Last Post?
It seems crazy that I have been blogging about my running for almost a decade now. Some years were more prolific than others, but I have always enjoyed sharing the running experience via the web! Life is crazy busy right now and I am doing double blog time with posts here and on saltyrunning.com. And it is just a bit too much right now! Never fear you can still read about my pursuits, but for now they will be over on saltyrunning.com! For all the gory workout details you can always check out the online log! Thanks so much for reading and following along on my running journey! Hopefully you will join me over on saltyrunning and added bonus you get to read great content from a bunch of other fabulous ladies too!
8 mile tempo blahs
Well, It's a good thing I had a nice track workout this week because last nights tempo was pretty ugly. Thanks to mother nature I had perfect weather, but thanks to being a female I got it on the worst day of the month for me running. Blah! Felt like absolute crap all day and though the tempo didn't look too intimidating on paper I had a feeling it would be tougher than usual.
Understatement!
My stomach was a mess and I had cramps from hell but I laced up and got it done the best I could. The warm up was SLOW, so slow I did an extra mile to try and get something from my legs before turning up the pace. Alas it was just not my night to run fast. Basically the entire workout felt like I was running uphill (which would be impossible considering I did several out and backs). I was supposed to get in 8 at 6:25 and I was only under 6:40 for the 2nd and last mile. Everything else between 6:40 and 6:53. Ouch! It wasn't for lack of effort either sadly. I ran hard the whole way and ignored the watch. Only one pit stop at 5.5 for a really pissed stomach.
Oh well, you gotta weather the tough ones sometimes. I really wanted to bag it and try again today but I decided that it was better to gut it out and get whatever I could out of the effort. I've had too many tempos in the past where I blew up and quit. No quitting on workouts this year because of slow paces! Hopefully the effort is what's really important ;)
Understatement!
My stomach was a mess and I had cramps from hell but I laced up and got it done the best I could. The warm up was SLOW, so slow I did an extra mile to try and get something from my legs before turning up the pace. Alas it was just not my night to run fast. Basically the entire workout felt like I was running uphill (which would be impossible considering I did several out and backs). I was supposed to get in 8 at 6:25 and I was only under 6:40 for the 2nd and last mile. Everything else between 6:40 and 6:53. Ouch! It wasn't for lack of effort either sadly. I ran hard the whole way and ignored the watch. Only one pit stop at 5.5 for a really pissed stomach.
Oh well, you gotta weather the tough ones sometimes. I really wanted to bag it and try again today but I decided that it was better to gut it out and get whatever I could out of the effort. I've had too many tempos in the past where I blew up and quit. No quitting on workouts this year because of slow paces! Hopefully the effort is what's really important ;)
Blossom Time 5.25 2012
I knew this probably wasn’t going to be the breakthrough race it was for me two years ago and I was pretty confident it wouldn’t be as smooth as Chili Bowl and Boston this year. But I put on my racing flats and gave it a go :) You never know when you might get lucky!
It was hot on the warmup and I showed LJ and my boyfriend a bit of the course as this was their first Blossom. Noted that a few fast local women were there and made it the goal to stay as close to them as possible. It was muggy and hot, but not nearly as hot as it has been here the past few years. I figured best case scenario was probably 5:55 pace for this one and more likely between that and 6:15 pace.
The first two miles of Blossom are mostly uphill and LJ and I managed
to cruise through mile one easily in 6:05. I was pleasantly surprised
by this and we were sitting in 3rd and 4th after getting by 3 or 4 other
ladies who went out a bit faster. I pulled away from LJ in the second
mile at some point and did my best to hold the gap between myself and
2nd. A bit before mile two you finally crest the hill and I instructed
myself to pick up the turnover. I surprised myself with a 6:06 this mile
which was actually better than 2 years ago. It certainly didn’t feel
like I was flying, but it felt solid.
JS ran with me and helped me focus on 2nd place, at some point between 2 and 3 after catching a pack ahead of us he motioned that it was time to close the gap on 2nd, but my legs had no response. I was sitting steady in that 6-6:08 pace range and the legs weren’t going anywhere. I watched as JS easily caught the 2nd and 1st girls before picking up speed to get in a decent training day. I focused on trying to stay with the pack that included my friend JK hitting mile 3 in 6:08.
Mile 4 is tough, a lot of sun and you have a nasty climb towards the end of it. I focused on a few males this mile and hit 4 in 6:00 thanks to BD helping me push that incline before the end of the mile. After that it was mostly a survival to the finish. BD coached me to use my arms and encouraged me to do a better job on the hills, I just had no fire.
I let three guys pass me that I normally would have been competitive
with. I just didn’t have that extra “juice.” I knew I’d have to fight if
I wanted to sneak in a PR and hitting mile 5 in 6:06 I was sure it was
close but a little shy. That extra gear didn’t show up on the final kick
and I managed to get to the finish in 31:54, over a minute behind 1st
and 2nd! Ouch! But only 16 seconds slower than two years ago here.
Based on the way I felt I’m happy with it. It was a really even and solid effort. I’m glad I was able to keep the effort high despite being far out of contention and knowing a PR was not likely. I’d like to think if 1st or 2nd had been closer I might have found some extra drive, but truthfully I was working hard out there. It just wasn’t one of those days where I felt “like a boss.” And both the gals that came in 1st and 2nd ran much faster than normal here. Kudos to them! I’ve got my work cut out for me this year!
It was hot on the warmup and I showed LJ and my boyfriend a bit of the course as this was their first Blossom. Noted that a few fast local women were there and made it the goal to stay as close to them as possible. It was muggy and hot, but not nearly as hot as it has been here the past few years. I figured best case scenario was probably 5:55 pace for this one and more likely between that and 6:15 pace.
JS ran with me and helped me focus on 2nd place, at some point between 2 and 3 after catching a pack ahead of us he motioned that it was time to close the gap on 2nd, but my legs had no response. I was sitting steady in that 6-6:08 pace range and the legs weren’t going anywhere. I watched as JS easily caught the 2nd and 1st girls before picking up speed to get in a decent training day. I focused on trying to stay with the pack that included my friend JK hitting mile 3 in 6:08.
Mile 4 is tough, a lot of sun and you have a nasty climb towards the end of it. I focused on a few males this mile and hit 4 in 6:00 thanks to BD helping me push that incline before the end of the mile. After that it was mostly a survival to the finish. BD coached me to use my arms and encouraged me to do a better job on the hills, I just had no fire.
Based on the way I felt I’m happy with it. It was a really even and solid effort. I’m glad I was able to keep the effort high despite being far out of contention and knowing a PR was not likely. I’d like to think if 1st or 2nd had been closer I might have found some extra drive, but truthfully I was working hard out there. It just wasn’t one of those days where I felt “like a boss.” And both the gals that came in 1st and 2nd ran much faster than normal here. Kudos to them! I’ve got my work cut out for me this year!
Quarters
The past few weeks we have started doing the track workout a bit later which is great for me, less stress and I don't have to leave work before everyone else and feel guilty about it.
Last night was our staple quarters workout followed up by an 800. A bit less rest than usual but otherwise the norm. Goal was 85 though coach made it clear we should be faster based on the early groups results. Not my fastest quarter workout ever but it was solid and worlds better than I felt the past two weeks at the track. I'll take it!
Last night was our staple quarters workout followed up by an 800. A bit less rest than usual but otherwise the norm. Goal was 85 though coach made it clear we should be faster based on the early groups results. Not my fastest quarter workout ever but it was solid and worlds better than I felt the past two weeks at the track. I'll take it!
| Set | Reps | Distance/Time | Goal | Actual | Rep rest | Set rest |
| 1 | 8 | 400 Meters | <85 | 82.12, 81.87, 82.03, 81.18, 82.47, 82.82, 82.02, 82.80 | 60 | 2:00 |
| 2 | 8 | 400 Meters | <85 | 83.40, 81.63, 81.97, 82.70, 82.63, 82.23, 82.19, 81.74 | 60 | 2:30 |
| 3 | 1 | 800 Meters | Hard | 2:41.60 |
Week # 4
Another week, another weekly rundown. This one was not stellar! My left calf tightened up significantly during Tuesday's track workout and a planned 70-75 miles turned into just shy of 30 with only one partial workout and one race.
