No, that was just a ploy to get you to start reading. What really happened yesterday was I showed up for a bit of the 100th Skodsborg Marathon (by "showed up", I mean Annette F and her husband, Ullrich, gave me a ride - thank you!). Skodsborg epitomizes all that is great about the Danish marathon. It is held all the time (not just once a year!) So if you feel like a Skodsborg, there's always one coming soon. You can run any distance and still graze off of the finest aid station this side of the Atlantic.
 |
| Good morning, slik! I must admit I brought my own snack in the form of peanut butter in a corn tortilla. |
 |
| A panorama! of starters, about to run whatever distance they choose. |
 |
| Perhaps the reason Skodsborg Marathon is so popular is summed up here. |
 |
| Take note of the woman in pink who appears to be standing still. |
 |
| 95% of the route is on dirt. And there are plenty of hills. Cotton t-shirts are acceptable attire for Americans. |
 |
| Anders runs his 535th ??? marthon! He always looks exactly this comfortable! |
 |
| From the back: race director, Jerk, Marianne (broke her back 20 years ago and RUNS with a cane!) and Annette F - now on marathon 84 over the last 84 days!! |
 |
| With grace and dignity, Henriette falls in her sprint to the finish. Jerk, RD, MD, treats the wound. |
The Secret of Calorie Consumption
I had an interesting chat with Annette Fredskov on the way to the race. As mentioned, she has run a marathon every day for the past 84 days.
Here is part of the conversation:
"Have your eating habits changed?", I asked.
"Everyone thinks I must eat like a horse, running as much as I do. But I don't. I probably eat a few extra handfulls of nuts per day." replied Annette.
"She burns about 2,200 calories per marathon according to standard calculations using sex, weight, distance and time, but doesn't eat nearly that much extra." added her husband.
And she then said she hasn't lost any weight. So how can this huge increase in activity not be accompanied by a huge increase in calorie consumption? Well, it sounds like in the beginning it was. But now her body has simply gotten used to running a marathon every day. Not as much muscle break down, or stress or change in heart rate. Amazing how the body can adapt to a new normal!
I, on the other hand, have had the opposite experience. Now that I am alternating hard days with rest days, my metabolism has shot up and I have trouble keeping weight on again. It is as if my body is not sure whether the rest or the activity is "normal". So I burn more calories now running less miles. This must also be because I run those miles hard. Any thoughts?
A Diagnosis
I have had this weird hip injury for about a month now, so I went in to get a massage. It is so helpful to just have someone feel your body sometimes when you are injured because she located the source of the problem: a huge, hard knot in my right calf. It was so strange that all the pain was in my hip, and none was in the calf, but last night I had SR work on that calf for about a half an hour and then I worked on it for a long time today and the hip pain has all but disappeared. It is great to know what has been going on - however unexpected it may be!
Marathons Today
Lots of marathons today! Good luck to Jen at the Twin Cities Marathon, good luck to Stefanie at Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon! And congrats to Joy's husband, Mike on a 2:51 yesterday!! We'll be thinking of you as we clean!
 |
| Simple weekend goodness. |
8 comments:
It's the "Moose" in SR's name that makes you laugh, isn't it? Part of the reason calorie consumption doesn't go up when mileage increases dramatically is that one simply moves less when not running... even fidgeting stops!
Wow. A marathon a day for 84 days? Impressive! One thing I love about the uptick in attention to marathons/ultramarathons is that it encourages people to consider what their limits really are. People like you and Annette etc. help illustrate that a lot of those limits are simply imagined limits.
I'm loving the lady running with a cane. Pretty much gives the rest of us no excuses, huh?
I enjoy reading your running blog.
I am always interested in the nutrition piece of the ultra world. I would guess that if she used a HR monitor the HR zone would be lower than when she started and thus the calories burned less? I notice big differences on my HR watch calorie counter depending on if I do interval training short distance versus long distance low endurance HR-- running or biking.
Steve - I've decided that it is the pronunciation of every single letter except the M that makes me laugh. Good point about the hibernation mode!
Phil- great point about the heart rate! I am embarrassed I didn't even mention that. But yet, heart rate would simply mirrot moment to moment changes in metabolic rate. So certainly because of all of the reasons I named, her heart rate is less and less as she runs more and more. But if she speeds up or tries using different muscles or is injured that might change.
I've spent the last week reading your blog "cover to cover" like a stalker, and even though we are polar opposites - I'm an underachieving, out-of-shape, overweight Norwegian living in the U.S. - I feel like I can really relate to your thought processes. I am just getting into running and I've signed up for my first race in January (Orcas Island 25K), so I'll have to keep stalk-reading you for inspiration.
Ingunn, if you truly are a lover of mountains, chocolate and dogs, we must also be kindred spirits. I can't thank you enough for taking the time to write that comment. It made my day. Good luck with the Orcas Island 25k! What a great way to get into running! I may have to start stalking your blog to see how the training is going :).
Post a Comment