Seven reasons why I will finish my first 100 miler

Well, technically it should be eight reasons with the first one being that I really enjoy running. Since it is to be expected that this pure in the moment joy will be greatly diminished  during the course of a 100 mile footrace, I want to focus on the seven additional reasons that will keep me going when all I really want to do is stop. All but two of my races to date went somewhat smootly. Both of my rougher experiences came at the 50 mile distance. One was due to a combination of mostly heat related factors such as chafing, stomach distress and overall fatigue and tightness. The other time I was just hosting a pity party for myself for no particular reason other than the fact that I didn't feel like running another 1 1/2 loops of the four loop 50 mile course just to prove that I can finish it. Although I did finish all of my races to date, I didn't always deal with adversity too well mentally. One might argue that picking an eight loop 100 mile course (the Lumberjack Endurance run in Port Gamble, Washington on April 8th) was not a smart idea with my dislike for looped courses, but then again ultrarunning is about overcoming adversity right?

So here are the seven reasons why I will finish the race and dare I say have fun doing it:

1. I will remind myself to be in the moment at the first sight of self pity and loathing. "Steady breath, shoulders relaxed, get out out of your head, notice your surroundings, smooth out your stride".

2. Speaking about smooth strides. The closest I ever came to having a mantra is: "Easy, light, smooth, fast" ... I adopted that one from Caballo Blanco of Born to Run fame.
The whole paragraph goes something like this:
“Think Easy, Light, Smooth, and Fast. You start with easy, because if that’s all you get, that’s not so bad. Then work on light. Make it effortless, like you don’t give a shit how high the hill is or how far you’ve got to go. When you’ve practiced that so long that you forget you’re practicing, you work on making it smooooooth. You won’t have to worry about the last one – you get those three, and you’ll be fast.”

3. I have been a fan of the sport of ultrarunning for a number of years now. The 100 mile race distance is made out to be this mythical beast of self discovery. I am finally ready to find that out for myself. A quote that very closely corresponds to this idea comes from William James who to the best of my knowledge was not an ultrarunner, but rather a 19th century American philosopher.

"Beyond the very extreme of fatigue and distress, we may find amounts of ease and power we never dreamed ourselves to own; sources of strength never taxed at all because we never push through the obstruction."

Wouldn't that be something?

4. More self talk. It will go something like this: "If I quit now it's back to the drawing board. It will take a lot of time and dedication to get back to being this close to finishing a 100 miler in the future. I did everything right to get myself to the startline healthy and fit enough to have a realistic chance at finishing the race and supposedly if you're not feeling like heck at one point or another during a 100 mile race, you're not doing it right."

5. I will also remind myself that I owe it to my family to take advantage of this opportunity. They supported me along the way and put up with this crazy hobby of mine. Plus, they granted me the time to come down here and run myself a race. I should honour their generosity by doing my absolute best.

6. I owe it to anyone who is injured and would love to be in my shoes if they could. I have a few running friends who have been sidelined by long injuries. I should honour them too by doing my absolute best.

7. I want that danged 100 mile finisher's belt buckle. Societal pressure is real. I'll likely never mount it on a belt, but that's not the point ... or is it?

Keep an eye out for my next post on this blog "x reasons why I did / didn't finish my first 100 mile foot race".

Actually. I'll finish. I'm strong. I got this. See what I'm doing here?

Here's the actual post: Lumberjack 100 miler race report

Happy Trails,

Marc

Lessons from a Year of Running: Resisting FOMO, redefining FKT's

A few of my 2015 races kind of got away from me. In hindsight I would say I probably did too many of them too close together or at least my expectations were too high in too many of them. Looking back on my year in running, I had the most fun while just relaxing and being out for fun or to catch up with friends. Exploratory runs in the back country while trying to bag a peak or explore a new to me area rank equally high. There were occasions in the past where just relaxing and having low expectations actually produced excellent race results, but for some reason I was not able to reproduce that this year. I am mixing up two things here though. Running is fun or at least it should be and for me personally it is - most of the time. Setting goals and working towards accomplishing them can also be fun. Mostly because it is satisfying to achieve a goal that seemed out of reach and inch ever closer to ones' full potential as a runner. There are other times though when training can seem like a chore, even though running is still fun if that makes sense. I guess the idea is to make training feel like play time and have the results take care of themselves.

