The weather turned cold and icy the last few weeks but I still managed to get out and run . A few times I had to use the treadmill or the community center indoor track. But I got it done. The hardest part about winter running is that the days are so short that it puts a serious limit on when it's light out (which is when I'm the most comfortable being outside). I don't enjoy not seeing where I'm going plus weather conditions can complicate things.
I didn't use my treadmill for a few months, last time I can recall was back in July when I had a coffee that kept me up all night. But it really comes in handy lately.
The rest of this month since the 18th was pretty good, the ice melted on the sidewalks and it got into the 30s making running possible again. I attempted to run on the icy conditions about two times so far this winter. The first time it was a day when the temperature was making a drop from 25 to about 10. I could see that the melted spots were freezing up and that made the path more difficult towards the end of the run. The second time I tried to run on sidewalks, it had just stopped with freezing rain and things were slicker than they first appeared. On both of these runs, my pace was significantly slower and it was in some ways a let down. I could have brought out the yaktracks but I'm trying to not use those if I don't have to because it seems to change my stride and make my feet hurt.
Recently. I've been focusing on running faster. My last few short runs, I tried to get the pace a little bit faster. Felt like today was one of my faster miles in a while at 8:47. I continue to do the running streak until New Year's Day so it's important to me to at least get a mile a day.
After New Year's day, I have an 8 mile race coming up January 15. I've been building my long run mileage to approach 8 so I'm thinking when it comes up, it should be a good distance that I'm ready for. Following that, I start to train for a half at the end of April. In between I have a few interesting races. The 8 miler in January, followed by a race that finishes on the hockey team's ice. I've never done that one, so it should be good. Then I'm doing a 15k race in preparation for the half. I signed up for another half at the end of May. I think for now I need to just not sign up for anything else for a while. I think I'm waiting a bit before doing another full marathon. I had wanted to jump in again right away but it might be wise to wait a little more than a year to make sure I have time for the training.
I have a plan for the half that should help increase my speed so I have a shot at breaking my old record. The rest of this week I plan to continue my streak and then take a short few days break after New Years Day.
Friday, December 23, 2016
Monday, December 5, 2016
Running streak continues, a fun 5k with family and friends
As my running streak continues, the hardest part now is paying attention to any sore muscles and trying to make the best decision about how many miles to run each day. To keep the streak going, I need to run at least 1 mile a day and my weekly goal is 15-20. Usually I have a longer run on Saturday, this week I did a 5k with family and friends so it was only 3 miles. Total ended up being pretty close to my goal so that worked out ok.
The 5k was a holiday themed run. Had a good time doing it and met up with some others that I have run with at times.
Got a holiday themed medal and everyone could choose a hat.
So this week I will be running at long run pace most of the time to give myself rest after trying to break my mile time (which I did) and then running daily. I think it's wise to do a few speedwork routines when I feel more rested, but for now maybe hold off on doing that for the time being.
This time of year I keep seeing discounts on races and I've been taking advantage of that. Just need to be careful that the calendar doesn't fill up too much as that can get to be a problem.
The 5k was a holiday themed run. Had a good time doing it and met up with some others that I have run with at times.
Got a holiday themed medal and everyone could choose a hat.
So this week I will be running at long run pace most of the time to give myself rest after trying to break my mile time (which I did) and then running daily. I think it's wise to do a few speedwork routines when I feel more rested, but for now maybe hold off on doing that for the time being.
This time of year I keep seeing discounts on races and I've been taking advantage of that. Just need to be careful that the calendar doesn't fill up too much as that can get to be a problem.
Saturday, November 26, 2016
1000 miles for the year and running streak plans
One of my goals for 2016 was to run 1000 miles. I was able to achieve that today when I ran my long run of 7.5 miles. At this point there are 35 days left in 2016. I decided to do something else, log at least 1 mile each day for the rest of the year. I think this is something I can accomplish even if it's dark and I need to use the treadmill at times.
I ran a Thanksgiving 5k which really turned out to be a 3 miler (not quite a 5k). I was happy with my finishing time, which was about 30 seconds more than my current PR, which I didn't expect. I wasn't sure after the marathon how I would do coming back from not running very often, but it worked out.
I have another 5k next weekend and then after that nothing until New Year's Day. Not sure if I'll try to run the next 5k fast or if I'll just take it leisurely. I guess it all depends on how I feel that day.
It's nice to have the 1000 mile goal done for the year with 35 days to spare. Not sure I'll make it to 1100 but at this point just happy with whatever I get.
Monday, November 21, 2016
Thanksgiving week
It's been fun the last few weeks not having much of a plan and just winging it with running. I've had a few friends to cheer on in both NYC marathon and Philadelphia marathon over the past few weeks. Right now the only thing on the schedule for November is a small 5k for Thanksgiving. I had a 19 mile week last week and I think that's probably where I want to keep it for right now.
One change over the past two weeks has been that the cold weather has started to settle in. It was about 30 degrees this morning on my run which I am not so much used to. However, it felt good and my pace is slowly starting to get back to where it has been in the past. I'm looking ahead to a good speed increasing plan for the winter/spring so that I might have a shot at getting close to my next goal which is increasing speed for the half marathon distance.
Other than that not too much else going on (thankfully). I am going to keep looking for a new watch to track heart rate as well after my scare a few weeks ago with passing out. I don't know yet what I'm going to get but the Garmin Vivoactive HR is looking like a top pick. The wrist based HR is what I want because I hate the chest strap ones.
I'm thinking the next few week will be 3 runs during the week (one 3 mile, two 4 mile) and then a long run between 6-10 miles. That will keep me around 17-21 miles which is good for the off season. Also need to investigate some speed work plans for one of my short runs during the week.
One change over the past two weeks has been that the cold weather has started to settle in. It was about 30 degrees this morning on my run which I am not so much used to. However, it felt good and my pace is slowly starting to get back to where it has been in the past. I'm looking ahead to a good speed increasing plan for the winter/spring so that I might have a shot at getting close to my next goal which is increasing speed for the half marathon distance.
Other than that not too much else going on (thankfully). I am going to keep looking for a new watch to track heart rate as well after my scare a few weeks ago with passing out. I don't know yet what I'm going to get but the Garmin Vivoactive HR is looking like a top pick. The wrist based HR is what I want because I hate the chest strap ones.
I'm thinking the next few week will be 3 runs during the week (one 3 mile, two 4 mile) and then a long run between 6-10 miles. That will keep me around 17-21 miles which is good for the off season. Also need to investigate some speed work plans for one of my short runs during the week.
Saturday, November 12, 2016
Resting now for quite a few weeks
After the marathon took some time to slow down and think about my next goals. It's been about 4 weeks now and I'm starting to feel more like my old self. Nothing is really hurting a lot and I've been able to relax.
Have been trying to run a few times a week, 2-3 miles each run. Today I ran/walked intervals with a friend training for a marathon next week . This was her 8 mile run and next Sunday is the big day.
I had a few heart tests run after an incident where I passed out after running a mile. Luckily, everything came back ok. After that I have been pretty much playing it careful.
This coming week I hope to get back into my regular running schedule again. I have about 50 more miles to make 1000 miles for the year. I've kept November's goal pretty low and then December will again be low.
Not too much else to say right now . I have a few races scheduled for November, December, January. I signed up for a half marathon at the end of April. Decided to try to not sign up for too much more than that at the moment. Weather is getting cooler in the mornings which is a good sign. Overall, just trying to take it easy and hang in there.
Have been trying to run a few times a week, 2-3 miles each run. Today I ran/walked intervals with a friend training for a marathon next week . This was her 8 mile run and next Sunday is the big day.
I had a few heart tests run after an incident where I passed out after running a mile. Luckily, everything came back ok. After that I have been pretty much playing it careful.
This coming week I hope to get back into my regular running schedule again. I have about 50 more miles to make 1000 miles for the year. I've kept November's goal pretty low and then December will again be low.
Not too much else to say right now . I have a few races scheduled for November, December, January. I signed up for a half marathon at the end of April. Decided to try to not sign up for too much more than that at the moment. Weather is getting cooler in the mornings which is a good sign. Overall, just trying to take it easy and hang in there.
Saturday, October 22, 2016
Monday, October 17, 2016
The Columbus Marathon
This is going to be a long entry... A lot to say as I think about this race and the week leading up to it.
My final week of taper I had a few short runs of 4, 3, 2 and a shakeout run (1 mile). All of those seemed to go ok. In fact, all were sub 10 minute miles which was a huge surprise as I didn't expect speed to return after all that I've been going through . I took this as a good sign.
The expo was Friday and Saturday with the race Sunday. I spent Tuesday through Friday kind of trying to eat a little more and drink a lot of water. Friday was my last higher carb day and then Saturday I tried to eat normally.
The expo was fantastic for this race. Parking was so easy. I got there right when it started and walked around, bought some discounted merchandise and just enjoyed it. Saw a few people I knew, which really helped.
The night before the race was a tough one . I planned on going to sleep at 8:30 but sleep pretty much eluded me the whole night. I was able to sneak maybe 2-3 hours of sleep in there. Kept waking up, having weird dreams, etc. I was told that I shouldn't worry unless my sleep was really bad the few days before, but it wasn't. I had 9 hours Friday to Saturday and the rest of the week 8ish hours each night.
When I woke up at 3:50 I went ahead and ate the pre-race breakfast I had planned... Toast with peanut butter, banana, and brought along an energy bar to eat an hour before start. Got all my stuff prepared and business taken care of before I left the house to pick up a runner in my neighborhood, meet someone else at the meetup location and the three of us were going together. Everything went well there. Even got to the parking garage super early. Met up with our friends and did a group picture, went to the corrals and lined up. I was put in D corral since I didn't put a super fast finishing time. I really had no clue, just wanted to finish. Second goal was sub 5 hours and ultimate goal was 4:40. I grabbed a pace band for 4:45 at the expo and decided to try and use that as a rough guide. Most important thing "Do not go out too fast. Stay at 10:45-11 minute pace for a long time!"
Race started with fireworks, pictures with the group I had been running with for months and everyone saying good luck to each other.
I'll break down the race into neighborhoods...
Miles 1-3 were basically starting in the Arena district down Broad Street on the way to Bexley. I felt pretty good because I was well rested. Biggest challenge was just keeping speed to 10:45-11 pace which I was able to do.
Miles 3-7 Bexley around to Nationwide Children's Hospital, the sponsor of this race. It was nice to see all the support at Capital University. Thought of a few friends of mine who had gone to Capital.
Miles 8-11 Nationwide Childrens to German Village - this part was really tough only because we run past the hospital and it's really clear who this race is dedicated to. There are patient champions on each mile marker and their families/friends and you can high five the kids when you go by. That really meant a lot and kept me feeling good about doing this. I was also able to get some donations to the hospital so I felt good about helping out in that way. German Village had some good music, really I still felt ok and managed to maintain pace.
Mile 12-13 is where the split off point is for half marathon and full marathon. I saw one of my friends at the split and was able to get a picture. Still felt pretty much fine here. Was happy that the half marathoners were almost done. Not to be mean, but when I heard them talking about only a mile, almost done, it stressed me out a little so I was ready for the split. Someone did say over a megaphone "Let them turn, it's ok, don't worry about them, keep going" because my guess is that others running the full had the same feelings.
Mile 13-15 Continue down High St up to the Short North and then up toward OSU campus - This stretch was where I initially noticed the knee issue. My left knee typically has a bit of trouble lately starting back up again if I stop to get water, walk, etc. I have to rub around it a little and then it's usually fine. Mile 14 I saw one of my friends and got really happy again for a while as I proceeded toward OSU. Passed some of the old buildings I used to have classes for graduate school. Enjoyed this part of the OSU tour. At this point, I turned on my music because the crowd was starting to lessen as there were no more people running the half marathon that were there. I needed the music at that point and planned to bring it just in case.
