Redemption Tour Update-Gatorade Endurance Fueled

Disclaimer: I received Gatorade Endurance products to review as part of being a Bibrave Pro. Learn more about becoming a Bibrave Pro(ambassador), and check out Bibrave.com to review, find, and write race reviews.

I decided to check in since I am coming up on the half way point of my training for Richmond Marathon aka the Redemption Tour. If you missed my previous post where I discussed why I am choosing to tab this training The Redemption Tour, here is a quick summary. In 2018 I trained hard in hopes of completing the Richmond Marathon, which at the time would have been my 4th full marathon. I have done about 30 half marathons but I usually limit my full marathons to 1 a year, just because of the time commitment to training for one. Everything went well all through training but the day before the race I went to eat at a local Italian restaurant with great reviews and I woke up race morning with food poisoning. Although I tried to drink as much gatorade and water as I could, the GI issues were just too extensive and I became extremely dehydrated at mile 14. I was unable to finish and was transported to ER via ambulance. Although I was able to find another marathon to run(Kiawah Island) a few weeks later and PR, I still have unfinished business with Richmond.

So here we are at the halfway point of my training for Richmond Marathon 2019, and things are going well. These summer NC days have been extremely hot and humid, but with the help of Gatorade endurance, I have been able to endure. I’m training 4 days a week currently and averaging about 40 miles each week. Typically if my run is an hour or less, I take 1 gatorade endurance gel and my water bottle filled with gatorade endurance mixture. For 2 hours, I add another gel and for anything 3 hours plus, I take 3 gel packs. By far my favorite gel flavor is the Apple Pear, and my favorite powder mix is the watermelon. I love how the taste is not overwhelming but still flavorful.

With all the heat and humidity, we have to remember to stay very hydrated. Gatorade Endurance has been great asset to have at my disposal. Average days have been in the 90s with 90 + % humidity. Only good that about this heat is it is great for burning calories and it has keep my weight down.

Looking forward to the second half of training, cooler weather and updating you after a successful Richmond 2019.

Redemption Tour Has Begun

“Disclaimer: I received Gatorade Endurance products to review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro(ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review, find, and write race reviews!”

Today officially begins what I have coined “The Redemption Tour”. Each training day will be a different tour date, as I work toward getting my redemption at the Richmond Marathon. The training will be tough, but lucky for me, I have teamed up with Gatorade Endurance to help me reach my milestone.

WHAT LED TO MY NEED FOR REDEMPTION
My strive for redemption began at the Richmond Marathon 2018. I had trained my butt off all year, in hopes of breaking the 4 hour mark in my 4^thfull marathon. My training leading up to the race went well, I mean not every training run was peaches and cream but I felt strong coming into the race. The day before the race, I followed my usual routine. That routine involves some serious carb loading with some Italian pasta. When I travel for a race, I typically try to eat at a local Italian restaurant, instead of the usual chain restaurants. I did my search and found a local spot with very good rating that made their own pasta in-house. We got there about 7pm and ordered our food, I got spaghetti and meatballs. With the exception of needing a little salt, the food was pretty good.

Fast forward to the next morning, race day, and things took a turn. I woke up and didn’t feel great, I had GI issues that were off the charts. I couldn’t figure out what was wrong, then I realized….it had to be food poisoning. It was hard for me to stand, and resulted to me laying on the floor or trying to crawl. I started to drink water and Gatorade, in an attempt to stay hydrated. As bad as I felt, I knew I had to attempt to still try and run the marathon. Anyone besides a runner would probably think this is crazy, but I had trained too long not to at least give it a go. I continue to drink Gatorade as I made the 1 mile walk to the starting line. I felt good enough to make the walk but I still felt the GI issues lingering. Nevertheless, the gun went off and I started out. The first mile wasn’t too bad, but by the time I reached mile 8, I could feel out of sync. Over the next few miles I had to walk a little and then run, but my pace was plummeting. By the time I reached mile 14, I had to throw in the white flag and just sat on the curve. Runners would slow down and ask how I was doing, I just told them I couldn’t physically go another step. Some cops walked up to me and told me they would call me an ambulance. Ambulance arrived and I was put on a stretcher for my first,and hopefully, only ride in an ambulance. They said I was dehydrated, which didn’t surprise me. I just couldn’t replenish my body enough to counter the effects the GI issues had done. So there we have it, my first every race DNF.

I was pissed for weeks about this race. Although, about 5 weeks later I ran Kiawah Island Marathon and broke the 4 hour mark, I still didn’t like the taste that Richmond had left in my mouth. I vowed to return to Richmond in 2019 and finish what I started.

THE REDEMPTION TOUR BEGINS
When registration opened for Richmond Marathon, I signed up and marked my calendar. The redemption tour has officially begun, so be on the lookout for the tour dates. Hopefully, with the help of Gatorade Endurance I can make this milestone a successful one.

Running Naked in just your Skin-SKINS DNAmics Compression Tights Review

“Disclaimer: I received a pair of Skins compression pants to review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out Bibrave.com to review, find and write race reviews”

Let me start by saying, I am not a big compression pants wearing type of guy. I don’t know, maybe self-conscious about my “runner’s a$$”(although I have been told it’s nice). Lol. Although I don’t like to wear them, sometimes you just don’t have a choice. NC winters can get down to the teens at times and you have to have something in the closet to protect you on those winter runs. At the time, I had 2 pair made by 2 different brands and I was not crazy about either. Although they were both size Medium, one fit too snug and the other was too loose. Enter this opportunity to test out Skins new DNAmic pants. I hadn’t heard of Skins before, so maybe they could be the brand that changed my mind about compression pants.

