No Marathon for me, not this year.

Once, a while ago there were 9 colleagues and me deciding to do a Marathon, more specific the Amsterdam Marathon on 21^st October 2012. Meanwhile only 3 or less are still in. For the others different excuses like injury, relocation and motivation came up over the summer.

For me it seems to be overload of my knee due to the long and hard uphills during my bike tour. Did not feel it during the tour but back home I only had one good run in Amsterdam. Since then I had to stop running after 5 to 8 kilometers and walk back home. The first time was the worst one. I planned a long run in the forest and was in pretty deep. As soon as I started to walk I was slow enough to be a target for mosquito’s, no street nearby and no cell phone net. I had to walk half an hour before I reached a street and was able to call my wife for a pickup. Embarassing…

After checking with specialists and having a MRT the doctor said my patella tendon is not so strong and due to unconscious load removal here I have an irritation in then Meniscus. Painful only during runs but it did not improve in weeks so I have to give up for now to restart very slow with very short runs.

Less sports same food intake quickly results in weight gain. Plus 2 kg in 4 weeks:

I will try again next year in Spring, likely again with colleagues, likely again in the Netherlands, likely in Rotterdam. Already looking forward to it but much more to the next longer painfree run!

Barefoot Running and other ways to improve speed

It looks like I am not really talented for running, at least not for running fast so I have to search for the one or other shortcut to catch up with my colleagues who, by very little training, still outrun me by far.

Improve technique:

One can read a lot about improving the running technique and running more efficiently by running barefoot. I did this during my holiday at the beach with some 4-8 km runs and experienced quickly how much fun that is. Automatically I land more on the mid/forefoot, the steps are shorter and the cadence higher. 

Unfortunately I am back home and there is no beach nearby but I try to do the shorter runs in “barefoot shoes”, the Vibram FiveFingers now. As the paved roads are much harder than sandy beaches I have to be more careful and after a longer run I felt my calves so I have to wait with the next barefoot run.

Improve training:

One can find a lot of training plans to lead to a marathon but those are not personalized enough for me as I have another target, I cross the Alps by mountain bike mid August so I use the help of Anke from www.MyGoal.de. She writes a detailed monthly plan about how, how hard and when to train.

I like long and slow runs but in the plan there are only very few. Instead I find what I don’t like: Sprints, intervals, strength training but it seems to work. I cannot really say for running because of lack of experience but it made me faster and gave me more endurance on the bike.

Optimize Weight

A reduction of 1 kg body weight statistically improves the Marathon speed by 3 Minutes. Compared to 9 months ago this should shorten my run by 21 minutes:

But even more important: My hamstring and left leg look and feel back to normal which the Tanita BC-601 proved lately:

The June is not really warm this year. Therefore I am happy to have this beautiful “Train with Tanita” Running Jacket:

Running in the Winter Wonderland

February was great when it comes to running but one reason was the super cold weather so I could not do much else. 125 km in 16 hours in four countries. Germany of course but also Amsterdam  at night with my colleagues Martine and Hiroki:

Actually it was too cold for Amsterdam which means train delays, cancelled trains, tram doors which don’t close , power outage, only cold water, …

But what still works is the bicycle infrastructure:

Back to running: Next was Sofia and one cannot imagine how much snow they had (it is around the same latitude than Rome). I started directly from the hotel and up a mountain. 500 Altimeters first day and 760 second day not much running uphill though, rather hiking or partly even crawling to avoid to sink in too deep. Downhill running and sliding:

Signs don’t help much here:

But Garmin helps. With this feature you can always be sure to find back to wherever you started. I try not to use it but it feels good to have it:

And last was Melk, Wachau, Danube Austria. One evening and one morning run not as spectacular as Sofia but also not as exhausting. Lot’s of castles and this huge Monastery around:

By the way, I could not improve my weight but at least the speed a little bit. On a long 21 km run beginning of February it was obvious that it is a loooooong way to go to finish the 42…

That’s my February in Garmin Connect:

When is it time to “Don the Ron’s”!

Ok so I realize the title of this post may not be understood by all, but hopefully after the next few paragraphs you will get the meaning!

So its January, a strange month and pressured month for me, as with most people the new year can be a time for reflection on the previous 12 months, and also and importantly it is a month which is often for many people a time for new years resolutions and our minds are often full of ambitions for the new year!

