A Little About My Plan To Get to the Boston Marathon; A Trail Kind of Weekend & Something I need to tell Runner's World

It's been no secret that my big, lofty running goal is to qualify and run the Boston Marathon.  Last season, I put that thought on the back-burner while I trained to do The Rut since those two goals required such different training.

 

This year, I still have a trail 50K on my summer race calendar but it is a much less intimidating race and has plenty of time allowance that I know I can complete the course as long as I keep some trail work in my weekly schedule.  So this year, I'm putting the hammer down and working towards my Boston goal. 

 

This season, my first step is to cut some mega time off my marathon best.  Last year I finished Missoula under 5 hours, but to qualify for Boston I have to get well under 4 hours (3:45 is the required qualifying time, and most likely I need to be closer to 3:40).  My Missoula goal for 2017 is 4:40.  Then I'll be downhill training with the idea of qualifying for Boston at the Revel Rockies Marathon in June of 2018, which is an all downhill marathon with an elevation loss of about 5,000 ft. I like down hills and I'm good at them.  I can run a BQ pace comfortably, so it will be a matter of learning to keep good form over 26.2 miles so I don't trash my legs in the process.

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Mitch and I drove to Lewistown to run Limekiln Trail yesterday.  Normally Saturday is long run day, but the weather had rain the forecast for Sunday in Lewistown.  We know from experience that the mountains/hillsides/trails in that area get down right nasty in the rain.

 

 

 

Limekiln Trail goes up to a lookout spot or you can stay on the main trail that loops back around to the start.  I did both and got just over 7 miles for the day.  The route gains 1200 feet in elevation, almost all in the first 4.5 miles.  I had to walk most of the climb.  It was mid-70's and it felt so much warmer.  Mitch rode his mountain bike.  At one point I looked down on the switchback below where he was (he let me get a head start) and asked him if was having fun.  He replied, "That ended when I took the bike out of the car."  Haha!  That climb was tough.



 

 

The extra side trail that goes to the lookout seemed like the steepest part.  The view was really nice, but there was barely any room up there and I met up with a big family.  I didn't stay long.

 

Don't laugh!  I've been looking for new fuel sources for extra long running days.  Gu, Hammer Gels and Honey Stingers are okay and they serve a purpose, but after about 2 of them I hate trying to choke them down.  CLIF makes a pretty good organic pouch but there is only one flavor I like and I tend to have some minor stomach issues with them.  I happened to be walking by the baby food at the store the other day and saw these.  They are organic, about 80 calories (depending on the flavor), 17 g of carbs and even a little protein.  This one tasted much better than I expected!

 

At this point of the day, Mitch stayed with me for the rest of my run.  It was nice of him not to run over me going down the hills.

 

My Papparazi was at it again.  I like this picture even though it is on the most barren part of the trail.  The best part about climbing 1200 feet is that you get to come back down.  I had so much fun running once I wasn't struggling up the mountain side.

 

 

At the end of my run, I meandered down to the creek and washed some of the salt from my face and drenched my hat.  

 

Mitch and I are both trying to make healthier choices, so he suggested sandwiches for lunch.  We made a stop at the grocery store in town and bought sandwiches, 3 containers of cut fruit and something to drink and enjoyed a little picnic at a park.  The gazebo is so cute!  I should have one in my back yard.

 

Did anyone else see that Montana had a page in Runner's World Magazine?  The article featured Glacier Park (a trail that I have been on there), Missoula Marathon and Billings.  The run they suggested in Billings is a stretch of trail along the Rims that starts by the airport and follows the rims to Zimmerman Park.  That last part of the statement is actually not entirely correct. The out and back run is about 8 miles.  I'm very disappointed that they chose this section of the trail along the rims for a number of reasons:

 

1.  A long stretch of the trail is close to the highway and has parking all along the rims.  Disrespectful people love to party there and throw their beer bottles off the parking area on to the trail so there is TONS of glass up there.  Years and years worth of it that is so scattered and ground in to the dirt that nobody bothers to try cleaning it up.  Today is one of the rare times I didn't have to pick up beer cans or garbage (or the occasional discarded porn magazines) off the trail and take it to the garbage (10 feet away in the parking area).

 

2.  I already said this, but the trail runs very close to the highway.  This close, in fact.  Not all of it, but plenty.

 

3.  Graffiti is a problem on the rims, especially in this area of the trail that has easy access from the parking area/highway.

