the game plan

alot of people i ask about what theyd like to see on here tell me the same thing. most wana know more about how to eat before, during, and after races. at some point id like to cover why i do fuel the way i do and what differs when i run a 5-10k compared to an ultra, but for now, as i go into another 50k, id like to share what my plan is for this weekend in a short, spark notes, version so people can replicate it easily.

-friday
>eat moderate portions of foods that i frequently eat. in my case that means brazil nuts and almonds, cereal, water, and probly some bread with nutella. the key is that whatever you eat needs to be staples of your regular diet: you arent gona get some boost by suddenly switching to an all kale diet the day before the race.
> in the evening i always eat a salad. either an apple harvest chicken salad from red robin or a caesar salad with chicken from pretty much anywhere. does this help? maybe not, but ever time i do it i dont have any GI problems during the race. (but remember: i eat salads multiple times a week, so its not unusual for my body)
-race day (saturday)
>more than an hour before start time: 1 brazil nut* and a few almonds along with probly half a nature valley bar
>1 hour before start time: sip a full-sized Vespa slowly, so it takes about 15 minutes to drink the whole thing. i love the stuff and it definately works, but dang it will make you sick as hell if you dont respect it. having run miltiple times with it, i now know where the line is for me: at about 7:00 pace. -if i try to run faster than that, it gets to me and i risk throwing up. at about 7:30 pace and slower i wont even feel it, so even with a "fast" start, i shouldnt have any trouble holing it down.
*i know one nut sounds insignificant, but i eat a few pretty much every morning, so why change. plus, just one nut has about 25 calories from fat, and i want my body to know that its ok to burn up the little bit of fat i have left. -the body isnt going to use up something that it doesnt know it can replace.
>about 2 hours into the race ill take my first few mouthful of gatorade (strictly water before that to get the full benefit from the Vespa) and continue to sip it until the end of the race
>about 2.5-3 hours in ill take either a vanilla bean GU or a 5-hour energy depending on how i feel. if my legs are starting to feel it, ill take the GU; if its just my mental clarity thats feeling it, ill take the 5-hour.
>3.5 hours in until the finish line im gona take whatever i feel like taking. if my mouth feels dry, ill drink. if my legs feel slow, ill eat some sugar or half a PB&J. if im feeling negative, ill take a 2nd Wind(which has 100 mg of caffeine and should get my head back in the game. -2nd Wind isnt really on the market yet, but i have a few and i plan to put up a review if i take it) or a Roctane

last lifting before the 50k this weekend

its difficult for me to balance the need to keep my hormones through the roof and ensure that im getting rested up for the race. so i usually have my last real resistance training day about 7-10 days before i race, with one more full body workout the week of.

heres both of those, so you can get a better feel for what i do leading up to a race:
-9 days out from race day
>50 clean and jerk @60-75% of bodyweight, for time*
>10 min rest
>tabata squats (narrow stance), holding an "air chair" during the 10 second rest
>400 single leg extensions, alternating legs each 20 for 200 each leg, @ 15-20 lbs
*so as fast as possible
-5 days out (the day after my last long ish run before the race)
>three sets 20sec on: 20sec rest of each: pogos, pushups, split jumps, arm circles, squat jumps with 180 degree turn in the air

even with the mild soreness that may result from an intense workout the week of the race, at this point in my running career at least, its worth it to ensure that i feel sharp instead of flat on race day.
my next post is gona have good news about this weekends race no matter what.