Archive for January, 2012

A week gone by with nary a post so this is a meaty one, starting with this: 88 miles and a breakthrough.  Like a gift from the Running Gods (or the result of 3 weeks back at high mileage) my general aerobic paces are suddenly back to my pre-injured state.  ‘Tis a thing of beauty.

In an odd coincidence, Tuesday through Thursday produced 3 runs averaging 8:06, 8:07 and 8:08, yet each run was composed differently: one had some faster miles in the middle, one included fartlek and the 3rd run was even splits.  I was especially happy with that last one since I never start quickly anymore, my first mile is usually between 9:1x – 8:3x so I was pleased when I saw 8:17 for that initial mile.

But then!  Saturday afternoon I wore my Hyper Speeds for the first time (review below) and between their magic powers plus the last day of Lady Time (hormonal magic powers) and a beautiful upper-40s day, my first mile was a completely unexpected 8:05 and then it progressed from there, ending in 8 miles@7:46 avg. pace.

Heart Rate
As much as I love data, the last time I strapped on my HR monitor was in September before my Half.  It would have been wonderful to have the comparison of HR while injured and rebuilding, but the inevitable crappy feelings it would have brought were not at all worth it.  I like to be happy when I can and knowing those numbers wouldn’t have given me anything useful.

But this week, I figured I was ready to see where I stood, so I started yesterday by checking my resting HR.  Much to my delight, I got a rock-solid 46 with a teasing of 45 (47-48 is more of a usual) so Yay!  Then today, I wore it out for my runs.

I’m glad I wore it for both runs because, while the morning run’s HR was fine, the afternoon’s was better – which is a good reminder never to put too much weight on HR data for one run, there are simply too many reasons for it to vary.  But back to the run…

I wasn’t wearing the magic shoes but the hormonal magic must be lingering because it was another feel-good zippy run averaging 7:58/mi with an average HRR of 73% and it was windy out there.  Considering this is the first week where those paces have reappeared, this is a really strong sign that everything’s in order.  I couldn’t be happier.

Running Form – Arms
As you know, I’ve given attention to different areas of my running form over the past couple years.  I’d work on one thing for a while then eventually come to peace with it, either because I’ve made an improvement (posture) or because the initial problem loses importance (foot plant).

Starting last Friday, I began focusing on something that’s been bugging me since the start: my armswing.  It’s not all bad, for instance I don’t cross the centerline of my body which is a common enough mistake, but when I see photos or watch my shadow on the bike path, there’s a certain “smallness” to my arm carriage that I know could be improved upon.

While it sounds like an aesthetic complaint, it’s much more than that.  I mean, of course I’d like to look like an Elite or, hell, even a high school XC kid, but beyond appearance, I suspect I’m missing out on a power boost because of this.  After all, your arms drive your legs: they dictate how fast you’ll go and even affect your stride length, so it really is no small thing.

I started by studying the race video from September’s Half and noticed a clearly uneven carriage: one arm doesn’t go back far enough while the other one goes back farther, but only because it’s driven by the hand (not the shoulder or elbow, as you’d want),  thus the angle increases well beyond the optimal 90-degrees.

So I’ve been reading articles and watching videos of runners I like – here’s a nice slow-mo of Shalane and Desi at the trials (Kara too, but she was all tensed up at that point).

When I work on it (and it’s very much a focus on the shoulders, not just the arms) there’s more swing to my upper trunk, less rigidity. It also seems to give me a more “tits out” posture, which is a good thing, not because I’m trying to get a job at Hooters, but because it’s optimal for breathing and efficiency.

In fact, Friday’s run was weird, it was unseasonably warm, 59 degrees, but super windy and I was feeling like crap so I almost cut it short.  The first couple miles were 9:15s and I was slugging along. After a bit, I started paying attention to my arms/shoulders and I’m not sure if it was the distraction or if it was really helping, but I picked up a good amount of energy – the last few miles averaged 8:03s.

I tend to think it’s really helping since I also paid attention to it on Saturday’s fast run as well, this time with an additional “trick” of brushing my hands lightly on the sides of my hip, which ensures they’re going back far enough while keeping a good angle.

