Adventures of a Reluctant Runner

I've been a bad, bad blogger. No posts in the last 5 months. Not much running either. Summer's almost gone. My bad, my bad.

Explanations are forthcoming, but no time to explain. Out of country. 4+ months traveling outside the country. Saudi Arabia (work), Indonesia (work). Scotland, India, Dubai, Bahrain, India, Switzerland (super!). Just back in.

Am heading to Virginia Beach for the Rock n Roll Half Marathon in an hour. The run's tomorrow. Since I haven't been running much, will see how it goes. At least the music will make it fun.

So off I am. Will write when I'm back. Have a great weekend!

So, finally after weeks of finishing the Big Run, I went running outside. Last 2-3 weeks' foul weather contributed to general indoor treadmillin', which is, I should say, just not fun at all. Nothing to look at but dumb terminals, the same old TV shows, the same old music. Outside is just more fun.

A few members of the erstwhile Salazar group met around 9ish yesterday at the regular hangout - Waterfront. And what a deserted place it was. Nobody in running clothes, hardly any cars, no enthusiastic runners stretching, talking excitedly about their past of future runs. Nothing. Just a blank, empty space where once a hundred people in colorful clothes stood excited. Makes me feel sad..

We were just four, waiting for a few more people to show up. After about 10 minutes, we decided nobody was going to be there, so left for our run. A 7 miler for starters. The route looked familiar. I especially love running near the Capitol  when it's bright and sunny. The national mall also looked rather deserted. Few people hung out there, except for some stranded tourists and assorted runners. Closer to the Obelisk (aka Big Pencil) I heard somebody shout, "Hey Miami!". We turned around to see a few AIDS marathoners who recognized us by my Miami marathon t-shirt. Bright orange-y and white.

The run was short enough to get me out of bed :-) but long enough to be *just* a little tiring. By the end of it, I was huffin' and puffin'. Not exactly how I was hoping it to be. My plan is to get some ~15-17 miles a week. Let's see how it goes.

Until later then.

With one target down, I'm now searching for a new target run. In the not-too-distant future, I hope.

There is a 10 mile Cherry Blossom Run on April 1st that I'm signed up for. That promises to be a great run. Sakura season is my favorite time here!

Sunset over Potomac

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And our running group is already talking of the Rock n Roll Half-Marathon in Virginia Beach. That's Labor Day. Do-able, of course, but way too far. Fred, the coach, says try a half-marathon, so I think I'll try one.

So here's a question to Voxers...
Any suggestions for half-marathons in the VA, DC, MD area in the next couple of months? 10Ks?

Thanks!

The rubber has hit the road, and what a road it was! A drenched, soggy, slushy, puddle-filled road that stretched twenty-six miles but seemed like a million. But I’m going ahead of myself..

It’s been over a couple of weeks since the Miami Marathon, and I’m just writing this report.. Aside from being a rather reluctant runner, I’ve been somewhat reluctant blogger as well. Oh well. This blog post is a rather long one, if only for my own purposes.

The Preamble
For a race start of 6:10 am, you wake up at 3:30 or some such unearthly hour. Fortunately, I was helped by a trans-atlantic call from a friend. This is the time that I sleep most soundly. It is *not* a time for stretching, carb-loading, hot shower and rubbing the crusties out of your eyes, all of which I found myself doing. The excitement of it all was enough to wake me up. In retrospect, it was a good thing to have stretched this early, for as it turned out, all the heavens broke loose that morning.

It pours in Miami, something we all were aware of. Yet, nobody in the group thought of packing a poncho. After a quick gathering at 5 am, the entire group ambled its way a few blocks down to the American Airlines Arena in downtown. It was drizzling lightly; people huddled together under any available palm trees that gave them shelter. It was an odd sight. Runners dressed in all the running paraphernalia complete with accessories - headphones, waist pouches, water bottles, camel backs, caps, goggles, headbands, etc. Odd because it was still pitch dark, and now it started raining heavily.

