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Hello? It’s me, your GI. You’re not running today.

Hello? It’s me, your GI. You’re not running today.

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Ah, yes.  A post about my gastrointestinal (GI) tract.  We all knew this was coming, sooner or later, since it’s often the subject of many a conversation on the run.

I was inspired to write about this because last Saturday, my 14-miler ended pretty abruptly when I first had to start walking because of what felt like knives going through my gut.  After a bit of walking and bathroom break #1, I felt a lot better, though I still had some seriously sharp pains in my abdomen.  As Jack and I ran a little more, natured called yet again, and by then I had finally realized that my GI was giving me a big “F-U,” middle finger for the morning.  14 miles suddenly, and without any opportunity for me to plead otherwise, suddenly became a lousy 7.   This hasn’t happened in a while, so I guess it was “time.”  Yet another way that the human body, particularly my own, humbles me…

I read a lot of running-related publications, typically online, and I can say with 100% certainty that I’m not alone when it comes to negotiating, for lack of a better word, with my GI when I want to run or, sometimes, when I’m actually on a run.  I’ve read or have heard horror stories or have endured them, myself, when I’m out on a run and suddenly my stomach decides that it’s done for the day.  My stomach says “no more miles,” yet my legs cry, “Go on!  Go on!”  And it’s always the stomach that wins out.

I’ll spare the gory and fairly disgusting details, but suffice it to say that, since I started partaking in all this marathon business in 2007, I have had many a run cut short, and end rather unpleasantly, because of GI issues of some shape or another.  At first, I thought it was strictly related to what I was eating immediately preceding my runs, so I got smarter about that — minimize the volume of fiber I had consumed, be really careful with dairy (which is a breeze now, thanks to my vegetarian-yet-vegan-like-tendencies), don’t drink pop or anything carbonated or caffeinated immediately before, go easy on the sugary Gatorade or sports drinks, chase the gels or gus with water, etc. — but sometimes this isn’t enough.  Some days it seems like the wind blowing the wrong way can affect the way my innards (again, very scientific, I know) handle all the repetitive pounding that is part of the territory of running and long-distance training.  I have often wondered, especially of late, if there is some sort of food allergy or intolerance I have besides those I already know, and it’d probably behoove me to get tested so I can adjust my diet accordingly.  I just haven’t gotten around to it yet.

Though I haven’t been marathoning for very many years, I think I’ve gotten smart enough to realize that when my body is trying to tell me something, I better listen…or I could be paying for it, substantially more, later.  I was irked that I couldn’t complete my long run on Saturday, yet as the day wore on, my GI freak-out continued, so I figured it was for the better that I didn’t push it.  Besides, there will always be other times and days to run.  If you don’t take care of yourself wisely, today, you may be jeopardizing your chance to run well, tomorrow.

Back on (the) track

Back on (the) track

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Last week was my first week back on the track, or doing any sort of speedwork, since when I was in the throes of Boston 2010 training.  The schedule called for 4×800, and since the aforedescribed lightning spectacle prohibited me from doing it with my buddies on Wednesday night, I sucked it up and did it by myself… sola.

From middle throughout high school, I was always a track girl each spring, though of the sprinter mindset.  It’s pretty funny to think about this now, because back then, if you would have told me to go run a couple miles, I would have scoffed and probably have hidden under the bleachers until an acceptable amount of time passed.  I never understood why distance runners actually ran a couple “warm up” miles before their 800, 1600, or 3200 m event– because, after all, why would you ever run a *long* distance warm-up run to prepare you for another *long* distance race?  My, how things have changed!!

Anyway.  Nestled right amidst the Northwestern Memorial Hospital and the Northwestern University lakefront campus is an all-purpose outdoor track and softball fields, affectionately called the Lake Shore Park, since it’s right at Chicago Ave. and Lake Shore Drive.  After about a 2 mile warm-up there from work, I took a breath of courage (and mental tenacity, because I really didn’t want to be doing this by myself… speedwork, and pain in general, is usually more tolerable with others) and began the 800s and planned to do about 200 meters, or 2ish minutes of recovery, in between each one.

I’m happy to report that they actually went fairly well.  Granted, I was a little rusty from not doing speed in quite some time, and my times slowed a bit as I progressed, but I finished with 3:28, 3:31, 3:34, and 3:38.  I was shooting for somewhere between a 3:30-3:40 and tried to hit 3:35, but as you can see, that never happened.  After a mile cool-down, I bussed it back home and finished the night with some push-ups and core work.  It was a rather productive Thursday evening, and I can guarantee you that I slept like los muertos that night. 🙂

I can’t stress enough how important speedwork is to becoming a better, faster, fitter runner, and this is especially true for the marathoners of the world.  It doesn’t matter if you run a 6 hour or a 3 hour marathon; everyone has something to gain from speedwork.  Running 800s, or mile repeats, or hills forces you to leave that “long, slow run” mentality that often dominates, if not pervades, marathon training.  Speedwork makes you cognizant of your running form, for you can’t move all that quickly if your form is out of whack (a technical term, I know, I know…).  And, quite frankly, speedwork is FUN, IMHO, in a sick and twisted sort of way.  If you’re strapped for time and can’t do your entire workout, I strongly suggest you consider doing some sort of speedwork workout instead.  These workouts are usually short in duration but high in intensity.  And, like I said, they’re fun 🙂

Here are some additional resources on speedwork: doing speedwork sans track, speedwork 101 and the marathon connection, and more FAQ about speed.