Training 11/18-24

 11/18- Felt better when I woke up today and opened with an 81.  Marginally slower after drinking a Red Bull (83) then MUCH WORSE after Endodren (1:44).  Actually, I interpret this as GOOD NEWS.  I no longer need stimulants to cope with the detox.  It remains to be seen if I will be better or worse tomorrow back on Thym Adren, which is what is suitable for my chemistry.  Eventually, I will need it again.  

PM- Half mile in the dark at Montreat in 5:49 (11:38 pace).  That's okay.  Consider this the starting point.  I should be a little better almost every day going forward.  Tomorrow will probably be rained out but I hope the effect of the Thym Adren will be clear one way or the other without a test.

Distance-1.0

11/19- AM-Forced myself to go in the rain.  Opened with a 1:51 then improved to 1:46 on Thym Adren.  Helpful but not a game changer.  At least it didn't hurt me.  I am slow because of detox not unbalanced chemistry.  I went back up to 5 mg Melatonin but I don't think that was a factor.  Even if it was, if I can function, I want to get the toxins out as quickly as possible.

PM- Repeated the half mile on the same route.  Improved to 5:14 (10:28 pace).  Nice improvement.  Keep it up.

Distance-1.0

11/20- Better than expected.  Full Mile at Montreat in 9:17.  Even pace without much of a push at the end.  Took all the pills before the run but I don't think I would have been much worse without them.  Demands #1 and 2 are met at least for now.  I've got a ways to go on #3.  Figure I am about a quarter of the way to a sub-60 10K

Distance-1.0

11/21- Adrenal spike hit yesterday afternoon.  Not unexpected.  How long will it last?  In the past 2 weeks, I experienced a spike, stabilization, need for stimulants and now another spike.  What a life!

Opened with a 1:54 then improved to 1:43 on 2 Thym Adren.

Distance-0.5

11/22- Better.  Full mile in 9:24 after a 1:38 start on no pills.  Comparable to 2 days ago but still feel overstimulated.  Good news:  Another former problem pill called Quercetin is now tolerated thanks to the Melatonin.  Unfortunately, I am afraid that there will be multiple rounds of detox.

Distance-1.0

Melatonin Detox Reaction

 Nothing should surprise me anymore but this latest false hope REALLY HURTS!  I've run little to nothing in the past 10 days and missed out on another local 5K.  It's looking like once again, I will not be racing at all this calendar year.  

At first, it appeared that adding back the Glycine would stop the adrenal spike and reduce my dependence on both the Thym Adren and the Melatonin.  It did that.  Only problem is that now, I can't tolerate the Thym Adren.  I need adrenal stimulants just to function.  

Has my metabolism flipped?  Highly unlikely.  I am over 90 percent sure that it is a detox reaction.  How long will it last?  Who knows?  I do except that it will flip back suddenly.  One day, I will need stimulants.  The next day, I will be back to the suppressants with a worsened adrenal imbalance.  What a life!  Indeed, Melatonin is involved with detox of heavy metals such as Lead and Mercury.  What angers me about this is that I already went through Hell with the TRS spray.  I thought I had already gotten most of those toxins out.  Apparently not.  I just can't plug all the leaks.  I cannot solve one problem without creating another.

Any good news?  Yes.  It appears that I am less dependent on the Melatonin.  Recently, I reduced the dose from 5 mg to 3 mg and the inexplicable reactions to Colostrum and Taurine returned.  2 nights ago, I didn't take ANY pills.  What were the results?

Opened with a 94.7 then actually improved to a 90.5 on the formerly problematic pills.  On Endodren (adrenal stimulants), I improved significantly to a 78.0.  Last night, I was back to the usual 5 mg and the result was worse.  I opened with a 1:45 then dropped to 1:30 on Endodren.  I tried again after a forbidden energy drink.  Again, I improved significantly to a 1:24.  

What now?  

I don't think I have any other choice but to let the detox run its course.  I am betting that it was not a Melatonin deficiency that triggered the reactions but toxic metals.  Melatonin will get them out.  I will reduce the dosage to make it manageable.  If I stop completely, I can probably get away with it for a few days but the inexplicable reactions will eventually return.  

Glycine Stops Adrenal Spikes

 I've hit a couple of bumps in the road over the past week or so.  Fortunately, the Melatonin remains effective and well tolerated at 5 mg.  By that I mean that the inexplicable reactions stop and I am not so stiff and lethargic after taking it.  If that continues, Demand #1 has been met.  That's the one that is most important to me.

Demand #2 looked to be a NO just a few days ago.  I need 5 mg of Melatonin every day.  If I drop it down to 3 mg for just 2 days, the bad reactions to pills come back with a vengeance.  I haven't even tried to see what happens if I don't take it.  Some night, I will forget to take it and I expect to be rudely reminded the next day.  

Still, as long as the Melatonin dose remains constant at 5 mg, I can live with that.  Please, no moving targets!  My need for Thym Adren shot up last week.  I thought it was an adrenal spike, which is common after solving a major problem.  Nope.  It was because I stopped taking Glycine.  I thought I no longer needed it but I was wrong.

6 pills was probably the best dose.  If I cut it down to 3, I was okay on the first day, a little off on the second day and downright awful on the third day.  No, I could not get away with even one day off the Thym Adren.  Not acceptable.  

Things changed when I went back to the Glycine.  The need for Thym Adren diminished.  3 pills will be effective but 6 will be too much and I'll feel the ill-effects of overshooting for a couple days.  If I get in an equilibrium on 3, what happens?  I probably won't notice if I accidentally take extra for just 1 day.  Also, I won't start to feel a little off unless I go maybe 3 days without it.  That's acceptable.  Will the Glycine reduce my dependence on Melatonin?  That remains to be seen.  Also, it's possible that cleaning up my diet will affect the balance point.  There is no extreme dependence on Glycine.  I won't notice until I go about 5 days without that stuff.  

Demand #3 is enough energy to be productive and enjoy life.  I did enjoy my trip to Florida last weekend but if the surf had been much rougher, I may not have had the strength to be out there on consecutive days.  Not acceptable.  I only did a couple of junk runs and still can't race.  I was hoping to jump into a local 5K this coming weekend but that looks unlikely.  I believe that if I meet demands 1 and 2, #3 will naturally follow suit 

Detailed Election Analysis

 Trump is a divisive figure.  If you don't like him and are disappointed by the results, that's understandable and I respect your viewpoint.  Cutting off long-time friends and family members over politics is not cool.  Posting profanity laced rants on social media isn't very smart either.  There was one in particular that really angered me.  A woman wished for black men who voted for Trump to be killed by police brutality and women to be victims of domestic violence.  Sickening!  Never in a million years would I wish harm on anyone who voted differently than I did!  

Acting as if Trump is evil incarnate?  Get a grip!  As the grandson of a WW2 Veteran, I am especially angered by the nonsensical Hitler comparisons.  Show me a concentration camp designed to exterminate an entire race of people and then I will listen.  Trump was one of the few presidents in recent memory NOT to start a war.  I blame the media for stirring up such hatred 

I find the suggestion that people didn't vote for Harris because she is a woman of color to be insulting.  I'll tell you why she lost.  She was part of an administration with a 36 percent approval rating and admitted that her policies would not have been much different from Biden.  Add to that, she is unlikeable and totally inauthentic.  Changing her accent based on her audience?  That's cringeworthy.  It really should not have been as close as it was.  Biden would have fared no better.  However, if he had dropped out earlier and allowed an open primary, Dems may have had a shot.

