My next "race"

Wow it has been a while since I have posted. I didn't realize it had been so long.  But I am just dropping in now to share some news with you all.

For the most part of this past year my schedule has been jammed pack with social events and it has been busy.  Training for a race just didn't seem to be right and my heart wasn't in it so I decided to relax my training and just get through most of the summer before deciding what to train for.

It was the most relaxing spring and summer I have ever had. There was no pressure to get up at 5am to run long miles (even though I do love that).  I still maintained a good base and really enjoyed running each and every mile. 

August finally rolled around and my social schedule really lightened up.  I had two weddings left in September but really most of my obligations were finished and my mind started to think about what was next.  It was too late to try and run the September half marathon that I usually do but I thought maybe I could squeeze in a few 5ks in the fall, especially with my best running friend, who had her baby in late July, and was making her comeback to running and getting back in shape.

As the end of August approached I was feeling really good, I even ran 10 miles at 8 min pace and felt like I had not even lost much of my speed.  Then two days later I found out I was pregnant.  It was the most excited news!

My plans for racing in the fall went out the window, but I knew I wanted to keep running.  My mileage decreased a bit but I just took it easy and enjoyed each run.  I was surprised that I never really felt that bad while running. Sure there were slower days and morning running got tough when the weather started to get colder but I just plugged along and felt pretty good on most of my runs.

Then when I was about 8 weeks along we had the first ultrasound and I found out that I was having not just one baby BUT TWO! We were shocked to find out that it was twins.  I didn't feel any different, my runs still felt great and I was doing well.

And so things have continued from there.  Today I am 13 weeks along and feeling really good.  I did have some fatigue in the beginning and most nights I am in bed by 9pm at the latest but I am so thankful for no morning sickness. 

The one unique thing about my pregnancy so far is that I am lactose intolerant.  I had a small touch of this before hand - I have always had a sensitive stomach and I had trouble when I ate a lot of ice cream; Iwould never feel good but now it seems with being pregnant everything is exaggerated for my stomach.  Not only can I not handle dairy, but I also can't handle greasy foods or anything really fatty or sugary.  I think its the first time in my entire life that I have not craved candy, cookies or cake. 

A lot has happened to me this year and it has made me begin to think about blogging.  I feel like I lost the desire to write back in the spring when I wasn't training for anything and just running for fun.  Maintaining a blog, taking pictures of everything is a lot of work and it just became too much.  I know I enjoy reading about women's journeys through pregnancy and running but I am not sure I really have any desire to blog about this.  It is quite personal and I am becoming more protective of my little twins. 

I really hope to continue running for as long as possible and I hope to exercise until the very end.  It is a new kind of training plan for a very special race day but so far I am really enjoying it. 

Happy Running!

Too much Treadmill

I haven't run outside in 7 days.

And there is a good reason for that. Well a few good reasons.

First, my best friend and best running buddy is pregnant!  She is about 16 weeks along and she has found that running on the treadmill works better for her.  So in order for us to "run together" I have been visiting the treadmill a bit more often so we can chat while we run.

Best friends and running buddies for life! (Pregnancy photo!)

Second, the weather has been horrible this week.  I refuse to run in winds greater than 20 mph. Combine that with snow and I will definitely not be going outside for a 5am run. 

Beautiful but not the best run conditions

So the treadmill and I have become pretty good friends in the last week.  It has been six days with 46+ miles of treadmill runs and my quads are ready for a break. 

Every winter I hear many other runners complain about how they hate the treadmill and how hard it is to run on it.  And I wouldn't disagree - the treadmill is tough and boring.  But when the roads get snowy or icy and the conditions become dangerous that I worry about getting hit by a car, I prefer to be on the treadmill.  Running on the treadmill is the safer option and is less stressful because then I don't have to worry about dodging cars or losing my footing in the snow.

The gym I belong to that has the treadmills also has TVs in front of each treadmill and I think that is one reason I can stand to run so long.  Having the TV really distracts me from focusing on watching the tenths of miles tick by.  Also having a buddy to talk to while on the treadmill makes the time fly by as well.  Without at least one of these distractions I don't think I would last long on the treadmill. 

Running on the treadmill really is a mental battle. Just like in a race, you have to have your head in the game when running on the treadmill in order to meet your goal. If you go into a treadmill thinking "this is going to be horrible" then it most likely will.  Instead if you think "this isn't ideal, but at least I get to run today" then I bet the treadmill run would go a lot better. Its all about your outlook.  And a treadmill run is still a run and at least you got to run today.

I really do love winter running but sometimes for my safety (and to keep Brian from worrying) I head to the treadmill.  At least for now the weather looks good for the next week so I think I can do most of my runs outside and avoid the treadmill for a while.

Frozen Tempo

Sunday and Monday I was in shorts for my runs and today I am bundled up and freezing!

This morning the temperatures were super cold - 28F and there was a nice layer of frost of the grass and cars.  I usually don't like to do my tempo runs in the cold mornings but today I didn't have a choice due to after work social obligations!

Running in the morning cold is bad enough but running tempo paced miles before dawn can be even worse but there are ways to make sure you run the best tempo you can.

