26+10 version 2, day 2

RUN 6 miles in 1:20 at Castlewood

Yeah, as you can see this run didn't go according to plan. I was planning on 10 miles. And it didn't happen.

After yesterday's run my feet hurt, my knees felt wobbly, but none of my muscles hurt. None of that muscle burn I expected after all that calf-work and hill-climbing yesterday. So while I was optimistic about being able to run, I had some doubts. 

TH decided to stay home and rest. She had the right idea. 

My energy just wasn't there. I wanted to run, but not 100%. I think I wanted the number more. I wanted the "10". Heck even my Garmin wasn't into it--it ran out of battery before I even started. 

So I drove out to Castlewood and tested out the new Cascadia 8's. The trail had re-frozen so it was a terribly rough frozen-footprint run that banged on my already sore feet. So I slowed down. I walked. I lost interested. 

Brekkie was a little too heavy (more sweet potato and eggs with coconut oil) and wasn't sitting well. [On that note, food didn't sit well all day, dinner isn't sitting well right now either...]. I was climbing, descending, cornering, everything was going well but my heart just wasn't in it. 

And when I hit just under 4 miles after an hour, my heart really sank. I didn't need another slog. This put me at 8 HOURS of being on my feets in just 24 hours. And my feets hurt. Was this worth it? 

But I wanted to finish. But I wanted to stop. I wanted to sleep. I wanted to throw up. I wanted to stop.

So I set 6 miles as a reasonable goal, hit 5.99, and stopped. 

The rest of the day was a mixed bag. I'm awake but groggy. I'm moving but like an old person. My feets still hurt and wearing shoes tomorrow could make for a long day.

But how am I doing otherwise? I'm happy next week is a rest week. I'm happy with the effort I put into today. I tried. I went 1.5 miles further than I wanted to. 

So go me! Another long week. A total of 52.5 miles running (11hrs), 18 miles indoor biking. Ugh, I'm babbling.  

26+10 version 2, day 1

RUN 26.3 miles in 7:02 at L&C
Ave pace 16:03m/m, ave HR 122bpm, 2100 ft elevation.

There's so much to say about this run, I'm not sure I'll get it all here especially given my current mental state.

My goals were simple: try running in compression socks and eat in the last 20 mins to prevent the fade-out. And of course, don't get injured.

Thursday we had a snow storm that dropped 4-5" on the trails then capped it off with sleet. That snow was still intact at the Mound where TH and I started the run. We made it a half mile out before changing our minds. 26 miles of stomping through the snow crust just wasn't a good idea. She suggested L&C, a winner idea. The trails there looked open and broken in.

So the last 25 miles were in that trail system. First a loop on Lewis with a 5 mile out-n-back on Katy, then a loop on Clark, then another out-n-back by myself for the mileage.

We were moving slow with the snow and at first I took that as a good thing--it would limit the pace and force us to "be good" about keeping the HR low. But in reality it wore us out fast, even though we moved slower. The Clark was in good condition, but the KT had just two narrow tire tracks from a vehicle, and the Lewis only had one other set of prints. Since we did the first 14.5 miles at the Mound, Lewis, and KT, a vast majority of those first 14 were rough going.

Punch-stomp along we went, wearing down fast. By the time we started mile 15, TH was getting quiet and falling back. I was happy to wait, but worried I was dragging her along. Our pace started averaging 19m/m, my HR dropped to 105-110 bpm. We hit 19.7 and she had to leave. We were 5.5 hrs into the day, putting us around 1:30pm already!

She was done on the trails and was going to finish at home, but I was set on finishing here. I took off for an out-n-back on the better-groomed Clark for the last three. I pushed the effort on these last miles to see just what I had left in the tank. My pace bumped up to 14-16m/m, but the effort to maintain that was not sustainable, as my HR topped out in the high 120s/low 130s.

One of my goals was nutrition and here's  the result:
Brekkie was a large sweet potato, two poached eggs, and a few T of coconut butter/oil
In run was 2 gels, sport beans, a powerbar, and a 2xdate/2xcashews/2xmanges devil bar recipe, and ~2 servings of the EFS left over from last week.
Hydration--one camelback and one water bottle. That's IT!!!!

My nutrition was slow to start. Those big brekkies leave me unhungry for a few hours. I'm not sure if that's good or not? Probably not, probably better to focus on the in-run instead. I also ate some snax Friday light in prep for the run, I don't think I need to do that either. But whatever works.