Weight
It’s been 9 days and I’ve lost a touch over 2 pounds. I’m also happy to report that by timing my meals differently I’ve virtually eliminated the hunger spikes I used to get.

As far back as I can remember, my dinner time has been around 6:30pm.  Didn’t matter if my bedtime was 10pm in the summer or 12-12:30am in the winter, I’d always eat at 6:30.  This meant that in the winter I’d have those extra hours before bed that invariably required snacks and carrot consumption.  Carrots are fine vegetables, btw, but I don’t love needing a stomach filler to keep the growling at bay.

Now, in the last month, my eating schedule started shifting due to doubling my runs.  I usually get in from the afternoon run at around 4:30-5pm which left some time before dinner, so I’d eat some almonds or other snack to hold me over.

But this week, I decided to do away with the snack and just go for it: eat a small meal right after the run and then push dinner up to 8pm. This works beautifully because then at 10-10:30pm, I’ll have another little meal, usually the ole standby of PB/cereal (I love that shit like crazy, don’t ask me why) – far much more substantial than carrots or little snacks.

Et voila! I end up pleasantly sated until bedtime and my morning run doesn’t need fueling.  I haven’t had a carrot in over a week. It’s a miracle.

Aside from that, I did a silly motivating thing that I’ve never done before…I bought a clothing carrot.  That is to say, the other day on a whim I ordered some compression shorts (I only ever wear regular running shorts) that I’m too chicken to wear at my current weight but I think might look pretty damn hot when I lose a few.

I didn’t actually buy them with that in mind but once they arrived and I put them on I was like “I can’t wear these, too scary”.  FYI, a 4″ inseam is frumpy for me in regular shorts but in compression (with the potential of ride-up)…not so much.  Anyway, instead of returning them, it struck me that they’d make a fun treat for sticking to the plan.  We’ll see, I may feel too nekkid in them no matter what but it’s silly fun and they were on sale, so no loss.

Shoes
As mentioned, I took advantage of RunningWarehouse’s shoe sale a couple weeks ago and bought the Saucony Fastwitch 5s and the Asics Hyper Speeds.  Here’s what happened…

Saucony Fastwitch 5s
These are the first pair of shoes I’ve straight up lost money on, which is my own fault for not exchanging them immediately.  The thing is, it was a defective pair but it wasn’t till the second run that I was sure about it.  When I first put them on, there was an intermittent feeling in my right arch when stepping off, almost a pinching, but it was occasional and I thought it might be something that just needed “seating” in the shoe.  I did try to find the source but no matter how I bent or investigated the innards with my hands, I couldn’t replicate it, so I took ‘em out for a run.

First run was fine, I didn’t notice the sharp thing though it was odd to run in a stability shoe after wearing neutral shoes for ages.  They were comfortable in the upper but extremely firm in the sole and I did not love them, but as I ran faster I started liking them more.

However, the 2nd time I took them out, the pinching thing was there in full force and I ended up with a blister on my arch!  That is a pain in the ass place to get a blister – you’re doomed to feeling it for days no matter what shoes you wear.  So I was pissed at the shoes but thought I’d give them another shot once my foot was settled. (only because I’d spent 52 bucks on them)

So yesterday, a week after the blister run, I tried them on again but was instantly alerted to that same hot spot.  At this point, I knew the shoes were a loss so I took some snippers and cut the logo off the side thinking it might be the hard plastic and did some other operating but in the end, I couldn’t locate it. I think it’s the stability post or whatever keeps the shoe supported but I have enough working shoes right now that I don’t care to try another pair.  And I’ll stick to neutral shoes from now on.

Asics Hyper Speeds (aka Magic Shoes)
These shoes are wonderful.  They’re the lightest shoe I’ve ever had, 6.1 oz, compared to the Adios’ 6.5.  Talk about barely there.  I took them on that 8-mile run yesterday and you know how that went (fabulously) and they felt great!  Lots of room in the toebox and no discomfort anywhere.

I’m debating whether to stock up on them, putting ‘em in regular shoe rotation since they’re so inexpensive right now (new version’s coming out) or whether to save them for races, in which case one pair will last me a long time.  Either way, I resisted wearing them today, the better to harness their mystical magical powers for good rather than evil.  Not really, I just wore the pair closest to the bed.

