# Twenty Miles!



## MilesMom (Jun 21, 2012)

I know that some people have been curious about how our long distance training for a 50 k has been going , so thought I'd give a little update. 

Miles and I ran his first 20 miles today (I have run marathons in the past but this will be my first ultra marathon). 

Preparation: Last night I put Bag Balm on his paws, fed him about 1/2 cup of white rice with his kibble and meat since his food is grain free and long distance running uses up carbohydrate energy sources. I made sure to give him a relatively light day of exercise, 1 hr play time at the beach and 1/2 hr playtime at a nearby park. He also got a massage last night while we watched TV. 

Morning: Musher's Secret on his paws, and about 1/4 cup high quality meat in his kibble giving 45 min to digest. He ate the meat and about 1/4 cup kibble which is normal for him, he's not a big morning eater. Packed bandages and Musher's Secret in our hydration pack. 

The Run!: We ran entirely off leash 20 miles on the trails. We stopped at miles 5, 8, 12.5, and 16.5 for water and fuel. I like to start early for long runs so it's cool the entire time. Miles ate 2 homemade energy bars, a few Zuke's power bones, and a few bites of my peanut butter sandwich during the run. He was crazy for the first 12 miles despite my attempts to calm him and keep him on the trail because I was worried he would burn too much energy early on. Oh well. Chase met us for the last part of the course and Miles felt energetic enough for a few wrestle sessions and a big chase in a field we passed. He helped encourage me up a 2 mile hill starting at 14.5 miles, and I waited for him as he made his way back down (he doesn't really like to run downhill if there are rocks, so we took our time). I reapplied Musher's Secret twice additionally.

Overall the run went great. He had a big bowl of food with meat and some mashed potato for carbohydrates when we got home, and we took a nap. He's still in bed but his pads look fine and he's moving around well when he has gotten up.  Easy day tomorrow for us, 5 miles early off leash on the trails. He and Chase pretty much play tag the entire time, fun to watch. Miles will have another massage and another application of Bag Balm on his feet. Already checked him for fleas and ticks, we are clear! He's the best running buddy ever.


----------



## mlwindc (Feb 8, 2013)

amazing; I am so glad to hear it's going well! Miles has a pretty awesome mama checking in on him and making sure he's okay.


----------



## Baja (Feb 17, 2013)

That's awesome!


----------



## einspänner (Sep 8, 2012)

Woohoo! Go Miles!

I definitely need to get some musher's secret. I got a dog bike leash for Christmas and started taking Scout out for short rides. Either they weren't short enough or she cut her foot on something, so it's epsom salt soaks and coconut oil until she heals up. Poor girl!


----------



## MilesMom (Jun 21, 2012)

Poor girl! My friends who bike use booties. Trail running is slower than biking because of hills, rocks, and creek crossings so I'm not sure Miles needs them yet. We are toying with the idea of mountain biking so he will get some if we go that route. Hope for a quick recovery!!!


----------



## einspänner (Sep 8, 2012)

Do you know what booties they use? I've heard good things about the ruffwear ones and will probably invest in some once she's old enough to run regularly. Thankfully we found a new trail this week which should be perfect for off-leash biking. 700 plus acres that used to be the grounds of a plantation. It was recently leased by the county parks system, but doesn't look like it's going under development any time soon, so we have it all to ourselves. Scout loves it!


----------



## MilesMom (Jun 21, 2012)

They use ruff wear. I know REI also has some but I heard not as tight fitting and they are only a little bit less expensive. We will get ruff wear ones if needed.


----------



## MilesMom (Jun 21, 2012)

Update:! 

We ran our race! We dropped down to the 35k (22 miles) because of hot summer weather in San Diego, making training a bit difficult this summer. 

Miles and Chase were super stars. All the other runners couldn't believe they were doing the whole race with me. They were polite and so thrilled to be a part of the race. They loved greeting the other runners and all the praise they got. I was so proud of my well behaved off leash boys. I was careful to monitor their fluids and their paws. They were ahead of me bounding around the whole time, likely wishing I would run a little faster! 

Here is a pic from the course, can't wait for our next one!


----------



## R E McCraith (Nov 24, 2011)

MM - a MASSAGE ! PIKE would run 100 miles if he got 1 at the end !!!!!! LOL our V's are athletes - up 2 us 2 meet the challenge !!! great JOB !!!!!! just fun 4 your pup ! taking breaks & recharging is all a pup in condition needs !!!!!! I never post or reply our Vs can do this or the other - as always - UP 2 us 2 get them there !!!!!!!!!! PS after at least a year old !


----------



## MilesMom (Jun 21, 2012)

Thanks! Both are over a year old! Just wanted to share how much fun we had, I love running with them. I used to be a more serious road runner, and the Vizslas have really helped me remember why I love running. We do all our running on the trails now, soft surfaces. I had my family at various points on the race in case we needed the dogs to drop out, and I carried a first aid kit and phone. They both got a massage and a nice dinner after ;D And tons of praise/ pets of course. They are my training partners and it was nice to share a race experience with them.


----------



## CatK (May 29, 2013)

Human puppy arrives in November, and I've finally had to give up on my running (33 weeks now), but I cannot wait to get back to it and build my strength with Morris as a training buddy. I read your running posts and take notes on how to look after my boy on the runs. Hopefully as I'll have to build up slowly it'll be the perfect way of breaking him in to it too. Love the photo!


----------

