in pursuit of my first marathon

Posts in category Training

Get Serious

Aug01
2011 1 Comment Written by Mike Berta

July was a fast and furious month for me. Apart from starting a new job, there are birthdays, parties, friends, family, and the like. Add to that some oppressive heat and humidity that kept me more indoors than outdoors. Excuses, excuses….

I was trying to get my long runs in on Sundays, since Saturdays were largely booked. Still, I fell short of either my mileage or the full run many of the weeks. Last week I determined that if I wasn’t able to get out on July 30th then there was no point in training up for my marathon in October. So determined…I awoke and readied myself for a long run. The group was going 16 miles (where I should be) and I was targeting 14 in hopes of capitalizing on my later than scheduled marathon.

I was able to get 13.1 miles in on Saturday morning thanks to some friends in the running group. When I split off from them to complete my shorter run my energy levels sunk. It was hot, humid, and I’d already had signs of heat exhaustion. Still, I was able to recover and finish my long run thus getting myself back on track.

It isn’t enough to want the marathon. I need to want the training too. One doesn’t happen without the other in my head but I seemed to have foolishly separate the two. I’d rationalized that not getting my short runs was okay as long as I got out once a week. But, I wasn’t even doing that. No more. I want the training, I want the marathon, I want the healthiness that I’m building toward.

It is time to get serious and now I am.

Running for Others – Part 2

Jun16
2011 1 Comment Written by Mike Berta

My wife begin with a Fleet Feet – Buffalo No Boundaries 5K training group this last Spring and finished her first ever 5K race at about 42 minutes just a few weeks ago. She was eager each Monday to hit the park and get out for her training runs. There were lousy weeks and great weeks but it all culminates in a feeling of triumph when you cross the finish line of that first race. I remember mine and remember being awfully alone in my training.

Maggie talks about the mentors and coaches as if they were friends and to some degree they are friends. These mentors push and nudge the running group further, answer questions, and cheer on the group. It was awesome to her Maggie’s stories each week.

As I cheered Maggie on at the finish line I noticed the mentors peeling off the race course and going back to get more new runners to push through to the end. It was neat to see them run that race over and over again, essentially, to help the new folks finish stronger than they had thought they could. As I stood there, I thought, being a mentor probably is very rewarding.

There was an article in Runner’s World a few months ago about how mentoring new runners and just being a friend changed the mentors’ views on running and abilities. I wondered, then, if it was something I might like to try. I know one thing, my wife and I have an agreement – we don’t play sports together and that might push into the mentoring running thing.

A lot of things are in motion right now with my work situation and picking up the Marathon-Rookie Training Group, this aside from the sheer novice status of my running. Perhaps next year I will give being a mentor a try given that I will have been running longer and stronger for a longer period of time. Mentoring might be one way to get out more, learn more, and be more of a runner for others.

Image Source: Me, that’s my Maggie and Olivia running for the finish.

Posted in Health, Races

Running for Others – Part 1

Jun14
2011 1 Comment Written by Mike Berta

When I started running back in July 2010, I was advised to read Dean Karnazes’ Ultramarathon Man to get myself motivated and see an extreme of the sport I was entering. Dean is EXTREME and while I marvel at his athleticism and endurance I know he is working at the limits of his ability and that is what makes it amazing. I don’t desire to run that far or that often but I do want to run to the limits of my ability and stretch myself.

As I read through the book I noticed that his running motivation switched from a personal endeavor to a charitable one. Karnazes was taking his love for the game and adding it to folks that needed that love and support. He wasn’t running merely for himself, at some point, but for others. That planted a seed to give my running some external focus.

In my own journey, I began running for myself, my health, my peace of mind. I was grossly obese, grossly unhealthy, and grossly GROSS. I was in no position to run for anyone but myself. I needed to be a better version of ME for myself and my family. A mentor of mine once told me you can’t help others when you’re in such a position that you need help yourself. Not that I exclusively subscribe to that theory but it makes sense to some degree; I couldn’t run for anyone else because I needed help running myself. Short of paying for races that benefit a cause, I’m not all in on the charitable running front. As my running improves and I feel more self-confident in my ability, I am looking more seriously at the running for others notion.

