July 14-20 Training

My summer race, the Buckeye Trail 50K, is “FINISH“ed. What a day and incredible experience. I am sure I learned much more through the training and race day than I even realize at this moment, and look forward to sharing a full report here very soon.

July 14-20

Monday - 5 easy (road)

Tuesday - 6 easy (road/path)

Wednesday - 13 miles cycling

Thursday - 5 miles (trail)

Friday - 1 hour yoga class

Saturday - 32 miles (Buckeye Trail)

Sunday - 10 miles recovery cycling (very easy pace and low resistance)

Totals: 48 miles running, 23 miles cycling, 1 yoga session

Good stuff: Accomplishing a goal and feeling good almost the whole 50K, the inspiration, learning, and company of much more experienced ultrarunners along the way.

Stuff to keep an eye on: Like last week and probably to continue next week, manage stress in a healthy way while moving and setting up in a new state.

Goals for the week: Squeeze shorter daily runs in for continued recovery and stress relief.

July 7-13 Training

Travel, taper, and terrain sum up this training week. My mileage dropped by about 50 percent due to two long travel days. Hopefully that extra rest will help me be extra ready to tackle the toughest 32 miles I’ve ever traversed this Saturday. While running declined, elevation spiked. My near-lifetime of flatland-dwelling was painfully obvious in mountainous Appalachia.

Grandfather Mountain near Linville, N.C.

July 7-13

Monday –  5 easy (road)

Tuesday - 8.5 easy (road/Metroparks path)

Wednesday —  Traveled to Western NC

Thursday —  The Bear 5-Mile Hill Climb

Friday – 1 hour easy hike in Asheville, NC

Saturday — 10 easy (track)

Sunday — Rest day; traveled to Pittsburgh

Totals:  28.5 miles running, ~2 miles hiking

Good stuff: Surviving The Bear! Memorable miles and time spent in Western North Carolina, one of my favorite places. A stop in the ‘Burgh on the way from Boone to Cleveland reunited me with childhood friend Andrew along with his wife and sister-in-law, both inspiring medal-winning athletes, at the U.S. Transplant Games.

Stuff to keep an eye on: Even welcome changes for the better can cause disarray. With a long-distance move and new job looming, managing stress will be crucial. 

Goals for the week: Give my very best and have fun running in the Buckeye Trail 50K, and then celebrate a new accomplishment.

June 30-July 6 Training

This was peak training week for the Buckeye Trail 50K, a new skill and distance challenge I decided on for a summer race. In terms of mileage, 50K training doesn’t vary much from the marathon training I’ve done for my last three marathons. The differences are bunching more mileage up for back to back longer weekend runs, more time on trails, and little speedwork if any. I have loosely followed this plan, formulated by the handy training spreadsheet tool on the Santa Clarita Runners website.

June 30-July 4

Monday –  Rest

Tuesday — 7 fartlek (track), 1.5 mile easy hike

Wednesday —  Traveled to NE Ohio, 8.4 (trail)

Thursday —  9.25 (trail)

Friday – Easy 7 miles cycling, upper body weights, pilates

Saturday — 7 easy (road)

Sunday — 23 long (trail)

Totals:  ~  54 miles running (40 trail/14 road or track), 1.5 miles hiking, 7 miles cycling, 1 each weights, pilates sessions

Good stuff: With about 9 hours of running it during this peak training week, I started feeling much more comfortable on the Buckeye Trail. Thanks to midweek shorter runs on the course, drier conditions, and much better fueling, I completed this week’s long run 75 seconds faster per mile. If I could do that again on race day, it would be a dream day for me. Most of all I had a lot of fun as a trail newbie, rather than frustration or discouragement.

Stuff to keep an eye on: I know I ran through poison oak on Sunday, so I keep checking my legs for an emerging reaction.

Goals for the week: Survive, er, summit The Bear, a 5-mile uphill run up Grandfather Mountain in western North Carolina. 

June 16-29 Training

Hello from the In The Distance Summer Tour 2008! 

