Dallas White Rock Marathon - Personal Record & Boston Qualifier!

Earlier today I had the fantastic experience of running the 2009 Dallas White Rock Marathon, and loved it!  My reasons:

• Beautiful course - especially around White Rock Lake.  I enjoyed the diversity between White Rock's nature and scenery and Dallas' urban landscapes;
• Great pacing groups!  The 3:20 group helped control my normal impulse to jack-rabbit the critical initial miles.  Though I could not hold onto the group past the two "Dolly Parton" hills at miles 19-20, I appreciated the group tremendously;
• Supportive Dallas spectators;
• The topography of the course provided a moderate - but not an overwhelming - challenge that added interest to the course.

During this marathon I managed to simultaneously accomplish five goals:

1. Personal Record with a 3:22:38 (by 3-minutes);
2. Boston Re-Qualification;
3. Marathon Maniacs Qualification;
4. Surpass 2009 miles during the 2009 calendar year!

5. Finish the marathon strongly (in the final six miles I passed 56 other marathoners, while only 3 passed me - link)

My pacing (not ideal, as I had a positive second-half split of 3:32):

• Through 10K @7:37 - perfect - running with 3:20 pacing group;
• 10K through Half @7:34 - minor mistake - too fast; ran a minute faster than the pacing group;
• Half through 20.1 Miles @7:52 - Ouch!  "Dolly Parton" hills were tough!  Unfortunately, I lost the pacing group in the distance;
• 20.1 through 26.2 Miles @7:51 - Kicked 'er in on the downhill stretch - feeling tired but in control.  Great support from Gloria, then as the clock ticked down I realized I'd just P.R.'d!

Factors which I credit for my White Rock P.R.:

• I was more diligent in following the KenyanWay program incorporating guidance provided by Coach Sean Wade.
• Losing weight!  Subsequent to my last P.R. at the Chicago Marathon two-months ago I'd lost five-pounds.  Importantly, I'd lost this weight not in muscle, but in fat.  Dr. Jack Daniels book and his VDOT correlations reveal the huge benefit of weight-loss to running performance (see this site for a great spreadsheet which simplifies the numerics).  Losing one pound of surplus weight translates - everything else held constant - to a predicted faster marathon time of one minute.  Adjusting for White Rock's two disadvantages - its hillier course and warmer temperatures - the correlation works as I believe a 3:20 would have otherwise been attainable.  Regardless, for both health and running performance reasons it's wise to lose those surplus pounds!
• My Newton stability trainer running shoes.

10K Uptown Park "Turkey Trot" - Great Experience & P.R.!!!

This morning I ran Houston's Uptown Park 10K "Turkey Trot", and again loved it!  The weather was perfect - temperature in the low 50's, sunny and clear.

I started-out well, with my initial mile, my slowest, at 6:50. From there, with the wind partially at my back the next two miles were my fastest - 6:37 and 6:49. Feeling strong, I turned-around, and held my pace constant the final three miles with a 6:51, 6:52 and a 6:51. Sprinting the final 0.2 miles I finished the race with a 42:34 time (6:49 average pace), which represented a 2-minute P.R., and placed me third in my 50-54 age group!

All in all, a great day!

Misc:

• Per Daniels' Running Formula this result shows my VDOT to be 48.3, predicting a potential Marathon time of 3:16!  Combining this incredible result with my recent Chicago Half Marathon result (which predicted  a full-marathon target of 3:19) I'm feeling more confident with the attainability of my 3:20 goal in the forthcoming Dallas and Houston Marathons.
• Another P.R. in my Newton shoes!

Why Exercise Makes You Less Anxious

Great NY Times article worth reading: "Why Exercise Makes You Less Anxious": http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/11/18/phys-ed-why-exercise-makes-you-less-anxious/

The Human Body is Built for Distance

I recommend a very good NY Times article: "The Human Body is Built for Distance" at: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/27/health/27well.html.

Chicago Lakefront 50K Race Report

This morning I had the pleasure of running the Chicago Lakefront 50K. It was a great experience, as the organizers did a fantastic job, the race participants were uniformly friendly, and the course truly unique and beautiful!

The race started at the historic 63rd Street Beach House, then continued north ~5-3/8 miles along Chicago's beautiful running/biking trail that is on park land between Lake Michigan and South Lake Shore Drive. At that point we turned-around, and upon then returning to the Beach House this completed one "loop" - of which there were three to assure the complete 50K distance. Since we switched back on numerous occasions we had plenty of opportunity to see and briefly interact with other competitors, both on the 50K and the 50-mile course. I found all of the runners to be uniformly friendly, which lent itself towards a very pleasant experience.

