Category: Geek Girl Runner

Week 4
It was a weird week. It’s been hot and humid, and I’m still having trouble keeping my heart rate down. On Sunday, my HR was all over the place and I actually found myself getting irrationally angry about it. In retrospect it was actually kind of funny. (Gritting my teeth in anger doesn’t do much to calm down the ol’ HR!) I’m having a bit of shoe trouble though. I looked down at my Newtons the other day and realised that the outer lugs on each foot have worn completely down on the front! I got them at the end of August, and my total mileage in that time is just over 200 miles (325km). Is that normal? On one hand it’s clear proof that I’m landing in the right spot (as are the calluses on the balls of my feet). But on the other hand, these are pretty expensive shoes, and I can’t afford multiple pairs per year. I tweeted about it to sirisaac but they didn’t respond. I’m guessing it’s partly because I actually have racers, as opposed to trainers. (The racers had a big discount when I bought.) Can anybody comment on the longetivity of their Newtons?

Anyway, the weekly totals…

Jan 22: 5.56km
Jan 24: 7.13km
Jan 26: 5.61km
Jan 28: 5.44km
Total this week: 23.74km (14.8mi) – same as last week!
Total in 2010: 92.4km (57.75mi)

I’ve got quite a cushion built-up in my quest to run 1000kms in 2010. I haven’t missed a run yet in January!

Running Barefood or in Minimal Footwear. “This website has been developed to provide an evidence-based resource for those interested in barefoot or minimal footwear running.” This is an extremely good introduction to running with a forefoot strike, and it’s got a lot of cool little videos showing exactly what your feet and legs are doing when you land on your heel, midfoot, and forefoot.

Geek Girl Runner Episode 001
The inaugural episode of my new Geek Girl Runner podcast is now available! I’ve been thinking about doing a podcast for a few weeks now, so I decided to bite the bullet and give it a go. This episode features: introduction to me and the show; training update; and review of RunKeeper.

Show links:
Phedippidations
Running with the Pack
Brandon’s Marathon
Sydney Half-Marathon
RunKeeper

Special thanks go to Nick Arthur for the use of his song “Little Donut Party”. Please give me some feedback and let me know what you think!

Week 3
As you might have noticed, my “secret project” didn’t quite materialise just yet. It’s a running podcast! I’ve got all the pieces in place though, and I’m hoping to upload the first episode tonight. It’s called Geek Girl Runner, and the plan is to record a new episode every two weeks. In the meantime, training continues. I had an especially hard workout at Spudds yesterday, so my run this morning was crapola. Still, I haven’t missed a run yet this year…

Jan 15: 5.09km
Jan 17: 8km
Jan 19: 5.54km
Jan 21: 5.16km
Total this week: 23.8km (14.8mi)
Total in 2010: 68.7km (43mi)

To meet my goal of running 1000km this year, I should be at 57.5km right now. So I’m about 10km ahead of schedule! That’s good; I like to have a cushion.

Jeff Galloway has a great article about getting started with running without aches and pains. If you’ve been inspired to hit the roads this New Year, you should check it out.

Week 2
Onwards and upwards. I’m meeting my goal of running four times a week, and this week I managed an itsy bit farther. We’ve had a run of hot weather, and it’s really hard to maintain pace and stay within my aerobic heart rate zone on hot and humid days. I also had my first circuit training session of the year at Spudds yesterday. (I was definitely feeling it on my run this morning.) Let’s look at the weekly totals:

Jan 8: 5.3km
Jan 10: 6.56km
Jan 12: 5.4km
Jan 14: 5.5km
Total this week: 22.6km (14mi)
Total in 2010: 44.9km (27.8mi)

I’m working on a new running-related secret project… which I’ll hopefully unveil this weekend. Stay tuned!

Do Running Shoes Cause Running Injuries? In a nutshell, nobody knows for sure. The folks at Newton make a persuasive argument against strapping giant blocks of foam to your heels though… (I love my Newtons.)

Week 1
The first week of 2010 is over! To meet my goal of running 1000km (621.4mi) this calendar year, I need to average just over 19km (12mi) a week. I’m happy to report that I’m right on schedule. I ran four times this week for a combined total of 22.1km (13.7mi). I’ve also planned out my training schedule for the 2010 Sydney Half-Marathon. I’ll be using Jeff Galloway’s plan for a 2:20 finish from Galloway’s Book on Running. It doesn’t really start in earnest til February, so I’m still base-building at the moment. I’m aiming to do three of my runs each week at less than 145bpm, and I’ll allow myself to push up to 160bpm on one of them. (Interesting sidenote: I found it much easier to stay within the easy zone this morning since I’d skipped my usual coffee. Might have to make that a habit.)

Jan 1: 5.23km
Jan 2: 5.12km
Jan 5: 5.81km
Jan 7: 5.95km
Total: 22.1km (13.7mi)

Heart Rate Training
When I got my heart rate monitor last month, the first thing I wanted to know was what level I should be training at. I used a number of online formulas to work out my Maximum Heart Rate, which turned out to be 185bpm. I knew I was supposed to be working at 70-80% to increase my aerobic fitness, so I aimed for 130-148bpm. This felt uncomfortably slow, but I told myself that I’d get used to it. A chance Twitter comment from Brandon about “zones” got me thinking though. I did some more reading and found out that I really need to be taking my Resting Heart Rate into account. For several days now I’ve been taking my RHR as soon as I wake up in the morning, and it’s averaged out to 65bpm. (Hey, that’s pretty good!) Okay, so 185 minus 65 equals a Working Heart Rate of 120bpm. Multiply THAT by .7-.8 and add back in the RHR, and I get a target aerobic zone of 149-161bpm. That looks better! That should allow me to push a little more without having to walk so much to stay within the zone.

Updated to add: These things are never simple. The great John Ellis is not a big fan of this more complicated formula, and he thinks basing it just on my MHR (as I was doing) is better. He’s suggesting I keep my easy days under 145, and my moderate days under 160. That means I’m back to going SLOOOOOW. 🙁

My base training continues. Using a heart rate monitor has definitely made a big difference in my runs. I don’t worry so much about running the whole distance without stopping; I just try to maintain a consistent level of effort the whole time. If my heart rate maxes out trying to run up a hill on a hot day, it’s better to walk it and stay within my target zone. Along those lines, I’m also noticing what a dramatic difference the weather makes. On a hot or humid day, I have to be vigilant about slowing down or my pulse skyrockets. On a cool breezy evening (like last night) I can run along at a decent clip without breaking 140bpm. Anyway, here are the weekly totals for the past month:

Nov 23: 21.5km (13.35mi)
Nov 30: 23km (14.2mi)
Dec 7: 24.5km (15.2mi)
Dec 14: 26km (16mi)

According to my Buildup Schedule, this week (week 4) will be a recovery week of only 20km. Looking forward to it. My lower back was bothering me a little last night, and overall my legs are feeling a little tight and tired. I was amused to note that I’m actually getting a small callus on the ball of each food. Hey, I guess that’s proof that I’m a forefoot runner now!