Yesterday: 2 miles with the dog in the morning, 5.5ish miles with both boys in the afternoon. We ran a different section of the Smithville lake trail system, and it was warm. 62F.
Today: I was feeling tired so I slept in instead of running in the morning. My husband's obligations ended earlier than expected this morning; he returned and we had a very short discussion about where to run. Him: "I have a crazy idea..." Me: "Local Burger?"
Back to the levee, just six-ish miles this time (actually turned out to be 5.9). We had a strong headwind going out, but it wasn't quite strong enough to be uncomfortable. The surface of the levee is beyond compare; it feels akin to running on a thick carpet, soft and flat. It's a weird sort of juxtaposition to be running on something which feels so indoors while all other sensations are decidedly outdoors. However, I got into a nice zone again. There's no point in looking far ahead because things are even further away than they seem, and there's not much point in looking just ahead either because there is almost nothing to trip on. I think I mostly gazed at the fields, but mainly inward, though I don't remember specifically what I was thinking about except when I was wondering just how warm the temps were. I was feeling kind of hot by the end.
Turns out it was 67F or so! That's 18C.
Since I've been feeling kind of drained lately, I decided to have the 1/2 lb burger.
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Sunday, January 29, 2012
long run away from home
This can be a tricky endeavour. Where to run, where to stop for food or water or a toilet...sometimes web-gleaned info is disappointedly out of date. And sometimes conditions rise above expectations. And sometimes both situations occur!
Today, we decided to check out the only (known to us so far) "flat" route nearby, along the top of a levee. There are hills here but also vast floodplains beside the rivers and thus levees have been built. We are still investigating the possibility of running on top of the levees close to our future home; during this process, we found out about a more formal "trail" along a levee in the town of Lawrence, KS. This is a ten-mile stretch.
After spending a couple of hours researching steak restaurants that specialized in grass-fed beef, I found out that there are none around here, but there is a burger joint which buys from local ranchers which raise their animals on organically-maintained pasture. This is also in Lawrence.
In general, I wish we were closer to Lawrence if not living in it: it is an interesting college town.
One drawback of driving to runs is finding a bathroom at the start. There were two supposed possibilities, but one was locked and, upon driving to the other, we found a rock liner where it might have been at one point. The levee itself is very exposed (picture a straight exposed ridge line with miles of views in most directions!) but it runs besides fields and intermittent wooded areas; we walked up to the top and started jogging. There was a couple with a dog shortly ahead of us, but we passed them by a mile and then ran down the slope (mindful of snakes) and into the woods. In the future, we will use a nearby service station we'd passed en route.
The run improved after that. The temps were about 10C and sunny with a refreshing but not battering wind, and the sheer scale and monotony of the levee system and the surrounding scenery was transfixing. At times, I felt like I was stationary, suspended in infinity--this is not a nice feeling during a race, but it makes a long run more relaxing. The sun was warm enough to cause distortion of distant images, creating an almost mirage-like effect. We'd spend a mile or two or so running up to things which shimmered unchangeably for most of our approach and then suddenly metamorphosed when we finally drew close. I kept mistaking posts and the water level markers for people, and people for dogs, and cyclists and walkers for runners, and sticks for animals (not just snakes); the levee was largely void of clutter or other beings, which made the beings and things there much more significant. It is amusing to be fixated on a single stick for ten minutes or so while running past hundreds on the side. We ran to the end of the trail and, since the levee continued, we kept on going for a bit more until approached by a dog which ran up from a nearby lone house (there were other farmhouses in the distance). The dog appeared friendly but we turned around just in case and it followed us for about five minutes. I suppose they had to end the trail on the edge of its turf! ;)
We passed our starting point after 59 minutes; we had a general idea of mileage because there were 1/2 mile markers on the trail, but we didn't know how far beyond the last marker we'd gone, nor how much before (and after) the first marker. We continued and gradually civilization built up alongside the levee; we passed construction, a trailer park, some other buildings, and finally ended up under a bridge. We had gone 1:16 by this point; our original intent had been to go to a certain park which was next to the levee, but the path was a bit diverted due to construction and so we turned around and ran back, past our entry point.
I was carrying water for all three of us and I've slowly come to realize that, though I can carry 2L of water for hiking without noticing it, running with it hurts my back. Even 1.5 L doesn't sit well. My pack doesn't fit my husband and alternatives are still in storage so we'll have to figure out how to get refills; there was a gas station not too far off at one point, and possibly a water fountain a bit beyond our 2nd turn around. However, the flatness and comfort of this route far outweighs the water concern. It is truly flat and relaxing, especially since the surface is dirt and crushed gravel and feels soft but not spongy. It's the perfect place to do a long run: we will get beat up by hills during the week, and then we can relax and unwind for a while once a week or so. Truly, the six-milers we've done were harder than this run.
A final bonus is the burger joint, Local Burger. They even have gluten-free buns. My husband had a bison burger and I had a succulent and flavourful beef burger cooked to medium rare perfection (most ground beef needs to be more cooked than this) and the most delicious fries ever...I think the last time I've been able to eat fries was when we were in Nfld in July so they were especially monumental. It was the perfect post-run meal.
Total: just over 12 miles.
Today, we decided to check out the only (known to us so far) "flat" route nearby, along the top of a levee. There are hills here but also vast floodplains beside the rivers and thus levees have been built. We are still investigating the possibility of running on top of the levees close to our future home; during this process, we found out about a more formal "trail" along a levee in the town of Lawrence, KS. This is a ten-mile stretch.
After spending a couple of hours researching steak restaurants that specialized in grass-fed beef, I found out that there are none around here, but there is a burger joint which buys from local ranchers which raise their animals on organically-maintained pasture. This is also in Lawrence.
In general, I wish we were closer to Lawrence if not living in it: it is an interesting college town.
One drawback of driving to runs is finding a bathroom at the start. There were two supposed possibilities, but one was locked and, upon driving to the other, we found a rock liner where it might have been at one point. The levee itself is very exposed (picture a straight exposed ridge line with miles of views in most directions!) but it runs besides fields and intermittent wooded areas; we walked up to the top and started jogging. There was a couple with a dog shortly ahead of us, but we passed them by a mile and then ran down the slope (mindful of snakes) and into the woods. In the future, we will use a nearby service station we'd passed en route.