As regards my performance I'm very happy to report that I ran in 4:38:35 (a 8:58 pace), putting me in 20th place out of 209 finishers (top 10%), and 3rd place in my division. It was also a huge personal record - an improvement of 78-minutes versus my prior best 50K!  While I was obviously very happy with this result, I had run only two prior races of this distance, and both in Huntsville State Park (which presented a far greater technical challenge owing to their narrow dirt trails, hazards and elevation changes.)

As regards my race execution I must note that I'd once again fallen prey to poor performance -  specifically by running the first 10-mile loop far too fast which cost me in the final 21-miles of the course.

Reflecting on the key difference versus my much better executed Chicago Marathon performance (held three weeks prior), I attribute the Chicago Marathon's availability of numerous pacing groups - which take the burden off the runner in holding a consistent pace.

Nevertheless, a great day! I'm certainly glad that I ran the Chicago Lakefront 50K, and recommend the event highly.

Misc.:

• Another P.R. in my Newton shoes!

Chicago Marathon - 7-minute personal record!

This morning I had the fantastic experience of running the 2009 Chicago Marathon. The results were beyond my wildest expectations since I completed the marathon in 3:25:32, which improves by over seven-minutes my personal record and re-qualifies me for the Boston Marathon! I was especially delighted since up until only six-weeks ago I was unable to run for a month while recovering from a minor stress-fracture.

I was very familiar with the Chicago course, as it was my 4th (and 14th overall marathon distance or beyond). The race temperature was absolutely perfect: 34 to 41°F, minimal humidity with a moderate 5-8 MPH wind from the north. While it was admittedly very cold during the pre-race waiting period, through wearing a disposable sweatshirt, hat and gloves (which I tossed at the start) I was able to remain comfortable.

I was very happy with my pacing consistency, as is shown on this chart. My first half-marathon time was 1:43:08 (7:52 pace), and I managed a rare negative-split in the second half with 1:42:24 (7:49 pace). Proving especially helpful was running the first 5K with the 3:30 pacing group as this mitigated my unfortunate tendency to jack-rabbit the start. Though I gradually ran ahead of the pacing group after that point, it played a continuing psychological benefit since I knew that if the group were to catch me I would then be able to hang-on with the 3:30's until the finish line. On reflection, during both my recent marathon successes (Houston and Chicago) I benefitted by pacing groups, where-as my recent April Boston Marathon was a partial disappointment (in terms of my completion time - not the fantastic overall experience) due in-part to their absence.

With regards my recent successful stress fracture recovery I credit my coach's excellent recommendation that I pool-run and bicycle during my five-week recovery period. Additionally, I credit myself for having the wisdom to follow my doctor's sage advice to interrupt my marathon training while giving my minor stress fracture time to fully heal. The bottom line lesson-learned was was not to give-up following an injury! Instead, keep-up the hard work and your positive attitude via finding healthful alternative activities to maintain your physical and mental health!

Additional elements which helped my Chicago performance:

• Other than my stress-fracture recovery period I closely followed the excellent Kenyan Way marathon training program. I highly recommend this program for any Houston based advanced marathoner.
• Rather than consuming my normal Crank eGel I tried out a new product - Gu's Rocktane (Vanilla/Orange flavor). Though eGel has more sodium and potassium per packet (220 vs. 125, and 80 vs. 55 mg respectively), adjusting for its 50% larger volume, both are comparable in electrolytes (though the smaller Rocktane size allows more frequent consumption and therefore provides a more consistent electrolyte and blood sugar levels). Two additional ingredients found only in Rocktane are 1200 mg of amino acids (the building-blocks of protein needed for muscle repair) and 35 mg of caffeine (which I've been convinced since my April 4-mile run helps my performance). I took my first Rocktane 10-minutes prior to the race start, then took an additional packet every 5-miles.
• My Newton stability training shoes (which I also had excellent results with during my recent Chicago Half Marathon) proved to be well worth their higher cost. Somewhat similar to a natural barefoot landing the Newtons help promote a more healthy and efficient mid-foot landing - which is especially important when running on typical concrete race surfaces.
• Upon approaching the half-way point of the marathon I realized that despite temperatures then in the upper 30's I was sweating heavily. Consequently, I removed my thin Boston Marathon shirt that I had been wearing and ran shirtless the final half. Though attracting odd-looks from the jacket and hat-laden spectators, I'm convinced that doing so helped tremendously. Since I had clipped my race number to my running belt/gel-holder (instead of pinning it onto my shirt) I was easily able to remove the shirt without worries of being interrupted as a suspected bandit!
• Finally, as I was seeded in one of the leading corrals that are restricted to qualifying runners I avoided the typical frustration of weaving in-and-out of slower marathoners in the initial miles. This is definitely something for advanced marathoners to check-into whenever registering for a large urban marathon!

