EHarmony's Date-a-Biker and a Biker's Awesome Response

Can't stop laughing!!

Click on the article to read all of it.

My Once Per Year Road Bike Experience

Varden, Desi, Irina, Josh, Alison, Phil, Becky and me

Late Saturday I received a text from the great Irina Wong, road biker, mountain biker and canyoneerer extraordinaire. She, her husband Josh and several others were going to bike the Alpine Loop. I considered my post half marathon state and opted in. We left at 7:00 AM in a group of 12. It was a great ride up to the top as conversation flowed, and we laughed a lot. The push from the mouth of Provo Canyon to Sundance Ski Resort is HC category climb with segments that are less steep at 2 and 3. Phil Graham, the rider straddling his bike in the picture, is an animal. He and I led the climb for a while. Phil was breathing easily while I was pulling in as much air as fast as I could. I was about at my limit and he would sprint ahead or go back down to check on the rest of the group.

These are such good people. As much as I would rather not road ride, being in their company is always great and made my once/year experience worth it. Other than the great company, the views were spectacular. There are not many better mountains than Tmpanogos.

Timp Trail Marathon and Half Report

Trail conditions were perfect. It had rained lightly the night before and some that morning making the trail soft and grippy with no mud. The weather was also perfect. it was cool with full cloud cover and occasional misty rain. The marathoners took off as a group at 6:00. They encountered the Green Monster about an hour and a half later. This thing is a beast. I ran it, better said, I power hiked it several weeks ago as part of my training. It begins at mile 12 and ends at mile 16. Brutal! Two runners tied for first and set a new course record with a 3:30 finish. Given the terrain and the elevation gain, this is a great time.

I had trained for the full marathon, but opted for the half in order to optimize for a strong finish in the Utah Valley Marathon on June 14th. The half marathon started at 8:00. I would guess there were 70 of us. My training was good, the day was perfect and everything aligned for a strong finish. I was hoping to beat 2:30. I had run the same course a week prior as part of an 18 mile run and had finished the course in 2:50. My friend John Aznar asked where I planned to make up the 20 minutes. I told him I would not talk to a guy on the trail for ten minutes as I had done and that I thought with rest, I could drop another 10.

I felt good the entire way. It is a steep course with 2400 feet of elevation gain. I learned a lot on the run. I followed one guy who was careful to cut to the inside of every turn to minimize the total distance. The guy, call him Bob for now, had clearly done several of these runs. I suppose all of the cutting to the inside of the turns adds up by the end of the run.

I learned that sometimes you are better off walking really steep stuff. It is all about energy conservation. I got passed on a hill by two guys on a steep section. By the time I got to the top, seconds after they did, they were doubled over, heaving and I was able to start running again. I never saw them for the rest of the race.

Maybe the biggest lesson is that it is really hard to pass people on a narrow trail while running down hill. I was slowed by two groups that I could only pass when the single track turned into double track. I can descend fast and lost some time on the two largest descents.

Finally, I learned that placement is a big deal for some people. I saw Bob, bobbing along near the end of the race ahead of me. I was pushing pretty hard at the time and passed Bob in the last fifty feet. I crossed the finish line seconds ahead of him. As I was standing in line to get my shirt and a bowl of chili, Bob tapped me on the shoulder and asked my age. He was relieved that we were not in the same category because I would have bumped him in the rankings.

I crossed at 2:23 according to my GPS. I am delighted with the result and look forward to more races this summer, in the fall, and, well, forever.

Well, it happens

I was feeling confident and fast on Saturday morning. I was one week out from a trail half marathon and decided to run the course and add on the distance from my house to the start line. That added about 5.5 miles for a total of about 18.5 with a  lot of elevation gain and on fairly familiar trails. I had just come out of a sustained climb and had started to pick up speed when I stepped too close to the side of the narrow trail, missed seeing a camouflaged root, tripped and in milliseconds was sprawled out over the trail with cuts, abrasions, embedded pebbles, slivers and a lot of pain. Being a mountain biker, this was all familiar. I waited for about 30 seconds, assessed the damage, got back up and started to run again. One mile later, I went down again and further scraped my right knee. This kind of injury is child's play by comparison to many I have had and really did not slow me down except for the minute it took me to get running again.