Mile 15-18 Continue past OSU stadium, up to West campus where there is a slight hill (!!) and then head into Upper Arlington - Around mile 16 I saw some of my other running friends. I think at that point we were all starting to feel it. Some complained of hip issues, hamstring issues, for me it was still the knees. I tried to keep going as long as I could running but then had to take a walk break. Tried to start my knee back up again and it worked for a little while. Around that point I remember seeing a sign that said "You thought this was a good idea 3 months ago, do you still think that?" This seemed to pretty much hit my mood right on at that point. There were a few others that would have been funny otherwise but weren't at that moment. That hill isn't really a hill but it sure feels like it at that point on West Campus. I remember this "hill" when I used to work there but never really thought it was anything until now. Someone warned me of this and I knew it was coming but until you experience it, you really don't know. Was able to somehow continue at a decent pace once I got going again and made it to Upper Arlington. At this point my pace was starting to become longer than I would have liked, around 11-12 mm. I knew this was because of the knee slowing me down and making me have to walk. I engaged in a small pity party there at mile 16-18. I was able to push through though. I thought about running with a few of the others I trained with. But part of me was worried I might hold them back so I let them go.
Mile 18-20 - Upper Arlington to Grandview Heights - This was a killer set of miles. If I was totally in my head from mile 16-18, the worst part physically started to kick in around mile 20. I wasn't any longer in the 10's-11's by the time I got to mile 19. Pace for 19 was 12:48 and then I started to really wonder what I was thinking. The knee kept doing the locking thing and so I did something a little bit different here. Walked about 3 minutes and then tried to run. A few times it felt like my knees might give out and literally smack the ground if I tried to run too long. I had a horrible picture in my head of actually doing damage to my knees by having a fall. I tried to block this out of my head. Pace was ok for 20, about 11:44. Feeling like maybe this would be ok once I got to 20. The mental battle subsided for a bit.
Mile 20-23 - Grandview Heights on the way to Victorian Village - Knee feeling continued to worsen. Running was getting harder. I felt like a drunk person trying to stand up. It continued to get sunny and hotter. Kept getting that image back in my head about dropping to the ground. Kept trying to push it away. Pace for 21-23 : 11:49, 12:38; 13:15. Was so thankful to see some friends at mile 23. I knew they would be there, they had told us to watch for them. Was so excited to see them. Explained my knee issue to them and they were so supportive. I told them "I will finish, I will cross no matter what!" I spoke those words out loud and as soon as I did that I knew I had to. That little voice was speaking to me that tells me to give up. "You've gone past 20, that should be good enough. You really don't have to." I told it to shut up and had been trying to ignore it as much as possible.
Mile 23-26 - Victorian Village to the Arena District - Pretty much a battle of the wills. Myself against the voice in my head telling me to stop. A few people yelled "This is what your training prepared you for!" There was a really peppy person in front of me running, and I remember thinking "how does she have so much energy at this point?" Then I started to think that I should too, what was stopping me from enjoying this? I made a decision during those last few miles that if I had to walk across the finish, I would. My pace was in the 15's for miles 24-26. I walked it and I know now that was absolutely the right decision for me. I felt really sad having to walk at first. I wanted to try to run most of this. I realize now that I did run most of it. The point where I had to walk was a decision to do so because running might have injured me further, resulting in a DNF.
Conversation in my head: "You know, every time you try to run, even for a few minutes, you have that feeling that your knees are going to give out. You have reached a point where you make a decision about this. You can either stop trying to run and finish this race walking, or you can keep attempting to run and risk injury. If you run and you are not successful, your mood will continue to get worse and you'll be mad at yourself for the outcome. So just walk this, because not finishing is not an option. I know you want to go find a medical tent and have them tape it for you. But is that really going to help you right now? No. First of all, there isn't even one around. You'd have to find one. They might even take your time up because they are concerned and maybe even make you stop. You know that when you stop the pain will get worse when you start walking again. So just finish this walking. Just do it because you said you would. Think of all your training runs. You will do this." (Throw in some whining and arguing with myself and this was pretty much the mental conversation). Honestly the main thing that kept me going was seeing the kids at every mile and giving them high fives. Thinking about what they had gone through being sick. This was just running. Their battle was much more significant than what I was going through. I made that my goal for the rest of the race, smile, give high fives and just be done with it however I did it.
Mile 26-end - Arena District - Definitely felt like the longest stretch. I was mad at my Garmin for being ahead of the mileage and beeping when I wasn't quite there. I ended up finishing with 26.56 miles. Which I guess wasn't bad. I tried to mainly run the tangents. But I also didn't want to miss the kids. I saw so many friends cheering me on. You get your name on your bib so once you approach the end there are so many saying your name. You can't even look at everyone because there are so many. Definitely needed that support right there. Saw a few of my friends at that spot and was so grateful to them. I thought I might cry when I crossed but I didn't. I was just so happy to be done that I got the medal, went into the finishers area and enjoyed sitting down. I figured I walked long enough, I can sit down. I know you're not supposed to right away but I just couldn't any more. At this point it said it was close to 80 degrees. When the race started it was 61. It was hot, sunny and so many challenges. I did not get a sub 5 hour race, but it's ok. I did finish which was goal #1.
Later I will talk about how I felt post race. I am so glad I did this and battled that little voice in my head telling me to stop. I think that last 6.2 miles is something you have to experience to believe. It's a mental and physical battle with yourself. The support is amazing at this race and I'd like to do it again. Not sure I'll do the full again (but I never say never). But I could see doing the half next year.
My final week of taper I had a few short runs of 4, 3, 2 and a shakeout run (1 mile). All of those seemed to go ok. In fact, all were sub 10 minute miles which was a huge surprise as I didn't expect speed to return after all that I've been going through . I took this as a good sign.
The expo was Friday and Saturday with the race Sunday. I spent Tuesday through Friday kind of trying to eat a little more and drink a lot of water. Friday was my last higher carb day and then Saturday I tried to eat normally.
The expo was fantastic for this race. Parking was so easy. I got there right when it started and walked around, bought some discounted merchandise and just enjoyed it. Saw a few people I knew, which really helped.
The night before the race was a tough one . I planned on going to sleep at 8:30 but sleep pretty much eluded me the whole night. I was able to sneak maybe 2-3 hours of sleep in there. Kept waking up, having weird dreams, etc. I was told that I shouldn't worry unless my sleep was really bad the few days before, but it wasn't. I had 9 hours Friday to Saturday and the rest of the week 8ish hours each night.
When I woke up at 3:50 I went ahead and ate the pre-race breakfast I had planned... Toast with peanut butter, banana, and brought along an energy bar to eat an hour before start. Got all my stuff prepared and business taken care of before I left the house to pick up a runner in my neighborhood, meet someone else at the meetup location and the three of us were going together. Everything went well there. Even got to the parking garage super early. Met up with our friends and did a group picture, went to the corrals and lined up. I was put in D corral since I didn't put a super fast finishing time. I really had no clue, just wanted to finish. Second goal was sub 5 hours and ultimate goal was 4:40. I grabbed a pace band for 4:45 at the expo and decided to try and use that as a rough guide. Most important thing "Do not go out too fast. Stay at 10:45-11 minute pace for a long time!"
Race started with fireworks, pictures with the group I had been running with for months and everyone saying good luck to each other.
I'll break down the race into neighborhoods...
Miles 1-3 were basically starting in the Arena district down Broad Street on the way to Bexley. I felt pretty good because I was well rested. Biggest challenge was just keeping speed to 10:45-11 pace which I was able to do.
Miles 3-7 Bexley around to Nationwide Children's Hospital, the sponsor of this race. It was nice to see all the support at Capital University. Thought of a few friends of mine who had gone to Capital.
Miles 8-11 Nationwide Childrens to German Village - this part was really tough only because we run past the hospital and it's really clear who this race is dedicated to. There are patient champions on each mile marker and their families/friends and you can high five the kids when you go by. That really meant a lot and kept me feeling good about doing this. I was also able to get some donations to the hospital so I felt good about helping out in that way. German Village had some good music, really I still felt ok and managed to maintain pace.
Mile 12-13 is where the split off point is for half marathon and full marathon. I saw one of my friends at the split and was able to get a picture. Still felt pretty much fine here. Was happy that the half marathoners were almost done. Not to be mean, but when I heard them talking about only a mile, almost done, it stressed me out a little so I was ready for the split. Someone did say over a megaphone "Let them turn, it's ok, don't worry about them, keep going" because my guess is that others running the full had the same feelings.
Mile 13-15 Continue down High St up to the Short North and then up toward OSU campus - This stretch was where I initially noticed the knee issue. My left knee typically has a bit of trouble lately starting back up again if I stop to get water, walk, etc. I have to rub around it a little and then it's usually fine. Mile 14 I saw one of my friends and got really happy again for a while as I proceeded toward OSU. Passed some of the old buildings I used to have classes for graduate school. Enjoyed this part of the OSU tour. At this point, I turned on my music because the crowd was starting to lessen as there were no more people running the half marathon that were there. I needed the music at that point and planned to bring it just in case.
Mile 15-18 Continue past OSU stadium, up to West campus where there is a slight hill (!!) and then head into Upper Arlington - Around mile 16 I saw some of my other running friends. I think at that point we were all starting to feel it. Some complained of hip issues, hamstring issues, for me it was still the knees. I tried to keep going as long as I could running but then had to take a walk break. Tried to start my knee back up again and it worked for a little while. Around that point I remember seeing a sign that said "You thought this was a good idea 3 months ago, do you still think that?" This seemed to pretty much hit my mood right on at that point. There were a few others that would have been funny otherwise but weren't at that moment. That hill isn't really a hill but it sure feels like it at that point on West Campus. I remember this "hill" when I used to work there but never really thought it was anything until now. Someone warned me of this and I knew it was coming but until you experience it, you really don't know. Was able to somehow continue at a decent pace once I got going again and made it to Upper Arlington. At this point my pace was starting to become longer than I would have liked, around 11-12 mm. I knew this was because of the knee slowing me down and making me have to walk. I engaged in a small pity party there at mile 16-18. I was able to push through though. I thought about running with a few of the others I trained with. But part of me was worried I might hold them back so I let them go.
Mile 18-20 - Upper Arlington to Grandview Heights - This was a killer set of miles. If I was totally in my head from mile 16-18, the worst part physically started to kick in around mile 20. I wasn't any longer in the 10's-11's by the time I got to mile 19. Pace for 19 was 12:48 and then I started to really wonder what I was thinking. The knee kept doing the locking thing and so I did something a little bit different here. Walked about 3 minutes and then tried to run. A few times it felt like my knees might give out and literally smack the ground if I tried to run too long. I had a horrible picture in my head of actually doing damage to my knees by having a fall. I tried to block this out of my head. Pace was ok for 20, about 11:44. Feeling like maybe this would be ok once I got to 20. The mental battle subsided for a bit.
Mile 20-23 - Grandview Heights on the way to Victorian Village - Knee feeling continued to worsen. Running was getting harder. I felt like a drunk person trying to stand up. It continued to get sunny and hotter. Kept getting that image back in my head about dropping to the ground. Kept trying to push it away. Pace for 21-23 : 11:49, 12:38; 13:15. Was so thankful to see some friends at mile 23. I knew they would be there, they had told us to watch for them. Was so excited to see them. Explained my knee issue to them and they were so supportive. I told them "I will finish, I will cross no matter what!" I spoke those words out loud and as soon as I did that I knew I had to. That little voice was speaking to me that tells me to give up. "You've gone past 20, that should be good enough. You really don't have to." I told it to shut up and had been trying to ignore it as much as possible.
Mile 23-26 - Victorian Village to the Arena District - Pretty much a battle of the wills. Myself against the voice in my head telling me to stop. A few people yelled "This is what your training prepared you for!" There was a really peppy person in front of me running, and I remember thinking "how does she have so much energy at this point?" Then I started to think that I should too, what was stopping me from enjoying this? I made a decision during those last few miles that if I had to walk across the finish, I would. My pace was in the 15's for miles 24-26. I walked it and I know now that was absolutely the right decision for me. I felt really sad having to walk at first. I wanted to try to run most of this. I realize now that I did run most of it. The point where I had to walk was a decision to do so because running might have injured me further, resulting in a DNF.
Conversation in my head: "You know, every time you try to run, even for a few minutes, you have that feeling that your knees are going to give out. You have reached a point where you make a decision about this. You can either stop trying to run and finish this race walking, or you can keep attempting to run and risk injury. If you run and you are not successful, your mood will continue to get worse and you'll be mad at yourself for the outcome. So just walk this, because not finishing is not an option. I know you want to go find a medical tent and have them tape it for you. But is that really going to help you right now? No. First of all, there isn't even one around. You'd have to find one. They might even take your time up because they are concerned and maybe even make you stop. You know that when you stop the pain will get worse when you start walking again. So just finish this walking. Just do it because you said you would. Think of all your training runs. You will do this." (Throw in some whining and arguing with myself and this was pretty much the mental conversation). Honestly the main thing that kept me going was seeing the kids at every mile and giving them high fives. Thinking about what they had gone through being sick. This was just running. Their battle was much more significant than what I was going through. I made that my goal for the rest of the race, smile, give high fives and just be done with it however I did it.
Mile 26-end - Arena District - Definitely felt like the longest stretch. I was mad at my Garmin for being ahead of the mileage and beeping when I wasn't quite there. I ended up finishing with 26.56 miles. Which I guess wasn't bad. I tried to mainly run the tangents. But I also didn't want to miss the kids. I saw so many friends cheering me on. You get your name on your bib so once you approach the end there are so many saying your name. You can't even look at everyone because there are so many. Definitely needed that support right there. Saw a few of my friends at that spot and was so grateful to them. I thought I might cry when I crossed but I didn't. I was just so happy to be done that I got the medal, went into the finishers area and enjoyed sitting down. I figured I walked long enough, I can sit down. I know you're not supposed to right away but I just couldn't any more. At this point it said it was close to 80 degrees. When the race started it was 61. It was hot, sunny and so many challenges. I did not get a sub 5 hour race, but it's ok. I did finish which was goal #1.
Later I will talk about how I felt post race. I am so glad I did this and battled that little voice in my head telling me to stop. I think that last 6.2 miles is something you have to experience to believe. It's a mental and physical battle with yourself. The support is amazing at this race and I'd like to do it again. Not sure I'll do the full again (but I never say never). But I could see doing the half next year.
Saturday, October 8, 2016
Week 17 - Taper continues...
Want to say something really important:
I'm tired of the expectation that when I, as a woman, go outside to do whatever, I have to be careful. I think this is a direct result of the culture we perpetuate, and support through certain public figures that convince us it's ok through their actions/past comments. They act like their comments were "locker room talk" or "no big deal, I've heard others say worse." Yesterday, being out later in the day (7-8:30pm) with a group of 2 other strong women, we were running on the road and a car full of men/boys shouted, yelled and honked. Then, they turned up the path we were going. I was immediately worried. The reason why is because I now have to live my life in expectation of these things, that immature men/boys think it's ok to do this. They were never taught this is a problem, and if they were taught, they don't care. They think it's funny. Then we watched to see where this group went and they parked at the gas station. I remember thinking how absurd it was that we had to keep our eye on them, just in case. I remember being mad that it crossed my mind that I need to look into concealed carry or having a taser, whistle, etc. Why should I have to do that? Because I'm afraid of some men's actions, men who exist in our neighborhoods? Then I looked back and thought about how I pretty much expect to be harassed, and double think my actions and where I'm going just because I happen to be a small female. Or if I'm wearing running clothes that are tight or short. The fact that this happening of getting honks/yells from groups of men is just commonplace. I think about all the past runs when I see a group of men coming and I think about whether they will do something or not. And then I think about the times that I was so used to it that it didn't even cross my mind to challenge it. And that is the scary part... if you made it this far, thanks for caring enough to read.
Now, the runs this week... because I'm not going to stop running even if there are awful people out there.
5 miles Monday, 4 Wednesday, 4 Thursday, and 8 Friday.
Decided to do the Friday run because I wanted a break from getting up so early. Ran at night (see rant mentioned above) and despite a few unpleasant moments, I really enjoyed it . The moon was beautiful and even though I went a bit faster than I planned, it felt fine.
My runs during the week have all been pretty close to a 10 minute mile. The runs Wednesday and Thursday were sub 10 minute miles. I think some of my speed has returned after fatiguing my legs with the really long runs.
So this is a really good sign.
I go into the last taper week thinking about my goals. I am going to stick with my plan of finishing my first goal... under 5 hours a subgoal, under 4:40 would be really awesome (but not expected). I'm planning my pacing and have a pretty set plan. Just need to really think on it and make sure it's ok. Also have to keep an eye on the weather as this gets closer.
I really can't believe it's almost time! Feeling pretty excited about the expo too.
Sunday, October 2, 2016
Week 16 - First Taper week
This week was a tough one due to the expected fatigue experienced after completing the 20 mile run on Sunday. I did feel better Sunday than I thought I would. But then Monday was not the best... nor Tuesday.
Decided to take Monday off to let myself rest. That was a smart plan, but then I decided to do the three short runs Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Tuesday was just a 4 miler and it ended up being a tough one because some soreness remained. But things felt good enough to complete it. Same with Wednesday which was longer, a 6 mile run. Noticed some weird feeling in the arch of my left foot but I also changed shoes due to trying a new brand/style since all my shoes have so many miles on them. I learned my lesson and Thursday went back to my standard brand/style (Saucony Triumph ISO, the original not the version 2) which made that feel better. Never do this, thinking changing shoes this late in the game is a good idea. Just don't do it. It's never a good idea. Just for reference I went with Saucony Triumph ISO 2 but the men's size equivalent. Sometimes I can get away with wearing men's shoes but this time it didn't work out. Time to give these to a friend...
Decided that it was worth it to order 1 more pair of my usual shoes and that way I could use them for the 14 miler Saturday and the runs next week to somewhat "break them in" for the marathon. They don't really need broken in, most likely, but it will make me feel better to have at least 20-30 miles on them. That way I know that they've been tested a little bit and seem good to go. They are the brand/style I've been running in so I'm thinking they won't need too much getting used to. My main hope is that they will be a little more "springy" than the 3 pairs I already have in that style that have each 300ish miles on them.
Here's a tangent... my foot has always been rather picky. Once I get used to something, it's hard to get a different shoe. I start to notice little creeping up pains and have to go back to what I'm used to. My first running shoes were Mizuno Wave Rider... then switched to Brooks Ghost... then to Adidas Supernova (I think?) briefly because I liked the boost foam... can't remember the style. Then Saucony Ride... decided maybe I need more support. Around summer 2015, I discovered Saucony Triumph ISO. I have continued to buy pairs of these for over a year now, but they are endangered! They keep trying to improve it and are now on version 3. I haven't tried version 3. But the original is the best. I also am trying to get used to something else so I have Mizuno Wave Creation 17 and Brooks Glycerin 13 that I really want to like after the marathon... Mizuno's are actually pretty good but feel a little bit harder in the heel. The Brooks feel more soft and I'm not sure about them yet. ok end of tangent.
Thursday's run in my "standard" shoes, I averaged 9:59 mm on my 6 miler. Looks like a little bit of speed has come back since Sunday's 20 miler.
Tuesday and Wednesday's runs were both close to 11 mm. But that's ok. I expected that.
Saturday was a 14 mile run and I have to admit I wasn't really feeling it. I wanted to just cut it short because I was pretty tired from this week. Others doing slightly different training plans went down to 12 or 13 miles. Decided if I needed to do that, I would.
New pair of shoes were here, so used those and was able to stick with the plan. Got to the running store early and did 5 miles, then did 9 with them for a total of 14. At the beginning of the run I was solo and then once I got to the running store I was solo again for a little bit (with people around me, just all doing slightly different paces).
Then part of the group broke off and I had the opportunity to run about a 10:45-11 pace with someone who was about 20 years older than me and a very experienced runner. She had run several marathons, a few at Boston which she did the whole BQ process twice. She told me she was just naturally fast and it worked out that she ran a 4 hour(ish) first marathon. Definitely got some good advice and the rest of my run went quickly. Almost didn't notice it was 14 miles.
Felt ok for most of the run but noticed some odd knee pain on the downhills so tried to walk those when needed. The rest of the day I was imagining phantom pains and things that would cause me to not be able to run. I know this is a part of taper, this fear of unknown injuries developing so I tried to let it go and see if things returned to normal.
Felt better Sunday so with any luck things will continue to stay feeling ok.
Next week is a much easier week... 5/4/4/8... 21 miles.
Overall, it was a good week. The recovery from the long 20 miler was as expected. I'm hoping this will give me some idea of how I'll feel after the marathon. But I'm sure I can't even imagine it yet.
Decided to take Monday off to let myself rest. That was a smart plan, but then I decided to do the three short runs Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Tuesday was just a 4 miler and it ended up being a tough one because some soreness remained. But things felt good enough to complete it. Same with Wednesday which was longer, a 6 mile run. Noticed some weird feeling in the arch of my left foot but I also changed shoes due to trying a new brand/style since all my shoes have so many miles on them. I learned my lesson and Thursday went back to my standard brand/style (Saucony Triumph ISO, the original not the version 2) which made that feel better. Never do this, thinking changing shoes this late in the game is a good idea. Just don't do it. It's never a good idea. Just for reference I went with Saucony Triumph ISO 2 but the men's size equivalent. Sometimes I can get away with wearing men's shoes but this time it didn't work out. Time to give these to a friend...
Decided that it was worth it to order 1 more pair of my usual shoes and that way I could use them for the 14 miler Saturday and the runs next week to somewhat "break them in" for the marathon. They don't really need broken in, most likely, but it will make me feel better to have at least 20-30 miles on them. That way I know that they've been tested a little bit and seem good to go. They are the brand/style I've been running in so I'm thinking they won't need too much getting used to. My main hope is that they will be a little more "springy" than the 3 pairs I already have in that style that have each 300ish miles on them.
Here's a tangent... my foot has always been rather picky. Once I get used to something, it's hard to get a different shoe. I start to notice little creeping up pains and have to go back to what I'm used to. My first running shoes were Mizuno Wave Rider... then switched to Brooks Ghost... then to Adidas Supernova (I think?) briefly because I liked the boost foam... can't remember the style. Then Saucony Ride... decided maybe I need more support. Around summer 2015, I discovered Saucony Triumph ISO. I have continued to buy pairs of these for over a year now, but they are endangered! They keep trying to improve it and are now on version 3. I haven't tried version 3. But the original is the best. I also am trying to get used to something else so I have Mizuno Wave Creation 17 and Brooks Glycerin 13 that I really want to like after the marathon... Mizuno's are actually pretty good but feel a little bit harder in the heel. The Brooks feel more soft and I'm not sure about them yet. ok end of tangent.
Thursday's run in my "standard" shoes, I averaged 9:59 mm on my 6 miler. Looks like a little bit of speed has come back since Sunday's 20 miler.
Tuesday and Wednesday's runs were both close to 11 mm. But that's ok. I expected that.
Saturday was a 14 mile run and I have to admit I wasn't really feeling it. I wanted to just cut it short because I was pretty tired from this week. Others doing slightly different training plans went down to 12 or 13 miles. Decided if I needed to do that, I would.
New pair of shoes were here, so used those and was able to stick with the plan. Got to the running store early and did 5 miles, then did 9 with them for a total of 14. At the beginning of the run I was solo and then once I got to the running store I was solo again for a little bit (with people around me, just all doing slightly different paces).
Then part of the group broke off and I had the opportunity to run about a 10:45-11 pace with someone who was about 20 years older than me and a very experienced runner. She had run several marathons, a few at Boston which she did the whole BQ process twice. She told me she was just naturally fast and it worked out that she ran a 4 hour(ish) first marathon. Definitely got some good advice and the rest of my run went quickly. Almost didn't notice it was 14 miles.
