Hydration Vest? I'm Diggin' It!

I tried out my 2011 Nathan Intensity Women's hydration vest for the first time yesterday morning and I was quite pleased with it! Plenty of pockets for food, keys, an extra drink, and more. I'll probably never use the full water capacity (72ozs), and not sure I'd want to as it would weigh at least 2 extra pounds I'd imagine.

It was extremely humid (over 90%) with rising temps, so I was able to put it to good use. I was surprised that I didn't get hot with the vest on. And maybe it was because I'd read previous reviews about the sloshing water being bothersome, but I had no problems at all. The big benefit I found with a hydration vest in comparison to the regular hydration belt was easy access to water. No pulling the bottle from behind you, opening it up, then having to put it back blindly and hoping it will stick. That wastes a lot of energy and is impossible for me to do while running. I was able to run through two water breaks with this vest, which for me is really impressive.

After nine grueling miles up hills and down, I was finished. And even though I had easy access to water, I still found myself in desperate need of liquid after the run. Darn. So the vest doesn't cure my bad habits for not hydrating properly, but it's a good start.

Runs I Look Forward To - The Long, Slow Distance

I always enjoy long runs not just because they are run at a slower pace, but because I can gab with my running buddy, Christine! Today's run was tough because of the humidity (we were told it was over 90%)!

Here's a piece of our conversation where we were just trying to keep going:





"Let's start running at that big tree."
"Ok"
"Don't count the little trees, just the big ones."
"Do we just stop at the trees on the right or do we count both sides?"
"Oh, yeah, let's do both."
Run, walk, run walk, run walk.
Four houses down...
"I hope nobody's watching us."

We talked about our marathon training, why we run, the weather, our family, & friends, our plans for the weekend, our jobs, our injuries, other runners, electronic devices, books, food, and more. It's not just a run, it's a social cardio event. It starts my weekend and closes my training week. It's the cohesive binding in my book of running, so to speak, and I am a better runner for it.

After my run today, I will have run 20 miles in less than 24 hours! (9 miles yesterday, 11 miles today) Cool, huh? Just had to throw that in there...:)

Humidity + Shin Splints + Dehydration + Run = Torture

It's runs like these that make me wonder why I ever thought I could run a marathon. Brutal I tell ya. I stopped FIVE times in six miles today. Here's the low down:

• .5 miles - Calves so tight I had to stop and stretch. Painfully tight!

• .75 miles - repeat what I said above.

• 2 miles - repeat what I said above.

• 3 miles - foot's going numb - first one, then the other. Found out after doing a bit of research online that it's likely due to shin splints and tight calves! Imagine that.

• 4 miles - Just plain tired. Dehydrated and hot.

Now I like to stop my Garmin when I take my walk breaks. Yeah, it's cheating, but my times look so much better! :) So my running pace averaged a 9:23, but with all the breaks I'd say I probably (hopefully) averaged a 10 minute mile.

I ran this morning around 9am (first mistake - should have run 2 hours earlier), and it's now 9:30pm and my legs have finally stopped throbbing. It was only six miles for heaven's sake! Geesh. Tomorrow I'm supposed to run eight miles. Eight miles. After writing some pretty sarcastic and crude things, then using the delete/backspace key, I should look at this as a lesson learned. I don't hydrate well, never have. I've been lucky so far, but there's no way around hydration in a marathon. If I can get into the habit of drinking just a couple swallows every mile, then that's immense progress, and should allow me to complete my run without feeling so drained.

Will tomorrow's run be more productive? Will Kim use what she's learned and hydrate properly? Will she ever run again!?! Dun, Dun Dunnnnn....Stay tuned...

Stretch, then Stretch...then Stretch Some More

When I first started running, I had stretch-related issues with my hip, then my IT band, then my quads, and now my calves. Over the past year I've learned what to stretch, for how long and when. With time, I imagine I could go through the entire muscular system and the act of stretching would take longer than the run itself.

I'm being facetious of course, but stretching does take time and without it, I would surely injure myself as I've managed to do so adequately in the past. I've learned the following stretches help me out before, during and after my run:

• leg swings (from side to side, and front to back)
• quad stretches (holding foot with bent knee - although some say this is not the best method. It works for me though.)
• calf warm up - I call it "tip-toe walking" Start by walking on your heel and end by raising yourself up on the ball of your foot.
• I also stretch my calf - both the upper calf muscle and the lower calf muscle (soleus)
• I always shake out my legs, arms and roll my head from side to side.

Onlookers would expect some spectacular performance after all that warming up, but I'm sure I disappoint when I start my warm up mile at a sprightly 10 minute pace! :)

After my run, I do a slow jog just .1 miles, then end with basically the same as above along with some light lunges, IT band stretches and piriformis stretches. I'll occasionally roll my foot around in a circle - both clock-wise and counterclockwise. Pointing and flexing the foot helps too.

I've noticed that once something is tight, it's very hard to get it loose again. That's why it's imperative for me to stretch religiously so that my muscles don't have the opportunity to get tight. It's easy to forget a stretch too, and with one slip you can be waiting for the doc in physical therapy.

What do you do to maintain your flexibility? What are your stretching routines?

