Mid Year/Mid Summer Check- In
Happy Halfway Day! July 2 marks the halfway point of the year. And, we’re almost halfway through the summer here. I know that seems crazy to those of you who just recently finished school, but we’re in the fifth week of our ten week summer vacation. I always think of July 4th as the “official” halfway point of the summer, which makes me a little sad. I don’t want summer to end! And… I had some goals for the summer. I declared it to be the summer of strength and speed, and almost right away I got derailed by a stupid calf issue. Why does this always happen to me??? It’s like the universe wants me to run very slowly, sigh. So now we’re at the halfway point (almost) and I feel like I’m starting all over again. The good news is, I ran on Sunday and my calf felt absolutely fine. I’m proceeding cautiously, but I’ll incorporate some gentle speed work into my runs for the rest of the summer. Seriously, I have to do SOMETHING, otherwise soon I’ll be running backwards. The calf issue did cause me to have an epiphany though. Since I had to walk instead of run, I decided to track my walking pace and try to improve it. This was actually kind of fun- much more fun than just going out to walk for 45 minutes, with no pace goal. This approach made me understand the problem I’ve had all along with strength training.- I don’t set any specific goals. I think I would enjoy strength training much more if I had concrete goals, rather than just vaguely saying “I’ll do strength two or three times a week.” So for the second half of the summer I’m going to set some goals for weight and reps. For a review of yearly goals, my first thought was, seriously, “Wait- did I have any?” Then I remembered that I decided to set monthly goals instead, which I did for a couple months and then forgot all about it. Maybe I should rethink that strategy! The one yearly goal I always have is to read 50 books, and I always fall just short. THIS year however, I’m ahead of my goal- I’ve read 30 books at the halfway point! For a brief, exciting moment I envisioned myself finishing the year with 60 books. Then I remembered my reading always takes a hit during NaBloPoMo, and I’m sure this year my TV viewing of the Olympics will seriously eat into my reading time. Still- this very well could be the year I reach my 50 book goal. Do you like to reassess your goals at “Halfway Day?” Are there any goals you’ve changed or added so far this year?
Weekly Rundown- Lots of Spectating
It was a week of amazing athletic accomplishments! Not by me, of course, although I might have set a PR for most hours spent watching sports on TV. There were the Olympic track and field trials, the gymnastic trials, and then (as if that weren’t enough) the iconic Western States 100 mile race. Not to be outdone, I got in some great (?) pool running. Thanks as always to Kim and Deborah for hosting the Weekly Rundown. Let’s see how it went! Sunday Since I’m still babying my calf, I walked 3 miles. In Friday’s post I mentioned that I’ve decided to work on my walking pace. Today’s a walk was 3 miles at 14:46 pace. It’s not running, but at least it’s something. Monday 45 minutes pool run! Sigh. Tuesday I did a total body strength workout from Sally McRae’s app, followed by the Caroline Girvan deadbug workout. I haven’t been doing my deadbugs as much lately! No real reason, I just felt like switching things up. Wednesday Another “exciting” walk! 3 miles, and this time I lowered my average pace to 14:10. Progress! Followed this walk with my new plank routine, including reverse planks and side planks. I can now add leg lifts to my side planks! Woohoo. Later in the day I got a deep tissue massage, focusing on my calves, hamstrings, glutes and low back. My therapist told me that what she feels in my calf is restriction in the fascia, and she showed me some things I can do at home to release it. I’ve been working on it! Thursday Another 45 minute pool run. I had some sore muscles from that massage! But I’m feeling optimistic about my calf. Friday Leg day at the gym! I did part of Sally’s “Bulletproof Runner” workout, plus squats and planks. I know you’ll be sad, but I forgot to take one of my awesome gym selfies. Saturday Off! And, Western States day. The livestream started at 7:15 am, so I watched as much as I could before leaving for work. When I came home from work I turned it on again, and watched all afternoon. In the evening I had Western States on my computer and the Olympic trials on the TV, and switched back and forth. Finally I got to see the great Jim Walmsley win the men’s race, and Katie Schide win the women’s. When I went to bed, runners were putting on their headlamps and getting ready to run all night. Sunday After watching all that running, I obviously have to run today. The calf is feeling good, but I won’t really know until I try running. Fingers crossed! And then… I’ll turn that Western States livestream back on. Runners will be finishing until 2 pm. I definitely want to see the “golden hour” finishers (the last hour before the cutoff.) Did you watch the Olympic Trials this week? Anyone else follow Western States? Top photo by Tirza van Dijk on Unsplash
Coffee Date “Walk-Fessions”
