I woke up this morning just feeling worked over from the massage and muscle restoration work yesterday. My calf is hurting less than yesterday, but still feels “different”. I guess that means it’s being restored??
Yesterday Josh got a really sensitive spot right below my ribs on the right side – I seriously jumped and recoiled my left leg when he did it. Last night I was thinking about it – I believe that’s where my adrenal glands are. So of course I started thinking – I’ve been working out reasonably hard for awhile and taking that SuperPump stuff… I think I need to pay attention to my cortisol levels a bit more. So no black tea for me today, instead I made sure to take maca with a morning smoothie and skipped my morning workout.
I felt pretty headachy and out of sorts for most of the day, and en route to Boulder to run felt like I was going to have to take it easy. Thankfully, the run cleared my head and I actually felt better for awhile!
The workout itself went great, I worked on my pacing and finished strong. And then I received Coco, a little award/statue given out at Tuesday practices. I was shocked! Darren said it was for putting in a few good workouts the past week. Awesome, nice motivation!
Then I went to Recovery Club, did the compression boots and had my shins/calves massaged. Can you say “glutton for punishment”?
Now I’m home and feel some sinus pressure again. Yuck :-/

Food

- Smoothie: Vega Whole Food Optimizer, coconut milk, banana, peanut butter, a bit of protein powder, maca, turmeric, ginger, glutamine
- Tokyo Joe’s Boulder Veggie Bowl – I got a coupon for a free bowl since it was my half-birthday today!
- White Bean and Kale soup
- apple
- greek yogurt with honey
- honeymilk post-workout
- PROBar superfood slam
- veggie juice: cucumber, apple, spinach

Exercise

- Great workout where I nailed my paces: 9.05 miles in 1:11.

The workout was 4x:45 with a focus on turnover, then 6min at 10K-HMP, then 4×3:00 at 5K-10K, then 5min with 2:30 below threshold and 2:30 above threshold.

We had a pretty big group, and Colleen and Joanna Zeiger joined us as well.

For the first :45s, I didn’t worry much about pace at all, and went 5:54mm, 5:48mm, 5:51mm, 6:00mm.

For the 6min, I ran what I felt was just past comfortable, and came in at 6:40 which is my current 10K pace. With about a minute to go, Darren was running next to me and I picked the pace to stay with him. I realized we were up around 6mm so I let him go but still kept a bit of the speed up. It was pretty windy, which made certain parts of the workout tougher.

Then came the 4×3:00. I told myself my primary goal was not to worry about where I was in the pack, but to really try to pick up the speed with each. I went 6:44, 6:41, 6:30, 6:18. In the third, Cheri had surged ahead but I resisted the urge to chase her for the sake of chasing. Instead, I kept something in the tank for the final 3, which ended up feeling absolutely great (I outsprinted a guy right at the end)!

Lastly we had the final 5 minutes. I felt like I was running so slow and relaxed for the first 2:30, but apparently it really wasn’t, and then it was great to push just that tiny bit harder at the end. Fred, who’d been behind me the entire workout, cruised by me during the last 2:30, and I thought “what a sandbagger!” Then with the last hard minute of the workout I pushed harder, and in the final 10 seconds I cruised by him and Cheri. (6:37, 6:31)

So all in all, most of the running I did tonight was about the same pace. I’m totally ok with that. I felt really strong and ultimately I want to be feeling good at that pace. It’s my 5K/10K race pace, and I want to be able to run that same pace at longer distances, so let’s have it feel right!

In all we ran 9.05 miles in 1:11:40.

After the workout we were congregating in the parking lot and I was shocked to win Coco for the week! Bean had placed 4th in a race this weekend and I expected her to get it, but Darren made a comment about how based off a conversation they’d had where she told him that she let a girl beat her by 3 seconds, he didn’t want to give her the award. (Something to keep in mind…) Rather, he said I’d had a good workout last Saturday and a good workout tonight. I was seriously floored, but obviously appreciative. I do think that although I didn’t notch those times in the 6:20s that I have in other workouts, I stayed strong and consistent, and that’s what’ll help me truly get stronger. Step by Step!

