Ryan Hall's Blog, page 357

September 3, 2015

75-Year-Old Keeps Rock ‘n’ Roll Virginia Beach Streak Alive

Photo: Rock 'n' Roll Marathon Series

Chet Coates’ first foray into adult exercise was cycling.

“I bought a 10-speed bike,” Coates recalls. “It wasn’t a marriage because my butt and that skinny seat weren’t a marriage.”

Instead, Coates tried sweating by foot, joining the early 1980s jogging craze. Initially, the Silver Spring, Md., resident stepped outside his front door, jogged five blocks to the local 7-Eleven, chatted up a friend who worked there, swigged some coffee, then sloshed home.

Coates has come a ways since jogging to Slurpee heaven. At 75 years old, his next marathon will be his 50th. He ran 40 races in 2014 and the competitive juices are still roiling.

“I ran a 10K [recently],” he says. “I saw one guy in front of me who may have been in his 70s, so I said, ‘I‘ve got to get his butt,’ and ran him down. I saw another guy who may have been 70 and thought, ‘Here’s another one.’ I got him.”

In the final mile, Coates’ clocked a 9:49, his fastest in the race. “I’m always trying to improve,” he says.

And he’s always running the Humana Rock ‘n’ Roll Virginia Beach Half Marathon. Coates has run all 14 Virginia Beach half marathons and the streak will hit 15 come Labor Day weekend. He’s a living, breathing example of not letting age slow you down. He keeps moving.

Coates’ home sits on a 13,000-square-foot lot, where he stills mows the lawn. It takes about 70 minutes. When reached by phone late one afternoon, Coates rattled off a Cliffs Notes version of his day: A 6-mile early-morning jog, shower, lift weights at the gym, run seven 200-meter intervals on the treadmill, stretch, shower again, cut the grass.

Coates and his wife of 47 years, Charlotte, are raising one of their six great grand children, a 14-year-old boy. They’ve raised Nijier Coates since he was 2 weeks old.

“I’m one of those chauffeur parents,” Coates says. “I have to take him ice skating three times a week, and diving. I just chauffeur his ass around.”

However, Coates’ irascible front is more act than reality. “He’s a father all over again,” Charlotte says. “To me, he’s a better father to this child than he was to ours. He’s more sensitive. He’s a very, very good father. He has more time to listen and reason with him.”

Coates began jogging in 1980. He didn’t run his first road race until 1985, a 5-miler covered in 40 minutes, 10 seconds.

He then ran his first 26.2-miler in 1987, the Marine Corps Marathon, finishing in 4:01:12. His PR is 3:28:57 set in 1991. Last year he ran five marathons, his fastest clocked in 5:03. He typically runs five or six days a week, totaling 35 to 40 miles.

“Mechanically, I think I’m pretty good,” says Coates, who practices yoga once a week. “I don’t have any ankle, knee or hip problems.” This may also be in part due to his weight of 150 pounds that hasn’t fluctuated much since entering the Army in 1963.

When asked what he thinks about during his runs, Coates lets that faux cranky exterior flash, blurting, “Why am I running so damn slow?” But later, he lifts the curtain and reveals part of what motivates him. “In the back of my mind, foolishly I’m trying to get back to where I was 25 years ago,” he says. “I know I’m not [going to get there], but I’m not going to stop trying.”

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Published on September 03, 2015 11:37

Trail of the Week: Hoh River Trail, Olympic National Park

Photo: Ilya Katsnelson /Flickr

Our Trail of the Week feature is made possible through a partnership with Trail Run Project.

One of America’s last remaining rainforests features a 17-mile path ripe for good trail running. The Hoh Rainforest on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington—and within Olympic National Park—lies about 150 miles west of Seattle.

The Hoh’s major running trail is the Hoh River trail, which leads 17.3 miles to Glacier Meadows and Blue Glacier, on the shoulder of Mount Olympus. Most people run the initial parts of this trail and turn around to retrace their steps once they have been overwhelmed with enough beauty. For this reason, the number of other users drops off after the first few miles, even though this is one of the most heavily used trails in the park.

From the Hoh Rainforest Visitor Center area, take the paved loop east for just 0.2 miles to the junction with Hoh River Trail. This well groomed, easy trail ascends the lush river valley along the north bank of the braided Hoh River. The heavily wooded and mossy trail is mostly flat for the first 12 miles. The first good view of the river comes around 1 mile, although you’ll likely have heard the rush of its waters over the birdsong much earlier. Spot Mount Tom and the High Divide from here. Pass campsites, two small falls and the impressive Cougar Creek cedar grove. After 5.3 miles, you arrive at Five Mile Island, a meadow-like spot formed by a huge gravel bar. Elk often can be found here and there are good views up valley. This is a worthwhile destination after which many people turn around.