And that’s it for today’s self-involved novella.  Have a great start to your week folks, run well and enjoy yourselves.  Later!

Finally!  Back to feeling like an efficient engine rather than the comeback clunker of recent weeks.  Of special note is that prior to this week, the injured leg had required daily stretching and foam rolling but now it’s as resilient as the right leg – no extra attention needed.

As far as the schedule goes, I quizzed Coach Adam/A muse on how far to take my long runs now.  Since I’m only doing short races this cycle, it makes sense to limit them accordingly.  I liked his suggestion: keep the weekly LR to 2 hours (for me, 14-15mi) and every 3-4 weeks do a 17-18 miler.  Perfect.

So on Friday, I did the 17-miler, moved up a couple days since our first real snowfall was due that night.  It turned out to be an excellent run, took my time on the way out but had lots of energy at the end.

That night we got 4″ of snow so I waited till the afternoon to venture out.  They’d cleared the bike path earlier but a thick sheet of sleet had fallen afterwards so the entire run was one long sheet of ice.  Luckily, it was mostly crunchy ice so no suicidal slipping, just a slow, effortful yet beautiful run.   I added a few miles to make up for not doing a morning run today – would have been too slippery.

Today was a lot more slippy and slidey.  I fell on my ass…hard.  Tomorrow promises warmer temps and rain, so hopefully that’s the end of it.

Oh, Snow You Di-unt! Week In Review

Weight, Weight, there’s more!
During my injured month off, my weight went up a few lbs to 123-124 and there it has stayed.  While it’s a fine weight for a normal 5’4″ woman, for someone whose primary interest is improving race times, that’s 10lbs over what I consider my optimal race weight (which is still 10lbs over any Elite), at least it’s the lowest I’ve ever been while running.

Now, my PR Half in September was done at a fluffy weight (120 lbs) so 5 lbs. heavy.  At the time, I had made a weak attempt to lose more but moving into a new apartment was stressful enough, plus I wasn’t that motivated since the higher mileage had already given me a great improvement.  But now my routine has settled in and after seeing the Olympic Trials last weekend with all those beautiful strong bodies, I’m inspired to get serious about it.

So at the beginning of this week I got all the cravings out of my system with a 3-day candy-fest: Reese’s Pieces, Hershey White Chocolate Bliss and some spearmint leaves.  Once the gorging was complete, I then pulled out the trusty ole notebook/food diary that got me to race weight in 2010 and Baby, I’m on this like a candy-coated shell on a Reese’s Piece.

Unlike some people who hate counting calories, when I’m motivated to make a real change I love jotting down my piehole input.  There’s something deliciously empowering about keeping track – it puts you in full control and as I’ve said in the past, removes the emotion from it entirely.  Not the enjoyable eating emotion, that’s still there in full glory, but the wishy-washy “I feel skinny today so I’ll eat this pile of crap” followed by “Fuck, I ate that pile of crap.”  I tend to get caught in that cycle indefinitely.

Calorie-wise, I’m kicking it off by eating about the same amount as I did for 2010′s weight loss (around 2000 cal/day).  Back then I was running 55mpw and lost about a pound a week but this time, with about 35 more mpw, it should come out to twice that (35mi = 3500 calories = 1lb).  It might end up even being more since doubling keeps your metabolism busy longer.  If that’s the case, I’ll up the calories to keep it at 2lbs/week.

My aim, as in the past, is to remain healthy and well-fueled for my runs.  So far so good: I’ve been timing things better with smarter choices, so instead of  munching on various and sundry after dinner, I have a 10pm bowl of hot cereal w/PB (my favorite sweet crack).  It’s the seemingly small things like this that add up to not feeling hungry despite eating less.

So this is exciting, as much as getting a new training plan or writing up my weekly schedule. I’ve worked on the puzzle pieces separately at different times in my running life: I know they work.  To think what might happen if I start putting them together…might be a trailer-trash masterpiece in the making.

