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Steve and Gary’s Marathon Training WebCast 1
Steve and I completed our first WebCast on Monday Evening. We only sent the invitation out to a few people as we are still trying out the technology.
We had over 25 people on the line and we answered many questions sent in including
- How do you deal with knee pain?
- How do you prepare for trail running?
- What pace should you run during the week?
We are scheduling our next WebCast soon and look forward to meeting you on the air.
Click Here to Listen to Our WebCast
Gary Smith
ChiRunning Instructor
Catalina Marathon Race Report - Special Wedding Proposal Edition
Doug proposing to Mina at mile 23 of the Catalina Marathon
March 17th 2007, St Patrick’s Day, the Catalina Marathon. Sounds like enough for one day, doesn’t it? When I woke up at 4AM to catch the ferry that would take me to the start line of the Catalina Marathon, I had no idea how much more meaningful this day would become.
When my boyfriend and fellow Beach Runner proposed that we run the Catalina Marathon, I thought he was crazy. 26 miles of grueling trail with 4,300 feet total elevation gain?!? But after doing several runs through the mountains of Palos Verdes with the Beach Runners, I actually got kind of excited for the beautiful scenery and the chance of running into a buffalo during my race.
4 AM is very, very early in the morning. But seeing friends and sharing the excitement and anticipation of the race motivated me to shake off the morning grogginess. The ferry left Avalon at 5AM and took us to the start line at Two Harbors. It was still so dark as we waited in the long lines for the bathroom. We were actually lucky enough to have a little surprise at the start line. A big, brown buffalo was grazing near the start line to wish us all good luck. Then a few minutes later, I heard a little ruckus behind me and saw the buffalo charging across the path toward some runners. Wouldn’t you know it was Steve that was right in the middle of the trouble! (I still wonder what he did to provoke the peaceful creature!)
The race was just as beautiful as I envisioned it would be. It was overcast for a good part of the morning which actually made some of the steep uphills a little easier since you could never really see how much further you still had to ascend. It was amazing to feel like you were running deep into the clouds above you. I saw runner after runner ahead of me disappear into the thick white haze.
After reaching the top of the first peak and back down to sea level, the slow ascent to the final peak was a challenge. A long 15 mile, 1600 foot uphill challenge. But luckily, I still had my Doug (and another good friend Tucker) by my side to keep my spirits up and make me giggle as we pushed onward and upward. As we started approaching the highest peak, the clouds began to clear and show us a view that made you forget the fatigue, tired muscles, and leg cramps. At Mile 23, we had reached the highest point of the marathon. What a feeling of accomplishment to look out from the top of the mountain and see the boats of Avalon Bay and the ever expansive Pacific Ocean. And in the far distance, I could see the Casino, a beautiful historic ballroom from the 1920’s, which meant the end was in sight. The finish line was still teeny from my vantage point, but so much closer than where we were hours ago.
As Doug and I enjoyed the view from the top of our conquered mountain, we decided to take a picture. My friend Tucker was ready for the heroic shot. Off comes Doug’s hat, his Halo headband, and even the Fuel Belt! Wondering why he cared to look nice for a picture in the middle of a marathon, I also shed the Fuel Belt and smiled for the camera. Then the next thing I see is Doug down on one knee, saying something to me, and holding something in his hand. I couldn’t understand his words, all I could do was cry. And cry, and cry. And apparently, I ran away a little too. (I blame it on dehydration and delirium from the preceding 23 miles!) Eventually, Doug caught up to me, got back down on his knee again, and proposed a second time. I still didn’t understand the words that were coming out of his mouth, but I didn’t run away this time. As he put the ring on my finger, it all suddenly became clear. I was at Mile 23, in the middle of the Catalina Marathon, with a view of the vast blue ocean behind me, and the love of my life is asking me to marry him. It was surreal. And I even had an audience of runners that stopped and cheered and shared their joy for us.
Little did I know I had another surprise waiting for me a little further down the mountain. A Beach Runners cheering squad at Mile 24! Kristin, Alexis, Lani, and John (who all had run the 10K race) hiked up the mountain to share their hugs and congratulations. (Apparently, I was the last to know about Doug’s special plans…)
The last three miles were all downhill—very fast, even faster for me since I had a renewed burst of energy from the shiny bling on my finger! Finally, I could see the glorious vision that I waited 26 miles to see. The big banner that bears the words ‘Finish Line’. As I inched nearer and nearer, I heard Steve yelling from the crowd, “Are you engaged?” So excited to be able to share my happy news again, I ran toward Steve and Gary, yelling “Yes! Yes!” while pointing at the ring. Onlookers and fans waiting at the finish line must have caught onto the engagement news because I felt like the crowd erupted into joyful Congratulations! What an unbelievable feeling! Hand in hand with my new fiancée, I triumphantly crossed the Finish Line. No more tears—just a big smile.
