Articles in December, 2011, Page 3

Festivus…err, the Holiday Season is Here!! I’ll Even Give You Some Presents!

Posted on December 9, 2011 by Cait — 8 Comments ↓

Christmas seems to take me by surprise as I get older. When I was younger I was counting down the weeks (who else made those epicly long chain ring?!) before November, but now it seems like when I start hearing the stores put Rudolf and Frostie the Snowman on the repeat loop I’m thrown, “What…already?!”

I still consider myself a five year old trapped in a 20-something’s body so I’m always ashamed and appalled that I’ve forgotten to make my chain ring. Where is that fat man so I can go sit on his lap? I hope I’ve been on the winning side of good this year, but who really knows…

In keeping with the season I guess I must put together my wish-list. But, with the risk of sounding too cliched and Hallmark that anyone will take me seriously, I really don’t have much to ask for. (Ummm, outside of having a bank account runneth over to pay my bills maybe?? hehe) Is that another sign of getting old? Regardless, I think I’ll scrounge up some things to get those elves a’working:

* Garmin: I lied. This is really the ONE thing that rolled right off the tongue when the parentals asked if I had anything I was asking for for Christmas. I want that 405 diddy because it is small enough to where I don’t feel like I’m doing an arm-curl the whole time I’m running.

*Shoes: I wear an 8.5 in the Nike Structure Triax. That’s all I’ll say…I’m loyal to my shoes too, I’ve been in these suckers since circa 2004 and while I’ve been disappointed at some modifications they’ve been through over the years (I talked to one of the guys behind these ‘updates’ and let him know I wasn’t all too happy…too bad my opinion didn’t sway the masses…lol) I still stand by my shoes.

*Scanner/printer: art related, again my scanner is from the dark ages.

*Gimmie the green: I’m not greedy and I think my list is tapped out from here; so feel free to send along some flat little envelopes with season’s greetings…so long as there are some green pick-me-up’s inside. 😉 (okay, please know I’m joking…unless of course you wanted to send something…)

Wow...aren't I so generous?! 😉

Because I’m so giving, here is my pledge to give YOU all for the holiday season…no matter what you celebrate, of if you celebrate nothing at all:

12 snarky side-comments
11 running shorts left out of the dryer and hanging on the banister (we all know they last longer if you air dry them!)
10 empty Pop-tarts wrappers…a day 😉
9 times that I lose track of time because I’m sucked into reading blogs and such
8 loogies you will have to dodge if you go on a run with me
7 times I get lost on said run…did I mention I’m a whiz with directions?!
6 times I’ll probably end up apologizing if you spend five minutes with me…chronic apologizer here…I dunno why, I’m sorry
5 tries it takes me to get my scanner and computer to get along in harmony and work!! sheesh, can’t these two take a cue from Cindy-Loo and the Who’s?!
4 times I’m sure I’ll tell you to go read an article in Running Times or Trail Runner Magazine…did I mention I’ve got a few coming out soon? 😉 Did I mention you might wanna sneak a peek into this month’s Running Times?
3 times a week at least that I will do my core routine
2 minutes I spend sneak-strecting my psoas while waiting for the microwave to DING
AND 1 big sweaty stain that is THIS GIRL after finishing her workout. 🙂

1) Does it seem like the holidays sneak up on you too? What are you asking for this year?

2) Can you pledge to give us anything this year?

3) Which guy is a bigger meanie, Scrooge or the Grinch?

Eat My Shorts ‘Fat Burn Zone’ — Debunking the Cardio Program’s Lies

Posted on December 8, 2011 by Cait — 8 Comments ↓

Oooot-oooot!!! I’m not exactly sure how you’re supposed to spell that but it was the yell coming from Amy Poehler in Baby Mamma. The scene where she’s bouncing on the stability ball in birthing class and the lady asked who is going to, “Poison their baby with drugs just so that they can have a less painful birthing experience?”

I’m feeling better again today, I’m still feeling tired and weaker than usual but, “If you’ve got an issue, here’s a tissue” right? Juuust kidding. 😛

So because I spent some quality time with the elliptical (with some Baby Mamma friends for distraction) I was able to stare at a pet-peeve of mine. Located on the display of the machine (and almost all others for that matter), listed as a program to choose: Fat Burn.

