Miraculous Miles Monday

What a run today. I must feel stronger because I know my kids come back today after school and my husband is off today. :) He made my day when he told me he bragged about me to his Captain. Aaaawwwww.

I warmed up w/ 2 miles at 18:16. Then I ran 6 miles at an "easy" pace averaging 8:30 per mile. Then a 2 minute potty break, then I ran 6 miles at half marathon goal pace + 20-30 seconds. This averaged out to 7:35 per mile (20 seconds slower than half marathon goal pace). I then cooled down with 2 miles at 18:59. I combined my Long Run w/ Ryan Hall's "Race Simulator" work out. I loved it!

Overall I ran 16 miles at an average pace of 8:15 per mile. Not too shabby. It was a confidence builder after the sub par 10K on Saturday. I feel ready for the half marathon on October 14. God willing, I'll nail it. I'll just work with what the Good Lord gave me and whatever happens happens.

Time to soak in the cold pool before I pick up the kids. Baby is napping and hubby is hanging out. Yaaay!

Missing My Kids Sunday

The schedule we have had for years has changed along with their dad's new work schedule. For the first time since 2003 he has weekends off. So now they're at their dads on weekends.

I MISS THEM. My husband is at work and the baby is sleeping and it's just me. Usually the kids are with me but not this weekend. I'm sad. It's days like this that I just absolutely hate what divorce does to families. But no whining. After all we have all adjusted well and moved on, and our lives are blessed. I just miss my babes. At least we got to go to church together this morning. My daughter was so pretty with the yellow ribbon she wore in her hair, and my son sounded so wonderful as he sang the hymns. And they both listened to the priest's sermon and understood. They even asked me if I understood! The baby didn't have a meltdown so that was good too.

Anyway, have you seen the movie Premonition with Sandra Bullock? It's so interesting and so good. You really have to pay attention and think things through as you watch. I'm so glad I saw it. One thing that really sticks with me from the film is the conversation she had with her priest about being scared and not knowing what faith was anymore. He told her, "Faith is just believing in something beyond yourself. Something you can't feel or see or touch. Like hope. Like love." I really like that. Believing in something beyond yourself. I gather that having faith (in anything) is akin to being less selfish. I like that so much.

Whatever you believe in, practice your faith. Look beyond yourself.

Take care!

Back to running tomorrow. :)

"Not My Best 10K" Rationalizations

I wanted to better my 10K PR set last April just before the Boston Marathon. As you can tell from the title of this post, I did not achieve my goal. I'm okay with it because I'm going to consider several factors as to why. Bear with me as I rationalize away. (I hate it when I do that, but it'll make me feel better). ;)

A. I ran a 6:49 first mile and knew it was too fast.

B. I slowed to 7:01 at the 2nd mile and then a half mile later, the two fast females ahead of me (my rabbits) turned around at the 5K turnaround... leaving me alone! I immediately thought, "Okay, I think I might win this 10K. But without any females to chase I don't think I'll PR." The two runners in front of me were male and at least a full minute ahead. That set the tone for the rest of the race.

C. We had a fierce headwind between miles 2-5 (20mph). I hate wind. I could feel my efforts against it just suck the energy out of me. My splits for those miles were 7:13, 7:16 and 7:04 (the wind let up a little for that one).

D. Mile 5-6 were run w/ the 5K walkers and the Half Marathon walkers and runners. Crowded, and again there was wind! Damn! Split was 7:13. The last .29 miles (the Garmin 305 said I ran a 6.29 mile race today) was run in 1:56 (6:40 pace). So I had something left at the end.

E. I don't know if the race distance was indeed long, or if the Garmin was completely off. Either way, the results are what they are. 10K (maybe w/ an additional .09) @ 44:35 (7:10 pace). To rationalize some more, if the course was long at 6.29, then I ran it at a 7:05 pace. But who's coming up w/ excuses??? Oh, ME!

F. I did not taper for this race, and actually ran 2 speed sessions within 5 days prior. I think I left it all on the training field, and definitely not on the race course. Good news is that at this very time 12 months ago, my best 10K was 46:13.

G. Did I mention the wind, and basically running the bulk of the race alone ???


Okay, I'm through w/ my nagging thoughts. Now on to the good news: I WON THE 10K WOMEN'S DIVISION AS WELL AS MY AGE GROUP OF 30-SOMETHING. I got a plaque, 2 ribbons, 2 medals and $50.00. Woot woot! I turned today's race into a 10.2 miler (running 2 miles each for warm up and cool down).

