February Runs

[Anelia]

It's already February and the weather is perfect for running: cold temperatures, snow, sleet, ice. Of course, it's nothing that would stop us.
Today I ran 7,5 mile according to Garmin (http://connect.garmin.com/activity/268270432) and 8,3 miles according to Sportstracker (http://www.sports-tracker.com/#/workout/AneliyaKaragyozyan/4eptb5cmssp92htj).
At first I felt very heavy and miserable on the uphill but then I got better on the flat.

[skhill]

I'm afraid it stopped me! Very snowy and icy and cold. I was going to go to the gym and hop on the treadmill, but changed my mind when I saw a police car sliding down the street when I took my dog out for her first piddle of the day. It's been a crazy week, warm enough to run outside in shorts on Monday and Tuesday, then too stormy to even get to the gym on Wednesday, very cold and windy on Thursday, and now 6F and icy on Friday. I am going to run on Saturday, even if I have to walk to the gym. (Yeah walking to the gym to use the treadmill is a bit weird....)

I'm not liking winter this year.

[indysteel]

Anelia, if I remember correctly from a past thread, you don't run all that often. You sure kick butt when you do! It's like pulling teeth for me to increase my average distance beyond the 10k mark.

Skhill, I feel your pain. This past week sucked in Indiana, too. I'm ready for spring.

[Anelia]

That's right, Indysteel, I run once a week. First my challenge was to beat 10 miles because my military students said that women CAN'T run. I said "watch me!"and I ran it with motivation to beat this misconseption. After having run 15 km, there are 3 or 4 to get home without calling my husband to pick me up. So I did this as my furthest distance. After running almost 20 k, it's not something difficult to run half of it.
At the beginning my HR was very high even with a light jog but now I can sustain even 130 and keep running. What I lack is speed and I have to work on shorter but more intensive runs but today was not the day: I felt heavy and slow...

[Artista]

Are you implying that it's not normal to feel heavy and slow while running;) In all seriousness, I always feel that way for the first 20 minutes. After a 20 minute warm up, I feel like I have wings on my heels. I'm hoping that it will take me less time to warm up as my body adjusts to running regularly.

[Anelia]

Thanks for comforting me, Artista :) It's not only me, then. What is more, when I go out, I have to climb a 3 km hill with ascend about 200 m so that I am in the forest nd strart running the flat part. Maybe it's not a good idea to start with a climb before warming up but this is the terrain we have...

[indysteel]

Wow; you have students who believe women can't run? I know women continue to face barriers in sport because of people's unfounded perceptions, but I thought we had at least established a heck of a long time ago that we can run for pete's sake. That's really sad.

In any event, I find it darn impressive that you can do 10-mile run with your training consisting of only one run a week. Good for you.

Artista, my legs don't feel heavy immediately into a run, but I hit a bit of a wall at the 2-3-mile mark. Once I'm past that, I feel better; it's just a question of going past three miles. If memory serves, people have indicated in past running threads on TE that they don't feel really warmed up until they've done 3-5 miles--depending on the person. These are people who have been running a long time, so I'm not sure it necessarily gets better with time. You just get better at running through it, which is what I'm finding. I used to just give up by the time I hit three miles. Now I have at least enough stamina--although, again, it's been like pulling teeth--to get to the 5-6 mark. I know it'll keep getting better, but I'm in awe of anybody who can run an hour or more on a regular basis. It's hard work.

[Artista]

Anelia, my terrain sounds similar to yours, although I'm not sure that mine is quite as steep at the beginning. My hill consists of long gradual climbs sprinkled with short steep climbs until I get to the top. Since my doctor suggested "easing" back into running after having ankle hardware removed, I'm indulging myself by walking the first 5 minutes, then walking all of the steep stuff as well as small sections of the gradual hills until I get to the top. I should be able to go all out by the end of February but I'm sure that I'll still have to do a lot of run/walk on my uphill warm up.

