Hill Month

So last night's practice officially kicked off "hill month" at Team in Training. I was kind of looking forward to the workout (I guess because I am a masochist?) because even though those workouts kill me I always end up feeling like I actually accomplished something awesome.

Last night was a doozie. We ran up the entrance hill at 72nd street at 85% effort and then DOWN the back of the hill at 85% effort and finished with a recovery along the road to do it again. Effectively we were making a triangle. What kind of sucked is that the recovery was all too short. We did this 12 times. Yuck.

I decided this would not be a good workout to do in the Vibrams, even though my Tuesday night runs are usually "barefoot". I am sure glad because I am super sore today.

I really took those hills hard. And I think the downhill part was just as hard as the uphill...at least I took it that way. I have the sneaky suspicion that the rest of my teammates took it as sort of a recovery. I say this because the same people who would pass me on the uphill were easily passed by me on the downhill.

I also figured out something else about my running form. I seriously think that I was built for distance. My stride is so efficient that it almost looks like I am walking when I run (I used to get so mad at Bill for saying this). But I also say this because I noticed in my hill and speed workouts I end up somewhere in the middle of the advanced group, even though I am one of the slowest runners of the group. People will always pass me on the speed part and I end up passing them on the recovery part. I always thought that this was because I was going too fast on the recovery. But when I check my heartrate, I can almost get it down to my walking heartrate. I'm breathing easily, and I feel fully recovered in time for the next repeat. So then I was like, maybe I'm not pushing myself hard enough on the speed part. But I know this is not true because I am really truly busting my butt (sweat pouring from everywhere, breathless, grunting, tired by the end, etc.) And when I ran this idea by Bill he was like "No, I've seen you do speedwork. That's not it." Anyway, these people who I pass on recovery will usually pass me again on the speed part...the first time or so. After awhile I just get too much of a lead on them and they can't pass me. So I start off the workout at the back (sometimes even the last) and end them in the middle or middle top. This just tells me that I am truly an endurance runner.

I guess this is why half marathons are my favorite event. (Bill also mentioned to me this weekend that since having Liam I have already completed  5 half marathons! That made me feel awesome!)

At any rate, at the end of the workout I was super spent and today I am super sore. But I am happy about that because it means I am building my muscles. Sometimes I think I am crazy.

P.S. Speaking of being built for distance, Bill pointed out this cool article to me about how scientists explain how Usain Bolt is truly built for speed. Kind of cool.

Hot Stuff

So the past three days have been in the 90s here in NYC. Not very fun for running. So I was very very relieved when, Monday night Ramon sent out this email:

TOMORROW'S WORKOUT:

NOTE: DUE TO THE EXPECTED WEATHER, I AM MAKING A COUPLE OF CHANGES TO THIS WEEK'S WORKOUT

(you see, I do have a soft side and do have a heart )

WE will have 2 Workout options, you make you own decision which one you want to attend:

OPTION 1: 5-6 Miles EASY Hot/sweaty/sucky run !!

OPTION 2: Cross Training Killing Workout + Running !!

You decide which of the workouts/options you want to do, just go to the proper location.

NOTE: KEEP in mind that if the weather gets better, the coaches could/may change the workout at the last minute.

Hurrah! It has been too hot to MOVE so I had not been looking forward to the original workout, which on the calendar just said "Hills."

But when we got to our meeting place Ramon had a bit of a change-up. One group could still do option 1, but the second option was going to be hills.

I really felt like an easy run would be a waste of valuable coaching time/practice, so I opted for the hills. I never get to train with Ramon (we usually just have Steve and Pete) and I forgot that his practices were really really HARD.

Everyone was bitching and moaning about the change-up in the plans, but Ramon said "Didn't you read my email? I said that we could change the workout if we wanted to!" So Ramon's workout was basically the worst of both worlds...hills AND cross-training.

We ran easy up to Harlem Hill and stopped off in the grassy area by Lasker Pool. We were already all drenched. I am not exaggerating. (I actually turned to my one friend and said "Uh, I have sweat running down my back into my butt crack." It tickled.) There we formed two lines to do Ramon's favorites. Squats. Ramon makes you do 90 degree squats...and hold them for a minute. And then he goes around and yells at you if you aren't low enough. (I got called out by name for this. Whoops.) After about a bazillion squats he yelled "GO!" and we had to sprint up either the left or right side of the hill, recover back and do more squats.

