December 2019 Monthly Running Challenge

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  • rheddmobile
    rheddmobile Posts: 6,840 Member
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    ereck44 wrote: »
    Hi everyone,

    Just needed a break from running/exercising. Now I am ready to get into it.

    Over the weekend, I was working on CPR re-certification (for my job) and did get most of it done except for skills demonstration, which I will do tomorrow night. I am amazed how much better I feel after getting this dreaded task done (the written part takes about 3 hours, including the test).

    I have been fighting a chest cold. It starts with drainage into the throat for 3 days and ends with a chest cold. Bleh! I have been spending so much time in bed sleeping.

    Last week I learned that my mother passed out while standing by the kitchen table, falling backwards, and hitting her head. My brother was there to help her, but she still stubbornly lives by herself. She does have one of those life alert buttons.

    I love reading the race reports....really getting my psyched for next year.

    A little worried about @T1DCarnivoreRunner 's electrolyte issues and major leg cramping. It must be dire to pour on salt onto an already sodium laden McDonald's meal. (My husband also gets leg cramps, albeit not as severe as yours, but he takes potassium and magnesium tablets.) Did it help at all? Scary stuff!

    I still haven't updated December or close out November yet, but on my to-do list. I hope to do both tomorrow night.

    I also have a stubborn mom who lives by herself. I ended up getting her an Apple Watch with the fall alert. It calls me and emergency services if it detects a fall. Life alert can only work if the person is conscious to push it, this gives you a countdown to cancel the alert and then calls if it’s not canceled.
  • T1DCarnivoreRunner
    T1DCarnivoreRunner Posts: 11,502 Member
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    ereck44 wrote: »
    Hi everyone,

    Just needed a break from running/exercising. Now I am ready to get into it.

    Over the weekend, I was working on CPR re-certification (for my job) and did get most of it done except for skills demonstration, which I will do tomorrow night. I am amazed how much better I feel after getting this dreaded task done (the written part takes about 3 hours, including the test).

    I have been fighting a chest cold. It starts with drainage into the throat for 3 days and ends with a chest cold. Bleh! I have been spending so much time in bed sleeping.

    Last week I learned that my mother passed out while standing by the kitchen table, falling backwards, and hitting her head. My brother was there to help her, but she still stubbornly lives by herself. She does have one of those life alert buttons.

    I love reading the race reports....really getting my psyched for next year.

    A little worried about @T1DCarnivoreRunner 's electrolyte issues and major leg cramping. It must be dire to pour on salt onto an already sodium laden McDonald's meal. (My husband also gets leg cramps, albeit not as severe as yours, but he takes potassium and magnesium tablets.) Did it help at all? Scary stuff!

    I still haven't updated December or close out November yet, but on my to-do list. I hope to do both tomorrow night.

    Just the McDonald's beef patties, not a meal. I don't eat carbs, which is part of why I need electrolytes in such high quantities. I do take magnesium as well. The salt and extra magnesium definitely helped in that case.
  • quilteryoyo
    quilteryoyo Posts: 5,972 Member
    edited December 2019
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    @LoveyChar That's an awesome picture. Congrats on getting your degree and showing your daughters that they can accomplish anything they set their mind to, including a marathon!

    @ereck44 I let dreaded tasks hang over my head all the time. Then, when they are done and I feel so much better, I wonder why I didn't do them sooner. You'd think I would have learned by now, but no! I'm too much of a procrastinator for that lesson to sink in. Sorry to hear about your mom. If it continues to happen, see about having her heart checked out. My dad kept passing out and it turned out that his heart was "pausing" for as much as 15 seconds. He now has a pacemaker/defibulator unit which is really helping him.

    No run today, but I did play doubles tennis for almost 2 hours. I hadn't played with these particular ladies in a while and they were impressed by how quickly I got to some of the cross court balls. Running pays off in other sports too. :smiley:
  • emmamcgarity
    emmamcgarity Posts: 1,593 Member
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    durhammfp wrote: »
    shanaber wrote: »
    I guess the PT exercises are working, making my glutes work harder and helping my form down the chain.

    What kind of exercises are those? I have to admit I have not started any strength training or stretching program (though I do do the 5-minute walking thing before running to warm up so I don't run cold....) Is there a 10-20 minute series of basic body-weight strength exercises you would recommend?

    I’m interested in what everyone does for strength training as well. I have some dumbbells that I use for HASfit beginner strength training on YouTube. Everything else I am currently doing are to help my hamstring injury. (Mostly core focused and hamstring curls, glute bridges (single leg), step ups, high knees, side steps, etc.)
  • mbaker566
    mbaker566 Posts: 11,233 Member
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    juliet3455 wrote: »
    PastorVincent wrote: »
    durhammfp wrote: »
    Sorry it was tough, but it sounds beautiful. I may have missed this in an earlier post, but was this a dog+human race? That would be pretty sweet. Also, what does it mean to say a trail is technical?

