Ingo's Run

Some Miles

2007-10-15T09:35:00.000+09:00

I did 10k at 5:03 min/k on Friday which felt terrible. I was having a cold the entire week and maybe it was a few days too early for a run. I went out on another 10k at 4:48 min/k yesterday and that was the best run in ages. At the moment I take it one run at a time. Always checking the left foot to see how it recovers/reacts. Any pain or discomfort makes me rest as long as necessary.

Actually I am very happy to be running a little again. If somebody gave me the option to keep this sort of running and never improve again for the rest of my life or risk this status quo for new PB's I think at this stage I'd opt for the former. 2-3 times a week a feel-good 10k is all I need for my sanity and happiness. I wouldn't want to risk that ever again.

Maybe the whole injury experience made me a different runner. My ego is a little bruised though for quitting the running game but it'll recover at some point as well.

Quick Update

2007-10-10T13:52:00.000+09:00

I've been careful (or call it lazy) recently. The only exercise I put myself through was self-massaging my injured foot in several Onsens while travelling four days in Nikko.

We had another public holiday on Monday here. This time Health and Sports Day. Good thing about public holidays in Japan is they're very often connected to a weekend. I took Tuesday off as well and enjoyed a really loooong weekend.

We stayed two days in an old remodeled Japanese house. The Nikko Inn is run by a young architect and is a very neat and economical place. Highly recommended.

Since it was a marathon weekend I caught up reading some blogs and noticed that actually many runners miss their targets in races. Why is that? The longer I think about it I realize that I hardly remember reading success stories. There are some though, but just not as many as the "bad" race reports. I mean there are always good reasons like taper, strategy, training, weather etc. Still, the bottom line is most ambitious guys miss their targets. That together with a long list of people dealing with injuries is actually pretty frustrating.

Let's see how that will influence my running once I got my foot injury sorted out. On a different note: I got into Tokyo Marathon! Hurray!

My Bloomberg Horoscope Today

2007-10-02T12:49:00.000+09:00

"Don't overdo it if you get into fitness programs. Make sure that you book a massage as well. You may want to go shopping for that special outfit you want to wear this weekend."

How do they know??

Anyway, I came across another article on plantar fasciitis which will make me hit the brakes again. Actually, I haven't even really started.

Two things caught my attention in particular:

“Treatment of plantar fasciitis can be a long and frustrating process for both the coach and athlete. If you do not have a firm grasp of the goals of this rehabilitation program your best advice will be to find a professional who routinely deals with athletic injuries."

“A partial commitment can make plantar fasciitis last forever.

Yes it is very frustrating and it lasts already too long. This article is quite a setback as I just thought I could at least run 10k regularly at 5 min/k paces and probably run an easy marathon in November.

Now what? Stocking up on night splints and (hard) heel cups? Strapping, orthotics, massages, foot drills and water training? I am getting slowly tired of this stuff. Can't I just rest long enough and take up running again once it's healed?

I don't have serious pain but I do feel it. Well, I better be careful. I guess it's back to the indoor cycle for me and more active rehab measures. Man, I now feel like burgers, pizza and beer.
*sigh*

Finding The Groove

2007-10-01T10:26:00.000+09:00

My brother visited me here in Tokyo the last two weeks and that's why I dropped off the radar. He's a surfer and we had some great time exploring beaches in Shimoda, eating out, drinking together and playing Guitar Hero II on Xbox!

I didn't do any sports, ate too many burgers and pizza and on top of that I smoked a couple of cigarettes during the annual motorbike weekend trip with my biker buddy Nick. I know it's bad but smoking on a road trip with my mate just felt the right thing to do. I enjoy being healthy but don't want to turn into a health nut.

So, the brother left town, the motorcycling season is over - time to get back to normal.

Interestingly my left foot got a little worse without doing anything which puzzled me a little. Most of the healing process is done when there's no tension on the plantar, i.e. at night. That's why the first steps in the morning usually hurt. I figure no exercise at all combined with no rehab exercises doesn't help the recovery either because of an imbalance of healing activity and stretching of the plantar. The healed connective tissue has to be gently reactivated (stretched, used) I suppose, otherwise it just stays tense. Not sure if that makes any sense.

On Friday I joined my wife at her gym. Did 5k on the treadmill at progressive speeds, starting at 12 kph, going up to 16.2 kph. Average 4:30 min/k over 5k. Good warm up before the yoga session. I am not really a fan of yoga but I know it's good. It's a bit boring actually (and it hurts in delicate areas if you try doing it with short running tights!).

Saturday was a 10k run @ 5 min/k and Sunday in the rain the same again. I keep it quite low tech. No paces, no heart rates, no real goals - just running and enjoying it again. The foot behaved OK but let's see how long that'll last. I had that stupid thought that maybe things would be better if something simply snapped. At least there's something to repair then. I mean, all these soccer players for example get their ankles and feet destroyed multiple times, then they go to a special clinic and two weeks later they're back on the field. And I am nursing some micro tears in my plantar fascia for the last 6 months?? I don't get it. I guess I should be more patient.

Good thing is I feel motivated to exit my pizza and starbucks lifestyle for the time being. With 2-3 kilo more on the scale I feel fat.

Little Jogging

2007-09-13T13:17:00.000+09:00

33 min @ 6 min/k pace with my wife yesterday. Testing the waters. Now that Tokyo is getting nice and cool I have to try running again!

The RevMaster Ride IV!

2007-09-11T12:34:00.000+09:00

I tried a new workout on the indoor cycle yesterday. The 55 min LeMond RevMaster Ride IV.

I burned 616 kcal and the computer indicated 30.8 km. The 144 bpm average heart rate (76%) is still below what I want it to be but maybe cycling heart rates are just not the same thing. Basically I want to get to 80% so that I can simulate a higher aerobic 10k running effort.

These 55-65 rpm hill climbs are the killer. I cannot get out of the saddle since I am not training on a real spinning bike but in a seated position it's really tough. And what does "XL's in 4 counts" mean anyway I wonder.

What bothers me a little is that the bikes at this public gym are not really designed for this. They're more of the health oriented kind. But maybe it's good enough for the time being. Can't always blame the equipment, can I?

Mastering the RevMaster

2007-09-10T12:22:00.000+09:00

I did the RevMaster again and slowly get the hang of it. I also wore my Polar to take a closer look at the heart rates. I'll post a graph later but I know now that I averaged 145 bpm (76% HRmax) over 45 min and maxed at 169 bpm (89%). I put out 515 kcal and "cycled" 24.2 km. Not that I care about calories too much but it gives me an indication of the workout's quality.

I am again impressed by the limited structural impact on my body. 45 min running @ 76% HRmax leaves more "damage". I will try to get the average HR a little higher, maybe into the 80% region to make it a more proper higher aerobic workout. I could for example work a little more during the warm-up (10 min). But I should also find new types of spinning sessions to make it a little different each time.

I was even fresh enough to do some weight training afterward. Maybe something I'll start doing from now on but I have no idea how it's done correctly. I did some reading on weight training and came up with things like 1-3 sets of 8-12 or 12-16 reps etc. Call me Hulk from now on.

I don't really know where my running is going - nowhere in the meantime I'd say - and I am not sure how this spinning and weight training will impact my running once I pick it up again. But for now I am simply happy that I can put some energy into something. I also noticed that even only the spinning seems just good enough for my foot. It hurt occasionally recently but after the gym yesterday it's much better. But in other words, running is probably still out of the question then.

3.1 Rice Bowls

2007-09-06T12:06:00.000+09:00

Or one bowl of ramen. That's what the indoor cycle's computer told me after my 500 kcal workout yesterday.

This time I managed to complete the RevMaster Cycling Intermediate Class and I have to admit it's quite a piece of work. Especially these low cadence / high resistance "hill repeats" are not easy. I had to ramp it up to 210-220 Watts to reach the target heart rate (it goes only to 250 W on this bike).

No wonder it's demanding when the heart rate is above 75% HRmax for almost half an hour. Comparing it to my 10k's I did earlier this year it's probably in the easier zone of a higher aerobic 10k run. My gut feeling would translate this effort into a 42:30-45:00 min 10k run.

I will do this workout again with my Polar to get the average HR so that I get a better understanding of what I am actually doing there.

I read somewhere that you should drink 30ml for each minute on the indoor bike - that's 1.3l! No way I am going to do that. Maybe 0.5l but not more than that. But granted, the session yesterday left me pretty thirsty.

At the moment I just don't really know what to do with my running. I don't feel comfortable enough to keep the 5k treadmill runs up. My foot is not getting worse but it's also not getting any better and it hurts occasionally. It's the kind of feeling when you know you'd risk a lot if you ran a 10k at race effort - or 30k easy. And unless I can do this little birds are telling me to better stay away from running.

Now I am asking myself why I signed up for a marathon in November... this year is over for me, running wise. Somehow a big part of what I identify myself with is missing. I am a runner after all but I am slowly converting into a gym & general fitness guy; doing maybe spinning 3x a week, some swimming, weights, table tennis, badminton etc. It's no problem to lose some sweat but it doesn't really do it for me.

In times like this it's obvious to start thinking the whole running experiment over. There's a always stress from balancing life & work and getting the runs in, not to mention the constant change between recovery and training which puts the body through a daily roller coaster. Maybe it's even anti social in a way - in the end I prefer running most of my runs alone. Joining the guys for the weekly track session gives at least some sort of justification but it's not easy to understand why you need say 2h daily (changing, running, showering, cooling down) completely to yourself.

Now I meet buddies at the gym, join my wife at her gym or do other sports. And more often than once I skip things to make more time for loved ones. I didn't compromise that easily while I was running. Being a runner is quite an "occupation". Some food for thoughts.

The Sience of Spinning

2007-09-05T12:24:00.000+09:00

It's actually quite funny when you find discussion groups related to spinning and start reading a little. People do take that serious.

For example you can share real race profiles like "Tour de France Stage 15" and ride it on an indoor cycle!

And people post their "ride reports" like: "I did a PB doing 1,200 km in less than 60 hours". And people reply: "Great ride report!" etc. Don't forget, we're talking about indoor cycling here. Am I being cynical? OK, that's not fair.

I found some information on cadence training on LeMond Fitness and thought I'd give the RevMaster Cycling Intermediate Class a try. The parameters for my workout look as follows:

I was putting this to a test yesterday. The first bike I jumped on didn't show cadence and was of not much use. I wasted 10 min there. I got on another bike which is not exactly a spinning cycle but had at least cadence. It was quite tricky to figure out the initial load but I ended up doing around 145-150 W for the warm up. The flat road spin-up repeats I did in the 165-175 W area and the spin-ups at 200-210 W.

It is actually difficult to hit the right cadence and heart rate in only one minute (for the spin-ups) but the good thing is it keeps your mind somewhat occupied. When I got to the hill repeats I noticed a very uncomfortable feeling of numbness at a delicate area of the male anatomy. That's scary dudes! I wonder if there are professional cyclists with kids at all. I gave up on the workout because people were giving me strange looks when I started reviving my numb parts.

I can probably blame it on the saddle and/or my riding position. The bike indicates a max body height of 185cm and I am slightly above that. Or maybe I was just to busy to figure out the loads and to monitor my hear rate and forgot about some more important things.

Throughout the entire workout I felt not challenged at all. It took pretty decent resistance to get me up to the target heart rates. But when I got of the bike I was shocked by how much my legs were shaking. I've never had that before. Running and cycling are just very different animals I guess.

Anyway, today I brought my cycling pants and hope they'll give me some relief so that I can at least complete this project.

More Spinning

2007-09-03T08:35:00.000+09:00

The foot hurt a little and that's why I ended up only on the indoor cycle:

20 min @ 160 W
20 min @ 165 W
10 min @ 170 W
5 min @ 175 W
1 min @ 180 W
1 min @ 185 W
1 min @ 190 W
1 min @ 195 W
1 min @ 200 W

60 min in total, 37.1 km. Trying to find the sweet spot. I kept the cadence always above 100 rpm. Only @ 165 W I slowly got into the lower running heart rate zones. The workout left me nicely tired and I am really surprised by the low impact on my body. A similar running training takes much more toll.

I should start reading up a little more on cycling an better indoor training. I've no idea if for example the 100 rpm are recommended etc.

In a way I really envy cyclists now. I think they can train proportionally much more than runners because of the lower total stress.

Tour de France, here I come!

Gym, Gym, Gym

2007-09-02T00:42:00.000+09:00

20 min spinning @ 155 watts and 100 rpm followed by another 20 min @ 160 watts (because all the treadmills were in use) and then finally 5k @ 4:20-4:25 min/k.

The spinning was worth 2.2 rice bowls!

Maybe I am a fool thinking that longer running is tougher on my foot than shorter at a higher pace but it works for me (for now). I would not want to run longer than 25-30 min at the moment.

The tricky part with plantar fascia is the fact that there's no pain during the workout (at least in my case). Holding back with running time allows me to get an early 'damage report'. Sure I could run 60-90 min but I would only know after the workout if it was too much.