My mental focus came and went with the sugar. That's one thing I HATE about the gel/sugar based nutrition--there needs to be a steady line of it for it to work. Also, the devil bars might be too heavy for these long runs, that or I need to eat less of them. By the last 5 miles I was feeling a wee bit gassy. But as for my goal, I ate the sport beans at mile 23 and another gel at 24.3. They helped, but I need to be more steady about it. Eat more early in the run. So I need to cut back on the big brekkie.

If a runner farts in the woods, and no one is around to hear it...

My feet got wet in the snow but were OK. My soles ached afterwards and the persistent blister on the medial area on the ball of my left foot came back. The Cascadia 5's are great, but I can't help but wonder what new shoes and fresh cushion could do for me.

Everything is comfy, everything is buzzing along, everything is falling into place.

10 in FoPa

RUN: 10.2 miles in 1:35, no HR data

Compared to yesterday's run, the 10 miles was 6 minutes shorter. The goal here was to push more than yesterday. Goal accomplished.

I was quickly dropped off the back of the group but I knew that would happen. Speed work for me these days is anything under 9!  I worked for a steady, upbeat, solid run.

My deltoids were tired and sore by mile 5.5, was I shrugging or sagging or slouching? Dunno. They didn't hurt the last 5 miles though. I've been working on my form to the benefit of my trapezius. Keep working on it I guess.

The last 3.4 miles went easier than I thought, sometimes when I stop at the VC for break and water I slow down, unable to get back up to steam. Not today. I felt fresh, upright, tall, proud. Good form.

When I got back to the truck, I walked it out to the tune of Lightning Flashes. There's a big snowstorm on the way later this morning, so everyone is excited/nervous about it. I had thought about doing a two-a-day today to make up for the lost Tuesday run, but fearing the weather would mess that up I ran the distance this morning.

My knees are getting sore, not really the joint itself but the skin and tissues on the lateral surfaces. It's a fatigue pain, just keep working on it!

10 in TGP

RUN 10 miles in 1:39, ave HR 129 bpm

Like last week, I paused every mile for a sip of water. I ran to the YMCA, refilled the bottles, ran to 5 miles and turned for home.

Unremarkable otherwise. I started this blog so that someday I could look back and say "I remember that day!" so I should do that here.

This is the run in which I waved to Dan in the pool. My "nipples" froze on the fuel belt. It was 21F, sunny, and gorgeous. In TGP I passed a black dog resting on its walk holding a big stick in it's mouth.

Bike instead of run

BIKE 18 miles in just over an hour, indoors

I just wanted a little more time to rest. That and it was cold outside ;)

26+10 version 1 day 2

RUN (what else, right?) 10.2 miles in 1:40

Did this on Grant's trail, a flaaaaat boring rail-to-trail type of setting with surprising trails off to the side and some gravel/grass edges to save the feets.

I've done some of my 18+ mile long runs on GT, so I know it's a mental test. I chose it for a group run but I was the group today. Good enough, I just need to run, but wow I can get negative when I'm alone!

The first 4 miles were on the trail, mile 5 and 6  were wandering in Clydesdale Park, then back home again. Those first miles were on the slight downhill; I didn't notice the effect in the legs, just in my head. The 2 miles of wandery trail were a great reward, they were really rough single-track with branches to push aside and washed-out roots. Reward!

I kept a steady pace as per goal, and didn't fade out until about mile 8 when I started fighting the urge to count. I didn't watch the Garmin, I'm much better at that now, and my body didn't want to quit. I didn't walk or die out, I just became acutely aware of how much this was hurting. My knees, my feets, my legs ached. But it's done!

Stoopidly I brought no water or food with me for this run! Where's "mom?", she would have made be bring some. I had it in my head that this was "only 10 miles I'll be done so fast". I didn't need them terribly, but I should have had them so I didn't fade out at the end.

And hoo boy did I have to pee at mile 5-6. And the bathrooms are still Closed For The Season, but I did find the biggest porta-pottie I've ever used--one of the handicap ones. Ahhhh...... :)

I passed the Clydesdales early on and used them as a run form inspiration. Head up, chest out, rhythmic feet, nice knee lift, no knee extension, smooth easy and proud running. :)

26+10 version 1 day 1

RUN 26.4 miles in 6 hrs, me and TH in the Babs

The 6 hrs was "run" time, the "actual" time was closer to 6:20 which include bathroom stops, water stops, etc.

