The Thankful Thirty

"Be happy while you are living, for you're a long time dead." - Scottish Proverb

It recently occurred to me that I should have written about my Thankful Thirty Trot... a Facebook challenge I opened up to my friends on Facebook in honor of Thanksgiving. I put together this event for two reasons: 1) to motivate me to continue to train during my second busiest month of the year, and 2) to motivate my friends and family to make healthier choices during the calorie-heavy holiday season. 

So what was the Thankful Thirty Trot? This was a virtual race of sorts to motivate participants to move continuously at least one mile per day, with a goal of hitting 30 miles by Thanksgiving. The rules were simple - KEEP MOVING, and motivate others. You could measure the distance however you pleased. You could walk, run, bike, dance, skip, or swim the miles. You could track your miles/steps using Fitbit, or you could estimate it using whatever other tools or know-how you had handy. You could update the group every day, once a week, or once during the entire event. Pretty easy, right?

I had 23 people join the event shortly after I posted it, but it stayed silent. Most of those that had accepted are already training for races or other events, or generally lead pretty active lifestyles... but no one posted anything. I guess I didn't really know what I was expecting. But then... a couple of people started posting their miles. Shortly thereafter, others began to chime in. Ever so slowly, a community developed... people who have no other connection to one another in life were cheering each other's accomplishments. Pictures were posted of trails and sweaty selfies. Personal records were smashed. Friends were made. It was a lot of fun!

Out of the 23 people who joined the challenge, 18 people regularly updated the group on their progress. Another 15 people didn't join the challenge or post their results, but commented supportive remarks or "likes" on other people's posts (I'm sure they were popping up on everyone's feed by that point). The participants included both men and women, ages 6 to 59. We had multiple long run finishes, including 1 Urban Dare winner in Houston (woohoo, Emily!), multiple 10K runners (4 officially participating in 10K races; 7 others finishing 10K+ distance runs), three Turkey Trotters, and a Half Marathon Finisher. In total, the group racked up over 763 walking and running miles!!!

When I set up the event, I made my goal to finish 70 miles before Thanksgiving. Without counting incidental steps as miles and only counting continuous miles... I ended the challenge with 43.6 running miles and 66.39 walking miles! Just one short year ago, finishing a one mile run would have been a challenge. Sure, I could walk far... but 5 or more miles? No way! What a year it has been, my friends! 

While I had hoped to end my challenge with a bang, I only got 5 miles in during my Thanksgiving visit back home in northern New Mexico. It was not for nothing, however... I used those 5 miles to encourage my nieces to work out with me. Both my oldest and youngest niece ran a little over a mile with me on Thanksgiving eve... 

and my youngest niece walked 2 miles with my brother and me after Thanksgiving dinner the following day!

On Friday, I convinced my mother, sister, and nieces to join me for another walk along the river near the ruins in my hometown. On Saturday, we did a very short, very cold, and very snowy mini hike! While our family did a lot of outdoor activities when I was a kid, it had been years since I could remember such an active holiday for us. I was elated! My favorite part? Both nieces said they had fun and that they would be asking to do more walks with my mom and sisters in the future. Hurray!

Given the tremendous success of this group, I toyed a great deal with the idea of creating a similar challenge to get us through the December holiday season. After much thoughtful deliberation, however, I decided to not go through with it. While November was a very busy month, December was scheduled to be even busier and I knew I just would not have time to moderate a group like this again. I've had several participants reach out to me and say how much they missed the community however... maybe I should start it up again in the new year?

I realize that we don't have a huge following for this blog, but I'm toying with the idea of linking this to a Facebook page so that readers could join a fitness community if they were so inclined. I've enjoyed a tremendous community of like-minded people on Instagram, but it's discouraging to find that some only reach out to you to sell you their products. I want this to be a solicitation-free zone. Thoughts?

Regardless, I think I will be setting up some kind of challenge in the new year. If you'd like to be included, drop me a line and let me know. We'd love to have you! I have two more long runs before my half marathon in four weeks... wish me luck. I've been avoiding this last one - hopefully I can motivate myself to finish it tomorrow. 

I start vacation on Wednesday, so hopefully I'll have more time to update this thing while I'm off. (PS - NATASHA! Where are you?). Thanks for sticking with me. If I don't post before then, have a safe, happy, healthy, and fit holiday! Merry Christmas!

Cheers!