The rest of the day was one big party. All day, I had random people hug me and tell me that they ran by me during the proposal and were so excited for us. It was like a whole island of people that were happy to be part of my special moment. The after-race partying began with burritos with Lani, Kristin, and John. Then another burrito (and tequila shots!) with my friends Tucker and Elizabeth. Then over to Steve and Gary’s house for champagne (and gossip!) with Beach Runners Sandy, AJ, Sindy, and Sindy’s fabulous daughter. I never would have thought that after a marathon, I would be out until 1:30 AM, but our Beach Runners group had such a close family feeling to it, that it felt so natural to be sharing my engagement evening with these happy faces. We did a mini bar crawl (Sandy’s first!) complete with kamakazi shots, green beer (St Patrick’s Day, remember?), and dancing until the wee hours of the morning.
I will admit that for months, I was secretly frightened that the mountains of Catalina would kick my butt and that I would suffer through every uphill step of the 26 mile course. But truthfully, we were all so well trained (especially for the downhills!) that the marathon was not nearly as painful as I had originally feared. When I look back on March 17th 2007, I don’t think about the calf cramps, sweat, and sore toes. I remember my friends at Mile 24, Steve and Gary at the finish line, giggling about territorial garibaldi fish, laughing at Steve leaping into every picture, and dancing at the Chi Chi Club until my quads burned. And of course, I remember an extraordinary man kneeling on bended knee with a ring in his hand, wanting to spend the rest of his life with me.
Mina Oh, Beach Runner
Dealing with Post Marathon Blues
Funny enough Steve and I were getting depressed as soon as we were returning to Los Angeles after one of the funnest weekends in our lives taking 10 Beach Runners over to the Catalina Marathon. We’d given months of our life to make this goal happen, so now what?
In fact all week I’ve been anxious. And a little beat up after my race due to sore feet from the downhills. Nothing serious, just my feet got a little bruised. The anxiety comes more from this transition between training programs.
My body is a little confused as to what I should be doing. For the last 7 seven weeks, I have been training very hard for the Catalina Marathon. And now, my body is asking me, “What next?”
I spoke to many runners last night who seemed to be suffering from the post race blues.
Here’s what I like to do after finishing a marathon.
1. Take a break from running. The time period might vary, but I will not run for about two weeks after finishing a marathon. Especially a marathon I went all out on. Instead I am lifting weights, riding my bike, and doing yoga. My body needs a break . I coached someone last night to take a month off of any serious running.
It’s not only important to let the body rest from running but also to let the mind rest from running. It is very easy to get burned out from running. In ways, I believe that my strong performance in Catalina came from taking a break from running in January. So when I returned from vacation, I was excited to be running again.
The next Beach Runners session begins on May 19th, so that gives you a month break from running, and then maybe spend a few weeks doing FUN runs. Just don’t get all obsessive about running again unless you have some specific goals like an important race coming up.
2. Write down your upcoming race schedule. The Monday after the race I was on the Internet finding more races to run. More importantly, races TO TRAIN FOR. Marathon runners by their nature are problem solving type of people. We like complex difficult problems to figure out and solve like running 26.2 miles. So even if your next race will be completing the Long Beach Marathon with the Beach Runners 7 months from now, right it down, and begin thinking about what you can do to prepare. Do you need to visit a doctor? Work on your flexibility? Improve your diet? Get new running shoes?
I will list my race schedule the next few days.
3. Write down some running goals. That means a reasonable goal. Many runners try to set unrealistic goals for themselves, don’t accomplish them, then get discouraged about running/fitness. Danny Dreyer in his book, ChiRunning, makes the clear delineation between process oriented goals and product oriented goals. Take for example, you want to run a marathon under four hours? Why do you want to do this? Is it ego driven so you can say you ran under four hours? Have a clear reason in your mind for your goals.
Say your last marathon was 4:10. Now running under 4 hours would be a reasonable goal. But even then, better goals would be to improve your speed, through your form, or keeping a more consistent pace. These are more process oriented goals, something that you can work on every time you go out running.
