The Running Thread - 2020

[garneska]

@flav agree with everyone that is a cool medal and congrats on the PR.

 

[camaker]

October was a good, solid month for running. I wrapped up a successful marathon training cycle and put it to the test in the NYC Virtual Marathon. Despite the race weekend being the warmest, most humid of the month and fighting stomach issues during the race, I came away with an unofficial PR for the distance, knocking 12 minutes off my previous best. Additionally, it has given me confidence that under better racing conditions I can break the 4:00 barrier. Now to find a time and race with those conditions...

The CRAW has also helped keep me motivated to not only push on with the running, but to press my walking distances, as well. As bad as 2020 has been, the enforced working from home and reduced forays out into society have been very positive for my fitness. Anyway, on to the numbers:

October Training Summary
Total Miles: 167.36
Total Time: 28:23:20
Average Pace: 10:10/mi
Average HR: 142/min
2020 Total Miles: 1524.09 (New annual PR with 2 mo left in the year!)
Rolling 12mo Miles: 1,731.35

Extra
Walking Miles: 88.12

 

[steph0808]

October Running
Miles: 75.45 (Arlo (dog) miles - 14.7)
Time: 12:50:06
Avg HR: 156
Avg Pace: 10:42

October Body Beast
Workouts: 25
Time: 15:38:28
Avg HR: 110

October was a good month, except for my dog. The ticks came out in full force, and he got several bites despite his tick collar. Those turned into itchy spots, which turned into a huge hot spot on his head that required antibiotics and prednisone. So he's out of running commission until we can find a better tick repellant and get him healed up.

Running-wise - I felt strong and good. I even had a race (technically it was Nov 1 - I will need to do a write-up).

Body Beast - definitely seeing results. Saturday was the last day of Phase 2. I need to do weight and measurements. However, this week starts my four weeks of reduced carbs. Not sure how that is going to go! I might take a few days off before starting up the next phase, mostly because I ended up with an upset stomach yesterday after my race and know I don't have enough food in me to adequately train.

 

[Jules76126]

October Mileage -
35 miles

I am happy with this as it is up from last month. The weather in New England has absolutely abysmal. I am enjoying the cooler temps that have happened. But it seemed every other day it rained. And we got a snowstorm on Friday. I refuse to go to the gym as cases are ticking up here so I am stuck inside on days it rains/snows so need to make the most of the sunny days. Aiming for higher mileage in November.

 

[cburnett11]

October Training Summary

Total Miles: 208.49
Total Time: 31:37:17
Average Pace: 9:06/mi
Average HR: 138/min
5k "PR" of 20:28

We had a virtual 5k at work as part of a fundraiser. I wasn't planning to do it, but when I hit snooze on a Thursday morning and skipped/altered my tempo day... I decided I'd punish myself the next morning (Friday) by pushing myself in a solo 5k time trial. It didn't hurt that the winner got a gift card and the person I KNEW would beat me was doing a virtual half on Saturday so would not be racing me. 5Ks hurt so much. It helped that I had one of my normal running partners up at the park that morning, so once I told him I was racing I knew I couldn't just quit after a mile or so of burning lungs.

 

[michigandergirl]

Congrats to everyone on your virtuals and PR's!!!

October
Run: 54.5 miles
Walk: 30 miles
Elliptical: 155 minutes
Strength: 220 minutes
Yoga: 4 hours

April was the last time I had over 50 miles, so happy to be more consistent. I am one week into my new DB training plan and it feels so good to be back on a schedule and training for races (whether they happen or not, I am determined to be ready).

 

[avondale]

Día de los Muertos Medio Marathon - Day of the Dead Half Marathon aka the virtual revenge

On October 4th, I ran a virtual Half to replace a canceled Marathon (Petit Train du Nord) and was deflated by the fact that I was within a minute of a PR. The idea of taking my revenge by running another virtual Half to replace another cancelled Marathon (NYRR), on November 1st, took root. To make it more official and fun, DH and I went medal shopping.

After enjoying the extra hour of sleep, I did my regular race morning routine: Eat breakfast, digest for a couple of hours, drive to the site (my mom’s place), warmup and go!

The temperature was around 5°C and slightly cloudy, perfect except for the wind at some point.
My goal was to beat my PR of 1:55:48. @DopeyBadger and I agreed on a race plan with a 1:53:00 best case target. That positive goal helped a lot.

Not having trained at the target paces this month, I had trouble getting the proper rythme. So km 1, 8, 16, 17 are way too fast, km 3, 13 are too slow and the rest is not really where it was supposed to be. The race itself was pretty uneventful except for crossing a runner dressed as a banana . I did not get lost and I had enough water to be autonomous. Those are little wins.

Like every time I push a race for time, I thought that this was not for me and I couldn’t do it for a Full . Fortunately, I tend to forget those pesky mental complaints by the time I am showered and fed.

As I approached our street, I was greeted by DH and DD who took pictures and put the medal around my neck. It was also kind of cute that they had a banana and a mandarin ready for me, even though we were a 100m from our kitchen.

So, drum roll please , my time was 1:54:01, it’s a PR!
View attachment 536121
View attachment 536122
View attachment 536119

Congratulations! That's an awesome medal!

 

[gjramsey]

October Totals:

Total Miles - 120.15 mi
Total Time - 17:17:09 h:m:s
Average Pace - 8:38
Avg HR - 141 bpm
hiking/walking/biking - ~60 m

Yippee for summer temps finally going bye-bye in the Houston area. Running is finally more enjoyable again. Adding some interval/tempo runs into the mix with the cooler temps.

 

[RunDopey]

Congratulations to everyone who is getting to race and achieve goals!

