Dear Penguin,

I’ve been running/jogging for 30 plus years and started enjoying distance training in my 50’s with 4 marathons completed.

Now at 58 I’m having to start the walk/run at mile 2 due to the
breathing issue. It doesn’t matter if it’s a dry winter’s day or a hot humid summer’s day the issue is the same.

It’s a great question, and, one that may not be answered easily. You’ve already done the most important thing you can do, check with your doctor. If he says you’re OK then let’s take a look at some other factors.

You don’t give your age but if you’ve been running for 30 plus years it’s safe to assume you’re well into you’re not a youngster. That being the case, you may simply be experiencing the affects of the natural aging process.

Make sure that you’re being realistic with your pacing. What was an easy pace even 5 years ago may not be easy now. It sounds like you’re still pushing yourself, which is OK, as long as you’re honest with yourself.

My other suggestion is to put in some walk breaks into your runs to help bring your respiration and heart-rate down as you run.

Waddle on,
John

John “the Penguin” Bingham, Competitor Magazine columnist
Author, The Courage to Start, No Need for Speed, Marathoning for Mortals and Running for Mortals.

Have a question for John? E-mail it to thepenguin@johnbingham.com.

I’m down here with Jenny and her group Chicago Endurance Sports. Their winter training program, called The Winter Warriors for the way they brave the weather in Chicago, picks a destination event to celebrate the end of the season. In other years they’ve gone to Cabo San Lucas and Bermuda. This year it was Key West for the Key West Half Marathon.

There’s something special about training with a group, especially training in the winter in the midwest. There’s something special about the camaraderie and sense of common purpose that comes from meeting the challenges of winter training week after week. I can remember a 10 mile run we did a few years back where we ran the first 5 miles  north along the lakefront, with the wind at our backs, only to turn and have to run the last 5 into the blowing snow and wind. People’s hair was frozen. People’s eye-lashes were covered with a crust of ice and yet we were happy at the end of the run. Happy that it was over, to be sure. But happy that we hadn’t stayed in bed that morning.

Doing as many of the Rock ‘n’ Roll events as I do I’ve become accustomed to a certain level of production. Yeah, I know that not every race has white tigers and flying Elvi like Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas, but it’s not uncommon for events to have start and finish line structures. I was a bit surprised on Sunday morning when I asked where the start line was and was shown an actual start LINE. That was it. A LINE and the word START. But, I guess with 700 hundred runners, many of whom have done the race before, you don’t need anything more than that.

The course was essentially a run around the perimeter of Key West and the participants were treated to great Gulf and Ocean views. Because I was here as “support husband” I didn’t run the race, but did get to spend time out on the course.

I’m hoping to get to scuba dive tomorrow if the weather clears. I’ve taken the course and dove in New Zealand when we visited there, but have never gotten formally certified. I’ll be able to take a “pool” refresher course and then do a couple of dives.  Look for the photos over on my Facebook page.

Waddle on, friends.
John “the Penguin” Bingham, Competitor Magazine columnist
Author, The Courage to Start, No Need for Speed, Marathoning for Mortals and Running for Mortals.

The miracle isn’t that I finished.
The miracle is that I had the courage to start.”

Have a question for John? E-mail it to thepenguin@johnbingham.com.

I am a newbie runner and I sweat a lot! So what is the “cool” or accepted form of sweat maintenance? A head sweatband? Carry a towel? People will be able to tell I am a new runner just by looking at me but I certainly don’t want to draw any extra attention to myself.

Hi,

First off, welcome to the running community. It’s a wonderful place.

It’s not unusual in the early stages for a new runner to “sweat a lot”. If you haven’t been active, just raising your heart rate can cause your body to over react and produce LOTS of sweat.

Very often what happens is that – over time – your body learns to modulate your core temperature more efficiently and you sweat rate actually goes down. This isn’t true for everyone, but it does happen.

You’ll also want to measure your fluid loss. You’ll need to weigh yourself – without clothes on – before you run and after. The goal is to try to lose as LITTLE weight as possible during the run. As the runs get longer you won’t be not lose SOME water weight, but you want to try to maintain as much as possible.

As far as what to wear, that’s really up to you. I’m a hat guy. Some folks like the traditional sweatband. I don’t see many runners carrying towels these days.

But do take care to maintain a balanced hydration.

Waddle on,
John

John “the Penguin” Bingham, Competitor Magazine columnist
Author, The Courage to Start, No Need for Speed, Marathoning for Mortals and Running for Mortals.

The miracle isn’t that I finished.
The miracle is that I had the courage to start”

Have a question for John? E-mail it to thepenguin@johnbingham.com.