That is going to happen on trails. Every running condition is a trade-off. I have concluded that trail running dividends far outweigh the occasional costs of a boo boo once in a while.

I also learned that I make the best energy bar available. I will include that recipe in a later post.

As a side note, I will be shooting for a 2:30 half marathon on Saturday. The terrain is occasionally steep and very rocky. I will report back.

Downhill Improvement!

A short departure from my series on weight loss success stories...

Jonathan and I set out to break some records today on an after work ride. It is so great to be this close to some great trails. We came close to #1 Strava rankings. When he is serious about it, he wears his DH helmet.

Jonathan wearing a DH helmet for high speed today

My Strava shows that I currently hold second place out of 61 people for one of the DH segments. 

My Strava results for today's downhill segment

Not sure how long it will last, but I will take it for a minute at least. 

Jonathan was second out of 285 in one segment. On the same segment, I was 16th. He was third in another segment and had some chain ring problems. I was 16th in the same segment. He is so fast; he will be first by next week. 

There are times when I will have biked with Jonathan only for weeks at a time. I sometimes get discouraged by how fast he is downhill and how relatively slow I am. It is good to get more feedback sometimes. I will be doing a post on what he does to be so fast. He is a purist and a technician about it.

Ann's Story -- Her Weight Loss Journey

Ann's story is the second of at least a three part series profiling success stories. I am so happy to have met Ann and grateful that she took time to tell her story. Ann is a friend of a friend and now a friend. Ha!

Ann's Story

D:  Let's start with how you put on weight in the first place. Were you thin as a teenager?

A: Growing up I was always naturally strong. I played volleyball and stayed active but never really worked out. I tried cross country one summer and hated it. My senior year I strained my back and then a car accident left me with a lower torn disc. I knew I wasn’t a skinny girl but I assumed that I could stay where I was and nothing would change, right? College was busy and I gained about 10 lbs, not bad. When I was cleared to start being active again, I never really picked up any sports or workout habits. 

D:  Ten pounds is not bad at all. Was the gain slow and gradual or was there an event?

A: In 2004 things started to change. I was now married and we were expecting our first child. The pregnancy was going great till 24 weeks when I went into preterm labor. Weeks of bed rest resulted in a

healthy baby girl but I was now just less than 200 lbs. naturally some of that baby weight came off but not much. Our second child came one month after moving to the Midwest, far from family, to start grad school. This pregnancy had done better with less bed rest but I didn’t work out at all during the pregnancy. In our new city I found a group of girls that also liked to play volleyball. We would meet each Tuesday to play, and occasionally we would have a couple’s night. This is where I started to feel like I could be active again. I dreamed of extreme weight loss, but let’s be realistic, an hour of church volleyball and chatting doesn’t lead to weight loss, but it is a great stress reducer!

When my son was 8 months old I decided to finish my bachelor’s degree. I remember thinking that this would also be a good time to work on losing some weight because I would be out of the home. I could plan better meals, walk a lot on campus and omit all the extra snacking. Well, my intentions were good, but things never really got established. I tried the “Eat to Live” diet and went from 195-183 in a few weeks, but as soon as I stopped the program the weight came right back. It was so frustrating. 

D: It sounds frustrating, but that is pretty typical. It seems that unless there is a life change, diets may have immediate results, but they rarely lead to lasting change.

A: Frustrations come in lots of different forms, I haven’t mentioned it yet but I have two absolutely gorgeous sisters, and one is my twin. They both look amazing after each and every pregnancy. My perspective of them over the years has changed, but at this time I felt like I was the girl that drew the short stick. I was constantly comparing myself to them. Always shopping, spending money to try and find that perfect outfit that would make me look smaller whenever we would travel home to visit family. I had a false perspective of them and a false perspective of myself. Neither helped. Comparing myself to them only made me more miserable…and then I would eat more…a vicious cycle difficult to break. 

