In 2007, I decided that I would try the Hamilton Boxing Day 10 Mile run. Boxing Day, for those of you who are unaware, is the day after Christmas if you live in a Commonwealth country (or Great Britain). The Hamilton run is a long tradition that has been happening for over 90 years. Having run my first half-marathon in 2007, I thought that I would be ready to go for the 10 mile because, after all, it is 3 whole miles shorter. And a 0.1.
However, I was not prepared for the course. The course is pretty brutal. And I was last. Not close to last or near the end. I was last. Mind you, for every race someone has to be last, so I guess that was my turn. It was not my favorite, as you can probably imagine.
For anyone who is planning to run the Hamilton Boxing Day 10 Mile run, here is a description:
0.0-5.0: not bad. You spend a lot of it by the harbor, which means you went downhill to get there, followed by lots of flat. There is a hill near the start, but that is about the only one. Furthermore, that particular hill is really not all that bad. You will note, though, that this race tends to be a fast one and that the average participant runs at a swift clip.
Need a bathroom? Look around 3.5 (I think) and 4.8 for Port-a-Potties.
5.1-7.5: you will notice the first major hill right after the 5.0 marker (actually, it will be a timing mat that you cross). It's really easy to see: first, there will be a big incline and second, you will see lots of people walking. These people are wise. Unless you are trained for hills, might I recommend joining them.
Then, you will notice several rolling hills over the next couple of miles. Don't be fooled. Your brutal hill is the one that starts near the golf course, at around 7.25. This hill is sheer evil. There is no getting around it. It makes the other hill look like a joke. You'll also notice many more people walking.
7.5-8.5: this part is fine as long as there isn't snow. You're basically running on a trail, so if there is snow, it is not the best. Fortunately, this year there was no snow.
8.5-10: There are a few hills, but nothing like what you had before. Keep your chin up for the last mile, including the one hill there. You can do it. It's almost over. You won't have to run hills like that again for a while (unless by choice).
This year, it is worth noting, I was not last. Not even close to last. I even passed people during my last 0.75 mile. So take that! Nevertheless, my time was not a huge improvement, mostly because I did not treat the hills in a strategic manner. My brain forgot how evil that one at 7.25 miles is, for instance. However, it was an improvement, I was not last, and I may even try and run it again in the future.
Tuesday, December 27, 2011
Saturday, December 24, 2011
Florida vs. The Great White North
Greetings from Canada, eh! I'm here for a week and trying to get back in the swing of running. After the chest cold, I was taking it easy for a bit. Last weekend, I decided the time had come to run again. I was in West Palm Beach and went for an easy, 30-minute run. Except that it wasn't so easy because the humidity was horrible -- in the 80%-100% range (it was rainy). In December. Not fair. But I did it, even though I didn't feel like I was running at my best, even taking out the awful humidity.
Much the same for my next run, which was on Monday in Fort Lauderdale (I was doing a Florida road trip, can you tell?). This time, the humidity was okay, but Mr. Florida Sun was awfully brutal. The run was by the beach, which offered great scenery but very little shade. I did okay, but needed to walk a bit at the end. Still a bit sick, I think.
On Thursday, I wanted to do some speed training on the treadmill, but the treadmills weren't working (?). So I did pyramid pieces instead. You alternate fast running and slower running (or walking, as the case was by the end of the last one) at different intervals. I usually do 1-1-2-2-3-2-2-1-1 for a 15-minute pyramid (bold indicates where I ran). It's a very good workout. Again, not feeling 100% and still a bit sick.
Now I am in Canada, where it can be humid too, only you don't mind it so much because it's below freezing. This describes yesterday pretty well. I did a good job of dressing for the weather and I noticed that the wind can make an incredible different. Places where the wind was blocked weren't so bad, but when you got the wind head-on, it was pretty intense. My run was a 5-mile one with hills in preparation for the 10-miler that I am doing on December 26 (Boxing Day). It went okay, although yet again, I do not feel that I am at 100%. Maybe someday I will actually recover. Until then, I am trying to accept that I may not be running at my best right now, but at least I am sufficiently recovered that I can run. It's a big improvement over how I felt during the last half-marathon!
Much the same for my next run, which was on Monday in Fort Lauderdale (I was doing a Florida road trip, can you tell?). This time, the humidity was okay, but Mr. Florida Sun was awfully brutal. The run was by the beach, which offered great scenery but very little shade. I did okay, but needed to walk a bit at the end. Still a bit sick, I think.
On Thursday, I wanted to do some speed training on the treadmill, but the treadmills weren't working (?). So I did pyramid pieces instead. You alternate fast running and slower running (or walking, as the case was by the end of the last one) at different intervals. I usually do 1-1-2-2-3-2-2-1-1 for a 15-minute pyramid (bold indicates where I ran). It's a very good workout. Again, not feeling 100% and still a bit sick.
Now I am in Canada, where it can be humid too, only you don't mind it so much because it's below freezing. This describes yesterday pretty well. I did a good job of dressing for the weather and I noticed that the wind can make an incredible different. Places where the wind was blocked weren't so bad, but when you got the wind head-on, it was pretty intense. My run was a 5-mile one with hills in preparation for the 10-miler that I am doing on December 26 (Boxing Day). It went okay, although yet again, I do not feel that I am at 100%. Maybe someday I will actually recover. Until then, I am trying to accept that I may not be running at my best right now, but at least I am sufficiently recovered that I can run. It's a big improvement over how I felt during the last half-marathon!
Monday, December 12, 2011
The Year of Frustrating Sickness continues
2011: in like a flu, out like a chest cold?
The reason I haven't been writing much lately (or running much lately) is that soon after Thanksgiving I came down with a pretty nasty chest cold. I did manage my Sunday night run (speedwork) and my Tuesday night run (same speedwork), but Tuesday night I noticed that I was coughing a lot afterward. Wednesday, I needed to take the day off work, which is virtually unheard of for me. So that was a cue that things were not okay. The cold stuck around for the next few days: it was one of those ones where you feel better one day, then tired again the next. So I decided not to run.
The basic rule of running when sick is that you are okay to run if the cold is from your neck up (so a head cold is okay, even if unpleasant) and not okay to run from the neck down (i.e., in your chest). I knew that I should take it easy and mostly I did. But I also knew that at some point, I was going to have to go running again.
I got out this Wednesday, so it had been a week of no running at all, which was lousy! I did some easy speedwork (this might sound like an oxymoron, but it was not a very long distance or amount). Admittedly, I did not feel 100%, but I did make it through the workout without falling off the treadmill. Same thing for Thursday. I decided to go ahead and do the next half-marathon that was on Sunday (yesterday).
This one was the Holiday Half-Marathon, which is a one-way that goes from Madeira Beach to Largo. The course was meh, I felt. At least it was overcast so it wasn't exposed and sunny, because I think that it would have been pretty killer in those conditions. I felt cautiously optimistic about the it, thinking that possibly with the time off, I had a chance for a good time.
And I think that I would have had a chance for a good time, too, if it weren't for this pesky chest cold that REFUSES TO DIE! So I got through the first two miles in relatively good time, then realized that I was not feeling well. I walked for a bit and discovered that my heart rate was much too high. Blerg. So walk/run it was. For the whole rest of the half-marathon. It seemed like one hundred million miles, although my time was actually not horribly dreadful considering the circumstances and that I was walk/running.
