Before (ish) And After (ish)

Tomorrow, I leave for my race weekend. I think it’s fair to say that I’m nervous, especially as I’ve started having nightmares about it. The most entertaining of which being that I had to complete the race in a skull boat with a crew of six…and the whole course was staged in water. You had to race other boats in between obstacles, get out of the boat to complete the obstacle, then go swim your boat down (which drifted due to waves/tides) before heading to the next challenge. It was a wild, exhausting dream. I don’t even know if my crew completed our mission!

Anyway, aside from the crazy dreams, I’m finally coming down to the wire. It’s been over two months of training, and I think that merits some reflection about where I was at pre-training, and where I am now.

Two months ago:

·         Just starting my running card. Running two minutes on, walking two minutes off for a total of 30 minutes and just around 1.5 miles.

·         Runner’s knee up the wazoo!!!

·         Running on treadmill only

·         Could feel my body weight with every stride. Things were bouncing and jiggling and rubbing…I like to call these reverberations my running "aftershock." Like what happens after an earthquake. Fitting, no?

·         Overall negative relationship with running. Why run if you're not being chased/chasing something?

Now:

·         I’m able to run a consecutive mile, in no longer than 11 minutes. Fastest mile has been 9.38

·         If I push hard, can run/walk a 5k in under 34.30

·         Fully functioning knees while running. Praise the high heavens, I'm not arthritic afterall!

·         Have been fitted for running shoes. And they are totally fly. Absolutely worthwhile luxury.

·         Running only outdoors for the past few weeks. Man, what a difference. I barely sweat anymore, thanks to this Fall weather. And I get to scope real estate in my neighborhood!

·         My ownership of spandex pants has grown by 400%. Seriously. So has my collection of high-impact sports bras.

·         My body has gotten “tighter” and aftershocks are less (read: not as jiggly/bouncy/rubby) over the past few months—particularly in my abdominal areas. I’m liking the reduced reverberation, and I feel much  more in sync out on the road.

·         More positive relationship with my running self. If running had a survey, I’d give it 4.5 stars in terms of how I feel when doing it/overall satisfaction with it as a workout. See, if I can manage to do THIS, we can have world peace, people!

Growth Areas

·         I’m struggling to push my distance past 1 mile without needing a quick break. I hope that in a few months’ time, I’ll be able to run an entire 5k without stopping.

·         Side stitches. Got some good tips from friends about how to ward these off, and am practicing them on every run. Side stitches really slow down my ability to run longer distances, because they are pretty much paralyzing when they happen. It’s hard to run when you feel like a gremlin is exploding from your belly.

So, not bad for a few months of work. It’s been easy to lose sight of my progress while being in the daily grind of working out. But when I take the opportunity to pause and look back at how far I’ve come, I have to say that it’s nice to enjoy the view from here and also to respect my journey. That being said, I’ll always have room for growth and new horizons for which to aim. And you know I’m going to shoot for that—this type A+ explorer is always hungry for new frontiers!

My Wheaties Run

Last week, I bit the bullet and started running outside in preparation for my 5k obstacle race coming up at the end of this month. It was really challenging and demoralizing, and though I barely got through it, it was a necessary step forward. Since then, I’ve done additional three runs on the same loop. Despite the short period of time, I am already seeing improvement in my performance.

At the start of the week—my first time out—I was finishing the loop in a little more than 40 minutes. The first run, I could only run at about 6 minute intervals before needing a walk-break, and basically crawled back to my house in exhaustion. The second run, I cranked out a mile non-stop, but then alternated running/walking for the remainder of the distance. I made the loop in exactly 40 minutes. I did my third run on a treadmill, because Sleepy Karl was too persuasive that morning—and it was a grueling, late evening endeavor where I suffered through a 39-minute workout and hated every second.

Then yesterday, I must have eaten my Wheaties or something. I set out from my place and ran the first mile non-stop. I walked until my heart wasn’t exploding from my chest, continued run/walking on the hill section of the loop, and ran most of the way back to my place (downhill & flat sections) with three one-minute walk breaks. I got back to my driveway in 36 minutes even. That’s four whole minutes shaved off from my time in one week!

With my improved overall time came an improved spilt time as well. Typically on the treadmill, at a fixed 5.5 mph pace, I can do a mile in about 11:05. But it feels a little too fast, and difficult to sustain. Yesterday, I did my first mile in 10:15. I have no idea where that came from, especially because I felt like I was simultaneously operating at sloth-pace and very near death. On a pace conversion chart, 10:15 is approximately a 5.8 mph on the treadmill. There is NO WAY I could run at that pace on a treadmill, especially for a mile straight …I wonder what is different about outdoor running that could allow me to be faster while still feeling like I am exerting equal effort? My first guess is it has something to do with the difference between the natural cadence and gait afforded during outdoor running versus the precision and monotony required for the fixed pace of a treadmill. I’ll need to look into that.

Now obviously, these are by no means world record split or finish times—but it sure feels like it to me right now! And so I shall bask in this moment!

