Trails and Travails

Mike MacLellan wrote:Thought that's what you meant. Then I started wondering whether playing with deer was common among trail-runners. In which case, maybe Auburn ISN'T the right place for me...

No, Mike. That's what happens in Chico.

I had an encounter with 2 fawns a few weeks ago. They both gave me that "Oh, crap, what's this guy doing here and what the hell do we do?" look. I was also concerned about not getting trampled, by them or a lurking mama deer. They took off in different directions finally, one behind me and one in front and I lived to tell about it. Early morning running is weird.

I once spooked a good sized buck after making a quick turn on a path in a small town in CO. I don't know who was more shocked, him or me. He ended up running into some thich brush and down a steep decline towards the river.

No deer along my normal running route. Only rabbits and chipmunks...When I run the trail near my parents house I see a lot more wildlife (deer, geese, ducks, cranes)

Mark - I hope Schuey sees that and has something to say to defend himself...

Jim - I used to see a ton of deer early morning back home. They're out all hours of the day here.

Other Jim - There was a doe in front of this young guy that did exactly what you described. Went straight down a near-vertical cliff towards the river. Would kill for that sort of traction - it would be hugely helpful in December...

Nick - Tell you what: if (when?!) I see a bear, I'll trade you, okay?

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Everyone want to see what I'm calling "Auburn's flattest course"? Patience.

Did another group run tonight. This one was a bit more group-y than the first. Just 2.2 miles out, a regroup (we stood around for 5 minutes... just enough time for the left hamstring to tighten back up) and 2.2 miles back. On flattish trails, average pace 8:24. Two things complicate these group runs:
1. I'm socially awkward in new situations. It's more in my own head than anything else, but eh, it's there.
2. After six hours of absolutely zero spoken English interactions (all ASL), I forget that these people are hearing and almost start signing to introduce myself. Maybe this has something to do with the fact that I'm much, much more comfortable introducing myself in an ASL context, as the Deaf community is much more socio-centric than the hearing community.

Anyway, I think I'll try and stick around this group and see if anything comes of it. They're all experienced and seem to be a fun bunch.

Okay, okay, here's the elevation chart. Remember, this is "flat."

Mike MacLellan wrote:Mark - I hope Schuey sees that and has something to say to defend himself...

Jim - I used to see a ton of deer early morning back home. They're out all hours of the day here.

Other Jim - There was a doe in front of this young guy that did exactly what you described. Went straight down a near-vertical cliff towards the river. Would kill for that sort of traction - it would be hugely helpful in December...

Nick - Tell you what: if (when?!) I see a bear, I'll trade you, okay?

---

Everyone want to see what I'm calling "Auburn's flattest course"? Patience.

Did another group run tonight. This one was a bit more group-y than the first. Just 2.2 miles out, a regroup (we stood around for 5 minutes... just enough time for the left hamstring to tighten back up) and 2.2 miles back. On flattish trails, average pace 8:24. Two things complicate these group runs:
1. I'm socially awkward in new situations. It's more in my own head than anything else, but eh, it's there.
2. After six hours of absolutely zero spoken English interactions (all ASL), I forget that these people are hearing and almost start signing to introduce myself. Maybe this has something to do with the fact that I'm much, much more comfortable introducing myself in an ASL context, as the Deaf community is much more socio-centric than the hearing community.

Anyway, I think I'll try and stick around this group and see if anything comes of it. They're all experienced and seem to be a fun bunch.

Okay, okay, here's the elevation chart. Remember, this is "flat."

How is that flat? To me it looks like an ECG. Are you sure you didn't go to the hospital instead?

Nick is right, it could be an ECG or perhaps a seismograph during a temblor. Clearly out here where I live, I have no clue as to what a hilly course looks like.



As for deer, this time of year when you come around a corner, sometimes you can spook deer that are hanging out in the cornfields occasionally. Of course skunks, possums, feral cats and once in awhile there are rumors of mountain lions in our area.