D: Wow, a lot of people will resonate with that.

A: Just after graduation we were excited to find out that a long desired baby number three would be joining our family. I continued to play volleyball weekly, but it still only remained a stress reducer. My husband was in the process of preparing to present his preliminary defense and we were making a move from an apartment into a rental home. It was a bit stressful. I talk about stress a lot; with each of my pregnancies I’ve dealt with post-partum depression. Thankfully after my first I was able to find the medical help I needed to keep it under control, but I have a history of depression, something most people don’t know about me, because I try hard to keep that part of me in control. This means keeping up an appearance of being happy and helpful to others all the time despite however I may truly be feeling…it is exhausting. 

D: I am astounded at how highly weight gain and depression positively correlate. What was your weight at this point?

A: My weight kept going up and when we had our second daughter I was 220. Frustrated, I asked my husband to purchase a treadmill so that I could start working out. He was so supportive and the purchase was made. I signed up for my very first 5K and started training.

Mid training I tore my shoulder in a volleyball game, so physical therapy started, but as my arm got weaker they realized that surgery was necessary. Two weeks after that race my shoulder was surgically fixed but it came with a setback. No workouts for 2-4 months. I felt defeated. I finally was making some good choices and building up my activity levels and now I couldn’t do anything. Holding my five month old baby was difficult, caring for the other two one-handed wasn’t easy either. We accepted a summer internship and it was there that we found out that we were pregnant with baby number four -- a complete surprise! How was all this supposed to work? I was still over 210 and I never saw my husband. I took it one day at a time and stayed very busy to help manage everything. Thirteen piano students, one daughter now in school, one son in preschool, a husband preparing his final defense and I was keeping the fort down. I snacked all the time. I told myself at first that it was to help with the nausea of the first trimester. In truth it was a comfort, a crutch, something to make me feel better. Well it worked, I didn’t go crazy, but it didn’t help the scale either. 

D: Taking it 'one day at a time' is good advice. I can't imagine how difficult and frustrating that must have been. When did your weight peak?

A: Two months after I delivered my 2nd son I weighed 255 lbs. For the most part I was happy. I avoided mirrors and photos and tried to make up for it in other areas. This lead to some hobbies and talents that I truly enjoy now, but they didn’t fix the root problem. My son came three days after my husband’s final defense. We packed up the house, made a trip to visit family and then moved to another new city to start his career. 

It's fun to have to give away bog clothes!

D:  What turned things around for you?

A: While waiting to close on our home, we rented a two bedroom apartment with no air conditioning, a tiny kitchen and on an upper level. I found that my previous struggles with depression were starting to come back and I wasn’t ready to deal with those again, so I decided it was time to make some permanent changes. Running wasn’t that bad the last time I tried it, so a friend and I decided to train for another 5K. We had five months so we started the “Couch to 5K” program. I also met some ladies at this time who attended the same church as me. They are beautiful and athletic and they run half marathons. I remember being so impressed. My twin is a runner and I’ve always admired her ability to maintain this activity as a mother, so I started making plans. I signed up for a six mile trail run called the “Frosty Trails” in January of 2013. I told myself if I felt good after that I would consider running a half marathon too. Several other friends included me in their training plan and we prepared for the KY Derby half marathon for April. I trained hard and met some amazing friends who I continue to run with today. I finished my first half in 02:26:00 and I was so proud of myself. My family came with me to support me on the race, they were there at the start line, then at mile four, then mile 12 and then at the finish line. My husband has continued to make it possible for me to race. 

The running pictures were one year and 50 pounds apart!

D:  Having a supportive family seems to be common with success stories. Did you do any other events?

A: I ran two other half marathons and a 6 mile race in 2013. Now in 2014 this last April I repeated my first ½ marathon setting a PR of 2:17:00. A year and a half of running and being aware of what I eat has helped me lose 77 lbs. I have a goal to lose a total of 100 lbs and I’m getting there! I now run 10-20 miles a week and heavy lift daily. A YMCA membership has helped me spend more time building more muscle because their gym is amazing. I am surrounded by women of all ages, mothers, grad students, single women all working out because they too want to be stronger and healthier. No one is there training for a body building competition or racing around the track to show off a 6 minute mile. No one compares, no one judges, everyone just encourages each other. 