I do notice the stress on my foot and deep massages of the plantar release a lot of tension. I am not a 100% yet but at least I found a way of working out one hour. Who knows what all that spinning is good for. Interesting is that I hardly reach heart rates there close to my lowest rates during my slowest runs.

Although one cannot call this marathon training at all I signed up for Otawara marathon in November. Let's see how it all works out. At least I want to run one marathon this year - and be it a comfy 3:30 or even slower.

Another Day at the Gym

2007-08-30T08:40:00.000+09:00

Nothing spectacular: 5k on the treadmill @ 4:20-4:25 min/k and 20 min spinning (cadence of 100 rpm, 150 watts, 561 kcal/h).

I've got no idea about these spinning parameters. First time I did this. Heart rate was in the lower aerobic region and the sweat ran like a waterfall. Now I really regret that I didn't do any exercise at all during my downtime. You can do so many different and new things at a gym. It's even fun!

The indoor bike shows your effort in rice bowls. My 20 min were 1.1 bowls worth (or 1 beer). That's what matters in Japan: Rice & beer! Cute.

Once I am old and rich I want a treadmill and an indoor cycling bike (which shows the rice bowls)! It's just so refreshing to do other things once in a while.

Not Hooked Anymore

2007-08-29T12:39:00.000+09:00

Strange but I am somehow not crazy about running anymore. Maybe the break was too long and the weather too hot and humid? I don't really know. Now that my foot is almost healed I could make a lot of time for running but I just don't feel like it.

Maybe I am simply lazy. It takes so much motivation to get out there and run. I put on 1-2 kg recently but I feel 10+ kg heavier when I run. I guess my general fitness has suffered a lot.

That's why I thought about how to fire my system up again. I went to the public gym last night and did 5k @ 4:30 min/k on the treadmill and then 1k @ 4:00 (to remember the good old days). Maybe a daily dose of higher aerobic 5k's will do the trick over the next 2 weeks. I am also thinking about combining it with 20-30 min spinning and/or swimming. That should result in a 1h general workout to boot up everything.

Maybe I also drop the pace by 5s/k each time down to 4:00 min/k. That would mean a 4:25 pace for today's 5k. Somehow the thought of running 60-90 min slowly freaks me more out than regular 5k's at a higher clip.

This is not going to be my next training regime; rather a short-term fitness booster: Shorter higher stress charge on the foot to see how it all holds up combined with some cross training.

I also entertain the idea of running a Marathon at the end of November. Just for fun and to get some confidence back. If things go well a 3:10-3:15 should be in the cards and the real deal would then be Tokyo Marathon next year in February - but if my motivation doesn't turn a corner it's not going to happen.

Skipping the Track

2007-08-23T10:30:00.000+09:00

I could finish work fairly early yesterday and didn't feel like killing time until Namban's weekly track workout starts. Instead I went home and did my usual 10k loop.

I felt pretty light and the headwind seemed to provide a nice cooling. Clocked the 1st km in 4:15 and averaged 4:30 min/k after 6k where I stopped to get a sports drink. From there I had to take it easy on the 4k back as my body started to heat up. It's amazing how different you can feel during only one 10k run.

I normally don't stop at red lights but whenever I run these days I really need these little breaks. I finished @ 4:48 min/k average and don't think I could have done much better no matter how hard I had tried. It'll take me some time to be able to run a consistent 4:30 min/k pace in these conditions. But hey, at least I can run again!

The Stomach Bug

2007-08-20T13:59:00.000+09:00

I caught a stomach bug and couldn't continue with my rehab runs. I am not sure what it was but after the two weekend runs a week ago all hell broke lose. First I thought it was some sort of heat exhaustion but by mid-week things were getting worse. I saw a doctor on Thursday, got a couple of pills, added a few "biscuit-only-days" and finally things slowly started coming around.

I escaped Tokyo over the weekend to cool down at the bottom of Mt. Fuji and realized how tired I was from the current weather conditions. I basically slept all Saturday in cooler mountain conditions. It almost had a jet lag feeling to it. We also discovered some nice waterfalls where the melted ice from Mt. Fuji was coming down. It was cold enough to make your legs numb after a while but the climate around the falls was very healing!

On a different note, my foot injury doesn't really hurt anymore! I know it's too early to get excited about it but it's still very cool! I was dragging this niggle almost 3 months and after only 3 weeks of active treatment and rehab it's almost fixed. I better remember this lesson.

Little by Little

2007-08-13T12:03:00.000+09:00

I managed to get a couple of rehab runs in:

Thursday: 5k treadmill @ 4:30 min/k at Minato-ku Sports Center in Tamachi
Saturday: 10.4k home loop @ 5:03 min/k
Sunday: 10.4k home loop @ 4:54 min/k

The 5k on the treadmill was just to remember how that pace felt again. The weekend runs felt alright but very exhausting in these weather conditions. I always took my time to get a sports drink from a vending machine after 6k and was also very happy about every red light that made me stop on this loop.

On Saturday I picked up two pairs of over-the-counter insoles. These things are fairly pricey I think. I got one pair of Sidas Custom Motion for 8,380 Yen:
These insoles can be custom fitted via thermo adaption if need be but I thought I give it a try in default mode first (well, I didn't want to go through the trouble of asking the Japanese sales staff at Victoria in Kanda).

And a pair of Shock Doctor Ultra2 inserts for 5,700 Yen:
I put the Shock Doctors into my Adizero CS (they even match the colour of that pair!) and the Sidas into the Asics GT-2110 and tried out the Adizeros yesterday. It's fine but I cannot really say it's because of the insoles. Maybe things are just getting better in general. But spending a little bit of money on running always motivates me and makes me feel good in the end.

I also bought a cold therapy kit for my foot but noticed at home that I had to buy the ice pack separately - bummer.

So far this works for me: light running, OTC insoles, glucosamine, deep plantar massage after the runs, golf ball under the desk and soon I'll do icing. Maybe I should have started a more active rehab approach months ago. It seems to be working and I would not have had to sit out three months doing nothing else but resting.

Every Beginning is Difficult

2007-08-09T15:47:00.000+09:00

The foot is getting much better and I ventured out for a 40 min jog last night in Yoyogi Park close to where Namban is meeting up every Wednesday for their weekly track session.

I love the track but I knew well enough to better not give it a go. It was really good to show my face there and talk to the guys after my little run. I missed the routine and I missed all the blokes. Now I am trying to get back into the habit and I hope it'll all help.

It must have been a 5+ min/k pace but that doesn't really matter at the moment. What's limiting me is my lagging aerobic capacity. In other words I simply had enough after 40 min in very humid conditions. Maybe I should take it as a good thing that I cannot push myself even if I wanted to. My foot will be very thankful for that I guess.

It was tense after the run. I massaged the plantar pretty hard and deep. It hurt at first but in a good way. When I massaged it again after a quick shower it felt already so much better and I got a decent boost of hope. Today it doesn't feel any worse than before the run and I take it as a small sign that I might be able to control the whole issue.

I now have to only bring up the discipline to start slowly but regularly. It requires adjusting my mind a little. Normally I would not put on shoes for 30 min workouts unless it's intervals or other intense stuff. But here's the difference: I am not doing workouts, I am doing rehab.

Maybe I start my lunch runs again - but only one lap around the Kokyo and not two for the time being. It'll be a perfect little 6.5k rehab run.

Should I Run?

2007-07-31T10:48:00.000+09:00

That's the big question I am facing these days. All I read about plantar fasciitis is mostly pretty painful stuff. I don't have such pain. Yes it feels tight when I get out of bed in the morning and I do feel it as well when I walk. If I push my fingers deep into the plantar I can also trigger something of pain quality. It reminds me that things are not 100%. But hey, Shiatsu massage can hurt in the same way.

My pain is more in the discomfort zone. When I compare both my feet the plantar of the injured foot comes out a little more when I stretch and it looks somewhat bigger - maybe you could call it swollen. But on the other hand my feet could simply be not exactly the same to begin with. One could have a higher arch and therefore also a stronger looking plantar?

What I am trying to do here is to estimate how injured I really am. I had 10 weeks of from running already and it got a lot better. Would a light training impulse even be beneficial to further recovery? I mean I don't have to blast around at 15 km/h but what about easy 45-50 min of light jogging in connection with decent stretching and icing afterwards?

I found an arch support taping method here and bought the tapes yesterday. I also have some over-the-counter orthotics at home which I haven't really used. Together with my Kayano heavyweights that should be a very supportive package altogether I thought.

If I don't try I won't find out, right? If it flares up again of course I'll stop but maybe I manage to get it under control so that I can jog around a bit and let it recover at the same time.

On a different note, I met an acupuncturist, Steve, on Sunday in Japan's biggest Hinoki bath (they call it 1,000-people-bath). The name of the Ryokan is Kanya. I stayed there one night with my wife and enjoyed the Shimoda beaches. Steve works at the Edward Obaidey Acupuncture Clinic and said I may want to talk to Edward Obaidey about this. Has anybody out there any experience with acupuncture and sport injuries? I am not a big fan of the idea of someone putting needles into my body to be honest.

The DiGiovanni Stretch

2007-07-24T12:27:00.000+09:00

I had coffee with Phil yesterday and he remembered a radio show on plantar fasciitis. A transcript can be found here. Thanks for that Phil san!

That's how the stretch goes:

"What you want to do is, and the way I instruct them to do it is to cross their legs kind of like a guy does. So if it's your right foot you put that right foot and ankle over your left knee and then what you want to do is with your right hand, if it's your right foot, you pull up on your toes - you grab just the toes, not the ball of the foot, grab those toes and pull it up towards your shin and towards your knee. And what that does is that you've got the toes pointed up and that ankle pointed up and with the other hand you feel the structure in the bottom of your foot in your mid arch area and that's the plantar fascia. It'll feel like a firm nice tight guitar string, typically if you have a good stretch. That left hand, the opposite hand, kind of feel that area making sure it feels nice and firm like a guitar string. And what I actually ask patients to do then is to kind of let go of the foot and the ankle and then while the leg is crossed to feel for that structure, you can't feel it anymore. And then I have them again pull up on those toes, point it towards the shin and the knee, using the other hand to make sure it feels nice and firm like a guitar string and then you hold it there for a count of 10 and then you kind of let it go, let the foot relax, pull up on it again, hold it for a count of 10 and do that ten times before you take that first step in the morning, or any time you've been less active, and you're going to take that step and have that sharp ouchy pain, do the stretch again."

DiGiovanni suggests to repeat this three times a day. He published a study in 2003 and a two year follow up on the patients in 2006 in the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery. 90% of the participants were very satisfied, 75% had no pain anymore.

The follow-up raised some criticism for not comparing those participants that were stretching to a control group. DiGiovanni "cannot attribute the changes in symptoms to the stretches performed. As previously mentioned, such improvements may have been due to the natural progression of the disorder or to the placebo or Hawthorne effects. Indeed the long-term improvement may even have been a result of the orthotic therapy the participants were encouraged to continue using from the earlier trial."

But you know what, since you cannot do too much wrong with a simple stretch I don't care too much about this criticism. In two years time I see myself running PB's like crazy again anyway and not stretching my Plantar Fascia all the time.

Plantar fasciitis

2007-07-18T15:06:00.000+09:00

Why am I only now taking the time to look into my running injury? Maybe because I denied for so long that I might have one at all? Or maybe I thought simple rest would do the trick and I could go back to normal once I gave it enough time?

Well, after some reading I guess I have to take a more active approach. What is Plantar fasciitis? Have a look at this:

The plantar fascia is the thick connective tissue which supports the arch of the foot and connects the heel bone to the base of the toes.

Let's look at my self-diagnosis:

- heel pain during the first steps of the morning ? YES

- pain returns after a long rest and then restarting activity? YES

- it is common in runners -> yep that's me

- sudden change in exercise pattern? hmmm, YES dammit

- you're also at risk especially if you have tight calf muscles that limit how far you can flex your ankles -> as a runner my calves feel always somewhat tight

- people with very flat feet or very high arches are also more prone to plantar fasciitis -> relatively high arch in my case

- you're more likely to feel it after (not during) exercise - YES (and that's maybe the dangerous part that makes you believe everything is alright; if it doesn't bother you during the workout, how bad can it be?)

I'll definitely get this checked by a physician. How do I track down a sports podiatrist in Tokyo I wonder. But hey, my employer enrolled me into an "expatriate health care program" starting this month. What a lucky coincidence! Let's test if this program is as fancy as it sounds.

What I don't like is that this "is considered a chronic injury rather than an acute injury". Anything chronic is bad stuff.

What puts me off as well is that "it typically takes six to eighteen months to find a favorable resolution". Strange when a rupture takes only 7 to 12 weeks to fully recover as they say here. Tears of the plantar fascia are normally happening with a "pop"; I am positive this didn't happen to me.

Here are some immediate actions:

- temporary decrease in training -> easy as I haven't really started training again

- gentle stretching of calf muscles -> done deal

- perform 20 seconds of "toe curls" three times daily to strengthen your foot muscles -> sounds like fun

- the usual icing -> not a fan because it's somehow inconvenient

- carefully examine your training regimen (if you've been keeping a running diary - check it for possible training errors) -> lesson learned

- do not go barefoot in your house or at any other time for 6 weeks -> gotcha

- try over the counter orthotics / consider custom orthotics -> not sure if this orthotics hype really helps

What puzzles me a little is that I already had almost 10 weeks of rest. But maybe rest with no further treatment doesn't mean much. And what are 10 weeks anyway considering "six to eighteen months".

