Let me know how it goes. So you have had Newtons in the past? How long did it take you to build the mileage in them? I'm afraid to run too far just yet. I can't risk an injury 6 weeks before a marathon.Quote:
Originally Posted by Selkie
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Let me know how it goes. So you have had Newtons in the past? How long did it take you to build the mileage in them? I'm afraid to run too far just yet. I can't risk an injury 6 weeks before a marathon.Quote:
Originally Posted by Selkie
Oak - I guess picking up a random half marathon will get you out and running, huh?
7rider - I'm sorry about your neighbor. That's really shocking and sad!
I ran 5 miles on the treadmill yesterday. It went really well because I was watching a DVD! By next weekend we'll have cable in our basement, too...so that'll help.
Today I did 10 miles outside. I ran my usual route but threw in 3 loops around the wetland preserve lake to extend it. Luckily, the rain held off, so I got to run the entire thing with dry feet. :)
Sunday I took my dog running for the first time. The wind was howling (and it still is) so I wasn't going to have a decent run anyway, so why not take Stella along. We did just one mile, with a piddle break and a squirrel break; Stella wanted to keep going but I was cussing the wind, so that was all. We'll try it again when the weather's better...
No run today, thanks to the wind. If it's raining tomorrow morning as hard as predicted, it'll be a treadmill day for the first time in months...
The first time I used Newtons, I just started wearing them. I was just getting back into running, so it was a natural progression because I was building mileage back up as I acclimated.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bike Chick
If I were you, I'd take it very very slow. Also, pay careful attention to stretching your calves and watching your ankles/achilles. You don't want to end up with ankle/achilles tendonitis, particularly right before a marathon.
Thanks, Selkie, for your advise. I did a 2 mile recovery run in them yesterday. I'm not quite sure how to run in them. I feel like I'm running on my tip-toes:DQuote:
Originally Posted by Selkie
Treadmill today. I'd forgotten how different it feels in the legs from the road! Just 3 miles, and I sure hope the weather is better tomorrow!
Yes my running has been sporadic....but I was off today so set out for a run. Did my usual 4 mile loop and took it pretty slow. It is about 76 degrees here in FL and usually that is pretty nice, but the humidity is 90%. I was drenched when I finished my SLOW run.
Speaking of speed...I have felt a bit slow lately. I am sure if I look back most of my runs are a bit faster, but I don't feel that much faster. I still long for a sub 10 min mile avg, especially on my long runs. My PR for my 1/2 is 2:10. I I want to get closer or below 2 hours. And I keep reading about how at my age (I turn 48) most runners are slowing down. But I have only been running for 8 years...so have I really already peaked? I hope not. I would like to think that my lack of speed right now is that last year I did mostly LONG slow runs in the heat and endurance building runs and little speed work and the fact that I have gained 6 pounds since Aug. (post Pikes Peak eating & drinking).
So it is time for a "training plan" and some real speed work. Jan. is a 5K that last year I finally did under 30 min so I will work to beat that and Feb is a 1/2 that I hope to set a new PR...looking at the 2 hour mark
K
Katluvr, there are a bunch of women in their 50s around here who are seriously fast. Most 5Ks, they post better times than any women in her late 30s or 40s. So I'm hoping for a sudden burst of speed in about 10 years time! And it was a huge thrill when I beat one of them this year-- passed her in a sprint to the finish line.
When I stepped outside with the dog first thing this morning and saw the weather forcast was correct, I was grinning. Decent running weather for the first time in almost a week! Just about jumped into my running clothes. Did about 5 miles; about .75 mile in, I realized I was at a sub-9 minute pace for the first time in a while. Slowed down after a while, but the 9:05 pace over the run was faster than I've run lately.
So I've been in hiding as well, but I wanted to come back and report that I ran the Richmond half marathon last weekend. Until I ended up with bronchitis 3 weeks ago, my goal time was 2:03ish (I wanted to beat the full marathon world record time) or 2:00 as a stretch goal. By race day, I would've been happy to beat my last road half PR (2:09:33)
Well, I finished in 1:59:31. Woohoo!! Beat the stretch goal and beat my last PR by 10 minutes. Pretty sure I ran the entire race about 30-45 seconds/mile faster than I'd been training. I ran faster than I've run since I moved to Denver and faster than I've done any race longer than a 10K.
I've decided that I don't think I like the Kinvaras anymore though. The point at the toes doesn't match the shape of my foot, and I had some NASTY blisters on my bigger foot (and yes, the shoes are plenty big). They squish my toes in weird directions - I ended up with a quarter-sized blood blister on the inside of my foot and blisters between several of my toes. Might go for the Brooks Pure-whatever next.
