Saturday was so so hot.
In fact, it was so hot that all of my team members (myself included) were sweating BEFORE we started our practice. Our workouts were all over the place (half-marathoners were running 6-7 miles, beginner marathoners 4-5, intermediate 10-12 and advanced 12-14). To complicate matters more we were running in pace groups, not groups by level. Since I was already sweating buckets and knew I had to do at least 12 miles I decided to run with the 10 minute pace group. I was so glad to have a pace leader because I tend to go way too fast at the beginning of my long runs.
Our little 10 minute pace group gathered up before the run and with a quick survey (with a showing of hands) I found out that Nicole and I were the only ones running 12. Everyone else was running less. INCLUDING our pace leader :( She was running 10, which at first I was like 'Two miles of pacing on our own? Cake!'. But then I realized that because of how the loops were set-up we would actually only be running with her for 5 miles. Grrrr. That meant I would have to concentrate on my run.
It was all the more complicated because the Pride Race was going on. So we had to run outside of the race barriers for a few miles and risk being run over by the overzealous cyclists (who are really angry because of a recent article in the New Yorker called "Who Owns Central Park?").
Luckily though, this meant that there was plenty of water out on tables. (Don't worry, I didn't take any until the race was over and the volunteers were cleaning up).
Anyway, our pace group started out great. It was a nice, relaxing pace and I found myself having to slow down a couple of times. Our pace leader pointed out all of the water fountains in the park. We were all having nice conversation to pass the time. Then she left us at 5 miles :(
Nicole and I did our best to keep the 10 minute pace, and we actually did a pretty good job. But as time wore on, we had to stop more and more to get water. It was just too hot. When we finished our first loop we were right around the end of the Pride Race. Everyone had rainbow striped popsicles. Nicole and I were SO JEALOUS. She wanted to stop at one of the vendor's carts to get a popsicle. I was like "No way. I have no incentive to finish if we do that." We started talking about Sno-Cones. At first all this talk was good, but then it just seemed to drag the run on. There were carts with them everywhere (or maybe it was just a mirage...just kidding). We climbed Great Hill for the second time and I was about done with the whole thing. Too bad I had about 4 more miles to go. We were still keeping our ten minute pace.
When we got to 72nd street on the east side I was so happy! 1.5 miles to go! I saw another cart and told Nicole that I decided to get a Sno-Cone when I was finished. It was one of the longer 1.5 miles that I have ever run. I had to stop myself from stopping to get water every 30 seconds.
We finished and went to the bag area where we immediately bought Sno-Cones. Who knew they could be so so delicious? Although it was sort of hard to stretch and eat it at the same time, it was the best $3 I spent all day!
Monday, June 30, 2008
Friday, June 27, 2008
Quick! I Need an Opinion!
Tomorrow's workout is a 12-14 mile run "easy". Coach Ramon says it's all about spending time on your feet.
The thing is, we're running in pace groups and I have no idea which one I should run with. The problem is that I have been pushing myself. So, when I was in the 5 mile Hope and Possibility Race I took the first mile out "easy". I clocked a 9:10, which felt comfortable to me at the time. Last night however, my 9:12 pace seemed a little harder than usual. In my last marathon, my pace was a 10:55. Grrrrr! Which group should I run with?
Ramon says:
"You should run with the group that feels very comfortable to you, remember saturday's is all about running easy, and spend time on your feet. If you find yourself pushing and putting too much effort early on, be smart (i know it could be a lot to ask...but try it !) and move to a slower group (either the same day or the following week)
How do you know if you are running with the right group?
1-If the pace feels easy early on and almost feel like you are holding back
2-if you can maintain a conversation while running
3-if you finish you run knowing that you could have gone a bit longer.
how do you know if you are in the wrong group?
1-if you feel like you are
2-if your breathing is elaborate while running
3-if you find yourself dropping farther back each mile.
4-if you hate the person next to you because he/she is not breathing hard.
I know it's not a huge deal to switch groups in the middle, but I would really like to try to stay with the group the whole time. Also, I still want to push myself (only a LITTLE...I realize this is an easy run) from what I have done in my past marathons.
The thing is, we're running in pace groups and I have no idea which one I should run with. The problem is that I have been pushing myself. So, when I was in the 5 mile Hope and Possibility Race I took the first mile out "easy". I clocked a 9:10, which felt comfortable to me at the time. Last night however, my 9:12 pace seemed a little harder than usual. In my last marathon, my pace was a 10:55. Grrrrr! Which group should I run with?
Ramon says:
"You should run with the group that feels very comfortable to you, remember saturday's is all about running easy, and spend time on your feet. If you find yourself pushing and putting too much effort early on, be smart (i know it could be a lot to ask...but try it !) and move to a slower group (either the same day or the following week)
How do you know if you are running with the right group?
1-If the pace feels easy early on and almost feel like you are holding back
2-if you can maintain a conversation while running
3-if you finish you run knowing that you could have gone a bit longer.
how do you know if you are in the wrong group?
1-if you feel like you are
2-if your breathing is elaborate while running
3-if you find yourself dropping farther back each mile.
4-if you hate the person next to you because he/she is not breathing hard.
I know it's not a huge deal to switch groups in the middle, but I would really like to try to stay with the group the whole time. Also, I still want to push myself (only a LITTLE...I realize this is an easy run) from what I have done in my past marathons.
Repeat Workout
Last night I had a repeat workout. This is how is was laid out in the schedule:
10 minutes warmup
3 lower loops of Central Park
Increase speed by 30-40 seconds for each loop
Each lower loop of Central Park is 1.7 miles. It was sort of muggy last night, so of course that made it harder. I am assuming that the point of this workout was to work on saving your energy at the beginning so that you could have more at the end. A perfect workout for me, because this is one of my problem areas. I told Bill that my goal was a 9:45 pace for the first loop, a 9:15 pace for the second loop and a 8:45 pace for the third loop. He thought we would be dying if we did this. After I thought about it I thought that he might be right. But I wasn't sure. So I said that we would just play it by ear.
We started by walking across town to the park. As soon as we got to the park we ran downtown to 72nd street where our workout began. Right on schedule, we logged a 10 minute mile. It's funny though, because I felt like we were running a good pace. Our first loop was a 15:40. I was dripping with sweat and dying. Bill calculated that this was around a 9:17 pace. (Pretty close. But good math in your head Bill, especially after a hot run. It is actually a 9:12). Hmmm. 9:17 seemed a lot faster than what I was supposed to start out at.
I told Bill that this meant that our next loop had to be a 15:10. He said that he thought that we should just try to meet our time again, since we were so off the pace we set for ourselves. I said it depended on how I was feeling.
I must have been feeling good because my second loop was 14:48. Granted, I did feel like I was dying at the end and my heart was beating in my head like none other. (That was an 8:48 pace).
I was really feeling tired, and I felt like I screwed up my workout by not really taking the first loop easy. I realized that if I counted my warmup that my paces were pretty much on track. After all, this wasn't speed work. I told Bill that I was going to take the last loop easy and count it as my cooldown.
So my last loop was 15:50 (a 9:18 pace). I think this workout was good for me. Especially since I am trying to figure out my "normal" pace. I am also looking forward to see how I pace this weekend when we have an "easy" 12-14 mile run. (I think...we haven't gotten the coach's email yet).
Ever since I decided to change my mindset to be more competitive these workouts are killing me. Not in a bad way (not like my legs hurt or anything) just that the effort I put forward is so much greater. I am trying to becareful about not burning out though.
10 minutes warmup
3 lower loops of Central Park
Increase speed by 30-40 seconds for each loop
Each lower loop of Central Park is 1.7 miles. It was sort of muggy last night, so of course that made it harder. I am assuming that the point of this workout was to work on saving your energy at the beginning so that you could have more at the end. A perfect workout for me, because this is one of my problem areas. I told Bill that my goal was a 9:45 pace for the first loop, a 9:15 pace for the second loop and a 8:45 pace for the third loop. He thought we would be dying if we did this. After I thought about it I thought that he might be right. But I wasn't sure. So I said that we would just play it by ear.
