The Outdoor Runner – Page 19 – Lessons learned from a habitual outdoor runner

My B12 experiment

On November 4, 2018

I regularly check myself for how things are working. Below is the journal from an experiment using a vitamin B12 supplement.

My Goal

The goal is to find out if a B12 supplement will provide my body the missing elements that affect alertness. While I am not a complete Vegan, I do prefer a mainly vegetarian diet. B12 is not plant-based and can be found in seafood, poultry, and red meats. I do eat these foods, but not as a regular part of my diet.

Day 1 (Aug 1, 2017)
It arrived yesterday, so the first consumption was today. Of course, nothing to report other than I’m giving this a try. The sleepiness hit hard after lunch, which is sadly usual.

Day 3 (8/3/17)
I’ve taken the B12 each morning after my run. As expected, no noticeable changes in my body. Daytime tiredness as usual.

One oddity I will note is the presence of what is similar to sinus drainage after a cold or allergy issue. While there is no sinus blockage, pressure, or mucus presence, there is a persistent “feeling” of throat congestion at the base of the sinus. It may not be related to this experiment, but worth noting.

Day 17 (8/17/17)

I have stopped taking the B12, yesterday (8/16) was the last time. I need to see if this issue in my throat/sinus area is deriving from the B12. I’ll give it a week or two and report any variances.

There really hasn’t been any improvement in alertness or thought enhancements either. I do have a good diet with a wide array of foods, so perhaps I am still getting enough B12.

Summary:

I did not experience any benefit from the B12 supplement and found it to be an irritant to the olfactory system.

You are unique!

By Jerry Schotz

On November 4, 2018

In Blog

The health and nutrition topics have millions of resources and solutions available, so why even bring it up? Because I will share what I’ve tried and learned, without trying to sell you anything.

Each of our bodies is unique!

Keep that in mind with any advice you’re given. You are the only person who really knows your body and how you feel. Sure there are generalities as we have similar biological structures, however, we are each a unique being in our own unique place in life and what works for one may not work for another.

We have been conditioned to listen to the experts, the professionals, and authorities. Yet in practice, we should use those experts as resources to learn from and not blindly accept what we “should do”.

Try things out for yourself. Try different exercises, sports, techniques, foods, supplements, drinks, and combinations. One thing that will make us end a good routine is boredom, there is no need to get in a rut and become tired of the same old thing. Our bodies and minds like routines as they are easier but not usually healthy for long.

Make yourself try things, change up your running route, play a different position, try new foods. There is research that dives deep into how our digestive systems and core health can actually maintain the body systems better through variety. Check out the science over at Viome, it is very intriguing.

I try to run different routes whenever possible, there are days where the weather patterns keep me on the same path due to wind, rain, temperature, etc. When those constraints are gone, I’m looking to change it up. Variety can provide energy and adventure. The same with food, I have my go-to items, but I also go out and eat things that are not part of my routine to provide options for my body.

Being unique is not a destination but rather a life-long discovery of who you are and what makes you function optimally while adjusting to your age and life situation.

From LoseIt to MFP

By Jerry Schotz

On November 4, 2018

In Blog

You may have read the post where I mentioned using the LoseIt program when I first started trying to control my input and output. So why did I switch from LoseIt to My Fitness Pal (MFP)? The primary reason is that I started using Garmin devices which do not connect (or sync) to LoseIt but they do connect/sync with MFP.

I believe there are several features with LoseIt that I prefer. In general the two apps have similar features for nutrition and exercise tracking. MFP has more ads to deal with, but works great as a free program.

If your not using a device or not using a Garmin, I would start with LoseIt.

The shoes to wear

By Jerry Schotz

On November 4, 2018

In Blog

I started my walking and jogging in some cheap Walmart shoes. At first, it didn’t seem to have a big impact as I was going slow and short distances, however, when I started increasing the distance and pace, it didn’t take long for the foot and leg pain to begin. I had a difficult time looking at the price of proper running shoes. I probably hadn’t paid more than $30 for a pair of shoes before this, now I was supposed to drop 80+ dollars!?!

I did it, I spent around $90 on my first pair. After much research and trying on shoes I selected the ASICS GT-2000 2, and I’ve remained with the brand and series. I’ve tried a few other shoes but keep coming back to the ASICS GT-2000’s. I can get about 750-1000 miles out of a pair of shoes, which is around a four-month cycle. If you use a GPS tracker like I mentioned in my Garmin post, you can track your shoe-miles easily.

: October 2017

: June 2018

: September 2018

When I remember, I take a picture of the new shoes as a reminder of how they look before I wear them out. I keep 4-5 pair of shoes available for those rainy weeks where a different pair is needed each day. Once they are soaked it takes a good three days to dry out. I learned early on not to run with moist shoes, the blisters come quickly when the skin gets soft from the moisture. The most I ever had in use at one time was four pair during an excessively rainy period.

20181104_053107 20181104_060110

My current “primary” runners are on the right in the photo above. As the inventory gets too large, I clean up the oldest shoes and donate them to a local thrift store with the hope that some other new runner can get a no-or-low cost opportunity to try the shoes and the difference they make.

I wear out the heels first, then the ball area, but for a beginner, these would still be beneficial. The shoes generally still look good and are quite serviceable, the soles are just worn down like tires with a lot of miles.

I purchase my shoes from a local sport supply store called Body-N-Sole or through Amazon, if I cannot get what I need locally.

Do your feet and legs a favor, find supportive and comfortable shoes.

A Garmin GPS Watch

By Jerry Schotz

On November 3, 2018

In Blog

A few years into my running, my adult kids purchased a GPS watch for Christmas 2015. The chart below is the stored running data (in miles) from the last few days of 2015 through October 2018.

Distance vs. Time Period

As of this post in early November 2018, Garmin has recorded 9,000.85 miles ran. Wow! In 4 months or so it will be over 10,000 miles logged! I’m guessing I’m already over that as there were three years before getting the GPS watch. LoseIt says I started with them in April 2012 and ended in October 2016 (I’ll explain in a different post). The LoseIt chart below reflects the calories burned per month, and I’ve consistently been over 25k per month since April 2014. The point being… blah-blah-blah… it’s over 10k miles. Sheesh, so wordy!

Screenshot from 2018-11-03 15-27-25

I have a Garmin Forerunner 10 which has held up very well. It’s not a fancy model, but it has been reliable. It doesn’t have Bluetooth, so I plug it into the USB cable each day when I return, it syncs up, and the battery is charged and waiting for me the next morning consistently. Thank you, Garmin!

I know people with fancier models that sync with your phone as they go, but I don’t see the need for the bells and whistles as this model does all I need. Keep it simple!