Goofy Challenge training is ticking right along. The running is going really well but I am failing at fitting in strength, core and recovery spins. I think part of it has to do with not wanting to spend every lunch hour or evening at home completely consumed in training, so these additional things are falling off. I’m craving a bit of balance and some home cooked meals in the evening without expecting Neil to always cook for me. I’ve also noticed that I’m getting tired a lot sooner in the evenings these days. I’m generally crawling into bed between 8:30 and 9:30 every evening. The good news is I’m feeling rested and healthy and I’m sure these other things will fall into place at some point.
This weekend in Calgary we jumped straight from fall to winter. Saturday was a double run day, with two hours in the morning and an additional 45 minutes in the afternoon. I wanted to switch up the scenery so I ran the pathway through Bowmont Park. This is definitely a more challenging route with some good hills along the way. I figured the strength building would be great even if it meant my legs might be a bit more tired on the second run of the day.
It was truly a banner day out there. The sun was shining and while it was cool to start off with I had to peel off my Lux Side Zip on my trip home.
I managed to find my old Camelbak hydration pack (similar to the Aurora) in the garage. This was a minor miracle since we still haven’t finished unpacking and organizing everything since our move into our new house back in June. It was really comfortable to run with the Camelbak on and it held plenty of fluid for my run. Luckily that weird low back pain I was suffering from a few weeks ago is gone, and it was much more comfortable to wear this pack than my usual combo of waist hydration pack and SPIbelt. Despite some crazy hills I climbed my legs felt amazing and I finished that run with plenty of juice in the tank. It was awesome.
I didn’t have the most restful recovery between runs on Saturday since Neil and I had to run to Costco and the grocery store for our weekly provisions. As soon as I got home I changed into run gear and headed out for my 45 minute recovery run.
It was even nice enough to wear shorts out. My legs were (predictably) tired, but I told myself that I should enjoy this one final run…in the fall…in shorts.
I woke up on Sunday to a beautiful winter wonderland. Snow was falling and the temperatures had dropped from +11C to -8C.
I knew the snow was forecasted to fall all day long so I figured I should get my Sunday run done as early as possible, before it really started accumulating. I started off wearing Yak Trax for traction, but I found the snow and ice was building up into big balls in the metal coils. I ditched them about 15 minutes and just decided to take my chances running on the snow and ice in my sneakers. It was much better, I just took it really slowly.
Despite the double runs the day before my legs were feeling pretty good on their 1:15 journey.
There were a lot of hardy runners braving the winter weather and sub optimal pathways too. It looks like this arctic blast is here to stay for a few days so I’d best get used to it…
On today’s run in -13C (or -22C with the wind chill) run.
What is the weather like where you are? Has winter arrived?
Lovely article. Good luck with training in this cold weather. It’s not yet winter over here but I have to confess I already find the 5 degrees that I currently face pretty challenging haha.
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Great blog post! And nice pics. I’m in Calgary too and at first when I was reading this I was asking myself where you must be that there is no snow. haha. Good idea switching up your running route to keep it exciting. I think I will be trying new pathways soon too.
I haven’t ventured out to run yet. I was hoping to ease into winter running a bit not be thrown into it!
-22! wow. It’s not that cold here (yet? ever?) but I’m so impressed. Love those bright crisp winter days though – it’s a bit murky in the UK at the moment. The skies improve when it gets colder. Don’t beat yourself for not fitting in the other stuff – time will come when you need to sacrifice lunches and evenings again so enjoy it while you’re not!
Good job on the back to back runs. I have to do more of that this winter.
Wow, it got cold there quick! It has pretty much done the same thing here. I feel like we kept warming back up to high 70’s and 80’s with a few fall days here and there. Now it’s cold and rainy and I’m afraid our brief fall is over.