Category: Fitness and Diet

Trail Running Ridiculousness

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What do I know about trail running?

1. Trails are involved.
2. Running is involved.

That’s simple, right? Find a trail and run on it.

Thanks to my scuba diving training I’ve developed a keen sense of how any sport can be disastrous given particular circumstances. Running, at least, you’re in the open air and should have a pretty good supply of air to breathe, however, there are other factors that can impact your health and well-being. Upon first telling my father-in-law my plans to just run in the suburban neighborhood in Westchester Co, NY, he let me know of a recent coyote problem in the area.

Coyotes.

Luckily, I haven’t had any encounters with coyotes in the neighborhood. I didn’t bother to think of the coyotes when I decided on driving out to Saxon Woods this morning to do a long run. In fact, I didn’t bother to look beyond the Google Map or GPS on the car to see what kind of running conditions I would encounter. I was honestly expecting more of a shady city park, not wilderness and gravel/dirt trails.

This did not bode well for my choice of travel running shoes (Vibram FiveFingers Sprint) which have a very scant amount of protection on the bottom. At least my choice of heart rate monitor was well suited for the trek (Garmin Forerunner 405CX).

It turned out that the trails were not as well marked as I would have liked, and that the trails themselves were pretty rocky, both with imported gravel and the natural rocky terrain of the region. It was BEAUTIFUL on this sunny day, with many chipmunks scampering about and songbirds singing. There were only a few people on the trail, making it rather lonely – and as I got deeper into the trail, it occurred to me that maybe I was fresh meat for a coyote. Alarmist, sure – but I realized I don’t know how to deal with wildlife, let alone, spot and avoid poison ivy. And did I smell a skunk? I’m pretty sure I smelled a skunk. This was enough to get me to turn around about 10-12 minutes into my run.

It all would have worked out well, too, if it wasn’t for a fork in the road that I somehow missed on the way in. I ended up taking the wrong fork in the basically correct direction, leading to a bit of panic calmed by the fact that I really was surrounded by civilization (a nearby highway could be heard). This is where my Garmin 405CX comes in handy. You see, I can switch to the GPS mode and it will help me get back home. It’s a wrist compass, and was basically accurate in getting me back to my starting point. To say the least, I only ran for about 15-20 out of my 45 minutes in the woods. What I basically know about survival is to not over exert myself, and to conserve resources to get out of the jam.

I was relieved to get to the car in short order – basically navigating through natural navigation, supplemented by my compass. It’s good to recognize your surroundings on the way in to help you on the way out.

I think I may want to go to a trail running clinic. There is so much in Washington State to hike and run in, and it seems a waste to do all my running just in the neighborhood.

Who wants to be my buddy? (Another good safety measure, btw!)

Mt. Si and FiveFinger Treks

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My friend and bad/good exercise influence Emily was in town for the weekend, which meant saucy* happenings abounded amidst barbecues and typical Northwest weather.

Emily was one of the first FiveFingers enthusiasts that I met, and this past weekend she showed me her newest acquisition,Vibram Fivefinger KSO Trek. Since we had planned on hiking during her trip, we ended up doing a pre-hike shopping trip wherein I bought my own pair of treks.

Interesting to note, the store we bought them at (REI) had most of their selection of FiveFingers obliterated – only the Treks were available due to high demand. Crazy! Luckily, they had them in my size, and we headed, late, to Mt. Si, where we did the 8 mile, round trip hike, burning more than 2000 calories each, and exiting the mountain ravenous, tired, and a little beaten up.

I loved the feeling of the ground and the rocks, and the rugged soles of the Treks served me well those first 4 miles up, and I couldn’t help but run up the trail a bit. Looking out for sharp rocks and watching my footing was a bit distracting, but I may learn to compensate for my insecurity over time. 🙂 My toes were definitely sore by the time we were three miles down the mountain, and the last mile was really rough. At one point I stumbled as my hips through ankles were starting to complain, and I don’t know if it’s my improved fitness, or if the Treks gave me cat-like reflexes, but I did not faceplant, but instead, deftly caught myself on both feet, not even dirtying my hands. Truly remarkable.

It’s now Thursday – and the hike was on Monday – and my calves are STILL aching, while my hips and thighs are a little more tempered. It was a wonderfully brutal experience, and I look forward to taking the Treks out for another hike or trail run sometime in the near future.

*sauciness comes from letting me/me taking the liberty to update your Facebook ustatus updates. Offer not available in all cities.

Still Recovering: Long Slow Run

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Today I did my first long slow run for recovery since my two weekends in a row of racing. Let’s just say my body is still not quite up to where it was. I don’t think I’m going to do two races in a row like that again!

I’m still running in my Five Fingers Sprint(36, Slate/Palm/Lichen), and loving every minute of it. I did have some funky minor blister/bruising after my race last weekend, but it cleared up in short order. I have to say that my dress shoes in the same amount of time are more hell on my feat than running in the Sprints!

