Can you keep up with Ryan Hall?

Asics has come up with a new way to get the ordinary runner or spectator to appreciate how fast a world class marathoner runs. Here is the Ryan Hall treadmill. Can you keep up?



This the Run with Ryan Hall wall from 2011.

Congratulations to the newest Olympians

The 2012 USA Olympic Marathon Trials held in Houston are history and what a great race in both the men's and women's division. We have a strong experienced and Olympic marathon team. We just may be able to get a medal or two in London.

There is much deserved celebration for Meb, Hall, and Abdi as well as agony for 4th place finisher Ritz.

Shalane Flanagan, Desi Davila, and Kara Goucher console 4th place finisher Amy Hastings. Here are some nice pictures of the Trials.

Meanwhile, while the best Americans were running a marathon, I only got in 18 miles for the entire week:

Monday-0 miles
Tuesday 5 miles hard treadmill
Wednesday 1 mile treadmill hard to move
Thursday 0 miles
Friday 4mile treadmill
Saturday 8 miles outdoors very slow
Sunday 0 miles

I am trying some new shoes and while I feel great wearing them, the next day it is hard to run. I realized I have been doing all my training the past 2 months in a very old pair of Asics Hyperspeeds. I have had 3 pair since I wore this version (without the holes on the bottom) and they had basically been my snowshoe racing shoes for the past couple of years. I couldn't decide what type of shoe I wanted to try, so I kept wearing this old decrepit pair of shoes. As someone who likes trying new shoe technology, I finally ordered a pair of Skecher GoRuns. They feel fast when running with them, but I use muscles differently and that is why the day after I run my muscles are tired. The good news is that if I like the shoes and if they agree with my body, then these are the shoes that took Meb to his 2nd marathon PR in 69 days and a win in the Olympic Trials. If not, they end up in the box with the Vibram five-fingers, the Hoka One One Biondis, the Newton shoes, and a few other "misses" I have tried.

2012 USA Olympic Marathon Trials Men Predictions

On Saturday, January 14 the United States will pick their Olympic marathon team for the 2012 Olympics in London. Actually they will allow the picking to be done based on racer's performances in just one race, the 2012 Olympic Trials Marathon held in Houston. For this Olympics the trials will be held for both men and women in the same place on the same day. I rather liked the trials for the Beijing Olympics, the men's trials were held in Central Park the day before the New York City Marathon and the women's trials were held in Boston on the day before the Boston Marathon. What I liked best was that I got to go watch the women's trials and it was such a wonderful setup for spectators, but the Olympic committee felt otherwise this year. The biggest problem I have with this years trials is that there will be no live video of the race. Really? It is 2012 and we can't get a live video feed to show the events as they happen and the "whole" event. Instead NBC will do a 2 hour show on the trials later on Sunday afternoon. That is fantastic, but I know I won't keep away from the computer so I will already know the results; plus a two hour show means that a vast amount of both races probably won't be shown.

It will be an interesting day to say the least and anything can and probably will happen, but I would like to throw out my picks for who may make our Olympic teams. I will divide my picks into 3 categories, from which I will chose 3 top picks for each category, and then I will choose a team.

Men's

My first category is for the superstars who have probably earned the top picks in each race

Ryan Hall- Ryan should be a shoe-in unless something unforeseen happens (things do happen- Deena Kastor broke a bone in her foot during the 2008 Olympic Marathon) or he races stupidly. He is that much better and more experienced at the top level than all the other runners.

Meb Keflezighi- He has an Olympic silver medal in the marathon, but he is getting older and he did race the NYC marathon in November. Strangely, he got a foot infection from leaving a breathe-right strip in his shoe during that race and missed 3 weeks of running because of that infection, although the rest could be a good thing). Questionable things like this and signing with Skechers seem to make it look like Meb is losing it, but Skechers seem to work for him as he set a marathon PR in NYC and ditched his orthotics in the process. He may be wily enough to make another marathon team despite a short buildup.

Dathan Ritzenhein - he's got the talent and the 9th place finish in the Beijing Olympic Marathon to be a real favorite, but Dathan is real fragile and has had a slow recovery over the summer from a strange injury that wouldn't heal. He has only run 2 5k road races lately. Is that enough for him to make the team?

