Snow Break and setting up for a good 2012

 
And did we have snow!  We had a few inches sticking to the roads the sunday after Nookachamps.  Monday and Tuesday stayed cold and then Wednesday, we got a few more inches.  it iced overnight and then we recieved a lovely mix of ice and snow, turning to mostly snow Thursday.  Winter roared in reminding us that nature can do whatever the hell it wants.  I measured 7" on Thursday and this was after a lot of it had compacted down.  I know we had more.  It's a lot for hilly, hilly seattle without a lot of snow removal equipment. 

it's pretty unusual for snow to stick around for more than a few days here in the Seattle lowlands. This snow stuck and even stuck around downtown.  I don't fuss with snow when training since I do not belong to a gym.  I count it as a rest week and don't worry about getting running workouts in.  I did go out and do a couple of short but really fun snow runs from our house on the hill.  all the kids with their sleds were out, i saw people cross country skiing and just tons of smiles on faces.  Sure i had to go to work everyday and I did except for the day when the ice exceeded my limit and I stayed put and worked from home.  Generally I can run on the waterfront trail along Downtown Seattle but this storm, even Downtown was affected.  I rode on the trainer a couple times for a short bit and just enjoyed looking out the window.  We even went and had wine and played scrabble with the neighbors. Fun snow stuff! 

It came at a great time too.  Nookachamps, the goal race, was a bust.  What next?  well I am signed up for a couple upcoming races (both trail and road) but I haven't really set the next goal.  I did take a closer look at why I think Nookachamps would've been tough to run well even if the weather had cooperated.  I really feel like I need to bump up my overall mileage and I need to look at my weight.  These two do go hand in hand to some extent (if i ran more, i'd lose a bit) but it's not that simple.  

I looked back to see what I weighed when I was racing and running my best.  The number shocked me as it seems so much less than what I weigh now.  Really? I know I have more muscle on me than when I set those running PRs. I've worked hard to build strength in my upper body, core, glutes and that strength has helped me stay injury free (knock down the tree!) and makes me a better trail runner. This is just a couple instances of why better strength is good.  

I didn't get into running for weight loss.  It was something I thought I could do and would be enjoyable and keep me fit.  And it certainly did that and more and as a bonus, I lost some weight.  But recently as I hit middle age and my female body is creeping towards change, I've noticed some gradual weight gain over the past couple years.  I didn't think much of it.  

However there is now a bit of a tummy that doesn't want to go away and a bit of extra padding which I'm pretty certain wasn't there a few years ago.  I came through the holidays with the extra pound or two gain which honestly is just fine to me.  I like to celebrate with family and friends and that often means eating and there is nothing wrong with that.  At some point, I have to draw the line and realize the extra pounds slow me down and will keep adding on.  what to do?

I usually go back to what worked when I initially needed to control my diet back when I'd joined a gym but wasn't a runner.  I cut out snacking at work except for what I bring.  I make sure I'm getting fruits/veggies with every meal and start measuring portions of things like rice and pasta.  I don't cut out wine or alcohol or sweets but do limit them to a few times a week.  This has generally worked without much fuss. 

And now?  I'm finding this harder to do when training as an endurance athlete.  I still gradually lose weight but struggle to eat enough at times and deal with hunger and wonder if my training suffers. And all this showed in my lead up to Nookachamps Half Marathon (turned 10k) I think.  Nookachamps is challenging because of the weather but also the time of year.  I enjoyed my egg nog a lot this holiday season and my weight is up.  If you know me, you probably can't necessarily tell.  It helps that I'm a taller person and can hide some extra weight.  I can tell you though that I am tired of carrying the extra weight up hills. 

I am not one who thinks I can successfully carry out a diet which limits or eliminates a lot of foods.  I like meat.  I like veggies, carbs, fruits and wine.  I love cheese and milk and full fat ice cream and homemade baked goods.  I'm the best omnivore I know!  Ok, I fail miserably at eating mushrooms (ick!) and seafood (mostly ick!) but I make do.  I've looked at diets like vegan or vegetarian or paleo or clean eating and there is no way that i could sustain that happily except for a short time.  I am very happy that i have not been forced to change my diet because of food sensitivities or gut issues. 

