Marathon Training Day 7

Week 1 of marathon training is over.  We ran 15 miles this week.  And, we feel pretty good!

Today's training was cross-training.  We played 30 in-game minutes of Wii Fit and then went for a 30 minute walk around the village (we went 1.5 miles).  Wii Fit lets you track your weight and BMI, so we thought we would track them on the blog as well.  Here's where we are now:

Phil
Weight: 140.4 lbs
BMI: 19.66
Goal: 155 lbs / 21.7 BMI

Niki
Weight: 125.9 lbs
BMI: 24.71
Goal: 111 lbs / 21.7 BMI

A BMI of 21.7 is dead center for the Normal range of BMI (18.5 - 24.9).  Niki is looking to lose 15 lbs during training for the marathon.  Phil, on the other hand, is trying to gain 15 lbs despite training for the marathon.  Freshman 15, where are you when I need you!?

Tomorrow is the first day of our second week of training and the schedule calls for rest.  No problem.

Marathon Training Day 6

Today's training was a 6 mile run and we killed it!

Phil, here.  I feel great.  Niki was complaining a bit during the run, but she pulled through strong near the end.  We ran at the community center.  We had to wait about 10 minutes for the treadmills to open up and while we were waiting we listened to a podcast about the public option.  But this isn't a blog about politics, it's about wine and running.  Here's how today turned out:

Phil & Niki
6 miles / 89 minutes
14.833 minutes / mile

We ran today at Niki's pace so we finished at the same time.  Whenever Niki changed her treadmill pace, I matched mine to hers.  I had a real easy time today.  My muscles felt fine afterwards.  Niki felt like she was going to die early on in the run and her legs were quite sore afterwards.  But, she finished and she feels great now.

We're taking showers now and heading out to see The Opera Show pretty soon.  It'll be our first Convocations show of the new year and we're really looking forward to it.

Tomorrow's training is cross training.  We'll be doing some Wii Fit, lots of stretching and then going for a walk around Purdue Village.

Oliver Honey Mead

The Wine
Region: Indiana
Vineyards: None
Grapes: None, it's made from honey
Oak: None
Price: 7.50

Tasting Notes
Look: Pale yellow
Smell: Sweet, slightly honey
Attack: SWEET, honey, smooth
Evolution: still sweet, we can taste the alcohol
Finish: light but mouth coating.


Sickly sweet.  Will not get again.

Marathon Training Day 5

Today's training was rest.  We kicked ass at it.

Tomorrow is a 6 mile run.

They're Here!!!

My Vibram FiveFingers came today!

 

They fit unlike any shoe I've ever owned.  

It will take some getting used to.  

They feel almost too tight, but they are fitting like they are supposed to. 

I have wide feet.  

The socks make it a bit easier to put them on.  

I am looking forward to running in them on Saturday.  

We'll see how I do.  

I think I will bring a back up pair of shoes in case I decide I can't handle running in the Vibrams yet.

[/rambling review]

After wearing them while blogging, I have decided Vibrams are not comfortable sitting-and-doing-nothing shoes.  Off they go.  Ahhh.... that feels better.  The Injinji socks are amazing, though!

Marathon Training Day 4

Phil here.  My quads are KILLING me.  But, in a sort of good way.

Today's training was another 3 mile run.  I had a PGSG executive board meeting tonight so we planned to go running at 8:30 at the PVIL community center.  When we got there, it was already occupied.  Our contingency plan was the Rec and we had no secondary contingency plan.  When we got to the Rec, the treadmills were packed.  And we had no idea where we were going to store our stuff.  But, we didn't have to wait too long, two treadmills next to each other opened up after a short wait and I found an open locker, stashed our stuff and we got to running.  This is how it turned out:

Phil
3 miles / 32:54
10.967 minutes / mile

Niki
3 miles / 42:15
14.083 minutes / mile

We both forgot to stretch before running, so that might be why we're a bit stiff.  Niki is substantially less stiff than I.  After we left the fitness center we went up to the second floor (the fitness center is in the basement) to peek at the puny indoor track.  It takes 9 laps around the 2 lane track to make a mile.  Niki and I are not impressed by it.  Hopefully, the Rec renovations will improve the track situation.  Anyways, the trek up to the 2nd floor and back down again was less than a cake walk for my thighs.

We remembered to stretch after running, though.  I am getting very close to being able to touch my toes.  It's exciting!  Niki can already touch hers because she has short legs.  Her short legs also mean she can't run very fast.  If we want to run the marathon together, we will have to work on a pace that is comfortable for us both.

