Running Shoes

      Shopping for most things is definitely not my forte. Now, if it has anything to do with running clothes or gear I'm always interested. The new pair of La Sportiva Vertical K trail shoes arrived at my door yesterday and needless to say I was excited.

I'm going to wear them for the Brazos Bend 50 Mile race. Oh, the smell of a brand new pair of shoes! It's just like that great new car smell and who doesn't like that! It's to bad that after the first time I lace them up and go for a long run on the trails they will look just as dirty and worn as the rest of them on my storage rack. But that is when they achieve a greater level of status. Instead of laying around in a box, now they have some dirt, grit and grime. Probably a new blemish or two and after running in the rain or mud they now have character. Serving the purpose they were built to do, each run is now a story to tell. 

     I rotate through several pairs of shoes as do most distance runners I'm sure. Currently I have 7 pair of trail shoes and 5 pair of road shoes. I keep track of and spread the mileage out between all of them. I'm able to get around 350 to 400 miles on a pair then I donate them to a local children's charity for kids that can't afford shoes. The shoes still have plenty of life in them just not for running long distance. 

     Running is basically an inexpensive sport. So if you don't need to get really high tech and connected, you just need a good pair of shoes, some simple clothing items and you're ready to hit the road. When I first started out I had the hardest time finding the right pair of shoes. The running store employees were talking to me in a foreign language - pronate, supinate, wide toe box, cushion, stability, neutral gait, heel or mid foot strike, one size bigger (WHAT! I already have big feet so why would I want an even bigger size). At first it seemed like a complicated algebra problem and I didn't know the formula. It can be a little frustrating at first, but it's worth having the right pair of shoes. Once again the tried and true method of trial and error has solved the problem. When you find the right shoes it's a lot easier to get that next pair. It's a process! I get asked frequently by people starting out their running life - What is the best running shoe? What brand of shoe do you wear? The very best running shoe is the one that fits your foot correctly, feels comfortable and you like. How many awesome stories can all of your running kicks Tell?

    30 mile run yesterday and a 15 miler with my husband today, getting those new shoes dirty!

Training Runs

     I'm going to run the 50 mile trail race at the Brazos Bend 100 on Saturday Dec 13th. I am using this race as a training run. My goal is to maintain a 10 minute mile pace, that equates to 8 hours and 20 minutes, but I also have to factor in maybe 30 more minutes for aid station stops to hydrate and refuel or solve any unexpected problems. So that should be right around an 8 hours and 50 minutes finish time. BOOM!! The idea is to see where my training is at and how much work is left to do for Destin. It's not uncommon for endurance athletes to use a race as an opportunity to train hard to be ready to compete at another event. It's all a process.

    I have been maintaining 55 to 65 mile weeks for the last two months and will increase that to 70 to 80 mile weeks through December and January for Destin in February. The key and essential component - back to back long runs. I have had a lot of success with this method. It builds strength and endurance along with teaching your body to function while being tired. Yesterday (saturday) at the Spring Creek Greenway trail, I ran 30 miles and stayed right around a 10:30 mile pace and then ran 15 miles today, with my husband pacing me we maintained a 9:45 mile pace all the way through. I feel strong and can tell the training is now starting to come around. I'm really looking forward to the Brazos Bend 50 event then sharing the time over New Year's Eve and New Year's Day at Snowdrop 55 Hr helping my husband achieve a long time goal for him. All of this work has an ultimate goal, that being the Destin 24 Hr run in February. I'm going to take a run (no pun intended) at something pretty big and special. I will spend some more time talking about that as we get closer to February. 

Company Picnic

    The Destin Beach Ultra Run - 24 hour event - is the big race I'm training and gearing up for in February 2015. The Race Director created this particular race event with the main focus on raising awareness and funds for the Special Operations Warrior Foundation. The SOWF has been providing the children of our fallen Special Operators, in all the branches of service, the opportunity to get and complete their college educations for the last 30 years. This will be my fourth year to be a part of this fundraising event and endurance competition. In the first 5 years of this endurance event they have raised a total of $134,000. 

    On Saturday Nov 1st, my company had their annual employee picnic. It featured a petting zoo, games, train rides and even a zip line for all the kids to enjoy. I think I even caught a couple of the parents putting their karaoke talents on display. I joined in the fun and set up a vendor booth to get donations for SOWF in exchange for origami paper wallets that I make.

I met and talked with so many of my fellow employees and met new friends from other departments. Getting my name out there and helping out the charity with the funds that were donated was awesome. I enjoyed sharing stories and displaying my medals and awards from the Destin Beach Ultra.

I appreciated the many different reactions and questions people had about ultra running. I raised a total of $100 for SOWF. Thank you to all of my fellow employees that donated. If anyone else would like to donate or find out more about the SOWF and spread the word around, here is the link. http://www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/jeanhofschulte/destin-beach-ultra-runs-2015

  Or www.firstgiving.com   Then search my name Jean Hofschulte 

    

What's Normal...

