Thankfully, I'm starting to feel pretty comfortable in these pace ranges. Have I mentioned that I'm using the Mcmillan Calculator to find these? Check it out here. It is such a useful tool. I wish that I had started using it with my very first race. I think I have mentioned before that my race pace is 8:31. (I feel silly saying 8:31 instead of 8:30, but I figure on race day at mile 23, that one second per mile might be the key to holding the pace.) Saturday called for a 7 mile run at race pace. I decided to run mile 1 easyish and then find 8:31 at mile 2.
When I heard my nikeplus guy say that mile 1 was done in 8:57, I thought, "Great, right where I wanted to be." Letting that first mile be a true warmup no matter what the workout has really been such a wonderful thing. So, mile 2 I concentrated on picking it up, but only a little bit. I really wanted to resist my body's natural urge to push into the tempo pace range. If I felt myself getting winded at all, I would put on the brakes a little. I was happy at mile 2 to hear that I had done an 8:23. I don't think I tried to pick it up for mile 3, I tried to remain steady, but probably due to the lack of sea breeze in mile 3 and my overall feeling of "this is a good running day" pushed me to a 8:17 third mile. Here are the rest of the splits.....
Mile 4: 8:23
Mile 5: 8:18
Mile 6: 8:20
Mile 7: 8:20
These splits are very encouraging to me. While this pace still feels like a pretty good clip, it is starting to feel more and more comfortable as the training weeks go by. It definitely isn't an intimidating pace; at least for 7 miles......26.2 might be a different story. But that's what the next 3 months are for, right?
After taking Sunday off (and by off I mean no running and lots of yummy food at our church potluck....fried chicken, enchiladas, and chocolate chip cookies to name a few of the favorites), today I had a 60 minute tempo run planned. I was a little nervous that my over-indulgent eating would make my legs feel heavy, but I think that it may have been much needed fuel because I felt GREAT today. (I've been dieting the past couple of weeks and I think I may need to add more calories because I felt so strong after yesterday's buffet....I want to feel that way every run. It is so hard to find that happy medium though.) My plan was to do the first mile as a slow warmup, then an 8:45, then an 8 minute mile, then a 7:45 minute mile, then let the last 2 miles be easy. My splits were:
Mile 1: 9:41
Mile 2: 8:36
Mile 3: 7:45
Mile 4: 7:43
Mile 5: 8:14
Mile 6: 8:18
And the best part was that I never felt like I was pushing super hard. I was a little winded during mile 3 and 4, but in that "this feels great" way. And then the last 2 miles I just ran what felt comfortable and was oh so pleased to hear that "what felt comfortable" was an 8:15. Yay!
Tomorrow I have a 6 miler with 3 miles being race pace. Then Wednesday, a 14 miler. Hopefully my legs will feel less brick-like than during last week's long run. Happy running everybody! ;)
Monday, February 27, 2012
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Heavy Legs
So maybe I was a little too optimistic on Monday after my tempo run...... Or maybe I was a little lacking in the wisdom department when I designed a schedule that called for 2 fast runs followed by a long run with no rest days in between. Either way, yesterday's 13 miler was a tough one. Let me start with Tuesday's hill workout though. My schedule calls for hill repeats once every three weeks, but since I procrastinated and pushed the first set of repeats back until last week, that meant I had to do hills this week again. Luckily my friend Brittany braved them with me. We did the same workout as last week, except that we did 4 repeats instead of 3. My goal was to do all 4 in under 2 minutes. Definitely not there yet.......
Repeat 1: 2:09
Repeat 2: 2:11
Repeat 3: 2:13
Repeat 4: 2:13
All I can say about those numbers is: "Probably need to keep working on the hills." Lucky for me, I changed my marathon plans and have signed up for the Ojai to Ocean marathon in Ventura Beach instead of the Rock N Roll here in San Diego. The Ojai to Ocean has a negative elevation with very few hills, so that means I don't have to worry too much about these repeats, right? Also, Susannah is heavy! Safe to say I'm relieved that I have 2 weeks before I have to meet with the 6th Avenue hill again.
