Our goal today was 11 miles and mom wanted to start out with run 3 minute/walk 1 minute. The temperature was nice, low 60's, and it was overcast which was nice. The good news about the SRT is that it is mainly covered in trees, so even when the sun is in full force, it's not too bad.
Mom mentioned that she was struggling a little bit for a couple of reasons -
1. she has some hamstring issues. I don't know how to describe where the pain is because it's not really IT band, but not necessarily hamstring either. It's kind of on the side in the back. It gets really tight and she has to stop and stretch it a lot
2. Someone drank a little yesterday and that does not help you have a good run!! :)
Anywhos.....so we changed the walk/run ratio a little bit as we needed to and mom had her first really bad run. So as we're running, I'm giving her tips on what to do before a big race. Some of my suggestions -
1. Eat right - processed carbs, lots of sugar and unbalanced meals do not make for a good long run. I try to eat like I normally do which includes lean protein, veggies and fruit. I also do eat come grains but typically they are gluten free or are as pure as possible.
2. Drink lots of water - mom actually does this very well. She has one kidney (she gave the other one to my grandfather) so she has to drink a lot of water. Hydrated, she is.
3. This is one that is very very important and people do not do. STRETCH. MASSAGE. KNEAD. My muscles can tighten up so easily and since I'm not rich, I don't get a massage once a week. Instead, I use these tools -
to get the knots out and make sure my body is loose. That being said - you STILL need to
4. Take yoga - in my opinion, this is non negotiable. Take yoga. Take a yoga class. Please, go to a yoga class and take it. There are certain things you just can't do on your own. Instead of just stretching out your tendons and getting tendinitis, go to yoga.
Those things are super important if you want to have a good, long run. That's just based on experience.
The second thing I did was buy some fall things to spice up my wardrobe -
NEW BOOTS
Yay for fall. I totally have on the bottom sweater and the boots. I just couldn't resist. And since it's a little below freezing in here, I'm dressed appropriately. Why do offices always have to be so friggin' cold?