So It Begins

I think I’ve reached the point where running has once again become pretty integral in my daily routine.  Today is the first day I haven’t gone out for even an easy jog in something like a week, and I feel a bit antsy and restless.  I know that my body needs a break though, and that I need to figure out a way to get more sleep (what do I do?) so I am happy that my training plan has me taking a bit of a rest – taking today off and running easy 3 tomorrow.

The whole week isn’t even going to break 40 miles, and though I had originally thought I would keep my mileage where I was last week by increasing my recovery miles, I’ve opted to rest instead and gear up for this half marathon I’m doing on Labor Day.  That means, according to this workout schedule, no tempo tomorrow (according to the aforementioned plan), a marathon paced 6 on Thursday, then a shorter long run.  I think I’m going to opt to do a little longer easy run tomorrow instead, and something closer to 10 on Saturday (not 12 like the plan calls for) and off on Sunday.  After that though, as time starts to disappear before the race in December, I’m going to hunker down and build my mileage, in an effort to keep my training my up before school starts.

I keep talking and talking about this, but I really think I need to start lifting again.  I bring this up because I wonder if the soreness in my body is really founded in my overall muscle loss.  The past couple years I’ve been able to coast on the strength held over from my rowing career, but I think most of it has sadly disappeared, making myself more prone to injury.  School doesn’t start until the end of the month, so I’m going to have to figure out a way to get my strength back in the mean time, especially with a partial conversion to these lightweight trainers.

Oh, and I’m going to start doing yoga as soon as I can find a place to buy a yoga mat nearby.

Bright Yellow (final wt 48)

I don’t quite understand how this week’s mileage total went from 18 to 48 over the past 3 or 4 days, but I am happy that it is steadily increasing.  I guess it’s good news, too, that I haven’t noticed much more of a time suck.  Luckily though, I am able to refer to my online workout calendar to review how I’ve been doing.

On Thursday I was slated to do a 6 mile marathon pace run (marathon pace being 7:12, apparently), but cut it in half with 3 miles at about a 7:15 pace, around Battle Point Park.  Though I was happy with the pace, it was a hard effort, and I was still annoyed that I hadn’t gotten out on the roads earlier.  Instead, I needed to cut my workout short to attend a party in Seattle, and settled for the 3 quick miles plus a one mile cool down.  Hopefully, this coming week I will be able to add to the distance of my pace run, just I hope to add distance to my tempo pieces.

To make up for short workout on Thursday, I resolved to do an easy four miles Friday, even though I had a long 18 miles to figure out on Saturday.  Like I said, the running club out here – Bainbridge Runners – planned a trip out to Olympic National Park to hike/run the High Divide, a 18-19 mile trek, but I don’t really feel comfortable crashing the party since I haven’t met any of them yet.  (Plus, I wanted to actively run the whole 18 miles).

I woke up on Saturday somewhere between 7 and 7:30, resolved to head out early and get my 18 miles done early.  I had gotten fully dressed, laid out two water stops on the out-and-back trip (so 4 stops in all) and headed out with my water belt.  I almost didn’t make it out though, seeing the rain when I opened the door and going so far as to strip off my top layer, make it back into the bedroom, and almost crawl back into bed.  The fact that I had already slicked up gave me pause enough to check out the bedroom window, and make it back out, figuring that I would have to get used to running in the rain eventually.  So, after grabbing my bright orange running jacket, I headed out and hit the roads, where the rain stopped within 15 minutes.

The fifteen minutes of rain were enough to make it uncomfortable once it stopped, and seeing the mountain range off in the distance I knew that the marine layer that the area is so famous for would break, and that I made the right decision by heading out early.  The pace and my run felt good, hitting the first 10 in (slightly) under 8 minute pace.  After the turn around there was only ~8 miles left, and I had been working on trying to stay calm and relaxed during the first 60% or so.  By thinking of it as a warm up/easier run, I could gear up for the second part, and hopefully push into the run.  Though it was slightly downhill overall, there were some tough ones none the less, and I am still unsure how my pace and effort would correspond on flatter terrain.  The run back varied, but I think also felt good, though my pace might have been slower (it was a cumulative uphill).  I think I succeeded in really trying to embrace the fight of the longer run, and increased my efforts in the later miles (one stretch of 3.5 miles even hit pace at 7:50ish despite in uphill climb).

