As endurance athletes we have a love/hate relationship with the sun. We want beautiful weather to train and race in, but protecting our skin from the damaging rays of the sun can be a struggle, especially for those of us training for long course events. And with the recent illumination on the dangers of sunscreen, it’s tough to know the best course of action.
I won’t attempt to dissect the literature on sunscreens in this short blog post, but I recently had a surprising sunscreen experience that I wanted to share. On February 19th I ran the Austin Marathon. The forecast called for mild temperatures and sun, and as I knew I’d be out there for at least 4.5 hours (turned into a little longer than planned), I knew I should have some protection from the sun. As I applied my current sunscreen of choice, thinksport, my internal dialogue went something like this, “It’s 5am, what are the chances this sunscreen I am applying will do me any good at 10am, 11am, noon…? Not good.” Given that train of thought, my application was casual, at best.
I finished the marathon with just over 5 hours of running time, which put me over the finish line around 1pm. The sun was shining down hard, and I was sure I was burnt to a crisp.
In looking at my post-marathon “tan” lines, you can see exactly where the thinksport sunscreen was applied, and were it was not. That means 6-8 hours after application, this sunscreen was still doing it’s job!
As much confusion as there is out there, I feel confident that I can trust the ingredients in this product. I highly recommend picking some up before your next long training day, and definitely before your next race!
Thanks for reading ~
Tammy Metzger | Tempo Multisport LLC
Nutritional strategies vary greatly between individuals, and between types of events. With our team coming up on the 3M Half Marathon this weekend, our final big push before tapering into the Livestrong Austin Marathon & Half Marathon, now seems like a good time to share some of my personal nutritional strategies. Your results may vary….
Taper Nutrition
A good nutritional strategy starts days before race day. As my exercise volume and intensity is greatly decreased in the final pre-race week(s), my diet is focused on high-energy foods that are easily digested, with as little fiber as possible in the final 48 hours. With running events in particular, I’ve found the necessity of avoiding high amounts of fiber in the days leading up to my race increases substantially. I focus on lean proteins, healthy fats, and small amounts of grains that are more refined than I typically prefer.
It’s even more important than usual to maintain a balanced metabolism during the taper. Don’t fall into the trap of thinking less exercise means you should be starving yourself by caloric restriction. When the body enters starvation mode / low blood glucose, it turns to internal fuel sources for functioning; sources that you want preserved and optimized for race day. By eating small, frequent meals, you’ll avoid this common mistake, and arrive at your race with optimal internal fuel sources, ready to give your best performance possible.
Pre-Race Dinner
Dinner the night before my race is the last “meal” I will enjoy before crossing the finish line, so it’s an important one. For this meal I want some lean protein, and easily digested carbohydrate to top off my glycogen stores. My traditional pre-race meal is Chicken Pad Thai (no spice). I know that a normal, healthy diet in conjunction with the decreased exercise levels of the taper, will optimize my glycogen stores without the need for a “carbo-loading” meal, such as the still too common “pasta feed” held prior to many charity events. Gorging the night before a race may result in sleep disruption, bloating, and constipation – none of which will contribute to a good race day performance. When you reach an 8 out of 10 on your “full” scale, push the plate away. You’ll thank yourself in the morning.
Race Morning Nutrition
As a general rule, ingesting 200 kcals per hour prior to race start is a good idea. So for a race that starts at 7am, if you plan to be done eating by 5am, you can probably safely ingest 400 kcals. Some racers I know will get up early, eat their pre-race meal, then get back in bed to grab a little more shut-eye. Personally, I’ve found that doesn’t work, as digestion slows when in the horizontal position, leading to possible bloating/heartburn issues. Additionally, I know from my research studies in grad school that sleep deprivation doesn’t negatively impact physical performance (quite the opposite, in fact), and since it’s rare to have a good night’s sleep the night before a race, you might as well just get up, stay up, and arrive at your race in a calm, prepared state. That extra 15 minutes of sleep you think you need really won’t help you at all… but slowed digestion, or rushing around feeling late, will have a negative impact on your day.
The contents of this race morning meal will vary depending on the type and duration of my race. Since we’re talking about running events here, my half marathon pre-race meal will be two bottles of Mix1, a product out of Boulder, CO that I recently discovered and am in love with. This liquid meal will be easily digested, and provide me with 400 kcals, 60g carbohydrate, and 30g protein. When it comes time for the full Austin Marathon, I’ll wake slightly earlier, and in addition to the above, add some solid foods to stave off hunger pains for a longer day on the course – egg white (hard-boiled), white toast w/small amt of nut butter.
All of this will be washed down with a small amount of my usual French-pressed coffee, as is my routine. Thereafter, I will hydrate with water and nuun until one hour prior to race start. That one hour gives my body time to absorb what it needs, and let go of the extra, so that hopefully I will not be needing to stop mid-race.
