2007 Man Against Horse Video

This video was put together by a good friend and ultrarunner Jamil Coury.

The Last Lecture

I have been watching this over and over the last two weeks.

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For more info on Randy Pausch visit: http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~pausch/

Kaizen Works!!!

If you read my first post on June 28, I talked about Kaizen if you dont remember, let me remind you:

The method of training that I use is called "Kaizen". Kaizen is a Japanese expression for constant small improvements. In other words, the Japanese see value in a progran that makes a 1% improvement 100 times, resulting in more than a 100% improvement (due to the compounding effect). The American way is to make a one-time change of 100%, so now tell me which do you think has the greater chance for success?

What got me through the Man Against Horse 50-mile trail run was Kaizen.

Saul's Power Breakfast

Here is a typical breakfast I like to eat, and was eating during my training.



Ingrediants: Calories
1/2 cup oatmeal; 150 cal
1/2 cup 2% Milk; 65 cal
1/4 cup Blue Berries; 20 cal
1/4 cup Walnuts; 200 cal
1/4 cup Raisens; 130 cal
1/2 cup Strawberries(optional); 25 cal

Total 590 cal

Along with it I sometimes have:

2 slices of toast (whole wheat)
with honey; 180 cal

1 cup of Orange Juice; 112 cal

Grand Total approx 882 cal

* The brand of bread I usually buy is Miltons, just regular whole wheat, because it is higher in fiber.

Massage

I got a massage yesterday, and now I can say I am fully recovered that is only 4 days after the race, Gina is a great massage therapist. If in Tucson I highly recommend getting a massage at the Iron Horse Clinic, 645 E. 9th St. Tucson, Az 85705. P 520.780.7534 or email ironhorseclinic@cox.net. The rates are very reasonable.

Race Day Recap

"Obstacles don't have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don't turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it." - Michael Jordan

In my first 50-mile attempt I had made some mistakes that cost me time, and I was unable to make the cut-off time at aid station 4. My run came to a halt after 33 miles and at a time of 10 hours and 52 minutes. The Zane Grey Highline trail is rugged country along the Mogollon Rim that was once roamed by Geronimo. I learned from my mistakes and from other runners.

Five months later I was ready to put what I had learned to the test. I had signed up to run the Man Against Horse 50-mile trail run in Prescott, Arizona. This is a race where runners run concurrently with horses. The weather conditions are highly unpredictable, with snow and hail are as possible as sunshine and clear skies. With very little information known about the race, and not even an elevation chart on their website, all I could do was visualize the trail in my head and be prepared for anything. (www.managainsthorse.com)





I arrived at Prescott on Friday at around 5:00 pm, to pick up my race number. Most importantly I was looking for a map of the course. Once I found it, I began to study it, and plan my running strategy, our highest point was Mt. Mingus at 7,600 ft. I studied the course until 9:00 pm when I went to sleep.



Its 3:00 am on Saturday morning when my alarm goes off. I'm up getting ready, showering, applying anti-chaffing cream. I start drinking water to begin my hydrating process. For breakfast at 4:00 am, I have a peach and Perpetuum by Hammer Nutrition (Its just calories in liquid form) I'm out the door by 5:00 am. The race begins at 6:30 am; I make about five trips to the porta potty as my body is getting used to the cold weather. Its cloudy but should clear up by noon. (low of 39 degrees and high of 65 degrees).



6:30 am, the race begins, I am off running with two 20oz water bottles, one in each hand. This was part of my strategy, whenever I felt the bottles getting heavy, it meant I had to drink up, thus my fluid intake was more consistent. At every aid station I would fill up, so the cycle would repeat.

I reached the first aid station in mile 5, in about an hour (12 min mile pace) just where I wanted to be. I had to keep this pace to reach mile 25 in 5 hours, which was doable and part of my strategy. In this station I ate half an orange, and off I was.

Our bodies store energy in our muscles and liver in the form of glycogen. Our liver can store 70 grams (or 280 calories) and our muscles normally 120 grams (or 480 calories). Endurance athletes can increase their storage of muscle glycogen from two to four times the normal amount. For this reason I had planned to eat at every station, even if I wasn't hungry, I wanted to keep my energy level high.

Aid station number 2 was at mile 9; I was still running at a 12-minute mile pace, feeling great. As my water bottles were getting filled, a lady at the aid station noticed that I was running with my keys in my hand, she asked why? I'm used to it, I sometimes run with my phone, business cards, just need to run with something in my hands.

Mile 16 or aid station number 3, I was keeping up with my pace. I find out that one runner had gotten lost, ran an additional 3 miles and was now one mile ahead of me, Damn!!! (I was in my zone that I didn't even notice him pass me).

20 miles in 4 hours, still running at a consistent 12-minute mile pace, this is the fourth aid station, and where I have my drop bag. In my drop bag I have cold PINEAPPLE, I eat about 5 thin slices (I cut them thin so I could eat them faster and not spend much time at the aid stations) and off I go.

Aid station number 5, I don't remember it. It was mile 23, my pace was slowing a bit, but I was feeling good. I was running along a guy who must have been in his 60's, his calves were f*ckn huge. We started talking, he tells me he has done this race about 7 times, and then power walks himself until I can no longer see him.

I reach mile 29 (aid station number 6) it is about 12:30 pm, I have been running for 6 hours. I eat; take an energy gel, they asked me about my MOJA 2 Running shirt. I tell them, and we have a good laugh (at the finish line they would remind me and we would have another good laugh). Up next was the most challenging part of the race. In 3 miles we would climb 1,700 ft. It doesn't seem as bad, but when you are at 6,000 ft up and within the 3 miles there are some down hills, it just makes the climb steeper. Mt Mingus is what we climbed, it is the highest peak in the picture below. We climbed from the back, Can you see me?

The 3 mile climb took me 1 hour 20 minutes to climb, I am now at aid station 7 and at the highest point of the race (top of the mountain about 7,600 ft) I spent about 10 minutes at the aid station hydrating and eating, I also caught up with the guy who had ran the additional 3 miles, that is the last I would see of him though. I leave the aid station at 2:00 pm. I have 4.5 hours to finish 18 miles (15 minute mile pace) and the tough part is over.

Mile 38, was the next aid station ( 8) It was also the same as 4, so I get to eat some more PINEAPPLE. I had also planned to take some Ibuprofen at mile 20 & 38 but I forgot. I remembered at mile 39 when I was slowing down a bit, going up hill and my right Achilles was feeling tight.