Take an extra long warm up - In the summer I can often get away with doing only 1-1.5 miles for warm up but once the temperatures dip below 40F, I have to extend my warm up to at least 2 miles.  I also try to add in an uphill (followed by a downhill) during my warm up because that really helps to get the legs warmed up.

Expect to be slower - The morning tempo runs are usually slower than if run in the evening.  When its really cold, I can run my tempos  about 10 seconds per mile slower.  It helps that it is dark out so you can't see your watch and see the difference in pace.

Wear a headlamp - I find that I can run faster when I can see where I am going.  Its hard to do a tempo run in the dark so don't forget the headlamp (and the reflective vest).

Know your route and mile marks - It is easy to get confused in the morning and the dark so I try to keep my tempo route pretty simple.

Run a time based tempo - Often during training I run 2x2 mi tempo runs or something similar, but when it gets dark and cold out I try to switch it up.  Instead of having to do math on my garmin (because I keep my garmin mileage to total and not lap), having a total tempo time you are aiming for makes life much easier.

This mornings run actually went pretty well.  My hands were cold for most of the run but after my warm up, my legs seemed to feel pretty good.

The workout
20 mins @ Easy
10 mins @ Tempo
5 mins @ Easy
5 mins @ Tempo
5 mins @ Easy
5 mins @ Tempo
25 mins @ Easy

Based on my recent 5ks, my tempo pace is supposed to be about 6:47/mile but there is no way I can hit that pace in the mornings.  My goal was to try and get close to 7:00/mile and I came in on all my tempos at 7:04/mile.  I will take the consistency over meeting my desired pace.  This turned out to be a good workout.

I think running tempo workouts based on time (instead of pace) is a nice way to switch things up.  Plus it is way easier to keep track of things when running a tempo based on time.  I am not very good at doing addition while running so having a time goal is an easy way to get in a tempo run in the morning.

Happy Tempo Thursday!

Double Trouble Speed days

Thursday is very often my second speed workout day of the week.  During marathon training it was the day of the week that I hit most of my medium long runs for a week day (10-15 milers).  This training cycle, I switched things up a bit.

Back in July, I was at my regular Tuesday running club workout and was talking to a veteran runner.  He suggested adding a second easy run to the days that I do my speed work (tempo or interval).  It was an interesting thought and with my peak miles week still ahead of me, I decided to give it a try. For 4 of the 5 weeks my speed work was done in the afternoon with an easy run in the morning (that final week - actually yesterday - I did my speed work in the morning to allow a easy run in the afternoon so I could go to the running club dinner and not be late).

Most mornings of double days, I felt slow and tired - often it was not until the final mile that I would bring my pace to just under 9 minute miles.  The dark mornings were quiet and calm and although I often did not want to leave my comfy bed it was good to get out and stretch my legs before work.  In the afternoons, I noticed a slight difference.  I was still slightly stiff in the warm up portion of my afternoon run, but the speed work portions but my afternoon runs really did start to get easier and faster.  I remember one particular day when I had 5x1000m at interval pace on the schedule (week 8) and somehow my legs just flew that day.  I went faster than I had before in any interval workout and I hit paces that I didn't think I could.

Hard to believe that just adding a second run on my speed work days could help me to become faster.  But I think it actually did.  Here is a look at the numbers - 5 weeks of double workouts on speed days...(If you love numbers read on, otherwise skip down.)

Week 7 - August 14th
AM run - 4.5 miles
PM run - 9.25 miles (5x1mi repeats)
Total - 13.75 miles

Week 8 - August 21st
AM run - 3 miles
PM run - 9 miles (5x1000m @I, 2x400m @ R)
Total - 12 miles

Week 9 - August 28th
AM run - 4.5 miles
PM run - 10 miles (2x{2mi@HMP+1mi@T})
Total - 14.5 miles

Week 10 - September 4th
AM run - 5 miles
PM run - 10 miles (3x2mi @T)
Total - 15 miles

Week 11 - September 11th
AM run - 8.5 miles (2x3mi @ T)
PM run - 4.5 miles
Total - 13 miles

I never expected this to work - although I have dabbled in the double "workout" idea on speed days.  In fact, during marathon training I often would go to total body class in the mornings at the gym and then run 10 or 13 or even 15 miles after work.  Sounds pretty intense and it was and is, but it was amazing to accomplish all that and push my body to places I didn't think it could go.

Adding on all these miles, the double days, continuing to cross train was scary at first.  I think we have all thought about how far we can push our bodies and how much we can do.  I am all for listening to your body first and foremost - just this morning I laid in bed instead of running and I know that was what my body wanted to do.  But there is also a point when you need to push past the regular norms of what you do every day and see where it takes you. 

After reading this you may think that running double on a speed work day is not for you or you may think that it just impossible for you to do.  But I encourage everyone to try it.  Even if it means a tiny mini run in the morning.  You never know what could happen and in the beginning, even I was skeptical.  Its all about starting small and building and seeing where it takes you. 

So I encourage you to give it a try and let me know how it goes...

Morning running in Boston

This past weekend, Brian and I headed to Boston to visit my college roommate.  It was great to visit my friend and see the city, but I also was finishing up my last big week of half marathon training and needed to fit in a super long run while in the city. 

At first I was going to run Saturday morning but after a long drive and a late night exploring Boston on Friday night and an early morning planned for Saturday, I decided to reschedule the run for Sunday.

