April 2023 Monthly Running Challenge

kgirlhart

April Goal: 110 Miles

4/2: 11.03 miles
4/4: 6.02 miles
4/5: 5.25 miles
4/6: 5.51 miles
4/9: 11.02 miles
4/11: 5.25 miles
4/12: 5.26 miles
4/13: 6.02 miles

55.36/110 miles completed for April

It was another beautiful morning. 55°F with a light wind. I ran 6 miles and felt really good. I took the first 3 miles pretty easy, but then I tried to speed up for the last 3. My paces were: 11:00, 11:03 and 11:26 for the first 3 miles. and: 11:00, 10:41 and 9:35 for the last 3 miles. I felt really strong afterwards. It was so pretty this morning. The moon was really bright and there were lots of stars. I also saw a skunk.

eleanorhawkins

@martaindale the flowers are stunning. They're suddenly gorgeous here too, I don't remember them being so great last year, guess I'm running in better places or something. How is your kid getting on?
@quilteryoyo boo for internet woes, yay for tennis and cardiologist wins!
@katharmonic so glad to hear you're doing well, must be much more comfortable with the drains gone. I don't remember my mum having those but they sound nasty. I agree about the sudden summer, spring seemed to last about a day and a half. Snakes, argh, yikes, noooooo.

I'm tapering and freaking out a bit now lol. After a lot of trying to arrange family plans I finally decided to travel alone for my race. I've booked myself a cheap and cheerful room a 15 minute walk from the start and 20 minute walk from the finish line, will drive up there on the Saturday morning, eat, pick up my race pack, have an early night, race, shower, eat all the food (there's a Domino's another 15 minute walk away if my legs can manage that), sleep, then drive home on the Monday morning. My husband isn't very happy about that, but I refuse to have to entertain, organise and cater to them that weekend. They were going to go bowling instead of going to see me finish and expected me to go find them afterwards. Nope, not playing. They can go bowling at home instead. Ha!

Mari33a

Got a run in just before it got too dark last night. We had quite a bad storm for a few day but it's passed now.
02/04 3.26 miles
03/04 3.24 miles
05/04 3.26 miles
07/04 3.26 miles
10/04 3.27 miles
13/04 3.25 miles

Total 19.54/40miles



My daughter is attending a wedding in Castlebar, Co Mayo today and President Biden is also visiting the area. It's causing some problems for the wedding because of road closures and access and they are thinking off all the days this could possibly happen!

quilteryoyo

Fantastic fast finish this morning @kgirlhart !

Thanks @eleanorhawkins Sounds like you made a wise decision there. Just concentrate on doing what you need to to run your best race possible. I'm sure you are going to do great.

@Mari33a Great running. I'm glad the storm is past and I hope the wedding isn't impacted too much. Sometimes I wonder if politicians realize how much their presence can impact the everyday life of other people.

I broke down and called the phone company, ISP, last night. Usually, if they do anything, it lasts about 10 min and then there is another issue. Knock on wood, so far it is doing great. He said he could see that I had a problem, did something from there, and.... We shall see how long it lasts. But, for now, I'm happy.

AlphaHowls

4/1 15.27 miles, The wind is a bully!
4/2 15.56 miles, I am so cold! 37°F
4/3 15.29 miles 57°F and still lose fine motor skills/cold
4/4 15.3 miles, 1800 days on the run, 982 days HM+ Streak
4/5 15.48 miles, 74°F, humid, south winds! SWEET!
4/6 15.47 miles Crazy Laps! Cold rain = nope
4/7 15.22 miles Crazy Laps!
4/8 17.61 miles 50 days meat free Running Partner E+1(17 weeks)
4/9 15.42 miles, 1805 days on the run, 987 days HM+ Streak Crazy Laps!
4/10 15.28 miles
4/11 15.69 miles Running Partner A! so happy she is home
4/12 15.43 miles 4 hours sleep, run of the dead!
4/13 15.32 miles Running Partner A! Bear Attack!
4/14 15.2 miles, 1810 days on the run, 992 days HM+ Streak, 2 dogs circling me


Bear Attack!

I was at a lecture on Wednesday in Nashville, TN. The speaker always uses bear attack for fight/flight response and discussion. He said because in reality it is rare and he does not want to trigger anyone. I wrote to him about my attack the next day.

I am a long distance runner and I encounter a myriad of experiences along the way. I got up @3:30 AM to get started on the day. I was on the road by 4:25 AM. I am already in my quiet head space and not even a quarter mile from home. I start up the hill and I am suddenly in the midst of danger. It is dark, but I heard the ferocious barking within 10 feet of me. My heart rate jumped and I heard the owner scream, "Bear, NO!" I turned to face what I know is a black German Shepherd (dark and I cannot see him), named Bear. I scream, "Bear, NO!" I have my feet planted and face the bear. The owner is frantically berating Bear, telling him how naughty he is.