I had a few mild side cramps while running.  I think I need to stretch and eat more foods containing potassium and learn to drink water properly while running.  Also, I think breathing can have an influence on side cramps, as in improper breathing can cause side cramps to occur.

Other than the leg fatigue (seriously, it feels like my quadriceps are bathed in lactic acid right now), we feel wonderful.  Tomorrow's training is rest.  Yes, please.

Marathon Training Day 3

This morning Phil woke up to sore quads, calfs and a sore bottom. Lucky for Niki she only had sore quads. Despite the soreness, overall we both feel pretty good. Niki had an early class this morning so we ran our 3 miles at 8 pm this evening. Other people were in the fitness room so Phil got to run on a treadmill, but Niki had to make do with an elliptical. Here are our stats for today:

Phil:

35:29

11.828 minutes per mile

Niki:

38 even

12.67 minutes per mile

After the workout we both could feel it in our leg muscles. Today's run was easier than yesterday's and we both felt really good after. It snowed some more today. The sidewalks are covered in snow and a little bit was coming down on our walk to and from the community center. Until the weather gets a little nicer for running outside, we plan to go to the rec for evening and weekend runs on the indoor track.

Tonight and tomorrow morning will consist of much stretching so that hopefully we both won't be too sore tomorrow. If we can stand it, lunges on Sunday should help. Things for us to work on: stretching our muscles so they hurt less and learning to run on the balls of our feet more.

3 miles tomorrow!

Marathon Training Day 2

Today's training called for a 3 mile run/jog/walk. Check!

We had planned to go at 6:30 AM, but the community center doesn't open until 8, so we went at 8. It was snowing so we drove. Rather, we spent 10 minutes scraping ice and snow off the car so we could drive what would have taken us 5 minutes to walk. Tomorrow, we are walking to the CC.

I, having never really used a treadmill before, accidentally reset the thing twice while I was running on it. Luckily, Niki wasn't mashing buttons or toying with stuff like I was so we used her treadmill to keep track of our time. Something fun: when I got off the treadmill and walked around, I felt like I was moving really fast. My brain had gotten used to me running but not moving so when I did move, it thought I was moving rather quickly. It was an exceedingly cool effect.

Here are the results:
Phil
3 miles / 40 minutes
13.33 minutes/mile

Niki
3 miles / 46 minutes
15.33 minutes/mile

We discovered that we Phil can power walk at the minimum pace required for the marathon, 15 minutes/mile, but Niki's legs are too short. Our goal is a 13 minutes/mile pace, so we would finish in about 5.5 - 6 hrs. Given how difficult today was, we have a long way to go. A looooong way to go.

Tomorrow's training is another 3 mile run. We're probably going to go in the evening, around 8PM.

Marathon Training Day 1

Today's training called for rest. Check!

We have decided that we want to get Vibram FiveFingers as our running shoes. Phil ordered his pair (KSO grey-palm) today, but Niki is holding out for the pink ones (KSO grey-fuschia) which are currently sold-out in her size. Along with the Vibrams, we are getting Injinji socks. The Vibrams and the socks come highly recommended.

That's right, Toe-Shoes!

Purdue has issued a challenge to the community to walk, as a whole, the distance to the moon, some 477,714,000 steps, during the week of February 1-5.  We will certainly do our part.  During those days we are running 9 miles.  At 2,000 steps per mile, we will each contribute 18,000 steps that week for a total of 36,000 steps (not counting walking around on campus).

Tomorrow, we are going running at the community center (treadmills inside because it's snowing outside) at 6:30AM.  The plan is to do 3 miles.

Santa Ema Reserve Merlot 2007

The Wine
Region: Maipo Valley, Chile
Vineyards: Santa Ema
Grapes:100% Merlot
Oak: 10 months in French Oak.
Price: $10.

Tasting Notes
Look: It was dark purple.
Smell: Bold for a Merlot. Other than that, we lack the vocabulary, but it smelled like a Pinot Noir.
Attack: Pepper was one of the first tastes we noticed.
Evolution: Not so much berry, but more like grape.  The pepper went away after a few sips.
Finish: Light and smooth.  The taste didn't last long once you swallowed.

We each had a glass of this wine with dinner last night (T-bone steak, rice and broccoli).  The other half of the bottle was used to make tonight's dinner: Boeuf Bourguignon (yes, the one from Julie and Julia), which, by the way, smells absolutely amazing right now.  We're using the Joy of Cooking recipe, but I'm probably going to try to buy Niki a copy of Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking if this turns out to be as amazing as it smells.  The wine was very good for a Merlot.  It received 90 points from Robert Parker's Wine Advocate and it is worth every penny of the $10 we paid for it.

