"I Only Run in Purple." - Anisum's Road PRs in 2018

[ZellyB]

Seems like a good week of training even with the GI difficulties on your Saturday run. I've had that happen before too and it's truly miserable.

Your tri-club bike ride sounds good though and glad you enjoyed it. Hope you can keep riding with them.

 

[Anisum]

Seems like a good week of training even with the GI difficulties on your Saturday run. I've had that happen before too and it's truly miserable.

Your tri-club bike ride sounds good though and glad you enjoyed it. Hope you can keep riding with them.

GI issues are the worst.

I did enjoy the bike ride though it's a pain to get down to where they ride (a half hour away) during rush hour, so we'll see how often I go.


@DopeyBadger - For tomorrow, is the CD 1.5 mi or 2 mi? The text and boxes show different things.

 

[DopeyBadger]

@DopeyBadger - For tomorrow, is the CD 1.5 mi or 2 mi? The text and boxes show different things.

Man, I need to stop missing these details! It's 1.5 miles of CD. It's also 1.5 miles on 8/23/17 as well.

 

[Anisum]

Hi guys! No update this week because I'm getting on the Wonder today!! I ran in Vancouver twice while I was here (and even saw the Wonder docked from across Stanley Park) and I'll be making an effort to run on the ship as well. Real updates when I come back!

 

[ZellyB]

Hi guys! No update this week because I'm getting on the Wonder today!! I ran in Vancouver twice while I was here (and even saw the Wonder docked from across Stanley Park) and I'll be making an effort to run on the ship as well. Real updates when I come back!

Have a great trip!

 

[Anisum]

Okay, so since I'm really behind I'll try to summarize this somewhat.

Week 14 (7/17-7/23):
Monday - 3mi @ EA
Wednesday - 2 miles @ WU + 6 x 0.25 miles @ CV w/ 1 min RI @ WU + 1.5 miles @ CD
Friday - 3mi @ EB
Saturday - 5mi @ LR

So I ran all of these as planned. If I remember correctly Wednesday felt pretty good and I pushed my alarm back to make sure I got in my Friday run before my flight. Saturday was in Vancouver and I could run to and then around part of Stanley Park and the Sea Wall which made for great running. It was also much cooler and breezier and I preferred running there to running at home.

Week 15 (7/24-7/30):
Monday - 3mi @ EA
Wednesday - 2 miles @ WU + 2 mile @ Tempo + 1 mile @ CD
Friday - 6mi @ EB
Saturday - 8mi @ LR

I actually switched Monday and Wednesday because Monday was my last run in Vancouver before getting on the ship. I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to accurately track my run on the ship since there was no guarantee of GPS so I decided to do that run instead since it's much easier to track a single maintained pace. True to form my phone refused to connect to GPS (understandable) but I did get all of these runs in around the promenade deck. I'm pretty sure they may not have been on the correct day of the week but they were done between port adventures and fun on the ship so that counts for something. I actually love running around the ship because it's always interesting to see what people are up to and in Alaska to see the ice float by while near the glaciers. Even the treadmills (though I would only use them in the promenade was closed) look inviting since they have a great view. During the cruise I needed to run anyway because of all the delicious food and drinks. Tiana's Place is literally the most amazing restaurant (though I'm biased since Tiana is my favorite) and I absolutely loved all the extra activities they threw in on the nine day. Alaska was so impressive and I loved that I felt I could go back and have a completely different trip excursion wise. Anyway, with running, around the end of the 8mi run I began to feel something wrong in the heel of my foot and my PT mother thought it may have been the start of plantar fasciitis based on where it hurt and how I described it. Since I was wearing my travel running shoes (less cushion) I figured that may have been the root of the problem so I decided to take a break until the end of the cruise.

Week 16 (7/31-8/6):
Monday - 4mi @ EA
Wednesday - 3 miles @ 12:06 min/mile + 2 mile @ CD
Friday - 3mi @ EB
Saturday - 4mi @ LR

Of course, when we got off on Wednesday our flight was delayed so I didn't make it home until Thursday evening and I wanted to ice my foot some more before jumping back into running so none of this week was completed. I am feeling better so I do plan to complete this upcoming week's runs. It's also triathlon week so that's exciting!!!

