The Running Thread - 2021

[FFigawi]

@FFigawi sorry I quoted you in my remodel thread. I think I was going to say something over hear and got distracted. Noticed I quoted you in the other thread. You were probably like WTH. Thought I would share here. People would find it funny. of course I did mention my 10 Mike run in that post.

haha, yeah, I saw that and chalked it up to remodeling memory loss

 

[Disney at Heart]

DH and I ran the Atlanta 10 Miler this morning. Map My Run shows me 10.15 miles at an 11:06 pace which is not a PR for this race, but good for an old “snail” runner.
Official time will knock off the .15 and show a slower pace, as usual.
The course was a little different this year as we veered off from Piedmont Road and picked up a trail to take us into the Botanical Gardens/Piedmont Park area. It may have been part of the “Beltline,” since the course description mentioned that. So part 2 of the Triple Peach is done with the Thanksgiving Half left to complete. I’ll just say Atlanta hills are no joke!

 

[Sara W]

I want to thank all of you who recommended I pay attention to where I am in the race instead of thinking ahead. A 10 miler happened to line up perfectly with my marathon training today, so I signed up. I’ve lived in Atlanta a long time, but this was one the hardest races I’ve done here because they found basically the steepest, longest hills they could. It was also my first time using run/walk to race. I told myself to get through the 3:30 and after the :30 walk I’d decide how to do the next interval. That mentality that I read here saved me and I kept a consistent pace throughout the race. And I was able to secure my POT by over a handful of minutes after not racing since 2017.

 

[Disney at Heart]

I want to thank all of you who recommended I pay attention to where I am in the race instead of thinking ahead. A 10 miler happened to line up perfectly with my marathon training today, so I signed up. I’ve lived in Atlanta a long time, but this was one the hardest races I’ve done here because they found basically the steepest, longest hills they could. It was also my first time using run/walk to race. I told myself to get through the 3:30 and after the :30 walk I’d decide how to do the next interval. That mentality that I read here saved me and I kept a consistent pace throughout the race. And I was able to secure my POT by over a handful of minutes after not racing since 2017.

And DH and I are still at Atlantic Station, enjoying the day. Wishing I had known you before we raced! I did see one man running with a W&D shirt and we chatted that we’d see each other there!
Looking at results, I won 3rd in my age group, but that’s easier when my age group only has 10 in it, and we are all “upper muddled aged” women!
ETA: The shirt the man wore was actually a Star Wars shirt (I saw him on FB and made contact), and the “upper muddle aged” comment was misspelled, although “muddled” seems to be more accurate the older I get!

 

[Sara W]

I did see one man running with a W&D shirt and we chatted that we’d see each other there!

I passed a lady dressed in an Evil Queen outfit- shirt, shirt and visor. I was sure she was doing a dry run for W&D, but when I asked her at the finish she said she just didn’t want to miss out on the costumes even though she wasn’t doing it.

I was glad to run DOWN cardiac hill rather than up it for once, but that race felt like downhill at the front and back ends with almost all uphill in between. I thought the hills would be done after Piedmont Park until I realized which road we were running up.

Nice job on the 3rd place!

 

[garneska]

Congrats @Disney at Heart and @Sara W . The weather for atlanta was perfect for racing today. I felt bad I did not get out to cheer but the extra hour of sleep was glorious. Even though I had 10 on my plan, glad I missed it. Knee is getting better but trying to avoid hills. while i love that race, those hills would have been extra terrible.

 

[Kerry1957]

Race Report: Des Plaines River Trail Marathon, Vernon Hills, IL

Sunday was the third time I have ran this race, and I have always enjoyed it. The weather was perfect; 44* at the start (69 T+D) and low 60's at the finish (99 T+D). I felt sorta bad that the Chicago Marathon was last week and not this week, but I was also glad to get the great weather for a change.

I was not able to run very much during the late Spring and early Summer with knee issues (old meniscus tears, arthritis, and IT band), and was only cleared to begin running again by the sports medicine doc and the orthopedic surgeon seven weeks ago. As I mentioned in a previous post I asked @DopeyBadger for the impossible; basically a couch2Marathon 7-week training plan. (Edit..OK, I was running about10 miles a week but I liked the sound of couch2marathon). We both knew it was it was sub-optimal at best, crazy (stupid) at worst. He put together a very conservative plan and told me not to push it at all. I am very fortunate to have Billy to give me a dose of reality and emphasize safety when I would rather live closer to the edge. I told Billy I at least wanted to start the race and see how far I could go before I fell apart and had to walk.

