The North Face Whistler Half Marathon
IN THIS ISSUE
Carbo Load Dinner
Little Rippers
Online Fundraising
Book of the Month
Host Hotel Room Rates
Training
Nutrition
CARBO LOAD DINNER
Purchase tickets online!
 
The Carbo Load Dinner will once again be at the Brewhouse, located across from The North Face Store and adjacent to Whistler Olympic Plaza.
 
Join us for an amazing spread of hand-made chef's choice pasta, salad, artisan breads and more!
 
In addition to amazing food, there will be guest speakers and plenty of great door prizes from our partners too! 
 
The Carbo Load Dinner is nearly sold out, so be sure to get your tickets soon at www.whistlerhalfmarathon.com
LITTLE RIPPERS KIDS RUN 
Presented by 
Rokmaster Resources
 
Little Rippers Kids Run Presented by Rokmaster Resources
The Little Rippers Kids Run, presented by Rokmaster Resources is a 1km run through Whistler Village open to children of all ages, but is primarily aimed at introducing young children (ages 5-9) to the wonders of running in a fun and non-competitive environment. Mom and Dad can run too!
 
The registration fee is $10 and is limited to 110 children.  Little Rippers is nearly sold out so be sure to register your little ripper today. 
 
Click here for more information.
ONLINE FUNDRAISING NOW AVAILABLE
CCFC
 
Imagine a world where cramps, stomach pain, diarrhea, and medications are all a part of your day to day life. Now imagine those who suffer even more, need surgery, live with an Ostomy, or many other side effects. 

 

Now imagine how nice it would be to be part of finding the cure!

 

More than 200,000 Canadians suffer from IBD- that is more than suffer from MS and Aids/HIV combined in Canada! Yet these diseases are not talked about, often because of the stigmas attached to the symptoms.  

 

The North Face Whistler Half Marathon is proud to support the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of Canada (CCFC) and already donates $5 from each registration to the Foundation. In addition to this, each of you had the opportunity to make a donation at time of registration, which many of you did - thank you! These two efforts combined have already raised more than $6,500 for the Foundation this year. 

 

Now you can help us add to that amount and assist in finding the cures for Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD).  Online fundraising is now available.
You can make a huge difference in the lives of those suffering from IBD by taking a moment to build your own personal fundraising page, then ask your friends and family for a small donation, and watch your fundraising efforts grow.  Put your all your running to good use not only for you but for others too!  

 

Start your fundraising right now - build your personal page here and find more fundraising tips here.
BOOK OF THE MONTH
 
Developing Endurance  
 
Regular book price: $21.95
Membership price: $15.37

 

North Face Whistler Half Marathon members save 30%!
 
The popularity of endurance sports continues to grow worldwide. Now, from the National Strength and Conditioning Association comes the definitive resource for developing the endurance training programs that maximize performance and minimize injuries.  

 

Order now. Enter code W328.
Offer valid on web orders only.
Expires 05/31/2102
SPECIAL RACE WEEKEND ROOM RATESCrystal Lodge
 
Race Weekend Room Rates from $110 at The Crystal Lodge
 
Traditional $110
Deluxe King $125
Deluxe 2 Queen $130
Loft or 1-Bedroom $169
 
Promo code: 4WH1111
Call 1.800.3363 to book
 
Crystal Lodge Lobby
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VOLUME 2 ISSUE 5
APRIL 2012
Race Director's Message 

We are now less than 6 weeks from race weekend, and the Whistler valley roads and trails are nearly clear of all the snow we received this winter.  We have received word that much of the race course has already been cleared of snow and gravel, and the course is well on it's way to being in pristine shape come race day. Our race operations team is working hard to make race weekend another memorable time, and we look forward sharing some more details in the weeks ahead.
 
We are pleased to advise anyone who is planning to walk the course that we now have a new start time for walkers at 7am.  This earlier start time will allow walkers the opportunity to arrive back to the finish area earlier and enjoy the festivities longer with other athletes, family and friends.  
 
Over the past number of months we have been planning our entertainment for race day, and I am proud to announce that we will once again have the Rutherford Creek Trio entertaining you at the finish line while you reload with our spread of post run food. Plan to stick around all morning as the Little Rippers kids run, presented by Rokmaster Resources, will take place at 10:30am, immediately followed by our awards ceremony, presented by North Shore Credit Union, where prize money, age category awards and tons of door prizes will be presented.  Lastly, we are adding some great headline entertainment to round out our post run celebrations.  We cant tell you about it just yet - that would ruin the surprise, but we can tell you that is something that Whistler has not seen before.  Stay tuned for more details!
 
I would like to send out our congratulations to Heather M from Squamish who won our VIP race weekend.  Heather wins a prize package worth over $800 including accommodations at the Crystal Lodge, River Rafting with The Adventure Group, Scandinave Bath Access, Carbo Load Dinner tickets, and more.  We had over 180 entries to the contest, so it was tough to narrow it down to just 1. Thanks to everyone who entered. 
 
Happy training everyone!
 
