Time off is good right?
I had a really good run with my brother last Saturday. Pretty good climbing, kept on truckin' through the flats, and did some pretty fast downhill sections. Sunday I was feeling pretty pooped and Monday I was a tired mess. So I decided to take this week off. I want to be able to consistently run over 10 miles on my weekend long runs so maybe a little rest will help with that. I'm still doing my simple strength training exercises every other morning. Oh and eating clean as usual. Have fun out there everyone.
Tuesday, August 26, 2014
Wednesday, August 20, 2014
Salomon Speed Cross 3 Review
This is kind of a long term review on my Salomon Speedcross 3 trail shoes. I'm not a huge fan of the one week in and "these/this are/is the best ______ in the world" reviews. You've gotta give it some time, right? In that spirit, here we go with my first product review.
First of all they're awesome.... Albeit with a few caveats. The last shoes I was in were Saucony Xodus 4s and I loved them, they were my first pair of real running shoes. Compared to the eight year old Adidas Response 10s I was running in they were magical. After about six months of running in the Xodus' I decided to try something else.
After reading many stellar reviews of the Speedcross 3 I felt like this would be a slam dunk of a choice for my next shoe but I wanted to wait to try them on. Off to Running Warehouse I went.
The sales team there is really helpful and super knowledgable about their entire product line. I feel pretty good just telling them what I'm looking for and letting them make suggestions - that's how I ended up with the Xodus'. After telling the sales guy what I was looking for, and saying that I was interested in the Speedcross 3, he picked a couple other pairs of shoes for me to try on as well. So, I now have three pairs of shoes in front of me -- LaSportiva Bushidos, Brooks Cascadia 9s, and the Speedcross 3s -- Running Warehouse is like a candy store! After trying all of them on and jogging on the treadmill, I was still pretty stoked on the Speedcross3s. The largest size Bushidos were too small and the Cascadias felt too big and almost clunky. The choice was clear and I left with a brand new, obnoxiously red and yellow, Salomon Speedcross 3s.
It took me a couple runs to get used to them but my initial thoughts were really positive. Here's a quick rundown of the pros and cons according to my feet.
Pros:
First of all they're awesome.... Albeit with a few caveats. The last shoes I was in were Saucony Xodus 4s and I loved them, they were my first pair of real running shoes. Compared to the eight year old Adidas Response 10s I was running in they were magical. After about six months of running in the Xodus' I decided to try something else.
After reading many stellar reviews of the Speedcross 3 I felt like this would be a slam dunk of a choice for my next shoe but I wanted to wait to try them on. Off to Running Warehouse I went.
The sales team there is really helpful and super knowledgable about their entire product line. I feel pretty good just telling them what I'm looking for and letting them make suggestions - that's how I ended up with the Xodus'. After telling the sales guy what I was looking for, and saying that I was interested in the Speedcross 3, he picked a couple other pairs of shoes for me to try on as well. So, I now have three pairs of shoes in front of me -- LaSportiva Bushidos, Brooks Cascadia 9s, and the Speedcross 3s -- Running Warehouse is like a candy store! After trying all of them on and jogging on the treadmill, I was still pretty stoked on the Speedcross3s. The largest size Bushidos were too small and the Cascadias felt too big and almost clunky. The choice was clear and I left with a brand new, obnoxiously red and yellow, Salomon Speedcross 3s.
See? Obnoxious, right?
It took me a couple runs to get used to them but my initial thoughts were really positive. Here's a quick rundown of the pros and cons according to my feet.
Pros:
- These shoes have an impressive amount of grip, especially on the rocky and technical trails that I run on. I joked to another runner that they felt like "jet powered rock climbing shoes".
- The lacing system is pretty awesome. Quick easy adjustments and there's a pocket on the tongue for the excess.
- The way the Speedcross holds my heel in place is super comfortable. I'm prone to blistering on my heel so this is a huge plus.