Harlem Hill (counterclockwise) was shorter, but definitely steeper. Lasker Hill was longer but more gradual. Both suck. My legs were already getting tired before I even started up the hill! But I sprinted to the best of my capability (I picked Harlem Hill...glutton for punishment.)

For the next round we had to switch hills. I must say, Lasker did seem a ton easier. It also seemed about 20 degrees cooler on that side of the park. I thought I was crazy, but Coach Pete said the same thing to me on our recovery.

We ended up doing 4 rounds of hills and 4 rounds of squats. (I kept hearing from different people "I thought cross-training involved more than squats.")

It was a HARD practice, made even hard by the high 80s temps. At the end I was exhausted and my stomach was growling so much that it hurt.

But I wouldn't have had it any other way. I do love a hard practice.

Hill Repeats

Last night, Bill and I found a nice, short, steep hill (there are LOTS of them in Riverside Park) and did some repeats. We basically sprinted up the hill 8x with very little rest in between.

I noticed a few things.

First of all, I am now very sensitive when it comes to running. Maybe "aware" is actually a better word than sensitive. Like, when I am running on a new surface (there were some stones laid into the concrete in the middle of the hill) I can feel my gait change to accommodate. This is actually where I started to lose my speed every time. So I could work to push through, harder, at that point the next time. I also noticed that I was running on my toes again. I stopped that right away. I can also feel which of my muscles engage when I go up different parts of the hill.

I think this is kind of cool. I used to just run to run. I would sort of zone out. In fact, the first time I ran a "long" run (which I think was 9 miles) I zoned out so much that I didn't even realize that I was in pain until I stopped. I mean, this is good and what you are supposed to do to some extent, but it is also nice to tune in to your body. It's all about the happy medium.

I think it is sort of like when I was in school and all of the seniors would be out with us and be like "Oh, nice use of Gill Sans." when they looked at a menu or something, and I always thought "How in the world can they differentiate one typeface from another?" Now, I do it all the time.

The second thing is that I basically pushed myself so hard that I almost puked.

I mean, I was DONE at the end of that workout (Even if Bill wasn't, and was like "Eh. I felt like it was ok. I could have done a lot more." Ptttt. I equate this with the skinny girls who are like "No, I can eat like, a whole pizza and not gain an ounce." I know them personally, because I was one of them in high school. Now I realize how annoying that is :) )

I literally had to STOP before we started the 7th repeat, stand over to the side, bend over, cough and spit (very ladylike).

But I have to say, I feel GOOD when I push myself. That's why it makes me mad that I haven't been able to fully dedicate myself to running this training season. Who knows what I could have done?

I know, I know! I still have a little over a month left. So I am going to continue to push. Because who knows what I can still do?

Hill Climbs

WOW. I actually got out of work at a real time last night, and SO DID BILL!!!

Even though it was really really cold and very windy, we did hill climbs last night. Now granted, it was probably the easiest hill workout I've ever done, but it was still good.

Since LOST was on last night (and I'm a freak who is totally addicted), I planned the workout for Riverside Park instead of Central Park. Even though it is only closer by 3 long blocks, it DOES make a difference in timing :)

So we did a nice 1.7 mile warmup all the way up to where the park "ends" (it doesn't really end there, but you have to go up steps and walk to the street to continue on into the park again). There are two sets of steps that go up to the street. They are not short steps, but long, wide steps...each has about 7 ft of depth. The steps are a sharp, fast incline, and we ran up them, fast, 6 times. It was rough, and I sort of started to sound like Stephi Graf (isn't she the one who used to grunt when she played tennis?) because I was really pushing myself.

After the hill climbs, we did a nice little cool down for the 1.7 miles back.

It felt nice to run outside during the week...even if it was cold and windy.

Today I am picking up my packet/race number for our second half marathon in the Grand Prix – the Bronx half marathon, which is on Sunday. It is the only one of the five that is on the "mainland" of the United States, which I think is funny.

Back on Pace

Sunday was the Manhattan half marathon. I was kind of nervous because I was using it as a training run. Even though I usually have the best intentions to stay on pace during "training run" races, I usually end up racing them. It is also the longest mileage I have run since October, so I wanted to make sure I took it easily enough that I wouldn't get injured. I was also worried about this, because I swear, I get injured more when it is freezing cold out (or below freezing cold out, as it was on Sunday...14 degrees). I wanted to stay just below a 10 minute mile.