In fact, my time was still better than it was for the Oak Tree back in September. Me sick > me running hills. Sad but true.
I think that there were some good things to take from this experience. First, I was glad that I had run into adversarial conditions last summer because I had strategies for coping with this en route. I decided to run divide my intervals into 0.65, so 5%, then run for 0.55 and recover for 0.1. Obviously, it worked well enough to get me through the course and I wasn't even the last person. I'm not sure that I would have known what to do if I hadn't had to complete such runs last summer. So this was a good thing.
Second, I feel like I am ready and raring to go for a half-marathon. It was the illness that stopped me this time. So here's hoping that the next half (January in Clearwater) goes better. I think that it will, too, because I will have some hill practice time between then and now while I am in Canada for the holidays. The Boxing Day race in Hamilton has a few nasty ones, so if I can get some hill work in, that should be useful for both. The next half involves the Causeway (i.e., one giant hill).
Third, I am half-way through the Halfathon! Which is totally cool. Only the equivalent of one marathon to go now. Also, I was happy with this most recent training plan, so I will modify it for the next race and see how that goes.
Fourth, I am incredibly glad that at no point yesterday did I lie down in a ditch and take a nap next to the race course, even though that was very tempting. Victory!
The reason I haven't been writing much lately (or running much lately) is that soon after Thanksgiving I came down with a pretty nasty chest cold. I did manage my Sunday night run (speedwork) and my Tuesday night run (same speedwork), but Tuesday night I noticed that I was coughing a lot afterward. Wednesday, I needed to take the day off work, which is virtually unheard of for me. So that was a cue that things were not okay. The cold stuck around for the next few days: it was one of those ones where you feel better one day, then tired again the next. So I decided not to run.
The basic rule of running when sick is that you are okay to run if the cold is from your neck up (so a head cold is okay, even if unpleasant) and not okay to run from the neck down (i.e., in your chest). I knew that I should take it easy and mostly I did. But I also knew that at some point, I was going to have to go running again.
I got out this Wednesday, so it had been a week of no running at all, which was lousy! I did some easy speedwork (this might sound like an oxymoron, but it was not a very long distance or amount). Admittedly, I did not feel 100%, but I did make it through the workout without falling off the treadmill. Same thing for Thursday. I decided to go ahead and do the next half-marathon that was on Sunday (yesterday).
This one was the Holiday Half-Marathon, which is a one-way that goes from Madeira Beach to Largo. The course was meh, I felt. At least it was overcast so it wasn't exposed and sunny, because I think that it would have been pretty killer in those conditions. I felt cautiously optimistic about the it, thinking that possibly with the time off, I had a chance for a good time.
And I think that I would have had a chance for a good time, too, if it weren't for this pesky chest cold that REFUSES TO DIE! So I got through the first two miles in relatively good time, then realized that I was not feeling well. I walked for a bit and discovered that my heart rate was much too high. Blerg. So walk/run it was. For the whole rest of the half-marathon. It seemed like one hundred million miles, although my time was actually not horribly dreadful considering the circumstances and that I was walk/running.
In fact, my time was still better than it was for the Oak Tree back in September. Me sick > me running hills. Sad but true.
I think that there were some good things to take from this experience. First, I was glad that I had run into adversarial conditions last summer because I had strategies for coping with this en route. I decided to run divide my intervals into 0.65, so 5%, then run for 0.55 and recover for 0.1. Obviously, it worked well enough to get me through the course and I wasn't even the last person. I'm not sure that I would have known what to do if I hadn't had to complete such runs last summer. So this was a good thing.
Second, I feel like I am ready and raring to go for a half-marathon. It was the illness that stopped me this time. So here's hoping that the next half (January in Clearwater) goes better. I think that it will, too, because I will have some hill practice time between then and now while I am in Canada for the holidays. The Boxing Day race in Hamilton has a few nasty ones, so if I can get some hill work in, that should be useful for both. The next half involves the Causeway (i.e., one giant hill).
Third, I am half-way through the Halfathon! Which is totally cool. Only the equivalent of one marathon to go now. Also, I was happy with this most recent training plan, so I will modify it for the next race and see how that goes.
Fourth, I am incredibly glad that at no point yesterday did I lie down in a ditch and take a nap next to the race course, even though that was very tempting. Victory!
Sunday, November 27, 2011
Thanksgiving Week
It was a somewhat busy Thanksgiving week. For instance, I went to a whole other country (okay, it was Canada, which is the country next door, but still). I did, however, get through my entire week of running and it was a big week for this plan: 6 miles on Tuesday, what wound up being 6 miles on Thursday (surprise!), 12 miles on Friday, and speedwork today (Sunday). I had to rearrange things due to travel, but at least everything got done.
The Thursday 6 miles was broken down as follows: 4 miles normal, then 0.5 miles fast, and 1.5 normal to finish. I did the fast quite fast. Plus it wound up being up a hill. A real hill, not a Florida hill (although nowhere on par with a California hill or a Pittsburgh hill or anything).
Other excitement during my week: I bought new shoes on Monday and tried them out on Tuesday. They seemed fine, so I took them to the foreign country. Surprise! They were not. I got back Thursday to find that they had viciously attacked my feet during my run. So I got to buy brand-new (expensive) running shoes in a foreign country. Yay! Ah well, these things happen sometimes. I have to say that these were my first skunky shoes in my running career, so probably I shouldn't complain too much.
The runs all went okay, although none was particularly great. I didn't have enough fueling stuff for the long run because I was out of my sport beans. By the end, I was hungry, which is a sign that you did not have enough en route. But that wasn't such a big deal since I wasn't too concerned about my time.
On to tapering! I am super excited about this since the past week wore me out.
The Thursday 6 miles was broken down as follows: 4 miles normal, then 0.5 miles fast, and 1.5 normal to finish. I did the fast quite fast. Plus it wound up being up a hill. A real hill, not a Florida hill (although nowhere on par with a California hill or a Pittsburgh hill or anything).
Other excitement during my week: I bought new shoes on Monday and tried them out on Tuesday. They seemed fine, so I took them to the foreign country. Surprise! They were not. I got back Thursday to find that they had viciously attacked my feet during my run. So I got to buy brand-new (expensive) running shoes in a foreign country. Yay! Ah well, these things happen sometimes. I have to say that these were my first skunky shoes in my running career, so probably I shouldn't complain too much.
The runs all went okay, although none was particularly great. I didn't have enough fueling stuff for the long run because I was out of my sport beans. By the end, I was hungry, which is a sign that you did not have enough en route. But that wasn't such a big deal since I wasn't too concerned about my time.
On to tapering! I am super excited about this since the past week wore me out.
Thursday, November 17, 2011
San Francisco
It's been busy since I got back from San Francisco...which was on Sunday, but feels like 87 days ago. In fact, the SF run was a week ago, but feels like a month. You may be getting the sense that the trip wore me out, which would be accurate!
My run was supposed to be 10 miles, except that my GPS absolutely refused to play ball near my hotel, so I opted to go by time instead. I picked a reasonable speed and decided to run that, considering it to be 'close enough' for 10 miles. I could have gone down to the Embacadero and run there, but I wanted a change of scenery from the last time that I was in SF.
