Riadens RUNNING marathon log

[riaden]

Long story short, had basically all of last year off due to illness, plus mental health, trying to beat an ED problem of anorexia nervosa. still trying to beat it now.
love my running, and since im back into full training i thought i would keep a log. as im planning to run my first ever road marathon in about 2months time. the marathon i was going to do before all of this started. so thank you for joining me.

I have been doing about 140km a week or about 90miles.

age 25
weight 130lb
hieght 176cm (5.10)

TOOLS
shoes-
ASICS gel nimbus (easy run shoe)
ASICS DS trainers (tempo shoe)
BROOKS ST racers (speed shoe/ race shoes)

WATCH
- Garmin 410- with H/R

DIET

basically i eat mainly vegaterian. but sometimes i have meat only at night time, not during the day.

TRAINING

a typicall week of training at the moment looks something like this

MONDAY
AM- Easy 8-10km
PM- 3km warm up- 7km tempo- 2km cool down

TUESDAY
AM- Easy 8-12km
PM- 3km warm up- 4x1km repeats or 3x 1400m- 3km cool down

WEDNESDAY
AM- Easy 10-16km
PM- Easy 6-8km

THURSDAY
AM- Easy 10-12km
PM- 2km warm up 4.5km fast run (THERSHOLD) 2km cool down

FRIDAY
AM- Easy 14-16km
PM- Easy 6km

SATURDAY
AM- 5km warm up- 8km tempo- 3km cool down

SUNDAY
AM- LONG RUN cross country 20-25km

only supplement i have is ASCEND WPI

[riaden]

Today was good, recoved well from my 30km long run yesturday, which was alittle surprising. the tempo in the after was abit hard as there was a bit of wind around the place, and raining, and also my legs felt alittle heavy.

basically just letting people know i also work full time from 6.30am to 3.30pm. most of my am runs i do at lunch time, or sometimes i start work late.


TRAINING

AM- Easy 16km
PM- 1km warm up 5km tempo tired to pick it up alittle for the last 2km- 2 km cool down

FOOD

Oats with whey, and yogurt

Cottage cheese and egg wholemeal wrap, apple

creamy pasta

oats with whey and yogurt, apple

frozen bannana smoothie with rice milk and whey

[Bonny_Lassie]

I'm in and subbed!

Never knew you on the forums before (I used to just stay in the womens section), but I see you've been battling Anorexia, and spent some time in hospital. I've been there too, and I also used to be an endurance athlete (But chucked that for bodybuilding ).I also checked out your old thread about checking yourself into hospital, and your post about a typical "Anorexic Day" totally hit home because that's more or less exactly how I lived when I was in the worst stages of my illness.

I really hope things are better for you now! Just make sure that it doesn't stat to "take-over" again as you said you're still trying to beat it! If you need any support from someone who understands just give me a shout! I'll be following your progress for sure! Good luck!

[riaden]

Thank you for your support . i just have to learn to eat more as im burning so much. and im too light as it is. I never want to go back to where i was.

Well didnt get much sleep last night, due to stressing out, over life ect, and was really really hungry at 2am, so i cooked up some hot rolled oats, to try and make myself fall back to sleep, but it was hard eating at that time ect and ended up didnt get back to sleep until 4.30am, and got up at 7.30am ( took the day off work) and went for a run, which made me feel good. but its something im working on with my life is trying to control my running, and not letting it control me.

TRAINING
AM- Easy 20km- 1hour 40min
PM- 2.5k warm up, 5x1km reps with 45sec recovery. 2.5km cool down
splits- 3.49-3.48-3.48-3.42-3.41

was happy with the afternoon session as i felt not bad, and it wasnt eye balls out which was good.

FOODS
since im still battling an ED, im trying to mix up my food as much as i can, and just trying new things, and trying to treat myself once in awhile. but sometimes its hard enough just to eat.

Apple

Oats with whey and yogurt


Blended chickpea and salad wrap


steak with mashed potatoes and veggies


Apple, handful of Almonds

Oats with frozen yogurt and LSA mix

Frozen bannana shake with rice milk and whey

PIC of my Gel Nimbus

[riaden]

Took a long hard look at myself today, im over training, to much junk kms, so im going to start backing off, and try and just run just once aday as my foods arnt supporting my running.

