8.5 and 4.5 miles

I broke the long run into 2 today because I started getting some soreness around 6 miles. I may have been able to continue just fine but I wanted to make sure that I recovered from the effort yesterday. Still a little sore on the 4.5 in the afternoon but an ice bath after the morning run helped.

5k - 19:36

Ran my first race since the 1/2 marathon last September. I wasn't sure what to expect given that my mileage over the winter was pretty low (3-4 miles/day with 1 to 2 days off per week and a longish run on Sundays). Since class was done in mid-May I have been in the 45 mile/week range and just added in preliminary speed last week.

The race went pretty well... it was really fun and I ran relaxed the whole way. My splits were 6:19, 6:28 and 6:18. I was hoping to still be in shape to break 20:00 and especially considering the wind and the course I am very encouraged. I am excited about racing now this summer and fall!

5 miles today

47 miles this week

Wed-Fri

Wed - 7.5
Thurs - 6 + speed
Fri - 5

Evaluation run - 6.5 miles

3 mile eval run just to see where I am at. 1.5 mile warm-up.

mile 1 - 7:07 (172 HR)
mile 2 - 7:09 (176 HR)
mile 3 - 7:08 (176 HR)

Recovered to 130 in 1:03 and 120 in 1:12.

5 miles

12 miles - 1:35

Felt good today.

June 15 - 21

Sun - 10
Mon - 6
Tues - 3 (just didn't feel like running)
Wed - 6 + preliminary speed (2 min/every 15)
Thurs - 6
Fri - 7.5
Sat - 6 + speed

44.5 miles

June 8 - June 14

Sun - 12
Mon - 4
Tues - 6
Wed - 7
Thurs - 5
Fri - 7
Sat - 5


46 miles

6 miles

Easy 4 miles on Monday ( a little tired from Sunday... but not sore) and 6 today.

12 miles

Easy run. Longest in quite a while.

June 1 - June 7

Sun - 8.5
Mon - 4
Tues - 4
Wed - 6
Thurs - 5
Fri - 5.5
Sat - 6

39 miles/week

12 miles

Ran 1:34 this morning... the longest run in a few weeks. I felt great and my legs are feeling good right now... I was thinking I might get a little soreness but it doesn't seem like that is going to happen. Daddy and the kids (in the stroller) joined me for the last 3.5 so that was pretty fun too. I am going to try to keep my mileage in the 30-40 mpw range for this next 8 week block of school. Towards the end of last block my mileage really started to slip because I was studying a lot more for the exams... mostly because of the fear of the unknown. The exams were definitely tough but they turned out better than I expected and it is nice to have an idea of what to expect now.

I am planning to run the veteran's day 8k XC race... the course is a muddy mess right now so hopefully it dries out a little in the next few weeks. It should be fun!

Still running!

I'm still running (some!). I just don't have time to write about it. Med school keeps me busier than I imagined and I am slowly learning how to survive on 6 hours of sleep or less. I really love it though and would study non-stop if I had the chance (it's a good thing I have a family so I am forced to take breaks). The kids are doing well and I am managing to spend all evening with them and some time in the morning as well. My runs are limited to 25-30 minutes or so during the week (on the treadmill to I can study anatomy powerpoints) but I am still getting out for a longer (10-12) on Sundays. Anyway, I wish I could be running more but am happy that it still fits into the day (at least most days).

Half marathon :: 1:29:27

The race went well this morning. I tried to be more conservative at the start than I was for the half in Fargo. It seemed to work much better! Here are the splits:

6:48 | 6:44 | 6:57 | 6:47
6:51 | 6:49 | 6:57 | 6:49
6:46 | 6:54 | 6:49 | 6:53
6:40

It was definitely a challenging course with a lot of rolling hills and one big one right after mile 6. I am really happy with the way I raced today... I let a lot of the women get away from me at the start and spent the last few miles chasing them down. It made the race a lot of fun. I caught three within the last mile and may have had a chance at 3rd place if I would have started my kick a little earlier. I ended up in 4th place (10 seconds behind 3rd) but she was really slowing at the end. I was pretty excited to see the finish clock was still under 1:30 as I was approaching the line =)

12 miles :: 1:30:26

Things have been a little crazy lately trying to settle into a routine with school, daycare, family-time, study-time, etc... I've been trying to fit in 4-5 miles each morning during the week and then longer on the weekends. It seems to be going ok although I would like to be running more miles.

My run went well today... 7:34 average with the last 3 being 7:11, 7:05 and 7:04. I felt good with the exception of a little soreness in my left knee... I haven't been taking the time to stretch before I run... apparently not a good idea.

It's time for bed... 3:00 comes pretty quick most mornings!

