Alameda Runners – Get After It!

Why run a half marathon?

Half marathons successfully transitioned from obscure running event to new popular running craze for casual athletes across the United States.

Here is what Wade Morehead, Houston Marathon Committee executive director, told Competitor:

“The half-marathon is a great achievement that requires preparation and training. [They are a] great way to get race experience as you build toward your first marathon or to run in between marathons to stay in shape and enjoy what race day offers.”

Besides less physical and mental dedication than a full marathon, many runners find half marathons to be ideal because there is less time commitments required. No longer, slow runs of 20+ miles, 4:00 hours of run time, which also means increasing mileage is easier.

Many experienced runners don’t taper for a half marathon, while beginners do have a few things to think about before race day.

Most beginner half marathon training plans call for runners to log three to four runs, averaging 20-25 miles per week, and run a half marathon safely.  Nutrition is a lot easier for a half marathon, because runners don’t empty our glycogen reserves and need to follow strict diets and nutritional plans.

There is a great demand for half marathon races, with more than 30 new half marathons making their debut in 2012, and that number could increase in the future.

Don’t forget an added bonus to half marathons: The atmosphere at half marathons tends to be more festive and jovial among the casual runners. Even when nervous about running a half marathon, there is less stress than full marathons and other events which require additional training.

A couple of weeks ago, we did an article about 110% Play Harder. I never heard of them but after editing the article, I was looking for my checkbook to try some of their products. They were kind enough to send us a pair of compression socks to review. I tried them out for a recovery run a few days after a 70.3 triathlon. It was love at first sight! I have link to their web site here so I won’t go into the advertised details. I will tell you what I think about them.  I love them.

They are an engineering marvel. When you pull the socks out of the pack, they look like a pair of high socks or stockings. (We are athletes, we don’t care what couch potatoes call our gear.)

When you pull the socks on, they form fit to your legs and feet without feeling tight. I can’t figure out how they do it but I am impressed.

The socks are comfortable.

The ice sleeve is built in much the same way as the sock but it is a bit thicker and sits lower than the sock and has openings at the heel and toe sections.

It is lower than the sock so you can have the ice packing hanging out over the top of the sleeve without the ice touching your skin.

The heel opening is for convenience when inserting the ice pack around the ankle and foot.

The toe opening is a bit uncomfortable until you figure out how to adjust the opening around your toes. It is there to assist in placing the ice around the feet and toes.

The ice packs come in sheets with little cubes for the ice. The sheets are shipped dry. They have to be soaked before they can be frozen. This is another marvel of modern science. Why doesn’t the water come back out after they are soaked?

The ice sheets come with instructions about trimming for use. I don’t recommend trimming the sheets until after you have tried them a few times. When you add water to the sheets, they swell up in height while contracting the length and width.

The socks are very comfortable for running. Compressions socks and working out can be a unique situation that is worthy of a separate discussion. It feels great to add the sleeve and ice right after running. I prefer a shower and compression afterward. For me the level of comfort is increased dramatically after a shower. For the recovery run, I wore the sleeves and ice for the commute home. The ice packs did not shift while I was walking and felt great while I was driving home. After a long bike ride, I wrapped my legs with the ice packs and lied down for a little while. The feeling on my legs while lying down was fantastic. After the ice melted, I removed the sleeves and ice packs and wore the socks around town. I went out to get my laundry and see a show while wearing my snazzy socks. See above picture.

These socks are really nice.  As soon as my wife stops complaining about my lost Maui Jim sunglasses, I am going to buy the shorts or kinickers to match the socks.

I am often asked about tapering for a big event.  I don’t usually taper because I don’t do many “A” events that I peak for.  I usually do events that are within my standard training zones so I can push it hard for one day, take a rest day then get back to normal.  I can usually do a half marathon or an international distance triathlon on a day’s notice.  Anything longer will require training and a training plan.  Some people can run a mile on a day’s notice  and need a plan for a longer distance.  Other people can run 50 miles on a day’s notice.  It is up to you how you should train and what you need to train for.

Let me start out by saying “Tapering is hard!”.  There is a reason that I don’t usually taper, it is easy to mess things up while tapering.  You can probably do a Google search any distance event taper training and find at least 5 different ways to taper for the event.  It is not a bad idea to read a few different articles then plan your taper from there.  I will explain my taper and reasons here.  When you ask yourself these questions, you should give yourself honest answers.  Sometimes, we give ourselves politically correct answers but that is not really the goal.