It’s true that we’ve got a pretty nice treadmill. It’s got lots of fancy buttons. It keeps track of your history, tells you your heart-rate, how many calories you’ve burned, what your high school GPA was – only kidding. The point is that it has the capacity to give me MUCH more data than I want. A message to all treadmill manufacturers out there: the only types of information I want from a treadmill are pace, time, distance, and elevation. Oh, one more thing. I want it to be quiet enough that I don’t have to turn the volume on the television so high that my neighbors can hear it.

For the first few weeks on the treadmill I feel like I’m being punished. So much of the joy of running for me comes from the sense of being free. I am liberated from the constraints of the rest of my life. I can run as fast or as slow as I want. I can run as far as I want. I can run. I can walk. I can define the experience for myself, by myself.

On the treadmill, I’m getting too much feed back. I know exactly my pace. I know exactly how far I’ve run. I know exactly how long I’ve run and – worse yet – exactly how much longer I have to run.

Eventually, though, I become at peace with the treadmill. It might be stretching it to say that I fully embrace the treadmill, but, I at least get to the point where I understand that it’s up to me to make the best of it. I start to “play” with the bells and whistles. I try the programmed workouts. [BEWARE of the HILL workout]. I come to the place where – while not as much fun as running outside – I’m am having fun.

The result of this is that come spring I’ve got a good base. I don’t do LONG runs on the treadmill, but I run short and often. So when the weather breaks, even for a day, I’m ready to go.

There’s more that I’d like to say. Instead, I’m heading downstairs to play squirrel.

John “the Penguin” Bingham, Competitor Magazine columnist
Author, The Courage to Start, No Need for Speed, Marathoning for Mortals and Running for Mortals.

The miracle isn’t that I finished.
The miracle is that I had the courage to start.”

Have a question for John? E-mail it to thepenguin@johnbingham.com.

Dear Penguin,

I have noticed that I’m sorer after running in the snow or in really cold weather. My pace is slower but I feel like I have worked harder, than when running a normal run. Does your body work harder, do you burn more calories, in snowy conditions?

Thanks RaNell

Hi,

I live in the Chicago area, so this time of year some part of my running is outside and in the snow. Even when there’s no snow on the ground I often run in some very cold temperatures.

If you’re actually running on – or through – snow as I do when I run the trails, it’s almost like running in sand. It’s much more difficult and yes, you will burn more calories. If, on the other hand, you’re running on a paved path that has been cleared of snow then no, you’re probably not.

By the way, make sure you’re using something like YakTrax on your shoes. You don’t want to slip and fall.

If you really want to get a work out get yourself some snow shoes. I’ve got a pair of “sport” show shoes and try to get out right after a snow fall when I can. I can tell you that a 3 mile “snow shoe” hike is one heck of an effort.

Winter running is a lot of fun as long as you dress for it.

All the best,

Waddle on,
John

John “the Penguin” Bingham, Competitor Magazine columnist
Author, The Courage to Start, No Need for Speed, Marathoning for Mortals and Running for Mortals.

“The miracle isn’t that I finished.
The miracle is that I had the courage to start”

Have a question for John? E-mail it to thepenguin@johnbingham.com.

Near the finish

I don’t even know where to start. So. I’m going to start at the finish and work backwards. This year’s P.F. Chang’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Arizona was one of the most exciting, most moving, most emotionally complicated and exhausting event that I’ve ever done. I’ll do my best to capture it all, but I’m afraid that some of the feelings won’t completely surface for some time.

The photo is of Pat and me coming up to the marathon finish line. Pat’s daughter and wife had given me the head’s up that he was on his way. It was late in the race, nearly everyone had gone home, but we were there to celebrate Pat’s victory. And a victory it was. You see, Pat had quadrouple bypass surgery a few years ago. He’s done 17 marathons since then but this was his most difficult. It had not been a great day for him. But he was not going to be denied.

I was also at the finish when my friend Carol finished her 236th marathon. That would be impressive enough, but she is only 9 weeks post radical surgery for breast cancer. I hugged her. She cried. I cried. Her friend Cheryl cried. It was such a powerful statement of self determination and courage that it took my breath away.

And then there was the 70 plus year-old man who walked a bit unsteadily across the finish line. He has Parkinson’s Disease. But he, like Pat and Carol, was not going to be told how to live his life.

These are just three of the thousands of stories from the weekend. These are just three of the thousands of reasons why I am so proud to be a part of this event, and others like it. I would never take anything away from the talented folks at the front of the field, but, if you want to see unadulterated courage in the face of unfathomable obstacles, stick around and watch the final finishers.