Our running group went together to the starting point where large, black, stadium-sized speakers were playing music too loudly and a voice blared out exactly how exciting it was to be running on this exciting day. If anyone wasn’t awake by then, they surely were now, and quite annoyed, to boot. We had tacitly agreed to run together, so we stayed together. Still, it was hard to make out who was who. Almost everyone was dressed in yellow singlets, shorts or the orange-white t-shirt, and literally huddled together like shivering squirrels in a tropical rain. And what a downpour it was! For a moment, I thought I was back in the monsoon season in Bombay. Shirts soaked, socks soaked and whatever dryness one could salvage in this tropical rain was appropriately taken care of by the large puddles. In short, totally soaked shoes. If you’ve ever run while in shower, you’d know how it feels.

The Start

After what seemed like an interminable wait, the crowds began to move. Slowly at first. Soon we were over the MacArthur causeway that connects to Miami Beach. And what a sight it was! A sea of people crossing the ocean en masse in darkness. On the right several cruise liners stood tall and majestic, with their shimmering purple lights. The downtown skyline dotted the vista. The sheer energy of the moment was breathtaking. It made up for the early start, the rain and the hundreds of people crowing in front.

My group pretty much kept to the pace. We took our short walks at designated intervals and it seemed rather silly to be doing so when everyone was running. That was the plan and so it was. After about 20-30 minutes, the rain stopped. The official cap I was wearing was very handy in keeping the rain out of my face. It was good to be running.. it was just a tad cold, but not too much.

We weaved into Miami Beach. By the time we crossed mile 4, we were entering South Beach territory. SoBe looked a lot like Bombay. Lots of palm trees, high rises on one side, wide roads, and lots of people! Most of them had come out for cheering the runners. Water stands were crowded, with hundreds of paper and plastic cups littering the road. Runners waiting in line for the port-a-loos or jiffy-johns; some smalls bands playing in one corner. Others singing or loudly cheering. It looked like a festival of people with us starring. It looked a little bizarre.

Bizarrer still was a sight to behold. Four ladies dressed in nothing but near-nude glittering, shimmering dancing clothes — if one could call them those — doing a Rio-style samba to a catchy tune. That put a extra spring in the step. M, one of the group’s more vocal members, shouted “Yeah, now that’s entertainment. We need them at every mile!”. I shook my head. Where in the world could you find samba dancers at 7 in the morning?

Such happy thoughts abounded until we reached mile 10 on the Venetian Causeway, heading back into Miami area. Energy was still high, and it was time to do the next 10 miles. Change of pace to a slightly faster one.

The Pain

By this time the sun was out and it was getting hot. We doused ourselves with water to keep our bodies cool. It was now quite fun to do that. Yet, the shoes were still soggy from soaked socks. I felt a pain in my toes as they bumped against the front of the shoes. The 2-week old shoes were slightly loose, and the soggy socks had made it difficult to maintain proper traction. As a result my feet kept sliding inside the shoes.

A couple of miles along the way, a pain shot up my right knee. I stopped, felt the knee. It looked all right. I stretched for a moment and ran again. It was nearing the half-marathon mark. Bands played tunes, people cheered in the streets. Susan’s family showed up to cheer. Her brother had a couple of bags of salty chips and all of us quickly snatched handfuls of it, thankful for some food other than the sweet gu. It was a big outdoor party.

The road split into two: the left for half-marathoners, straight for the full. Soon after the split, it seemed only a handful of people remained in the race. It looked as if the race dried up. My right knee / leg ached again. I slowed down, then picked up speed again. I was running without a running watch (!) so had to rely on others for pace info.

Another couple of miles later, the pain got worse. I stopped for a minute, and stretched. The knee flexed correctly; nothing seemed broken, so I started slowly. Each step felt like a struggle. The left leg seemed perfect, just the right one had some trouble. Managing to run slower, I signaled the group to go ahead and ran behind, slower.

The right leg, which had been aching a couple of weeks before even if mildly so, had been a bit of a trouble. I was hoping it would behave, and so had reduced my exercise intensity to pretty much light cross-training for a couple of weeks during the taper phase. Now these cramps and aches were the last thing I needed.

After another couple of miles or so, it was quite painful. I found it hard to run, although walking was okay. So I decided to fast-walk, and get some rest. Thinking about it still raises my heart beat now. Pretty soon I met with Laura, also in the pace group, who had troubles with her left leg. We fast-walked for a bit, then ran-walked when possible. By this time, we were in the massive residential areas of south Miami.

