Life After Marathons: A Running/barre3/Coffee/Life Journal

[jmasgat]

You are most certainly not being weird. This whole experience has been a Big F*ing Deal, basically a societal trauma. These things don't just get better/go away overnight. Also, like you, many people look at their previous "normal" life and realize that it wasn't all sunshine and flowers. It's good to look at things with a critical eye to make changes if that makes things better for you.

 

[SarahDisney]

2021 Activity Tracker Week 14 - April 12th, 2021 - April 18th, 2021

Monday:

• 19 minute walk - This was part two of the walk, but I was having GPS issues and didn't record the first part of the walk.
• barre3 Online Class - 30-minute class - I was signed up for a livestream class through the parent studio but never got the link so I did an online class instead. Which is fine because I did a shorter class and got to eat dinner earlier.
• Outside Time: Yep! Had an appointment so I had to get out ... but I managed to avoid rain, which was nice.

Tuesday:

• 2.57 mile run, 34:50 minutes, 13:33 min/mi avg pace - Kinda proud of myself for actually getting out for this one. It had been a few days and I wasn’t in the mood the night before. Started off the run week on a good foot.
• Outside Time: Yes!

Wednesday:

• 3.04 mile run, 41:49 minutes, 13:45 min/mi avg pace - My first post-work run of the year! I had cut out of work a few hours early because I wasn't feeling well, so I was able to get this one started early-ish, but I wasn't sure how it would go. It was okay, did walk a bit extra, but overall not bad.
• Outside Time: Yep

Thursday:

• barre 3 with Katie Livestream - 60-minute class - My first 7am barre class. I actually felt pretty okay (I guess my body remembers when I used to take 7:15am class back before the pandemic), but the instructor kept dropping out (wifi issues) so it was a bit of a chaotic class. Still good, though. We ended up finishing early and stretching on our own because wifi … I needed calm music for breathwork and stretching so I put on Folklore.
• 15 minute walk, 0.87 miles
• Outside Time: Yep. In the rain. Not a fan.

Friday:

• 41 minute walk, 2.07 miles
• 4.44 mile run, 56:49 minutes, 12:47 min/mi - I was off from work so I did a lunchtime run. Worked out okay other than being rained on.
• Outside Time: Yes!

Saturday:

• 35 minute Easy Walk, 1.75 miles
• Outside Time: Yes!

Sunday:

• barre3 with Vicky Livestream - 60-minute class
• Outside Time: Yep, did a walk but didn't track it because I wasn't in the mood

Total Running:
3 runs, 10.05 miles, 2:13:28 hours

Total barre3:
2 Livestream classes
1 online classes
Total time: ~ 2:30 hours

Walks:
4 walks, 1:50 hours

Active Minutes: 49+ 35+ 61 + 75 + 98 + 35 + 60 = 413 minutes
Total 2021 Active Minutes: 4751/7800 (60.9%)

So, remember how last week I said I would have to figure out a new schedule with the changes to the barre3 livestream schedule? I think I have an idea what I'm going to try:

• Monday – AM barre3 – 6:30AM wakeup
• Tuesday – AM Run – 6AM wakeup
• Wednesday – PM Run – 7AM wakeup
• Thursday – AM barre3 – 6AM wakeup (maybe 6:15?)
• Friday – AM Run – 5:45AM wakeup
• Saturday – Rest Day – 8:30AM wakeup
• Sunday – AM barre3 – 7:30AM wakeup (maybe 8:15 wakeup and eat breakfast after class? That’s what I did this week and it seemed to work out ok, but I'm still undecided)

The big advantage to this schedule is that I now have Wednesday mornings to do grocery shopping or whatever else is on my agenda without having to move stuff around. I'm also never waking up before 7 more than 2 days in a row. And I think I will do 6:15 AM on Thursdays because really all I have to do before class is get dressed, everything else can wait until after.
However ... I've never been a post-work runner. So if I can't make that work, it'll kill the schedule. We'll see how the next few weeks go. This will all change when I'm back to both baseball and in-person barre3, so I only have to get through a few weeks of this.

