Trotting for Turkey (November Running)

[skhill]

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!

[katluvr]

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

[skhill]

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.

[jessmarimba]

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.

[Bike Chick]

katluvr, I didn't start running until I was 50 so that probably means that I started after my peak 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.

[yellow]

katluvr, I didn't start running until I was 50 so that probably means that I started after my peak

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.

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.

[skhill]

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!!).

[jessmarimba]

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.

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

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.

[Veronica]

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.

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.

Veronica

[emily_in_nc]

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!

[Bike Chick]

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.

[yellow]

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

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!

[jessmarimba]

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.

[Bike Chick]

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.

[GLC1968]

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!