Busy

Sunday - 8 miles
Monday - 4 miles
Tuesday - 4 miles
Wednesday - 4 miles
Thursday - 5 miles (35:20) did 4 mile progression run 7:30, 7:06, 6:54, 6:52 and a cool down mile.
felt really good.

should get a long run in on saturday

10k :: 39:17

Today was a pretty fun day. I can't spend too much time on blogging though because I have lots of studying to do! The race went really well. I felt fantastic and the course was pretty fast (it was just a tad short.. it came up on the garmin as 6.17 miles). It was a little tough mentally because it was just a big square out on country roads (1.5 miles worth of gravel) so that meant no spectators and just a lot of open road to look at. I was happy with how well I was able to stay focused. Here are the splits:

3:49 (179) | 3:57 (190) |3:58 (195) |
4:05 (196) |4:10 (196) | 4:02 (195) |
4:01 (196) | 3:55 (196) |3:52 (197) | 3:30 (197)

(~60m short +15 seconds = 39:32 = NEW PR - ed.)

The 4:05 and 4:10 splits came on the gravel which was also into the wind and the last 1k was .o4 short. Otherwise it seemed to be a pretty consistent effort. I won the womens' division (and 75 bucks!) and took second overall. The guy that beat me was a real jackass. Too bad I didn't know that while we were racing... maybe I could have gone a little faster! He came up to me after the race to say good job and then proceeded to tell me that he could have beat me by more if he hadn't slowed up at the end. He looked back and saw that I was far enough away so he slowed down... and if I would have tried to catch him he "would have just blown me away". Congratulations buddy... you beat a girl. (barely - ed.)

It was a well-organized race and one that we will do again (next year Eric will run too... hopefully that guy shows up again so he can get his ass handed to him). (affirmative - ed.)

6 miles: Speed

Did a little speed work before the race on Saturday. Didn't have a lot of time to run so I made it short. 1 mile warm-up, 2 miles at 7:00 pace, 1 mile at 8:00 pace and 3x800 in 3:15 starting every 5 minutes.

Here is how it went:

7:45 (144) warm-up
6:58 (169)
6:55 (172)
7:46 (161)

3:00 (180) 130 in 1:10 and 120 in 1:20
3:10 (no data) 130 in :48 and 120 in 1:09
3:08 (176) 130 in 100 and 120 in 1:15

I felt great and obviously misjudged pace on the 800s. I backed off after the first one but was surprised at how I kept creeping down to run around 6:05 pace. It felt really comfortable.

6 miles

Felt really good today. 7:46 pace for 6 miles.

12 miles

Felt absolutely fantastic today... makes me wish that I had run the race yesterday. It was as if I could not feel my legs at all and they would have gone as fast as I wanted them to go. I averaged under 7:25 pace for the run with the the last 2 miles being 7:10 and 7:02. Fun run. I am hoping to do a little speed this week and then race a 10k next weekend. It is a small race about 25 miles from town but they have 75 dollars worth of gift certificates for first male and female. It sounds like the overall winning time isn't usually under 40:00 so that might be a good goal.

6 miles

Easy 6 miles today. Felt good to get out for more than 45 minutes!

Getting Adjusted

It's been a bit of a crazy week and it is nice to be done! Med school is definitely going to keep me busy and I am a little worried about fitting in my runs. It will just have to be whatever I can manage, I guess. Once we settle into a routine I am sure things will be much better. This week was extra chaotic because our schedule included extra in-class time as we were drilled with orientation activities on top of our regular schedule.

We had our first case study this week which was a ton of fun... just like playing House. But it also meant researching two different topics and giving presentations on Wednesday and Friday. I spent 5-6 hours on each topic which really cut into my running time! I didn't get a run in at all on Wednesday and only ran 3 on Thursday and Friday. But I will figure out a schedule soon and hopefully get back to being able to run more miles again.

Sunday - 13.3
Monday - 7
Tuesday- 7
Wednesday - 0
Thursday - 3 (with speed)
Friday - 3

I am looking forward to watching the half marathon tomorrow and might race a 10K next weekend depending on how the week goes. Daycare is going well for the kids... they are a little extra tired in the evening but seem to enjoy it. I am hoping that we all catch up on a little sleep this weekend =)

13.3 miles (1:45:00)

Felt great today. Wish I would have felt this way yesterday =)

Bad Day

Today was an odd day... there was a small 5k down in the park this morning (the local high school cross country team hosts the meet every August). It is usually a pretty small meet with mostly the high school runners and a few of the regulars in town. This year they changed the course so that it was completely on grass through the frisbee golf course which meant that it was pretty rough. I thought I felt ok at the start of the race although it was getting pretty hot already (it didn't start until 9:00 so it was high 60's, 89% humidity and 60 something dewpoint).

