Reasons NOT to run a Marathon

With Joe Garland, Matt, Colin Hayes and Flo I participated late this afternoon in a fun episode of the Runners Roundtable Podcast and truly enjoyed it.  The episode can be accessed either through RRT's website, through iTunes or directly through this link.

Sprint for Life 5K Race Report

Earlier this morning I enjoyed running M.D. Anderson's 13th Annual "Sprint for Life" 5K. Though a very experienced runner with numerous marathons, half-marathons and 10Ks under my belt, I'd never before run an officially timed 5K race. Consequently, a P.R. was assured!

In fact, I was somewhat concerned since I was hoping to run faster than my recent 4-mile P.R. pace of 6:40 minutes per mile - however the weather was decidedly uncooperative with a starting temperature of 75°F, clear skies and 90% humidity. Fortunately, I had an opportunity to warm-up beforehand with a fellow KenyanWay runner and to chat with a few friends - which appropriately re-focused me to simply have a good time.

Starting about ten runners from the lead I held my position. However, owing to the heat and my poor pacing I was unable to negative split as I had intended. My first mile split was 6:24, followed by 6:33, 6:44, following which I finished the final 0.11 miles at a 6:30 pace.  My overall 20:19 time was second in my age group and 11th place overall.

Afterward, I visited KenyanWay Sean Wade's excellent MyRunningTimes.com site, which computes WMA age-graded rankings for races and individuals.  Age-grading has the effect of adjusting runners' performances as if each individual were at their youthful peak (a fascinating concept by itself!) Unfortunately official race results aren't determined on this basis, as I would have been in 4th overall place!

Summing up, I rate the "Sprint for Life" 5K as an excellent Houston-area race. It is very well organized, fun, provides plenty of support on and off the course to runners & walkers - and most importantly all funds raised goes towards the excellent cause of supporting ovarian cancer research at M.D. Anderson.

BBC Video of a Persistence Hunt shows us to be Born Runners

Scientific evidence supports the notion that humans evolved to be runners. In a 2007 paper in the journal Sports Medicine, Dr. Daniel Lieberman, a Harvard evolutionary biologist, and Dr. Dennis Bramble, a biologist at the University of Utah, wrote that several characteristics unique to humans suggested endurance running played an important role in our evolution.

Most mammals can sprint faster than humans — having four legs gives them the advantage. But when it comes to long distances, humans can outrun almost any animal. Because we cool by sweating rather than panting, we can stay cool at speeds and distances that would overheat other animals. On a hot day, the two scientists wrote, a human could even outrun a horse in a 26.2-mile marathon.

Why would evolution favor the distance runner? The prevailing theory is that endurance running allowed primitive humans to incorporate meat into their diet.  They may have watched the sky for scavenging birds and then run long distances to reach a fresh kill and steal the meat from whatever animal was there first.

Other research suggests that before the development of slingshots or bows, early hunters engaged in persistence hunting, chasing an animal for hours until it overheated, making it easy to kill at close range. A 2006 report in the journal Current Anthropology documents persistence hunting among modern hunter-gatherers, including the Bushmen in Africa.  “Ancient humans exploited the fact that humans are good runners in the heat,” Dr. Bramble said. “We have such a great cooling system” — many sweat glands, little body hair.

The following exceptional BBC video by David Attenborough beautifully depicts the Kalahari Bushmen from Namibia and Botswana engaging in a persistence hunt.  This video well depicts the human hunter's ability to engage in an all-day hunt, with all of our evolutionarily-favored attributes being clearly shown, i.e. our: superior cooling, ability to reason (necessary to read the tracks of the prey to discern and deduce its movements) and the type of social and communication skills necessary in the lengthy stalking period leading-up to the chase and in carrying the animal back to the village. 

Boston Marathon Race Report

Earlier today I had the pleasure of running the 114th Boston Marathon. It was a great experience!

