trail running

Eugene Curnow Trail Marathon Training: Week 7

I’m deep in the throes of race anxiety at the moment.

Monday: 5.2 mi, road, 132 bpm
Tuesday: rest
Wednesday: 5.5 mi, trail (Hartley hodgepodge), 146 bpm
Thursday: rest
Friday: 7 mi, treadmill (tempo run), 145 bpm
Saturday: 9 mi, trail (SHT, Magney Snively trailhead to Becks Road & back), 147 bpm
Sunday: 4.8 mi, trail (Bagley, though I think the GPS is off/too high on mileage), 142 bpm
Total: 31.6 mi

I actually didn’t intend to cut down the mileage quite so far. I thought I’d do about 35 miles, but 3-4 of my runs last week were shorter than I’d intended. It doesn’t really matter. My run on Saturday was good, I was able to run under 20 min/mile over some fairly tough terrain, also including a stop to take a selfie on top of Ely’s Peak. Here is a huge photo of me.

The rest of the week was basically boring.

Like I said, I am extremely anxious about Saturday’s race. It doesn’t look like it will be too hot, so that is good. Now my 2 biggest concerns are 1. mud/trail conditions and 2. getting pulled off the course due to a storm. I guess I just need to be faster and finish before any potential thunderstorms develop. Hahahahahahahahaha. It rained a lot on Monday so the trail conditions and water crossings could be… interesting.

My biggest irrational concern is getting lost, which I’ve addressed. Everything else should be ok. I know I can finish. I know I’m probably going to perform better than I am expecting, but I am keeping my expectations low and manageable. I have another marathon 8 weeks after this one, so I can’t go buck wild.

There’s not much left for me to do, besides avoid injury, get adequate sleep, and complete a page-long, evolving to-do list. “3 more sleeps” until the race, as they say. Never mind that my resting heart rate is on the way up, my feet are sorta grossly calloused, and I am over-analyzing and second-guessing just about every decision I’ve made regarding this race. Especially signing up. WTF was I thinking?

It’ll be fun. Or a learning experience. Or both.

A Short List of Things I Suck At

I suppose I could be positive and grammatically correct and call this “A short list of things upon which I wish to improve,” but I don’t really care to. The list of running-related things that I suck at is long, so this is of course an abridged version. I’m going to give it its own tag since I suspect I’ll be revealing more suckage in the future.

I went for a run at Hartley yesterday that was fairly disappointing, both in length (Hartley is undergoing some kind of logging operation and many of the trails are closed, so I had to improvise. I am going to have to trust that it’s a good thing, as I’m not a forester, though I am the granddaughter of one) and in overall performance. I’m coming off a rest day so I thought it would go well and it didn’t.

Here are some things I suck at, relevant to yesterday’s run.

  1. Running fast (for me, not objectively fast) on trails.
    Once again, I found myself looking at my watch and noticing I’m going at a 20+ minute pace. It’s really annoying. Why am I so bad at gauging my pace? And why is my pace so damned lazy? I did manage to focus on pace successfully yesterday, and after running the first 2 miles in 18-something, I ran the last 3.5 in 16-something. Again, fast is relative, but that is more like the pace I want to be running on trails. It might be too little, too late for Curnow, but it’s a start.
  2. Picking up my feet
    I am always tripping over things that I see. I don’t really know why. It’s annoying. I need to quit shuffling. Especially when I’m like 2 miles in. There’s just no reason.
  3. Keeping my head up
    I watch enough hockey to know that keeping one’s head up is a key part of any sport, but I find myself staring at the ground in front of me instead of focusing on good posture and scanning the ground a few feet ahead of me for hazards. How can I stare at the ground in front of me and suck at picking up my feet? It is the mystery of the dance.

That’s enough for now, I was only running for an hour and a half so I didn’t have time to make any more mistakes.

Eugene Curnow Trail Marathon Training: Week 6

A lesson in what happens when I don’t take a cutback week in time.

Monday: rest
Tuesday: 5.7 mi, road, 138 bpm
Wednesday: rest
Thursday: 9.4 mi, road, 135 bpm
Friday: 7.1 mi, paved trail (Lakewalk starting @ Brighton Beach), 142 bpm
Saturday: 14.1 mi, trail (SHT starting at Highland/Getchell), 149 bpm
Sunday: 4.6 mi, road, 133 bpm
Total: 40.8 mi

Wow, I just did not care about running this past week. Both Monday and Wednesday, I took a rest day just because I couldn’t bring myself to run. I simply didn’t care. I hated myself for signing up for the race, I doubted my ability to finish it, and I just wanted to sit around and do nothing. I’m tired and my runs all feel like sleepwalks. I don’t think I had a run all week that I enjoyed.

