Sunday, November 6, 2011

New Blog

Blog has moved to:

www.pieceofcakerunning.com

Thanks for following! Shamrock Marathon training starts tomorrow :)

Friday, October 14, 2011

Podium Finish

Last two weeks of training went something like this:

Two weeks to go:
Ran a few times pretty easy, played tag with my cross country team (for an hour and a half!), "long" run of 13 miles (around 45 miles total)

One week to go:
Ran a few times really easy, two miles at marathon pace on Thursday, 4 miles easy on Saturday... and the marathon (16 miles before the race plus 26, 42 total)

I was so busy with work that I didn't make it a priority to post anything.. plus there wasn't much to report since we were tapering anyway. The biggest struggle for me was that last week. I didn't wear a watch at all because I was forcing myself to run slowly... I just didn't want to know my pace. I also had a hard time with the whole carbo-loading thing, but I sucked it up and did it anyway. Three days of almost no running and what felt like constanty eating. I thought I would enjoy it a little more but nope.

So.. the race. I really couldn't be more happy with how it went. I was really worried because we found out it was going to be a high of 82, and it was going to be a challenge to stay hydrated. After the first two water stops I actually stopped to take a few cups of water and I walked through them to make sure I got enough fluids. I stopped a few other times to take orange slices and gels and say a few word to my family (my fans). I noticed that I quickly caught up to the people I was running with before the water stop. Eventually I would catch up to the people I was running with and pass them. There was a water stop every two miles, and I was completely focused on my water stop strategy for the entire race.

I went through a bad patch from miles 11-13, and I was starting to worry because my race plan was not quite working out the way I had hoped. I was supposed to average 7:00 for the first 8 miles, then drop it down to 6:50 until mile 18, then run 6:40s for the last 8.2 miles. My pacing was pretty erratic all the way up until the halfway point, although I ended up coming through in 1:31 and some change which was on pace. After the next water stop I decided to stick with my 6:50- 7:00 pace until I felt better. Fortunately I worked though it and was able to pick it up on a downhill section. I started passing TONS of people. I was constantly picking off people from miles 14-16 toward the end of the Mohawk River trail. When I came out of the trail into the city of Cohoes around mile 16 one of the race officials told me I was in sixth, which was a surprise to me. When I looked ahead I saw two women in the distance and I got really pumped. I ended up running a 6:30 mile, followed by a 6:40 and picked off a bunch more people. I went through a few brief points where I got worried I was going to hit the wall, but I powered through it. My last mile was a 7:14 and I sprinted the last .2 miles. Only two people passed me in the entire second half even though I technically slowed down to a 1:34 half.

So, yeah I wish I had broken 3:00, but I'm happy to have stood on the podium in my first marathon. I'm also really excited to run another one. I wish I could run one again this weekend! But of course, we have to be smart and take a little down time and start training again for a spring marathon. We decided to run the full marathon at Shamrock instead of the half marathon... so stay tuned for Keep it Simple Part Deux!

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Pee Man & The Marathon

This past weekend was a great one. We were able to spend a lot of time with the family doing all sorts of fun things. Mollie will write about the marathon first, because with her amazing finish, she deserves the first post. However, I need to mention one of the weirdest things I've seen.

This disgusting event occurred at the start line of the race. Mollie and I are lined at the start, with only one row of bodies in front of us. We ran up about 3 minutes before the race started to grab our spot. To my left, I've been eyeing this man who had ridiculously short shorts on, was built as though he was a 50+ year old man who has run his entire life and had a beard and sunglasses on. I don't know what type of top he had on because he was wearing a black lawn-trash bag over his entire upper body with a head hole cut out and his arms by his side coming down out of the bottom of the bag (that's not the weird part). He was hopping around, shifting his weight, legs moving to keep his body warm, not an unusual start line activity. At this point the most disgusting event occurred. I looked to my left with my head facing forward, as not to look like I was staring, and watched the man take an empty water bottle, put it up the right inside short leg and then I watched the bottle magically fill with a liquid that resembled apple juice. My God, this man was peeing in a bottle. I immediately thought to myself, well the race is going to start in about 1.5 minutes and the porta-potty line is long, so "you gotta do what you gotta do". With no hesitation, like it was an everyday action, the man removed the bottle from under his shorts and lifted it toward his face.
At this point, standing about 4 feet away, I was staring straight at him, with my jaw dropped. He took that bottle and pounded all of its contents. He took that pee straight to the face, people. I could not believe what I just saw. I started saying out loud, "That guy just drank his pee!" I repeated it over and over again, grabbing Mollie and making her look. She was not happy with my distracting her from her pre-race focus, but I could not help it. I didn't ask for this distraction either! I was just eye-raped by this pee-drinker! Gross! We both watched the guy put down the bottle on the asphalt, nonchalantly, and take off his trash bag tuxedo. Holy crap that was nasty- he clearly wasn't hydrated. After that interesting event, I had about 30 seconds to get my head straight, focused back on the race. Then, a countdown over the p.a. rang out- "5-4-3-2-1-hoooorrnnnn"- the race began...

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Yikes. Two Weeks?

Well, I have to say that it's pretty cool that we are nearing our marathon race day. It all seems so far away until you're just about on top of the date. I'm beginning to feel a little bit of anxiety about it all, but not necessarily about the marathon itself. Frankly, it's about the faster paces that I'm turning over in my head. I have to fit in some "tune-ups" on Saturdays and wait for it... a 1.5 mile time trial for a fitness/wellness class I'm taking. True, I could just breeze through it with an easy pace and be considered in the 85th percentile of the population (being that America is now officially 20% obese), but I prefer to give it a go and see where I stand. Somehow, I can work it into one of my speed days without disrupting too much. It may be an encouraging experience, being that I have not run a short distance for time (in shape) in a long time.

We just finished our last "long" run on Sunday. Mollie cruised with me during a 17 miler. Unfortunately for us all, I had spent that Saturday putting in a new bathroom floor. This required about 5 hours of back and forth for each measure and cut between the bath and the garage, separated by an 8 step stair case. Yes, I could have placed the mitre saw next to the bathroom, but that would have made such a mess in the house that I didn't want to go there. Wow, did I feel that the next day. My glutes, quads and hamstrings were all sorts of sore the next morning, making for a slow and painful run. I don't think I'll ever forget that lesson.
Luckily, the bathroom looks great and the run was completed! The pain is only temporary.

Mollie and I have such a great time up in NY. Apple picking was really fun the last time we did that and we're going to keep our eyes out for a good pumpkin too. Can't wait to see little Mia!
It's right around the corner!

Monday, September 26, 2011

Two Weeks... To Go!

"When we are motivated by goals that have deep meaning, by dreams that need completion, by pure love that needs expressing, then we truly live life."
-Greg Anderson

This past week I reached a goal that I had silently set for myself, which was to win this ridiculous cross country race in Richmond. I've run it twice before and finished second both times. There's something about being second that really gets to me. Plus, both times I have run this race my time has been awful. My 6k PR of 20:17 is faster than I've run on this 5k course before. So, I was happy to win the race and happy to run 19:45. The time doesn't really matter, especially considering I've followed up both of my previous Maymont races a week later with a road 5k over 2 minutes faster. Ok, enough about that. The course is ridiculous though, I'm not exaggerating.

The rest of training this past week went well. I was not sore at all from the 22 miler, which was kind of unexpected. I took Monday off, ran 4 miles easy on Tuesday, 7 miles in 50 minutes on Wednesday, and took off Thursday (mainly because I was so exhausted and stressed from work that all I wanted to do was go home and crawl into bed- which I did). On Friday I ran the 5k and totalled 9 miles. Saturday I ran about 3 miles at the meet, sprinting up and down various parts of the course while my team raced. On Sunday I took it easy and ran my 17 miles with Pete. Total: 40 miles for the week.

I'm really looking forward to seeing my family in two weeks, doing some apple picking, and of course running this marathon. After the marathon, I'm also looking forward to a few other races I have planned. I'm not sure if I'm going to run another marathon in the early spring. I think it might be a good way to keep my base going over the winter before switching gears for my first track season in a loooong time. Not sure if a steeplechase is in the cards but hopefully a few fast 5ks and 1500s. I'm getting ahead of myself here. Let's get through the next two weeks before I make any more big plans.

Sunday, September 18, 2011

22 Miles. Yup, That's Right.

I've been extremely bad about updating my training here. My life has been centered around work for the past few weeks and my training has taken a slight hit. Fortunately, it seems that my reduced training volume has really helped my iron levels get back to normal. I knew it would be tough to fit in my runs once school started up again but this year has been straight up ridiculous. I'm on another committee, plus I have six classes with two preps (since I'm teaching two subjects) which means I also have to write double the lesson plans. We also held our first cross country invitational which was totally worth it but a royal pain in the ass.

So... last week was pathetic. I ran 5 miles, and then 7 miles of fartlek, did NOT run on friday or saturday morning but ended up running about 5 miles while setting up cones for the meet and running to put volunteers in place. I was supposed to run 17 miles on Sunday and ended up doing 18 in 2:18. I slowed down a lot in the last few miles because it was so hot and I was really dehydrated (I only had a 20 oz bottle with me). I actually stopped at Starbucks and asked for water when I was 2.5 miles from home. I don't know if I would have made it if I didn't get that water. That's a whopping 35 miles for last week.

This week I ran 5 miles at our cross country meet on Tuesday, then 5 miles on Wednesday and 6 miles on Thursday. One of those days was a fartlek day that I did a lot of sprinting but I don't remember right now and don't feel like getting up to check. Yesterday was the first cool, rainy day in what feels like forever and I ran 9 miles with Bella. Then today it was still 64 when I woke up (I even got to sleep in!) and overcast. It warmed up a little during the run and rained a little but it still felt sooo good compared to every other long run I've done for this marathon. Since this was my last real long run before the race, I wanted to push it and run a solid pace for the entire run. Well... I ended up running 20 miles in 2:25 and then tacked another 2 to make it my longest training run EVER... and finished in 2:39:26. I averaged 7:14 per mile for 22 miles! The fastest I did any of my long runs this summer was around 7:40 pace and I felt like garbage for the last few miles then. Today I felt great. I won't overanalyze this, but sure am happy to finish my last long run with a good day.

