October 2017 Running Challenge

Ohhim · October 2017

After 2 days of non-running (per plan from my coach), I went for a 90 minute run around mid day. Should have started earlier though as my watch showed an average temperature of 97 (weather station showed 90, but most of the run was on exposed concrete/asphalt) but the humidity thankfully was down to the mid 70s.

I've had success racing in the mid 90s (as my last Ironman marathon in 3:33 was then), but I returned home as a melted puddle of sweat despite keeping the pace relatively easy.

Hope folks racing this weekend did ok.

10/1 - 6 miles (Sunday night football)
10/3 - 6 miles (w. lots of odd drills & strides)
10/4 - 6 miles (off the bike)
10/5 - 6 miles (w. strides)
10/8 - 9.5 miles

Total: 33.5 miles
Goal: 130 miles
Remaining: 96.5 mile

Race Schedule:
6/4 - Ironman 70.3 Raleigh - 4:43:57 (w. 1:36:35 HM) - Qualified for 70.3 World Championship
8/26 - Ironman Coeur D'Alene - 10:16:55 (3:33:17 Marathon) - 21/1106 OA, 6/137 AG
9/10 - Ironman 70.3 World Championship - 4:57:25 (1:37:23 HM) - 150/470 AG, 877/2815 OA
12/10 - Holiday Halfathon (13.1)
1/6/18 - HITS Naples Half (70.3)
1/28/18 - Miami Marathon
4/16/18 - Boston Marathon
9/9/18 - Ironman Wisconsin

@garygse - congrads on finishing 26.2! I hope the experience both left you feeling satisfied but gave you some takeaways for your next one. Just spotted the splits on Strava and it looks like you paced it perfectly and managed to successfully embrace the suck as your heart rate climbed over 170 near the end.

@ariceroni - Awesome first marathon at Chicago and congrads on finishing under the 4-hour mark.

Elise4270 · October 2017

LaurenFOB2301 wrote: »

I guess I would say my goal would be to run 60 miles by the end of this month. (God, I hope that's not crazy for someone like me starting out?!)

Welcome! And dont worry if you don't make your goal, there always next month!

MNLittleFinn · October 2017

LaurenFOB2301 wrote: »

I guess I would say my goal would be to run 60 miles by the end of this month. (God, I hope that's not crazy for someone like me starting out?!)

Not a crazy goal, and don't worry if you don't make your goal. It's just something to help with motivation, if you need it. Just getting out there and running is the important part, and you're doing that.

LaurenFOB2301 · October 2017

MNLittleFinn wrote: »

LaurenFOB2301 wrote: »

I guess I would say my goal would be to run 60 miles by the end of this month. (God, I hope that's not crazy for someone like me starting out?!)

Not a crazy goal, and don't worry if you don't make your goal. It's just something to help with motivation, if you need it. Just getting out there and running is the important part, and you're doing that.

Thanks! I'm excited to get my mileage up each week!

LaurenFOB2301 · October 2017

Elise4270 wrote: »

LaurenFOB2301 wrote: »

I guess I would say my goal would be to run 60 miles by the end of this month. (God, I hope that's not crazy for someone like me starting out?!)

Welcome! And dont worry if you don't make your goal, there always next month!

Thank you! Best of luck to everyone!

MNLittleFinn · October 2017

LaurenFOB2301 wrote: »

MNLittleFinn wrote: »

LaurenFOB2301 wrote: »

I guess I would say my goal would be to run 60 miles by the end of this month. (God, I hope that's not crazy for someone like me starting out?!)

Not a crazy goal, and don't worry if you don't make your goal. It's just something to help with motivation, if you need it. Just getting out there and running is the important part, and you're doing that.

Thanks! I'm excited to get my mileage up each week!

Just take it easy, don't add too much mileage at once, and you'll be fine. You'll be amazed though, at how quickly you can really get into it.