We were joined by IT for the first 2hrs and it set the pace and tone--we just wandered. Left here, right there, up the hill, whatever. My original (and too complicated) plan was to leave Babs and head towards Gfelder. I wasn't too keen about running 10  miles along roads, then TH pointed out the double whammy of running on pavement. Wham-bam, out with that plan. Close enough.

So on TH's suggestion we decided to loop the park to simulate looping in the races. She's already done a practice run like that and I'm still psyched up over it since I haven't. While in the end we didn't do loops in Babs, this was in the end a really great run!

Problems & Solutions, Before & After:
1. My stoopid shoe laces kept coming untied. I finally put in the bungees. They've been coming untied since Glacial in October. Something about the material or thickness, I was blaming water for making them swollen or slick but the real fault lie with the fact that I needed to change them. While bungees may not work for mud, they worked awesome for this run. Didn't even notice them.

2. Food! On the last two 24 milers I was zonked by mile 22. I needed to EAT MOAR, and A LOT MOAR. So I broke down and bought gels and beans. The salesguy at BRR kinda half laughed/eyerolled when I said I hated those things while I had a pile of them on the counter. So my pack was packed for this run like this: 3 gels, a powerbar, 2 servings of devil bars (dates and nuts), raisins, cashews, 2 servings of plantain chips, and a 400 calories EFS flask left over from the free samples at CdA. It was too cold for the powerbar, woulda ripped out a filling or chipped a tooth. The raisins and devil bars were D-lish but maybe too much fiber for the run? The EFS was so sweet my face puckered and my throat burned at first but it was good and I wanted more after another hour. In comparison to previous long runs, this was a lot of carbs. But that's what I needed! And it WORKED! Mile 20 came, went, mile 23 did the same, mile 25...and DONE. (I didn't eat any of the gels or nuts or chips). When we finished instead of that zombie duuuuuuuuuuhhhhhhhhhhh mental state I was awake, zippy, and clearheaded. No more stoopids like before. Bingo, we have a Solution!

3. I'm good for ignoring the garmin, distance, and mileage for a few hours but after a while I just need to look. For this run I set the Garmin to laps, so I could only see that current mile. I kept joking that I had no idea where or when we were (TH just laughed/eyerolled...I get that a lot...) and it wasn't until Mile 19.7 at 4hr 20mins that I finally looked!! I felt GREAT for mile 20!  So maybe for the races I'll have the Garmin but not easily visible. It was nice to just be lost.

4. Setting the Garmin--speaking of which I need to program in nutrition alarms if I'm going to ignore it. Without the cues of x miles, I might go too long without eating? Even if I'm ignoring the Garmin in the race, I'll still have an idea of where I am since it's loops...hmmm..

5. In previous long runs we were walking the uphills but for the most part running a lot. For this run we really dialed it back. On the last 24's it took about 5hrs, maybe just over. This time we hit 24 around 5:20-5:30. When combined with the improved nutrition, this was a great feeling pace. I could have gone all day it seemed, at least at first.

6. The fade--I've been thinking about the fade. In the previous 24-milers, I faded at 22 miles. Today I faded at 25. Funny how I fade just before we're done...is that a mental thing? If I didn't know how far we'd traveled, would I still fade? See #3 above. Or, is it that when I know we're almost done I dial back the nutrition, figuring I don't need a gel for the last mile? So to test on the next 26-er, eating at mile 25 to see what happens.

7. My gear is spot on--no rubs, blisters, binds. All good. Except my shoes, the bottoms of my feet hurt by mile 26! I went trail shoe shopping Thursday but they didn't have my size ready. I was starting to blow off the idea of  new shoes until TH reported that when she put new trail shoes on she was able to notice that her current cascadias were shot, and that's why her feet hurt too. So, back to the running store! The cascadia line is up to 8, mine are a 5! So while they dont' have a terrible huge number of miles on them, it's probably time to replace. After this run, those shoes are at 261 miles since October 2011.

8. I did notice that my calves were lightly fluid-heavy at the end. So I might try running with compression next. I have the black compression socks, test 'em!

9. Long run funny--We were wandering the trails with IT, he asked if we had bread crumbs to find our way back. I said no, I just have coconut flakes. OK well I thought it was funny!