The Blogkeeper has spent two weeks driving up the Mid-Atlantic Seaboard, back and forth between the Western Reserve and western Maryland, and before long will head down to Western North Carolina. With limited Internet time and access and miles to go before I sleep, finding time to post has been more difficult than I’d like.

All those location changes have meant never a dull mile of running over the past half month.

June 16-22

Monday –  6 easy (treadmill); home Pilates practice

Tuesday — Took Spinning and Pilates classes at YMCA

Wednesday —  8 with just 3 X 800 of 6 planned (path & treadmill) due to feeling really off breathing-wise

Thursday —  8 easy (road)

Friday – Rest; traveled to Dover, DE.

Saturday — approximately 35K/21.7 miles (trail) of Team Slug International’s Booty Rumble; traveled to Philadelphia

Sunday — 6 easy (hilly road); traveled to Montgomery County, MD

Totals:  ~  50 miles running, 1 Spinning class, 2 pilates practices

June 23-29

Monday –  40 minute brisk walk, 20 minutes stretching

Tuesday — 6 easy (hilly road); traveled to Frederick MD

Wednesday —  8.5 (path and road); traveled to Northeast Ohio

Thursday —  7.5 (trail and road)

Friday – Easy 5 miles cycling

Saturday — 10 easy (hilly road and path)

Sunday — 16 miles (trail)

Totals:  ~  48 miles running, 5 miles cycling, 1 stretching session

Good stuff: I couldn’t have asked for more fun on the run, with lots of new sights and wonderful company.

Stuff to keep an eye on: On the trail — everything! There’s no zoning out with headphones, chatter, and deep thoughts for this unsure-footed, off-road newbie. I find myself constantly scanning ahead for rocks, roots, mud, fallen trees, hairpin turns and other tactical challenges to navigate. Sometimes it’s flowing, and sometimes pretty slow-going.

Goals for the week: As I post this the training week is almost up, save for a huge challenge for me on 7/6: 22 miles on the Buckeye Trail, setting of the 50K I have been preparing for and encountering a steep but rewarding learning curve as I go.

June 9-15 Training

Maybe there’s no such thing as a free lunch, but on Friday I learned about a free 8K run the next morning in Kitty Hawk.  Held to increase publicity for a worthy organization, the Carolina Estuarine Reserve Foundation (CERF), the course took the couple dozen participants along woods, through a quaint sound-side village complete with goats and horses in yards, over a stretch of hilly, rooty trail, and across an old covered bridge — all for an optional $5 raffle ticket. Oh, and the cost of gas to drive an hour to the Outer Banks.

OK, so there’s no such thing as a free run either. At least it made for an extra scenic and fun one!

June 9-15

Monday –  4 miles easy (treadmill), took Pilates class

Tuesday — Taught Pilates

Wednesday —  35 min. Spinning; 6.25 miles easy (road)

Thursday —  8.25 miles with 3 X 1 mile at ~7:40 min/miles (path); taught Pilates

Friday – Rest

Saturday — 12.5 including Kitty Hawk Woods 8K (path and trail)

Sunday — 8 miles easy (road), yoga DVD

Totals:  ~  39 miles running, 1 Spinning workout, 4 yoga/pilates practices

Good stuff: The heat wave simmered down, and all of a sudden 80-85 degrees feels comfortable as long as it’s not in direct sun. Heat acclimating seems to be going much better this summer.

Stuff to keep an eye on: One of many good reasons to practice yoga and pilates is that they will show you exactly where you have tightness. Right now it seems my left ankle/Achilles area is still tight and in need of extra stretching and self-massage. I don’t feel it when running, but it was blatant during the Leg Pull Front.

Goals for the week: My head is still first and foremost in the office wrapping up projects right now. Running-wise I intend this to be my first 50+ mileage week in several months, so safe and smart running and lots of stretching to stay loose are all in order.

