Training Supplement – July 6, 2016

I bought new shoes this week – the Brooks Ghosts.  They seem promising.

How exciting have the Olympic Track & Field trials been?  That women’s 800m final?  I got stopped in the grocery store to talk about.

I also got older and picked out a building for marathon training construction watch.

Clothing & Gear

Shoes.  I’m very anxious about the Wave Rider 19 going away.  After spending a lot of time and money to find a new shoe last summer, I don’t want to do that again.  Hopefully, the 20 will be fine.  I happened to mention this to a woman I ran with on my Sunday club run and she suggested the Brooks Ghost.  Hmm…  I don’t think I tried the Ghost last summer.

I went to the local running store later that day and tried on the Ghosts.  They felt okay – not great – but I thought the size 8.5 felt small.  I bought 9.0 but then had regrets the next day.  I exchanged them for an 8.5 in the previous model.

I wore the Ghosts on my recovery run on Tuesday.  The first few step felt awful but by the end of the run, I thought they felt just fine.  It made me realize a short run in the local running store just isn’t enough to really know how a shoe might feel on a run.   I’m looking forward to testing this shoe.

Belts.  I wore the Amphipod AirFlow Lite Waistpack this week on an easy run.  It was surprisingly comfortable.  I could see myself wearing it on shorter runs but I’m still not convinced it won’t chafe on longer outings.  I’m going to keep it around.

Handhelds.  During my trip to the LRS, I also bought an Amphipod Ergo Lite Ultra.  It holds 20 ounces of fluid and has a pouch that can fit my smartphone.  It might be just what I’m looking to run with this summer.

 

Nutrition & Hydration 

Weight.  I celebrated my birthday last week and all my good eating habits went out the window.  In fact, it seems the bulk of my celebration entailed consuming a lot of pizza and beer (and lattes, and chocolate croissants.)  And, I didn’t eat much better during the Fourth of July holiday.  But, all of that is behind me.  It’s time to knuckle down again!

Routes

Construction.  I live in a neighborhood that is being “revitalized” and therefore, has at least one major construction project happening at any given time.  During my past marathon training cycles, I’ve monitored some of their progress – mostly because they slightly inconvenience my running due to sidewalk closures and an uptick in large vehicles that may not see me.  (Pace the Nation has done segments on two of the Pacers running stores’ construction projects.  I thought they were funny because it’s something I would have noticed if I lived by those locations.)

For this marathon cycle, I’ve been eyeing a few places that would make good sites to monitor.  I chose this building in Crystal City (400 Army Navy Drive) because it’s making me choose between re-routing some of my saved courses or crossing the street to a more dangerous section of the road.  I look forward to seeing how this site looks in November!

Media & Motivation

Music. “Starships,” by Nicki Minaj.  Once again, I listened to Spotify’s Discover playlist during my long run this past weekend.  Spotify seems to think I go clubbing every weekend instead of running for 2+ hours.  Since I’m got older this week, I’m okay with that.

Podcasts.  “Tell Me I’m Fat,” by This American Life.  I listened to this podcast during my long run on Saturday.  I knew I would include it on my blog because it was so powerful but I wasn’t sure how I would write about it.  I thought it was one of the best popular media treatments on the issue of fat acceptance that I’ve ever heard.  The stories were moving and most notably for me, there wasn’t a counter-argument presented.  I got to listen to people talk about their experience of being “fat” without a doctor, nutritionist, or physical trainer interrupting the narrative.

Websites and Blogs.  “Five Tips for Summer Running,” by Eat Pray Run DC.  This post caught my eye because I’m always looking for ways to make summer running more tolerable.  She reminded me to look for the shady side of the street, which is something I often forget.

Olympics.  I watched the Olympic Trials over the weekend.  I didn’t run cross country in high school but I did run track – mostly the 200m, 400m, and the long and triple jumps – so, I find myself pulled to those events.  Watching Allyson Felix in the 400m was inspiring.  Her stride is simply beautiful.  But, the Womens 800m Final was certainly the most dramatic event so far!  I’m not expert enough to know who was at fault for the collision (if anyone).  Watching it live, I thought Alysia Montano might have been a bit out of control after surrendering the lead and ran up on Brenda Martinez.  But after re-watching the video numerous times and reading commentary, I changed in mind and concluded it wasn’t that simple.  In any event, it must be devastating for both athletes to miss out on the Olympics in that way.

Motivation.  Age wrinkles the body. Quitting wrinkles the soul. – Douglas MacArthur.

I celebrated a birthday this week and ran my first race in my new age group with my usual competitive spirit!