 

4.  The article says the trail goes to Zimmerman Park (which, by the way is the trail I would have suggested for this article).  To get to the Park, you have to cross Zimmerman Trail, which is a winding road with blind corners both directions and no safe crossing area.

 

 

Yes, the view is pretty awesome but there are so many nicer areas of the trail along the rims that you can see this from.  Runner's World suggested our trashiest trail and that makes me mad.  It makes me wonder if I should ever give much consideration to a place they recommend in their magazine because clearly they didn't research it very well.

 

Just a few miles down the road you can get to the Back Nine trail system.  Now there is a place worth mentioning!

 

My 14 mile run today ran along most of the rim trails and out through the Back Nine to the other side where Mitch picked me up.

 

 

I met this little critter on my run (in Zimmerman Park, actually).  He wasn't as happy to see me as I was to see him so he didn't stick around long.  I tried to tell him I was going to make him famous on my blog, but he just didn't care.

 

Do you subscribe to Runner's World or any other running magazines?  Which ones?

 

How do you pick running routes when you are traveling?



My Training Plan is Hard; Minor (thankfully) Injury; & a Few Pics From the Weekend





 

Much has transpired in the months since my last blog post.  I ran my Run to the Pub Half Marathon and missed my goal by 18 minutes, partially thanks to being sick in the days leading up to it and partially due to a training plan I didn't trust.  As a result, I came off that race with determination to create a plan for myself that was 1. Sustainable based on my schedule, 2. Designed to meet my own personal goals and 3. Evolving as needed.  Since I wrote it, there is no shame in making changes to it if I feel it's not working.

 

I scheduled a 16 week plan with the ultimate goal of knocking 20 or more minutes off my last marathon time.  This progress is needed if I'm going to get to Boston Qualifying speed (more on getting to the BQ in my next post).  The basic structure is a 7 day plan (I'm still on a run streak - 163 days and counting):

 

Monday - HILLS (officially my least favorite and hardest workout of the week)

Tuesday - Junk Miles - not really junk but an easy run day of varying mileage

Wednesday - Rest day - Important even though I'm running every day.  One easy mile.

Thursday - Speed Work - varying drills each week

Friday - Same as Wednesday

Saturday - Long run

Sunday - Semi-long run with Mitch (usually on trails right now since the next two races he is doing with me are trail runs)

 

In addition to the running schedule, I have a full strength training schedule and go to the gym at least three days a week.

 

Since today is Monday, it's hill work day.  This is the first time I have incorporated this particular hill into my workout even though it is the entrance to my neighborhood.  It's half a mile and approx. 200 feet of gain.  It's steep and hard to walk up, let alone run.  I had to take a few breaks to catch my breath.  I did it twice in one run and let me just say, That Hurt!  

 

 

 

I'm on week 6 of this training plan.  Last week I had to take it easy because I've had a rough go with a nagging pain on the top of my right foot.  I tried to run through it for a couple of weeks, but clearly that wasn't going to work out for me at all.  So last week I did a majority of my running in the swimming pool at my gym.  Basically this consists of running in place in the deepest part of the pool (not very deep in this pool, so there was still a little impact).  The reduction in impact allowed my foot to heel.  It still has a little niggle, but it is so much better.  I was very thankful for my waterproof, wireless headphones to say the least!

 

Just to be on the safe side, I taped my foot for my weekend long run and trail run with Mitch. Never mind the mess.... we had a 7-year-old stay the night.  I have used KT Tape for IT Band issues, but this is the first time for a foot injury.  It worked great.

 

My long run was tough.  I lost the mental battle early on, even though my foot felt better.  My planned 12 miler ended at 8.  Sometimes running is humbling.

 

Sunday was great.  Our trail adventure was more than half hiking so it was easy(ish) on my body.  Mitch and I found a new trail and spent lots of time taking in the sights.  I love the first flowers of Spring.

 

The views from the Rims in Billings were pretty stellar on this beautiful day.  Everything is turning green so it's like looking out on Paradise.  Enjoy it now... when summer is in full swing it gets rather brown.

 

Someone is being camera shy because I've been talking about blogging all weekend.  He thinks he's being cute and I have to admit that he is.

 

I'm striking a pose for my Paparazi!  Isn't this a neat rock formation??!  Unfortunately, someone thought it would be prettier with their graffiti spray painted on it.  People suck sometimes.