Racing = Kinda fun ... sometimes (Photo credit: Elaine Fung)

I think part of why I was trying to do too much in the past was the fear of missing out or FOMO and the fact that racing is being hyped and talked about a lot. "What races are you planning to do next year?" "Who's going to run -enter name of event here- next year?" or other questions are very frequent and can lead even the most even-keeled runner to feel like they should get on board and commit to more events.

 I had a couple of ankle sprains this year and as of late I also had to take some time away from running due to injury. Having said that, when I get out on the trails lately, I am having the best time ever. I am really enjoying each and every outing immensely. I have no immediate goals, I am signed up for zero races and I hardly ever wear a watch let alone a GPS these days. I just go out to play and have fun with or without company. I can not remember a time when I enjoyed myself more while running and  that's saying a lot.

It is the season for race registrations and goal setting again though and I have spent a good deal of time mapping out events that I am interested in for 2016 and beyond. A few of those races have opened their registration already. I am just not ready to jeopardize my carefree adventures in the forest by committing to a race.

Exploring: Usually lots of fun (Photo credit: Carlie Smith)

I will judge my year 2016 in running by how many smiles it brings to my face rather than by how many finish lines I cross. I will let the results come to me or not. I will have some great adventures and miss out on others without fretting. I am also going to borrow a term from my friend Andy and aim for setting as many Funnest Known Times (rather than Fastest Known Times) on the adventures I embark on as possible. I will race and I will have goals again soon. I just don't want them to own me along with my training and my mindset. I'm gonna own them this time. I will resist the urge to run a new longer distance this year, because if I am being honest with myself, I don't want to. Sometimes I am simply feeling like I should do certain things since it is a natural progression for many ultra runners. What it all comes down to is really that I will do what I want (which includes finding balance between adventures and family life) and not get sucked into things that I think I should be doing. It sounds shockingly simple, but at least for me, oftentimes it isn't.

Have fun. Run free.

Marc

The Price of Admission

Besides a couple of minor scars that I accumulated through childhood and adolescence, I managed to make it to the 4th decade of my life relatively unscathed. Since then though I seem to be making a habit of periodically breaking a bone or spraining an ankle. I hear that most accidents happen at home or work, but I have not yet managed to bang myself up significantly in either place. Play however, is a different story. I am afraid that this development goes hand in hand with me leading a more active lifestyle than I used to.

My mishaps themselves have not been the result of reckless behaviour however. I broke my clavicle when going over my handle bar while biking at approximately walking speed. I broke my hand when slipping on the downhill portion of a wet run and wrapping my fingers around my hand held bottle. Most recently I broke my pinkie while running an interval on a high school track. I tripped over a protruding piece of a football sled after stubbing my toe on it. The ankle twisting business just happens at random points during runs and the mishaps often seem to go in spurts. On the plus side, I never injured myself in a race or missed one, because of being sidelined.

There have been times when my typing was slightly more efficient

It has been suggested to me on numerous occasions to play it safe and modify my running, biking and exploring ways. My response is usually this: To me the injuries are the price of admission to the lifestyle that keeps me happy, balanced and sane. Although I'd be more than happy to gain access at a discounted rate for that matter. So as I am typing this with a surgically repaired pinkie wrapped in too many bandages, I am happily resting up and mapping out new adventures for 2016 and beyond.

Stay healthy everybody.

Digging deep in the face of mediocrity

As part of revisiting my Gorge Waterfall 50 k race experience I had to concede that my mental fortitude -or lack thereof- might have been the biggest limiting factor to finishing stronger.

It seems to be easier for me to prepare physically for a race than it is to prepare mentally. I usually ask myself on race morning: "How much are you prepared to hurt and suffer today?" I think it is a good question to ask and it prepares you for the fact that there will inevitably be some discomfort involved while trying to race to the best of your abilities. Even if you are mentally prepared though some discomfort will sneak up on you during a race. How do you manage not to be dominated by the pain and exertion though? I suppose you also need to answer the question: "Why should I make myself hurt in the first place?" There are two types of physical discomfort during a race. One is the kind of pain that you are trying to avoid as much as possible such as blisters, bruises, chafing and such. Then there is self-inflicted pain which comes from pushing your limits and racing hard.

