Sunday Wrap Up: So It Begins

I thought about treating myself to a pedicure when I got home from my run this morning, as a sort of "welcome to training season" sort of thing.  Then I realized the worst possible use of money immediately before training season could be a pedicure.  Thank God I'm going to Aspen and not Oahu for a winter retreat; these hooves are about to get even worse.

Number of Miles Run This Week: 40.  I set out for 11 miles this morning, and after 4, I strongly considered throwing in the towel because I was so hungry.  Instead, I spent the next 7 miles thinking about what kind of delicious sandwich I was going to eat when I was done. It's appalling how motivated I am by food.

Number of Beers Consumed This Week: 8. 

Number of Late-Night McDonald's Trips This Week: 1.  You'd think, with only 8 beers, I couldn't possibly have gotten to Happy Meal-levels of intoxication.  You'd be wrong.

Types of Beers Consumed This Week: Founders Porter, Labrador Lager, Bud Light. 

Wednesday Wrap Up: Ho, Ho, Ho-ly Crap

The title above could reference a number of things, including, but not limited to:

• my diet of late.  All crap, all the time. Shockingly, a steady diet of baked brie hasn't been kind to me, my digestion, my self-esteem, or my running.

• my sense of astonishment when I realized the time to start training for what I plan to be my first 50 miler starts, like, now.

• my feelings of discouragement, when I just left my (windowless) office and went into the hallway, where I had a great view of the blustery, snowy, generally unpleasant, and already quite dark conditions outside.  At 3:57pm.

Number of Miles Run Last Week: 29.  Despite having 2 double-digit runs last week, my mileage was on the low side.  Food and booze got in the way.  I don't feel bad about it, though, since as I mentioned, spring training is basically here.  I'll take a little food coma now while I still can.

Number of Beers Consumed Last Week: 12.  I think.  

Types of Beers Consumed Last Week: Bud Light, Guinness, Brooklyn IPA, Sapporo, Blue Point Oktoberfest (this was actually really good, even though I swear I don't drink Oktoberfests, and also I seldom like anything from Blue Point), Bear Republic Peter Brown Tribute Ale, Smuttynose Robust Porter, Victory Prima Pils.

Moving right along...

As I mentioned above, spring training season - of the running variety - is upon us!  Based on my usual Training Peaks marathon plan, Day 1 of Boston training kicks off on 12/30.  But if I'm really going to tackle this 50 miler (for which I have yet to register; I will, but I'd rather first spend all my money spoiling my nephew at Christmas...) in May, training for that kicks off on 12/15.  That's on Monday.  Shit.

My training for my first 50 is really with finishing in mind.  Granted, I want to finish strong and not have a sad-sack, woe-is-me, I-am-literally-broken pity party along the way (a la Connemara Ultra).  To that end,  I conducted a somewhat exhaustive Google search for a training plan, during which I kept displayed on one computer monitor several tabs, including my work calendar, my personal calendar, and the wedding websites of everyone I know getting married in 2015.  

In addition to schedules, here's some of the other criteria I took into consideration:

• Given that all my training for everything to this point has been mileage-based and not time-based, I knew I wanted to stick with mileage-based training for my first 50 miler

• My weekly mileage during Chicago Marathon training this summer peaked at 77 miles.  This felt heavy, but manageable.  Some "just finish" 50 mile training plans called for peak weeks of 50 miles, which felt much too low for me.  Conversely, 90 miles felt too high; I want to finish a race, but I'd rather not wind up single and jobless from spending ALL my time running as a result.

• I did not want to run two-a-days.  I take a lot of time to get ready, where ever I'm going. My view is: what's the point in heavily investing in nice clothes (which I do, to a fault...) if you wear them with wet hair and no makeup?  As a result, I'm only showering once a day.

• I did not want a plan with prescribed paces.  While this is my first 50 miler, it's not my first ultra, and I'd like to use own my (admittedly limited) experience to gauge how fast I should be both training and racing.  I didn't want to be locked into 35 mile weekends if those 35 miles were meant to be run at a 12-15 min/mile pace - ain't nobody got time for that.  Also, I will actually be running a marathon during the course of this training, and while I have no intention of racing it, those Athlink results are forever... 

With all that in mind, I found a training plan that seemed like a good framework from the Ultraladies (I don't know who they are).  The original plan looked like this: 

Source

5 days a week of scheduled running left me a day to either cross train or add another run, which I appreciated.  Further, a three week taper is both what I'm familiar with, and also allowed for the running of the Boston Marathon the week before if I cut other workouts.  Lastly, midweek mileage seemed manageable even with a job that has frequent travel and late-night events. So far, so good.

However, closer examination revealed the mileage looked to be on the low side, peaking at 62 miles. So I made myself a little spreadsheet and started making some changes.  And kept making some changes. In fact, the last change I made was 30 seconds ago when I went to upload this and saw I should be running 16 miles this Saturday, event though my longest run in a month has only been 12 miles.  Anyway, here is my very much still under construction plan right now:

In the 30 seconds since I first hit publish, I already had to
 go back and make another change...

While the peak mileage is still only 70, I have two 70 mile weeks in there, two 60+ mile weeks, and five 50+ mile weeks.  That should, hopefully, get my legs good and used to running tired.

So, that's the plan.  Any thoughts (besides "don't run Boston the week before," because I know that seems like a foolhardy move, but it's done)?  Any tips?

Monday Wrap Ups: In Which A Child Ruined My Thanksgiving

It's been a hot minute since I've updated this space, so I'll quickly get through the wrap ups before tackling the matter at hand.

Number of Miles Run, Week of 11/17: 34.  This was the first week it felt like winter in New York.  I had been considering giving up my gym membership, but of course the first time it got below 30 degrees, I was on the treadmill in my short shorts.  Old habits die hard.  

Number of Beers Consumed, Week of 11/17: Just 3.  Don't worry, I more than made up for that last week...