- They look bad ass! Who doesn't like a good looking shoe, right?
- Not a whole lot of cushioning under my forefoot. Anything longer than a 10 mile run and my dogs are barkin'. At 6' 5" tall and 215 lbs I'm a big guy so maybe i just need a little more cushioning under me.
- A rock plate (or a thicker one) would be nice. A couple times I've been jabbed by rocks poking into the sole.
- The toe box fit is a little cramped, especially running downhill. I aim for a mid-foot strike when going down hills but inevitably I'll misplace a foot and my toes are jammed in to the front of the shoe.
- Like I said before, the lacing system is awesome but it squeaks. Ok, not a big deal but it's kind of annoying on longer climbs.
After a few months - and one Crystal Springs Trail Run Half Marathon - of running in the Speedcross' I have mixed feelings. I love them for technical climbing trails, but I'd rather be in my Xodus 4s for downhills. On the flats they cruise right along, no problem. Another thing about the Speedcross vs. the Xodus is the difference in heel/toe drop. The Xodus is 4mm and the Speedcross is about 12mm. A huge deal for me? I'm not totally sure - but sometimes the heel feels huge. It seems like a lower drop (or zero drop as the Altra shoes are known for) would be more natural - however on rocky trails that big heel has saved me a couple times.
Anyway, thanks for reading my review of the Salomon Speedcross 3. It may not be the perfect shoe for me, but I like them, and I alternate between them and the Xodus.
Tuesday, August 19, 2014
Quickie post for Tuesday
I'm working on a review of my Salomon Speedcross 3 trail shoes but in the meantime check this out.
I'm pretty hooked on the Trail Runner Nation podcasts right now. They put together a good show with interesting guests and some great training tips. I usually have it on while I'm at the office or when I'm in the car. One of my favorite guests so far has been Dr. Steve Gangemi a.k.a. "The Sock Doc". In the three or four episodes he's been on he talks about some pretty cool training stuff so I investigated his site a little bit, ok a lot.
From Dr. Gangemi's website:
Good stuff for sure.
Find Dr. Gangemi at www.sock-doc.com and Trail Runner Nation at www.trailrunnernation.com
I'm pretty hooked on the Trail Runner Nation podcasts right now. They put together a good show with interesting guests and some great training tips. I usually have it on while I'm at the office or when I'm in the car. One of my favorite guests so far has been Dr. Steve Gangemi a.k.a. "The Sock Doc". In the three or four episodes he's been on he talks about some pretty cool training stuff so I investigated his site a little bit, ok a lot.
From Dr. Gangemi's website:
Sock Doc's mission is to educate athletes about the benefits of natural injury treatment and prevention. Most conventional therapies such as medication, wearing orthotics, and stretching, do not address the underlying causes of injury. With Sock Doc's holistic recommendations and methods, you'll finally break free of an endless cycle of frustration and costly symptom-based injury treatments that rarely work.You'll learn how to listen to your body and become a faster, stronger, healthier and more efficient athlete.Yeah, I'm totally into that. Natural ways to address injuries and become a more efficient athlete? Sign me the heck up! I've been experimenting with a couple of the methods he talks about and I've seen some improvement in my fitness and I think I finally worked out an on going issue with my achilles tendons.
Good stuff for sure.
Find Dr. Gangemi at www.sock-doc.com and Trail Runner Nation at www.trailrunnernation.com
Friday, August 15, 2014
My first half marathon was a beautiful disaster...
"Are you ok" asked a random runner as he passed me. "Yeah just moving slow, I'm cramped pretty bad" I replied as I stopped to stretch. Reaching into his pack he said "Do you need a salt tab or anything?" "Nah, we're almost there and I've never had one before but thanks" I replied. "Ok, hang in there" my new friend said as he continued on.
Training and getting sick.
