Weekly Update: 4/8 to 4/14

82.24 miles
17,782' gain
12 hrs 30 mins running
2 strength circuit classes (45 mins each)
3 therapy, massage, PT sessions at gym and home
1 Rest Day, 2 days with only 3 miles each



Really good with week with tons of quality running.  The snow is melting very quickly and the options are opening up daily for better routes.

Oh Lord...Stuck in a Low Dye Again!
I may have found the answer to my shin issues.  I was poking around Youtube looking for shin splint info, as usual.  I found a taping technique called Low Dye taping.  There are tons of videos and lots of different ways to do it, but they all seem pretty similar in effect.  I knew when I took my first step with the tape on that I was on to something.  I woke up with shin pain this morning on my left leg from my effort at Rapid River two days ago- typical.  I was debating whether to warm it up and try to go for a run, or just take another rest day.  When I put the tape on, my foot and posterior tibialis instantly felt normal.  I walked around without any discomfort.  When I started my run, the tape felt tight and rigid, but loosened up a bit as I warmed up.  I ran 10 miles in my normal Scott Trainer 2's, then came home and went out again for another 5 miles in Race Rockers- racing flats.  Both shoes felt fine, but the Rockers felt even better.

This tells me I have a problem with my left arch supporting my stride.  My posterior tibialis tendon and muscle pulls until it agitates the tibia.  I have a very high rigid arch and I have a distinct wear pattern on the outsides of my shoe soles.

This leaves me with many unanswered questions:

*Does the supported arch bringing me relief mean that I over-pronate?
*How can one pronate and supinate at the same time?  Impossible right?
*Is the wear on the outside forefoot of the sole from forefoot breaking (slowing down) while downhill running, then rapidly over-pronating?  This seems like it would tax the posterior tib and it is the downhilling that always worsens the pain.
*Does this mean anti-pronation orthotics would fix this issue?
*Can anyone recommend an extremely light and low volume orthotic that might work?  I have been using a Superfeet pink (lady's) insole.
*Why is this a consistent problem for me from December to June, but not July to November?

In the mean time I'm keeping the tape on and the miles piling up.  11 weeks until Statesmas.

Vert Test at Rapid River

27.5 miles, 10,000' gain/loss.  See those little jagged teeth on the first and last 7 miles of the run?  That is the beauty of Rapid River- constant, very steep ups and downs and poor footing. 

Start.

My #1 key to gaining fitness last summer was to be able to run ANY hill I encountered at a heart rate that was sustainable for 100 miles.  I keyed on hills with portions over 20% angle and from 6000' to 8500' elevation.  On my long runs, I stayed in granny gear- for me that meant 12-14 minute miles and heart rates 145-150.  For shorter runs and tempo efforts, that meant 9-12 min miles and heart rates around 165-170. No matter what, I never walked or rested on a single hill last year beyond May.  Before May 2012, I had to walk many of the steeper hills for lack of leg and cardio power.  Just part of the progression I guess.  Perhaps just expansion of the imagination.

I have had precious few chances to run on truly extended, steep uphills this winter.  McCall's mountains are still around 2 months from being runnable.  Thus, I make the 40 mile drive to Rapid River as often as I can with Brandi.  Not only is it warmer and sunnier, but it starts at only 2200' which means you get to run uphill forever.  The trails are melted out to around 6000' now, which makes for some great and gnarly climbs.  Once the window opens past 4000', several huge climbs materialize up to 1500' gain per mile.  Some of the steepest trails anywhere.

Yesterday, the plan was to climb up the East Fork of Rapid River about 7 miles to Wyant Camp, then try out my granny gear on the Wyant Creek and White Bird Ridge Trails until the snow line was reached.

Stats
Wyant Creek Trail 3200' to 6000', 3 miles.  I hit the snow line and downed trees at 6000'.
White Bird Ridge Trail 3100' to 5000', 3.5 miles.  I reached the Trailhead at the top- no snow.

I managed to run the whole way with minimal suffering at a sustainable effort of 10:30 average pace.  This, in spite of holding back on every flat and downhill section to avoid damage to the shins.  Very happy to feel like I am hitting my stride.

Coming down from Whitebird, I was a little bonky from the effort, but I was instantly refreshed by a can of ice cold cola and a nice campfire shared with me by awesome father/son antler shed hunters Joe and Ryan. Instead of the final 8 miles spent suffering, I cruised easily and found a nice tempo to the finish.  Thanks a million guys.  Trail magic!  I picked a lousy day to not carry the camera, as the views from White Bird were incredible.  That view of the Seven Devils could be mistaken for the Tetons!  Next time.  Brandi snapped a few good ones.