I brought this up a few days ago so let me really dig into this charade with my teeth today. Here’s the dealio:

The whole ‘fat burn’ cardio zone is really passe; I think it took off in the 90’s along with Fonda and leg warmers. The clif-notes version of the basis behind the theory is that your body uses different fuel sources depending on how hard you’re working out. When you go out and blast an interval workout your body needs fuel NOW so it will first go to burn anything you just ate and then turn to glycogen stored in the muscles. Glycogen, these theorists continue, is basically sugars.

The story goes that if you workout at a lower intensity, and your body realizes it’s not in such a rush for immediate fuel, it will ‘take it’s time’ and instead start to break down adipose tissue: read as fat. These ‘fat burn geniuses’ then equate this: oh, well burning fat must be better than sugar, so let’s workout so we burn fat and that’ll get us skinny.

There are so many things wrong with it all, but let’s just get to the point:

She's probably at a 'fat burn' level effort. 😉

*The fat burn on cardio machines basically aims to get you working out at a low enough level that your heart rate isn’t elevated above about 65% of your max heart rate. That’s about a quick walk to the corner if you’re late for the bus. You don’t have to have an actual heart rate monitor, so to put it into ‘effort level’ it’s where you’re not even really breathing hard…say a 6 on a scale of 1 to 10.

*To get cardiovascular benefits from exercise, think about what you want for your easy runs, you need to be at at least 70% of your max heart rate. Think like you’re running at a conversational pace; you can talk but you take breaks to breathe.

*We all of course don’t run JUST to lose weight, but to debunk these ‘fat burning guys’ we’ll say this: to lose a pound of fat you need to burn 3,500 calories. In the end, it doesn’t matter what ‘fuel source’ your body is using to burn those calories or where it gets it from the body; the bottom line is how many calories you end up burning. It’s all about input versus output people; burn more calories than you take in and *poof* you come in with a calorie deficit.

She's actually running... 🙂

*SO…when you workout harder you burn more calories. Wow, rocket science. When you are meandering at a ‘fat burn’ cardio zone you just are holding yourself back and not working out hard enough. You jype yourself of cardiovascular improvements and if your goal was to lose weight you’re not doing yourself any favors.

Finally, fun fact, intervals and pushing yourself to go hard in tough workouts will actually rev your metabolism up even more. You’ll actually have what is called the ‘after-burn effect’ where your metabolism is elevated for hours after you are done working out. You get a slight after-burn after any cardio, but it has been found to be much higher and last longer after intervals, tempo’s, really tough efforts…talk to anyone after a tough track session later in the day and they’ll tell you they are hunnnngry. 🙂 (maybe not RIGHT after they are done, but later on)

It really comes down to effort. Running isn’t easy, but that’s why we love it. 🙂 I mean we all know the saying, if it was easy there would be no sense of accomplishment when we’re done. And even on the days we just have ‘easy’ runs, I mean we are still working…there is always that level of pushing ourselves to at least a moderate degree.

So…thank you for allowing me to vent a bit about these ‘fat burn’ zones, and hopefully if you see someone who is just starting to get into the whole workout thang, you won’t let them fall into the ‘fat burn zone’ theory trap…it’s really a twisted little diddy that’s doing nobody any favors. 😉

1) I had a little rant, do you have a rant this Wednesday about anything in particular?

2) Fat burning zone on cario equipment, air your grievances, or do you have a funny story about them?

3) Who else love Amy Poehler and Tina Fey? Funny girls. 🙂

Crumbled to the Stomach Bug…I Will Get Revenge

Posted on December 6, 2011 by Cait — 12 Comments ↓

Where was I yesterday/early this morning? Half-dead, or at least sort of wishing I was…ugh, this runnerchick got sick.

The sick-bug...a suckerpunch to the face.

Remember how I was JUST saying how much I HATE being sick and do all I can to avoid it? Thanks karma.

Sunday night I got my nom nom on and went to bed…three hours earlier my stomach had ‘that’ feeling and I just felt gross. It took a few ‘oh, I think it’s coming’ moments but then…oh, there’s that nom nom. After that the rest of Monday passed in a haze of uncomfort and really random cartoons. The line-up has certainly changed since I was a kid. Good-bye Gumbi and PeeWee, hello Half Naked Animals…what? And has anyone seen the commercial for the game that the whole point is to get the dog to poop?!

Anyways, I clearly was not moving, hence the lack of moving to grab the remote. But by late last night I was able to at least stomach some food, and this morning had a little more than sacked out. I woke up around 11 and felt a world better. I’m knocking on wood I’m over the hump and it was some gross 24 hour thing.