We started by walking across town to the park. As soon as we got to the park we ran downtown to 72nd street where our workout began. Right on schedule, we logged a 10 minute mile. It's funny though, because I felt like we were running a good pace. Our first loop was a 15:40. I was dripping with sweat and dying. Bill calculated that this was around a 9:17 pace. (Pretty close. But good math in your head Bill, especially after a hot run. It is actually a 9:12). Hmmm. 9:17 seemed a lot faster than what I was supposed to start out at.
I told Bill that this meant that our next loop had to be a 15:10. He said that he thought that we should just try to meet our time again, since we were so off the pace we set for ourselves. I said it depended on how I was feeling.
I must have been feeling good because my second loop was 14:48. Granted, I did feel like I was dying at the end and my heart was beating in my head like none other. (That was an 8:48 pace).
I was really feeling tired, and I felt like I screwed up my workout by not really taking the first loop easy. I realized that if I counted my warmup that my paces were pretty much on track. After all, this wasn't speed work. I told Bill that I was going to take the last loop easy and count it as my cooldown.
So my last loop was 15:50 (a 9:18 pace). I think this workout was good for me. Especially since I am trying to figure out my "normal" pace. I am also looking forward to see how I pace this weekend when we have an "easy" 12-14 mile run. (I think...we haven't gotten the coach's email yet).
Ever since I decided to change my mindset to be more competitive these workouts are killing me. Not in a bad way (not like my legs hurt or anything) just that the effort I put forward is so much greater. I am trying to becareful about not burning out though.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Slacker has a New Meaning
So, as I was getting ready this morning I was feeling like I kind of slacked on my workout last night.
Last night I was planning on doing my yoga tape and some weight training. But I mixed up my schedule and ate dinner before working out. This basically made me pretty unmotivated to work out. Not to mention that I had sort of a heavy dinner (sirloin, asparagus and a glass of red wine). So I decided to do the Crunch Yoga tape rather than the MTV Yoga tape. I knew that the Crunch one was about 15 minutes less than the other one. I also decided NOT to do weights. I also realized how much easier the Crunch video is about 5 minutes into the workout. So I was feeling kind of guilty about that. But I also figured it was probably good to mix it up.
It is surprising to me how relaxing yoga is. I know that it is supposed to be, and that's sort of what it is known for, but yoga has NEVER been relaxing for me. It has always been much more of a chore. I dreaded doing it even though I knew it was good for me. Now, I sort of look forward to it. And I am really concentrating on my breathing. I don't know if that will help me at all in my running, but it does make me feel great.
So, this morning after I felt like I slacked, I immediately realized afterwards that NORMALLY "slacking" for me means not even doing a workout. Or going a couple of days without doing a workout. So then I was like "good for me." :)
I also started reading this book that I have had for awhile. It is called "The Body Sculpting Bible for Women". I got it a couple of years ago, but have really only used to see how to do the weight exercises inside. I decided that I probably SHOULD read it, because it talks about proper nutrition and all of that stuff too. Unfortunately, the whole thing is sort of written like an infomercial EVEN THOUGH the whole first chapter talks about how infomercials lead you in the wrong direction. I mean, the content is great. But the TONE is like an infomercial.
Being an avid reader it really annoys me when the tone of a book is off. (Like the Da Vinci Code...good substance but I HATED the way it was written, so I ended up hating the book). So I don't know if I am going to finish the book or just use it for the weight training exercises, like I have done in the past.
Anyway. Tonight is a ten minute workout and 3 lower loops of Central Park (approximately 1.7 miles each). Each loop is supposed to get progressively faster by 30-40 seconds. I hope the rain holds off :)
Last night I was planning on doing my yoga tape and some weight training. But I mixed up my schedule and ate dinner before working out. This basically made me pretty unmotivated to work out. Not to mention that I had sort of a heavy dinner (sirloin, asparagus and a glass of red wine). So I decided to do the Crunch Yoga tape rather than the MTV Yoga tape. I knew that the Crunch one was about 15 minutes less than the other one. I also decided NOT to do weights. I also realized how much easier the Crunch video is about 5 minutes into the workout. So I was feeling kind of guilty about that. But I also figured it was probably good to mix it up.
It is surprising to me how relaxing yoga is. I know that it is supposed to be, and that's sort of what it is known for, but yoga has NEVER been relaxing for me. It has always been much more of a chore. I dreaded doing it even though I knew it was good for me. Now, I sort of look forward to it. And I am really concentrating on my breathing. I don't know if that will help me at all in my running, but it does make me feel great.
So, this morning after I felt like I slacked, I immediately realized afterwards that NORMALLY "slacking" for me means not even doing a workout. Or going a couple of days without doing a workout. So then I was like "good for me." :)
I also started reading this book that I have had for awhile. It is called "The Body Sculpting Bible for Women". I got it a couple of years ago, but have really only used to see how to do the weight exercises inside. I decided that I probably SHOULD read it, because it talks about proper nutrition and all of that stuff too. Unfortunately, the whole thing is sort of written like an infomercial EVEN THOUGH the whole first chapter talks about how infomercials lead you in the wrong direction. I mean, the content is great. But the TONE is like an infomercial.
Being an avid reader it really annoys me when the tone of a book is off. (Like the Da Vinci Code...good substance but I HATED the way it was written, so I ended up hating the book). So I don't know if I am going to finish the book or just use it for the weight training exercises, like I have done in the past.
Anyway. Tonight is a ten minute workout and 3 lower loops of Central Park (approximately 1.7 miles each). Each loop is supposed to get progressively faster by 30-40 seconds. I hope the rain holds off :)
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Hill Drills!
So, last night everyone had interval work-outs of some sort. The advanced group had a hill interval training (yay for us...that was sarcasm ). I don't even know what the other groups did. I used to read through the entire email workout, but then it just made me tempted to run with the intermediate group instead of the advanced group, so now I just scroll down to the bottom and only read my workout.
Our workout included two loops of hills which each included two of the steepest hills in Central Park. The gist of it was:
a 1.7 mile warmup
a FAST uphill
go down to an effort level one on the downhill
a FAST (even longer and steeper and windier) hill
a little recovery across the park
repeat the two hills
recover .2 miles
run at regular pace for remaining 1.5 miles
The first hill didn't seem that bad, but then every subsequent hill killed me. I have never done a hill workout where you actually PUSH up the hill, just where you run at your normal pace up the hill (and then recover on the downhills). I have really been monitoring my effort levels using my breathing as a guide. I read about this all the time in Runner's World, but have never actually done it. I think it is actually a really great gauge.
I have also raised the bar for myself on my marathon goal. So...instead of running with people who run at my pace, I am pushing myself to run with faster people. Last night I ran with a group of girls who are aiming for a 4:00 marathon. It was hard, but I enjoyed it. In fact, I finished well before they did, by really pushing the hills. When I got home I made sure that I iced my knee (just in case). I also made sure that I stretched really thoroughly with the group. Unfortunately by the time I was going to bed, my hamstrings were kind of sore. They still are today. But I guess that's why Wednesday nights are always cross-training nights. Since Tuesday nights are usually some sort of speed work, it is nice to have a break the night afterwards.
On another subject...one major annoyance of mine lately has been my nose piercing. I have what is known as a nostril screw and the tip of it is supposed to rest against the top of your nose on the inside. Most of the time it does...except for during my workouts. Then it twirls down and falls out of my nostril. I don't know it has something to do with heat, or bloodflow or salt or whatever. But anyway, in my quest to fix it all the time I have to stick my finger up to readjust it. I'm sure everyone on my team thinks I am picking my nose. It's rather embarrassing. Does anyone else have this problem or a theory on how to fix this? (besides getting rid of it...that is a option I would rather not do).
Oh, and because I am obsessed with improvement, I went home and mapped out our course for the hill workout on mapmyrun.com. I was going to be very disappointed with my time if it ended up being a 10 minute mile pace (even though some of the workout was recovery pace). It ended up being 6.5 miles total and I averaged a 9:13. Hurrah!