Ann with an old pair of shorts

D: What advice would you give to someone in a similar situation as the one you were in after your last baby? What did you do to deal with certain setbacks and difficulties?

A: Depression: There is nothing wrong with asking for help to manage depression. For me it centered around my hormones changing and pregnancy. What a blessing to have a doctor that knew how to readjust things so that I could be happy. 

High expectations and Comparing myself to others: I had to learn to like myself and my body. I’m not like my sisters and that’s okay. We all have something that we would like to change about ourselves. 

Stress: I needed to find a new way to deal with it. Eating wasn’t the best option that fit with the fitness and weight loss goals that I was trying to achieve. I had to be honest with myself and stop making excuses. I figured out what my stressors were and then looked for healthy ways to manage them rather than turning to food. 

Diet: I try now to take good supplements and watch the calories that I eat. I track with My Fitness Pal and use a heart rate monitor to follow my calories burned while working out. I’m trying to eat more fruits and veggies and make more foods from scratch. 

Ann recruiting her daughter into running

D: I am a big advocate of My Fitness Pal. What else has worked for you?

A: Things that work great for me: Find a buddy (or two) who can workout with you or help trade kids. Sign up for an event; this motivates me to train for something. Plus that wall of medals and photos is really motivational!! If you have a cheat day or meal that’s okay. Just don’t let it turn into a week-long episode. Pick yourself up remind yourself of your goals and keep on going. Find a balance with the other things in your life. I rely strongly on a balance between a few big things. Spirituality, Physical Performance, Education, Emotion, and Family. I have found that I need to be doing something in each of these areas to help me feel well rounded. So daily I try to focus on something small that meets each category. My family is a huge part of my life and with little kids, I want them to know that I am never putting other things before them. If I have a workout planned I try to make sure they have a fun activity to do or they can work out with me. Meal time as a family isn’t negotiable. We eat together no matter what, and at the dinner table, where everything else for 30 minutes is put aside. Is losing weight and running easy? No but neither is life. I love this challenge and I love the results that I see from the hard work.

Ann and a running buddy at the KY Derby half

D: Thank you, Ann. Your story is inspiring. Please keep me posted on further progress. We would love to do an update as a blog post as you hit goals and milestones.

From Obesity to Fitness -- The Journey for Three Women

At a recent athletic event for one of my children, I sat by a couple who had not seen me since December. I am down almost 40 pounds since January 5th and it is showing in my face and neck. Kelly asked how much I had lost and what I had been doing. I told her that I was putting in a lot of miles each week running, I was regularly mountain biking and was using My Fitness Pal to carefully watch my intake. Her response was, "Oh, why is it so easy for men to lose weight and so hard for women?" I could have let it go, but responded, "Maybe you think running 40 miles per week, biking and me depriving myself of one of my favorite passions, food, for months at a time is easy." She was embarrassed and nodded in acknowledgement. There was no friendship lost. She is one of the best people I know, and we have spoken since as though nothing was said earlier.

The point is that it may be easier for me or men in general to lose weight, but it is a bad assumption to assume that any individual situation is easy (or hard, or anything). We can only speak in generalities.

The success stories seem to have desire, discipline and pain tolerance at their core. Failure occurs when one is missing. Fortunately, all three can be improved.

Here I profile three women with similar stories on successive posts and make some observations. I will begin with Heather Dittenber. Heather showed up in my facebook news feed as a participant in a run. Though impressive, one of the best features of the photos below is not her weight drop, but her facial expression in successive years. The difference between the first three and the last three is stark.

Heather's Story

Pictures of Heather running the Fifth Third River Bank Run in successive years

I friended her on facebook, got her permission to do a write-up and asked her some questions.

D:  What made you decide to get fit?