The River picking up steam as the mountains above melt out.    

Brandi's self portrait.

Ponderosa Pine.  I love how the vanilla scent of the Pondos grows intense as the temperature rises.  Mix that scent with that of dry, granite dust and it reminds me of Yosemite Valley.

Finishing up and showing teeth.  Not because I'm hurting...but because I was really psyched up to be running hard  after  all that tough climbing.

Orange and Robie wait for us to arrive home.

Cardio Test on the Weiser River Trail

Key Workout Stats: 
20 miles @ 150-155HR, 2:10 (6:30/mi average), <1000' gain.
3 miles @ 10 min pace.
65 deg F, 18 oz water, 4 VFuels (2 Peach dissolved in water, 2 Vanilla from packets), 1 VESPA Ultra Concentrate


B and I went down to the Weiser River Trail to run the canyon section north of Council and south of New Meadows.  This is approximately 10 miles north of the section of trail where the Weiser River Trail 50K is held. (Race Report from 2011).  The plan was to do a long tempo run of the uphill canyon part- about 1000' vertical until the terrain flattens out on top by the Tamarack Sawmill, then work on a faster "quad seasoning" effort on the downhill.  I had hoped for a tempo/marathon paced effort on the climb, then get what I could on the down.  With everything right, I would extend the effort out to a full marathon.

Everything started out well, with a comfy 7 min pace for the first mile.  I picked it up and the shin was a bit off, so I kept the heartrate at 150 beats, my comfortable all day race pace.  I climbed under good control and the first 10 miles passed with an overall pace of 6:50 and a heartrate no higher than 155.  A few spikes occurred towards the top because the terrain steepened briefly and it was a fierce headwind basically the whole way.  I turned around when I hit a wall of wind at about 4200' altitude just past the sawmill.

I eased into the downhill with concern- as I have not pushed a downhill yet this year for fear of shin injury.  Slowly my splits dropped to 6:30, 6:15, 6:00 and the final three miles were 5:45-5:55 on very gentle downhill at that point- almost flat.  I never went above 150 beats the entire return trip.  Towards the end, my hip flexors were tightening and my shin was weakening, but the power was still flowing.  I opted to stop the workout at the truck to avoid any injury.  I then had some food and jogged 3 more miles to meet Brandi and finish her run with her.

I would rate this effort as very promising- especially on the cardio front.  The miles are coming easier and at lower heartrates.  The engine is ready to rip, but the structure still lags far behind.  As the buildup of intensity continues, I hope to solidify the shins and other tissues to allow the full cardio effort to happen.  Patience!

Scenic Weiser River- flow is picking up from big melting in the past 2 weeks.

Lower section of Canyon- smooth and fast.

B finishing up.

Cool green stuff.  Haven't seen anything green in a while.  Just white mostly. Skunk Cabbage?    I call this stuff the TP plant.

Sharly watches over Payette Lake.  Pretty much the same species as the Loch Ness Monster.  Bred for her skills in magic.   Hundreds of "documented" sightings.

Our marriage spot on the semi-frozen lake.  The Crestline looms above as the backbone of the IMTUF 100.

B stares down Ellie while cranking on the mill.

Weekly update: 4/1 to 4/7

78 Miles, 16K' gain.  3 strength sessions, 3 stretching/therapy sessions.  120 miles in the past 10 days.

Monster week of intensity flowing straight from my race last Friday.  Nearly every hill I climbed was uptempo and aggressive.  This is usually a key indicator for me- climbing hard and the shins allowing it.  A few pretty hot long runs, including a Rapid River run that must have been 75F.  Things are happening that I have waited all winter for.  It all seems to be driven by power.  Once the power is up, the legs seem to be more resilient.  Resiliency encourages 2 a days which mean volume is good and around and around we go.  20 days until Leona 50K.

8 years old, runnin' with a dime in my hand
To the bus stop to pick up a paper for my Old Man
Sat on his lap, big old Buick, Id steer as we rolled through town
Tassle my hair, say son take a good look around
This is your Hometown.  Your Hometown.

West Fork Rapid River above the McCrea Cabin.  Just missed a PR from last fall to the cabin...and I was not trying to run hard at all...very good sign.

SCOTT Trainer 2.  Why have I not ran in these yet?  Easily SCOTT's most comfortable shoe for my foot.  Lots of beef and plush upper encourages long runs.  Love the colorway.  9.5 oz.

Dreary hill repeats.  This quasi-private property hill has all the amenities I need- dirt, a quarter mile and 200' elevation change- for building power and nastiness.  Nothing hurts like running 2 minutes as hard as you can!  That is why I still remember my last 800m race in 7th grade as the hardest thing I've ever done.