Our workout included two loops of hills which each included two of the steepest hills in Central Park. The gist of it was:
a 1.7 mile warmup
a FAST uphill
go down to an effort level one on the downhill
a FAST (even longer and steeper and windier) hill
a little recovery across the park
repeat the two hills
recover .2 miles
run at regular pace for remaining 1.5 miles
The first hill didn't seem that bad, but then every subsequent hill killed me. I have never done a hill workout where you actually PUSH up the hill, just where you run at your normal pace up the hill (and then recover on the downhills). I have really been monitoring my effort levels using my breathing as a guide. I read about this all the time in Runner's World, but have never actually done it. I think it is actually a really great gauge.
I have also raised the bar for myself on my marathon goal. So...instead of running with people who run at my pace, I am pushing myself to run with faster people. Last night I ran with a group of girls who are aiming for a 4:00 marathon. It was hard, but I enjoyed it. In fact, I finished well before they did, by really pushing the hills. When I got home I made sure that I iced my knee (just in case). I also made sure that I stretched really thoroughly with the group. Unfortunately by the time I was going to bed, my hamstrings were kind of sore. They still are today. But I guess that's why Wednesday nights are always cross-training nights. Since Tuesday nights are usually some sort of speed work, it is nice to have a break the night afterwards.
On another subject...one major annoyance of mine lately has been my nose piercing. I have what is known as a nostril screw and the tip of it is supposed to rest against the top of your nose on the inside. Most of the time it does...except for during my workouts. Then it twirls down and falls out of my nostril. I don't know it has something to do with heat, or bloodflow or salt or whatever. But anyway, in my quest to fix it all the time I have to stick my finger up to readjust it. I'm sure everyone on my team thinks I am picking my nose. It's rather embarrassing. Does anyone else have this problem or a theory on how to fix this? (besides getting rid of it...that is a option I would rather not do).
Oh, and because I am obsessed with improvement, I went home and mapped out our course for the hill workout on mapmyrun.com. I was going to be very disappointed with my time if it ended up being a 10 minute mile pace (even though some of the workout was recovery pace). It ended up being 6.5 miles total and I averaged a 9:13. Hurrah!
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Hope and Possibility
Today I ran my first official race in New York and let me say...I was pretty happy!
I was really good last night too. I limited myself to one cocktail and went to bed at 10:00 (loser!). Right before bed I read Coach Ramon's game plan for how to run the race. Basically, he said that if you run a 9:00 mile pace that you should stand up with the 8:00 milers. I felt kind of bad for doing this because I felt like I would be the one that was going to be run over by the real 8:00 milers. But then I realized that this is probably what everyone does, and why I am usually so pissed off when I am standing in the section that I think that I should be standing in (and then have to plow through a bunch of runners who really aren't at the pace that they say they are...does that make sense?). He told us to take the run out slowly. 85% of runners start their races too fast, and he wanted us to be the smart 15%. At Cat Hill we should take it easy and swing our arms really LOW. On the downhills we should make sure that we are not overstriding. Other than that, it was sort of play it by ear: if you felt tired, slow down, if not, you could settle into a nice pace and then kick it up for the last mile.
I ran my first mile with what I felt was a nice comfortable pace. I clocked a 9:10 for it, and was pretty happy. I knew I would have to make up those 10 seconds to average a 9:00 pace, but I wasn't freaked out about that at all. I knew I could do it. Cat Hill? Not a problem! I just kept my arms swinging low. In fact, I logged a 8:56 on that mile.
I was feeling great, but I didn't know how long I could keep it up. I felt like I was getting a higher kick then normal (= faster turnover). Next mile was 8:27. Hurrah! I was kicking butt.
NOW was when I felt tired. But I had to keep it up because I was doing so great. I found someone to keep my eye on (a couple in matching Princeton T-shirts) and tried to stick with them. I could tell this mile was slower. Maybe it was all of the little sloping hills. 8:44.
Ok, time to pick it up. I was exhausted but started to kick higher, I only had one more mile. I really pushed it in. 8:07!!!! For a final time of 43:25. AND we got cool medals.
It was also cool because Anthony Edwards was there for the race. (You know? Dr Green from when ER was still cool?).
Anyway, since I was so exhausted I took forever to get water and stretch. I had the best intentions of cheering on the rest of my team, but by the time I was done stretching the race was pretty much over. Bill and I walked over to Magnolia and I rewarded myself with a delicious cupcake. And then we came back to sit on the lawn and see if I won any cool prizes (like a treadmill or a trip to a bed and breakfast). I didn't.
(this is me just chilling after the race).
Oh and NYRR is so cool. Not only do they break down all of your results, but they also tell you the weather conditions during the race.
So here were my results:
536 Overall, 137 Female, 61 Age group, Pace 8:40, Age Group and Female 196, Age group % 55.7%, 70 degrees, 76% Humidity, 5mph wind
So now I am going to do nothing for the rest of the day except work on my sewing! Hurrah!
Friday, June 20, 2008
Overuse?
I'm not one who's really "tuned-in" to pain. I attribute this to my high-school cross-country days. Back then I had some major issues with my quads. I was in seeing the sports-medicine therapist (ok, how many hyphenated words can I use in this post?) just about every week. I also had back issues in college. I think because I was living with pain all the time I just kind of turned it off. I figured this out (with the help of a physical therapist) when during a PT session they asked me how much the pain was on a scale of 1-10 and I said "It's not that bad today...probably a three." I think I confused the physical therapist, because I basically could never tell him WHERE the pain was and I was always ranking it a 2 or 3, and never more than a 5. So he started feeling my muscles and I guess he found something because he said that he had seen a bunch of big football players come in who had less pain than I did with tears in their eyes. I don't know if that says more about the football players or the fact that I couldn't feel pain. His theory was that I had turned off my pain sensors because I was dealing with pain constantly. So he had me do a bunch of really lame (I thought) exercises that required almost no effort so that I could "turn my pain sensors on again." I don't know if any of this helped or not. But my point is, that a lot of times when I'm injured I don't realize it.
That could end up being bad.
So I try try try to be really tuned into my body and listen to it. I also know that I have issues with my left leg building up a lot more muscle than my right (even though I am right-handed). So I try to pay attention to that.
Last night I was scheduled to do my 5 miler on the course I am running this weekend with 3 short bursts of sprinting. When I got home and started putting on my workout clothes I realized that my right knee felt really bad. AND it was right on top of it. On the right side. Of course. I think it's my quads again. In the injury session I went to a couple of weeks ago they were going over knee pain and said that if you have that kind of knee pain, it usually means that your quads are not strong enough. Go figure.
I was pretty mad because I really wanted to run. I asked Bill what I should do. (Which means that I really knew the answer, but just needed to hear it from someone else.) He said that I was prone to overuse injuries so I should probably do something like yoga instead and ice it. Boo!
So that's what I did last night. I am hoping to get out and run tonight, but you know what? I don't think it is going to happen. My knee is still a little sore. Actually, it's just as sore as it was yesterday. So, I am going to do all of those exercises that the physical therapist LAST TIME told me to do, to build up my quads.
That could end up being bad.
So I try try try to be really tuned into my body and listen to it. I also know that I have issues with my left leg building up a lot more muscle than my right (even though I am right-handed). So I try to pay attention to that.
Last night I was scheduled to do my 5 miler on the course I am running this weekend with 3 short bursts of sprinting. When I got home and started putting on my workout clothes I realized that my right knee felt really bad. AND it was right on top of it. On the right side. Of course. I think it's my quads again. In the injury session I went to a couple of weeks ago they were going over knee pain and said that if you have that kind of knee pain, it usually means that your quads are not strong enough. Go figure.
I was pretty mad because I really wanted to run. I asked Bill what I should do. (Which means that I really knew the answer, but just needed to hear it from someone else.) He said that I was prone to overuse injuries so I should probably do something like yoga instead and ice it. Boo!