A Close Encounter, a Coincidence, and a Cookie

I will not typically write up a mid-week training run, as I figure they are interesting to no one but me. Tonight’s personal running adventure, though, was full of coincidence and even a close encounter.  Since I continually look to find and facilitate connections, I’m sharing it in the hope that it might help another runner notice an opportunity to be momentarily surprised by chance.

It was still warm when I started along my favorite path, and I had just finished demonstrating a lack of common sense by teaching a pilates class that focused on lower body right before running. After three miles, my legs still hadn’t forgiven me. If you can imagine running through drying cement with a super-size rubber band binding your legs, that’s about the way it felt. I intended to do some speedwork during this run, but after that warm-up was doubting whether I could eke any more pace out of my groggy legs. My rule of training is “Unless I am ill or hurt, I will always try,” so heading into mile 4 I looked for a pace that felt between “comfortably hard” and “all out 5K race pace misery.” The worst that would happen is I wouldn’t be able to finish the “fast” mile, and my confidence would be a bit bruised.

I made it fine, in a time I was satisfied with. To try for another, I retraced my steps and headed back in the direction of the trailhead.

Around a bend I encountered something that made me freeze for a moment. A doe was standing in the middle of the path facing me. Staring at me. Staring me down. Not turning tail and gracefully sailing off in the usual way that gives me deer envy.

Was she going to charge me? I had recently heard a few runners’ tales of aggressive behavior from Mama Deer, so I startled. Finally I asked Ms. Doe to move and she nonchalantly walked off the path. Despite the pause, I hit the .75 point of that mile way too fast and jogged in to come in faster the second mile. This wasn’t race day and I wasn’t out to deplete my legs.

During the rest period before the next interval, I walked to a water fountain at the rest area next to the trailhead. On the way I passed by two women holding the tiniest, most adorably snuggly puppies. The babies were the size of kittens, so they could cradle one in each arm. I’m not the type of person who squeals and gushes over Blatantly Cute Things, but at that moment it was all I could do to not walk over, gently take a puppy, and sprint off with it. I love dogs, so seeing those little ones made me smile as I headed off for the last mile repeat.

After running, I needed a few things from the store. Fifteen miles down the highway back to town there’s Wal-Mart, which is normally 12 miles out of my way. I don’t prefer to shop there, but tonight it was too convenient to pass up. My usual M.O. in a store is get around and grab what I need as efficiently as I can. I was doing that in the produce section when I passed a familiar face: one of the puppy women! We had that weird “I recognize you” moment, and she asked if I was the one who had been running. She wanted to know how far I had run and if I did that every day, and complimented me. I answered her questions as modestly as I could, feeling a bit self-conscious since I’m not out on the path looking for praise. I asked her about the puppies, and said how much I’d enjoyed seeing them and how cute they were. For the second time that night I headed away from the puppy woman too shy to follow her out of the store and ask to hold a dog.

It took a moment, but I realized this total stranger had given me a little lift twice in one evening without having any awareness of what she contributed. So, thanks, puppy woman!

My evening of minor and probably insignificant coincidences was completed by the fortune cookie that completed tonight’s Chinese take-out.

I am gingerly, often clumsily, spending more time on trails these days to add variety and fun to my running and prepare for a trail 50K next month. How is it that an assembly line worker (or, more likely, machine) knew of those ambitions when inserting the fortune I read:

(”Be careful! Straight trees often have crooked roots.”)

That might be one to slip in my race bag.

June 2-8 Training

I feel fortunate to have this training week on the books. Runs felt good, offered a lot of variety, and I was pleased with my effort. I got back into pilates & yoga practices, too. Sometimes I think about all the things that have to go right on a cellular, neurological, or biochemical level just to breathe and blink my eyes, and am blown away by the gift of enjoying a fit, active body. Moreover I am safe and fed, so have the luxury of “issues” like fussing over where to run. It’s important to step back and appreciate the ability to participate in these activities. I truly wish everyone could share the fun.

