tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25292716878621590452024-03-13T21:57:35.810-07:00Just Go RunAriellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995251370791082592noreply@blogger.comBlogger27125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2529271687862159045.post-59908257678174146692012-11-28T21:43:00.000-08:002012-11-28T21:43:07.536-08:00Getting Back in the Saddle Post-PregnancyLast night I went running for the first time in months and it felt absolutely amazing. My daughter Madison was born just under seven weeks ago on October 12. I continued running for the few months of my pregnancy but stopped running in the fifth month. Instead, I used the elliptical machine and continued with long hikes for the duration of my pregnancy. I also continued doing an abbreviated weight lifting routine during my entire pregnancy (mainly biceps, triceps, and quads). However, in the first four weeks after Madison was born, I barely got any exercise other than short neighborhood walks. And as we all know, pregnancy destroys your ab muscles so I have a lot of work to do to regain my core strength. <br />
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As a person who has exercised regularly since I was in grade school, it was a strange feeling to have to start from scratch with a workout routine. After Madison was born I first started with short walks around the neighborhood, then I gradually took longer and longer walks. Next, I started hiking again and this past weekend I went on a 2 hour hike while also carrying Madison in the carrier (she is about 11-12 pounds now). Last night I finally went on my first run!!! I tend to really watch the clock when running on a treadmill so I chose to run outside. I stuck to neighborhood streets and stayed close to my house in the event I got a half mile away and felt like death. To my surprise, running felt a lot better than I expected. I just ran two miles to start. My hips ached, my knees were a little sore, and my pace was excruciatingly slow compared to a year ago, but my breathing was not that labored and when I finished the run I felt like I could have kept going. </div>
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<u>The Goal and the Plan</u>:</div>
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When I got pregnant I immediately set a running goal for after the arrival of Madison. My goal was, and still remains, to run the half marathon in the Oakland Running Festival on March 24, 2013. I put together a 16 week training plan to ensure I meet my target. Below is a summary of the current plan:</div>
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<u>Long Run </u></div>
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<u>Week 1</u>: 4 miles </div>
<u>Week 2</u>: 4 miles <br />
<u>Week 3</u>: 5 miles<br />
<u>Week 4</u>: 5 miles<br />
<u>Week 5</u>: 6 miles<br />
<u>Week 6</u>: 6 miles<br />
<u>Week 7</u>: 7 miles<br />
<u>Week 8</u>: 7 miles<br />
<u>Week 9</u>: 8 miles<br />
<u>Week 10</u>: 8 miles<br />
<u>Week 11</u>: 10 miles<br />
<u>Week 12</u>: 8 miles<br />
<u>Week 13</u>: 12 miles<br />
<u>Week 14</u>: No Long Run - Ski Trip to Utah<br />
<u>Week 15</u>: 10 miles<br />
<u>Week 16</u>: 8 miles<br />
<u>Week 17</u>: <b>Half Marathon!!</b>Ariellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995251370791082592noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2529271687862159045.post-54823481676355527582012-01-22T16:33:00.000-08:002012-01-22T16:33:06.549-08:00Oakland Running Festival Releases 2012 Routes<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Recently the Oakland Running Festival issued a press release concerning changes to the 2012 course route, </span><a href="http://www.oaklandmarathon.com/News_Archive/2012_RUNNING_FESTIVAL_COURSES_ANNOUNCED.htm"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">found here</span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span>The start/finish line will be moved to Snow Park and the Festival’s 5K race will take place on the same day as its other running events on Sunday, March 25th. Snow Park is a really nice City park that sits at the corner of 19th and Harrison and is directly to the west of Lake Merritt, and often goes unused (except for the most recent use by the Occupy Oakland movement). </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span>Other than the move of the start/finish line, the course remains basically the same. Part of the reason for the move to Snow Park is that the </span><span>event has experienced a 43% increase in runner registrations compared to this date last year, and Frank Ogawa Plaza would not be large enough to accomodate the planned increase in the number of race participants. </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span>Here are links to the 2012 course maps.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span>- <a href="http://www.oaklandmarathon.com/Assets/Oakland+Marathon/2012FullCourse.pdf">Full Marathon Course Map</a></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span>- <a href="http://www.oaklandmarathon.com/Assets/Oakland+Marathon/2012HalfCourse.pdf">Half Marathon Course Map</a></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span>Regarding registration, both of the early registration deadlines have passed. Currently, the remaining deadlines are March 16 and registration at the Expo (most expensive).</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span><strong> March 16 / Expo</strong></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span><strong>Marathon</strong>: $ 110 / 130</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span><strong>4-Person Relay</strong>: $ 250 / 270</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span><strong>Half Marathon</strong>: $ 90 / 110</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span><strong>5K Race</strong>: $ 40 / 50</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span><strong>Fun Run</strong>: $ 15 / 15</span></span></span>Ariellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995251370791082592noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2529271687862159045.post-72110930920940534032012-01-19T17:55:00.000-08:002012-01-19T19:12:03.614-08:00Fighting the Urge to Compare<u>The Urge to Compare</u><br />
Last night I went to the gym to log a few miles on the treadmill. I usually stretch for a few minutes while standing on the treadmill before I get going. Last night, as I was stretching a tall, thin, young woman got on the treadmill to the left of mine and started running. By the sound of her feet thumping against the rubber tread, I could tell she was going at a good clip. Per usual, I took a peek at her treadmill monitor to see how fast she was going and saw she was close to a 7:30 minute mile (m/m). Most of the time the people on the treadmills are running a 10 or 11+ m/m, which of course makes me feel great since I usually run around an 8:45 or 9 m/m, but this chick was haulin' berries! I was instantly impressed, but also instantly thinking that I needed to pick up the pace. <br />
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I set out to do a short 3 mile run. I started out at around a 8:55 m/m pace, and then incorporated .25 to .5 mile intervals at 8:20 m/m, and in the end added some 8:00 m/m intervals. While running, I looked over at Wonder Woman and saw that she was now running a 7:20 m/m, making me feel even slower. Luckily, at some point a woman got on the treadmill to my right and was running somewhere around a 10:30-11:00 minute mile, which made me feel slightly less worthless. All-in-all, Wonder Woman actually motivated me to both run a little faster and avoid taking any walking breaks, which was a good result. But that is not always the case. <br />
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I'd like to say this was the first time that I actively compared my speed to others at the gym, but that would be a bald-faced lie. I often look over at the other treadmill monitors to gage whether in the stupid hypothetical treadmill race in my head, I would be winning or losing. Thus, the inspiration for this posting on fighting the urge to compare. . . .<br />
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I don't know what it is about how I was raised, or whether it is some biological instinct within me that I cannot control, but I am constantly making comparisons in my head. This often causes me to be overly competitive in stupid arenas, such as the treadmill example or in a game of Monopoly or Scrabble. Yes, I am fully aware of how ridiculous it is, so much so that I thought it might be funny to write about. <br />
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<u>Frequency and Popularity of Making Comparisons</u><br />
Sometimes making a comparison is normal, even required, such as comparing car models prior to a new purchase or comparing the success rates of one new drug against another in a drug trial. But often the urge to make comparisons can have negative repercussions. For example, often we compare ourselves to others as a means of proving why we are better or worse off or substantiating something we did or failed to do. In the treadmill example, I felt worse when confronted by a faster runner and better when confronted by a slower runner. The media, in particular, constantly draws comparisons of people in an almost obsessive fashion at times. In fact, after every single Hollywood award ceremony, television shows, magazines, and websites are devoted, for some brief period, entirely to deciding who was the best and worst dressed. In the current pre-election cycle for the 2012 presidential election, we constantly hear superficial and substantive comparisons of the various political candidates.<br />
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In the past year, I've thought a lot about the positive and negative implications of making comparisons in the context of running, both personally and with others. In many instances comparisons motivate us to train harder and run faster, but in other situations it can be self-destructive or even frighten people away from running entirely.<br />
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<u>When Running Comparisons Are Harmful</u><br />
I've heard countless stories from a host of different people about how they cannot run, or could never run a 10K, half-marathon, or marathon. Two years ago, I myself said on a number of occasions that I couldn't picture running a half marathon. And only a year or so ago I said that I couldn't see myself running a marathon. On both occasions, I placed these limitations on myself because I compared myself to all the people I knew who had run a half-marathon or a marathon and determined that I wasn't the type of person that could run a marathon. As I learned, that comparison was complete horse-shit. Last year I ran three half-marathons and this past September I finished my first full marathon. When I meet people who tell me how they couldn't possibly run a specified distance, I like to tell this story. <strong>Lesson: Avoid using comparisons as a means of placing unnecessary limitations on yourself.</strong><br />
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<u>When Running Comparisons Are Helpful</u><br />
In a race you are given a rank according to your overall finish times among all runners and those in your age group. Race ranks can provide motivation to a lot of people (myself included) by providing runners with a goal such as finishing in the top of an age group, or perhaps just trying not to be the last finisher. Race results can also provide feelings of self-satisfaction, especially for rock star runners like Wonder Woman on the treadmill, or for those lucky SOBs that find themselves in a group of slow runners in a particular race. I recently got lucky and placed third in my age-group. I was, unabashedly, super excited upon learning this news.<br />
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But, race ranks do not provide a runner with an evaluation of his or her<em> objectively based performance, </em>and for this reason can be disappointing in that they fail to recognize each individual runner's personal achievement. As an example: even though you cut 5 minutes off your time for a set distance, your race rank could go down if the runners in the second race are generally faster than those from the first race. Luckily, the concept of a "PR" in running is given a great deal of attention--at least in running magazines--offering runners a means of gaging their own improvement without making any comparisons to others. <strong> </strong>Thus, where you cut 5 minutes off your time, but your race rank is in the toilet, you still have bragging rights for setting a new PR. <strong>Advice: Use comparisons when they motivate you, but avoid comparisons that undervalue your personal achievements.</strong> <br />
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<br />Ariellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995251370791082592noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2529271687862159045.post-60981419863719198302011-11-06T14:14:00.001-08:002012-01-04T18:21:51.991-08:00Recent Races: Mt. Diablo Trail Adventure 10K Race and New Year's Eve 10K RaceDuring the past three months since the Half Moon Bay marathon I have been taking it easy, but I have been getting outside to run here and there, and I even ran two 10K races.
