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

[roxymama]

Ack that kids race medal rack is sooooo cute, I'm dying! And congrats to your mom on her decision!

Congrats @canglim52 on those awesome times for your half #goals
I've been feeling rickety and slow this week and reading what you just did is inspiring me to keep working!

 

[DopeyBadger]

Ack that kids race medal rack is sooooo cute, I'm dying!

Thanks! "These are mine???" She helped me hang them up.

And congrats to your mom on her decision!

She's pretty excited about it. She's already been searching past marathon weekend results for female 60-64 Dopey runners and what they've done.

 

[DopeyBadger]

Well I was perusing Strava and handing out "kudos" to everyone who had done their workouts for the day. I thought to myself I wonder what some of the average paces will be on some of my runs for this upcoming Daniels cycle. I kind-of know that Hansons almost always comes out close to LR-EB for most workouts, but what about Daniels. As I was doing the calculations, I had one of those, "oh crud, what have I done moments..."

I give you the two toughest workouts based purely on average pace for the entire duration of the workout:

3/14/17

2 mi @ WU + (4x200m @ R w/ 200m RI) + (8x400m @ R w/400m RI) + (4x200m @ R w/ 200m RI) + 3 mi @ CD

Total Distance - 10.875 miles
Total Duration - 1:14:06
Average Pace - 6:49 min/mile

3/21/17

2 mi @ WU + (2x200m @ R w/ 200m RI) + (10x400m @ R w/400m RI) + 1 mile @ WU + (4x200m @ R w/ 200m RI) + 3 mi @ CD

Total Distance - 12.125 miles
Total Duration - 1:22:47
Average Pace - 6:50 min/mile

Keep this in mind. If I keep running for one more mile after the 12.125 (to reach 13.1) I would only need to run a 16 min/mile to still run a PR of 1:38 (we could even say 14 min/mile for a 1:36 unofficial PR).

What have I done?!?!?! Thankfully after those two workouts things calm down quite a bit, but still...

I guess I need to practice what I preach and trust the process up to that point. Don't look ahead... Don't look ahead... Don't look ahead...

 

[DopeyBadger]

Well I was perusing Strava and handing out "kudos" to everyone who had done their workouts for the day. I thought to myself I wonder what some of the average paces will be on some of my runs for this upcoming Daniels cycle. I kind-of know that Hansons almost always comes out close to LR-EB for most workouts, but what about Daniels. As I was doing the calculations, I had one of those, "oh crud, what have I done moments..."

I give you the two toughest workouts based purely on average pace for the entire duration of the workout:

3/14/17

2 mi @ WU + (4x200m @ R w/ 200m RI) + (8x400m @ R w/400m RI) + (4x200m @ R w/ 200m RI) + 3 mi @ CD

Total Distance - 10.875 miles
Total Duration - 1:14:06
Average Pace - 6:49 min/mile

3/21/17

2 mi @ WU + (2x200m @ R w/ 200m RI) + (10x400m @ R w/400m RI) + 1 mile @ WU + (4x200m @ R w/ 200m RI) + 3 mi @ CD

Total Distance - 12.125 miles
Total Duration - 1:22:47
Average Pace - 6:50 min/mile

Keep this in mind. If I keep running for one more mile after the 12.125 (to reach 13.1) I would only need to run a 16 min/mile to still run a PR of 1:38 (we could even say 14 min/mile for a 1:36 unofficial PR).

What have I done?!?!?! Thankfully after those two workouts things calm down quite a bit, but still...

I guess I need to practice what I preach and trust the process up to that point. Don't look ahead... Don't look ahead... Don't look ahead...

Crisis everted....

Just an error in the spreadsheet. It bothered me on the whole drive home because it just didn't make sense. Now the numbers make much more sense. So instead of 6:49 min/mile it's a 8:35 min/mile average. Much more reasonable... It was nice to find this so I can re-print this off.

 

[canglim52]

Well my specific research is on Vitamin D and not on the protein powder itself, but...

I personally use whey protein powder in my Oatmeal Banana Peanut Butter Protein Bars. I use Bob's Red Mill brand. It costs more than what you can get from other sources.

