Wordless Weekends - Fall Colors

     

Running with headphones - yes or no?

Do you run with music?  A while ago I was tooling around on the web and found this post which I read and sort of ignored until I thought about it some more.  Since then I've been doing more and more runs sans music and it's been an interesting experience.  Today was the first day I didn't even bother bringing my headphones along.  Here's what I think:

• I feel much less pressure to keep looking for new music for running.  That playlist doesn't get nearly as old when I only hear it once a week.
• I like that I can hear the sounds of my feet on the pavement.  It's my own rhythm.
• Without music is much closer to how I run in races, since I'm normally with a pace group so it's good to practice that way.
• Such a better plan for running in the dark.
• I run faster up hills.  There's no music to provide a rhythm or pace and I just want this crap over with.
• I like runners who also do not have earbuds because they always smile and say hi as they run by and leave me in the dust.
• I never have any plans to stop listening to music for any workouts at the gym including track workouts, treadmill or the elliptical.  You can pry my iPod from my cold dead hands.

How I've done it so far:
One day I went out for a run and it was going to be dark when I left so I was all "I'll take my earbuds with me and put them in when the sun comes up or at XX point along the course.  Read more here.  I did that for a couple runs here and then for my 20-miler I kept my earbuds out the whole time I was running in the dark without a sidewalk.  More on that foolishness here.  For other runs in Cincinnati, I did one with music because I was totally unmotivated and wouldn't have left the house without the extra incentive.  The other run was totally without music although I had the earbuds with me as a safety net.  Today I just left them at home for my four miler.

Future plans:
I have no idea if I'll keep this up forever, or even go totally music free on some of my longer runs.  20 miles is a long way without some music to distract me.  For now it's nice in the mornings to feel like I have the energy to run without the boost from the earbuds.  I will probably still post what running tunes I'm using now, even if I don't use them as often as before.

Zumba Thursday

Last night I ran with Team:Work.  We're using the couch potato plan to train for the Dreidel Dash.  It was a pretty run along the river with a few long breaks for stop lights.  If you ask, their favorite part was the stop lights.  Really their favorite part was the big hill I make them run up.

After running I went out with a friend.  Some information was dropped on me like a bomb.  (That was unexpected.)  Even before I went to sleep I knew I'd have some energy to burn off and planned to get up early for a run today.


Run!  I guess I had a lot to sort out becuase I went for a 4-miler this morning and ran it faster than I've ever run that route.  Ever.  It was one of those runs where I was ticked and irked and had a lot to think about and did it by absolutely pounding the crap out of my legs.  It felt so good.

 Circuit Class  I'm imagining not coming to Circuit for a couple weeks while I taper.  Tapering is the best excuse in the world for all kinds of crap.  Eating more food - carboloading is an important part of the process; Not running as hard - I'm tapering; Not running as long - I'm tapering.   Today I used "I'm tapering" to get out of several jumping exercises. 

Zumba Thursday is just my favorite night of the week becuase I love Zumba.  It's such a big class, we fill up a gym that's two basketball courts big.  Mostly I go because I love the music.  Today we did a warm up to the song that's all over YouTube; I think it's in Korean, or by a Korean guy?  It was hilarious.  I guess last week the teacher told everyone to wear their shades for the warmup but I was in Cincinnati so I didn't get the message.

Vacation - Everything but running

Thursday was a travel day, and also my mom's birthday.  My flight was delayed.  When I got on board I accidentally read the headlines in the magazine the guy next to me had.  It was clearly a "the United States is a Christian Nation; kick out the Muslims" kind of magazine.  I was thrilled when the flight attendant asked if I wanted to move to a different seat where I'd be by myself.  Once we got off the ground, the flight was uneventful.
In Cincinnati we went to Target for bike helmets and a bike pump, birthday presents for Mom and Dad.  Then we headed out to Green Dog Cafe to celebrate Mom's birthday and carb up for me.

Friday was the 20-miler, which I've mentioned a couple of times.  For dinner, Aunt Barb and Uncle Tom came over.  I cooked.  The menu included pears with prosciutto and goat cheese, caprese salad for the people who can stomach tomatoes, pasta with chicken and homemade pesto sauce and fifteen kinds of olives. 