No tempo, busted track workout, 2 days off, 4 runs, one ART session, one race, and one bike ride.
I'm probably a bit paranoid with the left calf, but I think erring on the side of safety for a little while may be smarter than forcing anything and ending up on the sidelines completely again!
No tempo, busted track workout, 2 days off, 4 runs, one ART session, one race, and one bike ride.
I'm probably a bit paranoid with the left calf, but I think erring on the side of safety for a little while may be smarter than forcing anything and ending up on the sidelines completely again!
Walking on a Dream
Track = Bust
Well last nights track workout was a bust. My left calf knotted itself up in a little ball that wouldn't let go and I decided to stop the workout rather than seeing if I could really make it angry. It was the right decision as it is sore today after icing and massage last night.
Goal was 2400 at 5:50 mile pace, 2:30 rest, 1600 at 5:45, 2:00 rest, 800 at 2:48, 2:30 rest, 1600 at 5:45
What happened was 2400 at 5:50 pace and then 1600 at 5:59 (first lap was on but then the foot/calf and lack of focus dragged the pace down) before deciding it wasn't in my best interest to force it anymore.
Blah! This whole tight calf/tight heel nonsense is getting old ;) If anyone is looking for me I'll be on the bike tonight wishing I was running and hoping a few days of cross training and PT will appease this darn left leg and get me back on the training wagon :)
Goal was 2400 at 5:50 mile pace, 2:30 rest, 1600 at 5:45, 2:00 rest, 800 at 2:48, 2:30 rest, 1600 at 5:45
What happened was 2400 at 5:50 pace and then 1600 at 5:59 (first lap was on but then the foot/calf and lack of focus dragged the pace down) before deciding it wasn't in my best interest to force it anymore.
Blah! This whole tight calf/tight heel nonsense is getting old ;) If anyone is looking for me I'll be on the bike tonight wishing I was running and hoping a few days of cross training and PT will appease this darn left leg and get me back on the training wagon :)
Week 3 Rundown
Legs seem to be coming around. I felt perky for the first time in what seems like a long time this week thank goodness :) Perhaps due to adding back in nightly iron pills and OJ? Or maybe just finally getting recovered from the marathon effort.
Didn't quite hit the goal mileage this week but the mini vacation was a much needed trade :)
Goals for the week:
Total Mileage 70 - 75.
Monday: Easy.
Tuesday: Track.
Wednesday and Friday: Easy miles @ 7:40 or slower, 6 x 30 sec strides on Friday.
Thursday: 8 miles @ 6:35
Weekend:
12 miles @ 7:00
15 miles @ 7:30
Actual:
63 miles, 8 runs (one double), no 15 miler (replaced with a 10 mile trail run in Hocking Hills Friday)
a few hours canoeing, 1 PT session, 1 massage, and an easy/short swim
Though not posted about the "tempo" went well. I felt sluggish warming up and thought it would be a bust so I just ignored the watch, ended up pretty much nailing it and finishing with a nice last mile around 6:08!
Didn't quite hit the goal mileage this week but the mini vacation was a much needed trade :)
Goals for the week:
Total Mileage 70 - 75.
Monday: Easy.
Tuesday: Track.
Wednesday and Friday: Easy miles @ 7:40 or slower, 6 x 30 sec strides on Friday.
Thursday: 8 miles @ 6:35
Weekend:
12 miles @ 7:00
15 miles @ 7:30
Actual:
63 miles, 8 runs (one double), no 15 miler (replaced with a 10 mile trail run in Hocking Hills Friday)
a few hours canoeing, 1 PT session, 1 massage, and an easy/short swim
Though not posted about the "tempo" went well. I felt sluggish warming up and thought it would be a bust so I just ignored the watch, ended up pretty much nailing it and finishing with a nice last mile around 6:08!
Track Ladders
The last time I did a similar workout I managed to rally and hit the paces. The last time I did that workout it also wasn't 85 degrees and a few weeks post marathon :)
The workout got modified a little bit and was 4 sets of 800, 600, 400 (82 seconds recovery, 80 seconds recovery, 2 minutes between sets) Goals were 2:50, 2:04, 80. The 600s were not even close and pretty much after the first set I just had to settle for effort, there just wasn't any more speed to be had in these legs last night! Good workout even if it was slow!
2:53.56
2:04.93
80.94
2:51.00
2:08.45
82.57
2:55.10
2:10.98
84.52
2:53.18
2:08.77
82.91
The workout got modified a little bit and was 4 sets of 800, 600, 400 (82 seconds recovery, 80 seconds recovery, 2 minutes between sets) Goals were 2:50, 2:04, 80. The 600s were not even close and pretty much after the first set I just had to settle for effort, there just wasn't any more speed to be had in these legs last night! Good workout even if it was slow!
2:53.56
2:04.93
80.94
2:51.00
2:08.45
82.57
2:55.10
2:10.98
84.52
2:53.18
2:08.77
82.91
Ambling Alp
I like a lot of Yeasayer's stuff, unfortunately not many of the songs I like have a You Tube Video! But this one's pretty good :)
Week 2 Rundown
Pretty sure I angered the coach gods as my coach doesn't seem interested in a longer recovery period despite work screwing up last weeks training and me generally feeling lackluster. Goals for the week were:
Total Mileage 70.
Monday: Easy.
Tuesday: Track.
Wednesday and Friday: Easy miles @ 7:40 or slower, 6 x 30 sec strides on Friday Thursday: 8 miles (6 @ 6:45, 2 @ 6:30)
Weekend:
12 miles @ 7:10
16 miles @ 7:30
After slacking off Monday I decided to just suck it up and do the week despite not really feeling like myself yet. I got in the miles and the workouts but still not feeling perky. Quads are sore every day and my legs just feel tired. Hopefully working out all the junk here and moving back into the fun part of running soon!
68 miles, 7 runs, one double, 1 ART session
Total Mileage 70.
Monday: Easy.
Tuesday: Track.
Wednesday and Friday: Easy miles @ 7:40 or slower, 6 x 30 sec strides on Friday Thursday: 8 miles (6 @ 6:45, 2 @ 6:30)
Weekend:
12 miles @ 7:10
16 miles @ 7:30
After slacking off Monday I decided to just suck it up and do the week despite not really feeling like myself yet. I got in the miles and the workouts but still not feeling perky. Quads are sore every day and my legs just feel tired. Hopefully working out all the junk here and moving back into the fun part of running soon!
68 miles, 7 runs, one double, 1 ART session
6*6:45, 2*6:30
Ahh marathon recovery workouts, when long run paces become tempo paces, and they feel like it :) No matter how you slice it or what pace it is at I am finding an 8 mile tempo effort is a long one. Today went better than I anticipated, last night I could barely run 9 minute pace so I wasn't too optimistic about running 8 miles under 7. Thankfully the legs seemed ok and the paces weren't unbearable. But they definitely aren't as easy as they would have been a few weeks before Boston!
I had company for the first two and at least had some people to watch ahead of me for the next three but the last three were solo.
6:38.61
6:42.95
6:42.69
6:38.99
6:43.42
6:40.06
6:18.49
6:17.76
And with that I actually achieved two workouts this week :) We'll see how that recovery run tomorrow goes!
I had company for the first two and at least had some people to watch ahead of me for the next three but the last three were solo.
6:38.61
6:42.95
6:42.69
6:38.99
6:43.42
6:40.06
6:18.49
6:17.76
And with that I actually achieved two workouts this week :) We'll see how that recovery run tomorrow goes!
1200s
Another surprisingly speedy track workout on Tuesday while still not feeling quite right. I have no idea what it means, but I suppose it is better than a surprisingly slow track workout :)
5*1200 goal 4:15-4:19 with 2 minute rests. Nailed the first one and managed to hold it together for the rest thanks to the help of fellow CED teammate JS! If he hadn't been there I definitely would have fallen off, this was not one of those workouts where I felt light and speedy!
4:16.37
4:15.05
4:16.21
4:16.60
4:12.83
Now if I can line up a tempo and a decent long run too I will call it a good week. Just feeling a bit rundown and not sure if it is because of the crazy work schedule, a little less sleep, or motivation. To hedge my bets I'm going to take some iron and get some more sleep!
