Archives June 2018

July 1st is the start of the Bully Challenge.  What exactly is this?  Its just a six month friendly competition of fitness.

On Sunday, July 1st, start keeping tabs of the reps, distances and times of the following exercises.  And, every Sunday, jot down those numbers on the google drive spreadsheet linked here under the correct week: Bully Challenge

Running miles
Rowing miles (kayak, rower machine, canoe)
Biking miles
Swimming miles
SUP (stand up paddle board)
walking miles
push ups
situps
pullups
burpees
squats
planks
mountain climbers
lunges

You do NOT have to do all of the exercises listed above.  Pick the ones you want and go with those.  The key of this challenge is to exercise and keep tabs of the exercises you choose to do and compare with the others in this challenge.

Every week whoever leads in any of the exercises listed will get a bully (Teddy Skull) added to his profile picture.  Yes, we need a profile picture! Send that picture to me (Dan Hernandez dlh14255@gmail.com).  I’ll add the bully to your profile and post it on the Run 4 a Reason Facebook Group Bully Challenge 2018 photo album.

The Bully Challenge officially ends December 8th.  December 9th, we’ll announce the overall winner on Facebook.  The overall winner will be the one that has acquired the most bully’s.  We’ll also recognize all of the miles logged running, biking, swimming, rowing, walking, SUPing.

Also, if you’re a local (local to Savannah), you will be awarded a free pitcher of beer (or cider) and, a slice of pizza from Huccapoos or Mellow Mushroom (we cannot seem to decide on the pizza joint yet).

Also, the top three Bully earners get extra points for the Rough Runners Trail Race Series

1.  top gets 15 points
2. second gets 10 points
3. third gets 5 points

Everyone else that partakes of the challenges gets 1 point toward the RR Trail Race Series

Even if you live far away you may still partake of the challenge (you just don’t get the beer or pizza…sorry). You’ll get the accolades, though, especially, if you win. 🙂

You are responsible for entering your personal data into the google spreadsheet linked above.  We are all under the honor system…so, don’t cheat!  And, don’t mess with anyone’s results.  Capiche?

If you have a question, just shoot me an email or message.  Again, my email: dlh14255@gmail.com

Happy killing it out there!

peace,

dh

FAQ:

• for Situps exercise, you may do crunches, bicycle kicks, whathaveyou. For bicycle kicks, one set of both legs equals 1 rep!  Does that make sense?  Its not, that you do one side and count 1 and then the other side and count 2.  One set of both sides of the bike kick is one rep.
• for lunges, a rep of the right leg and, the left leg equals 1 rep!  You do not count each leg you lunge as a rep…a set of both legs equals 1 rep.
• The same thing as lunges applies to mountain climbers.  a set of both legs counts as one rep.
• you may do planks however you like and still count down the seconds and minutes.  There is not just one way to plank.
• for pull ups, you may do chin ups instead…whatever works for you.  If you cannot do a pull up but want to, start off with negatives and slowly let yourself down.  Do approximately 8-10 negative pull ups every time you go at it.  Eventually, you will be able to pull yourself up.
• you may apply your steps that you do through out the day in the “walking miles” entry on the spreadsheet.  Here is a link to a Steps to Miles Calculator  
• Biking is the same as the walking miles.  If you bike to work, count those miles.  Your training miles on the road or stationary, – count those miles.

Challenges

through out the six months we’ll will have challenges to keep us motivated and striving for more.  These challenges will include one or several of the list of exercises listed at the top of this page.  If you meet any of the challenges you will get a special bully added to your profile picture.

Here are some of the challenges to keep in mind and to begin when you’re hungry for it…

• 200 mile run in 1 month.  shoot for 200 miles in 30 days.
• 50,000 meter rowing in 30 days.
• 5000 push ups in 30 days
• 1000 burpees in 30 days
• 800 miles cycling in 30 days
• 5000 squats in 30 days
• 30 miles swimming in 30 days
• 500 minutes of planks in 30 days
• 500 pull ups in 30 days
• 150 miles of walking in 30 days
• 5000 lunges in 30 days

I will have some cool stickers made for each of the aforementioned challenges but I will have to charge a $5 fee for each sticker.  You do not have to buy challenge stickers but if you want one you will have to pay for it.  That cool?

