Run, of course! I slept in this morning, but it ended up working out just fine. I got out of work on time, went home, changed clothes and then went for a run. I was planning on running about 7 miles today, which is the distance from my apartment, once around the Park loop and then back home again. The weather was just perfect tonight for a great run.
I guess I wasn't the only person who thought that! I saw lots and lots of other runners out tonight. It seemed like there were lots of groups of people, but I saw a couple I know who are training for the NYC marathon out running. Thinking about how close the NYC marathon is just reminds me how close my marathon is. Which makes me a little bit nervous, if I'm being totally honest. I'm also 99% sure I saw Megan out running with her CPTC buddies.
I felt pretty good, but my feet and my Achilles felt a little bit off today. I actually thought that it might have had something to do with my socks (I was wearing some new ones that I've never worn before), but then I realized it wasn't my socks, it was my shoes. Traditionally, I never get as many miles out of them as some other people do, but I'm actually at the higher end of the miles, so I'm actually a bit surprised I didn't have any other twinges over the past few runs.
The worst part about all this is, well, two things. First, the new shoes are pink. REALLY pink. Embarrassingly pink. A little bit fluorescent pink. I will admit, there might have been a stage of my life where I really liked pink, but not any more. I'm hoping to get these shoes really dirty really quickly to take some of the edge off. Second, I was planning on taking tomorrow off and then doing a long run this weekend and I'm not sure I want to do that in my new shoes. I don't really have any concerns about the shoes not being broken in or anything like that, but I'm also not sure I want to spend the first several miles out of my long run adjusting my speed laces.
Today's run was really great. I don't know if it was that I saw so many other people out there running. Some running group was obviously doing Harlem Hill repeats and as they passed each other they were calling out "great job" to everyone else they passed, including me. So that was a nice little boost! The weather was perfect and aside from my shoe issues I felt great.
As I got towards the end of the run, I really tried to pick up the pace. In fact, I ran the last half mile (in the Park)at a 8:14/mile pace. Not too shabby, I think! I actually wore my heart rate monitor again tonight for the first time in about three weeks. My heart rate was definitely highest toward the end of the run, a good sign that I was pushing myself with just about everything I had left in the tank for the night.
I know that running at night isn't always the right option for me, especially since I feel like it's hanging over my head all day and I worry about getting out of work in time, but sometimes it's just a really nice change!
Running
Time: 1:12:53
Distance: 7.20 miles
Pace: 10:07/mile
Calories: 683
Average HR: 193
Maximum HR: 170
Showing posts with label Central Loop. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Central Loop. Show all posts
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Jingle Jangle Morning
This morning was a chilly one here in the Big Apple. I'm thinking that Fall might finally be here to stay, which is a bit of a bummer. Even though the summer was brutally hot, I really prefer that to fall and winter. Oh well. I dragged myself out of bed this morning to go running. In truth, I actually got up yesterday, put on running clothes and then got back into bed wearing all my running clothes, including socks and hat and went back to bed for another hour and a half. So, I guess that just proves that getting dressed isn't half the battle. Getting yourself out the door is!
I managed to get out the door today, so that seems like a good first step. I think I'll still be okay in the miles department. I was always sort-of planning on having a step-back week this week since Drew's parents and sister will be visiting starting tomorrow. On tap for today was 5 miles. I don't really have a good 5-mile route. Which is funny because there is a really good 5 mile route in the Park, but I've been including the mileage running to and from the Park and I can't quite get it to work out perfectly yet.
So, I ran to the Park and was wearing shorts and a long-sleeved shirt. I had been thinking of wearing a thin one, but when I realized that it was still pretty chilly, I decided on a thicker one that had a back pocket. I stuck my keys in there and they jingled along the whole time I was running. Which, I'm going to be honest, was sort-of annoying. And immediately this song got stuck in my head. While I really like the song, I could only think of the phrase "in the jingle jangle morning I'll come following you". It's a lot better when you can think of more words to repeat, I think.
There was actually a second jingle jangle incident this morning. I'm running down the west side of the road in the Park and I hear someone ringing and ringing a bike bell. I didn't really think anything of it because I was in the running lane. But, a guy comes up behind me on his bike and yells, "HEY!" and then proceeds to keep riding in the running lane. I know I'm a pretty big stickler on the rules and while that is the bike lane when cars are allowed in the Park, in the early morning and at night when there are no cars, it's for pedestrians! Of course, I felt obligated to yell after the biker and tell him the rules, which only makes me look crazy, I think.
I decided not to run all the way home since I knew that I'd already gone well over 5 miles and it was getting late and I don't do well with pedestrian traffic on the sidewalks, so I just walked home from the Park. Worked out pretty well overall, though!
Running
Time: 59:01
Distance: 5.65 miles
Pace: 10:26/mile
Still enjoying the Wardrobe Challenge. Pretty sure that both Monday and Tuesday's outfits are new ones (combos not yet worn), which seems impressive to me this late in the game.
Monday, Day 22: Black short-sleeved sweater, gray skirt. Worn with black flats (although I did bring heels to work, I never changed). I also wore the new necklace Drew got me in Germany, but again didn't take a close-up.
Tuesday, Day 23: Gray t-shirt and black pants. I wasn't actually planning on wearing this shirt again so soon, but I forgot that it was flu-shot day at work and it seemed best to be wearing short-sleeves. Only accessory today were glasses. And I'm standing in the other direction because Drew made fun of me recently for always having the same pose, so I switched it up!
Wednesday, Day 24: Purple long-sleeved shirt and black mini skirt. Worn with black fishnet stockings. I was going to wear different tights, but when I put them on they had a hole the size of my fist, which didn't seem ideal, so these got second prize. And, although they're not pictured, I am wearing my elephant hair earrings. I also brought the black v-neck sweater to wear over this as a "jacket" to work. I'm going out later and didn't actually want to have a jacket, so that's the reason for the layers.
I managed to get out the door today, so that seems like a good first step. I think I'll still be okay in the miles department. I was always sort-of planning on having a step-back week this week since Drew's parents and sister will be visiting starting tomorrow. On tap for today was 5 miles. I don't really have a good 5-mile route. Which is funny because there is a really good 5 mile route in the Park, but I've been including the mileage running to and from the Park and I can't quite get it to work out perfectly yet.
So, I ran to the Park and was wearing shorts and a long-sleeved shirt. I had been thinking of wearing a thin one, but when I realized that it was still pretty chilly, I decided on a thicker one that had a back pocket. I stuck my keys in there and they jingled along the whole time I was running. Which, I'm going to be honest, was sort-of annoying. And immediately this song got stuck in my head. While I really like the song, I could only think of the phrase "in the jingle jangle morning I'll come following you". It's a lot better when you can think of more words to repeat, I think.
There was actually a second jingle jangle incident this morning. I'm running down the west side of the road in the Park and I hear someone ringing and ringing a bike bell. I didn't really think anything of it because I was in the running lane. But, a guy comes up behind me on his bike and yells, "HEY!" and then proceeds to keep riding in the running lane. I know I'm a pretty big stickler on the rules and while that is the bike lane when cars are allowed in the Park, in the early morning and at night when there are no cars, it's for pedestrians! Of course, I felt obligated to yell after the biker and tell him the rules, which only makes me look crazy, I think.
I decided not to run all the way home since I knew that I'd already gone well over 5 miles and it was getting late and I don't do well with pedestrian traffic on the sidewalks, so I just walked home from the Park. Worked out pretty well overall, though!
Running
Time: 59:01
Distance: 5.65 miles
Pace: 10:26/mile
Still enjoying the Wardrobe Challenge. Pretty sure that both Monday and Tuesday's outfits are new ones (combos not yet worn), which seems impressive to me this late in the game.
Monday, Day 22: Black short-sleeved sweater, gray skirt. Worn with black flats (although I did bring heels to work, I never changed). I also wore the new necklace Drew got me in Germany, but again didn't take a close-up.
Tuesday, Day 23: Gray t-shirt and black pants. I wasn't actually planning on wearing this shirt again so soon, but I forgot that it was flu-shot day at work and it seemed best to be wearing short-sleeves. Only accessory today were glasses. And I'm standing in the other direction because Drew made fun of me recently for always having the same pose, so I switched it up!