For any of you east-coast runners, I love the Richmond full/half. I'm probably biased since I grew up there, but I think its great how much of the community comes out to cheer and volunteer. I had a smile on my face the entire time I was running.
katluvr, I didn't start running until I was 50 so that probably means that I started after my peak:eek: I'm terribly slow but am improving. There are a group of women in my age group that I race against that will ALWAYS beat me. They are really fast and continue to train and get faster. One of them took third place in the mile at the 2011 National Senior Olympics; she's 60. I helped a 70 year old woman in T1 at the Florida Ironman; it was her first Ironman. These women amaze and inspire me. Maybe you just need to concentrate on speed work for a while and see if that helps. I think you can get faster if you try but imo a 2:10 hm is pretty awesome! I just keep telling myself that age is just a number.
Congratulations on your pr Jess! That's a 10 minute improvement. Great job.
Respectfully disagree! Google Helen Klein. I don't think she started running until she was well into her 50s and was a smoker before that to boot.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bike Chick
She is an amazing woman and a great role model for all women, not just those in the digits above 49.
And Jess, are you in the Kinvara or the Kinvara 2? I tried on the 2 a while back and it is much wider in the toebox. I hated it for other reasons, but word is that the toe issue you describe was a common complaint. Hence the change.
Woke up this morning thinking of all the stuff I needed to do before heading out to a 10am meeting (mostly, rolling out and shaping and baking 2 dozen croissants), and my first instinct was to skip the run. But I went out anyway, hoping it would lower the stress level. It was a good call! I've gotten done everything I needed to, even given the dog a nice walk, and still have time to sit down at the computer.
It was a windy 4 miles this morning, but I was able to do 2 into the wind then get blown home for 2 miles. Saw the first house with Christmas lights of the season, and I think I've pinpointed the location of the illegal rooster in the neighborhood. (Our zoning allows for 5 chickens per house, but NO ROOSTERS!!).
Kinvara 2. It's wide enough, I'd guess, just the wrong shape for my feet. Plus I can't keep my feet from slipping forward into the pointy section, even with them laced the way I like. Part of being a midfoot striker, I guess, is that when you land more toward the front of your shoe your feet want to go to that part of the shoe. Gravity sucks :)Quote:
Originally Posted by yellow
Went out and did 6-ish this morning despite the fact that it was 25 when I got up. Our faster girl caught us with 2 miles to go (she was at the end of a 17-miler) and I managed to pace her to the end, leaving the rest of the group behind. So I'm going to try to run the last 6-8 of her 18 miler with her next weekend. It'll push me and it'll help her finish, b/c doing long runs alone just isn't fun.
Did intervals this morning - 4 x .75 mile with 4 minutes rest between. My Garmin was suppose to beep at me to keep me between 9:00 and 9:15, but it didn't beep. "jhunhyu!" Cassie Cat just interjected this as she walked across my keyboard. :D
Anyway, with no beeper I ended up doing my repeats between 8:20 and 8:40. So, I'm very glad it didn't beep. :p
Veronica
Did my usual beach path run this morning, which is in the 3.1 to 3.5 mile range; I am never exactly sure. Pretty good run but a hot morning - already 83F when I got home around 8 am! Next Sunday I will be doing a 5K for charity down here, my first official 5K event. I am slow as mud so my time won't be anything to write home about, but I am interested to see how many women in my age bracket even sign up...if three or fewer sign up, I guess I'll place! :D
I ran 18 long, ugly miles yesterday. You know when you start a run and it just doesn't feel good? Well that's the run I had yesterday and it got worse as I ran instead of better. I finished it but walked the last mile. I'm thinking it may have been a nutrition issue. It's my first marathon so these are things I have to learn. Next week is 20 miles so it will be another test. Any marathoners out there willing to give me some pointers on nutrition on the run? My tummy doesn't like any solid food pre-run so I've been sticking to yogurt before I run then I take perpetuem in my race belt and do a gel ever 4-5 miles. It worked fine for my 16 mile run but felt like I had bonked during the 18 mile run. It was a miserable day.
