Fair weather running

I guess my few weeks of perfect running weather are over. It seems I do best when the temperatures are somewhere in the small range of 65-80F. Back in March I was freezing up in my half marathon since I overestimated the temps and wore a tank top and shorts. And now I've already melted in the heat this spring, and it is only May.

Sun! He came out with this right after telling me he didn't know how to draw it.

Then he asked where the cold comes from and I tried to explain how the solar system works.

  

I might have possibly made a few small errors that caused my 10 miler to become a stumbling walk. After my apparent overeating before my triathlon a few weeks ago, I decided that less is more, and I knew a small breakfast would  get me through an aerobic 10 miles. Despite what I actually heard a registered dietitian tell a class once, exercise is NOT solely fueled by carbohydrates. And, also unlike what some "nutritionist" told a newbie runner recently, you don't use up all your carbohydrates in 30 minutes of exercise, requiring jelly beans to get you through. Good grief. No wonder people are so confused about how to fuel exercise. 

Anyway, I had a quick breakfast--so quick that I think the only thing I drank was my delicious coffee... Oops. The night before I had been out doing hill repeats on the bike with a group, and you know how much that makes you sweat, what with the lack of cooling wind and all. Then you get to talking on the descents and forget to drink. Some people may rehydrate all night, and then others dehydrate, like from nursing multiple times. 

So! I'm sure I started out a little low on fluids. I had a small 12oz water bottle with me running, which I finished within 6 miles. It was a bit warmer, leaving my house close to 10am, than my previous runs, and everybody knows how I can melt down in the heat. I've done it in the middle of the summer while training for an Ironman, during a half Ironman, during a few full Ironmans, and countless other times I happened to not have blogged about. Heading out for a hilly, sunny, humid, warm, longer-distance-than-I've-done-recently run on little fluid and scant fuel was not my brightest idea.

Like I mentioned in a previous post, I do need to work on remembering good nutrition before exercise. Just like after a winter off from long riding post Ironman, when I would always forget how much fuel I'd need for a "short" 3 hour bike ride, ending up terribly underfueled, I have forgotten just how much I sweat, and how much I need to replenish after a 90 minute hill workout followed 14 hours later by an easy 10 miler. Learn from me how NOT to acclimate.

My regular daily nutrition, on the other hand, while needing to see a decline in daily ice cream consumption (at least I'm adding some antioxidants-- chocolate, strawberries and bananas), is based around these huge CSA baskets full of a variety of lettuces, beets, radishes, broccoli, onions, and various other goodies. I'm addicted to a couple of things right now besides ice cream, and I suppose I'll share my secrets. Try this homemade ranch dressing from the Pioneer Woman on your salads -- mine of course has modifications due to the herbs I have growing in the kitchen-- and you will never buy ranch again. And then make this broccoli, and you won't eat it any other way again. I'm not even a huge fan of broccoli, until now. Hunter actually said to me, reaching for the broccoli, "Give Hunter that!"

And speaking of Hunter quotes, he attempted to teach me a few things this week when he said, "Owl is a type of bird." And then today, "Octagon has 8 sides." Why yes it does, my miniature scientist and mathematician...

And since no post is complete without Hunter pictures...

  proud owner of his very own new basketball

 

best daddy ever, goes walking through tiny tunnels during his lunch break

 after the trucks go through the truck wash, they sit out on the curb to dry (where his pants should also be)

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Forgetting to fuel

It's not often that I forget to feed my baby. Except those times he refuses his lunch and I eat it all and then later I wonder why he's getting cranky and realize he hasn't had much to eat all day. But before anyone goes and calls CPS on me, he still nurses a lot and is growing juuuust fine. :)

Evidence of his eating:

 there's nothing in my mouth, why?

 

 this shirt didn't come polka dotted

 

not so much eating as sorting food...but the opportunity is there

Apparently, however, I've gotten in the habit of forgetting to feed myself, especially before running. After carefully getting back into it Sunday but still having another discouraging run, I realized I'd forgotten to eat breakfast, and that 2 oz of orange juice used to wash down my antibiotic just wasn't cutting it. I'm not only not eating for 12 or so hours between supper and these morning runs, I'm also keeping Hunter's fuel reserves full. He still nurses a few times at night, but I'm not in there snacking in the bed to replenish myself (although at my old job I heard tales of pockets in bed skirts used to stash cookies for midnight snacking). 