I’d gone to bed early last night, so I was up pretty early this morning. It was fine though because my day ended up being busy! I did some stuff around the house, then headed to Cherry Creek where I got in a good workout at Pura Vida. It’s such a different vibe there: I feel like I end up doing much more “functional” work. I spent some time focusing on my legs – I realized recently in my 45 day pics that there is a really apparent difference in muscle definition between my two legs (and assumedly strength?). So I did some single leg squats as well as box jumps, etc. Worked on tightening my glutes and not collapsing in – all that stuff I learned a year ago in PT and haven’t worried about for months. :-/ There was one guy at the gym who was crazy ripped and at one point I was working on my pistol squats and he brought a box and a stretchy band over by where I was. He motioned for me to get up on the box and showed me how I could practice my single leg squats on there, which would help me in working my core during the squats. It was really helpful! He introduced himself afterwards, he actually works there, and now that I look at his bio, he’s an “NASM Corrective Exercise Specialist”. Sweet! I also did some different pushups with the TRX as well as with the slider discs, extending a leg, etc. They have a new machine too where you sit and there’s a rope you pull down (like climbing). There are different settings for cardio vs strength. I only tried it for about a minute but it was fun!

Driving home from the gym it was bright and sunny and I decided to get my run in. Well, it was actually really windy and therefore cold, so I only did 4.5 (ideally, I’d have done 6). I did focus on my form a bit and felt reasonably strong (when I wasn’t being blown over!)

THEN I headed to Recovery Club where I had my appointment with Josh. He did some muscle tests and right away commented that I’d been doing some work at home. Great to see it was already noticeable! I’d have to say the work, which was a combination of massage, muscle testing and ultrasound, was not the most pleasant thing in the world. I actually mentioned to Josh that sometimes when I run I get a quick stab of pain in my left shin, so he started doing some work and before the end of the session it felt like my whole shin was on fire. Ok- so here’s the thing, I know it’s bad. I’d actually started trying to use the stick on it before I went in to see him, and the front of my shin is sensitive to the touch. So his applying serious pressure was painful! But, I know it’s important. If anything, I am a bit encouraged that it is ok to actually work on it – apparently it’s ok to feel that pain and work through it apparently a few of the best climbers in the world came in while I was there. Welcome to Boulder..

He told me to work on my popliteus muscle (behind the knee), as well as hamstrings, and glute and ab work. For my abs, he just told me to focus on rollups with my legs together straight in front of me, abs pulled in. We all know there’s a ton of ab exercises out there, so it was good to have something specific that should help with performance.

After leaving the Club, I went right over to KJ’s house where we had the second installment of “Marathon Movie Monday” (it’s actually just Running Movie Monday, but that doesn’t have the same ring). She made dinner (I helped a bit) and we watched “Spirit of the Marathon”. Once again, I teared up. I can’t believe I don’t own that movie!

Food

Scrambled eggs with crimini mushroom (with a touch of caraway havarti cheese), seeduction bread
Tea
Cucumber, spinach, cilantro, ginger juice
Apple
Clean egg salad on hemp bread
probar
Coconut water
Whole wheat pasta with kale pesto (also had cheese in it)
Lentil stew
Seeduction bread
Berries and mango
Vega berry sports protein

Food

Ezekiel cereal with kefir, hemp seed
Beet, carrot, spinach, ginger juice
Electrolyte hydrator on the run
Smoothie: coconut milk, pb, banana, chia seeds, vega chocolate protein powder
Superpump pre-workoung
Monster Aminos post-workoung
Vega endurance bar
Nori roll with brown basmati rice, cucumber and avocado
White bean and kale soup, hemp bread
Kale chips
Greek yogurt with muesli

Exercise

Met KJ for part of her long run. (I did 12, she did 19) Wasn’t feeling great, but I got through it. Afterwards I went to Recovery Club. I was seriously limping up the stairs. After rolling, compressing, inverting and being on the balance board, I felt better. I then went to the gym.

I can’t seem to get my 30x65lbs, which is discouraging. Yet I stayed at the gym and still tried to get a good workout in. The highlight was doing 50 bosu pushups in a row! I spent the time doing the Fleetly lower body stretch program, which also helped a lot.

I’m so thankful this is a long weekend!!