Well, BC, you are experimenting, which is what you need to do! Maybe it was just an off day. Any number of factors can contribute. Hormones, hydration, attitude, alignment of the planets. And for the record, there is nothing wrong with taking walk breaks throughout the run. It probably won't affect your overall time that much and it gives your body a little break. Unless you are racing to win, of course :p
My hunch is that you might not be taking in enough fuel. What is the timing of your gel? Is the interval more than 40-45 minutes? Every person is different, but as an example, I fuel every 30 minutes (I try for 20 to 30 g of carbohydrates at each fueling) whether I think I need it or not (and I normally start the solid fuel at 1 hour). I cannot remember the last time I bonked and I never feel like I am getting too much fuel (the exception to that being events where I tend to get off because the aid station spacing never matches my regime). Is your gel plus the Perpetuem approaching 55 to 60 g/hour? It's a fine line: too many calories and your body can't process (with the standard reaction being GI distress). Too little and you suffer miles later.
However, given that you felt bad from the start, maybe what was affecting you is what you ate (or did not eat) the day before or the two days before. Are you getting enough low GI carbohydrate (enough to recover in between your long runs)? I've found that can make a big difference. I think that's more important than what you might eat immediately before you go for a run.
Good luck with your 20. It's hard. I don't care what anybody says. I hope it is better than yesterday's run!
Bike chick, food really can be pretty personal. But I find that I can't stomach too much sugary food while running - after awhile, I don't want anything more sweet. And then I don't eat as much as I need to to keep going. It sounds weird, but I like homemade baked potato wedges or slices with a little salt. They're soft, they don't stick in your teeth, and they don't taste like sugar. (My sister does french fries, but cold french fries just taste gross to me!)
My best guess on what happened towards the end is that you didn't fuel enough in the beginning. The first hour and a half or so I don't really feel the need to eat and then when I do, it's too late. It's tough to train yourself to eat when you really don't want anything.
Thanks so much Jess and Yellow. That's such good advice and the same thing DH pointed out. I've done 4 half marathons and could get through by doing a couple of gels. I'm realizing that's not the case training for a marathon and I think you are both exactly right. My stomach doesn't really tolerate anything solid prior to my runs so I've been just been eating yogurt before my runs and then I do a gel every hour. Its obvious to me that I'm not taking in enough calories. I also lost 2 pounds last week and wonder if that had something to do with it.
I'm going to be more concious of my nutrition through the week and take in more calories before and during the run and see if that makes a difference. I really don't want to suffer through another run like I did yesterday.
BC - I have no advice about long run nutrition since I haven't ever run that far myself! Another way to get in more calories before hand might be to put that yogurt into a smoothie with some fruit and maybe some protein. I've been using smoothies before my longer runs lately and it's working out really well for me.
Today we had our Chi Running clinic. It went really well. It confirmed a lot of what I already knew, taught me a few new drills, and reminded me of a lot of form points that I really hadn't been thinking about lately. A couple of reminders and my running felt just awesome! I'm really looking forward to my next run on Tuesday!
After you mentioned the clinics I looked up the ChiRunning clinics here. The cost is outrageous! I wish I could take one but they are $225 here (I think? Maybe $250) for one day. I'm glad it was useful and maybe some day I'll get to try one but I feel like that's just insane.
Watched my ChiRunning DVD for a refresher and then went out and did 4.2 miles yesterday on a MUT. Had a metronome playing in my ear, tapping out 78 rpm cadence. That's a bit faster than my normal plodding 76, and I'm trying to train myself to have faster leg turnover.
But my leg stride remains too long, I think, as my splits were all under 11 (that's about race pace for me, and not what I intended for this training run). It was an exhausting effort, and I ended up stopping a few times (okay, I hit stop on my Garmin on the side of the trail those times...is that cheating?) just to catch my breath. I'm really not used to such a constant level of effort in my cadence. So much for the endurance I thought I had from riding bikes all season.
I'm such a stupid runner. At least nothing hurt at the end of it. So that was a positive step for my back issue.
Jess - that's about right, actually. Ours was $100 for a half-day clinic. I think that a half day was enough to supplement the book. Without having read the book, I would think you'd probably want more instruction.
7rider - my DH has an 80 bpm stride. He was one of the slower ones in the group yesterday (in stride, not in speed) and could not seem to hit the 90 bpm cadence. As a quick drill for him, the instructor set the metronome to 110 bpm and we all tried to match it for half a lap...it was hard! Then she dropped it back down to 90 and lo and behold, he was able to hit 90 with no trouble. Then when she did the video of us, he used a metronome set to 90 and was not only able to hit the beat, but his form was greatly improved right away. He had significantly less over-striding than he'd had just 30 minutes earlier!
It might be worth trying it out.
I did a seven mile run with Thom this morning. It was nice to have someone running with me on a longer run. I usually do those by myself.
