Running ultramarathons and marathons with Parkinson's disease

[Jon Anderson]

I am currently in a "build up" phase after six months of sub par running. I've had Parkinson's disease for about five years - I'm on a new med and want to get going again. Four years ago I ran 50 miles in 8 hours and 14 minutes. Last year I ran a marathon in 3:53 ( my PR is 2:49 but those days are long gone) My running has been restricted recently due to PD symptoms, mostly leg tightness which is much better now due to new meds. I want to build up to about 80 mpw, six tens and one 20. I've done this in the past and it worked well. I try to avoid rest days, I'm retired ( 61 yo), can sleep/rest during the day. I'm running early, around 4:30 AM - my night sleep is not good so I just run when I am awake for good. I want to do single daily runs, avoid formal speedwork by tempo runs the last two or three miles of my runs and races every 3 weeks.

I think I could benefit from a neurologist who knows distance running or a distance coach who knows neurology.

[Sasha Pachev]

Jon:

No neurological expertise on my end, but a very interesting topic about how Parkinson disease affects your ability to run, or how running affects Parkinson patients. Keep us posted on what you find.

Seems like your illness has helped you understand some things, and interestingly enough they correlate well with what I have noticed in my own training. I do not have any diagnosed neurological pathology, but I have observed that I have always been clumsier than my peers from childhood in a number of areas. I have also observed that my nervous system gets easily fatigued. Going too fast on an easy run, doing too much speed work, or not getting enough sleep can easily put me in a state of not being able to sustain my marathon race pace for more than 1.5 miles with the heart rate stuck where it would normally be at that pace. It took me a while to understand what it was, but finally it dawned on me that this was a nervous system problem. Getting good sleep, properly replenishing carbs, taking easy runs easy, and reducing the speed work volumes has helped control it.