April 2017 Running Challenge
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Goal - 40 miles
4/3 - 2 miles (gotta start somewhere)
4/5 - 2.5 miles
4/7 - 5 miles
4/8 - 1 mile then crosstrained
4/10 - 2 miles and strength train
Total Miles - 12.54 -
4/10 -6.5.
37.5/100
Of which 2.5 was an attempted run with running buddies kids in tow- one on bike one in stroller, kid were not cooperative enough to call it a run. So sent the kids with dad when he got home- we then did 4 miles for real
May have to investigate this strava thing and see if I like it.... mostly have to figure out if I can handle/adapt to change
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4/3: 4 mi
4/4: 4 mi
4/5: 4 mi
4/6: 4 mi
4/7: rest
4/8: 6 mi
4/9: 4mi
4/10: 4mi
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April 10 4.5 k for a total of 24.5 of the 75k goal for the month. I had to stop .5 k short of my goal when I got a muscle spasm in my calf.2
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Sick babies and my husband working crazy OT totally kiboshed any chance I had at long run this weekend
. This coming weekend my SIL is driving up with our niece and her fiance for Easter and then my husband goes OOT for two weeks as soon as they leave. April just turned into a lot of treadmill running- pray my youngest stops trying to stay up all night (teething is not for the faint of heart even in the third kid lol).
April 1- 42.2
April 2- 7.6
April 3- 14
April 4- 13.4
April 5- Off
April 6- 10
April 7- 15.8
April 8- Sick baby, so much crying (only like 5% me)
April 9- 9.5
April 10- 15.5
128km/300km
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Hello all!
I was planning on not running today but joined a challenge on my running app this morning. Ran 2.4mi at average 6mph. 3 intervals 4min fast and 3min slow. Felt good after, first time I've ran intervals or even that fast. Might not run tomorrow, I'll see how the wheels feel after leg day.3 -
Map of my 14.6 km race route from Sunday. It was along iconic roads through Melbourne, past some awesome sights.
This is a selfie taken while running on the top of the Bolte Bridge, one of the main attractions of the run:
Pretty happy I managed to get the Melbourne Star observation wheel in the pic too. (Hope it shows in the uploaded version.)
Finally, my placing results:
On cloud nine today from seeing that I made it into the top 25% of my age group, considering I couldn't run 500 metres 18 months ago!
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11/04 - 3.2 mile fast(er) run @24:05, followed with 2 mile Interval, Shoulders & Core
Completed
• 11/03 - 10K Run The Solar System (thanks for the tip) - 52:01
• 12/03 - TM Half Marathon (plugged in the MK HM route - attempt 1 ) - 1:54:02
• 25/03 - TM Half Marathon (plugged in the MK HM route - attempt 2 ) - 1:53:53
Coming up:
• 15/04 - TM Half Marathon (plugged in the MK HM route - attempt 3)
• 01/05 - Milton Keynes HM
• 18/06 - Run-Bedford-Run - 10K
• 02/09 - Bedford HM
• 24/09 - Windsor HM
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Hi guys,
As a newbie runner I wondered if I could ask 2 questions...
1. What food is good to eat as you are starting to run further? I am upping to 10K (which I know is very small to many of the runs on here :-( ) and find my legs are feeling it a lot the next day. Any tips diet wise?
2. How do you improve your mind over mater. As I am going further, I feel like I psychically can do it but my brain is my devil and trying to tell me to stop and that I am done. Is this a standard thing when you first start pushing your comfort zone?
Thank you in advance, you guys are AMAZING and so inspiring!2 -
@Skipper111
I find having protein and some carbs right after a run helps with soreness/recovery. Other than that, just try different foods and see what agrees with you before/after runs.
As far as psychology and running. I do 2 things. First, I break my runs down, usually in 3-4 mile increments (for your run, two 5k increments might work) and only concentrate on the section I'm on. Visualization helps too, imagine you're running a goal race, or something, and use it to kind of tune out while you go.
These work for me, I can't guarantee they will work for you, but might be worth a try.1 -
@Skipper111 - A recovery drink will help. You want something with both easily digestible carbs and protein in a ratio between 2:1 carbs/protein and 4:1 carbs/protein. You should take this right after your run. After your run your body is highly receptive to taking in simple sugars and transporting that back to your muscles as glycogen which improves recovery time. Interestingly, this is improved when a little protein is added in the suggested ratio range meaning more is transported. The protein aids with muscle tissue recovery. You want to do this within the first 20 minutes of finishing your run. Nonfat chocolate milk fits the bill. Personally, I use a mix of powdered gatorade and whey protein (tastes surprisingly good). The difference is noticeable.
