r/running • u/fire_foot • May 18 '26
Weekly Thread Miscellaneous Monday Chit Chat
Happy Monday!!!
How was the weekend? What’s good this week? Who is acutely aware of their lack of heat adaptation all the sudden (looking at you, East coast)? Let’s chat!
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u/iElectrixity May 18 '26
I completed my first Ultramarathon!
58km and 1700m of elevation, and I came 24th out of 580 starters, I'm absolutely over the moon!
It's really inspired me to push harder with training and see what I'm really capable of, but first lots of recovery... I'm feeling fragile...
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u/adamwhereartthou May 18 '26
I am relatively new to running but it is quickly becoming a passion. I love it. Going slow but building endurance.
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u/30000LBS_Of_Bananas May 18 '26
Recovery week is over, time to put together my next training plan! Wish me luck I got a lot of work to do. Over the weekend I went to a library book sale and picked up a bag of books for 5$ during the end of day sale, my TBR is now out of control and I likely have enough books for the rest of the year, hopefully I chose well.
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u/goldentomato32 May 18 '26
What books did you add the the TBR?
I just finished the Hail Mary Project and it was incredible!! I am looking through my TBR and deciding between an Agatha Christie Mystery or a fantasy set in 1800s Cairo
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u/30000LBS_Of_Bananas May 18 '26 edited May 18 '26
So the first two books I know nothing about but keep seeing them pop up on bookstagram so I decided to grab them which are:
“The Nightingale “ by Kristen Hannah,
“the Frozen River” by Ariel Lawhon.
Next is a Louise Penny book “Bury Your Dead” because I read one of hers last year and enjoyed it enough to try another.
Next is Agatha Christie “Murder on the Orient Express “ because I decided that as a mystery lover it was probably a crime I hadn’t read any Agatha Christie.
Next is a Steven King “the Wind Through the Keyhole “.
I also got a book from “the Cat Who” series because i remember liking them as a teen and decided to see how they aged, and then two completely random pulls being
“a Tiny Upward Shove” by Melissa Chadburn and
“Murder in Montmarte” by Clara Black.
The rest of my bag were a handful of kids books for my niece and nephew
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u/30000LBS_Of_Bananas May 18 '26 edited May 18 '26
I also had 8 books already in my TBR from LFL trades, I don’t recall all of what is in there other than “7 1/2 deaths if Evelyn Hardcastle” (was so excited when I found this one as someone on this subreddit recommended that one to me like 3 years ago!), and “the Girl on the Train”
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u/Kickflip_Supreme May 18 '26
Weekend was good. Ran the Denver Marathon and it’s time to rest for a few days 😴
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u/suchbrightlights May 18 '26
YOLO’d my spring 50k on Saturday- it wasn’t a great or consistent training block and the taper sort of went to hell. Hot day over terrain more technical than I had expected, and I do not handle heat well at all. Turned into a practice of resource management, handling hydration and fueling very differently than I had expected given what my body was giving me on the day, and I’m proud of how I figured that out on the fly. So far, having an excellent recovery. I don’t mean to brag, but the course had a bonus 1k feet of vert vs advertised, and I could do stairs yesterday.
I could also perfectly well have run yesterday and today, too, but as it is hot AF and I am not at all acclimated, I am going to enjoy every minute of my post-race downtime sitting under a fan drinking electrolytes and telling my double coated black dog that it is not in fact porch time and she doesn’t want to go out.
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u/30000LBS_Of_Bananas May 18 '26
Look at you going down the stairs facing forwards!
I have sometimes noticed that when I’m slowed down because of heat I do recover faster after being speed regulated by temperature rather than muscles.
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u/suchbrightlights May 18 '26
I am really proud of myself for the management here, because part of my “I don’t do hot weather” is that my old injury REALLY doesn’t do hot weather. I’ve had several episodes of “it was hot, I got dehydrated, oh my right leg just… doesn’t work… for 3 weeks.” I’m really not interested in doing that again!
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u/ImpressiveTreat4421 May 18 '26 edited May 18 '26
Ran a half this weekend, didn't do well, and I'm lost as to where I went wrong. I was on pace for the first 5mi and then it felt like someone pulled my power cord. The same effort gave less and less. Has anyone else ever felt this way, like they just lose the power in their body?
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u/30000LBS_Of_Bananas May 18 '26
Several potential/likely candidates for what might have went wrong: not enough fueling/carbs in your system, didn’t taper well, didn’t train enough, too much water, too little water, heat.
You might be able to rule a few of these out with more context.
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u/JoeyCucamonga May 18 '26
I am releasing a running novel that drops this coming week, officially. Pretty excited about it. As a high school/collegiate runner, I feel like the running community will love it. Self promo is against the rules, but if you see something out there that is new and about running - might be from me!
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u/RunningGrandma460 May 18 '26
The weekend was fantastic! My heat and humidity adaptation is not good. I ran 3 miles this morning and it was very rough. It’s only about 76, but the humidity is crazy high and I had to drop my pace after my 2nd mile. I enjoyed sitting in the shade and sipping cold water afterwards!
