Preparation for 35km LSD this Saturday

The scary 35km LSD will be the next dish on the plate this weekend.  Though hard to swallow, mama said we just have to swallow it no matter what.  Mama also said... "good medicine is bitter", "suffer first and enjoy later".  If I want to enjoy my first marathon in 6 weeks time, I better taste the bitter medicine now.

Extreme Time Management
As I will be in outstation this Sunday morning, the LSD has to be done on Saturday morning... a working day for me.

If I had to work on this Saturday, I must complete the run by 8:30am.

From the past experience, I predict that I need 4hours 30minutes to complete the run.  Therefore, I have to start running at 4am in the morning.

If I had to start running at 4am, I have to wake up at 3:15am to complete my small and big business before the run.

If I had to wake up at 3:15am in the morning, to get a minimum of 7-hour sleep, I have to sleep at 8:15pm on Friday night.

I have never slept at 8:15pm on Friday night, probably, for the past 20 years (except when I fell sick)!  So, the best is to make myself really really really sleepy on Friday night.

To make myself really really really sleepy on Friday night, I need to have very little sleep on Thursday night.  If I slept at 3am on Thursday night (or Friday morning)... hopefully I will be very very very sleepy on Friday night.

So, to complete my scary 35km medicine LSD at 8:30am this Saturday morning and still make it to work, I need to have very little sleep on Thursday night... so that I will feel really really sleepy on Friday night... so that I can sleep at 8:15pm on Friday night... so that I can wake up at 3:15am on Saturday morning... so that I can start running at 4am... so that I can complete the run at 8:30am... so that I can make it to work.

Do I have the discipline to follow the Extreme Time Management?

Carbo loading?
Do I need to carbo load like what they suggest for marathon preparation?  Do I have to fill my body with extra carbohydrate so that I have enough fuel for the run?  I don't know.

Anyway, in addition to my normal meals, I will eat an extra 8 potatoes on Thursday and 8 potatoes on Friday.  Though a fan of spaghetti, I found that potatoes are easier to consume in large quantity.

Besides, I will try not to skip any proper meal for the whole week.  Yes, works always rob my proper meal... and I will try to stop that from happening.

Anxious, excited, anticipating!!!

Road to KL-Marathon 2010, 48 days to go (muscle cramp and wall banging)

Date: 9th May 2010, Sunday.

Weather: Cloudy.

Route: 30.88km (4 x Taman Desa 7.72km route)

Start time: 5:40am.
Timing: 3hrs 43mins 9s.

Fuel:
Pre-run: 500ml plain water.
During run: 1 liter of Gatorade, 750ml plain water, 1 power gel
Post-run: 600ml Revive.
(sorry kidney...)

Pit-stops:
Km-7.7: 15s for swapping of empty bottle with filled bottle;
Km-15.4: 2-minute for isotonic-bottle refilling, plain water intake;
Km-23.1: 4-minute walk/drink.

Muscle Cramp and Wall Hitting, Hybrid Engine at work
The route and distance of the run was just a re-visit of a LSD done few weeks ago.  According to the schedule, the run was supposed to be a shorter 21km run in preparation for the scary 35km next week.  However, the ego side of me has suggested that I should do 30km just to keep the momentum going.

To add a little 'flavour' to the run, i decided to run with empty stomach... nothing solid prior to the run, no power bar, no pre-run isotonic, just 500ml plain water.  Was experimenting if my body could cope.

Was comfortable from 0 to km-23.1.  Everything was as predicted.  I started to get slightly hungry at km-15, so, took 1 power gel... even if I had to violate the "no gel for training" experiment.  My bigger goal was to finish today's run instead of experimenting.

At the final pit-stop at Km-23.1, I carried extra 250ml plain water in addition to the 250ml Gatorade.  This was following the lesson learnt from previous LSD run as thirst could strike at km-26 onwards.

Unfortunately, the "un-thinkable" (at that time) happened at km-24.  Cramp devils stroke early on my left thigh... right after a 500m down-hill slope.  I had never experienced cramp on thigh at km-24.  In fact, I had never experienced cramp in all the previous sub-30k runs.  In shock, I was forced, yes... FORCED to walk for about 200m.  I knew that I would not be able to finish if I let my 'ego' or 'mind' to run the body.  When the cramp subsided, I resumed running for about 500m... and walk for another 100m.  Then, off I ran for 1km... followed by 100m walk with cramp-devil waving... and run for another 2km till the scary 400m climb.

At the 400m climb, I knew that if I let the 'mind' to run the 400m climb, I would probably need to crawl back... and subsequently miss my next LSD a week later.  Instead of gambling, I gave Mr. legs a break by walking up the 400m climb.