Alert system calmed down, all within seconds, I was back on my route and had to smile thinking about the rare bear attack. I realized later down the road that I had made the stance to fight. It has often been in my mind what would I do if I faced danger. I always thought I would run, but I was set on facing this bear.

2 Dogs circling me:

UHG! to the 2 new dogs in the route that I have never seen. Both circling me, barking, hackles raised. One is lactating female, so more worried about her. Owner finally comes out in his robe, waves at me, "they don't bite." My alert system tells me to not turn from the female. Owner scolds his dogs, "don't make me come out there!"
It is times like these, that I do not trust what could possibly come out of my mouth.

My sunrise! I love this picture so very much!

chris_in_cal

eleanorhawkins wrote: »

My husband isn't very happy about that, but I refuse to have to entertain, organise and cater to them that weekend.

I'm excited to see how this goes for you.

Please don't read this next part, but print it out and give it to your family.

[You can always go and surprise her at the finish line with a hug, a high five, an ice cold water, an orange slice, and later get a car to take her to Dominos.]

There ya go!!!!!

eleanorhawkins

chris_in_cal wrote: »

eleanorhawkins wrote: »

My husband isn't very happy about that, but I refuse to have to entertain, organise and cater to them that weekend.

I'm excited to see how this goes for you.

Please don't read this next part, but print it out and give it to your family.

[You can always go and surprise her at the finish line with a hug, a high five, an ice cold water, an orange slice, and later get a car to take her to Dominos.]

There ya go!!!!!

@chris_in_cal thanks. I have secretly hoped for that kind of thing many a time but am now resigned to the fact that it ain't gonna happen. They couldn't if they wanted to, I'm taking the car haha.
I came 3rd place in my age group at a small race a couple of months ago, and they had stayed with me the night before it but then left while I was racing and left me to find my own way home. Standing on that podium without them there hurt, a lot, and made me realise this is my crazy journey and it's up to me to find my own way to enjoy it to the max. This time, that means going alone so I focus on my race and taking care of myself. Other upcoming races it means I'll be going with new running club friends.

quilteryoyo

@AlphaHowls Funny about your bear attack. Sorry about the dogs you didn't know though. It is good to know that you have it in you to fight and not always run away. Beautiful sunrise, but am I the only one that sees a green UFO behind the tree limb?

@eleanorhawkins I hate that your DH and son didn't stick around for your podium appearance. I know that had to hurt, but I'm so glad that you have decided to focus on yourself and the race and finding others to join you on your adventures.

I did a driveway run this morning. It was a huge struggle. I wasn't driving the bus, I was being dragged way behind the bus, with no hopes of even catching it to get on. Not sure what the issue was, but I had planned a long-ish run. When I was struggling walking up the hill for my warm up walk, I knew that wasn't going to happen. So, my goal was a 45 min run. Once I started running, I knew that wasn't going to happen either. My legs were really stiff, my breathing was hard, and I was as slow as molasses. I modified to try for 3 miles, but that went out the window too. I just couldn't get my brain past the struggle. I decided it really wasn't worth pushing it and quit at 2.5 miles. My HR was okay. I had wanted to keep in under 140 bpm. Avg was 133 with a max of 144bpm. My avg pace for the run was 14:08 min/mile. The best thing I can say about this run is that I did something and burned some calories. After I cooled a few minutes, I went out and did some yard work until it stared raining - only got about 25 min in.

I can't get the ticker factory to come on my computer tonight, so I'll just say I'm up to 35.3/80 mile goal for the month. I may struggle to get there this month.

AlphaHowls

quilteryoyo wrote: »

@AlphaHowls Funny about your bear attack. Sorry about the dogs you didn't know though. It is good to know that you have it in you to fight and not always run away. Beautiful sunrise, but am I the only one that sees a green UFO behind the tree limb?

Yes, I saw the UFO. Anytime I take a picture of the sun/bright, I am able to catch the aliens!

Mari33a

02/04 3.26 miles
03/04 3.24 miles
05/04 3.26 miles
07/04 3.26 miles
10/04 3.27 miles
13/04 3.25 miles
14/04 3.25 miles

Total 22.79/40miles url=https://www.tickerfactory.com/exercise/w0h8Z2y/][/url]

eleanorhawkins

AlphaHowls wrote: »

quilteryoyo wrote: »

@AlphaHowls Funny about your bear attack. Sorry about the dogs you didn't know though. It is good to know that you have it in you to fight and not always run away. Beautiful sunrise, but am I the only one that sees a green UFO behind the tree limb?