In my opinion, making a time goal like sub four hours can drive your mind crazy as it is not something that you can practice in your runs.
My goal for Catalina was to be faster on the uphills and have better overall fitness. Well my power yoga gave me better overall fitness. And everytime I went out on the trails, I focused on my uphill form, swinging my arms, and breathing more. Consequently I got faster on my uphills. The results: I went from a 4:19 Catalina marathon last year to a 3:56 marathon this year. At no point, in my training was I thinking a sub four hour marathon. Isn’t that funny? I just stayed focus on the process.
4. Work on your hobbies or other things in your life. I have returned to my garden. Picked up my guitar. Tried finishing some books. I have even started Spring Cleaning. I’m doing anything to take my mind off of running right now. Writing this article even helps as by through the process of writing, I closing the training cycle in my mind.
Hope all that helps.
If nothing else, go for a walk or a rollar blade and watch the sun go down like I will with old friend this evening.
That will boost your spirits more than anything.
Gary
Running your First Los Angeles Marathon
(Finish LA Marathon 2001)
By the summers end of 2000, I was not in good shape. In one summer I had been fired from my job, lost the love of my life, got seriously overweight, and hit emotional lows. In other words, I was a depressed mess.
One thing I remember is standing in the shower and not being able to see my feet because of my belly. For some reason, I just remember that image. And this spurred me to take some action.
I had always wanted to run a marathon. In fact, twice, once in high school, and once in 1999, I had tried preparing for a marathon only to injure myself on long runs. I had no idea what I was doing both times…running in old shoes, no hydration, no eating, no stretching, and certainly horrible power running form.
But in 2000, I was ready to change my life around by training for and running a marathon. I called up my buddy James, and used my considerable persuasive skills to convince him to train with me for the Los Angeles marathon. James was my mountain climbing partner so we both had the mentality to train for and accomplish a difficult athletic task.
Training for the Marathon
I’m not sure where I got my training program from but it was fairly standard…2 runs in the week followed by an increasing long run on the weekends.
In all the training went well with James. We trained on the strand linking Torrance beach to El Segundo. But the longest run we did was about 18 miles leading up to the marathon. Which I’ve learned is not enough.
The running helped my emotional situation. By getting out and running it took my mind off my troubles, my heartache, myself. Yet I still had a belly that was not shrinking despite the long runs. But I was getting a lot more endurance, feeling better about myself, and was deepening my friendship with James.
The crazy thing was….I was smoking at the time. Not a lot. But still a half pack a day. Insanely enough, I would finish a long run then smoke some cigarettes.
The night before the Los Angeles marathon, I was so nervous I smoked close to half a pack.
And I do remember one day about two weeks before the marathon simply freaking out from fear that I was not prepared enough. I was mortified that my body would break down on the course and I would have to explain to all my friends and family why I couldn’t finish the marathon despite all my best laid plans. I remember having to sit in my room in front of my closet, meditate, and pray to God for answers about what to do.
I was paralyzed with fear of not finishing. And the answer I received in that session has guided me through many marathons now…don’t worry about the results…just focus on what you can do today to prepare…today…not yesterday…not tomorrow…but today.
And I walked away from that closet that day. And went for a run on the cliffs of San Pedro…the same cliffs Beach Runners are now running…and saw pelicans riding the wind…and the ocean crashing on rocks…and the sun go down…and…
I let go. I let go.
I could only prepare for the marathon by going for a run that day. That’s all I knew. And that was enough. I would have to believe…have faith…that I would finish. Because that is what faith is…a hope in the unseen. I was scared. I felt underprepared. I felt my smoking would not allow me enough oxygen to finish. My higher power would have to give me the strength to finish because I didn’t feel strong enough.
And that’s all we can ever really do to prepare for a marathon. Do something today…right now…to prepare. Take 10 deep breaths. Go for a run. Stretch. Do yoga. Close your eyes and visualize crossing that finish line. Rest. Eat a salad. Plan a run.
Just do something. Because that was the answer to fear for me. Go running and pray or meditate. That’s all I could do. And through this develop some faith.
Running for Yourself
So the morning of the marathon I’m standing in line for the porto potties with about 1000 others (I’m not kidding) and guess who I see?
My ex girlfriend with her new guy. This was no coincidence. I loved that girl all through graduate school. But I was a mess at the time, didn’t have my act together, far too much partying, too immature, unable to make a commitment to anything, preferred the company of my buddies…and so… she moved on… while I was under the delusion that she’d sweep all my shortcomings under the rug…wait around for another few years…marry me…and we’d live happily ever after.