I really wanted to tackle this distance. I've been close to running 13.1 in my weekly long runs but had never gone that far. I think 7.5 miles was my max. I had set out to tackle 13 miles at a state park that is close to my house. Doing some short runs during the week and a long run on the weekend was my game plan.
The short runs were going well and the long runs were getting longer. Three weeks out from the race I cracked 8 miles and I was feeling great. Two weeks out I was planning on going 9+ miles but I was rushed to get out of the house and didn't eat a good breakfast. I ended up bonking at 5 miles and called it a day. One week left and I was determined to get to 10 miles. I ran my usual route and got to 9.8 miles or so.
Feeling pretty good with that I went into the week before the race doing some light runs and walks, that was the plan anyway. Monday I walked, Tuesday I ran at the local track, Wednesday I got sick with a cold... I was crushed. Would I be sick for the race? Should I even bother now? I decided to just see what the rest of the week would bring. After lots of vitamins and good food I was feeling all right the night before the race.
The big day.
My wife, who was running the 5 mile course, and I arrived in plenty of time to get our numbers and warm up a bit. I was starting at 9:00 and she was at 9:15 so I gave her a kiss and queued up at the start. Feeling pretty good, just barely a hint of the cold I had earlier in the week. I started off in the back of the pack which is just fine with me but that had a couple disadvantages like trying to maneuver around people stopping to take pictures. In a race? Meh, ok, this is the back of the pack after all. First part of the course was downhill, cool no problems there.
Then the climb started. The profile of the course indicated that there is a 5 mile climb of about 1800', pretty long but nothing that I hadn't done on my long runs. So up we went. I'm falling into my slow climbing pace and doing pretty well "this is all right" I think to myself. My watch beeps, thirty minutes have gone by so I pop a Cliff ShotBlox in my mouth and wash it down with some electrolyte drink and water. Still going up. Back and forth on some great single tracks through a beautiful redwood forest. Awesome, right?
Still climbing and now the fast people doing the 5 mile course are starting to pass me, a little demoralizing but I'm fine with being slow. The courses split in two and I'm off to a new section of trail with some pretty steep climbs. I start to walk-run some sections. Still hanging in there, I'm looking through the trees to find blue sky and the top of the ridge. My watch beeps again, more CliffBlox and fluids. The trail climbs up and meets a trail that leads along the ridge then to the aid station. By this point I'm getting kinda winded. "This is more climbing than I expected" I think to myself but on I go, I'm almost to the top.
Now I can see people on the ridge trail, I'm almost there! "Shit. Are you serious?" I turn a corner to see a long STEEP section that is the last part of the trail before the ridge. Screw this, I'm walking it. I finally get up to the ridge trail, collect myself, and start to run again. Hmm, my stomach doesn't feel right. Well all I have to do is make it to the aid station, run another 2 miles, turnaround and head back to the aid station. Then I can stop and rest for a few.
The 2 miles past the aid station was an out, to a very unceremonious turn around, and back to start the second half of the course. So out and back I went. This section of the course wound around the top of the ridge and was noticeably warmer than the cool shade of the redwoods. This is where things started to go downhill for me, figuratively and literally.
After filling up my water bottle, having a snack, and thanking the volunteers (always thank them) I was off again. Running for a bit I was feeling okay but not great. My stomach hurt and my legs started cramping. "No! This is the downhill part, the easier part, and now I'm cramping up" I said to myself. I eventually started walking and trying to pull it together.
The miles passed really slow and I was only 9 miles into this. The next few miles were pretty dark. I went from "I can finish this" to "Well the road is right there. Maybe I can hitch a ride back." "Should I just sit down for a bit" it sounded great but I knew I would have a tough time getting back up. I was walking slow with cramped calves. At one point is was a struggle to keep going up an uphill section. Of course there were other runners whizzing by me. I admired an older gent who was running slowly past me.
