Well, race day is almost here and I'm nervous. All the normal questions are running through my mind.... Am I ready? Can I really hold the pace for 26.2? What if I can't? But unfortunately I have this additional question to add to the list....... Will my cold be completely better? Yep, I came down with a cold on Monday night and have been battling it since. It seems to be on the way out, thou I did miss one of my runs this week in an effort to rest and recover ASAP.
I did make it out for 4 runs though. And my pacing was super crazy. I did feel good today on my 8 miler though, so that is good news.
Monday was supposed to be an easy 4 miler but I was running a little late for a meeting and ended up running faster than I should have.
9:02
8:24
8:21
8:45
Tuesday I was already feeling sick but ran anyway. It was supposed to be a 5 mile tempo. My GPS signal went crazy during mile 3 though so I don't really know if I made it into the sevens or not. These are my splits according to crazy GPS.....clearly the third mile is innacurate.
9:07
8:43
4:38 (this makes me laugh and laugh.)
8:38
9:05
Wednesday Susannah and I slept in and stayed in our PJs until lunch.
Thursday was a scheduled off day. Then Friday I did a 5 miler with 4 miles at pace. Our splits were
crazy......definitely not feeling confident in the pacing arena.
9:25
8:00
8:11
8:37
8:38
Today I did my "long run" of 8 miles. It went well and I felt good as evidenced by these splits:
9:28
8:55
9:10
9:11
8:59
8:57
8:53
8:52
Well, I guess my next post will include a race recap of my 9th marathon!!! Wish me luck!
Saturday, May 26, 2012
Saturday, May 19, 2012
2 weeks out......Am I ready?
This week was my first of 3 tapering weeks. It was perfect timing too because Peter came home on Thursday, so I was able to use my left over time and energy for homecoming preparations and activities. I felt good all week and enjoyed the four runs I did this week.
Monday was a 7 mile tempo run. Felt good even though we started later than usual (because I spent the whole morning cleaning out and reorganizing Susannah's closet and drawers) and the sun was blazing. It was a perfectly executed tempo run.......just wish the splits had been a little faster at each mile. Still pleased overall though:
9:12
9:06
8:34
7:42
8:41
8:59
9:27
Tuesday was supposed to be 6 x hill repeats which we usually do at Balboa park, but I decided to improvise and stay on the island for this workout because my to-do list was long, it was my birthday, and I was lacking my hill running partner. So Susannah and I ran up and down the little bitty hill behind our house (probably 100 yards) 12 times without stopping for rest. Then we jogged 3/4 mile to the playground and played. Then jogged back. I felt like this was a pretty solid alternative to our normal hill workout. It was a good morning. Happy 31st birthday to me.
Wednesday was a 7 miler with 4 miles at pace. My plan was to warm up on mile 1, run an 8:31 for miles 2-5 and let miles 6-7 be a cooldown. Unfortunately, I'm not too pleased with the consistancy on this run......it definitely reinforced my fear that I don't know what my 8:31 race pace feels like. With only 2 weeks left of training, I think prayer is probably my best hope for good pace management on race day. ;)
8:59
8:07
8:08
8:24
8:34
9:09
9:06
I took Thursday and Friday off and then today did a 12 miler. It definitely wasn't the best run training-wise, but it was lots of fun and I am happy with my decision to make it a family event. I did the first 5 miles by myself and the last 7 with Peter and Susannah. After an ipod malfunction and a unexpected meeting with a friend, I was running super late so I ended up running the first 5 way too fast. It ended up okay because we took our time on the family 7 miler, and even stopped at the playground at mile 5. My legs definitely feel more tired than they probably should after 12 though. Here are the ridiculous splits:
8:29
8:10
8:35
8:15
8:06
10:13
10:23
10:36
10:00
9:48
9:45
10:14
Next two weeks are even easier and then comes the big day.....Ojai to Ocean Marathon, June 3rd 6:00 am!!!
