My marathon des sables race foods of choice

Here are the food choices I carry with me on a race and the food I will be carrying for the marathon des sables:-

Dried mango – very tasty, and surprisingly thirst quenching too.
Geo bars – same nutritional value as Cliff bars, but a fraction of the price. Very good as well.
Fruit and nut mix – high calories and healthy.
Honey roasted peanuts – a post-race treat. Oh! I could eat a super size pack of these and not feel ill.
Bombay Mix – I don’t like this quite as much as the other food choices as they aren’t natural, but they are very tasty and have a high calorie count so good for a bit of variety.
Almonds – one of the superfoods. High in nutrients and really enjoyable. Apparently the elite runners survive the whole marathon des sables week on almonds and nuts!

I’ll be carrying Expedition Foods with me for my main meals. These seem to be recommended time and time again. I’ve ordered some online already and tried them and they are surprisingly okay for freeze-dried food – though not sure I’ll be saying that after a whole week of eating them!

(Actually this is a complete LIE. I may try and smuggle in a pot noodle, as being a vegetarian the 2 options I have - woo - are going to wear a bit thin after, um 2 days)

I also tried carrying Pop Tarts, but won’t be taking these as they just crumble into pieces big time and are a bit sickly after a while.

For shorter races I used to take energy gels but I can’t stand them anymore so these will not be coming with me either.

Entry into the tough 2 month ultra race training period

With Christmas now well behind me, there are no more excuses not to be training for the big ultra race. There are now only 12 weeks to go and the last few weeks need to be dedicated to the “taper down” period, which gives the body time to rest and recover, ready for the big marathon des sables ultra.

The plan over the next 2 months is to do a couple more “biggie” ultra races at the weekend – I have a 45 mile race on Saturday, the “Country to Capital” race, and a back-to-back 33/33 mile ultra race in the South Downs in February. Maybe more importantly than that, I’ve allocated some weekends to training in the sand (managed a full MILE in the sand over Christmas – exhausting), and just getting out of the city to go hiking with a big pack for a few days.

I’m hoping the long walks will also give my poor joints a chance to recover as well as they are taking a fair beating at the moment.

Also, I’ve been advised by Karen Weir to focus a little more on quality short, fast runs. Now that I like the sound of! So I’ll be spending some time in the gym on the treadmill doing speed and hill reps too.

Finally, I’ll be doing more yogic stretching and core work and sitting a lot in the sauna (my favourite way to pass some time, though possibly without the fat, hairy male mascot who generally is seen hanging out in most saunas near you).

I'll be updating my training page shortly to hopefully help others who stumble across this random chat about marathon des sables training. I'll also update it post race to tell you what worked and what did not.

To be honest, it’s actually great fun doing all this. I just wish I could give up work for the next few months and concentrate on training for the marathon des sables only, but alas that will never happen!

Amersham marathon

Last Saturday I ran the Amersham marathon. What’s this I hear you cry? Well, it’s a fantastic informal “race” organised by a friend who is also running marathon des sables this year.

The Amersham marathon has been going for five years now and basically involves about 20 or so people who follow the organiser and complete a marathon in the beautiful Chess Valley, on the edge of the Chilterns.

People can choose to run the full marathon, join in at the half way point to run the half marathon, or with 10k to go. This year five of us ran the full distance (which actually ended up being 28 miles according to the Garmin) and then we were joined by another three at halfway.

All in all it was a brilliant run. It started early doors at 7am to ensure we finished by lunch time (v. Important) and mainly followed the Chiltern Way, through glorious rolling farmland and woods. Pretty much all of the route was offroad. At this time of year it was m.u.d.d.y – which was great for me, as it gave me a chance to run in difficult conditions, AND with hills.

My tactic for the race was to keep the PMA going throughout, as I’ve been having trouble of late with having negative doomlike thoughts, “can’t do it, I’m bored, my knee hurts”, those sorts of thoughts – sure you’re familiar with those old chestnuts if you run!

Anyway because I was running with 4 others, all male, I thought I can’t whinge. I have to be on my best behaviour, so I kept any bad thoughts wrapped away...and it worked!

My other tactic to help to keep the demons at bay was to break down the race beforehand, so I worked on a 10/10/7 split, again which worked really well. The lovely Karen Weir also suggested splitting races up into time periods, rather than miles, which I will try next Saturday at the “Country to Capital” race. This means rather than focusing upon how many more miles to go, you focus upon doing 40 minutes, then reward yourself with a short break (and also in my case some food), and carry on and so on.

What I am now experiencing frequently on long runs is that I find the second half easier. This was also the case with the Amersham marathon. I’m hoping this is 1) because mentally I know I’m past the half way point, so the race is easier to deal with and 2) because my body is hopefully getting used to the endurance side of things.

It’s fairly reassuring to know this. I feel I can cope okay with around 30 miles now. So I have the “horizontal” aspect of endurance down, I just need to work on the “vertical” side of it – being able to get up day after day and run for a long old time!

