February 2020 Monthly Running Challenge

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  • autumnblade75
    autumnblade75 Posts: 1,661 Member
    7.8 miles today, because I thought I had a spare .2 on the ticker. Nope - that was already a .8.

    I decided to see if I could maintain 11:00/miles yet. I thought I *should* be able to do it, since I'm running the long runs at 11:20-11:30. It felt good, so I threw in 10:00/mile intervals. Fitbit data says it was all still in the "Cardio" range, rather than peak. I finally feel like I'm making progress. That probably means the next run will suck.

    exercise.png
    Camaramandy648 wrote: »
    @autumnblade75 SO IN ARKANSAS, AND IN GEORGIA, AND APPARENTLY IN LOUISIANA, SOME PEOPLE ACTUALLY DO KOOL AID PICKLES AND LOVE LOVE LOVE THEM

    https://tornadoughalli.com/kool-aid-pickles/

    I found out about this at one of my first jobs when I moved here and someone had a "leaving the company" party. I did not love them, but they were not the worst.

    Maybe you could do a chemistry experiment with whatever part sugar, whatever part salt, etc. :)

    I think I knew that, but I wasn't suggesting that I intended to try it. They don't sound like something I really want to try.
    LoveyChar wrote: »
    @autumnblade75 Last thing Marathon, and I'm done talking about it. This was average pace. I'm obviously below average, which is fine. But 5 hours for females in this one was average. I have no point. I guess I'm just sharing with you what I learned.

    I don't think the statistics are far from other races.

    I can't think of a better place to talk Marathon. And I note that the very next post was yours, too - about Marathon stuff. ;)
    LoveyChar wrote: »
    Be honest. I have thick skin. You can be outright mean. I can take it. Anyway, would it be stupid of me to register for a trail run Marathon or should I just throw caution to the wind and try? There are so many here...

    It would be stupid of *me* to register for a Trail Marathon. I have come to the conclusion that I just don't enjoy trail running. Roots, rocks, bugs, mud. But I do like a mud run. Go figure.

    If you enjoy Trail Running, a Trail Marathon seems like a good plan.


  • T1DCarnivoreRunner
    T1DCarnivoreRunner Posts: 11,502 Member
    ContraryMaryMary wrote: »
    T1DCarnivoreRunner wrote: »
    Avidkeo wrote: »
    PastorVincent wrote: »
    Avidkeo wrote: »
    Morning all.

    Well no call outs last night. So got up at 7, went and did 2.6k before Parkrun, got to the start line with 1 min to spare, did the 5k Parkrun, then another 400m to round off 8k.

    Thene we are having an event in town today where all these American car enthusiasts come to town, participate in a parade and park up and show off their machines. Some beautiful old cars, and some pretty spectacular new ones. Apparently there are over 500 cars in town!

    So naturally we took the kids to an American diner for brunch. Cause why not. It was awesome! Most amazing waffles I've ever had - not that I've had waffles that often haha. So soaked up a bit of American culture. Now I'm relaxing watching Doctor who while the hubby takes the kids around to his parents for a bit.

    I am curious what you think an American diner is? I have talked to people from India (I work in IT so we see a lot of them) who come to America. They all tell me that what they thought American food was is nothing like reality they found why they got here.

    Also, they all gained a lot of weight, at least at first.

    Those points might be related. :)

    Haha OK how many "movie culture America" can I hit?

    The diner is fitted out like a diner from back to the future. Red stools, booths, lots of formica tables. There is pop culture references everywhere, from Betty boop playing on the TV, to elvis on the jukebox, yes there is a jukebox. There were American flags everywhere. They advertised a bottomless cup of filter coffee (not really a kiwi thing at all).

    Their desserts were sweet pies, so key lime, pumpkin, pecan for example.

    The food itself I would say was more amerikiwi. So they had burgers, but full of salads and extra stuff - from what I've heard from my vegetarian American friend, burgers are usually bun and patty. Our burgers have a whole heap of other fillings. My mum had a fish burger for example.

    Actually ill just paste the menu, you can see its "American" with a kiwi twist.