I reached aid station 9 where they gave me one Advil. There were 10 miles left and it was around 3:50 pm. I knew from studying the course map, that it was all down hill now. 10 miles left and 1,900 ft downhill.

Then it happened, but I don't know what it was, and I don't know where it came from. Is it really possible to get a second wind after running 40 miles? And with my right Achilles tendon feeling really tight?

All this time I had ran at a 12 minute mile pace somewhat consistently, or slower, and these next 3 miles to aid station 10 (mile 43) I run at about a 10 minute mile pace. I kept saying to myself, "things could be worse", "you can do it", and "there is no pain".

5 miles left to the last aid station ( 11) I knew there was still about 4 runners behind me and 2 horses, and I wasn't going to let them beat me, these 5 miles were still down hill, and I was running fast, but comfortably.

At around mile 46 with the sun directly in front of me, running on the somewhat rocky trail, one must be looking down to see where we step, then looking forward to plan the next step, and then up to look for ribbons and to see if we are running the correct trail. Well I ended up almost stepping on a dollar bill. Now me being a tight ass, I stopped and ran back to pick it up. (That was my highlight of my run; I will have to frame it).

I reached mile 48, the final aid station. I looked at my watch and it turns out I had ran those last 5 miles at a 9:30 minute mile pace. I knew that if I kept it up I would beat the last two horses. I was feeling great; part of it might have been because I found that $1 bill??? Up ahead I could see a guy, who I had last seen at mile 38, my goal was to see if I could catch up to him, but when you are able to see the finish line, you just cant stop.

I finished at about 11 hours and a few minutes, first thing I asked for after crossing the finish line was real food, I did beat the two horses, they had 3-4 stops throughout the race to get checked by vets. The guy who finished first finished in less than 8 hours. After the race, I had even forgotten that by finishing the race we get belt buckles.



"Some people want it to happen, some wish it would happen, others make it happen." - Michael Jordan

Week 14 Summary 09/27 - 10/03

Day 09 - 1.5 hr Spinning
Day 08 -
Day 07 - 6 miles (2,000ft) cylcing Mt. Lemmon
Day 06 - 6.2 miles run of hills
Day 05 - 1 hour Spinning & Massage
Day 04 - Rest
Day 03 - Massage

I got a massage on Monday, will have to get more body work on Wednesday, because muscles were too tight. Then next monday after the race I go back in for a recovery massage.

Long Run # 14

Sunday morning's run with the Moja2 was 6 miles of hills, it was a great run, I am as ready as I will be for the 50 miler. My muscles are tight but somehow I ran comfortably. The day before I had ended up going to Mount Lemmon and cycled up about 2,000 feet. Teaching spin classes and cycling has helped me in preventing injuries, I am scheduled for a massage today, then its time to rest up for Saturdays Big Run.

Week # 13 Summary 09/20 - 09/26

Day 16 - 1.5 hr Spinning
Day 15 -
Day 14 - 6 hours of running hills
Day 13 - 3.1 mile run of hills
Day 12 -
Day 11 -
Day 10 -

Long Run # 13

Hills, Hills, Hills, this weekend started off by going up Mt. Lemmon here in Tucson. We ran in high altitude appoximatly 8,500 ft. Mt. Lemmon is where Lance Armstrong trained back in 2001 - 2002 with the US Postal Team. Some of you may remember the look from El Tour de France in 2001.
So we ran for about an hour, and then had to buy some of that FUDGE!!!, damn its so good.
Sundays run with the Moja 2 Running Team we ran up Tumamoc Hill its about 750 ft in elevation gain over 1.5 miles, there are two switch-backs that are really steep, I think they may be steeper then the switch-backs when I hiked the Grand Canyon, but then again there are only two. We were lucky to see 3 deer on Tumamoc Hill, its rare to see deer especially with so many homes around.

Week # 12 Summary 09/13 - 09/19

Day 23 - 1.5 hr Spinning
Day 22 -
Day 21 - 15 mile run
Day 20 - 3.1 mile run
Day 19 -
Day 18 -
Day 17 -

Long Run # 12

This weekend the plan was to do my long run, I began my run at 5 am on Saturday, I covered 5 laps around Reid Park in Tucson, for a total of 15 miles, I ran comfortably at a 10 min/mile pace. It is still hot, here in Tucson. At around 7:30 am, the heat, the laps, running on the concrete, and since I dont run with music, just bored me. So I put my long run off, and was going to continue it on Sunday, but I woke up with tight muscles, I was only able to do one lap with the moja 2 running team. On Sunday they covered 2 laps. With all the running and cycling that I do, I really need a massage, I can wait another 3 weeks.

Week # 11 Summary 09/06 - 09/12

Day 30 - 1.5 hr Spinning
Day 29 -
Day 28 -
Day 27 - 3.1 mile run
Day 26 -
Day 25 -
Day 24 -

Long Run # 11

This weekend's group run was up to "A" Mountain we covered about 3 miles, but we ran up a mountain and got to see the view of the city on a beautiful morning. I am feeling good, and the running group is making progress, you can see the improvement on these first time runners.

Week # 10 Summary 08/30 - 09/05

Day 37 - 1.5 hr Spinning
Day 36 - 1 hr Spinning
Day 35 -
Day 34 - 6.2 mile run
Day 33 -
Day 32 -
Day 31 -

I plan on being in Bisbee for the Bisbee 1000, will not compete in the race, but will compete in the Ice man challenge. http://www.bisbee1000.org/

Crazy Cravings

"When you train hard, you must eat like a Champion"

Usually when I run alot, I begin to get these odd cravings. A little over a year after a 20 mile run, I got this craving for potatos. So I bought a 5 lb bucket of potato salad and ate it all in about 3 days, breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, you name it, it was potato salad. That means I had a years worth of potato salad in about 3 days.
This time around, for some reason my craving was grilled liver. I can cook, but I prefer grilling. I think liver taste good when it is grilled, and as you can imagine, I bought 5 lbs of liver at $6.00, good for about 2 weeks. My iron intake is great.
It reminds me of the time my friend Trish asked me how my iron intake was. I told her, "Well growing up in a Mexican family, and having to eat beans on average two serving per day, for the first 18 years of my life. I think I don't need to worry about my iron intake for the next 20 years".

Dont Buy This!!!

