Stalking 50

No, no, no...no thank you, no! Don't care for the elevation chart. While I'm no longer intimidated by smaller hills, I don't care for the fact that the chart doesn't have any straight aways on it. Probably an excellent training course for you!

dot520 wrote:No, no, no...no thank you, no! Don't care for the elevation chart. While I'm no longer intimidated by smaller hills, I don't care for the fact that the chart doesn't have any straight aways on it. Probably an excellent training course for you!

Aw, Dot... where's your sense of adventure? To be fair, I've tended to avoid this route over the years, even though I knew it'd probably help me. But since I've built a deeper base, I have found that I can apply low HR principles to hill work and not feel like I'm screwing up my endurance-focused approach with a lot of wind-sucking ascents.

My current plan is to do this route once a week to enhance whatever climbing I do on my Monday trail runs. I allow myself more level terrain the rest of the time, though none of my routes (walking or running) would qualify as billiard-table flat.

nice pic, ahhhhh, the rural countryside I pine for in this freaking concrete jungle. You run barefoot on these roads? Nice run.

fostever wrote:nice pic, ahhhhh, the rural countryside I pine for in this freaking concrete jungle. You run barefoot on these roads? Nice run.

There's something to be said for gritty urban running, but yeah... I kind of lucked out in where we moved a few years ago. I try to not take it for granted.

Barefoot on these roads? On some of them, yes. But not all of the roads around here are well-suited for barefooting -- at least at my current abilities -- because they resurface some of the roads with something called "chip seal," putting down a layer of sharp-edged pea-sized gravel and spraying sealant over it. Those little pieces of gravel can be really pointy underfoot.



Barefoot gurus would tell you those are exactly the sorts of surfaces that will make you a better barefoot runner, and I tend to agree... but I also know it'll take some time before I can handle that level of stimulus.

MAF Test+ 10.27 miles total

Weather: Partly cloudy, chilly and damp. 35 degrees, 93% humidity. Gear: Altra Instincts, tights, T, pullover, jacket, hat, gloves. Fuel: Grape Nuts and coffee. Nuun during.

I don't usually do MAF tests on sequential weeks, but I wanted to see the difference between a test done during a step-back week and then after the stepback week, when I've had the maximum possible recovery time after my previous long back-to-back weekend. Unfortunately, a pure comparison wasn't possible -- we're having a return of winter-like weather this week, so I was dressed in tights and a lot more gear on than I'd like for a test.

The first MAF mile came in at 9:45 - nice but slower than last week. That was a little disappointing -- I thought I'd be faster -- but the mile came in at an average HR 1 bpm lower than last week, too. Also, the fall-off in the next mile wasn't much. Or the mile after that. In fact, I only cracked 10/mi once, in my fifth mile. Not bad at all. I took a pit stop and headed back out to do a few more miles to get the distance up to 10 miles. My pace on those miles was VERY nice to see: 9:44, 9:55, 9:57 and 9:54. My average HR slipped up to 140 in those last two miles (and I was starting to feel the strain on my system), but the paces remained steady, so I can live with it.

What this shows me is that, while I continue to get faster bit by bit, my endurance over time is continuing to improve.

Walked first and last 5 minutes. Average HR for entire run: 134

Trail Run: 22.2 miles (longest ever!)

Weather: Sunny and gorgeous. Temp 45-63. Gear: Altra Superior, shorts, T, jacket (quickly stowed). Fuel: Grape Nuts for breakfast, with coffee. Picky Bar at about 2:10 in, then PB granola bars at about 3:10, then a Gu at 4ish. Carried nuun in Camelbak (didn't drink as much as I should have). 1 S-Cap before, then after every hour of running.

Alita had a dentist appointment late this afternoon, so I had to hustle to get this run in. I planned to do at least 20, and maybe stretch it out to 22. I went with the less-fueling-is-better approach, and liked it. I didn't feel the need to fuel until more than two hours in, when I was getting close to my turnaround point. (Woot!)

I got to my 20ish turnaround point and dithered for a moment deciding whether to go on, when a voice in my head yelled "MOVE IT!" Who was I to argue? I pressed on - into one of the prettiest parts of the Wildwood Trail - tagged up at a spot that'd give me just over 22 miles total and then started back. I knew I was going to have to hustle, so I let my low HR dedication lapse a little bit as I was heading up smaller hills and falls. I noticed as my glycogen started to deplete, my HR wanted to go up anyway.

All in all, it went well. I was feeling it in those last few miles... it just so happens that the most rocky part of the run is at the very beginning and end (ow), but I got it done in time.




