The event isn't over yet. Physically, I need to take as much care in recovering properly as I had to do in preparing for the race. Mentally, it's time to collect some more goodies from the race, this time in the form of lessons learned.
RECOVERY:
Post-race, I did a little shopping with my mom, which encouraged light walking. I was largely okay... some inflexibiliy, and I think my ankles were a bit tired, but better than I was doing after the CM Half. Perhaps the reason is that I didn't do a cool-down jog after the CM and ended up standing on a wee, narrow ledge for a long time looking for my friends to finish. Being fitter probably also helps, since I was very able to do a strong cool-down jog.
Once home, lots of stretching and rolling.
Ate a turkey sandwich, orange, half a banana post-race. Mixed greens when I got home, plus bread and PB. For dinner, some pork and tofu and sprouts with brown rice. Was hungry at night at a Halloween party where I got to just chill, and had Doritos (an all-natural brand) and salsa.
The next morning, I was more sore... DOMS setting in. I'm of the school that believes that DOMS is caused by the recovery process itself... perhaps the breaking down of the old broken stuff step. Anyway, so I made a milk / whey powder / oatmeal concoction, since protein is best absorbed with some carbs. Then, I chased with my usual fish oil (good for reducing inflammation and good for heart health and brain health and all sorts of things), glucosamine and chondroitin, and half a multivitamin - I do the multi when I have a meal sans veg or fruit.
MENTAL NOTES FOR NEXT TIME:
I had talked about perhaps joining the 3:30 pace group (a 1:45) in my Spinx Half Hype 2, but I had forgotten that the full started 40 minutes before the half, so out of the qustion. However, judging by how I operated during the race, maybe it's better if I don't? Or maybe just keep my eye on them but don't stick right up on them? Because there were people my pace-ish who I kind of fell into a grove with at about mile 2, when I was speeding (although perhaps not really speeding, considering that the pace held pretty well and that that was a downhil). They started pulling away two miles later, and I figured that it was because I was fading and that I was not fit to hang with that pace crowd anyways, so I didn't mind and accepted it as an inevitability. So I just ran my own race and was able to keep eye contact. But at about mile 6, I saw that I was reeling them in. I was glad that I had not expended energy in chasing. Steady effort is the key to PBs. So if I were to join a pace group, if they power up hills when I believe it's better to hold the effort constant, I think I'll let them go. If I happen to be feeling bad, I can take it easy for a bit and let my body get back into its groove. If I'm feeling great and am ready to zoom past... well, perhaps I shouldn't do that, since I have no idea what's in store beyond mile 20 and should conserve whatever I have until then.
My fueling seemed pretty good. I'll probably aim for something every 5-6 miles in the full. And I'll again go Gatorade or water depending on how I feel. Worked at the CM Half and worked at Spinx. Sometimes, you don't want more sweet. You want pure liquid water.
Don't know about using the Kinvaras for the full... it works your ankles and arches more. Maybe if I built up ankle and arch strength, I could. It certainly makes you fast because it's so light. We'll see. I guess I'll try to use them every once and a while in my runs (probably speedwork) to build up my arches and ankles so that I can potentially have the opton of using them.
The Garmin wasn't very useful this time... dead lots of weight. The mileage was a mile off, which makes the "ave pace" indicator by which I determine what overall time I can reach meaningless. Maybe too many turns in this couse. Houston's has many more straights, so it may work better there. And I ended up going by feel during this race so much, and it worked well. By feel and by simply looking at my mile splits. Dunno. I guess I'm familiar with 5k (and perhaps half) effort and can go by feel. Although until yesterday, I had noooooo idea I could do a half so fast... it was holding something only a little slower than 5k pace for 13.1!!! And again, I won't even have run 26.2 before, let alone raced it. TBD.
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Saturday, October 30, 2010
RACE REPORT: Spinx Half Marathon
WOOOW!!!
Way beyond my expectations... 1:36:01!!!
Temps were ideal (maybe a wee bit cooler would've been super ideal, but this was great), from 41 to 53 during the race. It wasn't too crowded. The hills slow you down, naturally, but that just means that I am capable of even more. The music helped a lot, to keep my mind off of the effort, although it did cause me to not concentrate as much on always taking perfect tangents, but that might've happened anyway due to tiredness. Roads were pretty cambered at times, but you deal with it. The Kinvaras were great -super-light and a sure factor in my speed, although at one point, I could tell that it was perhaps a little too flexible, making my arches have to work harder to stay rigid to push off. I also imagined that I could feel the lugs of the shoes at times, but maybe it was in my mind. My right knee got a little out of wack a couple of times, but nothing as bad as the last half, where I had to limp along slowly for a bit. I took a coffee-flavored Hammer gel at mile 4.5, which was good for the caffine boost and sugar, and it was good to have water at mile 5 to wash it down. I held pace for the first half compared to others around me and was doing some passing in the second half. I thought I had gone out way to fast, which was easy to do considering the goal times I was pursuing (~1:42), but it was okay. Haven't analyzed the splits yet and probably can't do it very well, because the first half was mostly downhill, and the second half was mostly uphill. Very happy with how things went, though. I only got tired in the last mile and maybe didn't push as hard as I could've. I think shaving off another minute would've been possible, but this went better than my wildest expectations. My mom came to watch, and I had given her a minimum time of 1:38, but I was just being overly optimistic, with a reasonable yet still optimistic estimate of 1:42 as the expected expected, and a 1:45 as the upper end, with an acknowledgement that something like 1:48 would also be possible. But man, 1:36. Phew. That's a 7:20 average pace!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Wrote out notes on my number, but I ended up not looking at them and didn't really need them, since I had basically memorized the map, with its elevation changes, the mile markers, water stops, roads, and everything.
Splits> 7:05 (see what I mean by too fast of a start?... I was used to racing 5Ks, since I've done 7 of them in the past 8ish months, so I kind of headed out with that effort), 7:17, 7:14, 7:04, 7:30, 7:40, 7:31, 7:22, 7:29, 7:33, 7:18, 7:18, 9:18 for 1.1.
My quads were cramping up a wee bit post-race, but a fairly strong cool-down run of ~1 mi helped. Now stretching. Good post-race food selection : turkey sandwiches on whole wheat :), oranges, bananas, grapes, pineapple, pumpkin bread (did not partake)... all good stuff.
Way beyond my expectations... 1:36:01!!!
Temps were ideal (maybe a wee bit cooler would've been super ideal, but this was great), from 41 to 53 during the race. It wasn't too crowded. The hills slow you down, naturally, but that just means that I am capable of even more. The music helped a lot, to keep my mind off of the effort, although it did cause me to not concentrate as much on always taking perfect tangents, but that might've happened anyway due to tiredness. Roads were pretty cambered at times, but you deal with it. The Kinvaras were great -super-light and a sure factor in my speed, although at one point, I could tell that it was perhaps a little too flexible, making my arches have to work harder to stay rigid to push off. I also imagined that I could feel the lugs of the shoes at times, but maybe it was in my mind. My right knee got a little out of wack a couple of times, but nothing as bad as the last half, where I had to limp along slowly for a bit. I took a coffee-flavored Hammer gel at mile 4.5, which was good for the caffine boost and sugar, and it was good to have water at mile 5 to wash it down. I held pace for the first half compared to others around me and was doing some passing in the second half. I thought I had gone out way to fast, which was easy to do considering the goal times I was pursuing (~1:42), but it was okay. Haven't analyzed the splits yet and probably can't do it very well, because the first half was mostly downhill, and the second half was mostly uphill. Very happy with how things went, though. I only got tired in the last mile and maybe didn't push as hard as I could've. I think shaving off another minute would've been possible, but this went better than my wildest expectations. My mom came to watch, and I had given her a minimum time of 1:38, but I was just being overly optimistic, with a reasonable yet still optimistic estimate of 1:42 as the expected expected, and a 1:45 as the upper end, with an acknowledgement that something like 1:48 would also be possible. But man, 1:36. Phew. That's a 7:20 average pace!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Wrote out notes on my number, but I ended up not looking at them and didn't really need them, since I had basically memorized the map, with its elevation changes, the mile markers, water stops, roads, and everything.
Splits> 7:05 (see what I mean by too fast of a start?... I was used to racing 5Ks, since I've done 7 of them in the past 8ish months, so I kind of headed out with that effort), 7:17, 7:14, 7:04, 7:30, 7:40, 7:31, 7:22, 7:29, 7:33, 7:18, 7:18, 9:18 for 1.1.
My quads were cramping up a wee bit post-race, but a fairly strong cool-down run of ~1 mi helped. Now stretching. Good post-race food selection : turkey sandwiches on whole wheat :), oranges, bananas, grapes, pineapple, pumpkin bread (did not partake)... all good stuff.
2/72 for the 20-24 age group for women.
13/713 for the women.
69/1304 overall.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Oct 27, plus Spinx Half Hype 2
FIT:
Last pre-race run! 2 rest days ahead. Need some serious recovery b/c I had a high volume week/weekend last week. It's tough to balance the need to continue training for a big goal while wanting to taper for purposes of a medium goal, when tapering maybe wouldn't hurt the big goal that much. Dunno.