47 miles this week... This definitely gives me some confidence for my race in 3 (yikes!) weeks. I would also like to mention that I am borderline addicted to Lauren Fleshman's Picky Bars and everyone should buy them from her website pickybars.com. They have helped me get through my work day AND my training. AND they taste amazing.

Thursday, September 8, 2011

Tag! You're It!

Last week I ran 44 miles, 20 of which were a long run I did in NY. My other runs last week were Tuesday where I did 5 miles in the morning and a 6 x1000 meter workout in the evening. On Wednesday I did 6 miles in the AM, and 6 miles in the PM. And... I drank a few too many martinis after the long run. Won't be doing that again. The ride home from NY was rough.

If you though that was bad, so far this week I ran 5 miles on Tuesday and a 7 miles fartlek workout today with my cross country team. Well, actually we had a 50 min long session of tag inside since there were severe thunderstorms. I can't even remember the last time I played tag, but it was seriously a lot of fun. I felt bad for all of the other teachers who were in their classrooms doing work while I was playing tag. Of course, I had to stay later to get the rest of my work done but I felt a lot better after my run than before.

We travelled to NY for labor day weekend to meet my niece and for my cousin's wedding so I missed THREE days of training in a row. The first two were because I had to work through practice a few times just to get my lesson plans done and everything else ready for school. The third was me being lazy. I missed running yesterday because I had to do lesson plans while my team was running again, and I was starving by the time I got home. Hopefully I can get back on track, but I've just been so stressed and busy. I've already lost two pounds, and I am definitely not trying to lose weight. At least I've been able to remember to take my supplements every other day.

Tomorrow is Friday!! I know I am not going to feel like running after work, and I'm not sure if I can squeeze in a run in the morning. We are hosting a cross country meet this weekend and then things should settle down a little. We have basically two more weeks of training and then we start our taper, so I really have to make the effort to get my training in. This 18 week training plan is no joke.

Thursday, September 1, 2011

Push Aside the Negative

What a wild time indeed, when it comes to the past few weeks.
I've encountered quite a few stressful, negative experiences in running, but still am standing strong thanks to willpower and a little help from others. Here's a few examples of how it's panned out.

The high school cross country season has begun. My boys team was picking up from where they left off last year, placing 2nd in the state championship. We had 2 of our top runners graduate, but had some solid runners coming up that could easily fill their spots once they get into shape this season. That's when I ran into the disappointment. A few boys, juniors and seniors in high school (of course), decided they would rather not bother with sports and instead be lazy all year. I spoke with each of them to get a better understanding of what the hell was going on and what their crazy minds were thinking. Though each was slightly different, it boiled down to them becoming lazy bums over the summer. Needless to say this was a serious blow to my other boys who had been focused on this season, running all year to prepare, and a serious let down to me as a coach. I realized two things: 1.) These guys are wasting their abilities and opportunities for the gain of nothing and they are letting down their team. 2.) These clowns came from under my coaching. Had I failed them? How had they "learned" such a great work ethic in season and then thrown it away so easily? Their decision making brain isn't developed yet and maybe that's to blame...

I stepped back and realized that the focus was not to be cast on the quitters or blaming myself for their decisions. It's more positive to reevaluate the new team, motivate and unite them and push ahead. The kids on the team this year are great kids. Some have very little running experience, some eat/sleep/breathe running, but I see a lot ahead for all of them. So we're moving on together.

Another example of pushing the negativity aside was after Mollie's and my half marathon race during the hurricane last weekend. I never thought they would hold the race with the winds as high as they were. I guess they do have money to make though, so they were willing to keep it as scheduled. Rain, well, rain is fine. I like running in the rain (minus the heavy shoes). Wind, well, I hate the wind. Needless to say, and as you read in Mollie's post, our times were much slower than we had anticipated. Even though we both ran a PR, neither of us were happy. I remember saying to Mollie in the car on the way, "I haven't focused on this race at all". That darn hurricane had thrown us all off, stressing about our house flooding, finding hotels to stay at, worrying about finances... I usually spend a little time each day anticipating a race that is a few days out. Instead, we were suddenly on the start line and the gun went off- "Good luck, and here have some wind in your face for at least an hour". Oh yes, and of course the unexpected 1+ mile hill at the end- "Take that!". Mollie and I walked back to the car after the finish, both of us disappointed. Mollie had a big mark to hit, dropping below 1:30. I just wanted to run around a 7:10 pace through the race. We skipped the cool down, pissed off.

As we got back to the hotel and Bella was there waiting for us with a wagging tail, I realized it was a crazy experience that we can talk about for a while. Hey, at least we didn't just sit around in our house all weekend watching the water rise in our garage! As Mollie and I chilled out the rest of the day, I quickly began putting the negative thoughts behind me. I knew I had to keep training hard and work toward the goal I set. We couldn't let one tune up race with all sorts of crazy variables bum us out and make us question our ability or training. That's when a runner starts to fall apart- when you question yourself and your training plan and "buy out" of your program.

Though I'm frustrated at times with my performance levels, overall, I'm feeling positive and pushing the negativity aside. I know we are making big improvements. I'm watching Mollie just get faster and faster, and I'm dropping a lot too from where I started (slow town, USA). I'm excited for our marathon in the beginning of October. We will show up and accomplish new things for ourselves and we will have done it together!

Monday, August 29, 2011

Swamp Fires, Earthquakes, and Hurricanes Oh My!

It's been a very eventful week in Virginia to say the least. Just in the past seven days we've dealt with the extreme smoke from the lateral west fire in the Dismal Swamp, a 5.9 earthquake in Mineral, VA (about 150 miles from our house), and the big mother, Hurricane Irene. As of right now, we have some powerful thunderstorms headed our way as well as another TORNADO WARNING! Geez!

Well, we are sooo thankful that we were able to come away with very minimal water damage in our garage. There is quite a bit of debris to clean up as well, but we got the day off from work to take care of the mess. Some of our neighbors did not fare as well because their property sits a bit lower and many have a slab foundation. Our house is up a few feet higher than our neighbors because of our crawl space foundation.

Running was okay this week, still taking all of my iron supplements and working on adding more iron to my diet. I didn't feel great this week, but still felt I would have a good race on Saturday.

The race itself was crazy. First, we didn't even know if they were going to let us run because of the hurricane. We decided we were going to evacuate on Friday and we had to take Bella with us, so we found a hotel in Ashland that was pet-friendly. We figured either way we would be safe from the Hurricane and maybe we would get to run if the race was still on. Well, they made the decision on Saturday morning to go through with it. I was nervous for various reasons but excited to race since it had been so long. The first mile marker than I saw was at mile 3, and I figured out I was running 6:45 pace, which was ok. I was aiming to start at 6:40 and drop it down to 6:30. Unfortunately that didn't work out because we ran straight into the wind for miles 5-10. I was still at 6:45 pace by mile 10, and feeling fine although I was having a lot more thoughts than usual. Usually I am very focused on the race and have very few thoughts that I can remember.

There was a long downhill before the hill I knew was coming at mile 11. Well... no one said it was going to be a MILE LONG! Literally, the mile 12 marker was at the top of the effing hill. Seriously! My legs were dead, my shoes sopping wet from the rain, but I pumped my arms as hard as I could to get myself going again. A few people pased me, and they were going a lot faster than me. My other thought was SHIT! I came to the mile 13 marker and looked at my watch and it said 1:29:15 and then I said it out loud "SHIT!". Well, I got to the line right at 1:30, and I was mad! The guy handed me a third place plaque, all smiles, I faked a smile back to him. I was soooo royally pissed. I laid on the grass, soaking wet from the rain, more rain pelting me, but I didn't care. I had been thinking this whole week that I would run 1:26- 1:27 on flat course, but with the hills I figured 1:27- 1:28. Never did think I would run another 1:30. I ran that time in March when I was only running 2-3 days per week and had no training plan. I've put in 12 solid weeks of 55-70 miles per week, and now basically no improvement? I'm still annoyed, but getting over it. I know the wind was bad but I'm pretty tough and figured I would power through it.

Eventually I quit being a baby and enjoyed the rest of the weekend of being temporary 'fugees. First we got the hell out of that "Quality" Inn we were staying at. We found a much nicer pet-friendly hotel in Richmond, a newly-remodeled Holiday Inn with a huge flat screen TV, King-size bed with nice linens, and a fully-equipped fitness room. We enjoyed some drinks and dinner and watched coverage of the storm all night. Bella was very excited because there were so many guests with dogs. It was her dream come true.

So... here's this week's summary:
Monday: off
Tuesday: 5 miles
Wednesday: AM 5 miles/ PM 6 miles
Thursday: 5 miles
Friday: 4 miles
Saturday: 14 miles (1 mile warm up, 13.1 race, didn't feel like cooling down)
Sunday: weak treadmill attempt of 5 miles
Total: 44 miles

Monday, August 22, 2011

Six Weeks To Go!

"Road racing is rock 'n roll; track is Carnegie Hall."
Marty Liquori

The World Championships in Daegu, South Korea begin this week. I also have my first tune-up race this Saturday, a half marathon. I would like to say that I'm excited for this race, but I'm more excited to watch the coverage of the World Championships on Universal. Road races can be exciting to watch and are definitely fun to participate in, but track really is the cream that rises to the top. I love watching the different racing tactics and seeing how the race plays out, especially at Worlds when the stakes are so high. It'll be interesting to see how much my marathon training will pay off in the spring. It's been soooo long since I've run a race on the track but I am very excited for the prospect of that actually happening. I'm getting ahead of myself though.

Anywhoo, I think I have the iron thing working for me. I really didn't know what to expect on my long run yesterday, but I ended up making it 19 miles. I actually felt good until about 17.5 and then I started to feel really bad. I didn't feel like carrying my water with me so I was probably more dehydrated than normal, and I couldn't stomach the shot bloks (I only had 4 for the whole run, which is the equivalent of one gel). I don't know why but I was not in the mood to eat those and I normally like them. But the good news is that I was able to make it that far without the low iron symptoms from last week. I hope if I can just take it easy again this week, things will fall into place for my race this weekend. That will be a huge confidence boost.