They claim its an energy drink, but it is not. On sunday I was at Sam's Club, when I saw this product, they had this salesman selling to people and answering questions. As I picked up a box to read the label, he offered me a sample, like he was doing to all the people. I declined and asked him, what in this product gives you energy. He said vitamin B12, but vitamins and minerals do not provide energy, they are micronutrients (needed in relatively small amounts to support normal health and body functions). Macronutrients are the nutrients that provide energy (carbs, fats, proteins). I tried to explain this to him in front of everyone, and he was losing his patience. He tried saying he has professional athletes taking this product, I told him I'm a distance runner and cyclist and would never take this. This product only contains 10 calories, and no sugar. All you are really doing when added to water, is adding color, artificial flavoring, and caffeine. A caffeine containing beverage or diuretic will just increase fluid loss via the urine. Not much energy there is there? In the end the guy was upset and yelling at me "I don't need to talk to you!, Thank you for your time!" I remained calm like I always do, because I get a kick out pissing people off, and I calmly walked away smiling. Most of the people did too. He might blame me for making him lose customers, but it was his yelling that got rid of them. So whatever you do dont buy this product, and if you want to have fun ask the salesmen/women, What in this product provides energy? Explain to them what Macronutrients are, and see if they agree that this item does not provide energy.

Long Run # 10

The temperature is getting cooler, 5:30 am run felt great, the rest of the Moja 2 showed up to run at 6:00am as planned and I ran another 5k loop with them, I felt great and I almost ran another loop, but I was hungry. So I ended up going grocery shopping. I need to pick up my mileage these next 3 weeks, I am noticing my hamstrings are tight, I may need a massage soon.

Week # 9 Summary 08/23 - 08/29

Day 44 - 1.5 hr Spinning
Day 43 - 1 hr Spinning
Day 42 -
Day 41 - 3.1 mile run
Day 40 - 1 hr Spinning
Day 39 -
Day 38 -

Long Run # 9

Tired as hell, I was struggling to get out of bed this morning, it was so hard I was swearing. I think I sweared more this morning, then what I have sweared this whole year. I think I am still tired from my "Payback Spin Class" (1.5 hours of sprints)
I did manage to get out there and run with my fellow Moja 2. I didn't cover much, just a 5k. I had to go back to bed after running.

Spinning

So I usually teach back to back spin classes, each 45 minutes in length. Since I was feeling a lot better this week, I had something special planned. You see, a few weeks ago, I told my spinners the story of me not running under the bat infested bridge here in Tucson. Some of them laughed at me and said bats are harmless. That same night on the news, they reported dead bats in the NW side of town who had RABIES!!! So now feeling alot better, I chose to push my spinners by creating two rides with lots of sprints, (this was payback for laughing at me) and damn am I feeling it today too. Those who stuck around for 1.5 hours of spin asked me what had gotten into me. All I can say is I think I'am back.

Week # 8 Summary 08/16 - 08/22

Day 51 - 1.5 hr Spinning
Day 50 - 1 hr Spinning
Day 49 - Free Weights
Day 48 - 4 mile run
Day 47 - 1 hr Spinning
Day 46 -
Day 45 -

I need to get better soon, and back on track.

Long Run # 8

I don't know why? Sometimes we need to take a break and rest, it seems I don't know how. I was having some difficulty breathing this morning, and I was coughing as I ran, after one mile I had to stop, I told the group I would catch up to them. I just had to clear my sinus. It's almost as if I am recovering from a sinus infection instead of a cold. It felt great, I was able to breathe a bit more and catch up to the rest of the runners. We ran just 4 miles this morning, I took it easy, it also gave me a chance to talk to the runners. I should be back to 100% by next week.

Week # 7 Summary 08/09-08/15

Day 58 - 1.5 hr Spinning
Day 57 - 1 hr Spinning
Day 56 -
Day 55 - break from long run
Day 54 -
Day 53 -
Day 52 -

Almost fully recovered from being sick, feel like I am low in energy, looks like I will be ready to get back on track tomarrow when I teach my spin class.

Long Run # 7 Visit to Yuma

I had to be out of town this weekend, so we skipped our Sunday run. I was in my hometown of Yuma. I usually go to Yuma on average twice a year. On my way I did the usual, and stopped at Dateland, exit 67 on I-8. In Dateland they have the World's famous Date Shakes, damn they are good (www.dateland.com). After I finished my shake, I started craving Mr. G's, If you know anybody from Yuma and you mention Mr. G's you will start a long conversation. Mr. G's Mexican food has been around since 1947, its the best food in Yuma. You guessed it, as soon as I arrived I placed an order of a dozen rolled tacos, and a bean and cheese burrito, and thats what I had for lunch (www.mrgsdrive-in.com) My high school, Yuma High (home of the Criminals)is near Mr. G's, I remember somedays during the week at my high school we would have Mr. G's combos.

There is something about Yuma, that always seems to get my allergies going, and ends up making me sick. It has happened my last 3 visits, they also happen to be the last times I have gotten sick. So that is what happened I drove back today early in the morning with a box of tissues, a bad case of the sneezes, and I feel a fever coming. I'm usually one who doesn't take any medicine, but if I had a choice I think I would choose some more Mr. G's as my medicine.

Day 100 of El Tour de Tucson

100 days before El Tour de Tucson. Time to start training, but this year I will not be riding. I'm just too busy, I was looking forward in riding it because I wanted to beat last years time. Last year I rode in 6hrs 37min, and I was hoping to do it under 6hrs. Instead I plan on selling my bike 2006 Lemond Tourmalet. Its well maintained like new.

Week # 6 Summary 08/02-08/08

Day 65 - Abs, 1.5 hr Spinning
Day 64 - Abs, 1 hr Spinning
Day 63 -
Day 62 - 9 mile run
Day 61 -
Day 60 -
Day 59 -

Long Run # 6 Rillito River (BATS!!!)

looking to run more than 15 miles, I arrived at 4:30am at the rillito river trail, I had not ran this trail this early in over 3 years, and I forgot how dark it really is, good thing I had my flashlight. As I began to run under the Campbell bridge, I heard some noises and it was the swarm of bats that live under the bridge. Instead I decided to run across campbell. For some reason all these bats meet up at this bridge? I didnt run much, I was more amazed at all the bats. I waited for the rest of the runners to arrive at 6:00am and we ran 5 miles together. My total distance covered was 9 miles.

