The Long Green Miles

I just earned some Green Karma yesterday. I raced a local half marathon without using any gas. I signed up for it over the Internet, biked to packet pickup on Friday, then ran 10 miles each way to race it on Sunday. I totalled 33 miles running, and even though it hurt, I'll remember it for life.

Why run to and from a half mary? I want to become a better runner. Many ultra-runners get in extra miles by biking or running to races, running to work, or simply running whenever it's feasible instead of driving a car.

I did well for a while, but the joint pain from doing the Rocky Raccoon 50 miler trail run a few weeks ago started to creep in around mile 16. I was bursting with pride, wanting to tell everybody during the race that I had run there and still had to run home, but kept myself humble and only mentioned it in passing to a couple of ladies running together that were chatting about doing Ironmans. Besides, I'll save yapping about it to others during the race until I'm actually fast. I don't expect that to happen anytime soon!

I recorded a podcast along the way, so there's a show about it in the works. I felt like I could keep running aerobically, but the joint pain was a real limiter. I averaged 135 bpm hr and felt energetic most of the way, so my fitness is fantastic. I just need to lay off the leg work for a while and let everything recover. I guess it's pool time!

Losing Weight

Losing weight can be a tricky thing. Two things happened recently that may help you out with how to do it.

1. Dawn of The Dawn and Drew Show just announced that she lost 40 lbs. She hardly worked out at all. Dawn simply ate less.

2. Last year I was working out at insane levels, often burning 2000 to 4000 calories per day with excercise. I never lost weight until I actually told myself to hold back from eating just a bit. After that, I lost the optimal 2 lbs. per week for a month leading up to IM Wisconsin.

I have a couple of tips and a great link to help you achieve the same results. It's pretty simple, so here goes -

First off, you have to eat less. The above proves that working out alone will not shed pounds. What's the trick? I've been doing something different lately and I think I've figured it out - Eat slowly and pay very close attention to the first sensation of fullness. That sensation is delayed by about 20 minutes and nowdays we have the ability to cram food faster than what we were designed to, so you gotta slow it down!

When you feel that very first sensation of fullness, step away from the food. Develop this habit. You can assist this by putting less food on your plate in the first place.

Secondly, get an accurate digital scale and check it daily. You can follow your progress and quickly correct a bad couple of days. Dawn said this was essential for her weight loss.

That's about it. Here is a great link to a guy who has written up a simple guide to losing weight that further explains this simple process and adds much more utility.

Personally, I think the way you live your day can greatly assist your diet. Slow down your meals. Slow down your cooking time. Enjoy this time with family and friends like they do in (skinnier) Europe. Snack during the day and while you cook and you'll never be so hungry that you binge eat and blow your lean and healthy day out the window.

When Marathons are Too Easy

My buddy sent me this photo set of an impromptu aid station set up by ultra runners at the Austin Marathon.

As you may be aware, an "Ultra" is anything more than a marathon. Therefore, this event that most people set as a life goal is nothing more than a walk in the park for these folks.

I won't name names, but some of them were drinking beer and eating tacos and still finished under 4 hours. Easily.

Indulgence - Anton Krupicka

Anton rocks.

Rocky Raccoon 100 Miler Video Start

I finally figured out how to post videos without it wrecking my blog. It only took 5 hours of upgrading and wanting to smash my skull into a truck bumper, but it's done.

This is a clip of the psychopaths joyful folks starting their 100 mile running event. Looks like fun? It has a 34% DNF rate. "Look to your left, look to your right. One of you won't finish. And the other two will wish they didn't."