9000KM of training mileage

Today I registered my 9005th kilometers ran into my running log. 5 years of running bring me lots of changes and I am glad that I am still keep going. Now I am using it as a transportation option to work. Daily commuting of 15km thru and fro and I planned to do this 3 to 4 times weekly. This removed some pressure to wake up 4am to login the required training mileage, but on the other hand add in pressure to restart the running momentum before the body fully recovered in the evening. So far, I completed this in past 4 weeks, logging in a decent 60+ km per week. The body seem like going to adapt to the new training approach, but I also observed some over-trained syndrome started to surface. Need to take extra caution to have more rest and stretching to avoid injury.

On the other hand, SCKLM / KSB issue caused me signed up to River Jungle Marathon in September. Now I had 4 full marathons in 3 months. If adding in the half marathon I signed up, I will be racing 4 FM plus 2 HM in the next 94 days. Seem like I am going to have a great time enjoying the rush in adrenaline in all these races, provided if I don’t injure myself. For sure, I won’t survive it I go all out in all 6 races. Some prioritization required here but I am obviously not really good in holding back. Let see how I survived these :) 

Start of a New Racing Season

18 more weeks to my yearly highlight race SCKLM, and now is the best time to start another round of training cycle. The previous training cycle actually dragged much longer than 18 weeks and it’s kind of back to back so often I felt drained after each major event I trained for. This time, I took 2 weeks off (almost totally off) from running, and went for shopping instead.

I got myself a pair of Merrell Bare Access 3, and a pair of Newton Distance 3, with good discount. With the good experience from R68 in Bare Access, I decided to explore my shoes running options. As there are lesser channel nowadays to get VFF in Malaysia, plus the build quality is deteriorating, I need some other options.

Bare Access 3 like its previous version, was a minimalist shoes. But it’s not really that minimalist anymore in this version. It’s heavier and harder soles; narrower in both toe box and arch area; make it more like a racing flat compared to the usual barefoot running shoes.

Distance 3 on the other side, with lots more cushioning and softer soles, flexible toes box (it’s still consider narrow, but the upper layer actually quite flexible and you won’t felt your toes restricted inside), with the strange feeling to running on those 5x lugs system.

Both shoes providing great stimulation to difference part of my legs muscles and also the workouts. Together with the 2 VFF, I am rotating shoes on daily basis. This also helped by taken away some routine from the running. As I am now so used to VFF, I usually just ran. I don’t check my gait, my posture, my form usually. But now I will need to adjust myself in every workout. Not to the extent of changing my gait, posture or form every time, but at least I am going thru my running form check list again. Lower back straight, kept those feet land below my centre of gravity, body lean forward, head upright, kept a high cadences, etc.. But with all these shoes added into my arsenal, now my wife started to question me regarding the number of running shoes I had :P

I will still follow the Hanson Marathon Method 18 weeks advanced training program and SCKLM will be my target race. 2015 SCKLM will be using the same route like 2014, I will be able to estimate and plan better to face the challenge now. Hence I am moving up my goal to finish this marathon in 345. Btw, this year the SCKLM sold out in record pace, only 4 days and all categories were filled. 6500 participants will be running full marathon. As this year the starting pen will be go by estimated finishing time (just estimated, no proof required), I don’t expect to have any issue at the starting point. 

The key challenge like last year, located at 37km when we joining the half marathon participant for the last 5km. I hope my training will allow me to go faster than 345, than the human traffic should still be manageable. The peak actually around 345-415, the full marathoners speeding at 5:20-6:03min/km pace will be facing the half marathoners who will be finishing around 2.5-3 hours with the 7 to 8min/km pace. The 1-2 min/km pace difference is too big so we will be blocked. The water station will be packed. I will make sure I run with my bottle this year, and padded up my elbows!

There are some races lining up in these 18 weeks, total of 2x half marathons (Seremban & Malaysian Day), and 1x full marathon (Kuching). All these races had their own target now aligned to my 345 goal.

Let’s train hard and aim high!