I finally got around to planning my Spring schedule – an activity rife with my usual mixture of excitement and fear.  I think this is my first season where I don’t have a goal Half, or any Half for that matter, it’s just 5ks, 10ks and a 10-miler in May. You can see what’s up on my At The Races page.

The first race, a low-key neighborhood 10k, is in 6.5 weeks and I’m nervous about it.  Normally, that’d be a good amount of time to get race-ready but I’m still catching up to my pre-injured self, so if I do it (notice, I just gave myself an out) I need to be prepared to suck wind, treating it as a rust-buster with bonus rust (Now! 30% more stagnation and shitty results as our gift to you…)

I have to start doing the mental work I’d begun when I signed up for all those Fall races, the thing that tells my sub-conscience races are fun, recreational and an entertaining way to spend a weekend morning, they’re…well, they’re not a measure of where you’ll be stuck from that day forward.

I want to be more open to the idea of having crappy races, knowing it’s just a comma in the big running story and not an indicator of the future. Only time will tell what we can achieve, let it unfold and show you the rest of the story at its own pace.

So that’s my homework, some self-propaganda.

A Few Excellent Links
I’ve posted some of these on Facebook but since all you readers aren’t my FB pals, you might enjoy them.  There are also some I’ve never posted so something for everyone.  Enjoy!

• Since I’m so immersed in doubles right now, thought I’d share this swell article on them.

• Here’s a truly fabulous resource that’ll keep you off the injured list or help get you off it asap.  It’s a Self-myofascial Release Manual that shows you all the different muscles and how to attack each with foam roller, Stick and/or tennis ball.  Trust me, open it up, scroll to the middle and you’ll get an idea of why you need this link.

• A nice article on Dathan Ritzenhein after coming in fourth at the Olympic Trials.  I thought it interesting what he said about not doing a tune-up Half, choosing to do two 5ks instead (boils down the brain/confidence thing!).  Poor guy has had an unbelievable amount of medical issues that it’s amazing he did as well as he did this last weekend.  I really hope he gets to rock his shorter race stuff in the Olympics, I’m a fan.

• Here’s a great post-race video interview with Kara Goucher where she talks about her race tactics at the Trials, getting back her fitness and training with Shalane among other stuff.  She’s so darn likeable.

• Behold a fabu collection of post-Olympic Trials recaps.  Tons of goodness in these!  I especially liked 5th place Janet Cherobon-Bawcom’s interview. This was the first marathon she actually raced and she ended up with an 8min PR.  “…and we have a rule in our house that you never complain if you ran a PR” – that made me smile.  But all of them are good, interesting to read about the slower ones and DNFs too.

And lastly a couple songs. This first one is Airborne Toxic Event’s “All I Ever Wanted”. Honest injun, I ran 8-miles with it today and kept hitting replay for the entire 8 miles. There are several versions and videos of it, but I’m a sucker for strings, so this is my favorite one.

I posted this on Facebook a couple months ago and I still love it like crazy, totally gives me the sex vibe. Even the geese in the park look at me funny when I’m running to it. I know they want me.

Back to pre-injury volume this week with 90 miles.  It also marks my first week incorporating doubles as a regular thing, which I loved, so 10-11 runs/week will be the norm until summer.

Even though the mileage is the same, twice-a-days are decidedly different from singles.  Despite the luxury of shorter runs, your day is actually more about running since you have a standing afternoon appointment with the pavement.  This might be a novelty factor that wears off eventually but it does feel like a larger commitment to the sport.  It’s as if me and Running had been dating but now we’re engaged.

It’s great though, I’m getting to bed at a more reasonable hour, the scale is dropping and I feel more adaptable.  For example, I’ve always run when the weather sucks the least, so in winter that meant afternoons exclusively.  But a pre-breakfast run on a frosty morning turns out to be a fine way to start the day, especially when countered by a warmer afternoon run.  You get to see the park changing outfits and personalities as the day progresses.

Anyway, the extra effort of getting dressed and out there twice doesn’t bug me as I thought it would.  My two other preconceived complaints also ended up being moot – mostly because it turns out I’ve no compunction about being a dirty pig.