Orphia · October 2017

Bravo, @garygse and @ariceroni !!!
Looking forward to your recaps.

_nikkiwolf_ · October 2017

@zdyb23456 I hope your daughters swim meet went well

@RunTimer Great race photos!
@girlinahat You can recognise wild mushrooms? So cool! I saw a lot of different kinds last weekend while hiking, but I have no clue what any of them were called. And ice cream on a run is more than okay ^^
@skippygirlsmom Awesome trail photos! I hope the bruises heal quickly. Roots are evil

@shanaber Your photos are great too. Lovely trail, and a very cute pup

@HonuNui I forogt to write, I received my AIM race pack a few days ago! I wasn't sure if I would get anything, since nothing on the website mentioned international shipping, so it was a happy surprise. I'm sure all will go well with the race, I hope you won't have any more nightmares!
@unparalleledAF and @LaurenFOB2301 welcome to the challenge!
@RespectTheKitty I hope the new medication will help you feel better soon. All the best wishes! And don't worry about your current pace, just focus on the fact that you can run, and enjoy it.
@kgirlhart Congratulations on your PR! The toad award is awesome

@wishiwasarunner Sorry that your leg is still not healed. Injuries are so frustrating. I hope you'll feel better soon!
@PastorVincent 16mi is a nice distance for a day where you feel like you need a rest day

Great start of the month.
@anitamistry1 Wow, your before-and-after pictures are absolutely amazing!!
@shanaber Sorry to read about this hips/quads tightness. I know you already do lots of strength training, and with all the stretching and foam rolling, it seems like you are already doing everything. Crazy idea - maybe your quads are unhappy because you are stretching and rolling too much? Maybe take it easy and do less of that, and try to help with tiger balm or something like that instead?
@allyphoe Good that your daughter was wearing a helmet! I hated mine as a kid, but now I never cycle without it... Hopefully she'll get well soon.

--

Just two short runs for me this weekend. Yesterday I went cycling in the morning and wasn't planning on running at all, but then it was so cold and sunny, I couldn't resist and went out for 6.3km.
Today I was planning to run a little longer in the afternoon. But then I went indoor rock climbing in the morning first, and was really exhausted when I came home. So I settled for 9km nice and easy in the sun, instead of anything more ambitious.
Oh, and since my knee is pretty much recovered from the fall last month, it was aparently time for me to do something stupid again: I managed to bust my lip on a handhold while climbing this morning. Now I look like I was involved in a serious pub brawl last night, and got a few really weird looks from the people I met while running... That's going to be so much fun to explain at work tomorrow

skippygirlsmom · October 2017

@_nikkiwolf_ thanks - I hope your lip feels better, I be you can come up with some great stories of how it happened

emmclean · October 2017

10/1: 5.16km
10/2: 5.17km
10/3: 4.03km
10/4: Rest
10/5: 4.52km
10/6: 1.54km
10/7: 5.10km
10/8: 4.27km

Had to keep it short today as I had to get into town to meet friends. Persuaded the better half to walk from the station to the pub across London rather than taking the tube so got an extra 9kms of walking in to offset the alcohol!

October goal - 29.79/60 kms

@LaurenFOB2301 as a dear friend once told me, there’s only one way to find out what’s right for you - listen to your body and remember you have no-one to prove anything to other than yourself. You got this!!

LaurenFOB2301 · October 2017

emmclean wrote: »

10/1: 5.16km
10/2: 5.17km
10/3: 4.03km
10/4: Rest
10/5: 4.52km
10/6: 1.54km
10/7: 5.10km
10/8: 4.27km

Had to keep it short today as I had to get into town to meet friends. Persuaded the better half to walk from the station to the pub across London rather than taking the tube so got an extra 9kms of walking in to offset the alcohol!

October goal - 29.79/60 kms

@LaurenFOB2301 as a dear friend once told me, there’s only one way to find out what’s right for you - listen to your body and remember you have no-one to prove anything to other than yourself. You got this!!