After completing the marathon I wanted to let my body rest, enjoy my weekends, and take a break from training for a little while. That said, I didn't want to completely lose the level of fitness that I gained during the past year. <br />
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After a month went by, I found that without an upcoming race scheduled, I had lost some of my motivation to log more miles both during the week and on the weekends. During marathon training I had avoided doing steep trails and focused on logging miles on flat surfaces. But now I had the freedom to sign up for anything, without fearing that it would disrupt my training. So I decided I would sign up for a a few local and low-key trail races to finish out 2011.<br />
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<b>Brazen Mt. Diablo Trail Adventure 10K</b><br />
On November 6, 2011 I ran in the <a href="http://www.brazenracing.com/DTAresults.html">Mt. Diablo Trail Adventure </a>10k (6.2 miles) race. In advance of the race I emailed a few of my friends who enjoy running. Come race day, my husband and four friends, and one of those friend's daughter participated in either the 10k or the 5k race! Below is a picture of all of us from after the race.
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisNKwNrbVmSXJAmGoz-Uglyhl29l38DrIRi6WEw45E2yGtRp0-LI1QdaeUWYtvIkfJop0I4wawb2WEqYna1FfiYpyrHn4xhtxEmtXkww_c9l0W395_X7SOwdURLXB7YUhY8JA4aVgJvwU/s1600/2011-11-06_11-21-53_89.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisNKwNrbVmSXJAmGoz-Uglyhl29l38DrIRi6WEw45E2yGtRp0-LI1QdaeUWYtvIkfJop0I4wawb2WEqYna1FfiYpyrHn4xhtxEmtXkww_c9l0W395_X7SOwdURLXB7YUhY8JA4aVgJvwU/s400/2011-11-06_11-21-53_89.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
The route included two steep ascents with two equally steep descents. The route was entirely on dirt packed trails and was absolutely beautiful. My friend Julie and I ran together, and she ended up really helping me to push my pace faster. She and I finished at the same time and we both placed third in our age groups (we are a few years apart)!!! I actually thought I placed fourth in my age group but when I checked the race results page they updated the information and it listed me as being in third place! That was first time I've ever gotten a medal in a race! Below is a link to my Garmin information for the race.<br />
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<iframe frameborder="0" height="548" src="http://connect.garmin.com:80/activity/embed/126968637" width="465"></iframe> </div>
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<b>Brazen New Year's Eve 10K at Lake Chabot</b> </div>
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The last race that I ran in 2011 was the <a href="http://www.brazenracing.com/newyearseveresults.html">Brazen Racing New Year's Eve 10K race at Lake Chabot</a>. This race was also a steep trail run, but a portion of it was on paved walking trails. The route included one long climb from mile 2 through mile 3.5, followed by an equally steep descent from mile 3.5 through 5. </div>
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This time I was again joined by some great friends. My husband ran the 10k with me, our neighbors and friends ran the half marathon race, and my friend who ran the Mt. Diablo 5k with her daughter, came back for this race and ran in the 5K again with her daughter.
Below is my Garmin information for the race. This time I ended up placing ninth out of 41 runners (no medal) in my age group.</div>
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<iframe frameborder="0" height="548" src="http://connect.garmin.com:80/activity/embed/137854016" width="465"></iframe></div>Ariellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995251370791082592noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2529271687862159045.post-24271491357191529202011-11-06T14:09:00.000-08:002011-11-06T14:11:31.415-08:00Recap on Half Moon Bay Marathon - September 25, 2011<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
On September 25, 2011 I ran in the inaugural <a href="http://halfmoonbayim.org/">Half Moon Bay International Marathon</a>, and finished! It is still hard for me to believe that I finally completed a full marathon, and I am still really thankful that I was able to do it considering the issue I had with my Peroneal tendons. I am also thankful that I was able to fit in my long training runs and that I never had any real disasters during training, except for one long run where I definitely had an electrolyte imbalance and mild heat exhaustion. It has taken me about six weeks to finally sit down and write a post, but here it is.</div>
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<b>Night Before</b><br />
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The night before we went to the Half Moon Bay Brewing Company and I had a grilled chicken sandwich with french fries, and a small 12 oz beer in honor of my husband's birthday that day (September 24). My husband had the beer sampler, which looked delicious. After dinner, back in our hotel room, I had some <a href="https://annies.alice.com/products/1275981">Annie's Honey Bunny Grahams</a> and dipped them in peanut butter - pretty delicious. We watched some half-decent movie on cable in the hotel room and then went to bed around 9:30 p.m.<br />
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<b>Morning of the Race</b><br />
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My memory is getting a little foggy now on the details, but I believe that I got out of bed at around 5 a.m. the morning of the race. I took a hot shower, and had coffee, a peanut-butter and jelly sandwich on white bread, and probably a few other small items (likely a few Annie's Honey Bunnies Grahams), and drank some water.<br />
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I filled my CamelBak with Gu Brew for the race. I was worried about my electrolyte balance since I experienced some problems with that on one of my longest run (discussed in a prior post). I also packed Gu Energy Gels, Espresso Love and Vanilla Bean, which tastes like cake batter, yum! The race started at 7:00 a.m., so we started walking to the starting line from the hotel around 6:30 a.m.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt9K-5UDvFDplbDojjOyjZRPQ2b3NXOrtpRTB7vNv3TfbdeeZbA5mRkV0Wk7p_xrao_BbAxvWfBk5iznu4V4svpljHj47tQDvt7fI6D2p0Oe6DQlP9TzKDyr1Z76-yNbasPraQLhrFzg0/s1600/P1040103.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt9K-5UDvFDplbDojjOyjZRPQ2b3NXOrtpRTB7vNv3TfbdeeZbA5mRkV0Wk7p_xrao_BbAxvWfBk5iznu4V4svpljHj47tQDvt7fI6D2p0Oe6DQlP9TzKDyr1Z76-yNbasPraQLhrFzg0/s200/P1040103.JPG" width="168" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_AS7nE0MhaoqJAhvo3HfnbTnjJ24OxFqM6-1gUh6DGf8hg0i9H1bEWLlIDhyCJl3Kgy6i5BPySH9RYptBsWxUv5mCsr7zn4ZQ9B2YP16jyhbK_dW1tNm31UKD_2pPFQh7ERoohvC1sbc/s1600/P1040105.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_AS7nE0MhaoqJAhvo3HfnbTnjJ24OxFqM6-1gUh6DGf8hg0i9H1bEWLlIDhyCJl3Kgy6i5BPySH9RYptBsWxUv5mCsr7zn4ZQ9B2YP16jyhbK_dW1tNm31UKD_2pPFQh7ERoohvC1sbc/s200/P1040105.JPG" width="198" /></a><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizpLS5f8rPSViN4ZbZJA0vd-3DtX54gRvnlb8L0AIn_y5Xcrbq63zDdkmcwjFbknKIx5sC1cvQDrmifHsOd8WhwlFiz6xCGwvE_Lwb_cxbc6d5jWp-QMLYk7O5PKIxmsYjzRbWzNYze_A/s1600/P1040108.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizpLS5f8rPSViN4ZbZJA0vd-3DtX54gRvnlb8L0AIn_y5Xcrbq63zDdkmcwjFbknKIx5sC1cvQDrmifHsOd8WhwlFiz6xCGwvE_Lwb_cxbc6d5jWp-QMLYk7O5PKIxmsYjzRbWzNYze_A/s400/P1040108.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo taken a few minutes before the race started.</td></tr>
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<b>Setting</b><br />
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The setting of the course was absolutely beautiful. The majority of the course was on dirt packed trails along the coast. The beginning of the course had a grouping of small steep hills, probably starting at around mile 2.3 through mile 9. Then the course was flat until about mile 16 or 17, at which point there was another grouping of hills around the Ritz Carlton. Below is information about the course from my Garmin watch, followed by a few photos of the course.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7NWdjyGKjGBgtErN1FJ_DIvUkt-SS5ii8p2FqBws8JR4AVNcICkj-OnATLHjXiaPgZ6hbcQY0P47glA-a9FviBHlxcInzcuhT7CXhGAzN28FDzSt3nw1vXQfWQDkG9JVVemJk2auRohg/s1600/IMG_6464.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7NWdjyGKjGBgtErN1FJ_DIvUkt-SS5ii8p2FqBws8JR4AVNcICkj-OnATLHjXiaPgZ6hbcQY0P47glA-a9FviBHlxcInzcuhT7CXhGAzN28FDzSt3nw1vXQfWQDkG9JVVemJk2auRohg/s400/IMG_6464.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View of the course looking south right after the race started.<br />
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I finished in 4 hours and 28 minutes, with a 10:14 minute mile average pace. I had hoped to run closer to a 10:00 minute mile, but in the end I was happy to have finished. Below is a shot of me crossing the finish line!<br />
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I didn't experience any pain (or if any very slight) in my ankle or in my hips during the race, which was great. At one point I think I twisted my ankle, but it did not hurt until after I finished the race. I was limping the rest of the day after the race and the following day, but after putting my entire foot in an ice bath the following evening, the pain completely went away!! All-in-all, it was a really successful race!<br />