Yesterday I was excited about my 13 miler because it was going to be uninterrupted.....I drove Susannah to my friend's house so I started my run from there. This meant all 13 miles with no stroller, so sippy cup retrievals or string cheese opening pauses. Yae! Unfortunately, before I even hit my stride I could already tell that this was going to be a tough day. My legs felt heavy, the sun felt hot, and the miles felt long. I pushed through though, managing to keep each mile split between 9:22 and 9:25. But I felt tired. Really, really tired. The one highlight of the run was that I saw several jack rabbits. They are so cute and so so fast. I really want to take a picture but I don't think my reflexes are fast enough.
Next week is a 14 miler and I'm hoping it will be a little less daunting. I haven't run this far since my November half marathon, so maybe it is normal for me to be feeling this tired. I have to say though, that running a full marathon at a pace that is an entire minute per mile faster than what I did yesterday seems close to impossible right now. Lucky for me I have 3 more months of training and I have the promise that "I can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens me."
Repeat 1: 2:09
Repeat 2: 2:11
Repeat 3: 2:13
Repeat 4: 2:13
All I can say about those numbers is: "Probably need to keep working on the hills." Lucky for me, I changed my marathon plans and have signed up for the Ojai to Ocean marathon in Ventura Beach instead of the Rock N Roll here in San Diego. The Ojai to Ocean has a negative elevation with very few hills, so that means I don't have to worry too much about these repeats, right? Also, Susannah is heavy! Safe to say I'm relieved that I have 2 weeks before I have to meet with the 6th Avenue hill again.
Yesterday I was excited about my 13 miler because it was going to be uninterrupted.....I drove Susannah to my friend's house so I started my run from there. This meant all 13 miles with no stroller, so sippy cup retrievals or string cheese opening pauses. Yae! Unfortunately, before I even hit my stride I could already tell that this was going to be a tough day. My legs felt heavy, the sun felt hot, and the miles felt long. I pushed through though, managing to keep each mile split between 9:22 and 9:25. But I felt tired. Really, really tired. The one highlight of the run was that I saw several jack rabbits. They are so cute and so so fast. I really want to take a picture but I don't think my reflexes are fast enough.
Next week is a 14 miler and I'm hoping it will be a little less daunting. I haven't run this far since my November half marathon, so maybe it is normal for me to be feeling this tired. I have to say though, that running a full marathon at a pace that is an entire minute per mile faster than what I did yesterday seems close to impossible right now. Lucky for me I have 3 more months of training and I have the promise that "I can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens me."
Monday, February 20, 2012
Yay for improvements in pacing!!
But before I talk about the awesome tempo run that I'm referring to in the title, I'm want to report on my first hill workout. I did it on Friday and my friend Brittany was kind enough to come with me. Since we live on an island that has absolutely no hills, I've been putting this workout off for the first three weeks of training. (My plan calls for hills once every three weeks starting with week one. This means that since I procrastinated I now have to do hills 2 weeks in a row, but such is life, right?) I googled "hill repeats in San Diego" since I had absolutely no idea where to do my workout. I had considered running in the zoo because it has some monster hills and I know it would be safe, but found a better option during my googling. It is a long, not too terribly steep hill in Balboa Park that I realized I had actually run on twice during a 5k and a 10k that I did last fall. So, we parked at the zoo (which is in Balboa Park) and jogged the mile or so to the bottom of the hill. Then we ran up it as hard as we could. It took around 2 minutes. Well, the first time it did. Each of the three repeats were a little slower of course. I have to say, hill repeats with a baby jogger are quite the challenge. I was so appreciative of Brittany because things always seem brighter when someone is going through the same torture as you are. All in all, I would count the workout a success. I'm glad I have found "my hill." And I think I'm just going to set my sights on the goal of doing all my repeats in under 2 minutes. Here's to hoping that hill work + baby jogger = PR marathon.
As a little sidenote, Matilda the Koala was in the zoo parking lot after our workout. Mommy had the bright idea to introduce her to Susannah.....
I took Saturday and Sunday off (walked 3 miles or so, but no running). So I was ready for my 7 mile tempo run today. My training plan actually calls for a 35 minute tempo, but since I am trying to fit 6 days of running into 4 days, I'm adding easy miles to some of my runs and today was one of those days. My plan was to run mile 1 super easy, then pick it up in mile 2 but really concentrate on holding back some too (I was thinking around an 8:45-9:00 for mile 2) then start really picking it up mile 3 and then hold my tempo pace of 7:45-8:05 for mile 4 and half of mile 5. Then we would be to the grocery store where we needed to stop and pick up a few items. Then we would finish the last couple of miles at an easy pace.