Anyway … other stuff:

• Looks like my summer Disneyland trip isn’t gonna happen. Beth starts her residency at the beginning of July and I don’t know when they’ll start letting non-CA residents into the parks, so … we’ll see. Plus, I wanted to stay at a Disney hotel and Grand Californian is the only one that’s open, and I'm not paying that much for a hotel room. So there’s that. I’m a little bummed, but … yeah. Still holding out hope that we can make something happen in June, but I’m not optimistic.
• I am, however, planning to attempt to return for the first runDisney race back. If it’s Princess, Beth thinks she may be able to get some time off for that, not quite as sure about Marathon Weekend. Wine & Dine is likely a no-go because she has a conference that week. So I’m rooting for Princess. Would be cool to do the last race before the break and the first race after. But we’ll see.

 

[SarahDisney]

2021 Activity Tracker Week 15 - April 19th, 2021 - April 25th, 2021

Monday:

• barre3 with Kelly Livestream - 45-minute class
• Outside Time: Yep - ran out for a quick errand (I have no memory of what the errand was, but it's written down, so I must have done it)

Tuesday:

• 7.14 mile run, 1:37:11 hours, 13:37 min/mi avg pace - This felt good. I forgot how much I love long runs. Could have gone longer, but a) no fuel, and b) I had to get to work to take care of something (I remember what this something was but don't remember Monday's errand... okay then)
• 27 minute walk, 1.42 miles
• Outside Time: Yes x2! Run + vaccine donut #2.

Wednesday:

• 3.05 mile run, 38:54 minutes, 12:46 min/mi avg pace
• Outside Time: Yep

Thursday:

• barre 3 with Katie Livestream - 60-minute class
• Outside Time: No, but I’m okay with that. I was a little worn out and didn’t want to force myself into anything.

Friday:

• 5.24 mile run, 1:02:17 hours, 11:53 min/mi - I think the GPS had a nutty in Times Square and the distance is a little off, but since my GPS often shorts me, I'm okay with one longer-than-actual run.
• Outside Time: Yes!

Saturday:

• Rest Day
• Outside Time: Yep, went to my usual Saturday morning prayer service

Sunday:

• barre3 with Vicky Livestream - 60-minute class
• 44 minute walk, 2.60 miles
• Outside Time: Yep, went to the running store to buy some fuel and went home the scenic way

Total Running:
3 runs, 15.43 miles, 3:18:22 hours

Total barre3:
3 Livestream classes
0 online classes
Total time: ~ 2:45 hours

Walks:
2 walks, 1:11 hours

Active Minutes: 45+ 124 + 39 + 60 + 62 + 0 + 104 = 434 minutes
Total 2021 Active Minutes: 5185/7800 (66.5%)

This was a good running week! Not every run was great (I’m looking at you, Wednesday’s suck), but overall I felt good about my running this week and hit all of my running goals. I want to try for 10 miles on Tuesday, which worries me a bit because it would be the longest I've done since November and I've only gone over 7 three times this year (and I feel like maybe I've been increasing the distance fast over a few weeks off), but I want to at least try since long runs are the only thing I actually like about running, and I'll have to just self-monitor really well and be willing to adjust if necessary.

I also bought Nuun (man that stuff ain't cheap) so I will try that in my water bottle to see if it helps. And if I don't like it, I can dump out the water and refill at one of the bottle refill stations in Hudson River Park.

 

[FFigawi]

I’m interested to hear how you like Nuun. Many people love it. I’m one of the minority that doesn’t. Tailwind works much better for me.

 

[SarahDisney]

I’m interested to hear how you like Nuun. Many people love it. I’m one of the minority that doesn’t. Tailwind works much better for me.

I will make sure to include some thoughts in next week's recap! I've never used any sort of hydration/electrolyte tabs/powder before so I'm interested to see how my body reacts (I don't react well to gatorade so there's some potential for yikes here).

 

[FFigawi]

Gatorade is mostly processed sugar. Not surprising to hear you have trouble with it. Many people do. It’s why Tailwind and other similar powders use dextrose instead. It’s far more gentle on the stomach.

 

[SarahDisney]

May Goal​

Let's start with recapping April's goal progress. As a reminder, the goal for April was 10 minutes out of the house/apartment every day. I missed a few days for various reasons, but mostly I managed it. A lot of it was errands or other reasons why I was already going out, but some days I went out just for the sake of outside time and most of those days I appreciated the fresh air (one day it was raining and no thank you). So this worked out pretty well. I think going forward I'm going to turn this into taking more walks rather than just focusing on outside time, but I do think the lesson learned here is that outside time is good.

