Tuesday, January 23, 2007

Shibuya Ekiden



This past weekend witnessed the Shibuya Ekiden (a running relay, which entailed 4 participants each running 2.6 kilometers). I am a "captain" for the Namban Rengo Veteran B team, which was perhaps way too much responsibility for me given my constant befuddlement at the arcane rules and regulations involved in even the most casual of Japanese weekend athletic events. Thanks to my more Japan-savvy teammates we seem to have successfully registered, figured out the various sashes (which serve as batons), and negotiated the transition area and course itself (without further straining international relations).
I am in no shape to run such a short-distance, but my teammates, particularly our leadoff runner Fabrizio, run spectacularly and we finish third in our division. As a marching band plays, and hundreds of race officials look on, we receive our bronze medals in the elaborate award ceremony --

Monday, January 15, 2007

Winter 2006-07: Trail run series Part 2

My primary training goal has been to avoid running the same weekly long course twice, and to continually discover new and entertaining courses. Continuing my November 25 blog posting, here is a list of my long runs over the past 6 weeks --

Week 7 (December 9) Olomana Trail 12k
My trail "run" near where I am staying in Kailua, Hawaii turns into a steep and slightly perilous climb along a narrow ridge. I manage about 6k of running up roads and mountain trails before I find myself walking, then crawling, then pretty much just clinging to the rock thinking about how stupid it will look if I fall and hurt myself after breaking all the common sense hiking rules -- hiking with other people, telling someone else where you will be hiking, bringing first aid equipment, etc. (well this was supposed to be a run not a "hike" anyway). Somehow I will myself to turn back and clamber down and after the "run" I look a the hiking trail guidebook afterwards and under danger level the Olomana Trail is "Very High"


Week 8 (December 17) Angkor Wat Half Marathon 21k
Needless to say this is an interesting new course - see December 25 posting

Week 9 (December 24) Sagamiko to Jimba to Takao
The Takao Mountain area is among the most popular day hike destinations for the 30 million odd people living in the Greater Tokyo area thanks to its easy access and extensive network of trails. Fortunately (for us runners) 98% of the hikers stick to the area around the Takaosanguchi station and Takao summit which is hardly a nature experience - lots of pavement, packs of schoolchildren, numerous vending machines, a cable car, noodle stands, etc. After running various routes through the Takao area, and after much discussion and analysis, I have concluded that the optimal run in terms of : 1) Time Efficiency, 2) Percentage of run on soft trail, 3) Fewest hikers, and 4) Scenery, is to start at Sagamiko station, run to the top of Jimba Mountain, then run back to finish at Takaosanguchi. This route is even more ideal if you take the comfortable weekend Kawaguchiko Express to Sagamiko. Since this run starts at one train station and finishes at another station, ideally the runner should carry everything with them. This proves no problem for me, for a run like this I will simply carry
1. the running gear I wear
2. a watch
3. a change of shorts
4. a train pass
5. a 1000 yen note,
6. and a Power Bar.
I send a message to the Namban Club email list about the run, and amazingly 15 people join me at Sagamiko. Actually the amazing thing to me is how much stuff everyone else brings. What is all this stuff they carry I wonder - Storm clothes? I-Pods? Navigation technology? Communication technology? Tents? Stoves?
It is a great day - if you look very, very closely in the accompanying picture you can even see Mount Fuji



Week 10 (December 30) The Kamakura Trail Run - 30k
Over the years I have always made an effort to time my runs around sunset. Research shows that this is the best time for your body to exercise, and of course it is the most pleasant and scenic time of day (no matter what my masochist teammates might lecture about their disciplined early morning runs). And naturally I make particular effort if I am running by a beach at sunset. So when 16 runners join me for the loop of Kamakura I time the run so you can see Mount Fuji silhouetted on the skyline as we run along the long stretch of coastline from Imamuragasaki to Zushi Marina, and Japan's Beverly Hills:



Week 11 (January 7) - Ikejiri to Inokashira Trail - 32k
This is an urban trail - a 32 km out-and back course starting in Ikejiri-Ohashi, following streams, walking paths, playgrounds and urban pocket parks from bustling Ikejiri-Ohashi all the way out to the bucolic Inokashira park in Tokyo's upscale west suburbs. Brett Larner managed to piece together this course by combining various trails into an almost continuous, seamless link. A nice urban adventure - at a brisk 4:45 per kilometer clip.


Week 12 (January 13) - Musashi Itsukaichi to Mount Hinode - 20k
My teammates advise me to focus on marathon training. They are so earnest and emphatic - it is inspiring, even touching. But for so long I have heard rumours about a trail from Musasi Itsukaichi to Mount Mitake, and the morning of January 13 provides a rare opportunity to learn the course from Satohi and the Yokota Striders. And it is worth it - the course is fantastic - even better than the legend that preceded it - after a steep climb we run on soft level trails through forests up to Mount Hinode were we have panoramic views in all directions, then on to the mountain-top village and temple perched on the summit of Mitake.