Becky

She's a brick... (Just leave it at that)

"People who avoid the brick walls -- 

all power to ya but we all have to hit them sometimes in order to push through to the next level." -- Jennifer Aniston

At this point, I've talked ad nauseam about my upcoming half marathon. I know a lot of you are sick of hearing about it. I get it - I'm sick of thinking about it myself. It shouldn't be a big deal. Plenty of people have told me how "chill" the RunDisney races are - several friends have walked them! And I've done a half marathon before (12 years ago... when I weighed less than 130 lbs and ran an average of 4-6 miles/day). I'm doing everything right, supposedly... I'm training pretty regularly, and I never skip my long runs. So why am I freaking out?

My first "long" run in this training program was just over 6 miles. I completed the run the week before my birthday. The picture above says 6.10, but it was actually 6.5 - my phone died as I was running back to my car to cool down and stretch. This was the longest I had ran in over 12 years, and I couldn't believe I finished it. It wasn't the easiest run, but it wasn't the hardest. It definitely proved to me that I could conquer my 10K race in January... shame I scheduled a half marathon before it!

My next scheduled long run was supposed to be 7.5 miles, but I did just over 8. This was my favorite run to date. I felt good throughout my run, paced myself (and kept below the race pace that I am aiming to keep), and wasn't sore the next day. Sure, I was tired, but that's to be expected. Could 8 miles be my sweet spot?

Just two weeks after my favorite run, I was scheduled to complete a 9 mile long run. I recently discovered Hogwarts Running Club, and committed to dedicating this run as a virtual race with a friend from out of town. We picked the Platform 9 3/4K, which is roughly 6.05 miles. I knew my 9 mile run would be far in excess of the requirements, so I decided to push myself and see if I could best my previous pacing. While I met my pace and distance goal, I certainly paid for it. My feet were k-i-l-l-i-n-g me after I finished. I could hardly walk, nearly stumbling as I tried to make it from my car to my house (about 5 feet) when I returned home. Does this mean I can't do further than 9 miles? Do I need to stop? Is this my brick wall? 

As most idiots do, I turned to Dr. Google for answers. Plantar Fasciitis, maybe? No, that's not it. I never have heel pain, and I'm good about making sure any shoe I run in has good arch support. Lactic acid buildup? Possibly. I have a bad habit of not doing much of a cool down walk - I walk a bit, stretch a lot, and jump in the car to go home. I also don't have the best race nutrition. Bad shoes? Definitely possible. Despite only having my shoes since August, I had put approximately 300 miles on them. They felt fine when I walked, however, so I didn't worry about it. I checked out the tread and insole after my 9 miler, however, and was shocked to find that the mid foot was nearly worn through!

Shortly after doing my unscientific research, I headed to my local running store to be re-fitted for a new shoe. A friend recommended the Hoka One One, so I decided to try it since my foot pain was so severe. The Hoka was a dream in the store! So cushy and soft! Surely this, in addition to ensuring that I do a proper cool down and adding magnesium and potassium to my diet, would be my solution... right?

The week after my 9 mile run was Thanksgiving. I headed home to New Mexico to visit my family, and took a couple of my nieces out for a short run to test out the new kicks. The results were disastrous. Not only did the shoe not provide enough stability support, but the Hoka's felt like I was running with boxes tied to my feet. I sadly retired them until I returned to California, committing to doing two more runs (one long, one short) before I would waive the white flag and return them to the store. 

I took my arch support insoles out of my old shoes to put them in the Hoka's. My next short run was better, but oh-so-slow. I was so frustrated. Gone was my foot pain, but hello knee pain! I injured my knee twice in my twenties, and now have DJD, but my knee has given me surprisingly little difficulty since I started running in June. Ugh - is this worth it?

Sunday morning, I hit the trail in the Hoka's to attempt a minimum 10 mile run. I made sure to have my insoles in the shoes before leaving, and also taped up my knee with pretty-in-pink KT tape. Let's see if this works! The first two miles were miserable. The shoe's cushion made it feel like I was running on a mattress, and it seemed like an eternity before I hit the 5K mark. By mile 5, I really wanted to give up. My knee pain was manageable (dull but present) but my ankles were in horrible pain. I attempted to do my run/walk intervals at various points on the run, but I just couldn't find a stride/gait that didn't make me want to cut my feet off at the ankle bone. 

I finished my 10 mile "run" with my slowest pace to date (since I started tracking in August). Shoot - who am I kidding? I walked far more than I ran. The foot pain was less severe but still present (thanks to proper hydration and overly cushioned shoes, possibly?), but my knee was starting to throb for the first time since I started running and my ankles were burning. I was miserable. 

I attempted every trick in the book to relieve the pain - an Epson salt bath with ice, tennis ball stretches, foam rolling, stretching, etc. After messing around with these for a few hours, I decided to head promptly back to my running store to exchange the shoes. Hoka One One - you're so done done. The gal at the running store kept insisting that I move from Asics to Brooks, but the Brooks felt too similar to the Hokas for me to consider them. I tried about 5 pairs of shoes before returning to my tried and true Asics. I'm hoping this works out. 