Types of Beers Consumed, Week of 11/17: NYAC Ale; Bell's Best Brown.

Number of Miles Run, Week of 11/24: 30. I had been planning on a few more, but then I got hungry and forgot.

Number of Beers Consumed, Week of 11/24: 11. Boom. And probably 2 bottles of wine, single-handedly.  'Tis the season.

Types of Beers Consumed, Week of 11/24: Two stadium-sized Bud Lights at the Barclays Center, a Maine Beer Company King Titus Porter, Bell's Best Brown, Stillwater's Brontide Swarzbier (spell check doesn't recognize any of those words), Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA, Sam Adams Light from my Dad's personal supply, Full Sail Pilsner, and Half Full's Bright Ale.

Number of Hot Dogs Consumed, Week of 11/24: 1.  Back in business, baby!

In addition to warming up the Thanksgiving engines with a hot dog, I also enjoyed incredible mashed potatoes, dressing (some people call this "stuffing," but the idea of stuffing anything into a dead, raw animal is revolting, so, dressing it is), biscuits, and other soothing starches.  This morning, my body was like "vegetables!" but my stomach was like "spinach artichoke dip is a vegetable, right?"  

For reasons unknown (read: drunk), Thanksgiving included a dramatic champagne presentation

While my Thanksgiving Day Turkey Trot was a race of one, whereby I raced against the dogs trotting around the arena on the televised National Dog Show from the relative comfort of my parents' basement as the snow fell outside, I did participate in an actual Turkey Trot on Saturday.  After Ryan's triumphant first 5k, she rallied the troops for our hometown Rye Recreation Turkey Run with the promise of post-race brunch.  Eager to prolong my food coma, I eagerly agreed.  So on Saturday morning, TG and I boarded the train back up to Westchester for the race.

(True story: when we were getting our train tickets, TG wanted to walk up to the window and ask for "two tickets to paradise."  It's funny because it's true.  #everythingsbetterinryeny #myglorydayswere15yearsago)

That turkey next to me (the one with the beak; not Rich) didn't smell very good.

Let it be known, the 5k is not my specialty.  In fact, I sort of hate it because you have to run hard for a not short amount of time.  But as the gang stood around before the race, everyone started asking me if I was going to win.  Normally, when people ask if I win races, the answer is no, because, duh.  But back on my home turf, and with enough goading from my friends, I figured I might as well give it a shot.

I lined up close-ish to the start, but when the gun went off, I realized I wasn't nearly as far up as I should have been, the big giveaway  being that the turkey was in front of me.  After very nearly stepping on his plush tail and taking him out, I weaved my way past him.

The 5.2 mile and 5k races start together, so it was hard to gauge where I was in the pack and against whom I was racing.  As I charged up the first hill about a quarter mile into the race, there seemed to be quite a few people around me, all seemingly strong.  Perhaps I had gravely misjudged the caliber of the field.

The pack continued together down Forest Avenue and into Rye Town Park, setting for so many illicit beers and cigarettes from my youth.  In fact, as we sprinted along the beach, fingers freezing, I consoled myself by telling myself I had done this very same sprint so many times in my youth, and this time, I wasn't running from the police.

As we left the park, the 5.2 milers turned left, and I was able to see how many 5k-ers were around me.  I could see about 10 in my direct line of vision, and began picking them off.  I took off two men right away, then coasted down Dearborn and made a right on Milton, where I made a move to take out a woman.  She picked up the pace and held me off as I got beside her, but I didn't let up.  Together, we came to another woman, and I made another move to pass, this time dropping both of them.  I could see 3 more people ahead of me, two women and one guy (boy, really).  I knew the rest of the course was straight and flat until the right turn to the hill and the finish.  I glanced at my Garmin and saw a steady 6:24 pace.  Telling myself I was nearly done, I tried to reel in the next woman.  

As we crossed the street to make the right turn, I could tell I was gaining on her, but knew I might run out of room before I could run her down.  We came up the final hill to the finish line, and her parents, who looked to be about my age, started screaming "MOVE IT, NATALIE!"  As it turns out, I think one of my friends might have been her babysitter growing up, so my self-worth took a beating when I realized I was racing a child.  Anyway, Natalie edged me out, and I finished in 20:47, a second and a half behind her.  (She won the 13-17 age group, and I died a little inside).

As it turns out, I was the third woman, seventh overall, and won my own age group, so naturally, I made all my friends stand around in the cold to watch me receive my medal.  They cheered embarrassingly loudly, and then we all started drinking, which is one perk Natalie can't enjoy.  Sucker!  

1st old person to finish!

I'm sure that's a 5k PR for me, though I don't keep track because again, I hate the 5k, and getting out kicked by a minor certainly doesn't make me like it any more (the first female finisher was also a child, but she's an undergrad (ugh) at my alma mater, Colby College, and so I'm less mad and more proud).

I hope you had enjoyable Thanksgivings!

Monday Wrap Up: Crowd Sourcing Race Advice

In the month since the Chicago Marathon, I've said to quite a few people that, if I never ran a faster marathon, I'd still be happy and content. Sure, I might not feel that way 2 years from now, but in the immediate aftermath of the race, rather than thinking about how I could have gone 3:10 if I'd eaten better/slept more/worn shorter shorts, I'm mostly thinking "damn, I am really psyched with that performance."

That said, I don't intend to retire from the marathon anytime soon. I'm registered for Boston in April already, and see no reason why I wouldn't also run a fall marathon next year, as I'm in the habit of doing.

But as someone who's motivated by goal setting, and who finds the most satisfying part of distance running to be the chipping away at a training plan en route to those goals, it's somewhat unsettling, when people ask if I'm going to try to PR in Boston in April, that my answer is "no." I want to have something to work towards, but right now, another marathon PR isn't it.

