The Running Thread - 2018

[KSellers88]

I'm running both of these too! (I'm local to PTRR, Virginia Beach will be my Virginia half).

Are you trying to run all 50 states? (Sorry if you've said this before and I missed it) I would love to do that one day!

 

[kbenson13]

REAL TALK. Armpit of Texas - why waste time in Houston when you can just go to Louisiana?

Well... Houston is a great place to LIVE. Just not sure why you'd want to take vacation time to VISIT. I would use vacation time for NOLA in a heartbeat, of course. And one of the best breweries in the country is in LA (Parish Brewing).

Back to running, I had a scheduled "off" day today and I'm hating not having run!!!

 

[Keels]

I'm running both of these too! (I'm local to PTRR, Virginia Beach will be my Virginia half).

What's your Texas race??

 

[tigger536]

Are you trying to run all 50 states? (Sorry if you've said this before and I missed it) I would love to do that one day!

Yes! I don't know if I've mentioned it or not (probably not, haha). I'm just starting, I only have about 10-11 states so far (I keep repeating too many lol).

 

[tigger536]

What's your Texas race??

Undecided. But I'm sure you have lots of suggestions. I figure it will be somewhere in the DFW area. Lol.

 

[Keels]

Well... Houston is a great place to LIVE. Just not sure why you'd want to take vacation time to VISIT. I would use vacation time for NOLA in a heartbeat, of course. And one of the best breweries in the country is in LA (Parish Brewing).

Back to running, I had a scheduled "off" day today and I'm hating not having run!!!

Ah yes. I've had to stop in Broussard many a time while driving to NOLA to pick up Ghost in the Machine.

My little brother lives in Houston and runs a restaurant there. He's very happy. But I'm a North Texas gal.

Undecided. But I'm sure you have lots of suggestions. I figure it will be somewhere in the DFW area. Lol.

Cowtown!!!!!!! M is doing the Marathon next year, and I think Whitti is too ... my friends do a big party at Mile 13 with booze and stuff. There's also an Ultra ... and a two-day challenge with extra bling which I know is your thing!

It's the same weekend as Princess though.

 

[apdebord]

I'm running both of these too! (I'm local to PTRR, Virginia Beach will be my Virginia half).

Aaahh how funny! I'm a native Virginian, lived in Atlanta after college, now back to Virginia Beach! This will be my first Peachtree and my first RnR. I've always been nervous about the weather for RnR VB, so I've never signed up! Fingers crossed for no hurricanes and low humidity!

 

[KSellers88]

Yes! I don't know if I've mentioned it or not (probably not, haha). I'm just starting, I only have about 10-11 states so far (I keep repeating too many lol).

How cool! That is a verryyyyyy long term goal for me. I'm only at 5 states right now, but will check off three more (hopefully) in the next year. Please post which ones you are doing in each state so I can keep up with your journey! Which ones have you done so far??

 

[OldSlowGoofyGuy]

Hey guys - been absent for a while.

No advice, but glad you're back.

 

[DopeyBadger]

Hey guys - been absent for a while. Had abdominal surgery (cancer scare) in late January/early February. I am finally past the surgery and have started running again. So this QOTD is very appropriate for me as I reassess my running goals for the year.

Essentially, my VO2 Max went from 51 to 38 from months of forced layoff from all exercise (seriously, I wasn't allowed to do anything but walk for months, and much of that was very slow). I started jogging again 4 weeks ago and have already improved my VO2 Max to 42, but man is it going to be hard to get back above 50. I have to put together a training plan to get there, and I haven't been this weak (as a runner) in my adult life. Really not sure what that will look like yet, but instead of taking the "stay healthy" approach during these months I am going to be pushing myself.

I would love to hear thoughts from others who have faced a similar hurdle. I don't have any races planned, but I really want/need to improve my VO2 Max.

Welcome back! Sorry to hear about the surgery and hope all is well moving forward. I guess the best advice I can give is a slow and steady return. Allow things to progress slowly and they should come back in due time. I always look at it as equal time off to equal time back. So count how many weeks you were off, and then aim for doing super easy pacing with a slow buildup in mileage in the same equal number (example: 8 weeks off = 8 weeks of easy running to build back up). Although, I do believe Daniels said the VO2max loss starts to plateau after about 10-11 weeks off. The book states an approximate 20% loss in VO2max after 10 weeks (so a 51 down to a 41). So we can estimate that you're about 10 weeks of easy running away from a full return. After the equal = equal is when you return to training in earnest and should be relatively close to a full return. At that point the VO2max should be close, and then it's a matter of doing the hard stuff to get it back all the way. I went through a period off from January to mid-March. After 6 weeks of easy running, and then about 4-6 weeks of training I was back to where I was VO2max (or more specifically HR v pace for me) wise in December (my issue is I still lack the necessary endurance to maintain those paces). Hoping the best!

ETA: Weight matters too. If you're pre-break and post-break weight is not the same it will influence the rate of loss/rate of gain back and the VO2max value. Another thing that's hanging me up as I'm about 5-7 pounds heavier than December.