Finally I reached the fire road that lead back to the finish line and the end of this suffering. About 2 miles left. Somehow I mustered the mental strength to run a little bit, my legs cramped even more. I stopped to stretch a little. When my new friend from the beginning of the story stopped. That little gesture brought me up enough to start running again.
The finish!
Less than 1 mile to go I got the biggest surprise, which totally made my whole day better. I could see the park, I could see the finish, and I could see some moms with little kids along the side of the trail. They saw me coming and started cheering. "What?? Well this is awesome!" I've been suffering for the past few hours and now I've got little kids cheering me on? I seriously almost started crying. Just a matter of yards to go and I'm back in the park. I can see the finish! I'm going to do it!
As I run through the park and out to the field where the finish line is everyone around the finish starts cheering! "Woohoo!! GO!" "Good job!" "Way to go!!!" I was amazed. I crossed the finish line and a lady put a medal around my neck. My wife ran up and said "You did it! I'm so proud of you. You did a half marathon!"
We went over to the picnic area and I finally got to sit down. I had the best Coke of my life and half a banana, also the best banana of my life. I saw the race director, who congratulated me on my finish, and thanked him for the great course. I finished in about 3:50. Pretty slow, ok really slow. I'm pretty sure if I didn't have the stomach and cramping issues I'd be closer to 3:15 which was my target time.
What next?
After just about a week off I'm back to running and looking at my next race. I had this idea a while ago that if I could do a couple half marathons and really trained well I'd be able to tackle the Big Basin Marathon that goes along the Skyline to Sea trail in the Santa Cruz mountains. Ambitious? Yeah probably, but it will be fun to train for it. In the immediate future I'm getting ready to do the 25k course at the Spooner's Cove Trail Run coming up in January. This time I'll be better prepared and my fitness should be a bit better too.
The positive energy and kindness of everyone at my first half marathon was absolutely amazing. The volunteers at the aid station, the race director, and even the runners themselves were just flat out awesome. If you're ever looking for a fun event to run take a look at Coastal Trail Runs. The put on a number of events here in California, mostly in the SF Bay Area.
Training and getting sick.
I really wanted to tackle this distance. I've been close to running 13.1 in my weekly long runs but had never gone that far. I think 7.5 miles was my max. I had set out to tackle 13 miles at a state park that is close to my house. Doing some short runs during the week and a long run on the weekend was my game plan.
The short runs were going well and the long runs were getting longer. Three weeks out from the race I cracked 8 miles and I was feeling great. Two weeks out I was planning on going 9+ miles but I was rushed to get out of the house and didn't eat a good breakfast. I ended up bonking at 5 miles and called it a day. One week left and I was determined to get to 10 miles. I ran my usual route and got to 9.8 miles or so.
Feeling pretty good with that I went into the week before the race doing some light runs and walks, that was the plan anyway. Monday I walked, Tuesday I ran at the local track, Wednesday I got sick with a cold... I was crushed. Would I be sick for the race? Should I even bother now? I decided to just see what the rest of the week would bring. After lots of vitamins and good food I was feeling all right the night before the race.
The big day.
My wife, who was running the 5 mile course, and I arrived in plenty of time to get our numbers and warm up a bit. I was starting at 9:00 and she was at 9:15 so I gave her a kiss and queued up at the start. Feeling pretty good, just barely a hint of the cold I had earlier in the week. I started off in the back of the pack which is just fine with me but that had a couple disadvantages like trying to maneuver around people stopping to take pictures. In a race? Meh, ok, this is the back of the pack after all. First part of the course was downhill, cool no problems there.
Then the climb started. The profile of the course indicated that there is a 5 mile climb of about 1800', pretty long but nothing that I hadn't done on my long runs. So up we went. I'm falling into my slow climbing pace and doing pretty well "this is all right" I think to myself. My watch beeps, thirty minutes have gone by so I pop a Cliff ShotBlox in my mouth and wash it down with some electrolyte drink and water. Still going up. Back and forth on some great single tracks through a beautiful redwood forest. Awesome, right?