A.      You will need to ask yourself what are your goals?  My goals for a half ironman are listed below:
1.       Cross the finish line healthy in less than 7 hours.  I said I did not care about the time but I had a massage scheduled for 7 hours after the start.
2.       Set a personal record (PR) on the bike.
3.       Show up to the start line healthy.
4.       Run the whole course.
5.       Look good on the run.
6.       Finish in less than 6:30.
7.       Ideal would be to finish in less than 6 hours but not likely.

B.      Look at your schedule
1.       Events are supposed to be fun.
2.       Live your life.
3.       Will it make you happy to skip a day out sailing to save 1 minute on a marathon?
4.       Will a day out sailing one week before the marathon be the difference between finishing and a DNF?

C.      What type of racer are you?
1.       Speed
2.       Endurance

Comments for A – Do you notice how I have finish healthy is number 1 but starting healthy is number 3?  I must have told myself that exercising for 7 hours will heal any injuries that I start with.  In my case, I was recovering from a run injury so I trained more for the bike than the run.  Looking back on this list, after I finished the event, I can say that my number one goal was to finish any way possible.  But that was not my goal when started tapering.  I tapered to list.  I did not bother add swimming to the list because I knew that I could and would do a sub 40 minute swim.  It should have been on the list.

Comments for B – I had a 5 day weekend the week before the event.  I could have been taking it easy to help me arrive at the race in peak condition but I did not.  I was out riding my bike all over Northern California during the long weekend.  I decided that riding my bike around the week before my “A” race would cause me to not meet goal number 2.  To me, having fun for a few extra days was worth risking goal number 2.

Comments for C – My goal is to complete races so I can go into a race pretty well rested.  People who plan on speed are rested when they do slower workouts for similar durations as peak training.

Now that we have examined ourselves and understand our goals and schedules, we can think about tapering.  Typical taper time is 1-3 weeks.  For a really big race like a marathon or half iron man triathlon, I like to taper for two weeks.  I could taper for 3 weeks and handle it physically but I don’t think I could take it mentally.  It is really hard to slow down after you have trained for 4-12 months preparing for an event.  I cycle my training in 3 week cycles where I build for 2 weeks, back off for a week the repeat.  Because of this, I average my workout time for the last 3 weeks before taper then cut back on the average going into the event.  For example:

For an average of 10 hours training per week, I would train
8 hours per week 3 weeks before the event
6 hours per week 2 weeks before the event
4 hours per week 1  week before the event

It is not a good idea to work on speed or strength during the taper phase.  The reason for tapering it to arrive at the start line healthy and ready to race.

I have not been writing much lately so I was a bit surprised when a set of Pyle PSWB4BL Waterproof Neckband MP3 Player and Headphones for Swimming, Water Sports showed up on my desk for review.  I happen to be training for a triathlon and swimming every morning is part of my training routine.  I have a love-hate relationship with MP3 players designed for swimmers.  I love listening to music when I swim.  I hate the fact that all swim music players have problems.

The Pyle is one of the cheaper swim MP3 players around but it seems to have the fewest problems.  I like the plastic neckband, headphones and player all in one unit.  When I use other models with a clip-on MP3 player headphone cord, I have a lot of problems.  The plastic head piece is great.  It works under the band for my goggles.

The Pyle has to be the simplest MP3 player on the market.  I plugged it into a Linux computer, a window opened and I did the old drag and drop from a music library to the device.  No muss, no fuss… just drag and drop.

The player has an on/off button, a volume button and a forward/reverse button.  that is it, 3 buttons.  I am swimming.  When I swim, my arms are too busy to be playing around with buttons.