Naturally, of course, I've been thinking about ultras. I've long said (haha, distance pun) there's plenty of room for improvement for me in ultras; my last ultra, 39.3 miles through the Irish countryside, was not the race I hoped it would be. And both of my other ultras have been afterthoughts following goal marathons. I'd like to take some time to train specifically for an ultra.

I haven't made any firm decisions yet (don't freak out, Mom), but I've done a little research into races that might work for me, considering my travel schedule, my role as permanent wedding guest, and the fact that I have a boyfriend whom I'd like to be able to see from time to time. I think I've targeted a 50 miler in May that fits the bill, and I've talked it over with TG, who alleges he won't break up with me if I add a long run to my weeks on Sundays in addition to Saturdays (on the plus side, he anticipates his squash game will get very good). The race in question is the week after Boston, which means I wouldn't be dragging out my race season either.  Basically, I have Ultra Sign Up open in another tab as we speak and am just trying to work up the nerve to register.

On the one hand, 50 miles sounds like SO MANY MILES. That's nearly twice the length of the marathon! On the other, it's less than 11 more than I've already run (with a broken foot), and the training plan I found isn't really that much more running than the 60-70 mile weeks I put in for the Chicago Marathon.

Anyone want to try to talk me into or out of this plan? Take to the comments, please.

Number of Miles Run This Week: 44. That was an accident. I ran longer than I would have otherwise on Tuesday, since I had the day off work, and then I ran both Wednesday morning and Wednesday evening.  It's unclear if I'll ever run again, though, since this morning the doorknob fell off my front door and I'm currently trapped in here with Dorito... 

Number of Beers Consumed This Week: 6.

Types of Beers Consumed Last Week: Bell's Best Brown Ale, Bud Light, Dale's Pale Ale, Shipyard Monkeyfist IPA.

Monday Wrap Up: California Dreaming

Shoot, what a nice series of runs I had in San Francisco last week.  I already wrote about a number of them, but Friday morning’s run turned out to be the best of the bunch: I headed even further along Crissy Field, the bay and sandy beach to my right, all kind of interesting birds in the marsh to my left, the Golden Gate Bridge straight ahead, and dogs out for their morning walks all around.  Friday was the only foggy day I had all week in San Francisco, but the cool mist made for a just perfect morning.  I ran 11.6 – more than I planned to, but I couldn’t help myself.

Then I read my book sitting by the Bay Bridge before it was time to leave.

Then I spent 5 hours on a plane.  The worst.

I took Saturday as a rest day and enjoyed a leisurely stroll around the Reservoir back in New York, and then last night, took Mike the Bike on the Roosevelt Island Tram for an evening ride.  With every ride, I get more comfortable, and sooner, and Roosevelt Island was a great place for me to practice riding in traffic without the pressure of actual terrifying Manhattan-type traffic.  Basically, it was like riding my bike in the suburbs when I was little.  It was also a good way to practice getting my bike through the subway turnstile.  Turns out, I need a lot more practice at that.

Number of Miles Run Last Week: 33.  Though I only ran 4 days last week, I was happy to have gotten 2 double digit runs in.  This is probably right about the maximum number of miles I’ll be looking to run in the weeks before Boston training.  I want to start things off next month excited to train, and not burned out already.

Number of Beers Consumed Last Week: 6.

Types of Beers Consumed Last Week: Calicraft’s Oaktown Brown, Cigar City’s Maduro Brown (so syrupy!), Bell’s Best Brown (in case it weren’t apparent, I really love Brown Ales in the fall), Bud Light, Stella, Sierra Nevada.

Monday Wrap Up: In Which I Complain About First-World Problems

Not a lot to report from the World HQ of Will Run For Beer.  Last week saw my first double-digit run since the Chicago Marathon, which was nice evidence that I can, in fact, still run double digits.  I was somewhat unsure myself, seeing as though I've spent the past three weeks really cultivating my "eating and drinking with reckless abandon" skills, which left little time for endurance running.  

Last week* also saw, of course, the New York City Marathon.  I was pleased as punch to be spending it indoors in a cozy sweater with eggs and breakfast potatoes and beer and television and not outdoors in Staten Island with those unfortunate pink-and-orange Dunkin Donuts hats.  If you asked me (and many people did), yesterday was not a good day for a marathon, weather-wise, but I am delighted for all of my friends who enjoyed themselves nonetheless.  I do hold a special place in my heart for the New York City Marathon, but even my own parents spent part of the Sunday on which I did run the race indoors with breakfast foods and alcohol, so I don't feel too bad about climate-controlled spectating.

Plus, I yelled loudly enough for Meb that I'm sure he heard me as he ran by outside.

Number of Miles Run Last Week: 28.  Pleased as punch with that number, actually.  I'm starting to get to the "now what?" stage of my post-race recovery.  I'm already registered for Boston in April, but that seems impossibly far away.  I have a few 5ks/Turkey Trots on the docket this month, but those are more social than anything else.  I'd love to line up a 50k for the spring, with the thinking that if I never ran a marathon faster than my most recent PR, I'd be totally fine with that, but there's plenty of room for improvement on the Ultra front for me.  Any thoughts?

Number of Beers Consumed Last Week: 8. While that doesn't sound like THAT many beers, I feel like I drank a lot last week.  Work was killer early in the week, and in addition to marathon celebrations, I had 3 cocktail parties mid-week and a wedding on the docket over the weekend as well (MUCH FANCY!).  I'm going to chalk it up to making up for those missed drinks while I was dry before Chicago.

Types of Beers Consumed Last Week: Bud Light, Long Trail IPA, NYAC Ale (I presume that this is the exact same beer as the 1912 Ale that is served at Manursing, and it's probably like a Sam Adams rebranded for every country club in the tristate area.  Anyone know?), Smuttynose Bouncy House Session IPA, Founders Harvest Ale. 

