Easing Back Into Running

I thought that maybe I’d bundle up every now and then and continue running through the winter.

Yeah, right. I should have known better.

It was hard enough to muster the motivation to bundle up to just walk to the coffee shop to work. 

But March is here, which means spring is just around the corner, and with it warmer weather. 

I ran once while we were in Sri Lanka, it felt amazing. And I ran when we were in Phoenix, equally exhilarating. 

I’m obviously far from in marathon shape where I last was in November. But I know I at least want to do a half this summer, and possible a full marathon in October. 

So, here I am, out of running shape, but I feel like I’m still further ahead then where I started last July when I started training. And it’s because now I know what I’m capable of when it comes to running. But that doesn’t change the fact that I couldn’t go and knock out a 10 mile run right now. 

Where do I start? 

Here’s my plan. 

I know I’m going to run a half in June, and hopefully that full in October so I have dates to work towards. I’m going to start creating my training plan for those, but in the mean time I’ve started easing myself back into all this. 

There were a number of really gorgeous days recently and I went on a few long walks because duh, why wouldn’t I get out and enjoy the weather. 

That’s step one, to just get out there and start warming up the creaky joints again. 

After that I’m going to ease in with some walk/jog sessions. I’ll choose a distance or total time, and start with something like five minutes running, two minutes walking, on and off until I finish that distance/time. 

And I’ll just grow from there into things like 10 minutes on, 1 minute off, until I can run three miles straight. 

Something I am going to do more of this year is strength training for my knees, hips, etc. so I can hopefully avoid the knee problems I had last year. 

And while I plan on a half and hopefully another full, I plan to run other races in-between. 

Another thing I learned from last year is that you can burn yourself out mentally during training. By the end of it last year I was over running. I hardly ran my last month of training (not the smartest thing, but I still did my marathon). 

I haven’t really looked at what I want my training plan to be but I think I’m going to create one to work on for the half in June, then keep that base and have a “separate” plan for the marathon. Who knows yet!

What are your race/fitness goals for this year? What are the steps you’re taking to get there? 

Recovering From My Marathon

I’m about five weeks out from the marathon, and I would say that after three or four days I felt basically back to normal. 

My knees did seem to bug me for a week or two after.  I’ve been on a couple easy three mile runs, and my knees were definitely cranky that first run after. 

So, here’s a list of things I’ve been doing to “recover”:

+ Epsom salt baths and just hot baths in general are my go to “feel better” activity for every situation. Have a cold? Take a bath. On your period? Take a bath? 

+ Using my heat pad or a bag of ice on my knees and ankles. Towards the end of training, I got much better about icing my knees thankfully. But there was a lot of heat and cold applied to my knees, ankles and feet for the two weeks following my race. 

+ Stretching and rolling out. Boy oh boy can I get stiff, especially now that we’re into the colder months. But before running as well as after I’ve tried to do a better job at stretching and then rolling out my back, hips and legs. 

+ Yoga is the perfect exercise for all seasons, but especially in the winter. I’ve been working on doing exercise a few mornings a week, and I’ll definitely be incorporating it into my training plan next time around. 

+ Something I started doing a few days after my marathon was walking places. If I was going to a coffee shop, the library, or anything less than a 20 minute walk away I would skip the car and bike and walk there to work out some of the kinks and pains. And I’ve continued doing this as a little break in the day to get outside. 

+ I’m not always the greatest at this but the two days leading up to my marathon and ever since I’ve made it a point each day to make sure I’m staying hydrated. 

+ While I woke up the day after my race feeling like I’d been hit by a train I found that the week following my race I was a bit knackered. So, I made it a point to make sure I was getting enough, if not more than enough sleep afterwords. 

+ And the final little thing I’ve been doing to recover but also keep inspired is watching little documentaries on YouTube about running. And I’ve found watching videos on ultra-marathons quite fascinating. While I can’t imagine running 50-100 miles I’m amazed and inspired by those who do. 

In the end it’s really not a big feat to recover from running a marathon. You just have to make sure you’re taking care of your body, take a few days to slow down. Refuel your body with food and water and stay inspired for the next one!

