Haha, last post was two weeks before the half marathon, that now is over a month passed!
So to summarize, the half was a great day for me. The weather was ideal and the course was everything that I'd heard it would be - flat, fast and exciting. I finished more than 11 minutes faster than my last half marathon, in 2:25. That's still 5 minutes slower than my first one, but I'm not complaining. I've come a long way and despite those couple weeks of lower morale during training, it was a great experience.
So the night before the race (during an incredible dinner at Cuba Libre in Old City) the words 'marathon next year' graced my lips. And now I'm spending time checking out when and where marathons are. There's the obvious ones - New York, Chicago, Philly, Disney, MCM, Steamtown, Lehigh Valley. And then there are the ones I never knew about or hadn't thought much of before - Rehoboth, Wineglass (in the Finger Lakes!), Outer Banks, Richmond. So what do I use to choose one - date, location, terrain, size. My initial thinking is late spring or mid- to late fall. And I think it would be helpful to be close enough to be able to drive to the race. It's tough doing a big race and having to stay overnight in a hotel, so I can only imagine the extra stress of flying.
But then there's the perspective of doing this marathon as a once-in-a-lifetime thing and using it to go somewhere different, and if I have to fly then use vacation time to make it a real trip. So then I'm looking at races in Europe and California. But oooohhh, I don't know. I love that concept, but don't think my bank account will go that far. So that just means that I'll do one next year as a practice and then when I marry a rich man I'll do the dream mary.
Now as I'm doing all this deep thinking and web searches, I'm challenging myself and getting my butt into gear at boot camp. Three days a week I do 45 minutes of hardcore plyometrics, cardio, abs and strength training. We've been doing at least 50 pushups each session! I have time now and it's a lot like having a trainer, without the price. I'm enjoying it, feel a lot stronger and after only one week of my four week plan, I hopped on board for the next session of three weeks. Over the 7 weeks I'm hoping to lose a few pounds and get faster. I'm doing three or four races in the next month so they'll be a good test. I've been getting out for about 10 miles each week and went to spin class twice last week.
Final thought - there's this tiny voice in my mind gnawing away at this notion of doing a marathon next year. It reminds me of all the time, focus and RUNNING involved just in training. I'm really trying not to let it get to me, but it's there. When I make my decision, I'm definitely looking into a training plan that is better than Runners World Smart Coach - that's a great plan, but I'm going to need to step up and the training plan needs to be the best.
Monday, November 9, 2009
Monday, September 7, 2009
The Juggling Act
13 days until PDR! I'm feeling great about the race and am really looking forward to it. Can't wait to grab a beer afterward and am glad that I discovered that Sam Adams Oktoberfest is out again!
Week 10 was a challenging week for my schedule but I made it work. My normal run days are Tuesday, Thursday, Friday (or Saturday), and Sunday. This week's schedule was for Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday (3-3-8-3-10). The Allentown Fair started on Tuesday and because of work, I had an event to attend on Tuesday and I had tickets to see Kelly Clarkson on Thursday. (The concert was Skylar and Jade's first!) So the schedule I devised was 4-5-8-10, Monday, Wednesday, Saturday, Monday (Labor Day!) The caveat is that this now impacts week 11's schedule (4-3-7-3-11) and I have a seminar in Philly Wednesday evening so I'm going to see how this all fits together. With 11 on schedule for Sunday, I definitely need to do the Thursday tempo run on Thursday because I may do 11 on Saturday because of Brenda and Kevin's wedding on Saturday (open bar, lots of food...). I guess since I'm going by myself it won't be too hard to limit myself, but you never know.
Running four (or running any miles) on Monday was tough. I had just come off of a 10-mile run on Sunday and my legs were still sore. The run went ok with the hills being pretty easy.
Wednesday I decided to do 5 which also went pretty good. Both Monday and Wednesday runs I did along the Rose Garden Parkway and through the West End.
