April 2017 Running Challenge

kgirlhart · April 2017

I'm not sure if I will get my run in today or not. It is my birthday and I know there will be plans this evening. I already had family members telling me over the weekend that I am too thin and I am obsessive and I just don't want to deal with that today. But I am still debating taking off work early this afternoon to get my run in. Maybe I am obsessive. I'm still on track to meet my goal this month even if I totally skip today's run, but I'm a little disappointed to not get it in. On a positive note, I did finally sign up for my first 5K. I am pretty excited about it. It is a fundraiser for the local animal shelter so it should be pretty low key so I think that will be good for my first time. This is an annual 5K and it is usually in September but this year they changed it to May 6th.

jessicalferrara · April 2017

I've been MIA this past weekend because it was my birthday, so I had a lot to catch up on! Amazing job to the Boston marathoners! Such an inspiration to me! I hope one day to do a full marathon. I got in 1.5 miles yesterday at Orangetheory, so I'm up to 19.5 for the month. I'd love to get a run in today, but we have work to be done in the house, so I don't think that is going to happen. I go to Orangetheory again tomorrow, so I hope to be over the 20 mile mark.

skippygirlsmom · April 2017

@kgirlhart Happy Birthday

@stoshew71 I was just thinking, you know you live in a running town when like 20 people from your local area ran in Boston yesterday.

7lenny7 · April 2017

Inspiration in Boston

https://twitter.com/AndreaWBZ/status/854042819790606336/video/1

https://twitter.com/AndreaWBZ/status/854046941910622208/video/1

7lenny7 · April 2017

Hey hey, I made the race highlight reel!!

I'm on for about 3 seconds, starting at 3:01. Maroon shirt, white hat. The 100 mile racers have red bibs, 50 milers have blue bibs, and 17 milers green. The 100 milers also had a pink ribbon on their back so they were easy to identify when fresh runners were approaching them from behind.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OqJ5_RndDdM

Here's more from that same race though I'm not in this one

https://youtu.be/lBQfZgsjAzY

angmarie28 · April 2017

4/2-3.3 miles
4/3-3 miles
4/5-3.5 miles
4/6-2.5 miles
4/8-4.2 miles
4/9-5 miles
4/14-5 miles
4/17-6 miles
total-32.5 miles

hoping for a better week of running. Colds gone, and my goal is to run 3 miles 3 times this week, and 7 miles this weekend.

also the Missoula half marathon I am for sure doing now, BUT I may do the full if my friend doesnt do the half with me. I know full well I will have to walk the majority of it because i wont be ready to run a full, but a couple people i know are doing it, and my coworker that is doing it is walking most of it. She did it last year and got second to last place, but shes trying to do better this year, but she said she will be walking 2/3s of it, so i may do it with them. we will see.

Training for:
5/14-womens run-5mile
7/10- Missoula Marathon-HM
9/17- Montana Marathon-Full marathon

WhatMeRunning · April 2017

OK, that's the last time I check the weather ahead of this Saturday's Garmin Half Marathon. I'll try checking again the night before. According to the Weather Channel, temps will be around 46 to 48 degrees, rainy with 25 mph winds with occasional wind gusts over 40mph.

That should be a workout!

zdyb23456 · April 2017

My update

4/1 8mi 1:14:29min
4/2 rest
4/3 4mi 34:55min
4/4 4.55mi 43:06min
4/5 rest
4/6 5mi 46:47min
4/7 3mi 25:53min
4/8 9mi 1:24:34min
4/9 rest
4/10 5mi 45:44min
4/11 7mi 1:03:31min
4/12 rest
4/13 4mi 35:51min
4/14 3mi 26:07min
4/15 10mi 1:35:12min
4/16 rest
4/17 5mi 46:22min
4/18 4.3mi 38:55min

I did my last two runs on the treadmill. I normally would have run 5 miles outside, but I didn't want to miss any of the marathon coverage! I am so amazed and inspired by all the Boston marathon runners. I look at the qualifying times and know I will never be there, but it still inspires me to run!

I have a 5, 4, and 9 miler left this week and I'm done with week 5 of half marathon training. I'm pleasantly surprised at how well it's gone so far. I do have a bit of anxiety before my long runs... does that go away after awhile?

snowyne · April 2017

kgirlhart wrote: »

I'm not sure if I will get my run in today or not. It is my birthday and I know there will be plans this evening. I already had family members telling me over the weekend that I am too thin and I am obsessive and I just don't want to deal with that today. But I am still debating taking off work early this afternoon to get my run in. Maybe I am obsessive. I'm still on track to meet my goal this month even if I totally skip today's run, but I'm a little disappointed to not get it in. On a positive note, I did finally sign up for my first 5K. I am pretty excited about it. It is a fundraiser for the local animal shelter so it should be pretty low key so I think that will be good for my first time. This is an annual 5K and it is usually in September but this year they changed it to May 6th.