Turns out that I am actually a pretty good pacer again! My first mile was a 10:06. I stayed around that pace for the first six miles and then kicked it up to high 9:30s and low 9:40s. I actually felt really good the entire time.

I also think that my cross training is REALLY paying off. I say this because I have only had one real hill workout. Well, the hills were not bad at all...not even Harlem Hill! I don't usually feel that way until after months of serious hill training. I have to attribute it to the fact that I am really pushing myself on the cross training. My muscles in my legs are WAY developed (I noticed this as I was doing elliptical on Friday and happened to glance in the mirror.) Plus, my arms may not LOOK muscular, but I think they are getting there. I am actually able to do multiple push-ups (with good form) in a time period of 30s, when at the beginning of the year I could only do 3. (I know! My arms are so out of shape!)

So yay! Even if my waist isn't whittling away (which it isn't) and I'm not losing weight (I might be gaining...gulp) I can tell things are changing in my performance.

It also helped to have Bill with me for the first 7 miles. (And poor guy waited around in the freezing cold for me to finish, after he had finished his 8 mile run. What a stellar husband!)

Oh yeah, I finished with a 2:09:09, which is a 9:50 pace...but I'm not going to dwell on that too much, since I wasn't racing.

When I was finished I felt like someone tossed me out of a moving garbage truck, but I think it might have just been the cold, because I'm fine today.

Tomorrow is a hill workout AND it's supposed to snow. Yuck.

Taper

Well, I am now officially into taper. Hurrah!

Last nights workout was cake compared to other workouts. We still had to do intervals, but instead of doing like 14 of them mixed in with ten million hills, we did three of them, with one big hill.

We started at W90th in the park, ran easy up to 102nd and then started our first push. We crossed the park, ran down to 86th and turned around for an easy run back to 97th. This next part was the hard part. Not only were we pushing, but we were pushing Harlem Hill into Lasker Pool Hill (the toughest hills in Central Park) all the way back to W102nd. From there we ran easy to 97th and then pushed it back to 90th.

Taper is weird for me, because even though you are supposed to feel like you have a lot of energy, I often feel the opposite. Like last night, even though our workout was easy my legs were feeling tired. They were mostly feeling tired on the recovery parts of the run. I'm thinking though, that this may be because it was really my first taper run. I mean, I'm probably still tired from the rest of the season. At least I hope that's it.

I've also been pushing really hard to fundraise my last $1000 for Team in Training. Yesterday I had a pretty successful bakesale at work and today is my last day to turn in donations before I get charged for the final amount. Soooooo...if you'd like to help me out, you can click on the link to the right :)

I cannot believe that this marathon season is almost over! But I'm not too worried. After all, I'll begin training for the next one in December, which really isn't THAT far away. :)

Hills, or "Inclines"

Since it is Hill Month 2 for our advanced team I guess it was no surprise that last night we had a hill workoutBut instead of doing tons of repeats on steep hills, we did 2 repeats on a bunch of rolling hills.

In fact, Ramon didn't even consider them hills, but "inclines".

What is the difference?

Well, on hills you have to shorten your stride in order to make up for the steepness of the hill. Otherwise you would die. On inclines your stride really shouldn't change at all. And because of this, we were supposed to be running at 90% effort level, which is about a 5K pace. Whew! This was a tall order, especially since our workout last night consisted of 8 miles of these rolling hills. (Of course we did have some recovery time in between, so it was sort of more of an interval workout with lots of hills thrown in).The tricky thing about effort levels is that you have to maintain the same effort for the entire workout. So, you may actually be going slower up the hill, medium on the flat part and faster on the down part, but the effort is all the same. An easy way to measure this is your breathing. When you're doing a workout at 90% you should basically be huffing and puffing. This is EXACTLY what I was doing the entire workout (well, the non recovery parts).

During these workouts I try not to use my watch, because Ramon told us the point of the workout was not to save energy for the end, but to go all out on each one. Therefore, your second round would be slower. Besides, effort levels are not about time. This kind of workout reminds me of the Karate Kid, because you are really really in tune with your body. I'm hoping that this means that I will become a better runner. I KNOW I never paid attention to my body this much before while I was running.

The workout was insanely hard and I really pushed myself. I was even keeping up with some of the insane NYRR classes that were being held in the park at the same time. I was so tired and my legs were extremely tired at the end, but I felt great!

The rest of the week for me is a taper because I am running in the Queens Half Marathon for time. The coaches all say it is a good idea to run a half around this time in the training to give yourself a good idea of what time to expect on your marathon, and just to see how you're going to race in a long distance.

