This Feels Like Cheating

Posted on November 15, 2012 by Jen

A post about a crazy runner mind!

I’m very honest with my training. I log my miles down to the 0.01. If there’s ever a question, I round down. I never want to look back at my training and have any questions, any doubts. I always KNOW I did AT LEAST what my training log says. In my normal life, I like to exaggerate, or “add a little flair” to my stories. With my training, it’s the opposite, always recorded exactly or downplayed. It gives me confidence looking back, knowing I did every single workout at least as well as stated, most likely better.

Snippet of my online running log, down to the 0.01

So as part of my crazy little runner mind, there are a few totally normal things I do that feel like “cheating” to me. The one I want to address today is: wearing racing flats for workouts.

Nothing about wearing flats for workouts is cheating. In fact, it’s common practice. Still, I like to do my workouts, even track workouts, in my regular training shoes. Then when I’m done with the workout, I can look back at my splits and say, “wow, and I did all that in regular trainers!” In my crazy runner mind, training shoes add a second or two per lap on the track. I leave those workouts feeling confident, fast, super tough, knowing when it’s race time and I’m in flats, I’m totally golden.

Then there are workouts like last night. I had a great workout on the track. My paces were faster than expected. The workout felt easier than expected. I left the track feeling like I had more to give. Like I could have run more repeats, at the same pace. Everything was clicking. But… I wore my flats for the workout. So this tiny little voice in my head was saying “well of course it was fast, you were wearing flats! You were cheating!”

My current racing flats

Thinking about this, I know it doesn’t make sense! I’m laughing right now just writing it. I race in racing flats, why not train in them? I’m not cutting a course, I’m not dropping out of part of the workout, I’m just wearing the same shoes that I wear when I’m racing. Yet somehow it feels like cheating. Maybe sharing this crazy little thing with you will help me realize it’s ok.

What do you think? Do you do workouts in lightweight shoes like racing flats? Do you have any crazy runner “things” that are normal but feel like cheating?

Peak Week, CIM

Posted on November 13, 2012 by Jen

I made it through my biggest week of marathon training! After a short buildup, very few workouts (especially marathon specific workouts) and a grand total of 2 “long runs” (meaning 20 miles or more) I hit my biggest week of training for CIM. I’m going to run it! I’m going to finish it! It is going to be fun!

great long run weather, let's do this tweet

~DID IT!

thanks to sisters in sport and roadkill racing

Thankful for running support, always!

It will be great to run a marathon very well rested. During marathon training I’m usually getting really tired at this point, feeling like I need a daily nap and like my body is SO READY FOR TAPER. Right now, I’m feeling rested. I’m not exhausted every day. I’m feeling pretty normal. It will be fun to see how this plays out on race day.

Thankfully, things went well last week and I’m feeling optimistic about the race being a good experience. I did 6 miles of speed on the track last Wednesday and it felt pretty darn good until the last 800 meters when it got a little hard. I did 21 miles on Sunday (3 weeks out) with an average pace of 7:20 and felt good. After the long run I did a few hours of museum time with Currie, some stroller walking, and some leaf raking so I’d say it was a good day of endurance training. I ended the week on 67 miles, and no problems. Very happy with that, considering where I’ve come from!

Buddy (from the PBS Kids show Dinosaur Train) was at the museum! Currie is blurry because she was jumping up and down with excitement.

In normal marathon training, I would usually do 2 workouts a week plus a long run, but since I jumped from 30 miles a week (at the 7 weeks til race day point) to 60 miles a week, I’m just doing one workout and one long run per week. The rest is easy running, to make sure I don’t get injured.

So now the beginning of the taper is here! I’ll probably run 50-55 miles this week. I’m racing a 6k cross country race this Sunday and will probably get 14 miles in total on that day to count as my long run.

Can’t wait to see how this marathon goes!

Something to thing to add to this post: if you still want to help those affected by Hurricane Sandy and aren’t sure how, please check out the virtual race, Race for Recovery 5k/10k. Michele has secured some great prizes that are up for grabs. Sign up now!

Do you get excited or angry when it’s time to taper? A little bit of both maybe?

