Drama camp potlucks, bake sales for Haiti, performances, laundry and packing for an upcoming trip has this mom in full lock down. i wanted to get a some kind ride in yesterday...but i needed to replace that adaptor thingy for the Co2 cartridges and my sun glasses were all scratched. T still had some credit over at Mikes Bikes, so i changed to ride and threw my bike into the back of his truck and after i got my stuff i still wasn't sure where i was going to ride because M needed to be at Bentley by 1pm (it was already noon) and the performance didn't start till 2:30...i just couldn't think straight... it was T that said, "you've 2.5 hrs to get to Lafayette, are up for it?" Duh, i could just ride to the performance and so what if i showed up in bike shorts and smelled bad. i am in training after all, right? T would drop M off and get some errands done in Lafayette before the show...for all my complaining about his lack of planning my man can think on his feet!
Mike's is close to the base of Spruce, a longish gradual climb to Grizzly Peak. from there I entered Tilden past Inspiration Point and then had a BLAST on the fast downhill to Orinda. i practiced not riding my breaks so hard and reacquainted myself with what gear does what...i practiced going into a high gear to go even faster downhill. i stopped for a little frozen yogurt then headed over Santa Rita....i'd forgotten how steep this part was and after the first climb i managed to clip out w/o breaking my neck and hoofed it to the top. the rest was downhill to Bentley. I arrived at 2pm.
M went out with friends later that night and T and i discovered a yummy indian buffet..7.99 per person. the chicken tikka was off the hook, spicey potatoes and bell peppers and naan, deeelish!
the ben and jerry banana split we shared later kinda kick the frozen yogurts ass.
Showing posts with label Training. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Training. Show all posts
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Sunday, July 13, 2008
Fresh Start
i can't believe how long it took me to finally get my shit together and go for a trail run. it's been at least 5 months since i've run on a proper dirt trail!
i took Brandy with and we headed over to Strawberry Canyon. My garmin wasn't charged and i purposely left my watch at home. with only 9 weeks to go before my 20k i'm still very much in "base building" mode which needless to say isn't where i should be. but it is what it is. PCTR events are as hard as they fun and beautiful. i'll have good time regardless of how under trained i am on race day. still, today up at Strawberry my run assured me that while i'm not at the level of fitness i was this time last year i haven't gone totally to pot.
i shuffled up Big Bertha without much ado but i fatigued as i approached the second climb to the lookout bench and walked until it flattened out. Brandy was her usual curious self and leaped and bounded most of the way up, though her enthusiasm eventually gave way to her lack of fitness and she was lagging behind towards the end. more than once i had to double back and coax her along.
last weekend i went to REI to buy a new pair of Montrails and learned they no longer carry them. My Hurricanes still have some miles left on them, but hey since I'm basically starting trail running all over again I felt justified in getting some new shoes. I went to Transport on Solano. i asked the sales guy to measure my foot and it appears to have shrunk ....and no, it wasn't first thing in the morning when i shopped . it was noon and AFTER my Strawberry run when you'd expect feet to be their most swollen.
so i tell him i usually wear 9 and he says "really, looks here like your a 7.5 - 8" and i say "yeah, but i go up a size for running shoes" and so to appease me he brings out an 8.5 W because not only is my foot short it's now wide...which is news to me. i confess that i'm a pronator and he redirects me from some svelte looking Montrail i'm eyeballing to a more orthopedic looking Brooks which i dismiss immediately in favor the bulkier Montrail Hardrock. 8.5 and it feels good on...in the store...but i've been happy with Montrails thus far so i got them along with a new camelback waist hydration pack.
it was good to hit the trails again, it's been way too long. it does require extra effort to gear up for a trail run and after such a long hiatus i feel like a roookie fumbling with basic logistics and gear issues as i try to get out the door.
what i know about trail running has basically come from just doing it and reading blogs or articles. i've been looking for a book specifically about training for trail races. i half suspect i already know what i need to know. i just wonder if there's a book out there that emphasizes the unique training aspects of trail running.
i took Brandy with and we headed over to Strawberry Canyon. My garmin wasn't charged and i purposely left my watch at home. with only 9 weeks to go before my 20k i'm still very much in "base building" mode which needless to say isn't where i should be. but it is what it is. PCTR events are as hard as they fun and beautiful. i'll have good time regardless of how under trained i am on race day. still, today up at Strawberry my run assured me that while i'm not at the level of fitness i was this time last year i haven't gone totally to pot.
i shuffled up Big Bertha without much ado but i fatigued as i approached the second climb to the lookout bench and walked until it flattened out. Brandy was her usual curious self and leaped and bounded most of the way up, though her enthusiasm eventually gave way to her lack of fitness and she was lagging behind towards the end. more than once i had to double back and coax her along.