And now, off to San Francisco.  This is, God willing, my last scheduled trip of the year.  On the one hand, I like having the chance to visit other cities, and drink their beers and run in their streets (and hotel gyms...).  On the other hand, I pay several thousand dollars a month to live in New York and I'd like to get my money's worth. In 2014 alone, I've been to Chicago four times, San Francisco twice, Boston twice, Atlanta, Los Angeles, DC, Portland, San Diego, Philadelphia, Bend, Fire Island, Lake Placid, Miami, Old Forge, and Wilmington.  That I haven't yet reached George-Clooney-in-Up-in-the-Air status on airlines is surprising and discouraging.


*I recognize that "last week" technically ended on Saturday, 11/1, and therefore, it is this week that saw the NYC Marathon, but here at WRFB HQ, we act like fancy Europeans, and our weeks run Monday-Sunday.  And by "our," I mean "mine and Dorito's

Wednesday Wrap Up: I Almost Died Again

Last Friday morning, I went out for my run before work, as usual, and headed towards Central Park.  I ran across 57th Street and turned uptown on Third Avenue.  The light changed, and I ran through the crosswalk at 58th Street.  I got about halfway across the street before, suddenly, I was lying on the ground, in the middle of the street, in the dark.  I was pretty sure I was going to die.

After a second or two, I realized I was still alive, but wouldn't be if I didn't get up before the light changed again, so I collected my keys, stood up, and crossed the street.  I reached the corner and stopped to examine myself.  A bruised and skinned knee, two skinned palms, a skinned shoulder, and a banged up elbow.  2 blocks into my run.  Genius.

Fortunately, I recovered from my injuries and was able to attend - you guessed it! - another wedding over the weekend.  My trip to the suburbs also afforded me a run among the changing leaves, two breakfast dates with my dad, and a champagne hangover.

The whole reverse taper is happening, slowly but surely.  Running still feels way harder than it should, and my "long" run last week was a whopping 8 miles.  My sincere hope is that it gets better just as soon as I have time to sleep well and eat properly, two things that haven't really been working for me since the marathon, since work has been so busy.  Looking ahead, I have - guess what! - another wedding this weekend!  It's my last of the season, unless anyone I know goes the surprise nuptials route.  Then it's off to San Francisco for business, which (God willing) is my last business trip of the season.  As always, though, I'm looking forward to some miles there.

Number of Miles Run Last Week: 22.  

Number of Beers Consumed Last Week: 3.

Types of Beers Consumed Last Week: Long Trail IPA, Full Sail Pilsner, Bud Heavy.

Monday Wrap Up: The Week After

I spent most of the week immediately following the marathon in a food-and-alcohol fueled stupor in Chicago.  In addition to the mashed potato pizza establishment, I also found myself in a place that served tater tots with a side of Cheez Whiz, and a place that served gallons of wine for $20.  The Midwest, man...

While the caloric indulgence is nice, in the short term, one of the other perks I've explored, post-race, has been the freedom to do things other than specific prescribed workouts.  While I try to incorporate some semblance of cross training into my weeks during the race season, and I run because I like to run, there's something to be said for not being beholden to a pretty strict regimen.  So here's what I did last week:

Monday: Binge eat oatmeal chocolate chip cookies and drink Charles Shaw Sauvignon Blanc on the couch because it turns out Nina lives near a Trader Joe's. 

Tuesday: 20 minutes of yoga in my room (I stayed at a Kimpton property Tuesday-Friday for the business trip part of my week in Chicago, and they have yoga mats and on demand workouts in every room).  Hour walk on the treadmill at my hotel.  I'm a strong proponent of getting moving pretty soon, post-race; I've found it really helps with stiffness.  That's what he said.

Wednesday: 20 minutes of yoga in my room.  I'm not really a yoga person, as you probably know, but this on demand workout was super gentle stretching that felt awesome.  I'd even incorporate it at home, except I have a cat, and cats and yoga don't mix. 3 mile run to make sure I still could run (survey: sort of...).

Thursday: 20 minutes of yoga in my room.  5 mile run because I stinking love running in Chicago.

Friday: Pancakes.  1.5 hours gentle stretching on the flight.  Just kidding; I just wanted to use this opportunity to mention that I got upgraded to first class, so I could have stretched if I wanted to.  Instead I did work on my laptop and ate a bowl of those warm nuts, and then after I finished them, wondered if I was meant to have shared them with my seatmate.

Saturday: Terry Fox run with Ryan.  This was Ryan's first race of any kind and I do believe she had a great time!  She ran the whole time, which is extra impressive because, while advertised as a 5k, the Terry Fox Run is more like 5k-ish.  And not in the "my Garmin says I ran longer, so definitely the course was long" kind of way (and my Garmin doesn't say anything because it's still cracked out after Chicago.)  The 5k sign on the Terry Fox course is about 3 tenths of a mile ahead of the finish line.  So Ryan, who diligently followed the Couch to 5k Program, got more than she bargained for.  Naturally, now we're trying to convince her that, since she went 3.4 miles, she might as well register for a 4 mile race. 

That Garmin is just for show

After the race, I got a shameful pedicure during which the nail technician looked extremely troubled by the calluses on my feet.

Sunday: Set out to run 8 miles, but my legs told me 6 was enough.  Stuck to the bridle path, which was really forgiving.  Came home, made pumpkin bread.  Added 50 minutes of bike riding in the evening, because I bought a bike a month ago and rode it one time.

This morning, I went spinning.  Wednesday, I look forward to running with Team RWB again.  I'd love to go for a hike out in CT next weekend. Being able to do whatever workout I feel like doing is awesome, and I think I'm going to really like this off season.  

Number of Miles Run Last Week: 18.

Number of Beers Consumed Last Week:  You know honestly, not that many.  I think maybe just 2?  I drank SO much wine in Chicago. 

Types of Beers Consumed Last Week: Revolution IPA.

Tell me: what other things should I be trying with my new-found time not spent doing specific workouts?  Refine method piyo zumba rowing?  What's your favorite workout that isn't 3 hours of running?