The answer was about 17 miles, but not for the reasons I thought they would be.

I ran 30 seconds a mile slower than my easy run pace. I completed a HM 3-weeks ago at easy run pace without drama so I hoped that the slower pace would get me to at least the 20-miler marker before I had to walk. At 17 miles I was right on my slower pace, feeling great, with my heart rate crazy low as usual (120s). Then I felt a bit of a twinge in my lower back, but I often get random, phantom pains when I run a HM or a marathon that go away quickly so I didn't stress over it. Unfortunately my lower back just "gave out" over the next couple of miles. I starting listing to the right with my right shoulder much lower than my left; I simply couldn't stand up and run straight upright. My family met me at mile 23 and wanted me to stop since I looked so bad, but the pain was minimal and I am stubborn and I did not want a DNF. I walked/staggered onward stopping at 4 or 5 benches to stretch and rest and crossed the finish line to collect my medal. The last 3-miles took over an hour with the rest stops. I did manage to finish (sorta) upright and definitely with a smile on my face which were my two goals for the race.

This has happened to me before at the end of one HM and one M, but not nearly as drastic as yesterday. My only real fear was that a race official might think I had a stroke and would want to bundle me up into an ambulance. Today I feel the best I have ever felt the day after a marathon, with just a bit of tenderness in my lower back. I have no pain or discomfort in my knee. I actually considered going out for a short run today before sanity took over. I spoke with a family friend who is a PhD sports medicine PT and she is going to put together a core strengthening plan for me.

Has this sort of thing ever happened to any of you?

Edit to add...The marathon is a distance that will expose your weaknesses. I thought I would do fine since I had a fairly high level of cardiovascular fitness before the sporadic training during the Spring and Summer. Billy's plan and my low heart rate confirmed (at least in my mind) that and I was in good enough cardiovascular health to do the marathon. My weakness was in my core musculoskeletal fitness, and the distance exposed it.

 

[FFigawi]

Has this sort of thing ever happened to any of you?

Edit to add...The marathon is a distance that will expose your weaknesses. I thought I would do fine since I had a fairly high level of cardiovascular fitness before the sporadic training during the Spring and Summer. Billy's plan and my low heart rate confirmed (at least in my mind) that and I was in good enough cardiovascular health to do the marathon. My weakness was in my core musculoskeletal fitness, and the distance exposed it.

That’s kind of like me and my shin splints last year. I was in great cardio shape, but had not done much running before entering a half at the last minute. As my coach told me afterwards, the engine was fine; the chassis needed work.

 

[akrosie]

Has this sort of thing ever happened to any of you?

Yes! It was so weird. At Tinkerbell one year I did the challenge and part way through the half I realized I was curved over sideways. No pain at all. I would stop and stretch the other way to get straight, but when I started running again, it came back. I have some pretty funny photopass pictures. Eventually got swept because of all the stopping, My family was very worried, but after a rest I was fine. I see hints of it in my Dopey attempts, too. Now I am doing a quick Pilates routine every morning, and hope core strength will help. We did a local half last week and I was fine. It was so strange, bent about 45 degrees, but no pain at all, just really annoying.

 

[OldSlowGoofyGuy]

Congrats @Disney at Heart and @Sara W . The weather for atlanta was perfect for racing today. I felt bad I did not get out to cheer but the extra hour of sleep was glorious. Even though I had 10 on my plan, glad I missed it. Knee is getting better but trying to avoid hills. while i love that race, those hills would have been extra terrible.

Sorry/glad I missed the 10 Miler. Sorry because we had such a fun time 2 years ago. Glad because I'm still having foot issues, and am in no shape to race. 10 miles is more like my weekly mileage.

 

[garneska]

@OldSlowGoofyGuy i am with you lots of fun. Maybe next year we will both be uninjured.

Been doing therapy weekly for 4 weeks and i have to say my knee is better. In fact the run today was the best i have felt in about 3 months. Moving now to every other week for therapy and on the mend. Still trying to avoid the hills of atlanta, which is hard, but i have the beltline.

 

[cburnett11]

Promised (threatened?) absolutely way too long and way too detailed Boston Marathon race report.