I was an early supporter of Ben Carson in 2016 and am a fan of Candace Owens.  I kinda liked Tulsi Gabbard even when she was a Democrat.  I sure do hope that the first female President is a conservative Republican.  That might close the gender gap.  I vote based on policy.  Race or gender of a candidate is not a factor.  Ben Carson was once called a "black white supremacist.". With the possible exception of calling Jewish people Nazis, that's the dumbest thing I've ever heard.

Demographics:

-38 percent of the Asian vote.  I see room for improvement here.  It was about 50/50 during the Bush era but swung D under Obama.  DEI policies have especially hurt the Asian community.  

-14 percent of the Black vote.  This number has been slowly rising since 2012 but I can't see it moving more than a few points every cycle.  It may not be until 2040 that Republicans get up to 25.  Trump got 22-24 percent of Black men depending on the exit poll.  Among young people, I am betting that it was close to 30 percent.  It's not as much of a taboo nowadays to vote Republican.  I expect that the gains will continue after Trump is out of office.  

45 percent of the Latino vote, including 52 percent of men.  That was YUGE!  I expected gains but not by that much.  I'd wager that Trump broke 50 percent in Texas, which will keep it safely red for the foreseeable future.  It also shores up Arizona and even puts New Mexico in play.  Incredibly, it was suggested that Latinos were motivated by racism and sexism, which was not a factor when they voted for Hillary and Obama.  Suppose that number jumps to 55 percent next cycle.  Will the Democrats call for a wall and strict border control if they think that Latinos will vote against them?  Serious question.  

57 percent of the white vote.  Marginally worse than 2016.  Trump is slowly losing upper class white voters.

State analysis:

One thing I found strange about 2020 was that Biden gained only in the swing states and the lean blue states.  He didn't make a dent in deep red America.  In this election, Trump improved in at least 48 states with his biggest gains being in deep blue areas.  The count is still going in a few states but Harris may have done fractionally better only in Utah and Washington.

Massachusetts- It was still a blowout win for the Democrats but Trump did do 5 points better than 2020.  Other states in the Northeast moved towards Trump by similar margins.  That's what you should expect when the national popular vote shifts by 6 points.

New York and New Jersey- Trump got shelled in Manhattan but made serious inroads in Brooklyn and Queens.  In the Bronx, he did more than 20 points better than 2020.  He did 11 points better in New Jersey, which voted nearly identical to Virginia.  Who would have thought that 20 years ago?

Georgia and North Carolina- These were a little closer than I expected.  The wealthy Atlanta suburbs used to be solid red.  Not so now.  They would have actually preferred a Romney style Republican.  I suppose that when you have a million dollars in the bank, paying more for groceries doesn't hit as hard.  I expected Never Trump types would come back after 2016.  Most have gone Democrat.  Trump did very well in suburban Nashville and Dallas but not so hot in Charlotte and Atlanta.  Tennessee's transplants tend to be Midwestern and conservative while Georgia and North Carolina attract more Northeastern liberals.  North Carolina should still go red in a 50/50 election but Georgia is a toss up and could be tough to win going forward.  

Florida and Texas- I expected a 7-8 point win.  The margin was 13 in Florida and 14 in Texas.  Trump won Miami Dade while Palm Beach was about 50/50.  In Texas, Trump flipped several border counties that were D by 50 as recently as 2016.  Solid red in the future.  Dems could shift on immigration.  

Illinois- Trump got 30 percent in Cook county (Chicago).  I don't have the prior numbers but I imagine that's a big gain.  This was much closer than I expected but I don't expect it to flip anytime soon.  

Arizona- Vote is still counting but Trump is up by 6.  Though Texas Latinos probably shifted the most, Trump gained in Arizona as well.  Arizona moved by about the national average.  It should be lean red in a 50/50 election.

California-  Harris' home state swung 13 points towards Trump.  The people who know her best didn't give her a ringing endorsement.  Again, I imagine that California Latinos shifted right as well.  There may be hope for California after all.  It's a beautiful state with lots of nice people.  

Rust Belt- This election was a solid victory for Trump but NOT a landslide.  4 out of the 7 battlegrounds were decided by 2 points or less.  PA, MI and WI all shifted red but by less than the national swing.  If Harris had flipped all 3, she gets to 270.  These are the bell weather states and I expect them to remain that way.

Future:

Like it or not, Trumpism is the new direction of the Republican party. Nikki Haley's candidacy was the last gasp of the Old Guard.  I really don't understand why some Liberals would prefer going back to Bush like candidates.  May I remind you that he tried to stop gay marriage and launched a pre-emptive war under false pretenses.  But oh, since he won't support Trump, all is forgiven.  LOL.  I do hope that the 2028 nominee has Trump's policies with a more genteel personality.  If that happens, I predict he or she will be just as hated.

Melatonin Verdict Soon

 It seems like 5 mg is the sweet spot.  At 8 mg, the inexplicable reactions stop but I will be too stiff and lethargic, especially in the morning. I would have to switch up the timing and take it at lunch if I had a race the next day.  At 3 mg, I didn't notice any side effects from the Melatonin but I did get an immediate bad reaction from Taurine.  At 5 mg, side effects are minimal and I was marginally faster immediately after taking it.  Even better, I had no reaction to Taurine and Colostrum.  Take 5 mg and everything is cool.  The only negative is that I'll probably have to take it every night and I don't like being dependent on a pill.

A few questions remain:

If the dosage remains consistent at 5 mg every night, I can live with that.  What is unacceptable is moving targets.  What if 5 mg is too much one day while 3 mg works like a charm and there is no explanation?  Then, after a week on 3 mg, I have to go back to 5? That's exactly what has happened with the Thym Adren many times.  

Dietary Restrictions:

I must confess that I did drink the equivalent of 3 beers the night that I cut the Melatonin dose down to 3 mg.  That's hardly alcohol abuse.  Though I'd never actually do it, I was still legal to drive.  I should be able to get away with a cheat day like that maybe once per week.  I did read that alcohol and caffeine  deplete Melatonin however.  Perhaps I just need extra after a cheat day.  

Clean Diet:

Perhaps with a clean diet, I won't be as dependent on Melatonin and I will be able to get away with a missed dose here and there.  What does scare me a bit is the possibility that on a clean diet, 5 mg will be too much and I'll have side effects just like I had on 8 mg earlier.  I will be forced to go back down to 3 or less.  

Best case scenario:

I can get away with lower doses and even an occasional missed dose with a clean diet.  BUT if I take 5 mg when I don't need that much, I can tolerate it and the side effects are minimal.  

Within the next 1-2 weeks, the final verdict will be in.  

Preliminary Election Analysis

 My prediction was very accurate.  I forecasted that that it would come down to 5 states (AZ, GA, PA, MI, WI).  Whoever won any 3 out 5 would win the election.  I predicted 3 point wins for Trump in GA and AZ, which meant that Harris would have to sweep the Rust Belt.  A tall order.  I liked Trump's chances best in Wisconsin (by 1-2) while Pennsylvania and Michigan would go down to the wire.  Trump would win PA by less than 1 but lose Michigan by a similar margin.

Nevada, Arizona and Michigan haven't been called yet but I expect that all will be added to the Trump column.  

I'm just going to highlight a few surprises:

Although Trump didn't make a dent in deep blue states like Maryland and Massachusetts, he was surprisingly competitive in New Jersey and Illinois.  

IIRC, Harris won NJ by only 5 points.  Illinois by 8 and even New York was barely double digits.  In recent years, New York and Illinois are D by 20 which NJ is D by 15.  Interesting.  Word on the street is that immigration was a big factor in the Republican swing, particularly in Chicago.  

My biggest disappointment was Colorado (D-11).  After apartments in the Denver area were taken over by Venezuelan gangs, they still voted for open borders?  I was in Denver earlier this year.  Yes, I still liked it but it has gone downhill since my first visit in 2010.  