Pretty much as soon as we started racing I knew that I didn't feel good. It was really hard to find a rhythm which could have been due to the rough course but I just didn't feel like I had any go in my legs. I came through the first mile in 6:14... bad sign as I ran the first mile of the 5k a couple of weeks ago in 6:03 and felt fantastic. I gave it a little more time thinking that sometimes it just takes a little while to get going but it just kept going downhill... before I knew it I was running close to 7:00 pace and just felt like I was running through mud. I eventually dropped out just after the 2 mile mark (something I have never done but it really felt pointless to continue slogging on). It was interesting to see the HR data as it showed that I had averaged 194 for the second mile (which only ended up being a 6:59). Not a fun time!

And so it begins...

The kiddos started daycare yesterday. I don't start school until Monday but am bringing them this week for a few hours/day to hopefully make it a smoother transition. Other than a few issues (including watching a mommy and daddy show... Elle's description), it seemed to go ok. We are really careful about how much and what type of television that Elle and Owen are exposed to so to hear that they watched a show (and not even a cartoon) during the not quite 3 hours that they were there didn't make me too happy. But sometimes Elle doesn't describe things as they really happen so I will have to wait to hear Laurie's version before I get too upset. It was my understanding (and one of the reasons why we chose this particular provider) that the kids only watched a cartoon as they settled down before lunch/nap... which is how we structured our day at home too. It was really crazy when we were looking for providers how many of them allowed the kids to watch 2+ hours of tv a day. But enough of that...

6 miles today with a few ~200m strides. Legs felt really good.

3 miles w/speed

I could give a number of excuses today why I only ran 3 miles but it really came down to just not wanting to run. It has been a long time since I have felt this way so I figured there was probably a good reason for it. I did 1x1:00 and 2x:30 at 15 minutes.

9 miles

Felt much better today (7:50 pace). I will be happy when the weather starts to cooperate a little more =)

7 miles

Easy run. Felt ok but overall just not a good day for a run.

12 miles

Planned to run 1:30 today... stayed out for an even 12 (1:31:51). Legs felt really good today but HR was a little higher (in the 160's toward the end). It was pretty hot and humid again today though. Finished with a 7:00 last mile... felt really smooth and easy.

8 miles w/ speed

Legs felt really good today after the first set of speed. Average pace was just under 7:30.

7 miles w/ hills

7 miles with a few hill repeats at the end of the run.... getting ready for the big hill next weekend during the 5k.

7 miles w/ speed

7 miles on the treadmill this morning. 2 minutes of speed every fifteen minutes... 2x1:00, 1x1:00 + 2x:30 and 4x:30. Felt good.

10 miles

10 miles this morning in some pretty sticky weather. Felt pretty good today so will probably do some speed again tomorrow.

7 miles w/ speed

Legs were feeling better this morning but still a little heavy at the start. 7 miles with 2 minutes of speed every 15 minutes... 2x1:00, 1x1:00 + 2X:30, 4x:30. I felt much better after the first set of pick-ups.

6 miles

Still a little tired today so I took it very easy (8:14 pace). It has been very hot lately and it looks like it will last a few more days. High nineties during the day only cooling to mid seventies at night.... combined with 90% humidity doesn't feel very good. We usually get at least one of these streaks every summer... hopefully it ends soon.

13 miles

Slow run this morning... between being a little tired from the race yesterday and the heat/humidity it was not one of the most enjoyable runs. 13 miles at 8:02 pace.

5K- 19:08

Small race this morning.. I think 54 people in the 5k and 20 people in the 10k. None of the college runners showed up so I wasn't sure if there would be anyone to run with. The course was an out and back with a 180 turn around. The weather was decent... 60 degrees with a 12-15 mph wind.

It turned out that there wasn't anyone to run with except the guy that went on to win the 10k. I was about 10 meters behind him until the 5k turnaround point and then by myself for the rest... I went on to be the overall 5k winner! Woohoo =) Second place was a high school boy in 21:14. Kinda fun =)

Here are the splits and average HR:

3:42.7 (180)
3:45.3 (187)
348.7 (193)
3:53.0 (195)
3:53.4 (196)

Max HR was 201

I think I ran a little more even than the splits show considering that the wind was in my face for the second half of the race. I felt pretty strong through 2 miles... my legs actually felt really good throughout the entire race. I am excited to race again in 2 weeks after I have a chance to get a little speed in my legs. Fun time =)

8 miles + speed

What a fun run! My tight calf that has been bugging me for a couple of weeks now felt great as did everything else about this run. It's amazing what a good email can do for you =) Today called for 8 miles with 2:00 worth of speed every 15 minutes. I did 2x1:00, 2x1:00, 1x1:00 + 2x:30 and finished the run right at 60 minutes with a 1:00 stride. Average pace ended up being 7:30 as even the segments between the speed were a little quicker today. I found myself falling very comfortably in the low 7:40's as soon as I backed off the speed. It was a really fun run and looking forward to the speed sessions made the miles go by very fast. If I wasn't racing on Saturday I would have been tempted to stay out much longer. Good run!

Can you blame me?