Week # 5 Summary 07/26 - 08/01

Day 72 - Abs, 1.5 hr Spinning
Day 71 - Abs, 1 hr Spinning
Day 70 - Abs,
Day 69 - Abs, 3.1 mile run
Day 68 - Abs,
Day 67 - Abs
Day 66 - Abs

Beginner's Bodybuilding Routine

Lately I have been extremely busy, that I have not had time to do the weight workouts that I have wanted to do. To get back in track, I usually go through my bruce lee books, and choose one of his past workouts.

Bruce Lee sought out the opinion of two trusted individuals who were not only his students, but more importantly, his friends: James Yimm Lee and Allen Joe. Both of whom were experienced bodybuilders who had developed imposing physiques as a result of their commitment to "pumping iron".

Bruce realized two things:
"The athlete who is building muscles through weight training should be very sure to work adequately on speed and flexibility at the same time."
and
"My muscles are developed mainly from practicing martial art, which is different from training purely for big, bodybuilder-type muscles."

As a runner, I believe that one must build up muscles in order to store more glycogen, for energy, not necessarily big muscles. You always hear about muscles slowing a runner down, and that the ideal body for a runner is the Olive Oil body. I think its a bunch of bull shit.

Here is Bruce's Bodybuilding routine done 3 times a week along with the amount of weight he lifted. Its a challenging workout, which will also work your endurance.
1. Squat: 3 sets of 10 reps (weight: 95 lbs.)
2. French Press: 4 sets of 6 reps (weight: 64 lbs.)
3. Incline Curl: 4 sets of 6 reps (weight: 35 lbs.)
4. Concentration Curl: 4 sets of 6 reps (weight: 35 lbs)
5. Push-Ups: 3 sets of 10 reps (weight: 70-80 lbs. placed on upper back)
6. Two-handed (barbell) Curl: 3 sets of 8 reps (weight: 70-80 lbs.)
7. Triceps Stretch: 3 sets of 6-8 reps (weight: 3 lbs.)
8. Dumbbell Circle: 4 sets of as many reps as possible (weight: 16 lbs.)
9. Reverse Curl (barbell): 4-6 reps (weight: 64 lbs.)
10. Wrist Curl (seated): 4 sets as many reps possible (weight: 64 lbs.)
11. Reverse Wrist Curl (seated): 4 sets as many reps possible (weight: 10lbs)
12. Sit-up: 5 sets of 12 reps (body weight only)
13. Calf Raise: 5 sets of 20 reps (body weight only)

Long run # 5 TUMAMOC!!

We ran Tumamoc Hill, today. Tumamoc Hill is considered a hike to many, but I like running up this hill. Hills make you stronger, this hill is 3.1 miles round trip, with an elevation gain of 730ft. It was a nice morning, I chose this run instead of doing a ten mile run for my training. Next week I will pick it up.

Week # 4 Summary 07/19 - 07/25

Day 79 - Abs, 1.5 hr Spinning
Day 78 - Abs, 1 hr Spinning
Day 77 - Abs,
Day 76 - Abs, 15 mile run
Day 75 - Abs,
Day 74 - Abs
Day 73 - Abs

Badwater 2007

July 23-25 marked the 30th anniversary of the Badwater Ultramarathon. Badwater Ultramarathon is the legendary, epic, 135 mile running race which travels in the heat of Summer from Badwater in Death Valley (elev. 282 feet below sea level) to Whitney Portals on Mt. Whitney (elev. 8360 feet). Usually the temperature is about 130 degrees, this year they had overcast skies and relatively cool – if humid – temperatures around 112F. Its tough to run when its humid (read my long run # 2 blog for training in humid weather), but then again these runners are tough, some train in sauna's to withstand the heat. As a result of 112 degree weather the two year-old course record for the Kiehl’s Badwater Ultramarathon was smashed by the rookie runner Valmir Nunes, 43, of Brazil, who came back from third place to take a hard-earned race win after an eventful night. His finishing time of 22:51:29 was a long way inside the previous mark of 24:36:08, set by Scott Jurek in 2005. This year Scott did not run. 2004 Badwater winner Dean Karnazes who is possibly the best know ultrarunner and author of the national best seller "Ultra Marathon Man confessions of an all-night runner" finished the race in 10th place with a time of 31:31:34. Akos Konya finished in second place for the second year in a row. David Goggins who also ran the Zane Grey 50 miler in Payson finished in third place. Had I known who David Goggins was when I ran the Zane Grey 50, I would have liked to have met him, but all I was worried about was running in the race, that is considered the toughest 50 miler.

David Goggins, actually came to Badwater through a heartfelt impulse and a fortuitous web search. As a Navy S.E.A.L., Goggins lost several friends in Afghanistan and felt compelled to do something to help the families of his fallen compatriots.

"I'm not the kind of guy who's going to have a bake sale and sell cupcakes, though," he laughs. "I went online and looked for a way to raise some money for their families. I typed in a search for the '10 hardest things in the world' and Badwater came up." This year, once again, Goggins is running to raise money for the children of those who have been killed in service to their country through the Special Operations Warrior Foundation (http://www.specialops.org).

"I started to think about the race a lot and contacted Chris Kostman, the race director about participating. He told me I had to do some qualifying races, like a 100 miler. So I looked around and found that there was going to be a 24-hour track run in San Diego in November. I was a powerlifter, not a runner. I mean, I ran 20 minutes every other day to stay in shape, but I'd never done a marathon. I showed up at registration for the San Diego race looking more like a power lifter, too. I was 240 lbs. then, and the race director, John Metz, just shook his head. Well, I did 100 miles in a little over 18 hours, then stopped. I was done, but I had my qualifier."

Long Run # 4

Such a beautiful morning to be outside, its 5 am the skies are cloudy, the ground is still wet from the previous day's monsoon rain. I parked my truck at Reid Park in front of Hi Corbett field, where the Colorado Rockies have their spring training. I thought I was early on a Sunday morning, but there was already another 4 cars. The best time to run in Arizona during the summer is early in the morning. I begin my first 3 mile loop, today's goal is to run about 20 miles. I start thinking of strategies, knowing I need to run at a slower pace, so I begin with running for 5 minutes and speed walking for 2 minutes. I tend to walk really slow, so I know I need to practice my speed walk. I finish my first loop and I continued on with the second one, the second loop was non-stop, because I felt warmed up. I knew I would be finished by 6:00 am when my running group begins to arrive. Once everyone arrived we began another loop (my third) I have noticed some improvements in some of the runners, they are getting to the point where running 3 miles looks easy, its all about taking it slow, and running to the Rhythm of your Soul. Once we finished the loop, I kept running up until 7:30 when it was still cloudy, but it was getting hotter, it felt like the temperature was in the mid 80's. I finished my morning run at 15 miles. Looking at my original plan, it looks like I am one week behind schedule, and that's alright. I am taking the time to listen to my body, and working on speeding up my recovery time.