Full list of the eats

- peanut butter on hemp bread with hemp seed, caraway/havarti cheese
- tea
- veggie breggo (sandwich warmed on a panini press)
- chai latte
- honey milk
- vega sports protein
- 2 mimosas
- mushroom omelette
- a few bites of amazing oatmeal/quinoa
- reese peanut butter egg
- cookie from the Mexican bakery
- froyo
- chocolate croissant (which I didnt really want, but I’d bought it earlier)
- sweet potato soup, caraway havarti and brie cheese
- coconut water
- veggie juice: beet, apple, spinach, parsley

Exercise

- 10.28 mile Fartlek run
- bench press: 25x65lbs, 20x60lbs
- decline bench press: 15x55lbs
- abs

It was very cold at the start but warmed up as we went on. I’d already shed my headband and jacket before we started, and the gloves came off after the first set.

1: 6:06, 6:26, 6:17
Whoops! A little fast.

2: 6:17, 6:31, 6:15
Closer.. And I forced myself to hold back to hit these paces. It’s worth stating that we were headed downhill for much of the first half. Because we’d originally planned a track workout I was wearing my Brooks Racers, which I wear with thin socks because they’re a bit tight. I’d forgotten today, so already at the halfway point my big toes were hurting.

As we turned, Darren said “time to see who went out too fast” and commented how in the first 2 min I’d sped off, but caught myself and slowed down. I’m learning…

3: 6:36, 6:43, 6:33,
Uh oh- this one was TOUGH! Although I still managed to keep the 4min close to where I wanted it, the “fast segments” weren’t staying that way. By the 4 min I felt Fred (who I’d lead the whole time) starting to gain on me, but I held him off. I exclaimed that the last set was really going to hurt, then stripped down to just a tshirt to gut the last bit out. I also slowed down a lot and really took advantage of the recovery, which I think helped a lot.

4: 6:23, 6:35, 6:37
Although the first 2 min segment was uphill, I felt surprisingly strong (smelling the barn?). I was held back because I was stuck behind some people, but felt decent. I was solidly at the back of the group for the 4min, but pace wise it was totally where I was wanting to be. I was excited to be nearly done and ready to tear off a final 2min.
But then we turned, the whistle blew and… Nothin’. Apparently my legs felt 30 min of hard running was enough bc I felt like I just had nothing left. I was a bit confused bc we were just repeating the segment we’d done in the first 2min of this set, but Darren said later than the changing direction from up to down to up can make a difference. I told Fred that I need to stick with him more for pacing, as he always finishes stronger than I.

One thing we’re supposed to get out of these workouts is how to get stronger/faster (or at least not slower) as we get more tired. I’m definitely still working on that! It’s tough for me because I am still figuring out my pace. Sure, if I’d stayed at 6:40/7:09 I’d have been consistent, or been able to kill it the last set. But I want to push it so I get used to these faster speeds. It’s all about calibration, I guess. I like looking back at a workout like this and seeing 30 minutes of 6:30ish (albeit with recovery intervals). That’s actually faster than my 5K PR!

Back at the car I couldn’t wait to switch my shoes, and my third/ fourth toes on my right foot felt a bit weird, like my sock was caught. Hours later when I took my sock off I saw the problem: my fourth toenail had dug into my third toe, and the fourth toenail and side of my third toe were all bloody. My sock had been stuck to it. Yuck!! A sign it’s time for a pedicure… I just hope my feet are feeling better for my run with KJ tomorrow. At least I’ll just have my trainers on!

In all, we did 10.28 in 1:22:42.

Food

- Kashi cereal with kefir, banana, a touch of chocolate protein powder
- bhakti chai/coffee blend.
- sample larabar
- tea
- whole foods salad bar
- olives
- banana “ice cream” (coconut milk, frozen bananas, chocolate protein powder)
- chipins chips and fake cheese
- sweet potato soup – had garam masala and chile powder, which made me think of chickpeas so I threw some of them in as well!
- seeduction bread
- greek yogurt and honey
- veggie juice- I almost didn’t have this because of my poor attitude about my diet, but decided it wasn’t the veggies fault. Carrot, ginger, orange pepper, lemon. The recipe called for orange instead of lemon, sadly I used my last orange yesterday. The lemon was a bit much.

