The 1st of the boring updates! :)

Sunday, October 23rd
2M warm up + 8M @ 6:09 AP
**See previous post for details**

Monday, October 24th
Rest & Doctor Appt - Stress Fracture in 3rd metatarsal

Tuesday, October 25th
20' arm cycle + 40' bike + 15' core

Wednesday, October 26th
40' rowing + 20' swim + 15' strength

Thursday, October 27th
20' arm cycle + 20' bike + 20' swim + 15' core

Friday, October 28th
20' arm cycle + 35' strength + 20' bike

Saturday, October 29th
30' bike + 15' core + 30' bike

Fall 2011 Training Summary & Race Recap

Basic Summary of fall training based on what I recorded on logarun.com this fall.

Weekly mileage progression from this fall's training. The taper worked perfectly!

I'll start with a race recap!

Sunday, October 23rd

2M warm up + 8.09M @ 6:09 pace + cop car ride home

• Pace Progression: 6:09, 6:04, 6:06, 6:15, 6:02, 6:05, 6:09, 6:13, 5:56 (only 32"!)

Today was supposed to be my first half marathon - It ended up being my first 8 mile run at half marathon pace! :)

I got in a 20' warm up, did drills and a few strides, and then it was time to race. My preparation plan turned out PERFECT. My stomach sloshed a lot on the warm up and strides, but by race start I was fine and knew I was hydrated and fueled up. 

The first mile felt a little aggressive to me even though it was right on my goal pace, but after that I got into a rhythm and felt GREAT. I had Emily Daum (and some guy that I don't actually know!) to run with the entire time and they were perfect for pacing purposes! I made sure to take deep breaths and relax my arms every half mile or so to keep fresh and thankfully never had any problems with that. I of course had my usual noisy breathing, but I have come to accept that as normal for me! :) 

The first time my foot started to really scare me was as we turned onto Shepherd, which I believe was somewhere around 4M? I chose to continue running and focused on splaying my toes out while my right foot was in flight to see if that would relieve the nerve. I continued this for the next four miles and dreaded every downhill and turn.

The gatorade stops were new to me and I will have to work on that for sure. I splashed it everywhere and choked on what little made my mouth! When I finally gave in to my foot at 8 miles I was starting to get a good second wind. I took some gatorade just a little before that point and was really rejuvinated. I hesitated for the last minute or so and started wincing and panicking out loud - that's when I knew it was time to stop. A big time bummer because there was finally a tail wind and I knew took note of some good downhill stretches I would hit coming back when we ran the first half.

All in all, I am happy with today's run. I felt very prepared and I really enjoyed the longer race "style". I love having a no pressure start and a relaxed enough pace to look around and enjoy the experience. I am usually an even splitter (if not negative), so the longer races suit me well. I'm pumped that I was sub goal pace and feeling so good, which tells me that I've found a training system, taper plan, and pre-race nutrition plan that I can be very confident in next time I toe the line. This was just God's way of giving me a good race rehearsal and now I know that when I am healthy again I can set a much higher goal.

I liked my fall training very much and believe it did wonders for my fitness level. My 5k PR felt so good and I know I am in shape for a solid half right now as well. I am excited to feed off of this training period when I am healthy again, and hopefully see some major PR's across the board this spring.

As for now, sitting, standing, walking, etc are KILLING me. My foot is throbbing and begging me to find a dream podiatrist to make it happy again. :) Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! 

And that's all for now, folks! :)

Week 14: Taper Time! The hardest part! :)

Sunday- 10.16.11
Easy: 6M (not timed)
Felt good and not sore or fatigued muscularly... definitely a lot of pain in the foot though! :(

Monday- 10.17.11
Rest day.
3M shakeout (8:00 AP)

Tuesday- 10.18.11
Workout: 2M warm up + 5k @HMP + 1M cool down

• Surface: paved 5k loop
• Total Time: 19:15 (6:11 AP)
• Pace Progression: 6:12, 6:19, 6:05
• Comments: Rough run this morning... It was very windy and my watch's screen was WAY off. I looked down at about 600m and was at 8:45 pace, at 1000m I was 6:35 pace, at 2000m I was 5:56 pace - And those were supposed to be average for the distance (not real time pace). In saying that, I went back forth a lot mentally about effort level and what pace I might actually be running. When I saw the 5:56 early in the second mile, I eased up a lot which explains the 6:19. Just wish the watch showed these times as I ran?! Got the job done regardless. Time to rest up for Sunday!

Wednesday- 10.19.11
Easy: 5M

• Surface: Tom Bass Park - paved and rolling hills
• Total Time: 38:01 (7:35 AP)
• Pace Progression: 8:06, 7:39, 7:28, 7:11, 7:01
• Comments: Very pretty run during my lunch break - the only downsides were the strong winds (it's an open loop around a lake) and a pain beneath my left glute (bone/joint pain). Other than that it was a nice run and break in the day.