The run improved after that. The temps were about 10C and sunny with a refreshing but not battering wind, and the sheer scale and monotony of the levee system and the surrounding scenery was transfixing. At times, I felt like I was stationary, suspended in infinity--this is not a nice feeling during a race, but it makes a long run more relaxing. The sun was warm enough to cause distortion of distant images, creating an almost mirage-like effect. We'd spend a mile or two or so running up to things which shimmered unchangeably for most of our approach and then suddenly metamorphosed when we finally drew close. I kept mistaking posts and the water level markers for people, and people for dogs, and cyclists and walkers for runners, and sticks for animals (not just snakes); the levee was largely void of clutter or other beings, which made the beings and things there much more significant. It is amusing to be fixated on a single stick for ten minutes or so while running past hundreds on the side. We ran to the end of the trail and, since the levee continued, we kept on going for a bit more until approached by a dog which ran up from a nearby lone house (there were other farmhouses in the distance). The dog appeared friendly but we turned around just in case and it followed us for about five minutes. I suppose they had to end the trail on the edge of its turf! ;)
We passed our starting point after 59 minutes; we had a general idea of mileage because there were 1/2 mile markers on the trail, but we didn't know how far beyond the last marker we'd gone, nor how much before (and after) the first marker. We continued and gradually civilization built up alongside the levee; we passed construction, a trailer park, some other buildings, and finally ended up under a bridge. We had gone 1:16 by this point; our original intent had been to go to a certain park which was next to the levee, but the path was a bit diverted due to construction and so we turned around and ran back, past our entry point.
I was carrying water for all three of us and I've slowly come to realize that, though I can carry 2L of water for hiking without noticing it, running with it hurts my back. Even 1.5 L doesn't sit well. My pack doesn't fit my husband and alternatives are still in storage so we'll have to figure out how to get refills; there was a gas station not too far off at one point, and possibly a water fountain a bit beyond our 2nd turn around. However, the flatness and comfort of this route far outweighs the water concern. It is truly flat and relaxing, especially since the surface is dirt and crushed gravel and feels soft but not spongy. It's the perfect place to do a long run: we will get beat up by hills during the week, and then we can relax and unwind for a while once a week or so. Truly, the six-milers we've done were harder than this run.
A final bonus is the burger joint, Local Burger. They even have gluten-free buns. My husband had a bison burger and I had a succulent and flavourful beef burger cooked to medium rare perfection (most ground beef needs to be more cooked than this) and the most delicious fries ever...I think the last time I've been able to eat fries was when we were in Nfld in July so they were especially monumental. It was the perfect post-run meal.
Total: just over 12 miles.
Saturday, January 28, 2012
getting strong now
(like Rocky)
This morning, the dog and I jogged 2 easy miles. We went to the end of the recently discovered sidewalk to a large vacant field. I let him sniff and dig but I didn't let him loose because of the nearby highway and because I still have to do some research about snakes. It's probably still too cold to worry about that just yet, but I've recently learned that there are six poisonous species around here: cottonmouths, copperheads, and 4 species of rattlesnakes. At any rate, it was a brilliant sunny morning and I've grown surprisingly fond of this airport-motel area. It has proven quite suitable for easy morning jogs: I have sidewalks, a bit of dirt road, and my favourite sort of scenery: open skies above open fields.
This afternoon, the boys and I ran 4.2 miles (4.5 miles total with cool-down walk). We went back to the first path we've run here and it was actually easier for me this time. I tried to be a bit more relaxed with the hills and keep my stride and breathing quick; I've occasionally noticed that I try to control my breathing too much on hills instead of letting it speed up naturally. And, perhaps, after getting chewed up by hills this week, I've gotten stronger.
I've had to adapt to different running conditions before: there were the sharp steep hills ("mountains") of Korea which sculpted some very shapely calves after a stiff month or two (I never got used to the Yellow Dust though), the altitude of Colorado which boosted my RBC count after a few weeks of burning lungs, and the summer swamp swelter of Virginia which soaked me mercilessly throughout, 5-10 minutes at a time at first, and continuously after a while. A week, or several, of discomfort yields to adaptation. There are tougher hills to come and more pain, but I feel fitter already.
And hungrier. My appetite has increased, so has my husband's (the dog is always hungry). There is extra work involved in counteracting gravity, after all. I bought some Ensure which has helped dull the hunger. Since we don't move into our house (and kitchen) for another week, we have been eating microwave dinners/vegetables and packaged salads--that stuff is expensive! And not as filling as our own cooking. Fresh fruit as opposed to frozen fruit smoothies is expensive too. It's kind of shocking how much we're spending on groceries, and the amount of trash we're generating is appalling too.
However, once we get settled and sorted, our diet will be amazing. I had no idea what was in store for us. http://eatwild.com/products/kansas.html And there are more farms across the river in Missouri. We'll probably sign up for a weekly CSA basket and buy a section of beef or a lamb, and there is hunting and fishing nearby. Plus we have space for a home garden albeit in pots not plots. But some plants are happier in pots anyway. Meanwhile, I am appreciating the convenience of frozen dinners and have become a bit of an Amy's gluten-free Mac & Cheese addict!
This morning, the dog and I jogged 2 easy miles. We went to the end of the recently discovered sidewalk to a large vacant field. I let him sniff and dig but I didn't let him loose because of the nearby highway and because I still have to do some research about snakes. It's probably still too cold to worry about that just yet, but I've recently learned that there are six poisonous species around here: cottonmouths, copperheads, and 4 species of rattlesnakes. At any rate, it was a brilliant sunny morning and I've grown surprisingly fond of this airport-motel area. It has proven quite suitable for easy morning jogs: I have sidewalks, a bit of dirt road, and my favourite sort of scenery: open skies above open fields.
This afternoon, the boys and I ran 4.2 miles (4.5 miles total with cool-down walk). We went back to the first path we've run here and it was actually easier for me this time. I tried to be a bit more relaxed with the hills and keep my stride and breathing quick; I've occasionally noticed that I try to control my breathing too much on hills instead of letting it speed up naturally. And, perhaps, after getting chewed up by hills this week, I've gotten stronger.