Having run Boston last year, and being disappointed by my inadequate preparation I incorporated significantly more hills and mileage into the preceding four months of training. My improved strength was clearly evident on Newton's hills, as I avoided last year's walk on the steepest section of Hearbreak Hill.  Additionally, in climbing hills I followed the advice by an experienced Boston-area coach who spoke at the Expo on Sunday.  He recommended that while climbing you should relax your abs, swing vigorously your arms, shorten your stride, and gaze a maximum of 15-feet ahead (i.e. however tempting, don't look-up to the top of the hill - since seeing the full height of the challenge can cause even a strongest runner to begin walking!)

The weather was a bit of a disappointment, though it was far better than it could have been! The temperature was between 52 to 56°F, with relatively clear skies and initially cross winds from the north, which unfortunately became more of a headwind as the race progressed.

I was very happy with the results as I amazingly managed to exactly tie my prior 3:19:37 personal record that I'd recently just set February in Austin! Having never tied a P.R., it was on the one hand frustrating (since even the slightest added effort along the 26.2 mile course would have given me an improvement to my personal record), but, on the other hand I was content since had I run even one second slower I would have been upset.  So, all in all I'm thankful for having done as well as I had, despite Boston's tough course, and particularly in overcoming my nagging right Achilles problem.

On reflection some things worked well while others did not. In the many areas that went well I credit my:

• Improved training , specifically the added mileage with good hills-specific training through generally following the excellent Kenyan Way training program and coaching by Sean Wade;
• Running on my Newton shoes, which I'm convinced help owing primarily to their light weight, their minimal heel, and the 'spring' action of the forefoot lug;
• Increasing my consumption of Gu's Roctane Vanilla/Orange to one packet every three vs. four miles, without bearing any adverse stomach-related side-effects. I'm convinced that the highly glycemic mixed sugars, combined with caffeine and amino acids, pay dividends in mitigating glycogen losses from the active muscles while enhancing my concentration and motivation.

Conversely, I had two distinct improvement opportunities:

• Though I generated a mymarathonpace.com pacing band beforehand, having every intent to use it, during the race I unfortunately reverted to running the course 'by feel' rather than with discipline. I inappropriately ran excessively hard during the first half marathon of the largely downhill course owing to my being overly ambitious in imagining a 4-minute P.R. potential. The adverse result of this fast downhill running was predictably felt in my quads which wouldn't permit me to step-up the pace on the excellent downhill segments running into Boston.
• Similar to my recent Houston Marathon experience I was excessively dehydrated upon completing the Boston course. This was despite drinking four or five ounces of Gatorade every two miles. Had I drunk double this amount it would have more closely matched my high sweat rate, and would have strengthened me in the late miles.

As was the case last year, the Boston Marathon spectators were hugely appreciated owing to their being unbelievably supportive and LOUD! While particularly true in the larger towns and cities along the course, and especially so at Wellesley College, I never felt unsupported along the entire course. The volunteers - of which there were literally tens of thousands - did an absolutely first-rate job, and bring huge credit to the most prestigious of marathons. I highly recommend the Boston Marathon to all serious runners!

Me crossing the finish line - exactly tying my marathon personal record!




Final results: Overall #4520/22645 (top 20%), Males #3994/13112 (top 30%), Males (50-54) #263/1868 (top 14%)

Memorial Park '4 the Park' Race Report

Following the Memorial Park Conservancy's "4 the Park" Fun Run fellow Texas Independence Relay DOGs Laura, Kim and I enjoy some healthy food and beverages. We had ample cause for celebration as each of us placed within our respective age groups in the 4-mile race event - despite very hot conditions (~70°F with 80% humidity).

Pictured are additional DOGs Paul and Rick crossing the finish line.


Post-race thoughts.  I was extremely happy upon crossing the finish line to realize that despite the heat I'd set a ~1-minute personal record.  Additionally, in extrapolating both today's race result and the recent Rodeo Run 10K using Dr. Jack Daniel's methodology suggests that my Boston goal of 3:15 is realistic.