Monday off
Tuesday: 5 miles
Wednesday: 12 miles
Thursday: 5 miles
Friday: 4 miles AM/ 9 miles PM (w/ 4 mile tempo 6:45 pace)
Saturday: 7 smoke-filled miles
Sunday: 19

Total: 61 miles

PS- this really confuses me, but the "weeks to go" thing means that at the end of the week, I'll have 6 weeks until my marathon. I don't know why the dude that made this plan counts it like that, but he does.

Saturday, August 20, 2011

*Actual* Recovery Week

The main topic of conversation around here is that the Dismal Swamp is on fire. This has been going on for weeks, and it is still only 10% contained. Depending on the wind direction, it can be quite dangerous to be outside. It takes some planning to avoid running when (and where) the smoke is at it's worst. This morning I was lazy and slept in and when I opened my front door I was hit with a thick waft of smokiness. I ran anyway, and managed to make it through without major respiratory probs.

Besides the impending school year (ugh) the other major thing on my mind has been my iron levels. I've been taking a multivitamin and emergenC pack every day as well as my slow-release iron tablet. I tried and failed at giving up coffee so I've just been taking the iron at lunch time. I've been really good except for yesterday because I was in shopaholic mode. Pete and I somehow got so into shopping that we missed lunch, then got stuck in traffic, so we didn't eat "lunch" until 5pm. We still had to do our tempo run too, so I skipped the iron pill (it can cause stomach issues). I still can't believe how much things can change in a few days. I could barely finish 5 miles at 7 min pace last Sunday. Last night I wanted to see how I felt running faster so I did Pete's tempo with him. We ran 4 miles at 6:45 pace and it felt easy, just like it should. I'm supposed to do a 22 mile long run tomorrow, but I may just do 20. I have to be careful not to get super excited and push myself over the edge again. Low iron can be a tricky thing.

Monday off
Tuesday: 5 miles
Wednesday: 12 miles
Thursday: 5 miles
Friday: 4 miles AM/ 9 miles PM (w/ 4 mile tempo 6:45 pace)
Saturday: 7 smoke-filled miles
Sunday: (22)?

Monday, August 15, 2011

Mooooooo

Last week was a "recovery" week with reduced mileage. I felt really good until Saturday when I did 8 miles with 10 x 100 meters and I swear I felt like I could not get any air in my lungs! After each of the last 4 I had to stop for about 15 seconds before I could resume running again. I blamed it on the heat and the smoke from the dismal swamp fire that continues to burn (and is only 10% contained as of yesterday). I felt kind of crappy for the rest of the day on Saturday, but still made sure to be hydrated and carb-loaded.

On Sunday we got a late start. As much as I hate waking up early I would rather get started at 6 rather than 7 because there are far less people on the trail and it's much cooler. Pete and I started our slow 2 mile warm-up together, 8:30 and 8:25 for the first 2 miles. I felt like complete garbage and couldn't catch my breath again. I actually felt like my lungs were burning. Of course I sucked it up and started my marathon pace run, after a quick stop to stretch. The first mile felt great, came through the half in 3:18 so I slowed it down a little and ran 6:50 for the first mile. Mile 2 was a 7:02 which was fine. Then I focused on keeping that pace to the turnaround at 5 miles where I would refill my water. Mile 3 7:04, whoops gotta pick it up. Mile 5, 7:07. Shit. By this point my lungs were really screaming and I was having trouble lifting my legs. I powered through mile 5 in 7:00 then stopped and basically hyperventilated as if I had just raced a 400 all-out on the track.

Suddenly I had a flashback to 2003 and 2004 when I remembered feeling exactly like this. It's such a strange feeling. I know I'm in good shape, and 7:00 per mile should feel easy. I just did a 6 mile tempo at 6:30 per mile 2 weeks ago. It's low iron! I started to think of all of the symptoms I experienced then and now, and what I had to do to fix them. I haven't trained this much since 2004, so I guess it was just a matter of time.

After Pete and I finished our run (I ended up running 14 total, but didn't do the rest of my marathon pace) we first went home and showered and figured out where to eat lunch. When we got to the restaurant, I looked through the menu and picked out a burger with roasted tomatoes, cheddar, and bacon. Hold the bacon, please. I also ordered an orange juice, which seems like a weird combo, but the vitamin C helps you absorb the iron better. Anyway, it was ok, I felt a little naseous when we left but it thankfully passed. We stopped by Target to get a multivitamin, raspberry emergenC, and SlowFe. SlowFe contains ferrous sulfate, which most doctors recommend because it is better absorbed. The multivitamin contains ferrous fumarate, which is another compound containing iron. I asked the pharmacist if it was better to get the name brand, but she said the Target brand is just as good so we went with that.

Last but not least: no coffee, tea, sugar, soda, etc. for awhile, especially with the supplements. They interfere with the absorption of Iron. No fun.

Week Summary:
Monday: off
Tuesday: 9 miles
Wednesday: 9 miles (6 x 800 meters workout)
Thursday:6 miles recovery
Friday: 11 miles in 1:24
Saturday: 8 miles w 10 x 100
Sunday: 14 with 5 at marathon pace
Total: 57 miles

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

VO2 Max'n It Up!

Woke up early again this morning, and hit the snooze three times. Somehow I managed to drag myself to the park for this workout. I only had 9 easy miles yesterday, so I think it was just me being lazy.

Anyway, the 2 mile warmup was pathetically slow, but I loosened up a little towards the end. It was very humid and smoky, but since the repeats were pretty short it didn't affect me very much. The workout was 6 x 800 with 90% rest. I decided on 2:30- 2:45 for rest, because I figured I would run 2:50- 2:55 for each repeat. The goal was to work at 5k race pace, which is a pace that should be close to your VO2 Max pace. 2:55 per 800 is an 18:07 5k, and 2:50 is 17:36.

Well, I stuck on that pace pretty well for the first three, but it actually felt too easy. My times were:

2:55
2:49
2:49
2:48
2:46
2:37

They're actually half mile times, not 800s since it's on the park trail, but the difference isn't significant. Since the marathon will be on a bike path, it's more useful to do the repeats on similar terrain (rather than on the track). 4 mile cooldown after the workout was slow but didn't feel terrible. I like these types of workouts sooo much more than the long tempos. Bring it on, VO2 Max intervals!

I appreciated all of the walkers and runners on the trail this morning who encouraged me... "Did you just sprint for half a mile?" ummm, yeah I guess. I even got a "You go girl!"

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Selfishness, Be Gone!

Alright, so this past Sunday was an awful reminder of some of my toughest days as a runner...

It began with an unwanted alarm going off at 4:45am. It indicated that I was about to dislike the next 4 hours. Mollie and I woke up, got ready and headed to the park in VB. We got out on the trail and running with our supplies around 6:30am. That's when the negativity really started to kick in.
Racing through my mind were tons of crappy thoughts:
This water bottle in my hand is heavier than I'd like.
My legs feel like I raced a half yesterday.
The air smells and tastes like campfire smoke.
I rushed the start and didn't get to stretch, so my calves feel "tight as a banjo".
I'm pretty sure a 2 mile warm up won't help break me in properly before this workout begins.
My revised marathon pace for this workout will be wrong and hard to run since I'm only on my 2nd week back in training.
10 miles easy sounds craptastic this morning, not to mention the workout I'm beginning calls for 16 miles (w/ 10 at race pace).
Mosquitoes are still biting me even while I'm running.
My first warm up mile split was atrocious.

Where did all this land me?
For starters, I began with an 8:40ish first warm up mile- ugh. Next, with a bitchy attitude from hell that not even a mother could love. Also included, bickering between myself and my running partner- the one person that could pull me out of this chasm of negativity that smells of hot trash. Finally, it helped me out 0% in my workout.

I don't know exactly why I was in that funk that morning. There were a thousand reasons I could propose, but they all seem negative just thinking them up, so there's no benefit to spitting them out. Ultimately, that negativity was a result of me being selfish and wanting to do everything on my terms. I sometimes find myself getting irritated at the workout plan, as if I didn't choose to do it myself- foolishness.

After that workout Sunday morning, which I did get through without total disaster, I realized I need to maintain a different take going into a run. The approach to the workout should not be "me, me, what if, but I need, etc.". Instead it should be "I'm prepared, what can I do for my partner, another day closer to our goal". We're human, not perfect, but I need to drop the selfishness- it's a crippler.

Monday, August 8, 2011

Feeling Better, Pushing Through

Long run yesterday, 20 miles in in 2:34:11, 7:42 average. Pete and I drove to the oceanfront, started at about 6:30 am... of course it was very hot and humid again and there was a lot of smoke in the air for some reason. I paced Pete for his run, which was supposed to be 7:40 average, then I finished the last 8 miles on my own.

Our splits:
mile 1: 8:48 sloooooooow
mile 2: 8:09
mile 3: 7:47
mile 4: 7:41
mile 5: 7:34
nile 6: 7:44
mile 7: 7:40
mile 8: 7:41
mile 9: 7:32
mile 10: 7:40
mile 11: 7:45
mile 12: 7:34
mile 13: 7:30
mile 14: 7:23
mile 15: 7:45
mile 16: 7:29
mile 17: 7:36
mile 18: 7:38
mile 19: 7:38
mile 20: 7:28

I wish I had been closer to 7:30, but I also didn't want to push it after last weekend. After the first two miles I averaged 7:37 which is a little better.

The rest of the week was just mileage, no big workouts since it was supposed to be a rest week. I hit 70 miles this week, for the first time probably since college. Next week is supposed to be a "rest" week as well, but I still have to make up a 12 mile marathon pace run, which I think I will do on Sunday.

Kinda feel tired today, and a little sore. Probably because we were entertaining family all weekend and we spent all day Saturday at Busch Gardens and all day yesterday at the beach in the hot sun. I feel like I've been downing fluids all day every day and barely getting enough in. (Hmmm... maybe I should have skipped the beers yesterday and just stuck with water?)

