For the last 4 years, I have run the “Ancient Lakes Trail Run”
I have done the 10K 3 times now and the 25K once. I ended up really liking the 10K as a test of where I am at each year with my fitness and health.
I don’t have the desire to run the other distances for various reasons, like the time needed for training and the fact that I have the predisposition to overdo it. If you know me, you know what I mean.
Here are my times for the 10K’s
2021 – 1:10:31
2022 – 1:09:26
2023 – 1:03:09
In 2021 I trained fairly well, and I was fairly happy with the result. In 2022 I was about 1 minute faster than the year before. I figured if I could cut off a minute each year, I would eventually finish before I started when I’m 120 years old or whatever.
Seven months ago, after moving to the island, I started wondering, could I cut more than a minute off my 2023 10K time?
I thought about it for a while and decided that I would hire a trainer to get both my diet dialed in and to push me physically to a new level of fitness. My goal was to shave 10 minutes off my 10K time.
“If people are not laughing at your goals, your goals are too small.” – Azim Premji
Even I was laughing at my goal.
I thought about it and ended up hiring Chris Holt, I had followed him on Instagram for some time, and it seemed like a good match. I liked his thoughts on training, eating, and mental health.
After looking at my diet and fueling, we removed anything with added sugar, all gluten/wheat, legumes, and packaged foods.
For what seemed like my entire life, I had struggled with stomach issues. Once we removed these things, my gut became way more healthy, no more constant farting. Again if you know me, you know what I mean
What I eat on a daily basis looks like this. I eat 2 meals, one around 11 am and another at 5 pm.
1st meal.
One apple diced and poached in water with a section of cinnamon stick and a few whole cloves. I add to this some blueberries and yogurt with a teaspoon or so of honey.
3 eggs
1/2 an avocado
A small portion of meat
2nd meal
1/4-1/3 of a pound or so of meat/liver/heart/fish
a large helping of vegetables sauteed in ghee
rice or potatoes.
Its basically a ketogenic diet with some extra carbs.
Over the course of the 6 months of training, I dropped about 8.5 lbs of weight.
For training, it ended up looking like this
Monday – AMRAP, fast 3 mile run.
Tuesday – AMRAP, Sled pulls
Wednesday – AMRAP, run 6-7 miles slow
Thursday – AMRAP, Sled pulls
Friday – AMRAP
Friday or Saturday – 8-10 mile trail run
Everything was going great, 2 months ago, I was running sub 7min miles on my Monday fast run. The diet was going great, and things were really clicking. Then I started dealing with a hernia I have had for many years. It was getting worse. I have surgery scheduled for next week, but that is a whole other story.
6-7 weeks ago, I started tapering down my runs and workouts, a short time after I started tapering my left calf started seizing up, it was so tight sometimes it hurt to run. This is where I started to get really frustrated. I had spent the last months training for this one thing, I was stronger and faster than ever. Why, now when I am tapering, is this happening? Am I even going to be able to run the race?
I ran twice in the last month, and did a few AMRAPs here and there, but mostly took it very easy.
A week before the race, I was pissed off, my leg was so angry that I didn’t think I was going to be able to run. I reached out to a friend here on the island looking for a massage therapist or PT. He recommended a massage therapist. A week before the race, she opened her office on a Saturday just to see me. She worked on me for 90 minutes, I scheduled another session on Wednesday. Wednesday, she worked on me for another 90 minutes. On the way home that night I stopped at the local grocery and bought a few CBD chocolate bars. CBD can act as a muscle relaxant. I ate some before bed each night, Wednesday through Friday. By Saturday morning, my leg was 99% better than it had been. I decided to give it a go.
I was running the 10K with my good friend Bob. He is an amazing runner. We have run Ancient Lakes for the last few years, and it’s sort of a tradition now.
Out of the gate, Bob took off like a greyhound, I kept pace with him for the 3/4 mile or so then I slowed it down a notch or 3.
Overall I was feeling strong, moving well, and really enjoying it. I don’t run with a watch or anything, so I never have any idea how fast I am moving or what time it is. I usually listen to Buddhist mantras as I run, and for this race, I was doing that, I have a fairly good idea of how long each track is, so I do get some idea of timing, but it’s not perfect.
The first 4 miles went off without a hitch, I didn’t really feel like I was moving any faster than last year. The last 2 miles are fairly fast once you start the descent back to the finish line. I was moving well, but not at 100%. My left leg started having issues.
A mile out from the finish, my left knee decided to scream at me. Dammit, am I gonna have to walk the last mile?
Then out of nowhere, another runner passed me. We had been passing each other off and on the whole time. As she passed, she said, “Finish strong”, I remember thinking, “My knee is going to explode if I do that.”
I slowed way down. DAMMIT!, why now?
I could see my “finish strong” friend a ways ahead of me and decided I would pass her.
My leg was killing me, only about a half mile to the finish line. As we entered the final stretch, I could see “finish strong” ahead of me. I could also see the timing display 1:02:31. I remember thinking is that right? “Close the gap, Kurt”, I kicked it up a bit. As I passed her, she whispered, “wanna race” at me, “I don’t have anything left,” was my thought. I kicked it into overdrive. I was now a few strides ahead of her, then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw her gaining on me. We crossed the finish line at exactly the same time, 1:03:09.
While I didn’t ever expect to hit my 10-minute goal (I set it that high for a reason). I am ecstatic with my performance given the challenges of the last few weeks, a leg that was angry, and a hernia that was getting worse.
So in closing, set insane goals for yourself, persevere even when you want to give up and be open to all outcomes. KEEP MOVING FORWARD.
Thank you to Chris Holt my trainer, and Bob for always goading me on to do better and to “finish strong” for pulling me through the last part of the race.
And also a Thank You to all of you. If you are reading this, I presume you are part of my life in some way or another. Thanks for being along for the ride!