Wednesday, Day 24: Purple long-sleeved shirt and black mini skirt. Worn with black fishnet stockings. I was going to wear different tights, but when I put them on they had a hole the size of my fist, which didn't seem ideal, so these got second prize. And, although they're not pictured, I am wearing my elephant hair earrings. I also brought the black v-neck sweater to wear over this as a "jacket" to work. I'm going out later and didn't actually want to have a jacket, so that's the reason for the layers.
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Can You Call It Marathon Training?
If you don't have a plan? Because that's what happened this morning. I'm thinking that I'd like to do something like run Tuesday and Wednesday, brick on Thursdays, long run Saturday and quick recovery on Sunday. That might all end up being too much running and I'm sure there are weeks where it won't work out perfectly, but I still have to find a plan that fits in with that and I really need a plan so that I can figure out the weekly mileage goals I should have!
I went to Terrier practice this morning and figured I'd just do whatever that workout was and call it a day. After doing our normal strides, we were told that the regular workout was a 4-5 mile tempo run. We should start out easy and then try to pick up the pace for the last 15-20 minutes. I'm not entirely sure I did that, but I tried.
While I was running today and saw all of my teammates pass me by in a hurry, I was thinking about what I had gotten myself into by signing up for this marathon. The good news is that I don't have any illusions about winning or placing in my age group or anything like that. I'd also like to think that I won't be the last person to finish the race. I guess, the truth is, that even if I am DFL, I will have still finished, right?
I think that is my main goal for this first marathon of mine. To not worry about a time goal, but to reach the finish line. I think that'll take a lot of pressure off my back to be speedy or feel like I'm not speedy enough if I can get through this first marathon. Then, next year at New York, I can worry about beating my own personal record. Maybe that's a extra great reason to take it slow in Philly! Then I can crush my PR next year in New York!
Run #1 (To The Park)
Time: 12:50
Distance: 1.25 miles
Pace: 10:16/mile
Calories: 100
Maximum HR: 165 (78%)
Average HR: 153 (72%)
Run #2 (Tempo Run)
Time: 44:52
Distance: 4.50 miles
Pace: 9:58/mile
Calories: 414
Maximum HR: 180 (85%)
Average HR: 169 (80%)
I went to Terrier practice this morning and figured I'd just do whatever that workout was and call it a day. After doing our normal strides, we were told that the regular workout was a 4-5 mile tempo run. We should start out easy and then try to pick up the pace for the last 15-20 minutes. I'm not entirely sure I did that, but I tried.
While I was running today and saw all of my teammates pass me by in a hurry, I was thinking about what I had gotten myself into by signing up for this marathon. The good news is that I don't have any illusions about winning or placing in my age group or anything like that. I'd also like to think that I won't be the last person to finish the race. I guess, the truth is, that even if I am DFL, I will have still finished, right?
I think that is my main goal for this first marathon of mine. To not worry about a time goal, but to reach the finish line. I think that'll take a lot of pressure off my back to be speedy or feel like I'm not speedy enough if I can get through this first marathon. Then, next year at New York, I can worry about beating my own personal record. Maybe that's a extra great reason to take it slow in Philly! Then I can crush my PR next year in New York!
Run #1 (To The Park)
Time: 12:50
Distance: 1.25 miles
Pace: 10:16/mile
Calories: 100
Maximum HR: 165 (78%)
Average HR: 153 (72%)
Run #2 (Tempo Run)
Time: 44:52
Distance: 4.50 miles
Pace: 9:58/mile
Calories: 414
Maximum HR: 180 (85%)
Average HR: 169 (80%)
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
First, It's Humid Out
This morning Drew and I rolled out of bed and headed to the Park. I was off for my regularly scheduled Terrier run and Drew had to be at work early so he was going to go for a quick run instead of heading to the gym. We walked to the bottom of the Park and then ran north so that I could meet my people. I got to the meeting place a few minutes early and after running for less than seven minutes, I was dripping with sweat. It looked like I had swam to the meeting spot instead of running there.
We did our normal strides plus a couple of extras. I'd guess that today's strides were about 0.70 miles instead of the normal 0.50 miles. After doing the strides, Spencer had us all gather round to explain the workout for today. Again, I went with the Sprint/Olympic group instead of doing anything more. After he explained what we were doing, he said, "First, it's humid out, so your heart rate will be more elevated than usual. Second, be sure to get something in you as soon as you get home to replace all that you'll be sweating out!" I'm not sure that as I was standing there soaking wet I really needed someone to remind me that it was humid out!
The workout for that group was to do a 4-mile interval run with 2:00 running and then recovery jog in place for 1:30 until we got to the northwest corner of the 102nd Street Transverse and then we would switch to 2:00 on and 0:45 recovery jogging in place. I was talking about this with Laura and we were discussing the different types of intervals. Basically, what we did was run for 2:00 hard (at 90%) and then draw an imaginary line in the road and jog in place for 1:30 (or 0:45). Some people use this opportunity to just stand around, but I really did keep moving around during the recovery time, but I didn't make any forward progress.
I started out running with 2 other girls and actually hung with them for the first half of the workout, which was pretty impressive for me (since I'm definitely one of the slowest people on the team). We ended up doing 8 x 2:00 running with 7 x 1:30 recovery, which was 2.15 miles in 16 minutes of running (or a 7:26/mile pace).
Um, hello? What in the hell was I doing running that fast? Granted there were the rest breaks in between, but it was active recovery rest and seriously? Less than 8 minutes a mile? Who do I think I am? Maybe I really was swimming out there after all. It's the only logical explanation for my speediness.
After getting to the corner of the 102nd Transverse where we were supposed to switch to the shorter rest intervals, the other two girls went a bit ahead of me, which was fine. Eliminating that extra recovery was definitely noticeable! I finished up with 9 x 2:00 running with 9 x 0:45 recovery, which was 18 minutes of running (or a 9:13/mile pace). I knew I had slowed down a lot on the second half of the run, but I'm still pretty pleased with that pace. I'm guessing I could have pushed myself harder and kept up for the remainder of the run, but my left calf started to get a little crampy and I figured that I was in need of some electrolytes, so I should just finish at my own pace.
I also timed my walk home, just out of curiosity, really. I had taken my watch off my wrist while doing the intervals because it's a lot easier for me to look at it when I'm holding it in my hand than it is to keep turning my wrist. I also changed the HR setting so that it would show up in percentages instead of numbers so I could really concentrate on keeping my HR up at the 90% mark for the running intervals. So, I was curious to see what my HR would be while just walking home after a hard workout. Still pretty high up there.
Oh, and as an aside, I seem to have discovered a new way of sleeping that makes my left elbow (the formerly broken one) the main pressure point of my body resting on the bed. I've woken up the past few days lying on top of it and then saying to myself, "my elbow hurts." I'm hoping that some of that is humidity related (?) and that when it cools off over the next couple days, my elbow will react better.
Run There
Time: 6:39
Distance: 0.70 miles
Pace: 9:30/mile
Calories: 63
Maximum HR: 186 (88%)
Average HR: 170 (80%)
Interval Run
Time: 34:00
Distance: 4.10 miles
Pace: 8:17/mile
Calories: 561
Maximum HR: 201 (95%)
Average HR: 184 (87%)
Walk Home
Time: 15:04
Distance: 0.80 miles
Pace: 18:49/mile
Calories: 115
Maximum HR: 164 (77%)
Average HR: 149 (70%)
We did our normal strides plus a couple of extras. I'd guess that today's strides were about 0.70 miles instead of the normal 0.50 miles. After doing the strides, Spencer had us all gather round to explain the workout for today. Again, I went with the Sprint/Olympic group instead of doing anything more. After he explained what we were doing, he said, "First, it's humid out, so your heart rate will be more elevated than usual. Second, be sure to get something in you as soon as you get home to replace all that you'll be sweating out!" I'm not sure that as I was standing there soaking wet I really needed someone to remind me that it was humid out!
The workout for that group was to do a 4-mile interval run with 2:00 running and then recovery jog in place for 1:30 until we got to the northwest corner of the 102nd Street Transverse and then we would switch to 2:00 on and 0:45 recovery jogging in place. I was talking about this with Laura and we were discussing the different types of intervals. Basically, what we did was run for 2:00 hard (at 90%) and then draw an imaginary line in the road and jog in place for 1:30 (or 0:45). Some people use this opportunity to just stand around, but I really did keep moving around during the recovery time, but I didn't make any forward progress.
