The official start to my Goofy training

This weekend my Goofy training officially started as I began my weekends of back to back runs with planned 5 and 10 milers. On Saturday morning I met up with Instructor S to run the pathway along the Bow River from Eau Claire towards Edworthy Park. Originally S had wanted to run 6 - 7 miles and I was going to keep up, but when she heard I was originally thinking about 5 we decided to cut the run down (she was breaking her long run into pieces this weekend as she was also running as a coach for Team In Training later that morning, but she is still training for the Nike Women's full marathon in October as well). We took the run nice and slow and she gave me some great pointers while we were running. The key one was to relax...I carry a lot of tension in my shoulders and they really creep up, which also translates into the Fonzie thumbs up I tend to sport throughout most of my runs. Running slowly really brings out any problems with your posture and yours truly was no exception. So many things to keep in mind while out running. This morning I was a little concerned about bonking...my nutrition has not been the best this weekend (I think I od'ed on burgers) and I was sure it would affect me....not to mention I was way late getting started considering Maggie had a vet appointment early in the afternoon that I was going to have troubles making. I ditched the idea of running around Glenmore (my favorite 10 mile loop) and went back to run from Eau Claire up the Bow River since it was closer. I kept up with my 9:1 run/walk intervals and things were feeling good. The pathway was beautiful - nice warm temperatures and leaves changing colours. By a mile and a half in I was in a groove and I didn't even feel like I had run 5 miles the day before. I also tried out the cola Clif Shot Bloks for the first time on my run and I have to say that this is definitely my favorite flavor of Bloks...too bad they aren't available in Canada (at least anywhere that I've seen around here). I finished out my 10 miles feeling strong the whole way and then I raced home to rush Maggie to the vet. Interestingly enough, this week has probably been one of my most sleep deprived weeks thanks to things at work, but this was also the first weekend where I didn't crash out on the couch for a big nap after my long run. I can only hope that things continue to feel this way!

9+ miles of observations and oops

So I deferred my 9 miler to Sunday morning. I tried to get up early, but didn't get to the pathway until 9 am. Oops. I went back out to Sandy Beach (which ironically doesn't have a sandy beach) to run the pathway up the Elbow River again. This time I knew where I was going, so I'd be able to make it farther up the pathway. Hmmm. I'm not sure what it is, but as soon as you get the inkling that a bathroom might be an idea, all of a sudden it becomes an all out necessity. Luckily I had entered into Stanley Park and they had some washrooms there. Note to self: they are only open May through October. Just as I was leaving Stanley Park I noticed a dog that seemed to be ownerless. I stopped the Garmin to see if anyone came along and finally he found his owner. I got going again but forgot to start the Garmin back up. Oops. Not being sure how much I was off by I vowed to still go till it read 4.5 mi, then turn around to see how much distance I had missed out on. I ran past Lindsay Park and then I reached Stampede Park. By this point in time I only had 0.5 mi to go before turning around, but the pathway was under construction and the detour was not marked at all. I continued running along the sidewalk which wasn't really pretty or fun and I was approaching a not so good area of town. I ran into a couple visiting from England and they were walking around trying to find a market shown on a map, which from what I could tell was not close by. I advised them to turn around since they were wandering into the bad part of town. I hit that 4.5 mi and turned around, happy to be on my way back. Once I was running back by Lindsay Park the pathway was deserted for a bit, and at that point in time this guy got on to the pathway just in front of me - definitely an unsavoury fellow - no shirt, lots of tattoos, twitching and muttering to himself. I'm pretty scared since I am the only one around so I just give him a wide berth and sprinted past him. Only to happen upon another fellow... I sprinted past him too, then all of a sudden there were more people on the pathway and I was approaching a fairly nice residential part of the area. Needless to say, in the future I will not run up as far as Lindsay Park. I've read I Am the Central Park Jogger and I know that really unfortunate things happen to folks out on their run. The rest of the run was uneventful...thankfully! I discovered afterwards that I had gone about 0.45 mi earlier before I realized that my Garmin was paused.

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The good news is that I feel like I am getting my legs back under me. They were feeling a bit sluggish since the half marathon, but now I feel like my pace is back to where it was before. After the run I went to the Calgary Farmer's Market to pick up some amazing produce since I was in the neighborhood. This is my favorite thing about summer - peaches, watermelons, strawberries, raspberries, you name it. Plus I now have some bison sausages (cajun and hot italian) at home to try.

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One other comment....Margarita Shot Bloks....blech! Those things were gross..!!

Sunday's 9 mile run, and no yoga!

This morning I got up nice and early and headed down to Glenmore Reservoir for my 9 mi run. It was still nice and cool out, and somewhat overcast when I started. The run honestly felt great. The scenery along the way is beautiful - water views, running through forest, running along a dam...amazing. Also there are some great elevation changes along the way to keep things interesting. About halfway through the run I lost some shade cover and the sun came out and it was warm... I slowed down a bit at that point, but otherwise I felt like I ran really great. The best part of the run was just approaching the 8 mi mark I had a hill to climb - 128 feet in 0.2 mi. I ran really strong to the top, keeping a great pace and barely slowing down. Once I crested the hill I ran the final mile back to my car the entire way - no stopping for walk breaks - I felt that good.

I also tried out a pack of black cherry Clif Shot Bloks. I can't say I loved the flavor that much, but from an ease of consumption point of view I really liked it. I found the Sport Beans a bit trickier to eat, but I was able to run and chew the Blok at the same time, so it didn't impact my time too much. I noticed that they make Margarita, Pina Colada, and Cola flavors, all which aren't available here (at least I haven't seen them yet). I'll have to look for them out on my next trip to the US.

On a disappointing note, I showed up for my yoga workshop, but sadly my instructor did not. I didn't hear that class was canceled, and I was really looking forward to it. Here's hoping I get a refund...

A shopping spree

Over lunch hour I went off to Mountain Equipment Co-op to pick up some goodies that I'll be needing for my long runs. When I trained for the 15K I only tried Jelly Belly Sport Beans, but this time I am keen to see what else I can work with. First up I grabbed a couple packs of Sharkies fruit chews - one in fruit splash, the other in berry blast. These seem to have more electrolytes in them than a few other products I looked at, so I'll see how they work out. I also grabbed a couple of packs of Clif Shot Blocks - one in strawberry, the other in lemon-lime. I haven't been able to track down the Cola or Margarita flavors yet, so if anyone knows where to find them in Calgary, let me know. I haven't opted to try Gu or PowerGels yet. I'm just not sure I can wrap my head around the texture... We'll see how these other products work out.

This afternoon I hit the Bow River pathway again for my 4.5 mi run. I started at Edworthy Park (around Bowness and Shagannapi), ran all the way east to the Crowchild Trail underpass, then returned back to Edworthy. It was a nice afternoon out and lots of people on the trails. My pace was super consistent the whole way through, so I was pretty happy about that. I have another 4.5 mi scheduled for Thursday. I'm not sure if I'll head back down to the trail, or if I'll tackle some hills in my neighborhood instead. Decisions, decisions...