Fortunately, I did not end up in the hospital; however, I'd sure as shit better be fully ready for Boston after training on this nonsense (it's a love-hate relationship... love it until I want a recovery run, then hate it).

Speaking of recovery runs, 4 easy/recovery miles this morning. Felt great in the legs, kind of fatigued in general. I'm attributing it to the first week of classes and the high mileage. Fortunately I get to catch up on sleep this week and next week is a stepback.

I think today might've been flatter than yesterday. Maybe. But it's only good for 4-ish miles. I'll post the chart after tonight's run.

Mike MacLellan wrote:Fortunately, I did not end up in the hospital; however, I'd sure as shit better be fully ready for Boston after training on this nonsense (it's a love-hate relationship... love it until I want a recovery run, then hate it).

Speaking of recovery runs, 4 easy/recovery miles this morning. Felt great in the legs, kind of fatigued in general. I'm attributing it to the first week of classes and the high mileage. Fortunately I get to catch up on sleep this week and next week is a stepback.

I think today might've been flatter than yesterday. Maybe. But it's only good for 4-ish miles. I'll post the chart after tonight's run.

Hey Mike, from my experience, just training on hills will not fully prepare you for Boston. You have to practice running hard downhill for many many miles. I've been scoping out some long downhills around here that Wendy will be able to use for downhill MP repeats.

Good point. We've got ups and downs, every length and grade imaginable, up here, so that won't be an issue.

Random observation: I'm at 1995.93 miles for the year. Tonight is a scheduled 3, which would put me at 1999, since 3 always becomes 3.0x. Do I do 4.0x instead? That'd give me 59.71 for the week, which means I only "have to" do 40 instead of 41 this weekend (planning 42-43 anyway). Hmmmm.

Oh, and my brother's (now mine, I guess) motorcycle finally got fixed. First ride(s) today. Fun stuff.

Do the 3, 1999 sounds cooler than 2000.



Enjoy the motorcycle.

Shoot, I totally lied. When looking at my training program, I remembered for the weekly total that I'd run 4 this morning, but forgot when looking at the yearly total... And I hadn't loaded the Garmin up since yesterday. Meaning I hit 2k just about 45 seconds into my run tonight.

I don't feel any different. Actually, I was pretty bonky by the time I finished my whopping 3 miles - hot, hot, hot day, long week, and it's a recovery day - so I decided to skip my usual post-double core work and upper body circuit. By usual, I mean I started it this week. And already skipping days.

So, I'm at 2002.96 for the year. Cool. I think I barely hit 1000 in all of 2010. I'm thinking I'll nab around 3000 by New Year's.

Mike MacLellan wrote:So, I'm at 2002.96 for the year. Cool. I think I barely hit 1000 in all of 2010. I'm thinking I'll nab around 3000 by New Year's.

Holy cow, Mike. That's a huge jump in mileage. And your body is still talking to you?

Ah, to be young...

Mike,

Nice mileage you are putting up certainly a big jump I would say. If your body is handling it then more power to yoU!

My body has only recently started expressing to me its dislike of my ambition. Fortunately, its symptom of choice is slightly dead legs rather than full-blown injuries (quick, find me a piece of wood to knock on). Such was the case today.

I'm not sure if I'm just being hard on myself or if I've really slowed down. I guess I could look at my runs when I was up here in July... Hm, apparently I ran my LSD run here (2.5 hours) at an 8:59 pace. My midweek sorta-long was 8:21, but that included a 30 minute tempo effort at the end... And today was 9:04 for 3.5+ hours. So I guess I haven't slowed down THAT much, especially considering how low my RPE was the entire run. The general feeling was that I wasn't pushing it at all aerobically, but the legs weren't going to let me do much more. Unfortunate that I couldn't bomb the downhills (8 minute pace down a 7.5% grade...) but fortunate that I was able to plug along on the uphills without TOO much difficulty.

