The Running Thread - 2016

[bumbershoot]

For those getting expensive running watches without a touchscreen, I recommend buying a tempered glass screen protector. I would have injured my poor 235 by now if I hadn't gotten such a protector for the screen.

I also have entertained the idea of getting a running watch, specifically the Garmin FR 235, but I don't think I would get as much use out of it as I should.

I thought it would be a replacement for my 10. So I bought the turquoise band. And now I wear it ALL THE TIME. Like I had a hard time taking it off for formal nights on our last cruise. I LOVE tracking my HR and having an idea of my daily calorie count b/c of it. (Weight Watchers and I had to break up after their update in December because they seemed to think I should be eating around 1000 kcal* even after running, and I strongly disagreed with that, but I needed to know my calorie burn during exercise) (*because I refuse to eat low fat low carb low sugar, so it seriously penalizes me now for the same food choices that helped me lose 85 lbs)

You might be surprised.

It's also been a lot of fun getting watch faces and screens from ConnectIQ to modify the screen. I found a datafield that lets me see everything I want in ONE glimpse while I'm running. I've got the time, battery level, HR, pace, cadence, timer, and distance all at once! It's running-heaven.

(I thin it's the Single Run Field)

 

[Kathymford]

For those getting expensive running watches without a touchscreen, I recommend buying a tempered glass screen protector. I would have injured my poor 235 by now if I hadn't gotten such a protector for the screen.



I thought it would be a replacement for my 10. So I bought the turquoise band. And now I wear it ALL THE TIME. Like I had a hard time taking it off for formal nights on our last cruise. I LOVE tracking my HR and having an idea of my daily calorie count b/c of it. (Weight Watchers and I had to break up after their update in December because they seemed to think I should be eating around 1000 kcal* even after running, and I strongly disagreed with that, but I needed to know my calorie burn during exercise) (*because I refuse to eat low fat low carb low sugar, so it seriously penalizes me now for the same food choices that helped me lose 85 lbs)

You might be surprised.

It's also been a lot of fun getting watch faces and screens from the app/site to modify the screen. I found a face that lets me see everything I want in ONE glimpse while I'm running. I've got the time, battery level, HR, pace, cadence, timer, and distance all at once! It's running-heaven.

Do you mind sharing which screen protector you like? I thought I would be in trouble without one on my Apple Watch, but I've been lucky. It's pretty hearty it seems.

 

[FFigawi]

I rented a bike for a weekend. I too don't like my feet not able to touch the ground, so it took some getting used to. I can touch with my tippy toes, but my early experiences clipping in were a hot mess. I was getting a bike to do sprint tris. I got a just above entry level road bike from Specialized. I rode 4-5 before I felt like I found the right one. It's late now, but lots of bike stores around here (and I assume elsewhere) have used bike sales in the early spring. I tried that route but had no luck finding anything near my size.

On the topic of buying a bike, I can't emphasize enough how important it is to choose one that fits you, not one that the store happens to be selling that day. The money spent on a professional bike fitting is well worth it as it will save you from discomfort and possible injury in the future. A few tweaks here and there of only a centimeter or so can make a huge difference in how comfortable you feel on your bike, and if you're comfortable, you're likely to ride more and get more use out of it.

In the end it was the open water swims that ended my tri career. I may give it a go again sometime, but I need to get over my fear of what's lurking in the murky water first I sadly haven't ridden my bike in almost 2 years. My husband brought ours for spring tune-ups. He needed all kinds of stuff, chain, brake pads etc. they said all mine needed was to be ridden more.

There's nothing lurking in the murky water that's of any danger to you. Well, unless you live in Florida. Then you might have something to worry about if you're swimming in the Everglades: Nile crocodiles

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/breaking-news/os-crocodiles-everglades-20160519-story.html

 

[Anisum]

Isn't that ridiculous? I don't care whether you think your dog will hurt me. First of all, no one can be sure of that (not even me, and I have the sweetest dog on the planet). They are animals. Second, they are in my space and making me uncomfortable. That is unacceptable, whether they will hurt me or not. I say this as a HUGE dog lover also.

I love dogs as well but some people just let them roam free in our town. It's not like there aren't cars around either. It's just dangerous all around. I will say I appreciate anyone who is walking their dog on a leash and holds their dog close so that they can't launch themselves at me when I try to make a wide arc to get around them.

