Passion, Weights and 2014

If you follow the sunrise/sunset calendar, then you know today the sunsets in Denver start to happen later and later. The sun sets today at 4:35. We spend the next few days at 4:35, and then on Saturday the sun sets at 4:36. Hooray! Our sunrises start to happen later in mid-January. So, while we're now at the point of later sunsets, we're not quite at the point of longer days. Soon enough!

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Several weeks have passed since my last post. It’s funny (to me, at least) that at various times I just don’t have much to say on this blog. Then there are other times when I’m posting updates a few times a week, or when I’m fired up as with the recent brouhaha over Leadville. I’ve found the same thing to be true with my use of other social media vehicles, particularly Facebook. Sometimes I think Facebook is great (like on Sunday when I participated in a great discussion about the recent Hardrock lottery results), and then other times I think it’s a total waste of time. I think in this world too many people are sharing opinions at once. We need more quiet reflection. That said, I’m occasionally guilty of being a social media loudmouth and so I know I contribute to the noise at times, unlike JT and Woody who cut to the issue with far fewer words :-).

I’m maybe a bit overly passionate at times because I love the sport of ultrarunning. The late, great Jim Valvano once said every day you should laugh, think and have your emotions moved to tears. Whatever ultramarathon distance I’m running--from 50K to 100 miles--all three of those things (laughter, emotion and thought) happen—more than what would ordinarily happen in a road race. Ultrarunning invokes deep passions within me. I can’t be dispassionate about anything related to ultrarunning and/or Leadville because of my love for the act of running long distances.

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On the running front, I’ve been hard at work with my weight training and have been managing to run 60 miles a week, which for me is fairly low-effort. I gave up on CrossFit as I didn’t have time for it and I began to question whether it was a good idea for a long-distance runner to do those types of movements in rapid succession with the clock ticking. But I digress…. My weight training has evolved quite a bit since last year. This winter, my focus is on heavier weight and fewer reps. I always do my weights on Sunday afternoon, usually 5-6 hours after my long run. For me, Sundays are best as I usually take Mondays off to recover during the winter (during the spring and summer I run seven days a week). I don’t like to do weights on recovery days or the day before my long run (usually Sunday), and I infrequently have time to get to the weight room during the work week. So Sunday afternoon it is. My typical routine is:

• Short run to the weight room to warm up
• 4x6-8 leg extensions, working each leg individually and increasing weight with each set
• 4x6-8 leg curls
• Hip stuff – not sure what the name for what I do is, but it’s great—I have a belt around my ankle and move my leg out from my body (to the side), lifting weight in the process via a pully machine.
• 5x3-8 squats
• Short run back home 

In between sets, I do lots of different things, such as CrossFit-style push-ups, CrossFit-style sit-ups, back extensions and planks. I keep moving, though I have to admit I usually take it easy between squat sets. I love to end my workout with Samson stretches, which really work the hamstrings and hips.

Over the winter, I’m going to continue to take most Mondays off, so that I can recover from Sunday’s work. Tuesdays are usually pretty rough for me as I’m still a bit sore, but by Wednesday I’m a lot better. I’m definitely feeling the benefits of my weight training. On Sunday I squatted 175 pounds three times. That means I’m now squatting more than my body weight. I’d like to work up to 225 pounds by early spring, when I transition away from weights (though I do core work and push-ups throughout the racing season) and start to increase my running volume.

Weights may not work for all runners, but for me I really think they help prevent injuries. The good health I’ve enjoyed this year didn’t come by accident—I think weight training last winter paid off big time. I also think more running at MAF has helped.

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With the Western States lottery not going my way, my 2014 racing schedule is starting to take shape. I’ve already registered for the Mount Evans Ascent. I have two scenarios I’m considering:

Scenario 1

Spring half-marathon (not sure which one)

Colorado Marathon – go for new marathon PR

Mount Evans Ascent

Leadville Trail Marathon

Leadville 100

Scenario 2

Spring half-marathon (not sure which one)

Cheyenne Mountain 50K

Jemez 50-Mile

Mount Evans Ascent

Leadville Trail Marathon

Leadville 100

I’m also eying the San Juan Solstice 50-Mile, which would sub in for Jemez under scenario 2. Jemez and San Juan are both pretty hardcore, though I haven’t run the post-fire Jemez course. I last ran Jemez in 2011, when the course consisted of a series of gnarly climbs that are really beyond the pale in terms of steepness and technical stuff like downed trees, huge boulders, etc. Jemez , which takes place in Los Alamos, New Mexico, will make you cry—it is honestly the hardest course, mile for mile, I’ve ever run (check out Lucho's Jemez race report from 2010). I don’t know what the post-fire course is like, but hopefully it’s still gnarly. I’m sure San Juan will also make you cry, but the elevation involved in San Juan is going to be more Leadville-like. Plus, San Juan is in mid-June—perfect timing for Leadville training.

Decisions, decisions….