This is my first post on my new laptop. After at least a month of deliberations, I decided to go with a Macbook Pro, the small one. It's a birthday/Christmas (they're close together for me) gift from my husband and parents; it seemed pricey and a rather breathless upgrade from its refurbished PC predecessor, but I was told that Macs are for artists and designers and thus I should have one, even if I do artistic stuff only part time.
What I actually have is the medium sized one with extra high def: the day I was to go to the store to get my machine, I received an unexpected scholarship. Its purpose was very clear.
Not that I can do much on this machine yet. I'm not sure it even has a word processing program, and I'll have to download ChemSketch and some sort of digital editing program, and stuff like that...
Anyway, Sunday's the big run! The extremely expansive Farewell to Ottawa escapade. I'm sort of starting to feel the excitement in a more concrete way, but I have been preparing:
No bodyrocking this week! I have to recover.
Lots of clamshells.
Lots of water.
Supplements, particularly iron.
chickpeas, lentils, that kind of thing
beet, carrot and ginger coleslaw. I think it could be considered a coleslaw, at any rate. It's shredded and rather satisfying.
Turkey soup. We had a 20 lb bird for Thanksgiving, and we boiled the leftovers for stock as usual. We don't buy a lot of meat, but we try to get it from good farms that feed and care for their animals properly (i.e., pasture-fed), and then we stretch the heck out of it. Then I picked the meat off the bones--a LOT of meat. I have to finish the soup tomorrow. This sort of thing takes a few days to make.
Basically, I'm trying to eat really well this week. Chia has helped--I have that instead of some nasty snack when I'm feeling hungry.
And, finally, sleep. Last night was adequate, but I'm hoping to be able to sleep more the rest of the week.
I have been running, of course:
15.5 miles on Saturday (a oddly tiring run, but usually the last long run is especially tiring despite the shorter distance).
6 miles on Sunday
3 miles on Monday
5.5 miles today, and it was a fast finish. I ran so fast at the end that my head hurt. The beginning of the run was as blah as most/all of my runs have been recently, but near the end, I started picking up speed, and once I got going, the mechanics improved incredibly, and though my lungs and mitochondria weren't quite up to the task, I clicked into something that felt perfect. I wasn't going in all directions, just forward, my core was solid, my feet were mostly off the ground, I had good lift, etc, etc, it was that proper form that I seek. It's so tantalizing: I'm able to maintain it for only a short time. I'm not sure how fast it is (the dog left his trot to go into a gallop), but I'm not trying to make the numbers the goal. Nor even race performance. What I want to do is recapture and prolong that elusive feeling of doing it right.
This won't happen on Sunday, but I hope to feel some sort of enlightenment, or at least change!
This post is a novel partly because the higher screen resolution gives me much more real estate, as other pixel pushers have put it!
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Thursday, December 1, 2011
Bodyrocking
I did two routines today (and ran 3 miles). I cannot resist the intensity and relative brevity of a bodyrocking workout. 12 minutes of hard effort and a 8ish mile fast finish run deliver similar endorphin release, but the latter requires an additional hour, and Patience isn't my middle name. And 12 minutes is so easy to fit in when required. When my trip to the fish store results in buying a side of shrimp, which then beckon for batter and deep frying, which then inspires other possibilities because the hot oil is ready and waiting (feta balls, onion rings, and deep fried pickles cropped up in this case), all of which are then consumed, the quick and dirty kcal burning workout becomes VERY attractive.
There are bodyrock routines which are longer than 12 minutes, but I like 12 minutes because I've been using a particular CD and I have 12:22 or so of Raised by Snakes and Time Operator before the annoying Yoko Ono song starts. Although, tonight's workout to a repeated rendition of The song of the Volga boatmen sung by the Red Army Chorus worked surprisingly well. My least favourite rep coincided with a stirring crescendo each time.
As for my long run preparations: still sticking with the daily iron pill and clamshells. I have put on some weight which facilitates some activities (I pick things up and put them down!!) but I feel the difference while running: my core is more steeled against my limp noodle tendencies but a few things like IT bands feel a touch more vulnerable too.