Race Nutrition
This has been a tricky one for me to nail down, as running nutrition is a lot different than triathlon nutrition; The non-jostling of the bike portion allows for better calorie absorption. Through diligent practice during our team long runs, I’ve found the right product and concentration that my system can handle. The more calories you can get in, the better you’ll perform, but only to the point at which your body can absorb and utilize said calories. Take in more than you can absorb at race intensity, and you’ll be dealing with stomach pain, and losing a lot of time at Port-O-Lets. For me, the right combination seems to be three servings of Espresso Hammer Gel, pre-diluted in a standard sized water bottle (which I will carry with me), every two hours. This provides me with about 270 kcals every 2 hours; about a quarter of what I’ll be burning. The rest of my energy will be coming from internal glycogen and IMTG stores, hence the importance of having and following good nutritional strategies in the week leading up to the event. I’ll have a second bottle waiting at the mid-race point to be handed off to me, pre-mixed. Added bonus: I am saving the environment by not using one of those millions of little paper cups that end up in waste/recycle/compost at all these events.
Post-Race Nutrition
Sometimes, ice cream is the answer!
The sooner I get calories in, the sooner and more adequately I will recover from the race stress. The average person burns 100 kcals per mile. So this Sunday at the 3M Half Marathon, we will all burn ~1,300 kcals. I will be ingesting 540 kcals, leaving me at a deficit of ~840 kcals. Since my goal is performance, not weight loss, replacing this deficit is a priority for me in order to recover well, and get back to training in the final weeks before the Austin Marathon. Delaying replenishment will result in loss of fitness as my body scavenges from itself in order to support essential functioning. Quality is less important than timing for recovery. Bottom line: Eat & rehydrate to stay strong.
Have a GREAT race ~ See you all at the finish line!
Coach T.
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Tammy Metzger, M.Ed. is a multisport coach, and owner of Tempo Multisport LLC in Austin, TX. Interested in affordable triathlon team affiliation, in a fun, supportive environment, with coaches that will motivate and challenge you? Join Team Tempo! For more information, contact tammy@trainwithtempo.com
What follows is probably one of the best race reports I have ever read. Eli documented his training leading up to the event, splits at the event, the weather conditions, nutrition (pre-race and during), as well as his emotional state. When he tackles his next marathon, and you know he will, this report will serve him well. Read on….
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Event: Jacksonville Bank Marathon (12/18/11)
Conditions at race time (7am-10am): 40s, low humidity, approx. 5 MPH wind from the North
Result: 3:09:44 (10/41 Male 25-29, 56/571 Male, 61/827 Overall)
Splits: -22:16 (5k [7:10/mile)
-1:10:27 (10-mile [7:03/mile total, 6:59/mile for this segment])
-1:32:09 (half [7:02/mile total, 6:56/mile for this segment])
-2:21:04 (20-mile, 7:03/mile total, 7:05/mile for this segment)
-3:09:44 (7:14/mile total, 7:50/mile for this segment)
Author’s Note: This race report is really, really long. Like, self-indulgently so. It’s broken up into four sections: Pre-Race, Race Morning, The Race, and Post-Race and Reaction. If you’re inclined to read the whole thing, feel free to take a break between each section—go for a run, maybe. Or, if you’re not interested in the whole thing, just read the last paragraph of Pre-Race, the entire Race Morning section, and the two paragraphs in Post-Race and Reaction that begin with the word “overall.” Skip The Race entirely—I followed a good nutrition plan, was on pace at 20 miles, and still slowed by 45-50s/mile the last 10k. That’s all you need to know.
Coach Eli Asch with Megan Baker at the Decker Challenge Half Marathon
I have a pretty calm attitude about racing. This attitude comes from three things: First, experience—I’ve been running competitively for eighteen years and have run literally hundreds of races; when I line up at the start line, I know what to expect. Second, I trust my training—not blindly, but if I’m lining up for a goal race I know I’ve put in the work over the past few months to make the race a success. And third, I’ve found that getting nervous doesn’t accomplish anything—sure I get race day jitters just like anyone else, but I’ve gotten pretty good at putting off the nerves until that morning because I’ve learned that nervous energy spent before race day is energy wasted, whereas nervous energy on race morning is part of what gives you that race day edge.
So even though Jacksonville was my first marathon, I treated it just like any other race (just, you know, longer). Sure, the training was different (I had never run longer than 16 miles until this October) and had entailed some new logistical elements (like practicing taking water and Shot Bloks on the run, which I had never done before), and yes, 26.2 miles was 5.2 miles longer than any run I had done in training. But I had spent 18 weeks preparing and there was no sense doubting that training’s effectiveness during race week. Based on my training and my tune-up races I knew I was in shape to run (on a day with good conditions when I felt good) somewhere between 3:02-3:09. So I committed to a plan of trying to run a Boston qualifier—which for my gender and age group is sub-3:05 (7:03 pace)—with a slightly slower first 5k and then even splits.