I've had to adapt to different running conditions before: there were the sharp steep hills ("mountains") of Korea which sculpted some very shapely calves after a stiff month or two (I never got used to the Yellow Dust though), the altitude of Colorado which boosted my RBC count after a few weeks of burning lungs, and the summer swamp swelter of Virginia which soaked me mercilessly throughout, 5-10 minutes at a time at first, and continuously after a while. A week, or several, of discomfort yields to adaptation. There are tougher hills to come and more pain, but I feel fitter already.
And hungrier. My appetite has increased, so has my husband's (the dog is always hungry). There is extra work involved in counteracting gravity, after all. I bought some Ensure which has helped dull the hunger. Since we don't move into our house (and kitchen) for another week, we have been eating microwave dinners/vegetables and packaged salads--that stuff is expensive! And not as filling as our own cooking. Fresh fruit as opposed to frozen fruit smoothies is expensive too. It's kind of shocking how much we're spending on groceries, and the amount of trash we're generating is appalling too.
However, once we get settled and sorted, our diet will be amazing. I had no idea what was in store for us. http://eatwild.com/products/kansas.html And there are more farms across the river in Missouri. We'll probably sign up for a weekly CSA basket and buy a section of beef or a lamb, and there is hunting and fishing nearby. Plus we have space for a home garden albeit in pots not plots. But some plants are happier in pots anyway. Meanwhile, I am appreciating the convenience of frozen dinners and have become a bit of an Amy's gluten-free Mac & Cheese addict!
Friday, January 27, 2012
(an almost) flat run and fatigue
Sometimes the easiest runs are the hardest, as if the body senses that not much will be asked of it and accordingly goes on vacation or something, taking energy and strength and leaving discomfort.
This morning, the dog and I jogged a very leisurely 1.8 miles. We found a sidewalk!
This afternoon, my husband, the dog and I jogged 6 miles (6.31 miles total with warm up and cool down walks). My husband chose the route and it was actually mostly flat. And it wiped me out. I've been carrying a knapsack on our runs with our water and snacks and so forth; this is a really comfortable running knapsack and I've worn it for hours running and walking without issues, but today the car keys jingling in an upper pocket gave me a headache after a few miles. I repacked the knapsack and the headache went away, leaving tiredness.
I've been carrying about 1.5 L of water along with other things such as clothes and snacks...I guess it's about 5-6 pounds of extra weight. It's amazing how much of a difference that makes sometimes.
I guess this is what happens when, after a hiatus of nearly three weeks spent fighting some sort of chest infection, I move to a hilly area and jump back into running. LOL. My husband is tired too, but not the dog!
The mattress topper helped a lot but I will probably take some sort of anti-inflammatory tonight. Yes, some inflammation is part of recovery, but it doesn't seem as beneficial when it impedes sleep.
This morning, the dog and I jogged a very leisurely 1.8 miles. We found a sidewalk!
This afternoon, my husband, the dog and I jogged 6 miles (6.31 miles total with warm up and cool down walks). My husband chose the route and it was actually mostly flat. And it wiped me out. I've been carrying a knapsack on our runs with our water and snacks and so forth; this is a really comfortable running knapsack and I've worn it for hours running and walking without issues, but today the car keys jingling in an upper pocket gave me a headache after a few miles. I repacked the knapsack and the headache went away, leaving tiredness.
I've been carrying about 1.5 L of water along with other things such as clothes and snacks...I guess it's about 5-6 pounds of extra weight. It's amazing how much of a difference that makes sometimes.
I guess this is what happens when, after a hiatus of nearly three weeks spent fighting some sort of chest infection, I move to a hilly area and jump back into running. LOL. My husband is tired too, but not the dog!
The mattress topper helped a lot but I will probably take some sort of anti-inflammatory tonight. Yes, some inflammation is part of recovery, but it doesn't seem as beneficial when it impedes sleep.
Thursday, January 26, 2012
easier run
4.2ish miles. I actually found a flatter route! It's not flat, but it had a relatively long almost flat portion. Actually, it turned out to be slightly uphill (I didn't notice); we went a bit further, turned around, and I finally felt the recovery run effort I was hoping for. My calves are pretty torn up still but I felt my quads loosening up at least.
Part of this paved path goes through a prairie restoration area. The grass was dead but tall: I'd envisioned waist-high grass but some clumps were about my husband's height.
I offered to let him choose the route tomorrow, but I've been asked to research a bit more. We are definitely learning about the area, which isn't actually our future home area (we're staying across the river and state line for the time being), but we won't be far. The area we ran in yesterday will be a great place for future weekend runs.
A good part of running is recovery; our new room is fine but both the mattress and I are too stiff. I like sleeping on hard surfaces but I need an inch or so of padding: my ideal bed was the (heated) floor and thin pad I had in Korea. Without such a pad, some of my joints sometimes get locked and I feel sore in general, especially when my muscles are already tender. Hopefully our new 1.25 inch memory foam topper will be a cloud!
Part of this paved path goes through a prairie restoration area. The grass was dead but tall: I'd envisioned waist-high grass but some clumps were about my husband's height.
I offered to let him choose the route tomorrow, but I've been asked to research a bit more. We are definitely learning about the area, which isn't actually our future home area (we're staying across the river and state line for the time being), but we won't be far. The area we ran in yesterday will be a great place for future weekend runs.
A good part of running is recovery; our new room is fine but both the mattress and I are too stiff. I like sleeping on hard surfaces but I need an inch or so of padding: my ideal bed was the (heated) floor and thin pad I had in Korea. Without such a pad, some of my joints sometimes get locked and I feel sore in general, especially when my muscles are already tender. Hopefully our new 1.25 inch memory foam topper will be a cloud!
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
"easy"
It has been dawning upon me that "easy" is relative and, instead of searching for "easy", I should really be looking for "difficult". Once I find that, I can decide if endeavour, or avoidance, would be the best strategy.
This morning, the dog and I jogged a very easy mile with pit stops and sniff stops and raptor viewing stops. We are still in the extended stay place, albeit in different circumstances, and it is in the typical sort of motel area with roads for cars only. However, development hasn't quite swallowed farmland and we found a nearby dirt road going to/through some fields. I don't want to run the entire road because it probably leads to someone who might not want us using it, but since there is no stock in the fields and we'll stick to the road, we aren't doing too much harm using the outside bit of it. There are no trespassing signs either.