No long runs for this girl this week... My week will consist of two or three short runs (2-3 miles) and one a bit longer (5-7 miles). I tried the new shoes on the treadmill tonight. I loathe treadmill running, but it's getting too dark too early to do otherwise. The shoes worked out pretty well overall, but I think I'll have to play with the laces a bit to get the right fit. So hoping that my outdoor runs fare better. 

Here's to a better finish to the last month of the year. Let's break down those brick walls, and show life we mean business! I can't believe we're here. It's been exactly a year since I started this more consistent fitness journey, and I'm proud to say I've mostly done it. I am so encouraged by the others who have joined me in this effort. It's great to see so many people committing to healthier lifestyles! 

Well, I better hit the hay if I'm going to be productive at all the rest of this week. Hope you have a great week too!

Cheers!

Becky

Easy Does It

I tend to include quotes in my writing, both here on this blog and periodically at work. Why? Because sometimes you read a quote so good that it's worth sharing! And sometimes others write the words or thoughts that you only wish you could so eloquently say. I try to keep the quotes I share brief, but this one was so good, and so relevant, that it had to be shared here:

"Every person needs to take one day away. A day in which one consciously separates the past from the future. Jobs, family, employers, and friends can exist one day without any one of us, and if our egos permits us to confess, they could exist eternally in our absence. Each person deserves a day away in which no problems are confronted; no solutions searched for. Each of us needs to withdraw from the cares which will not withdraw from us." -- Maya Angelou

Like most people, I have a tendency to overdo it. Training is no different - I typically apply an "all or nothing" mentality which usually leads to me being disappointed when I fail and giving up before I even begin. Ugh. Surprisingly, I have not given up in 2015. I have had my share of setbacks and disappointments, mind you, but I've used them to motivate me to continue and resume my training. It's been a pretty stellar fitness year so far, but there is still one area that I can improve...

REST! Yes, I said rest! When I began training this summer, I read several blogs and articles regarding half marathon training. Every-single-one included only 3-4 running days per week; most included 3 running days and 1 walking day. And they all included at least one "rest" day. Why?

Running is a high impact sport. Without proper training, you can easily injure yourself. I should know - my running addiction in college led to two knee injuries and multiple muscle sprains. There are multiple benefits to including rest days to your training schedule, though, including:

• Joint Recovery: All that pounding your joints take when you run isn't good in the long run. A rest day helps reduce inflammation, allowing your body to repair itself while preventing stress fractures and joint degeneration.
• Muscle Recovery: Like your joints, your muscles tend to work overtime when you run, breaking down muscle fibers and swelling. Allowing your muscles a day or two of rest during the week gives them time to repair the muscle fibers torn while exercising. When your muscles repair themselves, they become stronger! Whether you're lifting weights or running, these are the types of gains you want to see. Stronger muscles mean better/more efficient running. Don't neglect this!
• Overtraining: Yes, it's possible that too much running or strength training is not a good thing. Overtraining causes all sorts of stress on your body - it can cause sleeplessness, irritability, dehydration... not to mention it puts you at risk of injury (shin splints, stress fractures, etc). Your body is a machine, but it's one that requires proper maintenance. Give it a break, and it will last you a long time.
• Exercise Efficiency: This sort of goes hand-in-hand with overtraining - if you're body doesn't get to recover, it simply won't perform at a high or higher level of performance the next day. It sounds silly, but you do make gains with recovery. Want to run faster or longer? Give your body a break. Your body will thank you!

So... does rest mean lazy? Nope! Rest days don't have to mean that you just lay on the couch eating ice cream while watching bad Lifetime movies (although you totally could). Resting simply means that you give the parts of the body you used the most the day before a break. I like to do my strength training on my running rest days, and keep my runs between my strength training. And on Sundays? I eliminate both, and stick to walking my dog. How you use your rest days is up to you - just make sure to give yourself that recovery time.

When you have a history of giving up easily, or making excuses when you should be making gains, it's easy to confuse rest with laziness. It's also difficult (for me, at least) to go back to a routine if I take a few days off from it. To help keep me on track, I've set reminders on my calendar at work and my calendar on my phone to remind me of what I plan to accomplish on any given day from an exercise perspective. What do you do to keep you on track? And how do you make sure to give your body a rest, without losing your gains? 

Tomorrow is my "rest day," aka my day back in the gym for strength training. Friday is long run day! Woot! (maybe...) Hope each of you continues to have a happy and healthy week. Onward and upward.

Cheers!

Becky