South Miami looks distinctly like Bombay, except the houses are bigger.. more like small mansions. Big driveways adorned with crisply cut grass, dotted with palm trees, large and small. Characteristically, many of the “suburban” folks had come out of their houses and were cheering from their front verandas. One little girl - 5 or 6 - offered bottled water. When we politely declined, being well inebriated at water stops earlier, she complained to her mother: “I told you, nobody is buying our water!”, and stomped away.

I was dying for some salt. All my salt packets had withered in the morning rain. I asked coach Fred, whom we saw at some mile marker, and he could only spare one little pack. Oh, well. By this time Betsy, who herself had some cramps in her legs, had joined us.

After what seemed like an interminable million miles, we were nearing the end. Just before the last few hundred yards, there is a little bridge you cross to get to the finish line. It seemed like a cruel joke to place the bridge near the end, on an otherwise flat course.

I managed to run the last few hundred yards, with each step seemingly sending a dagger through the heart. We could hear the group cheering by the sidelines. That always puts a smile on the face… And thus it was over, after some 6+ hours.

***

As the Bard (almost) said, All’s well that ends… I couldn't agree more.

In retrospect, there are several things I could have done differently, apart from running in the rain. I’ll save those for another post. For now, I’m happy to have finished it!

On to other targets...

"Running a marathon is easy - it's just a 10K after a 20 mile warm-up." So goes popular T-shirt wisdom. And as far as T-shirt wisdom goes, this is about right.

Indeed, with just a day left for the actual run on Sunday in Miami, this is NOT the time to be thinking of how best to tackle the course, get past the sea of runners, determine the per mile pace and all that. This is a time to be calm, think positive thoughts and preferably not think about the race at all.

Yet, as Samuel Johnson once (almost) wrote: The prospect of hanging in a few days focuses the mind wonderfully. By writing this down, I'm hoping these thoughts won't constantly cloud my mind when I need it most to be free.

Coach Fred says, divide the run in three parts: 10 miles, 10 miles and a 10K (6.2 miles). In the first phase, run the first 10 miles at a pace 1-2 minutes slower than your regular pace. Don't worry about the sheer energy and enthusiasm of other runners, just run slowly at your own pace. Always walk at the water stops. Take a break if you have to. In the second phase for the next 10 miles, run at your regular pace. Conserved energy during the first phase will be of use here. Hydrate when you need to, eat salty pretzels and drink electrolyte-laden water (Gatorade, etc). In the final phase, run the last 10K at your best pace. Increase speed if you have to, but run at a comfortable pace.

That's it. Think 10K after the 20-mile warm up.

But as everyone knows, strategy is one thing. Execution is a totally different beast, of course. I know I'll find out when the rubber hits the road, literally.

Now I feel better already.

After this, I have a strange feeling that I'll be writing a "How NOT to run a marathon". *tongue firmly in cheek* Stay tuned...

What do you get when you mix 20 degree temperatures with 25 mile per hour winds and a hundred crazy runners? Some really frozen, foul-mouthed runners.

Yesterday we had the coldest run of the season. After being spoilt  every Saturday with unseasonably warm weather - and one almost simulating the 70 degrees we expect in Miami - Mother Nature probably thought it wisest to teach us a lesson. All talks of global warming disappeared like the melting glaciers of Greenland. Instead, all one could talk was the snow storm in Colorado, the fall in Malibu (for heaven's sake!) and how great it would be to be in Miami next weekend.

Yesterday's run was a short, 8-mile recovery run. Recovering from the previous 23 mile run of a couple of weekends ago. As runs go, this was about as routine as all the others. Except for the cold bit. The winds swept mightily, causing fierce amounts of cussing on part of the runners. On such a cold day, one is advised to protect the extremities and reduce the chances of losing heat by wearing gloves, a protection for the head, ears and neck. I only had a pair of gloves and a headband / ear cover, and made a makeshift neck warmer using a spare headband.