My legs felt heavy today. Boo. Volume catching up with me. But at least not injured. I had rolled my right ankle a bit shooting hoops w/ little kids, but it seems okay, since I've rolled that guy so many times now. The shoes hadn't been tight enough and are kind of top-heavy b/c of the raised and unstable heel - it was the Paramount.
Last 5 days: 7.7 / 7.0 / 4.0 intervals / 45 min bike / 60 min strength. And now, 3.2. Very heavy. 2 rest days coming, though.
For my taper leading up to the Coutry Music Half, it was 8.8 + 15 min ulty / 60 min srength / rest / 2.8 / rest / 3.8 / rest / race. That's more like a taper. Aaah.
I should be okay, though. My right TA is a little sore. I may ice after I roll for a bit. The 3.2 was a progression run. Started a bit slower than normal (6.8mph), but ramped it up a lot along the way. Felt better to go faster. Run seemed to drag on for longer than normal, and I wanted to get it over with. Had just woken up from a nap. Not ideal sleep this week/past couple weeks. Maybe tomorrow. Tomorrow would be the big sleep night... the night before the night before. Mom is visiting. Maybe watch Scared Shrekless then sleep long.
So 3.2 in 25:34, 7:59 ave. Oh, not that fast. Surprised. Okay. I wasn't pushing it, so it's okay. Wanted to keep it sane, to not do pre-race damage. Man, TAs gettin a little sore. Massage and ice are in order.
Splits> 8:41, 8:03, 7:30, (24:57), 1:18 for 0.2.
Listened to a podcast that is really good for race week. It was on mental strategies during the race and also the importance of recovery. What I've been doing with icing and rolling and fueling is good.
Race-day, some strategies I'll employ:
- Landmarks up ahead pulling me.
- Telling myself that I'm strong and light.
It's all about perceived effort... Central Governor Theory all the way.
Other stuff from personal experience:
- Imaging during the last stages that I still have a long ways to go, which allows me to relax and loosen up, saving energy.
Dunno yet if I'll use music. The podcast talked about dissociating, but I tend to be big on associating during races... LRs, dissociation is fine, since I'm a big podcast fan. But I am so zoned into mechanics and how I'm feeling during the race. Since the shuffle is so light, maybe I can bring it anyways.
Right after the nap, I was feeling very very blah... like getting sick or in need of vitamin B, and very tired. Dunno. Work? Training volume? Taper? (no... I have not been tapering like I should)
Felt better after the run, although I need to get these TAs calmed down.
Last pre-race run! 2 rest days ahead. Need some serious recovery b/c I had a high volume week/weekend last week. It's tough to balance the need to continue training for a big goal while wanting to taper for purposes of a medium goal, when tapering maybe wouldn't hurt the big goal that much. Dunno.
My legs felt heavy today. Boo. Volume catching up with me. But at least not injured. I had rolled my right ankle a bit shooting hoops w/ little kids, but it seems okay, since I've rolled that guy so many times now. The shoes hadn't been tight enough and are kind of top-heavy b/c of the raised and unstable heel - it was the Paramount.
Last 5 days: 7.7 / 7.0 / 4.0 intervals / 45 min bike / 60 min strength. And now, 3.2. Very heavy. 2 rest days coming, though.
For my taper leading up to the Coutry Music Half, it was 8.8 + 15 min ulty / 60 min srength / rest / 2.8 / rest / 3.8 / rest / race. That's more like a taper. Aaah.
I should be okay, though. My right TA is a little sore. I may ice after I roll for a bit. The 3.2 was a progression run. Started a bit slower than normal (6.8mph), but ramped it up a lot along the way. Felt better to go faster. Run seemed to drag on for longer than normal, and I wanted to get it over with. Had just woken up from a nap. Not ideal sleep this week/past couple weeks. Maybe tomorrow. Tomorrow would be the big sleep night... the night before the night before. Mom is visiting. Maybe watch Scared Shrekless then sleep long.
So 3.2 in 25:34, 7:59 ave. Oh, not that fast. Surprised. Okay. I wasn't pushing it, so it's okay. Wanted to keep it sane, to not do pre-race damage. Man, TAs gettin a little sore. Massage and ice are in order.
Splits> 8:41, 8:03, 7:30, (24:57), 1:18 for 0.2.
Listened to a podcast that is really good for race week. It was on mental strategies during the race and also the importance of recovery. What I've been doing with icing and rolling and fueling is good.
Race-day, some strategies I'll employ:
- Landmarks up ahead pulling me.
- Telling myself that I'm strong and light.
It's all about perceived effort... Central Governor Theory all the way.
Other stuff from personal experience:
- Imaging during the last stages that I still have a long ways to go, which allows me to relax and loosen up, saving energy.
Dunno yet if I'll use music. The podcast talked about dissociating, but I tend to be big on associating during races... LRs, dissociation is fine, since I'm a big podcast fan. But I am so zoned into mechanics and how I'm feeling during the race. Since the shuffle is so light, maybe I can bring it anyways.
Right after the nap, I was feeling very very blah... like getting sick or in need of vitamin B, and very tired. Dunno. Work? Training volume? Taper? (no... I have not been tapering like I should)
Felt better after the run, although I need to get these TAs calmed down.
Monday, October 25, 2010
Spinx Half Hype
Not as big of a hype as the CM half, since this is more of a progress check race.
I might've done too much training in the week before the race... not quite a proper taper. However, I still intend to race hard. I have a shot at an age group award, I think. It's hard to tell how I'm doing. I'm probably fitter than I was for the CM half, but I'm sort of training through this race.
REASONS TO BE FASTER:
- Fitter
- Fewer people to weave around... although not too much of an issue at the CM.
- No wear and tear from travel and expo
- Smarter about racing?
- Lighter shoes
REASONS TO BE SLOWER:
- Training through
- Hillier
- Fewer aid stations
SAME:
- Good temps
Ah... I should do alright, then? Maybe my goal will be a 7:50 pace... for 13.1? Sounds crazy fast. With the hills like they are, I'll need to anticipate when I'll naturally be faster and slower, so that I can stay on track. Must go for negative splits, especially with the big hills in the later half.
HILLAGE:
0-2 flat
2-4 fast
4-5 flat
5-6 fast
6-8 flat
8-10 sloooow
10-11 flat
11-12 slow
12-13 flat
AID:
3
5
6.6
8.3
10.5
... although it says that I should only see 4 stations, so maybe one of these isn't real.
Goal pace: 7:50... means time 1:42:37. They go by gun time, so that needs to include getting over the line. Boooooooooooo. For award purposes.
3:20 and 3:30 pace groups (1:40 and 1:45) are available, although they're focused on the full. I wonder if they plan to hit the half at an even split. I could potentilly start with the 3:30 and kick away at the end with a 1:00/mi pace increase for 2-3 miles. Dunno how trustworthy the pacers are. Should be okay. Dunno.
Oh man.
8:40 start... 10:30 finish. Could be a little warmer then. Man, that's late.
With only 4 Gatorade ops, I may bring some fuel. Gels are the easiest to down. Any fuel requires water b/c otherwise, it's sickly sweet. Maybe the 5 or 6.6, whichever one is first/real.
Clothing: Kinvaras... yes. Then, Oxysox. 5-pocket shorts and Pton bra... same as the CM half. Shades. No visor for wind resistance purposes... ah... maybe the shorter-billed, light ViziPro one. Since I'll be in the sun. Okay, we'll say yes visor for now.
That day, right now, temps are 41-67. Boo the late start. I like cold. Maybe if I'm expending lots of energy, I'll need the sun to warm me just as it gets warmer. Maybe it'll work out for the best.
Ooh, excited now. Having talked through all of this, I feel ready. Now to just take cae of myself (I should be sleeping). I'll foam roll myself now... maybe ice... maybe a bit more massaging of the TAs. Yeah. Psyched.
I might've done too much training in the week before the race... not quite a proper taper. However, I still intend to race hard. I have a shot at an age group award, I think. It's hard to tell how I'm doing. I'm probably fitter than I was for the CM half, but I'm sort of training through this race.
REASONS TO BE FASTER:
- Fitter
- Fewer people to weave around... although not too much of an issue at the CM.
- No wear and tear from travel and expo
- Smarter about racing?
- Lighter shoes
REASONS TO BE SLOWER:
- Training through
- Hillier
- Fewer aid stations
SAME:
- Good temps
Ah... I should do alright, then? Maybe my goal will be a 7:50 pace... for 13.1? Sounds crazy fast. With the hills like they are, I'll need to anticipate when I'll naturally be faster and slower, so that I can stay on track. Must go for negative splits, especially with the big hills in the later half.
HILLAGE:
0-2 flat
2-4 fast
4-5 flat
5-6 fast
6-8 flat
8-10 sloooow
10-11 flat
11-12 slow
12-13 flat
AID:
3
5
6.6
8.3
10.5
... although it says that I should only see 4 stations, so maybe one of these isn't real.