I'm not trying to have tough runs by under fueling, although there is that training method out there. Back in early season training years ago I'd forget that I was not using fat as efficiently as I had at the height of Ironman season a few months before, and going on a 3 hour easy ride requires fuel when you're coming off winter rest.

SO now that I realize my mistake, I've had two entire runs where I was properly fueled and felt much much better. Of course, the first was Labor Day when Jenny and I did 2x2 mi repeats in a hilly golf course neighborhood, but it was overcast. Then today I ran in the crisp cool fall-like 80 degree weather.

In other, non-running news of the Harwoods, Jeremy and I went on our kind-of -first-date since Hunter was born. We did ride our bikes about half an hour when he was 3 weeks old, and then we ran half an hour a month ago in laps around the block where we could peek on him at Jenny's every 4 minutes. But tonight, we left him, drove away in the car, and ate dinner together, just the two of us. He had a ball with Emily, Jackson, Ethan, and Jenny and Tim, and looked at us when we got back like, hey, did you guys go somewhere? I keep reading articles about "putting your marriage first" for the sake of your marriage and the kids, since, you know, the kids are only there temporarily and hopefully your spouse will be there forever. But that's the thing: the kids are only tiny temporarily, in these super formative years where attachment really matters, and if you and your spouse can't keep it together that long, well then, maybe there wasn't much there before. Not that there's something wrong with leaving kids with competent babysitters and family, but we just didn't feel comfortable when we didn't have family around that he really adores. As soon as Jenny comes in the front steps he's like, "Mommy who?" So it's a new chapter for all of us.

And now, this month in baby pictures.

my happy toddler

 and his fascinating daddy

 

trucks are ideal for hauling the essentials: water, dirt, sidewalk chalk 

 surprise attack on Daddy!

hands down, our FAVorite toy

 

 a little relaxation time watching some Baby Signing Time videos

The feed zone

Yes it's another post about food. And speaking of the feed zone, I'm interested in the book of this title. Years ago I found Allen Lim's recipe for Sushi Rice Bars with bacon and eggs, and they are awesome on long rides when you're tired of sweet stuff. I remember one ride where a certain dog yet-to-be-rescued named Shelby got a couple of them to tide her over until Damie went back to pick her up. She seemed to like them too. Anybody have the book? Reviews?

At home our feeding zone is usually the recliner. It sits in a sunny windowed corner of the living room, and soon after Hunter's birth we turned it to face the television. It rocks and has huge puffy arms, plus I added a back pillow, a mini boppy (actually a neck pillow) and a tray table with a water bottle, so I'm pretty much set. I can get really comfortable there. I watched the neighbors' entire move, I see them walk their dogs many times a day, and I cringe when Heinz, fresh from Germany, still insists, despite his crispy fried red skin, to go shirtless while he digs up the wildflower bed.

I'm pretty sure baby Hunter looks at me and only sees one thing: lunch. He's the stereotypical male, glancing at my eyes, then down to my chest. :) I seem to fit right in with my family of big milk producers, at least based on Hunter's weight gain. I honestly wouldn't mind if his rate of weight gain tapered off a bit. He went from less than the 25th percentile at birth to at least 95th by 2 months. My poor arms were not ready for that kind of strain. 

I've found another goal so I can start working on some new PRs: milk pumping. So far I've only timed my pumping once, and got 5oz in 6 minutes. I wasn't particularly full at the time, so I'm wondering what I can do if I go in tapered. :) My pediatrician tells me that every 5oz is about 100 kcals, so breastfeeding is a super fast way to get off those extra calories. I don't often run fast enough to burn 100kcals in 6 minutes -- that's over a mile for me! 

If Hunter weighs around 14.5 lbs, and he needs about 100kcal/kg, then he's eating 650kcal/day, or over 30oz. No wonder I'm thirsty and dehydrated all the time. He does seem to eat ALL THE TIME, but I really enjoy feeding him, so it's never a problem. Plus that means I can eat more!

Just since my last post I've done some baking. I started making homemade bagels since we just don't have anywhere to get them here. They're delicious! Then our two plum trees started ripening their plums. We have millions of birds who will peck a few holes in each plum if we don't pick them fast enough, so we got a good harvest over the weekend. I've made a plum pie and banana plum bread. The pie is gone, and the bread is only 12 hours old, so it's half finished. :)

My sweet little baby has started smiling all the time at us instead of just in his sleep. I can actually act silly enough to make him smile at me now. He really only gets upset when his little tummy hurts, and I'm wondering what I can do differently to help him. I am proactive in giving him drops, but I'm wondering if i should cut out dairy from my diet. I mostly get it through cheese, which I've given up before (one torturous Lent season with my friend Lara). I'm trying to cut back, and then find myself forgetting that the half of a large Papa John's that I just downed has plenty of mozzarella on it. Oops.