Having a time goal can be a good motivator, but this is somewhat tricky to establish a realistic finishing time on an unknown course especially if you are having issues early on in the race. I am not the kind of person to get super competitive with the racers around me either, if I don't know them that is. If I know them, the race is on.

Everybody loves stories about perseverance, but the vast majority of them seem to focus on contenders or champions even if they might be the underdog of the narrative. It's somewhat easy to imagine what drives athletes in these situations: Winning, earning prize money and qualifying for an event or competition among others. What about the rest of us though? The folks in the middle of the pack who punish themselves tremendously to finish 112th instead of 129th? What are we supposed to use for motivation? If you have ever volunteered as a course marshall or at an aid station in a race you might have also noticed that the slower the participants are the more fun they seem to have.

Even though my primary athletic pursuit is trail running, I am an avid reader of Bicycling Magazine. I remember now retired pro cycling veteran Jens Voigt writing about his relationship with pain and discomfort and claiming that he treats pain as his favourite enemy. He relishes the opportunity to get to know and control it better every time he encounters it. It's a great little article and you can just substitute "run" for "ride" as you see fit. The idea is the same. After re-reading the article I am wondering if I spend enough time getting acquainted with physical discomfort in training. Probably not. I am afraid I should though. It's the best thing I can think of in order to prepare for race day. On the plus side: It is generally accepted that training super hard all the time is not what you want to go for for best results as well as for staying injury free.  So luckily I don't have to face my newly crowned favourite enemy every day. Maybe a couple of times a week will suffice.

I re-discovered another article on pain and suffering which delves deeper into the science of things.  I enjoy the reference to former pro cyclist David Zabriskie's habit of adopting a superhero persona in his mind while competing in time trials (and quite successfully at that too). A good portion of the article deals with the thesis that a so called "central governor" in the brain is what determines how hard we can go. This governors' job is to tell us that we cannot possibly go any harder while preserving some reserves in order for us to not collapse on the spot. There are great reserves of strength and stamina to be found if we manage to override the impulse to back off that is sent out by the brain. If you feel motivated now to go out and run or ride yourself to pieces, don't blame it on me though please.

If you still haven't got enough of reading up on the subject, here are three more great articles on pain and perseverance from irunfar.com:

• Peak Performance and The Selfish Brain on irunfar.com
• Cramps and how to deal with them from irunfar.com
• Navigating the pain trail from irunfar.com Part 1/2
• Navigating the pain trail from irunfar.com Part 2/2

I especially like the concept put forth in one of the articles that our brain is like a board of directors which decides on the severity of a threat to our health and well-being and therefore lets us perceive the intensity of our pain signals accordingly.

After taking the time to look at the issue of digging deep, suffering and racing hard a little closer, these shall be my strategies to push myself hard and finish strong in future events:

Re-focus on form. This time I am not talking about the Caballo Blanco mantra of "Think easy, light, smooth, fast". That one works better for training rather than racing for me. Instead I will try to remember to tighten up my form when I start spending too much time in my own head or when I notice that I am getting sloppy.

Steady breathing, relaxed jaw and hands, arms pumping, cadence high, spine straight and long, shoulders back. Check, check, check and check.

As for developing an alter ego or super hero persona for races for myself, I think I will stick with trying to be the best version of myself. This might sound tacky, but I think it really touches on what will keep me going. There are a lot of people that are less fortunate than I am. They might be physically or mentally unable to pursue their passions. I am blessed to be able to run and live my life to the fullest for the time being and feel therefore obliged to not waste this opportunity. My mantra shall therefore be: Be the best you can be, always. This rule is great because it can be adapted to any situation. For example if you are racing hard and moving well, but you come across another athlete who is injured or in distress the logical consequence for me will always be to put my own ambitions on hold and and help out as needed. A good way to figure out what my best self would do is to ask myself how I would hope for my kids to react in the given situation. The idea is to try and see yourself from an onlookers perspective. This will usually help to make it easier to figure out how to act in a given situation.