Saturday we went to a conference put on by A.R.E..  The conference was sort of how this trip got started.  It wasn't exactly what I expected but it gave me some stuff to look up including the White Horse Prophecy and the Pyramid Timeline Prophecy.  Also, something interesting will happen on December 21st because that's when the Mayan Calendar ends.  After the conference we went home and took a nap and then headed to dinner with Mike and Linda.  We had African food and then Grater's.

Sunday I went for a run and then headed out to see Grandma.  Dad and I took her to and Italian restaurant, did some 'work' around the house (which was like two chores) and then hung out.  Dad watched football and baseball and I read a kindle book, Heaven is for real.  Dad got gum on his shoe during the trip.  Also, that night my computer died.  "Blue Screen of Death" on a mac is an entirely different concept.

Monday I went to play with some of my favorite people in the world.  How cool they still play with the blocks I got them for Christmas!  We read about the weather (yes, the snow in Minnesota comes up to my knees sometimes), watered the garden, ran up and down the hill and generally hung out.  I left when it was nap time.

 This one does not like to hold still for the camera so I did my best. 

 This one is every bit as sweet as he looks.

       
Mom and I hit Jazzercise for the 4:45 class.  We had a new teacher who seemed to have some new form of running on at the mouth.  (Jazzercise is a dance/exercise class where the teacher tells you what to do and demonstrates the moves as you go.)  It went from hilarious to bizarre pretty quickly.  I think she's a teacher in her day job so she talked about that but also some TV shows she likes/doesn't like and other random stuff.

Then all three of us went over to see a friend of my parents.  She'd cooked dinner for us and one other person who was also an out of town guest from South Carolina.  She lives in a hi rise looking over the Ohio River and it is an amazing view.  It was also Dad's birthday.

Tuesday I got up and went for a run in the rain while Mom worked on her dissertation.  Then it was time to head back to the airport.  My flight was miraculously on time (did I mention the weather?) but a little bumpy going up and coming down.  When I got back to Minneapolis I headed over to see my friends at the Mall of America Apple Store and picked up a brand spanking new computer to replace the five-year old behemoth that had finally bit it.  What they say about backing a Mac up with time machine - totally true.  One of the easiest data retrieval experiences I've ever had.

 

Vacation - Running

Wednesday night as I was going through my mail, I found this gem.  I can't believe I signed up for another marathon.  What was I thinking?  I also got my save the date postcard for the Dreidel Dash. 

Thursday was a day of travel and carb loading.  There was no exercise.

Friday was my last 20-miler before the marathon.  This pictures weren't taken on the run but this is what some of the views looked like.  I know in Minnesota we love the Mississippi River, but the Ohio River Valley is really something to see.

 

Saturday was a day of recovery from the big long run.

Sunday I did a short run becuase I knew I'd be in the car most of the day and it would feel good.  Also, I'm nicer and more patient after I run.  (Serious.)  This was actually the best weather of any of my runs.  It was nice and sunny but not swamp like.  I ran the "hill" route from my parents house.  It's a lot of going up at first and a lot of down hill at the end, just the way I like it.

  
Monday I did Jazzercise with my mom because for Mondays in September you can bring a friend for free.  When Danza Kuduro came on, I absolutely could not do the routine correctly because I kept trying to do the Zumba routine instead.  Fail.

Tuesday I did six miles, totally without music.  (More on that later.)  It was a super humid day and the weather ultimately devolved into rain for periods of the run.  Great.  I did a longer version of the out and back hill course from my parents house.  The elevation profile is in blue/white and my speed profile is in the red/yellow rainbow.  I ran really fast at the end because it was both downhill and I was over getting rained on.

Mileage got a little wonky with moving the 20-miler from Sunday to a Friday.  My plan for the rest of the week is to keep running and then to truly start the taper after my next 12-miler over the weekend.    

Long Run Friday - 20 Miles Cincinnati Style

For my final 20 miler before Marathon Sunday, I ran up and down big hills in Cincinnati.  Because that's how life is.  For a recap of past years final 20-milers, don't look for 2009 because it was so bad I didn't even write about it, here's 2010 with a bonus musical post and here's 2011. 

Weather - through a strange set of circumstances, this was the only day on the whole trip I could even get in a run this long, so I was stuck with whatever happened weather wise.  It wasn't super hot, in the 60s and 70s, but the humidity was impressive.  Around 90% when I walked out the door this morning.

