The Running Thread - 2016

[Dis5150]

QOTD: What is your total mileage for March?

ATTQOTD: I am also at 54. 54.6 to be exact.

 

[surfde22]

QOTD: What is your total mileage for March?

I hit 102.6 miles in March. This was a new monthly record for me, but it is also only my third month of serious running. I have run off and on in the past, but nothing as serious as now, but either way it's a record.

 

[Miranda]

ATTQOTD: Ouch, 25.1 for March. Yeah, that 10 miler in 3 weeks is going to be brutal.

 

[camaker]

ATTQOTD: I am a Middle School Principal. Anyone here ever get sent to the principal's office?

All the time! My wife, who is running her first ever 5k at SWDS, is a High School Principal.

 

[roxymama]

@LSUlakes I'm impressed with your 54...if that means anything

I think I got between 55-60...I need to go add them up since I mixed my Nike+ and my Garmin and I need to link them. Whatever it was I'm pretty sure it was a PR (remember, I'm not a marathoner.)
Next month I want to PR again as I gear up my 10k.

 

[camaker]

QOTD: What is your total mileage for March?

Just missed out on triple digits this month. Final tally show 98.78 miles, which includes one half marathon.

 

[disneydaydreamer33]

I'm pretty it sure it is around 50. I'm running about half the time on the treadmill and half the time outside, and I don't have a consistent place to log miles when running on the treadmill. I hope next month brings is mostly outside (though I have caught up on a lot of TV lol).

 

[Princess_Nikki]

I love this thread!!!

Questions I have for you fellow runners would be about hydration, mostly.

During the Princess Half, I was so worried about the long port-a-potty lines, that I failed to properly hydrate myself. This resulted in me not finishing strong and being horribly dehydrated for at least an hour afterwards. Thank goodness my DH is a dive medic (and I knew the signs of dehydration myself) and took care of me. (This is TMI; but I also did a #2 like 6 times! Not a good time!)

So, for my next runs I'd like to have my body prepared better! I've read tons of articles on nutrition and running but I'd like to know what works best for YOU all here.

Note to add: I am a female and have birthed two children! The female bladder undergoes some serious shenanigans during pregnancy. Our bladders get flattened about to the size of a pancake, hence the reason pregnant women must urinate so often. It doesn't bounce back to its perfect original design afterward, lol, unfortunately, so it's quite annoying to have to always use the loo during runs & races.

Bah Humbug.

What's my solution?
Suck it up, Buttercup, & keep drinking water and having to go all the time? Lol. Idk.

 

[DopeyBadger]

Thanks - I have a training plan (that you helped me build) and I am sticking to it. I feel like I can do more, but I am making myself follow the plan. By the middle of this month I will be solidly at 25 miles/week and can begin adding speed work to my routine, which will greatly help my VO2. I leave for vacation - another 9 days in WDW - and hope that I don't derail my progress. I plan on running 5 days while there - looking forward to running in the heat.

That's awesome! I'm happy to hear that you're taking things conservatively as it will pay major dividends in the upcoming future training. Yea for speed work!

Congrats on the weekly mileage PR . Your consistent effort at self-improvement is pretty impressive.

Thanks! It's a realization after several years of training that slowly increasing my training load allows me to maximize my current performance. It has allowed me to pear into the future and still see that to reach my ultimate goal of sub 3-hr marathon that I'm about 12-18 months away. Wish I could just fast forward to then, but I really am enjoying the small victories each and every day. Yesterday's victory was maintaining a marathon effort for 9 miles which equaled a pace of ~7:42 min/mile towards the end of the run.

 

[DopeyBadger]

I love this thread!!!

Questions I have for you fellow runners would be about hydration, mostly.

During the Princess Half, I was so worried about the long port-a-potty lines, that I failed to properly hydrate myself. This resulted in me not finishing strong and being horribly dehydrated for at least an hour afterwards. Thank goodness my DH is a dive medic (and I knew the signs of dehydration myself) and took care of me. (This is TMI; but I also did a #2 like 6 times! Not a good time!)

So, for my next runs I'd like to have my body prepared better! I've read tons of articles on nutrition and running but I'd like to know what works best for YOU all here.

Note to add: I am a female and have birthed two children! The female bladder undergoes some serious shenanigans during pregnancy. Our bladders get flattened about to the size of a pancake, hence the reason pregnant women must urinate so often. It doesn't bounce back to its perfect original design afterward, lol, unfortunately, so it's quite annoying to have to always use the loo during runs & races.