Well, no, that’s not entirely true. I did enjoy Saturday’s run. I enjoyed having a long run that wasn’t six hours long. I learned a few things on that run, too:

  1. Long runs are much easier when not begun during the heat of the day. I have been starting my long runs at, like, 1:00. That means I’m starting out in the heat, and by the time it cools off, I’m already sapped from the heat. I am doing it on purpose, to try to acclimate, so this isn’t a total surprise. But I started my long run this past week at about 3:45 pm. I had a lot more energy and I was able to run the second half a minute faster than the first half, including a potty break during the second half. This gave me a bit of confidence for the race. It starts at 6 a.m., so I will be covering a lot of ground before the sun gets too high. Of course, some people will be finishing before that point, but I will at least have a few hours of better weather to make some progress. I’ve been torturing myself with these warm long runs without putting them in context with the bigger picture, and I finally took a step back and pieced it all together. It’s good to remember the purpose of tough workouts, and if there isn’t one, I’d better find one or find a new workout.
  2. I can run faster than I do. Ok, these are training runs, so the point isn’t to go fast, especially on long runs. But I am definitely holding back. I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or not. I mean, yes, conventional wisdom is not to race one’s training, but am I going too easy? I realize that I am not practicing running faster on trails enough. I’m always afraid I’ll blow up, get sick from the heat, get hurt, fall, etc. And then of course there are the times I think I’m moving at a decent clip, look down at my watch, and see I’m running at a 21:xx pace. Why do I have such a bad sense of pace? Or is my watch just that unreliable? I don’t know. However, in pushing the pace to try to have even “splits” for the run, I ran the final mile, which was entirely uphill, faster than I ran the first mile, which was of course entirely downhill (since I did an out and back). I’m capable of more than I think.

Those are some good lessons, ones that I needed to learn as I struggle with my confidence. I’m less than 2 weeks out from race day, ready to start cutting back (I’ll be doing 2 rest days this week and next, and my “long run” this coming weekend will not require a hydration pack), and ready to do some much-needed mental work.

My biggest fear is the weather, that it will be 90 degrees the day of the race and in the days leading up to it (I don’t have air conditioning so 90 degree days = sleepless nights because my house takes so long to cool off) and I will suffer and get sick. I can’t control the weather, so I need to focus on my cooling strategies.

My other fear is not knowing the course. I don’t really feel like the maps and written course descriptions are very detailed or clear (I’m not sure how far “a bit” is), and since the course doesn’t follow a specific trail like the SHT, it worries me. I worry about getting off course. I shouldn’t worry; this isn’t a new race, not their first rodeo, etc. I’m more concerned about my own abilities to spot course markers and make good decisions. This concern is minor relative to my worry about the weather; I’ve already run two races without knowing the courses at all, and have not had issues. If I knew without a doubt it was going to be 75 and cloudy but not rainy for the entire race, I would be confident about my ability to finish strong.

I have a tiny fear of being swept, but there isn’t an advertised hard cut-off at any of the aid stations, and I do see some official finishes that are over 10 hours, but who knows if I just haven’t read the right part of the website and there really is a cut-off, or if those last finishers had to run without aid stations, or something. I’m not super concerned about this, but it does creep into my mind occasionally.

Now here I’ve gone and worked myself into a small frenzy over a simple weekly training log post. Good thinking!

Eugene Curnow Trail Marathon Training: Week 5

Still tired. Guess I didn’t really cut back on volume, either.

Monday: 8.5 mi, road, 135 bpm
Tuesday: 6 mi, trail (Bagley), 141 bpm
Wednesday: 5.5, treadmill (intervals), 149 bpm
Thursday: rest
Friday: 4.1 mi, paved trail (1 mi warm up, 5K race), 136 bpm/183 bpm (technically on Saturday)
Saturday: 6.5, road, 135 bpm
Sunday: 16.3, trail (SHT starting @ Twin Ponds), 149 bpm
Total: 47 mi

Nope, 47 miles is not a cutback when I’ve been averaging less than that over this training cycle. Whoops.

I’m feeling very uncertain and nervous about this race. I have no doubt I can cover the distance. I’m just very worried about the heat. For my long run, I started at about 1:30 and it was maybe 80 degrees, not sure. I had a steep climb in the first couple miles that took a lot out of me. It was a very difficult run overall, and I struggled to keep cool. I actually stopped and sat for… probably 2 minutes. I never do that. Well ok I stopped and crouched down several times during the Superior 25K. But full-on sitting? Never. I rested until my heart rate dropped into the 130s.