Walked first and last 5 minutes. Average HR for the entire run: 142

Walk: 4 miles on treadmill @ 2% incline

Weather: Indoors!

I wanted to get a recovery walk in today but I have a night shift and a bunch of laundry that needs doing, so I fired up the treadmill and cruised at an easy pace between loads. I didn't realize until after I finished that the incline was set at 2%. Which means I also climbed 422 feet over the course of my walk without realizing it. Oops!

My legs are recovering well from the extra-long run yesterday. I'm a little sore, but not horribly so.

All systems appear to be go - good work and especially good progress.

Michele "1L" Keane wrote:All systems appear to be go - good work and especially good progress.

Thanks, Michele. I'll probably be doing a sorta-stepback next week. It'll be spring vacation for Alita and Alec, and I took the whole week off from work to celebrate. Doesn't seem quite right to then go trotting off into the woods for five hours my myself, you know?

Later in the week, we have plans to stay in a yurt on the Oregon Coast, right next to some truly colossal sand dunes, which ought to be a lot of fun. Looking forward to that.



Pretty, huh? I needn't mention the barefooting possibilities.

And yes, I said yurt. Here's a video tour of the facilities by another camper.



Still nothing on the Mount Hood 50, btw. I'm starting to wonder if I'm going to end up doing a 50K rather than a 50 miler. That'd be a little disappointing, but with the preparations I'm doing now, at least I'd be in fabulous shape for it.

Barefoot Run: 4.14 blissful miles

Weather: Sunny, mild, 50 degrees. Gear: Bare feet, shorts, T, jacket (tossed after a couple of miles) Fuel: Nothing extra, chocolate PB and Grape Nuts afterward (mmmm....)

I had to skip a barefoot run last week, so my feet were begging me to go outside and play today. My pre-run heart rate was already in the low 50s (showing not much residual strain after Monday's 22-miler), but I started out treating this as a recovery run anyway. It took a mile or so to work the kinks out at a very low intensity, though it wasn't actually as slow as I'd thought, and I kept getting faster as I went.

Mile 1: 10:45 @ 125 Avg HR
Mile 2: 10:30 @ 132 Avg HR
Mile 3: 10:22 @ 130 Avg HR

Normally, I'd stop at about 3 miles, but I had extra time and was feeling really good, so I stretched it out another mile -- and decided to see what happened when I picked up the intensity to a point closer to my MAF heart rate.

Mile 4: 9:46 @ 138 Avg HR

Gotta love that. In fact, I DID love it. That last mile felt fabulous. I ran 22 miles on trails two days ago? Really? Doesn't feel like it now! And yes, I think the fact that I was running barefoot has a lot to do with it.

My feet were absolutely fine after the run, even though I was aiming for rough patches. All that running barefoot on wet pavement seems to have helped my technique. Woot!

Average HR for entire run: 131

The post run note: I've discovered that when you take a spoonful of dark chocolate peanut butter and plunge it into a box of Grape Nuts, it makes a delicious smooth-crunchy treat with loads of protein and complex carbs. Mmm. Bliss.

I enjoyed (vicariously) your recovery run today Mark. Training for Boston has been stressful, and I can't wait for the opportunity to just get out there and run some miles for no other reason than to just get out there and run some miles.
...and that looks like just about best recovery food I've seen in some time...

Seth Harrison wrote:I enjoyed (vicariously) your recovery run today Mark. Training for Boston has been stressful, and I can't wait for the opportunity to just get out there and run some miles for no other reason than to just get out there and run some miles.
...and that looks like just about best recovery food I've seen in some time...

Thanks, Seth! I'm running more than I ever have before, but it doesn't feel much like "training" - and runs like today's feel particularly carefree. I'm finding that hugely preferable to grim determination.

I apologize in advance if I get you hooked on dark chocolate peanut butter. Just save me some, okay?

Ah, yes...chip seal! Lovely. Mark, I do feel a tinge of envy when I read your blog because you live in such a versatile area with so many types of paths to run on. I'd have to get in the car and drive enough to get to that type of variety and even then not have a public path available. You'll be so ready for any type of race (except maybe pancake flat Chicago).

No thanks on the Dark Chocolate PB...that's just plain mean to post that.

dot520 wrote:Ah, yes...chip seal! Lovely. Mark, I do feel a tinge of envy when I read your blog because you live in such a versatile area with so many types of paths to run on. I'd have to get in the car and drive enough to get to that type of variety and even then not have a public path available. You'll be so ready for any type of race (except maybe pancake flat Chicago).

