July 2018 Running Challenge
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Miss a day, miss 115 posts!
I'll have to catch up later. Yesterday was a rest day and today is back to work. I plan to have a run when I get home as waking up this morning was pretty difficult.
I had a total of 19 miles last week, which is almost 20 so I'm pleased.4 -
@_nikkiwolf_ I run five days a week T, W, TH, SA, SU, with SA being my long run day... I do weights three days a week M, W, F. I lift and run on W because W is typically my shortest run of the week. I follow the training plans in Bryon Powell's "Relentless Forward Progress: A Guide to Running Ultramarathons." By far the best book on long distance running I have read... covers training plans for 50k to 100 miles, nutrition, trail gear, recovery, speed work, tips on efficient trail running, etc. His website irunfar.com is excellent as well.2
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PastorVincent wrote: »midwesterner85 wrote: »Here are my thoughts on waste and such at aid stations, and I know there are many runners who will disagree (which is a big reason why I asked):
The race I'm talking about will provide the cups and the aid station sponsors will provide trash cans / cleanup. I love to see cup-less races, but have only seen this once. At that particular race, it was a half-marathon (so no BQ's anyway) and they gave out refillable cups at packet pickup. The cups clipped onto a waistband and you squeezed it to open. You could opt out of this and save $2.00 off the race fee (I did this) and bring your own bottle. But there were no cups given out. You filled your own at the aid stations. They had quick-pour spouts (seriously, these would fill my 20 oz. in about 2 seconds, no joke). This was just outside a national park and done as a destination race. There was an important "No trash" policy. Aid stations did have snacks with wrappers and trash cans (mostly Honey Stinger as they were a sponsor). It was very clearly stated in the rules that you would be DQ'ed and banned from future races by this organization if you were caught littering. When I see pictures of cups everywhere on the street around aid stations at the big city races, I cringe because I know this can work. Yet I always get a lot of runners telling me there is just no way. At my last road race, I did what everyone else did (just threw the cups on the ground), but only because there were no trash cans provided at many of the aid stations. Of course it isn't possible then! But yea... I hate littering and waste.
This particular race is a "trail run" on a rails-to-trails trail. It gets much of the road runner crowd and not technical trails crowd, but the trail is only around maybe 10-15 feet wide and crushed limestone. They estimate 400 runners, so this is a pretty small crowd. I've run smaller (smallest had 19 total runners for the marathon and probably 3-4 times that for the half marathon race starting half-way along as both were point-to-point), but 400 is still a pretty small race.
I really like the reusable cup idea for drinks but I can imagine at a major race like the Pittsburgh Marathon, the condition at the water stops might get very complex when you have 100s of runners all at once - must of which appear to be dumb-dumbs. (meant in the best possible way of course).
When I did my 50k trail race, I brought my own bottles (the set that matched my belt) and topped off at each station. No waste that way. Worked very well in that environment but massively fewer people in that race, and I imagine only more serious runners show up for a 50k. So that probably helps a lot.
I've heard that, but I'm not convinced. The race where I saw this had probably around 5K participants, more or less, and the concept just scales to a larger number. There would just be more Quick-Fill spigots / color-coded dispensers as the quantity of runners increases.
At the race expo / packet pickup, they had these spigots available for practice even... so everyone knew how to use it (not like it was terribly complicated.1 -
_nikkiwolf_ wrote: »Completely different question to those of you that combine running and strength training: how do you fit everything into one week?
I've basically found two different approaches:
a) save strength training, especially lower body workouts, for days on which you don't run or do easy runs
b) "keep your hard days hard and your easy days easy" (e.g. do your strength training later in the same day where you did long runs or speed training, so that you can recover better on easy/rest days)
I'm currently trying to combine a 5-day running plan (rest, short, mid, short, rest, mid/tempo, long) with a 5-day-per-week strength programme (lower, upper, core, lower, upper, stretching, rest).
Last week I started out by something like approach a: did a long run on Sunday, lower body strength on Monday evening (and no running, then easy run & arms on Tuesday), but then the main leg&glutes soreness from the Monday evening workout hit between Tuesday evening and Wednesday morning, so the mid-week mid-long run really sucked.
So I'm thinking about trying option b this week. So far I did my long run Sunday (too-dang-early) morning, and then the lower-body workout in the evening before bed. That went surprisingly well, and today my legs can rest completely
On the other hand, this long run was only 17.6km / 11 mi, and I would like to gradually increase that distance in the next month. I'm wondering if I could still do any meaningful strength training after, say, a 30km run, or if my legs would be too trashed and I would risk injury?
I'm doing approach a at the moment: four days of running, two days of full-body lifting, and one day of rest. I've experimented with running an easy mile or two before one of the lifting days, but four days a week is plenty of running for me right now. I like doing some sort of workout every day but I like to keep it to an hour max - doing running and lifting sounds like too much of a time commitment. But I'm mainly just maintaining my strength training right now - I realized when I started running regularly again that I don't have the time or energy to go all out with both running and lifting, so I decided to split them seasonally and wait for winter to really amp up lifting again.