5*1200 goal 4:15-4:19 with 2 minute rests. Nailed the first one and managed to hold it together for the rest thanks to the help of fellow CED teammate JS! If he hadn't been there I definitely would have fallen off, this was not one of those workouts where I felt light and speedy!
4:16.37
4:15.05
4:16.21
4:16.60
4:12.83
Now if I can line up a tempo and a decent long run too I will call it a good week. Just feeling a bit rundown and not sure if it is because of the crazy work schedule, a little less sleep, or motivation. To hedge my bets I'm going to take some iron and get some more sleep!
Week One (Of what???) Rundown
First planned week of workouts post Boston was a bust.
The coaches plan:
Total Mileage 60 - 65.
Monday: Easy.
Tuesday: Track.
Wednesday and Friday: Easy miles @ 7:40 or slower, 6 x 30 sec strides on Friday.
Thursday: warmup, 8 miles @ 6:50 miles,warmdown.
Weekend:
12 miles @ 7:10
16 miles @ 7:30.
What really happened:
42 miles over five runs (Friday and Saturday were spent working with no runs) and basically merged the tempo, 12 mile, and 16 mile runs into one 15 mile effort on Sunday. Not ideal! But that's life I suppose! Lots of late nights at work and not much sleep = not really recovering very well right now. Let's hope it is better this week!
The coaches plan:
Total Mileage 60 - 65.
Monday: Easy.
Tuesday: Track.
Wednesday and Friday: Easy miles @ 7:40 or slower, 6 x 30 sec strides on Friday.
Thursday: warmup, 8 miles @ 6:50 miles,warmdown.
Weekend:
12 miles @ 7:10
16 miles @ 7:30.
What really happened:
42 miles over five runs (Friday and Saturday were spent working with no runs) and basically merged the tempo, 12 mile, and 16 mile runs into one 15 mile effort on Sunday. Not ideal! But that's life I suppose! Lots of late nights at work and not much sleep = not really recovering very well right now. Let's hope it is better this week!
No Tempo
I cannot remember the last time I let work get in the way of training but I find myself this week working day and night literally on a deliverable and the weeks workouts just aren't going to get done. Trying my best to just accept this as extra unplanned recovery, but I can't lie I want to get back to the training routine here soon! Let's hope this does not become the norm around here! I am not used to missing complete days of running just because I literally didn't have the time! Not this energetic girls style! Here's hoping I get this deliverable done and don't have to miss all the weekend workouts too! For those following along with the training the plan the workout was supposed to be 8 miles at 6:50 on Thursday! My hopes of getting it in on Friday were dashed and it isn't looking too promising for today either!
On the Track Again
As coaches email stated this week, the party is over and we are back to work. What? I want to keep partying! :(
Track workout went better than expected. Left heel is a little peeved, but nothing out of the ordinary for me this past year (seriously PF you can go away any time now!).
Easing back into workouts and goal was 2*800 with 2 minute rests, 4*400 with 80 second rests, and 8*200 with 200 jogged rests. Everything was a little faster than the goal and felt relatively smooth though it was definitely not easy.
2:53.42, 2:45.80
83.07, 81.85, 79.80, 78.33
38.57, 39.96, 39.08, 38.46, 38.40, 38.05, 37.91, 36.68
Track workout went better than expected. Left heel is a little peeved, but nothing out of the ordinary for me this past year (seriously PF you can go away any time now!).
Easing back into workouts and goal was 2*800 with 2 minute rests, 4*400 with 80 second rests, and 8*200 with 200 jogged rests. Everything was a little faster than the goal and felt relatively smooth though it was definitely not easy.
2:53.42, 2:45.80
83.07, 81.85, 79.80, 78.33
38.57, 39.96, 39.08, 38.46, 38.40, 38.05, 37.91, 36.68
Weekly Rundown Week 2 Boston Recovery
After a week of no running I eased back into things starting Tuesday. Coaches orders were easy miles, total miles up to me. Not going to lie I really didn't feel very good on any of these runs. Tuesday night was ok, but the quads were still tender. Wednesday I forced myself out the door really quickly while dinner was cooking. Thursday I made the mistake of trying to self massage my tight glute which resulted in the entire run consisting of shooting pain down my left hamstring. Friday was better but not 100%. I took Saturday off and Sunday just did 30 minutes easy on the trails. Hopefully I am just working out the last of the marathon junk and the body is cranky from the forced rest. I'd like to start training again soon :)
27 miles running, 1600 meter swim, one ART session
27 miles running, 1600 meter swim, one ART session
S&P
Yeah I completely slacked off and did not come up with a new fantastic video this week. Instead this is a shameless plug to send you over to Salty Running at noon. It's Wednesday, you know what that means! Pepper is revealing a few secrets to racing success :) Plus this is a throw back to when yours truly was an avid MTV watcher :)
Boston Quickie
Get your mind out of the gutter ;) This is just a quick post to say, uggh I don't have a post yet! Life does not stop just because of the Boston Marathon and I had obligations to get a post up on Salty Running first! But never fear I will have a detailed report up here and yes I will have much more to say about the race! But if you are jonesing for a recap I do have one up at Salty Running! http://www.saltyrunning.com/2012/04/19/7th-times-the-charm/
In the meantime this will double as last weeks rundown and a few quick pics/stats/shout outs!
I somehow did get in 30 miles despite taking some unplanned days off and shifting things around a bit due to travel.
30 miles, 5 days running, one mini track workout, and an up-tempoish run in Jamaica Plains! Add in a massage and some fun times with friends and that's the brief summary of all training last week!
I finally met ILikeToast! And even got to party with him and some really fast Australian marathoner Saturday before the race!
Huge shout out to all my Cleveland/NE Ohio friends who raced Monday. We didn't all have killer days but everyone did great in the heat and tackled yet another Boston marathon!
Special shout out to my roomie Barb Broad who dominated her age group again!And my high school friend Mylene killed her first Boston and only 3rd marathon coming only 3 minutes shy of her personal best despite the heat and no hill training!
And big shout out to Kam Lee for staying tough and gritting it out for top Ohioan at Boston again. Pretty cool to have SERC place top Ohioan on the male and female side! Kam was 9th in his age group too which is no joke at Boston!
CED killed it too, Barb, Lizzie, and I had great races and we were part of the SERC women's team who managed to be in the top 10 teams at Boston!
Many many thanks to Kurt and Janine for kindly letting us stay with them in Jamaica Plains Saturday night! And for feeding us and having some relaxed chill time before all the race weekend frivolities!
Many thanks to my boyfriend for treating our room of marathoners like Diva's. Treating us to waters, Nuun's, ice, schlepping our bags around, fetching me wine etc all weekend. We were very spoiled!
And a little something you didn't get to see on Salty Running! Very happy Ohio finishers!
In the meantime this will double as last weeks rundown and a few quick pics/stats/shout outs!
I somehow did get in 30 miles despite taking some unplanned days off and shifting things around a bit due to travel.
30 miles, 5 days running, one mini track workout, and an up-tempoish run in Jamaica Plains! Add in a massage and some fun times with friends and that's the brief summary of all training last week!
I finally met ILikeToast! And even got to party with him and some really fast Australian marathoner Saturday before the race!
Huge shout out to all my Cleveland/NE Ohio friends who raced Monday. We didn't all have killer days but everyone did great in the heat and tackled yet another Boston marathon!
Special shout out to my roomie Barb Broad who dominated her age group again!And my high school friend Mylene killed her first Boston and only 3rd marathon coming only 3 minutes shy of her personal best despite the heat and no hill training!
And big shout out to Kam Lee for staying tough and gritting it out for top Ohioan at Boston again. Pretty cool to have SERC place top Ohioan on the male and female side! Kam was 9th in his age group too which is no joke at Boston!
CED killed it too, Barb, Lizzie, and I had great races and we were part of the SERC women's team who managed to be in the top 10 teams at Boston!
Many many thanks to Kurt and Janine for kindly letting us stay with them in Jamaica Plains Saturday night! And for feeding us and having some relaxed chill time before all the race weekend frivolities!
