New feature! Gear Review Thursday

I've wanted to start doing gear reviews for a while.  I run a fair amount, mostly outside and in a variety of weather conditions, and I definitely have opinions, so why not, right?  So this is the first in what will hopefully be a series of gear reviews based on my own experience with different running-related products.  If you've got something you'd like to see reviewed, let me know in the comments and I'll see if it's doable.

So first up in our series, Injinji Performance Series - Mini Crew Rainbow (CoolMax EcoMade).  Yup, that's right, we're tackling socks.  When I made my first trip to the running store with the hubby, he insisted that I pony up what I considered to be mega bucks for some fancy-schmancy running socks.  Newbie me thought this was stupid, but after many many miles run, he was absolutely right.  Socks are something you don't want to skimp on, just as you want to make sure you have the best shoes for your own particular feet.  When you figure that good socks will last you LONGER than your running shoes, and are all that's standing between you and the mother of all blisters, it's sort of a no-brainer that decent socks are worth the money.  At $14, the Mini Crew Rainbow socks are consistent with what I'd expect to pay for running socks.  I've been reading about Injinji for quite a while, usually with an "OMG, I would *never* wear those!" kind of reaction.  Because, if you haven't looked at the link, these are toe socks.  TOE SOCKS.  My only experience with toe socks has been receiving them as a gag gift, but after I read a couple of articles extolling the benefits of toe socks for blister prevention, I decided to take the plunge and get myself a pair.  I had a couple of bouts of blisters this summer that were so bad I'd do just about anything to avoid the again.  I bought these socks from REI and the size small is the right size for my size 8-8.5 feet (I wear a size 9 running shoe, in the interest of full disclosure).

Could they be more adorable?  When I tried them on last night, my children proclaimed them "weird" and the hubby said he couldn't believe I was going to try toe socks, and I'll admit, they felt a little weird to begin with, but I got used to them.  I decided to give them a try on my 4 mile tempo run this morning.  It was cold this morning, air temp of 5 degrees and a windchill of -4, and given that my toes were frozen, which is not a problem I usually have, I'm going to say that these are not great socks for cold temps.  Think of it like this - mittens keep your fingers warmer than gloves because your fingers can huddle together for warmth, rather than being kept separated in their own separate casings.  Same goes for socks.  I think these are probably fabulous for summer running, or at least above freezing temps, but I won't be going to them again for these super cold mornings.  I'll revisit these for another review once the weather warms up and see how they do outside of sub-arctic temps (ok, it's not really sub-arctic, but it's still a bit nippy out there!). I didn't notice the separate toes once I got going, however, and they really did fit pretty well, despite being sized for men.  I'm not sure how well these would fit someone with significantly smaller feet or shorter toes, however.  I also did find the places where the colors joined to be noticeable when I first started running, so someone with more sensitive feet might be bothered by that.  Again, I didn't notice it once I really got moving, though.

So, rounding up:

Pros:

Good sizing (size small fit my size 8-8.5 feet well)

Comfy once I got going

Super cute (they come in other colors, too!)

Decent price point

Cons:

Not good for cold weather

Joins where colors change might be annoying for some

Sizing might not work for those with shorter toes/smaller feet

Overall, I'd say they're worth a shot, though ideally it might be nice to be able to try them on first (just don't let how weird they feel deter you - you get used to them!).

The gym may be packed, but I've noticed fewer and fewer runners out there braving the cold.  And it really hasn't been THAT cold (though it's supposed to be freaking frigid tomorrow morning - we'll see if I wuss out and go to the gym or if I tough it out in the single digits).  I think it's the inevitable post-New Year's resolution breaking, because now I'm back to just me and the old guys who walk every morning, with the occasional sprinter blowing past me.  I didn't see anyone else out running when I did my 10 miles on Monday morning, and only a couple of the guys I usually see out walking.  Could have been that everyone was at home still crying into their pillow over the Steeler's loss in the Super Bowl.  Whatever it was, it's sometimes nice to have that much time *alone*.  A couple of years ago a friend gave me a hat that said "Marathon Mama: 26.2 miles of peace and quiet", and sometimes I think that that's a big reason that I run.  I get time alone when I can listen to whatever I want without one of my kids telling me they don't like it, or my husband turning it off as soon as I leave the room.  And it's time when I don't have to communicate with anyone beyond a "good morning" or a nod and wave as I go past.  That's not to say that I don't enjoy running with someone else on occasion - I've very much enjoyed when I've gotten to run with Speedy, and I enjoyed taking a couple of laps a few weeks back with a guy who was training for the Boston Marathon.  But overall, it's nice to just get to be quiet and to hear myself think.  Or not think.  There's something wonderful about not having to think about anything other than putting one foot in front of the other.

