The Running Thread--2024

Remember, in my opinion, it's ok to go too fast on the R split. Just don't let them become sprints, and stay consistent with them within a workout. So if scheduled for 53 seconds and you do 8 reps of 50.5 seconds, then you're fine. But if you do 5 reps of 50.5 and then 51.0, 52.0, 54.0, 55.0, then that's when you'll have issues. When fatigue forces a slowdown on these super quick paces is when you're most at risk for injury. So swallow the pride, end the workout early, and then make sure to aim for slower splits the next time around.

A measuring wheel is unnecessary. By sticking with mailbox to tree (or whatever), then whether it's 190m or 210m is irrelevant for what you're working on. Then it's just the raw split to split variance that you're comparing because the start/finish is static. Your watch simply becomes a stop watch and that's enough.

A track inflates performance because that's their whole point. They're more responsive than asphalt, or dirt, or grass, or concrete. They're also flat. A road has an uneven surface that requires different stabilization from your muscles. So if you plan to be a road racer, then you'll get the best pace feedback and most road ready running from road speed workouts. Track workouts have their place too though, as long as you're using them properly and keeping a cautiously evaluating eye on the data that comes from them.
Thank you once again. My second interval set was rather interesting looking at the times. It went: 50.0, 51, 55 (my watch told me that I was running at 6'45", so I slowed down too much), 52, 52...then, I ran out of time before work. I understand that this will be a process, but I'm actually rather excited about learning a new skill even though it feels like it's a somewhat steep learning curve at this point.
 
The public pool opens this month too! YAY! I'm interested to hear about aqua-jogging if anyone does that. Is it as simple as "running" under the water? Should I be in waist high water or more like neck-high? Should I stay in one place or try to move forward in a line?

My Galloway customized training plan includes aqua jogging once a week. I alternate through a series of four different interval workouts that I have preprogrammed in my Garmin. At first, they look easy, but they really aren't. I definitely feel them afterwards and, for me, it is a great way to get the cardio of a fourth run in my week without adding any pounding on my body.

Aqua jogging is also a great way to keep up your conditioning if you are injured and can't run. Coach Chris tells stories of people who have almost exclusively trained for races in the pool and have done fine. I'm sure I ever want to test that theory...

Here is a video where Jeff Galloway explains all of the basics of water running:


The pool at my gym has floating belts available for anyone to use, which helps. My main gripe about aqua jogging is having to share the exercise area with ill-mannered/splashing children.
 
Does Garmin have an option to correct the distance after a run? Apple Watch doesn't, but I can correct it on Strava when I have that issue.
Yes, you can edit activities afterwards to correct the distance. I don't think you can do it directly on the watch, but you can do it in Connect in the app or online.
 

Course des pompiers 🚒 & Ottawa Virtual 🇨🇦 Marathon race report

Being unable to run the Ottawa Marathon last weekend, DH and I registered to the Course des pompiers 🚒 Marathon.

The Expo was held in a sporting store and many of the volunteers were firemen. In top of giving bibs and shirts, answering questions about transportation and providing advice (like the first half is easier than the second, keep your energy), they were giving live saving CPR and AED courses.

For the race, we decided to use our Ottawa T-shirts since we were running it virtually and that the fireman race didn’t have DH shirt size left.

We woke up before our alarm at 4AM, took our time for a calm breakfast, got ready and left at 5:20AM. We were in one of the Laval city buses provided for the race at 6AM. By the time we used the porta potty, ate our snacks and checked our gear bag, we were hearing the departure of the first wave… only to realize that there was only one wave! DH and I looked at each other and said, well are you ready to run now? Let’s start our app and go. So at 7:02AM, under the blaring horns of the fire trucks we passed the mat and stopped for a selfie!
IMG_6310.jpeg
The first half was flat, country side, by the river with no action except the occasional people having coffee on their porches waving silently. The weather was perfect with a light cloud cover. The pinches, nags, aches and groans (thanks coach for the richness of vocabulary) that had bugged me in the last month stayed in check, partly because of Tylenol and by carefully avoiding any triggers.

As we were approaching the first hill of the course and the 21k, we could hear the half marathoners departures. We were at the perfect speed for the merge as we ended up with people of similar pace that stayed with us for most of the second half.

I soon heard my name being called by a colleague who was running her first half marathon and shortly after by @azrivest ! We were all running one next to each other and there was almost 2000 runners on the course! Meeting each of them was a tremendous moral boost and an inspiration to keep running consistently. Thank you 😊

The course was now in the suburbs, parks and had turns, ups and downs. I was more determined to finish not too late than excited about the scenery. At least there were some cheers stations, including my mom and uncle at 36km. We took the time to hug, smile and give them all of our extra gels.