Many thanks to my boyfriend for treating our room of marathoners like Diva's. Treating us to waters, Nuun's, ice, schlepping our bags around, fetching me wine etc all weekend. We were very spoiled!
And a little something you didn't get to see on Salty Running! Very happy Ohio finishers!
The Show Goes On
I am a huge Lupe Fiasco fan. I love his song Superstar! And pretty much have enjoyed everything I have listened to by him. I think The Show Goes On is quite appropriate given this past Monday's crazy temps. More on that whole marathon thing to come soon but in the meantime real life calls and that whole "show" must indeed go on too.
Athlete Alert
| Event Information: | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Event: | 2012 Boston Marathon | |||||||||||||||
| Runner: | Elizabeth Hiser | |||||||||||||||
| Latest Results: | ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
All times are unofficial. Times may vary in post race official results.
Athlete Alert
| Event Information: | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Event: | 2012 Boston Marathon | ||||||||||||
| Runner: | Elizabeth Hiser | ||||||||||||
| Latest Results: | |||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
All times are unofficial. Times may vary in post race official results.
Athlete Alert
| Event Information: | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Event: | 2012 Boston Marathon | |||||||||
| Runner: | Elizabeth Hiser | |||||||||
| Latest Results: | ||||||||||
| ||||||||||
All times are unofficial. Times may vary in post race official results.
Athlete Alert
| Event Information: | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Event: | 2012 Boston Marathon | ||||||
| Runner: | Elizabeth Hiser | ||||||
| Latest Results: | |||||||
| |||||||
All times are unofficial. Times may vary in post race official results.
1993 not F36
I'm Boston bound in a few days here for the 7th time and as always chatter begins to start about what my goals are, what time I want to run etc. To be quite honest I really hadn't thought about it, at all, until the big 16 miler a few weeks ago. I really thought Boston was going to be a hard training run where I went, had fun, and finally sneaked in under 3 and just enjoyed myself.
Then I went and ran a fast 5k off two weeks of training, I started running fast track splits, I felt like an animal at Youngstown and couldn't run the prescribed slow pace despite having fun and running relaxed on some gnarly hills, and then 16 at 6:36 pace felt like a pace job (and it basically was as I was helping my teammate). After all that I had to admit I should probably think about a goal for Boston other than have fun and run a hard training run.
Before I knew all that I opted out of the elite women's start this year. I really didn't feel I would be in shape to cash in on it, and to be quite honest I wasn't sure if I was mentally ready to race 26.2 by myself again. Originally my thought process was if I was in shape to PR I should take the mass start and have more men/bodies to work with, and if I wasn't in shape take the EWS and force myself to learn how to race better in a stacked field. i.e. don't run anyone else's race but your own even when the stakes are high and the field is really fast. I didn't really discuss this with my coach but decided to leave it in his hands whether or not I would take the elite start and we decided I wouldn't this year. Given my high fitness, and now knowing the EWS field, I am glad we made that choice. Out of the 50 or so women in the start my qualifying time was only faster than 7 or so. The real race in Boston for women certainly isn't around 2:50 :) But in the mass start there will be plenty of men to race around that time!
I'm not setting any real time goal, the marathon has too many variables for that and my experience with Boston is that every time I get my hopes up I suffer and come very short of the goal. But I do have the goal of racing my best on Monday and I have an idea of where that should put me. I want to be competitive in the field, I want to represent my teams well, and by all means if that results in a fantastic time I will be very stoked. No limits and no expectations, just hard racing on Monday for me!
Feel free to follow along! Bib 1993
Then I went and ran a fast 5k off two weeks of training, I started running fast track splits, I felt like an animal at Youngstown and couldn't run the prescribed slow pace despite having fun and running relaxed on some gnarly hills, and then 16 at 6:36 pace felt like a pace job (and it basically was as I was helping my teammate). After all that I had to admit I should probably think about a goal for Boston other than have fun and run a hard training run.
Before I knew all that I opted out of the elite women's start this year. I really didn't feel I would be in shape to cash in on it, and to be quite honest I wasn't sure if I was mentally ready to race 26.2 by myself again. Originally my thought process was if I was in shape to PR I should take the mass start and have more men/bodies to work with, and if I wasn't in shape take the EWS and force myself to learn how to race better in a stacked field. i.e. don't run anyone else's race but your own even when the stakes are high and the field is really fast. I didn't really discuss this with my coach but decided to leave it in his hands whether or not I would take the elite start and we decided I wouldn't this year. Given my high fitness, and now knowing the EWS field, I am glad we made that choice. Out of the 50 or so women in the start my qualifying time was only faster than 7 or so. The real race in Boston for women certainly isn't around 2:50 :) But in the mass start there will be plenty of men to race around that time!
I'm not setting any real time goal, the marathon has too many variables for that and my experience with Boston is that every time I get my hopes up I suffer and come very short of the goal. But I do have the goal of racing my best on Monday and I have an idea of where that should put me. I want to be competitive in the field, I want to represent my teams well, and by all means if that results in a fantastic time I will be very stoked. No limits and no expectations, just hard racing on Monday for me!
Feel free to follow along! Bib 1993
Marathon Week Track Workout
Last night we headed to the track for the last "workout" before the race. I've gotten used to feeling fantastic on this workout. It is just 2 miles at marathon pace followed by 4*200. It's over quickly, and it's fun, and the pace feels so easy compared to the normal 5k paced stuff we do!
Well last night mother nature decided to make marathon pace feel a little harder. From lovely weather every day last week we showed up to the track in snow and around 36ish (don't ask me how that works but it was snowing). I hate doing anything fast in layers and it took the entire first mile for my little legs to loosen up and my lungs to agree with the pace. But we got it done, 2 miles at 12:50 followed by 4*200 at 41, 40, 40, 39. Here's hoping fast feels a lot easier in Boston on Monday once I am in buns and a singlet! (We all know despite extended forecasts being completely unreliable that I have sadly already looked at the weather for Monday and that singlet may get demoted to a sports bra if the predicted temps hold true) From snow to summer in less than 7 days. Welcome to the midwest!
King and Lionheart
I was really hoping this would have a real video. Bummer!
Just heard this tune and liked it instantly. The bootleg is pretty groovy too! I cannot wait for the Boston after party and dancing!!!
Just heard this tune and liked it instantly. The bootleg is pretty groovy too! I cannot wait for the Boston after party and dancing!!!
Blast from the past and looking to the future
What's that? Yeah I never did get around to a 2011 recap and I would just move forward without one but I think it was a year worth remembering. Turning 30 seems to be a big milestone and despite some setbacks and lows, 2011 had a lot of high points too. Lots of life changes between October of 2011 and now that I might at some point discuss here but for now let's focus on the running.
2011 was set to be the year of the marathon OTQ, not just for me but for many aspiring sub elites. Unfortunately for me it was not in the cards. Fortunately for me life moves on, OTQ or not!
Despite being stubborn and trying to race several times while less than 100% I did walk away from 2011 with an awesome 10 mile race, a Boston best, and a solid fall marathon. I also ran some solid 5k and 5 mile races while competing against some of the most stacked fields I have ever been privileged to race with. It was no 2010, but it was special in its own right.
At some point during the year running became a detraction from life, it became negative, and it lost it's fun. I think the official break down can be charted back to the week or so before the Indy Women's half. I did the unthinkable, in my mind, and lost myself somewhere along the way. I always prided myself on being above that. I thought "no matter how fast I get I will never become a shell of myself". But unfortunately I was not above that, and I did become a shell of myself. Thankfully the rock bottom was followed up with some self discovery and a renewal of my love of running, and racing, and the marathon. I was forced to make other pieces of my life a bigger priority and that allowed me to see that I can still pursue running excellence without losing myself in it.
I learned a lot from 2011 and I am hopeful that I can take those lessons and make 2012 my best year yet. I have a feeling my 30s are going to treat me well and I have high hopes that my running will continue to improve! Let's hope that holds true at Boston next week and see if I can run my 7th consecutively faster Boston!