So that's what I did last night. I am hoping to get out and run tonight, but you know what? I don't think it is going to happen. My knee is still a little sore. Actually, it's just as sore as it was yesterday. So, I am going to do all of those exercises that the physical therapist LAST TIME told me to do, to build up my quads.
Thursday, June 19, 2008
First Race in NYC
Sunday will be my first race here in the city. It is a five-mile run around Central Park (if you haven't noticed , that is pretty much the ONLY place that Manhattanites really run.) Luckily the loop totally avoids Great Hill (which would have been towards the end of the race), but unfortunately we do run up the other large hill in the park which is "Cat Hill". Cat Hill stinks because it is one of those hills that is both steep AND gradual. Coach Ramon said in his last email "Those of you that don't know Cat Hill, you know you are there when you feel like you are running backwards". I would love to get a 45:00 time on this race (or less) but we'll have to see.
I think I can do it because it is the same course that I ran on Tuesday for my speed work. Tonight's workout calls for a mini-speed session on the same course. While running that 5 mile course I am supposed to do 2 minutes FAST three times. So I figure that after running the course twice this week I should have a pretty good idea of what my goal should be.
Last night was a cross-training night, which Coach Ramon told us means doing any sort of workout that is not running. For the past 2 weeks I have used this as my yoga night. I just pop in a DVD (MTV Yoga) and do the whole 45 minute routine. I am finally at peace with the fact that I cannot do all of the exercises (even doing the "easy" modifications). Now I am just looking at the whole thing as a great way to get a deep stretch and increase my flexibility.
I THINK it is working. Already my flexibility has increased since last week...I am able to do more of the exercises. My balance has also gotten better, which we all know is crucial for runners. I would really like to do cross-training (including weights) more than once a week, but this crazy running schedule I am on doesn't really leave time for it. I already feel like running is a big time commitment as it is, so adding in double workouts for a day or two would be crazy. (Although I did do this during college when I was on the rowing team. But come on! I was in college!)
Also, I am gaining weight again. Let's just hope it's muscle mass :)
I think I can do it because it is the same course that I ran on Tuesday for my speed work. Tonight's workout calls for a mini-speed session on the same course. While running that 5 mile course I am supposed to do 2 minutes FAST three times. So I figure that after running the course twice this week I should have a pretty good idea of what my goal should be.
Last night was a cross-training night, which Coach Ramon told us means doing any sort of workout that is not running. For the past 2 weeks I have used this as my yoga night. I just pop in a DVD (MTV Yoga) and do the whole 45 minute routine. I am finally at peace with the fact that I cannot do all of the exercises (even doing the "easy" modifications). Now I am just looking at the whole thing as a great way to get a deep stretch and increase my flexibility.
I THINK it is working. Already my flexibility has increased since last week...I am able to do more of the exercises. My balance has also gotten better, which we all know is crucial for runners. I would really like to do cross-training (including weights) more than once a week, but this crazy running schedule I am on doesn't really leave time for it. I already feel like running is a big time commitment as it is, so adding in double workouts for a day or two would be crazy. (Although I did do this during college when I was on the rowing team. But come on! I was in college!)
Also, I am gaining weight again. Let's just hope it's muscle mass :)
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Grrrr, Lamposts...
Last night was my first speed workout of the season.
I have been running with the advanced group for the most part, but yesterday I got an email that said if you don't run a 9 minute mile or below that you should run with the intermediate group for the practice. I was confused (as was everyone else). Did he mean like a 9 minute mile for a 10k? or for your marathon pace? Most people agreed that it must have been marathon pace and decided to run with the intermediate group.
We were supposed to do a 5 mile loop with speed intervals in between. The first part of the loop (from East 97th up to 102nd and across the park then down to West 96th) consisted of a nice, easy warmup. When we got to 96th we had to run at Effort Level 4 for 8 lamposts on our left.Effort Level 4 was defined as 85% of your effort...not quite a sprint, but right before a sprint. If you were to talk to your neighbor you would only be able to get out one or two words before you had to stop and wheeze for a breath. After the 8 lamposts, we had 4 lamposts of recovery. Recovery was supposed to get us back to normal breath control. The coach emphasized that if we had to walk to do this then we should. The recovery was just as important as the speedwork. We repeated these cycles all the way around the park and back up to East 97th.
I had no idea there were so many lamposts in Central Park! (They range from 2-4 per short block...most times two. BTW short blocks are 1/5 of a mile). I kept thinking, "Wow. My time is going to be really fast." I mean, I was really pushing the speedwork. Sometimes I did have to walk on the recovery just to get a drink. I was pretty disappointed when I logged a 46:04. (That's a 9:12 mile). But my mentor, Gina, made a good point. Sure we were running fast on the Effort 4's, but when we recovered we were running much much slower than we usually do.
The whole purpose of the workout was to generate faster turnover in our normal runs.
As painful as it was, it did feel good to be passing people up on the path during the speedwork. AND it felt really cool to be kicking a lot higher in the back. I wish I could keep that up during my normal runs.
I have been running with the advanced group for the most part, but yesterday I got an email that said if you don't run a 9 minute mile or below that you should run with the intermediate group for the practice. I was confused (as was everyone else). Did he mean like a 9 minute mile for a 10k? or for your marathon pace? Most people agreed that it must have been marathon pace and decided to run with the intermediate group.
We were supposed to do a 5 mile loop with speed intervals in between. The first part of the loop (from East 97th up to 102nd and across the park then down to West 96th) consisted of a nice, easy warmup. When we got to 96th we had to run at Effort Level 4 for 8 lamposts on our left.Effort Level 4 was defined as 85% of your effort...not quite a sprint, but right before a sprint. If you were to talk to your neighbor you would only be able to get out one or two words before you had to stop and wheeze for a breath. After the 8 lamposts, we had 4 lamposts of recovery. Recovery was supposed to get us back to normal breath control. The coach emphasized that if we had to walk to do this then we should. The recovery was just as important as the speedwork. We repeated these cycles all the way around the park and back up to East 97th.
I had no idea there were so many lamposts in Central Park! (They range from 2-4 per short block...most times two. BTW short blocks are 1/5 of a mile). I kept thinking, "Wow. My time is going to be really fast." I mean, I was really pushing the speedwork. Sometimes I did have to walk on the recovery just to get a drink. I was pretty disappointed when I logged a 46:04. (That's a 9:12 mile). But my mentor, Gina, made a good point. Sure we were running fast on the Effort 4's, but when we recovered we were running much much slower than we usually do.
The whole purpose of the workout was to generate faster turnover in our normal runs.
As painful as it was, it did feel good to be passing people up on the path during the speedwork. AND it felt really cool to be kicking a lot higher in the back. I wish I could keep that up during my normal runs.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Yay for Me!
I have been so good lately. I have really stepped up my workouts and am trying to follow the schedule as closely as possible. I can tell that I have been working harder because I think my times are improving.
I bring this up because I think I am changing my mindset about my training. I realized this when I opened my new Runner's World and saw two very diametrically opposed ads. The one was a Brooks ad and the other was a Pearl Izumi ad. I am a dork because I work in branding and graphic design. So this kind of thing is VERY interesting to me.
I had a big long discussion with Bill on my last run about this. Last year I ran to "run happy". I loved my runners high and sometimes I would be so happy and have so much fun running that I would get teary eyed. (I know, I am lame). My coach, Joe, was great and always made sure that we had fun and were running safe. Of course he was harder on the faster more competitive runners, but for runners like Sarah and Lindsay and me I think it was more about having fun, loving to run and making improvements. I was all about "run happy" just like the Brooks campaign (by the way, I love both of these ads).I think this is also why I loved all of those adidas wallpapers from last year. (Like: I run to eat cookies).
