anabolic work to keep my meat-head hormones flowin

just a quick recovery workout before i hit another few days of high'ish mileage.

>1-3 mile WU
>KBS (kettlebell swings w/55lbs) & pullups: 20-15-10-5.*
>1 mile CD

*so 20 KBS, then 20 pullups, then 15 KBS, 15 pullups, etc... as fast as possible -so really fast
as i face another high mileage week, im taking today go low-mileage and high intensity in order to stay healthy and happy during the second part of this week.. 60 miles last week, 60 this week, 70 next week. who knows after that, thats what makes it exciting

pre-workout meals

for an average, untalented person to run past the 15 mile mark and still hit 7-8 minute miles on hilly trails, nutrition starts to matter even more. -this is me at mile 16 during the CRUD 8-hour relay. due to the faster paces during a relay, carbs can deplete even sooner.

old school runners will tell you that you should eat carbs before you run 'becasue your body needs to start the workout with full glycogen(stored sugar) stores.' the problem with this is that by eating a high carb(and therefore high GI) snack/meal before your workout, your starting your workout with too much glucose (blood sugar). that sounds ridiculous to most people because when you run low on glucose, you hit the wall and feel like crap. so how can you have too much glucose? -assuming your not diabetic.
the old school runners will tell you that when you hit the wall you have to slow down because your body has to switch to fat as its primary fuel source. however, if you could burn more fat (and therefore less glucose) from the start of the race/run, then youd never hit the wall in the first place.*
during training this is just as important. starting each workout with a stable blood sugar will help your body learn to metabolize fat faster.
so pre-workout meals need to be well-rounded with plenty of fat and protein along with carbohydrates. your stomach will need time to get used to eating like this and you will have to wait longer after the meal to workout/run, but your blood sugar will be under control and your energy levels will be much more stable.
a sample meal, 2 or 3 hours before a workout:
>12-16 ounces water
>mixed raw nuts (brazils, cashews, and almonds. my trifecta)
>meat raviolis with tomato sauce and pesto
then a bit more water (only if your thirsty) leading up to the workout

*another thing to note (in case you have a mild interest in some brief science)is that your body cannot be anabolic and catabolic at the same time. in plain english: you cant store energy and use it at the same time, your body wont let you. so if your blood sugar gets really high before a workout, it releases insulin to stop you from getting too hyperglycemic and causing brain damage. once insulin is present, its impossible to burn fat because your body is trying to store it.

Good Advice

someone i look up to quite a bit told me that the best way to get good at ultra running is to stop talking/blogging about running and actually run.
for the past three weeks ive taken that advice.
Week 26:
this weekend marks the halfway point of this year. i still have to think about it to avoid writing "2010" as the date and 2011 is half way gone.
for the first half of this year ive focused solely on the quality of my workouts, and as a result have averaged just under 30 miles per week. however, during that time i managed to run 2 races past marathon distance and soundly break 1:30 in the half marathon on two different occasions (and with less-than-perfect conditions). also, ive had no major injuries to speak of, and my body has never felt so strong. possibly most important of all is the fact that ive been dreaming of getting back to high mileage.
when every workout is high intensity, even running in the sauna has become something to look forward to -simply because i dont have to maintain a certain pace. so the idea of just 'going for a run' sounds amazing. and since my intensity was through the roof, ive made a very quick and easy return to real running: going from 30 easy miles (to recover) during week 23 to 40 miles in week 24, then to 50 in week 25, and now to 60 in week 26.
conventional wisdom says that doubling your weekly miles in three weeks after months at low mileage is insane and will get you injured, but the science says otherwise. and so do i. marathoners and ultra runners alike feel like complete garbage when theyre building base miles because theyre pushing how far there legs and metabolism can go day after day, week after week. once you settle into 50 or 60 (or 200) miles a week for a while, you start to feel better. but what if you could start high mileage training directly after your low mileage weeks with minimal delay and not get hurt/injured? -you would feel great since youre body (and mind) isnt used up by months of building... -thats what ive done.
by getting my lungs and legs as strong as possible with intervals and lifting, i think ive managed to do something that runners everywhere strive for: the ability to run high mile weeks while loving every minute of it, and without feeling drained in the slightest. plus the chances of getting injured are greatly reduced by the fact that my anabolic hormone levels (no i didnt get a blood test; im going by feel and recovery time from workouts) arent out of whack like 90+% of the distance running community.*
im still planning to resistance train two to three times a week to maintain as much power as i can in my legs (and im also training my core so i can front lever again), but the main focus for the second half of this year is to talk about running a bit less and actually run a bit more -im goin for 80 miles a week(average) for the second half of this year. my plan as of now is, after another month or so of building miles, to hit a week at 60 then a week at 100, then again at 60, and so on. during 100 mile weeks the focus will be on slow miles, and during the 60 mile weeks ill do my lifting and my speed work.

i just wanted to check in with an update and get my goals for the next few months in writing

*this link isnt perfect, but its in plain english, and shows that running decreases testosterone, and it shows more than just a chart with decreased numbers in runners. and if you run and are planning to have a baby, check this one out for sure

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.