Sidewalks - I feel like I never have to ask in Minneapolis or St Paul, "are there sidewalks on that street"?  It's an important consideration here, and even more relevant  because my reflective gear is at home.  (I'd planned to be doing this on a bike trail.)  So there I was on Victory Parkway going "wtf?" when there was no sidewalk in sight for about a mile. 

Hills - I'd originally had this slated as 22, but with the Cincinnati sized hills, I decided it could just be a simple 20.  That took me long enough as it was.  I went up a big hill on Victory Parkway between miles 6 and 8; down the big hill all the way into downtown and to the river from miles 8 to 11; and then all the way back up all the elevation I'd lost from miles 16 to 19.  I ran mile 16 and ran/walked from there to the top.  The last mile was literally all down hill which was great.

The route - my parents didn't want me to go out to the bike trail early.  For some reason they thought running through Norwood in the dark would be safer.  I picked this route at the last minute.  Other than Victory Parkway having no sidewalks it was a pretty good choice.  I'd run parts of this route for the Flying Pig but most of it was brand new.  Compared to where I normally run, there were so many stop lights. 

Nutrition and hydration - I think the salt sticks are working great.  I had a ton of them becuase it was so humid out.  I also ate a 'big' breakfast before I left of yogurt, banana and granola.  I took a gu every 4 miles (which I've been told is a lot, like every 50 minutes) and 2 gus at mile 12.  (I barely got down the gu at mile 16 without gagging.)  I had a total freak out about running out of water so I filled my bladder again around mile 15 (and barely drank any of that stuff).

Timing - I ran this route in about 4:40 (which I know is slow) but there is a nature break in that time, time for getting lost and what I think is a lot of time for stop lights.  I'm not sure how I feel about this time.  I mean, at mile 3.5 I was already at 48 minutes which is ridiculous.  Who knows what I actually did.  Here's what Nike thinks, but they also think this was 24 miles which is crap.

Music - The transition to running without music has been so much less painful than I ever would have expected.  I had my tunes with me but kept the earbuds out until about mile 7.  I wanted to have no music for anything in the dark and anything without sidewalks.  Once I started going up hill I wanted something to distract me.  I'm pretty sure I took the earbuds out in one other place along the run but I can't remember now.

Other stuff -

• Running downtown was a blast but I think the novelty would wear off if I had to do it again.
• The "Ohio River Bike Trail" is not complete.  That's how I got lost.
• What's up with all those water fountains not being turned on?  Rude.
• So much fun to be in Eden Park and running into downtown.  Gorgeous.
• The river was amazing.  It looked high to me but I know it's not.  (Who can say drought?)
• I should find a new route for every 20-miler I do to make them less awful.
• No ice bath but I did stretch a lot and kept moving throughout the day, especially when I made dinner for all those people.
• I found myself not caring about this run which was mostly hormonal (awesome) but about two hours later was all "oh awesome, now I get to taper"
• Still trying to decide on which shoes to wear on Marathon Sunday.  The ones today are slightly more shoe but I also had a big blood spot on one sock when I took them off.

Heirloom Tomatoes

I'm not sure if my distaste for raw tomatoes has been adequately described on this blog.  If I have to eat a raw tomato or even smell one, my face curls up worse than this:

Source.

 Tonight the conversation went like this:

Him: Have you tried heirloom tomatoes?
Me *Makes face* Yes.  I don't like raw tomatoes.
Him But heirloom tomatoes...
Me Trust me, I don't like raw tomatoes.  I like them roasted.  Or in soup.  Or in tomato sauce.
Him But they're so good, you don't need to cook them.  Would you just try one for me?

To be fair - yes, I will try one for you because I've been down this road before and it's the easiest thing.  Why does everyone think they have special powers that can make an heirloom tomato taste and smell different than all the other times I've tried them?  Save your heirloom tomatoes for people who will enjoy them as much as you do folks.

How to do a stair running workout

My advice on a stair running workout is Don't.  Ever.  See if you can not do it on a day when it's 95* and humid.  Through a cruel twist of fate, that's how all my stair workouts have been.  I'm not sure if I'd hate them less if I did them in better weather.  I am sure that these workouts were helpful in climbing mountains and sand dunes in Colorado and being able to run that extra leg and super big hill at Ragnar this year, so I grudgingly keep doing the work.

