Faster Than A Speeding Bullett...

but not quite as powerful as a locomotive!!!

First off let me address all the naysayers out there and clarify...yes that is indeed my body...okay, now that we've got that out of the way let me tell you about my first Lactate Test experience...

Let's get a little background...Lactate (acid) is a metabolic biproduct that is produced in various parts throughout the human body, mainly in the muscles during strenuous physical activity (like endurance running). Once lactate buildup becomes too much for your body to handle your muscles simply shut down...it's not permanent, but chances are you're going to end up falling flat on your face and not finish the race...plus you're gonna look like a Super Chump...kind of like me in that picture!!!

Anyhow, the purpose of the Lactate Test is to determine the maximum speed of running that your body can handle, before the lactate buildup becomes too much. The results are different for everybody, but can be extremely useful in tweaking something like a marathon training program.

Here's how it all went down...
I showed up at Tri and Run Sports in Trenton, got my gear on and hopped on the treadmill. Sandy (trainer extrordinaire) was kind enough to let me get a quick (10 minute) warmup in before attempting to kill me. After my warmup, I got to stretch, and grab a quick drink of water, then back on the treadmill...I'm not sure at what pace I started running, but it was pretty average (around 6 mph or a 10 minute mile). I should note I was hooked up to a wireless heart monitor. Okay, so I was running and Sandy was taking my heartrate, and every 3 minutes increasing my speed substantialy, she told me this was going to continue until I felt like I couln't take it anymore. It was a little crazy, and I made it to around 19 minutes and I was flying...sure, I was having a little trouble breathing, but the part that was concerning me was the fact that my legs were moving faster than they ever had before, and I really felt like I was going to lose control and smash my face of the front of the treadmill, so I cried mercy and that part of the test was over. Now what this told us was that my maximum heart rate is 197 bpm, which just happens to be 5 bpm higher than the average 28 year old male, so that's a good thing, despite the fact I was probably 30 seconds from my heart exploding!!!

So here I was thinking I was done when Sandy asks me if I was ready to start running again...I was like are you freakin' serious??? She was!
So I got to start running again, nice and slow to start, then she takes my finger and pricks it to take a blood sample on a strip, and puts it into a device similar to a blood/glucose monitor, except it was a blood/lactate monitor. She gradually increased my speed as she saw fit and took a new blood sample every 5 minutes. This went on for another 45 minutes...then I was finally done. The purpose of this part of the test was to see where my lactate levels would max out and at which point my heart rate would increase again, as it was still decreasing from the first part of the crazy test.

After all of this, the data was entered into a computer program and we reviewed the results...
essentially my new training pace (now called Zone 1 - Easy) is 8:52 per mile, which is considerably faster then my old 11:33 pace. And my speed training pace (now called Zone 3 - Speed) will now be 7:50 per mile, which means when I'm doing speed training I'm not supposed to run any slower then 7:50...that's pretty freakin' fast man!!! Also, it was determined that my body could theoretically run the marathon (42.2km) in under 4 hours, which is super duper insane considering when I set out on this adventure all I wanted to do was finish!!!

Anyhow, I've got 3 more of these run till you want to die, or maybe puke your guts out tests before the marathon...the next one in 8 weeks...can't wait!!!

Stay tuned for long run news on Saturday...this week we go for 90 minutes.

Will

Death by Peddle Boat...almost...

Okay, so here's another story of a run on the road...this time it was over the weekend in Haliburton where I was enjoying a nice relaxing weekend at Emily's cottage with her, Brock, Amy and other friends to celebrate Emily's entry into adulthood (Happy Birthday Em).

Anyhow, the pic you see is of Brock and I enjoying what we thought would be a leisurely peddle boat ride, but quickly turned ugly, as we we're unaware we had sprung a leak until it was too late. Now, this isn't really that big of a deal except for the fact that it's still May and the lake really wasn't warm at all...no we probably wouldn't have died, but we weren't looking forward to our testes crawling back up into our bodies either! We were rescued by some boaters that just happened to be passing by and realized our imminent peril before we did...whew...that was close!