Goal pace: 7:50... means time 1:42:37. They go by gun time, so that needs to include getting over the line. Boooooooooooo. For award purposes.
3:20 and 3:30 pace groups (1:40 and 1:45) are available, although they're focused on the full. I wonder if they plan to hit the half at an even split. I could potentilly start with the 3:30 and kick away at the end with a 1:00/mi pace increase for 2-3 miles. Dunno how trustworthy the pacers are. Should be okay. Dunno.
Oh man.
8:40 start... 10:30 finish. Could be a little warmer then. Man, that's late.
With only 4 Gatorade ops, I may bring some fuel. Gels are the easiest to down. Any fuel requires water b/c otherwise, it's sickly sweet. Maybe the 5 or 6.6, whichever one is first/real.
Clothing: Kinvaras... yes. Then, Oxysox. 5-pocket shorts and Pton bra... same as the CM half. Shades. No visor for wind resistance purposes... ah... maybe the shorter-billed, light ViziPro one. Since I'll be in the sun. Okay, we'll say yes visor for now.
That day, right now, temps are 41-67. Boo the late start. I like cold. Maybe if I'm expending lots of energy, I'll need the sun to warm me just as it gets warmer. Maybe it'll work out for the best.
Ooh, excited now. Having talked through all of this, I feel ready. Now to just take cae of myself (I should be sleeping). I'll foam roll myself now... maybe ice... maybe a bit more massaging of the TAs. Yeah. Psyched.
Oct 25
FIT:
Considered doing 5 / Strength / 3 / rest / rest / race. Doing 5 on top of 7.7 / 7 / 4 intervals would've been nuts, so I changed it up to bike instead. Legs were feeling a bit heavy today with very minor kinks anyway. Progression bike to keep fitness up and work stuff out. Pushed hard. Couldn't help it. Probably okay. B / Strength / 4 / rest / rest / race is the plan now.
Considered doing 5 / Strength / 3 / rest / rest / race. Doing 5 on top of 7.7 / 7 / 4 intervals would've been nuts, so I changed it up to bike instead. Legs were feeling a bit heavy today with very minor kinks anyway. Progression bike to keep fitness up and work stuff out. Pushed hard. Couldn't help it. Probably okay. B / Strength / 4 / rest / rest / race is the plan now.
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Oct 24
FIT:
Rest day (or potentially recovery bike day) turned emergency run to de-stress turned intervals. Nice. My legs seem to be in that dreamy able-to-take-consecutive-days-of-decent-running mode. The last time I specifically remember this happening was in Pton in August, where I forced my legs into going consecutive days so that I could take advantage of the precious time I got to spend w/ LD there. It was hard, but my legs took it and grew stronger because of it. Same thing now, with 7.7, followed by 7.0+, and now 4.0 intervals.
Had a short but convicting/humbling conversation with a really good friend. Somehow, got into a self-pitying mode afterwards turned angry at myself and my life. I sound really roller-coastery, don't I? Kinda felt Hulk-angry, so I needed to blow off steam. No basketball court to shoot freethrows like I did once back in boarding school, no big open courtyard to throw a frisbee like I did in college, but there was the treadmill, and my legs were feeling surprisingly fresh, after being a little sore (rare) earlier today.
I was feeling great, so it turned into intervals. 1.5 warmup at a little less than 7.5mph, then 3x[1/2mi @ 9mph, 1/4mi @ 7.5mph], 0.25 cooldown. 4.0 in 30:02, 7:30 pace. Not bad, considering I wasn't going all out. Excited. Should be tapering for the half in one week, but 1) neeed the previous runs to keep things going for marathon training, 2) needed this one to get out emotions. I'll have to think through my training schedule for this week, in light of a commitment on Tuesday night. Maybe bike tomrrow, strength Tuesday, 6 Wed? 3 Thur? Maybe too much.
Oh, I ran sox-less, once again... 3rd day in a row. Maybe that's why I was sore. In any case, I used the Kinvaras today - maybe that's why I wanted to do intervals so bad. Felt good. Maybe I'll use it for the half. If it works there, why not the full? We'll see. 4.0 working fine in them... I could see 13.1 being a fair extension. Doubling that, though... anything could happen. We'll start with the half, if everything still looks okay then.
Rest day (or potentially recovery bike day) turned emergency run to de-stress turned intervals. Nice. My legs seem to be in that dreamy able-to-take-consecutive-days-of-decent-running mode. The last time I specifically remember this happening was in Pton in August, where I forced my legs into going consecutive days so that I could take advantage of the precious time I got to spend w/ LD there. It was hard, but my legs took it and grew stronger because of it. Same thing now, with 7.7, followed by 7.0+, and now 4.0 intervals.
Had a short but convicting/humbling conversation with a really good friend. Somehow, got into a self-pitying mode afterwards turned angry at myself and my life. I sound really roller-coastery, don't I? Kinda felt Hulk-angry, so I needed to blow off steam. No basketball court to shoot freethrows like I did once back in boarding school, no big open courtyard to throw a frisbee like I did in college, but there was the treadmill, and my legs were feeling surprisingly fresh, after being a little sore (rare) earlier today.
I was feeling great, so it turned into intervals. 1.5 warmup at a little less than 7.5mph, then 3x[1/2mi @ 9mph, 1/4mi @ 7.5mph], 0.25 cooldown. 4.0 in 30:02, 7:30 pace. Not bad, considering I wasn't going all out. Excited. Should be tapering for the half in one week, but 1) neeed the previous runs to keep things going for marathon training, 2) needed this one to get out emotions. I'll have to think through my training schedule for this week, in light of a commitment on Tuesday night. Maybe bike tomrrow, strength Tuesday, 6 Wed? 3 Thur? Maybe too much.
Oh, I ran sox-less, once again... 3rd day in a row. Maybe that's why I was sore. In any case, I used the Kinvaras today - maybe that's why I wanted to do intervals so bad. Felt good. Maybe I'll use it for the half. If it works there, why not the full? We'll see. 4.0 working fine in them... I could see 13.1 being a fair extension. Doubling that, though... anything could happen. We'll start with the half, if everything still looks okay then.
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Oct 23
FIT:
Would've been a race report, except the race was more of a fun-walk. It was my company's 2nd annual 3k run/walk, which was really just a walking get-together. Since everyone was walking, it would've been awkward to be the only one to run, and they weren't timing anything, and I'm not sure they really measured the distance, so I just hung out at the very back. I saw one guy take off, so after maybe 30s of taking in the scenery, I chased. I caught up, and he started walking. It was awkward, b/c I had just chased to give him company. He seemed reasonably fit, but he'd run-walk at intervals. I didn't want to make him feel bad, so I just went off course and watched the HS's county XC meet for a little while before heading back on course and just leisurly jogging it in. Well, it was fun to see what it was like, and watching the kids runs is always fun. Since there were only 4 kids, there were many leftover plastic medals, so the adults got them too. Including my warmup, the intervalish "run", and jogging back to my car, maybe I covered 2 miles. I don't think it was really even a 3K. I was originally going to log it, but really... most of it was at warmup/cooldown pace with a bit of sprinting. Maybe I won't log it. It did make me tired, though. Or maybe it was just the 3-4 hrs of sleep I got.
I've been being very tired in the morning and day, napping once I got home, and then staying up until 1ish at night, then the cycle would repeat. Dead tired days. Hard to get out of the cycle. Maybe that's why ppl recommend just having a 30min nap. To me, that doesn't seem enough, but maybe it at least keeps you on schedule.
I was happy to be able to bank the planned 7 miles today, after the nap and dinner. 7.0 in 58:21, 8:20 ave. About marathon pace. Haha, I call my friend MP, but if you search for MP, you'd also get my references to Marathon Pace, so I've tried not to use MP, but I may do it anyways.
Umm... so no real issues. Lifting my knees more helped w/ knee issues that would otherwise start to come. Takes energy, though. Wore n3's w/ Spenco. Feels much less cushioned w/ Spenco vs. SofSol. Prob somewhat lighter, though. I was originally going to go in the Paramount, but I pronate too much in them, so I'll probably just keep that in the car as the emergency shoes for rando workout opportunities. I may put the Spenco insoles in those, since I seem to prefer Sofsol, although I don't like the Stability insoles much either, and those are the ones that are in there right now. Either way, I suppose.
Splits> 8:35, 8:33, 8:33, (26:34), 8:30, 8:22, 8:09, (52:21), 7:36. First half at about 7mph, then sped it up b/c felt better that way, and sped up even more at the end to get it over with.