Exercise

- An easy 3 miles

I finally reordered some Extreme Endurance. I started using this supplement back in October, and I heartily believe it has had an impact on my running. Although the recommended dosage is 6 per day, I only took 1 or 2, so a single bottle lasted me several months. The coupon code “PLANET” offers a 10% discount…

I also went ahead and ordered some topical magnesium oil after hearing about it so frequently on the Ben Greenfield Fitness podcast. I remember back in college when I went to a homeopath and he did some iridology and then asked about my chocolate cravings. At the time, yes, I was eating at least a chocolate bar a day. He said my body was having trouble absorbing calcium and I should take a magnesium supplement. I did, and the cravings went away. Lately I haven’t been taking a calc/mag because I understand that it competes with iron supplements for absorption. Not that this replaces taking a supplement, but it just seems like good stuff.

Sometimes, the music at the gym is really, really bad. But as I’ve been working more on my bench press, I can’t use my “behind the head” crappy headphones. At the Houston expo, Big Jelly tried (and bought) some yurbuds, which come in a number of sizes and “twist-lock” to stay in. I’d been thinking about them a bit, and at the Boulder Running Company they even have a little ear measuring tool to ensure you get the right size (I got the smallest, which honestly I probably didn’t need to be measured for). Also got to use my RRB discount, score!

And then…

There was the 40% off sale at all winter apparel at Runner’s Roost.

I had to stop by there anyway to pick up a shirt from my race a few weeks ago. I’d been looking at replacing the jacket I’d had stolen the other week, so I was already receptive to some winter apparel shopping and the sale was just a good excuse. Quite a few of the women in my running club have the same Nike jacket (all in yellow!), but there were none left in my size so I’ll have to be unique I found this great Utopia Thermal Hoodie from Brooks, which is actually WAY more comfortable than my old jacket.

I also came across a great vest as well. I really debated on this one, it wasn’t in the plan to buy a vest. But it was really comfortable and as it is, I often end up rolling up my sleeves when I run anyway. I did a quick buddy check:

Decision made! And honestly, I’m so glad I did. I wore it tonight, and it’s great! A bit longer so you don’t get that chill of wind between shirt and pants, and the collar is nice and high without being restricting, and it has a nice reflective pattern for running in the dark. I’m sure I’ll get a ton of wear from it! Sadly, I can’t find a photo of it online anywhere (?!?!)

I also scheduled a 30/30 appointment with Josh Shadle at Tri-Massage/AllSports Recovery. That’s 30 minutes of deep tissue/sports massage, and 30 minutes of muscle restoration. I’m sure it’ll be great and horrific at the same time… Josh is the only muscle restoration practitioner in Boulder.

Muscle Restoration is a bio-mechanically based therapy that dramatically improves functional capabilities—resulting in a pain-free lifestyle for people of all age groups. Muscle Restoration alleviates chronic pain, muscle tightness, and joint instability…Range-of-motion evaluations and comprehensive muscle testing allow us to identify muscular imbalances and poor neurological connections. We then use a variety of state-of-the-art treatments and techniques to restore the proper neural connections and correct the muscular imbalances. Specific exercises are provided to help you reinforce and maintain these connections.

About the dairy- last year even off the TBT I stayed away from cheese most of the time. But now I’m finding I’m craving it. I was recently listening to a Ben Greenfield Fitness podcast and he was talking about how important fats are. Normally vegetarian/vegan diets end up low in fat, which can affect mood, including mental health. Back in Ohio, some friends had a theory that after 6 months on a vegan diet, girls went a little crazy.. And that actually seems explained by what Ben talks about in his podcast!
So I can eat avocados, udo’s oil and nuts til I’m blue in the face, but part of me wonders why the heck I can’t have a bit of cheese to get that in.
Of course, there’s also that other side of me that doesn’t want to eat dairy at all, both for ethical and health reasons. I know there are no happy cows out there who experience joy in offering us not-somehow-tainted milk.

Huh. Ok even as I read this, I realize it’s been awhile since I took my calc/mag supplement, so I’m going to go pop those for a few days and see if that helps.

But I’m ALSO a bit conflicted over tofu. We all know that soybeans are like the most genetically modified crop in America, and soy is in everything and too much of it can cause problems with your estrogen level. But I’ve considered it a bit source of protein in my diet, and now I’m wishing there were a clear alternative.

I feel like when I first watched Food Inc. what CAN I eat??

