February 2020 Monthly Running Challenge

Guys, I ran 12.6k! My last long run a couple of weeks ago was 11 and I just managed that. Today not only did thr 13 feel relatively easy, I only stopped because I wanted a short cool Down walk, and my phone was digging intoy ribcage and I'd finally had enough.

It felt so good. I started about 9:10am. It was overcast but so calm. No wind. And not hot at all. I wore my crop top because last time I wore a tank I got hot and it annoyed me. It was sopping wet by the end but I was comfortable the whole time. I had my giant jelly beans and ate one every 3k, and took water when ever I needed it. I did kinda wish I had a isotonic drink toward the end, I definitely felt like I was starting to lack salt, so I'm going to have to investigate having a small drink bottle for that in the future. Anything over 12k, I definitely notice the need for that sort of thing.


Now I'm going to lay around till about 2 when I have to get ready for work.

Oh and an icecream after the run was my choice. Specifically a chocolate covered cookies and cream icecream. Sooooo good!

@MegaMooseEsq Sorry you've been sick. I hope you feel better soon!!!

@rheddmobile An extra rest day was probably wise. I like that you celebrated by walking the trail. That mud looks tough.

@7lenny7 I remember you talking about that race now. Looks interesting. Not sure it is something I would ever do, but hope you have fun!

@LoveyChar I agree with @7lenny7 . You should let him do it. That time with his dad is something he'll always remember. Not being to do it may be something he would always remember to, and not in a good way. Also, I think the fact that you are rethinking it, means you already know what the right thing is.

Great run @Avidkeo !

So, nothing real eventful tonight, other than a possessed/ malfunctioning treadmill meant I had a bit of extra walk/ recovery time in the middle of my run. I tried to trouble shoot the issue, and final resorted to the only electronics cure I know- turned it off and back on again... and did second half on the other treadmill. Which also means I’m not entirely sure on time or mileage.... other than I think I did my first sub 15 minute mile of the current reboot/regroup. Which gives me hope.

So, extrapolating from known factors, I THINK I did 2.3 today for 23/25 maybe. Which means I have 3 days to hit my goal. And although I feel for those missing goal for the first time.... if I pull it off in the next three days, it may be my first time HITTING my set goal in my long but intermittent history of being on the thread.... if it’s not the first, i can count the other occurrences on one hand. So, hopefully I find that to be motivating.

I did follow my intuition and get new shoes while I was in a real town over the weekend, and that was totally the right call, even if my budget disagrees. So it was first real run in the new shoes. If for some reason I am falling short of goal.... I may add my shoe testing mileage just to hit the darn thing for occasion.

And although @7lenny7 is doing something nearly as crazy... the thing I’ve seen lately that totally put @alphahowls on my mind, was something on a quarantined Chinese runner doing 50k/31 miles via laps in his living room..... y’all are nuts, but I love ya and appreciate you anyways!

shanaber wrote: »

Recovery foods - when it is hot as is has been the last couple of days here (expecting to hit 90F tomorrow) I love just cutting up an orange and eating it. Sometimes just off the tree and sometimes chilled in the fridge. I am also a big proponent of chocolate milk although I make mine with Starbucks mocha powder which is actually just really dark chocolate powder and sugar. Sometimes I even add a bit of coffee to make it a really chocolaty mocha.

I made a chocolate ‘let’s call it a recovery’ drink after my run-bootcamp-run this morning. 60g of chocolate ice cream, 120mls of milk, a shot of coffee, all whizzed together to a creamy foamy deliciousness. Went from shattered to feeling fab in a matter of minutes. And only 200cal. Will definitely be doing it again!

It's 1130pm. Just got home from work. Sitting in my spa under the milky-way. It's beautiful.

Just thought I'd share. Good night!

PastorVincent wrote: »

Avidkeo wrote: »

It's 1130pm. Just got home from work. Sitting in my spa under the milky-way. It's beautiful.

Just thought I'd share. Good night!

This needs a jealous reaction.

I needed it. Knee was a bit tender after being on my feet all day. Now I think i can sleep

@hanlonsk I heard about that guy doing the ultra in his living room. That is just wild! He had a great time too, 4:48:44. I guess that means no more excuses for the rest of us.

https://www.scmp.com/sport/outdoor/trail-running/article/3048941/coronavirus-outbreak-chinese-runners-forced-train
https://runningwithmiles.boardingarea.com/the-amazing-way-one-runner-did-a-50k-run-while-quarantined-due-to-coronavirus/

I've been going back this month to try to see what everyone's up to. Congrats to @shanaber @hamsterwheel6 @MegaMooseEsq @polskagirl01 @ContraryMaryMary @T1DCarnivoreRunner @rheddmobile (reading "Stanky creek" always cracks me up, lol) for your races. Sorry @janejellyroll that you missed yours. I'm sure there's more race reports out there but I'm only caught up to page 25.