Monday Wrap Up: An A+ Weekend

 

That's the smile of a 3:13 marathoner. (Thanks for the photo, GCR!). 

Yesterday was a better-than-A+ race day.  The stars were aligned (except the Garmin stars.  Those burned out at mile 9.  And again at mile 17...), the weather was perfect, the course was flat and fast as promised, and friends supporting me were incredible.  As a result, I ran a 9 11 minute PR (my mom had to email me to correct me, because I really am that bad at math), and blew my goal out of the water.  As I said to my friends at the finish, "I'm like a legit fast person now!"

Number of Miles Run Last Week: 43.

Number of Beers Consumed Last Week: 3.  Beer was in the runner recovery area at the finish line yesterday, which is awesome.  You get a beer before you get to find your friends and family.  Medal, Mylar blanket, banana, beer.  Excellent work, race organizers.  Really wonderful stuff.

Types of Beers Consumed Last Week: Goose Island 312 at the finish line, and then 2 pale ales called The Ploy at a pizza-brewery-football joint post-shower.  I ordered a pizza made of mashed potatoes and bacon, and now I have to run another marathon today because of the fatness.  Oh my God, it was so good.

I'll do a full race report this week, but in the interim, I wanted to say one last thing: A lot of people sent well-wishes before and after the race, and I tried my best to acknowledge them, but I just want to be sure to say it again.  Thank you guys so much for giving a shit about a random stranger from the internet.  (Person at mile 7 who said "Will Run For Beer, you're the best!," YOU'RE the best!).  The running community is such an incredibly supportive space, and I feel so lucky to be a part of it. 

Here's to the next great adventure!

Monday Wrap Up: In Which I'm the Protagonist in "Contagion: 2"

Today is Monday, and 6 days from now, I'll race the Chicago Marathon.  In the past 6 days, I have suffered from:
- one migraine headache
- one non-migraine headache, which is an inconvenient side effect of the drugs I take for my migraines
- one bout of... severe intestinal distress (not Ebola)
- one misdiagnosed allergic reaction to fun and warmth and beaches and weddings and North Carolina
- two days and counting of my second cold of the season, about which I am a tremendous baby.

So, week two of the taper was not ideal.  But I'm trying to be optimistic, and figure I might as well get the migraines/poops/boogers out of my system now, so that in 6 days, I'll be good as new.  That's the goal, anyway.

Number of Miles Run Last Week: 16.  Since my first week of taper was 62 miles long, I figure taking the average of these two weeks should leave me in a prime position for racing.  Right?  Is that how this works?  

Number of Beers Consumed Last Week: 5.  If it turns out the crippling cold I've been suffering through since Sunday is as a result of drinking again, I'm going to be sorely disappointed.  

Types of Beers Consumed Last Week: All Bud Lights.  I figured that they're close enough to water that they wouldn't be a shock to the system after 5 weeks dry.  

(The cause for the drinks, by the way, was Abbe and Baker's wedding weekend, which was beautiful and very fun, and I highly recommend the beach in October when there isn't a hurricane, and also anyplace with biscuits, but I don't want to steal their thunder, so they can tell you about it when they get back from Tahiti.)

For the next week, the only intoxicant in my future will be DayQuil.  Please send your healthiest vibes my way.

Sunday Wrap Up: Weather Woes

The fall marathon season is tricky: spanning from (roughly) the third week of September to Thanksgiving (California International Marathon in the first week of December is the notable outlier), a fall marathon can offer a 55 degree day and perfect foliage. It can also offer an 85 degree day and unrelenting sun. Or a 30 degree day and icy asphalt at every water station.

The hope, of course, is the first of these scenarios, and I've been fortunate enough to experience conditions like that a couple of times (my first Wineglass, also my first BQ, is a favorite example). My preference among the remaining two scenarios would be a cold day; while my body is much more acclimated to heat than cold right now, coming off the summer, I find it easier (and way less demoralizing) to try to stay warm on the run than stay cool. My second Philadelphia marathon was pretty icy, and it poured chilly rain during the Smuttynose marathon, my PR race, so I speak from some experience here.

But if the weather Gods take it upon themselves to give us a scorcher of a day in Chicago, which they have done there before, at least this past weekend will have prepared me somewhat.




I'm normally a post-run sandwich kind of gal, but this frozen yogurt was among the highlights of my weekend.

After 2 days and 23 miles in 80 degrees, I'm quite ready for Fall and a real, live taper, thank you very much.

Number of Miles Run This Week: 62. Not exactly a traditional first week of taper, but I'm ready to really dial it back now. In fact, I'm coming to you live from the pedicure chair right now, so you know I'm ready to stop wrecking my feet for a few weeks (also ready to not wreck Abbe and Baker's wedding photos with my hooves next weekend.)

Number of Beers Consumed Last Week: 0. I've been dry for a month. I haven't lost any weight, nor slept any better, so this is some BS. To that end, I'll be getting off the wagon next weekend in conjunction with the aforementioned wedding of my nearest and dearest running buddies, because what's a celebration of love between athletes without the alcohol with which athletes are handsomely rewarded after their races? I'll try not to go crazy, because I've already been the bridesmaid who throws up once before (in my defense, Caroline and Chris are still going strong despite, or because of, my dance floor antics), but I expect there is a Fat Tire or two in my future.

Types of Beers Consumed Last Week: n/a. TG asked me to hold his beer during the Norte Dame - Syracuse game last night, and it was like handing me a puppy and asking me not to squeeze it and start talking in a baby voice. That is to say, it was difficult to resist.

Better Late Than Never

Today is Tuesday, September 23rd.  My next marathon is 19 days away.  This morning, I ran 21 miles.  Taper: you're doing it wrong.