The goal for May is ... nothing. I have a lot of other stress going on (mostly work + apartment stuff, but also a few other things) and I don't want to add anything extra to that. So my goal is to just survive the month.

 

[SarahDisney]

Also, I told myself that I wasn't going to buy more masks because I'm hoping that in 6ish months (maybe less?) I won't need them anymore and I have better uses for my money but now I'm looking at buying athletic masks and maybe a few nicer masks and I know why (in-person barre3 + I don't love how some of my other masks that I wear to synagogue fit) but still...

 

[SarahDisney]

2021 Activity Tracker Week 16 - April 26th, 2021 - May 2nd, 2021

Monday:

• barre3 with Kelly Livestream - 45-minute class
• Outside Time: Yep, went out to buy eye drops and ice cream. Yes, you read that right.

Tuesday:

• 13.1 mile run, 2:56:52 hours, 13:30 min/mi avg pace - My plan was for Ten Mile Tuesday, but with the understanding that I might need to cut it short because I'm not in any shape for ten miles. Or am I? I woke up Tuesday morning inspired to try for a half. Decided to turn around at about 5.5 miles (which would be a total of 11 mile run), but with the thought of adding an extra 2 miles at the end if I was feeling up to it. Apparently I was feeling up to it? I'm glad I did this and it felt great, but maybe it wasn't my smartest idea. I also tried Nuun for the first time on this run - more on that below.
• Outside Time: Yes

Wednesday:

• 3.21 mile run, 41:38 minutes, 12:59 min/mi avg pace - Runch! I’ve got some non-running stuff that makes it hard for me to concentrate, so I had to take a break in the middle, but I got it done. I probably could have gone a bit more (I felt okay and had the time), but the way my day ended up working out, I was glad to have the extra lunch time.
• Outside Time: Yep

Thursday:

• barre 3 with Katie Livestream - 60-minute class
• Outside Time: Vaccine take 2. And that's all I'm going to say about that.

Friday:

• Was originally scheduled to run, but decided to play it by ear in case of side effects. I woke up feeling fine, which was extremely confusing (everyone in my family who got the same vaccine I did had bad side effects), but decided that I wasn’t going to run because I didn’t want to risk being out and starting to feel sick. Not sure if it was the right decision, but it was the best one I could make with the information I had.
• 24 minute walk, 1.18 miles
• Outside Time: Yep

Saturday:

• Rest Day
• Outside Time: Yep

Sunday:

• 3.49 mile run, 44:35 minutes, 12:47 min/mile avg pace
• Outside Time: Yes

Total Running:
3 runs, 19.80 miles, 4:23:05 hours

Total barre3:
2 Livestream classes
0 online classes
Total time: ~ 1:45 hours

Walks:
1 walks, 0:24 hours

Active Minutes: 45+ 177 + 41 + 60 + 24 + 0 + 45 = 392 minutes
Total 2021 Active Minutes: 5577/7800 (71.5%)

Nuun Thoughts:
I bought the watermelon flavor. The instructions are to put one tab in 16oz of water, but since I carry a 32oz water bottle and I'm new to Nuun, I decided to just put the one tab in my 32oz bottle (so half strength). This was the only liquid I carried, but I did mostly otherwise follow my usual fueling process (Clif gel pre-run, jelly beans every 45 minutes instead of my usual 35, and chocolate milk + 1/2 pack Sport Beans after the run).

So ... the stuff itself. My waterbottle tends to explode water all over me when I open it after it has been in the fridge for a while or if there's something stuck in the straw. I put the tab in and the next time I opened it ... it exploded and I got Nuun water all over me. So that was a fun start. Oh, and it took a while to dissolve fully, which freaked me out a bit.

I didn't hate it. There was definitely an artificial watermelon taste, but it didn't bother me too much. But I found myself wishing I had plain water. It didn't satisfy me as much as water does. Also, I don't know if it really had a significant impact, since I was mostly still following my regular routine. So there's that.

tl;dr - I'd use it if I was carrying two water bottles, but it can't substitute for regular water for me.