@katharmonic I loved the skiing photos!

@autumnblade75 I'm late to the race nutrition discussion but here are my thoughts. When I ran my first marathon I was all into calculating my calorie burn, glycogen burn, required carb intake, and all that. It finally occurred to me that the only thing that I needed to know was the maximum calorie intake my body could handle per hour. In a marathon you simply cannot replace all the glycogen you burn. Thus, if you can determine your maximum calorie intake per hour, just hit that number. Through trial and error I've determined that I can take in 300 calories per hour without getting an upset stomach, so that's the number I go for. The range I've heard is 200 to 300 calories, depending on the individual and the ambient temperature (hotter temps = less calories/hour because more blood is at the skin to help cool off). The way you find this out is to try to overdo it during a long run. Plan on 200 calories/hour and see if that works. The next time 250, then 300, and so on. If at some point your stomach gets upset, you know you've gone to far. For me, once I got to 300 calories, I felt that was enough and stopped there. I have an iron stomach when racing.

As far as how to get those calories, I'm also cheap. I generally rely on aid station food during ultras but road marathons are different. I used a combination of the Gatorade they served at the water stops (if you can find out how big the cups are, figure half that amount is what you'll actually get since they don't fill them up all the way and you'll likely spill some) and some honeywater I brought myself. I tried the gels, and they work fine, but were too expensive so I took honey, mixed honey 50/50 with water and filled a soft flask to carry with me. Not only did that allow me to take smaller portions, but more often, it was much neater than using sticky gel packets. I also carried a water bottle to wash down the honey water. You could add salt if you think that's needed.

The equation becomes (expected number of hours racing) x (calories/hour) = Total Calorie Intake. Then figure out the number of water stops with Gatorade x the calories in the amount you plan to drink (this is where it's good to know the cup size...if not, eyeball it) and subtract that from the Total Calorie Intake

Don't run all your long runs fully fueled. It's good to run some fasted or low fueled so your body can learn to burn more fat and less glycogen. Those runs may not feel the best, but it helps in the long run and saves more calories for real food after the run. It's quite rare that I run a long run fully fueled but my goal is to maximize my fat burn for ultras. The furthest I've gone without food, or water, is 19 miles, but that was in the winter.

One of the many reasons I started ultrarunning is the aid station fare. During races I've eaten pizza, cheeseburgers, bacon, pancakes, quesadillas, grilled cheese, M&Ms, potato chips, and even sushi. Then there's the beer and Fireball.

Okay so laying it out there. My eldest brother I never really got on with, he was the golden child, religious, joined the Uni RAF squad, played piano well, did well at Uni, dropped dead at 32 so there was no completing with that. You know the friendship parachute, multicoloured, people grab a corner, if you can find an example of that before he 'came up' with it in the 80s let me know but my Mum always said he created it. Nothing wrong with the guy mind you.

My other brother, we used to visit him and his first wife three times a year and they had two children slightly older than ours, it only dawned on me recently they never came to visit us, just my parents a few miles away and we were welcome to join. The only time they came to see us was to use us a week long babysitting service so they could go to the states. Before they got divorced he was a complete ****, nothing short of disgraceful, his wife had gained more than a few pounds and his 'anti-fat person' streak was on full display. Others didn't see this and his presented persona was ex-RAF superfit, charity concious ironman competitor who would do training cycle rides to my parents who were 60 miles away, do odd jobs and ride home again.

We had a couple of successful 'family' breaks when the children were younger, everyone gets on. A couple of years ago I suggested we all get together again, thought my retired parents would enjoy organising it as they always take over anyway. Nothing happened. I asked repeatedly, no interest. Boxing Day my niece sends a facebook post 'Having the greatest time with the best fam ever" both brothers families and my parents. Saracastically replied "Glad my idea of getting together worked for some". The following year my Mum's cancer won in late October, they did it again. To be fair my brother and I had already said at the funeral "let's not pretend we are going to keep in touch or anything". So they don't like us, not a problem, knowing where you stands means no wasted energy on it.

Whilst this is my opinion my children, who asked the question why weren't invited, have done their own homework through extend family and have come to the conclusion, not worth bothering with.