I started out running with 2 other girls and actually hung with them for the first half of the workout, which was pretty impressive for me (since I'm definitely one of the slowest people on the team). We ended up doing 8 x 2:00 running with 7 x 1:30 recovery, which was 2.15 miles in 16 minutes of running (or a 7:26/mile pace).
Um, hello? What in the hell was I doing running that fast? Granted there were the rest breaks in between, but it was active recovery rest and seriously? Less than 8 minutes a mile? Who do I think I am? Maybe I really was swimming out there after all. It's the only logical explanation for my speediness.
After getting to the corner of the 102nd Transverse where we were supposed to switch to the shorter rest intervals, the other two girls went a bit ahead of me, which was fine. Eliminating that extra recovery was definitely noticeable! I finished up with 9 x 2:00 running with 9 x 0:45 recovery, which was 18 minutes of running (or a 9:13/mile pace). I knew I had slowed down a lot on the second half of the run, but I'm still pretty pleased with that pace. I'm guessing I could have pushed myself harder and kept up for the remainder of the run, but my left calf started to get a little crampy and I figured that I was in need of some electrolytes, so I should just finish at my own pace.
I also timed my walk home, just out of curiosity, really. I had taken my watch off my wrist while doing the intervals because it's a lot easier for me to look at it when I'm holding it in my hand than it is to keep turning my wrist. I also changed the HR setting so that it would show up in percentages instead of numbers so I could really concentrate on keeping my HR up at the 90% mark for the running intervals. So, I was curious to see what my HR would be while just walking home after a hard workout. Still pretty high up there.
Oh, and as an aside, I seem to have discovered a new way of sleeping that makes my left elbow (the formerly broken one) the main pressure point of my body resting on the bed. I've woken up the past few days lying on top of it and then saying to myself, "my elbow hurts." I'm hoping that some of that is humidity related (?) and that when it cools off over the next couple days, my elbow will react better.
Run There
Time: 6:39
Distance: 0.70 miles
Pace: 9:30/mile
Calories: 63
Maximum HR: 186 (88%)
Average HR: 170 (80%)
Interval Run
Time: 34:00
Distance: 4.10 miles
Pace: 8:17/mile
Calories: 561
Maximum HR: 201 (95%)
Average HR: 184 (87%)
Walk Home
Time: 15:04
Distance: 0.80 miles
Pace: 18:49/mile
Calories: 115
Maximum HR: 164 (77%)
Average HR: 149 (70%)
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Is That A Triathlon Bag?
First, I'd just like to pat myself on the back for working out 4 days in a row. Something that hasn't happened in quite a long time. I definitely had to fight with myself to get out of bed this morning. Drew was working late again last night and had to be at work early again today, so it was very tempting to want to stay cuddled up with him. Instead, I got up and got ready for my brick workout.
Of course, when I get there and the first thing that Robert says when explaining the workout is, "this workout is designed to be hard", I just inwardly groaned. My legs already felt like jello just riding my bike to the Park this morning and I'm really trying to save something in them for my NYRR run tonight. Not to mention it was 80 degrees outside at 5 AM.
The format of the workout was 0.5 mile run followed by 4 miles biking. Rinse and repeat as often as you can for the next 90 minutes. I ended up doing three runs and three bikes. I was doing okay for the first run and the first bike. The second run was tough because we were supposed to be thinking about going faster each time, and I really thought about it then. (Please note that I often think about running faster, it just doesn't always happen). By the time I got back on the bike the second time, my legs were just burning.
I decided that in the interest of this run later tonight, I would back off a bit and use easier gears, which would sacrifice some speed, but I'd still get the miles in. Then I did the third run and realized that I should start wrapping things up for the day. I decided to do a third bike, but to really just use the opportunity to spin my legs out and take it easy on the way. So, I did the last 4 mile loop on the bike and then headed home.
As I was doing the last four mile loop on the bike, a guy on roller blades came up next to me and asked me if that was a triathlon bag on my back. I had my bright green Publix bag with me that I got at the Atlanta Half-Marathon Expo. I have to say, it's a great bag! It's got strips of reflective stuff down both sides, which is great for riding in the street and it also has a front pocket.
I was a bit thrown off when he asked me if my bag was a triathlon bag. Yes, I had it with me because I was doing a brick, which is triathlon related. But, I got the bag at a half-marathon expo. To me, it's mostly just a handy bag to cart my running shoes around it. And I guess if I was going to think of a triathlon bag, I'd think about one of those big transition backpacks, not this little drawstring bag that I've got! To me it's just a Publix bag. Not sport-specific.
I did pack my running stuff for tonight in the same Publix bag, so I guess maybe that makes it not a triathlon bag? Either way, I'm excited about this race tonight. It's downtown, so it'll be fun to do a race that's not in the Park. The high here today is 93 and they are saying that we have the potential for some thunderstorms later today, so I'm hoping that I don't get drenched, although that might be preferable to just regular 93 degree weather? My goal for tonight is just to run the whole race. I'm not going out there to set some sort of speed record for myself, I just want to be able to run three miles and have fun!
Running
Time: 13:27 (Run 1: 4:28 / Run 2: 4:24 / Run 3: 4:35)
Distance: 1.50 miles
Pace: 8:58/mile
Calories: 129
Maximum HR: 185 (87%)
Average HR: 174 (82%)
Biking
Time: 51:37 (Bike 1: 16:02 / Bike 2: 16:30 / Bike 3: 19:05)
Distance: 12.50 miles (14.87 miles total)
Pace: 14.50 MPH average
Calories: 446
Maximum HR: 176 (83%)
Average HR: 161 (76%)
Of course, when I get there and the first thing that Robert says when explaining the workout is, "this workout is designed to be hard", I just inwardly groaned. My legs already felt like jello just riding my bike to the Park this morning and I'm really trying to save something in them for my NYRR run tonight. Not to mention it was 80 degrees outside at 5 AM.
The format of the workout was 0.5 mile run followed by 4 miles biking. Rinse and repeat as often as you can for the next 90 minutes. I ended up doing three runs and three bikes. I was doing okay for the first run and the first bike. The second run was tough because we were supposed to be thinking about going faster each time, and I really thought about it then. (Please note that I often think about running faster, it just doesn't always happen). By the time I got back on the bike the second time, my legs were just burning.
I decided that in the interest of this run later tonight, I would back off a bit and use easier gears, which would sacrifice some speed, but I'd still get the miles in. Then I did the third run and realized that I should start wrapping things up for the day. I decided to do a third bike, but to really just use the opportunity to spin my legs out and take it easy on the way. So, I did the last 4 mile loop on the bike and then headed home.
As I was doing the last four mile loop on the bike, a guy on roller blades came up next to me and asked me if that was a triathlon bag on my back. I had my bright green Publix bag with me that I got at the Atlanta Half-Marathon Expo. I have to say, it's a great bag! It's got strips of reflective stuff down both sides, which is great for riding in the street and it also has a front pocket.
I was a bit thrown off when he asked me if my bag was a triathlon bag. Yes, I had it with me because I was doing a brick, which is triathlon related. But, I got the bag at a half-marathon expo. To me, it's mostly just a handy bag to cart my running shoes around it. And I guess if I was going to think of a triathlon bag, I'd think about one of those big transition backpacks, not this little drawstring bag that I've got! To me it's just a Publix bag. Not sport-specific.
I did pack my running stuff for tonight in the same Publix bag, so I guess maybe that makes it not a triathlon bag? Either way, I'm excited about this race tonight. It's downtown, so it'll be fun to do a race that's not in the Park. The high here today is 93 and they are saying that we have the potential for some thunderstorms later today, so I'm hoping that I don't get drenched, although that might be preferable to just regular 93 degree weather? My goal for tonight is just to run the whole race. I'm not going out there to set some sort of speed record for myself, I just want to be able to run three miles and have fun!
Running
Time: 13:27 (Run 1: 4:28 / Run 2: 4:24 / Run 3: 4:35)
Distance: 1.50 miles
Pace: 8:58/mile
Calories: 129
Maximum HR: 185 (87%)
Average HR: 174 (82%)
Biking
Time: 51:37 (Bike 1: 16:02 / Bike 2: 16:30 / Bike 3: 19:05)
Distance: 12.50 miles (14.87 miles total)
Pace: 14.50 MPH average
Calories: 446
Maximum HR: 176 (83%)
Average HR: 161 (76%)
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Are You Dropping Him Off At Daycare?