I am not sure about this one: "Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (such as aspirin and ibuprofen) can be used for 2-4 weeks in conjunction with other treatments." (here). I am not much of a pill thrower to be honest. Some runners use these things like their daily cereal. Does it really help? Also this very good recent article doesn't say anything about these drugs. "One small, placebo-controlled study has shown a beneficial effect from glucosamine." (here). Maybe I try this instead.

And remember guys: "Any foot injury that does not respond to treatment in 1-2 weeks may be more serious." Bugger!

I wanted to join the track workout tonight and took my running kit to work this morning but after having researched all this I better give it a pass. I am usually bad at holding back on the track.

Another Jet Lag Run

2007-07-17T12:42:00.000+09:00

Hey, maybe this becomes a good habit? It was 4:15 AM when I left the house for another easy 10k this morning. I couldn't believe it started dawning already around 4:30 AM!

When does Japan finally adopt daylight saving time? I heard they were discussing this in the Diet again.

Unless you're a farmer or a jet lagged runner you don't benefit much from an early sunrise.

The run went down OK at 4:42 min/k pace. My heart rate is still somersaulting and occasionally hit 180 bpm. My average HR is roughly 10-15 bpm higher than it used to be at that pace but I guess I shouldn't be surprised. Will keep an eye on this one.

Once everything settles down a bit I want to see 150ish bpm readings again.

Back on the Radar Screen

2007-07-16T06:30:00.000+09:00

It's been a while. I came back only yesterday from my wedding in Germany and honeymoon in Portugal and things are now set to get back to normal.

Quite a roller coaster the last 10 weeks: wedding planning took over pretty much everything, my job stressed me out and on top of that I must finally admit I was injured.

If you put all that into an equation the result is zero running. I tried cycling to work a couple of times but my behind didn't enjoy the road bike saddle too much. But at least I managed to put in some hours of tennis from time to time.

As for the injuries my hamstrings fully recovered after maybe 4-6 weeks. That it was my left foot that ended up taking so long was unexpected. It started really worrying me to the point where I was considering medical attention, x-ray etc. Only during the last 2 weeks it got a lot better. I still don't really know what it was/is but likely something with what is called plantar fascia (or plantar aponeurosis). I cannot say that for sure but at least it hurt there. It still does but only a little and I now feel comfortable enough running on it again without being too worried that I mess things up more.

My first running injury! I guess I have clearly overdone it. But it was a good ride and even better experience. Only shocking that it takes only 3-4 months to put things really at risk. Looking back I am very happy about my 5k PB and my HM PB this year. But going forward I will be much more careful. It's been a good running year already - no need to risk more.

What's left this year? First of all trying to get the hang of it again. Not sure about daily running though. I'd call this rather rehab or consolidation. Maybe a good marathon at the end of the year (but not in terms of time; more like "a good run") and next year Tokyo Marathon in February if I am lucky enough to get in.

Because of the jet lag I went out at 5 AM today for my first run in what feels like ages and I felt happy. I ran 10k by feel and when I checked I was doing a 4:30ish min/k pace. Not bad considering the break I thought. My heart rate was in a region I haven't seen in a while (around 170 bpm) but I guess it just shows the big drop in my general fitness. It's a mixed bag of reasons anyway: long break, jet lag, humid Tokyo weather...

I am glad my weight didn't take a big hit. Maybe 1-2 kg more and maybe it shifted a little but these 2 kilos make me look healthier anyway I guess.

I am sorry I dropped off the screen like that and haven't followed everybody's progress and stories. But to get myself out of my own running hole I will try to be more social going forward.

Not much Running

2007-05-09T11:01:00.000+09:00

...since Sunday. I am still fighting a terrible jet lag and am also looking after my niggles. I actually wanted to join Namban's track session tonight but after only 3h of sleep last night I better drop this idea.

My hamstrings are recovering, although slowly. I still fail to understand how I managed to beat them up so badly without really noticing it. Normally stress symptoms creep up on you and don't go like a bull at a gate, right? And normally my alarms go off in time but I must have somehow bypassed them successfully.

Maybe it's a good time for an interim report. Running wise I've had a breakthrough after finishing the base level test and starting the stamina build-up. I never felt that strong and this good in shape before. My 5k PB dropped en-route and I think I've got a lot more room. Taking out my other PBs seems just to be a matter of setting a date and doing it. From a fitness point of view everything is looking good.

However, the rest of my body is struggling with the program and I finally came to realize that it's just the wrong move trying to continue it and increase mileage. My systems will shut down again after another 2-3 weeks and that's probably not how it should be done.

On top of that it's hard to bring up the right motivation to keep at it. With no target race in sight, growing doubts and looming overuse issues I don't have the bite anymore. Or to put it differently, I don't see much sense at the moment in rushing and taking the risk of getting injured. It is definitely a setback as I got really excited but sometimes it's good to know when to pull out and go back to square one. And that's exactly what I am going to do.

I couldn't run 80-90k/week at higher aerobic paces continuously. Hence I drop this for the time being. The next 1-2 weeks I'll just run by feel and only if I really want to. Becoming niggle free is the main objective. Then I'll do easy 80-90k for maybe 2 weeks at slow speeds and only if that feels alright, I'll start the stamina build-up again from the beginning.

Interesting that writing this feels like a relief.

Something's not quite right

2007-05-06T16:29:00.001+09:00

After 7 days off due to travelling and being busy I went out on an easy 10.4k @ 4:17/k (6.5 Mi @ 6:54/Mi) @ 153 avgHR (80.5%) and things didn't feel the way they should after a decent rest.

My HR was maybe a few bpm higher than usual at that pace but this can well be because of the higher humidity or the jet lag.

What caught me by surprise was that my left hamstrings / adductors were giving me some decent trouble. Maybe this adductor brevis thing but I have to read some more on this to really understand the difference between the adductor and the hamstring parts.

These things acted up a week ago on my run in Berlin and it came pretty much out of the blue. Granted, I do feel the usual stiffness and tightness there from time to time, especially if I put in some hard work, but this was more than that.

I had some problems in that area last year but if I remember correctly a break of about 2 weeks fixed it and the issue went silent.

I thought my shins or feet or other orthopedic related things were the first candidates for trouble caused by my recent training but instead it seems it's simply muscles. It has not injury character yet but I better watch out. The stamina build-up is on ice for now and if anything I'll do easy mileage only with rest days in-between for the next 1-2 weeks.

All in all, I seem to be struggling through this program a little too much to my taste. Maybe I am just not ready yet for the whole daily running idea.

Su: 10.4k @ 4:17/k (6.5 Mi @ 6:54/Mi) @ 153 avgHR (80.5%)

Back from Europe

2007-05-06T05:20:00.000+09:00

Long time no post but let's quickly catch up:

Week 3 (repeat), We:
5k evaluation @ 3:38/k @ 165 avgHR (87%), max HR 175 (92%), 6k warm up & cool down @ 5:00/k

The evaluation went down as planned. Felt easy and controlled throughout. But things really changed I have to say. Before I ran my 5k best at the end of March a 18:11 would have been a PB by 1 sec; and now I am running this pretty much out of the box. I tried to measure recovery time but somehow failed to retrieve the data later with the Polar Precision software. Can it be that this data is only stored in the watch? Too bad I deleted the data set already.

Week 3 (repeat), Th:
12.6k @ 4:11/k

Last run before heading to the airport to catch the evening flight to Paris.

Week 3 (repeat), Sa:
Too jetlagged and busy to run on Friday but the 13.7k @ 4:21/k @ 148 avgHR (78%) on Saturday were fun. I was running my old home loop in Berlin where I basically started running more than 15 years ago. The first two kilometers felt really clunky and I hobbled at a 5:00/k pace but I gradually settled into the run later. My wife took the bicycle and had a good laugh about my running style in the beginning. My left hamstrings were just incredibly tight. Still, I love this loop! Berlin is a pretty green city to start with and beautiful forest trails start right from my parents' house. Packed dirt roads, no traffic lights, no cars and 30% humidity make for a great run! That's the sort of stuff that makes me melancholic. Tokyo is great but running wise there's not much that can compare to Berlin. Looking at the bright side of things, I'd probably be already injured in Berlin because of the great running environment there. I'd love to run the Berlin Marathon again but travelling three times to Europe this year is just too much.

And that was already all for the week:

Mo: 11.4k @ 4:01/k (7.1 Mi @ 6:29/Mi) @ 154 avgHR (81%)
Tu: 12.9k @ 4:06/k (8.0 Mi @ 6:36/Mi) @ 151 avgHR (79%)
We: 5k evaluation @ 3:38/k @ 165 avgHR (87%)
Th: 12.6k @ 4:11/k
Sa: 13.7k @ 4:21/k @ 148 avgHR (78%)

62k in total only but altogether a nice shorter week with the faster stuff in the 1st half. I basically skipped the slower runs.

I didn't do any more running during my trip as I got super busy with planning my wedding. It almost felt like a business trip and I was always dead in the evening. My mileage for the last 7 days is a big fat zero. But my hamstrings are grateful for that I guess.

Well, my weight increased... I started eating meat again last year in Japan after being 10 years a vegetarian and this was my first trip back home to my "meaty" roots. In other words I haven't had German traditional cuisine in a decade and I guess I had some catching up to do. Not sure if that's a good excuse for my +2-3 kg but I enjoyed it. What I don't understand is that my body fat dropped at the same time. Before the trip I weighed 72ish with 16% body fat and a BMI of 20 and now I am more like 75 kg, 14% fat and a little healthier BMI of 21. So I was either constantly dehydrated before or my body built muscles in the meantime? With 7 days off and a healthy appetite I clearly didn't lose fat. Or is my water balance just all over the place because of the 12h flight and a 7h time difference? Whatever, I feel a little fat now and better go for a run.

Why so Easy?

2007-04-24T13:57:00.000+09:00

I really didn't want to go faster than the planned 4:12/k (6:45/Mi) but everything felt so easy. I tried to slow down but it would have unsettled my rhythm and I didn't want to allow that.

I think the wind was in my favour in addition to a good recovery. Only some tendons in my left foot want to tell me something but these guys will get a break soon. Or is it the muscles there? I don't really know. When I massage there it feels like a very tight little muscle. Probably a mid-foot strike side effect.

Let's see how tomorrow's 5k evaluation run on the track goes down. I am planning to use some recovery HR functions on my Polar but I still have to wind my head around it.

Week 3 (repeat), Tu: 12.9k @ 4:06/k (8.0 Mi @ 6:36/Mi) @ 151 avgHR (79%)

I like Mondays

2007-04-23T12:44:00.000+09:00

...as far as running is concerned. My Monday runs often turn out better than expected. Today I did 11.4k @ 4:01/k (7.1 Mi @ 6:29/Mi) @ 154 avgHR (81%).

Last week wasn't a bad week but it also wasn't going as planned. Here's what I did:

Mo: 11.4k @ 4:00/k (7.1 Mi @ 6:26/Mi) @ 151 avgHR
Tu: 12.9k @ 4:12/k (8.0 Mi @ 6:46/Mi) @ 149 avgHR
We: Track
Th: 11.4k @ 4:18/k (7.1 Mi @ 6:56/Mi) @ 147 avgHR
Fr: Day Off
Sa: 21.4k @ 4:20/k (13.3 Mi @ 6:58/Mi) @ 149 avgHR
Su: 12.6k @ 4:23/k (7.8 Mi @ 7:03/Mi) @ 149 avgHR

But I was planning to run this:

Mo: 11.3k @ 4:07/k (7Mi @ 6:38/Mi)
Tu: 12.9k @ 4:12/k (8Mi @ 6:45/Mi)
We: 11.3k @ 3:39/k (7Mi @ 5:52/Mi)
Th: 12.9k @ 4:12/k (8Mi @ 6:45/Mi)
Fr: 11.3k @ 4:00/k (7Mi @ 6:26/Mi)
Sa: 14.5k @ 4:19/k (9Mi @ 6:57/Mi)
Su: 11.3k @ 4:19/k (7Mi @ 6:57/Mi)

82k vs. 85 (53 Mi) on the plan. I did a tempo run, a track workout and a longer run on Saturday. However, I had to juggle workouts, missed the target pace on Thursday and took a day off on Friday. I cannot really say I completed the 3rd week of this build-up.

The rest day on Friday felt very good and especially the longer run the next day. I really missed being out longer on my my home loop.

This week will be a short one for me. Golden Week is coming up in Japan and I'll be going away for a couple of days. I think I'll partly repeat the 3rd week rather than moving on in the plan. Once I am back from my trip I'll tackle week number 4.

Week 3 (repeat), Mo: 11.4k @ 4:01/k (7.1 Mi @ 6:29/Mi) @ 154 avgHR (81%)

A Day Off Won't Kill Me

2007-04-20T13:55:00.000+09:00

... said Mike yesterday and he's probably very right.

