Amy Reinink

Now that Outdoor Emergency Care classes are done, Steve and I are back to our Pacers Silver Spring Fun Runs at 7 p.m. every Tuesday and Thursday. For our first run back last night, we were treated to temperatures in the 20s, with gusting winds leading to a windchill of something like 16 degrees. I dragged us out the door, anyway, but not without heeding my best cold-weather running tips.

Bundle up. Last night, I wore: My ancient Brooks running tights; a technical T-shirt and long-sleeved shirt; my new mid-weight long-underwear T-shirt from Columbia; a fleece hat from the George Washington 10K Classic; my Mizuno Breath Thermo gloves, made from some fancy material that actually heats up when you sweat; a pair of fleece gloves (yep, I even layer my gloves); and finally, a University of Colorado pull-over fleece. Pull my reflective vest on top of the whole mess, and we’re ready to go!

I wore all of these clothes on my run last night. Really. All at the same time.

Cover up. David Nieman, Ph.D., who heads the Human Performance Laboratory at Appalachian State University, told Runner’s World he suggests wearing a neck gaiter, and covering your nose and mouth with it. Your breath will humidify the air, making it easier to breathe. I did so with my Columbia turtleneck last night, and it worked wonders. For other great Runner’s World stories about coping with the cold, click here.

Imagine this abominable snowwoman with her face covered by a turtleneck.

Warm up. Last year, I wrote a post about bribing myself to hit the pool on cold days with the promise of tea and chili after. Hot chocolate made with skim milk, Hershey’s cocoa and your sweetener of choice hit the spot last night, as did some leftover turkey chili.

Suck it up. It’s D.C., not Minnesota. And if you are in Minnesota … well, I’m sorry. I think you’re screwed until the springtime, which I’m told comes around sometime in May. For the rest of us, check out this guest blog post from my Minnesotan running friend about coping with the cold.

How do you deal with cold-weather running? What piece of cold-weather gear can you not live without? Share your tips by posting a comment.

A few months ago, I was lucky enough to get to chat with sports psychologist Stephen Walker, a fellow University of Colorado grad who has worked with the likes of Adam and Kara Goucher (also CU Buffaloes!), for a story. Now that the story, Meditations on Fitness, is live on the Coloradan magazine’s website, I’m happy to share my favorite of Walker’s tips here:

1. Train with a partner. Walker says this is a tried-and-true motivation tip for a reason. “[It] distributes the motivation, so it’s not all on one person,” he says. “And you feel a responsibility to your team or group rather than just yourself.” Plus,” he says, “it makes time spent doing hard work fly by.”

2. Appreciate the benefits. “Look at the reasons you work out,” Walker says. “For many active people, fitness in and of itself is reinforcement. Appreciate the byproducts of living a healthy lifestyle — a more positive attitude, more energy and the way you look and feel in clothes.”

3. Develop a dashboard. Walker advises athletes to scroll through a mental checklist during a race or event. “Athletes at every level can benefit from rotating through a mental list: How’s my form? How’s my rhythm and tempo? How’s my breathing? How’s my arm work?” he says.

4. Be as relaxed as possible on race day. “Look around,” he says. “Wave to people you recognize. Put a smile on your face. Drink it in and have fun.”

In other news, I’ve got a major announcement: After something like 140 hours of class, and countless more hours of study, reading and practice since September, Steve and I passed our Outdoor Emergency Care (ski-patrol medical) practical exam on Saturday! The exam took three hours, with each candidate leading two scenarios and taking part in a total of six. It marked the first time we treated practice patients on the snow at Whitetail—an exciting reminder of what it is we’ve been training to do. Better yet, our entire class passed on our first try, which we’re told is rather unique.

You may recall that I celebrated the passage of our OEC written exam with “suck it up” cupcakes.

Our OEC instructors tell us to "suck it up, cupcake" when we're being sissies.

Steve and I upped the ante to celebrate this one, with a yummy pasta dish and wine for me …

… and a steak and Steve’s favorite Belgian beer for him.

Note that the beer is in an Arapahoe Basin glass.

We’re not ski patrollers yet—we’ve got ski & toboggan/mountain operations training just about every Saturday this winter. But this marked a major milestone worthy of celebration.

How do you celebrate a major accomplishment, athletic or otherwise?

This hearty pasta dish, often suggested as a sneaky way to get kids to eat cauliflower, might just be the perfect winter running fuel. Cauliflower, whole-grain pasta and reduced-fat cheese are easy enough on the stomach to make this a great pre-race meal. But it’s healthy enough to qualify for dinner on an off-day, too. 

Cauliflower mac ‘n’ cheese

4 cups whole-grain elbow macaroni (I actually used rotini, and it turned out great)
1 head cauliflower, chopped into bite-sized pieces
sea salt, black pepper, garlic powder, paprika to taste
1 cup grated reduced-fat cheddar cheese
1 cup fat-free sour cream
1/2 cup skim milk
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
Bread crumbs

First, roast the cauliflower at 400 degrees until lightly browned, about 15 minutes.