Not sure if anybody besides me has noticed, but so far, I don't think I've managed to actually hit all my goals for a training run....yet.....until today. Check out these splits:
Mile 1: 9:29
Mile 2: 8:25 (okay, so now I'm noticing that this was a little faster than what I had intended.)
Mile 3: 7:52
Mile 4: 7:46
Mile 5: 9:06
Mile 6: 9:09
Mile 7: 9:20
I'm feeling really good about this run because I never felt super tired. I finished feeling refreshed and energized which was a first. I know I still have a looooong way to go before that 8:31 feels like my go-to race pace, but I feel like I'm making progress which is all I can be hoping for at this stage in my training. Thank you LORD!!
Doing Hill Repeat workout number 2 tomorrow. This week is 4 repeats instead of 3. Dreading/looking forward to it at the same time. I think I like hill repeats more than 800's.
Happy running friends!!
As a little sidenote, Matilda the Koala was in the zoo parking lot after our workout. Mommy had the bright idea to introduce her to Susannah.....
 |
| Mommy was definitely a bigger fan of Miss Matilda than Susannah. |
I took Saturday and Sunday off (walked 3 miles or so, but no running). So I was ready for my 7 mile tempo run today. My training plan actually calls for a 35 minute tempo, but since I am trying to fit 6 days of running into 4 days, I'm adding easy miles to some of my runs and today was one of those days. My plan was to run mile 1 super easy, then pick it up in mile 2 but really concentrate on holding back some too (I was thinking around an 8:45-9:00 for mile 2) then start really picking it up mile 3 and then hold my tempo pace of 7:45-8:05 for mile 4 and half of mile 5. Then we would be to the grocery store where we needed to stop and pick up a few items. Then we would finish the last couple of miles at an easy pace.
Not sure if anybody besides me has noticed, but so far, I don't think I've managed to actually hit all my goals for a training run....yet.....until today. Check out these splits:
Mile 1: 9:29
Mile 2: 8:25 (okay, so now I'm noticing that this was a little faster than what I had intended.)
Mile 3: 7:52
Mile 4: 7:46
Mile 5: 9:06
Mile 6: 9:09
Mile 7: 9:20
I'm feeling really good about this run because I never felt super tired. I finished feeling refreshed and energized which was a first. I know I still have a looooong way to go before that 8:31 feels like my go-to race pace, but I feel like I'm making progress which is all I can be hoping for at this stage in my training. Thank you LORD!!
Doing Hill Repeat workout number 2 tomorrow. This week is 4 repeats instead of 3. Dreading/looking forward to it at the same time. I think I like hill repeats more than 800's.
Happy running friends!!
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Fall Back Week
This week was my first "fall back week" of this training schedule. Oh, how I love these weeks. I love how they refresh you, and I love how, by the end of the training cycle, you find yourself saying things like: "Oh, this week is an easy week. My long run is only 14 miles." This week though, my long run was only 8 miles and it was a great run. I forgot to pause my gps when I dropped Susannah off after mile one, so the entire run my splits were wacky because they were averaging with a 14 minute first mile. I almost reset my gps so I could have an accurate pace reading, but then I decided I would just go by feel and run what felt comfortable and easy. If I felt myself picking it up too much, I would try to pull back. I love training with these strict pace guidelines because I'm finding that most of the time, I'm having to concentrate much more often to slow down than speed up. So, I often catch myself thinking about how this plan seems easier and less intense. I'm counting on the mental and emotional benefits of this kind of training to carry me straight to the PR I'm looking for in June. I finished the run feeling great and excited to look up my splits on the computer. Unfortunately, I instead had to get in the car and drive back over our last mile route so that I could find Susannah's sock and shoe that she threw out of the stroller. (The sock and the shoe were at least .5 miles apart and the sock was thrown out first, which I find so odd.)