 

[jennamfeo]

How cool! That is a verryyyyyy long term goal for me. I'm only at 5 states right now, but will check off three more (hopefully) in the next year. Please post which ones you are doing in each state so I can keep up with your journey! Which ones have you done so far??

This has been sneaking into my brain as something to do over the next lots of years. Maybe like, before I'm 50 hit a half in each state. That gives me some time, haha. I am only at 5 states right now too, but I'll be adding Washington D.C. this fall!

 

[OldSlowGoofyGuy]

(frankly, I'm not eating BBQ pork at all because why if beef is around)

Sorry @Keels , I seem to be speaking in equations lately.
Bacon = pork
Jerky = beef
Because:
Fat = good
Thus:
BBQ pork > BBQ beef
QED

 

[tigger536]

Cowtown!!!!!!! M is doing the Marathon next year, and I think Whitti is too ... my friends do a big party at Mile 13 with booze and stuff. There's also an Ultra ... and a two-day challenge with extra bling which I know is your thing!

It's the same weekend as Princess though.

Yes! I've seen your reviews on this! this is definitely the one I would do. Stupid princess getting in the way though.

Aaahh how funny! I'm a native Virginian, lived in Atlanta after college, now back to Virginia Beach! This will be my first Peachtree and my first RnR. I've always been nervous about the weather for RnR VB, so I've never signed up! Fingers crossed for no hurricanes and low humidity!

Me too! And hopefully after a summer of heat and humidity it won;t be that bad!

How cool! That is a verryyyyyy long term goal for me. I'm only at 5 states right now, but will check off three more (hopefully) in the next year. Please post which ones you are doing in each state so I can keep up with your journey! Which ones have you done so far??

Thanks! So far I have:

Georgia (half and full)
Florida (half and full)
Kentucky (half and full)
Tennessee (half and full)
Alabama (full)
Ohio (full)
Arkansas (full)
Illinois (full)
Washington DC (full)
California (half)
Iowa (half)
Nebraska (half)
South Carolina (half)

By the end of the year, assuming all goes well I will have Virginia (half), Michigan (full), and New York (half) also. And also SC full. Its a long term goal for me too. I want to have fun at the ones I chose, and pick good ones and make a weekend out of it.

 

[Keels]

Yes! I've seen your reviews on this! this is definitely the one I would do. Stupid princess getting in the way though.

WE COULD DO A TEXAS RAGNAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!11111111111111

Sorry @Keels , I seem to be speaking in equations lately.
Bacon = pork
Jerky = beef
Because:
Fat = good
Thus:
BBQ pork > BBQ beef
QED

Get outta here with that 1. math and 2. terrible meat opinion.

 

[tigger536]

WE COULD DO A TEXAS RAGNAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!11111111111111



Get outta here with that 1. math and 2. terrible meat opinion.

YESSSSS!!! Ragnar!!!

 

[roxymama]

ATTQOTD: Run a lot. Trust the plan. Prepare for my marathon debut in the fall. It's gonna be a training summer, not much of a racing summer.

RE food snobs. @SarahDisney is a pizza snob. She thinks Chicago pizza is superior to NYC pizza. This is why she is going to fly to Chicago in July to do this race with me.
(disclaimer...the above statement is not endorsed by @SarahDisney but paid for by the roxymamaisatrollfund.)

 

[Keels]

Chicago Pizza is Pizza Lasagne.

 

[KSellers88]

This has been sneaking into my brain as something to do over the next lots of years. Maybe like, before I'm 50 hit a half in each state. That gives me some time, haha. I am only at 5 states right now too, but I'll be adding Washington D.C. this fall!

When you do any of the bordering states of Alabama (or Alabama, lol), let me know and I will tag along! Mine will be extremely long term too. I love to travel but that gets expensive!

 

[Keels]

This has been sneaking into my brain as something to do over the next lots of years. Maybe like, before I'm 50 hit a half in each state. That gives me some time, haha. I am only at 5 states right now too, but I'll be adding Washington D.C. this fall!

Did you know that Texas is a state?

When you do any of the bordering states of Alabama (or Alabama, lol), let me know and I will tag along! Mine will be extremely long term too. I love to travel but that gets expensive!

RnR New Orleans is a fun race weekend ...

 

[BuckeyeBama]

ETA: Weight matters too. If you're pre-break and post-break weight is not the same it will influence the rate of loss/rate of gain back and the VO2max value. Another thing that's hanging me up as I'm about 5-7 pounds heavier than December.

Yeah, this has also been a challenge. I lost 22 pounds after the surgery - all tied to the surgery, recovery, complications, etc. I have since put back much of that weight, but my diet has been very restricted (and not in a healthy way). So, while my weight is pretty close to my January weight, I am probably down about 10 pounds in muscle mass. So I am treating my recovery as if I am 10 pounds heavier, because that means that I have 10 pounds more fat. I am slowly being allowed to add things like fruits and vegetables back to my diet - so I expect to see a more healthy weight in short order.

At this point I am so happy to be healthy that I will gladly take this problem. I went from being told to get my affairs in order to a new lease on life. The whole world looks amazing through the lens of this experience. My mantra has always been "I get to run today, so make the most of it". That has a whole new meaning to me now.