What Ultrarunners Want

[vgpedlr]

Posted this elsewhere, but here is where the traffic is.

I volunteered at the last aid station (mile 86) of the Leadville Trail 100 from 4PM Sat. to 8AM Sunday. Lots of fun. We had cold cooked potatoes with S&P on the side, (which were not on offer for the MTB, boo!) and we ran out.

I was serving up hundreds of cups of ramen but what were the runners asking for?

POTATOES!

Especially potato soup. Maybe next year I'll volunteer some home cooked McD potato soup.

Despite the current LCHF craze in endurance sports, no one was asking for lard.

[geo]

Do you have a good McD potato soup recipe?

[vgpedlr]

Do you have a good McD potato soup recipe?

I saute onion, celery, fennel bulb, and leeks until soft then add 4 russets peeled and chunked and enough stock to cover. Cook until potatoes break apart, whizz with an immersion blender. Add some seasoning. For a creamier soup, blend in some plant milk, but it's fine without. I generally like to make a green soup by adding some blanched greens, usually dandelion.

[Thrasymachus]

I think what ultra-runners need for their health is to not run 86-100 miles in an event or at all. That is definitely past the level where exercise actually starts premature aging, excess injury and where not exercising is actually a better option. That is exercise and pain addiction.

[calvin]

I think what ultra-runners need for their health is to not run 86-100 miles in an event or at all. That is definitely past the level where exercise actually starts premature aging, excess injury and where not exercising is actually a better option. That is exercise and pain addiction.

Have to agree. They need a slap in the face and a "SNAP OUT OF IT" ala Cher in Moonstruck. Ultra-running is an ultra-stupid ultra-insult to an already overworked body. Maybe tolerable for a Tarahumara back in the day when they were being raised starchevores from day one and played cross-country kickball occasionally. And the fact that some people are temporarily getting away with it with apparent (as in cosmetic) impunity is testimony to what the body is able to put up with in spite of its design. Oh, and I've done my share of marathons...nothing but pointless and selfdestructive egotrips. "Look at me; see what I can do." The body spends what? ~60% of energy on converting food to ATP, another ~25% running the brain, that leaves ~15% to deal with stupid human tricks. I no longer need running for self esteem. Ok, I'm off my little soapbox...for now.

[pickles]

Oh, and I've done my share of marathons...nothing but pointless and selfdestructive egotrips. "Look at me; see what I can do." I no longer need running for self esteem. Ok, I'm off my little soapbox...for now.

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[Thrasymachus]

I remember when I went to Greece I saw this guy John Beeden made the news for rowing from Australia to California across the Pacific Ocean:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... scuit.html

The guy was 53 in this photo but looks about 20 years older. A quintessential example of the effects of too much exercise.:


He is a life-long marathoner apparently:
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2015/12/ ... 649094.jpg

There is also this ultra marathoning nut Marshall Ulrich who got all his toenails surgically removed::
https://static01.nyt.com/images/2009/10 ... /popup.jpg

You are not really supposed to run that far and physiologically the body cannot handle it:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/22/fashi ... TNESS.html

Toenail removal is not for the faint of heart, but it can be a big relief to people who compete in 50- or 100-mile races. Even the most hardened ultramarathoners, for whom 26.2 miles is a warm-up, can be distressed by bleeding under a nail or a loose nail that bangs repeatedly against the front of a shoe.

Here is a blog post with some gruesome pictures of an ultra runner's feet after a race:
http://www.willrunlonger.com/2013/10/bl ... hings.html

[geo]

These are examples of where the word, moderation, comes to mind and might even be somewhat useful. On the other hand, these extreme loons need a good "Gibb's bitch slap" upside the head...a few hundred times...or maybe a few thousand hours on Doc Lisle's couch.

[petero]

Well, it looks like as the distance rowed approaches infinity, the amount of remaining body fat approaches zero. It looks like his problems are mostly cosmetic.

This guy is doing a one-off extreme event and maybe should have brought more food on his boat, or, more likely, maybe he miscalculated his fat loss for the trip if he factored that into his food storage system, as some people do. Some people I know of in the hiking community are trying to do amazing feats by becoming "fat adapted", gaining body weight, and then budgeting small daily calories, but in my opinion (and not just mine) that's going to lead to failure. Replacing your carbs seems to be the way to go if you're not into bonking.

