Post #26: Marathon Training v. Suzanne Point Oh

I registered for the 16th Annual Little Rock Marathon at 9:24 EDT on August 1st. Technically, I registered for the Marathon/5k combo. I was lucky enough to get ten percent off the price too, because I had signed up for the training program.

The theme is Medieval, and to reveal that they did a cute video that was Monty Python themed. A lot of people were confused or upset about the theme, poo on them!! I loved the video and I am super excited for the theme. Thank you to the Chicks in Charge #CIC for loving what they do and having fun with it!!

I started the "ramp up to training" training on August 7th. The ramp up training is particularly for first timers, and people who are not at the point of running/walking/crawling 6 miles. I specify running/walking/crawling because from now on when I say running, I am channeling Hobbit, and I mean all it: running/walking/crawling, getting through the milage. I would love to be able to run all the way through all of my training runs, but all I am gonna focus on is getting through the milage. The actual training started on September 18th.

09/08/17 Update: My 3 mi build up training run yesterday (9/7) I ran the whole 3 miles, no walking, at a 13 min per mile pace.

10/19/17 Update: As I have already mentioned, I am using the marathon training program provided by the Little Rock Marathon. The focus of the training program is mileage, not time. Sure it is going to take me 5+ hours to finish my 20 miler on February 10th, but you know what I am gonna do it.

Things I need when I go for my long runs (> 6 miles):
1. Water
2. Running GU(s) (1 for 10/12/14 milers, 2 for 16/18 milers, 3 for 20 miler, and 4 for my marathon)
3. Sweatband/sweat towel
4. Lip balm

10/23/17 Update: One year ago today, I finished the ZenLab's Couch to 5k training program. If you had asked me on that day if I would ever run a marathon, I would have laughed in your face. I never intended on running a marathon. It wasn't until June (after I started listening to podcasts regularly), that I stumbled upon the Not Real Runners Podcast and after 5 weeks of listening I decided 'Why not?' It was them talking about the Little Rock Marathon in the first episode 34 (the one from July 11th) that put it in my mind that I wanted to complete a marathon.

I use the run/walk method for my weekend long runs. I don't have a nifty watch that tells me when to run and when to walk so I rely on the ZenLabs Marathon Trainer app. In the app it has daily training prompts, including short runs (45 - 60 minutes), cross training sessions, rest days, and long runs. The long run days are the only ones I use. In particular, I am using Week 11 Day 6 for runs less than 11 miles and Week 20 Day 7 for all above 11 miles. Week 11 does 23 repetitions of run 4 mins, walk 2 minutes. Week 20 does 52 repetitions of run 4 mins, walk 1 minute.

5k Costume?

As of now, 4 ish months before my Marathon weekend, I am thinking of doing a plague skeleton for my 5k costume and a Monty Python Spanish Inquisition themed outfit for my Marathon 'costume' (red shirt, red bottoms, running with a cross, and the hat).

Clif Energy Gel Reviews: I got the multi pack from Amazon so I could try out a bunch of different flavors. (1) Chocolate Cherry w/caffeine: 10/22, not bad, but a little too heavy on the chocolate taste, could have used more cherry flavor. But to be fair, I am not a chocolate fan.

Marathon Costume?

Post #19 gearing up for AGU 2017 Fall Meeting: New Orleans

The American Geophysical Union (AGU) Fall Meeting is in New Orleans, Louisiana this December. This is a change because typically it is in San Francisco, California. The Moscone Center (the conference complex that holds the 25,000 scientists for the meeting) is under construction, so AGU had to find somewhere else.

This December we are in NOLA, and next year we are in Washington, DC. AGU has had meetings in NOLA before, but after so many years at the Moscone Center in San Fran, it will be interesting to see how, and if, the conference has a different feeling in NOLA.

What is good about all the destinations for AGU is that I have been to all of them in a non-conference capability, albeit had been 5 years between my first time in San Fran to my first Fall Meeting in San Fran. I went to NOLA for Easter 2016, so I am familiar with the area. Washington, DC has been my home for the past 5 years at this point, so it's safe to say I know where I am going.

Enough about the past and future meetings, this is about gearing up for #AGU17. Abstracts were due on August 2nd, I got mine in before then, but there is a lot of work to get done before December.