Would've been a race report, except the race was more of a fun-walk. It was my company's 2nd annual 3k run/walk, which was really just a walking get-together. Since everyone was walking, it would've been awkward to be the only one to run, and they weren't timing anything, and I'm not sure they really measured the distance, so I just hung out at the very back. I saw one guy take off, so after maybe 30s of taking in the scenery, I chased. I caught up, and he started walking. It was awkward, b/c I had just chased to give him company. He seemed reasonably fit, but he'd run-walk at intervals. I didn't want to make him feel bad, so I just went off course and watched the HS's county XC meet for a little while before heading back on course and just leisurly jogging it in. Well, it was fun to see what it was like, and watching the kids runs is always fun. Since there were only 4 kids, there were many leftover plastic medals, so the adults got them too. Including my warmup, the intervalish "run", and jogging back to my car, maybe I covered 2 miles. I don't think it was really even a 3K. I was originally going to log it, but really... most of it was at warmup/cooldown pace with a bit of sprinting. Maybe I won't log it. It did make me tired, though. Or maybe it was just the 3-4 hrs of sleep I got.
I've been being very tired in the morning and day, napping once I got home, and then staying up until 1ish at night, then the cycle would repeat. Dead tired days. Hard to get out of the cycle. Maybe that's why ppl recommend just having a 30min nap. To me, that doesn't seem enough, but maybe it at least keeps you on schedule.
I was happy to be able to bank the planned 7 miles today, after the nap and dinner. 7.0 in 58:21, 8:20 ave. About marathon pace. Haha, I call my friend MP, but if you search for MP, you'd also get my references to Marathon Pace, so I've tried not to use MP, but I may do it anyways.
Umm... so no real issues. Lifting my knees more helped w/ knee issues that would otherwise start to come. Takes energy, though. Wore n3's w/ Spenco. Feels much less cushioned w/ Spenco vs. SofSol. Prob somewhat lighter, though. I was originally going to go in the Paramount, but I pronate too much in them, so I'll probably just keep that in the car as the emergency shoes for rando workout opportunities. I may put the Spenco insoles in those, since I seem to prefer Sofsol, although I don't like the Stability insoles much either, and those are the ones that are in there right now. Either way, I suppose.
Splits> 8:35, 8:33, 8:33, (26:34), 8:30, 8:22, 8:09, (52:21), 7:36. First half at about 7mph, then sped it up b/c felt better that way, and sped up even more at the end to get it over with.
Friday, October 22, 2010
Oct 22
FIT:
Treadmill base run, 1 degree as usual. Broke in my new blue 1224's for the first time - great shoe. My fav for training. Better than the Gel Evolution 3's. Back into training after laying off for a couple of days to let the left achilles recover. Had some kinks... right TA stiff and bangy, right knee maybe... don't remember much now. Okay, though. Took it easy b/c I need to get in some big mileage this weekend to make up for the time off.
Splits> 8:33, 8:33, 8:35, (26:33 5k), 8:32, 8:34, 8:33, (53:06 10k), 8:16, 5:10 for 0.7. Mostly 7mph but sped it up at the end b/c it was easy. Slow run overall, but just an easy mileage builder. Marathon pace, too. Quickie "race" tomorrow, company 3k.
Treadmill base run, 1 degree as usual. Broke in my new blue 1224's for the first time - great shoe. My fav for training. Better than the Gel Evolution 3's. Back into training after laying off for a couple of days to let the left achilles recover. Had some kinks... right TA stiff and bangy, right knee maybe... don't remember much now. Okay, though. Took it easy b/c I need to get in some big mileage this weekend to make up for the time off.
Splits> 8:33, 8:33, 8:35, (26:33 5k), 8:32, 8:34, 8:33, (53:06 10k), 8:16, 5:10 for 0.7. Mostly 7mph but sped it up at the end b/c it was easy. Slow run overall, but just an easy mileage builder. Marathon pace, too. Quickie "race" tomorrow, company 3k.
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Oct 19
FIT:
Yesterday, 1 hr on the bike, covered 15.1 miles. Used it to work out tight hammies. Due to wacky alignment of the bike (and maybe me), top left ankle got crammed a bit. Right hammie got a little cramped. Eh... not a chronic issue, so not too concerned.
Today, the Kinvaras came. Tried it in 3.1 in 24:46, 7:59 ave. After mile 1, took small steps, making a different kind of workout. Had to do it b/c my left calf and achilles have been tight. Got a little better yesterday, but aggravated somewhat again today. Maybe should give it a rest, but optimistically hoping it can somehow get worked out on its own. Hmm... can feel a knot. Been icing, but probably need to ice more.
Splits> 8:02, 8:02, 7:55, 0:46.
Shoes... super light, as if I'm not wearing shoes. Toebox is too big. Different feel. Clunkier than I would've thought for minimal shoes. Light though. We'll see. Didn't put arches in, so that I know what the raw shoe is like. Most ppl who reviewed it online have average arches. We'll see how my low ones do.
Yesterday, 1 hr on the bike, covered 15.1 miles. Used it to work out tight hammies. Due to wacky alignment of the bike (and maybe me), top left ankle got crammed a bit. Right hammie got a little cramped. Eh... not a chronic issue, so not too concerned.
Today, the Kinvaras came. Tried it in 3.1 in 24:46, 7:59 ave. After mile 1, took small steps, making a different kind of workout. Had to do it b/c my left calf and achilles have been tight. Got a little better yesterday, but aggravated somewhat again today. Maybe should give it a rest, but optimistically hoping it can somehow get worked out on its own. Hmm... can feel a knot. Been icing, but probably need to ice more.
Splits> 8:02, 8:02, 7:55, 0:46.
Shoes... super light, as if I'm not wearing shoes. Toebox is too big. Different feel. Clunkier than I would've thought for minimal shoes. Light though. We'll see. Didn't put arches in, so that I know what the raw shoe is like. Most ppl who reviewed it online have average arches. We'll see how my low ones do.
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Oct 17
FIT:
Awww, I was hoping I just did 16, but it was reall just 15.1. Oh well, I'll take it. Thankful it went okay.
I had toyed with the idea of doing maybe 12 on the treadmill yesterday evening, but I figured that it may be smarter idea to give my post-race legs 24 hours of rest first. No need to rush. The week still had 1 day left to get in the LR. Then, I toyed w/ the idea of running at 7am, to have temps in the 40s, rather than in the 70s, like it would be the rest of the day after church. Well, I'd have to run the first 30 min in the dark, and if I wanted to make Sunday school, with a shower, I'd have to leave at 8:30 at the very latest, and that still would've only been a 1:30 run at best. Not safe to run in the dark, because of footing, not because of people.
So I thought about doing the treadmill, to have full shade and comparable 70s temps, but the treadmill is definitely not the same. First, it pulls you a bit, so you're not so much the one pulling during the initial phase of footstrike . Second, you have to adjust the speed by hand, whereas with running, you can naturally slow down or speed up depending on how your body is feeling. Third, with varied surfaces, your foot hits at different angles and works your stabilizers. That definitely takes more work, but it can help to be able to give certain nagging spots a rest by adjusting form. Not as much room to do that on the treadmill, which is always flat. You strike more or less the same way each time, so whatever form you're using, good or bad, you'll be doing it over and over again. So no treadmill.
It wasn't quite as terribly hot as I'd imagined, so to the run it was! Ate an apple and cheese in the car, clippped on my new Shuffle, visor, shades, pak w/ energy bar (didn't use b/c ended up getting queasy) and jelly bellies (finished the rest of the pack... 8 beans maybe), oxysox, and 1224's w/ stab. I've ordered replacement 1224's, since the current ones are approaching 300 miles, so I can go ahead and finish them off. Good shoes. They've served me well in long runs.
Umm... stopped to drink at the water fountain every 3 miles. Listened to podcasts a/b a guy running his final Boston as a way to go down fighting as arthritis or something sets in in his knee. It was shady maybe 60% of the time, which was good. The 40% was uncomfortable, but you just do it. No real issues. Hamstrings were better this morning, though still fairly sore. The run worked out most of the soreness though. Quads started getting a bit tired maybe 70% of the way in, but never lost too much strength. Stomach got queasy maybe 80% in. Right butt had a slight twinge of pulled-ness, but went away. Right knee got a wee bit grindy maybe 65% in, on the outside, but I did the old swing hips trick, and it seemed to help. It was mentally tough with 3 miles left, but I just told myself to think of it as a 3mile cooldown, where I could take it easy without feeling the need to finish strong, and that loosened up my stride and kept things fairly comfortable. It was tough, though.
Finished and just laid on the parking lot ground for a while. When I first got there, many people in matching t-shirts were parking - saw from the shirts that it was a Walk for the Homeless. Some were trickling back as I finished and collapsed. Many good Samaritans came by and asked if I was okay, needed water, needed them to call someone, etc. Later noticed many Presbyterian sickers on the cars in the lot. Good Samaritans.
I refueled w/ mixed greens and a bagel. Now, eating an orange an icing. I think I wanna try and bike tomorrow to get bloodflow to speed up recovery. Hope I recover okay. A year and a half ago, when I first got in to more serious running, each 16.6 miler got easier and easier, so hopefully, that's the case here. Oh man. I can't believe the 15 was that hard.
Splits> 15:20 p, 7:34 c, 7:36 p, 7:32 long b, 6:12 short p, 7:37 c, 7:36 p, 7:32 long b, 6:27 short p (ooh, slowed down), 7:45 c, 7:39 b (got some speed back), 7:37 long b, 6:16 short p, 7:46 c (slow again), 7:34 p, 7:53 long b (slooow), 10:03 car.
15.1 in 2:16:17, 9:02 ave. Used to beable to run 16.6 in less time than that... in ideal temps, though.
Awww, I was hoping I just did 16, but it was reall just 15.1. Oh well, I'll take it. Thankful it went okay.
I had toyed with the idea of doing maybe 12 on the treadmill yesterday evening, but I figured that it may be smarter idea to give my post-race legs 24 hours of rest first. No need to rush. The week still had 1 day left to get in the LR. Then, I toyed w/ the idea of running at 7am, to have temps in the 40s, rather than in the 70s, like it would be the rest of the day after church. Well, I'd have to run the first 30 min in the dark, and if I wanted to make Sunday school, with a shower, I'd have to leave at 8:30 at the very latest, and that still would've only been a 1:30 run at best. Not safe to run in the dark, because of footing, not because of people.
So I thought about doing the treadmill, to have full shade and comparable 70s temps, but the treadmill is definitely not the same. First, it pulls you a bit, so you're not so much the one pulling during the initial phase of footstrike . Second, you have to adjust the speed by hand, whereas with running, you can naturally slow down or speed up depending on how your body is feeling. Third, with varied surfaces, your foot hits at different angles and works your stabilizers. That definitely takes more work, but it can help to be able to give certain nagging spots a rest by adjusting form. Not as much room to do that on the treadmill, which is always flat. You strike more or less the same way each time, so whatever form you're using, good or bad, you'll be doing it over and over again. So no treadmill.
It wasn't quite as terribly hot as I'd imagined, so to the run it was! Ate an apple and cheese in the car, clippped on my new Shuffle, visor, shades, pak w/ energy bar (didn't use b/c ended up getting queasy) and jelly bellies (finished the rest of the pack... 8 beans maybe), oxysox, and 1224's w/ stab. I've ordered replacement 1224's, since the current ones are approaching 300 miles, so I can go ahead and finish them off. Good shoes. They've served me well in long runs.
Umm... stopped to drink at the water fountain every 3 miles. Listened to podcasts a/b a guy running his final Boston as a way to go down fighting as arthritis or something sets in in his knee. It was shady maybe 60% of the time, which was good. The 40% was uncomfortable, but you just do it. No real issues. Hamstrings were better this morning, though still fairly sore. The run worked out most of the soreness though. Quads started getting a bit tired maybe 70% of the way in, but never lost too much strength. Stomach got queasy maybe 80% in. Right butt had a slight twinge of pulled-ness, but went away. Right knee got a wee bit grindy maybe 65% in, on the outside, but I did the old swing hips trick, and it seemed to help. It was mentally tough with 3 miles left, but I just told myself to think of it as a 3mile cooldown, where I could take it easy without feeling the need to finish strong, and that loosened up my stride and kept things fairly comfortable. It was tough, though.
Finished and just laid on the parking lot ground for a while. When I first got there, many people in matching t-shirts were parking - saw from the shirts that it was a Walk for the Homeless. Some were trickling back as I finished and collapsed. Many good Samaritans came by and asked if I was okay, needed water, needed them to call someone, etc. Later noticed many Presbyterian sickers on the cars in the lot. Good Samaritans.
I refueled w/ mixed greens and a bagel. Now, eating an orange an icing. I think I wanna try and bike tomorrow to get bloodflow to speed up recovery. Hope I recover okay. A year and a half ago, when I first got in to more serious running, each 16.6 miler got easier and easier, so hopefully, that's the case here. Oh man. I can't believe the 15 was that hard.
Splits> 15:20 p, 7:34 c, 7:36 p, 7:32 long b, 6:12 short p, 7:37 c, 7:36 p, 7:32 long b, 6:27 short p (ooh, slowed down), 7:45 c, 7:39 b (got some speed back), 7:37 long b, 6:16 short p, 7:46 c (slow again), 7:34 p, 7:53 long b (slooow), 10:03 car.
15.1 in 2:16:17, 9:02 ave. Used to beable to run 16.6 in less time than that... in ideal temps, though.
Saturday, October 16, 2010
RACE REPORT: GE 6K
Oh man, I almost decided not to run the race. I signed up on Thursday night when I thought I'd be staying in town. I figured that it was an ideal week for a race, since I had some good workouts earlier in the week, including intervals on Wednesday. I'd take Thursday off and have some strength work with a free personal training session early Friday.
At the Friday session, pushups and assisted pullups, squats of various sorts, leg extensions, bit of ab work. Yoinked my inner left knee a bit while standing up, but it seemed to get back in place.
I started being sore on Friday during work... hamstrings, some inner/lower abs, and the yoinked knee seemed to cause my inner left achilles to get a little inflamed, which seemed to later spread to my left TAs. Early Friday, I still figured that I could be recovered enough by the next morning to race well. Later on Friday, though, with the TA issue and the knee and the achilles and the sore hamstring and the sore abs, I began to have doubts. Hated to lose the $11 entry fee, but better lose it than cause an injury that would wipe out my chance with the marathon. In any case, with the soreness, it wouldn't be a stellar perforance. And even if I did well, it's in an oddball distance, which I wouldn't run again except in this race, so a good time would not mean much and would not help me track my progress anyway.
Woke up still feeling very sore... worse. Hurt to sit down, with the sitting down motion. Hammies and abs sore. I debated for about 30 min but decided that I could just go and run super easy at my LR pace and make it like a warmup before adding another 12 or so miles after the race. That way, I get all the goodies from the race (t-shirt, chance at door prizes, race auora) while not hurting myself or losing the $11. Good plan.
When I got there, there were lots of high schoolers of different colors camped out on tarps and tents. It was exciting, bringing back memories of high school XC. Since I had been debating for so long, I got there w/ a/b 30 min before the race. I got my number, switched into my Brooks Trance 8's, and set off to do a warmup w/ 20 min left. I actually felt pretty good. The soreness was just there... not bothersome. So I decided to rac it.
Since it was cool outside (ideal weather), and since I was sore, I didn't mind a longer warmup. Went around the big grassy field where the race was to start then did a bit of dynamic stretching, ROM stuff, and striders. Then, time to line up. Earlier, before the soreness, I figured a 7:00 pace would be excellent, since that had historically been my target for the 5K but now I knew I could do 6:45 under ven non-ideal conditions. So 7:00 with an extra K would be reasonable and nice.
Set off. It was partially grass, partially dirt, partially sidewalk. Grass and dirt was sometimes uneven, almost a bit riskily so. Passed the 1 mile mark in what was announced as 6:35, but that was short, which others agreed with post-race. Some time before the 2, I noticed that my Garmin had shut down. Boo. Now, no idea of my time at all, since I hadn't set my normal watch. So I just went by feel, which worked fine. I went along, and it was kind of exciting. Didn't ever see any other girls, so I'd just be alongside guys every now and then, and it was exhilarating just pushing each other and pushing ouselves. Didn't mind if I got passed, didn't mind if I passed. Just ran my own race. Hit the 2 at 14:00.
Could feel that I was slowing down some afterwards. Normally, it would only be 1 mile left. Just kept it going. At the 2, I started my normal watch, so I have splits from then on and can derive my times from there. Hit the 3 at 7:25. The last bit was a second loop around the big field where we first started, which was wonderful b/c we were looping around the finish and could see our opponents and where to kick. Perfect. Good for audience members, too, to see a lot of the runners. Finished in 26:53. 6k = 3.73 miles. 7:13 ave. Not bad, considering the soreness.
Afterwards, cheered on those coming in. Always gives you joy to do that. Then, after refueling, getting an apron doorprize, and watching awards, got to watch the XC races... mens and womens, JV and varsity. It was fun. The varsity race were the best. Finishes are fun to watch, especially with last-min passing, watching people kick. It's also great to see fast runners with good form, like the mens' winner. Effortless speed. Wow. Watching all of them and hearing their times, I felt old and kinda slow. Really, I'm just 5-9 years older... so the 5, not much older, 9, a lot I guess. I guess I just don't have the genetics to be super fast. Or is part of it not working hard enough? Oh well, I may not be as young (what am I thinking... I'm only 23!) or fast, but I'm seasoned, I guess, to the extent that 1.5 years of more serious running makes one seasoned. Oh well, keep training. Then, see what January brings.
Even tighter after all that. Maybe should've done a cool-down, but I was busy watching the races. And it felt too hot to do the LR right after, and I kind of just wanted a mental break. So I went home. Good day, though. Glad it worked out.
5/100 women. 60/269 overall.
At the Friday session, pushups and assisted pullups, squats of various sorts, leg extensions, bit of ab work. Yoinked my inner left knee a bit while standing up, but it seemed to get back in place.