I am having a pretty tough time right now... 3 weeks left until I have to start leaving these 2 sweeties at daycare. Needless to say I am quite the emotional mess lately. So how has this been affecting my running... I really don't think I am going to worry about the marathon anymore. I would like to still run it but am starting to realize that running 70+ miles/week while I am trying to balance family time and study time might not be realistic. Family obviously will come first and if something has to take the back burner it will have to be running. So I think I am going to drop my mileage some right now and do a little speed work to get my legs in something that resembles racing mode. And then I will just see how things go from there. I will still run as many miles as I can fit in to my schedule (without stressing myself out too much... something that I tend to do from time to time =)). If it happens that I can still run enough so that I can run the marathon, great! If not, at least I will have had a chance to run some races this summer.

14 miles this morning.

7 miles yesterday.

9 miles

I have been thinking for some time now that I don't want to focus my training on TCM. I really want to spend the rest of the summer running some races. I am pretty sure that I will still run the marathon (just with a different goal in mind)... assuming that I can put in enough miles during school for it to make sense.

9 miles for today (a little faster than usual just because it sounded fun). 7:30 average pace with the last 1.5 miles at 6:45 pace.

10 miles

Legs felt good today... 7:50 pace for 10 miles (under 150 HR).

8 miles w/ hills

8 miles on the treadmill with some inclines. Felt pretty good today.

10.5 miles

Legs felt better today. 7:53 pace with 148 average HR.

7.5 miles w/ 3 mile evaluation

I knew I was tired before I even started this morning... my standing around HR was 80 (about 20bpm higher than normal). I had planned to do 3 miles at 6:50 pace and then monitor HR and recovery time. The 2 mile warm-up wasn't enough to loosen my legs very much but it was starting to rain and get windy so I started the eval miles anyway.

6:48 (174)
6:50 (181)
6:49 (185)

The first mile actually felt ok but my legs were definitely tired. Mile 2 was a little harder and mile 3 felt about the same as mile 1 (even though the winds had picked up and the rain was dumping). Probably the most telling part of the run was that it took 3:00 to recover to 130.

7 miles

Recovery run. The long run yesterday wore me out more than I thought. My legs weren't really sore this morning.. more stiff and tired than anything.

18 miles

I have been taking it easy since the race so it felt good today to go out and get some good miles in. My legs felt really good and I tried to run a fair amount on grass today... probably close to half of the run was spent running back and forth on the edge of the golf course. 2:21:47 (7:52 pace). Average HR was 157... stayed under 160 until the last 2 miles (164). A recovery shake and ice bath later my legs are feeling good.

7 miles

Easy run at 8:02 pace.

7 miles

Another easy run this morning found my legs feeling good. 7 miles at 8:02 pace (146 HR). An easy 7 or 8 tomorrow and then I should be ready for 17-18 on Sunday.

5 miles

My legs felt ok this morning.... no soreness, just a little tired. I ran a slow (8:20 pace) 5 miles at 143 HR. I am going to take the next few days really easy so that I am recovered and ready to start next week with a good long run on Sunday.

10k

40:51 for 2nd place (9th overall). Here is the breakdown:

3:48 (184) | 3:58 (186) | 4:00 (189) | 4:03 (189)
3:56 (189) | 4:09 (191) | 4:05 (191) | 4:07 (190)
4:12 (191) | 3:50 (193)

Max HR was 203. It was pretty hot out on the course... it was mostly on an asphalt bike path with no shade. It was about 77 at the start of the race and we had to stand around in the sun for an extra 15 minutes waiting for the race to start.

I am disappointed because I let myself shut down a little after the first place girl starting pulling away. Instead of being mentally tough I started telling myself... she's 10 years younger than I am, she was the conference champion in the 10K this spring, blah blah blah.

Anyway it's probably ok because my legs feel really good a few hours after the race.

7 miles

Easy run today. Legs felt great after yesterday's 13 miler. Average HR 151 at 7:55 pace. My left calf and shin were a little sore yesterday and today... maybe due to running more of my miles on the road instead of the treadmill. Nothing serious but I will watch it nonetheless. I am standing in a cold water bath drinking hot chocolate right now instead of rushing around at work to finish everything by 7:45 like I am used to. It's a wonderful thing to be done working =)

13 miles

A shorter long run this morning. 7:51 pace felt nice and easy. HR stayed under 160 for most of the run.

9 miles

Easy 9 miles outside this morning (7:50 pace). Yesterday was my last day of work so this was the first relaxed Saturday morning that we have had in a few years. Unfortunately it won't last too long as classes start in 5 weeks. The run felt pretty good this morning although I started to feel a little tired toward the end and my HR reflected it as well as it went up to 165 for the last mile. I will probably keep my long run down to 14 tomorrow because I want to be ready to race on the 4th. 70 miles for the week.

10 miles

Easy 10 this morning at 7:50 pace (4 outside and 6 on the treadmill). Legs felt good and still no signs of the sore knee.

7 miles

Easy 7 on the treadmill at 8:00 pace this morning.

