To Infinity and Beyond - Becoming a Better DopeyBadger (Comments Welcome)

[roxymama]

Great! Hoping that the pain stays away and the buzzing subsides. Wonder if it's a pinched nerve thing?

So that means the secret to weight loss all along was to eat more apple fritters? Who knew it was that easy ?

 

[DopeyBadger]

Congrats!! This is awesome to hear.

Thanks!

Glad you're pain free!!

Me too!

Great! Hoping that the pain stays away and the buzzing subsides. Wonder if it's a pinched nerve thing?

So that means the secret to weight loss all along was to eat more apple fritters? Who knew it was that easy ?

I hope so as well. I don't really have a good idea at this point what it was/is. So maybe?

LOL, if only that were true about weight loss.

 

[Ariel484]

Congrats on a pain-free run! I know how nerve-wracking the first one back can be, so you've gotta be feeling great after getting that one done!

 

[DopeyBadger]

Congrats on a pain-free run! I know how nerve-wracking the first one back can be, so you've gotta be feeling great after getting that one done!

Thanks! Agreed, it was definitely a relief to finish it! Glad to put it behind me and hopefully get back into a normal running routine.

 

[BikeFan]

Glad to hear about your latest full PR! Hopefully, your leg pain is nothing major. Keep up the impressive work!

 

[pixarmom]

I'll be honest. This was the most nervous I have ever felt prior to a run. More than my first run ever. More than my first marathon. More than my first Dopey. More than any other run I've ever attempted. While I've been pain free since last Saturday, I have had a different sensation in the leg the entire time since. It's not a pain. It's an odd sensation (like cold, tingling, dull buzz, etc.) I'm chalking it up to mental, but I can't be sure at this time what it is or isn't. Last night I slept horribly. My leg just wouldn't stop buzzing and I'm sure it was because I was just really nervous. Nervous about running and nervous about the future of my leg.

I strapped on the shoes. Did my stretches. And...

View attachment 201461

Finished the run PAIN FREE! Not a hint. Nada. Nothing. Not even like the pre-warmup to the marathon where I felt the twinge. However, the dull buzz is still there. I'm still sure it's mental and until I have the MRI it won't go away. I'm just being hyper aware to that area right now. So a definite hurdle has been cleared. I'll be closely monitoring how the leg feels over the course of the next 24 hours, but I feel as if I have cleared a major hurdle.

As for the run, I was super stiff and out of shape. I could definitely tell I've taken off the last 2 weeks. But, it's still there and I'm not overly worried.

Lastly, a review of the two weeks off. Weight...

Weight on morning prior to marathon (carb loading day) - 156
Weight on morning of marathon - 156

Actually quite surprised I didn't gain any weight from the carb loading (the last time I gained 3 pounds).

Weight on day after marathon - 167

As is the MO for my body I gain a ton of weight post-marathon. It typically takes me 5-7 days to work that weight off during a normal training cycle.

During the last two weeks I opened up my diet to enjoy more things. I ate my normal training diet (oatmeal, eggs, chicken, etc.), but added in some other foods I've ignored. Like pizza, ice cream, brownies, cookies, cupcakes, apple fritter doughnut (?!?!), apple crisp, big thick burger, pound bag of chocolate pretzels, just to name a few.... Needless to say dietarily I've been enjoying myself the last two weeks. Thus, the scale this morning was...

Weight on first day back to running - 157

LOL! Only one pound gained after all that. Now to be fair, I'm not nearly as lean right now as I was pre-marathon. The weight has just shifted places. But overall, I'm happy with the enjoyment:weight gain tradeoff.

So, now it's the waiting game. How will the leg feel in 24 hrs? How will it feel after another short training run? And when is this darn MRI going to be scheduled....

Great news! So glad it went well!! Working on the "running blind" and the 10-mile race I did yesterday helped - no clocks at the mile markers!

 

[DopeyBadger]

Glad to hear about your latest full PR! Hopefully, your leg pain is nothing major. Keep up the impressive work!

Thanks for checking in! Very happy with the progress this year and still eyeing a BQ attempt in Fall 2017. Only 349 days to go!

Great news! So glad it went well!! Working on the "running blind" and the 10-mile race I did yesterday helped - no clocks at the mile markers!