Overall, my feelings about the week and the long run specifically is that I am happy to be getting back in the routine, but slightly annoyed that my paces and numbers aren’t where they used to be.  There’s just no telling how these hilly miles correspond to the miles I’ll actually run in a race, but there are advantages, at least, of training on them, as CIM has a mostly rolling downhill course.  I will, though, be getting a taste of what type of shape I’m in when I hit the Super Jock N Jill Half on September 7, Labor day.  The course seems pretty level, with one hill about half way through the course, and I’m thinking of setting a soft goal of 1:35, or something like a 7:35 pace.  We’ll see about that.

I’m also happy with the augmented schedule that Brian has me following.  Though I am slowly transitioning to get fully onto the workouts, a major change that I wondered about were the two-a-days.  Though they consist of an easy jog int he morning and a harder workout the same evening, I wasn’t sure how it would feel.  Happily, I seem to be able to handle the additional miles, and I even enjoy the routine and feel of the double workout.

Today I capped off the week with an easy 4 mile evening jog.  I had biked 30 miles in the morning at Bike for Pie, a fun ride around the island that included tow pie stops.  The 30 miles included the 20 miles course (though it was purported to be 30, then 25 miles) and the distance to and from home.  The ride really loosened up my legs, and the 4 miles, which were slow, felt good.

Finally, I bought a pair of lightweight trainers, after grudgingly deciding it was time to change up my footwear for experimentation.  I was this close to picking up a pair of Asics Gel DS Trainer 14s, and even promised myself them if I hit the 18 well (which I think I did and I still might buy them) but convinced myself to buy a pair of New Balance 903s on sale for $40 since the new 904s have been released.  I would use the lightweight trainers for shorter runs and my tempo workouts while keeping the GT-2140s that I have been attached to for longer runs.  I actually went out int he 903s today, and they felt good and super light, but at 8 ounces (!) I wonder if they have enough support for much hard running.  Even know my shin is a little sore, and I wonder if using them (or any lightweight trainer) would lend too much impact.

So, next week I hope to continue my quest to get back into shape and get faster.  Brian’s schedule actually corresponds with the half marathon very well (we had me only running 13 next weekend) but I think I’m going to try to keep my miles about where they are at now, but with a higher percentage of easy runs.

Sad Song (wt 18.75)

I haven’t posted since Monday, but I have been putting my time in on the roads, and even though the efforts have been varying, I am happy with how things are turning out.  I hope that I can stay with it and that I get back to where I was in the spring and then improve from there.

I tried to make up for the fact that I didn’t do intervals Monday evening by trying to balance my run on Tuesday (a 6 mile out and back) with recovery and effort.  It would seem a bit difficult, but it ended up being just a little faster than the pace Brian has listed as my easy/recovery run pace.  At the same time though, it’s hard to gauge how much recover my legs are really getting: I clocked in at about 8:08/mile (7:55 out and down, 8:20ish back and up), but my effort felt harder than I would suspect.  I do understand the benefit of running on a course with rolling hills, but I wonder how much it will prepare me for a race that I think of as mostly flat (ok, not really – I need to do some downhill training).

A part of me still wants to run the rolling hills (what?) despite the fact that I’m planning on running a downhill course.  I think I’m starting to get back into running for fun, and even though my goals are to improve my times and speed, a big part of me understands that I might be able to do that if I stopped thinking so much about concrete numbers, and more about improving how I feel while I’m out.

Which is why I’m happy with the past few runs.  After Tuesday’s moderate-easy 6 mile run, I found it in me to do both of my planned runs today (Wednesday).  The first was an easy 4 mile jog in the morning (which was really noon) while the second was some tempo work at the local high school.  After the first run, I remembered to do some stretching, which seemed to help prepare my legs for the second run later that night.  I’m trying to slowly readjust my workouts to match Brian’s plan for me, and tried to do some tempo work.  I also recalled Gretchen’s workouts that seemed to be aligned to the same goals, so I wanted to do something close to what she had us do, and remembered a 2X2mi piece at 10K pace with 10 min rest in between.  I modified the workout (during the first piece) and ended up doing 2 x 1.5 mi at 10K pace (6:52 and 6:48) and resolved to add another lap to each piece in that workout for a while and work on getting the pace down to at least what it was in the spring (6:40).

So, overall, I think my spirits are improving when it comes to my running.  I’m realizing that I would like to add both yoga and lifting to improve my flexibility and core strength, respectively.  I’ve been looking into some yoga classes around the island to try to get a head start before school starts (and I’ll just be able to take a class on campus for cheaper).