TRAINING

AM - Easy 20km 1 hour 35min ( felt not bad after half way.)
PM - Easy 5km 26min (waste of time and effort, felt crap) plus it was raining, shouldnt even of headed out.

FOODS
Well i tried something different for lunch and had some muffins, which im sort of proud of myself, but im really going to try hard to change my foods up everyday so im not having the same thing every day ect. Im glad my mum is a Chef as me and her cook tea together sometimes. i also tried to treat myself to some sweets, which is hard for me cause i dont allow myself any cakes, sweets, or fast foods. i basically stick to water and milk, and all unprocessed foods, and i hardly try not to eat anything out of a packed, e.g potatoe chips, ceral, muslie bars, ect ect. but im trying to overcome this slowly.

Apple

oats with whey and yogurt

Engilsh muffins with pizza sauce and cheese


Chicken with homemade fries, carrots, mushrooms, and colieflower


Tried to treat myself with some lollies, only had about half of this.


oats with frozen yogurt with whey and LSA mix

Apple

Frozen bannana shake with whey and skim milk

[riaden]

Well another night of not much sleep, about 4hours, been awake since 2am. still went to work. manage to get through it, and still manage to go for a run after work, i have no idea how, as i was almost falling asleep. should of been a rest day today. well mabey i might ake tomorrow off., as i think i really need it.

TRAINING

i was pretty happy with this run, as i felt dead tired, and i was actully not going to do it, even thought about taking the day off to be honest. Anyway went out and got it done. Done almost 3laps of this course i do around a park, There is a slight hill half way around, as you can tell from my km pace dropped off alittle. In the end I didnt know how fast i was going until i had finshed, as i was just going off my Heart Rate.

PM- 3km warm up 5km Tempo 2km warm down

5km Splits- 3.45-3.49-3.44-3.48-3.32
Total time- 18.41
Avg Hr- 169

Here is a picture of the park i run around when doing my tempo, there is a road that goes around the outside of it.


FOODS

One thing im trying to do is eat more during the day and not at night time. i feel like i have to do the hard work first before treating myself, which is wrong i know, and im trying to fix it.

Oats with yogurt

Oats with yogurt and whey

Turkey salad wholemeal wrap


Apple

Small bannana shake

Beef Sniz with mashed potatoes and veggies


Oats with Frozen yougrt and LSA mix

Small cottage cheese wrap

Frozen Bananna shake with Whey

[determined4000]

Good luck with the marathon training.
I know you will do well.

Nutritionally, your fat intake is non-existent, but I am sure you know this.

[riaden]

Good luck with the marathon training.
I know you will do well.

Nutritionally, your fat intake is non-existent, but I am sure you know this.

Thanks for the support. i know my fat intake is low, and thanks again for bringing that to my attenion. i will try to increase my fat intake asap! thanks

[blacktegu]

Good luck brah! Sub'd and looking forward to updates!

[riaden]

Well after yesturday effort i thought i would try and have a bit of a rest day today. i also had an upset stomach. so basically my body was tell me to have a break. still manage to get in 6km thoe.

TRAINING

Easy 6km jog
Time- 30min
Avg HR- 150

FOODS

Well trying to include in more fats, and also trying to change it up abit.

scrambled eggs/ mushrooms/ Tomatoes


Oats with yogurt and whey

cottage cheese salad wrap


apple

chicken stirfry me and my mum cooked


oats with frozen yogurt and LSA mix

Frozen bannana shake with whey


here is a pic of where i go running most of the time!

[bbavender]

Good luck man. Like others have said make sure you get what you need calorie wise because you ate teetering a very fine line at your weight and height. If you ever need some advice on how to change it up and overcome the obsessive thoughts shoot me a PM and I can share what has helped me on my recovery journey

[riaden]

thanks for that pm sent!

[determined4000]

Meals looking better (and pretty tasty)
Your hormones will thank you.

[riaden]

Thanks mate

Well today was better then expected as i thought i wouldnt even run today due to my stomach, but manged to get through it. only went to the toilet once.

