40 days ago

Back-of-the-envelope: energy expenditure in a multi-day footrace

How much energy do you spend on a multi-day foot race? I tried to estimate the expenditure first, using a back-of-the-envelope calculation before stumbling over a study researching exactly that. Fun with bananas.

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189 days ago

Swiss Peaks 360, Race Reviewed

The Swiss Peaks 360 foot race is done. Finished after 5.5 days of madness, covering a distance of over 360 km, 25900 m elevation gain, 26900 m elevation loss. Deprived of sleep, but enriched with an intense experience; body fatigued, but mind inspired. Time to look back on this unique adventure in the spectacular scenery of Valais in Switzerland.

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206 days ago

Swiss Peaks 360, Specific Period Reviewed

The specific period of training for this year’s edition of the Swiss Peaks 360 foot race is complete. Time to look back, taper, and fine-tune the preparation for the big adventure in the gorgeous mountains of Valais in Switzerland: over valleys and passes from Oberwald to Fiesch, Eisten, Grimentz, Grande Dixence, Finhaut, Morgins to Le Bouveret.

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224 days ago

Using Strava segment efforts as benchmarks: heart rate versus running speed

How to find out whether my training is effective? A casual investigation into whether I can use frequent Strava segment efforts in order to see whether the ratio of heart rate versus speed shifted between two training seasons. The results look promising.

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231 days ago

Swiss Peaks 360, Support Period Reviewed

What I called the support period in my preparation for this year’s edition of the Swiss Peaks 360 foot race is complete. Time to look back, assess progress, shape the last training period before the big adventure, which will bring me to the vast mountaineous landscape of Valais in Switzerland.

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344 days ago

Progressor, Programming the Training Program

How to plan the training sessions for the weeks ahead? I hacked together a web app which allows me to do just that. The app helps me to plan the training progression according to established training principles, supporting modes such as running, hiking, cycling. Apps for the purpose exist commercially, but it was fun and instructional to roll out my own.

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347 days ago

A computer scientist's attempt at tracking the effect of training without testing

How to find out whether the effort put into training actually increased performance? I asked myself whether there is a shortcut to testing benchmark protocols, whether in the lab or in the outdoors. As you may already have guessed, shortcuts are rare in training. But sometimes, it’s fun looking for one.

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352 days ago

Swiss Peaks 360, Base Period Reviewed

Two weeks left in what I called the base period in my preparation for this year’s edition of the Swiss Peaks 360 foot race. Time to look back, subjectively and objectively, assess progress (or the lack thereof), and thus set the foundation for creating a more detailed plan for the upcoming training period.

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366 days ago

Putting more C into running: trail-maniacs

In 2023, I intend to contribute more to the running community, again. The opportunity to do so presents itself through leading one of the crews in the trail running club I joined last year, the trail-maniacs, ever so aptly named.

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392 days ago

Swiss Peaks 360, Prepping for the Next Edition

Poised to experience the Swiss Peaks 360 foot race again in 2023! An epic journey through Valais, covering 360 km and an excess of 26,000 m of vert in less than a week. One thing is certain: preparation is necessary. As a self-coached hobby-athlete, sketching the training remains up to me.

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559 days ago

Swiss Peaks 360, Lessons Learned

After completing the Swiss Peaks 360 foot race, it’s time to contemplate what I learnt from moving through the mountains of Valais over a distance of 360 km and a vertical gain in excess of 26,000 m, in less than 6.5 days.

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575 days ago

Swiss Peaks 360 is a Go

This year’s challenge is approaching: Swiss Peaks 360. After recovering well from “the plague” in early July, and coming to terms with the turmoil it caused to my training, I decided already a few weeks ago: It’s a Go.

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622 days ago

The Pandemic Wants Me, Too

Hit a roadblock 194 days into the training cycle, and 160 days after my previous post. Turns out the COVID-19 pandemic wants me, too. I am grateful, that so far, the pandemic does not seem to make me give as much as it makes others do. Nevertheless, time to reflect on the training so far. Time to poke a bit into available research on how to safely return to what all athletes want: get back out, and continue.

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781 days ago

Exercised at home: hacking a plyo box

How to bring some hills into your home? Such to train for hiking using box step-ups when stuck at home? After surprisingly long Internet research, I finally found a compact, wooden, pretty-enough “plyo box” . Even though plyometrics wasn’t what I had in mind.

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910 days ago

Swiss Trail Tour, Day 3

Punishment. Today’s theme is voluntary punishment. The last stage of this footrace is framed by rain and snow. After two days of sunshine tralala, the adventure gets a new facet. Impressions from Day 3 of the Swiss Trail Tour.

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910 days ago

Swiss Trail Tour, Day 2

The longest stage of the Swiss Trail Tour is awaiting me. Spirits are still running high, although my legs remember the effort from the previous day. How is it going to turn out today? Impressions from Day 2.

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910 days ago

Swiss Trail Tour, Day 1

Nine months after signing up, after nine months of training, race day has finally come. Spirits are running high. I can’t wait for the start of this footrace. What does the first day have in store? Only time will tell. Impressions from Day 1 of the Swiss Trail Tour.

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1066 days ago

Swiss Trail Tour, Darth Vader on a Treadmill

What does Darth Vader do on a treadmill? Breathe, breathe, breathe. This week, I treated myself to the futuristic world of performance diagnosis: I wanted to learn more about where I am as a hobby runner, how to improve from there, and how applied science in sports works nowadays.

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1080 days ago

Swiss Trail Tour, Incorporating Objective Feedback

Without feedback, you can only achieve what you already know how to do. With feedback, you can achieve what that you do not yet know how to do. I believe that feedback loops are at the core of any development. In this post, I am sharing my thoughts on incorporating objective feedback into long distance running training by visualizing data from Strava in Google Data Studio.

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1095 days ago

Swiss Trail Tour, Training Differently

After more than a decade of running, I figured it’s time to understand how training actually works. Unsurprisingly, after digging through three books on the art and science of exercise, I have changed how I train for the Swiss Trail Tour this year. Maybe such research will change your training, too.

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1129 days ago

Swiss Trail Tour, Beginning or Comeback?

Having signed up for the Swiss Trail Tour in September, I am wondering whether this is a comeback to ultra running, or rather the beginning of something else? Either way: why do this, and how to prepare for three days of trail running─and hiking─a total distance of 103 km and 6000 m elevation gain?

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1362 days ago

A not-so-serious SARIMA forecast for running in 2020

Just for fun: what happens when you fit a SARIMA model (using statsmodel) over past Strava running activities in order to predict remaining running distance in 2020? Not much happens beyond the nourishment of my interest in predicting time series.

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1367 days ago

Some hills, finally

In the past years, finding some way to train hill running prior to races was difficult for me. I tried office staircases but they were boring and the air was dry and stuffy, so I failed to follow my training plan. Ever since moving to Switzerland, this is no longer a problem. I ran some statistics over activity data pulled from Strava, and the results are promising.

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1387 days ago

A computer scientist's diagram of the systems that turn macronutrients into energy for the muscles

How do the macronutrients we eat─carbs, fat and protein─turn into energy that the muscles can use as fuel? How to answer this question without failing to see the forest for the trees? In this post, I am trying myself at a high-level abstraction based on the book Lactate Threshold Training by Peter Janssen.

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1393 days ago

A computer scientist's diagram of heart and lung supplying the muscles with oxygen

What happens if a computer scientist tries to understand more about the heart and lung supplying the muscles with oxygen? The computer scientists applies graph theory. Out comes the flow conservation principle, and─woosh─there’s a diagram relating cardiac output, oxygen consumption and oxygen intake.

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