The bottom-line, however, is the Memorial Park Conservancy's 4-mile fun run was a great event (see overall results); it was fun for the participants, and an excellent money-raiser for a very good cause.  I highly recommend this race!

2010 Texas Independence Relay

This weekend I ran the 2010 Texas Independence Relay (TIR) with a fantastic group of long-time friends - the 'DOGS'.  It was an absolute BLAST!

The TIR is a 203.2 mile long collection of forty "legs", each ranging from three to nine miles in length, and are run by teams consisting of as few as one or as many as twelve individuals (our situation, and the most common).  It starts in Gonzales, Texas and finishes at the San Jacinto Monument in a southeast Houston suburb.

In the TIR's vast distance it encompases much of the diversity of Texas - from its rural hilly farm land, to the wide rivers which span it, to beautiful parkland, to upscale suburban west Houston, to Houston's southeast commercial and industrial sights, to the impressive 570-foot San Jacinto monument that is the tallest monument column in the world.

Thanks to the combination of cooler weather than we'd seen last year, and more rest (a consequence of better planning and logistics), we collectively managed to significantly improve by 40-minutes our overall time to 27:32:56!

I had the honor of running the baton to the monument in the final leg, and the caution shared by my team was appropriate - just when you first see the monument (see photo) know that it's going to take a long, long time to reach it!  This advice was truly sound, and with my cumulative fatigue of running 23.6 miles at faster than marathon pace in four segments over two days on only three hours sleep I was truly eager to celebrate crossing the finish line - which we did!

This photo captures our happiness at the San Jacinto Monument following crossing the finish line.  For additional photos see the Webshots TIR-DOGs (best of collection) or the remaining set (part 1).  The entire team is looking forward to doing it again in 2011, and I highly recommend the relay race to anyone interested in having a fantastic time and adventure with a group of running friends!

ConocoPhillips 10K Rodeo Run Race Report!

This morning I had the privilege of running the ConocoPhillips 10K Rodeo Run.  The weather was generally good, with temperatures in the mid 40's, clear skies and relatively low humidity, with the only weather-related challenge being a stiff 10 MPH northerly wind.

Since the popular Rodeo Riders parade immediately followed the race there was a large and supportive crowd which was very motivating.  Hoping to perform well, and cognizant from prior Rodeo Run experiences of problems with congestion if starting further back, I lined-up within five feet of the start line.  As I had never before been within easy sight of the ultimate race winners I observed that group during the immediate minutes before the start, and was happy to see their relaxed collegiality and good cheer.

After the bang of the gun due to my not being obstructed as usual by slower runners, the loud cheers from the crowd, and the wind being at my back I knocked-out the fastest single mile I have ever run - 6:17!  Struggling for breath, however, I realized that I was foolishly allowing my high levels of adrenaline to drive me to an unsustainable pace, so of necessity I backed-off a bit in the second mile, running a more moderate but a still excessively ambitious 6:33.  The third and forth miles were my slowest and most challenging at 6:53 and 6:52 respectively owing to the combination of a strong headwind and significant elevation changes (due to our climbing a very long bridge over a decidedly non-scenic freeway and rail yard).  Upon turning around however, with the wind suddenly being at our backs I ran the fifth and sixth miles more easily, with a 6:47 and 6:48 mile.  Finally, owing to my rapidly growing fatigue it took all of my mental focus to slightly pick-up my pace in the final 0.21 miles to 6:42, and I ecstatically crossed the finish line with a time of 41:36 - a huge one-minute personal 10K record (set at last November's 'Turkey Trot')!

While I was obviously delighted with the race outcome, it is crystal clear that my initial scalding 6:17 mile and too fast second mile prematurely sapped my kick.  Being primarily a long-distance endurance runner most comfortable at the half and full marathon distances I neglected my coach's frequently repeated guidance, i.e. every runner should run the second half of every race or training run faster than their first (mine was 35-seconds slower).  In retrospect, in the initial mile had I glanced at my trusty Garmin Forerunner I could have made an immediate correction to my pace which would have paid dividends later.  Nevertheless, I was otherwise satisified since I did eventually back-down to a still-ambitious, but not excessive level of exertion.

