Fartleks...terrible name, amazing results!

You know when you go on a run and it just feels kind of blah? Kind of like you're slogging through knee deep mud... Well, that was my Sunday 13 miler, my Tuesday 11 miler and my Wednesday 6 miler. Not only was each less than inspiring, but I had the same average pace for all of them...seriously. The pace was okay for the 13, not great for the 11 miler and pretty poor for the 6. I finished the 6 miler thinking that my quads had turned to iron and that I would probably never run again if I could help it.

But then Thursday came and with it, the waffling commenced. Would I do the 8 mile fartlek that I was supposed to or push it off for a day and wallow in my three woeful outings? I decided to push it off and wallow. But then my sagacious husband reminded me that oh yeah, I was running 5 on Saturday and 20 on Sunday and that having a rest day in between the fartlek and the weekend fun was a pretty good idea. He urged me to just get out there, have fun and knock it out. Somewhat bolstered by his rationality and certainty that I would not die if I had to run one more step, I slumped out the door.

Fartlek Definition: A fartlek is similar to interval training in that you alternate short bursts with your regular running or slower jogging recovery intervals. There's no predetermined schedule to follow and you set your own interval speeds and lengths in response to how you're feeling throughout the run. It dramatically helps me concentrate on feeling my pace and my physical response to it...thereby better developing my own self awareness and pace judgement skills.

I'd struck a bargain with myself that if I did the fartlek on Thursday as opposed to delaying until Friday, I'd allow myself to do it on a flat route. Resigned to "knocking it out", I decided to run along the end of West Cliff Drive and into Lower Wilder Ranch. It's a gorgeous (see below) run and mercifully flat. The relatively smooth course, combined with the variety of a fartlek run successfully broke my streak of crappy runs. I finally had some fun running again! I love fartleks for that because their structure puts the onus on you and so you're constantly tuned in with your body, seeing if you're ready to go hard again. The run was some of the most connected I've felt to my own running in a long time.

Thank god for Fartleks...and for Graham who is my constant sissy barometer.

West Cliff Drive, Santa Cruz, CA

Lower Wilder Ranch, Santa Cruz, CA

It's Hammer Time!

Though I didn't hit the time I'd been shooting for by a long shot, the 13 miles this Sunday felt decent. For some reason, I insist on picking routes with significant elevation gain/loss, which is a good thing...I think. The main issue though, is that I expect times that, for me, probably require a flat course. Oh well. If we're being frank, I'm sure I won't change my ways or adjust my expectations. Fortunately there were some good parts about the run as well :)

1. Hammer Gel
I'd heard so many positive reviews from runners with sensitive systems, but had kind of shrugged it off as just another gel that would give me cramps. While at my favorite running store, Running Revolution in Capitola, I queried the seriously badass employees (one was a marathoner many times over and the other had recently completed his first Ironman) about Hammer products. They both gushed and I had liked the Hammer Endurolyte tablets (electrolyte mid-run replenishment), so I somewhat grudgingly bought an Espresso Hammer gel. It was AWESOME! Seriously awesome in fact! Not only did it taste good (imagine that!), but it wasn't nearly as thick or slimy feeling as the Roctane GU I'd barely been able to choke down on a run weeks ago. And the best part of all being that it didn't trigger cramps, aches or sh*ts. All good in my book. 

Thus far, Hammer gels join a diced up PB sandwich on my short list of fuels that work for me. A friend also recommended those little pretzels filled with peanut butter as an alternative to the sandwich. She said that the added salt and crunch were great on the run; makes sense to me and since those things are delish, I'll be trying those soon too.

2. KT Tape
I got a freebie sample from Running Revolution of KT tape, which is similar to Rocktape. I'd been having some pain in the arch of my right foot since it developed around mile 18 of my first 20 mile run...greeeeeeeat. They showed me how to wrap my foot with the KT tape to support my arch and it was awesome. I didn't have any discomfort on the 13 miler and the tape didn't move an inch. 