Cheers
Dave Clark
Race Director  
Mental Preparation                                                         
By Christine Suter
Mental preparation

Traditionally, mental training has been seen as something separate from physical training, but according to Matt Fitzgerald, author of Brain Training for Runners, it is very much intertwined. He suggests that you can use your brain to get the most out of your body, meaning that every run can be used for your mental training.  


During your training, cues of comfort and discomfort come from your brain. Studies have shown that when athletes quit a test due to exhaustion, their muscles remain physically capable. Think about yourself performing a long run, and in the middle you start to feel like you have nothing left, yet at the end of the run you can sprint for the finish. If you were really physically exhausted your body would not be able to do that. 


During training, you need to experience similar perceptions and emotions that you would feel while racing. Perception is your own interpretation of any event, feeling, and emotion and is based on your past experiences. Two people doing the same training will have different perceptions of the workout. So the perception that you take away from your training lays the foundation for how you will perceive future training. It is important to vary your speeds, intensities and duration of your runs so that you can develop many different sensations and experiences on which to draw upon during your race.  


A big part of the mental training is building confidence throughout every training session. Being able to complete a previously tough workout feeling good and strong will help you build the mental confidence you need to push past your perceived limits. Matt Fitzgerald suggests that you approach your training firstly as a means of building confidence in your ability to achieve your race goal. That means that your training plans need to be created and performed in a way, that help maximize your confidence.  


Think about what you need to do to feel confident at the start line. The other part of mental training is not only being positive but also being realistic. By this I mean that sometimes our training doesn't always end up with us executing the perfect race, trust me on this one! During your mental preparation, you need to think about the "what if's" and have a plan. One of the best things I ever heard racing was from the race announcer who said, "you can only control one thing today: your attitude." He is right, you cannot control the weather, how your stomach will feel on race day, if someone trips you and many other things. You need to go into your race with a strong positive attitude of success regardless of the other variables. Believe in yourself and go into every training run and your races doing the best you can on that day and believe it!!


Happy brain training,

Coach Christine 

Fuel for Long Training Runs                               
By Melissa Spooner                                                 

Shake

By the time you read this newsletter, you will be getting that much closer to race day. How exciting! As your move through your training you will no doubt notice that your runs are getting longer in duration - you did sign up for a half marathon after all!

 

This provides us with the perfect opportunity to discuss some specific fueling needs for your longer training days. I like to divide training nutrition into 3 areas:

  • Pre-training nutrition
  • During training nutrition
  • Post-training nutrition

Now ask yourself some simple questions: 

  • Do I have the energy to get started on my workout? 
  • Do I have the energy to get through my workout?  
  • Is what I am eating during my workout working for me?
  • Do I have the energy to recover from my workout?

Pre-workout nutrition for your longer runs that are now getting to 90 minutes in duration, is the perfect time to practice what your body can handle before your race. Typically speaking, you can take in 200-300 calories/hour pre-activity.  For example, the Whistler Half Marathon starts at 7:30am. If you are planning to eat 90 minutes before the start, that would mean you can work on taking in 300-450 calories at this time. It is totally worth it to do 2-3 of your longer training runs at this time and find out what you can and cannot eat. Some examples of what to eat include:

  • 1 cup cooked oatmeal with � cup milk, soy or rice milk topped with 1 tsp good fat such as hemp oil and some maple syrup
  • 2 pieces toast with nut butter 
  • 1 cup yogurt topped with fruit and granola

Try experimenting, it is always better to have a not so good training day than a not so good race day! You may discover that fruit doesn't work for you, or that you feel better (or not) eating toast than eating oatmeal.

 

During runs that are over 90 minutes, you will want to practice taking in fuel that you plan to take on race day. Most electrolyte drinks will have approximately 100 calories/16 oz as well as sodium in the range of 50-100+mg/serving. Many people will be just fine taking in hydration, but others will need a little more energy than that. It is not unusual to burn over 1000 calories during a half marathon, so you will want to ensure that you give yourself every chance to finish strong. Other options you can try during your longer training runs are gels or sport-type gummies such as blocks or chomps. You can even make your own energy sources with items such as sea salt, agave, dates, or maple syrup and water. 

 

Depending on the effort and time it will take to do the event, most people will want to get in between 200-400 calories total. Practice to see how your energy levels feel during your runs to determine the amount of calories that will work for you and what will make up those calories in 2-3 of your longer training runs.

 

After your workout it is ALL about recovery. The key to training is consistency, and in order to be consistent in your training, you need to recover from your efforts so you can get up and do it again! Your long runs are very important to recover from, as this is when breakdown will occur. Your ligaments, tendons, muscles, etc. need to recover from the stress placed on them. Getting recovery food into your body within that 30 minute window after your run is key. Not only do you want to think about good carbohydrates to replenish your glycogen stores, proteins to aid in muscle recovery, and good fats to help with inflammation, you don't want to forget about vitamins such as vitamin C, and minerals such as potassium and magnesium. By getting something as simple as some organic yogurt and a banana with a handful of nuts, you are getting your body off to a great recovery! 

 

Happy eating and happy training!

Melissa

 

Recipe: Melissa's Favorite Protein Shake
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