Track workout in Seattle

I join a group of 50 serious Seattle runners at a track near Green Lake last night.   Having done workouts with groups in the past year in Singapore, NYC, HK, San Francisco, and Tokyo I was interested to see what the group from my hometown would be like.  And I found this club was definitely different - 

1. Faster runners -  We did 6 x1000 and I slotted in with the B group.  The four college aged guys in the A group averaged 3:05 per 1k.  The five guys in my B group averaged 3:14 and I struggled to keep up.  I needed to hit the restroom and missed the 5th interval and I could sense the rest of group B thinking that this guy just doesn't have what it takes.

2. Worst facilities - Considering Seattle is one of the wealthiest cities on the planet, it is shocking to experience the Green Lake track - more like one would expect in the developing world - a rutty, four-lane dirt track with dust blowing in from the interior soccer field.

3. Less friendly to newcomers - This group has to rank among the most unwelcoming, cliquish collection of people I have ever encountered.   Not only did no one make any effort to say hello, my efforts at conversation were met with cursory monosyllable replies.  There was no introduction of new people and rather than a post-workout group dinner  people went off together in small clusters.  I had observed how clannish and aloof Seattle people can be during numerous visits to my hometown since leaving for college two decades ago.   I guess like the city of Seattle itself, the Green Lake track is perceived as already full, and newcomers are simply not welcome.  I was just another outsider fresh off the boat further clogging up their city.  I thought about calling attention to my deep roots in Seattle but it didn't seem worth the effort.   

Laser focus on swimming - 2

My swimming mileage is at all time high - not that I have ever really tracked it before but I am sure the last month is an all time high.  Until early March I had been doing 1-2 short, easy workouts on my own each week - so a weekly average of about 75 minutes and 3 kilometers.  Since then I have been doing drills with swim squad and doing more mileage on my own:

Week/#swims/duration/distance 

Mar  9 -  3x, 1:30, 3.7k
Mar  16- 4x, 2:30, 6.0k
Mar 23 - 2x, 1:45, 4.5k

Mar 30 - 3x, 2:45, 6.5k
April 6  - 2x, 1:30, 4.0k
April 13 - 1x, 0:45, 2.0k
April 20 - 3x, 1:45, 5.0k
April 27 - 3x, 2:15, 6.0k
May  4 -  4x,  2:45, 7.0k
May 11 - 2x, 1:45, 5.0k
May 18 - 2x, 1:30, 5.5k
May 25 - 4x, 3:15, 8.0k
June 1 -  3x, 2:50, 7.5k
June 8 -  3x, 3:25, 8.5k
June 15- 3x, 3:00, 8.0k

More on Nutrition/Caffeine

This morning Anthony sends me this article on nutrition to maximize performance and recovery.

So the jury is still out on carbohydrate and protein intake immediately after workouts (though I will still eat my Cliff Bar - I mean why not?)

So WHAT does the latest research recommend we consume after workouts? Yes, you guessed it, our favorite substance - caffeine. Once again the lab rats and test subjects have outperformed and more quickly recovered when loaded up on coffee. So before, during, and AFTER the race and hard workouts we should be hitting Tullys.

They say that people will seek out information that is consistent with what they want to believe. So readers of this blog might assume I am just desperately trying to justify all the coffee swilling and caffeine addiction whatever way I can. But I swear I keep stumbling on these positive remarks about caffeine (and nothing that says it is slowing me down).

Run Mileage Update - Why are my times faster?

Here is mileage to date for 2008.
I can't figure out why I am running faster than last year given my lower mileage. Maybe less cycling? more swimming? better nutrition? more caffeine?


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Tuesday, June 03, 2008

30-45 minute window

Our teammate Motozo left the pool last Thursday with ankle soreness and Keren and Mary and I shouted advice: "R.I.C.E., - rest, ice, compression, elevation. Take some ibuprofen, get a massage..".

But according to the recent research we should have been shouting at Motozo to quickly grab a yogurt smoothie.

Ingesting protein and carbohydrate within 30-45 minutes of exercise-induced muscle damage is apparently critical to taking advantage of the higher insulin level in the blood caused by the exercise. This "insulin response" causes your muscles to absorb more fuel (glucose) and rebuild - which is the whole point of training. Once the 30-45 minute window passes your body's ability to replenish fuel drops dramatically.

This is consistent with what I have been reading for several years, but the "energy drinks" that are available and we consume after workouts seem to be watery, sugary concoctions that taste good and quench our thirst but are grossly inadequate for providing the protein requirements for recovery? I am curious if there is anything I can buy out of a vending machine in Tokyo to adequately replenish carbohydrates and protein?