Thank you! Great work this week!

MobyCarp · October 2017

LaurenFOB2301 wrote: »

Wow, what amazing goals to have!!!

I recently started running again for the first time in about a year (I started Sept. 4.) COPD and breathing issues run in my family so I would say breathing is my toughest and challenging obstacle. It's getting easier week by week.

That said, so far I have recorded 13. 3 miles since the start of the month -- but my mileage is increasing every week! I ran 3.2 miles this morning and will run 4 tomorrow on the lakefront (I live in beautiful Chicago.) This week, I will attempt my first-ever 4-mile stretch without stopping and increase that by about half-mile to 1 mile every week.

I know this is nothing to many people on this message board, but I am proud of myself. I struggle with low self-esteem, body image and depression. Running has truly been a life-saver for me and I hope I can stay with it. I've never felt better in my life.

You should be proud of what you're doing. And you should not worry about other runners thinking it's nothing. You start from where you are, and build to where you want to go. If you're running, and you're happy with how you're running, you are a success.

As far as what other runners might be doing, we have a traditional saying about that:

MobyCarp · October 2017

October Running Totals (miles)
10/1 – rest day
10/2 – 5.07 easy
10/3 – 5.05 easy
10/4 – rest day
10/5 – 6.01 easy
10/6 – rest day
10/7 – 10.09 paced run
10/8 – 7.20 easy to MP

October running total to date – 33.42

Nominal challenge goal: 100 miles

Real goals: Get healthy enough to run 5 days a week. Avoid re-injury. Build base.

Today's notes – 72º F (22º C) and overcast with a noticeable west wind when I went out for a run this afternoon. The recovering ankle is not 100%, but it felt good enough to run easy. I set out on a familiar 7 mile route with the option to cut it shorter any time before 2.6 miles. At that point, I was pretty much in the groove so I kept going.

Along about 5 miles, my mind began to play games with me. What if I can't finish the route? It's a long walk back home. I tried to put that stuff out of my head by counting paces. A few weeks ago, Coach had recommended an old school (pre-electronic gadgets) practice of pace counting. Count how many times one foot strikes the ground for a minute, with the idea that 90 is the ideal count (i.e., 180 paces per minute). I did that for 13 minutes, and the answers were all 90 or 91. That made most of the last 2 miles pass without angst.

Then I looked at the data. Turns out I ran 5 miles easy, and the last 2.2 about marathon pace. My ankle was okay with that, so that's good. Then I mowed the lawn. From a physical standpoint, I'd rather have deferred till tomorrow, which will be a rest day from running; but the forecast says 100% chance of rain tomorrow. The ankle didn't complain about mowing the lawn after running 7.2 miles, so that's very good.

The other weird mental game is, I'm not training for anything in particular right now. So I'm kind of making this up as I go along, guessing at how much running is enough. Guess right, and nothing much will happen other than my ankle slowly getting better. Guess wrong, and there will be pain. No pain so far. I have a planned rest day tomorrow. Tuesday I'll decide whether I'm up to trying some very light speed work.