I am excited but also nervous.

Ramon is Trying to Kill Us

So Sunday I got an email summarizing our upcoming September in running. My favorite line was
"Well....the advance group has been thinking all along that they were not doing any hill work, wellll....september is your hilly month...get ready !!" And all of this started out with our first September group workout.

Last night we had 7-10 hill repeats on Cat Hill. YUCK.

I have never done THAT many repeats in one workout. Ramon emphasized that we should not be guaging this workout on what anyone else was doing, that it was a personal workout. We were also not supposed to worry about time (good thing, because I forgot my watch) because obviously you will get more and more tired as the workout progresses. Instead, we were supposed to run at effort levels again. The up hill was an effort level 4 (out of 5...that means at about 85%). I guage these workouts through my breathing, which is what I think you are supposed to do.

It was also a sliding scale of 7-10 because you were supposed to go with how you were feeling. For instance, if you were dying after 4, you should only do 7.

All of these caveats were because (as our coach for the night explained to us) all of the Advanced runners have Type A personalities and think they have to do the full workout even if they are dying and that they have to beat everyone that they usually run with because they are so highly competitive. (Guilty as charged).

The first 3 were not bad at all (I mean, for hill workouts). I was definitely tired and definitely behind the people I usually run with (you can't help but notice), but I was feeling pretty good. I hydrated after these 3 which I think was a mistake, because it sort of took my momentum and motivation to do more away.

So instead of my plan to hydrate after every 3 I decided to play it by ear and try not to hydrate until the end of the workout. This worked out a lot better. Our coach was at the top of the hill making sure that we ran at full effort all the way to the end with great form, so I was really concentrating on keeping my arm swing low and not running on my toes, which I tend to do when the hills get tougher for me.

After 7 I was done. I was slowing down and my recoveries included walking.

So I decided to do two more.

It WAS a good workout. I think all of this heavy hill work will help me out in the marathon for sure.

Test Run

Last night we had a "test run" in Central Park. This is something that Coach Ramon does so that we can see how much we have progressed. Unfortunately for me I wasn't around for the first test run, so I had nothing to compare it with. So I just figured I would run hard and remember my time for next time we do a test run.

The advanced group's test consisted of two two-mile repeats wedged in between a warm-up and cool-down run. The first 2 miles was from East 72nd, up Cat Hill to East 102nd and across to West 102nd. This was tough because it included Cat Hill. I was breathing heavily and trying to not get too hung up on the fact that people were passing me. I just kept thinking of what everyone (mom, dad, teachers, husband) has told me my whole life which is "Don't worry about what everyone else is doing, just concentrate on doing your best." But, as a side note, I think the reason that I push myself to do my best is because I'm concentrating on what everyone else is doing. Ha ha. Anyways, I was happy to see as I was crossing 102nd street that I had caught up to the girl who usually runs just a little bit behind me. I also noticed that The Mentor That Paces Way Too Fast was right by me. So I figured I wasn't THAT far off. When I finished the repeat I was at 17:03 which is roughly an 8:30 pace.

Our recovery (ha!) was Harlem Hill to East 102nd. I had to keep telling myself to slow down because it was a recovery, because I can't help wanting to speed through that hill to get it over with.

The next 2-mile repeat was the same course backwards (West 102nd to East 102nd to East 72nd). The Mentor That Paces Way Too Fast, the girl I run with sometimes and I decided to do the last two miles together. I was a little wary of this since I had a really bad experience with her going out too fast. I think she was trying to make up for it though. She kept giving us running advice and updating us with our pace like every minute via her Nike+ wristband. She was telling us how we could keep pace until Cat Hill and then we needed to sprint in. She was telling us that we all should run together in the Marine Corps and that by our pace tonight (8:30 mile) we could totally do a 3:55 marathon (8:58 mile). Fast pacer was overwhelming me by talking about a lot at once when I was trying to concentrate ("Have your boyfriend cut up oranges for us three at mile 18. Hey guys slow down we're going to die on this pace. You aren't too talkative are you? Guys, slow down, for real!") I also felt like they were flying, so I cut back a little. They flew ahead of me and kept looking back and making sure I was there. I kept telling myself that I knew what I was doing. I needed to take it at a hard pace where I could breath heavily but not too heavily.

