To help make up for my lack of posting, you all get an extra bonus two for one deal today!
Pretty much every time I run, I think about the blog post I can make afterwards. And then by the time I get back, get showered, etc, I either get involved in something else and end up not posting, or try to post but forget what I wanted to say.
If only I could blog while running. Somehow I think even a phone with a full qwerty keyboard would make that difficult though.
I ran around Rutgers today. It's still nice and quiet, with the semester not yet having started. For the last 2 miles or so of my run, this ambulance kept passing me. It was kind of odd. I'm not sure if they were doing a usual weekend sweep of the campus to find people lying in ditches from the night before, or maybe just training for a new driver to learn all the roads around campus before the semester begins. I think that second one is probably more likely. I was amusing myself by imagining that it was trying to casually follow me around to make sure I didn't collapse and die, running in the heat and humidity.
So, today I did about 6 miles. Normally I would do a longer run on the weekend, but I missed my run at the end of last week, so I wanted to do another shorter one before I increased miles. I'm off work for the next 3 days (yay!) so I can do a long run on Tuesday instead.
I still haven't crossed that 10 mile mark. I really want to, but I feel my body draining at around 8 or 9. I think it's actually just a matter of me finding the right snack along the way. I've been experimenting with different power boost snacks. Everyone reacts to them a little bit differently, so you just need to find the one that's right for you. There are different brands, different ingredients, different flavors, and different forms. The general idea is that they are quick and easy for your body to process, and give you some calories, electrolytes, caffeine, etc. But again, each one is different, and gives you different things.
Today I tried some cola-flavored chewy gel snacks. Whey they say "chewy" they mean it. I got tired of chewing enough to swallow, and just downed them with a big gulp of drink instead. Next time it's going to be vanilla goo (yes, goo). It comes in a pouch and you squeeze the goo into your mouth and swallow it right down. The consistency is kind of a cross between jello and pudding.
Overall, they're actually pretty gross. The only way I can down them is because by the time I need them, my body needs the fuel enough that I don't really taste much. The same actually goes for Gatorade & similar drinks. You won't ever catch me drinking that stuff just for fun. As it is, when I run alone I cut it with water to reduce the flavor. When there are drink stations out (during group runs or races) I usually grab a cup of the power drink and then chase it with a cup of water.
I find it interesting that my view of food has changed drastically since I began running. Food was always something you ate because you were hungry, or because it was time to eat. You decide what to eat based on who you're with or how delicious the food sounds. Now, food is fuel for my body. This might sound silly...maybe it's common to think of food this way, and I'm just late in the game.
But the evening before a long run, I'm going to make sure I get in certain foods. If I don't, I notice it the next day. That morning, I make sure to have something to eat, and again, what I eat will affect my performance. I love eating pasta the night before, and if I don't get a piece of bread and some peanut butter that morning with my breakfast, I get tired much faster. Even after my run -- a lot of times I'm not really hungry, but I still make sure to get something within an hour of stopping, because otherwise my body will crash. I like bananas for this, and spreading again some peanut butter is good too.
I ran out of bananas, so I had a PB&J today instead. I think I'm going to treat myself to something delicious tonight.
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Decision Time!
First off, I apologize for going so long without an update. My intention was to make a post every week or so, so that everyone would know how my training was going. Well, time sort of escaped me, and here we are.
People have started asking me whether or not I'm still running. And the answer is....YES! I am. I actually just committed last week. See, when you first sign up for TNT, you're in sort of a trial period. You pick an event, and start training and fundraising for it, but you're not really locked into anything.
Then, about 2 months before the event, you have to commit for real. This allows the group to make the reservations for travel and hotel, register people for the run, etc. I don't actually do any of that myself; it's all done through the group.
So now I'm in for the long haul! Which means I need to get back into the gear of fundraising so I can meet my goal!
There is one change to my original plan, however, which is why this post is titled "Decision Time."
Instead of running a full marathon, I'm going to run a half.
