Running to Think

After the third training session with the new Brooks Cascadia 9, it's time to write down my impression. I honestly don't like reviews because I think that shoes and feet are such a subjective and complicated topic to be summarised in a pros-and-cons list.
First of all, I consider myself a versatile runner who enjoys the road and, on a similar amount, the trail. Running on the hills around Liege is not really an easy task, not only due to the elevation gain, but especially because of the irregular terrain, usually soft and muddy.
The terrain where I am running since two weeks, in Spain is just another story. Rocky, aggressive, rough and only partially soft and muddy. And, of course, I am running on the road too.

I chose a pair of Brooks Cascadia for several reasons, definitely not for the colour (which, for the record, I find disgusting). When I first tried them in the shop it was kind of love at first sight. The shoes adapted quite instantly to my foot. The feeling of having comfortable shoes since the very beginning is invaluable and already a positive sign for a buy.
With the aid of some drills in the shop I also checked their flexibility. Brooks Cascadia are shoes that, if I close my eyes and run around I really won't feel to be running in a pair of trail shoes, if you know what I mean.
They looked bulky only in my hands. On my feet, it was another feeling.

The first training on the road was quite disappointing though, for several reasons that I can explain a posteriori. Running on the road does not allow these shoes to express at their full potential.
Moreover, the first training session should not be considered by any runner who wants to assign a score to any shoes.
Two days later I tried about the same distance on the rocky roads around Madrid and the tale was indeed quite different. Protective but still capable of giving me the responsiveness I need from the ground. Soft but stable. Running on rocks for long distances doesn't seem to affect the sole of the foot, which is isolated by a solid but flexible platform.

But what impressed me the most was the top line. Not bulky at all. Actually quite low; as low as the New Balance 890v3, probably my favourite road running shoes. I personally think that this is what makes Cascadia a winner in the realm of trail running.

Runners are usually focused on the midsole and the heel, believing that those two components can change their running technique. Probably. I am not sure. But a lower top line is the only thing that can give me the mobility I need from the ankles.

But don't forget that an off-road run requires a good running technique and trained ankles, regardless of any type of shoes.

First time in Madrid. Actually day 2.
After landing I had to take a train to get to the apartment which is located out of the city centre and I really couldn't contain the excitement. After only half an hour I was cycling around to check some of the places I will be running in the next few days. The weather conditions are much better than those of Belgium. A steady 14 degrees/celsius and the presence of the sun in the morning can make the running experience just perfect. This is also the time for serious training sessions due to the fact that the race of the year is much closer now (and I am really feeling it).

New place, new tracks, new distances and, of course, a new form of intensity training.
In fact I am experimenting another form of training in which the resting time is basically set to a minimum, sometimes even below the threshold governed by the heart rate monitor. This prevents me from running at very fast pace during interval training.
I believe this to be open to debate.  I heard of runners training at a pace they will clearly not get to during race, not even in their last 30-second sprint. So what's the point?
Moreover, running at slower pace will give benefit to your ligaments and tendons and to your running technique in general, due to a better control in body coordination.
I believe this applies quite well to those who are training for ultra marathons, which is exactly what I am doing.

Running smart in Madrid!

I need some time to convince my young lady to contribute to this blog with her experience regarding nutrition and sports. She's unravelling some insights of intense sport activities and vegetarianism. A real blast not only for this blog, in my opinion.
Of course, this kind of persuasion might take longer than expected. Bear in mind that I am working in that direction. In the mean time I would like to share a recipe we are enjoying so much at home.
It is, as usual, very light and nutritious at the same time.

Ingredients for 2 portions
120 gr of white rice
200 gr green lentils
3 carrots
persil
1 tea spoon coconut oil
3 cloves of garlic
1/2 tea spoon turmeric (curcuma)
1/2 tea spoon cumin
1/2 tea spoon hot paprika
half cup of crashed almonds

Procedure:
Prepare the lentils in a pot covering them of water for about four hours before cooking. Don't forget to wash them with clean water. This helps a lot getting rid of the "air" with a pleasant feeling to your belly and your partner ;)

Boil the rice apart.