34 years ago this day....

Bruce Lee passed away in Hong Kong at the age of 32 (July 20, 1973). He is buried in lot 276 at Lakeview cementary in Seattle Washington, I have been to his gravesite everytime I have been in Seattle. His workouts have always seemed to amaze me, you can find them in the book "Bruce Lee: The Art of Expressing the Human Body" by John Little.

Bruce's devotion to fitness gave him a body that was admired by many of the top names in bodybuilding community. Joe Weider, the founder of Mr. Olympia, described Bruce's physique as "the most defined body I've ever seen!" Many top body building competitors have indicated Bruce as a major influence on their bodybuilding careers including Flex Wheeler, Shawn Ray, Rachel McClish, Lou Ferrigno, Lee Haney, Lenda Murray and 6 time Mr. Olympia Dorian Yates

Lee was known to have collected over 140 books in his lifetime on bodybuilding, weight training, physiology and kinesiology. In order to better train specific muscle groups, he also created several original designs of his own training equipment and had his friend George Lee build them to his specifications

Week # 3 Workout Summary 07/12 - 07/18

Day 86 - Abs, 1.5 hr Spinning
Day 85 - Abs, 1 hr Spinning
Day 84 - Abs,
Day 83 - Abs, 4.5 mile run
Day 82 - Abs,
Day 81 - Abs
Day 80 - Abs

This week I was busy, that I would sometimes forget to eat, had a headache for 3 straight days, was stressed out, low in energy. things need to change.

Long Run # 3

This week the plan was to drop down in mileage down to 12 miles, but Saturday morning I woke up with a headache. Since I dont like taking medication, pain killers, even vitamins, I have yet to take anything to help get rid of the headache. I believe the only reasons you get headaches is if your out in the sun too long, haven't slept well, or haven't been eating well. This morning I was only able to run 4.5 miles, we started running at 6:00 am when the temperature here in Tucson was 79 degrees. By 7:30am it feels like its in the 90's plus with this humidity it feels hotter. I actually ran a little more than 4.5 miles, because Sundays I usually visit my nephew/godson, and today I ran while he rode his bike, and the two year old can pedal fast!!! I may have to sign him up again to do El Tour De Tucson 1/4 mile kids ride, last year he was the youngest at 20 months, and he finished last. He too is working his way up.

Week # 2 Workout Summary 07/05 - 07/11

Day 93 - Abs
Day 92 - Abs, 1 hr Spinning
Day 91 - Abs, 1 hr Spinning, 1 hr Rep weight workout
Day 90 - Abs, 15 mile run
Day 89 - Abs, 1 hr Spinning
Day 88 - Abs
Day 87 - Abs

I really didn't do any free weight workouts, will have to pick it up in the weeks to come.

Long Run # 2

Sunday morning it was long run # 2, I had planned to have covered 18 miles. Here in Tucson we are getting ready for Monsoon Season, its almost here. Saturday night we got some rain, so as you can imagine Sunday was humid. I was only able to cover 9 miles before 7:00 am, then it got hot. So I drove to the gym and ran 3 more miles on the treadmill. I'am not a big fan of treadmills, I can't cover more than 3 miles at a time on a treadmill. After lunch I ended up heading back and covering another 3 miles, bringing my total to 15 miles for the day. I may have to distribute my mileage throughout the day especially with the weather being hot and humid.

Sweating is one of the most effective means of regulating internal body temperature, exercising in hot, humid conditions is especially stressful to the unacclimated person. For sweat to dissipate heat, it must evaporate. When the humidity is high, sweat does not evaporate. Even if you are sweating profusely , there is a risk of severe heat problems. The main concern of exercising in the heat and humidity are replenishment of water and allowing the maximum amount of sweat to evaporate. To replenish fluids, drink at least 7-10 ounces every 10-20 minutes during exercise. The cooler the water the better, because cooler water empties more rapidly than warm water from the stomach into the intestines where it can be absorbed.

Competitive Eating Cannot be a Sport

I was only able to see the last minute of the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating contest. That was the nastiest shit I have ever seen. Kobayashi eating his vomit, and Chestnut being able to eat 66 hot dogs. As I was watching this I was wondering how many calories they were taking in, and if they puke it all out after the competition. If they do, do they puke for like 5 minutes straight, 66 is alot of hot dogs.

I was able to find how many calories a Nathan hot dog has. The breakdown is 308 calories per hot dog times 66 hot dogs gives you 20,328 calories. Dammmmn!! most people eat that much in 7-10 days, Nicole Richie would eat that in a month, sometimes two. OF those 20,328 calories, 13% comes from protein (2,640 kcal) 28.6% comes from Carbohydrates (5,808 kcal) and 58.4% comes from fat (11,880 kcal). 11,880 calories of fat is almost like eating 6.5 cups of lard. Why don't we just start a lard eating competition.

Week # 1 Workout Summary 06/28 - 07/04

Day 100 - Abs
Day 99 - Abs, 1 hr Spinning
Day 98 - Abs, 1 hr Spinning, 1 hr Rep weight workout
Day 97 - Abs, 8 mile run
Day 96 - Abs, 1 hr Spinning
Day 95 - Abs
Day 94 - Abs, Upper body Weights

Upper body Weight workout consist of Repetitions of 10, 8, & 6. Weight Increases as Repetitions Decrease.
Workout Results for day 94:
Dumbbell Chest Press - 45lbs, 50lbs, 55lbs
Barbell Bicep Curl - 40lbs, 50lbs, 60lbs
Hammer Strength Back machine - 130lbs, 160lbs, 190lbs. *need to drop weight
Wide Grip Pull Down - 90lbs, 100lbs, 110lbs

I plan on keeping this weight workout another 2 weeks.