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<br />Ariellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995251370791082592noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2529271687862159045.post-24066517929875181862011-09-24T13:01:00.000-07:002011-11-06T13:02:44.866-08:00Countdown to Half Moon BayLess than two days until the inaugural <a href="http://halfmoonbayim.org/">Half Moon Bay International Marathon</a>! We leave for Half Moon Bay Saturday mid-day and will be staying at a hotel only 0.4 miles from the starting line of the race. <br /><br />This past week I've done my best to sleep more, eat relatively well, and not drink any alcohol. I did a nice interval run on Wednesday and today, Friday, I am going to do an easy 2 mile run with a little bit of elliptical. Tomorrow, I plan on either resting completely or doing an easy 2-3 mile run. <br /><br />Saturday I am hoping to see Scott Jurek speak at the Expo. Saturday night, Adam and I are going to eat at the <a href="http://www.hmbbrewingco.com/">Half Moon Bay Brewing Company</a>.Ariellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995251370791082592noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2529271687862159045.post-26636848838951389052011-09-04T08:45:00.000-07:002011-09-07T19:24:00.470-07:00The Big OneThis past Sunday was the longest of the long runs in my marathon training plan: a 22 mile run. Here is a recap of how it went.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Preparation, or Lack Thereof</span><br /><br />The week leading up to the run was perhaps the busiest five-day period I experienced at work, ever. I squeezed in a short work out Thursday morning, but otherwise did not exercise during the week. Thursday night I never went home and instead had to work through the entire night. I did, luckily, go home early on Friday and took a nap. Needless to say, I did not have a chance to prepare for my long run in the manner I had hoped (i.e. a few good but short runs, ample stretching, and sufficient sleep). I also did not plan out my running route or check my supply of running fuel (obvious foreshadowing here) -mistake number one.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Morning of the Run</span><br /><br />Sunday morning came along and instead of waking up early and hitting the pavement, I slept in. And here we have mistake number two. As I lied in bed Sunday morning, looking for any excuse to hit snooze on my alarm clock, I seized upon the following excuse: it was more important to recoup the sleep I lost Thursday night than it was to get up early and run during the cooler hours of the day. Well, all I can say is that this excuse sounded entirely rational at the time.<br /><br />After waking up late, I made a third mistake, I decided to run on the Iron Horse Trail (IHT). I was toying with either running on the Bay Trail or the IHT, but chose the IHT because it was a much simpler and more straightforward route. Because I've never gone more than 10 miles on the Bay Trail, I wasn't entirely sure how I would piece together a 22 mile run without doing loops. Also, the Bay Trail has no water fountains while the IHT has several on the northern end of the trail. I ran out of water for my 19 mile run a few weeks ago while on the IHT and ended up using the water fountains a lot during the last several miles. I checked the weather forecast for Walnut Creek and Danville, and it said that it will only be around 77 degrees at 1pm. I could handle 77 degrees. The decision was made, I would run on the IHT. <br /><br />Thankfully, no mistakes were made with regard to the pre-run meal. Breakfast that morning consisted of a peanut butter, jelly, and banana sandwich, a small amount of coffee with soy milk, and a glass of water. <br /><br />As I gathered my things to head out the door, I realized I only had two GU gels, which was definitely not enough for a four hour run. I drove to the local running store only to find out they would not open for several more hours. I then scrambled home to search for any GU gels that I might have missed earlier in the morning (and get my Garmin watch, which I forgot to grab). I found no additional GU gels or Chomps. I did have a single granola bar, but I knew that if I ate that during the run my stomach would revolt. Finally, I called my brother-in-law and was able to borrow two gels from him.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">The Run</span><br />I finally got on the road at 10:15 a.m., almost two hours later than the time I left the house for my 19 mile run a few weeks ago. As soon as I drove through the Caldecott tunnel into Orinda, the cool and refreshing mist hovering over Oakland and Berkeley was nowhere to be seen. Instead, an almost cloudless sky lay overhead. My stress level increased ever so slightly. But I could not turn around. We had a big dinner planned that night and there was no way in hell I would be in a better position to run tomorrow morning. There was no turning back. <br /><br />I finally arrive at the IHT. It is 10:45 a.m. and it is already warm, not hot, but warm, probably somewhere around 70 degrees. The majority of the IHT was drenched in sun. I took every opportunity I could to run in the shade, when shade was available. But only a few miles of the trail had consistent shade. After only 5 miles I tore off my tank top and just ran in my sports bra. By the time I reached the half-way point of 11 miles I was really tired and pretty damn hot but still had energy left. <br /><br />When I got to 18 miles I began feeling nauseous and slightly light-headed. At one point I really thought I was going to vomit, but I did not--thank god! To this day I have not vomited during a run. I stopped for a few minutes under a tree to rest and do a self-assessment. The last thing I wanted was to faint from heat exhaustion. I started back up again, but for the last three miles I ended up doing a combination run/walk. I would run for maybe a half mile, then walk for a few minutes, then run another half mile, then walk for a few minutes. I ran the last half mile and finished the full 22 miles. One great thing about the run is that I had no pain in my left hip and no pain in my feet or my ankle, and for that I was very thankful. I did not finish the run until around 3pm--meaning I ran during the hottest hours of the day--what an idiot I am. I checked the temperature when I finished the run and it was about 84 degrees. I know, that does not sound very hot, but after 22 miles I felt really uncomfortable.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Post-Run:</span><br /><br />For several hours after the run I did not feel right. I know, who the hell feels "right" after running their first 22 mile run? But, I am not referring to fatigue or muscle soreness, but something else. I drank a few glasses of water and had a protein shake. But then I started feeling nauseous again. I started thinking that my electrolyte balance was off. We had plans to get drinks and then dinner, with a departure time of around 6pm. I quickly drank a small glass of salt water but then had to leave the house. <br /><br />When we got to the bar I ordered some olives (for the salt content) and had a small 12 oz beer. After eating two small dishes of deliciously salty green olives I finally started to feel better. At dinner I also felt fine. I had only a little bit of wine with dinner (well two small glasses), and otherwise only had green tea and a lot of water. The only thing that persisted through the evening was that my face felt like it was on fire all night--like I had a sunburn, but I didn't. <br /><br />Then came the late hours of the night. I initially fell asleep, but then found I could not sleep sometime after 1 a.m. I was really hot and my face still felt like it was sunburned. I finally got up and turned on the fan, but found that I still couldn't sleep and then realized I was really thirsty. Eventually, at around a quarter to 3 a.m. I got up and went to the kitchen and read about the signs and symptoms of heat exhaustion and heat stroke. I drank a full glass of water, then realized that I had some free samples of electrolyte drink mix. I poured another glass of water and added the electrolyte mix, ate half a banana, and cooled my face with an ice cube. I got back in bed around 3:15 and was able to fall asleep after a half-an-hour or so. Today I felt fine.<br /><br />And there you have it, the full story. The Half Moon Bay International Marathon is now less than three weeks away. After this past weekend, I am relieved that I chose a marathon with a coastal route, as there is no chance it will be hot in the morning. If anything, I will likely be cold for the first several miles. My remaining long runs are not very long at all, one 13 mile run, and one 8-10 mile run the weekend prior to the race.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Lessons Learned From Sunday's Run:</span> <br />(1) Always plan out the route for a really long run (especially a new distance) at least one day in advance; <br />(2) Check on your GU gel supply prior to the morning of the run; <br />(3) By all means get your ass out of bed and run early when running for more than two hours; and <br />(4) Do not underestimate the heat.Ariellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995251370791082592noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2529271687862159045.post-83167984233522268082011-08-21T15:31:00.000-07:002011-08-25T11:09:56.382-07:00Iron Horse Trail - 19 Mile RunLast Saturday I ran 19 miles on the <a href="http://www.ebparks.org/parks/trails/iron_horse">Iron Horse Trail</a>. I began the run around 9:15 am in Danville, ran south through San Ramon, then turned around and ran north up to the south side of Walnut Creek, and then back to where I started. I finished the run sometime around 12:40. The last hour or so of the run I did my best to run underneath the shadows of the trees along the trail, but many stretches of the trail were soaked in sunlight. Below is a map of the route I took.