Still climbing and now the fast people doing the 5 mile course are starting to pass me, a little demoralizing but I'm fine with being slow. The courses split in two and I'm off to a new section of trail with some pretty steep climbs. I start to walk-run some sections. Still hanging in there, I'm looking through the trees to find blue sky and the top of the ridge. My watch beeps again, more CliffBlox and fluids. The trail climbs up and meets a trail that leads along the ridge then to the aid station. By this point I'm getting kinda winded. "This is more climbing than I expected" I think to myself but on I go, I'm almost to the top.
Now I can see people on the ridge trail, I'm almost there! "Shit. Are you serious?" I turn a corner to see a long STEEP section that is the last part of the trail before the ridge. Screw this, I'm walking it. I finally get up to the ridge trail, collect myself, and start to run again. Hmm, my stomach doesn't feel right. Well all I have to do is make it to the aid station, run another 2 miles, turnaround and head back to the aid station. Then I can stop and rest for a few.
The 2 miles past the aid station was an out, to a very unceremonious turn around, and back to start the second half of the course. So out and back I went. This section of the course wound around the top of the ridge and was noticeably warmer than the cool shade of the redwoods. This is where things started to go downhill for me, figuratively and literally.
After filling up my water bottle, having a snack, and thanking the volunteers (always thank them) I was off again. Running for a bit I was feeling okay but not great. My stomach hurt and my legs started cramping. "No! This is the downhill part, the easier part, and now I'm cramping up" I said to myself. I eventually started walking and trying to pull it together.
The miles passed really slow and I was only 9 miles into this. The next few miles were pretty dark. I went from "I can finish this" to "Well the road is right there. Maybe I can hitch a ride back." "Should I just sit down for a bit" it sounded great but I knew I would have a tough time getting back up. I was walking slow with cramped calves. At one point is was a struggle to keep going up an uphill section. Of course there were other runners whizzing by me. I admired an older gent who was running slowly past me.
Finally I reached the fire road that lead back to the finish line and the end of this suffering. About 2 miles left. Somehow I mustered the mental strength to run a little bit, my legs cramped even more. I stopped to stretch a little. When my new friend from the beginning of the story stopped. That little gesture brought me up enough to start running again.
The finish!
Less than 1 mile to go I got the biggest surprise, which totally made my whole day better. I could see the park, I could see the finish, and I could see some moms with little kids along the side of the trail. They saw me coming and started cheering. "What?? Well this is awesome!" I've been suffering for the past few hours and now I've got little kids cheering me on? I seriously almost started crying. Just a matter of yards to go and I'm back in the park. I can see the finish! I'm going to do it!
As I run through the park and out to the field where the finish line is everyone around the finish starts cheering! "Woohoo!! GO!" "Good job!" "Way to go!!!" I was amazed. I crossed the finish line and a lady put a medal around my neck. My wife ran up and said "You did it! I'm so proud of you. You did a half marathon!"
We went over to the picnic area and I finally got to sit down. I had the best Coke of my life and half a banana, also the best banana of my life. I saw the race director, who congratulated me on my finish, and thanked him for the great course. I finished in about 3:50. Pretty slow, ok really slow. I'm pretty sure if I didn't have the stomach and cramping issues I'd be closer to 3:15 which was my target time.
What next?
After just about a week off I'm back to running and looking at my next race. I had this idea a while ago that if I could do a couple half marathons and really trained well I'd be able to tackle the Big Basin Marathon that goes along the Skyline to Sea trail in the Santa Cruz mountains. Ambitious? Yeah probably, but it will be fun to train for it. In the immediate future I'm getting ready to do the 25k course at the Spooner's Cove Trail Run coming up in January. This time I'll be better prepared and my fitness should be a bit better too.