Every day's goal is to eat just a little less dairy. And keep running. I'm not going to jinx how running with the baby is going by writing about it, so I'll just say it's been better than ever lately. I know it's just a phase or a fluke, just like that great sleep I got last night. :)

 Plums!

 Baby!

My own PRs

The new PRs of the athletic kind aren't coming as quickly as I'd inferred they would from Dr. Clapp's book, so I'm making up my own. I am actually doing ok with the stroller running this week. For a while Hunter was waking up quickly when jostled over the stray rocks and large pavement cracks. Here's a tip: go over cracks at an angle even if it means looking like you're drunk driving. I understand it's hard to keep debris out of the street when 80% of the front "yards" consist of a few trees and, if you're lucky like we are, multicolored rock patterns (and as a side note, I have recently noticed THREE yards with actual grass in our neighborhood being dug up and replaced with rocks). But it sure is annoying to a sleeping baby to have to startle like that. So back to the running. I set a new record this week with Hunter tolerating the stroller while I ran 5 miles straight. Then I even walked a half mile for bonus. All at a (sad as it is) record pace with the BOB: 9 mins per mile.

Much more fun PRs I need to start recording have to do with my binge eating. I'm excited to have my appetite back after 9 months without one, and I may be overcompensating (probably why I am still hanging on to those 4ish pounds). 

-It started with Nutella. In just about 2 weeks I, all by myself, consumed two jars of the LARGE sized Nutella. I may have used 1/4 cup of it to make some banana bread.

-When my sisters were here we made chocolate chip cookies and before adding the eggs, ate the usual spoonful(S) of dough. After they left, I made an entire batch of cookie dough sans eggs and ate it straight. It was very deliberate. Jeremy helped me with it, thankfully. But who is left alone all day unsupervised with the stuff? 

-Next I made some brownie/cookie/Heath bars, but had to buy a couple of bags of Heath, since we ate them all before I could make the bars. They were just ok, so I sent half of them with Jeremy to work.

-Somewhere in the last 10 weeks we made dump cake, which is half fruit, right? We can finish that off in under 24 hours, easily.

-I refused to buy any more Nutella, but remembered that I had half a jar of dark chocolate almond butter, so I finished that off within a day.

-We have a neverending supply of ice cream at our house, usually Breyer's vanilla. Then J got me some Ben and Jerry's that I stretched into 2 days.

-I just finished off the Newman O's, but we've had those since Monday.

I wonder if this has anything to do with all the cooking shows I watch while nursing and rocking the baby. Thankfully on Chopped there's at least some inedible (to me) ingredient that helps take my appetite. 

What have I learned from this? Don't look at labels so often. When you see that a large jar of Nutella is 4000 calories (wait, it's not healthy?), it makes it just the tiniest bit less enjoyable. I should find more healthy ways to set PRs, or at least substitute some grapes or something for the chocolate. At least I can set attainable goals this way. Is anybody up for a binge eating challenge?

Weekend Plans

We have a big weekend planned here. My sisters are both coming in town tomorrow with their babies Ethan and Annie. Hunter is the newest member of the Under 3 Club, and this is their first meeting. We're very excited (but we sure will miss the older two cousins). Jeremy has big plans as well. He'll be seeing Damie in New Orleans for the 70.3. Funny he picks my all time least favorite half Ironman. I am certain he will do much better than I did down there, and hopefully have a better experience.

In other news:

-I have already blown a BOB stroller tire. We get a ridiculous amount of flat bike tires out here with all the thorns and whatnot. I still haven't patched it yet, but it'll make it 3-4 miles every time I pump it back up.

-My running frequency has slowed a little. Plus I think every time I run it's for a shorter distance. I must've overdone it when I started (because running 3 miles two days in a row is waaaaay too much), because I was really feeling it in my abs/incision area, and I was super tired afterward. But I got in about 25 miles of walking/running last week, and I've continued with 3-4 more every day since.

-I ran a whole 1.25 miles without pushing the stroller yesterday. It was awesomely slow. My Garmin says 9:38 pace. My last run the day before Hunter was born was 6 miles at about 9:30 pace. So I'm lighter and ran a quarter of the distance and I'm the same speed. Gotta remember that whole abdominal surgery thing, I guess.