Since i pulled up ok, i have been planning on running in a 25km race tomorrow, so i will see how my stomach holds up for the rest of today and tomorrow to see if i will go in it or not.

TRAINING

AM- Easy 15km
Time- 1 Hour 15min
AVG HR- 152

FOODS

Still trying to change things up, also trying to include more FATS, and eat more.

Scrambled eggs with mushrooms

Oats with yogurt and Whey

Avacardo and cottage cheese whole meal wrap


Apple

Homemade egg, cheese, spinch pizza- YUM


Oats with frozen yogurt and LSA Mix


cottage cheese wrap, Apple, and some Almonds

Frozen Bannana shake with Whey

Thanks for your support everyone!

[tofastforyou]

[QUOTE=riaden;714910051]
TRAINING

AM- Easy 15km
Time- 1 Hour 15min
AVG HR- 152

No offense mate, i run quiet a bit, and knowing that you did a 15k run the day before a 25k race tells me you need to slow it down a bit and let your muscles relax before a 25k race, also consider carbohydrate loading in order for optimal performance, i am 16 and have ran a sub 45 minute 12k, through hard work and fine eating, i know how it feels thinking you need to run everyday, the sooner you get over that feeling the better.

[Bonny_Lassie]

[QUOTE=tofastforyou;715052601]

TRAINING

AM- Easy 15km
Time- 1 Hour 15min
AVG HR- 152

No offense mate, i run quiet a bit, and knowing that you did a 15k run the day before a 25k race tells me you need to slow it down a bit and let your muscles relax before a 25k race, also consider carbohydrate loading in order for optimal performance, i am 16 and have ran a sub 45 minute 12k, through hard work and fine eating, i know how it feels thinking you need to run everyday, the sooner you get over that feeling the better.

^^^Riaden, I was going to post something similar. I also notice from your training schedule that you don't have any rest days. It is really important to incorporate at least 1 day of complete rest - especially given the volume of training you are doing!

Don't want to sound like I'm giving you a lecture or anything, but just concerned for you because I've been there (training everyday because I felt driven to) and it only leads to bad things

[bbavender]

[QUOTE=Bonny_Lassie;715167451]

^^^Riaden, I was going to post something similar. I also notice from your training schedule that you don't have any rest days. It is really important to incorporate at least 1 day of complete rest - especially given the volume of training you are doing!

Don't want to sound like I'm giving you a lecture or anything, but just concerned for you because I've been there (training everyday because I felt driven to) and it only leads to bad things

Couldn't agree more. At my worst I trained everyday and it led to where I couldn't get better on my own. I know it seems as if your not motivated or not strong willed to take a day off. But trust me, there are so many people in this world who would sacrifice a ton to have half of the motivation and determination to train as you do. The central nervous system needs time to recover tho so take a day of active rest to foam roll or relax and take it easy. Your body will appreciate it and you can train that much harder on then other days

[Bonny_Lassie]

Oh, and another thing....don't lower your calories on rest days either, tempting as it may be! One thing that eating disorders do is link food and activity together eg the more activity you do the more food you are "permitted" to eat.

Feel free to PM me btw because this is something I really struggled with, and still find it tough sometimes!

[DTrulez616]

Hey man, im a big fan of Marathon running as Ive done 3 myself so im subbed into this.

[riaden]

Thanks guys for the feedback. i know i still have issues when it comes to training and eating as i find it very hard to slow down abit, or do less, as i should be saying.

Well what can i say about today. i got my best ever result, ended up coming 3rd. i have to admit thoe i didnt really feel that great, as i was low on fuel, which of course i should of known better. i guess having an ED and racing is stopping me from going forward as who knows what would of happened if i carbo loaded more. Its something im really trying to work on. So please bare with me.
Well hopefully full REST day tomorrow!

But apart from that it was really good that my mum was there to support me and as soon as i finshed i ran over to her and hugged her and had a bit of a cry, cause this time last year i wasnt running at all, and i never thought i could run again. so it was very emotional.

RACE DAY- RUSULTS

Distance 25km
Time- 1hour 38min
AVG Km pace 3.57
AVG Mile pace-6:22

FOODS

Well after todays effort i said to myself im going to reward myself for lunch. Long story short, one of my best childhood memerories was staying at my grandmas house on the school hoildays, and every sunday we had a very special lunch which was 2 honey sandwhiches, a big iced dohnut, and a big chocolate milk. i looked forward to this all the time when i was a kid.

