I Pity the Fuel

Good form is critical.

But so are effort, recovery, hydration, and fueling. Finding the correct balance among all these factors is a constant challenge. Last night's hill workout reinforced this.

I am training with the Revolution Running group. I've only been with them about a month, but I feel like my running is much improved. Better still, I'm actually rather enjoying putting in the miles. I was feeling optimistic that I'd be able to run hard on Tuesday night's hill repeats, and was looking forward to the challenge.

After warmup, though, I was feeling a bit light-headed. Even though I had consumed a healthy snack before I had left the office, it felt like I might be a tad low on energy. My seat-of-the-pants calorie meter told me that I should be adequately fueled, but the fuzz in my brain and the spongy feeling my legs indicated otherwise.

I almost always carry some energy chews in my fanny pack. My default choice is Honey Stingers, but I had picked up a tube of Clif Shot Bloks as race swag at some point, so that's what I tore into last night. Between each of our post-warmup technique drills, I was gulping down a Blok or two.

The hill repeats would be up the Dinosaur Ridge hogback hill near Rooney Road and Alameda. It's been closed to auto traffic for quite a few years now, but the road remains in pretty good shape, and is well-used by cyclists and hikers. It's not the steepest hill around by any means, but the slope is enough to get your heart rate up in a hurry.



We started each repeat just above the barricade, and ran as far as we could during the time allotted. The workout consisted of 8 repeats total, alternating between a 75-second uphill sprint and a 90-second burst. Our rest was to walk (or slow jog) back down to the barricade after each climb.

Though I haven't been with RevRun all that long, I have begun to identify the runners who seem to be in my pace group. As we started the intervals, I kept an eye on those folks to gage my performance.

For the first 50 yards or so, it felt easy to keep up with them. But suddenly, my breathing became labored and my legs ran out of juice. I watched my pace group surge ahead and leave me in the dust.

It was the same on each of the first 6 repeats. I felt fine for the first few dozen strides, and then watched the pack pull away. I felt as if my effort was consistent throughout, but the dramatic change in my relative position in the group made it obvious that I was fading badly.

Then came repeat number 7. On this one for some reason, the piano didn't drop. I started out the same as I had on the others, slightly behind my target pacers. But suddenly, I noticed that they were the ones dropping back. I finished that segment a good 15 yards further up the hill than I had on each of the others...and I felt fine! On repeat number 8, I surged even further ahead, and hardly noticed the slope at all.

I do have a history of end-of-workout improvement, but that's usually because I save a little bit of juice for a good, strong finish. This was not a case of sandbagging, though -- I was going as fast as I could on each of the repeats. I simply didn't have it for 6 intervals, and then suddenly found it on the seventh. It had to be the Bloks. Had to be.

If you know me well, you probably wonder if I am smart enough to learn anything from this experience. Time will tell, I suppose. But at the moment, I'm thinking that this season, I'm going to pay much better attention to fueling than I have in the past, and will be ready to down some gels or something at those critical workout or race moments instead of relying solely on my ample fat reserves. I would ask that you, my friends, help me keep this commitment by reminding me of the "spinach effect" at appropriate times. Thank you.

OK, let's finish today's entry with a couple of really easy questions.

1: In the Chekov dance photo above, what is the middle name of the bad guy after whom the episode is named?

2: What unique running quality do the two joggers in the second photo possess?

For extra credit, what is the quickest way to Kevin Bacon yourself from the first photo to the second? Answers tomorrow. Have a great day!