Running Slow Is Hard

Going into Week #13 of my journey towards the title of Ironman, training is going great. I can swim farther, ride at a faster pace, and run with more efficiency than ever. As I've mentioned before, my body is adapting well to the many hours of training and intense workouts. Each week I look forward to my training sessions and view them as building blocks to the ultimate goal on August 24^th.

This past weekend my wife, Ashley, and I traveled to Ohio to visit my family for Easter and I was a little apprehensive about how I was going to get in my workouts. Because of my schedule at the fire department, we only get a handful of opportunities each year to visit friends and family. In addition, the 8 hours of driving and 500+ miles over 4 states do not help either.  More often than not, our visits are very busy and making time to see everyone can be quite the task. Hence, the reason why I was so nervous about finding time for a 2.5 hour bike ride and two separate 1 hour runs. Thankfully, with a little forethought and careful planning I was able to get in all of my workouts without cutting into family time.  Even if that meant starting a run at 8PM or waking up at 5AM for a bike ride.

On Saturday morning, I hooked up with a local group of cyclists from Ride On Bikes in Wooster, Ohio for a comfortable country ride through rural (and flat) Wayne County. The pace was more relaxed than I’ve grown accustomed to over the past few weeks but, it was exactly what the doctor ordered. The week prior I had pushed myself a little too hard with a fast paced-high intensity assault on Greenville’s Paris Mountain so needless to say, my legs needed an easy day. The easy ride on Saturday made Sunday’s long run awesome. When I say awesome, I mean totally freaking unreal.

Sunday's run on the Towpath Trail in Canal Fulton, Ohio

 

Two miles into my run I was running a 6:50 pace and my heartrate barely hit 160 beats/minute. My maximum heartrate is 195 so, only hitting 160 is aerobically equivalent to slowly jogging around the neighborhood for most people. I hate to be cliché but, I felt light as air and as fast as lightning. Although, I simply knew better... I knew better than to give into my instinct to run fast because, eventually my heartrate was going to spike and I was going to run out of gas. I knew from what I had read in Iron Fit, Runner’s World magazine, and had seen online that running faster means burning fuel faster. Yes, every time I ran I could go as fast as possible. I could blow the socks off of every other runner right from the starting line but, I wouldn’t get very far before “blowing up”. In an Ironman triathlon or marathon, speed is nice and can be achieved over time but… slow, steady, and efficient is the name of the game.

I unhappily fought the natural urge to run fast and I pulled in the reigns before I was gasping for air with a heartrate of 189. Running slow is hard! It’s hard to fight that voice inside of you telling you to go faster and run harder. It’s hard to run an easy relaxed pace when you know you’re capable of speeding up.

In an article for Competitor.com Matt Fitzgerald explained it perfectly:

“Why do the fastest runners do most of their running at slow speeds? Because they run a lot, and if they ran a lot and did most of their running at high intensities they would quickly burn out. But you can also turn this answer upside down and say that elite runners run slowly most of the time so that they can run a lot. Research has shown that average weekly running mileage is the best training predictor of racing performance in runners. The more we run, the faster we race. Keeping the pace slow most of the time enables runners to run more without burning out.”

It’s just like the story of the Tortoise and The Hare… slow and steady wins the race. Although Sunday’s run might have been my 10K or 1 mile personal best, I ran with my head, not with my heart and I ran SLOW.

 

Guess My Finish Time Week #13 Progress

Swim 100 Meters - 1:51

Bike Average Speed - 18.2 Mph

Run Average Pace - 8:17/Mile

(**Average AG Finish Time ~ 2.5 - 3 hours**)

Week 11 - Soaking Up Recovery With a Runner's Banana Boat

It's been 4 weeks since my infamous bike crash and the show simply must go on. No if's, and's or buts about it. The Ironman is not going to train for itself.

Fortunately, I was able to take a few days off during Week 7 to allow my bruised hip and cracked rib to heal. Now that I've been able to train at full strength, I've once again found the gains I was seeing a month ago.

Coming into the second 10 week phase of my Ironman training, the "Build" phase, I truly feel my body is ready for the increase in time commitment that's on the horizon. One of the reasons that I feel so enthusiastic and confident 10 weeks into my training is, I've always taken my recovery days very seriously. Going back to my marathon training, when the schedule called for a rest day, I rested. No questions asked. That training theory has transferred over well into my triathlon training and I'm fortunate to have always heeded the advice of others regarding rest.

I've read hundreds of articles and books, watched videos, and listened to many other endurance athletes all emphasize the importance of rest and recovery. Rest in endurance sports is the key to growing faster, stronger, and more powerful, just as it is in any other physical sport or activity. Your body cannot adapt and grow without recovery.

One of the ways that I accomplish an adequate recovery is eating the right foods after a hard workout, long run, or long bike ride. Consuming the correct ratio of protein, carbohydrates, fat, and sugar immediately following a intense workout promotes muscle growth and glycogen storage. Recently, there's been a movement emphasizing the benefits if chocolate milk as a recovery food. In an article published by Runner's World magazine in 2013, they state that "chocolate milk naturally has a four-to-one carb to protein ratio, making it a logical drink to consume post run or workout." Personally, I felt it was a marketing campaign at first but, after testing it out myself I can attest that I feel 100% better after run or ride when I drink a glass of delicious chocolate milk afterwards.

The other staple of my recovery food arsenal, I seriously have to thank my sister Laura, a fellow endurance athlete and marathoner, for. The "Runner's Banana Boat" is a great after workout snack that combines all the essential nutrients needed for proper recovery. The recipe cannot be found anywhere online because, my awesome sister created it herself. Here is the recipe...

The Runner's Banana Boat:

Ingredients:
1 large banana
1/4 c creamy peanut butter
1 tbsp. honey
1/4 c granola

Directions:
1. Soften the peanut butter and honey in the microwave. 20-30 seconds should be sufficient.
2. Stir to combine.
3. Peel the banana and coat it with the peanut butter mixture.
4. Sprinkle granola on all sides of the banana.
5. Set on wax paper and put in the fridge for 10-15 minutes.
6. Eat immediately after running and be totally satisfied.

Relevant Nutritional Info:

Calories 679, Fat 37g, Sodium 176mg, Potassium 487mg, Carbs 78g, Fiber 9, Sugar 44g, Protein 18g

As with chocolate milk, the Banana Boat recipe has an approximate 4:1 ratio of carbs to protein, making it a great recovery food. Although the caloric value may scare of few "calorie counters" away consider this, the average amount of calories burned from a 2+ hour run is approximately 1653 (At a 9:00/mile pace). In addition, it's freaking delicious.  

Just like any recovery drink or food, I always try and eat my Banana Boats within 30 minutes after finishing my workout. Although, the benefits can still be achieved by eat/drinking up to an hour after your run or ride. For those fellow endurance athletes reading this blog, next time you finish a hard run or ride, whip yourself up a Banana Boat  and a glass of chocolate milk, and enjoy the benefits of tasty recovery! You surely will not be disappointed.

Guess My Finish Time Week #11 Progress

Swim 100 Meters - 1:48

Bike Average Speed - 18.1 Mph

Run Average Pace - 8:17/Mile 

 (**Average AG Finish Time ~ 2.5 - 3 hours**)