I started being sore on Friday during work... hamstrings, some inner/lower abs, and the yoinked knee seemed to cause my inner left achilles to get a little inflamed, which seemed to later spread to my left TAs. Early Friday, I still figured that I could be recovered enough by the next morning to race well. Later on Friday, though, with the TA issue and the knee and the achilles and the sore hamstring and the sore abs, I began to have doubts. Hated to lose the $11 entry fee, but better lose it than cause an injury that would wipe out my chance with the marathon. In any case, with the soreness, it wouldn't be a stellar perforance. And even if I did well, it's in an oddball distance, which I wouldn't run again except in this race, so a good time would not mean much and would not help me track my progress anyway.
Woke up still feeling very sore... worse. Hurt to sit down, with the sitting down motion. Hammies and abs sore. I debated for about 30 min but decided that I could just go and run super easy at my LR pace and make it like a warmup before adding another 12 or so miles after the race. That way, I get all the goodies from the race (t-shirt, chance at door prizes, race auora) while not hurting myself or losing the $11. Good plan.
When I got there, there were lots of high schoolers of different colors camped out on tarps and tents. It was exciting, bringing back memories of high school XC. Since I had been debating for so long, I got there w/ a/b 30 min before the race. I got my number, switched into my Brooks Trance 8's, and set off to do a warmup w/ 20 min left. I actually felt pretty good. The soreness was just there... not bothersome. So I decided to rac it.
Since it was cool outside (ideal weather), and since I was sore, I didn't mind a longer warmup. Went around the big grassy field where the race was to start then did a bit of dynamic stretching, ROM stuff, and striders. Then, time to line up. Earlier, before the soreness, I figured a 7:00 pace would be excellent, since that had historically been my target for the 5K but now I knew I could do 6:45 under ven non-ideal conditions. So 7:00 with an extra K would be reasonable and nice.
Set off. It was partially grass, partially dirt, partially sidewalk. Grass and dirt was sometimes uneven, almost a bit riskily so. Passed the 1 mile mark in what was announced as 6:35, but that was short, which others agreed with post-race. Some time before the 2, I noticed that my Garmin had shut down. Boo. Now, no idea of my time at all, since I hadn't set my normal watch. So I just went by feel, which worked fine. I went along, and it was kind of exciting. Didn't ever see any other girls, so I'd just be alongside guys every now and then, and it was exhilarating just pushing each other and pushing ouselves. Didn't mind if I got passed, didn't mind if I passed. Just ran my own race. Hit the 2 at 14:00.
Could feel that I was slowing down some afterwards. Normally, it would only be 1 mile left. Just kept it going. At the 2, I started my normal watch, so I have splits from then on and can derive my times from there. Hit the 3 at 7:25. The last bit was a second loop around the big field where we first started, which was wonderful b/c we were looping around the finish and could see our opponents and where to kick. Perfect. Good for audience members, too, to see a lot of the runners. Finished in 26:53. 6k = 3.73 miles. 7:13 ave. Not bad, considering the soreness.
Afterwards, cheered on those coming in. Always gives you joy to do that. Then, after refueling, getting an apron doorprize, and watching awards, got to watch the XC races... mens and womens, JV and varsity. It was fun. The varsity race were the best. Finishes are fun to watch, especially with last-min passing, watching people kick. It's also great to see fast runners with good form, like the mens' winner. Effortless speed. Wow. Watching all of them and hearing their times, I felt old and kinda slow. Really, I'm just 5-9 years older... so the 5, not much older, 9, a lot I guess. I guess I just don't have the genetics to be super fast. Or is part of it not working hard enough? Oh well, I may not be as young (what am I thinking... I'm only 23!) or fast, but I'm seasoned, I guess, to the extent that 1.5 years of more serious running makes one seasoned. Oh well, keep training. Then, see what January brings.
Even tighter after all that. Maybe should've done a cool-down, but I was busy watching the races. And it felt too hot to do the LR right after, and I kind of just wanted a mental break. So I went home. Good day, though. Glad it worked out.
5/100 women. 60/269 overall.
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Oct 12
FIT:
Wobbly bobbly. Back on my made-up words track, at least for today.
TA's tight right now and could use some digging into. Iced them a few minutes ago. Finished an intervals session that started off as an intended longer run (8ish). I realized that the 6.0 from Monday plus 8 plus 15 would be... 29 - phew! Way too much of an increase. It had been a while since a running interval session, and my last race performance was kinda disappointing (although it was just announced that the 2.0 was perhaps really a 2.1, which would make my performance okay). Oh yeah... I had done an interval session the day before the race... that was the last time I had done one. Anyway, it seemed to make a lot of sense to turn the 8 into a 4 or so.
I did the 4 (1 mi warmup @ 6.8mph, 6x[1/4 on (9mph), 1/4 off (7.5mph)]), but since I felt decent and wanted to start pushing myself a little bit again (I've been too comfortable and taking it easy lately), I decided to just run it in through another mile, which ended up being progressiony, just b/c was eager to finish and get over and even alleviate some growing pains. Nothing bad. Worse was probably some blistering that began on my left toes. Probably the new insoles. Stung a lot. Lucky it didn't hit until the last mile.
5.0 in 38:35, 7:43 ave. Sox, n3's w/ Spenco, pak w/ iTouch... received the shuffle 4g today but thought it was broken so I didn't use it but it really was working... just involved reading the full-blown manual to figure out how to use it on podcasts. 78 degrees. Drank 1/3 bottle 1/3 diluted Cyotomax... much of the first few sips ended up on the treadmill, but the rest was okay. Swallowed significant air, prob, but at least I got the needed cool water.
Wobbly bobbly. Back on my made-up words track, at least for today.
TA's tight right now and could use some digging into. Iced them a few minutes ago. Finished an intervals session that started off as an intended longer run (8ish). I realized that the 6.0 from Monday plus 8 plus 15 would be... 29 - phew! Way too much of an increase. It had been a while since a running interval session, and my last race performance was kinda disappointing (although it was just announced that the 2.0 was perhaps really a 2.1, which would make my performance okay). Oh yeah... I had done an interval session the day before the race... that was the last time I had done one. Anyway, it seemed to make a lot of sense to turn the 8 into a 4 or so.
I did the 4 (1 mi warmup @ 6.8mph, 6x[1/4 on (9mph), 1/4 off (7.5mph)]), but since I felt decent and wanted to start pushing myself a little bit again (I've been too comfortable and taking it easy lately), I decided to just run it in through another mile, which ended up being progressiony, just b/c was eager to finish and get over and even alleviate some growing pains. Nothing bad. Worse was probably some blistering that began on my left toes. Probably the new insoles. Stung a lot. Lucky it didn't hit until the last mile.
5.0 in 38:35, 7:43 ave. Sox, n3's w/ Spenco, pak w/ iTouch... received the shuffle 4g today but thought it was broken so I didn't use it but it really was working... just involved reading the full-blown manual to figure out how to use it on podcasts. 78 degrees. Drank 1/3 bottle 1/3 diluted Cyotomax... much of the first few sips ended up on the treadmill, but the rest was okay. Swallowed significant air, prob, but at least I got the needed cool water.
Monday, October 11, 2010
Oct 11
FIT:
Oh man, missed realizing it was 10/10/10 when it was 10/10/10. I had made note of it like 2 weeks ago, but yesterday was just so exciting and not requiring dates that I missed it.
Anyway, today, did a trial of a gym. Fancy equipment, although with TV screens right in front of you, your eyes have no choice but to stare at the screen, on top of all the screen time I get during the day. They had some fancy twists on equipment, though. The bike lets you simulate a race, including steering with the handlebars. There's even a game mode where you collect coins and run into dragons.
The treadmill has a little picture of a 5K course... ended up being just watching a mark travel around the path, rather than making it look like you're actually running through a trail.
The elliptical-stair machine combo was nice, but I didn't use it for long b/c I had been going for 2+ hours by then. It links up to you iPod and lets you view videos/mp3s on the screen.
So my workout...
Bike, 2.9mi (hills), in 10:30ish
Run, 3.1mi (1 degree), 8:00/mi steadily, 24:48
Run, Hill training, 2.9mi, 8:34/mi, 25:00, level 15-20.
Bike, 6.3 mi (not sure if I believe), 20:00
Elliptical, 6 min stair elliptical, 10% incline, level 12.
Strength scattered throughout... rope climbing, box jumps (useless), 20-15 clapping pushups, roman chair, declined situp bench, deltoid pressups, pushupy pressouts, rows, hula hooping, pullups, stretching. Also got a hydromassage... water shoots up with a lot of pressure against a bed you lie on. I had to press down on my legs to keep the pressure, b/c otherwise, the water would just push them up. My hammies were waaaay too ticklish, and I had to essentially raise them up whenever the water went that way. Felt nice on my back and butt, though. Calves somewhat, but the pressing thing.
Had a banana, protein powder, and part of a grapefruit after the bulk of the workout. Got some good volume in by cross training. The bike made it really easy. A sitting-up bike is better than a recumbent bike... maybe it's just that my apt fitness room's recumbent is slightly misaligned... dunno.