10. TH is a great run partner :) She's methodical and although she calls herself The Mom of our little pair, she's got a lot of inner strength and resolve. She doesn't seem to fall prey to whims like I do. I didn't run with her at Glacial because of my injury (I needed to run my race super careful) and that race wasn't as fun as it could have been. So I've been thinking that these next races we'll pace together.

11. Oh and finally, I'm still an outdoor pee-panZ.

~8:33 m/m and still dropped!

RUN 6.6 miles in 56.75 mins about an 8:33 m/m pace

After yesterday's flat run and another night of less than ideal sleep, this run was tough. When it starts to get tough, I remind myself to take it mile by mile, but today I was telling myself that in the first two miles! Not a good sign.

My legs were burning so I'm surprised I was able to maintain that pace at all. IT ran back with me, I'm glad he did but I always offer them the chance to jump back on to the forward group. Wow. 8:30's and still dropped!  DC said he had 8:10 on his Garmin. Wow again!!

I few hours later all I can say it I want a NAP :)

Flat 10 miler

RUN 10 miles in 1:40 ave HR 137 bpm

The goal was a steady, easy, smoothly paced mid-week long run. Another goal was to pause and drink some water at each mile. I achieved all that, but other things not so perfect.

My mind was in a negative place, being critical and a downer. Not so much about the run but about other things in life. So instead of my usual smiley self I was just there.

My tummy was unhappy with the chicken salad with my prerun meal. In addition I had a sweet potato with ghee. I tried it to test it out--I read about ultra runners who can eat burgers and cheese sandwiches during a run--but that doesn't seem to be for me. Granted, I didn't have stomach upset, pain, or loss of meal, but at the same time it didn't sit right.

And on top of that, I'm a bit unhappy with how my nutrition has been the last few days. So an unhappy tummy, a negative mind, and a poor attitude about myself led to a run that was flat.

Not flat in the sense that there was no altitude change, but flat in the energy and spirit. I never wanted to quit or walk, but I certainly wasn't feeling the magic.

I'm still in a negative mood. Not sour, again, just not my usual self. But it's still early in the day and that can change :)

Namaste!

YOGA 1hr
RUN 39.5 mins at 4 miles tracking HR with an easy, steady pace


#1 9:41 125bpm
#2 9:53 130bpm
#3 9:52 132bpm
#4 10:17 133 bpm (up the stairs in FoPa)

I did  brief strength sessions Sunday and Monday and was surprised and disappointed at just how tight and inflexible I'm starting to become, especially in the upper back. I've been wanting to try yoga to see what everyone is raving about, I'm glad I did! I thought I'd be bored or anxious to move, but CB kept us thinking and changing. This was my first ever class, so while I had low expectations for myself I really didn't think I'd hit them. In some poses I was tight just getting into the basic position, never mind the movement once into the starting basic position! So I have things to work on.

I liked the focus on breathing, I was holding my breath sometimes! I do that outside of exercising too.

The run came about an hour afterwards (later than I wanted to start) but I still had yoga on the brain. I focused on breathing, my head position, my shoulders. Got thinking about Bee Calm and Buzz On. Thinking about triathlon, swimming (I started making 2013 swim cards yesterday!), and get back into tri scheduling and balance.

Some Odds and Ends on Maintaining Confidence & Good Spirits Along The Trail

This is from a RW.com forum post. I have it hanging at my work desk and on my fridge. I don't want to lose it! So I'm putting it here.

Some Odds and Ends on Maintaining Confidence and Good Spirits along the Trail

Believe in yourself--nothing else will get you to the finish line.

Decide before you start what will stop you--if that doesn't happen, you continue.

Are you racing or running?  Time goal (sub-24 hour, big buckle, age group) or running to finish.  Don't let the initial goal be etched in stone. Something may go wrong out there--adjustments will need to be made as the day unfolds.  Evaluate, adjust and keep going.

Run your plan.  Stay within your realm.  Don't feel bad if someone passes you.  Don't chortle with glee if you pass someone.  Keep a sense of what your are about.  Keep pressing on, maybe it will be one of those good days when you pick it up and then keep on picking it up.

Have faith in walking.  Walk when you need to or when you want to (hopefully not often), but walk with purpose...no trudging...no survival shuffle...keep a good mindset and walk with a purpose.  Smile and enjoy what you are passing through.