 

[CheapRunnerMike]

For those of you who bike how did you get started? It's not like running where anyone with sneakers can give it ago until they get good shoes/clothes/etc for it. I would like to do tris (I think I've mentioned that before) but not being able to touch my feet to the ground terrifies me (my childhood bike was evidently poorly fitted because I used my feet as brakes) so I don't really want to spend the $$$ on a bike if it's not going work out.

I started biking because I wanted to do a triathlon. I borrowed a road bike from a friend and trained on it for about a month before doing a "Try-a-Tri" event. After completing the race and deciding I wanted to do more I went shopping for my first road bike.

I have an observation that I have been wanting to say and kept putting off but this made me break my silence. Your name is "cheap"RunnerMike and yet you are a fan of Disney (not cheap), you ran Boston this year (not cheap), and you have probably a couple thousand dollars in bikes in this picture. None of this has the makings of someone calling themselves "cheap".

Completely fair observation! While those things are all true, I never pay full price for anything and seek out the best value I can possibly get with anything because I don't enjoy parting with my money (Scottish roots). We are DVC members, obviously not "cheap" but a great way to get the most out of Disney vacations, and we fly Spirit to Orlando (can't get any cheaper than that). We drove to Boston (9 hours) and stayed right downtown using Best Western points. Every one of those bikes was purchased as previous year's clearouts and the two road bikes I had coupons for an additional 25% off, so all of them were less than half the sticker price. Mostly though, I have a blog called 3 Cheap Runners that I (used to) write...I say "used to" because all I ever post there these days are race recaps every few months. Maybe I should change my name to "Deal-Hunter"RunnerMike

My very first outing on my tri bike was at a tri training camp for novices. I managed to clip one foot in, with some difficulty, and promptly fell over. The third time I was out on the road, I stopped at an intersection and promptly fell over. It's not just you.

Me too...first time out on my fancy carbon tri bike, standing still fall over at the traffic lights a half mile from my house #smooth

On the topic of buying a bike, I can't emphasize enough how important it is to choose one that fits you, not one that the store happens to be selling that day. The money spent on a professional bike fitting is well worth it as it will save you from discomfort and possible injury in the future. A few tweaks here and there of only a centimeter or so can make a huge difference in how comfortable you feel on your bike, and if you're comfortable, you're likely to ride more and get more use out of it.

There's nothing lurking in the murky water that's of any danger to you. Well, unless you live in Florida. Then you might have something to worry about if you're swimming in the Everglades: Nile crocodiles

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/breaking-news/os-crocodiles-everglades-20160519-story.html

Nile crocodiles, amazing...I wonder if they broke out of Kilimanjaro Safaris? You also need to be aware of the murky water if you ever do the Loch Ness Triathlon.
Great advice on bike fit too, worth every penny. The best bike you can buy is one that you will actually ride...a poorly fit bike will be uncomfortable and likely sit collecting dust.

 

[DVCFan1994]

On the topic of buying a bike, I can't emphasize enough how important it is to choose one that fits you, not one that the store happens to be selling that day. The money spent on a professional bike fitting is well worth it as it will save you from discomfort and possible injury in the future. A few tweaks here and there of only a centimeter or so can make a huge difference in how comfortable you feel on your bike, and if you're comfortable, you're likely to ride more and get more use out of it.

I totally agree. I spent a weekend on one rental bike and knew I wanted my own, then spent about 3 hours trying various options to purchase riding them around the store where I bought mine. In the end it was the difference of a cm on the Specialized I went with vs. the Trek I had been planning on because it was $100 cheaper. Then I spent another hour+ with them tweaking the fit, changing the stem etc. My husband has had several of those motion capture camera fittings, but I just don't ride mine enough to warrant the cost. His short ride of 40 miles is longer than my longest. I wish I liked it more, but I got out of the habit two years ago when I had was put in a walking boot over the summer. Then last summer my biking partner moved and I get bored out there riding alone. I promised my husband I'd give it another go and not let the bike collect dust for another summer. Otherwise he's going to sell it and use the money for his zillionith set of wheels or some other accessory. Already has the power meter, not sure what else is left. I wish we could ride together, but we have kids requiring babysitters. Darn kids!

There's nothing lurking in the murky water that's of any danger to you. Well, unless you live in Florida. Then you might have something to worry about if you're swimming in the Everglades: Nile crocodiles

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/breaking-news/os-crocodiles-everglades-20160519-story.html

Alligators are scary enough, forget Nile Crocodiles. I get freaked out by the silliest things. Sunfish for instance. Doesn't this guy look terrifying?


