New Shoes, New Tech, New Goals,

My training is going well!  Plain and simple, I feel like I am accomplishing my little short term goals (weekly mileage and strength exercises) as developing and working up to new long term goals.  Things are good and getting better.  And best of all?  My man is training alongside of me (sometimes, well ahead--read this article about running with the mister).  I want to talk a bit about my goals and training plan, but first, some new goodies I've gotten recently:

After a few LONG visits to my LRS (local running store), Red Rock Running Company, running in and sampling several different pairs of shoes, I finally found a pair that just felt right.  It's the New Balance RC 1600 racing flat.  I'm no racer, but this shoe felt natural on my foot.  Extremely light with an 8 mm drop, it's close to minimal with a bit of spring for extra speed.

...and they're cute to boot.  So far so good with these little beauties.  I'll keep you posted on how they continue to work.  On to the next:  the Garmin Forerunner 10.  I usually track my miles and times with the Endomondo app. on my phone, but the GPS signal is nothing short of a nightmare at times.  I try not to be a slave to any tracking device, but let's face it--knowing your pace is not only useful, it's motivating.  I also liked having the capability to upload my runs to social networking sites for extra motivation and accountability.  The frustration of the inconsistent GPS signal was just too much and I had had my eye on the Forerunner (with its cute colorful wrist band) for some time.  For the price ($125), it does quite a bit.  In addition to tracking mileage and pace, it tracks calories, has interval training options, pacing, speed v. mile/min., and the capability to have your runs uploaded to Garmin Connect for further analysis, sharing, and personalized training plans.  Pretty nice!

For a review of both the New Balance RC 1600's and the Garmin Forerunner 10, follow the links.

Now onto my training and some goals I've been setting....
Because I am starting my training quite a bit in advance, I feel that not only will I be prepared for the Stinson Beach 37K, but I will have a strong foundation on which I can continue to build.  In addition to the running, I am also working through pretty intense strength (total body) training three days per week, and focusing on clean eating*.  All of this has helped me feel and become stronger, and my running has improved.  Here is a sample of the training calendar:

Week	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday
1	3 miles (morning) Strength:  Upper Body	3 miles	Strength:  Upper Body	4 miles (intervals or trail)	Strength: Lower Body	Long Run: 5 miles	Rest
2	3 miles (morning) Strength:  Upper Body	3 miles	Strength:  Upper Body	4 miles (intervals or trail)	Strength: Lower Body	Long Run: 6 miles	Rest
3	3 miles (morning) Strength:  Upper Body	3 miles	Strength:  Upper Body	4 miles (intervals or trail)	Strength: Lower Body	Long Run:  7 miles	Rest
4	3 miles (morning) Strength:  Upper Body	3 miles	Strength:  Upper Body	4 miles (intervals or trail)	Strength: Lower Body	Long Run: 8 miles	Rest
5	3 miles (morning) Strength:  Upper Body	3 miles	Strength:  Upper Body	5 miles (intervals or trail)	Strength: Lower Body	Long Run: 9 miles	Rest
6	3 miles (morning) Strength:  Upper Body	3 miles	Strength:  Upper Body	5 miles (intervals or trail)	Strength: Lower Body	Long Run: 10 miles	Rest
7	4 miles (morning) Strength:  Upper Body	4 miles	Strength:  Upper Body	5 miles (intervals or trail)	Strength: Lower Body	Long Run: 10 miles	Rest
8	4 miles (morning) Strength:  Upper Body	4 miles	Strength:  Upper Body	5 miles (intervals or trail)	Strength: Lower Body	Long Run: 10 miles	Rest
9	4 miles (morning) Strength:  Upper Body	4 miles	Strength:  Upper Body	6 miles (intervals or trail)	Strength: Lower Body	Long Run: 10 miles	Rest
10	4 miles (morning) Strength:  Upper Body	4 miles	Strength:  Upper Body	6 miles (intervals or trail)	Strength: Lower Body	Long Run: 11 miles	Rest
11	4 miles (morning) Strength:  Upper Body	4 miles	Strength:  Upper Body	6 miles (intervals or trail)	Strength: Lower Body	Long Run: 12 miles	Rest
12	4 miles (morning) Strength:  Upper Body	4 miles	Strength:  Upper Body	7 miles (intervals or trail)	Strength: Lower Body	Long Run: 12 miles	Rest
13	5 miles (morning) Strength:  Upper Body	4 miles	Strength:  Upper Body	7 miles (intervals or trail)	Strength: Lower Body	Long Run: 14 miles	Rest
14	5 miles (morning) Strength:  Upper Body	4 miles	Strength:  Upper Body	8 miles (intervals or trail)	Strength: Lower Body	Long Run: 15 miles	Rest
15	5 miles (morning) Strength:  Upper Body	4 miles	Strength:  Upper Body	8 miles (intervals or trail)	Strength: Lower Body	Long Run: 16 miles	Rest
16	5 miles (morning) Strength:  Upper Body	4 miles	Strength:  Upper Body	8 miles (intervals or trail)	Strength: Lower Body	Long Run: 16 miles	Rest
17	5 miles (morning) Strength:  Upper Body	5 miles	Strength:  Upper Body	8 miles (intervals or trail)	Strength: Lower Body	Long Run: 17 miles	Rest
18	5 miles (morning) Strength:  Upper Body	5 miles	Strength:  Upper Body	9 miles (intervals or trail)	Strength: Lower Body	Long Run: 17 miles	Rest
19	5 miles (morning) Strength:  Upper Body	5 miles	Strength:  Upper Body	8 miles (intervals or trail)	Strength: Lower Body	Long Run: 17 miles	Rest
20	5 miles (morning) Strength:  Upper Body	5 miles	Strength:  Upper Body	8 miles (intervals or trail)	Strength: Lower Body	Long Run: 18 miles	Rest
21	5 miles (morning) Strength:  Upper Body	5 miles	Strength:  Upper Body	7 miles (intervals or trail)	Strength: Lower Body	Long Run: 20 miles	Rest
22	5 miles (morning) Strength:  Upper Body	5 miles	Strength:  Upper Body	7 miles (intervals or trail)	Strength: Lower Body	Long Run: 21 miles	Rest
23	5 miles (morning) Strength:  Upper Body	3 miles	Strength:  Upper Body	7 miles (intervals or trail)	Strength: Lower Body	Long Run: 22 miles	Rest
24	3 miles (morning) Strength:  Upper Body	Walk 2 miles	Strength:  Upper Body	5 miles (intervals or trail)	Strength: Lower Body	Long Run: 23 miles	Rest
25	3 miles (morning) Strength:  Upper Body		Strength:  Upper Body	3 miles (intervals or trail)	Strength: Lower Body	Stinson Beach!	Rest

*I am not dieting.  I suck at "dieting".  What does that even mean, anyway?  However, I am very good about eating healthy, clean meals, and enjoy it.  Not to mention, all natural ice cream is clean eating, so this is a win win.

As for official goals I have set, in addition to running my longest race, I am planning on saving $1 for every mile I run each week.  I read an article recently about finding ways to "celebrate" your weekly success.  Even though this seems pretty measly for weekly payoff, it will add up to just slightly more than $600 by the time Stinson Beach arrives.  That's worth saving for.

"It's supposed to be hard....

If it wasn't hard, everyone would do it.  The hard...is what makes it great!"

 -Jimmy Dugan (Tom Hanks) A League of Their Own

Hi all!  The Humble Runners are back--this time for real.  It's been quite some time (since 2011!) and a lot has happened since the last post, so there will be a lot to talk about in the coming posts.  Since 2011, I've been doing a lot of running, had some great running partners, took a long hiatus due to injury, and became really great at Zumba and cross training in place of pounding the pavement (while I healed).  All of this, but now I have enthusiastically returned to the warm, gritty, temperamental,  and beautiful arms of running.  Here I am again-ready to share it all with you.  But for now, I am going to start fresh with the most current updates.

