Quiz: Which is healthier?

Unfortunately, this is going to be a quick post since the husband is just back from work trip in Bermuda (tough life amIright???)! It's probably for the best - two nights alone and I reverted to bachelor(ette) mode, catching up on all my TV shows and eating nachos for dinner. Shameless. 

Anywho, the Wall Street Journal had a post on the gluten free diet saying what everyone knows - it's great for the small percentage of people who can't digest gluten, but won't necessarily help you lose weight. That being said, I do think it's a bonus for making you more aware of what you're eating, and can help for weight loss in that way. 

The story had a great link in there to a quiz about packaged food. Test yourself - much harder/more unexpected than you'd think! This is seriously what scares me off from packaged food... easier to have a banana. Nice encouragement for clean eating, though lets get real, I'll never go completely clean!

Keeping at it - Motivation for morning runs

Just one month into training (six weeks if you count the pre-training), and I had my first battle with motivation.

Last week was a long week, and I was looking forward to having some free time. Matt asked me Friday night what I wanted to do the next day, and all I could think was, I don't want to plan anything. Thoughts of laying in bed, watching TV, taking the day slow and doing whatever I felt like came to me. But, of course, I knew I had to wake up and run ten miles in the morning. 

It was a passing thought, but I couldn't help thinking how much easier it would be to give up. No running schedule. No demands every single Saturday between now and October. Just whatever I felt like doing. 

I posted my entire training plan on the fridge, and above my computer at work. While at times it seems daunting, it's nice to be able to look at it to know what to expect this week - because you'll see it's entirely manageable when you break it up day by day/week by week - but also to be able to look back and see how much you've accomplished. It's only been four weeks, but already, I don't want to mess up my streak. I've committed so much time to this race already, how can I mess it up now?

Well I got up and did the 10 miles, and I'm so glad I did. The whole time I was just thinking about how lucky I am that my body is capable of this. Six weeks of running and I can run ten miles. It feels amazing. 

The more I run, the more I want to keep pushing the boundaries - thinking I've found my limit and then surpassing it the next week. Your body is capable of outstanding things. Treat it well, fuel it properly, listen to it, and be amazed.

Words to live by

Words to live by. For real. Do you know how freeing it is when you let go of the need to be perfect, and just focus on being a better version of you? 

That's really the way I was able to find joy in running - once I stopped comparing myself to the women around me who could run sub-seven minute miles, and instead focused on going further than I did the week before, and maybe a little faster too. 

Now if only it was that easy in other aspects of my life! It's hard to recognize, sometimes. I find myself unhappy, worried that it's not good enough and not able to get anything  done. It's paralyzing. And that's the most ridiculous thing about it - you're so focused on doing it perfectly, that you can't get it done. Done is better than perfect, right?

Well, it's a work in progress. Just keep reminding myself: Let go of perfection.

Ten Miles and a Fanny Pac

Week four of marathon training ended with a ten mile run this weekend. The weather was just perfect and I felt great doing it. Averaged 8:33 minute miles.

I had tried out my new Ultimate Direction Jurek Endure hydration belt, AKA fanny pac, on my three mile run on Friday just to see how it felt/how much it moved, but this was my first time loading it up. And load it up I did. A bottle of water, bottle of Nuun (lemon lime) and a vanilla bean gu pouch. I've never run with anything before, and I was feeing so free knowing I could run for miles and miles with all that sustenance. I secured the belt at the smallest part of my waist above my hips hoping to keep it from moving. That, along with the full water bottle on each side, seemed to help keep it in place and it was so comfortable I hardly noticed it. For as nervous as I to start running with gear, this was a great experience. I'd definitely recommend it. 

Anyways, the vanilla bean gu was actually delish (or as delish as something called 'gu' can be). It tasted like a sugar cookie or something. Way better than the orange I tried last week. I was worried about stomach issues I'd heard about from others, so I pretty much chugged my water while I gulped it down. Worked well. 

Also, drama, I encountered some geese along the way. Terrifying. They had little babies with them which, while adorable, certainly upped the already testy attitudes of the parents. I kept thinking about the YouTube video where the goose was attacking anyone who tried to save the woman's bag and was convinced it was going to happen to me. I looked like an idiot, but I gave those geese a LOT of space. 

I joined Matt and little Mojo Man for a walk after my run and ran into a neighbor who has run a few marathons. I talked with her about training (and yes I was still rocking the fanny pac!), and she recommended the Fleet Feet training program. I have to say, the first question I seem to get from people after I say I'm training for the Hartford Marathon is "Who are you training with?" 