I did manage to get to the Golden Gate Park, which looked like a superb place to run; unfortunately, I got to it right near the turn-around! Next time, it may be a better idea get a bus and start there, otherwise you can run into a lot of traffic lights.
The hills were insane, but I knew that that was going to happen. So I decided to try running them and accept that I would have to walk at times. This seemed to be a good plan that worked: it took about the same amount of time to/from the hotel, so my run/walk times must have balanced pretty well on either side. What was funny was reaching moments where I felt that I had to walk, then looking behind me. I did do some serious hill running, even if I didn't get through everything!
That was the only run I wound up doing in California. Sunday, I was far too tired to try anything. I did finally get back on the ol' treadmill yesterday and should be able to get my 4 runs in this week, so back to the routine.
My run was supposed to be 10 miles, except that my GPS absolutely refused to play ball near my hotel, so I opted to go by time instead. I picked a reasonable speed and decided to run that, considering it to be 'close enough' for 10 miles. I could have gone down to the Embacadero and run there, but I wanted a change of scenery from the last time that I was in SF.
I did manage to get to the Golden Gate Park, which looked like a superb place to run; unfortunately, I got to it right near the turn-around! Next time, it may be a better idea get a bus and start there, otherwise you can run into a lot of traffic lights.
The hills were insane, but I knew that that was going to happen. So I decided to try running them and accept that I would have to walk at times. This seemed to be a good plan that worked: it took about the same amount of time to/from the hotel, so my run/walk times must have balanced pretty well on either side. What was funny was reaching moments where I felt that I had to walk, then looking behind me. I did do some serious hill running, even if I didn't get through everything!
That was the only run I wound up doing in California. Sunday, I was far too tired to try anything. I did finally get back on the ol' treadmill yesterday and should be able to get my 4 runs in this week, so back to the routine.
Diatribe: quote-on-quote performance tees
I've noticed recently that more and more races are giving away what they term as 'performance tees,' the kinds of t-shirts that look super fancy, as opposed to the cotton ones that look like generic t-shirts. Well and good. I got a snazzy one from the Northdale 5k Pumpkin Run and decided to wear it today at the gym for what was supposed to be a teeny tiny run (okay, not teeny tiny, but not massive). I looked snazzy. But I couldn't run because this 'performance t-shirt' did not actually perform, in that it did nothing in aid of removing sweat from my body. Therefore I overheated after having completed only half of the teeny tiny run. So a tee-ti amount.
Grr.
As I was driving home, I was trying to figure out why I had failed to complete what was an easier work-out than the one I completed last night on the exact same treadmill at the exact same gym. Then, I noticed that my t-shirt was in no way sweaty at all, yet I still was. That is not a performance t-shirt, people. That is a fancy-looking shirt that performs as well as--if not poorer than--a cotton shirt. So could you please just give me a cotton shirt instead so that I won't try to use it while actually running?
/rant over.
Incidentally, it got hot and stormy again. I could rant about that, but that's enough ranting for one post.
Grr.
As I was driving home, I was trying to figure out why I had failed to complete what was an easier work-out than the one I completed last night on the exact same treadmill at the exact same gym. Then, I noticed that my t-shirt was in no way sweaty at all, yet I still was. That is not a performance t-shirt, people. That is a fancy-looking shirt that performs as well as--if not poorer than--a cotton shirt. So could you please just give me a cotton shirt instead so that I won't try to use it while actually running?
/rant over.
Incidentally, it got hot and stormy again. I could rant about that, but that's enough ranting for one post.
Saturday, November 5, 2011
Northdale 5k Pumpkin Run
I did the Northdale 5k this morning, as did my friend. And as I suspected, she beat me. In fact, she beat my all-time best 5k time by numerous seconds (although not more than a minute! Yes!). I feel okay with that. That time required me to train my freaking bootie right off.
My race was not my best, but I'm quite certain that it was in my top five 5ks. I'm fully okay with this because I hadn't really trained for this particular distance and I actually haven't even run a 5k in months (okay, I participated in a 5k, but did not really run). So that's fine. If I felt like spending this year working on 5k times, I would probably get pretty good. However, I chose to run four half-marathons, so that's plenty to keep me busy.
The weather was quite nice from a temperature standpoint (in the 50s!) but less so from the humidity standpoint (80%+, ugh). Next time, I will not walk for so long in the middle when I get water. In fact, for a 5k, I probably could have passed on water altogether. But that's fine. Live and learn.
This is probably the most chilled out I have ever felt about running a race in my entire life. Is this progress?
My race was not my best, but I'm quite certain that it was in my top five 5ks. I'm fully okay with this because I hadn't really trained for this particular distance and I actually haven't even run a 5k in months (okay, I participated in a 5k, but did not really run). So that's fine. If I felt like spending this year working on 5k times, I would probably get pretty good. However, I chose to run four half-marathons, so that's plenty to keep me busy.
The weather was quite nice from a temperature standpoint (in the 50s!) but less so from the humidity standpoint (80%+, ugh). Next time, I will not walk for so long in the middle when I get water. In fact, for a 5k, I probably could have passed on water altogether. But that's fine. Live and learn.
This is probably the most chilled out I have ever felt about running a race in my entire life. Is this progress?
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Run 1 of the New Plan: yes, I have fast twitch muscles (somewhere)
When you run, you use one of two kinds of muscles in your legs: fast twitch or slow twitch. One helps you go fast, the other helps you go the distance. You can probably guess which one is which.
I've decided to go with the more challenging, intermediate running plan for the next half-marathon. Even though the slacker easy plan apparently worked (and I still have no idea how that was), I think that I'm in to be pushed this time around. Hopefully, weather will cooperate again. My book, The Runner's World Guide to Road Racing, suggests that you are ready for the intermediate level plan when you want to race a half-marathon, not just run it and survive to tell the tale. After the last one, I feel ready to race...I hope!
Incidentally, I have used this book before with pretty good success. In 2009, I did the intermediate 5k plan and I PRed (mind you, it was in Connecticut with amazing weather, but that is still a good sign). The beginner marathon plan was the one that I used last year. I opted to go with the intermediate plan for this half-marathon because I do want to be pushed, so it is time to step things up a bit.
Anyway, tonight's run was intervals at actually paces that are not wholly embarrassing. You get to use your fast twitch muscles. Whoo! Because I was starting to forget that I even had fast twitch muscles after all of the plodding runs that I've done over the past few months. Think about it: I've been essentially running at a slow and steady pace SINCE MAY. That is forever. Not really, but it's starting to feel like it. So tonight, it was fun to do intervals as a change of pace.
Saturday I am running the Northdale YMCA 5k. Why not? It's actually in the running plan to do a race and I felt like this would be a good endeavor. I used to live right next to the Northdale YMCA and this will mark my third time doing this race, a personal record for participating in the same event. My plan is to try and remember that I have fast twitch muscles. With any luck the weather should be great.
I will be joined by a friend; we will be celebrating two years of her running by running the same race as her very first 5k (awwwwwwww). We also ran her very second 5k together and she beat me. I suspect that the same will occur on Saturday. But that's okay because I have fast twitch muscles and I am not afraid to use them.
