Wow, 2 months since I posted. Strange, but sometimes life happens. It's been a rough couple months but I have been running with some consistency at least and hopefully it will pay off. I've been trying to find a 5k to race that fits into my schedule to test my fitness but things seem to come up every weekend and I haven't had the opportunity yet.
I have started my marathon training more or less and have some long runs coming up. I'm sort of wishing I had more time to train, increase mileage and gain speed but I'll just have to do my best. October seems far away right now but the summer flies by and there just aren't that many weeks.
I have a few speed workouts on my watch I'd like to upload soon if only for my own sake. It's nice to have a record to gauge my progress against. I still need to do more tempo runs and actually run a few races but other than that running is going okay.
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Just the numbers.
Here are my intervals from last Tuesday and this Tuesday.
The only other run I did was a slow 3.5ish run Sunday. The weather was crap and I was just sort of down and not feeling it all week. I did do my core workout Wednesday but Thursday-Saturday were a big FAIL. I also didn't eat the best which generally brings my mood down and my weight up. However, I haven't weighed myself in a while. If I see weight gain on the scale it translates to slower running in my head so I try and avoid the scale before a race.
The only other run I did was a slow 3.5ish run Sunday. The weather was crap and I was just sort of down and not feeling it all week. I did do my core workout Wednesday but Thursday-Saturday were a big FAIL. I also didn't eat the best which generally brings my mood down and my weight up. However, I haven't weighed myself in a while. If I see weight gain on the scale it translates to slower running in my head so I try and avoid the scale before a race.
From last Tuesday:
5 1/4 intervals with 1/4 recoveries - 4.5 miles total.
1:25
1:31
1:33
1:31
1:27
From this Tuesday:
2 1/2 intervals + 3 1/4 intervals with 1/4 recoveries - a bit over 4 miles total
3:10
1:31
1:33
1:34
3:30 (I was really stuggling in the middle of this interval - should have picked it up more)
It was raining the whole run tonight. In fact its been raining most of the week.
My running goals for the rest of this week are to
1) Do a tempo run
2) Do a run over 6 miles.
This needs to happen so hold me accountable!! I'm pressed for time because I'm going home for Easter this weekend. Do you guys celebrate/have plans? I still hunt Easter eggs even though I'm 30 because I'm mature like that.
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Skunk Recap
Sunday I ran the Skunk Cabbage Classic. I guess it is named for the Skunk Cabbages along the course - only somehow I missed them. God knows there was nothing else to look at so I'm not sure how - maybe because I don't have the slightest idea what a skunk cabbage looks like but no matter. There was a pretty sweet pheasant farm we passed twice...but I digress. The race was pretty small but it seemed like there were some fast runners there. There was a 10k as well as the half and that started 15 minutes beforehand. The race started late - 10:15 so there was plenty of time for me to eat breakfast (pb, banana, honey on a sandwich thin) and have coffee, find the start and get registered without waking up insanely early. Before you get bored, my finsh time was 1:48:27, pace 8:17. So I made my sub 1:50 goal! Okay, I realize it may not look that impressive to some of you, and may look great to others, but this was a pretty good run for me. I hadn't done a lot of distance lately and this is almost 7 minutes faster than my previous half-marathon PR which was 1:55 and change. Granted, I've only actually run 2 halfers - not counting the 2 halves of the full I did, but still a significant improvement. And, I faxed in my time to Chicago so hopefully I'll get into a corral for the Chicago marathon. I think it will make me feel better just because the race is going to be so giant that even though there would be 4000 people in my corral that is better than not being in one.
This is one of the hardest races I've done - I think partly because of the distance and while the hills weren't anything major - they did wear me down after a while. I think the other reason was because they didn't allow ipods as the roads weren't closed for the race. That was a long freakin' time for me to run on my own with no music - and the race was out in the country so there was nothing to look at. It was mind-bogglingly boring and hard to stay in it mentally. But I kept going and got through it at my goal pace. I'd love to get this pace closer to 8s for a half in the fall - and I think I could run faster on a flatter course but all in all I'm very happy with the run.
I also kept my splits pretty even - it was nice not to go out too fast and see really slow splits at the end of the race. I think the gradual uphill start helped - mile 4 was actually my slowest mile of the race and I think I ran the first and second halves in almost exactly the same time. I took a couple clif shot blocks and some gatorade, starting right before mile 7 which I think helped too. Although, I still need to perfect my eating/drinking while running technique. I wanted one more clif shot instead of the gatorade but didn't get a water so, oh well. Whatever.
The other good news is I'm recovering a lot faster than I did from the hilly 10 last weekend. I ran 4.5 today with 5 quarter intervals and felt pretty good. I'll have to get my splits from that up but I'm tired so for now here is what Garmin had to say about my race: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/78568965 That's it, I'm out!