The past couple weeks have been hectic and stressful: I was in LA for a week for work, followed by Maddy's memorial service, both of which were emotionally challenging and draining for different reasons.  I kept up with my running as best I could, squeezing in a mid-week 16 miler in two parts (10 miles in the morning, 6 miles in the evening - it sucked precisely as much as it sounds like it would) before I left, and hitting the treadmill at the Equinox in my hotel once I got to LA (same hotel as last year, same love affair with Equinox).  While the miles got done, the treadmill seems to exacerbate my hip pain, which I pretended was a random coincidence, and continued to hit the treadmill at my own gym once I was back in New York and struggling to wake up at hours conducive to exercising before work in the Eastern Time Zone.

After a tough (but pretty baller, if you ask me) set of 800s at the track last Friday, my 10th consecutive day of running, my hip was like "you can go right to hell," and I decided a rest day or two were in order.  Which meant, of course, that my long run was off the Saturday docket.  (Instead, I bought a bike for $25, so now mostly I want this marathon to be over so I can play with it).  Sunday was filled with family obligations (and cider donuts!), and so the weekend came and went and my last long run wasn't completed.  Which brings us to today, when I had the time (if waking up at 4am on Tuesday constitutes having the time) and inclination to just get it done.

And great news!  My hip feels a-okay after two days of rest, I feel much more satisfied with my training having completed my last long run, and the bacon, egg, and cheese I just ate was delicious.  While I know one run won't make or break me, especially having done this whole marathon thing one or two or 17 times before, I think the mental aspect of knocking out a 20+ miler and commencing the taper is an important and satisfying milestone.  Even if it happens two days too late.

Something else that is happening too late is the recap of last week... and the week before.

Number of Miles Run, 9/8 - 9/14: 49.  28 of those were on the treadmill - barf.  I also attended a SoulCycle class in Beverly Hills that week, and was shocked to discover that I was one of about 5 people in the 6am Thursday class.  In New York, you have to fight tooth and nail for a bike at 6am.  In Beverly Hills, I guess no one goes to work, so they don't have to exercise at the butt crack of dawn.  

Oh, I forgot I registered for Boston, too.  So there's that. 

Number of Beers Consumed, 9/8 - 9/14: 0.  Still on the wagon.

Types of Beers Consumed, 9/8 - 9/14: N/A.  It saddens me to travel and not sample local beers.  Good thing I'll be back in California in November.

Number of Miles Run, 9/15 - 9/21: 40.  Respectable, even without a long run.  I'm okay with it.

Number of Beers Consumed, 9/15 - 9/21: 0.

Types of Beers Consumed, 9/15 - 9/21: N/A.  But I had hot apple cider on Saturday, which is... not the same.

So, now I can officially say I'm tapering, which is pretty fun, except for the insatiable hunger, constant over-analysis of mysterious aches and pains, and random crying jags.  This week will be a less traditional than previous tapers, since today's run will keep my weekly mileage pretty high, but I'll really be dialing back intensity.  And wondering if there are people out there who follow training plans exactly as written and if so, what kinds of jobs and lives they might have that makes that even remotely possible.

Do you adhere strictly to your training plan?  I'm good about getting the workouts done, but seldom in the order or on the days they're prescribed.

Monday Wrap Up: The Nuanced Diet of the Distance Runner

Interested in a peek into my highly scientific approach to fueling as an endurance athlete?  Today is your lucky day!

Oops.

Never fear - this was actually just a measure of my pre-run intake, which consisted of a frosted strawberry Pop Tart.  I actually can't believe those have any protein in them at all.  In any event, I spent 23 miles yesterday thinking about what else I was going to eat, less because I am concerned with a well-rounded diet than because I was so, so bored on my run and wanted to have something to look forward to.  I went with a turkey-cheddar-alfalfa spout-green apple-honey mustard sandwich on a sesame seed bagel.  It was awesome.  I love sandwiches so much.

Number of Miles Run Last Week: 50.  I ran to the Little Red Lighthouse for the first time in my life.  I'll never do it again, because it felt like it took FOREVER and that damn GWB never seemed to be getting any closer.  On the plus side, the running path up there is nicely maintained and shady, and there was a water fountain at the end. 

Number of Beers Consumed Last Week: 0.  And so it begins...  If that pie chart above is any indication, though, I shouldn't have much trouble working carbohydrates into my diet despite the lack of beers for the next couple of weeks.

Types of Beers Consumed Last Week: n/a.

Off to LA on Wednesday morning.  Expect miles logged on the treadmill at the Equinox, where I fell in love (with the Equinox) last year, and a spin at SoulCycle in Brentwood, where I bear witness to how the other (fancy) half lives.

Tuesday Wrap Up: All The Miles

Last season, I felt like I was in over my head with respect to my training plan.  The mileage seemed too high for me to manage, especially with how much I travel both for work and personally.  In addition, six days a week of running was leaving me exhausted.  I spent much of my time stressed about how I was going to squeeze in runs, and which ones I was going to cut from my week.  Ultimately, I was satisfied with my marathon performance, but the training that lead to it was more fraught with anxiety than it was fun.

Given that, I went back and forth this season on what plan to use, consulting a few runners as well as my travel plans to identify whether or not there was another plan that might make me more comfortable.  Some people suggested I try two-a-days, instead of six days a week of running, but that struck me as even more difficult to schedule (and the laundry!). Ultimately, I went with the same Training Peaks Break 3:15 plan, less because it seemed like the right fit and more because I didn't find a suitable alternative.  For reasons completely unbeknownst to me, however, the plan has been great thus far.

I've just wrapped up two heavy volume weeks, and instead of feeling beat up, worn down, frustrated, and starving, I'm feeling confident, accomplished, and starving.  Some things never change, I guess.  I don't know that I can point to a specific change - my travel has been consistent, this season to last, and I've kept up a pretty robust social calendar.  Also I still have a job, which, you know, occupies a fair amount of my time.  But something I've really tried to do is a) make my runs a priority, and then b) not feel bad about it.  It's the second part that's the kicker for me.  It's hard for me to say "I can't do that with you, because I need to run;" my default instead is "I can do that with you, I'll just run super early/late/on a different day/while carrying Dorito in a backpack," because I don't want to inconvenience other people.  But then I'm left feeling pressed for time (something I hate), and the run becomes something to just grit through, as opposed to the focal point it should be, given my race day goals.  It's a work in progress, of course, but trying to keep in mind that it's okay to say no to things ahead of time, instead of saying yes and then feeling guilty and anxious trying to manage my time, has done wonders for my ability to maintain my training this season.  So far, anyway.  To be continued...

