April 2016 Running Challenge

6 miles today at a nice slow, easy pace. I was pretty stiff for the first quarter mile from yesterday's long run, but the rest of the run was quite pleasant.

I had to dodge many sticks and run though lots of mud and dirt on the paved trails today after the recent storms. We had so much hail for so long that chunks of trees got shredded. Makes me wonder what the natural trails look like.

4/1 - Rest
4/2 - 14 miles
4/3 - 5 miles
4/4 - 5 miles
4/5 - 5 miles
4/6 - 8 miles
4/7 - 5 miles
4/8 - Rest
4/9 - 13.1 miles
4/10 - 5 miles
4/11 - 5 miles
4/12 - 5 miles
4/13 - 8.3 miles
4/14 - 5 miles
4/15 - Rest
4/16 - 13.3 miles
4/17 - 5 miles
4/18 - 4 miles
4/19 - 4 miles
4/20 - 4 miles
4/21 - 4 miles
4/22 - Rest
4/23 - 13.1 miles (or 12.5???)
4/24 - Rest
4/25 - 6 miles
4/26 - 6 miles
4/27 - 10 miles
4/28 - 6 miles

158.8/160 miles



Upcoming races:
4/9 - Rock the Parkway half marathon (Kansas City, MO) 2:30:17.6 new PR
4/16 - Garmin Wickedly Fast half marathon (Olathe, KS) 2:28:39.52 new PR
4/23 - Heroes for Hope half marathon (North Kansas City, MO) 2:19:14 new PR
5/1 - Buffalo Bell Stampede half marathon (Leavenworth, KS)
5/14 - Running with the Cows half marathon (Bucyrus, KS)
6/2 - Hospital Hill 5k 7pm PRE-RUN (Kansas City, MO)
6/3 - Hospital Hill half marathon 7am RE-RUN (Kansas City, MO)
9/25 - Broadway Bridge half marathon (Kansas City, MO)
10/15 - Kansas City Marathon 26.2 (Kansas City, MO)
11/5 - Jenks half marathon (Jenks, OK)
11/6 - Kansas half marathon (Lawrence, KS)
11/12 - Longview half marathon (Kansas City, MO)
11/13 - Gobbler Grind half marathon (Overland Park, KS)
11/19 - White River half marathon (Cotter, AR)
11/20 - Pilgrim Pacer half marathon (Lenexa, KS)

9voice9 wrote: »

Elise4270 wrote: »

I'm at 98/130 for the month- so sad. Maybe I'll get lucky and be able to get 2 miles before the end of the month.

Think of me on your runs.

Being slightly CDO myself, I completely understand the NEED to get those last 2 miles in. 'Fraid I'm not thinking of much WHILE I'm running, but I'll keep you in thoughts and prayers otherwise, mm-kay?

All ya gotta do is lie to me.

@Elise4270 - I will run my HM in your honor this weekend! Heck, for that matter, this weekends HM is for all of the MFP Running Challenge peeps in the infirmary.

Oh, and something I just thought about while blending up my post-run meal smoothie...

Back in the March challenge I ran to the store to get some beets, some of you may recall because there was some funny imagery people had of me running 2 miles back to my house carrying a bag of beets (which I did actually do). I was taking in some beets as part of my regular diet after reading about beets possibly having a positive impact on your bodies ability to deliver oxygen to your muscles thereby increasing endurance and even speed. I recall @Stoshew71 saying he was curious to know how this went, which is why I am sharing here (and for others who may be interested).

So, in the weeks since I started having some beets regularly on my run days I feel faster and feel my long runs are easier. Granted, I have to give a large chunk of this credit towards my training. I am currently about 45 seconds/mile faster than just a month ago. I have not felt any need to walk on long runs, even on increased mileage weeks.

How much I can credit the beets? I have no idea. But I do plan to keep them in my nutrition plan if only for their unique antioxidants and boatloads of iron and Vitamin A (I use the greens as well).

