Leadville 100 Training Diaries-Week 1, Day 1

It's official—Leadville 100 trail run is 19 weeks away. Today is day 1 of training, which is always the easiest day, in my opinion. Why? Because I'm excited, of course! However, what I want to document in this diary is the day-to-day experiences. Some days and some weeks are going to be harder than others, but I want people to see that you can do hard things even if you work full-time, have a family, and have a life outside of the "training plan." I want to explore the depth of my "pain cave" as Courtney Dauwalter puts it. How deep can I go? I intend to reflect on the good, the bad, and the ugly of my training and performance. I'll share my meal plan and prep strategies, my workouts (both running and strength), and even my feelings. There is so much that goes into training for an ultramarathon. Honestly, it never gets any easier. I'm really selling this, aren't I! Well, if you want an honest diary about what it takes to tackle a 100-mile race, I'm the girl for you. I hope you enjoy the diary as I go forward. Like I mentioned earlier, some days are going to be better than others. Some days I may have a lot to say or very little to say, but I'll do my best to capture the essence of what fuels me to keep going. Hopefully, along the way, you too are inspired to do something hard. And remember, hard is relative. My "hard" is different from your version of "hard." If you have only ever walked, running a 5K (3 miles) might be your challenge. Wherever you are, that's the journey you are on. We are all in different seasons of life and going through different experiences that bring us to running. So, let's get going! I'm currently sitting at my husband's office, drinking a pre-workout so I can motivate myself to get to the gym! Raise your hand if you are there! This is a regular for me, so hopefully, I'm not alone.

Reflection on Leadville

Leadville is a unique race. It's called Race Across the Sky since it's the highest-elevation ultramarathon, making it one of the most difficult races to complete. The terrain is probably 80% jeep roads and 20% mountains, but those mountain inclines are viciously steep. They take no prisoners and feed you a heaping bowl of humble pie.

Today's Workout

On today's Training Peak plan, I have a cross-training day. No running actually involved. My game plan is to work on some lower-body strengthening. I recently was able to complete my first pull-up, so I don’t want to lose that strength.

Lower Body: Strength and Power

• Back squat

  • Warm-up: 45# @ 10 reps

  • Main set: 3x5 @ 135#, 135#, 155#

• Romanian deadlift

  • Warm-up: 155# @ 5 reps

  • Main set: 3x5 @ 175#

• Hamstring curls: 3x12 @ 60#

• Leg Extension: 3x12 @ 70#

  
  

This is all I ended up having time for. I wanted to do some pull-up training and core, but we didn’t get to the gym as early as I would have liked. JJ had to work on finances for the home. I’m not going to lie; I was upset, and he visibly noticed. I'm not great at hiding my emotions, so I did not get the hour-plus leg workout that I wanted. But that is life. I will add in that I’m super grateful JJ takes the time to work on our finances—he does a great job and takes care of all the bills—but I do feel like he chooses the most inopportune times to do such things. As grateful as I am, I hate when it cuts into my gym time. At least we got something in, right? Honestly, I wish I was okay with that mantra, but it never sits right with me. I seem to have an all-or-nothing personality when it comes to my training. But I would have felt worse if I didn’t get any strength in, so I am happy I got something in.

Nutrition Check-in

So now to the food situation. Today... not good. I ate way over my calorie budget, and I can feel it. I'm bloated and feel heavy. I’m contributing that to the two amazing and delicious blueberry muffins I had today. Those did not particularly serve me well. Why am I bothered by this, you wonder? Well, I’m aiming to get the most fit possible with a lean body mass going into Leadville. This meal today did not put me in a good starting position.

Body Composition Stats

• 5'6" female

• 144 pounds

• 30% body fat

• Macronutrient goals: 2,100 calories

  • Protein: 30% (158 g)

  • Carbs: 40% (210 g)

  • Fat: 30% (70 g)

Now, looking at me, I think most people would say I look like a fit athlete, and I agree. But I know I can perform better if I can reduce my body fat from 30% to 20%. Honestly, I’ve been trying to do this for a long time, but I have not managed to make a dent. So, I figured if I document this process live, it may keep me accountable. So here goes nothing.

Meal Prep Today

• Breakfast: 1 breakfast taco (2 eggs, 1 piece bacon, 1 homemade flour tortilla); 170 g Two Good vanilla yogurt w/ 1/4 cup blueberries and cashews; 12 oz coffee with sweet cream Chobani creamer

• Snack: Blueberry muffin from Traders Coffee (it was AMAZING)

• Lunch: Lamb and brown rice bowl

  • 1/2 cup brown rice

  • 2/3 cup ground lamb (spiced with cumin, paprika, salt, and pepper)

  • 1/2-1 cup sautéed purple cabbage with mushrooms and onions

  • 12 oz coffee with Splenda and hazelnut creamer

• Snack 2: Homemade chocolate zucchini muffin

• Dinner: Chicken mole (homemade)

  • 1.5 cups chicken mole

  • 1.5 cups roasted veggies (cauliflower, red bell pepper, carrots)

  • 1/2 cup purple cabbage slaw (homemade)

  • 1 homemade whole wheat tortilla

• Snack 3: (Didn’t need but ate anyways because JJ wanted some)

  • 1/2 blueberry muffin

  • Cashews

    
    

As you can see, I totally ate outside my budget. I don’t need three snacks, and I certainly don’t need three muffins. You may think this is harsh. You may think, "Well, you run almost every day and are training for 100 miles; surely you can eat whatever you want." Well, that’s not the case. You can still overeat while training for a race of this magnitude. When you run that kind of distance, it’s not like I’m running that fast. My heart rate is pretty low, so I’m not burning that much fat.

Looking Ahead

Tomorrow’s workout is a 15-minute walk at 15% incline, plus a 50-minute moderate run. Let’s see how my legs feel after my strength session today since I lifted really heavy.

A Promise and Call to Action

So... tomorrow is a new day. A new day of training and a new day of food choices. To my readers out there who find me interesting enough to follow, I want to make a promise to myself and to you.

I promise not to give up. I promise to be vulnerable and truthful about my journey. I promise to share the highs and lows. And I promise that on the other side of this, our lives are going to change for the better. Because through our suffering, we find joy. Through our suffering, we become one with our Creator, and we become more like Him. And that’s my ultimate goal: To become like Jesus and to share my faith with my neighbors, my friends, and my community through running really long distances and eating some really great food!

Please send in your comments! I would love to hear about your own experience as we are all on this journey together. What are you training for? What is something "hard" you've tackled lately?

I'll end with one of my favorite quotes from Philippians 4:13: "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength."

Happy training!