Training Widget

Saturday, July 24, 2010

Week Six Whoops!

I think week six is best summed up by my daily mile post for today. Other workouts this week included six miles on Monday and five miles on Wednesday. Sadly, I did not get any cross-training in this week. Next week should be better on that front... the schedule's fixing to lighten a bit.

For today's 'deep thoughts' section of the blog, I will say this: One thing I love about running is its ability to transition my mood and help me find perspective. There's nothing like a nice long run with the one I love to help me realize that things like forgotten Garmins and locked cars are sooooo very insignificant in the grand scheme of things. I completed today's run with an immense feeling of gratitude. I love running, I love my family, my kids are healthy, my leg feels good, it's a beautiful day, I have some phenomenal people in my life, I have people to help me when I need it, I have all I need and so much more... life is good, dang it!

And, finally, hear me now and believe me later. I am resolved to try Gu or something like it before the August 7th half marathon. Wish me luck :)



  • 12mi tracked
  • 01:47logged
  • 08:57pace
  • 1205calories
greatWhoops! 12 mi 01:47 08:57 pace

Where do I begin? We were up and at 'em early. Got the babysitter in the door and settled, and headed out for our group meeting spot. We got about 3/4 of the way there when I looked around the car and realized Gwen (the Garmin) had been left on the kitchen counter. Not to worry, the 'handy runner' app on the cell phone is not quite as handy as the watch, but it will do the trick.

We arrive at the meeting point with a few minutes to spare, so I opt to take a little walk to the facilities for a pre-run potty stop. The facilities were locked. Not to worry, there are plenty of biffys along the trail.

I get back to where everyone is gathering, and my beloved running buddy asks me, "How much do you love me?". In our relationship, this is never a good conversation starter. Turns out he had locked the keys in the car. Grroan. Again, however, not to worry, because we have THE best neighbors on planet earth. Made a quick phone call and made arrangements for fab neighbor Peggy to meet us when we were finished with our spare key. Peggy ROCKS!

So...after all that, we were not exactly in the best frame of mind to start this run. However, once we got going, this was a great run. A definite perk of all that Wednesday sprint and hill work is that it makes the Saturday long runs feeI positively dreamy. I have not yet worked up the nerve to try a Gu type product, and it caught up with me a bit today... I was really hungry by the end.

All in all, a great run.

Gear
  • Ann B.

    Anne, it took me forever to use Gels but now that I do I love it. I take one every 45 minutes during runs that are longer than an hour and a half.

    about 3 hours ago
  • Barry L.

    I agree with Ann - gels (or shot blocks, or similar) are an absolute necessity.

    about 3 hours ago
  • Renee B.

    Great job Anne! You had a lot of obstacles this morning and you did great. I do gels every 30-45 minutes on long runs. About 10 minutes after I take one I can feel the extra energy in my body. However it has taken a while to find gels that agree with my body and learn how to eat them. You might want to try some.

    about 3 hours ago
  • Jeni H.

    What a crazy morning, but you had a fantastic run! I like the shot bloks and usually try to eat one to two of them every 5 miles or so during long runs. You might want to try just tasting some different products on a non-run day sometime.

    about 3 hours ago
  • Tiffany R.

    Love Peggy! I did put down a Gu today at about 1:20 and it went ok took it in near water though. Great job today even though the start was rough! You guys are a great couple!

    about 2 hours ago
  • David B.

    Wow, 12 miles with no fuel - I used to bonk after 7. Now I never do a run over 6 miles without something. You might just find that you can push your pace another 20 seconds with some fuel.
    This would have been a great run at any time but given all the challenges this morning I'm very impressed with you.

    about 2 hours ago

Sunday, July 18, 2010

Adios RW Plan

WkDatMonTuesWedsThursFriSatSunTotal










57/12
7/18
Easy Run
Dist: 2 mi
@10:14
Rest
/ XT
Tempo Run
Dist: 6 mi, inc
Warm; 4 mi @ 8:45; Cool
Rest
/ XT
Rest
/ XT
Long Run
Dist: 12 mi
@10:14
Rest
/ XT
20 miles





This is the last time I'll be cutting and pasting the weekly RW plan, because I'm now pretty much completely off it. I think it's been hard for me to give up because I really liked the projected marathon finish time it came up with (4:02: 29). I don't know how exactly they got that number, but I'm letting go of the dream. While I'm all about a challenge, a four hour goal for my inaugural marathon is ludicrous. My faith is now officially in the PJ (YMCA run club leader) plan, with a goal simply to finish.

Here's how my week went:
Monday: A fantabulous six miler from out of nowhere. It was hot, my planned childcare fell through. I was tired from the Nebraska journey. Yet, I went out there and had a great run. Oh, how I love it when that happens.

Tuesday: Goose egg

Wednesday: 3.23 miles of sprints and hills on one of the hottest, most humid days of the summer. This was pure hell. Ten times up and down that damn hill along with some (hilly) laps around Adams park, along with some speed surges. I hate Wednesdays.

Thursday: Goose egg

Friday: I finally made it back to the pool. Swam 1150 meters in about a half hour. I struggled with getting my heart rate where I wanted it, which was a bummer. Ultimately, though, I was just happy to get some cross training in, as that has been quite a struggle of late.

Saturday: 11.23 miles, Calhoun and Harriet and some parkway action. My usual long run buddy (Chris) abandoned me, so I was very grateful for the run club.
On that note, Chris has been gone for a long four days. As a result, I haven't slept worth a crap. To make a long story short, I got about three hours of shut-eye before this run. The run itself went ok. The post-run crash, however, was NOT a pretty site.