@kgirlhart - Awesome. I'm running my first 5K on May 6, too! It's to bring awareness to domestic violence in remembrance of a local woman. A sad but motivating cause....

MNLittleFinn · April 2017

stated looking for info on my 50k, and found this run by a guy who did it last year, Course will probably be the same this year.

https://www.strava.com/activities/745685814

7lenny7 · April 2017

MNLittleFinn wrote: »

stated looking for info on my 50k, and found this run by a guy who did it last year, Course will probably be the same this year.

https://www.strava.com/activities/745685814

Very cool! That's less elevation than I would have thought, but then elevation numbers vary widely between devices so it could be more than the 4000' that log shows. Regardless, you'll be running/hiking on the SHT so it ain't going to be easy, that's for sure!

ETA: @MNLittleFinn for your reading pleasure:
https://minneapolisrunning.com/wild-duluth-50k-race-recap/

MNLittleFinn · April 2017

7lenny7 wrote: »

MNLittleFinn wrote: »

stated looking for info on my 50k, and found this run by a guy who did it last year, Course will probably be the same this year.

https://www.strava.com/activities/745685814

Very cool! That's less elevation than I would have thought, but then elevation numbers vary widely between devices so it could be more than the 4000' that log shows. Regardless, you'll be running/hiking on the SHT so it ain't going to be easy, that's for sure!

I figure that the races are called the toughest 50k and 100k in the midwest, so they will be pretty rough. For some training, I'm planning on going up and down the ski hills at Giant's Ridge. Starting to look at what different gear I might need. Is it sad that my way of getting my mind off of Marathon training is to look at gear for running an ultra?

garygse · April 2017

KatieJane83 wrote: »

4/1 - 4 miles on the dreadmill + cross-training - zumba
4/2 - 12.7 mile long run (night on a crappy couch-worth of sleep, and stomachache from a new gel)
4/3 - rest
4/4 - 9 mile glorious run in the misty rain / 1 mile treadmill + cross-training - strength training
4/5 - 5 mile slow recovery run + cross-training - strength training
4/6 - 8 mile rainy/windy run + cross-training - zumba
4/7 - 9 mile glorious run at Piermont Pier/Tallman Mtn. State Park
4/8 - cross-training - zumba awesomeness!
4/9 - JFK Runway 5k Race + 10 miles to get to my planned 13 for the day
4/10 - rest
4/11 - 8 miles in the ‘it’s way too hot for early/mid-April’ heat (84° when I finished) + strength training
4/12 - 7 miles in the comfortable rain + strength training
4/13 - 5 mile short, slowww recovery run
4/14 - 8 miles
4/15 - rest (had to miss Zumba, so sad!)
4/16 - 10 mile long run (shorter cutback week run)
4/17 - 11 mile run (not as sucky as expected despite being tired/10mi day before/headache/didn’t start til 6pm)

April Total: 110.8/170

457.8 miles/2,017 miles - goal for the year

So I ran 11 miles last night, on what is normally my rest day, but again, I'm juggling my schedule to reduce the amount of running I need to do on my vacation coming up. I was tired, I had a pretty bad headache to start out, I had just run 10 miles the day before, and I didn't get to start until 6pm after being at work all day, so I was 100% expecting this to be an overall craptastic, not fun run. While it wasn't one of those glorious, amazing runs, it was actually much less sucky than I was expecting. I think I still keep surprising myself with the level of fitness I've built up to, lol. Still, we'll see how today and tomorrow pan out. I'm doing a 4 or 5 mile recovery run tonight, and then crossing my fingers that I physically have it in me to pull out my long run tomorrow after work, which will be a distance PR for me, at 14 miles. I'm really hoping I'm able to pull it off. It will also be my 4th day in a row of running. Yikes!

Not to alarm you, but if 2017 miles is your goal for 2017, you're currently a little behind schedule.

To hit that goal, you need to average a little over 5.5 miles per day, which means you should be at around 596 miles today to be on target. Just a heads up, I'm a data nerd and have the same goal lol, and there's plenty of days left in the year to catch up...just thought I'd let you know sooner rather than later when playing catch up will be harder to do.

Run4life375 · April 2017

Elise4270 · April 2017

http://www.runnersworld.com/boston-marathon/nearly-naked-caveman-crushes-boston-marathon I wanna go to the Boson.

autumnblade75 · April 2017

MNLittleFinn wrote: »

I just had an intervention with myself and came to a realization..... I now have accepted that I'll almost certainly never be fast enough to BQ, and I now realize that my relentless push toward ultra is a way for me to compensate for that...... I may always be slow, but if I can go slow for a LONG way, I can be OK with it........