I’m learning a lot throughout the shift from indoor to outdoor running. Here’s some tidbits from my experiences this past week:

• I am thankful that most drivers yield to runners at intersections. Thank goodness for this, because if I got the chance to break my groove by waiting at stop sign, it is likely that I would never get going again. I like to think that drivers have an innate sense of pity and/or respect for runners, and they are doing what they can to be supportive.

• Running (indoor or outdoor) calls for a lot of spandex. I just dropped so much money on compression capris and high-impact sports bras. Best. Purchases. Ever. Especially because my selections are largely neon colors. Neon makes me feel both safe (visibility) and like Rainbow Brite (awesomeness).

• Running also calls for really awesome playlists. I’ve been rocking out to a lot of classical/hip-hop fusions, like Nuttin’ But Stringz, because it’s both calming and motivating. I realize those are paradoxical sentiments. It’s hard to explain. Just give them a listen.

• Driving your running route makes you feel like a superhuman. You’re all, “holy crap, I did this on my own two feet??? Go me.”

• Running downhill makes you feel like a racecar. I am very happy about this.

So, after a week of outdoor running, I’m happy to see the improvement and am starting to enjoy it more and more. At the very least, I’ll ring in yesterday’s run as a personal best for individual mile and overall time, though I am looking forward to progressing in speed and endurance as the weeks unfold.

In unrelated news, and in case you haven’t noticed, I like to end my posts with pictures. So I’ve decided to show you some shots of food. This week, I made lots of tasty, Paleo/Primal noms—including homemade, organic mozzarella cheese. If you’ve never done this before, it is SO easy and SO freaking good. I highly recommend it.

Mmm, cheese. Recipe here.

Shaved steak with chimichurri over mashed sweet potatoes; Spring mix salad

Peace, peoples!

I Ran For Real

Yesterday was an absolutely perfect day. The sun was shining, the wind was gusting slightly, and the humidity was (for once) not completely oppressive. That is to say, it felt like Fall. After waking up and having my gallons of coffee to start my morning off right, I found myself pondering a strange, new thought—let’s go for a run outside today.

Ya, that’s right. I’ve been training for a 5k and have yet to actually run without a treadmill underfoot. I understand how ridiculously crazy that sounds, but there was something holding me back from lacing up and heading out on pavement. Maybe I was hesitant to run alone. Maybe I was afraid of being killed by crazy CT drivers (you know that one is valid). Maybe I felt less accomplished knowing a piece of technology wasn’t going to be logging my every step. Or maybe I was just being delusional and lazy.

Either way, yesterday I actually got the urge train outdoors. So I took that feeling and ran with it. (HA! See what I did there?!)

I used Map My Run to chart a loop around my neighborhood, and was able to freehand a route with gradual climbs and descents that totaled exactly 3.1 miles. I thought some added terrain variety would be a nice challenge, and my strategy was to replicate what I had been used to in the gym: run 1 mile, walk 2 minutes, repeat 1 time, then alternate 3-4 running minutes with 1 minute walking recovery until I reached my distance goal. Sounds like an okay game plan, right? So, I laced up my running kicks, coerced le boyfriend to join me, grabbed the iPod, and off we went.

Describing the run as “difficult” wouldn’t be explicit enough. In fact, I can think of a lot of expletives I could share to give a genuine understanding of my experience, but I’ll spare your brain’s earholes the assault. Instead, I’ll just say that it was an incredibly challenging and humbling experience. I only made it about a half mile before needing to stop. We took a quick walk break so I could catch my breath, then set back out. And then the hills hit.

…You can imagine my colorful language disappointment.

In short, the theme of this whole workout evolved from “a nice challenge” to “run until you think you are going to die, then take a walk-break; repeat until complete.” All said and done, we made it back to our place exactly 40 minutes after starting out. Albeit a slow pace, I was just amazed I walked through my front door instead of needing an airlift. After several laps around my kitchen and living room to aid in draining all of the blood from my face, I basked in the glory of making it back alive. It’s the small victories in life…

Nearly everything about running outdoors felt different than its treadmill counterpart. First, it was WAY harder on my body than running indoors. I could feel my legs working overtime to absorb the impact of my feet on the ground, and pushing harder just to keep my stride. My abs felt a lot more tired after returning home too, and I’ll also attribute that to stabilizing on variable terrain. Consequently, my heart rate hovered at around 185 bpm the whole route. Usually on my treadmill workouts, I am right around 178 bpm. The upside of that is more calories burned, the downside is feeling death trailing right behind you…especially on the hills.

Second, the varied terrain was a whole new ballgame. On the treadmill, I usually run at a constant 1% incline to help my toes land first. Try telling that to Mother Nature. So, not only was I working with some added stability demands, but I experienced the mental demand of outdoor running, too. For example, seeing a huge, long hill in front of you and fighting your urge to turn around and run the other way, or just sit down and cry. Despite feeling the intimidation, I also noticed that my runner’s knee did not show up to play yesterday—which is particularly strange considering the aforementioned impact increase! I have to wonder if the constantly changing inclines afforded my joints a little less of a beating…either way, I definitely appreciated the break!   