In the meantime life hasn't slowed down at all and I have taken on some roles in the running community this year above my racing. I am once again president of my local running club and I am helping out on Salty Running this year as Pepper! The posts there will likely be a bit more personal and less Type A training, so don't worry you will still get typical E-Speed posts here, but if you are looking for more "spicy posts" definitely tune into SR. I'm also still really jazzed about being a apart of CED this year and working with Nike, Keyes, and Fleet Feet to run my best! I seriously think that my team of body experts has finally started to figure out the puzzle that is my wonky hip :) Lots going on and all good. Thanks as always for reading!
2011 was set to be the year of the marathon OTQ, not just for me but for many aspiring sub elites. Unfortunately for me it was not in the cards. Fortunately for me life moves on, OTQ or not!
Despite being stubborn and trying to race several times while less than 100% I did walk away from 2011 with an awesome 10 mile race, a Boston best, and a solid fall marathon. I also ran some solid 5k and 5 mile races while competing against some of the most stacked fields I have ever been privileged to race with. It was no 2010, but it was special in its own right.
At some point during the year running became a detraction from life, it became negative, and it lost it's fun. I think the official break down can be charted back to the week or so before the Indy Women's half. I did the unthinkable, in my mind, and lost myself somewhere along the way. I always prided myself on being above that. I thought "no matter how fast I get I will never become a shell of myself". But unfortunately I was not above that, and I did become a shell of myself. Thankfully the rock bottom was followed up with some self discovery and a renewal of my love of running, and racing, and the marathon. I was forced to make other pieces of my life a bigger priority and that allowed me to see that I can still pursue running excellence without losing myself in it.
I learned a lot from 2011 and I am hopeful that I can take those lessons and make 2012 my best year yet. I have a feeling my 30s are going to treat me well and I have high hopes that my running will continue to improve! Let's hope that holds true at Boston next week and see if I can run my 7th consecutively faster Boston!
In the meantime life hasn't slowed down at all and I have taken on some roles in the running community this year above my racing. I am once again president of my local running club and I am helping out on Salty Running this year as Pepper! The posts there will likely be a bit more personal and less Type A training, so don't worry you will still get typical E-Speed posts here, but if you are looking for more "spicy posts" definitely tune into SR. I'm also still really jazzed about being a apart of CED this year and working with Nike, Keyes, and Fleet Feet to run my best! I seriously think that my team of body experts has finally started to figure out the puzzle that is my wonky hip :) Lots going on and all good. Thanks as always for reading!
Week 9 Rundown
Goals for the week:
Total Mileage 55- 60.
Monday: Easy.
Tuesday: Track.
Wednesday and Friday: Easy miles @ 7:20 or slower, 6 x 30 sec strides on Friday.
Thursday: 8 miles @ 6:40
Weekend:
12 miles @ 7:30
10 miles @ 7:10
How it played out:
60 miles. 7 runs. 1 easy swim. one ART appointment.
Pretty much felt fantastic every run this week. Not sure what that means but if I can feel like I did mentally and physically Saturday at Boston next Monday I will be a super happy camper!
After a week of pretty much behaving I went a little crazy on the weekend with a huge meal at Melting Pot and a fabulous Easter dinner with friends. One of the many reasons to stay off the scale during taper!
Total Mileage 55- 60.
Monday: Easy.
Tuesday: Track.
Wednesday and Friday: Easy miles @ 7:20 or slower, 6 x 30 sec strides on Friday.
Thursday: 8 miles @ 6:40
Weekend:
12 miles @ 7:30
10 miles @ 7:10
How it played out:
60 miles. 7 runs. 1 easy swim. one ART appointment.
Pretty much felt fantastic every run this week. Not sure what that means but if I can feel like I did mentally and physically Saturday at Boston next Monday I will be a super happy camper!
After a week of pretty much behaving I went a little crazy on the weekend with a huge meal at Melting Pot and a fabulous Easter dinner with friends. One of the many reasons to stay off the scale during taper!
Tempo with a Tailwind
I still haven't learned that lesson about checking the wind forecast when planning a tempo downtown but I lucked out yesterday and the winds changed direction! I wasn't too worried since it is taper time and I had an "easy" 8 miles at 6:40 on tap so I figured even if the winds were a little strong on the back half I should be able to suck it up and hit the pace. Lucky me the headwinds were on the way out. About 2.5 miles into the wind around 6:40 and then it was time to fly back to Cleveland effortlessly. By mile 8 of the run including warm up I was already averaging below 6:40 with pretty minimal effort. I put in another mile at tempo effort and jogged it in. Now that is how to cash in on windy weather on tempo day :) If only Boston could have a tailwind again this year!
Keep Your Head Up
What a wonderful song, and what a wonderful idea! I think I have found my mission this summer and it involves a big hill and lots of watery fun :) Thanks to Runs on Beer for turning me on to Ben Howard this week!
Swim Top Track Workout
Well it's a good thing I always have a few swim suits in the trunk because despite by best packing efforts I completely spaced out and did not pack any sports bras for the Tuesday/Wednesday workouts this week. Apparently a good bikini top will do the trick in a pinch ;)
Tonight's workout felt pretty easy, the goal was 86 for all 400s of the ladder and other than being a bit too lackadaisical on the first 600 of the 1200 it was really smooth sailing. Had a little fun on the back half but kept it all an easier effort than I have been putting forth the past few weeks. Gotta love taper time! (and slightly easier workouts from coach ;))
Tonight's workout felt pretty easy, the goal was 86 for all 400s of the ladder and other than being a bit too lackadaisical on the first 600 of the 1200 it was really smooth sailing. Had a little fun on the back half but kept it all an easier effort than I have been putting forth the past few weeks. Gotta love taper time! (and slightly easier workouts from coach ;))
| Set | Reps | Distance/Time | Goal | Actual | Rep rest | Set rest |
| 1 | 1 | 400 Meters | 86 | 86.85 | 44.57 | |
| 2 | 1 | 800 Meters | 2:52 | 2:51.75 | 87.25 | |
| 3 | 1 | 1200 Meters | 4:18 | 4:17.88 | 2:10.45 | |
| 4 | 1 | 1600 Meters | 5:44 | 5:40.85 | 3:02.82 | |
| 5 | 1 | 1200 Meters | 4:18 | 4:12.22 | 2:12.03 | |
| 6 | 1 | 800 Meters | 2:52 | 2:44.62 | 89.03 | |
| 7 | 1 | 400 Meters | 86 | 75.58 |
Week 8 Rundown
Goals for the week!
Total Mileage 70.
Monday: Easy.
Tuesday: Track.
Wednesday and Friday: Easy miles @ 7:40 or slower, 6 x 30 sec strides on Friday.
Thursday: 8 miles ( 4 @ 6:30, 3 @ 6:20, 1 @ 6:10)
Weekend:
12 miles @ 7:10
15 miles @ 7:30
How it played out:
70 miles, 6 days running, one double.
Possibly my best week of training ever, all the workouts went well and I felt genuinely good for everything. It's a fine line and my body is definitely strong but I need to be careful and stop neglecting the strengthening PT type stuff as it would be really easy to get an imbalance and end up pushing it too far towards injury again. This was really evident at my massage Friday as there was some serious tightness in my left hip, psoas, hip flexor, lower back. Ouch! Good thing it is taper time!
Total Mileage 70.
Monday: Easy.
Tuesday: Track.
Wednesday and Friday: Easy miles @ 7:40 or slower, 6 x 30 sec strides on Friday.
Thursday: 8 miles ( 4 @ 6:30, 3 @ 6:20, 1 @ 6:10)
Weekend:
12 miles @ 7:10
15 miles @ 7:30
How it played out:
70 miles, 6 days running, one double.
Possibly my best week of training ever, all the workouts went well and I felt genuinely good for everything. It's a fine line and my body is definitely strong but I need to be careful and stop neglecting the strengthening PT type stuff as it would be really easy to get an imbalance and end up pushing it too far towards injury again. This was really evident at my massage Friday as there was some serious tightness in my left hip, psoas, hip flexor, lower back. Ouch! Good thing it is taper time!
Another Lonely Tempo
Unfortunately my schedule and those that could and/or are willing to run my tempos with me are not alligning right now so I was on my own for last nights tempo. I could run at lunch and have company for some of the run but then I have to deal with marginal winds, and getting in the whole tempo during lunch hour is a bit nutty. I guess solo is the lesser evil!