Friday morning I woke up feeling like a ton of bricks had been dropped on my arm. Instead, what happened is that I slept on my arm. I'd just like to say here that I haven't been sleeping all that great since I broke my arm. I'm a left side sleeper and when you can't sleep on your chosen side, it leads to a lot of tossing and turning in the night. Thursday night I decided to test the waters and see what would happen. The answer? Nothing good.
So, even though I woke up bright and early on Friday, I decided to forgo the walking and lounge around on the couch before work instead. I'm sure that was the right decision since it pretty much felt like I had just broken my arm and I actually had to stop a couple of times on the way to work and just breathe through it since even walking was so painful. Definitely the right decision not to go out power walking on Friday!
This morning, however, was a different story. My arm went back to "normal" and only hurts when I straighten it completely or lean on it. Drew was going to go to the Park class that his trainer, Billy, leads on Saturdays. I decided that I'd walk him to class and then go for a walk myself. We started walking and Drew quickly realized that he couldn't keep up with me!
Even though his legs are a little bit longer than mine, he said that it was really hard for him to walk that fast and he started jogging along side of me. I guess my walking is a better workout than I give it credit for sometimes. Anyway, I went to Drew to the meeting place for the class and waited for a few minutes for Billy to arrive. I wanted to know the best place to meet Drew after the class. One of the guys commented that it was sort-of like I was dropping Drew off at daycare while I went and did my own thing.
And after arranging to meet Drew where I'd left him, I went off on my walk. I knew I had about an hour to get my walk in, so I headed north to tackle the Harlem Hill. And tackle it I did. It actually felt easier walking than it does riding my bike. I'd say that it was because I was walking a lot slower than I normally ride my bike up the hill, but I'm actually not sure that was 100% true.
As I was heading back down the west side, I happened to pass another guy who was walking along. As I passed him, he said something to the effect that I had crushed him. I told him that he should start swinging his arms and pick up the pace! He told me that I had inspired him and he was going to try to stay with me. I told him that I had a broken arm, so he didn't have any excuse not to keep pace with me! He laughed and actually, he definitely did stay about two steps behind me for at least a mile.
Then I turned onto 72nd Street to head back up the east side. As I was walking along 72nd Street, all of these people wearing Bobby Police helmets and shirts were running along the transverse. And they just kept coming and coming. It felt like there were about 200 of them, although maybe it was more like 100. It was just so silly to see them. At first I thought they were wearing costumes, but it turns out that they were real British Police officers!
I then headed back to the meeting spot to wait for Drew. I walked around a bit and tried to find them, but I didn't have any success. I ended up waiting about 15 minutes for the group to come back. Drew and I were both really hungry and sweaty, so we stopped to get a Froz-Fruit on the way home. While we ate our Popsicles, we wandered home the long way and then Drew made us a delicious breakfast of eggs and toast!
The amazing thing is that I was really walking fast on my walk by myself today. I'm guessing that Drew wouldn't have been able to keep up with me just walking if he had tagged along with me. I really tried to keep my heart rate up as high as possible and make it the best workout that I possibly could. And, seriously, I never ran. I think I could tryout for the Olympic race-walk team!
Walk There
Time: 26:49
Distance: 2.20 miles
Pace: 12:11/mile
Calories: 262
Maximum HR: 186
Average HR: 156
Walk Upper Loop
Time: 59:55
Distance: 5.00 miles
Pace: 11:58/mile
Calories: 718
Maximum HR: 188
Average HR: 175
So, even though I woke up bright and early on Friday, I decided to forgo the walking and lounge around on the couch before work instead. I'm sure that was the right decision since it pretty much felt like I had just broken my arm and I actually had to stop a couple of times on the way to work and just breathe through it since even walking was so painful. Definitely the right decision not to go out power walking on Friday!
This morning, however, was a different story. My arm went back to "normal" and only hurts when I straighten it completely or lean on it. Drew was going to go to the Park class that his trainer, Billy, leads on Saturdays. I decided that I'd walk him to class and then go for a walk myself. We started walking and Drew quickly realized that he couldn't keep up with me!
Even though his legs are a little bit longer than mine, he said that it was really hard for him to walk that fast and he started jogging along side of me. I guess my walking is a better workout than I give it credit for sometimes. Anyway, I went to Drew to the meeting place for the class and waited for a few minutes for Billy to arrive. I wanted to know the best place to meet Drew after the class. One of the guys commented that it was sort-of like I was dropping Drew off at daycare while I went and did my own thing.
And after arranging to meet Drew where I'd left him, I went off on my walk. I knew I had about an hour to get my walk in, so I headed north to tackle the Harlem Hill. And tackle it I did. It actually felt easier walking than it does riding my bike. I'd say that it was because I was walking a lot slower than I normally ride my bike up the hill, but I'm actually not sure that was 100% true.
As I was heading back down the west side, I happened to pass another guy who was walking along. As I passed him, he said something to the effect that I had crushed him. I told him that he should start swinging his arms and pick up the pace! He told me that I had inspired him and he was going to try to stay with me. I told him that I had a broken arm, so he didn't have any excuse not to keep pace with me! He laughed and actually, he definitely did stay about two steps behind me for at least a mile.
Then I turned onto 72nd Street to head back up the east side. As I was walking along 72nd Street, all of these people wearing Bobby Police helmets and shirts were running along the transverse. And they just kept coming and coming. It felt like there were about 200 of them, although maybe it was more like 100. It was just so silly to see them. At first I thought they were wearing costumes, but it turns out that they were real British Police officers!
I then headed back to the meeting spot to wait for Drew. I walked around a bit and tried to find them, but I didn't have any success. I ended up waiting about 15 minutes for the group to come back. Drew and I were both really hungry and sweaty, so we stopped to get a Froz-Fruit on the way home. While we ate our Popsicles, we wandered home the long way and then Drew made us a delicious breakfast of eggs and toast!
The amazing thing is that I was really walking fast on my walk by myself today. I'm guessing that Drew wouldn't have been able to keep up with me just walking if he had tagged along with me. I really tried to keep my heart rate up as high as possible and make it the best workout that I possibly could. And, seriously, I never ran. I think I could tryout for the Olympic race-walk team!
Walk There
Time: 26:49
Distance: 2.20 miles
Pace: 12:11/mile
Calories: 262
Maximum HR: 186
Average HR: 156
Walk Upper Loop
Time: 59:55
Distance: 5.00 miles
Pace: 11:58/mile
Calories: 718
Maximum HR: 188
Average HR: 175
Sunday, May 9, 2010
R Baby Mother's Day 4M
This morning I had a 4M run that I needed to do in order to keep going on my marathon qualification for 2011. This was race number 7 (out of 9) so I'm definitely in the home stretch. The only catch? Until I hear from the doctor, I'm not supposed to be doing anything. Which meant that I went with a big goal of walking the 4 mile race.
I was really curious to see if I could do the race in under an hour (15:00/mile pace). I was fairly confident that all my New York City walking could pay off and that an hour or less was a pretty realistic goal. I walked to the Park, used the port-a-potties (I forgot to go before leaving home - what was I thinking?), and then lined up for the race.
Now, I'd just like to mention that since I knew I was walking, I lined up at the back of the corrals. Not in my assigned corral. Could everyone else who is a walker in these races please take note? I don't understand why if you know you're walking, you find it necessary to be more towards the front and getting in the way of those who are running?
As soon as I crossed the finish line, I started walking as quickly as I could. My only goal was to get to the first mile marker by 15:00. It was quite windy here in NYC today, so the mile markers were on the ground today instead of up in the air because they didn't want them to blow over. I know approximately where they should be, but I felt like today more than ever it was really critical to see them to know how I was doing time-wise.
You can imagine my shock when I got to the first mile marker at 13:13! Holy cow, I was doing really well. At that point, I figured that I could have a couple bad miles and still come in under an hour, but since I had done the first mile so quickly, I was curious to know if I could hold that pace for the rest of the race.
I got to mile number 2 at a total time of 26:05 (mile time of 12:52) and I was sure I could hold on to the end. My arm was actually feeling okay at this point too. I basically just had my elbow at a 90 degree angle and swung it slightly back and forth while I really swung my right arm back and forth. Amazing how much easier that was to get some momentum than having my arm solidly against my body like at Alcatraz.
I got to mile 3 at 39:10 (mile time of 13:05) and I knew I was still on pace to finish this thing in about 52 minutes, which I couldn't believe. I wasn't surprised that this mile took a little bit longer, there are a couple rolling hills here that always make this a slower mile (even when running).