 

[meye1099]

Hello! I'm enjoying following along with your running/fitness journey. I'm curious about bringing the Nuun on your run. I've always used the tablets as a recovery drink--I think there is a special kind of Nuun that's a powder that's meant for during your run (I've never tried it). I think it's not effervescent like the tablets. Did drinking Nuun alongside the beans bother your stomach at all? I've always thought mixing electrolyte sources like that was hard on the digestive system, but it sounds like you felt great on your run!

 

[TheHamm]

I find the nuun tabs also cause a glorious fountain effect on my bottle. I tend to pre-mix and let it sit beforehand it and is less of a spectacular explosion. I also only find it helpful during really sweaty runs long, otherwise I also would pick plain water.

 

[SarahDisney]

Hello! I'm enjoying following along with your running/fitness journey. I'm curious about bringing the Nuun on your run. I've always used the tablets as a recovery drink--I think there is a special kind of Nuun that's a powder that's meant for during your run (I've never tried it). I think it's not effervescent like the tablets. Did drinking Nuun alongside the beans bother your stomach at all? I've always thought mixing electrolyte sources like that was hard on the digestive system, but it sounds like you felt great on your run!

I didn't know there were different kinds of Nuun! I bought the tablets labeled "sport" ... it seems like those are meant for during exercise? Not sure about that.
I've never had a problem with mixing different fuels on runs (in the olden days of marathon training I used to do gels + jelly beans), but I also use regular jelly beans, not sport beans, so that may make a different. Definitely didn't seem to bother my stomach at all.

I find the nuun tabs also cause a glorious fountain effect on my bottle. I tend to pre-mix and let it sit beforehand it and is less of a spectacular explosion. I also only find it helpful during really sweaty runs long, otherwise I also would pick plain water.

Yeah I think I will try the pre-mixing option next time. That explosion was not how I planned to start my run. Maybe I'll try the nuun again once summer actually shows up and it gets a little hotter, see if that makes a difference.

 

[C.beara]

I have found that nuun has a bit of fizz so I do get that "exploding" when I use it occasionally - helps if the bottle isn't "full" full. I definitely put it in a half hour before my run and leave it in the fridge if I have time so it dissolves.

My only advice is avoid the strawberry lemonade flavour - it sounds so promising but it is awful. My favourites are fruit punch or lemon-lime, or there's a lime with caffeine that's pretty good too if you want that.

 

[MissLiss279]

I have found that nuun has a bit of fizz so I do get that "exploding" when I use it occasionally - helps if the bottle isn't "full" full. I definitely put it in a half hour before my run and leave it in the fridge if I have time so it dissolves.

My only advice is avoid the strawberry lemonade flavour - it sounds so promising but it is awful. My favourites are fruit punch or lemon-lime, or there's a lime with caffeine that's pretty good too if you want that.

Ha! I actually like the Strawberry Lemonade, but Tropical is another story...
I actually don’t use Nuun very often, but do occasionally to add extra electrolytes, sometimes in the days leading up to races (Disney) that I know will be hot and humid. I have used it during runs also, but do try and remember to add it to my water a while before I want to drink it, and then either leave the bottle open when it is dissolving it remember to open it carefully, away from me before I start my run.

 

[SarahDisney]

I have found that nuun has a bit of fizz so I do get that "exploding" when I use it occasionally - helps if the bottle isn't "full" full. I definitely put it in a half hour before my run and leave it in the fridge if I have time so it dissolves.

I gotta try putting it in more than 5 minutes before the run. That really seems like that will help.

My only advice is avoid the strawberry lemonade flavour - it sounds so promising but it is awful. My favourites are fruit punch or lemon-lime, or there's a lime with caffeine that's pretty good too if you want that.

I actually almost bought the fruit punch! I was between that and watermelon. Maybe I'll try that one next time.

Ha! I actually like the Strawberry Lemonade, but Tropical is another story...
I actually don’t use Nuun very often, but do occasionally to add extra electrolytes, sometimes in the days leading up to races (Disney) that I know will be hot and humid. I have used it during runs also, but do try and remember to add it to my water a while before I want to drink it, and then either leave the bottle open when it is dissolving it remember to open it carefully, away from me before I start my run.

Yeah, I definitely gotta be more careful about opening it next time ...

