Tuesday, September 30, 2014

30 Day Wall Sit Graduate!...and my 30 minute run...

I made it through the September Wall Sit Challenge safely! Today was the last day for my consecutive wall sits. For October I'm still going to do them regularly (mainly on my cross training days) and try and improve my performance. Today's wall sit....

Tomorrow marks the start of my 30 (31?) day Plank Challenge. I'm trying to start at 1 minute and just add 10 seconds per day, which means that if I'm successful I will be able to do a plank for longer than 5 minutes by the end of the month. That might be a bit over zealous so at the very least I want to be able to do a 5 minute plank (so it gives me a few "do over" days in case things don't go as planned during the next month).

I ran this morning for my mid week 30 minute running session. My legs felt tired but I tried to keep up an ok pace....

More summary pics....


After I ran I did some recovery yoga for about 15 minutes. This is my favorite pose...
Least favorite...
I can never balance correctly and spend my time trying not to fall over rather than focusing on deep breathing and meditation.

I really think I could get more training done if I had the anti gravity treadmill device that they talk about in THIS article and video...
and of course if I didn't get dizzy running on treadmills. I wonder if the lack of gravity will make me more dizzy :(. From watching the video it looks like this anti-gravity treadmill would revolutionize injury recovery and therapy for runners. It takes the impact and stress off the runner's joints, thereby allowing the runner to recover while maintaining some degree of activity. Interesting stuff!

So today I ate a lot. ALOT. I normally have a bigger appetite on the days I run but today was a combination of that and emotional eating (work stress). I wish I wasn't an emotional eater but rather one of those people that loses their appetite when they are stressed. When you're an emotional eater you don't make the best food choices (aka the apple cinnamon croissant I had after my second lunch). Yes I said second. Anyway, we'll just pretend I'm carb loading ;)
The fatigue I felt in my legs from this morning's run lasted all day, so once I got home after work I iced my left knee and massaged both legs with icy hot, and did a little foam rolling as well. Tomorrow will be a cross training day... but I haven't decided exactly what I will be doing yet.

Side note: I'm looking forward to hearing more about the upcoming running documentary "Transcend" following Wesley Korir as he trains for some major races (running events and political races alike). You can check out the trailer HERE.  The film comes out in October.

Anyone else doing a 30 day challenge (wall sit or planks or any other)?

Monday, September 29, 2014

Monday's random thoughts...

~ Today was my rest day!!! I appreciate these days more and more, especially after a loooong long run day (not just the miles but also the activities etc that kept me busy)...

~ I woke up this morning and did my wall sit challenge...
(This morning's wall sit was a lot harder than it was yesterday...my legs are still tired)

I have one more day for the September wall sit challenge and then I will be focusing on planks next...
The goal of getting a stronger core is being achieved slowly but surely.

~ I haven't done more than 8 miles (well 8.78 miles yesterday) since my half marathon two months ago because my goal for the remainder of 2014 was to focus on building a foundation of core mileage and then improve from there as of next year. With the Florida Storm Series half marathon races approximately 1-2 months apart (starting in December with the Palm Beach half for me) I will be able to taper up and down to the 13.1 mile mark several times and assess how strong I feel with each race. I will also be able to compare them to how I felt in Chicago (taking weather conditions and race conditions into consideration of course). I'm both nervous and excited about training for the next race

~ I'm getting mixed reviews/feedback about how long my longest LR should be during marathon training (or half marathon training). The popular rule is to run up to 20 (maybe 22 miles) but not to exceed that during training. Of course, the Jeff Galloway plan (and a few others) recommend running your marathon distance during training (some even suggest running more than that). I'm hoping to figure out what's right for me as I go along. I'm liking the max LR of 20 miles more and more, but worry that I will hit the wall at mile 20+ and really struggle at the end...

~ And final thought...

Happy Monday!

Sunday, September 28, 2014

In Sunshine or Rain...

I was determined not to be late for my running group this morning. I knew where to go this time (thanks to my "me time" adventure yesterday), but didn't want to wake up late so I set my alarm before I went to bed last night....several times:

I got up right before the first alarm went off, got ready and completed my wall sit challenge...
(Yeah baby! I passed the 5 minute mark!!!!!)

Then I headed to the meet up location. I ended up getting there early (thankfully) and enjoyed the beautiful scenery and the early morning sunrise until it was time to run with my group...

I intended to take pictures along the route and of my group but got very focused (sorry). Plus, at about mile 6 it started to rain (you know how much I hate running in the rain) and I just wanted to focus on finishing and finishing strong...



The worst thing about running in the rain is having wet shoes and wet socks. Thankfully I didn't end up with blisters. I'm drying my shoes and insoles so they will be ready for my run next week...

During parts of my LR today I felt like I was in bumper-to-bumper traffic on the highway. Between bicyclists and other runners the route was crowded...
This was the first time running with my running group and overall I was happy with how it went. Even though I'm not a very "social" runner (I don't talk much during the running session) I liked having company. Plus, I'm not running for social reasons, I'm running for myself and my goals...

After I got home, iced my knees and ate breakfast, and once Kaiyu finished her homework and studying I took her to a picnic hosted by her track club...

The rest of my Sunday was uneventful and relaxing. The only other exciting thing that happened was that I registered for the Miami Half Marathon (Jan 2015)! I'm still waiting to get a discount code for the Palm Beach Half Marathon and then I will be all set for the Florida Storm Series!

