Weekly recap: 7/25/16 - 7/31/16

Yeah yeah, I probably shouldn't count down the weeks to something I'm not going to be able to accomplish...  that really sucks, it really does.  In the bigger picture these things stick out as noteworthy:

1. This has been a nice break from running in the heat and humidity, it does a number on my brain and my confidence. 
2. The extra pudge from the last 6 weeks didn't kill me and if I didn't point it no one would notice.
3. Maybe it's not a requirement to run every day, cross training days are OK, except if its snowing or raining on an off day, then I have to run as those are favorite running times.

And on top of that it's been quite a week in my non athletic pursuits too!!

Monday (0/5/15) - Faith has been wanting to try a spin class and to have someone's hand to hold for her very first spin class ever.  We went on Monday!  It was fun.  The Westerly Y has the fancy new smooth bikes, and there were only 4 of us in the class.  We got there early so the instructor could help adjust the bike and get her set up.  And class started all seemed well, she didn't fall off the bike and really seemed to enjoy the challenge of the class.   Hopefully we will be able to meet up for more classes.

Tuesday (0/5/0) -  I had a nice walk at work and enjoyed chatting with Mikey B and Eric S about injuries, it's nice to know someone understands what a HUGE deal it is to not be in pain getting out of the car or having to pick your leg up to move it!

Wednesday (0/0/0) - PT day and Vinnie (my car) died and I bought a new car.  Who knew you could go in take a test drive and drive the car home that night.  I'll miss Vinnie, we had a good run 10 year and 247K miles.  I was SO close to the 250K I wanted from him, but the costs to repair to get him running and safe would mean I'd need to keep him at least another year and who knows what other expensive things would go wrong. Plus I really don't need to have a car die in the middle of the Wilds of PA.

Thursday (0/0/0) - Aqua jogging in the a.m. Joe put me through my paces with core work.  I get it, my core isn't all it could be.  Noted and will work on this.

Friday (0/3.1/0) -  I got out for a walk in the rain and spent a good 30 minutes with my HEP (Home Exercise Program) and a couple other things Sarah has been doing with me in PT.  The 29th was also Dave's 50th so we went out to dinner.  He seems a little down about this birthday thing, I reminded him that he has all his hair and 2 maybe three strands are gray so he's leaps and bounds ahead of many men his age and younger.  That did little to cheer him up till I brought up my brothers 47 and 46 and how what's left of their hair is silver.

Saturday (0/4/37) - What started out as a 50 mile ride turned into possibly a 40 mile ride and ended up being a 37 mile ride.  The initial drop was because I had a hard time getting motivated and really didn't want to be out on the roads past noon, so taking 10 off was a good way to thwart dealing with the searing sun and traffic.   Had a nice chat with Mikey when discovered him outside cleaning cars!  I decided to take his route for my trek up Cossaduck Hill to see where I ranked against his venture up there a few weeks ago.  Wyassup Hills are more of a gut punch, by the third one I was sucking wind and swearing.  Cossaduck was steep and hard, but not so much that I wanted to swear, and swearing comes rather easily to me.... Mikey was faster on the steep part and I was faster on the overall hill, nice to have a benchmark!  Running?  I'll never catch him on a training run, forget about a race, but I CAN keep up on a bike ride!

Ventured up to Buttonwood Farms to see the sunflowers, I opted out of ice cream as the place was a zoo.  Another day, when it is quieter, after the let the cows loose in the sunflower fields.

Sunday (0/1/0) -  I am surely taking more rest days than necessary however, wow do I feel good taking care of projects at home and catching up on my naps.  I am very very behind on my Friday afternoon naps.  I need to heal and continually putting stress on my hip isn't going to help that process.

Mileage:
Feet:  17.4  yearly 1,100 against a straight line goal of 1,173.6
Saddle: 52.1  yearly 861.2 against a straight line goal of 1,173.6

Sincerely,
Beth, learning how to eat with in her actual calorie expenditure and taking one day at a time

Week 13: 07/18/2016 - 07/24/2016

Lucky Week 13, crap... by the time this posts I'll be in to week 12 with over a month not having run.  Still there is a glimmer of hope in my ever hopeful heart, my brain, well it knows better but won't let the squishy thing in my chest down so it keeps quiet.