Worked on a new eating/packing food strategy today. Instead of slicing my PB/AB&honey&banana sandwich in half and bagging it, I quartered it and wrapped each piece in foil. Worked well, since they're small enough that when I grabbed the first from my pack, I could stuff 2 more in my pockets without feeling like there was something heavy there. Gotta start figuring out what works best for me nutrition wise on these longer-long runs; specifically, how many calories I need and can handle per hour of running. Today was 200/hr, which seemed to keep the energy levels constant. Was just dehydrated when I finished.

5am wake-up call to get out the door by 6:45 to beat the heat... 23.3 miles total, 5350' gain/loss. Here's the chart:


Can I go back to bed now?

Mike, how are you calculating your calories/hour?

Seth Harrison wrote:Mike, how are you calculating your calories/hour?

For consumption? I know my sandwich was 560 (100/slice of bread, 200 for 2T peanut butter, 100 for the banana, 60 for 1T honey) and the granola bar I ate was 140, so that's 700 in 3.5 hours.

Calories burned, I estimate 80/mile (in addition to my BMR, which I estimate to be around 2400/day) on streets, up to 100/mile (or more, I guess) on trails.

Mike MacLellan wrote:

Seth Harrison wrote:Mike, how are you calculating your calories/hour?

For consumption? I know my sandwich was 560 (100/slice of bread, 200 for 2T peanut butter, 100 for the banana, 60 for 1T honey) and the granola bar I ate was 140, so that's 700 in 3.5 hours.

Calories burned, I estimate 80/mile (in addition to my BMR, which I estimate to be around 2400/day) on streets, up to 100/mile (or more, I guess) on trails.

Thanks Mike. I was asking about calories burned. I also use 100/mile as a rough estimate.
I never calculated by BMR until just now. At my height 5'7", weight 144, and age 50, my BMR is 1480. What a difference from yours! I know it decreases with age, but I would never have thought there would be such a difference. I guess I better keep moving!

Seth Harrison wrote:

Mike MacLellan wrote:

Seth Harrison wrote:Mike, how are you calculating your calories/hour?

For consumption? I know my sandwich was 560 (100/slice of bread, 200 for 2T peanut butter, 100 for the banana, 60 for 1T honey) and the granola bar I ate was 140, so that's 700 in 3.5 hours.

Calories burned, I estimate 80/mile (in addition to my BMR, which I estimate to be around 2400/day) on streets, up to 100/mile (or more, I guess) on trails.

Thanks Mike. I was asking about calories burned. I also use 100/mile as a rough estimate.
I never calculated by BMR until just now. At my height 5'7", weight 144, and age 50, my BMR is 1480. What a difference from yours! I know it decreases with age, but I would never have thought there would be such a difference. I guess I better keep moving!

I'm not sure I'd trust a calculator to that. I just calculated mine on an online calculator and it says 1563 (5'7", 130 pounds [I think; I haven't stepped on a scale in a long-ass time but I'm just about as lean as ever right now], age 24), but given the residual effect on metabolism from exercise (just 30 minutes can supposedly keep your metabolism elevated for up to 14 hours) in addition to other waking activities (walking, etc.), somehow that's tacking on another 850/day? I don't really know, but the 2400 estimate is from a while back where I tracked my consumption (as accurately as I could) for an extended period - I think 3 months - and noted changes in weight. It averaged to 2400/day prior to exercise.

With regards to calories burned running, though, most of the reading I've done indicates that we really can't process more than ~350/hr while exercising, so its a bit of a non-issue. I just need to figure out how much I can take in before my stomach revolts and what kind of foods are best. For example, is the fat in the peanut butter causing my body to divert too much blood to utilize it? Does it matter, given that a 9:00 pace is already allowing my body to burn a lot of fat for fuel? Etc.

I'm suddenly feeling much better about my 22 in 2:58 or so. I mean, it took you another half hour to cover 1.3 more miles! Oh, wait, you climbed a freaking mile during your run. Never mind. Nicely done!

On the calories burned per mile, I'd bet you're a little higher than 80. I'm around 130 or so per hour at 5'9" and 160ish.

Wow. 23 miles distance, 1 mile up and down. Nice job.