At this point, I really had to fight with myself to keep from running. Part of me really wanted to know how fast I could do it just walking, but the other part of me is going completely stir crazy from not exercising and I just wanted to run! Finally, as I was rounding the corner on 72nd Street to the finish line, I gave in. I only ran about 0.10 miles, but it felt great. Of course, I didn't pay any attention to how my arm was feeling, I just wanted to stretch out my legs for the last little bit. I ended up doing the last mile in 12:30, so the running didn't really affect my total time, I don't think. I probably could have come in just over 52 minutes if I hadn't run, which would have still been amazing, I think.
The funny thing is that even though this was my slowest running race ever, I felt awesome when I left because I had shattered my goal of finishing in an hour! My arm actually felt okay at the end, just really tired. That definitely continued as the day went on as well. The good news is that it doesn't feel any worse, but still no real improvement.
Walking
Time: 51:40
Distance: 4.00 miles
Pace: 12:55/mile
I was really curious to see if I could do the race in under an hour (15:00/mile pace). I was fairly confident that all my New York City walking could pay off and that an hour or less was a pretty realistic goal. I walked to the Park, used the port-a-potties (I forgot to go before leaving home - what was I thinking?), and then lined up for the race.
Now, I'd just like to mention that since I knew I was walking, I lined up at the back of the corrals. Not in my assigned corral. Could everyone else who is a walker in these races please take note? I don't understand why if you know you're walking, you find it necessary to be more towards the front and getting in the way of those who are running?
As soon as I crossed the finish line, I started walking as quickly as I could. My only goal was to get to the first mile marker by 15:00. It was quite windy here in NYC today, so the mile markers were on the ground today instead of up in the air because they didn't want them to blow over. I know approximately where they should be, but I felt like today more than ever it was really critical to see them to know how I was doing time-wise.
You can imagine my shock when I got to the first mile marker at 13:13! Holy cow, I was doing really well. At that point, I figured that I could have a couple bad miles and still come in under an hour, but since I had done the first mile so quickly, I was curious to know if I could hold that pace for the rest of the race.
I got to mile number 2 at a total time of 26:05 (mile time of 12:52) and I was sure I could hold on to the end. My arm was actually feeling okay at this point too. I basically just had my elbow at a 90 degree angle and swung it slightly back and forth while I really swung my right arm back and forth. Amazing how much easier that was to get some momentum than having my arm solidly against my body like at Alcatraz.
I got to mile 3 at 39:10 (mile time of 13:05) and I knew I was still on pace to finish this thing in about 52 minutes, which I couldn't believe. I wasn't surprised that this mile took a little bit longer, there are a couple rolling hills here that always make this a slower mile (even when running).
At this point, I really had to fight with myself to keep from running. Part of me really wanted to know how fast I could do it just walking, but the other part of me is going completely stir crazy from not exercising and I just wanted to run! Finally, as I was rounding the corner on 72nd Street to the finish line, I gave in. I only ran about 0.10 miles, but it felt great. Of course, I didn't pay any attention to how my arm was feeling, I just wanted to stretch out my legs for the last little bit. I ended up doing the last mile in 12:30, so the running didn't really affect my total time, I don't think. I probably could have come in just over 52 minutes if I hadn't run, which would have still been amazing, I think.
The funny thing is that even though this was my slowest running race ever, I felt awesome when I left because I had shattered my goal of finishing in an hour! My arm actually felt okay at the end, just really tired. That definitely continued as the day went on as well. The good news is that it doesn't feel any worse, but still no real improvement.
Walking
Time: 51:40
Distance: 4.00 miles
Pace: 12:55/mile
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Running For The Parks
First - I just need to say that I did figure out the elevation map on iMapMyRide, so I'm feeling a little bit better about the app as a whole. Although it wasn't the easiest thing to figure out, I don't think. But it's probably more user error than anything else. Here's the elevation map from my Saturday ride:
Of course I'm still panicked when I compare the above map to the Alcatraz map, but in order to keep my panic at bay, I'm not going to re-post the Alcatraz map.
Second - Here's this week's workout plan:
Third - on to today! This morning was the NYRR Run for the Parks, a 4-mile run in Central Park. The last couple of NYRR races have started at 10 AM, but today's started at 8 AM, which was pretty early for me. I was pretty tired at the start of the race and just felt very tired all throughout the run as well. I'm guessing that yesterday's triathlon took a little bit more out of me than I thought that it did initially.
The weather was also pretty cool - about 43 degrees. I ended up wearing capris and a long-sleeved shirt. I also wore my race t-shirt over my other shirt, just because it seemed like I should wear it to the race. Plus, I don't really care about pinning my number to that t-shirt, but I sort-of do care about pinning it to my other shirts for some reason.
I was fine temperature wise during the race, but was freezing on my way home. The other issue I had was that yesterday while I was swimming in my wetsuit, I realized that the velcro from the pull-tab on my wetsuit was chafing my neck. I did fix it so that it wouldn't do that anymore, but the damage was done. For the first mile of the running race today I was convinced that I was going to have to take off my long-sleeved shirt (since it comes up further on my neck) in order to continue running - it was not comfortable.
I knew as soon as I started running today that I wouldn't be setting any PR's. I was fine with that. I was just hoping to run a fairly steady pace and get my run in for the day. I really was quite tired while running, so I was glad with the pace that I ended up with was still under 10 minutes per mile. Right as I was nearing the finish line, a guy came sprinting up behind me and a spectator was yelling at me to not let him beat me. At that point, I didn't really care too much and didn't feel like sprinting. All I really wanted to do was go home and eat breakfast. I just wanted to take my post-race bagel home and toast it and eat it with peanut butter. Priorities, right? Maybe I should have sprinted in order to get my bagel faster? I will say that they also passed out Terra Chips and an under-ripe plum as well as bagels. The plum was a bit of a bust. I'd like to suggest that they go back to apples!
All in all, certainly not my best effort, but I am still proud of the fact that I got up and went to the race. This is my sixth NYRR race this year and I guess that now is as good of a time as any to announce the fact that the reason I'm doing all of these races is in order to qualify for the New York City Marathon in 2011. I still have three more races to run and I need to volunteer at one race, but I am really excited at the prospect of running the NYC Marathon next year!
Run To Race
Time: 10:01
Distance: 1.05 miles
Pace: 9:32/mile
Calories: 108
Maximum HR: 175
Average HR: 166
Running Race
Time: 39:30
Distance: 4.00 miles
Pace: 9:52/mile
Calories: 485
Maximum HR: 189
Average HR: 177
Of course I'm still panicked when I compare the above map to the Alcatraz map, but in order to keep my panic at bay, I'm not going to re-post the Alcatraz map.
Second - Here's this week's workout plan:
Third - on to today! This morning was the NYRR Run for the Parks, a 4-mile run in Central Park. The last couple of NYRR races have started at 10 AM, but today's started at 8 AM, which was pretty early for me. I was pretty tired at the start of the race and just felt very tired all throughout the run as well. I'm guessing that yesterday's triathlon took a little bit more out of me than I thought that it did initially.
The weather was also pretty cool - about 43 degrees. I ended up wearing capris and a long-sleeved shirt. I also wore my race t-shirt over my other shirt, just because it seemed like I should wear it to the race. Plus, I don't really care about pinning my number to that t-shirt, but I sort-of do care about pinning it to my other shirts for some reason.
I was fine temperature wise during the race, but was freezing on my way home. The other issue I had was that yesterday while I was swimming in my wetsuit, I realized that the velcro from the pull-tab on my wetsuit was chafing my neck. I did fix it so that it wouldn't do that anymore, but the damage was done. For the first mile of the running race today I was convinced that I was going to have to take off my long-sleeved shirt (since it comes up further on my neck) in order to continue running - it was not comfortable.
I knew as soon as I started running today that I wouldn't be setting any PR's. I was fine with that. I was just hoping to run a fairly steady pace and get my run in for the day. I really was quite tired while running, so I was glad with the pace that I ended up with was still under 10 minutes per mile. Right as I was nearing the finish line, a guy came sprinting up behind me and a spectator was yelling at me to not let him beat me. At that point, I didn't really care too much and didn't feel like sprinting. All I really wanted to do was go home and eat breakfast. I just wanted to take my post-race bagel home and toast it and eat it with peanut butter. Priorities, right? Maybe I should have sprinted in order to get my bagel faster? I will say that they also passed out Terra Chips and an under-ripe plum as well as bagels. The plum was a bit of a bust. I'd like to suggest that they go back to apples!