As for continuing to run, what worked for me was just challenging my thoughts. When my legs said they could not go on, I dared them by continuing on. Had they started wobbling and I actually started tumbling I would have stopped. But that never happened.
I did stop if I ever felt any pain...or I should say, you should always stop for pain, or if your form changes. 2 -
@skipper111 - I drink chocolate milk after each run. When it is humid (360/365 days in Florida) I drink Ultima Replenisher. Kind of like powdered gatorade but only 15 calories - and it has a tiny scoop, perfect in a 16oz bottle.
Running is so mental... you have to find what works for you to get the mileage to increase.1 -
Some intervals today but mainly zoning out to Zombies Virtual Training run and music.
4/1 - 44 miles biking
4/2 - 40 miles biking
4/3 - 3.7 miles
4/4 - 4.2 miles
4/5 - strength training
4/6 - 3.4 miles
4/7 - strength training
4/8 - 10K Zombies Chunnel run
4/9 - 28 miles on bike - but like a rest day
4/10 - 4.5 miles
4/11 - 4.6 miles
4/12 - travel day
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Skipper111 wrote: »Hi guys,
As a newbie runner I wondered if I could ask 2 questions...
1. What food is good to eat as you are starting to run further? I am upping to 10K (which I know is very small to many of the runs on here :-( ) and find my legs are feeling it a lot the next day. Any tips diet wise?
2. How do you improve your mind over mater. As I am going further, I feel like I psychically can do it but my brain is my devil and trying to tell me to stop and that I am done. Is this a standard thing when you first start pushing your comfort zone?
Thank you in advance, you guys are AMAZING and so inspiring!
as other's have said - chocolate milk, protein etc. are all good. The main thing for me is having a good meal planned and ready. Otherwise I end up picking at food and it isn’t satisfying. I’ve had trouble with my legs too after a long run – and SEVERE pain overnight in the calf muscles. Oddly, despite my very hilly Half marathon over the weekend followed by an 8 mile run/walk over hilly terrain, I have not had the same issues. My quads ache from the hills, but I’m not in permanent pain. I suspect the increased use of electrolytes during the run may have helped.
As to the mental thing - when i'm on my own running, I take headphones. I might not use them until towards the end of the run, but that helps.2 -
Having problems trying to post for some reason.
Cutting back a little more on the mileage; tomorrow and Thursday may just see around 5-6 miles each, and then Friday will be just a couple more to keep the legs fresh before Saturday's race.
03 - 13.37
04 - 9.59
05 - 13.39
06 - 10.75
07 - 13.36
10 - 10.73
11 - 9.27
Total: 80.46 / 175 miles3 -
Skipper111 wrote: »Hi guys,
As a newbie runner I wondered if I could ask 2 questions...
1. What food is good to eat as you are starting to run further? I am upping to 10K (which I know is very small to many of the runs on here :-( ) and find my legs are feeling it a lot the next day. Any tips diet wise?
2. How do you improve your mind over mater. As I am going further, I feel like I psychically can do it but my brain is my devil and trying to tell me to stop and that I am done. Is this a standard thing when you first start pushing your comfort zone?
Thank you in advance, you guys are AMAZING and so inspiring!
1. Food:
@MNLittleFinn said something real good about post workout recovery by getting in a little protein and carbs after a run. I would add that they be simple quick digesting carbs and protein. I usually mix a scoop of protein powder in some 1% or 2% milk and have it ready for as soon as I am done running. Some say chocolate milk is the best thing to have since it has equal parts fat/protein/carbs.
I tend to eat a lot of protein in general. Like I will bake an entire package of chicken breast Sunday night and then put them in individual Tupperware containers so I have something for lunch for the week. Fatty fish like Talapia and Salmon are real good. Lots of fresh fruits and vegetables and salads. I have a banana almost every morning along with some other 2 pieces of fruit will go into my lunch box (apples, oranges, strawberries, grapes, melon, pineapple, ect). Depends on what is on sale for the week. Salad is great. I started putting avocado in my salad and surprised that I like it. I find coconut water is great when you're trying to rehydrate after a good run especially throughout the day after my long run. Seek whole grains and things like brown rice as opposed to white rice or bleached breads and processed grains.