A friend of mine, Tracey, recently set a fitness goal for herself to swim 600 meters in open water. Firstly, I am proud of her for setting a fitness goal – it is awesome and inspiring. Secondly, she is swimming and raising funds in support of another friend’s daughter who contracted a form of childhood Cancer. Now, Tracey is charity-minded; she supports numerous causes, initiatives, and needs throughout the Western New York community and it something I’ve always admired of her. It made sense then, that she would combine her doing for others mindset with a fitness goal/need she perceived for herself. Admirable.

Tracey’s story isn’t unusual at all but it is personal. I gave me further motivation to look at running for others and sizing up a worthy cause to support through my running. Over the last year I thought about causes that spoke to me:

There are a lot of charities that host runs, lots of causes to support but I think it is important to find one that speaks to you. I suppose I need to make a decision about it if I’m serious about it. Who do you run for?

Image Source: Daniele Satori, thanks

Posted in Health, Races

Cross-training Ideas

Jun13
2011 Leave a Comment Written by Mike Berta

I recently picked up a bike to commute around town with. It isn’t anything fancy but I tricked it out with the commuter rack, saddlebag, mirror, and lock. I took it out for a 6-mile round trip the other day and noticed how different it is from running. Granted, I’m going in the same direction (forward) but the pushing is coming more from my quads on the bike. I feel like this is complimentary to the running; which is probably why so many runners also bike or tri.

Additionally, I noticed during the Buffalo Half Marathon and earlier long runs that my upper body was tight, sore, and weak. ow, I had been going to the gym three times a week most of the Winter but an unfortunate work stress load and situation prevented that from happening in the Spring. Still, I think the marathon training this Summer/Fall will demand some cross training in this area. My job situation is changing and getting out to the gym during the day might prove difficult. Leaving evenings or early mornings as my choices. My training pal, Amy, has a nice group of exercises for upper and lower body activity. Now I need to get the time to commit to them again.

Finally, the whole idea of a Monthly Mission can figure into the cross-training program. If you remember

Here are some of my own questions that could turn into a monthly mission:

  • What would my body feel like if I did 50 push-ups, planks, sit-ups, crunches, etc a day?
  • How many books could I get through if I read 1-hour a day?
  • Do I really need Facebook?
  • Can I eat an exclusively vegetarian diet?
  • How much quicker can I get my distance pace for running? (Running about a 12-minute mile now)
  • What would happen if I didn’t yell at anyone or anything?
  • How would my house look if it was worked on everyday?
  • Can I make a cool iPad/iPhone app without any existing programming knowledge?
  • Could I knit a blanket large enough for my whole family to sit under on the couch?

A former co-worker of mine had a 100 pushups a day plan and it worked pretty well. The idea wasn’t to do 100 pushups at once but to fit in at least 100 pushups during the day. The trick, as my co-worker explained, was to find 5-10 minutes and some non-trafficked areas to get down and give me 10. This might be a nice July monthly mission, fit in 100 pushups a day for the month. It might also be a good idea to combine some crunches in the mix. Perhaps I could split the middle and go 50 pushups/50 crunches or situps each day.

In any case, I realize that this 18-week push to my first marathon will require a dialed up degree of focus. What do you do to cross-train? What are some good ideas for a novice marathoner?

Image Source: Sanchom; thanks

Posted in Health, Monthly Missions, Races

Getting Back on Track

Jun12
2011 2 Comments Written by Mike Berta

I’ve been slacking for 2 weeks on my running and exercise. I’ve also been under a lot of stress for the last few months at work (more on this in a follow-up post on stress and my health). Combine these two things with a habit of eating like I was running 20+ miles a week and it makes for an easy slide up the scale.

Stepping on the scale this morning I noticed a number beyond my acceptable window of healthiness. I’ve also notice that in the last few weeks I’ve been sleeping less, snoring more, and being sloth-like during the day. Last night I wonder why my left leg was hurting and realized it was probably a nerve pinch from sitting on my ass a little too much lately.