This morning though, when I finally checked the splits, I was happy to see these:
Mile 1: 14:06
Mile 2: 8:59
Mile 3: 9:17
Mile 4: 9:14
Mile 5: 9:16
Mile 6: 9:24
Mile 7: 9:24
Mile 8: 9:20
So happy to see that even in the wind, this is my easy pace. I have that wonderful feeling of being right where I am supposed to be for this moment of the training program.
On Tuesday, I ran a 4.5 mile pace run. It was supposed to be 6, but we got a late start and I needed to do two errands before lunch/naptime, so we had to cut it short. My marathon pace is 8:31. I have decided to let the first mile of pace runs be a warm up though because I think it sets the wrong mental tone for me to bolt out of the door. I was pretty pleased with these splits too.....
Mile 1: 9:03
Mile 2: 8:24
Mile 3: 8:16
Mile 4: 8:45
I think the slower mile 4 was due to a redlight and my decision making moments when I was deciding whether to turn off my original intended route to make sure I got the errands in. So, in sum, my last two runs have been really encouraging and I'm feeling hopeful about the goal I have set for myself. Tomorrow I'm going to do my first set of hill repeats. I'm pretty sure they will be interesting when I factor in the stroller. By interesting I mean butt-kicking. ;)
This morning though, when I finally checked the splits, I was happy to see these:
Mile 1: 14:06
Mile 2: 8:59
Mile 3: 9:17
Mile 4: 9:14
Mile 5: 9:16
Mile 6: 9:24
Mile 7: 9:24
Mile 8: 9:20
So happy to see that even in the wind, this is my easy pace. I have that wonderful feeling of being right where I am supposed to be for this moment of the training program.
On Tuesday, I ran a 4.5 mile pace run. It was supposed to be 6, but we got a late start and I needed to do two errands before lunch/naptime, so we had to cut it short. My marathon pace is 8:31. I have decided to let the first mile of pace runs be a warm up though because I think it sets the wrong mental tone for me to bolt out of the door. I was pretty pleased with these splits too.....
Mile 1: 9:03
Mile 2: 8:24
Mile 3: 8:16
Mile 4: 8:45
I think the slower mile 4 was due to a redlight and my decision making moments when I was deciding whether to turn off my original intended route to make sure I got the errands in. So, in sum, my last two runs have been really encouraging and I'm feeling hopeful about the goal I have set for myself. Tomorrow I'm going to do my first set of hill repeats. I'm pretty sure they will be interesting when I factor in the stroller. By interesting I mean butt-kicking. ;)
Monday, February 13, 2012
2 weeks in and already behind....
Well, when I decided to blog about this training plan, my intention was to post about each run on the day that I ran it. Obviously, I have already fallen waaay behind on this. I think I may revise my strategy and post twice a week. I'm only running 4 days a week, so this means I can write about 2 runs in each post. This seems like a more realistic goal.
But, before implementing the new plan, I need to play catch up. So, since I last wrote I have completed 4 training runs. The first being a 5 mile run with 3 miles at race pace. I did this last Tuesday and was pretty pleased with myself. Here are the splits:
Mile 1: 9:38
Mile 2: 8:15
Mile 3: 8:06
Mile 4: 8:13
Mile 5: 8:50
While technically this run wasn't a success since I ran too fast for the three pace miles(My race pace is 8:31.), I would rather be misjudging my pace in the too fast direction than the too slow direction. But I know that the author of my training plan, Hal Higdon, would be none to pleased with my pushing too hard. He harps and harps on his website about not ever pushing too hard. So, tomorrow during my 6 mile pace run, I'm going to try extra hard to hit those 8:31s right on the money.
On Wednesday I did my long run of the week (THANK YOU to my friend Shannon who has volunteered to keep Susannah for my weekly long run!). The run was a little disjointed.....Half mile to the dog groomer with Meadow and Susannah in tow. Then a fast 1 mile to Shannon's house because I did the math in my mind wrong and thought that I needed to be fast because Meadow needed to be picked up sooner than I expected. Luckily I eventually realized that I actually had plenty of time. So after dropping Susannah off I had a nice, much needed 8 miles in the sunshine. Have you ever had those days when you needed to run? I mean really NEEEED to run. Well, I have had a couple of those days this week, and Wednesday was definitely one of them. I didn't even turn on my music. I just ran. And talked to God. And ran some more. And listened to God. There is something about the combination of rhythmic steps and physical exertion that makes me more aware of the amazing creation around me and the creator that designed it all for us. It took all 8 of my stroller-free miles, but I'm happy to say that by the time I picked Susannah up and headed back to the groomer for Meadow, my head and my heart were clear and content again. Ah, the joys of this sport. (I averaged 9:30 for this run.)
