New blog home...

This blog will now be "archived", I appreciate everyone that has been reading it. My new blog can be found at:

Gary's Fitness Blog: http://www.endurancebasecamp.com/garysfitnessblog/

If you have subscribed to my feed, don't worry.. it will be updated for you and you should still receive the posts in your reader.

See you on the roads. garyd

Testing to know your fitness and racing abilities.

One thing that I love to do within a training program is use a set of fitness tests that are done regularly. The value that fitness tests offer a runner or triathlete is an honest understanding of where they are are in comparison to where they need to be to meet their goals.

What is a fitness Test

There doesn't have to be anything extremely technical about the tests, but they need to be repeatable. A few posts ago, I talked about getting my VO2 Max and Lactate Threshold analyzed in the lab at the University of Cincinnati. Those test are informative for a geek like me, but they are often not practical for the average runner due to the complications of getting into the lab often enough (not to mention, the cost).

A few of the fitness tests that I use in my triathlon season are the following:

* --> 3 Mile Aerobic Run w/heart rate
* --> Thursday 6.3 mile group run w/heart rate
* --> 10 x 200 yard main set
* --> 4000 meter time
* --> North Middletown Bike Ride w/out and back, heart rate/time
* --> Valley View Ferry Climb time (2mile climb)

I have written about these test previously here. As you can see there is nothing extremely difficult in setting these tests up. Some of the tests are routes that I normally run and I just track specific data with each workout.

The one that I pay a lot of attention to early during a training program is the 3 mile aerobic run workout. Currently I run outdoors at a specific heart rate (+/- 3 bpm) and monitor the time it takes me to run the same route. What I'm looking for is a faster time while having a similar heart rate. You might say that I'm trying to get more "output" for the same "input". One thing to pay attention to is other variables that can impact heart rate that could skew results; things like weather and nutrition can influence heart rates too.

The North Middletown route that I ride is a similar situation, although it is a much longer duration. What I like to compare here is not only results and data from time to time, but the data from the first half of the ride to the second half of the ride. A fitness test ride like this would be incredibly valuable if you are a rider that trains with a power meter.

The one suggestion that I have is that you don't use the routes and tests as your everyday training protocol. I like to include them every other week or every third week. This time period keeps an athlete from being too encouraged or discouraged by a single workout and keeps the workouts available for monitoring periodic improvements.

How the fitness test may change as the season progresses?

The tests that are listed above are targeted at testing the development of swimming, cycling and running fitness. Knowing that your fitness is improving is important, but at some point during the training program an athlete that has performance goals needs to test their current performance ability.

In a half-marathon or marathon program, I normally insert shorter test races to measure performance. It is important that the athlete treats these races like they would their main race. That means they use a similar nutrition pattern and pre-race schedule.

In Louisville, Kentucky, they have a series of races called the Triple Crown of Running Series. It includes a 5k, 10k and 10 mile race. Those races build very naturally to the Derby Festival Half Marathon or Marathon. One thing that a runner can do is take their race times in a series of races and insert them into a VDot chart to estimate their predicted race times.

While the charts are not infallible, they do provide a good sense of what your expectations could be as you start to prepare your race strategy. A good sign that I like to see in the results of these races and the resulting "predicted time" is as the test race distance increases, the closer to your desired race goal time it is.

I have written about predicting race times before. You can see that post at - Predicting Running Performance.

In triathlon, it is just as important to have race simulation rides and brick workouts to base your race strategy on. This past summer, I shared a series of 3 simulation workouts that I completed in order to establish my Ironman Wisconsin strategy. Here are links to those workouts:

1. Race Simulation and Nutrition - 2007 #1

2. Race Simulation and Nutition - 2007 #2

Why it is important to have this knowledge before you start your race?

If you have read my "Einstein, Relativity and Triathlon" post then you know that I believe it is important to ground yourself in reality and not fantasy. It is also valuable during a race to know what you are able to do so that you don't get caught up in the excitement that surrounds a race and try something you are not prepared for.

Sometimes this can be a difficult thing for an athlete to do. All summer last year I worked hard to improve my fitness and skill on the bike. Using the fitness tests I mentioned above (North Middletown Ride and Valley View Ferry Climb) I saw improvements. So when it came time to insert my simulation rides and brick workouts, I was frustrated to discover that I wasn't going to be able to ride as fast as I was planning on.

