July 2023 Monthly Running Challenge
Replies
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July 1 – 4.00 miles
July 2 - 4.01 miles
I did my weight session before running this morning and wouldn’t you know that today was posterial chain day. An hour and many, many Romanian dead lifts, Bulgarian split lunges, etc. later and my legs were jelly. Thought about sitting down and resting for a few minutes before I headed out for my run but I figured if I sat down too long I would not get going again. I ran 4 miles, walked 0.69 of a mile and pulled weeds out of my landscaping for a cooldown.
Good push @tarun_yadavA. Now stretch, stretch, stretch! I hope the new insoles work out.
@quilteryoyo – We got another strong line of thunderstorms around 4:30 yesterday evening. Today it is sunny and beautiful but more storms are forecasted for this evening.
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Today I decided to screw with Apple and broke my 10k run into 3 segments. It was actually kind of interesting. 2 miles pretty slow pace. 3.2 at a nice pace and then 1 mile as fast as I could! My HR actually got up to 195 but I had a 9:31 min mile. So altho I was messing with Apple to get 3 of my 21 5 minute runs in it actually encouraged me to do a little further and push at the end. I haven't run a 10k since early May and I love the distances so it is encouraging to me that things have hopefully turned the corner.
oh be careful of the cat.
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@Teresa502 thank you! 😊
Stretching away... And still doing my Heat-Ice-Heat regimen! Will do a couple of slower 6K ones for next couple of days. Work on form and posture
@SummerSkier well done on the 10K 🙌7 -
July Running Goal: 16 runs, 60 miles
Hello,
I'm Chris, I live in San Diego, California. I've been on MFP since 2009 and during that time I've had some wild swings with health and fitness. My most fit years were 2010 and 2019, when I did lots of food tracking and a lot of running. This year 2023 is my post covid/get back to running year. This is my fifth month on this thread, and I find that it is great accountability. I just plugged in some guesses, and then started following along.
I'm doing small goal increases each month to try and keep it fun, and injury-free.
Please connect on Garmin if you have one.
https://connect.garmin.com/modern/profile/chris_in_cal
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BTW: I'm about 100 lbs over my race weight, and since I've started running again five months ago I've lost zero pounds. I weigh about once a week or more, and it has been flatlined/locked on this weight.
I know a bunch of you have dropped their excess weight and are in maintenance, and of course that's my dream. I now have the beginnings of a base of fitness after these five months on this thread. I can plow through a couple of miles running, my BP is good, resting heart rate is good, VO2 Max is trending.....and I'm 100 lbs overweight. I'm not whining, just reporting the facts.8 -
chris_in_cal wrote: »BTW: I'm about 100 lbs over my race weight, and since I've started running again five months ago I've lost zero pounds. I weigh about once a week or more, and it has been flatlined/locked on this weight.
I know a bunch of you have dropped their excess weight and are in maintenance, and of course that's my dream. I now have the beginnings of a base of fitness after these five months on this thread. I can plow through a couple of miles running, my BP is good, resting heart rate is good, VO2 Max is trending.....and I'm 100 lbs overweight. I'm not whining, just reporting the facts.
Which just proves that you can’t outrun the fork Chris. 🥹. It’s tough to train and also drop weight best of luck3 -
☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽SummerSkier wrote: »Which just proves that you can’t outrun the fork Chris. 🥹
🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥💯🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥2 -
July Goal: 115 Miles
7/1: 1.26 miles
7/2: 11.11 miles
12.37/115 miles completed for July
It was pretty pleasant this morning when I started out. It was 72° F which isn't really cool, but is much cooler than it has been lately. I ran 11 miles. It was nice, but it was starting to get warm by the end at 83° feels like 85° so I was ready to be done. I saw 2 jackrabbits and a roadrunner at the cemetery. And I saw 7 people walking at the park. One lady had 2 dogs with her. I guess everyone wanted to get out after the rain yesterday. It's kind of a weird holiday weekend. I'll be off on Tuesday, but have to work tomorrow. I would have rather been off tomorrow and worked on Tuesday so I would have actually had a long weekend, but I guess at least I get a day off, so I shouldn't complain.