How I Choose Running Routes

One of my favorite parts about training is getting to go on a new route, or an old favorite. 

Everyone has their own method of getting in their mileage, but this is what has worked for me. 

I tried for about a week to use the Nike Run Club app, which is awesome, but something about hearing how far I had gone and how fast I was going made me feel like I was doing worse than I was. 

I’ve recently started not listening to anything while running, and often times even leaving my phone at home. 

So, how do I know that I’m running a certain number of miles? 

It’s all in the planning stage. 

Usually the day before a run I will sit down to decide my route for the following day. 

As I find new routes I’ll add them to my growing list (which I keep in Evernote). If I’m repeating a distance I’ve already done I will usually choose from that list, but if I don’t feel excited about any of those paths or I’m going a further distance than I have I head to good ol' Google maps. 

I start most of my runs outside my apartment, sometimes I’ll drive to a nearby park I like to run through. 

Knowing that I prefer to run on trails over sidewalks I’ll scope out one of the many awesome trails winding through and out of downtown. 

I just use the directions function of Google maps and add a destination to hit the different point of the route. I just kind of fiddle with a route until it equals the distance I need to go. 

For example, back when I was doing shorter runs I would do something like run to Grays Lake and back, which is 5 miles. Or I would do four to five mile routes through Ashworth Park. 

But now I’ve started adding and connecting different routes together for my longer runs. Which mostly just means running through multiple parks and back home.

It’s very satisfying to create a new route and find the perfect path to get your exact mileage whether that’s 3 miles or 14 miles. 

I got to do 14 miles for the first time today, and to get that distance I combined three different routes to create 14 miles.

And there’s nothing quite like finally finding the perfect route to make those big runs, stepping back and looking at them, going Woah that’s far, and then knocking them out like a champ. 

What are some of your favorite settings to run in? The greener the better for me!

Not Losing Your Cycle While Training

When deciding whether to train for a marathon I knew I didn’t want to screw up my cycle , and so I knew if I was going to do this I needed to do a bit of research.

According to a few different sites, at my current pace and weight I burn around 90 calories a mile, which means:

- 3 miles = 270 calories burned 

- 5 miles = 450 calories burned 

- 10 miles = 900 calories burned

While I’ve never really tracked calories, I have been more conscious of the need for me to consume more during this little adventure I’m on. 

Now, let’s talk about why it’s important to incorporate that information into your diet. 

Turns out that when you don’t have enough fuel, your body starts choosing to support functions that are vital to survival. And would you guess it? The menstrual cycle doesn’t make that list. So, your body can shut down your cycle if there’s not enough nutrition, which results in a hormonal stress response, lowering the levels of estrogen, messing up your healthy cycle. 

When you cycle starts not showing up it’s because you don’t have the necessary energy to ovulate. 

At first you might not notice anything, but that doesn’t mean it’s not affecting you. Low estrogen affects bone loss, which means stress fractures can be the first sign that something is wrong. 

If you keep training under these conditions it’s going to affect how your recover, your energy, and your running, which seems quite detrimental doesn't it?

I have found that my body (obviously) just naturally started needing more fuel as I started running more. I’ve gone from two meals and one snack a day to three meals and two snacks a day. 

I remember to eat breakfast, to fuel up before and after runs, and I eat when I’m hungry. And I’ve been keeping an eye on my menstrual cycle. 

Because I view the cycle as the canary in the coal mine. If things head south there then I know something is up. 

Loosing your period isn’t a good thing, it shouldn’t be a moment of success or relief, or a “I’m doing this right” moment. 

If your cycle disappears you need to reassess what you’re doing. Up the calories and lower the amount of exercise. And remember it took a few months or so for this to happen so it will take a few more for it to get back in order. 

While there are certainly other factors at play, time and time again it comes back to nutrition. So if you're having issues I alway suggest starting there. 

And it should be worth noting the quality of some calories over others. Make sure you are getting enough of your nutrients for good sources. Head to the produce aisle, through in some beans, rice is always easy and great, and happy eating. 

Not to mention, coming home from a long run and being able to replenish (stuff your face) with delicious, nutritious meals. 

Happy training!