100 Up Challenge

Have you heard about the new movement?  It’s called the 100 Up.

It started with an article by Christopher McDougall author of Born to Run, in the New York Times earlier this month.  In it, he described an exercise called the 100 Up that is supposed to help you master the “ideal” running style, if one exists.  The exercise is simply a modified running in place movement.

You can see a demonstration of the 100 Up in this video.

Faster than Usain Bolt, news of this miraculous exercise shot through the running blogosphere and has now morphed into the 100 Up Challenge.  Try the exercise every day for a month and see what effect, if any, it has on your running.

Seems simple enough.

I’m in.

Will it live up to the hype?

Stay tuned.

Milestones

I know it’s weird to do a “year in review” update in March, but I just reached a significant milestone.

I believe in the value of setting goals. One year ago I ran my first 100 mile month and set the goal of maintaining that level of running for at least one full year. I achieved that goal this month.

Succeeding required running a total of 1,516 miles including:

• four 5k’s
• a 4 mile race on the beach
• a 15k
• two half marathons
• two marathons, and
• completing an ultramarathon training program (I’m currently tapering for the race on 4/9/11)

I suffered aches and pains along the way, but managed to complete the year without incurring any significant injuries.  I attribute this both to Chi Running and to the sage advice of some very patient, generous and accomplished runners.

I discovered that the benefits of an ice bath far outweigh a few minutes of discomfort and rediscovered the long lost, youthful pleasures hidden deep within a tall glass of chocolate milk.

I found serenity in a 20 mile long run.

Most importantly, I found a great group of new friends who share my passion for running. I know I couldn’t have achieved this without them.

Choosing a First Marathon

I actually agonized over this decision. I made lists and budgets. I spent hours staring at a calendar and reviewing my training programs. In the end the decision came down to three factors of fairly equal import.


Location/Budget: With unlimited resources I could include options like Hawaii or even the Great Wall of China. Fortunately (or unfortunately depending on how you look at it) a tight budget this year makes that kind of travel out of the question. A local race also has the advantage of being near family and friends whose support will no doubt be a great motivator to help me reach 26.2. Still, a race as significant as the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington DC, for example, was not out of the question.

Timing/Training: I started on a marathon training program immediately after finishing my first half in February. The problem is that my training is peaking now, in May, and there are not many options for Marathons during the summer. That means waiting until the fall. My task will be to maintain my fitness during a long hot summer and then step up the training mid to late summer in preparation for the race. Considering my excitement about achieving this goal, and considering my current level of training, the earlier the race the better.

Unique Nature of the Event: There are a lot of considerations here, destination races, local races, themed events, fundraising, and the size of the event.

In the end I narrowed it down to four choices, most of them local in consideration of a tight budget this year.

1. Marine Corps Marathon, 10/31/2010, Washington DC

2. Space Coast Marathon, 11/28/2010, Cocoa, Florida

3. Jacksonville Marathon, 12/19/2010, Jacksonville, Florida

4. Disney Marathon, 1/9/2011, Orlando, Florida.

The final decision was tough. The MCM was very tempting, and the earliest race, but I just don’t think I should be spending the money for a trip like that this year.

Disney was 2nd behind the MCM considering the unique character of race. It’s huge, over 20,000 runners, and you get to run through all of the theme parks. The wait until January would be agonizing though.

Jacksonville is close, and a little earlier than Disney, but still pretty far off. For me, it also lacked the uniqueness I wanted for my first race.

The winner: The Space Coast Marathon. It’s a small race but its right in my backyard and close to family and friends who I can count on to be there to cheer me on. It has a unique sci fi theme that includes a pre-race dinner at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex under a Saturn V Rocket. It is also run fairly early in the season.

Now that the decision is made it’s a matter of counting down the days and logging a lot of miles.

I can’t wait.

Look at me! I’m blogging. I’m somebody now!

I’m having one of my best running weeks ever, so I decided to start a blog today. I’m also going public about my plans to run my first marathon. There’s no backing out now.

Here is a brief synopsis of my running “career.” There was none for 39 years of my life. I spent most of my adult life with no athletic activity at all. I was a true couch potato. About four years ago I was inspired by a friend who told me she wanted to train for a marathon. I always admired endurance runners and had tried numerous times over the course of almost 40 years to become a runner myself, but I always failed.

I still can’t explain why this time was different. I did what I always did, ran as far as I could, usually less than ½ mile, and then hobbled home. After another very brief and embarrassing effort, I made the fateful decision to look up running programs online and stumbled across Cool Running’s Couch to 5k plan. The name says it all:

http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_3/181.shtml

Nine weeks later I was running 5 kilometers (3 miles) without stopping. It was euphoric.

I ran fairly frequently and consistently over the next two years, extending my longest run to nine miles and losing 50 pounds in the process. Then I suffered a set back and my running tapered off almost completely. I could give you 100 reasons why, but in the end they are all just excuses. Gradually, the weight started to come back.

Then, last fall I saw an interview with Christopher McDougal, the author of the book Born to Run. I was interested in his views on natural running styles and the story he had to tell of the Tarahumara Indians of Mexico. I found the book to be very inspirational and immediately followed that reading with Chi Running. Chi Running changed my entire perspective on running and I believe it is primarily responsible for the success I have had over the past six months. Using this running style I successfully trained for and completed my first half marathon and have nearly finished a marathon training program. I run more in one week now than I used to run in an entire month and I have virtually eliminated the runner’s ailments that plagued me in the past - like shin splints and knee pain. (knock wood!)

That was my past- now for the present.

I am having a great week. Saturday I completed my longest run to date – 17 miles. Tuesday I ran 5 miles, setting a new personal record of 48:23 and recorded my fastest mile ever 8:23. I followed that up with a strong 8 miles on Wednesday. This morning another 5, setting another PR at 48:18 and finished the final mile just seconds off the record mile pace I managed on Tuesday.

Here is a map of this morning’s run:

http://sportypal.com/Workouts/Details/311373?key=a8d0756fe5b05ebfa17f0c9e160fa24c33fc63c0&ms=1

I’m looking forward to an 18 miler this weekend, so stay tuned!