Tag Archives: sports

Training: Recovery and a Bad Race

March 25, 2019 By in Running, Training Tags: , , , , , , 1 Comment
Training: Recovery and a Bad Race

Last weeks training was somewhat of a cutdown week. I skipped my midweek workout to recover from both the Adrenaline 5k and Shamrock 13.1. I got Active Release done, and I tried to focus on sleeping.  I recovered moderately well but didn’t feel great at the Phillies 5k.

Monday: OFF
Tuesday: Easy 60 minutes in VA
Wednesday: Easy 60 minutes in NJ
Thursday: OFF
Friday: Easy 60 minutes in NJ/core
Saturday: Phillies 5k (20:08)/core
Sunday: Long Run

Thoughts:

My easy runs were just that, easy. As I’ve increased my speed (with races) during the last few weeks, and I’ve opted to take two rest days a week versus 1. I know it’s kept me healthier coming back. While I might not be as “fast” coming back, I’m not injured.

Over the last two weeks, I’ve had some slight pain in my metatarsals. It hasn’t been anything to alter my stride or anything too serious, but enough that I’ve been more cautious. With Active Release, Dr. Craig at Dr. Kemonosh’s office has helped flush it out. I don’t like to take any chances with metatarsal pain because not much at the top of the foot except bone.

I’ve been keeping up with core more. I know core and strength is something I often skip so I’ve been adding it in.  I’ve just been doing the same exercises as usual.

Phillies 5k: (20:08)

I didn’t feel good at the Phillies 5k from the get-go. It’s hard to go to a race you’ve won and got third, but even if I felt good, I’m not in the shape that would have won anyway. As I warmed up, my legs still felt tired.  I think it was a combination of the previous weekends races as well as getting a lot of Active Release done to keep me healthy. Short term, it stunk. Long term, it’s just another workout to reach me to bigger goals.

Anyway, my splits themselves were 6:35, 6:35, 6:20. (The last mile had tailwind). It was windy the first two miles around the water, and then we had a tailwind the last mile. I couldn’t get my turnover any faster.  It was nice to see so many friends and locals racing.

Long Run: 14 miles averaging 8:03 pace with the last four around 7:10

This was a great long run. I started easy and slowly progressed into a faster run. The second half of the run was faster, and I just felt good all around.  It felt good to have a strong long run.

Posts from the Week:

 Shamrock Half Marathon (1:29.52)

Adrenaline 5k (19:26)

Finally, have you subscribed to the LOLZletter? It’s a free newsletter that comes out each Monday. In the newsletter, I share running industry trends and things relevant to the sport. 

Questions for you:

Have you had a bad race recently?

Are you a Phillies fan?

Shamrock Half Marathon (1:29.52)

March 21, 2019 By in Running, Running Reads, Training Tags: , , , , , , , 2 Comments
Shamrock Half Marathon (1:29.52)

This was my 8th year running Shamrock. Many long term readers know but I grew up in the greater VA Beach area. 1:29.52 is neither my fastest nor my slowest Shamrock. It’s on the slower side, but that’s okay.

Last year I had an incredible experience that would be hard to beat and ran a 1:23. This year the goal was just to finish healthy. My training over the winter was nothing to write home about, and I’ve come to terms that this Spring might be a rebuilding season for me (something I personally seem to need after every marathon?).

Anyway, I arrived at the start around 6 am. The weather was ideal. It was low 40s, some wind but not much. Most importantly, it wasn’t raining. Two years ago,it poured rain and was low 30s.

Before the race, I met up with my good friend Jen. We haven’t seen each other since we both lived in NYS. We’ve both since moved, but it was nice to catch up. She ultimately ran a 1:18 and placed 3rd.

Yuengling Shamrock Half Marathon Virginia Beach me running

After that, I tooled around and got to the start about 5 minutes early. I talked with rabbit teammate, Nick, and by the time I knew it, we were off.

Since the half and full start together now, it was crowded. Right off the bat, I felt decent. Plus unlike the day prior, I remembered to start my watch. I plugged along and cruised the first mile in 6:44. I felt good and realized a sub 90 minute half was doable if I continued to feel okay through the race — a great goal to make a mile 1.