Brundage...still packin'.

New Meadows from Last Chance Ridge (Forest Road 273).

New AK pack.  Like it a lot- and I don't care for packs.

Pickled Feet 6 hour Run

I am quite happy with my run last night, even if it was brief.  I was nervous about the shin acting up, so I taped heavily and took a few aspirin to dull it.  I wanted to warm up on the run without any hitch in my stride, which could cause more damage if I was limpy.  The aspirin worked to get me through the warm up pain-free...but I came to find out has some side effects.

Brandi and I drove down from McCall in the late morning, did a few errands in Boise and arrived at Eagle Island State Park.  We set up our camping tent and I set up the SCOTT tent as I would be doing rep work for the event, while I was not running.  We visited with friends and got ready to run.

I went out feeling great, a little too fast, as my watch was giving me bogus splits.  After 20 miles or so, I noticed the pace was slipping to about 6:50 and I had pain in my lower intestines.  A few speedy guys jumped in to pace me a bit with Ben Blessing doing one lap and Matt Tock giving me 3 good ones.  As darkness fell, the pace dipped again to 7:20 ish and I began to stumble and trip over the rocks and uneven grassy terrain.  It became clear that I would not be able to keep the pace up to hit 50+ miles in the dark.  I had tried to bank enough miles in the daylight, but darkness fell quickly and it took a good bite from my speed, even with a headlamp and hand light.  I hit the 10 lap/mile 25 mark in 2:50.  Matt joined me for one last lap and the pace just fell apart as my guts were tied in knots.

My belly felt great, energy was great from Vespa and VFuel, but something was bad in the lower GI tract.  I will spare you the details, but give you all a warning to be careful with aspirin.  When I finished the 11th lap and 27.5 miles at around 3:10, I "discovered" I had lost a significant amount of blood!  That was good enough for me.  I pulled the plug right there and felt glad to get a great run in and spare myself the damage of 3 more hours of running.  Brandi soldiered on a few more hours and bagged it at the 5 hour mark with 25 miles.  We had a great time getting some sun and running on some dirt.  It's going to be a long season, but this was a very promising start for both of us.  I am walking around fine and planning a recovery workout for tonight and a good run tomorrow.

Life is good.

SCOTT stuff!

B at the start.

1 lap down.  

Around in circles...

Testing the waters today with a different kind of ultra than I am accustomed to.  The "Pickled Feet" 6/12/24 hour and 100 Mile race will start today.  I will see if I can last 6 hours of 2.5 mile scenic dirt loops along the Boise River.  Brandi and I will run from 6 pm to midnight.  I am approaching this as nothing more than a long, fast workout and some fun.  If anything acts up, I'm dropping.  You hear that self...dropping!  I've had some tendonitis-y feelings in the left shin of late- the same that I've had every March since I started running.  Not too bad this time, but definitely cause for concern.  It only happens in winter and is gone when it warms up- Juneish.  Not sure what it is, but I have thought about it for thousands of hours, picking my brain for answers.  I welcome any and all advice and comments as to what this "condition" is and how it may be handled.  It could help me to put this in writing and get a different take on the "problem."

Here are a few leading theories:

1. I run too fast, too often?  Nope...I kept all that in check this winter.

2. Too much volume?  Nope...it has come whether I run 20 miles per week and cross train, or more miles, like during this winter.

3. Cold related- tissues are too cold?  Nope...I bundled up every single run this winter.  Wore compression sleeves a ton this winter.

4. Hard and consistent surfaces?  There are no trails for me to run while everything is buried under snow.  I run the TMill, roads, etc to do what I can.  I manage this the best I can, but I feel it is a factor.

5. Vitamin D deficiency?  My tissues seem to degrade by winters end from getting basically no sun at all
for 5-6 months, then I get inflammations throughout my body- headaches, shin splints, hip pain, etc. I supplement 3x daily and eat a diet high in D, but it is just not the same as a mountain run without a shirt on.  I have read that a long run with good sun exposure can create 10x the Vitamin D than the USRDA level.  Dr. Phil Maffetone says Vitamin D is like steroids.  When the sun comes out, I can feel my strength grow daily.  Last year, that did not happen until late June.  This year, I am hoping this comes along a little sooner.
This is one of the many hardships of living in the high country for me.  When the sun comes out, I have been bulletproof from July until December.