This afternoon, my husband, the dog and I headed to the lake. It wasn't quite what we expected:
The lake is quite large, the trails are lovely, and hilly. We saw a couple types of woodpeckers, a swan of some sort, lots of other birds, especially thousands and thousands of snow geese in the distance. At first they looked like a white blur. There were enough birds remaining on the water to turn it white. The sheer numbers of birds here has been startling. Apparently we are on a migration corridor. Yesterday we saw a flock of black birds (maybe black only in silhouette, I am not sure) that stretched as far as we could see.
And the people here have been very friendly, and not the cloying false friendliness found especially in the South or the curious and/or desperate or rote friendliness of other places, but a simple sort of uncomplicated friendliness. And customer service has been amazing.
This came in handy last night around 3:30 am. We have been staying in pet-friendly accommodations, which is sometimes a decommissioned smoking room. This hasn't been a problem before because, apart from the faintest edge of an old smell which doesn't quite smell like it belongs, the rooms we've stayed in have been fine. Yesterday, we checked into a smellier room with its heater off. That should have been a hint. Adding heat unleashed potency; we then bought carpet Febreeze (we are in the US with a bewildering range of options), but before we applied it, we found the true culprit: the bed. Someone had smoked on it; there were even scorch marks on the cover. I gave up my pillow and then, after my eyes watered for two hours and my lungs started to feel irritated, I decided to sleep on the bathroom floor on towels. I can be sensitive to cig smoke so I figured I'd sleep a few hours and we'd sort things out tomorrow, get a fresh set of bedding and definitely test Carpet Febreeze on Mattress. Then my husband felt the same symptoms; he went down to notify the staff, and we got a new room! Somehow I'd assumed that there would be more discussing, or we'd be fobbed off to some other stinky room, but this new room is MUCH better and there's not a single hint of a cigarette. The furnishings are whiter, too...I hadn't realized that the old room was probably smoke stained. The old room also had ants, unlike this one. We'd bought and laid down ant traps; I wasn't going to fuss about a few bugs but not being able to sleep is a different matter! We finally went to sleep around four.
So, I didn't really feel much like running and my husband and I didn't have much energy, but we ran for an hour and, with walking breaks, covered about 6.7 miles. Total for me: 7.7ish miles.
This morning, the dog and I jogged a very easy mile with pit stops and sniff stops and raptor viewing stops. We are still in the extended stay place, albeit in different circumstances, and it is in the typical sort of motel area with roads for cars only. However, development hasn't quite swallowed farmland and we found a nearby dirt road going to/through some fields. I don't want to run the entire road because it probably leads to someone who might not want us using it, but since there is no stock in the fields and we'll stick to the road, we aren't doing too much harm using the outside bit of it. There are no trespassing signs either.
This afternoon, my husband, the dog and I headed to the lake. It wasn't quite what we expected:
The lake is quite large, the trails are lovely, and hilly. We saw a couple types of woodpeckers, a swan of some sort, lots of other birds, especially thousands and thousands of snow geese in the distance. At first they looked like a white blur. There were enough birds remaining on the water to turn it white. The sheer numbers of birds here has been startling. Apparently we are on a migration corridor. Yesterday we saw a flock of black birds (maybe black only in silhouette, I am not sure) that stretched as far as we could see.
And the people here have been very friendly, and not the cloying false friendliness found especially in the South or the curious and/or desperate or rote friendliness of other places, but a simple sort of uncomplicated friendliness. And customer service has been amazing.
This came in handy last night around 3:30 am. We have been staying in pet-friendly accommodations, which is sometimes a decommissioned smoking room. This hasn't been a problem before because, apart from the faintest edge of an old smell which doesn't quite smell like it belongs, the rooms we've stayed in have been fine. Yesterday, we checked into a smellier room with its heater off. That should have been a hint. Adding heat unleashed potency; we then bought carpet Febreeze (we are in the US with a bewildering range of options), but before we applied it, we found the true culprit: the bed. Someone had smoked on it; there were even scorch marks on the cover. I gave up my pillow and then, after my eyes watered for two hours and my lungs started to feel irritated, I decided to sleep on the bathroom floor on towels. I can be sensitive to cig smoke so I figured I'd sleep a few hours and we'd sort things out tomorrow, get a fresh set of bedding and definitely test Carpet Febreeze on Mattress. Then my husband felt the same symptoms; he went down to notify the staff, and we got a new room! Somehow I'd assumed that there would be more discussing, or we'd be fobbed off to some other stinky room, but this new room is MUCH better and there's not a single hint of a cigarette. The furnishings are whiter, too...I hadn't realized that the old room was probably smoke stained. The old room also had ants, unlike this one. We'd bought and laid down ant traps; I wasn't going to fuss about a few bugs but not being able to sleep is a different matter! We finally went to sleep around four.
So, I didn't really feel much like running and my husband and I didn't have much energy, but we ran for an hour and, with walking breaks, covered about 6.7 miles. Total for me: 7.7ish miles.
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Flat enough to watch your dog run away for two days
Not here! It is not flat at all!
We tried a "easy" trail today and it was easy footing but ripply. It was by the river which has somewhat steep banks, but once I read that it was an easy trail, I envisioned a level path along the bank. That's what the trains got but we ended up going up and down above it. We ran about 4.1 miles and it felt like a tempo run. Perhaps my breathing isn't quite back to normal yet. However, I had no mucus or coughing. Score!
I found another trail that goes by a lake. Same prelim info: by water, "easy"...we'll confirm, or not, tomorrow.
We tried a "easy" trail today and it was easy footing but ripply. It was by the river which has somewhat steep banks, but once I read that it was an easy trail, I envisioned a level path along the bank. That's what the trains got but we ended up going up and down above it. We ran about 4.1 miles and it felt like a tempo run. Perhaps my breathing isn't quite back to normal yet. However, I had no mucus or coughing. Score!