Okay, on to the run...Saturday was a 60 minute run and I managed to cover 7 miles which meant I ran through the town of Haliburton almost 3 times over...too be honest it was getting a little boring...not too much to see here! It was a solo run as nobody had the courage to come with...no worries as I got to break in my new iPod last week, which I'm loving by the way!

Wednesday I have my first of a series of lactate tests...no I'm not pregnant, it's a test that will test the lactate acid levels in my muscles as I run to determine if my training needs to be tweeked (aka step it up a notch). I'm not really too sure what the test entails, but I know it's done on a treadmill with some stuff hooked up to me and is an hour of running. I'll let you know as soon as I do.

Talk soon.

Will

Mmmmm...Ribs...

So yesterday, something very interesting happened while I was stretching, and I saw something I haven't seen in probably 25 years...my ribs!!!

Now, don't misunderstand me here...this isn't because I have lost too much weight...there will not be a commercial on tv with me on there shirtless in a diaper and Donald freakin' Sutherland saying "For the price of a cup of coffee...."
It's not like that at all...I'm starting to look really healthy, and it's a little exciting as I really have been carrying around a little too much extra fat on my bones for way too long. Of course all this did was make me think about Tony Roma's ribs...the best ribs I've ever had...I'm thinking of booking a trip to Winnipeg for the sole purpose of eating ribs...just kidding Nana!!!

Okay, seeing as how it's been about 10 days since my last post (sorry Aunt C), let's get to some training news...
Yesterday I had my long run which this week was 80 minutes long...I managed to cover 8 miles, which was awesome! I felt great, besides a little bit of soreness in my muscles which is expected, but then I got thinking...holy crap...that's not even one third of the distance I have to cover during the marathon. This of course made me feel very nervous, and a little nauseous...then I started thinking about ribs and everything was okay!

I also have been doing some further experimentation with nutrition while I run, and the past couple of long runs I've been using water, energy gel's, and sodium tablets...yesterday I figured out the formula that works for me...after the first 30 minutes of a run I take a gel pack, then at 45 a sodium tablet, then at 60 another gel pack, and another sodium tablet at 75, and so on...of course I'm constantly drinking water through the entire run. This method worked amazing for me...I felt great. The only issue I have is dispossing of the gel packs when finished...I'm not about to chuck them on the ground, so if there's no garbage can around you just have to carry it until you find one. Right now if I had to chose between this method and the Infinit method, I think I'd have to go with Infinit, but I may switch to gels later.

Some tunes from yesterday...
Groove Armada - Madder
The Flaming Lips - Do You Realize?
Talib Kweli and Mos Def - Definition

Also, on Friday I met with fellow Team Diabetes member Katherine Taylor, who ran the Honolulu marathon a couple of years ago with Team D. We swaped some fundraising ideas, and brainstormed a bit, then she shared her Honolulu experience with me...her story was awesome and really got me pumped up and excited about everything even more than I already was. It really is inspiring to hear someone talk about the whole experience, and I can't wait to finish so I can share more of mine with you. Anyhow, you'll probably be hearing about Katherine more often as we're planning to team up for some fundraising efforts as she's doing the Disney marathon in January with Team D.

Hope you're enjoying your long weekend...unless your one of our non-Canadian friends, in which case...have fun at work tomorrow suckers! Talk soon!

Will

Let's Talk Nutrition...

Hey there. So with all the Diabetes Spin for Fitness insanity I've been neglecting my running posts, so here we go.

As I mentioned in a previous post I went to see Sandy (my trainer) on Friday to talk nutrition. Now I assumed that meant diet, but I was wrong...for runners nutrition is replenishing what your body depletes when you run, as you're running. There are apparently many different ways to do this and I'm now in the phase of my training where I have to experiment with different things to see what works best for me. Hears the deal, when you run you burn approx. 700 calories per hour, up to 3 litres of water and some crazy amount of sodium that I can't remember right now and the bottom line is that you can't absorb what you lose after you run so you have to do it while you run.