Supplemental Work: 3x12 light strength session in AM

Thursday- 10.20.11
Easy: 5M + strides

• Surface: Memorial Park dirt loop
• Total Time: 40:05 (8:01 AP)
• Pace Progression: 9:00, 8:00, 7:55, 7:58, 7:10
• Comments: Cold again!!! Think 45 degrees! Anyways, I passed Mr. Benson (my friend's dad about 5 minutes in so I slowed down to run with him for a while... hence the 9:00 first mile). My muscles feel strong and such, but my foot and "butt" are hurting so bad. :( Taking advil all day and will ice tonight. Oh, and I threw the strides into my fifth mile, which explains the drastic change in pace!

Friday- 10.21.11
Easy: 4M w/ 3', 2', 1' at HMP

• Surface: Memorial Park dirt loop
• Total Time: 30:36 (7:35 AP)
• Pace Progression: 8:40 (1st mile), 7:43 (2nd mile), 6:13 (3'), 7:33 (3' recovery), 6:10 (2'), 7:34 (2' recovery), 6:08 (1'), 7:37 (finishing out the run)
• Comments: I almost didn't run this morning because my foot has been so painful, but I'm glad I did. It was GORGEOUS weather and the surges felt surprisingly easy to hit. I kept looking down halfway through them and finding I was 5:45-5:50 pace... Had to put a cap on it during the second half of them! :) Hoping to be healthy enough on Sunday to have a solid race and see this gift and traing that the Lord has blessed me with come through.

Saturday- 10.22.11
Easy: 3M + strides

• Surface: Memorial Park dirt loop
• Comments: No watch for this one- just got in the mileage and kept things relaxed! Still major pain in my foot, but other than that I'm ready to race!!!

Week 14 Total Mileage: 33M
Total Seasonal Mileage: 638M

Week 13 of Training. Tune-Up 5k on Saturday!

Sunday- 10.9.11
Easy, Long: 75'

• Surface: Terry Hershey Park (paved with rolling hills)
• Total Time: 75' (calling it 11M)
• Comments: Very sluggish run on the way out, but the way back was a good, solid uptempo pace. Probably hit 10k pace for a good portion of the run. Ran in the rain and storm with Jake - hence the faster run home!
  

Monday- 10.10.11
Rest Day
25' shakeout with Jake

Tuesday- 10.11.11
Workout: 2M w/u+ 2x400 + 2x15' @ HMP + 2x400 (3' jog recovery b/w everything) + 1.3M c/d

• Surface: Memorial Park (dirt loop for 15', concrete track for 400's)
• Pace Progression: 71, 72, 6:14, 6:08, 73, 73 (6:10 AP for 15's) (4:59 AP for 400's)
• Comments: Good workout, but much harder effort than I wanted to put out this week. Hoping that 6:15 to 6:10 pace feels MUCH better in about a week and a half when I race?

Supplemental Work: Light strength session

Wednesday- 10.12.11
Easy, medium long: 9.5M

• Surface: Memorial Park loop
• Total Time: 1:12:30 (7:37 AP)
• Pace Progression: 8:46, 8:02, 7:47, 7:43, 7:30, 6:04(?????), 7:30, 7:37, 7:35
• Comments: NO CLUE what happened with my Garmin during that sixth mile. I know we ran 9.51 miles because I know the route, so I trust the Garmin that sense. The total time for the run comes out to a 7:37 average, but I KNOW we didn't bust out a 6:04 in the middle. Not sure what happened! Regardless it was a nice morning out and I enjoyed catching up with Amanda during the run. Props to her for winning the 10 for Texas 10 miler this weekend!!

Supplemental Work: 50xV-Sit Russian Twist, 1x60" pedestal routine, 25xcrunches, 25xreverse crunches, 60"xback extensions

Thursday- 10.13.11
Easy: 6M

• Surface: Memorial Park Loop
• Total Time: 48:25 (8:04 AP)
• Pace Progression: 8:26, 8:03, 8:14, 8:02, 7:54, 7:44
• Comments: I'm feeling really stiff, achey, and tired but I think it's just from some rough nights of sleep. Hoping to keep things light and easy tomorrow so that Saturday I wake up a bit more fresh and springy.

Supplemental Work: Light strength in AM

Friday- 10.14.11
Easy: 5M
Strides: 3x100m

• Surface: Tom Bass Park paved trail with rolling hills
• Total Time: 38:42 (7:47 AP)
• Pace Progression: 7:47, 8:00, 7:54, 7:44, 7:36
• Comments: Very short, light day today- hopefully not too short or light? Looking forward to tomorrow's race!