Saul's Ab Workout

If I were asked what my weakness is, I would answer my abs. Like most people, I rarely work my abs out. Here I put together a simple workout, with the intention of being able to do this everyday. It takes about 15 minutes to do, it consist of 5 ab exercises, and you only do 2 sets of 10 repetitions per exercise, with a 30 sec recovery between sets. Dont rush it, do the movement along with your breathing. For example on a basic crunch, as you roll up you want to inhale and tighten your abs, as you roll back down you exhale sucking your stomach in. There is two different workouts, one that can be done at home and the other at the gym using equipment.

HOME WORKOUT

Oblique Exercises (Sides - Love Handles):
Bicycle Crunch, alternate legs, keeping feet off ground

Oblique crunches, 2 sets on each leg, ankle over knee


Middle & Upper Abdominal Exercises:
Basic Crunch


Lower Abdominal Exercises:
Reverse Crunch, I extend legs out keeping them 2-3 inches off of ground

Medicine ball raises


The Gym Workout is the same with the exception of doing the basic crunch on an exercise ball, instead of the floor, and replacing the Medicine ball raises with Hanging leg raises, try not to swing your legs and bring knees close to chest.


You always end your workout with the Plank, try doing 2 minutes or 2 sets 1 min each with 30 sec recovery in between.

The next big thing

Since in my last post I talked about television, obesity, and child obesity, and I guess you can say that video games play part when it comes to child obesity, well that all may change. Keep your eyes open for this product, my brother along with about 6 other people have been working on this, and they recieved great reviews at the Game Developers Conference in March. It is a vest, originally designed for medical applications, this vest packs a serious punch. There are 8 pneumatic air pouches – 4 on the front, 4 on the back – that pack 256 analog levels of impact with up to 10 pounds of pressure each. Unlike traditional force feedback devices that rumble or buzz, the ForceWear Vest gives you precise impact where it happens, as it happens. Get pounded with body slams, crushed with G-forces, and blasted with bullet fire. That's right it may kick your a$$ into shape. For more info visit their website, www.tngames.com. If you are like me, who is not into video games please pass it along to those who are and mark my words, this will be the next big thing for video games. Check out the mini commercial of the vest.

Television

I really don't watch much television, but I have to watch Shaq's Big Challenge, I am interested in seeing if he can get these kids to shape up. After two shows I see there are a few things I would have done differently. I would have been on these kids since day one, they wasted the first month because they trusted these kids would do the workouts. The other thing I would have done differently is get the parents involved too, they need to set an example. How can you let someone you love become morbid obese? You dont get like that over-night. Here are some interesting facts I read on the sunday paper:
- In 1957, the average fast food burger weighed 1 ounce. In 1997, the average burger weighed in at 6 ounces. Now it's not uncommon for a fast food burger to weigh 8 ounces.
- Women take in an average of 335 more calories per day than they did 30 years ago and men take in an average of 168 more calories per day.
- A child with overweight parents is 40 percent more likely to be an overweight adult, than a child with parents who are not overweight.
- More women are obese than men. 34% women / 28% men
- Women with higher amounts of belly fat have higher rates of diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure.
- Americans spend about $30 billion each year on weight loss products and services
- Eighty percent of women have tried a popular diet, and 64 percent considered the diet to be a failure.
- According to the National Institute of Health, the key to successful weight loss is making a lifestyle change, not dieting.
- For every pound of muscle you build, your body burns an extra 35-50 calories a day.

So there you go make it a lifestyle, be patient think 100 days.

Long Run # 1

I've got a running group running every Sunday morning, all levels are welcomed, whether you want to train for a 5k or a 50 miler. If you are interested in running drop me an email at training@moja2run.com. Today was my first long run, and here in Tucson, Az the weather is in the 110's so in order to run it has to be really early or really late. I was out running at 5:15 am, the temperature was about 75 degrees, at 6:00 am a few runners began to arrive, so we ran 3 miles, everyone did great. It makes a huge difference when you run with someone, even if they are ahead or behind you, they help you get through it. After the 3 mile group run was complete, I continued running, I covered about 8 miles today. As I got home I went straight to the refriderator for my favorite recovery drink, chocolate milk.

A good rule for recovery after a hard workout is to divide your weight in pounds by 2, and that is how many carbs you should take within 2-3 hours after your workout to refuel your muscles. Why I like chocolate milk? I need 77 grams of carbs and 2 cups of 1% chocolate milk contains 52 grams of carbs, 16 grams of protein, and 5 grams of fat. Its low in fat, you really don't need much protein, and the carbs are stored in the muscles or liver as glycogen, plus it does a body good. Its important for me to be able to recover quickly because I got a spinning class to teach on Mondays.

The Master Plan

Everyone trains to their own needs, to what makes them feel good. I tend to do a lot of cross training. My running during a week only consist of one long run and two 20 minute runs, but I also teach spinning classes, so I really don't feel the need to run much, I get more than enough cardio. To give you an idea of my long runs, here's what I have planned.

THE LONG RUN PLAN
Date Distance
1-Jul 10 miles
8-Jul 18 miles
15-Jul 12 miles
22-Jul 20 miles
29-Jul 10 miles
5-Aug 25 miles
12-Aug 12 miles
19-Aug 30 miles
26-Aug 10 miles
2-Sep 35 miles
9-Sep 12 miles
16-Sep 40 miles
23-Sep 20 miles
30-Sep 10 miles

As long as I get close to that distance I feel good, some days I may or may not reach the distance, it all depends on how much energy I have and how my week went. As for working out with weights, I do that too. I usually stick with a weight workout for 2-3 weeks, and then I switch it up, just to work other muscles and to not get bored with doing the same over and over. Usually runners lift light weights at high repetitions for endurance, I tend to lift heavy weights at low repetitions, just my preference. I want people to see me and not think I'm a distance runner. I base my workouts on the F.I.T. Principle:

Cardirespiratory Fitness

Frequency - 3-5 days per week

Intensity - 55 - 90% of Maximal heart rate
or an RPE of 12-15 (somewhat hard to hard)

Time - At least 20 consecutive minutes


Muscular Fitness

Frequency - 2-3 days per week

Intensity - 70 to 85% of maximal weight you can lift
or an RPE of 13-16 (somewhat hard to very hard)

Time - 1-3 sets of 8-12 lifts for each set

Why 100 Days?

It all starts with patience and consistency, today is day 100 from my next running challenge. I plan on running the Man Against Horse 50 mile trail run in Prescott, Arizona, on October 6, 2007. ( www.managainsthorse.com ) From now til October 6th, I will be sharing my workouts, philosophies, and thoughts on what it takes to prepare for this run. The method of training that I use is called "Kaizen". Kaizen is a Japanese expression for constant small improvements. In other words, the Japanese see value in a progran that makes a 1% improvement 100 times, resulting in more than a 100% improvement (due to the compounding effect). The American way is to make a one-time change of 100%, so now tell me which do you think has the greater chance for success? I will show you.