There are bodyrock routines which are longer than 12 minutes, but I like 12 minutes because I've been using a particular CD and I have 12:22 or so of Raised by Snakes and Time Operator before the annoying Yoko Ono song starts. Although, tonight's workout to a repeated rendition of The song of the Volga boatmen sung by the Red Army Chorus worked surprisingly well. My least favourite rep coincided with a stirring crescendo each time.
As for my long run preparations: still sticking with the daily iron pill and clamshells. I have put on some weight which facilitates some activities (I pick things up and put them down!!) but I feel the difference while running: my core is more steeled against my limp noodle tendencies but a few things like IT bands feel a touch more vulnerable too.
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
The final countdown
This fall has gone by quickly, which is good because the weather has been rather WET. However, with every soggy run, I remind myself that winter and summer this year were very good (the winter was cold and dry, the summer hot and humid but still comfortable), and since spring is pretty much non-existent here, that leaves only one season to provide negative balance.
I am still not running enough: my body rebels with 30-40 miles/week, but once I get around 50 miles or so, there is acceptance, neuromuscular synergy, and the mysterious unlocking of hoarded strength, and running becomes surprisingly easy and automatic. A reasonable goal might be to regain this by the end of the year.
Meanwhile, I have been running and recovering. Yoga and switching from various fancy tarted up teas back to plain old green tea has helped reduce symptoms a lot. I've been doing an endocrine yoga routine I found on youtube, and will investigate this avenue further. I should also tweak my diet a bit: I know I like butter too much and that grapeseed oil tastes almost as good, but sometimes I need more willpower.
A minor setback last Friday was caused by a rogue pack of Mentos--not all of them contain wheat glucose syrup, including the ones I'd eaten during several 3 hour biochemistry lectures this term (candy is necessary--it's my brain craving glucose, not me), but during my temporary time on the Mentos wagon, the old supply at the bus station had run out and was replenished with wheat glucose syrup fiends. Halfway through the lecture, I started to feel kind of funny. Looked at the label and, yep. So Mentos is now on the list of Never Again. I know I need to look at each and every label, no matter how many times I've bought that particular product before, but the bus was coming and just this once...
as an aside, the gluten issue has weaned me off many mass-produced "food" items, and perhaps I should eliminate a few more.
Fortunately, I found some gluten intolerance enzyme pills, kind of like lactase for lactose-intolerant people. It was too late at that point, and I have to avoid gluten altogether rather than wash it down with pills, but the pills seems to have helped me recover more quickly this time. The enzymes help break down other things as well.
And the final cog of my recent progress is chia. Yes, it's a part of the barefoot running-Tarahumara fad, but I can't be too cool for fads, especially those involving food described as looking like frog eggs.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAZXTrpXRRs&feature=related
Basically, I bought some chia seeds, mixed them with 1 freshly-squeezed lime and water. That was enough to hook me. The stuff is very fulfilling. My last long run (some with Gaz, some with the dog) was just over 20 miles, and all I had was chia, lime and lemon juice, water, and a bit of sugar or agave (can't remember what I put in), and it was enough. I'm definitely taking some on the upcoming super long run.
I am still not running enough: my body rebels with 30-40 miles/week, but once I get around 50 miles or so, there is acceptance, neuromuscular synergy, and the mysterious unlocking of hoarded strength, and running becomes surprisingly easy and automatic. A reasonable goal might be to regain this by the end of the year.
Meanwhile, I have been running and recovering. Yoga and switching from various fancy tarted up teas back to plain old green tea has helped reduce symptoms a lot. I've been doing an endocrine yoga routine I found on youtube, and will investigate this avenue further. I should also tweak my diet a bit: I know I like butter too much and that grapeseed oil tastes almost as good, but sometimes I need more willpower.
A minor setback last Friday was caused by a rogue pack of Mentos--not all of them contain wheat glucose syrup, including the ones I'd eaten during several 3 hour biochemistry lectures this term (candy is necessary--it's my brain craving glucose, not me), but during my temporary time on the Mentos wagon, the old supply at the bus station had run out and was replenished with wheat glucose syrup fiends. Halfway through the lecture, I started to feel kind of funny. Looked at the label and, yep. So Mentos is now on the list of Never Again. I know I need to look at each and every label, no matter how many times I've bought that particular product before, but the bus was coming and just this once...
as an aside, the gluten issue has weaned me off many mass-produced "food" items, and perhaps I should eliminate a few more.