This week was going OK so far but I started shuffling workouts around to get the rest I needed. Still, I was building up a decent recovery deficit. The 7 miles yesterday felt already like the last 10k of a marathon. I think it's in general good to trigger this sort of fatigue in training but it's a little worrying if that happens during a 7 miler (well, I shouldn't forget that it was a lunch run after an evening track session).

On top of this I seem to develop a pattern. It's week number 3 of the build-up but only the 2nd week after taking a break of 6 days. The last time I had to fold was in the 2nd week of this build-up. Back then I was running for 10 consecutive days. This time I am running for 11 days straight and think a day off would serve me well.

Good thing is I don't feel as wiped out as before. In fact, I almost regret that I didn't bring my gear to work because I am now pretty positive I could have nailed today's run with no regrets. Too bad I made already plans for tonight! Otherwise I'd definitely run. Looks like I will really rest today - damn! But maybe I can put some slow mileage back tomorrow.

I found some good indicators that signal an increasing recovery deficit:

Avoiding stairs and looking out for escalators and elevators
Cravings for sweets - like starting the day feeling hungry for a caramel doughnut
Having no drive for anything
Mood swings
Feeling hot and breaking into sweat easily

Two more Runs

2007-04-19T13:25:00.000+09:00

It was Namban's weekly track workout yesterday and here's how it turned out:

Rest after the 800's was around 2:45 min and 3:45 min after the 1,200's. I always tried to keep the HR above 100 bpm during these periods. Here's what my HR did:

I was overall very pleased with this session. I had no target paces in mind and ran pretty much by feel, keeping the next workout in mind so that I don't overdo things at expense of the following day's run.

I still missed today's target... didn't even try to do run the 12.9k @ 4:12/k (8Mi @ 6:45/Mi). Instead I settled for 11.4k @ 4:18/k (7.1 Mi @ 6:56/Mi) which sort of is what's on the plan for Sunday. Taking things a bit slower allowed me at least to do a few miles. At some point I was considering to take a rest day. Let's see how my recovery manages to catch up. Looking at it right now I doubt if I feel like 11.3k @ 4:07/k (7Mi @ 6:38/Mi) tomorrow.

Week 3, We: Track workout + 6.5k @ 4:45/k (4 Mi @ 7:39/Mi) warm up & cool down
Week 3, Th: 11.4k @ 4:18/k (7.1 Mi @ 6:56/Mi) @ 147 avgHR (77%)

Adding another Mile

2007-04-17T13:30:00.000+09:00

Granted, it's only 1 mile difference but I see 7 miles more like a 10k which is still tempo run territory. 8 miles (almost 13k) however are somehow longish. Having that said, I feel that bloody additional mile! And be it only mentally.

Apart from that I seem to have absorbed yesterday's run OK - at least to 85%. The legs felt heavier today though. Maybe also because I switched to Kayano's for a change in order to give my hamstrings a break which lately have come under more stress due to my mid-foot strike. Running in cushier shoes allows me to roll more over the heel which eases the pull on these muscles.

The weather here in Tokyo is still not very inspiring with cloudy & rainy 11C... but that's nothing compared to the conditions during the Boston Marathon yesterday. The organizers even issued a weather alert a couple of days ago.

Week 3, Tu: 12.9k @ 4:12/k (8.0 Mi @ 6:46/Mi) @ 149 avgHR (78%)

Rainy days in Tokyo

2007-04-16T12:56:00.000+09:00

Rainy 12C today in Tokyo and that is not going to change anytime soon according to the forecasts. But what are windbreaker vests good for, right? Lucky me I packed one in this morning. Still, getting motivated on grey days like this always feels twice as hard as usual. A nice lunch would have been the right thing to do but instead I headed out into the rain.

Traction was obviously worse but the splits seemed OK and soon I realized I was going at a much faster clip than planned. Somehow I like getting these 4:00/k (6:26/Mi) paced workouts out of the way early in the week. I did it last week on Tuesday and again today. I don't want to wait until Friday when I can already pull it today - who knows how I'll feel at the end of the week. I find a 4:00/k (6:26/Mi) pace demanding and when my 'recovery control center' signals all clear and I feel like it, I better get these runs in the bag when I can - not when I am supposed to. Of course it disrupts the carefully structured and well thought through plan but I take this plan as a better guideline only and adjust.

I started looking at HR's again after cleaning the transmitter. I averaged 4:00/k (6:26/Mi) during the base level test and ran 19 times with the HR monitor, averaging 157 bpm. Today's workout was 6 bpm (or 3% of HRmax) lower than that. Interesting.

Week 3, Mo: 11.4k @ 4:00/k (7.1 Mi @ 6:26/Mi) @ 151 avgHR (79.5%)

2nd Week Recap

2007-04-15T19:19:00.000+09:00

During the 2nd week of this build-up I was planning to run:

Mo 11.3 @ 04:07/k (7 @ 06:38/Mi)
Tu 11.3 @ 04:12/k (7 @ 06:45/Mi)
We 11.3 @ 03:39/k (7 @ 05:52/Mi)
Th 12.9 @ 04:12/k (8 @ 06:45/Mi)
Fr 11.3 @ 04:00/k (7 @ 06:26/Mi)
Sa 12.9 @ 04:19/k (8 @ 06:57/Mi)
Su 11.3 @ 04:19/k (7 @ 06:57/Mi)

And ended up running:

Day 1: 11.4k @ 4:06/k (7.1 Mi @ 6:35/Mi)
Day 2: 11.4k @ 3:57/k (7.1 Mi @ 6:21/Mi)
Day 3: Track
Day 4: 12.9k @ 4:10/k (8.0 Mi @ 6:43/Mi)
Day 5: 11.4k @ 4:12/k (7.1 Mi @ 6:45/Mi)
Day 6: 12.6k @ 4:21/k (7.8 Mi @ 7:00/Mi)
Day 7: 10.4k @ 4:23/k (6.5 Mi @ 7:03/Mi)

84k vs. 82 on the plan. I swapped Tuesday with Friday but will try to not easily do this in the future.

I should also not forget that I completed this week after a decent time out of 6 full days to fully recover. Going through the next week will be the real test to see if I can pull this build-up or not. From a recovery point of view I feel fine now. I held back on Wednesday on the track and also ran both weekend runs slower than planned. Not that I wanted to but it just happened. Both runs felt pretty good and sometimes I just want to enjoy it rather than pacing myself to the second. On Saturday I actually felt like putting on more miles but behaved.

What's on the plan for next week?

Mo 11.3 @ 04:07/k (7 @ 06:38/Mi)
Tu 12.9 @ 04:12/k (8 @ 06:45/Mi)
We 11.3 @ 03:39/k (7 @ 05:52/Mi)
Th 12.9 @ 04:12/k (8 @ 06:45/Mi)
Fr 11.3 @ 04:00/k (7 @ 06:26/Mi)
Sa 14.5 @ 04:19/k (9 @ 06:57/Mi)
Su 11.3 @ 04:19/k (7 @ 06:57/Mi)

Calves feel Loaded

2007-04-13T14:19:00.000+09:00

Apart from the title nothing really new today. Since I did the quicker run already on Tuesday I could take it a little easier today. My calves are paying for the new mid-foot strike I am practicing these days but it's only pure muscle soreness. It will be interesting to see if I manage to shake this off over the weekend where I have two runs scheduled @ 4:19/k (6:57/Mi). I actually have to recover. There's no point in starting the next week on sore muscles.

Week 2, Day 5: 11.4k @ 4:12/k (7.1 Mi @ 6:45/Mi) @ 148 avgHR (78%)

Settling in

2007-04-12T13:53:00.000+09:00

My sprained ankle from Tuesday's run kept quiet (good I iced it immediately) and I could join the track session yesterday. I normally like running hard on the track but with the current plan that requires daily running I have to learn how to hold back and save some energy.

Here's the breakdown:
7k - warm up @ 5:25/k (8:42/Mi)
400 - 1:45 (just to warm up ahead of the mile)
1 mile - 5:44 (3:34/k)
2x800 - 2:45 & 2:41
strides - 100m jog/100m sprint over 1,600m in 9:53
2k - cool down

I enjoyed the sprinting part a lot! Goodness, I cannot even remember when I sprinted full out like this! I like especially the transition from fast running to sprinting, as if some sort of turbo kicks in.

Today's lunch run went down pretty smoothly in nice spring conditions. I finally fixed my HR monitor which didn't seem to work properly anymore. The Polar WearLink Transmitter can be removed from the textile strap and you better clean the contacts from time to time. I never knew!

I managed to keep my mid-foot strike until 10k and then didn't try too hard. I should change my style slowly - maybe every other day or so. Apart from that it looks like I have maximized this lunch run and it will be almost impossible to squeeze in more mileage. Maybe one more mile but then there's a high risk that I won't be back at my desk before the Tokyo stock market reopens @ 12:30 PM for the afternoon session.

Week 2, Day 3: Track
Week 2, Day 4: 12.9k @ 4:10/k (8.0 Mi @ 6:43/Mi) @ 149 avgHR (78%)

Awesome Run!

2007-04-10T13:45:00.000+09:00

When yesterday felt a little rusty after my one one-week break, today was simply awesome! The plan called for 11.3k @ 4:12/k (7 @ 6:45/Mi). I passed the 1k mark in 3:50 and still kept a sub 4/k pace until after the uphill section at 3k. Slowing down to 4:12/k didn't feel right considering how easy it felt and I decided to trade today's workout with the run on Friday. Feels good to have already this run in the bag!

I did some reading on shin splints; not sure if I have one in my right leg but if so it's very minor. The more I got into this topic, the more it made me think about my foot strike. In the end it comes all down to the individual running stride - at least it says so here.

Shin splints are "most common among three groups of athletes: middle-distance high school track athletes, novice joggers, and army recruits. In a word, among groups of low skill athletes who are pounding the ground mercilessly to make their way to success."

Maybe I am also kind of a newbie when it comes to the type of running I am recently doing? At least I want to pay more attention to this. In 2000 I started mid-foot/forefoot running when I was training in very hilly territory in Luxemburg. It was especially relieving on the downhills and saved my spine a lot of stress. I still switch to this method on downhills but forgot totally about it otherwise (focusing too much on paces and HR's). I used to be able to do tempo runs up to 15k on my forefoot but couldn't keep at it much longer when the legs started getting tired.

I broke in a brand new pair of (old model) Adizero CS today and concentrated only on my stride, thinking a less cushy shoe would be helpful. It felt good and easy but I noticed that my right leg got tired first and wanted to go back to heel striking. That's the good thing about the one-week break I took; I'd have never been able to notice little nuances like this without it. Looks like I have a small deficit there and I will work on it (or is my right leg just shorter?).

Anyway, I finished the entire run nicely on my forefoot. My right leg seemed to have enjoyed it a lot - I could even pound the downhills hard without holding back anything to prevent any looming niggle.

Only downer is I sprained my right foot - ouch! It's not so bad but I am cooling it with an ice bag under my desk now. Hopefully I can join the track session tomorrow...

Week 2, Day 2: 11.4k @ 3:57/k (7.1 Mi @ 6:21/Mi)

Rebooting

2007-04-09T13:17:00.000+09:00

Bleeeeeeep, bloooooop, dee doo dee doo, de, deeeeee, deeeeesssshhhhhh...

I took a somewhat radical approach last week and simply didn't run at all. I couldn't trust my senses anymore and wanted to reset the whole system once. As if my mission control center lost the key person that analyzes the data from the damage surveillance division.

Two months ago I changed my training approach and running a lot. I was in a state of constant recovery and lost the ability to know how things are supposed to feel like. What's "pleasantly tired"? Was my fatigue normal, was the soreness normal? I ran into completely new territory and just couldn't tell a niggle from a looming injury anymore because everything was quite sensational to me.

Sitting out one week may sound drastic but I needed to rebase my system in order to relearn how 100% recovered feels.

I allowed some other things to take over the driver's seat in the meantime to keep my mind off running, such as wedding planning for example.

Now everything is back to zero and I am confident again that I am not running myself into the ground. But I'll be more careful and aware from now on. I start where I left off, try not to overachieve, allow myself more freedom and give myself less pressure on rainy days.

I will continue with the plan but also have a plan B ready. If I feel stale in two weeks again, I have to warm up to the idea that I just don't have enough stamina for the stamina build-up. The build-up starts with roughly 80k/week and that's actually a lot for someone who's not a high-mileage runner like me. In that case I'll put the build-up on ice and first run 4-6 weeks only miles, no matter how fast or slow.

Week 2 (again), Day 1: 11.4k @ 4:06/k (7.1 Mi @ 6:35/Mi)

The deep Fatigue

2007-04-06T12:11:00.000+09:00

Were you ever surprised by how fatigued you really are? It happened to me once before during last New Year's break.

I was doing quite a bit of running in December to prepare for Tokyo Marathon in February and then went on a relaxing one-week trip to Kyushu, enjoying onsen hopping in Kurokawa and great kaiseki meals.