Saturday- 10.15.11
Race: 5k (3M warm up + 2M cool down)

• Surface: paved path at Oyster Creek Park (very windy with a few rolling hills & two 180 turns- literally!)
• Total Time: 17:55 (5:47 AP)
• Pace Progression 6:01, 5:36, 5:42
• Comments: Very difficult course as far as running a fast time goes, but I'm pumped about how easy it was to break 18 anyways. The course was basically a V-shape and on a 3ft wide trail. The turning points were literally "stop, turn, run" and when you turned around you spent the rest of the run against the flow (think 400 people walking/jogging in clumps). After a 6:01 first mile and no nearby females I decided to keep it simple and make it a good tempo effort. Next thing I knew I came through the second mile and ran 5:36 for it- Surprise! When I got to 2.5M and saw my average pace was 5:47 for the run, I was like, "hey, I can break 18 still!" so for the last .5M I switched over from just win it mode to break 18 mode. Yay! Good run, though!

Supplemental Work: Light strength session

Week 13 Total Mileage: 52.5M
Seasonal cumulative mileage: 609M

Week 12 of Training. Getting more race specific!

Sunday- 10.2.11
Easy, Long, HMP Workout: 12M w/ 8-11 @ HMP

• Surface: Sidewalks and Streets
• Total Time: 81:52 (6:53 AP)
• Pace Progression: 7:59, 7:16, 7:23, 7:07, 7:06, 6:54, 6:55, 6:54, 6:12, 6:07, 6:05, 6:39
• Comments: Very nice afternoon run with my husband! I was concerned that we ran the first part too steady for the HMP portion, but those 3M ended feeling great once I made the jump in pace and got settled. The last mile could easily have been kept at HMP, but no need to push buttons now! 

Supplemental Work: 2x12 strength session

Monday- 10.3.11
Rest Day
3M easy shakeout with Jake (8:15 AP) + 2x60" pedestal routine

Tuesday- 10.4.11
Workout: 2M warm up + 3 x 2M @HMP, 2' rest + 2M cool down

• Surface: Memorial Park Trail
• Total Time: 16:40, 37:04 (6:11 AP), 15:30
• Pace Progression: 6:12, 6:10, 6:10
• Comments: I struggled a lot more with today's workout than with the previous HMP workouts we've done. My breathing was more strained and my muscles felt tight and heavy. I think part of the problem was that I never got warm (first run in the cooler weather), so I will have to experiment with that over these next few weeks. Glad Jake made the call to do only 3 reps this week. I had planned on 4 but I think that would have overdone things today. Better to save the extra effort for a day I'm fully healthy.

Supplemental Work: 3x15 strength session

Wednesday- 10.5.11
Easy, Medium Long: 10M 7M (overselpt)

• Surface: Treadmill (1% incline)
• Total Time: 54:35 (7:46 AP)
• Pace Progression: Not sure- Started at 9:20, spent 2nd mile in 8:00 range, spent the remainder between 7:47 and 7:19.
• Comments: After the initial shock of oversleeping and the rushed decision making process- I opted for a 7M run on the treadmill. I will tack on 3M tonight with strides and just swap today's run with tomorrow's. It will work out well because I'll have Friday to run easy and Saturday to knock out my workout. The run felt good aside from my head and throat. No muscle fatigue or soreness.

3M double in 23:20 (7:46 AP) + 0.5M strides (4:24 AP)

Thursday- 10.6.11
Easy, Medium Long: 9M

• Surface: Dirt path and streets near Rice
• Total Time: 73:00 (8:06 AP)
• Pace Progression: 9:47, 8:42, 7:59, 7:49, 7:50, 8:17, 7:42, 7:35, 7:17
• Comments: Not sure that my Garmin worked well this morning. We were in downtown Houston and Jake ran with me the entire time. The first 2 miles were definitely slow, but not slow enough that we only ran 8:06 pace for the run. Jake's thinking it was closer to 10 miles altogether. Not a bad run... Still pretty tired (sleepy tired and tight/ heavy muscles both).

Supplemental Work: 3x12 upper body strength, 3x10 varying leg raises

Friday- 10.7.11
Easy: 6M
Strides: 0.5M of strides

• Surface: Memorial Park dirt loop
• Total Time: N/A (no watch today!)
• Comments: Very nice, comfortable run. I started with a slow jog and finished at a solid pace, feeling very good doing so. Did the strides on Memorial Park's concrete track... 100m stride on the straights and 100m jog on the curves for mile (1/2 mile total of strides).Very happy with this morning as a recovery day.

Supplemental Work: 2x60" [pedestal routine, v-sit russian twist, superman]


2M easy shakeout in PM

Saturday- 10.8.11
Workout: 3M warm up + 12x400 (60" rest) + 1M cool down

• Surface: hard track in Hull!
• Pace Progression: 83,81,81,80,79,80,79,79,78,78,77,77 (5:17 AP)
• Comments: I was definitely happy to see what this pace felt like - certainly was not what I expected. Seems like the half marathon work was more effective than I thought! 60" is a lot of rest and only 12 reps is short, but still... 3M at 5:17 pace is a blessing after months of 6:15 pace work.

Week 12 Total Mileage: 60.5M
Cumulative Seasonal Mileage: 556M