 

[Anisum]

Week 17 (8/7-8/13):
Tuesday - 4mi @ EA
Thursday - 1 mile @ WU + 3 miles @ Tempo + 1 mile @ CD
Saturday - 3mi @ EB
Sunday - Autumn Lake Tri (0.4mi swim, 13 mi bike, 4km run)

So this week I wanted one more day of post vacation rest so I switched to Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday/Sunday for the week. All runs went pretty well though, Tuesday was exhausting as my first run back and also sunny because I didn't do it early in the morning. The rest of the runs went better though my pace was a bit slower because I had taken off.

More important is Sunday. It was my first triathlon and my goal was finishing (spoiler: I did). When I registered they asked if I was Athena division (165+ lbs) which I am. I didn't realize at the time that under USAT you could either be in that or your age division, or at least only win awards in one of the two. Not that it mattered too much since I placed the same in both but it's definitely something to consider for the future if I ever miraculously become good at triathlons. I wasn't able to get my packet the day before so I picked it up early on Sunday morning (5:45am) and had a good amount of time to pick my bike rack (they weren't assigned) and set up my little square in transition before the start of the race.

My mom had come out with me and my one aunt (also a triathlete) stopped by a little before the start to watch with her. My aunt had swam in the lake before (it's used by one of the local tri clubs to practice) and compared it to the Caribbean with regards to how light and clean the water was. I personally like clean lake water or water so dirty I can't see the bottom. If I see things like lake plants or movement of fishes I get kind of grossed out. This was also a rolling start with an athlete entering the water every five seconds or so. Women from my triclub were there which was good because I swim faster than most of them and therefore was able to estimate where to start. The swim is probably my best of the three and I was towards the top of the results (25th for all women, 2nd in both divisions).

I can transition pretty quickly because I wear a tri-suit and I don't have clip ins so while my first transition is slow while I dry off and slip on sneakers (my On Clouds because they don't have laces) my second one is fast because I just re-rack my bike and remove my helmet.

Then came the bike ride. I am the worst at the bike ride. It's because I don't practice as much as I should for bikes. To be fair when I started training I wasn't confident I could ride a bike so my slowness is an improvement. I had driven the course in advance once and it seemed flat but in fact it was a series of slight slow inclines and declines that were imperceptible from the car. I'm comfortable changing gears but I'm not smooth when doing so. I often change gears when going up a hill too early and end up spinning out and then switching back and losing my momentum and other such things. I didn't pass a single person on the bike and in fact I came in last in both divisions for the bike ride. Also my butt hurt more than usual but perhaps that was because I was trying to push harder.

Finally the run. I had practiced bricks a few times but it's one of those things I still hate the feel of. As I ran more my legs felt better (and my privates felt worse since the edge of the padding for the bike in that area of my tri-suit tends to chafe and I forgot that happened before too) and I was able to pass a few people on the run portion which felt good. I was able to hit about 13:15 which was pretty good after the bike ride from hell (though I call all bike rides that) and I finished with a clock time of 2:00:57 and a chip time of 1:53:10. I was 5/6 in my age group and 5/10 in Athena division so not bad for my first tri.

I think in the future I need to train more on the bike. I think if I got faster and more comfortable on the bike I might be able to do an Olympic distance next year because the swim and run weren't bad at all.

Most importantly after the tri I got a peanut butter and jelly sandwich (a rare treat) and had a sundae with 3 scoops of vanilla peanut butter swirl, bananas, hot fudge, peanut butter sauce, peanuts, crushed reeses, and whipped cream (I took off the cherries) and then a 2.5 hour nap.

 

[ZellyB]

Great job on your tri!!

 

[FFigawi]

I'm comfortable changing gears but I'm not smooth when doing so. I often change gears when going up a hill too early and end up spinning out and then switching back and losing my momentum and other such things.

Buy a Garmin speed and cadence sensor package if you don't already have one. Then keep an eye on your cadence as you reach a hill. Change gears when your cadence starts to drop to keep your pedaling smooth as you ascend. A smooth & steady cadence will keep you from spinning out and keep you from using too much energy during the hill.

 

[FredtheDuck]

Great job on your tri!!! Congratulations!

 

[Anisum]

Great job on your tri!!

Thank you!

Buy a Garmin speed and cadence sensor package if you don't already have one. Then keep an eye on your cadence as you reach a hill. Change gears when your cadence starts to drop to keep your pedaling smooth as you ascend. A smooth & steady cadence will keep you from spinning out and keep you from using too much energy during the hill.