I knew I was going to recover there and didn't even consider taking any running gear with me. What was very surprising, not to say shocking, was the fact how long it took me to feel fully recovered. I didn't see at all how deeply anchored the fatigue already was. You'd think two good nights sleep would be all you need to put you back into the game.

Back then I could still feel the impact from my training almost one week into the holiday! And here I am again. Good my warning system raised the yellow flag early enough. First thinking sitting out one workout would do the trick, I am now looking at a rest of 3 consecutive days. I guess I badly needed it. Imagine I would have run through this... I could have though.

But I have to come to new conclusions here; I'd be quite a fool going back to the original plan in light of all this. I got some helpful comments and the bottom line is, I have to pay more attention to the "little things" to keep the current running up and/or revise the paces down until I can run them (maybe 5s/k slower in average to begin with). Good point that recovery should be more than just not running!

Let's take a look at the damage report. Apart from my running confidence taking a small hit the physiological effects are fading quickly (to my big relief). Things didn't snap in the end. Come to think about it, I should be fairly good conditioned now to run a 10k PB this weekend!

Just kidding ;-)

Backing Off

2007-04-05T11:55:00.000+09:00

A second day of rest for me. I am hitting the brake a little harder and decided to pull the trigger on week 2 for now.

Most recovery departments were still on alert yesterday even after a day off and I decided to first get my act together before tackling the build-up again.

Of course I am looking for reasons why this happened to me. The program is based on the previous base level test and I am falling apart already in the 2nd week? This cannot be right. At this stage I find it actually hard to believe that I completed the test the way I did.

Running 10 days in a row should not kill me (although I am not fully comfortable with daily running yet). But maybe overachieving in the 1st week combined with a 5k PB did?

Whatever it was, I did not recover enough to keep the training up. I'll take it easy the rest of the week and start the 2nd week schedule on Monday again with a focus on not running faster than needed. If I manage it ok, fine. If I don't I have to reassess the whole plan. That likely means including rest days and easier paces in general.

I was wondering, is recovery a linear process? If not how is it sloping? Will the amount of recovery activity decrease or increase over time? One scenario could be, the body is so tired that it recovers slowly at first and faster the more recovery sets in. Or it's exactly the other way round.

Linear:
1st day off 25% recovery (= 25%)
2nd day off 25% recovery (= 50%)
3rd day off 25% recovery (= 75%)
4th day off 25% recovery (= 100%)

Non-linear I:
1st day off 10% recovery (= 10%)
2nd day off 20% recovery (= 30%)
3rd day off 30% recovery (= 60%)
4th day off 40% recovery (= 100%)

Non-linear II:
1st day off 40% recovery (= 40%)
2nd day off 30% recovery (= 70%)
3rd day off 20% recovery (= 90%)
4th day off 10% recovery (= 100%)

Day Off!

2007-04-03T17:13:00.000+09:00

"The understanding and importance of knowing that a workout consists of two major and equally balanced factors; the load or work phase, and the rest or restitution phase. The importance of the rest phase is underrated. Very many athletes are worried about resting a day now and then if they feel tired because they think they will lose a lot. The consequence of this is both the feeling of guilt and negative emotions about the "lost" workout as well as many worn out athletes."

Ingrid Kristiansen in this article (found again on Mike's blog).

It's been not even 2 months that I started (almost) daily running and I already feel pressured to come up with an explanation why I took a day off yesterday. Not long ago I used to have 2-3 rest days a week and now I struggle to take one day off? I better re-adjust here.

If I manage to complete the remaining runs this week on target then I'll not worry too much about the skipped 11.3 @ 04:12/k (7 @ 06:45/Mi) yesterday. Maybe I even put back the missing 7 miles over the weekend. In case I keep struggling this week I'll implement point 4 of my running contingency plan.

After a good night's sleep I feel much better now. A day's rest really does wonders (plus a big Skippy Super Chunk peanut butter sandwich)! Let's see how tonight's track session turns out.

Another good Kristiansen quote to finish this topic:

"Training programs should only be used as a lose framework that the athlete should be encouraged to adjust and change based on the feedback from his/her own body."

How to hit the Brake

2007-04-03T10:00:00.000+09:00

I am not exactly sure what is slowing my recovery down these days but I have to come up with a plan to handle situations like this. I was thinking about the following order:

1. Delaying the workout intraday
2. Backing off the pace to do the mileage
3. Taking a day off and completing the rest of the week as planned
4. Taking as many days off as needed, postponing the scheduled week until recovery is back on track, only easy runs until getting back on the schedule

My neck is stiff and my right leg is sending first signs of overuse. Somehow surprising considering I managed to run faster for 28 days in a row during the base level test. Maybe I haven't found the groove yet with respect to the other paces. Also the bit of racing last Wednesday definitely took a toll on my body.

"You can't train hard and race well at the same time."
(Arthur Lydiard in this article, found on Mike's blog)

I guess that is very true. Going through my above list I think I will start with point 1 today. Depending on how things look tonight I might even go directly to point 3. And hey, on top of it it's raining today...

Going into the 2nd Week

2007-04-02T14:08:00.000+09:00

I kicked off the 2nd week with a run right on target. However, I did feel the shortened recovery of only 15 hours. My hamstrings are good again but one of my right hip flexors, probably this guy, is acting up.

If I wait for the next run until tomorrow night to get a few more recovery hours in it may go away.

Today's pace felt like work. The plan allows me actually to go a little faster on Monday as long as the weekend mileage is low but I didn't feel like it. My recovery is lagging behind and I am willing to back off the paces if need be to get at least the miles. I wasn't even expecting to hit today's target.

Come to think about the weekend paces again, during the build-up I will never run slower than 4:19/k (7 @ 6:57/Mi) which is bugging me somehow. It's doable but not what I'd call a comfortable speed at which I can really relax for a change. This will hopefully get easier after a few weeks.

Week 2, Day 1: 11.4k @ 4:07/k (7.1 Mi @ 6:37/Mi)

First Week Recap

2007-04-01T20:39:00.000+09:00

During the 1st week of this build-up I was planning to run:

Mo 11.3 @ 04:07/k (7 @ 06:38/Mi)
Tu 11.3 @ 04:12/k (7 @ 06:45/Mi)
We 11.3 @ 03:39/k (7 @ 05:52/Mi)
Th 11.3 @ 04:12/k (7 @ 06:45/Mi)
Fr 11.3 @ 04:00/k (7 @ 06:26/Mi)
Sa 11.3 @ 04:19/k (7 @ 06:57/Mi)
Su 11.3 @ 04:19/k (7 @ 06:57/Mi)

And ended up running:

Day 1: 11.4k @ 4:02/k (7.1 Mi @ 6:29/Mi)
Day 2: 11.4k @ 4:09/k (7.1 Mi @ 6:41/Mi)
Day 3: 5k evaluation @ 3:32/k (3.1 Mi @ 5:42/Mi); easy 8-9k warm-up
Day 4: 11.4k @ 4:08/k (7.1 Mi @ 6:40/Mi)
Day 5: 11.4k @ 3:58/k (7.1 Mi @ 6:24/Mi)
Day 6: 10.4k @ 4:19/k (6.5 Mi @ 6:57/Mi)
Day 7: 10.4k @ 4:17/k (6.5 Mi @ 6:54/Mi)

80k vs. 79 on the plan. Basically an over achievement by a small margin (I mean the paces). However, I don't think I recovered properly during the week mainly because of the 5k time trial (which resulted in a PB). Lucky me the weekend mileage is still low.

By running yesterday at 9AM and tonight at 7PM I could get 34 hours of recovery in-between the two slower weekend runs which helped a lot to get me back on track. Now I feel confident enough to tackle week number 2:

Mo 11.3 @ 04:07/k (7 @ 06:38/Mi)
Tu 11.3 @ 04:12/k (7 @ 06:45/Mi)
We 11.3 @ 03:39/k (7 @ 05:52/Mi)
Th 12.9 @ 04:12/k (8 @ 06:45/Mi)
Fr 11.3 @ 04:00/k (7 @ 06:26/Mi)
Sa 12.9 @ 04:19/k (8 @ 06:57/Mi)
Su 11.3 @ 04:19/k (7 @ 06:57/Mi)

Fast on Friday

2007-03-30T12:57:00.000+09:00

This morning my hamstrings felt still a little stiff from Wednesday's 5k time trial and I worried about today's 4:00/k (6:26/Mi) run.

I thought about swapping it with one of the slower weekend runs but the Friday pace is supposed to fatigue the first sets of muscle fibers ahead of Saturday's long run (which is not long yet). As long as the mileage is low I think I could do this with no harm. On the other side I didn't want to make comfortable adjustments already in the 1st week of this build up.

Then I read Patrick's comment on Mike's blog:

"Just don't be afraid to let the pace lag on days you don't feel your best."

Keeping this in mind made me much more relaxed about the paces in general.

On top of that the weather changed overnight to my advantage. It was raining in the morning and temperatures cooled down to around 13-15C. A good side effect was that my lunch loop wasn't packed with hundreds of Hanami geeks.

In the end all the worries were for nothing and the run was simply good. Everything felt right at that pace. Now I have two easy weekend runs ahead of me!

Week 1, Day 5: 11.4k @ 3:58/k (7.1 Mi @ 6:24/Mi)

Cherry Blossom Run

2007-03-29T13:41:00.000+09:00

According to the Cherry Blossom Forecast 2007 the "estimated best viewing" is from March 29 to April 7, i.e. from today!

My lunch runs take me around the Imperial Palace which is close to one of the top cherry blossom spots in Tokyo. Hence, busloads of flower viewers made today's run very much an obstacle course. I think I have to find an alternative route until Hanami season is over.

I thought I was behind the pace which was fine with me considering last night's time trial but when I finished I realized I was 4s/k faster. Pretty stupid in the end because this will put tomorrow's 4:00/k (6:26/Mi) paced workout at risk. Of all the things I didn't want to do was going faster than 4:12/k (6:45/Mi).

With 23C today it is also the warmest day so far this year and cooling down takes now more and more time. I don't like coming back to my desk and keep sweating in my seat! At some point I will have to shift most of my running into the early morning hours.

Anyway, Hanami season is a great time in Japan and this weekend everyone is "doing Hanami". Check out how. I like the picture of the poor guy sitting on the blue picnic sheet and reserving the spot for his group. Normally the most junior employee of a company is in charge of that. He'll probably be already drunk by the time his colleagues arrive.

Happy Hanami to everyone!

Week 1, Day 4: 11.4k @ 4:08/k (7.1 Mi @ 6:40/Mi)

Whoo-hoo!

2007-03-29T09:06:00.000+09:00

I joined the 5k time trial last night and managed to PB. I am tempted to say it was rather easy...

There's a park close to the track where I usually warm up and I did very easy 8-9k there with occasional stretching breaks. The legs didn't feel 100% fresh but the stretching really helped and a couple of strides before the trial woke them finally up.

It was a little disappointing that the fast guys from the club didn't show up and I knew I had to do most of the work myself. Only Adam was there who tends to start too fast and then fades in the 2nd half.

My first goal was to break 18 min and my second to zoom in on 17:45. I wanted to run 1:25's but I can only set up full seconds on my watch timer and I wanted it to beep every 200m. I decided against 42s for 200m (1:24/lap, 17:30) and went for 43s (1:26/lap) which would return a 17:55. I prefer being slightly ahead of the pace maker rather than behind. As long as the timer beeps after the mark I know at least I am on track to break the 18 min.

Here are the splits:

1 - 1:21.3
2 - 1:26.5
3 - 1:26.2
4 - 1:26.2
5 - 1:26.2
6 - 1:26.9
7 - 1:25.2
8 - 1:26.0
9 - 1:26.3
10- 1:26.3
11- 1:25.3
12- 1:23.8
13- 0:37.0

Finishing time was 17:43.2 - hurray! I think in the future I'll run all 5k's like that. Even pace between laps 2-11 and a quicker 1st and last lap.

Until lap 6 I was behind Adam but I gradually gained on him. I passed him and wanted him to grab my tail (it was his last workout with the club before going back to London and a PB for him would have been a nice one) but he had not much left and finished around 18:20. Too many sayonara parties I guess but we better have an eye on him. Next stop is London Marathon where he'll be in the news for sure! Stay tuned.

Let's see if I can hit today's 4:12/k (6:45/Mi) paced workout. I may have to save some energy for tomorrow's 4:00/k (6:26/Mi).

Week 1, Day 3: 5k evaluation @ 3:32/k (3.1 Mi @ 5:42/Mi); easy 8-9k warm-up

Keep Chopping

2007-03-27T12:58:00.000+09:00

"We're in the middle of a forest," he remembered telling the team. “It's dark. You have to chop wood. You have to start chopping." (Greg Schiano)

I guess that's how the stamina build up will feel from now on. Just keep chopping it! Today was 11.3 @ 04:12/k (7 @ 06:45/Mi) on the plan and I did it in 4:09/k (6:41/Mi).

It's somehow difficult to hit the slower paces. Running "as fast as you can" is easy compared to that; you don't have to think about a certain speed. I clocked 1k at 4:00/k but managed to slow down to 4:10/k by 3k (with the help of the uphill section there).

