Oh, the Iron-y!

January was a rough month; I wasn't feeling like myself and I didn't know why. Much of the time I was tired, craving starchy/sugary foods, had very little motivation for anything other than the basics of keeping it together, and everything felt effortful. I was moody and quick to tears. I had mini-meltdowns during run practice (always where no one could see, of course), frustrated at my slow rate of progress. I was feeling depleted after my long runs, as if I had run them at race effort. There were good moments - exhilarating hill workouts, time spent with friends, and Gracie, who can always make me smile, but the runner's high or bit of good mood evaporated quickly and I would return to my gloomy, depressed state. I didn't want to get out of bed in the morning, wasn't looking forward to my workouts, had trouble focusing at work, and only wanted to lie on the couch and/or eat when I had down time. Poor Gracie only got short walks. I had many symptoms of overtraining, but this was puzzling because the heart rate monitoring was designed to prevent overtraining. I reached my breaking point during a warmup mid-January, when I found myself in tears and wanting to turn around and go home, leave the workout, and possibly quit running altogether. I sucked it up and kept going, told my coach I was struggling, ended up having a great workout (hills, how I love thee), but when I found myself in a sour mood again the next day, I emailed my coach, expressing my pent-up frustrations.

I wondered if maybe this was my new normal after my thru-hike, wondered if there was something wrong systemically, wondered if I was just bored after almost six months of base training and no racing. I wondered if this is what getting older feels like (if so, it sucks!). Would there be a time when doing laundry wouldn't feel overwhelming; when I could put away the clean clothes the same day I washed them? Cook dinner and do the dishes all in the same night? When I ran, most of the time it felt like I was sinking into my steps. My back was progressively better, but my running was suffering, along with many other aspects of my life.

Getting Some Answers
On my coach's recommendation, I paid a visit to Dr. Noah Moos, who had helped significantly with some structural challenges over the past year. I ran down my list of issues. He stopped me when I mentioned I'd been on antibiotics for 10 days in December for a sinus infection. He figured the fatigue was a result of an imbalance of gut bacteria following the antibiotics. Made sense to me. My digestion had been "off" since then. The supplements he gave me (probiotics, echinacea, and P-5-P) had me feeling better in a couple of days. Remarkably better. I had energy, my appetite stabilized, sugar cravings dropped off, and best of all, I felt happy for no reason. When I hit three consecutive days of feeling good, I kept telling everyone how I couldn't remember the last time I felt that good for x many days. And it continued. There was power under my legs, and a spring in my step. I had energy to do more than the basics of self-care and run workouts. I could wash/dry/put away clothes, and then bake or make treats for work, all in the same day. It was awesome. Then I ran 3M, which was also awesome. But the recovery seemed to be never-ending. After 3M, I wanted to write about how much better I'd been feeling, but was too tired. Important plot-point: The day after 3M I was rejected as a blood donor because my hematocrit was too low. I didn't think too much of it. Dr. Moos had mentioned that my iron was low, but until my gut flora was stabilized, iron supplements would only fortify the bad bacteria, so we'd held off on those. However, by mid-February I was back in the hole and the original supplements weren't helping. I began to suspect something else was amiss, so I had some blood work done and took the week off from running while I waited for results. I might've been able to run if someone had been chasing me that week, but they would've had to be pretty scary. Meanwhile, it's good that I was so fatigued, it didn't leave much energy to worry about the possible outcomes of the blood work. Most likely was anemia, but low thyroid and a few far-fetched possibilities tugged at my consciousness. I tried not to spend too much time searching the Interwebs for answers.

The Results:
Low hemoglobin, low ferritin (iron storage), high RDW (red cell distribution width), all markers for iron deficiency anemia. Thyroid hormone, and everything else tested was normal. I was much relieved to have a treatable cause for my symptoms.

The Treatment:
Twice daily iron supplements, recheck levels in 6 weeks, scale back training, cancel New Orleans half trip, eat lots of iron-rich foods (except liver, for now), cut back or eliminate foods that inhibit iron absorption (coffee, tea, chocolate!), rest, and let my body recover.

Next up: I've never had anemia issues, and I'm not vegetarian, so how did I get to this point? I have a theory...