The next category is the top level American marathoners. These guys have posted fast time in recent years, but none of them have gone sub 2:10 which means they are barely noticed as international level runners. It would be fun if one or more of these guys has a significant breakthrough on Sunday.

Brett Gotcher ran a 2:10:36 marathon debut in Houston in 2010, but followed that up with a 2:19:30 in Houston last year. Is Houston his city or not!

Jason Hartman ran a 2:11:01 in the 2010 Chicago Marathon and was a high school teammate of Dathan Ritzenheim.

Tim Nelson has a marathon time of 2:15:06from the 2010 New York City Marathon which is less than stellar when compared with many other Trials participants. His build-up races haven't been too fast either, so he doesn't look like the best pick, but he is a quick and experienced runner having a 27:28.19track 10000 meter PR and he did represent the USA at the 2009 World Championship in the same race. He is one of those guys that could have a breakthrough race.

My final category is for debut marathoners. Who can predict what will happen with them?

Mo Trafah has a 1:00:39 1/2 marathon PR. It will be interesting to see what he can pull off at the marathon distance. He tried the London Marathon last year, but went out too hard and dropped out of the race.

Brent Vaughn has a 1:02:04 1/2 marathon PR but I liked the way he looked and ran when he won the National Cross-Country title last year. Can he translate that XC skill and toughness to the marathon?

Brian Olinger is the wildest of all wild cards in the race. He is the only Trials entrant to have never run a 1/2 marathon and full marathon. He gained entry based on his 10000 time. The former steeplechaser was the first American at this years Falmouth Road Race in fourth place with a time that only 3 Americans have ever run faster (Alberto Salazar, Craig Virgin, and Meb Keflizighi. Olinger also won this year 75th annual Manchester Thanksgiving Day race in Connecticut). He just might be the runner with the biggest upswing.

It would be too easy to pick Ryan Hall, Meb, and Dathan as the top 3 picks in these Trials and I would be more than happy with that outcome, but that would be too easy. I will go out on a limb and pick one runner from each category. I am sure my predictions will be way off, but it is fun to play the game.

1st place: Ryan Hall 2:07:19. He should be unbeatable.
2nd place: Brett Gotcher 2:09:30
3rd place: Brent Vaughn 2:10:05

Sure I would like to see faster times. I hope for a real fast race and not a timid one. Whatever happens, I think a lot of guys will be hurting at the end. I just want to see some great racing. I think Meb left things too close to NYC and he doesn't sound too confident in interviews. I don't think Dathan's body will hold up.

I can only hope the finish looks something like this:



What are your thought and predictions?

Keeping up with Ryan Hall

This is in a subway station in New York City. People are trying to keep up with Ryan Hall for 60 feet. This is his pace for a full marathon. Even Ryan had a hard time keeping up in street clothes. I think it is a neat way to make people aware of how fast the elites do run.

Ryan Hall: Running with Joy

One of the greatest running quotes of all time comes from the Oscar winning movie Chariots of Fire.As you may recall, in this movie based on the 1924 Olympics, Scottish runner Eric Liddell disqualifies himself from the 100 meters because he refuses to run on the Sabbath. A teammate gives up his spot on the 400 meters so that Eric has a chance at winning a medal. During this final scene in the movie, as Eric Liddell throws his head back towards the heavens and races towards the finish line we hear his words proclaim, "I believe God made me for a purpose, but he also made me fast. And when I run I feel His pleasure."

Non-runners don't get it, but that quote so perfectly encapsulates the joy of running that many so perfectly feel and pursue. I think it has become so ingrained in my soul, that I continue to want to "feel" this joy despite injuries and pain that tell me that maybe my running days might possibly be over. When people tell me that I should just quit and find something else to do, I can't. I think running is so written into my DNA. I just want to run and it is one of the profound ways that I can experience the pleasures of being a human.

This week I read Ryan Hall's new book Running with Joy: My Daily Journey to the Marathonon my Kindle. This book is a journal-like build-up of the 14 weeks prior to Hall's running of the 2010 Boston Marathon. In it Ryan details his workouts, his thoughts and doubts, his routines, and his spiritual thinking. Much has been said about Ryan Hall and the decisions he has made as a runner and particularly his spiritual thinking. This year, he even walked away from his long-time coach so he could coach himself with God's guidance. This sent the running message boards into a frenzy. So what is up with Ryan Hall?