Friday night we headed to the North End for a great dinner at Antico Forno which is a great Italian restaurant! After eating, we walked down to the docks to see the beautiful skyline and I actually figured out how to use my camera at night!  Once we had digested enough, we headed back up Hanover street to get some dessert!  We stopped at Vittoria Caffe for some coffee and I had a cannoli while Brian had a giant Lobster tail.  They both were the best ever.

We then made our way farther down the street and stood in line at Modern Pastry for some take home goodies!  In that bakery, everything looked delicious - we got more cannolis, a torrone and macaroons.

Saturday we were up bright and early to get some breakfast at a local bagel shop and then head over to the aquarium.  I had been there before but Brian had not and we spent a while seeing all the fish, sharks and turtles!  Afterward we started walking again and made our way from the North End to Boston Common, Boylston Street and Newberry Street. It was so amazing to walk everywhere - something we are definitely not accustomed to.  For lunch, we stopped for a quick but delicious bit at Joe's American Bar and Grill and then continued our walking tour.  We walked towards the Charles River and crossed the Harvard Bridge.  At this point I was paying very close attention because this was the area I planned to run on the next morning.  The bike path by the river was amazing and I could not wait to get out there and run.  From there we walked through MIT (a college I could only dream of attending).  It was pretty obvious that school was back in session since there were a thousand bikes outside one of the MIT buildings.

Once we arrived back at my roommates apartment, we lounged a bit before taking the walk to Harvard for dinner. The area around Harvard was buzzing with people and it is just a gorgeous area.  We stopped for dinner at Border Cafe which has awesome chips and salsa.  I even splurged and got a margarita with my fajitas!  After dinner there was more walking to digest all the food we had consumed so that we could make room for frozen yogurt at Pink Berry!  They had so many different kinds of Fro-yo, it was hard to choose but I finally decided on the Chocolate hazelnut with brownie bits!

We consumed our frozen yogurt as we walked back home and I was ready for bed since I knew I had an early wake up call the next morning.

The best part about being in Boston was that the sun rises early than it does at my home.  The sun was up at 6:10am on Sunday which made my 6am long run start time that much easier.  I had studied the map so many times, written out directions and had my phone so I set out for my 17 miler (with 3 miles at HMP).  It was beautifully quiet as I ran down the streets - I ran through Harvard again and onto the Charles River bike path. 

I was pretty much alone for the first 8 miles and then suddenly the bike path was filled with more and more runners.  I was following this one girl for a very long time.  At the Harvard Bridge, I crossed and headed back.  I am pretty sure I saw the Citgo sign that everyone talks about seeing during the Boston Marathon.

As I finished off my miles on the bike path, I started in on my half marathon pace miles.  The 3 miles to home were my 3 miles at HMP.  I was pretty worried about this part of the run - my legs were tired from all the walking (5+ miles) on Saturday and I just did not have a lot of energy.  I decided to just try and take it one mile at a time.  I managed to get through 2 miles at 7:15 pace so I pushed on for a third mile.  And that is when I got lost.  I missed a turn and was pretty lost for about half a mile.  I had to stop and get out my phone to check where I was.  A little back tracking and I was headed in the right direction.

It was slightly scary for a few minutes there on the run because NOTHING looked familiar and I was at mile 16 of my 17 mile run so I was not exactly able to think the clearest. Thankfully I made it back home and wasn't too lost!  It was a great run and I am glad I got to explore more of the area while on the run.

After the run, I quickly showered so we could get on our way to another day of sightseeing.  Sunday we decided to take the drive up to Portland, Maine and see the area.  Brian and I had never been to Maine so we were excited to visit a new place and my college roommate really wanted to take us to this great restaurant. Sitting in the car for 2 hours was not exactly the best thing for my legs post run, but we did more walking in Portland so I wasn't feeling that bad.

Dinner was at Fore Street in Portland and it was the best food I have had in a long time.  And also some really good wine!  I definitely recommend that if you are ever in Portland, make a reservation and treat yourself to dinner there.  It was well worth the drive.  Plus Maine is just beautiful.

Monday, we packed up our things and headed back home after a wonderful weekend.  I did manage another run around Harvard before I left! It is just so beautiful there to run and I love having sidewalks and other runners around!  Totally different than what I have at home - no sidewalks and very few other runners out while I run. 


Fitting in runs while on vacation (even a mini weekend getaway) can be tough but I am glad I have an understanding husband and friends who helped me to make my visit to Boston even better!

I can't stop buying shoes

I kind of got caught in a down pour this morning on my run. When I first set out, there were some dark clouds in the distance but they looked like they has gone past.  I was at about mile 3 when the clouds over head started to get really dark. Then the rain drops started to fall and by the time I was at mile 4, it was raining so hard I could barely see.  My pace picked up quite a bit as I tried to get home but I was still a mile away.  By the time I reached my driveway, the rain has completely stopped, but I was soaking wet from head to toe.

The 5 miles this morning were pretty easy and I felt good out there running.  Sadly my Ghost 5s are now squishy and filled with water from the down pour.  They are going to have to dry out for a couple of days.  Thankfully I have another pair of shoes that I tried out on Sunday.

  

Brooks Pure Flows!