 

Mitch is doing his best to push it over.  That or he really needed to stretch out those calves.

 

Mitch spotted a grouping of paw prints on the trail. The lack of extended claws leads us to believe they are feline.  I would say a pretty big feline at that!  I know there are wild cats in the area.  I'm less intimidated by them than bears.

 

One of our after Sunday-Runday lunch spots is the Pickle Barrel.  This place has the best subs!  Besides... what is a running blog without food pics?

 



It's good to be back at the blog.  With a full race schedule this season, I have so much to write about.  Coming soon I'll be writing a review of my new Orange Mud hydration vest (spoiler: Its awesome), a bit about this year's race schedule, and talking about how I'm planning to get my Boston qualifier next summer.  Come back soon and check for updates.

The race schedule for 2017:

May:  Don't Fence Me In 12K Trail Run

June:  Yellowstone Half Marathon

July:  Missoula Marathon

August:  HURL Elkhorn 50K

September:  The Rut 11K

October: The Columbia Gorge Marathon

Running When It's REALLY Cold, Our Christmas & What's Coming

Over the past ten days I have had to come to terms with the fact that winter weather has truly arrived.  Anyone that knows me very well understands that snow is just NOT my thing.  What you might hear me say in any given conversation about winter is that I don't mind cold, it's the snow I hate (really, I don't hate snow, I just hate driving in it).  But it has been pretty darn cold lately and when you are trying to keep up a running streak, that can be down-right crushing!

 

By the way, I'm on day 26.

 

In order to maintain said streak, I often need to go for a short run after work.  No matter what, I have to run for at least a mile.  When it's cold, getting to the gym for my scheduled training runs is a must or there is a good chance it's not going to happen.  We all know how much I love the treadmill, right?

 

About 3 days a week, I expect only to get out for that one mile and while it has occasionally happened in the morning, evening is usually my poison of choice.  This is what evenings have looked like lately....

 

Brrrrrrrrrr......

 

It's dark by the time I can drive home from work and get dressed for a run.  Note (in case I haven't already mentioned it in previous posts): for a one mile run it takes longer to get dressed than to actually run.  Darkness means some measures are important to insure my safety and a headlamp is a must.  I'm less concerned about being visible than I am about being able to see the road in front of me.  I bought this one for The Rut and I will get a ton of use out of it.  The funny looking tag on the band is a piece of KT Tape I stuck to it with my race number for the race!

 

I get a lot of strange looks when the weather gets really cold and I go out for a run.  My husband has accused me flat out of being crazy, but I know he's proud of me anyway (evidence later).  Going out in super chilly weather requires planning and gear.  On Saturday,  I had a ten miler on the schedule and it was only 9 degrees.  I couldn't handle the idea of more treadmill so I dressed out for the occasion.

 

These booties are an investment Mitch made for cycling to keep his toes warm.  They are a simple neoprene toe cover you wear inside your shoes.  He has a few other types of foot covers so he let me use these.  I cannot tell you how much they helped!  In nine miles (my run was cut just a tad bit short), my feet stayed warm even though I ran in single digit temps and in 2-3 inches of fresh snow.  I have since worn the same shoes just for a 3/4 mile walk in similar conditions without the toe covers and froze my toes off.  Those booties really work and they are now a staple for my winter gear.

 

Mitch took my picture before I set off for my run.  I am wearing leggings (only one layer this time though I often wear two), calf-length socks with the toe warmers, a sports bra, tank top, long sleeve tech shirt and wind proof jacket. Sometime I also wear a jacket from my track suit over all of that.  Add gloves with hand warmers (you can get these at any camp store), a neck cover that pulls over my face and has breathing mesh and a hat.  I think that's all of it.

 

For the first half of my run, snow did not stick to my shoes at all.  I'm not sure what happened but by the end I had ice chunks growing off of the upper.  My feet stayed warm, at least until the snow melted and they became wet.  I was afraid the snow on my socks would be a problem, but ultimately they insulated themselves.

 

I wish this picture did a better job of showing it but my eyelashes were completely crusted in ice.

 

I seriously needed a good meal and time to warm up after that experience so we went to Bin 119 for lunch and I had the apple-cranberry-brie panini and French onion soup.  Ahhhh.  I asked the waitress for a class of Sangria and a hot cup of water.  She offered me hot mulled wine instead.  She was my hero and I had two cups.  Amazing!  I'll be back for more.

