Thursday, April 12, 2007

Movin' kind of slow

I feel like I'm walking through molasses in clogs this morning. Last night's sleep started at 10 or so, stopped at 12:30 a.m. when the power went out briefly and resumed an hour later. I woke up at 7:07 this morning – pretty late for me.

It's good to know I'm not alone in thinking that fat calculator is full of hooey. The Hussman Fitness link over there in the sidebar has a pretty accurate BMR calculator – I think M@rla recommended it to me quite a long time ago, and while even it suggests I should eat 1350-1450 calories per day [too many for me], it's more realistic than any other I've found.

I used MapMyRun the other day to find a safer 11-mile run for Saturday – safer than the one where I would have to deal with coal and logging trucks and 18-wheelers. The total distance is in the ballpark: 11.45 miles, giving me a bit of warm-up and cool-down distance. After I did the eight-mile tempo run yesterday [10 seconds slower than I was supposed to – darn!], I drove the long route. The last seven miles are gentle hills, only about 100 feet from the lowest point to the highest. They also are seven miles I've never run before, so it'll be new scenery, which will be a very good thing.

It's not that I'm bored with my usual routes, it's more of the "familiarity breeds contempt," or at least comfort. The four-mile flat run is truly easy at this point. I just can't imagine I'm actually writing that, thinking it and believing it.

Yesterday was cool and rainy; I left the iPod in the car and I really liked running without music, although I'm sure that contributed to my slower time. It helps to have something peppy going on in my head to keep pace with. But it was also nice to listen to the birdsong and the river and even the rain.

If you walk or run for fitness, you probably have two or three pairs of training shoes cluttering up your bedroom or closet. I accidentally wore an old pair yesterday, which might also have slowed me down a bit. I could really feel where the rubber meets the road! I thought I might have to go get a new pair of shoes today, to have time to break them in before the race, so was very glad to see my "good" shoes parked by the chair where they usually are when I finally got home.

I haven't learned yet that I will get warm, no matter how chilly it is when I start out. I wore a long-sleeved t-shirt under my favorite cotton hoodie and soaked through both of them by the time I hit the halfway mark. That made the second four miles more than slightly uncomfortable, and I ripped off the hoodie at the seven-mile point. I just couldn't take it any more!

If you've been here for a while, you'll notice I haven't been talking about food or knitting lately. I'm still sort of following the YOAD plan, although I've added some sugar back to my diet in the last couple weeks. I need the quick shot of energy from hard candy or a gel pack on the long runs, and I have to admit that since I'm eating it during a run, it's also pretty easy to justify having a cookie here or a sweet treat there. It's one more thing to get back to doing right, after the half-marathon, and it certainly contributes to my weight staying the same. Average daily calories are in the 1400 to 1500 range right now; I eat when I'm hungry and I probably need more, since the long runs are slowing down when I should be getting faster.

Knitting? I made and felted a larger bowl, which ended up being more like a shallow tray, and also made two of the smaller bowls in a dark red to go with my dark red living room furniture. I'm still slogging away on the all-garter-stitch, all-the-time pullover. I bought a couple of patterns for some felted animals [I ordered them from Woobee KnitShop, and can highly recommend their excellent service!] which will be for my new expected granddaughter, whose room is going to be decorated in a zoo theme. Those are next in line, after the pullover is finished.

I think that covers it. Four easy miles today ... and I really mean that!

Sixteen days until race day.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thank you so much for the link to "map my run"! I've been looking for a tool like this forever and now know that my route is 2.33 miles.

Come and do an easy run with me in Chicago some time (although easy for you, I'm still working my way up to it with jogging and walking).

Here is my route http://www.mapmyrun.com/route/united-states/il/chicago/331603318

Jeanette

Debbi said...

I would love to run in Chicago some time! The closest I've been to Chicago is Midway Airport or the interstate going around the city on the way to or from either Milwaukee or Oshkosh. I waved at the big, tall buildings as I drove by.

Oh, there also was the time my daughter and I went to Ikea. But that wasn't exactly in The City.

Jack Sprat said...

I loooooove mapmyrun!! And I totally understand the desire to find new running routes, while also the desire to know where you're going when you change them!! I have four separate routes that I do just to stay sane. Hope you have fun -- you inspire me daily!

Anonymous said...

Speaking of knitting - I think I mentioned before that I subscribed to a "page a day" knitting calendar called "stitch n bitch." It's an interesting thing to look at every day - even if my knitting is still at the exact same point it was over 2 months ago - waiting for the Russian join.

Anyway, this calendar comes up with some unusual things, but I thought today's entry definitely takes the prize for THE weirdest! Check it out:

For about $40, you can buy yourself your very own knitted uterus from Birth International (www.birthinternational.com). A classic teaching tool, it’s used by midwives and doulas to demonstrate dilation, crowning, and all other labor-related events. (The knitted “vaginal extension” attaches to the uterus with snaps!)
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Maybe I should get you to knit me a uterus - since I lost mine a few years ago! ;-)

Anonymous said...

oops...last comment was mine. For some reason my blogger password isn't working... :-(

...denise