The Amersham marathon also reconfirmed one of the things I love about running. Most other runners are pretty decent, down to earth people. A bit of random banter with a group of like-minded people in the English countryside – what could be better?! Good times.

Footwear for marathon des sables

I can't really write anything about running routes for this post as I've been well and truly lazy over the festive period and have run an outstanding one mile (in sand mind you) in the past two weeks. My justification for this is to rest my niggly injuries - left hip and left knee, and to start again fresh in 2012.

So here we are. No more excuses. Except I need to buy the footwear I am going to use in the marathon des sables pretty quickly to make sure I wear them in in time. There are only three months to go!

A quick google revealed these shoes to be the shoes of choice for the desert race:-

Roclite 295 - for runners who like more lightweight shoes. Lots of flexibility though I would worry it doesn't give enough cushioning over miles and miles of stony ground. Here's a good review from irunfar

Roclite 315 - trail shoes with more stability. A review from Runner's World and another blogger - seems a bit varied - some like this shoe, some thing it's a bit clunky. Seems the heel is rather low which may or not be a good thing.

Roclite 319 - trail shoes with high stability. These are highly recommended by Likeys - an amazing store for all things desert (likeys also has a really useful kit list with their recommendations as well). Here's a blog review. Seems to be pretty good though I'm a bit worried it's a bit of a heavy shoe.

Here's some other advice from inov-8 about footwear too with some further info on gaiters.

New Balance M1100OR - the official MDS shoe. Ugly and I can't really find many reviews which rate this shoe either.

Brooks Cascadia - Scott Jurek swears by these shoes (though he does also get sponsored by Brooks so...). Look nice though! Anoter good review from irunfar who rates them highly

UK Gear PT03 Desert - looks a little chunky to me though what do I know. Here's a forum thread. Seems to viewed favourably.

UK Gear PT1000 NC - Another Likeys recommendation. Look nice too though mental note to self - it's not about fashion, it's not about fashion!! This shoe is supposed to last 1000 miles. I'd be happy with 150.

Montrail Mountain Masochist - Recommended by irunfar. Looks cool. Review here suggests maybe better for dry trails. Good for over pronators too.

Overall it looks like things to consider are:-
Whether you are wearing gaiters or want them already sown into the shoe (and most things I have read suggest separate gaiters are superior)
Weight/cushioning - weighing up (ho ho) between having a lighterweight shoe or protecting your feet from the rocky ground. Personally I'm used to a pretty bog standard shoe with some but minimal cushioning so am contemplating this one at the moment.
Width - seems that a wide shoe is preferable given your feet swell considerably.
Road or trail shoes - the majority of posts seem to say trail is best, though there is a huge difference between trail runs in wet muddy conditions and in the desert, though I do agree that trail is best here.
Height - low versus high back. Some people like high backs, some low. I would suggest check your current trainers and go with that height if it is going okay for you already.
Size - at least 1 size bigger than your normal shoe size, maybe 2. I reckon I'm going to go for 1.5!

Finally here are some great forum resources for other footwear for marathon des sables discussions.

MDS Forum - Footwear
Runner's World

And for me?
I'm going to try out the Brooks Cascadia as I run in Brooks, but also the inov-8 315 and UK Gear 1000PT or Desert if I can find them anywhere to try on.

Next? Gaiters and bag. Watch this space! My bank manager is going to love me.

Second 30 mile ultra training run done

I've now got three ultra runs under my belt which I'm pretty pleased about. Two 30 milers and the 38 mile "race" around half of the capital ring.

Last Sunday was the second 30 mile attempt. The route I took was along the capital ring to Finsbury Park, along to Stoke Newington, down to the canal, a lap of Victoria Park, along the Limehouse Basin past the Blackwall Tunnel and back again.

Cute cottage in east London next to Regent's canal

The actual run itself was fine. My left hip is still playing up slightly but it was well behaved on Sunday. I even slashed my time down to 5 hours 35 mins - 25 minutes faster than my first attempt (this works out at around 10.8 minute mile, so with walking included in that my actual running pace is probably more like 9-9.5 minute miles, which I'm happy with).

Houseboats on the canal

The thing I am having trouble with is my head. I got to 10 miles and had a minor paddy attack that I didn't want to carry on. I thought I had run further than 10 miles. It was only the thought of having to run back 10 miles anyway that spurred me on to get to the 15 mile halfway point. From there it was plain sailing. I'd passed half way so it was downhill from there.

I'm having real difficulties at the moment with breaking the run down into manageable sizes during the first half, and remaining positive. I get bored quite quickly and then start thinking of how many more hours to go and fantasizing about what I want to eat (currently I'm obsessing about mince pies and cheese - though not together!). So this is definitely something I need to work on - and I'm sure I'll have looootttssss of practice over the next couple of months with the looming scary long and back to backs ahead.

On a positive (see! I'm trying!) I experienced the endorphin trick again at around mile 28, which was great. Absolutely stormed up Finsbury Park hill and along the last mile of the capital ring to home. It's such a great feeling. It feels a bit like the first few seconds of setting off on a really fast run and feeling invisible before the lactic acid kicks in and your lungs start screaming. Very very cool.