They kept being further and further away from me. At Cat Hill though, I was right up with them again. Fast pacer said she was worried about me. I said "Nah. I've got to do my own thing. I have to start out slower and build up."

I think I've been stressing way too much or something, because I found the whole thing very distracting. I mean, it was no fault of the other two girls, who were just trying to help me out and make sure that I had a good run, but I just felt like I needed to do my own thing. For me, trying to improve on my running takes a lot of concentration...especially on speedwork days. I am just not used to people talking the whole time on speed days. Most everyone I ran with in the past is panting too heavily to do so :)

I sprinted in the last 50 feet or so, finishing that one with a 17:17.

I was a little bummed to get 15 seconds off, but all in all I think it was a good run.

Into Brooklyn

Saturday we had a really fun run. I was a little nervous to pick up the mileage again since I haven't really been running all that much. According to my schedule I was supposed to do my 19 miler, but I knew that this probably wasn't a very good idea since I really only ran 3 miles this week and 10 miles last week (btw, both of those were single runs). I decided to shoot for 14-15 but see how I felt along the way.

We started out way downtown in the Winter Gardens (right by the World Trade Center site). We had the option of staying in Manhattan for the entire run, or venturing into Brooklyn. I of course, wanted to venture into Brooklyn. I am always up for a change of scenery AND this would give me some hill work too.

I also decided that if my pace leader was pacing this week I was NOT going to be in her group. Luckily though, she wasn't there. And Ramon was making the coaches pace this week instead of the mentors. This was good because I was really afraid of getting lost in Brooklyn. Manhattan is pretty easy to navigate since it is all on a grid and most of the streets are numbered. But Brooklyn is another story.

What a difference it makes when you're going the right pace! I felt so much better through the entire run. And I truly COULD have added another 4 miles on without much problem (but I stopped anyway. I didn't want to push it too hard).

The run was also a lot of fun. We got to run over the Brooklyn Bridge, which is always great. It was super crowded with people though which was a little frustrating runningwise (I was running in a zigzag a lot of the time to avoid other people). I decided though that you can't get mad at people for wanting to walk/bike/rollerblade/run across the bridge. It is extremely cool and the view is amazing, plus the weather yesterday was great for outdoor activities. Some lady obviously didn't feel the same way. She was out for a leisurely stroll and was talking on her cellphone. I think she was overwhelmed by all of us even though we were being very good and only running one or two across and staying on the right side of the bridge. I was trying to avoid her completely and swerved to the right to do so (just as she swerved to her left) so we met face to face and she threw up her hands and screamed "F*CK!!" in my face, which I thought was a little humorous. I could tell it was her last straw. :)

Anyway, after crossing the bridge we ran through Brooklyn. I had no idea where exactly we were but found it commical how many other people in the group had never been to Brooklyn. We passed the Brooklyn TNT team and our coach yelled "Yeah! Go Brooklyn!" And they hollered back "YEEEEAH!" which made me laugh because it is sort of the stereotypical Brooklyn reaction to something like that (anyone ever see that movie "Newsies"?). Ramon was following the course on his bike because he was super afraid that we were all going to get lost and never find our way back to Manhattan.

We finally got to the Williamsburg bridge and I looked forward. It went STRAIGHT UP. I was like "Oh yeah, this is nice." And the coach said it was good practice for San Francisco (which I am so glad I am not running.) I just tried to enjoy the beautiful view and read all of the graffiti instead of concentrating on the hill.

Crossing Manhattan again through the Lower East Side was NOT pleasant because it smelled like garbage baking in the sun.

But we finally made it to Lafayette to run up Park Avenue for the last time (boo! I hope they do Summer Streets again). I really had time to enjoy it this week since I was on pace instead of flying through the streets tiring myself out. I remembered to stop at the church that everyone was talking about (because they gave out freshly squeezed lemonade...delicious!). By this point though, most of our group had split up. Hardly anyone was running all the way up to 72nd street because most people were not doing 19 miles. I ran all the way up to 63rd with Kelly though and then caught up with some other people from the group to cut across the 72nd Street Transverse.

The rest of the run was on my own since I just decided to head uptown for the last two miles and head home. It was nice to be able to finish right in front of my apartment building.

I had to double check Ramon's mileage count on mapmyrun.com, because I figured there was no way that he could be right (according to my watch). But he was! I did 15 miles in 2:18 which means that I was doing a 9:19 mile the whole way. I was so ecstatic!