Food

- superpump max
- monster amino
- tofu scramble with hash browns
- vega protein powder with kefir
- cashews
- superfood slam
- tea
- amy’s rice crust dairy-free spinach pizza (actually very tasty! I preferred the crust to other kinds)
- fresh-squeezed oj
- Brussels sprouts brushed with citrus habanero olive oil/balsamic vinegar, then steamed, brown rice, avocado

Exercise

- 32 reps at 60lbs at the gym!
Decided to do legs at the gym for the first time in awhile. My left knee actually started really bugging me. A few hours later it’s fine, but I wasn’t happy at the gym!
- leg press
- hamstring curl
- leg extension
- various lunges and squats
- single leg jumps
- abs

Recovery

- compression boots
- cold laser around my knee
- neck massage
- stability board
- inversion table. I determined that abs look best when you’re suspended upside down.
- rumble roller

A couple weeks ago I got in my mind that perhaps I’d like to get my MBA. I did some research, and then realized that the program I wanted to get into (Evening MBA at CU Boulder) only accepts applicants once a year, and the deadline was 2/15! So it’s been occupying my mind for awhile as I pulled together documentation, solicited references and wrote a series of essays. I woke up this morning around 5 with “one more thing…” to finish up. I managed to knock it out and still get out for an easy run before work.

My work has an office in a shared space, and I only go into the office maybe once a week. I went in today to find a nice sign in the breakroom announcing there would be a party at 2pm, with chocolate, cupcakes and wine! Shortly before 2 one of the receptionists came in to tell me the party was about to start. I figured it would be easier to avoid the temptation if I stayed in my office, so I didn’t venture out til almost 3:30. I wasn’t safe! I could smell the sugary cupcakes all the way down the hall. And not only did they have chocolate, THEY HAD A CHOCOLATE FOUNTAIN. With fruit and pretzels to dip, and also cheese and crackers and wine and cupcakes. Thankfully the cupcakes were those little small ones so I really wasn’t tempted at all. I grabbed a plate of fruit and had to decline the explicit invites from people to “have a cupcake! have some wine!”.
Shew, crisis averted!

Then after work I headed over the Runners Roost to join their run club. I’d met a few of the folks a few times before, which was nice. I started out running with Luke for a bit, and then Heather U. caught up with us (she’d arrived late) and she and I started running together. I think it was a recovery run for her and it was closer to a tempo for me, but whatever. With a little over a mile to go, she suggested picking it up a bit. I started with her, but couldn’t quite sustain the pace. Then a street crossing with quite a few cars separated us and I wasn’t sure which way to go. I waited on some folks who gave me directions and then I was off again. In all I did 6.25 miles in 45:45, which is a 7:20 pace. Yeah.. not an easy recovery run for me at all! Got back to the store, and what was waiting there? Free wine and beer and chips and salsa, and I think more cheese and crackers! I seriously felt like the universe wanted me to drink wine today. But again, I resisted. Chatted with some folks for awhile, and then Heather asked if I wanted to join them for dinner. I hedged a bit and asked where they were going (shit TBTers say). She said she wasn’t sure, and I decided that I wasn’t sure how much temptation I could resist in one day, so I said I’d join them next time.

Finally I made it home, safe from temptation. I’ll tell you what, normally the TBT doesn’t bother me, but today I even wished I were on day 46 with everybody else. I feel like I’m ready to be done.. (I should take some pics to keep myself motivated, shouldn’t I?)

Oh! And the moment you’ve been waiting for, I finally published my review on the new Vega sport line!

Food

- Banana pre-run
- tea
- Vega chocolate sports protein (with water, this was gross)
- Whole foods Breakfast burrito with egg, potato, veggie chili, sauteed veggies, mango salsa, cilantro, guac on a whole wheat tortilla. The guy offered me a sample of their vegan chorizo. It was ok, but I don’t feel like I need to eat something meat-like.
- Seed bread, almond butter, banana
- Coconut lime curry, brown basmati rice
- Fruit
- Coconut water
- Honey milk
- More Vega Chocolate protein powder, this time with coconut milk. Better, but it’s no chocolate milk!
- Falafel chips and hatchamole
- Ezekiel pita pocket with quorn chickn, hatchamole, hummus, tomato
- veggie juice: beet, carrot, spinach

Exercise

- 4.75 mile run in 41:57
- 6.23 mile run in 45:45
Yeah.. 1.5 miles difference, and only 4 minutes. we were flying tonight!