Yuengling Shamrock Half Marathon Virginia Beach me running

At mile 2, I saw my dad’s friend and waved. I started getting into a rhythm.  The next three miles were relatively boring. I logged 6:44, 6:44, 6:40 (mile 4 on the gradual uphill was my fastest), 6:44. At mile 5, I was feeling good. I thought wow, this is much faster than I anticipated (I didn’t have a goal prerace, but didn’t anticipate being that fast either).

Then we entered Fort Story, and it all changed. Fort Story is a lonely part of the race. Unless you have a military ID, spectators can’t get on the base. It’s right along the water so extremely windy. In fact, one year there was a layer of sand across the entire course.

Miles 7-9 broke me both mentally and physically. I didn’t feel good, and I was running alone. There was some wind but nothing terrible. It wasn’t that I didn’t feel good because I had raced the day before, I just mentally felt disconnected and my legs felt stale. I told myself, make it to mile 10, and you’ll be heading directly home. I ran a 6:55, 6:59, 6:50, and kept it barely under 7 minutes.

Yuengling Shamrock Half Marathon Virginia Beach me running

I knew the 90-minute pace group was probably catching me soon.  Around mile 10, a man started talking to me about “my form”.  I wasn’t feeling the greatest and not in the mood to chat. We kept plugging along.

Mile 11 went down with nothing major. I ran a 6:55 and we had some wind at our backs. At mile 12, the 90-minute/3 hour marathon pace group engulfed me. I thought, wow I really did slow down. I also felt my shoe beginning to come untied, and it just felt like the wheels had come off.

The group engulfed and went around me and it stung. I hit mile 12 just over 1:22 and I knew I was still at 1:30 pace. Now I was just much closer than the start of the race. It made me feel a little better the group was ahead of their goal pace.

The last mile goes to directly into the wind. When you’re close to a time goal, running into the wind the last mile is the last thing you want to do.  You can see the tent and King Neptune and it just never feels like it’s getting closer.

Yuengling Shamrock Half Marathon Virginia Beach me running

Then at mile 13, I saw it click 1:29:10.

Yuengling Shamrock Half Marathon Virginia Beach me running

I tried to sprint as hard as I could to the finish. I didn’t have much gas left but it was enough to get right under 1:30.

Yuengling Shamrock Half Marathon Virginia Beach me running

Thoughts:

I’m pleased with the race but know I have a long way to go fitness wise. In all, another good Shamrock. It’s one of my favorite races of the year and I always enjoy seeing local friends as well as others that come from far.

Yuengling Shamrock Half Marathon Virginia Beach me running

Yuengling Shamrock Half Marathon Virginia Beach

Chilling on the beach with Nick

Questions for you:

Have you run a race for several years in a row?

What is your favorite race? 

 

Training Log: 2 Races and Building Fitness

March 18, 2019 By in Uncategorized Tags: , , , , 3 Comments
Training Log: 2 Races and Building Fitness

Last week was exhausting for life and exhausting for running. It wasn’t until Friday that I felt like I wasn’t “on the go” and had some time for myself.  I feel like the last two weeks I’m starting to see glimpses of fitness come back. While I’m still nowhere near where I would like, I’ve made a successful jump towards it.

Monday: Easy 60 minutes/Core
Tuesday: OFF
Wednesday: 6X800s jog/800 easy (total miles 10)
Thursday: OFF
Friday: Easy 60 minutes/Core
Saturday: Adrenaline Run 5k (19:26)
Sunday: Shamrock Half Marathon (1:29.52)

Thoughts:

I took 2 rest days off again. I think I’m going to continue that trend for a few weeks as I increase my speed. Increasing speed and keeping at high mileage, is a recipe for disaster. On Tuesday, I just felt exhausted, and I had no energy. I knew any run wouldn’t be worth it. So I didn’t.  The easy runs were just easy and boring.  Many people ask about core my core routine, and I wrote about that here.

Workout Wednesday: 6X800s averaging 6:01 pace

This is one of my faster workouts in a while. I was surprised at how good I felt.  The last few were even under 6 minutes. I jogged 800 between for a total of 10 miles with warmup/cooldown.