Indy, now that you mention it, I do remember seeing posts by conditioned runners about not feeling warmed up for the first 3-5 miles. I'm running on single track trails with varying amounts of hills and rocky sections that slow me down. I tend to track my runs by time rather than distance since I can't maintain an even speed. So maybe taking 20 minutes to feel warmed up isn't as out of the ordinary as I thought it was.

[Crankin]

This why I have a love/hate relationship with running. I never get past the heavy feeling, because I am running 3 miles, with hills. Even the few times i ran 4, at first I felt heavy, then OK for like 2 minutes, then tired or something would be annoying me with pain. I don't have too much pain from anything now, but given that I need at least 30 minutes to feel decent on the bike, I know I'm a slow to warm up type. And that's been since the beginning, not just in my "advanced" age.
It annoys me that running seems so easy for some people.

[Artista]

But Crankin, think of how many people may be "annoyed" that YOU can ride and run as "easily" as you do. Perceptions are relative:)

[OakLeaf]

Dang, Anelia, nice work! I hope you've shut your students up! :D

I warm up reasonably quick, but you know running did NOT come easy to me. Chi Running literally changed my life. Before I learned Chi Running, I could go three, maybe four miles on a soft surface and pound myself so hard my shoulders would be aching by the end of it. I'm still working on form all the time. And I, too, envy people who can naturally run light and easy ... the way most of us did as children.

I actually got back on the road bike today for a slow easy 22 to spin my legs out. Can I say that in the running thread? :p

[indysteel]

I have really wanted to attend a chi running workshop, but none of them have been offered in a time and/or location that works for me. I hope someday to fit it in. I think I've managed to incorporate some of the concepts, but I need actual instruction to get it right.

[yellow]

Short but pointed article about Kathrine Switzer about women & running.

http://www.runnersworld.com/general-interest/kathrine-switzer-says-womens-running-has-only-just-started

We will continue to prove people like Anelia's students wrong! If we've come this far in 40 years, imagine what things will be like in another 40!

[indysteel]

Five treadmill miles today at a slightly faster pace than usual. I felt really good and was aiming for six, but the treadmills were all in use by then, and I was well past the half hour limit as it was. Maybe tomorrow.

[rocknrollgirl]

Hi All,
I have not posted much on here in ages, but I still stop by and lurk. I read this most recent running thread this morning before I went out for my own run, and I really wanted to post a few words of encouragement to those of you that have a love/hate relationship with running.

I have only been running more seriously for about 7 years. I dabbled before that but got more focused when I started doing triathlons again 7 years ago. I am an adult runner. This is not something that I did in college and am now I am coming back to it. When I started I "worked" to get up to 30 mins. I felt slow, and heavy footed and like I was invading the territory of the real runners.

Today I just got back from a 2 hour trail run. Running comfortably takes time and consistency. Not every run will be fabuluos. As a matter of fact Thursday I spent most of my time on the trail bent over with my hands on my knees, It happens. But it does get better, and it does get easier. It just takes time. One year ago, an hour was my long run and I trained up to make the 13.1 for the Half Ironman I was training for. Now an hour is what we do on a Tuesday.

Will I ever be a 7:30 min miler? No. And that is ok. I am ok with that. What I will be is someone that has come to really enjoy running. If you are feeling creaky and poundy on the road, find a trail or rail trail. It is a whole different animal. Much softer on the joints and very restorative for your soul. Plus the nice thing about trail running is that pacing goes out the window and you just run. Like the wild woman you are meant to be.

If I can start this at 44 and learn to love it in my fabulous 50's, there is hope for almost anybody.

Slow and steady, consistency and patience.....


OK, so now my run from today:
10 miles on the trails
1:54
12 degrees when we started
19 degrees when we finished

Cheers!

Ruth

[indysteel]

Ruth, that's awesome. Thanks so much for sharing your experience. It does provide encouragement. This is has been a real breakthrough year for me, and I hope I can stick with it (I often stop running come spring when temps rise).