I came across a book which has really gotten me thinking about things like appetite, hunger, training versus racing weight, diet quality and balancing energy sources (fat, protein, carbohydrates) for an endurance athlete. 

Racing Weight: How to Get Lean for Peak Performances by Matt Fitzgerald had me enthralled on the bus.  I had to take out my phone with calculator and start figuring my optimal performance weight.  This book is very technical to begin with and i can just imagine someone who has a lot of weight to lose could find it discouraging.  I did find a lot of references to what to aim for if that is the case.  Some simple changes include adding in more fruits and veggies (higher diet quality), portion control, nutrient timing and rethinking things like managing appetite instead of trying to control something you need.  I have one of those fancy scales to measure body fat percentage.  I hadn't done much but notice that yes as I peaked for races, my body fat would subtly decrease while weight would stay about the same.  I didn't track this or compare it to anything however. 

This book lets me do that and gives me a reasonable body fat goal to aim for while losing a couple pounds.  I know what I weighed when I raced my best.  I know I have more muscle than i did then so that weight may not be optimal now.  I really liked the discussion about balancing energy sources (ie how much fat, protein, carbs should I eat).  As a runner, I hear a lot about making sure to fuel a run by eating carbohydrates but then don't forget to eat protein to build muscle.  I'm sure you've heard this too and it isn't quite as simple as that nor in the case of protein building muscle even true.  

Note that this book is not really about what to eat when working out.  As Coach Lesley was quick to point out, everyone has different energy requirements when working out.  I know I burn fuel quickly when running a more moderate pace and have to fuel accordingly and often higher than someone else will.  but those higher carb diets overall make me hungry and cranky and prone to gorging on fatty stuff.  I was interested to see that higher levels of protein and fat is (probably) called for when you are NOT training at a high level.  I don't train at a high level.  I normally train about 5 hours a week consistently and if i plug in the recommended carb intake for that level of training, it is about what I get naturally.  If my training time goes up (ie my mileage is higher or I add a lot more biking) than I naturally start adding in snacks like whole grain cereal and other high quality carbohydrates. 

The timing of nutrient intake makes a difference too.  when you eat and what you eat can either go to restock fuel sources, power muscle work, power immediate energy needs or get stored in adipose tissue making you fatter.  I like all the options but that last one.  How 'bout you  I like tracking food and activities because it really shows me how wildly I swing between undereating and overeating depending on my activity level.  I know that after a busy weekend of running, I can get to work on Monday and I'm starving all day long and do eat knowing that i need the calories.  Nutrient intake timing FAIL!  ha! I should've eaten a lot more over the weekend but i was too busy having fun.  what is my body doing with that extra calories now?  Hmmm.

No my body's energy requirements are not the same throughout the day nor every day and I often try to eat the same amount every day.  Athletes who do a better job of matching calorie intake with calorie needs throughout the day were leaner.  This means i probably need to bring even more food to work for snacks. Sigh.  I also plan on adding a quick snack before longer midweek runs to help. 

The author does a great job of debunking a lot of myths and pointing out design flaws in studies. What works for this elite athlete may not work for this other elite athlete in another country and may not work for you or me (definitely non-elite!).  This book was published in 2009.  I just noticed that the author has a new one out (Racing Weight Quick Start Guide). I've requested that one from the library and I'm curious to see what's different.  Like I said, the edition I'm reviewing here is pretty technical which the geek/nerd side of me loves!  Please, poke holes in studies and tell those nuanced shades of gray!  I don't believe the black and white.  I hate news stories which flash: Drink 12 gallons of mustard sauce to lose weight, build brain health and cure cancer!

I don't think food is cure for things.  I like to eat and I like to run.  I know that by making some subtle changes and bringing my weight down a smidge for training and then a bit more for a short time for racing, I'll run better.  AND I'll continue sailing into middle age happy about my body and what it can do.  It takes some effort on my part and that is ok.  It's the only body I have. 