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Yes, and they make me sad, grateful, depressed, hopeful, and several other mixed feelings all at once. There are ones from 2, 3 or more years ago as well. 😕tarun_yadavA wrote: »Side note- does anyone here on Strava get those 'On this day 1y ago' reminders?
😔
@AlphaHowls I've heard of dogs that enjoy running, but that cat sure was determined!
I'm still trying to rest my way back to my recent baseline. Some storms came through and got rid of the Canadian wildfire smoke, which is awesome. So I sat way up in the backyard, next to my storage shed (where I found my old comfy lawn chair), and enjoyed the view.Of course the pretty roses back home finally decided to bloom. Husband sent me pictures:
I found bikes in the shed suitable for the kids (one of them that I rode for the entire Great Allegheny Passage bike trail one year), and my nice bike that they aren't allowed to touch😆, re-inflated all of the tires, and got them going. Once I get back to baseline, I may replace my good-day walks with some light cycling (starting with maybe 5 minutes up the road in the more flat direction, then back). My aunt's lake house is 5.2km away, but includes quite a bit of dramatic elevation change. Not sure I'll get there by bike this summer, and not setting it as a goal, but we'll see how it goes.12 -
July total: 9.3/100 miles
7/1: 5.2 miles
7/2: 4.1 miles
Treadmill miles this afternoon.6 -
Morning everyone!
Happy 4th July, you guys!
Got in an easy 6K... Eighth consecutive run for me
@polskagirl01 hope you're enjoying being home (and enjoying all the stuff you can't get back in Europe!)
@chris_in_cal In my humble opinion Sir...
In Feb I ran a full 26.2M marathon (God that feels so long ago now!!). Between Feb 1st and a few days post marathon, I'd actually put on about 6 Lbs.
I don't think training for a longish race (at pace) and losing weight are compatible IMO.
It took me all of March (31/31 runs, 172 miles - all at 08:45ish pace) to get back into the zone/175 Lbs.
Either lose some of that 100 Lbs first then think about long races; or maybe drop lower the frequencies of runs to maybe a couple of times a week... So you don't lose it... And focus 5/7 on losing weight (calorie deficit, bike/Elliptical, dumbbells etc)4 -
(get that today's the 3rd... But read/heard you guys all do long weekends and stuff!)3
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As per Strava comments with @tarun_yadavA I said I'd start the convo up in here on running form tips. I remember reading a lot of them in here in the old days, many from @PastorVincent (God I miss him still), and I found them very useful so thought we should drag them back out for newer members.
Help me out here, folks!
The one I vaguely remember was something about imagining you had headlamps on your hip points and nipples, I guess to avoid hip drop and torso twisting while keeping a nice straight posture...
Anyone remember more correctly and/or share any others?5 -
Meanwhile in me and running news...
I ran my moonlight race on Saturday night. It was hot and humid, bloody hard work because I ended up racing it even though I didn't intend to (surprise, surprise lol) but great fun and very pretty. The first half of the route is nothing to write home about, just along a road around the edge of the outskirts of a small town, but then it heads uphill for a couple of kilometres and runs through the forest for the second half. There is one stretch that burned last summer in the horrific wildfire that hit our mountain, which is still heartbreaking to see even though green stuff is starting to grow again. Eerily beautiful in the dark with an almost full moon in the sky and a snake of headlamps in the distance ahead and behind you.
I had avoided that particular race in the past because the small print gives a cutoff time of 90 minutes and I didn't think I could manage the 14km the details make it in that time. I'd run the route a couple of times last month to see and done it in around 1h45 each time, but I also looked up last year's results and saw had finishers around the 2 hour mark despite the supposed cutoff so I wasn't worried.
Well, it turns out if I push hard enough, ignore screaming hip flexors, only stop once to pick up the water bottle I dropped and once more to refill it, then really let rip on the last couple of km back down into town (almost smashing into a brick wall at the bottom of a steep downhill stretch with a sharp turn at the end) and manage a sprint finish, I can do it in 1:30:09 according to the official results.