For those continuing on, the trail takes on a more mystical wild feel away from other people. Pass the Happy Four shelter, several more campsites and cross a rickety bridge. After the Olympus summer ranger station and the intersection with Hoh Lake Trail, you start really feeling isolated. Marvel at the blue Hoh River water as you near its source. Wind towards the river and away from it, through meadows and dense forest. Begin an abrupt ascent climbing 3,000 feet over four miles through narrowing valleys and over a gorge via the High Ho Bridge.

The Data

Miles: 17.1

Runnable: 88 percent

Singletrack: 100 percent

Average Grade: 6 percent

Max Grade: 32 percent

Total Ascent: 4,897 feet

Total Descent: -427 feet

Highest Elevation: 5,089 feet

For a closer look, check out the interactive map, data, photos and virtual run simulator courtesy of Trail Run Project:

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Published on September 03, 2015 11:10

September 2, 2015

Out There: No Such Thing as a Know-It-All

A few years ago, I hired a running coach—for the purposes of this column, we’ll call her “Polly.” Though Polly was incredibly nice and one of the most motivating people I’ve met (both important qualities), I eventually learned she lacked one of the most critical elements of a running coach: actual knowledge of how to coach runners.

It wasn’t obvious at first. Polly did a good job playing the role of expert, and I bought what she was selling (literally, with a monthly coaching fee deducted from my bank account). But the more time I spent under her tutelage, the more questions I had about her approach to training. When I asked to modify the plan, she said no. When I said her strategies weren’t working for me, she insisted it worked for others, so I must not be trying hard enough. When I dared question her tactics, she was quick to point out how little I knew about running.

One day, I finally decided to research some of the “facts” she spouted about her training philosophy, only to come face-to-face with reality: my so-called expert, the person I turned to because I didn’t know enough to coach myself, wasn’t such an expert after all.

Eventually, I learned that Polly had only been a runner herself for two years. Her coaching style was identical to the way she had been coached, and the training plans she sent me were the exact same training plans she had followed. The “facts” she shared with me about her training philosophy weren’t facts; they were merely vague, unfounded claims she could recite, but never explain.

She wasn’t an expert—she was a parrot. And I was an idiot for hiring a parrot to coach me to a PR.

Looking back, I cringe at my own stupidity. In addition to bypassing the research portion of hiring Polly, I ignored a lot of red flags during our coach-athlete relationship. The biggest one, of course, is that Polly claimed to know it all.

Here’s the problem with that line of thinking: Nobody knows it all. It’s dangerous to say so; once a person proclaims expertise, it usually signals an end to learning. In the case of Polly, she learned one training strategy that was effective for her, and therefore decided she knew enough to tell other people how to train. That’s how parrots are made.

In the years since that eye-opening experience, I’ve encountered dozens of coaches like Polly. Just recently, a friend of mine came to me with a “Polly” story of her own, and the experience left her diminished and embittered. These parrots serve as a stark reminder that just about anyone with the time and willingness can call themselves a coach—but that doesn’t mean they should.

It took months after leaving Polly to find the joy in running again, and even longer before I fully trusted a new coach. When that coach asked for input on my training plan, it made me scoff.

“You’re the expert,” I said. “You tell me what to do.”

“Actually, no,” he replied. “You know yourself better than anyone. That makes you the expert.”

With that statement, I realized I had ignored another big red flag in my tumultuous situation with Polly: failure to give myself some credit. Though I admittedly didn’t know a lot about running back then, I did know how I felt about running under her guidance, and it wasn’t good. In hindsight, I should have listened to my gut.

Take heart—there are very, very good running coaches out there. I have met them, I have worked with them, and I have learned so much from them. The biggest thing I’ve learned, are that the best coaches are the ones who don’t know it all. Instead, they’re the ones whose knowledge complements, not overrides, what an athlete brings to the table.

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About The Author:

Susan Lacke does 5Ks, Ironman Triathlons and everything in between to justify her love for cupcakes (yes, she eats that many). Susan lives and trains in Salt Lake City, Utah with three animals: A labrador, a cattle dog, and a freakishly tall triathlete husband. She claims to be of sound mind, though this has yet to be substantiated by a medical expert. Follow her on Twitter: @SusanLacke

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Published on September 02, 2015 17:54

Ask the Experts: Ryan Martin Talks Nutrition, Training, Drills

Recently, ASICS professional runner Ryan Martin answered a variety of reader-submitted questions, ranging from nutrition strategies to favorite drills to training strategy as the season progresses.