 

On the recommendation from my running buddy, I picked these new shoes up and decided to give them a try.  Since the Ghost 3s are not longer available I wanted to have an extra pair of shoes just in case the Ghost 5s weren't my favorite.  And the 5s are different from the 3s - they aren't bad but I do miss the Brooks Ghost 3s.

The Flows have a 4mm drop compared to the 12mm drop in the Ghosts.  I was pretty excited to try a more minimalist shoe and my Sunday morning run was a perfect time to try them out.  I had 2.5 miles on the schedule and I enjoyed every minute of it with my new shoes.

I can't really tell the difference in the drop just by looking at the shoe but my feet could tell.  It is hard to describe but with less drop on the shoe, I felt like I was running better.  I am not sure how my form looked or if I was striking my heel less but it did feel good.  As my running buddy says, "These shoes feel good but funny!".  I know that these shoes will take a little bit of adjustment and I plan on slowly working up my mileage in them so my legs and feet can get used to the lesser drop.

Today - a day after the run - my calves aren't that sore (I was warned that I might have sore calves).  In fact, I don't really feel any difference from running in the Flows yesterday.  It seems like the transition into the Flows will be easier than I thought!

It's hot enough for hot shorts

When I first laid my eyes on these hot shorts in the clearance rack at the sporting good store, I knew I was meant to have them on my legs.  We were destined to share many sweaty miles together.  It was love at first sight.

The forecast for this week predicted hot.  Hot and humid and sticky, wear as little clothing as possible to run, pour water over your head, hot.  I knew I needed to wear my new hot shorts.  Perfect.

It was slightly awkward changing into my outfit at work and walking out to my car.  I managed to avoid seeing any people I actually knew but I did get a flew looks from other random employees who saw me sneaking out.

From this - 

To this -

 I was pretty excited to try run in my new shorts. And when I got outside it was hot so I was glad I was wearing them.  Although I love my Nike Tempo shorts, sometimes in the heat and humidity, which is when I tend to sweat the most, the fabric just sticks to me and makes me feel gross and uncomfortable.  None of those problems happen with these shorts because they are spandex and are very fitted. (Plus sometimes I sweat so much in my Nike Tempos, that it looks like I peed my pants. Not Cool.)

Once I got to the track to meet my running club, the sun was beating down and the air was thick.  There may have been an air advisory or something but that really didn't stop me from running.  I did my usual warm up of 2 miles then hit the track for the workout.

7 total miles later, with 6x400m at tempo pace (~7:06 min/mile) and I was soaked with sweat but I felt good.  And the shorts worked out really great - I am even thinking about wearing them in the Boilermaker race in July.

The only downfall (or complaint I have) about these hot shorts (spandex shorts) is that they ride up on me a bit. I seem to have a bit of an irregularly shaped upper thigh/butt area so I don't think that helps much in keeping these shorts in place. But even with that, I love them. And they make me feel fast which is always great, especially when its hot and that usually means running slow.

So even with the heat, I tried to make yesterdays run as awesome as possible.  The heat wave continues until tomorrow, then the temperatures apparently are returning to normal (70F +/- 5F). Either way, I think running in the heat is good practice.  Gets your body used to the heat that is coming in July and August!  Stay cool and stay hydrated!





**These hot shorts are also known as Under Armour spandex compression shorts.  They come in many different colors including black.  I was not given these shorts for any sort of review and the opinion is my own.

Flower City Half race report

Sunday I raced the Flower City half marathon as part of my marathon training schedule.  This was the second year in a row I had run this race.

The morning dawned a cool 30F but sunny.  I made a judgement call and decided to wear less layers since I seem to always overdress for running/races.  My running club racing singlet, arm warmers and capris with gloves and sunglasses were hopefully going to keep me warm enough for the entire 13 miles.

I met up with my running girls and we did a quick mile warm up before removing our sweats and heading to the start line.  I was chilly at first in my skimpy outfit but once we were in the mass of people at the start, it was actually warm.  Soon we were off and running.

As I mentioned before this course was very flat for the first 6 miles and then hilly from mile 6-9 and then flat to the finish.  I had planned to try and keep at 7:20-7:25 pace for the first six miles.  The miles slowly ticked by and we weaved around the empty streets.  I was being passed by a lot of runners at this point but I knew the hills were coming so I held back and didn't push myself.  The sun was shinning and I was just enjoying being out on the course.  I passed Brian around mile 2.5 and made sure to smile!

Around mile 3 I started to feel a little bit fatigued and that worried me.  I had done a small mini taper for this race but there was still a lot of fast miles on my legs.  After about a mile or so I started to feel stronger and better and just pushed on to the hills.

The crowd support going into the hilly portion was awesome and it gave me a little extra boost and I started up the hill.  I tried not to push the pace and just maintain my effort from before.  I lost about 4 seconds on my over all pace on the first large hill.  We entered a steep downhill and I picked up speed as I braced myself and tried to recover before hitting the second hill.  At this point I seriously got confused about the course.  I thought they had changed a section because I didn't remember it from the year prior.  About 2 minutes later I realized where I was and that things had not actually changed.

With three hills left to conquer, I entered the cemetery portion of the race.  I saw Brian again but didn't really acknowledge him because I was focused on not tripping on the cobblestones that lined the hill.  The last thing I wanted was to fall!