Training must go on

Lately lots of changes happen in my organization and my main project hitting the wall too. Also, I suffered the usual dip in emotion after every big race (failed to score the highly anticipated PB made it worst). To overcome this, I do shopping.

I got myself double doses of endorphin from the books by two famous Japanese Ultra Runners, Hirofumi Ono (a.k.a. the White Radish Costume Runner) and Ryōichi Sekiya (4 times 24hrs Ultra World Champion). I signed up for Seremban Half Marathon, got myself a pair of Drymax Socks (will be running in Bare Access in the coming Challenge68 Ultra), and tentatively get a new pair of Merrell Bare Access later in the RSH Warehouse Sale. The family will have more shopping over this weekend because the bloody GST is coming.

After the Seoul trip, I rested for few days. Only resume my running last Saturday. As I back in Ipoh, I decided to run up the Bukit Kledang as part of the training for the 1900m elevation gain in Challenge68. The training was great. Surprisingly I found a way to keep my effort manageable when scaling the incline, just keep the stable breath by counting it, and never thinking of stopping until you reached the target. My target for this training was simple, 1.5km up (out of the whole 6km road to the TM Tower) with close to 144m elevation gain. Then I walked up another 1.5km, and ran all the way back to start. The descending of 3km over 350m was fun! I clocked 5.5min/km pace in Bare Access. Usually I descend slower than ascending in road race. Now is time to put in some training on how to descend properly with some speed.

Apart from the hill workout, I add in evening run. Challenge68 will start at 6am, no matter how fast I go, come noon I will still be in the race. It preparing my body to endure the heat (plus I planned most of the long run sessions in April to be done in 8/9am-12pm). The usual 6 morning training sessions will still be continued. Evening workouts planned for all easy days (Monday, Friday & Saturday), and Tempo run (Thursday). The easy run was just to building up my endurance. And the tempo run will be a continue session from what I left in the morning. As I need to finish my morning run by 6am, I usually don’t have enough time to cover the planned tempo run distances (especially towards the end of the training program). So the evening session will be filling up the gap and also training the body to restart into target racing pace after some break.

The game plan for this 68km race was ready too. Plan A (711) very aggressive and Plan B (828) relatively conservative. Tentatively I will mix them up and play by ear. The elevation gain doesn’t look very scary as I break it down to average elevation change per KM. But the plan was draw out with the CP elevation. There will be more to be expected in between CPs as the organizer announced 1900m elevation gain in total. I will need to do lot more hill workout in order to follow thru the planned pace.

After putting down all these plans, I felt some relief of my emotional stress. May be I just need to have something to divert my attention and perhaps doing venting helped too.

In short, training (the show) must go on. 6 weeks until my second Ultra road race.

Training report: Seoul International Marathon and training week 3

The highlight of training week 3 is the start of the tempo run and the long run. If you compared to the usual training program, Hanson method used slightly difference terms in this two key workout. In short, tempo run will be practicing targeted marathon pace, and long run is working on anaerobic threshold.

I was doing fine in week 3. The speed repeats completed without too much of issue with all 8x done faster than 4.5min/km pace. Anyway, I wasn’t able to complete the planned tempo run and long run. I only managed to hold up that pace for part of the planned distances. The pace was selected at 5min/km and 5.4min/km respectively. Not a very fast pace but it will still hurt if doing it for long enough. I am not very worry about this cause it is normal when you aimed to take down a pace that obviously beyond your existing capacity. The body just need time and practice to getting used to the pace and intensity. Like how it handles in the previous program. If it’s ok to take the pace, it will slowly ease into it. If it’s not ok to take the pace, it will show some sign to tell me to stop the abuse. I just need to listen closely to my body now.