I gave myself Thursday and Friday off which made Saturday's speed workout that much better. The rest was well worth it. On Saturday I went to the gym to do the speed intervals so I could manage the pace and I felt like it was one of my best speed workouts. It was eight miles total - one mile warmup at 11 min/mile, two miles at 10 min/mile, two miles at 9:45 min/mile, 1/2 mile breaks between intervals, and finished with a mile at 10:50 min/mile. I did feel really tight afterward so stretching was not pleasant.
Today's 11-mile long run (I was an overachiever) went pretty well - not my best long run but definitely not my worst. I ran over to the Parkway, then back to Hamilton, through the Rose Garden Parkway and then past Muhlenberg. I discovered some new energy chews that I really liked - tasted like Gummi Bears! They were from Power Bar. I'll have to decide between them, Gu Chomps, and the old standby Luna Moons on what to take along for the race. Can't wait to leave the fuel belt at home - so annoying to wear but I need to rehydrate. Went to three bottles this week (2 water, 1 Clif electrolyte drink) and one of the bottles kept popping out.
The concert on Thursday was so fun. The girls had a great time which was what really mattered. I was impressed with her all-around show - the songs she did and the lead-ins between songs. Definitely liked the newer songs that I hadn't heard before - I'll be picking up a few on iTunes. Also found out that Logan's baptism is going to be on my birthday, adding another thing that I will be doing in these next six weekends of craziness! So that weekend will be Sarah/Andy wedding rehearsel/dinner Friday, Sarah/Andy Pennsylvania wedding and dinner Saturday, Logan baptism Sunday morning (I'll be a Godmother!) and then my 30th birthday dinner with family on Sunday night. So glad I'm now doing a golf tournament the following Friday - I'm going to need to play a round to relax a little bit before Sarah/Andy wedding 2 in New York!
All this weekend I made the rounds feeding cats! I had to stop by Carrie's for Capone on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Just Saturday and Sunday I had to run to Kutztown and feed Spunky at Mom and Dad's. Took my laundry along Sunday :)
Went to a rugby game on Saturday afternoon and the post-game social. It was pretty neat - got hot in the sun and I definitely got a little too much. Went with Julie because Jake was playing. Julie's mom and step-dad were there and they are always fun to talk to. The team was fun to hang out with afterward and the bar it was at was where my buddy from Starbucks works (because he apparently got fired from the 'Bucks). I've been making coffee at home much more often so I haven't been in there in nearly two weeks (!). The social was also funny because it was around 3:00pm on a Saturday, so it's kind of weird to be walking into a bar at that time of day. But it did make it easier to stay in and relax Saturday night. And I was able to watch a little college football :)
Fun time last night at a barbecue at my friends Rob and Megan. Hadn't seen them in a few months and tested out a Jello shot recipe that I was thinking about for Sarah's bachelorette party later this month. I've got sweet tea vodka so I figured it would go well with Lemon Jello. After telling a few people this, my friend Julie suggested I do half Lemon, half Strawberry so that it would be sweeter. The combo went over very well, just need to go a little ligher on the vodka because they were apparently a bit strong. I don't do Jello shots so I didn't taste these but trust what everyone said. Made a new friend there who is in a book club so I might be joining that group. I'm so bad with starting books, then putting them aside and starting a new one or just not reading for months at a time. I have stopped buying books! I'm using my library card or borrowing from friends. The barbecue was a fun time catching up with everyone, some who I hadn't seen since February or so.
So the juggling will continue this week, next week, and pretty much the next few weeks but it's all worth it and always fun.
Week 10 was a challenging week for my schedule but I made it work. My normal run days are Tuesday, Thursday, Friday (or Saturday), and Sunday. This week's schedule was for Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday (3-3-8-3-10). The Allentown Fair started on Tuesday and because of work, I had an event to attend on Tuesday and I had tickets to see Kelly Clarkson on Thursday. (The concert was Skylar and Jade's first!) So the schedule I devised was 4-5-8-10, Monday, Wednesday, Saturday, Monday (Labor Day!) The caveat is that this now impacts week 11's schedule (4-3-7-3-11) and I have a seminar in Philly Wednesday evening so I'm going to see how this all fits together. With 11 on schedule for Sunday, I definitely need to do the Thursday tempo run on Thursday because I may do 11 on Saturday because of Brenda and Kevin's wedding on Saturday (open bar, lots of food...). I guess since I'm going by myself it won't be too hard to limit myself, but you never know.