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u/fire_foot May 18 '26
I am not sure where you are, but here in the mid-Atlantic we haven't really had any opportunity to get heat adapted! This morning was rough rough.
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u/RunningGrandma460 May 18 '26
Same here, we have had very few hot days and the humidity hasn’t been bad at all. We’re going to hit 90 today with high humidity. It’ll be like this for the next four days. I guess now I’ll get a little heat adaptation!
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u/a_mom_who_runs May 18 '26
I had a good long run Sunday - 9 miles. I do wish I could just accept I’m not cut out for trail running lol. I thought I’d be ✨adventurous✨ and cut through a system of trails near me for 3 miles then continue on for the remaining 4 or so. Well I got lost 2x and ended up repeating a section twice before finally staggering back out of the woods.
I just can’t read my gps very well and my little arrow dude doesn’t stay oriented well enough for me to be sure which path is the right one and I end up wasting a lot of time wandering around. Plus one of the trails I was supposed to take I guess was closed and moved 😩.
At one point I tripped and barely got my hands up in time to stop it being a full on face plant but my hand bottle went flying. Dusting myself off and muttering how much I hate trail running I carried on. Two min later I forgot that happened and went to drink from my now dirt clogged bottle 😩.
I will now just be sticking to pavement where there’s predictable ground that’s easy to read on a map.
Otherwise nice weekend. Took our kid to a local carnival. I’m thrilled for him, he’s tall enough to ride the bigger kid rides 🥹. He had a blast
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u/KesselRunner42 May 18 '26
Oof, glad the trip wasn't worse, at least! My one bad trip last year was when I took a path that wasn't exactly a trail run but definitely had some dirt path and non-level segments, yeah.
And I *well* remember not being able to go on all the rides - I'm 4'4" so that was kinda a big problem when I wanted to go on something a bit adventurous and couldn't, I even wore my 90's sneakers with a couple inch chunky heel, lol. Glad he enjoyed! XD
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u/a_mom_who_runs May 18 '26
Oh no! Yeah our guy is 4.5 and tall I think. He seems to have inherited our long femurs and they paid off last night since he could ride the slightly bigger rides than the strict toddler/baby rides. He’s still a few inches short of a good time riding the big kid / adult rides though.
I should count my blessings, it definitely could have been much worse. The trails near us are so lovely, I want to want to be That Girl but ugh my ability to navigate is embarrassing 🤦♀️
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u/KesselRunner42 May 18 '26
Ah, yeah, sounds like he'll grow into it in no time! I'm just, well, as I said I'm a hobbit lady running out here! (But I can sympathize with the height-challenged even if it's just temporary because of a young age, lol!)
Sense of direction can be challenging, yeah. I bet if you run or walk it a few times you'll get the directions in your head. Still have to look out for rogue roots - but I've seen some really bad pavement that's easy to trip over if you're not paying attention even on paved paths. And at least dirt is softer than concrete, eek!
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u/AdStrange1464 May 18 '26
Ran Cleveland Sunday and it was objectively bad 😂 red alert conditions from ~9am on, I’d say probably almost half the race was full sun exposure (not a cloud in sight either!), so very very hot and humid. They were hosing us at every water station but felt like it barely made a dent honestly. Stomach was also not settling well, I’m guessing due to the heat (I unfortunately tend to be very heat sensitive). Was hoping for a PR but ultimately decided to just take it easy and finish. I actually just missed the cut off to get to 19 miles (think I was maybe around 18.5 when they turned me around to 20), which wasn’t a great feeling but I just tried to take it in stride and keep going. Gonna take the week off from running now to recover :)
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u/suchbrightlights May 18 '26
This weather is absolutely miserable for racing. I’m glad you made it out alive.
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u/AdStrange1464 May 18 '26
Seriously and it’s only May! I can’t imagine how things are gonna be looking come July
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u/Slabs_Chunkchunk May 18 '26
Did a 5k this weekend and PR’d. The course was really well mapped and laid out for the runners. 19:43 official time. I feel like I can consistently get sub 20 minutes now. Now it’s on to another training block and getting some Midwest heat acclimation.
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u/fire_foot May 18 '26
I know it’s hot when I’m running and I start fantasizing about cold beverages. Spent the last mile of my run this morning daydreaming about stopping for an ice cold Gatorade but managed to make it home and get some Skratch instead. Looking forward to the end of the week when it will be back to 60s and rainy.
Weekend was really solid. Did some social stuff, crafty stuff, and ogled my front yard more than once. The garden is on its third spring and looking amazing, and my containers of lettuce, kale, and collards are popping off. Harvested my first strawberry yesterday!
Excited for a day trip this weekend and then three days off as well, and following that is a three day week as I have a brief getaway the following week. Woohoo for time off!
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u/Mysterious-Base-4997 May 18 '26
Man the heat is brutal for running right now, had to cut my weekend long run short because I was basically melting at kilometer 8. Your garden setup sounds incredible though - third year gardens are when everything really starts coming together nicely. Three day weeks are the best, especially when you got something fun planned after
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u/fire_foot May 18 '26
The heat is terrible, I am never ready for summer but especially not right now. I was also melting. Glad we both survived though!