I got to see my hubby and the baby just before I crossed the finish. Always sweet! I wish my older kids were there, but they are now at their dads on the weekends.
Time to get the baby down for his nap. And then my daughter's soccer game later.
Have a great weekend!!!

6 x 1200s

I was excited and nervous to do Ryan Hall's workout today. 6 x 1200 meters w/ a quarter of the distance as recovery in between. I walked those 300 meter recoveries, by the way. McMillan says my prescribed pace for 1200s based on my last 10K race is 4:54-5:09.

After a 2 mile warm up to the track which included just a couple of 100 meter strides, the 1200s shook out like this:
4:57, 4:58, 5:04, 5:01, 5:12 (yikes), 5:02.

The 5th one was so slow. I was feeling fatigued and experimented w/ a new mantra, "Feet off the ground." Um yea, actually saying that over and over made my feet feel like lead, thus the slow down! After that I went back to saying, "Dig," and "Please God."
Cooled down with a 2 mile jog home.

Overall my 1200 paces were in between my mile and 5K race paces. I personally would have liked to run them in less than 5 minutes each, but that didn't pan out today. Overall I'm still pleased. It was just 2 days ago that I did that 14 miler w/ the marathon goal pace, 800s and Tempo pace miles. So I'll use that as an excuse. Three more days until my first 10K of the fall racing season. :)

Kids will be home in a few and time for homework.


Picture at left is Ryan Hall setting the new American record for the mens's Half Marathon in 2007.

I Should Skip Days More Often

After Friday night's gluttonous activities, Saturday's little flu bug and yesterday's pure laziness I decided to do my long run of 14 miles combined with the marathon goal pace, 4 x 800s, tempo paced run today. Mind you, I did run easy miles on Thursday and Friday, so my only days off of running were Saturday and Sunday. Saturday I was supposed to run the MGP-800s-tempo run, but skipped it. Thus the combination of the two workouts today.

Here's how it worked out:
2 miles warm up @ about 8:54 pace
3 miles marathon goal pace @ 7:39, 7:43, 7:29
.43 mile recovery
4 x 1/2 mile intervals @ 3:06, 3:10, 3:11, 3:17 with .10 mile recoveries after each.
3 miles tempo pace @ 7:19, 7:25, 7:18
3.16 miles cool down @ about 9:00 pace

TOTAL: 14 Miles

It felt so good but definitely tough. It was a hard workout. I'm going to soak in the cold pool w/ some coffee and then hang with the family.
I stink! I need a nice shower.

Lesson of The Day

I am living proof that what they say about certain food combinations is true. I've heard that combinations like a candy bar or ice cream with a Coke or Pepsi makes your immune system take a nose dive for so many hours afterward. So... lastnight's Ben and Jerry's along with the soda pop I had to wash it down was not a wise decision on my part.

I woke up feeling okay, although my nose was immediately running down my face. I took some Airborne and an allergy pill and rounded up the kids for the first soccer game at 8:00 a.m. All was well until the downpour of rain. I thought my Boston Marathon jacket was water resistant but I was wrong. By the end of the hour I was soaked to the bone. The kids were too, but they didn't really care. As a side note, my son's team won.

By the time we got home I felt like every joint in my body was going to melt. My husband came home from work and took over, and by noon I was sacked out. I slept for as long as the baby did (almost 3 hours). My husband took the kids to my daughter's soccer game while the baby and I napped. (Her team won also).

My body and head still hurt and I have a slight fever of 100.4. I'm sure it wasn't just the ice cream and soda. I'm sure it has been broken sleep and lots of things (but I don't want to say "running too hard").

Today would have been THE PERFECT day to run hard and run long. I missed a golden opportunity. :(

11:20 p.m. Friday Night

I just peeked out my bedroom window and saw raindrops falling in the pool. I love it. I had to post something about it because even though the kids will have to play soccer in the rain and I'll have to cheer them on in the rain, I really want to run in the rain! For the last 2 days I've run easy paced miles and tomorrow I have a tough triple play speed session. The marathon goal pace, 800s, tempo pace run. I would love to do that outside in cool, damp weather. Crossing my fingers. I'll report back tomorrow.


In the meantime I have a confession. As late as it is, I just polished of AN ENTIRE PINT of Ben and Jerry's Karamel Sutra. Man it was good. I'll regret it in the morning when I'm dragging because of all the sugar. But that run later in the morning will do me good.

All right, g'nite.

Speed Day

I needed a change of pace today after taking a rest day yesterday. This morning I met some of the MOMS Club moms again for a little walking and exercise at the track. It was so great to do that stuff with them. Sure beats doing it alone. After they left I jogged around a little to warm up more, and went right into my speed work.