[Crankin]

Your post inspired me, Ruth, as much as I can get inspired by running! I do like trail running better than running on pavement. We do have a neighborhood trail that is connected to conservation land trails. I walked down the road, about a quarter of a mile, ran the trail to the end and then turned around and ran until the last part, which is about a 20% grade climb for maybe another 1/3 mile, when it meets my street. The beginning of the trail has lots of logs that cover the trail in areas that often get wet, so I did have to sort of walk there, as well as slow and climb over two fallen trees across the trail. Of course, my running is slower than hell, but it was fun. I saw one other runner, a dog walker, and 2 very large ladies, who were cautiously walking down the steep climb.
It's a beautiful winter day out, I wish there was some snow!
Indy, I am jealous of your "breakthrough." I always stop running in the heat, and also because I find it just makes my body too sore for riding. Maybe I'll stick to trail running.

[indysteel]

Crankin, my breakthrough has been pretty modest I'll admit, but I'm excited that I've at least gotten to the point where I'm actually enjoying myself. Slowing down about 30 seconds per mile helped, as has working on my form. The mere fact that my hamstring doesn't hurt all the time helps, too. The heat will be a big test. Anything over 65 degrees bothers me, so we'll see.

[rocknrollgirl]

I hate the heat too. To combat the issue, I go in the morning when I can, and we have adapted our run strategy to help with the hot temps. Instead of running out and about, we have found an out and back rail trail. pretty shaded. We leave cold water and sports drink in the middle and shorten our loops so that we hit it every 2 mile or so. Pretend it is an aid station at a race. I grab a water or drink and "walk the aid station" let my heart rate come down, take a few sips and trudge on.

The same strategy could work in your neigborhood if your roads are shaded. Just make a short loop that will come past your house. It is not the most mentally stimulating thing, I just day dream of trail running in the 12 degree weather and how awesome that will be. And I let my pace adjust down a bit so that I keep my heart rate down.

[Crankin]

Yeah, my neighborhood is shaded, but it is also a 10-12% grade hill. SheFly told me she and her DH call it "Aneurysm Hill Rd," which is a slight variation on the real name... sigh.

[rocknrollgirl]

Yikes! If I had to contend with that in the heat, I would take my business elsewhere. We drive to runn all the time. We have the opposite problem, not enough hilly terrain to simulate what we are usually training for. We are lucky to have a rail train about 5 miles from home. Good parking, safe, shaded. We use that in the summer.

[indysteel]

Did another 5.5 miles today, again on the treadmill. Enough with this weather. I'm really pleased with how I ran his week! The only bummer is that I had to skip my usual yoga classes because of the weather. I'm starting to feel a little edgy because of it.

[skhill]

15F with snowy and icy sidewalks this morning, so it was the treadmill again. I started off strong, but after about 3 miles my back started tightening up. Hoped it would be a passing thing, but finally stopped at 4 miles. For some reason, spending almost 2 hours shoveling snow on Sunday did not entirely agree with my 41 yr old back!

[Anelia]

After 2 days of endurance riding, Monday was supposed to be a rest day. But my colleague wanted to use my Garmin to measure distance while running so I offered to go with him. His aim is only 3 km so we paid attention to speed. Before we started I was not sure if I could keep up with him (he is younger, tall and male) but then it turned out that I set a very good pace for him so he invited me on his next run because I kept him motivated :)
Here's the training (http://connect.garmin.com/activity/269636190)

[katluvr]

Wow lots of post for so early in Feb. I, too, have been lurking but not posting. I have kept up running thru the end of Jan. Did a trail run, but overall time was slower than last year, but I do love this race. Nothing fabulous but running better steady of 3 - 4 times per week. Which is good for me to not be so sporadic. I did the easy 3+ mile loop this AM without the Garmin. I think I ended up with a pretty good pace (for me). I am still slower than I need/want to be. I also know my pace is not steady, need some time of TM to work on that. But it felt good. Last week I ran in the evening after work....UGH! My pace is super slow and I feel so heavy! I am such a morning (but after sunrise) runner.
Good work ladies!
K

[Anelia]

Today I don't have the time for riding, so another 10-mile run (http://www.sports-tracker.com/#/workout/AneliyaKaragyozyan/esasvl0e3npbfbh5) while I was waiting for my son to finish his chess training.