I wasn't as sore as I expected yesterday, but stuck to stretching and half an hour on the bike to move my legs a bit, and went for a 45 min recovery run this morning.
We've been focusing on base training for a few weeks now and I can see the results. Whereas in the past my HR would end up spiking no matter how slowly I tried to go and I would be gasping and have to take frequent walk breaks, today I did the 45 minutes all in zone 3 with no walking at all until around minute 40, when I slowed to a walk for a couple of seconds as a dog came running towards me and I couldn't see a human with it.
Oh, and I just signed up for another race. First Saturday in August, mountains and darkness are involved. All of this is intended as training in case I end up doing one of the overnight stints of the ultra relay in November.9 -
Thanks @tarun_yadavA ! Great faster, longer run today. I'm glad the new ortho inserts seem to be the key. And form. As for the junk food - sounds like you were just carb loading for today.
@Teresa502 I don't know how you ran 4 miles after your legs were already jelly! You are amazing. I hope you can dodge the storms today - we have already had one heavy shower and more in the forecast.
Great run @SummerSkier . Is that your cat in a robot of sorts? Cute and interesting.
@chris_in_cal I don't know what your eating habits are, and it doesn't really matter. I just know that, unlike what we would want it to be, the quote "You can't outrun your fork." is a true statement. I am stuck at about 10 pounds over where I want to be too and keep fluctuating a couple of pounds around that number. I always think that with the extra activity I have in the summer I should lose, but I never do. Hang in there. Hopefully it will start dropping off soon, for both of us. (Looks like @SummerSkier stole my line. Or maybe I stole hers.)
Nice run @kgirlhart and glad it was a little cooler for you. I have the same work schedule - heading in for 6 hours today and off tomorrow.
You are doing great @polskagirl01 . Hang in there. Love your relaxing view.
Gotta go get ready for work. I'll try to catch up with the rest of the thread later.
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Back straight, don't arch, chest puffed...@tarun_yadavA wrote: »
So today's run I took @tarun_yadavA with me in my head.
7/1 18.58 miles, Running Partner A, plus kitten
7/2 17.29 miles, County Line and back
7/3 17.37 miles, 1890 days on the run, 1072 days HM+ Streak
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AlphaHowls wrote: »
Back straight, don't arch, chest puffed...@tarun_yadavA wrote: »
So today's run I took @tarun_yadavA with me in my head.
7/1 18.58 miles, Running Partner A, plus kitten
7/2 17.29 miles, County Line and back
7/3 17.37 miles, 1890 days on the run, 1072 days HM+ Streak
@AlphaHowls hahaha! love it
@eleanorhawkins headlights on the nips - it will be in my head tomorrow now! haha6 -
tarun_yadavA wrote: »@chris_in_cal In my humble opinion Sir...
I completely agree. For this year I planned to enjoy running along side dropping a hundred pounds.
It's easy to get lulled into thinking more running is what I need, but I can't outrun the fork (as some sage poster mentioned).
For fitness, fun, and mental health I can continue running and diversify into other activities.
For weight loss address the fork.
Okay....I'm breaking out my yoga mat, and consistently logging my food into the MFP diary.
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chris_in_cal wrote: »July Running Goal: 16 runs, 60 miles
Just for fun, I'm putting in my "Fork" status in my monthly running goal.
I'm calling July 1, 2023 as --- 0.0 lbs lost.4 -
Great job on your night race @eleanorhawkins!2
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@eleanorhawkins you absolutely SLAYED that moonlight race. 👏👏🌟👏👏 Congratulations. AND still able to run the next day.
@Scott6255 I am curious if you have been able to stop taking the Naproxin daily? My lower back/hip/whatever still aches quite a bit altho I can manage without anything. I have found that 1/2 an excedrin migraine 2x a day seems to put it to sleep. Not that I want to do that forever but it is nice to have some relief. 🥺✅
@chris_in_cal you are doing amazing with your ramp in running so I have no doubt if you put your mind to it you can drop a few pounds this month. Just remember slow and steady will win the race and then you can be in maintenance and go up and down 5 pounds every once in a while.
