The RunRunLive 4.0 Podcast Episode 4-452 – Caffeine!     (Audio: link) audio:http://www.RunRunLive.com/PodcastEpisodes/epi4452.mp3] Link MarathonBQ – How to Qualify for the Boston Marathon in 14 Weeks - Intro: Hello my friends and welcome to episode 4-452 of the RunRunLive Podcast.  Today is Sunday April 11th.   Next week it Patriots Day up here in Greater Boston.  And due to the Apocalypse there will be no marathon.  It’s a strange thing.  I was working in the garden yesterday, turning over my vegetable beds and I realized that for the last 20+ years I have not been working on my yard until after Patriots Day.  I would be deep into the red, misty paranoia of the taper weeks, trying to cling to sanity.  One of my rules has always been not to do yard work during the taper.  Taper time is such a fragile time that I just wouldn’t risk it.  You come out of 3 or 4 months of intense, committed training. Somehow you have miraculously avoided injury.  You’re not going to leave that effort under the bushes in your yard! But not this year.  This year I’m injured anyhow and I’ve got no race, so it was nice to get out into the garden and work a bit while before it gets hot and buggy.  This week we are going to talk to the owner of Caffeine bullet all about caffeine.  I am a coffee drinker.  I usually drink two 16-oz cups of good coffee in the morning.  I like the darker stuff, arabica beans.  I get my coffee from Starbucks and grind it myself.  I love the smell of coffee being ground.  I get great joy from that first sip of hot coffee on a cold morning. I switch over to tea in the afternoon.  I’ve been mixing oolong tea with yerba matte, less than a half teaspoon of each into my silicon tea bag.  Then I refill it all afternoon without changing the tea grounds. Eventually, by the end of the day it’s just hot water! I’ve never been a heavy medicator when running.  I know ultra-runners who take caffeine pills and ibuprofen by the fist full in their events.  To be honest with you, I just don’t think that is healthy.  I think it’s probably a crutch that they could train away from.  But, everyone leads their own life.  I will take a caffeinated gel before a race or when it gets hard late in a marathon to get that boost of energy.   Today we talk about caffeine. Then in Section one I’m going to re-read a piece I wrote in 2013 when I was coming back from my 18 month dalliance with plantar fasciitis.  I have this tradition of writing a piece before every Boston Marathon.  I’m glad I did this because It’s an interesting historical document.  As you listen to it remember what happened in 2013.  I ended up having a horrible race.  I was walking by Newton.  And because of that I was behind where I usually would be.  I never made it to that finish line.  Or, more accurately I made it to that finish line in 2014.  In section two I’m going to talk a bit about pandemic shopping habits.  It’s been a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to observe consumer behavior.  I find it interesting.  When I was working in my garden I had my phone in my pocket and was trying to listen to podcasts.  I realized how noisy it is in my neighborhood on a Saturday.  There are various saws and lawn equipment buzzing.  There are planes flying around overhead.  The dog is barking his fool head off at hikers in the woods and walkers on the street.  It’s a cacophony! I’m still staying off my knee.  It will be six weeks on Friday this week.  I had my appointment with the knee guy.  X-rays didn’t show much except I have very little arthritis in my knees.  I’ll give you a little play-by-play on the dance.  I went into the office early on a Monday.  They gave me a clipboard with paper to fill out.  Each piece of paper asked the same questions about name, DOB, etc.  I got through two of them before I was called in for my X-rays.  Then I was hustled into an exam room with my clipboard.  Changed into a very utilitarian pair of exam shorts.  The lady, who is not a doctor but has the same basic training as a doctor and I talked about my injury.   She poked and prodded a bit.  I asked her if she wanted my clip board, she said no.  Then the Dr. himself joined me and went through the same routine.  At one point he started talking about me in the 3rd person which was confusing.  “I’ve got this gentleman who’s a runner and wants to keep doing it…”  And I’m thinking, “Do I know him?  Sounds like I should.” He said the knee looked a little swollen and recommended the MRI and a follow up. That was my 5 minutes or less with the Dr.  Then another lady, who was not a doctor, came in with the MRI information.  I asked her if she wanted the clipboard and she said to leave it in the room.   No one ever looked at it. It’s probably still sitting on a chair with all my personal information for the other patients to read like an old copy of magazine. I was already familiar with the MRI process from my injury in the fall – so that was easy – I got that this week and have my follow up 5 minute phone call with the doctor next week.  Where he will offer vague comments, painkillers and physical therapy.  I will thank him and decline that offer, now a few thousand out of pocket dollars closer to my deductible, and get back to work, as I have always done.  And you should too. That’s all we can control.  We keep positive, put in the work and let the road come to us.  On with the show.     About Zero ZERO — The End of Prostate Cancer is the leading national nonprofit with the mission to end prostate cancer. ZERO advances research, improves the lives of men and families, and inspires action. Link to my ZERO page: (for Donations) … I’ll remind you that the RunRunLive podcast is ad free and listener supported.  