I haven't really been struggling with the tempos or the paces lately (knock on wood) so I wasn't too worried about running by myself. But, I had an 8 mile progression run on tap. 4 at 6:30, 3 at 6:20, and last one at 6:10. No matter how you slice it being focused for 8 straight miles is a bit mentally taxing even when your legs feel great. 6:30s are just fast enough to require attention but just easy enough that I tend to slack mentally and I easily fall off the pace :)
Went from tank top weather on Wednesday to pretty darn chilly last night and I did not bring the proper attire. I settled for buns, a tee, and long sleeve. I was hot enough to strip the long sleeve but really could have used some gloves and an ear band. By mid tempo my hands were frozen and I am pretty sure part of my brain was too.
Despite all that my legs actually did feel pretty good and physically the tempo went great. Nailing the paces and staying focused was not an easy task and for some reason this was one of those nights where time seemed to slow to a halt. Perhaps this is because I have stopped looking at the watch so much, but some of these miles seemed like 3 :) I am sure the windy segments didn't help with nailing pace but somehow each mile came out right in the end which is always nice!
Glad to have that one done!
6:25, 6:28, 6:29, 6:32, 6:17, 6:15, 6:15, 6:00
I haven't really been struggling with the tempos or the paces lately (knock on wood) so I wasn't too worried about running by myself. But, I had an 8 mile progression run on tap. 4 at 6:30, 3 at 6:20, and last one at 6:10. No matter how you slice it being focused for 8 straight miles is a bit mentally taxing even when your legs feel great. 6:30s are just fast enough to require attention but just easy enough that I tend to slack mentally and I easily fall off the pace :)
Went from tank top weather on Wednesday to pretty darn chilly last night and I did not bring the proper attire. I settled for buns, a tee, and long sleeve. I was hot enough to strip the long sleeve but really could have used some gloves and an ear band. By mid tempo my hands were frozen and I am pretty sure part of my brain was too.
Despite all that my legs actually did feel pretty good and physically the tempo went great. Nailing the paces and staying focused was not an easy task and for some reason this was one of those nights where time seemed to slow to a halt. Perhaps this is because I have stopped looking at the watch so much, but some of these miles seemed like 3 :) I am sure the windy segments didn't help with nailing pace but somehow each mile came out right in the end which is always nice!
Glad to have that one done!
6:25, 6:28, 6:29, 6:32, 6:17, 6:15, 6:15, 6:00
6*1000, 6*200
1000s or Ks depending on what you want to call them! I seem to love 1000s. Just long enough to be semi comfortable, but short enough that pace can be relatively fast and still bearable. I finally made it to the group workout last night and I don't know if it was the cool temps, the company, or just the fresh legs after a day off but the workout went really well.
Goal was 3:32 I think for each 1000. Coach said 84/85 for the 400s and I just went with the flow and was open to 86 and being a little slow if that felt better as that was Lizzie's target.I felt really smooth and actually was a bit mentally disengaged. I looked at the watch once and the rest of the workout just ran by feel. I had Passion Pit's Sleepyhead in my head and it obviously seemed to work for me as I got a bit faster each repeat.
Coach neglected (I am guessing intentionally as he usually only has us do more if we are looking good) to inform us we would have more to do after the 6*1k and I begrudgingly followed up my seemingly kick ass ks with a sufferfest of 6*200. 200s and I just do not get along and man my calf was tight during these. Ouch!
I think with this workout I can fairly say my speed is about back to where it was at my peak which makes me a very happy camper this early in the year!
Goal was 3:32 I think for each 1000. Coach said 84/85 for the 400s and I just went with the flow and was open to 86 and being a little slow if that felt better as that was Lizzie's target.I felt really smooth and actually was a bit mentally disengaged. I looked at the watch once and the rest of the workout just ran by feel. I had Passion Pit's Sleepyhead in my head and it obviously seemed to work for me as I got a bit faster each repeat.
Coach neglected (I am guessing intentionally as he usually only has us do more if we are looking good) to inform us we would have more to do after the 6*1k and I begrudgingly followed up my seemingly kick ass ks with a sufferfest of 6*200. 200s and I just do not get along and man my calf was tight during these. Ouch!
I think with this workout I can fairly say my speed is about back to where it was at my peak which makes me a very happy camper this early in the year!
| Reps | Distance/Time | Goal | Actual | Rep rest | ||||
| 1 | 1000 Meters | 3:32 | 3:30.87 | 2:00 | ||||
| 1 | 1000 Meters | 3:32 | 3:30.77 | 2:00 | ||||
| 1 | 1000 Meters | 3:32 | 3:29.7 | 2:00 | ||||
| 1 | 1000 Meters | 3:32 | 3:28.92 | 2:00 | ||||
| 1 | 1000 Meters | 3:32 | 3:27.73 | 2:15 | ||||
| 1 | 1000 Meters | 3:32 | 3:24.87 | 4:00 | ||||
| 6 | 200 Meters | 39 | 38.32, 37.64, 37.96, 36.92, 39.00, 36.30 | 200 |
Sweet Tides
The Cleveland Public Library has proven to be an awesome place to get to know some more tunes recently. I usually listen to Pandora or Spotify but after being introduced to some new groups I just got online and requested a ton of CDs and was pleasantly surprised to find they had most of what I was looking for. I love this song by Thievery Corporation and have been grooving to it the past month or so!
Week 7 Rundown
Goals for the week were:
Total Mileage 75 - 80.
Monday: Easy.
Tuesday: Track. 4 sets of 800m, 600m, 200m
Each set consists of:
800m at (84 secs per lap, 02:48 for 800m), 84 secs recovery,
600m at (81 secs per lap, 02:01 for 600m), 81 secs recovery,
200m at 39
Rest between sets: 2 mins.
Wednesday and Friday: Easy miles @ 7:20 or slower, 6 x 30 sec strides on Friday.
Thursday: 4 x 2 miles @ 12:40 with 3 min jogs after each 2 miles
Weekend:
14 miles @ 7:10
20 miles (10 miles @ 7:30, 5 Miles @ 7:15, 5 miles @ 6:50)
My alternative to the 20 miler was to help out CED teammate Lizzie with her 16 miler @ 6:35
How it played out:
76 miles for the week, 1 double, 1 short 20 minute swim
I opted for the fast 16 and felt fantastic (note I ran the 14 the day before over a minute per mile slower than instructed so I was feeling pretty rested and fresh)!
Perhaps the 16 was so fast thanks to the sweet new kicks from Fleet Feet and Nike?
Track and tempo also went well this week so I am feeling optimistic that I am indeed getting back to the fitness I had before Philly, this time with a much healthier body though!
On a bad note I ate out every day last week. I need to be better about planning some meals at home, not just for the sake of my bank account but also for the sake of eating a bit healthier!
Lonely Tempo
Tuesday night we went to see the Black Keys at the Q. They put on a pretty good show though the venue left something to be desired for them I think. Trisaratops and EH tagged along for the fun and thankfully I clicked over to Sara's blog before my tempo last night because Lonely Boy was apparently the perfect pace to nail my tempo intervals last night despite doing them on a softer surface (towpath) and it being rather hot (80!)! I love it when it just seems to fall into place like that without forcing it.
Goal was 4 sets of 2 miles at 6:20 pace with 3 minute jogs between each set. How I love those 3 minute recovery jogs!!!
Managed to hit every one except the first and was even close on that one!
6:24.48+6:17.95
6:15.21+6:17.89
6:15.70+6:18.82
6:17.42+6:11.64
I was very grateful the fountains were on and I was able to hydrate between the second and third set!
Ran this one solo though I did have a few spottings of Camp the Champ as she headed out after me with a friend to get in her much speedier tempo intervals!
Goal was 4 sets of 2 miles at 6:20 pace with 3 minute jogs between each set. How I love those 3 minute recovery jogs!!!
Managed to hit every one except the first and was even close on that one!
6:24.48+6:17.95
6:15.21+6:17.89
6:15.70+6:18.82
6:17.42+6:11.64
I was very grateful the fountains were on and I was able to hydrate between the second and third set!
