Coogan's Salsa and Blues Festival 5k

This weekend I ran twice (I haven't done that in a loooooong time). Saturday morning I added on mileage all the way up to 6 :) I can't say that the run went very well. There was a lot of stopping and walking and starting again. I started out at a 7:51 pace and ended with an average 10:18 pace...so you can kind of see what I mean. :(

I guess, this was kind of good though, because it set up my expectations for my first race of the year. I knew not to take it out too fast, at least.

Sunday was also fun because all of my friends were running this race as well...AND it was my birthday! I think all in all there were 10 of us, and for 2 of them it was their race debut! We all basically ran in pairs, which was helpful because everyone had some moral support. I was so glad that Bill ran with me, because that way I didn't beat myself up for my newly-found slower pace.

Here is a (long)video of the race. I actually found myself in the crowd at 1:45. (I'm probably like the only one in a tank top.)

I decided to shoot for 9:30s for each mile...especially since I had heard the course was hilly.

And it WAS hilly...but it was okay too, because it was a beautiful course, and a beautiful, warm day (like the first real day of spring!) and about every 200 feet there was a band playing. I told Bill that if they had that much entertainment during a marathon, that would be the best marathon ever. But that would also mean there had to be like 400 bands. (Actually, I just checked it out and it would be 691 bands).

Our first mile was a 9:22, which made me happy. I felt pretty good, but knew I couldn't push it a ton more. I was really happy that I stayed on pace and didn't push it too much.

Since I did feel so good, I picked it up a smidge (but only as much as I felt comfortable). I definitely felt like I was pushing, but not over-the-top. I did feel a lot slower on the hills. The next mile was a 9:10.

The third mile I felt like I had more energy and could really pick up my stride a bit. I was pushing, but I could still talk to Bill fairly easily. Luckily, he was encouraging me the whole way up the hill. I was watching my heartrate rise rise rise on the monitor as I went up, and go down down down as I went down the hill. That last mile was an 8:15!!! And with all the energy I had left, I really kicked it in for the finish.

I felt GREAT! (It was also funny to see my HR at the end of the race at 173, plunge back down to 89 in a matter of seconds). I was very happy with myself because I knew I did the absolute best I could. My finishing time was 28:10.

It was also really fun to run a race and not worry so much about the time. I think last year I would have beat myself up if I got anything more than an 8:00 pace. Especially since 8:03 was my best 10k pace from last year and I was hitting 7:30s-7:40s in practices for 4-5 miles. But really, this was so much more fun and relaxing. I was happy with myself for setting a reasonable goal and attaining it.

I was also very proud of my non-running friends. The both finished a tough course with lots of hills in their first event ever!

I would have to say that it was a great birthday run!

New Years Resolutions?

By this time of year I usually have my race/workout schedule all planned out. This year, I am deciding to sort of play it by ear. I haven't really gotten to a point where I want to go out and run again, but it is not a totally unappealing idea to me, which is, at least, an improvement.

I am totally enjoying the wii fit, but I kind of feel like this is a cop-out when it comes to exercising. I have done the wii fit almost every day this weekend and have a great time. The minutes just tick away. Afterwards, I do some (assisted) pullups on our new over-the-door chinup bar. I do see a difference in my arms and shoulders. It's amazing what a little switching things up will do for you.

I also have a fun 5k run planned with a lot of my running AND non-running friends. It is on my birthday too!

I kind of want to look into some trapeze lessons as well. I have no idea how expensive this is (probably $$$) but when I mentioned it to my friend yesterday she said that she was looking into it with another friend of ours. Working out with friends is a definite plus for me, and I have heard that trapeze is a GREAT workout.

So I think the resolution this year is to have fun working out. It is crazy but this week I lost .9 pounds! That is a LOT for me because I really kind of have just fluctuated between 140-142 since college. So I'm hoping my new attitude towards mixing it up and enjoying my workouts is contributing to this. :)

Race for the Cure

Sunday, my friends and I ran the Race for the Cure which was a 5k up in Mason.

I had to look like a dork, because I had to bandage up my nasty chafing accident . Well, and of course, when I walk I look like John Wayne.

I have decided that I really for real, do NOT like running 5ks. They always exhaust me. I was aiming for 10 minute miles since I have been training with 10:30 miles. I know that 5k is a lot shorter distance than what I am used to, but it is hard for me to switch between paces. Luckily, the sun was not out, so we weren’t baking on the course.

I took out the first mile at 9:03. But then of course I was starting to think “where is mile two…it has to be here somewhere?” I looked at my watch though, and unfortunately only 2 minutes had passed. Pttt.

It also stunk (quite literally) because the whole time I was running I would get this whiff of something like wet dog. Then I started to panic and wondered if it was me. But at the end of the race, the first thing my friend Malia said was “I was so grossed out because this girl I was running by smelled like wet dog the entire time.” I was not running next to Malia, so I was instantly relieved. Bill said he thought it was the sweatband he has to wear because of his laser eye surgery. So since we all smelled it, it must have been the trees or something. I don’t know. It HAD just rained.

We all did really well. Bill finished first (of course) with a 25 something, followed by me, with a 28:05. Maren kept a steady 10:30ish mile pace and Malia finished right under 33:00. We were all pretty happy. I was just glad that I could keep my 9 minute mile pace. It was exhausting.

The best part? IHOP afterwards! Mmmmmm, pancakes.

Easy Day

Tomorrow I have an easy day and I am so glad, because tonight is our company outing and I want to make sure I can stay out late. I just have to make sure that I watch what I eat so that I don't have problems like last time. Looks like we are hitting Eastern again for a nice 12 miles. I almost feel like, 'what's the point?'. Just kidding. But 12 miles does seem really really light. Especially since we usually do a 10 or 12 mile loop and then add on from there.

What I'm most excited about (runningwise) this weekend though, is the Race for the Cure. It will be a good, fun way to do a recovery run. Plus, the course is completely flat. Last year, my friend Jen and I ran it and it was a lot of fun. Plus, it was just a very very inspirational race. I had just read Why I Wore Lipstick to my Mastectomy for my bookclub, so felt like I had a better understanding of what breast cancer survivors go through. It was really moving when at the beginning of the race, they had all of the survivors march in. There were so many of them!

Plus, I coerced all of my non-running friends to run again. Of course, this includes big plans for IHOP afterwards.


Which is good, because my tapeworm is back and I am eating like crazy. This does not bode well for my parents, who are having a cookout this weekend, but IHOP can be sure it will sure be making money on me.

This time though, its weird, because I am so hungry all the time, but I can't eat that much. I mean, like I will eat a burger and be so full that I can't finish my fries. But then, less than an hour later I am starving like I haven't eaten in an entire day. So I've been grazing like crazy.

Bill thinks its because my metabolism is fast but my stomach is small. Well, and of course all the calories I am now burning on my long runs. At any rate, I am not complaining because I LOVE to eat.

A New PR!!!

So, Beat the Banana was fun, but a LOT different from any race that I've been in.

First of all, this was a very non-competitive fun run. They didn't even have a clock, so I'm glad that I had my running watch with me. We met at the South Bandstand in Hyde Park, but they didn't have roads closed off or anything. In fact, when the woman at the starting line was going over "rules", one of them was "watch out for people and bikers along the course".

EVERYONE wore their t-shirts. Which to me, is really funny . My friend Jen, wanted to wear her Hyde Park Blast tee in the race last year (because they are so cool, and because my company designed them, and because she happened to be the Client Team on that project) and my boss Richard was like "no, no, no, only amateurs wear the race shirt the day of the race". I kept thinking about that when I was watching all of these people in their bright yellow "Beat the Banana" shirts. I shoved mine into my backpack and put it in the tent with all of the other backpacks. But then I realized that if I didn't wear it, I would be the only runner NOT wearing one. And despite my track record of being a non-conformist, there are just some times when you have to conform.

It was a good thing, too, because otherwise I would have gotten lost in the shuffle. Because people work out and run and walk and bike along these paths, it would have been hard to tell who was in the race. And all of the yellow shirts made it easy to spot where the course was.

So I was dying! I felt so tired, and sneezy, running through all of the polleny trees and plants. And I felt like it was HOT (it was only 74). I was trying to do a 9 minute mile. It was hard to figure out though, because they don't mark the miles here, only the kilometers, and I was trying to do the math in my head, but it just is not one of my strong points. It has been really hard for me to get out of my 11-minute mile pace that I was running for the marathon. I thought for sure it wasn't going to happen. I felt like (and the calculations in my head told me) I was doing about a 10 minute mile.

At the last kilometer I looked at my watch and SWORE it said 26 something, but I don't think it did, because I finished with a 26:43! Yay! A new personal record for me!!! (That's an 8:35 mile pace!) I know I'm not breaking any world records, but for me that is AWESOME!

Since Bill wasn't here to buy me ice cream (that's his thing...whenever I get a PR we get whatever kind of ice cream I want. I usually go for Dairy Queen) I got a banana milkshake at dinner tonight.

Oh yes, and now I also have a bright yellow t-shirt that says "Beat the Banana" (and the banana was FAST).

Motivation Drain

It is SOOOOOO difficult for me to run. I get up in the morning on the weekends, go back to sleep, and promise to run in the evening. After walking around all day, I get back and vow to run on Sunday. On Sunday, even when fully dressed in my running clothes, I still contemplate going back to bed. What is going on with me?!

I remember sometimes it was 6am on a Saturday in January, eighteen degrees out and snowing horizontally and I just got dressed and jumped into my car, sometimes even bearing incredibly slick, not cleared off roads to go run in the middle of the street because that was the only non-slippery path. (I didn't mean to sound like "I used to walk 2 miles to school...")

My runs aren't even all that satisfying. I find myself looking at my watch every 2 minutes or so, thinking 'it isn't time to turn around yet?'

I don't know what the deal is. Maybe since my next goal is a 4.1 mile race it just seems less satisfying. I think my goal though, should be to build up my speed again. Get back to that 8:45 minute mile pace I had in the last 5k I did (as opposed to my 11 minute mile marathon training pace). I just find it really hard to work towards that goal. I need to kick it back in mentally.

I did find out that the hotel I am moving to this week has a gym though. So that's good!

Tonight I DRAGGGGGGG myself out after I get home to do another 3 miler.