ETA: Also, I get super sweaty running no matter how "easy" the run and am not crazy about lifting while drenched in rapidly cooling sweat (for whatever reason I don't sweat much while lifting, bodies are weird!). I guess I could run in the AM and lift in the PM, but if I don't get my workouts done first thing, they don't always get done.2 -
PastorVincent wrote: »
I really like the reusable cup idea for drinks but I can imagine at a major race like the Pittsburgh Marathon, the condition at the water stops might get very complex when you have 100s of runners all at once - must of which appear to be dumb-dumbs. (meant in the best possible way of course).
You should have just done the Pittsburgh Half - there were some sharp looking people there!0 -
Regarding aid stations - I say keep it simple. A runner should be able to run through it and still get what they need. A sign before the aide station can state the order of what you've got coming up (I'd keep it either all on one side, or the same on both sides of the road), and volunteers announcing what they have. Water, iso (sports drink), then bananas, gummy bears, and pretzels, all on separate big TRAYS. Trays definitely work, and have been used in all of the races I've done that had food on the course. Have bananas peeled and broken into 2 or 3 pieces. At one aide station during my last marathon, the chocolate melted, and some [super-awesome] volunteers started dipping the bananas in it If you want bonus points for whoever is sponsoring the station, bacon or chocolate (on big trays) would achieve that. I've seen fig cookies, too. That grilled cheese sounds wonderful, but might be a bit difficult logistically unless a local restaurant is your sponsor. But too many choices, and people are slowing down and having to think.
I'd skip the skittles/M&Ms (messy and will roll off the tray) and potato chips (hard to grab in a hurry without crushing them, and then eat them rather than dropping them while also holding a cup of water and running). I do agree with @_nikkiwolf_ and others about not using extra cups... but I don't like the shared bowl of candy idea, either. My opinion on cups is that it depends on the race - if the volunteers are planning to pick them up (some do during the race if there's a break in runners coming in) and don't put a trash bag/can out for me past the aid station, they are fine with you throwing the cup off to the side. I like the reusable cup idea IF the race has the means to refill everyone's cup without causing a delay, or having a policy of no throwing cups IF they've got a ton of trash cans after the aid stations (such as locations where it could be hard to clean up before the cups all blow into the ocean). But there is no reason why I should have to see gel wrappers laying out along the course or a trail somewhere. However you carried the gel before you consumed it (pocket/hand/safety-pinned to your shorts), you can carry your trash out the same way. The races I've done have been great about post-race course cleanup.
Today I rode my bike to the dirt track. Got squealed at by another european hamster in the weeds next to the road as I quietly rode by; those things are so cute and nasty at the same time. I'm also apparently not the only weird person who prefers the dirt track to the fancy school track. As I was finishing up, another runner arrived and started doing laps too. The track is short though, so I put my bike near my starting point, then started my watch and went forward 50 meters and sat my water bottle down for my stopping point so I could do 400s
Upcoming race:
7/16 CityTrail OnTour 5k7 -
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July Goals: 200 running miles.
July Running:
07.02.18 - 07.08.18: Running Miles 48 / Weekly TSS 585 / Fitness: 76 CTL
07.09.18 - 07.15.19: Running Miles / Weekly TSS / Fitness: CTL
07.16.18 - 07.22.18: Running Miles / Weekly TSS / Fitness: CTL
07.23.18 - 07.29.18: Running Miles / Weekly TSS / Fitness: CTL
Goals 07.09.18 - 07.15.18:
Run: 6 Days, plus a LR of 15 on Wknd. No wussing out this weekend.
Base 1 : Week 1 of 4
07.09.18 - AM - 2.5 m. PM -
Upcoming Events:
08.25.18 - Tour de Donut Bike Ride
And @AlphaHowls is like my hero
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Reading all these aid station ideas has been bringing back lots of race memories... some good (potatoes and grilled cheese ) and some not so good. When I attempted my first 50 mile race I made a stupid rookie blunder and chuffed down a sports drink that I had never tried before at the very first aid station only 7 miles in. It was Heed and it gave me nearly immediate nausea. I figured I could run through nausea, but what I failed to anticipate was that my stomach was so upset the only things I could keep down were peanut M&Ms (which were mounded high and loose in big bowls at every aid station) and Coke. By the time I hit the 25 mile mark, I was struggling with rapid sugar rushes and drops... at mile 38 I had totally bonked, was crying, missed the cut-off by 11 minutes and was forced to absorb the soul-sucking disappointment of my first DNF. So... I learned two things: 1) do not drink Heed and 2) in a pinch, I can run 38, but not 50 miles on M&Ms and Coke.8
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polskagirl01 wrote: »That grilled cheese sounds wonderful, but might be a bit difficult logistically unless a local restaurant is your sponsor.