Saturday, April 9, 2011
1/2 is tomorrow - wish me luck!
Well, tomorrow is the big day. In a couple minutes I'm going to have to stop reading blogs and get packed up for our mini trip to Ithaca, NY for the Skunk Cabbage Classic. Ithaca is only an hour or so from here but we decided to leisurely drive out today and spend the night there. The race actually starts late tomorrow - 10:15 so I could have driven out on my own but this sounded more fun. The race is the Skunk Cabbage Half Marathon: http://www.halfmarathons.net/usa_half_marathons_new_york_skunk_cabbage_classic_half_marathon.html That elevation profile is making me tired just looking at it. I've said it on here before but my goal is to break 1:50. I'm not as prepared as I should be but it seems like I should be able to do this. I'm worried about the challenging course, or if it is a windy day - but I'm just going to try my best and stay positive! I know a lot of it is mental.
After the race we are planning to meet my parents here for brunch - the menu looks like it will almost be worth the pain of running the race: http://www.carriagehousecafe.com/ 
Monday, April 4, 2011
Recovery...
Today I ran a couple miles and then did most of my core workout. It was so nice outside I had to run a little but honestly I could still feel Saturday's run in my legs. Obviously the biggest problem is I don't run enough mileage consistently but does anyone have any tips for a faster recovery?
I try to eat protein after hard workouts and I have been wearing my compression socks. I am REALLY bad about icing, I really only do it if something is hurting. And by hurting I don't mean sore, I mean when it feels like something is off, sometimes my hip or knee will bug me and I'll ice it just to ward off injury. I should probably make it a point to ice after long runs...
I'm really long overdo for some blog updates and pictures so I apologize for that and will try and work on it. I'm still new to this and haven't really had a lot of time. Actually, I just spend my time reading other blogs instead of beautifying mine. haha.
GO UCONN!!
Sunday, April 3, 2011
It's on!
Okay, I'm still sick but I did manage to get in my 10 miler yesterday morning. I'm going to try and link to the garmin data - check out the hills: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/76949805
I've been having some trouble with my garmin finding satellites - I think I ran about .6 miles before my garmin connected - it does not like getting up early! I actually think the buildings "downtown" at the beginning of the run got in the way when I first turned it on. So, I think my run was just about 10 miles even though the Garmin has 9.32. Time was 1:18:34 (8:26 pace). The run felt hard although I didn't really feel like I was going that fast - so I was pleasantly surprised with my time being as good as it was. Like I said - my goal for the race would be sub-80 but I'm sick and certainly was having problems pushing it, and I was chatting for part of the run and stopped at a water stop so I still think that is a reasonable goal.
How do you guys deal with water stops? I typically do NOT like stopping completely but got trapped behind people yesterday and had to.
Also notable, I did not use my ipod at all. I tend to depend on my ipod for runs but this one seemed fine without it, I had it with me and just never ended up using it! I know I should get used to running without it but sometimes I need that extra push. Do you run with music?
So - based on my performance yesterday, I think I'm going to try and do that half next weekend. I just need to focus on sub 1:50 and not try and go out too hard. I feel like I should be able to do this, I think I could have done another 3 or so miles yesterday at the same pace if they were flat miles. Hopefully I'm not completely off base there!
In other news, the Yankees ( I love AJ Burnett and am ready for him to have another great year) AND UConn both won yesterday. An amazing sports day for me! I'm a Syracuse fan but since they are out I am cheering on the Big East all the way! I also really admire Kemba Walker and would love to see lead the Huskies to a championship! We had friends over yesterday for the game and it was really fun. We're trying to entertain more - and I think we also need more "couple" friends to hang out with. We all really clicked yesterday and it was a fun vibe. We did chili and pulled pork so no stress about dinner cause everything could just stay in the crockpot and be ready whenever. Lots of food and good times :) Now I'm just trying to take it easy today - maybe work a little and get over this cold. I'm planning on a speed workout Tuesday and maybe 2 other runs, somewhat easy this week and then the race is next Sunday!
Thursday, March 31, 2011
the goat
Okay, I got sidelined with a cold this week - serves me right for complaining huh? But before that - I did get in a decent tempo type workout with some hill action on Saturday morning.
There's actually a pretty awesome 10 mile race here May 1st - The Mountain Goat Run. I ran it a couple years ago and have been wanting to do it again since but it conflicts with the time we have been taking vacation. I'd love to do it this year, but since I am certainly not a competitive runner by any means I do try to keep running in perspective and figure the time is more important to spend with my husband. Although, fair is fair and next year I think we should go a week earlier or later so I can run my race! Anyway - here is the elevation profile for the course:
Piece of cake right? haha. There are two killer hills...the last one after mile 6 really gets you. Lucky for me they have training runs for this race so I get the fun of running the course even without being able to do the race.