I've decided to do a mix of Ryan Hall's Half Marathon training schedule as well as Runner's World Your Ultimate Marathon Training Program - Advanced. Today I ran Ryan's speed workout of 2 miles at Half marathon goal pace, 3 minute recovery after, 2 x 1 mile intervals at 10K race pace, 2 minutes recovery after, then 2 x 800s at 5K race pace with 2 minute recoveries after. It felt awesome! I ran the mile intervals and the 800s a little too fast (on the track), but overall I was pretty close to my recommended times. I ran the 2 mile portion on the road at an avg. pace of 7:10 (my half marathon goal pace is 7:15-7:20). After the workout I jogged a mile for cool down as my husband and the baby walked around the track.

Now time to gear up for a busy day with the kids. :)

Total Miles: 7

Weekly Totals 9/10/07 - 9/17/07

Mon 9/10: SRD (scheduled rest day)
Tue 9/11: 8 (2 x 3 @ Tempo pace)
Wed 9/12: 5.1 (recovery)
Thu 9/13: 8.66 (4 x 800s and 4 x 400s)
Fri 9/14: SRD
Sat 9/15: USRD (unscheduled rest day - felt lazy)
Sun 9/16: 5.43 (easy, w/ kids)
Mon 9/17: 12 (Long run, had to do today due to Hubby working yesterday)

TOTAL: 39.19

The 12 miles today felt GREAT. I felt "on." Overall average pace of 8:16. First 6 were at an avg of 8:31/mile, last 6 were run at an avg of 8:00/mile (marathon pace). I was happy with that. Miles 4 & 5 were 7:56 and 7:49.

I'm going to stand in the pool for relief as I sip coffee and then I'm going to take care of my poor husband. He finally caught the baby's cold. The baby is down for his nap and the kids are at school.

Have a blessed day.

What do you think about this?

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

- Marianne Williamson

I think it's easier SAID than DONE. I guess it's something I need to work on.

Running Log

Hey all. I've decided to keep a hard copy running log in addition to my blog page. I like the idea of having one at my disposal without having to log in to the computer. I wish there was a way to get my blog printed in to hard copy, but the last I'd heard, they don't do it for blogger.com yet. :( Anyone know differently?

Anyway, update of last few running days.
Tue 9/11: 8 total, warm up, 2 x 3 miles @ tempo pace, cool down. The tempo miles shook out like this -- 22:34 (7:31 pace, roughly 10-15 seconds slower than I needed to be) and after a 3 minute recovery I ran 23:18 (7:46 pace, 25-30 seconds slower). My only "excuse" is that I ran it outside at 12:45 p.m. in about 85 degrees. Not smart!

Wed 9/12: 5.1 mile recovery run, no watch. :) I pushed the baby in the jogging stroller.

Thu 9/13: 8.66 total, warm up, speed intervals at track, cool down. The intervals were 4 x 800s : 3:11, 3:12, 3:10, 3:14; and then 4 x 400s: 1:28, 1:29, 1:28, 1:30. Each interval was followed by a 400 meter jog/walk (one lap). It was a tough workout done at 10:30 a.m. and luckily it wasn't too hot yet.

Today I'm resting, but doing some core strengthening later on. I've come to the realization that if I want to feel good and race well, I really need to commit to eating less SUGAR and more vegetables, in addition to the protein and whole grains I already eat. I'm just a sugar addict though and it's horrible!

Okay, time to go. Have a great weekend! Tomorrow after soccer games I will do a 5K time trial. It's a cutback week on my marathon training schedule.

REMEMBER 9/11

I will never forget.
I had gotten home from work just a few hours before it happened. My brother (a fireman) called my house and woke me up. Asked if I had heard about the planes. I was groggy and said "yea I'll call you later." Then I couldn't get back to sleep.

I got out of bed and turned on the TV as I made coffee. As soon as I saw what was going on, I wept. I watched and cried some more, then I got ready and drove in to work early. I worked the swing shift at the time. The city where I work has an international airport and it was a strange silence to not hear the planes overhead.

Residents throughout the city sat outside their homes or on major street corners holding candles and American Flags. The calls for service that night were slim to none. However there were many possible "hate" crimes in the days to follow including assaults & arson.

My heart is still saddened when I think about that time. Just a few weeks later, my friend and coworker was shot and killed while he made a car stop.

So every year around 9/11, I not only honor the people who lost their lives in that tragedy, but I also mourn the loss of my friend.