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<br />I have not widely broadcasted that I signed up for the Inaugural <a href="http://halfmoonbayim.org/">Half Moon Bay International Marathon</a> on September 25, 2011. I signed up a few weeks ago just prior to the event selling out. I have been superstitious about the marathon distance after getting injured back in May, and now I've been experiencing soreness in my right foot since the 16 miler. But, the reason I ran 19 miles is because I am training with my eyes set on running the Half Moon Bay marathon.
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<br />I originally planned to run 18 miles, but around mile 10 I started thinking that my last mile jump was from 13 to 16 (3 miles) with a lower mileage week in between. If I wanted my longest run prior to the Half Moon Bay marathon to be 22 miles, it would not be a good idea to do an increase of 4 miles for my next run (18-22). But, if I ran 19 miles, I would have consistent 3 mile increases in mileage (16-19-22). Hopefully, I'll be in a position to run the full 22 miles. From a confidence standpoint, it felt great to finish 19 miles last weekend. A year ago if someone told me I was going to run 19 miles in August 2011, I probably wouldn't have believed him/her. A year ago this time, I hadn't even run 10 miles yet.
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<br />For the 19 mile run my pace was 9:54 - with a moving time of 3:07:22. But including all my breaks for water/GU/stoplights, the total elapsed time was 3:20:09, meaning all of my breaks put together totalled 13 minutes, making my actual pace around a 10:30 pace. I'm pretty sure the majority of the breaks occurred in the last 6 miles. My Camelbak was running low on water so I started to stop at the water fountains.
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<br />The weekend of September 3/4 is the 22 mile run --the longest run prior to the marathon. After that I get to taper my mileage prior to the marathon. I'm anxious to get the 22 miles done with!!
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<br /><iframe width='465' height='548' frameborder='0' src='http://connect.garmin.com:80/activity/embed/108406455'></iframe>Ariellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995251370791082592noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2529271687862159045.post-83667756126662345172011-08-12T11:32:00.000-07:002011-08-12T11:40:53.061-07:00Quick UpdateI am very excited today because while I still have some slight soreness in my foot, I do not think it is anything serious. Earlier in the week I was really nervous that I had a new injury to deal with, but the bruise has gone away and the pain has significantly decreased.
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<br />I took a few days off this week and iced the bottom of my right foot to help the inflammation go down. On Tuesday night I just rode the bike at the gym. Yesterday morning I ran a quarter mile to see whether I experienced any pain during or after. I had absolutely no pain at all! Last night I rode the bike and then ran just 1 mile (per Dr. Jess's orders) at the gym and again had no pain during or after! This weekend I had originally planned on running 13 miles, but I will probably only run 6-9 miles just to give my body a rest. The weekend of August 20/21 is when I'll run my first 18 miler and I want to make sure I am feeling strong for that run. Ariellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995251370791082592noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2529271687862159045.post-32252867834134895072011-08-07T16:42:00.000-07:002011-08-09T18:41:01.279-07:00Sonoma 16 Mile RunLast Friday, August 5th, I went on my first ever 16 mile run! We were away for the weekend so I had to find a route in the area we were staying. The route was in the town of Sonoma. I coasted through vineyards, farms, a little bit of high-traffic roadway, and then the lovely downtown Sonoma and residential area around the town. I averaged a 9:48 minute/mile, faster than I thought. I was actually aiming for a slow 10:00 to 10:15 min./mile pace.
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<br />Unfortunately, Sunday morning (almost 48 after the run) I woke up with pain in the bottom of my right foot. I cannot remember whether the pain started Saturday or not because I spent most of yesterday wine tasting and the effects of the wine may have dulled the pain. I do know that I had no pain in my foot during my run. Here is a photo of the bruise that formed on the bottom of my foot:
<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj78NoxkDv5mWr8heOgMKPQ2YDwk4k0dZs5BuCp08npd5QlVnyTmaLnpvPs5z7bi1AXM8CdCg5p6MUOvQmffXtwNEFvR0uJcGAj4pFpjv_tQ1KzRjTiOd5VHfISWC3N3Yva7h_syq2NGXQ/s1600/P1030932.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj78NoxkDv5mWr8heOgMKPQ2YDwk4k0dZs5BuCp08npd5QlVnyTmaLnpvPs5z7bi1AXM8CdCg5p6MUOvQmffXtwNEFvR0uJcGAj4pFpjv_tQ1KzRjTiOd5VHfISWC3N3Yva7h_syq2NGXQ/s320/P1030932.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5638323150640009922" /></a>
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<br />When I apply pressure to the spot where the bruise is located, it is really painful. However, I am able to walk with basically no pain. My foot ached on Sunday but hasn't really ached since then. There is only pain when pressure is applied directly. Sunday night I read some scary stuff online about tears to the plantar fascia and so I made an appointment with Dr. Jess for Monday (yesterday).
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<br />Dr. Jess looked at my foot/ankle and said she cannot be sure yet whether I tore the plantar fascia. She told me not to run for a few days, then run just a quarter mile and see how it feels the day after. If the pain doesn't spike or get worse, I can run a mile after another two days. She said I cannot do a long run this week. I will see her again next Tuesday. I am desperately hoping that the pain will resolve itself quickly and that I can return to doing long distance runs in a week or so.