Thursday, August 4, 2011

Setting Goals and Stuff

My high school coach used to help us set goals before the state meet. He would give them to us with our itinerary before we boarded the section 2 bus. It went something like this:

name "ultimate goal" "realistic goal"

Jess 1st 1st
Elizabeth 5-10 15-30
Mollie 15-20 25-50

You get the picture. I changed the names other than mine. As you can see, I wasn't an all-star in high school. I think I was more excited about the hair ribbons and glitter than actually being focused on my racing performance.

Anyway, in the spirit of good old Coach Mindel, I have decided it's about time to set some goals for my race. We didn't really get time goals from Mindel since the weather and terrain were so unpredictable in NY in November. This race is in October and is basically flat, so I feel comfortable making time and place goals. Okie here goes:

name "ultimate goal" "realistic goal"
Mollie 1st 1st- 5th
Mollie 2:55 3:00- 3:10

That was scary. I wrote 2:59 at first, and then I felt like a wimp, so I changed it. At least I have a goal pace now, with plenty of time to work towards it.

So the other part of this goal-setting involves what happens after October 9th. My coach at JMU always encouraged us to make "process" goals rather than "outcome" goals. So taking his wisdom into account, the real goal of this marathon is to get in decent enough shape to be able to run a (gasp) race on the track. I'm going to wait until after the marathon to set any further goals because it's making me nervous just thinking about it. Obviously it would be nice to say, oh I want to set a PR in the (1500/ 5000/ whatever) but I can't even imagine that right now.

So this week has been pretty low key training-wise. After my crappy long run last Sunday, my cold took on a life of its own. It seems to be going away, but it may also be gearing up for one final push. I had 10 miles on Tuesday which I did with Pete, and 15 yesterday. Both of those runs were at a very easy pace, around 8 min/mile. I wanted to run faster, but I also want to make sure I'm fully recovered from this cold by Sunday. Today I had a 5 mile recovery run, and I also did the ab ripper from p90x. I never actually did the p90x system, but I like some of the workouts, especially the yoga and ab ripper. I started doing the yoga workout too, but had to get showered before the guy from the glass company came to fix our window. I might do that one tomorrow.

Oh, btw, its still flipping HOT.

Sunday, July 31, 2011

I'm Back, Baby!

Well, I'm not trying to jinx anything, but my legs are doing alright since I've returned to training a week ago.

I saw a specialist a few weeks back and he is certain I have chronic compartment syndrome in both of my calves. He wants to confirm it by giving me a test that measures the pressure in each of the compartments in the posterior calf muscles before, during and after a run with big needles. This will tell the doctor if I am fine or redlining toward a serious problem.

When I was told the test was scheduled for Aug. 15th, I gave the Doc a call. I told him my concern about my symptoms. They had mostly disappeared and I was worried that the pressure readings wouldn't be accurate considering my inactivity. He agreed, and told me to get back to the marathon training and see if the same feeling returns. He said if I'm lucky that the pain may not return and I can simply cancel the appointment. If it does, then it's a date with the needles... I'm running again, and we'll see what happens.

For now, I'm back! I started this past week with 38 miles. I'm on a 12 week plan and I started that plan at the 10 weeks-to-go mark. I think about the possibility of overtraining in the near future, but I'm willing to take that risk with my lack of time left before race day. I'm stronger than most of my in-law family believes I am- who loves to jab me for being frequently injured in running. They never have asked about all of the things I've been able to accomplish uninjured in my life...

This past week went well, and my 15 mile run this morning was good. I finished the 15 at 1:55.38, a 7:42 pace. I ran it alone, which I do well when I have to focus and push myself. I'm excited to keep getting back into shape and prove to myself how well I can do after all of the adversity in the past month and a half.

I found a steal of a deal on a pair of Nike LunarFly+ 2s and they feel great. Keeping my fingers crossed! Next week is 43 miles.


The Good, the Bad, the Ugly.

The Good:

Friday's tempo run of 6 miles at 15k to half marathon tempo pace. I did 6 miles in 39:35, which is 6:35 per mile average. I actually felt great, and completely surprised myself that I was able to focus for that long. My 1.5 splits were 9:47, 9:50, 9:59, 9:46. I went out too fast, first 400 in 91, and realized my first loop would be fast but I just told myself to stay under ten minutes for the last 3 loops and ended up running way faster than I "felt like" I was running.

The Bad:

The heat and humidity are really pissing me off. I'm really not happy about having to wake up at 5 or 5:30 in the morning just to be able to run. I have also been sick this week, a minor cold I caught from Pete which he caught at his conference. It's almost gone, but my throat is still sore.

The Ugly:

My long run today. I was going for 20 miles at 7:30 pace. We got a late start, so it was pretty warm by the time we started at 7am. I felt really good though, and hit 51:55 for the first 7 miles. All of a sudden, about a mile later, my legs stopped working. By ten miles I felt really depleted, hot, dehydrated, and altogether just not good. I started going over the situation in my mind. I ran into Pete on the trail (he was doing 15 at a different pace) and he tried to help by telling me I was "almost done". I believed him for a split second, but then I did some simple math in my head and realized he was lying to me. Eventually I decided to stop my watch at 12 miles (it said exactly 1:30:00, which I thought was weird and maybe a sign?)gather my thoughts, i.e walk for a few, and then continue the last two miles back to my car. I recalled that my long run for next week is supposed to be 15 with 12 at marathon pace, so I'm just going to try for 20 again next Sunday and make up the 12 miles at marathon pace another time.

I've been through enough "bad days" to know that it's not a big deal to have to change your workout due to outside factors. You don't all of a sudden get out of shape or lose your talents. Sometimes your body isn't ready, and it's better to be smart rather than tough it out. I have felt this way before and I think I just need to do a better job of getting sleep, fluids, and more good food. I'm down to 125.2 as of this morning, which is 5 pounds less than I weighed at the beginning of the month. I don't want to get below 120, so I gotta eat (and drink) up!

This week:
Monday: off
Tuesday: 10 miles
Wednesday: 14 miles
Thursday: 5 miles recovery
Friday: 6 mile tempo, 11 total
Saturday: 6 (miserably hot and humid) miles
Sunday: 14
Total: 60 miles

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Uh oh. It's Almost August.

I've had cross country on my brain a lot this week. That's the tough thing about coaching a fall sport; even though you have the summer "off", it's really just the month of July because fall sports in Virginia start August 1st. Well, it's been awhile, but when I was in high school in Averill Park, New York, we did not start practice August 1st. We started the week before school, at the end of August, and we still managed two state championships during my three years of cross country. Don't get me started on that third year scandal... we should have been three for three but we had some administrative issues (ahem).

My cross country team is what you might call a "developing program". I spend the entire season basically tricking them into running longer and faster, while keeping it fun and adding in some cross training for kids whose primary sport is not running. I do scavenger hunts, relay races, and workouts where you pick a card from a pile and do whatever is on the card. We do more tradititonal training too, but I always do my best to make it fun, if not an opportunity to build some character. Having an entire month of practice in the heat of August is not my idea of a good time, and I know my team agrees. So we are starting pre-season conditioning the second week of August, and "try-outs" start August 15th. I wish I could start later, but we have to have a certain number of practice days before our first race.

I think part of the reason I've been thinking about cross country so much is that I am wondering how I'm going to fit in all my training with what I have scheduled for my team. This is going to require some really annoying planning. I'll just put that off for now.

Training has been great this week, but I do have some minor shin pain. It's on both sides, just regular old shin splints, so I'm doing some ice baths and ice cups after my runs. I should be taking ibuprofen too, but I keep forgetting. Tuesday was 10 miles than I ran with Pete. It was supposed to be split up into two runs but we had dinner plans last night so I just did it all in the morning. Today was 14 miles, which I did in 1:48 (7:45 per mile). Finally my Wednesday runs are feeling good.

Monday, July 25, 2011

Brutal Week

But I made it through! And Pete finally got the clearance to run... so after he gets through this cold he caught from staying in the dorms at JMU he'll be reading to resume (slightly abbreviated) training.

Saturday was 7 miles and 10 x100. I ran 5 miles with Bella and then did an ins and outs type workout around my neighborhood so I could make sprints part of the rest of my run. It was pretty easy and I felt good. Later we met some friends for sushi and way overpriced drinks. The best part of the evening was that we stopped at a frozen yogurt shop called Sweet Frogs and got some serious sugar highs. I can't remember everything I put on mine, mostly peanut butter cups, oreos, and hot fudge. Pete's weighed twice as much as mine and I think he put one of everything on his. Fatty.

Sunday, ugh. I spent most of the time I was supposed to be sleeping in a fit of pain. I have never experienced the monthly curse as bad as this, and even though I haven't had children yet I swear it felt like labor pains. Luckily it went away after about three hours so I got 2-3 hours of sleep total. I woke up at 5am, got everything ready, and Pete and I drove to the oceanfront for our long run. Technically the park doesn't open until 7, but we were able to sneak in through a side trail and start running by 6. Overall, the run went well. I didn't bother to drink coffee in the morning so I felt pretty sluggish for about 5 miles, but I figured it was more important to hydrate due to the extreme heat and humidity. I did the run on an out and back 7 mile stretch so I could stop and refill my water. My only hiccup was when I finished my second 7 miles Pete was still out running on his own and I couldn't find where he put the water. I kept running until I finally found him and then we went to the car. I filled up with G2 instead, so it ended up being a good thing. The last three miles were pretty rough, although not as bad as some of my Wednesday runs have felt. I ended up running 2:42:22, which is about 7:42 per mile for 21 miles. I would have liked to be closer to 7:30, but considering the heat, the conditions of the trail, and the fact that it was my longest training run ever, I'm satisfied.

Afterward we walked to the beach and soaked in the ocean for a few. By the time we got home I was wiped out, and I slept for about three hours (after a shower of course). I spent basically the rest of the day on the couch watching movies. It was too hot to do anything outside, and I'm doing all of my chores today since I have the day off from running.

So that's it! Here's how the week went:

Monday: off
Tuesday: 5 mile tempo, 10 total
Wednesday: 14 miles
Thursday: 5 miles recovery
Friday: 11 miles
Saturday: 7 miles with 10 x 100 sprints
Sunday: 21 miles!
Total : 68 miles

Friday, July 22, 2011

I'll Huff... and I'll Puff... and I'll Blow Your House In!

I'm not even going to bore myself by writing about the heat anymore. I've been waking up early all week, and it sucks, but I'm hoping it's not going to be like this for the rest of the summer. I know if I can make it through 68 miles this week, I can pretty much make it through anything. In typical fashion, I slogged through Wednesday's 14 miles. I have yet to feel any better on these Wednesday runs. They flat out suck. Thursday was a recovery 5 miles which I ran with Bella. Today's run was 11, and I actually felt good! I did the first half in 44 min, and came back in 42 (the route is actually a little longer than 11 miles, which I was happy to find out a few weeks ago). While I was running back, I couldn't believe I was actually feeling better with each mile. That rarely happens in the heat, and it usually goes the other way. For some reason I started about that fairytale The Three Little Pigs, and the wolf who tries to blow their houses in. Couldn't get it out of my head. Maybe it was because I was huffing and puffing a lot, I don't know.

Tomorrow is supposed to be 7 miles and some sprints and Sunday's run... 21 miles! This is going to take some planning. I actually was thinking today that I need to get some handheld water bottles because the gatorade bottles I've been using are annoying to hold. I hate to buy gadgets, but I borrowed my brother Brandon's a few weeks ago and I actually liked it. I also might need to break down and buy some new running shoes, since I've been doing all of my training in Nike Free's and I probably need to get something with a little cushion. My poor feet and shins are kind of sore from all of the sidewalk running this week.

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Tempo Run

I woke up at 5 friggin 30 today to beat the impending sauna-like conditions (which will be around for the entire week, and this also coincides with my toughest week of training so far). Bullshiz. Unfortunately I will probably have to wake up at the same time tomorrow.

Drove to the park, warmed up 2 miles, stretched a little. I should probably start doing some more organized drills, but whatever. Like usual, my first 400 was way too fast so I just relaxed a bit and really I was feeling like crap anyway (I don't know if it was because of Sunday's run or the early wake-up or what). I came through the mile at 6:54, ummm not good. So I picked it up and ended up hitting my pace. I wasn't super encouraged by this workout, but I also haven't done a short tempo in a long time so I won't labor over it. Followed by a 3 mile cooldown shuffle, for 10 total.

My 1.5 mile splits:
10:13.20
9:58.87
9:56.45
3:07.65 (last 800)

Total: 33:16.17

6:39.2 per mile pace

Post script: After figuring out my pace, I feel a little better. I thought I had averaged 6:45, but it ended up being 6:39. Still not groundbreaking times but not awful either.

Sunday, July 17, 2011

Mmmm... Blueberry Waffles for Breakfast...

Go USA in the Women's World Cup today!!

Yesterday Bella, Pete, and I did our 5 mile recovery run together. Felt much better than last week, even though Bella was on a tear the whole 5 miles. She wavered between 6:30 and 7:30 (this is just an estimate as I don't use those Garmin gadgets). We spent the rest of the day at the beach, but we left Bella home because she likes to kill crabs and bark at them the whole time. In fact, this morning she found a crab in the garage, tore it into pieces and rolled all over it on the kitchen floor.

Today's run was 15 with 10 miles at marathon pace. I don't actually know what my marathon pace is but I'm guessing 7:00 for now. I didn't time the whole run, only the 10 miles. Total time was 69:21. I stayed on 7 min pace basically the whole time, but my last mile was 6:35.
My 1.5 mile splits were:

10:27.63
10:19.24
10:28.31
10:33.96
10:25.12
10:34.31
6:35.49
Total 69.21

This week's summary:
Monday: rest
Tuesday: 8 miles and 10x100 (9 total)
Wednesday: 12 miles
Thursday: 5 miles
Friday: 10 miles
Saturday: 5 miles
Sunday: 15 miles
Total: 56 miles

PS- This was supposed to be a recovery week, but I needed to make up for the marathon pace run that I missed last weekend when I was being a pathetic lazy ass. Hopefully it won't affect this coming week.

Friday, July 15, 2011

Sweet Relief

67 degrees this morning... aaaahhh. My 12 mile run on Wednesday went well considering how hot and humid it was, much better than I felt last week.

Bella ran the whole ten miles with me today, and my 5 mile recovery run yesterday as well. She runs about 6:45-7:00 pace until she gets tired, and in cool weather she can keep that pace up for 8-10 miles or more. She's a good training partner, except for when she takes a sharp turn to go after a bunny or a squirrel. I ate it once last fall, but I guess my reaction time has improved since then.

The week has felt really easy, almost too easy. I just have 5 mile recovery run tomorrow and a 15-miler on Sunday. I may try to make up for the marathon pace run that I missed last Sunday (I ended up just running 18 at a regular pace because of the heat) and turning the 15 into a race pace run.

Not much else to report... pretty chill week, just enjoying the time off and getting settled into our house. Looks like a nice beach weekend ahead!

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Week in Review

I've been lacking motivation lately, so I listened to some Mitch Hedberg stand-up on my iPod (I never run with my iPod, this was yesterday on my day off). I've heard his stand-up so many times I have it memorized, but he never fails to crack me up. Here's some motivation Mitch Hedberg-style:

I'm sick of following my dreams. I'm just going to ask them where they're goin', and hook up with them later.

Last week:

Monday: rest
Tuesday: 9 miles
Wednesday: 11 miles
Thursday: 8 miles
Friday: 9 miles
Saturday: 5 miles
Sunday: 18 miles
Total: 60 miles!!

So... I felt pretty awful this week. I skipped the marathon pace part of the 18-miler on Sunday because it was incredibly hot, but the effort was there. I ended up running 1:21:58 for the 18 miles, almost 4 minutes slower than last week. Of course, last week it was 60-something, overcast and raining. This week it was high 80's, sunny and very humid. I guess I have to wake up even earlier. Oh well, another lesson learned.

We went to the beach Sunday afternoon (I made a big effort to re-hydrate though), and when we came back I was toast... didn't get much accomplished yesterday either because I felt like crap. Today's run started off pretty rough, but I felt great by the end. I love running really fast (tell me again, why am I running a marathon?) so today was fun, only 8 miles and then 10 x 100 meters, which I rocked.

I wonder what my new neighbors think when they see me sprinting back and forth in front of my house?

Monday, July 11, 2011

Doc, Can We Speed This Up?!

Wow, the world of medicine seems to operate at a snails pace sometimes, doesn't it?
It's been a full three weeks since my last post, mentioning my calf injury and what I had done to pursue an answer to getting healthy. My physician-visiting journey is hopefully drawing to an end today.

Here's a quick catchup on the past three weeks:
Week 4- 28 miles (3 days of rest)
Week 5- 14 miles (5 days of rest)
Week 6- 24 miles (3 days of rest)

My PT sent me back to my PCP almost positive I was experiencing Chronic Compartment Syndrome in my lower legs. My PCP referred me to get an MRI on both legs. Now, a week later I'm bringing the MRI film to a sports med. specialist for them to review and diagnose my problem. This process has taken 4 weeks and the pain began 5 weeks ago.
The pain does seem to line up with the increase in my mileage in training, but why the compartment syndrome? Why not just soreness and fatigue? Hopefully I'll come away with my answers this morning.

The time off of running has sucked. I'm behind in my training. The rest has been good on the calves and they feel better now when I begin my runs, but I can still feel them lingering slowly beginning to bother me. At least now the feeling is not so strong and I can focus on other things during my run! Wish me luck.

Friday, July 8, 2011

Close Call

Thank you to the lady in the POS Cutlass Supreme who stopped in the middle of the crosswalk to shove a doughnut in her mouth. You could have easily stopped before the crosswalk and let me continue running, especially because there were no cars coming in either direction. I understand that doughnuts taste good, but in the future you may want to wake up 30 seconds earlier and eat that at home since you can't seem to handle driving, chewing, and turning your head at the same time.

That happened yesterday, but it really bugged me. Any close calls I have ever had while running have involved people at fast food establishments. For some reason, they get so excited by their purchases that they forget to check for pedestrians or other cars.

Wednesday's run was supposed to be 14, but I could only get in 11 before my dentist apptointment (no cavities!) unless I skipped the shower (ew). I should have just done my scheduled recovery run yesterday, but I wanted to make up the mileage I had missed so I ran 8 miles instead of 5. Today I woke up feeling like garbage and contemplated skipping my run altogether, but Bella was really hyper so I decided to run 3 with her and see how I felt. It was really humid and almost 11am by the time I finished, but I got in 9 miles. Pretty slow and I feel awful now, but at least it's done!

Not much else to report, just laying low and doing a lot of work on our house. We're having a mini-cookout tomorrow, and I'm looking forward to a nice weekend!

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

13 Weeks To Go!

Last week was a short week because of our vacation. I somehow managed to squeeze in 40 miles in 3 days. After Lake Placid, we drove to my hometown in upstate NY and stayed with my sister and brother-in-law. From Thursday afternoon until yesterday afternoon we basically slept, ate, ran, and laid out by the pool. It was fabulous.

I jumped back into training on Friday with an 11-miler and Saturday with the same distance. Sunday's 18-miler turned out much better than I had hoped. Pete rode the road bike next to me and Brandon ran the first 9 miles with me as well. I had planned to go about 75 minutes per loop to end up with about 2 hours and 30 minutes for the run. It was warm, but rained (heavily at times) for most of the run, and I think the overcast skies made the very hilly loop seem easier than usual. We ended up running the first 9 miles in 70 minutes. I felt really good until the beginning of the second loop (after about 5 minutes it's straight uphill for a mile) but I ended up pushing myself to hit the same time as the previous loop. My final time was 2:17:17, well under the time I was trying to hit. Marathon training is starting to work it's magic.

Monday was a rest/ travel day. It sucked having to leave NY on the Fourth of July. A lot of my cousins were up for my sister's baby shower, the weather was perfect, and we had such a good time seeing everyone. Unfortunately we had to bite the bullet and take off at 2pm. Traffic wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, so we got good sleep last night. This morning I picked up Bella from the boarders and ran part of my 9 miles with her. I think those rest days paid off because I'm feeling really good and looking forward to this week!

Friday: 11 miles
Saturday: 11 miles
Sunday: 18 miles
Total: 40 miles

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Week Four... Olympic Fever!

