Sunday, February 16, 2020

These Shoes are Made for Running

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links.

These shoes are made for running
And that's just what they'll do
One of these days these shoes are gonna
Run all over you...
Apologies to Nancy Sinatra/Lee Hazelwood

I continue to put miles on my new trail shoes. Between running on the trails and the snowpacked path, my Brooks Cascadia 14 XTs were my main go-to for my runs this week. Since I've gotten so many questions about them, I'm going to post a full review in a couple of weeks. My early verdict: so far, so good.

There was also an indoor race on Sunday, but I wore my Brooks Adrenaline 20s. The race was run entirely around the Chicago Auto Show and in an interesting twist, we ran for one hour, trying to accummulate as many miles as possible. I'll share a full recap on Tuesday, but if you want to know how it went, be sure to check out my instagram!

Sunday's cold, windy run

Weekly Rundown
Monday: CrossFit
Tuesday: rest
Wednesday: trail run 6 miles, yoga with Adriene
Thursday: strength training, bootcamp
Friday: rest
Saturday: run 10 miles, yoga with Adriene
Sunday: Honda Miles per Hour Run

Running
On Wednesday, the sun was shining and with most of the snow gone, I thought it would be a good morning to try out the trails at the local forest preserve. When I pulled into the parking lot, my car was the only one there. I was a little nervous about being alone, but after I started running, I was fine. There was a mix of frozen ground, some snowy patches, some ice, and just dirt. Part of the path ran along the paved path--how did I never notice this trail before? but most of the path was in the woods. I came upon a deer and I stopped because I didn't want to chase him away. He wasn't afraid of me, but as I approached, he moved into the brush. When I turned around and retraced my steps, he was back on the path again. He just stared at me, as if to say, "keep 'er moving". I don't listen to music when I run on the trails, obviously for safety but also because there's so much to absorb!


I completely enjoyed this run, save for the few tree roots I tripped over. I didn't fall, but my landings jarred me. I have to comment that running on trails requires a great deal more effort that running on pavement. I was tired after my 6 miles.


In preparation for my upcoming 25k trail race, I needed another long run. We received more snow and on Saturday morning, it was cold and windy. The treadmill wasn't going to be a good option for trail training, right? Even though I planned on running on the bike path, I wore my trail shoes, figuring that I'd be hitting a lot of snowy patches and I was right about that. Most of the path was snow packed, so after my first 3 miles I ran the streets in the nearby neighborhood to get to a park where there's a lake and paths I knew would be plowed. What I didn't count on was that wind blowing across the lake--it was brutal! On the way home, I had that wind at my back and it literally pushed me forward. That was a gift. While I was happy to have gotten my 10 miles in, I was more happy to be done and out of the cold. That was a tough run.

CrossFit
The strength portion of Monday's WOD was a clean/front squat x 2/jerk complex E2MOM at 75% of our max. I wasn't really sure what my max was, but I wanted to work on technique, so I kept it relatively light at 55#. The MetCon was 2 AMRAPs (8 minutes). The first AMRAP was a 2-4-6... Deadlifts at 125# alternating with bar-facing burpees. I was thrilled to have gotten to 14 reps! The second AMRAP was another 2-4-6... toes-to-bars alternating with lateral box stepovers on a 16" box. I can't do TTB, so I subbed V-ups and got to 16 reps. This was a fun WOD!

Working on my clean technique and making funny faces!
The coaches have been programming our bootcamps to be more like the CF WODs. The first 15 minutes was 4 sets of 3 exercises: 8 banded face pulls, 1 lap of banded side steps, and 8 strict presses at a moderate weight. This was followed by a 25 minute AMRAP: 40 single unders, 1 length DB waiter's lunge, 10 pushups, 10 renegade rows, 1 length DB waiter's lunge, and a 400m row. I completed 5 rounds.

I wasn't sure I was doing these banded face pulls correctly, but unbeknownst to me, SJ took a picture .
I was happy to see my lats engaged!
Strength
Sammy Jo had me work on bench presses, sets of 8 at 65#. She made some adjustments in my technique and that made a big difference in my ability to complete my lifts! I alternated those with sets of 8 Bulgarian lunges with a 25# DB in each hand. I finished up with ring rows, which SJ made tougher by propping my feet up on a box. There's always something more they can do, right?



How was your week? Did you battle the cold? The snow? The wind? Trail runners, do you run without headphones? 

I'm linking up with Kim and Deborah for the Weekly Rundown.


37 comments :

  1. I never ran an indoor race before. That sounds interesting and fun! Is the trail 25k that you are training for the one in Florida? I am loving trail running right now and getting to do it more often than usual. I am going to get all the trail running in now. Once the hornets and poison ivy come out, I don't like to trail run anymore.

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    1. Yes, the trail run is in the Everglades! I struggled a bit today in the warmer 'conditions" indoors. I hope that doesn't mean trouble for me in Florida.

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  2. I can't even imagine running trails right now. It was challenging enough just on the paths in the park (and I wore my trail shoes for that!). We've had a lot of ice in the last few weeks. :(

    Trail running is absolutely more tiring than road running of the same distance.