ME Monday: How to Remove an Avocado Seed

Posted on November 12, 2012 by Jen

ME Monday. It’s the post where I usually talk about life that doesn’t relate to running, but it somehow always ties back to running. Today, I really won’t bring the topic back to running, even though I’ve already mentioned running 4 times…

As you probably know, we spent the summer in Seattle, and I was able to spend a good amount of time with one of my BFFs, AM. We met online (not creepy at all) and quickly fell in platonic love, despite being total opposites. We initially bonded over home cooking and super spicy bloody marys. This summer, we picked up right where we left off with some cookouts and bloodies.

Blurry iPhone pic of me and AM this summer. We are hilarious. Trust me.

As usual, she taught me something new – how to easily get the seed out of an avocado. This method has changed my avocado-loving life so I thought I’d share it with you, in case you’ve never seen this trick.

(I’m going to go through the whole process of prepping the avocado in case anyone has never done it. Seems a bit silly, but I never ate an avocado until I was 26 at a super bowl party where all the food was avocado based, so I know there are some newbies out there!)

Step 1: Wash and cut avocado lengthwise. Pretty normal.

An avocado, ready to be cut lengthwise

Step 2: Glide spoon just along the inside skin of the non-seed side and pull out flesh in one nice chunk. Still normal and obvious. I think everyone starts their prep this way.

One half out of skin, other half waiting

Step 3: Now here is where things get tricky. How do you get the seed out without destroying the flesh of the avocado? This has been my big struggle. And here is where the good advice comes in. Take a sharp knife and smack the blade right into the middle of the seed, a few millimeters deep!

Knife smacked into seed and inserted a few millimeters.

Step 4: Twist knife about 90˚ to release seed from flesh and pull detached seed (still stuck to knife) out of avocado. Amazing! It really works!

Step 5: Repeat “Step 2” with other side of avocado. It’s now ready to use in any recipe or just eat whole like I enjoy doing!

Warning! Beware of mishaps with this method! I get a little too confident and knife happy and have often *almost* cut the pad of my thumb/sliced up a finger or two with a simple knife slip.

OUCH! BEWARE! It’s super easy to slip and cut the pad of your thumb one way, or slice your fingertips the other way.

There you have it! A ME Monday that had nothing to do with RUNNING!

How do you remove avocado seeds? Do you use this method?

Cold Weather Commando

Posted on November 9, 2012 by Jen

This summer, I realized that pretty much EVERYONE goes commando when running. I’ve always worn underwear, even with shorts that have a great liner, because:

I had a bad experience many, many years ago when running shorts weren’t made so well.
It never occurred to me to try commando again.

Pre-marathon 2011, wearing my “race rundies” from Oiselle under my shorts.

Once I realized commando was the way to go (through a long Twitter discussion about it) I decided to join the commando crowd the very next day. I haven’t looked back and have been freely running ever since.

But… that was in the summer. When it was warm! What do you do in the winter, when extra layers are NEEDED?! How do you protect your lady (or man) parts in freezing cold temperatures? I was less than comfortable in my “sensitive region”, if you know what I mean, on my run yesterday morning and think I have to bring the undies back.

What do YOU do?

The Games We Play

Posted on November 8, 2012 by Jen

I love being in my 30s, 31 to be exact. I feel like I’m old enough to be taken seriously, but young enough to not be taken TOO seriously. And I’ve said a million times, I feel like running keeps me young, makes me feel as strong, flexible and carefree as I felt when I was a teenager. I doubt I’d feel the same way if I wasn’t a runner.

Physically and mentally strongER. (Always room for improvement with both.) Headed down into an ice bath post long run. Wouldn’t have done this as a teen! Oh, hi random toes!

The older we get, the less childlike we often become. Lucky for me, it seems having a child keeps my childlike spirit. I think running does the same. I am able to play “games” every day because of my running. This week alone I’ve:

done running drills, and talked myself through them in silly ways. High skips (to my Lou), running backwards (this one just makes you feel like a kid!), karaoke (country line dancing), high knees (bet I can get my knees higher than my belly button!), butt kicks (butt butt butt butt butt butt butt), lunges (how low can you go, can you bring it to the floor?) – you can imagine the dialogue both in my head and out loud as I tried to go faster, higher, deeper.
played mind games, or “make believe”. I’ve pretended I’m in the last few miles of a race, how I would feel, and how I wanted to feel. If I do one more rep, maybe I can make race day a little more successful.
done some random speed-play, saying to myself, “ok, at the leaves I’ll sprint… and I’ll stop at the next mud puddle”.