Ya...Monday, stick a fork in me, I was done.

Of course I was double grouchy yesterday just because I didn’t get my endorphin fix…you know I’m sick when that doesn’t happen! But I at least was able to slog out a workout by now and am feeling better…hurrah.

Sorry for the bit of a downer opening there…so let’s turn this around. When you’re sick do you guys fall into any comfort habits? ie:
*snuggling in a blanket and staying in it like you’re in the womb.
*calling a parent and bugging them, not for any other reason than to inform them that you are, in fact, sick
*search the channels for things you watched as a kid, like old movies or cartoons? To this day every time I see ‘Coming to America’ my stomach turns because I had the flu the first time I saw it

I may or may not have done all of the above. Then, when you finally can stomach some foods, what do you guys go for? Usually I want waffles or something that is covered in syrup, I go for the breakfast foods…but alas last night it ended up being the totally over-played chicken noodle soup. But I did get a cranberry muffin for some sweetness.

In parting, while I HATE it, I do recognize forcing a workout when you’re sick is just plain not the thing to do and will only prolong the misery. Yesterday I didn’t change out of the PJ’s. When I hunkered down to sleep at around 9am this morning I figured today would be another rest day but being that when I woke up I could eat and felt human, doing something easy/light wouldn’t kill me and at least perk up my mood. Just take it day by day and roll…

1) Last time you were sick and what did you do?
2) What kind of person do you turn into when you’re sick? Are you the insta-infant, the goucho, or what?
3) Do you have any comfort sick foods?

What to do After You Cross That Finish Line (If Your Lunch Comes Up, Try to Miss Your Shoes)

Posted on December 5, 2011 by Cait — 17 Comments ↓

So I had the fine pleasure of watching one of my friends finish her first marathon this morning…gotta love that agony/excited to be almost done/thanks for cheering for me/oh lord I want to be done look that she gave down that final stretch. 🙂

Bam, finish line.

Her choice of race fuel, was our sugary little friends. 🙂

It made me think about what you do after you cross that line. It was interesting to watch what different people did today: hunch over and almost…oh, there it comes. Dazed and confused sort of try to meander the finish chute until a race official comes and guides them so they don’t run into the fence. Shouts of excitement and well-founded pride. Many came to a dead-halt and after 26.2 miles I don’t blame them.

While every race and every distance of course offers its own challenges (speed vs. endurance, hills vs. track, etc.) there are some general things that we should all keep in mind after you cross that line or break that finishing tape.

Smile for the camera...people are watching. 😉

* Collect yourself and be a good sport: this might sound kind of ‘Hallmarky’ but it’s very true; whether you are a winner or anywhere else, people respect a good sport. If you win and are still unhappy with the time, put on a fake smile and congratulate the other finishers. If you put up an obvious stink you insult your competition…in front of people, even if your race was stinky, at least be considerate…then you can rage away once you get some privacy.

* Workout: say what? This may sound kind of crazy but hear me out. Depending on where the race was in relation to your season, how long it was, and some other factors you could actually jump on a prime time to increase your fitness by going right into a workout after you cross the finish line. When I was training with the Nike Oregon Project, this is something Alberto Salazar is known for in training his athletes. There are a few reasons; one, physiologically after a race there are a TON of hormones coursing through your system and it’s at this elevated time that it is found you can get more benefit working out in this window than a day you do just a ‘normal workout’. Two, if the race was only a 5k, most of our workouts would have worked out to be more volume. Three, if you’re waiting to peak for a race much later in the season, you would benefit from getting in a more volume workout. Finally, I think there is a huge mental benefit too…workout out when you’re already tired proves you can do more than you think. The last thing I’ll say, and it ties into the endorphins and hormones after a race, you will actually feel a LOT better than you think in that workout. So jog an easy mile or so and then do your mini-workout (ex: 3 or 4 x 800) Tip though: in your race, don’t even think about having a workout after or that you still have more. That will just hold yourself back, so still go out there and race.

* Cool-down: okay, I’ll grant those marathon finishers a free pass on this one for the most part…BUT after any other race you DO NOT want to go from an all-out effort to zilch. All that lactic acid that built up will just sit and stew in your muscles; as counterintuitive as it sounds running, no matter how unappealing it sounds, is the BEST thing you can do to recover.