I am VERY hesitant to use any supplements as they don't have to follow the strict guidelines of the FDA (especially the "claims" of what they can or can't do specifically). Too many horror stories of the awful things they've put in "supplements" that don't pass the sniff test. Thus, that might be where the "Protein powder is a waste and can lead to colon cancer" might come from. Although I haven't specifically heard that claim. It might not be the protein powder but the other junk thrown in there that could be the culprit.

But I have heard numerous claims of ingredients in supplements that just shouldn't be in there.

In the end I am a big believer in bioavailability. Simply taking in certain things (like excess protein) may not work/absorb appropriately without the other micronutrients that are normally associated with "normal" foods. Although I am not a nutritionist, but one of my superiors is a nutrition science major so I've heard her stories. So I try to take in most of my protein, carbs, fats, vitamins, amino acids, etc. through "normal" foods and less through supplements or combinations of vitamins/etc.

Take all of this with a grain of salt as this is not my specialty. So this is more one person to another than anything I've extensively researched.

I've watched a fascinating lecture on bioavailability and eating whole foods over supplements. They also talked about how humans first use nutrition to survive, before using any surplus for longevity and thriving.

Personally I've stopped using a multivitamins, and I just try to eat as many foods with different colors as I can per day. My smoothie helps a lot. As for protein powder, I can't seem to eat enough protein without the extra help... I only use organic "non-denatured", from grass fed cows. I know non-denatured is a joke because the milk was still pasturized, but it's the only way I can find grass fed lol. I try not to overreact to everything I read because one article will tell you it's great and the next that it's terrible.... too hard to keep up lol

 

[canglim52]

Time board has been updated! Looks like it's time for a third board...

View attachment 217808

View attachment 217809

View attachment 217810

Also these are really cool!

And thanks @roxymama !!

 

[surfde22]

Crisis everted....

Just an error in the spreadsheet. It bothered me on the whole drive home because it just didn't make sense. Now the numbers make much more sense. So instead of 6:49 min/mile it's a 8:35 min/mile average. Much more reasonable... It was nice to find this so I can re-print this off.

I think this is why @Keels says not math. #mathfails

 

[dis_or_dat]

How about you? How are you feeling in advance of your race next weekend?

Ah, well I'm bagging the race. No more real racing for the next 9 months and most likely the next 1.5 years. Maybe a local 5k for charity, but no racing. So I'm happy I signed up last minute for that September race and hit my goal of sub 1:40, thanks for all the help!

You might have noticed I've been doing mostly slow easy runs with only the non-race Light Side 10k at a 7:37 pace (including stops). I'm glad the fitness from week 12 of your plan + Hansons helped carry me through the Rebel Challenge given my longest run afterwards was just 8mi. I thought I was really limiting myself with runs of 5-6 miles, but with all the fatigue and nausea, they have been exhausting. Sometimes running slow all the time feels like a real slog.

Hopefully I can run more once my energy returns. Felt better on Sunday, so decided to stretch my legs a bit and was surprised that my VO2 hit 57, but saw my HR was abnormally low, so an erroneous result. So I started looking back and am surprised that my VO2 max has been holding pretty steady at 54-55 despite my slow runs.

Anyways, I'm definitely disappointed to not race given how well training was going (consistently running faster than prescribed pace with no fade) and think I would have run a more disciplined race. I wonder how I would have done. Since training was never a motivational factor for me to lace up my shoes (it was more about seeing what my body could do), I'll keep running until I can't!

 

[DopeyBadger]

Ah, well I'm bagging the race. No more real racing for the next 9 months and most likely the next 1.5 years. Maybe a local 5k for charity, but no racing. So I'm happy I signed up last minute for that September race and hit my goal of sub 1:40, thanks for all the help!

I had been reading between the lines on some of the other threads, but never saw any official announcement (I only casually read the SWLS thread). Does this mean congratulations are in order? Or did I still miss it...

Definitely happy to help with the sub 1:40!