Oh man, missed realizing it was 10/10/10 when it was 10/10/10. I had made note of it like 2 weeks ago, but yesterday was just so exciting and not requiring dates that I missed it.
Anyway, today, did a trial of a gym. Fancy equipment, although with TV screens right in front of you, your eyes have no choice but to stare at the screen, on top of all the screen time I get during the day. They had some fancy twists on equipment, though. The bike lets you simulate a race, including steering with the handlebars. There's even a game mode where you collect coins and run into dragons.
The treadmill has a little picture of a 5K course... ended up being just watching a mark travel around the path, rather than making it look like you're actually running through a trail.
The elliptical-stair machine combo was nice, but I didn't use it for long b/c I had been going for 2+ hours by then. It links up to you iPod and lets you view videos/mp3s on the screen.
So my workout...
Bike, 2.9mi (hills), in 10:30ish
Run, 3.1mi (1 degree), 8:00/mi steadily, 24:48
Run, Hill training, 2.9mi, 8:34/mi, 25:00, level 15-20.
Bike, 6.3 mi (not sure if I believe), 20:00
Elliptical, 6 min stair elliptical, 10% incline, level 12.
Strength scattered throughout... rope climbing, box jumps (useless), 20-15 clapping pushups, roman chair, declined situp bench, deltoid pressups, pushupy pressouts, rows, hula hooping, pullups, stretching. Also got a hydromassage... water shoots up with a lot of pressure against a bed you lie on. I had to press down on my legs to keep the pressure, b/c otherwise, the water would just push them up. My hammies were waaaay too ticklish, and I had to essentially raise them up whenever the water went that way. Felt nice on my back and butt, though. Calves somewhat, but the pressing thing.
Had a banana, protein powder, and part of a grapefruit after the bulk of the workout. Got some good volume in by cross training. The bike made it really easy. A sitting-up bike is better than a recumbent bike... maybe it's just that my apt fitness room's recumbent is slightly misaligned... dunno.
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Oct 10
FIT:
A double day!
I think it's been a long time, since I've done a double run day. I've done double workout days a couple times this year maybe, but not double run.
Recap... bike intervals, then 2 rest days b/c I was busy recovering/having fun w/ my sis. Sunday morning, went out for a run. Explored the trails around campus. They were very turny with some mile hills, roots and logs to jump over, singletrack, scenic and fun. Took pictures on the 1.7miles out but just cruised and got in a challenging workout the rest of the time. Left knee got a bit yoinked jumping over a major ditch, and rolled an ankle pretty far but not far enough to be called an actual roll, bu everything seemed okay enough to continue running on. Just 55:48, b/c it was tiring and my ankles were getting worked with the uneven footing, and I had to just guess the distance... maybe 6.8 or less.
Rest of the day, tired and head felt kind of hot to myself, like I was getting sick. A mininap and coffee helped, though. Drove home.
Once back, felt surprisingly good and ready to run again! Dunno what did it. Glad to have fast recovery, though. So after dinner... 30 min after dinner, did the 1 degree treadmill for 3.1. Could've done more/faster if I hadn't eaten so recently, for sure. Tummy muscles had to work just to keep everything in there and not jiggling around too much. Held a 7.1mph pace the whole way.
Good stuff. Looking forward to another week of training.
FUN:
Toooonnns of fun this weekend w/ my sis:
Watched men and womens' soccer games, Trader Joe's shopping spree, HORSE in the gym, ping pong, boxing, Capoeira show, tried capoeira ourselves in the dorm, self-serve fro-yo, art museum, trail running, bookstore and university gift shop, The Sprout healthy cafe, coffee and biscotti, SET card game, movie, great fun.
A double day!
I think it's been a long time, since I've done a double run day. I've done double workout days a couple times this year maybe, but not double run.
Recap... bike intervals, then 2 rest days b/c I was busy recovering/having fun w/ my sis. Sunday morning, went out for a run. Explored the trails around campus. They were very turny with some mile hills, roots and logs to jump over, singletrack, scenic and fun. Took pictures on the 1.7miles out but just cruised and got in a challenging workout the rest of the time. Left knee got a bit yoinked jumping over a major ditch, and rolled an ankle pretty far but not far enough to be called an actual roll, bu everything seemed okay enough to continue running on. Just 55:48, b/c it was tiring and my ankles were getting worked with the uneven footing, and I had to just guess the distance... maybe 6.8 or less.
Rest of the day, tired and head felt kind of hot to myself, like I was getting sick. A mininap and coffee helped, though. Drove home.
Once back, felt surprisingly good and ready to run again! Dunno what did it. Glad to have fast recovery, though. So after dinner... 30 min after dinner, did the 1 degree treadmill for 3.1. Could've done more/faster if I hadn't eaten so recently, for sure. Tummy muscles had to work just to keep everything in there and not jiggling around too much. Held a 7.1mph pace the whole way.
Good stuff. Looking forward to another week of training.
FUN:
Toooonnns of fun this weekend w/ my sis:
Watched men and womens' soccer games, Trader Joe's shopping spree, HORSE in the gym, ping pong, boxing, Capoeira show, tried capoeira ourselves in the dorm, self-serve fro-yo, art museum, trail running, bookstore and university gift shop, The Sprout healthy cafe, coffee and biscotti, SET card game, movie, great fun.
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Oct 7
FIT:
Knee issues today at work... is it the new shoes? the jumping during bball? mileage accumulation? Tried to run today, in the n3's w/ my new Spenco insoles, but my knees were too banged up. Some shin bone issues and medial knee general banging.
So I biked instead. Good, b/c I got in some interval work, wasn't hard, which is a good sign. Oh, forgot to look at the mileage, but it was a 45 min session. 10 min warmup, then 30 min of alternating [3min on (18.5-19.0mph), 1 min off (13.3mph), 3min on, 2 min off], 5 min cooldown after last 3 on. Didn't seem to sweat as much as normal. Watched The Office and then the 2nd half of Nikita. No water. Oxysox. Asics running singlet. Post 2 hr nap that was hard to wake up from.
Felt better afterwards, with the increased circulation. We'll see if my knees are any better tomorrow. TA's still tender (2nd day in a row... issue has popped up again).
Knee issues today at work... is it the new shoes? the jumping during bball? mileage accumulation? Tried to run today, in the n3's w/ my new Spenco insoles, but my knees were too banged up. Some shin bone issues and medial knee general banging.
So I biked instead. Good, b/c I got in some interval work, wasn't hard, which is a good sign. Oh, forgot to look at the mileage, but it was a 45 min session. 10 min warmup, then 30 min of alternating [3min on (18.5-19.0mph), 1 min off (13.3mph), 3min on, 2 min off], 5 min cooldown after last 3 on. Didn't seem to sweat as much as normal. Watched The Office and then the 2nd half of Nikita. No water. Oxysox. Asics running singlet. Post 2 hr nap that was hard to wake up from.
Felt better afterwards, with the increased circulation. We'll see if my knees are any better tomorrow. TA's still tender (2nd day in a row... issue has popped up again).
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Oct 6
FIT:
Logging miles, decently.
I had planned on running yesterday (following a 13.6, then 7.0, then strength), but another commitment went long, and the gym was closed, and I was exhausted, and I wasn't 100% fresh injury-wise, so it was a good night to bank as a rest day... save up for tomorrow. I figured I'd kill the next day b/c I was so run-ready.
It was a long day at work... pounding tiringly away. But got to come home. My TA's were very tender, probably from jumping around playing basketball and knockout with kids at an after-school program yesterday. Some massaging immediately before seemed to help free it up some, though.
The run went well. Tired, I think, but quality. 6.2 in 49:21, 7:58 ave. Ok, not fantastic, but I'm happy. It at least felt effective. 76 degrees, 1 degree treadmill. Oxysox, pak w/ iTouch. Did more arm-swing to help my leg movement to relieve the TA pressure. Effective. Takes energy, though. But since injuries are the limiting reactant, I'll take fatigue. It toughens you anyway. Could've used a little energy boost... I was tired from work, and I had to wait 30min for 2 ppl to use the treadmill before I got my turn, so my fueling timing was not what I had planned. Ok, though.
Wore the Saucony Paramount again - still pretty good. The stability insoles squeak a little bit in them, though, suggesting a bit of wasted energy. My left toes are really blistered, too. They'll adapt, though. Still a fan. My new Spenco insoles came today. They look big. Haven't tried them yet. Maybe I'll do that now. I'm finishing off icing while I fuel and type. Multitasking.
Splits> 8:14, 8:08, 7:59, (25:10 5k), 7:57, 7:50, 7:41, (49:21).
Logging miles, decently.
I had planned on running yesterday (following a 13.6, then 7.0, then strength), but another commitment went long, and the gym was closed, and I was exhausted, and I wasn't 100% fresh injury-wise, so it was a good night to bank as a rest day... save up for tomorrow. I figured I'd kill the next day b/c I was so run-ready.
It was a long day at work... pounding tiringly away. But got to come home. My TA's were very tender, probably from jumping around playing basketball and knockout with kids at an after-school program yesterday. Some massaging immediately before seemed to help free it up some, though.