Packaging/Eye Test

The DNAmic pants arrived in a cloudy see-through plastic pouch, complete with skins website and some of their social media hashtags imprinted on it. #RiseUP. For the eye test, I already told you I wasn’t a big fan of compression, well I am even worse when it comes to brightly colored compression pants. I like the more subtle, darker colors. The color I chose was specter mariner. The website made this color look somewhat mysterious, I couldn’t really tell if it was black or a shade of blue but either of those colors were fine. When I opened the package the pants looks black with some green design, I thought they were pretty funky. Imagine my surprise, when I first put them on and went outside….the color was actually a sort of tinted blue. I still liked the color, they passed my subtle test.

Wear

I was anxious to see how they would fit, since I mentioned the issues I had with the other 2 pairs of pants I own. Pulling them on there was some resistance, which I expected(they are compressions after all) but I got them on fairly easily. After I got them adjusted in all the right places, they didn’t feel bad at all. I wasn’t getting the too loose feeling I had with my other pants nor did I feel like they were “too” tight. They were snug but the range of motion I needed, seemed to be fine.

They felt good going on, but the real test would be when I took them out on the trails to see how they held up. I took this DNAmic compressions out on several runs, with the longest being 14 miles and they performed PERFECTLY. It was probably the closest thing you can get to running around naked. (true story) They moved with you, and when I jumped in the shower afterwards….no surprise screams. Lol. That’s right, no chaffing whatsoever on my inner legs, etc.

Specs

So how did Skins appear to make the perfect compression with their new DNAmic line, take a look at some of the product details and specs on these amazing compressions.

*DNAmic is one of the 5 products from Skin that are the only high-performance apparel to take into account compression levels needed to increase oxygen delivery to active muscles while in motion. Skins call this dynamic gradient compression.

*SKINS worked with the scientific and industrial research organization in Australia to develop a device capable of taking multiple readings of the human body in motion. SKINS athletes were hooked up for the first time ever, and they were able to accurately measure compression on the muscles in motion-as they change shape with increased levels of oxygen-fueled blood pumping through them. This is relevant because all previous compression measurements have been carried out on athletes that are standing still.

Recommendation

Sooooooo, you remember that guy that didn’t like compressions at the beginning of this review?? Yeah, he left the building. These SKINS DNAmic compression hit the mark on every category for me. They had nice color options(even for us subtle color folks), they fit very comfortable and successful capture your range of motion with no post-run chaffing. What more could you ask for from compression pants? So did I convince you? Are you ready to grab your own pair? Well, you are in luck, use my code 20BIBRAVE and score 20% off any non-reduced items at www.skins.net.

Ride the Wave, Observe the Sky-Mizuno Wave Sky Review

All you Mizuno brand lovers listen up, I am here with a review of the new Mizuno Wave Sky running shoes.

APPEARANCE
I received a blue and lime color, not as loud of a color as I usually purchase but these were professional looking. This color seems to say, you are all about your running business. Once passed the color the next thing I notice is the tread. This is the 2nd pair of Mizunos I’ve owned and one of the things I admired is the tread on their shoes. The formation is arranged in such a way that they don’t tend to wear down as fast as some other brands I have ran in.

SIZING/COMFORT
I immediately notice upon slipping them on that they seemed to run a bit big. I also own a pair of Mizuno Wave Rider 20 that fit true to size, but the Wave Sky seem to have a little more room in my size 11. Not a huge deal as I can just wear a slightly thicker sock, but I felt it needed to be pointed out. Even with a little more toe room, these shoes were still very comfortable.

WEIGHT
The men’s shoe is about 11.2 oz. Kind of more on the heavier side, but you really can’t tell the difference once you get moving.

DURABILITY
The shoes appear to be made from high-end materials and feel well put together. I did some bending of them, as well as runs, and all threads remained in place. Another feature I admire about Mizuno running shoes, is the quality of their shoe laces. I know it may sound simple, but good shoe laces increase the overall comfort of the shoe. They are threaded well enough that you don’t have to worry about them fraying over time.

TEST RUN #1
I started out with a low mileage run of 3 miles. I wore thin socks, so the extra toe room was a small issue but not overly uncomfortable. The shoes responded well on surface impact and, upon checking my splits, I was actually moving faster than I thought. This speaks to the weight of the shoe.

TEST RUN #2
I turned up the mileage slightly on this run to 5 miles. This also allowed me to test them in slightly different conditions as it was hotter and the road was still wet from the day before’s rain. With a slightly thicker sock, the shoes responded perfectly. There was no ill effect from hot temperature or the wet surfaces. I experienced feet sweating in some other brands during hot temps, but these Wave Sky handled the conditions like a champ.

TEST RUN #3
For my final run, I ramped it up to 8 miles in preparation for a half marathon I was training for. Eight miles were not a problem at all and I didn’t experience any soreness in my feet afterwards.

MY RECOMMENDATION
Whether you are already a Mizuno loyalists or thinking about giving them a try, you won’t be disappointed in the new Mizuno WaveSky. Although they are listed a slackly higher weight than comparable shoes, the weight is not something that you can easily detect once you are pounding the payment. The shoes provide the right kind of durability and comfort that will leave your feet happy.