Anyway, the in case you were wondering what the title of this post had to do with anything, I submit the Jason Nevins’ remix of Blake Lewis’ Sad Song, which I have started listening to quite a bit while running:

One But Not Two, Yet (wt 4.25)

I ran ~4 miles today early in the morning as an easy recovery, planning on doing intervals alone at the local high school track.  Instead I got sidetracked and build a bookshelf/entertainment center for the apartment, which we’ve needed for a couple of weeks now.  I would have liked to have done the intervals, but I the more I thought about it the more I realized that I didn’t want to do every single workout that Brian had listed for me this week.  I don’t want to build too fast, and I think I would have been well over 50 miles, especially since I’ll be going a little further than Brian had planned for me this weekend.  Plus I figure that I should do only 3 hard workouts this week, and next week try my hand at all four.

I do think it’s funny though how I just let myself get caught up in the furniture again.  So far I’ve refinished our coffee table (which we bought from a slightly crazy woman at an estate sale who thought she knew more about design than I did – whatever), our dining table, our dresser (which was the biggest overhaul), and built the bookshelf.  Maybe I should blog about that?

Getting Back Into It (Final Week Total 40.5)

While I’m not exactly feeling like I’ve returned to the fitness level I was during the spring (far from it still), I am comfortable with this week’s set of workouts (16 weeks out, by the way).  I think that, with the exception of my attempted hard run in the middle of the week, my workouts are falling more into place.  The routine of running (almost) everyday is also setting back in, and it’s giving me something to do consistently as I await for school to start in late September.  It helps that the past few days have cooled down a bit.  Even running into the sun, the heat isn’t as bad as it would be elsewhere in the country.  The tree cover over most of my routes is helping, and I’m starting to go out at a more appropriate time.

Today Jimmy joined me for a new 6 mile lollipop route that took us out, around and back in for a nice recovery.  I’m finding more and more that I don’t get warmed up in my legs until well into the third mile or so, especially after the long, hard workout I had yesterday.  What’s also difficult is that even on these recovery runs, I don’t seem to be able to find a flat, easy run to go out and do.

I’m over 40 miles for the week for the first time in a while, and I think this new mindset that I’m trying to ingrain into my brain – to enjoy the fight and think less about the accumulated miles – is helping me when things get tough on the roads.  I hope that the upcoming week will be even better, and that I’ll find my stride again.  I think I’m going to try to get my workouts closer to those set up by Brian, with a few tweaks here and there to compensate for the fact that I’m still building base/miles up to what he has.  I’ll hopefully get in something closer to the upper 40s, but I’m a little worried that increasing my mileage by 20% again might be a bit much.  A lot of it is going to be easy jogging, since I can’t really do intervals yet (though maybe I can go to the high school and see if I can use the track), but still.

Next weekend I’m going to try to hit something like 18 or 19 miles.  I’m on the listserv for a running club out here called Bainbridge Island Runners, but so far have missed both Sunday runs (their only real scheduled run).  I bring it up because I get invitations to things like the potluck dinners, even though I haven’t met any of them.  One of the things I was invited to was an overnight trip up to the Olympic Mountains for an 18-19 mile trail run over the High Divide, which would be perfect for my long run except that I don’t think I could handle the 3000+ foot gain (yet).  I also think it would be a little awkward since this is the sort of thing that people are going to all be sharing a large condo for.  Maybe next year.  Anyway, I wouldn’t be back in time for Bike for Pie on Sunday, which I’m really excited to do (though I’ve decided that I won’t do it hard, and still run a recovery run that day).

Finally, I’ve may have decided that the following weekend, Labor Day, I’m going to register and run the Super Jock and Jill Half Marathon which will take place in Seattle.  There is also a 4-mile course that Jimmy has agreed to run with me (it helps that it’s at the Red Hook Brewery).  I’m not ever pretend that I’m in good enough shape to try to best my PR here, but the course is mostly flat, which I can appreciate.  The only thing that can really change my mind is the fact that it’s a bit of a hike to the east of Seattle, in a town called Woodinville.

PS  Happy 100th blog entry!  I feel like a professional.

Truthy 16 (wt 34.5)

I say truthy because it’s not really a word.  I mean, it’s meant to evoke the idea of slightly off, I guess?  I don’t know, I didn’t make up the word.