Soaring Eagle Trail Marathon

NW Passage Trail at Soaring Eagle

I need another long run.  Actually the plan called for a long run followed by a 10 mile trail run the next day.  Problem is that I want a run-free day for the holiday weekend.  And the long run would end up being in-city.  Sometimes an in-city run on a glorious summer day is torture for me and I really felt like i needed some more trail running before the event in just two weeks.

A quick search revealed Northwest Trail Runs was putting on a trail run at Soaring Eagle.  Yes my favorite place to run trails and it was supposed to be gorgeous and there was a 10 mile or marathon distance.  OK! So how to approach this then?  Run a few on friday and then run about 4 hours on Saturday paying attention to fueling and hydration and make sure not to beat up the legs.  I signed up for the trail marathon.  Not only are NW trail runs on great trails but they are inexpensive too.  I love that they do trail maintenance and trim back the vegetation on courses as well. 

I always forget how much slower the Soaring Eagle trails are.  It's deceptive because overall they are much more runnable than Cougar or Tiger because nothing is as steep. BUT they are constantly turning and winding and slight ups and downs with some rocks and roots to keep it interesting.  An easy pace on these trails is a couple minutes over my normal road pace at least.

I got over there easily and was immediately annoyed because it turns out there was an early start allowed but there was no mention of this on the website.  I would've been happy to start earlier because it was going to be a long day.  oh well.  But then the pre-race briefing didn't start until about 8:30 when the race was supposed to start.  They were trying out a new timing system and it was having a few glitches I suspect.  So 15 minutes late we start.  Actually that was amusing.  The race director said "Go!" and no one wanted to move forward.  Haha!  I was one of those standing towards the front and no way I wanted to get out in the front.  I was just out for a run remember?

Anyway, after listening carefully to the race directions, we were back at the start after a 1.2 mile loop (hey i thought we were supposed to do the 5 mile loop first?), i went back out to start the 10 mile loop and got lost with a bunch of other people as well.  No, we weren't lost but we skipped a portion of the course.  I realized this pretty soon and decided that it really was a good thing for me.  Instead of having to decide about finishing the race as intended or not, I could just run for time as long as I felt good.

The new plan based on chatting with coach was just to run about 4 hours.  I could go longer as long as I didn't feel beat up.  Turns out that wasn't an issue at all.  By about 2 hours, I was feeling beat up and by 2.5, I was stumbling.  Yeah no.  No reason to continue with this and I cut out across trails to get back to the start sooner and turned in my chip. I had just run over 13 miles so pretty slow but that also includes closely questioning the race directors during hte middle of the race about where I was supposed to go, some general group consults with fellow runners and figuring my way across the trail system when I decided I was done.  Trail running always has some of this! 

I guess I should've had a clue when I went out for my run the day before and made it 3/4s of a mile before I turned around.  I was just not in the mood to run and feeling off.  I felt fine enough trail running and got into a good rhythm at times. 

I figured out what I'd eaten during the race and it was just barely enough per general guidelines for carb consumption during endurance events (40-60 g of carbohydrates is recommended).  I thought i was eating enough but evidently not.  Here's my intake over the almost three hours:

food	calories	carbs (g)
fig newton	45	11
potato piece	30	3
potato chips (about 3)	32	3
mike n ike (5)	28	5
mint choc gu	100	20
coke (1/4 cup)	24	7
accel gel choc	100	20
1.5 my energy bars	221	33
	580	102

 

Mike and Ike's candies don't count nearly enough carbs considering they take a bit of time to eat! The potato piece dipped in salt tasted really good but I just had a little piece so I'll have to try more of that.  It's also that time of the month so I often need more food not to mention that general malaise.  Oh well. I enjoy the mix of foods offered at these long trail events but probably just need to supplement gels/my energy bars instead of grazing instead of eating my planned food like I did.  I never felt hungry but the stumbling I was doing towards the end indicates low fuel.  If I figure out what I'd had up until around 2 hours15, it was quite low for what it should've been and I started having trouble directly after that.  I felt rather wiped from the effort the rest of the day but perked up by the evening and felt fine the next day so that's good news.

