I was cocky enough to go into Trail Marathon telling everyone I was going to win, and I did. I knew better than to do the same for a shorter distance, like Flirt with Dirt 10k this morning. I figured someone faster would surely show up! She didn't. I won again!! That's 2 out of 2 so far for the Serious Series. Now I'm feeling the pressure to win The Legend Half Marathon and make it a Serious Series SWEEP. That'd be WAY sweet!!
I learned four years ago to go out fast at Flirt because there are not many opportunities to pass. This is the tightest singletrack I've ever raced on. It isn't very hilly, nor very technical, just TIGHT! Always changing direction! I love the trail! It is very unique.
The few times I got behind someone, he was going at just the right pace to keep me from overdoing it. I used that to my advantage to keep myself from blowing up. I set goals, telling myself, "Once I get to mile 2, start looking for a passing opportunity." Then I'd pass, catch up with the next guy and let him pace me for a while until I hit another mile marker. Then I'd pass, catch up with the next guy, rinse and repeat. It worked great! Trail race strategy is so much different than road race strategy! That's why I consider them two very different sports.
The most amusing part of the day was when Randy went to read Matt's name for his age group award. Instead of saying his name, Randy called him, "Paula's Husband." lol!!!!!!!!
Super fun time and great seeing so many pals!!!
June 8, 2011
Oakland University - 1st Treadmill Trial
Today was my first treadmill trial at OU. I took my "mystery drug" 2 hours before the start and showed up at the lab ready to run. They took all sorts of bodily fluids from me before we started and attached an HR monitor and body core temp reader to me (which read the sensor I swallowed earlier). They set da 'mill at 6.3 mph which is 60% my max speed from my VO2 max test and I ran for exactly one hour. Then they took more samples and I did a performance trial which was similar to my VO2 max test sans headgear/facemask and heavy tubing which made it MUCH easier! I maxed out at 10.8 mph for 1 min after having the speed bumped up 0.5 mph every minute. Total time for performance trial - 10 minutes. More samples taken and then I had to donate my clothes (which will be returned) and got all the sweat rinsed off me (COLD!!!).
I felt totally fine during the treadmill trial. Oddly enough, after rinsing the sweat off, toweling dry and dressing, I started to overheat pretty badly. I had to sit down with a fan right on me and have some ice applied to the back of my neck. I sucked down quite a bit of Gatorade too. It only took a few minutes to get back to normal.
I'm going to have to guess the capsule I took is the placebo unless the diuretic and anti-diuretic are so mild that I wouldn't notice their effects, which I suppose is entirely possible. I didn't feel any different during the trial. Didn't need to urinate, didn't feel excessively thirsty, didn't feel bloated - just normal. We'll see if I can tell a difference during the next trial!
I felt totally fine during the treadmill trial. Oddly enough, after rinsing the sweat off, toweling dry and dressing, I started to overheat pretty badly. I had to sit down with a fan right on me and have some ice applied to the back of my neck. I sucked down quite a bit of Gatorade too. It only took a few minutes to get back to normal.
I'm going to have to guess the capsule I took is the placebo unless the diuretic and anti-diuretic are so mild that I wouldn't notice their effects, which I suppose is entirely possible. I didn't feel any different during the trial. Didn't need to urinate, didn't feel excessively thirsty, didn't feel bloated - just normal. We'll see if I can tell a difference during the next trial!
June 1, 2011
Characters and Dirt Roads
I picked up my "mystery drug packet" today at Oakland University for the study I'm participating in with Dr. Tamara Hew. I'm discovering more and more how much of a character Dr. Hew is. She signed off her last email to me with, "giggles and grins." When I walked in to her office, she was wearing a bright red Dr. Seuss Cat in the Hat sweatshirt. She had bunny Easter peeps on top of her filing cabinet decorated and in different poses. She also had placed stickers all over our drug packets. Cute. :-) She truly is a character. I like her a lot!
I was given explicit instructions not to store the drug packet in a metal container. Then I got thinking... once I swallow the drugs and the core temp sensor, I'll be sitting in a metal container (car) for quite a while on my drive to the university! Hmmm... ;-)
After picking up my drugs and getting my strength training out of the way, it was time to celebrate National Running Day!! I had a great run, almost perfect. The only tiny little mar in an otherwise perfect run was a nagging sore hamstring. Little bugger. The weather finally feels like late Spring, sunny and warm (but not too warm) so I strapped on my Fuel Belt and headed out for a middle distance run on my beloved dirt back roads. I'm so very spoiled by these roads. The traffic is very light to non-existant, the scenery is lovely with lots of trees, wildlife and wildflowers, ponds, marshes, lakes, farms and fields... Even though my singletrack is still muddy and partially underwater in spots due to all the rain this spring, the roads are so trail-like I hardly miss it.