Congrats on your Boston Marathon @dis_or_dat ! I ran very similar paces overall, but unfortunately had a much more positive split than you. You paced very well and I did almost the opposite and really spent some time in the pain cave late in that race.

 

[dis_or_dat]

@cburnett11 I wonder if I should have pushed the pace a little more, but I wasn't trying to requalify and my quads were definitely feeling it at the end. I do think if I went faster at the beginning I would have been in the pain cave with you!

@Kerry1957 marathon distance is a beast. A little niggle at the beginning becomes a full blown disaster by the end. I was seeing people curving by the middle of the race and just felt terrible for them - spasms are so painful. But you could see on their face they were not going to stop. And you powered through - amazing!

I will say one of the most touching things about races is all the cheering for the runners at the very end of the race. After eating dinner, we were still seeing people crossing the line and we cheered so hard for them. The will to finish despite all the pain takes so much strength and fortitude. I was in so much awe.

 

[Jules76126]

For those of you who have a treadmill - what brand do you have and do you like it? Moved this summer and don’t have streetlights/sidewalks in the new neighborhood so running when it snows or is dark is not feasible this winter. So need a treadmill that will hold up to daily use by 2 people. Space is not an issue. We are more looking for something that will be reliable and not break the bank.

 

[Naomeri]

For those of you who have a treadmill - what brand do you have and do you like it? Moved this summer and don’t have streetlights/sidewalks in the new neighborhood so running when it snows or is dark is not feasible this winter. So need a treadmill that will hold up to daily use by 2 people. Space is not an issue. We are more looking for something that will be reliable and not break the bank.

Don’t get a cheap one off Amazon. The one we got is a fold-up one, which is nice when we need to use the guest room as a guest room, but the programs are junk, the instructions are junk, and the incline adjustments are minimal and manual. And the speed adjustments are slow and awkward. I can’t find a brand name anywhere on it. It’ll do the job in a pinch, but I’ll be getting a month to month membership at Planet Fitness for my winter running.

 

[inkedupmomma]

Marathon Weekend 2022

Over in the Marathon Weekend 2022 thread you'll find others running that particular weekend. Once waivers are released and people find out what corral they've been assigned to (which btw for the 5k/10k we don't find out assignment until the Expo), then usually I put together a spreadsheet like the attached. For the 5k/10k, we usually just do a guess of corral assignment based on your inputted estimated pace range. The file helps DIS members find others with similar corrals and pace goals. Gives you some people to potentially chat with pre-race and in the corrals themselves.



I did a quick search and few a good ones with lots of tips for new runners.

Advice for Newbies #1
Advice for Newbies #2
Advice for Newbies #3
Advice for Newbies #4
Advice for Newbies #5

There was a QOTD (Question of the Day) some years ago that was, "If you could go back in time and give your past runner self advice, what would it be?" And the responses were by and large quite similar:

1) Slow DOWN in training. Train slow to race fast.
2) Slow DOWN in training. Train slow to race fast. LOL, so important it needs to be listed twice!
3) Find a training plan that you can commit to nearly 100% from the start with little modifications to the plan as written.
4) Be consistent in training.
5) But playing off #2 and #3, be flexible when you need to be. We're doing this for fun. So keep that in mind in the decision making process.

I'm all of like 3 weeks into following this advice, but it's going well for me so far!

I've found that by slowing down, it's a lot easier to be consistent. Instead of being wiped out the entire week because pushed too hard on Saturday, I have the energy to go out (almost) every morning.

But jeez, I'm slow. "Pushed too hard on Saturday" meant like a 12:30 pace across 6-8 miles. Now my long runs are 15:30, and my weekday runs are 14:30 (can I even call those runs still?). But I know it lays the foundation for staying healthy and getting better.

Here's what I have learned from not following these points and what happens when I do follow them.

1. Training fast to usually leads to more soreness during training and oftentimes more recovery time from the long runs. I used to spend long run Saturdays and recovery Sundays in a perpetual state of soreness and shuffling due to training fast.

This can make training miserable and a perpetual slog to get through. Before long, training is the thing that you must endure to get to the run. Once I embraced training slow, I found training to be a far more enjoyable experience and helped me love running more. I also found that the dramatic increase in mile volume for the marathon had me far less sore than half marathon volume because I was slowing down. I believe that undoubtedly kept my legs and mind fresher heading into the race.