I think I am heading more towards a Pearl Izumi mindset. Pearl Izumi's ads are shocking compared with the happy-go-lucky Brooks ads. I couldn't find the one I saw in Runner's World, but basically it has a skinned knee with a lot of blood on it and talks about how running is hard. And Pearl Izumi doesn't want to water running down by adding a bunch of nice adjectives to it. And that if you feel that way then you are a jogger...not a runner. It is pretty controversial. Their running website is even called We Are Not Joggers.Here is one of THEIR desktop images though:
Now granted, I run a 10 minute mile. I am not an elite, I will probably never qualify for Boston. I run because it is fun. And a lot of people are mad at these Pearl Izumi ads because they think that PI is trying to make running for elites again, and not for people like me. Don't get me wrong, I love that marathoning has opened up to people like me. I think programs like Team in Training that teach people to run endurance events are awesome.
BUT the PI ad is sort of an aspirational target for me. I would love to be a "hard core" runner.
Before, I was going to practice and if I did well I was happy and if not, oh well, I was doing something good for myself. NOW I am really trying to improve. I am running harder. I am thinking about my form and my speed. I am serious about cross-training and stretching and core strength. And I am having fun doing it. I don't think that running has lost it's fun for me. But I think that I am ready for the next level. The funny thing is, I don't think that I could have gotten to this level without running happy. I would have burnt out and hated the sport.
I think running long-distance is a lot of mental along with the physical. We'll see if this change of mindset and training will benefit me or if I should just stick to running happy. :)
I bring this up because I think I am changing my mindset about my training. I realized this when I opened my new Runner's World and saw two very diametrically opposed ads. The one was a Brooks ad and the other was a Pearl Izumi ad. I am a dork because I work in branding and graphic design. So this kind of thing is VERY interesting to me.
I had a big long discussion with Bill on my last run about this. Last year I ran to "run happy". I loved my runners high and sometimes I would be so happy and have so much fun running that I would get teary eyed. (I know, I am lame). My coach, Joe, was great and always made sure that we had fun and were running safe. Of course he was harder on the faster more competitive runners, but for runners like Sarah and Lindsay and me I think it was more about having fun, loving to run and making improvements. I was all about "run happy" just like the Brooks campaign (by the way, I love both of these ads).I think this is also why I loved all of those adidas wallpapers from last year. (Like: I run to eat cookies).
I think I am heading more towards a Pearl Izumi mindset. Pearl Izumi's ads are shocking compared with the happy-go-lucky Brooks ads. I couldn't find the one I saw in Runner's World, but basically it has a skinned knee with a lot of blood on it and talks about how running is hard. And Pearl Izumi doesn't want to water running down by adding a bunch of nice adjectives to it. And that if you feel that way then you are a jogger...not a runner. It is pretty controversial. Their running website is even called We Are Not Joggers.Here is one of THEIR desktop images though:
Now granted, I run a 10 minute mile. I am not an elite, I will probably never qualify for Boston. I run because it is fun. And a lot of people are mad at these Pearl Izumi ads because they think that PI is trying to make running for elites again, and not for people like me. Don't get me wrong, I love that marathoning has opened up to people like me. I think programs like Team in Training that teach people to run endurance events are awesome.
BUT the PI ad is sort of an aspirational target for me. I would love to be a "hard core" runner.
Before, I was going to practice and if I did well I was happy and if not, oh well, I was doing something good for myself. NOW I am really trying to improve. I am running harder. I am thinking about my form and my speed. I am serious about cross-training and stretching and core strength. And I am having fun doing it. I don't think that running has lost it's fun for me. But I think that I am ready for the next level. The funny thing is, I don't think that I could have gotten to this level without running happy. I would have burnt out and hated the sport.
I think running long-distance is a lot of mental along with the physical. We'll see if this change of mindset and training will benefit me or if I should just stick to running happy. :)
Saturday, June 14, 2008
Busy TNT Day
So I was so happy this morning when I looked at the schedule and realized that we were scheduled to run on the west side today! That meant that I didn't have to wake up as early, which was good because I was out pretty late the night before since some of my friends were in town.
We started the day with a nutrition clinic. Most of the info was pretty basic, but I did learn that the Marine Corps marathon will be having Powerade instead of Gatorade Endurance Formula (which is what most marathons have). I also found out that 60% of my diet should be carbs and then on Thursdays and Fridays I should pump them up to 70-80% of my diet.
Because today was Connection to the Cause, we had a shorter run than we were scheduled for. Instead of 12 miles we did 40 minutes out and 40 minutes back. The catch was that we ran along the West Side Highway. There is a bike path there, which is nice. The good thing is that the entire path is pretty flat. The bad thing is that there is no shade so the sun is beating down on you the whole time. Also you can see the Hudson, but are far enough away from it that you don't get the benefits of a nice breeze.
Since I go by landmarks and not by street names it seemed like an especially long run. I remember saying to my mentor, Gina (who was running with me) "We're all the way down by Chelsea Piers?!" I looked at my watch and figured out that we still had about 20 minutes left. Geez. It felt like we had already been running for 40! I WAS feeling pretty good though. I even felt like I was kind of on the butt of some other people and had to pass them. I like running with Gina because she always negative splits her runs. That is my problem...I cannot do that. I push too far in the beginning. We were also running with this other girl, Nikki, who likes to run with me because she said that I push her pace. So I think we are all good for each other.
Unfortunately, on the way back we all lost each other. Gina stopped for water and told me to keep going and I never saw her again. Nikki disappeared before we even turned around.
The one thing that I was really glad that I had was my water bottle. I had filled it with half Gatorade and half water and froze it in the freezer overnight. So all during my run it was cold. AND the exact right taste. I realized that Gatorade is normally a little too strong for me and leaves a sort of viscous aftertaste in my mouth (ew. Sorry. I know that is gross). But I have to figure out something new for my fuel belt. It keeps riding up on me and making my shirt ride up. I am afraid I am going to get some horrible chafing. So I try to push it down around my waist, which works for about three strides before it rides up.
Anyway, the run back was worse and I felt like a loser because I stopped like three times to rehydrate and added 3 minutes onto my 40 :(
But then I found out that everyone basically had the same problem. I think we just aren't used to the heat. I ended up doing 8.5 miles at a 9:45 pace. Not too bad. I was really pushing myself this week too. (I had a 9 mile run on Thursday where I kept a consistent 9:00 minute pace for all three loops).
After our run we had carbs galore back at the school. I grabbed a huge chocolate chip muffin :)
Then we had Connection to the Cause. We got to meet all of our honored teammates. They all are running with us, but have had Leukemia and have beat it. I was surprised that a lot of them were around my age. It was VERY inspirational and made me glad that I am running for Team in Training.
On another note, my crazy coach, Ramon, didn't run with us today because it was his 41st birthday. In celebration he decided to run 41 upper loops of Central Park. He said that he would be running for about 10 hours and we were welcome to join him on a few of the loops if we wanted to. He is crazy!!!
We started the day with a nutrition clinic. Most of the info was pretty basic, but I did learn that the Marine Corps marathon will be having Powerade instead of Gatorade Endurance Formula (which is what most marathons have). I also found out that 60% of my diet should be carbs and then on Thursdays and Fridays I should pump them up to 70-80% of my diet.
Because today was Connection to the Cause, we had a shorter run than we were scheduled for. Instead of 12 miles we did 40 minutes out and 40 minutes back. The catch was that we ran along the West Side Highway. There is a bike path there, which is nice. The good thing is that the entire path is pretty flat. The bad thing is that there is no shade so the sun is beating down on you the whole time. Also you can see the Hudson, but are far enough away from it that you don't get the benefits of a nice breeze.
Since I go by landmarks and not by street names it seemed like an especially long run. I remember saying to my mentor, Gina (who was running with me) "We're all the way down by Chelsea Piers?!" I looked at my watch and figured out that we still had about 20 minutes left. Geez. It felt like we had already been running for 40! I WAS feeling pretty good though. I even felt like I was kind of on the butt of some other people and had to pass them. I like running with Gina because she always negative splits her runs. That is my problem...I cannot do that. I push too far in the beginning. We were also running with this other girl, Nikki, who likes to run with me because she said that I push her pace. So I think we are all good for each other.