@AlphaHowls and @tarun_yadavA another posture "hack" that a friend told me about is to turn your palms up for a few strides. Amazingly this rolls your shoulders back and helps you posture. My parents both had the dreaded dowager humps in their 80's and I am determined to fight it as long as I can.
@polskagirl01 glad you are recovering from the long trip and sorry you are missing the blooming roses at home. It sounds encouraging to me that the bike is calling to you. 💖🌟💖
I am trying to check in here daily and at least until work cranks back up again on Wed get an hour of something done in the mornings. I did not take any meds at all or ice overnight and I was really gimpy this morning. sigh. But I thought at least I could get out and do a mile or so before it got hot. The more I jogged/walked the first half mile that looser things got (versus more crippling!) so after about 10 minutes I restarted my watch and did a 5K run. Then I cooled down again with some jogging and walking to get about 4 plus miles in. I don't think it was the 10K yesterday which made me so sore but rather weaning off the excedrin yesterday. I know things are improving but I am so dang impatient for "this" to be over with.
@quilteryoyo you have to be kind of a sci fi geek to get the photo of the cat in the machine. 😂😂😂 I was just following along with the current "cat" theme.
I have a strava account linked but I don't use it as my main fitness tracker. Just my fitbit and apple watch.
Which even after almost a year or more fitbit still inflates my mileage and pace.
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July total: 15.3/100 miles
7/1: 5.2 miles
7/2: 4.1 miles
7/3: 6 miles
Another hot morning. Found some sprinklers about halfway through.
Re: form checks. A big one for me is relaxing my face, shoulders, arms, hands. When I first started running and I would get tired I would catch myself tensing up my shoulders and kind of grimacing my face. All of that uses energy. Relaxing actually makes running feel easier.
I also do a version of @tarun_yadavA mantra but mine is more like head high, shoulders back, chest out. One thing that I found helps my posture a lot was concentrating more on keeping a little bit of tone in my abs rather than just focusing on my shoulders, etc. That helped a lot with getting my upper body to be in a better posture as well.8 -
Hello everyone! I had a nice 8.2 km run this morning followed by a nice 3.6km kid/training/race practice run with my friend’s daughter this evening. My son has unfortunately had a headache all day so he didn’t feel up to joining us. Hopefully he will feel ok to race on Wednesday. The weather has been very pleasant here these past few days and I am trying to make the most of it
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So far, so good for July - 23.4km/150km.8 -
7/1: 3 miles
7/2: 3 miles
Total: 6/60 miles completed.
My goal for July is 60 miles, with more focus on speed. I was getting pretty comfortable with the speed I've been running on the treadmill, so for my first couple of runs this month, I have been playing with speeds to see what I can do. I was happy to find that I was able to cut a minute and half off of my 3 mile run, without it being too challenging. I'm excited to see what I'll be able to accomplish this month.7 -
So glad you are able to do consecutive runs again @tarun_yadavA !
Hahahaha This doesn't surprise me. Congratulations on your race results! Sounds like you did great!eleanorhawkins wrote: »Oh, and I just signed up for another race. First Saturday in August, mountains and darkness are involved. All of this is intended as training in case I end up doing one of the overnight stints of the ultra relay in November.
You are doing great @SummerSkier !
Great running @martaindale ! Glad you can find sprinklers to run through.
Great run @Laurz9191 . It's good to see that you are having pleasant weather. I hope your son feels better soon.
Nice running and goal @Zaxa2021 !
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July 1: Walk 1.00 mile Run 2.00 miles - treadmill
July 2: Walk 2.00 miles - treadmill
July 3: Walk 2.00 miles Run 1.50 miles - treadmill
8.50/80 mile goal
I didn't post yesterday. Just my 2 mile treadmill walk after church and a nap for my rest day.