I spent many training runs obsessed with thoughts of her. Running up hills pissed off determined to finish this marathon to prove to her that…yes…I could actually finish something I started…that yes…I could make a commitment…that yes…I could live a healthy lifestyle.
And there she was.
We exchanged pleasantries like you would with an ex. Her new boyfriend was running the marathon also. She said she had to go…obviously trying to not be seen with me and she walked away with her new guy.
And I stood there. And it dawned on me how much time I had spent training…preparing for this marathon…for someone else other than me. I had really started training to get my thoughts off of this girl I had loved soooooo much. To heal my broken heart.
So in this crowd of 24,000 runners, thousands of spectators, I saw the one person I needed to see in order to close that chapter of my life. Right before I ran 
James and I stood in the back of the largest line I’ve ever been in. The start of the marathon. First time LA marathon people will be amazed at the experience. James and I prayed. We joked with others. I prayed some more. Randy Newman’s “I love LA” blasted on the loudspeakers and we were off. God was going to have to guide me through this race because I had no idea how to.
Finishing The Marathon
The run went well. Up to about mile 16 or 17 when James began complaining about leg pain. His complaints and pain got worse mile my mile. I was hurting also. We only knew power running so of course we had started much too fast, had poor form, and ran pushing and pulling with our leg muscles, tiring them out much too early. The wall hit about mile 19, and James began walking. I was popping Advil like an addict trying to deal with the pain. And James started saying he would be unable to finish. I got pissed.
“There’s no way we did all that training to quit now,” I said. I suggested we stop and pray. Which we did. Not sure whether that helped him but it sure helped me. I had to ask for more strength to finish.
And in that prayer I heard an answer that still guides me today. “You will get the strength to finish by helping others”.
“You will get the strength you need by helping others.”
With that answer I started what has been a six year practice for me now. “James, you can do it.” He was cursing in words I can’t repeat here, but after words he told me my words were pissing him off so much, he found some energy to keep going.
I began saying motivational words to the other struggling runners around me, “Hey, great job.”. “You’re almost there.” “You’re my hero.” “You’re looking strong.” Anything to keep them going. Some looked surprised at me, but most were like, “Thanks”, “You’re looking great also.”
And the more I began to turn my attention to others, to helping them anyway I could, to using every cliched saying I’ve ever heard in the movies, the more…I forgot about how my legs were feeling…and trust me…they were killing me…the more I helped others…the more strength I was finding to finish.
James and I found our legs again at about mile 24. For first time marathoners this is very important, you will hit a wall, feel completely exhausted, like you cannot take another step, but you must, you find the strength somewhere, somehow, and then magically, between miles 21-26 your legs will gain a new energy out of nowhere, enough to power you to the finish.
So James and I crossed the finish line four hours and forty two long minutes after we started (4:42). We jumped up and down hugging one another and I cried. I cried for the lost girlfriend, I cried for my grandfather who had recently passed away, I cried for the family dog (my old running buddy) who also recently passed, I cried for all the times I had tried to accomplish something and failed, I cried for myself, that I had done something good for me. I had done the impossible. I had done the training. I had done the spiritual work. I had found some belief that “Yes, I can succeed.”
The Spiritual Journey
James and I could barely walk for days afterwards. James told me repeatedly out on the course that day, “I will never do this again.” And he hasn’t.
But I found something out there. Something about myself, about God, about helping others, about faith, in the training and the pain of mile 19. A seed was planted that day. A seed that has grown into doing the LA Marathon a total of four times, the Long Beach marathon twice, the Big Sur marathon, the Catalina marathon, and an ultramarathon. A seed that grew into ChiRunning and me becoming a marathon coach. A seed that grew into Yoga and teaching yoga on the grass to 100 runners at a time. A seed that grew into my current body…30 pounds lighter…stronger…more flexible…and smoke free.
A seed that grew into the tree of current running and coaching practice. It brings tears to my eyes to even think back to the origins of this journey that has led me to Beach Runners, Yoga, SoCalRunning.com, and writing this massively long blog entry.
Thank you for taking this journey into my past with me. And the journeys we take every Saturday. And I have faith that you will find something out there on the Los Angeles marathon on Sunday, something that will sprout into a beautiful tree in your life. Keep your heart, ears and eyes open that day.
Because that something special is waiting for you.