I laugh a lot when I’m running. Whether I’m:

by myself and I do something crazy like get tangled in a tree while running in the dark

bruised and bloody legs after falling on dark run

Minutes after the tangled incident. Goosebumps from freezing temps still apparent. Sorry if this picture was shocking. Sent it to a family member who said at first glance it looks like a vagina?! I don’t see it, but ALRIGHTY!

or when I’m with running buddies and trying to pass the workout time with humor
or when I’m with my husband and repeat the same “hilarious joke” multiple times until he laughs too

I just like to laugh and be happy while running (hence the blog subtitle: Live Running, Laugh Running, Love Running.

So to keep from rambling any longer, I’ll just say keep running! Stay young! Don’t forget to HAVE FUN with it!

What kinds of games do you play with your running? Do you like to keep your running serious or more on the fun/playful side? I can definitely be a little of both, but I like to keep most of the week more fun/playful.

Less Than 4 Weeks to CIM

Posted on November 6, 2012 by Jen

It’s now less than 4 weeks until CIM.

I bought my flight last night…

What about my training? My strength training is great! My actual running = less than ideal.

Take this weekend for example. I was all set to do 20 miles. Then lack of sleep led to lack of motivation which led to lack of long run. I did 15 miles instead of 20. I had 60 miles for the week, but was feeling ~~a little~~ VERY nervous about not getting the last 5 miles in.

I’ve done a handful of long runs in the past few months (and by long I mean anything 15 or longer). I did a slow 20 miler last week and it’s looking like that might be my one and only true “long” run. So, when I think like that, I’m feeling quite nervous about the pain I’ll be experiencing in less than 4 weeks.

homemade face mask, cocoa, corn meal, honey, water

I was always very nervous about letting Currie paint a chocolate/honey face mask on me last night but it was fun and she only spilled a few times. :)

But … when I think of how this marathon is going to be fun, and how I know I can finish and finish fairly fast since I’m not starting with nothing here, and how I’m setting myself up for great marathons of the future (my ultimate 3 year goal) I’m feeling just fine about it.

I guess you can say I go from “oh boy, this marathon was a crazy, expensive, decision” to “it’s all going to be perfect and fun and probably my favorite marathon ever”. And those thoughts both pass through my head multiple times per day.

We will see how it all shakes out in just a few weeks!

Give me some positive thoughts here please! Help me keep thinking “it’s all going to be perfect and fun”! Share some of your own lack-of-training-but-still-fun-marathon stories.

ME Monday: Raynaud’s Disease

Posted on November 5, 2012 by Jen

I have Raynaud’s Disease. Sounds serious, huh? It’s not so serious for me, and somewhat easy to maintain as long as I pre-plan all my outdoor adventures.

Raynaud’s Disease (or Raynaud’s Phenomenon as it’s sometimes called) results from decreased blood supply to certain parts of the body, primarily fingers, ears, nose. You can see pictures and a longer description here on Wikipedia. You should know that the pictures on the right hand side of the Wikipedia article are not “worst case scenarios” but actually the way Raynaud’s sufferers will often look when they are exposed to cold temperatures. My fingers have looked just like all of those pictures at different points in the past few years when I wasn’t prepared for the weather.

Raynaud’s Disease typically affects my hands the worst. If it’s colder than 60˚F I need gloves, even if exercising when I know I’ll get warm. If it’s in the 30s, I need heavy duty mittens. Just yesterday, I spectated a XC meet with temps in the high 30s. I wasn’t even outside for an hour. I had on many layers, a heavy jacket, and mittens that protect against -10˚F. Still, my fingers looked like this:

Right pinkie and little bit of middle finger affected.

