the morning shakeout | issue 503
Helping each other get through it, a few thoughts on Faith Kipyegon's sub-4 attempt, how to pay attention in a world of digital distractions, and a lot more.
Good morning! I got to spend this past weekend helping support Vincent Bouillard at the Western States 100. Unfortunately he had to end his race at mile 80 on Saturday, a difficult decision which is his story to tell if/when he chooses to. For me, what I’ll remember most about the experience is the people I got to share it with, most of whom I hadn’t met before I arrived in Olympic Valley on Thursday afternoon. There’s something magic about being part of a team and bonding through a shared purpose. Throughout the weekend we hung out, planned, pivoted, problem-solved, laughed, cried, and looked out for one another while doing everything we could to support Vincent in his quest. It was a real-time reminder that while only one person runs the race, ultrarunning, like life itself, is very much a team sport. This shit is hard and unpredictable and things aren’t always going to go your way. But it’s the relationships you form, the lessons you learn, and the memories you make along the way that shape and stick with you. As I’ve written here many a time before: At the end of the day, I really believe we’re just here to help each other get through it.
OK, my brain is operating at about 40 percent power right now, so apologies in advance if what follows here is incoherent or all over the place. Let’s get right to it.
Quick Splits
— Before I left for Olympic Valley I caught Faith Kipyegon’s sub-4 minute mile attempt on YouTube, the entirety of which you can watch right here. (If you want to skip the hour-long pre-race show and just watch Kipyegon run, here you go.) I haven’t had the time to form my own complete thoughts about the event, but I agree with most of what Steve Magness and Alison Wade wrote here and here, respectively. Kipyegon ran as hard as she could for as long as she could, covering 1 mile faster than any woman ever has before (4:06.91), but the 4-minute barrier was never under threat at any point of the attempt. No doubt she’s the GOAT and, if nothing else, I love that non-track nerds got to see Kipyegon do what she does better than anyone else in the world: run fast. And while I know that running purists such as myself weren’t the target audience for this event, the broadcast made my eyes sore from rolling them so much. At the end of the day this was an hour-long Nike commercial (no surprise there) but the empty stadium, lack of an “undercard” before the main event, and overly optimistic if not dishonest commentary didn’t do anyone—Nike, the fans in stadium and online, not to mention Kipyegon herself—any favors, in my opinion. I would’ve loved to see Nike add a women’s Bowerman Mile to the upcoming Pre Classic (why there isn’t one already, I have no idea), make it the last event of the meet, invite Kipyegon, the next 10-12 fastest 1500m runners in the world, and 2-3 pacers to get them through 1K in 2:28-29, hype it up on social media as a sub-4 attempt, stream it live on Nike’s YouTube channel (I know, I know, Diamond League broadcast rights, yada yada yada), and make a big f*cking deal out of it. I still don’t think Kipyegon goes sub-4 in that scenario but I bet she could run 4:05 and pull a lot of other women to some insanely fast times. Everybody wins.
— This is one of the better pieces I’ve read in a while on how to pay attention in a world full of (mostly) digital distractions. “Attention is more than just focus – it’s how we meet our moments,” writes Yana Yuhai. “It’s the way we notice the warmth in someone’s voice when they say our name, the way food tastes different when eaten barefoot in the backyard on a humid evening, the way song lyrics hit differently when they mirror something we’ve lived through, the “it’s all going to be alright-ness” we feel when we hear the tinkling laughter of children as a long summer day comes to an end. Attention is presence. And presence isn’t just powerful – it can be radical. In a world where attention is monetized, captured, manipulated – reclaiming it is an act of resistance.” (Bonus points if you can read it the whole way through without losing focus.)
— For as much as I love writing on/for the internet, there’s nothing I enjoy more than putting my pen to the paper of my Field Notes notebook. These 3-½ by 5-½ inch memo books have been my constant companion for as long as I can remember and I take mine everywhere since it easily shoves down into a pocket. I jot down ideas, thoughts, quotes, lyrics, and notes on this or that, make lists, sketch out workout ideas, all sorts of shit. I didn’t know much about the brand’s backstory so it was fun to read how Field Notes started as a side project nearly 20 years ago and grew into a widely adored product that far exceeded cofounders Aaron Draplin and Jim Coudal wildest dreams. “The biggest, funnest part about this thing—number one, we didn’t lose any money. Isn’t that cool? I would have been okay if we did,” Draplin says. But, “This can exist. This happened. [We’ve done] it for almost 20 years. It’s fucking amazing. I’ll tell you what . . . it exceeded my dreams.”