At the top of the cobble-stoned hill, I tried to recover quickly but the next hill came fast.  I don't really remember thinking about much at this point except trying to just get through the hills.  Finally I reached the flat portion and tried to pick up speed.  I was feeling great and this point and had actually gained back a second that I had lost through the hill portion.

I was surprised at how good I felt and how good my legs felt.  I had no pain in my legs what so ever, while last year at this point I started to have trouble.  The cemetery portion of this course can get very lonely and boring and although it was not as bad as last year, it still was pretty desolate.  Definitely my least favorite portion of the course.

Once out the cemetery, the crowd support picked up and as I made a right turn I thanked a very cute police man.  Always nice to have some eye candy while running!  At this point I continued to try to pick up my pace without going all out and burning out.  I was seeing my pace slowly drop back closer to 7:20 overall and I was happy.  I was feeling good and continued on until I finally made it to the mile 12 marker.  I couldn't believe that the race was almost over - my legs were still feeling good and my pace was dropping.

The final mile I did my best to smile because I was happy to be racing.  I had enjoyed running the race and knew I was going to PR.  As the finish line came closer and closer, the crowds began to grow and get louder!  Although I had my garmin time, I wasn't really looking at it in the final mile - I was just trying to get to the finish line.  When the clock finally came into view I was very happy to see a 1:36!  My favorite part had to be running with the streets lined with people and finishing while the announcer called my name.

Brian happened to catch me close to the finish - I didn't even see him.  I think this is my favorite photo that he took.  It just shows how good I felt and how strong I finished.  My goal had been to run under 1:37 and I did that and I ran about 5 minutes faster than last year's race and PR. 

Monday and today (Tuesday), I am feeling really good.  I have no soreness and only minimal tightness in my legs.  I think all this high mileage marathon training is actually paying off to help me run faster at the shorter distances and recover faster too!

Post race, I met up with my running girls and we all had brunch together with our significant others.  I had muffin bread french toast and it was the best thing ever.  A great way to refuel after a fun race!

Final Stats:
1:36:30 (7:22 pace)
Place: 166/2252
Female: 37/1299
Age group: 15/280

10 Reasons to become a Spring Morning Runner

It is finally Spring!  Time to come out of gym hibernation and hit the roads for some runs.  This has to be my favorite time of year for running in the morning.  I did a post like this about reasons to run in the predawn during winter, but I think morning running in the spring is a lot more appealing to most people.

1. It is finally light out before 7am (and soon 6am!)

Having the sun rise earlier and earlier makes morning runs more enjoyable because you can see where you are going. And the early sunrise make getting out of bed easier too!

2. You don't need as much clothing as during the winter. 

There's nothing like throwing on a pair of shorts and a long sleeve shirt and heading out the door for a run.  Without spandex and all those heavy layers, it makes running feel easier!

3. Spring running clothes are way cuter than winter running clothes.

Capris, tank tops, shorts, long sleeves.  All these are so much cuter and fun to wear than winter spandex and under armour tops.

4. Since its light out, you don't need to wear that goofy headlamp anymore.

I am so ready to ditch the headlamp (and the hat). And the gloves.

5. Some of the best sunrises happen in the spring. 

There have been so many mornings where I wish I had run with my camera in order to capture the most beautiful sunrise.

6. Persuading your running buddy to run in the AM with you is more likely to happen in the spring when the weather is nice.

Predawn running is even better with a buddy and with the nicer weather, it is easier to meet up for a run.

7. The morning temperatures are more enjoyable than the winter.

I will take 50F or 60F any morning rather than the freezing cold 30F.

8. No more battling snow covered roads and trails.  

Running is more fun when it isn't snowing!  Plus seeing the trees bloom and bring all that vibrant green color back to the world is so amazing.

9. Spring makes running a double workout so much easier.

Squeezing in some AM miles before a PM speed session seems so much more doable when you don't have to go out into the cold, bundled up in tons of clothes. 

10. You start the day off with a caloric deficit.

Best part of morning running! Can't beat burning 400 or 500 (or more) calories before breakfast.  Just means you can eat more cupcakes later!

Happy Spring Morning Running!

Dark and Easy

After a over month "vacation" from running group practices, I headed back last night. I was nervous because a) it was dark outside and b) I was worried about my knee.

The workout:

Easy 20 minute tempo (~2.4 miles)
1x 600m, 400m, 400m (2:49, 1:45, 1:40)
cool down (~1.5 miles)

The tempo portion started slow and then we picked up the pace. Winter running really is unique because you can feel your body get warm. As we ran I could feel the warmth slowly seep into my fingers and legs. Street lights were few and far between which made seeing the uneven sidewalk cement in front of me difficult, but thankfully I didn't fall. The guy in front of me did though, twice. The tempo run was over before I knew it and then we went into the intervals.

We weren't able to do the intervals on the track because the football team was practicing so we ran on the sidewalk. Not exactly your most ideal spot to do intervals but we made it work. I had no idea what pace we were running, I just followed the group and hoped that my legs would keep up. And they did. Which I was really happy about. I know I have lost some speed but it doesn't really feel like that much.