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@workaholic_nurse 13 miles is a solid distance to run. I remember how I felt after after my first one and wasn't sure I would ever be able to run much more than that. After I ran my second one, I ditched road races and went to trail races and moved up to the 30k distance then jumped to 50k. I really like that 50k distance even though every time I cross the finish the line, I swear I will never do it again. I hope to successfully complete a 50 mile race next year, but I told myself I have to get at least three more 50ks under my belt before I attempt it again. I have a couple of friends that really want me to do a 100 miler with them, but that is daunting, demands a huge amount of time and I am not sure my 60 year old (probably 62 year old by that time) body would hold up to the wear and tear of a 100 mile training program. But if you have already done some halfs, you could definitely be ready to do a 50k relatively soon.1
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LaDispute57 wrote: »polskagirl01 wrote: »That grilled cheese sounds wonderful, but might be a bit difficult logistically unless a local restaurant is your sponsor.
Sign me up!2 -
I skipped breakfast this morning and wound up having to take my lunch early due to peeking in on this thread.
I am about to start adding nutrition and fueling into my training runs. The only thing I know is that honey stingers are icky (to me). I can't imagine eating a sandwich in the middle of a race but I know ultras are a whole other ballgame as far as race fueling goes.
Rest day for me today and yesterday.6 -
July Running Challenge
Goal: 40 km
Done: 17.5/40 km
9/7/18 Run 5 km SL A
8/7/18 Run 2 km Walk 4 km
7/7/18 Walk 3 km SL B
5/7/18 Run 2.5 km Walk 6 km
4/7/18 Run 2 km Walk 7 km SL A
3/7/18 Run 4 km Walk 9 km
2/7/18 Run 2 km Walk 5 km
1/7/18 Walk 7 km2 -
At aid stations for our local event we set up a series of 4-5 garbage bags/boxs at various distances 5,10,20 and 40 meters out from the aid stations. This eliminated 90% of the trail trash. Also it was repeated multiple times during the pre race briefing.
Favorite food item baby potatoes and a salt dip followed by PB cookies.4 -
5k on the Greenway - pretty good run, didn't get hot until we were almost finished. First mile at 9:40 then had to slow down because my husband's asthma was bugging him. But I felt like I had more in the tank and we finished in 31 something, which makes me feel like I'll be back to sub 30 soon.
We went for a long walk on the river bank to cool down, and saw the biggest soft shell turtle I've ever seen in the river! He was submerged in mud at the bottom except for his head and neck, which were the size of a grown man's hand on an arm! Just his wee little nostrils poking out above the surface. He noticed us staring at him and swam off, leaving a giant sized mud cloud in the water. I also got to enjoy one of the few pleasant side effects of being a diabetic - I was mobbed by butterflies landing on me! I had a big navel orange before the run and some of it must have come out in my sweat. By the time we got home my bg was actually low, so it got used up on the run.5 -
juliet3455 wrote: »Favorite food item baby potatoes and a salt dip followed by PB cookies.
Damnit... pavlovian response for PB cookies...1 -
juliet3455 wrote: »At aid stations for our local event we set up a series of 4-5 garbage bags/boxs at various distances 5,10,20 and 40 meters out from the aid stations. This eliminated 90% of the trail trash. Also it was repeated multiple times during the pre race briefing.
Favorite food item baby potatoes and a salt dip followed by PB cookies.
Man those sound good.0 -
girlinahat wrote: »re: sweaty hands.
I have just come back from a weekend of fast swing dancing (collegiate shag). four hour workshops in non-airconditioned rooms, plus evening dances. You rotate partners a lot during classes, and dance will a variety of people during the socials. The tempo ranges from 180-220beats per minute. I take sweat from the leads arm, and put it on the next leads arm, ad infinitum. Add that to my own sweat and we are all pretty much just mixing our sweat together in one big wet dripping mess. You change shirts, you change t-shirts, but straight away you sweat into that new shirt.
Okay I'm not putting any of that sweat in my mouth, but the point is, if I cared about sweat I wouldn't do it. If you are that bothered by the hygiene of someone's hand in the bowl before you, I guess you'll have to be self-sufficient.
There's a lot of discussion from race organisers about how to deal with the plastic cup thing, and it IS pretty hard. Some will allow you to buy your own to clip on, but that takes a small amount of time to fill. Paper cups have their own environmental issues (they are never truly biodegradable as many have waxes on or plastic coatings). There are also a lot of complaints about the mess left after races (less so on trails because they tend to be smaller races AND good waste disposal is perhaps encouraged more. After the Brighton and Portsmouth marathons, the images of the bottles strewn on the ground were really depressing. These are races that are run pretty much on the beach, so the chances of littering the sea are too high not to do anything about it. More bins, and fostering a culture that it just isn't acceptable to drop litter is the way to go.
Sweat on someone's hands doesn't bother me, but sweat is the least of what gets on hands. Runners also blow snot rockets, and use porta potties which have washing stations with no water in the pumps, and so on. Yeah, I am bothered, I have lupus and diabetes and an illness which is minor to someone else could kill me. And I know I'm not the only immune-compromised runner out there - how many runners are cancer survivors? Other people's hands are not good things to have on your food!8 -
KeepRunningFatboy wrote: »
And @AlphaHowls is like my hero
She's been mine too this last month.1 -
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