* Chow down – refuel and rehydrate: there is a crucial 30 minute window of time that you NEED to get food back into your depleted muscles. Think a combo of protein and carbs (a bar would work as it’s easy and fast, but you could do some turkey and a bagel…etc) and make it your first priority once you are done running. I’m blanking on the exact percentage here, but it’s somewhere around a 60% drop in muscle recovery if you wait until after that 30 minutes…no good.

* Ice/Massage/Stretch: if you did a really hard effort and have access to ice right after that may be worth a grimace-worthy bath. And as always, treating your body right and staving off an injury is an ongoing kind of upkeep in our sport. Be smart, don’t neglect the ‘little’ things and you’ll be far better off in the long run.

The last thing I want to say which is also very important: chuck self-consciousnees OUT THE DOOR!! Now, I did make some wise-cracks about people in the finishing chute, but I make fun of myself too. I have never had a good running shot, and I joke about it, because I really don’t care. Running is tough stuff, you don’t need to look pretty. So if you cross the line with a loogie stuck to your cheek, have dried salt all over, and your mouth is twisted into a wry look of disgust or pain…who the heck cares? I’ve been there, and so has everyone else. Wear that pain proud, and be proud of yourself. 🙂

1) Worst mistake you’ve made after finishing a race?
Probably the cool-down, I was young and didn’t want to run another step…I paid for it in soreness later.

2) Best tip you have for after a race?

3) Anyone race this weekend and care to brag on themselves?

ElliptiGO With Me Cross-Training

Posted on December 3, 2011 by Cait — 10 Comments ↓

Ellipti-what? Okay, I’ll admit I actually heard about the ElliptiGO awhile back when a friend of mine got to test out one of the prototypes. Basically it’s an elliptical that moves…pretty cool, though I’ve heard you probably shouldn’t be trying to hop any curbs on it. 😉

Lauren Fleshman on the ElliptiGO

Image Source

The machine is getting a lot ore press as of late because Lauren Fleshman has come out to be one of their biggest supporters as she uses it regularly in her training. We don’t have to go into ALL of the reasons why cross-training is great, just a quickie recap:
* extra cardio without the pounding/high-impact of running = less chance for injuries
* easy way to ‘sneak’ in extra miles without upping your injury risk
* perfect for times when you ARE injured to stay in shape so the reality-slap back to running isn’t so painful 🙂

The standard elliptical is my choice of cross-training (of cousre you could bike, aqua-jog, etc.) and so I think building a mobile one would then bust one of the biggest downfalls of cross-training in general: the boredom factor. Ummmm, slogging out hours on the elliptical is at time more of a mental workout than anything!

“I knew my body couldn’t tolerate running more than 80 miles per week, so I filled in gaps with the ElliptiGO,” states Lauren. “Instead of going out and putting the additional volume on my legs and joints, I rode it for the equivalent amount of time that I would be running, replacing some of my key training and recovery workouts.”

Easy days, double workouts…these are prime times to cross-training when you aren’t injured. You can easily do hard workouts on the elliptical too, and just take your running workouts and do intervals based off of time. What any hard workout ultimately comes down to is effort.

So, do you ElliptiGO? Couldn’t resist putting that in there, but I think it would be a really cool machine to test out if I had access to one; until then I guess it’s just strapping on the Ipod or using the TV to distract me on the stationary. 🙂

1) What is your top pick for cross-training and how much of a role does it play in your routine?

2) Could you master some mad tricks on that ElliptiGO? Just kidding, but what do you think about it?

3) For hard workouts, what’s one of your favorite ones to do while cross-training?
I like longer intervals, last one I did I did repeat 10 minutes hard.

City of Sin Forecasts Flocks of Runners With Un-sinly Missions

Posted on December 2, 2011 by Cait — 7 Comments ↓

All the cool kids are doing it. The marathon.

But we've established I'm FAR from cool already...

I was on the fence about writing one, and my reason is this: No I have not run a marathon *horrified gasps* but I still think of myself as a runner. The marathon has grown in popularity an insane amount in the recent years; it happens, the mile used to be the lovechild event but now it’s the 26.2’er.

Yet for as long as I can remember being a runner, anytime anyone see’s me out running or hears that I like to run I get this, “Do you run marathons?” When I answer no I can see their looks of shock…then disappointment…then pity, “Oh, poor girl, she thinks she’s a runner.”

