Mercedes Over? Now What?

"The thirst you feel in your throat and lungs will be gone minutes after the race is over. The pain in your legs within days, but the glory of your finish will last forever." - Unknown


Well, first of all, I want to congratulate all runners and walkers who did the Mercedes Marathon and Half Marathon yesterday. What a fantastic day we had. Just to think about running or walking miles and miles is enough to make most folks go lie down. I always say it's not doing the race that makes the marathoner, it's getting through the 5 months of training! When I first began running marathons in the late 70's (No, not the 1870's!) the recommended training period was 6 months if you ran but didn't have a solid base. Now, folks come out because you got a flyer in the mail, decide you would skip all that Base stuff, set a goal of a Half or Full Marathon out there and you hang in for 20 weeks. The next thing you know is that you have a medal around your neck. Finishing a marathon is something you can NEVER explain to anyone, and it's something that, no matter whatever you do from here on out, anyone can EVER take away from you. If you did this with The Bell Center, TNT, or any other charity, your rewards were even bigger. YOU are saving and changing lives. Through being a TNT Coach for so many years, I know the power of fund-raising and I know what you've been through to get there, but more importantly, I know what it means to children and adults you will never know. That's the best kind of giving, isn't it?

So, what do you do if you did Mercedes? After the soreness wears off - and you're sure it never will - you're all jacked up and despite whatever you said late in the race, you'll start thinking about your next race. Give yourself a break and enjoy what you've just done. Only one-tenth of 1% of the US population has ever finished a marathon - that's pretty select company. You'll start to feel better long before your muscles are ready to go through that again, and don't be surprised if you get a cold in the next week or so. I think that while you train, your immune system takes a tumble and some other forces are at work to ward off the evil germs, but then when you eventually complete your event, your body says "OK, are you through with that for a while? I'm not fighting Mother Nature for a little bit, so you're on your own!". You should take a few days off from running, but try to do some walking, biking, easy elliptical, etc. to keep the blood flowing to help the damaged muscles repair. Try not to take anti-inflammatories (Advil, Aleve) for a few days as inflammation is actually part of the healing process, so stick to Tylenol to control the soreness. Your first few runs will immediately remind you of how you felt at the end of the race, but that will pass. Your best bet for the next two weeks is to just do your taper in reverse. The danger lies in if you try to race too soon. Then you may be setting yourself for an injury. No racing for at least 3-4 weeks and then try to keep it short and/or easy. There are alot of 5K's in the area, so you might want to look at one towards the middle of March. Anyway, go easy on yourself as you recover - easy runs, stretch, ice sore muscles for the first couple of days and keep your medal close at all times so absolutely nobody you encounter misses the chance to see it! If you want to see a funny, very short video from the London Marathon about what runners look like the day after the marathon, go to here.

So, this volume of Training With Al has come to a close. I hope it's been of help to some of you training for Mercedes or your own marathon. Then in September, we'll blow the dust off these posts and recycle them to the next batch of Mercedes runners. To them, the posts will be new, and the rest of you new veterans will review slightly revamped episodes of Training With Al. If at any time you have any questions about training, don't hesitate to contact me.


If you have any ideas for this blog, have a comment about how next year it might be better, or anything else, just email me at trainingwithal@gmail.com

So, again congratulations and I'll see you when I see you on the roads - AL

Here We Go...It's Mercedes Showtime

              

So, here we go. It's Mercedes week and everybody's freaking out! Well, all I can say is just relax and just work on the things you can control. If this is your first marathon or half marathon, I thought I would just pass along some tips about this weekend.

When you go to the expo to pickup your number at Boutwell, be careful if there is free food out there. You don't want to be loading up on Metamucil samples the day before the race! Tasting is fine, but keep it to a minimum.

Do not confuse "carbo-loading" with "carbo-stuffing". Don't wait till Saturday night and try to stuff a pound of Rigatoni into your gut. During the week this week, you should try to eat some healthy carbs (pasta, rice, veggies, you know the routine), and don't force feed. You're going to be cutting down your miles run so the body will have no trouble storing the "extra" carbs for fuel. Be sure to drink often during the week. I try to be sure to have a bottle of water on my desk all the time AND during race week, I you might want to try to drink at least one energy drink a day (gatorade or powerade, NOT RED BULL!!).

On the day before the race, lay out all your race clothes, pin on your race number, and if we have a race chip this year, tie it on your shoe so you don't forget it. The chip might be part of your race bib, so then it's one less thing to screw up!

Arrive at Boutwell Auditorium early. You're going to be nervous enough - why add to it by getting to the start late? The race starts at 7AM and parking can be a little tricky if you get there late.

