Post Race Reflections

The morning after my race, I spent a little time on the Hammer Nutrition website. Hammer makes products for endurance athletes. In fact, the guy who set up camp next to us at the race used Perpetuem as his main source of calories at the race and he has completed Leadville several times. Aid stations at the SM100 were stocked with Hammer Gel, Heed, and Endurolytes. I knew about some of these products before the race but had really not embraced them as much as I probably should have. More on this a later.

I have a neat little iPod app that allows you to track caloric intake as well as how many calories are burned during exercise which it also tracks. Just about any food you eat can be entered in the app and it will tell you how many calories are in that food, including Hammer products. I entered in all the food that I ate before and during the race and also added in the 12 hours of mountain biking in the exercise part of the app. I came up with a 6000 calorie deficit. I should have consumed way more calories than I did. And honestly, I think that was my downfall.

Since the race, I have not really done much exercising. I think I had the post race blues or something. I did a couple of easy rides and one more intense but short ride. One thing I have decided is I am going to start figuring out my nutrition now. And I have decided that I am going to embrace the Hammer products fully and deeply. In fact, a coworker of mine had given me some Perpetuem to try out. So last Sunday, I mixed myself a bottle and went for a ride. Mostly I was just trying it out. I was not going out for more than 2 hours which is what Perpetuem is made for but I thought I would try it out to see how my stomach liked it.

I did pretty well with it and I think I will be able to learn to use this and even learn to love it. I have already found that the Hammer Gels are good and I have started to get used to the taste of Heed. Next I will try some Endurolytes which are electrolyte replacements in pill form. I am thinking that the combination of Perpetuem and Hammer Gel for calories and energy, Heed and good old fashion water for hydration, and Endurolytes for electrolyte replacement is going to be my winning combination of endurance foods. There are some Ironman athletes who swear by them. In case you did not know, the Ironman athlete trains and competes in a triathlon that consists of a 2.4 mile swim, usually in the ocean or at least some other open water, followed by a 112 mile road bike ride, followed by a 26.2 mile run which is a marathon. If Hammer is good enough for these guys, it is good enough for me. This fall and winter is going to be nutrition experimentation time. My plan is to have it all dialed in for the spring.

In addition to the riding and nutrition experimentation, I would also like to do some running to see how the old knees are holding up. There is a race at the end of the month that sounds really fun. It is an 8 miler that traverses the downtown Richmond trail system that I am very familiar with. It should be challenging but also very fun. With this race in mind, I went for a trail run Tuesday night after work with my friend Mario. Mario is on the MTT which is the Richmond Sportsbackers Marathon Training Team. He has been running a great deal. In face, MTT starts up in May or June and goes all the way up until the November Richmond Marathon.

Mario and I met up at the river and took off or an "easy run." Was it easy? Well, we did not go all that fast but we did end up with 7.5 miles of trail running which included the roots and rocks of Buttermilk and the up and downs of Forest Hill Park. We ran for about an hour and a half. Towards the end, my quads were starting to ache a bit but we finished strong. And now 2 days later, I am still paying for it. I had not run since May and then went out and did way too much. My quads hurt and it is difficult to go down the stairs. I knew this would happen but it is not the end of the world. I figure I will feel better by this weekend and will likely do some biking, hiking, or both. Then I can get back out there on the trails some more. Plus I plan to get to the track to do some speed work. I have also started doing my core workout again which is something I had let go by the wayside.

Also it is my plan to get a coach. I am going to start with a swim coach. Melissa has been going to a coached swim practice with a coach who won Ironman Canada in 2005. Melissa's swimming has improved a great deal and Melissa has really been enjoying it. So my plan is to start swimming and continue working out on my own and then at some point, perhaps look into getting a coach who can work with me on my goals. My main goal is to get in really great shape but also I know that I want to do the SM100 again next year but this time, I want to crush it! On the way to achieving that goal, I may try to do some triathlons. Although that would entail getting a road bike and I really could use a new mountain bike too. So for now, I will stick with just the swimming and see how that goes. If I take to the swimming, then I will consider some triathlons.

For now, I have to nurse my quads. After I post this, I am firing up the massager. I hope it helps. That's all for now!