Wednesday, October 7, 2009
16 mile addendum
I can't believe I completely forgot to mention that last week's 16 miles took place almost entirely an a very steady rain -- some may even have described it as a downpour. Doesn't that make the milestone seem even more macho? And also explain my need to shop for a waterproof jacket and moisture-wicking pants?
The winning hydration contraption
A few weeks ago, I posted about my search for the perfect thing with which to carry water on a long run. I bought something that totally didn't work and even injured me (see my post re: not trying new equipment on a long run).
I'm happy to say that I've found a wonderful water-carrying device that is not only comfortable and bounce-free, it also offers space for the other little things I like to carry when I'm running long distances:
• My phone in case I get hurt or, my not-so-secret fear, am subject to a sudden diarrhea attack;
• A washcloth for my sweaty brow;
• My fuel of choice, which I am still experimenting with -- last week I did cherry-flavored sport beans, which were yummy but had my stomach feeling a bit sour and unhappy by the end of the 16 miles;
• My iPod, if I'm doing some of the run with a partner and some alone;
• My written route instructions, in case I can't remember them.
This is what the winning contraption looks like:
It's made by North Face and I got it at REI. Here's a link:
Man, I love it. It fits snugly, but not tightly; it doesn't bounce at all (I know I said that already but it bears repeating); the water is easily accessed with a fun "bite and suck" tube that snakes over my shoulder, handily tucks under a strap and attaches to the front with a magnet so it doesn't flop around; and it holds 50 ounces of water, the perfect amount for my needs and the low end for packs like this.
I've worn the pack twice now -- on a 7-miler to try it out (learned my lesson, don't you know), and then on last week's 16 miles. Heaven all the way. Now I can cross that piece of gear off my list. Next up: waterproof jacket; after that, moisture-wicking pants.
Barefoot running?
Super-interesting article in the New York Times this week, inspired by the book "Born to Run" by Christopher McDougall. Here's a link to the book:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0307266303/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_1/191-4245017-5502047?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_r=1CZHSGFJ2ET93809CWBK&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_p=486539851&pf_rd_i=0739383728
Why are Amazon's links so long and complicated, while others are so nice and simple? Here's a more understandable and substantially shorter link to the article:
I haven't read the book but really want to (my cousin Crazy B bought it a while back and said he'd pass it along; I wish he'd hurry up!). My understanding, in a nutshell, is that it talks about the Tarahumara Indians in Mexico, who became known for running long distances on foot. McDougall posits that running shoes aren't good for us, encourage bad form and can even lead to injury. He thinks we should all be running barefoot instead -- or using "gloves for feet." The people that use those seem to be all about a product called "Vibram Five Fingers." Here's what they look like:
I think they're kind of cute.
The article describes how the author went for a barefoot run through Central Park (on pavement, not grass) with McDougall, who wore the Five Fingers. Thinking he wouldn't be able to go very far in his bare feet, the author carried his shoes with him. But before he knew it, they'd covered 6 miles and he felt great. His feet never started hurting, although he did admit to some soreness the next day -- but it was muscle soreness, not pain. He didn't injure himself at all in the way you might think: cuts, blisters, stuff like that. Amazing.
The comments on the article were really interesting to read, too. Almost all of them came from people who endorse barefoot running. Someone even mentioned that it's helpful to lift weights barefoot. I'd love to give that a shot, but I don't think it would go over well in my gym. Maybe I'll go in really late some night, when no one else is in the weight room, and sneak in a barefoot workout.
All this really has me thinking about giving barefoot running a try. But, as one of the commenters mentioned, doing that while in deep training for something is a mistake. So I'll have to save my experimenting for after the marathon in November. I hope I remember. In the meantime, I'm going to bug Crazy B for that book ...
Uncharted territory: 16 miles
Holy crap, I did it. I went 16 miles last week.
Notice how I said "went" instead of "ran"? That's because I can't fully say I ran the distance. Since I'm now abiding by the rule of the heart rate -- staying within my most efficient range even if it means slowing to a walk -- I couldn't run the whole time. The route was hilly, so there were times I had to walk a bit even in the first five miles. And by the last three, even a slight incline spiked my heart rate. But I never had to walk for more than a minute or two. And regardless, I covered the ground. I finished. That's the farthest I've ever run in my life (insert self-undermining comment here re: "I didn't really run the whole thing.") Prior to that, the farthest I'd ever gone was 13.5 miles, when I was training for a half marathon last spring and wanted to be sure I could manage the whole distance with a bit to spare.
It's too bad that my purist's definition of running doesn't allow me to totally own and celebrate my milestone achievement last week. I'm working on that. Of course, it would be my preference to run the whole thing without stopping. But everything I've read says that's not a reasonable expectation. For heaven's sakes, even star marathoners stop to pee, hydrate or fuel up. And for my first marathon, if I can just get to the finish knowing that running was my primary method of locomotion, I think I'll have a lot to feel proud of. I hope I'll let myself.
But back to the issue at hand: 16 miles, and the looming Seattle Marathon on November 29. Finishing that distance really, for the first time, gave me a glimmer of hope (and dare I say confidence?) that I will have what it takes to complete the full 26.2 miles. Incredible. And that, bar none, will be the farthest distance I have ever covered on foot at a single go -- including walking. When I did the Breast Cancer 3-Day walk the year before Little C was born, we did 24 or 25 miles the first day. I can't remember exactly. It may even have been 26 miles. But I know it wasn't 26.2.