And there are a lot of ocean tris here in New England. You've seen Jaws right? I'm with Brody. I know, I need to put on my big girl pants. I am working on it. I did love the first and only sprint tri I did, and it has a half ironman (Ironman Timberman) the following day. I always thought I'd do it eventually, but its going to take more time to train for than I can commit to right now.

 

[dis_or_dat]

Took the plunge and ordered the 235! I hope the HR monitor works, I'm so excited to see what my HR zones are and VO2 max etc. Gotta start reading about them now ...

 

[cburnett11]

Probably the only thing I could use now are some new socks...primarily use Wrightsock but open to other good sock suggestions.

I've become a bit of a sock snob. I don't like to wear anything thick when I run, so I always wear Swiftwick Aspires. They are very lightweight and compression. If you go to buy these, the numbers (zero, one, two, etc.) just refer to the length of sock. With Zero being a no show. Even though these don't have tabs, I've never had them creep down into my shoes and I've never gotten a blister when wearing them. I never even notice them when I wear them. After long runs, races, or just to relax, I tend to wear Balega Hidden Comfort. For my liking, these are too thick to run in, but they are super soft and make you feel like you are walking on pillows.

 

[LSUlakes]

QOTD: What is the longest distance you have traveled for a race in terms of both miles and travel time?

ATTQOTD: Miles - Baton Rouge, LA to Boston MA ~1,600 miles. Time to travel - Baton Rouge, LA to WDW. 10.5 hour drive

 

[rteetz]

QOTD: What is the longest distance you have traveled for a race in terms of both miles and travel time?

Walt Disney World
About a 19 hour drive
1,262 miles
2 hour 45 minute flight.

 

[opusone]

QOTD: What is the longest distance you have traveled for a race in terms of both miles and travel time?

When I lived in Seattle, I traveled to Madison, WI for Ironman Wisconsin, so ~1,600 straight-line miles. I probably haven't driven more than about two hours for a race.

Edit: oh, I forgot about The Golden Gate Relay, so I have traveled about 1,850 straight-line miles from Chicago to San Francisco for a relay race.

 

[cburnett11]

QOTD: What is the longest distance you have traveled for a race in terms of both miles and travel time?

Miles - Louisville, KY to Disney ~860 miles. Time to travel... 2 hour direct flight.

 

[CheapRunnerMike]

QOTD: What is the longest distance you have traveled for a race in terms of both miles and travel time?

Miles - London, Canada to WDW ~ 1300 miles
Time - London, Canada to Boston ~ 9.5 hour drive

 

[disneydaydreamer33]

QOTD: What is the longest distance you have traveled for a race in terms of both miles and travel time?

haha edited to take out the extra number! I guess I am just am so sad to be far away from Disney World, it may as well be 23,000 miles instead of 2,300
Princess Half Marathon 2,330 miles
Travel Time is usually about 6 or 7 hours, because I can't get a direct flight.

 

[camaker]

QOTD: What is the longest distance you have traveled for a race in terms of both miles and travel time?

Current Answer: 605 miles, 1:40 flight (Holly Springs, NC to WDW)

Bonus Upcoming Answer: 2,540 miles, 5:30 flight (Holly Springs, NC to DL coming up this September)

 

[FFigawi]

QOTD: What is the longest distance you have traveled for a race in terms of both miles and travel time?

Dubai to Orlando for Dopey. 8000 miles, probably 27 hours of total travel time.

 

[GreatLakes]

QOTD: What piece of equipment, or running accessory, do you not currently have that you want or plan to buy next?

My next planned equipment purchase is a Garmin Edge Touring. It is more for getting out and exploring more places on my bike but will come in handy as I ramp up my bike miles.

 

[Chaitali]

I think the furthest I've traveled for a race is Baltimore to Orlando for Run Disney races. In November, that will change since I'll be going to Vegas for a race.

 

[croach]

QOTD: What is the longest distance you have traveled for a race in terms of both miles and travel time?

ATTQOTD: Miles - Baton Rouge, LA to Boston MA ~1,600 miles. Time to travel - Baton Rouge, LA to WDW. 10.5 hour drive

However far it is from Virginia to California for DL Half. Similar to @camaker upcoming trip.

Dubai to Orlando for Dopey. 8000 miles, probably 27 hours of total travel time.

I think you win.

 

[Chasing Dopey]

QOTD: What is the longest distance you have traveled for a race in terms of both miles and travel time?

Birmingham, connected at Midway, to Phoenix for a football game and some work, then a hop to Anaheim! Stars Wars half this January.