6. Arthritis in my genome?  About 15 years ago, I got iritis in my right eye.  This is a terrible inflammation of the iris (colored part) of the eye.  It lasted over 1 month and required specialists and steroids to cure it.  I was worried I would lose the eye.  It looked like it was going to fall out.  Part of my treatment was testing me for an arthritis gene that makes me prone to inflammations.  Sure enough, I had it.  My closest relatives on my mother's side have suffered from arthritis and pain all their lives.  My joints are fine, so it is not true arthritis in my case (arthro=joint, -itis=inflammation), but I feel this has something to do with my pains.  I can feel it coming on and it is accompanied by headaches- one of the key reasons I quit running when I was 12.  I just could not stomach another headache.  Once the tissues get inflamed, it is weeks before I can kick it.  I feel as if I have missed a good 2/3 of the training I am capable of because of these issues- mostly the shin splints.  Everything I have accomplished in running has been on a less than 40 miles per week average.

7. Biomechanics?  Probably.  I need help here and I know it.  I have studied and tried to apply what I've learned, but I feel there are still strength differences causing my injuries in my shins.  I know from my shoe wear patterns that I supinate- meaning I strike on the outside of my foot and fail to pronate adequately- or roll onto the medial side of my foot and push off the big toe.  This causes a few things to happen.  My peroneal tendons and muscles (up the lateral side of lower leg) are punished and the medial shin muscles (posterior tibialis) works hard to pull that supination over, but winds up shearing the connections of that muscle from the shin bone.  Occasionally, the anterior tibial muscle will act up- the one that lifts the foot toward my face- from trying to take on jobs it is not built for, once the other muscles fail.  The entire left lower leg falls into chaos and I have to take time off.

8.  Not enough physical therapy (PT), stretching, rolling out?  Impossible. I do this stuff 10 times as much as I run.  Maybe I do it too much and cause tissue aggrevation?

9. Wrong shoes?  I've tried them all.  My shins are crap when it's cold and hard as steel during mountain running season.

10. Diet?  I have experimented with this with great attention to what seems to help or hurt.  I eat super clean- mostly wild game meat and vegetables.  I had the same troubles when I ate whatever I wanted- no better no, worse.

11. A blessing?  Maybe.  All this forces me to rest during much of the winter and cross train with things that balance me out.  This makes for a great summer, but causes all sorts of grief when I try to race in the early season.

Feel free to armchair MD this one.  Not sure it will help me this year, as Spring seems to be creeping up on the Mountains of Idaho and with it the trails begin to melt.  I know I have it pretty good, and this is a petty thing to concern myself with such grief.  However, figuring out this puzzle could unlock the next levels of my fitness and bring me closer to my dreams.

Cheers,
Jer

Challenger Track Club...fer life!  This was the Old Man's jersey.  I still have mine, less than half this size.

Cows...just a different kind.

Jug Mountain Ranch SNOWY 45K Fat tire bike race.

Manning the SCOTT booth with Julie and her Maker's Mark.

Brandi represents team "Shrink and Pink" 

Team Oompa Loompa climbs the Unimog to claim their last place, "Little Red Caboose" prize.  Jug Mountain Resort owner David Carey functions as human step.  Gravity Sports owner Michelle Reagan looks on in hideous Team Shrink and Pink garb reminiscent of Kentucky Derby wear.  Notice the Jug of beer in the bed.  Yep it was that kind of race.  We are really excited to host our McCall Trailrunning Classic 10/20/40 milers this year at JMR.  We love this place!

The victors!

Packing up.  A great day of volunteering for me and racing for B.  

VFuel

Use COUPON CODE "A-StayVertical" to get 20% off your Order!

I am excited to announce that I have signed on with VFuel to be my one and only source of energy gel! 

This was no easy nut to crack.  They are a small start-up and these guys get after it.  I had to track them down over a period of months, begging and pleading to get their attention and let them know I was not accepting "NO" as an answer.  I had a few run-ins with their product in 2012.  Josh Arthur gave me a few after the Cascade Crest 100 and in October, Eric Lee gave me a bag full at my IMTUF 100 race.  This was enough.  There was no going back.   I am still learning why it works so well.  Lots of sciencey stuff to devour.  A full review is forthcoming, with a give away contest.  

My VFuel Page

For now, I am sure of 3 things:

1.  Best taste.  No comparison.  Vanilla and Peach Cobbler are without equal.  As a gel eater/100 miler, this is #1 in my book.  No garbage gut in the world can consume 50 gels a day if they taste bad.  FACT!

2. The fat (MCT Oil) in the gel means I need to eat it less frequently.  

3. The consistency is perfect for mixing into water bottles or adding to gel flasks.  Drains easily and completely from a flask at -15F.  Try a Hammer Gel at -15F.  Like taffy.