RnR Washington DC Half: Training Wk 2

Image courtesy of Rock n Roll

Before I get into this very short update. I’m definately feeling the message from this meme.

Between a couple of heath issues, work stress, general depression, and political stress, I think that I need a redo for the beginning of the 2025. It has been a rough 31 days, and we are only one month in to what appears to be a very long four years with our new President. I'm not super religious, but I really gotta say: God, help all of us.

Oh, since my Federal Government is planning to ignore this, I'm gonna say welcome back Black History Month 2025.

---

Summary of Mileage

Speaking of redoing January 2025, rather starting 2025 in February, I guess I can start keeping track and pretending that I'm going to run 2025 km in 2025. The month of January was a bit of a bust. ;) But if I'm gonna consider February as my January, I guess that gives me an extra month to complete my 2025 km in 2025...and the 1st month of 2026. ;)

Image adapted from Beachbody

I clocked in only 110 km in January. According to simple arithmetic, I'm supposed to clear at least 168 km every month to meet my 2025 km in 2024 goals. So, I guess that I'm a little behind. ;)

In terms of training for my upcoming March marathon, this week was a slow start, but I managed to get in a single 7-mile long run and two easy 3 mile runs. Not ideal for a full training week, but something is better than nothing.

---

Training Activities

Lol, we'll circle around to weekly training activities with next week's training update.

• Monday: 3-mile easy.

• Tuesday: Skip

• Wednesday: Skip

• Thursday: 3-mile easy run

• Friday: Skip

• Saturday: 7-mile long run.

• Sunday: Skip

---

Long Run Spotlight

There was no biggie for this week's long run. Although the temps are warming up, there is still a bit of snow and ice on my primary running paths. So, this long run took place at my local Planet Fitness. Since the temps are (slowly) going up, hopefully, I can start running outside. I dunno, but this winter has been especially brutal in the mid-Atlantic regions. Eh, I guess this winter has been brutal everywhere. I still cannot believe that New Orleans received closed to a foot of snow last month.

Although treadmill runs can be a bit boring for me, I can power through these "boring" runs because I know I can hit up the gym's hydromassage bed after my run.

---

Goals for the Upcoming Week

• Start preparing myself for bed around 9 pm.

• Actually, do all of my runs this week.

• Look into some half marathons after March.

• Do at least two strength training workouts.

• Take some notes from this meme I saw on Instagram

---

Playlist for the Week:

Since we are still in national selections season for Eurovision 2025, this week's soundtrack was from Benidorm Fest 2025 (Spain's national selection) playlist. Although I did not like ALL the songs (as one would expect) from this year's national selection, a few tracks from this playlist definitely have made it to my general and running playlists. If you listen to this playlist, I'll let you guess which songs made to my general and running playlists. ;)

RnR Washington DC Half: Training Wk 1

Image courtesy of Rock n Roll

Looks like we are back at with another round of half marathon training. Also, this will be my second time running Rock n Roll DC Half Marathon. Hopefully, I will have a better experience than last year.

From what I remember, I thought the course was pretty cool giving us a grand tour of Washington DC with a small taste of Virginia. I do remember a huge hill in Rock Creek Park, so I'm not looking forward to that. ;)

Since I'm still figuring out what's going on with my back, I'm taking a "Que será, será" approach to training for this half marathon. Basically, my goal is to run better than I did in last year's half. With a time of 2:39, I do not think it will be that difficult to beat this time. Hey, if I run the half in 2:38, I've accomplished my goal. Also, I am not trying to put too much stress on myself (in particular, my back) training for this thing because I only have like 1.5 months to train.

Training Plan:

I think my training plan is pretty straightforward. I will admit that I asked ChatGPT to help devise a training plan. While it gave me a decent training plan, it was not anything too groundbreaking. I guess that makes sense, since ChatGPT pretty much regurgitates what's already out there. Also the plan it gave me was more or less similar to what I was going to do anyway.