Unfortunately, on the way back we all lost each other. Gina stopped for water and told me to keep going and I never saw her again. Nikki disappeared before we even turned around.
The one thing that I was really glad that I had was my water bottle. I had filled it with half Gatorade and half water and froze it in the freezer overnight. So all during my run it was cold. AND the exact right taste. I realized that Gatorade is normally a little too strong for me and leaves a sort of viscous aftertaste in my mouth (ew. Sorry. I know that is gross). But I have to figure out something new for my fuel belt. It keeps riding up on me and making my shirt ride up. I am afraid I am going to get some horrible chafing. So I try to push it down around my waist, which works for about three strides before it rides up.
Anyway, the run back was worse and I felt like a loser because I stopped like three times to rehydrate and added 3 minutes onto my 40 :(
But then I found out that everyone basically had the same problem. I think we just aren't used to the heat. I ended up doing 8.5 miles at a 9:45 pace. Not too bad. I was really pushing myself this week too. (I had a 9 mile run on Thursday where I kept a consistent 9:00 minute pace for all three loops).
After our run we had carbs galore back at the school. I grabbed a huge chocolate chip muffin :)
Then we had Connection to the Cause. We got to meet all of our honored teammates. They all are running with us, but have had Leukemia and have beat it. I was surprised that a lot of them were around my age. It was VERY inspirational and made me glad that I am running for Team in Training.
On another note, my crazy coach, Ramon, didn't run with us today because it was his 41st birthday. In celebration he decided to run 41 upper loops of Central Park. He said that he would be running for about 10 hours and we were welcome to join him on a few of the loops if we wanted to. He is crazy!!!
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
18 Hours
That is apparently how long it takes for my muscles to get sore after a cross-training run. But it's funny...my legs aren't sore, its more my arms, my chest, my back and my abs. In a sick way I am kind of glad, because I know that this means that I got a good workout last night.
Here is what my workout consisted of:
We all met at the park at the Bethesda Fountain. From there we ran to the Hunter Statue (it looks like that might be a little over a quarter mile). From there, the group was split into two. The first group stayed with Ramon while we went on a 12 minute run.
This run seemed FAST to me. But it could be because we were all running with a pack (usually I am in the middle to back of the advanced group, but last night I was up with the coach). It could also just be because it was in the mid 90s.
At that point, we were back where we started and did a bunch of exercises. The worst were the squats. We did about a million of them and my quads were shaking. According to Ramon that is because my quads are WEAK and if I want to be a good marathon runner I'd better be doing a lot more of them. We also did that karate kid thing, where you balance on one leg and then switch really fast to the other one. More squats. Some other exercises which I can't remember and then MORE squats. I actually was happy when the other group came back so that we could run. By now I was roasting. I looked around to see if any of the other girls were showing their midriffs (they weren't) but then I decided it was too hot anyway and left my shirt with the cross-training group so that I could run in my sports bra. This is another reason that I need to do these cross-training workouts...to tone my midriff so I can run like this without being embarassed :)
Another 12 minute run. This one seemed a lot better. Maybe it just took me awhile to get used to being out in the heat. My ponytail was able to be wrung out by then though (that is my gauge of how much I am sweating).
Back to cross training for YUCK pilates moves. Planks. I HATE these. When I took Pilates I loved everything except for the planks. Well we did forward, right side and left side..Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. Then we did push-ups. I found out that I pretty much have been doing push-ups wrong for all the years of my life. The right way to do them is MUCH harder and engages your chest as well as your arms. I could barely do my 3 sets of 15. My arms were so achy.
Another 12 minute run.
This time we did a bunch of technique exercises. They mostly involved kicking our butt. But the catch was that we did this on one leg over and over and over. It was like running with one leg, which was HARD. Then we switched legs and THEN we did both legs very very fast. More squats. Lunges.
Another 12 minute run.
Then, one big stretch fest. For some reason, my group ended up doing one run more than the other group. We tried to tell ourselves that this was okay because we would be stronger than them, but really we were just wishing we were in group one.
Today on my schedule is a cross-training day, which I thought was kind of weird, seeing that we just did a cross-training run. But I trust Coach Ramon. I have been much more able to run in the heat than I was last year, I have been running faster in the heat than I did last year AND I can tell I am getting stronger and my technique is improving. So I guess I will stick with his plan :)
I am glad that cross-training tonight also = air-conditioning.
Here is what my workout consisted of:
We all met at the park at the Bethesda Fountain. From there we ran to the Hunter Statue (it looks like that might be a little over a quarter mile). From there, the group was split into two. The first group stayed with Ramon while we went on a 12 minute run.
This run seemed FAST to me. But it could be because we were all running with a pack (usually I am in the middle to back of the advanced group, but last night I was up with the coach). It could also just be because it was in the mid 90s.
At that point, we were back where we started and did a bunch of exercises. The worst were the squats. We did about a million of them and my quads were shaking. According to Ramon that is because my quads are WEAK and if I want to be a good marathon runner I'd better be doing a lot more of them. We also did that karate kid thing, where you balance on one leg and then switch really fast to the other one. More squats. Some other exercises which I can't remember and then MORE squats. I actually was happy when the other group came back so that we could run. By now I was roasting. I looked around to see if any of the other girls were showing their midriffs (they weren't) but then I decided it was too hot anyway and left my shirt with the cross-training group so that I could run in my sports bra. This is another reason that I need to do these cross-training workouts...to tone my midriff so I can run like this without being embarassed :)
Another 12 minute run. This one seemed a lot better. Maybe it just took me awhile to get used to being out in the heat. My ponytail was able to be wrung out by then though (that is my gauge of how much I am sweating).
Back to cross training for YUCK pilates moves. Planks. I HATE these. When I took Pilates I loved everything except for the planks. Well we did forward, right side and left side..Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. Then we did push-ups. I found out that I pretty much have been doing push-ups wrong for all the years of my life. The right way to do them is MUCH harder and engages your chest as well as your arms. I could barely do my 3 sets of 15. My arms were so achy.
Another 12 minute run.
This time we did a bunch of technique exercises. They mostly involved kicking our butt. But the catch was that we did this on one leg over and over and over. It was like running with one leg, which was HARD. Then we switched legs and THEN we did both legs very very fast. More squats. Lunges.
Another 12 minute run.
Then, one big stretch fest. For some reason, my group ended up doing one run more than the other group. We tried to tell ourselves that this was okay because we would be stronger than them, but really we were just wishing we were in group one.
Today on my schedule is a cross-training day, which I thought was kind of weird, seeing that we just did a cross-training run. But I trust Coach Ramon. I have been much more able to run in the heat than I was last year, I have been running faster in the heat than I did last year AND I can tell I am getting stronger and my technique is improving. So I guess I will stick with his plan :)
I am glad that cross-training tonight also = air-conditioning.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
The Longest 40 Minutes
This heat is just killing me. I think yesterday was especially bad though because my side of the office didn't have air-conditioning all day. I was sticking to my desk. (Oh yeah, and did I mention that it was 97 degrees)? Anyway, the whole thing put me in a bad mood, so the last thing I wanted to do when I got home was run my workout, which was 40-50 minutes easy.
As soon as I got home I put on my workout clothes, because I knew that if I didn't I would convince myself to not run. Luckily, because of the air-conditioning thing, I had been hydrating all day.
Bill ran with me, and let me tell you, Riverside Park has never seemed so small. It seems like when we got to Harlem it would have been time to turn around (20 minutes). Instead, we had only run 10 minutes. So then, not only did we have to double back, but we had to run even further. I was avoiding hills because my calves have been really screaming at me lately. I also wanted to avoid the river. Even though you get a nice cool breeze from it there are also no trees, so the sun really beats down on you. In retrospect though, this was kind of stupid of me, seeing that it was 8pm and then sun was pretty much setting. At any rate, if you are trying to avoid hills and trying to avoid the river, and trying to not stray too far downtown there is really not that much of the park to run. And we all know how much I hate loops. It made for a very long run.
