I started this fad training since Friday that has been a circulated the running community this spring called 4 by 4 by 48 (4x4x48) run. David Goggins, a famous ultra runner, (he did many other notable things too) came up with the idea of running 4 miles every 4 hours for 48 hours. Rumors had it that he himself used it for his ultra trainings.
I was training for my 100 miler and I thought why just as well to try it. The run itself was too easy for me since I am now am able to run a 50 miler without dying. This 4x4x48 basically spreading a 50 miler over two days. So this is too easy.
What I found challenging was waking up in the middle of the night to do the midnight and the 4 am run. I started the run at 4. So all my runs occur at the 4, 8, 12 interval. The first night I already was struggling with the 12 am and 4 am. The second night I totally blew the midnight and 4 am run. I set alarms for them but over slept the 12 am by an hour. As for the 4 AM one, I heard the alarm but couldn’t will myself to get up. It was a battle of will. Finally after half hour of self talk and struggle, I convinced myself to get up and got out to run it. It was not bad once I started running.
Lucky that the second night the temperature was much milder. I hate cold. The temperature was around 50F instead of 42. So once I was out the door, I was not freezing to death. It was quite comfortable to run.
Another thing I found about the graveyard shift runs was I was hungry most of the time. But when I got back inside, I was too tired to eat anything but went straight back to bed. I slept on the second night. The first night I couldn’t sleep but second night, I needed all the sleep I could get. Constantly feeling that sleep deprivation.
I don’t know if I will do it again. Night runs are fun but they are too brutal. This kind of thing is not for me. I rather run in the day time than to miss sleep to do night training.
So my sleep dep training did not work out as I would expect because I went to bed. As for the 100 miler, I am not too worry because just losing sleep one night is not too bad. I can pull it through. But for 200 miler, not sleeping on the second night will mess me up.
Just few more runs today and I am finished with this 4x4x48. The hard part is already over.
In awe 