular basis on easy days. I stop before stressing my anaerobic system- advice from Arthur Lydiard. Tomorrow is the weekly 5K time trial.

The Marathon Collapse Point Theory

I've been in the sport for a long time, and over the years have collected a substantial library of books about running and training.

Recently, I took at look at one called 1975 Marathon Handbook, which believe it or not includes a U.S. list of all sub-3 hour marathoners in 1974.

The 1975 Handbook includes an article that describes Ken Young's "Collapse Point Theory", which goes like this:

Training mileage over the previous 6-8 weeks sets the limit of how far one can hold a fast pace. That limit is about 3 times the daily average. After that point, the pace slows dramatically, and the runner may even have to stop.

In other words, a runner that averages 9 miles a day for 6-8 weeks has a collapse point of 27 miles.

Supporting the theory is a look at the old Oregon's Trail's End Marathon by researcher Paul Slovic. Generally, here is what he found:

1. Sub 3 hour runners averaged 9 miles a day
2. 3 to 3:30 hour runners averaged 6 miles a day
3. 3:31 to 4 hour runners averaged 5 miles a day
4. 4:01 and up runners averaged 4 miles a day

Further analysis showed that the average pace of Group One dropped 14% in the last 6 miles. Group Two slowed 22%, Group Three slowed 37%, and Group Four slowed down by 58% after the 20 mile mark.

Here is another way to look at it- if you average 40-50 miles a week, your collapse point will occur between 18-20 miles. You'll finish, but you are also likely to experience a significant slowdown the last 6 miles.

Clearly talent, pace, the number and length of long runs, environmental conditions, the course, and other factors play a role, but I wouldn't be surprised if this 70s Collapse Point Theory still applies to most marathon finishers today.

Training Update- Long Run

Sat Sept 13: Went for an easy run and discovered my legs were totally wiped out from yesterday's intervals. Barely made it 25 minutes. Went for an hour on the bike instead and felt wonderful!

Sun Sept 14: 12 miles in 90 minutes on pavement. Another long run off the trails. I plan to increase this gradually.

If You Think You Need Electrolytes- READ THIS!

1.Sweating causes some sodium loss, but because the sodium content of sweat is so low relative to body fluids, your sodium concentration will rise. And it is the concentration that is important, since this controls fluid shifts in the body. It is NOT possible, even for a "salty sweater" like Randy in these scenarios, to LOSE sodium through sweat.

2.Rather, we have demonstrated that the only possibly theoretical way that the sodium level can fall is if Randy drinks too much. If he drinks more than he sweats, then he will really be in a lot of troube. For example, if Randy took Gatorade's earlier advice and drank 40 Oz per hour (1.2 L), then his sodium levels would fall to 125mM

Anybody considering a marathon or beyond should read this interesting post on fluid and electrolyte replacement. Take the time to read through the facinating debate on this subject that follows. The Science of Sport

There are companies out there now (Enlyten, Ultima Replinisher) that market electrolyte replacement as essential for optimal performance, even more so than carbohydrate (which is absurd!)

Training Update 12 x 400

I went back to the 400s- a little easier on the body than those grueling 800s, and I wanted to work on turnover and biomechanics of running faster again. No expectations on times. I looked back at the 400s I did on July 23. I felt some tenderness in my right hamstring. Remember, these 400s are on the Oly Discovery Trail and a little short- you can do that once you are over 50!

Sept 12.....July 23

81..........80
79..........78
81..........80
79..........80
81..........81
78..........79
79..........80
78..........78
78..........80
77..........77
80
77

Hamstring Exercise for Runners

Last year I posted a youtube clip of a good exercise to increase hamstring eccentric strength.

I found another great clip using the Bosu Ball that takes this exerise one step further-using those hamstrings to bring yourself back up to the starting position- this woman (Ooos- second look and it appears to be a guy!) makes it look so easy!



I'd be doing this but just haven't figured out a way to anchor my feet.

Training Update- Sept 10

Today I did something I haven't done in months- a 10 miler on the roads! Nearly the entire summer, other than a handful of interval workouts, I have done every single run on trails. There is a huge difference- on the roads I probably average a min per mile faster at a similar heart rate.

This will take some time to get used to- ideally you should mix up your workouts so you get some of both. I also noticed today that my bum hamstring (I've had a right hamstring issue for years) was extremely tight today- I assume this is due to yesterday's bike ride.