12 miles

Easy 12 this morning (7:50 pace)... 6 outside and 6 on the treadmill. Legs felt really good today. I started a new pair of shoes on Monday and haven't had any pain in my knee since. The miles are adding up a little quicker now and it's easy to forget that my shoes might be getting worn out.

Hills... sort of

10 miles (7:50 pace) this morning with some inclines thrown in... I'm hoping to get my legs used to the idea of hills. The only good option for us outside is the back of the levy out our front door... but it isn't the best footing and is way too dark to attempt at 3:30 in the morning. My legs felt pretty good today.

7 miles

Recovery run this morning on the treadmill. Legs were just a little sore but overall didn't feel too bad

15 miles

Legs felt good this morning.. no soreness and not too tired once I settled in. 15 miles at 7:51 pace. HR stayed under 160 for the first 6 miles then averaged 162 for the next 5 miles. Miles 12-15 were at 164-165. I was definitely more tired than on a typical long run but it didn't feel as if I had raced yesterday. It was a good indicator that I ran as controlled as I thought I had during the race... another good sign was that my knee didn't bother me too much. Just a little starting around mile 10.. I stretched it a little and was able to continue without any problems. I stopped at 15 just to be on the safe side. Recovered to 130 in1:03 and 120 in 1:15.

12k

The race wasn't exactly what we were expecting... not so organized and a little more of an obstacle course than your typical road race. We got a chuckle out of the course map before we began as there were many footnotes... run under the bridge and through the dirt path up the grassy hill.... over the bridge and down the handicap accessible ramp (with three 180 degree turns)... run along the bike path until you reach the 3 flights of stairs leading back up to the bridge... Last year they had trouble with people getting lost and missing a section of the course because it was pretty complicated, not well marked, and they didn't have any type of escort. Anyway, I was happy that this was going to be more of a workout effort than a real race.... the plan was to run 6:55 to 7:00 pace.

I ran a short warm-up about 20 minutes before the start, stretched and did a few strides. It was pretty humid and probably close to 60 degrees but I actually felt a little cold while we stood around waiting for the race to start (it finally did... 10 minutes late).

I felt really good from the start.. really relaxed. The first 4 miles went by in 6:44, 6:53, 6:48, 6:49. They were all on pretty flat roads... no cross country, ramps or stairs yet! Miles 5 and 6 were 7:05 and 6:59... it was somewhere in these miles that we had to run off the bike path into a frisbee golf course (the dirt path and up the grassy hill) and then a little later we ran down the ramp and back up 3 flights of stairs. I was still feeling really relaxed and controlled through these miles... it felt much more like a MP back-to-back effort that I had been doing prior to the half marathon. It was tempting after mile 6 to pick it up a little but I stayed on pace through mile 7... 6:50. I let myself go a little for a the last .44 and finished (on a huge downhill) at 6:17 pace.

I was 10th overall (99 runners) and the first woman in 51:23 (6:53 avg. pace) ... not a very competitive field =) But it was fun and probably a good training effort. My legs didn't get sore at all and my knee felt fine throughout the race and later in the day as well. It was a nice change in effort from the easy runs that I have been used to lately.

6 miles

Easy 6 on the treadmill this morning. Everything was feeling good. 12k tomorrow!

8 miles

I made it through 8 miles (7:50 pace) today without any pain in my knee. I added a few 200m strides at 6:55 pace just to get the legs moving a little before the 12k on Saturday.

9 miles

My knee was still hurting a little this morning so I stopped at 9 again. It is frustrating to have a problem like this that never completely goes away. I will keep icing and be careful with my mileage!

9 miles

For some odd reason my knee was hurting pretty badly this morning. I usually only deal with the pain immediately after a race or occasionally the day after a long run. It was bad enough that I had to stop and stretch my IT band after 7 miles and still had to stop early at 9 miles. So I will ice and take ibuprofen today. Otherwise my legs felt good today.. a little tired at the start but after a mile I settled in to 7:50 pace and felt pretty good. My HR didn't go above 150 today... it averaged almost 10 beats lower than what is the new normal.

7 miles

Recovery run today. Felt ok after the first mile... a little tired and still a tiny bit of soreness in the legs. 8:15 pace.

17 miles

Long run this morning... 17 miles in 2:12:59 (7:49 pace) with average HR of 156. My HR stayed below 160 for the first 12 miles. Miles 13-17 were 161, 163, 162, 162, 163. I pushed a little on the last 400m of the run to see if I could get it up a little higher (just out of curiosity and because I was a little concerned that it was low because I was tired... even though I haven't been feeling tired). Anyway, it did go up to 169. I recovered to 130 in :52 and 120 in 1:02. My legs felt great with the exception of the last 4 miles when they started feeling a little tired. They are just a touch sore but I think that it will be gone by tomorrow. I think this was a pretty good run!