What does that mean? It means you don’t have to listen to me trying to sound sincere about Stamps.com or Audible.. (although, fyi, my MarathonBQ book is on audible) We do have a membership option where you can become a member and as a special thank you, you will get access to member’s only audio. There are book reviews, odd philosophical thoughts, zombie stories and I curate old episodes for you to listen to.  I recently added that guy who cut off is foot so he could keep training and my first call with Geoff Galloway.   “Curated” means I add some introductory comments and edit them up a bit.  So anyhow – become a member so I can keep paying my bills.   … The RunRunLive podcast is Ad Free and listener supported.  … Section one – 2013 Boston Marathoin  -     Voices of reason – the conversation David Hellard – Caffeine Bullet     THE BENEFITS OF CAFFEINE IN SPORT Fat Mobilisation Caffeine releases fat into the bloodstream, mobilising fat stores and delaying muscle glycogen depletion. Caffeine allows athletes to train harder, longer and faster before becoming fatigued - allowing you to get a new personal best, gain extra places in a race or those last few reps in the gym. Reduced Perception of Effort and Pain Caffeine affects the central nervous system, influencing the dopaminergic and other neurotransmitter systems, decreasing the symptoms of fatigue. A reduction in skeletal muscle pain and force sensation also lowers the perception of effort making it easier to train hard and go beyond your mental limits. Improved Focus and Concentration Caffeine users maintain a higher dopamine concentration especially in those brain areas linked with 'attention'. Through this neurochemical interaction, caffeine improves sustained concentration and focus. Not only great for the office, but mental fatigue also plays a vital role in performance in endurance events.   Section two – Pandemic Shopping -     Outro Ok my friends we have Shaked and jittered from our caffeine through to the end of episode 4-452 of the  RunRunLive Podcast.  Now it will be impossible to sleep tonight.   I went in Yesterday and got my first vaccine shot.  Yay!  It was the Moderna vaccine.  Moderna is a Boston company.    I got it in the early morning.  Have my second shot scheduled for May.  I felt fine all day, I bit thirsty, but fine.  Worked in the garden and stacked some wood and ran my errands.  Then I met my buddies for a trail ride on the mountain bikes.  It was a wonderful ride until I crashed as we were coming in.  It was one of those weird things that happens so fast you just can’t respond.  We were crossing a road section, going slow, talking.  I had my right hand off the handlebars for some reason.  Frank drifted in front of me so I instinctively pulled the brake on the left which, is, unfortunately the front brake. The wheel locked and my momentum threw me over onto my right side.  Didn’t hit my head but landed pretty heavy on my side and was in a fair amount of pain.  Still am today.  Seem to have a good bruise on that latissimus and the rib.  But I’ll live.  The weather has been fantastic.  Warm and dry.  The trails are all dried up.  I got a surprise visit from Just Plain Dave our ultra-running friend who lives a bit south of me on Thursday afternoon.  I couldn’t run but we went on a 2-3 mile hike down by the pond and let Ollie get some exercise.  It was good to get out and talk to someone.  He got to experience the canine crazy that is Ollie Wollie the Crazy Collie. Ollie is turning 2 years old and he’s starting to mellow out a bit.  Dave and I talked through my new SciFi podcast and he helped me with some plot points and recommendations on character arcs.  It’s been fun producing that and I think the last couple chapters have been really good.  Don’t’ forget to go to subscribe, either on Acast or iTunes, it’s After the Apocalypse.  Leave a review.  Tell some friends.  Send me some feedback. And finally, I have a editorial clarification for my friend Russ who used to live in Duchess.  He sent me a note that he was disappointed in me for referring to R2D2 as a ‘humanoid’ robot in the last show. Yes indeed.  You are right. I meant “human-like”.  Probably should have gone with C3PO.  But, my point was we are still a few years away from a general AI that can enable robots to do all the things a human can. There was an actor inside of R2D2 in the Lucas films. English Actor Kenny Baker, at 3ft 8 inches tall was R2D2’s inner human.  I’ve had  a lot of adventure for a couple weeks haven’t I? The next thing I have on the calendar is the Patriots Day Mile, which is a virtual race put on by the BAA next Monday.  I’m going to take the week off anyhow.  I should be able to run a mile.  I liked the hat, so I signed up.  After that I am signed up for Hood to Coast at the end of August and the Boston virtual in October.  I signed up for the virtual because I don’t want to waste a charity bib and I don’t know if I’m going to be able to requalify, ever, and it counts towards my streak if I do decide to try and run going forward.  I’m starting to consolidate on a plan.  The last few times I’ve had these types of injuries I’ve switched to cross training to build strength and flexibility while letting my legs heal.  I’m thinking I’ll join the gym now that I’m vaccinated and perhaps start hitting the pool and the weights.  I think the change will do me good.  It always has in the past. That’s the opportunity.  Look ahead and see where the advantage is.  Look inside and see what you’ve got for tools to use, and then use them the best you can.  I’ve got that itch to start a new project.  You’ve got to scratch that itch. And I’ll see you out there.   MarathonBQ – How to Qualify for the Boston Marathon in 14 Weeks - Rachel -> Coach Jeff ->