I, of course, plugged that into one of those calculators that can predict your marathon times based on your long runs. It says that I can do a 4:14 based on that time. That would be awesome!

So, what did I learn from this? Take it out easy and you will do better than you thought. Yes, every coach I have ever had has told me this, but I am one of those people who has to experience it for myself before I believe it ;)

A Rotten Egg

(As in "the last one in is...)

I seriously think that Ramon is trying to kill the advanced group.

Last night's workout was killer. And it was just mean that the whole time it looked like it was going to rain, but never did. I was drinking water the whole day in anticipation. I don't think it's good when your ponytail is soaked all the way through before you even finish your warmup. I think it's the dewpoint that is actually killing us. The air was so heavy. Yuck. Anyway, onto the important stuff, the workout:

From East 72nd warmup to the bottom of Harlem Hill (the top of the park, which is around 110th street).
4 x Harlem Hill (which is steep and long with varying inclines) – speed up to the top, recover on the downhill
4 x Lasker Hill (which is winding so that you can't see the end, but not as steep) – speed up to the top, recover on the downhill
Easy back to East 72nd

Even the warmup tired me out yesterday. I was feeling gross and tired because of the heat and therefore I couldn't push as much as I usually do. As a result I was DEAD LAST in our advanced group. And I mean, by a LOT. I hate that. On the recoveries I was okay and caught up with the people in front of me, so at least I could chat a little...but I absolutely hated being last up the hill. I just couldn't will my legs to go any faster.

And those were some hard hills. My legs started to hurt immediately ( like in a "working hard" way, not a "pain" way).

The goal was to build up and push through the lactic acid. I'm still not exactly sure about lactic acid. I've had the whole thing explained to me several times, but the whole concept is sort of over my head.

I was also having issues and couldn't find the restroom at Lasker Pool. By the time I got to the Boathouse the restrooms were locked for the night. So basically I had to deal with stomach issues on top of everything else.

It was not a good workout for me. I know that normally I could have pushed myself harder. But I am just happy that I finished it. I mean, it WAS a killer workout. In fact, it pretty much exhausted me. By the time I got home (9ish) I just wanted to go to bed. I was even having a hard time staying up for the delivery guy (I rewarded myself with a pizza:) .

On Saturday we have a "bridge run" which everyone was moaning and groaning about. When I asked why they said that it was just a really hilly, really tough workout. I can't wait until July (which Coach Ramon dubbed "hill month") is over!

Hills AND Speed

It's always bad when your coach's email contains the subject "Tonight's Workout – LUCKY YOU!" I read through it at work and decided that I pretty much didn't want to go to practice. :) It seems everyone else in the advance group felt the same way. Our turnout was slimmer than usual and we didn't have any coaches sign up at our meeting spot for a LONG TIME. One of the girls suggested the 5-minute rule (if no coaches show up in 5 minutes we don't have to practice).

I was glad when they did show up because I was thoroughly confused by the workout description and needed it to be recapped to me. Even the coaches said they had to read through it about three times before they understood it. Here it is:

"You are going to do 2 x 2 mile(aprox) repeats, plus a little warm up.
We are warming up a lower loop with a couple of intervals (about 1/4 mile each) in the middle. From East 72nd street heading west bound and south to East 64th street, once you get there you'll start your first pick up to the Traffic light on 59th street and entrance of 7th ave then Recover to East 64th street then start your next pick up which goes to Eat 68th street. Then recover to East 72nd street.

NOW you'll start your 2 mile repeats.
The two mile consist of a FULL lower loop PLUS Cat Hill !! So, you'll start timing yourself from East 72nd and go around, complete the lower loop and once you get back to East 72nd continue (pushing) north until you get to the traffic light on top of cat hill.
The recovery will be from the top of cathill to Cleopatra's needle and back to East 72nd street. (repeat this a second time)

Goal and description of the workout: This is a TEST. That means you are going to try to run as fast as you can. Of course tomorrow the weather is gonna suck, so, be smart and adjust your effort accordingly, do no expect to get great times. Run by effort, as long as you put the effort you are getting the benefit of the workout.
This should be an decent effort 85%+, but it must be equal effort thru the whole 2 miles.
Time each of the 2 miles. see how well you pace yourself."

You can see why everyone was confused.

It was also very HOT out, so I wasn't really sure how to pace at 85% effort. The first two 1/4 speed intervals SUCKED. I had no idea how I was going to do 2-mile repeats at a good clip afterwards. Especially since they involved Cat Hill at the end. Despite how I FELT though, I was doing pretty good. My times were right on track in keeping a consistent 9-minute mile pace when I was pushing it, which is REALLY good in that weather. Also, the girls I usually run with (Nicole and MaryAnne) dropped behind me pretty early on. Nicole and I usually keep the same pace, but MaryAnne is a bit faster than me, so I figured I was doing okay if I was ahead of her.

Cat Hill absolutely killed me though. I felt like I was running through wet cement. The other thing that sucks is that most of the workout was on the east side of the park. Now, the west side definitely has more rolling hills. But the east side has what the mentor Marissa calls "sneaky hills". And it has a LOT of them. The way I define sneaky hills is this: they are hills that do not look like hills. In fact, it looks like you are running on flat ground unless you look waaaay far ahead....then you see that they are actually uphill climbs. If for some reason you don't notice this by sight, you notice it when your legs feel HEAVY.

So it was a TOUGH workout.

But it was one of those workouts that make you feel like you actually accomplished something when you are finally finished.

Also, I decided to bring a towel with me to that practice for afterwards. How smart! Why didn't I think of that before? :)

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!

The Heat Is On

So, this week, I decided to do my long run on Saturday for two reasons. The first being that I loved how last week I had the whole weekend in front of me and I wouldn't have to worry about getting that run in. The second being that it was supposed to thunderstorm in the afternoon and all of Sunday. As it turned out, all of Saturday was very very beautiful...and HOT! (Well, hot for running.)

I realized just how unprepared I am for running in warmer temps. It is always a struggle with me, because I do love running in the cold. But it is amazing how a 20 degree rise in temperature can change your run so much! Last week we were in the 40s-50s which I found enjoyable. This week, running in the 60s-70s was a struggle. I'm sure it didn't help that I chose to run when the sun was at it's highest point and beating down on me. But I better get used to it, because Cincinnati is generally warmer than New York AND we still have three weeks for it to get even warmer. (One thing that was really cool though, is that the park is in full bloom! It actually looked and felt like spring! And I got to see the cherry blossoms in bloom, which was really cool.)

I also felt like I was waaaay off pace, but I think that was due to two things; the heat AND the fact that I ran 20 last week. I think that 20 must have really done me in more than usual, because after my 10 this week my legs were so achy, even into the next day. I ended up with a 10 minute pace, which IS my GP for the race, but I was a little disappointed since my last 9 miler had a 8:45 pace.

I also added in some hills for myself to better prepare me for the Pig. Instead of bypassing the big, sudden hill up to Strawberry Fields, like I usually do, I added it into my run. I also did the top of the park loop TWICE in order to run Great Hill twice.

Next week is my last truly long run, at 14 miles. And Wednesday I am up to 10 Yassos. Yay! Taper!

Repeat, Repeat

So last night we did the whole Grandin/Rookwood area repeat thing. I was really really hoping that we would meet at Game Day Sports Café and run up to Mt. Adams to do hill repeats, so when I looked on the schedule on Monday night I was really dreading practice. It's just that the hills when we start from O'Bryonville tend to be up and down and up and down and up and down, while in Mt. Adams it is just up and down.

Either I forgot what it was like, or we took a slightly different route than normal, because it really wasn't that bad. Besides that, I was in the slow group, so we only actually did three repeats.

I also have selective memory, because I say this every time (in my head at least) in the middle of the workout: hill repeats aren't so bad! To me, they are never as long as they seem. And I tend to look up the hill in front of me and get completely overwhelmed and then only a few seconds later, realize I am already halfway up.

Sure, there is a lot of huffing and puffing, but then at the end you get to run DOWN the hill. Plus, you know you did a hard workout. AND my repeats actually got faster each time (ok, only by like 2 seconds, but that is still faster).

I also think there is just a little bit of me that is actually psycho. I mean, seriously...who LIKES hills? And as slowly as I go up the hill, I seem to always pass people on them in the races. They are like my secret weapons. Last year when I ran the Race For the Cure I DIED and I swear it's because the course was so flat! I guess that doesn't bode well for Chicago. (I do secretly cringe every time someone tells me I will love the course so much more than the Pig because it is so flat!)

Anyway, after the hills we ran Millionaire's Mile (through Grandin, etc.) as our cool-down. Seeing all of those beautiful houses actually really helps the time go by quickly.

All in all, it was another great run!