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    1. We had enough warm days to rid the trails of snow; then it got cold and froze the much. Worked out pretty well, all things considered.

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  3. Well done on running in the freezing wind on Saturday - at least you got a bit of tailwind on the home stretch. That AMRAP with deadlifts and burpees would have killed me, never mind doing 14 reps!
    Looking forward to your recap on the Honda Miles on Tuesday.

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  4. Oh yes, lots of snow, cold and wind for me, too. But lots of sunshine, so there's that. I had a brief span with a tailwind at my race yesterday, for the final kick to the finish...and it DIDN'T help. LOL I was SO exhausted at that point. Totally glad to have that race done!

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    1. I was pretty beat at the end of my 10 yesterday--that tailwind is just what I needed! Sorry to hear it didn't do the same for you.

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  5. I love that you are hitting the dirt...and ice and snow. ;) I do not wear headphones on the trails or roads. I like to hear everything around me and don't want to be spooked. The Honda miles race sounds like fun and so unique!

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    1. This year is turning out to be just the spark I needed in my running! New things and its so fun!

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  6. I kind of have FOMO when I see all of your snowy trails. They look so peaceful. I have fallen twice on trails and I a kind of scared to try again. Your indoor races sound fun and different can't wait to read all about it. Have a great weekend ahead and thanks for linking up

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    1. I was a little unnerved when I tripped over the roots! Glad I was able to stay upright. I'm sure I'll hit the dirt one of these times...

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  7. oh, interested to hear about the indoor race!

    You had an awesome week! Love the deer pic :)

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  8. I have so many deer around when I run and this weekend I felt like they would just move to the side of the road and watch me run by. It's a little creepy but I am so used to them now.
    Your race sounds so interesting!

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    1. That is exactly what happened with the deer I saw on the trail!

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  9. Oh wow you did a race the day after a 10 miler? That must have been tough. I don't do a lot of trail running, but one of the joys of running my town is that I've found a few short trails just tucked away off the roads. If it wasn't for running I'd have no idea that they were there.

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    1. It was tough and I think it's why I (spoiler alert) struggled.

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  10. Those trail pics are gorgeous! Running with Scooby I can never get that close to deer - or if I do I have my hands full! We had 24 hours of super cold weather that drove me to hot yoga.

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  11. Running around an auto show sounds interesting! Someday I'd like to try a trail race that goes by by time instead of distance - those are usually run a shortish loop as many times as you can for 3, 6, 9, or 12 hours.

    I definitely don't run with headphones on trails - I have Aftershokz and I think they'd be ok to use on some of our busy trails, but still not entirely comfortable with it.

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    1. I'm not a fan of races that have you running multiple loops--this one where I completed 2 1/2 loops or so, was plenty!

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  12. I don't usually run with headphones regardless if it's road or trail, but DEFINITELY not on the trails. I love that deer, and I'm glad your new shoes are living up to the hype :)

    Great job with your strength training and weights! You are rocking it!

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    1. Thank you Jen! I tend to zone out when I'm running to music and the trails are not the place for that to happen!

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  13. Awesome job this week, especially that cold run on Saturday!

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  14. I can't wait to hear more about your race at the Chicago Auto Show!! Still not running outside so I am staying warm in the gym. :-)

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  15. I can't wait to read about your race! It sounds so interesting. I'm also interested in your trail shoe review. I really could use a good pair.

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    1. Today, I made the verdict official--I love my trail shoes! I'll share more soon but they are just perfect for me.

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  16. That looks like a gorgeous trail! I love seeing wildlife on my runs...as long as they're the vegetarian type and not the carnivores haha! I never wear headphones when I run! I like to be alone with my thoughts and if I'm with friends we are usually chit chatting so I like to be able to hear the conversations.

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    1. You know, our forest preserve trails aren't bad for being in the congested Chicago burbs. I am amazed at how much better I feel being out in nature like that.

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  17. glad you are able to get some good miles with your new trail shoes! falling and messing up my ankles is probably my biggest reason I don't go on the trail much. I probably wouldn't wear headphones - I don't wear them that often anyway (more lately because I'm trying to make the aftershokz purchase worth it!) because I think being out in nature is enough "distraction" that I need.

    I remember that "wind from the lake" all too well. can't say I miss that!!

    looking forward to hearing about your indoor race!

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    1. Today's trail run was so icy that I needed 100% focus! Plus, nature...

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  18. I think it's great that you've been enjoying the trails lately! Looking forward to reading about your indoor race - I'm impressed you took on a 10 mile run the day before - that would have left me completely spent!

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    1. I figured I'd just enjoy myself at the race--there was no need to compete, but then again, I wanted to at least finish with a time I could be proud of!

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  19. Since I'm so behind in reading my friends' blog posts from last weekend, I'm looking forward to hopping over and reading your indoor race recap shortly!

    I'm pretty much always running with friends when I run on trails so I don't wear my headphones. From a safety perspective, I agree that it wouldn't bee a very good idea...

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