•The "agony" of choosing a spring marathon. Who ever thought it would be so "difficult" to choose a goal race? (Haha) 1st world problem for sure. Things I'm considering/concerned about:
-Weather
-Course Profile
-Whether or not I'm healthy 4-5 months in the future. My knee has a bruise (presumably) from the turnstile incident 2 months ago and gives me minor discomfort on longer runs. The bruise showed up a week ago.
Front runners include the Knoxville marathon (hilly) and the Wisconsin Marathon. (Along with a few others) I just can't pull the trigger on a race just yet.
So I continue to base build and enjoy snowy runs.
•Food and running and the holidays and stuff. I don't get the "free pass" mentality of stuffing your face with all the things during the holidays, and marathon training and just because. I say that- yet I struggle with food (eating too much) and am not sure why. Could it be our cultural emphasis on food as a reward, or motivation?
So for December I've made a very conscious effort to eat reasonable portion sizes, not snack (feeling a little hungry is OKAY), and continue to eat more whole foods. And 3 weeks in I'm feeling the best I have in a while.
Last night we made pizza- just heirloom tomatoes, mozzarella, basil and some Parmesan. Noms with a bottle of good wine.
This also ties into the potential spring marathon because I want to be in better shape going into training. "You can't out train a bad diet." Cliche I know, but "garbage in, garbage out.Ok I'll stop. But seriously, I plan to improve my running for as long as my body allows- (and I want to continue to look and feel "better.")
•CB is no fan of Christmas either. We are just over the materiality of this season and the fakeness that goes along with it. Be a good person all year long, yo!
- xaar
Kim and Chanthana can probably also give you their input on Wisconsin (half and full, respectively), but I wasn't a big fan of Wisconsin. I had an amazing support group there, but the course itself was pretty unappealing. There's pretty rough pavement/hardcore gravel roads that make up at least 4-5 miles of the course, which I suppose, is a personal preference, but it was pretty brutal on the legs, and a fair amount of weaving and watching where you put your feet was tiring in of itself. The first half is ok (some rolling hills), but it's an out and back with a hairpin turn, which I really hate. Second half was awful - through a forest preserve, so pretty, I suppose, but the gravel was here, and you basically spend 45 minutes weaving close to/away from the final 10k stretch, but not actually there (soul crushing), and there's another hairpin turnaround at mile 20 that was kind of the worst. I know that these kind of course issues can be very personal, and recognize that they may be things that don't really bother you. The only other thing to consider is that it's right on the lake, so not sure if other years have been really windy. We lucked out this year, I suppose, but the wind was pretty gnarly the night before. If you're cool with gravel and hairpins, it's definitely a race to consider. Decent crowd support, cute swag, and free (good) local beer.
ReplyDeleteI approve of both the pizza noms and the adorable Christmas churro.
- H
The Wisconsin Marathon would be appealing because it is nice and close and is literally a short train ride away. Anyway, I think that stuffing our faces is okay as long as it's mostly protein, fruits and veggies. Unfortunately those things are not in abundance at most holiday dinners/parties. :)
ReplyDeleteTotally agreed. I never mind stuffing my face with all the veggies ;) but all the booze, carbs, and processed things kill me!
DeleteThat's the main appeal of Kenosha for me- that it's easy to get to. I don't need any fancy bells and whistles.
Bummer about your knee bruise, hopefully it clears up soon. Glad that it's just a bruise and not something more serious. For the marathon, is the Wisconsin race in Madison? If so, that city is really awesome to check out - so many good restaurants and bars there.
ReplyDeletehttp://nellyontherun.blogspot.com/2012/09/football-games-galore.html
I've been reading more articles about Brazil World Cup 2014, the more I read, the more it sounds like a bad idea to go there. I can't seem to find anyone else who would want to go it seems like. And after reading fantastic articles like these as well:
http://espn.go.com/espn/feature/story/_/id/10079392/generation-june
my diet is not good...I know it isn't..but I can't seem to find any self control
ReplyDeleteIt is difficult! I just try to make the "right" decision moment by moment and not think too far ahead.
Deleteohh i miss those snowy runs, I feel like they were always so quiet and peaceful...also good for allowing you to slow down if needed :)
ReplyDeleteYea, in terms of 2014, my guess is that I won't end up doing a marathon, but I will end up doing some half marathons hopefully. Just got to stay healthy like you mention.
ReplyDeleteAnd I appreciate the continued tips on the World Cup, you have given me more tips than anyone. Yea, I'm not going to go down there for it =). I am curious to see what happens though in June during it!