Lastly, I really did enjoy exercising outside. I appreciated both the warmth of the sun and the coolness of the shade, and got to enjoy both in almost perfect rotation on this route. It was also nice to see the scenery change. I didn’t have to sketchily stare at people, like I do on the treadmill, for entertainment—a win for all parties—and it was nice to experience my neighborhood in a whole new way. I think the coolest thing, though, was creating my own wind. I might not have been trucking away, but at least I was moving fast enough to somewhat “air condition” my workout.

So today, I’m left to reflect upon my first outdoor running experience in attempt to strategize for the weeks to come until race day. I certainly know that I feel a difference in my body. My legs wouldn’t stop shaking last night, and today my hip flexors and calves are incredibly angry at me. But I’m also feeling a little disheartened and a lot humbled.

I know that the first time you do something new is always the hardest, and I am glad that I finally got out there to bite the bullet. That being said, I’m still really nervous that I’m not going to be ready for the 5k that is now a mere 3 weeks away. I was just starting to be able to log more than 1 consecutive mile at a time on the treadmill, but there I was, not being able to complete a full mile outdoors without needing a break! I feel set back and a little pressed for time.

That being said, I’ve decided that (weather permitting) I am going to do all my running cards outside until doomsday the race. I’m hoping that my body can adapt quickly to the rougher workout and terrain, so that I can start to build up my endurance. Realistically, I know I probably will still need to walk parts of the race, and I’m okay with that. I just want to feel more comfortable with the increased physical demand and mental engagement that caught me so off-guard yesterday.

So, I’ve made myself a new workout playlist and am ready for round two—which starts bright and early tomorrow morning! Happy Sunday!

How I felt after yesterday's workout.

West Coast, Best Coast?

People in the Bay Area of CA have this whole “epic lifestyle” thing down. Okay, that might be an overgeneralization, but I have to hand it to the West Coast, they know a thing or two about a thing or two. West Coasters no doubt work very hard. But it seems like it’s just as important for them to kick it doing something they really enjoy after their work-selves have cashed in for the day. I’m talking about play, people.

Per my very limited sampling this past week, the West Coast seems to be up to lots of play and fun. And it’s largely active and outdoorsy. I can get with that. But then again, why WOULDN’T you want to be kicking it with Mother Nature all the time if you had a seemingly endless supply of sunshine, virtually no concept of humidity, and awesome views like this waiting just out your back door:

Spending the week out there was a ton of fun, and provided me with a novel, interesting take on vacation—one which I am dubbing “active relaxation.” We were busy doing something on our trip literally every day. Checking out wine country. Hiking up/down trails. Walking around a crazy house with a thousand rooms. Scoping out famous beaches overlooking rocks filled with seals. Poking around former prisons. Pretending to be at Wimbledon when playing tennis in Stanford’s stadium. Trekking San Francisco’s infamous hills. Chasing down Flash Gordon. And, of course, housing a TON of food.
Even though we were constantly moving about, it was really relaxing! What’s more, I began to feel more in touch with the stuff I “used to do”—you know, before “life” got in the way. The pace of things out there seemed to slow way down to manageable, tasty little morsels of life that I could really appreciate. Yum!

Then I returned to my “real life” in and around NYC suburbia. The stark contradiction made me realize a few things:

• One: in this area of the world, we all seem to live for work. Obviously, work is a major part of how we spend our day to day lives and can make us feel accomplished and purposeful. And I mean, who doesn’t appreciate earning some green to offset our expenses? But between commuting in, commuting out, and then trying to recuperate from everyone’s collective attitude problem so much in your face all at once  (as is the culture around here), it’s no doubt we are relatively blob-like come quitting time. Le sigh. Where’s the fun it that?! I’ll take wine country and hikes on the weekends, please!

• Two: I forgot how much I love to be outside. I grew up in what many might consider the town next to the middle of nowhere, and I can remember being outside and exploring for most of it. (I was that cool kid running around for hours, scraping trees for bark and berries, digging in the ground for worms, then putting it all in my “play pot,” mixing it with water and calling it “soup.” It’s cool, you can be jealous.) Somewhere in the grind of make believe adulthood, I lost touch with that rudimentary part of me. Major bummer. It really does make me feel good to spend time outside, simply playing. With trees I can defile, water for “soup,” and sunshine. Where being active doesn’t come with the price of feeling obligated or rushed.  It’s just the best of both worlds—peaceful exploration.

It’s high time I return to that playful part of me…she’s way more interesting (and happy—bonus!). Too bad I came to this epic conclusion during the last few weeks of summer, huh? Oh morbid coincidences…

As the fall rolls in, I’m going to make more of an effort to catch some rays, crunch some leaves, and climb some hills—if I can find them.  After all, we’re all adults here (teehee, when did that happen?), but that doesn’t mean we’re ever too old to play.

Case and point, here’s some more photos of my West Coast debauchery.

Escaping Alcatraz

The Lone Cypress

About to stick my feet in the Pacific

Buena Vista Irish Coffee

My Monterey Captain

Classic Sister Prom Pic

I carried him to the top (cough)

Domaine Carneros Vineyard

Beware of large cats whilst hiking...

The Dish.

One side of The Dish.

Other side of The Dish.

I hope you managed to get yourself into some good, old-fashioned fun during some of the last official days of summer, too!