Heading into the final phase of race preparation, I was hoping that I would be able to ride in the mid 5 hour range on the bike. During my test rides, I was consistently at a 6 hour to 6:20 ability, with any ability to run off the bike.

While this knowledge was disappointing, it was a key factor in setting up my race strategy. It also allowed me to remain sensible during the Ironman and left me with the ability to have a decent run.

Summary of the key points

1. Fitness tests are a great way to evaluate your training in order to make sure it is benefiting your development. Fitness Tests don't have to be elaborate.

2. Test races and simulations are valuable to creating a sensible race strategy and race expectations.

Hopefully some of these ideas will help you along your journey of endurance!

A look at the Long Run and marathon training.

The long run is usually viewed as the center piece of a marathon training program. In the current pop running culture, this means that most marathon training programs work towards the "20 miler".

This is a topic that I have discussed many times in the past, with many different people, and I thought now was the time to get all my ideas out there to share with fellow runners.

Why I don't like the "20 mile" Destination for marathon training:

1. I don't like the concept of placing so much importance on a single 20 mile run. Why? In many running programs that I see, runners end up putting so much value on the long run that it ends up taking away from the value and training stimulus they could get by having a solid week of running. (Which means running regularly throughout the week too.)

This doesn't mean that every runner using these programs puts too much emphasis on the long run, but psychologically it can become a trap. If you decide that the weekend long run is the most important workout of the week, it can be tempting when "life happens" to justify missing a couple runs during the week, as long as you "accomplished" the long run.

This is a trap that often leads to, in the worst case - injury, in the best case - less developed fitness due to less overall training stimulus.

This idea becomes even more magnified if a training program leads towards the 20 miler and a runner develops the belief that they are ready to run the marathon, using the 20 miler accomplishment as their only indicator.

I'm not the only one who takes this approach. Jack Daniels, in his book, Daniels' Running Formula suggests that the longest run you do be under 2.5 hours. The risk-to-reward ratio (injury risk/physiological reward) beyond that point is often not worth it. I remember Bobby McGee taking a similar stance.

Solution: as a runner begins a marathon training program, set the initial goal to accomplish "x" number of weeks running 3 days and building to 5 days a week before taking on any run over 2 hours. "x" depends on your timeframe, but a typical 18 or 20 week program should give you at least 6 weeks to build up to 4 runs at 40mins+ or 5 runs at 30mins+.

2. Does it pass the common sense test to do more than 50% of your running in one day? It doesn't, but many marathon runners that I see or read about do just that.

When a runner is doing less than 40 miles per week, that is what they are doing when they build to a 20 mile long run.

Again in Daniel's book he suggests that the long run be no more than 25% of your total weekly mileage. Therefore to have a long run of 20 miles, a runner must be doing a minimum of 80 miles a week. That kind of mileage is not all that common for the average age-grouper hoping to finish a marathon.

An approach that I have reviewed several times that I like a lot (probably because it is how I like to train people too) is the way the the Hansons train their runners (their age-groupers, not their elite... that would destroy all of us).

In their approach, the longest run that a beginner or advanced runner does is 16 miles. (I know your are screaming in revolt as you just read that.) The advanced runner will see more training stimulus throughout the program, but the longest run distances are the same.

What a refreshing display of understanding an average runners needs and ability. Someday I would love to get some closer looks and discussions with the Hanson-Brooks guys, but from the outside looking in, I like what I see.

Solution:

So you are freaking out about not running longer than 16 miles prior to your marathon day - that's normal. But it is normal due to the fact that the 20 miler has become ingrained into every running groups mindset around this country, not because there is a physiological or training stimulus significance to that distance.

I personally don't have a 16 mile limit in many of the programs I help with, I schedule the longest run at 2.5 hours and allow a little more if the runner is running well, consistent and injury free.

So how do we address the psychology behind "being ready"?

The Double Long Run Weekends.

I have to admit this is not my idea originally. It was a style of training that a professor I had at UNL (Nebraska-Lincoln) put me through (in late 2000) when I went to her for a solution to my 2 previous failed attempts at running a quality marathon.

The basic Idea: is to alternate weekends, doing a longer run on week one, then two medium long runs on Saturday / Sunday of week two. Then repeat that pattern throughout your training program. An example might look like this:

week 1 - Saturday: 12 miles / rest
week 2 - Saturday: 8 miles / Sunday: 8 miles
week 3 - Saturday: 14 miles / rest
week 4 - Saturday: 10 miles / Sunday: 10 miles

That is a basic example, it would be changed based upon athlete, scheduling, along with other variables that could impact the schedule, such as races. I personally prefer to use time goals than mileage goals, but the same pattern would apply with either method.