No thanks on the Dark Chocolate PB...that's just plain mean to post that.

So sorry on the PB. It is really tasty, though. Definitely worth a try if you like that sort of thing.

The idea of running Chicago made me laugh. I could imagine being one of the few runners nearing the end to cry out "Oh, here comes 'Mt. Roosevelt!' Oh, finally! A hill! Thank you! Thank you!"

Seriously, the idea of holding a steady pace over miles and miles and miles of perfectly flat terrain sounds horrifying. A huge challenge and impressive, to be sure, but horrifying.

I do have to drive to get to trails for my longer trail runs, but my go-to route in Portland's Forest Park is about a half hour away in good traffic. I can make it up into the Columbia River Gorge (with some insanely steep trails) in about an hour, and there's Silver Star Mountain, which has been beckoning me for months. It looks absolutely gorgeous up there, but it's a bit farther from my house and is at the moment buried under several feet of snow. Sigh. One of these days...

Mark B wrote:The idea of running Chicago made me laugh. I could imagine being one of the few runners nearing the end to cry out "Oh, here comes 'Mt. Roosevelt!' Oh, finally! A hill! Thank you! Thank you!"

I say this every time I run Chicago - as much as it is flat here on this side of Cleveland, I'm a better hill runner and actually crave the hills I train on each summer in NY. And yes, that PB is evil.

Michele "1L" Keane wrote:

Mark B wrote:The idea of running Chicago made me laugh. I could imagine being one of the few runners nearing the end to cry out "Oh, here comes 'Mt. Roosevelt!' Oh, finally! A hill! Thank you! Thank you!"

I say this every time I run Chicago - as much as it is flat here on this side of Cleveland, I'm a better hill runner and actually crave the hills I train on each summer in NY. And yes, that PB is evil.

Evil, but very tasty. The variety with the peanut butter and honey premixed is awfully good, too. Just had some of that on a slice of fresh cracked wheat sourdough bread. Mmm...



I could imagine how monotonous a truly pancake-flat course like Chicago would be. None of my routes around here are truly flat (unless you count the high school track, of course), but I spent years trying to avoid the hilliest routes. Now that I'm taking them on - and barefoot running - I'm noticing some significant muscle development in my lower legs and butt. Woot!

Low HR Run: 6.27 miles

Weather: Mostly cloudy, mild, muggy. 50 degrees, 95% humidity. Gear: Altra Instincts, shorts, T, jacket (shed). Fuel: Post-breakfast. Carried water.

Had to squeeze in a run before the two-hour window when the bug guy would come this morning, so I wasn't exactly relaxed for this outing. I decided to head out on one of my flatter routes and take it easy. My HR averages weren't nearly as consistent as yesterday when I was barefoot, but I did notice that I was relaxing more as I ran in the second half - and it showed. I even was able to ease up the ravine on the return trip with little impact on my HR. That was a pleasant surprise.

Walked first 5 and last 6 minutes. Average HR for entire run: 130

Hills are speedwork in disguise, Mark, and definitely our friends. I have not been able to run as many this winter due to snow and ice, but soon, very soon.

Michele "1L" Keane wrote:Hills are speedwork in disguise, Mark, and definitely our friends. I have not been able to run as many this winter due to snow and ice, but soon, very soon.

I can imagine how much you're looking forward to that. Though I suspect you run them a lot faster than I do.

Walk: 3.86 miles

Weather: Mostly sunny with rain (!), 61 degrees.

My weird schedule week continues, with a rare day shift on Friday. I took advantage of sunny, mild weather to head out during lunch for a walk along the Columbia River... and got rained on, in the sunshine. Ah, the Pacific Northwest.

Luckily, it was only a light shower (though I couldn't figure out what cloud it was coming from), and I stretched the walk out to the longest possible distance during lunch. I don't know how much I'm going to do next week, what with vacation and all, so I'd better do what I can now.

Low HR Run: 7.49 miles

Weather: Sunny, cool. 43 degrees, 93% humidity. Gear: Altra Instincts, shorts, long-sleeved T, jacket (peeled). Fuel: GrapeNuts and coffee.

Out on a beautiful Easter morning for an easy run with my training partner. He hasn't been running as much as I have, so it gives me an excuse to throttle it way back and work the lower end of my HR range. It's nice to see me hitting times that used to come at great effort at average HRs well below my target, and it's very encouraging to be able to ease back enough to make it out of the greenway without having to walk.

