Chafing

Owwww... although there is a lot of stuff you can do to help prevent chafing (like apply body glide, vaseline, or baby powder to "chafe-prone" areas), inevitably you miss something. So, then what? First, wash the area with soap and cold water and apply some type of anti-bacterial ointment. Covering the affected area with a band-aid or gauze can also help protect it, and wearing loose-fitting clothing also helps. Some people also recommend using diaper rash ointment.

What doesn't kill you makes you stronger

Hills.

Some people hate them to a lesser degree than others, but I'm not sure I've ever met anyone who likes running up them. However, I have also never met someone who was a good hill runner, but not a good runner, so there must be something to it. Turns out, there is, but many of us don't correctly incorporate hills into our training. In order to fix this, we must first understand what hill running does for us as runners. Similar to how you add more weight when lifting to get stronger (assuming you lift weights... haha), running up a hill increases the force requirements for a given workout (compared to running on level ground). You have to pick your legs up higher, which increases range of motion, leading to a longer stride. Running up hills also necessitates quicker turn-over, the neuromuscular adaptions of which carry over into running on flatter ground.

Similar to interval workouts, not all hill workouts are created equal. In order to work on endurance and strength, run longer hill repeats at a less steep grade to work on recruiting slow and intermediate muscle fibers. To build speed, choose shorter, steeper hills to work on building fast twitch fibers. There are some example hill workouts on page 2 of the article. Also, it's important to note that your legs take more of a beating on hill workouts (compared to interval / tempo workouts on level ground), so you might need more time to recover.

2/4-5 Race Reports

Lots of racing this weekend! Sean set a new PR at the Goldsboro Heart & Sole Half Marathon, placing 7th overall and 1st in his age group (half marathon results). James decided to take "5k Marathon" racing to heart, and logged a 6.5-7-mile "5k" (5k results). He was 2nd overall at this distance, although his time did not beat Rita and Nick's 5-mile + dozen donuts performance (KKC results). Speaking of the Krispy Kreme Challenge, despite managing to be one of the first few down to Krispy Kreme, Nick hadn't practiced inhaling donuts, although his time was still impressive. Rita, a veteran KKC participant (although not exactly a veteran donut eater), managed to place in the top-10 females. And, John "Iron Man" Garrity can now add successfully completing the Krispy Kreme Challenge to his long list of accomplishments, as he too finished in under an hour. And last... but certainly not least... from the forests of central NC, Brad finished 18th and BD finished 64th in the Uwharrie Mountain Run 40-miler (40-mile, 20-mile, 8-mile results).

CONGRATS... CONGRATS... CONGRATS... WAHOOO!   

Games

As in games to play on a long run... or easy run... or long van rides:

• Alphabet Game: pick a category (TV shows, bands, etc.), and start naming items from A-Z (double points for 2 consecutive words that start with the same letter... like Big Bang Theory)
• 20 Questions
• With Game: pick a category containing the word with/without (cereals with marshmallows), and see how many items you can name in it 
• Favorites: pick a category and name your favorite thing
• If You Could: finish the sentence 
• I Hate: finish the sentence (with something that most people like but you can't stand)

When I was younger, I played a variety of the alphabet game on long car rides (and now on long runs when I have to run alone) - spot something that begins with the letter A and work your way to Z (in alphabetical order... my sister and I cheated for weird letters... the word just had to contain it).

Weekend Outlook

Ahhh, yes... it's that time of year again... when thousands of people descend upon Krispy Kreme, inhale a dozen donuts, and then muddle their way back with glazed over eyes. The lucky ones cross the finish line before the sugar high wears off, while the less-than-fortunate ones see their donuts for a second time. Yup, the Krispy Kreme Challenge is this Saturday at 8:30AM. For those with weaker stomachs, the Heart and Soul Half Marathon & 5k and Uwharrie Mountain Run (8-, 20-, and 40-miles) are also on Saturday. 

Eat This Now - Donuts

Yes, the Krispy Kreme Challenge is this weekend, so I figured I would post an "eat this now" segment on the topic. Apparently, donuts are not a bad option for runners, especially those who are looking to fuel on a budget. According to this donut connoisseur, the key is moderation and only eating the best donuts (local bakeries use lower calorie oils that also have less trans fat compared to chains and prepackaged options). There are some "health benefits" too... like donuts can make you more famine resistant (which would help on long runs) and more buoyant (which makes you faster in the water). Donuts are also considered to be comfort food, and eating them relieves stress and makes you feel good (at least according to this article, which also contains a complete history of donuts). And, finally, this blog post just made me laugh.

Rrrrrrrrest Day?

No... don't make me...  can I at least swim? Maybe, but some times a complete day off might be an order. What criteria should you use to make this call?

1. You magically weigh 2+ % less than the previous day and/or your urine is dark yellow, both of which are signs of dehydration.
2. You're resting heart rate is elevated and/or your blood oxygen levels have dipped (below 95%). Both of these are also signs that you might be getting sick.
3. You've slept like crap more days than not for the past week.
4. You have no energy and/or are in an unusually bad mood (which may be the result of 3).
5. You've had a string of bad workouts.
6. You're nursing an injury and/or are trading a bunch of nagging injuries on a day to day basis.

The original Runner's World article had split these up into 10 things (I grouped some together because I felt they were the same problem), and came up with a scoring system for deciding if you should call it a day or not (0-1: go for it; 2-4: scale back the intensity of the workout; 5-6: start easy, and if you don't feel right, call it a day; 7+: rest). However, as I only have 6 things (and maybe really only 5.5 if you consider having no energy and being cranky the result of not sleeping), this obviously won't work. Plus, I think some things are more "severe" than others. So, here's my revised scoring system:

• Being dehydrated is pretty significant... so x2 if you are.
• Elevated heart rate and low blood oxygen will make paces seem more difficult, so a high intensity workout will suck, but you can still do something... so x1.5 for this.
• Sleeping, while important, can be overcome temporarily with caffeine... x1.
• Sometimes I feel more energized and in a better mood after I work out... although either of these things make getting out the door tough... so x1 again (note: if you're energy levels have been low for a while, consider getting a blood test, as there may be something bigger wrong).
• A string of bad workouts probably indicates that you are not recovered... so x1.5 for this one.
• Being injured and/or trading injuries for any length of time is not a good idea, and you should pay attention... so x2 to prevent more than one day off.

This puts me at a total of 9 points, so I'd like to propose another +1 rule (that I usually take into consideration) so you can use the 10-point scoring system:

• You have a race that you really care about that is close-ish (<15 days away), you've been training hard for a bit and you're just not feeling right (getting sick, nagging injury, etc.).