After a week of 35 degree temperatures, I decided to research how to run in the heat. So, naturally, what happens? It cools right down! (Today, it’s a balmy 21-ish degrees. I don’t even have the air conditioning on.) But I did my research and, since it is sure to get hot again, I’m figuring out how to run in the extreme heat.
Of course, hydration is of primary importance. I’m thinking of trading in my old water-holder and bottle for on of the hydration packs at the Running Room. It’s basically a bunch of small bottles distributed all around your waist. I find my water bottle is a bit heavy, and slows me down.
It’s also good to run in either the early morning or early evening, according to my online Running Room instructor. Avoiding the heat of the day is best, although that isn’t hard for me to avoid, as I’m never really free or available to run around lunchtime/naptime!
Finally, clothes are critical. These runners (at least those at the Running Room) have a saying that “cotton is rotten,” and advise to wear moisture-wicking technical fabrics to keep sweat away from the body. Of course, they could just be saying that so you buy more clothes at the Running Room! (It does make a difference, so I don’t think it’s all marketing ploy, although there is that element to it.)
So how did training go this week? My regular schedule was a little messed up thanks to some unavoidable work stuff. I had planned to go to the gym on Monday to do a special cardio/muscle class, because pre-school is finished and it’s the first time I’ve been able to make it to that class. It’s run by my favourite instructor, who is not only in incredible shape, but is also extremely knowledgeable about strength training and building long, lean muscle. She also teaches my Tuesday morning muscle class and has mentioned that the two classes are supposed to compliment each other.
But when I arrived on Monday, it turns out she wasn’t the instructor! And not that I didn’t like the alternate instructor, but I wasn’t sure the two workouts (Monday and Tuesday) would compliment each other. So I skipped the class in favour of a spinning class, and had a good workout there.
Tuesday it was muscle class, so I decided that I’d skip the gym on Wednesday and go for a run in the evening. That ended up not happening, thanks to very hot weather (I know, no excuse!), an impending thunderstorm and just plain tiredness. Yesterday was another spinning class, and today, I did a run on the treadmill at the gym because I don’t have time to go for a run tonight. Mike has to go out, so I’m stuck at home.
The treadmill isn’t quite good enough, but I varied my speed to try and push myself a little. I did this week’s 7-and-1s, and actually ran for a total of 35 minutes. I ran at speeds from 5.5 miles per hour to a max of 7.5 mph. I’d increase and decrease to try and push myself a little. It’s not as good as running outside, but for me, it’s a good compromise when I can’t get outside. (That happens a lot… if I don’t have a sitter, or Mike is out in the evening, it can be tough to run outdoor.) It’s also good if the weather is extremely hot, extremely cold, snowing, raining or just generally something you shouldn’t be out in.
Now that I’ve completed my research on running in the heat, it’s on to the nutrition aspect. And once again, I’ve fallen off the wagon! Yesterday was Mike’s birthday, and I made a special dinner of steak (with melted Roquefort cheese, like we had in Paris on our honeymoon), baked potato, Caesar salad, garlic bread (with cheese and sundried tomatoes) and his favourite yellow cake with chocolate icing. We also cracked open a nice bottle of Wolf Blass Shiraz to celebrate. Talk about too much food!
I also know this weekend isn’t going to get much better… we’ll probably do takeout tonight when Mike gets home, and tomorrow we’re going to a barbecue which I know won’t be good. To top it off, I just ate two Timbits that Andrew’s little friend brought with him for a play date! (And I never eat Timbits.) Talk about negating my good day, which started with a protein-packed soy milk and berry smoothie and a great salad for lunch.
I guess that means it’s time to start the nutrition research. I’m sure a lot of that will happen along this journey. Right now, if I could stop falling off the wagon (or at least stop falling off as much!), that would be a big help.
Now I’m off to play outside with the boys! Tomorrow, I’ll go for another early-morning run, then take Sunday off. Mike is on holiday next week, so I’m sure my schedule will get a bit messed up! I’m aiming to run outside Monday, Thursday and Saturday again, and go to the gym on Tuesday (for muscle class) and Wednesday (for spinning.) I can’t guarantee I’ll go to spinning on Friday. I may just take a rest (it is supposed to be a vacation after all!) or see what kind of fun class might be happening on Friday at a time I can’t normally go to the gym.
Happy trails!
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