Spring Running Thread

[emily_in_nc]

Congratulations, Oakleaf! I am perpetually in awe of anyone who runs a marathon, considering how difficult even 3-4-mile runs are for me!

I have not run at all since we arrived in NC in mid-March. Sigh. There are just too many strikes against me here: family obligations, RV projects, a tiny campground with only two roads out, both of which have such a steep grade I can barely walk up them, much less run, and not enough time to drive somewhere to run.

However, I did buy new running shoes here and am ready to start up again (slowly!) once we leave this place. We'll soon be heading west in the motorhome, and I am hoping to get back to running at least occasionally. Also planning on many more bike rides and some hikes. I've enjoyed this family time (with my mother and step-dad, plus a brief road trip to Ohio to visit DH's elderly parents in assisted living) but am ready to be on our way!

[rocknrollgirl]

Emily,
bummer that you have not been able to run, but it will come back quickly.

We got out for our last longish run before our race next Sunday. Last w/e we drove an hour north to get some bigger hills and got in 11 miles of hilly single track. I felt really good, and not too bad after. We got in 2 very solid mid week runs and two good days lifting, so the hay is in the barn. Now I just have to be really mellow this week and go enjoy myself next weekend.

I signed us up for another trail half in Maryland in June, so I am trying to keep the momentum going. 7 weeks between will give me plenty of recovery after The North Face next weekend and time to get in a few solid long runs. The elevation gain in Maryland is 1/3 of what we will face next weekend so it will be easier for us to train. I think the total elevation change for the half next weekend is 4500 feet of vertical. That is a lot of up and down. Tough to train for when you are a flatlander.

[OakLeaf]

Yikes, that is a lot of climbing! Have a good week - you are ready for this!

Emily - sometimes a break isn't a bad thing. When your situation is right for running, it will come back.

[emily_in_nc]

Thanks RnR and Oak...I have stopped and started running over the past ten years more times than I care to count, so when life permits, it will come back. We leave NC on Tuesday, so soon after that, I should be getting back out there.

Good luck on your race, RnR! Sounds like you have prepared the best anyone could!

[Crankin]

Good luck RnR. That sounds hard, for sure, but I truly undersand the allure of a trail run.

[Crankin]

I ran today. I was doing errands all day and then my friend needed to come over and work, because noisy stuff was going on at her house and she needed to do a conference call. Anyway, by then it was 3:45. I set out on the little trail that connects my street to the next neighborhood, but turned in a different direction that I usually walk, since that is a hill. This is rolling and ends up on partially dirt road, near another road I wanted to explore. I got to the road I wanted to explore, because it's dirt (once was on a group ride where I refused to go down here on my road bike). Very interesting. There's a town hiking trail off of here, but I kept going on hte broken pavement/dirt road, until straight ahead was a sportsman club (I knew I've heard shooting on the weekend) that was posted. The road turned left, but looked much more dirt-like. I was getting a bit creeped out, so I turned around. I would have ridden my bike on this road, but the part I didn't go on, i am not sure. I am pretty sure where it comes out, but I will wait to do this with DH.
I walked when something started hurting (hip or knee), watched my posture and foot strike, and made it back sweaty, but in one piece. I have no idea how fast I was going, but it was slow, and I estimate it was about 2.50 to 3 miles and I made sure to foam roll, lacrosse ball, and stretch the hell out of my body when I got back.

[Crankin]

This wasn't a run, per se, but I did go back to the dirt road with DH this morning, as it was threatening rain and not good weather for cycling. I wore my rain jacket and it didn't do more than sprinkle to a light rain just when we were getting back. We walked and took the road up where I had stopped; as I thought, it was rutted, sandy, and very rocky in spots. Not what I would do on a road bike. But, it did come out where I thought. On the way in, we noticed 3 trailheads for town conservation land trails, so we took one on the way back. Another goes up a nice hill and goes on for a while, as we surmised by looking at a map on DH's phone. As we headed back on the dirt road, a woman (whom I had seen on Friday, came whizzing by on a mountain bike. I had seen her and a guy on Friday, and also on the path by my house). Saw some interesting birds and geese, a waterfall, and some interesting homes. When we got back, we downloaded the trail map for the area, which used to be a rifle range up until the 50s. So, this will be a good area for snow shoeing come winter. I thought maybe there was a trail on the other side of the dirt road that connected up to the top of the hill near where I walk to get my gym, but the land is owned by the sportsman's club where there is a bridge that crosses a pond and it's posted (thank you Google).
Interesting, and a different little corner of my town that I had no idea of. Good for running, trail running, snow shoeing, hiking, and maybe a mountain bike?

[OakLeaf]

Nice, Crankin. Hope it didn't beat you up too badly.

Looks like miserable weather for RnRgirl's race. Hope it went well!

Yesterday was fun. I was able to watch at mile 1, mile 7 and the finish line. I hadn't known Tara Welling's story before she won, but now reading about the year she had last year, makes me glad she won the race. And seeing Desi Linden up close ... swoon.

I'm nursing a mild but stubborn cold. That on top of trying to let things heal up, the little bit of jogging from point to point that I did yesterday, was as much as I've run in two weeks. Soon enough. I have a call in to a PT who comes highly recommended - it's a LONG drive, but I'm hoping that he can give me some guidance with just occasional visits.