You might have noticed I've been doing mostly slow easy runs with only the non-race Light Side 10k at a 7:37 pace (including stops). I'm glad the fitness from week 12 of your plan + Hansons helped carry me through the Rebel Challenge given my longest run afterwards was just 8mi. I thought I was really limiting myself with runs of 5-6 miles, but with all the fatigue and nausea, they have been exhausting.

You're a strong runner so it didn't surprise me one bit.

Sometimes running slow all the time feels like a real slog.

I think many of us (especially those following my guidance with my propensity towards slow running) can relate to this. I can relate to it right now as I have only slow for these two weeks and then slow + LR + one M Tempo for the three weeks after.

Hopefully I can run more once my energy returns. Felt better on Sunday, so decided to stretch my legs a bit and was surprised that my VO2 hit 57, but saw my HR was abnormally low, so an erroneous result.

Thats interesting. Anything else about that day, other the HR being low, abnormal for you? Did the HR have wild low swings or it was just consistently lower the whole time?

So I started looking back and am surprised that my VO2 max has been holding pretty steady at 54-55 despite my slow runs.

I guess that would say to me the fitness is still there regardless of the current training of slow runs. I guess we should take that as a good thing.

For instance, mine peaked at 61, but it's at 57 right now. Partially the sickness and partially just not in the same shape as a few weeks ago.

Anyways, I'm definitely disappointed to not race given how well training was going (consistently running faster than prescribed pace with no fade) and think I would have run a more disciplined race. I wonder how I would have done. Since training was never a motivational factor for me to lace up my shoes (it was more about seeing what my body could do), I'll keep running until I can't!

Well, not that it's worth anything but I was going to guess around a 1:33-1:35 (7:06-7:15 min/mile).

Congrats again! Can't say I've got any kind of spreadsheet help or training plan for that. I've only done that "training" once and I was more of a "spectator" than a "participant".

 

[dis_or_dat]

I had been reading between the lines on some of the other threads, but never saw any official announcement (I only casually read the SWLS thread). Does this mean congratulations are in order? Or did I still miss it...

Definitely happy to help with the sub 1:40!

Haha! I PM'd you! But thank you!

Thats interesting. Anything else about that day, other the HR being low, abnormal for you? Did the HR have wild low swings or it was just consistently lower the whole time?

No, looking at the HR graph, it's clear my garmin was just not picking it up correctly. I've noticed it's been a little wonky lately too, sometimes catching my cadence instead so that my HR was abnormally high. Like my HR would jump to 190s right before I stopped for character pics at Light Side - I was excited to see the characters, but not that excited!

Well, not that it's worth anything but I was going to guess around a 1:33-1:35 (7:06-7:15 min/mile).

Congrats again! Can't say I've got any kind of spreadsheet help or training plan for that. I've only done that "training" once and I was more of a "spectator" than a "participant".

surely I wouldn't have been able to maintain those speeds, but I'll pretend like I could have! I must say, it's pretty awesome running with a passenger on board.

 

[canglim52]

Haha! I PM'd you! But thank you!



No, looking at the HR graph, it's clear my garmin was just not picking it up correctly. I've noticed it's been a little wonky lately too, sometimes catching my cadence instead so that my HR was abnormally high. Like my HR would jump to 190s right before I stopped for character pics at Light Side - I was excited to see the characters, but not that excited!




surely I wouldn't have been able to maintain those speeds, but I'll pretend like I could have! I must say, it's pretty awesome running with a passenger on board.

My Garmin chest strap occasionally spikes with really high HR, but I did some research and found out it's due to dry air and a static electricity from dry fit shirts. They advise licking the sensors or using some special gel, and it works like a charm(even if it's a little gross). Hope that helps!

 

[asheleycs]

DopeyBadger, I'm amazed at your pace, and wanted to tell you how inspiring you are. Your support in developing a training plan at the beginning of this journey really kept me going. I know it's fun for you, but my life has changed, and I can't thank you enough.