I have not. I'll have to get one. Thanks for the advice.

Great job on your tri!!! Congratulations!

Thanks!

 

[Anisum]

Week 18 (8/14-8/20):
Monday - 3mi @ EA
Wednesday - 1 mile @ WU + 3 miles @ Tempo + 1 mile @ CD (BLIND!!)
Friday - 3mi @ EB
Saturday - 6mi @LR

So this week started off tough since I had just finished the tri and didn't want to wake up early to run my 3 miles. I almost considered sleeping through it and instead doing the group run at 6pm but a quick look at the weather made me back out. Once I got up and moving I felt much better and was glad to get the run in. I always feel so successful after a morning run because I accomplished something before I even left for work.

That morning I checked the marathon weekend registration link since I'm forcing my mom down to Disney to watch me run and figured the least I could do is get her a ChEAR Squad package so she is comfortable while waiting for me to finish. Despite the website not being updated (what do you expect) they actually did have the link and after a quick call my mother confirmed she wanted the two day package so she can see me finish the half rather than sleep in (weird, I know). So I bought her that so now we're all set for marathon weekend.

Wednesday was a good run too. I had done the same run the week before so I had a pretty good idea of how it should go even though I was doing in blind. In general biggest challenge with the runs that have a WU and a CD is I always have a harder time getting back down to CD pace after. I ran close to WU (15:54 instead of 15:58) then on my first mile of tempo I probably took a little while to ramp up before getting consistent (13:28, 12:51, 12:57) and then to ramp down to CD was tough per usual (15:31) but overall very successful.

Wednesday also allowed me to check my last Marathon Weekend task (at least until it comes to fast passes and packing) off my list. Flights! L is waiting for prices to drop but I didn't want to risk it so I booked flights that will have me in at 8:20am on Wednesday 1/3. That will give me enough time to head to the hotel and then either to the parks before an afternoon expo visit or to the expo in order to suffer the rush.

Friday saw rain. Which was the worst because it didn't start until after I headed out and I didn't put my phone in a plastic bag to protect it so I ended up changing my route to head back early only for the rain to stop so I could finish my planned 3 miles. It was quite the rollercoaster.

Saturday was hot. It was awful. I hate the heat and the sun and it makes for miserable running especially with humidity and no breeze. Still, I finished which really is all one can ask for.

This coming week is the toughest in the plan. Then two weeks left until my 15k and the end of my current @DopeyBadger plan.

 

[FredtheDuck]

Once I got up and moving I felt much better and was glad to get the run in. I always feel so successful after a morning run because I accomplished something before I even left for work.

Yes! I always grumble when my alarm goes off, but I'm always SO GLAD when I finish that I got up and did it. Plus, it makes me that much more grateful for the days I don't run, because I get an extra hour+ of sleep.

In general biggest challenge with the runs that have a WU and a CD is I always have a harder time getting back down to CD pace after.

ME TOO! I'm terrible at CD pace. I end up doing it somewhere between LR and EB. Usually my CD is also on a downhill, which makes it even worse. One thing that sometimes helps: There's a part of my route where I often have to stop running for traffic. Sometimes just stopping at restarting breaks the momentum and allows me to slow down.

 

[Anisum]

Yes! I always grumble when my alarm goes off, but I'm always SO GLAD when I finish that I got up and did it. Plus, it makes me that much more grateful for the days I don't run, because I get an extra hour+ of sleep.

I can't wait until Fall so it's cool enough to run in the afternoon and I can sleep that extra hour. That feeling of accomplishment is not worth the agony of waking up early no matter what I try to tell myself.

ME TOO! I'm terrible at CD pace. I end up doing it somewhere between LR and EB. Usually my CD is also on a downhill, which makes it even worse. One thing that sometimes helps: There's a part of my route where I often have to stop running for traffic. Sometimes just stopping at restarting breaks the momentum and allows me to slow down.

See when I have to stop for traffic I always end up going faster when I restart. I think it has to do with the feeling that I'm not running and so it's delaying my return home. I do find if I walk for a minute just to get my heart rate down it helps sometimes with getting into the CV mindset because I'm still moving, just slower. I also have the advantage of my CD being mostly flat with a short downhill followed by an uphill section.