Thanks! That makes it significantly easier to run blind when there are no race clocks. How did the race go?

 

[pixarmom]

Thanks for checking in! Very happy with the progress this year and still eyeing a BQ attempt in Fall 2017. Only 349 days to go!

Thanks! That makes it significantly easier to run blind when there are no race clocks. How did the race go?

Of course, I'd vote for the BQ attempt! Would you consider using the Milwaukee Running Festival marathon for your BQ attempt? It's later in the season and the weather last year was absolutely perfect. I ran the half at the last minute last year with not much training, but I might use it for a PR attempt at some point in the future.

Race yesterday was great overall! Course was a really nice out-and-back - mostly on paved trail. Ran at significant but not full effort. Too humid. My current PR pace is 8:35 mm for a half. I ran this at 8:45 mm and felt great at the end. Followed the rule of full participation in all family activities for the day and all was well! Ran three miles today and felt like I didn't run at all yesterday. Can't get too optimistic, or I risk overdoing it for Dopey.

 

[DopeyBadger]

Of course, I'd vote for the BQ attempt! Would you consider using the Milwaukee Running Festival marathon for your BQ attempt? It's later in the season and the weather last year was absolutely perfect. I ran the half at the last minute last year with not much training, but I might use it for a PR attempt at some point in the future.

I actually really want to run the Milwaukee Running Festival marathon. But as long as I continue to run Dopey every year, it will continue to be delayed. There are only 9 weeks between MRF and Dopey, which only leaves me with 7 weeks of running prior to Dopey. I'd be putting myself at a higher injury risk because not everything in my body would be back to full running shape in that shorter time frame. I know I could do it as I did Madison and Dopey in 2014/2015, but I'm not sure I'm willing to take that risk again. So to do the MRF would force me to sacrifice the effort on Dopey one year. I could do it, but I don't really want to do that unless I have to. However, having 30s for a BQ attempt is really tempting because I fly in those temps. But when the eventual day comes and I don't run Dopey, then I think MRF is near the top of my list for fall marathons.

As of right now, I will do either Lakefront or Chicago in Fall 2017. Lakefront because I know what to expect, or Chicago because I FEED off crowds.

Race yesterday was great overall! Course was a really nice out-and-back - mostly on paved trail. Ran at significant but not full effort. Too humid. My current PR pace is 8:35 mm for a half. I ran this at 8:45 mm and felt great at the end. Followed the rule of full participation in all family activities for the day and all was well! Ran three miles today and felt like I didn't run at all yesterday. Can't get too optimistic, or I risk overdoing it for Dopey.

Well done! Yea, what was with that blast of summer temps... Yep, I'll echo you and say "Save it for race (Dopey) day!"

 

[BikeFan]

I actually really want to run the Milwaukee Running Festival marathon. But as long as I continue to run Dopey every year, it will continue to be delayed. There are only 9 weeks between MRF and Dopey, which only leaves me with 7 weeks of running prior to Dopey. I'd be putting myself at a higher injury risk because not everything in my body would be back to full running shape in that shorter time frame. I know I could do it as I did Madison and Dopey in 2014/2015, but I'm not sure I'm willing to take that risk again. So to do the MRF would force me to sacrifice the effort on Dopey one year. I could do it, but I don't really want to do that unless I have to. However, having 30s for a BQ attempt is really tempting because I fly in those temps. But when the eventual day comes and I don't run Dopey, then I think MRF is near the top of my list for fall marathons.

This year I've done a ton more mileage (on pace to hit ~2400 miles for the year, after hitting ~2100 last year), and I've found that for events where I just ran to finish, but didn't really race, recovery was remarkably quick. I started with the Goofy Challenge in January, followed by a 36 mile race in Feb., another full marathon in March, and my 50-miler the first weekend in April. I didn't hit true 'race pace' in any of those races, and I found I only needed ~2-3 days to recover, and I was able to resume training. The week after my 50-miler, I did the Star Wars Half (very slowly) with my brother-in-law, and felt great. Of course, what's true for one runner may not be true for another, but I just wanted to share my experiences with someone else going for a BQ. I find that pace matters a whole lot more than distance. Good luck to you and I can't wait to hear about the BQ! Best of luck!