Another long run done, and my highest mileage week to date!

Like the good girl that I am, I got up before dawn this morning to get my 14 mile long run done.  We had too much other stuff going on during the day to do it later, and it's so nice to have Sunday free as a full rest day.  I got up to the reservoir just as it was starting to get light, and good thing, too, since ALL the streetlights were out on one side.  It was a bit disconcerting,  but interesting to see just how much natural light there was around 6:30am.  I think the snow helped.  The run itself was uneventful, and only noteworthy because it was so pleasant.  As usual, the first three miles were pretty slow - between 10:55 and 10:40 - and after that the pace just kind of took off.  I spent at least 3-6 miles in the 10:35 range, and the last 3 miles, at least, were sub-10 minute miles for the most part.  I have no idea what this pattern means, but it seems to repeat with pretty much every long run.  Today's pace was only 1 second per mile off of last week's at 10:29.  Really, that's still a little fast according to the McMillan pace calculator, but it makes the 10:20 pace of the 4:30 full marathon group seem that much more doable.  Yes, I obviously know that there's a big difference between 14 miles and 26.2, and trust me, given how my last marathon went down, I know that for me, it's kind of up in the air what's going to happen after mile 15.  At the very least, I think I can pull out a decent pace for the 15 mile race I've got towards the end of the month.  I might try doing it at 4:20 marathon pace and see how that goes down.  If it's pretty easy, then I'll know that the 9:56 pace that a 4:20 marathon requires might be doable.  If it's wicked hard, then I'll know that a 4:20 finish isn't going to happen this time.

Today's run brings my weekly mileage total to 36.4 miles, my highest mileage week to date.  From now on out, every week that my mileage increases will be a new high.  Haakan's plan has me topping out at 50 mpw and doing not one, but TWO 22 mile runs.  One of those might get dropped if I get sick, or if the 20 milers are particularly horrendous, but we'll see.  I've been lucky so far in terms of illness, maybe my luck will hold.

I was disturbed this morning to find that my Garmin was apparently dead, even though it was fine last night as I was downloading all my runs and clearing it's full memory.  I stole Haakan's for my run, since I wasn't going to do 14 miles without anything to help me with my pace (yes, I rely too much on it, I'm sure there's something deep and existential in there), but I spend a lot of my run thinking about what I would do if I had to replace it, if I'd get something different instead or just try to get it fixed, etc.  Luckily, a friend online advised me to do a "hard reset" on it, and that worked!  So if your Garmin ever locks up or won't turn on, try a hard reset (and if you Google that, you'll find out there are a couple of ways to do that, and a "soft reset", too).

I'm thinking of doing some fit reviews of the running gear that I use all the time, is that anything that those who read this blog would be interested in seeing?  Let me know in the comments and I'll start doing a review with pictures maybe once a week.

Warm 10 miles and the never-ending pacing issues

I was supposed to do a temp run this morning, but I hate tempo runs and it was cold, so like a loser I opted to stay in bed.  I'll hope on the dreadmill after the hubby gets home this evening and maybe find a fun rerun on the DVR to watch while I try to burn up the track with my wicked tempo pace.  But I *did* get out to run 10 miles yesterday morning and it was absolutely gorgeous.  I really wasn't feeling it much when I got up, but it was like 40 degrees, and that kind of warmth in February is just too good to pass up.  With most of the rest of the country in the grips of the storm of the century, I felt a little guilty about the unexpected warm weather, but since we were up to our armpits in snow about this time last year, I didn't feel *that* bad.