So basically today i said screw it and thats what i had today. Now remember this is the first taste of a dohnut or chocolate milk or even a honey sandwhich ive had in nearly 10years. yes thats right 10years. I tell you what i couldnt beleive the taste, sweet, weird, yummy lol, and before i knew it, it was all gone.

Apple
Bottle of sports drink

Rolled oats with yogurt and whey

2 Honey sandwhiches, with a small chocolate drink and a mini dohnut! (This was huge for me)


Apple

Scrambled Eggs with spinach and cheese on Toast


Oats with frozen yogurt and LSA mix

Cottage cheese sandwhich, Apple

Frozen Bannana shake with whey and yogurt

PIC from the Race.

[determined4000]

I think its a great step that you feel frustrated (despite doing so well) because you know you could have done better if you were better fueled. One of the things that helps me is questioning what benefit eating less has ever provided me-->none.
Why do we restrict? Has it brought us happiness? Increased athleticism? More brain power?
Anything of benefit? No, No, No, and no.

[ErikTheElectric]

Subbed to this..

As a former runner, and current ED Sufferer I know what you go through on a daily basis.
Best of luck to you man.

[riaden]

thanks for that determined, as i know myself, if i would of fueled better i could have mabey done better. i was lucky enough to have some engery gels, along the way, but i should not of relyed on that. hopefully i can learn from this, and hopefully move forward. i dont know why i restrict myself, being light dosent always mean being faster.

Thanks Erik.

[riaden]

Well waking up today i thought it would be a good idea to just have a full rest day. well to be honest i just couldnt help myself. i ended up going for a slow jog with a friend in the afternoon, so i wouldnt be so stiff, and still feel alittle bit better mentally i guess. i tried to stick to a grass surface as much as possible today thoe which was good. I know most of you guys say take a full on rest day, but for me its very very hard to do. at least i only jog very slowly today, but i did feel tired, and had pretty sore legs.

TRAINING

Easy- 10km
Time- 55min
AVG HR- 140

FOODS
Well i didnt really change it up today, not sure why, i guess after yesturday lunch i thought i would get back into a normal routine. but hopefully tomorrow is a new day and i can at least ry and change things alittle and increase the size as well. i know i need to eat more, its just doing so my biggest problem.

Apple

Oats with yogurt and whey

Avacardo and cottage cheese salad wrap

Apple


Chicken Breast with sweet potatoe and veggies


Cottage cheese Toastie


Oats with Frozen Yogurt and LSA mix

Frozen Bannana shake and Whey

[blacktegu]

^want that sandwich^

And I'll reiterate what others have said, you REALLY need a rest day...especially once your long runs build. You've got a strong weekly base, and are clearly ABLE to run every day. But once those long runs get bigger, or if you do more pace runs, you'll need to rest. Injuries don't always give you a lot of warning.

Great progress so far! If you're looking for a good food mix-up, try some Quinoa. Great nutritional profile, t's easy to make, and can be mixed up with almost anything. I'll usually just mix it with eggs and spinach or kale:

[riaden]

Thanks for that might give it a go!

Well after yesturday slow recovery jog around the place, i decided to go out with some friends and the local running club today. only problem is, its at 6am and its cold, but anyway, its the only real sort of social outing i have. As you can most likely tell i dont really go out hardly at all, my social life ( well if you can call it that) there basically isnt one, i only catch up with friends when im running, and sometimes alittle bit outside on weekneds. But the fear of going out for tea, or going to a friends places for tea, is very hard for me, and it is something im trying to improve. After group runs i struggle to go to a coffee shop afterwards and have breakfeast. i normally go straight home. But im detirmined to change this.


TRAINING

Morning run today i tried to take it pretty casual as i still feel abit tired ect, and im still recovering.

AM- Easy 16km

Time: 01:22:04
Distance: 9.97 mi
Elevation Gain: 377 ft
Avg HR: 134 bpm
Max HR: 166 bpm

Very sluggish shouldnt even headed out, i sometimes wonder why i do, but i cant help myself, felt abit light headness. (should of known better)

PM- Easy 6km
Time: 00:33:12
Distance: 3.74 mi

Here a pic where i went for my afternoon jog.