Stair workouts:
Step 1 - find a big stair case.  Big.
Step 2 - welcome to hell.

No, seriously, our trainer has us do a few different things, and works the exercises into a few different workouts. 

• Box Jumps - the goal is to land in the middle of the step, and to just keep jumping all the way up the stair case.  When I first tried it, I'd do 10 or 15 steps in a row but be absolutely dying by the top of the stairs.  Tonight I'd do about 7 in a row, take a breath or two and keep going and had much better luck with my endurance.  Jumps go up the stairs only, run back down them.
• One legged hops - five on one foot and then five on the other, all the way up.  I am a freak of nature because my left leg is much stronger and more balanced than my right side, the opposite of everyone else.  I am also left eye dominant and play tennis left handed.
• Sprint up and down - run up and down the steps, pretend someone is chasing you if it helps.  This is the only one that can be done up and down the staircase.

Tonight our workout was sprint up and down the staircase then a full minute of jumping jacks, then recover and do it 3 times.  I was the only person who made all three times.  One runner has asthma and her heart rate got too high, and the other two had run to the park from 3 miles away and were super hot already so they get a pass.

Above: The view from the top - Sears Building on the left and downtown Minneapolis on the right.  This on the "high side" of the park.  Below: the pond at Powderhorn Park.  This is one of the few bodies of water in the city that is never referred to as a lake.  It's too small.  The staircase is in between these two sites.

 

Spork. Not a spork.

An important distinction needed to be made today.  Spot the differences:
 

This is a spork.

Image from here

This is a grapefruit spoon.

Image from here.

 

Long Run Fridy - Lucky 14

I felt like garbage when I woke up.  Awesome.  I forced down a Luna Bar (the raspberry icing so did not help) and got myself together for a run.  It was about 60* and super humid when I left.  There were on and off sprinkles, mostly off, but it was humid pretty much all day.

14 Miles were on the calendar for today *Monday*, but I deferred to today becuase of weather.  I'm still following this training program, and modified it only slightly to allow a 3 week taper instead of 4.  For my 14, I hit Lake Nokomis and Ft Snelling, and caught a glimpse of the improved Coldwater Spring National Park.  I ran with and without music, just alternating based on how I felt and how much motivation I needed.  Here's what it was like:

The Nike+ kit seems to work much more accurately if I turn it on when I've already started to run instead of in my warm up run.  It's nice and somewhat reassuring to have actual data about a run.

• Mile 1 and 2 - running in the neighborhood on my way to the Lake.  I was trying to decide if it was raining or if the wind was blowing water out of the leaves most of the way.  Also, I felt like garbage.
• Miles 3, 4 and most of 5 - running at Lake Nokomis.  Sunrise was gorgeous.  There were a lot of clouds so it really added to the drama.  Some of those miles are slower because I got caught at stop lights twice.
• Mile 6 - Minnehaha Parkway.  I have a love/hate relationship with this street.
• Miles 7 and 8 - one of those miles is slow for potty stop reasons.  Don't panic.  Thank goodness I'm near the falls and Ft Snelling because this is my favorite part of the run.
• Mile 9 - up that damn hill.  I think I took it faster than normal but I can't remember.  I was so out of breath at the top I nearly blacked out.
• Miles 10 and 11 - back through Minnehaha Falls, and caught my glimpse of Coldwater Spring.  (There's some controversy over this park, like nobody wanted it until they threatened to build a road over top of it or something?  Also, it's sacred to the tribes here.)  The parking lot is not paved.  Is this on purpose or not finished?  Also, took my last bit of food and my last salt tab.
• Miles 12 and 13 - Minnehaha Creek running trail and Lake Hiawatha.  Slow and steady wins the race.  But I was basically still moving at a respectable pace.  Is it possible I stopped listening to music on this stretch?  Just being entertained by the sound of my own feet.
• Mile 14 - I hate this stupid hill.  I'm sure it's good practice but whatever.

When I logged on to Nike to see my run data, I told me I sped up at the end (ha!).  That can't be right.

Nike also told me it's my five year anniversary?!?  There have been some extended absences from using this thing, but I have stuck with it an impressively long time I think. 