Fortunately, I found some gluten intolerance enzyme pills, kind of like lactase for lactose-intolerant people. It was too late at that point, and I have to avoid gluten altogether rather than wash it down with pills, but the pills seems to have helped me recover more quickly this time. The enzymes help break down other things as well.
And the final cog of my recent progress is chia. Yes, it's a part of the barefoot running-Tarahumara fad, but I can't be too cool for fads, especially those involving food described as looking like frog eggs.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAZXTrpXRRs&feature=related
Basically, I bought some chia seeds, mixed them with 1 freshly-squeezed lime and water. That was enough to hook me. The stuff is very fulfilling. My last long run (some with Gaz, some with the dog) was just over 20 miles, and all I had was chia, lime and lemon juice, water, and a bit of sugar or agave (can't remember what I put in), and it was enough. I'm definitely taking some on the upcoming super long run.
Monday, November 21, 2011
Yoga
Yes, I've returned to regularly scheduled yoga classes. A relative of mine is testing it out and so I've been going too.
I don't know why I always forget how much yoga helps! I have been doing a tiny bit everyday, but not enough to get fully into it, I've realized.
Sunday, I woke up feeling off. I grabbed the dog and we did the world's slowest 6ish mile whatever it was...I did jog most of it (at a pace somewhere between 10:30 and 11 min/mile) but we took breaks. My legs were heavy and everything was sore, etc.
I decided during this adventure that it was time to go old-timey, medieval, if need be, to get rid of this issue I've had since September (!!!). It comes and it goes, yesterday, it was back again. Surely a hot compress or something could push it toward a more decisive exit? I still haven't hit google for this yet but I figure that this is one of those things that women have had since the dawn of time and there's got to be some sort of folk remedy.
Fortunately, it turns out that twisting up for an hour or so in a yoga class is pretty therapeutic! I felt much better during today's run and it was fine. Just 3 miles (I could have kept going quite easily but my gloves were too thin for the cold wind), then a bodyrock routine, then a yoga class in the evening. Oops, I just realized that I forgot the clamshells. :/
I don't know why I always forget how much yoga helps! I have been doing a tiny bit everyday, but not enough to get fully into it, I've realized.
Sunday, I woke up feeling off. I grabbed the dog and we did the world's slowest 6ish mile whatever it was...I did jog most of it (at a pace somewhere between 10:30 and 11 min/mile) but we took breaks. My legs were heavy and everything was sore, etc.
I decided during this adventure that it was time to go old-timey, medieval, if need be, to get rid of this issue I've had since September (!!!). It comes and it goes, yesterday, it was back again. Surely a hot compress or something could push it toward a more decisive exit? I still haven't hit google for this yet but I figure that this is one of those things that women have had since the dawn of time and there's got to be some sort of folk remedy.
Fortunately, it turns out that twisting up for an hour or so in a yoga class is pretty therapeutic! I felt much better during today's run and it was fine. Just 3 miles (I could have kept going quite easily but my gloves were too thin for the cold wind), then a bodyrock routine, then a yoga class in the evening. Oops, I just realized that I forgot the clamshells. :/
Friday, November 18, 2011
slugs
I'm in a 3 mile/day rut. That's all I want to do, or rather, it's what I have to do. The daily minimum. My dog requires at least 3 miles a day. Without him, I don't think I'd head out as much these days.
Not that this is bad...I ran a fair bit during the spring and summer and and had 4 races that went better than expected. I honestly didn't expect to run a 3:53 marathon and a 1:42 half this year (especially the latter). Consequently, I'm not disappointed that I don't feel like running much for the time being.
However, lately, I've been mildly troubled by something else: elusiveness of easy run effort. There's a weird dynamic at play and it's taken a while for me to figure out what could be happening, and it's still a guess...I can't seem to jog anymore on my own. My core feels stronger and the temps are a lot easier to handle, and these pull me into a faster pace which is still easy aerobically but sort of hard muscularly. I can only hope that my leg muscles will catch up to my core. Meanwhile, my runs are too fast to be easy and too slow to be exciting. Maybe a few more weeks will see a turning point of some sort. I have no idea of how fast I'm going; it might be really slowly after all and my legs are just tired from the cross-training. I have been hitting the bodyrock routines pretty diligently. 3-4X a week!
