How can people run 100 miles -by Kassidy

This blog chapter is devoted to not only my goal of a hundred mile race but to my neighbor girl Kassidy who is 8 years old.

When I heard David was running a hundred miles next year I thought "WOW, that is far." I could never run that far because, well, I'm too little and you know, I AM only 8 years old.

Kassidy: How many hours would that take to run 100 miles?

Dave: It will really depend on which race I choose but most races will probably take at least a day and maybe as much as 1 1/2 days.

Kassidy: If the race lasts that long how will you live, like eating and sleeping?

Dave: If the race lasts more than a day I will have to eat A LOT and eat while I run. Some of the foods that I will eat will be like ice cream, sandwiches, nutrition bars and I will have to drink lots and lots of water and Gatorade. As for sleeping, well, besides maybe short naps I probably will not sleep until the race is over.

Kassidy: Will you sweat a lot.

Dave: Yes, a whole bunch and that is why I will have to drink so much. It really depends on how warm it is and also how hard I push myself during the race.

Kassidy: How skinny will you be after running for the next 18 months and after you finish the race?

Dave: I am hoping that I can get my weight down to at least 150 pounds and I was 187 or 189 when I started two months. Right now I weigh in at 161 pounds.

Kassidy: Wow, I knew you didn't look as fat as you used to be.
(UGH, from the mouths of babes huh!)

Kassidy: Where will you run.

Dave: I will probably run somewhere in the mountains, maybe in the Grand Tetons or in Minnesota by Lake Superior but I have not made that decision yet.
(I used Google Earth to show Kassidy some of the trails in the Tetons and what the mountains look like from a distance.)

Kassidy: What will you see when you are running.

Dave: If the race is in the mountains then lots and lots of hills and if in Minnesota then lots of trees and sometimes maybe I'll see big lake Superior.

Kassidy: Will you have to keep running or can you stop and rest.

Dave: I will stop only for short breaks to eat and take care of my feet and while running I will do a combination of running and walking, especially walking up the hills.

(I showed Kassidy the pack that I will wear when I run that has two big bottles for water and space for a first aid kit and for food. I also showed her the hand held water bottles.)

Kassidy: Now for my biggest and most important question. Why do you have to run?

Dave: I want to do this run so that I can just see if I am still capable of doing something as hard as this because of how old I am getting. Also I want to run because it is healthy and exercising is something that everyone should try to do. Maybe also it is just that my memories of running from 25 years ago are still strong in my mind and I want to experience that feeling again.

When I asked Kassidy if she thought I was crazy for wanting to run a 100 mile race she told me that she thought I should go for it. I will more easily take advice like this from an 8 year old than from other adults that can never envision such an odyssey.

Down but not out

A couple of tough weeks. I went out one night a couple of weeks ago and felt just awesome managing to knock off 4+ miles but at the expense of cramping big time. During a 9 day stretch of work and with all the stairs and walking in work boots 10+ miles each day I didn't get much healing time. Finally about 6 days ago, with a hugely swollen and sore calf I had to decide to just take the time off and keep icing and massaging.

I was really starting to get depressed about not being able to run so yesterday I determined that I would go on a ten mile hike and toward the end see if I could run a bit. It was a hilly course but with a lot of loose, fine gravel for cushioning and I almost started running too late because I got in 3.5 miles and felt great. It really was encouraging that the time off didn't hurt too much.

bad cold - good run

These last couple weeks I've had some really good days, and some really bad. I've settled into a routine that goes quite well with my 12+ hour work shifts. I try to run my longer runs (if you can call them that) on my off days and have started to take rest days, one at a time, when I have to go back to work. This is another lesson I've had to learn about getting old I guess because 25 years ago it would have been a sin to take a day off. Just can't afford to have that mindset now while I'm starting over with my running because of what I am seeing occasionally with over stressing my body. Also after a day's rest I see great results with a really good run as a reward.

Another thing I've learned is the importance of drinking - A LOT! Yuck, I hate water but I keep forcing myself to drink more water and less soda or milk. The cramps are much less frequent with the added intake of liquids and I know, this should be an obvious thing but hey, what can I say after being dehydrated for 25+ years. At least now I see why my digestion used to shut down on my 20+ mile runs years ago.

I came down with a wicked cold over the weekend and took two days off (ohhhh noooo) and the cold moved into my lungs with lots of hacking. Last night I couldn't take it any longer so I ran a mile and it made my headache and runny nose slow down so tonight I went out and ran at 2:00 am and wow, felt great with a 3.4 mile run.
Back to work tomorrow and I'll run maybe a mile in the heat of the afternoon before work then another day off. Gained a couple of pounds with eating a few too many carbs while I felt under the weather but I'll crack down this week and hopefully get below 165 which would be 24 pounds in 6 weeks.