 

[DopeyBadger]

137 Days to Go (Another, possibly connected, sickness...)









Date - Day - Scheduled Workout (Intervals within desired pace, Strength +/- 5 sec, everything else +/- 10 sec)

1/25/17 - W - 7 miles @ 9:01 or slower min/mile
1/26/17 - R - OFF
1/27/17 - F - OFF
1/28/17 - Sat - 6 miles @ 9:01 or slower min/mile
1/29/17 - Sun - 7 miles @ 9:01 or slower min/mile
1/30/17 - M - OFF
1/31/17 - T - 6 miles @ 9:01 or slower min/mile

Total (training) mileage = 26 miles
Number of intervals within pace = *not tracking easy anymore

As a house-cleaning measure, going forward I'm going to stop tracking the accuracy of the easy days. Easy days will now be fully dictated by effort. I know what easy feels like so I just got to stick to that (and just ignore what happened on Tuesday...). I will continue to track the hard workouts accuracy though because I still feel to maximize the benefits they need to be run as close to pace as possible.

Wednesday was another easy day. The pace and effort were good. It was actively snowing out so there was a little slippery conditions to deal with, but overall a good day. I finally felt like my legs were getting back under me and I wasn't as sore anymore.

Thursday... not so much. I could tell throughout the day I wasn't feeling well. By the time 2:00pm came around it was a question of do I go home now or just wait it out. I chose to stick at work and try to get some things done. I just felt so cold. As I was walking outside, I got even colder. After a quick shuffle to the car, I just sat inside trying to get warm from the heater. Ugh... It wasn't an easy drive home because I didn't feel well. I finally made it home and parked myself squarely on the couch. Going running, Steph said. Nope... not a chance. I just kept sitting there with blankets on trying to get over the chills. But the blankets contributed to my feeling of being warm (you know the feeling of being warm and cold at the same time...). Finally checked my temp and it was 101.5, then 102, then 102.5, then 103.4... Decided to give the doctor a call and they suggested tylenol for the fever and to come in that night or next day. I decided to give it a day. But I bagged the run because that just wasn't going to happen. This made it a cold since mid-December, then the plane to Disney and the nose blowing up, then somewhat better in Disney, then marathon day was the best yet, then awful on the day post marathon, then cold-ish symptoms and then two fevers. I figured it was pretty conclusive at that point that I had "network connectivity problems".

Friday I woke up and the fever was gone. I was feeling relatively good, so I let work know I was coming in. I decided to keep my doctor appointment just in case. Although throughout the morning I had really bad sinus pressure and my teeth hurt like crazy. I saw the doctor and the doctor said:



LOL! The doctor said I had a sinus infection (maybe). So we started antibiotics. My teeth hurt for the rest of the day. I even had a little trouble getting my mouth open enough to eat. Alas, when I got home it came down to another question of whether I should run or not. I decided to not run, to try and give my body a leg up on the sickness, and to see how I would react to the medication.

Saturday I was back at it. Because the medication had to be taken every 12 hours, not within 1 hour of calcium rich food (and several other restrictions), I had to be good about timing meals and running. Nice and easy run with a good effort. The legs were a bit stiff but settled in well. It was a cold day with a wind chill of 10F. Nothing really else to note.

Sunday was another good day. I could finally tell my legs were getting back. I even had a few moments where I wanted to speed up but I decided to hold back. The HR isn't where it was, but it's making progress.

Monday was off and no medicine ball workout yet. It was nice to have a change in schedule to have a whole evening with just G and I. Although, it did take us 90 min to eat dinner because "that food is yucky!" and the whole fake "poison/awful taste" reaction to the food... Oh kids...

Tuesday was another easy day. It felt nice and easy. Maybe pushed a bit too much though because the avg. pace was in the mid 8:30s and the HR at 140. Time to remember to keep pulling back. But there was a big ole' smile the whole time I was running.

My resting HR told an interesting story...



I went from 48 bpm on 1/18/17 to 62 on 1/24/17.



And then from 68 bpm on 1/25/17 to 47 on 1/31/17. Guess there was a little bit of sickness action going on (or something else?!?!)... Maybe?

Well this is the last recovery week. Sunday is the first long run of the plan. Then next week Thursday is the first TEMPO run during the base building phase of the plan. Happy to have this sickness recovery now so I can move into the real training at 100%. Thanks for reading!