What I found was that this pattern allowed me to be incredibly more consistent in my running. I would spend less time recovering from the mega long runs. I also found I could easily handle more total running stimulus in a week compared to situations when I was trying to stay fresh for the weekend long run.

Those two things improved my running greatly - consistency and greater overall training stimulus.

How to approach the Double Long Weekend?

These weekends can be tough sometimes, but they can also provide a great deal of training stimulus and self-confidence. Here are some tips that I like to share about those weekends:

1. Saturday's run should be relaxed and comfortable. I rarely get excited about how fast or slow the runs are, because the main goal is to feel strong. Many times the Saturday run will be finished with the runner feeling a little anxious about not having done enough. Especially when they have reached a point where 10 mile runs could be done each day they run.

2. Make sure you allow your legs to recover after Saturday's run. Proper post run nutrition, stretching, cold baths are all good ideas.

3. Sunday's run should be done at an intensity slightly higher than Saturday's run (but much less than the Tuesday,Thursday runs during the week.) Ideally, the runs would be completed at a pace that is 45 seconds to 1:15 per mile slower than the goal marathon pace.

This depends upon the runner's current fitness though! Don't run those times if they are picked out of the air, know that your fitness is prepared for them.*

4. Make the back half of the Sunday run the most intense of all the weekends efforts. Often this will happen naturally as the legs fatigue, but a very fit runner may need to push that portion of the run in order get the training effort up. (Still should be around 45 seconds off marathon pace.)

Using these double long runs in this manner, especially approaching the Sunday run this way should give the runner confidence in their ability to run the marathon's 26.2 mile distance. It can also be a huge learning experience to feel the legs achy and tired prior to Sunday's run and still being able to finish the distance or duration.

As mentioned, this structure also allows recovery to occur faster and decreases the risk of injury when compared to the single long run days.

Expanding this concept (even to triathlon).

This idea can be taken one step further for the more advanced runner. An example that I can share is my approach to our (Nikki and my) run programs leading up to Ironman Wisconsin last September.

Knowing that putting in a long run didn't fit the schedule or our ability to maintain regular workouts in the other sports, we built up to a "broken marathon". This was different for the two of us as we were different in our running needs.

My program built to this series: 12.6 am run / 6.8 pm run (included some tempo) / 6.4 am run. That got me to 25.8 miles with a little tempo built into it within a 30 hour period.

Nikki's program built to this series: day 1: 10miles, day 2: 10miles, day 3: 6miles. That got her to 26 miles within a 48ish hour time period as the day one run was an evening run and the day 3 run was a morning run.

Keep in mind that this isn't a prescription to copy, just an example as to how the idea of stacking runs in a 24/36/48 hour time period could be done. This method was easy enough on my body that I was able to get in an hour recovery swim during the evening of the second day.

(As a sidenote, the longest run I did in the Ironman build was 15 miles.)

Final Thoughts on Approaching your Long Run.

The long run is an important piece to any marathon program, but don't be fooled into the dogma that the long run has to follow the staircase to 20 miles. It might just be the worst thing you could do for your training, because training and racing become difficult if not impossible when you are nursing an injury.

Try a double long weekend... you just might see your running improve like I did.


* This deserves another post that I hope to get to soon, but for now you can read Daniels' Running Formula or search google for "VDot running".

Developing Durability in Legs of a Runner.

I am currently dealing with the results of not following my own advice. It happens to all of us at times. Here's my quick story:

The entire year of 2008 I have made a decision to remain consistent in my training, but to not train for any specific race. I have followed through, but got the idea to sign up for an ultra marathon a couple weeks before the race. I ended up turning up the mileage on my legs pretty quickly (like doubled in the couple weeks). I didn't have any troubles at first, but then....

I started having some hip problems. Issues that have lead to this, in my view: Running too many miles way too quick. Dropping strength training and yoga in order to get in the extra runs.

The worst part of the situation is that I always have runners that I coach and mentor focus on "leg durability" as the main goal for the first phase of their training programs. This almost always means running multiple days before running a certain mileage or duration. I fell into the trap of feeling unprepared, thus jumping into something my legs were not ready for.