This coming weekend I plan to do the whole thing for my long run, but last Saturday I just did the first half, 45:15 for the 5.66 miles (8:00 avg pace which was my goal!) and my splits were:
7:55, 8:37, 8:19, 7:45, 7:34, 7:42 (last .66)
I was very happy with this run and my negative split times. That is something I need to work on. Again, clearly I really struggled with my pace on the hill. My goal for the race would be to break 80 minutes and this run felt hard so I don't think I'm there yet. Then I got sick and didn't run or workout until today when I just ran an easy 3. Oops.
I am going to be in so much trouble if I do that half next week. haha. The plan right now is to run 10 or 11 Saturday morning and if it goes okay do the half I originally planned on next weekend. Yes, I am horribly prepared and haven't run long much at all...yet somehow I still think I can pull a sub-1:50? Hopefully I'm not setting myself up for disappointment, but if nothing else it will help me gauge my actual fitness vs. where I'd like to be at this point!
Friday, March 25, 2011
blah week
So, I'm having a very lackluster training week. I'm blaming it on the return of winter! Seriously, more snow? More cold? And next week doesn't look a lot better. sigh.
Anyway, I did do some intervals with the group Tuesday - the group in general is faster than me so I was feeling like they sucked but they may have been my fastest of the year
1/4 - 1:27/1:28 (evidentally I haven't mastered the art of the Garmin yet!)
1/4 - 1:29
1/4 - 1:33ish?
1/2 - 3:24
4 miles total. So, whatever. I felt like I should have done another int, for some reason I have it in my head that doing less than 5 intervals isn't really helping much...thoughts?
Did my strength training Wednesday and then just ran a couple miles yesterday. Nothing at all last weekend. So I should have tons of energy for my run tomorrow. I really don't feel like getting up early in the cold but we're busy later in the day so I'm going to do an early group run with a big hill. Probably about 6 miles, but if I can find a group that is running my pace I'll do 10.
Time is running out if I'm going to do a half next month so I'll need to get a 10+ run in soon.
I need some training tips for getting my 5k down to a 7:00 pace this year. And by mid-June I have a big goal for a sub 25 minute 3.5 miler.
Anyway, I did do some intervals with the group Tuesday - the group in general is faster than me so I was feeling like they sucked but they may have been my fastest of the year
1/4 - 1:27/1:28 (evidentally I haven't mastered the art of the Garmin yet!)
1/4 - 1:29
1/4 - 1:33ish?
1/2 - 3:24
4 miles total. So, whatever. I felt like I should have done another int, for some reason I have it in my head that doing less than 5 intervals isn't really helping much...thoughts?
Did my strength training Wednesday and then just ran a couple miles yesterday. Nothing at all last weekend. So I should have tons of energy for my run tomorrow. I really don't feel like getting up early in the cold but we're busy later in the day so I'm going to do an early group run with a big hill. Probably about 6 miles, but if I can find a group that is running my pace I'll do 10.
Time is running out if I'm going to do a half next month so I'll need to get a 10+ run in soon.
I need some training tips for getting my 5k down to a 7:00 pace this year. And by mid-June I have a big goal for a sub 25 minute 3.5 miler.
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Boring Entry...
Workouts this week went sort of like
4 mile run last Saturday
2.75ish Monday (2 miles fast - under 7:30 pace)
6.5 Tuesday (2 miles on own 4.5 with group)
Strength workout Wednesday
4 miles Thursday with intervals
.5 mile 3:10
.25 - 1:30
.25 - 1:31
.25 - 1:40 (getting tired, more into wind)
.5 - 3:36 (wtf? I forgot it was an interval after the first .25 haha)
Going away again this weekend so it's going to be hard to get some more miles in but we'll see what I can do. Go BIG EAST!!
4 mile run last Saturday
2.75ish Monday (2 miles fast - under 7:30 pace)
6.5 Tuesday (2 miles on own 4.5 with group)
Strength workout Wednesday
4 miles Thursday with intervals
.5 mile 3:10
.25 - 1:30
.25 - 1:31
.25 - 1:40 (getting tired, more into wind)
.5 - 3:36 (wtf? I forgot it was an interval after the first .25 haha)
Going away again this weekend so it's going to be hard to get some more miles in but we'll see what I can do. Go BIG EAST!!
Thursday, March 10, 2011
more for the core
It's been a tough week of workouts for me and unless you like reading detailed stuff this will probably be a boring post. Actually, this is more like a workout journal than a blog so far...
I probably should have taken a "before" photo to post huh?
Sunday I started my core strength routine. I did
10 Burpees - See Katie's blog here for a demo if you don't know what a burpee is: http://bikinirun.blogspot.com/2011/01/burpee-contest-and-demo.html
I just recently found her blog and have been loving it. Very motivating!
Bowflex - chest press, fly, tricep extensions
dips, squats
reverse lunges with weights
elevated planks
elevated side planks
pilates ab series + teasers
I was SORE on Monday after this on top of the effort from Saturday's race. But I STILL did my long run because I'm hard core like that. Plus my long run is only 10 miles at this point. I did 10.08 in 1:25:44. 8:30 average. However, that was my moving time - it actually took me longer than this to make it home because I had some stomach issues. I don't usually have problems when I run but I had to stop twice on my route to use the bathroom. Luckily there was a convenience store/gas station and one in the park on my way otherwise I'm not sure what I would have done...called my husband to pick me up and cried until he got there I guess. After the first 5 miles the stomach issues went away and the run got better until mile 10 which was tough. Mile 8 was my fastest at 8:11 which I'm happy about. I mean I want my pace faster than this but I'm happy that I was able to keep it consistent. I think my only mile over 9:00 pace was because I had to weight for a light during mile 5.
Tuesday I took off because I was really sore.
Wednesday I did intervals again however the girl I ran with and I were both sore so we only did 4 1/4s. I know that's pretty lame and it almost doesn't count but the point is I did them and logged 4 more miles for the week in the process.
Splits: 1:29, 1:35, 1:30, 1:35.
Okay, a little better. And my legs hurt. I know I should have done at least one more but at least one of them is under 1:30. That's improvement.
I don't remember the reps from Sunday but I did basically the same workout as above again today (Thursday) with the following:
12 burpees (legs less sore but these still kill me - the jump up gets me)
2x12 bench press 50lbs (yep, I'm a wuss)
2x10 fly 20lb
2x10 tricep extension 20 lb
20 dips - this was tough, I keep my feet elevated on a stool
20 squats (100 lbs)
2 sets of 12 reps reverse lunges with 10 lb weights
10 elevated planks, 5 elevated side planks each side
pilates ab series + teasers
chest pullups with bar - 4 with legs straight, 6 with bent legs.
It takes me about 25-30 minutes for the whole she-bang.
Okay, it took me three tries to get to this point without my computer locking up on me so I'm posting now! Tomorrow is Friday!!
I probably should have taken a "before" photo to post huh?
Sunday I started my core strength routine. I did
10 Burpees - See Katie's blog here for a demo if you don't know what a burpee is: http://bikinirun.blogspot.com/2011/01/burpee-contest-and-demo.html
I just recently found her blog and have been loving it. Very motivating!
Bowflex - chest press, fly, tricep extensions
dips, squats
reverse lunges with weights
elevated planks
elevated side planks
pilates ab series + teasers
I was SORE on Monday after this on top of the effort from Saturday's race. But I STILL did my long run because I'm hard core like that. Plus my long run is only 10 miles at this point. I did 10.08 in 1:25:44. 8:30 average. However, that was my moving time - it actually took me longer than this to make it home because I had some stomach issues. I don't usually have problems when I run but I had to stop twice on my route to use the bathroom. Luckily there was a convenience store/gas station and one in the park on my way otherwise I'm not sure what I would have done...called my husband to pick me up and cried until he got there I guess. After the first 5 miles the stomach issues went away and the run got better until mile 10 which was tough. Mile 8 was my fastest at 8:11 which I'm happy about. I mean I want my pace faster than this but I'm happy that I was able to keep it consistent. I think my only mile over 9:00 pace was because I had to weight for a light during mile 5.
Tuesday I took off because I was really sore.
Wednesday I did intervals again however the girl I ran with and I were both sore so we only did 4 1/4s. I know that's pretty lame and it almost doesn't count but the point is I did them and logged 4 more miles for the week in the process.
Splits: 1:29, 1:35, 1:30, 1:35.
Okay, a little better. And my legs hurt. I know I should have done at least one more but at least one of them is under 1:30. That's improvement.
I don't remember the reps from Sunday but I did basically the same workout as above again today (Thursday) with the following:
12 burpees (legs less sore but these still kill me - the jump up gets me)
2x12 bench press 50lbs (yep, I'm a wuss)
2x10 fly 20lb
2x10 tricep extension 20 lb
20 dips - this was tough, I keep my feet elevated on a stool
20 squats (100 lbs)
2 sets of 12 reps reverse lunges with 10 lb weights
10 elevated planks, 5 elevated side planks each side
pilates ab series + teasers
chest pullups with bar - 4 with legs straight, 6 with bent legs.
It takes me about 25-30 minutes for the whole she-bang.
Okay, it took me three tries to get to this point without my computer locking up on me so I'm posting now! Tomorrow is Friday!!
Saturday, March 5, 2011
race recap
So this morning I ran the Tipperary Hill Shamrock run. Why do I continue to torture myself by signing up for races with "hill" and "mountain" in the name?
haha. The race was great, very well organized, no issues parking, a little over 2000 participants, good crowd support, plenty of water, and G2 (Jeter Juice!).
The weather, not so great. Rainy although it had slowed to a drizzle and then stopped for most of the time I was running but more troublesome - extremely windy! And somehow they planned it so all the uphills would be into the wind!!
Anyway, onto the numbers.
My net time was 30:44, 7:41 pace
I don't really care about age group/place results - you know unless I win something which is almost never. haha
My Garmin splits show how lopsided the course was in terms of elevation - first mile almost entirely downhill and miles 2.5-3.5 almost entirely uphill!
Garmin said:
4.00 miles
30:28 mins
mile 1 - 6:43 (?!)
mile 2 - 7:28
mile 3 - 8:22
mile 4 - 7:55
I think my garmin mapped out 4.05 miles hence the time discrepancy which is really pretty accurate. I had to take some wide corners due to crowding so there would be a difference there. Also, I still haven't mastered the art of stopping my garmin when I cross the line. I accidentally restarted it twice, and then again on the drive home (that was my fastest split) so I didn't get my garmin pace.
Anyway, my splits look very uneven - way worse than they are. The first mile felt ridiculously easy but I did try to push it to have a time buffer. The second mile felt harder as there was some uphill so that must have been when my legs got to work. The third mile I completely fell off pace, the final hill killed me - the slight rolling hills had taken more of a toll than I thought and I was winded. My abs really felt it too, I've done a bit of hill work, actually I haven't really been training again for long but still, I was disappointed in this effort. Since the first half of the course had been relatively easy I was hoping to have more left at that point. I think running into the wind might have made a difference here as well. The final mile is a little more uphill and then around a loop to the finish. I had anticipated that I could pick it up again and finish pretty strong! The problem was, I had very little left! I think more of this mile was uphill than I realized because I did try to push it on the flatter areas but it was still tough to get under 8 min/mile pace.
So overall, I'm okay with my time. I mean, it's the first race of the year, I've only done 3 interval sessions and while I've been running conistently and more miles the past couple months - I wasn't really doing much consistently all fall/winter. So given that this was a hilly course and the weather was tough - rainy/windy I'm okay with it.
I am disappointed I couldn't hold it together better for the hill at the end. I thought I could still keep the pace down to 8:30s for the hard part of the hill and I clearly did not. I also had a hard time recovering at all after the hill and just wanted to be done at that point.
So I have quite a bit of work to do but its a start. I really want to get my 5k pace down to 7:00 min/miles. It won't be easy but I'm going to work at it.
I also think I need to start working on my core and doing some exercises there. I haven't done any weight training at all and know its lacking. I'm going to do a more detailed post on some of my planned training and goals soon!
Next up, a couple of longer races! I need to get a long run in soon, tomorrow if I feel okay otherwise I'll have to be good with my time Monday to fit it in.
haha. The race was great, very well organized, no issues parking, a little over 2000 participants, good crowd support, plenty of water, and G2 (Jeter Juice!).
The weather, not so great. Rainy although it had slowed to a drizzle and then stopped for most of the time I was running but more troublesome - extremely windy! And somehow they planned it so all the uphills would be into the wind!!
Anyway, onto the numbers.
My net time was 30:44, 7:41 pace
I don't really care about age group/place results - you know unless I win something which is almost never. haha
My Garmin splits show how lopsided the course was in terms of elevation - first mile almost entirely downhill and miles 2.5-3.5 almost entirely uphill!
Garmin said:
4.00 miles
30:28 mins
mile 1 - 6:43 (?!)
mile 2 - 7:28
mile 3 - 8:22
mile 4 - 7:55
I think my garmin mapped out 4.05 miles hence the time discrepancy which is really pretty accurate. I had to take some wide corners due to crowding so there would be a difference there. Also, I still haven't mastered the art of stopping my garmin when I cross the line. I accidentally restarted it twice, and then again on the drive home (that was my fastest split) so I didn't get my garmin pace.
Anyway, my splits look very uneven - way worse than they are. The first mile felt ridiculously easy but I did try to push it to have a time buffer. The second mile felt harder as there was some uphill so that must have been when my legs got to work. The third mile I completely fell off pace, the final hill killed me - the slight rolling hills had taken more of a toll than I thought and I was winded. My abs really felt it too, I've done a bit of hill work, actually I haven't really been training again for long but still, I was disappointed in this effort. Since the first half of the course had been relatively easy I was hoping to have more left at that point. I think running into the wind might have made a difference here as well. The final mile is a little more uphill and then around a loop to the finish. I had anticipated that I could pick it up again and finish pretty strong! The problem was, I had very little left! I think more of this mile was uphill than I realized because I did try to push it on the flatter areas but it was still tough to get under 8 min/mile pace.
So overall, I'm okay with my time. I mean, it's the first race of the year, I've only done 3 interval sessions and while I've been running conistently and more miles the past couple months - I wasn't really doing much consistently all fall/winter. So given that this was a hilly course and the weather was tough - rainy/windy I'm okay with it.
I am disappointed I couldn't hold it together better for the hill at the end. I thought I could still keep the pace down to 8:30s for the hard part of the hill and I clearly did not. I also had a hard time recovering at all after the hill and just wanted to be done at that point.
So I have quite a bit of work to do but its a start. I really want to get my 5k pace down to 7:00 min/miles. It won't be easy but I'm going to work at it.
I also think I need to start working on my core and doing some exercises there. I haven't done any weight training at all and know its lacking. I'm going to do a more detailed post on some of my planned training and goals soon!
Next up, a couple of longer races! I need to get a long run in soon, tomorrow if I feel okay otherwise I'll have to be good with my time Monday to fit it in.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
nerves
So, I am ridiculously nervous for this 4 mile race I'm doing Saturday. I haven't raced since last June and I've never done a 4-miler. I think I'd feel better if it was flatter, or if I felt more prepared but its still kind of early in the year for up here - a balmy 8 degrees outside today I believe.
Anyway, I never quite got my long run in last weekend, I did a little over 5, although there was some difficult rolling hills. Tuesday I did a pretty fast tempo-ish 4 with the girls at lunch and that's it. I wanted to go yesterday but the wind was ridiculous and today its freezing so I'm actually thinking I might not run again until the race. That's probably way more rest than I need and I originally only planned on taking 2 days off but in the grand scheme of things it's probably not goign to make a huge difference in my race time. What MAY make a difference is if I can't stop eating, haha. I'm a terrible stress eater and have been overdoing it a bit lately. Time to rein it in. Okay, I'm going to try and update again later with some talk about goals but I have to get this day started now!
Anyway, I never quite got my long run in last weekend, I did a little over 5, although there was some difficult rolling hills. Tuesday I did a pretty fast tempo-ish 4 with the girls at lunch and that's it. I wanted to go yesterday but the wind was ridiculous and today its freezing so I'm actually thinking I might not run again until the race. That's probably way more rest than I need and I originally only planned on taking 2 days off but in the grand scheme of things it's probably not goign to make a huge difference in my race time. What MAY make a difference is if I can't stop eating, haha. I'm a terrible stress eater and have been overdoing it a bit lately. Time to rein it in. Okay, I'm going to try and update again later with some talk about goals but I have to get this day started now!
Friday, February 25, 2011
workouts
So...running this week. Tuesday I did 4 at a decent clip but I didn't wear my watch so I don't have stats for the run.
Thursday – intervals! I recruited my relatively new running friend (she’s actually much faster than me so the interval workout was good – we still had company but we could both get a good workout in too).
My times:
800 - 3:13
400 - 1:34
400 - 1:36
400 - 1:36
400 - 1:36
So I was a little bit slow with the 1/4s but very consistent which is good at least.
We did a bit over a mile warm up and cool down and 1/4 mile recoveries so it was a little over 5 miles for the run. Not bad.
Then I ate delicious thai food and we went out to dinner with friends so not the best eating day. I may have went to town on my remaining converstaion hearts too.
I actually really need to work on my eating because my stomach has been bothering quite a bit lately and I'm guessing it is diet/acid reflux related.
Thursday – intervals! I recruited my relatively new running friend (she’s actually much faster than me so the interval workout was good – we still had company but we could both get a good workout in too).
My times:
800 - 3:13
400 - 1:34
400 - 1:36
400 - 1:36
400 - 1:36
So I was a little bit slow with the 1/4s but very consistent which is good at least.
We did a bit over a mile warm up and cool down and 1/4 mile recoveries so it was a little over 5 miles for the run. Not bad.
Then I ate delicious thai food and we went out to dinner with friends so not the best eating day. I may have went to town on my remaining converstaion hearts too.
I actually really need to work on my eating because my stomach has been bothering quite a bit lately and I'm guessing it is diet/acid reflux related.
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Better short than nothing.
We ended up going to one of our couple friend's for dinner yesterday and it turned into a very late night! It's basically my husband's best friend since he has known since they were kids and his wife that I just adore and get along great with. They just had a baby last year so I got to play with him before his bedtime. We brought a bottle of wine and they served up some delicious shrimp scampi (I justified this as carbo-loading for my long run today - that didn't actually happen afterall but I'll get to that later). A couple more bottles of wine and a mini cream puff and eclair later it was well after 1am by the time we left. It was fun times even if it was hard getting up this morning.
So I put off running as long as I could and I was having trouble deciding what route to run all week. I originally was going to do a step back and just do a 6-7 miler but then I was all but settled on doing 10. In the end, a dying ipod battery and the need to practice hills won out and I ended up doing about a 6 mile loop with some hills thrown in there.
It worked out well though since essentially it was a 5 mile tempo run (7:53 overall pace) with about a .5 mile warmup and cool down.