8 miles

I kept the miles at 8 this morning even though I felt fantastic. I expected to be tired today as it is the end of a 76.5 mile week for me and my legs were feeling a little off yesterday throughout the day. I was pleasantly surprised to find my legs feeling really good as soon as I got going on the treadmill this morning. I kept the pace at 8:10's anyway just to make sure I am not overdoing anything. Hopefully this means I will be feeling good for my long run tomorrow. I am running (racing?) a 12K next Saturday but am not planning on adjusting mileage at all other than a slightly lighter day on Friday.

11 miles

Easy 11 this morning at 8:00 pace. Legs felt pretty good during the run but I am starting to feel a little tired as the day goes on. Tomorrow's 10 might get changed to 8.

9 miles | 3 .5 miles

Easy 9 this morning. Legs were a little tired to start but felt better as I got going. I kept the pace a little slower this morning (8:10) and average HR was 148. I added a few 200 meter inclines in the last mile which got the HR up to high 160's.

Easy 3.5 miles this afternoon with the kids in the stroller. We did a little tour of the parks in the neighborhood which meant there were a few breaks during the run.

12 miles

70 degrees and light rain when I headed out the door at 3:30 this morning. I felt great today... there's something about running in the rain. I did the first 6 outside with the HR monitor on... I was running 7:45 pace at 156 HR. It wasn't that long ago that I couldn't take a step without my HR going up to 167. The last 6 were on the treadmill. Good run.

10 miles

Easy 10 this morning with 6 outside and 4 to finish on the treadmill. Legs were a little heavy for the first 2 miles or so but that lifted and I felt good for the rest of the run. 7:50 pace with my HR staying at 160 or under.

7 miles

Recovery run today... my legs weren't sore just a little tired. Nice and slow on the treadmill. 71 miles over the last 7 days.

Long run

It seems like it has been a long time since I have been out for a long run. It felt good to be out today for 2 hours... 16 miles in 2:04:50 (7:48 pace). I started feeling a little tired around 13 miles and stopped back at the house for some gatorade (thanks Elle!). It seemed to help after a couple miles and I felt pretty good by the end of the run. My legs never got sore (which is new for me) and a few hours after the run everything is feeling good.

9 miles

Easy 9 on the treadmill.

10 miles

Easy run this morning... 4 outside and finished on the treadmill. Averaged 8:05 pace and was able to keep my average HR under 160 for the entire run!

9 miles

Easy run on the treadmill. 8:15 pace.

11 miles

Easy run today. The first 7 1/2 were outside and then in to finish on the treadmill. Legs felt good. Average pace outside was 7:45 and then a little slower on the mill.

Don't fly United

That was the lesson we learned from our trip to Vermont. Other than one canceled flight and one that was delayed, we had a great trip. The wedding was beautiful and we had most of the morning on Sunday to spend with the groom (our friend from college who also ran cross country and track with us). He took us on a hilly trail run that really wiped out my legs... I will need to work on hills before TCM! I had planned on a long run but after close to 6 miles on the trails I was happy to just add another 1+ miles to make it 7 for the day. The wedding made for a late night on Sunday and with an early flight on Monday we didn't have time for a run before we left (and there was no way we were leaving the kids to go for a run once we got home!) so Monday was a day off.

Tuesday - Easy 9 this morning (7:50 pace). My legs felt great.

7 miles

Recovery run this morning on the treadmill. Legs were a little sore but overall didn't feel too bad.

Easy runs

Thursday - Easy 7. Felt good.

Friday - Easy 8. 4 miles outside and finished with 4 miles on the treadmill (averaged 7:50 pace). Felt really good today.

We are off early tomorrow morning to Vermont for a friend's wedding. It will be a short trip (back on Monday) but we should have a chance to get in some fun runs. We are leaving the kids for the first time (ever!).... we have never even left them with a babysitter yet. Grandma and Grandpa are coming to take over so things should go just fine though... Elle is very excited (Bud will probably be a little less excited to not see Mommy for 3 days).

Evaluation Run

The plan for today was a 3 mile evaluation run at 6:40 pace. I felt pretty good during the 2 mile warm-up and noticed that my HR was staying in the high 140's at 8:00 pace. I thought the run was going to go pretty well... but shortly after I picked up the pace I began to think differently. I was breathing much too hard for the pace and my legs just weren't there. My HR shot up pretty high right away and just kept climbing throughout the effort. I ended up stopping at 2.5 miles. Here are the splits:

6:39 (177)
6:41 (186)
3:22 (189)

Recovered to 130 in 1:20 and 120 in 1:37.

Catching up

Friday - Easy 5

Saturday - Easy 7

Sunday - Long run (13 miles). I felt really good during the run. I fell into 7:50 pace and stayed there throughout the run. My heart rate was nice and low... averaged 160 (the first few miles were all in the mid 150's, mile 12 and 13 were 166 and 168). I had planned on going a little further but it seemed like it was the right time to stop.