I found another trail that goes by a lake. Same prelim info: by water, "easy"...we'll confirm, or not, tomorrow.
no more winter
And I have access to a treadmill: we're in a hotel. Admittedly, I've had TM access for a few days now, but those were long travel days. Fortunately, we were very good about bringing and eating healthy snacks (no combos, cheetos, doritos, Nerds, etc); this is a huge victory for me because sitting in the car for more than half an hour inspires terrible salt, sugar, and sat fat cravings. This trip, I have eaten some junk food, namely two "turtles", a caramel, and half a praline from Grandpa, but that's good ole homegrown Ohio baking and candy making and doesn't seem to count: I overheard someone saying they had "energy, not calories" and this person was possibly Grandma. I couldn't argue with Grandma. http://www.grandpascheesebarn.com/ Admittedly, I've also eaten some other candy, but this was a gift from Sugar Mountain back home...believe it or not, compared to road trips past, we have been on a Zen diet! I nearly broke down and bought some Smart Food popcorn somewhere in Indiana, or Illinois, but they didn't stock it. Saved! I didn't hit a single rest stop vending machine and all I got from gas stations was fruit, vegetables and milk. Incredible!
My secret: http://www.beanladies.com/products.html. The dill pickle ones are a brilliant substitute for chips.
At any rate, it is so much warmer here and I'm feeling almost recovered, finally! Most of my clothing is still inaccessible, even the clothing that came with us: my large bag is crammed in the bottom of the roof carrier and we will never get all that stuff back in there a 2nd time so it might as well be on Mars. Meanwhile, I bought a cheap tshirt and jogging pants (and more underwear): I can work out.
Today: 3 boring TM miles and most of a Seinfeld episode. We have found a place to live in but still have a week and a bit to kill elsewhere.
My secret: http://www.beanladies.com/products.html. The dill pickle ones are a brilliant substitute for chips.
At any rate, it is so much warmer here and I'm feeling almost recovered, finally! Most of my clothing is still inaccessible, even the clothing that came with us: my large bag is crammed in the bottom of the roof carrier and we will never get all that stuff back in there a 2nd time so it might as well be on Mars. Meanwhile, I bought a cheap tshirt and jogging pants (and more underwear): I can work out.
Today: 3 boring TM miles and most of a Seinfeld episode. We have found a place to live in but still have a week and a bit to kill elsewhere.
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Finally
I ran outside. 2ish miles. It felt almost normal breathing-wise so that was a relief. Some mucus was stirred up post-exercise but it wasn't bad. I jumped into the shower asap so I didn't get chilled.
It was a low-key see-you-later-Ottawa run (we still haven't left! lol) but it was on streets I learned when I was a child, and I passed houses where friends used to live. It was unexpectedly suitable.
It was a low-key see-you-later-Ottawa run (we still haven't left! lol) but it was on streets I learned when I was a child, and I passed houses where friends used to live. It was unexpectedly suitable.
Sunday, January 15, 2012
another good night's sleep
Another 11 hours or so. Sleep is underrated. I still haven't ruled out going to the clinic for some antibiotics but I won't be in town for more than two or three days, so if they want tests done, forget it!
Meanwhile, I will sleep as soundly as possible and trust in my own antibodies.
I felt recovered enough to attempt a run. Not outside because it's still too cold: I ran on the manual nordic walk/track/? machine in my parents' basement. It works for running as long as I touch or tap the handlebars to gain a little traction. This thing is pretty much like uphill running. I managed only 1.5ish miles, but that was plenty. I didn't notice any suspicious pulmonary fire or heaviness; that is a good sign.
And then I did a FULL bodyrock workout and planks.
If tomorrow afternoon is warm enough, I may attempt a few miles outside.
Sushi again tonight! :D I will be a sushi camel and store up a year's worth for my time in Kansas.
Meanwhile, I will sleep as soundly as possible and trust in my own antibodies.
I felt recovered enough to attempt a run. Not outside because it's still too cold: I ran on the manual nordic walk/track/? machine in my parents' basement. It works for running as long as I touch or tap the handlebars to gain a little traction. This thing is pretty much like uphill running. I managed only 1.5ish miles, but that was plenty. I didn't notice any suspicious pulmonary fire or heaviness; that is a good sign.
And then I did a FULL bodyrock workout and planks.
If tomorrow afternoon is warm enough, I may attempt a few miles outside.
Sushi again tonight! :D I will be a sushi camel and store up a year's worth for my time in Kansas.
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Day 10
or so, with this illness.
The problem with it is that good days are followed by bad nights, but I think I'm getting the upper hand. The night before last, I was able to sleep for only 2(2ish hrs), but I bought more drugs including nighttime Neocitran (the best Nyquil was all sold out!), propped my upper half up and slept for 11 hrs last night. I'm feeling much better. Sushi supper last night helped too :)
I still haven't resumed running. Breathing faster is aggravating enough without the cold air.
I'm still planking but haven't body rocked for a couple of days at least. There was a minute or two of sad doubt this morning: have I lost all the muscle I gained this fall? If I think this often enough, perhaps this will inspire me to stop lying around and get reactive. lol
The US marathon trials are on...not live telecasted, unfortunately, but I'm reading message threads and posted updates and so forth which is still exciting. Maybe I need to dig up an old marathon telecast and start thinking about resuming running. It would be a shame if I left Canada without one last little jog!
The problem with it is that good days are followed by bad nights, but I think I'm getting the upper hand. The night before last, I was able to sleep for only 2(2ish hrs), but I bought more drugs including nighttime Neocitran (the best Nyquil was all sold out!), propped my upper half up and slept for 11 hrs last night. I'm feeling much better. Sushi supper last night helped too :)
I still haven't resumed running. Breathing faster is aggravating enough without the cold air.
I'm still planking but haven't body rocked for a couple of days at least. There was a minute or two of sad doubt this morning: have I lost all the muscle I gained this fall? If I think this often enough, perhaps this will inspire me to stop lying around and get reactive. lol
The US marathon trials are on...not live telecasted, unfortunately, but I'm reading message threads and posted updates and so forth which is still exciting. Maybe I need to dig up an old marathon telecast and start thinking about resuming running. It would be a shame if I left Canada without one last little jog!
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
day -2
Well, I have been body rocking, but I've cut the routines down.
And I walked today with the dogs (my parents' dog has big brown beseeching eyes) for about a mile, I guess. The air wasn't too cold or too harsh, but tomorrow will be colder, I think.
