FEBRUARY 2025 Monthly Running Challenge

quilteryoyo

Lovely pictures @ContraryMaryMary .

Sorry about the martins @SummerSkier . Mother nature can be harsh. You are doing great with your running. Thanks for your kind comments. I think you definitely in better shape as you are getting in so many more miles this year so far.

Great run @yirara .

Nice weather shift @Laurz9191 . Excellent run.

@Emilienewme Love the pictures. Looks like a lovely spot for a run. Glad you have someone to run and race with.

Great running @John772016 .

quilteryoyo

1 Feb - Walked 1.10 miles - Ran 2.10 miles - Treadmill
2 Feb - Walked 1.00 miles - Ran 0.00 miles - Driveway laps
3 Feb - Walked 0.85 miles - Ran 2.25 miles - Driveway laps - Gym-about 30 min (didn't turn on Garmin)
4 Feb - Walked 0.50 miles - Ran 2.60 miles - Driveway laps
5 Feb - Walked 1.10 miles - Ran 0.00 miles - Driveway laps - Gym-28m29s
6 Feb - Walked 0.60 miles - Ran 1.75 miles - Mostly driveway laps - Gym - 22m25s
7 Feb - Walked 0.80 miles - Ran 2.30 miles - Driveway laps
8 Feb - Walked 1.15 miles - Ran 0.00 miles - Driveway laps
9 Feb - Walked 1.10 miles - Ran 0.00 miles - Treadmill
10 Feb - Walked 1.10 miles - Ran 0.00 miles - Driveway laps
11 Feb - Walked 0.60 miles - Ran 2.50 miles - Treadmill
12 Feb - Walked 1.60 miles - Ran 2.50 miles - Treadmill - Gym - 25m09s
13 Feb - Walked 1.10 miles - Ran 2.50 miles - Treadmill
14 Feb - Walked 1.85 miles - Ran 1.25 miles - Treadmill - Gym - 26m22s
15 Feb - Walked 0.60 miles - Ran 1.00 miles - Treadmill
16 Feb - Walked 1.60 miles - Ran 0.00 miles - Treadmill
17 Feb - Walked 0.60 miles - Ran 1.50 miles - Treadmill - Gym - 24m37s
18 Feb - Walked 0.60 miles - Ran 2.50 miles - Treadmill
19 Feb - Walked 0.35 miles - Ran 2.75 miles - Snowy driveway laps
20 Feb - Walked 1.00 miles - Ran 3.10 miles - Treadmill
21 Feb - Walked 1.40 miles - Ran 3.10 miles - Treadmill
22 Feb - Walked 0.85 miles - Ran 4.75 miles - Treadmill
23 Feb - Walked 2.10 miles - Ran 0.00 miles - Treadmill

62.00/80 miles goal

Did my Sunday Rest day treadmill walk after church and before lunch. I didn't sleep very good (Garmin score of 43) so had planned to take a nap (Garmin said I needed extra rest today. I try to listen when it tells me something I want to hear. ) But, for some reason, I just couldn't get to sleep. I did rest on the couch most of the afternoon.

@SummerSkier I have looked back and I am running my treadmill runs about 1 min/mile faster, on avg, than I was last year. Once I get outside again, consistently, we'll see. It's harder on the hilly driveway. Still, may be faster, just not AS fast.

kgirlhart

February Goal: 125 miles

2/2: 13.25 miles
2/3: 4.02 miles
2/4: 6.27 miles
2/5: 6.04 miles
2/6: 7.02 miles
2/7: 4.26 miles
2/9: 11.92 miles
2/10: 6.20 miles
2/11: 6.02 miles
2/12: 6.02 miles
2/13: 3.26 miles
2/14: 3.26 miles
2/15: 10.11 miles
2/17: 6.02 miles
2/18: 6.26 miles
2/20: 2.62 miles
2/21: 6.52 miles
2/22: 13.11 miles