-And yes, I'm using the Garmin for my walks. I have no way of knowing how far I go since I'm not a consistent 15:00 mile pacer yet. I need some kind of number to log these days.

-I'm hanging on to that extra 4ish pounds still. It's probably because I actually like eating now.

-I actually like eating! For most of my pregnancy I wondered if I'd ever be interested in food again, and it has happened! I'm especially enjoying Nutella.

-Our second anniversary was this week. Can't believe it's been 2 years! Can't believe I've had a baby for 5 weeks either. I have the sweetest little family :)

-In breastfeeding news: this stuff really squirts. Hunter likes to nurse a bit to get it going and then pull back and let it go. This means we're both usually doused in milk. I've been caught without a burp cloth way too many times and have even resorted to catching it in my hand. Not so effective.

-My poor sleep deprived brain has finally figured out that I only have one baby. The first few weeks I was so confused in the middle of the night, trying to figure out which baby had eaten most recently. It culminated the night Jeremy brought me Hunter and I asked, "where's the other baby?" I had warned him of my confusion before, and he just said, "there is no other baby," probably while planning to look up which anti-psychotics are ok while nursing.

It's a beautiful day, so we're off for a walk!

Taper Time! 3 weeks to go

It's March, the month I've been thinking about for the last 8 now! I'll be hitting the 37 week mark tomorrow, which means just one thing: it's time to taper. I've done the work, and now it's time to sit back and relax, and prop my feet up. While lying on the ironing board.

I'm taking this literally. Actually, my baby is still breech, so I've been doing everything possible to get him to flip. The fact that he's not in position has caused me a lot of stress. My doctor will deliver by cesarean if breech, and that was definitely not in my plans. I know there are always surprises and circumstances that pop up right before or during a race that you've been planning for months. This changes the whole race for me. I've found that I've stopped reading my Bradley and Ina May books on natural childbirth, and my obsession with getting the baby to turn is changing to finding reasons why cesareans are actually chosen by some people. There must be positives.

Otherwise, I plan on tapering as I've always done. Since most of the work is done, I need to concentrate on not ruining my race delivery now. Rest is important in this stage, and as Gordo writes, I might want to reduce my outside commitments. Done! The last week or two it has been hard for me to commit to work out partners, and I had to quit my pro bono swim lessons. That wasn't hard, since they wanted to meet at 6 am. I need my rest.

"Lay out all gear well in advance," says Gordo, along with ensuring the equipment is 100% functional. The room is stocked and the cats have tested the comfort of all soft surfaces.

The jogging stroller got a good shaking out for potential loose parts as soon as it was put together (thanks J). We even figured out and installed the carseat base.

I'm not waking up earlier to get ready for the race day alarm, but I am waking up frequently in the middle of the night, and often spending an hour or more lying awake (usually trying to massage baby into a better position). That's great training for nursing.

Since I'm still trying to put some fat on this baby, I'm not eating less, but trying to get an abundance of good nutrients, lots of fluid, and plenty of protein. My exercise has been steady, but may be taking a hit due to a newly developed cough and cold (which I'm trying not to medicate at all). And swimming is out for the next two weeks due to both pools in town being simultaneously closed. I'm still enjoying running most, and even kept up with a group last weekend. We dropped one guy :)

Staying out of the sun has been harder, since it's been beautiful outside, but I am avoiding alcohol and naps. There's no expo to limit my time in, but I don't spend a lot of time in baby stores or around new moms with horror stories. That has to be similar to staying away from the expo.

The mental imagery is the hardest for me with this new twist of natural vs cesarean. I'm trying to go through each with the most positive thoughts. The ending is always the same, with a new healthy baby boy to take home. Just like crossing the finish line when you know you'll get there no matter what.

March = spring, and spring is here!

My beautiful V-day flowers from Jeremy :)

From our back balcony at sunset

 

I'm really going to get bigger than this?!

Mileage PR

This week, following the 12 week Pfitzinger plan, I ran my highest mileage ever. This is not going to be impressive to any of you who have every run a marathon, I promise. For some reason, throughout college and even Ironman training, I've never broken (to my knowledge, at least), the 45 mi/week mark. Until today.

Today's 20 miler, even though I died a slow death the last 3 miles, pushed me to 48 miles for the week. I mentioned before that I'm trying really (kind of) hard to follow this plan, but actually I was supposed to hit 55. Knowing my past mileage PR of around 45, 55 was just a bit too much. Oh, and also, I skipped the whole "7 of the 12 miles at half marathon pace" part of Friday's workout in favor of running 10 miles at an easy pace with a friend.