 

[DopeyBadger]

This year I've done a ton more mileage (on pace to hit ~2400 miles for the year, after hitting ~2100 last year), and I've found that for events where I just ran to finish, but didn't really race, recovery was remarkably quick. I started with the Goofy Challenge in January, followed by a 36 mile race in Feb., another full marathon in March, and my 50-miler the first weekend in April. I didn't hit true 'race pace' in any of those races, and I found I only needed ~2-3 days to recover, and I was able to resume training. The week after my 50-miler, I did the Star Wars Half (very slowly) with my brother-in-law, and felt great. Of course, what's true for one runner may not be true for another, but I just wanted to share my experiences with someone else going for a BQ. I find that pace matters a whole lot more than distance. Good luck to you and I can't wait to hear about the BQ! Best of luck!

In complete agreement. The question is when I toe the line of a race can I give anything other than race pace? I've tried in the past and it always ends up becoming a competitive thing for me and I break my rules. Some day I'll learn to turn that off. You can put a reminder in your phone for October 1st, 2017 at 10:30am central and October 8th, 2017 at 10:45am central. That's BQ moment, not a doubt in my mind (dependent on race chosen).

 

[opusone]

As of right now, I will do either Lakefront or Chicago in Fall 2017. Lakefront because I know what to expect, or Chicago because I FEED off crowds.

Although the spectators are awesome, Chicago is quite crowded, especially for the first 5-8 miles. It could be frustrating if you are going for BQ. Just something to consider.

 

[DopeyBadger]

Although the spectators are awesome, Chicago is quite crowded, especially for the first 5-8 miles. It could be frustrating if you are going for BQ. Just something to consider.

Thanks for letting me know. I'm generally a patient runner in the beginning, but that is definitely something to consider. Is it comparable to Disney starts? I would imagine Chicago is worse.

 

[opusone]

Thanks for letting me know. I'm generally a patient runner in the beginning, but that is definitely something to consider. Is it comparable to Disney starts? I would imagine Chicago is worse.

Full disclosure: I have not participated in the Disney marathon weekend (only Star Wars Dark Side weekend). But in my view, yes, compared to the EARLY Disney corrals, Chicago will feel a lot more crowded. For Chicago, there are probably 4,000-5,000 runners in each corral, so many more than Disney's 1,000-1,500 in the early corrals. I was in corral A for Star Wars Dark Side, and I never felt I couldn't run the pace I wanted. There may have been a few areas in the first mile where I slowed a bit, but only for 5-10 seconds max. For Chicago, I remember either having to slow down or dodge for many miles (I want to say the first 5-8 miles). Then, even after it slightly thins out and you can go at your pace, it is still somewhat crowded, so you have to pay attention and keep focus vs. being able to just run like you are used to.

However, it has been many years since I last ran Chicago, so maybe @cburnett11 or @IamTrike can chime in since they have run it in recent years.

 

[ZellyB]

ACK! Not sure how I got so far behind on your journal but anyway...

Love the new schedule. As always a very analytic approach to review of your marathon attempt and what you need to do to continue to improve. Truly impressive.

I hope you can get that MRI scheduled soon. I know the uncertainty and waiting can be really tough, but given how you have been improving since the marathon, I'm taking that as a good sign that the MRI will confirm that everything is fine!

Congrats on getting that first run done and pain free!!!!

 

[DopeyBadger]

ACK! Not sure how I got so far behind on your journal but anyway...

No worries, you're back!

Love the new schedule. As always a very analytic approach to review of your marathon attempt and what you need to do to continue to improve. Truly impressive.

Thanks! This was a year of testing. I was my own guniea pig if you will. I knew that I wasn't going to be fast enough for a BQ this year. So the plan from the beginning was to figure out what I could and couldn't handle for training. What does and doesn't work. So post-Dopey 2017 I could formulate a game plan to go from where I am to where I want to be in 10 months (October 2017). I think I learned a lot in the last year (thanks to you all for that). So it's allowed me to see what does and doesn't work in my last training cycle and what I need to work on to get where I know I'll be in 348 days.

I hope you can get that MRI scheduled soon. I know the uncertainty and waiting can be really tough, but given how you have been improving since the marathon, I'm taking that as a good sign that the MRI will confirm that everything is fine!