Number of Miles Run Last Week: 68.  That's a weekly mileage record for me, by plenty.  In fact, by Friday of last week, I'd run 77 miles in a 7-day span.  Damn.  Highlights included 9 miles on trails in the Adirondacks with my friend Jason, a run I wouldn't have done otherwise but am so glad I did, and knocking out my long run on Friday before work, which left the weekend free for this:

Okay, fine, neither of those is me, because I'm too scared to jump.  But I spectated.  And also did some of this:

Number of Beers Consumed Last Week: 8.  

Types of Beers Consumed Last Week: Bell's Oberon, Miller Lite, Labatt Blue Light (I mean...), Saranac IPA, Saranac Pale Ale, Saranac Adirondack Lager, Blue Moon.

I'll face another big mileage week this week, so here's hoping the good vibes continue.  Six weeks to go!

Tuesday Wrap Up: Styling and Etiquette for Runners

I was home sick yesterday after being up all night on Sunday with a horrible stomach ache, no doubt a result of drinking a two gallon strawberry milkshake on Sunday afternoon (I considered it "refueling" after Saturday's long run). Since I was run down, but not acutely ill, my day involved a lot of watching Ina Garten, talking to Dorito, cleaning my apartment, making dinner, and trying out a variety of hairstyles (and yes, it was as lovely as it sounds; I asked TG if being a stay-at-home girlfriend was "a thing," but sadly, he says no). One of my pursuits of the day involved French braiding my own hair for the first time in my life, which definitely counts as cross training. I took my French braid to the track this morning for speed work, and oh my god, this is the best hairstyle ever invented. I mean, yes, I look like a 7th grader at a bat mitzvah (I know this because I actually wore my hair in a French braid to Liza's bat mitzvah), but the thing stayed in place and out of my face and off my sticky, sweaty back for a full set of 800s, plus warm up and cool down. This is amazing. Thank God I wasn't at work using my brain yesterday, otherwise I never would have discovered this!

/Googles "running, French braid," sees I'm definitely not the first person to discover this...

In other news, after the aforementioned track workout this morning, I went into Dunkin Donuts for an iced coffee, as I do many mornings. I have a bit of a history with this place; one morning recently, I went in after my run and the woman behind the counter said to me "oh it's raining already?" I was confused, and then realized she was asking because my shirt was completely soaked through with sweat. Yeah, it's raining, but just under my boobs and on my stomach...

Anyway, this morning I was being helped my the same woman, and was similarly sweat-soaked, when she said to me "you run a lot." People say that to me from time to time. Never before has someone said it in this tone. It was as if the "you disgusting beast" was audible at the end of the sentence. I stammered something about it being really humid out today, paid for my coffee, and beat a hasty retreat. But I ask you: am I a disgusting beast for going into Dunkin Donuts in my sweaty running clothes? I'm not sitting and staying awhile. But do I need to at least put on a dry shirt before I interact with humans? Even though I have a classy French braid?

Number of Miles Run Last Week: 51. By Saturday afternoon, I'd run 64 miles in a seven-day span. That's a lot. The strawberry milkshake derailed my running plans on Sunday, but I regret nothing.

Number of Beers Consumed Last Week: Believe it or not, just 2, despite the fact that I went out every night last week. I guess I've been hitting the vino lately. I'm sorry.

Types of Beers Consumed Last Week: Bud Light. The old standby.

Wednesday Wrap Up: VERT Race Series Trail Master Killah

Things are picking up steam with respect to training: I’m on target for 56 miles this week and a record high 60 miles next week.  I’m also on pace for setting a record on the calorie consumption front, if Monday night’s picnic in Central Park is any indication.  “Two-bite brownies” are so named because you’re meant to consume two in each bite, right?  Right?!

Last week was a step back week, which I gladly accepted.

Number of Miles Run Last Week: 42, including an 8 mile GMP workout, a hilly as f*ck trail 5k (more below), and a “long” run of 13 miles, which I completed before 8:45am Sunday, which literally never happens because I need at least 90 minutes to drink coffee, go to the bathroom, and generally procrastinate and psyche myself up for running.  While I was so proud of myself and my time management skills on Sunday morning, it all came back to bite me in the ass Sunday night, when I was so tired the prospect of picking what to have for dinner brought me to tears.  Cool.

Number of Beers Consumed Last Week: 6.

Types of Beers Consumed Last Week: Beer blogger fail – I drank an IPA and what was pitched as an “IPL” from SingleCut and Gun Hill, but I don’t know which was which.  I also enjoyed a Sixpoint Sweet Action, and a Fire Island Lighthouse Ale, rounding out my New York beer sampling (#drinklocal).  Allegedly I had two Sierra Nevadas somewhere along the line, but I don’t really know when or where that was.

Now, as for that hilly as f*ck trail 5k…

On Saturday, I made good on my promise to check out Van Cortlandt Park for the inaugural VERT Race Series Trail Master Killah.  This voyage was not made easy.

On Friday, I received a travel advisory email from the VERT people, informing me that the 1 train would not be running north of 96^th Street.  