Really the biggest news for the week is that I actually registered for the marathon that I've been running all this excessive mileage for. It's in 5 weeks. Considering the disaster that was miles 17-20 today, I'm excited that I'll be well tapered for the actual race.

I think part of my problem today was ole Bob Seebohar from last week's USAT Clinic. I mentioned he is big on training the fat burning zone and consuming fewer carbs. Apparently my subconscious has committed wholeheartedly to this training technique, because, in my delusional state at about 15 miles in, I decided to change my route and not go by home. Home is where the food is. At least I burned about a half pound of fat today, so I'll be lighter on race day, if nothing else. 

I know a good bunch of carbohydrates was burned at mile 18.3, and again at 18.7 when I ran by a crazy yapping black chihuahua-like dog who dared to chase me down the street (I had to turn around at 18.5 and face him both directions). My heart rate skyrocketed when my legs realized they had little choice in making a quick escape. I had to challenge him back with yelling and running straight at him. Luckily it worked.

I'm starting to think about marathon pacing now. I read on Joe Friel's blog that the #1 mistake athletes make is poor pacing. I don't disagree with that, but do disagree that emotion is my biggest problem. I really don't know what I am capable of running at this point. I know I have run one marathon (my only flat out) with a negative split, and have negative split an IM marathon, which is how the fastest races Joe has coached have been run. He says it's a hard skill to learn, but I'm not sure if it's just an underestimation of your ability or, in my case, a complete lack of ability to guesstimate a realistic pace. I don't remember ever running  while checking mile splits in any of these races. I hoped it was just my central governor telling me how fast to run. Or maybe it was just comfortable and I knew I could hold on. I don't know. So I'm going to make it extra hard on myself and try to stay with a pace group. Nothing like running someone else's pace, right?

So marathon veterans, how do you do it? I was recently telling someone my almost 3 hour time differential between my fastest and slowest marathons. Obviously, I don't know; the 6:23 one felt harder than any 3:30ish ones I've run (except for the lying on the side of the road part). Maybe I'm overthinking this, just like I overthought the decision to actually register. Help?

Another Culture

There's a culture out there of which I am not a part of (but that's ok), and was not totally aware of until today. I went to Starbucks this morning, which is an unusual stop for me. Most mornings I go to High Point, where you get a chocolate covered bean with your drink. Many times, especially when I've come from the pool, I stop by Quetzal, where the coffee beans are roasted right in the building. On lazy summer mornings when there was no spin class for me and everyone was Ironman training, Charlie, Laura, Damie (and when we're lucky, Nancy) and I would go to Bluff City Coffee and hang out on the leather couches until we decided that we should go to our jobs.

But this morning, Starbucks was right on my route from my part time job to my full time job. I went inside and entered another world. It was just after 9 a.m., and the tables were packed with people; most were chatting, not many newspapers were being read, few laptops were out. It was like happy hour at a bar. Do these people work? They were dressed like they do. Then why aren't they at those jobs?

I got my Thanksgiving Blend, as it's still 10 more days until Christmas Blend is out, according to the large board over my head. I didn't quite know what to expect from Thanksgiving Blend, a hint of turkey and dressing? Squash casserole, maybe? Definitely no pumpkin spice; that's reserved for the latte of the same name. I passed on the protein and fiber additive, since I always add milk (protein), and does anybody really need any more help getting things moving than the caffeine already gives you? No vitamin boost either; coffee is the country's biggest source of antioxidants as it is.

I wedged myself between tables, ignoring the lure of the new Starbucks Gold Card sign, since it's for "people who really love Starbucks," and I wouldn't say I really love it. I just love it when it's convenient and my other coffee shops aren't. I also bypassed the "take this card for a free itunes download" card. Nope, no CDs, coffee mugs, gift baskets, or stuffed reindeer toys for me today, thanks. Where did all this stuff come from? I guess it was always here, but I never noticed before I went to independent coffee shops who can't sell a mug for 500% more just because their name is on it.

I really like the place just fine, I think they're geniuses for all they've done to create this culture, and some of their mugs are really cute. I like going and sitting in there in the afternoons with all the students, taking my work with me. It's calming and relaxing and a very nice break from my office. But I guess coming back after an absence has made me realize what a lifestyle it is for some. And there's something about that red Christmas cup that makes you keep going back again and again.