But, I was very very good and did all of my stretches once I got home.
Today is supposed to be just as hot. AND we have a cross-training run. All I've heard from the mentors and coaches is that these workouts are really difficult. We will be teaming up with the intermediate group tonight. However, we have a longer run than they do. We have to run down to meet them before we start the workout. Then we divide into two groups. The first group stays with the coaches to do cross-training exercises while the second group does an out and back run for 12 minutes. Then we reverse. We will do this a "few" times according to Coach Ramon. Who knows what this means? He also told us that the cross-country course had 1.5, no 2.5, no maybe 4, no maybe 10 hills. After running it I would have said closer to 10. :)
As soon as I got home I put on my workout clothes, because I knew that if I didn't I would convince myself to not run. Luckily, because of the air-conditioning thing, I had been hydrating all day.
Bill ran with me, and let me tell you, Riverside Park has never seemed so small. It seems like when we got to Harlem it would have been time to turn around (20 minutes). Instead, we had only run 10 minutes. So then, not only did we have to double back, but we had to run even further. I was avoiding hills because my calves have been really screaming at me lately. I also wanted to avoid the river. Even though you get a nice cool breeze from it there are also no trees, so the sun really beats down on you. In retrospect though, this was kind of stupid of me, seeing that it was 8pm and then sun was pretty much setting. At any rate, if you are trying to avoid hills and trying to avoid the river, and trying to not stray too far downtown there is really not that much of the park to run. And we all know how much I hate loops. It made for a very long run.
But, I was very very good and did all of my stretches once I got home.
Today is supposed to be just as hot. AND we have a cross-training run. All I've heard from the mentors and coaches is that these workouts are really difficult. We will be teaming up with the intermediate group tonight. However, we have a longer run than they do. We have to run down to meet them before we start the workout. Then we divide into two groups. The first group stays with the coaches to do cross-training exercises while the second group does an out and back run for 12 minutes. Then we reverse. We will do this a "few" times according to Coach Ramon. Who knows what this means? He also told us that the cross-country course had 1.5, no 2.5, no maybe 4, no maybe 10 hills. After running it I would have said closer to 10. :)
Saturday, June 7, 2008
I Must Be Super-Fit
Last week at my clinic, the doctor was saying that if you find that you are sweating more during your workouts than you did before it is a sign that you are getting fitter. It's your body's way of cooling itself off and as you work out more, your body's cooling systems becomes better and more efficient.
At any rate, I was sweating a TON today. It was rather gross. The sun was beating down. I have no idea what the temperature was, but I know that today we got up to 94 degrees.
Also, we were doing loops. I pretty much hate loops, especially on long runs. The loops were 3.1 miles each (we were running on a cross country course. The good thing about this was that there was a significant part of the run that was in the woods (hurrah! shade!). The part where we ran in an open field, which I guess was about a mile, was awful. All kinds of people were playing soccer games and I kept thinking how miserable they must all feel. The loops ended up not being so bad, because you ended up knowing that when you got to the bridge for the second time in the loop, you knew that the rest of the loop was downhill.
I was already out of Gatorade by the end of my second loop. The heat was just killing me. So that clinched it for me. I was doing three loops...not four. (Ramon said my group could do anywhere from 3-4 loops).
The funny thing was that I wasn't feeling any pain or anything. I wasn't feeling physically tired from the run, just the heat. Even now, I am not sore. But I have taken in a LOT more water than usual today.
Luckily, Coach Ramon said that it only takes our bodies about 2 weeks of running in this to get used to it. I mean, not like we would be feeling awesome running in 90 degree weather, but at least so that you don't get so tired and have it affect your run as much. That doesn't sound like too long right now. I'm sure I will disagree all of this week though :)
Oh, btw, I did 9.3 miles but I'm not even looking at my time or figuring out my splits. I figure I have a lot of time to worry about that. I'm just chalking this one up to getting used to the heat.
(Also, something else that I never had to worry about in Cincinnati? Riding back in the subway for 40 minutes, dripping wet with sweat. I bet the other people in my car were just thrilled.)
At any rate, I was sweating a TON today. It was rather gross. The sun was beating down. I have no idea what the temperature was, but I know that today we got up to 94 degrees.
Also, we were doing loops. I pretty much hate loops, especially on long runs. The loops were 3.1 miles each (we were running on a cross country course. The good thing about this was that there was a significant part of the run that was in the woods (hurrah! shade!). The part where we ran in an open field, which I guess was about a mile, was awful. All kinds of people were playing soccer games and I kept thinking how miserable they must all feel. The loops ended up not being so bad, because you ended up knowing that when you got to the bridge for the second time in the loop, you knew that the rest of the loop was downhill.
I was already out of Gatorade by the end of my second loop. The heat was just killing me. So that clinched it for me. I was doing three loops...not four. (Ramon said my group could do anywhere from 3-4 loops).
The funny thing was that I wasn't feeling any pain or anything. I wasn't feeling physically tired from the run, just the heat. Even now, I am not sore. But I have taken in a LOT more water than usual today.
Luckily, Coach Ramon said that it only takes our bodies about 2 weeks of running in this to get used to it. I mean, not like we would be feeling awesome running in 90 degree weather, but at least so that you don't get so tired and have it affect your run as much. That doesn't sound like too long right now. I'm sure I will disagree all of this week though :)
Oh, btw, I did 9.3 miles but I'm not even looking at my time or figuring out my splits. I figure I have a lot of time to worry about that. I'm just chalking this one up to getting used to the heat.
(Also, something else that I never had to worry about in Cincinnati? Riding back in the subway for 40 minutes, dripping wet with sweat. I bet the other people in my car were just thrilled.)
Friday, June 6, 2008
Field Trip!
Tomorrow is our first "outside of Manhattan" run. It is at Van Cortlandt Park (in the Bronx), which is apparently some sort of cross-country mecca. It is supposed to be HOT tomorrow, so I am glad that we are running trails. It's kind of funny, but I really have done more trail running here in New York City than I ever have in Cincinnati.
Last night I went to the Injury Prevention clinic that Team in Training put on. It was chock full of information. And the hot topic? Hyponatremia. Of course. It seems like anything I hear anymore about runners and health is about hyponatremia. I went to a clinic put on by the NYRR where the guy scared everyone into grabbing salt packets to dump into your hands and lick before your marathons. Don't get me wrong. The whole thing is scary. Especially if you have ever seen any of the videos of people finishing their races who have it (I don't know if anyone saw the Gatorade commercial where the guy tanked during the Ironman...that is pretty much what it looks like). But it seems to be what EVERYONE is talking about. You know how people are...they will hear about the whole thing, and only hear the scary parts and freak out and then dehydrate themselves on the course.
I WILL say that the clinic last night was VERY good and VERY clear on the whole thing. In fact, I found that I may be one of the people who actually is more prone to hyponatremia. I say this because I exhibit a lot of the signs that the doctor (I can't recall his name right now) was talking about:I get a salt ring around my mouth and sometimes on my arms when I go on any long run. Sometimes my fingers feel tingly. Sometimes I feel light-headed. (Mom and Dad PLEASE do not freak out...I always take care of myself when I do these things. Which I know you know, but I am just reminding you.) He said that some people just displace more salt than other people do. I am one of these people. So his solution was to make sure that I am drinking Gatorade at some of the stops. Also (I am going to try this, this Saturday) to maybe have some pretzels before the run and after the run (NOW I know why they have potato chips at the end of all of the marathons!).
I also found out that my charleyhorses were due to dehydration. I know this sounds contradictory. (How can you be prone to hyponatremia if you are dehydrated?) But the thing is that I need to drink more water before my runs but also be aware that I displace more salt than other people.
I also found out a lot of other cool things (like, studies show that caffeine actually improves your running abilities...Coach Ramon actually puts Red Bull in his Gatorade).
I am glad that they put on clinics like this. And I always go to them even though I've heard a lot of the information before, because I feel like I always learn something new.
