Like a Bigfoot

Motivation, Mindset, Positivity, Endurance, Adventure, Perseverance, and Possibility

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Grayson Highlands 50k (one and half weeks away)

April 14, 2016 / / 0 Comments

Picture from my first visit to Grayson Highlands- Summer 2013- Studly dude= Jake Reed

One week out from the Grayson Highlands 50k and I’m finally falling into my plan of attack.

Usually I get really focused on diet about a month before a race, but for whatever reason I have not nailed this aspect of training this time.  I’m curious to see if this comes back to bite me on the ass.

But for this last week and a half I’m on track!  I promise.  (Even though I’m going to D.C. this weekend where I’m assuming delicious not-so-healthy-food exists on every corner)

Here’s the plan for the next week and a half:

  • Thursday (today): Eat clean whole foods, run 4 miles, light squats and pullups
  • Friday:  Eat clean whole foods, run 6 miles, various body weight movement exercises
  • Saturday: Rest day, wander around the national zoo in D.C, eat salads (or something lame instead of all the junk I’d rather have), 15 minutes of yoga
  • Sunday: Eat a big beautiful brunch, find an awesome trail to hike/run on the way home from D.C.   (I’m driving back by myself while my wife and daughter vacation for a few extra days), recovery yoga
  • Monday: Eat clean whole foods, light squats and pullups, 4 mile trail run at a SLOW pace
  • Tuesday: Resist the temptation to consume ALL THE PIZZA and eat an omelet or something boring, 5 miles on flat pavement to keep the legs loose, body weight movements
  • Wednesday: No more running, recovery yoga, eat a GIANT MEAL of healthy food
  • Thursday: Pick up the man, the myth, the legend Travis Steffen (who is running his first Ultra with me) and proceed to carbo load and consume a crap-ton of pasta and bread
  • Friday: Move just enough to keep the body loose, drive to Grayson Highlands, look at the wild ponies
  • Saturday: Race day!!!!  I’ll write more this week on the advice I’m giving Travis before his first 50k.

After looking at the game plan, it seems that I have plenty of time.  Looking forward to dominating this week in order to have a successful race day!  Happy Thursday!

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How Ultrarunners can Maintain Happy Relationships

April 13, 2016 / / 0 Comments

Over the last few weeks my training has ramped up in preparation for the Grayson Highlands 50k (hopefully one of the prettiest races in Virginia).  That means added stress on my body, my mind (from not eating pizza) and most importantly my wife.

Ultrarunning adds many positive things to people’s lives- helps them stay in shape, shows them what is possible, demonstrates what they can overcome, makes them feel like a badass (complete with the superpower of running long long distances), etc, etc, etc.

But if you aren’t careful the negatives start to reveal themselves.

Specifically in relationships.  Countless families have probably suffered due to obsessing over this crazy sport.  I’m sure divorces have happened because one member places “running” above “making the other happy.”

I’m grateful to say that this isn’t the case in my household.

Ultimately I’m a husband/father first and an athlete second….and a wannabe chef/rock god in a very distant third.

These are a few strategies I use to follow the classic advice “a happy wife= a happy life.”

  • Involve your family- Invite them to your race.  Aid station volunteers, crew, post-race activities are all great ways in involving your family the day of the race.  The ultrarunning community is THE BEST and I highly suggest exposing your family to the other fantastic people you meet during a race.  My wife really enjoys hanging out at the finish line chatting with the other runners’ crew members.  Although she isn’t a runner, now she gets one of the reasons I love ultrarunning so much- the super cool people you meet.

 

  • Family time can mean training time– Hiking with your kids is just extra training.  Playing with your family after a long training run is just “overtime”.  Family time can be an opportunity to put in extra work.  Ultrarunning isn’t all about running, so do yoga with your kids, have them help you with foam rollers, go for walks or bike rides.  Your family might not be able to do your training runs with you, but all the other stuff counts,  so play with your family as much as possible and you will ultimately achieve extra training.

 

  • Wake up early- I mean EARLY.  Freakin’ early!  Man up and set the alarm for the tear-inducing early hours for your long training runs.  I usually do a 4am Saturday morning.  Running through the pitch black woods might be cold and scary but it’s a necessity in my training cycle.  Training for an Ultra takes time and it is important to prioritize your family before yourself.  So get up and run before sunrise (it’ll give you that much needed “night running” practice), have some extra coffee and spend the rest of your day with your family and friends.  You will enjoy the your day even more knowing you’ve already knocked training off the to do list.

 

  • Skip a training session– If something important comes up, skip training.  Family is more important and skipping one day is not going to hurt you.

 

  • Support your significant other’s passions– An eye for an eye.  They are supporting your goals so you have no excuse not to support whatever interest they have.

 

  • Be nice…even when you are bonking– They didn’t choose to run an ultra.  You did.  Have integrity to put their feelings above your own, especially when you are feeling like complete shit.