The plan

• Monday: Rest day (from running) / yoga / strength training

• Tuesday: Easy run (3 - 5 miles)

• Wednesday: Strength training

• Thursday : Speed work

• Friday: Yoga / light strength training / rest day

• Saturday: Long run

• Sunday: Easy cardio - biking, row machine, Cize (a dance workout), or absolutely nothing.

For stength training, I'm kind of getting back to basis, and I plan to work through Joel Freeman's LIIFT 4 from Beachbody (oh they go by BODi nowadays). I will admit that I do like looking at a muscular dude with an oblong-shaped head. ;)

Image adapted from Beachbody

The 35 - 40 minute workouts are pretty straightforward with each workout targeting two 1-2 muscle groups. In terms of time, I think the workouts are ok. However, I think that I might start doing two workouts at a time once I start getting into my groove. If I make it through the eight weeks, I'll write a brief review.

Workout update:

So I did not follow my training workout to the T. I hope ChatGPT will not get me. However, I did manage to get in my easy run (4 mi), my long run (6 mi), and a couple of strength training. Unfortunately, the weather as been extremely cold in the mid-Atlantic region so my runs were pretty much treadmill runs.

Unless I absolutely have to, I refuse to run in temps under 35F, so treadmill running was my go-to Also, a lot of the sidewalks and trails have not been cleared of all the snow and ice, and I am not trying to take a spill.

One thing about Planet Fitness, they really know how to motivate me. ;)

Speaking of treadmills, check out our wonderful set up in my apartment building's "gym".

One thing about this building - NOTHING is ever in working order. Also, the gym is a joke because some of our wonderful neighbors have stolen pretty much all of the dumbbells that are under 65 pounds. Ugh! i cannot wait until we move in June.

Since I have other stuff to do, this update was short and somewhat sweet.

Goals for the week:

-Since it takes me a minute to get moving in the morning, I need to prepare my gym stuff the night before.

-Actually pay attention to my alarm and do my stretches on a nightly basis. I have been good with doing my stretches, planks, pushups, and/or situps throughout the day.

-Since I have been pretty good with my 14-hr intermittent fasts, I wanna increase my fasts to 16 hours. To be honest, I accidentally did a couple of 16-hr fasts last week bc I forgot to eat. In the near future, I would like to attempt one 24-hr fast during the work week.

Playlist for the Week:

Since we are in the beginning stages of Eurovision 2025. Well, the beginning stages of the participating countries' national selections, this week's playlist is from the Benidorm Fest (Spain's national selection) playlist.

RnR Washington DC Half: Training Wk 0

Yikes sometime during the Christmas holiday, I remembered that I registered for this March Half Marathon. My only real goal for this half marathon is to have a better finishing time compared to last year’s. I’m not sure if this will happen because I have about seven weeks until this half marathon. Ok, seven weeks is a decent amount of time to train for a half marathon IF you are already in decent running shape. However, I have not really done anything running-related since Richmond’s Half Marathon (Nov. 16/17, 2024). Also, I was dealing with a back issue from Thanksgiving to about the middle/end of December. So, this might be one of those run just to finish situations. Then again, I think last year’s Rock n Roll DC Half was a run just to finish situation.

Back Pain Updates:

Last week or maybe the week before, I finally had a chance to see a spine and back specialist regarding my lower back issues.

I will say that I thought this appointment was super productive, and I really liked the MD. Why? The doc actually listened to me describe my issues. Extra points because he did not cut me off while I was in the middle of a sentence or a thought – something this annoys the SHIT out of me. Nowadays, I feel like doctors do not have the time to fully listen to their patients due to time constraints imposed by insurance companies. Years ago, someone who worked in health insurance told me that insurance companies highly recommend (or rather, mandate) doctors spend 20-30 minutes with their patients. This is annoying because sometimes, it will take a good 10-15 minutes to really discuss what’s doing on especially if: 1. you have dealing with an issue for years; and 2. if it’s your first time seeing the doctor. After his somewhat comprehensive examination, he came to the conclusion that I suffer from Flat Back Syndrome. However, he would like for me to have an MRI just to confirm a couple of things and to have a baseline. BTW, the copay for my MRI is going to be close to $350! I do not think that I’ve ever paid that much for an MRI (then again, my last one was a good 12 years ago). Also, we are very early in the year, so perhaps, my out of pocket price is so high because I have not met my deductible yet.