There were indeed 15 water and electrolytes stations, 4 also included Xact Nutrition fruit jellies and 4 also provided bananas. DH had four 🍌 during the marathon! One water station ran out of glasses and they were very apologetic… Firemen unable to distribute the water 💦🥲 At that point the day was much hotter and most 10k runners had also passed by.

The final 3km were the toughest. There was this 1km climb followed by its reversed direction down and what seemed like an infinite approach to the finish line. We were rewarded with a nice medal, some decent snacks and a huge post-race celebration. There were educational shows, music, ancient trucks 🚒 displays, food trucks, etc. Unfortunately, I seem more attached to my toenails than they are to me. So I had to remove my shoes and minimize walking.

Overall, this was a well organized race but one that I found both easier than feared and harder than I was hoping. DH and I both finished at 4:27:54, a PR for his second marathon and my third best time out of seven.

Most importantly, we are happy to have deserved our double medals (including the virtual), honoured our training and ran this journey together.
IMG_8641.jpeg
 
Course des pompiers 🚒 & Ottawa Virtual 🇨🇦 Marathon race report

Being unable to run the Ottawa Marathon last weekend, DH and I registered to the Course des pompiers 🚒 Marathon.

The Expo was held in a sporting store and many of the volunteers were firemen. In top of giving bibs and shirts, answering questions about transportation and providing advice (like the first half is easier than the second, keep your energy), they were giving live saving CPR and AED courses.

For the race, we decided to use our Ottawa T-shirts since we were running it virtually and that the fireman race didn’t have DH shirt size left.

We woke up before our alarm at 4AM, took our time for a calm breakfast, got ready and left at 5:20AM. We were in one of the Laval city buses provided for the race at 6AM. By the time we used the porta potty, ate our snacks and checked our gear bag, we were hearing the departure of the first wave… only to realize that there was only one wave! DH and I looked at each other and said, well are you ready to run now? Let’s start our app and go. So at 7:02AM, under the blaring horns of the fire trucks we passed the mat and stopped for a selfie!
View attachment 865646
The first half was flat, country side, by the river with no action except the occasional people having coffee on their porches waving silently. The weather was perfect with a light cloud cover. The pinches, nags, aches and groans (thanks coach for the richness of vocabulary) that had bugged me in the last month stayed in check, partly because of Tylenol and by carefully avoiding any triggers.

As we were approaching the first hill of the course and the 21k, we could hear the half marathoners departures. We were at the perfect speed for the merge as we ended up with people of similar pace that stayed with us for most of the second half.

I soon heard my name being called by a colleague who was running her first half marathon and shortly after by @azrivest ! We were all running one next to each other and there was almost 2000 runners on the course! Meeting each of them was a tremendous moral boost and an inspiration to keep running consistently. Thank you 😊

The course was now in the suburbs, parks and had turns, ups and downs. I was more determined to finish not too late than excited about the scenery. At least there were some cheers stations, including my mom and uncle at 36km. We took the time to hug, smile and give them all of our extra gels.

There were indeed 15 water and electrolytes stations, 4 also included Xact Nutrition fruit jellies and 4 also provided bananas. DH had four 🍌 during the marathon! One water station ran out of glasses and they were very apologetic… Firemen unable to distribute the water 💦🥲 At that point the day was much hotter and most 10k runners had also passed by.

The final 3km were the toughest. There was this 1km climb followed by its reversed direction down and what seemed like an infinite approach to the finish line. We were rewarded with a nice medal, some decent snacks and a huge post-race celebration. There were educational shows, music, ancient trucks 🚒 displays, food trucks, etc. Unfortunately, I seem more attached to my toenails than they are to me. So I had to remove my shoes and minimize walking.

Overall, this was a well organized race but one that I found both easier than feared and harder than I was hoping. DH and I both finished at 4:27:54, a PR for his second marathon and my third best time out of seven.

Most importantly, we are happy to have deserved our double medals (including the virtual), honoured our training and ran this journey together.
View attachment 865647
Great job making lemonade out of lemons!
 
Most importantly, we are happy to have deserved our double medals (including the virtual), honoured our training and ran this journey together.
IMG_8641.jpeg

Hey I recognize those green shorts! :D

Congratulations again on an awesome marathon performance to you and your husband.
 
Course des pompiers 🚒 & Ottawa Virtual 🇨🇦 Marathon race report

Being unable to run the Ottawa Marathon last weekend, DH and I registered to the Course des pompiers 🚒 Marathon.