[skhill]

Finally I managed to find a good long run pace today. It's been a struggle; I've been working on speed so much it's been hard to slow down. But today's route had a lot of steep uphills in the first mile and bad visibility in the second mile, and that did the trick of slowing me down. Only had time for 7 miles (at 9:10 pace), but I felt like I could have kept going for twice the distance. It's supposed to be windy and raining in the morning, so it'll be back to the treadmill yet again. Sigh.

[rocknrollgirl]

Just got in from an 8 mile trail run. We were hoping to go longer, but the snow that fell last night made it feel like running in sand, so sometimes, it is what it is. I felt pretty good the whole time, I will take take that as a plus. Now I am ready for some breakfast. Yum!

[OakLeaf]

Well, I signed up for a half next weekend that I'd been going back and forth about. Back before I got hurt, this one was definitely in my training plan (as was Columbus half in October). Then everything went kablooie. I'm just having trouble getting it into my head that I'm going to be able to race, I'm terrified of aggravating something, I haven't been doing any speedwork at all, I've already blown off the 5Ks I usually do, and I just need to do something to reset my head. So, I'm going to do my long run as planned tomorrow, Sunday won't be a "race" race, but hopefully it will give me a better perspective on April.

[skhill]

It's a wet Monday and I feel my age today. I was planning on an easy 5 miles, but quit at 3 as I was feeling sore and achy and just couldn't loosen up. I wonder if I might be coming down with something... I did do some upper body strenght work as I was there at the gym and had some time. I really ought to do that more often!

Oak, I'm seriously considering the Columbus too, not sure about the half or whole thing. Good luck on getting through next weekend's half!

[indysteel]

Good luck, Oak!!!

[skhill]

Made up for yesterday's crappy run with a great one this morning. It was a comfy 30F, excellent running weather. So I went out and did 6.2 miles, in 52:10. Which is faster than my 10k PR. I'm wondering if I had a timer malfunction! But I've been working on speed, and felt like I was going fast, so who knows?

[indysteel]

That's awesome, skhill! I did some "speed work" yesterday on the treadmill. It's sort of embarrassing that my speed work equates with your slow run pace, but you gotta start somewhere, right? At least that's what I keep telling myself.

[skhill]

Indy, I took a look at my running log from last winter recently, and all my runs, long short and speedy, were about 30 sec/ mile slower than now. I've cleaned up my form, put on about 5 lbs, and started taking off 2 days per week from running (instead of 1 then). It's working! But I so wish races were run at 6 am on Tuesdays, as that seems to be when I'm fastest...

[skhill]

Looking at the weather forecast for the weekend, I knew a long run was going to be today or not at all. So I got up plenty early, and when I stepped outside with my dog, what did I find but a sleety drizzle. It stopped before I finished my coffee, and the weather map looked clear, so I headed out with fingers crossed. It was going well; I got lost in a neighborhood I don't know well, which is always interesting, and had the discipline to not try to catch and pass the runner about half a block in front of me at the 4 mile mark (but I really wanted to!). But at nearly 6 miles in, the sleety drizzle started again. If I'd been wearing a cap to keep it off my face and glasses it would have been no big deal, but I wasn't. And I was concerned that things might get worse. So I cut it short and headed for home. Ended up going 7.5 miles; logged it as a long run anyway as it was my intention and pace. And of course 10 minutes after I got home the sleet had stopped again.... Gotta love February in Kentucky! season of ice storms and sudden changes...

[OakLeaf]

I did what I wanted to today and feel pretty much okay, so I'm happy ... my slowest half marathon ever, but not by much. Mainly I just wanted my head back in the racing game ... as a close second, I wanted some confidence that my body could perform under a *little* bit of pressure.