In such a cold weather, it's important to warm up properly or else muscles stiffen up. Having barely stretched properly, it was hard to listen to the morning prep talk when the winds picked up speed. All one could think of was to get on with the run, get warm and go home. And as it happened, it snowed during run!  Light snow flakes, but snow none the less. It looked pretty for a while, but the snow melted quickly. At the four-mile turn around point near the Potomac after crossing the Pegasus bridge, the strong winds almost swept us away from the course. The choppy green waters of the  dirty Potomac looked quite menacing, and for once, I was in a hurry to run faster and get it over with quickly. As it happened, my right leg had different plans.

The muscles of my right leg stiffened up and ached. I ran slower, stretched a bit and came back to the home base slower than expected. It's not aching badly, just a little. My right IT band isn't exactly happy right now. I'm doing some suggested stretching and strengthening exercises, both for the leg and for the back. I hope these exercises will help do their bit.

As I write this in the local Panera Bread sipping hot chai, it is snowing outside. The first big snow of the season in DC. Reminds me of my days in Boston, where this would have been regular occurrence, and weeks ago in the season.

Next up - strategy for conserving energy and running the marathon on the D-day...

That's right. Just ten days left for the big run! And how do I feel?

It's a strange butterflies-in-tummy feeling, and I don't know why. Perhaps, it's this picture...

Miami-marathon

The course looks rather large, twisting from the mainland to the island, over the MacArthur causeway into Miami Beach and back to the mish-mash, urban jungle of Miami. The city looks like a criss-cross of densely packed streets running perpendicular to each other. And the ocean? The ocean appears most menacing, dark blue and ferocious, as if
ready to swollow you right now. Or maybe it's just my weird imagination.

Mentally, I feel prepared, more or less. I have done 23 miles before, and although it was a tough run, I know 26 is do-able. It's a matter of time. This week, though, has been rather slow. I haven't been running, having taken a rest after last week's 8 mile run and the following pain in the right leg. The only activities were stretching, cross-training and strengthening. The pain's gone, thankfully.

There's a matter of getting new shoes, which I hope to do today. I've been looking for new shoes for the past month, after the current Saucony pair gave me a terrible ache in the right foot after the long runs. I need a wider model. I have a slight over-pronation in my feet, and the right foot is just a tad flatter. I'm going to try the New Balance 767. In the past week or so, I've tried the Asics Gel (I forget the model) which has a higher arch, but wasn't very comfortable for my left foot. Oh well. I just want ONE pair of comfortable shoes.

Reluctant runner has been a trifle reluctant in blogging as well.

Last weekend's 23 mile run was a tough one. Hot weather, a slip-and-fall injury and some random things made it a tougher run. To start with, weather was in the 70s (in January!), simulating the run conditions in Miami, I guess. As if that wasn't bad enough, I forgot my face towel, so I tasted my own sweat a million times during the run. Still worse, I made a strategic error in not wearing shorts. The long leg warmer / sports pants helped during the initial 10 minutes when it was cool, but for most of the run it was a drag. But, I'm running ahead of myself.

We gathered early - at 7ish - for the run. Much pep talk followed on how to do this run. Having finished the 20 miles, most people were totally psyched out. Still, enthusiasm ran high. More talk followed on proper hydration, salt intake, Gu and energy gel intake, and all that. By the time everyone came together, it was 8.20ish already. Having spent more than an hour early in the morning wasn't exactly a fun thing and people were raring to go. That was a strategic mistake...

Most of us ran fast in first half, despite being told to reduce the pace by 1-2 minutes per mile. Physically, it is well near impossible to run much slower than your natural running pace for a long time. One feels like running in slo-mo, taking one exaggerated step after another. The ground was slick from the rain the previous night. As soon as we crossed the reflecting pool near the Capitol Hill (1 mile mark), I slipped and fell. I felt flustered. Pace group runners looked on concerned, perhaps wondering if one of them would have to stay behind with me, as Designated Drivers are supposed to do. And *I* happened to be one of the DDs that day. Right knee had a skin lesion, and a little blood oozed out. My palms, which took the fall, were hurting a bit but were fine.  It wasn't bad, actually, so I ran albeit a bit more cautiously.

Long runs can be boring, as we've discovered. So new games were played, different versions of the name game, with celebrity names, movie names, etc. The run took us way into Maryland territory on the Crescent trail. For a while, I thought we'd cross into Delaware and make way into New York. Thankfully, these were only idle thoughts on a hot, muggy, day. The turn-around point was mile-marker 4 on trail (somewhere near the crossing of Dorset Ave and Crescent trail).