Tips of all fingers on left hand. Appears I need some hand lotion and a manicure as well

Underside of left hand

These pictures show what is pretty normal for me when I take full precautions. On days where I’m not prepared, I have major problems. I usually can’t move my swollen fingers enough to open a door, take off my shoes or even grip a cup to take a drink. The best way to warm my hands is to run them under cool water, then eventually get warmer or just get inside and let them thaw naturally. It is extremely painful (brings me to tears and there aren’t many things that get me like that!) and goes through different levels of pain like feelings of stabbing pain, pins and needles, and dull aching before it’s completely back to normal. Not fun, but something I deal with.

I found the best ways to avoid problems are:

Wear gloves/mittens almost year-round if you live in a typical 4-seasons state. I live in upstate NY and we get the true Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter seasons. I get a break in the summer, but most of spring and fall (and obviously all winter) you will see me in gloves.
Wear arm warmers or a thumbhole long sleeve top that cover part of the hand as extra insurance. I love the Oiselle armwarmers and the Rundelicious top. I like to tuck my fingers in the palm part then add light mittens for cool fall mornings.

In case you needed a visual. Just add mittens and you are good-to-go!

Invest in some packets of hot hands.

Always have gloves packed in your car, in case you get the urge for some outdoor time when on-the-go.

And there you go! Another little glimpse into my life outside of running that always seems to heavily tie back to my running!

Do you suffer for Raynaud’s or anything similar? How do you deal?

Sisters in Sport, 1st Check-in

Posted on November 2, 2012 by Jen

I’ve been working in my Believe I Am Journal for a month now, and it’s time to check-in with myself and all of you to see how it has been going. In my first post about Goals and Believing, I talked about my goal of an Olympic Trials qualifier and the smaller steps I’m focusing on to get there.

2013-2015 Marathon goal planning

The goal I chose to focus on was hip/glute/hamstring strength to set myself up for less chance of injury on my way to a super speedy marathon. The Journal has given me an easy way to record my strength and stay accountable. My Sisters in Sport have kept me motivated every week with their posts and encouragement. It has been wonderful. Here’s what I’ve been doing.

First two strength sessions of the month. I would like to claim the title of “worst handwriting of all sisters-in-sport bloggers”.

Twice a week, I’ve been focusing on strength exercises. One day, I do between 120-130 lunges (between 60-65 per leg, per session). Another day I do specific glute strengthening exercises – a few exercises from the following Coach Jay Johnson video. I really recommend incorporating a few of these exercises into your strength routine. (Just don’t add too many at once, you WILL be sore!)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GLrKr54yA0&feature=player_embedded

Like everyone else, I have little free time to throw in extra workout-related-stuff, so I knew I’d have to get creative. My first lunge session was completed in the hallway of Currie’s dance studio. In this outfit:

sweater, scarf, boots and skinny jeans while doing lunges

I got the feeling that if I waited to do lunges after Currie went to bed, they wouldn’t get done so I went ahead and did them in my “street clothes”.

My next session was done 2 days later when Currie (thankfully) decided to take a nap. Boom – just like that “week one strength” was done. Each week’s strength workouts followed a similar pattern. I found a way to get the stuff done without adding stress to my life or rushing through the exercises. Seeing my progress in the journal motivates me to keep it up. Hearing that others are doing well helps me even more.

A few days ago, right before I drifted into dreamland, I noticed something and jotted it down in the blank pages in the back of the journal. Check out 10/29 below:

No idea why I was flexing my booty in bed (dirty jokes aside), but glad I did. I felt so strong and wonderful!

A positive I didn’t expect from the Journal is it’s helped me keep track of little quotes, sayings, etc that I pass throughout the day and want to remember in my racing. Anytime I see something inspirational, something I want to think about during the marathon, something I need to remember during training, etc, I pull out my journal and write it in the blank pages in the back of the journal. I visit that space often, reread it, etch it in my mind.

Digging these quotes this week.

So what’s next? I’m training for my marathon for the next few weeks. As far as my strength goals go, for the month of November, I’m going to continue the current routine, but add some core (think planks), some drills and some additional hip exercises. Adding slowly, staying consistent, enjoying the process.

Do you have a Believe I Am journal? How are you doing in terms of goals this Fall?

Racing Update – Next Goal

Posted on October 30, 2012 by Jen

Quite a few people have been asking “What’s next Jen? What are you training for?” I finally have an answer for you. I’m running California International Marathon!

Picture straight from the CIM website… oooooo… ahhhhh….

