MY FAMILY 💕
TRAINING:
Hello everyone! Welcome to WEEK 9! When the run hole becomes bigger, the miles get longer, but things begin to align, and you get a chance to conquer it.... with a shortened prep week with that to boot!!!
So, this week, I had to attempt at least one pavement tempo run. It was hot, but it was needed. It also did aggravate the quad a bit though. I expected as much, there
was no way it was completely gone even with all the protein, stretching and conditioning. This was going to be my 2024 "issue". I have one every marathon training season (Calf, tibia, Hips) ...I mean something is bound to get out of line when you are putting so much exertion on your body. I just need to understand how to "deal with it" before long runs (ice, heat, Theragun, electric therapy, massage, funstick, pressure point ball, Biofreeze, Aleve, etc.....) Ah, the pain of the run hole...the pain you will mask, run through and carry with you to the starting line...! Yeah, I know, it sounds morbid, but this is when you start to map out race day. I'll explain more of that later.
With all that said, I used this week for another bike ride, no more short runs, but a ton of conditioning and strength training. Like I’ve said before, there are ways to "run" without running, by strengthening the muscles of my heart and my legs without hard impact. I had one 50-min wellness session this week and about 18 miles walking!
THE HISTORICALLY MAGNIFICENT 14 MILER!!
Alright, confession here, I LOVE THS RUN. Historically, it's always been my best run of training season. There are so many reasons: it's more than halfway, it's not so mundane as the 16 Miler (my most dreaded run next week) and it's not too far off from the anticipated 20 Miler (in 2 weeks).
First off, let's talk about the weather...50 degrees and no humidity at 6am....MAGNIFICENT. Full on sunshine by 6:30am to keep the muscles warm and loose, but not hot enough to destroy my breathing...GLORIOUS. Wind...just enough to cool off, but no tail/head winds in sight...FANTASTIC. When elements that you can't control are aligned, along with the personal love for 14 miles...what can go wrong???? It has to be a perfect run, right??? Well........YOU BET IT WAS. I can't even fake it or tell you something went wrong. It just didn't, at least not run wise...wait for it.
Started at 6am from the house, just headed east to the lake, and then south to 31st Street Beach and ended conveniently at Soldier Field the day before our Bears home opener! I didn't walk for even a moment, wait, no... I took three steps up the dreaded bridge by Navy Pier transitioning from North Lake to South Lakefront. I met up with the family on some old stomping grounds near Monroe Harbor and finished the last 4 miles as a family.
Now, let's talk about what went wrong...people. People are just wrong, ignorant running/biking pieces of crap. I had a guy biking, not an avid biker, a random dude wearing a flannel shirt, lollygagging on a bike in the running path lanes...there are 2 dedicated paths specifically for biking that are created to keep both parties safe and efficient and out of each other's ways. Initially, I wasn't sure if he got the memo as he didn't look like he frequented the lakefront paths often, so I let the ignorance go and politely informed him that the bike lanes were to the right of us, and this was a running only lane. I continued my run, and he started to just be a total prick saying useless things to other runners, riding his bike in a hazardous manner that could have seriously injured any one of us and trying to cut runners off.
I had had enough, stopped very abruptly, and clipped his front tire with my shoe and just kept on going as I glanced to see him lose balance and fall off his bike...well-deserved, you pretentious prick. Sorry, not sorry. I also have a huge gripe about that strip of running path that spans from Ohio Street Beach to Oak Street Beach that is bi-level. Normally, I would have run on the path closer to the lake level, but it was soaking wet from the rough waves, so I had to choose the raised bi-level path. This path is designed so poorly...I mean who puts a 2 ft garbage can in the middle of a 4-foot path every 25 feet? It's the most ridiculous situation. You end up either being run over by the guy that can't be bothered to stop or get stuck trying to figure out who's right of way it is when the oncoming runner is also standing at the garbage can crosswalk. "You go, no it's ok, you go, no no, go...." For the love of GOD! Then let's also have an open swim where that path turns into bleachers and stroller parking! That was awesome to have to navigate through. Maybe because my run felt so easy, I noticed other things more, or just maybe those things are really just a huge pain the butt. All in all, I killed that run and continued down the run hole.