The return half felt tough. A bunch of people in the pace group raced ahead. I stayed behind with 2-3  runners, one of them from the Sunday training group. Salt, gu, pretzels, gels and water was consumed regularly. Feeling no cramps, we trudged along. Raj, from the Sunday group, stayed behind to join the other Salazar A pace group. We, the Salazar B group, should have been running at the same pace, but some enterprising and enthusiastic runners took the lead early, causing an almost 10 minute gap between the two groups. It might have been a better strategy to stick with the Salazar A group, but I was now squarely between the B and A groups.

And so it was - one hard step after another. I was now almost isolated from the pace group, right near the Georgetown / M. St area. Not possessing a running watch, I could only approximate the run:walk intervals. And so I did. With just about 5 miles remaining, it felt like a long run. Still, as it happens when you are familiar with the route, every step brings the milestones closer. 4 miles remaining near the Pegasus bridge, 3 miles at the intersection of 19th and Constitution, 2 miles near Smithsonian Natural history.

Finally, at the 1 mile mark, I met a whole bunch of staggering runners, those who had paced fast early in the run. Some were struggling, others walking, still others hobbling. Alternating between the three like others, I finally reached the finish point.

The best part of the finish was the cheering that people did. "Come on, almost there!", clapped those who had finished earlier and were waiting. A smile automagically spread on my face... It felt great to finish at long last!

Treats awaited everyone. Plenty of peanut-butter, jam sandwiches, oranges, gatorade, bananas and such were to be had. My legs were aching, but not as much as I was fearing. The injury seemed marginal now. There was only a feeling of accomplishment, even if minor..

In retrospect, plenty of things could have been different. But I'll save them for another day. Another day, when the writer is not feeling as reluctant...

Twenty miles today. Yay!

It's been a while since the last post. Much water has flown under the bridge since then, not to mention many miles under the belt. First, 17-miles a couple of weekends ago, then a 10-mile recovery run last weekend, and now a 20-miler. It feels great. Didn't exactly feel that great right after finishing. But more on that to come..

Today's run was an "early" run, starting at 8 am. The mood wasn't exactly the best one I've been in, given how it took me a few snoozes on the alarm to wake up. Gulped down a breakfast energy bar with tea, and did some minor stretching. In fact, apart from the reasonably mild weather, nothing exactly was beckoning for a run. Still, a run it had to be.

Our pace group - Alberto Salazar - was a smaller one today. Only 7 people, which was good, so one could keep track of the running mates without anybody vanishing suddenly in the crowd. The run started as usual path, went along the 4th st, circling the pool near the Capitol Hill, then on to Constitution Avenue, left towards Lincoln Memorial, and across the Pegasus bridge. From there it goes to Georgetown, crossing over the 34th (35th? St) and then to Crescent Trail.

The Crescent trail goes along the C&O Canal all the way to Maryland, and today we actually crossed into MD. It's very popular with bikers, roller-bladers (in summer) and dog-walkers and more runners. In short, it's almost a high-traffic hazard, except of the foot-power kind. Along the way, one sees shady trees now having lost their leaves, smells of the  yech kind, kayakers racing their kayaks in the canal and various other distractions.

About 5 or 6 miles into the trail after crossing a little wooden bridge, you get into Maryland territory. It seemed more settled than the DC area, with a school, some residences, and other buildings nearby. Our turn-around point was the 5.5 mile marker (the markers run in reverse order, starting from somewhere Maryland). One of these days, I'll see that starting point.. For today, that was enough.

The run back was fun, for a change. Usually the return half is a boring affair, having already crossed the scenic routes. Somebody decided to play the "name game" to ward off boredom. One person would name a celebrity, say, "Bill Gates". The next person would have to name another celebrity with name starting with a G. And so on. If a name had two same letters, like "Christopher Columbus", then the everybody would have to name a person with two names starting with a "C"  until the round was complete.  This double-whammy was a pain. Having exhausted several letters and names like Sammy Sosa, Farrah Fawcett, etc. we turned to bands and characters like Cutting Crows, characters like Donald Duck, Daffy Duck. All the ducks, mice, having exhausted, it became a serious pain in the neck to continue, so the game was abandoned. Thankfully, we covered about 6-7 miles playing the silly game.