Just "Ran" 3M

Because January was a tough month, training and health-wise, the official "unofficial" plan was to "just run" 3M, and not race it. That's a big challenge for me. My competitive streak is wide, to say the least, and it takes good reason for me to participate in a race when I'd rather be testing myself. I knew just running was the prudent thing to do; I was only a week into feeling some recovery from health issues I'd experienced in the last two months, just coming off base training with only two weeks of hill/speed work, and this race was only 6 weeks from my goal half...

but, but, but...

3M is a PR kind of course, I was waaaay overdue for a race, I wanted to establish a PR for the distance (I've run four half marathons, but never raced one, they were either training runs or triathlon legs), I was feeling better than I've felt in a long time, I'd have 6 whole weeks to recover, and there was perfect race weather forecast (clear, 40 degrees, no wind). Ultimately, I decided to go out conservatively, run by feel, and see what happened.

Yeah, right.

Yesterday I was totally in pre-race mode: 45 minute shakeout run with Gracie, careful about nutrition/hydration, drove the race route (I like the new course, which took out the quad busting steep downhills), took a nap, and used my last marathon race plan to figure out clothing/nutrition. In the back of my mind, I was hoping for a sub-2 hour time, and knew what kind of pace I'd need to maintain for that. At the same time, I wasn't putting any definite time or pace goals on myself.

Race morning I ate my usual long run goo (almond milk with ground flaxseed, chia seed, hemp protein, cocoa, cacao nibs; added almond butter, a bit of ground coffee, and some agave for a race day boost - not as awful as it sounds), a boiled egg, and a bite of banana. Drank a Nuun before I left the house. The 30 minute warm-up at the race site was just right. I wasn't feeling overly excited or overly tired. I dropped my extra clothing at the car, decided to forgo the arm warmers (ultimately a good decision), ate a post-national anthem gel, and hopped into the crowd at the 1:50 corral. I had no intentions of hanging with that group - there was just plenty of room there.

Mile by Mile Highlights
Pre-Race: I closed my eyes for a few moments and thought of what it's taken me to get here and felt immense gratitude to be at the starting line, reasonably healthy. I had a big grin on my face as I crossed the starting line.
Mile 1: The 1:50 pacer blew by me, looking darn fast, I stuck to a pace that felt good. Orange and indigo Eastern sky as we made the turn onto Braker, sun not yet up; Chariots of Fire theme by bagpipe
Mile 2: Checked my average pace over the first two miles. Um, this actually feels pretty good - better than the warm-up; thought about my mantras/positive affirmations. Funny shirt: 'pace be with you.'
Mile 3: checked my pace - really? This feels good, and I'm still in HR Zone2!
Mile 4: See Mile 3
Mile 5: Ate 3 shot bloks, focused on settling into a comfortable pace, wary of expending too much energy too early, but thinking this is turning into a really good run.
Miles 6-8: Lots of gradual uphill on this course (glad I drove it yesterday, and glad I wore my sunglasses); favorite signs: 'run like you stole something,' 'good job, random runner!' 'chafe now, brag later,' 'Look, Laugh, Pass, Repeat.' Thought about mantras, floating up the hills, light feet, and quick turnover when I felt myself working hard.
Miles 8-9: I was feeling good and smiling (at least on the inside) when I passed the big Rogue cheering section camped out along Shoal Creek. They spotted me and cheered as I ran by. So grateful for the coaching I receive and the community of Rogues I run with. Ate another gel.
Mile 10: 5k to go from here; if I was feeling good, here was the time to start picking up the pace. I'm consistently in HR Zone3 by now, and know the run from 45th/Duval to Congress well. I don't so much pick up the pace as maintain effort. I decide to just hold pace as well as I can until mile 12.
Miles 11-12: Either my recent health issues or the gels are giving me gut issues. I'm ready to be done. Saw Ruth, who had asked me to "just run," and said "I'm not really 'just running'" as I ran by. Today was an "ask forgiveness later" kind of day.
Mile 13.1: Knowing the "four laps on the track" marker at the end of the race is not necessarily a good thing. I felt like my pace was slowing, and that slight uphill from MLK to Congress was tough. Here's where my lack of race-specific training was evident. I didn't have much of a kick at the end. But I'm ok with that.

All things considered. I ran a good race, tested my current fitness a bit, but most importantly, felt good and enjoyed running. Remarkably, I feel better post-race today than I did running a much slower 12 mile training run four weeks ago. It's beyond nice to be back. See you in 6 weeks, NOLA half!