And like usual, any day running on trails is always good! 

Summer is coming, right?

Memorial Day is the traditional start to summer.  Eh.  It's hit or miss around here.  This past weekend was a decided miss.  Oh well.  The non-stop rain kept us from working much in the yard (I did take down most of a very large shrub) and it was nice to have some time to clean and organize in the house.  I'd rather go for a nice long trail run. 

Even with the less than ideal weather, we still had a go of a favorite trail.  This run, we did last year on July 4th.  I was really looking forward to going back.  The alpine lakes along this trail were stunning and relatively easy to get to for a trail runner. 

It was raining and 45 degrees when we set out for milepost 47 along I90.  Pratt Lake Trailhead has a lot of different option for runs/hikes.  All of them require going straight uphill for some miles but that's just what it's like out there. 

The rain isn't nearly so bothersome under the tree cover and the trails weren't as muddy as I was expecting.  With the weather not so nice, there was hardly anyone at the trailhead which was an extra bonus.  All streams were running pretty heavily with both rain and snow melt.  I was just loving life. 

Climb, climb and climb. Stop to take photos and climb.  Pay attention to how much time has passed (45 minutes).  Ok, take a gel and have some water.  Climb some more.  I'd been dropped by my running mates since I was stopping to take photos. No biggie. 

Then, they are all coming back towards me.  Uh oh.  That can only mean one thing.  Snow!  Sure enough, they'd encountered snow which made it tough to go on.  I debated for about half a second and then realized I really wanted to make it to the lookout over Oallie Lake.  Then I could see an alpine lake and be quite satisfied.  The snow level was round 3600.  Oallie lookout was around 4000.  How bad was the trail?

 CO had been going back to the car but decided to join me on my quest to see an alpine lake.  That was good.  Company was better once we hit snow.  And soon enough Coach T and speedy E had caught up to us and passed us.  The snow was deep in places but packed down.  Post-holing was a danger in places.  Under the trees, the trail would often be open.  It just amazes me how quickly one can be somewhere so remote and wild feeling.  Careful, it's easy to slip and the trail drops off steeply.  I think everyone had a bit of a slip and slide with shrubs. 

And we made it!  What a contrast this view was to last year.  It's breathtaking in it's own right.  But I'll show you the view from last year. 

Ok.  I was happy.  I'd seen an alpine lake.  Breaking trail in these sort of conditions is both fun and challenging.  If it's in your mindset that it is miserable than it will be.  I approach it with the idea that there is no way I can get any type of this sort of experience and workout anywhere else.  It's mentally challenging and physically challenging and I do enjoy it.  No, I wouldn't go do this every day but I had a huge grin on my face much of the time. 

Of course, you are going slowly in those sort of conditions.  I'd brought gloves and hat (could've used a heavier shirt) but was still starting to get cold.  We had just the steepest section to go and realized that it just wasn't going to be possible to make it point to point on the course and so we headed back.  Sorry Rainbow Lake but I'll make sure to try and catch you later this year. 

Of course, what goes up must come down.  Oh that sounds good doesn't it?  An all downhill run?  It certainly is easier than the trudge uphill but at this point, you are tired and really needing to pay attention.  I should've stopped to have more of the food that I'd brought.  I was fantasizing about the coffee and snack I'd brought to munch on. 

The trail is pretty rocky and it's easy to fall and that I did.  I took a pretty good tumble and turned my ankle.  For all the trail running that I've done, I've never really had an ankle sprain.  Yikes!  That hurt.  We were just a bit out from the car so I was able to hobble, then walk and then eventually slowly jog and ankle felt better by that point.  I had ice and a wrap on it probably within 20 minutes of the fall.  A mild strain is my assessment as it is very slightly swollen and a touch bruised.  It feels stiff but two days later feels fine to run on and walk around on at work.  And a good lesson.  EAT!  I probably wouldn't have fallen if I'd taken the time to eat earlier.  I knew i needed the calories as we were out for 4 hours! 