Bonus: I beat Michael Waltrip at Daytona! :D :D It was funny, because I'm not a NASCAR fan and I wouldn't have known him from Adam, but the paper had made such a big deal about four of the drivers running the half, and Waltrip was part of a group I was pacing for about mile 2-5, so lots of people called out to him. He got ahead of me for a while, but after the turnaround I picked it up a little bit, while he obviously had to save something for work later in the day. :p I had fun, didn't aggravate any of my injuries, good day.

[Catrin]

Congrats Oak for doing this, having fun, AND not aggravating your injuries - yayyyyyy!

[indysteel]

Great job, Oak!

[Crankin]

Congrats, Oak!

[Anelia]

10k today on the stadium under 50 min (http://www.sports-tracker.com/#/workout/AneliyaKaragyozyan/1n627tk044kljgg4) :)

[skhill]

Got to run outside today for the first time this week! Every morning it's been too cold or windy or wet, so I've been spending time on the treadmill at the gym. Just 6 miles this morning as my legs felt dead-- really pushed it on the treadmill yesterday, doing 6 miles in just under 50 minutes!!!! so this was an easy recovery run.

Weather looks better for next week, thank God. There may be snow but at least there are no sub-20F mornings predicted...

[nuliajuk]

I wasn't going to start running again until March. The plan was to cross-country ski a lot, get some fitness in my legs from that, then make the transition gradually in early to mid March. Yesterday the car died on the way to the ski area, so I ended up going for a long highway drive to recharge the battery (after a nice man named Brian gave it a boost), and then run-walking for 30 minutes when I got home.
The skiing has given my legs a boost, it wasn't as hard as I thought it would be and I'm not sore today. Despite having to do the trail running thing over big drifts of snow on the pathway. Looks like classic-style nordic skiing is a great alternative to running in winter, providing you have the snow. (And do we ever have snow!)

[Anelia]

I did a technical training in orienteering (http://connect.garmin.com/activity/277080501), this is why I have so many stops: I had to look at the map and compass.
Next week I am going on a business trip and since it's not possible to take my bike, I'm going to take my running shoes.

[Anelia]

Today I didn't intend to run but my colleague asked me to keep him company. I decided to work on speed but OMG, I was about to die. It's very difficult to sprint 3 times 800 meters with 3 min easy between. The first sprint was fast but I was really tired and after that my sprints were slow and tired. Anyway, I didn't quit. Also I was in my crappy old running shoes and I hadn't had anything to eat in the morning. Today's sprints on Sports tracker (http://www.sports-tracker.com/#/workout/AneliyaKaragyozyan/n95m7dejhli3ou62)
I biked in the afternoon about 1,5 hours.

[skhill]

Rain and wind outside this morning, so it was back to the treadmill. Just set that sucker at 8:30 pace and took off; maintained that pace for 4.25 miles and then cranked it up for the last .25 mile. Is it just me, or is it harder to maintain the same pace for a prolonged distance than average the same pace while varying it a little?

I've been noticing lately that I'm grabbing my long baggy shorts and shapeless men's tank top for trips to the treadmill. There are a couple dirty old men who use the gym at roughly the same time I get there, and the treadmills are now all on the row at the very front of the room. One of the guys comes off as flattering but annoying, the other as downright creepy. I try to grab a treadmill in front of the ellipticals when I can, because Mr Creepy sticks to the bikes, but that's also the warmer end of the room. I'm seriously thinking of switching to a different gym...

[OakLeaf]

Ew, I hate creeps at the gym. Way back in the day there was a guy who always used to watch our aerobics class through the glass door at the Y.

Can you say something to management? It's not likely you're the only one they're harassing...


Anyway I had a nice one today - ran to yoga and back, and did the last 1.5 miles at 10K pace. That made me feel as good and as optimistic as any workout I've done since I got hurt. Yay.

[Veronica]

It's time to get myself back into the running game. I want to do a sprint and an Olympic distance tri in late spring, so I think I need to be running more just one three miler a week. :D My legs were feeling pretty fried from my bike and weight workouts, but I did go out after work. Just three miles, but it's a start. After work runs never feel very good.

Veronica