Be sure your crew (if you have one—a crew is not a necessity) understands that you might go through a transition from nice person to "not so nice" person.  Have a talk with them about the need to kick your butt back out on the course.  Sympathy may exist, but not to the extent of shortchanging the runner.

Problems?  Is it a problem or just an inconvenience?  Decide which.  Find a solution for the problem.  Block out the inconvenience, it will pass.

Food.  Stick with the safest food there is at the aid stations.  Use as much of your own stuff as you can, but don't be inflexible about things not being perfect.  Be flexible as you go.

Equipment.  If some equipment change comes into your head--is it a need or a want?  If it is a need, solve it at the next crew or drop bag point.  If it is a want and can't be fixed fairly easily, drop the thought—keep running.

Throwing up, vomiting, coughing the cookies...it may happen even if it has never happened before.  It is not fatal.  It is an inconvenience.  You might need more water between the point it happens and the next aid station (vomiting can be dehydrating).  Drink more--pay attention to electrolytes. Stay at the next aid station long enough to drink and eat more.  Your body is now low on fuel and water.  You must pay attention to eating more.  You can restore the liquids fairly quickly, but you must eat every chance you get.  Oh yeah, try not to throw up on anyone.

Don't stop.  Keep moving.  Low points will come, continued movement will bring you back around.  Don't sit in those chairs at the aid stations unless you really need to.  Think about how far you have come.

Encourage other runners.  Smiles and laughter will help others.  Helping others will help yourself.

Smile and joke with the aid station folks.  Say thank you to the volunteers. They will help you all through the day and night and...be good to them. They are a great source of energy—those people who donate all that time to get us through our little escapades on the trails.

Do not externalize negatives.  No comments like, "Hot out here, ain't it?" or "This is a long hill, eh?"  Just believe in the person that signed the entry blank.  Remember all that training, all those folks you ran with throughout the winter, spring, and summer that got you so strong.

Run gently out there.

Rest Weekend

Friday: BIKE ~1hr indoor 18 miles
Saturday RUN 9.5 miles on the CCup course, 1:55
Sunday RUN 8 miles in Fopa 4x(1mi easy, 1mi push), ?

A weekend like this sets my head spinning with crazy ideas. First I had energy to burn Friday so I did an am spin. Then after Saturday's easy run I took to cleaning out the basement. Then Sunday I was just plain bored.

The Saturday run was with TH, MD, BE, and OA--a new group and all fun. TH and I took it easy and walked the big uphills.

The Sunday run was in the rain. I started out puddle jumping but gave up eventually. The plan for this run was 1 mile easy alternating with 1 mile push. The easy segments were about 9:45-10m/m and about 135-145 bpm. The push segments were just under 9m/m and HR in the 150s.

I'm only just now starting to wear the HRM. I've been wearing it about 2 weeks now, but this is the first time I've paid attention to it.

Rest weekends also get me thinking ahead and doing other training planning. On Sat and Sun I did some strength training from my app. In doing so I've realized I have some imbalances and tight spots. I've lost some flexibility! So now I'm planning out a Tues am yoga. And I'm looking at master's swimming. And I've pulled out the EN HIM plan. Yup, I'm starting to think triathlon again.

But I'm in the thinking phase. I've started making my little MTWTFSS lists with the boxes and color coding, trying to find what days to do what when. I'd like to start swimming again, but both shoulders have a "click" in them when I stretch them out (something else I need to work on--shoulder flexibility!) so I'm worried that my awful swim stroke will have an impact on that as a injury or as a technique compensation?

Either way, triathlon season is coming up and I think I've picked my races: Rt 66 in late July and Branson in Sept.

DC is back! And the pace is fast!

RUN 6.6 miles in 55.5 mins, ave'd an 8:23m/m pace

Some of the miles were 8:06 and 8:07. Damn I love the group runs.

This is a rest week, and it must be that mentality that got me feeling so good this morning. Usually I've done 4+8 by the time Thurs rolls around. This week I was at 4.2+6.2, so not substantially different. The rest week difference is really the weekend long runs. So what got me going this morning? The warmer weather (39F)? The mental idea of a rest week?

I give credit to the group. We had a new addition today (RE), he and DC took off around mile 4 and my designs on catching them in a surge slipped away one tenth at a time. Didn't happen :)

Can I call this speedwork? Nah, probably not.

Late morning FoPa run

RUN 6.2 miles in 61 mins.

Goal was easy, to find a comfy pace and settle in keeping the hills and flats an even effort.

