June 2017: Did I pass?

~ Chocolaterunsjudy

bjune2017

It seems a little unfair, really, that as we reach the peak of our race training, many of the things that keep us in shape tend to fall by the wayside: good nutrition, prehab, cross training. Did that happen to me in June?

You be the judge!

Getting in scheduled runs
I stuck to my training schedule, for the most part, until race week (which happened to coincide with the beginning of June). I’m definitely giving myself props for getting in that last long run the day after arriving in UT.

I skipped several runs on the schedule in favor of hiking in National Parks. The one run I managed to squeeze in was shortened because I was running at 8000 ft (thankfully the race was only at 5000 ft). But I picked up where I left off when I got home with no problems.

Grade Earned:  B+

Recording my runs
I’m doing a little better getting those runs recorded in a reasonable time frame now that life isn’t quite so hectic.

Grade Earned: A

Dynamic Warmup
I know how important it is to warm up. And yet . . . it seems like I always want to get out there and just get it done. Generally because I’ve got other stuff to get to.

And my warmup before the race was definitely lackadaisical.

Grade Earned: A-

Foam Rolling
Boy when you slide, you slide big. I had my worm with me in UT. I think I used it once. Even when I got back home, I kept skipping the foam rolling . . . I’m back at it (for now, anyway).

Grade Earned: B

Respecting my body
I think this was one area where I did good. I could’ve run in 97 degree heat. I could’ve run after hiking all day. It wasn’t in my best interest.

Grade Earned: A

butpie
A little too much sugar . . .

 

Nutrition
I must say that the food in Bryce wasn’t terribly exciting. I managed, somehow, to get plenty of veggies in while in UT — not always easy while traveling. But there was also Garret’s popcorn — I did impress myself with saving some for post race — I bought that on the way to UT! And there were pretzel sticks, pie, ice cream, a large dark chocolate peanut butter cup, lots of fries . . .

So really kind of a mixed bag there.

Grade Earned: B

Support
I had a chiropractor appointment, a massage, and I visited the Salt Den again before leaving.

Grade Earned: A

bzion
. . . but a whole lotta hiking!

Cross Training
There was all that hiking, of course. And I’m riding my stationary bike again and swimming. We even got in a hike last weekend!

Grade Earned: A

buvm
It’s always a good month with a PR in it — but I could have done better, as usual!

May 2017 gets  . . . 
. . . a B+. I definitely see (and feel) the lack of strength training in my body. I thought I ate fairly well in UT, but when I really think about it . . . maybe not so much. Don’t get me wrong — I’m okay with indulging sometimes. And you could say “but you were on vacation”. Except it was my second vacation in three months. It doesn’t take long to put on the pounds, but it sure takes longer to take them back off.

And I just kept blowing off all the stuff I know keeps me running pain free. Usually because I just didn’t want to do it.

Yes, I had an awesome PR (you can read about that here), but I had that PR partially because I put in the work. The year isn’t over and I have one more big goal race and probably a few shorter races too. Which leads me to:

How’s 2017 treating me?
On a personal level, the first half of the year was definitely rough. It wasn’t easy to see my parents so unhappy. My mom has realized they are better off where they are, although it still doesn’t make her happy. My dad will never really accept it, but he’s not going anywhere. Moving them and getting them to give up the car were really major victories. I wonder, sometimes, though, if they are now declining more rapidly because of the move. I also know they truly couldn’t remain where they were.

Sometimes aging really sucks.

Going back and forth almost every week to work on their house — not to mention the stress of actually sifting through most of their belongings — well, the only thing good I can think of about that is at least they are actually still alive. Although in some ways that made it even more difficult, trying to decide what was important for them to keep. It was both physically and emotionally draining.

Never having time to get together with friends and rarely being able to do anything fun wasn’t a lot of fun, either. But I knew it would pass, and my life is more or less back to normal. For now. I hope for a good long while!

But of course we’re talking running. Running was good. I’ve run 3 half marathons in 2017, and technically every single one was a PR. I was shocked to have a PR in a very steamy NOLA half (read about it here). I ran my first trail half — read about that here — (that was the “technically” a PR — because it was a first trail half, I suppose you could claim it was a PR, even if it was my slowest half ever). And I ran my first half at elevation (read about that here).

I’ve had little aches and pains, but nothing major. I’ve managed to stay healthy, knock on wood.

I started out the year by giving Rachel @ Runningonhappy a month trial as my coach, after which I continued to follow her coaching — and I have no doubt that she is definitely part of the reason I’ve had such a successful season racing in 2017 — so far!

It’s time to dial things down a little, and yet ramp them up, too, as I begin to train for my fall half marathon.

Goals for July:

  • Continue keeping my journal up to date.
  • Swim once a week.
  • Run on trails occasionally — an easy run once a week would be great, but something is always better than nothing.
  • Continue to hike occasionally — if the weather doesn’t get too humid and buggy for it.
  • Get back into regular (2-3 x week) strength training.

I’m linking up with with MCM Mama Runs, Marcia’s Healthy Slice, and My No Guilt Life for the Tuesdays on the Run linkup.