121.29/125 miles completed for February

The weather was absolutely perfect today. After a week of horrible weather it was so nice to have good weather for my long run. It was a beautiful run. I wore shorts and a t-shirt. It was just so nice that I felt like I could run forever. When I got home, I had run 11.25 miles. My husband said he thought that I would probably go for a half marathon since the weather was so nice. I said I thought about it, but thought I should get home since we were cooking out. So he told me that he had everything under control and that I should finish my run. So I ran around a few blocks until I got to 1.85 miles. I was a little disappointed that I had stopped my watch when i first got home, but there were only about 5 minutes between the end of the first run and the start of the second, so I am counting it as one run. And either way it was 13.11 miles.

CaityP27

Goal for February: 40km/25miles walking

01/02 2.29km - 30:16min - Treadmill
02/02 1.85km- 25.06 min- Treadmill
04/02 2.86km - 44 min - Outside
11/02 2.76km - 42.44min - Outside
13/02 9.74km - 2hr 22min - Outside
14/02 4.23km - 1hr 4min - Outside
17/02 5.36km - 1hr 16 min - Outside
20/02 2.38km - 32.37 min - Outside

21/02 2.49km - 36.20min -Outside
23/02 1.22km - 25.43 min - Outside
24/02 AM 2.08km- 28.37min - Outside
PM 4.55km - 1hr 1min - Outside
Total for Feb so far: 41.81kms/ 25.97 miles

This evenings walk had me questioning my life choices. First half was great, super easy, loved it, only took 25 mins to walk 2.3kms. Second half I had my 15kg/32lb toddler sitting on my shoulders insisting on having a full blown conversation while I was trying to walk back home. HR went from avg 115bpm to avg 135bpm for that second half.

quilteryoyo

Great run @kgirlhart . I love that your husband encouraged you to go out and finish a HM distance! Hope you enjoyed the cookout.

You're doing great @CaityP27 ! Carrying 35 pounds on your shoulders is tough and definitely increases your cardio!

martaindale

Feb total 87.6/100 miles
YTD: 204.6 miles

2/1: 6.5 miles
2/2: 14 miles
2/4: 3.2 miles
2/7: 4.4 miles
2/8: 6.4 miles
2/10: 4.6 miles
2/12: 4.4 miles
2/13: 6.5 miles
2/15: 8 miles
2/17: 4.2 miles
2/18: 3.9 miles
2/20: 5.4 miles
2/22: 3 miles
2/23: 13.2 miles

Did the Rock n Roll Last Vegas HM last night. Race report in the spoiler.

Tldr: The race was cool, I jacked up my fueling and paid for it with the hardest HM I've ever had.

I chose this race for NV because nothing seems more quintessential NV than running the Last Vegas strip at night. While the race itself was very fun, this was the worst I have ever felt during a HM. The evening timing threw everything off from what I usually do on race day. I woke up, had breakfast at a restaurant in my resort, a lemon crepe with berries. It was delicious! I also picked up a baguette to eat later. I came back to the room and spent most of the day watching YouTube videos about road tripping to national parks. I purposefully took it easy because I knew I'd be running this evening. Because I had a bigger breakfast I didn't get hungry like normal for lunch. I ate my baguette, some grapes, and a handful of peanut m&M's and felt fine. That was my mistake. Left the hotel at 3 and wasn't hungry but also didn't bring anything to eat right before the race. By the time I was getting into my corral at 4, I was hungry and all I had was gels. Usually, I don't take gel right before a race because I've just had breakfast, but I was already hungry and I knew that was going to be a problem. So I took a gel right before the start. I was also a little bit dehydrated despite feeling like I had been drinking a lot of water. The very dry air here also meant I should have been drinking way more water than I was used to. So, hungry and dehydrated to start a half marathon. I knew this wasn't going to be fun.

The race starts in front of the New York New York hotel. The Blue Man group was shooting off colored confetti for each starting group, of which there were several. It's a joint start of the 10K and HM totalling 45,000 racers based on the packet pickup stands. The grouped starts did a fantastic job keeping the course from feeling crowded. I was in the third starting group and we started around 4:45.