 

[DopeyBadger]

Haha! I PM'd you! But thank you!

No, looking at the HR graph, it's clear my garmin was just not picking it up correctly. I've noticed it's been a little wonky lately too, sometimes catching my cadence instead so that my HR was abnormally high. Like my HR would jump to 190s right before I stopped for character pics at Light Side - I was excited to see the characters, but not that excited!

CHEWIE!!!!

surely I wouldn't have been able to maintain those speeds, but I'll pretend like I could have! I must say, it's pretty awesome running with a passenger on board.

Trust me, you could have and would have done it!

DopeyBadger, I'm amazed at your pace, and wanted to tell you how inspiring you are. Your support in developing a training plan at the beginning of this journey really kept me going. I know it's fun for you, but my life has changed, and I can't thank you enough.

Asheley,

Thank you very much! It's moments and messages like these that make everything worth it. So THANK YOU for giving me the opportunity to help and play a small role in your life. It's truly been a pleasure to watch your progress. Keep on crushing it out there! Almost time for the GSC!

 

[LSUlakes]

The doctor said I had a sinus infection (maybe). So we started antibiotics. My teeth hurt for the rest of the day. I even had a little trouble getting my mouth open enough to eat. Alas, when I got home it came down to another question of whether I should run or not. I decided to not run, to try and give my body a leg up on the sickness, and to see how I would react to the medication.

I believe we had the same cold. The difference is I tried to let it work itself out for a way to long period before going to the Dr. The teeth hurting from the pressure is the worse, every. single. footstep! i even ran a few times with that issue, but when it got so bad my face felt like it was going to pop and I just felt terrible I finally went to a Dr. Sounds like we were given similar RX. One thing I was given was a steroid shot at the Dr office and the some pills. I absolutely hate those things! Couldn't fall asleep and wanted to eat the whole house. I also noticed a increased HR from it, so maybe we had the same meds... Anyway, a few days later I felt much better and starts to slowly get back into running, and here we are.
Short version... colds are for the birds.

 

[DopeyBadger]

I believe we had the same cold. The difference is I tried to let it work itself out for a way to long period before going to the Dr. The teeth hurting from the pressure is the worse, every. single. footstep! i even ran a few times with that issue, but when it got so bad my face felt like it was going to pop and I just felt terrible I finally went to a Dr. Sounds like we were given similar RX. One thing I was given was a steroid shot at the Dr office and the some pills. I absolutely hate those things! Couldn't fall asleep and wanted to eat the whole house. I also noticed a increased HR from it, so maybe we had the same meds... Anyway, a few days later I felt much better and starts to slowly get back into running, and here we are.
Short version... colds are for the birds.

Sounds like it, although it sounds like you had it worse than me for sure. I am feeling better and breathing was much easier during last night's run. The HR is definitely still up but the treatment regimen doesn't end for another few days. I'm hopeful things will return to normal and then the fun gets to start! Happy to see you back out there and getting back into the swing of things!

 

[FFigawi]

 

[DopeyBadger]

View attachment 218142

 

[MommaoffherRocker]

Do you listen to the Runner's World Podcast? I was listening to the one entitled "Moonshot" while running last night and thought you would think it was interesting. The Nike team that is trying for the sub 2 marathon offered to help the Editor in chief qualify for Boston. They had him do some running tests, checked his Lactic acid levels etc and then gave him a plan that sounded similar to your plans. Some of the advice that they gave him was spot on to what you have told me. If you haven't listened to it yet you should check it out.

 

[DopeyBadger]

Do you listen to the Runner's World Podcast? I was listening to the one entitled "Moonshot" while running last night and thought you would think it was interesting. The Nike team that is trying for the sub 2 marathon offered to help the Editor in chief qualify for Boston. They had him do some running tests, checked his Lactic acid levels etc and then gave him a plan that sounded similar to your plans. Some of the advice that they gave him was spot on to what you have told me. If you haven't listened to it yet you should check it out.

I don't really listen to any podcasts, but doesn't mean I won't. Looks like the segment is about 28 min long. I'll put the link here, so I can find it again. I'm interested to hear what they have to say. Thanks for sharing!