My topic is generally the topic I have been focused on since early last year, see Post #3 and others scattered. More FTE analysis and more cold ion analysis. I can't share too much on this topic, but I will post a more comprehensive post on AGU after it happens.

Post #13 February Summary - March Goals

Straight from my January Summary:

Stuff I am hoping to finish in February:

1. Sew my first dress (will also be in the February sewing blog)
2. An alien makeup inspired by a deep sea creature

3. Chapter 2 of Gurnett and Bhattacharjee

4. Submit my first first-author paper

5. Have my thesis proposal mostly done.
6. Finish the C210k Trainer

I did complete my first dress as you have seen in post #11.

Also, I did attempt to create an alien inspired by an angler fish, post #12, albeit nearly a week late.

I have been slacking on the plasma textbook. I only completed up to the section I posted on earlier this months: post #10.

I have not submitted my paper yet...

I still have no real thought on my thesis proposal...

Technically, I have not finished the C210k Trainer, instead I have started the marathon trainer by Zen Labs. I am not doing this because I aspire to run a marathon, I am running off the adage "Go big or go home," pun intended. I ran outside during the beautiful weather we had last week, and failed miserably, so instead of trying to continue with the free version of C210k, I would just do the one time payment of the marathon trainer and be good to go until I can run on my own for any distance. So who knows, six months from now, maybe I will be capable of running 26.2 miles. (Don't worry if you laughed, I am laughing, and anyone who knows me would laugh. I am not a marathon runner, I like pizza entirely too much. Though if I do make it, this whole section will be fun to read, and make a great part of my Success Story.)

So 2 out of 6 goals completed... eh. Here's to a successful March:

Stuff I am hoping to finish in March:

1. Sew a vest, some beach apparel, and my Tea Party dress

2. An angel/devil makeup inspired by a good/bad personality trait

3. Chapter 2 of Gurnett and Bhattacharjee

4. Submit my first first-author paper

5. Have my thesis proposal done.

6. Finish weeks 2, 3, 4, and 5 of the Marathon Trainer

Post #9 January Summary - February Goals

Motivation

I was sick at the beginning of January, and unfortunately had to take a number of days away from the office. In my recovery I popped a number of Halls cough drops (they are my favorite cough drop). Recently, Halls has included 'a pep talk in every drop' on the wrappers of each drop, so I would like to write out a couple here:

1. Turn "can do" into "can did!"

2. You got it in you.

3. Don't wait to get started.

4. Tough is your middle name. 

Stuff I finished this month:

1. A circle skirt (to be revealed in the February sewing blog)

2. Three makeup looks (Post #8)

3. Chapter 1 in Gurnett and Bhattacharjee

4. A first & second working draft of my first first-author paper

5. A first working draft of my thesis proposal

6. Weeks 9 and 10 in the C210k Trainer = 34.15 miles

Stuff I am hoping to finish in February:

1. Sew my first dress (will also be in the February sewing blog)
2. An alien makeup inspired by a deep sea creature

3. Chapter 2 of Gurnett and Bhattacharjee

4. Submit my first first-author paper

5. Have my thesis proposal mostly done.
6. Finish the C210k Trainer

Overall January was pretty productive, there is room for improvement, as always. February might be a short month but I am going to make it a good one. (I even rearranged my 6 goals for February to match the categories of stuff I finished in January, yay organization!!)

Post #4 Well... At least I am writing something

Fact: I am procrastinating.

GT: I have plenty of material to write my first first-author paper. No more discovery necessary.

I was about to Google "tricks to sit down and write". I would predict that the first tip would be:

#1 Get off the internet and start writing!

I am not going to search for that list though. I am going to write here and hope that just the act of writing something, anything, gets me motivated to work on my paper. I have started it. I wrote up a very rough draft of the previous work. That was written over a month ago though. My outline looks great (Fig. 1). I have even listed the authors and written up some of the reference I know I will be citing. 

Fig. 1 My outline

So looking at the list, I know I know all of it. I've gone as far as to think that I should use voice to text, just so I can get it out of my head and on to paper. Once I do that all that is left is editing, albeit A LOT of editing, but hey, that is what my coauthors are for.

Fact: This isn't helping.

PTM: I will get this done, and by this time next week I will laugh at myself and this blog, because I will have successfully written a working draft of my first first-author paper. 