    For the record, I had waffles (two) with bacon and banana. And it was 3 pieces of bacon only - which I shared with my kids - one small banana and a dish of say 30ml of maple syrup on the side. So from what I hear, about half the size of an American meal.
    e371r76u2jtb.jpg

    c64hps7973th.jpg

    That is definitely a 1950's themed American diner setup... I'm not that old, but I've seen photos and movies, lol.

    What is this aioli that is on everything? Also, what is the difference between bacon and "steaky bacon?" Steak here is a whole cut of meat (i.e. not ground) and if it doesn't specify the type of meat, it is beef from cows. Bacon, on the other hand, is typically slices cut from pork / hog bellies and processed / cured to become bacon. However, there are certain types of bacon that come from other parts of the hog or even from other animals, but then it isn't just "bacon." It's specifically called "hog jowl bacon" or "turkey bacon" if it comes from a different part of the animal or from a different species.

    ETA: As a carnivore, I know my meats. :smiley:

    I'll give the Kiwi perspective since @avidkeo is off doing a rain dance or something (the drought here kinda/sorta broke today)

    That would be streaky bacon - or what you call bacon. Streaky bacon is belly so has way more fat. We couldn't buy streaky bacon here when I was a kid - it didn't really become popular until the late 80s - our options were shoulder bacon or middle bacon.

    As for aioli. It's a garlic mayo. I don't know why they stick it on things as it's a bit gross. I prefer regular mayo or, when it come to fries, tomato sauce thank you very much.

    As for American food. The only place you'll ever find pecan pie, pumpkin pie or key lime pie is in an American-themed restaurant. We don't really do sweet pies, and our savoury pies, which are amazing and delicious and hugely varied, are always single portion pies. Love me a steak and cheese pie. Never get them because one has about 700+ calories.

    American burgers are amazing but heart-attack fare. I'm kinda glad our default burgers are a bit healthier, but that being said, it's easy enough to find a giant meaty bacony cheesy burger with pickles if you want one.

    That being said, the biggest difference I noticed when I went to the US was portion sizes - literally three times more than we get here, and here we get generous portions. However, this only applies to cheaper and mid-priced restaurants. It seems super-expensive restaurants the world over go for tiny portions (I was on a company credit card so got to try all sorts of fancy restaurants). Caveat: My experience of the US is limited to 3 week-long work trips to Vegas, and a week in Austin, plus a few one-long stops en route to Canada.

    The other big difference I noticed was cheese - I thought it was weird you did orange cheese and yellow cheese. We've always had loads of different cheeses to choose from.

    In the supermarket, I was blown away that everything contained added sugar. Things that we'd never even consider should have sugar in them, like tinned tomato soup and peanut butter. Also the cereal isle didn't actually contain cereal - I was trying to buy muesli and could only find extruded breakfast foods - called cereals but not actually containing cereals unless highly processed.

    I do think it's a lot easier to eat healthfully here. A lot less high-fructose corn syrup hidden in stuff, way less mayonnaise, way less cheese on everything, and that portion size thing again.

    I was travelling and working with a bunch of English writers who were all complaining they were putting on weight. I told them to read the calorie count on the salads they were eating - 1000+ which blew them away. They asked why I only ever ate half a sandwich and I said, this sandwich is 850 calories, if I eat the whole thing I can't have dinner!

    Ah, bacon. BTW Hog jowl bacon is the best. Canadian bacon is basically ham here in the U.S. too and good on pizza with pineapple, if I still ate such foods. Canadian Bacon is also the most hilarious movie ever. John Candy was a legend.
  • eleanorhawkins
    eleanorhawkins Posts: 1,659 Member
    Avidkeo wrote: »
    I turn into a lobster in about 10 minutes in the sun here, so I do all my running before 10am atm. I done like sunscreen with sweat, just gross. So I get my running done before the sun is too high in the sky.