I got some extra sleep a couple nights during race week and made sure to moderate my holiday party-related excesses. Since I’m someone who actually likes to taper I didn’t have even a mild case of the dreaded taperitis. Everything ran smoothly Saturday (the flight to Jacksonville, hotel check-in, packet pickup) and I took a 10-minute super-easy shakeout run after checking into the hotel, had a huge pasta dinner, laid out my racing clothes and attached my bib and chip before going to bed (never leave this until race morning!), and then slept great.
Race Morning
On race morning my alarm went off at 3am and I made a breakfast of Gatorade and a bagel with peanut butter and honey in my hotel room (I had taken a quick trip to the grocery store the night before, as the hotel’s breakfast didn’t begin until 5am and I wanted to have time to digest before running) and then promptly went back to sleep. My second alarm went off at 5:15am; I took a shower, put on my BodyGlide and racing clothes (shorts, socks, and a dry-fit T that I had tested on my long runs)) and throwaway warmup sweats, grabbed my Gatorade and a banana and headed down to the lobby to catch the shuttle to the race site.
The shuttle arrived at the start line at 6:20am for a 7am start. I waited in line for the portolets, took care of business in there, and then immediately got back into line as I knew I would need to pee again in 10 minutes. After getting out a second time I stood around by a generator pumping out some hot air (it was 39 degrees!) for a few minutes before going for a two-minute warmup jog with a couple 10-second faster than race pace pickups—no need for more, gotta conserve energy for 26.2! I then snuck behind some hedges for a final pre-race pee before getting in the chute four or five minutes before the start.
The Race
The race was, as all good races are, about what I expected. I ditched my sweats on the side of the road moments before the start, and after only a little bit of typical race start clogging (Jacksonville isn’t big—only 2300 runners combined between the marathon, half, and 5k) was able to settle into just over 7-minute pace. About two minutes in I realized that I was over-hydrated, and when the course went onto a side street with some bushes I pulled off to the side and took a 15-second pit stop—I figured it was better to give up a few seconds now than feel uncomfortable for as long as it took to work itself out. I settled back into my pace, and the next few miles went according to plan, starting steadily just over 7-minute pace and dropping down to about 7-flat a little before 10k.
I stuck to my fueling and hydration plan (water at most water stops, the occasional Gatorade, and a half-pack of Shot Bloks immediately before the water stops at Mile 8, Mile 12, 17, and 21) and found myself right on pace at 5k, 10 miles, 13.1 (13:04), and 20 miles (2:21:04). And this was when I learned firsthand the truth of the old marathoners’ cliché that there are two halves to the race: the first 20 miles and the last 10k.
From Mile 20 to the finish I lost four minutes and forty seconds to 3:05 pace, finishing at 3:09:44. And while I didn’t feel great, the thing that surprised me was that I didn’t feel any worse than while running at the end of any other race—I just couldn’t go any faster. I would focus on really bearing down and keeping my stride length and turnover up for 20-30 seconds and still get passed by that person I had heard rolling up on me. Yeah, my calfs were a little sore, but my legs really just seemed like they were out of power more than anything else.
It turns out a marathon run is just like any other run (just longer). I’ve run 800s where I’ve closed with a 36-second 200 meters after running the first lap in 60-flat, 5ks where I’ve closed in 6:00/mile after hitting the mile at 5:20 pace, and half marathons where the last 5k was at 7:30 pace after the first 10 miles being at 6:40 . . . and now I’ve run a marathon with my last 10k at 7:50 pace after doing the first 20 miles just over 7-flat (I’ve also run races where I’ve closed strong, too!). It’s pretty standard—you go out over your head, and for than the last just less than quarter of the race you slow down by right around 10%.
Post-Race and Reaction
My first thought upon crossing the finish line was, “Crap, I forgot to Tebow” (a friend had offered me a night on the town if in my finish line pictures I was imitating the Denver Broncos’ quarterback). Finishing really wasn’t an emotional thing; when you’ve already made the commitment to leading a healthy lifestyle, the completion of the marathon itself isn’t life-changing. The commitment to a healthy lifestyle, and to the training is what really matters, and what happens on race day is a reflection—a celebration, really—of that commitment made months or years ago.