No running, though! Probably not for the rest of the week. I've been hit pretty hard and I'm moving pretty slowly. Turns out that everybody else in my family has been sick except for my mom who was taking some extra-pumped meds prior to going to the Amazon. Somehow I hadn't really noticed this before! too much holiday rush. One family member went to a clinic and will be getting chest X-rays tomorrow. I'm going to lay low and continue studying for my exam on Friday. This loss of energy has actually been beneficial in a way: I can sit down and focus a bit better.
And I walked today with the dogs (my parents' dog has big brown beseeching eyes) for about a mile, I guess. The air wasn't too cold or too harsh, but tomorrow will be colder, I think.
No running, though! Probably not for the rest of the week. I've been hit pretty hard and I'm moving pretty slowly. Turns out that everybody else in my family has been sick except for my mom who was taking some extra-pumped meds prior to going to the Amazon. Somehow I hadn't really noticed this before! too much holiday rush. One family member went to a clinic and will be getting chest X-rays tomorrow. I'm going to lay low and continue studying for my exam on Friday. This loss of energy has actually been beneficial in a way: I can sit down and focus a bit better.
Sunday, January 8, 2012
Day 0.
Maybe 5 if I feel like a bit of a sweat.
Turns out my new strategy didn't quite work yesterday: even with a space heater pointed at me, it took me awhile to not feel cold, and I still have this cough.
Unfortunately, skipping the shower is not a viable solution, but skipping today's run is a different story. :/
I had brought some frozen broth from the old house: chicken noodle soup, at least.
Turns out my new strategy didn't quite work yesterday: even with a space heater pointed at me, it took me awhile to not feel cold, and I still have this cough.
Unfortunately, skipping the shower is not a viable solution, but skipping today's run is a different story. :/
I had brought some frozen broth from the old house: chicken noodle soup, at least.
Saturday, January 7, 2012
Day 4
I'll adopt bodyrock numbering. The workout was simpler today; apparently, people commented that the complicated routines took too much time to learn. I actually enjoyed doing 12 different exercises because this pushed time aside, but admittedly when I came to an exercise I couldn't remember, I just did whatever exercise seemed most similar. I have to substitute exercises anyway: I don't have a dip station, or much else besides the floor these days.
Before that, my husband and the dog jogged with me for 8.43 miles. It's been nice running with them pretty much everyday. The weather cooperated too: a bit wet and slushy, but warm, -4C or so, and not a lot of wind either.
After the run, I did the exercises and planks, showered, and now I am sitting under a blanket in front of a space heater.
Before that, my husband and the dog jogged with me for 8.43 miles. It's been nice running with them pretty much everyday. The weather cooperated too: a bit wet and slushy, but warm, -4C or so, and not a lot of wind either.
After the run, I did the exercises and planks, showered, and now I am sitting under a blanket in front of a space heater.
day?
Day 2.5 was actually Thursday.
This entry is actually for Friday: I didn't exercise at all. I'm trying to shake a small but stubborn cold. There are a few factors in play:
I'm still sleep-deprived, and I'm in holiday mode which delays bedtime. However, unless really really sick (as in fever and delirium sick), I cannot sleep in. Ever. I can take short naps, but it's very hard for me to sleep much past 9 even if I stay up past 5 or so.
I'm doing this herbal detox cleanse which presumably has stirred things up a bit...there was a warning that symptoms might crop up in the first few days.
The main issue, which has taken me a week to realize, is that I'm staying cold after running. Getting cold is normal after winter runs because under-circulated and chilled blood returns to the core once exercise and exposure to cold external temperatures is over. It's a less drastic effect now that I don't underdress for winter runs anymore; I used to not wear any sort of windbreaker until -20 C or so (really!) and the blood in my arms would get refrigerated, which refrigerated everything else once it fully returned to circulation. Now that I wear a windbreaker, extremities stay warmer, but I still get chilled after runs.
Getting cold is not the issue though: staying cold is. My old house was generally frigid but the hot water heater was jacked up to near-boiling. Come to think of it, I was getting a daily mini-spa treatment during the winter. We're now staying at my parents' house which is a much warmer house in general, but their hot water heater is set at a lower temp. I don't touch add cold water at all while showering and it's still not warm enough; I feel cold for hours afterward.
Now, yes, cold doesn't cause colds, viruses do, but getting cold makes it more likely to "catch" a cold, and here's why (explanation honed by a few arguments with people who, in rejecting simplistic folk wisdom, seized simplistic biology instead): the immune system, particularly all those killer T cells and macrophages that attack and ingest intruders, operate more effectively at warmer temps (to a certain degree, of course!). At normal body temps in normal people, they usually keep things down to a dull roar, a bacterium here and there wanders in and blips around for a bit before getting chomped, kind of like a couple of kids from down the street running through the house a few times and then out the door, or that lonely neighbour bringing over some mis-delivered mail and hanging around for a few extra minutes, or a meter reader showing up, no big deal. After several minutes, you get them out of the house. Sometimes more people show up and it starts to get crowded, maybe the neighbours start knocking, and inflammation and increased mucus production do the job. When the party gets a bit more out of hand, the macrophages and other cells ring up the hypothalamus, essentially, The Heat, and the resulting fever helps kicks things into a higher gear. Exercise is pretty much an artificial fever and seems to stifle little colds as well. However, if body temps drop too much, defences get sluggish and pathogens get a head start. The longer it takes to raise body temps to normal or above, the more pathogens there are to gobble up. The party that was kind of noisy at 11:01 pm is torching cars and sofas at 3 am. I have a slightly lower body temp than normal which probably doesn't help either.
Solution: A: look at the bodyrock routines BEFORE runs so that I keep active and revved up right until the shower. Usually I run, then check the website for the daily workout and video (and start to get chilled), then do the workout. B: after the shower, curl up under a blanket or something. This is going to be an incredibly difficult sacrifice but my health is worth it.
Hopefully I'll run and implement my strategies later today.
This entry is actually for Friday: I didn't exercise at all. I'm trying to shake a small but stubborn cold. There are a few factors in play:
I'm still sleep-deprived, and I'm in holiday mode which delays bedtime. However, unless really really sick (as in fever and delirium sick), I cannot sleep in. Ever. I can take short naps, but it's very hard for me to sleep much past 9 even if I stay up past 5 or so.