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<br />I'll report back soon. Cross your fingers that this damn thing goes away!Ariellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995251370791082592noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2529271687862159045.post-28353844532596136262011-07-31T13:58:00.000-07:002011-08-07T21:39:40.402-07:00San Francisco Half MarathonToday I ran in the San Francisco Half Marathon. My goal for this race was to beat my time from the Oakland Running Festival Half Marathon (which was 1:59:38). I accomplished my goal, I shaved off five whole minutes!! Here are my stats:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Finish Time</span>: 1:54:28 (8:44 minute mile pace)<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Overall</span>: 1025/4244 = top 24%<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Female</span>: 301/2367= top 12.7%<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Age Group</span> - <span style="font-weight:bold;">F20-29</span>: 123/756= top 16%<br /><br />This time I raised money for the HALO Trust, a non-profit organization that clears land mines all over the world. With the help of friends, family, and co-workers, <a href="http://www.crowdrise.com/ArielleHarris">I was able to raise $700.</a> <br /><br />I ran in the "Second Half" which started in Golden Gate park at Spreckels Lake, meandered through the park, then eventually through the Haight/Asbury district, down through SOMA (area South of Market), past AT&T Park Stadium, and down the Embarcadero, ending just before the Ferry Building. Here is a shot my husband took of the finish line.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOqNmQ-vf230rAVZ_kaMdseFy0hYejrd1SOJqJKyfrEMJhDSJhKLBO-8PQTshpNFzQyPlhPhYBiWfseMlHpw6z4IkCzMwAJII421DAW6tAZ7kHzIirde8QsG0yo2MTQNsZwZg2355xAmA/s1600/P1030799.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOqNmQ-vf230rAVZ_kaMdseFy0hYejrd1SOJqJKyfrEMJhDSJhKLBO-8PQTshpNFzQyPlhPhYBiWfseMlHpw6z4IkCzMwAJII421DAW6tAZ7kHzIirde8QsG0yo2MTQNsZwZg2355xAmA/s320/P1030799.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5635678193612528690" /></a><br /><br />My friend JP ran this race with me again, which always makes things more fun!! She and I ran together the whole time, so she had the same finish time as me!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv5eV9IUFWIpd2AfV1doUspD07JQQ_cH2JC-Thw6n8fXQhqp_YZCvU1OIhmjmqSCj2yxxQxbwL4FdNFMGmg1gegVlMM7jlC0P3Xo9MEwfuCtnGsxbPyNpARmdAl_OdLzKbe4DWzVDjzkY/s1600/P1030806.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 304px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv5eV9IUFWIpd2AfV1doUspD07JQQ_cH2JC-Thw6n8fXQhqp_YZCvU1OIhmjmqSCj2yxxQxbwL4FdNFMGmg1gegVlMM7jlC0P3Xo9MEwfuCtnGsxbPyNpARmdAl_OdLzKbe4DWzVDjzkY/s320/P1030806.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5635678197474424722" /></a><br /><br />Here is a shot of my husband and me, enjoying the free Sierra Nevada that was offered at the finish line area.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBndVjUAHmr5_Wa9CS6wq2O-PcjxaeXngaxk8-fnoGfPCiuQVIbVCURWDBi10dUfTE6DPaHVbtkPPfIFN4qsuxP3d2TwbPtKtgV1EPW1xTp92Gg-LeRVnk4motRP6d7ZH7j62IwZxd-NY/s1600/P1030807.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 270px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBndVjUAHmr5_Wa9CS6wq2O-PcjxaeXngaxk8-fnoGfPCiuQVIbVCURWDBi10dUfTE6DPaHVbtkPPfIFN4qsuxP3d2TwbPtKtgV1EPW1xTp92Gg-LeRVnk4motRP6d7ZH7j62IwZxd-NY/s320/P1030807.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5635680637031377314" /></a><br /><br /><br />Below is the map & time from my Garmin watch. My Garmin was off by 30 seconds because it clocked the end of the race by .1 miles too soon. The distance of the Garmin is probably accurate in that it likely reflects the tiny amount of distance added by weaving around other runners for the first several miles. Even though the race had five different wave times, there were a lot of runners in front of us with a much slower pace than our wave group. The beginning of the route was also narrow, making it harder to get around people. Once we got out of Golden Gate Park, we had much more space to maneuver around other runners. <br /><iframe width='465' height='548' frameborder='0' src='http://connect.garmin.com:80/activity/embed/103177026'></iframe>Ariellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995251370791082592noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2529271687862159045.post-57688047096157829342011-07-28T19:57:00.001-07:002011-07-28T20:13:58.429-07:00Street Speed Intervals With DogThis week I did 2 rounds of interval training. On Monday I did my regular 400 meter repeats with a mile warm-up on the treadmill for a total of 4 miles. <br /><br />Tonight I took Jackson (my dog), and my husband, on a speed interval run on the streets around our neighborhood. We started with a mile warm-up, followed by 4-400 meter sprints at around 6:30-7:00 minute mile pace. Then we finished with a cool-down mile.<br /><iframe width='465' height='548' frameborder='0' src='http://connect.garmin.com:80/activity/embed/102463185'></iframe><br />It was really difficult doing fast running with Jackson because he wanted to sprint<span style="font-style:italic;"> really</span> fast, instead of moderately fast. At first he was sort of all over the place. We taught him the "heel walk" a while ago, but it was necessary to teach him the "heel run" tonight. Basically I taught him not to run all over the place in front of me like some crazy monkey, and instead run alongside me and keep my pace. It is definitely a work in progress. Jackson is still panting from our run! The picture below was taken of him about 10 minutes after we finished the run.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9y2kDyapB546JimWjKSrAb7MDAkVbjSh7QNBIAbHwAucqL90p-W4u-RX9Kn8QHOnq3qUDHWfD6K3XkUr2tmkaTq0grD-IIDKHWZo01fanP80QTjIM9lfJETNfDZd_9Poxr8QHoNsFmpU/s1600/P1030793.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9y2kDyapB546JimWjKSrAb7MDAkVbjSh7QNBIAbHwAucqL90p-W4u-RX9Kn8QHOnq3qUDHWfD6K3XkUr2tmkaTq0grD-IIDKHWZo01fanP80QTjIM9lfJETNfDZd_9Poxr8QHoNsFmpU/s320/P1030793.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5634606516691453938" /></a>Ariellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995251370791082592noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2529271687862159045.post-58685585234285561442011-07-27T16:54:00.000-07:002011-07-27T17:13:42.826-07:00Flying Yoga on Telegraph in OaklandI have been having a lot of tightness in my hips and legs from the last few long runs I've done. I've been doing exercises on my own to loosen the muscles in my hips (particularly my left which is weaker), but in preparation for this weekend's half marathon I wanted to make sure I could squeeze in a good solid yoga class.<br /><br />Last night I finally had a chance to check out <a href="http://www.flyingyogashala.com/">Flying Yoga</a> on Telegraph Avenue in the Temescal district of Oakland. I went to the 7:45 p.m. Bhakti Flow class with <a href="http://www.facebook.com/RachelMeyerYoga">Rachel Meyer</a>. <br /><br />The sequencing in the Bhakti Flow class encourages alignment, flexibility, balance, strength, and cardiovascular endurance. The climate of the class was moderately hot. Rachel played music during the class and I found it really added to the experience for me. I found that the songs coincided well with the flow of the movements and I liked the artists she chose. Rachel did chant at a few points during the class, but it was tasteful and not annoying.<br /><br />I found the class appropriately challenging. While they say it is "moderately hot" I was definitely dripping in sweat during most of the class (as were my neighbors). Some of the postures were cardiovascularly challenging, but the emphasis was not huge on strength building (it isn't Power Yoga). By the end of the class I felt rejuvinated and relaxed. <br /><br />I definitely recommend Flying Yoga to new and experienced practitioners of Yoga!Ariellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995251370791082592noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2529271687862159045.post-50203776250664114682011-07-24T21:37:00.000-07:002011-07-24T21:39:51.634-07:00Bay Trail 10 Mile RunSaturday's 10 miler went pretty well, I clocked a 9:03 minute mile. Note, this time did not include one bathroom break at mile 5, and the break I took for stretching after the first mile. <br /><br />Next week is the half marathon!!!!<br /><br /><br /><iframe width='465' height='548' frameborder='0' src='http://connect.garmin.com:80/activity/embed/101185183'></iframe>Ariellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995251370791082592noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2529271687862159045.post-6622402285682919282011-07-18T17:43:00.000-07:002011-07-18T17:47:13.521-07:00Almost ThereThis past weekend I ran 12 miles for the first time since the flare up in my tendons, and I had no pain after the run nor any pain today! The longest distance I've run to date still remains at 14.5 miles. Hopefully in a few weeks I will be back to that distance.<br /><br />The half marathon is now less than two weeks away!! I will try to post photos of the event.Ariellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995251370791082592noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2529271687862159045.post-73319270145730522452011-06-26T19:05:00.000-07:002011-06-27T09:29:50.565-07:00Making ProgressIt has been three weeks since I've posted an update. The one major thing (well major in my eyes) that I dealt with in the past few weeks was coming to terms with the fact that I wouldn't be able to run the SF Marathon. Because of my injury, I got way off track on my training regimen. I will, however, be ready to run a 1/2 marathon by July 31st. So I downgraded from the full to the half, and that sure is better than not being able to run at all. This will be my third 1/2 marathon, and maybe my fastest? The route will have several hills, so it may be challenging to beat my time from the Oakland 1/2 (which was flat), but I'm going to give it a shot.<br /><br />The last three weeks I have intensely focused on my stride and the number of steps per second I take while running. I still run with the metronome, but now use it for about half of my runs. Each week for the past five weeks I've been adding one mile per week. Dr. Jess had me start with just 3 miles, which was tough considering I was running 14 before I got injured. The exciting thing is that by increasing my steps per minute to an average of 180-182 I have gotten a little faster. Last week my long run was 6 miles, and I kept an average pace of 9:08. <br /><iframe width='465' height='548' frameborder='0' src='http://connect.garmin.com:80/activity/embed/93617439'></iframe><br /><br />This past work-week I only managed to run once, but I had a strong 3 mile run with an 8:28 pace. I had a few stop-light breaks during the run, which helped, but overall I didn't actually push myself that hard. This week I think I will try for an 8:20 or 8:18 for my short run.<br /><iframe width='465' height='548' frameborder='0' src='http://connect.garmin.com:80/activity/embed/94249043'></iframe><br /><br />On Thursday I went to a yoga class for the first time in a long, long time. I go through spurts where I attend a lot of yoga classes. Then I will go for months without attending any. I struggled during Thursday's class, which isn't normal for me, and a sure-tell sign of how weak my upper body strength is. Today, Sunday, my arms and shoulders were still sore. It's time that I incorporate more cross-training into my weekly routine.<br /><br />Looking ahead to the 1/2 marathon, I figured out this past week that I needed to start increasing my long run mileage by more than 1 mile per week, otherwise I wouldn't be ready. Today I ran 8 miles (increase of 2 from last week). I ran down to Lake Merritt and back and was, again, surprised by my time. For my long runs I usually clock between a 9:30 and 10:00 pace, depending on the length of the run and whether it is a new distance. Today, I successfully ran 8 miles with no pain during or after the run. Not only that, I ran an average 9:07 pace for the 8 miles. I think that might have been my fastest 8 mile. I would have gotten a sub-9 minute mile if the run had been flat, but the incline on the way back dragged my time above 9 minutes. <br /><iframe width='465' height='548' frameborder='0' src='http://connect.garmin.com:80/activity/embed/95142782'></iframe><br /><br />All in all, while getting injured was not fun, I am starting to think that I am becoming a stronger runner. By focusing on my form and working on key muscle weaknesses, I am slowly getting faster and hopefully, more efficient. I am still going to Dr. Jess Greaux about once a week. She has been exploring other parts of my right leg to see what other muscles are having issues. We discovered that I have a really tender and tight spot on my upper thigh, slightly to the back of my IT band. I also have a lot of tenderness in the lower part of my calf. The good news is that the area surrounding the upper portion of my peroneus muscles is markedly better. The scar tissue in the muscle and the nerve entrapment are almost entirely gone!! Now I just need to get the remainder of my leg muscles healthy! <br /><br />I've now got my eyes on the inaugural Half Moon Bay Marathon in late September. I haven't registered yet. I am going to wait a few more weeks to assess how my body is feeling and whether or not I continue to make progress. I also need to plan out a new training program that will prepare me in enough time. There are so many marathons to choose from in the fall, that I am confident I'll be able to find one that works.Ariellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995251370791082592noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2529271687862159045.post-63539208863550845012011-06-06T20:51:00.000-07:002011-06-06T22:27:38.421-07:00Diagnosis, a Video, and a Metronome<span style="font-weight:bold;">First Visit: Initial Diagnosis</span><br />During my first appointment with Dr. Jess Greaux at Innersport I learned that my suspicions about the pain originating from the peroneal tendons and peroneal muscles was correct. Unfortunately, I was hoping that I had a simple tendonitis, but her initial diagnosis is that I have tendinosis. Tendinosis is defined as damage to a tendon at a cellular level. It is thought to be caused by microtears in the connective tissue in and around the tendon, leading to an increase in tendon repair cells. Explained another way, tendinosis is an accumulation over time of small-scale injuries that don't heal properly; it is a chronic injury of failed healing. She pointed out that I had a build-up of scar tissue all along the side of my right calf where it was currently experiencing tenderness and pain.<br /><br />Dr. Greaux (or Dr. Jess) used <a href="http://innersport.com/services/art/">Active Release Technique (ART</a>) and the <a href="http://innersport.com/services/graston-technique/">Graston Technique</a> on the side of my right calf where the muscles and tendons were tender to the touch. She also applied <a href="http://www.nucapmedical.com/explained.html">Spyder Tech</a> tape to the side of my calf. My first visit was on a Thursday, and by Sunday the pain and tenderness on the side of my calf was dramatically decreased. That Sunday I even went for a 4 mile and I had NO PAIN! This was amazing considering just prior to my visit I was experiencing pain after running a mile or less. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Second Visit: Video Analysis</span><br />While things were looking up, I still awaited finding the cause of the tendinosis. Dr. Jess had me do a running analysis during my second visit. In order to analyze my stride, Dr. Jess' assistant took a video of me running in front of the office at the beginning of my appointment. She took a video from the side and from the front/back. As I ran for the video I purposely didn't think at all about my stride so that I would demonstrate whatever bad form I have when I am not paying attention. Dr. Jess analyzed the video and we discussed what was out of alignment. I was embarrassed to find out that I was heel-striking worse than I thought I was, I wasn't taking enough steps per minute, and my feet were staying on the ground too long. One of my hips was also dropping down more than the other one. All in all, my alignment and my form need improvement.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">A Metronome</span><br />After seeing the weaknesses in my running form, Dr. Jess directed me to purchase a portable digital metronome to run with. She said if counting every foot-strike I should be at 176-180 on the metronome. If I am counting one foot strike, it should be 88-90 on the metronome. She also directed me to do running exercises which I basically call "knee thrusts" where you thrust your knees forward as hard as you can, lifting your leg in a more exaggerated fashion forward. Finally, during both of my visits she gave me several different exercises to do at home, some stretching exercises and some glute strengthening exercises. Dr. Jess also told me during my second visit that until further direction from her, I am not allowed to run more than 3 miles every other day. She didn't say I had to give up on running the San Francisco Marathon, but also didn't say that I could. So the jury is still out on that issue. <br /><br />Like a good student, I purchased a metronome immediately after my second appointment so that I could start running with it. I purchased the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Seiko-DM50S-Digital-Metronome-Silver/dp/B00074B62A">Seiko DM70B Pocket Digital Metronome</a>e, and had it delivered within two days to my office. I ran with it on Thursday and found it was challenging at first to make sure I was taking enough steps per minute. On Saturday while at the gym I ran on the treadmill and instead of using the metronome I just counted 30 foot strikes for 10 second increments every few minutes to make sure I was taking an average of 180 steps per minute.<br /><br />This week I have two appointments, Dr. Jess recommends that her patients come twice a week during the initial weeks. I will report back soon with any updates.Ariellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995251370791082592noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2529271687862159045.post-66261582112556150802011-05-28T20:30:00.000-07:002011-06-02T08:07:39.254-07:00Spoke Too Soon - Pain ReturnsIf you read my post <a href="http://justgorun.blogspot.com/2011/04/beginning-again.html">Beginning Again</a>, then you know that in 2007 I struggled with ankle pain that caused me to stop running. I'm sad to report, the pain came back two weeks ago. <br /><br /><strong>Prologue to Pain</strong><br />During the first week of May I was at a conference in Fish Camp (just outside Yosemite) for work and basically did not run. I only ran a total of about four and a half miles while at the conference and took one very easy and short hike. I arrived home on a Friday, and departed for vacation in St. Thomas on Saturday. I planned on running Saturday morning prior to leaving for vacation, but I was too tired so I skipped that morning's SFM run. I then spent a week in beautiful St. Thomas (U.S. Virgin Islands), where I ate too much, drank too much, and didn't run at all. I did take one six mile hike and managed to get in a decent amount of swimming, but all in all, barely exercised. I flew back from the USVI the following Saturday.<br /><br /><strong>Last Recent Long Run</strong> <br />On the Sunday after returning from St. Thomas (May 15), words cannot express how pumped I was to finally hit the pavement. I ran 11.5 miles that day (SFM scheduled run on Saturday was 11-13 miles). That evening I felt stiff (which is normal). I was sitting on the couch for a while, and when I got up to take Jackson (my dog) out for a short walk, I noticed that I was limping a little due to soreness in my right ankle. I only walked Jackson around the block (maybe 1/3 mile total) but the whole time my ankle was aching. <br /><br /><strong>The "Oh Shit" Moment</strong><br />Monday morning I got out of bed and immediately took Jackson out for his walk. I noticed my ankle still hurt. In fact, that morning my ankle seemed to feel more stiff and the pain was a little worse. At this point I got a little worried that the epic ankle pain of the summer of 2007 had reared its ugly head. I took it easy Monday, did not exercise, iced my ankle and took some ibuprofen. Tuesday night I skipped the SFM track practice and just went to the gym to do the elliptical, stretch, and do some abdominal work. I had no pain on the elliptical. <br /><br />Thursday night I went to the gym, spend 20 minutes stretching and using the foam roller as well as the hard black plastic roller. I followed that up by using the bike for about 20 minutes, trying to warm up my muscles. Finally, I got on the treadmill to see whether I could run without pain. I ran a mile and took a few breaks to stretch my ankle and legs. As I got closer to mile two, the pain in my ankle began slowly increasing. I stopped running at only 1.8 miles. It was obvious that I was not ready to start running again. At this point I started getting a little more worried. That weekend I went to the gym but stuck to the elliptical and the bike. I was on my feet all weekend cleaning, running errands, and gardening, so I didn't exactly rest but I did not run (in my head that is a big difference but perhaps not). During that entire week I continued icing my ankle and taking ibuprofen.<br /><br /><strong>1 Week Later & A Discovery</strong><br />Monday (now May 23) comes and it has now been one week since my ankle began hurting. I ran into my neighbor "H" who is a regular runner and she recommended I go see Dr. Jessica Greaux at <a href="http://innersport.com/">Innersport</a>. I went online to Innersport's website and noticed I could make an appointment online (this is huge for me because I hate calling places). I was lucky enough to find that there was an open appointment within the week, so I scheduled the appointment for Thursday.<br /><br />On Tuesday I was getting impatient and thought I could maybe try to run again. If anything it would be a good experiment prior to my appointment with Dr. Greaux. However, prior to running, I made a relatively important discovery. I noticed that the entire right side of my calf was tender to the touch. One would think I would have noticed this earlier, but for some reason I didn't. It basically felt like someone kicked me in the leg a dozen times with a steel-toed boot. I learned, based on my very adept online research (more like desperate hope that I could get through this without the assistance of a doctor or physical therapist) that there are two peroneus muscles on the outer side of the calf that lead into two peroneal tendons that lead on and around the outside of the ankle. When I had ankle pain in 2007, I never knew about the link between the peroneus muscles and the peroneal tendons. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheC-8OZWGYk2v2YiCcpZxHGHFVm7ig2D3jTY5wV4_EYvde36bZ09cq6D6-7oY_LFuDQnGMH6etrcq1TCcG0G6XnF5Ko2mCPm5-qOMSUR8R8Re84L7SWCsJQYSUAwuCFgVwFX6NKaJTuVc/s1600/peroneus-longus.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 256px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheC-8OZWGYk2v2YiCcpZxHGHFVm7ig2D3jTY5wV4_EYvde36bZ09cq6D6-7oY_LFuDQnGMH6etrcq1TCcG0G6XnF5Ko2mCPm5-qOMSUR8R8Re84L7SWCsJQYSUAwuCFgVwFX6NKaJTuVc/s320/peroneus-longus.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5613459727937405986" /></a><br /><br />So prior to heading out for a run that Tuesday night, I took our wood baker's rolling pin and massage the side of my calf where the peroneus muscles are. I then head out for a run. During the run, I stopped every quarter to half mile to massage the side of my calf and stretch my calf muscles. I ended up running 4.5 miles and by the end of my run I was not even in any pain. I am still, of course, unsure of whether this means I have made progress or just found a short-term bandaid.<br /><br />My next posting will explain what I learned from Dr. Greaux at my appointment at <a href="http://innersport.com/">Innersport</a> on May 26.Ariellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995251370791082592noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2529271687862159045.post-91217197879811713112011-05-01T18:13:00.000-07:002011-05-01T21:17:53.673-07:00Sunday's 14-mile run<span style="font-weight:bold;">Departure time</span>: 20 minutes past high noon. <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Temperature</span>: 74 degrees but my face was on fire!<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Route: <br /></span><iframe width='465' height='548' frameborder='0' src='http://connect.garmin.com:80/activity/embed/82910993'></iframe>Ariellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995251370791082592noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2529271687862159045.post-21357307334387891822011-04-29T22:38:00.000-07:002011-04-29T22:49:24.470-07:00516+ miles in 9 monthsI started tracking my runs at the very end of July 2010 by using the Nike+iPod and uploading them to Nike.com. Last week I purchased a Garmin so I will no longer be tracking my runs on Nike.com. Tonight I uploaded my last Nike+iPod run (last weekend's 10 miler). After uploading the run data a nice little video message came up saying I had run 500 miles! Adding in my run from this week (and ignoring the dozen or so runs that I was unable to track) <span style="font-weight:bold;">I ran 516 miles in 9 months!</span>!Ariellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995251370791082592noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2529271687862159045.post-42847928679355496962011-04-28T19:53:00.000-07:002011-04-29T13:39:51.111-07:00Week of April 24-30My last post was about my struggle with running on Wednesdays after Tuesday's track workout. This week I changed my Wednesday workout and finally made both the Tuesday track session and the Thursday run. Here is a break-down of my progress this week. <br /><br /><strong>Sunday and Monday: </strong> Rest Days<br /><br /><strong>Tuesday:</strong> This week's track session consisted of a timed mile at about 85% exertion level. I didn't know we were doing a timed mile and did not have a chance to properly warm-up (I arrived late as usual, getting out of work at 6pm is tough). Nonetheless, I ended up doing a 7:38 mile, not bad. I have not run a timed mile since high school and I do not even recall what my time was. I have a feeling I ran slower in high school. After the timed mile we did 12 sprint repeats around the track, jogging or walking the curved part of the track and sprinting the straightaways. The total distance was 1.2 miles worth of sprint work, or 6 laps around the track. One of our running coaches complimented my form on the sprints and asked me if I ever ran track. Perhaps I remembered some of my high school winter track coach's teachings? I never ran track for real (winter track was not taken seriously), I only ran winter track to stay in shape for soccer and lacrosse. <br /><br /><strong>Wednesday:</strong> Paying heed to last week's disastrous Wednesday run, I went to the gym and did the elliptical for 45 minutes instead of running. I also sprinkled in a little abdominal and triceps work and of course spent some quality time with the foam roller. So far I have not experienced any IT band issues and I hope never to develop any so long as I keep using the foam roller.<br /><br /><strong>Thursday:</strong> For the first time since starting the SFM Training program I actually made the Thursday night run!! We ran from the Lake Merritt Boathouse to Jack London Square and back (5 miles) and I did a 1.5 mile warm-up run (total 6.6 miles). I felt pretty great throughout the run, doing my best to keep up with some of the faster runners in the group. Overall pace for the run was 9:08. Not bad! My goal pace for the marathon will likely be around a 9:20 pace if I can do it. Below is a view of the run we did.<br /><br /><iframe width='465' height='548' frameborder='0' src='http://connect.garmin.com:80/activity/embed/82342610'></iframe><br /><br /><strong>Friday:</strong> Rest Day<br /><br /><strong>Saturday:</strong> This weekend I'll be out of town so I will miss the SFM scheduled long run which is 14 miles.<br /><br /><strong>Sunday:</strong> I will need to do a 14 mile run all by my lonesome. I may try going to the Emeryville Marina and run along the East Shore freeway trail along the water. We did this last Saturday for the 10 mile run.Ariellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995251370791082592noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2529271687862159045.post-2733296561669494342011-04-21T18:11:00.000-07:002011-04-26T09:58:56.618-07:00Not Every Run Is A Good OneGenerally people enjoy telling stories about recent PR races or satisfying training runs (myself included) but rarely mention those poor performance training days or races. In an effort to be transparent about my marathon training, I thought it would be a good idea for me to share information about a recent unsatisfying training day. <br /><br />I have at least a few runs a month that leave me feeling like crap, such as those where I get a stubborn side stitch, feel like my feet are encased in cement, get slightly light headed for no good reason, or for one reason or another just cannot get into an enjoyable tempo were I can forget about the mileage and instead just zone out in the scenery and my music.<br /><br />My SFM training program schedules us to do a tempo run every Wednesday. Last week was only a five mile tempo run. (See description below of tempo runs.) For starters, I didn't do five miles. Nope, I barely squeezed out four miles. How fast did I run? Well, not even close to a tempo pace. The run would be better characterized as an "easy" run, or more bluntly, a "dragging my tired butt along" run. The entire time I was running I couldn't help but look at the mileage, dearly hoping it would be over soon. I thought to myself, why am I doing this? I should have just skipped today's run. I not only ran at a snail's pace, but because I had to pee the entire time (bad planning on my part) I stopped for a few minutes at around mile three thinking I'd duck into a local restaurant to pee. After stopping, I felt so tired that I realized if I waited another five minutes to start running again I wouldn't even finish four miles! So I didn't stop to pee and just slogged through the last mile. <br /><br />This past weekend I thought a little more about my training program and how to avoid repeating last week's crappy run this coming week. I don't want to skip tempo runs, but I've learned that the SFM training schedule does not always work for my schedule or my body. I am notoriously tired on Wednesdays from the Tuesday track session, which always involves speed work. By using Wednesdays for cross-training, instead of a tempo run, I can let my body rest from the speed work, and re-direct my energy toward making Thursday's marathon-pace run a worthwhile endeavor. <br />_____________<br />Tempo Runs:<br /><br />I've read about them, but mathmatically, I am not always sure how to pace out a tempo run based on my goal pace. <a href="http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-238-267--11909-1-1-2,00.html"> John Hanc of Runner's World Magazine defines a classic tempo run</a> as "a slow 15-minute warmup, followed by at least 20 minutes at a challenging but manageable pace, then a 15-minute cooldown--as often as twice a week." So what is a challenging pace? Here is how the article explains it:<br /><br /><blockquote>To ensure you're doing tempo workouts at the right pace, use one of these four methods to gauge your intensity.<br /> <br /><strong>Recent Race</strong>: Add 30 to 40 seconds to your current 5-K pace or 15 to 20 seconds to your 10-K pace <br /><strong>Heart Rate</strong>: 85 to 90 percent of your maximum heart rate <br /><strong>Perceived Exertion</strong>: An 8 on a 1-to-10 scale (a comfortable effort would be a 5; racing would be close to a 10) <br /><strong>Talk Test</strong>: A question like "Pace okay?" should be possible, but conversation won't be.</blockquote>Ariellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995251370791082592noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2529271687862159045.post-45548858756248314792011-04-17T21:16:00.000-07:002011-04-19T09:45:55.631-07:00Saturday's Trail RunYesterday, I went on the eight mile trail run scheduled through the San Francisco Marathon (SFM) training program in which I enrolled. The trail run started at Lake Anza in Tilden Park. The trail was a single track trail that meandered through thickly forested portions of the park, over (far too frequent) patches of deep, wet, and inescapable mud, it included several rocky uphill climbs, and a few peaceful grassy meadows. Unfortunately the poison oak is in full force (at some places it was several feet high), but I managed to avoid it. For the first time in the seven years I've lived in California, I saw not one, but dozens of banana slugs. They seemed to be attracted to the deep damp patches of mud. So, in addition to avoiding falling on my butt in huge puddles of mud that looked like brownie-batter, I also tried to avoid squishing the banana slugs (which were absolutely enormous)! All in all, the trail was hilly and muddy, but also beautiful.<br /><br />While I ran the first few miles without stopping, a few miles into the run we hit a huge, never-ending, uphill climb and after running the first portion of it, I finally gave up and walked. As we continued on, I realized that I would re-characterize the morning's trail run into what was really a "trail run/hike" since I ended up walking (or hiking) a majority of the uphill climbs. <br /><br />Somehow I managed to stay at the beginning of the pack with a group of about 6-8 people and one dog. I was at the back of the group, but we were far ahead of any other runners. The entire running group that morning was probably around 25 people. The run was absolutely exhausting. During the last few miles, my right hip flexor began to ache and my ankles and knees began to feel sore, but the pain was not so bad that I couldn't finish. When I did finish, my feet were entirely caked with mud. In fact, the trail's mud patches were so wet that my socks were also soaked in muddy liquid. When I removed my sneakers and socks, even my toes were covered in mud! Gross!! Here is a photo of my sneakers from after the run:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVW4fRVSCP6u0b40uCZspwzZ7fTNZo_yWh5OqRxpEiGtELfpKuYGRDbk-sBLIjVCmbqciR-OZpCdkWWHLvdhCTpJ50rcG_KIZIQsLUnGKhykU0FvynzGfu9pqkPy8O8bv5_xHseO_tvGY/s1600/2011-04-16_10-42-08_469.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 181px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVW4fRVSCP6u0b40uCZspwzZ7fTNZo_yWh5OqRxpEiGtELfpKuYGRDbk-sBLIjVCmbqciR-OZpCdkWWHLvdhCTpJ50rcG_KIZIQsLUnGKhykU0FvynzGfu9pqkPy8O8bv5_xHseO_tvGY/s320/2011-04-16_10-42-08_469.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5596779660798319090" /></a><br /><br /><br />When I got home I was starving. In an effort to aid my muscle recovery, I slammed a protein shake and gobbled down a peanut-butter and jelly sandwich. Yum! While I wanted to lie like a corpse on the couch for the rest of the day, my husband and I had big plans for the remainder of the afternoon and evening, which included spending the next seven hours on our feet (took the dog to the dog park then went on a long overdue shopping trip), followed by dinner and drinks with some friends in San Francisco. Needless to say, I definitely over did it Saturday. Fortunately, today I was not as sore as I expected to be. My quads and calves were not sore at all (which was sort of amazing). I just have lingering soreness in my joints but that is it!Ariellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995251370791082592noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2529271687862159045.post-42903255949969842112011-04-14T22:24:00.000-07:002011-04-14T23:07:36.502-07:00Getting Over My Doubts About 26.2Since last November, I have been thinking about running a marathon. However, until a few weeks ago, self-doubt about my ability to run that many miles prevented me from taking the plunge and signing up. After the <a href="http://www.oaklandmarathon.com/site10.aspx">Oakland Running Festival</a> I felt so pumped and excited that I figured I should seize the moment, find a marathon, and sign-up. So I did. I signed up for the <a href="http://www.thesfmarathon.com/">San Francisco Marathon</a> on July 31, 2011. I noticed that the SFM listed various training programs - in particular an <a href="http://www.thesfmarathon.com/the-official-san-francisco-marathon-traning-program/18-week-marathon-training-program/">18-week program</a> that had recently started. In line with my record of self-doubt in the marathon arena, I figured I should sign up for the training program to stay on top of training and to stay motivated. <br /><br />Up until last weekend, my longest run was 13.1 miles, and I had only completed that distance twice. But last Sunday, after returning from a short snowboarding trip to Tahoe the night before, I set out for my weekly long run. The 18-week training program suggested I run only 10 miles, which would be no problem. But, I was ahead of the game having just finished a half marathon in late March. Plus, it was a beautiful day, not too hot, sunshine was abundant but not oppressively strong, and the air was crisp. As usual, I set out for a run down to Lake Merritt (in Oakland) and back (H & C introduced me to this route, which you can customize by adding/subtracting how many times you circle around the lake). Around mile five I began toying with the idea of running more than 10 miles. I told myself, I would mentally and physically "check-in" throughout the run to see how I felt. At mile seven I still felt pretty good, and when I finished mile nine I found I was not nearly as exhausted as I anticipated I would be. So after completing ten miles, I just kept running, and running, and running. I looped back from the lake and meandered around the streets off of Piedmont Avenue. At first I thought I would maybe run 12 miles. But then I approached 12 miles and thought, well shit, I should just run a half marathon. But then I realized, why not try to set a new distance PR and break through my fear about running distances greater than the half marathon? And so I did, I ran 14.5 miles. I will admit that the last mile was rough. I ran out of fuel and had barely any water (I wear a very lightweight <a href="http://www.camelbak.com/Sports-Recreation/Packs/2011-Annadel.aspx">CamelBak</a> on my long runs). My stomach felt more and more concave and grew slightly tense, but I finished. Most importantly, I won a small battle (in a longer war) against my fear of the marathon.Ariellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995251370791082592noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2529271687862159045.post-26066444059446828402011-04-13T13:57:00.000-07:002011-04-13T14:15:19.281-07:00Runner's HighHow do you feel when you finish a run? Elated? Invincible? About a month ago, the New York Times ran a story entitled <a href="http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/02/16/phys-ed-what-really-causes-runners-high/">Phys Ed: What Really Causes Runner's High</a> discussing the cause of "runner's high." The article first points out that endorphins are not the cause of runner's high.<br /><blockquote>Endorphins first gained notoriety in exercise back in the 1980s when researchers discovered increased blood levels of the substance after prolonged workouts. (Endorphins, for those who know the word but not the molecules’ actual function, are the body’s home-brewed opiates, with receptors and actions much like those of pain-relieving morphine.) Endorphins, however, are composed of relatively large molecules, “which are unable to pass the blood-brain barrier,” said Matthew Hill, a postdoctoral fellow at Rockefeller University in New York. Finding endorphins in the bloodstream after exercise could not, in other words, constitute proof that the substance was having an effect on the mind. So researchers started to look for other candidates to help explain runner’s high. Now an emerging field of neuroscience indicates that <em>an altogether-different neurochemical system within the body and brain, the endocannabinoid system, may be more responsible for that feeling</em>.</blockquote><br />The article detailed a few different research studies concerning the effect of endocannabinoids during and after exercise. What appears without question is that "the endocannabinoid system 'is well known to impact onto central reward networks.' . . . Without it, exercise [seems to provide] less buzz. . ." In fact, in experiments on rats, the rats with non-functioning endocannabinoid systems did not indulge in exercising on their running wheel as much as those rats with properly functioning systems. <br /><blockquote>Although the full intricacies of the endocannabinoid system’s role in motivating and rewarding exercise is not yet understood, it seems obvious, the researchers say, that the cannabinoid-deprived mice were not getting some necessary internal message.</blockquote><br />While the article concluded that current research is not decisive on the issue of whether endocannabinoids are the cause of "runner's high," "endocannabinoids are a more persuasive candidate, especially given the overlap between the high associated with marijuana use and descriptions of the euphoria associated with strenuous exercise."Ariellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995251370791082592noreply@blogger.com0