Ryan is open and honest in his book as he dishes out his daily thoughts. If you want to know his training schedule and routines, it is here. What is interesting is his chronicles of doubts along the way. Who knew that a world-class runner hurt as much as us normal runners? If you want to get to know more about Ryan's life, this really isn't a biography. Most of the background information in the story has been written elsewhere. This is more of a snapshot of a period of time. He does break apart from the journal routine to give specific short passages on training and other running related issues. These are interesting, but not thoroughly in-depth. We learn he does self-massage with rollers or massage balls, but it would be real interesting to learn the specifics and routines. Fourteen weeks is a short amount of time and we learn a little bit about his running wife, Sarah, but not a whole lot. In fact I found this short blog entry by Ryan Hall to be more entertaining than just the basics in the book. What we are left with is a running and spiritual journal.

The first book on running I ever received was a book given to me when I was about 10 years old called "Running the Race" (1968). I still have it. It was a book about great Olympic athletes and their challenges and triumphs. Many of the stories reflected on the spiritual lives of these champions. I was nothing but a run-around-the-neighborhood kid when I first read the book, but the stories of Jesse Owens, Jim Ryan, Kip Keino, Roger Bannister, Paavo Nurmi, Emil Zapotek, and others certainly influenced the future decisions I made to become a runner.

The next two running books I  read when I started running in ninth grade were the biographies of Jim Ryan and Kip Keino, both runners who integrated running and faith. Other books, such as Meb Keflezighi's recent biography tell about a strong faith, but Ryan's book is something different all-together. A non-runner reading the book may find the descriptions of his workouts indecipherable, likewise a non-believer may find his spiritual thoughts and devotional writings incomprehensible. I admire Ryan Hall, for letting us take a glimpse into his thinking processes. I am not sure he did the best job articulating his goals, but I think his thinking was a work in progress. It may just be the journal format, or the fact that we are seeing his thinking more than his actions beyond the running. Or maybe his dream is just too heavenly too describe. I think it comes down to Ryan wanting to feel God's joy when he races. He wants to rediscover that joy he had when winning the Olympic Trials marathon in New York City, finger pointing to the sky, full of run in the final strides, during that overwhelming championship run.



It then becomes a struggle for Ryan to develop a plan for racing. Do you run to win or do you run to feel God's pleasure? What if God's pleasure is for him to win? What if is is not? Ryan tries to make sense of his thinking and in today's world where winning is usually everything, what should be Ryan's mindset? Some people will probably pour hate on the book because of Ryan's spiritual inclinations. Some will not get it at all. Some will see a champion who is trying to keep his head on straight and not let fame interfere with personal growth. Others may delight in reading about Ryan Hall's spiritual path. Even if you read the book and don't enjoy it, at least you know that the profits from the book will be going to Ryan's Hall Steps Foundation.

Here are some interesting quotes I bookmarked (don't know what pages as it is a Kindle)

"I still compare myself to others. But I am getting closer. This is not what running should be about at its fullest. Running should be a pure flood of joy. Comparing myself to others is empty and vain. I rob myself of the goodness and joy of running every time I do it."

"I really struggle with the concept of having only one winner. I don't want to tell kids that if they do their best, work hard, and sacrifice, they will accomplish their dreams. If their dream is to win the Super Bowl they will probably never accomplish it. Instead, I want to encourage kids to focus, work hard, and dream big because the journey is what matters. To dream and live a life of devotion is better than to never dream at all. As we pursue our dreams, we realize the abundant life."

"I feel that it would be robbing those who are interested in my running to not share what it is that makes me tick and about the journey that I am on. I realize that everyone may not agree with everything I believe in, and that's alright. I think we all need to extend the grace to one another to allow people to be who they are and way what makes them who they are."

Running with Joy website and blog.

But if you really want to experience what I think Ryan Hall is trying to articulate in this book, just re-watch the ending to Chariots of Fire.

Slow Motion Running

Steve Magness over at The Science of Running has a post today  analyzing the footstikes in a slow motion video of the top women at the Sunday's 5th Avenue Mile in New York.  I just find the viewing of running form presented in this fashion as fascinating. Here is the video.