In full disclosure, if my race entry had not been comped, and had I not demanded TG shell out a race fee himself in the name of supporting me and “OMG it will be so funnnnnn!” I probably would have been deterred.  I hear the expression “free shuttle service” and I’m like “more like free time to NOT do whatever it was I was planning to do that is now inaccessible by subway.”  In the MTA’s defense, the free shuttle service is the same thing as the subway, but above ground on buses.  They make it as easy as humanly possible to not change your plans.  And yet…

But, I had indeed committed to this event, and the VERT people generously comped my registration, so I collected TG and we took the D to the A to the E to the free shuttle service to Van Cortlandt Park.  And thank goodness we did, because it turned out to be totally awesome (not necessary the free shuttle service part, though that wasn’t objectively bad either…)

Pre-Race:  The free shuttle service let us off directly outside Van Cortlandt Park.  Directions indicated that the registration would be at the Tortoise and the Hare statue in the Park, but having never been there, I had no idea where this was.  Fortunately, TG did, and also, there were people milling about with bibs on, which is generally a good sign when you're looking for a race start.  We followed the crowds and walked along a gravel track, skirting a huge field filled with cricket players, until we reached registration.  We picked up bibs and t-shirts (quick note: the shirts are AWESOME.  I'm not someone who goes all crazy about unisex versus gendered sizing, mostly because at approximately 40 feet tall, men's t-shirts fit me better anyway, but the unisex small fits really well and is super soft cotton.  The design it pretty rad too, and I'm psyched I have non-tech shirt to add to my arsenal) and dropped bags with no wait whatsoever.  I switched into trail shoes and felt a little embarrassed about doing so, but truthfully, I have so few opportunities to wear them that I wanted to take 'em out for a spin.  We hung about talking and stretching and running a few warm up laps on the aforementioned track (okay, technically I ran a few warm up steps, but other people were running laps, and in the interest of writing a thorough race report, I'm sharing that to paint a more full picture of the scene.  It's a literary technique.  I took one creative writing class in 2004.  I know what I'm doing here.).  

While we were hanging out, TG asked someone to take our picture, because he's ALWAYS taking pictures and putting them on social media and it's so annoying (just kidding; it's me who does that).  Lo and behold, the girl he asked was Pamela, and she and her husband Monojeet recognized me from this here blog!  TG was not especially impressed that I am FAMOUS on the INTERNET, but I was too busy being impressed with myself to notice.  

A couple minutes before the 11am start time, the announcer encouraged us to head to the starting area and self-seed.  TG and I hung in the back third of the pack, not entirely sure what we were up against with respect to the allegedly hilly course.  Right on time, we took off.

The race: The first half-mile or so took us around the cricket fields on the gravel track.  Not quite singletrack but not nearly a full six lanes, the track was about wide enough to handle the estimated 300-ish runners, baring a few instances I had to step to the outside grass to pass.  TG and I started out together, and I thought to myself "these people are crazy if they think this is hilly."  

Soon enough, though, we made a right off the track and into the woods, where TG and I separated.  The shade from the thick trees overhead was a welcome change at 11am in August.  The hills were not.

This course was tough!  The hill at about 1.25 miles was super steep, and from then on, it was basically uphill for a mile.  The descents were no picnic either.  The path through the woods was the same loose, small gravel that made up the track, and as I was barreling down the hills, I thought to myself "holy hell I am so glad I thought to put on these trail shoes." 

That's me in the orange, hurdling over a water bar trying not to eat it. Photo

That said, I thought the course was also super fun!  Normally I sort of dread 5ks, and speed work in general, but this was one of the first times I felt like "I can push the pace here, it's only 3.1 miles," and scrambling up and down the hills on loose footing did make me feel pretty bad ass.  Well, at least until I looked at my Garmin and saw I was only 1.5 miles in...

Miraculously, I took no tumbles and avoided the puke threshold, and found myself with less than a mile to go exiting the woods and heading back to the gravel path.  I'd been in hot pursuit of the guy in front of me for close to two miles, so when we hit the track, I tried to make a move.  This was foolish, since I'd used up any gas I might have had for making moves hauling myself up hill for the last 2.5 miles.  He held me off, and crossed a few seconds ahead of me.  I extended my congratulations and tried not to vomit on his shoes.

Photo

I grabbed a bottle of water at the finish and stood in the infield cheering on the runners and chatting with some other finishers, including a girl from Van Cordlandt Track Club, who told me I "zoomed" by her early on.  I told her she actually had the advantage, and had I known what was in store in Van Cortlandt, most certainly would have been a little more conservative.

Finish time: 24:38

Overall Place: 30

Gender Place: 5

AG Place: 3

Post race: Now on to the good stuff!

One of the selling points for this race for me, besides the opportunity to use those trail shoes, was the post-race party.  It did not disappoint.

The party was a short walk away at the Van Cortlandt Golf Course, which was a pretty venue overlooking a small pond. 

Photo

When we walked in, a fellow looked us up and down, decided what he'd call us, wrote those names on plastic cups, and handed them to us.  It was all very frat party, which naturally, I loved (my named was Shorty, because of course).

We took those cups directly to the kegs, which were provided by SingleCut and Gun Hill Brewing.  The beer was plentiful, the lines moved quickly, and best of all, the intoxicants were free.  We enjoyed a couple beers standing in the sunshine (me in my new t-shirt!) talking to Pamela and Monojeet, who were super fun and nice and also like beer and marathons, which is a deciding factor when I'm evaluating potential friendships.  You're in, guys.

While we imbibed, the DJ starting playing, and a few people hit the dance floor before the awards ceremony kicked off.  Much as I would have liked to stay long enough to consume enough beers to make me consider hitting the dance floor myself, I had a 4pm appointment in Chelsea, so TG and I took off for our voyage home.  The pics look awesome, though, so I'll make a note that for their next race, I should probably block off the whole day.

In conclusion: VERT Race Series' Trail Master Killah was a challenging but really fun course.  The number of runners was just about perfect considering the width of the trails in Van Cortlandt, and despite the subway snag, getting up there is so easy I might even return under my own volition.  The t-shirt is solid, and the post-race party was among the best, and certainly the most boozy, I've attended.  Sounds like you missed out on a solid time, eh?

As a reminder, VERT Race Series comped my entry for this race.  These opinions are my own.