Ran this one solo though I did have a few spottings of Camp the Champ as she headed out after me with a friend to get in her much speedier tempo intervals!
The Wilhelm Scream
I had to do some "googling" to figure out who this was by. I love it. Very appropriate for this morning too as I was up extremely early for a shake out run and pretty sure I was still dreaming, and most definitely was in a haze for the first few miles of the run. So much so that I was back asleep post run with no issue. Loving that with the higher mileage I am once again a sleep lover, but man there are not enough hours in the day for everything I want to do!
Well How About That Track!
I overslept this morning for my planned EARLY track workout with Stina (Black Keys and Arctic Monkey tonight!!!). I rallied and got my butt to the local track before work to run solo but the legs clearly needed a little more wake up time. The first set was not too promising and I was pretty much resigned to go by effort this morning but I guess my legs just needed to ease in because somehow I managed to hit most of the paces this morning after the first set and I think the workout in it's entirety ended up pretty close. Though clearly an ideal world would be nailing every rep at the right pace, getting faster with each one was pretty fun :)
Goal was:
4 sets of 800m, 600m, 200m
Each set consists of:
800m at (84 secs per lap, 02:48 for 800m), 84 secs recovery,
600m at (81 secs per lap, 02:01 for 600m), 81 secs recovery,
200m at 39, Rest between sets 2 minutes
How it played out:
2:55.69
2:05.30
38.62
2:48.55
2:03.00
37.87
2:46.32
2:00.78
38.22
2:43.68
1:58.35
36.26
Glad to have that done and glad my legs rallied and that I found a little speed this morning!
Cheesy note of the morning I was singing "Right Here Right Now" to myself on these reps, and sadly it really did help to get me focused :)
Goal was:
4 sets of 800m, 600m, 200m
Each set consists of:
800m at (84 secs per lap, 02:48 for 800m), 84 secs recovery,
600m at (81 secs per lap, 02:01 for 600m), 81 secs recovery,
200m at 39, Rest between sets 2 minutes
How it played out:
2:55.69
2:05.30
38.62
2:48.55
2:03.00
37.87
2:46.32
2:00.78
38.22
2:43.68
1:58.35
36.26
Glad to have that done and glad my legs rallied and that I found a little speed this morning!
Cheesy note of the morning I was singing "Right Here Right Now" to myself on these reps, and sadly it really did help to get me focused :)
Week 6 Rundown
Goals from coach for the week!
Total Mileage 70 - 75.
Monday: Easy.
Tuesday: Track 5*1600 with 90 sec rests
Wednesday and Friday: Easy miles @ 7:20 or slower, 6 x 30 sec strides on Friday.
Thursday: 6 miles starting @ 6:50 and increasing 10 sec faster each
mile
Weekend:
12 miles @ 6:55
18 miles @ 7:30
How it played out:
73 miles
Monday-Off
Tuesday- Track
Wednesday- Double- easy runs
Thursday- Double- tempo at lunch, easy evening
Friday- easy with strides
Saturday- 12 at 7:02 with CED crew
Sunday- 20 at 7:11 with Michigan speedsters, fun hilly course!
I felt pretty run down Monday through Friday AM this week. I was pretty much resigned that due to the higher mileage returning I was doomed to start feeling like this most days. But I think I must have just been fighting something off combined with adjusting to day light savings and the unseasonably warm weather as I started to feel like my speedy spunky self sometime Friday afternoon. Thank goodness!
The legs aren't feeling crazy good, but I think we are starting to make progress on the puzzle that is my body and I had a really good massage session Friday night where we narrowed down some of my issues and we are working towards figuring out how to stay on top of problems before they arise.
Mission loosen my left psoas, left glute, left hip has begun as well as mission strengthen my shins to keep up with the increased calf strength that was inevitable with the return to real training! We really think if we can solve this left hip issue the left heel will finally get back to 100%!
I Promise I am Not a Garmin Freak
Ok so let's touch a bit on my last two race reports and let me assure you I, really, am no Garmin freak (Though I do find this song very entertaining!). The truth is I live in NE Ohio and in this running scene it is well known that most of the shorter local road races are not certified. In fact a few of the races are gossiped about being short so much so that I have friends that shoot down your PR before you can even let them know if the course was legit. Most of the time if I don't care about the result or time I won't even wear the garmin as I'd prefer to be oblivious if the course is a hair short. But to be quite honest I like the feedback post race and a lot of times courses either don't mark a mile or they misplace markers etc. Volunteers are just that, they aren't professional course markers and they are human and make mistakes. It's nice to have a relatively reliable feedback during the race if one of those situations arises and you are gunning for a certain time.
Right now any races I do are serving as a direct feedback into where my fitness is at and that plays into my coaches decisions on my training and what I am capable of. Sure I am also using these to practice my mental tenacity and to get my racing legs back under me, but mostly these are reality checks right now. I know how to race, I know I will race well, so the clock time is important feedback to tell me where I am at and what reasonable goals I should be making in the near future and for this year.
How does that apply to my reports as they were written? Well I made it clear that I believe neither course was legit. I'll give the 5k a waiver of doubt and say it was probably pretty close, close enough for me to be confident that my 5k fitness is at least where it was the last time I raced a 5k, and perhaps a little better. But it was definitely not a fitness breakthrough (though there was a nice mental breakthrough for me!) and I don't feel comfortable calling it my PR (How I wish I would have raced on the track that day!!!).
The 5 mile on the other hand gives me no real indication of where I am at for that distance because it was significantly short and the course wasn't my kind of course. There were some rollers, a lot of downhill, and a significantly climbing mile, followed up by a fast downhill finish that was cut short.
Had I not wore the Garmin I possibly would have walked away from this race believing I was in 28:50 shape. There was no 4 mile marker and my pace the first 3 miles was fast, actually faster than the 5k I just ran (you'll have that when the first 3 miles are mostly downhill!), my effort was pretty high and I might have believed I held that third mile pace through the hill. But I did wear the garmin and while it may be a little inaccurate, that 4th mile was nowhere close to the 5:46 I would have had to run to make my finish time legit. It was around 6:37 kids, so yeah, that fourth mile was TOUGH! I run marathons faster than that pace.
Point being thanks to my garmin (and every other garmin map online, and every fast runner without a garmin who knows what they are currently capable of) I know what I was capable of running for about 4.8-4.85 miles on that course. And it wasn't the pace I wanted :) I was hoping my fitness was a little higher right now. Had I not wore the Garmin I might have believed I ran 5 at that pace and coach may have bumped up my workouts this week and I can assure you I would not have hit the paces, I would have fallen off, and I would have been frustrated. Hell as my log shows I didn't even hit the paces I was assigned this week :)
The garmin is certainly not the end all be all when it comes to races or workouts. I raced hard at both of the above mentioned events, and I competed at pretty much the same level at both. They were nice efforts on tough courses. But they weren't fitness breakthroughs yet, these races put me solidly where I left off before the injury woes of last year and training still isn't quite back up to where it was at its height. And that is where the Garmin is handy, it is a good indicator of whether or not a course is what it says it is and on making sure I base my workouts off of my real current fitness. It says nothing about the course that day, the conditions I ran in, about the field I raced, or how hard I worked on any given day, it just gives me relatively consistent feedback that I can compare to all of my other efforts to ensure I am training properly and continue to get faster without going back down the injury rabbit hole.
I decided at some point last year that I would not base my personal bests on race times any more. I can honestly tell you Philadelphia was the best marathon I have ever run. I worked harder that race than I ever worked to get to that line and though it was not a PR it was clearly my best effort and result. I honestly believe had I been on a course more my style that day I could have PR'ed, but my PR is still 2:49:53 :)
My best 5k to date was actually one of my slower ones last year. I ran the Hyde Park Blast and got my ass handed to me by all the fast chicks in the state, but I ran as hard as I could that day in those conditions all the way to the line. I can tell you I worked harder in that 5k than any other and if it had been flat and cool most certainly it would have been a PR kind of day. But the truth is every day is not a PR kind of day and that is what makes PRs so very special! And as a competitive female I need to be very careful that I don't rate myself by my PRs. My worth as a runner and a female are not tied up into my race times. And most certainly not by what my Garmin tells me on any given day. I am a strong woman and a tough little runner. And trust me when I say on the days I bring my best to the line, I don't give two shits what the garmin or the race clock says :) But right now when I am building fitness and setting goals, I like to know about what ball park I am in!