2017 races:
January 1, 2017 Freezeroo #2 (Resolution Run 7.5 mile) (Mendon, NY) Finished in 50:45
January 7, 2017 Winter Warrior Half Marathon (Gates, NY) Finished in 1:32:40
January 14, 2017 Freezeroo #3 (Pineway Ponds Park 5 mile) (Spencerport, NY) Finished in 33:42
January 28, 2017 Freezeroo #4 (Hearnish 5 mile) (Victor, NY) short course, finished 4.88 miles in 32:50
February 4, 2017 USATF Cross Country National Championship Masters 8K (Bend, OR) Finished in 35:39, team won the 60+ Men's cross country championship
February 11, 2017 Freezeroo #5 (Valentines Run "In Memory of Tom Brannon" 8 Mile) (Greece, NY) sat out due to training schedule
February 25, 2017 Freezeroo #6 (White House Challenge 4.4 mile) (Webster, NY) short course, finished 4.34 miles in 27:51
March 11, 2017 Johnny's Runnin' of the Green 5 mile (Rochester, NY) finished in 33:25
March 18, 2017 USATF Masters 8K Championship (Shamrock 8K, Virginia Beach, VA) finished in 30:59, PR for 8K
April 17, 2017 Boston Marathon (Hopkinton, MA) finished in 3:49:42
April 30, 2017 USATF Masters 10K Championship (James Joyce Ramble, Dedham, MA) finished in 39:54, PR for 10K
May 21, 2017 Lilac Run 10K (Rochester, NY) finished in 40:04
May 27, 2017 Canandaigua Classic Half Marathon (Canandaigua, NY) finished in 1:33:06
June 9, 2017 Charlie McMullen Mile (Fairport, NY) finished in 5:44.90, PR for mile
June 18, 2017 Medved 5K to Cure ALS (Rochester, NY) finished in 19:32
July 4, 2017 Firecracker Four Mile (Fairport, NY) finished in 25:42
July 15, 2017 Shoreline Half Marathon [1:40 pacer] (Hamlin, NY) finished in 1:39:05
July 28, 2017 Karknocker 5K (East Rochester, NY) finished in 19:28
August 9, 2017 Pound the Ground 10K (Mendon, NY) finished in 41:26
August 12, 2017 Bergen Road Race 5K (Bergen, NY) finished in 19:47
August 25, 2017 USATF Masters Mile (Hap Crim Michigan Mile, Flint, MI) DNS - injury
September 3, 2017 Oak Tree Half Marathon (Geneseo, NY) DNS - injury
September 17, 2017 MVP Rochester Marathon (Rochester, NY) DNS - injury
November 23, 2017 Race with Grace 10K (Hilton, NY)

2018 races:
April 16, 2018 Boston Marathon (Hopkinton, MA)

amtyrell · October 2017

Goal 50 miles
October 4 - 2.2 mile total 2.2
October 5- 2.7 miles total 4.9
October 8 -2.1 mile total 7.0

Goal event November 18 Annapolis Running Fest 10k

kristinegift · October 2017

10/1 through 10/8: Nothing, injured, 0 miles

So I've been absent from the thread since just before the end of September. On my last track workout before Steamtown almost two weeks ago, I felt a twinge in my right heel/calf which then turned into a grade 1 calf tear that Thursday evening (Sept 28). I saw two doctors last week who gave me an idea of how long recovery should take. Luckily, I have been very proactive: lots of icing and compression, some electrical stimulation with a borrowed at-home unit, and tons of rest.

I'm finally able to do cross-training; I did some biking and rowing last Thurs and Fri and I should be able to do full load bearing exercise (aka: RUNNING!) again in 2 weeks or less I hope. I can already walk and do stairs and toe-raises pain free, so I'm feeling very optimistic.

Today was the Steamtown Marathon, which I spent most of the last 10-12 weeks training for. I still went and turned all my runner energy into spectator pep for my friend who was the lone survivor of our running group to make it to the start line. Unfortunately it was not a good PR day: 73F at the start and 76F at the finish, threatening rain the entire time, and just gross and muggy the entire way. My friend trained really hard, so I felt awful for her that her training cumulated in such a miserable race. She ended up with her slowest marathon of the three she's run but she was in surprisingly good spirits at the end for someone who had to pull over at the mile 25 sign to puke.

Hoping to be back on the thread now. No goal for October right now besides this:
October Goal: Heal my calf tear and run any miles at all!