........LOL, Saturday morning thoughts...... this is the problem with getting my LR done on Friday, and not getting a run in yet today.

After my first year of running, I thought the same. Now, I'm looking at the times and saying "if they don't update these, and I don't get slower, I could run Boston when I'm 60..."

But I'm 6 years into this running thing, and if I keep improving, I might BQ by the time I'm 50, instead! For the record, though - I'm already past 40, and I do realize that I'm supposed to start slowing down, rather than getting faster.

KatieJane83 · April 2017

garygse wrote: »

KatieJane83 wrote: »

4/1 - 4 miles on the dreadmill + cross-training - zumba
4/2 - 12.7 mile long run (night on a crappy couch-worth of sleep, and stomachache from a new gel)
4/3 - rest
4/4 - 9 mile glorious run in the misty rain / 1 mile treadmill + cross-training - strength training
4/5 - 5 mile slow recovery run + cross-training - strength training
4/6 - 8 mile rainy/windy run + cross-training - zumba
4/7 - 9 mile glorious run at Piermont Pier/Tallman Mtn. State Park
4/8 - cross-training - zumba awesomeness!
4/9 - JFK Runway 5k Race + 10 miles to get to my planned 13 for the day
4/10 - rest
4/11 - 8 miles in the ‘it’s way too hot for early/mid-April’ heat (84° when I finished) + strength training
4/12 - 7 miles in the comfortable rain + strength training
4/13 - 5 mile short, slowww recovery run
4/14 - 8 miles
4/15 - rest (had to miss Zumba, so sad!)
4/16 - 10 mile long run (shorter cutback week run)
4/17 - 11 mile run (not as sucky as expected despite being tired/10mi day before/headache/didn’t start til 6pm)

April Total: 110.8/170

457.8 miles/2,017 miles - goal for the year

So I ran 11 miles last night, on what is normally my rest day, but again, I'm juggling my schedule to reduce the amount of running I need to do on my vacation coming up. I was tired, I had a pretty bad headache to start out, I had just run 10 miles the day before, and I didn't get to start until 6pm after being at work all day, so I was 100% expecting this to be an overall craptastic, not fun run. While it wasn't one of those glorious, amazing runs, it was actually much less sucky than I was expecting. I think I still keep surprising myself with the level of fitness I've built up to, lol. Still, we'll see how today and tomorrow pan out. I'm doing a 4 or 5 mile recovery run tonight, and then crossing my fingers that I physically have it in me to pull out my long run tomorrow after work, which will be a distance PR for me, at 14 miles. I'm really hoping I'm able to pull it off. It will also be my 4th day in a row of running. Yikes!

Not to alarm you, but if 2017 miles is your goal for 2017, you're currently a little behind schedule. To hit that goal, you need to average a little over 5.5 miles per day, which means you should be at around 596 miles today to be on target. Just a heads up, I'm a data nerd and have the same goal lol, and there's plenty of days left in the year to catch up...just thought I'd let you know sooner rather than later when playing catch up will be harder to do.

haha, I totally appreciate the number nerdiness, and fear not, I have it all accounted for. My mileage for the year is going to be progressively increasing, since I start my full marathon training plan in July, for Philly in November. Cuurent calculations, based on actuals so far, and scheduled miles for upcoming months, puts me at 1,929 miles through the end of November, which means I need to run 88 miles in December to hit 2,017.

Here is a taste of my planning craziness, lol. I have this hanging on my cubicle wall at work, and a copy at home.

The number to the right of each month is my estimated mileage for that month, or actual if it's in pen, lol.

7lenny7 · April 2017

Catching up my miles from the weekend.

The college club volleyball national championship tournament was in Kansas City this past Easter weekend. Since she couldn't come home, we drove down there to watch her play and bum around KC. We also flew my son down from Marquette so we could all be together. We had a wonderful time, but I did have to trade miles for family time (easy decision), I didn't get to run with my son after all, and I didn't get to meet up with @WhatMeRunning like I had hoped.

Friday morning I was able to get a decent 12 mile run.
Saturday - no running.

Sunday - no running in in KC but since my wife and I drove separately, I found a very nice trail, including some awesome single track near the interstate in Iowa and had a (mostly) wonderful 12 mile run there, finishing up after dark.

Before I finish this story, I have to warn you that you might find this TMI. I know my wife did but we're runners here, so hopefully you will understand. I thought about keeping this to myself but felt the humor was worth any embarrassment I might endure.

For a long time, on my long runs and at races, I've carried with me a ziploc bag with some baby wipes in case the need arises. About a week ago, I decided to quite carrying them because I've never needed them and the wipes I had carried time and time again were dried out anyway. You already know where this is going, don't you...