I'm doing this herbal detox cleanse which presumably has stirred things up a bit...there was a warning that symptoms might crop up in the first few days.
The main issue, which has taken me a week to realize, is that I'm staying cold after running. Getting cold is normal after winter runs because under-circulated and chilled blood returns to the core once exercise and exposure to cold external temperatures is over. It's a less drastic effect now that I don't underdress for winter runs anymore; I used to not wear any sort of windbreaker until -20 C or so (really!) and the blood in my arms would get refrigerated, which refrigerated everything else once it fully returned to circulation. Now that I wear a windbreaker, extremities stay warmer, but I still get chilled after runs.
Getting cold is not the issue though: staying cold is. My old house was generally frigid but the hot water heater was jacked up to near-boiling. Come to think of it, I was getting a daily mini-spa treatment during the winter. We're now staying at my parents' house which is a much warmer house in general, but their hot water heater is set at a lower temp. I don't touch add cold water at all while showering and it's still not warm enough; I feel cold for hours afterward.
Now, yes, cold doesn't cause colds, viruses do, but getting cold makes it more likely to "catch" a cold, and here's why (explanation honed by a few arguments with people who, in rejecting simplistic folk wisdom, seized simplistic biology instead): the immune system, particularly all those killer T cells and macrophages that attack and ingest intruders, operate more effectively at warmer temps (to a certain degree, of course!). At normal body temps in normal people, they usually keep things down to a dull roar, a bacterium here and there wanders in and blips around for a bit before getting chomped, kind of like a couple of kids from down the street running through the house a few times and then out the door, or that lonely neighbour bringing over some mis-delivered mail and hanging around for a few extra minutes, or a meter reader showing up, no big deal. After several minutes, you get them out of the house. Sometimes more people show up and it starts to get crowded, maybe the neighbours start knocking, and inflammation and increased mucus production do the job. When the party gets a bit more out of hand, the macrophages and other cells ring up the hypothalamus, essentially, The Heat, and the resulting fever helps kicks things into a higher gear. Exercise is pretty much an artificial fever and seems to stifle little colds as well. However, if body temps drop too much, defences get sluggish and pathogens get a head start. The longer it takes to raise body temps to normal or above, the more pathogens there are to gobble up. The party that was kind of noisy at 11:01 pm is torching cars and sofas at 3 am. I have a slightly lower body temp than normal which probably doesn't help either.
Solution: A: look at the bodyrock routines BEFORE runs so that I keep active and revved up right until the shower. Usually I run, then check the website for the daily workout and video (and start to get chilled), then do the workout. B: after the shower, curl up under a blanket or something. This is going to be an incredibly difficult sacrifice but my health is worth it.
Hopefully I'll run and implement my strategies later today.
Friday, January 6, 2012
day 2.5
7.8 miles, bodyrock, herbal tinctures.
Deep-fried pheasant nuggets, onion rings, and vodka.
Balance is important.
Deep-fried pheasant nuggets, onion rings, and vodka.
Balance is important.
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Day 3?
Or Day 1 of the cleanse + Day 2 of the Bodyrock 30 day challenge = Day 1.5
The bodyrock workout today was quite complex, but I can't say it was almost as much of a mental workout as a physical workout because the physical component was kind of gruelling. I do believe I produced a few credible 1-leg pushups though.
Before that, I ran 5.79 miles, 3.64 miles with my husband and the dog.
The bodyrock workout today was quite complex, but I can't say it was almost as much of a mental workout as a physical workout because the physical component was kind of gruelling. I do believe I produced a few credible 1-leg pushups though.
Before that, I ran 5.79 miles, 3.64 miles with my husband and the dog.
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
Day 2
Or Day 1 of a gentle restorative cleanse. It's time to detox!
This is my second cleanse and supposedly hopefully not as extreme as my first, which was almost seven years ago and involved drinking a can of something that came with rather specific instructions: before bed, and not before a workday. I'm still sceptical about the benefits of totally wiping the slate clean like that, but after a few weeks of taking the prescribed supplements and quitting my biweekly fish and chips habit (the doctor was very specific about that), I went from falling asleep while standing and talking (actually I was teaching, so falling asleep was awkward, but not as awkward as what once happened in the subway) to feeling incredibly buoyant.
We'll see how I feel after this one.
I'm actually still on Day 1 of body rocking too: Day 2 wasn't posted in time. I did the planks and ran 3 miles alone in the howling cold. -29C windchill is actually pretty comfortable for a short run as long as I don't stop at all. My route wound up and down and around the neighbourhood, depending on traffic and lights. I started with a weird left hip twinge and managed to get rid of it.
This is my second cleanse and supposedly hopefully not as extreme as my first, which was almost seven years ago and involved drinking a can of something that came with rather specific instructions: before bed, and not before a workday. I'm still sceptical about the benefits of totally wiping the slate clean like that, but after a few weeks of taking the prescribed supplements and quitting my biweekly fish and chips habit (the doctor was very specific about that), I went from falling asleep while standing and talking (actually I was teaching, so falling asleep was awkward, but not as awkward as what once happened in the subway) to feeling incredibly buoyant.
We'll see how I feel after this one.
I'm actually still on Day 1 of body rocking too: Day 2 wasn't posted in time. I did the planks and ran 3 miles alone in the howling cold. -29C windchill is actually pretty comfortable for a short run as long as I don't stop at all. My route wound up and down and around the neighbourhood, depending on traffic and lights. I started with a weird left hip twinge and managed to get rid of it.
Monday, January 2, 2012
Day 1
of two separate exercise challenges:
Plank to Plunk Down for Mitocanada, just 3 planks a day, total 1.5 min.
Bodyrock 30 day challenge. This started with a fit test:
squat jumps = 21
pushups = 20
burpees = 6
high knees = 63
switch lunges = 35
tuck jumps = 23
sit ups = 19
50 seconds on/10 seconds rest. I suppose the fit test will be redone at the end of the month. I have never kept any exercise scores before so this will be an interesting experiment.
