Training Update: Post States Limbo, Nutritional Ketosis and TRX Training

Three weeks since Western States, and all systems are in good order. The last few toenails have given up their station. The muscles and joints are well rested and itching to go running. With no races on the schedule, my motivation sprouts from fighting off general malaise and feelings of fatness.

The toenails have left the building...

I have two goals for the next few months: drop weight and build strength. Calorie counting and hard training do not mix well. Running ~25 miles a week, and employing the TRX Suspension Trainer in my office gym will complement a novel nutritional strategy I learned about at the "Medicine and Science in Ultra-Endurance Sports" conference at Squaw Valley last month. Nutritional ketosis, as described by Stephen Phinney, is a state in which fat is used for energy in the absence of carbohydrates. Simply put: consume less than 50 grams of carbohydrates per day with 0.6 - 1.0 g/protein per pound of lean muscle mass. Measuring the blood ketones via a simple blood sugar/ketone meter allows the athlete to dial in ratios which work best for the individual.

Nutritional ketosis occurs at blood ketone concentrations between 0.5-3.0 mM

In the end, being in ketosis allows for more exertion while still burning fat for fuel. The drawback is that it takes 2-4 weeks to achieve, and energy levels crash during the adaptation phase. Shoehorning this experiment into my summer vacation schedule will be difficult, but I am excited to see the results and share them with you. I hope to spend the majority of August on the diet. Stay tuned for updates.

Simple, effective. The TRX Suspension Trainer

In the mean time, TRX is kicking my ass. All of the minor core muscles I have neglected for years hurt. MAP is giving me an edge, allowing for an even effort throughout the workouts, but until I build more capillaries I will continue to feel like a newbie. Of course, that kind of soreness is the best kind. It lets you know you're doing your body right. 

I have been scouting a 50 mile course out of Nevada City. In the coming weeks I will run it in sections. Once the route is nailed down I hope to put on a race. If you have any interest in sponsoring, volunteering, participating or racing, please let me know!