Felt ok for most of the run but noticed some odd knee pain on the downhills so tried to walk those when needed. The rest of the day I was imagining phantom pains and things that would cause me to not be able to run. I know this is a part of taper, this fear of unknown injuries developing so I tried to let it go and see if things returned to normal.
Felt better Sunday so with any luck things will continue to stay feeling ok.
Next week is a much easier week... 5/4/4/8... 21 miles.
Overall, it was a good week. The recovery from the long 20 miler was as expected. I'm hoping this will give me some idea of how I'll feel after the marathon. But I'm sure I can't even imagine it yet.
Sunday, September 25, 2016
Week 15 - last week of heavy training... then taper time
This was a good week with some variation in running paths and temperatures/humidity down a little bit in the mornings. Afternoons have still been hot, but that's expected for mid to late September.
This week started out with a 7 mile run, followed by a 6 and a 5 mile. The 7 mile run was a little bit faster (10 mm) and the others about 10:30 mm. Did some changes in my course to make it more interesting. This will be my last 7 mile weekday run for a while because next week is taper. Changed taper a little based on some new knowledge about not decreasing miles too much.
The last run of the week was to be a 20 mile run. Decided to do it on Sunday instead for just a change of pace, a chance to stay up a little later Friday night, sleep in a little Saturday morning. Met up at 6am Sunday and the day was beautiful. A little dark at 6am but we did bring our headlamps. A few of the group wanted to start as early as 5am but I didn't feel like I could get up that early (plus the trail was a good 30 minutes from home) so I opted for 6. When I got there, one of the two ladies continued with us and we stayed with her so she could finish her 20 and then we finished ours. I never thought 20 miles could go that fast, but it did. Even running at a slower pace. I'm glad I ran it at a slower pace. I feel like the "time on my feet" was better to estimate marathon feel. It was all about the temperature and it finally felt good (55-65 degrees). I really felt like I could have gone a few miles longer, even so I definitely can say I feel I've done my best in preparing for this marathon. I head into taper feeling pretty pleased. Now my goal is to try to rest up and hopefully do well with taper. A little step down is sometimes good but there is something called the 'taper crazies' that many runners dread...
https://getgoing-getrunning.com/2015/01/31/the-causes-of-the-taper-crazies-and-how-to-get-over-them/
I'll have to read this later when they take full effect... for right now I'll enjoy the present moment.
https://getgoing-getrunning.com/2015/01/31/the-causes-of-the-taper-crazies-and-how-to-get-over-them/
I'll have to read this later when they take full effect... for right now I'll enjoy the present moment.
Sunday, September 18, 2016
Week 14 - 4 day running streak and Air Force 10k
So I'm getting sick of running the same routes all the time.
Decided to venture out of my comfort zone this week a little and set up a few new neighborhood paths to try.
Monday was a 6 mile run and it felt considerably cooler. I tried a new neighborhood and did have to consult google maps to find my way back at one point. I am certainly directionally challenged! This neighborhood had a few different entry ways so when everything looks similar it can cause me to get turned around. Managed about 10:26 mm pace for this one.
Wednesday was a little longer at 7 miles . Had to cross a kind of busy road which I don't really enjoy doing, but it was the only way to get to a few new neighborhoods. I reevaluated the decision before the run, and since it's busy but only has 2 lanes and I'd be running during the daytime I felt ok about it. I usually will not run on a road without a sidewalk just due to my own fears of cars hitting me.
But I looked at how long I'd even have to be on it and it wasn't long. Basically just enough to get to the next turn for the following neighborhood. So I decided on best practices during those runs, only on the left side of the road, no headphones in my ears during those times. And I always wear a road ID bracelet. The new neighborhoods felt like unexplored territory which was nice. I had mapped out which roads and approximately how many miles. Also, there is only one entry into each of the neighborhoods and the rest were cul de sacs so I felt like it would be hard for even me (as directionally challenged as I am) to get lost. Managed a similar pace of 10:29 mm.
Thursday was a 6 mile run again. Ran a 10:07 mm pace on a not very exciting route (mostly main streets with sidewalks). I was able to get negative splits so that felt good.
Friday I hadn't planned on running because I had a race scheduled for Saturday and was figuring out how I was going to get 12 weekend miles. The race was a 10k so I randomly surveyed some of my running group and luckily someone was available Friday afternoon. I hadn't run with her before and she has a faster pace but she was nice enough to slow it down for me. She had run a trail race Thursday and was ok with that.
However, did not anticipate the heat which made me have to stop several times. I apologized but she didn't mind the stops. Then a train crossed the road we were running on which made for an unexpected break. Finished this one at about 10:09 mm pace which wasn't bad considering I had to stop a few times.
Saturday was race day. It was a bit complicated as this was the Air Force Marathon, Half, 10k all starting on the same day. The 5k was the night before. I drove Friday night to my friend's house. She had picked up all of our stuff for us so that made it easier. It also was good to have a place to stay. The next morning we got up early at 4am because our plan was to catch the shuttle over to the race start line. We heard thunder at 4am but were hoping the storm might leave before the race.
We got ready and left at 5am after eating something, We arrived for the shuttle around 5:20 and got on. Then the shuttles didn't move for an hour. No one told us what was going on so I checked on my phone. Start was supposed to be at 7:30. However, there was still lightning in the area, so the start was delayed until 8am. Eventually around 6:15 the buses moved to the start. I didn't mind too much because I was sitting. I'm not sure how fun it would be if you were standing on the bus. They had asked everyone to stay in their vehicle due to the storm.
I was sitting next to a person running the full so we talked about his training and how he was hoping to finish today. The ladies I came with were sitting on a different part of the bus due to lack of seating.
Once we got there it looked like the storm was gone. The sky started to clear and we found a place to sit in one of the tents with tables and chairs. Things got underway, and I enjoyed the course, especially the two Ospreys that flew over before the start. We did a 10/2 interval plan which was my friend's goal and finished better than she expected. The water stops were frequent which was great. Also got a really awesome medal, shirt, patch and a hat.
Would recommend this one to others. It does tend to be hot time of year so as long as the weather cooperates, it would be enjoyable. The only downside is that it's not very shady being on base and on main roads a lot of the time. But it was cloudy most of the time for us, so it wasn't too bad. The humidity was a little bit high but it wasn't full sun.
Next week is a bigger week mileage wise. 7/6/5/20 total of 38 miles. Then it's taper time! I may revise my taper plan a little upon getting some new advice about cutting back mileage 20% the first week of taper and 25% the second week. More on that later.
Decided to venture out of my comfort zone this week a little and set up a few new neighborhood paths to try.
Monday was a 6 mile run and it felt considerably cooler. I tried a new neighborhood and did have to consult google maps to find my way back at one point. I am certainly directionally challenged! This neighborhood had a few different entry ways so when everything looks similar it can cause me to get turned around. Managed about 10:26 mm pace for this one.
Wednesday was a little longer at 7 miles . Had to cross a kind of busy road which I don't really enjoy doing, but it was the only way to get to a few new neighborhoods. I reevaluated the decision before the run, and since it's busy but only has 2 lanes and I'd be running during the daytime I felt ok about it. I usually will not run on a road without a sidewalk just due to my own fears of cars hitting me.
But I looked at how long I'd even have to be on it and it wasn't long. Basically just enough to get to the next turn for the following neighborhood. So I decided on best practices during those runs, only on the left side of the road, no headphones in my ears during those times. And I always wear a road ID bracelet. The new neighborhoods felt like unexplored territory which was nice. I had mapped out which roads and approximately how many miles. Also, there is only one entry into each of the neighborhoods and the rest were cul de sacs so I felt like it would be hard for even me (as directionally challenged as I am) to get lost. Managed a similar pace of 10:29 mm.
Thursday was a 6 mile run again. Ran a 10:07 mm pace on a not very exciting route (mostly main streets with sidewalks). I was able to get negative splits so that felt good.
Friday I hadn't planned on running because I had a race scheduled for Saturday and was figuring out how I was going to get 12 weekend miles. The race was a 10k so I randomly surveyed some of my running group and luckily someone was available Friday afternoon. I hadn't run with her before and she has a faster pace but she was nice enough to slow it down for me. She had run a trail race Thursday and was ok with that.
However, did not anticipate the heat which made me have to stop several times. I apologized but she didn't mind the stops. Then a train crossed the road we were running on which made for an unexpected break. Finished this one at about 10:09 mm pace which wasn't bad considering I had to stop a few times.
Saturday was race day. It was a bit complicated as this was the Air Force Marathon, Half, 10k all starting on the same day. The 5k was the night before. I drove Friday night to my friend's house. She had picked up all of our stuff for us so that made it easier. It also was good to have a place to stay. The next morning we got up early at 4am because our plan was to catch the shuttle over to the race start line. We heard thunder at 4am but were hoping the storm might leave before the race.
We got ready and left at 5am after eating something, We arrived for the shuttle around 5:20 and got on. Then the shuttles didn't move for an hour. No one told us what was going on so I checked on my phone. Start was supposed to be at 7:30. However, there was still lightning in the area, so the start was delayed until 8am. Eventually around 6:15 the buses moved to the start. I didn't mind too much because I was sitting. I'm not sure how fun it would be if you were standing on the bus. They had asked everyone to stay in their vehicle due to the storm.
I was sitting next to a person running the full so we talked about his training and how he was hoping to finish today. The ladies I came with were sitting on a different part of the bus due to lack of seating.
Once we got there it looked like the storm was gone. The sky started to clear and we found a place to sit in one of the tents with tables and chairs. Things got underway, and I enjoyed the course, especially the two Ospreys that flew over before the start. We did a 10/2 interval plan which was my friend's goal and finished better than she expected. The water stops were frequent which was great. Also got a really awesome medal, shirt, patch and a hat.
(Our commemorative patch)
(Shoe selfie!)
(Front and back of medals)
Would recommend this one to others. It does tend to be hot time of year so as long as the weather cooperates, it would be enjoyable. The only downside is that it's not very shady being on base and on main roads a lot of the time. But it was cloudy most of the time for us, so it wasn't too bad. The humidity was a little bit high but it wasn't full sun.
Next week is a bigger week mileage wise. 7/6/5/20 total of 38 miles. Then it's taper time! I may revise my taper plan a little upon getting some new advice about cutting back mileage 20% the first week of taper and 25% the second week. More on that later.
Saturday, September 10, 2016
Week 13 - You know you're a runner when you buy stylish compression socks to wear with your work outfits
Monday was a 6 mile day but was also Labor Day. I signed up for a community race several months ago and forgot about it somewhat. Then I saw packet pickup was on my calendar and remembered. So I made a plan to meet a new person I haven't run with before at the start of the race about an hour beforehand. Enjoyed running with a new person, always makes for new conversation. I did 2.3(ish) miles to warm up for the race with her (avg pace 9:57). I remembered that when I ran this race last year it was only 3.8 miles instead of the 4 miles it was billed to be. I had a really great result last year and it would have been a PR. But I was hesitant to count it last year because it was significantly shorter than 4 miles.
This year's plan was to push it pretty hard and maybe even to the max of my comfort level to try to PR again. I am typically competitive with myself when I'm running a race I already did (can current me beat younger me kind of thing). My hope was that it would be closer to 4 miles this time. I discovered upon arrival at the start, that they changed the course slightly and moved the start to a farther away location. This made the race 3.91 miles... according to my watch anyway. Once again I pushed myself more than I usually would. The first mile was really fast (for me, anyway) and I looked down and saw 8:42 at the beep. The day was far cooler and less humid than last year's same race. The next 2.91 miles I had between 8:57-9:04 but basically was able to hold a pretty good pace. I've decided to count the new PR for 4 miles but I'm not sure if it's really accurate. However, I asked the question "Had I not been wearing my watch, would I have counted this as a 4 mile PR?" I probably would have.... So I will... but it's unlikely I'll be beating that one for a while, if ever...
I hadn't run a race where I really felt compelled to go fast in a while. Usually my body and mind are screaming at me to quit running so fast if I get that pace in a training run. I've also been training in extremely hot/humid weather and since it's a marathon distance with long runs 13+ I've been working on pulling the pace to a slower and more comfortable level . So with this in mind, I wasn't actually sure if I could do a less than 9 min/mile pace for any longer than a mile at this point. I found myself pleasantly surprised. The weather being better certainly helped.
This race prompted me to think about post marathon goals. I signed up for 3 relatively inexpensive 5k's (Thanksgiving Day, December/holiday themed, and New Year's Day). Other than that, I only have one other race (a mid January 7.5 miler) planned for 2017. I have a half marathon in late March/early April in mind but so far no registration opening for that one.
So, I'm thinking after this I need to chill out some. That doesn't mean I'd never try to do another full, but maybe it would be better for a milestone birthday coming up...
It crosses my mind periodically that I'd like to run a sub 2 hour half marathon some day. Then I start to wonder if I'd really be able to hold that pace for that long.. another thought for another day... maybe a new training plan required for this goal.
Ok, I digress...
Wednesday did 7 miles which was a step down from my midweek run last week which was 8 miles. I welcomed the break and ran at a decent pace. (10:18)
Thursday felt some fatigue and the heat/humidity was awful so was able to do about 5 miles just over 11min/mile. I realized that after the race Monday and then 2 other fast(ish) runs this week that I needed to have a more relaxed pace. I also tried running in a new neighborhood for about a mile and found out that it was hilly and the lack of sidewalks made it mostly unpleasant. Not sure I'll be going there again.
Saturday had a 19 miler on the schedule and agreed to meet at a different trail because as mentioned earlier, I'm getting sick of the same places and same trails. Met some other runners getting 19 miles as well at 6(ish)am, but now it's dark at that hour so I brought my headlamp. I didn't realize it was so low on battery so the light was kind of eh... But it got me through the first 3.5-4 miles until the sun came up, and we met up with a local running group at 7 who were planning on 15 miles. I really enjoyed the trail and it didn't seem that bad. It was a shady trail for the most part. There was one spot where the sun was out that seemed unbearable, but it was over after a few miles. 19 miles actually went rather quickly, considering...as quickly as 3.5 hours of running can go. Kept a decent 11 min/mile pace. Considering it was 73 degrees and high humidity when we started, I was happy with this. It was nice to run with a group again because the 18 miler was tough to do solo. Distance PR! Until the 20 mile run in 2 weeks.
Next week is a shorter long run . Then one last week with a long run until taper...
Week 14 will be: 6/7/6/12 =31 miles. I might need to break the 12 miler up into two 6 mile runs due to my weekend schedule. But that's ok. I could use a change.
This year's plan was to push it pretty hard and maybe even to the max of my comfort level to try to PR again. I am typically competitive with myself when I'm running a race I already did (can current me beat younger me kind of thing). My hope was that it would be closer to 4 miles this time. I discovered upon arrival at the start, that they changed the course slightly and moved the start to a farther away location. This made the race 3.91 miles... according to my watch anyway. Once again I pushed myself more than I usually would. The first mile was really fast (for me, anyway) and I looked down and saw 8:42 at the beep. The day was far cooler and less humid than last year's same race. The next 2.91 miles I had between 8:57-9:04 but basically was able to hold a pretty good pace. I've decided to count the new PR for 4 miles but I'm not sure if it's really accurate. However, I asked the question "Had I not been wearing my watch, would I have counted this as a 4 mile PR?" I probably would have.... So I will... but it's unlikely I'll be beating that one for a while, if ever...
I hadn't run a race where I really felt compelled to go fast in a while. Usually my body and mind are screaming at me to quit running so fast if I get that pace in a training run. I've also been training in extremely hot/humid weather and since it's a marathon distance with long runs 13+ I've been working on pulling the pace to a slower and more comfortable level . So with this in mind, I wasn't actually sure if I could do a less than 9 min/mile pace for any longer than a mile at this point. I found myself pleasantly surprised. The weather being better certainly helped.
This race prompted me to think about post marathon goals. I signed up for 3 relatively inexpensive 5k's (Thanksgiving Day, December/holiday themed, and New Year's Day). Other than that, I only have one other race (a mid January 7.5 miler) planned for 2017. I have a half marathon in late March/early April in mind but so far no registration opening for that one.
So, I'm thinking after this I need to chill out some. That doesn't mean I'd never try to do another full, but maybe it would be better for a milestone birthday coming up...
It crosses my mind periodically that I'd like to run a sub 2 hour half marathon some day. Then I start to wonder if I'd really be able to hold that pace for that long.. another thought for another day... maybe a new training plan required for this goal.
Ok, I digress...
Wednesday did 7 miles which was a step down from my midweek run last week which was 8 miles. I welcomed the break and ran at a decent pace. (10:18)
Thursday felt some fatigue and the heat/humidity was awful so was able to do about 5 miles just over 11min/mile. I realized that after the race Monday and then 2 other fast(ish) runs this week that I needed to have a more relaxed pace. I also tried running in a new neighborhood for about a mile and found out that it was hilly and the lack of sidewalks made it mostly unpleasant. Not sure I'll be going there again.
Saturday had a 19 miler on the schedule and agreed to meet at a different trail because as mentioned earlier, I'm getting sick of the same places and same trails. Met some other runners getting 19 miles as well at 6(ish)am, but now it's dark at that hour so I brought my headlamp. I didn't realize it was so low on battery so the light was kind of eh... But it got me through the first 3.5-4 miles until the sun came up, and we met up with a local running group at 7 who were planning on 15 miles. I really enjoyed the trail and it didn't seem that bad. It was a shady trail for the most part. There was one spot where the sun was out that seemed unbearable, but it was over after a few miles. 19 miles actually went rather quickly, considering...as quickly as 3.5 hours of running can go. Kept a decent 11 min/mile pace. Considering it was 73 degrees and high humidity when we started, I was happy with this. It was nice to run with a group again because the 18 miler was tough to do solo. Distance PR! Until the 20 mile run in 2 weeks.
Next week is a shorter long run . Then one last week with a long run until taper...
Week 14 will be: 6/7/6/12 =31 miles. I might need to break the 12 miler up into two 6 mile runs due to my weekend schedule. But that's ok. I could use a change.
Sunday, September 4, 2016
Week 12... a fun week with great weather
I really enjoyed this week of training. And the reason why was that I tried some new areas to run and just focused on getting it done.
Temperatures and humidity were far better this week. My pace saw a dramatic improvement.
5 miler on Monday... modified a neighborhood path a little to make it slightly longer and a little more interesting. 10:29 pace... felt nice and not too rushed.
8 miler on Wednesday, ran out and back a different route. I had been going to the metropark but decided to try something different. Not sure if I actually liked the route or not, but the run felt good. It was hotter at that point though. Pace was 10:42
5 miler on Thursday, a good pace day (9:53). Same path as Monday . But I like this way enough that I might keep it as a regular rotation for 5 mile possibilities.
13 miler on Saturday (had to make it 13.14 though because that seemed better to run a half marathon distance... yes, I'm weird like that). 10:18 pace which I was really happy with. I haven't run that fast on a long run in quite a while. The nice part was it felt great during the whole run. Didn't even think I was really pushing it because I didn't look much at my watch . I love those kind of runs. A funny thing did happen to me, though. At the running group Saturday we typically take a weird route to get to the park. I forgot where the turnoff was due to my spacing out during a good song and missed the point I was supposed to turn into the woods. I found myself looking around, and all the condominiums there look pretty much the same. Found a way to get back on track but it was a weird feeling. I get lost sometimes, I admit it...
Next week I increase again... doing a 19 miler (wow) next weekend. Already planned with someone else training for the marathon where we're going to meet. It will be a different trail but that's fine with me, because my old hangouts are getting old...
Next week: 6/7/5/19...37 miles... another high mileage week. Going to take this long run a little slower on purpose.
Temperatures and humidity were far better this week. My pace saw a dramatic improvement.
5 miler on Monday... modified a neighborhood path a little to make it slightly longer and a little more interesting. 10:29 pace... felt nice and not too rushed.
8 miler on Wednesday, ran out and back a different route. I had been going to the metropark but decided to try something different. Not sure if I actually liked the route or not, but the run felt good. It was hotter at that point though. Pace was 10:42
5 miler on Thursday, a good pace day (9:53). Same path as Monday . But I like this way enough that I might keep it as a regular rotation for 5 mile possibilities.
13 miler on Saturday (had to make it 13.14 though because that seemed better to run a half marathon distance... yes, I'm weird like that). 10:18 pace which I was really happy with. I haven't run that fast on a long run in quite a while. The nice part was it felt great during the whole run. Didn't even think I was really pushing it because I didn't look much at my watch . I love those kind of runs. A funny thing did happen to me, though. At the running group Saturday we typically take a weird route to get to the park. I forgot where the turnoff was due to my spacing out during a good song and missed the point I was supposed to turn into the woods. I found myself looking around, and all the condominiums there look pretty much the same. Found a way to get back on track but it was a weird feeling. I get lost sometimes, I admit it...
Next week I increase again... doing a 19 miler (wow) next weekend. Already planned with someone else training for the marathon where we're going to meet. It will be a different trail but that's fine with me, because my old hangouts are getting old...
Next week: 6/7/5/19...37 miles... another high mileage week. Going to take this long run a little slower on purpose.
Sunday, August 28, 2016
Week 11... Marathon training ramps up...18 miler out of town on an unfamiliar trail... getting it done
I didn't plan on running Monday after the trail race Sunday. But then the weather was perfect, and I realized that I really wanted to run . I really felt like running (ala Forrest Gump). So I did. For 6 miles. It was 75 degrees but the dew point was low at 55 and humidity 50%. It was pretty much a perfect day to run. Slight breeze in the air as well. And my pace was 10:07 which I didn't expect after the trail race. I'd been loving the change in the weather but I knew it wouldn't stay that way all week.
Wednesday run was another lower humidity day. Temperature was down a bit, too. However, my legs finally "felt" the trail run and 6 miler from Monday and pace was slower. But this was fine as I felt pretty good through most of it. Most of the runners and walkers on the metropark path seemed happier as the humidity and temperature were lower than they had been in a while for about 3 days straight. But that was about to change, unfortunately a turn to hotter temperatures started Wednesday afternoon.
Thursday did a 4 miler in the neighborhood. Pace was 10:53 as I was showing some increased fatigue, higher temperatures and humidity... Decided to think about how to approach the 18 miler Saturday . I'd been trying to plan for a course since I'd be out of town and not as familiar with the area. Did some mapping on the computer and came up with a plan.
Saturday was the out of town run. It was a trail system I had run on before, but never this far south. It runs along the WV side of the Ohio River in Wheeling, WV (Wheeling Heritage Trail). I previously did a 13 miler after my beach trip on part of this trail. This time I had 18 to do and planned to go south for about 6-7 miles (according to my calculations) and then planned to connect to another trail and go east. However, I changed my plan. I realized if I continued north past my start point, there would be more shade opposed to heading east. I also had never been on the east part of the trail that connected to this one and I decided it was better not to venture somewhere I wasn't sure of. I had run the north part of this trail many times in the past and was familiar with it. So that's what I did... also encountered some beautiful views during the run
Wanted to set a steady pace between 10:45-11 and for the most part I was able to achieve this (10:49 average pace). A few times I slowed down and a few times I sped up. But I kept an eye on my pace and tried to be mindful.
Wednesday run was another lower humidity day. Temperature was down a bit, too. However, my legs finally "felt" the trail run and 6 miler from Monday and pace was slower. But this was fine as I felt pretty good through most of it. Most of the runners and walkers on the metropark path seemed happier as the humidity and temperature were lower than they had been in a while for about 3 days straight. But that was about to change, unfortunately a turn to hotter temperatures started Wednesday afternoon.
Thursday did a 4 miler in the neighborhood. Pace was 10:53 as I was showing some increased fatigue, higher temperatures and humidity... Decided to think about how to approach the 18 miler Saturday . I'd been trying to plan for a course since I'd be out of town and not as familiar with the area. Did some mapping on the computer and came up with a plan.
Saturday was the out of town run. It was a trail system I had run on before, but never this far south. It runs along the WV side of the Ohio River in Wheeling, WV (Wheeling Heritage Trail). I previously did a 13 miler after my beach trip on part of this trail. This time I had 18 to do and planned to go south for about 6-7 miles (according to my calculations) and then planned to connect to another trail and go east. However, I changed my plan. I realized if I continued north past my start point, there would be more shade opposed to heading east. I also had never been on the east part of the trail that connected to this one and I decided it was better not to venture somewhere I wasn't sure of. I had run the north part of this trail many times in the past and was familiar with it. So that's what I did... also encountered some beautiful views during the run
Wanted to set a steady pace between 10:45-11 and for the most part I was able to achieve this (10:49 average pace). A few times I slowed down and a few times I sped up. But I kept an eye on my pace and tried to be mindful.
This was not the view from the trail, but a view from another bridge of an area that I ran past (WV side of the river). The trail goes next to this park.
One of the bridges I passed
Went past this historic tobacco factory which was on the south end of the city
Scenic view coming back. I enjoyed this part of the run, as there were a lot of clearings and I could see the Ohio side of the river and all the bridges very well.
At the north end of the trail when I started back, there was a dam and locks. I was glad to see this, as I knew I was approaching the end of my run (I've run this part before).
I was pleased to get a 18 mile distance PR on Saturday. This was a heavy week mileage wise. It was important to bring electrolyte water (nuun) a few gu's and a honey stinger waffle that I had at the half way point of this run. I also brought my camelbak 50oz of water with me. The backpack was a bit heavy at the start but I really needed it. In my mapping, I also noted where a few gas stations, convenience stores, and other places that might have restrooms were located. I think this is an important thing to do when one is doing long runs (especially solo long runs).
Next week mileage goes down a bit. Then the following week, I have a 19 miler scheduled. Really just 2 extremely long runs remain before the marathon. So I have to try to get that done in order to feel good about it. I know 26.2 is going to be a bit more than 20, but from what I've heard people usually can run 26.2 if they've done their training. I'm not sure it's a good idea to go too much more than 20 miles... however I have heard varying opinions on the mileage of one's last long run... Either way, I think sticking to 20 is my plan.
Week 12 will be 5/8/5/13 for a total of 31 miles.
Sunday, August 21, 2016
Week 10... Good running and a Review of the Hoot Half Marathon (Trail Run)
An interesting 5 mile run on Monday. Had planned to do it at around 7:30 am as part of my morning routine but then a really bad thunderstorm was predicted around 8:00. It was predicted, but didn't really get underway until maybe 8:30. So I probably could have done it then, but the radar looked scary and I wasn't sure about risking it. I estimated I'd be able to get a few miles in but if a really bad storm broke out, it could be a bad plan.
As a result, ended up going to work and running 5 over my lunch break. Ran down a different trail but I did enjoy it. Ran past the University stadium where the marching band was practicing. Made for kind of a fun (but humid after the storm passed) kind of run. Had to stop a few times due to heat, but overall it was a good one. The only thing that's weird about running at work is then I have to feel gross for the rest of the day. But you do what you have to do, right?
Wednesday I tried something new and ran to the local metropark. It worked out well to get 8 miles in from my starting point and I needed a change of scenery. You can only run your neighborhood or areas near where you work so many times and you get tired of it . Especially during marathon training. So I kept hearing we were to get a bad storm that day again. Mostly just rain, but downpours. Lightning and thunder were not predicted and looking at accuweather again it was just a steady light rain. So I decided to go for it . And I enjoyed it more than I thought I would. I'm not a huge fan of rain soaked shoes but I managed to pretty much keep a 10:30 pace the entire time with minimal stopping. One stop at halfway to gu up and go. Solo run with new headphones, visor and pouring down rain but it was very nice. Makes me remember why I ever started running in the first place during runs like this one.
Thursday was a shorter run, only 4 miles this time. Managed a similar pace but it was a little bit more humid and less rainy. Nothing too exciting about this one. Just a typical neighborhood run.
Sunday was my first trail half marathon and my 5th ever half marathon. I knew this would be a tough 13.1 as I looked at last year's times and found a few people I have known in my running group who run either the same pace or faster than I am in a typical race. For the 10k, a person about my same pace (maybe slightly faster) had about 1:30... for a 10k. For the half, one of the fastest people I've run with had just over 3 hours for the half. So... I braced myself for a tough trail race. Over 3 hours, most likely (and it was 3:35). What makes this one so hard is that there are tons and tons of tree roots, rocks, creeks, bridges, downed trees to hop over, etc all along the path. Most of the path is either grass or dirt with some gravel parts (but not many). The elevation changes are constant. They aren't actually as bad as the elevation changes in the Wheeling Ogden Half that I wrote about in May but it feels like it because of all the roots and rocks and mud...
Yes, and my Garmin tracked a path that looked very similar to this!
I averaged a 16:00/mile pace. But the funny thing was, I felt like I was moving the entire time. There were a few stops but not many. A group of 4 of us did the trail run and I think all of us fell at least one time (or more) over tree roots or some other obstacle.
The place actually is very beautiful and scenic. I'd love to go there and just to a leisurely hike some day with my family. The problem on this trail run was that to look at the scenery while running meant that you might forget to look at your feet and go flying over a tree root and injuring yourself!
I'm thankful for my awesome running friends for making it be actually not that bad. I think doing it alone would be super tough.
Was very grateful to see some running buddies volunteering along the course at the aid stops. We did ok until mile 11.5 where it wasn't clearly marked where to go and we got to this section that went out onto the road. We're running for maybe 0.2 mile and my friends and I start to wonder, what happened to all the arrows. This doesn't seem right... We head back and retrace our steps. Turns out we missed an arrow. I was pretty exhausted by that point about 3 hours in and made a joke about how maybe we slipped into another dimension and went to another period in time... Because it looked like a deserted finish line where we ended up. We joked that maybe we had been out so long that they packed it up. Luckily, it was just a wrong turn. I was a little bitter about having to finish up 0.4 miles going back in the woods for a second after I saw how close we were to the finish. The race organizers felt it was 0.4 mile short so they had everyone do that. I think after getting lost for about 0.4 miles I felt like I should be done... after all, I already did the 13.1... I actually ended up with 13.49 for my final mileage. But it's ok, we did it. It was a relief to see our friend from the running group cheering us all in at the end. Felt so good to finish!
As a result, ended up going to work and running 5 over my lunch break. Ran down a different trail but I did enjoy it. Ran past the University stadium where the marching band was practicing. Made for kind of a fun (but humid after the storm passed) kind of run. Had to stop a few times due to heat, but overall it was a good one. The only thing that's weird about running at work is then I have to feel gross for the rest of the day. But you do what you have to do, right?
Wednesday I tried something new and ran to the local metropark. It worked out well to get 8 miles in from my starting point and I needed a change of scenery. You can only run your neighborhood or areas near where you work so many times and you get tired of it . Especially during marathon training. So I kept hearing we were to get a bad storm that day again. Mostly just rain, but downpours. Lightning and thunder were not predicted and looking at accuweather again it was just a steady light rain. So I decided to go for it . And I enjoyed it more than I thought I would. I'm not a huge fan of rain soaked shoes but I managed to pretty much keep a 10:30 pace the entire time with minimal stopping. One stop at halfway to gu up and go. Solo run with new headphones, visor and pouring down rain but it was very nice. Makes me remember why I ever started running in the first place during runs like this one.
Thursday was a shorter run, only 4 miles this time. Managed a similar pace but it was a little bit more humid and less rainy. Nothing too exciting about this one. Just a typical neighborhood run.
Sunday was my first trail half marathon and my 5th ever half marathon. I knew this would be a tough 13.1 as I looked at last year's times and found a few people I have known in my running group who run either the same pace or faster than I am in a typical race. For the 10k, a person about my same pace (maybe slightly faster) had about 1:30... for a 10k. For the half, one of the fastest people I've run with had just over 3 hours for the half. So... I braced myself for a tough trail race. Over 3 hours, most likely (and it was 3:35). What makes this one so hard is that there are tons and tons of tree roots, rocks, creeks, bridges, downed trees to hop over, etc all along the path. Most of the path is either grass or dirt with some gravel parts (but not many). The elevation changes are constant. They aren't actually as bad as the elevation changes in the Wheeling Ogden Half that I wrote about in May but it feels like it because of all the roots and rocks and mud...
Yes, and my Garmin tracked a path that looked very similar to this!
I averaged a 16:00/mile pace. But the funny thing was, I felt like I was moving the entire time. There were a few stops but not many. A group of 4 of us did the trail run and I think all of us fell at least one time (or more) over tree roots or some other obstacle.
The place actually is very beautiful and scenic. I'd love to go there and just to a leisurely hike some day with my family. The problem on this trail run was that to look at the scenery while running meant that you might forget to look at your feet and go flying over a tree root and injuring yourself!
I'm thankful for my awesome running friends for making it be actually not that bad. I think doing it alone would be super tough.
Was very grateful to see some running buddies volunteering along the course at the aid stops. We did ok until mile 11.5 where it wasn't clearly marked where to go and we got to this section that went out onto the road. We're running for maybe 0.2 mile and my friends and I start to wonder, what happened to all the arrows. This doesn't seem right... We head back and retrace our steps. Turns out we missed an arrow. I was pretty exhausted by that point about 3 hours in and made a joke about how maybe we slipped into another dimension and went to another period in time... Because it looked like a deserted finish line where we ended up. We joked that maybe we had been out so long that they packed it up. Luckily, it was just a wrong turn. I was a little bitter about having to finish up 0.4 miles going back in the woods for a second after I saw how close we were to the finish. The race organizers felt it was 0.4 mile short so they had everyone do that. I think after getting lost for about 0.4 miles I felt like I should be done... after all, I already did the 13.1... I actually ended up with 13.49 for my final mileage. But it's ok, we did it. It was a relief to see our friend from the running group cheering us all in at the end. Felt so good to finish!
A flat section of the trail
Traversing some of the terrain. Don't let this picture fool you. Tons of roots sticking up every where causing falls, and some sprained ankles from what I heard from other runners. Really have to be careful on these trails. They even do a winter series here! Ice plus tree roots... wow!
Beautiful part of the lake trail where it's pretty flat. There weren't many sections like this!
Anyway, I did get my mileage in for the week.
Week 11 should be a doozy. 6 / 8 / 4 / 18.... for a total of 36 miles. Probably going to be one of my longer marathon training weeks with a nice wrap up on a new trail this Saturday. I'm going to have to track the path I'm taking (out of town again) and try to figure out where some convenience stores, gas stations and fast food places are along the way. I know there is a distinct possibility I may need to stop in somewhere to get water and other essentials. I've learned now...
Sunday, August 14, 2016
Week 9 ... I'm starting to wonder if it's just getting hotter every week
This week was a high mileage week without question. Unquestionably the highest mileage week I've ever done to this point.
And yet it seems to just get hotter and hotter as the summer goes on.
Another issue was that with the new school year starting I had to change the timing of my runs a little bit to work with bus stop pickup.
I also started to lengthen the weekday runs per my schedule which can make it difficult to get it done before it really starts to heat up.
Monday - 6 mile run. Was able to do this one in the morning. I had the best pace this week with 10:01 for this one. My Wednesday and Thursday runs were 10:19 and 10:27... The heat wasn't as bad for Monday's run so it allowed me to feel ok about a faster pace.
Weds - This was a tough one only because I had to start at almost 8am due to the bus schedule for school. But I was able to get my 7 miles in. Definitely needed to take some breaks for the heat.
Thurs - was able to get up early to do this one. I was grateful for that. It was a 4 miler so also went by fairly quickly. Pace was slower, but felt pretty good about this one. Going early in the morning makes a big difference. As soon as the summer sun comes up, it really increases the uncomfortable feeling.
Saturday - 77 degrees and 74 dew point when I started at 6:30 am. Thankfully, I had a friend meeting me for my 17 miler. She was willing to do 9 with me. Which is always a help, no matter how many miles a person can hang out for support. It was great to catch up with her and things went great. We purposely set a slower pace at 11/mile. Everything was great until the heat started to get to me and my stomach did not feel good around mile 6.5-7. I kept hoping for a rest spot but I knew the nearest one was a convenience store at mile 8. I made it but my friend moved on... which was fine and I told her to because I wasn't sure how long I would hold her up and I knew she wanted to be done. The running store was only a mile from there so I had confidence I'd make it there eventually. That break pretty much re-energized me and the weather turned. Clouds rolled in as well as a nice breeze. I decided to head to the running store and try to finish up my remaining 8 miles.
Before this 17 miler (which is my distance PR now) I had done a 16 miler back in April on a snowy day. This day was the complete opposite. I really wanted to have that distance PR. Since the running store does a 5 mile loop I didn't want to get so discouraged that I'd just do the 5 and finish at 14 miles. So I did what I felt was the most logical way to get 17 without quitting. I did 1.5 miles of the 5 mile loop, came back to the running store, got a drink of water, and finished up with the 5 mile loop. The running store employees are always so encouraging and I love being able to have that oasis there to drop in on. Stopped due to the heat several times in people's yards in the shade. Sat down in the grass a few times. Was overjoyed to see sprinklers and run through them. Also this was my first run with a camelbak which really helped me. 50 oz of water was needed! And brought nuun water as well as some gels to replenish energy
Another thing I'm working on is what to eat before a long run. I usually don't want to eat but probably should. I know I'd have more energy. But it's hard to know what won't cause stomach irritation, especially with the hot temperatures.
I sit here watching the Olympic Women's Marathon. It's amazing how fast these ladies are. Especially when the announcer says they are "holding back" their pace and they are at mile 19 and 1:44 into it. That's incredible. Under 2 hours is my dream half marathon time...
Next week I cut back a little which is going to be good for me.
Week 10 - 5 / 8/ 4 / 13... the 13 mile is a trail race that I'm just going to have fun with and not worry about the time. 30 miles next week.
And yet it seems to just get hotter and hotter as the summer goes on.
Another issue was that with the new school year starting I had to change the timing of my runs a little bit to work with bus stop pickup.
I also started to lengthen the weekday runs per my schedule which can make it difficult to get it done before it really starts to heat up.
Monday - 6 mile run. Was able to do this one in the morning. I had the best pace this week with 10:01 for this one. My Wednesday and Thursday runs were 10:19 and 10:27... The heat wasn't as bad for Monday's run so it allowed me to feel ok about a faster pace.
Weds - This was a tough one only because I had to start at almost 8am due to the bus schedule for school. But I was able to get my 7 miles in. Definitely needed to take some breaks for the heat.
Thurs - was able to get up early to do this one. I was grateful for that. It was a 4 miler so also went by fairly quickly. Pace was slower, but felt pretty good about this one. Going early in the morning makes a big difference. As soon as the summer sun comes up, it really increases the uncomfortable feeling.
Saturday - 77 degrees and 74 dew point when I started at 6:30 am. Thankfully, I had a friend meeting me for my 17 miler. She was willing to do 9 with me. Which is always a help, no matter how many miles a person can hang out for support. It was great to catch up with her and things went great. We purposely set a slower pace at 11/mile. Everything was great until the heat started to get to me and my stomach did not feel good around mile 6.5-7. I kept hoping for a rest spot but I knew the nearest one was a convenience store at mile 8. I made it but my friend moved on... which was fine and I told her to because I wasn't sure how long I would hold her up and I knew she wanted to be done. The running store was only a mile from there so I had confidence I'd make it there eventually. That break pretty much re-energized me and the weather turned. Clouds rolled in as well as a nice breeze. I decided to head to the running store and try to finish up my remaining 8 miles.
Before this 17 miler (which is my distance PR now) I had done a 16 miler back in April on a snowy day. This day was the complete opposite. I really wanted to have that distance PR. Since the running store does a 5 mile loop I didn't want to get so discouraged that I'd just do the 5 and finish at 14 miles. So I did what I felt was the most logical way to get 17 without quitting. I did 1.5 miles of the 5 mile loop, came back to the running store, got a drink of water, and finished up with the 5 mile loop. The running store employees are always so encouraging and I love being able to have that oasis there to drop in on. Stopped due to the heat several times in people's yards in the shade. Sat down in the grass a few times. Was overjoyed to see sprinklers and run through them. Also this was my first run with a camelbak which really helped me. 50 oz of water was needed! And brought nuun water as well as some gels to replenish energy
Another thing I'm working on is what to eat before a long run. I usually don't want to eat but probably should. I know I'd have more energy. But it's hard to know what won't cause stomach irritation, especially with the hot temperatures.
I sit here watching the Olympic Women's Marathon. It's amazing how fast these ladies are. Especially when the announcer says they are "holding back" their pace and they are at mile 19 and 1:44 into it. That's incredible. Under 2 hours is my dream half marathon time...
Next week I cut back a little which is going to be good for me.
Week 10 - 5 / 8/ 4 / 13... the 13 mile is a trail race that I'm just going to have fun with and not worry about the time. 30 miles next week.
Saturday, August 6, 2016
Week 8 - Or why one should never attempt to run in 90 degree weather and 72 dew point...
This week was a lot hotter than previous weeks. I didn't that that was possible after North Carolina, but somehow most of the lows never made it into the 60s this week. The temperatures of my running days were: 84 on Monday (but I did go later in the day - 6pm, to be fair); 70 Wednesday 6am; 72 Thursday 6:30 am; and then Friday I ran my long run early. 15 miles at 7pm and it was 90 degrees. Never doing that again!
All of my runs were over a 10 minute pace. The 15 miler was a 11 pace. But it needed to be and I'm actually pretty glad I took some walking breaks because that's what my body was telling me to do.
Monday I ran a little later in the day because my long run from the previous week had been so late that I didn't want to go again in the morning. Also I didn't want to wait until Tuesday knowing I had a long one Wednesday. And it was hot, but really not too bad.
Wednesday ran with two other people and it went well. Then they told me they were thinking of doing their long run Friday night. I thought about this possibility.
Thursday did a 4 miler, early in the morning and went average... 10 ish pace, warm weather for 6:30am
Friday was the hardest run I've ever done in my life (thus, the title of this entry). I had made up my mind that I'd do my long run Friday. I'm not really an evening runner but a few people had agreed to meet up and I thought I'd join them for a change and sleeping in Saturday. My pace overall didn't end up fast but it was really on target for the conditions when I look at it now (11:20). At the time I was really disappointed that I felt so sluggish but it was actually an ok pace. I'm starting to realize that I need to back off pace quite a bit and I've been more successful at working on that (maybe thanks to the temperatures and humidity.
But nothing prepared me for this . The first 5 miles were brutal. 90 degrees, sun was still out. I actually thought of giving up, even this early. Giving up usually doesn't enter my mind this soon. I typically stay pretty positive and try to complete the miles I have scheduled. That's how I knew this might be trouble. The other thing was I forgot my phone, which I never do. It completely throws me off to not have background music. So I'm facing one of the longest runs I've ever done (my record is 16 miles) with no music, extreme heat and humidity.
But I had committed and pushed through. A friend of ours was joining us for 10 of the 15 miles. We got to her car and she was kind enough to get us water, gatorade, fuel... seeing her car was like an oasis in the desert. So we took a break and then continued. I started to feel on and off like I was going to throw up. Realized I needed to monitor for heat illness symptoms. Decided to cut some of the running into intervals and throw some walking in there when I needed it. One of my friends hung back with me and was encouraging. There was a grocery store/gas station coming up. She told me if we just made it there, we could rest. I was having a lot of negative thoughts at that time but she turned on music on her phone and I tried to not let the thoughts take over.
Made it, rested, drank some smart water. Another friend was kind enough to bring cash and got us all water. I hadn't thought we might stop somewhere and hadn't figured this in. But I'm glad we did. Really love my running friends... couldn't have done it without them. The last 6 miles was running up a dark road (put on my headlight) and taking walking breaks when necessary. My friends told me if I fell behind where they'd be headed next and the path was pretty much straight so it worked out. Once I got to about 13 miles I figured I had it. The main thing that bothered me at the end was I felt like I was holding others back and I didn't want to do that. I just needed to take the walking breaks. Without music, my thoughts really varied. There were moments of negative thoughts, moments of random thoughts and then some positive ones (really more about being finished or getting to the next rest break, dreaming of what I might eat later). On the way back, stopped at one of the runner's houses for some water/ice around mile 11. Enjoyed the breaks when they came.
And eventually we finished. But I don't think I'll do that again if it's that hot/humid. It was certainly an adventure. So glad all of us were there for each other. And that is why I prefer to run with a group for long runs. It makes a huge difference!
Next week... longer runs, continued build up of mileage... Week 9... 6/7/4/17 ... 34 miles total
All of my runs were over a 10 minute pace. The 15 miler was a 11 pace. But it needed to be and I'm actually pretty glad I took some walking breaks because that's what my body was telling me to do.
Monday I ran a little later in the day because my long run from the previous week had been so late that I didn't want to go again in the morning. Also I didn't want to wait until Tuesday knowing I had a long one Wednesday. And it was hot, but really not too bad.
Wednesday ran with two other people and it went well. Then they told me they were thinking of doing their long run Friday night. I thought about this possibility.
Thursday did a 4 miler, early in the morning and went average... 10 ish pace, warm weather for 6:30am
Friday was the hardest run I've ever done in my life (thus, the title of this entry). I had made up my mind that I'd do my long run Friday. I'm not really an evening runner but a few people had agreed to meet up and I thought I'd join them for a change and sleeping in Saturday. My pace overall didn't end up fast but it was really on target for the conditions when I look at it now (11:20). At the time I was really disappointed that I felt so sluggish but it was actually an ok pace. I'm starting to realize that I need to back off pace quite a bit and I've been more successful at working on that (maybe thanks to the temperatures and humidity.
But nothing prepared me for this . The first 5 miles were brutal. 90 degrees, sun was still out. I actually thought of giving up, even this early. Giving up usually doesn't enter my mind this soon. I typically stay pretty positive and try to complete the miles I have scheduled. That's how I knew this might be trouble. The other thing was I forgot my phone, which I never do. It completely throws me off to not have background music. So I'm facing one of the longest runs I've ever done (my record is 16 miles) with no music, extreme heat and humidity.
But I had committed and pushed through. A friend of ours was joining us for 10 of the 15 miles. We got to her car and she was kind enough to get us water, gatorade, fuel... seeing her car was like an oasis in the desert. So we took a break and then continued. I started to feel on and off like I was going to throw up. Realized I needed to monitor for heat illness symptoms. Decided to cut some of the running into intervals and throw some walking in there when I needed it. One of my friends hung back with me and was encouraging. There was a grocery store/gas station coming up. She told me if we just made it there, we could rest. I was having a lot of negative thoughts at that time but she turned on music on her phone and I tried to not let the thoughts take over.
Made it, rested, drank some smart water. Another friend was kind enough to bring cash and got us all water. I hadn't thought we might stop somewhere and hadn't figured this in. But I'm glad we did. Really love my running friends... couldn't have done it without them. The last 6 miles was running up a dark road (put on my headlight) and taking walking breaks when necessary. My friends told me if I fell behind where they'd be headed next and the path was pretty much straight so it worked out. Once I got to about 13 miles I figured I had it. The main thing that bothered me at the end was I felt like I was holding others back and I didn't want to do that. I just needed to take the walking breaks. Without music, my thoughts really varied. There were moments of negative thoughts, moments of random thoughts and then some positive ones (really more about being finished or getting to the next rest break, dreaming of what I might eat later). On the way back, stopped at one of the runner's houses for some water/ice around mile 11. Enjoyed the breaks when they came.
