Hills, Florida-style

This morning's workout was 4-6 long hills.  Before you scoff, I did pretty well as far as hills in Florida go, I think:

Florida hill

There is a definite upwardness to the land here.  It's about as hilly as I'm going to get in this part of Florida, I think.  Also, it is conveniently located in the golf course neighborhood across the street and offers some hills on the way there and back from where I parked today.  All in all, I felt like hill training went okay.  Also, I felt like I ran the hills okay, so maybe I learned something while in Pittsburgh.

It was warm, but not as bad as it could have been.  Also, the shade--which is ample, as you can see from the photo--was extremely helpful.

Split run

Today's run was supposed to be 6M.  Instead, I treated that like two 3-mile runs, completing one in the morning and the other later on.  Then I treated those like two 3-mile runs when I am adapting to Florida heat.  To finish, I treated the second one of these shorter runs to a run preparing me to stop walking during my adapting.  Confused yet?  Here's how it worked out:

Run #1 (AM): 6 intervals of 4 minute run/1 minute walk
Run #2 (PM): 5 intervals of 5 minute run/1 minute walk

I'm not really sure where I go from here in modifying, except that 30 is a great number for toying around with stuff.  The plan is to be running throughout by next Saturday's 3-mile run.  I just need to figure out how to pull that off most effectively.  Or I could suck it up for this week, which may have to be the answer, as icky as that may feel.

Modifying isn't really relevant for Tuesday since Tuesday is hills and I already have that scoped out.  I'm going to go to the Florida hill in the golf course neighborhood, which likely has an elevation of about 25 feet or so.  A marked change from Pittsburgh, I can promise you that.

As for today's runs, both were somewhat hot and sweaty.  Not as bad as they could have been, particularly the PM one since it was overcast.  It would have been horrid with Mr. Florida Sun out.  But I could have done with less humidity since it was in the 75% range.  You can't have it all, though, and all things considered, I think I prefer humid over searing heat.

Tired legs

Yesterday, I did my first yoga class in a good long while, and I have to say that while it wasn't overly challenging, it was somewhat challenging, and I am definitely feeling tired in different places than normal today.  I thought that this would lead to a good night's sleep, but unfortunately I woke up at around 4am very thirsty.

Note to self: do not forget water when running on treadmills, then attending yoga classes.  Water is your friend.

I was hoping to get up bright and early today to do half of a 5-mile run, but unfortunately, my 4am wake-up did not help things.  Instead, I wound up getting out of bed closer to 10am (this was after being up for a while after 4am), which is too late to actually run.  Also, there are still storms circling around in deceptive ways.  For instance, earlier today it was sunny and seemingly nice, when I heard ominous thunder.  Right now it is raining.  Again.  You might be noticing a pattern here.

I did get myself to the gym and I tried the weird treadmill that I described yesterday, the Woodway Curve.  The jury is still out on this one.  It supposedly goes as fast as you are running, but I found it considerably more challenging to get a regular pace than on a conventional treadmill (or just plain running outside).  It feels very heavy and I was running about 0.5 mph slower than I was yesterday on the normal treadmill.  I got through about 1.2 miles with a couple of walk breaks; it was considerably warmer and more humid today than yesterday, and I got pretty sweaty even just doing that. 

My gym recently acquired some rowing machines, like real Concept 2 rowing machines as opposed to those 'replicating water' ones that are actually toys.  I decided to do two 500m intervals with a 1-minute rests in between.  Considering that my legs were already tired from yoga, treadmill running, and wacky treadmill running, I think I did okay.  By the standards of actually erging on the machine, I did not do all that great.

I forgot that this week is a semi-taper week and my long run tomorrow is only 6 miles, instead of upping from the 7 miles last week.  So I think it's okay to skip the second half of my run this afternoon, especially since I am feeling tired.  Tomorrow, I will set the alarm and get half of the 6 miles out of the way early, then do the rest later (possibly on a treadmill, depending on storms).  Next week I should be able to get back on track with the schedule.  I do have to say that I've been more excited about things than I am for next week's 8-mile run.  Time to stock up on healthy Gatorade and caffeinated runner's jellybeans.

The Little Runner Who Could (finally get herself motivated to leave the house)

Today is rainy.  I mean all day, tropical-level rainy.  I thought about running this morning, took at look at the weather radar, and thought again (weirdly, I woke up during one of the few points when it was not raining today).  My next plan was to hit the treadmill, but it was super-downpour rainy.  So I decided to have breakfast instead.

This decision complicated the situation since I'm adding something new to my workout plan, which is lots and lots of yoga.  I got an unlimited membership to a local studio for the next six months.  Because I have more time in the summer, I am going to try to take advantage as much as I can over the next few weeks.  My first class is today.  What does this have to do with running?  It means that I will have to be more careful about scheduling.  I thought about running tonight, but I am doing a class from 4:30 - around 6pm, and this seemed hazardous to leave it until after a yoga class.

Finally, at some point this afternoon, the rain seemed less tropical and more normal, so I finally ventured out from my house and went to the gym (I realize that this is a luxury that not all of us have.  I won't have it always either).  Did three miles on the treadmill, with one walk break.  The treadmill is much more reasonable when it is not in the 90s outside.  I barely overheated, except near the middle (hence the walk break).  I also cheated a bit, since I went over the 30-minute limit at my gym for cardio equipment, but there were two empty treadmills so I really didn't feel too guilty about that.