I'd discussed my arch issue with a Running Rev employee who also happens to go to the same CF gym I do and he gave me an awesome tip. I'd been attacking my arch with a lacrosse ball at night to try and massage the pain away and not really icing it. He said that an overuse injury like that needs a lot of icing and a little compression, but not a lot. So he recommended that I fill a plastic water bottle with water and a little rubbing alcohol and stick it in the freezer. The alcohol keeps the water from freezing solid, making it an awesome icing tool. I would roll it underneath my foot with enough pressure to depress the malleable ice in the bottle while I moved; this provided enough compression on my arch while still icing the crap out of it. Highly recommend it!

The run down:

Graham's Recipe for the Perfect Ice Bath

As promised, this is G's recipe for the perfect ice bath. Don't get me wrong, ice baths are horribly, terrifyingly awful while you're in them...and yeah, I'll admit that during my first one, I cried...but just a little. I'd thought that my toes were going to explode in a frostbitten fury, though fortunately for everyone, they did not.

WOO HOO ice baths!!!

But before I give ice baths too great of a sell (ha), here's the recipe:

1. Buy A LOT of ice. We go with two 20 lb bags and that's proved to be plenty.


2. Fill the tub with cool water. We've found that it doesn't have to be freezing cold yet and if you make it cool water as opposed to straight up cold water, it's infinitely easier for the victim, ahem (cough, cough), I mean athlete to get into the tub and keep the process moving along. I try to chug water (or whatever recovery liquid is your fav) and eat something...perhaps a banana, isn't that right @SkyHighTrails? :)



3. Get into the tub and get ready! This actually isn't bad because you're still nice and sweaty from the run. As a quick side note, I've read that not everyone does the ice bath immediately after a run, but I do for a couple reasons. Mainly I just want to get the ordeal over with, but also I find myself thinking about the ice bath for the last couple miles of the run...and more astonishing still, actually looking forward to it. Crazy. Also, at the end of a run drenched in sweat, I want to get the ice bath over with so I can get in the shower and go to town with the body wash.


4. Add the ice! Yeah, not going to lie, this is the sh*tty part. I've found that if you adequately fill the tub - so that the water level is significantly above the top of your thighs when you relax them - it greatly lessens the discomfort of actually adding all the ice. The first ice bath we did didn't have quite enough water in it, so the ice was basically just heaped on top of my legs, which felt as terrible as it sounds. So make sure the water level is nice and high and don't worry, it will still get cold enough! :)
   
   
   
   Also, I've found that keeping my socks on for the bath helps tremendously; I kept them on this last Sunday and voilà, no toes threatening to explode with cold AND no crying. I also read that some people like to sip on hot drinks while in the tub, but I haven't tried it yet; it stands to reason and sounds lovely!


5. Try to relax :) I know, I know, sounds impossible, which is exactly what I fussed to Graham. But if you can convince yourself to relax into it, even a little, it's way less painful.



6. Sit tight for 10 minutes. I force Graham to stay in the bathroom and entertain me (aka, please god, just distract me!) for those long ten minutes. The last ice bath included G hand feeding me tortilla chips out of the deliciously greasy paper bag from my favorite taqueria - a good preview of the burrito to come - a pretty well established post long run routine now.


7. CAREFULLY get out of the tub. I almost did a face plant getting out of the tub the first time. You're pretty much numb from your waist down, so take it nice and slow.


8. Shower and stretch/roll. I do a little stretching in the shower, then get out and get to pounding that burrito I might have mentioned earlier. Once I'm fed, I stretch a little more and try to do a thorough job of the foam roller on my legs. For an interesting and informative article on foam rolling (instructions how to as well as the reasons why), check this out.

All in all, I have to say that ice baths rock. I've read a few articles that advise that ice baths shouldn't become a routine after every long run as sometimes you should allow your body to restore itself - essentially forcing your body to recover from your training and ensuring the continued efficacy of that training. That makes sense, but as I prepare for Boston, I'm absolutely allowing myself to take an ice bath on any run 20 miles or longer because it feels good...okay, fine and because I like all the attention and praise from G during the process.

20 miler round 2

Woo hoo, another 20 miler in the books! I decided to up the ante a bit this time around and made my route include about four miles of basically UP at the very beginning. It was tough and not surprisingly, did take a toll on my legs and time, but I was glad that I went that way. I also made two decisions that made my run fun...amazingly enough.