Finished the 400m uphill walk... I felt extremely tired, breathless, and fast-beating heart.  Yes, that was just after the 400m walk, which is supposed to be a short recovering interval.  Instead of recovering, I felt the opposite... weak, 'sotong-ish' legs, low spirit.  I believed that was what they said, hitting the wall.

Fortunately, there was no dizzyness nor imminent cramp.  So, I believe I can let the 'mind' to run the body.  By doing so, the god-made hybrid engine should be able to automatically switch to the secondary fuel reserve.  Although tired, the final 1.2km was completed in slow run.  Thank goodness that cramp devil did not strike till the finish line.

The un-planned 30km was completed with new experiences and lessons learnt.  Well-invested 4-hour weekend sleep.

So, "to gel or not to gel", still a question.

Side-stitch Ghost
Thank goodness, absence.

What's on the plate:
(22/3 - 28/3) 13 weeks to go: 21k (Energizer Night Run 2010 done. Timing: 2hr 23min 15.63s);
(29/3 - 4/4) 12 weeks to go: 25k (26.46km done. Timing: 3hrs 12mins 6s);
(5/4 - 11/4) 11 weeks to go: 21k (23.16km done. Timing: 2hrs 46mins 4s);
(12/4 - 18/4) 10 weeks to go: 29k (30.88km done. Timing: 3hrs 34mins 53s);
(19/4 - 25/4) 9 weeks to go: 21k (23.66km done. Timing: 2hrs 42mins 44s);
(26/4 - 2/5) 8 weeks to go: 32k (33.19km done. Timing: 4hrs 2mins 4s);
(3/5 - 9/5) 7 weeks to go: 21k (30.88km done.  Timing: 3hrs 43mins 9s);
(10/5 - 16/5) 6 weeks to go: 35k;
(17/5 - 23/5) 5 weeks to go: 21k;
(24/5 - 30/5) 4 weeks to go: 37k;
(31/5 - 6/6) 3 weeks to go: 19k;
(7/6 - 13/6) 2 weeks to go: 23k;
(14/6 - 20/6) 1 week to go: 16k;
(21/6 - 27/6) Race day!!!

Top 5 KL-Marathon 2010 "Run For A Cause" Runners... in age

While browsing through the list of KL-Marathon 2010 "Run For A Cause" runners for familiar name and face, I was touched by the following participants... especially their 'seniority'.  Check it out...

http://www.kl-marathon.com/profile/24050 , 62 years old uncle, 10km!

http://www.kl-marathon.com/profile/14593 , 66 years old uncle, Half Marathon!

http://www.kl-marathon.com/profile/14898 , 72 years old uncle, Full Marathon!

http://www.kl-marathon.com/profile/25287 , 82 years old uncle, 10km!

and ladies and gentlemen... the top-1 runner is...
http://www.kl-marathon.com/profile/8742, 87 years old uncle, Half Marathon!

Four of the uncles have yet to get the minimum RM500 donation for their run... please lend your helping hand.

To all of you who are still giving various excuses of not to exercise... think the five uncles.

Road to KL-Marathon 2010, 56 days to go (a laborious Labour's Day)

Date: 1st May 2010, Saturday. A very laborious Labour's Day.

Weather: Hot and humid.

Route: 4x(Taman Desa 7.72km route) + 1x(Taman Desa 2.31km route).

I ran 4x of Taman Desa 7.72km route:

And 1x of Taman Desa 2.31km route:

Start time: 5:15am.
Timing: 4hrs 2mins 4s.

Fuel:
Pre-run: 1 Power bar, 500ml plain water.
During run: 1 liter of Gatorade, 325ml 100Plus, 500ml plain water, (no solid fuel... nothing)
Post-run: 600ml Excel, plenty of plain water.
(sorry kidney...)

Post run...

Pit-stops:
Km-7.7:  15s for swapping of empty bottle with filled bottle;
Km-15.4:  15s for swapping of empty bottle with filled bottle;
Km-23.1:  2-minute for swapping of empty bottle with filled bottle, plain water intake.
Km-30.8:  4-minute walk... and more walks for the next 2.3km.

First 33km LSD without energy gel, Good or Bad?
This was my first time running 33km, predictably, in more than 4 hours.
Out of curiousity, I was doing the LSD without energy gel during the run. This was the longest LSD that I've ever ran and I was putting my body under unknown stress -- WWII Japanese-torture style.  I was not sure what would happened in the next 4hours... my predicted finishing time... an uncharted territory, that make me feel extra excited and nervous.

