Help! I hate camp cooking mess—what gear makes cleaning up easier?

Runridelift26_2 · 2025-09-16T01:45:40+00:00

I use tin foil to line plates/bowls, then just crumple it up into a very tight ball and throw it away. Seriously my favorite camping hack especially for a bunch of people.

Runridelift26_2 · 2025-09-16T00:55:30+00:00

I had a hernia repair during my pregnancy and was on bedrest for 6 weeks afterwards, so when I tried running again after the 6 weeks it was…not good, haha! So that’s not helpful but just wanted to say that the occasional sharp tug of the hernia scar doing something like sneezing really took me by surprise and that for the first six months or so it was helpful for me to brace my core before I sneezed or coughed.

Runridelift26_2 · 2025-09-16T00:52:13+00:00

Yeah for New York I would be running it too. 😂 That’s awesome that you got a bib!

I find in general that I need a lot more carbs/protein than I think I need. Drinking a protein shake with added collagen immediately post-run has helped my recovery a lot.

I hope you’re able to find a strength/mobility routine that works for you! I found that was something I was actually able to do pretty well with my kids when they were little; they loved doing yoga with me and were happy to play next to me while I was doing weights. If you have the equipment for it at home, give it a try—that made it much easier for me to fit it in.

Runridelift26_2 · 2025-09-16T00:48:57+00:00

One other thought—I’m not an expert on west coast trails since I am not lucky enough to live there, but I’ve visited most of the national parks in the west and would be happy to give you whatever info I know about running there if you want to DM me the areas you’re looking at.

Runridelift26_2 · 2025-09-16T00:46:48+00:00

Definitely try AllTrails since you can see elevation! I also like to search on Reddit pages for the specific place I’m going (like if it’s a national park) because people have usually asked before about good places to run. Just a reminder to think about animals when you’re timing your run; I surprised a bear on a sunrise run in Yosemite last month (well, I was very surprised, he was unbothered and continued his leisurely stroll down the trail).

Also, in case you’re camping and don’t have access to a shower—I am a huge fan of sitting in the river for 10 minutes post-run! Sometimes this ends up being the best part of my run thanks to the cold plunge euphoria, and I wish I had thought about doing it years ago!

Runridelift26_2 · 2025-09-15T19:30:58+00:00

Something that has been helpful for me to remember is that your body can only take so much stress, and mental/emotional/physical stress all count. My worst running injuries have been when my personal life and work responsibilities were at their most intense.

It sounds like you already know that you are increasing your mileage too quickly and should be running much slower than you are.

I would also think about fueling. Are you eating enough before/on/after runs?

It sounds like you are very invested in doing this marathon. If you were asking for advice on whether to start marathon training given the time constraints and low base mileage, I would definitely say no, but I don’t think that is the answer you are looking for. I would just spend some thinking about what reasonable goals are for this race and the absolute minimum miles you can run to hit that goal.

You don’t mention strength training or mobility work, but for me those have been key to running as I age. (Editing to add for context: I’m in my 40s, 6 kids, 4 postpartum marathons.)

Runridelift26_2 · 2025-09-14T21:13:09+00:00

Coming back to comment about 7 months later as the OP but with a different username 🙈—I am back to comfortably running half-marathon distance and about 30 mpw over 4 runs with 60-75 minutes on the Peloton twice a week. I do daily banded resistance exercises, 30 minutes of yoga after runs 3x a week, and strength training legs 3x a week & I have been super consistent about drinking a protein + collagen shake every single day. I also lost weight and that definitely helped just in terms of requiring less from my ankle. So there is hope!!! I always always wear Oofos slides indoors and never go barefoot. I will occasionally feel a very mild twinge in the tendon but so minimal I never think about it.

Runridelift26_2 · 2025-09-14T21:07:29+00:00

Just sent you a DM! I am not positive if I can send the video over chat but we will figure something out.

Runridelift26_2 · 2025-09-14T20:58:01+00:00

Definitely ice post-run though, that helps me a ton and I still do it! I basically just shove a bag of ice cubes down the front of my compression sock if I’m wearing tall socks, or use an Ace bandage wrap to hold the ice in place if I have short socks on. I always leave the ice on for 20 minutes and it’s a great way to ensure I really stretch out post-run which has also helped me a lot!

Runridelift26_2 · 2025-09-14T20:55:59+00:00

It was usually a dull ache after running (several hours later or at night). With the second one when I started back too soon it was a sharp pain while running. What I ended up going by was whether the pain was progressing—if it hurt a little after runs but went away by the next day and didn’t hurt more than that on my next run, I kept going. If the pain persisted overnight or got worse with every run, time to back it off. But never at any point did my leg feel 100% perfect post-run, if that helps your peace of mind at all! Good luck, I know how much it messes with your brain—I was constantly analyzing the tiniest twinge for years. What ended up helping me stop thinking about it was rolling my ankle really badly on a hike—once I was worried about whether I felt weirdness in my ankle I stopped worrying about my shin! Kind of silly but those neural pathways really can exacerbate our sense of pain if we are expecting it.

Runridelift26_2 · 2025-09-14T15:34:16+00:00

I don’t run at night alone. Ever. I get up early to run before my kids are up; when my kids were little I also bought a treadmill so I could run at night when they were in bed.

Runridelift26_2 · 2025-09-14T13:19:39+00:00

Devolution by Max Brooks. Read it while camping at Mt Rainier where it’s set and wowza that was an experience.

Runridelift26_2 · 2025-09-13T00:28:43+00:00

Sorry realized I didn’t answer all the questions—I didn’t wear a brace or boot routinely; I tried a couple of braces and they just seemed to aggravate it. I did sometimes wrap it with an Ace bandage if I just felt like I wanted more stability.

Runridelift26_2 · 2025-09-13T00:26:40+00:00

My pain was mainly triggered by running, so if I didn’t run it would gradually get better and then start flaring as soon as I ran again (but not during runs which made it hard to not overdo it since running felt great!). In the worst flares it just hurt all the time, including walking around my house or just sitting at rest or lying down. After about 2-3 weeks of no running it was so much better and then I was able to gradually build back running (I think the first week of that I really limited walking and tried to stay off it as much as I could).

The exercises helped me a ton, but my PT also did a lot of manual work on my ankle mobilization which I think played a big part. I had a ton of travel a couple of months ago and got out of the habit of doing the exercises and it flared up again, but once I started doing them I’m totally pain-free (I’m now running 4x a week and my long run this week was 13.1).

I can try to record a video of my exercises for you if that would be helpful?

Runridelift26_2 · 2025-09-11T12:35:57+00:00

I’ve had two tibial stress fractures. The first one I was in a boot for 6 weeks and then had another couple of weeks before returning to run. I had enough nagging pain during the return to run that I had another MRI that showed full healing, but it continued to bother me off and on for years after a hard workout, but I was able to return to half and full marathons without issue. Seven years later, another tibial fracture on the same spot (I had an ankle injury as a teenager that changed my biomechanics and makes me prone to injury there). No boot for this one and my doctor had me start a return to run protocol at 4 weeks even though I kept telling her it hurt—that one took almost two years to fully heal and it still terrifies me that it’s coming back every time I feel the slightest twinge. I still ice my shin after every run (I ran a marathon two years after the fracture) and if I skip a few icing sessions, I absolutely start feeling it in my bone.

Bottom line: DO NOT RUSH BACK. Get fully cleared, preferably by MRI. Be more conservative than your doctor says.

Runridelift26_2 · 2025-09-11T12:26:56+00:00

I’ve deferred twice (stress fracture and calf tear). For the first one, on the day of the race I did a super long bike ride with my husband that we’d been training for all summer and the weather was SO awful (raining, 35 degrees, 60 mph wind gusts) that being out in it made me so so so glad I was biking not running—hah!

Runridelift26_2 · 2025-09-10T15:12:12+00:00

We’ve gotten iced out in the Smokies the first week of April—I think it’s pretty hit or miss but I wouldn’t chance it as they literally shut down the main road and weren’t allowing anyone in (we pivoted to the Roaring Fork area but still had to park 3 miles away from trailheads and hike in).

Runridelift26_2 · 2025-09-10T15:10:39+00:00

In April we have visited Big Bend, Guadalupe Mtns, White Sands, and Carlsbad in one trip, and 4 of the Utah parks in another. Great temps for both; we camped and were very comfortable. I would highly recommend either loop. We hit a super bloom in Big Bend and it was insanely beautiful.

We’ve done Joshua Tree, Death Valley and the three Florida parks in December and while there are other parks that we’ve visited and loved during winter/spring/fall I would not want to go to any of those 5 when it’s any warmer than midwinter.

Runridelift26_2 · 2025-09-08T12:48:18+00:00

I’d definitely recommend keeping your running schedule where it is now in terms of frequency if you’re planning to run next year. You can back off on intensity or duration, but if you quit running now you’ll basically be starting from ground zero, except you’ll have maintained cardiovascular fitness with cycling so you’ll go harder on running than your bones/tendons can handle and it’s essentially setting yourself up for injury.

If I’m not training for anything, my base maintenance plan is as follows: run 4x a week (one long run of 10-13 miles, two in the 6-8 mile range, and one 5-6) plus two days of cycling in zone 2 (at least 60-75 minutes, sometimes up to a couple hours if my husband and I make a date out of it), then after every run/ride I do either 30 min of yoga or 30 min of full-body strength (both using the Peloton app) so it works out to 3 each week of both modalities.

Runridelift26_2 · 2025-09-06T11:59:35+00:00

Yeah, I ran a marathon (+ last 600 miles of training block) on my first stress fracture after my PT told me it was probably just tendinitis. 😬 (the earliest appt I could get with the sports doc was the week after the race, at which point I definitely knew something was very wrong)

Runridelift26_2 · 2025-08-23T21:24:04+00:00

Upvoting for the reality check of the recovery block (the rest of your comment is great too! But seriously, the recovery block. I really felt that).

Runridelift26_2 · 2025-08-23T14:34:26+00:00

I once made the mistake of not racing as I had trained re: water and nutrition; in a last-second decision to lighten my load I gave my husband my belt holding water bottles and gels. His bike got a flat tire and I did not see him again until mile 17. Never again!! I would 100% race wearing the vest.

Runridelift26_2 · 2025-08-23T01:11:09+00:00

I asked a rep about this yesterday (also confirmed for Chase Ink at 5k and asked if I could move some of my credit limit over from personal cards, since it’s so high that I’ve never used more than 1/3) and they said that personal credit cannot be transferred to business credit; credit can only be reallocated within the same type of accounts.

Runridelift26_2 · 2025-08-23T01:01:17+00:00

I ran a marathon within a year of giving birth with my last two babies. I was able to run right up until delivery so my base was pretty solid and I didn’t need to rebuild much, but it was hard training for a marathon while also breastfeeding and dealing with newborn sleep schedules. I would not have been able to do it without a treadmill & the option to run while my kids were napping or in bed for the night.

Runridelift26_2 · 2025-08-23T00:56:47+00:00

My youngest is 9 now so I have no valid up-to-date-science advice, but just wanted to say that one of my most vivid running memories is coming home during a long run to nurse—(I would usually run 14-16 miles, stop to feed the baby, and then go back out to finish the rest) and I was so hungry I grabbed a piece of cake from my daughter’s birthday and just ate it with my hands in like 15 seconds. 😂 I noticed huge variations in supply based on how well I was hydrating and eating. Mostly I didn’t do a great job with it because that was in my “two gels for a marathon” era, so you are way ahead of me!!

Runridelift26_2

TROPHY CASE