I'll likely change my tune as I up the miles and spending hours every weekend running, but running with someone else just doesn't appeal to me right now. I loved having an hour and a half yesterday all to myself - not talking to anyone, no more than a wave and a smile as I passed someone. The entire time was devoted to me and how I was feeling, and I could focus on my body and not have to worry about someone else. I didn't have to stop and walk, but if I needed to I could have, because the only one I'd be delaying would be me. I sped up the last two miles because I was feeling good and I wanted to better my pace, and didn't have to check with someone else to see if they'd be up for it, or feel guilty if I separated from my buddy. 

The main reason a group training program would probably help is keeping up motivation throughout the next four months, which is something I already struggled with just this week. I'll write a separate post on how I plan to keep motivated, and what I'm doing already to stay there. 

Gearing up

I took the plunge and ordered some running gear this weekend! I went with Ultimate Direction's Jurek Endure hydration belt and then ordered some basic flavors of Nuun. My next run isn't till Friday morning, so I'm looking forward to it!

It's week 4 of training for the Hartford Marathon. Things are going well, but I think I need to adjust some of my training. Right now I run five days a week and do strength training three days a week, meaning I have one day (Tuesday) where I lift before work and run after, and my two rest days from running are devoted to lifting. My legs have been feeling tired and maybe I need to change it up and take a full day no working out, or maybe my body is just still getting used to this routine. A part of me wants to just wait and see, but also don't want to be stupid considering I have 16 weeks of training to go.

Ten mile run scheduled this Saturday and I'm excited for it! I can't believe it's four weeks in and I'll be up to ten miles already. I get caught up sometimes thinking about how far 26.2 miles really is, how am I going to be able to run for 4+ hours straight, and need to keep reminding myself of this Nick Saban quote.

Focus on the process of what it takes to be successful. 

Gu!

Week two of marathon training culminated with a seven mile run on Saturday and my first attempt at fueling on the go. Months ago I found some article about eating solid food, which seemed like a great alternative to the aptly named "Gu." I grabbed two Fig Newtons and I was off!

I planned to have the Fig Newtons around mile five. I knew I wouldn't really need them for seven miles, but I know I will need to fuel for the marathon so better get my body used to fueling on the run sooner rather than later! Well I forgot a certain major point I've read in everything about fueling strategy - wash it down with water! Something to improve on next week. I took small bites, got the two Fig Newtons down and finished up my seven miles.

It wasn't awful, but it did motivate me to get over to Fleet Feet to try out some Gu. I haven't tried it yet - waiting for my eight mile run on Saturday. Mentally it's just going to be hard to get myself to eat it, so I'm hoping I'll be pleasantly surprised. Can't be that bad right? I'll let ya know.

I also tried on some little gear belts/vests. I spoke with one woman who insisted this one fuel belt was the way to go, apparently doesn't slide around, then talked to another guy who selected another belt for marathons, and then another woman swore by some little vest. Now I know it's all about what's comfortable for you and very much personal preference, but at $50-100, I want to make sure I'll be happy with what I buy!

Which is to say... I'm delaying the decision until I can do more research.

Belated National Running Day!

Yesterday was National Running Day, and what better way to celebrate than by registering for my first marathon? Honestly I can't believe I'm even saying that - oh boy, two weeks into training and I'm already psyching myself out!

I chose the Hartford Marathon (newly minted NU Hartford Marathon) mostly because of the location and I had a great experience doing the half marathon last year. Eventually I'll branch out and start doing more destination runs, but when I'm just starting out I want to stick with what I know.

I selected this plan from Cool Running to follow. I used their intermediate training plans for my half marathons and felt like I was well-prepared, so I figure it should work for a full too, right? Yes, it pains me to admit I should do the beginner plan for the marathon, but I don't want to push it. Blow to my ego now is better than a blow to my body later, am I right?

The plans has me running five days a week, and I have added three days a week of strength training. I was just thinking though, I was going to do strength on Sunday after my long run Sunday... is that bad? So many questions, so much research to be done.

Other than strength training, I vow to be consistent with stretching and warming up. I've gotten lucky so far completely avoiding those, and do not want to push my luck.

So many questions, so much to learn. Mainly on nutrition. I've adjusted my diet a lot over the past month to try to build muscle, and now I need to figure out what's right for runners - ahem, carbs. And I still haven't conquered the beast that is my sweet tooth. Soon enough.

Anyways, I'm signed up so here we go! It's on. I'm in. Hartford Marathon 2014!