THIS SATURDAY AT-A-GLANCEMileage: 14
*download revised training schedule for 2009 LA Marathon at www.RunVentura.com
November Volunteers:
Set-up – Naomi Kress and Philippe Naveau
Breakdown – Caroline Connolly
Supplies – Veronica Santangelo
Aid station/s – Luz Lyon
TRAINING CORNER
NEW TRAINING CALENDAR - The second change in the LAM XXIV date necessitated another revision of our training calendar. Please download the latest calendar and incorporate the changes into your training schedule if you plan on participating in our target marathon.
Surely it is frustrating for all of us having to make all these changes, but let’s look at this latest change positively. It will give us more time to adequately train for the 26.2 mile distance. It will also give those who are injured or aching time to recover and get back to their training. And lastly, it will give newly arriving members a chance to catch up with the rest of us.
The revised training schedule is not meant to have you continue extending your LSD mileage, otherwise you will peak your fitness much too early before the marathon date (you want to peak at the time of the target race date). So we will be on holding pattern for a couple of months, keeping our LSD at around 15 miles (it is not unusual for runners to hold at 15 miles throughout the year – I had done this for many years).
However, it is important that you keep up with your midweek speed and hill workouts. You need to do these workouts to continue developing your speed and strength. These are hard workouts at shorter distances. We do not run hard and fast on our LSD runs, except during the last month of training.
Pace Group Feedback I’ve asked your Pace Leaders to give me feedback about their group’s pace and responses to the pace. Now I would like to have feedback from as many of our members as possible, preferable from everyone. Please email me your answers to the following questions: (1) Which Pace Group are you in? (2) What pace (or finishing time) are you hoping to achieve in the marathon? Now that you have several weeks of running under your soles, you may have a more accurate idea of this pace or finishing time. (3) How are you finding the pace of your present Pace Group to be, that is, is it too fast, too slow or just right? Remember the LSD pace should be comfortable for you.
THIS WEEK'S ESSAY
EAT WELL
by George Arita, Training Committee Chair
Passionate runners and walkers, such as members of RV and ITRC, realize the value of regular exercise as a vital component in maintaining a healthful lifestyle. However maintaining good health requires not only an active lifestyle but also an awareness of and a vigilant care in what we take into our bodies. The substances that we take into our bodies may become incorporated into our tissues and organs and can have beneficial or deleterious effects on our wellbeing.
As highly active individuals, we take in a lot more air than the average or the sedentary person. We know that today’s air contains not only the necessary oxygen but also many pollutants that can cause short-term and life-long damage to our cardio-respiratory systems. So we try to take in clean air by exercising during early morning hours, and we try to avoid the bad air by not running or walking outdoors during high smog periods.
As highly active individuals, we drink a lot more fluids than the average or the sedentary person (not counting alcoholic and carbonated beverages). We try to avoid drinking water coming from polluted sources.
As highly active individuals, we require a lot more calories (food) than the average or the sedentary person (although many people in the latter categories often out-eat us). And we try to consume food that is healthy for us. But do we? Most of our foods, fresh or processed, that are produced by conventional means may be nutritious but may not necessarily be healthy for us in the long term. Food grown using conventional farming and ranching methods, for example, are usually tainted with residues of chemical fertilizers and pesticides that may be declared safe by FDA and USDA, but the safety declaration is usually based on the minute quantities of residues found in individual foods eaten in individual meals. What about the long term and cumulative effects of all the foods eaten in all the meals over the entire lifetime of a person? These effects are not known! It is a fact that we are experiencing higher incidences of illnesses such as cancer, heart and vascular diseases, stroke, diabetes, autism, ADD, and so forth. The higher incidence of illnesses is not due to changes in our genetic make-up (genes don’t dramatically change in just a few generations). The more likely culprits are the changes in our environmental conditions and our constant exposure to new and human-created chemicals, many of which we breathe and ingest via food and drink.
Because we are super active people (we are or soon will be marathoners!) who need to maintain a relatively high intake of food, I recommend consuming pesticide-free (i.e., California Certified Organic) foods as much as possible. These foods are grown or produced without the use of artificial fertilizers, chemical pesticides or chemical additives. Nutritionally the organic foods are not necessarily better than conventionally grown foods, and the cost may be a bit higher, but for long-term health benefits (for you and your family), organic foods are the best way to go. Also producing foods (and other consumer products such as cotton) without artificial fertilizers and pesticides benefits our environment. Fertilizers and pesticides adversely affect wild terrestrial plants and animals. Fertilizers and pesticides also leech into ground waters and run off into surface waters where they affect aquatic life. Minimizing or eliminating the use of fertilizers and pesticides in the growing of foods and other products would minimize or eliminate this source of environmental contamination.
We take care of ourselves by exercising and running marathons. We must also take care of ourselves (and our families) by breathing clean air, drinking clean water, and eating “chemical-free” foods.
NEEDED: DECEMBER VOLUNTEERS
This December, we could use some help in setting up and breaking down home base, purchasing supplies and manning aid stations. Would you like to help out?
Contact: Naomi Kress at nukress@yahoo.com if you are interested in volunteering
CLUB NEWS
Do you know anyone in the club who just got married or engaged? Just had a baby or a job promotion? Just qualified for Boston? Let us know!
Contact: Mira Reverente at mirarev@hotmail.com to help spread the good news
ERRATUM
Mike Miskel’s e-mail address should have read: mmiskel@att.blackberry.net
COMING SOON: SPOTLIGHT ON… (a feature on runners)
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