Running four (or running any miles) on Monday was tough. I had just come off of a 10-mile run on Sunday and my legs were still sore. The run went ok with the hills being pretty easy.
Wednesday I decided to do 5 which also went pretty good. Both Monday and Wednesday runs I did along the Rose Garden Parkway and through the West End.
I gave myself Thursday and Friday off which made Saturday's speed workout that much better. The rest was well worth it. On Saturday I went to the gym to do the speed intervals so I could manage the pace and I felt like it was one of my best speed workouts. It was eight miles total - one mile warmup at 11 min/mile, two miles at 10 min/mile, two miles at 9:45 min/mile, 1/2 mile breaks between intervals, and finished with a mile at 10:50 min/mile. I did feel really tight afterward so stretching was not pleasant.
Today's 11-mile long run (I was an overachiever) went pretty well - not my best long run but definitely not my worst. I ran over to the Parkway, then back to Hamilton, through the Rose Garden Parkway and then past Muhlenberg. I discovered some new energy chews that I really liked - tasted like Gummi Bears! They were from Power Bar. I'll have to decide between them, Gu Chomps, and the old standby Luna Moons on what to take along for the race. Can't wait to leave the fuel belt at home - so annoying to wear but I need to rehydrate. Went to three bottles this week (2 water, 1 Clif electrolyte drink) and one of the bottles kept popping out.
The concert on Thursday was so fun. The girls had a great time which was what really mattered. I was impressed with her all-around show - the songs she did and the lead-ins between songs. Definitely liked the newer songs that I hadn't heard before - I'll be picking up a few on iTunes. Also found out that Logan's baptism is going to be on my birthday, adding another thing that I will be doing in these next six weekends of craziness! So that weekend will be Sarah/Andy wedding rehearsel/dinner Friday, Sarah/Andy Pennsylvania wedding and dinner Saturday, Logan baptism Sunday morning (I'll be a Godmother!) and then my 30th birthday dinner with family on Sunday night. So glad I'm now doing a golf tournament the following Friday - I'm going to need to play a round to relax a little bit before Sarah/Andy wedding 2 in New York!
All this weekend I made the rounds feeding cats! I had to stop by Carrie's for Capone on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Just Saturday and Sunday I had to run to Kutztown and feed Spunky at Mom and Dad's. Took my laundry along Sunday :)
Went to a rugby game on Saturday afternoon and the post-game social. It was pretty neat - got hot in the sun and I definitely got a little too much. Went with Julie because Jake was playing. Julie's mom and step-dad were there and they are always fun to talk to. The team was fun to hang out with afterward and the bar it was at was where my buddy from Starbucks works (because he apparently got fired from the 'Bucks). I've been making coffee at home much more often so I haven't been in there in nearly two weeks (!). The social was also funny because it was around 3:00pm on a Saturday, so it's kind of weird to be walking into a bar at that time of day. But it did make it easier to stay in and relax Saturday night. And I was able to watch a little college football :)
Fun time last night at a barbecue at my friends Rob and Megan. Hadn't seen them in a few months and tested out a Jello shot recipe that I was thinking about for Sarah's bachelorette party later this month. I've got sweet tea vodka so I figured it would go well with Lemon Jello. After telling a few people this, my friend Julie suggested I do half Lemon, half Strawberry so that it would be sweeter. The combo went over very well, just need to go a little ligher on the vodka because they were apparently a bit strong. I don't do Jello shots so I didn't taste these but trust what everyone said. Made a new friend there who is in a book club so I might be joining that group. I'm so bad with starting books, then putting them aside and starting a new one or just not reading for months at a time. I have stopped buying books! I'm using my library card or borrowing from friends. The barbecue was a fun time catching up with everyone, some who I hadn't seen since February or so.
So the juggling will continue this week, next week, and pretty much the next few weeks but it's all worth it and always fun.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Definitely out of the ordinary to post twice in less than a week (or less than a month with my consistency) but felt like going online and doing a new post tonight.
I'm in the midst of Week 10 and when I first looked at the week's training plan I was surprised. Let me begin with a recap of the long run that capped off week 9 - I ran 10 at at nice pace. It was a tougher run than the 9 two weeks prior but I finished strong. It was the perfect way to wrap up a week that took a lot of determination to do. So, week 10's training takes me to a 5-day a week schedule rather than 4 like it's been so that was my big shock. Because of the Allentown Fair, I have/had to adjust it into the normal 4-day training. So the schedule should be - 3-3-8-3-10, instead it's shaping up to be 4-5-8-10. So far I've done the 4-mile and 5-mile runs (Monday and today) and they went well. Today's was better, Monday was tough because I had done 10 the day before and 3 on Saturday so between Saturday, Sunday and Monday I'd run 17 miles - not all that smart...
So today is Wednesday and I'm giving myself tomorrow and Friday off, then picking up on Saturday morning with a speed workout of 8 miles. Since Monday is Labor Day I'm pushing my long run to then, giving me Sunday off. Not really set in stone any plans for the weekend but should be able to hang out somewhere Saturday night and then I got a picnic invite for Sunday which would be worth stopping by.
Very excited for Kelly Clarkson tomorrow night - I think it's Jade and Sklyar's first concert so I really hope they enjoy it. Not much more to muse about so maybe this could have waited till the end of the week but oh well, I'm in a typing mood.
I'm in the midst of Week 10 and when I first looked at the week's training plan I was surprised. Let me begin with a recap of the long run that capped off week 9 - I ran 10 at at nice pace. It was a tougher run than the 9 two weeks prior but I finished strong. It was the perfect way to wrap up a week that took a lot of determination to do. So, week 10's training takes me to a 5-day a week schedule rather than 4 like it's been so that was my big shock. Because of the Allentown Fair, I have/had to adjust it into the normal 4-day training. So the schedule should be - 3-3-8-3-10, instead it's shaping up to be 4-5-8-10. So far I've done the 4-mile and 5-mile runs (Monday and today) and they went well. Today's was better, Monday was tough because I had done 10 the day before and 3 on Saturday so between Saturday, Sunday and Monday I'd run 17 miles - not all that smart...
So today is Wednesday and I'm giving myself tomorrow and Friday off, then picking up on Saturday morning with a speed workout of 8 miles. Since Monday is Labor Day I'm pushing my long run to then, giving me Sunday off. Not really set in stone any plans for the weekend but should be able to hang out somewhere Saturday night and then I got a picnic invite for Sunday which would be worth stopping by.
Very excited for Kelly Clarkson tomorrow night - I think it's Jade and Sklyar's first concert so I really hope they enjoy it. Not much more to muse about so maybe this could have waited till the end of the week but oh well, I'm in a typing mood.
Friday, August 28, 2009
Successes and other disasters
A month since the last posting - it's been a month of ups and downs. Good weeks and bad weeks. It's a little more than three weeks from race day so no excuses - I CANNOT slack off. I say that knowing entirely well that I've missed a 4-mile easy run today, but also knowing that I'll do it tomorrow. My plans for tonight were to play golf, until 5:30 when I find out that the rain has made the organizers of the tournament reschedule.
So, the running run-down.
Week 5 - 4-6-3-8
Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday (Friday) runs went well. I was on vacation that week and enjoyed being able to do the runs at any time of day and really didn't do much else on Tuesday and Thursday. Friday I spent the day in NYC, fell down some stairs at Paragon Sporting Goods (ironic, especially because I was going downstairs with the intent to look at the Sports Medicine department...) so Saturday's run was a little weird because of a big bruise on my right hip. Now the long run DID NOT HAPPEN. I made the terrible mistake of going out Saturday night to catch up with Niki after her vacation in Alaska and what was intended to be a nice catchup session at Union Jacks turned into 3 beers there, 2-3 beers down the road at the Tiki Bar and then another couple at the Flying Dog. SOOO bad... Sooo much fun!! But after that I resolved that I couldn't do that anymore.
Total for week - 13
Week 6 - 3-7-3-9
Got new test shoes from RW on Tuesday and they were AWFUL for me - I ran 4 in them (not realizing at the time that I only needed to do 3), then went back to the Mizunos but had stomach issues on Thurdsay and Friday, but was an overachiever and did 2 on Wednesday. Sunday I did 8 because I needed to and they were the WORST 8 miles I've ever made myself do. It was rainy so it was super-muggy and I just was not in the mood, even though I was out there.
Total for week - 19
Week 7 - 5 -6-4-9
Tuesday I missed 2 miles, I did Friday's run on Wednesday, but only 2 miles of it, I did the tempo run on Saturday, only 5 but made them hard and then Sunday I had the best long run in weeks, it was 70/75 degrees and nearly 100% humidity but those 9 miles went great. I did the parkway and will definitely do that again soon.
Total for week - 19
Week 8 - 5-4-4-5
Cutback week!! Didn't really push the mileage this week - I did my Tuesday 5, and went away to the beach Thursday to Sunday so Thursday, Friday and Sunday runs were pointless. I put in 2 on Friday but it was too hot and humid at 8am that I was done.
Total for week - 7
Week 9 - 4-7-4-10
BACK ON TRACK - this week's training is going well, just need to make up for not running tonight tomorrow morning, piece of cake. Definitely feeling good for Sunday's long run because the temperature finally broke and we've lost the humidity. The high is going to be in the 70s so at 7am it will be perfect. My notes for last night's tempo run have 'KICK ASS' in all caps - I really felt awesome with that run. I was kinda 'meh' about it, got through the first mile and a 1/2 and was in the mindset of maybe going to 2 miles then doing the rest on the elliptical, but then I fell into a groove. Not sure if it was willpower, perseverence or bitterness/disgust at seeing Vick in an EAgles uniform (the gym had the preseason game on) but damn was that a great run. I did an extra 1/2 mile at tempo pace, and kicked up the pace even more the last quarter mile.
So what have I learned? I NEED to focus on the training now - it's game time. I'm done making excuses - it's the end of the line.
My next 6-7 weeks are daunting. I'm glad to have a 'calm' weekend this weekend and NOTHING next weekend. I have two weddings (three if you count one of them taking place twice in two states, which I'm in), a half marathon and a bachelorette party. Plus my 30th bday is sandwiched in the middle of all of that and really isn't going to get to be anything special because I'll be so busy with weddings. I'm going to have fun with it all, but I'm kind of bummed that I don't have a really special celebration.
So, the running run-down.
Week 5 - 4-6-3-8
Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday (Friday) runs went well. I was on vacation that week and enjoyed being able to do the runs at any time of day and really didn't do much else on Tuesday and Thursday. Friday I spent the day in NYC, fell down some stairs at Paragon Sporting Goods (ironic, especially because I was going downstairs with the intent to look at the Sports Medicine department...) so Saturday's run was a little weird because of a big bruise on my right hip. Now the long run DID NOT HAPPEN. I made the terrible mistake of going out Saturday night to catch up with Niki after her vacation in Alaska and what was intended to be a nice catchup session at Union Jacks turned into 3 beers there, 2-3 beers down the road at the Tiki Bar and then another couple at the Flying Dog. SOOO bad... Sooo much fun!! But after that I resolved that I couldn't do that anymore.
Total for week - 13
Week 6 - 3-7-3-9
Got new test shoes from RW on Tuesday and they were AWFUL for me - I ran 4 in them (not realizing at the time that I only needed to do 3), then went back to the Mizunos but had stomach issues on Thurdsay and Friday, but was an overachiever and did 2 on Wednesday. Sunday I did 8 because I needed to and they were the WORST 8 miles I've ever made myself do. It was rainy so it was super-muggy and I just was not in the mood, even though I was out there.
Total for week - 19
Week 7 - 5 -6-4-9
Tuesday I missed 2 miles, I did Friday's run on Wednesday, but only 2 miles of it, I did the tempo run on Saturday, only 5 but made them hard and then Sunday I had the best long run in weeks, it was 70/75 degrees and nearly 100% humidity but those 9 miles went great. I did the parkway and will definitely do that again soon.
Total for week - 19
Week 8 - 5-4-4-5
Cutback week!! Didn't really push the mileage this week - I did my Tuesday 5, and went away to the beach Thursday to Sunday so Thursday, Friday and Sunday runs were pointless. I put in 2 on Friday but it was too hot and humid at 8am that I was done.
Total for week - 7
Week 9 - 4-7-4-10
BACK ON TRACK - this week's training is going well, just need to make up for not running tonight tomorrow morning, piece of cake. Definitely feeling good for Sunday's long run because the temperature finally broke and we've lost the humidity. The high is going to be in the 70s so at 7am it will be perfect. My notes for last night's tempo run have 'KICK ASS' in all caps - I really felt awesome with that run. I was kinda 'meh' about it, got through the first mile and a 1/2 and was in the mindset of maybe going to 2 miles then doing the rest on the elliptical, but then I fell into a groove. Not sure if it was willpower, perseverence or bitterness/disgust at seeing Vick in an EAgles uniform (the gym had the preseason game on) but damn was that a great run. I did an extra 1/2 mile at tempo pace, and kicked up the pace even more the last quarter mile.
So what have I learned? I NEED to focus on the training now - it's game time. I'm done making excuses - it's the end of the line.
My next 6-7 weeks are daunting. I'm glad to have a 'calm' weekend this weekend and NOTHING next weekend. I have two weddings (three if you count one of them taking place twice in two states, which I'm in), a half marathon and a bachelorette party. Plus my 30th bday is sandwiched in the middle of all of that and really isn't going to get to be anything special because I'll be so busy with weddings. I'm going to have fun with it all, but I'm kind of bummed that I don't have a really special celebration.
Monday, July 27, 2009
Legs of Steel...
I can't believe how quickly the weeks of training are going by and how well I've been doing. Today I'll finish my week 4 plan with a five-mile run that was on schedule for yesterday. I spend the weekend at the beach so I wasn't too concerned with fitting it in, especially since it was cut-back week and I'm on vacation this week so it's easy to fit it in today.
Week three went well - was two miles short of goal because of shuffling around the Thursday and Friday runs. I still felt that the week was good because I did my 8-mile long run.
Week 3 looked like:
Goal - 19
Tuesday - 3 Easy - Treadmill - Was very easy
Friday - 3 Tempo - Treadmill - Not great but still made it. The 3-miles of tempo pace run was supposed to be flanked by 1 mile easy which I bailed on. I did the elliptical but was not feeling it.
Saturday - 3 Easy - Treadmill - Considering that I'd run my 3-miles of tempo less than 24 hours before I felt great for this run. I even did spin class afterward which also felt great.
Sunday - 8 LONG - West End/Rose Garden - 6:40am! This run was rough at first but once I made it past 3 miles I fell into the groove of things.
Total - 17 miles
Pretty crazy to think that between Friday at 6pm and Sunday at 8 am I ran 14 miles, and did a spinning class... LEGS OF STEEL....
Week 4 is...
Goal - 15
Tuesday - 5 Easy - Treadmill - Was very easy
Thursday - 5 Easy - Treadmill - Another run that went by easy peasy
Did spin class Wednesday night which felt awesome.
My last 5 miles of the week will be today. Then week 5 will pick up tomorrow!
UPDATE: 7/28... 5 MILES on Monday went well
I'm soooooo glad to be on vacation this week and only really have tentative plans. Certain things are on my mind to do and there is a birthday party to go to but I'm really winging it this week. I think a trip to NYC on Friday is very likely but we'll see.
Week three went well - was two miles short of goal because of shuffling around the Thursday and Friday runs. I still felt that the week was good because I did my 8-mile long run.
Week 3 looked like:
Goal - 19
Tuesday - 3 Easy - Treadmill - Was very easy
Friday - 3 Tempo - Treadmill - Not great but still made it. The 3-miles of tempo pace run was supposed to be flanked by 1 mile easy which I bailed on. I did the elliptical but was not feeling it.
Saturday - 3 Easy - Treadmill - Considering that I'd run my 3-miles of tempo less than 24 hours before I felt great for this run. I even did spin class afterward which also felt great.
Sunday - 8 LONG - West End/Rose Garden - 6:40am! This run was rough at first but once I made it past 3 miles I fell into the groove of things.
Total - 17 miles
Pretty crazy to think that between Friday at 6pm and Sunday at 8 am I ran 14 miles, and did a spinning class... LEGS OF STEEL....
Week 4 is...
Goal - 15
Tuesday - 5 Easy - Treadmill - Was very easy
Thursday - 5 Easy - Treadmill - Another run that went by easy peasy
Did spin class Wednesday night which felt awesome.
My last 5 miles of the week will be today. Then week 5 will pick up tomorrow!
UPDATE: 7/28... 5 MILES on Monday went well
I'm soooooo glad to be on vacation this week and only really have tentative plans. Certain things are on my mind to do and there is a birthday party to go to but I'm really winging it this week. I think a trip to NYC on Friday is very likely but we'll see.
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
The First Three Miles are Definitely the Hardest
Lots of stuff going on in my mind this week. I survived week two of training with every run on its scheduled day! I started keeping a log to note the day, distance, where I ran (treadmill, trail, route) and how it felt for me.
Week Two looked like:
Tuesday - 3 Easy - Treadmill - Felt Good
Thursday - 5 Speed - Treadmill - Felt challenged, but finished strong - pace was 10 min/mi at speed pace (2 x 1 mile), 10:50 min/mi at middle (2 x 1/2 mile), 11:19 min/mi beginning/end (1 mile each)
Friday - 3 Easy - Treadmill - Good run
Sunday - 7 Long - West End/Rose Garden - A few rough spots, some light hills, finished strong
What was consistent in all of them was how much more difficult the first three miles were compared to later miles if I was doing my speedwork or my long run. I think my long run was the best evidence of it - I got to the 2.5 mile point and needed to walk for a tenth of a mile or so, then got to 3.5 miles and felt good moving. Another factor was that I ran it at 7 am which was the most humid time of the day, even though it was the coolest point in the day. Being able to get up and out that early was a big deal for me and showed me that I could do it and am going to have to in order to do this race.
Week three is moving along, although it won't be on the correct schedule but not as bad as week one. Week four is a cutback week which I'm looking forward to. Week five is my vacation week which is strongly beginning to look like a staycation. More on that later, but it will actually be more beneficial for me to be able to have my gym and home routes to get my runs in well.
I've also decided to limit my flip flop wearing to as little as possible because my feet are achy and I don't want to risk making it worse. Can't wait for shoetesting in a couple weeks!
Week Two looked like:
Tuesday - 3 Easy - Treadmill - Felt Good
Thursday - 5 Speed - Treadmill - Felt challenged, but finished strong - pace was 10 min/mi at speed pace (2 x 1 mile), 10:50 min/mi at middle (2 x 1/2 mile), 11:19 min/mi beginning/end (1 mile each)
Friday - 3 Easy - Treadmill - Good run
Sunday - 7 Long - West End/Rose Garden - A few rough spots, some light hills, finished strong
What was consistent in all of them was how much more difficult the first three miles were compared to later miles if I was doing my speedwork or my long run. I think my long run was the best evidence of it - I got to the 2.5 mile point and needed to walk for a tenth of a mile or so, then got to 3.5 miles and felt good moving. Another factor was that I ran it at 7 am which was the most humid time of the day, even though it was the coolest point in the day. Being able to get up and out that early was a big deal for me and showed me that I could do it and am going to have to in order to do this race.
Week three is moving along, although it won't be on the correct schedule but not as bad as week one. Week four is a cutback week which I'm looking forward to. Week five is my vacation week which is strongly beginning to look like a staycation. More on that later, but it will actually be more beneficial for me to be able to have my gym and home routes to get my runs in well.
I've also decided to limit my flip flop wearing to as little as possible because my feet are achy and I don't want to risk making it worse. Can't wait for shoetesting in a couple weeks!