Monday was a 7 mile tempo run. Felt good even though we started later than usual (because I spent the whole morning cleaning out and reorganizing Susannah's closet and drawers) and the sun was blazing. It was a perfectly executed tempo run.......just wish the splits had been a little faster at each mile. Still pleased overall though:
9:12
9:06
8:34
7:42
8:41
8:59
9:27
Tuesday was supposed to be 6 x hill repeats which we usually do at Balboa park, but I decided to improvise and stay on the island for this workout because my to-do list was long, it was my birthday, and I was lacking my hill running partner. So Susannah and I ran up and down the little bitty hill behind our house (probably 100 yards) 12 times without stopping for rest. Then we jogged 3/4 mile to the playground and played. Then jogged back. I felt like this was a pretty solid alternative to our normal hill workout. It was a good morning. Happy 31st birthday to me.
Wednesday was a 7 miler with 4 miles at pace. My plan was to warm up on mile 1, run an 8:31 for miles 2-5 and let miles 6-7 be a cooldown. Unfortunately, I'm not too pleased with the consistancy on this run......it definitely reinforced my fear that I don't know what my 8:31 race pace feels like. With only 2 weeks left of training, I think prayer is probably my best hope for good pace management on race day. ;)
8:59
8:07
8:08
8:24
8:34
9:09
9:06
I took Thursday and Friday off and then today did a 12 miler. It definitely wasn't the best run training-wise, but it was lots of fun and I am happy with my decision to make it a family event. I did the first 5 miles by myself and the last 7 with Peter and Susannah. After an ipod malfunction and a unexpected meeting with a friend, I was running super late so I ended up running the first 5 way too fast. It ended up okay because we took our time on the family 7 miler, and even stopped at the playground at mile 5. My legs definitely feel more tired than they probably should after 12 though. Here are the ridiculous splits:
8:29
8:10
8:35
8:15
8:06
10:13
10:23
10:36
10:00
9:48
9:45
10:14
Next two weeks are even easier and then comes the big day.....Ojai to Ocean Marathon, June 3rd 6:00 am!!!
Saturday, May 12, 2012
And Let the Tapering Begin!!!
This week was the highest mileage of the entire training program and it was a surprisingly good week. According to map my run, my Nike app is back to being accurate, so that has helped. I had to switch my days around due to childcare scheduling, so I ended up doing my long run on Monday. I really enjoyed getting the long one over with. I was very pleased with my performance on my last 20 miler. The pace was faster than my previous long runs have been (avg: 9:19). I was tired by the end though. So tired that I wouldn't let myself consider that race day I am planning on running 6 more miles at significanly faster pace. My legs ached a little the rest of the day, but I wasn't tired or sore at all the following day so I take that as a good sign. Here are the splits:
9:34
9:24
9:27
9:01
9:05
9:16
9:09
9:00
9:11
9:12
9:22
10:28 (left my gps running when I took a walk break to text.)
9:08
9:15
9:22
9:16
9:12
9:03
9:04
9:04
Tuesday was an off day followed by a 10 mile pace run on Wednesday. I had to take Susannah with me, so we cut it a little short....we did 9.4 miles. I was able to maintain a pretty steady pace, but I have to admit that the idea of holding that pace for another 16.8 miles seemed extremely daunting. I told myself that was because I had run 20 miles 48 hours earlier. I'm praying that the three week taper I'm about to start will result in legs that are fresh enough to maintain the magic 8:31 pace for all 26.2 miles. Here are the splits:
8:31 (nice start)
8:17
8:24
8:20
8:47 (I think this was slower because this was the turnaround mile and I took us over some bumpy driveways. Also, I was probably unwrapping a granola bar or a piece of cheese for my hungry running partner.)
8:24
8:27
8:36
8:35
Avg. pace 8:28 Oh how awesome would it be if this could be my avg pace on race day???? Let us pray.......
I was so proud of my little running buddy and her good stroller behavior, that we stopped at the park on our way home. She had a ball:
Thursday was supposed to be a 7 mile tempo run. I opted to cut it short in favor of being on time to bible study. It was definitely a good decision. The 5 miles I did complete were a little tough.....my legs didn't want to run fast. But I was proud of myself for pushing through and getting into the 7's for mile 4.
