Kickas.org Forums Ankylosing Spondylitis General Discussion Sporting ASKickers Half Marathon

Great job!!! You are an inspiration to everone here.

Thanks Orch!!!

Like you the walking/running seems to really help. I have had hardly any pain or fatigue since the event and in fact training for longer seems to have really helped.
My biggest problem is trying to explain to others that do not have AS that it alleviates my symptoms. They all think I should be sitting around doing nothing!!! What I do know is that when I stop training for a while, I'm in a pretty bad way.
My Mum has MS. I hope you are coping with that OK as well.

Glad you made it, Dobsy!!! What endurance challenge will you take on next? A full marathon?

I forgot to ask if you are on a low starch diet. The type of long-duration low-intensity training I recommended not only builds endurance, but also adapts the body to fat-burning metabolism. The key to going long on a low starch diet, without being able to carbo load on pasta, rice and bread as endurance athletes normally do, is to develop your fat burning metabolism. This is why the run/walk method is so effective. Intermittent walking helps keeping the heart rate below the switch point between fat and carbohydrate metabolism. This is a specific heart rate (approximately 180 minus age) below which more than 50% of the calories used comes from the burning of stored fat. Curiously, it usually feels easier (and therefore tempting) to go slightly above this threshold. The reason is that the body then switches over to carbohydrate-dominated metabolism, which provides more quick energy. But during an endurance event lasting for several hours, the carbohydrate stores (glycogen) will eventually run empty, whereas the fat stores could last for several days.


As an example, I recently did a 90 K ski marathon, which took me 6:56.38 to finish. My estimated energy expenditure was 6000-7000 kcal, my glycogen stores 2000 kcal, and my energy intake (sports drinks and energy gels) during the race no more than 1000 kcal. I finished strong, and after the event I was more hungry and thirsty than out of energy! My next challenge will be a 300 K cycling event in the summer.

Cheers,

Michael

Hi Michael,

I am nowhere near as fit as you but your advice was a great help, as I said before, and especially in building up time.
I have no more endurance events on the horizon but am aiming to walk/run about four times a week for at least 1 1/2 hours. I cannot deny how much difference it has made to me to step up my training for this event,infact I haven't felt better in years!!
No LSD for me I'm afraid, just a pill muncher, tramadol, Piroxicam, low dose SSRI and co-codamol. Don't drink or smoke and they work for me.

Good luck for your 300k bike ride. Regrettably I have had to give up cycling as it causes me too many problems with neck, knees and and upper back.

Regards,

Sarah

Very nice, in the summer I usually bike around Bear Lake once or twice. It's a little over 50 miles. Now that you mentioned 300km though, I'm thinking about maybe doing it twice in one day? We'll see.