I also don't feel quite as smooth. Maybe I am making this up but my running ergonomics seem to break down at slower speeds. I am stomping, my stride is heavy and I fail to settle into the run. I am not gliding like I did at 4:00/k.

I looked into new running gadgets yesterday and came across the Polar RS800sd which offers you additional parameters like cadence and stride length. I've never heard of "over-striding", have you? Maybe it's all bollocks.

But come to think about it, maybe I run smoother at slower speeds with increased leg turnover and a shorter stride? Speed in distance running comes mainly from increased stride length I once read. Vice versa, slowness should then result in a shorter stride, right? That would be a great excuse to get a crazily overpriced running watch!

Tomorrow we'll have a 5k time trial on the track. I was thinking of giving it a bit of a go. It's the day of the evaluation run but replacing this with a time trial won't do much harm I hope. Breaking 18 min for the first time would be nice.

Week 1, Day 2: 11.4k @ 4:09/k (7.1 Mi @ 6:41/Mi)

Kicking it off Again

2007-03-26T12:52:00.000+09:00

The plan called for 11.3k @ 4:07/k (7 Mi @ 6:38/Mi) with some room to go quicker as long as the weekend mileage is low.

I forgot my running shorts and my watch but my colleague was so nice to help out and lent me his supersized shorts and a Suunto t6! The 1st km passed in 3:40/k (5:54/Mi) and by km 3 I still averaged 3:45/k (6:02/Mi). After this I gradually faded as things started to feel pretty clunky and I didn't try to keep the pace. My breathing was labored.

Tokyo weather changed big time within a week. 17C and 34% humidity at lunch time and a noticable increase in pollen. That's just a foretaste of Tokyo's hot and humid summer months with plus-30C temperatures and an average 75% humidity.

I wasn't the only guy out there who found it more difficult today and if I run out of other excuses I can still blame it on the increased drag from the mega shorts ;-)

The t6 is a bit tricky to operate I found. The buttons are smaller than on the 625x and it happened a couple of times that I pushed a button twice although I wanted to hit it only once.

And hey, I know someone who met someone very fast! Check out this nice story.

Week 1, Day 1: 11.4k @ 4:02/k (7.1 Mi @ 6:29/Mi)

Preparing for the Stamina Build up

2007-03-25T18:41:00.000+09:00

I had a very easy week ahead of my 1st week of the stamina build up:

We 14k @ 5:30/k
Sa 10k @ 4:26/k
Su 13k @ 4:32/k

Just maintenance and recovery to remember how really fresh legs feel like. Next week will look as follows:

Mo 11.3 @ 04:07/k
Tu 11.3 @ 04:12/k
We 11.3 @ 03:39/k
Th 11.3 @ 04:12/k
Fr 11.3 @ 04:00/k
Sa 11.3 @ 04:19/k
Su 11.3 @ 04:19/k

Or in miles:

Mo 7 @ 06:38/Mi
Tu 7 @ 06:45/Mi
We 7 @ 05:52/Mi
Th 7 @ 06:45/Mi
Fr 7 @ 06:26/Mi
Sat 7 @ 06:57/Mi
Su 7 @ 06:57/Mi

The pace on Wednesday is just for a 2-3 mile evaluation run. I'll be doing something similar to this effort on the track with my running club. I actually got all clear from Mystery Coach to run @ 4:00/k (6:26/Mi) on Monday as long as the mileage is low.

Let's see. I'll kick off with 80k in the 1st week and to be honest, I do not think that is low mileage. At least not to me. I ran most of my marathons on not more than an average mileage of 70-80k/week, peaking at around 100-120k 3-4 weeks before a race.

Having that said, I started worrying about the target paces a little. They are clearly out of my comfort jogging zone of 4:30-5:00/k. That means every day will be a real 'workout' and I will have to push myself.

Today I tried to produce a power band for myself by running 2.2k loops at 140, 150, 160, 170 and 180 HR with 90 sec breaks. But my Polar 625x played games with my HR and I dropped the whole idea. Strange though, I got it recently serviced and replaced all batteries. Maybe I have to upgrade to a newer model or brand. The 625x I have was Polar's first model with speed sensor.

Two Doubles

2007-03-23T10:15:00.000+09:00

Yes, that's right! Two doubles of rest days this week! Monday + Tuesday and Thursday + Friday. Not that I badly need this break but I am rather taking it very easy ahead of the stamina build up I am going to kick off next week. I'll be running for 14 weeks straight - every day!

Instead I enjoy culinary evening trips around Tokyo. I had a corporate thing yesterday at Cicada in Nishi-Azabu:

This place has become very popular and serves food far from over-the-top prices in a warm, comfortable, stylish setting with great, friendly and helpful service in both English and Japanese.

However, going there is not really hip anymore. It's no news and too established in light of the incredibly high turnover of restaurants in Tokyo. Even if you find a great place, you get either bored after 3-5 times or they cannot keep up the quality.

We had beer from the T.Y Harbor Brewery, some very good Italian wine and finished with a Calvados. Somehow I didn't have the feeling that we were out 'drinking' but I changed my mind when I woke up this morning. TGIF!

Post-Test Carbo Loading

2007-03-22T10:15:00.000+09:00

I took my wife to The French Kitchen for brunch yesterday and stuffed myself full with eggs served every way, piles of warm pastries, bowls of fruit, all types of freshly squeezed juices and so forth... The buffet is something of a feast but the best is the French Toast. I had three of them!

I felt so full for the rest of the day and didn't even have dinner last night. Six hours after the feast I still felt heavy during my 80 min easy jog.

Last Sunday I came across a great money saving opportunity: Take care of your feet yourself! I thought I'd do myself (and my beaten feet) a favour by trying out foot cosmetology for the first time. I went to Foot Balance in Yurakucho.

The website looked somehow promising and I wanted to get rid of all the calluses and dead skin. Well, a young girl just scraped half-heartedly my feet for half an hour and then gave me another half an hour a pretty weak leg massage. So far so good if they didn't make me pay almost 10,000 Yen (= 85 US$) for this. They said they didn't take off too much skin so that it's not getting irritated... right, and how often do I have to come back now? What a waste! I can do a better job than that.

But you know what? It's a booming business and most of these foot shops are booked out for the next couple of weeks.

Shifting Things Around

2007-03-20T16:48:00.000+09:00

Now that I have a rough plan to build up some stamina I was thinking about how to arrange the days so that I can join the track training on Wednesdays.

On this subject Mystery Coach commented here:

"Once you figure out the equivalent loads (like the sample paces) you can arrange them in any order. I have found the back to back pattern to be very effective. If you look at Arthur's original schedule you'll see this pattern: short harder effort followed by long steady effort (10-15,12-18,10-22) Two of these back to back combos (four days with the other three days shorter and steady) give very good results."

The original plan for me looks like this:

Tuesday's 2-3 mile evaluation run will be replaced by the Wednesday track workout which will be very much at evaluation run effort.

How to reshuffle the original plan:

Mo @ 4:19 min/k (6:57 min/mile) -> Su
Tu @ 3:39 min/k (5:52 min/mile); 2-3 mile evaluation run -> We
We @ 4:12 min/k (6:45 min/mile) -> Th
Th @ 4:07 min/k (6:38 min/mile) -> Mo
Fr @ 4:12 min/k (6:45 min/mile) -> Tu
Sa @ 4:00 min/k (6:26 min/mile) -> Fr
Su @ 4:19 min/k (6:57 min/mile) -> Sa

New plan mapped to the new days:

Mo @ 4:07 min/k (6:38 min/mile)
Tu @ 4:12 min/k (6:45 min/mile)
We @ 3:39 min/k (5:52 min/mile); intervals on the track
Th @ 4:12 min/k (6:45 min/mile)
Fr @ 4:00 min/k (6:26 min/mile)
Sa @ 4:19 min/k (6:57 min/mile)
Su @ 4:19 min/k (6:57 min/mile)

The new plan:

I think I managed to keep all important combos ("short harder effort followed by long steady effort").

Today is my second day of rest after finishing the test - I am already getting fatter ;-)

Tomorrow is Vernal Equinox Day in Japan (春分の日 Shunbun no hi), an official national holiday. It is spent visiting family graves and holding family reunions. I am rather going daytripping to Okutama to see some nature.

"There's an old saying that the chill of winter finally disappears after Shunbun no hi, and temperatures do get higher from around this time. Cherry blossoms - the most popular symbol of spring in Japan - begin to bloom, first in the south and then in the colder parts of the country in the north." (source)

Mission Accomplished

2007-03-19T08:58:00.000+09:00

Yesterday was the last day of the Base Level Test. I put on the flats, cranked it up another notch and ran a 3:47/k (6:06/Mi) pace - the fastest I have ever been over a distance like that. My potential 10k best must be sub 38 min now.

I got me another blister but don't care anymore at this stage because it's all done. I noticed the increased wear and tear on my 188cm frame and wonder how some guys can run this 2 1/2 hours without falling apart. I guess it'll take years of training to compensate this kind of impact.

Let's start with some analysis:

I missed run number 11 due to some massive blister problems that almost made me abort the test. I managed to come back and gave myself a penalty pace of 4:11/k (6:43/Mi) for the miss. This was the slowest I was expecting to run in the entire test. The missing mileage I made back on day 14 when I did a decent warm-up and cool-down.

Everything included I averaged a 3:59.9/k (6:26.1/Mi) pace. I wore my HR monitor on 20 days and averaged 82.2% (based on 190 HRmax). I mentioned that I am not sure about the 190 bpm but it's probably save to say that I was in a 80-82% range of HRmax (190-195 bpm).

If I calculate theoretical 5k and full marathon times based on this post I end up showing 16:53 for 5k and between 2:42-2:44 for the full marathon which is clearly out of my reach.

A stamina build up with a 4:00/k (6:26/Mi) base would look like this:

M @ 4:19 min/k (6:57 min/mile)
T @ 3:39 min/k (5:52 min/mile); 2-3 mile evaluation run pace
W @ 4:12 min/k (6:45 min/mile)
T @ 4:07 min/k (6:38 min/mile)
F @ 4:12 min/k (6:45 min/mile)
S @ 4:00 min/k (6:26 min/mile)
S @ 4:19 min/k (6:57 min/mile)

The whole program:

The discussion I am facing now is how to read these results. On the one hand Mystery Coach pointed out:

"Most runners miss this line "making sure that you can recover from the effort". To me it sounds like you are just a bit above your steady state. Try backing off 15-20 seconds per mile (you'll find you'll gain this back by the end of experiment). Remember you're trying to find your true steady state not force yourself into one."

But it was said here:

"To find your base level; for the next 21-28 days run 7 miles a day over the same course as fast as you can."

I did run as fast as I could for 28 days. Looking at the extracted 5k and full marathon times above I must have "forced" myself. But isn't running as fast as you can always forcing yourself?

I've done the test but where is my "true steady state" now? Is it 4:00/k (6:26/Mi) or should I add 15 sec/Mi for safty or other reasons, putting the base at 4:09/k (6:41/Mi):

M @ 4:29 min/k (7:13 min/mile)
T @ 3:49 min/k (6:08 min/mile); 2-3 mile evaluation run pace
W @ 4:22 min/k (7:01 min/mile)
T @ 4:17 min/k (6:53 min/mile)
F @ 4:22 min/k (7:01 min/mile)
S @ 4:09 min/k (6:41 min/mile)
S @ 4:29 min/k (7:13 min/mile)

Once I've figured that out I also have to think about shifting days around. My club is always having a track session on Wednesdays and I was thinking of doing the Tuesday workout on Wednesday instead. We're doing all sorts of different intervals there and it will be an "evaluation run" effort one way or the other.

I've got one week time to think about all this before kicking off the stamina build up. I allow myself two full days of rest and then cannot wait to see my running mates on Wednesday on the track. It's been more than four weeks missing the track workouts - and the beers afterwards!

Otsukaresama!

Day 28: 7 miles @ 3:47/k (6:06/Mi).

Zooming in

2007-03-17T17:08:00.000+09:00

I felt very sleepy today. No surprise after going to bed at 3am and getting up less than 7 hours later.

In the early afternoon my wife convinced me to join her for a 2k jog before she took her ballet class and I took off for the 2nd last 7 miler after this warm-up.

I easily found my groove and switched to autopilot after checking my pace at 1k. I noticed after 4k that this run was actually going pretty well and I remembered my goal this weekend to knock out my PB on this loop. Why not today I thought and opened up the throttle, but at this point it was probably a little late for a serious attempt - I missed it by 15 sec and likely jeopardized this project by prematurely reaching out for it.

Where is all that strength coming from? Something is definitely kicking in. This week is already better than the 1st one and I would have never expected that. I was close to finishing the test after only three weeks and now I realize that week number four could be the most meaningful one. I feel as strong as never before and could take out my 5k, 10k and half marathon PB's in the upcoming weeks if I wanted to.

Day 27: 7 miles @ 3:54/k (6:16/Mi)

Running with Ram Air

2007-03-16T13:24:00.000+09:00

"A ram-air intake is any air system in the intake which uses the air pressure created by vehicle motion to increase the air pressure inside of the intake manifold on an engine, thus allowing a greater volume of intake air, and hence engine power."