FOODS

Well again didnt try and change things too much, apart from im liking having scrambled eggs, as well as some oats, as its abit of a change. Also had a really nice dinner, of pasta and tuna. Tasted amazing, love my mum for this lol. Manged to eat quite abit of it, around two plate fulls so that was good.

Apple

Scrambled eggs with mushrooms
Oats with yogurt and Whey

Avacardo and cottage cheese salad wrap

Apple

Tuna and pasta and cheese. Tasted amazing


Oats with frozen yogurt and LSA mix. Apple

Frozen Bananna shake with whey

[tofastforyou]

Just trying to help you out here, but you should really look up training principles for running and you need to realize that running two times a day isnt helping you improve, infact you are not givining your body enough time to recover the body actually needs rest days to recover and repair muscles to get stronger. So, if you run every day without taking days off, you won't see much improvement. If you really loved running you could say to yourself, today i might have a rest day and just take it easy and relax, knowing that you will get straight back into it the next day.

Also the only reason kenyan marathon runners run twice a day everyday is because, they dont need to work on technique, speed etc, they have to maintain it. Think about it. maybe instead of a complete rest day for you, you could do some drills and run throughs, i.e practicing perfect form (strides), high knees, but kicks etc. Just trying to help

[blacktegu]

That tuna/pasta! Wow! Definitely trying that! Strong meals!

Is the not going out thing tied to your ED or more of a social anxiety thing? I had some pretty bad social anxiety for years. I'm definitely an introvert, too. Too much time around certain people just drains the hell out of me. Just have to find a group you can be yourself with, and it'll get better.

And again, what the poster above said is 100% truth. Unless you're a 4 hr marathoner, you've got no need to run that much. You're going to get injured and be depressed, especially when it's such a big part of your life. Sub in some weight training or something instead. Can do more for your mile time than wrecking your legs 2x a day will.

[Bonny_Lassie]

Meals look yummy, but I am concerned that they will not be adequate to support the level of activity you are doing. There is no way that you are in a calorie surplus with the amount of training you do!

[riaden]

I know what you guys are saying and i do thank you for it, and this is by no means having a go at anyone, as i know where you guys are coming from But what you have to understand is ive been doing this for a number of years, its not like ive just started running. back when before i had all this drama about ED, ect ect, i was running 150km aweek for a couple of years, and its just the type of training im used to. When i was at my peak back then this was the type of training i was doing, as i felt so strong. My coach said i needed the miles in my legs, most elite athlethes run twice aday. i know im not one of them, and i know i most likely never will be. but its hard for me to back off i guess you can sayl a rest day for me is an easy jog.
But back to the factor of not going out, its my ED that stops me from going and i suffer from abit of anxiety, i just cant relax. i struggle to sleep. i also listen to a relaxing cd everynight before i go to bed, to try and help me sleep better.

TRAINING

Today i thought i would see how i feel to see what i would do today. Well i felt not bad so i done abit of a tempo run to see how the legs are. I just headed down to my local training grounds where i do my tempo runs, and done 4 and a half laps of a 1.8km course, which has a slight hill in it. Didnt feel to bad, the last lap i started to get alittle tired but that was expected.

AM- 6km Warm up- 8km (5miles) Tempo- 2km Cool down
Splits- 4.07-3.53-3.59-3.50-3.54-3.47-3.48-3.43
Total Time- 31.04
AVG HR-173
MAX HR-182

PM- Easy 8km run with my Brother
Time-41min

FOODS

Well food wise i tired to add abit more then normal, started off with a teaspoon of honey in my shake, i know its only small but its a step forward to increase cals. IM trying Bonnie (thank you) Chickpea burgers tasted amazing.

Scrambled egg toasted wrap, Frozen Bannana shake with milk and a teaspoon of honey


Apple

Avacardo and spinch salad wrap


Toasted avacardo sandwhich, Apple

Homemade Chickpea burgers, YUM YUM


Oats with yogurt and LSA mix


Frozen Bannana shake with Whey