Today: getting ready for a little mini golf with the kids

While the running went well, this week has not been without its struggles. I think a plan where one runs only three days a week to train for something like this is genius. I think that for a myriad of reasons which I won't go into now, because the mini-golfers await. However, if that's the approach one chooses to take, I believe cross training takes on a whole new level of importance.

Finding that time to cross train is my biggest hurdle right now. My practical cross training options are: biking, cycle class, swimming, or yoga. I suppose I could throw in the elliptical, but I hate that thing with a passion of epic proportions. I'm frustrated because I feel like, as an unemployed person, finding this time to cross train should not be such a struggle.

Taxiing kids to soccer camp and baseball this week effectively ruled out both yoga and cycle classes. OK, then, we'll bike. I threw out the idea of biking to baseball on Thursday (about a six mile journey, round trip), and my eight year old proceeded to throw a fit. I maturely responded by sending him on a major guilt trip. But, the kid had a point. He's barely eight after all, he had played soccer in the same miserable heat and humidity that I ran hills in on Wednesday evening, and we were headed to b-ball... where he would be hanging out in the heat and sun. We drove. Was that the right choice? Should I have forced him to get his skinny butt on that bike so that I could log a few miles (which in the grand scheme could probably be described as insignificant anyway)? Who knows. I'm obviously struggling a bit to find balance.



Monday, July 12, 2010

Week Four-- Nebraska and Acupuncture


WkDatMonTuesWedsThursFriSatSunTotal










47/5
7/11
Easy Run
Dist: 5 mi
@10:20
Rest
/ XT
Easy Run
Dist: 5 mi
@10:20
Rest
/ XT
Rest
/ XT
Easy Run
Dist: 5 mi
@10:20
Rest
/ XT
15 miles








I tend to not know where I'm at these days. We returned home from Kansas on Monday the 5th (after running another five miles in western Kansas), were home Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, and headed out for the ever popular vacation destination of Nebraska City, Nebraska for a family reunion. The travel + training combination is not ideal for me, but the worst is over.

Running on Wednesday couldn't happen due to scheduling, so trainer PJ sent us out to run the hill behind the YMCA after a 30+ minute weight training session on Tuesday. I think we ran somewhere between two and three miles. It was insanely humid and it SUCKED.

Wednesday was rest, and I went to a cycle class on Thursday because I knew Friday was going to be uber sluggish with the long car ride.

Saturday we ran 10 in Nebraska (the picture above was taken in a state park we ran through). Upon arriving, I discovered that I had left Gwen (our Garmin) in Minnesota. Groan!! We were luckily able to download an app for our cell phone which tracked time and distance. It wasn't ideal, but it worked.

Now time for true confessions. My previously injured leg had been giving me a little grief. Nothing I couldn't manage, but something was not feeling 100%. I was pretty much in denial about the whole thing; yet really feeling the running horizon was looking a little bleak.

A few weeks ago an acupuncturist (sp??) came to talk to the running group at the Y. Figuring I had nothing to lose other than some cash (and even that's minimal thanks to the good ol' Health Savings Account), I made an appointment.

On Thursday I had a fairly long assessment with him and got some pins stuck in my legs, hands, and head. After giving western medicine its shot at this injury last summer, I really was not expecting much. And, I still don't understand why becoming a human pin cushion can really do anything, but when I ran on Saturday, I felt SIGNIFICANT improvement. Just craziness. Then, on Monday, I went out for a six miler and ran at 8:33 min/mile pace. It was kinda like the run of my life. I don't know if the acupuncture accounts for the quickened pace, but man, it feels good to feel good. I think I may actually be able to get this damn leg out of my consciousness... for the first time in a long time. I went for another session today and can't wait to see how this evening's sprints and hills feel. As of right now, I am a believer.

Monday, July 5, 2010

Weeks Two and Three


26/21
6/27
Easy Run
Dist: 3 mi
@10:20
Rest
/ XT
Speedwork
Dist: 5 mi, inc
Warm; 2x1600 in 8:16
w/800 jogs; Cool
Rest
/ XT
Rest
/ XT
Long Run
Dist: 9 mi
@10:20
Rest
/ XT
17 miles
36/28
7/4
Easy Run
Dist: 3 mi
@10:20
Rest
/ XT
Tempo Run
Dist: 5 mi, inc
Warm; 3 mi @ 8:46; Cool
Rest
/ XT
Rest
/ XT
Long Run
Dist: 10 mi
@10:20
Rest
/ XT
18 miles

I am chugging along, still drifting between plans.

Here's what I actually did week 2:
Monday 4 mile easy run
Tuesday Weight training
Wednesday Sprints and hills with the Y group
Thursday rest
Friday 9 miles along Clear Lake
Saturday rest
Sunday rest

Here's week 3:
Monday 4 mile easy
Tuesday Weight training
Wednesday Sprints and hills
Thursday rest
Friday rest
Saturday 10 mile long run in western Kansas



The picture shows the run we did our 10 miler (12 for Chris) on. Very different from our usual metropolitan runs. Initially, it was a nice change of pace, as well as nice and flat. Once we turned around after mile six, however, things got a little dicey. I went out thinking I would do 12, but I ran out of fuel. It would seem that it may be time to take in something other than water on these longer runs (sports drink or maybe even gels). I've never used any such thing, and the thought daunts me a bit. I fear GI issues, but I suppose even that would be better than the way I felt on this run!

Week two's nine miler was completed along Clear Lake in Iowa. It was nice, though it did get a bit hot and windy by the end. The long runs while traveling present some challenges. I've got one more this weekend (we'll be in Nebraska for a family reunion), but after that I look forward to getting back to doing them in good ol' Minneapolis.