 

[SarahDisney]

2021 Activity Tracker Week 17 - May 3rd - May 9th, 2021

Monday:

• barre3 with Kelly Livestream - 45-minute class

Tuesday:

• 3.71 mile run, 47:39 minutes, 12:51 min/mi avg pace - Please explain how last week I made it through 13.1 fairly easily and today I struggled to get in less than 4 miles. No really, please explain. I’ll wait. (Yes, I know, every day is different and long runs are very different than short runs, but it was frustrating as I was experiencing it)

Wednesday:

• I was scheduled for a post-work run but just really wasn't feeling up to it, so I did an online barre3 class instead
• barre3 Online Class - 30-minute class

Thursday:

• Was scheduled for a morning barre3 class but I woke up tired so I cancelled
• 5.22 mile run, 1:05:42 hours, 12:36 min/mi avg pace

Friday:

• 3.25 mile run, 44:14 minutes, 13:37 min/mi avg pace

Saturday:

• Rest Day

Sunday:

• barre3 with Kelly Livestream - 60 minute class - Kelly was a substitute for a substitute for this class. And I really struggled with my last class with Kelly. But then Kelly announced that this is going to be her last week with the studio, and that kinda motivated me to get my head in the game. I also signed up for her Wednesday class, which I believe will be her last class.
• 40 minute walk, 2.2 miles

Total Running:
3 runs, 12.18 miles, 2:37:35 hours

Total barre3:
2 Livestream classes
1 online classes
Total time: ~ 2:15 hours

Walks:
1 walks, 0:40 hours

Active Minutes: 45+ 48+ 30+ 66+ 44 + 0 + 100 = 333 minutes
Total 2021 Active Minutes: 5910/7800 (75.8%)

 

[SarahDisney]

2 weeks of updates in one this week!

2021 Activity Tracker Week 18 - May 10th - May 16th, 2021

Monday:

• 4.51 mile run, 56:04 minutes, 12:25 min/mi avg pace - Was originally planning to do 7 but just didn't feel up to it.

Tuesday:

• barre3 with Katie Livestream - 60-minute class

Wednesday:

• barre3 with Kelly Livestream - 45-minute class - This was Kelly’s last class, as the studio is transitioning to livestreaming studio classes (vs having separate livestream classes) and she’s no longer in NYC. Which was sad, because she was one of my favorite instructors for a long time, but I know why she decided not to come back to NYC (it’s something that had been discussed before classes for a while) and I’m happy that she made the decision that’s best for her. I’m hoping she comes back to visit and guest teaches at the studio so that I can take her class in-person again.

Thursday:

• 3.02 mile run, 39:50 minutes, 13:12 min/mi avg pace
• 21 minute walk, 1.13 miles

Friday:

• Was originally scheduled to run but had too much other stuff going on
• 53 minute walk, 2.79 miles

Saturday:

• Rest Day

Sunday:

• 1:23 hour walk, 4.51 miles - walked to barre3
• barre3 with Vicky In-Studio - 60 minute class - My first time back in studio. It was wonderful. Felt like I never left. They did a good job with the spacing and sanitizing, and the mask wasn't a problem at all.

Total Running:
2 runs, 7.53 miles, 1:35:54 hours

Total barre3:
1 In-studio class
2 Livestream classes
0 online classes
Total time: ~ 2:45 hours

Walks:
3 walks, 2:37 hours

Active Minutes: 56+ 60+ 45+ 61 + 53 + 0 + 143 = 418 minutes
Total 2021 Active Minutes: 6328/7800 (81.1%)

2021 Activity Tracker Week 19 - May 17th - May 23rd, 2021

Monday:

• Rest Day

Tuesday:

• Rest Day

Wednesday:

• 4.01 miles, 53:16 minutes, 13:17 min/mi avg pace

Thursday:

• barre3 with Jenna In-Studio - 60-minute class
• 49 minutes, 2.55 miles - walked part of the way home from barre3. Through midtown. And that's all I'll say.

Friday:

• 2.19 mile run, 31:49 minutes, 14:32 min/mi avg pace - this was supposed to be a run/walk but it turned into more of a walk because yeah.

Saturday:

• Rest Day

Sunday:

• Rest Day. I haven't been sleeping well and I wanted to focus on the baseball, so I took the rest..