After a quick cool down, where my knee/IT band started screaming towards the end, I headed home. I reached my mileage limit for the night of 4.7 miles but I felt pretty good. Today though I am sore and my legs feel like lead. There will definitely be some inconspicuous stretching done in my cube today. Maybe even some icing too.

I will leave you will one picture that I managed to obtain from the Brightroom photography website from the half marathon in September! This is at mile 11ish and I actually don't look as bad as I was feeling at that exact moment! Have a great day!

Tuesday Double

I wish I could say that I did a double run yesterday but sadly I only did a double gym workout.

Morning workout:
10 minute warm up on the elliptical
2 mile treadmill run
20 minutes seated elliptical (my new favorite XT machine!)

Afternoon workout:
15 minute seated elliptical warm up
30 minutes of weights/stretching

After the gym, I met up with my best friend and maid of honor, Kaylie. She is getting married in July 2011 and I am her maid of honor! We went to a Inspiration Board Color Workshop put on by a local Wedding events coordinator company! The place was decorated with all kinds of wedding inspiration. They even had actual bouquets made up, along with centerpieces so you could get ideas to use for your own wedding!



It was a great way to spend a Tuesday night! How did you spend your Tuesday?

Fact or Fiction?

October seems to be the month of marathons and once the race is finished that means taking some rest days. I have never run a marathon and live vicariously through every other blogger that trains and runs marathons. So after you finish those grueling 26.2 miles, how many days do you take off?

After I ran my first 15k race in the summer of 2005, a friend told me that I should take off the same number of days that I had just raced. That seemed like a bit much and it always perplexed me where that philosophy had come from.

So I did some researching online and found this on Hal Higdon's website:

Generally, it takes a minimum of two to three weeks for the body to recover from the strain of running 26 miles 385 yards. Return too quickly and you increase your risk of injury. Some experts suggest resting one day for every mile you run in the marathon, thus 26 days of no hard running or racing!

Has anyone else heard of this idea of resting a day for every mile raced? How many days do you rest after a race?

Why do I run? (and some books to read)

This post has been along time coming. I decided to post it because I read Amanda's post yesterday on reasons to run.

When you don't run for 3 months straight, you begin to ponder why you were even running in the first place. Strange thoughts would creep into my head while I drove home from a tough day at work, "Do I even miss running at all?"

At first the knee pain was so great that running was a horrible experience. And honestly I did not miss running. But once the pain faded and I still didn't have this urge to get out on the road, I wondered why didn't I miss running? It had been my favorite source of fitness for almost 5+ years, so what went wrong?

Slowly I began to remember why I love to run. It started when I came across this post by Amy and it really hit home with me. I hadn't had the same experience as her, but I understood.

A week or so later I came across this video with Kara Goucher on The Laminators Blog and it reminded me of why I love to run.

Then I saw this article on Runners World about staying in decent shape all year round. After reading it, I knew that is what I wanted to do. I wanted to just run - run for fun and enjoy every minute of it but be able to race if I felt like it.

And I know that many of you already do this but this whole summer and fall has been a transition for me. I always was preparing for some race or season and now my life is wide open with no deadlines.

So I think that the reason I love to run is because of the way I feel while running - its not totally about the racing or competition. Its about getting up when everyone is asleep and being out on the roads alone with my thoughts. Its about finding new routes and exploring new places.

I want to have fun when I run and so I am not sure that I will be following a training schedule anytime soon. When I trained for basketball in college I would just run each morning and decide the distance and pace depending on how my body felt. I would listen to my heart and just know what would be good for that day.

So....why do you run?

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Switching gears now - it is Wednesday and I have been slacking on my Literary Wednesday! I was able to get to the Library on Saturday for some new books! I got caught in the 'C' area of the fiction section and grabbed four books.

Snow Angel by Jamie Carrie
The Chocolate Snowman Murders by Joanna Carl
Sarah by Orson Scott Card
The Various Flavors of Coffee by Anthony Capella

I have only started the first one so far but I thought it was fun to get books all by authors with last names starting with 'C'. I totally judge books by their covers and titles so hopefully these ones will turn out to be good!

Happy Wednesday!!

First Day of June

Its a new month!! One step closer to summer...the funny part is that the weather hasn't been feeling like summer here at all! It was barely 60 degrees and cold yesterday and today it isn't much better.

So I am headed to Florida on Saturday and I have been checking the weather down there. It looks like its going to be high 80s or 90s for most of my trip. I guess I will be getting up super early to make sure I get my runs in before it gets hot. Anyone live down there? If I ran at 6 or 7am will I survive?? Will I even be able to get up that early on vacation!!??

Over the weekend (Saturday) I completed my first long run. 6 whole miles! I went slow because my legs were still tired from the 3.5 mile race on Thursday and the 800m repeats at the track Friday (not a good choice 12 hours after a race!). Currently I am living at my parents house and there are a ton of hills! It seems like no matter which way I go I am always running up a hill for the majority of the run!!

I took Sunday off from running and this morning I ran 3.7 miles. Those miles once again were tough. Not sure what happened but I got through them. With about a mile left I finally felt good. Maybe it was because I waited over an hour after I got up to start the run this morning and I didn't have anything to eat before I left!

See the thing is that I am trying something new over here with my eating habits. Its very personalized and I am trying to figure out what works best for me. Basically I am trying to eat more protein and cut back on the carbs. I use TheDailyPlate.com and I have been tracking everything I eat. Previously I was consuming a minimum of 400 grams of carbs a day. Now I am trying to cut way back and see how it affects me and my running. Today is my fourth day on this eating plan and I am still experimenting. After a week I think I will evaluate my progress and the pros and cons of eating less carbs!

That is all I got for today! Congrats to all the SD marathoners out there! You all did fabulous!!

Happy Monday!

Bump on a Log

Ok so I graduated....and it was AMAZING!! Seriously one of the best times of my life. In all the pictures I have this ridiculous smile on my face! It is the biggest smile EVER!!

Friday was convocation where all the graduates gathered and the president spoke to us and stuff like that. It wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be and I actually enjoyed it.

Saturday afternoon was the official commencement/graduation ceremony and my whole family was there as well as B-Rabbits fam. B and I have very similar last names so we actually got to sit next to each other at the ceremony (they make you sit alphabetical) and I graduated first and then him. The feeling of walking across the stage was so exhilarating!

Sunday I had to pack up the remaining things in my school apartment and head home to my parents house. I have my new apartment...but it doesn't have a bed yet or any other furniture for my room. I said good-bye to my roommate Scottie and it was one of the hardest moments. I have lived with him for 3 years now and he is one of my best friends that it is hard to imagine life without him. He is now in Boston which isn't that far so hopefully I will be able to go and visit him!

Now it has been over 4 days since graduation and I have been a total bump on a log (except for running). It feels great just to sit around and relax finally. I don't start my job until June 29th and on June 6th I am headed to Florida with the family!! Thanks for reading! I have been trying to stay on top of reading blogs! Hope everyone is having a great week!
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Running Recap:

Last Wednesday - 6x400m repeats this morning. Finally my legs felt rested and not heavy. Took me a whole 5 days to recovery from the track meet. It was beautiful outside, very sunny and I was alone on the track. Perfect! (times = 84, 85, 85, 87, 85, 84 seconds)

Thursday - ummm, I may have been drinking Wednesday night so no running! hehe

Friday - 3 miles....blahh...I need to drink more water!

Saturday and Sunday = no running

Monday - 3 miles...back at home where there are tons of hills! ewww

Tuesday - 35 minute tempo run. I think I am getting the hang of this. Last week I did about 1.3 miles of tempo running and this time I did 2.45 miles of tempo running. I am slowly building up my miles

Wednesday aka Today - Went to the local high school track and apparently you cant use it even if you are a resident. WTF!! So today is a rest day. Tomorrow is the Corporate Challange (held at my alma mater..heeheh...thats weird to say) and I will be running it as a rebel! Track workout rescheduled for Friday morning!

Spring Rain

My training schedule called for a run and some hills yesterday and although it was a super fabulous day outside I decided to put off the run until today.

I had looked at the weather so I knew it was supposed to rain today and that kind of excited me.

I wanted a rain run, I was craving a rain run!!

The only problem facing me before this run was that my hip was aching and kind of hurt. I set out for a nice long warm up and followed a 3 mile loop. At around 2 miles it started to sprinkle and at the 2.5 mile mark I got to "the hill".

I did 7 hills and it was raining up a storm!! I was completely drenched before I even had two hills done! But it was totally awesome - I was all by myself, just me and the rain!

Funny thing - the hips feels better now that I went for a run. I feel like my hip has its own personality! Or I just needed to stretch and get the muscles going in my hip! I hope everyone had a great weekend!


**I finished my book - For Women Only and it was really good. Not everything applied to me but it did help me understand men better and how men sometimes perceive things differently than women!!

Annoying Roommate, Running in Groups and Books

It's a Wednesday morning and I am already annoyed with my roommate. We don't technically share a room, just the bathroom, kitchen and living room but this girl is the most inconsiderate person I have ever lived with.

She has class at 10am but every morning she wakes up at about 7am and proceeds to bang around the apartment waking me up. She takes F-O-R-E-V-E-R to get ready and always leaves a mess behind. I am trying not to be passive aggressive but it is really hard. Currently if she leaves something out in a place where it doesn't belong I proceed to hide it! I can't wait for April Fools day - this is going to be good!

Now that I got my rant out of the way, on to running - Current workouts have included lots of running!

Monday -
warm up 1/2 mile
1x350m FAST (58 seconds)
2x200m FAST ( 30-32 seconds each)
cool down 1 mile

Tuesday -
warm up 1/2 mile
8x400m at 70% (about 90 seconds for each 400m with 3 minutes rest)
cool down 1/2 mile

The hip flexor was tender after yesterdays 400s, so I am going to go light today.

So I promised to talk about my running experience with a group yesterday but I got side tracked so here it is today.

Recently I have been trying to coordinate with my coach a way to train for Heptathlon. It is really difficult trying to fit in 7 different events. I was feeling discouraged as my coach told me that I would have to do the running workouts on my own. I never want to go back to doing sprint workouts with a group or partner. The decrease of intensity that results from running alone is very discouraging. (Thankfully my coach and I worked things out so I can still run with the sprinter girls).