H:  It was a combination of things. It started with my sister-in-law talking me into doing the 5th 3rd 5k. We wanted to do one that was huge I started running and exercising and joined the YMCA after that but never really changed eating habits. I got sick of always trying to stay out of pictures when my hubby would take pictures of our children. I hated buying clothes from the big girl catalog and hated sitting in the bench at the park while the kids played. I wanted to play with them.

D: What was your weight loss journey like?

H: I am 5'6" and my top weight was 298. My lowest was 173. I have a lot of that weight is extra skin and a lot of muscle. I met a trainer at the YMCA, and they were having a 'Choose to Lose' competition so I joined his team. In the 10 week program I lost 61 lbs . In that program I met a woman who was very into fitness she got me in to weights but I wasn't as strict with my diet so It took me a total of 10 months to lose 100lbs.

Side Note: I'm not sure if you are aware of the latest, big weight loss story, but Shape Magazine has decided to run with a story and photos of Brooke Bingham which show her excess belly skin after weight loss. The reality is that skin loses elasticity over time, and only surgery can remove it to any significant degree. When Heather talks about excess skin, it comes as a consequence of weight loss, unless you lose weight in your teens and even then there is excess skin. You can see Brooke's photos HERE.

 D: That is impressive! What other things do you do besides run and lift weights?

H: I like boxing but not great at it. I have a friend who has a boxing class at the Y and I love that. Other than that, no. I don't have tons of time with 2 younger kids and a husband and not willing to sacrifice running or lifting for much of anything

D:  Another blogger mentioned that your husband is very supportive. 

H:  I have a super supportive husband who will buy me all kinds of spices to change things up and he always has my food prepared when I get home from the gym. He has even started running and loving the gym. When the kids complain, he would always say.. 'mommy going to gym gives her more years with us. Please don't make her feel guilty.' He is my greatest fan. He has literally loved me through 'thick and thin.'

D:  Were you thin in High School?

H:  I was thin in High School

D:  How did you get heavy in the first place? Was pregnancy a part of it? 

H: I wish I could blame it on that. I became depressed around 22yrs old, and got put in anit-depressants. I put 60lbs on in 3 months and just continued to try different meds until one day I decided I wasn't taking this crap medicine any more, and I was going to fight it! I got out of the depression med free but still hung onto to weight. And I love food. I always say...unlike alcoholics who can choose to stay away from their addiction, food addicts have to eat to live.

D: What advice would you give someone starting out on their own fitness/weight loss journey?

H: Find something you love to do, and make meals ahead of time. Being prepared is very important! Drink water! We are made mostly of water if we don't give our body water it will hold onto what it has. Find a partner with like minded goals.

Heather is also an impressive weight lifter. She dead lifts 225, no grips. Her max squat is also 225. Her max bench is 165, and she leg presses 440.

Heather is open, kind and delightful. Her story is inspirational.

Maybe My Best Smoothie

This one may be the healthiest, best tasting smoothie I have ever made:

2 Cups frozen mango chunks
2 t Spirulina powder
1 T Chia seeds
1 Banana
2 t Honey
1 Cup leaf spinach

A Healthy Appetite is A Weight Loss Asset

As I finished a run earlier this week, a friend who is suffering from back and leg pain, partially due to excess weight, was finishing a walk. He asked me for some weight loss tips as he had seen my drop in weight over the last few months. I had not really thought of it until I started explaining to him what My Fitness Pal does for me, but my big appetite and food cravings were actually instrumental in my weight loss. Here is how it works,

My Fitness Pal status after breakfast and a workout

I really love food. I have set My Fitness Pal to allow me a calorie reduction that will result in a 1.5 pound per week weight loss. The way My Fitness Pal calculates my calorie allotment for the day is by taking what would be my normal calorie burn if I did no exercise and reducing that amount by 750 calories. 750 calories times 7 days results in a 5250 calorie deficit for the week which is equivalent to 1.5 lbs. 

The problem is that the 1680 calories allotted in a day with no exercise is just not enough to keep me from being hungry most of the day. The only alternative I have is to work out, and the harder I work out, the more I can eat later in the day. I mentioned on my weight loss page that although workouts do increase our appetite, they only do so at about a 70% rate. Meaning, that if you burn 1000 calories in a workout, you are only hungrier by 700 calories. The 300 calories left over are pure magic for me. 

