Oktoberfest Bier Run Race Report
I decided to go gluten-free because I was having way too many stomach issues lately from running. If I wasn't a runner, I probably wouldn't have noticed anything, but competitive running isn't easy on your body. When I was 19 I was actually diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis, so these kind of ailments are something that have been with me for a long time, though I haven't had any major flareups since my early twenties, just minor issues like what I had been dealing with. Going gluten-free seems to be making a big difference already in just one week. I had stumbles across an article about the elite runner Amy Yoder Begley who has Celiac Disease and her symptoms were pretty much dead-on to what I had been experiencing, so I figured I'd give it a shot.
Moving ahead, I've decided that I want to run the Youngstown Peace Race 10K on October 23, so that's my next immediate focus. I'm doing a low key 5K as a tune up three weeks before that. I'm going to try to do a few slightly different things with my training leading up to that race and to Club Nationals in December. I'm going to do some Hansons type workouts like 2 x 3 miles and 3 x 2 miles as well as 8-10 mile marathon pace runs. While I don't plan on doing a marathon, I think running strength workouts like that will be good for me. In the past I've always approached cross country as a 5K runner moving up so training more like a half-marathoner may reap some benefits. I may even run the Fall Classic half marathon 3 weeks before Club Nationals!