Thursday and Friday are days off for me because I am exclusively a morning runner and we have morning committments on both of these days. As my mileage builds and it becomes tougher to combine two runs worth of mileage into one day though, I realize that I may have to sacrifice and run on Fridays which will mean a very sweaty and stinky bible study for me and all of the poor women in my group.
On Saturday all the joy and peace that Wednesday's run had provided had long worn off, so I was once again in the "I ABSOLUTELY MUST RUN IN THE NEXT HOUR OR MY HEAD WILL EXPLODE" kind of mood. In the course of our 7 year marriage, Peter has learned when to say, "Babe, I think you should go run. Please, just go. PLEASE, we will be fine." Saturday was definitely one of those days. So I left he and Susannah at the playground and took off. Once again, with no music. Just me, the gray clouds, the strong breeze, and the one who created it all. I did 6 miles at an easy 9:30 pace. (I must admit though, that the "easy" 9:30 pace didn't feel as easy as it should have. I think the fact that it is girl scout cookies season may have something to do with my sluggishness on Saturday.... pretty sure two sleeves of do-si-dos is more than the recommended serving size for one person. Even with the girl scout cookie induced sluggishness, though, at the end of this run, just as on Wednesday, I finished feeling like the burden sack on my back only weighed 100 lbs instead of 1000.
After taking yesterday off, I was ready to go this morning. I had a 45 minute tempo run planned. I forced myself to start slow, knowing that I would need energy to get me cranked up to an 8 minute pace by mile three. So when my trusted NikePlus man told me my 1 mile split of 9:23, I thought okay, right on target. I must admit though, that I didn't feel right on target. I felt tired and winded. (Possibly due to the conversation hearts and pizza I had last night?) I picked it up anyway though, surprisingly feeling less tired as I picked it up. By mile 2 I was feeling all right and felt GREAT when I heard that my pace avg for the first 2 miles was 8:33. Wow! That means I just did a sub 8 and it didn't even feel that fast! Yes! My tempo pace is supposed to be 7:45-8:01, so even though my goal was to just build to an 8 minute pace and hold it for mile 3, I decided to keep pushing considering my energy level. I kept pushing, concentration on keeping my stride short and was excited to hear that by mile 3 my pace average was 8:15. (My nike plus won't give me splits on each mile, so I have to do the math in my head to figure out my splits. Yes, I could use my watch, but the math actually gives me something to focus on during tough runs. And, it is oh so fun to check my splits online after I get home and shower.) We slowed down after mile three, stopped at Boney's Grocery at mile 4, and jogged very slowly home for the fifth mile to avoid breaking any of the groceries I had stuffed into all pockets and crevices of the stroller. So, in sum, this was a great run with very encouraging splits.
Mile 1: 9:23
Mile 2: 7:51
Mile 3: 7:36
Mile 4: 8:32
Mile 5: 10:00
Hope everybody else is enjoying some good running this week! Next post, I'll let you know how the first hill workout goes.......
But, before implementing the new plan, I need to play catch up. So, since I last wrote I have completed 4 training runs. The first being a 5 mile run with 3 miles at race pace. I did this last Tuesday and was pretty pleased with myself. Here are the splits:
Mile 1: 9:38
Mile 2: 8:15
Mile 3: 8:06
Mile 4: 8:13
Mile 5: 8:50
While technically this run wasn't a success since I ran too fast for the three pace miles(My race pace is 8:31.), I would rather be misjudging my pace in the too fast direction than the too slow direction. But I know that the author of my training plan, Hal Higdon, would be none to pleased with my pushing too hard. He harps and harps on his website about not ever pushing too hard. So, tomorrow during my 6 mile pace run, I'm going to try extra hard to hit those 8:31s right on the money.