June 2-8

Monday –  6 easy (road), 2.5 mile walk

Tuesday — 5 with 4 X 800 (track); yoga DVD

Wednesday —  1800m swim; pilates class, 2 mile walk

Thursday —  9 easy (treadmill), yoga DVD

Friday – Yoga DVD, pilates DVD

Saturday — 20 easy (12 road/8 treadmill)

Sunday — 8.5 easy (trail)

Totals:  ~ 48.5 miles running, 4.5 miles walking, 1 swim, 5 yoga/pilates practices

Good stuff: Swimming! Weightless, supportive, refreshing, and gentle, this workout is the perfect antidote to hot-weather running.

Stuff to keep an eye on: Running slower due to heat & humidity results in achy feet and tighter calves. TLC like self-massage, stretching, and heat/cool soaks offer relief.

Goals for the week: With a cut-back planned, my goals are more about my non-running life this week. I have so much to do to get out of town for a while in a week to 10 days, and can’t seem to get my butt in gear to do any of it.

May 19-June 1 Training

Let’s hear it for summer vacation! Since May 15, I’ve been free to move about the country. I took advantage of this teaching career benefit the second half of May and embarked on a running tour of the Midwest. The trip took me down several new trails in Cuyahoga Valley National Park and Cleveland’s Metroparks system, and down memory lane in Madison, Wisc. 

All along the way I enjoyed good company, and got used to the camaraderie of running with a best buddy or group. Arriving back in North Carolina, it took a few runs to get used to “the loneliness of the long-distance runner” again. Fortunately, I met some new four-legged, furry friends on a few familiar local routes: An orange cat who appeared just when I wished for someone to talk to, and the friendliest Golden Retriever on the planet who tried her best to get me to stay and play rather than move forward.

May 19-25

Monday –  6 easy (paved path)

Tuesday — 8 with 6 X 2:00 95% effort pick-ups (treadmill)

Wednesday —  Travel day; no workout

Thursday —  6.3 easy (trails)

Friday – 5 easy (pavement and dirt path)

Saturday — rest day

Sunday — 15.1 miles (Madison Half Marathon race plus warm-up/cool down)

Totals:  ~ 40.5 miles running

May 26-June 1

Monday –  Travel day; no workout

Tuesday — 8.3 easy (pavement)

Wednesday —  4.75 easy (trails)

Thursday —  6 easy (road)

Friday –  3.5 mile walk

Saturday — 18 easy (road)

Sunday — 6.25 easy (treadmill); yoga

Totals:  ~ 44 miles running, 3.5 mile walking, 1 yoga practice

Good stuff: Too much for this little blurb. First and foremost, priceless company and memories made. I benefited from Trail Running 101 instruction on the Buckeye Trail, site of my summer goal race, and for the first time truly realized and appreciated the different, specialized techniques needed to traverse off-road.

Stuff to keep an eye on: After almost a month off from yoga and pilates due to a bit of burnout from teaching so much, my body feels clunky, weak, and stiff. Just one yoga practice helped loosen a tight lower leg and settle my mind, a reminder of how beneficial these supplemental activities are. I will schedule them into my training weeks until they become habitual again.

Goals for the week: Start heat-acclimating! I came back to what feels like mid-summer in N.C. It can be downright miserable to run in the steamy, stuffy conditions, but it can be done with some safety precautions and adjustments. Not giving in to the temptation of an air-conditioned treadmill with built-in fan will mean better performances in summer races and much stronger running when fall comes. Sadly, I confess to already longing for that more runner-friendly season!

Week of May 5-11

This week, my plan was to balance continued marathon recovery with getting a little training in for the Madison Half Marathon on May 25. Two weeks after Boston, my runs felt back to normal.

For a little extra cross-training, I took my friend Noel’s kickboxing class on Wednesday. I will not be writing off cardio classes ever again. With countless squats and lunges included in the fast-paced routine, I was sore for a good three days.

