Competitive Jerks Racing and Training - 2023 (Read 574 times)

63 miles running,1000 yards swimming, and 3 hours pool-running.
M: 90 minutes pool-running
T: 11 miles, including a track workout of 2000, 5x800 in 8:35, 3:18, 3:16, 3:14, 3:10, 3:07 (5:42 recovery after the 2K and 3:0x-3:2x recovery after the 800s - way too long due to a very busy track). Followed with leg strengthwork.
W: 11.5 miles very easy (9:59) with some grass running, drills and hill sprints, and streaming yoga.
Th: 90 minutes pool-running and upper body weights/core.
F: 11 miles, including 7 Iwo Jima hills (alternate route - this was about 2:30 up, then 60 second jog; 30 second stride, and 60 seconds to bottom of hill.) Followed with leg strengthwork and 500 yards recovery swimming.
Sa: 11.5 miles very easy (10:20) with a few miles trail running at the end of the run, followed by upper body weights/core.
Su: 17 miles, split as first 13 miles averaging 9:29 pace and next 4 averaging 8:03 pace. Followed with injury prevention work and 500 yards recovery swimming.

Just building strength at this point. As part of my work to improve my ankle strength and proprioception, I'm adding some running on grass and on trails - anywhere from a few minutes to a few miles on the different surface. It is definitely challenging and uncomfortable.

In shoe news, I've been considering the Hoka Rocket X2 as a marathon shoe. I wore it for today's run (which was very humid, with lots of damp pavement) and I discovered that this shoe has absolutely awful traction on wet pavement. So yeah, maybe a marathon shoe for dry weather; definitely not a marathon shoe for damp weather.

 

This is the best highlight video of that race that I could find.  Note how Gammoudi pushes between Mills and Clarke to take the lead at one point.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5F5iCsymMj0

That's a good video... but I like this one from Billy Mills' own perspective: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tv-ZfEqxQGg

"Look at... look at Mills, Look at Mills, Oh my God..." 

I volunteered at my locak 60k/56 mile/99.87 mile race this weekend. I saw the ALMOST last place 55k runners come in (last place was 34 hours), the last 50 milers come in (some took a wrong turn at the last turn. it was night time) and the first 12 100 milers. Such a different crowd. The first 100 milers were asking how many people dropped, as if they can't imagine going through the 90-100F temps a second day like most normal humans.

I might do CIM. I've looked for a bib. I don't really want to pay $200 for it including transfer fees. I think the race was $140-160 at sign up. I'd have to do speed work to do marathon shape.

I volunteered for a few reasons. 1. They sent out an email saying they were 20 people short. 2. I said last year when I finished I'd volunteer to give back. Volunteering gets really old really fast, and this race I heard the runners saying how great the volunteers were. It didn't matter to me, except for knowing I felt the same way last year and its a race filled with experienced people.

52 miles of easy running. A few naked runs where I went by feel instead of looking at the watch for pace guidance. Oddly, my heat acclimation dropped 40 percent according to Garmin. It was the hottest it's been all year this weekend. Just like everywhere else.

Dwave I haven't found a pair of Hoka's i have liked. My friend told me his now cost $180. Ew.

favorite race I can't say I have one. Maybe rowing. I don't usually watch the Olympics. Maybe the sports I don't usually see in America, but I try to watch more YouTube shorts/videos than olympics. It's like the Millennial Version of "This Old House" or "Shade Tree Mechanic."

steve hope you feel better soon.

mmerkle slow down.

RP - thanks for volunteering! I always think I should do more of that. But it's kind of a hassle to go to races if you're not racing, plus I still have to get a run in. (Although I guess sometimes you can do that on the course?) I do a fair bit of pacing so I suppose I can consider that my volunteer work. I would not want to be an RD - gotta be super stressful to not be sure whether you'll get enough volunteers to adequately support your race. My inbox gets clogged with desperate emails from races needing more volunteers.

If you do decide you want to run CIM, and can't find a bib, post here. There are usually a bunch of people in my running group signed up; of course occasionally people have to bail and may offer up their spot. Sometimes they don't try to get their registration fee back, and you'd just have to pay the transfer fee.

Mikkey - I'm coping with it by being in the city of Porto, which somehow is at least 5 degrees cooler than everywhere else 😎

It feels like mountain climate in here.

I do not recommend moving here though, just too many Brazilians...

That warning seems to make sense, the Brits don't see the sun most of the year, they don't know how to handle sunlight 😂

On a completely unrelated subject, we went to watch a strongman competition on Sunday, my Lord, them dudes be deadlifting 380kg

That's 840 freedom units for the non initiated on the advanced arts of the metric system.

It was super cool, the soundtrack of heavy Mettalica and Rammstein songs also helped the atmosphere.

Mark - Good week.

Flavio - Hooray for another complete week!
I might be joining the local gym. What would the most effective overall strength exercises be? Squats, deadlift, benchpress/incline bench?

Steve - I'm glad you're (apparently, mostly) ok. "Towbar" is a new one for me.