I've decided to go with the more challenging, intermediate running plan for the next half-marathon. Even though the slacker easy plan apparently worked (and I still have no idea how that was), I think that I'm in to be pushed this time around. Hopefully, weather will cooperate again. My book, The Runner's World Guide to Road Racing, suggests that you are ready for the intermediate level plan when you want to race a half-marathon, not just run it and survive to tell the tale. After the last one, I feel ready to race...I hope!
Incidentally, I have used this book before with pretty good success. In 2009, I did the intermediate 5k plan and I PRed (mind you, it was in Connecticut with amazing weather, but that is still a good sign). The beginner marathon plan was the one that I used last year. I opted to go with the intermediate plan for this half-marathon because I do want to be pushed, so it is time to step things up a bit.
Anyway, tonight's run was intervals at actually paces that are not wholly embarrassing. You get to use your fast twitch muscles. Whoo! Because I was starting to forget that I even had fast twitch muscles after all of the plodding runs that I've done over the past few months. Think about it: I've been essentially running at a slow and steady pace SINCE MAY. That is forever. Not really, but it's starting to feel like it. So tonight, it was fun to do intervals as a change of pace.
Saturday I am running the Northdale YMCA 5k. Why not? It's actually in the running plan to do a race and I felt like this would be a good endeavor. I used to live right next to the Northdale YMCA and this will mark my third time doing this race, a personal record for participating in the same event. My plan is to try and remember that I have fast twitch muscles. With any luck the weather should be great.
I will be joined by a friend; we will be celebrating two years of her running by running the same race as her very first 5k (awwwwwwww). We also ran her very second 5k together and she beat me. I suspect that the same will occur on Saturday. But that's okay because I have fast twitch muscles and I am not afraid to use them.
Sunday, October 30, 2011
What a difference decent weather and a packet of caffeinated jellybeans makes
I can tell you exactly what a difference these two things make: a full 30 seconds off of my personal record (PR) mile split for a half-marathon! That's a whole 6 minutes faster! I think that actually it's closer to 7 minutes faster!
Really!
That happened!
The scenario: the first half-marathon in the Florida Halfathon series was today. I was, to say the least, concerned, particularly after the last long run that I did where I was awful. I decided to try being better about fueling: generally I don't eat much before a race, so I decided to change that. I had one of my packets of caffeinated jellybeans prior to the race. That apparently did the trick. I don't think that I've ever felt so focused at the beginning of a long run. This idea is staying.
Then, I was very fortunate in that the weather was MUCH better than anticipated. It was 58F with a dew point of 50F. Now admittedly, this is actually in the 70% humidity range, but it felt considerably better than normal. And there was a pretty hefty breeze--actually, I could have done without the hefty breeze from a running standpoint, but it was fantastic from a not-overheating standpoint. Also great: it was overcast throughout the run, so Mr. Florida Sun was not even a factor.
And I did not even come close to overheating! I did have to walk a bit around mile 11 because I got going too fast for a while. But I was back on track soon enough and polished off the last mile and finished in a much faster time than anticipated. Considering that I was worried about being taken off the course for slowness, this was, to say the least, an unexpected surprise.
This was my benchmark race for the series. I need to work on staying steady and getting faster so that I can power through that 11-mile slump next time. On the other hand, who cares because I got a half-marathon PR!
WHOOOOOOOOOOO!
Apparently, it's the year of weird running surprises. I got the age award for the 5k in April, even though I didn't run all that fast. Then, I got my half-marathon PR on a race that I really didn't expect. Considerably better than last year, which was the year of the cruddy race weather.
Really!
That happened!
The scenario: the first half-marathon in the Florida Halfathon series was today. I was, to say the least, concerned, particularly after the last long run that I did where I was awful. I decided to try being better about fueling: generally I don't eat much before a race, so I decided to change that. I had one of my packets of caffeinated jellybeans prior to the race. That apparently did the trick. I don't think that I've ever felt so focused at the beginning of a long run. This idea is staying.
Then, I was very fortunate in that the weather was MUCH better than anticipated. It was 58F with a dew point of 50F. Now admittedly, this is actually in the 70% humidity range, but it felt considerably better than normal. And there was a pretty hefty breeze--actually, I could have done without the hefty breeze from a running standpoint, but it was fantastic from a not-overheating standpoint. Also great: it was overcast throughout the run, so Mr. Florida Sun was not even a factor.
And I did not even come close to overheating! I did have to walk a bit around mile 11 because I got going too fast for a while. But I was back on track soon enough and polished off the last mile and finished in a much faster time than anticipated. Considering that I was worried about being taken off the course for slowness, this was, to say the least, an unexpected surprise.
This was my benchmark race for the series. I need to work on staying steady and getting faster so that I can power through that 11-mile slump next time. On the other hand, who cares because I got a half-marathon PR!
WHOOOOOOOOOOO!
Apparently, it's the year of weird running surprises. I got the age award for the 5k in April, even though I didn't run all that fast. Then, I got my half-marathon PR on a race that I really didn't expect. Considerably better than last year, which was the year of the cruddy race weather.
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Finding perspective and favoring the good
Today's run was supposed to be one of those warm-up a mile, run at race pace for a distance, then cool down for a mile. I did the warm-up and cool down as instructed. But not so much the race pace part.
Actually, I ran much too fast. And I did it on purpose. And I don't really care.
(To be perfectly honest, I'm not sure what my race pace is going to be...if last week was any indication, very slow. Slower than I had hoped).
Here's what I realized, though. Sometimes, you need runs like this to remind you that you are not just in an eternal circle of annoying runs. The race pace distance today was 1.5 miles. My warm-up and cool-down miles felt pretty meh. But, for every meh mile, I had a good mile, and another .5 of good to boot. That's like 1.25 good for every 1.00 bad. This got me thinking about finding a better way to think about a broader perspective when running.
I think that most of us tend to dwell on the runs that don't go as planned--by which I mean me, of course. But I realized today that for every bad run I have ever done in my life, I have done at least one good run where nothing went wrong and I completed the distance as planned. In fact, I'll bet I've done more than one good one. Probably for every five good runs, there might be a bad run (actually, if I averaged this over my entire running career, I suspect that bad run number is even smaller). So I need to remember this when I am tired and frustrated, and things aren't going as planned.
I also realized the wisdom in running other events while you are training for a long run. Last year, my marathon plan included running a 5k and a 10k during the preparation. In retrospect, this is genius. Even if you do not run a record-setting pace (and I did not for the 5k....couldn't find a 10k), you are reminded that you are not a super-slow awful runner who barely sloshed through 12 miles last week--by which I mean me, of course.
I've already decided that I need a different plan for the next half-marathon training. Maybe it's also time to include some shorter runs to make it more fun. And, of course, to get some more t-shirts.
Actually, I ran much too fast. And I did it on purpose. And I don't really care.
(To be perfectly honest, I'm not sure what my race pace is going to be...if last week was any indication, very slow. Slower than I had hoped).
Here's what I realized, though. Sometimes, you need runs like this to remind you that you are not just in an eternal circle of annoying runs. The race pace distance today was 1.5 miles. My warm-up and cool-down miles felt pretty meh. But, for every meh mile, I had a good mile, and another .5 of good to boot. That's like 1.25 good for every 1.00 bad. This got me thinking about finding a better way to think about a broader perspective when running.