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain pasta, then return it to the pot, adding remaining ingredients and stirring constantly over medium heat. Stir until combined. Transfer to baking dish, sprinkle with bread crumbs, and bake until lightly browned, about 10 to 15 minutes.
Serves four hungry runners.

Earlier this week, in my review of last week’s Alexandria Turkey Trot, I promised I’d share some lessons from my own performance. My big take-away: Having a bad day, running-wise, doesn’t mean you have to have a bad race.

I ran the flat, easy course in 44:33, or just under 9-minute miles. Typically, that’s a true jogging pace for me, which would have been fine if I’d meant to jog. Unfortunately, I’d intended to race it, but just couldn’t find the next gear when I tried to upshift. Here’s what I *didn’t* do when I realized my body wasn’t cooperating:

1. I didn’t beat myself up about it. I did a quick survey of the things that might have caused my sluggishness (Bad night’s sleep? Yes. Stomach troubles from the night before? Yes. Stone in my shoe? Sun in my eye? You get the picture …). Then, I stopped thinking about reasons, and started just accepting the conditions on the ground. As is the case in life, the sooner I got over how the race was *supposed* to be and accepted how it actually was, the situation improved.

2. I didn’t give up on the race. Once it became clear this wouldn’t be a PR, I decided that I’d go for mental toughness rather than time. I decided I’d try to run evenly paced 9-minute miles, knowing that would feel challenging but do-able, and that I’d try to keep my head in a good place—no trash-talk, no self-pity, no throwing in the towel. In that respect, the race was a huge success.

3. I didn’t let any of the above ruin my race. Rather than spending 45 minutes beating myself up, I spent it interacting with spectators and other runners, eying cool-looking houses or and restaurants in Del Ray and appreciating how much fun it is to be able to take part in an event like that at all. As a result, I was more observant than usual, noticing the baby bulldog at the turnaround point (aww!) and the plate of bacon at an aid table (eeuww).

Have you managed to turn a rough race into a good day? Share your tales of mental toughness below.

A few years ago, Steve and I decided to start a Thanksgiving tradition of running a turkey trot the morning before the feast. We have yet to run the same race twice. But now that we know how much fun the Alexandria Turkey Trot is, that might change.

The race starts at 10 a.m., which gives it an instant advantage over races requiring an alarm clock. More importantly, it’s billed as being flat, fast and fun, and it delivers on all three promises. The five-mile course takes runners through the lovely (and flat!) Del Ray neighborhood, with its charming bungalows and rows of quirky small businesses. Crowd support is incredible for such a small race (about 3,000 runners)—residents set up tables with water and treats, including a full plate of bacon.

The race is also extremely well-organized, from the flow of foot traffic within the pre-race registration area to the thoughtful placement of portable toilets.

Stay tuned later this week for post-race analysis and lessons learned from my own performance. I covered the five miles in 44:43, which is basically a slow training pace for me, despite my best efforts to shift into a higher gear. Stay tuned for details about the real victory—not falling apart mentally when things didn’t quite go my way.

Check out my review of last year’s Bethesda Chevy-Chase Turkey Chase 10K here. Did you run a turkey trot this year? If so, let me know how it went by posting a comment below.

With ingredients like heavy cream and marshmallow fluff, there’s nothing intrinsically runner-friendly about homemade Hostess cupcakes. Still, I feel compelled to share the ones I made this week, since they’re celebrating something significant: Everyone in my Outdoor Emergency Care (ski-patrol medical) class passed the written OEC exam with flying colors on Tuesday!

The recipe comes from the cooking blog Bake at 350, which shows the cupcakes decorated with warm, fuzzy messages like “love,” “hope,” and “faith.” Mine bear some oft-repeated phrases from class, such as “This is gonna hurt” (which we’re instructed to tell patients before we do something that will hurt), and “Suck it up, cupcake,” which the instructors tell us when we’re being sissies.

The class isn’t done yet. We still have our practical exam to study for and pass. But I feel confident we’ll be celebrating that milestone with “suck it up, cupcakes” soon enough.

Speaking of cupcakes, Steve and I are skipping last year’s hilly, challenging Bethesda Chevy-Chase Turkey Chase 10K and are instead running the Alexandria Turkey Trot, which promises to be a flat, fast five-miler. Stay tuned for a review next week!

My homemade pumkin pie

After the race, we’ll be meeting with friends for a Thanksgiving feast that includes many of the same runner-friendly recipes I shared last year, including homemade cranberry sauce and roasted butternut squash, not to mention a homemade pumpkin pie.

A few years ago, I read an Outside Magazine profile of Danielle Fisher, the youngest person ever to climb the Seven Summits, the highest peak on each continent. In the profile, Fisher talks about how mountaineering has helped hone her focus and lessen the effects of her attention-deficit disorder.

“Increasingly, who I am on the mountain is who I am in the rest of my life,” she told Outside.

