December 1, 2007

Saturday, December 01, 2007
I’m ill. Some little microbe has managed to gain a foothold in me, and is bent on taking over. I noticed it after swimming yesterday, sore throat, coughing, headache, muscle aches. This morning there could be no doubt. urti. Time to crank up the defense machinery. I spent the day resting, and made the easy decision to swim today. My immune system should be ready for this. I’ve often thought about the similarities between training the body/mind for athletic competition and training the immune system. My definition of training is “improving fitness through the systematic application of alternating stress and rest.” As athletes, it is easy to recognize the effects of all stress and no rest (physical and mental breakdown{me in 1980}) and all rest and no stress (no fitness {me in 2006}). The effects on the immune system are analogous. If your immune system is infrequently used (living in germaphobic isolation), it becomes weak and sluggish. If it is constantly stressed (e.g. chronic low-level exposure to allergens), then all sorts of auto-immune conditions are exacerbated. Up till the age of about 18, I had a host of allergy and asthma problems. At one point I had four different asthma and allergy medications, and they only helped a tiny little bit. Seasonal allergies used to drive my sinuses haywire. I am happy to report that my allergies haven’t bothered me (enough to affect my life) in many years and my last asthma “attack” was in 1975. I haven’t missed a day of work due to illness in more years than I can count. It’s not that I don’t get a cold when everyone else does. Sometimes I can feel that little tickle in the back of the throat, or a couple wayward sneezes, that indicates a nascent infection. When that happens I take it real easy, get lots of extra sleep, and visualize my adaptive immune system cranking up, from B cell activation to clearing of the antigen-antibody complexes. No bullshit, it works. Invariably over the last couple decades, that first little tickle is all there is, then I’m fine. Immune system kicks infection’s ass. I figure my immune system was constantly stressed when I was young, a combination of pollution (long island, ny), cats in the house, indoor carpeting, and volatile organic compound emissions (1955-1965 construction standards). Results, chronic autoimmune issues and pitched battles with every urti going around. Now I live in the north country, in an old house with leaky windows and hardwood floors and no animals. My medicine cabinet is empty and this infection will be remembered as just another easy workout.
I know there will be missed days (the dreaded “DNR”). I just don’t want it to be today.
Swam 1600 m, 34:18. Steady, very relaxed pace all the way. I use a three stroke breathing pattern for virtually all my swimming (except warmup and cooldown), if anybody cares.
I found a blog with some great descriptions of some of my favorite trail races. Ron’s running adventures. Kind of a boring blog title, but he writes well. I’m thinking seriously of going on the circuit this spring. It’s too bad a few of the races are on Saturdays and conflict with track. The Grand Tree Trail Race Series. They had 23 races last year, and you accumulate points equal to the percentage of your time vs. the race winner. The race winner always gets 100 points.
Huge, possibly no. 1 race goal is the 2008 USATF Club National Championships.
December 6, 2008 (3 days after I turn 50, and about 13 months since training commenced. It would be a great honor to have represented the Bellmore Striders over a 25+ year period, especially if I can race at a high level. And when are we going to sweep open, masters and womens championships at the ocean to sound relay? 2008? Alex?