Now, I consume my beets differently than how most people who specifically take beets to assist in running. The stories I read had people consuming beet juice BEFORE a run. In my case I am using the actual beet vegetables (and greens) as part of a smoothie that I eat an hour or two after a run as a first post-run meal. So basically, I run, then have my standard recovery drink (carbs+protein) then an hour or two later I make my smoothie which is:
50g Beet root
140g Blueberries
120g Dark sweet cherries
120g Triple berry blend (blackberries, raspberries, blueberries)
30g Beet greens (leaves and stems)
30g Spinach
30g Kale
42g Mixed nuts (for fat and protein)
1 scoop protein powder (for protein)

Similarly to how I feel I can notice faster recovery from my recovery drink, I feel like this smoothie has a similar effect. Granted, it is a crazy blend of healthy crap, so that may be a given. But there it is.

For whatever it's worth to anyone. Could be nothing, could actually be something. But my running HAS improved in the last month, no doubt about that.

@MNLittleFinn Thanks! I'll take it! @WhatMeRunning I was thinking about that today, you and those beets. I had fresh vegetable juice today at lunch, and something has knocked me smooth sleepy (OK it could be work/depression/no running/the talk of a strike-I'm in a salaried non union position- so that could be a disaster).

I copied your recipe. I do plan on getting my juicer out, ugh it's SUCH a mess. But, why the heck not. It's not like I'm spending 5-7 hours a week running.

I may be out. So I'm going to focus on nutrition and dropping some weight. Perfect timing on the beet info.

@MNLittleFinn - My Glycerin 13s are my favorite shoes! They are my second pair. I wear a wide, and there aren't that many running shoes that come in wide so I am somewhat limited. RE: wide shoes... I love it when shoe store people tell me, just buy a bigger size. No running store employee has ever said that! Just regular shoe store people.

@elise4270 - so sorry, again, about your injury. You have gotten so much running in the past few months.

@_nikkiwolf_ - When I have clothing issues like that I immediately just throw them away the second I get home! Because otherwise I forget and wear them and then realize it out on a run. Same is true with regular clothes.

@skippygirlsmom - yay! negative splits on two days! Good luck with your track fundraiser! I'm looking forward to @PoppetsMaster sense of humor. No pressure there @PoppetsMaster.

April Running Totals (miles)
4/1 – scheduled rest day
4/2 – 13.31 easy
4/3 – 7.83 easy
4/4 – 4.59 easy 30 minutes + 4 strides
4/5 – 14.14 warm up + speed work
4/6 – 5.18 easy
4/7 – 11.45 – short warmup, long speed work
4/8 – scheduled rest day
4/9 – 7.30 speed work
4/10 – 11.67 easy
4/11 – 3.87 easy
4/12 – 7.78 warm up, speed work, cool down, commute
4/13 – 3.92 easy
4/14 – 7.30 warmup + light speed work
4/15 – 3.86 easy
4/16 – travel day, no running
4/17 – 2.70 very easy
4/18 – 26.39 Boston Marathon (couldn’t' run good tangents)
4/19 – travel day, no running
4/20 – 4.05 recovery run
4/21 – 5.28 easy
4/22 – 4.00 easy
4/23 – ad hoc rest day
4/24 – 13.26 Flower City Half
4/25 – planned rest day
4/26 – extra rest day
4/27 – 4 to 6 miles 3rd rest day
4/28 – maybe 2 or 3 easy miles 4th rest day
4/29 –
4/30 –

April total to date – 157.88

Nominal Challenge Goal – 200 miles
Real Goals: Taper well. Arrive at Hopkinton healthy. Run Boston well. Recover well.

Today's notes – I had hoped to run a bit today. I'm doing better than yesterday. Jogging my hallway while the eggs cooked was normal. I could do my full panoply of morning exercises - push-ups, pull-ups, Turkish get-ups with a windmill at the top, the funky bridge with leg lift my PT gave me in 2013, weighted one-leg calf raises, hip abduction/adduction with a resistance band, and even the kettlebell swings and snatches. Walking felt pretty normal, just some minor twinges in the right leg.

Got out and tested running a bit, no more than 200 meters at a time. Did two stretches in the morning, and 4 or 5 intervals at noon when I walked 2 miles to a mailbox and back to mail a bill. It was iffy. Sometimes it felt like I could keep going for quite a while. Sometimes I'd get an ache that might or might not be affecting my gait. What part of my leg ached varied; now one part of the calf, now another, then a hamstring, once the pesky hip abductor.

I could have talked myself into running an easy 3 miles today. It probably would have been OK. It might even have helped. But I got to thinking about what I wrote and other folks' comments on the injury thread. I decided that I could stand a fourth rest day in the hopes that the leg will be even closer to normal tomorrow. Told myself, there are no medals for a training run.