And eventually we finished. But I don't think I'll do that again if it's that hot/humid. It was certainly an adventure. So glad all of us were there for each other. And that is why I prefer to run with a group for long runs. It makes a huge difference!
Next week... longer runs, continued build up of mileage... Week 9... 6/7/4/17 ... 34 miles total
Monday, August 1, 2016
Week 7 - at the beach
Well my first run of the week was a hot one again. 80 degrees, 73 for the dew point . I ran my 4 miles at a much slower pace, about 10:45. The day before I had some weird sort of stomach issue and a fever, but thankfully I was somewhat over it by Tuesday morning After the 9 miler on Sunday, I somewhat was used to the hot temperature and humidity.
Stores along the beach road at 5:45 am
Picture from newly finished Corolla Greenway
Wednesday was a longer run, it was similar weather conditions and I had 6 miles planned. It went better than expected and I got to explore a different part of the beach path and take a few more pictures... 11:05 average pace which was fine because the heat is hard and I was still partially recovering from random stomach issue.
Water tower from Wednesday's run. Nice path they have here...
Knee pulling weirdness started right after that. I think a part of that was going in the ocean this week and the way that the pull of the waves effects a person's legs and calves. So I didn't assume it was the running that did this to me. Decided to take off Thursday and do my last 4 miler on Friday.
Friday's run was the hottest yet. It was 81 degrees already at 5:40am. Decided to try running a short distance up to the walkup for the beach and then take shoes off, run along the shoreline and go back.... As anyone knows, running along the beach in running shoes/avoiding chafing due to sand is harder than expected. But it seemed to work out and the 4 miles went fast. 10:40 average pace. Also took a few pictures of the experience.
Stores along the beach road at 5:45 am
Picture from newly finished Corolla Greenway
Wednesday was a longer run, it was similar weather conditions and I had 6 miles planned. It went better than expected and I got to explore a different part of the beach path and take a few more pictures... 11:05 average pace which was fine because the heat is hard and I was still partially recovering from random stomach issue.
Water tower from Wednesday's run. Nice path they have here...
Knee pulling weirdness started right after that. I think a part of that was going in the ocean this week and the way that the pull of the waves effects a person's legs and calves. So I didn't assume it was the running that did this to me. Decided to take off Thursday and do my last 4 miler on Friday.
Friday's run was the hottest yet. It was 81 degrees already at 5:40am. Decided to try running a short distance up to the walkup for the beach and then take shoes off, run along the shoreline and go back.... As anyone knows, running along the beach in running shoes/avoiding chafing due to sand is harder than expected. But it seemed to work out and the 4 miles went fast. 10:40 average pace. Also took a few pictures of the experience.
Sand is a lot harder to run on logistically than one might think.
But I'm glad I caught the sunrise!
Due to travel I decided to postpone my long run until Sunday again. I had 13 miles scheduled.
Ended up doing it Sunday morning. Unfamiliar trail in some places. Usually I'm not traveling so I wouldn't typically run on this trail... but it was what I needed to do so I got my 13 miles in there. 13.14 to be exact. 10:40 pace but that was just fine with me. Humidity was a lot better in WV than it had been in NC last week. And it was about 10 degrees cooler with no sun and mist on the mountains. Elevation changes about 294 ft gain. But I got it done. Just in the nick of time to get over 100 miles for July 2016 (107.21 total when all was said and done). First 100 mile month.
Week 8 is going to be possibly a 30 mile week! 5/6/4/15 long run... This would be a first for me to get this many miles in a week. Not sure if I'll do the 5 miler Monday night or Tuesday morning next week, but most likely in the AM....
But I'm glad I caught the sunrise!
Due to travel I decided to postpone my long run until Sunday again. I had 13 miles scheduled.
Ended up doing it Sunday morning. Unfamiliar trail in some places. Usually I'm not traveling so I wouldn't typically run on this trail... but it was what I needed to do so I got my 13 miles in there. 13.14 to be exact. 10:40 pace but that was just fine with me. Humidity was a lot better in WV than it had been in NC last week. And it was about 10 degrees cooler with no sun and mist on the mountains. Elevation changes about 294 ft gain. But I got it done. Just in the nick of time to get over 100 miles for July 2016 (107.21 total when all was said and done). First 100 mile month.
Week 8 is going to be possibly a 30 mile week! 5/6/4/15 long run... This would be a first for me to get this many miles in a week. Not sure if I'll do the 5 miler Monday night or Tuesday morning next week, but most likely in the AM....
Sunday, July 24, 2016
Week 6... finished it up later due to vacation
This week was a reduction in miles which was welcomed as the long run day I would be on vacation . The humidity was pretty high this week. I was able to get some of my runs down to a more reasonable pace.
Monday I was outrunning a serious thunderstorm which I don't recommend . It told me I had 50 minutes until the thunderstorm started (thanks minute by minute tracker from accuweather) and that was correct . As soon as I finished my 4 miler, the storm hit . I was able to do negative splits due to the storm... avg 9:56/mile with 10:21; 10:00; 9:46; 9:31 for the miles... felt good about that. Outrunning a storm can help your splits... The last mile I felt the wind pick up and so I just moved fast! Reminds me of this picture.... in jest... I would never actually go out if there was a tornado approaching/tornado warning:
Wednesday met with my usual running crowd to do 6 miles. Slower pace (which was welcomed). 10:53/mile.... I think we were all tired that day.
Friday did my last run before vacation. 4 miles at 9:25 pace... it was actually pretty hot/humid but we felt motivated to run faster. Met up with another runner in a different place. Stomach was feeling bad during the run and I had to take an unexpected break but it ended up working out well.
My final run for the week wasn't until Sunday due to traveling for vacation. It was a 9 miler along a beach bike path. It was super hot that morning so I started out at 5:30am! 79 degrees, dew point of 75. It was a difficult journey. Probably this was the run that I struggled the most throughout my lifetime of running. I can't think of many that were harder due to the humidity and temperature... but I got through it.
Next week is week 7. I will actually start it on Tuesday due to getting my long run in later for week 6.
Mileage totals should be about 4/6/4/13 for a total of 27 miles...
Monday I was outrunning a serious thunderstorm which I don't recommend . It told me I had 50 minutes until the thunderstorm started (thanks minute by minute tracker from accuweather) and that was correct . As soon as I finished my 4 miler, the storm hit . I was able to do negative splits due to the storm... avg 9:56/mile with 10:21; 10:00; 9:46; 9:31 for the miles... felt good about that. Outrunning a storm can help your splits... The last mile I felt the wind pick up and so I just moved fast! Reminds me of this picture.... in jest... I would never actually go out if there was a tornado approaching/tornado warning:
Wednesday met with my usual running crowd to do 6 miles. Slower pace (which was welcomed). 10:53/mile.... I think we were all tired that day.
Friday did my last run before vacation. 4 miles at 9:25 pace... it was actually pretty hot/humid but we felt motivated to run faster. Met up with another runner in a different place. Stomach was feeling bad during the run and I had to take an unexpected break but it ended up working out well.
My final run for the week wasn't until Sunday due to traveling for vacation. It was a 9 miler along a beach bike path. It was super hot that morning so I started out at 5:30am! 79 degrees, dew point of 75. It was a difficult journey. Probably this was the run that I struggled the most throughout my lifetime of running. I can't think of many that were harder due to the humidity and temperature... but I got through it.
Next week is week 7. I will actually start it on Tuesday due to getting my long run in later for week 6.
Mileage totals should be about 4/6/4/13 for a total of 27 miles...
Sunday, July 17, 2016
Week 5
I've already had a few posts this week so I covered the track workout Tuesday and having to treadmill at 3am on Weds morning... But basically it went pretty well with staying on track with ideal pace
So the plan was as follows: 4/6/3/12 for a total of 25 miles.
Monday 4 miles with a relatively progressive pace and average 9:55/mi
Tuesday I picked up about 1.8 unexpected miles doing warm up/cool down at the track workout. A part of that was sprint drills so was definitely pushing the pace there.
Wednesday was the 3am insomniac treadmill session for 6 miles. The pace was really hard to say because I feel my treadmill's calibration is off since I rarely use it. I spent about 1 hour, 18 minutes on it so its possible it was actually more than 6 miles.
Thursday I was able to do 3 miles but I was still considerably sore from the track workout. It was another progressive run and the average was 10:21/mi
Saturday I did get my 12 miles in. Was able to find some company and kept the pace down and even took a few walk breaks. It was hot but not overly humid. 10:23/mi which was close to the 10:30-11 was aiming for. Felt like a good run.
Overall I ended up 26.85 miles for the week.
Next week I will cut back some.
Plan : 4/6/4/9 = 23 miles total
So the plan was as follows: 4/6/3/12 for a total of 25 miles.
Monday 4 miles with a relatively progressive pace and average 9:55/mi
Tuesday I picked up about 1.8 unexpected miles doing warm up/cool down at the track workout. A part of that was sprint drills so was definitely pushing the pace there.
Wednesday was the 3am insomniac treadmill session for 6 miles. The pace was really hard to say because I feel my treadmill's calibration is off since I rarely use it. I spent about 1 hour, 18 minutes on it so its possible it was actually more than 6 miles.
Thursday I was able to do 3 miles but I was still considerably sore from the track workout. It was another progressive run and the average was 10:21/mi
Saturday I did get my 12 miles in. Was able to find some company and kept the pace down and even took a few walk breaks. It was hot but not overly humid. 10:23/mi which was close to the 10:30-11 was aiming for. Felt like a good run.
Overall I ended up 26.85 miles for the week.
Next week I will cut back some.
Plan : 4/6/4/9 = 23 miles total
Thursday, July 14, 2016
Safety and Temperature, Dew Point, Slower pace post
I realize that I need to post this.... It's very important to think about temperature and pace (as well as dew point, humidity, etc).
Came across a few interesting charts. First, this one:
This one just demonstrates that pace will likely slow down with temperature, and it should. However, I think the most important thing to remember is dew point/humidity makes the biggest difference in one's pace.
So I came across this on another running blog (http://maximumperformancerunning.blogspot.com/2013/07/temperature-dew-point.html)
So essentially what you want to do is find out the temperature and dew point and add them together. This will produce a number that will give you some additional information.
100 or less: no pace adjustment
What you do with this number is see the chart below:
For myself, I'm going to say 9:30 or 10:00 pace. On a really humid day, I'm running maybe a minute per mile slower than I would on a typical day. For example, today was 68 for the dew point and about 67 degrees when I woke up. Which produces 135. That is about a 2-3% pace adjustment. If I was aiming for 10:00min/mile I would actually want to go about 15 seconds per mile slower to account for this.
Important to keep in mind!
End of safety announcement fellow runners.
Came across a few interesting charts. First, this one:
So I came across this on another running blog (http://maximumperformancerunning.blogspot.com/2013/07/temperature-dew-point.html)
So essentially what you want to do is find out the temperature and dew point and add them together. This will produce a number that will give you some additional information.
100 or less: no pace adjustment
101 to 110: 0% to 0.5% pace adjustment
111 to 120: 0.5% to 1.0% pace adjustment
121 to 130: 1.0% to 2.0% pace adjustment
131 to 140: 2.0% to 3.0% pace adjustment
141 to 150: 3.0% to 4.5% pace adjustment
151 to 160: 4.5% to 6.0% pace adjustment
161 to 170: 6.0% to 8.0% pace adjustment
171 to 180: 8.0% to 10.0% pace adjustment
Above 180: hard running not recommended
What you do with this number is see the chart below:
Important to keep in mind!
End of safety announcement fellow runners.
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