This is especially the case this year for me, as my birthday is also in January and this year I will turn a magical 31 years of age. Now you might ask what is so special about being 31, why not 30! Will I figure that 30 was the test year for being a real grown up adult, but 31 well that’s serious and is definitely the time to do adult things and target the more serious challenges such as a marathon, Ironman,  or maybe growing a beard

Now at 30 almost 31 years of age I still cannot grow a beard, I can achieve a slightly adolescent, patchy cat like whiskers, but not a full beard, much to the amusement of my “mature” running friends. I was out training with these guys over the Christmas break and my friends were joking about turning 31 and the fact that I had the look of a teenager and how it was time to stop worrying about how I look when I go running and it was time to “Don the Ron’s”, for those who do not know “Ron hills” are a traditional type running pants which were traditionally only worn by the more mature runner!

For those who live in a cave, Ron hill as I hope most will know is a legend in terms of marathon running and has completed in World and Olympic marathons and has a PB of 2:09:28. Ron also has held numerous world records for other events. I have been lucky enough to meet Ron on lots of occasions and not only is he inspiration he is articulate and a warm friendly gentleman. If you have the opportunity Google “Ron Hill” or buy his book. Having said all that im not sure its time to wear Ron Hill Tracksters yet!

So 2012 is the year when I will run my first marathon and the winter training was a great time to really get stuck into the training, I managed to run or ride the bike everyday apart from 25th December, and I feel like I was getting quicker and stronger on every run. I took the time to also do some training plans and schedule a few mid years races, so in March I have a 5miler which I am hoping to go Sub 30 minutes(not done that for 3 years), and April see’s my first Duathlon in 6 years, so it is all taking shape.

Anyone who has not done it yet, take the time in January to plan for 2012, and make it realistic, we all know that if we are not realistic it wont last and we will revert back to being lazy in February.

So 2012 the year to succeed achieve and hopefully grow a beard!

Simon

 

 

Explore the World running

I love to run (and cycle) in unknown regions. Last week it was the North Sea, Bensersiel. As expected it was windy and wet 

While Running I passed this nice but lazy guy: 

and during low tide I ran pretty wide into the sea where I seen this clam cemetery:

That’s the map for the clam run. First on the dyke then through the watt:

In Garmin connect it is possible to set targets. My target is 10 hours running and 10 hours biking per month. While I managed to run 10 hours I reached only 61%. Due to increased party activities I had two rather inactive weeks. Here is a screenshot of the calendar (including Weight from BC-1000):

And all the readings from BC-1000 including my jump around weight:

Genetical condition as excusion for slow runs?

Last week I had a sports medical checkup. I did this in the practice which is also used by all the VfB Stuttgart athletes directly besides the stadium so I hoped to see one of my favorite soccer players but no.  Heart, Lung, Arteries have been tested, also some blood tests. Everything is fine and I am all right to do whatever I like.

After that the hard part started. I had to sit on a bicycle ergometer, a lot of cables were fixed to my chest and back for a Stress Electrocardiogram. A Blood Pressure Monitor was fixed on my upper arm and a respiratory mask on my face for a Spiroergometry. My ear was pricked to get blood for the Lactate Test.

Then I had to start cycling with 80 rounds per minute starting with 40 watt resistance going 40 watt up every 3 minutes till exhaustion. I gave up after 20 minutes which was 2 minutes 280 watt with a heart rate of 186. Another 5 minutes with 40 watt again to cool down then all cables were replaced and I took a shower.

The doctor told me your fitness is not bad but your VO2 Max which was measured with the Spiroergometry is pretty low. That’s genetic determined and can only be changed by 20-50%. You will never be really fast no matter how hard you try. But hey, a Marathon in four or five hours is still a Marathon! Now I even have an excuse to go slow…

I received a lot of data, actually every gasp was analyzed and I had a lot, at 280 watt almost one per second. Most of the data means nothing to me but I now know exactly with which heart rate I need to do what and for how long. This helps make the training more effective than just guessing or calculating heart rate zones from age. Actually calculating from age would be 10 strokes per minute too low in my case and would mess up the training effect big time.

 

There are 4 kinds of training regions with different effects:

Recovery Zone 115-127 BPM: After long workouts. Running is not at all a good idea because the muscles are exhausted and injuries are more likely. Better go for a swim or cycling.

Aerobic Zone 1 127-140 BPM: The body becomes more efficient at feeding the working muscles and learns to metabolize fat as source of fuel. Long and boring workouts. Runs up to 2,5 hours (I read somewhere that longer runs are not effective). With the bicycle it can be any length, ideally in not known areas to avoid boring trainings.

Aerobic Zone 2 140-158 BPM: Increase the cardio respitory capacity and increase overall muscle strength. 1-2 hour runs, 2-4 hour bike tours.

Anaerobic Zone 158-170 BPM: Increases the lactate threshold which improves performance. Training in this zone is hard and I will do it mostly with friends on the mountain bike on the trails in the forest around. Should do it also running, let’s see.