A little bit of mid week running psychology

I took it really easy last week after the effort of the first proper ultra "race", with just a couple of runs in during the week. My left hip and my right knee are also feeling a little niggly so I thought it wise to ease off the training too. Oh that's the excuse I gave myself anyway...

However, not running does really seems to affect me mentally. I get moody, tearful and irritated about things that usually would not affect me. How do non runners cope?!

I think running helps with stress on two levels. First is on a physical level. Anger and stress can be shaken off along a run. Endorphins help make you feel better inside yourself. Second is on a mental level. I find I am able to work through things in a more fluid yet abstract way in my head on a run. Things that may seem important or overwhelming can be taken down in size. Nothing ever feels quite so bad when thought through on a run.

Maybe it’s the sense of control over things that you have when running. Maybe it’s the setting or maybe it’s that you’re working so damn hard to keep going that takes the edge of other problems! I don’t know but whatever it is, I always – without fail – feel 100% better after I’ve been running. So that's my little bit of mid week running psychology for you!

This week, I hope I'm back on form and am planning on runs in all this week with two long runs at the weekend, to try and start building up the "horizontal" running stamina (day after day of running) as well as the "vertical" running stamina (ultra runs). It will take a lot of running psychology for me to tell myself I do really, really want to go out in the freezing cold EVERYDAY and run lots of miles.

First 38 mile ultra race completed

I've done it! Wow. Big pat on my back. Technically we were all ready and signed up for the Hereward race - 38 miles around Peterborough. But we decided against going as it would have taken us 2.5 hours to drive there, god knows how many hours to run it, train back to the start point, then drive home. Plus it was on a Sunday so no rest day before work on Monday.

It just highlights the realities of trying to train for these sorts of things. Any other distance - even a marathon, is doable in a day round trip. Or I guess if you are a fast ultra runner - which I am not, that also helps to squeeze in these races.

So we decided to run it on the Saturday in London using a garmin to track distance and time. We took the capital ring loop from Highgate around to Wandsworth via Richmond, and ended in Clapham South, before hobbling onto the Northern Line back home.

Here's the route. Nuts. I expect we'll do the other half at some point soon too.


View Larger Map

As predicted times were snail pace. A huge 8.25 hours (9 in total with 2 stops) which equals 13 minute miles. Pretty slow. I'm hopeful that the times will get faster as we go, but because it's a completely new area and I'm not sure how my body is going to react I'm erring on the side of caution. That plus I basically couldn't go any faster. He he. To put into context how slow we were the winners of the Hereward Race did it in 3:45:42 male and 4:19:24 female - though this is insanely fast.

The first half of the run was pretty awful. I moaned a lot. Stopped a lot. Ate a lot. Walked a lot. My left hip unfortunately also moaned a lot (I think I've damaged the top part of my ITB (iliotibial band) but am hoping it is recovering now).

Bu then! the golden arches appeared from nowhere through the gloom and drizzle of Greenford. Like a fly to an electric zapper we headed in and ate an extremely healthy lunch to exit and storm the next 10 miles from Greenford to Richmond.

It was like Mr Negative had left the building and Mrs Positive was now sat on my shoulder. I'm starting to see that the biggest part of ultra running is the mental attitude. 38 miles is such a long way, it's difficult to break it down at the beginning of a race.

I don't know about other runners but I always break races down into sections. For example if I'm running a half marathon I would break it into the first three miles - relax and try and get into a good rhythm. The next five miles maintain a steady pace, the next three miles crank it up a bit, the final two miles, just hang on in there!

Doing this helps makes it all a bit more manageable and also staves off the boredom, as it gives you something to concentrate on at that moment rather than thinking, ugh 10 miles to go, so far! But for 38 miles I found this really difficult to do until I got to half way, then I found it much, much easier to break down.

We had another break at Richmond. Climbing over Twickenham bridge rather felt like an out-of-body experience as my legs were wondering what the f I was doing and didn't want to participate in climbing as well.

The next section though was even more extraordinary. We had limited light left and still had to get through Richmond Park and Wimbledon Common so knew we had to get a move on. It honestly felt like I was running on air. We must have been running at 8 minute mile pace. It was ridiculous. I don't know where it came from. People talk about endorphin highs and I guess this was it. I've never experienced anything like it before.

Similarly, I just put it down to mental attitude. We knew we had to get through that section before it got dark so had a deadline so the head said go and the feet followed. The light also helped as it just made both parks stunning to run through. I remember thinking I must have had sunglasses on as the colours in a lake and on the trees were so vibrant.

Another strange thing which started to happen was I saw a few odd things. Now I think this was just because I was tired and it was getting dark but it was a little wierd. I kept thinking someone was running alongside Pete, and I thought a leaf was a rat and I screamed and jumped over it. Dear me.

The best bit was eating curry at home in the evening. This does also worry me slightly as I know the desert is not going to have these luxuries. Again, it's going to be something I'm just going to have to reframe in my mind. We're going camping for a week with a few runs in between. Yeh, that will work!