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Back in Training - 11 weeks and counting
I am the world's worst blogger. And since I have no one reading these I don't feel so bad. My last post was in October so I could do a big recap of everything from the last 10 months or so but why bother. 1/2 Marathon, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's, 3 Grand Slams, Memorial Day, 4th of July, Easter have all passed - woohoo....
No, the big thing I have on my mind is that I'm back in training. This will be my first time doing the Philadelphia Distance Run and I'm really excited for it. I thought about it last year but really wasn't interested in doing it because of the grueling training during the summer. But the end of last year I decided that I really needed to do it - physically and mentally. I made the decision that this would be my only 1/2 for this year so watching the runners during the Lehigh Valley Half and not being among them was a bit depressing, but now I'm focused and looking forward to PDR, just 11 weeks away.
I started my training this week. My schedule was supposed to be Tues 2 - Thurs 5 (Tempo for 3) - Fri 2 - Sun 6 for a total of 15 miles. What it turned out to be was Mon 2.5 - Wed 3.2 (5K for LVRR Summer Series - pitiful but still did the miles) - Sat 5 (Tempo for 3) - Sun 6 (Yay!) for a total of 17.5 miles. I'm in awe, and a bit achey. I'm mad at myself for waiting until Saturday for the tempo run - I told myself that since I raced on Wednesday doing a tempo run on Thursday was too much, but then I didn't account for the slug I was on Friday because I had 1 (or 2) too many beers on Thursday night. So I pushed myself to do it Saturday and it was my best run of the week, even better than a lot of recent runs. But then doing my 6 today I was definitely feeling a bit overwhelmed. I could have settled at 5 or 5 1/2 today, especially because the loop I ran was exactly 5 1/2 but when I got to that starting point after looping, I felt I needed to prove to myself that 6 could be done and I needed to do it.
Tomorrow is a rest day, thankfully, and the run schedule should be pretty good to follow on the right days. Looking at Tues 2 - Thurs 5 (speed for 3) - Fri 2 - Sun 7 for a total of 16 miles. The only day I'll struggle with is Sunday and I'll just have to be up early for it. I'm going to CitiField for a Mets game and I think it's at 1.
So I've got one week down, 11 to go. This should be great!
No, the big thing I have on my mind is that I'm back in training. This will be my first time doing the Philadelphia Distance Run and I'm really excited for it. I thought about it last year but really wasn't interested in doing it because of the grueling training during the summer. But the end of last year I decided that I really needed to do it - physically and mentally. I made the decision that this would be my only 1/2 for this year so watching the runners during the Lehigh Valley Half and not being among them was a bit depressing, but now I'm focused and looking forward to PDR, just 11 weeks away.
I started my training this week. My schedule was supposed to be Tues 2 - Thurs 5 (Tempo for 3) - Fri 2 - Sun 6 for a total of 15 miles. What it turned out to be was Mon 2.5 - Wed 3.2 (5K for LVRR Summer Series - pitiful but still did the miles) - Sat 5 (Tempo for 3) - Sun 6 (Yay!) for a total of 17.5 miles. I'm in awe, and a bit achey. I'm mad at myself for waiting until Saturday for the tempo run - I told myself that since I raced on Wednesday doing a tempo run on Thursday was too much, but then I didn't account for the slug I was on Friday because I had 1 (or 2) too many beers on Thursday night. So I pushed myself to do it Saturday and it was my best run of the week, even better than a lot of recent runs. But then doing my 6 today I was definitely feeling a bit overwhelmed. I could have settled at 5 or 5 1/2 today, especially because the loop I ran was exactly 5 1/2 but when I got to that starting point after looping, I felt I needed to prove to myself that 6 could be done and I needed to do it.
Tomorrow is a rest day, thankfully, and the run schedule should be pretty good to follow on the right days. Looking at Tues 2 - Thurs 5 (speed for 3) - Fri 2 - Sun 7 for a total of 16 miles. The only day I'll struggle with is Sunday and I'll just have to be up early for it. I'm going to CitiField for a Mets game and I think it's at 1.
So I've got one week down, 11 to go. This should be great!
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