Right now (like that carries a lot of weight) it looks like it might be pretty cool (mid 20's). "Cold" at the start might become "pretty doggone warm" by mile 20. WEAR LESS THAN YOU THINK YOU NEED. Now go back and read that last sentence again! OK, one more time...I'll wait. Wearing a 55 gallon garbage bag waiting at the start may be your best running gear purchase (sorry, Val). It's waterproof, it's windproof, BUT IT IS NOT BREATHABLE, so don't run too far in it. You can just rip it off at the start and be sure to toss it on the sidewalk, NOT on the course where some slightly aging runner (me) might trip over it! Dress in layers, so you can shed some clothes if needed. If it's cold, use HotHands in your gloves. They'll stay toasty warm for several hours. Also, a trick I've been using on the trails this year is that if you carry a water bottle, fill it with warm water at the start instead of cold!

Be sure to position yourself at the start based on your pace. If you're walking, don't get in the front, because you'll get run over by some guy trying to win the race in the first 50 yards. There shoud be pacing signs at the start so you have an idea where to begin. I think there will be pace groups up to 5 hours (about 11:30/mile). Now, these are for the full marathon, but the course is a two loop course, so you can do the math for the half marathon.

Before the race, be sure to try to learn the course so you have an idea what's up ahead. There are some hills on this course, but this is Birmingham and we're only going to worry about the things we can control. Knowing your opponent (the course) is the first step in winning (finishing).

Thank all the volunteers and Police out there. They don't get big bucks to keep you safe and happy, and they're there for a long time. And if it's cold, they're not running to stay warm.

Try to have a great time, and remember, when you cross the finish line, they will be taking your picture, so smile, hands up, and for goodness sake, DON'T BE HITTING YOUR WATCH - it makes a lousy 1st marathon finishing photo!

If you have any concerns, email me at runningwithal@yahoo.com

Almost Showtime For Mercedes. ONE WEEK TO GO!!

"There will be days when you don't know if you can run a marathon. There will be a lifetime of knowing that you have"

Hi guys - Holy Crow! What a huge crowd we had down at Boutwell last week for our "on-the-course" training run. There had to be close to 150 folks there! A big thanks to Val from The Trak Shak for putting out all the water & Gu, opening up Boutwell, and having coffee and Do-nut holes at the finish (Man, they were good). And a big Thank You to the Cahaba Cyclists that accompanied us to prevent cars from running us over. They were great to have out there. With so many folks out then, and with the huge crowds I saw running the streets this weekend, I know this is going to be one fantastic Mercedes.

All of you training for the Mercedes Marathon or Half Marathon, pay attention. THE RACE IS A LITTLE OVER ONE WEEK AWAY!!! Now, if any of you are surprised by that, call me immediately...we need to talk! Now, about the next week! From here on out, I want you all to just relax and believe you can do this. Visualize the course EVERY day, EVERY night! Learn the turns, learn where the hills are, know where the aid stations are, know where to get gel...it's all on the Mercedes Marathon website. In other words, get the race in your head so you literally know what's coming all the time. You know how that drive to work in the morning just kind of goes by? Some mornings I wonder how I got to point B from point A, because I sure don't remember going by anything in between A & B (OK, I know there's nothing between A & B, but you get the idea). The running and walking will not exactly be automatic, but you are trained and your body won't let you down as long as you stay positive. Keep negative thoughts out of your head. Again, stay as relaxed as you can. It will take you a couple of miles to get comfortable, so take that time to just let your body unwind and the miles will click by. The middle will let you know that you are working your engines, and then in the final third of the run you may have to start digging down deep, but as they say (whoever "they" are), the marathon is easy until it gets hard!


As I have been preaching since about October - don't do anything in the race you haven't done in training!! How can I be clearer? How about don't do anything stupid!! Remember, don't overdress. You should feel a little chilly at the start, but protect your hands and your head if it's cold. This week, your runs should be short, but done at the same pace you have been doing your training runs. After this weekend's long run, I recommend 2-4 short sessions of 20-40 minutes...no more! On the morning of the race, be sure to get some calories in you before the race. It doesn't matter if it's liquid, solid, or something in between (a Denny's Gland Slam Breakfast is probably not a good idea - unless of course, you've been doing this in training). It's amazing to me how many folks try to do a marathon or half marathon on an empty stomach. I mean, c'mon people, you're going to be out there for hours and there's no smart reason to begin empty after a 12 hour fast!! For those of you with finicky stomachs, there is something out there that will help your energy supplies...Boost, toast & jelly, oatmeal, soft energy bar...SOMETHING! If you have any questions or concerns, NOW would be a good time to contact me. I'm here for you. This weekend, plan on wearing most of what you plan to wear on race day, and just for good measure try to eat before this weekend's run whatever you're planning to eat pre-run on race day. Better to upchuck this week someplace in Homewood instead of mile 3 at Mercedes next week!

Next week's TWA will be a little more specific about the expo, the night and the morning before the race and a few specifics about Mercedes itself. Be smart!


I'll see you all on the roads - AL

"One child lost is too many...one child saved can change the world"