Intervals - My New Tough Workout

Yesterday I decided after running a mile warm-up to incorporate some interval training. I set up my Garmin for interval workouts (which is so cool - love that Garmin) where each of the 6 intervals lasted 8 minutes at 5k pace with a 2 minute recovery walk. Of course, I didn't do this on a track, I did this on a road with rolling hills, making the effort even more difficult. After two intervals I was exhausted, but I kept going. Knowing that I only had about a mile till a recovery allowed me to run faster than I normally would have. This is one of the benefits of interval training, along with improving your form, and reaching your anaerobic threshold which increases your oxygen, number of cells, mitochondria and capillaries surrounding the muscles, and so on.

One thing I didn't count on was my calves cramping up the first 2 intervals during my recovery walk. Of course, this all makes sense in retrospect because I don't officially warm up until mile 3.5 to 4, which is about where I'd be after my 3rd interval. But unfortunately, when one issue is resolved, another one appears, and this time it was my lungs! I couldn't get enough air - anaerobic threshold is reached! The other thing about intervals is it allows your body to reach and hold that threshold for a bit so you're training your body to get to a higher max threshold, and the recoveries help to remove the lactic acid so you're not incredibly sore the next day. It's actually quite an ingenious workout when you know the science behind it all.

In the end, I was able to run 5 intervals...ahhaa...no one to push me except myself. Could I have completed 6 intervals? Yes, I think I could have, but I wanted to stick to my weekly mileage since 2 weeks ago I was rewarded with shin splints for my overage.

It's a weird feeling to like something and hate it at the same time. I know that intervals are good for my training and I feel great when they're done, but while I'm doing them I curse them! Maybe next time I'll decrease my time from 8 minutes to 5 minutes, and try them on a flat track. We'll see if that makes me change my attitude while doing them...I bet it won't. :)

A Run for the Doggies!

Today was the SPCA Rescue Run! At 7am, the gun went off and so did we. After my long run with Christine yesterday, I was tired the rest of the day. And although I felt like my normal self today, I could tell that I wasn't 100%. I had no intentions of a PR today. I went out with Christine and we stayed together for the first 1.5 miles. We talked and it was really enjoyable! I looked over one time at her and she was taking a picture of herself while running! :) She's so talented! The other runners huffing and puffing around us probably thought we were crazy!

Although we didn't PR, it was a great recovery run and we even had enough energy to sprint to the finish! The t-shirts, although just a cotton shirt (no tech t) are really cute too! It was tough getting up this morning, but afterwards I always feel so much better.

This was a great end to my 2nd week of marathon training! Tomorrow will be the start of week 3, where I will begin core training at the gym, attend some yoga classes and start lifting some weights. Ugh! I"m going to be sore by the end of next week. And my running buddy has family visiting, so no long run to look forward to! :( Week three will be tough...

My Sworn Enemy Has Returned - Shin Splints!

Well, that didn't take very long, did it. :( I was supposed to run six miles today, but ended up doing four. I was mad, so I really ran hard on mile three. Take that, stupid shin splints. They aren't bad, just painful enough to know that I needed to cut my run short. No worries though, I'll ice it and cross-train tomorrow instead. I have a feeling that it's because I'm not stretching my calves enough. After the first mile today I had to stop because my calves were so tight. I'm sure it was pulling on my medial tibial muscles. I have been devout about stretching from the knees up, but have not properly stretched my calves. It's all connected...I can't sluff off when it comes to stretching. You wouldn't think that would be hard to remember or do, but stretching is sometimes harder than the actual run! For me, stretching is absolutely necessary to stay injury-free. I have yet again learned my lesson.

Tomorrow I will look to my bike for cardiovascular comfort. Maybe I'll test out the waters on Thursday. I've got a bike ride on Friday, a long run Saturday, and a race on Sunday! I hope I'm feeling better by the weekend! Week 2 of Marathon training looks to be a bust. :(

Marathon Training Week One - Done!

The first week of marathon training is complete and it's time to start the next! My weekly mileage goal was 33 miles and I ran 34.5. I also cross-trained on the bike for about 25 miles too! Boy that cross-training helps. It really gives my legs a chance to recoup from pounding the pavement.

I admit, I started too high on my weekly mileage. I'm used to 28 miles a week, so this was over the 10% rule. Because of that, I'll repeat this same mileage again this week. I don't feel tired, and I've monitored my RHR every morning and so far so good.

Unfortunately, this Summer is looking to be a brutal one! The next three days are in the 90s. Let the early morning runs begin!

Today is an off day, but I'm staying motivated with a Netflix movie I rented called, Marathon Challenge! Sweet!

Happy National Running Day!

Six miles on the treadmill! Woohoo!

Today is National Running Day!

And the 3rd day of my marathon training program. I WILL run today...I WILL run today. Things are a bit crazy this morning, but I WILL run today!!

I feel guilty because I didn't run yesterday. It was too darn hot. And yes, I have a treadmill, but business demanded most of my time and by the end of it, it was already 9pm

Had a great time on Monday running with my marathon buddy, C.! Here's our after-run pics!

The humidity made for a tough workout, but I felt so much better the rest of the day! Thanks for the pictures and the run C!

So, my next run will be on the basement treadmill (not my favorite setting) TODAY! :)