Granted, it doesn't work like this when it comes to running but I noticed something in my breathing pattern that I find quite exciting. At a certain effort I seem to be breathing in same as strong as I breathe out. It's like a squeezed sponge that sucks in the water around or maybe a vacuum cleaner - as if there is negative pressure in my lungs. I am not gasping for air, my system rather sucks air nicely but strongly into my lungs and they love it.

I didn't have great plans for today's run but it turned out very well. It was cloudy, 8C with 50% humidity; a little bit colder than on the previous days. Knowing it was my last base test related run on this loop I allowed myself to simply "run" and averaged 3:52/k (6:13/Mi). A proper finish on a loop I ran 20x in the last 4 weeks. If I feel good on Sunday I'll try to knock down my best time for the home loop as well. That would be a nice completion of the test.

Day 26: 7 miles @ 3:52/k (6:13/Mi)

Is this steady?

2007-03-15T13:08:00.000+09:00

Running today felt like getting up in the morning in order to go to work. I wasn't really motivated but knew that I simply had to do it. On the other hand I wasn't panicking either because I know how to do the job. Pretty much like work, right?

I am now counting down the remaining days of this test and completing it is about the only thing that keeps me going. I know the course like the back of my hand and could probably tell the running time without stop watch within an error of 20 sec. I also knew I am done pushing to the upside after yesterday's record pace. In other words I was bored by the thought of running the same 7 miles again.

Interesting is the effect of alcohol on recovery. Last night I had a beer at a bar waiting for my buddy and then two more with the guy. Three beers are nothing outrageous when hanging out with friends but they do have a weakening effect. Sleep is not as deep as usual and the next morning your body is not hiding the fact that you had three beers after all.

Back to running. I noticed the same heart rate phenomenon that I observed already yesterday. Today it was @ 154 bpm (81% HRmax) the 2nd lowest average in the whole test. Interesting if that's already a trend. However, the effort felt a little harder overall. Well, what can I expect after a couple of beers last night, a good run yesterday and not much motivation today?

Day 25: 7 miles @ 3:59/k (6:25/Mi)

Feeling Strong

2007-03-14T12:38:00.000+09:00

I saw that somehow coming last night. If a running buddy had suggested an evening 10k I'd have not said no - I felt already this good! With sunny 10C and 28% humidity today running conditions were fantastic (forget about the wind at 23 km/h).

I felt very recovered, set out at a sub 4/k pace and noticed that I was running the downhill sections stronger than usual. Normally I switch to cruise control there to recover a little and also limit the impact. Maybe the heavy Kayanos encouraged me as well. If there's a shoe out there that can absorb some serious pounding then I believe it's this one. Of course that shoe wasn't built to be your weapon of choice when it comes to faster paced 7 milers but that's a different story. At least my blister plagued left foot had no objections.

I finished at a record pace of 3:57/k (6:21/Mi) for this loop. Interestingly my average heart rate @ 153 (80.5% HR max) marked the lowest level so far. I've got to check the HR graph tonight to see if it's consistent or if there are any gaps. I had some troubles with the chest belt recently. I wasn't wearing it tight enough and it moved around sometimes at these speeds, miscounting the parameters.

Anyway, I feel good and there are only 4 more days to go!

Day 24: 7 miles @ 3:57/k (6:21/Mi)

Back on Schedule

2007-03-13T12:45:00.000+09:00

The weekends turn out to be the tricky part when it comes to a test that requires running every day. Going out, sleeping in or doing many other things easily throws me of my schedule. During the week I've got no difficulties in sticking to my 24h recovery schedule; I always run the same loop during my lunch breaks at always the same time of the day (in that respect I guess I can call myself very lucky).

But today everything is back to normal. The legs started filling up after the 7k mark before the long uphill section. Then I noticed that I passed 8k 45 sec earlier than yesterday and that gave me a nice boost. It didn't feel that much faster. In fact, I was very pleased with the unexpected finishing time.

Day 23: 7 miles @ 3:59/k (6:25/Mi)

P.S.: I mentioned a couple of days ago that my running buddies participated in a race to raise charity to support sight restoration operation in the developing world. Here's more on this from Steve. Hat's off to you guys!

Safety First

2007-03-12T12:47:00.000+09:00

A shortened recovery due to yesterday's late run, bad sleep and mainly the renewed blister worries let me take things easier today. When I took care of my left foot last night I seriously considered quitting the test. The risk-return profile does not look very favourable anymore:

The overall result of this Base Level Test will not be much affected by this week's performance I think. On the other hand, any new blister complications will likely get pretty messy.

Three layers of skin have been affected and I fear there's not much left. It looked very dark red under the newest layer. It's under control for now and I really learned recently how to tape and protect it. If I had a race scheduled tomorrow, I could run.

It's not a shoe issue; I tried many different old and new ones. It simply comes down to the fact that my feet are not used to the specific strike (more mid- and forefoot) that the current paces require (at least not on a daily basis).

A good rule of thumb I figured out is: the bigger the problems, the cushier the shoes should be. It was time again to put the Kayanos to work.

In light of all this, I am more than happy with today's run.

Day 22: 7 miles @ 4:06/k (6:36/Mi)

Three Weeks Down

2007-03-11T20:13:00.000+09:00

Sometimes there can be a big gap between your mood for running and your actual performance. It was a rainy, cold and windy day here in Tokyo and I allowed myself to feel sleepy and slow all day long.

At 6:30 PM I kicked myself out of the door to get this run just over with. I now stick to my habit to leave the speed sensor at home and not check the splits, the time or the heart rate at all anymore. I only listen to the engine, control the breathing and concentrate on my stride.

I felt good from the start and just kept pushing to a feel-good-level which I was able to hold until the end. Why was I so sleepy before I really wonder. With three weeks booked I have to decide whether or not to continue this test for another week. It's originally 21-28 days. How do I know if I can stop now? I think I just continue. The pressure will be less from now on because I know I could have called the test complete already today.

I noticed to my surprise that the 3rd layer of my mega blister broke. How many layers are there? At some point there will be flesh, right? Impressive, a blister through 3 levels of skin. My only hope is that this area will be much stronger once it's completely healed.

The only downside of running in the evening is that the time to recover for the next run will be reduced by about 8 hours. Let's see how that feels tomorrow.

Day 21: 7 miles @ 3:56/k (6:20/Mi)

Alive and Kicking

2007-03-10T17:46:00.000+09:00

I had a big night out with my German mates yesterday. As is right and proper we started at Bernd's Bar with a couple of beers and a huge meat platter. I had already an after-work beer before that with colleagues and was pretty loaded when we moved on to a fancy whiskey bar. I wanted to quit before that but couldn't resist the peer pressure.

One of the guys asked who was the oldest among us and then ordered a 1971 Glenmorangie. One shot of this is probably worth a decent bottle of scotch but the paying guy is a pretty successful dude - carpe diem!

Needless to say that my condition was sub-optimal this morning when I woke up. I allowed myself a few more hours recovery and only got out of the door at 5 PM. I wasn't really excited about going running with a fading hangover and just wanted to get it done. Another handicap was that the second layer under the fresh skin of the mega blister I mentioned a few days ago popped yesterday after removing the special bans-aid. My feet are obviously somewhat behind in this game.

During the first 3k I failed to ease into the pace and had to work harder than usual. Headwind was strong but I gradually realized that I was going at a pretty decent clip. That increased my confidence and made me run stronger and stronger. It also helped that I had picked a new pair of Asics GT-2110 that I had in stock for this run. It's always good to have a few pairs of proven sneakers stored at home - especially when you bought them at almost half price because a newer model got released.

I finished this 7 miler @ 4:01/k (6:28/Mi) and I slowly wonder if I already start reaping the benefits from my first test week. I mean, the last two days were already good and today I nailed this run after a big night out without having to kill myself? Apart from my blister plagued feet all other recovery departments are giving green light these days. The 3rd week is almost completed and I am somehow excited about entering the last test week soon. Maybe I'll feel like playing around with the throttle a little. The engine is well broken in by now.

On a different note, Daniel participated in a "race to raise charity to support sight restoration operation in the developing world and have the experience to run with a blind runner" today. Here are the pictures he took. I am so proud of you guys!!!

Day 20: 7 miles @ 4:01/k (6:28/Mi)

Uneventful Day 19

2007-03-09T13:00:00.000+09:00

It felt not as good as yesterday but it can well be the weather or my work stress. I got a few more smaller blisters but they are nothing scary.

There was a promotional dose of glucosamine added to the Tokyo Marathon bag. I normally don't use any supplements but this time I deceided to just give it a try - it's was 'free' after all. Do I notice anything? Nope. Will I start buying it after I finishing the free stuff? Probably not.

I rather believe in my habbit to cold shower my legs and knees for a minute after a workout. It's not exactly 'icing' but it somehow feels good and I believe it counters inflammation. Maybe I am wrong.

Day 19: 7 miles @ 4:00/k (6:26/Mi) - same as yesterday, again running by feel.

Oops... I Did It Again

2007-03-08T13:07:00.000+09:00

Did I say I am done running 4:00/k (6:26/Mi) paces? Not quite yet it seems. I hit it spot on without speed sensor. I didn't even bother to check the splits manually. Another run by feel - and the long uphill sections felt strong. Perfect running conditions again today and wearing flats just feels better for this kind of distance.

I actually didn't sleep very well. Some work thing kept me awake and the thoughts just didn't want to stop bouncing around in my head. This run made me release some stress.

My heart rate behaved; in fact it was close to the lowest level for this pace @ 82%.

Day 18: 7 miles @ 4:00/k (6:26/Mi)

Metric vs. English

2007-03-07T12:51:00.000+09:00

The thought crossed my mind that I might be too obsessed with this 4:00 min/k pace. It's a landmark in the metric running world whereas 6:26 min/Mi doesn't mean much. Maybe I am just chasing ghosts in the metric world and I could relax a bit more by using the English system? There's no point to push yourself to see a 6:26 min/Mi pace at the end of your workout but there's a certain motivation to challenge 4:00 min/k when you are that close.

I'll think more about it. Does anybody have any firsthand experience with switching between the systems to optimize training?

Today's 7 miler felt very relaxed and stronger. My stride was more powerful and overall it felt much easier than yesterday's 4:09/k (6:40/Mi) run. It's cooler today and nicely sunny with not much winds. Perfect running conditions! I wish the Tokyo Marathon had taken place on a day like this. There was also a bit of competition on the lunch loop. Some high school kids had a blast and I clung on to them. At least a small change in my daily routine. I have to admit I am getting slowly bored of 7 milers. At some point I'll have to deceide to do this test over 21 or 28 days. What should be the criteria for that I wonder.

No fade today; rather a strong finish: 4:05/k (6:35/Mi) pace.

Easy does it

2007-03-06T12:41:00.000+09:00

My body felt a little stiff this morning. Not sure if it's because of having put on 30k in new flats over the last two days. Also with the warmer weather I start showing some early hay fever symptoms. Whatever it is, it made me go to bed early before 11PM last night which is unusual.

Mystery Coach left a comment putting my base level @ 4:15/k (6:50/Mi).

The stiffness and his comment made me take things easier today. Why pushing myself so much when the 'real' base is about 15 sec away from the average I have been running. I left the speed sensor at the office, took the cushy 2110's and hobbled out without checking my pace at all - only my HR from time to time. I ran pretty much by feel. Breathing was a lot easier, the general output seemed lower but my HR didn't seem to ease off so much. With two parameters lower I'd expect my HR to follow but it didn't. I'll keep an eye on this.

Day 16: 7 miles @ 4:09/k (6:40/Mi) - slowest run so far.

Funny actually that I now call a 4:09/k pace 'easy'. But it really felt this way!

Spring cleaning

2007-03-05T13:12:00.000+09:00

I managed to retire four pairs of running shoes yesterday. It wasn't as sad as usual: two Adizero CS2 (they served me well but gave me some big blisters recently), one pair of Asics DS Trainer (never liked them) and some old Adidas flats. And of course that made me feel justified enough to restock my fleet!

I went to the recently opened Asics store in Ginza and picked up a pair of O'Hanaracers yesterday. They're not really flat flats as they offer a bit more support for marathon races in the sub 3 region. I figure they'll do well on my daily 7 milers. Also I want to try if I am able to do more mileage on lighter shoes.

When you spend 15,000 Yen there you can become a member and try the locker and shower facilities inside the shop three times. The short distance from the famous Imperial Palace 5k loop could make this interesting. After the trial you can use the facilities for 2,000 Yen per month. Well, nice try Asics but there are more convenient and cheaper options I think.

I tried the new racers on the Tamagawa 10k loop. A friend of mine lives down there with his family. There's a lot of space for all sorts of activities by the river and it's rare to see a little bit of nature in Tokyo. It's not exactly pretty by most standards but after having spend now a few years here I actually appreciate it a lot. Nonetheless, in most parts of Europe they would probably make trash-dump out of an area like this.