Happy Running!
I was given explicit instructions not to store the drug packet in a metal container. Then I got thinking... once I swallow the drugs and the core temp sensor, I'll be sitting in a metal container (car) for quite a while on my drive to the university! Hmmm... ;-)
After picking up my drugs and getting my strength training out of the way, it was time to celebrate National Running Day!! I had a great run, almost perfect. The only tiny little mar in an otherwise perfect run was a nagging sore hamstring. Little bugger. The weather finally feels like late Spring, sunny and warm (but not too warm) so I strapped on my Fuel Belt and headed out for a middle distance run on my beloved dirt back roads. I'm so very spoiled by these roads. The traffic is very light to non-existant, the scenery is lovely with lots of trees, wildlife and wildflowers, ponds, marshes, lakes, farms and fields... Even though my singletrack is still muddy and partially underwater in spots due to all the rain this spring, the roads are so trail-like I hardly miss it.
Happy Running!
May 27, 2011
I've become a lab rat!
Today I had my V02 Max test at Oakland University in preparation for a study I'll be participating in as a runner. The proposed title for this study is:
Revisiting the Human Sweat Gland - Does arginine vasopressin modulate sweat sodium concentration via the V2 receptor?
I realize that is mumbo-jumbo to many, but most runners have probably heard of hyponatremia. Dr Tamara Hew-Butler's continuing research could go a long way toward understanding this condition and helping runners prevent it.
I was allowed to warm up at my leisure, so I ran on the treadmill in the lab for a little over 10 minutes at about 6.5 mph, then stepped off the treadmill and had the scary mask from hell put on my head. It was a mask that collected and measured all the gases I exhaled. As big and bizarre and heavy as it was, it actually did not bother me too much during the test.
The test had me start at 5.5 mph and then the speed was increased by 0.5 mph every minute until I could not go any longer. Since I couldn't talk with the mask on, it was a thumbs up or thumbs down to signal if I wanted to keep going. I made it 11 minutes, the final minute at 10.5 mph before I had to stop. My VO2 max was 57.6. They were hoping to get my HR too, but the HR monitor didn't work. Bummer.
The best part about it was that the longer I went, the more the five people there helping cheered me on. During the last 3-4 minutes, they were shouting their lungs out for me! It was great!! I bet that doesn't happen during most VO2 max tests!!
Revisiting the Human Sweat Gland - Does arginine vasopressin modulate sweat sodium concentration via the V2 receptor?
I realize that is mumbo-jumbo to many, but most runners have probably heard of hyponatremia. Dr Tamara Hew-Butler's continuing research could go a long way toward understanding this condition and helping runners prevent it.
I was allowed to warm up at my leisure, so I ran on the treadmill in the lab for a little over 10 minutes at about 6.5 mph, then stepped off the treadmill and had the scary mask from hell put on my head. It was a mask that collected and measured all the gases I exhaled. As big and bizarre and heavy as it was, it actually did not bother me too much during the test.
The test had me start at 5.5 mph and then the speed was increased by 0.5 mph every minute until I could not go any longer. Since I couldn't talk with the mask on, it was a thumbs up or thumbs down to signal if I wanted to keep going. I made it 11 minutes, the final minute at 10.5 mph before I had to stop. My VO2 max was 57.6. They were hoping to get my HR too, but the HR monitor didn't work. Bummer.
The best part about it was that the longer I went, the more the five people there helping cheered me on. During the last 3-4 minutes, they were shouting their lungs out for me! It was great!! I bet that doesn't happen during most VO2 max tests!!
I'll be back in the lab on three more occasions. These three runs will be entirely different. No more VO2 max testing. Instead they'll be measuring my urine, sweat, blood and saliva after making me run for an hour and then undergoing a "performance trial". All this is after being given a diuretic, anti-diuretic or plecebo pill along with an ingestible core temperature sensor. I won't know which pill I'll be taking and neither will the researcher. Very cool. I'm very excited about this study and getting the chance to participate!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
red's 2011 race schedule