On Wednesday I did my long run of the week (THANK YOU to my friend Shannon who has volunteered to keep Susannah for my weekly long run!). The run was a little disjointed.....Half mile to the dog groomer with Meadow and Susannah in tow. Then a fast 1 mile to Shannon's house because I did the math in my mind wrong and thought that I needed to be fast because Meadow needed to be picked up sooner than I expected. Luckily I eventually realized that I actually had plenty of time. So after dropping Susannah off I had a nice, much needed 8 miles in the sunshine. Have you ever had those days when you needed to run? I mean really NEEEED to run. Well, I have had a couple of those days this week, and Wednesday was definitely one of them. I didn't even turn on my music. I just ran. And talked to God. And ran some more. And listened to God. There is something about the combination of rhythmic steps and physical exertion that makes me more aware of the amazing creation around me and the creator that designed it all for us. It took all 8 of my stroller-free miles, but I'm happy to say that by the time I picked Susannah up and headed back to the groomer for Meadow, my head and my heart were clear and content again. Ah, the joys of this sport. (I averaged 9:30 for this run.)
Thursday and Friday are days off for me because I am exclusively a morning runner and we have morning committments on both of these days. As my mileage builds and it becomes tougher to combine two runs worth of mileage into one day though, I realize that I may have to sacrifice and run on Fridays which will mean a very sweaty and stinky bible study for me and all of the poor women in my group.
On Saturday all the joy and peace that Wednesday's run had provided had long worn off, so I was once again in the "I ABSOLUTELY MUST RUN IN THE NEXT HOUR OR MY HEAD WILL EXPLODE" kind of mood. In the course of our 7 year marriage, Peter has learned when to say, "Babe, I think you should go run. Please, just go. PLEASE, we will be fine." Saturday was definitely one of those days. So I left he and Susannah at the playground and took off. Once again, with no music. Just me, the gray clouds, the strong breeze, and the one who created it all. I did 6 miles at an easy 9:30 pace. (I must admit though, that the "easy" 9:30 pace didn't feel as easy as it should have. I think the fact that it is girl scout cookies season may have something to do with my sluggishness on Saturday.... pretty sure two sleeves of do-si-dos is more than the recommended serving size for one person. Even with the girl scout cookie induced sluggishness, though, at the end of this run, just as on Wednesday, I finished feeling like the burden sack on my back only weighed 100 lbs instead of 1000.
After taking yesterday off, I was ready to go this morning. I had a 45 minute tempo run planned. I forced myself to start slow, knowing that I would need energy to get me cranked up to an 8 minute pace by mile three. So when my trusted NikePlus man told me my 1 mile split of 9:23, I thought okay, right on target. I must admit though, that I didn't feel right on target. I felt tired and winded. (Possibly due to the conversation hearts and pizza I had last night?) I picked it up anyway though, surprisingly feeling less tired as I picked it up. By mile 2 I was feeling all right and felt GREAT when I heard that my pace avg for the first 2 miles was 8:33. Wow! That means I just did a sub 8 and it didn't even feel that fast! Yes! My tempo pace is supposed to be 7:45-8:01, so even though my goal was to just build to an 8 minute pace and hold it for mile 3, I decided to keep pushing considering my energy level. I kept pushing, concentration on keeping my stride short and was excited to hear that by mile 3 my pace average was 8:15. (My nike plus won't give me splits on each mile, so I have to do the math in my head to figure out my splits. Yes, I could use my watch, but the math actually gives me something to focus on during tough runs. And, it is oh so fun to check my splits online after I get home and shower.) We slowed down after mile three, stopped at Boney's Grocery at mile 4, and jogged very slowly home for the fifth mile to avoid breaking any of the groceries I had stuffed into all pockets and crevices of the stroller. So, in sum, this was a great run with very encouraging splits.
Mile 1: 9:23
Mile 2: 7:51
Mile 3: 7:36
Mile 4: 8:32
Mile 5: 10:00
Hope everybody else is enjoying some good running this week! Next post, I'll let you know how the first hill workout goes.......