Total Running:
2 runs, 6.20 miles, 1:25:05 hours

Total barre3:
1 In-Studio classes
0 Livestream classes
0 online classes
Total time: ~ 1:00 hours

Walks:
1 walks, 0:49 hours

Active Minutes: 0 + 0 + 53 + 109 + 32 + 0 + 0 = 194 minutes
Total 2021 Active Minutes: 6522/7800 (83.6%)

 

[SarahDisney]

2021 Activity Tracker Week 20 - May 24th - May 30th, 2021

Had a lot of life stuff going on this week, so not much in this update.

Monday:

• 7.14 mile run, 1:41:38 minutes, 14:15 min/mi avg pace

Tuesday:

• barre3 with Ashley E Livestream - 60-minute class - originally was signed up for an afternoon in-studio class, but had too much other stuff to do so I switched to a morning livestream.

Wednesday:

• 2.93 mile run, 40:29 minutes, 13:50 min/mi avg pace - this run was torture, but I knew I could still push myself to do it as long as I was willing to do a little extra walking. Which I was. But ... my parents were picking me up for a drive to Philly so I ended up having to cut this short.

Thursday:

• Rest Day. Was signed up for a livestream, but the logistics wouldn't so much have worked so I cancelled.

Friday:

• Rest Day. Was in the car in the morning and then work.

Saturday:

• Rest Day

Sunday:

• Rest Day. Just a lot going on.

Total Running:
2 runs, 10.07 miles, 2:22:07 hours

Total barre3:
0 In-Studio classes
1 Livestream classes
0 online classes
Total time: ~ 1:00 hours

Walks:
0 walks

Active Minutes: 102 + 60 + 41 + 0+ 0 + 0 + 0 = 203 minutes
Total 2021 Active Minutes: 6725/7800 (86.2%)

So ... I might hit my 2021 goal before the end of June? Maybe? Will depend on a few things. But when that happens, I'll take some time to re-evaluate and see if I want to just keep counting without a goal or if I want to double the goal.

 

[SarahDisney]

2021 Activity Tracker Week 21 - May 31st - June 6th, 2021

Monday:

• barre3 Online - 30-minute class. Was supposed to run but was dealing with some stuff, so this happened instead. And I was so tired that I barely made it through this. So yeah.

Tuesday:

• 4.40 mile run, 58:05 minutes, 13:12 min/mi avg pace - Is it bad that like 5 hours after this run I totally forgot that I had run?

Wednesday:

• 28 minute walk, 1.42 miles
• 3.01 mile run, 38:33 minutes, 12:49 min/mi avg pace

Thursday:

• barre3 Studio with Jess - 60-minute class

Friday:

• Rest Day. Just a lot going on. Last day of work (more on that in a few weeks, hopefully), saw a few apartments, had some cooking to do ... something had to go and my run was the logical answer.

Saturday:

• Untracked walk. Probably around an hour and fifteen minutes, maybe a little more, maybe a little less. No idea on the distance. Not counting this for minute totals but it counts as a walk

Sunday:

• 4.34 mile walk, 1:15 minutes
• barre3 Studio with Vicky - 60-minute class

Total Running:
2 runs, 7.41 miles, 1:36:38 hours

Total barre3:
2 In-Studio classes
0 Livestream classes
1 online classes
Total time: ~ 2:30 hours

Walks:
3 walks

Active Minutes: 30+ 58 + 66 + 60+ 0 + 0 + 135 = 349 minutes
Total 2021 Active Minutes: 7074/7800 (90.7%)

So here's a fun non-running non-Disney related question:
When looking for a place to live, do you see yourself more in an older home or a more modern construction? Or are you comfortable in either one? I feel like I know some of you better than others but definitely don’t know anyone’s personal housing style and it feels like a fun random thing to learn about people.

For context … I’m currently deciding between 2 apartments, one in a pre-war building and one in a more modern building (80s, but the apartment is newly renovated). My personal style is definitely more modern. Although the older apartment has some advantages (the closet space is one of the big ones), so I’m not making my decision exclusively based on that, I need to figure in some other things. But this whole process made me curious what other people focus on when picking a place to live and also what people’s personal aesthetics are.

(I really gotta make this decision by tomorrow-ish, so nothing that anyone says here will really impact my decision, I'm just curious what other people like)

 

[MissLiss279]

I think I like the ‘charm’ of older houses, but I currently live in a house that is just over 60 years old. Maintenance-wise, I really would like a newer more modern house at this point, but my old house/low mortgage payment lets me afford to run all the Disney I want.