9:13
8:38
8:08
7:53
8:45
Friday was an easy 7 mile run. I was expecting to drag after how I felt on Thursday, but I actually felt really good. It is amazing how much more fun it is to run when you aren't pressuring yourself to hit certain paces. I was having so much fun that I ended up running a little too fast for an easy day. Definitely a problem I like to have.....running too fast. :)
8:51
9:01
8:42
8:55
8:59
8:49
8:54
Today, Saturday, I did 8x800 repeats. My friend Brittany came with me which helped so much. Susannah was really patient and well behaved too. And it was sunny with a cool breeze. And my legs felt shockingly fresh. All in all, a perfect morning. I'm supposed to run my 800's in between 3:29-3:39. I stayed in this range for every repeat except one, which I did faster, not slower. :)
3:33
3:32
3:34
3:33
3:34
3:27 (this fast time is thanks to an older man who raced me and won. And he wasn't doing repeats....he was just out for a jog. Was at least 50 years old and wasn't even breathing hard. Definitely a piece of humble pie for me. He wasn't pushing a stroller though.)
3:36
3:34
And that concludes the peak week of my training for the Ojai to Ocean Marathon. 45 miles done!!
PS. I went to one of those running stores that takes video of you on the treadmill and tells you your shoe type and correct size. I was shocked to learn that my trusty Asics 2100 series stability shoes that I've been wearing since my very first marthon back in 2006 are completely wrong for my feet. I bought some Asics Gel Nimbus 13s which are neutral cushioned and they are so amazingly comfortable.....like running on a really supportive pillow. LOVE!!
9:34
9:24
9:27
9:01
9:05
9:16
9:09
9:00
9:11
9:12
9:22
10:28 (left my gps running when I took a walk break to text.)
9:08
9:15
9:22
9:16
9:12
9:03
9:04
9:04
Tuesday was an off day followed by a 10 mile pace run on Wednesday. I had to take Susannah with me, so we cut it a little short....we did 9.4 miles. I was able to maintain a pretty steady pace, but I have to admit that the idea of holding that pace for another 16.8 miles seemed extremely daunting. I told myself that was because I had run 20 miles 48 hours earlier. I'm praying that the three week taper I'm about to start will result in legs that are fresh enough to maintain the magic 8:31 pace for all 26.2 miles. Here are the splits:
8:31 (nice start)
8:17
8:24
8:20
8:47 (I think this was slower because this was the turnaround mile and I took us over some bumpy driveways. Also, I was probably unwrapping a granola bar or a piece of cheese for my hungry running partner.)
8:24
8:27
8:36
8:35
Avg. pace 8:28 Oh how awesome would it be if this could be my avg pace on race day???? Let us pray.......
I was so proud of my little running buddy and her good stroller behavior, that we stopped at the park on our way home. She had a ball:
Thursday was supposed to be a 7 mile tempo run. I opted to cut it short in favor of being on time to bible study. It was definitely a good decision. The 5 miles I did complete were a little tough.....my legs didn't want to run fast. But I was proud of myself for pushing through and getting into the 7's for mile 4.
9:13
8:38
8:08
7:53
8:45
Friday was an easy 7 mile run. I was expecting to drag after how I felt on Thursday, but I actually felt really good. It is amazing how much more fun it is to run when you aren't pressuring yourself to hit certain paces. I was having so much fun that I ended up running a little too fast for an easy day. Definitely a problem I like to have.....running too fast. :)
8:51
9:01
8:42
8:55
8:59
8:49
8:54
Today, Saturday, I did 8x800 repeats. My friend Brittany came with me which helped so much. Susannah was really patient and well behaved too. And it was sunny with a cool breeze. And my legs felt shockingly fresh. All in all, a perfect morning. I'm supposed to run my 800's in between 3:29-3:39. I stayed in this range for every repeat except one, which I did faster, not slower. :)
3:33
3:32
3:34
3:33
3:34
3:27 (this fast time is thanks to an older man who raced me and won. And he wasn't doing repeats....he was just out for a jog. Was at least 50 years old and wasn't even breathing hard. Definitely a piece of humble pie for me. He wasn't pushing a stroller though.)