The night before I had been moved to tears by the Team in Training Mission Moment given by a father who was honoring his daughter on the 10th anniversary of her death by completing the marathon. He has raised over $140,000 through Team in Training and serves as an example of how to take personal tragedy and use it for a greater good. And he, like the others, finished long after the crowds had left.

The starts, on the other hand, of both the full and the half marathon were simply unbelievably fun. Phoenix mayor Phil Gordon and Arizona Senator John McCain joined me on the announcer’s stand. I figured they’d fire the gun and scoot out. But NO! They not only stayed through the full start but pumped up EVERY corral in the half marathon. They were there for nearly an hour waving at enthusiastic runners and walkers. It was a total gas.

And then there was the expo seminars where I got to spend time wit Deena Kastor, Josh Cox, Ryan Hall, Greg Meyer, Steve Scott, and the legendary Frank Shorter. Sometimes I have to pinch myself. I am such a huge fan of the sport of running that I am THE most enthusiastic member of the audience.

AND, I got to run three times along the SRP canal in 70 degree temperatures, bright sunshine, and blue skies.

If I’ve had a more perfect weekend, I can’t remember it. Now it’s off to New Orleans for the NEW Rock ‘n’ Roll event there at the end of February.

Waddle on,

John “the Penguin” Bingham, Competitor Magazine columnist
Author, The Courage to Start, No Need for Speed, Marathoning for Mortals and Running for Mortals.

“The miracle isn’t that I finished.

The miracle is that I had the courage to start.”

Have a question for John? E-mail it to thepenguin@johnbingham.com.

Dear Penguin,

I am training for my first marathon in April. My running plan gets longer & longer in terms of distance for the weekend long runs. I run very slowly. (In October, I finished my first half marathon in 2:43).

Is it important to run past a marathon distance in training? I’m getting worried about having to run 3-5 hours every other weekend for my training.  Is it possible to train by time & pace rather than distance.  My plan says Long Slow Distance.

Chris

Hi Chris,

Thanks for a great question. This is something that nearly every first time marathoner faces. How do you know how much training is enough and how much is too much.

I’ve completed 45 marathons. I’ve never trained for more than 20 miles for any of them. So, I can tell you from personal experience that 20 miles is more than enough.

In our book “Marathoning for Mortals”, Coach Jenny Hadfield also recommends a 20 mile long run. We’ve heard from thousands of runners and walkers who have been successful using the programs in the book.

As I travel to various events and talk to new and experienced marathoners, I am more and more convinced that consistent training with regular long runs is the KEY to marathon success. There are nearly no contemporary coaches who require first time marathoners to go more than 20 miles in training.

And yes, you can, train by time rather than by distance. In that case a 4 hour long run is PLENTY.

All the best.

Waddle on,
John

John “the Penguin” Bingham, Competitor Magazine columnist
Author, The Courage to Start, No Need for Speed, Marathoning for Mortals and Running for Mortals.

Have a question for John? E-mail it to thepenguin@johnbingham.com.

I don’t know for sure, but my best guess is that this was taken in 1968 or 69. I know that it was taken at the Kappa Sigma fraternity house at Millikin University. The group was called “The Power Company” and we were – I say modestly – the hottest rock and roll band in Macon County, Illinois. We had a great singer who was a cross between Lou Rawls and Ike Turner backed up by a bunch of college kids that – for the most part – had never heard of Sam and Dave, let alone Buddy Miles. But the work was steady and the gigs fun. At 19 I didn’t need much else.

My life was Rock ‘n’ Roll. I lived it. Breathed it. Performed it. I was a rock star. Or, at least as much of a rock star as you can be in Macon County. I thought that Rock ‘n’ Roll would be my life forever. I was wrong. The hair is gone. The horn is gone. The button-fly pants are LONG gone. But now, after a 40 year hiatus, I’m BACK.

This year I’ll be at 14 of the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon series events. I’m headed to Phoenix on Thursday for the Rock ‘n’ Roll Arizona. At the end of February we’ll be hosting the first Rock ‘n’ Roll New Orleans. Then it’s off to Dallas, Nashville, San Diego, Seattle, and more. This year is shaping up to be the most exciting series of races EVER, and I’ll be there on the microphone at the start. I’m looking forward to greeting many of you as you run down your dreams.

Like just about everyone, I’m trying to figure out my own running goals for 2010. I’ve mentioned before that I’ve gotten stuck doing shorter runs and races. Some of it is just a function of time. Being gone so many weekends makes it tough to do the long runs on Saturday or Sunday. I suppose I could do them during the week, but I don’t like the idea.