My appetite got me out of bed this morning on what could have been a rest day. I have gone out running for the last three mornings including doing speed work on Wednesday. I could have easily and justifiably rested, but I got out of bed, went to spin class for an hour and burned 634 calories. 

The other powerful result of calorie restriction and a big appetite is that junk food has lost its bliss. All I have to do is read a label like this one and yuck!

150 calories and 90 of those from fat is not satisfying. Here are some alternatives with high nutrient density:

Banana 105 Calories

Apple 65 Calories

Pear 102 Calories

Tomato 22 Calories

Broccoli 50 Calories

For a long time, I thought my appetite was the enemy of my weight loss. Not any more. 

Is The Clydesdale/Athena Category Bogus?

The Clydesdale/Athena classifications for running, biking and triathlon events are 200 for men and 150 for women. This is an actual argument with a friend.

Me: Wow, you should see the Clydesdale results for the Utah Valley Marathon last year.

Friend: What were the times?

Me:

No Clydesdale ran it over 3:36. I would really like to know the actual weight of these guys.

Friend: There will be a result over 3:36 when you run it.

Me: Ouch, but true.

Friend: I think it is a bogus classification. I mean, so what, you weigh more than other runners.

Me: What about sex categories. Should those be done away with as well.

Friend: No. That is different.

Me: I don't see how. 

Friend: You can't change your sex, but you can change your weight. 

Me: What about age classifications? 

Friend: Same as sex. 

Me: You are suggesting that if you are 6'6" tall with an average build that you can ever get your weight as low as someone who is 5'8" with an average build?

Friend: No

Me: Then you are limited in how much you can change your weight and for more reasons than your height. Look at all of the elite runners. None of them are heavy. There is an advantage to running at a lower weight. I think there should be a classification for that. You are at a greater running burden than Meb at a higher weight, just like you are if you are female or significantly older. 

Friend: And what about non-Kenyan? Should we have a classification for that? And what about body types and people with chronic health issues or anatomical challenges? Should we have classifications for all of those? Why not make it perfect and have a classification for every person.

Me: Well, they kind of do. Everyone gets a shirt and a medal. But Clydesdale/Athena is a classification I would keep, maybe 'cause I am one, but I think that it normally encourages heavier people to participate, and that is a good thing.

Friend: Until they see the results you showed me. Those are intimidating. Your normal Clydesdale running his first marathon will look pretty bad by comparison. 

When I got into mountain bike racing eight years ago, I thought I was pretty fast. I had the choice of signing up as a beginner or a Clydesdale. I opted for Clydesdale, thinking I would show those fatties a thing or two. I got to the starting line of the Cholla Challenge, part of the Intermountain Cup and looked at the other seven riders in my division. There was not a fatty to be found among them. I was the heaviest one there by far weighing 240 at the time. The other guys weighed about 210, had monster quads, about 10% body fat and I did not see three of them for the rest of the race within a minute of the starting gun. I took a lowly fifth out of eight and was humbled. I fared better on my next race at Soldier Hollow when I competed as a beginner. I came in 15th out of about 50 in my age group.

My friend's point is well taken. If you have a bunch of sand baggers, guys who weigh 205 with 6% body fat and huge aerobic engines, the classification is bogus. I still think that because weight is at least as big a factor as age and sex in determining outcomes of aerobic events, there ought to be weight classifications in aerobic events like there are in boxing or MMA, just not quite as many. It encourages participation, and that is good. 

For myself, I don't really care if there is a weight classification for me or not. I am less motivated competitive results than I ever have been. 

Please leave your thoughts on whether or not you think there ought to be weight classifications and what they should be.

Food Tip -- Which Wich

Which Wich is great. I found a sandwich that is muy bueno. Here is a picture of my order:

The rye bread option has sent this sandwich over the top. Give it a try!