Warm the coconut oil and gild the garlic for 3 minutes. Add the lentils, salt, persil and the spices. Boil for about 30 minutes (or alternatively when the lentils are soft enough to be eaten as they are).
Blend the boiling content and process for about 2 minutes until it becomes a smooth cream of lentils.
Serve in a bowl, next to the rice and add the almonds on top, as the picture suggests.

Enjoy!

Attempt to finish a marathon in Italy (~km 18)

The amount of work and the unexpected happenings of every day life didn't give me much time to write some lines any time soon. Better late than never, of course.
Year 2014 already had the flavour of an intense year full of things to take care of and targets to achieve. And that feeling was not wrong at all.

My running activity is taking the scary pace of the competitive phase. The race of the year is getting closer and closer, being now only two months far. I have been increasing the mileage quite smoothly after the injury to the posterior tibial tendon, fixed in no time (a record in my career).
I started running a bit everywhere between the hills of Sart Tilman and the flat lands around Leuven.
What made week 6 though was an unexpected trip to my hometown in Puglia, south of Italy. Caroline and I found and booked a flight in the time I need to run 1 mile and prepared the luggage in much less than that. It was that fast!
The trip to Italy was amazing. Great food, great places to visit, great weather and, of course, a lot of miles to run.
On the day dedicated to the long distance training I felt so good that I was about to complete a full marathon. Blisters under three toes of the right foot put an end to my attempt at the 40th km.

Attempt to finish a marathon in Italy (~km 20)

I rested a bit only one day, to give some time to the blisters to get dry. Some good taping and special plasters fixed everything in a bit more than one night. Those are the benefits of having a girlfriend on my side who is into sports and nutrition as a profession.

After two days I was back on the road and did some interval training on 1000 meters. The pace was unexpectedly high, around 3'30" per km.
It seems that I can keep the intensity of the schedule after those two weeks in which I was forced to stay at home due to the injury. I can claim that it is true: giving the body some rest regenerates it and prepares it to the worse. Or the best.

I want to believe that everything is fixed with my ankles and I can start running 100% of my schedule, which consists of a gradual increase of milage from 80 to 130 km per week. It's time to take a risk and get prepared for my first ultra marathon in March.

I want to believe that a dream can indeed become true and that I can get to the finish line, on my feet or on my knees. That's something I will find out later.
 
So far, I shouldn't worry.
So far I should listen to what those few positive people around me are suggesting.

Don't worry about a thing. Cos' every little thing gonna be alright. 
Indeed.

The last two weeks have been dedicated to fixing and recovering something that had all the characteristics to be a really bad injury. Without surprise I didn't feel psychologically down or, as many prefer to say, depressed, due to the fact that I couldn't run. I really didn't freak out this time. I rested. I ate more than I am supposed to and I had a great time. I also focussed more on my work at university. I can say that I enjoyed it so much. It was actually divine.
Not that I want to experience it again, of course. An injury is always an injury, after all.
The supervision of my physiotherapist had many invaluable benefits; it not only allowed me to recover in a very short time with respect to the other injuries I got in the past, but it also taught me some lessons I will hardly forget.
Every injury has its own story, and every injury teaches me something I will treasure for myself and my fellow runners.
Stressing the posterior tibial tendon should not be an easy task for an advanced runner. Fixing it and persuading a patient to go back on the road in less than 10 days is everything but easier for a physiotherapist. Injured runners usually want to go back on the road as soon as they can. Sometimes much sooner. Coming from an experience that forced me to stay at home for 6 months, I decided not to take the risk and throw my entire faith in Kathelijn, my physiotherapist. I don't know what will happen in the near future but I have the impression that she was right on many aspects.
I'll keep writing in first person here, even though I am sure that many runners will recognise themselves in my words.