Miscellany:

• My preliminary results were: Division Place, M50-54, #129/1471 (top 9%); Gender Place, #2,828/18,983 (top 15%); Overall Place, #3,258/33,608 (top 10%)
• My Forerunner 405's Connect.Garmin.com log.
• On October 14th I participated in a Runner's Roundtable podcast featuring a number of runners who participated in various distance running events worldwide over the weekend.  To listen to the banter click here.

Alpine Races Half-Marathon

After Saturday's 20-mile training run at beautiful Moraine Hills State Park the following day I ran the Alpine Races Half-Marathon.

The weather was very good. Moderate humidity and temperatures in the 60's throughout. Despite the massive mileage run over the prior week I felt good through the run.

Having the benefit of my recent benchmark P.R. from the prior week's Chicago Half-Marathon I knew my ideal pace. Adjusting for my partial fatigue I dialed-in my goal 7:20 pace into my Garmin Forerunner 405, and tried to hang-on. By the fifth mile I knew that pace was a lost cause, however, so backed-down a bit.

I was able to complete the half in 1:38:35, a 7:31 average pace, which put me in 2nd place in my age-group! All-in-all, I was very satisfied with the race and the weekend - particularly as both runs provided me confidence going-in to the quickly approaching Chicago Marathon.

Misc:

• Per Daniels' Running Formula this result shows my VDOT to be 45.8, predicting a potential Marathon time of 3:25.
• A near P.R. on my Newton's.

Newton Running Shoes Rock!

Having used Brooks Adrenaline stability shoes for many years I suddenly developed a minor left-tibial stress-fracture in late July. In the subsequent month-long injury-induced recovery period I had ample free-time opportunities to contemplate the causes of my first-time serious running injury and to read the excellent Born To Run book, which highlights the Tarahumara Indians and their startling ability to run for hundreds of miles on a thin sole sandal without injury.

Contemplating these incredible athletes' avoidance of stress-fractures it occurred that my own behavior was largely to blame by significantly exceeding the generally recommended 10% increase in weekly cumulative mileage and running sprints downhill on hard surfaces. Additionally, avoiding injurious heel-landings can be easily accomplished by adopting the type of mid-foot landing utilized by the Tarahumara on a minimal sole shoe.

During a marathon expo I'd met with a representative of Newton Running Shoes, and after trying-on their shoes and familiarizing myself with their technology, I purchased a pair of Newton's Stability Trainers. A good video explaining the Newton shoes technology and design is found below:

Subsequent to switching to the Newton Stability Trainer for all my subsequent races, I P.R.'d every one of them (with the sole exception of a half-marathon run two weeks after another)!  While I have no doubt that my increased fitness level resulting from my switch to KenyanWay is primarily to credit, I'm also convinced that the Newton shoes have been significant contributors to my improved performance owing to my more more rapid leg turnover due to their lighter weight, energy-recovery provided efficiency advantages through the springy forefoot lugs, and landing more healthfully at the midsole of the shoe due to the lower heel.
As initial proof of the Newton shoes' advantage I was happy to set a massive ~5-minute P.R. improvement at the Chicago Half-Marathon - with absolutely no discomfort or pain.

Follow-up Notes:

Coincidence?  I don't think so! I partially credit my Newton shoes in additionally providing me subsequent P.R.s at nearly every race in which I've worn them - without any hint of a return to my former stress fracture, i.e.:

• The October '09 Chicago Marathon (7-minute P.R.);
• The October '09 Lakefront 50K (78-minute P.R.);
• The December '09 Dallas White Rock Marathon (3-minute P.R.);
• The January '10 Houston Marathon (3-minute P.R.)
• The February '10 Austin Marathon (1-second P.R.)
• The February '10 Rodeo Run 10K (1-minute 10K P.R.)
• The April '10 Boston Marathon  (tied the Auston P.R.!)