Mile splits were 8:14, 7:39, 7:34, 7:42, 8:13.
So the first mile was slow, even after the warmup which I'm slighly concerned about. The 3 fastest miles were the ones with the hills but I think the downhill counteracts the uphill on the course I ran so my overall pace ends up faster. It was HARD going back up the hill but I got through it. The course for the race I'll be running in a couple weeks has more gradual hills so that's good but I think it has a lot less downhills which is bad for me.
Overall I'm very happy with this run. It's nice to see the 3 miles sub-8, I really wasn't motivated on my way out the door, it was nice and sunny out and although only in the 20s it felt really comfortable to run in. So, overall very positive!
So I put off running as long as I could and I was having trouble deciding what route to run all week. I originally was going to do a step back and just do a 6-7 miler but then I was all but settled on doing 10. In the end, a dying ipod battery and the need to practice hills won out and I ended up doing about a 6 mile loop with some hills thrown in there.
It worked out well though since essentially it was a 5 mile tempo run (7:53 overall pace) with about a .5 mile warmup and cool down.
Mile splits were 8:14, 7:39, 7:34, 7:42, 8:13.
So the first mile was slow, even after the warmup which I'm slighly concerned about. The 3 fastest miles were the ones with the hills but I think the downhill counteracts the uphill on the course I ran so my overall pace ends up faster. It was HARD going back up the hill but I got through it. The course for the race I'll be running in a couple weeks has more gradual hills so that's good but I think it has a lot less downhills which is bad for me.
Overall I'm very happy with this run. It's nice to see the 3 miles sub-8, I really wasn't motivated on my way out the door, it was nice and sunny out and although only in the 20s it felt really comfortable to run in. So, overall very positive!
Friday, February 18, 2011
Heat Wave!
What a warm and beautiful day. It was in the fifties here today. In Central New York. On February 18th! Craziness. Unfortunately, it’s not going to last but I’ll still take it after months of runs in the 20s, teens, and single digits. I knew it was supposed to get colder and windy later on so I headed out for an early run at lunch...in a t-shirt and shorts! Woo-hoo!
My goal was to do some intervals and this proved more challenging than I anticipated due to a pretty strong wind (it's bringing back the cold weather - boo). I decided I better go for it anyway as I knew I’d feel bad if I didn’t get some speed work in.
I did intervals as follows - halves and quarters with 1/4 mile recoveries in between, and then an additional 400 after my run back to work.
800 - 3:30
400 - 1:38
400 - 1:31
800 - 3:29
400 - 1:36
It was a little over a mile warm-up and cool down so about 4.5 miles altogether.
The first ½ and ¼ were into the wind which made them extremely difficult for me. I really wanted to stop during the first half mile and almost ditched the whole effort, but I knew I’d feel like crap about it if I did. So, even though I’m not happy with my times – I’d prefer about 10 seconds off each interval (particularly the 800s) I’m still happy with my effort and that I completed my intended run. Besides, every little bit helps! And I got to eat candy when I was done!
Tomorrow is supposed to be super windy so I might not be running at all, and hopefully Sunday I'll make it out for a longish run again. Glad it's Friday even if it is getting cold again :)
My goal was to do some intervals and this proved more challenging than I anticipated due to a pretty strong wind (it's bringing back the cold weather - boo). I decided I better go for it anyway as I knew I’d feel bad if I didn’t get some speed work in.
I did intervals as follows - halves and quarters with 1/4 mile recoveries in between, and then an additional 400 after my run back to work.
800 - 3:30
400 - 1:38
400 - 1:31
800 - 3:29
400 - 1:36
It was a little over a mile warm-up and cool down so about 4.5 miles altogether.
The first ½ and ¼ were into the wind which made them extremely difficult for me. I really wanted to stop during the first half mile and almost ditched the whole effort, but I knew I’d feel like crap about it if I did. So, even though I’m not happy with my times – I’d prefer about 10 seconds off each interval (particularly the 800s) I’m still happy with my effort and that I completed my intended run. Besides, every little bit helps! And I got to eat candy when I was done!
Tomorrow is supposed to be super windy so I might not be running at all, and hopefully Sunday I'll make it out for a longish run again. Glad it's Friday even if it is getting cold again :)
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Sick
So, weird random sickness struck this afternoon. My stomach has been feeling a little off for a couple days now and this morning it was slightly worse. I still went to work and met up with the girls for a lunchtime run but shortly after that I barely made it through a meeting and had to go home sick. I'm feeling somewhat better but still a little off. Hopefully this will be gone in the morning.
Anyway, back to the run. Due to feeling craptastic I decided not to wear my watch. I thought we'd be going slower but the other girls are both faster than me and the first couple of miles were definitely faster than I would have done on my own. So, overall I mapped it out to be about 4.85 miles which I'm happy with from a distance standpoint. I haven't run since Sunday when I did my long run and my legs were feeling good. I don't know the pace, I'm guessing it was under 8:30 overall. Like I said, the other girls didn't seem as challenged by the run as I did but it may have been due to my sickness as well.