April 28-May 4

Monday –  1800m swim

Tuesday — 6.2 easy (road) with 6 X strides

Wednesday —  Taught Spinning class; took Kickboxing

Thursday —  6 easy (treadmill)

Friday – 5 easy (path) with 4 X strides

Saturday — 3.1 jog/walk (dirt road, pacing a 5K) 

Sunday — 14.2 easy (road)

Totals:  ~  34.5 miles  + 3 cross training workouts

Good stuff: I rediscovered how good swimming makes my body feel. After Monday’s swim, I was both worn out and refreshed. I also loved running in the beautiful Kitty Hawk and Nags Head Woods areas of the Outer Banks Friday and Saturday. Pacing my friend Mert and spending time with friends at the beach was lovely, and I got to break in my Team StayPut gear.

Stuff to keep an eye on: My body feels so tight and stiff, but aside from some paltry stretching and foam rolling I did no flexbility maintenance this week. With summer vacation from work starting, I am lucky to have time to begin a daily yoga or pilates personal practice.

Goals for the week: Continue careful nutrition and ramp up yoga/core training. Use a local 5K on Saturday as a measure of current fitness.

Post-Boston Training: Weeks 1 and 2

What? After a marathon, there’s still more training to be done?

There is, and it’s called “Recovery.” This is my absolute least favorite phase of training. Typically after a race, I am re-enthused and even more excited about running. My mind and heart want to run, but the body is stiff, tired, and achy.  Forty-eight hours post-marathon, I always catch myself marveling how two days earlier I could go for what felt like forever and now I can barely shuffle and stagger around.

Recovery is very important and necessary to allow the body to rest, heal, and repair micro-tearing and other slight wear and tear to soft tissues. Some runners live by the rule of no hard workouts for the month following a 26.2 mile race. Depending on my next adventure, I usually do a reverse taper, bringing mileage back up to a base level over three to four weeks following a marathon.

Race Week, April 21-27

Monday –  26.2 miles (Boston Marathon), quite a bit of walking through the evening

Tuesday — Considerable walking around Boston and Logan Airport

Wednesday —  Rest, if you call teaching 1 pilates and 2 yoga classes “rest.” Just another day at the office!

Thursday —  30 minute easy jog/walk ~ 2.5 miles

Friday – Rest

Saturday — Rest

Sunday — 6.5 easy (dirt road/trails)

Totals:  ~  35.2 miles  + 2 pilates and 2 yoga classes taught

Post-Race Week 1, April 28-May 4

Monday –  Rest

Tuesday — 6.5 (trail)

Wednesday —  Taught Spinning class

Thursday —  5 (road)

Friday – 4 easy jog/walk/hike (dirt road  & trails)

Saturday — 8 (paved path and overpass), 45 minute brisk walk

Sunday — 3.5 (road)

Totals:  ~  27 miles  + 2 cross training workouts, 3 pilates and 2 yoga practices.

Good stuff: After arriving back in North Carolina, I cherished wonderful company on some runs. New runner Mert, who is about to do her first 5K, helped me keep my pace comfortable twice. Lloyd visited for my birthday weekend and I got to share a favorite trail with him. My former running partner Ken was back temporarily from The Netherlands, so we had a mini-reunion of sorts with our other buddy Bill:

On two separate occasions, I ran the Nags Head Woods nature preserve road and trails at the Outer Banks. I also got to turn a “good-bye for now” at RDU into trail time with an hour on the multi-use dirt path at neighboring Umstead State Park, which had dried out four weeks after the soggy 100-Mile Endurance Run.

Stuff to keep an eye on: Nutrition! Gah! Two weeks of much less activity, a gluttonous carbo-loading phase, post-marathon noshing on malt balls, pizza, and beer, and a couple birthday parties = a currently chubbyish runner. Experience has taught me that I will self-regulate and re-balance well, especially as I add back mileage, so I am just being careful to avoid junk and alcohol right now rather than restrict intake.

Goals for the week:  If I’m feeling good, extend a scheduled 10-mile long run to more like 14 to sneak in a little training for a half marathon I’m planning on the 25th.  Continue listening to my body, do lots of stretching, and most of all rest.