Milestone Pod and other running related items...

...which may contain a little TMI.

My interest in running and yoga, as alluded to in my previous post, seems to wax and wane.  When I'm on a yoga high I'm all things yoga.  Same for running.  And when I'm on one of those highs I tend to buy stuff whether that's a new pair of running tights or a nice flowy yoga top.  With my recent running high I decided to tell you about a few of my recent running related acquisitions.  Some I have opinions on, others I haven't had long enough to form opinions on yet. 

First up...my new sneakers.  Here's the deal, I need to own as much stuff as I can so that I have as few reasons as possible NOT to run because the upcoming winter generally has a whole host of excuses not to run.  Well, this year I will have one less reason not to run.  I recently purchased the Brooks Adrenaline ASR 12 GTX.  I haven't picked them up from the store yet so I'm a little concerned reading the two reviews indicating they run small.  At the store they told me I shouldn't have to worry about them NOT being a narrow (which I usually special order if I'm buying Brooks Adrenaline regular sneakers) because these have a stiffer upper and will feel more narrow.  They even said they've put women in the men's version to account for this.  I'm hoping my narrow foot will find the fit works.  My theory is having a gore-tex sneaker with a more rugged tread will keep be running all winter long.  Fingers crossed!

Second.  One size fits all UNDERWEAR.  Yes, you read that correctly.  Under Armor sells a one size fits all pair of undies.  These were a bit of a Zulily impulse purchase.  Read the reviews on Amazon before purchasing.  A little mixed but one of the reviewers had similar dimension to me and she gave them 5 starts so I took a chance. I've run them once and, well, they are underwear.  I had no complaints.  They seemed to stay in place.  That might have had something to do with the particular pair of capris I had on at the time - compression - so I will have to try them again with a looser pair of running shorts to see if they stay in place as well.  But bottom line, I rarely wear shorts running anymore.  I'm almost capris or tights 100% of the time now so as long as they stay in place while wearing what I usually wear then I'm happy.  I just had to tell you about them because, well, one size fits all underwear?  Don't tell me you weren't curious!

While talking underwear though I might as well mention...third...Moving Comfort technical undies.  These DO come in sizes and I'm very happy with them as well.  And they do dry very quickly. If you haven't "upgraded" to athletic specific under garments yet I recommend investing in a few pieces. Wicking and quick drying fabric really does make a difference.  And I know I know...we're working out, we aren't supposed to care what we look like.  But underwear lines don't make me feel cute and I run much faster when I feel cute.  ;-)

I also recently bought three different sports bras by Moving Comfort.  They have a line called "Secure Collection."  I've decided these might be my favorites.  They are super comfortable.  The "Hot Shot" might be the best of the bunch though I really appreciate that Moving Comfort made a model, the "Fine Form", which has a hook and eye closure for those days I don't feel like being a contortionist in order to get in and out of my bra.  That one though, the straps seem to squeak a little.  Note, "Vixen" from their "Stabilize" collection has fallen to the bottom of the pile.  It is TIGHT around the band.  Not a fan.  And no secret here...I don't really NEED much "stabilizing."  :-P

Lastly, I think, is the Milestone Pod.  I've logged three runs on it now.  Was hoping to have better feedback on it than I do.  I mean, after two runs and calibrating it, my run Monday matched the mileage on my RunKeeper almost exactly.  That's cool.  But it keeps telling me I'm a heel striker.  Do I look like a heel striker to you?

Hmm...don't answer that.  But seriously, after seeing this picture and attending a Good Form Running workshop, I've made a concerted effort to NOT be a heel striker.  And it doesn't feel like I am, but the pod told me last  night that no matter how hard I try, I might always be a heel striker. 

So what is the Milestone Pod (if you didn't click on the link already)?  Its a little gadget that you lace into your sneakers and it automatically starts collecting data when it senses something that might feel like running to it using a variety of sensors.  It's small and light enough on the sneaker that I've never noticed it and since it syncs with your phone when you're done running (via Bluetooth 4.0) you technically don't need to have your phone with you on your run.  I do.  Because, podcasts.  But it's nice knowing that if I have a rainy or snowy run ahead of me I don't have to bring my phone and risk getting it wet. 