Yes, I saw the UFO. Anytime I take a picture of the sun/bright, I am able to catch the aliens!

@AlphaHowls I freaked out when I saw bear attack! Dogs and snakes are my biggest fears while running alone, but if we had bears they'd be up there too. I see the UFO too!

@quilteryoyo well done on adjusting and still getting something done. Those are the character building runs!

martaindale

So glad to hear good medical news @katharmonic and @quilteryoyo!

@katharmonic New car is exciting! I’m currently sort of car shopping to replace my car that will be almost 12 years old by the time I’m ready to hand it down to my kid. It’s in good shape and works perfectly fine, but I’m looking forward to a leap forward in time as well.

@AlphaHowls Bear attack Absolutely gorgeous sunrise!

@eleanorhawkins Have an awesome time at your race! I love it when I can manage a close walk in/out for a race. It doesn’t happen often. I do most of my races solo too (including a week at Disney world for Dopey! Seriously couldn’t convince anyone to go to Disney world. It was wonderful BTW). Often my family isn’t interested in waking up early or waiting around for the finish. My husband went with me to my first 5k and I saw him sitting at a picnic table reading as I finished. I still give him a hard time for that. I texted him a copy of this picture as I was walking over.

And thanks for asking about my kid. Things were a little better for a bit. It’s hard to enjoy those days because it feels like it’s going to go away. It’s only been about a month since they got out of the hospital and I think their depression is getting worse but having a hard time convincing them that anything is changing. They are tired ALL THE TIME. All day they move through the world with eyes half shut and really looking like they would fall asleep if they stopped moving but they are sleeping more than ever at night. Also, not really eating. This kid has always been picky and tends to hyperfixate on a few foods at a time. Then they get burned out on them and won’t touch whatever it is for months or years. PB&J has been the only thing they have probably never truly burned on. Now throw in the feeling that eating is “too much work” and there are days I’m lucky if that kid gets 1000 cals in. And you can’t convince a teenager that they are wrong about anything, so they will not accept that their poor eating is probably part of the reason they feel so crappy. We have less than 6 weeks of school left. I’m just hoping we can hold on until then without any major breakdown. Hopefully removing school stress will help some.

martaindale

April total: 46.5/115 miles

4/1: 6 miles
4/3: 4 miles
4/5: 5.1 miles
4/6: 3.1 miles
4/8: 8 miles
4/9: 4.1 miles
4/11: 3.1 miles
4/13: 3.1 miles
4/14: 10 miles

I had to move some things around because there is an art show at the waterway that my MIL and I are planning to go to today (Saturday) and I didn’t have time for a long run before we would need to leave. Luckily I wasn’t in clinic Friday so I could run in the morning then work later in the day.
So Friday long run was planned for 11 miles. Obv, cut a mile off that. I tried UCAN gels on this run. They recommend one 15 mins before exercise then another every 60-90 mins. It’s a starch based fuel, not sugar, so it’s supposed to stick around longer and you don’t need the water to dilute the hyper concentrated sugar. Worth a try, but isn’t going to work for me. I felt ready for fuel about mile 4ish, but needed to wait until mile 5 because I stupidly didn’t bring a backup extra gel and I knew if I took it too early I would tank miles before I was supposed to finish. So I took the next one at mile 5, and it was gone by mile 8. At that point, I was far enough from my house that cutting that 1 mile was the best I could do so I slowed it down, took a few walk breaks when I needed, and just made it home. I have a few of those left but I think I will use them for pre-run fuel and stick with gu or maurten for runs.
Currently it is raining and it’s almost time for me to get out the door for a shorter run before heading to the art show. Luckily it looks like the rain should be pretty much done in another hour or so and stay gone for a few hours.

SummerSkier

Closing in on 500 miles for the year. Enjoying reading all the news but hard to comment as there is SO MUCH!

Goal of 120 miles is in sight and the 2nd half of the month may be a little lighter on mileage.

quilteryoyo

Thanks @eleanorhawkins !

Thanks @martaindale . Funny picture of your DH, even though you probably didn't think it was funny at that moment. Sorry to here that your kid isn't doing well. I'm sure they are taking an anti-depressant. Can you talk to their doctor and maybe get is changed or add something? I don't really have any advice, just big hugs for you and them. Nice run yesterday, even with not having enough fuel. I hope your run today is nice and that you and your mom enjoy the art show.