So on marathon day, no matter how much walking I've had to do when I reach the finish, I'll know I've just crossed a big threshold for the very first time.
Superman back exercise from SuperAthlete J
Another fab find from SAJ's workout!
Superman back extensions
1. Lay face down on the floor, legs straight.
2. Lift your legs a few inches off the floor with your feet touching.
3. Put your arms in a "goalpost" position (bent at 90º) with palms facing the floor.
4. Lift your face just a bit -- enough to get the tip of your nose off the floor.
5. Take a deep breath in. On the exhale, extend -- and I mean realllllllyyyy EXTEND your arms straight forward, just like you are Superman flying through the air. Reach reach reach!
6. Bring your arms back to goalpost on the inhale. Do two sets of 15 reps and you will really feel the goodness in your entire back and all the way down to your firming and more booty-licious rear end!
Awesome bicep exercise from SuperAthlete J
As promised, here's one of the fab exercises that I learned from SAJ last week:
Wall Sit with Bicep Curl
1. Grab a couple hand weights. I used two 12 pounders, I think SAJ used two 7s. If you're doing this at home and don't have hand weights, you can use cans of soup or anything you can do a bicep curl with that offers some heft.
2. Get in position. Scoot down the wall with your back flat against it until your legs are bent at a 90º angle. Make sure your feet are directly below your knees. Put your shoulder blades and elbows against the wall and keep them there at all times.
3. Bring the weights (or soup cans, or whatever) down until your arms are straight, then curl them back up to your shoulders. Stay in that chair sit position! Do two sets of 20 reps and you will feel like a total rock star -- plus, you won't know what muscles you worked harder: your biceps or your quads. Awesome!
Overdue weekly roundup
Hoo-wee, life has been a little hectic lately. Thankfully, not so busy that I've had to scale back on exercise (with an exception, see Friday) -- but the one ball I've had to drop has been updating this blog. Prepare for Blog Deluge 2009, starting with this entry...
Last week's exercise
Monday, 9/28:
20 minutes on the elliptical in zone 1 (125ish bpm) for warmup
Intervals -- 3 sets of 2:00 in zone 2 (144-156 bpm), then 10:00 in zone 4 (165-174 bpm)
Tuesday, 9/29:
Superfun new full-body weight workout with SuperAthlete Jane
4 miles on the treadmill in zone 2 (144-156 bpm)
Wow, this was a great one. SuperAthlete Jane (SAJ) has been working with a trainer and got a challenging but fun weight workout which she kindly shared with me. I loved a couple of the exercises so much that I'm going to include them in a separate post.
After our weight workout, SAJ talked me into running on the treadmill instead of hitting the elliptical as I'd planned. Sneaky thing, she said she was going to do 3 miles and then increased the distance to 4 when we were within half a mile of being done. Fine by me, because we were having a lovely conversation and I felt like I could have kept running along forever. Treadmill running -- such a luxury! I also noticed that I could totally bust ass over my usual pace and easy-as-pie stay in my most efficient heart rate range. Interesting, and more on that later.
Wednesday, 9/30:
7-mile run
Once again, that wily and charming SAJ enticed me into doing something I wouldn't have done on my own: a beautiful yet hilly loop from Ballard, across the Locks and into Magnolia, around the bluff and back home. Gorgeous! My legs were tired and I wasn't feeling particularly motivated about doing so many hills, but in the end (of course) I was really glad I did.
Thursday, 10/1:
45 minutes on the treadmill, 15% incline and 1.5mph, superlow zone 1 (105 bpm)
I'm still loving this -- it feels like the perfect way to prep for the next day's long run. Have I typed those exact same words before? I suspect I have; I'll doublecheck in last week's roundup.
I was also supposed to do upper body weights but totally ran out of time. This was the one element from the week's schedule that I couldn't complete. All in all, not such a bad one to miss -- but I did give myself a major guilt trip over it nonetheless. I keep remembering what I've heard about the necessity of weight workouts three times per week in order to maintain (or is it increase?) muscle mass. Maybe twice per week is for maintenance, three times is for increase? I'll have to look it up. Another subject to dedicate a post to later.
Because I love to lay on the guilt, I stupidly promised myself -- even wrote a note on my hand -- that I'd do upper body weights after my long run on Friday. Did that happen? No it did not. I'm making peace.
Friday, 10/2:
16-mile run
Yes, you read that correctly. I ran 16 miles last week -- a milestone that deserves its own separate post (to come).
Saturday, 10/3:
Rest
Oh thank heaven. Although I probably didn't rest as much as I should have. My legs were really tired, not surprisingly, and there were several moments during the day that I thought, "I probably shouldn't be doing this." So far, the lack of actual "rest" on rest day doesn't seem to have made a bad impact on my subsequent workouts. But I can't help but wonder if I'd come away stronger if I honored the idea of rest a little bit more.
Sunday, 10/4:
Full-body weight workout
45 minutes on the elliptical in zone 1 (125 bpm)
Phew, I didn't really feel ready to go back to the gym. My legs were still tired and I was generally a bit sore. But I made myself go and it wasn't bad. Knowing that I was starting off slow, doing zone 1 cardio, helped a bit. I also got lucky with the weight workout -- I have about 6 that I rotate through, and the one that came up on Sunday wasn't a doozie. All in all, a somewhat gentle re-entry to exercise and good preparation, I hope, for the week to come.
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