Aren't you glad it wasn't the other way around?

mul21 wrote:I'm suddenly feeling much better about my 22 in 2:58 or so. I mean, it took you another half hour to cover 1.3 more miles! Oh, wait, you climbed a freaking mile during your run. Never mind. Nicely done!

On the calories burned per mile, I'd bet you're a little higher than 80. I'm around 130 or so per hour at 5'9" and 160ish.

Right? It's really a blow to the ego to look at what I did today and realize that last Sunday I ran .2 miles longer and shaved off a half hour. Trails, trails, trails.

You're right, I'm probably closer to 100 for road miles. I don't know why I stick to 80. Habit, I guess.

Mark B wrote:Wow. 23 miles distance, 1 mile up and down. Nice job.
Aren't you glad it wasn't the other way around?

But, but... The other way around would be like skydiving 5-6 times and would be hardly any work at all. Or I could just be in space

Mike MacLellan wrote:Random observation: I'm at 1995.93 miles for the year. Tonight is a scheduled 3, which would put me at 1999, since 3 always becomes 3.0x. Do I do 4.0x instead? That'd give me 59.71 for the week, which means I only "have to" do 40 instead of 41 this weekend (planning 42-43 anyway). Hmmmm.

Mark B wrote:

Mike MacLellan wrote:So, I'm at 2002.96 for the year. Cool. I think I barely hit 1000 in all of 2010. I'm thinking I'll nab around 3000 by New Year's.

Holy cow, Mike. That's a huge jump in mileage. And your body is still talking to you?

Ah, to be young...

Yeah, Mike's training basically makes my body ache by just reading about it. I just reviewed my last 15 mile run, and I had elevations ranging from 197-413, with 90% of the run between 250-310. My EKG/elevation would basically mean death! I'm in so much awe of what you can accomplish - and after running for a relatively short time to boot. Hope you have a fantastic semester and good luck with hooking up with running buds. My only other comment is that it is hard to imagine Mike Mac feeling "socially awkward". Could of fooled me - I know you write an entertaining blog! Kudos to you with your training and it sounds like you are enjoying things more these days...

Oh, to be 24 yrs younger..........

John - Appreciate the words about the blog. Here's some more entertainment for you...
Michele - Good timing chiming in with that one, as today was definitely the downside of being a youngin'...

Yep, you guessed it: we had a drinking night last night. And an eating night. Went to my brother's in Davis to hang out on his porch, listen to music, play guitar, etc. About 15 people showed and a combination of beverages as well as so-bad-for-you snack foods was consumed. A bit too much of both. Note to self: this is okay when you have a 1hr run the next day. Not a planned 19.5-miler.

By the end of the second hour, I had stomach cramps so badly I wanted to kill something. After pit stop number two, I tried to pound out my last 4.5 miles at a 7:00 pace. The first hour was 8:00, the second was 7:30, so it only made sense to really kick the last half hour and finish in under 2:30 running time. Well... The pace wasn't hard. At all. I felt fucking fantastic, leg-wise. The stomach wasn't having any of it. I had to stop about a mile and a half in at some apartment complex's leasing office to beg for a restroom. Oh, and I was shirtless, COMPLETELY dripping in sweat (I looked like I'd been doused in baby oil), and wearing not-washed-for-a-week shorts. Bless the receptionist for not only allowing me to use the restroom, but also for not looking at me like the maniac I was.

So, I knew I needed 18, and I knew that 19.5 wasn't in the cards. I cut across back towards my brother's on 8th instead of 15th (he lives on 5th) and let the pace fall back to something my stomach would handle... Mid 7:40s. Finished up with 18.1 @ 7:42 average pace.

Which makes... 100.13 for the week! First ever 100+, and of course I had to really, really fight to get it there today.

Was able to celebrate the feat by heading over to Lake Berryessa with a group and their dogs (all vet students seem to have dogs) for the afternoon. And realized I'm becoming a bit of a, dare I say it, northern Californian? I've started keeping my iPod off and playing country stations instead. What the hell is happening to me?!

Stepback week starts tomorrow.