NUTRITION:
Ok, this week, food wise, I was over it. It was a shorter turnaround week, so my meals had to be balanced with carbs, proteins and nutrients. This is about the time when I am TIRED OF EATING. My whole life revolves around meal planning, or meal prepping, then cooking to actually eating. I’m just over it, I force myself to eat because I have to, not because I want to, especially towards the end of the week. Blech....anyways, here is the food for the week!
Meals of the week included and pictured are:
(PLEASE NOTE: All meals are home made by Vik or me unless otherwise noted in the description (i.e. restaurant website link, or source (parents, family, friends))
1. Quinoa of the Week – Chicken Fajita (Ground Chicken, Pinto Beans, Cheddar, Corn, Onions, Tomatoes, Cilantro)
Served with Romaine, Taco Salad Style for Lunch on Wednesday, Made for a great breakfast burrito on Friday.
2. OTHER BREAKFASTS THIS WEEK:
Sausage Biscuit with Cheese & Egg (Yes, I do eat Mc Donald's breakfast every so often)
Hummus Toast - Olive Hummus, Tomatoes, Cucumbers, Black Pepper Turkey & Fresh Dill on Toasted Rye
Peanut Butter Toast with Tart Apples, Cinnamon on Oat Bread
Special K Protein Fortified Cereal with Whole Milk (pictured last week)
Avocado Toast - Refried Beans, Hard Boiled Eggs, Tomatoes, Everything Seasoning on Marble Rye Bread
Fajita Quinoa Breakfast Burrito (as mentioned/pictured above)
3. LUNCHES THIS WEEK:
Grilled Crispy Whole Red Snapper - stuffed with Limes, Mint & Chilies with Tomato Corn Salad
Taco Salad Quinoa (as mentioned /pictured above)
Cajun Chicken Pasta (dinner leftover, see below)
Fiesta Grilled Cheese - Peppers, Onions, Pepper Jack Cheese, Dill Havarti, Cheddar Cheese on Marble Rye
4. DINNERS THIS WEEK:
Homemade Mexican Pizza - Take that Taco Bell!
Cajun Chicken Pasta - Chitarra Pasta, Grilled Chicken, Bell Peppers, Onions, Cajun Cream Sauce (made with Coconut Milk)
Grilled Skirt Steak with Chimichurri, BBQ Rubbed Grilled Salmon with Lemon & Garlic, Crispy Roasted Potatoes with Sour Cream Cheddar Sauce
5. PRE-RUN DINNER THIS WEEK:
Grilled Tandoori Chicken, Lamb Kebabs, Hariyali Paneer (green herbs) with Dal Makhani, Homemade Naan and as always, some fresh Garden Heirloom Tomatoes
With the shorter week, I didn't really need to incorporate much more nutrition. I snacked on meats and cheese and took down a half gallon of chocolate milk with all my strength workouts this week.
OVERALL:
Week #9 was the week I looked forward to, it was the week I needed, it was the perfect run. The confidence and validation that I got from this week, even with its shortened turnaround, will hopefully carry me into next week!
Physically, I am feeling ok. That quad is giving me some crap, but like I said before, it's time to manage it, not wish it away, it's not going anywhere until I stop running for a month.
Mentally, I feel strong. While the 16-miler next week always hangs over my head like a black cloud, I feel great about the run I just had. I can't worry about something that hasn't happened yet.
Emotionally, I feel on top of the world with that run. This week really gave me the boost I needed. Honestly, if this run didn't pan out as I had hoped, or as it historically has been, it may have really destroyed me. Instead, I destroyed it.
At this point in training, I am antsy, I want training over with. I just want race day to be here. This is also when the run hole begins, and you head down it knowing that the other side is race day. You start to make a list of what comes with you on race day...this week, my achy quad is coming with me, but so is the confidence from this 14-mile run. I will collect more and more as we head into the final 2 long runs, the most intense of them all. Getting to the starting line happy and healthy is more important to me than the finish, because you can't finish if you don't start.
I am running the Chicago Marathon 2024 for the same charity as in previous years, The Chicago Diabetes Project - Cellmates on the Run Foundation! Click on the link below for more information, race updates and donations! Every dollar counts, help us find a cure!
See you all next week!
~Giz
コメント