For Whom the Dogs Bark

Hey Flatlander,

Did you see my comment to you in your January 6th blog entry? I wrote it on January 8th. It references the Competitive Runner's Handbook. So glad you purchased that book. Well worth the price.

I have to agree with you on the shoes. I just feel faster in my Kinvara's - it is hard to run slow in them. The transition is so much faster than regular "big heel" shoes. Thinking about it logically one would come to the conclusion that the greater the distance the greater the benefit of lighter shoes. A marathon is over 40,000 steps - in your case that is almost a 1 lb more attached to your feet over 40,000 steps - seems that would wear your legs over that distance more a 5k. Once caveat, of course, is that one would need to do most of his/her training miles in the lighter shoes so that the legs are built up to handle the impact of 40,000 + steps with less cushioning.

Thanks for the tip on the book - I just sent it to my Kindle.

PRE, yes, it must have been your suggestion, thanks. It should be a good resource, interesting how I have formed so many running opinions in 2-1/2 years of doing this.

David, you think like I do. I never want to be just told something, there needs to be an explanation. I like yours better than theirs. Definitely have to build up to minimal shoes though.

A good estimate is 2 seconds/mile per excess pound. Maybe a little more because it is far from center of gravity. So worth a minute over a marathon. Many of us carry quite a few extra pounds. Better than chahging shoes would be to get down to optimal weight well before a race. Losing that extra 5 or 10 pounds really makes a big difference in a long race.

I just had this discussion with a running partner on what is optimal weight? I know when I was around 162-163 I felt weak. (I'm 5'11") After strength training and proper nutrition I am up to about 168. Though I am 5 lbs heavier I feel much stronger and am able to hold my pace longer during runs. I think losing weight, as well as comparing ourselves to elites, can be a trap us runners get ourselves into. Next time at a marathon look at runners coming in at 2:40 - 3:00 - they are all shapes, sizes, and body compositions. It is probably a better idea to go for body fat loss than overall weight loss. But doing so during hard training can be hard on your body by not fueling correctly. I think the most enlightening thing I have read on this subject is Chapter 6 of this book: "http://www.amazon.com/Sports-Nutrition-Endurance-Athletes-Monique/dp/1931382964/ref=dp_ob_title_bk"

Every endurance athlete needs this book, IMO. In the end, each individual must find his/her own optimal racing weight. I completely agree that excess weight will make a huge difference during a race. The challenge becomes finding that "optimal" weight and then achieving it.

I agree completely. That is why I did not assign a value to "optimal" and suggested getting there well before a race. I have run into glycogen shortfall/dehydration issues when I have run high mileage and tried to lose weight. Or run more than 45 minutes every other day when I was actively on a weight loss program.

Anymore I find that as long as I run 50+ miles a week all these things tend to take care of tthemselves. Now injury makes for a far different beast.....

Interesting discussion. I sometimes tell people that if I weighed the same as I did 4,000 miles ago I am not sure I would be any faster. Sometimes I think it is all about weight loss. That isn't true, of course, but it is a big factor that is often overlooked. I agree you definitely can't hurry it, just eating sensibly and pushing away from the table a tad early does wonders, but it takes a while.

Flat - I went through a v02/max and body comp testing at UT twice. I would need to dig out the paperwork for exact numbers, but there was a column with a calculation as it pertains to body fat percentage. It showed how much faster I would be able to run in relationship to a % of body fat loss. I don't know what their formulas are, however, there is a direct correlation between running performance and body fat. So you are right in saying that it is a big part of the equation. Once you get to a certain point though - in my case 10% bf - I think it is harder to see gains as you then risk loosing muscle trying to lose that extra % or 2 of bf. If I find those numbers from the UT testing I will post them. Sorry to hijack your post! :-)