That is to say, I always thought running twice/day meant you had to take 2 showers and do twice the laundry.  But unless I have somewhere I need to be between runs, I just dry off and sit in my filth (which isn’t real filth, maybe a tad salty but I don’t smell).  And since most of my runs are half the distance they used to be, I’m cool with wearing most of my stuff twice before washing.  Rule: As long as it doesn’t stink, it can have another run.

So here begins a new running experiment (doubles) and a continuation of the one I began last summer (mileage).  Needless to say, I’m excited to see what comes of it.  I expect good things ahead.

A Doubly Good Week In Review
All easy stuff, though a couple runs had some fartlek or a few faster miles.  It’s a relief to find my paces returning to normal, I figure a couple more weeks should do it.

More shoes and a PureFlow coda
Running Warehouse has a great sale on racing flats (20% off) that ends today so check out the offerings. The prices are so good I ordered a couple models I’ve been curious about: the Asics Hyper Speeds and the Saucony Fastwitch 5s.  I plan on using them both as regular training shoes since the Adios’ worked so well in that regard.

Speaking of, I really do still love my Adidas Adios’ so despite my dissing the awful new color scheme and major design revamp I’ll probably order a pair of the new version, but only after the price goes down.

A final word on the PureFlows: I mentioned how they’d been said to be slippery in wet/snowy conditions so I took them out on a rainy run this week.  I had great traction on the asphalt bike path so I thought people might have been overreacting…until I ran under a couple bridges and felt some serious slippage.  I’m not sure why, it was the same bike path asphalt on a warm day (so nothing was frozen and I avoided the tar repair spots) but it happened twice.  So I’ll wear them in the rain, being careful under bridges, but if it snows, forgetaboutit, I’ll use another shoe.

It’s been a very reviewy time on this blog lately, for no reason except the timing of generous companies and my own purchase of a new pair of kicks.  This last entry into the review-a-thon is an all-important piece of running gear for the ladies: the sports bra.  More specifically, the Zensah sports bra.

No makeup, messy hair, and an expression reminiscent of Charles Manson, but that's ok because you're looking at my boobs.

As posted before, I wear Target sports bras, not because I think they’re the best, just that they’re cheap, cheerful and do the job. That said, I’m always curious about “nicer” bras so when Zensah offered me up one of theirs, I was all over it.

Zensah, btw, is known for compression gear (the calf sleeves in particular are extremely popular with many of my runner pals) in fact I had no idea they even made sports bras until now. Turns out they make the whole kit and kaboodle: compression bottoms, tops, etc.  But back to the bra, I wore it on two runs to give it a proper try-out.  Here are my observations:

Color: The color choices are great.  I got the pink one, which is a lovely dusty shade so you can wear it under white tops without show-through.

Fabric: Extremely soft and stretchy.  The front is a double layer of fabric, the better to help against radar nippage and the inner layer has some gathering at the center for shape.

Style:The nice thing about these bras is they have textured detailing on the straps and back (almost like a pin-tuck pattern) so it’s not entirely plain, it has some style to it.  What I didn’t like so much, and this is just my own thing, is that the neck is a little high for my tastes, I find a lower scoop more flattering.  This might be due to the fact that I’m a small-busted gal or because I have trollop tendencies, either way it’s a minor deal and I’m sure many women prefer this higher cut.

This is the back of the bra so you can see the pretty textured pattern.

Fit and Performance: They only come in 2 sizes which, for me, is the bra’s downfall.  It comes in Small/Med and Med/Large.  This is ok for dry sports or fitness classes where you don’t sweat much, but if you’re like me when you run and end up with a soaked sports bra (even in winter), the support you leave the house with is not the same as that upon your return – as the bra gets wet, the fabric becomes looser.

Now, this isn’t specific to Zensah, my Target bras do the same but this is why, when I started running and didn’t know any better, I bought medium sports bras.  Then after a year of that, I switched to smalls and more recently, started wearing x-tra smalls.  The garment sizing didn’t change, it just took me a while to figure out what holds me up best since I couldn’t tell there was floppage just by looking down;  it took race photos and video to enlighten me (thank you very much, Brightroom).