Fatigue hit around mile 2. Wondering when I'd start to hate running around mile 3. Forgetting all the mental crap and settling in around mile 4. Took a long time to reach that.

This is one of those runs that I don't feel the rest of the day, it's to the point that 6 miles doesn't have much effect on me. That's a good thing!

Run to work, only to sit there

RUN 4.2 miles in just under 41 mins

And since I didn't have auto-pause on, I'm counting that as 40 mins :)

Yeah, I'm unhappy at work right now. Bored. Sitting. It's 55+F outside and I'm bored inside. Sux.

Anyway.  I commuted in today, wearing the Kinvara's. I'm surprised I have barely 35 miles on them so far. I'm thinking I'll start wearing them on all the Tuesday runs since they are just 4 miles.

"Just 4 miles". Well considering that I ran 35.4 miles this past weekend, yeah, it's "Just 4 miles".

I'm still having some concerns about the upcoming 50M, this morning it was the magnitude of running 5 10-mile loops. I envisioned the 1st one being OK and the 2nd one too. That's 20 miles. No problem. Then the 3rd one. Oof, that's 30 miles. The there's 2 more loops after that.

OMG

24+10 recovery

Just a few notes while I'm here.

1. Wow what did I get myself into? I know it's healthy to doubt yourself, and if I knew I could do it then it wouldn't be such a challenge. But hoooo-boy! Am I nuts?
2. As confirmation of above, I found an ultra running sticker this morning that says : To run an ultramarathon you have to be arrogant enough to believe you can do it...and stupid enough to try.
3. My initial 8-10 hr estimate is being re-worked to 10-12hrs. 10hrs is 12m/m. 12 hrs is 14:24m/m. I haven't been planning on that long of a day. OK I know, I've only added 2 hrs and what's 2 hrs in the grand scheme of a 10hr day. A LOT!
4. I need new trail shoes. I need more comfort. More pillow.
5. I need more carbs.
6. I need better recovery. Today at work I was unfocused, dizzy, almost nauseated. I measured my sitting HR at 44 and 46 bpm!!! It's usually 55-60 when I'm sitting. I thought about it and came up with a few options. I had chili for breakfast, and I felt a little nauseated yesterday after eating it too. So that's a possible explanation. Of course I'm tired, so I'm unfocused. But the dizzy, clumsy, loss-of-time feeling...and the low HR. Dehydration and fatigue cause high HR. DH suggested low blood sugar. So for lunch I ate no veggies and just nuts, cranberries, plaintain chips, and coconut butter. Oh and half a plantain. This afternoon I'm more awake but my HR is still 48-49. Is that low? Probably not.
7. We did a 5hr run Saturday. When IM training is ramping up, you know it because your training plan says a 5hr bike ride. We RAN 5hrs. Holy sh!t.
8. I told TH that when the 30M "fun run" at Potawatomi sounds apt, let me know cuz that means I'm ready to do a 100.
9. I woke up Sunday and said "Never a 100".
10. Oh and my back is hurting. Feels like I've been punched a few times. Might have something to do with the fall down the garage steps on ice last Thursday? Might have something too with how I run with the camelbak. Might need to stop and take care of that during this rest week.

Only 34 miles this coming week.

24+10 weekend, part 2

RUN 11.4 miles in 1:55 CCP, 10:05 m/m pace

To everyone's surprise, we got 4 inches of puffy, sticky, wonderful snow overnight! I was saying yesterday that "I wish we had more snow"!

I felt better than expected rolling out of bed (and the new mattress!) this morning. Only the bottoms of my feet hurt. I wasn't exactly bouncing around, but I was moving.

JF and RE joined me for the first loop in the snow. We had a late start so it was 32F at start, with sun and WIND. The Yaktrax did great, the pace a little faster than I thought I could go (9:27 m/m for the first 5.5 miles with them), and the weather no where near as bad as it sounded on the forecast. Too bad for those who opted out, it wasn't perfect running weather but it wasn't bad either.

Near the end of the loop JF and I are talking about miles/week, and I mentioned that "I'm not even over 50 yet" and he expressed surprise. Mr 3 Xmas Hams clocked a lot more for just a marathon! So I got to thinking...what will I get this week. After a few minutes of checking and double-checking on my fingers (mittens made this easier) I realized that an extra 1.4 today would put me at 50 for the week. Oooohhhhh....should I?