Monday - 6 mile recovery. Felt good.

Tuesday - Easy 7

Back to normal

My left IT band has been tight since the race and knee pain has limited my miles. My legs were sore on Sunday and my knee was hurting already at 2 miles so that is where I stopped. The soreness was almost gone by Monday but my knee was a little worse and I ran/walked for 3.5 miles. I have been icing 3X day since Monday, taking some ibuprofen and only running as far as I can make it before my knee starts to hurt. It has been getting better with each day... Tuesday was 5 miles, Wednesday was 6.5 miles and today I made it 8 miles without it even starting to hurt. So I think I am probably done dealing with that... I will still be careful the next few days though because I want to be able to get in a long run on Sunday. If all goes well I will shoot for 17 miles and try to get my mileage up above 65 for next week.

I am anxious to race again. I don't feel like I really raced the half... I figured I would be trying to hit a pace for the first 8-9 miles and then start tactical racing after that. However, because I went out too hard from the start, instead of racing the last few miles I could barely move the last few miles =) There aren't very many (any) races in the area for the next few weeks. It looks like the best opportunity is going to come on June 23rd... there is a 12K race in St. Cloud. It sounds like a neat race (interesting distance and the course winds through 3 different parks along the Mississippi). Plus my family will be able to watch the kids so that Eric and I can both race (if he feels up to it).

There is a 10K on July 4th that I want to race and then I would like to race at least one 5K this summer as well. But my main focus will be building for Twin Cities. The Dick Beardsley 1/2 marathon is on September 8... I want to race that as well (even if it is as a training type race). I am excited to get my miles up right now... if my legs can handle it I would like to be running 90-100 mile weeks in July.

The Race

I didn't finish in the time that I was hoping (or place for that matter) but for now I am just happy to be able to say that I did finish (in 1:31:24 for 11th female). Somewhere around mile 9 I started to hit the wall and by mile 12 I really didn't know if I was going to finish. I was hanging on for dear life at 7:30 pace as people were flying past me to finish. The medics grabbed me as soon a I got across the line and wanted to wrap me in blankets because I was pretty white and my lips were purple. I knew I was getting pretty cold on the last stretch into the wind but didn't realize how bad I was until I stopped. I didn't care about the blankets but I was pretty desperate for some sugar... I grabbed some oranges and gatorade and that seemed to get me out of the haze a little. I have never bonked on a run but from what I have been told it seems pretty similar to what I experienced during the race. But it doesn't seem right that I could have bonked during a half marathon.

I went out exactly as I had planned... hitting 6:35's for the first 4 miles and was feeling really strong. The next few miles were a little slower (6:48 averages over 3 miles... I missed the individual mile splits) but it was windy and I wasn't running in a group so I was still ok with the splits. Things seemed to be on track and I was reeling some of the women in that had gone out a little quicker. Mile 8 was really tough mentally... into the wind and I was by myself.. I could feel that I was dropping off the pace a little and then a spectator told me I was the 7th female. I thought there were only 4 ahead of me so that set me back a little too. I tried to dig in a little and tough it out and actually got down into the 6:30's again during the middle part of that mile. I felt better as I picked it up a little but just couldn't keep the pace by myself. It ended up being a 7:03 mile and things just kept getting worse from there. I was really starting to get cold (it was 56 degrees at the start of the race but dropping so that it was in the 40's by the end and the wind was steady at 20 mph gusting to 25 straight out of the north). My hands and forearms were really bad and from mile 10 on I was really struggling. Honestly, while I am not too happy with my time or place, I am just happy that I was able to finish.

So now what? I really want to know what happened. I am pretty sure that with the training that I was doing (even though it was only for 6 months) that I was in shape to do better than that. Maybe not. Maybe I was expecting too much and I died because I went out faster than what I could handle. I don't really know... but I want to run another half marathon! I am not sure when but for now I am going to take a week of reduced mileage (40ish) and then get back into some base miles.

3 miles

3 miles starting at 7:50 pace and working down to 6:35 pace for the last .5 mile or so. Legs felt really good today.

Day off

No run today. Hopefully the complete rest will do me some good. Tomorrow will be just a few miles with a little race pace mixed in somewhere. Then 2 miles or so on Friday...

4.5 miles

10 minute warm-up followed by 3x1000 at 6:25 pace. These were supposed to be at goal race pace or a little faster with long recoveries. I ran them in 4:00, 3:56, 3:56 with 3:30 recoveries between. I am still not really sure what pace I am going to be able to hold on Saturday... I want to think that I can break 1:27 which means I have to run under 6:39 pace. I am just not sure how far under to shoot... 6:35's would give me a 1:26:15. I might try to start with that and see how I feel.

4.5 miles

Easy run on the treadmill.

