Well what a difference a week makes!! Not just the reduced mileage (although it helps...a lot) I feel like I learned so much this week, and wonder why the **** I didn't try and figure this stuff out before. First thing I learned was that just because you like a pair of shoes doesn't mean there aren't better ones out there. I have been using Asics DS Trainer 13's for about a year and have really enjoyed them, but last week I purchased a pair of Mizuno Wave Elixir 4's and LOVE them. They weigh in the same as the Asics, but they have a funny looking sole that allows Mizuno to increase the thickness of the outsole without increasing weight...so they are much more padded than the Asics. Another thing I learned is to get the proper size. I have always purchased my Asics with a very snug fit, which feels great but for extended training isn't so good (blisters, black toe nails, etc...). I purchased the Mizuno's online and ordered two sizes. I took me a full hour to decide between the two. The smaller pair felt really good and snug, but my toes would just come into contact with the edge while moving. The larger size actually fit perfectly, but the extra room in the toebox was just so foreign to me that it took me a while to be comfortable with it.

Second lesson is to experiment with everything until it is ideal. I have been using Clif Shot gels for the last 6 months. I like them because they are mostly natural and organic (brown rice syrup vs. maltodextrin). But after last week I think that they are not so great for my stomach while running. So I did some research and found two other gels to experiment with. I used the first this morning, Gu Roctane gel. Roctane is kind of ridiculous, it is expensive and tries to do everything, which is exactly why I like it. I used the Roctane this morning and it was much easier on my stomach. It is also less thick than the Clif Shots, which is nice. I don't think that I really felt the benefits of the BCAA's or the electrolytes, but I know it works with my stomach so that is a plus. Next week I am going to try Crank e-Gel (seriously that is the name they come up with!!). e-Gel has one of the higher concentrations of electrolytes and similar sugar content to Roctane. My goal is just to find something that settles in my stomach better than Clif Shots. The other experiment I tried this weekend was to eat my carbo load meal for lunch instead of dinner, and that worked brilliantly. I slept better during the night and I didn't have blood sugar issues (at least not at night). Also I felt much better in the morning as well. Funny thing is that when I gorge my self on carbs I have really strange blood sugar issues. Eating a low-fat carb heavy meal causes my blood sugar to shoot up to ridiculous levels 5-6 hours after eating. I did some reading and it seems that this is caused by slow rate of digestion and absorption because of my gorging. I might try to eat a smaller amount of carbs 5-6 times next Saturday and have the total be equivalent to my carbo load.

Final thing that I discovered last week was my magic preemptive insulin adjustment plan. I had tried before, but some how this week I magically got the adjustments correct...at least for evening runs. The key is to lower my basal insulin to 50% about 2 hours before I start running. This replicates what occurs to the insulin rate of normal people (their bodies lower the rate within 15 min. of starting exercise). I had some issues with high blood sugars after running, but I made some adjustments and have that pretty much figured out as well. This plan didn't really work for my morning run however. I did the same adjustment and about 25 minutes into the run my blood sugar was well over 200, and climbed to nearly 300 later in the run. The problem is that the 50% adjustment assumes that your basal rate is correct and clearly in the morning my rate is not. I am still suffering from major counter-regulatory hormone effects, so I think that maybe 75-90% is a better adjustment in the mornings. The best part of these new adjustments is than now I do not have to continuously consume gels or Shot Bloks. To me this is a major step in the right direction. I hate haveing to carry Shot Bloks on short 5-7 mile runs, and the amount of gel I was consuming during long runs definitely wasn't good for my stomach.

So yeah I learned a lot this week, and as I said before this week was much better than last. For our long run this week we only did 12 miles (not even 12 actually), and since I had a bad one last week I wanted to do some miles at MGP. I ran 4 miles under MGP and they felt great. It was nice to be running a part of the Pasadena course as well because it meant I had to watch the terrain and try to maintain even effort. It will be interesting to see how the race works out. There are a lot of inclines on the course for which you have to slow the pace quite a bit to maintain even effort, but there are also a lot of downhill's. The MGP section I ran today I spent a lot of time at 6:50 pace on the downhill's and 7:20-30 pace on the inclines yet overall it average out to around MGP. The race itself will require a lot of tactical decisions and I am glad that we have been able to run a large section of the course.

Oh yeah, one last thing. I now do not know what shoes I am going to wear for the race. I was planning on using my Bandito's, but I don't know if the discomfort that they cause will outweigh the speed benefit I get from the decrease weight. I think the Elixir's might be better. They are very comfortable yet light enough that I won't get too worn out at the end. I am going to do some speedwork with my Bandito's this week and probably base my decision on that. My original thought was to say **** with how I feel after and wear the Bandito's but if they will have an effect late in the race then they might not be worth it. 

Last weeks training:

• Tuesday - 9.79 Mile Run w/ Strides - 1:17:08 min, 7:52 pace

• Wednesday - 5.62 Mile Easy Run - 45:52 min, 8:09 pace

• Thursday - 10.75 Mile Run w/ Intervals - 1:17:37 min, 7:13 pace

• Sunday - 11.81 Mile Run w/ MGP section - 1:26:38 min, 7:20 pace

Shoe Mileage:

• Asics DS Trainer 13.1 - Retired

• Asics DS Trainer 13.2 - 151.15

• Asics DS Trainer 13.3 - 109.53

• Asics Gel Bandito - 88.24

• Mizuno Wave Elixir 4.1 - 21.6