I think that most of us tend to dwell on the runs that don't go as planned--by which I mean me, of course. But I realized today that for every bad run I have ever done in my life, I have done at least one good run where nothing went wrong and I completed the distance as planned. In fact, I'll bet I've done more than one good one. Probably for every five good runs, there might be a bad run (actually, if I averaged this over my entire running career, I suspect that bad run number is even smaller). So I need to remember this when I am tired and frustrated, and things aren't going as planned.
I also realized the wisdom in running other events while you are training for a long run. Last year, my marathon plan included running a 5k and a 10k during the preparation. In retrospect, this is genius. Even if you do not run a record-setting pace (and I did not for the 5k....couldn't find a 10k), you are reminded that you are not a super-slow awful runner who barely sloshed through 12 miles last week--by which I mean me, of course.
I've already decided that I need a different plan for the next half-marathon training. Maybe it's also time to include some shorter runs to make it more fun. And, of course, to get some more t-shirts.
Thursday, October 20, 2011
There's some good news and some bad news
Good news: I can still run 12 miles! And while I will admit to walking once or twice, I did not have to walk for any significant amount of time, unlike a few months ago. I consider this to be a major achievement after the past few months! And the weather was great! Low 70s at the highest point with not very much humidity...by Florida standards....it was in the 60-70% range, but hey, I'll take what I can get.
The bad news:
1) I sure didn't run them very fast.
2) I sure didn't run them at a consistent speed.
3) I think I double-bonked, if this is possible (bonking is what used to be called 'hitting the wall,' which is when your body up and quits. Sometimes your brain up and quits. I've been close to this before, but today I think I was over the edge. If you want to know more about bonking than you ever thought that you would know, Runner's World has a detailed article). I definitely felt a drop in energy at the half-way point, then felt better after having a mini-Clif Bar (I am out of sport beans. Boooooooooo). I'm going to assume that this was Bonk #1. Bonk #2 pertained to fluids, or lack thereof. I passed the neighborhood water fountain at 4 miles and thought, 'Meh, I'm doing okay.' This was a stupid thought, because I still had 2 miles to go out and 2 miles to go back. For those of you who are slow at math, that was 4 miles. I should have just stopped at the drinking fountain both times. Oh, and I was out of healthy Gatorade (Recharge), so I used the last two packages of healthy Gatorade juice crystals--the ones that offer basically no caloric support.
I'm going to blame Bonk #1 on the fact that I didn't plan my eating very well today and I was probably drained by the time I actually got out to run. Yet another reason to do long runs in the morning (although truth be told, I don't really need to remind myself of that).
Another idea I had: maybe don't try a long run the day after your toughest yoga class of the week. I started with some tired legs.
But what matters is that I did it, and unlike on Sunday, I didn't quit after 2.5 miles. So it was an aberration. I think that I may play this half by ear, depending on the weather. If it's back to classic Florida conditions, it might be a good day for run/walk. If not, I'll do my best to full-out run (or my current version of full-out running, which is not really 'full-out'). I knew that this half was not going to be very good, so my motivation will be just to go out there and do it. It is the first of four, I get three more chances.
One thing that does need to change: I need a better training plan. This one is not challenging enough.
The bad news:
1) I sure didn't run them very fast.
2) I sure didn't run them at a consistent speed.
3) I think I double-bonked, if this is possible (bonking is what used to be called 'hitting the wall,' which is when your body up and quits. Sometimes your brain up and quits. I've been close to this before, but today I think I was over the edge. If you want to know more about bonking than you ever thought that you would know, Runner's World has a detailed article). I definitely felt a drop in energy at the half-way point, then felt better after having a mini-Clif Bar (I am out of sport beans. Boooooooooo). I'm going to assume that this was Bonk #1. Bonk #2 pertained to fluids, or lack thereof. I passed the neighborhood water fountain at 4 miles and thought, 'Meh, I'm doing okay.' This was a stupid thought, because I still had 2 miles to go out and 2 miles to go back. For those of you who are slow at math, that was 4 miles. I should have just stopped at the drinking fountain both times. Oh, and I was out of healthy Gatorade (Recharge), so I used the last two packages of healthy Gatorade juice crystals--the ones that offer basically no caloric support.
I'm going to blame Bonk #1 on the fact that I didn't plan my eating very well today and I was probably drained by the time I actually got out to run. Yet another reason to do long runs in the morning (although truth be told, I don't really need to remind myself of that).
Another idea I had: maybe don't try a long run the day after your toughest yoga class of the week. I started with some tired legs.
But what matters is that I did it, and unlike on Sunday, I didn't quit after 2.5 miles. So it was an aberration. I think that I may play this half by ear, depending on the weather. If it's back to classic Florida conditions, it might be a good day for run/walk. If not, I'll do my best to full-out run (or my current version of full-out running, which is not really 'full-out'). I knew that this half was not going to be very good, so my motivation will be just to go out there and do it. It is the first of four, I get three more chances.
One thing that does need to change: I need a better training plan. This one is not challenging enough.
Sunday, October 16, 2011
It all works out in the end
A friend of mine in Tampa has gone through some pretty tough situations over the past year. During the summer, her house caught on fire. No one was hurt (including her pets), but it was an understandably traumatic experience. More recently, she was in a car accident and her vehicle was totaled. Again, no one was hurt, but she had finished paying off the car only a month before....seriously. This seriously happened. However, she somehow gets through these things with a smile on her face and patience. I certainly do not think that I would be capable of doing the same.
My friend got a new car last week and it is very spiffy. It is a Kia Soul and has all kinds of great features (including speakers that light up!), plus it is a brand-new car. She was able to manage this in the aftermath of the accident, meaning that she came out ahead. When we were talking about this, we also noted that while the fire had been very traumatic, there were good elements from that too, such as getting a new central A/C put in her house (she did have A/C before, but the central system had broken and she had been using window units). What I took from this was that even though she had encountered difficult and challenging situations, there truly was a silver lining on these potentially dark clouds.
I was reminded of this observation this morning when I had to stop my long run because I did not feel well at all--which, okay, is not on the level of having my house catch on fire or being in a car accident, but is frustrating all the same. After chiding myself over and over, then getting angry at myself for not training better, I decided to check the upcoming weather. My plan is to redo this run on Thursday (it's 12 miles) because there is supposed to be a major storm moving through on Tuesday, and I already ran in one monsoon this month. And you know what? The weather looks fantastic. Highs in the 70s (!) and lows in the 50s (!!!). I could not ask for better weather around these parts at this time of year. Sure, I would still prefer that I had finished today. But sometimes things don't go the way that you hope. What is important, is that it does work out in the end.
(I think the issue this morning was that I was out of healthy Gatorade and decided to try apple cider instead. This is not something that I will try again. However, I'm still feeling lousy, so maybe there is something else at work here).
My friend got a new car last week and it is very spiffy. It is a Kia Soul and has all kinds of great features (including speakers that light up!), plus it is a brand-new car. She was able to manage this in the aftermath of the accident, meaning that she came out ahead. When we were talking about this, we also noted that while the fire had been very traumatic, there were good elements from that too, such as getting a new central A/C put in her house (she did have A/C before, but the central system had broken and she had been using window units). What I took from this was that even though she had encountered difficult and challenging situations, there truly was a silver lining on these potentially dark clouds.