What information does the pod collect?  In addition to the stats below, it also calculates a run efficiency score which didn't make my screen grab but I'll chat more about that later. 

RunKeeper on this same run tracked me at 6.02 miles, a pace of 9:04 minutes/mile for a total time of 54:33.  I'm pretty sure that the Milestone Pod actually "pauses" when I do.  Looking at my splits from both devices this makes sense as I know during which miles Lexa wanted to take a break and when I had an extended period of time waiting for cars before I could cross the road.  RunKeeper tracked me at an average of 165 steps/minute to the pod's 169 steps per minute.  All in all I'm happy with the pod.  I'll probably always have my RunKeeper on me (or perhaps I'll get a Garmin watch one of these days - at which point I'll probably STILL run with my phone because (1) I love listening to podcasts and (2) it feels safer one long runs having the ability to phone for help should I need it).  I do like having an easy and cheap - $25 - way to track mileage on my sneakers.  I'm still trying to figure out what Leg Swing is and where you would ideally want it to be.  I had a short 2 mile run during which I set a metronome to 180 steps per minute to see how that cadence affected my stride and I can tell you that my numbers, especially leg swing, changed.  I was 48% low and 52% mid.  Is that better than 100% low?  I don't know!  I was faster though, my cadence was in the "ideal" range coming in at 178 steps per minute.  And the pod does calculate something called "run efficiency."  At the higher cadence my run efficiency score was 83, which is my highest tracked.  That number is calculated from a combination of stride length, stance time and cadence. 

All this is new to me.  I used to just run.  But with having had a few minor injuries over the years I'm trying to really focus on my stride and strengthening my "run muscles."  Hence my new Milestone Pod toy.  :-) 

I think one of the most effective running tools out there though might be a simple camera/video camera.  Here is another poached picture of me from the Wineglass Half Marathon. 

It's no wonder I often get stitches in my sides...I'm constantly rotating as I run.  My arms are crossing in front of my body and my torso is generally twisting.  This is very inefficient as it's using my core muscles to not only stabilize my run but to do this twisting motion as well.  This can really tire out your core prematurely.  So I'm working on trying to keep things straight as well. 

Ugh!  So much to think of while I'm running!!  I long for the day I can go out and just run.  When my stride has progressed to the point where I'm naturally doing all the "right" - or right enough - things so that I don't have to be thinking "am I twisting?" or "am I landing mid-foot?"  Nothing feels better than returning home from a 6-8 mile run and feeling as though everything went right.  Your pace was comfortable, your breathing wasn't labored, and maybe if you'd wanted to, you could have just kept on running.

So tell me...do you have any fun running related items/gadgets you're in love with?  Have you ever invested in gore-tex sneakers?  And Nike...does ANYONE else run in Nike sneakers or am I the only one??

Wineglass Half Marathon Weekend!

Runners are supposed to eat pasta the night before a race, right?  Well, not this runner.  :-)  This runner's magical pre-race dinner includes a burger, fries and beer.  Not sure when I discovered this but it's worked for me for several relays and half marathons so I figured I might as well keep up my tasty tradition!  So with that in mind, my friend Michele and I went to Market Street Brewing Co. in Corning, NY for dinner.  My burger was very tasty and much to my delight, the fries offered were sweet potato with a maple dipping sauce.  Because you know, sweet potato fries made the meal (feel) healthy.  Washed it down with two of their Wheelhouse IPAs.  There are carbs in beer after all and runners need carbs.  ;-)  Maybe one day I'll figure out a healthier sounding pre-race meal, but in the meantime I am happy to indulge in my burger and fries knowing I'll torch them off the next morning!