During the Winter I want to do my runs in Aerobic Zone 1. Mountain biking Sunday with friends mostly means Anaerobic Zone mixed with some recovery during downhill rides. Snow is very welcome, there are cross country skis in the cellar. Let’s get things started!

Practice makes perfect

My name is Marc Kastermans. I manageTanita Europe since 2009. I have always been fascinated by endurance sports but personally never got further than running the occasional 5K around my house (about 10 times per year) and I usually felt very out of shape after that. I never really considered taking it any further. Then about three years ago I started feeling overweight. Maybe it was at Tanita because being on a weighing scale and measuring my body composition every other day is very confrontational. In that period the good life also got the better of me. Exceeding 100KG, 22-24% body fat, not good ! (I am 193cm. and now 43 years old)

In 2008 I also started playing landhockey again. Participating in a match every week made me feel better but also confronted me with my limitations and the idea that the field appears to be getting larger in the second half of the match. In that year my spouse also started running at the Gooische Atletiek Club. Looking at her coming home from her runs I started to feel even more out of shape.

It took until 2010 that I decided to take matters into my own hand by losing some weight and taking running and biking more serious. I started skipping all the food that I do not really like and all the snacks. No regime, just changed my food intake. In a period of about 3-4 months I dropped my weight to about 87KG and my fat percentage to about 15-17%. I started to feel much better.

Since then I have been running but I have always seen this as something ‘personal’. Just me, usually a headphone on and running every couple of days usually between 5-15km depending on my mood and my schedule. It clears my mind and gives me time to think things over. I never felt the need to do any of the organised runs nor did I feel the need to set a real goal. Furthermore I started biking. Ever since I live near a mountainbike path (yes, Holland is flat, but that’s still how we call it) I started doing some biking as well. Once a week, 50 km or so with a few friends. Nowadays I try to bike to our Tanita office in Amsterdam (25-30KM one way) a few times per week as well.

What we do best at Tanita is measuring people’s body composition. But we all realise that this leads to many questions about lifestyle, sports, exercise, food intake etc.  These conversations have made many of us change our lifestyle as well. Travelling around Europe the last years I have also had the chance to do an occasional run with my colleagues and we discuss this topic often. It is great to share a common interest ! That resulted in conversations about doing a run together.  We decided to go for a real challenge together. October 2012, Marathon of Amsterdam it is ! Can I do this ? Of course, I say to everybody with confidence. But deep down inside I know it’s a stretch. I know I can do half a marathon under 2 hours, but double of that, I feel I need to structure my sports activities.

My current methods of tracking my results:

For measuring my body I have an old Tanita BC-410 in my office.

Occasionally I use a Tanita BC-1000 and track my results via Garmin Connect. I also use our new Tanita MC-980 whenever I have the chance. What a great machine !

I use a Garmin 310XT to track my running results and a Garmin EDGE 800 on my bike and I plan to start with putting a schedule together to bring some structure in my activities. I know it’s almost a year away so there is some time left.

We can do it !

Ready Steady Go!!

The First Marathon!

Ok so I have now committed myself to run my first Marathon, after many years of joking with my father about how I still have not completed a Marathon let alone an Ironman, I am finally one step closer to achieving one of these goals, or at least I hope I will be!

So since I completed my first world record in 2000 my dad has joked about I am getting older and should try to finish one of the events which he completed so many times at his competitive peak. I have put this off for many years, but now having just turned 30 it is time to attempt phase 1 (the marathon). The problem is not only do I have to complete the event my competitive nature and of course the inter-family competition I have a target time to achieve also! I am going to keep this to myself at this early stage in the preparation, but I promise to share my target time at some stage before event day!

I have been taking a look back at my training diary’s from my bike racing career and checking out my Body Composition and performance statistics, at my peak as a young 22 year old cyclist and triathlete I was a mere 65kg, with a Body fat of 5-6%. Now however it is a little different and current statistics are 73.8kg and 11.3% Body fat with 62.2kg of Muscle mass, so things have changed since I stopped racing. Of course the target is not to achieve a wafer thin 65kg but a more realistic 6-8% body fat.

I have a little over 10 months to achieve the target marathon time and of course target Body fat, and will keep you all up to date with the progress, I have already started back a little running over the last month, and I have been back riding the bike and swimming for around 6 months. Of course fitting this into my work and family life is a little different these days, but I am optimistic with the correct plan and race calendar in the build-up. The ???? marathon time is achievable.

I will share stories and progress updates in this blog including Body Composition updates. I am currently using a Tanita BC-1000 paired with a Garmin Forerunner 610 to track and store data, and whenever possible update the stats.

Keep Training!

Simon