The Evil Alphabet -- The Letter 'L'

If I were to assign an evil training thing to each letter of the alphabet, I would start like this:

A -- Atrophy
B -- Bursitis or Bunyan callous or Bonk
C -- Colitis
D -- Dehydration
E --

You get the idea. When I get to 'L,' there is a clear favorite. LACTIC ACID, and I am feeling it today!

I ran 20 to get ready for a few events coming up and decided to push it a bit. I started at the top of South Fork in Provo Canyon, ran seven miles to Nunn's Park on pavement, changed shoes and run up the trails to do about 13 of the Timp Trail marathon. My splits during the road run were good for me. In fact, I PR'd my 5k and 10k, got second in my 20k and half marathon. It is probably not a good idea to PR when you are supposed to be doing long miles. I think I remember Hal Higdon saying something about that. My splits for the first six were,

1. 8:43
2. 8:57
3. 7:48
4. 8:07
5. 9:42
6. 9:03

Back of the napkin calculation puts that at about an 8:40 pace or so which gets me to an under four hour marathon which would be great. 

It was the last 14 that put a hurt on me. I got home, took an ice bath and tried to replenish the 4000 + calories I burned. On that, I was craving pureed black beans with a little salsa and sour cream mixed in on a corn tortilla with some chunks of rotisserie chicken. Great post run fare. 

Yesterday I was having a hard time moving at all. Standing up from sitting in a church meeting for over an hour was torture. It is a little better today after going on a couple of walks yesterday. 

So what is the rule on training when lactic acid has not been flushed? I asked Brian Beckstead who just completed the Ultra Trail Mount Fuji, a 105 mile ultra race. Talk about lactic acid, right? Brian said, "if you are so sore you can't move without significant pain, don't train. If you are sore and stiff, go on an easy run on a fairly flat trail for a few miles. It will help flush the bad stuff."

So there you have it. I will do a short, easy run today and cross train tomorrow (mountain bike). This week will be a taper week, and next week will be another big miles week. 

Ultra Runner Profile -- Zac Marion

Zac is a 28 year old pre-med student who currently works as the customer service and events coordinator for Altra; he is an ultra runner. I interviewed Zac and learned a ton about ultra running, faith, spirit, zen running, nutrition, weight loss and dedication. I present the paraphrased interview below.

Zac in his Altra office for our interview

D: How did you get into ultra running?

Z: I played football in high school and got a scholarship to play for the University of Utah at defensive end. I was fast, but needed to put on weight to compete at the D1 level. The university put me on a weight training regimen that caused my muscle strength and size compared to my frame, especially my pelvis, to stress my back, and I herniated two discs. It was the best thing that could have happened because it was then that I decided to serve an LDS mission. 

D: And where did you serve?

Z: Guatemala City South. I loved it, and I could not trade that experience for anything. When I got home, I married almost right away. I was heavy and out of shape. I weighed 230 pounds. In 2009 I started running a mile long, out and back route in my neighborhood all the while believing that running was punishment. Football had conditioned me to go hard in everything physical, so I did. A friend told me that I should try a novice triathlon, so I signed up. I took second in my division and did well on the run. Before long I hit the magic four.

D: I'm not familiar with that.

Z: The Magic Four is when you can run four miles comfortably after about four to six months of training. Running became a ritual. I was running about six miles per day, five days per week. 

D: What was your next organized event?

Z: A friend invited me to do Ragnar. I loved it. Two weeks later, I did a half marathon. I ran it in 1:32 and took first in my division. My next event was the St. George Marathon in 2011 that I ran in 3:17. 

Zac running in Southern Utah

D: What was your body weight at the time? 

Z: I had lost 85 pounds in one year. I like my race weight to be about 145 and my training weight to be 155.

D: My own weight loss has caused some people to be concerned, especially family members. The word anorexia has even come up and I am at 220. I can't imagine what people were saying about you. 

Z: Yes. Some family members were worried and asked my wife if I was sick or something. 

D: When did you do your first ultra?