We'd started without a distance goal but probably thinking about 10, but we turned around early after my buddy felt his knee start to tighten up. So this became a much easier run than anticipated. That's okay, it was nice to get out and stretch my legs and get the blood flowing while enjoying a very pretty sunrise.



Walked first 5 minutes, more than 5 minutes at the end. Average HR for entire run: 126

Hill Run: 14.33 miles

Weather: Low clouds, clearing, very muggy. 48-54 degrees, 94% humidity. Gear: Altra Instincts (with Injini socks), shorts, T, jacket (stowed). Fuel: Grape Nuts and coffee before. No calories during. S-Cap before and on every hour, 32 ounces of nuun in Camelbak.

It's spring vacation, so I cut back the long-long run on my schedule to not take too much time from the family. I still wanted it to be challenging, though, so I decided to try what is probably the hilliest route I can take from my house. I ran 14 miles, walking the uphills when my HR passed 143 and keeping it easy and relaxed on the downhills. I didn't mention what I did on the flats because, well, there really aren't many of them on this route.

It went pretty well. I barely had to walk on any of the hills on my outbound leg and only the tops of a few of the steepest ones on the way back. I also went without taking any fuel (I did keep restocking electrolytes), and I didn't really suffer because of it.

I got a pair of Injinji toe socks yesterday after hearing so much about them, and tried them for the run today. I can't say I could tell that much difference, though it was weird for each toe to have its own little covering. I guess I had a little better proprioception, maybe.

And oh yes, the hills. The GPS corrected data from RunningAHEAD estimated the elevation gain at 2,060 feet (and, being that it was an out and back, a downhill total of 2,060, too)



Walked first 5 and last 6 minutes. Average HR for entire run: 133

Curious how you like the toe socks. I wore them years ago as a kid, not for sports.

On another note: This is just for you. I wore my HRM during a 15k race that took me 1:42:29. Here's the fun part...not the low HR like you would think. Noooooo. I had the alarm originally set for my lower MAF...about 140. FORGOT to turn the alarm off and my wrist vibrated
about every 10 seconds for the entire race. Nice, eh? Your worst nightmare?? LOL Used it like a metronome.

dot520 wrote:Curious how you like the toe socks. I wore them years ago as a kid, not for sports.

On another note: This is just for you. I wore my HRM during a 15k race that took me 1:42:29. Here's the fun part...not the low HR like you would think. Noooooo. I had the alarm originally set for my lower MAF...about 140. FORGOT to turn the alarm off and my wrist vibrated
about every 10 seconds for the entire race. Nice, eh? Your worst nightmare?? LOL Used it like a metronome.

Ha! Way to adapt to the situation, Dot! I long ago turned off the alarm function for heart rate zones. It's the only reason my Garmin isn't on the ground somewhere in a bazillion little pieces.

Just back from a rainy vacation on the Oregon Coast. I'll update my blog with photos - and even a video - later today.

So, the trip.

We'd been looking forward to our trip to the Oregon Coast for months, partly to celebrate spring vacation together... partly to celebrate Alita's birthday. We had no specific plans, other than me showing them the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area, which is one of the cooler places on the planet. (Or off planet! SciFi fans might be interested to know that these dunes inspired Frank Herbert to write his epic space fantasty novel, Dune. No, there were no giant sandworms... but you could imagine them.)

We got there on Wednesday, after days of gorgeous spring weather. It was starting to cool off a bit but we decided to make use of the mile-long trail that circles the lake in front of our yurt. It was gorgeous, and I spent much of the walk imagining how much fun it'd be to go barefooting on it the next day.

That is, until the rain came in that night. It rained an inch the next day and about a half inch or so every day after that, with heavy wind. I joke that Vancouver is rainy. Its nothing compared to an actual rain forest. Yipes!

We spent a lot of time hunkered down in the yurt, which was quite cozy and dry.

Here's the yurt from the outside:


And the inside:


We did make it out one day to the dunes, and I took this video from the crest of the dune. Sorry about the audio; it was very windy.



And here's a group self-portrait to underscore just how windy it was. The horizontal rain started moments later. We would have stayed longer, and maybe I would have shucked my shoes, were we not getting soaked and sandblasted.



We also visited the Umpqua River Lighthouse - discovering that a Coast Guard station next to it was built by my great uncle's firm back in the 1930s - and got a tour of the light itself.

Here is the building:


Here are two photos from the lighthouse tour:

The lighthouse fresnel lens from the outside...


.. and inside (it's the only red-and-white light on the Oregon Coast):



As for running, well... I never quite got around to it.