Last night I went to the Injury Prevention clinic that Team in Training put on. It was chock full of information. And the hot topic? Hyponatremia. Of course. It seems like anything I hear anymore about runners and health is about hyponatremia. I went to a clinic put on by the NYRR where the guy scared everyone into grabbing salt packets to dump into your hands and lick before your marathons. Don't get me wrong. The whole thing is scary. Especially if you have ever seen any of the videos of people finishing their races who have it (I don't know if anyone saw the Gatorade commercial where the guy tanked during the Ironman...that is pretty much what it looks like). But it seems to be what EVERYONE is talking about. You know how people are...they will hear about the whole thing, and only hear the scary parts and freak out and then dehydrate themselves on the course.
I WILL say that the clinic last night was VERY good and VERY clear on the whole thing. In fact, I found that I may be one of the people who actually is more prone to hyponatremia. I say this because I exhibit a lot of the signs that the doctor (I can't recall his name right now) was talking about:I get a salt ring around my mouth and sometimes on my arms when I go on any long run. Sometimes my fingers feel tingly. Sometimes I feel light-headed. (Mom and Dad PLEASE do not freak out...I always take care of myself when I do these things. Which I know you know, but I am just reminding you.) He said that some people just displace more salt than other people do. I am one of these people. So his solution was to make sure that I am drinking Gatorade at some of the stops. Also (I am going to try this, this Saturday) to maybe have some pretzels before the run and after the run (NOW I know why they have potato chips at the end of all of the marathons!).
I also found out that my charleyhorses were due to dehydration. I know this sounds contradictory. (How can you be prone to hyponatremia if you are dehydrated?) But the thing is that I need to drink more water before my runs but also be aware that I displace more salt than other people.
I also found out a lot of other cool things (like, studies show that caffeine actually improves your running abilities...Coach Ramon actually puts Red Bull in his Gatorade).
I am glad that they put on clinics like this. And I always go to them even though I've heard a lot of the information before, because I feel like I always learn something new.
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Boo!
Looks like I didn't make it into NYC. My friend Julie from work didn't make it in either :(
The good thing about this is that I already know that I have another marathon lined up AND everyone that I've talked to has really loved the Marine Corps Marathon and its course which is super flat. Hurrah! Maybe I can get my 4:30 then.
The bad thing is that I really wanted to get into NYC. There's always 2010, when I will have guaranteed entry. Unfortunately, I joined the NYRR too late to make guaranteed entry for next year.
I have also never been to Washington DC before, so I am looking forward to the trip. I might tack an extra few days on for sight-seeing.
Tonight I have a two-hour injury clinic. I'm hoping to pick up some good tips.
The good thing about this is that I already know that I have another marathon lined up AND everyone that I've talked to has really loved the Marine Corps Marathon and its course which is super flat. Hurrah! Maybe I can get my 4:30 then.
The bad thing is that I really wanted to get into NYC. There's always 2010, when I will have guaranteed entry. Unfortunately, I joined the NYRR too late to make guaranteed entry for next year.
I have also never been to Washington DC before, so I am looking forward to the trip. I might tack an extra few days on for sight-seeing.
Tonight I have a two-hour injury clinic. I'm hoping to pick up some good tips.
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
ARGHHHH going crazy
Yesterday I found out that the lottery for the NYC marathon is TODAY not Friday. It is making me crazy. But I've been really good so far and have only checked twice. IBUT the lottery goes until 11:59 tonight.They said that you would know for sure by then. That is frustrating too, because I could not sleep last night. I kept waking up every 15 minutes. I think its because I had the NYRR Anniversary race this morning. It was at 5:30 and I am ALWAYS nervous about races and can't sleep. Unfortunately, it rained like crazy this morning. I already am not a morning person. It didn't help that I hadn't gotten any sleep. Running in the cold, pouring rain on top of that? I pooped out. Just before the alarm was going to go off at 4am I asked Bill "Do you just want to skip this? It is pouring down rain." Luckily, I had coerced him into running it too, and I don't think he wanted to anymore than I did.
Turns out I am glad I didn't. Yesterday was my first run in over a week (there was no way to run in London with my crazy schedule). It was six miles in Central Park. I was kind of pushing myself too. (Even though I only ended up with a 58:40). It was super hot and muggy and I made the mistake of not hydrating at all until the 4th mile. I was sooooo thirsty. I was running with Kaitlyn, who I've been running with since the first practice. We don't like to stop at the fountains, especially since the TNT team sort of runs in a pack. There tend to be lines like crazy at the fountains and it just breaks up our momentum. We finally decided to stop and the fountain was broken! Grrr. Luckily, we knew there was one at the bottom of the park. By that point we only had one mile left! It never ceases to amaze me how much the heat slows me down. I mean I felt like I was really pushing it, but I was so off of my usual Central Park Loop time from the winter.
The point is, that it is probably good that I didn't do the 5 mile race this morning because my achilles was all clicky like it gets sometimes. Gross.
I did feel bad though, because I thought it was a nice thing for the NYRR to put on this race. Entry was free and everything. I'm betting a lot of people didn't show up :(
AND this week is Running Week (but I don't know if that is just in New York or everywhere).
Turns out I am glad I didn't. Yesterday was my first run in over a week (there was no way to run in London with my crazy schedule). It was six miles in Central Park. I was kind of pushing myself too. (Even though I only ended up with a 58:40). It was super hot and muggy and I made the mistake of not hydrating at all until the 4th mile. I was sooooo thirsty. I was running with Kaitlyn, who I've been running with since the first practice. We don't like to stop at the fountains, especially since the TNT team sort of runs in a pack. There tend to be lines like crazy at the fountains and it just breaks up our momentum. We finally decided to stop and the fountain was broken! Grrr. Luckily, we knew there was one at the bottom of the park. By that point we only had one mile left! It never ceases to amaze me how much the heat slows me down. I mean I felt like I was really pushing it, but I was so off of my usual Central Park Loop time from the winter.
The point is, that it is probably good that I didn't do the 5 mile race this morning because my achilles was all clicky like it gets sometimes. Gross.
I did feel bad though, because I thought it was a nice thing for the NYRR to put on this race. Entry was free and everything. I'm betting a lot of people didn't show up :(
AND this week is Running Week (but I don't know if that is just in New York or everywhere).
Monday, June 2, 2008
Crazy Week!
Finally back home! It seems like I have been gone forever, and it is so hard to run when I am not home. I was also worried that I would gain a ton of weight, because I have not been eating so healthily. Luckily though, I am the exact same weight as when I left.
This week is crazy with after work stuff, and most of it is running related!
I have a fundraising clinic tonight, a practice tomorrow, a race on Wednesday (at 5:30 am!!!), and an injury prevention clinic on Thursday. Whew! Friday I am on pins and needles, because I find out if I made it into the NYC Marathon. I know the chances are slim of me getting in and I know I have guaranteed entry into the Marine Corps Marathon through TNT, but I will still be really upset if I don't make it in. I warned Bill already that I would probably be mopey about it. My friend Julie, who just started running in January, also entered her name into the lottery. I hope we both get in.
Tuesday night's practice is a cross-training run. Turns out that last week's run was a form practice, so I didn't miss the cross-training. I know I will be thinking differently on Wednesday, but for now I am really pumped for the practice.
This week is crazy with after work stuff, and most of it is running related!
I have a fundraising clinic tonight, a practice tomorrow, a race on Wednesday (at 5:30 am!!!), and an injury prevention clinic on Thursday. Whew! Friday I am on pins and needles, because I find out if I made it into the NYC Marathon. I know the chances are slim of me getting in and I know I have guaranteed entry into the Marine Corps Marathon through TNT, but I will still be really upset if I don't make it in. I warned Bill already that I would probably be mopey about it. My friend Julie, who just started running in January, also entered her name into the lottery. I hope we both get in.
Tuesday night's practice is a cross-training run. Turns out that last week's run was a form practice, so I didn't miss the cross-training. I know I will be thinking differently on Wednesday, but for now I am really pumped for the practice.
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