The princess and the speed

That’s it, I need a vacation, like now. My brain is seriously catatonic, I kid you not. It’s like it’s in a perpetual daze, I’m constantly forgetting things, important things, like for instance in less than a 24 hour period, I forgot to test my blood sugars before going to bed last night which I always do to ensure there won’t be any un-welcomed overnight surprises and then tonight after my run, I forgot to test my blood sugars and set a post-run temporary basal. Seriously, I need a vacation! Good thing I’m going on one starting Friday! Woohoo 😀

TONIGHT’S RUN:

  • 6 p.m. BG before: 6.5
  • Temp basal: -50 per cent
  • Distance: 7 km
  • Average pace: 6:15 min/km
  • Average heart rate: 168 bpm
  • Time: 43:48
  • 8 p.m. BG (1 hour) after: 4.1

I joined my favourite running chick and Little Miss Speedy Gonzalez for a good-clip tempo run tonight. Miss Speedy Gonzalez informed us that she thought maybe she might be coming down with something (I may have instantly inched away from her as though she had the ebola) and to run ahead if she fell behind. Now, I used to chase run with Miss Speedy Gonzalez back in the day, but it’s been a good year and a half I think since that last time we really ran together, and let me just say, I had forgotten the chase.

It was an out and back route and my favourite running chick and I were leading the way for a good portion, and at one point Miss Speedy Gonzalez had fallen back. So we’re chatting away, huffing and puffing, when all of a sudden, out of the corner of my eye, I spot Miss Speedy Gonzalez directly across the street from us, her form was perfect, she wasn’t huffing and puffing, wasn’t struggling, was just running, perfectly running. What the heck? I thought she was under the weather, I thought she was supposed to be sick? Where the hell did this second gear come from? And she was not content to keep pace with us, oh no, those super toned legs of hers would not be defeated. My favourite running chick and I both looked at our Garmins, we were going a 5:25 pace, how fast she was going, I have no idea, but she was a good two car lengths ahead of us. I tried to break her on the hill, oh did I ever, I was giving her up that sucker, she was going to falter, I knew she would, she had to, she couldn’t possibly keep pushing that distance, at some point it would have to break. It didn’t. As her legs speed cycled one after the other it was as though they were laughing at my efforts. And I swear I even heard them say, “Not tonight, my friend, not tonight!”


She was so fast, I couldn’t even get her in focus!

So, I have a bit of decision to make and I’m looking for any possible advice that may come my way. As you know I’m training for a full marathon which is on May 29, but in two Sundays from now I will also be racing the Toronto half marathon. Theoretically this is only supposed to be a training run, but knowing me, I will likely race it if I’m feeling good (and maybe even if I’m not). So, where does that leave me for this week’s long run. I don’t want to kill my mileage for the full marathon, and while I am leaning towards doing the scheduled 32 km, I’m not sure if maybe I’d be overdoing it. But like I said, I don’t want to kill my mileage.

How many kilometres would you run?

I stocked up on gels tonight, and going against everything I believe in, I strayed from my typical choice of GU (I don’t like change) and picked some Hammer Gels and eLoad gels. I’ve never tried either, but I’m thinking my belly is in need of something new as I think it’s starting to rebel against the GU, which is never a good thing. Let’s just hope these ones don’t have adverse effects.

Do you take gels? Which ones do you use?

5 thoughts on “The princess and the speed”

  1. Robert Freeman

    I loved your story about Miss Speedy Gonzalez 🙂 But don’t even mention dandelions to me. When I was a kid, I was FORCED to pull two quart-baskets (half a bushel?) of dandelions out of our lawn every day after school. I soon learned the trick was to dig up the BIGGEST dandelions I could find to fill the basket faster – but I was still emotionally scarred by the experience 🙂 As for the gel – before I met you, I never knew there was a gel you could eat, just the kind you put in your hair. But that kind of gel was too expensive, so me and my brother used vaseline to create a concrete-hard “wave” of hair a la Elvis Presley. In the winter-time, a lot of water did the trick, turning the “wave” into ice – until we got to school and it started to melt 🙂 Ah, Life was so much simpler then 🙂

  2. I’m a GU user all the way too. But I have to give kudos to the eloads. They aren’t very pungent in flavour which is nice when running so they go down easy. I think you have the big eloads in that picture? The ones where you don’t really need water with them. As much as I hate admitting superiority over GU, I really like the big eloads. (though I find it hard to get all the gunk out of the package through the wee little hole) AMAZING run by the way!

  3. Carol Renney

    According to the training schedule for a marathon this week’s 32km run is followed by a 23km run so you could actually do the long run this Sunday but I would suggest you take it real easy during it. I would also suggest that you don’t ‘race’ next weekend and that you go out and enjoy the half in Toronto. Just sayin’

  4. So we aren’t going with my theory that because “Miss Speedy Gonzales” was on the opposite side of the road it was therefore a shorter distance (as in inside lane) which started the advantage she had over us. Or, perhaps, our side of the road had a bigger incline……
    Okay, I concede “Miss Speedy Gonzalez” (sick and all) showed me up good. As did you, I was trying my hardest up Delair hill to keep up with both of you!! Alas, a 3rd place finish.
    (P.S. I agree with Carol. I think you need to get in the 32km and I caution you to run your Half at a comfortable non-competitive pace.) 🙂

  5. Me, I can’t handle the gels, the texture is… Nasty at best. So I stick with chew type things. I have a random question, I ran my 1st half may 1st and want to do the may 29th, but will be away and not training for a week from the 15 to 22. Is this a bad idea?

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