A Washington Post story last week about group exercise instructors who have high-powered day jobs, from a lawyer who teaches spin classes to a Zumba teacher who also serves as executive director of a business improvement district, drove the same point home: The skills and confidence you gain during your workouts can translate to improvements in every area of your life.

Running, swimming, skiing and lifting all remind me that I can be fierce and strong, and sharpen my own focus in a way that improves my writing and other daily interactions (thanks to Haruki Murakami for this revelation!). Like Fisher, increasingly, who I am on the trails, in the pool or on the slopes is who I am in the rest of my life, which is reason enough to motivate me to get out the door most days.

Who are you on the mountain—or in a marathon, or in an open-water swim? How does that translate to the rest of your life?

This week marked the last pickup of the year for my weekly CSA (community supported agriculture) share from Norman’s Farm Market. In honor of the bevy of winter squashes that now call my kitchen counter home, I’d like to present my second-favorite use for fall squash: pumpkin oatmeal.

Fall squash from my CSA.

This is my no means a unique idea; all sorts of health and fitness enthusiasts advocate mixing half a cup of canned pumpkin into a serving of oatmeal. Still, I think it’s worth highlighting this easy and delicious use for any fall squash—I actually added roasted, pureed butternut squash to my oatmeal at breakfast this morning.

This big, beautiful butternut squash gave its life for my breakfast.

Here’s how to make it happen:

Cook (microwave or stove will do) 1/2 cup oatmeal with 1 cup water, and 1 tsp each of vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and your sweetener of choice.

Add 1/2 cup pureed winter squash and 2 tbsp ground flaxseed meal. Cook until warmed through. Add a splash of milk, if desired. Garnish with an additional sprinkle of cinnamon and a swirl of maple syrup. Devour, preferably with a latte.

Looking for other uses for butternut squash? Check out my No. 1 favorite fall recipe, roasted butternut squash and whole-wheat penne.

Disclaimer: My training plan is not based on any sort of science, or on advice from any kind of professional coach, but instead on conversations with veteran open-water swimmers and my own experience. It is also based on a conversation with the guy who sold me my wetsuit a few years ago, who says as long as you get in a decent amount of yards/meters every week, it doesn’t matter how many days you swim.

Goal: To finish the 4.4-mile Great Chesapeake Bay Bridge Swim on June 12, 2011. The operative word here is “finish.” I’m not looking to win here, just complete the distance.

Plan: Right now, I’m swimming two to three days a week, 3,000 meters per workout. I’ll maintain that schedule, making sure I’m swimming three days per week as the race gets closer. Starting sometime around March, at least one of these days will be a long swim.

Long swims: 4.4 miles is roughly seven kilometers, so I’ll make my longest swim 7,000 meters, and aim to complete it sometime between May 29 or June 5. I *have* to start working up to that distance with increasingly longer weekly swims in early May, but I’ll likely start adding a weekly 5,000-meter swim long before that.

Fuel: I swim roughly 30-minute miles in open water, so I’m hoping to finish the swim somewhere around two and a half hours. That’s almost long enough to think about refueling mid-swim, which is something I’ve never, ever messed with. If you have, please share advice on the topic: Do you stash a gel in your wetsuit? Or … what?

After I first swam the 1-mile Bay Bridge Challenge in 2008—the first open-water swim of my adult life—I was immediately curious about the 4.4-miler, which crosses the entire Bay from shore to shore as the 1-miler weaves around a few buoys close to the finish. I asked a swimmer-friend who had done the 1-miler several times whether she recommended the longer distance.

My favorite A. Aubrey Bodine photo of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, which I'll be swimming beside in June.

“The water’s different out there,” she said, with the suspense and mystique usually reserved for describing something much sexier than a swim race.

She’s right: There are currents and waves out there you just don’t see closer to shore. A 1992 Baltimore Sun story details safety concerns that led the U.S. Coast Guard to consider not sponsoring the event, thanks to an abnormally strong current in the shipping channel under the bridge during one race in 1991 that led to a massive rescue operation in which 720 of the 884 starters were pulled from the water.

Am I the only one who’s more intrigued than frightened?

In October, I registered for the lottery for this year’s Bay Bridge Swim, and I spent all of last week waiting for the confirmation e-mail that I’d be among the lucky 700 swimmers to get a spot. The e-mail came on Thursday, and as of this morning, my name appears among the list of entrants.

Gaah!

Over the coming months, there will be long swims on the weekends, and weekday swims I need to force myself to complete. There will be experimentation with re-fueling mid-swim (ugh), and trial swims in the Gulf of Mexico on visits to Florida (not so ugh). For today, there’s only excitement (and slight trepidation) about the challenge ahead.

For an idea of what the 4.4-miler is like, check out this great video, or this race review from a past participant.

Have you finished the 4.4-mile Chesapeake Bay Bridge Swim? If so, tell me everything: training, refueling on the swim, post-race impressions, etc.

Coming on Wednesday: How an exciting purchase at a ski-patrol training weekend at Whitetail has me thinking snow. A hint: I think I’m in K2 True Luv …