Today’s run: .3 miles, not many minutes. YT: 334.6 miles. I tried wearing my contacts two days in a row, checking for improvement. Big mistake. My eyes were a mess this a.m., but I eventually tried to run anyway. I think this might be the second time ever that I’ve set out on a run and bailed at less than a mile. Running in glasses, with blurred vision anyway…. ugh.
After yesterday’s jubilant plans for a 110% week, today’s fail really hurt.
How do you know when to push yourself, and when to stand down?
A couple things I’ve read….
- Run with a head cold; stand down if it’s in your chest.
- When you have a pain that’s a 3 or below on the pain scale, definitely run. 7 or above, rest.
Today I felt too physically debilitated to run. I put on the clothes, got my feet on the pavement, and it still felt WRONG. But the fact is, I could have done it, I would have survived. To run was not impossible.
Today’s run: 3 miles, 30:17 minutes. Like a comic book character consumed with diabolical revenge plots, all I could think about today was how much I hated my stupid, no-good, lying Nike Plus (mileage here is adjusted to account for its stupidity). But the weather was nice and I saw my favorite Mastiff, on my first run ever wearing glasses. Bring out the gimp!
I know that the conventional wisdom around distance running is that you need to “Carb-o-nate”: load up on carbs and not much else before a race. As someone who’s carb-shy – I’m all about protein and veggies, occasional whole grains and very occasional sweets – this made me wonder if my body isn’t made to run a marathon. (Actually there are a bunch of things that make me wonder about that….my stubborn fatness and a desire to avoid things that are uncomfortable being among them…)
Anyway, point here is, eating nothing but carbs for a couple of days would send me down the rabbit hole. But I did some searching and was glad to find that there are, in fact, low-carb marathoners, as well as a bi debate about whether you can burn fat to fuel long runs. (People get so vicious over the topic of carbohydrates; it’s like the South Park episode where the atheists take over and “God” becomes “Science.”. Good one, btw.)
I do most of my runs on a nearly-empty stomach and do just fine. I don’t get hungry and the thought that I might be burning away some fat? Balloons, bells, and whistles!! But as I increase the length of my runs, I’m curious to see whether I’ll hit a wall.
What about you: carb-happy or carb-wary? Has this changed since you became a runner?
Today’s run: 4.65 miles, 53 minutes. YT: 22.45. When I see Japanese men of a certain age on my run, as I did today, I like to imagine that Murakami has sent a manifestation to usher me down the path. As I ran home, stainless steel pot man, wearing a shiny Angels jacket and carrying a briefcase and lunchbox, was making slow progress down the sidewalk near his house, stopping every few yards to turn and confront an imaginary irritant before moving on.
A friend recently told me that he has a lot of thoughts that are too weird to say out loud – something he sometimes discovers mid-sentence. I think that may be what the italicized portion of this blog is becoming.
* * *
I remember after I ran my first 10K – “run” being a stretch of the term – we went to a ’50s diner and had shockingly huge breakfasts. Then we went home and pretty much collapsed on the couch for the rest of the day.
These days, I have terrific energy all day after 10K runs. It’s in part being in better shape, but I also chalk it up to my awesome recovery drink. This is all I eat after a run, and I try to wait at least 2-3 hours before I have my next meal. Sometimes it’s hard, but trust me, it’s keep a spring in your step.
Note: This is not my actual green drink, but it's more or less what it looks like. I think I'll try adding mint!
GREEN RECOVERY DRINK
- 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1 cup water
- 1 scoop Macro Greens (TJ’s has a similar seeming product, Green Drink Powder, that I haven’t tried yet but is half the price)
- 1 scoop Designer Whey (“research proven,” but to do what, we don’t know)
- a few ice cubes
- 1/2 cup berries or other fruit (optional; I don’t usually add fruit, but I will admit it tastes better that way)
Blenderize and drink!
After yesterday’s jubilant plans for a 110% week, today’s fail really hurt.
