Tag Archives: running

Will Run for Carbs

I’m not gonna lie–one reason that I was excited to run back-to-back-to-back halves (halfs?) was the prospect of extending the carb-loading another few weeks.

Thomas’, as in the English muffin and bagel thin people and the people sponsoring me for Sunday’s half, sent me over a little runner-friendly care package last week: three packages of bagel thins, foot cream and Ahava muscle-soothing bath salts. (I got them in another swag bag recently, and I definitely plan on buying some when I run out of the free ones.)

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My love for bagels is well-documented on this blog. Really, the only reason I don’t have a bagel everyday is because there are too many empty calories in them. But these 110-calorie bagel thins are plenty filling once I put banana and sunflower butter on them.

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Yesterday, I took a look at my split’s from Saturday’s race.

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They were a little all over the place, but in general, I started out fast and burned out towards the end of this race. Except for that awesome mile 11. Maybe that’s when I was running with Becky. This race definitely felt hard because of my tired legs, but also, I think, because I started out fast. We talked about this on Saturday night. Liz and Ashley both preferred to start out fast and have nothing left by the end. If you run a good race, they reasoned, you’re going to feel burned out by the end either way.

When I ran the NYC Half, I definitely started out a little slower and saved it all for the end.

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I definitely prefer to do that. After years of not being able to run, starting out really hard scares me. What if I can’t finish?

I do think it’s a matter of preference, though. Which do you prefer? Starting out fast or saving some energy for a strong last push?

Knowing Your Limits

Last week I posted about being able to do anything I want, but not everything I want.

I alluded to feeling a little overextended and thinking about dropping the nutrition classes I’d been taking. The reason that I had wanted to take them in the first place was because I get a lot of questions from readers about how they can lose weight, too. I have a hard time answering those questions beyond “this is what works for me,” and I wanted to have a real background in nutrition to answer those questions.

But I just couldn’t make the time right now. The other things that take up my outside-of-work time–Junior League, blogging, training for races/working out–are frankly more important to me right now, and I couldn’t devote the time to these classes that they deserved. That, and I really need more downtime in my life, not less. So I admitted I couldn’t handle these classes right now and withdrew. I’d rather not take the classes right now than not be able to devote the attention necessary to them. I also have to admit I feel a lot lighter mentally since dropping them, but I haven’t ruled out picking them up again at some point.

I listened to my limits at the gym tonight, too. Liz had suggested I run four miles tonight, but I had zero energy. I don’t know if I’m still tired from my race, if I was a little tired from freaking out over having the mole removed or if I was a little dehydrated, but I ended up doing three and feeling as if I had just run a marathon. It took literally everything out of me both mentally and physically–which feels good sometimes. Afterwards, I laid in the steam room for a few minutes until some girl walked in totally naked and I felt uncomfortable and left. Maybe I’m a little prude, but the least I’ll ever wear in a steam room/sauna is shorts and a sports bra.

Just in case I was dehydrated, I bought a coconut water on my way out of the gym. Caitlin and Abby are enablers.

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When I got home, I roasted some broccoli and sweet potatoes and made a chicken pattie on some Nature’s Pride Hearty Wheat with Flax that I was sent as part of the Foodbuzz Tastemaker Program.

Breakfast was a sunflower butter and banana sandwich and lunch was Pump, so I spared you.