New Hampshire and Virginia were closer than last time but it would take a near landslide to flip those 2.  Minnesota would have been closer without Walz on the ticket and New Mexico could perhaps be flipped in the future.

Republican states:

Georgia by 2- Too close for comfort but I'll take it.  I didn't look at the county results yet but I suspect that the Atlanta suburbs did NOT swing back to Trump.  Rather, Harris didn't run up the score in the city of Atlanta.  I read that 25 percent of black men in GA voted for Trump.  Pennsylvania is as red as Georgia.  I didn't see that coming.   

Florida by 14- Not a huge surprise after DeSantis won in a blowout 2 years ago but the margin was bigger than expected.

Texas by 14- Probably the biggest and most pleasant surprise.  I'll bet Trump won the Rio Grande Valley.  I'm curious how he did in suburban Houston and Dallas.  Democrats predicted that demographic shifts would make Texas competitive by now.  Not gonna happen.  I'd be very curious about the Latino vote in Texas compared to California or even Arizona.  Pretty safe to say that Texas Latinos are more Republican than elsewhere.  

Final thought:

Not a landslide but a decisive win for Trump.  Harris would have had to flip 3 states and the 3rd closest was decided by more than 2 points.  Even if there was fraud, it's pretty hard to argue that it made the difference.  

The system works.  Biden has not been an effective president and 72 percent believe that the country is on the wrong track.  Democrats deserved to lose.  For anyone who fears that this is the end of American democracy.  Don't.  There will be another election in 4 years.  If Trump's policies fail, the Republican nominee will lose in 2028.

Republicans have a deep bench.  I'd be good with Vance, Ramaswamy, Tulsi or DeSantis in 2028.  If I had to choose now, my ticket would be Vivek as P and Tulsi as VP 

Training 11/4-11/10

 11/4-AM.  I may have spoken too soon about the need for Thym Adren being manageable.  I got hit with a SEVERE adrenal spike yesterday afternoon and evening.  Cut the Melatonin dose down to 5 mg and it remains effective.  It will probably be effective at 3 mg.  

Opened with a 1:59 half lap (11:54 pace).  In recent days, I was marginally better after taking formerly problematic pills.  Today, I was still BAD but SIGNIFICANTLY BETTER on Taurine and Colostrum.  Improved to 1:48 (10:48 pace).  Not sure what to make of that but I suspect that Taurine is good for an adrenal spike.

Took the max dose of Thym Adren (8 pills) and tried again.  Improved to 1:24 (8:24 pace).  Much better but still a far cry from the 1:06 morning session that I managed before the adrenal spike.  

Reaction:

Is the Melatonin tolerated at 5 mg?  I really can't say yes or no with certainty but I'd wager that 90 percent of my slowdown can be explained by the adrenal spike.  I still plan to gradually cut the dose and eventually see if I can manage a few days without it.  

As for the adrenal spike, the news is not all bad.  Even with the max dose, it still wasn't enough to get me back to form.  The 24 second gap is 2:24 per mile, which is BIG but that's only 3 seconds per pill.

  I'd only be marginally faster on 1 pill.  I'd actually rather see only modest gains from a pill than a night and day difference.  Why?  That shows reduced dependence. I HATED having to hit a sweet spot every day while shooting at a moving target.  The adrenal spike will eventually go down and I will get back to form.  It won't require a mega dose to get there.  In fact, I plan to gradually cut it starting today.

PM- Montreat Mile in 9:56.  Ugly result but I got a BIG VICTORY.  I took 5 mg of Melatonin after the first 2 laps.  Splits were 3:20-3:19-3:17.  Marginally FASTER AFTER MELATONIN! On both 10 mg and 8 mg, I got an immediate negative reaction.  

 There is a good chance that I have found a dosage that is both tolerated AND eliminates the inexplicable reactions!!  When the adrenal spike goes down, I believe that I will see reduced need for Thym Adren.  The stable chemistry will allow me to train consistently and meet the minimum standard for demand #3.

The degree of dependency on Melatonin still remains to be seen.  Maybe I can get away with a lower dosage.  Maybe I can get away with an occasional missed dose.  Maybe not.  Even still, if I have to take 5 mg every night, that's a price that I will gladly pay.

Distance-1.5

11/5- AM- No run.  Went directly to my polling place this morning.  Adrenal spike is still there but I cut the Thym Adren from 8 to 6.  Hope to see a modest gain this evening.  I will cut the Melatonin to 4 mg tonight.

PM- Repeated the Montreat Mile and my time is down to 9:05. Splits were 3:02-3:05-2:58.  About what I expected if not a little better.  It was obvious that this adrenal spike is not a 1-2 day blip.  Rather, it will go down gradually.  I sliced 51 seconds off yesterday's time and am within 95 of a PR.  From that perspective, this looks pretty good.  Tomorrow is perhaps more important.  I want to see continued improvement on a reduced dose albeit at a slower rate.  4 pills tomorrow.  Hoping to see an 8:30-8:45.

Distance-1.0

11/6- Slightly better than expected again.  Vestavia Mile in 8:08.  Splits were 1:59-2:06-2:04-1:59.  Did this on lowered doses of Melatonin and Thym Adren.  Did not try formerly problematic pills but I doubt it would have been a problem.  MINUS 57 compared to yesterday and 38 away from a PR.

Montreat vs Vestavia route:  A PR is only legal on a track even though Montreat is probably slightly tougher.  I suspect that Montreat is 15-20 yards short but that's offset by the hills so the difference is negligible.

11/7- Very close to a verdict on Melatonin.  3 mg was not enough last night.  Bad reaction to Taurine this morning and I knew it before the workout.  Managed 2 miles on North Lakeshore in 19:10 (9:35 pace).  Splits were 9:39-9:31 despite a tougher back half.  This was not as bad as I expected.

Distance-2.0

11/8- Back on track today.  Vestavia Mile in 7:42.  Missed a PR but pleased that I was well under 8.  Adrenals still feel a little high.  Perhaps 5 Thym Adren instead of 3 would have made the difference.  Passed halfway at 3:44 but started fading at 600 and knew I wasn't going to make it.  Last lap was not much better than 2:00.

Distance-1.0

11/9- Not good.  1 mile on the beach (slight slope but hard sand) in 8:49.  I popped 1 Thym Adren at the turnaround and splits were 4:30-4:19.  Clearly, that dose must be raised.  One pill did make a difference but it was barely enough to hit the threshold of significance.  I can handle a couple of days at a lower dose but not for long.  Going back on Glycine next week.  Maybe that will make a difference.

Distance-1.0

Dependence on Pills

 Once again, my demands are hardly unreasonable.  I've accepted that I will never be free from the pills.  A total cure is unrealistic.  I only wish to get it under control with treatment.  So far, I am doing great on Demand #1.  The inexplicable reactions have stopped.  That's the one that I needed the most.  It still remains to be seen if these reactions will still be gone at 3 mg but I have a good feeling.  I believe that anything above that dose will trigger morning issues.  Enough about that for now.

Regarding Demand #2:

The Melatonin is not a magic bullet that cures all of my chemical imbalances.  I had no such expectation My adrenals remain unbalanced and I still need support in that area.  Also, without at least semi-regular B-12, I will have issues with pernicious anemia. As long as it's controlled with treatment, I can live with that.

What happens if I miss a dose of Thym Adren?

I was slightly slower but not enough to be considered significant.  The gap in a sprint was only 15 seconds per mile and I believe that some of that was due to natural variability.  That said, if I go 3 days without it, yes I will start to feel a little bit off.  If I had to go 5 days, it will get ugly.