Hello there! Usually on the last Friday of the month I link up with Marcia for her monthly “Runfessions.” However, this week I’ve been doing a lot of walking (note the return of the dumpster fire mug) and I have THINGS TO SAY. Pour yourself a nice cup of coffee and I’ll tell you all about it. There are two types of running injuries- the kind where you can’t even walk without limping (um, sprained ankle, for example) and the kind where you can do pretty much EVERYTHING ELSE, except run. My calf “issue” falls into the second category, and while it’s frustrating, I am definitely appreciating the fact that I can at least get out and walk. As a matter of fact, I had intended to work on my walking this training cycle! Not instead of running, of course, but… let’s just say I’m embracing the opportunity. In the 2 1/2 (ahem) ultras I’ve run, I’ve become aware of how people walk. Everyone walks at some point- it’s part of ultra races- but I’ve seen some people walking REALLY FAST. I always thought I walked pretty fast, but these people are really booking it. I remember hearing someone talking about their ultra training on a podcast, and their coach would periodically have a day where they WALK a 5K as fast as they can, and then a month or so later do it again, trying to improve their time. Well, perfect time for me to try this. On Sunday I walked 3 miles and finished in 44:20, with an average mile pace of 14:46. Today I tried it again and was able to improve my average mile pace to 14:10. My last mile was a PR, at 13:59! Seems kind of fast, right? Now, did you know that race walking is an Olympic sport? How fast do you think those athletes are walking? Go ahead… take a guess. In the Tokyo Olympics, the men’s gold medalist in the 20K distance finished in 1:21:05, or a pace of a 6-minute, 31-second mile. WHAT????!!!!!!! HOW is that possible? Even in my youth, at my fastest, I’m not sure I could have run one mile at that pace. I DEFINITELY couldn’t come anywhere close now. How can they walk that fast? And more importantly, why would you, well… want to? Walking fast is so uncomfortable- it gets to the point where it would be so much easier to just break into a nice jog. At what point in a person’s athletic career do they say “My dream is to be an Olympic walker?” There’s also a 50K race walk in the Olympics! The men’s winner in Tokyo finished in 3:50:08. Now I just have to laugh- does anyone remember how long it took me to finish my last 50k (where I was mostly running?) If you don’t remember, well, let’s just say I’d rather not discuss it, in light of this new information. Speaking of the Olympics… I’ve been watching as much of the track and field trials as I can, and loving every second of it. Heal up fast, calf! I want to stop walking and start running again. Do you know your mile walking PR? – Don’t be afraid of hurting my feelings- I’m still working on it! Are you watching the Olympic trials? Have you ever watched a race walking event?
Reading and Eating
We had some great meals last week! Having visitors really helped motivate me. But first, I finished a book I really liked: I originally got this book because I thought it would be light and easy to read during a busy week. I had no idea I would enjoy it so much! Five years ago, Lucy was somehow involved in the murder of her best friend. Everyone thinks she did it, but she can’t remember anything about the incident, and she was never charged with the crime. She’s trying to put it all behind her, but a true crime podcast is dredging it up again and forcing her to revisit the scene, and memories start to return, little by little. This book was funny! (For anyone who’s read it- Grandma’s birthday party, hahahahahaha!) And it’s a satisfying mystery, and there’s a little romance thrown in. I enjoyed it so much, I was sad when it ended because I didn’t want to stop reading it. Everyone recommended the audio version, but I read the print and I can vouch for the fact that it was VERY enjoyable in that format. Ah, food. I already reported on the epic burrito night from my sister’s visit. The next night we ate out at Planta, an amazing vegan restaurant. We got all sorts of sushi rolls: …and noodle dishes, appetizers, and some amazing desserts. Fun and delicious night! THEN… we had our Big Pizza Party! Originally we were going to make four different pizzas, but the logistics of getting them all cooked at the same time didn’t make sense, so we made two very large ones. The first was half Buffalo “chicken” (we used the Daring brand) and artichoke, and the other half was Beyond sausage, pineapple, and hot peppers: The second pizza was our “bipolar” pizza. About 2/3rds of it was a veggie-lovers pizza, with yellow pepper, broccoli, hot peppers, and onion, and the other third was a “vegan meat lovers” pizza with leftover Beyond sausage, Buffalo chicken (we just put on everything that didn’t fit on the other pizza) and vegan pepperoni from Trader Joes. Both pizzas had homemade pizza sauce and Miyoko’s liquid mozzarella. So good!!! It probably goes without saying that after all this, I hit the wall. Our visitors left and I felt like I never wanted to cook dinner again. We got Chipotle the next night, and since then we’ve been grudgingly throwing together some meals, because everyone still insists upon eating dinner… every. single. night. Sigh. What are you reading? Have you made any great meals lately? Top photo by Jess Bailey on Unsplash