Running Quiz

Earlier this month, I was reading my friend Carina's blog posts and she had done a running quiz.  I love these kind of posts.  I get to know things about the person that they probably normally wouldn't have written about on their blog and then, the most fun part, I get to answer the questions myself and post them on MY blog!  I answered all the questions on Sept 4th.  And today is when I'm posting them.  Haha, can we say easily distracted and short attention span?  So, here you go!

1.  Would you rather run along a beach path or on a mountain trail? 
I have run on a beach and on a mountain trail.  I have to say even though the beach was gorgeous and I got to get super close to a bald eagle, I would choose the mountain trail over the beach path.   

2.  If you could choose the flavor of gatorade at your next race’s aid stations, what would it be? 
I like the orange Gatorade the best.  

3.  If I gave you a $100 gift card to a running store, what would be the first thing that you would purchase with it? 
a second pair of Hokas.  That wouldn’t pay the whole bill for the shoes, but it would at least pay for half the price of them.  

4.  Do you prefer to follow a training plan or wake up and decide then how far and how fast you want to run? 
I like a training plan with flexibility.  What I mean is that I like to create my own training plan based off of other training plans I’ve looked at for ideas, but I want to be able to run less or more than what is scheduled, or if I’m just really super not feeling it, skip the run scheduled for that day, or move it to another day.  

5.  Would you rather start your run with the uphill and end on the downhill or start your run with the downhill and end with the uphill? 
I would really much rather start on an uphill.  Even though I have found that once my legs are trashed or just tired I don’t pick up speed on a downhill, it’s still less difficult to go downhill when you’re tired/trashed than it is to go uphill in that condition.  

6.  When you can’t run, what type of cross-training do you choose to do? 
this is a hot topic for me lately.  Seriously.  I have been on the injured list, but before that, for a month, I was taking a break from running because I had gotten a little burnt out.  Pre-injury, I was focusing on getting my cardio in different ways to include HIIT and tabata training, the stair climber, and cycling.  And I was also putting a good emphasis on strength training.  Since my injury, I have had to figure out different ways to get my cardio because I can’t doing stairs on a machine right now and I can’t do any jumping around and I can’t bend my right ankle either.  So, most of my cardio is either just swimming or when I do what I’m currently calling my “creative gym workout” where I use the ropes, the kettlebell, and the TRX straps in quick succession and it works in a cardio way for me.  Once I’m cleared by my doc to start running slowly and carefully again, I plan to keep up my twice weekly visits to the gym with swimming, but I also plan to add the stair climber back in and add the rowing machine once a week at least to said gym visits.  I want to go back to 1 workout DVD a week (most likely a HIIT or tabata workout…or one of the P90X videos).  And then, running, of course, 2-3 times a week.

7.  What is your preference—  Out and back, point to point or loop runs? 
I loooooooove a loop run, but if I HAVE to, I can deal with an out-and-back.  The longer the run, the less I mind an out-and-back because it’s been longer since I ran past that spot on my way out when I’m running back to my start location, so it’s less like running on a treadmill.

8.  If you could recommend ANY running related item to a new runner, it would be a: 
good, quality running shoes that you go to a good running store to get professionally fitted for.  You won’t regret it and your feet and legs will thank you.  

9.  Do you ever see any wild animals while out on your runs? 
if I’m just running around where I live, I might see squirrels and cottontail bunnies, but that’s the extent of it.  That one time I ran on the beach, though, I got to see a majestic bald eagle and that was the icing on the cake for me!  

10.  Ever gotten lost while out on a run? 
I have, but it made the run a little more fun in my opinion.  I wasn’t in an iffy neighborhood or a scary place, and I wasn’t in a hurry to get done and be anywhere else, so I really didn’t mind at all.  It was when I was running Peavy Auditorium near Corvallis, OR when I was there in May.

11.  If you could have one meal waiting and ready for you each time you got home from a run for the next 30 days… what would that meal be? 
I’m usually not hungry post-run or really even post-workout, but I make myself drink a protein shake within an hour after finishing any workout so that I am taking something in nutrition-wise.  Then, about an hour or so after that I will have either 3 boiled eggs with a little sea salt or 2 eggs scrambled & 1 egg over easy with some sea salt and sriracha.  I mean, if calories didn’t matter, I’d love to have bacon, eggs and pancakes waiting for me post-run/workout.  Haha!

12.  Capris or shorts… what do you run in most often? 
until recently, I’ve been a die-hard capri runner girl.  My awesome running friend, Kirsten, has talked me into giving skirts and shorts a try and I have to say that I really like them both.  I kind of like the skirts a little more than the shorts, but I only have 4 right now.  Going to try and beef up my running skirt collection with different colors.  Of course, with the addition of skirts and shorts to my running gear, I am going to have to start investing in more Body Glide to deal with the extra chafing that occurs with the less skin coverage.  

13.  At what mile (or how many minutes) into your run does your body start to feel like it is warming up and ready to go? 
after about 2-3 miles is when I find I start to get in my groove.  

14.  What do you do with your key when you run? 
if I’m running with my hydration pack (which, since it’s hotter right now, I usually am, even on shorter runs) there’s a little zipper pocket and I’ll put my key in there.  If I’m not running with the hydration pack, a lot of my capris and skirts have zipper pockets in the back and I also use a stretchy gear belt to hold my phone (that I put in a Ziploc bag to keep it from getting damp) that also has a second, smaller pocket that is perfect for my key.  

15.  If you could relive any race that you have done in the past, which one what it be?
my very first marathon.  It was an all-around amazing experience, I got to meet a long time blogger friend of mine in real life during that race.

16.  What type of run is your least favorite type of run?
well, since I don’t ever do any structured training runs like tempos or speedwork or anything like that, I’m not sure how I can answer this question accurately.  I love hills.  I love progressive tempo runs, but I’ve never forced one, they’ve always just kind of happened.  Really, my least favorite one is the one that I just feel like crap the whole run, like it’s a huge effort to go at a super slow pace and I just feel super bogged down and blah.
 
17.  What has been your biggest motivation lately to get out the door to get your run on? 
I wish I could say I’ve been out the door recently to run, but I haven’t so I can’t.  <input sad face here>   

18.  When you go for a run, do you leave right from your front door or do you drive somewhere to start?
if I’m running around where I live, I walk to the front of my apartment complex (about ¼ of a mile), do my warm ups and then start running.  Sometimes, I drive to the adjacent town to run hills or into Austin to run trails.  But I usually run from the front of my apts.

19.  When running in daylight:  are sunglasses a must or an annoyance?
they’re a must!  Don’t get me wrong, I love it when I don’t have to wear them because they can cut into the sides of my head and the tops of my ears when paired with my Bluetooth wrap-around earphones, but if it’s sunny, I have to have them.  My eyes are very blue and super light sensitive.  

20.  When you get tired, what keeps you from quitting? 
the simple fact that I’m not done yet.  I have to finish what I started!  Unless I literally can’t finish due to injury.  But, even that one time, when I strained my calf at mile 5.4 of a 15 mile run and limp-ran the 2-something miles home.  I didn’t quit, I just adapted.  Haha!  but, if I’m overly tired and just feeling completely taxed, I will stop.  I don’t want to force myself when I feel crappy and then end up getting hurt as a result.