Z: My first ultra was in 2012 at a 50K in Southern Utah called Red Mountain. I was working at Salt Lake Running Company at the time and got invited down to run it. I took third overall. The course was part pavement and part trails. The trails were so fun, I forgot it was a race. It was almost a spiritual experience for me. I got hooked on trails. Altra Embassador, Craig Lloyd passed me up to take second. After the race, we became good friends. 

Zac with friend Craig Lloyd

D: Have you done any hundred milers?

Z: I did Leadville 100. During 100 mile races, every emotion you could ever feel is compressed into one race. You test yourself in ways that can't be duplicated in other races. You feel elation, despair, faith, hope, sorrow, everything in a 24 to 36 hour period. You want to quit. You want to take a short nap for a while. You want to sit by a campfire for a while. There is every temptation to stop and rest. If there were ever a parallel to 'endure the the end,' it is most adequately captured in a 100 mile race. You must have faith in your training and you have to keep pushing through. 

Zac at Leadville. He's not dead yet.

D: You seem to me to be a purist. Of all the guys working here, Brian, Golden, Seth and everyone else, who is most purist about running?

Z: I am. Running is very spiritual for me. When I run, the only electronic anything I take with me is an altimeter watch. There is no music playing or anything else. Prayer is a big part of it. I am constantly thanking God for his creations and allowing me to be a part of them. I express gratitude for my body that allows me to enjoy the surroundings as much as I do. When I run I go out for hours and not miles. 

D: How competitive are you compared to Seth, Brian and Golden?

Z: I am probably the least competitive of the four of us. If I have a goal of a sub three hour marathon, and I could easily come in at 2:45, if there is a person that I can help reach their goal of coming in under three hours and I can help them through it, I will slow down, help them, and maybe come in with them at 2:58 or 2:59. I get more satisfaction out of helping people than I do out of a PR.

D: Is anyone faster than Seth?

Z: No. No one is. He is competitive, but he is not elitist about it. If he gets beat at the line by someone to take second, he is the first to congratulate them, and it is sincere. 

D: So you work with some pretty great people.

Z: Yes. I can't imagine working with better people.

D: Tell me about your Altra connection.

Z: I left New Balance to be with Altra. 

D: Have you ever tried to go back to some other shoe, any shoe?

Z: I have tried and nothing compares. Altra has nailed it. I love the lone peaks. I like the Olympus' for recovery runs because they are softer, but they keep me from feeling the trail.

D: That's funny. I like my Olympus' precisely because my mind can be other places than to worry about every rock and root and how I am going to finesse each obstacle. It is pretty much grip and rip. 

Z: That's true. That is what they are built for.

D: Talk to me about nutrition.

Z: My pre-race is horrible. It may include a burger, fries and a shake. I love shakes and have one several times a week. If I do eat a burger and fries, I balance it out with a lot of healthy stuff. You have to figure out what works for you and go with it. During a run I will eat one gel every two hours and 10 ounces of water. During a race, I do a gel every half hour and something solid every 50 miles. V-Fuel really works for me. Pop Tarts do too, but I try to avoid them because of all the bad stuff in them. The other things that really works is Justin's chocolate hazelnut packets. They really sit well with me and they have some fat. During a race or in hot weather, I take a salt tablet every hour or so. Generally I eat leafy green stuff and stuff from the ground up. Appetite has a lot to do with the amount of nutrients you consume. If there is a nutrient deficiency, your body will go into hunger mode until it gets its nutrient requirements. What you ate last is also important. It is the first thing your body goes to when it gets hungry. 

Zac at Antelope Island

D: What are your top tips for people starting out?

Z: Be consistent in training. Even on a horrible day, go out and run one or two miles. Start slow. Have fun. Find your motivation and remind yourself of it. 

D: What is your gauge as to whether you decide to rest or run through an injury?

Z: If it is annoying pain that does not affect my gait, I run through it. If it does affect my gait, I get it fixed.

D: What is your favorite trail?

Z: BSTF to Black Mountain. I also love Hope Pass. 

Zac at Hope Pass

D: Could you summarize your running philosophy?

Z: Yes. Run Well - Do Glad. Make people happy.

Note: Zac exemplifies his motto. If you see him at an event or on the trail, make sure you say hello.