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Settling In
I'm definitely still in the "settling into a new training regimen" phase. I'm a little stiff and tired after every run, but it feels good to be pushing myself again. On Saturday I did my first 10 miler in weeks. Before getting sick, my typical 10 miler would be an 8:30-9:00 minute pace, so I was looking forward to these 10 miles being really easy since McMillan prescribes my ideal long run pace at a 9:30. I forced myself to start off really really slow and it felt awkward the first minute or so, but then it felt great. That is, until my little Nike plus man told me my 1 mile split of 9:50. I was expecting a 9:30, maybe even a 9:40, but 9:50? I am very proud of myself for the amount of self control I used in that moment. While everything in me was screaming, "PICK IT UP SLOWPOKE! HOW ARE YOU GOING TO RUN A SUB 3:45 MARATHON IF 9:50 FEELS COMFORTABLE?" I managed to ignore that voice and listen to the calm, rational voice instead. The calm voice was saying, "Remember, this was your plan in the first place. Start really slow and you will have energy in the end." Stay calm and keep the pace light and easy." So, that is what I did and I had an awesome run. (Take that evil, crazy voice!) I ran down the bike path that travels from Coronado to Imperial Beach. The morning was so clear and blue. I still marvel at the beauty of the desert landscape. To have beautiful mountains on one side of my gaze and the sparkling Pacific on the other is pretty perfect. And, on the way back I saw two rabbits playing on the trail. They were darting in and out of the shrubs that line the trail and they were so cute. They look just like the rabbits in the southeast, but with much bigger ears. I ended up averaging exactly a 9:30 pace and finished feeling a little tired, but mostly grateful for such a perfect morning. Looks like listening to the calm voice instead of the crazy voice definitely pays off in the end.
After taking Sunday off, I did my first speed intervals yesterday. The schedule called for 4 x 800. I decided to add a mile warm-up and a mile cool down. And I walked/jogged for a couple of minutes in between each interval. My target time for 800's is 3:30-3:40. I did them on the bike trail that is over on the bay side of Coronado. I have done mile repeats over there before so I had a general sense of distance. I used my Nike plus app too. I am not too confident that my distances were exact, but I feel like for a middle-packer like me, a few meters here and there will not make any difference in my race performance. My first interval took 3:48, but that included stopping to pick up my phone and plug it back in when it fell off the stroller. So, I'm going to call that a 3:40. My second one was 3:43. Third was 3:41. And for the fourth, I have no idea because I was planning on running to my old mile repeat marker, but when I got there, my watch read 3:15. So I kept pushing for another 15 seconds for good measure. I have no idea how long that last one was though. I would like to think I was running faster because I knew it was my last one, but I think the more realistic conclusion is that my last 800 was probably more like a 700. Oh, well. Hopefully by June I'll have the distances figured out. The one mile cool-down I had planned turned into a 1.5 mile cool down with a stop in the middle at the grocery store. I think I will use map my run to figure out a more exact 800 for next time. Luckily, this training plan only calls for intervals once every three weeks, so I have some time to figure it out. The good news is that Susannah did great in the stroller with the stopping and starting. I was worried that she might cry to get out each time I slowed to a walk, but she did great. I would appreciate any prayers for this to continue. ;)
Today I am going to do a 5 mile run with the 3 middle miles being at race pace. It is supposed to start raining sometime this morning so I'm hoping to squeeze it in before the rain starts falling. Fingers crossed......
After taking Sunday off, I did my first speed intervals yesterday. The schedule called for 4 x 800. I decided to add a mile warm-up and a mile cool down. And I walked/jogged for a couple of minutes in between each interval. My target time for 800's is 3:30-3:40. I did them on the bike trail that is over on the bay side of Coronado. I have done mile repeats over there before so I had a general sense of distance. I used my Nike plus app too. I am not too confident that my distances were exact, but I feel like for a middle-packer like me, a few meters here and there will not make any difference in my race performance. My first interval took 3:48, but that included stopping to pick up my phone and plug it back in when it fell off the stroller. So, I'm going to call that a 3:40. My second one was 3:43. Third was 3:41. And for the fourth, I have no idea because I was planning on running to my old mile repeat marker, but when I got there, my watch read 3:15. So I kept pushing for another 15 seconds for good measure. I have no idea how long that last one was though. I would like to think I was running faster because I knew it was my last one, but I think the more realistic conclusion is that my last 800 was probably more like a 700. Oh, well. Hopefully by June I'll have the distances figured out. The one mile cool-down I had planned turned into a 1.5 mile cool down with a stop in the middle at the grocery store. I think I will use map my run to figure out a more exact 800 for next time. Luckily, this training plan only calls for intervals once every three weeks, so I have some time to figure it out. The good news is that Susannah did great in the stroller with the stopping and starting. I was worried that she might cry to get out each time I slowed to a walk, but she did great. I would appreciate any prayers for this to continue. ;)
Today I am going to do a 5 mile run with the 3 middle miles being at race pace. It is supposed to start raining sometime this morning so I'm hoping to squeeze it in before the rain starts falling. Fingers crossed......
