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…Time Keeps on slippin’, slippin’, slippin’…Into the future….Time

Thank you Lynard Skynard for the inspiration

Yup – every day I wake up at 5am is one sleep closer to October 28th.

On another note – have any of my before dawn runners felt that it went dark sooner than normal this year?  I felt that one morning I woke up and it was time to grab  “ALL THE REFLECTIVE GEAR” and put it into use.  It makes it a bit harder to get up.

A later sunrise also means that I am also forced to be on the alert for the common pitfalls that attack “before dawn” runners – especially animals, barely lit streets, and uneven sidewalks. I do not want to pull a repeat of last year!

On the flip side – I really feel speedy in the dark.  Like a stealthy runner gliding through my empty neighborhood streets before everyone else gets up.

The weather was hit and miss last week (I actually had to wear long sleeves and fingerless gloves on Monday) and my weekly mileage continues to slowly climb at a reasonable rate.

Strange to think that in August I was thinking ” how will I coach ever get me to 50 miles a week” and BAM here I am!  Guess Coach knows what he is doing :).

I ended the week at 53.7  – a new high for 2018 (and honestly most of 2017)

On the diet side – I have been learning to live with my UC and have taken steps to modify my diet.  Diary is out (insert sad emoji) and I have started to limit my Gluten intake to see if that might be another trigger.

Between the small dietary changes and the medication – I have felt some improvement and have even had a couple of runs without any pit stops.  I have also been lurking on some of the UC messages boards – but so far I have not seen anyone run a marathon with UC.  I know they are out there – I just need to find them!

A lot of ‘new’ eating has been trial and error but I am keeping a log to hopefully find some combinations that work (and unfortunately some that do not for the time being).

So with about 40ish days to go….

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Marine Corps Marathon Training Log – Week 11

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Monday – 8 Miles Easy

Tuesday – Easy 7 miles

I averaged an 8:54 pace and no bathroom pit stops!  Have not done that in a while!

Wednesday – Quality Session (3 mile warm up; 6x1mil (8:06); 3 min recovery jog in between; 1mile cool down)

This workout was a win!  11 miles total and each rep was below my threshold pace and my reward – a lunch date with Mark.  We tried a new Ramen place in town and it hit the spot!  

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Thursday – Glorious Rest Day!

The highlight (besides sleeping in) was getting to finish the last scoops of peanut butter and share Harley.  (Please note this is the only time he will listen to me)

Friday – 6 miles Easy

Saturday – Quality Session (3 mile warm up; 1x 7 miles at marathon pace; 1×2 miles at easy; 1×4 miles at marathon; 1 mile cool down

So this week I practiced nutrition on the run and what I “might” be carrying on October 28th.  I am happy to report I got in about 300 calories during the run – while not ideal is a big improvement for me who is a big “saver” of calories.  Pre-run oatmeal also did the trick as I just had a quick pit stop (more of a pee break) during my warm up and once after mile 13. I love Huma and am also really enjoying the Honey Stinger gummies (which I may or may not have driven to buy after work on Friday) which are just gummy enough to either swallow whole or chew for an extra flavor burst.

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However the big FAIL of this workout was not executing it exactly as written – the second set of marathon miles which was supposed to be 4 miles – I ran 3.  I still got the total mileage expected in but – Whomp, Whomp!

You might also notice that the picture was taken on the track – I don’t recommend this (especially given that I hate the treadmill) but given that my stomach has been not my best friend lately, I chose to do the miles here.  Yes it was boring but I got it done and I think I am a little mentally tougher because of it.

Sunday – Easy 4 miles

I slept like a rock after yesterday workout but was up and out the door just as the fog lifted.  Got these miles in before the heat and humidity of the day took over and spent the rest of the day lounging around (stretching of course!)

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Onward we go!