 

  • Smelly hugs are the best hugs– Don’t shy away from giving them a gigantic gross sweaty hug at the finish line.  You’ve been waiting a long time for this moment, they’ve been waiting a long time for this moment too.  Share your joy with them.  It’ll probably be the best hug ever!

Hope this advice helps!  Remember family always comes first.

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The Path

April 12, 2016 / / 0 Comments

At first running a mile was hard…my back ached…my feet hurt…my lungs were heaving.

Then it wasn’t.

Then running 3 miles was hard…I would put on rock music to try to distract myself from pain and misery.

Then it wasn’t.

Then 10 miles was hard…around this time my body would run out of fuel…my ribs hurt…my back cramped.

Then it wasn’t

Then 20 miles was hard…

You get the point.  Of course starting off was hard.  You have perceived limits.  Your body hasn’t adjusted to the discomfort.  It takes months, if not YEARS, to adjust.  If you are a new runner you shouldn’t be intimidated by these challenges and you definitely should not expect to be a gazelle right away.  It’s a process.  It’s something you have to adjust to.

One day, without warning, you will go out for a run and realize “holy crap! I actually enjoy this.”  Running will become a relaxation.  It will be WONDERFUL!

That day is in the future for you new runner.  Keep putting one foot in front of the other.  Be consistent (show up) and persistent (don’t stop showing up).  This is the path you must take.

Happy Tuesday!  Hope you get outside and enjoy the day.

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Book Review: 81 Days Below Zero

April 11, 2016 / / 0 Comments

“What Crane Learned was gathered in increments, plucked like stray threads from crises and moments of doubt.  His transformation bound him, in ways he probably couldn’t yet imagine, to some of the greatest feats of resolve.  In the words of one famous polar odds beater, it just comes down to putting one foot in front of the other.”

Over the last few years I’ve been obsessed with tales of survival (maybe since 3rd grade when we had to read Hatchet by Brian Paulson).  Endurance, Into Thin Air, Unbreakable, River of Doubt have all been engrossing reads that completely captured my imagination. Something about the amount of pain and suffering someone can overcome is utterly fascinating to me…

Is that weird?  Am I a masochist?  I promise I don’t want to be in a situation where I am forced to overcome massive amounts of misery (except for ultras)….but just knowing that I would be capable is important to me.

The latest book to add to that list is 81 Days Below Zero by Brian Murphy.

This is the true story of Leon Crane, the lone survivor of the harsh Alaskan wilderness when his B-24 bomber crash in the winter during World War II. (Part of the non-survival story was about Alaska’s role during WWII which was fairly compelling)

Leon was a city boy from Philadelphia who knew next to nothing about wilderness before this catastrophe.  Throughout the book he is forced to step up to the insurmountable challenges and through his experiences he slowly gains the competence he needs to survive.

I love the idea of small lessons and skills adding up over time.  It reminds me of one of my favorite non-fiction books The Slight Edge.  Crane doesn’t just instantly become a badass mountain man, rather he uses lessons from his failures to give him the education needed to survive (the failure cycle is something I’m constantly preaching).

The other interesting idea in the book is “LUCK”.  I don’t want to spoil anything but Crane gets unbelievably lucky repeatedly throughout the book.  Don’t get me wrong he still goes through hell and misery, but then he stumbles on a few commodities that are essential to his ultimate survival.  It reveals how circumstance and complete coincidence can affect our lives.

Crane never wallows in self pity, always keeps his ultimate goal in mind (get back to base and let his parents know he’s alive), breaks down his goal into smaller achievable tasks, gives gratitude when he stumbles onto good fortune, uses his talents as a critical thinker to solve problems, and endures.

Overall it was a good book to add to my ever-growing list of “inspiring survival books that are true stories about people overcoming impossible odds”, a very specific genre of books.

Keep reading and enjoy your Monday!

Information Overload

April 7, 2016 / / 0 Comments

How do I get in shape?

Crossfit, bodyweight movements, Arnold Schwarzenegger’s books, HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training), heart rate training, aerobic training, anaerobic training, high fat diets, high protein diets, “Bulletproof Coffee”, Vegan, Paleo, and on and on and on and on.

Figuring out which path to take gets OVERWHELMING.  So overwhelming to the point of “screw it.”

“The one path that never works is the most common one: doing nothing at all.”

-Seth Godin (my newest life hero)

The only guarantee is that not even trying will certainly lead you to failure.

Keep this in mind as you move forward in any of your goals.

Have a happy Thursday!

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Virginia Hike: Cascade Falls and Barney’s Wall

April 6, 2016 / / 0 Comments

One of my spring break goals last week was to explore a new part of Virginia.  (Along with “go for a hike with my wife” and sit on my butt and binge watch Daredevil)

I looked up “hikes around Blacksburg” because it is a part of the state I had never explored and “Cascade Falls” was recommended again and again along with “Barney’s Wall”.  Lucky for me these are both essentially in the same location so you can knock them both out on the same trip.