My run today was a short 33 minutes and change. I cracked just under 12 minutes a mile, and kept my heart rate at around 140, give or take. I had to go pretty slow to start off to keep my heart rate from getting too high. I tried to do some more hills, but it turns out no matter which route I take in my neighborhood, I’m not equalling the elevation I saw around Seattle Center for the LIVESTRONG Challenge. I might need to find a hillier place to train.

I canceled my gym membership this week in order to seek out alternative cross-training opportunities. Should I do the climbing gym? Maybe get back into yoga classes (this is most likely)? There are definite possibilities out there. I may rejoin a gym once the cold/dark season comes back, but for now, I’ll enjoy the freedom.

It’s funny doing two races and realizing I’m a very small minority of runner with the minimalist shoes. I would have thought they were all the rage – I hear so many people talk about them, even just an aside at a bus stop when I’m not even wearing them! So many people I know are converts, and I’m definitely noticing benefits of my own – but I’m curious as to why this isn’t catching on like wildfire. I mean, they’re light, washable, packable and fun! What’s not to love?

More on my minimalist shoe fetish in the next post.

Rest Week Continues…

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I went for a short, fast run yesterday and found that my performance was greatly diminished from previous weeks, with more exertion giving less reward. This indicates to me that I may be risking over-training, especially considering I ran two races at full force a week apart from each other. Luckily, I love walking, and I plan to get some low-impact walking done in place of running for the next week.

Did I mention that the race on Sunday was brutal? It was. Very, very worth it, however.

Another interesting note about the past two weeks is that I seem to have lost a size. I haven’t lost enough weight, in my opinion, to lose an entire size in a month, but sure enough, yesterday I tried on a size 10 petite at Banana Republic and they fit – a little snug, but they fit. I also invested in my first pair of Spanx. With more than 100 lbs lost, I’ve been left with some lose skin, and I’m anti-cosmetic surgery (well, I’m anti-elective surgery, to be clear.) Spanx seem to be the safest, cheapest way to lift the derriere and tone the thighs, so here’s hoping they work as well as I hear they do!

I just checked my weight on my Weight Watchers Scale which also tallies my body fat% – I’ve found that I’ve lost about 1.5% body fat in the past month, which means that, to the best of my knowledge, I’ve actually managed to lose body fat when I’ve lost pounds this past month. I’m also beginning to believe that strenuous exercise turns my body into a calorie burning furnace. Not only am I more hungry the day or two after a race, I seem to be able to eat more than my alotted calories and still lose weight. It’s pretty remarkable.

Anecdotal, obviously.

Anyhow – I look to resuming running sometime early next week. But for now, I rest.

LIVESTRONG Challenge – 29:42 minutes, 5K

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According to my Garmin, this was the most hills I’ve run since I started training. I ran the 5K yesterday morning at a pace close to around 9:30 per mile, and by the time the finish line was in my sites, I was pushing myself to go further, meanwhile feeling an overwhelming urge to cry and hurl at the same time.

My time beat the challenge laid out before me, which was a 5K in under 30 minutes. This means that at the end of it, I raised $375 for LIVESTRONG – where none was required for runners.

The only thing I didn’t like about the race was that the cycling portions were competitive, but the 5K was not. We didn’t get chip-timing, which seemed to have been a possible option. I also didn’t get a tech t-shirt for raising the $250 minimum – I got the standard, oversized, bright yellow LIVESTRONG Challenge t-shirt. The cyclists got tech t-shirts. I know that Mr. Armstrong is a cyclist – and this is a cycling event, however – if you’re going to have triathlons and running events for LIVESTRONG, I’d think it to be just courtesy to have the same options for the runners or triathletes (yes, they cycle, I get that.)

It was overall a pretty great race. It’s hard not to get choked up – everyone has someone they’re running in honor or memory of. I had three people on my “in memory” and two on my “in honor” – and I forgot to add a few people on there. I put the first people who came to mind, one of them being a friend who died last year, who while he was undergoing cancer treatment and a secondary, life-threatening illness caused by the treatment, was still able to buoy me up during my crisis. I get choked up just thinking about it. I wasn’t super-close to Alex K. the way other people were, but last year he was able to cut through the bullshit and make me feel a little less isolated. He also had a bravery in the face of cancer that just kept me, and I think everyone who knew him, in awe. He is missed.

I’m sad that I don’t have another race planned for next month, but I’m sure I can change that easily. I’m resting this week, as that I’m feeling wrecked from yesterday. HILLS. MY GOD. HILLS. I had no idea there were so many hills around Seattle Center. 250ft elevation total! Last week’s race was flat. This was brutal. The GI distress I had lasted for about 2 hours after the race, and I was ravenous the rest of the day.

Yesterday was huge. I made a goal that I set for myself. I am 7 lbs from reaching the upper level of the BMI (which is bullshit, and actually, more generous because my body fat percentage is still too high.)

Today is rest – then I will gently resume training later in the week.

Wow. Go me!