After the race, I experienced a good amount of joint soreness (knee, specifically). I walked with a limp for the remainder of the day, and going up and down stairs was a bit of an adventure. But by Monday morning my pain was solely muscular, and by Wednesday I started feeling like myself again. On Saturday I even went for a very easy and very, very short (15-minute) run. By the middle of the next week I was thinking about running the 3M Half Marathon at the end of January (after some well-deserved down time, of course).
Overall, I would say I did more things right for my first marathon than wrong: my training was consistent; I didn’t have any huge race day nutrition, hydration or GI issues; I avoided chafing, cramping, or injury; and I had a race plan and I executed it, giving myself a chance to hit my goal. That’s a successful race.
Of course, with the benefit of hindsight, there are a few things I would do differently: I wish I had done a bit more quality training substantially faster than race pace; I think my calfs may have maintained a little more power the last 10k if I had raced in a shoe with a bit more cushion and maybe even more heel drop (I wore the Asics Hyperspeed 4, which weighs only 7 oz.); and, based on the layer of salt that I wiped off my face, ears, and neck after finishing, I may have benefited from taking salt tablets during the event in addition to water, Shot Bloks, and a little bit of Gatorade.
I don’t see myself doing another marathon for a while–at least not in 2012, anyway. While the training isn’t any harder that it is for other distances, it is more of a time commitment. But when 2013 rolls around, who knows, maybe I’ll get back on the marathon wagon? For now, though, I’m really interested to see what I can do over the shorter distances with a solid four months of marathon training for base—after all, I’ve got an age group fish to defend at the Chuy’s 5k this spring!
Happy racing!
Coach Eli
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Coach Eli Asch leads track/quality run sessions for Team Tempo, and is also available for private run lessons. Take your running to the next level with Coach Eli!
by Coach Tessa Madison, Team Tempo Multisport
‘Tis the season for training to come undone. Between social gatherings (where overeating and drinking abound), family obligations, traveling, and the pursuit of the perfect present, runners often find it difficult to stick to a routine. And once the mileage plummets, so goes the body and mind.
While missing one or two workouts won’t hurt your overall training, missing weeks and months will. Not only will it set you back physically, your mental focus suffers just as much and usually more. Once you fall out your daily routine, it quickly becomes easier to justify sleeping through your next scheduled run/workout. They say it takes on average 66 days to form a good habit, but only a few days to break it.
Coach Tessa at Run for the Water, Photo cred: William Geisler
Fortunately, you don’t have to log mega-mileage during the hectic holiday season to preserve your fitness, sanity, and motivation. Here a couple of my favorite, often-used tips for staying fit during the holidays:
Go for a brisk walk a couple times a day. Take your dog for a long walk, or park further away at the grocery store or mall.
- Go for a brisk walk a couple times a day. Take your dog for a long walk, or park further away at the grocery store or mall.
- Take the stairs whenever possible, maybe even run up and down them a few times at home or at hotels. No one is ever in the stair well at hotels so you can usually do this with complete privacy!
- Do core work. Sit-ups and planks are a great way to work your core and you can do them anywhere.
- Stay sane. With all the holiday parties and presents, it is easy to lose focus and forget to make time for yourself as well. Remember exercise is a great way to keep the stress at bay, so don’t feel guilty for making some “me” time. Your family might actually appreciate this more than facing your cranky twin.
- Get the family together for a jog. Even if they claim they aren’t “runners” your enthusiasm can be contagious. Even if it is only a couple times around the block, just getting those muscles fired up will ensure you don’t lose all that you have worked hard to earn! Plus you might even get a family member motivated.
- Stretch. Maybe get up 15 minutes early to do some stretches or take extra time in the shower to stretch. Keep your muscles loose and active by stretching.
- Have a work-out accountability partner. If you know it is going to be hard for you to stay motivated, buddy up with someone and keep each other accountable by continuing to check in or even coordinating a workout together. What better way to escape your in-laws than sneaking out for a quick run with a friend?
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Tessa Madison is a lifelong runner, with an impressive resume, who’s been coaching for Team Tempo Multisport since Summer 2011. When not running, which is rare, Tessa loves to read and practice yoga. For more about Tessa, visit our
coaches page.
With 20 members training for the Austin Marathon & Half Marathon while raising funds for the continued good works of LiveStrong, I guess you could say we are among the passionate when it comes to cancer prevention, awareness, and research. Our fundraising for this event is underway, and YOU can make a difference in this fight by donating to Team Tempo today! We’re putting the miles in our legs, sitting in ice baths, carbo-loading, and wearing silly mustaches. All you have to do is CLICK HERE and have your credit card handy.
Special thanks to the lovely & talented Annie Ray for her photography skills! As we always say, if you live in Austin, and haven’t been photographed by Annie Ray, you need to get out more! Hire her to do a photo booth at your next event, professional photographs for your business/website, or editorial spreads. Annie Ray Photography is Austin.