This is why I have been contemplating joining a local running/track club after I graduate. The guy who runs the club is a neighbor of my parents and I am really looking forward to having people to run with. I even considered coming back to my college next year just to run with Abby and Jill and Alison (my track teammates). I am not sure exactly what the future holds but I cannot say enough about running with a group. Not only is there a social aspect and great friends to be made but having others to run with for track workouts helps to keep me honest and to push me to become a better runner.

I really could go on and on about this but I have to get ready for school. Happy Running!


Current Book I am reading -
For Women Only by Shaunti Feldhahn
A friend recommended this book and so far it is pretty interesting -

From amazon.com -
What’s going on in a man’s mind? From their early days, every woman has struggled to understand why males behave the way they do. Even long-married women who think they understand men have only scratched the surface. Beneath a man’s rugged exterior is an even more rugged, unmapped terrain. What bestselling author Shaunti Feldhahn’s research reveals about the inner lives of men will open women’s eyes to what the men in their life—boyfriends, brothers, husbands, and sons—are really thinking and feeling. Men want to be understood, but they’re afraid to “freak out” the women they love by confessing what is happening inside their heads. This book will guide women in how to provide the loving support that modern men want and need.

(they also have a For Men Only book too!!)

Hills

I sit now at my desk, in front of my computer enjoying a cup of coffee and my regular oatmeal and raisins breakfast. I love oatmeal.

This weekend B-Rabbit and I took a little trip and visited his sister and brother in-law and also saw some of my relatives. We arrived mid-afternoon Friday and proceeded to watch basketball all night long. I started watching the Siena vs. Ohio State game, then took a little nap in the second half. It was as if I knew I would need my strength - when the game went into overtime I was full of energy!

Saturday morning I woke up and went for a cold run. The sun was out but the air was quite chilly. I ran for a warm up of about 0.7 miles then started doing some hills. When I run hills with the girls team we sprint up the hill then walk down it and rest until we are fully recovered before starting the next hill.

For running hills on my own I sprinted up the hill then proceeded to jog down. Once I reached the bottom I would rest about 2 seconds then start the hill again (this way my hip or muscles didn't tighten up). I did about 6 hills before cooling down for about 0.7 miles. I felt like I could have done more (last week I did 4 hills with slight hip pain) but I didn't want to push it.

As I was running I was wondering what you all do for hills. My hill distance was just over 0.1 mile. How far do you usually run up a hill? Do you stop at the bottom and rest or just keep going? How many repeats do you do??

Anyway, the rest of the weekend was filled with family fun! I took Sunday off because it had been about 9 consecutive days of running or "active-ness" and I felt the hip needed a break.

I mentioned in my last post that I feel there are real advantages to having a group or partner for speed workouts. Stay-tuned I plan on talking about this tomorrow with gory details from my experiences!!

Happy Monday!

Friday Fun

I woke up this morning and met up with my teammate Jill to do the workout. I am heading out soon to visit family for the weekend and I wanted to make sure I got my workout in.

I am so glad that Jill ran with me - It just re-emphasizes why running speed workouts with a partner or group is an AWESOME idea! More on this subject later ;)

We did the usual warm up and then did 2x300m at 90%.

#1 - 50.35 seconds then rest 12 minutes
#2 - 51.54 seconds

When we did this workout a few months ago I wasn't able to run my second one as fast. I can't seem to find the post where I mentioned it so I will have to check my running log later.

B-Rabbit is getting impatient with me cause we were suppose to be on the road at noon and it is 12:04 now! opps!!

Have a good weekend and enjoy the warm weather!!

Outdoor Track

Hello OUTDOOR TRACK!!

Yesterday was the second day I ran with my new shoes. Sunday I went to the track with B-Rabbit and we did some 400m repeats. He didn't like running that much so he decided that he was going to be my "Sprinting Coach"! He may know how to sprint in swimming but he still has a few things to learn about sprinting in running!! He made me do a bunch of drills to work on my speed though which was a really good idea!

Monday I went to practice and I must say that I looked SUPER cute in my target capri running pants and white T and dark maroon running jacket. Usually I just throw clothes on for practice but this time I just wanted to look cute. Maybe it is just a girl thing - some days we just want to look good!! It was a bit windy but the sun shone and I was just so happy to be running with my girls again!

We did a intense workout -
500m, rest 2 minutes
120m all out, rest 10 minutes
400m, rest 2 minutes
120m all out, rest 8 minutes
300m, rest 2 minutes
120m all out, rest 6 minutes
200m, rest 2 minutes
200 all out

I felt great! The hip was "uncomfortable" at times and I talked to my friend who had the same injury over Christmas and she said that it was common and lasted a few weeks but got better!

We ROCKED the intervals!
500m in 99 seconds
400m in 76 seconds (insane - didn't even feel that fast!)
300m in 53.5 seconds (2 seconds faster than I ran during an indoor workout!)
(the 120m were just run, we didn't time them)

I did not run the 2x200m sprints because I could feel my hip getting tired. I don't want to get injured again.

Ok heres the pictures of my new shoes! I have a surprise - I bought new sprinting spikes!!! I fell in love with them as soon as I saw them!

My new lovely Asics! Aren't they pretty!!

My NEW pink Sprinting Spikes! Holy Hot PINK!! They are bright!

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!!! Today it supposed to be almost 60 degrees! How about that for Spring?