Here is another wonderful slow-motion video showing the elite male runners at the 2010 Boston Marathon at about the 17 miles mark.


Elite Men in the 2010 Boston Marathon - Super Slow Motion from Runblogger on Vimeo.

Runners in order on video are: 1. Robert Kiprono Cheruiyot, 2. Deriba Merga, 3. Tekeste Kebede, 4. Moses Kigen Kipkosgei (red/green singlet); 5. Abderrahim Goumri (purple singlet w/ yellow stripe), and 6. Mebrahtom Keflezighi. Video is from runblogger.com.

Here is Ryan Hall (also at the 17 mile mark) in Boston.


Ryan Hall - Boston Marathon 2010 from Runblogger on Vimeo.

In case you missed the 5th Avenue Miles last week. Here is the video of the women's race (actual race at 2:25).



Here is the video of the men's race (actual race at 4:25).


It has been two weeks since my last run. That is not even slow-motion running. I am just not running. I have no desire to run. Oh, I would love to, but I am tired of the pain and trying to fix imbalances. All the muscles that were bracing around my hip have loosened up and now I am left with pelvis and hips that are definitely out of alignment: up, down, back, and forward. I don't know what to do about it anymore. I tried a second MRI and that went worse than the first. They lie you flat on a table that slowly slides you into the jaws of the MRI machine like you are being swallowed alive by a monster. It just wasn't my idea of a fun time, even though I knew how important those images would be. I am waiting to hear from the doctor to see what his advice or next line of action is going to be. I would love to be running, but until someone can tell me what I need to do, I can't muster the energy for it anymore. I just know that I am tilting at windmills and I can't think of anything else to try to keep my legs and hips in alignment. It is good that I stopped and let things unwind. I can feel exactly what is going on.

Whether from a labral tear or bad positioning, my left hip is pushed forward and the femur doesn't sit properly. It then is rotated inward. This makes the whole femur twisted on down to the knee where it seems to rest on the inside of the knee which compensates by twisting the lower leg out. This stresses the outer quads and inner hamstrings. Then it angles down wrong on the heel which makes it feel like the foot is everted out and I can't bend the knee forward over the foot properly. It doesn't feel in aligment when walking let alone running. I have tried everything that I can think of to fix this over the years, and I can't think of anything else that would solve it. Right now, my body isn't a body that should be running. Hopefully the doctor can figure out if it is a labral tear or find some fix that I haven't thought of. Until then, I can only dream of having such wonderful running form as in these videos.



Update:
This new book from the author of The Entrepreneurial Patient blog is a must read book for anyone with hip problems and is thinking about about arthroscopic hip surgery or has had arthroscopic hip surgery for a labral tear or FAI.

Ole! Is Ryan Hall Ready for Boston?

Check out this video of Ryan Hall training at altitude. He ran an 8 mile workout last week with a 4:18 first mile and completed the run in 38:05. Not too shabby! Let's hope he has a great run at Boston.

It is Spring, So Why I am on the Treadmill?

Monday night I lifted up a kettlebell without positioning myself correctly and something in my mid-upper back got tweaked a bit. Today I decided to run on the treadmill in case it hindered my running. Everything went fine except when I was starting the treadmill I was also fiddling with an iPod. I didn't realize that I got the treadmill speed up to 12 mph until my legs started going faster than I had planned. Fortunately, I got the speed down before I shot off the back. I actually felt real good on the treadmill and ended up doing 8 miles at a faster than normal pace. My back still is tweaked, however.

Now I am thinking about jumping in a race this weekend or next to see where I am at. I know I am not anywhere near to a racing speed and I will need a lot of races before I feel comfortable running fast. So I could do the Eastern States 20 miler or the "lesser of two evils" half-marathon (it has been a few years since I have done the 20 miler). I could also do the Great Bay 1/2 Marathon. Or I could do one of the Eastern States races this weekend and the Great Bay race next weekend. Or I could just train and save my money. I'll have to check out the upcoming weather and decide soon. What is nice is that I feel good enough running that thinking about racing is actually I choice I can make.

Here is an interesting video on marathoner Ryan Hall and Team World Vision. They are bringing clean water to people in Africa.