3:36
3:34
And that concludes the peak week of my training for the Ojai to Ocean Marathon. 45 miles done!!
PS. I went to one of those running stores that takes video of you on the treadmill and tells you your shoe type and correct size. I was shocked to learn that my trusty Asics 2100 series stability shoes that I've been wearing since my very first marthon back in 2006 are completely wrong for my feet. I bought some Asics Gel Nimbus 13s which are neutral cushioned and they are so amazingly comfortable.....like running on a really supportive pillow. LOVE!!
Friday, May 4, 2012
1 week until taper begins!!!
This was a great week running wise, but a frustrating one technology wise. I've become pretty dependent on my nikeplus app to keep track of my mileage and pacing and this week it has been acting crazy. It has been giving me different mile markers than normal and really throwing me off. So I've been required to use map my run to verify my mileage. Then I use crazy math to try and figure out how off my pace report was on nikeplus. So, to say the least, my splits for this week may be a little inaccurate. I'm trying not to freak out with worry that I'm completely off base with my pacing goals for the race. Saying lots and lots of prayers that God remind me that this is for fun and all I need to do is my best. But then my brain wants to remind God that to do my best, I need to be able to pace appropriately. And so goes the anxiety treadmill that is my mind. Good times.
Anyway, like I said early, this week has actually been a good running week. Felt pretty strong and completed all of the scheduled mileage. I do have to confess though that I'm super excited about starting the taper after next week. It seems to be more mental than physical, but I've been feeling pretty worn out by the demands of this training schedule. I love it, but I'm tired by it at the same time. I'm really looking forward to June when I can do some strength training and just go for a jog without any prescribed distance or pace or purpose other than to have fun.
Monday was a 7 mile tempo run. This was one of the screwy GPS days, so these splits are questionable at best, but here they are regardless:
9:05
8:25
7:55
7:08
8:09
9:04
9:06
Fingers crossed that these are accurate because they are pretty strong numbers.
Tuesday was an easy 5 miler. Avg. pace 9:10
Wednesday was a fall back week with a 12 miler. Felt tired at the end, but still managed to run negative splits towards the end. I didn't mean to speed up so much so I'm taking that as a good sign.
8:45
9:28
9:24
9:42
9:45
9:36
9:36
9:21
9:47
9:02
8:48
8:40
Thursday was an off day. Then today, Friday, I did a 7 mile run with 5 miles at race pace. Race pace is 8:31. I tried my best, but am not very pleased with my consistency. Or I should probably say lack of consistency.
9:19
8:28
8:05
8:32
8:09
8:50
8:59
I'm going to keep focusing on race pace in these remaining 4 weeks until race day. Definitely not there yet. I feel like I have the fitness and endurance levels to break 3:45, but I need confidence in the pacing department. Without it, I'm scared I'm going to psych myself out during the race. We shall see.......
Happy Running everybody!!
Anyway, like I said early, this week has actually been a good running week. Felt pretty strong and completed all of the scheduled mileage. I do have to confess though that I'm super excited about starting the taper after next week. It seems to be more mental than physical, but I've been feeling pretty worn out by the demands of this training schedule. I love it, but I'm tired by it at the same time. I'm really looking forward to June when I can do some strength training and just go for a jog without any prescribed distance or pace or purpose other than to have fun.
Monday was a 7 mile tempo run. This was one of the screwy GPS days, so these splits are questionable at best, but here they are regardless:
9:05
8:25
7:55
7:08
8:09
9:04
9:06
Fingers crossed that these are accurate because they are pretty strong numbers.
Tuesday was an easy 5 miler. Avg. pace 9:10
Wednesday was a fall back week with a 12 miler. Felt tired at the end, but still managed to run negative splits towards the end. I didn't mean to speed up so much so I'm taking that as a good sign.