When I was still able to train for the 50k I'm going to DNS in September, it was a great feeling to be able to run/walk over 30 miles. I was certainly in no danger of being emaciated, and my diet wasn't very far off the one recommended here. I ended up powering myself with a mix of dried fruit. (Maltodextrin would have made me technically starch-powered but was impractical.) Based on past experience, I doubt my biomarkers were suffering, either.

A 100 miler or the Bigfoot 200 is definitely a different story than a measly 50k, but I doubt it poses any real risk to the people who have actually trained and prepared for it. They are some good looking people, with or without toenails. Nobody needs toenails, do they? These are calculated risks people take in pursuit of their self-imposed, gratuitous, unnecessary, risky, ridiculous, awesome goals.

Best of luck to vgpedlr at Leadville!

[dailycarbs]

Both science and observation would indicate that ultra anything is not the best thing for longevity. That said, not everyone's goal is longevity. Perhaps life is much more exciting if you row across an ocean, race in the Tour de France or run 100k. If those sort of things appeal enough to a person I'm in no position and of no mind to criticize them or tell them how to live their lives. That crocodile hunter guy died pretty young and left a family behind but according to his wife, he lived life to the fullest. Maybe having a strong a passion for something (even if it places you in some peril) is better than tottering your way to 100.

As for looks and health, plenty of overweight people look healthy. Plenty of lean, low body fat people look older than their years. I don't come to any health conclusions from that.

[GeoffreyLevens]

Both science and observation would indicate that ultra anything is not the best thing for longevity. That said, not everyone's goal is longevity. Perhaps life is much more exciting if you row across an ocean, race in the Tour de France or run 100k. If those sort of things appeal enough to a person I'm in no position and of no mind to criticize them or tell them how to live their lives. That crocodile hunter guy died pretty young and left a family behind but according to his wife, he lived life to the fullest. Maybe having a strong a passion for something (even if it places you in some peril) is better than tottering your way to 100.

As for looks and health, plenty of overweight people look healthy. Plenty of lean, low body fat people look older than their years. I don't come to any health conclusions from that.

Thank you!

Photo above of John Beeden looks to me like not enough calories and too much sun rather than anything to do with exercise.

[Chris_B]

Good and interesting thread gone down the crapper because people gotta find something to criticize regardless of the topic.

Boiled potatoes with salt are great aid station fare and I am always a bit pissed when they don't have simple starches available.

[Ltldogg]

Here is a great post from Jeff Novick, RE: Exercise, Health & You: How Much Is Enough?: viewtopic.php?f=22&t=43482

[vgpedlr]

Wow, haters gotta hate, or in this case, haters gotta hijack. I should have just stayed off the grid and kept riding 11,000ft mtn passes.

The point of this thread was to note what I thought would be interesting to a starchivore, that at mile 86 the only food we ran out of was a simple starch, the humble potato. They weren't clamoring for the sports stuff or junk, they wanted potatoes and soup.

I thought it might be of interest. Silly me. Apparently ranting against endurance sports and the people who pursue them is of far more interest. The characterization of ultra athletes does not reflect the many great people I've met along the way.

Sorry to have offended, but I've got a 100 mile MTB race in two weeks I need to train for. It's important since I failed to make the time cut at the LT100. Thought there might be a little support around here. How foolish of me.

Back to your regularly scheduled programming . . .

[vgpedlr]

@petero:
Thanks, the LT100 was a blast, but I just wasn't fast enough to make the first time cutoff at mile 40. Despite the miles on road, it's a hard course at 10,000 ft. Since I was in the area, I decided to volunteer for the following week's LT100 run at the last aid station. Endurance of a different sort to last all night in the freezing cold, but I have all love and appreciation for the aid station volunteers at my races who have to wait so long for the back of the pack (me) to come through. I have the greatest respect for anyone who undertakes such a challenge, and I wanted to support each and every runner that came through any way I could. One of our aid station guys was a collegiate runner, and when somebody needed a pacer, he jumped, and ran that guy in, then caught a ride back and kept helping! Great people all around, on and off the course.

Sorry to hear about your 50K. You'll get it eventually. Or not. Doesn't matter as long as it's fun.