Even though 11/1 was a downer, I still beat the previous day's time on a tougher course.  I attribute that to the reduced Melatonin dose.  I began the workout with a noticeable increase in energy on 8 mg vs 10 but faded down the stretch because of adrenal imbalances.  I recognized what was wrong and made the correction before things got too ugly.  I can live with that. 

 It was not a shock that I had to raise my dosage.  Adrenals often spike temporarily after a major problem is solved.  The difference between 3 and 5 pills was 30 seconds per mile.  That's significant but not a night and day difference.  It would not have been a total disaster if I raced a 5K on 3.

I predict that once I hit equilibrium on 5, I will once again be able to get away with an occasional missed dose.  I expect that in time, the dosage will go back to 3.  I'll be sluggish for a couple of days then get 30 seconds faster after going back down to 3.  As long as these adjustments are relatively infrequent, I can live with it.  Hopefully, after I fully adjust to the Melatonin, the adrenal dosage will be consistent.

Now let's compare this to where I was before the Melatonin:

A missed dose of Thym Adren cost me nearly 2 minutes per mile in a sprint. In a real workout, it would have been even worse.  The longer the distance, the uglier it gets.  To put it another way, I could not even function without the Thym Adren.  

Add to that, the dose was a lot more unpredictable.  Some days, I could get by with 3.  Other days, I needed 6 or more.  If I overshot on an adrenal spike, I was CRAP for another 2 days because I took too much.  Taking 3 when I needed 5 and vice versa was a DISASTER.

Conclusion:

Sure, I wish I could get off Thym Adren and I wish the dose was consistent but I am a LOT better.  Again, there is a chance that the adjustments will stop once I am on the Melatonin long-term.

Sleep changes:

This is a minor consideration as I never did have serious sleep issues.  I've noticed that I don't require as much sleep at night and the quality has improved.  I had a funny dream last night that involved being naked at my desk at work.  Nobody noticed but I was afraid of getting caught.

Lowered Melatonin Dose

 I keep hoping to hear something like this from a doctor:  

YES, I have seen patients like you before.  Inexplicable and extreme reactions to pills are usually linked to a specific marker that is either undetectable or off the scale high in lab tests.  Though I can't guarantee that it will be effective for you, many of my patients have had success with X or Y treatment.

No such luck.  In fact, one doctor told me flat out that he has NEVER seen this before in TWENTY YEARS of practice!!

Yesterday's phone consult went about as expected.  He didn't have a simple straight answer but at least he listened (many dismiss it).  Dr. Cole's  protocol is a comprehensive plan to get to the bottom of it that would cost me upwards of $7,500.  I will keep it in mind but it's becoming more and more likely that it won't be necessary.  His at home urine test is what led me to the Melatonin through my own research, and for that I am grateful.

10 mg every night has completely eliminated the inexplicable reactions and significantly reduced the extreme dependency on key pills.  Unfortunately, it leaves me groggy and unmotivated especially in the morning.  By the afternoon, I begin to feel better and am "almost good" by the evening.  

My bare ass minimum standard for racing is a sub-60 minute 10K.  Based on recent evening workouts, I may already be there.  If not, it won't take much additional training to make it.  Just extend the distance of my standard workout to 3-4 miles.  Without the extreme reactions that prevented me from training, I see no reason why I can't do it.

Unfortunately, almost all races take place in the morning.  There is no way that I can meet the standard in the morning.  Last night, I reduced my dosage from 10mg down to 8.  I still got an immediate negative reaction but it was not as severe.  This morning's sprints were significantly better than yesterday morning but not nearly as good as the evening.

More importantly, the problem pills were still tolerated on the lowered dosage.  Once again, I was marginally faster AFTER Taurine and Colostrum.  I will stick with 8mg for 1 more night.  I want to see how bad I do in a real workout in the morning.  I could tweak the formula and take Melatonin at Lunch.  In that case, I would have to endure a rough afternoon but it will clear out by the next morning.

If I drop it down to 5-6 mg, I'm sure that it will reduce the side effects.  I'm not sure if it will remain effective.  Time will tell.  My ideal scenario is to take only 1-3 mg occasionally to prevent flare ups while facing minimal side effects.  If that happens, all of my demands will be met!  Hell, even if I have to take 5 mg every night and it's effective, that's still a LOT better than where I was just 1 week ago

Melatonin Part 2- Jury Still Out

 Again, I don't want to get my hopes up but if current trends continue, 2 out of my 3 demands will be met.  The first is for the inexplicable reactions to STOP.   

Liver Beef, Taurine and Colostrum gave me FITS in recent weeks.  This is the most maddening thing about this whole ordeal.  The last 2 days: No discernable reaction and I was actually marginally faster after taking the problem pill.  That's YUGE!

The second is no extreme dependency on any one pill.  Up until yesterday, that pill was Thym Adren.  I want to get to a point in which I can make it through a long weekend without it.  Just 3 days ago, I was nearly 2 minutes faster per mile IMMEDIATELY after taking the usual dosage. Yes, I had been taking it every day prior to that.  That should NEVER HAPPEN.  Tolerating one day off it is not enough to declare victory but I have to say that the prognosis looks good.

Today, I felt no discernable difference after taking the Thym Adren.  After the usual dose, I was only 15 seconds faster per mile over a short interval. Suppose I forget to pack it before a road trip.  I'd say chances are pretty good that it would NOT wreck the trip.  

The third demand is somewhat subjective.  I need enough energy to enjoy life and be productive.  I don't need to run a marathon but a 10K would be nice.  That way, at least, I can enjoy the social aspect of it.  Also, crashing on the weekends and having to take frequent naps is not acceptable.  

This demand has NOT been met as of yet.  Crashing on the 2nd lap of a Mile time trial will not be tolerated.  I would not have finished a 5K yesterday without walk breaks.  I feel groggy and unmotivated.  It's comparable to the zombie-like feeling of anti-depressants.  I wasn't sleepy yesterday evening but didn't want to do anything except lay awake in bed.  Melatonin is most definitely the culprit.

Best case scenario:

The Melatonin will be effective even if taken at low doses only a couple of times per week.  I can take 3 mg maybe only on Wednesday and Saturday and it will be enough to prevent the reactions and extreme dependency.  Low doses will be tolerated and will not cause significant side effects.

Worst case scenario:

I need 20 mg every day for it to be effective but the side effects are worse than the disease itself.

Prognosis:

I took 25 mg the first day and 20 mg the second day.  Clearly, that's too much.  I read that more than 10 mg is usually NOT recommended.  I will cut it down to 10 mg from now on and it must be taken before bed.  The million dollar questions:  Will the lower doses be enough?  If so, will the side effects be manageable?  

Early returns:

I've already lowered it from 25 to 20.  I only managed an 87 half lap yesterday.  Today, I clocked a 75 and it was just as effective in preventing the extreme dependency.  That's a good sign.  I've read that it's a sustained release pill.  That is, the full effect doesn't kick in for a few hours.  The fact that I felt an immediate positive impact suggests that I got results with a small amount in my system.  

Melatonin for Sensitivity

 Too soon to get my hopes up but I may have found something with Melatonin.

I took the at home urine test early this afternoon and as expected, it showed severe inflammation.  It was at least Level 5 out of 7 based on the color codes but I don't have any hard numbers or reference ranges.  This test was done in advance of my scheduled consultation with Dr. Cole, which will be done the morning of October 31.

What exactly did this test for?

It was a Meta Oxy test, which qualitatively measured the concentration of Malondialdehyde.  I had never heard of that stuff before today.  On an impulse, I looked up how to reduce it.  I had tried everything on the list except for Melatonin so I took a drive to the health foods store.  I was already in bad shape so what the hell did I have to lose?  I got the strongest form plus a bottle of Curcumin.