A few times I ended up with too full a stomach from the water I was drinking. I’d still be thirsty but have to deny myself water in order to keep from getting sloshy. I do know I was underfueled, since I had 4 gels and a bottle of sports drink, but didn’t eat anything else. So yes, I made some mistakes. And yes, I know during a race I’ll have access to aid stations where I can get cold water, tasty food, ice, etc., all things that would have made a difference during the long run. The race also starts at 6 AM, so I won’t be out in the heat and full blast sun for the beginning. It’ll still most likely be hot at the end, but I won’t start out hot. Maybe I should try getting up early for my long run sometime. Ha ha ha.

All of this solidifies that even if I complete a qualifying race, I won’t be throwing my hat into the ring for Western States, which I followed over the weekend. A very strange race (on the men’s side) this year!

Summer Running Goals 2

Last year’s goals are here. I didn’t achieve too many of them.

This year, I’ve broadened my focus a bit, and it’s not just about running in state parks. Here’s what I’ve got:

  • Run a <30 5K
  • Run across the Bong Bridge
  • Become a marathoner
  • Recon every section of the Moose Mountain Marathon
  • Volunteer at an aid station
  • Traverse the entire Lakewalk in one run
  • Run from Gooseberry Falls to Split Rock

This is a nice mix of goals, I think. Last year’s goal list was focused solely on places to run, most of which required significant driving distances. There’s more variety to this year’s list, which I think will make it more achievable.

I had to get this post out quickly as my first sub-30 attempt is in just a few days. If I don’t make it then, I will have to try another race in August. That also means finding another race in August that will work. I’m already signed up for two marathons and a volunteering stint, so I basically have to show up and do what I’m supposed to and I can tick off those other goals. The rest are all about timing and planning.

Eugene Curnow Trail Marathon Training: Week 4

I am so tired. Perfect time for a cutback week in week 5.

Monday: 5.5 mi, trail (Hartley), 133 bpm
Tuesday: 8.5 mi, road, 136 bpm
Wednesday: 3.6, treadmill (intervals), 146 bpm
Thursday: 6.5 mi, trail (Hartley), 139 bpm
Friday: 4 mi, trail (Bagley), 145 bpm
Saturday: 20 mi, trail (SHT at Becks Rd to Jay Cooke & back), 156 bpm
Sunday: rest
Total: 48.1 mi

A new milestone! 20 miles!

This week I had a minor epiphany, if that’s possible. I was getting really frustrated with the slowness of my actual pace, when I thought I was running much faster. I’m running lazily. I’m sitting back and loping along instead of running in a more dynamic posture, and the result is a slower pace with the same heart rate. I’ve been working this week on being more present when running, and keeping an engaged posture and stride. I still find myself zoning out, but snap myself out of it when I check the pace and see it’s slow. This might mean I can’t start my watch and then ignore it, at least for awhile, until I stop lapsing into the lazy posture and stride by default. Seeing slow paces flash across my watch screen is a good wake-up call.

I attempted a speed workout on Wednesday. I was doing half mile intervals at 6.3 mph on the treadmill, and was halfway through my 4th interval when the treadmill quit on me. All I needed to do was re-set the power strip, but I took it as a sign I needed to stop. With my strange rest days this week was hard enough; I’d run 50 miles since my last rest day by Friday, and still had my long run on the docket. That’s a lot of volume, and my body doesn’t actually know it’s a new week; it still knew I did 2 long runs between rest days. Oops.

Saturday was HOT. I mean, for Duluth. It was in the 80s and I started my long run at about 11:30. I didn’t mind starting in the heat because I need to practice running in heat, work on my cooling strategies, and see how I handle it. The trail was fairly shady so it wasn’t as bad as what the marathoners were experiencing, full sun with no shelter or respite for much of the race, especially for slower people (like I’d have been, had I entered). I did feel fairly crummy for the first 6 or 7 miles due to the heat. I ran on the Munger Trail for awhile which helped me speed up a bit, although there were several fairly runable single-track sections on the chosen stretch of the SHT. Unfortunately there were also some miles that weren’t groomed well, and the thigh-high grass made me itch pretty badly. Around mile 9, after I’d crossed over the Thomson Dam, I hit a really frustrating section of grass that left seeds sticking to my legs and arms. The combination of the grass, heat, and salt on my skin left me rubbing my legs during any ascent, just to get the itchiness to subside.