1. Book tape
For all of my training up until this weekend, I had been listening to music - A LOT of 2Pac, Snoop Dogg (excuse me, Snoop Lion), Method Man & Redman mixed with Papa Roach, Red Jumpsuit Apparatus and Alien Ant Farm - and that had worked well for the last few months. I kept my runs gangsta and rocked my way up the hills. However, I finally reached a point where I'd heard every song on the ipod too many times. I knew I'd hit this point when if I ever heard a song that was on my ipod while not running- on the radio, in a store, etc. - I immediately got tired as though I had been running and wanted to take a nap. So, I switched to a booktape and voilà, the time passed in warp speed.

2. Peanut Butter Sandwich Bites
So, I've been struggling (and whining) about my fruitless search for a fuel source that didn't plague me with stomach cramps or side aches and/or inspire a case of the urgent shits. I'd tried sports beans (they were the best, but still gave me a side ache), honey stinger energy chews (wowza, those combined with the pressure of a waterbelt...yikes) and Roctane GU. None really worked and I still hit the wall on long runs. However, taking a suggestion from my sister in law's husband, I made half a peanut butter sandwich, cut it up into little squares and stuffed them all into a plastic bag and that into the tiny pouch on my handheld water bottle  Fortunately peanut butter sandwiches are delicious smashed or not and best part of all, I felt GREAT after eating them on the run. I pounded all the squares and probably could have brought more! This was seriously exciting as I didn't hit the wall and I felt good eating...I'd feared I'd never find anything that worked. 

Those two changes made this run leagues better than my first 20 miler...particularly at the end. G met me along the run numerous times with his replenishment suite: chapstick, gum, lotion, snacks and water refills. As has become our tradition after the really long runs, he got me into the ice bath and rewarded me with a fat shrimp burrito after the ordeal. I hate to say it, but ice baths totally work. They help wildly with leg soreness and the "dead" feeling post long run; don't get me wrong, my legs were still extremely tired, but after the bath, they didn't ache or feel all that sore...just tired. 

I'll detail Graham's recipe for the perfect ice bath on the next post :)

One and done?

I've been frequently asked and periodically query myself whether or not I would attempt another marathon after I run in Boston this April. It's funny that my most common answer is 'probably not', considering I'm running the insanely prestigious Boston Marathon. When someone says they're running the Boston Marathon, that in itself immediately conveys the impression of an intensely serious, accomplished runner who was able to nab their BQ. But of course I didn't get to Boston the way that everyone assumes - aka, I didn't have to qualify to run it. Even still, I'm hoping for a good showing and a respectable time and if by some miracle I could hit the requisite time to qualify for next year's race, that would be staggeringly spectacular.

After my 15 mile run...after this
shot I promptly flopped to the ground.

 So, now I ask myself again if I think I'll attempt another marathon and I'd give it a 'maybe'. I'm definitely intimidated of the race itself and though I ran 20 miles a week ago, the 26.2 still seems really, really daunting. So maybe my opinion will change (I have been known as a biiiiiiit of a flip flopper) after the race and I'll decide to do another. But right now, that doesn't feel likely. 

I tried to pin down exactly what is making me so nervous about the race itself and I finally got it: I'm worried about hitting the storied marathon wall. I hit a wall on my 20 miler a little over a week ago around mile 18 and damn, that thing was solid. My legs, pace and attitude did not exactly recover from the impact and I struggled through the last two miles having to stop twice and not having much fun anymore.

The idea of running more than 6 miles further than that sounds impossible and the environment of the race itself is intimidating. I chatted with some marathoner family members and they diagnosed that I probably hadn't eaten enough and hit the wall as a result. An article on Running Planet confirmed it: (see the whole answer here)

"There is no barrier that drops down in front of you at mile 20. The marathon wall is really just a generic term that describes the effects of running out of fuel in your body."

So, okay, that takes some of the terror out of it. I just have to eat and keep putting one foot in front of the other. Sometimes I forget that a marathon is just running...granted, for a really long time, but it's just running. I know how to run...and if I hit a wall in Boston, then I'll just walk through it.

I've heard a lot of runners say that they do it for the beer. Well, I don't like beer, but I do like Lululemon. Graham has assured me that he will be right there on the sidelines (at one point along the race anyways), donuts in hand, supporting me and reminding me that there is going to be a shopping trip at the end of that long, long 26.2 miles. I suppose I'll just do it for the clothes then.