8:45
9:28
9:24
9:42
9:45
9:36
9:36
9:21
9:47
9:02
8:48
8:40
Thursday was an off day. Then today, Friday, I did a 7 mile run with 5 miles at race pace. Race pace is 8:31. I tried my best, but am not very pleased with my consistency. Or I should probably say lack of consistency.
9:19
8:28
8:05
8:32
8:09
8:50
8:59
I'm going to keep focusing on race pace in these remaining 4 weeks until race day. Definitely not there yet. I feel like I have the fitness and endurance levels to break 3:45, but I need confidence in the pacing department. Without it, I'm scared I'm going to psych myself out during the race. We shall see.......
Happy Running everybody!!
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Highest Mileage Week: 42 miles
This week was a good week. All the knee pain is gone. Lesson learned......listening to my body is always a good idea. I'm so glad I took 4 days off last weekend because now (fingers crossed) I seem to be back to 100%.
Monday was a 7 mile tempo. Felt good and thought the splits were right on target:
9:31
9:02
8:26
7:46
8:40
9:23
9:39
Tuesday was 7 x hill. I wanted to conserve a little energy for my second 20 miler on Wednesday so I didn't give full effort on the hills. I was proud to knock out all 7 though and then we headed to our hill repeat treat.....the petting zoo!!
Wednesday was a pretty solid 20 miler. I felt tired in the middle (as evidenced by my splits) but then felt pretty energetic towards the end and finished strong. All in all a good run.
9:43
9:23
9:24
9:34
9:38
9:39
9:35
12:31
9:55
9:47
9:53
9:40
9:51
10:11
9:59
9:27
9:25
8:17 (I'm thinking the gps may have glitched here, but maybe I should just give myself credit.)
9:29
Thursday was an off day, followed by an easy 5 miler Friday. Avg pace 9:14
Saturday was a 7 mile pace run. I am still a little nervous about my lack of ability to find and hold my race pace. I am always too fast, but I know that I couldn't hold the faster pace for the entire 26 miles. I'm going to try this week to focus on pacing correctly. Based on these splits, I clearly need it:
Target pace 8:31
My Splits:
8:29
8:17
7:50
8:20
8:24
8:29
8:29
I'm pretty sure that in this case, faster isn't better. Really need to work on this.
This week is a fall back week, followed by my third 20 miler week and then the taper officially begins. yay!
Monday was a 7 mile tempo. Felt good and thought the splits were right on target:
9:31
9:02
8:26
7:46
8:40
9:23
9:39
Tuesday was 7 x hill. I wanted to conserve a little energy for my second 20 miler on Wednesday so I didn't give full effort on the hills. I was proud to knock out all 7 though and then we headed to our hill repeat treat.....the petting zoo!!
Wednesday was a pretty solid 20 miler. I felt tired in the middle (as evidenced by my splits) but then felt pretty energetic towards the end and finished strong. All in all a good run.
9:43
9:23
9:24
9:34
9:38
9:39
9:35
12:31
9:55
9:47
9:53
9:40
9:51
10:11
9:59
9:27
9:25
8:17 (I'm thinking the gps may have glitched here, but maybe I should just give myself credit.)
9:29
Thursday was an off day, followed by an easy 5 miler Friday. Avg pace 9:14
Saturday was a 7 mile pace run. I am still a little nervous about my lack of ability to find and hold my race pace. I am always too fast, but I know that I couldn't hold the faster pace for the entire 26 miles. I'm going to try this week to focus on pacing correctly. Based on these splits, I clearly need it:
Target pace 8:31
My Splits:
8:29
8:17
7:50
8:20
8:24
8:29
8:29
I'm pretty sure that in this case, faster isn't better. Really need to work on this.
This week is a fall back week, followed by my third 20 miler week and then the taper officially begins. yay!
Friday, April 20, 2012
Listening to my body, even when it hurts......