The Expo was held in a sporting store and many of the volunteers were firemen. In top of giving bibs and shirts, answering questions about transportation and providing advice (like the first half is easier than the second, keep your energy), they were giving live saving CPR and AED courses.

For the race, we decided to use our Ottawa T-shirts since we were running it virtually and that the fireman race didn’t have DH shirt size left.

We woke up before our alarm at 4AM, took our time for a calm breakfast, got ready and left at 5:20AM. We were in one of the Laval city buses provided for the race at 6AM. By the time we used the porta potty, ate our snacks and checked our gear bag, we were hearing the departure of the first wave… only to realize that there was only one wave! DH and I looked at each other and said, well are you ready to run now? Let’s start our app and go. So at 7:02AM, under the blaring horns of the fire trucks we passed the mat and stopped for a selfie!
View attachment 865646
The first half was flat, country side, by the river with no action except the occasional people having coffee on their porches waving silently. The weather was perfect with a light cloud cover. The pinches, nags, aches and groans (thanks coach for the richness of vocabulary) that had bugged me in the last month stayed in check, partly because of Tylenol and by carefully avoiding any triggers.

As we were approaching the first hill of the course and the 21k, we could hear the half marathoners departures. We were at the perfect speed for the merge as we ended up with people of similar pace that stayed with us for most of the second half.

I soon heard my name being called by a colleague who was running her first half marathon and shortly after by @azrivest ! We were all running one next to each other and there was almost 2000 runners on the course! Meeting each of them was a tremendous moral boost and an inspiration to keep running consistently. Thank you 😊

The course was now in the suburbs, parks and had turns, ups and downs. I was more determined to finish not too late than excited about the scenery. At least there were some cheers stations, including my mom and uncle at 36km. We took the time to hug, smile and give them all of our extra gels.

There were indeed 15 water and electrolytes stations, 4 also included Xact Nutrition fruit jellies and 4 also provided bananas. DH had four 🍌 during the marathon! One water station ran out of glasses and they were very apologetic… Firemen unable to distribute the water 💦🥲 At that point the day was much hotter and most 10k runners had also passed by.

The final 3km were the toughest. There was this 1km climb followed by its reversed direction down and what seemed like an infinite approach to the finish line. We were rewarded with a nice medal, some decent snacks and a huge post-race celebration. There were educational shows, music, ancient trucks 🚒 displays, food trucks, etc. Unfortunately, I seem more attached to my toenails than they are to me. So I had to remove my shoes and minimize walking.

Overall, this was a well organized race but one that I found both easier than feared and harder than I was hoping. DH and I both finished at 4:27:54, a PR for his second marathon and my third best time out of seven.

Most importantly, we are happy to have deserved our double medals (including the virtual), honoured our training and ran this journey together.
View attachment 865647
That is really great. Congratulations to you and your husband!
 
I don't want to get too excited yet, but i went for a run this morning. I was allowed a 1 minute run/ 2 minute walk interval with 8 intervals. Not a lot of running but the last time i tried to run at the end of Feb, I only made it through 5 runs. By run #6, my knee was screaming and i could not even walk on it. It has been a few more months off, one magic A2M shot in my meniscus to try and hold it together, and a lot of strength training, so i am hoping i make it more than 6 runs. Right now it is only 3 times a week, so i will report back in 2 weeks and hope i am still running.
 
Today, in the Continuing Adventures of Treadmill Disposal… :rotfl:

I’m here to tell you that one CAN take apart a circa-1998 ProForm into pieces light enough to be carried down a flight of stairs and hefted into a dumpster by a very petite 50+yo woman and her not very strong 20+yo son. It took HOURS - like, 6ish, spread over 3 days - an abundance of WD-40, creative thinking, and some mad Tetris skills, but the old treadmill is GONE! That was one very solid, almost entirely steel, treadmill. We had it all apart, down to the final single U-shaped frame, but could not get the nut at the end of the big bolt attaching the motor to the frame to release. So I took out the 2 screws holding the guts of the motor inside its casing and yanked out the motor, which made the frame light enough for us to get to and into the dumpster, though only after turning it at least 5 times to find the only angle at which it would fit through the side door. Kudos to the grippy work gloves I saw on sale at Home Depot a couple weeks ago and thought, “hey, those might some in handy some day” - they did lol!