Yesterday I went out for the longest run I’ve been on in a while, hoping to hit 16 on a cool day.  My out and back course took me all the way south along the island, down through some pretty scenic forest and park space, along the water.  I had put out a couple water stops the night before, and had been carbo- loading to prevent hitting the wall like I had last weeks, but even then I brought some GU and a water bottle, which I hate.  I had this grand idea that I would wake up at 7 AM and get my run in, but finally got out the door closer to 10.  I was counting on the marine layer of clouds that was out when I hit the roads, but it burned off within half an hour.  The saving grace though, was that the weather seems to have retreated back into a cooler spell.

The run out was a cumulative downhill, and I was able to hit the 8 miles at about 7:55 pace, and the run back was a bit of a climb.  Add to the uphill my growing fatigued, my pace did drop to about 8:10 or so, though most of it came in the last 4 miles.  Overall though, I was surprised that I was able to run solidly, and that I kept the fight up through the run, though I stopped at the base of the largest hill, which coincided with the 15.5 mile mark.  I took it to mean I was done and cooled down on my walk home.

Here was my route.  I’m going to get a recovery run in this afternoon and get over 40 miles this week.

Days Go By (wt 19)

And still I think about you.

In case you can’t tell, I’m referencing a Dirty Vegas song, though it is appropriate nonetheless.  I was realizing today as I sat in Pegasus Coffee, out here on the island, reading and trying to figure out how to approach the need for a soft drink without corn syrup, I realized that I was reminiscent of Zume’s back in Charlestown.  By extension my former life as an unemployed yuppie (how can that be?) came into mind, and of course, as it relates to running, I complain about my lack of a support network to get through the workouts with.

Yet, with as much complaining that I have nobody to run with, I’m understanding more and more that I’m really going to have to let my time as a runner in Boston go, and focus on what’s coming next.  I was thinking, during my one mile cool down/hike up the hill to my apartment that I had to stop thinking about how fast I was last spring, and just on getting better right now.

I ran a hard 4 today at 10:30, though it was meant to be 6 or 8.  My pace was about 7:30/mi, and I was happy with that, but I’ve got to learn to really get up and go, instead of dilly dallying.  Even when I went out at 10 and started running by 10:30 the sun was a bit much.  I’m taking tomorrow off and trying for 15-16 on Saturday, early.

Free-wheeling? (wt 15)

I read a couple of articles today about Kara Goucher, one from earlier in the year in the NY Times Well blog in which she gives advice and relates to us lay runner in an interview, and one in the Wall Street Journal about her training in preparation for the marathon at the IAAF World Championships in Berlin.  I enjoyed reading the first one, because it gives the reader better insight into her mind set while she runs (she’s amazing AND has two wits about her, unlike – well, I won’t say), but I found the second one more interesting.

I am hesitant to admit that I prefer a Wall Street Journal article over a NYT one, but what I appreciated from the former was the explanation of Kara’s training in light of the history of American long distance training.  They explain that she doesn’t focus necessarily on mileage training, but running to push herself to get faster:

During marathon training, Ms. Goucher runs twice a day, but says she hardly ever considers specific times and distances. She focuses on running hard and fast for as long as it seems right.

David Biderman, the author of the article also relates what an agent for several Kenyan runners thinks – that Africans run longer distances because they “enjoy the battle,” while western runners “race with anxiety.”  I can appreciate what both Kara and the agent say, the latter especially because I run with such anxiety on race day, as I know many of my running friends do.  But the former also speaks to me, because I’ve always been stressed out by my mileage amounts (notice the weekly tally of miles).  I mean, moving forward with this next marathon I wonder if I can keep less structure, focus less on total mileage (while still doing 50-70 a week) and run based on how I’m feeling.  Maybe this amount of free-wheeling could clear my preconceived notions of what to expect from each run I do from here on out.

Today I went out wanting to do a recover 6, but was stupid and lazy and didn’t get out until 1 pm when it was 85 degrees and sunny enough to leave a spandex tan line on my thighs.  Whoever thinks this area is cloudy and gray all year long need only come during the summer.  It was hot and my ankle didn’t seem particularly happy.  In an effort to stay injury-free and not pass out from the heat, I stopped at 4 and walked home, craving gummi bears (which we didn’t have) and orange juice (which we did).  I’m hoping that the ankle just needed a little rest (maybe the downhills are tearing me up more than those dreaded ups) and that tomorrow it will be fine.  I’m thinking of doing 8 miles strong – or rather running for about an hour – but I really, really want to get out on the roads by 9 or so to keep the heat off my back.

