Enabling Fitness

health and fitness information | the diary of an athlete

Tag: half marathon

finish line gate
  • Races & Events

The Boston Half Marathon

By stephanie 9 Oct, 2017

First things first, I want to clear up some common misconceptions about the Boston half marathon. The half marathon course is NOT a shorter version of the full marathon course. Yes, they are both organized by the Boston Athletic Association, but that is where their similarities end. The half marathon does not require one to

Read More
2017 boston half marathon road race running
  • About
  • Blog
Facebook
Facebook
fb-share-icon
Instagram
LinkedIn
LinkedIn
Share

Categories

  • Health Mythbuster
  • Product Reviews/Guides
  • Races & Events
  • Recipes
  • Science

Recent Posts

  • T1D and Sports: Riding the Ups and Downs of Blood Glucose
  • Outcome vs. Behaviour
  • People-first language
  • ViaCyte trial for Type 1 Diabetes
  • Spartan Beast – Montana 2018

enablingfitness

#XcSkiing in the winter, #TrailRunning in the summer. #LiftHeavy year round. #ClinicalExercisePhysiologist in the #okanagan. #Political advocate. #t1d

Stephanie Hendy 💖💛💙
Thursday night was my first day of night #skiing f Thursday night was my first day of night #skiing for the season. It was much colder than the weather station temperature suggested, but other than it taking longer for my hands to warm up, it was a wonderful time! 
I ran into two of the leaders up there, which helps it feel like home. 

The lit loop is about 3km, I did the first loop with however many stops my legs needed, and the second loop, I tried really hard to #ski and not stop moving for any reason. And I did it! Which to me is shocking, because that was only my second time on #skis this season, and that was my nemesis over the past couple of seasons.

Saturday was even better!! I went skiing with a couple friends who are much better than I am and they watched me ski and gave me some technique tips. My lower legs instantly stopped hurting, and I was FLYING. 
At first, it felt harder because I was asking my body to move a certain way. Moving in a new pattern while also trying to break the old pattern is challenging when it comes to movement control. But the new pattern is leaps and bounds more efficient and that's what I needed!

The Strava screenshot at the end shows the time it took me to do the full Passmore #trail. You can see from only a week ago, I did the same loop 3 minutes faster (yes last Saturday was my first day on skis and I realize my performance #gains may not be as big as the season continues). The long duration loop from yesterday that preceding it was from my friends and I stopping to talk about technique! 
Even comparing the loop to 2 years ago with my first season at this facility, a whole 12 minutes faster and my #HeartRate was 15bpm slower! I'm still in awe of what my body is letting my brain do, or rather, the other way around. 

I'm trying to not jinx it but I feel like this is finally my season to crush #CrossCountrySkiing ! I will really only know once I start racing. So far, the #training is showing amazing results. If my skiing continues with this trend, I can finally return to #biathlon next season!!

#GetOutside #TrainSmart #WinterInTheMountains #TrainingGoals
Yesterday was my first day on #snow at @sovereignl Yesterday was my first day on #snow at @sovereignlake for the start of my 2023/24 #CrossCountrySki season. 

Not all of the #trails were ready to be opened yet, but a lot of my favourites were open, like upper Passmore and upper World Cup and the first Aberdeen climb. 

The first thing I noticed was how crappy my technique is! I know, first day back at it since early April takes a little getting used to. My lower legs were fatigued easily from getting used to that position again. 

The second thing I noticed is how easy it felt on my body! For the first time ever, I didn't feel like it was my #fitness limiting me from going fast. My average #HeartRate was only 140bpm, and my HR only peaked at 163bpm at the top of some climbs. Every offset pole plant, I could feel the force moving diagonally through my core. I didn't feel like I was fighting my body. To feel like it's *only* my technique slowing me down is actually a very empowering feeling!! 

I stopped a few times, not to catch my breath, but to stop and take pictures, pay attention to how great I felt,  momentarily stretch my lower legs a bit, and have some maple syrup (my during #exercise fuel rather than Gatorade). As my body warmed up more, I felt better and better. 

So imagine my surprise when I looked at my @strava and saw I had 4 personal best segments! The day I had no performance expectations and just wanted to get out on snow, I skied the fastest AND I didn't feel I was working hard? Now I understand what being relaxed means, and why it's so important. 

This is exactly what I trained for during the summer. Built a #stronger body, learned what I needed for fuel, and learned how all my little decisions work together. 

My body will never hold me back. 
My mind will take me everywhere I want to be, as long as I let it. 

#GetOutside #TrainSmart #TrainForLife #CrossCountrySkiing #SkateSkiing #VernonBC #MyHappyPlace
Tonight may have been my last #run of the season. Tonight may have been my last #run of the season. Cross country skiing opened yesterday at @sovereignlake but night skiing isn't open yet, meaning I couldn't go after work today. I'm planning to go this weekend!

To avoid a repeat of last week's trail running snafu, I ran conservatively down the street, the same road #running route that I have been doing since September, when I told my trainer that I wanted to train to run 10 km/h. The street was lit most of the way, dark patches didn't last very long. 

I was really angry that I couldn't find my running shoe blinky lights, but I found my bicycle tail-light and attached that to my running belt, on the side of my body closer to traffic. 

I was really happy (but disappointed) after re-lacing my runners. My feet were becoming numb while road running and I wasn't sure why. I was really hoping it wasn't #t1d ! I suspected it was the @caterpyrun laces which I LOVE because they turn all runners into slip-on shoes and always keep the perfect tension, but they are too short for my shoes. I would have to buy an extra long pair. Sure enough switching the laces worked. Hooray for an easy solution but sad to make that change. 

I wasn't aiming to go fast, today. I focused on my arm swing and I ran at an RPE 5 most of the way. When I realized I could probably run the last 2km faster, I really started to focus on not just PLOP PLOP landing on my midfoot but actually trying to ROLL forward from midpoint to my toes and SPRING forward. The more I thought about my arm swing strong behind me and my feet as little rolling trampolines, I naturally propelled forward more and lengthened my stride. It worked. 

I love finishing a run happy! That in itself takes a LOT of #training! I'm looking forward to what next season will have in store but I am ready to stop running for the winter while I return to my paradise. 

#TrainSmart #RunnersOfInstagram #FuelWell #BodyMachine
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Tags

5K 2016 2017 2018 Alberta behaviour biomechanics British Columbia diabetes diet dinner exercise femsport fitness flexibility fun run gluten-free goals half marathon health illness low-fodmap low-glycemic MEC race montana motivation nutrition obstacle course race ocr Ontario posture psychology quickandyummy road race running savoury seattle Spartan strength trail race type1diabetes vancouver viacyte Washington weight loss

Meta

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org
Powered by WordPress | Tecblogger by Themepoints.