Miscellany/Credit:

• Thanks to the Kenyan Way program and Coach Sean Wade.  Clearly my improved fitness is continuing to pay dividends.  Note: A shout of congratulations to the Sean who despite being 44 won today's overall race with a time of 31:27 (i.e. 5:04 average pace!)  It's rare to have an opportunity to be coached by someone who truely knows and loves their sport; it's even less common to see that knowledge superimposed on a life-long gifted athlete of his caliber.
• Thanks to the Rodeo Run volunteers and the huge Houston crowds for their support and encouragement.
• I happily noted afterwards that per Dr. Jack Daniels predictive correlations today's race result suggests that I should be able to achieve a 3:12 marathon.  While ambitious (my marathon personal record is 3:19) this points to the attainability of the 3:15 personal goal that I've set for April's Boston Marathon.
• Another P.R. on my Newton running shoes - which I continue to swear by on race day.
• Official stats:
• Average pace 6:42.
• Overall: 106/5414 (top 2%)
• Males: 96/2722 (top 3%)
• Division (50-54): 8/246 (top 3%)

Austin Marathon Race Report!

This morning I ran the Austin Marathon, and while I found the hills HUGELY challenging versus the much easier Austin course that I'd run five years ago I neverthless narrowly managed to eke out a personal record by one-second!

When I'd last run Austin five years ago the course was both faster and easier since it started twenty-miles north of the city and finished downtown, providing a gentle downhill for much of the course and an overall net elevation decline of more than 400 feet.  Unfortunately, the growing logistical challenges of busing race participants, and dealing with the frustration caused by traffic jams on the surrounding narrow roads in the north Austin area caused race organizers to adopt the current course - which is a technically challenging looped course through most of Austin's many hills (see link).  Nevertheless, though challenging the course was both interesting and achievable.

The race began with a pyrotechnics display directly over the start line.  In downtown Austin's pre-dawn darkness the pyrotechnics were spectacular, however due to the lack of wind the resulting fumes lingered in the starting area - which we were unfortunately forced to breathe as we started our run.

Quickly getting past the starting line the weather conditions were good, as fortunately a predicted cold front with accompanying strong winds and rain held-off until just after the marathon finished.  The sky was crystal clear, and as a result the temperature quickly rose from the initial mid 30s to the mid 50s - though perceptually warmer still owing to the high humidity.

As with other recent successful recent marathons I made the decision to run with a pacing group, on today's occasion the 3:20 group since I was hoping to beat my prior personal record of 3:19:38 set on Houston's flat course one-month ago.  The two Austin 3:20 pace group leaders did a fantastic job of keeping the group organized, motivated and encouraged.  They demonstrated incredible running discipline and strength by holding an extremely consistent pace - whether running up or down hills.  As I didn't possess the strength to easily match their pace on the steepest up-hills I ran behind the group at those points (though always keeping the group in sight), then caught them on the ensuing downhill.  Even more-so than in prior marathons the pacing group was pivotal in allowing me to set my narrow personal record.  Thanks again, pacers!!

Miscellany:

• Another P.R. on my Newtons!
• Encouraged by Houston's recent success I ramped-up even further my use of Gu's Roctane (to one every three - versus every four) miles. Again, no stomach upset or digestive issues.
• Credit, again, to the Kenyan Way training program for my clearly improved personal fitness.
• I successfully used ThinkGeek.com's "spy" sunglasses with built-in digital camera and remote control shutter release (in my hand throughout the race) to capture these photos.  While the picture quality is nowhere close to that provided by a conventional one-megapixel digital camera the quality was certainly acceptable!
• Official Stats:
  Overall: 221/4039 (top 6%)
  Males: 196/2462 (top 8%)
  Division (50-54): 6/202 (top 3%)