A long run experiment

Well, I should be napping since little red is down for the count, but instead i am blogging.  Priorities.  Lots going on in my world, thus the lack of blogs.  Crazy things, some good and some bad.  Sorry to be vague, but I will write about them when I can.  The biggest thing is that Uncle Cayce (my brother in law) just found an apartment and is moving in to the new place and out of our place this weekend!!!!  We are so excited that he found one in our little town and in his price range.  He will be about 3 minutes away and near to my BRF which is nice.  Maybe he will start eating at her house for dinner LOL!  I imagine he will still come and see us a bunch and that is okay.  

Today's run was a bit of an experiment.  I am trying lots of new things this training cycle, like new shoes and new fuel.  The shoes have been going well (well see the bottom paragraph), so it was time to hit the fuel.  My coach swears by UCAN.  Many of the bloggers I read use it too, so I knew it had to be good.  I ordered the flavor pack, so I could try out all of the flavors.  As the heat and humidity increase as the true Kansas summer starts, I am going to have to start getting up much, much earlier to beat the heat.  The traditional way of getting up and eating and then waiting two hours just isn't going to cut it.  I would be having to get up at 2 am to go out at 4 am, and that is not going to happen.  I was intrigued by UCAN because you can take it 30 minutes before you run and you should be good to go.  I was skeptical, very skeptical.  Who wants 16.9 ounces of liquid sloshing in their belly while they run? And how would it last?  Would it hurt my sensitive tummy?  

 I am happy to say that this stuff is AMAZING.  I liked this flavor (lemonade), however I did have trouble getting it to go into solution, and have since learned it never really does go completely in.  I was having issues with gagging, as I am gaggy in the morning anyway and the thick chunky liquid was not helping.  I tried using fridge cold water in my blender bottle, and a straw, and it was still very chalky and particulate filled.  I managed to choke all the liquid down and not throw up (it helps having your hubby encouraging you to chug it  and not throw up), so that is a win in my book.  I took fuel just in case and had planned on taking it around mile 5.  I am trying to do less fueling, so I don't have to carry so much with me.  By mile 7 of 10, I was still feeling great, but decided to fuel anyway just in case.  I did not have any stomach issues, did not have any sloshing in my belly early on, and felt great after 10 very hot and humid miles.  This is a winner in my book, and i will have to investigate ways to get it down easier.  I am also excited to try and push how long I can go without fueling, to see if I can push that window even further.  It would be so easy and nice to just carry this and my blender bottle to races versus lugging other foods.  I am going to try the other flavors as well to see if there is one I like more than the lemonade.  

Stella says getting up at 6:30 am for a run sucks.  I am with you stella, I always love the fall and winter for sleeping in and doing long runs later in the morning.  4 am is going to be necessary for both of us this summer and it is going to SUCK.  We got to the trail head around 8ish and were finished around 9:40ish and were both very hot and tired.

Wow, I have a triple chin.  Guess who forgot to put on deodorant at all today?  Yep, this girl.  I was amazed I wasn't too smelly after 10 very sweaty miles.

Here is a better shot where I don't have triple chins, YIKES

 It was kind of an ugly long run for both of us but we made it work.  My BRF got 9 and I got 10 in.  I think the strength training is paying off.  I also feel like, minus the slowing down for us getting use to the heat and humidity, that my marathon pace will be around 10:30.

I will mention something about my new shoes (sacouny triumps).  I have noticed some times (not every run, so maybe it is sock dependent) that I get a little bit of a callus on my right big toe. and by the ball of my foot. I use to have this problem before i got put into the Nike Vomero's but it went away after i ran in those a few years.  I don't think my foot is moving around in the shoe, but it is odd that this problem has returned, and that it is only my right foot.  I am still struggling with my biomechanics, and I know that my right leg is taking longer to come around, so this may be the issues, not the shoes.  I am going to be patient, take note of what socks I was wearing today, and then see if the problem progresses.  I really love this shoe, and while this isn't a deal breaker,  I liked for once having pretty feet that i could wear in sandals or flip flops without huge amounts of pumice being involved.

Whelp, that is all.  I am calling my first big experiment a success.  I have a day of strength training tomorrow, and then maybe a nice long walk with Deuce.  The real Kansas summer has hit with icky humidity and heat, so walking and running will have to be done early in the morning or late at night.  Have a great weekend!!!!