Great running @SummerSkier !

eleanorhawkins

@martaindale ugh I hear you on the sleepiness and the thinking they know everything! Mine dropped out of school after her nervous breakdown at the beginning of Feb. She's a little less stressed out but her anxiety kicks in a million times a day. She feels useless not doing anything, but says she's scared of getting sick again if she does. Also, there's a new pain or ailment every day. Always something. Her therapist doesn't want to give her medication and she would probably refuse it anyway. And to think we thought the colics and teething were hard, huh?

martaindale

eleanorhawkins wrote: »

@martaindale ugh I hear you on the sleepiness and the thinking they know everything! Mine dropped out of school after her nervous breakdown at the beginning of Feb. She's a little less stressed out but her anxiety kicks in a million times a day. She feels useless not doing anything, but says she's scared of getting sick again if she does. Also, there's a new pain or ailment every day. Always something. Her therapist doesn't want to give her medication and she would probably refuse it anyway. And to think we thought the colics and teething were hard, huh?

quilteryoyo wrote: »

Sorry to here that your kid isn't doing well. I'm sure they are taking an anti-depressant. Can you talk to their doctor and maybe get is changed or add something?

Oh, they are on all the meds. They get tweaked from time to time if something doesn’t seem to be working right but with psychiatric meds it often takes a month or 2 to even see the effects. It’s also not simple depression. They also have anxiety and may actually be bipolar but are too young to be diagnosed as such. It’s a moving target. @eleanorhawkins I feel like you and I are living parallel lives. I’m sorry your kid is struggling. I am worried mine will end up dropping out of school and getting stuck not knowing what to do with themself. My husband doesn’t seem worried about that but I don’t know that he seems them objectively. Technically they will be 18 before graduating from high school so at this point I just hope we can at least get them through that. I hope I’m wrong but I’m preparing not to be.

quilteryoyo

I'm so so sorry that your children are both struggling with this @eleanorhawkins and @martaindale . I'm glad you can be there for each other.

SummerSkier

It’s too bad that there’s no way to get the kids interested in some sort of sport. I know when I was a teen between tennis and horseback riding. I really didn’t have much time to think deep thoughts

shanaber

@martaindale and @eleanorhawkins - sending you both big hugs! I don't have any real experience other than my older brother. He also dropped out of school, was on suicide watch for much of his teen years and stopped taking his medications so many times. It is so hard to see them struggle and not know how to fix things or even make it a little better. My brother made it through and but still struggles. Depression and anxiety are such terrible illnesses that we just can't seem to get a handle on.

@eleanorhawkins - I loved @chris_in_cal comment to your husband. I can commiserate. For all the races I have done, my husband was more than willing to drop me off or pick me up after but never watched any of them or met me at the finish line. Even in SF when we literally stayed at the hotel right at the start/finish.
I hope you enjoy the race, don't stress too much and enjoy a relaxing time away from everyone, doing and eating whatever you feel like!

@AlphaHowls - I too was startled with the 'Bear Attack' until I read it 😂 We don't have bears here but like you dogs are a problem. I honestly worry more abut Hobbes being attacked by dogs their owners can't control or think are friendly regardless of on or off leash. Interestingly we have a (huge) dog in the neighborhood that is frequently off leash in their yard. She runs out to see Hobbes and the two romp and try to play. Her owner was so worried that she had attacked Hobbes but it is like the two know each other and are buddies. I guess she hasn't been friendly to other dogs in the area.
I love all your sunset pictures here and on Strava! Beautiful!!

Our flowers are blooming like crazy too from all the rain. We are hoping to get a drive out to the Poppy Preserve in the next week or so. This last Thursday thought we needed to be out of the house and it was wet and rainy so just took a drive that we hadn't before from inland Lake Elsinore to the coast. Had a great view of the lake that was previously all but a dry basin.

This was taken from the car and I couldn't get close enough to identify but I think it is blue sage.

Saw several Cleveland or chaparral yucca off the road but not where I could get a picture. I have never seen them in bloom like this before and they are fantastic.

This lavender is from my garden where they have just exploded and are replicating little plants all over. I had never noticed the perfect, tiny little flowers within the flower bud before.

Running - I have been trying to get out as much as my body will allow without overdoing it. Yesterday had a great run. It was cloudy and cool with a coldish wind, then got mostly sunny and warm and then cold and drizzly on the return home. My watch died so I brought up Strava on my phone instead but that meant I couldn't use my interval app. I just ran what I could took my walk breaks and stopped a couple f times to enjoy the views and birds. I ended up with just over three miles running with 2 well under my usual 13 min mile. I was pretty pleased with the pace and seeing some improvement.
So far I am at 37.64 miles so just about halfway to goal!