Eric and Paul from Yokota Striders are even more well-equipped than my teammates at the Sagamiko Run. The gadgetry is impressive - as you would expect from members of the US Air Force: various state-of-the-art navigation equipment and altimeters and thermometers and cameras and numerous layers of technical clothing and thingamajigs that I don't recognize and decide not to ask about - presumably some classified technology that will call in aerial or space-based reinforcement. They also bring lots and lots and lots of Girl Scout Peanut Butter Sandwich Cookies and Girl Scout Caramel Delights. I learn how the Yokota Striders' activities benefit the bases' Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts. Obviously I was not a boy scout - I do not prepare well at all for these wilderness runs. Eric and Paul are aghast that I fail to even bring water. I only bring: 1) The clothes I wear, 2) One Power Bar, 3) 2,000 yen. On this day I have neglected to even bring my watch.

Friday, January 12, 2007

When It’s O.K. to Run Hurt


I have been increasingly worried about various triathlon training related pain as I have tried to run more relative to swimming and cycling since last October.  In fact I have  abandoned the high-mileage running training I had planned as preparation for the Tokyo Marathon (and begun to worry that I will need to abandon plans to do the marathon entirely).

But today's NYTimes is emboldening.   For decades I have heard the advice to cross-train, ice, and use anti-inflammatories when faced with injury.  I would always cross-train anyway when injured to maintain cardio-vascular fitness and keep from going crazy.   But I have never heard medical advice nearly this aggressive about continuing to run when facing a running related injury - and new research indicating that rest itself prolongs the injury.    Here is a summarized version of the article:


When It's O.K. to Run Hurt

JUST before the end of last year, a prominent orthopedic surgeon was stretching to lift a heavy box and twisted his back. The pain was agonizing. He could not sit, and when he lay down he could barely get up.

So the surgeon, Dr. James Weinstein of Dartmouth College , decided to go out for a run.

"I took an anti-inflammatory, iced up, and off I went," Dr. Weinstein recalled. When he returned, he said, he felt "pretty good."

It sounds almost like heresy. The usual advice in treating injuries is to rest until the pain goes away. But Dr. Weinstein and a number of leading sports medicine specialists say that is outdated and counterproductive. In fact, Dr. Weinstein says, when active people consult him, he usually tells them to keep exercising.

The specific advice can differ from specialist to specialist. Some, like Dr. Weinstein, say most people can continue with the sport they love although they may need to cut back a bit, running shorter distances or going more slowly. Others say to cross-train at least some of the time and others say the safest thing to do is to cross-train all the time until the pain is gone. You might end up cycling instead of running, or swimming instead of playing tennis. But unless it's something as serious as a broken bone or a ripped ligament or muscle, stopping altogether may be the worst thing to do.

"We want to keep you moving," said Dr. William Roberts, a sports medicine specialist at the University of Minnesota and a past president of the American College of Sports Medicine. "Injured tissue heals better if it's under some sort of stress."

He and others acknowledge that the advice to keep moving may come as a surprise and that some doctors feel uncomfortable giving it, worried that their patients will do too much, make things worse and then blame their doctor.

"The easy way out is to say, 'Don't exercise,' " said Dr. Richard Steadman, an orthopedic surgeon in Vail, Colo., and founder of the Steadman Hawkins Research Foundation, which studies the origins and treatment of sports injuries. That advice, he added, "is safe and you probably will have healing over time." But, he said, "if the injury is not severe, resting it will probably prolong recovery."

Medical researchers say that they only gradually realized the importance of exercising when injured. A few decades ago, Dr. Mininder Kocher, a sports medicine specialist and orthopedic surgeon at Children's Hospital Boston, said doctors were so intent on forcing hurt athletes to rest that they would put injured knees or elbows or limbs in a cast for two to three months.

When the cast finally came off, the patient's limb would be stiff, the muscles atrophied. "It would take six months of therapy to get strength and motion back," Dr. Kocher said.

Some, like Dr. Fu, who is himself a cyclist, Dr. Roberts, and Dr. Steadman say the first priority is to see a doctor and get an accurate diagnosis in order to rule out a serious injury.  Others, like Dr. Weinstein, say that such an injury, a broken bone or a torn Achilles tendon, for example, has symptoms so severe that it is obvious something is really wrong.  "If you had inflammation and swelling that was very tender to the touch, you would know," Dr. Weinstein said. And if you tried to exercise, it would hurt so much that you just could not do it.

Dr. Weinstein's advice for injured patients is among the boldest — he said it's based on his basic research and his own experience with sports injuries, like knee pain and tendinitis of the Achilles and hamstring. Before exercise, he said, take one anti-inflammatory pill, like an aspirin. Ice the area for 20 minutes. Then start your usual exercise, the one that resulted in your injury, possibly reducing the intensity or time you would have spent. When you finish, ice the injured area again.

The advice involving an anti-inflammatory pill, Dr. Weinstein said, is based on something surgeons know — in most cases, a single anti-inflammatory pill before surgery results in less pain and swelling afterward. It also is consistent with Dr. Wang's research because, at least in theory, it should forestall new inflammation from the exercise that is about to occur.

The icing is to constrict blood vessels before and after exercise, thereby preventing some of the inflammatory white blood cells from reaching the injured tissue.