During my run Sunday, with the sun long gone and about 2 miles to go to get back to my car, I started feeling a bit of GI distress. That crampy, gurgley, oh-*kitten*-I-know-what-this-is-about kind of distress. I thought I could tough it out and kept running, faster now.

Slowly it gets worse and with a half mile to go, I have to quit running and start walking and try to maintain control. I'm somewhere between a power walk and a duck walk. It's not pretty. I start wondering if I'll need to use one sock or two. Maybe my shirt too. Oh man I'm so uncomfortable at this point!

A couple hundred yards out, I'm convinced I can make it back to my truck and grab a handful of napkins I have in the console. With headlamp on I'm scanning the woods looking for the perfect grunt bar (horizontal tree or branch at just the right height to rest my lower back against). I find a likely prospect and make note of the location.

I'm now at the car, fumbling with my keys, in near panic mode. I grab the wad of napkins and charge into the woods, no time for the grunt bar. I'm now just trying to get far enough away from the trail head that no one will accidentally stumble across it. I go behind a big tree, turn off my headlamp and take care of matters. Relief washes over me. Disaster averted!

Business take care of, I now turn on my headlamp so I can properly pile up leaves, rocks and branches. Soon I'm thinking to myself that there's no way all that light I see could be from my headlamp. I look up to find a bright white light washing over me and the surrounding trees from the parking area. What the..!!!! OH *kitten*!!!! There's a car there with a big spotlight pointed at me. A second vehicle pulls in and also sees fit to light me up. There's no doubt that these are likely law enforcement of some type. How much did they see?!?! How am I going explain this? What's the penalty for something like this? aw man....

I try to play it cool by walking out of the woods like nothing weird is going on and start to walk to my car. It didn't work. As soon as I get close to the parking lot the first deputy sheriff says, "Is everything ok over there? What's going on?" I walked up to the vehicles, hands in the open. My immediately strategy was to do what every runner does...talk running! "Everything's fine, I just gone done with a long run".

From there they started quizzing me about my running. On a trail? In the dark? How far? You just stopped half way between KC and Minneapolis to run? It was clear from my appearance that I was indeed a runner but the location and the time of day held their suspicions. I brought up that I was training for an ultra and that got us to talking about my history of running..when did I start...did I run marathons...what makes you want to run so far... I don't know if they honestly cared (they seem to be really interested) or if it was just a way to continue to evaluate me and the situation. At one point I said to them, "yeah, the reason you saw me in the woods back there was because I had to go to the bathroom when I got back", not bothering to tell him the full nature of the incident. "Well there's certainly no law against that", the first deputy says, and that seem to satisfy their remaining curiosity about what I was doing in the woods.

Finally I excused myself, telling them I needed to get something to drink. Back at my car I grabbed a beer as they drove back onto the road, telling me drive home safe.

I think I'm going back to carrying baby wipes with me on my long runs.

2017 Races
01/28/2017 - Securian Winter HM - St. Paul, MN - 1:51:40 - *PR*
04/08/2017 - Zumbro 17M Trail Race - Theilman, MN - 3:10:14 (112/425 OA, 10/56 GMM) *PR*
04/29/2017 - Chippewa 50K Trail Race - New Auburn, WI
05/24/2017 - Endless Summer Trail Running Series, 10K - Eagan, MN
07/19/2017 - Torchlight 5K - Minneapolis, MN
09/00/2017 - Outrun Hunger 5K - Savage, MN
10/07/2017 - Big Woods Run Trail Half Marathon - Nerstrand, MN

WhatMeRunning · April 2017

@7lenny7 - I suppose it could have been worse. They may have considered you suspicious enough to warrant a look around the woods where you were and an uncovering of the true nature of things.

garygse · April 2017

KatieJane83 wrote: »

haha, I totally appreciate the number nerdiness, and fear not, I have it all accounted for. My mileage for the year is going to be progressively increasing, since I start my full marathon training plan in July, for Philly in November. Cuurent calculations, based on actuals so far, and scheduled miles for upcoming months, puts me at 1,929 miles through the end of November, which means I need to run 88 miles in December to hit 2,017.

Here is a taste of my planning craziness, lol. I have this hanging on my cubicle wall at work, and a copy at home. The number to the right of each month is my estimated mileage for that month, or actual if it's in pen, lol.

Ah, I see...very nice! Yeah, I was already well ahead of a similar "2017 in 2017" goal, thinking that I needed to get plenty of running in prior to the summer heat. Except now I'm signed up for a marathon in October with a couple of the ladies from my morning running group, so who the hell knows what kind of mileage I'll be racking up for this year!

April 2017 Running Challenge

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