Crappy Chicago Marathon

"I like the part where very fast and talented runners (ie yourself) sometimes feel like they need Depends, too.  Makes us normal folks go 'oh, EVERYBODY poops.'" Mike MacLellan, on September 26th

I blame Mike.  His post turned out to be quite prescient.  Because in the end, my day was ruined by my stomach. 

The race started perfectly. I had plans to run with a teammate at 5:50 pace.  We executed miles 1 through 4 perfectly: 6:05, 5:55, 5:50, 5:49.  And I felt goooooood.  Now I know everyone feels good that early in the marathon, but I was confident this was the right pace. 

Sometime during mile 5 I felt a rumble. You know that feeling, where something shifts in your digestive track and you know you better find a bathroom soon.  I tried to ignore it, desperately hoping in would pass.  A pit stop meant not only giving away at least a minute, but also losing my teammate and pace buddy.  I lasted until just before mile 6 when I couldn't ignore it any longer. I veered off the road and sprinted into a port-a-potty. 

I hoped that would resolve the issue.  I took a risk, though, and decided to drop the pace a little to try and catch Dan. I ran the next 4 miles in the 5:35-5:40 range, and even though faster than the original plan, it felt okay.  I passed mile 10 under the 60:00, thereby almost regaining the time I gave away.  

I passed Britt for the first time at 12.5 and grabbed a water bottle with Nuun from her.  I drank about half, but couldn't manage any more.  My stomach still wasn't right.  In addition to the constant rumbling, I was battling some severe reflux.  Though I now had Dan in sight - probably 30-40 seconds ahead - I began to suspect I'd need another bathroom stop soon.  Sure enough, I pulled over around 14, thereby giving up any hope I had at a PR. 

Nevertheless, my legs still felt good. I was worried about my inability to take in any hydration or fluid, but I focused on maintaining a 6:00 pace and coming in under 2:40.  That hope lasted until about mile 20, where I was forced to stop a third time and started to feel the effects of dehydration.  Each mile thereafter slowed a bit, as I could feel the cramps coming.  

They didn't hit until mile 25, but when they hit, oh boy were they severe.  I was brought to a screeching stop with searing pain in both hamstrings. There was a point where I thought they were about to snap.  I couldn't take a step.  So I started backpeddling.  No joke.  It's the only movement I could make.  I backpeddled and shuffled for about a half mile to Mt. Roosevelt, which I was able to slowly jog up.  My 26th mile was over 12 minutes (a new personal best in a race!).  Yuck. 

My final time was 2:50:00. I stopped my watch during the pit stops and the total time was about 8:00.  That's 2:42 of actual running time.  If the last 1.2 was at even a 7:00 pace, I'm looking at 2:37-38 for a finishing time.  Now obviously that's not how running works, but I bring this up only because I know that's the sort of shape I'm in.  I didn't get to prove it, and I won't get to prove it until April, but I walk away from this race content that I am in the best marathon shape I have been in years. 

As for my stomach, it was probably only a matter of time before this happened.  I rarely make it through a long run without a bathroom stop.  The lack of a gall bladder does that sort of thing.  I'm due for an upper GI scope anyway, so I will get a check-up to make sure there's not something more going on. And I will continue to tweak my diet to minimize this risk. But in the end?  Shit happens.

Everybody poops...Haha...Well poop, I am sorry that your race didn't end up the way you wanted it.  I knew that you were in good shape by how confident you sounded on Friday.  The only thing you can do, though, is learn from this race and make some tweaks to hopefully prevent it from happening again.

Sorry to hear this, Dave-O, and I hope that you get it figured out before April because we are all going to rock that course.  One thing is to look at an alternate to Nuun.  I love Nuun, but I'll be honest in saying that I think it might be causing me some stomach issues.  Now I don't have the added gallbladder complication, but just see if it makes a difference to try another product.

Michele \"1L" Keane wrote:Sorry to hear this, Dave-O, and I hope that you get it figured out before April because we are all going to rock that course.  One thing is to look at an alternate to Nuun.  I love Nuun, but I'll be honest in saying that I think it might be causing me some stomach issues.  Now I don't have the added gallbladder complication, but just see if it makes a difference to try another product.

Ditto.  I'd recommend S!Caps, as they are capsules and not a fizzy.  Definitely look for a marathoner sans gall bladder to get some tips.

Rest up and get back on that horse, son.

  

Ugh, so frustrating, Dave, and really sorry it didn't go as planned.  I'm really impressed that you did as well as you did with your body revolting, and that you didn't just give up completely.  Until the cramps came and forced you to walk, you were not giving up and making up as much time as you could, and that's really impressive.  I think many people would throw in the towel and just run easy after 1 pit stop, let alone 3.  I know you have your PR inside that's ready / waiting to come out, and when it all comes together, it'll be so awesome for you.