REMEMBER. Let your loved ones know how much they mean to you. Honor those that have gone home before you.

Weekly Totals 9/3/07 - 9/9/07

First here's my weekly total from 8/27/07-9/2/07: 11.8 miles

Now let's get up to date:
9/3 Mon: rest day
9/4 Tue: 9 miles (hill tempo on TM)
9/5 Wed: 4 miles recovery
9/6 Thu: 11 miles (marathon goal pace and tempo pace mixed)
9/7 Fri: rest day
9/8 Sat: 6 miles recovery (10 min. miles)
9/9 Sun: 13.3 miles progressive run. Started at a 9:30 pace and last 2-1/2 miles at 7:30 pace. (overall avg. pace was 8:36).

TOTAL: 43.3 That's back on track. My marathon training schedule called for up to 44 last week. I'm still not going to stress out if I don't do the scheduled workout. If I need a break I'm gonna take it! That's my new motto. :)

Feeling Good (this week)

Once again, thanks for the encouragement through my downer week everybody! YOU are all the nicest people. ;)

Tuesday I ran 9 miles on the treadmill at the gym. I did a 3 mile warm up and then 5 miles of hills that simulated Boston's Newton Hills (at my hill tempo pace) and then a one mile cool down. It felt so good!

Wednesday I ran 4 easy miles and worked out with some fellow MOMS Club moms at our local track. It was so good to exercise with other people! I need to do that more often.

Yesterday I ran 11 miles on the treadmill again (poor air quality outside due to multiple forest fires in the surrounding areas). I ran 15 minutes warm up, 59:58 for 8 miles, then 13 minutes cool down. The middle 8 miles were 2 @ marathon goal pace (7:41s) then 4 @ tempo (2 @ 7:18 & 2 @ 7:13) then 2 @ marathon goal pace (7:35 & 7:30). It felt pretty good, but my legs were WORKING. So were my lungs. I talked to God a few times to help me through it! I felt lightheaded, as if I were going to pass out, between miles 4 & 5, but the feeling passed. Otherwise it went great! :)

Today is a complete rest day. I really like those!
Have a great weekend.

The Nicest People

I really want to thank everyone who posted comments on my last blog entry. You're all so sweet, so understanding and so nice. THANK YOU!!!

Since I last posted I have enjoyed 3 very easy runs. Two with my older son and daughter and one by myself. All three runs felt so nice because I left the watch at home and just went where my feet wanted to go. For the runs with the kids, I let them lead. A part of me misses the really hard training runs, but most of me is happy to break away from them for now.

I posted a copy of the blog entry on the Runner's World Message Boards and the support there was overwhelming. Another wonderful bunch of people (some of whom posted comments here on the blog too). Here are the links to those supportive message board threads. Here's the one from the Master's Board. So awesome! And this next one is hilarious...be prepared to laugh really hard when you open it!

I couldn't help but be cheered up when I read what these kind and kindred spirits had to say. It just goes to show ya' that you really aren't alone even when you feel like you are. God Bless!

Struggling

Hey all. I haven't actually done any physical exercise since Sunday morning. I ran today after a 4 day hiatus. I've been tired, blue, burned out, bummed, just not motivated to run in the least. I forced myself out there today and managed 6.4 miles at an avg. pace of 9:35 and I felt bummed out the entire time. It felt like such a chore. Like I was only out there because I HAD to do it, not because I really wanted to or that it would bring me joy. I guilted myself into it.

It was the first time since the CIM of 2003 where I wanted to just stop, lay down on the course I was running and just fricken sleep. Just sleep. The Geetah on runner's world has this method of checking himself while out on a hard run or during a difficult race, "ATFQ" meaning answer the fu*&ing question: "If you could be anywhere on earth right now, where would you want to be?" I asked myself that today on the run and for the FIRST time ever, I said, "NOT F_ING HERE." I wanted to be home. But I said, "Just get at least 6 miles in and then that's it for the day." So I jogged and sometimes walked. It sucked but I did it.

I think I need to reevaluate my running goals. I think I need to figure out if training for marathons is worth it anymore. Why am I doing it? I had told myself long ago that once I ran Boston, I'd forego marathons for shorter races and just enjoy running again. And here I am training for the CIM. It's absurd. Why am I pushing myself to do something that's not in my heart right now??? Why? Why? UGH.

Okay, thanks for reading yet another rant. Time to go. God bless ya'll!

Work Stories

There's nothing like work and 2 hours sleep to put things into perspective. I worked swing shift patrol yesterday and it was so busy and I loved it. But there was a call that really bothered me afterward.