One of the biggest bestest pieces of news this week was a girlfriends Father, diagnosed with Stage III Lung Cancer July 2015 was given a clean bill of health this week.  Holy crap, that is fantastic!  The advance in treatment are amazing.  The cancer is gone!!  He still has some residual use of oxygen due to pneumonia, once that clears he is on the 3 month CT routine for the first year, then 6 months for another year and once a year.

This news, of course, feeds my ever hopeful heart that I can accomplish at least my 50 miles before 50 goal...  Lung Cancer going away, eliminated, that is a miracle.  I'm still in awe of that news, in the 9 years I've been exposed to this cancer first with my mother's diagnosis and as a result meeting people living with it and dying from it and their relatives, this is the first.  There have been so many deaths in the last 9 years, and so few living withs and now the first NED (No Evidence of Disease).  Wow, just wow.

Monday (0/5.6/0) - 5K walk at lunch time, felt good.  Ok in the beginning I felt like a grumpy bitch and it showed on my face.  It helped to get out but not to see all the happy runners.  I tried to focus on how much I hate running in July and August and how frustrated I get with myself for not dealing well with the temperatures.  I resorted to recalling a run where I got a full mile in and sat on the rocks and beat myself up for being such a horrible runner.  That actually helped a little bit, in some sort of perverse and weird way.  Plus that's when I learned the term "recovery run" or some such other title really meant that the run sucked.  At the end I had to laugh at how ridiculous I was being, so it was a good walk.  At least I got to work on my tan a bit, ha ha ha... 

Gus and I had a short stroll in the evening, it was cooler, but still steamy enough that he had enough by the time we hit a 1.5 miles and when he pulled me back towards home and I let him lead and the prance came back in his step. 

Tuesday (0/0/0) - NY for the day.  I debated on bringing shoes with to work out at lunch (they have all the gear,  you don't even have to bring socks!) at least ride the bike for 30 minutes.  Glad I opted not to as I didn't have any free time, save the space in my work bag for beer for the train ride home!  All in all the meetings went well and I'm pleased with the progress my team has made, they really made me look good!!

Wednesday (0/7.8/0) - Hills with Ro, our pace picked up a bit with the reduced humidity, I have to remember some of our quicker loops were when I would run to meet her and then run back, so a mile of running does take down the average pace about a minute.  It really is a good loop, we have to add in the climb up the 166 stairs in the Fort Griswold Monument.  I live and work in an area so rich in history!

Dave took Jax out with him to do some clean up on a rock painted with graffiti in one of the areas he rides a lot in, I was going to bike to the fun run get in some miles on the saddle and then take Gus for a walk later.  Gus isn't so keen on being alone so when I got home after him being home alone for less than an hour he was in full panic mode.  I decided I'd see how he'd do at the fun run with all the people. He did better than I did!  He was curious about all the people, ignored the other dogs, and was happy to take treats from John and get petted and made much of by people.  We walked on the beach for a bit and went back to see who we could see coming into the finish area. He was ready to go home and have his dinner and crash on the floor.  It has to be tough being a dog with the fur coat and not being able to sweat to cool off.  Not quite my plan for the evening.

Thursday (0/0/20.5) - Aqua jog in the a.m. went well.  Took the bike out for a spin to Watch Hill and back.  Nearly picked off a few tourists, oops.  Picked up a few more PRs!

• PRd my time on Ocean Ave segment, 20 seconds away from Gazelle and 5K, be fun to see how far I can close that gap.  I'll need a hell of a tail wind though!!
• PRd my time on the Epitome of Death, 3 seconds away from Jeff H, 9 from 5K, and 11 from Gazelle.  That's a tough one this time of year with traffic.
• PRd my Winnepaug Climb, that one is a bitch, 3 seconds away from 5K, 4, from Jeff H, and 11 from Gazelle. 