The first experiment was with a product called Infinit. It's a powder that you add to water, that can be custom created to provide you with the right amount of sodium, proteins, carbs, etc. for your own body. I used in on Friday when I ran my 70 minute run, with which warm up and cooldown became a 1.5 hour outing and 7.75 miles. I found out that it makes me burp a lot uncontrollably as I run, which is apparently due to the protein and my body will adjust...still a little odd running down the street burping away. It tasted good and was easy to mix and digest, I'm just a little worried how I would mix it during a marathon...apparently theres a solution for that too. I also learned to open the little water bottles on my fuel belt with my mouth instead of my hand, or you end up with sticky infinit mix all over your hand and you have to just deal with it until the end of your run...not cool!!!

Anyhow, it seemed to work well, so we'll have to see how the next experiment works on Saturday...gel packs (the hammer gel) and sodium tablets. Today I did my 60 minute run (4.5 miles) and tomorrow is speed training (Yasso 800's). I'll keep you posted.

Will

Diabetes Spin for Fitness Recap...

I just happen to know some of the best people in the world!!! I want to start this post by saying Thank You to everyone who participated yesterday in the Diabetes Spin for Fitness helping to raise awareness and funds for the Canadian Diabetes Association, and promote Fitness by doing a 6 hour spin class.

Team Will managed to raise $927.75...you guys rock...
Amy, Bethea, Raymond, Angie, Shelly, Adriana, Gaby, Adam, Jacob, Leslie, Ruben, and Henry. Thanks to each of you, I definately couldn't have done it without you!!!

Team Brock consisted of Brock, Emily, Rebecca, Rene, Rene's daughter, Anne, Grace, 2 people I think came off the street and joined at the last minute, and perhaps some other people that I may have forgotten. I have no idea how much money Team Brock raised, but I'm sure he'll post it when he gets up.

Also, big thanks to Dad, Grandma C, Luis, Joy, Claire, Eric, and Friend of Eric for comming out at various times throughout the day Just to cheer us on...and a special thanks to our honorary coach Ella (Jacob and Leslie's daughter) who kept us smiling all day!!!

It was a great day with lot of sore asses and muscles, but it was fun, and we raised some money and kicked some ass!!! Personally I spend about 3.5 hours total on a bike and I think that was pretty much the average for the team!

I'm back to running today, but wanted to let you know about the spin event yesterday...amazing!!!

Will

Note on picture: You get a little hungry after being on a bike for so long, so I decided to eat Brock's thumb....he got a really nice prostetic one to replace it.

Who wants to see me in bike shorts???

Yeah, me neither, but if I ever come accross these KISS bike shorts, I'm definately going to have to pick up a pair to wear around downtown Belleville on a Saturday afternoon...they'd probably elect me as mayor!!!

Anyhow, all of this was simply a terrible seguay into the big event going down on Saturday at Goodlife in Belleville - Diabetes Spin for Fitness. My team is set and ready to rock, and I think Brock's team is ready to go to, but he's off enjoying his much deserved vacation, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

If you want to come out and cheer on the team, we'll be at goodlife at the Quinte Mall from 9-3 on Saturday, then back to the house for a bbq...it's definately going to be good times, and we're going to raise some cash for the diabetes association and promote fitness all in 6 hours! If you want to make a pledge, then get in touch before Saturday.

As far as the training is going, I hit a minor snag and contracted some kind of virus that feels like someone poured battery acid down my throat. I've only managed to miss one run so far, so that's good. Today it was speed training day and I logged 5 miles in 45 minutes, but I'm really thinking it's time to switch up the tunes on the playlist as it's definately starting to get stale.

Anyhow, I'm in a rush, so I've gotta cut this short, but on Friday I'm going to see Sandy (my trainer) as she wants to discuss nutrition now that my milage is getting up there, plus it's time for some new kicks as I've managed to log 280 miles (450km) on my latest pair of sneaks in only 3 months...not bad!!!

Gotta run (get it?).

Rock On!

Will