2. Mind over matter: Running with other people can help in this area. It's sometimes tough to run a lone. Also, as you are increasing mileage, keep the pace nice and easy. You want a conversational pace. That means you should be able to hold a conversation with a running buddy or be able to sing a song out loud if you're alone. If you find that you're having trouble to do this because you're breathing too hard, then you need to slow your pace down.
One last point with regard to your long run. A lot of people talk about increasing their mileage and usually focus only on their long run. When you increase mileage, think in terms of weekly mileage. How many miles are you doing throughout the entire week, not just your longest run of the week. You want to spread out your mileage throughout the week and make sure you give enough time for recovery in between runs. Your longest run of the week should represent only 25-35% of your entire weekly mileage. This will help you build your base slowly and evenly. it's very stressful on the body when your mileage is lopsided and without the proper recovery before your next workout, it takes a big toll on the body. Sleep is important too.
1 -
Skipper111 wrote: »Hi guys,
As a newbie runner I wondered if I could ask 2 questions...
1. What food is good to eat as you are starting to run further? I am upping to 10K (which I know is very small to many of the runs on here :-( ) and find my legs are feeling it a lot the next day. Any tips diet wise?
2. How do you improve your mind over mater. As I am going further, I feel like I psychically can do it but my brain is my devil and trying to tell me to stop and that I am done. Is this a standard thing when you first start pushing your comfort zone?
Thank you in advance, you guys are AMAZING and so inspiring!
1. Lots of good replies on food already. In addition to the specific suggestions for just after you run, be sure your general diet has enough protein. General health recommendations for males say to eat at least 75 grams of protein per day; I target at least 150. The runner's body needs more protein than the general recommendation to support the continual process of rebuilding muscle. This is particularly true for a newer runner who is still developing the muscles in the running chain.
2. Feelings of it's time to quit when you push your comfort zone are normal. The open question is, should you be pushing the comfort zone in the way that you are? For distance running, most of your runs should be easy, which is slower than most new runners go naturally. I'd tell you a pace, but it's different for everyone. As a general rule of thumb, if your goal is to run farther than you have and you're feeling you should quit, slow down. Don't stop, don't walk; just run slower. It won't feel natural at first, but it can be learned. Also running with other people can help pass the time on long runs, assuming you can find someone whose pace is close to yours.1 -
@Skipper111- Lots of good replies on the post run recovery that I agree with. I like to end my long runs at the Starbucks about 1 mile from my house. I carry along a scoop of chocolate whey protein powder in a baggie. After my run, I get an iced Americano with half water and half 2% milk and I add the protein powder. I drink this while I walk home. As an added bonus, it helps with that mind over matter part because I know that the sooner I make it to Starbucks, the sooner I get my post-run "treat".3
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2. Feelings of it's time to quit when you push your comfort zone are normal. The open question is, should you be pushing the comfort zone in the way that you are? For distance running, most of your runs should be easy, which is slower than most new runners go naturally. I'd tell you a pace, but it's different for everyone. As a general rule of thumb, if your goal is to run farther than you have and you're feeling you should quit, slow down. Don't stop, don't walk; just run slower. It won't feel natural at first, but it can be learned. Also running with other people can help pass the time on long runs, assuming you can find someone whose pace is close to yours.
I think the bolded bit is really important. My weekend run showed me that.
Having attempted ‘long’ runs in the past with various techniques and feeling pretty awful after, I was pleasantly surprised by my Saturday run of over 13 miles. There were a LOT of hills, so we did a LOT of walking. There were some technical down bits, which I was more confident to do at speed than my running buddy, so that slowed the pace. I stopped and took photos, we stopped for lunch after 8.5miles. But after 12 miles I was willing to run a bit further, and was still keen to run the next day. Yes we were terribly terribly slow and didn’t run the whole thing, BUT, the key point was ensuring that I could be out for the distance and time (Strava tells me it tooks 3 ½ hours, my Tom Tom reads 4 1/5 so I think Strava takes into account the pauses better (even though I paused the TomTom, I think it shows active time as opposed to moving time).
Next time I attempt distance I'll try and move a little faster, with less walking, but mentally I KNOW I can do the distance.1 -
4/1 7
4/2 7
4/3 6 + 6x circuits
4/4 8
4/5 7
4/6 REST
4/7 7.3
4/8 6.0 + 9 x strength circuits
4/9 8.5
4/10 4.5 + 6x circuits
64.3/200
Good to be back here and making myself accountable for my miles!
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