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Week 16/17 Long Run

tswenttswent
in Coaching Forum 🧢

Hey Coach,

So after having a killer week 15 on the long run, these past two weeks have been pretty challenging.  My week 15 consisted of a 16.1 mile run and I felt great after the run.  My week 16 run I ran 17.36 and really struggled the last 5k.  Actually had to walk about an 1/8 of a mile and then the rest was done at a dismal 13 min/mile pace.  This week, I tried to stick to the zones and was doing pretty well until the last 30 minute set.  10 minutes into the set, I felt like I hit the wall, really struggling to keep my 8:57 pace.  5 minutes later....absolutely done.  I think my major mistake on week 16 was not bringing enough calories as I had a total of 200, consisting of 24 oz of fluid with skratch and some 80 calorie power bar applesauce thing.  This week I tried to make the adjustment by bringing 4 shots of Hammer Gel which totals about 360 calories and 20 oz of fluid with skratch with about 120 calories.  I ran out of liquid yet again and was too stubborn to stop with just a 5k left, and of course I bonked.  Do you think it's because I need more fluids?  The only other thing I can think of is that I changed my running shoes from the Brooks Glycerin (neutral) shoe to the Brooks Adrenalin (pronate) shoe.  I did notice that my feet were also more sore running in the new shoes.  Do you think I should go back to the Glycerin's?  Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Ted

Comments

  • Coach PatrickCoach Patrick
    @Ted, I would stick to the comfy shoe for the long run, for sure. use the other one for anything under 90 minutes as you build up tolerance to it, but otherwise not worth pushing that.

    On the food front, you are probably burning close to 1600 cals on these runs, so 20 cals = a 1400 cal deficit. Ugg. Here's what I suggest:

    * 15' Pre-Run = A get or 1/2 powerbar (assumes no breakfast within 60' of start of run, so like a post-work, late AM or midday run).
    * Gel on the 15' mark and every 15' thereafter.
    * You need 4oz of sports drink for every mile. I have a fuelbelt with 4 x 8oz flask and that gets me 8 miles, then I reload and do lap 2 (from home or car).

    That said, your Skratch labs only has 310mg sodium for 16oz or, in your case, 390mg for 20oz. Contrast that with Ironman Perform which has 380mg for 16oz, or 475mg in 20oz. Then we look at your HammerGels, which have only 40mg of sodium per 100 calories, vs a Powerbar Gel which as 200mg.

    So Level one is try more fluids and frequency. That should be a revelation.

    Level two is that I think you are NOT getting enough sodium to make digestion and basic endurance function possible. Compared to your skratch + hammer effort for 16 miles, my IM Perform + PowerGel gets me a total of ~1000mg sodium more:

    * 800mg sodium in 4 gels to your 160mg
    * 1520mg sodium in 64oz IM Perform vs your 1240mg

    If you want to keep using Skratch + Hammer, then you will want to supplement with additional sodium. Something like a SaltStick Cap (215mg sodium) every 30 minutes will get you pretty close to the sodium levels that I think are acceptable given your effort and desired calories!
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