I've been thinking a lot about distance lately.  About how running long makes me feel powerful and how the overwhelming sense of accomplishment is unequaled by almost anything else.  Ultimately, it is running long that makes me love being a runner.  Now, I am no ultra-runner,  but I can't say that I haven't toyed with the notion of running great distances.  It would take a lot of work and be very hard, but like the Jimmy Dugan quote above, isn't that what makes it great?  How do you even get started?  Well, you take the first stride.  Plain and simple.  No one has told me that I can't run 30 miles, so who am I to back away from the challenge.  So, I signed up for the Pacific Coast Trail Run series 37K in Stinson Beach, California on October 26, 2013.  This 22 mile hilly, dirty, beautifully lush monstrosity,  with over 6000 feet total elevation gain, is going to be my catalyst.  What better way to start running LONG, than to set a goal to run long--a commitment that will be shared with other runners--OFFICIALLY.  Here, I will share my journey to Stinson Beach.  Please join me and share any ideas, advice, motivation, etc!  I'd love to hear it.

Cheers,

Tayler

we´re back

after months and months of inactivity (and a dead link), we are back. more posts to come soon. we apologize for the white noise.

they told me so...

After class, I picked up a sugar free Red Bull and headed over to Pitman trail to pick up 3 or 4 miles.  I had run a mile to watch my husband play softball yesterday, so I didn't do a rest day between runs.  Some would say that yesterday's mile was a junk mile, but that term is a bit obscure to me so, no matter.  Anywho, today I ran in a pair of heavy running shoes that came from...Target.  Didn't think much about it because they were what I had in the trunk of my car.  I just wanted to run without having to make the stop home for my Nike Frees.  Also, I have recently been putting up with minor shin pain--ache.  Fortunately, after I get set in my gait, the ache subsides and it's all good.  Today was different.  I'm blaming it on Target's cheap excuse for running shoes...at the same time blaming myself for not making the stop home for my trusty sneaks.  After about one and a half miles, I wanted to stop and walk.  When I stopped to walk, the pain was more annoying.  I jogged lightly, keeping my knees up.  Damn.  I walked again.  Running through my mind were thoughts like, "Great.  My knee pain is gone and now I have pain in the shins."  "Is it splints?  If so, how long should I rest?"  "It wasn't this bad two days ago when I was wearing my Nikes..."  Frustrated, I yanked at my laces and pulled my feet free from their "over cushioned" confines.  I stuffed my socks deep into the shoes followed by my loosely balled fists and took off on my bare feet expecting the worst in discomfort, thinking that 'they' couldn't possibly be right about the benefits of relying on bare feet.  They were.  Running felt great.  Steer clear of the occasional pebble and it's all good.  I was really amazed at how comfortable things became when there wasn't a thick, over built sole in between me and the ground.   My shin aches quickly disappeared and I felt that I could continue for a good mile or two more with just the soles of my feet.  Granted, when I was finished and returned to my car, my feet were the color of asphalt.  Not sexy, but worth it for the moment.  Now it's time to think about some minimalist trail shoes.  How about the New Balance Minimus 

-Tayler

It's been a while...

It's been a while since my last post, but I've been running and am super excited about an upcoming 18K in April through Sycamore Canyon, Malibu.  In addition to the new race, I've found a great new running partner that is super motivated and an awesome partner and friend.  As a matter of fact, I've invited her to share on this blog as a new Humblerunner.  Her name is Jaclyn and she is one of my best friends.  She, her husband Travis, my husband Branden, and I will all be participating in the Sycamore Canyon run in April.  The next several posts will be reflections on our running to prepare for the race and any other information we read or learn through experience that you may find helpful.  Keep posted and happy running!