0-23km was manageable, no huffing or puffing.  No hunger.  Legs were feeling ok.  Confidence rose.
Km-23 onward... started to breathe harder and pace slowed down.  A sign of fatigue.  The body was begging for fuel, but no... no... power gel please!

Km-27, started to feel thirsty... and had only 100ml Gatorade left... finished all of it in one go.  There would be another 3km before reaching the next pit-stop.  In the morning sun and dry weather/body, I let my mind run the body, was trying not to walk although the devil-side of me kept saying that it is okay to walk a little as I didn't take gel.  No... the angel-side said I could keep going even without gel.

Km-29.9... at the little 100m hill leading to my car, I felt that the cramp-devil was waving to me at the left calf.  I held on for a while until reaching my car... the 100m really felt like 10km.  Re-filled my bottle with plain water only... realizing that I had consumed all the isotonic drinks.  That was 1-litre of Gatorade and 325ml 100plus, in less than 4 hours. Sorry, sorry, Mr. kidney... you have been working as hard as Mr. legs, Mr. heart and Mr. lungs.  After re-filling... 3km to go!

Km-30-33... cramp-devil was in sight.  To avoid having to crawl back, I decided to walk a little, coupled with some runs when feeling ok.  The cramp-devils, not one, but TWO, were waiting to strike on the left calf (when going up-hill) and left thigh (when going down-hill).  Each time they knocked on the door, I slowed down or walk.  That continued for the final 2.3km.

Finally, my car was insight again... and the mind managed to bust the cramp-devils despite the fact that they tried to haunt me several times.

Without much drama, if you excluded the Side-stitch Ghost and Cramp-devil, my first 33km LSD ended with much satisfaction.  Was so tired that I just managed to walk to 7-eleven about 200m away to grab my post-run re-fuel of Excel and Spritzer.  After getting the drinks, was just able to sat at the kaki-lima outside 7-eleven motionless... waiting for the pain on the ass legs to subside.

While resting... suddenly, the morning scene became so beautiful, and the air was so fresh... and everyone walked pass looked so attractive... was that what they said, the biological drugs was in action?!

So, is it better to do LSD without gel so that one can perform better with gels?  Does that balance the "stress and adapt" equation in "train and perform"?  To find out the answer, I need to do another similar run, this time, with gels.  Anyway, despite of the tiredness, I didn't feel that hungry.

Creditability of "to gel or not to gel" experiment
There were two factors that might violate the creditability of the experiment...
1.  I did not carry adequate water for the final 10km run, perhaps, leading up to the imminent cramp during the final 3km run.
2.  I fell sick on Tuesday.  I had been on antibiotic for 3 days prior to the LSD.  In addition to the antibiotic influence, my week-day run was just a miserable 4.9km run on Thursday... how low can it go?!

The lesson learnt
1.  My lack of weekday run is still haunting me, both psychologically and physically!  I need to pile-up my weekday mileage to match the LSD.  Time fly... 7 weeks to go!  Where is the 60+km weekly mileage?!
2.  Take more drinks than I think I need!
3.  Regardless of how good I felt for the first 20++km or so, anything can happen even for the very last 2 kms.
4.  "To gel or not to gel, that's the question".  To find out.

Side-stitch Ghost
Came and go away regularly.  Hate that!

What's on the plate:
(22/3 - 28/3) 13 weeks to go: 21k (Energizer Night Run 2010 done. Timing: 2hr 23min 15.63s);
(29/3 - 4/4) 12 weeks to go: 25k (26.46km done. Timing: 3hrs 12mins 6s);
(5/4 - 11/4) 11 weeks to go: 21k (23.16km done. Timing: 2hrs 46mins 4s);
(12/4 - 18/4) 10 weeks to go: 29k (30.88km done. Timing: 3hrs 34mins 53s);
(19/4 - 25/4) 9 weeks to go: 21k (23.66km done.  Timing: 2hrs 42mins 44s);
(26/4 - 2/5) 8 weeks to go: 32k (33.19km done.  Timing: 4hrs 2mins 4s);
(3/5 - 9/5) 7 weeks to go: 21k;
(10/5 - 16/5) 6 weeks to go: 35k;
(17/5 - 23/5) 5 weeks to go: 21k;
(24/5 - 30/5) 4 weeks to go: 37k;
(31/5 - 6/6) 3 weeks to go: 19k;
(7/6 - 13/6) 2 weeks to go: 23k;
(14/6 - 20/6) 1 week to go: 16k;
(21/6 - 27/6) Race day!!!