The real deal with massive weight loss, maintenance, and healthiness is to be on plan 100% of the time but willing to not beat yourself up about getting off track from time to time on accident. I didn’t make a conscious choice to add some pounds, become too sloth-like, or feel lethargic. However, it happened and I need to accept that, make a plan to be on plan, and get back after it. I feel a little angry at myself but not so much that I am paralyzed by that anger or frustration.

Seeing Maggie run her first 5K yesterday and hanging out in the running community for a day was a nice kick in the ass. I needed one. I was so proud of Maggie. She’d been training and on a plan for 12 weeks to complete her first 5K.She was dedicated, focused, and deservedly eager to complete her goal.

As she crossed the finishing line crowd, she reached out for Olivia and they ran to the finish together. I was never so proud of her (and Olivia). That pride is my energy, my lever, my catapult into getting back onto my plan of dropping some weight so I’m inside my acceptable window and carrying on with my marathon training.

The first step in the plan is dial back the noshing and snacking. My stress levels for the last few weeks and months has been so high that any trip to the kitchen resulted in grabbing a snack or two.

Second point of the plan it watch what it is I am eating in terms of salt and fat. This is a hard thing to monitor but I know my salt/water weight is always higher after some salty goodness or a fatty delight.

Third point is to watch those carbs. It is a hard thing to do in any home. Quick snacks of carbs are easy to grab and so prevalent in our house. So, monitoring that will be key to dropping weight.

Now, it is not easy to lose weight and train for a marathon, this I know from the Spring and talking with other runners. It is possible and finding the right nutritionally balanced diet will keep energy levels high, give me the fuel to train, and help me lose the weight I want to lose.

So what is my goal? Well, I am setting it higher than I need to get into my window of weight normalcy. In fact, I am trying to find a new window of weight normalcy so my weight loss goal is to lose 30 pounds before the end of the Summer.

Image #1 Source: Wader; thanks
Image #2 Source: Me!

Posted in Health

Enjoying the taper…

May19
2011 Leave a Comment Written by Mike Berta

…maybe a little too much honestly. I was so stoked about logging long miles and adding strength each week that when the taper came along I was ready for the break. Little did I realize how much more discipline it takes. Wanting to run long and being advised against running long on the training program are hard forces to navigate.

So, it manifests with me as not running very often. That is easier with travel for work, high stress levels, and just wanting to hideout at home after long hours on the job. Not to mention the torrents of rain and wind we’ve been getting and without a break for weeks on end. One week and a few days away from race day and I feel weak.

I trust the training plan but my laziness combined with rain delays might not be on the plan. I’ll get out tomorrow and Saturday for a bit and then again on plan for next week. Race day is coming whether I’m ready or not.

I’ll bounce right back from the half marathon by signing up for the Marathon-Rookie group with my favorite Fleet Feet-Buffalo running group. Fall’s marathon is just months away!

Running in Circles

Apr20
2011 Leave a Comment Written by Mike Berta

It’s a metaphor for life, running in circles, and yesterday while out on my short run I realized that I’ve been literally and figuratively running in circles. In the literal sense I got my exercise but never really went far running a half mile trail near my home. In the figurative sense, the half-mile trail I’d been running multiple times in a session was symbolic of my life at work – running but without a destination or productive journey.

So, the other day I broke from my circular hell and hit some of the nearby streets. I was invigorated, charged, and enthused to see something different than the back of houses, trees, and benches this lovely park has to offer. It wasn’t a major deviation from the trail but it was enough to spark some thinking about running in circles and how good it felt not to be trapped in a small circular space for miles on end. As I rounded the corner back into the park for one more loop I felt tired, drawn, and melancholy. The lesson of breaking from running in circles became crystal clear. DON’T DO IT!

My long runs follow a large circle but with twists, turns, major mileage it feels more like a journey and accomplishment. The long runs offer better views, long stretches, a map to follow, a place to go. At the end of the run, when I approach the shop (start/finish) it is like coming home again and not just a turn in a day of multiple circles.

Perhaps my short run and lesson about running in circles was a symbol of the day I had yesterday. At work, I was running in tight little circles working busily along and yet accomplishing nothing. It seemed that with every turn on the work circle I was revisiting nonsense and emergency. I felt tired but not with a sense of accomplishment – weary.

