Tag Archives: #GameOnPGH

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#GameOnPGH: The Recap

05 May 16
Heidi Kumm
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As I pinned my Pittsburgh Half Marathon bib on my Runner’s Roost singlet on Saturday night as I was tossing together my race day essentials I had a tingle of remorse. I was supposed to be proudly rocking a Pittsburgh Marathon bib that flaunted my name while stashing road race snacks in my SPIBelt. Instead, I had backed down to the half marathon at the race expo. I kept telling myself it was the right choice…I was grossly under-trained for a full marathon + I had big plans that a race day injury would really kick in the face. Plus, I knew running 13 miles with Lynne would be more fun than running 26 miles alone. I refused to feel guilty for playing it smart!

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#GameOnPGH: Taking a Step Back

29 Apr 16
Heidi Kumm
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Okay. We’re about to let the #realtalk roll. Phew. Tomorrow afternoon I’m head to Pittsburgh for a few days of harassing Lynne…and partaking in the Pittsburgh Marathon races. Initially I had high hopes for a crazy successful marathon. When I signed up I imagined a strong training cycle with speed work, confident miles, a PR + possibly a BQ. I was optimistic, and a little delusional. And then…reality happened.

More than once [all the times?] I opted for rocky trail runs over speedy road runs every. single. time. This lead to a fair bit of “oh crap” moments as the marathon date approached. Today I officially took a step back. My bib has officially been moved from the Pittsburgh Marathon to the Pittsburgh Half Marathon.

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#GameOnPGH: Still Running

30 Mar 16
Heidi Kumm
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one comments

Cross training is essential for a successful, injury-free race…right?! I sure hope so, because that is currently my game plan for this upcoming marathon. Don’t get me wrong, I’m still running! But I’m not running nearly as much as I thought I would be considering how many times I threatened myself + my lack of training during the Steamboat Marathon last year. I’ve been active + playing outside a lot lately, more often than not with my running shoes on my feet; however, I’m not always doing the whole arms pumping + legs churning running thing while I’m out there. #GameOnPGH, right?!

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#GameOnPGH Update: Running…Uphill.

19 Feb 16
Heidi Kumm
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So, running + marathon training. I’ve actually been doing it, lately. With varying levels of success…but considering everything else going on in my day-to-day life I’m feeling pretty good at where I’m at with running. I’ve been getting #GameOnPGH 4+ days of running in each week, I’ve sprinkled in a few days of snowboarding/hiking to spice things up and I feel pretty good about the amount of effort I have to put into my runs, physically + mentally. Not bad, right?!

I’ve only topped out at 12 miles, so far. And while I had a minor “gah, that’s not enough” spaz the other day I’ve done a little counting + scribbling and I feel pretty good about it. My upcoming weeks of training [only 10 left!] are going to look something like this, in terms of long run mileage…14, 10, 16, 18, 14, 20, 22, 16, 14, 12, race day. Seems like a solid #GameOnPGH plan, eh?

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The Four Mile Warm-up

15 Feb 16
Heidi Kumm
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8 comments

I’ve spent the last few weeks in a mental rut of sorts, but I’m not about to start complaining about that. Instead, let’s ponder the cause/solution for my rut. Since I started training for the Pittsburgh Marathon I had not made it past 7 miles in a continuous run. Heck, that one 7 miler I did get in was the longest 100% run/no hiking distance I’ve gone in…months? Considering a marathon is nearly 20 miles further than my current “longest run” I needed to get my act together! I needed to run…longer.

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Running The Numbers: Zero.

05 Feb 16
Heidi Kumm
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2 comments

My story-worthy runs are very rarely the picture perfect, everything-went-as-planned, no-misery-could-be-found events. Nope. Those runs are boring. Or at least I think they are — it’s been a very long time since I’ve had one of those runs! Instead my runs usually come with random bouts of drama, excitement or whining. Either I’m squishing a run into a tiny window of time or I’m getting lost in random Denver neighborhoods or it’s just too damn cold…there’s always something keeping any given run from being spot on perfect.

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Mountain Pavement

22 Jan 16
Heidi Kumm
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The title of being a “runner” is an interesting beast…and it usually comes with a qualitative adjective of some sort. In a way that makes sense, there are a lot of aspects to running. In other ways I find this silly. If you run, you’re a runner. Period. Of course, everyone has their own perception of what is required to become a runner and therefore want to be identified accurately. Okay, fine. But what about those of us who are a little mash-up of everything? Do we really need the adjective to justify our pace, goals or endurance? Eh. I hope not.

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#GameOnPGH — My Marathon Game Plan

13 Jan 16
Heidi Kumm
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Soo…last week I went on a tangent about who I am as a runner vs who I sometimes pretend to be. I’m still sticking with that “running for fun” mentality but in the name surviving the Pittsburgh Marathon I’ve decided to pull together something that resembles a training plan. Since this past weekend was the official kickoff of #GameOnPGH in Pittsburgh it only seems appropriate that I cobbled together my training with Monday being “Day 1” for me here in Colorado.

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My Version of Running

04 Jan 16
Heidi Kumm
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5 comments

When it comes to running I like to float around this lazy river of denial, pretending I have the burning desire to become a type of runner I have never been…a dedicated run-nerd who loves speed work and is motivated by the numbers Strava spits out at me. Eventually I come to my senses, but not until I completely freak out, forget how to run and doubt my ability to walk. The fact I still think I could one day become that type of runner is sad, but at least I’m well versed in the feelings of self-doubt and worthlessness these ambitions breed so I can give up on my crazy wannabe runner notions and fall back in love with my lazy crazy before it’s too late!

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The Uncertainty of New Roads

07 Dec 15
Heidi Kumm
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There are some really awesome stories about Austria, Czech and Switzerland that I really need + want to share but let’s take a quick second to bounce back to one of the main topics of this blog — running. As you may have picked up from my most recent “currently” post I’ve signed myself up for a marathon. A road marathon. The Pittsburgh Marathon, to be exact. #GameOnPGh! I’m excited about it…and hating myself for it. Today marks Day One of my official unofficial scribble of a training plan. Instead of hopping out of bed when I woke to the sunrise at 6am I stuck headphones in and watched John Oliver between dozy naps for two hours.

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