1.25 miles

I hadn't planned on running today but I wanted to practice taking cups of water and drinking on the run because I have never done it before. I ran .75 mile to warm up and then did 5 ~100m strides at 6:30ish pace while grabbing cups and trying to drink. I didn't end up taking in much fluid but at least I have some idea of how it is supposed to work. Hopefully I don't have to worry about drinking much during the half.

10 miles

Easy 10 today just under 8:00 pace. Legs felt good.

Sunday will be a day off.

4 miles

4 miles with 3x400 pick-ups at 7:00 pace.

Easy 5

5 miles today.. everything felt good after yesterday's workout.

1000m reps

5x1000m at 3:55 starting every 6 minutes this morning. Felt ok this morning.. a little bit tired and not a lot of snap in my legs.

3:55 (178) | 1:01
3:54 (176) | :58
3:53 (174) | 1:18
3:53 (174) | 1:17
3:53 (175) |1:13

Even though I felt a little tired from the start they still felt comfortable enough that I could have kept it up for some time. 5 felt like a good place to stop. 6 miles for the day.

Eleven days and counting

My heart just skipped a beat when I saw that there are only 11 days until the race. I don't know if I am more excited/nervous for my half or for Eric's race.... I guess nervous for my own race and excited for his.

Something I thought I wouldn't do for at least a few more years... I registered for TCM. I feel like I already have a pretty decent base to build on right now and I am not going to have a chance to train like this again until I am done with med school. I am done with my job at the end of June so that leaves 5 weeks before school starts to hopefully get up in the 100 mile/week range. The last 8 weeks before the marathon I will be in school so training may get a little tricky. One good thing is that the first block of school is all about memorizing biochemistry.. all stuff that I studied before in grad school... the bad thing is that it was 7 years ago.

Easy 4 miles this morning... my legs were a little tired but they started coming around by the end of the run.

Road Trip

13 miles today with 6 at MP. There was a nice 25 mph wind with 34 mph gusts blowing this morning so Daddy and the kids offered to take me out in the country so I could run with the wind at my back (sort of.. it was a SE wind and I was running straight east). The kids had a blast eating treats and watching movies while they watched for Mommy to run past.

The wind settled down quite a bit after the first few miles.. I could feel it blowing me a little right away which got me running a little faster than I had planned. The first 7 miles were very comfortable and I decided not to worry too much about HR and focus more on how my legs felt.
7:25 (146) | 7:33 (155) | 7:30 (157) | 7:34 (158) | 7:39 (159) | 7:35 (164) | 7:39 (166)

And the MP miles:

6:58 (175) | 6:54 (179) | 6:58 (180) | 6:59 (180) | 7:01 (181) | 6:56 (182)

I don't really know what to make of my HR these last two days. All I know is that my legs felt great today and I didn't start to feel tired until the last mile. No soreness at all and my legs continue to feel good as the day goes on. I was a little disappointed because of the HR data but I still think it was a good effort without being too much.

MP run

8 miles today with 5 at MP. My HR was high for some reason today. 2 mile warm-up with the first mile at 7:36 pace (155 HR) and second mile at 7:40 (164 HR). I don't know why my HR jumped during the second mile but it was off for the entire run. Here are the MP miles:

7:03 (173)
6:58 (177)
6:59 (179)
6:59 (180)
6:57 (181)

My legs felt great during and after the run. No soreness today and my legs never started feeling tired. Recovered to 130 in 1:02 and 120 in 1:13.

Easy 7

Felt good today. Easy 7 at 8:20 pace on the treadmill.

8 miles

My legs felt really pretty good this morning.. no soreness at all from yesterday and surprisingly fresh. I ran easy keeping the pace around 8:20/mile.

1000m reps

Today's workout was 1000m reps in 3:55 starting every 6 minutes. I felt good during the 2 mile warm-up and noticed again that my HR was low (150). I started the first rep and could tell right away that I was running too fast.. as soon as I get it in my head that I am running repeats I immediately shift into a "run fast" mode even though these were only supposed to be at 6:17 pace. It's a little tricky to do these on the road too because I don't have markers to help me with pace. Anyway, I was able to back off for the first one but got off track again on numbers 2 and 3. Here are the splits:

3:53 (178 HR) | :59
3:49 (176 HR) | 1:03
3:49 (177 HR) | :59
3:55 (175 HR) | 1:04
3:53 (176 HR) | 1:04
3:55 (176 HR) | 1:07

I was still feeling pretty good on number 6 but decided to stop because I could feel that I was getting close to the point of getting some muscle soreness and my stride was starting to alter a bit. These are the numbers from the first time that I did this workout on April 11:

3:54 (182 HR) | 1:27
3:56 (180 HR) | 1:47
3:47 (183 HR) | 1:54
3:47 (182 HR) | 1:46

Pretty cool.

6 and 8

Monday - 6 mile recovery at 9:00 pace on the treadmill. Legs were a little sore but overall I felt ok.

Tuesday - Easy 8 on the treadmill. Legs felt quite a bit better today.