You know your an Ultra-Runner when....

1. Your wife introduces you to your three children and you reply "What..Three?"
2. You spend more time shopping in the drug section than the food section.
3. You wonder why they don't make all running socks a dusty brown color.
4. You have more dirt on your shoes than in your garden.
5. You think that flagel and ibutrophin belong on the breakfast table.
6. You get more phone calls at 5:00 AM than at 5:00 PM.
7. You don't recognize your friends with their clothes on.
8. You have more buckles than belts.
9. You postpone your wedding because it will interfere with your training.
10. You keep mistaking your boss for Norm Klein.
11. 6am is sleeping in
12. your feet look better without toenails
13. your idea of a fun date is a 30-mile training run
14. you're tempted to look for a bush when there's a long line for the public restroom
15. you don't think twice about eating food you've picked up off the floor
16. you can expound on the virtues of eating salt
17. you develop an unnatural fear of mountain lions
18. You know the location of every 7-11, public restroom, and water fountain within a 25-mile radius of your house.
19. You run marathons for speedwork.
20. You have more fanny packs and water bottles and flashlights than Imelda Marcos has shoes.
21. Someone asks you how long your training run is going to be and you answer "seven or eight ... hours".
22. People at work think you're in a whole lot better shape than you think you are.
23. You actually are in a whole lot better shape than you think you are.
24. Your weekend runs are limited by how much time you have, not by how far you can run.
25. You always have at least one black toenail.
26. You buy economy-sized jars of Vaseline on a regular basis.
27. You tried hashing, but felt the trails were too short and easy.
28. You think of pavement as a necessary evil that connects trails.
29. you rotate your running shoes more often than you rotate your tires.
30. your friends recognize you better dressed in shorts than in long pants.
31. you really envied Tom Hanks' long run as Forest Gump.
32. you carry money around in a ziplock bag because store clerks complained that your money's usually too sweaty.
33. any time a plain old runner talks about her aches and pains, you can sympathize because you've already had that at least once.
34. you put more miles on your feet than on your rental car over the weekend;
35. you don't need to paint your toenails; they're already different colors;
36. you start planning the family vacation around races, and vice-versa.
37. When you start considering your next vacation on the merits of its ultras Only
38. You spend you entire paycheck on running gear, ultrabars, and entry fees
39. You become a quasi-expert on different detergents so as to not "hurt" your tee shirts...
40. You leave work early to hit the trails
41. You wear t-shirts based on if you've had good work outs when you 've worn them before
42. Have a trail shoe collection that would make Imelda Marcos envious
43. During a 10k you punch the lap button on your watch instead of the stop button at the finish
44. Your pedicure kit includes a pair of pliers. 8-0
45. The number of toes and toenails you have is not equal
46. You drink from a water bottle at the dinner table
47. You consider the mold and mildew in your bottles extra electrolytes
48. You just found out Poison and Oak are words by themselves...
49. You know you're married to an ultrarunner when Valentine's gifts come from Ultrafit.
50. You know you're married to an ultrarunner when she helps you up and
51. says, "Come on, suck it up, keep moving!" and you know she means it in love.
52. You know you're an ultrarunner when a prospective employer asks for a photograph and all you have is race photos.
53. You know you're an ultrarunner when the races you enter end in a different area code. -and pass through several different Zip codes enroute.
54. You know you're an ultrarunner when your crew tries to keep you motivated by saying, "You're in second place and only 6 hours behind first with 25 miles to go!"
55. You know you're an ultrarunner when you don't finish on the same day as the winner
56. You know you're an ultrarunner when people praise you to the high heavens for being able to finish a marathon, and you feel insulted.
57. You know you're an ultrarunner after you’ve posted another ULTRA message about relative 100 miler difficulty.
58. You know you're an ultra runner when you can really identify with those scenes at night in the woods in The Blair Witch Project.
59. If so many places on your body hurt you can't figure out which one hurts more, so you ignore them all and do another 50K, and then you feel better!
60. Everything in your life, everything, is organized in different sized zip-loc bags.
61. when livestock salt blocks look good after a run.
62. Your 6 year old knows the difference between a 100k and 100 miler.
63. You don't hesitate to lie down in the trail (anywhere) when you are falling asleep on your feet during the early morning hours on the second day of a 100 miler; and it feels so comfortable.
64. Ya know you're and ultra runner when a girl changes her tank and her bra in front of you and all you do is take another drink of water, look at your watch, get up and tell your pacer "Let's hit the trail."

Hydration and sweat rate:

Hydration and sweat rate:

Recently I found this short but sweet overview of sweat and hydration, a good first step when you really want to crunch numbers is to find your (PSW) Personal Sweat Rate – not sure why is not PSR but…I thought it worth mentioning…..

How to determine your sweat rate:
1. When well hydrated, do a short warm up and then weigh yourself naked. This weight will be called the pre-run weight.
2. Run for an hour in the conditions and intensity you expect to face in an upcoming training session or race.
3. Dry yourself thoroughly.
4. Weigh yourself naked. This weight will be called the post-run weight.
5. Subtract the post-run weight from the pre-run weight.
6. Multiply the number you calculated in step 5 by 16. [(pre-run weight - post-run weight) times 16]
7. If you drank during the 1 hour run, add the number of ounces you drank to the number you received in step 6,
Example:
Pre-Run weight: 160
Post-Run weight: 156
Pounds lost: 4
Drank 8 ounces of Water
(160-156) x 16 = 64
64 + 8 (ounces of water)
Total fluids lost = 72
**Try to replace 72 ounces of fluid each hour. When replacing fluids, It is best if you drink fluids every 15 to 20 minutes.