As my “year of no marathons” was coming to a close, I started to feel a little sad about 2012 being an empty marathon year. The Columbus Marathon on October 21st would mark my one-year-away date. Just a week before that half, I was having a rough time personally and decided to medicate with more running. I started plotting a potential December marathon. It worked perfectly with my “train through Columbus half” plan. I applied for the elite field at CIM and told myself if I was accepted, I would run. The email response came after my long run on October 14th. I tweeted about it.

Yes, I was accepted into the elite field. Very cool. Also, I was feeling extremely out-of-MARATHON-shape.

I almost died (drama queen) doing 17 miles. It could be because I had been running 30-40 miles a week with an 8-10 mile long run most weekends up until that week. Then I applied for the marathon and got fired up and decided to run 60 miles with a 17 miler to finish up the week. #ouch

Maybe you wondered why I ran Columbus Half as a training run if I had no bigger race coming up. Or maybe you wondered why I was feeling insane enough to do a workout after my 5k race this weekend.

Well, now you know.

I’m not out of shape. I have a good base. I was doing 12-13 mile long runs all summer along with lots of stroller running. I even did a 17 mile long run for fun one day in Seattle this summer. As you can see from my recent race recaps, I’m not in PR shape, but I’m in pretty good shape from 5k-half marathon. You saw in my Goals and Believing post that I’ve been working on hip/glute/hamstring strength in the month of October so I’m feeling strong. (More on how the month of strength went in a post later this week.)

It’s all going in my Believe I Am training journal

The question is… how ready can I be for this marathon on December 2nd? I had 7 weeks until marathon day when I started training. That leaves about 5 weeks until taper… maybe 6 if I make it a short taper. In an attempt to remain injury free, my plan is to run 60-69 miles per week for the next 3 weeks with one workout and one long run. The other days will be easy so I can recover.

Hello old friend!

I will be ready for this marathon. Will I be PR ready? Not likely. Will I be ready to have fun AND run fast? Yes! I will be racing with a friend whose goal is slightly faster than mine. I will dig deep. I will be tough. I will see what I’m made of.

Why CIM?

My brother Jason Ordway will be running and it’s good family bonding time.

We bonded over post-race massage and a family cool down the last time we raced together!

Lots of my Oiselle Team birdies will be racing. I love a good meetup.
Other friends will be running.
Not many big marathons in December and I like the big race feel for 26.2 distance.
A history of great running weather usually ranging from 40-60 degrees F.
Strong field of runners.

So here I go! This is going to be exciting!

What’s your shortest marathon buildup? How did you do?

ME Monday – Smoothie Addiction

Posted on October 29, 2012 by Jen

If you follow me on Twitter (@jenbigham) you know I’m addicted to smoothies. I make one almost every day. Berry/fruit smoothies, green smoothies, protein smoothies – I love them all and switch it up often. I love drinking smoothies post-run.

My little helper add spinach and mixing up a green smoothie.

This is not a food/recipe blog, but I’ve had a lot of questions about my almond milk smoothies, so I thought I’d share here. For the past 6 months, my family has been hooked on this smoothie which involves just 4 simple ingredients (plus optional ice, so I suppose you could say 5 ingredients).

I just throw the ingredients together to my liking, and I think that’s the best way to do it. You really can’t mess up the ratios here. But, for those who need amounts, you can read below to see approximately what I use.

Currie is going to town on the cinnamon. She loves to help.

Almond Milk Smoothies! (makes 2 adult glasses, plus a toddler serving)

2 cups almond milk (I initially used the vanilla flavor but have switched to unsweetened.)
2 frozen bananas (keeps it nice and cold, more like a milkshake)
3 huge spoonfuls of almond butter/peanut butter
Cinnamon – I let Currie do this part, and she often pours way too much in, but it has never ruined the flavor. So sprinkle away!
2-4 ice cubes, optional

Add all ingredients to a blender and blend well, at least 30 seconds. Then pour into cups and enjoy! We like to drink these from tall wine glasses with colorful straws. And if I make too much, I pour the extra into popsicle molds and Currie and I enjoy it as popsicles later! YUM! Enjoy!

Finished product from today!

What’s your favorite smoothie? Tell me about your weekend of running. Any racing?

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