I was reminded of this observation this morning when I had to stop my long run because I did not feel well at all--which, okay, is not on the level of having my house catch on fire or being in a car accident, but is frustrating all the same. After chiding myself over and over, then getting angry at myself for not training better, I decided to check the upcoming weather. My plan is to redo this run on Thursday (it's 12 miles) because there is supposed to be a major storm moving through on Tuesday, and I already ran in one monsoon this month. And you know what? The weather looks fantastic. Highs in the 70s (!) and lows in the 50s (!!!). I could not ask for better weather around these parts at this time of year. Sure, I would still prefer that I had finished today. But sometimes things don't go the way that you hope. What is important, is that it does work out in the end.
(I think the issue this morning was that I was out of healthy Gatorade and decided to try apple cider instead. This is not something that I will try again. However, I'm still feeling lousy, so maybe there is something else at work here).
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Finding patterns
I think that I have figured out one reason that running has been more challenging this year. When I started the most recent bunch of training, I was in Germany, where the weather was not torturous. I got used to running at somewhat normal speeds. Now I am back in Florida and that is impossible. So I get going too fast, then find myself done. Last year, when I was training for the marathon, I was running at a considerably slower pace most of the time--like a minute/mile slower. I need to get back to that speed. It's not easy, as much as I try to remind myself.
Tonight was another one of the warm-up, run, cool-down runs. I was aiming for a slowish pace and almost succeeded, except that I needed to walk around 2 miles and didn't quite maintain the pace I was hoping for as a result. It got somewhat hot again, although conditions are still nowhere near as evil as the summer. It's okay. I was actually much closer to my planned pace than I have been on any of these runs to this point, so I see that as progress. Also, heck, I went running, so that's always a good thing.
Tuesday I got out as well, although that was too hot. Due to some evening plans, I had to get out earlier than I would have ideally wanted, with Mr. Florida Sun still out. After the halfway point, I added some walk breaks. And should have started more slowly. Yes, I'm figuring out the pattern, it's just taking me a while.
Tonight was another one of the warm-up, run, cool-down runs. I was aiming for a slowish pace and almost succeeded, except that I needed to walk around 2 miles and didn't quite maintain the pace I was hoping for as a result. It got somewhat hot again, although conditions are still nowhere near as evil as the summer. It's okay. I was actually much closer to my planned pace than I have been on any of these runs to this point, so I see that as progress. Also, heck, I went running, so that's always a good thing.
Tuesday I got out as well, although that was too hot. Due to some evening plans, I had to get out earlier than I would have ideally wanted, with Mr. Florida Sun still out. After the halfway point, I added some walk breaks. And should have started more slowly. Yes, I'm figuring out the pattern, it's just taking me a while.
Monday, October 10, 2011
Monsoon
Last week's running did not go entirely as planned, but I did get to the long run....even if it, too, did not go entirely as planned. In part, my plans were disrupted by a monsoon-type storm that made an appearance over the weekend. In all of my years of running, I think that this is the first time I have run into weather issues for a long run (apart from trips to Arizona, which don't count). That is pretty impressive.
It wasn't just the monsoon that I was worried about on Sunday, but possible thunderstorms. I had planned to run out on the Clearwater Causeway (aka the evil hill in an upcoming half-marathon), but I didn't want to get stranded in case of weather. It was a 10-mile run, so that was going to take me relatively far away. There is not a lot of shelter out there. So instead, I decided that I would run on the treadmill. About half-way through, I decided that there was no point in finishing on the treadmill because I would probably kill myself if I continued, thereby making the whole training moot. I finished up the remaining 5 miles outside to save myself from this fate. I also got soaked, thanks to the monsoon, but that was better than the treadmill. It was possible to make a route that was 2.5 miles without getting too far away from shelter in case of emergency, so that was fine.
The biggest treadmill issue, other than abject boredom, was the temperature in the room. 75F is not a good temperature for running. I even had a fan right next to me and it was still too warm. Ah well.
Earlier runs last week were not entirely successful. I had a good 5 mile to start things off on Tuesday, then didn't get out for my Thursday run due to a number of lousy reasons (mostly bad planning on my part). Saturday I didn't get in the mileage that I wanted, doing only 3 miles instead of 5. But it was on that treadmill, so maybe I should see that as some kind of victory.
Update: it really was a monsoon.
It wasn't just the monsoon that I was worried about on Sunday, but possible thunderstorms. I had planned to run out on the Clearwater Causeway (aka the evil hill in an upcoming half-marathon), but I didn't want to get stranded in case of weather. It was a 10-mile run, so that was going to take me relatively far away. There is not a lot of shelter out there. So instead, I decided that I would run on the treadmill. About half-way through, I decided that there was no point in finishing on the treadmill because I would probably kill myself if I continued, thereby making the whole training moot. I finished up the remaining 5 miles outside to save myself from this fate. I also got soaked, thanks to the monsoon, but that was better than the treadmill. It was possible to make a route that was 2.5 miles without getting too far away from shelter in case of emergency, so that was fine.
The biggest treadmill issue, other than abject boredom, was the temperature in the room. 75F is not a good temperature for running. I even had a fan right next to me and it was still too warm. Ah well.
Earlier runs last week were not entirely successful. I had a good 5 mile to start things off on Tuesday, then didn't get out for my Thursday run due to a number of lousy reasons (mostly bad planning on my part). Saturday I didn't get in the mileage that I wanted, doing only 3 miles instead of 5. But it was on that treadmill, so maybe I should see that as some kind of victory.
Update: it really was a monsoon.
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Seen while aquajogging
I don't know why, but today I just felt like doing aquajogging instead of running for real. No idea. So I decided to go for it, even though this is kind of cheating. Honor the body and all that (at least, that is what they say often in my yoga classes).
Anyway, I'm glad that I did because what very well might be the highlight of my day took place. There are two pools at my condo association: one bigger one and one smaller one. Usually, I aquajog in the smaller one because fewer people use it and there is shade. Today, there were two elderly people walking across the short part of the pool (not length-wise) as their exercise--I am in no way mocking their exercise regiment, since I have the utmost respect for anyone who takes the time to exercise. What did crack me up, though, was that they were listening to the Sirius Radio Broadway channel while they were doing this and the Paul Robeson version of 'Old Man River' came on. It was just too funny. And too wrong.
Mind you, it still ranks as the second-wrongest 'Old Man River' moment I have ever experienced after this one.
Anyway, I'm glad that I did because what very well might be the highlight of my day took place. There are two pools at my condo association: one bigger one and one smaller one. Usually, I aquajog in the smaller one because fewer people use it and there is shade. Today, there were two elderly people walking across the short part of the pool (not length-wise) as their exercise--I am in no way mocking their exercise regiment, since I have the utmost respect for anyone who takes the time to exercise. What did crack me up, though, was that they were listening to the Sirius Radio Broadway channel while they were doing this and the Paul Robeson version of 'Old Man River' came on. It was just too funny. And too wrong.