Wow.... I just realized thats 72 ounces!, for an extended run this seems overkill and will just be too much over a period of hours and hours..might need to recheck the values and adjust to your taste but the base of the content is still a valid way of understanding what your need to sustain your water balance.

Where does the Fluid Go?
Your body looses fluid:
• Urine
• Sweat
• Evaporation (other than sweat)
• Water used inside the body and respiration

Just run.

runrunrunoc

a running SWOT Analysis

Perseverance,


The length of the word suits the definition; life’s pretty amazing if you just step out and consider the vast numbers of decisions, actions and reactions that are created in a single day..much less a month, a year.

It’s funny when you begin to compare yourself to others, race their races, train like they train….we all have to start somewhere but the reality is that each person is most likely searching for a solution that fits their own personal running needs – not yours. So when you consider what others are wearing or eating or what programs they follow to train, remember that your on your own path.

For those that might feel that a set structured program is a benefit..I agree, someone had to create it. Possibly for themselves or someone they know and thats great, I fully believe that the core dicipline of running can be taught and the initial benefits of an exercise regiment are irreplaceable but the natural ability of many will always trump.

I’ve read many articles, talk to many people firstly about intake whether it be salt or water, calories or other. I collected the information as reference , a base if you will to begin my own balance. Then I thought about shoes, something durable, tough , something off road worthy and found them!.

Later I spoke with others that would swear by something different.. going light, simple..Hey, they’re running with them and doing great! But that’s the allure; my sub-concience comparisons to others drive me to consider that their running results could then be magically transferred to me, regardless of genetics, physical capacity, body structure and the like.

A simple reality is that they most likely could have put on any shoe……any shoe……..and their race results still are something that I’d like to have.. you ran in what!, in elmo slippers!, were can I get some. Listen, I’m a marketer, I’ve been in advertising and PR, yet the futile search for mercurys' winged footwear is not wasted on me, I’d try some elmo slippers if I thought it could help.

I'd suggest putting together a "SWOT analysis", Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats; lets translate for running…..

Strengths: Distance? Pacing- are you the rabbit or the turtle? Ect. Write them all down…
Weaknesses: Same as above , scheduling, nutrition, water intake, clothes…ect
Opportunities: Scheduling – are you flexible to start a consistency in your training…. Education…ect.
Threats: Scheduling, upcoming surgeries you’re in need of, injury assessments and actions….

List these for yourself, sit down and write down at least 5 items for each category, some might seem tough but with some thought and a little enlightenment you’ll be fine…

Take these and look at them, make a decision for yourself what your priorities should be and just tackle one at a time…… before long you’ll be running comfortably in your own shoes…not someone elses…

There are some that can just run, they can wear the elmo slippers, train like crazy people and just run, avoiding injury scheduling issues and pretty much anything aside from the end of the world, not me, I’ve got to do an analysis, I’ve got to do research….right?

I have to persevere through scheduling and life balance, I listen, make note and compare these to my own personal SWOT analysis, I then try something different, mostly I don’t notice much, so I’ll try something else and it just goes on this way and I’m ok with that. That’s what’s so great about running; the trails will always change as will your running and the way you approach it, just don’t lose sight of the freedom and enjoyment you get from it because when all is said and done because it’s not the hat, clothes, shoes or stuff you intake that make you the runner you are…it’s just you…..so run.

Runrunrunoc.

New and improved attitude!!

Hello world its been to long,

I've been unusually busy lately..nothing extraordinary, not to much to hang on my wall of achievements but with family busy is busy and because of this I'd lost focus.

My life doesnt revolve around my next run or for that matter anything to do with running; with that being said it's a constant endurance battle to remain vigilant and true to what I "know" makes me feel good about myself.

Running is not just a lifestyle it's a true connection to yourself - to your balance.. if your lucky enough to be a runner, some don't understand and the effort to convince them is not only frustrating but just plain waisted.

So from now on I'm true to myself, I heard a story once, sit down and bear with me....

A father was struggling with depression, his world was spinning out of control and everything seemed to be to much. As he sat in his chair his 7yo boy who had been playing in his room shuffled up, bored and sulking. Looking around the room, the father grabbed a magazine page which contained a large image of the earth. Not showing his son what image he had selected he then cut it up into many pieces.

With this he gave it to his son and told him to go to his room and try to put it together.. "that'll keep him busy for awhile" he thought, no more than 10 minutes had passed and to his astonishment the boy came back to his father placing a taped up magazine page with a picture of the earth on it. " How did you put it together so fast?" he said to his son. His son replied " Their were too many pieces,I started to get confused, it was then that I noticed a picture of a person on the other side of the pieces, once I put the person together the world just fell into place......"

Life can get overwhelming, pulling you in a thousand different directions, at times you need to step back and refocus on yourself and your health.... and everything else will begin to get clearer.

Thats what I intend to do...so lets run! :)

Runrunrunoc