The positive energy and kindness of everyone at my first half marathon was absolutely amazing. The volunteers at the aid station, the race director, and even the runners themselves were just flat out awesome. If you're ever looking for a fun event to run take a look at Coastal Trail Runs. The put on a number of events here in California, mostly in the SF Bay Area.
Thursday, July 3, 2014
Running while on vacation
Running on vacation can be fun, unless you're in the desert, and it's 100+ degrees, and super humid, and you're feeling lazy, and you're feeling sorry for yourself because you hurt your knee the week before. Well enough of that....
I kinda learned to like running in the heat, you just need to be flexible about when you get out. Early in the morning has been the best time to go, it's cooler -- well it's 80 -- and a little less humid. The heat alone isn't so bad it's the muggy air that kills me. I'm longing for my foggy coastal trails.
I brought a Chi Running and Chi Marathon with me for a little inspiration which helped me to get motivated and out the door. I managed just under two miles on my first outting, two and a half on my second, and just under four on my third. Not huge numbers but I'm getting out and getting my knee stronger.
My third attempt at running in the heat and humidity...
http://www.strava.com/activities/161198531
I kinda learned to like running in the heat, you just need to be flexible about when you get out. Early in the morning has been the best time to go, it's cooler -- well it's 80 -- and a little less humid. The heat alone isn't so bad it's the muggy air that kills me. I'm longing for my foggy coastal trails.
I brought a Chi Running and Chi Marathon with me for a little inspiration which helped me to get motivated and out the door. I managed just under two miles on my first outting, two and a half on my second, and just under four on my third. Not huge numbers but I'm getting out and getting my knee stronger.
My third attempt at running in the heat and humidity...
http://www.strava.com/activities/161198531
Monday, June 23, 2014
A great run
Sometimes you have a just flat out awesome run. It wasn't super fast so I'm not qualifying for the Western States 100 any time soon but right now it's all about PRs for me. Yesterday was one of those runs on one of my favorite trails.
Hazard Peak Trail (or Ridge Trail for you locals that remember) is located in Montana de Oro State Park which, as luck would have it, is about 3 miles from my house. It's a winding single track that goes to the top of, well, Hazard Peak. It's smooth, sandy, rocky, technical, and a ton of fun. About 3 miles up with just under 1000' of climbing.
I was reading Ingrid Hansel's blog post about being a "downhill demon", something I really struggle with, and to my surprise the techniques that she outlined really do work. After 3 miles of mid-foot striking on technical downhill singletrack I'm sore in new places now but the technique is way better than the heel striking I was doing, my knees and hips aren't completely trashed....
The data from Strava shows that I averaged a 13:07 per mile pace. Again not earth-shattering but I'm 46 and I weigh about 225 pounds so I'm thinking that's pretty good. The part that made me really happy with this particular run is that I had a quick walk break at the summit and that was it. I ran the whole thing up and down.
Down at the parking lot I quickly checked my watch and couldn't believe I ran that far with just a little break at the summit.
Good times!!
Hazard Peak Trail (or Ridge Trail for you locals that remember) is located in Montana de Oro State Park which, as luck would have it, is about 3 miles from my house. It's a winding single track that goes to the top of, well, Hazard Peak. It's smooth, sandy, rocky, technical, and a ton of fun. About 3 miles up with just under 1000' of climbing.
I was reading Ingrid Hansel's blog post about being a "downhill demon", something I really struggle with, and to my surprise the techniques that she outlined really do work. After 3 miles of mid-foot striking on technical downhill singletrack I'm sore in new places now but the technique is way better than the heel striking I was doing, my knees and hips aren't completely trashed....
The data from Strava shows that I averaged a 13:07 per mile pace. Again not earth-shattering but I'm 46 and I weigh about 225 pounds so I'm thinking that's pretty good. The part that made me really happy with this particular run is that I had a quick walk break at the summit and that was it. I ran the whole thing up and down.
Down at the parking lot I quickly checked my watch and couldn't believe I ran that far with just a little break at the summit.
Good times!!
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