A top priority for any coach is to get their athletes to the start line without injury. I did that this year, in spite of a heavier run training program. My last long bike workout was on October 20. Soon after that I made the decision that Pattie would not be strong enough to travel to Mexico for my IM Cozumel race, nor would she be strong enough to be left alone at home. I still had the Honolulu Marathon penciled in on my calendar, so I cleared away most of the remaining bike workouts and replaced them with runs. Tuesday and Thursday mornings became two hour runs, and Sundays varied between three and four hours. A niggle finally appeared at the start of race week. I skipped the taper interval workout scheduled for Wednesday and rested all week. No pain anywhere on the last couple of days. No issues during the race.
This year was slightly better than last year. I did not puke. I never felt sick or unsure I could make it to the finish line without passing out. I even beat last year's time and finished under 10 hours. Very pleased with that. Last year I started puking somewhere on the return and the climb over Diamond Head was like a scene from an old movie where the hero is crawling across the desert while buzzards circle overhead. I actually thought I might pass out. This year I did Sunday long runs of four hours and was not a total wreck afterwards. I figured that if I could do that on race day I could run at least halfway, and maybe more. But that did not happen. Why? Some thoughts.
Heat
Some years it's wet. Some years the wind on the highway is so strong I look for someone to draft behind while holding my hat in my hand. None of that this year, just like last year.
The temperature my Gamin recorded at the start was 86F. It cooled a bit passing through Waikiki. Must be due to the proximity to the ocean, as the sun is not high enough for shade to make a big difference. By the time we reached Kalanianaole Highway it was close to 90F. The outbound lane gets no shade from the trees lining the road, and everyone was getting cooked. Sad to see runners not even halfway through perched on the center barrier struggling to find some energy. Peak temperature of 100F was in Hawaii Kai, near Costco. There was some shade along the makai side of the road on the way back, but by then the air temperature was 94F. Going over Diamond Head we saw 97F.
Along with high temps we had high humidity and very little wind. I doused my head and back with water every chance I had and grabbed ice wherever there was some. Several households along the way had water showers going, and at some aid stations the water fillers had been instructed to hose down people. That was so welcome.
It is well known that high heat and humidity take a toll on long endurance events. The issue is rising core temperature. Once the body reaches the point where evaporative cooling can no longer keep up with the heat being generated by the muscles, the brain will shut down those muscles. This is non-negotiable. Grit and willpower are of no help. Maybe if I were a more efficient runner I could keep running instead of walking, but in any case, my power output would drop significantly.
I always start in my assigned zone. This year that was 7+ hours finishing time. That was a very generous plus, because everyone around me walked across the start line and kept walking. I settled into my target run pace and only walked for the pinch points, like up Nuuanu and down at the bottom end of Pensacola. It was around the 10K point, the grind up Monsarrat to Paki, that my run gave out and walking was the best I could do.
Mental Fatigue
One thing that felt different this year was my desire to abandon. I was kidding when I feigned turning off at Kapiolani Park, as if I were doing the 10K. By the time I was approaching the end of Paki I had to fight off a very real urge to turn right and walk back, to call it a day. Why? Because I knew I would be walking the rest of the day.
Jason Coop talks about this in his book, Training Essentials for Ultrarunning. It was my good friend Chet Blanton, himself an accomplished ultrarunner, who commented that my marathon is more like an ultra. That got me interested in the sport, and that led me to read Jason’s book. Chapter 15 is on Mental Skills, and one thing he describes is our inability to judge how long we can tolerate long periods of exertion. We are pretty good at it for short time periods, but as the period of exertion goes from minutes to hours we tend to give up before we really need to.
I used a trick I learned from Jason. Pick a target you can comprehend and agree to go that far. In my case, I was on Paki and agreed to go as far as Triangle Park. From there, the Aloha gas station. It helps that I am familiar with the course. I have heard this works well on an unfamiliar course by going one mile at a time.
Fuel and Hydration
Last year I wore a hydration vest for the first time in a race. I was, and still am, leery about mildew taking root in the water bladder so I never used it for sports drink. For the race I carried four Precision Hydration (PH) gels and some PH salt tablets and planned on getting most fluids and electrolytes from the Gatorade served on course.
Bad idea. Maybe due to the popularity of the 10K, they only offer water until Triangle Park. I was taking in way too much water and not enough salt, resulting in a sick stomach and no energy. Plus, 120 grams of carbs is not enough for a ten hour day.
This year I used PH1000 in the bladder and carried four 90 gram PH gel bags. I love these because they have screw-on caps, so you can suck only what you need without any mess. High carb intake during a race is fashionable, 90-120 grams per hour. In practice I could only tolerate one bag every two hours. That was one comfortable suck every twenty minutes. I stuck to it until about mile 18, when I went more by feel. I ended up not opening the fourth bag.
I would rate this year’s fuel and hydration plan my best ever and a complete success.
Feet
When it comes to feet, I have had some bad years. One time I wore Newton shoes that felt good in practice but were much too small. Result? An agonizing second half and I lost both big toenails. Then there were minimalist shoes that highlighted every crack and pebble along the highway. Last year I wore Hoka Bondies. Great shoes, big toe box, but heavy. This year I tried Cliftons, extra-wide, and they were perfect. Lighter than Bondies while retaining plenty of support. The only down side is they only come in black.
Strength
I have done a few runs around Diamond Head and intervals up Kilauea, but even then I felt weak on Sunday whenever we started going uphill. On thinking about this I realized that for some of my best marathons I was diligently working with a strength and conditioning coach twice a week. My intent was to do the same this year. I even rented a locker at the Fort Shafter gym. It turned out I can’t always get away in the middle of the day. Meanwhile, a Planet Fitness gym opened in Kahala Mall. Not 24 hours, but plenty early and late so that I should be able to find the time. Strength training will be a high priority next year.
Walking
Back in April 2022 I proposed shifting my run training to walk training, because my marathon run pace is only slightly faster than my brisk walking pace, and I can sustain that walk a lot longer than the run. For an Ironman, then, the plan was to go hard on the swim and bike to leave enough time to walk the marathon and still finish before the cutoff time.
Earlier I mentioned Jason Coop and his book on Ultrarunning. In that book he discusses the three modes of locomotion used in an ultra, walking, running, and climbing, and how important it is to train all three. Last year and this year I never trained the walk, yet I walked more than half the distance. For next year I want to cover both sides. Better run training and add some long walks. I can use the Hapalua as a test.
Summary
If there is one key takeaway to this ramble, it is to train with greater variety. This fall I spent a lot of time along Kalanianaole Highway running just below LT1. Great for endurance, and I have tons of that. What I need now is better neuromuscular activity – smoother, more efficient movement – and force generation. That last point is where age really takes a toll, and the solution is simple; more time in the gym.