    Yeah me too, in the summer I make sure my run ends within 30 minutes of the sun coming up, even if that means getting up at yuck o'clock. Sun or no sun, it's way too hot and humid otherwise, even after sunset.
  • enaliba
    enaliba Posts: 146 Member
    @polskagirl01 do you use an inhaler before running? I use albuterol before running and it makes all the difference. I also have exercise induced asthma.
  • polskagirl01
    polskagirl01 Posts: 2,024 Member
    enaliba wrote: »
    @polskagirl01 do you use an inhaler before running? I use albuterol before running and it makes all the difference. I also have exercise induced asthma.
    Good idea. I'll have to ask next time I see the allergist. Fortunately it's not too serious in my case. I've actually doubted the diagnosis because it happens so rarely.
  • Camaramandy648
    Camaramandy648 Posts: 711 Member
    @Scott6255 i forgot to mention- for the whole thirty minutes i was running - I was able to maintain a HR of 172 🤣🤣
  • quilteryoyo
    quilteryoyo Posts: 6,474 Member
    @polskagirl01 What I want to know is, did you wear the tutu on the run to and from the park run? If so, did you get any weird looks from passersby?
  • Tramboman
    Tramboman Posts: 2,482 Member
    polskagirl01 wrote: »
    Those of you wearing long sleeves in the sun - does it help if it's loose-fitting?

    Today I did 15k, including parkrun and a break for tea/coffee and 2 donuts(!), although I should've left the house 5 minutes earlier, as I had to push the pace to arrive on time.

    We were supposed to wear costumes, and those of us who did got to start in front. Not that this helps me in any way, when there's a herd of people ready to mow me down, hahaha. I was also having an off day with breathing. I wasn't in any danger and finished in a respectable-for-me time but was just not feeling it. Even after running home at a relaxed pace, I still felt like I was gasping for air. I believe it's the exercise-induced asthma the allergist says I have and it only acts up at certain times - infrequently enough that I haven't figured out the triggers yet. So I won't complain :)

    I put off posting until I could include a picture of my ridiculous costume...
    I'm the reindeer in a tutu, and yes my tights matched thank you very much! fomva0gtbb9a.jpg
    nmlesejcrms4.jpg

    February goal 100 miles (stretch goal 200 km)

    exercise.png

    That's not ridiculous - that's pretty cool!!
  • PastorVincent
    PastorVincent Posts: 6,668 Member
    enaliba wrote: »
    @polskagirl01 do you use an inhaler before running? I use albuterol before running and it makes all the difference. I also have exercise induced asthma.

    This is what my wife does, but she needs it every time, more especially when it is cold.
  • PastorVincent
    PastorVincent Posts: 6,668 Member
    Camaramandy648 wrote: »
    @polskagirl01 i have really bad asthma. It’s worse in the cold and when i forget to take Zyrtec before bed. At times. i feel like I am suffocating. Drowning in the lack of air. It is the worst, most panic-inducing thing I’ve ever felt. I have been running, could not breathe, and started having a panic attack while grasping for my inhaler.

    So i get it. What helps me is: Zyrtec before bed (i always have horrible allergies), Qvar steroid inhaler (daily / as remembered), Albuterol inhaler before and during running. Also if you run in the cold - the buff or bala clava has really helped me. I can run long distances now, with essentially no fear of sudden, torturous death.

    My wife uses a neoprene face mask when the temp is below like 60. I would die in a puddle of salt water if I tried that, but she says it really helps her asthma.
  • PastorVincent
    PastorVincent Posts: 6,668 Member
    eleanorhawkins wrote: »
    Avidkeo wrote: »
    I turn into a lobster in about 10 minutes in the sun here, so I do all my running before 10am atm. I done like sunscreen with sweat, just gross. So I get my running done before the sun is too high in the sky.

    Yeah me too, in the summer I make sure my run ends within 30 minutes of the sun coming up, even if that means getting up at yuck o'clock. Sun or no sun, it's way too hot and humid otherwise, even after sunset.

    Most weather apps seem to have the UV rating per hour these days and if you watch that you can run either early or late depending on your schedule and miss like 90% of the danger.
  • PastorVincent
    PastorVincent Posts: 6,668 Member
    Tramboman wrote: »
    polskagirl01 wrote: »
    Those of you wearing long sleeves in the sun - does it help if it's loose-fitting?