Do not get me wrong, I would love to run a marathon one day, I haven’t yet for a few reasons but I do want to eventually. I do have the name One-speed Chock for a reason and I love long runs…so I’m sure it’ll happen. I have a tremendous amount of respect for the event, but I also have a tremendous amount of respect for the other events: would you walk up to the World Record holder in the mile, ask them if they have run a marathon, and then deem them an unworthy runner and give them that ‘pity’ look? 😉

Regardless of the reason, I do love seeing a mounting passion in people for running and if it takes the marathon to do it…godspeed! I think it’s just funny sometimes. THAT said…because that it’s an Olympic year fast approaching I wanted to do a quickie post on this.

Turns out that it won’t be hung-over bachelors, bachelorettes, or all the people in the middle wandering the streets of Las Vegas this weekend. Well, there probably will be those too, but the city of sin is being taken over by runners too! There are two big marathons this weekend, the first is the Rock n’ Roll Marathon in Vegas as well as the California International Marathon (CIM) in the Sacramento area. What do the two have in common?

They’re both faster courses AND the last ditch effort for anyone hoping to make an Olympic Marathon Trials Qualifying time. The trials will be in Houston, TX in January…ahhh, so the bar has been set, and I do know there are plenty of men and women lining up with some lofty goals and dreams.

Yet even if you’re not with Olympic Trials aspirations, best of luck to anyone who is running in either those marathons, and any other for that matter. My earlier ramble was of course no love lost on runners who ARE marathoners, more just poking fun at the mass public who lump all runners into a single category. 🙂 Mostly, just a teenie vent at the people who do offer up that pity look when they hear the phrase, “Yes, I’m a runner…but no, I’m not a marathoner.” 😉

If your feet are torn up from miles, you stank of sweat, and you know what a fartlek is you are a runner…and one day I’ll join the marathon club…

1) Do you know ‘that’ look I’m talking about, whether you do run marathons or not? Let’s get both perspectives!

2) Have you run a marathon or what is you choice event?

3) Do you know anyone running in either marathon this weekend? Are YOU running them? Any of them going for the time standard?
Yes I do some some people…gooooood luck! 🙂

4) You’re a runner if…

In My Mind I Dance Like a Swan — And Am Super Flexible

Posted on December 1, 2011 by Cait — 11 Comments ↓

Well, at least I know where all the flexibility and coordination went in my family…

actually it’s never been a secret. So I spent the night watching my little sis’s dance show and while I may be biased, I’ll say she’s the bestest one out there. 🙂 (pix from tonight are being stupid and not working at the moment…sorry)

I have always had that little girlie part of me lurking away any time ice skating or gymnastics is on; that part that sorta wished I had even one fiber of grace and the ability to do all those flippy things. Dance performances can pull that part out sometimes, but I know my place…I’ll cheer and live vicariously through the sis.

Running makes you tighter, combine that with my mom’s DNA and we have my situation…I’ve never once, not once, touched my toes while keeping my legs straight. I use the excuse that since I’m all legs my arms proportionately never stood a chance.

Excuses aside, I have been doing a little better in my pledge to do at least SOME stretching. I may not ever do splits while conscious but neglecting the problem is certainly doing me no favors and was like letting it fester. Reasons not to fester: increased chances of injury, limiting range of motion, poor form, by the time I’m 30 I’ll need a walker…

If you’re like me and don’t like to stretch or say you don’t have time, I’ll call you out, I did it to myself and here are some sneaky ways to get your stretch on: (PS-rembember it’s counterproductive to stretch cold muscles, so only do so after you’ve warmed up…mmmmk)

Let's cut to Audrey in Funny Face, shall we?

*Dynamic leg swings: if you only have a second, I’d pick these. Hold onto a pole, swing your left leg front to back, gradually getting higher each time. Repeat with right leg. Then do lateral leg swings, so across your torso. Do a few sets of 10.

*Covert stretch: make fun of me, but when I’m waiting to micro up something, I’ll use the minutes to alternate between some easy stretches. My hip flexors and psoas muscles are tight from my elliptical sessions. And people, you can use TV time to do a little you know what.

*Do it sweaty: really, I know there is no excuse to give a minute or two to stretching after my runs/core. I’m already nasty and lying on the floor won’t make me dirtier. The thing is, doing little bits at a time is actually better than planning on doing a huge chunk once a week. The time adds up, and how many people actually then stick to that ‘planned’ stretching time?

So while I’ll never do an Arabian back-whatever, I know I can muster a few leg swings…eh?

1) Are you good with stretching?

2) Have you ever done the splits?

3) Have you ever been a gymnast, dancer, ice skater…or the like?
I actually used to tap dance and that I wasn’t horrendous at.