All in all, certainly not my best effort, but I am still proud of the fact that I got up and went to the race. This is my sixth NYRR race this year and I guess that now is as good of a time as any to announce the fact that the reason I'm doing all of these races is in order to qualify for the New York City Marathon in 2011. I still have three more races to run and I need to volunteer at one race, but I am really excited at the prospect of running the NYC Marathon next year!
Run To Race
Time: 10:01
Distance: 1.05 miles
Pace: 9:32/mile
Calories: 108
Maximum HR: 175
Average HR: 166
Running Race
Time: 39:30
Distance: 4.00 miles
Pace: 9:52/mile
Calories: 485
Maximum HR: 189
Average HR: 177
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Running For Colon Cancer
This morning was the New York Road Runners Colon Cancer Challenge 4 mile run (there was also a 15K run as well as 1.7 mile walk, but I decided 4 miles sounded best). I didn't have a chance last week to pick up my race number, t-shirt and D-tag, so I had to do that this morning. The weather was about 40 degrees for the race and I wore tights, a long sleeved shirt and a wind breaker.
I decided just to walk to the packet pick-up so that I wouldn't get myself too hot and then be freezing while waiting for the race to start. I was definitely chilly walking to the race. I picked up my number and t-shirt without any problems. I pinned my number to my shirt and went over to wait in the corrals. While I was waiting, the girl next to me started chatting with me. Apparently, I seem to be a magnet recently for talking in the race corral!
We talked about the weather and our running experience. We were both in the 10:00/mile corral and she told me that she had really been working on speed recently and was more of a 9:00 miler. Then we talked about how we never seem to have good times at these New York Road Runner races. I haven't had good luck recently, but I did notice that this morning there seemed to be fewer people out than in the past races.
I definitely wasn't going into this race with any expectations. I know from past experience that's just a bad idea. I figured I would just run my race as best I could given the race conditions. I also knew that I couldn't do much worse than my last attempt at a 4 mile race in Central Park.
Since it was a Colon Cancer fund-raiser run, there were several groups there wearing t-shirts in honor or in memory of someone, but there was one group with funny "Don't be a chump. Check your rump" t-shirts. I thought those were much better than our plain and boring race t-shirts. But, a free t-shirt is a free t-shirt and I won't complain too much.
I started out the race pretty well. I ran the first mile in about 9:30, I think. That seemed like a pretty decent pace and I should just try to keep going. I was thinking while running that it's both good and bad to know the Park so well now. It's frustrating to know every single hill and to anticipate (and slightly dread) all the uphills, but it's good to know that you can just run to X spot (sign, lamp post, tree, etc.) and then it will be downhill from there.
I didn't stop at any of the water stations, I just ran the whole race (also different from last time). As a result of all of this, I ran 0:59 per mile faster than last time! I can't believe I shaved almost 4:00 off my time. It's funny because now that the half-marathon is done and over with, I've actually been liking running more. I think part of that has to do with the fact that the pressure is off a little bit now and I can focus on something other than only running and get back to triathlon training.
No matter what, I'm really proud of myself for today's effort at the run. I can't believe how much better today was than a month ago!
Running
Time: 37:11
Distance: 4.00 miles
Pace: 9:17/mile
Calories: 447
Maximum HR: 192
Average HR: 175
I decided just to walk to the packet pick-up so that I wouldn't get myself too hot and then be freezing while waiting for the race to start. I was definitely chilly walking to the race. I picked up my number and t-shirt without any problems. I pinned my number to my shirt and went over to wait in the corrals. While I was waiting, the girl next to me started chatting with me. Apparently, I seem to be a magnet recently for talking in the race corral!
We talked about the weather and our running experience. We were both in the 10:00/mile corral and she told me that she had really been working on speed recently and was more of a 9:00 miler. Then we talked about how we never seem to have good times at these New York Road Runner races. I haven't had good luck recently, but I did notice that this morning there seemed to be fewer people out than in the past races.
I definitely wasn't going into this race with any expectations. I know from past experience that's just a bad idea. I figured I would just run my race as best I could given the race conditions. I also knew that I couldn't do much worse than my last attempt at a 4 mile race in Central Park.
Since it was a Colon Cancer fund-raiser run, there were several groups there wearing t-shirts in honor or in memory of someone, but there was one group with funny "Don't be a chump. Check your rump" t-shirts. I thought those were much better than our plain and boring race t-shirts. But, a free t-shirt is a free t-shirt and I won't complain too much.
I started out the race pretty well. I ran the first mile in about 9:30, I think. That seemed like a pretty decent pace and I should just try to keep going. I was thinking while running that it's both good and bad to know the Park so well now. It's frustrating to know every single hill and to anticipate (and slightly dread) all the uphills, but it's good to know that you can just run to X spot (sign, lamp post, tree, etc.) and then it will be downhill from there.
I didn't stop at any of the water stations, I just ran the whole race (also different from last time). As a result of all of this, I ran 0:59 per mile faster than last time! I can't believe I shaved almost 4:00 off my time. It's funny because now that the half-marathon is done and over with, I've actually been liking running more. I think part of that has to do with the fact that the pressure is off a little bit now and I can focus on something other than only running and get back to triathlon training.
No matter what, I'm really proud of myself for today's effort at the run. I can't believe how much better today was than a month ago!
Running
Time: 37:11
Distance: 4.00 miles
Pace: 9:17/mile
Calories: 447
Maximum HR: 192
Average HR: 175
Sunday, February 21, 2010
If I'd Known, I Would Have Worn Spandex
This morning I took advantage of the fact that I didn't really have to do anything today other than run and I slept in until about 10. Then I dragged myself out of bed, ate a bar and had some Gatorade and then got sucked into the TV for the next hour and a half. I didn't force myself outside until about noon. I just walked to the park because I figured that I would get enough running in without the extra mileage running there and back.
When I left the apartment, it was 41 degrees and sunny. I wore tights, shorts, thin long-sleeved shirt and windbreaker and shoved my gloves and hat in my pocket just in case. I also got to wear sunglasses! Also in my pockets were a couple of dollars as well as 3 full-sized Fig Newtons. I had tried the mini Strawberry Newtons before, but this would be my first time with the regular ones. Each one is 55 calories, so I had brought along a total of 165 calories.
Since this week was sorely lacking in the mileage department, I decided that it was time to test my legs and try out a double-digit run (my very first!). My plan was to run from the southwest corner of the Park up and over the Harlem Hill, down the west side, cross the 72nd Street transverse and then back up to 102nd Street and then all the way back down the west side back to where I started. Essentially, I made a circle within a circle.
I started out really slowly. I knew that today was less about time and more about breaking that mental barrier between 9 and 10 miles. I don't know exactly where all the mile markers are in the park, so that makes it easier to just plod along in complete bliss and not worry about how fast you're going per mile.
When I got to the Harlem Hill, I was running down the hill near Lasker Pool and there were three girls out walking. The oldest one seemed to be high-school aged and was probably with her younger sisters from what I could tell. They were sort-of goofing around and making fun of the runners who were passing them. When I was running by, I heard the oldest one say "If I had known I'd be running, I would have worn my spandex". Which really made me laugh, because in actuality, very little of what I was wearing was really spandex. (I'm such a dork that I actually checked this when I got home and my tights contain 12% spandex and my sports bra 8% and everything else is some sort of polyester - rayon blend). Next time I'll try to be all decked out in 100% spandex!
I will say that the best part of my outfit had to have been my Marilyn Monroe socks. I figure that on long journeys like this, it's best to have someone there with you - even if it is just on your socks. In case you're wondering, this is what my socks look like:
Drew's mom and dad actually sent me those socks a while ago and Marilyn and I have had some other good adventures together. However, just recently, my mom sent me an e-mail with this photo of Marilyn and JFK, so I think she was just on my mind:
After running about 5.6 miles, I was back at the 72nd Street transverse and I stopped to buy a water from the vendor on the corner. I knew that I wouldn't get through the rest of my run without some water. I ended up taking 2 walking breaks of 2:00 each to eat my Fig Newtons. I thought they were pretty good. Sweet, but not too sweet, and chased down with water, they weren't dry at all. I'm definitely thinking that they'll be my nutrition plan for the half-marathon. Especially since I don't have any of the issues that I have when taking gu or gu-related products.