Results:

Curcumin seemed to be a non-factor, which was no surprise.  At least I didn't react badly to it as I have in the past.  The reaction to Melatonin was immediately POSITIVE.  My body loosened up and I was actually able to touch my toes.  Time for an impromptu interval test.  

On no additional pills, I clocked an 88 second half lap (8:48 pace).  Not great, but it was a better showing than the end of my Mile a few hours earlier.  I believe it would have been in the 11- minute range without it.  Next, I tried Colostrum, the very same pill that triggered this week's relapse.  Just 3 days earlier, I was fully 3 minutes slower per mile immediately after taking it.  Today, I felt no difference from the previous interval and actually finished marginally faster at 86 (8:36 pace).  Not enough to be significant but that's okay.  I only wanted to be able to hold the previous pace.  

On extra Melatonin, I clocked a 60 second half lap at Montreat.  That's right.  SIXTY seconds (6:00 pace).  Granted, I did increase the effort a bit but that is YUGE!  Later on that afternoon, I popped a Liver pill, which has also not been tolerated recently.  I felt no apparent ill-effects.  Though I didn't try an interval, I did sprint about 50 yards at the end of a one lap walk.  It felt GOOD and FAST.  That tells me enough.

I say it's too soon to get my hopes up because similar things have happened in the past.  The treatment showed promise early but later became a non-factor and in many cases, gave me trouble.

Why might this be different?

I believe that my Melatonin levels have been unbalanced for many years, perhaps since childhood.  I had a HORRIBLE time getting up in the morning when I was growing up.  Too often, I was late for school because I missed the bus and didn't feel fully awake until about 9 AM.  I thought that low adrenaline was the reason and maybe it was a factor.  However, the real problem was likely Melatonin.  The cycle was off.  Normally, it's high at night and low in the morning.  Most probably, mine was low in the evening but peaked in the early morning.  Yes, this phenomenon is common among autistic children.  Fortunately, getting up in the morning is no longer an issue for me.  Perhaps, my Melatonin levels remain low throughout the day.  Starting today, I will take it before bed and go with it until it stops working.  Hopefully, I will not require mega doses.  

Training 10/22-11/3

 10/22- 1 mile on Lakeshore in 8:47.  Very stiff but I was encouraged by how much I had left at the end.  I don't know the exact split but I may have been sub-8 pace in the last quarter mile.  Let's see if I can maintain it for a full mile.  

Distance-1.0

10/23-AM. Mission accomplished.  Vestavia Mile in 7:51 (3:55-3:56).  Pace was steady at 8:00 give or take with the exception of the first and last 200, both of which were around 56 seconds.  There may be room for improvement if I tweak the formula a bit.  21 seconds off my reset PR.

PM- 2 miles on Lakeshore in 17:14 (8:37 pace).  Dialed it down in terms of effort but this was sub-27 pace for 5K, which would have been a PR.  I estimate it was worth a 27:15-30.  Faded on the back half (8:34-8:40) and it took a late push to get it close to even.

Distance-3.5

10/24- Interval Testing.  Half lappers.

Opener-88 (8:48 pace)

3 Thym Adren- 69 (6:54 pace). 

Colostrum- 1:41 (10:06 pace)

Granted, I wasn't really warmed up for the opener but a gap of nearly 2 minutes is unacceptable.  Even more disturbing is that I was CRAP after taking the Colostrum.  This stuff actually helped last week.  I wonder if the Functional Med Doctor has any explanation.  I doubt it.

PM- Felt better in the afternoon but took the evening off as planned.

Distance-0.5

10/25- 1 Mile in 9:40.  Started off pretty well but the power cut off at 600 meters and I just slow jogged it in with a last half in 5:28.  Could have done a little better but not much.  No panic.  Most probably, the Colostrum and subsequent sugar test hasn't fully cleared.  I expect to be better tomorrow and back to the new norm by Sunday.

Distance-1.0

10/26- 2 miles at Heardmont in 18:14 (9:07 pace).  Not quite back to the pre-Colostrum form but almost there.  Splits were 9:12-9:02.  I pushed the last lap but didn't go all out.  I had plenty left for another Mile at this pace but I probably come up short in a 10K.  I'll take it and try to do better tomorrow.

Distance-2.0

10/27- A repeat of 2 days ago.  Planned on a 5K but had to bail after just 1 Mile in 9:50 (4:30-5:20).  I ran the first lap on target at 2:09 but the power had already cut off and it got worse with every lap.  Lap 4 was 2:46 so I had enough after that.  Signs point toward an adrenal spike.  VERY ANGRY about this one.  Glycine was supposed to stop this from happening.  I'll be in rough shape for the next few days too after overshooting.

PM- Impromptu interval session.  See the separate post for details.  Splits were 88-86-60.

Distance=1.5

10/28- Split decision.  Definitely feel different on the Melatonin and I was anxious to see how it would play out on the track.  I was shooting for a reset PR in the Mile (7:30).  Legs were loose and limber warming up and I was ready to roll. 

 I thought I was going to get it after passing 400 in 1:47 but the power cut off between 500-600.  Passed 800 still on pace at 3:44 but knew I couldn't hold it and would be hard pressed to break 8.  Called it after 900 and went back to my car to see what would happen on extra Melatonin.  The result was worse.  Pace slipped to the 10-minute range by the end.  Unclear if it's an adrenal spike or too much Melatonin.  I'll find out tomorrow.

Had just enough time for a 1 lap test after I got home.  Taurine is another pill that has given me fits in recent weeks.  Today, I was marginally better with it than without (90/87).  Almost an identical result as yesterday's Colostrum trial.  I really wanted to test out extra Thym Adren but just didn't have time.  

Distance-1.5

Reaction: An end of these inexplicable reactions would be YUGE!  THERE IS A CHANCE!  Why was I bad today?  Adrenal spike or too much Melatonin?  I'm rooting for the latter.  In recent years, I've had insatiable need for an effective pill, which eventually died down.  That doesn't appear to be the case this time as I did have ill-effects from a mega dose.  Perhaps this is different from the false hopes of the past.  More news to come later.

Update: No discernable reaction to extra Thym Adren this afternoon.  Tomorrow is BIG.  I don't care about my time.  I only want the Thym Adren gap to shrink.  If I run a 65 without and a 60 with, that's fine.  If it's a 90 without and an 85 with, that's just as good.  A 90/90 would be even better.  Even if the gap is small, questions will remain about the Melatonin.  How much can be tolerated?  Will the tolerable limit be enough to be effective?  This is far from over.

10/29- AM- Opened with a 77.5 (7:45 pace) after a half lap warm.   Not horrible but it did not feel sustainable and I probably would have crashed again in the 2nd lap.  I was not concerned about that, however.  I needed to know how I would do on 3 Thym Adren.  

I didn't feel much different and was only slightly faster at the finish.  Time was 75.0 (7:30 pace).  Enough to be significant?  I say that's borderline and a longer distance would tell me more.  Nevertheless, this is EXCELLENT NEWS!  Last time I did this, my times were 88/69.  It appears that 2 out of my 3 demands may have been met.  Jury is still out.

PM- Lakeshore 1.5 in 13:10 (8:47 pace).  Better than expected but there's pressure to improve on this tomorrow.  Power never cut off (6:37-6:33) and this felt sustainable.  

Distance-2.0

Reaction:

In the past, I had pills that I couldn't tolerate at all.  Even a few specks triggered a reaction. 