The local fire departments had their annual Smokey The Bear parade.  I crumpled into a pile of goo thinking about my friend Andrew.  I knew it would happen when I heard and saw a fire engine, I just didn't know when.  I had a good cry while stopping to wave at all the departments going by lights flashing and horns blaring.  It was nice not to see the ceremonial fire hearse.  Andrew's casket was taken away with a fire hearse someone had restored, it was actually pretty cool, as far as death goes. 

Friday (0/0/38.5) - Commute to and from work.  I was a biker before I was a runner, a trail biker, I'm enjoying the speed on the road. It was a rough start in the a.m.  I did something to my front derailleur and need to get it looked at and fixed.  Shifting to the big ring is tough and touchy.  Ding dong! Picked up a few more PRs and a QOM! 

At the bottom of Fort Hill at the light at Rte 117, a car pulled up beside me and the driver says "Hey"  I looked over, smiled and said "Hey".  I do this with trepidation, figuring it is more likely this person hates bikers so being sweet and ready to dive for the ditch is my safest bet.  Bikers kinda reap what they sew, especially when they ride in packs.  I nearly was taken out by a pack of Pequot Cyclists a month ago.  It was terrifying with them all flying down the hill not stopping to make a left and I was going straight and they had the stop sign.  Anyhoodles, he holds up 4 fingers and has this smirk on his face and says "You hit 40 going down that hill. Way to go!"  I smiled and said "Sorry for edging to the middle of the lane, that hill is so fun to bomb down."  He said  "Quite alright I wasn't going  to catch you anyhow!"  That made my morning, that and surpassing 40 on that down hill.  0:00:47!  QOM is 0:00:45  hmmmm.....




Decided on Rte 184 to go home, it feels like a net elevation loss, so that's nice, but damn it was hot.



Collected two more QOMs on the way home  3 for the day! Yeah me...

Anyhow, while I'm not running my biking is improving and that is quite alright by me, for now.  Maybe the rest will give my running a boost?

As I sit here debating erasing my list of achievements from Thursday night's ride.  I'm not a braggart, but it really does feel good to finally have some successes, so I'll not delete.

Saturday (0/1.3/0) - I didn't really plan on doing much but volunteering at the Run with the Beavers trail race.

Volunteering was great, it usually is!  What made it even better was finally getting to meet a runner I've been following for years.  I think we started getting serious about running about the same time, his story of getting into running was so inspiring and similar to mine, it was hard not to follow!  Jose has been an inspiration to me! Watching and cheering his successes from 5Ks to marathons, and last year his first 100 miler, this year will be his second, has been a great part of my journey.

Gus and I had a short walk.  He was so funny, pacing because it was walk time.  It was cooler in the house because Dave and I put in the AC for the living rooms.  It's nice to not sit and sweat and listen to the dogs pant.  But they think, oh it must be fine outside.  Getting that damn heavy thing from the second to the first floor is always a little touch and go.  The dogs want to help and get in the way and then there are smashed fingers...  It was nice to come home to slowly cooling off rooms.

Sunday (0/0/40.4) - There may be a short dog walk later...  The dogs got us up an at 'em early and it was a nice way to start a ride, in the what felt like cool temps, imagine that 79F feeling cool to me!!!

I bought a cadence sensor for the bike.  I'm really curious about it, from this a.m.s ride seems like I like a cadence about 70 and a heavy gear.  I don't feel right spinning fast... wonder what difference that makes.... something to investigate.

Plan?  What plan? I wasn't exactly sure what my plan was, I really do need an 80 mile ride, but I really don't need to die attempting it.  I went out on the route I planned out and then when the GPS told me to turn left on a dirt road (gotta correct the route) I thought, yeah, time to just finish this up on the Tour de Farms and go home and have coffee, oh but did I want to make coffee?  Not really, maybe I'd stop and get some, but I smell really bad...  so I decided I'd have the Night Shift Awake Rachel swapped me for a baby sweater!  (included in this swap was a Bell's Expedition Stout (I didn't find any on my last trip back home) looking forward to that also)

http://www.nightshiftbrewing.com/beers

Fortunately, or unfortunately Dave got home just after me and started making coffee, um OK sure.  I'll save the beer to enjoy later.