I’m also coming to realize that I need to be conscious of what I eat again.  Today’s run left me feeling spent and hungry, which was the second time that has happened in the past 5 days or so.  I’ve realized my carb intake is oddly low (seems to default there, and we don’t really have a rice or pasta stock in the apartment yet) and with a boost in my time on the roads that just doesn’t seem right to me.  I’m also concerned that I’ve lost some muscular strength this summer which would make me more susceptible to injury, which is scary!

Two a days? (wk tot 11)

These days I often finding myself questioning my motivation to run.  Maybe motivation isn’t the right word.  I’ve just been off the roads in any consistent manner and it takes all my strength to get into a routine.  And I know I’ve been out of it for a while (does anybody read this anymore?) – my fault, I know – but it’s also disheartening that it’s just not as easy as it was six months ago.

Six months ago!?  Oof!  I think about that PR I ran out at the New Bedford Half and wonder how I was able to hit a 1:30.   Now, with my first race (really?) of the season quickly approaching, I’m finding it more and more likely that I will be modifying that goal of a sub 1:30 half at summer’s end.  Even if it was a “soft” goal, I’m just under prepared, and haven’t been able to get over the sound for track workouts with Club Northwest (where I would have my butt handed to me anyway).

Excuses, excuses, I know!  We’re still settling into the new (amazing) apartment and my schedule is yet to solidify.  School will just throw a wrench into the plans when it starts up at the end of September so I’m totally lost.  I also must admit that I’m floundering a little bit without regular runs with my old friends back in Boston and my weekly speed/interval workouts with CR.  I ran a rough and hilly 13.5 or 14 (I’m still getting used to the mileage here on the island) on Saturday and was totally spent, to the point where I had difficulty walking the mile cool down back to home.  (Jimmy even had to run out a banana and gatorade for me at the end of the driveway.)

What I’m coming to realize though is that because of the hills and the unknown environment and the lack of company, my best bet is to really just get up and start running.  Today I did a moderate and hilly 7 miles (with breaks for lights and such, then one mile walking cool down) at about 7:45 pace at about noon (so silly of me to do any run at noon in the summer) then a 4 mile jog with Jimmy, finishing up at dusk.  The first run was hard and hot (and damn those hills!) but I was happy with my pace, since it was the first time that I was consistent at about that speed in a while.  I’d like to think that without the hills I’d be closer to 7:25 or so (maybe even race pace?) but who knows.

I’ll be interested to see how my time at this half on Labor Day compares to today and the SF half that I spontaneously ran in.  The second run felt good, though my legs were tired.  It helped that the last mile and a half or so was on soft pack ground.  Hopefully tomorrow I can hit an good 6 easy then do a tempo run and an easy recovery on Thursday.  Last week I barely hit 30, but hopefully I can ramp my miles up to 40 without a problem.

Where Have I Gone?

Bainbridge Island, Washington, that’s where.  Sheesh.  Talk about taking some time off.  With all the moving (i’ll fill you in on that later) I’ve barely had time to get in a couple runs a week, and even when I hit 30 it amazed me.  We will have to see.  I am trying to get back into the act of running on a daily basis, and I might have to keep up the blogging, if only to keep myself honest.  I mean, this weekend marks 16 weeks before race day – California International Marathon – and I need to whip myself into shape.

The good news is that I hit the roads today on the island after moving permanently just yesterday.  I ran a solid 7 and man was it hilly.  There were two hard hills, (though, really, about 6 in all) one at a 4.5% grade and another at a 5% grade!  The 5% one was harder because it was steep and at about 6.5, but the 4.5% grade was longer – about a half a mile long!  I was thinking about it though, and I’m not really sure what that percentage means.  Or, at least, I was really confused.  I mean, is it 1 foot rise for every 20 feet traversed?  Standard handicap ramps are 1:12, and a 5% grade equally 1:20 doesn’t seem like it should be that steep.  Clarification anyone?  (What’s most humorous about this is I was a whiz at math a long, long time ago).

Anyway, 5 tomorrow.  I hope, I hope.  I’ll update on Club Northwest in the upcoming weeks, when I start going to get my ass kicked.  Woot!