I wound up ordering the new treadmill from Amazon, and paid extra for delivery to the room of my choice. Ironically, the treadmill mat I also ordered will arrive a day after the treadmill, making delivery into that room pointless. But I figure it’s still worth the $20 to make sure it gets delivered up the stairs and through my front door: I can take it from there. Went with a sleek Xterra with no big console on the front, since I have no need of it - readout and controls are on a bar across the front, low enough for my short self to use without needing to reach up. Motor is 1.5hp more powerful than my old one, it folds flat should I need to tuck it away ever, 10 levels of power incline!, and it was on sale, coming in under budget - AND it requires no putting together at all: shows up ready to unfold and put to work. I’m reminding myself that yes, this is exciting… but it’s still going to be a treadmill and 90% of the time I’d still rather be outdoors.
 
I don't want to get too excited yet, but i went for a run this morning. I was allowed a 1 minute run/ 2 minute walk interval with 8 intervals. Not a lot of running but the last time i tried to run at the end of Feb, I only made it through 5 runs. By run #6, my knee was screaming and i could not even walk on it. It has been a few more months off, one magic A2M shot in my meniscus to try and hold it together, and a lot of strength training, so i am hoping i make it more than 6 runs. Right now it is only 3 times a week, so i will report back in 2 weeks and hope i am still running.
I hope that you feel better soon. For what it's worth, I empathize with your frustration. Keep at your PT and this will just be a memory in your future.
 
I don't want to get too excited yet, but i went for a run this morning. I was allowed a 1 minute run/ 2 minute walk interval with 8 intervals. Not a lot of running but the last time i tried to run at the end of Feb, I only made it through 5 runs. By run #6, my knee was screaming and i could not even walk on it. It has been a few more months off, one magic A2M shot in my meniscus to try and hold it together, and a lot of strength training, so i am hoping i make it more than 6 runs. Right now it is only 3 times a week, so i will report back in 2 weeks and hope i am still running.
Yay! Progress.
 
I meant to ask this yesterday, but now am just curious. Did you come across any good global running deals? I didn't see too many. Rock n roll had some discounts, and few other races I've done in the past but not much.
 
For anyone looking to join or upgrade Club rD who may not frequent the Club thread, they just sent out an email to current members. Renewal windows are:

Platinum June 27-July 10
Gold July 11 - 24
Silver July 25-31

If there are any memberships left over after that, they'll go on public sale on August 1.
 
I love my Apple Watch 7 but have thought about going to a more dedicated platform as I try to improve my speed (also battery should I go for an ultra) so I like to study all the responses to this discussion. I haven’t really decided yet but for what it’s worth this past MW I was talking to the Galloway pacers I was running with and both of them switched from Garmin to Coros and said they won’t go back, so I’d really like to hear from others on this as well.
FWIW, I decided to pull the trigger and I bought the Forerunner 965 (I have Blue Cross Blue Shield, so I was able to get the watch for $480 instead of $800). I have only had it since Monday where I charged it to full and my watch (after doing a Pilates workout, two strength training workouts with 30 minutes on the Elliptical after each one and a five mile run that took 51 minutes) is still at 34%. This is in addition to wearing the watch while I slept each night.

So far, I really like the information that I am getting from the watch telling me about my maximum heart rate (if you trust that this measurement is actually accurate even with a chest strap) and my state of fitness. Nonetheless, I am having a little bit of buyer's remorse because I now have a Garmin 965 AND I still have a functioning Apple Watch. I have to wonder if the smarter thing would have been to trade in my AW and have gotten an AW Ultra.
 
FWIW, I decided to pull the trigger and I bought the Forerunner 965 (I have Blue Cross Blue Shield, so I was able to get the watch for $480 instead of $800). I have only had it since Monday where I charged it to full and my watch (after doing a Pilates workout, two strength training workouts with 30 minutes on the Elliptical after each one and a five mile run that took 51 minutes) is still at 34%. This is in addition to wearing the watch while I slept each night.

So far, I really like the information that I am getting from the watch telling me about my maximum heart rate (if you trust that this measurement is actually accurate even with a chest strap) and my state of fitness. Nonetheless, I am having a little bit of buyer's remorse because I now have a Garmin 965 AND I still have a functioning Apple Watch. I have to wonder if the smarter thing would have been to trade in my AW and have gotten an AW Ultra.
Join the rest of us cool kids rocking a Garmin on one wrist and an AW on the other. I like the run tracking and metrics of the Garmin and the freedom to leave the phone behind and still have cell service and music/audiobooks with the AW.
 
I meant to ask this yesterday, but now am just curious. Did you come across any good global running deals? I didn't see too many. Rock n roll had some discounts, and few other races I've done in the past but not much.
I finally relented and signed up for a local 10k in August because they offered a $10 off code, and also registration prices increased today. So I bit. I didn't see any really great deals though.
 












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