Upcoming Races:
10/08/17: Steamtown Marathon - DNS, injured
10/22/17: Perfect 10 Miler
11/05/17: Princeton HM (Pacer)

Runningmischka · October 2017

Whew, finally caught up with all posts and have time to actually socialize a little

@PastorVincent You have a lot more patience when it comes to being lost while running. I get my GPS out after about a mile or so . And 60 miles this week? That’s awesome! A rest day would not hurt though
@Sarahthes Congrats on signing up for your HM! Is that your first? Got any specific plans for training? I bet this group can really help you out with various training plans.
@shanaber Sorry to hear about your pain. I will be no help with this, but I hope someone else can give you some advice. I’ve had a little bit of tightness in my hips recently, but it went away on its own.
@anitamistry1 You look amazing! What a transformation Congratulations on your success!
@allyphoe I hope your girl is feeling better soon. You surely handle this situation a lot better than I would have!
@JessicaMcB I am envious of your running route – love pine trees! This view is amazing.
@Midwesterner85 When I was training for my first marathon and it was time to tape, I just had to keep myself busy. It wasn’t difficult since I had 2 jobs and was going to college full time, so in a sense it was nice to have one less thing to do. But if you can find something else to keep your mind occupied, it could be helpful to release some anxiety. One suggestion – take a non-trivial online course
@kristinegift I am so sorry you did not get to race. You look like you had a good time though, what a good sport you are. And your friend looks pretty good considering how bad that race was… Wishing you a fast recovery!
@garygse congrats on your race! I am sure you are resting right now, but don’t leave us hanging for too long!
@MobyCarp that saying is spot on! Short and right to the point.
About pacing in general, I have an analogy that some of you might appreciate. I teach mathematics at a community college and many of my students get extremely frustrated with themselves when they cannot differentiate a function as quickly as I can (or perform some other math operation). For some reasons many of them believe if they can watch me solve problems as quickly as I do, they will be able to do just that, without putting in the same amount of years (!!!) of practicing…I have to keep reminding them not to make these unfair comparisons. Same goes for running and pacing – a lot of that has to do with experience, so when I see a runner passing me on a road, I give him/her a mental high five and keep on running . It will sound very cliché, but I personally compete with myself only.
No run today, it felt like a lazy Sunday, staying home with my family and just relaxing before the new week. Hope everyone enjoyed their weekend!

kgirlhart · October 2017

October goal: 70 miles

10/1: 7.7 miles
10/3: 3 miles (intervals)
10/4: 3.1 miles
10/5: 2.3 miles
10/7: 3.1 (race)
10/7: 5.7 miles

24.9/70 miles

I had to cut my long run short this morning so I only got 5.7 miles in. I didn't get up as early as I should have. I woke up with a sinus headache and had to wait a while for it to go away. Then I had a baby shower to attend. But the 5.7 miles I ran was really pleasant. Tomorrow will be a rest day and it should be cooler on Tueday and Wednesday.

Upcoming Races:
10/7/17: Old Rip 5k
10/14/17: Aim at Melanoma 5K (virtual)

rlstepp29 · October 2017

I'm a little late to the party, but count me in for 40 miles. Just getting back into running after a couple of injuries.
Oct. 7: 4 miles
Oct. 8: 4 miles

So far: 8/40

kevaasen · October 2017

October goal of 120 with a stretch of 150

Week 1: 31.6

Had a wonderful week of running. Ran a fantastic and very fast (for me) 12k race in San Fran (7:40 per mile avg) and ran most of my total mileage above in the city with some fantastic views of the bay. Finished the rest of my mileage with a 10K race on Saturday and while I improved my official race time from my last 10k race earlier this summer it ended up being a slower pace than the slightly longer 12k a few days prior. Ultimately I think I started out to fast and it ended up teaching me a lesson that I will be sure to try and remember on future races.

sarahthes · October 2017

@Runningmischka Yes, first half marathon. I only started running in late May of this year

. I've been looking at Hal Higdon's Novice 1 plan and trying to figure out how I'm going to make it work in Edmonton in winter--hoping the weather is mild enough that I can keep running out doors and I won't have to do too much contingency planning since my home is too small for a treadmill.

October 2017 Running Challenge

Replies

Categories