FAT bastard Pinot Noir 2007

The Wine
Region: Primarily from the Herault region of France, with some grapes coming from the island of Corsica.
Vineyards: Vin de Pays Vignobles de France
Grapes: 100% Pinot Noir
Oak: Not oak at all, but stainless steel tanks.
Price: $10.

Tasting Notes
 Look: Ruby red.
Smell: Big and bold.
Attack: Uhm... it was good. Bold, smooth, dry.
Evolution: Mostly berries.
Finish: Full-bodied, delicious, left us wanting more.


We had it with dinner, which was pork seasoned with garlic salt, coriander, paprika and chili power and mashed potatoes and corn.  Overall, the wine was very good, and the price tag was completely reasonable.  I would buy it again.

The 38 Week Marathon Training Schedule

Here is Hal Higdon's 18 week novice marathon training schedule expanded to 38 weeks.

Week	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thur	Fri	Sat	Sun
1	rest	3	3	3	rest	6	cross
2	rest	3	3	3	rest	7	cross
3	rest	3	3	3	rest	6	cross
4	rest	3	3	3	rest	7	cross
5	rest	3	4	3	rest	5	cross
6	rest	3	4	3	rest	9	cross
7	rest	3	4	3	rest	5	cross
8	rest	3	4	3	rest	9	cross
9	rest	3	5	3	rest	10	cross
10	rest	3	5	3	rest	7	cross
11	rest	3	5	3	rest	10	cross
12	rest	3	5	3	rest	7	cross
13	rest	3	6	3	rest	12	cross
14	rest	3	6	3	rest	13	cross
15	rest	3	7	4	rest	10	cross
16	rest	3	6	3	rest	12	cross
17	rest	3	6	3	rest	13	cross
18	rest	3	7	4	rest	10	cross
19	rest	3	7	4	rest	15	cross
20	rest	4	8	4	rest	16	cross
21	rest	4	8	5	rest	12	cross
22	rest	3	7	4	rest	15	cross
23	rest	4	8	4	rest	16	cross
24	rest	4	8	5	rest	12	cross
25	rest	4	9	5	rest	18	cross
26	rest	5	9	5	rest	14	cross
27	rest	5	10	5	rest	20	cross
28	rest	5	8	4	rest	12	cross
29	rest	4	9	5	rest	18	cross
30	rest	5	9	5	rest	14	cross
31	rest	5	10	5	rest	20	cross
32	rest	5	8	4	rest	12	cross
33	rest	4	6	3	rest	8	cross
34	rest	5	9	5	rest	14	cross
35	rest	5	10	5	rest	20	cross
36	rest	5	8	4	rest	12	cross
37	rest	4	6	3	rest	8	cross
38	rest	4	5	rest	rest	race

Cross training on Sundays is an hour of walking, biking, swimming, or other similar [low-impact] activity.

The sum of all the miles we will run in the 38 weeks, including the 26 miles in the marathon, is 989 miles.  This is a LARGE number.  But, 989 miles over 264 days is about 3.75 miles per day which doesn't seem nearly so bad.  The proximity of 989 to 1000 being what it is, we have a new goal: Run 1000 miles.

Probably a couple days after the marathon, we will go for a short 11 mile run to reach the 1000 mile mark.  1000 miles is the approximate walking distance between our apartment in West Lafayette, IN and Phil's parents' house in Houston, TX.  WOW.

Wine and Running: an Explanation

The Goals

1. Complete the Indianapolis Marathon on 16 October 2010.
2. Taste 50 different wines by 2011.
   

The Plan

1.  To train for the marathon, we are going to following a plan by Hal Higdon.  The plan is 18 weeks long, but we are going to slightly more than double it to 38 weeks because we are super-novices.  We are starting tomorrow by... resting.  Sweet.  We expect this to be difficult but exceedingly rewarding.
2. The plan to taste 50 wines before the new year is to drink an average of just under 1 bottle of wine per week.  The key here is to not just consume the wine, but to taste it and remember it's characteristics so we can intelligently choose wines in the future.  For now, we will follow the About.com wine tasting guide.  We expect this to be both easy and rewarding.

We expect to have fun above all else.  Our intention for the blog is to keep a record of our progress and our thoughts as we proceed on this adventure.  Marathon updates should be posted roughly once per day and wine posts whenever we open a new bottle, roughly once per week.

If we run for our health, let us also drink to it. Cheers,
Phil and Niki

Progress Meter and Countdown
264 days until Indianapolis Marathon.
0 miles ran, 989 miles left to run.
(entry containing the training schedule explaining that number coming soon)

340 days until 2011.
2 wines tasted, 48 wines left to taste.
(entry on the 2 wines, a pinot noir and a merlot, coming soon)