To make a long story short a little, preschool-aged girl got bit in the face by the family dog. The good news (if there is any out of this) is that the dog is just a little ankle biter and did not maul her vital areas. The bad news is the ankle biter left a 2" in diameter hole in the girls cheek, and some flesh hanging off of her little face. The really sad part though was the state of her home. Dog feces and urine were on the floor where she and her infant sister played with garbage (no toys around). She also has an older sister and all three of them were inhaling second hand smoke from their grandparents and dad. Mattresses were strewn all over the floor along with food wrappings, half eaten food, dirty laundry, cups filled with who knows what. The word that describes it best is filth. The adults in the house didn't seem to be too concerned about anything. The dog owner (the girl's grandmother) was more sad about watching her dog go with animal control services than watching her granddaughter being taking away by ambulance. It just IRKED me, and I'm being polite when I use that word. And the worst part is there was no CRIME committed. I could only write an information only report of the dog biting incident.

Through it all, the children there still managed to smile at us. Seeing their little smiles offered a glimmer of hope. When I left to go see the girl that was bitten at the hospital, I reminded the dad and grandparents that they were ALL these children had and that in their eyes they were God. They were/are the children's heroes. I told them that they need to never forget that and to try to set an example for them. I'm hoping it did not go in one ear and out the other, but most likely it did.

Anyway, the girl is fine and the dog is in quarantine for a while. If the owner can't afford the fees to get the dog after quarantine is over, it's going to be put down because animal control will never try to get a dog like that adopted. Thank goodness.

All of this made me think about how good my family and I have it. We have nothing to complain about or long for. We have a loving and caring home with all our basic needs met. We have only to be thankful!!!

Thanks for reading my "rant." I hope it offers some insight to others.

Weekly Totals 8-21 thru 8-27

Tue 8/21: Rest day
Wed 8/22: 9.76 w/ track intrevals
Thu 8/23: 3 @ recovery pace
Fri 8/24: 5.4 @ easy pace
Sat 8/25: 8 w/ 2 @mgp, 2 @tempo, 2 @mgp
Sun 8/26: 11 mile "long" run
Mon 8/27: Rest day

TOTAL: 37.16

Track Intervals - Geetah Style

This is my 7th race in the RW Online Geetah Race Series.
Okay I was going to blow off the intervals today and push them out til tomorrow because the DOMS were setting in from the Tabata workout yesterday. Then I reconsidered because I know the DOMS usually hit me harder TWO days after the initial workout. I sucked it up and did the track intervals. 83 degrees at the start. Here is how it all broke down:

2.03 miles jog for warm up
1600 meters @ 6:33 / (equivalent to a 6:08 mile). I ran lap 3 in lane #2.
800 recovery jog
1200 @ 4:54 / 6:13 mile
600 recovery jog
1000 @ 4:02 / 6:01 mile
600 recovery jog
800 @ 3:10 / 5:52 mile
400 recovery jog
600 @ 2:19 / 5:58 mile
300 recovery jog
400 @ 1:27 / 5:47 mile
400 recovery jog
2.00 miles cool down

Total miles = 9.76

I'm feeling pretty decent, kind of tight right now. I will stretch a lot later on today. But I have to clean house in a big way. Time to scrub the bathrooms and everything else for that matter. Joy. ;-)

CORRECTIONS on pace per mile equivalents:
Mile....6:33 pace
1200m...6:34 pace
1000m...6:29 pace
800m....6:22 pace
600m....6:13 pace
400m....5:50 pace
Thanks to The Geetah for setting me straight!

CrossFit Tabata Day

The workout of the day:
"Tabata Something Else"

Complete 32 intervals of 20 seconds of work followed by ten seconds of rest where the first 8 intervals are pull-ups, the second 8 are push-ups, the third 8 intervals are sit-ups, and finally, the last 8 intervals are squats. There is no rest between exercises.

This was a tough one. Never did a tabata workout before. The push ups were the most difficult for me today.
Pull ups: 9,6,7,8,7,7,7,6 = 57 (jumping pull-ups)
Push ups: 14,10,12,7,7,6,6,6 = 68 (traditional, down to fist)
Sit ups: 10 x 8 sets = 80 (not anchored)
Squats: 15,14,13,13,13,13,12,12 = 105 (no weight)
TOTAL REPS: 310

I took a day off from running to rest my legs after the weekend's race and long run yesterday. Tomorrow I do more track intervals. It'll be over 100 tomorrow so I'm doing them early in the morning.