 In this case, I have seen enough to know that I will have less severe side effects on a lower dose.  I am pretty sure that 10 mg will be effective and do the job.  Unsure if it will be tolerated long-term.  If it's not, I go down to 5, which will almost certainly be better tolerated.  However, I am uncertain if 5 mg will be effective.  Overall, the news is excellent but the jury will be out for quite awhile.

10/30-AM No opener and closer.  Took the full dose before the sprint and it most probably didn't matter.  This is the first morning after 10 mg the previous day.  I was expecting a 65-67 versus yesterday's 75.0.  I was marginally better with a 72.3 (7:14 pace) but came away disappointed because it wasn't as good as expected.  I got a negative reaction last night from the Melatonin but it had mostly cleared by the morning.  

Reaction:

Unless I am significantly worse than yesterday in the evening session, I will stick with 10 mg for 1 more night.  However, it's pretty clear that it will be too much.  5mg will almost certainly be better tolerated.  Will it be effective?  That's now a multi-million dollar question.

PM- 2 miles on Lakeshore in 17:10 (8:35 pace).  Even pace with no real effort to kick.  Significantly better than yesterday.  Maybe I should stick with 10 mg.  I will do so for 1 more day but the goal is to find the lowest dose that is fully effective.

Distance-2.5

10/31- Half lap sprint in 73.9 (7:23 pace) plus a warm and cool.  Slightly slower than yesterday but slightly faster than 2 days ago.  Not enough to be significant in either direction.  The verdict is is on 10 mg:

Clearly effective but the dose is too high.  I get an immediate negative reaction to this dose before bed.  I am still sluggish and groggy in the morning but improve as the day progresses.  I was "almost good" yesterday evening.  

If I continue this dose, times will plateau at this level give or take about 15-20 per mile and caffeine is actually beneficial because it depletes excess Melatonin.  That's probably why I was better yesterday evening.  At any rate, tolerance is unchanged after several days of use.  Could be worse. 

 I will cut the dose gradually and hope it remains effective.  Tonight, I will take 8 mg.  I hope to be faster tomorrow morning with no significant reaction to problem pills.  Even if 10 mg is the lowest effective dose, this is still a big improvement over where I was before I started it.

PM- SHOCKER!  Another half lap sprint in 55.6.  I repeat FIFTY FIVE point SIX (5:33 pace).  Nearly 2 minutes faster than this morning.  The reason is definitely the clearance of excess Melatonin.  I expected to be significantly better than 73 (probably mid 60s) but I wasn't expecting anything like this.

Tomorrow's prediction: Even with a reduced dose, I won't come close to this level.  However, it should definitely be better than this morning.  I've got to set a benchmark.  If I can't break 60 in a morning sprint, the dosage is too high.  If I can break 60 with or without pills, that's very strong evidence.

Distance-1.0

11/1-AM- Got what I expected on the lowered dosage.  Still a bad reaction last night but less severe on 8mg.  Did the first sprint in 66.9 (6:41 pace).  Is the lower dose Melatonin still effective?  YES !  Once again, I was marginally better after the problem pills.  65.9 with (6:35 pace).  Significantly better than yesterday morning but not nearly as good as the evening.  Dosage is still too high.  I plan to stick with 8 tonight then drop it down to 6.

PM- 2 miles at Veteran's Park for a change.  Finished in 16:56 (8:28 pace).  Route was 3 times around the lake.  Probably translates to a sub-16:40 on Lakeshore because of the slow gravel trail here.  

Decent job overall but this was a bit of a downer.  Faded pretty badly on the last lap (5:29-5:33-5:54), which means the pace was approaching 9 by the end.  A 5K would have been ugly.  Adrenal balance feels just a little bit off.  Hopefully, there is an explanation.

Distance-2.5

11/2- AM Felt better after taking Glycine last night.  I thought Glycine would worsen Melatonin side effects.  Wrong.   I'm okay with that.  I didn't feel a little off until I missed 5 doses.  That's hardly extreme dependency.  Can I get away with a few missed doses of Melatonin?  I'll find out soon.  I will continue the plan of a gradual reduction.

Workout was 1 Mile at Heardmont in 9:34.  I'm okay with this too.  I knew that I would struggle in the morning and I will be better in the afternoon.  I was encouraged by the even pace (4:48-4:46) and I had some left in the tank.  Dose will be cut to 6 mg tonight.  The gaps between the morning and evening workouts should diminish on lower doses

#2- It was only 9 AM so I wasn't expecting much.  Did 1 lap at base effort at Montreat and clocked a surprisingly decent 2:44.0 (8:12 pace) but it didn't feel sustainable and I could feel a fade coming.

Popped 2 more Thym Adren and improved to 2:33.8 on the same effort (7:41 pace) and I did feel a difference.  Unfortunately, this is enough to be considered significant (MINUS 31) and it means that I must raise my dose.  More details to come.

11/3- AM.  Down to 6 mg with no sign of diminished effectiveness.  Once again, I was marginally faster on Taurine and Colostrum.  I did a 78.8 without and a 77.3 with.  Not a sprint.  This was done at standard training effort and without Thym Adren.  That's why it was slow.

Another thought:

I was fractionally better on the 2nd interval today than I was on 10/29's opener.  10/29 was an all out sprint.  Today was standard training effort.  That's the difference between 10 mg and 6 mg of Melatonin.

PM- YUGE DISAPPOINTMENT!  Attempted a 5K and had to bail after 1.5 miles in 13:07 (8:45 pace).  Passed 1 mile ahead of schedule at 8:20 and I thought I was going to PR.  SUDDENLY died after that.  Last half mile was 4:47 and the last lap was over 2:30.  No reason to keep going.  Culprit is most probably an adrenal spike.  5 pills won't cut it.  I need the max dose and even that may not be enough.

Distance-2.0

Health News (New Functional Med Doctor)

 I dipped under 8:00 for the Mile this morning for the first time since Spring.  I can't say that I felt good.  Legs were stiff and my breathing was labored starting after the first lap.  Nevertheless, I was able to maintain a fairly even pace.  Splits were 1:56-1:59-2:01-1:55, for a 7:51 finish, comfortably under the barrier.  This is 21 seconds away from my reset PR.  That will surely fall with any amount of consistent training.

Glycine has stopped the adrenal spike.  This was done on just 2 Thym Adren pills.  Maybe I could have done marginally better on 3 but beyond 4, I get worse.

Glycine has NOT stopped the sugar intolerance.  Well, maybe it improved the tolerance a bit but not by much.  I'll still be worthless for 36-48 hours if I cross the line with sugar consumption.  Better to avoid that stuff altogether even though it is difficult to do so.  It seems like if I cheat once, I can't stop and end up binging.  

Anything that "improves or strengthens the immune system" must be avoided like the plague.  That explains the trouble with Arginine.  

What baffles me is the Taurine.  It should be avoided but anything that indirectly lowers it should also be avoided.  You would think that if my Taurine is too high, CBS NOS or Probiotics would be helpful.  Not so.  It quickly drops it too low.  Adding back just a few caps of Taurine takes it right back to the other side of the spectrum.  WHAT THE ______!  Needless to say, I won't mess with either.

I have a phone consult with Dr. Will Cole, a Functional MD who specializes in autoimmune issues.  I don't have anything to lose and figure since it's affordable, it might be worth it.

I will receive a urine test kit that measures inflammation.  There is no need for lab analysis.  It will be color coded based on severity using test strips or reagent.  I don't know how it can be determined what my body needs based on so little information but I am willing to give it a try.  What I want to see is a lab value that is either off the scale high or undetectable that explains the reactions to certain pills.  

An Interesting Dating Question

 The following question was posed on Instagram, which I found to be thought provoking on another level.

If everything else is equal , who would you rather date?  