Grand Canyon Adventure

Of all the people who visit the Grand Canyon, only 2% visit Havasupai.  

On Thursday May 31, we arrived at  Hualapai Hilltop at 11:30pm, it was a full moon, the canyon looked bright.  We were six hikers; Trish, Brad, and myself were first time Havasupai Hikers, while Rick, Athens, and Adam have been there many times and are experienced when it comes to hiking Havasupai.  We decided to sleep at the hilltop and begin our journey at 3:30am. From the Hilltop to the Village its about 8 miles, along the way we took some pictures. (pictured below left to right, Adam, Trish, & Brad)

At around 7:00 am you must be on a lookout for what they call the mule pack trains, or else your trip could end quickly.

(Will have to Upload video soon)

We arrived at the village around 7:30am, first thing we did was walk into a store and checked out the pricing on food. A box of cereal sells for $7.50, but what caught our attention was Tang, a small container of Tang in powder was $12.00, which immediatly made me say "God Tang". (pictured below is the whole group arriving at the village. Brad, Trish, Adam, Rick, & Athens). 

After checking in at the village we headed to the cafeteria. At the Cafeteria we ate big breakfast burritos, which were good and not greasy at all.  The burritos are priced between $5-$7.  Then off we were to the campgrounds, another 2 miles.  As you head to the campgrounds you see two of the waterfalls, Navajo Falls, and Havasu Falls.  Navajo Falls tumbles 75 feet into a refreshing pool, that is excellent for swimming.  Havasu Falls plunges 100 feet into a pool of blue-green waters, it is one of the most photographed waterfall in the world.  At the campgrounds we set up next to this swinging rope.

After setting up, and jumping into the year-round 70 degree water, we decide to get out and head over to Havasu Falls, about 1/4 mile away from where we were camping. 

Late that afternoon we decide to walk about a mile from campgrounds to see Mooney Falls.  Mooney Falls is roaring thunderous falls that drops about 200 feet. Access is only possible by climbing down a narrow ledge, this was just a sneak peak of what was ahead for us on day 2.  (Picture below is on top of Mooney Falls)

Saturday morning we are up early, our plan is to go to Mooney Falls, from there hike another 4 miles to Beaver Falls, which is a series of cascades at the conflux of beaver and Havasu canyons.  Rick, Athens, & Adam's plan was to make it to the Colorado River, another 4 miles from Beaver Falls.  We started early at 7:00am to beat the heat and to avoid a long wait going down Mooney. 

off we were to Beaver Falls for about 4 miles and along the way we saw, small cascades, a field of grapevines, and lots, and lots of lizards.

About 3.5 miles into the hike, we had to rock climb about 15-20 feet.

After the rock climb, we continued another 10 minutes, all that was needed was to continue the trail heading down and to turn the corner of the canyon and we would have been at Beaver Falls (like 5 more minutes), but we came across a Desert Big Horn Sheep.  At that point we decided to see if it would leave, we waited for about 30 minutes, but it continued to eat, we choose not to disturb the animal. 

So we were on our way back to Mooney Falls, we did not reach Beaver Falls, but we were lucky to see a desert big horn sheep.

Rick, Athens, & Adam did manage to make it to the Colorado River, the furthest they had gone, and in the afternoon we all shared our stories and laughed like we did throughout the trip.  In the afternoon we packed, and Sunday at 1:00 am, Trish, Brad, and I began our hike to the top.  For 10 miles Trish lead the way, and 5 hours later we were on top of the hilltop for our last photos. 

We calculated that in 51 hours we hiked 37 miles, hiking uphill my pack weighed 32 lbs. Hiking downhill it must have weighed 35-40 lbs.  Next time I must pack lighter.  Had Adam not showed us how to adjust our packs, I would be hurting.  Had Rick, Athens, & Adam, not hiked with us I don't think we would have not covered what we covered.  We are definitely going back late July – Mid August, with a larger group, so if you're interested in going contact me at saul@moja2run.com.  There are many options to get to the village, you can ride a helicopter for about $90 one way trip. 

For more info visit http://www.havasupaitribe.com/waterfalls.html 

Fast Food

On Friday April 27th, I arrived in Payson Arizona, the following morning I was to run the Zane Grey 50 mile trail run.  I had just checked into my hotel room, and I was to meet up with my friend Rick at Famous Sams, before the pasta dinner.  Needing directions I headed down to the front desk of the hotel, and asked for them.  I don't know how to say this politely, but the lady at the front desk was rather large. She gave me the directions, I told her all I needed was the names of the streets.  She insisted I would not get lost this way.  Wanting to laugh, I asked her if she could write it down, and this is what she wrote down: 

As I leave the hotel parking lot make a left, keep driving til you see a McDonalds, make a left when you see the McDonalds, then a left at the KFC, and right next to the Dominos you will find Famous Sams. 

Well I found Famous Sams, and I was glad the lady didnt place an order for me to pick up food from all of the above. 

Zane Grey 50-miler

             On Friday I ended driving up to Payson Arizona for the Zane Grey 50-trail run (aka the toughest 50-miler) I arrived and met up with a good friend in Rick who was also running in the race and his friend Athens.  From there we headed off to the pre-race pasta dinner.

 

As we were about to finish eating, Bob the race director began talking to all.  He asked all who were running the trail for the first time to please stand, and there must have been a good 40-50 runners running this trail for the first time.  Then he asked if there was anyone doing his or her first ultra, and I was the only one who stood up.  There were two 70+, and I think Michael Hayden was the only one under 20 (remember that name, at 17 I say he's the future of ultra running).  Also in attendance was Pam Reed of Tucson, a back-to-back winner of the 135-mile Badwater Ultra-marathon.  (http://www.pamreedrunner.com/)  We ended up taking pictures with her and I was off to bed for some rest.