Bah Humbug.

What's my solution?
Suck it up, Buttercup, & keep drinking water and having to go all the time? Lol. Idk.

Hydrating the day prior to the event is super important. I'm usually drinking as much water that is tolerable but still allows my urine to be an appropriate color.

On race day, what works for me is that I don't take any liquids in within 2 hours leading up to the last time I'll reach a restroom. This means for Disney, no water 3 hours prior to the event (as about 1 hr before race start is typically the last time I can make it to a restroom in a good amount of time). For local races, it usually means 2.5 hours prior to starting gun (as I start my warmup 30 min prior to the race).

When the race is about 5-10 minutes to starting I typically take in a gel and about 8 oz of water. For me, this water typically does not have enough time to make it to my bladder. I've used this system in about 20 races and it's only failed me once (WDW Half 2015 had to use the restroom from beginning to end).

During the race, I consume between 3-5 oz of water per mile.

I typically practice all of these techniques on every training run to allow my body to get into a routine. Hope this helps!

 

[Miranda]

Hydrating the day prior to the event is super important. I'm usually drinking as much water that is tolerable but still allows my urine to be an appropriate color.

On race day, what works for me is that I don't take any liquids in within 2 hours leading up to the last time I'll reach a restroom. This means for Disney, no water 3 hours prior to the event (as about 1 hr before race start is typically the last time I can make it to a restroom in a good amount of time). For local races, it usually means 2.5 hours prior to starting gun (as I start my warmup 30 min prior to the race).

When the race is about 5-10 minutes to starting I typically take in a gel and about 8 oz of water. For me, this water typically does not have enough time to make it to my bladder. I've used this system in about 20 races and it's only failed me once (WDW Half 2015 had to use the restroom from beginning to end).

Pretty much all of this. No liquids except maybe a small coffee in the hour or 2 before the race. Then during the race, I drink whatever I want... it doesn't ever seem to make it to my bladder.

I don't specifically measure my intake at each drink... in the summer though it can be as much as 60 oz over the course of a long run. For my 9-10+ mile runs I'll plan 2 water refill stops for my 20 oz handheld into my route instead of just 1. In a race, I carry the 20 oz handheld with Nuun, and drink 2 cups (however much a "cup" contains at the table) at every water stop and save the Nuun for inbetween water stops.

 

[BuckeyeBama]

Hydrating the day prior to the event is super important. I'm usually drinking as much water that is tolerable but still allows my urine to be an appropriate color.

On race day, what works for me is that I don't take any liquids in within 2 hours leading up to the last time I'll reach a restroom. This means for Disney, no water 3 hours prior to the event (as about 1 hr before race start is typically the last time I can make it to a restroom in a good amount of time). For local races, it usually means 2.5 hours prior to starting gun (as I start my warmup 30 min prior to the race).

When the race is about 5-10 minutes to starting I typically take in a gel and about 8 oz of water. For me, this water typically does not have enough time to make it to my bladder. I've used this system in about 20 races and it's only failed me once (WDW Half 2015 had to use the restroom from beginning to end).

During the race, I consume between 3-5 oz of water per mile.

I typically practice all of these techniques on every training run to allow my body to get into a routine. Hope this helps!

This is almost exactly what I do. I make sure that I get up early enough to have my cup of coffee 3 hours before race time, then nothing else until my gel right before the race starts. I drink about 2 oz/mile if it is cool outside (one cup per water stop), and this goes up to more than 4 oz/mile if it is really hot (2 cups per water stop). I generally only have to take one potty break over the course of a marathon - sometimes none.

Practice helps you to get it right on race day. Race the way that you train.

 

[gjramsey]

ATTQOTD:

Miles: 131.6
Pace: 8:11
Duration: 17:55:19

 

[PrincessV]

QOTD: What is your total mileage for March?

ATTQOTD: 85ish miles for me.

I love this thread!!!

Questions I have for you fellow runners would be about hydration, mostly.

During the Princess Half, I was so worried about the long port-a-potty lines, that I failed to properly hydrate myself. This resulted in me not finishing strong and being horribly dehydrated for at least an hour afterwards. Thank goodness my DH is a dive medic (and I knew the signs of dehydration myself) and took care of me. (This is TMI; but I also did a #2 like 6 times! Not a good time!)

So, for my next runs I'd like to have my body prepared better! I've read tons of articles on nutrition and running but I'd like to know what works best for YOU all here.