The other day I happened to notice a runner on the seawall wearing a shirt that read: "Ride hard. Smile often." This reminded me of reading an article about the positive effect that smiling has on the brain. A lot more reading can be done on the subject. Go ahead and google it if you like, but it comes down to what is expressed in this quote by Thich Nhat Hanh:

"Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy."

Since my primary athletic pursuit is running my mantra shall henceforth be known to be:

Run hard. Smile often.

I will furthermore try to be aware that goals have to always be re-evaluated or adjusted. If the goal of finishing the race under a goal time fails the event doesn't have to be a write off all together. If that happens I shall not fret, but try to focus on finishing and having fun in the process instead.

Having devised this ingenious strategy I also have to say that racing to ones' full potential in terms of speed might not be for everyone and I respect anyone who emphasizes fun and camaraderie over pushing their limits. As for myself, I will test my boundaries for a little while longer and see how far I can take my fitness or how far my fitness can take me. I also see the need to plan adventure runs and other events and training runs that focus on connecting with fellow runners. As with everything else in life I am striving for the ever elusive balance.

See you out on the trails,

Marc

Guest Post: Conquering North Shore Trails - beginner's perspective

This is a post written by my wife Angie and her thoughts on running our beautiful North Shore trails. Enjoy the read:

It's always a bit intimidating to get out there into the great unknown. So many reasons not to go for that run, I've tried them all.

But my partner is a serious runner and he offered to take me, so sheepishly I put my shoes on. I've had those "pearly zooms" runners for about a year now, but they still look brand new. Well, I guess it's time to get them a little bit dirty. Oh yeah! It's so happening! No more excuses.

On a trail now and so far so good. I'm keeping up, even hopping over some logs. Hey, I'm running and it feels good! Then the first incline comes, hmm, start feeling my lungs, then the next one. I'm trying real hard, but I'm not moving much. Marc runs circles around me, finally  he starts hiking next to me, as I'm still "running"! That's when you know it's bad, BAD! So I get a little angry:

"You do your fast intervals," I order my significant other, I'm walking this hill...and the next one, and when the trail finally evens out, because it just has to, then I'm gonna break into my stealth mode shuffle: the stride so short and the feet so close to the ground, you'll never know if I'm moving at all!

Made it home somehow. Suffice to say, it was a humbling experience. In my mind I run much faster, and so the reality check was a bit unnerving. And demotivating. Big time.

But then a sunny day came. And a sunny crisp day during wintertime in Vancouver is a treasure. I knew I had to spend it well, and the only way to accomplish that, I felt it in my heart, was to hit any of our rain forest trails and let my feet take me where they may.

Decision time: I'm not a fan of disappearing into the woods alone. Didn't work out so great for Red Riding Hood, why should I push my luck? Oh, but I really wanted to do something brave, and my rain forest guide, aka the owner of this blog, aka my husband had to work that day, so I resolved to go it alone.

The plan: stick to the trails you know, listen to your body. Ten minute climb, some shuffling on an even terrain, then pummel down the hill all the way home and feel good about yourself. Probably won't last longer than 30 minutes, so no need for snacks or water. Will take my cell phone though...because you never know.

OK, on a trail now looking for a turnoff. I know there is another path veering off to the left, but can't find it. I keep going on thinking it's further ahead. Oh, but it's getting steeper. Ten minutes into the run and I'm walking already. And I also realize that I'm way past the turnoff, but I'm just too stubborn to come down. I know I've been on this trail before and I want to find out where it goes.

I get kicked out on a road, which I cross looking for a continuation of my trail on the other side. Hey, there's a sign: Trail Permanently Closed, Do Not Use. I'm sorry, but that's the only trail I can see, so I'm taking it. Doesn't look too bad at all, and after I climb over a big log, I'm all of a sudden on a trail I do know, and I realize that I already did my "big" climb. Hey! Not too shabby. A rush of confidence enters my bloodstream: I can do this, and it will be longer than half an hour!