  

I'm trying another new thing in training called "eat right away after a long run" because of all the things out there to tell runners we should.  I made a smoothie and hit the ice bath.  Ugh.

 

I just gave someone a goat - review update

A while ago I wrote about an exercise incentive site that had a few bugs.  EarndIt and Nike have made friends since then and things seem to be working out, so I have an update.  I'd earned almost 2,000 points and decided it was time to spend. I'm actually not in a buying mood so I gave 500 of my points to Heifer International to buy a goat for a poor farmer in Africa.  500 points didn't buy the whole goat.  Turns out 1200 people need to donate 500 points for the goat, but I was part of the solution.  Here's the update:

Things you'll like when you try the site:

• I actually track my exercise much more than in the past.  Even now if it's a short run or a run with friends, I'm totally using my Nike+ kit, just because I want the points.  (This run could give someone a goat!)
• The Nike+ information syncs perfectly now.  (Thanks for working that out.)
• The website is quite user friendly.  Both the workout section that lists points and the 'redeem' section where I can get stuff are straight forward .
• Totally not required to log in thrugh Facebook.  (Am I the only person annoyed by that trend?)
• I like the 'challenges' don't use points to determine an outright winner (whom I imagine would be some crazy person who did nothing but work out and brag on facebook) but are more "if you get this many points you'll be entered for this level of drawing..."

Things that can get better - Redeeming points for charity:

• The FAQ section should address how this works, becuase my 500 points would've turned into about a $50 gift certificate to one of the vendors but my 500 points turned into about fifty cents when I donated them to a charity.  I'm okay with this (what other place can my slow ass running help so many charities?), but the site should explain how it works.
• The site should list when the number of goats/camels/flu shots/care packages/whatever that have already been given to these charities.  Most of the comments on the Heifer International page are all "dude, do they ever really give anyone a goat?"  Brag about what you've done so far.
• Send an email or give me a trophy or a notification or something when someone gets the goat I made a donation for.  (I don't know if this happens.  Maybe my goat just hasn't been given yet?) I just need to be patient.

Things that can get better - other stuff

• Please, for goodness sake, start to sync with Endomondo and its apps.. Done. Thank you!
• When users 'accept a challenge' - the site should automatically credit points earned from the first day of the challenge, no matter when the invitation was accepted.  You know I gave your site a junk email address I check like once a week right?  I tried to accept a challenge some time after it started and got zero points because of when I'd accepted versus synced my data to the site.
• The vendors that offer deals seem to have interesting stuff but are all little unknown.  (I understand Reebok and Adidas might not have a lot of incentive to offer deals on this site.)  I'm not super excited about buying from a company I don't know just because I get a deal.  (This is a great site for all you impulse shoppers out there though.)
• In addition to energy bars and workout clothing, get some tech vendors for gift certificates and deals.  I know this is an exercise site but by definition, everyone using the site has a computer and some pretty sophisticated equipment to track workouts.  There's got to be some weird brand of headphones or bike computer or something that would love to get business from the site.

Stuff I have yet to do on the site

• Refer a friend - I've never referred anyone.  If you want a referral and some free points, drop me a line with your email and I'll shoot you a link.  In real life I don't know any other runners who are as manic about tracking workouts as me.
• Redeem points for a gift certificate - I actually haven't done it yet.  Those make your own granola bars are still looking good but the timing has never worked out with vacations and stuff.  I do have a Christmas gift planned for one of you though.  Pooky Bear, it's not you, but you can let me know if you see something you like.
• Accept a challenge - I've kind of blown those off so far because of the experience above and because I estimate that so many people enter them I'm just as likely to win the lottery as one of these

New Running Soundtrack - the sound of my own awesomeness

Summer came back to Minnesota with a vengeance this week.  Sunday I took a 3 mile walk with a friend and was drenched with sweat by the end.  It was pretty to walk along the river.

Monday I woke up to run my long run of the week (14 miles).  At 545am I checked the weather in order to make final preparations.  It was 75* and a billion percent humidity.  I went back to bed.  I woke up later and hit the elliptical at the gym for "6 miles" and then the rowing machine for 30 minutes.  I'll do the long run on Friday when it cools down.

Today (Tuesday) I knew I had to get in a good run.  I left when it was dark so I was all decked out in my safety gear.  Or my runners suspenders as Jarrod calls them.