Adrenaline Run 5k: 19:26

I’ll have a full recap later.  It’s my fastest 5k in several months. I didn’t feel good or bad, just meh.  The weather was windy with a good headwind or tailwind.  It’s been a fun race for me, because I get to see so many local people since our running store hosts it.  I was too busy talking to start my watch so I had no idea what I was running. I wouldn’t have run any different if I knew my splits.

Shamrock Half Marathon: 1:29.52

Of the two races, I’m happier with the 5k. I took the half out faster than I should have and faded quite a bit in the final miles. I’m proud that I was somehow able to muster up the energy to run just under 90 minutes. I won’t say I’m terribly excited about running a 1:30 half, but I’m not devastated either.  It was a good effort for where I’m at fitness-wise right now.

For now, I’m just plugging along. I’m hoping to keep the momentum of training and slowly getting back into shape.

Posts from the Week:

Guide to Vital Proteins Products: Collagen Peptides, Whey, and Gelatin

9 Years ago I Began Running

Glycerin 17 Shoe Review

Finally, have you subscribed to the LOLZletter? It’s a free newsletter that comes out each Monday. In the newsletter, I share running industry trends and things relevant to the sport. 

Questions for you:

What was your best workout?

How long does it take for you to “feel in shape”? 

Guide to Vital Proteins Products: Collagen Peptides, Whey, and Gelatin

March 15, 2019 By in vital proteins Tags: , , , , , , 14 Comments
Guide to Vital Proteins Products: Collagen Peptides, Whey, and Gelatin

As many people know, I’m a Vital Proteins Ambassador and have been using Vital Proteins Collagen for over a year now.

One of the most common questions I get is: Which is best?

Unflavored peptides?

Whey?

Beauty Greens?

Like most anything, it depends on your goals. Any quality Collagen can benefit most people.

Vital proteins collagen gelatin

I’ve written several posts of how it’s personally helped me including:

Why Collagen Post Run?
Hair and Nail Benefits of Collagen
Skin Benefits from Collagen
Top Benefits of Collagen

Before we Dive into Different Products, a Few Things About All Vital Protein Products:

  • Free from artificial ingredients and sweeteners.
  • Contain All Real Food

So Why Use Collagen?

If you are looking for a protein powder, Vital Proteins is the most natural. There is just one ingredient, collagen.  The body produces collagen naturally.

Vital Proteins Collagen Guide:

Unflavored Collagen Peptides:

The unflavored is your basic collagen. It mixes well with almost everything from hot beverages to cold, to baking recipes. Yes, it does taste flavorless. The unflavored collagen peptides are the most popular, and one of the easiest solutions for anyone wanting to improve their overall wellness routine.

You can add it to almost everything since it tastes like nothing. If you’re not into fru fru and fancy, this is the Vital Protein product for you.

Flavored Collagen:

Like the unflavored collagen, the flavored collagen has all of the benefits from collagen, but also has probiotics and is flavored.  It should just be a subcategory and has the same benefits as unflavored but with flavor.

The flavors contain no added sweeteners.  There is anything from vanilla to blackberry to mixed berry. I’m a fan of mixed berry myself! It’s a great option when you want a hint of flavor in baking or smoothies.

Marine Collagen Peptides:

Vital Proteins Marine Collagen is very similar to the unflavored. It mixes into both hot and cold liquid. The difference is where the collagen comes from. Marine Collagen comes from snapper (fish), where the unflavored collagen comes from Bovine.

Gelatin:

Gelatin can be confusing, and it appears almost identical to regular collagen.  I wrote a longer post here about the differences.

In short, gelatin is still collagen, but the processing is different.  When gelatin cools, it becomes a “gel-like” substance. It resembles jello and is a great thickening agent for smoothies or even making your own gummies!

One of the significant benefits of gelatin versus collagen is with digestion. It helps to coat the digestive tract. Gelatin is known to help those with a leaky gut syndrome or IBS.

One thing to keep in mind is that gelatin doesn’t actually thicken until it begins to cool.  If you heat it, it’s still liquid or soup like.

Collagen Whey:

Collagen Whey is my favorite product. The Collagen Whey has just whey protein and collagen.  The product is loaded with hyaluronic acid, probiotics, and amino acids. I usually have a serving almost every day.