Once my breathing slows down and I settle into some sort of a rhythm, I finally start enjoying myself. It's almost always like that. Those first 15 to 20 minutes of my runs are always devoted to this tug of war between me and my body:
Body: "What are you doing to me?"
Me: "I want you to run."
Body: "The pace is too fast and terrain is too steep, I'm not trained for that."
Me:"Just do it."
Body:"Sorry, no can do."
Me:"OK, fine, what can you do?"
Body:"Let me get some oxygen in and we can negotiate."
An unspecified period of laboured breathing and not much moving passes.
Me:"How about now?"
Body:"Sure, but next time, don't take this multivitamin on an empty stomach before you go out. I'm gonna make you burp this for the rest of your run."
Me: "Duly noted."

And finally I'm running and it's not just one big discomfort. I'm starting to feel the inklings of joy, and I grasp the potential for happiness that exists in this free, light movement through nature. And there is so much to look at as the sun illuminates the forest: the cedars. the firs, mosses, ferns, bubbling creeks, roots and rocks. Yet at the same time the images before my eyes are so unobtrusive, not demanding my engagement, that it's possible to let the mind wander, well, after some automatic eye to brain to feet communication is established first of course. I relax, it's so peaceful here.

Thirty minutes into the run I take a picture of myself at a trail sign: to prove that I have made it this far, but also to help my husband guide me home in case I get lost on the way back and need directions. I do make it home no problem though. I mean, I trip over a root and barely save myself from falling flat on my face, and once I hit the road close to home, I lose all the grip on the black ice and have to really slow it down to remain upright, but none of this matters. I make it home in one piece, and it's been an hour.

I do a few stretches, because I'm just that motivated, drink some water, and I'm really looking forward to that hot shower. But before even the first drops hit my face, I'm already as happy as can be. Why? Because I "braved" it out there on a crisp wintry day, and that feels mighty fine.

Inspiring the next Generation of Trail Runners ... maybe

My daughter is in 4th grade in elementary school. Her teacher stumbled across this blog and asked me if I would like to come to school and share my passion for trail running with the class and maybe take them out for a little dash through the forest. I happily agreed and then it dawned on me that I should probably be able to share some of the reasons why trail running is awesome and why the children should get into it. The more I thought about my presentation the more I came to realize that the children's reasons for running are vastly different from my own. I personally didn't get seriously into trail running until a few years ago.The kids don't look at running as exercise. It's part of their everyday play along with doing monkey bars, squatting, hiding, bushwhacking, scooting and biking. Too often our adult exercise is highly structured, scheduled and more often then not measured and analyzed. It's the exact opposite of what kids do. Once you take the playful nature of their pursuit out of the equation and turn the run or hike into a structured activity the child's motivation will usually flat line. That's the thing though. If done right trail running can induce the feeling of freedom and playfulness. In essence it should feel like recess. Trail running is my moving meditation at times or my exploration at other times. It's my time to be with myself and work through my everyday issues or just to find the perspective to let go of them. Sometimes it's my time to socialize with friends, explore the mountains or push myself in a competition.

While looking for ways to communicate these feelings I remembered this video featuring Adam Campbell and it really sums up everything I could possibly try to explain to the kids. So I decided to share it along with some personal pictures to hopefully motivate the children to give exercising in nature a second look.

The kids were awesome actually and they were very involved in sharing stories about their favourite places in nature and we found out together that humans are pretty well equipped to run long distances due to the fact that we can cool off by sweating and we have big butts (glutes) to power our strides while running, although these muscles are pretty useless for walking. I would like to tell you that I converted the whole class into nature lovers and explorers, but I am not sure if I managed to reach that lofty goal. That's just the thing with parenting. You never know what will inspire your children and what's essentially just a waste of your time and effort. In the end the best I think I can do is to just keep exposing them to the things I think are worth pursuing and hope some of it sticks with them.

Here are a few of the pictures I shared with the kids with the subtitles indicating the comments to go with them:

I run because I am not very good at other sports.

I will visit the classroom one more time to actually take the children for a run or hike. Maybe that'll inspire a few more of them to choose spending time in nature over spending time in front of the TV or with other electronics.

And if all of this doesn't get them on board maybe the fact that burping and snot rockets are perfectly acceptable during trail runs will. You just never know.