The gym has a new, wacky treadmill called a Woodway Curve.  There is no motor, so it goes at your speed, which is a bit weird if you are accustomed to normal treadmills.  I tried this for about 0.2 miles or so, but I just couldn't get a feel for it.  I like the principle and maybe with some more practice, it will make more sense to me.  For today, I stuck to the traditional treadmill for the workout.

Hills and Heat

Two of my favorite things so far this week:

Tuesday was hills.  It was my last Pittsburgh run, so I did the worst hills that I could find in my immediate vicinity.  It wasn't a very long route, just over a mile, but the icky hills definitely made up for it.  The one in the previous picture was actually not the worst of them.  However, it doesn't matter because no more elevation for me for a while!

This morning, I did one of my '3 mile' Florida adaptation runs.  I actually was hoping to get the 5 mile for this week out of the way by splitting the run in half (3 in the morning, then 2 later), but this afternoon was rainy and I decided to pass.  It was beyond the icky zone (over 160 when you total temperature and humidity), but it was overcast so actually this didn't feel as awful as it might have.  That being said, it was still pretty sweaty and I'm glad it didn't have to go on for any longer.  I'm going to try and do four straight days to make up for missing yesterday, although I plan to split the long run up on Sunday into two 4 mile runs instead of one 8.  Then next week, I plan to actually try running the full route.  We will see.

In response to my question

Running Times--the much crazier running magazine (compared to Runner's World)--has investigated the question of just how nasty hills are.  Of course, this being Running Times, they then give you tips to prep for nutty marathons.  Enjoy.

Past week

There was an impromptu trip to Chicago this past week, so I changed my running schedule.  The plan was to do the following (hills were Tuesday):

Wednesday: 5M
Thursday: off (travel day, which started stupid early)
Friday: 3M
Saturday: 3M
Sunday: 7M

This plan did not go exactly as scheduled, but the main parts of it were accomplished.

WEDNESDAY

I decided to do the 5 mile in Pittsburgh because at least I know where I am going, even if I am physically incapable of completing this distance with the hills.  And again, I was physically incapable of completing this distance.  Needed to do some walking between 3-4 miles.  This was the same trail that has proven challenging before.  Apparently, it is a 213-foot gain, and this doesn't take into consideration the up/down on the rest of the route.  I have no idea what that actually means, but I can assure you that it feels really awful.  Also, as you can see from that profile, it is pretty much a straight 213-foot gain and you run it up on the way back.  Nasty.

THURSDAY: Day off

FRIDAY

I got to run in Chicago!  By the lake!  Just like you want to!  And to get to the lake, I got to run here!

On the way to the lake.  By the river.  Could not be more perfect.

Chicago weather forecasting is distinctly Germanic in that it's not very accurate.  It was supposed to rain on Thursday, be hot on Friday, then rain on Saturday.  Instead, it was lovely all day Thursday, rained Thursday PM to Friday AM, and finally got hot.  That being said, it was a titch warmer than I would have liked on my run.  Just a slight bit.  It was in the low 70s, though, so I really can't complain.  The actual run (by the lake!) went very well, probably my best 3M so far this training session.

SATURDAY

I woke up Saturday morning and my legs were just not interested one bit in running.  Quite a bit of walking had been done the day before, plus a trip to the Art Institute (=more standing).  I decided that my legs had earned a day off, especially since more walking was going to be done.

Also, it was hot.  The morning wasn't so bad, but the afternoon was almost too much for me--it was in the high 80s and if you were to check Accuweather, I'm sure that they would claim it was in the 90s.  So I think it's better that I took a break.

SUNDAY

After last week's debacle, I really wanted to get back on track for the long run.  And I did!  I found a trail in Pittsburgh that is relatively flat called the Eliza Furnace Trail.  I drove over because it is by the river (although not as nicely as in Chicago) and requires a pretty severe slant to get there.  Finding the trail turned out to be a bit of a challenge, so I first ran around my parking lot a bit, then got on track.  Some of the trail was closed, although this didn't really affect my plan; I've never been so happy to see 'trail closed' signs as I was at the 6.5-mile mark, since that was the indication that I only had 1/2 mile left.

I wound up running along the trail, then crossing a bridge and running on the south side of Pittsburgh for a bit.  It was an incline, even though they claim that this neighborhood is the 'Southside Flats.'  I mean, I guess these are relative flats, if you compare them to the 213-foot gain on the trail in Schenley Park.  But I don't think that most people--particularly people from Florida--would consider it flat.

I realized two things during my run today:

1) I need to take my long runs more seriously.  Because I've completed these distances before, I think that I've had a 'meh, this won't be so bad' attitude.  Seven miles is still a distance to run.  So it's important to remember that these are challenging.

2) Running in the summer is just harder, no matter where you are.  I think that almost all of my runs over the past week would have been better if the temperature were slightly lower.  Of course, it's nowhere near Florida conditions, but it can still be a challenge.  This morning, Accuweather seems to think that it was between 73-83F with the RealFeel and although I think that these numbers are a bit inflated, that is still warm (humidity was in the 80% range too).  Not ideal conditions.  The magic number for ick while running is when humidity and temperature add up to 160: that is total, complete ick.  It wasn't quite that bad this morning, but it started in the 150s when I began my run.  Definitely not ideal conditions.  But the important thing is that I persevered.

Tomorrow is off, Tuesday I will do my hill training again, then it is back to Florida, where the ick shall prevail.