If you are looking for collagen with more protein, the whey is your best bet. There are 25 grams of protein, plus 10 grams of collagen in each serving. I make a lot of smoothies from the whey. A few of my favorite are:

Vanilla Almond Recovery Protein Smoothie Recipe

Vital Proteins Berry Blast Recovery Smoothie

Vital Proteins Recovery Smoothie

Vanilla Almond Recovery Protein Smoothie Recipe vital proteins

Hopefully, this Vital Proteins helps you decide what is best for you.  I’ve personally used each of these so if you have any questions feel free to ask.  I’ll have another guide to the lesser known product next month.

Thank you Vital Proteins for allowing to me continue to be an ambassador.

Questions for you: Do you use Collagen? If so, what’s your favorite?

 

9 Years ago I Began Running

March 14, 2019 By in Running, Running Reads Tags: , , , , , , , 5 Comments
9 Years ago I Began Running

For last the 9 years, the time around St. Patrick’s day has held a more sentimental reason to me than drinking beer, wearing green and pots of gold.

Although if you would like to send me a pot of gold that is fine too!  Nine years ago I ran a 5k in college that would change the path and direction of my life. I started this blog the summer after which means the blog is coming up on 9 years too. Wow, where did my 20s go?

You can read my entire running story here or in the tab above.

When I was a college sophomore, I saw a sign at the gym stating if you completed the annual campus 5k you would get a free long sleeve t-shirt.  As a college student, you can never have enough things to stuff in your dorm room.  My roommate appreciated my hoarding I guess.

I had plenty of short sleeve shirts but long sleeve shirts were something I was always looking for.  All I had to do was sign up for a 5k and complete it?

Okay sign me up.  Sign me up and I didn’t run an ounce beforehand.

My running history previous to March of 2010 was lackluster. I swam competitively through high school and most of college. I failed the mile countless times in both middle and high school…or passed by a couple of seconds (passing was 12:30 and my mile PR was 12:12). Since 10th-grade gym class I had avoided running like the plague.

I ran twice in the first two years of college. Both times were to “impress” upperclassman on the swim team. It wasn’t impressive and I made a fool out of myself.

During the offseason from swimming, I went to the gym and used the elliptical or lifted weights.  It was nice to keep cardio and strength when I wasn’t swimming.  I didn’t run during the offseason at all. The elliptical and I were friends. Long story short I had no idea what I was getting myself into running the 5k, but the phrase “if it’s free, it’s for me” comes to mind with this race.

The race itself is pretty much a blur.  I don’t remember much other than I didn’t really hate it.

I finished the 5k is around 24 minutes.  I don’t remember the exact time but I remember not dying, texting my shocked dad that I had run a 5k and picked up my free long sleeve shirt.

Of course, I didn’t tell my parents I was running this 5k…I didn’t want them to ask if I didn’t finish… My dad has been running far longer than I have. In fact, he had a big marathon the next week (The Shamrock Marathon). I didn’t want the embarrassment that his daughter couldn’t finish a 5k.

I wore that t-shirt all around the following day.  I was going to wear my badge of honor.

After the race, it wasn’t as if I magically became engrossed in running.  I wasn’t “hooked”. I did realize it wasn’t all that bad and I ran occasionally when it was nice out.  I ran 10-20 miles a week depending on the weather. When it was sunny I would run the same 5k loop around campus.  When it wasn’t nice out, I wouldn’t run.  I would just go to the gym.

I mark St. Patrick’s Day as the official day I got my running start because after that point I considered myself someone who didn’t hate running anymore.  When you fail the mile test multiple times in grade school, it’s hard to like it.

I began to consider myself a runner:

I didn’t run every day.

I didn’t run fast.

I didn’t log my mileage.

I didn’t run when it was cold, windy or not perfect weather.

I had no desires to run with anyone or at a certain time…

I didn’t run any more races until July.

But I ran…and when I did I enjoyed it. 

Crazy to think that was almost a decade ago!

Questions for you:

When did you get your (workout) start?

What are you up to this St. Patrick’s Day?

%d bloggers like this: