My running progression is coming along good enough. I’m not completely happy with my results so far but I am in a lot better condition and position than I was at the beginning of my running career in January. Running has now become fun, which in the beginning it most definitely was not. My new found whole food plant based diet keeps me well fueled and ready to run at a drop of a hat, and my once painful 1 hour 6 minute 10 k, has now become an easy 50 minute 10k. I hope this time next year I will be able to be in the 40 minute mark.
Some problems I am having though is proper fuel for my longer runs, and considering I have a marathon in 5 days, this is something to worry about. I feel I start crashing after 15 k, and I usually have to stop 5 minutes, eat an energy bar, drink coconut water and then I can continue. Then When I get up at 20 k my body is completely depleted and I hit sometimes (not all the time) the provibial wall where my body simply can’t move. I’m guessing that I have to be better at eating at every 30 minute intervals, which is something I haven’t been very good at.
So my strategy and goal for the Stockholm marathon is to run in 4 hours 30 minutes. My strategy to do this is to run at a cool but easy pace and eat at every station regardless of my hunger or lack there of. I’m not too concerned about my endurance, just my fuel. Keeping my body well fed I think will be the key for me.
On a side note, a combination of my diet change and my running I have now lost around 20 pounds of fat and body fat down to around 21%. Still high, but I’m not trying to diet, I am making lifestyle changes that I plan to keep throughout my life time. I don’t really care about the get fit quick, though I do think that with a little more discipline around sugar and fats, that I should be able to move my progress considerably faster. I don’t really have any goal in site, just to be at optimal running weight which I believe is about 77 kilos for me and 12% body fat. This should lower the pressure on my back, shoulders and knees. Right now I am somewhere between 86-88 kilos depending on the day…
My plans for after the Stockholm marathon include a couple of half marathons and if I’m feeling courageous perhaps another marathon before the year is done. As I’ve said before, I am literally starting from scratch so my goals are more for building a base and a love for running, than going all out and risking burning myself out. But as with all things I need to compete inorder to stay interested, I need the competition in order to get myself out the door everyday. At-least this is how I feel right now.