Travel Time: 2.5 hour drive from Danville

There really is no convenient way to get to Blacksburg- you either drive north to Roanoke and than south from there (I did this in the morning before the sun was up because its on easy-to-drive highways) or you head straight through the windy roads of the mountains (how I got home- extremely beautiful but would have been a pain in the ass in the dark).

Trail Head: Drive through the town of Pembroke, Virginia.  It’s about a mile through the town.

Hike:

The hike can be split into two distinct sections: The gorge up to Cascade Falls and the uphill to Barney’s Wall.

The winding stream to the falls is one of the prettiest sights I have seen in Virginia.  It was 2 miles of fallen trees covered in moss, giant boulders and mini waterfalls- I loved every second of this section.  I started hiking (trail running) at 7 in the morning and had the area completely to myself.  It was incredibly peaceful.

Once I got to the waterfall (also beautiful) I took a left directly up the hill and began the hike up Barney’s Wall.  The 2 miles up to the scenic overlook was pretty uneventful (aka nothing really to see).  For awhile you are heading up this old fire road (preservation road) before you are solely following the signs for Barney’s Wall.  The trail was really well marked and easy to find.  The view from Barney’s Wall was pretty awesome (similar to most views out here).

Total Time: 2 hours (I ran it so I would estimate it taking 4 hours if you were hiking)

 

A Few Things we are REALLY Good at

April 5, 2016 / / 0 Comments

There are a few things we are REALLY good at:

  • Creating Excuses– If I try this than _________ will probably happen
  • Procrastinating– I can start tomorrow
  • Distracting Ourselves– Constantly checking social media, binge watching TV (Recently guilty of this!)
  • Choosing the Path of Least Resistance– Falling into the trap of comfort
  • Overthinking– Seth Godin calls this THRASHING.  Constantly second guessing, brainstorming, “One More Thing”, spinning your wheels.

Good thing you can become better at:

  • Trying Something New AND Failing at it
  • Accepting Failure as a Necessary Tool for Learning
  • Focusing on One Important Activity at a Time
  • Working Hard and Being Uncomfortable
  • Making a Decision and Going With it

Pause in my Routine

April 4, 2016 / / 0 Comments

Last week I took a pause on my routine.  It was my spring break, I had to travel, I went to the mountains a couple days, etc, etc.

It was good for me mentally.  I can fall into the trap of being too regimented sometimes (waking up at the same time, eating the same food, going on the same run) and every 7 or 8 weeks I need to give myself a week “off”.

My dad always told me “everything in moderation” and I really try to take this idea to heart.  Even healthy activities need to be checked every so often.  I you are incredibly intense and extreme about what you are eating or how you are working out day after day with no break, eventually you will burn out.

This week’s challenge is to get back on track.  Fall back into my routine.  I only have 3 weeks until the Grayson Highlands 50k so it’s time to get really focused!

Anyways…just checking in.  It’s good to be back!

I will have a longer post tomorrow.  I’m planning on reviewing a couple hikes I did over break.

Happy Monday!

Decisions

March 25, 2016 / / 0 Comments

Every decision we make is faced with doubt.  Am I doing the right thing?  Is this the path I should take?  How will this blow up in my face?

When you have a kid this is amplified, because now the decision doesn’t only affect you it affects the person you love more than anything in the world.

My wife is finished with residency next September and we are now trying to decide what the next move will be.  It is stressful.  Being faced with change and choices is a difficult path to navigate.  You start thinking about every single thing that could go wrong.  How the decision might destroy your happiness.

We get so hung up on the “wrong” that we tend to imagine all the things that could (and probably will) go right.  How the decision might amplify your happiness.

You can weigh your options forever; constantly playing ping pong with your self doubt.  In fact, for major life decisions you should consider the advantages and disadvantages.  But eventually you just have to make the choice.  Will your decision end up like your best imagined outcome?  Probably not.   But I’ll tell you this, it sure as heck won’t end up as your worst imagined outcome either.

So make the decision.  Once you do, don’t think twice.  There’s no need for second guessing or “what could have been”.  The decision is in the past.  Now you are living with your choice and you have the responsibility to make the best of it.

Hope everyone has a happy Friday!

I’m hoping to have some kickass hiking experiences to share over the next week.

Define your Limiting Beliefs

March 24, 2016 / / 0 Comments

To move forward you must first define your LIMITING BELIEFS.

These are the ideas that are ingrained in you that are holding you back.

“I’ll always be _____________.”

“I could never do ___________.”

“__________ will never happen for me.”

Define your limiting beliefs.  Just observing them puts the silliness of some of them into perspective.     (Mine filled up two whole notebook pages)

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