The weather was definitely better than on Monday, but only just barely.  The air was basically supersaturated with water, to the point there was fog everywhere.  It was gorgeous but it was hot.

I did something new on this run.  I ran without music for the first 2.5 miles or so.  (I had a landmark in my head that I wanted to get to.)  I started thinking about running sans headphones when I read this blog post.  I'd been toying with the idea for a while.  When I started off this morning and it was dark.  For safety reasons, it felt like the perfect time to give it a try.  I had my headphones with me and music playing, I just kept them in my pocket for a while and listened to the sound of my own greatness.  (There's a running joke on the internet that runners don't need music because they have the sound of their own awesomeness to entertain them.)

Around mile 2.5 or so, I put in my headphones, after the sun came up and I was on a trail away from the road.  I also took a few pictures since my iPod was in my hand.  Did I mention the fog? And the humidity?

All in all, this was a much faster run than I was expecting (for me).  I took the beginning too fast and kind of bonked at the end.  (There's this really steep hill...)  But I was still pretty satisfied with how it turned out.  This run just felt good.  Until that hill.  Also, according to Nike, I couldn't run a consistent pace if my life depended on it.  I must've really worked it because it took me forever to recover when I got home. 

I also tried a new breakfast smoothie (based partly on some fruits I needed to use up).  The ingredients were a super ripe nectarine, sans skin; vanilla yogurt (I hate plain); one kiwi.  I thought I'd need to throw in a liquid to make it more 'smoothie' like, but it turned out great as it was.

How to care for your running clothes and make them last forever

Also titled: I just paid an arm and a leg for this.  Now what?

I just went to REI for one simple thing and walked out $75 lighter.  Woops.  It turns out that it's REIs big labor day sale.  I sort of knew that in the back of my mind but walked in unprepared for the grandeur of it all.    (Did you know REI is a Co Op you can join?)  The prices I paid for my gear, on sale, got me thinking about the price of running clothes, and why I'm always willing to pay it.  (Because I take care of my clothes and make them last forever.)

What I came out with:

• Salt Sticks which is what I went in for, becuase Run N Fun was out of them.
• A little travel pill container to put the salt sticks in for carrying on runs, otherwise they'd be loose in my pocket.
• EZ Racerback Tank - I don't know why google could only find Canadian stores when I scanned the bar code.  I have tons of race shirts, but very few tanks that I like for running so I was willing to part with the cash.  Plus I love Brooks shoes and am hopeful their shirts are just as great.
• Nike Women's Running Capris Mom got me a pair of these for Christmas and they are my favorite running pants ever.  I love the Nike DriFit material and I like they have a drawstring in the waist.  And they were a great price at REI.

How to care for running clothes - because they're expensive as heck and I want them to last forever:

• I hang up my gear on hangers in the bathroom after a run, just to let the funk dry out. (I sweat a lot.) Once its dry, it can sit in the laundry basket for a week or two, no worries.
• I wash everything in the normal cycle of the washer.  This may sound insane.  I don't even know if our washers have a gentle cycle.  (I live in a Condo with a laundry room.  It's very much like Big Bang Theory.)
• No fabric softener.  The tags all warn it can destroy the fabric's ability to wick sweat away.
• I hang absolutely everything to dry.  Smart wool socks - air dry; Sports bras - air dry; Nike running sweat pants - air dry; compression shorts - air dry; technical race shirts - air dry; winter gear - air dry.  My winter hat - air dry.  All of it.  Heat from the dryer destroys the elastic/compression quality of your clothes.
• Do not let your dog eat your pants.  You know who you are.

Some of my other favorite items for running:

• Every lady needs a sports bra, and maybe a second style for good measure.
• Cold weather gear - Underarmour is my favorite for cold weather tops.  I like the bottoms but they lack a draw string.  Boo.
• My favorite cold weather bottoms are Nike Cold Weather Running Pants.
• For mild weather, the stuff Target sells by Champion is actually pretty good.  I got three pairs of pairs of these pants when I started running and I still have two pairs in good condition.  I also have the original black biker shorts I used to start running in reasonable shape, all by Champion.
• Socks: I have some Smartwool socks for winter but don't by fancy socks for summer.  Sorry.