last weekend i went to REI to buy a new pair of Montrails and learned they no longer carry them. My Hurricanes still have some miles left on them, but hey since I'm basically starting trail running all over again I felt justified in getting some new shoes. I went to Transport on Solano. i asked the sales guy to measure my foot and it appears to have shrunk ....and no, it wasn't first thing in the morning when i shopped . it was noon and AFTER my Strawberry run when you'd expect feet to be their most swollen.
so i tell him i usually wear 9 and he says "really, looks here like your a 7.5 - 8" and i say "yeah, but i go up a size for running shoes" and so to appease me he brings out an 8.5 W because not only is my foot short it's now wide...which is news to me. i confess that i'm a pronator and he redirects me from some svelte looking Montrail i'm eyeballing to a more orthopedic looking Brooks which i dismiss immediately in favor the bulkier Montrail Hardrock. 8.5 and it feels good on...in the store...but i've been happy with Montrails thus far so i got them along with a new camelback waist hydration pack.
it was good to hit the trails again, it's been way too long. it does require extra effort to gear up for a trail run and after such a long hiatus i feel like a roookie fumbling with basic logistics and gear issues as i try to get out the door.
what i know about trail running has basically come from just doing it and reading blogs or articles. i've been looking for a book specifically about training for trail races. i half suspect i already know what i need to know. i just wonder if there's a book out there that emphasizes the unique training aspects of trail running.
Sunday, September 09, 2007
piecing it all together
training is going well. i had to switch things around here and there but for the most part i'm feeling pretty good about things. i started things off easy with a pre-work 5 miler on monday. i had a great run on wednesday, a double scoop of Strawberry Canyon, for a total of 14+ hilly miles in 3:26. yesterday i got about 16 seconds into my run when the garmins battery died. it must've got knocked off the charger while M was rocking out to Rhianna's "Breaking Dishes" on itunes.
i was unenthusiastic about a 20 miler to begin with and when the battery died i immediately started coming up with excuses to shorten my run. i know better than to decide too early how far i'm going to go...especially when i'm feeling lazy. i gave myself permission to "see what happens".
i found my groove somewhere between miles 4 and 5 and passed through the cattle gate at the end of Nimitz and continued on towards san pablo ridge then wildcat canyon. this eventually looped back top my car . i know this route well and it's 11 miles. i finished in 2:46.
this morning the weather was PERFECTION. i slept well but still had a hard time mustering up much enthusiasm for that overdue 20 miler. with my cup o'courage in one hand i jumped on the internet for blogspiration. i am remiss to omit the blog credit here but sara of hooked on trails and jack of running with jack both gave me a good dose of "get your ass out there and get in done" like sara my marathon is mere weeks away and like jack i didn't care how fast i was going i just needed to get twenty miles in.
i refuelled every 4 miles and felt pretty good the whole time. by mile 16 i was looking 3:26 it suddenly dawned on me that i was well under 5 hours i had given myself for this run. i pulled off 20 miles in 4:13. yeah, i know road miles are faster than trail miles but still it was a boost to my confidence for sure and a major deposit in the golden hills account. boo ya!
on the quilting front i am super happy with how M's quilt is coming along. over the labor day weekend i finished the quilt top and have it sandwiched. my fingers are still a little tender from all the pinning involved as this is by far the biggest project i've ever tackled. i know i know, pictures would be nice. i still need to get the cd rom looked at but i'm so disgusted with this computer i'm secretly holding out for a notebook....i
description: mostly flat paved urban trail, sandy along bayside section,
not allot of traffic
the route: BART trail to richmond
richmond to home
home to ceaser chavez park,
ceasar chavez(1 loop)to bayside trail
bayside trail to chevy's
chevy's to home
b
i was unenthusiastic about a 20 miler to begin with and when the battery died i immediately started coming up with excuses to shorten my run. i know better than to decide too early how far i'm going to go...especially when i'm feeling lazy. i gave myself permission to "see what happens".
i found my groove somewhere between miles 4 and 5 and passed through the cattle gate at the end of Nimitz and continued on towards san pablo ridge then wildcat canyon. this eventually looped back top my car . i know this route well and it's 11 miles. i finished in 2:46.
this morning the weather was PERFECTION. i slept well but still had a hard time mustering up much enthusiasm for that overdue 20 miler. with my cup o'courage in one hand i jumped on the internet for blogspiration. i am remiss to omit the blog credit here but sara of hooked on trails and jack of running with jack both gave me a good dose of "get your ass out there and get in done" like sara my marathon is mere weeks away and like jack i didn't care how fast i was going i just needed to get twenty miles in.