I abandoned any time goal before the race even started. I was hungry, already had a little bit of a headache, and knew this was going to be a slog. I decided to do the best I could to enjoy the experience. The course starts out heading south past the welcome to Las Vegas sign before flipping around and running the length of the strip. Coming back up the strip I passed the Bellagio while the water show was going on, which was really cool! Also, all that water injected a little bit of humidity into the air and it felt so nice! Along the way there were several DJs and bands themes to different parts of the strip.

Probably 3 to 4 mi in, I started getting a little charlie horse in my side, which usually happens either when I'm dehydrated or I'm hungry, and I was both. Even though I took a gel right before I started, I also my second one at about mile 3, which is earlier than I would typically fuel. I also made sure to stay on top of the salt tablets and drink water at every aid station. That charlie horse would continue to pop up throughout the race.

There were a lot of people out cheering along the newer part of the strip, but as I got into older Vegas the crowds dwindled and it got quieter. The people that were out in that part of the city were super supportive and had great signs. This part of the race was really difficult. My legs and feet were starting to hurt and the lack of fueling was draining all of my energy. Luckily, they were handing out gels on the course so I was able to supplement the stuff that I brought. By this point, I was starting to take walk breaks. My fitness was fine, and I could have run the whole thing without any problems. I probably shouldn't have stopped for walk breaks. It was so hard to get going again and my legs felt stiff but mentally I was so done. Once into older Vegas, the course flips around again to run the final miles back through the strip and finished in front of The Caesars hotel. I have never been so happy to see a finish line!

My one suggestion for improvement is fixing the exit shute. Once you cross the finish line, there's nobody directing people to keep moving. There were so many people just sitting on the ground and clogging up the walkway. It was difficult to navigate through and find out where things were. I got my medal and immediately started scanning for water. For the size of race, I was a little bit surprised at how small the nutrition pickups were at the end. Water was a couple of metal tubs that someone was constantly dumping bottles into but no one handing it out or again, keeping people moving. The snack bag was tiny and contained the sorts of things I would eat maybe before or during a workout but not a lot of stuff that I would eat afterwards. It took me forever just to find a banana and I was so hungry! Once I reached the end of the shute, I had to keep walking to find a pedestrian bridge to get across the street and stopped at basically the first quick place I could find, the Earl of Sandwich. Picked up a hot sandwich, chips, and a Snickers cheesecake. I limped back to my room to eat. After I ate, I showered and realized it was already almost 9:00. I was exhausted and ended up in bed shortly after.

I doubt I'll do another night race, but if I do I will be much more diligent about my food beforehand. And lesson learned about the water. I need way more than I even realized when it's dry.

WarmJellyfish

Good running everyone
@martaindale congrats on the half
Am at 29km for the month, all walking
I think I might have to go back to a couch to hero program to restart this year

Laurz9191

@martaindale That sounds like a really hard race! I do one evening race a year in my city (just an 5km) but find it so difficult to NOT be hungry before the race and still be fuelled enough to have a great race. I think it’s no easy feat! Great job completing your race while feeling so bad! I hope your recovery goes well!

@kgirlhart It’s really nice that your husband is so supportive in adding to your miles .

Today I ran 12km. The weather was nice, a bit chillier than yesterday, and my legs were a bit sore, so I took it kind of easy. Nothing “exciting” happened, just an average run .

267.9/301km.

John772016

All treadmill for Feb:

24/02 - 6.49K / 4.03 miles

Total = 129.59K / 80.52 miles (Goal - 145K/ 90 miles)

quilteryoyo

@martaindale That sounds like a really tough race for you. Hopefully we can all learn from your experience as far as nutrition and hydration goes when races aren't on our normal schedule. But, you toughed it out and finished! You are amazing in my book.

Great walking @WarmJellyfish .