The first few miles felt pretty slow to me, they were probably around 10:40 or so, but right about mile 3 I hooked up with a new running friend, we'll call her Speedy (since I don't know if she wants her identity disclosed in my blog), and did a lap or two with her.  She had a friend with her who turned around as I came up behind them, nudged Speedy, and said "Hey, it's your skinny friend with the cute clothes!"  The cute clothes comment I can get behind, as I've dropped some bucks at Lululemon on my running attire (hey, if I'm going to get up at 5am to run, I might as well look cute doing it, right?), but somehow I still can't picture myself as the skinny girl.  Too many years of being the fat girl, I guess.  I mean, I weigh 5lbs less than I did when I got pregnant with Charlie, and I wasn't exactly a large girl at the time, since that was after I'd done the big weight loss, but it's still hard to think of myself as the "skinny girl."  So I laughed and told them they'd made my day, and Speedy went on to tell me that a guy she runs with (he won't get a nom d'plume unless he appears in the blog a few times) had also commented to her that I keep a "great pace".  I immediately wondered what kind of crack he was smoking, since my blistering 10 to 10:30 pace is pretty unimpressive by many standards, but it still made me glow a little bit to get a compliment from someone who I know runs much faster than me.  We averaged between 9 and 9:30 for the laps I did with Speedy and her friend, and that little burst of speed was enough to get my speed up for the rest of my run, which I finished with an average of 10:03.

So this leaves me with a few questions about pacing.  I am running WAY too fast, according to the McMillan pace calculator, but I am consistently running at sub-10:30, and feeling good while doing it.  My last long run averaged about 10:24 (I think), which is well below what I should be averaging for a long run.  So am I running too fast, or have I gotten faster?  My next race is a 15 miler at the end of the month and I was going to try for an average pace of 10:20, but now Haakan is thinking that might be too slow and maybe I should go for something faster.  I'm oddly terrified by the idea of doing it faster, but I'm thinking around 10:00 will be my marathon pace, so why should that same pace scare me when it comes to a shorter distance?  Obviously I still have some issues.  I'm feeling pulled between the 4:20 and 4:30 pace groups, too, since I'm not sure what would be best.  I think I could probably finish somewhere between the two, but I guess I'll have to wait until I've got at least this 15 mile race out of the way to think about where I should be.  I've got a half marathon at the end of March, too, which I think will be particularly illuminating in terms of pacing.  I don't think I'll hit sub-2 hours, but I can hopefully get closer than I have been in the past!

I heart Florence + the Machine

There are those who would say that running with music is a crutch Haakan  and those who swear by it. I'm somewhere in between, I've done runs with tunes and runs without.  I did all my last marathon training with audiobooks, which was actually kind of fun.  But this morning, as it was pouring down rain and was potentially going to be icy, I ended up on the treadmill and I found that the tunes were key to keeping me going for 8 incredibly dull miles.  Haakan was a trooper and got the kids all ready to go about their various routines while I ran at home, and though we have a TV in the bedroom positioned right in front of the treadmill, I didn't use it this time since I didn't know which kids were going to come in and want to sit on the bed and talk endlessly to me while I ran (this do that a lot).  So I had NPR on for the first half of my run, and after hearing about riots in Egypt, healthcare policy in the US, and the condition of the local roads (not as bad as they'd thought they'd be, for once), I felt like I needed to change things up a bit, so into my new music I went.

I've thanked Florence + the Machine in the title of this post, but really, Justin Timberlake, Beyonce, Cee Lo Green, Gnarles Barkley (who is mostly Cee Lo Green), and Lady GaGa all share some of the credit here.  I've got to thank my friend Carrie for the recommendation of Florence + the Machine, what a great group.  I'm really enjoying the whole CD, but obviously "The Dog Days are Over" is a fabulous running song.  I also REALLY liked the visual of the video, with everyone popping into little puffs of confetti at the end.  I heard this at the very end of my run and I kept thinking about those little pops, like the 10ths of miles popping off as I finished them.  So, for your viewing pleasure:

The best laid plans

As I mentioned before, the hubby is still out of town (he'll be back on Saturday, and not a moment too soon!) and it's been really challenging to get time to run while he's been away.  I didn't realize just how convenient that getting up at 5am to run routine really was.  The first issue is that my gym's daycare options SUCK (Urban Active Pittsburgh, I'm talking to you!).  They are closed from 2-4pm Monday through Thursday and 12-4pm on Friday.  This is ridiculous because that's the time of day I could actually really use the gym and make the most of my time!  If they were open during that time, I could pick Elliot up from preschool at 1pm, drop him and Charlie at the childcare (where Charlie would nap and Elliot would play with the cars) and do my 8 miles, or whatever, get showered, and have plenty of time to get Oliver from school at 3:50.  That time between Elliot's pickup and Oliver's is absolutely dead time because of Charlie's nap, it would be the perfect time during the day to run.  But can I?  Nope.  Because my gym's daycare hours suck.