The racers felt very good, although running them on gravel was actually not such a good idea for fragile beauties like this. I had to pull a few stones out of the sole today. I first jogged 3 mile with my mate and then took off for my 7 miler (@ 4:03 min/k or 6:32 min/ml; 83% HRmax), finishing with another 3 mile warm-down. I had a good feeling throughout the entire run, the weather was great and spring finally seems to be breaking through here. Cherry blossom is only two weeks away!

I got another run done during lunch today @ 4:01 min/k or 6:28 min/ml; 84% HRmax. It's day 15 into the Base Level Test and it's getting harder. I tend to go out a bit fast these days and fade a little on the last 3 miles. At the moment I average 4:01 min/k or 6:28 min/ml (83% HRmax) for all runs so far but I am not sure if it's the right approach to average these results in the end.

Close to Halftime

2007-03-03T10:51:00.000+09:00

Another 7 miler under my belt today @ 4:03 min/k (6:31 min/ml). I started at my usual sub 4 min/k but the legs started filling up after only 4k. When I reached the 7k mark I had slown down to 4:07 min/k which is the pace I should be running anyway. I managed to speed up a little over the last 3k but it wasn't easy. Average HR was 83% but I am not sure if my HRmax is still correct these days. I shouldn't be able to run daily at 80%+ HRmax, should I? Maybe I have to put that to a test at some point (any ideas on how to do this in the field are more than welcome as it is obviously a well kept secret how to get a clinical test done in Tokyo).

Today felt somehow as if I am approaching a certain limit. At least I know I won't be able to pull the sub 4 min/k runs next week like I did in the first one (after a two week taper for a marathon I ended up not running). Maybe the lack of sleep, again too many beers last night, two hours less recovery in my 24h running cycle or the heavy Kayanos played a role today. Not sure what it was but I ran 90 seconds slower on my weekend course than last week and I didn't do it voluntarily.

Back in the game

2007-03-02T13:24:00.000+09:00

I cannot really believe it but when I left the house this morning I took my running bag. I had to sneak out because I didn't want my wife to see me leaving with this bag. It would have been hard to explain why I was limping, suffering and whining all day yesterday and claiming special attention from her.

I took a shower, gave the blister a hard look and was surprised that soap and shampoo didn't cause any pain. Fast Eric shared his blister wisdom and that was the time I started reassessing the situation. Maybe I can still get it fixed but I wasn't sure where to pick up some duct tape on my way to work and I was already running late. I prepared a quick fix with these blister band-aids (putting it directly onto the open wound) and covered everything with a big tape-like bandage.

The only worry I now have is that I discovered some sort of bruise close to the blister exactly underneath the midfoot region. Not sure where that came from but maybe I unconsciously adjusted my foot strike on my last run to reduce the pain? I hope it's just a related symptom and nothing new from the current overuse. The killer is always the long downhill stretch where I hit the road hard with sometimes sub 3:50 min/k (6:10 min/ml) paces. I can run that speed but it's not exactly something I am used to on a daily basis (as my left foot can tell now).

I am not sure how to evaluate the fact that I basically took a day off yesterday which of course is not supposed to happpen during this test. But It’s not that I “needed" it for my musular recovery; it was rather “forced” upon me.

Let's face it, I could fly to a remote island with masseuse, physiologist, a yoga instructor and a cook to perform this test under perfect conditions which would result in a great steady state pace. But if I would plan my training based on that back in the real world I'd probably end up in hospital. In other words, the currrent test reflects very much my current lifestyle. There always will be disruptions (not because of blisters I hope) and I also will be eventually hungover (like today because I ended up celebrating my test stop with too many beers last night). Yesterday's disruption and today's hangover will make the test results very usable for my future training – because the conditions will likely be the same.

On a different note, Daniel sent me a link for further discussion. The bottom line is we should all run around in racing flats only. Hmm, I like my heavy duty gear though but I also remember one of Namban's quicker guys, Brett, saying that he runs mostly in flats. Makes me think... Daniel, why don't you go first? ;-)

Anyway, I went out today and ran the 7 miler @ 4:01 min/k (6:28 min/ml). The foot behaved. It's most important to not think at all about the blister. If you do you start making little adjustments, be it to reduce impact or to force yourself to roll exactly over it, giving it a bit of extra pounding so that the fresh skin gets used to it quickly. You only want to get your natural foot action back without being conscious about it. It worked for me. Breathing felt easy although my average heart rate at 84% seemed a little elevated for this kind of output. Can it be the hangover? Or do I tolerate a higher HR better; at 84% I normally gasp harder for air than today.

To fill yesterday's gap in my test data I assume for now that I would have run the workout 20 seconds per mile slower (4:10 min/k or 6:43 min/ml) as suggested by Mystery Coach.

Test aborted

2007-03-01T09:45:00.000+09:00

I didn't expect a blister to put me out of the game but the damn thing indeed did. It covers a relatively large area just short of the ball of my left foot and reaches to the metastarsus.

The area already took a beating in a half marathon a few weeks ago and just healed up before I started the test. I had to open it last night to apply some antiseptic and to check how everything was. It's the baddest thing I ever got and I'd say it has injury quality. There are even pockets of water underneath the main blister, a second layer which I wouldn't dare to touch at the moment.

My running ego quickly reached an unanimous consensus with whatever sanity is left in me and I pulled the trigger on the test. Yes it's frustrating but I cannot do much about it now. Let's look at the results:

I'd love to believe that my steady pace is at 03:59 min/k (6:25 min/mile) but that's probably where it only will be in about 2 years time. The test wasn't "steady" was it? At least one part of the system failed, even if it's only my left foot.

If I extrapolate theoretical 5k and full marathon times from that pace I end up showing 16:50 for 5k and between 2:41-2:44 for the marathon which is clearly not my league (yet).

Let me try to simulate how this test could have ended. Mystery Coach suggested to back off 15-20 seconds per mile which I almost achieved yesterday. Last night I felt "pleasantly tired" and today I feel just fine with no residual fatigue left. I assume that I'd have tried to gradually slow down more from here until I am 20 seconds per mile slower than the first 9 test days. The last few days I'd have probably sped up a little.

Altough my first 9 days were likely a little above my steady state I think it's still fair to use these days when calculating the average. That will take the fact into account that I somehow was able to perform upper aerobic running for some time which is a certain strength I guess.

Based on the simulation my steady pace should be in the area of 4:05 min/k (6:35 min/mile). Theoretical 5k and full marathon times would be 17:21 (5k) and between 2:46-2:48 respectively. Without sounding too ambitious I think a 17:30 over 5k is very possible to achieve near term.

How would the stamina build up look with a base of 4:05 min/k?

M @ 4:25 min/k (7:07 min/mile)
T @ 3:45 min/k (6:02 min/mile); 2-3 mile evaluation run pace
W @ 4:18 min/k (6:55 min/mile)
T @ 4:13 min/k (6:47 min/mile)
F @ 4:18 min/k (6:55 min/mile)
S @ 4:05 min/k (6:35 min/mile)
S @ 4:25 min/k (7:07 min/mile)

Now that looks ok to me. As soon as my blister allows running again I'll start the build up. Meanwhile I'll nurse my poor foot.

Not easy at all

2007-02-28T14:50:00.000+09:00

It's two laps around the Imperial Palace (in total 10k) plus the distance from and to my office (1.4k), making this an almost perfect 7 miler for my ongoing Base Level Test.

The picture shows the elevation profile and as you can see it's somewhat challenging with a total ascent of 50m for two laps. The climb grade is between +1-1.5% and the descent is -1%. Basically 3k of one 5k lap is running up- and downhill, the remaining 2k are flat but often times very windy. And even though it's a lap you don't get things paid back in tailwind. I often wonder why...

Did I say earlier today will feel like a recovery run? Far from it and I already have to thank Mystery Coach for his advice to back off 15-20 sec per mile. I think this saved me from wiping out big time today. Only the first 3k felt like heaven due to the slower pace. Breathing was easy but the legs started to feel heavier. I managed to go 13 sec per mile slower, the slowest run in the series - but it felt bloody hard! I don't think I could have gone much faster today. If I had, I would have experienced a very bad day.

It also didn't help that a nasty blister appeared yesterday under my left forefoot. It's exactly the same spot where I got a big one during the Shinjuku Half Marathon 3 weeks ago. My feet are just not used to running at continuously faster paces as I naturally have to use more mid- and forefoot. I dumped my Adizero CS2 and went out in my heavy duty Kayanos to get some sort of relief. But Kayanos for a 7 miler is like racing a tank on a Formula One race track! I also used a Compeed blister plaster but it all still feels like walking on a waterbed. The plaster is 70-44mm and it just covers the blister - ouch! I am not sure at the moment if I will be able to complete the test under these conditions.

And finally the headwind was vicious today! I feel like a beer now.

And the credit goes to...

2007-02-28T10:19:00.000+09:00

Mystery Coach!

Mike pointed out that the links I was referring to in my previous post are both the work of "Mystery Coach" who is a co-author on his blog.

Thanks Mike for the clarification and big 'gomenasai' to the coach for having overseen such important fact.

And in true coach fashion the mysterious man made his appearance on my blog with a very helpful comment:

"Most runners miss this line "making sure that you can recover from the effort". To me it sounds like you are just a bit above your steady state. Try backing off 15-20 seconds per mile (you'll find you'll gain this back by the end of experiment). Remember you're trying to find your true steady state not force yourself into one."

It looks like I got it a little wrong in the beginning when I read here:

"To find your base level; for the next 21-28 days run 7 miles a day over the same course as fast as you can."

That's what I did but the important point I think I missed is that 'true steady state' does not mean to be wasted at the end of the test. The test only finishes and should be followed by the 'Stamina Build up'. The way I executed the test up until now would have made me need a 1-2 week recovery break after completion. I guess in theory 'steady state' means you should be able to repeat this for much longer than the 3-4 test weeks.

The difference lies in 'forced' vs. 'true' steady state. I am actually amazed by the fact that I am able to force the current level of running onto myself. More than once I have broken my old 10k PB during these runs. Granted, it's not the nature of the test I just learned but this strength will definitely come in handy in race situations - I hope.

Hey, how lucky am I? I started this blog only two days ago and got already an invaluable piece of advice from somebody somewhere on this planet! Friedman is right: The World Is Flat!

Today is day number 10 into the test for me and pacing down a little will make it almost feel like a recovery run.

Base Level Test

2007-02-27T09:08:00.000+09:00

The purpose of this test is to 'Determine Your Capability'. That's in Mike's words:

"To find your base level; for the next 21-28 days run 7 miles a day over the same course as fast as you can, making sure that you can recover from the effort (generally it will be about one minute per mile slower than your 5K pace or about 10-15 seconds per mile slower than marathon pace). This test works the most easily recruited fibers (1-5) and test their output efficiency and recovery ability."

More on this can be found in Planning a Stamina Build up with the Lydiard Method and in A Model for the Lydiard Method.

Today will be day number 9 into the test and I have to admit that this is probably the toughest running experiment I have ever put myself through. In my case it means daily running at about 83% HRmax or close to where I think my ATS level is. Others would call that a tempo run, daily! That's when you start counting the hours recovery left before you go out to do it again. My muscular recovery seems to be holding up for now. It actually feels like it's improving a little. Can I already get used to this sort of daily pounding?

But not only muscles have to recover. There's the cardio vascular and the skeletal system and my mental health as well. I was worried a little about the former in the beginning. I wouldn't call it chest pain but I sometimes feel a slight pressure in the heart area which always goes away within 24h. In order to keep an eye on this I run with an HR monitor. If my heart rate blows out or behaves funny in any way I'll pull the trigger on the test immediately. To my relieve my average heart rate now starts dropping while being able to keep the pace.

Bones and tendons don't complain much yet but I expect some sort of revolution when I hit the halfway mark in a couple of days. Mentally it's getting tougher day by day. What keeps me going is that I am very surprised about my results which I'll post here soon and that the test does not necessarily have to last 4 weeks.

Kick-Off

2007-02-26T17:01:00.000+09:00

It took me some time but I finally felt the need for a running blog. It'll serve me as a diary of my training and as a platform to bounce off ideas and share experiences with others.

I successfully set a new half marathon PB in January after roughly 6 months of rather non-specific running training. So far I ran by feel to simply get back into it. Last November I completed an easy comeback marathon in 3:26 to tick off one of my 2006 New Year's resolutions.

I also did a 30k evaluation race in January which I finished in 2:11.

The half marathon PB took me by surprise as I did it out of full training for the Tokyo Marathon, which I ended up not running. The weather forecast on race day just looked too uninviting and for the first time I deceided to not show up in order to save myself for the bigger picture.

I was planning a sub 3:10 to evaluate my recent training efforts and to come within gunshot of my 2:58 PB. Constant rain and 4-6C didn't make this project look very comfortable.

Not being able to release power made me feel a little edgy. I did the training and the taper but couldn't put it to some use. I changed the game plan and started a little self-experiment by trying an approach I found on Mike's blog. I have never followed a training plan; so that's going to be a first.

I'll come back to this model often enough and don't need to write too much about it at this stage. At the moment I am performing a 'Base Level Test' that will later hopefully be followed by a Stamina Build up with the Lydiard Method.

More on the ongoing test later.