The 2nd loop was just me and the melting snow. It really was warming up, especially when sheltered from the wind. I could hear it howling in the trees in the bluff over me, and when I turned into it it was only more annoying than cold. So I enjoyed the wind. I usually don't.

The plan was 3 out then 3 back. The yak trax were suffering a bit on the now-exposed pavement so I would try to find some side-road to run on. This left me running on uneven ground most of the run, either icy-slush snow or snow on grass.  I did the 9 miles in 1:29 (9:53m/m for the 9 miles) and was very happy once turned around. Once again, my will to keep running was fading.

Wouldn't ya know it, I had nothing at all to eat for this run! I never wanted to quit (which tells me I was not bonked) but I was fading. I'm still thinking this is a carbs issue, I just need more.

Overall, the last 6 miles averaged 10m/m (6 miles in 1hr). I thought I was moving much slower than that.

Nothing hurt at the end, and after I got a lara bar to eat I was actually feeling better after the run than I did before! It was super bowl day, and I got cranky as we were readying the house. I didn't' manage my recovery very well. I didn't drink enough or nap like I should have.

50 miles this week! The first 50 miler since...???  Just think, if I were to add up all the miles I did this week and run them in one day, that's my race.

EEEEEK!!!!!

24+10 weekend part 1

RUN 5:07 and 24 miles in LV/KT/L&C, upper 12 min/mile pace

Finally I got to run with TH, it's been weeks. Of all the people to do a long run with, she's top of my list. Pace, conversation, and just the right amount of "mom" --as she calls it. :)

The day started off cold and warmed up, but the wind never died down unless we were in a valley or under the trees. The windbreak layer came off fast, the double gloves unnecessary. In other words, perfect day for a trail run.

Started at the Mound (same as the SHITR) and went south to the KT, then up the KT to where it connected with L&C. I didn't know you could connect them! We had a sort of "exploring" plan, sorta mapped out but not really. The conversations went from kitchen color to religion to LOTR to P90X and everywhere. My editing started to fail in the last 2 miles and I brought up my frog legs in the freezer. :( Now I'm not even sure I can eat them! I knew she was a frog fan, I didn't think of that when I bought them, but I remembered after, and duh I had to ask "ever eat frog legs?".

A super cool moment in the run was around mile 17 when we went by a runner wearing a Glacial Trail sweatshirt!!! He said it was maybe 20 years old! TH asked for any 50M advice, he said "it's a long day". Oof.

Today's pace seemed to have a lot of walking, but I'm thinking we need to walk even more. We walked up the hills and even down some, but kept a pretty steady pace overall. I'm not sure where to put the walking yet, but I think more is needed at this stage. I dunno.

My hydration was most off of the camelbak. My nutrition for the 5hrs was a "chocolate turd" (square of chocolate, 2-3T of coconut manna, 0.5c coconut flakes, and 2T almond butter), Lara bar (only ate half during the run, other half at the end), and plantain chips.  I should add that up to see where I am...this whole30 no-counting might be messing me up?...70+250+140+190+210+150=~1000 calories over 5hrs, or 200 calories/hour. Huh, that's not far off at all...my usual is 200-250 per 45-ish minutes. The change is in the carbs, I'm not doing gels with caffeine and powerbars, maybe that's leading to the zombie brain?

My energy level is good, my footing OK, no stumbly/trippy, but my will to keep going starts to wane. This happened last week too. By the end I just lost interest. Both runs ended with me in zombie-brain mode--losing track of time, clumsy, slow reactions, probably shouldn't be driving home type of mentality.

I'm going to guess it's the fatigue and low carbs. Fat adapted metabolism or not, I have to try it.

By the end of the 22 miles back to the Mound, I was whipped but still wanted the 2 more as per plan. Me and my plans. So we looped out around the Mound for one mile, the repeated in reverse. The gravel was wearing on my will too. The last mile was hard. The worst part is that it's not even half way! 5hrs and 24 miles means the 8-10 hour estimate I had is WAY OFF. Thinking more like 11-13, which I'm OK with, but I'm not planning for that race. So I need to start planning that way.

Saturday afternoon I was able to move, kept upright, and the only thing hurting was the bottoms of my feet. In particular the lateral part of my right foot near the pinkie toe. Just felt sore. I'm working on trail shoe research, and need to move that higher on the list to get settled into new shoes.

So...I need to work on nutrition, shoes, and conversation topix.