    If you ask me which I like better training for a race or running the race. I do have to admit I really love the training part it gives me a goal and purpose. Every time I finish a training run it makes me feel accomplished knowing I have the dedication and drive to do my very best. 

 

 My layover in Portland, Oregon this morning was no exception being in the gym on the treadmill at midnight getting my 20 miles in before I have to go to work, that's normal to me. What's seems crazy to me is the tv shows that are on at that time of night. Do people really stay up to see these programs? I've watched some really strange stuff between the Sci-fi channel extra large squid living in the local river killing people to Hallmark channel movies that make you cry and then there's Infomercial's. It's all very entertaining and it does pass the time. 

  I'm feeling very accomplished today. Now it's time to put the uniform on and go to work. 

Mini Muffins

  Food, food and more food. The people who participate in Endurance Sports at all levels come to understand this fact. When I run extremely long distances, a huge amount of calories are expended and therefore needed to fuel my body to keep it moving forward. Liquid calories just aren't enough to get it done so I need to eat real food. Teaching your body to eat and run at the same time is a very weird concept. Naturally the cooking and baking skills I learned from growing up on a farm and making everything from scratch has really come in handy. I love to experiment with different combinations and ingredients to find the ones that fit my needs the best. Since I'm a fairly patient person the trial and error method is mostly effective and can be fun. Fortunately my husband is a great sport and always steps up to the plate as my guinea pig. No pun intended although it works. He tries anything I put in front of him. I found a cook book that is really informative and has answered a lot of my questions about hydration and fueling for endurance sports. Feed Zone Portables by Biju Thomas and Dr Allen Lim. The introduction to this cookbook explains about endurance athletics and what the specific requirements are to be successful. Very interesting and reasonably more complicated than it might appear at first glance. Great stuff though! I have been following these concepts and ideas for a year now and feel I've had a good deal of success. I've even taken away more ideas, altering the recipes and packing techniques for taking food on my trips. They truly are portable, easy to make and easy to eat while using mostly all natural and fresh ingredients. My favorite is the French Toast mini muffins. I stuff them either with a glob of peanut butter or chocolate chips or both. (my idea for stuffing them) MMMMmmmm. My husband makes amazing fresh blueberry pancakes with 7 natural ingredients to supply the perfect ratio of nutrients and even has the pure maple syrup included. Then I just put the batter in the mini muffin tins to bake. A bite size muffin that has everything I need and is simple to eat and I only need about one an hour. Those muffins work for when I want something sweet. For the savory taste, I make a mashed potato with sausage and grated fresh parmesan cheese mixture. They all get baked the same way in mini bite size muffins. A perfect petite package of pleasure.

   Happy eating and exercising!!!

Race Report Huntsville Half

    I made a last minute decision at the Huntsville Half Marathon to run the whole race stride for stride with my husband instead of racing. He has not pinned on a bib number and lined up for a race in a long time. I truly wanted his company along the rolling hills on the double looped course. When we run together I feel so much joy and happiness and it reminds me of when I first started running. He has always given me his help and support in my running. 

    The day could not have been any nicer. We had beautiful weather with cooler temperatures at the start, tons of volunteers cheering and the young kids at the aid stations trying to hand out the most water without spilling a drop. There are plenty of hills up and down on this course. The start/finish line is located on a downhill, a nice way to start and especially finish. 

     One of the great moments of the day happened passing through mile 11. We were running past one of the Huntsville State Prison units, on an old cobblestone street at the main entrance of the building and the Saturday morning shift change was about to happen. The employees were standing in line outside on the sidewalk waiting to enter. We came around the corner of the building, being careful not to trip on the uneven cobblestones, but still trying to look like we were running a confident solid finishing pace. I also need to mention we were the only runners there at that moment. The employees started giving us a huge round of applause and cheering us on. Wow, what a reception and quite unexpected. I was completely taken off guard by all their enthusiasm so early in the morning. So after waving and taking our Thank You bows I had  to ask them '' is this the line to get a good cup of coffee?'' There was plenty of laughter so I hope my attempt at some comedy helped to start their long day with a smile. Good times, I love running and sharing laughter. We had another funny moment along the way as we were climbing the last big hill at mile 12. We were just trying to push through and one of us was looking a little rough at this point. As we got to the top of the last long hill a young lady who was passing out water at the aid station complimented me on being a great 'daughter', running with and helping 'My Father' finish the race. Oops! I got such a great laugh out of that and hubby was to tired to correct her so he just mumbled a few words under his breath then smiled all the way to the finish.

   We finished our half marathon in  2:25 enough to get my husband a 4th place finish in his 'old man' age group while I took home a 6th in my age group. 

  I know the Huntsville Half  Marathon race was 3 weeks ago. Sorry for the delayed report. Life sometimes gets in the way of blogging. This morning though I went out for a 26.2 mile run in honor of my friends running the NYC Marathon today. It looks very cold and windy. Good Luck!!