The run went well. Tired, I think, but quality. 6.2 in 49:21, 7:58 ave. Ok, not fantastic, but I'm happy. It at least felt effective. 76 degrees, 1 degree treadmill. Oxysox, pak w/ iTouch. Did more arm-swing to help my leg movement to relieve the TA pressure. Effective. Takes energy, though. But since injuries are the limiting reactant, I'll take fatigue. It toughens you anyway. Could've used a little energy boost... I was tired from work, and I had to wait 30min for 2 ppl to use the treadmill before I got my turn, so my fueling timing was not what I had planned. Ok, though.
Wore the Saucony Paramount again - still pretty good. The stability insoles squeak a little bit in them, though, suggesting a bit of wasted energy. My left toes are really blistered, too. They'll adapt, though. Still a fan. My new Spenco insoles came today. They look big. Haven't tried them yet. Maybe I'll do that now. I'm finishing off icing while I fuel and type. Multitasking.
Splits> 8:14, 8:08, 7:59, (25:10 5k), 7:57, 7:50, 7:41, (49:21).
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Oct 3
FIT:
A couple of milestones with today's run!
First, how it was made possible...
After yesterday's LR, I iced and used the foam roller. Today during church, I did some deep tissue massaging of my TA's and calves. Felt pretty good in general, and considering the LR, great. I was excited to try the new Saucony Paramount, too. Sleep was average, aka not quite enough. Had a good amount of protein... 20g of whey powder, 25g of chicken, 20g of milk, 10g of almonds, 6g of peanuts, 10g of cheese, then maybe 15g more from grains and other sources. I normally have a decent amount, although maybe 25g less on average.
Inserted stability insoles because wearing it around the carpeted apartment, I felt like I was rolling in a lot just standing in the shoes. But the ride was excellent. They seem to be great shoes, a bit lighter than what I'm used to, and maybe what I'll end up using in the marathon. Yes, that good. We'll see the long term effects of the curved last, although the PT I talked to said that it's okay to have a curved last if you have insoles.
My inner right knee/lower quad had issues in the earlier miles once I got going. It went way when I tried to suppinate more, but in the late miles, the problem might've migrated to my achilles, which got strained. I kept going because I wanted to reach the milestone. I ended up doing less of forefoot b/c it felt like a softer landing. Dunno if it's b/c my usual forefoot muscles are tired from yesterday, or if somehow the shoe design made it feel better that way. Something to pay attention to in the future. Listened to an iPod and enjoyed the ride.
7.0 in 55:41, 7:51 ave. Splits> 8:13, 8:08, 8:07, (25:18 5K), 7:58, 7:48, 7:46, (49:37 10k), 7:37.
Oh yeah, the milestones. Dunno for sure b/c I don't have last year's log with me, but this may be the first time I've done 20+ miles within a 2-day period, and it's the first time I've hit 25 miles in a week this calendar year, I think. Yay.
So to make more great runs like these possible, I iced, and I'm refueling as we speak... type.
A couple of milestones with today's run!
First, how it was made possible...
After yesterday's LR, I iced and used the foam roller. Today during church, I did some deep tissue massaging of my TA's and calves. Felt pretty good in general, and considering the LR, great. I was excited to try the new Saucony Paramount, too. Sleep was average, aka not quite enough. Had a good amount of protein... 20g of whey powder, 25g of chicken, 20g of milk, 10g of almonds, 6g of peanuts, 10g of cheese, then maybe 15g more from grains and other sources. I normally have a decent amount, although maybe 25g less on average.
Inserted stability insoles because wearing it around the carpeted apartment, I felt like I was rolling in a lot just standing in the shoes. But the ride was excellent. They seem to be great shoes, a bit lighter than what I'm used to, and maybe what I'll end up using in the marathon. Yes, that good. We'll see the long term effects of the curved last, although the PT I talked to said that it's okay to have a curved last if you have insoles.
My inner right knee/lower quad had issues in the earlier miles once I got going. It went way when I tried to suppinate more, but in the late miles, the problem might've migrated to my achilles, which got strained. I kept going because I wanted to reach the milestone. I ended up doing less of forefoot b/c it felt like a softer landing. Dunno if it's b/c my usual forefoot muscles are tired from yesterday, or if somehow the shoe design made it feel better that way. Something to pay attention to in the future. Listened to an iPod and enjoyed the ride.
7.0 in 55:41, 7:51 ave. Splits> 8:13, 8:08, 8:07, (25:18 5K), 7:58, 7:48, 7:46, (49:37 10k), 7:37.
Oh yeah, the milestones. Dunno for sure b/c I don't have last year's log with me, but this may be the first time I've done 20+ miles within a 2-day period, and it's the first time I've hit 25 miles in a week this calendar year, I think. Yay.
So to make more great runs like these possible, I iced, and I'm refueling as we speak... type.
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Oct 2
FIT:
Yay-ah. 13.6 in 1:58:36, 8:43 ave. Pas mal. I didn't know if it would work, since I was pretty sore and banged up. 2 days of total rest fixed me up, though. Lots of sleep last night (11 hours, broken up by 4 hrs of cleaning the apt) helped as well. Work has been very busy, so it was good to have good excuses to take the time to recover anyways.
Nothing exceptional. 1pm-3pm, sunny. Nice weather... not hot, but shade was appreciated when I could get it. Took advantge of the water fountain 3x, which was easy, since I did one that section of the course 4x. Ate a serving of plums immediatey pre-run and 5 Jelly Belly sport beans during the run. Wore 3's w/ arch supports, which worked well. Oxysox and a visor. Shadowpak w/ the iTouch.
Afterwards, bought shoes from the local running store - they were on sale and a bit worn (says on the box "worn in the store only", but the treads are a little worn and fairly dirty, so I don't believe them at all, but they were good enough, and I only paid 1/3 of the original MSRP. Then, I used a massive 20% one-day only discount to get shades, new insoles, and a Vizipro rainjacket... splurged, but I've been eyeing those items for a looong time, and 20% is huge.
Splits> 9:07 b, 6:20 p short way, 7:39 c, 7:29 p, 7:27 b long way, 6:15 p short way, 7:33 c, 7:30 p, 7:39 b long way, 7:34 p long way, 7:36 c, 7:38 p, 6:14 b short way, 13:25 b to p to b, 9:02 car.
After the LR 6 days ago (11.734), I felt like I could do more b/c I took it easier than normal. It took a while to recover, though. Maybe it was the bike session. I only have 4.5+13.6 so far this week... 18.1. I'd like to get another 4 in tomorrow. We'll see how recovery goes. Oh yeah, also got calf sleeves for a low $10 today from TJMaxx. They work really well and keep my feet free while keeping the swelling down. The bike was an equivalent of 4, but I want the miles anyways.
FUN:
After a shower, went out again to Oktoberfest. Watched polka dancers and German musicians. Fun, and a good way to walk around some to help with recovery.
Yay-ah. 13.6 in 1:58:36, 8:43 ave. Pas mal. I didn't know if it would work, since I was pretty sore and banged up. 2 days of total rest fixed me up, though. Lots of sleep last night (11 hours, broken up by 4 hrs of cleaning the apt) helped as well. Work has been very busy, so it was good to have good excuses to take the time to recover anyways.
Nothing exceptional. 1pm-3pm, sunny. Nice weather... not hot, but shade was appreciated when I could get it. Took advantge of the water fountain 3x, which was easy, since I did one that section of the course 4x. Ate a serving of plums immediatey pre-run and 5 Jelly Belly sport beans during the run. Wore 3's w/ arch supports, which worked well. Oxysox and a visor. Shadowpak w/ the iTouch.
Afterwards, bought shoes from the local running store - they were on sale and a bit worn (says on the box "worn in the store only", but the treads are a little worn and fairly dirty, so I don't believe them at all, but they were good enough, and I only paid 1/3 of the original MSRP. Then, I used a massive 20% one-day only discount to get shades, new insoles, and a Vizipro rainjacket... splurged, but I've been eyeing those items for a looong time, and 20% is huge.
Splits> 9:07 b, 6:20 p short way, 7:39 c, 7:29 p, 7:27 b long way, 6:15 p short way, 7:33 c, 7:30 p, 7:39 b long way, 7:34 p long way, 7:36 c, 7:38 p, 6:14 b short way, 13:25 b to p to b, 9:02 car.
After the LR 6 days ago (11.734), I felt like I could do more b/c I took it easier than normal. It took a while to recover, though. Maybe it was the bike session. I only have 4.5+13.6 so far this week... 18.1. I'd like to get another 4 in tomorrow. We'll see how recovery goes. Oh yeah, also got calf sleeves for a low $10 today from TJMaxx. They work really well and keep my feet free while keeping the swelling down. The bike was an equivalent of 4, but I want the miles anyways.
FUN:
After a shower, went out again to Oktoberfest. Watched polka dancers and German musicians. Fun, and a good way to walk around some to help with recovery.
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