Mind you, it still ranks as the second-wrongest 'Old Man River' moment I have ever experienced after this one.
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
So much better
So today's run was over the Threshold of Ick: it was in the low 80s with over 80% humidity. The dew point was right around 75F. And you know what? It really didn't feel so bad. Which tells you just how bad the weather was this summer. Don't get me wrong: I was very sweaty and I definitely had to push (and my time was nothing to write home about), but it was at least manageable and not, to choose an example at random, 100% humidity like at the start of the month.
I was going to go this morning and make up for last week's long run but I was still tired. It was a very tiring weekend. And so, I decided that I would just follow the schedule from here on out and not try and make up last week's run. It should be fine, I didn't miss anything too crucial on the schedule. Last week was 10 miles, but next week is 10 miles too as the long run, so I will just do it then (this week is 8 miles, so that will be Sunday).
Today was 4.5 miles. I ran pretty well throughout, I think, even though my actual speed was slow. That was one of my goals because I'm getting fed up with walking. And I succeeded! Except for the part where someone had his dog off-leash and the dog came up and said hi to me. Then I walked so as not to completely freak out the dog. Unavoidable walk.
I was going to go this morning and make up for last week's long run but I was still tired. It was a very tiring weekend. And so, I decided that I would just follow the schedule from here on out and not try and make up last week's run. It should be fine, I didn't miss anything too crucial on the schedule. Last week was 10 miles, but next week is 10 miles too as the long run, so I will just do it then (this week is 8 miles, so that will be Sunday).
Today was 4.5 miles. I ran pretty well throughout, I think, even though my actual speed was slow. That was one of my goals because I'm getting fed up with walking. And I succeeded! Except for the part where someone had his dog off-leash and the dog came up and said hi to me. Then I walked so as not to completely freak out the dog. Unavoidable walk.
Saturday, September 24, 2011
That's more like it!
After a long day of travel, I was looking forward to getting to my hotel in Louisville and chilling out. It's been a tiring few days, particularly with today's travel (Phoenix to Oklahoma City to St. Louis to Louisville...someone really should have checked the flight schedule more carefully). But the minute I stepped out of the airport and I didn't immediately recoil at the weather, I knew that I wanted to go running.
This decision went against many of my normal habits. It was near dark. I didn't know where to run. I didn't know the area. But I asked the woman at the front desk of my hotel about 15 times if it was safe, and she assured me that it was. She was right.
I'm actually on the Indiana side of Louisville in Jefferson and there is a great trail here. It is called the Ohio River Greenway and it was incredibly well lit at night, which was totally unexpected, but great. I only wish that I was spending more time here and could explore this trail more. For a quick, 30-minute run, though, it was ideal. And the weather....the weather was great! In the 60s and fortunately, no rain (there is rain in the area).
It's nice to be reminded sometimes that I actually enjoy running and run willingly when I get the chance. The past few months have not been very encouraging. Runs like tonight's are great rewards.
This decision went against many of my normal habits. It was near dark. I didn't know where to run. I didn't know the area. But I asked the woman at the front desk of my hotel about 15 times if it was safe, and she assured me that it was. She was right.
I'm actually on the Indiana side of Louisville in Jefferson and there is a great trail here. It is called the Ohio River Greenway and it was incredibly well lit at night, which was totally unexpected, but great. I only wish that I was spending more time here and could explore this trail more. For a quick, 30-minute run, though, it was ideal. And the weather....the weather was great! In the 60s and fortunately, no rain (there is rain in the area).
It's nice to be reminded sometimes that I actually enjoy running and run willingly when I get the chance. The past few months have not been very encouraging. Runs like tonight's are great rewards.
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Running in Phoenix
Ages ago, I lived in Vegas for a summer. What I most hated about it was that you always felt hot. Even when you were inside, with the A/C on, you never really cooled down. For instance, if I took a hot shower, it was too hot. Summer of cold showers. Ew.
I couldn't help but think about this while trying to run on the treadmill here. It just felt too......hot. Didn't help that the A/C in the fitness room seemed to be unreliable. Didn't help that the A/C wasn't on when I started and the room was 75F for a while today (it cooled to 71F....but it sure didn't feel like it). Didn't help that the treadmill made scary, weird noises or that there was no water in the fitness room. You're probably getting the idea.
Today was going to be the long run, but it didn't work. I'm going to try to do it on the treadmill on Saturday when I am in Louisville, KY and it is not 96F out at 8pm. If that doesn't work out, then I will move the long run to Monday or Tuesday of next week. It's okay. I did run yesterday and today. Conditions are just not ideal here.
I couldn't help but think about this while trying to run on the treadmill here. It just felt too......hot. Didn't help that the A/C in the fitness room seemed to be unreliable. Didn't help that the A/C wasn't on when I started and the room was 75F for a while today (it cooled to 71F....but it sure didn't feel like it). Didn't help that the treadmill made scary, weird noises or that there was no water in the fitness room. You're probably getting the idea.
Today was going to be the long run, but it didn't work. I'm going to try to do it on the treadmill on Saturday when I am in Louisville, KY and it is not 96F out at 8pm. If that doesn't work out, then I will move the long run to Monday or Tuesday of next week. It's okay. I did run yesterday and today. Conditions are just not ideal here.
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Ha!
Last night I sat down and plotted out the training for the first of the four (eek!) half-marathons that I plan to run. No biggie, right? Just like doing two marathons in six months? Actually, I am feeling remarkably good about this whole thing, so BRING IT ON!
I chose a half-marathon plan from about.com, which is a first. It's called an advanced beginner plan, although I am not sure what that means...still looks considerably easier than the 'beginner' plan that I did for my last one. I'm having to start with the week where you do the 10M run to be ready in time, but that's okay. I'm still in decent shape from the last one, even though I took some time off in between. In fact, that might prove to be a blessing in disguise since it gave me a break.
Things are going to get hectic this week due to travel, so I opted to try the 'speed' training tonight. You run one mile as a warm-up, then do 2.5 at race pace, and finish with a mile cool down. This was going really well except that I ran the 2.5 much, much too fast to start. I think that this kind of training will require some practice for me since I've never tried to sustain my race pace for any amount of time before. It's a great exercise and one that I'm looking forward to improving. But today I didn't quite have it. I did meet my goal overall, but my pace was all over the place.
The weather felt great to start, a beautiful, Florida fall day. What I mean by a Florida fall day is that it was still in the 80s when I started (90s with the heat index), but that the humidity was a mere 70%-ish and the dew point only in the lower 70s. As I was running, the dew point went up to the mid-70s and the humidity increased because of storms in the area, meaning that the end of my run was above the threshold of ick--which might also account for why my pace dropped. And yet, it still felt about 100x better than the horribleness that was this summer. Right now, for instance, I don't feel as though I am going to die by melting into a smelly ball of sweat. Neat.
I chose a half-marathon plan from about.com, which is a first. It's called an advanced beginner plan, although I am not sure what that means...still looks considerably easier than the 'beginner' plan that I did for my last one. I'm having to start with the week where you do the 10M run to be ready in time, but that's okay. I'm still in decent shape from the last one, even though I took some time off in between. In fact, that might prove to be a blessing in disguise since it gave me a break.