By the Numbers:

Splits/Avg HR Zone:
Miles 1-2 18:33 Z2
Mile 3: 8:46 Z2
Mile 4: 8:46 Z2
Mile 5: 8:37 Z2
Mile 6: 8:52 Z2
MIle 7: 8:35 Z2
Mile 8: 8:32 Z3
Miles 9-10: 17:24 Z3
Mile 11: 8:07 Z3
Mile 12: 7:55 Z3
Mile 13.1: 8:38 Z4

my day in pictures

Assuming the nap position, enjoying Zilkerpark (Gracie does some essential core work), and dinner of Brussels sprouts with bacon and a basted egg. Not pictured: 6am 14 miler (loved the empty, quiet streets), sitting in 3 hours of meetings, and an ice bath. Tap water is cold enough these days without adding ice, but it still took a lot of positive affirmation that I'd feel better for it to get me in the tub. Totally worth it!

insomnia options

Neighbors woke me up around 3 this morning, and I couldn't get back to sleep. After making a list of some stuff I needed to do, my best options for what to do were this:



or this:



Who won?

Adios y andale Gracie Ann!

dinner!

In an effort to take better care of me this year, I'm going grain-free. I've tried gluten free (GF) since 2007, but had a hard time sticking to it, especially after my AT thru, by the end of which I'd thrown any dietary caution off a cliff. It was tough getting back on track, and after two years, I was still struggling. Dr. Moos pointed me toward Dr. Phil Maffetone's work, and after a two-week carb elimination test, I felt better than I ever had when I was strictly GF. I gave in to birthday and Thanksgiving temptations, but got mostly back on track by Christmas. What I've learned in the meantime is that GF substitutes (GF bread, crackers, baked goods) cause all the cravings and blood sugar swings as anything made with wheat flour, with the added bonus of being unsatisfying and leaving an unpleasant aftertaste. Also, dairy is as much a culprit as gluten for me in terms of inflammation & bloating.

People ask, "what in the heck do you eat? How do you give up grains?!?" And I include corn, white potatoes, and refined sugar, while I'm at it. Actually, there's still plenty to choose from. Eggs and meat (preferably pasture-raised & pasture-finished), wild-caught fish, vegetables - lots of vegetables, leafy greens, fruit (avocado!), nuts & seeds (except peanuts), and dark chocolate. Suffice it to say, I am no longer vegetarian. Tonight's dinner was a very satisfying spaghetti sauce (from a jar - no sugar added) that I spruced up with some sauteed elk, green bell pepper, and black olives. Served over a bed of arugula wilted in bacon drippings. Also steamed broccoli with Casa de Luz' pepita sauce. I don't miss the old brown rice pasta a bit. But what do I eat guacamole with, if I don't eat chips? A spoon, of course!

so long, 2011

Highlights from this morning's run:
the house on Speedway with the (large!) collection of Fiesta Ware pitchers filling their casement windows
negative split - a minute or so faster on the second half
perfect weather

I'll be doing some reflection on 2011 and setting intentions for 2012 over the next couple of days. In general, I'm wanting to get outside my comfort zone more, take ever better care of myself (rest, nutrition, fitness), do fewer of the things that don't serve my best interest, and more of the things that do. With intentions like that, I may never have to make New Year Resolutions again!

guerrilla art - 1

Have I mentioned one of my favorite things is guerrilla art? Seeing art in unexpected places, made with unexpected media, the fact that someone had a vision (often quirky) and took the time to bring it to life for others to experience, these things make me happy. I like graffiti. Some tagging can be quite uninspired, but oftentimes I can gaze with wonder at how someone can get so much nuance and expression from a spray can. Once at Venice Beach, a street performer/artist was making small-scale (8x10, 11x14) graffiti art. It was cool to watch the process, and to learn there are special spray tips you can use to get different effects. I saw this cool bit of art today that had been painstakingly rendered on the side of a building that is being renovated. The raccoon makes me forget this is done on plywood. East Side!



Then there's the recent rise of guerrilla knitters who sneak about placing knit sweaters on all sorts of public objects. Yarn bombs. Love this stuff, too. I guess it's been cold enough that the Hyde Park Bar & Grill fork needed a sweater.