We're in Lake Placid celebrating our two year anniversary...and not running. Unfortunately I'm using a lot of muscles that I don't normally use and I'm really sore! We might go for a run tomorrow, but we've been saying that every day. I feel a little antsy, like I want to go for a run. I think that's a good thing though. I'll be excited to start up again later this week.

Week four went like this:
Tuesday 14 miles total
Wednesday 10 miles
Thursday 5 miles recovery
Friday 11 miles
Total: 40 miles

We cheered on our brother in his first tinman (half ironman) and we've been kicking back since then. Sunday we hiked Whiteface (my fourth time, Pete's first time), toured the Olympic sites, rented stand up paddle boards, and met up with some family that lives nearby for a four person four-hour dinner. We also drove by the Olympic Training Center, the site of many fun APXC times at the OTC Peak When It Counts Running Camp.

Training resumes Friday and I have an 18 miler on Sunday before my sister's baby shower... I think I'm going to enjoy this time off until then.

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Early Morning Run

Bad weather always looks worse through a window. ~Author Unknown



I love that quote because there have been so many times that I almost skipped a run for rain/snow etc. and it ended up being a great run. I ran early this morning before work and it was really overcast. It ended up raining for most of it, but I had forgotten how refreshing it is to run in the rain in the summer. Anyway, I did the 8 miles in about an hour despite the rain. I felt kind of stiff when I woke up and had some weird foot and knee pains that came and went. I don't know what that's about, but everything came together after I turned around and then second half felt great.

The next two weeks of training are going to be kind of off-book because we're going out of town for over a week and we planned on not running for a few days. So, I think I'm going to run again this afternoon, 5 or 6 miles and do my 10x100 meters that I didn't have time for this morning.

Tomorrow is supposed to be 14 miles, but I'm definitely doing less than that. I have to run early in the morning again because I'm helping out at a golf tournament and it's supposed to be 100 degrees or something ridiculous. We are going to freeze in the Adirondacks this week, it's been getting down to the 40's there at night.

Sunday, June 19, 2011

Injury... yeah... about that

So I'm going through a bit of a trial right now. Every runner despises it, yet we all have to face it in one form or another at some point.

The dreaded injury has struck and landed in my calves. It's an extremely uncomfortable all-encompassing tightness in my gastroc and soleus. No matter how much you stretch or when you stretch, the feeling does not go away. I ran through it for a couple of weeks, but knew the feeling was beyond the sore or tight feelings that are expected from time to time. I found myself very drained from mentally managing the pain through the longer runs. Eventually, even the short 5 mile recoveries became dreadful. It really started to aggravate me to the point that I was losing it. I was seeing improvements from my training (besides the calf pain) and I just wanted to continue in my training progress problem free.

I sucked it up and went to my PCP (who I made sure was a runner before I selected him 2 years back). He assumed (as did I) that it was just adhesions that needed to get worked on in the muscles. I had the pleasure of taking more time out of a day on Wednesday to go to the PT, who was nice, but admitted that she spends far less time treating athletes than she does treating people who are older and/or rehabbing from surgery. She proceeded to go through an extensive regimen of tasks to narrow down the problem (range of motion measurements, massages, stretches, 101 questions, treadmill tests, etc.). I found myself repeating the same descriptions and answers over and over. After 2 hours I went home. The next 2 days I ran more and I hurt more.

I went back on Friday and we did ultra sound and intense myofacial release, to no avail. And, wait for it.... another treadmill test. We spent another large amount of time where she asked- "Does this hurt? Is this the same pain?" She's the type of person who thinks out loud and her questions were becoming more frequently followed by her saying "that concerns me" or "that's not good". She finally admitted that she thought the pain is not a result of the adhesions or any muscular imbalances.

I asked her what direction this was heading and she said it could be a form of compartment syndrome. I don't believe I have a bad case of it (which requires surgery), but it does suck, so after I meet with her tomorrow we will have a final verdict on where I'm headed.

I took the liberty of consulting a friend who's been through the ringer with compartment syndrome. She had a bad case of it and had to have the full surgery where they release all 4 compartments in the lower leg or "calf" muscles. She referenced me to Glasson Sports Medicine in VB that specializes in working with athletes. Evidently their staff is top notch. That appointment is still being arranged by my PCP, so hopefully I can get to a visit and answer soon.

Until then, I'm running, but the runs are shorter. Can we say annoying?

Week Three

Lily: Ted, you may be single and childless, but you're totally a dorky dad.

Ted: I don't think I like your tone, young lady.**




Pete is still working on his injury so I had to go it alone today. Total time was 1:57:42, but I actually ran 15.3 miles due to that extra distance between the end and beginning of the loop so I averaged 7:42 per mile.

The park was really nice this morning, lots of dads fishing or going for walks with their families, which made for some good people-watching. I decided to practice drinking water while running, and I took a GU block every three miles. I find the gels to be so disgusting, so I tried the blocks and success! I like how you can just take one block instead of trying to hang on to a half-full gel pack.

After the run I had about ten minutes to get ready to meet Pete's dad for brunch. We went to the art show at the oceanfront afterwards. It was fun to browse through all the different artists, but as we got further up the boardwalk it turned into lots of tourists in too-small bathing suits eating turkey legs.

Anyway, I would say Happy Father's Day, but I know my dad will not be reading this (which is the same reason I'm not going to bother writing it on facebook). I already called him this morning, and we'll see him on Thursday for a belated FD celebration in NY. Dad is "old school" and prefers to get all of his information and gossip by word of mouth, so facebook is out of the question.

Week Three:
Monday: rest
Tuesday: 10 miles (4 tempo)
Wednesday: 13 miles
Thursday: 5 miles recovery
Friday: 9 miles general aerobic
Saturday: 5 miles recovery
Sunday: 15 miles long run
total: 57 miles

(**from the How I Met Your Mother episode, Not A Father's Day**)

Saturday, June 18, 2011

School's Out!

Overwhelming feeling of happiness... the book has closed on this 2010-2011 school year and now it's officially summer!

Thursday's workout was five miles easy. I ran part of it with Bella, then dropped her off and finished my run. She can run really far in the winter but she gets too hot in the summer to go more than a few miles.

Yesterday Pete and I drove to VB to run at a park near the oceanfront. Pete took the day off, so I ran the 9 miler on the trails by myself. It was really nice and peaceful. I felt great and ended up running a lot faster than I was supposed to. The part of the trail that I ran on is mostly flat and is 3.5 miles to the trail center, so I turned around there and ran back to where I started from. After 7 miles I stopped my watch to get some gatorade and saw 49:00 mins! I used to run 7 min pace for most of my runs in college but now that I'm relatively out of shape I usually run 7:45 or even slower on easy days. Continuing on the trail after my brief stop, I made the decision to treat the last two miles like a cool-down, especially because this section of the trail is very uneven. I've been known to take a few tumbles on the trail (and on sidewalks for that matter). I turned the corner after crossing the access road, and saw the 3.5 mile marker... well that made a lot more sense. That probably added another minute to my 7 mile time. I shrugged it off with a whatever, continued on my "cool-down" 2 miles.

Pete picked up some sushi and drinks while I was running, so we went across the street to the beach after my run. I jumped in the water to cool off, and then we ate dinner on the sand. The waves were actually nice for Virginia Beach (which is known for ankle-high waves most days) so we watched some old guys surfing, then it started raining a few drops and a rainbow appeared. It almost felt like we were in Maui again... or not. We stayed to watch the sun set and then went home.

I'm about to do my 5 mile recovery run, and then get ready to go to graduation at the school where I work.

Happy Summer!!

Thursday, June 16, 2011

I'm calling it a long run

Yesterday I had to run 13 miles, and for some reason my training plan calls this a medium-long run. I disagree.

I ran during lunch, at the hottest time of the day, but it was still cooler than last week's 11 miler. When I got back to school, anyone who saw me in the hallway was all "wow, is it hot out there?" and "you're all sweaty". Is that the best you can come up with? One of the teachers in my hallway asked me how far I ran. "Five miles?" he guessed. "No, thirteen." His jaw dropped to the floor. I don't get why that's such a big deal.

I am so happy school is almost over. People are getting on my nerves in a big way. Driving to work is obnoxious. The state of VA sells "vanity" plates at a very affordable price, and the trend is for basically everyone to get a personalized license plate. It's bad enough I have to sit in traffic, but then I am forced to read the license plate on the vehicle in front of me. Dear driver of the blue Ford Escape with the license plate "ESSKAPE", why? Clearly your frontal lobe is lacking something. And I'm pretty sure Jesus did not sacrifice Himself so that he might be part of your clever license plate message, "4HM4EVA".

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Rest Day and Tempo Run

Monday was a rest day, so Pete and I met some friends for Mexican in VB. We sat outside, because it was so nice. Compared to last week, it feels amazing outside. Very low humidity, nice breeze, high 70s. I was only going to have one maragarita, but since it was our day off I went for another. The food was reeeally good too. I ordered the enchiladas, which are my current fave.

Tuesday's workout was a 4-mile tempo at 15k to half-marathon pace. I drove to the same park from Sunday with a 1.5 mile loop. After a 2 mile warm-up, I got some water and used the disgusting port-a-potty. I wanted to go in the woods but I didn't have the nerve to do it with so many poeple around. Ugh that bathroom is so nasty.

The tempo went well. I aimed for 6:40 pace and ended up averaging 6:38's, for a total time 26:33.49. The actual time was 27:06, but I had to subtract the time it took me to run the 50 meters between the "end" and "beginning" of each loop. Splits from my watch (so I can clear it for my run today):

9:54.04 (1.5 miles)
16.78 (between "end" and "beginning") 10:10.82 total
10:03.73 (1.5 miles) 20:14.55 total
16.31 (between) 20:30.86 total
6:35.72 (last mile) 27:06.58 end time
subtract 33.09 seconds
total time: 26:33.49

I am probably going to run during lunch today (since we actually get a full hour and a half for lunch on half days). I might be a little over since I am supposed to run 13 miles today. Two more school days left, and both are half days. Summer cannot get here soon enough!

Monday, June 13, 2011

Gettin' Paper

Track season is finally over!! One more week of school, and then summer break begins. I just found out that our school district has a surplus for the year and they are giving all teachers a 2.5% bonus this summer. That will go to good use, either for our house or for our vacation in Lake Placid.
Training has been going well, although the heat has been a serious factor. We lucked out yesterday because we slept in and didn't start out run until almost 9am. The plan was to run 4 miles, then 6 miles at marathon pace, and then finish with 4 more miles to make 14 total. We drove to a nearby park with a 1.5 mile loop, and decided to modify the workout so that we did 4 x 1.5 miles at marathon pace, with a short jog/water break in between. Times for the repeats were:

10:56 (7:20 at mile)
10:44 (7:00 at mile)
10:23 (6:45 at mile)
9:52 (6:40 at mile)

I got a little carried away on the last one because I wanted to run under 10:00, but I didn't feel like I was running an all-out interval. I didn't feel lactic acid at any point in my workout either. I was pretty pleased with the workout and it wasn't nearly as difficult as I thought it would be.
We spent the afternoon at the beach, which was sooo relaxing. When we got home last night we hung out with our neighbors for a little bit and made dinner. It was a great day, and made up for Saturday.
(*I had to take a Praxis test, then drive straight to Richmond for a track meet. The lightning started after the first event, then we all waited around for three hours before they had to cancel the whole meet. I was pissed but didn't want to let my athletes know. I had really been looking forward to this meet because it's one of the few in VA with a girls steeplechase, and now we have to wait until next year. Plus, Pete got a speeding ticket in some crappy town between here and Richmond. The officer had really bad teeth.)


Week Two:
Monday: rest
Tuesday: 8 miles with 10x100m strides (9 total)
Wednesday: 11 miles
Thursday: 5 miles recovery run
Friday: rest
Saturday: 5 miles
Sunday: 14 miles with 6 miles at marathon pace
total: 44 miles

Saturday, June 11, 2011

Life "Lines"

Alright, so when we run competitively there are always lines involved. They mark the lanes on a track, the start and ends of reps, every single block of the side walk, and of course, the start and ends of races. We cross them in the beginning of runs with early ambition. We may not feel great when we cross the start line, but we know how that compares to how we feel when we're nearing the finish line but not quite there.

Runners are accustomed to this scenario and can apply our practice to our work life. That doesn't make us superheros by any stretch of the mind, but we do know how perseverance benefits the performance and pays off.

Currently, Mollie and I are both at a place in our work lives where we are nearing the finish lines of the "season". We both just finished the spring season coaching our outdoor track teams (a long season might I add). Next in the sights of our "work seasons" are two things. Mollie's teaching wraps up in a week and my summer classes wrap up in 2 weeks. This finish line brings us to the much needed rest and recovery of a month of summer. August begins it all again with coaching our cross country teams, the beginning of teaching the 2011-2012 school year and some college courses thrown on top.

Everyone that shares wild professional schedules can appreciate what I'm about to state:
Please take your ventures one "rep" at a time. Please look to the next line ahead, pull yourself forward, do it well, and persevere with a result you can be pleased with. But for the love, reward yourself with some rest and recovery. If you don't, burnout is inevitable. Find your balance mentioned in an earlier post, but remember, there will be moments of having to push hard. Look ahead to the line, the proverbial "pool and beverage of choice" of recovery is just beyond!

Here is my finest example of what I'm speaking of-
In Boston, I had a boss at a yoga and wellness studio that I worked at as a personal trainer. He owned and operated the studio as a yoga instructor and a personal trainer. He charged $120 for an hour session and was completely booked for the next 2 years out for training sessions. The man trained and instructed 10 hours a day, 6-7 days a week for 2 months straight at a time.

This is how he managed to balance and stay sane:
He would work 530 hours in two months, but then he would take a 2 week vacation to Belize, India or just somewhere relaxing in the US. No work, no calls from clients, just him and his wife for two weeks. He did it all the time. The guy was amazing and his clientele was unwavering. I believe this was simply because he practiced working through the lines, and recovered after each 2 month "rep".

We may not be going to Belize, but you better believe I know how to refresh! Work through the lines people, then kick back and enjoy.

Friday, June 10, 2011

Yes, it's hot!

Heat waves shimmering
one or two inches
above the dead grass.
(a poem by Matsuo Basho)


So hot I cannot breathe
I pause and it only gets worse
Pick it up
I have to stop
I can see the traffic lights ahead
There is a bug on my shoulder
Smack! I got it
A fly on my knee
Too late, he already got me
Twenty minutes more
My leg itches
I have to walk
No!
Stare at the pavement and
I'm going to make it
I think.
(my actual thoughts)

Wednesday's run was not good. 11 miles and in the mid-90s when I left my house at 6:30 pm. I was sweating before I even left. By the halfway point I was feeling ok so I picked it up a little, but 10 minutes later I was toast. I really wanted to walk soooo badly but I made it home with a verrrry slow jog.

Thursday was a 5 mile recovery run, and it was just as hot as the day before. Felt bad at first, but overall I think we achieved the goal of "recovery". I am pretty exhausted, but thankful that school will be over in a week.

Pete and I are looking forward to this weekend. We have one last post-season track meet on Saturday, and then finally track season is over! We're also planning to go to the beach this Sunday. And maybe hitting up a few margaritas.

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Time

Don't let the fear of the time it will take to accomplish something stand in the way of your doing it. The time will pass anyway; we might just as well put that passing time to the best possible use.
~Earl Nightingale

I put off actually training for a marathon for one reason. It's not the pain, or the hunger, or the actual race that I dread.

It's staying on a strict training schedule. It's the actual amount of time that one has to devote to this goal some 18 weeks in the future. No thank you.

My self-discipline with regard to training has always been below average. When left to my own devices I always find an excuse to skip a workout. After college, I didn't feel like running for awhile. When I got the urge to run, I would, but otherwise I didn't give it much thought. My friend asked me to train for a marathon with her in grad school (turns out 3 days a week is not proper marathon training) and I hated it. I hated spending three or more hours on a saturday running. That memory has unfortunately stuck with me and discouraged me from catching that elusive marathon bug. Fine with me.

I've been running some local races this year, and I've been first or second in the 5ks and 10ks. I'm amazed at how I've been able to get by on residual fitness in the shorter races, although the longer races are more of a struggle. I mentioned before that I may be a bit lazy, right? Well I also hate losing. So, along the way I decided to maybe train for a marathon-- not some crazy 100 mile per week training plan, but something workable. Why? Because I miss the feeling of being in really good shape and being able to beat everyone.

I read an article in the May 2011 edition of Runner's World that compared being in good running shape to a secret superpower that no one really cares about.

(excerpt, link below)

FADE IN

DEEP WOODS—DAYTIME
A LOVELY YOUNG WOMAN lies on the ground, a snakebite on her thigh. A DOCTOR cradles her head, as she bravely fights for life.

DOCTOR
She only has two hours to live, and the only antidote is five miles away! We have no transportation and no way to communicate! She's doomed unless...someone here can run 10 miles in 90 minutes or less!

THE FOOTBALL STAR, THE CLASS PRESIDENT, and THE HANDSOME MUSICIAN look down helplessly.

PETER steps forward. He peels off his jacket, revealing a running singlet.

PETER
I'll be right back.



So it may seem like a pointless endeavor at times, but at least you're using your time wisely. I don't know how anyone else feels, but I get a lot more satisfaction from spending those 60 minutes working out, rather than watching The Bachelorette.

(*to be fair, our new cable hasn't been hooked up and I didn't really want to go back to our apartment just to watch whatever crap is on our DVR anyway)

Week two started off with 8 miles, and 10x100m strides. Pete and I did part of our run with Bella, and she did the strides with me too. Number 8 of 10 was really fast because she was trying to catch a fox that crossed the street in front of our house.

http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-243-297-519-13920-0,00.html

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

Discomfort... get over it!

So following up some of the thoughts Mollie posted about the appetite.

I had almost forgotten how long runs bring weird stomach pains. That lovely, easy to identify feeling comes after the workout. Your stomach feels uneasy. For me it's not like I'm going to barf. It's more like a subtle, nagging uneasiness.

That uneasiness doesn't prevent me from eating food though... I eat a lot when I train. I don't eat stupid, but I eat those big plates of food they bring out at restaurants. I need the calories and I still lose weight. Eating after my runs isn't fun at first, but quickly my body goes, "yeah you're right, we need this.... let's do this." So the food intake isn't the problem.
The biggest problem with the stomach discomfort after long runs at night is when I'm laying in bed just a few hours after the workout. You find yourself laying there in the dark saying, "dude, this sucks". You turn to the left, right and roll over to no avail. It's just letting you know it's going to be around for a while, whether you like it or not.

The bottom line is a common theme in training- the "get over it!" theme. Training is going to have a number of physical discomforts among other hurdles. I see it as character building. Disclaimer- This may be the biggest reason why people think competitive runners and other competitive endurance athletes are insane! Seriously, to run for hours straight, push so hard you feel awful for about 85% of that time and then say, "It's character building"- I even think I have a problem.

The positive side to it all is that there are and will be many many more feelings of happiness and accomplishment throughout the training and performance experiences. They will be etched in your memory and the push you made through the tough times is going to to make those positive experiences that much more appreciable and memorable.

We may allow the subtle residual stomach pains from long runs fade to the back of our memory, but those wins, PRs and short-/long-term goal accomplishments are sweet baby! They won't be easily forgotten.

Monday, June 6, 2011

Long Run/ Recap of Week One

"If the furnace is hot enough, it will burn anything."
- John Parker, Once a Runner

Yesterday our long run of 13 miles went well, but we didn't finish until almost 9pm. I felt pretty nauseous through the whole thing but the rest of me felt great so I just sucked it up. We had planned to eat Mexican after our run, but I knew there was noooo way that was going to happen. Gag.

I try to eat healthy foods 90% of the time, but for some reason I settled on eating Wendy's after our run. Chicken sandwich (which I forced down) and a frosty (which was all I really wanted at the time, but knew I had to eat the "real food" first). I feel like whenever I increase my training workload, my appetite takes a while to catch up. In another week or two, I'm sure it will be totally different (like, I'll be ravenous 24-7). I have to go to the grocery store after work today because our fridge is bare and we haven't moved any of our pantry supplies over from the apartment yet.