For the record, I’m not a tiny person (5’4″ and 123lbs at the moment) though as you can see, I’m not busty by any means.  Still, I need support and the limited sizing here coupled with the stretchier fabric makes this bra iffy for smaller, sweaty runners or other high-impact sporty gals.

For low-impact activities, however, or if you’ve got a larger frame/chest, a Zensah sports bra would work like a champ and keep you extremely comfortable throughout.  I’ll wear mine for Pilates and similar activities, just not for running.

I’ve switched between two shoe models for a while now: Saucony Kinvaras and Adidas Adios.  They’re different on a couple levels – Kinvara is a low-heel drop shoe, the Adios is a racing shoe I wear as a trainer and it has a standard heel-drop, but both are lightweight. This used to be more of a rarity, but lightweight shoes have been popping up like daisies in the past year, several featuring a low heel-drop so it seemed a good time to try something new, particularly since the newest Adios’ are so freakin’ ugly, I’m on strike till further colors become available.

Note on the right shoe, my trademarked snip at the base of the shoelace trim piece. Also of note, I do not have cankles though the photo makes it look like the left one is. It isn't. Really.

I’ve heard a lot of great things about the Brooks Pure line, so I thought it worth a shot.  The PureConnects would have been my first choice, they’re the lightest, but too many reviews mentioned a narrow fit so I didn’t even bother. The PureFlows, however, according to Shoeftr on Running Warehouse and the reviews I’ve read, pointed to a wider fit and roomier toebox, so I ordered a pair. Here are my thoughts:

Weight: I’m currently wearing men’s models in both the Kinvara (size 7½, 7.1 oz) and Adios (size 8, 6.8 oz). For the PureFlow, I bought women’s size 8.5.  At 7.5 oz, they’re slightly more shoe, but not noticeable to me.

Heel drop: Since I’ve been wearing Kinvaras for ages, it feels normal.

Fit: Feels great.  The toe is rounder than the Kinvaras so there’s more room for the tootsies.  There’s also a thick elastic band that crosses the instep which turns out to be pretty cool, keeping your arch snug to the shoe.  The trim frame around the laces is hard plastic and I had to snip it for my right foot (sensitive big toe knuckle), but I do that on all my running shoes now, so no biggie.

Sole: It’s got a harder sole than the Kinvaras which makes it much more comfortable over gravel, you don’t feel each rock.  I like this a lot.  However, it’s also said to be slick in wet conditions (as discussed on the last few pages of this) so I’ll switch out on rainy/snowy days.  I could do without the split sole design since the resulting space will surely grab an occasional rock and it doesn’t seem to do anything perceptible, but this is just a minor “eh”. (Edit: I took them out on a rainy day and for the most part, traction was good, though under a couple bridges I definitely noticed some slippage.  So I won’t be using them for snow or racing/workouts on a rainy day but rainy training runs are fine)

Comfort: Super comfortable!  Well padded and an enjoyable ride.  My first run in them was Friday, a planned 8, but they felt so good, I took it to 14mi.

Conclusion: I really like these shoes and think we’ll be buddies for a long time.

A Cutback Week In Review
My paces improved significantly this week.  I’m still not back to September fitness but getting there.  In the meantime, today I start posting my paces again.

It’s probably not apparent but the shape of the week was purposeful: lower mileage at the start for faster recovery, higher in the middle and lower today since next week will be high again.  Ordinarily, I wouldn’t be so anal about it but after that accelerated mileage bump, it seemed sensible to treat it like an ocean wave chaining the weeks together (calm, crest, calm).

As far as effort, it was all easy runs aside from today, when I did my first bit of faster running in a long time.  Boy did I need it, mentally as well as physically – the nag of workouts has been on my mind and while I said I was going to add strides, I hadn’t yet.  It was fun without any pressure for distance or pace, just “go to that curve” or “where those people are standing” and as a result, I got a couple 7:3x miles in, which I haven’t had in ages.

Mon: 6@8:53
Tues: 6@8:28
Wed: 8@8:17
Thurs: 10@8:44
Friday: 14@8:24
Sat: 9@8:23
Sun:8@8:11 (fartlek)
Total: 61 mi