Here are some details from the Pyle web page with my notes under the Pyle stats:

4-GB Memory Storage
You can hold an obscene amount of music on 4-gb
High-Fidelity Sound Reproduction
I don’t notice if something has high fidelity when it is on MP3 format
Supports MP3 and WMA Music Formats
I put both onto the device with no problems.  I did not try OGG files
USB 2.0 Compatible For High-Speed File Transfer
I tried 4 different operating systems and it worked on all of them
Rechargeable Battery Provides Up To 10 Hours of Play
I have about 5 hours on the battery with no problems
Includes 6 Pairs of Earbuds (3 Sizes for Water & 3 for Land Use)
It is a good thing there are options.  I wear a medium in the left ear and a large in the right
Waterproof Rating IPX-8 For Submersion Up To 1 Meter (3.3 Feet)
So far so good.  I do knock the ear piece out, every now and then
Technical Specs
I don’t know much about the technical specs but I do know that you should rip all of your songs in the same bit rate.  the higher bit rate the better.  If you rip at different bit rates, your volume will vary and you will either blow your ears out or the music will dim.
Distortion: <0.1%
Lithium Battery: 190 mAh
Signal-to-Noise Ratio: >70 dB
MP3 Bite Rate: 8kbps ~ 320kbps
WMA Bite Rate: 32kbps ~ 192kbps
Frequency Response: 20Hz-20KHz
Earphone Output Power: 5mW + 5mW
Operating Temperature: 41°F – 104°F (-5°C – 50°C)
Sold as : Unit

Final thoughts:  I like the Pyle MP3 player.  I usually lose the sound in one ear after about 30 minutes for one reason or another.  I don’t let it bother me and continue to swim.  I suppose I could keep it going for a whole swim if I tried but it is not worth the effort for me.  I am happy that I can do flip turns and push off the wall as hard as I can without the ear buds coming out.

The Belkin Pro Cycling Team certainly had internal goals for the 2013 Tour de France, but beyond being in breakaways to get TV time, we didn’t know what to expect from the rebranded team.

Bauke Mollema and Laurens Ten Dam are currently sitting in third and fourth on general classification – the fight for the yellow jersey. It’s safe to admit the top 10 will continue to change after the next time trial and a foray into the mountains – but seeing Mollema and Ten Dam in the top five is still something very special for Belkin.

Computer electronics company Belkin, which officially became team sponsor shortly before the Tour, has to be pleased with how the race is going. In addition to getting into breakaways, the team has two GC riders in the top five.

I expect to see Team Belkin continue to look for stage wins through the remaining two weeks of the Tour.

The key to being active in the endurance sports community – especially online – is to go out and chat with the companies that are making high quality products but might not be as well-known.  That’s why I like when companies approach me and actively want to engage, because there is new opportunity to put together a great story.

Alameda Runners recently caught up with David Green, 110% Play Harder CEO and experienced triathlete and Ironman, to learn more about the company and its unique product line.

110% makes compression clothing from compression shorts and knee sleeves to compression socks, tights and calf sleeves – including ice inserts, which can be heated to create heat inserts – offering even better healing capabilities.

Jump into the full interview after the jump!  Read more… »

Let me start out by saying – I love group runs!

A lot of people are nervous about doing group runs or working out with a group.  I hear a lot of reasons why people don’t want to join a group.  I think the number one reason people don’t join a group is because they are afraid of something.

Afraid of being dropped
Afraid of being bad-mouthed or teased
They don’t want to be seen at the back of the pack
Nervous of being around people who are in great shape
Don’t want to commit to a routine

Do any of these excuses sound familiar?  If they do, don’t worry.  Most experienced people who run with groups, understand group running and what it is like to be the new guy.  We all started at one time.  Most of us understand what it is like to be a beginner and run at the beginners pace.

Don’t worry about being at the back of the pack.  When I did my first triathlon, I did not care where I finished.  I wanted to finish.  As I progressed, my goals changed accordingly.  I am racing in a half ironman triathlon next week.  My goal is to finish healthy.  Every now and then, I will pick a half marathon that is suited to me and try to place in my age group.  I the idea is to get out and do it.  Have fun while you are doing it.

Group runs can be fun for everyone.  Last week, I went out on a group run and wound up with someone who wanted to pick up the pace and distance.  Since he was tired, I did all of the talking.  Since I am training for a long triathlon, that is all I have to talk about.  When we got back from the run, my running partner was telling the group to run with me because you hear the craziest things.  I told him about how tired I get after a 6 hour bike ride if I don’t eat properly.  To me that is normal.  To most people, it is odd.

Get out on a group run.  You will add something to the group.  The more people who are in the group the better options there are for everyone.