It's not that I don't eat pasta though.  Last week I was gifted some tomatoes, an eggplant and a giant zucchini.  Recently having been told by my sister in law that there is a super easy way to make a tomato sauce by simply roasting tomatoes and smashing them I decided to give it a try.  Put a healthy swirl of olive oil on my pan, placed the halved tomatoes on it, added a few cloves of garlic and seasoned with S&P.  Normally you would roast this at around 400F.  But I was also doing the eggplant and zucchini which would roast closer to 450-475F.  So I split the difference and roasted at 425F which resulted in some burnt stuff on my sheet.  I didn't let that upset me though, I simply removed the tomatoes and garlic then added some red wine to help deglaze the pan and added that to my sauce for a nice deep color and extra flavor.  I might burn my tomatoes on purpose next time.  I ran the tomatoes through my food mill to remove the skins, added my roasted veggies and boiled a little bit of pasta.  The pasta wasn't the star of this dish - the veggies were!  I love making simple meals like this using fresh ingredients.  I just long for the day when I have my own garden and fresh veggies to experiment with in the kitchen.  :-)

Ok, enough about pasta...how about this amazing glass sculpture I saw at the Corning Museum of Glass where the Wineglass Marathon/Half Marathon Race Expo was held?  I can't imagine being able to create something like this.  Bums me out I wasn't able to catch the Chiluly exhibit when I was in Seattle a few months ago.

After grabbing a delicious dinner (see first paragraph :-) ) we checked into our hotel.  Umm...I usually don't complain about hotels but this one, well, I will NOT be staying there again.  Not sure the bathroom had been cleaned, ever. 

Regardless, I managed to get a good night's sleep but we decided to cut, peanut butter and eat our bagels in my car instead of the hotel room - it just seemed cleaner.  (Hehe...they JUST sent me a survey...)

We were really impressed with how well everything was run by the race organizers and were totally surprised when, out of a few thousand people, friends from my Ragnar team wound up on the same shuttle to the half marathon start line.  It's always good to see familiar faces, especially when those faces reassure you that you can do this (thank you Kevin G!!!).  The start line was a little chilly but I took the opportunity to raid my Goodwill bin and snag a fleece to keep me warm until it was time to run and then drop it.  Many races take dropped clothes and donate them.  I was happy to contribute to that and it made my wait much more comfortable because you all know how I feel about cold!

We totally lucked out with the weather. It rained ALL day the day before.  But sometime in the night the skies started to clear and we were treated to a beautiful sun rise while waiting for the gun to go off. 

The race itself, well, it's a little silly for me to call it a race.  I placed 688th out of 2,381.  That doesn't really make me competitive.  Unless you are an "elite" runner though, it is rarely about the race.  It's about your own accomplishments.  Running faster than you did last time.  Farther than you did last time.  You learn things about yourself during all the miles leading up to the event and during the event itself.  I learned that with a little more training, I'll be able to run a sub 2 hour half marathon.  I learned that when there are 3.1 miles to go, I can dig deep and find more speed in me.  I learned I want a do-over to do it better.  I won't be happy until I break 2 hours. 

You also learn a lot about other people.  Runners are some of the most caring and supportive people I've ever met.  One of the gals I met last weekend (Ragnar ADK) organized a finish line welcome wagon for another one of the guys I met last weekend who was running his first full marathon.  It should be noted that last weekend during Ragnar, this guy also ran the toughest leg of the entire relay...a week before a full marathon!  Talk about an inspiring runner.

Apparently Swedish fish are THE marathon running power tool.  


Being a part of his finish line welcome wagon though, shoot...there was a little water in my eyes.  Whether it was from the sheer emotion of the day (a text message my husband sent me seconds after I crossed the finish line also made me cry!), the feeling of being there to witness someone accomplish one of their goals (and crush it!), or being a part of something so great and supportive - I was all warm and fuzzy inside.  Seriously.  No joke.  

After a little parking lot tailgate with our fellow finishers, Michele and I wandered around Corning a bit, visited the Rockwell Museum for a little wine tasting and then hopped in the car for the 2 hour drive home.   I unpacked, and then related in the hot tub with my Stick and the champagne/wineglass we received with our race registration.  Perfect end to an amazing, hectic, and physically demanding weekend.

How do you unwind after a crazy weekend?  

I love the Stick for helping with muscle recovery...do you have any favorite tools you'd like to share?