Back to what this blog was originally about! RUNNING!
Running has taken its proper place back in my list of priorities. Since I had signed up for the North Face Endurance Challenge 50 Miler, I decided most of my training needs to be on hills and on trails.
First of all, let me go over my hydration pack woes. I have FOUR, count 'em, FOUR hydration packs. #1 is an old Nathan 2 liter vest that I kind of like, but it's a little heavy for my taste and is a bit awkward looking. It is a great pack for the cost, and I'm going to keep it around. #2 is my Ultraspire Spry vest, which I love love love, but the nozzle broke off recently and I've been to lazy to change it. I also find that it goes lopsided on me, I think because the straw pulls it over. And sometimes I think 1 liter just won't cut it. I also have vest #3 which is the Orange Mud Hydraquiver Single Barrel vest. It's OKAY. I like the concept, and love the bottle. It's so easy to refill. However, on the last two runs I used it on, I noticed my hair was super sticky and wet from the bottle. I am not sure if I left open the top, but oh man that was not fun. I kept ripping my hair on it because it was so sticky. Gross.
So enter vest #4 which is my Salomon S-Lab vest. It's great, except now that I'm 10 lbs lighter from last year, it is too big for me. When I got it, I was sized somewhere between the XXS and the XS/S, so I got the XS/S. Poor choice. I also didn't like the snap system in the front, and as great as those flexible bottles are, I find them pretty annoying. They get floppy when they're empty, and they're hard to put ice in and mix fluids in. Cleaning them is a pain, and I just don't see why everyone raves about them.
Oh, and it gave me a killer burn on my collarbones from being too large. By the end of the run, I just yanked the bottles out and ran with them in my hands so it would stop the chaffing. The burn was surprisingly deep, and I was hurting all week from that.
I am going to sell my Salomon Vest, and replace it with the Ultimate Direction Jenny Vesta. I tried it on, and the fit is great. I love how small it is, and how the bottles ride above the boobage, so you don't have that awkward look going on. I am not sure how I feel about the bottles that come with it, I hear a lot of people have issues with the caps being hard on the teeth, so I got two replacement nathan bottles with soft pull out valves that will fit. I also got a 1.5 Liter bladder for the back for super long runs. I will report to you guys next week. :)
It is week 3 of our 16 week training plan. I think my approach is going well. I am trying to do MAF runs during the week, and harder trail runs on the weekend. I even did hill repeats last week which were all at my MAF heart rate. It was a slow walk up hill and then a fast run downhill. I felt amazingly fresh doing that, compared with the other hill sprints I did the week before. That week I had ran fast up hill and then had to stop to catch my breath or walk downhill. Turns out I was only 30 seconds slower per mile with my MAF heart rate. A small price to pay for how much better I felt, and how much healthier my legs were for the week.
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| My hill sprints fast uphill- 735 feet gained |
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| MAF Hill day - walking uphill - 778 feet gained |
Doing hill repeats on this 50 foot hill wasn't too bad actually, especially if you have a sunset to watch the entire time. It is a good mental exercise as well, so I'm going to be including it once a week.
This weekend we conquered two peaks. One was Eagle Peak at Mt. Diablo. Jon and his sister were backpacking up, and I ran by myself. I would run a bit and then go back to check in with them, and then run farther. I ended up doing 11.5 miles and over 3,700 feet of elevation! I was mostly walking since the sections were pretty freaking steep. It was rewarding to get all of that elevation in. We even spotted a tarantula. They are known to come out around this time for mating season.
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| Part of the harder sections of the trail. So steep! |
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| Photo Credit to Jon Martin |
The next day we ran up Montara Mountain. Jon needed to get in 3000 feet for his training plan, and I needed to get in 8-9 miles for mine. I wasn't intending on doing so much elevation but I got over 2,300. I had a new technique of something between going all out and MAF. I would let my heart rate go to about 165-170 before I would walk, and then run again. I was basically walking for 10 steps then running for 10 and so on. I have to say, it felt GREAT. I had so much energy the entire day, never felt weak, and maintained a somewhat decent pace. This type of trail running is definitely going to be a regular technique for me from now on.
Last but not least, I had a run today that went really well! My heart rate was low, and even though it was pretty windy out, I was able to do a below MAF run at 145bpm, AND do a 10 min mile. Not sure how that happened, but I'm happy with it!
Tomorrow is hill day, Thursday is a fun run with the co-workers, and then this weekend Jon and I are planning on running up Mt. Tam for the first time! I have to say, I don't want to get all cheesy but I really am thankful for having Jon. How lucky am I to have a partner that I can go off and explore trails together with? Looking forward to taking the rest of the weekend to catch up on other things in life and to maybe even have a day where I can do completely nothing! I won't hold my breath though.
Have a great long weekend Everyone! Here's a recent photo of chickens just because...
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