I officially have to get more Iron Master weight! I can build 105’s but that’s all I have.
I followed this with a really intense back and triceps / push pull routine through total failure.
I did a couple miles of natural movement playing with my 6 year old. Basketball was game. Prepping for a long sweaty run also took in close to 300g carbs from multiple clean and just a bit of dirty sources. Protein high in the 200g range, fat very low in the 60-70g range.
Double down on electrolytes, bone broth again. Let’s see if I can sustain out there in the heat or it it will get me.
I also got some new Summer running gear to experiment with because my compression shorts over underwear with Vuori shorts is not working for the swampy weather:
So with these, I reduce my weight and lessen the heavy sweat retention on my clothing.
Slow and steady DOES NOT win the race, but it’s what’s needed to run in this nutty summer heat. I ran 20 miles at a 9-minute mile pace, starting at 6:15am when it was 75 degrees, and finishing around 9:15am when it was 86 degrees. By the end, the sun felt like a flamethrower, and not one inch of my outfit was dry, including my sneakers which were filled with sweat. Gross!
Up at 4:15am, I had a 1/4 cup of my homemade granola, 1 tbsp honey, 1 banana, electrolytes with a pint of water, and black coffee.
Today I did a 70 minute 110 degree Bikram style yoga class and nothing else. Just a nice active recovery. Legs a bit banged up, lower abs a bit sore. Lower back pretty hammered.
Took in high protein, lowered my carbs down to under 100g and will suck down even more the next few days.
Here’s a simple yoga sequence with no technical or yoga lingo - easy and accessible to anyone with a sore running body:
4 mile hike with some light sprints and a minor upper body circuit training session where I just went at each body part with one long light set. Prepping for a power session and still recovering from my 20 miler.
Protein jacked way up to around 250g on the day, carbs up around 150 total. Basically I added in a whole meal for more repair and recovery. After a good sleep I’ll be fully ready for intensity.
Severe strength session with a mild yoga stretch a couple hours later.
Weights: Barbell squats 135 x 6, 135 x 10, 185 x 8, 225 x 20
Incline Dumbbells: 50 x 10, 60 x 10, 80 x 12 (failure)
Superset to Incline Barbell Press: 185x6, 135 total failure
Pullup Isometric Hold: 45 seconds, 30 seconds
Back Pulldowns
1 set dumbbell overheads like this followed by Tricep Dropset
7 miler in super swampy soul sucking humidity followed by a chill active recovery yoga session.
Later that afternoon I did a short powerful vanity workout for arms. Bi’s and Tri’s. I’m still nursing a weird forearm pull, it’s about 90% but still not going hard on bi’s. I did a lot of cable work and drop sets.
4 mile “zone 2” recovery hike was really nice because the temps and humidity were a bit eased up a bit. I did a few uphill jogs nothing past my zone 2. No other exercise today just a bunch of natural movement with my 6 year old. Total steps on the day around 11,000.
Calories jacked up a bit today around 2300 calories taking in 230g protein, 140g carbs prepping for a monster Saturday weight session. I don’t plan to do another super long run for 2 or 3 weeks hoping by then the am temps drop, so I am not doing the whole “carb loading thing” until then. Which is fine by me because its not something I enjoy.
I will be doing some speed training during this time. Can’t see the need for carbs to go higher than 150g for any given training session.
I got in 2 great ocean view runs down in Narragansett / Point Judith followed with beach time and tons of natural movement. Swimming in the cold ocean with the big waves followed by local fresh seafood is the best.
On the days I didn’t run, I did repeated the same workout: Floor weights with the old 50’s I brought outside on the deck and I did this video 3x:
Hit a 60%-65% strength training session. Day after family vacation body sore in so many weird ways from beach, weird sleep and just being off the routine. Jumped in but not too hard.
Prepping for a long training run tomorrow. Made my homemade granola, fueling up on 200-250g carbs and going at it!
20 miler and a LOCK on my official race day gear (see below). I got out super early (6:20am) to avoid the heat and it still got me in the last hour. I am really looking forward to cool dry temps but this Summer training has made me really strong in weird ways. Running distance is one thing but when heat is a factor it really complicates it all so much.
Gear, electrolytes, this soaked head to toe thing, the gd sweat in my shoes, the fn bugs. All of it made me stronger as much as it SUCKED.
For this run I got up at 4:30am. I had a NUUN electrolyte tablet in 12oz of water, 1/2 cup homemade granola, 1 tbs honey and a large black coffee.
I took a water bottle out there with a NUUN and also had 2 extra in my pocket. I had all of them. I also took down 5 Skracth Labs energy chews around 1/2 way though.
I hit the road at 6:20am and ran for 3 hours. The 1st hour was pleasant. Temps were great and even a bit cool. Then the damn sun peeked out and started it’s hellfire on me and I just plowed through.
The new path project shorts with fanny pack are working out well. Full review for those coming too! I have solidified my race day gear, video coming very soon
My official race day gear head to toe:
It has taken me months to fully address every issue that may pop up during a long run. When I began training it was cool out so the heat and heat related issues were not a thing. As time has gone on after 1000+ miles, hundreds of hours and dozens of run stopping annoyances I have it all figured out.
Below is the list of finalized items I will use come run day. The only “optional” items may be lightweight gloves, compression shorts for some extra warmth and a base layer long sleeve shirt if NYC temps are in the low 40’s at the start. All of which I’ll probably have to discard along the way as I heat up.
My sole goal here is to have no issues during the run from head to toe.
I may add to this list but I won’t take away from it. Everything here is tried, tested, vetted and amazing, for me, an almost 50 year old man.
Video coming soon.
Optional cold weather add-ons for NYC Nov 3 weather:
The shorts are great. Light, well made, barely notice they’re there in my sweaty Summer NYC marathon training runs. However one big flaw is the phone pocket.
I have a large phone (Galaxy) with a case and it barely fits in the pocket. Even if I jam it in, when I run it flops like crazy on my back and becomes entirely inaccessible during my run. Not that I need to be on my phone a lot but sometimes I want to take a picture or need to change a music setting or access a run app. Or I get a message from family (all other notifications are off). And on marathon day, will need to communicate with family post race and have the NYRR tracking app on me.
So this makes me have to use a “fanny pack” which I was really trying to avoid. I really wanted to be as lean and light as possible for my marathon.
The phone thing is a very important detail. Something more stable and tight to the body is needed.
5 mile light “Zone 2” hike today at dawn and something amazing happened. Literally the 1st signs of FALL fell right in front of me. I looked over and saw a tree already changing colors. This really inspired me because it means the marathon is getting close.
Great barbell squats day. Worked up to a set of 20 x 225 quite like this:
Been going a touch deeper than 90 degrees.
I also worked up to an incline dumbbell set of 80lbs x 12.
I followed this with a short hike/walk outside in the nasty heat. Being in the woods helps minus the bugs landing on my ears and flying directly in front of my eyes. Please let it get cool again soon!
In addition to going over 200g protein, I pounded down an extra 100-125g carbs in the form of movie popcorn (no butter) and a cup or so of trader joe’s maple granola cereal for a morning run. That makes the total carbs on the day around 200-225.
Early, swampy, 73 and muggy and buggy at 6:30am, trainer.
Kept a good pace despite choking on humidity for an hour
Did a short active recovery yoga sequence outside to loosen up my smashed squat legs. Starting to gear up for a decent trainer this Sunday. Nothing too far, no need to do a multi-day carb load. I’m aiming for a speedy 13.1.
Hit a short powerful strength session for back and bi’s. My weird forearm pull is 95% better. One more week of nursing and I should be back to it full steam.
Did a 4 mile / 10,000 step woods hike today. It was a good low impact sweaty walk with some light sprints. “Eye bugs” were out of control, heat and humidity just over the top. But, I did it, cleaned off and survived.
80lbs x 13 reps
90lbs x 10 reps and I mean the last 3 were killer.
DId 2 sets of shrugs 190 x 15-20 reps
Lat/bicep isometric hangs x 2
Cable pulldowns x 2
Overhead dumbbell pullover followed by a nasty tricep dropset
Review these videos for reference:
Made my homemade granola and had probably a cup or more, I didn’t measure but I loaded up on high quality carbs ahead of hopefully my LAST SWAMPY Sunner run.
I pray this is my last week of this crazy humid hot swampy weather. Hit a 9.25 miler and literally my shoes were squishy sponges that weighed 5lbs ea filled with sweat!
70 minute Bikram style class in 110 degrees. Seems funny to do this and complain about the heat all the time. This is literally the same heat and humidity but worse lol but it’s different when it’s controlled and you are doing static holds. I swear by it for recovery!
followed by a chill 