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Published on September 02, 2015 16:42

Scientists May Have Pinpointed the Reason for ‘Runner’s High’

Photo: Shutterstock.com

Runner’s high is real—just ask any runner—and now, scientists may have found an explanation for it.

A new study published by Cell Metabolism concludes that running-induced endorphins stem from leptin, a fat cell-derived hormone that signals to the brain when the body has enough fuel and energy. The new research suggests that falling leptin levels “send a hunger signal to the brain’s pleasure center to generate the rewarding effects of running.”

“Based on these findings, we think that a fall in leptin levels increases motivation for physical activity as a means to enhance exploration and the pursuit of food,” senior study author Stephanie Fulton of the University of Montreal said in a press release. “Our study also suggests that people with lower fat-adjusted leptin levels, such as high-performance marathon runners, could potentially be more susceptible to the rewarding effects of running and thus possibly more inclined to exercise.”

Low leptin levels have previously been linked to exercise addiction and fast marathon times in humans, as well as greater running speed in mice. But this is the first time it’s been linked with the feeling of euphoria many runners get.

The scientists used genetically engineered mice that lacked STAT3, a leptin-sensitive protein which relays the leptin signal specifically in neurons that release dopamine. With a running wheel in their cage, the STAT3-deficient mice ran almost twice as much as normal mice and spent more time in a part of the cage that had the running wheel, suggesting that a drop of leptin-induced STAT3 correlates with an increase in the rewarding effects of running.

The scientists plan to further explore this link, testing the hypothesis of running reward being associated with food seeking among other theories.

“We do not want people to think that leptin is the only metabolic signal controlling the rewarding effects of running,” Fulton said. “Likewise, dopamine is not the only brain chemical involved. More work is needed to parcel out the precise contribution of dopamine, opioid and endogenous cannabinoid signals and the manner by which they interact to impact physical activities and its rewarding effects.”

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Published on September 02, 2015 10:30

Shoe of the Week: Skechers GoRun Ultra Road

The GoRun Ultra Road is the most cushioned shoe from Skechers Performance yet.

Fit-Feel-Ride: Although Skechers Performance was founded around lightweight, low-to-the-ground neutral training and racing flats with a decidedly natural feel, the brand has evolved to include a few slightly more structured shoes with additional cushioning and support. The best one so far is the maximally cushioned GoRun Ultra Road, a neutral model with an engineered knit upper that moves and flexes with the foot while also providing some dynamic support to keep the foot locked in place. It’s not a stability shoe (and isn’t meant for severe overpronators), but it has more material underfoot than previous Skechers Performance and it’s not nearly as marshmallowy soft as the original GoRun Ultra and GoRun Ultra 2 or as flimsy as some of the original GoRun models. Like some of its svelte cousins, it has a soft, flexible feeling underfoot, but it also has enough structure for long-distance running, thanks in part to much more durable outsole interspersed with sturdy rubber pods.

What makes this unique from many maximally cushioned shoes is that it’s both soft and cushy but amazingly responsive too, due to thick layers of absorbent and resilient foam sandwiched together in the midsole. It’s a shoe that can accommodate 2-hour-plus training runs with long-wearing comfort, while also serving as your shoe of choice for long intervals and tempo runs. Several of our wear-testers suggested it was one of the best maximally cushioned shoes they’ve ever run in.

This is the shoe for you if … You’re looking for a max-cushioned, smooth-riding shoe for long-distance running.

Price: $115

Weights: 10.4 oz. (men’s 9.0), 8.3 oz. (women’s 7.0)

Heel-Toe Offset: 4mm; 30mm (heel), 26mm (forefoot)

Info: Skechers Performance

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Published on September 02, 2015 09:25

September 1, 2015

Photos: Amazing Images from the 2015 Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc

The 13th annual Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc trail running race was held Aug. 28-30 in Chamonix, France. The 104-mile race sends runners around the the Mont Blanc massif, the largest mountain range in Western Europe, on a through-the-night voyage through parts of France, Italy and Switzerland. Runners tackle more than 30,000 feet of vertical gain and go up and over 10 mountains before reaching the finish line back in Chamonix. In all, more than 7,250 runners tackled one of the five races during UTMB week that ranged in length between 50K and 300K.

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