Image adapted from Medical News Today.

Simply put, Flat Back Syndrome (as the name would suggest) is a condition where the spine loses it curvature and becomes more flat over time. This syndrome can lead to regular back pain and an inability to stand straight. Let’s check out some of the characteristics.

• An inability to stand up straight ✅

• A bent forward posture ✅

• Bent hips and knees to maintain an upright posture. I did not know I had this but ✅. The doctor told me to stand up. When I did (or thought I did), he asked me to stand up straight without having a slight bend in my knees. Boy, I definitely felt the difference. Once I put my knees a completely straight position, I felt I slight pain in my lower back.

• Fatigue due to strain on the lower back and leg muscles. ✅

• Reduced spinal curvature (my previous X-ray showed this). ✅

• Back pain. ✅ ✅ ✅

What’s next?

At this point, the specialist wants me to focus on doing back stretches and exercises before upping the treatment regimen (e.g., surgery), and I kind of agree. Some exercises that I can/should do include:

Images from Northwest Florida Spine.

The kick in the face:

Since I really want to get my back issues behind me (pun intended), I asked how long would it take to see improvements. He said 4-6 freaking months. BUT, here is the other kick in the face. Since my last back pain flare up (August 2023), I pretty much have been doing these stretches on a daily (well near daily basis). So, I'm kind of side eyeing his recommendation and thinking this regimen might be a way for him to get me out of his hair for a few months. Then again, since this is my first time visiting him, he probably needs a baseline of my situation without hard core medical intervention. Also, maybe doing these these stretches since August 2023 have improved some issues, but the improvements are so small that I have not really noticed it. While the jury is still out, I guess we are moving towards some progress.

Goals for the week:

-Start training for my upcoming half marathon.

-Get on a REAL stretching plan.

Post-Richmond Marathon: Where do we go from here?

Now that Richmond Marathon is 9-10 days behind me, I'm wondering where do I go from here. Since I kind of half assed trained for last week's marathon, I'm not really experiencing post-marathon blues.

From Runner's World (link: ***):

"Well, you might start to feel a bit flat – it’s known as the post-marathon blues. ‘Whatever the distance of the race, if you have trained hard for it and it was important to you, then once it physically ends you might have a psychological hangover in the shape of post-race blues,’ explains sport psychologist Josephine Perry, director of Performance in Mind. ‘These usually pop-up mid-week when the euphoria of finishing and the post-race DOMs starts to subside, and you get a dip in mood.’"

Kwame’s Post-Marathon Blues:

I have not really being having feelings of post-marathon blues for a couple of reasons:

• I was not really on top of my marathon training, so it's not like I'm really missing my training routine...because there really was not one. ;)

• While I completed 26.2 miles last Saturday and walked a SIGNIFICANT part of it, I kind of feel like a fake who did not run/jog a marathon.

Well, this sounds a bit depressing. Hey, maybe there is some aspect of post-Richmond Marathon Blues in there. Over the past few days, I had a chance to reflect on my very subpar marathon performance and realized that I want to become a better runner. Or rather, I would like to get to a point where it does not take six hours to complete a marathon.

Mental/Physical Endurance:

While I might run slow as molasses (for now), I can run (or rather a combination of running and walking) for 6 hours.

Ok, so there were multiple points of last weekend's marathon where I 200% over it, but I did power through and completed the marathon...eventually. So that's something...I think.