Well, this week started off MUCH better than it is ending. Susannah and I both came down with colds last weekend, so I was dreading my Monday 7x800 workout. It turned out to be really great though. I felt good, only had to blow my nose a few times, the weather was beautiful, and Susannah was content in the stroller.........a recipe for a good morning. Here are the splits:
3:29
3:29
3:27
3:29
3:32
3:33
3:28
I feel good about these because they are all in or below my 3:30-3:40 range and I did them all pushing Susannah, with 4/7 being into a headwind. Even if my nike gps is a little generous, I still feel confident about this workout.
Tuesday was supposed to be 6 easy miles, but I had a baby-sitting committment at 9 and we didn't get out the door in time to do all 6 miles (And I opted to use 10 of the minutes we did have getting coffee) so we only did 3 at a 9:30 pace.
Wednesday was a 12 miler since this is a fall back week. I felt okay at the beginning but by the turn-around I was feeling my hamstrings again. I managed to keep a pretty consistent pace throughout the run, but I definitely felt pretty tired at the end. Here are the splits:
9:22
9:22
9:15
9:21
9:27
9:08
9:37
9:22
9:18
9:08
9:02
Thursday was a scheduled rest day, which was a good thing considering my left knee was hurting even when I walked. Not horrible pain, just a little ache, but still an ache. NOT GOOD NEWS!!!! My left IT band and glute are complaining too, so I've decided to take today off as well. And probably tomorrow so that I will have a 4 day rest period before starting back again on Monday. I'm going to stay positive and trust that God has even this in his hands and he will use whatever happens for good. Definitely keeping fingers crossed though that his plan involves me being injury free, well trained and on the start line of the Ojai to Ocean Marathon in June. ;)
Happy running (and resting) to everybody!
3:29
3:29
3:27
3:29
3:32
3:33
3:28
I feel good about these because they are all in or below my 3:30-3:40 range and I did them all pushing Susannah, with 4/7 being into a headwind. Even if my nike gps is a little generous, I still feel confident about this workout.
Tuesday was supposed to be 6 easy miles, but I had a baby-sitting committment at 9 and we didn't get out the door in time to do all 6 miles (And I opted to use 10 of the minutes we did have getting coffee) so we only did 3 at a 9:30 pace.
Wednesday was a 12 miler since this is a fall back week. I felt okay at the beginning but by the turn-around I was feeling my hamstrings again. I managed to keep a pretty consistent pace throughout the run, but I definitely felt pretty tired at the end. Here are the splits:
9:22
9:22
9:15
9:21
9:27
9:08
9:37
9:22
9:18
9:08
9:02
Thursday was a scheduled rest day, which was a good thing considering my left knee was hurting even when I walked. Not horrible pain, just a little ache, but still an ache. NOT GOOD NEWS!!!! My left IT band and glute are complaining too, so I've decided to take today off as well. And probably tomorrow so that I will have a 4 day rest period before starting back again on Monday. I'm going to stay positive and trust that God has even this in his hands and he will use whatever happens for good. Definitely keeping fingers crossed though that his plan involves me being injury free, well trained and on the start line of the Ojai to Ocean Marathon in June. ;)
Happy running (and resting) to everybody!
Saturday, April 14, 2012
This week has been pretty solid. My hill workout on Tuesday was a little disappointing.....my legs were tired and heavy.......but I found my strong and got it done. (Just a warning.....I am a little obsessed with Saucony's new ad campaign and will probably be using the slogan an obnoxious number of times in my posts.) I told my partner Brittany that sometimes Finding Your Stong just means finishing the workout and that was definitely the case. So, while I didn't run up the 6th avenue hill as fast as I would have liked, I ran up it the 6 times my workout called for and that is all that really matters. The other thing that really matters is Susannah got to go see the petting zoo goats after our run. And oh, how she loves them!
The day before the hill workout, I did a 6.5 mile run with 5 at race pace. Felt pretty satisfied with this effort. Here are splits for that one:
9:35
8:51
8:31
8:14
8:24
8:18
Then Wednesday came the first 20 miler. I was mentally prepared because the weather report said 100% chance of rain and predicted the rain to be "heavy and steady" for the hours I was planning to run. So I was ready......dreading it, but ready. Waterproof jacket.....check. Hat.....check. ziplock bag for phone.....check A determination to run 20 miles even if it meant pneumonia......check.
