Beautiful Spring Run

Even though it was 34 degrees when we started it felt like Tom, Holly, Mike and I had a wonderful spring run. Sunny, no wind - perfect. A good 12 miles! We "ran" into the marathoners at the start, they were looking good and in a good mood to be running in nice weather for once!

Love that Forerunner!

Today was one of those days that I love my Garmin Forerunner. I felt like I was really struggling on my 5.6 mile run with Jenny. It was supposed to be a pace run, but I didn't have the energy to push it any harder. At the end my trusty Forerunner told me I was running an 8:24 average pace. No wonder I was struggling!

Top 10 lists

On this morning's run Mike was talking about a Top Ten list he recently heard at a Men's Health Expo. Tonight I happened upon this Top Ten Nutritional Myths list. (maybe Christy will disagree with it) Note #2 - drink Chocolate milk after a long run! Yeah!

These top ten nutrition myths appeared in a recent report from Medical News Today. So without further ado, here they are:

10. Eating carbohydrates makes you fat. Cutting carbs from your diet may have short-term weight loss benefits due to water loss from a decrease in carbohydrate stores, but eating carbs in moderation does not directly lead to weight gain. The body uses carbs for energy, and going too long without them can cause lethargy.

9. Drink eight, 8-oz. glasses of water per day. You should replace water lost through breathing, excrement and sweating each day - but that doesn't necessarily total 64 ounces of water. It's hard to measure the exact amount of water you have consumed daily in food and drink, but if your urine is pale yellow, you're doing a good job. If it's a darker yellow, drink more H2O.

8. Brown grain products are whole grain products. Brown dyes and additives can give foods the deceiving appearance of whole grain. Read labels to be sure a food is whole grain, and try to get three-ounce equivalents of whole grains per day to reduce the risk of heart disease, diabetes, and stroke.

7. Eating eggs will raise your cholesterol. This myth began because egg yolks have the most concentrated amount of cholesterol of any food. However, there's not enough cholesterol there to pose health risks if eggs are eaten in moderation. Studies suggest that eating one egg per day will not raise cholesterol levels and that eggs are actually a great source of nutrients.

6. All alcohol is bad for you. Again, moderation is key. Six ounces of wine and 12 ounces of beer are considered moderate amounts, and should not pose any adverse health effects to the average healthy adult. All alcohol is an anticoagulant and red wine also contains antioxidants, so drinking a small amount daily can be beneficial.

Want to know the top five myths? Then,

5. Vitamin supplements are necessary for everyone. If you eat a variety of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, along with moderate amounts of a variety of low-fat dairy and protein and the right quantity of calories, you don't need to supplement. Most Americans do not, so a multi-vitamin might be good. Special vitamin supplements are also recommended for people who are pregnant or have nutritional disorders.

4. Consuming extra protein is necessary to build muscle mass. Contrary to claims of some protein supplement companies, consuming extra protein does nothing to bulk up muscle unless you are also doing significant weight training at the same time. Even then the increased requirement can easily come from food. A potential problem with supplements is the body has to work overtime to get rid of excess protein, and can become distressed as a result.

3. Eating fiber causes problems if you have irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). There are two kinds of fiber: soluble and insoluble. Insoluble fiber can cause problems in IBS sufferers; soluble fiber, however, is more easily absorbed by the body and helps prevent constipation for those with IBS. Soluble fiber is found in most grains.

2. Eating immediately after a workout will improve recovery. Endurance athletes need to take in carbohydrates immediately after a workout to replace glycogen stores, and a small amount of protein with the drink enhances the effect. Drinking low-fat chocolate milk or a carbohydrate drink, like Gatorade, is better for the body, as they replace glycogen stores lost during exercise. Protein is not going to help build muscle, so strength athletes do not need to eat immediately following their workout.

1. Type 2 diabetes can be prevented by eating foods low on the glycemic index. High levels of glucose are not what "cause" diabetes; the disease is caused by the body's resistance to insulin. Foods high on the glycemic index can cause glucose levels to spike, but this is just an indicator of the presence of diabetes, not the root cause.

It's not April Fools day!

Yes, we ran in snow today - April 12th for Gosh Sakes! It gave me good excuse not to run a pace run and enjoy a slower run although enjoy might be pushing it. I was suffering from the usual end of week dragging.

The good news is that the weather forecast for the weekend is looking up! A hear a collective sigh of relief from the marathoners!

Time for some WARM Inspiration!

Given the forecast of 6-12 inches for tonight and tomorrow, I thought it was time to share this video.