Things are going to get hectic this week due to travel, so I opted to try the 'speed' training tonight. You run one mile as a warm-up, then do 2.5 at race pace, and finish with a mile cool down. This was going really well except that I ran the 2.5 much, much too fast to start. I think that this kind of training will require some practice for me since I've never tried to sustain my race pace for any amount of time before. It's a great exercise and one that I'm looking forward to improving. But today I didn't quite have it. I did meet my goal overall, but my pace was all over the place.
The weather felt great to start, a beautiful, Florida fall day. What I mean by a Florida fall day is that it was still in the 80s when I started (90s with the heat index), but that the humidity was a mere 70%-ish and the dew point only in the lower 70s. As I was running, the dew point went up to the mid-70s and the humidity increased because of storms in the area, meaning that the end of my run was above the threshold of ick--which might also account for why my pace dropped. And yet, it still felt about 100x better than the horribleness that was this summer. Right now, for instance, I don't feel as though I am going to die by melting into a smelly ball of sweat. Neat.
Thursday, September 15, 2011
I may have lost my mind
There is a Florida halfathon series in which you run 4 half-marathons over the course of about 5 months (late October to mid-March).
I signed up for it today.
Yes, I realize that this could signal the fact that I have lost my mind.
However, I am very excited about this suddenly, which is great since I'll need all of the enthusiasm that I can muster to get through it. Over the next few days, I plan to map out a training schedule, probably one that has me running 3-4 times a week, since that worked well when I did the marathon. I'll have to improvise a bit since I'm pretty sure that I'll be coming into a training plan midway, but I think that I should be okay since I did just train for a 1/2 marathon and wasn't running into any injury problems. Also, I'll have to figure out what to do between races as a modified plan. But this is okay.
One of them has 'hills,' by which I mean the Clearwater Beach Causeway. It's legit. And very sunny. I will get photos soon. Fortunately, this is the race in January, so we can all cross our fingers that it won't be complete torture.
It is on.
I signed up for it today.
Yes, I realize that this could signal the fact that I have lost my mind.
However, I am very excited about this suddenly, which is great since I'll need all of the enthusiasm that I can muster to get through it. Over the next few days, I plan to map out a training schedule, probably one that has me running 3-4 times a week, since that worked well when I did the marathon. I'll have to improvise a bit since I'm pretty sure that I'll be coming into a training plan midway, but I think that I should be okay since I did just train for a 1/2 marathon and wasn't running into any injury problems. Also, I'll have to figure out what to do between races as a modified plan. But this is okay.
One of them has 'hills,' by which I mean the Clearwater Beach Causeway. It's legit. And very sunny. I will get photos soon. Fortunately, this is the race in January, so we can all cross our fingers that it won't be complete torture.
It is on.
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Getting caught up
Well, I have definitely not written in a while and, if you're curious, I haven't been running as much lately either. But it's not as grim as the lack of blog posts might infer. Here's a quick summary:
For once, I'm not sure what my next goal is. I was thinking to do a 10K turkey trot, but travel plans changed and that now won't work. So I need to think about what I want to do. Some long-term thoughts:
1) I don't know why, but I want to run the NY marathon. So I will put in for the lottery and see what happens.
2) I feel like I still haven't had a good shot at a half-marathon with a respectable time. This summer was brutal and then there were hills; the other halfs I have run were in Florida and humid, all too humid. So one thought it to think about Philly if I don't get in for NY. Philly is mostly flat and that race is in November, when it shouldn't be too hot and humid.....right?
But those are for next fall. I need to find something for between then and now. With a bit more digging around, I'm sure that I will.
- Ran 2 miles in Pittsburgh on the Saturday before the half-marathon. I thought that I was going to a part that wasn't too hilly. And for Pittsburgh, probably it wasn't. But by normal standards, there were plenty of hills. No need to walk any of them though.
- Unfortunately, for the half-marathon in Geneseo, NY, there was A WHOLE TON OF HILLS. Several super nasty ones too. There were rolling ones around 4-5 miles and one super killer one right before the 12-mile marker. Because that is what you want to see at Mile 12: a huge hill. Also, it was somewhat humid. Humid and hilly, my two favorite conditions. But we did it (I ran this with another person). We persevered. Even if we had to walk some of the hills. The part that I found hilarious was when we looked ahead at the killer hill near Mile 12 and saw everyone still out on the course walking. It was very pretty, though, and the race was well-organized. Its only major flaw was that it was ridiculously hilly for a Floridian.
- There was one advantage to having walked parts of the half-marathon: I ran the last mile. Really ran it. And was rewarded with a finish-line picture where I am actually running instead of gasping for my last breath of air before I die. I liked the picture so much, I ordered a super-huge copy of it.
- Last weekend I did 2 miles on a treadmill and 5 miles outside. I called it 'a treadmill' because it was in a different gym, which doesn't believe in air conditioning with the same fervor as my normal gym. So that was why it was only 2 miles: I got too hot. The outdoor run went pretty well, except that I wound up in the direct sun for ~20 minutes of the run (10 out and 10 back). This was a mistake and I did some walk-running to finish up. On the plus side, the weather is not nearly as horrid as it was in August.
For once, I'm not sure what my next goal is. I was thinking to do a 10K turkey trot, but travel plans changed and that now won't work. So I need to think about what I want to do. Some long-term thoughts:
1) I don't know why, but I want to run the NY marathon. So I will put in for the lottery and see what happens.
2) I feel like I still haven't had a good shot at a half-marathon with a respectable time. This summer was brutal and then there were hills; the other halfs I have run were in Florida and humid, all too humid. So one thought it to think about Philly if I don't get in for NY. Philly is mostly flat and that race is in November, when it shouldn't be too hot and humid.....right?
But those are for next fall. I need to find something for between then and now. With a bit more digging around, I'm sure that I will.
Thursday, September 1, 2011
I think I have identified the issue
I took a quick look at the Weather Network to learn more about Katia, our next named tropical storm, and I saw a big mess in the Gulf of Mexico. There is a huge amount of tropical moisture streaming around, which will likely form into the Storm After Katia, which would be Lee. This would explain why we have been experiencing higher than normal humidity. But it doesn't make it any less icky:
Today's run was 8 miles. In 100% humidity the entire time. I was somewhat excited when I looked at the weather this morning and saw that the dew point was merely 73F, but that lasted only until I looked at the temperature and saw that it, also, was 73F. Incidentally, this puts the temperature + humidity at 173. That is so far beyond the threshold of ick (160) that I don't even know what to make of it.
I mean, it wasn't hot and it was overcast, so I guess that is good. But I could have done without the mounds of sweat that I experienced. The weirdest part was that my legs really didn't feel tired at the end. Everything else did, but not my legs.
Today's run was 8 miles. In 100% humidity the entire time. I was somewhat excited when I looked at the weather this morning and saw that the dew point was merely 73F, but that lasted only until I looked at the temperature and saw that it, also, was 73F. Incidentally, this puts the temperature + humidity at 173. That is so far beyond the threshold of ick (160) that I don't even know what to make of it.
I mean, it wasn't hot and it was overcast, so I guess that is good. But I could have done without the mounds of sweat that I experienced. The weirdest part was that my legs really didn't feel tired at the end. Everything else did, but not my legs.
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