Remembering that Mikey did Cossaduck Hill last weekend and now I'm really wanting to attempt it and then remembering that I'm not supposed to be climbing big hills I opted for the nice net downhill of Ryder Road.  Unfortunately as I sat at the Ryder Road/Wyassup Hill/Chester Maine intersection watching that same pack of terrifying Pequot Cyclists decide to though to Ryder Road and not up Wyassup I went up Wyassup.  So much for taking it easy on my hip.  Cut a whole 3 seconds off my time on those three hills...

I don't think the hills compare in anyway, they are very different climbs... But out of curiosity here is Cossaduck Hill (Mikey's results) and then Wyassup Hill.  Next week Cossaduck Hill!

Caroline Pierce is a beast, there is no catching her.  Maybe I can continue my goal of catching Mikey!

Top male: Anthony Eisle 4:43
Top female: Jacqueline Parker 4:59

Now to get Mikey to ride Wyassup so I can see how we stack up! It's nice to have someone to chase to keep improving.

Top male: Chris Case 14:04
Top female: Thalia Pryor 16:56

Anyhoodles, my hip feels fine and actually better than yesterday morning so who even knows.  I think it wanted some exercise?

Mileage summary:
Feet:  Weekly 14.7  Yearly 1081.9 against a straight line target of 1135.1 (watching the gap widen)
Saddle: Weekly 99.4  Yearly 809.1 against a straight line target of 1135.1 (closing the gap, slowly)

Looks like making either goal may not happen, well that's why I set the goals high to have something to aim for....

Sincerely,
Beth, happy I'm not starting from zero once I can run again

Week 14: 7/11/16 - 7/17/16

Clearly I live in a world of rose colored glasses and where hope flows over.  This week it started becoming reality I do have an injury that needs time and patience to heal.   Looking forward to the long term picture is more sensible than the short term is very hard for me to come to grips with.

Reflecting on this hip, I've been having discomfort and issues all year. Pin pointing when it first cropped up is difficult, I'm vaguely remembering the winter.  Pin pointing the root cause, nearly impossible, although I'm suspecting the spin bike (it couldn't possibly be running, it just couldn't).  The remedy is time, time to allow the insanity in a very complex point in the body get sorted through physical therapy, non impact exercises, ice, the miracle of KT, and yes, Vitamin I.

My activity this week was very limited and that makes me depressed and a little grouchy, ok grouchy and a little depressed.  

I need to take this to heart.

Monday (1/4.2/0) - I did some intervals, 5 minutes walking 1 mile running, I think I can accept 1 12 minute  mile for running, it may have been a little more, at this moment I haven't studied my Strava download.  The pain was constant and consistent, probably a 4 or a 5.  Not enough to make me want to cry, but enough to make me think I should stop.  Which I didn't.  I wanted to see if it would get worse, it didn't.  I iced and took some Vitamin I when I got back to the office.  It felt fine the rest of the day.  Dave took the pups out to the field to run so no evening walk.  This turned out to be a good thing because it finally dawned on me I needed to reserve a room in Sturbridge the night before the PMC start.  Well shit.  I got that all sussed out now I really need to get my crap together with my fund raising.

Tuesday (0/2.8/38.3) - Biked into work, I do enjoy that.  Although the walk of shame to the gym to shower and change is a little odd. It's early enough no one is awake enough to notice.  Biked out to the Tuesday night fun run at The Dog Watch, caught up with a couple people and biked home.  I didn't need to get obliterated like I did last Tuesday.  Wednesday was a little tough, I shouldn't of had the beer or the Fisher's Island Lemonade when I got home.  Perhaps some actual food would have been appropriate.  The ride home was uneventful, I was ready to be home so I cut off a few miles I had planned to get to 40.  Plus I'm not supposed to be riding lots of hills with my hip.  Nor am I supposed to be 'running'....

All in all the hip feels better, I iced when I got home, and then took Gus for a walk and it never got stiff or sore, I'm hopeful I am on the mend.  It itches, which is weird.

As I peeled off the KT tape I was remembering how in awe my Nephew Jin was with my HUGE band-aid.  He only had two small boring ones on his knees from a bike crash earlier in the day.  Oh to be 5 going on 6 again.  Hopefully he won't try and figure out how to get injured enough to have a band-aid from his knee up to his hip!