After all my meticulous planning and prayers for strength and will power though, God decided to give me a break. So even though the weather forecast on my phone was still reading a "100% chance" of rain, I enjoyed 20 miles of sunshine with only one 5 minute shower that came at the perfect time and provided the perfect amount of refreshment I needed at mile 11. Thank you Lord!!
The surprisingly good weather must have been symbolic of the entire run, too. Despite my fears of heavy legs after running hard Monday and Tuesday, I was pleasantly surprised with my performance. I averaged a 9:35 for the first 15 miles. I felt good but wanted to stay conservative because I knew that this week was a 3:1 workout so I was supposed to run the last 5 miles at race pace. And while my training plan author, Hal Higdon, would definitely frown on it, I decided to go pretty much all out for the last 5 miles so I could do a little mental training in preparation for the pain of race day. It was tough, but I gave it my all and this was the result:
Mile 16 8:34
Mile 17 8:25
Mile 18 8:09
Mile 19 8:05
Mile 20 7:50
I think I Found My Strong on this run. ;)
I took Thursday off to rest my legs and then did a 6 mile easy run yesterday. Felt pretty heavy but averaged a 9:15 pace which felt slow and easy.
Today I was supposed to run 10 easy miles, but we are having a serious wind storm and the jogging stroller creates quite the resistance, so I ended up only doing 8. My hamstrings are a little whiny with me so I decided cutting it short was the wise choice. I averaged a 10:05 but that was with the crazy, crazy wind and several stops to give Susannah snacks. I don't think she liked the wind either so she was whining along with my hamstrings.
Taking tomorrow off and then hitting it hard on Monday with 7 x 800 repeats. Happy Running everybody!
The day before the hill workout, I did a 6.5 mile run with 5 at race pace. Felt pretty satisfied with this effort. Here are splits for that one:
9:35
8:51
8:31
8:14
8:24
8:18
Then Wednesday came the first 20 miler. I was mentally prepared because the weather report said 100% chance of rain and predicted the rain to be "heavy and steady" for the hours I was planning to run. So I was ready......dreading it, but ready. Waterproof jacket.....check. Hat.....check. ziplock bag for phone.....check A determination to run 20 miles even if it meant pneumonia......check.
After all my meticulous planning and prayers for strength and will power though, God decided to give me a break. So even though the weather forecast on my phone was still reading a "100% chance" of rain, I enjoyed 20 miles of sunshine with only one 5 minute shower that came at the perfect time and provided the perfect amount of refreshment I needed at mile 11. Thank you Lord!!
The surprisingly good weather must have been symbolic of the entire run, too. Despite my fears of heavy legs after running hard Monday and Tuesday, I was pleasantly surprised with my performance. I averaged a 9:35 for the first 15 miles. I felt good but wanted to stay conservative because I knew that this week was a 3:1 workout so I was supposed to run the last 5 miles at race pace. And while my training plan author, Hal Higdon, would definitely frown on it, I decided to go pretty much all out for the last 5 miles so I could do a little mental training in preparation for the pain of race day. It was tough, but I gave it my all and this was the result:
Mile 16 8:34
Mile 17 8:25
Mile 18 8:09
Mile 19 8:05
Mile 20 7:50
I think I Found My Strong on this run. ;)
I took Thursday off to rest my legs and then did a 6 mile easy run yesterday. Felt pretty heavy but averaged a 9:15 pace which felt slow and easy.
Today I was supposed to run 10 easy miles, but we are having a serious wind storm and the jogging stroller creates quite the resistance, so I ended up only doing 8. My hamstrings are a little whiny with me so I decided cutting it short was the wise choice. I averaged a 10:05 but that was with the crazy, crazy wind and several stops to give Susannah snacks. I don't think she liked the wind either so she was whining along with my hamstrings.
Taking tomorrow off and then hitting it hard on Monday with 7 x 800 repeats. Happy Running everybody!
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