GT: The weather has continued to be fall like, which is AWESOME!! 

I have been not only making good progress (at least research and education related progress) at work, I am nearly finished with my Halloween costume. Seeing as it took me >2 weeks to write this post after Post #3, Post #5 will include a picture of me in my costume. I am excited about it, and I have high hopes that people are going to like it (Fig. 2). 

Fig. 2 Not Telling

I suppose I should also put in a follow up to my follow up from Post #3: At this point, 13:31 EDT 10-14-16, I have completed the runs up to, and including, Week 7 Day 1 of C25K by Zen Labs. Wednesday's run was a 5-min warm up walk, followed by 25 minutes of running, no walking!! I had moments of doubt before and during, but I did it. I am also 5 runs away from completing the 8 week program. So...

PTM: Post #5 will also include a follow up to this follow up, saying that I graduated the Couch to 5k running program. 

Fact: I run for health, not weightloss, to be clear, this isn't a physical transformation blog.

FPI is still wowing the scientists as we progress through Phase 1B. I haven't picked any new data yet, but it is still early. I won't get nervous until mid-November. Though, even if I do get nervous, you won't read it. This is a positive thinking blog! 

Positivity in, Positivity out.

Post #2 Direction: Moving Forward

Fact: I have just begun my fifth year of Graduate School.

Graduate school implies that I am working on my dissertation. Until this week I hadn't really given it serious thought. I always believed I wouldn't have control over the research I was doing (Fig. 1). This comic was released during my senior year of undergrad, maybe this was it that gave me the idea.

Fig. 1 #truth

Now I have started a working list of research questions I want to answer. With MMS, I am working the presence of lower energy ions that once were located in the Earth's upper atmosphere, but by one mechanism or another made their was to the magnetopause. My interests have been varied since I started my research career, but something that has been consistently dangled in front of my nose, but I have not taken part in, Space Weather research.

PTM: I have my chance, with my research questions.

Fig. 2 Less Dramatic

Do ionospheric ions effect space weather? (and, if so) How?

PTM: I will be able to answer these questions.

GT: Work was on the productive side last week.

1) Caught up on September's Housekeeping.

2) Actually had a meeting with my Advisor [two actually!!]. 

3) Made a plan for what to work on, moving forward.

GT: I have been working through a Couch to 5k app, I just finished week three, and I am about to start week four (Fig. 2).

PTM: 5 weeks from now I will be able to run a 5k without stopping.

This point of all research is so exciting. The literature search; where each paper brings you closer and closer to the answer. Now the question... the question is one of two. One - "Who has the answer?" The literature search may prove that my research questions have already been answered. OR Two- "Will I have to answer the question?" It may be my turn to learn something new and write a paper on it.

Fig. 3 Research Thoughts

Post #1 Start positive. Stay positive.

Fact: I am in LA this week for the first public Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) mission Science Working Team (SWT) meeting.

This meeting is a chance for those working on the teams to interact with scientists that are using the MMS data, which went public back on March 1st. 6 months people have been working with the Phase 1a data. (Phase 1a was MMS's first dayside past of the Earth's magnetopause [Fig. 1]. Phase 1b, MMS's second pass of the dayside, starts on September 26th)

Fig. 1 MMS orbit plot for Dec. 1, 2015. The Sun is to the left,.

Fact: I gave a 12 minute presentation on the cold ions that appeared on the leading and trailing edge of an apparent flux transfer event (FTE).

This was my first talk given in a public setting. I have given talks to the greater Fast Plasma Investigation (FPI) team via telecon. This was for sure different. I was nervous, as per usual, but I wasn't ripped to shreds. Then again, I wasn't even poked. No questions or comments from the peanut gallery.

Positive Thinking Moment (PTM): They were stunned silent by my awesome presenting skills, [Fig. 2].

Fig. 2 This might be a bit dramatic

I have found that in the course of my graduate school career I have had moments of absolute dread. The moments where it is hard to believe that I am going to make it out alive.

Fact: The goal of this blog is to focus on the good things and keep my mindset positive [Fig. 3].

Good Thing (GT): LA really does have beautiful weather.
It has been the mid to upper 70s all week, with sunny skies. I wouldn't say this trip is making me a "LA Devotee" but I am enjoying the break from East Coast humidity.

Fig. 3 Idea courtesy of my friend, Lo.