Julia has "zero achievements" and I took that to mean that she didn't even graduate high school.  She works at McDonald's but shows up every day with a cheerful disposition.  She is well liked by her co-workers and leaves a positive impression on her customers.  She was described as shy and submissive but peaceful and loving.

Janet is a Harvard graduate and a big shot in her office.  She earns well over $250K per year and had been successful in every endeavor.  She is arrogant and bossy and sometimes disliked by her peers.  She may be combative and overly critical.

While neither is an ideal match, if I had to choose one of those two, it's Julia all the way.  I didn't even give it a second thought.  Based on the comments that I read, it seems that upwards of 80 percent of men agreed with me.  For the record, no I don't believe women should be submissive BUT there should be give and take on both sides.

If the situation were reversed and the same question was posed to women, how would the vote play out?  I believe that the shy and submissive guy from McDonald's would be rejected most of the time.  The wealthy guy won't have any trouble in the dating market even if word gets out that he treats his women poorly.  It is sad but true.  

When I was in college, there was a super nice woman that worked as a cashier at the bookstore on campus.  I hadn't thought about her much in the last decade.  Hell, I don't even remember her name.  For some reason, she has been on my mind a lot over the past few days.  Why?  Perhaps, the question on IG made me think deeper than my initial answer.  

We first met when I paid for textbooks with a check.  I asked who to make it out to.  Even though I'm sure she was asked that question scores of times that day, she sweetly replied "Campus Shop, honey." She was about 2 decades older than I, so there was nothing flirtatious about this.  Just a sweet and friendly personality.  She left me with a warm and heartfelt smile, which I of course reciprocated.  

She always greeted me in a very friendly manner but I found it difficult to talk to her.  First, I was shy and second, the age difference was awkward.  It's more difficult for a 20 year old to be friends with a 40 year old than 30/50.  She was just as nice to other students too and I grew to greatly respect and admire her.  Regrettably, I never told her how I felt.  

Would I like to date a woman like that now that I am the same age as she was at the time?  Most definitely.  It would be a pleasure to be around that type of personality.  If I had a difficult day at work, that loving environment would be just what I need.  Once again, the only way that I would feel better about a chronic illness for so many years is if there is a woman out there that I would have overlooked if we met a decade ago.  Could I date a less educated woman?  Yes.  Not sure if I would have several years ago.

New Relapses and Culprits

 Thursday's workout was probably my best since the candida dump in late July.  It was 1 Mile in 8:32 with a strong negative split (4:23-4:09).  Surely, I  could have broken 8:30 with a faster start and felt like I could have sustained that pace for a few more laps.  I hoped to build on that on Friday.  Nope.  

Shooting for 2 miles, I settled for 1.5 in 14:53 (9:55 pace).  Though the splits were fairly even (7:22-7:31), it took a push in the homestretch to shore up a sub-10 pace overall when I expected a sub-9.  I had absolutely nothing left after I finished and slow jogged a cool down that might as well have been a walk.  

The culprit this time was the Lemonade that I drank with dinner the previous night!  A bad reaction to a Red Bull or even a Coke is understandable.  NOT a non-caffeinated and non-carbonated drink.  I confirmed it later that morning.  A Snapple drink made it MUCH WORSE!  The extreme sugar intolerance is back.

In the past, Glycine took care of the sugar intolerance so I tried it again.  I felt no better after the Glycine but no worse either.  By Saturday afternoon, I began to feel a little better and hoped to salvage a workout on Sunday.  I figured that the excess sugar was clearing my system.

Sunday was the worst day of all.  I lasted less than 1 minute before I called it quits and my pace had already slipped to the 10-12 minute range.  This time the culprit was Serine.  Apparently, combined with Glycine, it was too much of an adrenal suppressant.  The Serine had been a non-factor before and I planned to finish the bottle and be done with it.  I pitched it today.

Any good news?  Yes. Intolerance to sugar appears to be gone.  Yes, I need to limit sugar but it's almost impossible to avoid it completely.  The Glycine may have finally stopped the adrenal spike.  An extra Thym Adren pill made things worse.  I may be able to cut that dose from 6 pills down to 2-3.  Unfortunately, the next 2 days are going to SUCK!

Training 9/16-9/22

 9/16- Very interesting.  I've been taking Zinc for the last few days.  Before, it was a non-factor.  Now, it's a game changer in a POSITIVE way.  Another very positive development:  Serine and Argentine are now tolerated.  I had an instant negative reaction just last week.  Taurine is still bad for me but I'm betting that cologne would be tolerated.

Reaction:

Zinc is key for many enzyme reactions.  My intolerance to these pills was probably an enzyme defect, not an autoimmune issue.  A doctor won't help with this.  

Not surprisingly, an adrenal spike has hit.  Zinc doesn't help anymore.  Extra Thyme Adrenal does.

Distance-0.5

9/17- Another junk workout but it's now confirmed.  Arginine and Serine are now non-factors thanks to Zinc.  Unfortunately, it's also caused a MASSIVE adrenal spike.  In theory, I can start training again when it goes down.

Distance-0.5

Two questions:  Does caffeine have any effect on the need for Zinc?  Can blood donation slow down the adrenals?

9/18- Probably the peak of the adrenal spike.  Half mile in 6:11.  Not my worst of all time.  This was WITH the pills.  I couldn't even attempt this without pills.

Distance-0.5

9/19- Repeated the half mile distance and my time is down to 5:45.  I will take it.  That's 52 per mile better than I was just 12 hours ago.  Shooting for 1 mile tomorrow.

Distance-0.5

9/20- Full mile at Montreat in 10:48.  I will take it.  That's 42 seconds faster pace than yesterday and I doubled the distance.  Slight negative split (5:29-5:19).  Weakened a bit by a mild summer cold too.

Distance-1.0

9/21- Crash and burn again.  This time, B12 was the culprit.  I simply can't tolerate it when my adrenals are through the roof.  Cut off the watch at 0.67 and walk jogged from there.

Distance-1.0

9/22- Half mile in 6:30 in the morning.  Thanks to B12 clearance, I was down to 5:30 by the evening.

Distance-1.0

Winter 25 Trip Ideas

 The original plan was Maui, Hawaii in either January or February but I am beginning to re-think that idea.  I have been to Hawaii twice before and visited the Big Island and Oahu.  No doubt that I do want to see both Maui and Kauai as well. 

 Unfortunately, the big negative is the cost.  Flights are relatively affordable but hotels could be upwards of $400 per night even if I don't stay on the beach.  A rental car is a necessity too as the Road to Hana is a must do.  Because of the jet lag, I almost have to take an extra day to recover on my way back and will likely take an overnight layover in Las Vegas.  Yes, I can afford all that but I'd likely have to skimp the rest of the year.  If I can only afford EITHER Alaska OR Hawaii, I choose Alaska because it's the only state that I have visited only once.  Alaska will be very pricey as well in the summer.  

I went to Colorado this past winter and enjoyed it but I am sticking to tropical destinations for the foreseeable future.  South Florida is never a bad idea but I want to be more adventurous.  Two options on my radar are Sayulita, Mexico and Cartagena, Colombia.

Sayulita- Though I have been to Mexico many times, I have never been to its Pacific coast (Tijuana doesn't count).  I can fly out of Birmingham with a single connection in Dallas and I believe it's only a 2 hour time difference.  The only negative is that I'll have to take a bus from Puerto Vallarta, which is about an hour away.  No rental car expense and hotels are very reasonable.  I can stay on the beach for under $100. Those beaches look nice too.  Probably not in the same league as Hawaii but certainly worth it.  There will be no side trips.  I'm only there for the beach and the local culture.  I could easily do this trip in 3 days plus 2 for travel.  Hawaii would require a full week if not more.