As do I. It's still pending as of this morning. So what was an original estimate of 1-5 days has now been 12 days... I'm hopeful that the lack of pain is a good sign as well. Unfortunately both the doctor and my sister both said that a lack of pain won't be proof positive of nothing being there. Just got to keep playing the waiting game I guess...

Congrats on getting that first run done and pain free!!!!

Thanks! It was a major relief. It's nice to get back to running. Although I feel as if I got hit by a truck. Just so sore and stiff these first two runs. Looks like I wasn't in as bad of shape as I was re-starting in May (Yea for journals!). But, I did give a more significant effort in the October race than the May race. So I'm still recovering. Back I'll take the pain free over any of it at this point!

 

[roxymama]

@opusone I know you've done the Hot Chocolate, but have you also done the Shamrock Shuffle in Chicago? I've been told that it's basically the start and then the end of the Chicago marathon. If so, would Billy running that race be a good test drive of the crowded-ness of the start of Chicago marathon? And that final "fun hill"?

It's the same race sponsor and start and finish line so it'd maybe be a good way to decide if it's for you? (Yes, this is part of my ploy to get everyone to run all the Chicago races!)
I was back in literally the second to last corral for shuffle and it was majorly crowded, but that's expected way back there.

 

[opusone]

@opusone I know you've done the Hot Chocolate, but have you also done the Shamrock Shuffle in Chicago? I've been told that it's basically the start and then the end of the Chicago marathon. If so, would Billy running that race be a good test drive of the crowded-ness of the start of Chicago marathon? And that final "fun hill"?

It's the same race sponsor and start and finish line so it'd maybe be a good way to decide if it's for you? (Yes, this is part of my ploy to get everyone to run all the Chicago races!)
I was back in literally the second to last corral for shuffle and it was majorly crowded, but that's expected way back there.

It's been quite a while since I ran the Shamrock Shuffle. In any case, they have about 15,000 runners in 8 corrals, so about 1,500-2,000 per corral, where the Chicago Marathon has 45,000 runners in 10 corrals, or about 4,000-5,000 per corral. It would give him an idea, but I would still expect the Chicago Marathon to be worse.

BTW, I think you have given that "fun hill" at the end of the Hot Chocolate 5k (and Chicago Marathon) too much power. It's really not so bad, you just slow down a bit, keep your effort the same, and you're up it in no time.

 

[roxymama]

BTW, I think you have given that "fun hill" at the end of the Hot Chocolate 5k (and Chicago Marathon) too much power. It's really not so bad, you just slow down a bit, keep your effort the same, and you're up it in no time.

I will keep those words in my head the next time I come up to that hill!!!

 

[DopeyBadger]

@opusone I know you've done the Hot Chocolate, but have you also done the Shamrock Shuffle in Chicago? I've been told that it's basically the start and then the end of the Chicago marathon. If so, would Billy running that race be a good test drive of the crowded-ness of the start of Chicago marathon? And that final "fun hill"?

It's the same race sponsor and start and finish line so it'd maybe be a good way to decide if it's for you? (Yes, this is part of my ploy to get everyone to run all the Chicago races!)
I was back in literally the second to last corral for shuffle and it was majorly crowded, but that's expected way back there.

That would be a tough sell to my wife. To drive to Chicago and run an 8K, regardless of the practice aspect of it. She barely lets me even consider running the Chicago marathon because of the cost aspect. However, I do appreciate the thought.

It's been quite a while since I ran the Shamrock Shuffle. In any case, they have about 15,000 runners in 8 corrals, so about 1,500-2,000 per corral, where the Chicago Marathon has 45,000 runners in 10 corrals, or about 4,000-5,000 per corral. It would give him an idea, but I would still expect the Chicago Marathon to be worse.

BTW, I think you have given that "fun hill" at the end of the Hot Chocolate 5k (and Chicago Marathon) too much power. It's really not so bad, you just slow down a bit, keep your effort the same, and you're up it in no time.

That's quite a few people. I'm going to try and find some people who've tried to run around a 3:00-3:30 marathon at Chicago to get their input it sounds. I'm patient, but I'm not sure how I would tolerate that many people around me.

I will keep those words in my head the next time I come up to that hill!!!

LOL!