 

 

 

After a long run, hot showers are important but getting in a hot water when you are still frozen in spots is never a good idea.  Proper pre-warming is in order and for me that means a warm electric blanket, topped with more fuzzy blankets and a hot beverage.  A half hour or so of this and I was ready to hit the showers.

 

I mentioned earlier that Mitch tells me I'm crazy, but then does stuff like this so I feel good about myself.....

 

 



 This blog might make it seem like all I do is run.  That's not entirely true.  I do other things sometimes.  This last weekend, we had our family Christmas at our house. 

 

We got our tree last week, but I decided to let the kids put on the ornaments.  When you let the littles decorate the tree, you can't expect a perfectly symmetrical arrangement.  In multiple places, they thought there needed to be more than one ornament or bow.  I considered changing things around later, but I have left everything just as they placed them.  My tree has character.

 

We had a lot going on throughout the day.  The biggest hit was sledding down the hills in our back yard.  I adore this picture.  I might have to frame it.

 



 

Seven of our eleven grandchildren made it for our gathering (one had to leave early, though).  We are so blessed! 

 

We had a gift-opening frenzy!

 

I wish I could say that the coldest days for running are behind me, but sadly that is not the case.  The next few days are going to be brutal!  Just look at Friday!  At least Sunday looks decent so I can postpone my long run for a day.

 

My training plan has me doing some different workouts for the next two weeks.  I'm barely keeping up, but keeping up none-the-less.  I'll post more about that next time.

 

 

Are you bold enough to run in the cold?  What do you do to make it bearable?

First Week on the Training Plan, a Little Randomness & Merry Shoemas to Me!!

Today I wrapped up my first week on the training plan and I feel like I can pat myself on the back and say "Kudos, Angie!"  For the most part I stayed on schedule and did most of the workouts.  The plan has specific routines for non-running workouts and while I did some of them, I felt that some of my own gym training would work in place of them.  The running workouts I followed to the letter.  The schedule said I would have 23 miles this week, and I ended up with 27.  This was a result of my run streak (so I am doing a mile on the rest days) and also a few of the runs called for "strides" after the run which added a little.

Strides (in case you are wondering) - 100m accelerations where you start at a jog, build to about 95% of your max speed, and then gradually slow to a stop.
Credit: Jason Fitzgerald @ Strength Running.

The hardest day by far was 6 miles on the treadmill.  I did 4 miles at 10:31 min/mile and 2 miles at 9:45 min/mile.  I did a couple of short walk breaks to drink water and switch music but I held my paces admirably!  But it was still over an hour on the treadmill.  Ugh!

 

On Saturday I was scheduled for my long run, but postponed it until Sunday because it was extremely windy.  Instead I did 3.6 miles (1 easy, 2 steady state and .6 strides).  My run was followed by our annual pilgrimage to Red Lodge to find a Christmas tree in the mountains.

 

We took our snow shoes (a fun Black Friday purchase), but sadly there was not enough snow to wear them.  But aside from being windy, it was a beautiful day.  We bought one tag and while hiking through the trees we found another one that someone had lost.  Sadly, we did not find our tree so we went home with an empty truck and one extra tree tag.

 

My favorite run of the week is always my long run.  No other run day gives me quite the same feeling of accomplishment that a long run does.  Today was 10 miles.  The last time I did double digits was the beginning of October so I'm pretty much pleased with myself right now.  I'm supposed to run at "easy" pace for the entire distance, but it's more difficult to hold a 10:30 or slower pace on the road. The good thing about it is that I can go much further without walking... but only if I can make myself hold the pace.  It feels like I'm crawling!

 

I was hungry after my run today and we went to Montana Brewing Company for lunch.  Southern Mac for the win!

 

The Brew Pub (the name we usually call this place by) is decked out so festive.  I love the holidays and Christmas lights just make me happy.  I tried four times to get good picture of Mitch, but he kept making faces (or obscene gestures) so I'm posting the one that looks like his eyes are closed.

 



 

 Since we didn't find our tree in the mountains, we bought a White Pine from the Boy Scouts.  I've never had this kind of tree before.  It's pretty and it smells good, but putting lights on it was a challenge!  I haven't put the ornaments on yet.  I'll do that later this week after it snows and I'm all in the holiday mood again.