 

[ZellyB]

Nice that you were able to get the 2 day ChEAR package for your mom and yay on booking flights. I stalled a long time too hoping flights would drop in price, but finally just got tired of worrying about it and bought them at the higher price. It's nice though to have everything squared away though (except FP as you said). Now I can start stressing about getting a FoP FP+

 

[CheapRunnerMike]

Week 17 (8/7-8/13):
Tuesday - 4mi @ EA
Thursday - 1 mile @ WU + 3 miles @ Tempo + 1 mile @ CD
Saturday - 3mi @ EB
Sunday - Autumn Lake Tri (0.4mi swim, 13 mi bike, 4km run)

So this week I wanted one more day of post vacation rest so I switched to Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday/Sunday for the week. All runs went pretty well though, Tuesday was exhausting as my first run back and also sunny because I didn't do it early in the morning. The rest of the runs went better though my pace was a bit slower because I had taken off.

More important is Sunday. It was my first triathlon and my goal was finishing (spoiler: I did). When I registered they asked if I was Athena division (165+ lbs) which I am. I didn't realize at the time that under USAT you could either be in that or your age division, or at least only win awards in one of the two. Not that it mattered too much since I placed the same in both but it's definitely something to consider for the future if I ever miraculously become good at triathlons. I wasn't able to get my packet the day before so I picked it up early on Sunday morning (5:45am) and had a good amount of time to pick my bike rack (they weren't assigned) and set up my little square in transition before the start of the race.

My mom had come out with me and my one aunt (also a triathlete) stopped by a little before the start to watch with her. My aunt had swam in the lake before (it's used by one of the local tri clubs to practice) and compared it to the Caribbean with regards to how light and clean the water was. I personally like clean lake water or water so dirty I can't see the bottom. If I see things like lake plants or movement of fishes I get kind of grossed out. This was also a rolling start with an athlete entering the water every five seconds or so. Women from my triclub were there which was good because I swim faster than most of them and therefore was able to estimate where to start. The swim is probably my best of the three and I was towards the top of the results (25th for all women, 2nd in both divisions).

I can transition pretty quickly because I wear a tri-suit and I don't have clip ins so while my first transition is slow while I dry off and slip on sneakers (my On Clouds because they don't have laces) my second one is fast because I just re-rack my bike and remove my helmet.

Then came the bike ride. I am the worst at the bike ride. It's because I don't practice as much as I should for bikes. To be fair when I started training I wasn't confident I could ride a bike so my slowness is an improvement. I had driven the course in advance once and it seemed flat but in fact it was a series of slight slow inclines and declines that were imperceptible from the car. I'm comfortable changing gears but I'm not smooth when doing so. I often change gears when going up a hill too early and end up spinning out and then switching back and losing my momentum and other such things. I didn't pass a single person on the bike and in fact I came in last in both divisions for the bike ride. Also my butt hurt more than usual but perhaps that was because I was trying to push harder.

Finally the run. I had practiced bricks a few times but it's one of those things I still hate the feel of. As I ran more my legs felt better (and my privates felt worse since the edge of the padding for the bike in that area of my tri-suit tends to chafe and I forgot that happened before too) and I was able to pass a few people on the run portion which felt good. I was able to hit about 13:15 which was pretty good after the bike ride from hell (though I call all bike rides that) and I finished with a clock time of 2:00:57 and a chip time of 1:53:10. I was 5/6 in my age group and 5/10 in Athena division so not bad for my first tri.

I think in the future I need to train more on the bike. I think if I got faster and more comfortable on the bike I might be able to do an Olympic distance next year because the swim and run weren't bad at all.

Most importantly after the tri I got a peanut butter and jelly sandwich (a rare treat) and had a sundae with 3 scoops of vanilla peanut butter swirl, bananas, hot fudge, peanut butter sauce, peanuts, crushed reeses, and whipped cream (I took off the cherries) and then a 2.5 hour nap.

Great work on the tri! Figuring out all of those little bike nuances is a challenge but you will find what works for you eventually...it just takes time in the saddle to get to that comfort level. Just be thankful that you didn't drop a chain while changing gears (been there)...focus on the little victories with the bike and you have some pretty big victories to focus on as well with that rockin' swim and strong run to the finish. Way to go!

 

[Anisum]

Nice that you were able to get the 2 day ChEAR package for your mom and yay on booking flights. I stalled a long time too hoping flights would drop in price, but finally just got tired of worrying about it and bought them at the higher price. It's nice though to have everything squared away though (except FP as you said). Now I can start stressing about getting a FoP FP+

Yes. That's next on the list. I also need to get park tickets first but I have a few more weeks for that.

