A Seven Continent Journey

Less then 12 weeks remain for the Chicago Marathon. The reality of training has gradually set in. With 3 long runs completed including the last one yesterday of 14 miles I have gained some confidence but there is still a long way ahead. The arduous part of Marathon training is getting to the start line, the last 26.2 miles go by quick. At times it is hard to get out of bed very early on the weekend's when the rest of the world, the sensible ones, are enjoying their morning siesta's. Maybe I don't deserve that morning luxury, although not to be carried away by this self pity mode I have rarely regretted my morning runs. The first few miles are always a challenge after that its just fun provided the weather and my wife approves . The self imposed rule at home is to be back from the run before my wife gets up, she gets her morning tea in bed and life then resumes a more normal routine. I have been able to keep up an average running schedule of around 25 miles/week. Cross training is some exercises routines from P90X. In-spite of my initial plan of doing some spinning routines have not been able to get to the gym. The good news is I remain motivated although with a rather ambitious agenda hoping to get to finish line in a sub 4 hr.time. I will keep you posted with my training. Adios Amigos ...

Last week I lost the most avid follower of this blog. Professor V.M. Ganga Nair, 80, Green Bay, a world-renowned expert on forest preservation and professor at UW-Green Bay for over 40 years, died unexpectedly on March 10, 2010. "Ganga", as he was affectionately called left a lasting impression on any one he met. His infectious smile will stick in my mind for ever. My office desk is full of cards he had sent while he was on his travels around the world. He was source of inspiration, always encouraging me to keep up with my running and other goals. He will be greatly missed.

Running barefoot, maybe, is the way to go. In the December issue of a Journal put out by the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation researchers concluded that running shoes exert more stress on the knees, hip, and ankle than running barefoot or walking in high heels. According to the lead author, Dr. Irene Davis," we want to run barefoot, and when we put on shoes, we're trying to be taking away the function of the foot". It is known that human foot has a relatively little padding on the heel, therefore, is treads more lightly, landing on the outer part of the midfoot and then rolling inwards. It has been thought that all the cushioning provided by the lead running shoe brands encourage us to heel to toe strike that could lead to a lot of injuries.

Running barefoot debate has been going on for a while, although recently it seems is taken off in discussions on running following the publication of Christopher McDougal's book, "Born to Run". This took follows the Mexico's Tarahumara Indians, who currently run Ultra marathons, wearing thin rubber sandals or no-shoes at all. Your are bound to be inspired and by this work. Besides being a page turner, I was almost as enthralled as reading" Into Thin Air". The book explores the thesis that that humans were born to run. Mr. McDougal , tries to answer why our Ancestors were stronger and plays with a more provocative question whether modern running shoes increase the odds of injury. He has also tried to downplay the misconception in noncompetitive running of "no pain, no gain, " in fact, if done right according to Mr. McDougall, running can be as enjoyable as any other thing you would like to do regularly.

Personally I have not tried running barefoot, it may not be a smart idea in Green Bay, particularly in this season. For the more adventurous there is Vibram 5 fingers, thin rubber foot gloves that protect as you run in. According to runners who use them the stride changes naturally. It is much lighter on the heel , shorter stride probably leads to a dramatic change in posture. There is apparently less knee stiffness and back pain.

The temperature in Green Bay, still in the 30s, however, I can sense Spring is in the air. It is getting milder for this town's standards. Today morning I spotted a number runners going for their morning jogs. It's also the time of the year when resolutions are made. I have to admit I have not been able to run as much as I would like to partly due to a busy work schedule. I am training to do the Green Bay Cellcom Half Marathon in April. My hope is to complete the run in around 1 hour and 45 minutes. This for now seems like a tall order, but if I am able to achieve this, then would surely put me in a strong position to prepare for a Fall Marathon. It was a dilemma where to run. I finally decided to run the Chicago Marathon. The other options were Milwaukee Marathon, which apparently is a fast course to run on. However it lacks the charm of Chicago, but most importantly, the crowd support. I also considered running in Berlin, but could not fit in in my schedule. I am working that particular weekend. Not to mention Chicago is a much cheaper prospect. I am hoping to run at least 3 times a week and time permitting do cross training at least twice a week. The cross training will involve spinning routines. This year, the hope is to complete some fast runs. I will plan to do the Antarctica Marathon in December only if I am able to finish a sub-four hour Marathon.

I seem to have done the disappearing act from the blogging scene. The excuse is flat out procrastination. It is not without guilt. I have not even put up the Chicago Marathon report, which I intend to do in the next few days. I have done some strength training over the last month trying a new program called P90X. This is an intense program, which is hard to keep up with. It involves yoga, Plyometrics, like exercise besides normal strength training. Running obviously has been side-lined because of this activity. I probably have not run more than 25 miles since finishing the Chicago Marathon. Hopefully, this will change soon and I may get back in rhythm. The next big run is in Spring in Green Bay. I plan to run the Cellcom Half Marathon hoping to do a good finish with a much faster pace than I am normally used to. The training will start in January. I am looking forward to attending a talk by Bill Rogers, also known as the “Boston Billy”, who will be in Green Bay to do a pep talk. Mr. Rogers has won three times in Boston. Until then I need to avoid gaining too much weight as this being the holiday season, there is too much to eat at every corner.