Merkle - Solid week. Yes, the heat is killer right now. We'll be fast in the fall, though, right??

Dave - I wouldn't call anything with that grading a "fail", even if it isn't what you wanted.

DWave - Strong work. Even with it being uncomfortable and challenging, how's the not-road work going?

RP - Good for volunteering. Also, they don't hand out buckles for 99.87 mile races, do they? I thought buckles started at 100 miles.

Decent week for me, would have been great had I gotten in a LR, but wlife got in the way.

Weekly for period: From: 07/10/2023 To 07/16/2023

Totals: Time: 11:59:33 - Statute: 82.08 mi - Metric: 132.07 km

 When I moved from Belfast to London back in the late 80’s (lived in London for 10 years) I met a lot of cool Brazilians, so I’m assuming it’s changed now?  

Most are cool, some, like the PCC are not. PCC have been here in Portugal and they're enshitificating the country little by little. The local police are helpless to deal with this level of organized crime. I just hope Portugal is too small of a market that they lose interest over time.

London is gradually being destroyed now and there’s no way back, a bit like Paris. 🤷‍♂️

I'm very curious about the upcoming discussions about the independence of Scotland between a Pakistani and an Indian 😂 How the turns have tabled 😂 (I've intentionally inverted the saying...).

Re: Paris, I was there a couple of months ago, it's really shitty around Gare du Nord, but 3 blocks away from there it's pretty cool still. Same experience in Toulouse and Bordeaux.

 Check out a really cool guy called Zuby…he’s a rapper, but also into fitness and common sense….he identified as a female for 2 seconds to break the powerlifting female record. 

LOL that's hilarious and really smart of him, it seems he went from 15K to 120K subscribers after that stunt.

Keen - yeah, those are the big 3. Even though you're obviously freakishly strong, I say start very easy. Your core and legs might be strong, but perhaps your wrists are not yet strong enough to handle a heavy dead lift. So maybe start with just the olympic bar (which is 20kg), then add 10kg on each side for the first day.

Next time add more, but always make sure you can do at least 3x5 reps.

Also, you're adding strength training on top of your 100 mile weeks, so gotta be careful with any new stimuli.

Do pay attention to form.

On the deadlifts, make sure your back is neutral, and that your shoulders are higher than your knees when you start the lift.

Your aim is to push with your heels against the ground. A few weeks of that and it's amazing how you will notice your running form improving just from that hint alone.

With the squats it's the same thing, push against the ground with your heels. One tip my coach gave me was to lift my toes from the ground, so I'm forced to push with the heels and not the forefoot. Also, each person has a position which is more comfortable to squat, usually you might have to place your knees pointing out at a slight diagonal angle, that's normal, just gotta find which range is the most comfortable for your body type. Usually a body weight squat will tell you that.

As Mark alluded, you also need an upper body pull exercise, usually there's a pull up bar available, so pull ups and chin ups are the bread and butter.

Also, every single one of these exercises work your core, so no need to be doing tons of planks nor ab curls.

You can start with these 4 exercises, 3x5 reps each, go easy, come back in about 8 weeks and tell us the amazing gains you have had 😎

RP - thanks for volunteering! I always think I should do more of that. But it's kind of a hassle to go to races if you're not racing, plus I still have to get a run in. (Although I guess sometimes you can do that on the course?) I do a fair bit of pacing so I suppose I can consider that my volunteer work. I would not want to be an RD - gotta be super stressful to not be sure whether you'll get enough volunteers to adequately support your race. My inbox gets clogged with desperate emails from races needing more volunteers.

 

If you do decide you want to run CIM, and can't find a bib, post here. There are usually a bunch of people in my running group signed up; of course occasionally people have to bail and may offer up their spot. Sometimes they don't try to get their registration fee back, and you'd just have to pay the transfer fee.

I figured I could get a run in if I wanted, or I could just take the day off since I do THAT from time to time now. Pacing is kind of volunteering with getting a run in. I just understand the race can hapen without pacers, but maybe not without clean up crews or award hander outers.

Interestingly....there is a need for pacers in my area according to one group. right about where I have paced. Probably because the organization was extremely rude to a volunteer about showing up 1 hour before a race AFTER the head volunteer called to confirm someone would be there on time.

I'll let you know if I decide on CIM. I know the portal isn't open yet and paying just the registration fee would be cool. Maybe I'd casually run a 2:55:23 to prove Boston is totally faster than CIM and the Newton "Hills" aren't as big of an obstacle as the constant rolling nature of CIM hills. 

Keen I ribbed a runner who was the last sub-24 finisher for posting a 99.87 mile run and not doing the full 100. I handed him his finisher buckle and talked with him for a bit. Thinking about it today, I was wondering if he was slightly sad he had a bad day and didn't get top 3 overall.

Andy I don't think it works that way, but maybe? back calculating for speed in ideal conditions using Kiwi Points should be left up to kiwi's and JMac...although there was once a spreadsheet....