Note to add: I am a female and have birthed two children! The female bladder undergoes some serious shenanigans during pregnancy. Our bladders get flattened about to the size of a pancake, hence the reason pregnant women must urinate so often. It doesn't bounce back to its perfect original design afterward, lol, unfortunately, so it's quite annoying to have to always use the loo during runs & races.

Bah Humbug.

What's my solution?
Suck it up, Buttercup, & keep drinking water and having to go all the time? Lol. Idk.

Florida runner here - I specify that because my hydration needs change based on time of year, and are probably a LOT different from folks in more moderate climates.

At any time of year, I drink to thirst, not a prescribed amount. In cool weather (say, under 65), plain water is fine; no extra electrolytes needed. I sip water all day, every day, again to thirst. I have a cup of coffee with breakfast and the occasional glass of wine or beer, but otherwise water is my only daily beverage: no soda, juice, etc. My point being that I'm pretty well hydrated all the time.

When the temps go up, I need more electrolytes - especially sodium. So I use Nuun during my runs, and will add Nuun to a glass or two of my usual water the day before a very long, hot run. More Nuun after, too. Again, I drink to thirst, not a pre-determined amount. In winter, that's often less than 24oz over a 10 mile run. Summer? I've easily gone through 70+ oz on a 10-miler.

Here's a really good way to get a handle on how much fluid your body uses: Sweat Rate Test. I check this routinely in summer, when hydration is most critical... there have been days when I lost almost 10% of my body weight to fluid loss. In cooler weather, I might not lose any at all.

I've found over the years that when I'm properly hydrated for the conditions, I don't need to "go" often. Not at all up to 13.1 miles, once up to a 20-miler. If I'm out there doing 4 miles and need to "go" midway, I know I've overhydrated. And yep, I've got the mom-bladder, too.

 

[CheapRunnerMike]

QOTD: What is your total mileage for March?

Running Miles - 226.5
Avg Pace - 7:12/mile

Cycling Miles - 277.7
Avg Speed - 20mph

Swimming - 36,900m
Avg Pace - 1:39/100m

Total Swim/Bike/Run Duration - 52:24:26

This is why I am always tired, and always hungry

 

[ZellyB]

QOTD: What is your total mileage for March?

ATTQOTD: 52 for me. Not as much as I had originally planned but had some tendonitis that popped up in one of my knees so I had to dial things back a bit. Still overall, getting back into a pretty regular groove.

Regarding hydration, I'm a lot like everyone else. I try to really focus on good hydration the day before (that's what I'm doing today in fact). I also have coffee a couple of hours before running and then I mostly just drink to thirst. I don't typically keep close track of my intact. Most of the time I can run a half without needing to go to the bathroom unless I've overhydrated. On marathons, I can usually manage just one sometimes two bathroom stops.

I've also learned to identify a nervous bladder (especially at the beginning of a race) a bit better and find that even though my brain is trying to tell me to go to the bathroom, the truth is I don't truly need to go most of the time.

 

[roxymama]

@Princess_Nikki You speak so much truth about the post-mama bladder!! I don't know if anyone can really understand it until experiencing it. Maybe they should give all mothers a few minute "handicap" during long races for the inevitable bathroom break?

I literally do not drink anything before sitting down at work to avoid any mis-haps on my 30 min commute. Same thing with before leaving...nothing after 3:30pm and I leave at 5pm. I asked my doctor if something was wrong with me and she said basically to enjoy my new life as a frequent bathroomer...that it is a better thing to have that burden than to be dehydrated.

But I agree with the above people about hydrating really well the days (well everyday) leading up to the race and then giving yourself at leas that 2 hour window with no water before the start. Although I like to take a few little sips right before (like minutes before.)

 

[Mickey's sweetheart]

QOTTD: 55.1 miles for the month.
I've been struggling with pain in my lower left leg for a couple of months so not many miles. I'm seeing a physical therapist this afternoon and hoping to get it cleared up. I have a half on May 1 and I'm starting to get worried about that.

 

[opusone]

QOTD: What is your total mileage for March?

Total Miles: 211.3 miles
Total Time: 31:58:06
Average Pace: 9:05/mi

 

[derekleigh]

QOTD: What is your total mileage for March?

ATTQOTD: Another not so impressive month for myself with a total around 54 miles. The struggle is real.

Just over 90 miles. Was aiming for 100 but a sick day (my one for the next two years) changed that game plan.

Total Miles - 90.3
Total Time - 13:14:40
Average Pace - 8:49