            Our run was to begin at 5:00 am.  My alarm went off at 1:30 am, I usually wake up early, and begin to hydrate myself, I always have to shower, before leaving the house, that's my routine.  So I drive to the bus at 2:45 am so I can get dropped off at the start line, We get to the start line around 4:00 am, I'm not really nervous, I just think of my game plan.  I decided to run with my heart rate monitor

 

            The race begins at 5:00 am, we are off running, first 30 minutes or so we need flashlights, we start up at an altitude of 6,800 ft.  I have no problem with it.  I'm feeling good and the views are spectacular.  I arrive at the first aid station at 6:25 am, 35 minutes ahead of the cut off time.  Average heart rate was at 80% of my max. 

           

            The next aid station is at mile 17, so I fill my camel pak with water and two 20 oz bottles.  Along these next 11 miles I decide to have a cliff bar, along the way I must have gotten lost about 3 times, I didn't go off that far, its just that I couldn't find the ribbons, the trail was rocky that I really didn't look up that often.  I reach aid station 2 at 9:30 am, 45 minutes ahead of the cut off time.  Average heart rate was at 83% of my max.

            Off I go, I pull out my bandana wet it and keep it on the back of my neck to keep cool.  They had said that from mile 20-30 we were not going to have any shade, I wanted to make sure I felt great, and I did.  The next aid station was at mile 25, (Hell's gate canyon) I would say that around mile 23, I heard thumping, about 20 yards away, I could see a stampede of Elk, damn they are huge.  I decided to walk to be safe; I never thought I would see that, I guess I am lucky I did.  I reached mile 25 at 12:55 empty on fluids, so I refilled. My average heart rate was at 81% of my max; my pace was comfortable and consistent. I was 35 minutes ahead of cut off time and was feeling good just hungry, the energy gels that I had taken did not sit well, so I had to take some Tums.  My legs were feeling a little tight, so I just had to bust out with the Tiger Balm to keep them warm. 

            I was at the mid point of the race my legs felt warm I had fluids, the only problem was I was running on an empty stomach, by this time all I had had was two cliff bars and about two energy gels that upset my stomach.  So I had to force feed myself, everything was looking good, except that I felt I was slowing down a bit. I was no longer power walking the hills or they felt steeper.  Since there are really no mile markers, you have to estimate your pace and your mileage.  I got to the point where I had about 40 minutes till the cut of time, and I had about 3 miles to go.  I took some time to think things over.  I knew that I could have picked it up a bit, and made the cut off time, and I had the energy for it.  But had I done this, would I have still had the energy to complete the remaining 17 miles?  At this point I made up my mind, and said that is it, by loosing my patience I might have risked an injury from those rocky trails. I had seen others passed out in aid stations, others throwing up, I was still standing and feeling good, with just tightness on the calves and starting to cramp up a bit.  From that point I walked the rest and drank up the rest of my fluids, I didn't care much about time.  My run came to an end after 33 miles of running. I took some pictures of the rocky trail

 

Some may be disappointed for not finishing, not me. For being the first Ultra marathon that I attempt, and choosing one with a tough trail, I have to be happy with my results.  Its a great experience, I met great people, I saw some great landscape views, I experienced a stamped of elk, and most importantly I listened to my body and made the right decision before things got ugly.  I recognize some mistakes that I made, that I could learn from. I can assure you that in late April in 2008, I will once again be up in Payson attempting to run the Zane Grey 50 mile trail run, with more experience.

 

Soreness update:  It took me about an hour to get out of bed Sunday morning, I feel the back spasms in lower back and upper back is sore for carrying my camel pak.  Legs feel ok, calves a little tight, ankles sore and slightly bruised on the inside from stepping on all those rocks, I got 3 blisters on my right big toe. A total of five blisters on both feet.  Finished off the day having Indian food for dinner, with great group of friends. I am scheduled for a massage on Monday.  I should be fully recovered by Tuesday or Wednesday. 

When I run I usually observe others and wonder what got them to this point?  How did they get started? What motivated them to finish? I don't know if others do the same, when they see me running with the flourescent green Moja 2 logo on my chest.

As for me, the event that got me into running occurred on May 25, 2002. It occurred on my way from Yuma, Arizona to Tucson, Arizona.  The exact location was between mile marker 143 & 144 near Vekol Road on I-8.  That's when my front tire blew out on me, took me off the road, and I rolled over 2.5 times.  At the time I was driving a 1976 GMC Jimmy with a 4-inch lift, No Airbags, I had my weights in the back of my seat, (about 300lbs, 4-50lb plates) And some how I managed to survive and walk out on my own with only minor injuries.  I was wearing my seatbelt like I always do. 

 It was the front driver side tire that blew out on me, when driving at 70-mph. Because of the lift of the vehicle and the weight, it made it harder to control; it just pulled me off the road. 

 

There was no way of me getting out through the driver side.

 .

All the glass broke with the exception of the passenger window, so I had to crawl out through the back between the bush and the spare tire.

 

When I got out I thought the rear tire caused me to roll over, The rear wheel coming off occurred during the roll over, some how the rear axel broke, that's about 5-6 inches in diameter of solid steel.  It was one rough ride. 

 

Can you see my lucky red hat?  I still have it, I've thought about selling it on ebay, but I just cant let go of it. 

 

 With all this I still remember having to wait over an hour for the ambulance to arrive.  It took that long because no ones phone worked in that area.  The Fuckin' Verison guy had not been to the Arizona Desert in 2002.

 

I was flown to Phoenix, because of the vehicle's damage; they considered it a level 1-trauma accident.  The Trauma was full since it was Memorial Day weekend, so they rolled me into the emergency room.  They placed me under a television and this is what I was able to see. 

 

 I told the nurses, to please change the channel; the last thing I want to see is another accident.  I am thankful I had people pull over and help me; they provided me with company, ice, and water, it is important to stay hydrated during the summer heat, that's why I will encourage you guys to make a donation to Humane Borders, providing water is the least one can do. 

 

You can visit my website www.moja2run.com to get Humane Borders address, I also donate 5% of all sales to Humane Borders. 

 

 It wasn't until almost a year later that I got a flyer for Team In Training (Leukemia & Lymphoma Society) and decided I was going to run a marathon.  When I made my decision to run a marathon, I had no idea that a marathon was 26.2 miles.  But training began in Early September and on January 11, 2004, I completed the Inaugural P.F. Chang's Rock N Roll marathon. 

(I have to pay to get access to the picture sorry I can't share).

Now I haven't told many about this, but on April 28 2007,  I will be attempting my first Ultra marathon, the Zane Grey Highline 50 mile trail race (The toughest 50 miler).  That's my next challenge; I want to see how far I am capable of pushing my body.  www.zanegrey50.com