Soon we will feel the SUN too!

7 miler

Everyone showed up with energy today b/c we decided to do a 7 miler or else they were guilty about yesterday. Big group... Mike, Sandy, Christy and Jill. It was a bit chilly, but no wind.

I am back

After almost a week of being sick, I finally ran today. I almost didn't since the kids don't have school and I took the day of work (aka - I could sleep late). But when I realized it would be a week without running, I decided to set my alarm and decide in the morning. I am glad I ran. It felt better then I thought it would.

Everyone must have had too much Easter Ham yesterday since 3 of the five who said they were going to run didn't show up (You know who you are!). Everyone must have been counting on everyone else to show up and run with Christy. Or maybe everyone was afraid we were going to do hills again!

No rain

Much to the chagrin of all of us, it was not raining hard this morning so we all had to run! Christy was feeling the effects of our hill work out the morning before, but she eventually stopped whining and crying ;-) Her new love are Clif Shot Bloks (Sorry Bryan!). And no, alcohol isn't involved!

Hills again

Sandy wanted to do a hill work out again, so we did. At the end she was probably trying to remember why she liked them so much. It is a nice way to start the week since the walks down the hill give us time to talk and catch up from the weekend - once we get our breath back that is!

Appreciating running friends

Today was a day that was meant to make you appreciate your running friends (they are SO much more than partners!). Jill and I planned on meeting this morning at 7:00 for 5-6. I called her at 6:30 since it was raining, just to make sure she was still planning on coming. I guess my subliminal power of suggestion wasn't strong enough because she said she was still planning on it. Chalk it up to one of the many things that I said I would never do -but do anyway... run in a cold, windy rain. (Other things I said I would never do,but did; run any race longer then 5K, run a marathon, run in the morning, run on vacation) Thanks Jill for helping me take that one off my list!

Despite the weather and legs feeling very heavy the first mile, it turned out to be a nice run.

Oh - I also ran 11.67 with Jill, Judy and Amy on Friday. Amy kept me going fast.

Speed

I attempted a speed work out this morning and it became the story of the turtle and the hare. My training plan had me doing 3 miles at race pace, so after a mile warm up I told Wendy and Jenny I would be running faster then normal and don't worry about keeping up. I went all out and ran faster then race pace for the 3 miles then slowed to a leisurely pace at which point Jenny and Wendy passed me up. It was a good run.

Delayed Reaction

When we were running this morning others were talking about where they were feeling the effects of our hill workout the day before. At that time I wasn't feeling any negative effects, but as the day wore on my glutus max was getting sorer and sorer - and not when I was sitting!

I am post recovery of a root canal. Since it was my first, it will be interesting to see how the night goes. Ugh. The root canal itself wasn't bad, it was the embarrassment of my crying! I have no idea what was going on in my head! You would have thought they were telling me that I was loosing all of my teeth! I guess it was just the situation of trying to make a decision when you feel completely unqualified to do so. Plus this was the first major dental decision I have ever had to make. (tooth has a crack in it which may result in the root canal failing so I had to decide whether or not to try the root canal or just get the tooth pulled). Or maybe in some weird way I felt like I had failed - "If I had flossed maybe this wouldn't have happened". Wait - a thought just occurred to me - Maybe I should start a class action suit against Bubblicious and Bubble Yum for the cavity they caused to form in my tooth! (During the time in middle school I chewed this gum was when I got cavities!) It isn't that different from smokers and tobacco companies right? AND they were doing it to CHILDREN for gosh sakes! The injustice! Gotta run and go call my lawyer brother-in-laws! (Jim is on a run)

I think my tongue and cheek finally got feeling back - time to go eat dinner.

Shorts - part II

We got lucky again and were able to wear shorts and t-shirts! A little earlier start than normal due to Christy, Jill and Sandy running 8 miles. I reminded myself that I am not training for a marathon so I was able to cut off and do 5.66.

My lonely return to the start reminded me how much I appreciate running with others! Thanks everyone for the runs in the morning!

March 26, 2007 - First Time We Wore Shorts

Yes, believe it or not we all wore shorts and t-shirts this morning! 60 degrees was shocking. We were so excited that we decided to do a hill workout! Well, actually Jill, Jenny and Sandy were willing to give it a try, I am not sure how excited they were about it. But we did it and all seemed to enjoy the change. I think it became even more enjoyable once we cut the distance from 400 to 200 yards, especially after I said we were doing 8!

We ended up running about 4.67 miles when all was said and done.

GOOD JOB!