Looked at my records. The last time I had more than 2 non-running days in a row was May 16 through July 23, 2014. That period was recovery from multiple stress fractures in my left metatarsals. I really, really don't want to go there again, even if the issue isn't the feet. So today I'm not running any distance to speak of. Again. For the fourth day in a row.

The good news is, my appetite has toned down and it's easier to hold to my reduced calorie range than it was immediately after Boston. The bad news is, not running is driving me nuts. The ugly news is, if this goes on for a while I'll need to cut the calorie range some more.

But I am optimistic that I will be able to run tomorrow. I *could* have run today. I might have got away with it. Or I might have set my recovery back another week. That's a chance I don't want to take. A big thank you to @Elise4270 for starting the injury thread. By commenting there, I may have helped myself more than I helped her.

I will run again. Just not today.

2016 races:
January 1, 2016 Resolution Run 7.5 mile (Mendon, NY) finished in 53:58
January 9, 2016 Winter Warrior Half Marathon (Gates, NY) finished in 1:30:59
March 12, 2016 Johnny's Runnin' of the Green 5 mile (Rochester, NY) finished in 32:32
March 26, 2016 Spring Forward Distance Run 15K (Mendon, NY) finished in 1:05:24
April 18, 2016 Boston Marathon (Hopkinton, MA) finished in 3:23:01
April 24, 2016 Flower City Challenge Half Marathon (Rochester, NY) finished in 1:36:50, targeting MP
May 15, 2016 Highland Hospital Lilac Run 10K (Rochester, NY)
June 19, 2016 Medved 5K to Cure ALS (Rochester, NY)
July 16, 2016 Shoreline Half Marathon (Hilton, NY)
September 18, 2016 Rochester Marathon (Rochester, NY)

@Elise4270 - In the morning, I cook my eggs sunny side up with the eyes closed. That is, after my 2 minute jog I add a bit of water and cover, and the steam cooks the top of the yolk pink while leaving the center soft and yes, runny. As I age, I favor them more done like a diner (30-40% solid) as opposed to the really, really runny that I liked when I was younger.

That's if I'm cooking 2 eggs. If I have to stop running for an extended period, it could go down to 1 egg. I'd fix that scrambled, because I can do 1 egg scrambled in the microwave quickly and easily with only a glass custard cup to wash. And in the heart of marathon training, at a later meal when I'll have 3 eggs, that's worth making an omelet. But there's no jogging when fixing an omelet; it requires intervention too frequently.

_nikkiwolf_ wrote: »

I got a softflask hydration glove thingy and a magnetic clip-on-the-shorts pouch for my birthday!
My family is still not convinced that I might actually be able to run more than 10k, but by now they are willing to humor me and buy me weird running-related items anyway.

And I treated myself to a nice nighttime run to conclude the day. Although I'm not sure I ran nearly enough repeats of my little hill to account for the unholy amount of sweets and cake I ate today - how come colleages never bring you protein shakes and beet roots?

Cool! And, Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday @_nikkiwolf_ !!

Oh, you can taste the beets @ddmom0811. They are not the dominant flavor, but they are there!!

I do my eggs the same way @MobyCarp, although that is the first time I heard the "eyes closed" reference to describe it. I like that.

4/1: Rest day!
4/2: 5 miles
4/3: 13.1 Caesar Rodney HM!
4/4: 3 miles with Joe to Go crew
4/5: Rest day
4/6: 10 miles (am), 6 miles (pm)
4/7: 7 miles tempo (am), 6 miles with Thursday crew (pm)
4/8: Rest day
4/9: 22 miles << Last super long run for this training cycle!
4/10: 10 miles
4/11: 6 miles with Joe to Go crew
4/12: Rest day!!!
4/13: 10 miles @ marathon pace
4/14: 8 miles (am), 6.4 miles with Thursday crew (pm)
4/15: Rest day!!
4/16: 10.75 miles + 6k (3.75 miles) race = 14.5 miles
4/17: 7.1 miles
4/18: 6 miles with Joe to Go crew
4/19: Rest day!
4/20: 8 miles
4/21: 6.4 miles with Thursday crew
4/22: Rest day!
4/23: 6 miles
4/24: 10 miles big group run
4/25: 4 miles with Joe to Go crew
4/26: Rest day
4/27: 6 miles
4/28: 6.4 miles

Good group run! A bit drizzly -- very similar to forecasted conditions for Sunday's race -- and that kept a lot of people home. We had a solid 20 runner last week. We had 7 today. Lots of people tapering though, to be fair. This is my last "long"/"normal" run before Sunday. IT'S GETTING REAL, FOLKS!