Day	Program	Done	Remark
Mon	Easy 9.7km	10km
Tue	Speed 8x 600m	Speed 8x 600m	All repeats faster than 4.5min/km
Wed	Rest	Rest
Thu	Tempo 9.7km	10km	Only 5km in tempo pace
Fri	Easy 11.3km	8km
Sat	Easy 9.7km	10km
Sun	Long 16.1km	16km	Only 9km in long run pace
Total Done		67km	Right ankle & PF issue

The right ankle seems to have some pain from the tempo run last week. I suspect that is a PF issue. The intensity of the training is taken its toll on the body. Calves felt tights most of the time and I had a hard time to loosen them in my every night stretching. Anyway the training intensity in the coming weeks will be reduced as I will be traveling from this Thursday onwards. I plan to continue with the 6 days training but change all into 10km easy run. Hopefully I can still maintain the momentum during my trip.

Today the long waited Seoul International Marathon registration has started. The fees increased to USD50 but still one of the most affordable IAAF GOLD label marathon. Flat course with 10-15degC weather are the big plus if you are chasing your PB. Furthermore, you will finish the marathon like a champion after the final lap inside the Jamsil Olympic Stadium (for 1988 Olympic Game). Click the picture below to the official website.

Random Update

Thanks to the help from AECO Malaysia, the Garmin Forerunner 910XT service completed right before the start of the APBIM. I was surprised to get a free replacement of reconditioned unit from Taiwan. I got mine on 2012 March, which is 2.5 years before it punctured. Anyway, the unit working fine and it will be great help for the starting of another round of 18 weeks training program from Hanson Marathon Method, for the preparation of Seoul International Marathon. Btw, the Garmin Forerunner 920XT will be available in Malaysia from mid-December onward, make sure you got yours from the authorized distributor and it will save you lots of trouble if something went wrong. Anyway, I will only consider mine after the Seoul International Marathon. May be I will got it as a gift (for achieving my 330 target, or a consolation price for missing the target).

I finally decided to purchase from Amazon. Ordered the VFF Komodo Sport from it and all I needed pay was USD84.56 (MYR289.14 via credit card). I received the parcel 2 weeks after the order, and the only downside about this purchase was the shoe is the older color (or production batch, the black and silver series). But I am ok if it compared to what I need to pay from local running (MYR447). I will give it a last change before I give up and move to other barefoot friendly shoes like Merrell Bare Access. 

I used the saved amount from my online purchase to sign up my next race, Route68 Challenge. This is the inaugural race for this 68km ultra marathon. Start from Dewan Serbaguna Komuniti Orang Asli, Gombak, ran 34km to Bentong Hot Spring, and then have a dip before taking the u-turn and ran back to the starting point. Initially I think of skipping it, but from the previous race experience, I will need to have some other target to reduce my dip too deep into the post-race blue. And I will be more or less done with my speed chasing (gave in my best shoot during Seoul International Marathon). Difference type of running will be good.

Kids had their yearly race yesterday at Desa Park City. They were really enjoyed the race refreshment (icy Milo, 100Plus) and running around freely. The event was great, and the kid race getting lots more participants from year to year.

Running with joy!

Mood Recovery

Last weekend was tough! The hazy and hot weather is bad enough but it just getting worst over the weekend.

It started from Friday evening, with DSAI case. Then after my hazy Saturday morning run, I got the news of missing MH370. The mood just dip into the bottom. Come Sunday morning, it was just too hazy to run (API > 100). I was terrified with these 2 unidentified persons boarded with stolen passports. I will be flying to lots of places this year! Lucky I got another novel at home for my consumption, else my family will sure suffered from my bad mood.

Anyway, did a short & quick run this morning. It helps to stabilized the mood. But I need more than stabilizer on a Monday! Hence I plugged my earphone to my mobile, play the "Spirit of the Marathon" over the phone, just listen to it when I am working. The movie was fantastic, I watched it many times so I don't need the video. The music, the conversation, the noise over the race field, the foot steps, the starting horn, the progress reported over the Chicago Marathon, kept me calm, and slowly pull me up into positive side. I think this is the benefit of having some highly energy good/positive addiction. The issues happened over the weekend still disturbing me, but I felt I got more energy to deal with it now (at least emotionally).

Have a good week ahead, keep running and keep smiling!