Heat related maladies are no joke, especially when exercising down here in the South.  This past Friday I was reminded how quickly your body can go from running strong to running on empty and then, crash.

Early Friday morning the Rough Runners crew and I ran the Daufuskie Island half marathon course.  When we started the run the temperature was about 80 degrees Fahrenheit.  By the end of the run, the temp was in the upper 80’s.

After the 13.1 mile run, we then began to ride the course on bikes.  A few miles into the ride my back stiffened greatly, making it very difficult for me to peddle without great discomfort.  I got off my bike and stretched out on the ground several times.  That felt better but, several minutes later my back was so stiff and tight I could hardly stand it.  I decided to call it quits and peddle back to the Haig Point dock.

before my crash

At the dock, I just was not feeling well.  My girlfriend handed me a cold powerade and told me to drink it.  Reluctantly, I did.  Soon after that, though, I began to feel very ill.  I felt nausea.  Suddenly, the worst cramp I’ve ever experienced hit my right calf forcing me to grit my teeth and pray the pain would go away.  After about twenty seconds the calf muscle loosened up but my nausea progressively grew worse.  I looked up at Kerry and she began to blur out as if I were turning the focus on a camera in the wrong direction.  Her face then began to streak before my eyes and I went down on my knees and began to dry heave.  Fortunately, Kerry, a registered nurse, got me to sit back and quickly began to force feed me a hammer gel, followed by water.  She made me drink more powerade.  She helped me to my feet and guided me to the ferry where I then laid on the floor because I didn’t have the strength to stay up on my feet.  The boat captain brought over some ice cold water bottles and ice.  Kerry placed the ice on the back of my head where it meets the neck.  She placed the two cold water bottles under my arms, in my armpits and, continued to force feed my hammer gels and water.  While this was all happening, Jason took pictures to use as blackmail later.

Finally, though, I began to come to.  Twenty minutes later, we pulled onto mainland on Hilton Head and I was able to walk off the ferry on my own, feeling severely spent.

The rest of the day, I remained completely spent.  I felt as if all of the energy had been sucked out of my body.  We hit a Mexican restaurant where I was revived somewhat more by eating their salty chips and salsa.  When I got home, I showered and went to bed and, quickly fell asleep.  The rest of the weekend, I remained very weak and lethargic.

Heat related maladies can come on quickly and become dangerous just as fast.  You may think that you are hydrating well but always question yourself.  Personally, I thought I was hydrating well.  I was taking a combination of endurolytes and, anti-fatigue pills, one of each every hour during the run and bike and, taking sips from my water bottle regularly.

During the run, I refilled my 20 ounce water bottle twice and, drank a powerade at the convenient store in Freeport (which is along the course).  Before we started riding I chugged down almost a quart of water and refilled my twenty ounce bottle.

My two running and biking mates (Kerry and Jason) didn’t experience what I did and they were hydrating as much as I was.  No one person is the same, though.

I tend to sweat more than the average adventure seeker, especially as the temperature rises.  So, I deplete my sodium and potassium faster than most people doing the same level of activity.  Take for instance, that by the time we hit the 2.4 mile mark, Jason and Kerry’s shirts were halfway soaked from sweat, -where I looked like I had jumped into the ocean in my running clothes.

Drinking water is important but maintaining a healthy level of sodium and potassium intake as I continue to hydrate is equally important.  My intake balance between water and sodium and potassium was off obviously and, drinking more water began to make me feel gravely ill.

Please take note from my dreadful experience this past Friday and hydrate well and replenish your electrolytes accordingly while exercising on hot days in the South.  The mishap I suffered could of been much worse than it was.  I was fortunate enough to have a nurse on hand to help me get through this heat related malady before serious damage occurred.

