Holiday Running, Training Updates, Running without a watch and Shoe Talk

I could have sworn that I posted last week....But, I guess not.  I had a wonderful Christmas, and now

I have about two weeks of training updates to tell you about.  Last week on a whim I decided to try to earn a girl scout, I mean Strava badge for climbing while running.

  I didn't read all the fine details.  I thought I would only have to climb 1500 feet in the month of December.  It turns out I have to climb 1500 meters...  hahahahaha. I have about three more days to tack on some elevation.

Training Updates and Running without a Watch

Thursday 12/17- Just shy of 9 miles.  I've managed to kill both my Garmin and my cheap digital stop watch.  I have been running blind, but I'm hoping to purchase a GPS watch soon.

No more arm parties for you!

I went for a run on my lunch break, and I totally lost track of time.  I planned on running for an hour, and I ended up going over.  I was also really trying to go after a Strava course record during the third mile, and that sucked the life out of miles four and five.  This was an out and back course, so the second half was a nice downhill ride.  I pushed the pace, when I realized that I needed to hurry back to work.  Here's the data:

Friday 12/18- I did a short strength training workout, and then I ran two miles at recovery effort.
For my weight training I did the following exercises:
Incline dumbbell press 
Back Flys 
Around the worlds for chest 
Side step downs off of a bench. 
Tricep extensions with rope 
Around the world lunges 
Handstand against the wall 
Mountain Climbers

Saturday-12/19-Rest

Sunday 12/20- 4.7 Mile shake out run.  My hip is feeling oh so tender...  I really aggravated it when I ran super hard down the hill on Thursday.  I was able to run, but I didn't want to run really far on it.


Monday 12/21- 3.6 Mile run.  Another easy run.. Nothing too exciting to report

Tuesday 12/22-Rest-  I had  a very hectic day at work.  No time to run.

Wednesday 12/23-  7.4 Miles...  I needed two miles to warm up, but my hip was still feeling tender.  I think I aggravated my hip from over striding during tempo pace.  I watched a few videos online to work on my running form the night before, and I decided to do some form drills, A-skips, butt kicks, and high knees, then I decided to do some short strides.  After that I was nice and warmed up, and the rest of my run was quite pleasant.  Here's the data.

Thursday 12/24 Christmas Eve!  Rest,  No running, only baking.

Friday 12/25 Christmas Day-  7.3 Miles. Since I entered a climbing challenge I decided I wanted to run up a big hill in the area.  Owens St. has one of the steepest residential climbs in my neighborhood.  It's not a very long hill, just very steep.  It was also really freaking cold and windy.  Like a dummy I wore shorts, and froze my ass off.  But, I did take a selfie at the top of the hill.  Here's the data.

Saturday 12/26- 7.6 miles. It is so bloody cold!!  There isn't any snow on the ground. But, our early morning lows are in the high 20's-low 30's with wind chill. It sucks... It's so funny because normally I would be talking myself out of going for a run, but my husband has been so encouraging of my running lately.  It's almost like he is daring me to go for a run in this weather... I'm not turning down a run, even if the weather is brutal.  I headed out again for another hour long run... I had a little more spring in my step this morning, and I headed back into the neighborhood with the stray dogs....
I have avoided Los Feliz drive for the past few months, because a home owner was letting their dogs roam freely in the neighborhood.  I figured it was too cold for the dogs to be up and running around.
Here's the data:

Another attempt at a Selfie. Derp.

 

 Sunday 12/27- Six miles, and never a dull moment in my hood rich Las Vegas Neighborhood....   I didn't want to run very far, but I did want to get some elevation in....  I stayed close to home and ran loops around the neighborhood.  During the 5th mile I'm running up a steep hill at the end of a fairly busy road (Charleston Blvd.)  This road dead ends at the base of Sunrise mountain.  This area isn't super deserted and in the summer months I have run further into the trails in the mountains....

This picture is from earlier in September.