Even with the tumble, it was so worth it.  Instead of moping around at home, I had a blast outside doing challenging fun things.  I wasn't going to see this view in my living room.  

You biking?

Yes, I am. I've been trying to get in two rides a week and either a commute ride or a faster ride on Bea the Bianchi but running is really coming to the forefront right now. I've had two longer rides for me(30 miles) in the past month.

My training group(AR) has done a really neat ride starting at the community center in Renton on the Cedar River Trail and riding towards Enumenclaw and then on towards Crystal Mountain in years' past. I have always wanted to this ride even before I had ridden all that much. In total the mileage would be anywhere from 30 - 100 depending on where you started from but I was happy to plan for a half century.

Truthfully, I was quite nervous about this ride. I had the handlebars replaced on my fast bike and was still getting used to the feel. I'd had a little tweak on my back from the first time riding and wasn't sure if 50 miles would quite work.

I need not have worried.

I woke early. (Thanks dex the cat.) Got up around 5:15 so had plenty of time to putter around, have two breakfasts and get things ready. I did still manage to forget my phone but did well with everything else. I had also loaded the course onto my garmin so I could follow. That was something new for me and I'm glad I did it since I didn't have a phone (or money) as someone with a helpful jab at my stupidity pointed out.

I was so stiff in the morning from the previous day off yesterday that I decided to go running in the early am. Yep, I trotted around the neighborhood for just an easy mile and saw two raccoons up to no good strolling about. That worked very well and then I stretched well. Hips and back felt much better for that.

Got down to Renton and Dave was there with the van and his very fancy bike - a colnago. He was really hoping to ride and I was egging it on because I knew the day was going to be great - it was clear and a very comfortable mid-50's already. T held me back so I started around 8:30 instead of 8:15 and I was riding alone. While I had been looking forward to riding with someone that was also part of the nervousness. I'm not at all used to riding with other people so it was fine with me just to ride.

Cedar river trail is really fun on bike. I just zipped along saying hi to everyone. I had long sleeves on at that point and was very comfortable. Made it to the Hwy 18 crossing lickety split and from there you have to cross the gravel lot (I walked) and cross the hwy there (busy) and get on the road. Very shortly, you come to a turn and you are on a very peaceful rolling road. Lately when I hit the first hill of any ride, my legs feel like lead and I worry about what is going to happen for the rest of the ride. Same thing happened here as last week where I hit an uphill and legs complained and I though "uh oh" but I guess I'm just waking them up! I was fine the rest of the ride.

And I just rode. I had put the garmin to auto lap at 5 miles so that worked well and had loaded the course. Passed Dave in the van around 15 (just waved) and he was following making sure I made one turn which was a detour. Evidently a bridge is washed out along 169 so we went on this different road through who knows where. It was a bit disconcerting to have the garmin tell me I was off course. I didn't realize that there had been a detour but then I made the connection with all the detour signs which I was following. And now that I think about it, the detour was probably better than staying on the main highway.

There was a really fun downhill section (I almost hit 40 without trying) and then we crossed the Green River and then a really challenging climb. I didn't think I was going to make it up. But I stayed focused and kept at itand 3/4 way up remembered I have a triple crank.

:-D That made a difference and I was past the worst of the climb and congratulated myself for not giving up. there was just rolling farmland then. I saw a horse lie down and luxuriously scrub his back. I saw cows and llamas and peek a boo views of Mt Rainier. Amazing!



The nice thing about the 5 mile laps alert with the Garmin was that each lap was around 20 minutes so that was a good reminder to eat and/or drink. In total, I had two gels, on packet gu chomps, one large square of my energy bar and 1/3 bottle of powerade which Tony had at a fueling stop and I was eying. Good. I was only hungry towards the end when I remembered I had half a packet of chomps left. I had stopped to take off my long sleeved thing and wrap around waist around Maple Valley (mile 15). It was definitely warming up but not at all uncomfortable.