Plus clamshells (again).
And I am presently typing in pigeon pose. My yin exercises have sadly dwindled to nothing, which could be a factor too. Will see.
There are a couple of health factors too, and it's sort of typical that as I fix one (gluten/malabsorption), another one begs for attention (the same cyst, not gone). The best solution? tweak my diet, probably. Lately I have been craving and consuming arugula/green salad with pepitas and homemade lemon juice dressing. I ate a similar dish during the dinner with Gaz and the guys and it was so fulfilling that I could practically hear every little cell screaming for more, every day. Unfortunately, I have also been craving and consuming perhaps too much popcorn, with perhaps too much butter/grapeseed oil and parmesan, naturally. I mustn't pretend any longer that the weight I've gained is purely muscle. ;)
Not that this is bad...I ran a fair bit during the spring and summer and and had 4 races that went better than expected. I honestly didn't expect to run a 3:53 marathon and a 1:42 half this year (especially the latter). Consequently, I'm not disappointed that I don't feel like running much for the time being.
However, lately, I've been mildly troubled by something else: elusiveness of easy run effort. There's a weird dynamic at play and it's taken a while for me to figure out what could be happening, and it's still a guess...I can't seem to jog anymore on my own. My core feels stronger and the temps are a lot easier to handle, and these pull me into a faster pace which is still easy aerobically but sort of hard muscularly. I can only hope that my leg muscles will catch up to my core. Meanwhile, my runs are too fast to be easy and too slow to be exciting. Maybe a few more weeks will see a turning point of some sort. I have no idea of how fast I'm going; it might be really slowly after all and my legs are just tired from the cross-training. I have been hitting the bodyrock routines pretty diligently. 3-4X a week!
Plus clamshells (again).
And I am presently typing in pigeon pose. My yin exercises have sadly dwindled to nothing, which could be a factor too. Will see.
There are a couple of health factors too, and it's sort of typical that as I fix one (gluten/malabsorption), another one begs for attention (the same cyst, not gone). The best solution? tweak my diet, probably. Lately I have been craving and consuming arugula/green salad with pepitas and homemade lemon juice dressing. I ate a similar dish during the dinner with Gaz and the guys and it was so fulfilling that I could practically hear every little cell screaming for more, every day. Unfortunately, I have also been craving and consuming perhaps too much popcorn, with perhaps too much butter/grapeseed oil and parmesan, naturally. I mustn't pretend any longer that the weight I've gained is purely muscle. ;)
Sunday, November 13, 2011
getting back into the saddle
Thurs, Fri, Sat: 0. I was sick on Thursday and just plain lazy on the other days. I'm also feeling a bit off in general due to a few recent gluten exposures. It happens; the trick is to space it out enough that damage doesn't accumulate too much. Unfortunately, I started feeling it a couple of days ago but it's not bad.
Fortunately, the staff at the restaurant Gaz and I and the boys went to last night was experienced with GF issues, not to mention that the cooking was excellent!
This morning, Gaz and I started at 8:30 (ok, 8:35, my fault). I wore my backpack instead of my fuel belt to avoid squeezing my guts.
We ran around for a while, went where we felt like. no plan. It was great.
Unfortunately, I started to feel the beginning twinge of ITBS near the end. It's been ages since this has happened, but it has also been ages since I've done clamshells, and the correlation is definite. And nothing else can replace clamshells. Yet I get sloppy with the clamshells now and then and then receive a gentle reminder.
When I got home, my husband was preparing to go for a run. I jogged with him and the dog for about 3 miles, and then I walked the last mile and a bit. I didn't want to aggravate my ITB too much; best to stop while the complaining was still mild. Then I did bodyrock AND clamshells.
total traveled today: 20.19 miles.
Fortunately, the staff at the restaurant Gaz and I and the boys went to last night was experienced with GF issues, not to mention that the cooking was excellent!
This morning, Gaz and I started at 8:30 (ok, 8:35, my fault). I wore my backpack instead of my fuel belt to avoid squeezing my guts.