Dr. Kocher said that if the pain is no worse after exercising than it is when the person simply walks, then the exercise "makes a lot of sense."

It also helps patients psychologically, he added. "If you take athletes or active people out, they get depressed, they get wacky," Dr. Kocher explained.


Wednesday, January 10, 2007

Top 5 cities for triathlon training

I am quoted in today's Japan Times saying

 "I think Tokyo is the best city for running in Asia. The climate is tolerable, the streets are clean and safe to cross, the air is breathable and you have a huge local running community and great foreign running community."

 I am not surprised then that within 12 hours I receive an email from a friend who is an ex-Japanese resident currently living in California who is shocked and appalled that I would gush about Tokyo in this context.  "Tokyo almost killed me" he writes,  "The constant long hours and after-work drinking, cigarette smoke, cold winters, rain, crowds, concrete, etc., etc."

Well, my friend's points are somewhat valid, but I stand by my assertion that Tokyo is the best running city in Asia.  The large triathlon/running contingency from Singapore is no doubt outraged, but lets face it, running in 90 degree heat is not exactly optimal, and the overall population in Singapore hasn't quite embraced endurance sports like in Japan.

Also, the key operative words are "In Asia".   I have had extended stays in various places, and for arguments sake, here is a quick list of my global 5 favourite and least favourite places for working out --

5 favourite triathlon training cities
 
1. Berkeley, California - The hills behind the University of California campus may be my single favourite place to run in the world.  There is great cycling nearby too.  But San Francisco Bay has to be among the coldest, scariest places to swim in the world (I have no plans to do Escape from Alcatraz any time soon).
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2. Kamakura-  The bicycle ride down the Miura Pennisula is scenic, the 50-meter pool by the waterfront is convenient, and the network of trails are wonderful

3. San Diego - Hard to beat the weather.

4. Sydney - I didn't even spend that much time there but the local support is still memorable.

5. Seattle - So many great urban trails in every direction.  Too bad that the "rainy season" lasts from October to June


I have not spent sufficient time in Eugene, Boulder, or Melbourne to comment, but I understand they are  also training meccas.


My Bottom 5:

1. Honolulu - The roads are scary narrow, yet the traffic screams along at 70 miles per hour (at least in Japan the narrow roads causes the traffic to move slower).

2. Beijing - I have fond memories of being swept along Beijing's wide streets with a river of millions of other cyclists.  Fond memories at least until I collided with another cyclist and almost precipitated an international incident.  Unfortunately now Beijing's streets are clogged with cars and the air is unbreathable.

3. Sao Paulo, Brazil - After my business colleague is held up at gunpoint, my security situation became an obsession with the business partners, and I found myself trapped for days in my fortress-like hotel, office, shopping mall complex.  To make matters worse, the exercise bikes at the hotel was broken and it was impossible to do laps in the swimming pool which was filled with bikini-clad Brazilian beauties (ok, the latter is not an entirely bad thing)

4.
Manila - The people are fantastically kind and friendly, but I would not characterize this as a triathlon culture.   Moreover the air was unbreathable, AND the security was questionable. 

5. Las Vegas, Nevada - The worst of American suburban sprawl on steroids. 
 

Friday, January 05, 2007

2007


This is the part of the triathlon training blog where I post my obligatory 2007 triathlon goals.  However, as per my yoga instruction, I have been trying to "live in the present" and my planning horizon right now has not extended much past the January 21st Shibuya Ekiden and some business presentations on January 22-24.  I have not really begun to think about goal times.  Moreover when I think of my triathlon goals for 2007 I am inclined to take into account certain work/survival parameters - I need to be able to make money to buy food in 2007, and thus need to focus on some business travel in the crucial months of March and April. 

That said, here are a few immediate broad objectives:
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1. Swim -
  • Work on crawl technique - As much as I enjoy my serene, meditative lunch swim sessions at the spa, all this back-and-forth is not the most efficient use of time.  If I am going to spend so much time swimming I might as well at least try to do it right.  Several people have recommended spending a weekend at a  Total Immersion Class
  • Enter a pure swim-only event (during which I vow that I will make absolutely NO remarks to anyone, including myself, that I am really a runner/cyclist and not a swimmer).  No excuses - if I am in a swim race, I was born to swim, I am half-porpoise.

2. Cycling -
  • Explore Hokkaido by bike.  The last 2 years I have hoped to travel to Japan's northernmost island and cycle the famous scenic routes, and in 2007 will really try to make the journey.
  • Participate in more of the local group rides - especially when the group travels on scenic, rural routes.  These rides tend to be time-consuming, but ultimately rewarding
  • Survive - Continue to avoid getting hit by trucks and buses on Tokyo's crowded, chaotic streets.

3. Running -
  • Continue to enter new and interesting events  - For example it would be nice to experience the St. Petersburg or Lisbon or Gobi Half-Marathon. Qualifying for Boston Marathon in 2008 would also be nice since this is another event I have intended to do and procrastinated about for.. hmmm..some 25 years.
  • Enjoy the Tokyo Marathon without debilitating injury -  Tokyo Marathon is shaping up as the social event of the season and will the inaugural running of what should become one of the world's top marathons.