Anyway...As I"m running up the hill a car drives past me up the hill, then they flip a u-turn to come back down the hill.  As they are driving close toward me, the car intentionally swerves in my direction to probably scare me. (I've had this happen in the past)... That didn't scare me.... When I ran to the top of the hill to flip a u-turn to come back down the hill, I notice that the car is parked on the shoulder of the road... If felt like they were waiting for me....

I yanked my headphones out my ears, and pulled out my phone, and set the dial to 911... I also slowed my pace down to a near walk.. I wasn't in any hurry to run towards this car... After what seemed like forever the car took off...  I ran the rest of the way home scared....  I made a point to run the turns really wide, and I also ran on the much busier road, as opposed to running down one of the quieter residential streets. I kept waiting for a car to come rolling up next to me.  When I run, I'm always paranoid, but this took things to a whole new level... My neighborhood isn't the best, but it's okay. However, if you go a few miles up the road, things get pretty real...  I don't want to take my safety for granted...I'd to think that I'm not the only runner that scans the ground for possible weapons when I'm out running...

Here's the data:

Monday 12/28 10.6 Miles-  I didn't expect to run this far today.  I wish I would have planned better and brought fuel with me.  I did dress more appropriately today, and I wore tights.  I ran my old favorite 10 mile loop.  The first half was uphill, and the second half was downhill.  I also plan to run something long tomorrow, so I took the pace easy.  Here's the data:

Shoe Talk

I bought two new pairs of running shoes for Christmas!! I needed to replace both my Nike Air Zoom Structure 18's, and the Brooks GTS Adrenaline 14's that I recently wore for the marathon. 

Both pairs have around 250 miles on them..  I will still probably wear the Nike's as casual shoes, and the Brooks have another 100 miles left on them.

I really liked that the Nikes' they did an excellent job of correcting the effects of my heel striking, and I feel that they helped fix the plantar fascitis issues that I was having earlier this year.  My only complaint is that I wish they lasted longer than 250 miles. It's  a very stiff shoe, with a very responsive ride.  I liked this shoe for tempo paced workouts, or when my feet needed TLC.  My only complaint is that it's a pretty pricey shoe.

The two pairs of shoes that I ended up buying are the Saucony Guide 8 and a new pair of Brooks Adrenline 15's   

I bought both pairs of shoes at a deep discount!!  I paid less than $80 for the Adrenaline 15's and $50 for the Guide 8's,

I chose the Guide because I had worn the Guide 7 previously, and while I wasn't blown away by the shoe, $50 is too good of a deal to pass up on running shoes.  It's a stability shoe, with a lot of cushion, I feel that these shoes are a softer ride, than the Brooks Adrenaline, and that this would be a great shoe for tempo workouts.

The Brooks Adrenaline 15 is last year's model, and one generation newer than my previous pair of Adrenalines.  While I love the snappy colors, I noticed that this pair of shoes has a firmer more stable ride than the last edition.  Which is good since this will be the replacement pair to my Nike's.  But, the fit is also a little larger too. I noticed that my foot was sliding around a little bit in this shoe, and I will need to make adjustments to the laces and fit...

Well that's all I've got for now.... I will try not to let too much time pass, before you have to read a long wall o' text.

Thank you for reading!!

Recovery Running, Ethel M, Visit to Oxnard, & Whitney Mesa

This week is the first week, where I am feeling somewhat back to normal. I'm trying to fight off some sinus issues (maybe a slight cold).  But, I'm trying to get back into a normal training routine again.

I wanted to post my post marathon recovery, to show you how I recover.  I'm sorry to bore you with two weeks of updates.

Recovery week November 30-Dec 6
Monday 11/30-Rest, I did stretch.
Tuesday 12/1- Rest- A little bit of light stretching.

Wednesday 12/2- I went for my first post marathon recovery run.  I ran 2.1 miles at 9:17 average pace.  This run felt so much longer than two miles.  I also did a little bit of light weight training.

Thursday 12/3-Rest

Friday 12/4- 2.8 Miles @ 9:05 average pace.  I felt like I had a little bit more energy, but I'm still feeling sluggish and tired.

