Sunday, February 16, 2020

Weekly Sweats: A Sunday Long Run and Running App Round Up

In this week's sweat recap: 28 miles of running including an ultra rare Sunday long run, and I figured out how to fit the weights in for now. And a look at the running apps that I use and why.


I'm linking up with the Weekly Run Down, please head over to Kim and Deborah to check it out.

Monday: started with an experiment to see if it will work to do my weight workouts before running.  I set my alarm for 5 minutes earlier than usual, and hit the iron and then did 4 miles easy with some strides on the treadmill.  Check, check, check, everything worked out and my energy was off the charts for the rest of the day.

Tuesday: 5 treadmill miles, one mile warm up, then a ladder of 1-2-3-4-5-4-3-2-1 minutes fast/2 minutes recover.

Wednesday: off!

FYI, a big storm came in on Wednesday night, and I didn't leave the house other than for dog walking purposes until Saturday afternoon, which is my best guess as to why I felt off for the next three days.

Thursday: I felt pretty sluggish, 5 treadmill miles easy and called it a day.

Friday: weights (yay) and then 4 treadmill miles easy.  By rights it should have been a hill run, but I couldn't stomach the idea and went easy instead.

Saturday: started with single digit temps and my plan was my first double digit run of the year.  When I saw the forecast a few days earlier I knew that outside running was out of the question, so I switched from daydreaming about which route I wanted to run to which movie I wanted to watch on the treadmill (yes I daydream about my long runs, anyone else or just me?)

I made coffee and tried to psych myself up for 10 miles.  I run much faster on the treadmill than off it, I'd always rather wear a tank top and shorts for a run rather than all the layers that I have to wear outside this time of year, blah blah blah.  You know the joke about when you talk to yourself you know that someone's listening?  Nope, not this time.  The truth is as much as I love (or at least don't hate) the treadmill, nobody except nobody wants to do double digit TM runs.  And gah, I was just so tired, my feet hurt a little bit...and oh yes by the way the whole reason why Saturday is my long run day is just in case something happens I have Sunday as a fall back.  And hey there was a warm up in the forecast for Sunday.  I snuggled a bit deeper into the couch and took an extra rest day.

Sunday: I felt like a whole new woman this morning and I got my 10!  Because it's still fairly snowy around here, I had to stick to my neighborhood which isn't the most exciting route ever but it's low traffic.

For context, anytime my average pace is below 12 minute miles, it's a big deal.
Let's see, mile 3 isn't just 0 elevation, it's negative 0 elevation.  I'm not sure what slowed me down so much in mile 4, mile 6 included a minute or so walk for water and a gel, and mile 9 was sheer willpower in that I hadn't had a 12 minute mile up to now and by god that split was going to be 11:xx if it killed me.

And let's flip over and see what Smashrun has to say:

The 10:xx runs were on the treadmill and the 11:04 run was this race, so today's run was the fastest outdoor non race 10 miler that I've ever done.  And fun fact, half marathon #4 is 7 weeks away.

Running Apps Round Up
I loved Teri's recent post on running apps, and as a tribute here are the apps I use and why:
  • Garmin: because duh, I have a Garmin.  I like it just fine but it does have a few limitations.  My biggest beef is that I can't see my overall mile splits if I have a workout set up (ex: when I do my 0.10 miles fast/0.01 miles recover, it shows me those splits but not the overall mile).
  • MapMyRun: is a legacy thing for me, I've used it ever since I got my first iphone and I have my Garmin set up to send all of my data there.  I can't remember the last time I used the app, but the website is gold for planning my routes.  I also like that I can really zoom in on the elevation for my runs.
  • Strava
    • Likes: I use it to get the info that I can't get from Garmin, ex: mile splits as I mentioned above and the elevation per mile.  I like the challenges, and even though I loathe social media, for some reason Strava's social is an exception for me and I enjoy peeking into my (very few) Strava friends' running lives.
    • One Big Dislike: whoa, Strava is not a fan of the treadmill.  If you pause your watch on an outdoor run, Strava doesn't count the pause toward your run time, but if you pause your watch on an indoor run, Strava counts it.  Strava also doesn't let you adjust the run distance, which is something I do for every treadmill run since I let the treadmill be the judge of distance and not my watch.  My workaround is to delete Strava's import from my Garmin and manually enter TM runs.
  • Smashrun: is perfect for a run like today where I think that was a good time but thanks to Smashrun I can quantify that it was my fastest non race outdoor 10 miler.
  • And last but not least:  Excel.  Even with all of these apps, I still log everything the old fashioned way, which gives me a quick way to see how many miles I've run per month, treadmill vs outdoor miles, and shoe mileage.
What running apps do you use and why?  Anything good that I'm missing?  Who's Team Saturday long run and who's Team Sunday long run?