Running Free-ish

I just finished reading Running Free by Richard Askwith. The author references the ages of running repeatedly throughout the book. Essentially these ages are tied to your motivation to run or exercise. Are you in it to stay healthy, shrink your butt, become faster or to enjoy the sheer joy of running and the connection with nature (the one outside the door as well as human nature). As I was reading the book I had to ask myself what motivates me and I have to say it has to be a combination of the above mentioned factors. There are usually a couple of races a year that I really train for in earnest. I like to pick a target race in spring, because it keeps me honest and focused through the rainy and dark month when hibernating seems oh so tempting. These are the times when training principles like specificity (tailor your training to the demands of the event you are training for) or the 10% rule (don't increase your weekly mileage by more than 10% over the previous week) are somewhere in the back of my head. I might not have a written training schedule, but I do try to follow some cycles of progressively increasing mileage week over week with easier weeks roughly every four weeks. I also want to believe that I have a chance of bettering some of my past race results before focusing entirely on other sources of motivation.

Through much of the summer my focus shifts. Between work, the kids being home from school and holidays I am happy to keep some kind of weekly regimen going. Often times the majority of my workouts will consist of running or biking to and from work. Whenever I do have more than just the odd hour for playing outside I will try and bag some peaks or have some adventures. I love these activities as they motivate me to go out and explore places that I otherwise might not try to get to. These outings offer a welcome change from my regular running routine. The terrain usually requires me to hop, pull, bushwhack, scramble my way to my destination. Split times and pace are pretty useless indicators of performance on those occasions and more often than not I end up with my upper body being sore the next day rather than my legs. The change of scenery and general spirit of adventure of these outing help to keep things fresh and interesting. I am signed up for my third consecutive Frosty Mountain Ultramarathon this September and I intend to keep up that streak. For me it's a great indicator of what kind of fitness my random long run adventure summer routine has left me with.

Another big motivator for me is to meet and share the trails with like-minded people. Especially those long and wet workouts seem to go by a lot faster if you have someone to share them with.

Coming back to the book, the author seems to have the ability to find beauty and joy in each and any of his runs and rambles around his home regardless how grey, cold or wet the conditions. This is one of the things I aim to get better at myself. I'd like to tell you that my regular weekday runs involve gliding along in a meditative state while being totally present and alert to my surroundings. More often than not I start my workout -which I have been looking forward to- just to then be preoccupied with chores, blogging, my next workout or a million other things that pop into my head.

I really want to work on being more in the moment on and off the trail. How so? For starters I will ditch my GPS watch whenever I can (unless I am training of course). I will also incorporate some conscious breathing into my day (you can call it meditation if you like, but for now that's too big of a word for me). Whenever I notice my attention wandering to all the wrong places during a workout I will acknowledge the thought and try to let it go. Now that sounds relatively easy. I don't know if you ever tried though. It sure doesn't come easy to me. The best starting point I can think of is actively focusing on my surroundings rather than the incessant stream of thoughts in my head.

What motivates you and how do you manage to stay present or get in the flow as they say?

Now if you would excuse me, I shall attempt to bag a peak before going to work.
Have fun out there,

Marc

10 Reasons to love the Frosty Mountain Ultra

Everybody has their favourite event on the calendar each year and for me that is the  Frosty Mountain Ultra trail race, which has been  held in Manning Park BC since 2008. I will be going back for the 3rd consecutive year this September.

Here are the top ten reasons why I love the Frosty Mountain Ultra (and you can too):