Nice running @Laurz9191 .

quilteryoyo

1 Feb - Walked 1.10 miles - Ran 2.10 miles - Treadmill
2 Feb - Walked 1.00 miles - Ran 0.00 miles - Driveway laps
3 Feb - Walked 0.85 miles - Ran 2.25 miles - Driveway laps - Gym-about 30 min (didn't turn on Garmin)
4 Feb - Walked 0.50 miles - Ran 2.60 miles - Driveway laps
5 Feb - Walked 1.10 miles - Ran 0.00 miles - Driveway laps - Gym-28m29s
6 Feb - Walked 0.60 miles - Ran 1.75 miles - Mostly driveway laps - Gym - 22m25s
7 Feb - Walked 0.80 miles - Ran 2.30 miles - Driveway laps
8 Feb - Walked 1.15 miles - Ran 0.00 miles - Driveway laps
9 Feb - Walked 1.10 miles - Ran 0.00 miles - Treadmill
10 Feb - Walked 1.10 miles - Ran 0.00 miles - Driveway laps
11 Feb - Walked 0.60 miles - Ran 2.50 miles - Treadmill
12 Feb - Walked 1.60 miles - Ran 2.50 miles - Treadmill - Gym - 25m09s
13 Feb - Walked 1.10 miles - Ran 2.50 miles - Treadmill
14 Feb - Walked 1.85 miles - Ran 1.25 miles - Treadmill - Gym - 26m22s
15 Feb - Walked 0.60 miles - Ran 1.00 miles - Treadmill
16 Feb - Walked 1.60 miles - Ran 0.00 miles - Treadmill
17 Feb - Walked 0.60 miles - Ran 1.50 miles - Treadmill - Gym - 24m37s
18 Feb - Walked 0.60 miles - Ran 2.50 miles - Treadmill
19 Feb - Walked 0.35 miles - Ran 2.75 miles - Snowy driveway laps
20 Feb - Walked 1.00 miles - Ran 3.10 miles - Treadmill
21 Feb - Walked 1.40 miles - Ran 3.10 miles - Treadmill
22 Feb - Walked 0.85 miles - Ran 4.75 miles - Treadmill
23 Feb - Walked 2.10 miles - Ran 0.00 miles - Treadmill
24 Feb - Walked 1.60 miles - Ran 2.50 miles - Treadmill - Gym - 31m45s

66.10/80 miles goal

My personal trainer had to change my appointment from noon until 1:30, so it threw my schedule/plans off. I decided to do an easier treadmill session this morning, so ran 2.5 miles and walked 0.6. The run was at an avg pace of 12:51 min/mile. Avg HR was 124 with a max of 154 bpm.

I left early enough for the gym to run a couple of errands and then get in half a mile walk for a warm up before my weight lifting session. Today was legs, so I was glad I didn't do much more or push the run this morning. After the legs session, I did another half mile walk to cool down. I hope I'm not too sore in the morning.

kgirlhart

February Goal: 125 miles

2/2: 13.25 miles
2/3: 4.02 miles
2/4: 6.27 miles
2/5: 6.04 miles
2/6: 7.02 miles
2/7: 4.26 miles
2/9: 11.92 miles
2/10: 6.20 miles
2/11: 6.02 miles
2/12: 6.02 miles
2/13: 3.26 miles
2/14: 3.26 miles
2/15: 10.11 miles
2/17: 6.02 miles
2/18: 6.26 miles
2/20: 2.62 miles
2/21: 6.52 miles
2/23: 13.11 miles
2/24: 4.02 miles

125.31/125 miles completed for February

It was kind of chilly this morning at 43°F, but it wasn't freezing and it wasn't windy and there was a beautiful crescent moon so it was really good running weather. I was just planning to run a 5K to recover from my unplanned half yesterday, but it was just so nice that I ended up running 4 miles. I felt like I could go further, but unfortunately I had to go to work so I had to stop.

Great job on your race @martaindale. I've never run a night race, but I would think the fueling would be difficult.