After getting my water and heading back again, I was just thinking that I couldn't believe that I was really doing 10 miles today. I think that keeping a slow and steady pace really helped me not get too tired out in the beginning and having the Newtons definitely helped give me an extra little boost.
However, I don't know if they were quite enough. I just happened to look at my watch after I had burned about 1100 calories and it wasn't long after that point that I think I went a little bit crazy. I don't remember where I was exactly, but I was making my way back down the west side of the park. I was definitely getting a bit tired by this point, so I just started talking to myself. Normally I think about a lot of things while I'm running, but this time I just started talking out loud.
My dialogue went something like this, "This is easy!" "You don't need to stop again!" "You're incredible for doing this today." "This is easy!" "Lots of people out here walking today won't ever even run 1 mile and you're doing 10!" "This is easy!" "This is easy!"
The "this is easy" comment was definitely my mantra for the last mile or so. I just kept repeating it to myself. I also realized that talking to yourself out loud actually might not be as crazy as it seems since so many people are wearing iPods that they weren't paying any attention to me anyway and I had seen several people running and talking on the phone, so I couldn't be any crazier than they were.
In the actual plan from Runner's World for the half-marathon, the maximum that they have you run is 10 miles. I built in a week where I run 12, but that's really for my own mental benefit during the race. I think that doing 10 miles today really proved to me that this half-marathon is within reach and I still have a month to go!
This coming week is a little bit tough because I'm supposed to be aiming for 32-34 miles total this week and I'll be out of town over the weekend. I am planning on going running on Saturday while I'm out of town, so that'll be nice to get one long run while I'm away, so I don't know how well the rest of the week will go with following the plan. I figure as long as I can come close to the total for the week, I should be all set. (Fingers crossed!).
Running
Time: 1:52:40
Distance: 10.20 miles
Pace: 11:02/mile
Calories: 1421
Maximum HR: 188
Average HR: 174
When I left the apartment, it was 41 degrees and sunny. I wore tights, shorts, thin long-sleeved shirt and windbreaker and shoved my gloves and hat in my pocket just in case. I also got to wear sunglasses! Also in my pockets were a couple of dollars as well as 3 full-sized Fig Newtons. I had tried the mini Strawberry Newtons before, but this would be my first time with the regular ones. Each one is 55 calories, so I had brought along a total of 165 calories.
Since this week was sorely lacking in the mileage department, I decided that it was time to test my legs and try out a double-digit run (my very first!). My plan was to run from the southwest corner of the Park up and over the Harlem Hill, down the west side, cross the 72nd Street transverse and then back up to 102nd Street and then all the way back down the west side back to where I started. Essentially, I made a circle within a circle.
I started out really slowly. I knew that today was less about time and more about breaking that mental barrier between 9 and 10 miles. I don't know exactly where all the mile markers are in the park, so that makes it easier to just plod along in complete bliss and not worry about how fast you're going per mile.
When I got to the Harlem Hill, I was running down the hill near Lasker Pool and there were three girls out walking. The oldest one seemed to be high-school aged and was probably with her younger sisters from what I could tell. They were sort-of goofing around and making fun of the runners who were passing them. When I was running by, I heard the oldest one say "If I had known I'd be running, I would have worn my spandex". Which really made me laugh, because in actuality, very little of what I was wearing was really spandex. (I'm such a dork that I actually checked this when I got home and my tights contain 12% spandex and my sports bra 8% and everything else is some sort of polyester - rayon blend). Next time I'll try to be all decked out in 100% spandex!
I will say that the best part of my outfit had to have been my Marilyn Monroe socks. I figure that on long journeys like this, it's best to have someone there with you - even if it is just on your socks. In case you're wondering, this is what my socks look like:
Drew's mom and dad actually sent me those socks a while ago and Marilyn and I have had some other good adventures together. However, just recently, my mom sent me an e-mail with this photo of Marilyn and JFK, so I think she was just on my mind:
After running about 5.6 miles, I was back at the 72nd Street transverse and I stopped to buy a water from the vendor on the corner. I knew that I wouldn't get through the rest of my run without some water. I ended up taking 2 walking breaks of 2:00 each to eat my Fig Newtons. I thought they were pretty good. Sweet, but not too sweet, and chased down with water, they weren't dry at all. I'm definitely thinking that they'll be my nutrition plan for the half-marathon. Especially since I don't have any of the issues that I have when taking gu or gu-related products.
After getting my water and heading back again, I was just thinking that I couldn't believe that I was really doing 10 miles today. I think that keeping a slow and steady pace really helped me not get too tired out in the beginning and having the Newtons definitely helped give me an extra little boost.
However, I don't know if they were quite enough. I just happened to look at my watch after I had burned about 1100 calories and it wasn't long after that point that I think I went a little bit crazy. I don't remember where I was exactly, but I was making my way back down the west side of the park. I was definitely getting a bit tired by this point, so I just started talking to myself. Normally I think about a lot of things while I'm running, but this time I just started talking out loud.
My dialogue went something like this, "This is easy!" "You don't need to stop again!" "You're incredible for doing this today." "This is easy!" "Lots of people out here walking today won't ever even run 1 mile and you're doing 10!" "This is easy!" "This is easy!"
The "this is easy" comment was definitely my mantra for the last mile or so. I just kept repeating it to myself. I also realized that talking to yourself out loud actually might not be as crazy as it seems since so many people are wearing iPods that they weren't paying any attention to me anyway and I had seen several people running and talking on the phone, so I couldn't be any crazier than they were.
In the actual plan from Runner's World for the half-marathon, the maximum that they have you run is 10 miles. I built in a week where I run 12, but that's really for my own mental benefit during the race. I think that doing 10 miles today really proved to me that this half-marathon is within reach and I still have a month to go!
This coming week is a little bit tough because I'm supposed to be aiming for 32-34 miles total this week and I'll be out of town over the weekend. I am planning on going running on Saturday while I'm out of town, so that'll be nice to get one long run while I'm away, so I don't know how well the rest of the week will go with following the plan. I figure as long as I can come close to the total for the week, I should be all set. (Fingers crossed!).
Running
Time: 1:52:40
Distance: 10.20 miles
Pace: 11:02/mile
Calories: 1421
Maximum HR: 188
Average HR: 174
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Running for Haiti
This morning I was all excited for the New York Road Runner's Run for Haiti. It was a 4-mile run and I had been planning on just going out and really pushing myself hard and finishing under 40 minutes. The race was scheduled to start at 9:00. I walked to the park and then jogged from the bottom of the park up to the corral for 10-minute milers. I got into the corral at about 8:45, so I thought that was pretty good as I didn't think I'd have long to wait.
Except that there were 10,000 some people in the park who were also going to be Running for Haiti. The good news in that fact is that close to half a million dollars were raised to go towards the relief effort. The very bad news is that this was not a race to be setting any sort of time goals or personal records. Here's a good picture to give you some sort of indication as to how many people were there:
I had a really slow start. I didn't even cross the start line until 9:15, which meant that I was pretty cold by the time I got going. It was about 40 degrees and sunny, which was nice, but still not very warm when you're standing around waiting. I wore tights, shorts, a short-sleeved shirt, long-sleeved shirt, windbreaker, hat and gloves. Once I was actually running, I'm not sure I needed all that and ended up taking my hat and gloves off, but I was glad that I had it for standing around and especially for walking home after the race.
My first mile was over 10 minutes, which was really frustrating to me. I had thought that it might be smart to run on the inside of the road, but there were a lot of walkers and puddles of melting snow to dodge there. My second mile ended up being just about 10 minutes, slightly faster than the first. Somewhere after mile 2, I realized that no matter what, the race just wasn't going to thin out and open up for better running conditions. This was also about the time that I got pushed in the back while running. Granted, I understand that because it was so crowded that there was going to be a lot of knocking of shoulders and elbows, but this was different and was a literal push from behind, which I didn't think was so cool.
By the time I got to mile 3, I was just over the whole thing. There was a fluid station, so I got a cup of water and walked while I drank it. I knew that there was no way that I would be setting a PR, so I might as well just accept this race for what it was. I thought a lot about my half-marathon next month and how I have some time goals in mind for that race as well. I wonder if I should just throw those out the window so that I don't become as frustrated as I did today. I think it might be in my best interest to just tell myself that I'm going to do my best under the conditions of the race, whatever those may be. At least, that's my plan right now.