I was going to PM you this part, but then thought I'd leave it in case it could help someone else, too.  In case you have similar problems again, I have some medical ideas.  I know your lower GI system seemed to be the obvious problem since it caused 3 pitstops, but in reading your story again, what ended up hurting you was 1) cramps and dehydration, and that was from 2) your upper GI system not working. To solve problem 1, if you can't keep stuff down, you need a way to bypass it during the race. What if you try the tablet form of nuun and try not mixing it with water, and chewing it instead of drinking it.  Or better yet, chew it, keep it in your mouth and don't swallow it and let it get absorbed through your mouth and not your stomach.  Not sure how strong they are and how bad they may taste without water, though.  They make orally disintegrating nausea meds for that exact reason, so you don't throw them back up.  Not sure that alone would have helped because you still need water, but it may help get you some electrolytes while your stomach is acting up.  2) The reflux itself / inability to tolerate water / fluids is the other issue that you need to figure out.  It's probably mechanical / physical so taking an extra PPI isn't likely to be enough.  But what if you tried reglan? It's an anti-nausea medicine that helps your stomach to empty / digest faster. If your stomach empties faster, there's less to reflux back up.  It may not help immediately, but in the space of 30 minutes or something, if it allows your stomach to settle down so you can take water, you're still better off.  And if you're stomach can't tolerate fluids, you probably need to give it much smaller amounts of water more frequently instead of larger amounts.  Maybe at your next race, Brit can be ready with one of those small little squirt water bottles that fit over your hand, so that if you need it, you can grab it and hold it and drink from it while you run a few sips every 5 minutes or something.  When you get your scope, see what your GI thinks, and make sure he/she knows how serious a runner you are (ie don't let them blow it off).  These are all just ideas, of course.  Reglan can cause drowsiness in some people, so you definitely would need to try it and see how you react to it.

Kathy, that's good info. Thanks for posting it. Now question, what if I take reglan way erlier, like before my last meal or bed time, or several hours before the race?

I get my share of GI issues myself, so I feel for you. I always take an immodium before races, which usually does the trick for me, although I would prefer to go without it. On long runs I just plan routes around porta potties. I have no idea if immodium would help you though when you have the unique circumstance of missing a gall bladder.

Dave, kick Mike out. Diet is the non fun factor of marathoning. I hate it.

What rotten luck, Dave. Sorry.

I've heard of some runners taking an antidiarrheal like Immodium before a race to shut down the lower GI system. That might help with the problems at that end. As for the other end (and specifically to keep hydrated), you may want to give up on nuun and try S-Caps or Endurolytes. The salt will let your stomach pass the water into your small intestine faster, and having it in capsule form requires you to consume less fluid at one time to get that effect.

No matter what, it seems consultation with a GI doc is a good idea - as is a healthy dose of experimentation on long runs and shorter races.

All that and 2:50, not bad. I remember the Arnie 10 you won while spewing. That gall bladder thing must be frustrating. Way to hang in there and at least get your medal! It was fun seeing you and Brit Friday also.

Nothing to add medically except to say great job on bringing it in.  Not many sub-3 people have ever ran a half mile backwards in a marathon I would bet.  It's an inspiration to see you continue to battle!

That sucks. Nothing worse than GI issues in the middle of one of these, I know first-hand.

Still, a video of your last mile and reactions of anyone in the crowd might make a good youtube post.

Sorry to read this Dave.  Nice to see you got thru to the finish though.  I've never figured out the race hydration issue, but never had problems like you.  ouch.

Commiserations. It must be so frustrating to be affected like this, when you were so well trained and prepared for a great performance. I'm sure it will come right next year, and I know you'll be doing all you can to sort out the nutrition and hydration. It amazes me that you can still do 2:50 with such a handicap, especially with that terrible last mile. Congratulations on sticking it out.

Ugh, really sorry for you Dave. You have better races in your future.

Dave-O, I'd bet everybody on this board has had an otherwise perfectly planned race ruined by some issue or other. Unlucky on this occasion, recover well and come back stronger for the next one.

Use all that fitness to run a fast half in the next month? I bet you could PR with four weeks of speed now.

Dave, sorry about the issues.  The fitness was definitely there and can take some comfort from that. Hopefully you can get the stomach stuff figured out.  2:30 is right there once you get that taken care of.  Congrats on finishing when most would have stopped.

Dave,

I had that exact issue from the same cause for some time. The only thing that has helped me is Cholostyramine powder taken with water every night before bed. Despite what they tell you when you have your gallbladder out, this is a common side effect according to my GI doctor. I still have some issues, but never as severe and less often. Also avoid anything carbonated.