Upcoming Races:
3/12: Run O' The Mill 5K: New PR! 21:55
4/3: Caesar Rodney HM: New PR! 1:40:13
4/16: River Horse 6K (Ewing, NJ)
5/1: New Jersey Marathon (Lots of towns, NJ)
5/15: Princeton 5k << social event, not racing!
6/11: Pacers Princeton Halfway Half (Princeton, NJ)
7/4: a fourth of july race somewhere!
11/20: Philadelphia Marathon (Philly, PA)

@Elise4270 I'll run for you!
4/28 - Short 3mi run. Was going to do 6-8, but thunderstorms developed literally when I was running. I was counting the time between the lightning and thunder and it was about 6-8mi away. So I had just enough time to run back to my truck and drive home (1.5mi). I had no target pace today. Just run by feel. Didn't even look at my garmin. I was looking at the incoming torrential downpour. And lightning everywhere. ---- Avg pace today was 8:28/mi.

Normally I wouldn't care about storm running. But I had my phone with me

4/1 - Easy 10.1mi @ 8:25/mi
4/2 - rest.
4/3 - 1mi fun hike for views of SLC. 400ft vertical.
4/4 - Snowboard 41.8mi 30,000ft, descent (not counted on April total), 55.8mph top speed.
4/5 - 7.3mi mountain (steep) run. About 2,000ft vertical, 14:31/avg. Medium effort.
4/6 - Rest
4/7 - 4.5mi easy w speed bursts 8:50 - 5:40/mi
4/8 - rest
4/9 - Beginners Luck 25k trail race (2:53)
4/10 - 7.1mi on Black Mtn, 2,234ft vertical gain, 14:11/mi (PR)
4/11 - AM 9mi easy (8:41/mi) ---- PM 6.4mi trail (1,207ft vertical) -15.4mi total
4/12 - rest
4/13 - AM: 2.25mi Med w H bursts (6:59 avg). 2.25mi slow back. PM: 10.2mi @ glacial (9:05/mi) - 14.7mi total.
4/14 - 8.3mi easy. 463ft vert.
4/15 - 5mi all out. 36:14 (7:15/mi)
4/16 - 5.2mi recovery (873ft vert)
4/17 - 22mi long run (9:35/mi) (705ft vert)
4/18 - 3mi (7:31/mi)
4/19 - AM 6mi easy (7:57/mi) PM: 2.2mi (8:44/mi) - 8.2mi T
4/20 - 9.2mi steep mtn (3k vertical)
4/21 - rest
4/22 - 6.2mi (7:01/mi PR)
4/23 - rest
4/24 - 13.13mi (7:52/mi)
4/25 - rest
4/26 - 8.1mi (7:24/mi)
4/27 - rest
4/28 - 3.0mi

April total - 167.43 / 153mi

PoppetsMaster wrote: »

Going to try this again. This is Lonewolfrunner aka Morningghost14... Real life kicks *kitten*. Especially mine.... but working through it. I have been staying up with my running fortunately, and I feel decently ready for my 50K on May 14. I will just follow along this month (I have about 140 miles so far), but will get my ticker going again for May. I have missed you guys.

@PoppetsMaster - Missed you too and so glad to have you back!!

04/01 3.1 miles easy
04/06 4.5 miles comfortable run
04/08 10 miles much better than the last long run, managed to get out of the habit of walking breaks
04/14 4.5 miles
04/15 4.8 miles
04/19 5 miles
04/20 5 miles
04/23 13.1 miles Longest run ever!!!
04/27 6.5 miles Kept it easy with a little sprint at the end to fully stretch my legs out.
04/28 4 miles Easy run with a couple of walking breaks just to keep it slow, out today for a 3 miler again at recovery pace.



03/20 Canterbury Riverside 10k 1:16:12
05/29 Edinburgh Half marathon