As an example of what I often preach, here is a note I sent to a group I trained for the Rock N Roll Marathon back in January.

So often a new runner is concered about how far they are running or how fast they run, but one thing a new runner should be concerned about is how durable their legs are. If a person hasn't developed the right amount of durability, then when they run "far enough" or "fast enough" to make them happy, they commonly are in a position that their legs can not hold up. Things like injury and soreness creep in and their running becomes less consistent, exactly the opposite of what they might need to produce better durability in their legs.

Two things about the program that you can pay attention to is this:

1. Are you completing all the runs during the week?
2. Are your legs recovering from the Sunday runs?

Your answers to those questions will lead to your answer of this question; "How durable are my legs?"

It's so important that you develop an adequate durability before you start doing the typical "long runs". I like to see people run at least 4 days a week at 40 minutes per run before they do anything that resembles a long run.

The athletes that I help become used to the "double long" weekends very quickly. What a great way to turn around your running... those runs build durability, they also allow people to get in more training than when they spend all day Sunday recovering from the weekends "mega long run".

Guess it is time to take my own advice! As I can not run consistently right now, I'll be cycling and swimming (and yes, getting back to strength training and yoga).

For now, I'll keep sharing the message. Think Bobby McGee said it this way, "strong before long."

Vo2 Max testing and lactate testing at University of Cincinnati

I had the opportunity to go to UC (University of Cincinnati) to have some metabolic testing done this past weekend. Since I'm not in training for anything, I was leary about going, but the opportunity to be in the lab again and see how another lab does their testing was an opportunity I couldn't pass up.

The set up at their lab was very nice for several reasons:

1. They have standard road bikes that are available... which means you don't have to ride those uncomfortable Monarch cycles that both the University of Kentucky and Nebraska had. (Although to be fair, I never spent time on UK's).

2. They have the bikes set up with powertaps. I liked this because they are commonly used power meters by cyclists and triathletes on the road. I have not made the investment to start riding with power, so it was nice to get my hands on one.

3. They have four stations. Very nice when you are testing a large group of athletes. I am assuming they have a good funding source?

4. They have metabolic analyzers that are worth using. I still have questions as to the validity to the portable systems that we see at fitness centers and other various places. Maybe someone could show me that those systems have been proven reliable, but I just hear too many strange results for me to be a big believer.

The Tests:

After getting 5 minutes of resting data, I got onto the bike. (Which had my own pedals on it!) We started at 120watts and increased the power output by 20watts every three minutes. The watts were increased initially by changing the gears, then by the incline (using a Tacx trainer).

The metabolic analyzer was measuring o2 consumption, co2 output, ventilation, the powertap was measuring heart rate and power output, while an assistant (Jim was the man) was taking blood samples at the end of each 3 minute stage to measure blood lactate (using a Lactate Pro).

The protocol (3 min steps) was used in order for the rider to achieve a steady state prior to increasing to a new workload.

The Results:

I have had this done before several times on the bike, but many more times on the treadmill. What I found out was similar to past experiences: my cycling Vo2 is about 10 ml/kg/min lower than my running Vo2 max.

Here's a link to the results: RESULTS HERE - username: gditsch01

I haven't had much time to look through the data, but the initial things that I wanted to look at were these:

Vo2 : 56.93 ml/kg/min
Watts/kg at Lactate Threshold : approx 3.2
Watts at Lactate Threshold : 213
Heart Rate at Lactate Threshold : 176bpm

I need some more time to look through the efficiency data and the other metabolic data before I can make a more detailed comment on them.

One interesting comparison to make is looking at the watts/kg at lactate threshold. I remember reading a book on Lance Armstrong (Lance Armstrong's War, I believe) that talked about a test he did with his coach, Ferrari. They would go to a mountain climb and ride the climb a few times. Each time increasing the intensity, until they hit his lactate threshold (they took the sample at the top of each climb). After the testing, they new Lance was ready for the Tour if he had a watts/kg result of 6.7 or above. (You might have to go check the facts, as it has been awhile since I read the book.)

I guess I am not ready to take on the Tour! But still not completely disappointing results as I have the worst fitness that I have had in several years (Fall of '05).

To compare the results that I got this weekend to last year's Vo2 testing I had done on the treadmill might be of interest. You can read my post after those tests:

Here - Vo2 Max the Good Results.