Tor-box

This week I am also joining up with Running on Happy, Suzlyfe, Crazy Running Girl, and Coach Debbie Runs each week for the Coaches’ Corner linkup

coachescorner

37 thoughts on “June 2017: Did I pass?”

  1. Wow Judy! That’s well done.
    I’ve been super busy with work the past three weeks and I have to admit that the last week in particular, my yoga schedule has suffered a major blow! And drowning in that guilt I found my way to your blog..only to remind me that anything I give as an excuse is exactly that – an excuse!
    Thank you for always inspiring me 🙂

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  2. You’ve had a great first half of the year! I think it’s normal to have various aspects ebb and flow. It’s good to hear things with your parents have settled somewhat. I saw my dad on Father’s Day and the decline is going rapidly.

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    1. Marcia, I’m sorry to hear about your dad. My mom fell right before father’s day& hurt her ankle. Turns out she fractured it — supposedly “slightly “.

      What the heck is slightly at 89? She has to go to the orthopedist today & apparently their transportation guy is out. 😔

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    1. I log my mileage — but not the mileage on my shoes! I used to, but somewhere along the way I just stopped.

      Most of the time I note which shoes I wore in my journal but I don’t add it up. Not good!

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  4. I think this year has been great for you so far. I agree with you that the coaching has definitely helped you step up your game. I truly believe that having an objective person guiding a runner’s training is a benefit. I know it’s helped me!

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    1. Well of course I think a coach is worthwhile. Well, scratch that — the RIGHT coach. It’s not the first time I’ve worked with a coach, but it’s the first time I feel that I’ve successfully worked with a coach.

      I used to work out with a personal trainer years ago. I loved it. Now I work out a lot more at home, though. The dogs do tend to suck up a lot more time than cats (I didn’t have dogs back when I worked out with a personal trainer).

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  5. What a fabulous first half of the year!! I can only get better…right??!! Since my Chicago training plan is a little more structured than anything I’ve done in the last year, I’m trying to get used to logging ALL the stuff!!

    I hope your mom heals fast and well!!

    Jodi

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    1. It does get harder to log stuff as the miles pile on . . . thanks so much for the good wishes for my Mom.

      She is now in a walking cast. Luckily (or unluckily for her) my sister had yesterday off so I didn’t have to drive down, but it was an all day affair. And good thing they went, they said if she’d waited much longer she might have needed surgery and that last surgery last year really didn’t go so well.

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  8. My mom finished selling my grandfather’s house right before Memorial Day. Now my grandfather has a slush fund for his senior living place, and that stress is gone. More importantly, my grandfather’s in a place getting real food, and he seems to like the place.

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    1. Your mom is very lucky! We have had to drop the price on my parents’ home several times already & still no real interest. 😦

      And yes, they need that money from the sale of their house for their apartment!

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    1. Something seems to happen to people around the age of 85. They seem to be good up until then, and then things start to fall apart.

      Not everyone, of course, but I’ve noticed it as a trend.

      I have no excuse for slacking off yoga — and I’m still not back at it! But I’m slowly adding things back in & that’s what counts.

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  11. It sounds like you had a pretty good month to me! Skipping a few runs here or there because of heat or altitude is no big deal, and you certainly hiked enough to earn the time off! Glad you had a great month and it was super fun to meet you IRL!

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    1. Thanks, Kerry! I had a great time meeting you, too. While I would looooove to go back to UT & explore more (so much to see & hike!), I don’t see that happening anytime soon. So many more states to explore . . .

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  12. Having gone through the loss of my in-laws recently (actually Dec, 2014 and May 2015….seems recent, though), I know how tough it is to go through the scaling down of things, transitioning to a better living place (with staff on hand instead of just the sister next door), and the eventual aging process going full circle. You have weathered rather well, I think, given how time-consuming it was (and probably still is) for you. It’s physically AND emotionally draining, no doubt. Oh, and you had a rather new dog in the house as well 😉 And those PR’s were well-earned 😉

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    1. Yeah, it’s been a tough couple of years on the personal side all around. And in the beginning, Bandit was just more stress for sure.

      It’s hard to believe the difference a year has made — I’m taking him for a vet visit next week — it will be very interesting to see how that goes.

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  14. I would actually give you better than a B+ grade for the month! You had so many accomplishments and knocked out all your goals! Eating healthy is always a challenge for me…I had too many sweets this month so I need to lay off the candy for a while (so hard!).

    Caring for your parents has had to be a tough experience, I feel for you. I’m not there with my parents yet but it’s definitely something I worry about. Hopefully they will gradually adjust to the move. I’m glad to hear things are getting back to normal for you and you’ll have more time to have fun!

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    1. While it was a good month, I know I slacked on a lot of things I really shouldn’t have. Important things to keep me running pain free. Definitely not an A month — but hey, B+ is not a bad grade at all!

      Ya know, Albany could make a nice place to stretch your legs on the way to Montreal. And I live really close to the Northway. Just sayin’. 🙂

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      1. I make a really solid effort to clean the house on Fridays. It doesn’t always work, but at least the effort is there. Plus it’s my rest day so might as well, right?

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