— Dylan Bowman and Aaron Lutze recently had me on The Second Nature Podcast to talk about what I’ve learned from publishing this very newsletter for 500 weeks in a row. We discussed why I started the morning shakeout in the first place, the ways in which it’s evolved over the past 10 years, how I “protect my plate,” and a lot more. We even had a little side conversation about Grand Slam Track canceling the last meet of their inaugural season at the very end. You can find this one wherever you listen to podcasts or at this handy link.
— I’ve been a big fan of Jack White since my buddy Bergie introduced me to The White Stripes back in college. He’s got a distinctive voice and is a criminally underrated songwriter, if you ask me. I present his latest, “Archbishop Harold Holmes,” as evidence of those facts. I first heard this one last fall and loved it—it’s a short, catchy, and hilariously scathing critique of manipulative preachers and other such charlatans—but the recently-released music video takes it up a notch or two. Listening instructions: Turn it up to 11!
— From the archives (Issue 138, 7 years ago this week): I’ve been thinking a lot about life the past couple days as I’ve been somewhat disconnected from the rest of the world. Spending most of your time in the woods and out of cell range will have that effect on you. It’s been a good reminder that I don’t need a lot to be happy or for my life to be meaningful to me: If I can regularly make the time to reflect upon my life, spend it with the people who mean a lot to me, be open to new experiences, and share what I’ve learned with others so they might apply it to their own lives, I’m good. Now, I recognize that recipe is going to be different for everyone, which is part of what makes life interesting and awesome, but putting the ingredients together for yourself is simpler than you think.
— As a coach, one of the most popular topics of conversation between me and my athletes, especially as we get into the dog days of summer, is dehydration. We all sweat, some of us more than others, and despite our best efforts it’s inevitable that we’ll need to operate in a bit of a deficit as our body tries to keep itself cool. But how much dehydration can we tolerate before performance starts to suffer? My friends at Precision Fuel & Hydration tackled this question head-on in a recent edition of their newsletter, which you can read for yourself right here. It’s chock full of history, expert insight, and science-backed advice that you can use to measure your sweat rate and keep that deficit within a safe and workable range. (And if you’re interested in trying any PF&H products for yourself—they’re what I’ve used to keep myself fueled and hydrated for nearly 8 years now—check out this link and save 15% off your first order.)
I’m stoked to share that the New Balance FuelCell Rebel v5 is available everywhere as of today! I’ve run in every iteration of this shoe and it’s my go-to for faster workouts on both the track and the roads. This latest version is no exception. As fast and fun as carbon-plated shoes can be, it’s important not to be overly reliant on them for all your track sessions, fartleks, hills, and tempo runs. The Rebel allows your feet to do what they want to do while providing plenty of protection underfoot when you’re putting a lot of extra force into the ground. The new blend of PEBA and EVA foams in the midsole provides a snappy ride underfoot, helping make the miles go by quickly. I’m excited to take ’em for a ride soon! The FuelCell Rebel v5 is available on newbalance.com (men’s sizes here, women’s sizes here) and at your favorite local run specialty retail store.
Workout of the Week: Brad Hudson’s “Intro to Power Endurance”
I first learned about this session in coach Brad Hudson’s Little Black Book (Redux). He calls it an “introduction to power endurance” workout and recommends using it early in a training cycle when an athlete is still building fitness but ready to handle more work. The pickups are relatively short—1-3 minutes in duration—and the intensity—10K effort—should manageable for that chunk of time. The “recovery” intervals, which are run at more of a moderate training pace than a slow jog, are equal in duration to the work interval that preceded it. I like to use a version of this workout every few weeks during a half-marathon or marathon buildup because it forces the athlete to stay engaged the entire time and serves as a nice substitute for a standard threshold session. Here are the details.
The bottom line.
“When you start thinking about what people like, you start thinking about what people expect. Then you start pandering to people’s expectations. Then you start talking about yourself in the third person. I learned very early on not to think about that. You go out there and do the best you can, and you do things that are interesting to you. Hopefully it will be interesting to other people. I don’t want to be adequate. I’d rather fail gloriously making something strange, awesome but ultimately a failure.”
— Anthony Bourdain describing how I approach writing this newsletter.
That’s it for Issue 503. Please forward this email to a friend, share the web link on social media and/or in your group chats, or reply to me directly at your own risk.
Thanks for reading,
Mario
I love the Bourdain quote at the end.
Loved your thoughts here.... and especially that Bourdain quote... how I've tried to live my life! I'm also about to have my first crew/guiding experience at Vermont 100, and loved reading your crewing thoughts here!