    Today I did 15k, including parkrun and a break for tea/coffee and 2 donuts(!), although I should've left the house 5 minutes earlier, as I had to push the pace to arrive on time.

    We were supposed to wear costumes, and those of us who did got to start in front. Not that this helps me in any way, when there's a herd of people ready to mow me down, hahaha. I was also having an off day with breathing. I wasn't in any danger and finished in a respectable-for-me time but was just not feeling it. Even after running home at a relaxed pace, I still felt like I was gasping for air. I believe it's the exercise-induced asthma the allergist says I have and it only acts up at certain times - infrequently enough that I haven't figured out the triggers yet. So I won't complain :)

    I put off posting until I could include a picture of my ridiculous costume...
    I'm the reindeer in a tutu, and yes my tights matched thank you very much! fomva0gtbb9a.jpg
    nmlesejcrms4.jpg

    February goal 100 miles (stretch goal 200 km)

    exercise.png

    That's not ridiculous - that's pretty cool!!

    I am pretty sure the goal is to be ridiculous for these things :)
  • PastorVincent
    PastorVincent Posts: 6,668 Member
    autumnblade75 wrote: »
    I decided to see if I could maintain 11:00/miles yet. I thought I *should* be able to do it, since I'm running the long runs at 11:20-11:30. It felt good, so I threw in 10:00/mile intervals. Fitbit data says it was all still in the "Cardio" range, rather than peak. I finally feel like I'm making progress.

    Yay! well done!
  • PastorVincent
    PastorVincent Posts: 6,668 Member
    Scott6255 wrote: »
    7.25 miles this afternoon. Hate that I am becoming a weekend warrior. Hopefully that will change soon. Today felt really good though. Fresh legs, perfect weather. Kept telling myself to slow down and relax, and kept clocking faster splits. Averaged 9:05/mi. HR is still up there at 136bpm. Just need more time on my feet.

    If you felt really good, then it was not to fast. Listen to your body and adapt your plan to match. :) Well done!
  • Avidkeo
    Avidkeo Posts: 3,206 Member
    polskagirl01 wrote: »

    I put off posting until I could include a picture of my ridiculous costume...
    I'm the reindeer in a tutu, and yes my tights matched thank you very much! fomva0gtbb9a.jpg
    nmlesejcrms4.jpg

    You did tutu day too!
    fyaicsj1v5l5.jpg
  • Avidkeo
    Avidkeo Posts: 3,206 Member
    edited February 2020
    Went for a 4k run this morning, but as my period is due, my appetite is raging. Hubby just took the kids out for a bit, so I'm going to go for a walk.

    This has 3 benefits: 1 - gets me away from temptation. 2: gives me more calories if I do cave to temptation when I get back. 3: I can listen to the end of my current crime file podcast on the Yorkshire ripper. I have a theory and want to see if I'm right.
  • emmamcgarity
    emmamcgarity Posts: 1,594 Member
    Finally caught up in all the posts the past few days. Our Parkrun here In Houston also did tutus this morning. They said something about rugby, but I didn’t understand how that related to tutus. I don’t have one. So I dressed in boring running capris and an athletic shirt. I guess I’ll need to scout sources for tutus for next time.. but the run was good, the coffee and companionship great. All in all a great day.

    Asthma - I also have asthma which is mostly seasonal but cold weather definitely is problematic for me when running. I use my inhaler a few minutes before heading out to run. And sometimes I’ll drape a light scarf around the lower half of my face to warm the air a little as I breath it in. Luckily we don’t have many cold weather days here.

    Sunscreen - I really should do better with this. In the Summer I run at night after dark due to the heat. But in Winter I’m actually running in daylight. Though my face moisturizer does have spf15. So I guess that’s something.
  • polskagirl01
    polskagirl01 Posts: 2,024 Member
    quilteryoyo wrote: »
    @polskagirl01 What I want to know is, did you wear the tutu on the run to and from the park run? If so, did you get any weird looks from passersby?

