Hi gang, Recovery from spine surgery is going well. I am striving to get weaned off of the fun meds - which I am other than sleepytime. I'm starting to get out more often, but still require a lot of resting time after any form of activity. I've dropped 10lbs and am down to 186. I am not eating much, and I'm positive I've been losing my hard won running muscles (my legs look so depressingly unripped now). So, how's this for a change of pace - I'm upset that I'm losing. I really miss running. I get to start taking walks today. Training for the half-marathon in February is on hold for now. We'll see what the surgeon says. Mostly I'm trying to learn how to cope with knowing that my back condition is permanent - in the sense that I have a tendancy to have disc problems more frequently than others. I can't say enough how thankful I am I had my WLS - because this back problem really is the one that debilitated my mom and lead to a huge amount of the neurological problems that helped her become immobile - which let her life-long eating disorder do its magic to help her become SMO. . .which started the catastrophy of diabetes-heart disease-congestive heart failure-etc. that is her current body. Hugs to all, ~Lara Lap RNY 4-1-04 400+/186 Healing from spinal surgery

You may want to look at your schedule. If you run long or fast today, tomorrow you should run less or slower (or both). You should try to avoid intense (long or fast) runs on consecutive days, intersperse easy (slow and/or short) runs or complete rest days in between. Rest/Recovery days are important for your body to rebuild/repair muscle. Sometimes, 2 or more recovery days are necessary. Try looking at training programs, even though you are not training for anyting in particular. Additionally, some days are good and some bad 'just because'. Some days feel bad/hard until I finish and see that I was actually running faster than I thought. Some days feel bad because they are. Runners High is in my experience over hyped. I also don't get any kind of 'high' from running, but I do get a tremendous sense of accomplishment from it, and feel good about doing it. Check out running message boards to get more insight, such as www.coolrunning.com. Tek

Congratulations on your 10 mile race. Sorry to hear about your back and all the problems that it has caused. I hope all goes well with the surgery and that you are feeling 100% soon. Becky

Seattle Marathon! I am excited for it. I don't yet enjoy running, but I love the accomplishment and no longer hate it. That's something, eh? I'm still cold all the time from my WL - I wonder what it will be like in late november. It's not so cold here now. You are very inspiring, Tek. 50-60 miles a week!?! Wow. I'm not sure I'll every shoot for the full marathon but you make me think about it! Thanks for all the input on refueling and nurtrition. My stomach is the same way about food close to a run/workout. I have found Gu, banana (well-chewed and washed down), and yogurt to be acceptable to my tummy. Thanks for the link and, again, for the advice and insight and indepth reply! Nan

Congratulations on your 1/2 in November. Which one? So much of this stuff is trial and error to find out what works best for you. 1000 calories for 1.5 hours of running is not way out of line. I tend to lose a few pounds on weekends, as I tend to run more and eat less. My stomach doesn't cope well with food after a run, and the longer the run the longer I need to wait to eat solid food. So, weekends I usually run a significant calorie defecit. I can usually get the pounds back by the end of the week (friday). When I am in a taper (as now), I have to be careful not to let the pounds pile up too much. Before my run (usually at 4:30am) I drink a liter of ice tea & gatorade mixed (I sorta use the Gatorade as the lemon flavor in the tea). I usually also drink a liter of water in addition. I have found if I eat, or drink a protein drink, I feel sluggish during the run. Also, if I eat I will get sick during the run. On runs of about an hour or less, I don't worry about fluids or carbs. Two hours and less, I will usually bring about a liter of water and drink about 3-4 ounces every couple miles. Over 2 hours I usually bring 1.5 liter of gatorade and drink 3-4 ounces every couple miles, refilling at a convenience store if I need to. During summer, I drink more of everything. For recovery usually have a yogurt. Sometimes a protein drink. Carbs and protein are important for recovery and muscle repair in the first 90-120 minutes after a run. I do yogurt because anything more solid tends to make me sick that soon after a run, particularly a long run. During marathons, I do Gu (or comparable) at about mile 20 and, after a big screw-up by not doing so at the Huntington Beach marathon in February, I drink 3-4 ounces of water or gatorade at every water stop, which are usually every couple miles. I DO dump, but haven't on Gatorade or Gu, unless I start out dehydrated, or am sick. I have found I usually won't dump on fluids. I did talk to my surgeons about my running, and they pretty much said "do what works for you." They are pretty strict on meals and (no) protein drinks, but that does not necessarily apply to crazy runners. I do quite a bit of reading and research on running and nutrition, so I trust what I have found more than a nutritionist (who more than likely is not experienced with endurance sports). My normal running week is about 50-60 miles. I pretty much am eating something all day long, it seems. Technically, I have added snacks (fruits) throughout the day. My opinion, for what its worth, is that WLS endurance athletes have the same needs as Non-Op endurance athletes. We just need to work within our constraints, which at a year or more out is really that we can't eat a pound of food line they can. 95% of the information applies to them and us. They (non-ops) are trial and error also. I like www.coolrunning.com message boards for information. Good Luck! Tek