We ran around for a while, went where we felt like. no plan. It was great.
Unfortunately, I started to feel the beginning twinge of ITBS near the end. It's been ages since this has happened, but it has also been ages since I've done clamshells, and the correlation is definite. And nothing else can replace clamshells. Yet I get sloppy with the clamshells now and then and then receive a gentle reminder.
When I got home, my husband was preparing to go for a run. I jogged with him and the dog for about 3 miles, and then I walked the last mile and a bit. I didn't want to aggravate my ITB too much; best to stop while the complaining was still mild. Then I did bodyrock AND clamshells.
total traveled today: 20.19 miles.
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
I didn't make it into the dawn
Well, it was still dawn when we ran, but not that crazy atmospheric gold dawn. I don't think it lasts too long. Will try to catch it tomorrow.
The dog and I ran about 8 miles. It felt sort of off...aerobically, very easy, but the mechanics were somehow not efficiently aligned, plus my legs felt a bit heavy. But I couldn't slow down. It felt worse to go slower; my body kept picking the pace back up.
This is something I've been thinking about: ideal pace. Yes, there's one for every distance, etc...I long for the pace that really feels good. There are actually a few: the slow dreamy and restorative jog around 11 min/mile which I can't seem to tap into these days despite spending many miles this past summer in it, the quick trot at about 8 min/mile (a bit slower and easier than my recent 1/2), and this faster pace where I lean forward a bit more and somehow my legs become light and almost absent, the motion becomes that fluid and effortless and superfluous jiggles vanish BUT my lungs burn. I can't keep it up for very long! I can't even capture it reliably by trying to run faster: if I push too hard, the form is lost. I've done whole workouts which are at or around that pace without feeling it, and I actually don't know exactly how fast it is, just how it feels.
It seems to happen when I fall into a faster pace for no reason except that I feel like running faster. Today, for instance, on our way back near the end of the run, we hit a dirt path and it felt good to pick up the pace and there it was. for a minute or two, it was transcending and nearly perfect. My dog broke into a canter and it was a whole new level. And then the oxygen debt hit and I slowed down
I feel like I have to handle it in a certain way: no push, no pry. I'm running mostly without the Garmin anyway which helps resist the temptation to find out how fast it is. I just have to remind myself that I seek the feeling, not the numbers. Open up and see what happens, enjoy it, but don't reach for more. Not yet.
After today's run, I did a new bodyrock routine. It went well: more exercises, longer reps, but just two sets. It was easier mentally.
The dog and I ran about 8 miles. It felt sort of off...aerobically, very easy, but the mechanics were somehow not efficiently aligned, plus my legs felt a bit heavy. But I couldn't slow down. It felt worse to go slower; my body kept picking the pace back up.
This is something I've been thinking about: ideal pace. Yes, there's one for every distance, etc...I long for the pace that really feels good. There are actually a few: the slow dreamy and restorative jog around 11 min/mile which I can't seem to tap into these days despite spending many miles this past summer in it, the quick trot at about 8 min/mile (a bit slower and easier than my recent 1/2), and this faster pace where I lean forward a bit more and somehow my legs become light and almost absent, the motion becomes that fluid and effortless and superfluous jiggles vanish BUT my lungs burn. I can't keep it up for very long! I can't even capture it reliably by trying to run faster: if I push too hard, the form is lost. I've done whole workouts which are at or around that pace without feeling it, and I actually don't know exactly how fast it is, just how it feels.
It seems to happen when I fall into a faster pace for no reason except that I feel like running faster. Today, for instance, on our way back near the end of the run, we hit a dirt path and it felt good to pick up the pace and there it was. for a minute or two, it was transcending and nearly perfect. My dog broke into a canter and it was a whole new level. And then the oxygen debt hit and I slowed down
I feel like I have to handle it in a certain way: no push, no pry. I'm running mostly without the Garmin anyway which helps resist the temptation to find out how fast it is. I just have to remind myself that I seek the feeling, not the numbers. Open up and see what happens, enjoy it, but don't reach for more. Not yet.
After today's run, I did a new bodyrock routine. It went well: more exercises, longer reps, but just two sets. It was easier mentally.
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