Keep your training going but be careful out there!  Learn how your body reacts to heat and train smart.

Wishing you many happy miles of training this summer!

dh

06/18/2018

We’ve recently launched the Rough Runners 100 mile club (or Club 100).  The whole purpose behind this idea is to bring to light and commemorate those individuals that are dedicated, disciplined and driven to push themselves to extremes. Pushing themselves to extremes opens them up to expand their boundaries and venture into territory few choose to explore.

Pushing your body beyond the 100 mile mark in running is territory where very few choose to venture to.  This is hard territory.  And, it comes at a price.  That price you pay is your willingness to wreck your body and mind a little bit to stand on this hallowed ground.  It doesn’t come easy.  You have to work for it hard.  The recovery (mentally and physically) from such a feat is usually long too.

The question begs, why do they do it?  I believe everyone that has accomplished this milestone has a different, intimate answer for why.

We’re not here, though, to answer the why but, to commemorate those extraordinary individuals that have.

Here are the runners that have crossed the hundred mile milestone in a Rough Runners event

1. John Durant
2. Karl Joseph
3. Andrew Snope
4. Steve Barber
5. Catherine Weimer
6. Frank Kelly
7. Kerry Dulina
8. Jason Watts

Well done, ladies and gentlemen, well done!

These folks have shown tremendous grit and, have been disciplined enough in their training and follow-through to accomplish great things.  Despite the discomfort of an aching body that is sleep deprived, hungry, bruised, cold or, hot they have battled internally and chose to finish what they set out to do.  The excuses surfaced many times why they should quit but they chose not to heed those dubious warnings and continued onward. That is a very tough thing to do when you are completely out of your comfort zone!  So, yes, we celebrate them!  That is what the Rough Runners 100 mile club is about…to celebrate these great athletes, these huge overachievers!

You may ask, how do I get into this unique club? Push yourself beyond your boundaries of comfort and reach for that star that continually moves ever so slightly, just beyond your grasp…keep going after it and, after a while you will get it…just don’t quit.  Quitting, unless your life is at stake, should never be an option.

Commit. Plan. Train. Re-commit. Train. Go after it. And, get it.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Each of these runners has earned a buckle for their respective RR race, a certificate commemorating their achievement and soon, -they will each receive in the mail a patch, sticker and card (pictured above).  Their names will also be burned into a walking staff that we will display at every Rough Runners event.

The card they will each receive will have the Run 4 a Reason seal of the badass embossed on it as well as the Rough Runners stamp “In it to win it!”

The card also has two celtic symbols, – the tree of life and the triskelion.  These two symbols are appropriate to the RR 100 club members.

The Triskelion “represents triple nature and the movement of life which is formed of past, present and, future.  It is also a symbol of strength in Celtic culture since it represents the will to move forward overcoming adverse conditions one might face.

The triskelion symbol looks like it is moving and in that sense, it is also considered as the symbol  of progress, personal growth and improvement.”

The tree of life is “symbol of all of life on the planet, born of the earth and sustained by the power of the Universe.  There is no better depiction of the intimate and unbreakable bonds between each of us and the natural world in which we live than the tree of life knot.  It is an intricate representation that links every root below to every branch above, depicting the network of natural bonds that links all life together.”

To some, these small overtures to commemorate these great athletes and adventurers may seem trivial if not, silly.  Those of us that have traveled in these athletes’ footsteps know all too well that what each of them has accomplished is a big deal!  There is nothing trivial about it.

Some say, “pain is inevitable. suffering is optional.”  If you want to experience greatness, you must be willing to endure both pain and suffering.  Its how it goes.  It is how you grow into a stronger, fuller person, physically and mentally.

Do you have it in you to be in the RR 100 mile club? Only you can answer that.  And, if you want to venture down that path with a Rough Runners event, we have several that can help you get there.

Rough Runners.

dh

The information regarding the aforementioned celtic symbols was gathered from mythologian.net