Great work on the tri! Figuring out all of those little bike nuances is a challenge but you will find what works for you eventually...it just takes time in the saddle to get to that comfort level. Just be thankful that you didn't drop a chain while changing gears (been there)...focus on the little victories with the bike and you have some pretty big victories to focus on as well with that rockin' swim and strong run to the finish. Way to go!

Thanks! I'm very glad I didn't drop a chain. I'm still learning the ins and outs of bike maintenance as well so I probably would have been totally out if something like that happened. I definitely look forward to doing more tris next year. I just need to shift my focus back to running until Dopey is over.

 

[CheapRunnerMike]

Thanks! I'm very glad I didn't drop a chain. I'm still learning the ins and outs of bike maintenance as well so I probably would have been totally out if something like that happened. I definitely look forward to doing more tris next year. I just need to shift my focus back to running until Dopey is over.

My wife is hopeless when it comes to bike maintenance and she dropped a chain way back in our second triathlon ever. She had no idea how to fix it but one of the medics saw her and came to her rescue. That was probably about 5 years ago and I don't think she has shifted gears since!

I have one tri left in my season but totally hear you about shifting back to a run focus...I've had about enough biking for now and I'm looking forward to just running again.

 

[Anisum]

My wife is hopeless when it comes to bike maintenance and she dropped a chain way back in our second triathlon ever. She had no idea how to fix it but one of the medics saw her and came to her rescue. That was probably about 5 years ago and I don't think she has shifted gears since!

I have one tri left in my season but totally hear you about shifting back to a run focus...I've had about enough biking for now and I'm looking forward to just running again.

I can see where I would lose all desire to shift gears after that. I can't wait to hear about your last tri.

 

[Anisum]

Week 19 (8/21-8/27):
Monday - 4mi @ EA
WednesdayTUESDAY - 2 mile @ WU + 8 x 0.25 @ CV w/ 1 min RI + 1.5 @ CD
Friday - 6mi @ EB
Saturday - 9mi @LR

So this was my most difficult week of running. It started off nice and easy with 4mi on Monday. The problem is I always mis-remember what EA is and end up going a little fast. I was supposed to do this at 15:02 min/mi but I ended up at 14:51. Still it was a good warm up for what would be a rough week.

Tuesday I got into work my usual early morning time only to discover I would need to be there between 4pm-Midnight. So I headed home after an hour or two of emails and figured since it was cloudy and high 70s I could get my run in. This was a mistake. The moment I got outside to start the sun came out and was beating down heavily. I actually had to head home around 4 miles to refill my water and get my cooling towel because my skin was overheating. I did remember suntan lotion so I didn't get burned but it felt like I was on fire. [Insert appropriate gif when less exhausted]. I had a nice lunch at home and headed back in to get some afternoon work done before my long night. Luckily during the night there were storms which improved the weather later in the week.

Since the whole purpose of my training was for Friday and Saturday to be back to back days I had to take two days off because there was no way I could do 9 miles before work and after the other day I didn't really have any desire to be out and about in the evenings. I got my 6 miles in on Friday very early in very nice weather and ended up so tired (the start of heavy cumulative fatigue?) that I ended up falling asleep on the couth watching TV and going to bed much earlier than usual.

The next morning I woke up and really could have gone back to sleep and stayed in bed all day but we were visiting family so I needed to get up if I wanted my 9 miles in. The weather was great for it and the run itself was enjoyable. What was interesting was that it was a fueling run and I usually take a pack of Skratch gummies or Sports Beans or Shot Bloks on a run and eat a few each mile which on occasion isn't enough by the time I'm hitting the end of my run. So this morning I took a vanilla bean gu gel I had got during a race once (I didn't eat it then because it had caffeine and I won't take caffeine during a race unless I've thoroughly tested it) along with a pack of blueberry gu gummies I had gotten in my Stridebox. My hope was by taking what I could of the gel mid run (I never buy them because I don't eat more than half because I hate the texture) it would provide me with the extra boost I needed to get through my run with my gummies. Sure enough I had a slow mile 4 (this mile is always my slowest for some reason) but after I ate part of the gel and it kicked in it definitely seemed to provide the boost I needed. I want to run a few more trials with other gel samples I've gotten (ones that don't taste like caffeine) but this could be a good strategy for me during the half and the full.