1. Frosty is one of the most scenic courses you'll ever find anywhere with seemingly endless Mountain views. It's wonderful to be in a wild place like this.
2. The location is perfect for either driving in from Vancouver for the day or spending the whole weekend in beautiful Manning Park. The 8 am start time helps with that too.
3. The event has a great grass-root feel about it which I love. It's actually quite amazing how the race director Gottfried and a couple of dozen volunteers are able to pull off a quality event like this.
4. There is absolutely no cell reception in the area, so you will not be able to check your tweets, texts or Facebook as you make your way across the course or reach the finish. Nothing could be more relaxing.
5. My schedule allows me to do a lot of my training during school hours. It's tough for me however to do any kind of structured training in the lead up to the Frosty Mountain race due to the fact that my kids are off school throughout the summer. So there is very little pressure for me to do my best. I just show up and do the best I can with some run commuting, random long runs and peak bagging missions for preparation.
6. Making it to the finish before the veggie burgers run out is a good motivator (legend has it that this has happenend in the past).
7. Any race distance can be humbling, but there is also a realistic chance that you bump into somebody who just completed the Pacific Crest Trail which is a 4270 km trek from Mexico to British Columbia with the northern terminus close to the race start at 20 Minute Lake. Now that really takes self propelled long distance travel to the next level.
8. It's a "Goldilocks" course in terms of technicality. Not too easy, but no crazy ankle eating terrain either. Make no mistake though. There is lots of climbing and descending to be done.
9. It's a great value with the ultra distance costing $ 60 for the early bird registration.
10. There is a challenge for every ability level with a flat and fast 13 km, a one mountain 27 km option and a 50 km two mountain ultra distance.

Don't take my word for it. Check out the Frosty Mountain Ultra homepage and register for this awesome trail race.

See you in September in Manning Park.

Marc

The Workout You'll Love To Hate

I did quite well on my inaugural improvement of the month in May. I learned a lot about creating delicious smoothies in the process  and I have the recipes to prove it.

This month I set out to incorporate more strength and stretching exercises into my routine.
I vowed to strength train at least 2 times a week for a total of at least 90 min per week and stretch at least 3 times a week for a total of at least 60 min per week . I aim to implement this change permanently. So far I have managed to complete 2 strength and 3 stretch sessions per week, I am however not meeting my goal for the total weekly duration of the workouts. It's never easy to implement a new habit and make it stick, but I will keep working at it and maybe make myself a schedule to help me be more consistent.

I have however manged to design a little benchmark workout for myself and I would like to share it with you today. When I used to teach fitness classes a couple of years ago, many of the participants really hated a similar workout that I subjected them to once a month. Others loved to hate it. The reason for that is that it is quite hard, because it falls into the "get it done and get out" category.

So here is my little body weight pyramid workout that I designed:

Aim to complete the entire workout in the least amount of time possible without compromising form and execution of the exercises. Don't worry if you need to rest between exercises or even in the middle of a set at first. Push yourself, but respect where you are at. Remember: You are only competing with yourself. Note or remember which progressions of each exercise you are using and take down your times, so you can gauge your progress over time. As your fitness increases you might come to a point where you are unable to significantly better your time without compromising form and execution of the exercises. If that happens, pick harder progressions of the exercises where available.

• 10 Burpees   harder
• 20 Back Rows    easier: bend your legs   This exercise can be done on most playgrounds, with a sturdy stick between 2 chairs, on a sturdy railing or even using your dinner table
• 30 Push Ups   easier / harder
• 40 Side Bridge (20 on each side) easier / harder
• 50 Single Leg Split Squat (25 on each side)  easier / harder
• 50 Squats harder (forget about the flag - just do squat jumps and try to reach high with both hands)
• 40 Arm Reaches in Plank position (fully extend your arm above your head before returning to plank position - repeat 20 times with each hand) 
• 30 Close Grip Push Ups  easier / harder
• 20 Back Rows with underhand Grip   easier: bend your legs (Palms are facing up / you are pulling the bar towards your abdomen rather than your chest)
• 10 Burpees   harder

I always welcome new ideas for home or outdoor based core and strength workouts or stretching routines. What is your routine? What motivates you?

The Fine Print:

 I strongly recommend that you consult with your physician before beginning any exercise program.
You should be in good physical condition and be able to participate in the exercises described.
I am not a licensed medical care provider and have no expertise in diagnosing, examining, or treating medical conditions of any kind, or in determining the effect of any specific exercise on a medical condition.
You should understand that when participating in any exercise or exercise program, there is the possibility of physical injury. If you engage in this exercise or exercise program, you agree that you do so at your own risk, are voluntarily participating in these activities, assume all risk of injury to yourself, and agree to release and discharge me from any and all claims or causes of action, known or unknown, arising out of performing this exercise program.