    "technical" - for road runners, read that as "hard" - it means that there are roots, hills, mud, and other issues that require more experience to run safely.

    @durhammfp to add to @PastorVincent description of technical I add:
    "technical" - for Trail Hounds - read that as a whole lot of fun jumping over fallen trees, scrambling up rock bench's, surviving down hill portions that are near vertical, mud slides, water hazards etc. A few good photo's from events.
    q4pkagnkv849.jpg
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    45wrskc1ndos.jpg
    dcgi8tskksw3.jpg
    111z28638vhy.jpg
    tey1h5oqqak6.jpg
    nag19tuc308b.jpg
    slw14v7ej6ih.jpg
    xq9390aozyu6.jpg
    ke1mornqhhfk.jpg

    Thankfully, no rock scrambling on this trail. A few downed trees.
    Lots of mud uphill and down while speed demon pulled.
    emmamcgarity wrote: »
    durhammfp wrote: »
    shanaber wrote: »
    I guess the PT exercises are working, making my glutes work harder and helping my form down the chain.

    What kind of exercises are those? I have to admit I have not started any strength training or stretching program (though I do do the 5-minute walking thing before running to warm up so I don't run cold....) Is there a 10-20 minute series of basic body-weight strength exercises you would recommend?

    I’m interested in what everyone does for strength training as well. I have some dumbbells that I use for HASfit beginner strength training on YouTube. Everything else I am currently doing are to help my hamstring injury. (Mostly core focused and hamstring curls, glute bridges (single leg), step ups, high knees, side steps, etc.)

    I do aerial yoga. Full body strength building. Mostly bodyweight work. I'll help students find muscles they didn't even know they had (or didn't have). I've found it a nice mix of strength and flexibility
  • mbaker566
    mbaker566 Posts: 11,233 Member
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    my naggers are slacking.
    hypersomnia knocked me out sunday and yesterday.
    i'll get a few miles in tonight
  • Camaramandy648
    Camaramandy648 Posts: 711 Member
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    Those "technical" photos make my heart swell. I think trail running is my niche for sure. It's so fun and interesting and challenging. It's also filled with experiences that one only gets if they actually go out and do the thing.

    To answer the cross-training question - I lift. Usually three times per week, unless it's a weird week where I get almost nothing done. I think it definitely helps my endurance.

    I didn't lift last night because I was still so sore from Saturday. I am supposed to run tonight, but I'll have to see how my quads feel. I am still pretty sore from the long run Saturday, still. I hope I can get out to get it done. Really, I hope my legs are up to it.

    I haven't ordered a running vest, which I really need to get done - I got so thirsty Saturday that I legit drank the water which I found out yesterday, one should NOT drink from that particular location. It's called Slaughterpen and I guess they call it that because it used to be a slaughterhouse and the water is all waste water - from the waste water treatment plant nearby????? What in the literal heck. My boss was so shocked when I was showing him the picture of the spring and said, "You DRANK that?" And I said, "well, yeah. I was thirsty."

    I don't know if I want a vest or more of a camelbak and I certainly am not spending $150 on it. What's your go to for this? I already know I don't like the handhelds. I ran with a water bottle recently and I Hated it. I always feel like everything has to be exactly right - a specific way and a specific feel - or the whole run is off. Even Saturday, I stopped at the running store near my house for a headband because I had some baby bangs that I could feel while I was running and it was driving me insane......

    Anyway, happy running! I love reading all of your posts so much!

  • PastorVincent
    PastorVincent Posts: 6,668 Member
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    Camaramandy648 wrote: »
    Those "technical" photos make my heart swell. I think trail running is my niche for sure. It's so fun and interesting and challenging. It's also filled with experiences that one only gets if they actually go out and do the thing.

    To answer the cross-training question - I lift. Usually three times per week, unless it's a weird week where I get almost nothing done. I think it definitely helps my endurance.

    I didn't lift last night because I was still so sore from Saturday. I am supposed to run tonight, but I'll have to see how my quads feel. I am still pretty sore from the long run Saturday, still. I hope I can get out to get it done. Really, I hope my legs are up to it.

    I haven't ordered a running vest, which I really need to get done - I got so thirsty Saturday that I legit drank the water which I found out yesterday, one should NOT drink from that particular location. It's called Slaughterpen and I guess they call it that because it used to be a slaughterhouse and the water is all waste water - from the waste water treatment plant nearby????? What in the literal heck. My boss was so shocked when I was showing him the picture of the spring and said, "You DRANK that?" And I said, "well, yeah. I was thirsty."

    I don't know if I want a vest or more of a camelbak and I certainly am not spending $150 on it. What's your go to for this? I already know I don't like the handhelds. I ran with a water bottle recently and I Hated it. I always feel like everything has to be exactly right - a specific way and a specific feel - or the whole run is off. Even Saturday, I stopped at the running store near my house for a headband because I had some baby bangs that I could feel while I was running and it was driving me insane......