I'm still hoping to be able to run tomorrow and I'd also still like to get an interval workout in this week but I'm not sure if it will happen. Depends on how I'm feeling. I definitely don't want to miss another day but maybe it would be better for me to go easy tomorrow and try for a speed workout Friday. We'll see.
Anyway, back to the run. Due to feeling craptastic I decided not to wear my watch. I thought we'd be going slower but the other girls are both faster than me and the first couple of miles were definitely faster than I would have done on my own. So, overall I mapped it out to be about 4.85 miles which I'm happy with from a distance standpoint. I haven't run since Sunday when I did my long run and my legs were feeling good. I don't know the pace, I'm guessing it was under 8:30 overall. Like I said, the other girls didn't seem as challenged by the run as I did but it may have been due to my sickness as well.
I'm still hoping to be able to run tomorrow and I'd also still like to get an interval workout in this week but I'm not sure if it will happen. Depends on how I'm feeling. I definitely don't want to miss another day but maybe it would be better for me to go easy tomorrow and try for a speed workout Friday. We'll see.
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Back!
I decided to blog a bit again - because...well, because why not?
I like to talk about how I'm feeling and what I'm eating and how much I'm running and why and a lot of people in my real life probably get bored hearing about it so maybe whoever finds the old blog-a-roo will be more interested. Or maybe it will be motivating to someone?
Anyhoo - I've been trying to get back into doing more runs again. I kinda fell off the radar last year - I had my awesome (for me it was awesome) 10k, followed it up with a bit more disappointing 5k in May - but still decent (22:26), and a 5k trail run that was VERY tough for me - I don't remember my time right now but it was over an 8:00 min pace. Shortly after that I started missing runs and my training got a little lack luster. I managed a 26:00 min 3.5 race in June and haven't run since!
I did move and oh yeah, get married though. So anyhow - even though its been one of the worst winters I can remember as far as snow/cold and I don't have access to a treadmill I've actually been running more consistently since January than I have in a year!
I'm starting to do longer runs on the weekends and get out at least two other times a week. However, I'm still really lacking in the old speedwork department. I know I need to incorporate some serious speed sooner rather than later.
The last 3 weekends my long runs have looked like this: 8.8 miles - about a mile through a couple inches snow so more like a trail run 9:07(?) pace, 7.55 miles 8:06 pace, today - 9.3 miles 8:26 pace. I was hoping to stay under 8:23 for my run today but overall I feel okay with it. I really didn't feel like going, the first few miles were into the wind and there were some hills. I have been trying to get a little extra hill work in because the next two races I'm planning on are both going to be very hilly. A 4 miler at the beginning of March - not much time left to prepare for that one so I'm just going to try and keep it under 8s (32 minutes) and a very hilly 10 miler in May, which again my goal for will be to keep it under 8s.
And...I signed up for the Chicago marathon - not until October 9th, but I am hoping to rock it!
I like to talk about how I'm feeling and what I'm eating and how much I'm running and why and a lot of people in my real life probably get bored hearing about it so maybe whoever finds the old blog-a-roo will be more interested. Or maybe it will be motivating to someone?
Anyhoo - I've been trying to get back into doing more runs again. I kinda fell off the radar last year - I had my awesome (for me it was awesome) 10k, followed it up with a bit more disappointing 5k in May - but still decent (22:26), and a 5k trail run that was VERY tough for me - I don't remember my time right now but it was over an 8:00 min pace. Shortly after that I started missing runs and my training got a little lack luster. I managed a 26:00 min 3.5 race in June and haven't run since!
I did move and oh yeah, get married though. So anyhow - even though its been one of the worst winters I can remember as far as snow/cold and I don't have access to a treadmill I've actually been running more consistently since January than I have in a year!
I'm starting to do longer runs on the weekends and get out at least two other times a week. However, I'm still really lacking in the old speedwork department. I know I need to incorporate some serious speed sooner rather than later.
The last 3 weekends my long runs have looked like this: 8.8 miles - about a mile through a couple inches snow so more like a trail run 9:07(?) pace, 7.55 miles 8:06 pace, today - 9.3 miles 8:26 pace. I was hoping to stay under 8:23 for my run today but overall I feel okay with it. I really didn't feel like going, the first few miles were into the wind and there were some hills. I have been trying to get a little extra hill work in because the next two races I'm planning on are both going to be very hilly. A 4 miler at the beginning of March - not much time left to prepare for that one so I'm just going to try and keep it under 8s (32 minutes) and a very hilly 10 miler in May, which again my goal for will be to keep it under 8s.
And...I signed up for the Chicago marathon - not until October 9th, but I am hoping to rock it!
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