At 30ish, we went back to hwy 169 and around 132 Tony and the FJ were there and I had caught up to a lot of riders. I came up to T with a huge grin and said it was pretty much the best ever! T said everybody else was bitching and moaning about the heat and hills. Whatever. Unlike with running, I'd rather be too warm when biking. T refilled my water (I only have the one cage on the bike) while I chugged powerade. His question, am I riding to 50?

Hell yes, I'm riding 50.

Passed three AR riders again almost immediately. one of the gals was riding so poorly up a not so big hill that she was really wobbly and I was nervous about passing her. I made sure to yell at her way before I was coming to let her know. I passed Laura E and she shouted at me "You biking?"

Hunh? I then spent another 5 miles trying to decode this one. :-D I have no idea what she meant! Could be:

• Are you biking today? (well yes but maybe she meant the whole thing)
• Are you injured and only biking?
• I didn't know you biked!
• You call that pitiful turning of the cranks biking? (this was Tony's helpful suggestion)

Hit Enumenclaw and some traffic through this area. Narrow streets through there but I'm going fast enough with traffic for it not to be a big deal. I waited at the light to turn off the Crystal Mountain hwy with a couple of motorcycles behind me. It just struck me as funny and compared to their prominent guts, I felt super strong, fit and studly. Snort.

And then the hway towards Crystal. This had made me nervous. I know you are just on the road to climbing towards passes around Mt Rainier and I expected it to be hard. It just looks like you are heading up a mountain but it really is more rolling and flat feeling than I was expecting. At 40 I had to take a break as my back muscles were tightening up. Dave showed up then with the van and we chatted a bit more before I went rolling off. Poor Dave never got to ride and only did course support. I think he'll have to go back and ride it!

Really, I was feeling amazing. Back tight but everything else great. AT 50 (just past Green Water) i had decided to turn around and head back to 45 as there was a good access to the white river and I really wanted to sit in the river. but T caught up then and thought there was access farther up. Ok, but it would be fun to go downhill! but no biggie, so i turned and started up again. Got another 3 and T said that he was mistaken. D'oh! but at that point I was only a few miles from a turn off to a view point to Mount Rainier and thought that would be perfect.

56.4 miles and I am so happy. I had some time to hang out and stretch on teh grass there (not lying or stepping in the deer? poop). chatted with tourists from ? who were amazed I had biked up the mountain 56 miles.

After 20 minutes or so Les and Steve show up. they still had about 12 or 15 miles to go still for Steve to hit 100 (he's training for Coeur D'alene IM in a few weeks). T showed up right then and they got their bottles filled and off they went. T had my food! So he snacked and I chowed (pancakes with pbj or nutella, pasta salad, orange, chips) and we chatted for a while. It was really nice and peaceful and gorgeous.

we went wandering up after a while to get Steve and Les. we went by all the trail access for the white river run and we were wondering if the pedestrian bridge has been replaced. (here it is in 2006)At the sign by Crystal, I guess Steve was done with uphill and they had 3 miles left so they went back downhill. At that point I realized, I could get a quick look at the trail to the pedestrian bridge as that was about 3 miles! T was agreeable to this so pushed me out the door with my running shoes (ha!) and I went trotting off. It had been a while since I'd biked and legs felt fine. I'm sure i was very slow but it did feel good and the trail was so nice. Super squishy and gorgeous. Lots of trees down to scramble under and over. T had made some crack about K would not appreciate me being lost to bears so I was thinking about that the whole time. :-D

I got down to the river (trail is not even half a mile I think) and wow the force of the river and the rocks all over. No trace of a bridge. Poof gone. You could see the guide wire there still. I took more photos and trotted back up. T had the bikes and now Les and Steve were running a mile I guess because I was! :-D I changed. I had gotten so hot running that little bit and we went off to load everybody and come home. Detour in Enumclaw (bike race) which took a while and then lots of traffic through Auburn so didn't get home until 4.

Perfect day!

Biked 56.4 miles in 3:43 (average pace 15.3) - runsaturday.com link

And then the challenge will be doing a fun trail run the next day in the cascades. Did I push it too hard on the bike ride today? Did I fuel well enough during and after to not feel like a zombie runner? We shall see.