mymarathon-blog1

[mymarathon-blog1]

I’M BACK BABY!!!!!

Will I be able to run the half marathon in 4 weeks? 

Will I die trying? 

All god questions. 

I had to skip about 8 weeks of training all together, but I was able to run 3 k in one go a few days ago and (even though I wanted to die by the end) it felt SOOOOO GOOD! 

So I decided to try and run the half marathon after all (I made the decision about 2 weeks ago that I wouldn’t). 

I made an ambitious plan, the first step of which was to run 4 k today. 

I did it! I was slower than a bag of turtles, but I did it! 

[mymarathon-blog1]

Nothing to report

Leg still hurts. Angry. Frustrated.

[mymarathon-blog1]

Finding Motivation

It is hard. 

In the past couple day I could not go out for a run I have been felleing very undermotivated. 

Yesterday I mad plans to do some other excercises till I get back on my feet (pun intended), but I took a missstepp and now after some healing my leg hurts even more. 

So much for that. 

I made a balanceboard and I can now use it with relative little pain so I take that as a good sign, but I m ure that I am out for atleast a week (if not two). 

I feel I can still amke it to the half marathin in September, but the race I have planned for this Saturday is a no go. 

Bummed.... 

[mymarathon-blog1]

Not a Cramp

What I thought yesterday was a cramp became evidentpy clear is not. Last night my entire left calft hurt and throbbed, I even started getting chills. I was not sure how I would sleep. I managed to get a full night sleep, and some of the pain did go away, but my calf still hurts a lot when I try using it. I managed to get around today though with "mininal" pain so I take that as a good sign, but I am sure I will not be running for a couple of days. This does put me behind in my marathon training, but it is not till september so I am farely confident I can do it. My immediate concern is that I am signed up forba 6k race in a weeks time. Not sure I can make it. I am very bummed that I cannot run, but mostly I am angry at myself for getting in this situation. Everything I read told me that I should gradually ease into barefoot running, but I was cocky and now am injured.

[mymarathon-blog1]

OUCH

I got a cramp in my left calf exactly half way through my run, meaning I was at my furthest point from home.

I had to hobble my way home from there.

FUN!

Needless to say I have to re-plan the rest of my week. Tomorrow is a rest day and I hope I will be able to run again on Saturday.

A quick google search into the matter has yielded this result: Cramping in the calves has several causes, but the true cause is not fully understood.

Yay...

I can be caused by over use or under use of the muscle and the prevention is either more or less exercise.

Based on what I know crams are caused by a lack of magnesium, so I will try to up my intake.

Googleing natural sources of magnesium.......

[mymarathon-blog1]

I am Rested

Today was a rest day.

I decided to do core workout (as I get side stitches during run). The plan is to so it every day.

We’ll see how that goes.

[mymarathon-blog1]

Fun 5K

As you can see my pace is better, and the run felt good.

(I think I was even faster than this, just the GPS on my phone sucks... We’ll never know for sure)

The strange think is that my calves (especially the right one) hurts during the day, but not during the run. As I just sat down my left calf started hurting in the same place. This I believe is because of two things:

barefoot/minimalist running put more stress on the calves (a muscle that is use less thanks to modern running shoes),

I supinate (land on the outside edge of my feet) and where it hurts is where the muscles are that are meant to tension.

Hopefully this will go away as my legs get stronger.

Plus side: my feet themselves didn’t hurt during the run.

[mymarathon-blog1]

Rest Day

I like running and can’t wait for the next one, but I might like the rest days from the entire training.

[mymarathon-blog1]

Pretty Good, If I do Say So Myself

The run hurt. My feet! hurt, my calves hurt. By the end of the run I could feel the pull of my right calf on my little toe.

The run felt great!

I still have to work on pacing myself better to get a stable performance throughout.

I read today that there is a way convince the body to burn the fat that is stored rather than carbohydrates. This sounds great to me as I started running to lose weight.

The method is simple:

cleanse the system of sugars

exercise below a certain heart rate

The heart rate is simply enough to calculate: 180 - age (I checked and my run today was way over this).

The diet on the other hand:

Eat only meat and vegetables - Yay!

no sugars - doable, though I drink my coffee VERY sweet

only full fat milk and dairy - OK

No pasta - can live without

No bread - tough, but ok

No beer - HELL NA’!!!

So much for going paleolit...