2. A training plan that you can commit to just feels "easier." And that helps reduce or even remove some of the mental blocks we impose on ourselves. There will always be times when training also requires sacrificing something, but a plan you know you can commit to makes it feel more doable even when such times come.

3. Consistency helps make it possible to better absorb missed runs caused by short term illness and/or general life craziness. I find this especially true when training for January races during the holidays and/or cold season. I've had nasty colds that really messed with my long run schedule in the last month before the taper. But consistency helped me get back to good enough for when it really mattered.

4. Speaking solely for myself, I find that I enjoy races so much more when my only objective and goal is to finish. There are many areas in my life where I need to excel. Allowing running to be something that is just fun means that I can save the serious introspection for more important matters.

Thank you for all of these thoughtful responses! Taking my time to read everything, and absorb. HOT take, slow down. How'd you know? I literally just decided to run one day... no idea what im doing. Appreciate the links!

 

[michigandergirl]

For those of you who have a treadmill - what brand do you have and do you like it? Moved this summer and don’t have streetlights/sidewalks in the new neighborhood so running when it snows or is dark is not feasible this winter. So need a treadmill that will hold up to daily use by 2 people. Space is not an issue. We are more looking for something that will be reliable and not break the bank.

I have the NordicTrack 2450. It was a little more than I wanted to spend, but it is SOLID and I like the wider belt. It came with a one year iFit membership and I love that there are thousands of workouts on there - I can run anywhere in the world! And not just running workouts, but walking, hiking, strength, HIIT, yoga, etc.

My only hesitation on recommending it to someone is that the touch screen is a bit temperamental sometimes. Last week I couldn't get it to even turn on. Luckily my husband is very tech savvy and was able to figure out how to reboot everything, but like he said, it seems like a cheap tablet/screen for a $2000 treadmill.

 

[DopeyBadger]

For those of you who have a treadmill - what brand do you have and do you like it? Moved this summer and don’t have streetlights/sidewalks in the new neighborhood so running when it snows or is dark is not feasible this winter. So need a treadmill that will hold up to daily use by 2 people. Space is not an issue. We are more looking for something that will be reliable and not break the bank.

I bought my wife the NordicTrack 2450. She absolutely loves it. Uses it quite a few days per week. She's liking the iFit workouts especially since the workouts coincide with the videos and control the treadmill speed/incline automatically.

I've used it twice. I don't do special workouts on it. But I can say that it is quite nice to run on if I absolutely have to.

Thank you for all of these thoughtful responses! Taking my time to read everything, and absorb. HOT take, slow down. How'd you know? I literally just decided to run one day... no idea what im doing. Appreciate the links!

How did I figure out I needed to slow down in training? After reading some running books in 2015. Prior to that, I was doing a "PR the day" mindset. After that, I realized endurance training improved more with slower running.

How'd I know I was going slow enough? By doing a mile test, or a Galloway 800m huff/puff test, or using a recent race time, and inputting it into an online training pace calculator. There are several training pace calculators options available from Jack Daniels, Hansons, Galloway, and McMillan to name a few. You can find the details on the Galloway mile test or 800m huff/puff test on the runDisney training plans on the website. Keeping in mind that running uphill or running in heat is cause to slow down even further from the recommended paces.

 

[Dopey 2020]

For those of you who have a treadmill - what brand do you have and do you like it? Moved this summer and don’t have streetlights/sidewalks in the new neighborhood so running when it snows or is dark is not feasible this winter. So need a treadmill that will hold up to daily use by 2 people. Space is not an issue. We are more looking for something that will be reliable and not break the bank.

I got a Proform through Costco for a great deal (just under a grand for a $1600 tread mill). Ive had it just under 3 years with no troubles, it has ifit but I don't use that. Does more than I need it to do since I only use it if outside is an absolute no go. Its extra wide and long and seems very solid to me. No squeaks or rattles and a 5 year parts warranty.

 

[matt and beth]

For those of you who have a treadmill - what brand do you have and do you like it? Moved this summer and don’t have streetlights/sidewalks in the new neighborhood so running when it snows or is dark is not feasible this winter. So need a treadmill that will hold up to daily use by 2 people. Space is not an issue. We are more looking for something that will be reliable and not break the bank.

We’ve had two Pacemasters that are now out of business. And replaced two decks, 4 belts, and 4 motors on them. This time we went with the Sole because it has a lifetime motor warranty which is absolutely huge in my book! So far not a single issue.