I know, I know. Gasp! But but....you wanted to do a full! Are you giving up? Well, no. I still do want to run a full, and I will in the not too distant future. I'm just not doing the full for this event.
But why!?!
Glad you asked. When I originally signed up for this back in March (or so), I wasn't sure if I wanted to do a full or a half for this particular event. In the end, I signed up for the full because it would be easier to drop from a full to a half then to bump it up from a half to a full (both for training and registration reasons). I figured I'd sign up for the run that would give me more flexibility to change later, if need be.
So why the switch? I want to run at Disney again. See, the half marathon is already full (haha). The full marathon isn't. So if I want to run at Disney in January, I am going to be doing the full. And if I run a full marathon in October, and then one again in January, I just might die. Well maybe not, but it's more strain than I want to put on my body. Remember I'm still a novice runner. Now, quite conveniently, running a half marathon in October is pretty good training for running a full in January. So doing it this way will actually set me up rather well for the full at Disney!
This also gives me the bonus side effect of allowing me to ease up a bit on training, so I can focus more on fundraising and the other things going on in my life. For instance, back when my mid-week runs took 20 minutes, it was pretty easy to fit those in. Now that they take an hour or so, it's a bit harder. (Running 6 miles takes longer than running only 2.) And it will only get more difficult, as the mileage builds up and the semester begins.
I've already done a half marathon before, and I'm actually in much better shape now than I was for that one. So I'm not too concerned about the run. Instead, I can stress more about raising money to meet my (other) goal.
Speaking of which, I have another $250 to submit. This will put me at about 25% of the way there. I need to raise $3,000 in 2 months, so all help is most appreciated! If anyone has any ideas for things to do, please let me know.
People have started asking me whether or not I'm still running. And the answer is....YES! I am. I actually just committed last week. See, when you first sign up for TNT, you're in sort of a trial period. You pick an event, and start training and fundraising for it, but you're not really locked into anything.
Then, about 2 months before the event, you have to commit for real. This allows the group to make the reservations for travel and hotel, register people for the run, etc. I don't actually do any of that myself; it's all done through the group.
So now I'm in for the long haul! Which means I need to get back into the gear of fundraising so I can meet my goal!
There is one change to my original plan, however, which is why this post is titled "Decision Time."
Instead of running a full marathon, I'm going to run a half.
I know, I know. Gasp! But but....you wanted to do a full! Are you giving up? Well, no. I still do want to run a full, and I will in the not too distant future. I'm just not doing the full for this event.
But why!?!
Glad you asked. When I originally signed up for this back in March (or so), I wasn't sure if I wanted to do a full or a half for this particular event. In the end, I signed up for the full because it would be easier to drop from a full to a half then to bump it up from a half to a full (both for training and registration reasons). I figured I'd sign up for the run that would give me more flexibility to change later, if need be.
So why the switch? I want to run at Disney again. See, the half marathon is already full (haha). The full marathon isn't. So if I want to run at Disney in January, I am going to be doing the full. And if I run a full marathon in October, and then one again in January, I just might die. Well maybe not, but it's more strain than I want to put on my body. Remember I'm still a novice runner. Now, quite conveniently, running a half marathon in October is pretty good training for running a full in January. So doing it this way will actually set me up rather well for the full at Disney!
This also gives me the bonus side effect of allowing me to ease up a bit on training, so I can focus more on fundraising and the other things going on in my life. For instance, back when my mid-week runs took 20 minutes, it was pretty easy to fit those in. Now that they take an hour or so, it's a bit harder. (Running 6 miles takes longer than running only 2.) And it will only get more difficult, as the mileage builds up and the semester begins.
I've already done a half marathon before, and I'm actually in much better shape now than I was for that one. So I'm not too concerned about the run. Instead, I can stress more about raising money to meet my (other) goal.
Speaking of which, I have another $250 to submit. This will put me at about 25% of the way there. I need to raise $3,000 in 2 months, so all help is most appreciated! If anyone has any ideas for things to do, please let me know.
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