This last week was Shoemas at my house!  I bought these lovely Altra Superior 2.0s to replace the ones I wore for the Rut and had to retire.  I have the privilege of being a Brooks wear tester and my newest pair of test shoes showed up the next day!  I'm not allowed to post pictures of those.

Next week's training is identical to this past week.  We are expecting snow and arctic cold to come in over the next few days so there will definitely be long miles on the treadmill again.  The weekend should be decent enough to enjoy my ten-miler outside though.

Have a great week everyone!

For those of you that get a Christmas tree, do you prefer real or fake?  Do you cut your own or buy?  (BTW... Is my city the only place the Walmart isn't selling them this year???)

Moments from Thanksgiving weekend and it begins this week!

Thanksgiving weekend started with Run Turkey Run 5K.  This is the first year Mitch has run it with me.  It was a gorgeous day and a big difference from last year's 10 degrees with snow on the ground.  It's hard to believe its almost December and still this nice out.

Not a PR race for me, but I didn't go out with that as my intention.  In fact, Mitch had us at a 9:05 pace for the first mile and I kind of wanted to trip him and make him slow down. 😏

We have planned a day in December as our family holiday and all of the kids are invited over.  Thanksgiving was just Mitch and me, but I still made a turkey and the fixings we love the most (i.e. potatoes, gravy and stuffing).  The best part of cooking a feast for just two of us is that it doesn't matter what time the food is ready!  I also made a pretty great apple pie.

My weekend went by in somewhat of a blur so I don't remember which day I went on this trail run on the rims.  Maybe Friday?  Again another beautiful day and even though I was feeling sluggish from the holiday food and events, I loved hitting the trail.

Run Selfie because... why not?

I spent Saturday evening with these awesome ladies!  Meet Mary and Natasha.

We went to see The Nutcracker ballet.  This is one of my traditions, or it has been for the last five years.  Natasha went with me my first and second years and then moved away for a few years so I was tickled that she could go again.  It turns out that this was Mary's first ever Nutcracker (or ballet for that matter).  What a treat for me to be a part of that!

Sunday was pretty much the best.  I stayed in my jammies until almost 3:00 and watched movies on the couch.  That is a very rare thing for me and when it happens its usually because I'm sick.  Mitch got up and dressed out for a bicycle ride so I got up and went for my run.  Even on my laziest days, I must get up and get a run in if I'm going to keep up the run streak. 

Today was day 10 of that streak.  I haven't decided how long my streak goal is.  Last year I went 100 days. I have considered a mileage goal for this year instead of days, but still not sure.  Stay tuned.

My Half Marathon training plan starts this week officially.  Oddly, the plan calls for a rest day on Monday, so even though it is the first official day there is no running on the schedule.  I went anyway to keep the streak alive.  I was too lazy to get out of bed and hit the gym this morning which meant that I got my first cold weather, dark run after work.  While the weather has been mostly nice, it was chilly and VERY windy this evening, which meant I was in full gear: long pants, long sleeves, wind breaker, beanie, headlamp and armband light.  I guess you could say that for a one mile run, it took longer to get dressed than to actually run.

The plan I picked is higher mileage than I'm used to.  In fact, some weeks are more miles than I would normally do while marathon training but week one is just 23.  Tomorrow I have 6 miles, 4 at an easy pace and 2 miles a bit harder.  Six miles after work isn't going to happen so I will have to make sure I'm up extra early and I'll have to suck it up and do it on the treadmill.  Not excited about that!

The rest of the week looks like this:

Wednesday:  30-60 min. cycling and 45 min. Core workout (and 1+ miles for the streak).

Thursday:  4 miles plus a set of strides, IT Band rehab routine

Friday:  Scheduled for rest day, but it will be a short, easy run and strength training

Saturday:  Long run - 10 miles and Core work

Sunday:  Easy 3 miles (probably trail) and IT Band rehab routine

I have had a history of my IT Band being problematic especially when I up my miles.  I'm hoping the rehab routine (this includes exercises such as clam shells and theraband stretches, etc.) helps prevent that.

I'm excited to be invested in a routine.  I've never been great at following a plan, but I'm committed to sticking to this one as closely as possible because I want to see if it helps me reach my bigger goals.  First one... half marathon in under 2 hours.

Ever follow a training plan to the letter?  Did it help you meet your goals?

Do you prefer training books or online plans?