How was your Sunday? What fun activities did you do today?

Running in the rain...yay or nay?

Saturday, September 27, 2014

Challenges, Chi Running, and other Saturday activities

Last night I attended a "sleepover" in Kai's room. First we stayed up watching some of our favorite Fall season shows on Hulu+ (Chicago Fire, Chicago PD etc) and then had a spirited conversation about "mattress comfort levels". To test her theory we fell asleep in her room and I woke up this morning well rested....and well after 7am!

I had a meeting at 9am so I had to forgo the gym today but I didn't neglect my wall sit challenge...
It's getting harder and harder to complete the challenge. Ultimately I want to be to do a full 5 minutes without trembling legs and a heart rate bordering on a potential 911 call (I'm creating a plan for that for next month).

I did a few sets of sit ups and one plank set for a little over a minute (nothing to get excited about). October is going to be the "30 day plank challenge + improved wall sit performance challenge" month.

Today was busy with one activity after another, starting with a 9am meeting at a local nursing school that I teach for occasionally...
(I never like my id photos)

Then Kai and I went to a Chi Running class for my running group at Runner's Depot...
I'm going to try and incorporate some of the techniques when I run tomorrow with my running group. The great thing is that members of the running group seem interested in learning the concepts and incorporating them, so hopefully we can all remind each other as we go along.

I took Kai to lunch at FROOTS (love this place!) and had a tuna on spinach wrap with a topical mango smoothie. You can also see Kai's Hickory Chicken wrap in the back...

Then I dropped Kai at my brother and sister-in-law's house and headed to work. Day 13-in-a-row...

After work I enjoyed a mini "me time" session that took me on a trip to the meet up location for the running group tomorrow. It was a whole lot easier to find in daylight so (now that I have a few visual reference points) hopefully I can find it again tomorrow morning. Then I treated myself to some Chick-Fil-A for dinner (their dipping sauces are the absolute best!)

I'm looking forward to enjoying a few hours of relaxing entertainment before I go and get Kaiyu and hopefully I will be able to go to bed early.


What was the best part of your Saturday?

Important tangent question: What is the longest LR you run on your half marathon and/or full marathon training plan?

Friday, September 26, 2014

It's Friday!!! Do I even need to say anything more?...

I'm so glad it's Friday! Even though I have less than a relaxing weekend ahead of me, I'm looking forward to all the activities (minus the work stuff). The work day went by fast so I decided to share a few pictures and thoughts to describe my day....

I woke up this morning to a daily Milepost motivational quote...

Wall sit challenge Day 26....

The weather for my morning running session was ok, but humid....

I decided to stick to a 30 minute running session this morning...

Other running session summary pics...
My pace was slower than it was yesterday, but that's to be expected because I typically don't run two days in a row. Still overall it wasn't the worst pace in the world....well not in my world (there might be some elite runners who would disagree with me).

After work I went to cheer for Kaiyu and her team at their soccer game...which they won 7-0!!! I was too busy cheering to take pics (sorry) and then Damian and I took Kai out for a celebratory dinner (where I was too busy eating to take pics). 

Tomorrow I'm attending a Chi Running class sponsored by my running group. I've heard about Chi Running before, but don't know much about it so it will be good for me...informational at the very least. 
I'm not sure what my plans for tomorrow (workout-wise) will be. I'm going to go based on how I feel in the morning, which I think is a good plan to have for the day before my LR day. 

Random pic of me when I was younger...

What are your workout plans for this weekend?

Anyone knows/follows the Chi Running philosophy?

Thursday, September 25, 2014

When the stars align...

It's better to start out slow and get faster and faster over time, than to start out too fast and be forced to slow down. I reflected on this during my running session and (as you can see) the stars were truly aligned for my run this morning...
(those might not actually be stars but I reserve the right to view them as such, especially at 6am)

I felt good and my legs felt rested (it's amazing what a difference a good night's sleep makes). I contemplated doing a 5K run, but decided to stick to the 30 minute session and have a longer cool down and post-run recovery time.

Morning run summary...
The weather was really good. It didn't feel too humid and there was a gentle breeze even though the weather app doesn't reflect that. I was still sweating profusely despite the nice weather...
The Milepost quote for today accurately reflected my mood and thoughts this morning (and how I feel about my early morning mid-week run sessions in general)...
Running in the morning is always a peaceful time for me, even when I am working on speed or my form or endurance. I have a better day overall when I start it with a running session (too bad I can't run every day).

I also did my Day 25 wall sit challenge today (before I ran)...

The rest of my day was filled with the typical work stuff (blah). There was nothing to get excited about until I got this...

The WINGS FOR LIFE WORLD RUN is BACK!!!! (I'm excited can you tell???). In case you didn't see the race recap post I did, for the inaugural run in May this year, you can read about it HERE. And if you want to learn more about the Wings for Life World Run, the organization (and what it does), and pre-register for the 2015 world run event you can do that HERE. I did a lot of fundraising for the organization's world run event earlier this year and I'm probably going to do the same thing for next year as well. I'm also going to try and get more people to run and support the cause (check out the links when you have a moment).

Did anyone do the Wings for Life run this year?

What cause or organization or foundation do you run for (if any)?