As my day wore on wearily, I thought again about my running in circles lesson and how I needed to find a new route that recharged my spirit, re-energized my body, and reinvigorated my mind. From a running standpoint, I sat down and mapped out a little run that takes me through some streets and back home. It offers me a run right outside my house and the chance to see something different, make some tracks, and get some distance in an exciting way. From a life/work standpoint…well…that is a different story but not really.

Tonight, I’ll join the running group for a little out and back that winds through some neighborhoods in North Buffalo, NY. A break from the day and an excitement that comes from not running in circles.

Image Source: Saulk61, thanks.

Posted in Health

The Long Run Blues

Apr12
2011 4 Comments Written by Mike Berta

Saturday’s are my long run days with Fleet Feet Buffalo‘s Distance Training Group and for the most part I enjoy the hour or so of being on my feet and making some distance. However, the last few weeks I’ve noticed an odd feeling of aggravation after my runs.

I hit the run hard. The night before I layout my gear, fill my water bottles, and have a nice balanced snack (usually of graham crackers+peanut butter and milk). In the morning, I rise to my alarm, get dressed, take my vitamins, get stretched, get psyched up, and get a quick snack of some sports gel or beans or gummy things plus water. I arrive to the shop and feel great about getting out there.

On the run I feel upbeat and positive. I enjoy the glare of the sun, the feeling of making some distance, and getting healthy. Along the way, I gel back up, stay hydrated, and keep moving. I get back from the run, stretch, get a shower, and crash on the couch. I don’t feel hungry when I get back so I usually wait until lunch to get something to eat.

However, since I moved up to 8 miles I’ve been feeling the blues. I come home and tend to be a little short tempered, ill-spirited, and withdrawn.

If you follow along, you know I am a Type 2 Diabetic that is in remission (as they explain it to me). I don’t take any diabetes medication or even test that often anymore. Healthy eating and exercise are my new drugs and they work great! I experience more lows than I have before and my low’s get frustrating. I tend to be agitated, confused, frustrated (and ‘ing), short tempered, and snappy. Eating usually solves for this. This happens periodically and not always associated with my long runs.

I’m not convinced that these Long Run Blues are associated with the diabetes thing but it wasn’t until this week that I noticed the pattern emerging. Googling “long run blues” brought up a varying set of frustrations from people being over heated or hating the long runs. That’s not me. I know running lowers blood sugar and I had hoped the sports gel regiment would supplant the need blood sugar-wise.

I’m curious if other distance runners feel this sense of agitation after hitting a long run. Let me know your thoughts in a comment.

Admittedly, I feel better when I eat but it is fleeting. In an hour or so, I go back to being a Grumpy (‘ier) Gus. In general, I want to be left alone throughout the day, with exception of meal times. I sleep like the dead though and that feels great too.

This week, I’m in a conundrum on my long run day. I need to hit a neighborhood 5K race and squeeze in my long run. I think the plan is to run the 5K (since it ends 300 yards from my house), run home and gear up, then hit the streets for the last 7 miles I need to get 10 miles in). I’ll have to do some blood testing to see what is happening there.

Image Source: Sean Venn, thanks.

Posted in Health

Alarm Bells

Mar16
2011 Leave a Comment Written by Mike Berta

I work from home and haven’t used an alarm to wake up short of being on a business trip or needing to hit the road at a particular early hour. This means that the clock next to my bed is largely decoration. My body clock does the rest. I usually wake up in plenty of time for work and usually enough time to get my runs in before that. However, these last few days have not given me enough time to get ready, run, and get to work on time.

I know some of you would think, “So what? You work from home. Who would know?” Well, I would know for one person and while it isn’t a big brother sort of deal; I feel it is fair to be at work on time each day to get my work done. Silly work ethics.

As my runs increase but my pace remains the same, I am struggling with finding the time to get out and put in an hour or so running before work. Compounding that is that the last week or so I’ve been sleeping right up to the point of having to trudge upstairs and start my day. So what to do?