Hyde Park Course

Tonight training for the Hyde Park Blast. It should be fun because I've recruited some friends who are running it to join me and Bill tonight. Unfortunately I think it just may be the muggiest day of the year. So it may help to wait until later.

I will be interested to see how I think the hills are in the course this year. I'm sure I will still think they are bad, but maybe they will not be AS bad, since I have trained so many hills for the pig, and I had been doing hill drills while I was in London. I don't know. I remember Menlo (I think that is the name) being absolutely horrible and I think it was at the end of the race.

Last night I hit the gym for some more weight training. I tried to not overdo it this time. I know I said last week that I didn't overdo it, but it was about two hours after I posted that I could barely walk because I was so sore. I was smart this time and when I got to the quad machine and did one rep and felt pain in my knee I hopped right off! No need to tear up my knees just so I can do reps on those machines. If I make it past noon without a ton of soreness I will be golden. I'll welcome some soreness since that just means my muscles are tearing and rebuilding themselves, but I do need to play in Landor's softball game tomorrow! (and more importantly, run injury-free this weekend in the Blast!)

Recovery Run

So, running 3 miles this weekend seemed a little pointless. It was actually pretty hard to get motivated to get up and do it. My ipod wasn't working either, since I hadn't charged it in so long, but it was ok, because I was only gone for 20 something minutes :) For that amount of time I could entertain myself by singing songs in my head.

I also scouted a new hill for me to run on Tuesday. That is when I am going to do some hill repeats. Hill repeats are always greeted with a mixed sense of dread and relief for me. I hate to admit it, but sometimes I actually ENJOY them. I mean, there is something rewarding about them. AND they are over with rather quickly. It kind of reminds me of pulling a band-aid off really quickly. And call me a masochist, but when my calves hurt that badly the day afterwards, I feel like I actually worked my muscles hard and I kind of like it.

My hill that I found is called Penton Rise, and it has an ascent of 53 feet over .17 miles. (So it is no Cliff Street in Eden Park, but I am also training for a much shorter distance). It will have to do for now until I find more daunting hills. By the way, I think it is funny that streets with huge hills tip you off to it in their names: Penton RISE, CLIFF street.

It's a Mental Thing

First of all, I am amazed at how quickly my body has recovered. I no sooner had written my entry "Ow Ow Ow" when my legs really did feel better. I was able to walk all over the city of New York on Wednesday, tackling steps and everything! :)

So yesterday I went to Waterstones, which is basically the British version of Borders and I couldn't resist getting a book (on sale!) that was part of a series called "Teach Yourself To"...I picked up "Teach Yourself to Run a Marathon". I know, I know, I just ran a marathon, but that doesn't mean that I can't learn anything new. Besides, I am obsessed.

Already I am scoping out hills to practice repeats on in my neighborhood. Which brings me to today's title.
I started to feel a little anxious about the Hyde Park Blast. I mean, there are a TON of hills and it is usually sweltering that time of the year. I am just not used to running like that. But then I thought, 'you know, when I started marathon training, it was painful to run even 3 miles'. Also I remember amazing myself by saying that I was training mostly in the Hyde Park area. I mean my FAVORITE place to run is in Eden Park, which has no lack of hills. I decided that it is all a mental thing. (Well, not ALL). Because when you train properly, it is all up to you in your head, to get past whatever it is you are trying to get past.

On the day of the marathon, I was not asking myself if I could do 26 miles. I knew I could do it. The difficult part will be coming up with my own training program.

It starts tomorrow! 3.5 easy miles as part of my recovery (no sprints or repeats yet!)

The Hills are Alive

OK, so I was a little bummed that I was going to have to train in London. In my mind, London was very flat. I guess that is because when I was acting as a non-runner tourist I didn't pay attention to hills. Well, London DOES have hills. Especially where I am staying, in Islington. There are so many hills on the way to work that I feel like my walk there is a workout. That being said, my calves and knees has finally started to act up again (I knew there was no way I was in the clear after that 20 mile run). So tonight is a long walk, some icing and an Aleve. Tomorrow will be a run. Coach said at this point, the most important thing is to make sure I get the cardio in. I have worked so hard, I am not going to botch it by injuring myself. On the other hand I don't want my muscles to atrophy either...so I am exercising the principle of I know what's best for my body. Which I think I do now...I couldn't say that at the beginning of the marathon training, but I think I have learned a lot now! This weekend is the London Marathon, and I am going to the park to watch at least some of it. Exciting!