Week One:
Monday: off
Tuesday: 8 miles (4 at lactate threshold)
Wednesday: 11 miles medium-long run
Thursday: 8 miles general aerobic
Friday: off
Saturday: 5 miles recovery run
Sunday: 13 miles long run
total: 45 miles

Sunday, June 5, 2011

Firsts

First week of marathon training and first weekend at our new house! Yesterday we ran five miles with our brother-in-law Brandon(and a little at the end with my 7 months pregnant sister), then spent the rest of the day tanning our pasty selves at the beach. Yesterday was perfect weather, low humidity, sunny, 80 degrees. Today we opted to eat brunch with Steph and Brandon and wait til this evening for our long run. Well, actually I would have preferred to get it over with before brunch but I was out-voted. It was raining and I guess some of us didn't want to run in the rain.

*clears throat* Ahem.

Friday, June 3, 2011

Good Company

Well the saying, "You are who you hang out with" holds good value.
To be an athlete, especially a competitive athlete, you need to be aware of this. Your company is influential in more ways than you ever could imagine.
Think of your room mates, your closest friends, your team mates, your family, your class mates, and your coworkers. Think of how often you revolve your actions around these people. You eat with them, you play and relax with them, you philosophize with them, and you even develop your sleep habits around them.
So who are these people? How do they help you? How do you help them? Are they helping or hurting your cause and your short and long term goals?
Always great questions to ask yourself, especially for those training and who have specific goals set for themselves.
It's not selfish to make these evaluations and act on them. It's not "Un-Christian-like". It simply holds true that you are positively and/or negatively affected by your company in some way. And with personal goals, come standards that you have to set for yourself.

This weekend, I will be blessed with the opportunity to see my sister and brother in-law as they are making the trip down from NY to hang. They are both road race runners and Brandon participates in triathlons as well. We've all made it a point to spend time with each other despite the large distance of interstate and numerous state lines between us. Biggest reason- they are family. But to keep on topic- they are such positive company. We've all made it a point to go on runs together, enter and run races together all over the east coast, lend ideas to each other considering lifestyle and health, and even just lay around the beach and pool. Seriously, just good people.

Today is a day off from training and tomorrow will begin it again, but mark my words- I will be in the waves at the beach tomorrow! Have a good one people, hope your company is great.

Thursday, June 2, 2011

Night running

Sunshine is delicious,

Rain is refreshing,

Wind braces us up,

Snow is exhilarating,
There's really no such thing as bad weather,
Only different kinds of good weather.

-John Ruskin

I do not advocate night running for obvious safety reasons, but we had no choice today. It was really hot and humid again, and we had a lot of work to do on the house so we didn't even start our 8 miler until 8:45. For some reason running in the dark makes me feel like I'm running super fast. I think all of my track PRs occurred in the dark (well, under the lights of course) so maybe it's not an illusion and I just run faster because I'm scared of the dark.
Tomorrow I am taking the day off from running. Our training plan calls for a 9 mile run, but Pete and I need to get our house ready for guests this weekend, and I'm going to be at a track meet for most of the day. We ran a little longer today to make up for it, but there's nothing wrong with skipping a day when you need to.

Balance People, Balance

I know it has been thought and perhaps even said aloud within certain company, but here it goes. People who exercise a lot (and by a lot I mean at least an hour + a day throughout the week) can be weird. Don't let this offend you, because I know how to fix this.
Here's the thing, if you are obsessed with workouts (RUNNERS!) you've got to chill out a bit, or at least know the art of balance. Balance means taking important aspects in life and giving them all equal opportunity. If you are OK with allowing most of your time and life to be devoted to workouts, well... "Houston, we've got a problem".
I've trained personally, observed my wife's training habits on a professional running level and trained "regular" adults as their hired personal trainer. All of us succeeded in not becoming the recluses of training. The object is to enjoy your training, seek the challenge and succeed, but seriously, leave the training there in that hour or two and move on with other important parts of your life when you complete the daily task.
I've worked with 2 different types of people. The reluctant and the obsessed. The reluctant people are unable or don't want to devote a full hour session a day to a workout, so they figure, "What's the point if I can't spend enough time working out each day to make a difference?". That's fine you feel that way. But now balance it out. No time for a 1 hour session? Make room for two 30 minute sessions a day. Maybe 3 days of two 30 min. sessions and 2 days of one 1 hr. sessions. It works, and it's the alternative to being fat and disappointed in yourself. Trust me, you won't "figure it out later".
The obsessed only want to train. They focus on it all day and then when they finish, it's about the next day and the next... They don't find time to relax, they make time with others miserable for the others! People, we love that you are a die hard worker. We're proud of you and sometimes amazed at your ability, but it's about working it out and balancing your life.
Make the choice to value your health over laziness and disease and strive to push yourself to experience accomplishments. But here's the kicker, make it a point to balance this with other important parts of your life. Don't turn it into an obsession that impedes on other important aspects of your life (like people and relaxation). That's how it works best. Balance people.

Day 2- Went outside after my morning class in 95+ degree F to run 11 miles. I was extremely optimistic, hydrated and driven. I approached mile 6 and felt like I was going to fall out. Here's the balance application:
I wished the 11 was done in one session, but it wasn't possible. I could have rested for 20 minutes, gone back out and tackled more, but I've got other things I need to do in the day. So I had to break it up. I called the workout, showered, went to my new house and took care of some projects in the AC. I even drank a beer while I worked. The follow up run came later. It's all getting done, just not quite as I originally projected. Between me and the support of my wife, I'll stay accountable in training, but there are other necessities that I need to accomplish. And I will gladly find a way to make it all happen.

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

National Running Day

June 1st is National Running Day... so if you haven't gone for your run yet, you still have a few hours left!

Today's workout was 11 miles. The first 6 or 7 were fine, but the last 30 minutes were awful. It was so hot, and all I kept thinking about was water, water, water. A bug flew down my throat in the last two minutes. But it's over, and I feel pretty good now.

So just to recap: alarm went off at 5:20 (although I hit the snooze and didn't get up until 6), drove 30 minutes to work, taught three classes of hyper 9th graders, left work at 2:45 because I cancelled practice today, drove home and got Bella, put together an end table and 2 chairs from Ikea and helped Pete install the Pergo floors, ran 11 miles, and now finally, we're back home waiting for the pizza! Yum!

Thank goodness school is almost out.

Officially Registered

We are registered for the marathon! I almost panicked. Clicked on the link to go register and it said the race was full! So I write an email to the race director pleading for an entry, click send before checking what the webpage said... then I look a little closer.... ooooh. It says October 10, 2010. Yeah that was last year.

Everything's ok now, we're in, and I sent another email to the race director to apologize. Maybe I gave him a good story to tell to his friends today. Anyway, I learned my lesson, to always check for the date and time before wigging out.

The Great Outdoors

What a way to begin the first day of training- heat index at 100 degrees F. Most would take it to the treadmill right? That would be the smart, safe, no-brainer option wouldn't it? Well let me describe to you this experience and let you decide...
The treadmill experience:
It all went down at my local university that I am attending to earn my VA state teaching license. I exit class and go straight to the locker room to change into my newer USATF running shorts that my wife bought me at this year's Penn Relays. My head is in a great place and I'm psyched on getting to begin my training with a solid workout.
REWIND- I had just been previously explaining to a classmate as I exited my class on the way to the locker room that I didn't run with headphones on. I told him about how I have adopted that habit for safety reasons and that I don't need to have music in my ears to keep me occupied and entertained during a run. I explained to him how I like to use my own thoughts and observe the environment around me for entertainment during my runs.
NOW- Dressed out, I'm walking from the locker room to the treadmills of the university's gym. It's May session and the gym is practically empty. It feels like the university is saving on energy costs as the facility's AC feels like it's at a stale 80 degrees F. I step on the treadmill and begin the run, starting with 2 miles at an easy warmup pace. I immediately notice my pace feels fast compared to the pace indicated on the treadmill. I figure maybe I'm just going to take a few miles to break in. After 2 miles I pick up the pace into my 4 miles of tempo. Again the treadmill indicates I'm slow as ever, but I know what condition I'm currently in and what paces I currently run and this digital pace is not anywhere close. Now discouragement and confusion are in my mind. "Is the calibration on the treadmill off?" "Am I just having a terrible day?" "And why is the Roger Federer tennis match close captioned on the tv in front of me? Can't I just watch the match and enjoy that without half the screen covered with CC text?"
I look out the enormous 2 story windows beyond the televisions and quickly realize, it's not me, it's the environment. The treadmill sucks and the room sucks. I need to step into the great outdoors. Impulsive as I am, I barely took the time to power down the treadmill before I ran down the stairs, out the security gates and front doors of the recreation center building and straight into the last 3 miles of my run. It was hot, and the sun was bright with not a single cloud in the sky, but with the improvement in my attitude and a little extra vitamin D added (thank you sunshine) I felt great and ended the workout with such a great feeling. P.S.- nailed my pace once I was outdoors.
"Endorphin city" kicked in after that and now I'm ready to enter the next workout (11 miler) with a positive attitude. And you better believe I'm running outside.

Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Day One

"We run, not because we think it is doing us good, but because we enjoy it and cannot help ourselves...The more restricted our society and work become, the more necessary it will be to find some outlet for this craving for freedom. No one can say, 'You must not run faster than this, or jump higher than that.' The human spirit is indomitable."
-Sir Roger Bannister, first runner to run a sub-4 minute mile

Running is definitely an outlet. Stress is an occupational hazard for all of us, but being a teacher is especially tough at certain times of the year. Like right now.

Pete and I started our marathon training today. Technically I started yesterday, because I wanted to get it out of the way and he is running his workout literally right now.

The workout is 8 miles total, 4 of which are supposed to be at 15k to half marathon race pace. I ran mine yesterday in a little under 25 minutes, but I think the course was short. It felt too easy for 6:15 pace, especially in the heat.

We are loosely following a plan from Peter Pfitzinger's "Advanced Marathoning" which I downloaded to my Kindle. It's supposed to be 18 weeks but I decided to make it 19 weeks to allow for a week of slacking when we are on our anniversary trip in June.