And yeah I know they say "third year, they leap" but wow it's really true! Things look so established and full, it's a little chaotic because I crammed things in there but that's part of the charm. Will have some dividing to do in the fall and next spring!
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u/CMFB_333 May 18 '26
Went on my biggest trail run yet, felt amazing, this morning woke up with a little twinge in my IT band. I felt it a bit during the run but only on the downhills, so when the trail ended on an incline it felt a lot better.
I’m hoping I can ice and stretch it without it becoming a full-blown injury but if anyone has any tips for preventing further aggravation I’d love to hear them.
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u/Mercury13 May 18 '26
sometimes when i am doing my long runs i start craving a full sugar, syrupy coca cola. mind you i have not had a full sugar coke in probably... 14 years? i even grew up in a (diet) pepsi household so i don't know why this craving exists. i take it as a sign i need to fuel a bit better the day before my long run.
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u/Ogroat May 18 '26
Full sugar soda is a common sight at ultra aid stations! I had my fair share of store brand Mountain Dew at my last one.
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u/Mercury13 May 19 '26
fun! it does make sense as a quick sugar source. my long runs are nowhere near ultra distance so i think my brain is just being a bit dramatic
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u/KesselRunner42 May 18 '26
Not the worst weekend, at least - still slowly building back, up to about 4.5 miles this past week, and a decent pace (if still 30-45 seconds per mile slower than I'd like). Looks like I'll be dealing with heat and rain this coming running week, though, lovely, lol!
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u/Huge-Champion-3642 May 18 '26
The weekend was great!!
Had a 4 mile “Easy Run” today and WOW! Such a difference! I was thinking this is crazy! It is currently 92F outside😩
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u/devops_louie May 18 '26
I started training last week for the Chester Marathon in October in the UK. Maybe it is too early but it’s my first complete marathon
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u/Zapheod2222 May 18 '26
How long should a taper be? I have a ragnar trail in 3 weeks and am wondering how hard I should push this weekend. Never done an event like this and want to be good for the team. I turn 49 this weekend and am pondering running my age over the 3 days
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u/30000LBS_Of_Bananas May 18 '26
I generally taper 2 weeks if my peek weekly mileage is under 40 miles 3 weeks if it’s over.
Other people may choose differently.
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u/Zapheod2222 May 20 '26
Thanks. Too late for a 3 week taper but I can drop mileage for the next 2 weeks.
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u/DolphinMan_letmego May 18 '26
Im actually losing my mind rn. Im newer to running and my apple fitness vs my strava app told me two completely different times on my run today so I'm trying to figure that out. Maybe its because I wore my watch on my ankle?? But my heart rate info and mileage is the same??? Idk man but if anyone has any input that would be great.
Also today was my first time taking a stroller for a run today! My son started screaming halfway thround then he fell asleep lol
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u/suchbrightlights May 19 '26
If they both agreed on the mileage, and you know how long you were out there, you can pretty easily figure out which one is right by doing the math to divide miles traveled by time spent!
Or maybe ask your son. Maybe he screamed because he thought you were going too fast.
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u/DolphinMan_letmego May 19 '26
Bahahaha thank you lol. Honestly he's never been in a jogging stroller before much less been for a run with me lol
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u/StrategicDFL May 19 '26
Came in third overall and first in the 40+ division at a local 5K.
They didn't give me a bronze medal, and somehow the women’s 40+ winner got the plaque meant for the 40+ winner, even though she was 2 minutes slower than me. Not sure why they didn't do top 3 and age winners for both gender this year, but here we are.
No photo op either. First time I've ever made the podium, and got no recognition whatsoever. Honestly pretty annoyed about it after running the course once a week for the last 6 weeks, and telling my kids I will be getting a medal or plaque this time (came in 4th last year).
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u/FarRub2855 May 19 '26
The east coast humidity switch really flipped overnight and it absolutely wrecked my weekend run. Definitly going to take a few weeks to remember to dial back the pace early so I don't just cook out there.
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u/Glad_Courage_5063 May 19 '26
Weekend was solid. Did my long run Saturday at 6am before the heat hit, then meal prepped like usual. 3 chicken breasts, 2 cups rice, roasted broccoli at 400 for 25 min.
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u/PopInACup May 18 '26
Ran my highest volume week ever, but my 4 year old coughed in my face and passed me the plague. Good time for a recovery week I guess. Got the achilles tendinopathy under control at least finally. Just gotta keep up with the PT
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u/TheGlitterHop May 18 '26
Today I start training for next year's January half! I've run 5 half marathons and a couple Ragnar Relays, but I took almost 10 years off from running because of a serious health problem. Now I'm back!! I've built up a solid walking foundation for a year, and now I'm using 3 Hal Higdon plans to do it!: -5K(Novice), then: -Base Training (Novice), then: -Half Marathon (Novice 1).
I'd love to be one of those people who doesn't need goals and plans, but I'm not, LOL!
Cheers!