i refuelled every 4 miles and felt pretty good the whole time. by mile 16 i was looking 3:26 it suddenly dawned on me that i was well under 5 hours i had given myself for this run. i pulled off 20 miles in 4:13. yeah, i know road miles are faster than trail miles but still it was a boost to my confidence for sure and a major deposit in the golden hills account. boo ya!
on the quilting front i am super happy with how M's quilt is coming along. over the labor day weekend i finished the quilt top and have it sandwiched. my fingers are still a little tender from all the pinning involved as this is by far the biggest project i've ever tackled. i know i know, pictures would be nice. i still need to get the cd rom looked at but i'm so disgusted with this computer i'm secretly holding out for a notebook....i
description: mostly flat paved urban trail, sandy along bayside section,
not allot of traffic
the route: BART trail to richmond
richmond to home
home to ceaser chavez park,
ceasar chavez(1 loop)to bayside trail
bayside trail to chevy's
chevy's to home
b
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
Taper Week
Took Brandy on a short run yesterday and since I'm in taper mode (hehe) this morning, I jogged over to the donut shop near my house and bought banana's (fruit for M's lunch). I'm sure I looked silly jogging with a banana in each hand. I then mosied on over to the track for a few laps with A & K then continued on through the neighborhood back home. I've been getting good sleep, hydrating and eating well. Now if I could live the way I do a week before a race ALL THE TIME that would be some serious progress.
Yoga at the Y was sooooooo good. It's a restorative yoga class the emphasis being floor work, which my tight lower half greatly benefitted from. Between the light run yesterday and yoga this morning things (kinks) are working themselves out.
Speaking of lower halfs.....yesterday under strict orders per M to not purchase another pair of "mom jeans", I fit into a size 10 pair of Levis 501's. (yeah, I'm old school) I think I was 18 the last time I wore a pair of these!
The weather is great today and I'm tempted to go for a bike ride, it's been far too long but I'm not sure I should push my legs too much more before Sunday. The plan calls for another light run thursday and saturday, so I'm going to hold off.
I have no predictions, but a sub 1.0 hr would be cool. Last year I remember the route bottlenecked so bad in places that we walked for what seemed a long time. There was confusion among the 5 and 10kers too due to the poorly marked course. Nevertheless, I had a blast at my first 5k trail run and I'm excited to revisit this race this year as a 10ker.
Question: If I add a GU to my water bottle, can I sip from it like I normally do (every 20 minutes) and still benefit or is it better to take it all at once and wash it down with water? I realize this is highly subjective, but was curious if anyone has tried this.
*************************************************************************************
The Halloween boxes that occupied the corner of my living room have been replaced by 3 times as many Christmas Boxes! We're having Thanksgiving at our house this year and M is convinced that we'll need name cards....(we eat off paper plates and sit on picnic benches, it's very casual) I redirected her enthusiasm and suggested she make a center piece. You can give that kid a ball of string, a Q-tip and a roll of tape and she's sure to come up with something fantabulous. She hasn't quite tapped into her athletic self yet (I'm still hopeful) but she's her father's daughter and is quite artistic.
Yoga at the Y was sooooooo good. It's a restorative yoga class the emphasis being floor work, which my tight lower half greatly benefitted from. Between the light run yesterday and yoga this morning things (kinks) are working themselves out.
Speaking of lower halfs.....yesterday under strict orders per M to not purchase another pair of "mom jeans", I fit into a size 10 pair of Levis 501's. (yeah, I'm old school) I think I was 18 the last time I wore a pair of these!
The weather is great today and I'm tempted to go for a bike ride, it's been far too long but I'm not sure I should push my legs too much more before Sunday. The plan calls for another light run thursday and saturday, so I'm going to hold off.
I have no predictions, but a sub 1.0 hr would be cool. Last year I remember the route bottlenecked so bad in places that we walked for what seemed a long time. There was confusion among the 5 and 10kers too due to the poorly marked course. Nevertheless, I had a blast at my first 5k trail run and I'm excited to revisit this race this year as a 10ker.
Question: If I add a GU to my water bottle, can I sip from it like I normally do (every 20 minutes) and still benefit or is it better to take it all at once and wash it down with water? I realize this is highly subjective, but was curious if anyone has tried this.
*************************************************************************************
The Halloween boxes that occupied the corner of my living room have been replaced by 3 times as many Christmas Boxes! We're having Thanksgiving at our house this year and M is convinced that we'll need name cards....(we eat off paper plates and sit on picnic benches, it's very casual) I redirected her enthusiasm and suggested she make a center piece. You can give that kid a ball of string, a Q-tip and a roll of tape and she's sure to come up with something fantabulous. She hasn't quite tapped into her athletic self yet (I'm still hopeful) but she's her father's daughter and is quite artistic.
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