A Hundred Thousand Moments

This morning I went to the semi-annual Dan (black belt) test at my Aikido school's main dojo. It was a long test, with three people each testing for shodan (1st degree), nidan (2nd degree) and sandan (3rd degree) rank. But it was also an exciting test to watch. At Dan level you see everything from …

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Hydration Salvation

I had no idea getting water into my body was so complicated. Yesterday morning I was on the Pinckney area trails with other runners training for the Run Woodstock ultramarathons in two weeks. While I will be volunteering this year and not running an ultra, I'll accept any excuse for a run with fellow trail …

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It Changed My Life! Or Did It?

On a recent Saturday run I caught up to someone I hadn't met before, and to pass the time I struck  up a conversation. Turned out she'd run the Western States 100 just two weeks prior. "I messed up my leg less than two miles into the race," she told me, "and it bothered me the …

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Ultra Recovery: How Not to Cut Back on Training

Today makes exactly one month since Kettle Moraine, where I completed my first 100-mile trail ultra. And with no upcoming goal races in the near future, what have I been doing training-wise since then? The answer in brief is - not much, and too much. Not much, because I've cut back on training volume. Too …

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