Once the race was over and I was walking home, I heard a lot of people complaining about the same thing that I had been frustrated with. A couple of guys who were aiming for 6-minute miles said that they had trouble with 6:45-minute miles. So, I guess I should be happy that I wasn't that much slower than my ideal time.
I will say that while this wasn't the race I was planning on having this morning, it was a good learning experience for me. I think that's probably a good thing overall. Even though I'm disappointed in myself and my times, I know that I can't really blame myself and I did the best I could under the conditions of the race. If I had pushed people out of my way, perhaps I could have done it under 40 minutes, but that extra 1:07 isn't the end of the world.
Running
Time: 41:07
Distance: 4.00 miles
Pace: 10:16/mile
Calories: 532
Maximum HR: 191
Average HR: 172
Except that there were 10,000 some people in the park who were also going to be Running for Haiti. The good news in that fact is that close to half a million dollars were raised to go towards the relief effort. The very bad news is that this was not a race to be setting any sort of time goals or personal records. Here's a good picture to give you some sort of indication as to how many people were there:
I had a really slow start. I didn't even cross the start line until 9:15, which meant that I was pretty cold by the time I got going. It was about 40 degrees and sunny, which was nice, but still not very warm when you're standing around waiting. I wore tights, shorts, a short-sleeved shirt, long-sleeved shirt, windbreaker, hat and gloves. Once I was actually running, I'm not sure I needed all that and ended up taking my hat and gloves off, but I was glad that I had it for standing around and especially for walking home after the race.
My first mile was over 10 minutes, which was really frustrating to me. I had thought that it might be smart to run on the inside of the road, but there were a lot of walkers and puddles of melting snow to dodge there. My second mile ended up being just about 10 minutes, slightly faster than the first. Somewhere after mile 2, I realized that no matter what, the race just wasn't going to thin out and open up for better running conditions. This was also about the time that I got pushed in the back while running. Granted, I understand that because it was so crowded that there was going to be a lot of knocking of shoulders and elbows, but this was different and was a literal push from behind, which I didn't think was so cool.
By the time I got to mile 3, I was just over the whole thing. There was a fluid station, so I got a cup of water and walked while I drank it. I knew that there was no way that I would be setting a PR, so I might as well just accept this race for what it was. I thought a lot about my half-marathon next month and how I have some time goals in mind for that race as well. I wonder if I should just throw those out the window so that I don't become as frustrated as I did today. I think it might be in my best interest to just tell myself that I'm going to do my best under the conditions of the race, whatever those may be. At least, that's my plan right now.
Once the race was over and I was walking home, I heard a lot of people complaining about the same thing that I had been frustrated with. A couple of guys who were aiming for 6-minute miles said that they had trouble with 6:45-minute miles. So, I guess I should be happy that I wasn't that much slower than my ideal time.
I will say that while this wasn't the race I was planning on having this morning, it was a good learning experience for me. I think that's probably a good thing overall. Even though I'm disappointed in myself and my times, I know that I can't really blame myself and I did the best I could under the conditions of the race. If I had pushed people out of my way, perhaps I could have done it under 40 minutes, but that extra 1:07 isn't the end of the world.
Running
Time: 41:07
Distance: 4.00 miles
Pace: 10:16/mile
Calories: 532
Maximum HR: 191
Average HR: 172
Sunday, November 29, 2009
I Feel Bad
Today Drew and I had planned to go running. He claims that last time we went he said that he wanted to go 3 miles and I made us run 4, but this time he actually said 4 miles, so I suggested that we run the Central Loop of Central Park (starting at 72nd Street and going up and across the 102nd Street Transverse).
We walked from the bottom of the Park up to 72nd Street and headed North. I don't know why, but I've really been on a kick of running clockwise instead of counter-clockwise, so that's what we did today too. Drew was a little worried about his toe hurting while running, but we started out fairly slow and he said that it was fine.
My legs were exhausted the entire time we were running. I think it was a combination of the longer run I did on Friday and the biking I did yesterday, but they were beat! I tried to keep us at a slower pace than it seemed like Drew wanted to run. I am still really concentrating on keeping my heart rate under 180 when possible and that seems to be somewhere around a 10 minute (or 10+) mile.
Because Drew kept running ahead of me, I told him that if I was slowing him down, he should just run on ahead. I think I told him at least two or three times that he should just run ahead. Finally, I had to tell him that him running faster than me was making me feel bad about myself. It wasn't the fact that I can't run that fast, it's that I can't run that fast while keeping my heart rate in the zone I wanted. He said that he wasn't trying to race me or even run at any specific pace, it's just how he was running. I knew he wasn't doing it on purpose, it was just how I felt about the whole situation.
I was thinking about it a lot and I think it's a lot different than running in a group with Terrier because there everyone goes at their own pace and you don't feel bad passing someone (or being passed) because there is an unwritten understanding. It's a lot different when you go running with someone specific and think that you'll be running together and then to have that person running just two steps in front of you the entire time is a little bit frustrating (to me at least).
Once I pointed out my frustration, Drew stayed behind me the rest of the way (or right next to me). It might be really crazy, but I felt like I was running more on my own pace that way instead of just trying to keep up with him and I actually wouldn't be surprised to find out that we ran faster once I started leading than we were the other way around.
When we got to 72nd Street and were crossing the transverse, I realized that if we pushed it just a little bit more, we could come out with 10-minute miles, which would be nice, so right when we passed by the Cherry Hill Fountain, I told Drew to pick it up a little and we sprinted to the end.
I don't think this was our best run ever together just because I think I was a little off and feeling left behind, but I'm really happy with the final result. After we ended the run, Drew said that while he really liked the route, he wasn't so thrilled to have to walk home from 72nd Street. I can't really say I blame him, although it is a good cool down and we did stretch for a while once we ended running. It doesn't take long for your body to cool off and then walking home isn't really all that fun in these cooler temperatures!
Running
Time: 40:57
Distance: 4.10 miles
Pace: 9:59/mile
Calories: 547
Maximum HR: 189
Average HR: 175
We walked from the bottom of the Park up to 72nd Street and headed North. I don't know why, but I've really been on a kick of running clockwise instead of counter-clockwise, so that's what we did today too. Drew was a little worried about his toe hurting while running, but we started out fairly slow and he said that it was fine.
My legs were exhausted the entire time we were running. I think it was a combination of the longer run I did on Friday and the biking I did yesterday, but they were beat! I tried to keep us at a slower pace than it seemed like Drew wanted to run. I am still really concentrating on keeping my heart rate under 180 when possible and that seems to be somewhere around a 10 minute (or 10+) mile.
Because Drew kept running ahead of me, I told him that if I was slowing him down, he should just run on ahead. I think I told him at least two or three times that he should just run ahead. Finally, I had to tell him that him running faster than me was making me feel bad about myself. It wasn't the fact that I can't run that fast, it's that I can't run that fast while keeping my heart rate in the zone I wanted. He said that he wasn't trying to race me or even run at any specific pace, it's just how he was running. I knew he wasn't doing it on purpose, it was just how I felt about the whole situation.
I was thinking about it a lot and I think it's a lot different than running in a group with Terrier because there everyone goes at their own pace and you don't feel bad passing someone (or being passed) because there is an unwritten understanding. It's a lot different when you go running with someone specific and think that you'll be running together and then to have that person running just two steps in front of you the entire time is a little bit frustrating (to me at least).
Once I pointed out my frustration, Drew stayed behind me the rest of the way (or right next to me). It might be really crazy, but I felt like I was running more on my own pace that way instead of just trying to keep up with him and I actually wouldn't be surprised to find out that we ran faster once I started leading than we were the other way around.
When we got to 72nd Street and were crossing the transverse, I realized that if we pushed it just a little bit more, we could come out with 10-minute miles, which would be nice, so right when we passed by the Cherry Hill Fountain, I told Drew to pick it up a little and we sprinted to the end.
I don't think this was our best run ever together just because I think I was a little off and feeling left behind, but I'm really happy with the final result. After we ended the run, Drew said that while he really liked the route, he wasn't so thrilled to have to walk home from 72nd Street. I can't really say I blame him, although it is a good cool down and we did stretch for a while once we ended running. It doesn't take long for your body to cool off and then walking home isn't really all that fun in these cooler temperatures!
Running
Time: 40:57
Distance: 4.10 miles
Pace: 9:59/mile
Calories: 547
Maximum HR: 189
Average HR: 175
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