Today, I was supposed to work from 11-5, but when I went in, they really didn't need me. Since I had driven into town, I did work for 3 hours....I got to be in the baby room and put the itty bitty 6 week old to sleep. I love little baby cuddles.
After I got home, I did a treadmill session. I was tired and lazy, so decided on the quarter mile intervals. I did 6 x (3.8/5.0 mph) and then half mile at 3.8 mph for cool down. So, I'm counting it as 1.5 miles ran and 2.0 miles walked.4 -
@Zaxa2021 that's an amazing improvement for your 3 mile run! Great job.
@SummerSkier yes, I have been able to stay off of the daily Naproxen, and my other addiction of slathering IcyHot on my calves has dwindled to almost nothing too I still feel some twinges of pain when I start off, but it is getting less and less. I have cheated a couple times with the Naproxen before a Saturday long run, but trying hard not to do that.
Got in a 10K on the treadmill after work.
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Ugggh, yes. It started with pretzel bites dipped in cheese sauce, then progressed to Poptarts, English muffins (cinnamon-sugar raisin, of course)... then to cake and brownies at the lake... not to mention the homemade cheeseburgers my Dad just made... I've been here almost a week though, so it's probably time to back off on all of the junk. I have NO chance of outrunning my fork!tarun_yadavA wrote: »@polskagirl01 hope you're enjoying being home (and enjoying all the stuff you can't get back in Europe!)
Yes, I remember that with the headlamps, "hips and nips" to help avoid the twisting some people do. Also imagining a string coming out of your head, pulling you upwards (for straight posture), and a slight lean forwards - from your ankles - to help propel you forward. Apparently running barefoot can give you a feel for some of what you should be doing. I've also heard that messing too much with your gait can be detrimental, and that some of our bodies just look funny when we're running, but it can still be efficient for us (see Camille Herron - you can't argue form with someone when they're winning).eleanorhawkins wrote: »As per Strava comments with @tarun_yadavA I said I'd start the convo up in here on running form tips. I remember reading a lot of them in here in the old days, many from @PastorVincent (God I miss him still), and I found them very useful so thought we should drag them back out for newer members.
Help me out here, folks!
The one I vaguely remember was something about imagining you had headlamps on your hip points and nipples, I guess to avoid hip drop and torso twisting while keeping a nice straight posture...
Anyone remember more correctly and/or share any others?
Great race, @eleanorhawkins ! Sounds awesome. I love night races. You're really doing great.
I had a lake day today, which means I sat around and my kids played in the water. Even the boat ride consisted of me laying down in the back. So I think that means it was a success. I'm feeling *slightly* better today, so hopefully have turned the corner on this particular crash.9 -
July Goal: 115 Miles
7/1: 1.26 miles
7/2: 11.11 miles
7/3: 6.25 miles
18.62/115 miles completed for July
I ran 6.25 miles this morning. Tomorrow will be a holiday, so I decided to have my rest day then instead of today so I can sleep in. I'll get a mile in sometime tomorrow, but not at 5:30 in the morning. It was pleasant enough this morning at about 75°F. I enjoyed the run and felt pretty good. It was an uneventful run, but nice.
Great job on your night race @eleanorhawkins ! 7 -
Good morning everyone!
Got in a pacier 6K today
(Can't seem to upload today! ... Oh well. For those on Strava - I'm sure you'll see it there!)
@polskagirl01 - ooooh yum. How's Poland for Pretzels? (Realise it's a very German thing!)
But yes. Going to America (from Europe) is calorific carnage. I'm back there in 2weeks. God help me! Thank God I'm running again is all 🙏
(Will almost certainly squeeze in a trip to the Cheesecake factory again!)
@eleanorhawkins thinking of nipples and headlights throughout today's run. Laughing. Such old school guy code for 'its cold' and/or 'shes not wearing a Bra' 🤣😂
(Sorry ladies!)
@chris_in_cal how accurate is your logging of calories btw? Both - eating and exercising.6
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