Friday, August 14, 2009

Heat and Humidity Are My Kryptonite



Random Road Run: Temperature 85 degrees; Splits 9:24; 9:20; 9:24; 9:20; 9:21; 9:28; 4:33; 1:00:49 total for 6.5 miles; 9:21 per mile pace. (Planned pace was 9:00).

I was prepared for today's run. I took a Hammer Nutrition Endurolyte, I ate a PowerBar Tangy Tropical Fruit Snack, with its 42 grams of carbs, I mixed a packet of Hammer Nutrition Heed in 24 oz. of water and carried it with me along with a 16 oz. bottle of water. As planned, I ran for an hour. As not planned, I averaged a 9:21 per mile pace, and had a difficult time battling the heat and humidity. I carried and ate some of the Blueberry Pomegranate GU Chomps during my run, along with drinking adequate amounts of the Heed and water. Overall though, I'm satisfied with my run. I fought the weather, and today I wasn't so "Super, man." The heat and humidity were my kryptonite.
I struggled at times, or so I thought. But my splits were consistant, as you can see above. Also, I wore the complementary hat that I received from Devon at outsidrpr.com to review. The hat is called a "Relay Hat," and is lightweight (2 oz.). It's sold by Headsweats, and on its tag it claims it has a CoolMax(R) Comfort System. According to the tag on the hat, "The CoolMax(R) terrycloth sweatband has loops that increase the surface areas for incredible moisture transfer.""Pulls moisture away from your skin." "Dries 3 to 4 times faster than cotton." I took it off a few times while I ran, and readjusted it on my forehead to try to catch the sweat, but to no avail. I took it off after 2 miles. I actually felt like I was sweating more by wearing it, and even if I wasn't, the hat didn't wick the moisture away from my head as promised. Sweat was pouring down my forehead and burning my eyes as I wore it. Once I took it off, I sweated less. I may wear it again on my next run. It was comfortable to wear, and I'm having a difficult time believing that it doesn't deliver as promised. I didn't wear the Sugoi(TM) Mobil Trail Short that I talked about in yesterday's post. I researched it on the internet, and found the following: "Made with Mobil and FinoMesh fabrics, the shorts offer free movement and extreme comfort, without too much bagginess. The Mobil Trail Short moves seamlessly from trail to gym." It has 1 back zip pocket and an inside key pocket, so despite the color being "Vicuna," or ugly brown as I've nicknamed it, I'm going to wear them soon and let you know my opinion. Speaking of opinions, I have a few things I need to get off my mind. First, when I started writing this blog, it was with the intention of having a written log of all of my runs starting from the day of my first post. Unfortunately, I didn't learn or attempt to blog until 2 years after I began running. I had always hoped that I would have "Followers," who are indeed my motivation for running. I am happy to say that I have 21 Followers/Motivators. I try as hard as possible to read all of your posts, and also to comment on them. Lately I haven't been able to keep up with all of you for reasons I've mentioned in my latest posts. I honestly feel guilty whenever something interesting or exciting happens to one of you, and I've missed it. Also, I'm disappointed in a few of the blogs that I follow or read. Some running blog writers have shifted their focus from their personal stories, achievements, accomplishments, ups and downs of running, etc. to giveaways and product reviews aimed at getting us to buy and promote certain products. I want to clarify a few things related to this. First, the GU Vanilla Bean Gel that I gave away (Congrats Lindsay) was purchased by myself for full price from a well known website that sells running gear. I do rave about that particular gel not because I'm obligated to, but because I use it and it works well for me. The same goes for the Hammer Nutrition products that I blog about. I purchase them from their website at full price, and use them because I've found they're a healthy supplement choice that works for me. The POM Wonderful product that I reviewed I reviewed on August 1st, and also explained my reasons for trying it: "First off, other than getting the 100% pomegranate juice for free, I have absolutely no pressure to say anything good about this product. I wasn't asked to say "nice things" in exchange for receiving the juice. If I had been, I would have turned down their offer. The juice was sent to me by them to try with the hope I would write about it in my blog. Fair enough!" The same can be said for the hat and shorts I'm reviewing. I received an e-mail stating: "Hi Rick, My name is Devon and I work at OutsidePR. A few of our clients include GU, Sugoi, Headsweats and Cannondale. I couldn't help but notice, via your blog, that you frequently use GU (and do some crafty raffles!) Would you like to do some product testing? I'll send you some of our clients' products, and you post reviews. You may keep whatever I send you." As you see, there is no pressure for me to say positive things, or to persuade others to buy the products I receive. That being said, you saw my honest negative opinion earlier about the hat. I will always be willing to suggest products for you to try such as GU gel and Hammer Nutrition products because I've tried them and had good results with them. I will NEVER accept free products under the condition that I have to promote it, persuade others to buy it, or say positive comments about it. I will never have give-aways that have been given to me by retailers under the condition I promote it as I'm giving it away. In other words, I can't be bought. I have always been, and will always be, honest and informative in my blog. I'm disappointed that other bloggers can't say the same.

5 comments:

Unknown said...

GO Marathonman...a man of integrity and ethics! Let's keep the hidden agendas out of bloggin!!

Lindsay said...

the freebies are nice but we can't just be sellouts here. i've enjoyed the gu and sugoi products that i've received and purchased - some i learned about through a freebie and therefore began buying them on my own (ie gu chomps! yummm! same with some sugoi clothing).

the vanilla bean gu has been a nice change from my usual blueberry pomegranate or vanilla orange! i was tempted to 'eat' some this weekend while on my liquid diet, haha.

sorry the run didn't go as well but the weather can really wear you down sometimes. i'm sure you're not dwelling on it though and just looking ahead - like i need to work on right! :)

Mel-2nd Chances said...

i agree with you fully. Since i'm in Canada, we don't get a lot of the same solicitation that the US bloggers seem to get, but I wouldn't get involved if i was pressured either!

Gordon said...

I'll vouch for the credibility of MarathonMan, and I happen to be the owner of OutsidePR. We like to get our clients' products in the hands of bloggers and we treat them like the new-world journalists they are.

Our clients' products stand on their own, and if they aren't well-reviewed, well, then that's that.

That objectivity, conincidentally, gives us the freedom to personally disagree with reviews like this. I am an ultrarunner, adventure racer, cyclist and long-time athlete. My training times (usually under 7m/m on the road) are a lot faster than MM's, and my environment less humid, but I have never run into the kind of sweating problem he mentions with either the Headsweats hat or the Trail Short. So...just another perspective.

Best of luck with your marathon, and for your autism advocacy!

Irish Cream said...

Oh my gosh, heat and humidity are totally my kryptonite too! Ugh. Maybe you just needed to "fuel" more with your Superman fueling strategies ;)

Also, good for you regarding not selling out! It's good to know you're looking out for all of us, fighting the good fight ;)