    Anyway, happy running! I love reading all of your posts so much!

    Wunjo.

    $60 - https://wunjosports.com/products/wunjo-x5-ultra-advanced-hydration-backpack-10-1-5-l

    Many of us in this thread us it, or one of the other varieties of it. It is a great buy and I have run 1000s of miles in mine. There is a new "version 2" coming out of the X5 Ultra, it is supposed to be bigger and hold more but I have not seen it yet. It is pre-order only right now.
  • MegaMooseEsq
    MegaMooseEsq Posts: 3,118 Member
    edited December 2019
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    Well, November turned out to be one of my lowest mileage totals of the year - I ran less in February (when the weather was appalling), May and July (when I was injured) - and yet looking back, it felt like a good month. Coming back from shin issues at the end of October, I increased from two runs a week to four, keeping them mostly short but consistently building. Thanksgiving week I took off for no reason other than I wanted a vacation, and it was lovely. The weather was miserable Thanksgiving morning and my husband/driver wasn’t feeling well, so instead of trying to make a 7:30 Turkey Trot gun time, we slept in. I’ve DNSed a bunch of races this year, but I just can’t bring myself to feel bad about it right now.

    I’m going to set my nominal goal for December at 50 miles again, and my real goal at remaining consistent and uninjured. I only ran once last week and not at all the week before that, but I’m going to try jumping back to four runs this week with a 10% increase on my total from three weeks ago. My last race of the year is on Saturday and then it’s time to look forward to 2020.

    I had to skip the last couple of weeks of posts so hugs and congratulations all around. I'll try and dig back for the monthly questions this afternoon, but for now, it's time to prep for run #1 of the week - 1.5 miles to the gym (with soft plans to run back as well) in 2F cold. BRRRRRRR.

    December Goals: Run 50 miles, lift 2-3x/week, 15 minutes/day of moderate cardio, 15 minutes/day of mobility.
  • shanaber
    shanaber Posts: 6,390 Member
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    Question:
    Strength Training - I see a trainer 2x/week. He is actually the one who got me started running. That entire story is on my profile so not going to repeat it here. Even though I love the way I look and feel and how it helps my running, I am not entirely sure that I would actually do it on my own so I continue with the trainer. We do a mix of upper/lower body as well as core work. I was honestly pretty amazed at how much the core and upper body work affects running so it is important to not just focus on the obvious exercises for hips, glutes, etc.. Those are definitely needed too, but not all you need. Right now and probably going forward I also do a series of exercises (from the physical therapist) with a band that are specifically for my hips and glutes (to correct a knee issue). The PT didn't want me doing them every day and I have found it best to do them as a pre-run workout so my legs don't know to complain yet. If I do them the day before I run my legs are tight and tired and it makes my run very difficult.

    @ddmom0811 would be a great one to answer this question. She has a bunch of different home workouts she does that she could give her input on as to what she likes or doesn't.

    @ereck44 - I hope your mom is ok!
    @greenolivetree - congratulations to your husband!! I hope he is proud and excited about his doctor's response to the weight loss!
    @Camaramandy648 - yuck on drinking that water! Definitely get a pack of some kind. I got an Osprey because it is small, holds plenty of water (1.5L) for me, has lots of pockets and I got it on sale. I know lots of people here do like the Wunjo that @PastorVincent mentioned. It just didn't work for me.
    @mbaker566 - Love the pictures! Also love that you know need to nag your naggers :) Have you run yet? What are you waiting for?
    @quilteryoyo - Great job showing those other ladies how you can run! It really does pay off in other sports! I love being able to run with Hobbes the Vizsla in agility. If I didn't run and train he would leave me in the dust, well, to be honest he still does but it would be so much worse!
  • Camaramandy648
    Camaramandy648 Posts: 711 Member
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    What about this one?

    https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07QWP7QND/ref=twister_B071YN6SQK?_encoding=UTF8&th=1
  • PastorVincent
    PastorVincent Posts: 6,668 Member
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    Camaramandy648 wrote: »
    What about this one?

    https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07QWP7QND/ref=twister_B071YN6SQK?_encoding=UTF8&th=1

    Never heard of the brand. People in this thread use Wunjo, Nathan, and Osprey at the very least. Maybe one or two others, but not heard of that one so can not comment on it.
  • mbaker566
    mbaker566 Posts: 11,233 Member
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    eleanorhawkins wrote: »
    mbaker566 wrote: »
    my naggers are slacking.
    hypersomnia knocked me out sunday and yesterday.
    i'll get a few miles in tonight

    @mbaker566 Not slacking, you had permission for a couple of days off after a race.
    Now, stop posting awesome photos and go run! :-p
    shanaber wrote: »
    Question:

    @mbaker566 - Love the pictures! Also love that you know need to nag your naggers :) Have you run yet? What are you waiting for?

    well, i'm at work now. no run allowed in the office. when i get back home :)

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