Experience:

I have been doing this long-distance running thing for about 12 years and have been hit with almost anything associated with the sport. For the most part, I know what works and (more importantly) does not work for me in terms for running programs, groups/clubs, nutrition (somewhat), racing in general.

Willingness to adapt:

While I can be a bit stubborn, I am open to hearing and taking in different opinions and approaches to training. Also, I think that i'm pretty good with setting goals...well ATTAINABLE goals. My only problem is keeping up with with a routine to meet said goals.

Things I need to work on:

Consistent Running:

Lack of consistency is one of the things that really too me out of training for Richmond Marathon. Once I become consistent at being inconsistent, my attitude changes from I can do this to eh, fuck it. Going forward, I would like to stay consistent with three runs a week for the next two months. I'm thinking of 10+ mile runs on the weekends, 5-7 mile post-work runs (probably Tuesdays), and a speed workout.

Racing:

While I am not overly competitive with others, because who has time to worry about what others are doing. I've noticed that my state of running has taken a nosedive after we left NYC. For most years, I was trying to complete NYRR's 9+1 program for guaranteed entry into the NYC Marathon. While I did not run the marathon every year, it was nice to know that I could have a spot in the marathon if I ran nine races (and volunteered for one) during the year. Racing, usually at least one 5K, 10K, and/or half marathon each month, gave me a chance to compete with myself to improve my times. Since I have not been racing as much (mainly out of logistical laziness), I've found that I do runs mainly to complete them instead of completing them in X amount of minutes. Yes, one can do this without a race. However, for me, it's an inspirational feeling to run with others in a race who are reaching for the same goal of trying to do better than their last race. Maybe it's less about racing and more about 'mob mentality'. ;)

While there are some races in the area, I have been spoiled by living in NYC and having easy access to many races. For instance, many of NYRR's races are in Central Park, and Central Park is pretty accessible by multiple forms of public transportation. In these parts of Maryland, you have to drive everywhere. One example. For last year's RnR DC Half Marathon, I did not worry about transportation until the day before the race because I just assumed that I would take the subway to the race. I just so happened to check which metro line I would need to take to get to the start, and I learned that DC Metro/subway does not start running until 7 am on weekends. Another example: the closest half marathon next month is a 1.5-hour drive from Silver Spring, Maryland to Annapolis, Maryland. Random thought: While I absolutely loved living in NYC, I think living there may have done more harm than good in terms of living outside of NYC (more on that on another day).

Nutrition/Weight:

Unfortunately, that part of the marathon really did not have spectators, so it was a bit hard to stay motivated with the exception of an alien offering to transport us to the finish.

Unfortunately, it’s not huge secret that I’ve gained quite a bit of weight since leaving NYC. A lot of this is on me because I have not been very good at monitoring what goes in my mouth (that’s what she said). Besides my waistline and man boobs, I’m really feeling this on the “inside” 1. My blood pressure is getting into prehypertension range and my blood sugar is a big higher. While I’m not technically diabetic (or even pre-diabetic), it’s going to happen very soon if I do not make major changes ASAP especially since diabetes runs in my family. Pretty much everyone on my mother’s side of the family that make it past 60 years has type 2 diabetes.

Two month plan:

• Return to portion control and meal prepping after Thanksgiving.

• Stop late-night snacking. Lately, I’ve been doing this weird thing where I wake up around 1 – 3 am. Since I’m unable to go back to sleep, I’ll make myself something to eat..usually something not good for me.

• Cut down my consumption of Devil’s Lettuce to 1-2 times a week. While I’m not a huge consumer of Devil’s Lettuce, I find that even when I take a couple of puffs that I really get the munchies, and this opens the floodgates to crappy eating.

• Work up to 16-hr intermittent fasting during the work week (I’m currently on 14 hours now). While I did not see significant weight loss right away, I did notice after about 30 days of fasting five times a week, I became fuller faster.

Let’s see where I am in two months.