Hopefully this will start a discussion, as it is much easier to be in a discussion about this information than it is to state all that seems important.

The Ultra that wasn't and Podcasting bests of the past week.

One: So I was supposed to do the ultra at the Land between the Lakes this past weekend.... to make it very short, I didn't make it. The decision came down to either driving in bad weather and doing the race in the bad weather or stay home and safe. I made the best decision, I think, but knowing that others were there pushing through the trails was hard to take, emotionally.

Two: Podcasting is something that I have been spending some serious time learning about. My first podcast was supposed to be phases of the ultra run. I had tested and researched various mobile podcasting set-ups and got the stuff ready to do the editing, but I don't have those edits (obviously).

Don't worry, I have some outtakes from my week leading up to the ultra. So I'm going to put together the first podcast soon and include some discussion on various material on nutrition I've been reading. Stay tuned.

Three: There are quite a few podcasts that I listen to (and motivation for me to try) and recently I have heard a couple very good podcasts. I wanted to share the links and a brief idea of what you'll find:

a. Steverunner.com with his podcast, Phedippidations. One of the podcasts that I've listened to the longest. But one episode that I downloaded this week and listened to was the show that talked about the running legend, Billy Mills.

Here's the link: Billy Mills at Phedippidations - go to episode 125, Dec 2007

Billy Mills is a huge childhood hero of mine. There are many reasons that I admire Billy Mills, part of it I believe is that growing up in Nebraska the American Indian culture was always close by, but probably more due to the fact that I could identify with the scenes from the movie "Running Brave." I remember running along the country roads or next to my uncles bean fields, especially as a way to escape.

I have actually blogged about this a little before : March 16, 2006.

b. Tri-Talk.com - go to the most recent episode (60). David talks about the importance of the glut medius in the runner. I urge you to go listen to the podcast and talk the advice he has. Nikki and I have been working on a project that will hopefully help runners address these issues. (I know another promise of "stuff to come"... but it will be soon!)

c. Endurance Corner Radio - go to the Feb. 20, 2008 podcast. This is Gordo, et. al's podcast. The podcasts are interviews with athletes and coaches, so sometimes they are not as entertaining as some of the other podcasts (such as the touch of comedy in Phedippidations) but you can pick up a lot of information as you workout if you want.

If you want to skip to what I thought was great information to listen to go to: minutes 17:45 to 32:00. Here's a list of the topics that Gordo and Dr. John Hellemans discuss:

- Health - Injury - Overload and Intensity - Basic Week - Consistent Training - Job and Commitments - Family - Depression -

The discussion back and forth between them can provide some gyms that Ironman triathletes can use in their approach to their athletic careers. Advice that will help them stay Health and Fit, and likely help them achieve good performances too. (The three steps I love.)

Sometimes fear can be a good thing!

So here I am, it is at the beginning of March in 2008. I have held true to this idea that I'm going to just workout and train throughout the year, no periodization, no "A" races, etc. My idea was to just drop in a race when I felt like it.

That brings me to next weekend. Next weekend I am going to run my first ultra run! It is a 60k run in the Land between the Lakes area of Western Kentucky. I am pretty excited about this race, but I am getting an enormous dose of fear.

The longest run that I've had since the Ironman last September has been the Rock-N-Roll Marathon in Arizona. It was a good day to experience what it would be like on my feet for a very long time, as I coached all the athletes from Kentucky to the finish line. But to be honest, I didn't feel like I was in great shape at that race and I am not in better shape now.

The truth is that I have less long runs than a person normally puts in getting ready for a marathon. I ran 15.5 miles last weekend and then this weekend I ran 13.5 yesterday and 19.4 today. Last night a friend of Nikki's asked her "Is that his taper"?

The thing with this style of training and racing is that it doesn't have a taper period. And I'm getting nervous enough about knowing if I can finish this distance that I wanted to put in a double long weekend to see what would happen. It didn't go super well. I am hurting pretty bad right now. I can move (and actually jogged a half mile with a client after) but by the end of today's run, I was hurting enough that I started having some second thoughts.

Fear. Sometimes we have fear about what is about to happen. I am thinking that at times it might be wise to have a little dose of fear before we get ourselves into a situation like this.

I'll let you know how it goes. I went and bought a digital voice recorder and a lapel mic, I plan on doing some updates during the run. I'll share them with you if there is anything interesting, funny or ridiculous.