Friday, February 3, 2012
Race Pace
Yesterday I did training run #3, which was supposed to be a 5 miler at race pace (8:31). As for the success of this run, let's just say that I'm glad I have 4 months to learn and practice holding race pace. Even though I knew better, I ran the first mile waaaay too fast. I always seem to do this, even though I know it is such a rookie mistake. But no matter how rational I try to be, I always seem to succumb to that voice in my head that tells me I won't have enough energy in the last miles, so I should smoke the first miles to give myself some wiggle room at the end. After years of missing time goals in races with this strategy, I know better. But yesterday was like so many other days when knowing better doesn't translate to doing better. So my first mile I felt good, but was breathing too hard and knew that it would be a struggle to hold this pace for the entire run. Even after the first couple of minutes, I was almost positive that I was well under 8:31pace, but instead of trusting myself, I listened to the voice that tells me I'm not fast, not in shape, ect and forced myself to keep pushing. Of course, when I hit mile 1, I was discouraged and encouraged simultaneously when I heard the nike plus voice telling me that my avg. pace was 8:03.
I tried to pull back on the reigns and slow down, but again, that voice was in my head, whispering that I was probably pulling back too much; that I would be so disappointed at mile 2 when I realize I had slowed down to a 10 minute pace. So mile 2 ended up being almost just as fast...8:08. During mile 3, I was started to feel pretty tired and just wanted to be finished so I still didn't let myself let off on the effort. The split was a little slower though (8:35) because of a stop we had to make to retrieve our sippy cup. Mile four and five were the same....I was tired and dragging. I was using the same effort as I had in the first miles, but I could feel that I was much slower (8:37).
So, while my overall pace average was actually pretty close to target (8:21), I feel that this run was a perfect example of what not to do on my next pace run. After all, the purpose of a race pace run is to build confidence. Ending a run feeling as spent as I did yesterday is most definitely not a confidence builer. Keeping that in mind I am promising myself that next week, I will start SLOW. I will ignore the evil voice and I will listen to my body. I will be even more recovered from the bronchitis so I will have the energy to make up any time that I lose in the first couple of slow miles. This is my plan. Keeping fingers crossed that I will implement it. The good news is that I have approximately 15 more race pace training runs until the marathon. It looks like I may need all of them.
Coming up: First LSD run.....10 miles at 9:30 pace. Long slow distance on an early Saturday morning.......definitely one of my all time favorite things.
I tried to pull back on the reigns and slow down, but again, that voice was in my head, whispering that I was probably pulling back too much; that I would be so disappointed at mile 2 when I realize I had slowed down to a 10 minute pace. So mile 2 ended up being almost just as fast...8:08. During mile 3, I was started to feel pretty tired and just wanted to be finished so I still didn't let myself let off on the effort. The split was a little slower though (8:35) because of a stop we had to make to retrieve our sippy cup. Mile four and five were the same....I was tired and dragging. I was using the same effort as I had in the first miles, but I could feel that I was much slower (8:37).
So, while my overall pace average was actually pretty close to target (8:21), I feel that this run was a perfect example of what not to do on my next pace run. After all, the purpose of a race pace run is to build confidence. Ending a run feeling as spent as I did yesterday is most definitely not a confidence builer. Keeping that in mind I am promising myself that next week, I will start SLOW. I will ignore the evil voice and I will listen to my body. I will be even more recovered from the bronchitis so I will have the energy to make up any time that I lose in the first couple of slow miles. This is my plan. Keeping fingers crossed that I will implement it. The good news is that I have approximately 15 more race pace training runs until the marathon. It looks like I may need all of them.
Coming up: First LSD run.....10 miles at 9:30 pace. Long slow distance on an early Saturday morning.......definitely one of my all time favorite things.
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