Cartagena- Not only have I never been to Colombia, I have yet to step foot on the entire South American continent.  This seems like a good introduction.  Hotels are more expensive than Mexico but much cheaper than Hawaii.  I might have to fly out of Atlanta but should have a simple connection in Miami with little to no jet lag.  Again, no rental car expense.  Just a 20 minute taxi ride to the beach.  

Here's where it gets a little complex.  I will likely stay in Boca Grande, preferably on the north side.  Word on the street is that the beach itself isn't all that great.  Sand is light grey and the water isn't clear but if there's decent surf with 85 degree water, it will be fun for me.  One tourist said that it looks comparable to South Carolina.  I'd have no complaints about that.  There are prettier beaches nearby but since those lack surf, I'll pass.  

In this location, I am NOT just there for the beach.  I want to see the walled city too.  Supposedly, it is safe and possible to walk from the beach, especially the north side, but taxis are plentiful.  I'd certainly wait until evening as I'm sure the heat and humidity will be brutal.  Again, I think I can do this one in 3 or 4 days.  

I may be able to do both Mexico and Cartagena in the same year.  Definitely not anything else besides Hawaii.

Training 9/9-9/15

 9/9- After a break, I wasn't expecting much.  Aimed for just 1 mile under 10 minutes and clocked a 9:55.  I was behind pace until the last half lap.  A late rally got me under the barrier.  

Tried Zinc and Probiotics later that evening.  Zinc was a non factor.  Probiotics?  Slightly better but not enough to be significant.  I'll go without them.  

Distance-1.5

9/10- Increased the distance to 1.5 on Lakeshore.  Finished in an even 14-flat (9:20 pace).  Better than yesterday so I will take it.  I've noticed lately that my legs feel noticeably more stiff and sore after a forbidden drink.  I was clean today.  

Zinc didn't do anything last time I tried it but I still think it may be helpful.  Blood donation is also planned for later in the month.

Distance-1.5

9/11- Step backwards.  1 mile in 10:11 with bad splits.  I was on pace for about the same as yesterday but fell apart just after the half mile.  Very overstimulated today.

Distance-1.0

9/12- Half mile, which was worse than yesterday but I found the culprit.  Nothing should surprise me anymore but this one left me totally blindsided.  The culprit is a few sprays of COLONGE!!   Yes, I'm sure of it too.  I was MUCH worse just 5 minutes after a few additional sprays.  I have no words.  

Distance-0.5

9/13- Same as yesterday.  Maybe worse.  Didn't even use a watch.  When the COLONGE clears, I will likely face an adrenal spike.  Scratch the weekend too.

Distance-0.5

9/14- The adrenal spike peaked in the morning.  Took me 4:35 to do one lap at Montreat.  I was better in the evening.  2 laps in 7:44 (11:36 pace).  BAD!

Distance-1.0

9/15- Junk mile

Distance-1.0

-7 miles

NorCal Trip Report

 8/30- No issues on the flight to Reno.  I did have a long layover in Dallas but that enabled a sit down lunch.  There was a bit of a delay with the rental car but I still got to Tahoe by late afternoon.  My hotel was in South Lake Tahoe, just across the
California line.  I could have done one short hike but elected not to.  Instead, I simply walked through town then had a sunset dinner at a restaurant on the beach.

8/31- I wanted an early start because I figured that crowds would be an issue on a holiday weekend.  First stop was Inspiration Point in Emerald Bay then on to the Eagle Rock trail.  This trail was longer and more strenuous than I expected but the reward was a crystal clear lake that actually reflected a mountain.  Awesome!  

The plan was to take a dip in the water at Kings Beach on the north side before lunch.  Unfortunately, I was too late.  At 10 AM, lots were already full and the road was jammed.  I decided to try my luck elsewhere.  Maybe, the Nevada side would be less crowded.  Traffic wasn't bad but lots were full and street parking fees were $30-40.  Not worth it for just a quick dip.  I did do one more short hike on the Cave Rock trail.  That was really cool too.  

After driving all the way around the lake, I headed west to the Bay area.  That proved to be a good call.  It enabled me to see San Francisco's Dolores Park at dusk.  After dinner, where I met a real nice local couple, I went back to see it lit up at night.  My hotel was in Oakland because it was a shorter drive in from Tahoe and out to Yosemite.  I wasn't impressed with Oakland but it was probably a good call.  I was only there to sleep and there was a BART station just 2 blocks away.

9/1- Took BART to Union Square then walked to see the Painted Ladies.  Fans of Full House and Mrs. Doubtfire know it well.  After a rare sit down breakfast, where I met another nice girl, it was off to Oracle Park for a Giants game.  Giants lost 7-5 but it was a pretty good game in one of the best ballparks.  From there, it was a quick tour of Coit Tower and Lombard Street then a walk down to Fisherman's Wharf.  From there, it was 3.4 miles to the Golden Gate bridge.  Too far.  I settled for Crissy Field, just 1.2 miles away.  Nevertheless, the sunset views were amazing.  After a late dinner, I took a cable car back to downtown then BART back to Oakland.

9/2- Drove across the Golden Gate bridge into Marin County.  First stop was Stinson Beach.  I arrived at 9 AM and this was early enough.  I just walked on the beach for a while until it warmed up a bit.  I forgot to pack my wetsuit so I didn't expect to last long with a water temperature of 61.  Surprisingly, I did find it tolerable and caught a few decent rides even without a board.  Fortunately, it was sunny with calm winds and I had access to a warm car shortly thereafter.  

Next stop was Tamalpais State Park where I embarked on two more hikes.  The second one was pretty strenuous but again, the views were worth it.  From there, it was about 45 minutes to Battery Spencer, still in Marin County.  This location is probably the best view of the bridge with the city in the background.  It was now late afternoon and I went back across the bridge into San Francisco.  I did go to Golden Gate Park but only stayed a few minutes just to say I was there.  I didn't want to venture too far because I was afraid of getting lost.

  

Next I went to Lands End, where I was treated to more views of the bridge then just down the hill was Ocean Beach.  I waited for the sunset then drove back to Oakland.  I was afraid of driving in San Francisco but the traffic was not as bad as I feared.  Car break-ins were not a concern because all of my stuff was in Oakland.

9/3- Left Oakland for a 3 hour drive to Yosemite.  This park requires reservations on weekends and holidays.  Fortunately, the day after Labor Day wasn't a problem.  The first hike there was a bit of a bust because the waterfall was barely dripping.  Still, the road provided some real nice views of Half Dome.  The area around Glacier Point made the trip more than worth it.  

I exited the park via Tioga Pass, which goes up to nearly 10,000 feet elevation and is only open in the summer.  I got to see some nice mountain sunset views on the way out and made it to my hotel in Mammoth Lakes just after dark.  

9/4- A bit more of a chill day.  The plan was to play it by ear as I had time for unfinished business at either Tahoe or Yosemite.  I opted for Tahoe.  This time, there was parking available at the beach for only $10.  Like SF, the water was chilly but tolerable and offered beautiful mountain views.  Though there were no waves, the water was crystal clear.

From Tahoe, I went to the Old West town of Virginia City for a walking tour.  Nevada has a different vibe and is much more arid.  I got to Reno just after 5.  I stayed in a casino but I don't gamble.  It was nice to have restaurants inside but I just don't care for that atmosphere.  If I had it to do again, I would have spent more time in Tahoe, then would have had dinner in Virginia City and then got an airport hotel in Reno.  Still, this was definitely an all time great trip.  As you can see from the pictures, there was nary a cloud in the sky the whole trip.