I use an alarm for my group runs on Saturday mornings but that is only because the group starts promptly at 7:30A and I don’t want to be late for that experience. I don’t where a watch because I hated being confined to certain hours of the day and rather choose to adhere to my cycles of rest, hunger, work, play (which adhere strictly to normalized notions of the working world oddly enough). We don’t have many clocks in the house because we both stay home all day and have a routine. But, I’m missing my runs because of time.

Grrr. Do I need an alarm in the morning to get me up and get me running before work? I’d like to say no but I fear the answer is yes. Tomorrow I’ll try it out…begrudgingly…but with the thought that running is good for me and so will getting up early to do it.

Do you alarm yourself into running?

Image Source: Alan Cleaver, thanks

Monthly Missions

Mar14
2011 3 Comments Written by Mike Berta

Last week something interesting popped across my Twitter feed. A tweet from RageMichelle asking “how do you know what you’re capable of? with a link out. The link began an interesting mental journey that questioned self-imposed or culturally-imposed limits we place on ourselves. I found myself deep in thought at Simpler Life asking the question – how do I know what I am capable of anyway?

Sam Spurlin, the blog’s author and author of some eBooks tells his story about 30-day missions and then shares the results. He questions what else he could do on a 30-day mission and ponders what he might expect from taking that step. I was so intrigued by Michelle’s link (as I am with most of her links) and Sam’s challenge that I put it into my thinking process and pondered the same thing. What am I capable of?

Saturday long runs provide me both the time and space to think. As I settled into my run on Saturday this idea of missions bubbled up to the top. I’d given it some pre-thought and considered doing 20-minutes of push-ups a day. I even tweeted about it and garnered a response from Sam questioning the amount of push-ups 20 minutes would entail. Still, the idea of a mission seemed plausible.

My first thought on the run was around scheduling. I was never like that before but a schedule sets me free. The notion of sticking to something for 30-days might have some psychological or spiritual significance but the timing throws off the nice and neat 12-month calendar. So, why not use the Gregorian calendar (go look it up) as the baseline for this project? Good idea…for me anyway. No sense starting in an odd week either – I’ll start in April.

The next miles turned to what types of things I could challenge myself to do through monthly missions. Spurlin deleted his Facebook account, and counted caloric intake, and limited is discretionary spending. He ponders some others:

I have a whole list of questions that will probably turn into some sort of 30 Day Mission:

- How much sleep do I actually need to operate well?
- What would I feel like if I didn’t consume any caffeine?
- What would I feel like if I ate a completely vegan diet?
- How fast can I run 1 mile?
- How far can I move myself in 8 hours?
- How long can I go without purchasing anything?
- How long can I fast?
- How long can I not sleep?

Some really interesting thoughts and missions to consider. These rattled through my brain on my long run for quite a while. What am I capable of? My weight loss and marathoning journeys are examples of significant missions that have become themes in my life. The focus and determination of each have laid waste to other activities. They’ve given me a new definition for what I am capable of doing in my life. More importantly, have given me confidence in challenging my body to new levels of health and fitness.

Here are some of my own questions that could turn into a monthly mission:

  • What would my body feel like if I did 50 push-ups, planks, sit-ups, crunches, etc a day?
  • How many books could I get through if I read 1-hour a day?
  • Do I really need Facebook?
  • Can I eat an exclusively vegetarian diet?
  • How much quicker can I get my distance pace for running? (Running about a 12-minute mile now)
  • What would happen if I didn’t yell at anyone or anything?
  • How would my house look if it was worked on everyday?
  • Can I make a cool iPad/iPhone app without any existing programming knowledge?
  • Could I knit a blanket large enough for my whole family to sit under on the couch?

Lots of thoughts run through your mind when you’re out on the long run. Monthly missions has some legs though. What could you challenge me to do for a month? What could you accomplish by focusing on it for a month?

Image Source: zebble, thanks.

Posted in General
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Run w/ Mike

Last Run

12.26 mi

03:05 /15:05 pace

I wouldn't call this a run. I'd call it a slog. 12 miles in deteriorating snow conditions. My pal Katie made the miles go by and she kept me going when I wanted to stop ~ Thanks. posted 11 days ago

Week Miles
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2012 Miles
54 mi
Total Miles
871 mi

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