Veronica
The price might be right, but that's still ridiculous. I run because it's affordable. I could do a weekend bike clinic at that price.
Funny...the local ChiRunning coach is also a Newton running coach. And the Newton clinics at their factory are free, last I checked. Only 2 hours, but still.
Yeah, it is pricey. It's way more affordable than Total Immersion clinics though! :eek: I almost had a heart attack when I looked up one of those.Quote:
Originally Posted by jessmarimba
Just did 7-ish with a friend who was going for 18. She's generally a little faster than I am but either she was slow since I met her for the last 7, or I've gotten faster than I think I am, but most of the run I was a step or two ahead of her. Not enough to drag her but enough to motivate, I think. Interesting change as I'm usually the one getting pulled along on a long run :)
Anyway, beautiful weather here, hope you all are enjoying Thanksgiving!
I ran for a solid hour today. No stopping. That's big for me. Yay!
I did a 5K Turkey Trot not too far from me. Considering the pizza and beer I had last night I didn't run half bad, either. :p The race is a benefit for the local food pantry and it just keeps getting bigger - they said 1600 entrants, although I don't think anywhere near that many actually ran. It was a fun way to start the day. :)
Indy, that's awesome. WTG!Quote:
Originally Posted by indysteel
I did my first 10k last night. My timing was awful but the calorie burn was huge. So proud of this feat - never thought it possible :)
Right back at you! Way to go on the 10k!Quote:
Originally Posted by VeganBikeChick
Way to go indy and VeganBikeChick!
I was thinking in the shower about the discussion of the cost of the Chi Running workshops. IMO the instruction is worth every penny, but I barely ran at all before I learned Chi Running, and when I think about what it's cost me in entry fees and hotels before the longer races.... okay, it is outrageous. :p
I've at least saved a lot of money there! I used to run all of the club races in VA, except the ones I volunteered at. They weren't expensive but I bet they added up! But since I've moved to CO I've gone from mid-pack to back-of-the-pack (at the same pace) and I just don't want to race out here. I haven't done a road race besides the Richmond full and half since I moved. I think I've done 5 trail races, and two of those were in VA.Quote:
Originally Posted by OakLeaf
(So to save money racing, move to state where everyone runs at a 7:30 pace!)
DH and I started off Thanksgiving Day with the local Turkey Trot. Despite the cold weather, it was very well attended and the route was hilly. There were a lot of families participating, so I had to dodge around kids, stollers, & pooches. I was in dog lover heaven and collected a lot of canine kisses before and after the race. The race is truly a community event, and just about the entire course was lined with folks cheering you on.
Since it was so cold, I had a creaky start, but after I warmed up, I set an increasingly blistering (for me) pace--8:54 min mile. I placed 15th in my age division, 538 out of 2,461 runners. I have to admit that I'm pretty shocked. This is a faster pace than when I was a regularly running half-marathons--more than 10 years ago!
Despite the pleasant surprise of my results, I'm not competitive and am entering these races for the fun of it.
Hope to register for an 8K Jingle Bell run in DC during December. :-)
Some friends of ours invited some people over Thanksgiving morning for a 3-8 mile run. The invite was sent by text message and we good pass it along to whoever we wanted. All they asked was for everyone to bring canned goods for the local food pantry. Thirty people showed up! DH and I ran the 6 mile loop and stayed for an hour of coffee and fellowship afterward. It was a lot of fun.
BikeChick, that's so cool! I just read about how a similar get-together in Florida has grown to 400 runners. http://www.orlandosentinel.com/featu...,7932268.story
Started yesterday with a 5K Turkey Trot. I missed it last year for the first time since I started doing it in 2004. So it was extra nice to be there and the weather was awesome.
Worked today (Black Friday) and will work tomorrow, but have another "fun" 5K scheduled with a brewery sponsor. So I am getting my runs in, more slow than a race and food and/or beer involved!:D
K
Tried running today. Ran out 3, walked back (and timed it so I finished with our running group perfectly).
Guess it's time to get the tendonitis taken care of. Now I need to find a PT or doctor who isn't going to immediately scream "ORTHOTICS" at me. I think it's a leg length issue, so orthotics in both shoes is not the answer.
2.8 mile run today at 9:22 average pace. It's a super flat run though, only 80 feet of elevation gain in the whole thing! :D
Still the first time I did - last Oct. it took me nearly 33 minutes - 26:15 today.
Veronica
Nice 4 mile run early this morning (630am). The temp felt great.. I think the it was in the low 20s. I was planning on going for 6 miles but my hamstrings said no way. Oh well.