The last stretch of 2-3 miles is usually difficult. My last mile was a somewhat painful affair. Having running faster than the usual pace for 19 miles, my right calf suddenly hurt badly. It was hard to take any step. With aches in both knees, shooting pain in the right calf, and other areas I don't quite remember, I slowed down. Wasn't sure if it was an injury.  I did a little stretching during the walk phase. Didn't quite help much, but felt better. Nevertheless, I was determined to finish it.

Finish time was about 4 hr and 5 minutes or so. We took a few stops, for water, bio-break, etc. Back at the base camp, I stretched for a long time. Coach said that it's probably lack of salt (I had only one pack, but ate two breakfast bars with sweet-salty nuts and two packs of Gu. I also drank one bottle of electrolyte-filled water). Next time, I've to incorporate more salt in the intake during the run. The body loses salt in form of sweat, so one has to make up for it especially during a long run, otherwise the body results in hyponatremia. Mild forms can result in cramps, severe ones can be really bad. Not a good condition, as I hear..

So that was the 20-miler. Having failed in procuring a massage, I used my handy-dandy Brookstone thumper massager to massage the back and the calf muscles. Better this than nothing.

Time to celebrate. Just don't make me run!

----

PS: So here's a question for other runners: What form of salt do you take for your long runs? Regular salt packets, or any other form? 

What would you do to look like a trained athlete without the training? To be young, to live long... Will you take 'wine pills'?

This may be a bit of old news for regular athletes and other news junkies... As NYT and other sources report, an ingredient found in red wine, resveratrol, shows two interesting effects: it slows the aging process, and ups endurance. In mice.

An ordinary laboratory mouse will typically run one kilometer on a treadmill before collapsing from exhaustion, but mice given resveratrol, a minor component of red wine and other foods, can run twice as far, according to the widely circulated research announced last week by Johan Auwerx and colleagues at the Institute of Genetics and Molecular and Cellular Biology in Illkirch, France.

Further, the mice also have reduced heart rate and energy charged muscles, just as trained athletes do, says the article.

“Resveratrol makes you look like a trained athlete without the training,” Dr. Auwerx (pronounced OH-wer-ix”) said in an interview.

But wait, there's more.. The scientists reported that large doses of resveratrol prevented mice from gaining weight, and from developing metabolic syndrome. It increased their mitochondria (which help produce energy) and thus were able to burn more fat and avoid weight gain. In short, it protected mice from "degenerative diseases of aging and prolonged their life-span by 30%".

A second independent study, by Dr. David Sinclair from Harvard Medical found that:

.. much more moderate doses of resveratrol protected mice from the metabolic effects of a high-calorie diet. Though his mice did not lose weight, they lived far longer than undosed mice that were fed the same high-calorie diet...

A drug that prolongs life, averts degenerative disease and, on top of all that, makes you into a champion athlete — at least if you are a mouse — sounds almost too good to be true.

I'll drink to that!  Who doesn't like slim, trained, long living mice?

Is this too good to be true? Well, it just might be. Is it hard to imagine athletes asking for resveratrol in their energy bars, Gu and other energy drinks? Is it hard to imagine vendors not providing these supplements in effort to boost the performance (even if psychological) of athletes? I don't think it is out of realm of possibility..

In fact, yesterday's Wall St Journal reports just this. Sales of resveratrol as dietary supplements have been flying off the shelf since these reports came out a few weeks ago. Whole Foods sold out its stock of 'Longevinex' earlier this month (no figures disclosed though). As dietary supplements go, these are unregulated by the FDA. Nor is there a causation proved in humans.

As my friend Shefaly notes, for humans to have the same effects as that of the well-fed, merry mice, we might need as much as 39 liters of the fine vintage red per day to get the same effects.

I can almost imagine marathoners asking for their glass of rouge during their runs. Especially in Paris. :-) Can you say drunk athletes?

As for me, I sure could use one for tomorrow's 17-miler. But I think staying sober may be a far better strategy...