So, I’ve been focusing on shorter distances and – yes – speed. Not so much speed for speed’s sake but the speed that comes from running more efficiently. By the way, I’ve never told anyone that running fast is bad. It’s not. There’s almost nothing that feels as good as running, or walking, at a pace that raises your heart rate and makes you breath hard. It’s just that I get that feeling while running at a 10:30 pace not a 6:30 pace.

What I’ve been trying to do is break the “every run is a long, slow run” habit. You know what I mean? I’d get out the door, walk for a few minutes, start to run slowly with the plan that I’ll pick up the pace as the run goes on and then – well – I just don’t. I start slowly and find myself having so much fun that I just keep running slowly.

Latley, though, I’ve been mixing it up more and feeling better about it. My body is beginning to remember what it feels like to move faster. My feet are beginning to remember what it feels like to move faster. And it’s a good feeling.

My first goal is to run a 5K in under 30 minutes. I haven’t done that in years. My quiet goal is to run a 10K this year in under an hour. That’s going to take a lot of work, but I think it’s a goal I can achieve.

And who knows, maybe I’ll have so much fun that I’ll decide that I want to run a Rock ‘n’ Roll event.

Waddle on, friends.

John “the Penguin” Bingham, Competitor Magazine columnist
Author, The Courage to Start, No Need for Speed, Marathoning for Mortals and Running for Mortals.

Have a question for John? E-mail it to thepenguin@johnbingham.com.

“The miracle isn’t that I finished.
The miracle is that I had the courage to start.”

This is also the time of year that many of us decide to stop eating all the foods that we REALLY like and start eating food that we hate. We convince ourselves that we’ve suddenly uncovered an unstoppable discipline and commitment within ourselves. We also discover that we’re wrong. We’re just who we are, who we’ve always been, and by February 1 most of us are back to our old habits.

I know this because for many, many years I did this. My failed diets always started on January 1. I put out my last cigarette at least 10 times on December 31. I joined gyms, bought new shoes, shorts, and shirts, and boldly went forward into my new life. For about a week.

Even as a runner I thought there was some magic about the new year. In the days before we kept track of everything online we had printed running log books. Sounds quaint, I know. But, each January there was the ceremonial opening of the new log. Hours were spent identifying goal races and training schedules. For me it was an agonizing process. Staring at 365 blank training days was like looking into the abyss.

Having just completed my 17th year as a runner I have to admit I’m in a very different place. First of all, I no longer keep a log of any kind. Some people may object to that arguing that it’s important to know what you’ve done, what you’re doing, and what you’re going to do. I don’t disagree. But for me, running is now such an integral part of my life that keeping track doesn’t seem that important anymore.

I don’t need a schedule to tell me that I need to run. I WANT to run. I don’t need a schedule to tell me when NOT to run. I trust myself. I trust my sense of how I feel. I trust the physical, emotional, and spiritual part of me that makes me a runner. I’ve learned to trust my internal rhythms. There are weeks when I run a lot. Weeks when I don’t run that much. Days that I run long and slow. Days that I run short and fast. Days that I just plod along. And it’s all OK.

So, my resolution this January is to never make resolutions in January. If I need to change something in my life I resolve to do it right away. If I need to move more, or eat less, or eliminate some hurtful habit, I resolve to do it as soon as I recognize the problem. I resolve not to wait until my life is fully engulfed in flames to put out a small fire.

Waddle on, friends.

Dear Penguin,

I am looking for some insight…is it unusual to take long breaks from running?? Say 4 weeks or more?? I have been feeling guilty for not running like I usually have been for the past 5 years and I am beating myself up for taking an extended break from running.

I am just wondering, since you are a veteran runner…have you taken time off from running for rest and rejuvenation?? Please Help!

Kerrie

It’s not unusual for runners – and all athletes – to take breaks. Think of professional athletes. They have seasons and off-seasons. Both are important. The same is true for us as amateurs.

There’s also a big difference, in my mind, between training and running. Most of us have a tough time training for more than 12 to 18 weeks. Every now and then you might get into a marathon training program that runs 20 weeks or more, but it shouldn’t be often.

When you’re not training it’s the perfect time to just run for fun, or cycle, or swim, or cross-country ski. It doesn’t matter. The key is to do something that keeps your aerobic fitness.

But it may also be that for YOU, taking a specific time off is what you need. I’d have a very specific date on which I was going to start running again. And keep in mind it will take a while for your body to get back into the shape it was in when you quit.

Waddle on,
John

John “the Penguin” Bingham, Competitor Magazine columnist
Author, The Courage to Start, No Need for Speed, Marathoning for Mortals and Running for Mortals.

Have a question for John? E-mail it to thepenguin@johnbingham.com.