[mymarathon-blog1]

DIY minimalist shoe

How to transform a shoe you already have into a minimalist shoe:

take a shoe you bought a year ago before you knew anything about barefoot/minimalist shoes (any by pure accident it basically meets all the criteria of minimalist shoes).

Remove the thick insole.

Insert a thin insole.

You’re done!

Enjoy the minimalist shoe you did not have to spend a fortune on.

[mymarathon-blog1]

Did not go well

I ran today as per plan, but it was not very fast. 

I have a theory though why this is.

I did not eat well today.

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t by any measurable standard or existing nutrition plan. What I mean is I did not heave luncs. I had something to eat a little before my run, but that seems was not enough.

I will have to keep an eye on this in the future.

Tomorrow is a rest day.

[mymarathon-blog1]

I did run yesterday

Having had internet problems I did not post an update last night.

Here it is.

Distance: 5km; Pace: 6:16/km

Splits:

[mymarathon-blog1]

I Ate a Banana

Today was a rest day.

I really wanted to go out for a short run, but decided the best course is to follow the plan.

One mustn’t do too much too fast.

Why do I lean towards barefoot running rather than modern running shoes?

The two ends of the spectrum are:

Humans evolved to run, the modern running shoe has undermined this ability.

Humans were not meant to run, our feet are not prepared for this, we need to protect them as best we can.

When I first started running I just used my old trainers I had lying around (from high school), but after a while my knees started to really hurt. My educated guess was that it was probably because of my old shoes and as I was getting the hang of running I might as well invest in a running shoe.

So that is what I did, and it did make a difference.

The strange thing was is that after several weeks of running I started getting shin splints and could not complete a run anymore. So I gave up.

About a year later I returned and was still having the same problem, so this time I tried finding the answer online.

What I found told me that either

my shoe is too soft, or

my shoe is too hard

Not very helpful, and either way I would have to buy new shoes (because running is free), but what type One with a harder, or a softer sole?

I have no idea why, but before a run I decided to look inside my shoe and discovered I could remove the insole. The insole was almost half a centimeter at the heel and also quite thick at the toes. I removed them from both shoes and the run felt much better. Still had the pain around my shins, but it was not as pronounced.

I have a solution: I needed harder shoes, and I didn’t need to go out shopping again.

When I read about barefoot running it all started making sense and it was in sync with my experiences.

[mymarathon-blog1]

I Planned to Run 5k

The plan for today (and for every other exercise day for this and next week) was to run 5k.

Again I planned my route incorrectly and ended up running 6k.

Distance: 6km; Pace: 6:34

Splits:

5:56

6:52

6:54

6:53

6:48

6:01

My new shoes arrived today (right on schedule) and OH MY GOD are they amazing.

I was able to run the entire distance with ease (it my seem slow, but for me this is actually quite fast), and for the first time I felt that I could actually run 10k with no problem.

I only stopped at 6k as it was over what I have planned and I don’t want to over extend myself.

I had no pains, aches, I did not feel tired, I had fun. I feel more energized than I did before my run.

Can’t wait for the next one, shame that tomorrow is a rest day.

[mymarathon-blog1]

Reading For Runners

Couple of books I found while browsing Amazon. Have not read all of them yet, so they might be crap.

Christopher McDougall: Born to Run (this is good)

Christopher McDougall: Natural Born Heroes (listening to the audio book, good so far)

Eric Orton: The Cool Impossible (just started reading this)

Scott Jurek: Eat and Run (next audiobook on my list)

Ken Bob Saxton: Barefoot Running Step by Step: Barefoot Ken Bob, The Guru of Shoeless Running, Shares His Personal Technique For Running With More 

Adharanand Finn: Running with the Kenyans: Discovering the secrets of the fastest people on earth 

Adharanand Finn: The Way of the Runner: A journey into the fabled world of Japanese running 

(Eric Orton: trainer Ken Bob Saxton: creator of the modern bare foot running Scott Jurek: one of the best ultra marathon runners)

Oh, and today is a rest day.

[mymarathon-blog1]

Need to plan better

I did not feel like going on a run today, but I powered through.

The plan was to run 5k, but I only managed 4.5.

Distance: 4.5km, pace: 6:26/km

The first 3 kilometers was very good, but it went downhill from there. I think my fitigue was more psychological than than physical as I planned my route incorrectly and it was the 3k mark where I made a full circle and reached home. I had to run past my house to try and get my distance goal.

Need to plan better.

[mymarathon-blog1]

't was a rest day

I rested.