28 comments:

  1. I hope you're sitting and not holding anything breakable...but I don't use any running apps (gasp LOL). Wearing my Garmin for non-racing (which I don't do very often), is about the extent to which I let technology in on my running. For me, I'm a tech idiot (I have admitted to that before), but I also fear I'd become too tech-dependent if I tapped into all the available apps (or even some of them)...so I do the ostrich-head-in-the-sand and avoid it altogether. I do log all of my stuff old-school, though. Yeah, I'd be a coach's nightmare if I ever hired another... Anyways, congrats on the long run! Great pacing!!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Aw Kim your race results definitely back up ostrich running. I think your approach keeps you more in tune with your body and it's how you've gotten to the place where you can run a marathon bookended with halfs the week before and after. For better or worse I am tech dependent.

      Delete
  2. It sounds like your body was happy with the extra rest day you gave it and rewarded you with good splits. I use the Garmin app and I suppose I could say the GoPro app since most of my GoPro pictures are of me running. Well, running when I'm not injured...

    Have a great week!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Oh wow I would go nuts being stuck in for 3 days! Way to get that 10 miler done today and congrats on your speedier time. thanks for linking up today and have a great week ahead

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Deborah! I love the WRD linkup and am so grateful to you and Kim for hosting.

      Delete
  4. Nice job on that 10 miler! I debated yesterday about the TM vs outside. Outside won but it wasn't very pleasant. I use Garmin Connect and Strava. You can connect with me on Strava.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ha ha some days the TM isn't very pleasant either!

      Delete
  5. I like Strava for the community part...I don't use it for tracking really, I use my Garmin.

    Congrats on the long run!

    ReplyDelete
  6. I like doing my long run on Saturday to get it out of the way! It sounds like it was a great choice to move your run to Sunday. At this point I really only use my Garmin app.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Me too, once the run is done the rest of the weekend is mine all mine.

      Delete
  7. I have the Garmin app because I have a Garmin, but I wouldn't say I really use it except occasionally for sending workouts to my watch. Strava is what I look at for stats - weekly monthly mileage, elevation, shoe mileage. I use a spreadsheet for my training plan, and I really ought to do a more detailed log either there or on actual paper, but I haven't gotten around to it yet...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh man, if I had your views I wouldn't track anything, I'd just get out and run. Anyone who doesn't know what I'm talking about should check out the pictures on Hannah's blog, she has the most gorgeous scenery: https://prepareforadventure.com/

      Delete
  8. I use Strava and Garmin apps. I like the idea of Smashrun and I may check it out.

    It's definitely hard to start adding in a new workout regimen to running, and I imagine you will feel pretty tired until you get used to things. However, I know you'll get it worked out. Mile 4 is always where I hit the struggle bus. I don't know why.

    ReplyDelete
  9. It's awesome you were able to fit the weights in. I love Strava, Garmin, FinalSurge. My all-time favorite is not an app, it's the RunningAhead log which allows you to run reports. I have kept my data there since 2008 so it's really cool to see the progress.

    ReplyDelete
  10. I use my Garmin for my runs. I also use Strava but only because my Garmin data syncs with it. I thought that Strava does count any pauses towards the run time whether it is outdoor or inside. That is why the data never matches the data from my Garmin. Double digit runs on the treadmill aren't that bad. I've done plenty of them before. The key is to break up each run and take breaks.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Back in the summer it didn't count pauses on outdoor runs, maybe they've changed it since then. Yes, double digit on TM can definitely be done, I just wasn't feeling it on Sunday.

      Delete
  11. You sure have all the metrics! I only use my Garmin app, because it’s automatic. And Strava, because it’s linked. I am not good at remembering to log anything, and I hate Excel, so there’s that! What weights routine do you do before your runs?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. This is the video I've been doing for the past 3 weeks, 24 minutes and done: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=VQZJlSAuOTc&feature=emb_logo

      Delete
  12. Great job on your 10 milers - sounds like the extra rest day was the right call!

    I use Garmin for my runs, and Final Surge because that's what my run coach uses to upload my training plans.

    ReplyDelete
  13. sounds to me like your decision Saturday was the best one of the week! And a GREAT 10 miler was had on Sunday. Love it when that happens!

    Most people in Europe do the long run on Sunday. I don't know why that is! I cannot imagine doing regular long runs on Saturday. Nope. I need some time to get a good nights sleep. Now that parkrun will be every Saturday, I am sure Team Sunday Long Run will still be a thing for me. Luckily right now I'm not really running long. I will do a long run on Saturday if I have something going on on the Sunday or if the weather is going to be horrendous.

    Apps: just Garmin and Strava now. I think if you pay for the premium membership on Strava you can adjust the distance, etc. Why don't you add me on either? I think I'm runlaugheatpie on both. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The only reason that makes sense to me to do the long run on Sunday is that a lot of races are on Sunday...but it's so nice to get it out of the way first thing on the weekend and then get extra sleep and maybe an extra drink on Saturday night.

      Delete
  14. How about that Garmin & Strava treadmill issue?? I just learned that one and it's annoying. But oh well, my friends can judge my pace if they want to. I know the real deal. I do use Strava, Garmin and that's about it. Good call on Saturday's run. I sure haven't been looking forward to my long runs outside :( I guess I'm just more of a summer runner!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think I'm an April and October runner at this point, those are pretty much the only 100% good weather months.

      Delete