Holidays

Ok!

Officially in the holiday season. I am determined to not get derailed in my training. Last week was a bit light, but I snuck in a few work outs while still enjoying festivities.

Did the spin bike yesterday and 60 minutes of interval weight training yesterday. Going back to the spin bike today, and more interval training tomorrow. I desperately need to get my tires replaced on my bike so that I can start riding to work again (and seriously, it does save money) and go back to Saturday AM rides. And next Monday I start bootcamp. Of course I pick the night the Patriots are playing MNF to start bootcamp, but I suppose that just helps with the whole, staying on track thing.

I am determined to be in a good place come mid January when real training begins.

Ultra Running

The North Face Endurance Challenge is rapidly approaching. It's a series of long distance running events offered over two days - the challenge has a few locations and one of them is in the Marin Headlands. You have the pleasure of selecting a 50 miler, 50k, marathon, half marathon, or marathon relay. My friend Kate did the 50k (32 miles) two years ago, this year, our friend Tony is doing the 50 miler in hopes to secure a spot for himself in the 2012 Western States race.

To help Tony prep for his race day - the three of us did a trail run on Sunday just shy of 16 miles. We covered all our favorite trails: Troop 80, Alice Eastwood, Bootjack, Sun Trail, Dipsea. And some new trails: Heather Cutoff, Lost Trail, Fern trail. It's been raining like crazy in the bay area (which means snow in Tahoe) so the trails were nice and muddy ... and wet. So it was a bit tricky coming down a few of the switchbacks, but it was also beautiful because the waterfalls & creeks were going full force. Fern trail might be my new favorite trail.

Highlights of the Day:

1. Tony clapping & making weird noises at the coyote to scare him off the trail.

2. Kate swearing she could clear the creek (that Tony had barely just cleared - and he's over 6 ft tall) and missing it by two feet.

Also - if you have a friend who is registered for an upcoming race, joining that person for their training runs/rides/swims, is a great way to get a good work out in with some company. You don't necessarily have to be doing the same race to train together. Plus going out for group burritos post run is always a good time :)

Staying with It

Biked to work today and it felt good. Really don't feel as beat up as I usually do after a marathon, and feel 10x better than I did after Tahoe. IM training doesn't really start til mid January. That's when I'll do the back to back Saturday-Sunday work outs, brick workouts during the week, and really increase my cycling miles. For now I need to start doing crunches and lifting weights. And get back in the pool. My core is not nearly as strong as it used to be, and my biceps appear to be shrinking.

Holidays are a great time to indulge and relax, but I'm still working off my October indulgences. I don't want January to arrive and start training when I'm out of shape.

Numero Cinco!

I registered for this marathon back in August. I planned on dropping down to the 25k race, but the thought of going an entire year with out running a marathon really bothered me. So I said to hell with it, I'm going to run this thing.

As you can see by the course map above, this is no easy race. It's brutal. You literally start on the beach (sea level) then run up the west side of Mt. Tam. Only to immediately drop down it, and run right back up it on the south side. It's cruel & unusual.

I actually felt pretty good running it. It's all trail, so completely different from a road race. There were times where I felt guilty for not pushing harder and going faster, but I spent the majority of the day running on the edge of the cliff, so I thought it safer to take it easy. So many runners who were in the lead had blood on them & ripped clothing. A one point I thought, this is a marathon of carnage.

I came in 4th for my age group. Total time was 5:21. First trail marathon & first time completing an Envirosports marathon. It was my fifth marathon - insane that I've decided to torture myself like this so many times.

A Word on Safety

Recently on a ride home from work, my tires got stuck (thank you cable car tracks) and I ate it hard. Yes, I had a minor concussion, but I basically walked away from it with a few cuts and bruises. I wasn't even going that fast maybe 10 mph, but it was still harsh & I actually freaked out people on the sidewalk. They kind of all came over to me, asking in very concerned voices, "Are you okay?"

My reply: Yea, I'm fine, it's a good thing I'm wearing a helmet.

Had that not been the case, I'd have needed stitches and would have had a nasty head injury. So PLEASE WEAR YOUR HELMET! Just because you're not going on a long ride, mountain biking, or going down some huge downhill, doesn't mean something unexpected might not happen. If you break your arm, it will mend, you get another chance. If you break your head, that same rule doesn't always apply.

Tam .... Again

Hit up Mt Tam again this wknd. I met up with my friend who is training for the NorthFace 50 Endurance Run. His plan was to run 25 miles - I met him at mile 12 in Mill Valley. We did mostly single track & a few fire roads and ended up running down into Muir Woods. Run went pretty well despite the pouring rain. FYI if you run with a hat on, be extra careful. Not fun to run face first into low branches. Especially when there's a group of tourists nearby taking pictures of Redwood trees.

I had planned on resting on Sunday - but - it ended up being warm & sunny. And I wanted to take advantage of it since it's been rainining for days. Went on a 22 mile ride in the city. Visibility was awesome & got some great pics of the city (coming soon).

Hope everyone had a good Halloween!!

Cookies & Beer

It's been almost a month since I did the events in Tahoe. And in that time, I have been eating donuts, cookies, cake, nachos, a lot of beer, and a lot of wine. My dinner last night was cookies & beer. And I think that was hitting rock bottom.

The time of gluttony is over. One alcoholic drink per day & one dessert a week. Those really are the guidelines you should follow (unless you're a guy, you can have two drinks a day). If you want to perform well at competitions, you can't rely only on your training. Proper nutrition & fuel are key factors in your performance. Wish me luck in sugar withdrawl.