In an effort to overcome this difficulty, I decided on Monday that we'd go to the gym at 4pm after picking Oliver up from school and I'd do my 8 miles on the treadmill, then we'd either grab dinner out or whip something up quickly at home.  I figured we'd be home around 6pm.  Well, it too longer than I thought to get us checked in and everything (it should be a newsflash to no one that 4pm is a busy time at the gym, and I should have anticipated this), I misplaced my phone in the changing room and had to track it down, and the 4 miles into my 8 miler I got a call from the childcare that Charlie was freaking out, so I cut it short, showered and went down to get him.  Since it was so late in the day, I had packed a bag of snacks for the kiddos, which the childcare staff totally forgot I brought, so my children were absolutely losing it because they were hungry, poor things.  So I took everyone home, all three of them crying, Oliver in low blood sugar induced hysteria, and realized that there really was no part of that plan that had been a good idea.  So lesson learned, 4pm at the gym is not a good time for a whole bunch of reasons.

I was going to try to go this morning, since the older two kiddos would be at school, but then I ran into problem number two - my kids keep getting sick.  Oliver said his belly hurt, so I agreed to let him stay home since he said it hurt "so bad" and was crying and upset, the whole nine yards.  Now he *IS* a pretty sensitive soul and prone to overreaction, so I made a rookie mistake and let him stay home even though he really didn't seem that sick (I think he just had some gas).  I didn't want to drop him at the childcare if he was sick (obviously), but I did make him come to Target with me to get some new shoes for Charlie, where he proceeded to *skip* through the aisles and pitch a hissy fit in the Lego aisle when I wouldn't buy him the 12 different things he asked for.  At that point I decided he was probably fine, so I signed him into school late.  Yup, I'm *that* mom.  But I'd already missed my chance to run since the stupid childcare closes so early, so today is a wash, too.  This means either I'll have to talk my mom into hanging out at my house after I put the kids to bed so that I can go to the gym and do my hamster on a wheel routine, or I'll have to skip pilates tomorrow so that I can run instead.  And that'll only work if everyone stays healthy!  Let's not forget that I've got my old annoying cold that I'm fighting, but since mom's don't get to be sick, I'm choosing to ignore it for now.

That's a whole lot about my kids and not a whole lot about running, which seems pretty appropriate given how the week has been shaking out.

Still plowing away

My 14 miler on Saturday went surprisingly well, some belly upset notwithstanding.  I'm not sure what causes the upset belly, but I choose my routes for the facilities, so it all works out.  This was my longest run in almost 2 years and though the pace was a pretty slow 10:50ish, I got it done.  I think the poor conditions contributed to the slow pace - it was wicked slippery out there!  My Yak Trax did not live up to my expectations and snapped after just 5 or 6 uses, so I was out there sans friction, and the icy snowy yuck that got left up around the reservoir was just enough to slow me down.  I did the last 2 miles on the road and they were MUCH easier, even with the hills.

Haakan's put in some projected paces and finish times for the races I have coming up, and for once I actually don't think he's overestimated my abilities.  I'm shooting for a 2:35 finish in the Spring Thaw 15 miler at the end of February, and I think that's pretty doable, if I get the early pacing right.  That puts me at a 10:20 pace, and after I get a couple of 16 milers under my belt, that really shouldn't be pushing it all that much.  I'm shooting for a 4:30 finish in the marathon in May, which would be awesome.  It would please me to no end to actually come in just under 4:30, like 4:29:59.  I mean, less than that would be great, but I'd be happy with *just* under.

Haakan's out of town so I'm stuck on the treadmill, which I absolutely loathe.  It was actually beautiful outside today, over 40 degrees, and I would have taken the younger kiddos out in the jogging stroller, but it was still pretty icy, so the treadmill it was.  I'm sort of perplexed about why it's so much easier to keep my pace up outside as opposed to on the treadmill.  I'm thinking it's because it's just so. damn. boring.  Seriously, it's like being a hamster on a wheel.  I need some better strategies for dealing with it because I'm stuck on the dreadmill for another week or so.  Yes, the fancy schmancy gym does have TV's on the treadmills, but for some reason the volume is so low on the headphones, I can barely hear what's being said.  This does actually provide some distraction, but it's totally annoying, and I can't ever get the closed captioning to work.