In July I will aim to be an UltraVeggie activist.
I will take action by signing petitions, inquiring at companies and in stores about vegan friendly products and choices and generally promote a plant-based conscious lifestyle. I will take action a total of 31 times during July or on average once a day.

Ready, Set, Go!

Marc Schmitz

My plant powered journey into endurance - The top 5 things I have learned so far

Welcome to the new weekly UltraVeggie blog. If you just happened upon this page feel free to read up on what it's all about.

I had completed a handful of  road races in the past, but my adventure in long distance running began in earnest when I signed up for the Knee Knacker back in 2012. Here is the essence of what I learned during racing and training since then:

1. Keep your nutrition simple

There are a myriad of choices for performance nutrition out there. Many of these products taste overly sweet and artificial though and they also often contain a lot of additives and are basically high fructose corn syrup in disguise. I found that I do just as well if not better on simple plant products such as grapes, raisins, dried fruit and baby food pouches (or homemade pureed fruit or vegetables). On outings longer than 4 hours, such as peak bagging missions, I  will usually also pack a mix of raw nuts and dried fruit and maybe an apple, a banana and a wrap or a sandwich.

If you have more time and energy to invest into your endurance nutrition here are some more ideas:

Chia pudding, which contains dates and soaked cashews as a base and can be modified or amplified with blended fruit, berries, coconut water (instead of water) or even some coconut or MCT oil. There are plenty of recipes out there that can be modified to your liking. The one that I use is loosely based on Brendan Brazier's recipe from Whole Foods to Thrive.

Make your own fruit and nut bars with as much or as little liquid as you like to change the consistency.

My electrolyte drink usually contains:
1/3 water
1/3 coconut water (an excellent source of hydration and electrolytes)
1/3 apple or tart cherry juice
Electrolyte powder or lemon and lime juice and salt to taste

Overall I am trying to stick with all natural, easily digestible foods that provide me with quick energy for my endurance nutrition. At aid stations in races this means choosing fruit or potatoes and water to supplement your own food.

I was able to adhere to this strategy, during my last ultra, the 2014 Diez Vista 50k. I felt really good throughout the race and finished strong, which has traditionally not been my forté.

2. Don't leave your recovery up to chance

Since it is often tricky or even impossible to know beforehand what kind of food will be available at the finish line of a race (or even after a long workout), make sure you have some wholesome choices waiting for you to kick-start your recovery.

3. Don`t go it alone

One of the nice things about endurance sport is that it gives you a lot of freedom in terms of where or when you can practice, but training by yourself all the time can get boring and stale. Try joining a group or finding a few like minded friends to boost your motivation and enjoyment.

Easier said than done? A good place to start is your local running, bike or outdoor store. Check their message boards or website and talk to the staff. There are plenty of local clinics, group rides, runs or other outdoor activities.

In Canada MEC has extensive online event listings and so do Impact and Get Out There magazines. Many local races and events will also host free training sessions. Check what your local Rec Centre has to offer or search the web for Clubs in your area.

Joining Meet Up or Facebook groups can be another good option. Before you know it you will develop a network of workout buddies and friends to share your athletic journey with.

4. Make your post race shower a lot more pleasant by applying the personal lubricant of your choice liberally to all areas prone to chafing

Don't learn this one the hard way. Long, hot and / or rainy workouts can cause chafing in all the wrong places.

I am personally happy with good old Vaseline (although I would love an alternative from a local ethical small batch company), but there are plenty of pricier purpose-designed products available at your local running or bike store if you so desire.

I also noticed that many of my technical garments perform differently depending on conditions such as temperature, rain and humidity.

5. Race

Stay focused and motivated by challenging yourself with a specific event to train for every now and so often. You don't have to be fiercely competitive to sign up for a race. Whether it is a Gran Fondo, an orienteering challenge, a cyclocross race, a local 5k, an ultra, a triathlon or an adventure race. Every event has its unique vibe and meeting other active people and amazing volunteers who give their time to make everybody's day special never fails to make me happy. There also seems to be a special kind of supreme effort that your body reserves for the occasions when you pin on a bib. Compete or just finish, chances are you'll love it.