October:
Running: 245.34 mi
Total Time: 41:23:00 h:m:s
Pace: 10:07
Elev Gain: 5,384 ft
Average HR: 139 bpm

Walking: 10.34 mi

Up 80 miles M/M. Slowly worked through my medial tibial issue by keeping the pace a little slower. 100% with @gjramsey about the weather in Houston. My 100 mile race for December got cancelled and I am probably going to put a 100K technical trail race in its place. Enjoying the CRAW experience and it has kept my motivation up during cancellation of events.

 

[jmasgat]

Happy to have a few days of unseasonably warm weather in the 60's here in MI. Means I can get out and run in shorts and a t-shirt. This is so welcome, I just can't say how much.

 

[Jules76126]

Does anyone here run in a mask? If so, what do you recommend? There is a new executive order here in MA that you now need to wear a mask outside no matter if you can social distance. Before you could exercise without one as long as yo could stay 6 feet apart. Not thrilled with this new development, but looking to see if anyone has a recommendation. Unfortunately, I live in a urban area so the chances of seeing people is pretty high.

 

[sandam1]

Does anyone here run in a mask? If so, what do you recommend? There is a new executive order here in MA that you now need to wear a mask outside no matter if you can social distance. Before you could exercise without one as long as yo could stay 6 feet apart. Not thrilled with this new development, but looking to see if anyone has a recommendation. Unfortunately, I live in a urban area so the chances of seeing people is pretty high.

I broke down and bought the Under Armour sports mask and really like it (well, as much as anyone likes a mask). I felt like I was eating every other mask when breathing hard. This one has a structure and creates an air pocket so it doesn't collapse into my mouth. I'm not super thrilled with the nose piece (I like ones that create a tight seal around my nose), but I'm going to buy some stick-on metal nose pieces and I'm thinking that that will solve the problem. They aren't cheap ($30 each), but my comfort is worth it.

 

[SarahDisney]

Does anyone here run in a mask? If so, what do you recommend? There is a new executive order here in MA that you now need to wear a mask outside no matter if you can social distance. Before you could exercise without one as long as yo could stay 6 feet apart. Not thrilled with this new development, but looking to see if anyone has a recommendation. Unfortunately, I live in a urban area so the chances of seeing people is pretty high.

I run in a cloth buff/gaiter (I had a bunch from various races/events) and have had no problems.
I've heard good things about the under armour sportsmask, but I haven't tried it myself.

 

[PrincessV]

Does anyone here run in a mask? If so, what do you recommend? There is a new executive order here in MA that you now need to wear a mask outside no matter if you can social distance. Before you could exercise without one as long as yo could stay 6 feet apart. Not thrilled with this new development, but looking to see if anyone has a recommendation. Unfortunately, I live in a urban area so the chances of seeing people is pretty high.

Does it have to be an actual mask, or can you use a gaiter? I use gaiters from Buff and BondiBand in cold weather to help with asthma - no issues breathing in them at all while running.

 

[Jules76126]

Does it have to be an actual mask, or can you use a gaiter? I use gaiters from Buff and BondiBand in cold weather to help with asthma - no issues breathing in them at all while running.

It just need to cover your nose and mouth. The order still says scarfs, bandanas, etc. are fine. So it sounds like a gaiter is my best bet.

 

[Smilelea]

October Totals:

80.6 miles
13:11 average pace
8 - 10 cross training hours (my tracking of this is a little messed up for October so I don't know)

Other news:
- Weight loss has picked back up with a new plan - 22.5 lbs lost since January.
- I'm about 50 miles away from my yearly mileage goal with 2 months left to go. Shouldn't be an issue
- When we decided to get the refund for W&D, I didn't let that change my training plan. So this past Saturday, I decided to run the half marathon distance (I was scheduled for 14 miles the week prior anyway - due to scheduling conflicts I did have to do some switching) a little faster than long run pace but still fairly comfortable. I ran it in 2:37:46 which is a PR by 26:47 !!!!! I was shocked! I knew my pacing had improved thanks to cross training, hill workouts, and speed runs. I just didn't expect to have improved by that much that quickly. Now I just need my local half marathon in February to stay an in-person race so I can get that good of a time for MW 2022 .

 

[happ]

Does anyone here run in a mask? If so, what do you recommend? There is a new executive order here in MA that you now need to wear a mask outside no matter if you can social distance. Before you could exercise without one as long as yo could stay 6 feet apart. Not thrilled with this new development, but looking to see if anyone has a recommendation. Unfortunately, I live in a urban area so the chances of seeing people is pretty high.

Is this order specific to your city/town? I'm in MA and haven't heard about it.

 

[Jules76126]

Is this order specific to your city/town? I'm in MA and haven't heard about it.

No its the order Baker released on Monday. It goes along with the stay at home advisory at night. The new order states that everyone over the age of 5 must wear a face covering inside and outside regardless if you can maintain 6 ft of social distancing space. I was hoping that it would not include exercise but it looks like it does as there were lots of complains in the paper from runners. It goes into effect tomorrow.

 

[happ]

No its the order Baker released on Monday. It goes along with the stay at home advisory at night. The new order states that everyone over the age of 5 must wear a face covering inside and outside regardless if you can maintain 6 ft of social distancing space. I was hoping that it would not include exercise but it looks like it does as there were lots of complains in the paper from runners. It goes into effect tomorrow.

Oh wow. I had no idea. Thanks!

 

[FFigawi]

Does anyone here run in a mask? If so, what do you recommend? There is a new executive order here in MA that you now need to wear a mask outside no matter if you can social distance. Before you could exercise without one as long as yo could stay 6 feet apart. Not thrilled with this new development, but looking to see if anyone has a recommendation. Unfortunately, I live in a urban area so the chances of seeing people is pretty high.

Here you go. Fully adjustable, lightweight, and comfortable too.

https://www.desotosport.com/collections/protective-wear/products/single-ply-face-mask