Wednesday (5.8/0/0) -  I was thinking I should update my cover photo, it is from January, but I love the cold...  besides I still haven't managed to find a way to superimpose a zombie or other creature in this delightful image from the Blessing 2014.  Because, really it needs to be done...

Ro and I did our hill loop.  I stopped stopping my watch when I meet up with her or we stop at the top of Ft. Trumbull for a drink of water.  It messes with the pace, right?  At this point, I'm happy to be power walking with no pain.  Running, I'll try that again next week.  My Physical Therapist said it was good the pain didn't get worse and the fact my hip itches like a mofo means it's healing.  Here I thought I had some irritation from a tag in my pants, nope...  Now to just not scratch the skin off, because well that's something I would do.

Kept track of times at the Westerly Fun Run tonight.  Wowzers that is a chaotic job and definitely all those kids puts me out of my comfort zone.  As my boss would say "This is a good development opportunity for you Beth."

Thursday (0/0/0) -  There was PT in the a.m. so not an inactive day.  I was given a dressing down for my run/walk.  OK fine, I'll not try that again.  I miss the euphoria of running, however I don't miss the misery of running in this heat.  Maybe this is all a blessing in disguise.

The PT really kills my opportunities to bike into work, so I should ride more after work...

Joe gave me a dressing down for my 'running' which frankly isn't really running, even at my conservative pace!  Fine.  In the spirit of letting things work, I won't force myself back on the running road.  I say this with a bit of trepidation, what if I lose the love of the run? what if I can't even get back to my conservative pace?  what if what if what if... mostly how the hell am I going to not get fat?

Gus's walk and any possibility of a ride was sacrificed so I could do some genealogy research.  I received a very interesting DNA match making my tree wider, not taller.  It did and it didn't surprise me to find I have a great-grandfather in common with someone else trying to figure out where the hell they came from.  Definitely a lot for her to chew on, I'm sure.  It's a tough thing to dig into the past.  As one of my mother's aunts told us, "Sometimes people want the past left in the past and we should respect that."  My father used to ask questions to his grandfather only to be told "We have a new life here.  That is the past."    Now we have people like me, curious to know where they came from and ever expanding resources to enable this curiosity.

Friday (0/0/0) - this is not a good trend of triple zeros.  I'm surprisingly exhausted and that is probably a result of not a lot of activity.  My day was mostly made up of work and driving.  I met up with my LUNGStrong Team, and received my jersey and a pair of bike shorts.  Those things are freaking expensive.

Saturday (0/0/35.4) -  Postponed my 80 mile ride till Sunday when I could actually devise a route because I did't get back from Amesbury till nearly midnight last night.  Decided I'd do a 30ish mile route from a few weeks ago and add in some different sights.  The ride went well, the shorts, well they are OK.  I like my PI's much better than these...  They will be fine for the 86 miles into PTown on the second day of the Pan Mass Challenge.



Sunday (0/0.5/41.3) - 80 didn't happen, with the sun it is like riding in a steam room.  In hindsight I'm still glad I cut the ride short.  I didn't feel right once I got home and some food and a couple Gatorade's and water and a nap and I'm still not feeling quite right.  I dumped water on myself during the ride and that barely dried.  I rarely arrive home from a ride soaked, I did today.  The temp was even cooler.  Next weekend a double may be tough but it needs to be done again.    I hit a little more elevation gain than I'm supposed to per my PT too...  ruler breaker?  Although I don't think we ever defined 'hills' a hill to him may not be a hill to me.  I'm thinking Mt. Washington Century hills, I think he's thinking something less...

84ish would have taken me out to South Kingstown on the map below and then joining back in where I clearly cut South from Hopkinton.  Another day, definitely another day!  

It's a mile from home and they had a nice shady breezy place to hang out and enjoy this American Stout!

Mileage:  

Weekly  Foot: 14.3  Saddle:  115
Yearly  Foot:  1067.2  Saddle: 709.7  Against a straight line target of 1096.5  

Sincerely,
Beth, taking some time to regroup.