Saturday 12/5-Rest, but I got a big workout in that evening.  I met up with my very good friend Jenn, and we took our kids the Ethel M Chocolate Factory's Nature Preserve.

They decorate the area with Christmas lights and Santa Claus even made an appearance.

 I didn't bring a stroller for my younger child.  I ended up carrying her around when we had to get through foot traffic, or to dodge around people who did bring their strollers.

Sunday 12/6-Rest
 I must be getting old. I'm not used to being out at night, and I felt like I had gone out drinking and dancing all night. Nope, just a sore shoulder from kid hauling.

Recovery week December 7-13
Monday 12/7-Circuit training followed by a two mile tempo run on the treadmill.  I was itching to go outside, but I didn't have a whole lot of time.  For circuit training I did the following exercises.

1st set
Flat dumb bell bench press 
Chest Flys with dumb bells
One Arm Rows 
Step ups onto a bench with a knee lift

2nd set w/25lb EZ curl bar
Bicep curls 
Upright Shoulder Rows
Over head Shoulder Press
Good Mornings
Squats
Single Leg Lunges

Last set 
Lat Pull Downs
Push up

Tuesday 12/8 -Rest

Wednesday 12/9- Two a days. 4.6 Miles for the day.  I had a few errands to run, I was also feeling kind of anxious/jittery due to PMS.  Running helps me focus when I'm feeling jittery.  With my morning commute being 15 minutes longer than it used to be  I only had time to run 2 miles before work.  But, two miles is enough to make me feel less irritated, and more able to focus when I sit down in front of my monitor all day.
At lunch time, I had time time to get  another short 2.5 mile run in.


Thursday 12/10-3.1 Miles at lunch time...This was a nice short run, just to get some fresh air

Friday 12/11-That day at work, we had our holiday party.  I had been on the committee for organizing the event.  I think this was one of the reasons why I was stressed out earlier in the week.  I was worried that I would forget something, or that something would go wrong...
Also earlier in the week, we decided to drive to my husband's and my hometown on Friday evening.

 We left at about 4pm and got into Ventura County a little before 10pm.  My husband is a champ for driving in gusty winds with some rain.  We stayed with my parents and we let kids stay up way late that night.

Saturday 12/12- 4 Miles at sea level. The story of my life is, "I only have time for a short run".  We were only going to be in town for 36 hours, and there was a lot of family to visit.  I managed to get out of the house for a short run, and I wanted to rip down the road. I live in Las Vegas and the elevation is around 1750  feet, The air is also quite dry.  My hometown is Oxnard CA, which is very at sea level and a stones throw away from the ocean.

The air was so moist, and full of oxygen!  I brought my waist pack so I could bring my phone, to record the data on Strava mobile (even on vacation I can't live without my data).  But, I was running completely blind because my Garmin Forerunner 10 decided to quit on me. Anyway....
I think I ran easy for .25 miles and then I just wanted to run as hard as I could...  There were a few stretches where I had to slow down to cross the street safely, and there were times that I did a few intervals for fun.  It was a nostalgic run, around my old neighborhood, and by my old junior high school.

Later on that day we went to visit my husband's side of the family, and then we took a quick trip to Port Hueneme Beach to let our kids stick their feet in the sand.

Sunday 12/13- Rest

We had to get back in the car super early.  But, we let the kids open up a few presents from their grandparents first.

Monday 12/14- Rest.  I had to go to the post office on my lunch break.  No time to run.

Tuesday 12/15- I had wanted to run something long.  But, my body is still telling me "NOPE".  I went to the Whitney Mesa Recreation Area, and ran around there.  I didn't have a planned route, and the park isn't very large.  I found a few neat climbs, but I hate sliding down the side of a hill.

I ran just over 5 miles.

 I also froze my butt off wearing only a t-shirt and shorts...That night I felt like crap, and I took a dose of Nyquil. 

Wednesday-12/16 -Rest, I'm not feeling so hot, so I'm going to listen to my body and rest....

Well I guess that's all I've got for now.  My apologies for the length of this post.

Thank you for reading.