I hit a low point mentally in the last couple of miles. People who aren’t slow can’t really understand what it feels like to say “hey, only 3 miles left!” and then realize that still means an hour. I was really frustrated, itchy, bugs were driving me crazy, there were more climbs than I was expecting (not hard climbs, but still), and time felt like it was standing still. There were also Egyptian plague-levels of toads on the trail; if they had been frogs, I’d have been repenting like mad in preparation for the rapture. I was trying to dodge small toads, and clods of mud that looked like toads, and HUGE toads that startled me. There was a lot going on. I also think I was under-fueling. I resisted eating in the last few miles until I realized there was no way I was going to make it, and started on my second protein bar. I had 4 gels, 1.5 protein bars, and a small bottle of sports drink, which was probably (definitely) not enough. Of course, during the race, I won’t let that happen.

I am glad I did that run, though. I am now pretty darned certain I can complete the marathon next month. It starts early in the morning, so I can avoid some of the heat, I’ll be carrying more gels and eating at aid stations, I’ll have a drop bag along the way, and there will be access to cool water and ice for more active cooling.

My rest day was hardly a rest day. It remained hot overnight, at least in my house (I do not have air conditioning or even cross-ventilation), and I had a terrible time falling asleep. I slept maybe 4 non-consecutive hours, before deciding we weren’t going to be leaving at 9 a.m. for a drive down to the Twin Cities, where my mom had planned a lovely day of an outdoor picnic… in 90 degree weather. No. We did end up driving down in the afternoon, with the AC on, and had a short visit. I hate to drive down just for a few hours (we were traveling longer than the visit), but I had out of town family visiting, so it was worth the environmental irresponsibility.  I’m annoyed that I didn’t get to catch up on my sleep, but I still benefited from the rest day.

Step-back week this week, as I need to give myself more rest, especially with the crappy sleep I’ve been getting. I’m hoping to have a good showing in my 5K Friday night!

Eugene Curnow Trail Marathon Training: Week 3

A big week for me! And NO treadmill running!

Monday: 6 mi, trail (Bagley), 136 bpm
Tuesday: 6.6 mi, trail (SHT at Spirit Mountain), 141 bpm
Wednesday: 7.3, road (MAF test), 134 bpm
Thursday: 5.4 mi, road, 130 bpm
Friday: rest (work/travel)
Saturday: 4.1 mi, road, 137 bpm
Sunday: 18 mi, trail (SHT out & back starting at Becks Road), 148 bpm
Total: 47.4 mi

This was my biggest mileage week of the year, and thus probably ever, and I set a new personal best in miles covered, at 18. I was really excited to have decent weather the entire week. It was hot on Saturday, but I ran in the evening after we returned from an overnight stay for a family event. It was late enough that I wore my headlamp and turned it on for the last mile or so, mostly for visibility to cars.

On Monday, I tried to take things nice and easy to recover from my long run the day before. Since I was running Bagley, I still got in a bit of climbing, but I didn’t feel overexerted.

Tuesday I parked at Spirit Mountain and did 5 repeats of the “stairs” on the trail just beyond. My legs were burning but each time I reached the bottom again, my heart rate had recovered to an acceptable level, so I felt good about the experience. I ended up running farther than I had planned. I ran down to the Knowlton Creek crossing and then climbed back up, but decided to continue on the main trail back toward the Magney parking lot, to see where I’d missed the turn the previous Sunday. The trail goes down along the base of the ski area and along a creek; it’s a very nice section of trail. I found where I’d missed the turn and can’t believe I missed it, it was really obvious where the trail continued. Mystery solved, I guess. I didn’t think very hard about where I was going, and realized the Magney parking lot was a lot farther away than I thought. I ended up leaving on a spur trail that I thought would lead me to the road, but I couldn’t figure out how to get there. I ended up on an access road for Spirit Mountain, and followed that back. I got to the final ski run and climbed the rest of the way to the parking lot.

Wednesday’s workout, I already discussed. Thursday I took it really easy (obviously, from the 130 bpm HR), running a familiar road loop around UMD and back home.

Sunday, I picked a pretty tough course, starting and ending just after Ely’s Peak. I didn’t climb all the way up the peak, but there’s still some very technical climbing on the trail in the area. I ran more slowly than I would have liked, but it was a training run, and I probably could have had a few more gels/snacks along the way to get an extra boost. I definitely have a lot of work to do before the race next month, though. The last few miles were very frustrating, since I would think I was picking up the pace, then I’d look at my watch and see just how slowly I was going. The final mile was pretty darn slow, but that also includes navigating the rocky sections near Ely’s Peak that required extra care due to my tired legs. My sense about this training cycle is that if I do enough climbing and make a lot of my runs challenging, I will set myself up for a good race. We’ll see how that goes. I still have several long runs left, including a 20 miler planned I think for next weekend, so there’s lots of time to improve. I hope.