    No, I did not :) It was in my backpack. But we did get some strange looks during the run.

    @emmamcgarity I made my own. I had a bunch of pieces of tulle that the preschoolers wave around during my music classes, and I just threaded them onto a string and tied it around my waist :)
    Avidkeo wrote: »
    polskagirl01 wrote: »

    I put off posting until I could include a picture of my ridiculous costume...
    I'm the reindeer in a tutu, and yes my tights matched thank you very much! fomva0gtbb9a.jpg
    nmlesejcrms4.jpg

    You did tutu day too!
    fyaicsj1v5l5.jpg

    Oh fun! Yeah, for us it was a "Carnival" theme (as in the festive cultural season before lent, usually associated with costume parties and other revelry, depending on your age), which was also the reason for the donuts. Afterwards they wrote up their summary post like a news report about strange fugitives seen running around in circles at the park.
  • quilteryoyo
    quilteryoyo Posts: 6,474 Member
    All of the tutu/themed park runs sound like fun!

    @Avidkeo Hope you make it through the week without too much damage to your food plan.
  • PastorVincent
    PastorVincent Posts: 6,668 Member
    noblsheep wrote: »
    Popping back in here to say hi. I nearly drove myself crazy with a 16 day no run streak. Yesterday I went out before dawn for 8km and now feel much better. This running thing we're doing is better than meds.

    Planning to get back to running by doing low risk outings in the wee hours of the morning, and cycling since that seems to be a pretty good way of doing cardio without getting close to any other human beings. Been working from home for three weeks already. I think I was getting some variation of cabin fever back there. And the HIIT and strength training weren't doing anything for the mental health.

    I've long since given up any kind of goal for this month. But let's say three runs a week from now until the end of the epidemic, just to keep myself sane.

    Not been in the forum much, but read through all the posts and hit a lot of likes and hugs. Love you all, keep running guys!

    So glad to hear from you! The news reporting on what is going on over there is dismal.
  • noblsheep
    noblsheep Posts: 593 Member
    edited February 2020
    PastorVincent wrote: »
    noblsheep wrote: »
    Popping back in here to say hi. I nearly drove myself crazy with a 16 day no run streak. Yesterday I went out before dawn for 8km and now feel much better. This running thing we're doing is better than meds.

    Planning to get back to running by doing low risk outings in the wee hours of the morning, and cycling since that seems to be a pretty good way of doing cardio without getting close to any other human beings. Been working from home for three weeks already. I think I was getting some variation of cabin fever back there. And the HIIT and strength training weren't doing anything for the mental health.

    I've long since given up any kind of goal for this month. But let's say three runs a week from now until the end of the epidemic, just to keep myself sane.

    Not been in the forum much, but read through all the posts and hit a lot of likes and hugs. Love you all, keep running guys!

    So glad to hear from you! The news reporting on what is going on over there is dismal.

    Thanks! Generally speaking, the situation as a whole is getting better. Figures have been going down steadily for the last week or so, and everyday life is slowly ramping back up. But Beijing with all its transient population is in a bit of a risky state right now, especially if people start going back to work en masse starting this week or next. To be safe and responsible, we're staying very put until the end is in sight.
  • RunsOnEspresso
    RunsOnEspresso Posts: 3,218 Member
    I posted this in the FB group but I thought I'd cross-post here in case some aren't in the FB group.

    So I'm kind of in a weird place with my running right now.

    I want to do a 50k in March 2021 which means training would probably start September (I think that's months - which was the longest training plans I saw).

    I have some trail races this spring & summer but all are less than 7 miles. I've been keeping my long runs around 6-8 miles (the dog can handle this distance easily - she can do 9 or 10 but she gets tired and warm). It's starting to get warm already so I don't know if I should keep increasing my long runs or stick in the 6-10ish range.

    I was thinking of maybe increasing slowly so I run an unofficial marathon on my 40th birthday (8/30) and can say I did a marathon. LOL

    Thoughts?

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