Ultra Marathon Training Begins
Staying Fit While on Contract
This past weekend, Steve and I began training for an ultra marathon coming up in February. And by that, I mean that we finally pieced together two days of back-to-back running with each other for the first time since before leaving Durango (Kinley was 5 weeks old)! Let the ultra marathon training begin!
Our up-coming race is the Ultra Adventures Antelope Canyon 55K in Page, AZ on February 24, 2018 – exactly 6 months to the day from Kinley’s arrival. We signed up to race this event in 2017, but as fate would have it we found out about the pregnancy shortly after paying the entry fee. Along with a month of “morning sickness” nausea, winter storms on the Central California Coast left soggy trails in their wake, and we requested a deferral for the 2017 race. Instead of racing, we opted to hit the slopes of Whistler-Blackolmb for a relaxing ski vacation – a delightful alternative to nearly 35miles of desert running.
But now with airline tickets purchased and hotel booked – and the procurement of my sister, Erin, and her Fiancé, Eric, to tag along as professional baby handlers while we race – we need to get serious about our training!
Running
This will be our first substantial race together since the Pikes Peak Ascent/Marathon in 2016, and our first Ultra together since the Bryce Canyon 50 miler back in 2016 as well. Training was a bit different back then! While working home health on the Central Coast, we had our option of at least 10 different after work trail or beach routes to choose from for a quick run with both dogs in tow. On days off, we would piece together trails around San Luis Obispo or head up to Big Sur for an adventure run of 15-25 magical miles.
Now in Lexington, KY our options are slim: we have two dirt trail systems that are 20 and 45 min away from our house. Paved trail options include a handful of 1-2 mile paths that we can loop or do laps on together, with one of us pushing Kinley in the BOB Stroller.
This year, we also have lots of individual needs to juggle. I do better on trails due to the residual trauma to my pelvis from labor. If Kinley joins us she needs to be on a paved path so she can sleep in the stroller. Our pup Layla had an orthopedic surgery on her elbow back in Alaska, and so she does better on dirt trail. On top of that she has a recent foot infection (likely from stepping on something sharp and gross in the urban woods) placing her temporarily on strict leash-walking restrictions. (Leading to her severe dog depression from being left behind!) Cayenne is nearing 2.5 years old, and despite her chunky frame when we adopted her, is now a sleek and muscular running machine, and needs to run as often and as far as possible for her optimal happiness. Thankfully, Steve is super flexible and just wants to run as fast and far as the rest of us can handle!
Needless to say, we will need to get a little more creative with our training this year around, and will also have to put in some less than ideal runs with less than ideal weather/scenery. Since running and adventuring together is our absolute favorite family activity (including the dogs) I’m pretty sure we will survive! And I think mixing in some long run/hikes in the Red River Gorge this winter will help break the urban and suburban monotony.
Our tentative training plan thus far is to complete several “short” runs each week, along with one “long” run on the weekend – hopefully together! This week our “long” run was 8 miles. We have 11 more weekends till race day, and plan to add 2 miles per week to our long runs. If all goes well we will get up to putting in a 26 mile run together before race day.
Now that we have Kinley, we’ll have to be flexible as we can’t just leave her behind. Training long runs individually seems intolerable and takes away from what we enjoy most: running together! Along with finding a decent babysitter on care.com, we may also take advantage of my best friend who lives nearby, begging her to spend some bonding time with Kinley, as well as our parents who are both only a few hours away. Another perk is that Lexington is where we met in PT school, and we still have good friends/classmates here in town who we’ve been able to snag for a few runs: Heidi was my training partner for my first marathon back in 2010 – now between the two of us we have an entourage, her two girls, Layla, Cayenne, and Kinley all joining us. And also Dustin, Steve’s grad school room mate and founder of The Senior Rehab Project, has helped us put in some training miles already.
Cross-Training
At this time we are both in the habit of working out at least 3-4 days a week, lifting, yoga, etc. Steve loves to listen to pod-casts, so he is constantly trying out different exercise programs that are recommended by the various “experts” he listens to. Back in 2015 he lost #10 while religiously following the ketogenic diet and running routine recommended by Dr. Phil Maffetone. Now he has packed on 20lbs of muscle mass in a program touted by the likes of Tim Ferris, etc. He constantly has a gym membership which rotates based on where we are living, but is currently a member at Planet Fitness due to ease of access and a sweet deal of $10/month. Whenever he can bear to spend his evenings away from Kinley, he is working out there.
At the invitation of our billing manager in Alaska, I started working out using Beachbody programs and eventually became a “coach” (though I no longer actively lead groups any more). Although I know home work-outs aren’t for everyone, these programs have been incredibly beneficial for me. Leading up to the 2016 ultra-marathon races, I completed various programs including P90X3, 21 Day Fix, and Hammer and Chisel. Along with snagging an overall women’s 3rd place finish during my first Ultra-Marathon, I was also the one dragging Steve across the finish line (and distinctly remember him asking me to “slow down, you’re going too fast!”). At any rate, due to the added fitness I was able to achieve with these programs, we ran both races together AND I was able to keep Steve’s preferred pace, at least for a majority of each race.
We are both excited to be back in training mode! Running and racing together has been, and will continue to be, one of our favorite activities as a couple. While different training challenges will pop up as long as we travel, thankfully both of our fur-babies are as addicted to trails as much (or more) as we are. Now we just need to find ways to bring Kinley along, and with any luck, she’ll be running trail races with us before long.
Written by: Ellen Stockhausen