And my husband and the dog ran with me for six miles. The morning was nice and warm at about 1C so we took our time getting out, did errands first, watched a movie, etc, oblivious to the cold front moving in. The windchill was -15 at the start of our run and goodness knows what by the end. The predicted high tomorrow keeps dropping: now it's supposed to be -19. That's without windchill. Fortunately, the typical Ottawa dampness disappears when the temps drop enough, so the apparent difference is lessened. Unfortunately, my parents are getting some of their windows replaced tomorrow. !!!
At any rate, I definitely noticed some soreness around my hips during this run, likely from yesterday's run on the snow that was, though nicely packed, was not level or completely solid. I'll get used to it, and it's kind of satisfying to have the additional training stress.
Plank to Plunk Down for Mitocanada, just 3 planks a day, total 1.5 min.
Bodyrock 30 day challenge. This started with a fit test:
squat jumps = 21
pushups = 20
burpees = 6
high knees = 63
switch lunges = 35
tuck jumps = 23
sit ups = 19
50 seconds on/10 seconds rest. I suppose the fit test will be redone at the end of the month. I have never kept any exercise scores before so this will be an interesting experiment.
And my husband and the dog ran with me for six miles. The morning was nice and warm at about 1C so we took our time getting out, did errands first, watched a movie, etc, oblivious to the cold front moving in. The windchill was -15 at the start of our run and goodness knows what by the end. The predicted high tomorrow keeps dropping: now it's supposed to be -19. That's without windchill. Fortunately, the typical Ottawa dampness disappears when the temps drop enough, so the apparent difference is lessened. Unfortunately, my parents are getting some of their windows replaced tomorrow. !!!
At any rate, I definitely noticed some soreness around my hips during this run, likely from yesterday's run on the snow that was, though nicely packed, was not level or completely solid. I'll get used to it, and it's kind of satisfying to have the additional training stress.
Sunday, January 1, 2012
Day 1
of a New Year.
After about 4.5 hrs of sleep and a headful of songs I didn't know I knew (thanks, Rockband), I slowly got up and crawled into my running clothes. This was a new year! My dog needed exercise and I needed some sort of something which seemed most obtainable out of doors. A couple of miles would do, and that's all we can usually manage in slush.
The snow was greasy; there was almost no true slush. We went beyond a couple of miles, past the plows where there was snow, obligingly packed down by other people, but still white and crisp. Almost everything was white, the path, the river, the sky, the trees: I don't think I've had a new year that was such a blank page before...well, not quite blank. There were many little animal tracks, some of which my dog rolled on (before dropping a few commas). So many smells! He was like a puppy going in so many directions simultaneously. I felt I was missing something, but not in a bad way. It was like being illiterate in a foreign country which can be (unsettling but also) amazingly intense, the quotidian blurred and the significant distilled. And if there is nothing significant, there is very little to distract from simply being there. I ran in a fog of white, insensitive to sensations, or time, or effort, and I felt not like a person with running goals or New Years resolutions nor even like a person, really, just an interchangeable collection of atoms occupying space amidst other atoms, occasionally coalescing to tell my dog to slow down.
For me, that is comforting. I sometimes get too wrapped up in what's going on, this date or that chore, like everybody else does, and has to. This is being productive. But it is good balance to be a sponge sometimes too, not just in terms of absorbing important knowledge, but also to become so tenuously differentiated from the environment that what is outside is pretty much also inside.
Which leads me to my first haphazard resolution. I didn't think of this during this run (I didn't think of anything at all--it was an hour-long brain wipe), but it's something I've been mulling over for a while. I'm going to try to buy less stuff, specifically cheap stuff which is produced far away. I haven't set any parameters apart from not buying a load of junk at the local Kansas Walmart once we move there. Already I'm thinking about needing a scrub brush because I left my old one behind to clean up the house, but is there an alternative? Something in my parents' basement which they don't need, or something which I actually already own but haven't used? Or there is a more expensive but more durable brush which I can buy once and keep for ages?
My second resolution is to get healthier. Which also includes running a bit more.
5.38 miles this morning, then Bodyrock. I was a bit disappointed to not find a New Year workout, but since I haven't done all of the 12 days of Christmas yet, I can't be too demanding.
After about 4.5 hrs of sleep and a headful of songs I didn't know I knew (thanks, Rockband), I slowly got up and crawled into my running clothes. This was a new year! My dog needed exercise and I needed some sort of something which seemed most obtainable out of doors. A couple of miles would do, and that's all we can usually manage in slush.
The snow was greasy; there was almost no true slush. We went beyond a couple of miles, past the plows where there was snow, obligingly packed down by other people, but still white and crisp. Almost everything was white, the path, the river, the sky, the trees: I don't think I've had a new year that was such a blank page before...well, not quite blank. There were many little animal tracks, some of which my dog rolled on (before dropping a few commas). So many smells! He was like a puppy going in so many directions simultaneously. I felt I was missing something, but not in a bad way. It was like being illiterate in a foreign country which can be (unsettling but also) amazingly intense, the quotidian blurred and the significant distilled. And if there is nothing significant, there is very little to distract from simply being there. I ran in a fog of white, insensitive to sensations, or time, or effort, and I felt not like a person with running goals or New Years resolutions nor even like a person, really, just an interchangeable collection of atoms occupying space amidst other atoms, occasionally coalescing to tell my dog to slow down.
For me, that is comforting. I sometimes get too wrapped up in what's going on, this date or that chore, like everybody else does, and has to. This is being productive. But it is good balance to be a sponge sometimes too, not just in terms of absorbing important knowledge, but also to become so tenuously differentiated from the environment that what is outside is pretty much also inside.
Which leads me to my first haphazard resolution. I didn't think of this during this run (I didn't think of anything at all--it was an hour-long brain wipe), but it's something I've been mulling over for a while. I'm going to try to buy less stuff, specifically cheap stuff which is produced far away. I haven't set any parameters apart from not buying a load of junk at the local Kansas Walmart once we move there. Already I'm thinking about needing a scrub brush because I left my old one behind to clean up the house, but is there an alternative? Something in my parents' basement which they don't need, or something which I actually already own but haven't used? Or there is a more expensive but more durable brush which I can buy once and keep for ages?
My second resolution is to get healthier. Which also includes running a bit more.
5.38 miles this morning, then Bodyrock. I was a bit disappointed to not find a New Year workout, but since I haven't done all of the 12 days of Christmas yet, I can't be too demanding.
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