Good luck everyone,
Gary
gary@socalrunning.com
How to do a Long Run with Style
Well I’m back from my Cambodia/Thailand trip. I could write a whole book on what I experienced over there, but I will share these memories more in conversation. Its good to be back and running with this exceptional running community.
I look forward to teaching this group yoga which I practiced diligently on my trip.
My running practice however, slipped up a little bit. I needed a break after running an ultramarathon in December. My goal is to just keep up with uber athlete Steve Mackel on Saturday. My technique is still good, just lost a little cardio with all the fun I was having in Thailand.
So overall, I had a great year last year. I ran three marathons and an ultramarathon. I didn’t accomplish my time goals but those are becoming more and more irrelevant for me. I also got certified as a yoga instructor so easily did over 300 hours of yoga last year. That’s why I am so flexible. Its just a matter of doing the work. You all could accomplish things like this also. Have patience and try to do a little more every week than the week before and you’ll get there.
So these are some important lessons I’ve learned from training for 8 marathons and an ultramarathon.
Gary’s Top Ten Tips for Doing a Long Run
1. Drink Water and Electrolytes. Easiest way to do this is to set your watch to beep every ten minutes and when it does, just have a sip of water. Another option is to have a small drink, certainly not a whole glass of water, every mile. Either way would work. the key is not to drink constantly and to not drink too much which will make you feel water blogged. You need to use electrolytes. Electrolytes are minerals which help transport electrical signals through your muscles. Without using electrolytes, your muscles can bonk, making you feel exhausted later in the run. I like to use Ultima powder which you can find at whole foods. Gatorade has some electrolytes but also a bunch of corn syrup and enough artificial preservatives for a fifty year shelf life.
2. Be sure to breathe deeply. The best way to do this is to inhale to the count of four and exhale to the count of four. Try your best. Another thing I do is to count breaths up to 50 or 100, something to keep your mind busy on those long lonely stretches. Oxygen and water are the most important nutrients on your run.
3. Eat every hour. You have a few options here. Some people like gels but I find them a little too yucky yucky syrupy. I like to use cliff bars and powerbars. The food is solid and burns more slowly giving less of a spike that you get from the gels. So on a long long run I will take two cliff bars, and each hour eat about a half/quarter of the bar. You need to eat for fuel. You need to eat for fuel. You need to eat for fuel.
4. Relax. Constantly scan your body for any areas of tension. Sometimes my shoulders get tight for example. So I am working on relaxing my shoulders during the whole run, just repeating the mantra “relax, relax, relax” will do wonders, just try it. You will do better when you are relaxed. In fact to go faster, you don’t need to try harder, just relax.
5. Start off slow and run slow until your turnaround point. I know, Steve and I repeat this over and over and over again. But I cannot stress enough how important this on your long training runs. Running slow will allow your body to transition to fat burning about an hour or so into your run. Once you are burning all those Pringles and pizza away, you can run an ultramarathon or longer. But most runners start out to fast and consequently are operating off the sugars in their system which burn out quickly and consequently you bonk and are stumbling along like a junkie looking for their next “gel/sugar” hit. Once you get to the turnaround point then increase your lean, for a slightly faster run back in.
6. Use body glide or vaseline on any area that rubs. For me that means, all around my groin area, between my legs, between my butt cheeks, my nipples, and underarms. I’ve experienced the alternative far too many times and it is painful.
7. Have a conversation with someone you don’t normally talk to. Always a fun goal for me. This will help hours of your run fly by. I have had some of the best conversations of my life on long runs.
8. Say “good morning” to all you pass. This sends positive energy out to the universe and what we send out we get back a hundredfold.
9. Its okay to walk. Remember it is a training run. So if you feel any pain or real discomfort, slow down, walk for a little bit, then start running again. I have seen too many runners in three seasons of coaching try to run through pain which has only aggravated or created injuries. When you feel pain, it is your body sending a VERY IMPORTANT MESSAGE to you, so listen to it, slow down, and figure out what’s going on. This is a training run, so the goal is to stay healthy for the marathon. So if need be screw your “time goal”, “pace” or whatever notion you had in your head of what you were going to do that day and LISTEN TO YOUR BODY.
10. Practice some spirituality out there. Some simple things I do for this include:
Look at birds.
Pray to God.
Thank my ancestors for sacrificing so much for me to do this.
Think of heros that had a lot of strength like Gandhi and Martin Luther King.
Just feel grateful
Hopefully these tips will help you on your long runs this weekend. I look forward do running with all of you.
Namaste,
Gary
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