Right now any races I do are serving as a direct feedback into where my fitness is at and that plays into my coaches decisions on my training and what I am capable of. Sure I am also using these to practice my mental tenacity and to get my racing legs back under me, but mostly these are reality checks right now. I know how to race, I know I will race well, so the clock time is important feedback to tell me where I am at and what reasonable goals I should be making in the near future and for this year.
How does that apply to my reports as they were written? Well I made it clear that I believe neither course was legit. I'll give the 5k a waiver of doubt and say it was probably pretty close, close enough for me to be confident that my 5k fitness is at least where it was the last time I raced a 5k, and perhaps a little better. But it was definitely not a fitness breakthrough (though there was a nice mental breakthrough for me!) and I don't feel comfortable calling it my PR (How I wish I would have raced on the track that day!!!).
The 5 mile on the other hand gives me no real indication of where I am at for that distance because it was significantly short and the course wasn't my kind of course. There were some rollers, a lot of downhill, and a significantly climbing mile, followed up by a fast downhill finish that was cut short.
Had I not wore the Garmin I possibly would have walked away from this race believing I was in 28:50 shape. There was no 4 mile marker and my pace the first 3 miles was fast, actually faster than the 5k I just ran (you'll have that when the first 3 miles are mostly downhill!), my effort was pretty high and I might have believed I held that third mile pace through the hill. But I did wear the garmin and while it may be a little inaccurate, that 4th mile was nowhere close to the 5:46 I would have had to run to make my finish time legit. It was around 6:37 kids, so yeah, that fourth mile was TOUGH! I run marathons faster than that pace.
Point being thanks to my garmin (and every other garmin map online, and every fast runner without a garmin who knows what they are currently capable of) I know what I was capable of running for about 4.8-4.85 miles on that course. And it wasn't the pace I wanted :) I was hoping my fitness was a little higher right now. Had I not wore the Garmin I might have believed I ran 5 at that pace and coach may have bumped up my workouts this week and I can assure you I would not have hit the paces, I would have fallen off, and I would have been frustrated. Hell as my log shows I didn't even hit the paces I was assigned this week :)
The garmin is certainly not the end all be all when it comes to races or workouts. I raced hard at both of the above mentioned events, and I competed at pretty much the same level at both. They were nice efforts on tough courses. But they weren't fitness breakthroughs yet, these races put me solidly where I left off before the injury woes of last year and training still isn't quite back up to where it was at its height. And that is where the Garmin is handy, it is a good indicator of whether or not a course is what it says it is and on making sure I base my workouts off of my real current fitness. It says nothing about the course that day, the conditions I ran in, about the field I raced, or how hard I worked on any given day, it just gives me relatively consistent feedback that I can compare to all of my other efforts to ensure I am training properly and continue to get faster without going back down the injury rabbit hole.
I decided at some point last year that I would not base my personal bests on race times any more. I can honestly tell you Philadelphia was the best marathon I have ever run. I worked harder that race than I ever worked to get to that line and though it was not a PR it was clearly my best effort and result. I honestly believe had I been on a course more my style that day I could have PR'ed, but my PR is still 2:49:53 :)
My best 5k to date was actually one of my slower ones last year. I ran the Hyde Park Blast and got my ass handed to me by all the fast chicks in the state, but I ran as hard as I could that day in those conditions all the way to the line. I can tell you I worked harder in that 5k than any other and if it had been flat and cool most certainly it would have been a PR kind of day. But the truth is every day is not a PR kind of day and that is what makes PRs so very special! And as a competitive female I need to be very careful that I don't rate myself by my PRs. My worth as a runner and a female are not tied up into my race times. And most certainly not by what my Garmin tells me on any given day. I am a strong woman and a tough little runner. And trust me when I say on the days I bring my best to the line, I don't give two shits what the garmin or the race clock says :) But right now when I am building fitness and setting goals, I like to know about what ball park I am in!
Wishing I was Superwoman Tempo
One of these days I will learn some lessons about tempos. Today was not that day :)
The workout on tap really didn't seem too hard. We've been doing 8 mile tempos for a few weeks and last weeks 8 at 6:25 was pretty relaxed. So today's 6 starting at 6:50 and getting down to 6:00 seemed like a pretty doable challenge.
And here is where we impart some wisdom for ourselves to learn from.
1) I am always a bit tired on Thursdays. Paces that feel easy on Sunday are challenging on Thursday. This is the way it has always been for me, and despite the new found happiness and change of attitude it hasn't changed. I am still a bit tired and rundown on Thursdays.
2) Given #1 I should learn to set myself up for success on my tempos. This would mean running a course that is not as challenging the second half as the first or running with the right people to help pace. Instead I seem to set myself up for failure quite often in the hopes that it will somehow make me tougher if I succeed despite the added challenges.
3) It is windy in Cleveland and that wind is almost always coming from the west.
4) When it is that windy stop targeting the paces and target the effort. It is near impossible to run certain paces into the Marginal wind on the best of days, let alone on Thursdays!
All that said here is how it played out :)
6:34.20 (This was laughably easy, I was holding a very animated conversation and not working hard at all, this should have been a sign of what was to come!)
6:37.23
6:30.28
6:19.62
0.51 at 6:19 pace
I was absolutely wiped out at this point and falling way off pace so I took a 2:30 jog to recover and then ignored the watch and just ran hard for 1.5
6:29.65
0.50 at 6:08 pace (This was downhill assisted and extremely painful, absolutely wasted at the end)
All in all, not bad, wish I would have stopped looking at the watch after the 4th mile and just went by effort so I could have backed it off a bit and not taken the break. I for some reason discount the wind while I am in the heat of the tempo and start wondering if I am dealing with exhaustion or being a pansy etc. I need to give myself more credit than that and chalk it up to reality, it was really windy and it juiced me, end of story.
Next time I run a progression run in Cleveland mark my words I will not run East on the way out no matter how tempting it is to have company! Solo would have been better today and running with the wind at my back on the back half would have been a fun bolster whereas dieing into the wind on the way back was just a suffer fest!
The workout on tap really didn't seem too hard. We've been doing 8 mile tempos for a few weeks and last weeks 8 at 6:25 was pretty relaxed. So today's 6 starting at 6:50 and getting down to 6:00 seemed like a pretty doable challenge.
And here is where we impart some wisdom for ourselves to learn from.
1) I am always a bit tired on Thursdays. Paces that feel easy on Sunday are challenging on Thursday. This is the way it has always been for me, and despite the new found happiness and change of attitude it hasn't changed. I am still a bit tired and rundown on Thursdays.
2) Given #1 I should learn to set myself up for success on my tempos. This would mean running a course that is not as challenging the second half as the first or running with the right people to help pace. Instead I seem to set myself up for failure quite often in the hopes that it will somehow make me tougher if I succeed despite the added challenges.
3) It is windy in Cleveland and that wind is almost always coming from the west.
4) When it is that windy stop targeting the paces and target the effort. It is near impossible to run certain paces into the Marginal wind on the best of days, let alone on Thursdays!
All that said here is how it played out :)
6:34.20 (This was laughably easy, I was holding a very animated conversation and not working hard at all, this should have been a sign of what was to come!)
6:37.23
6:30.28
6:19.62
0.51 at 6:19 pace
I was absolutely wiped out at this point and falling way off pace so I took a 2:30 jog to recover and then ignored the watch and just ran hard for 1.5
6:29.65
0.50 at 6:08 pace (This was downhill assisted and extremely painful, absolutely wasted at the end)
All in all, not bad, wish I would have stopped looking at the watch after the 4th mile and just went by effort so I could have backed it off a bit and not taken the break. I for some reason discount the wind while I am in the heat of the tempo and start wondering if I am dealing with exhaustion or being a pansy etc. I need to give myself more credit than that and chalk it up to reality, it was really windy and it juiced me, end of story.
Next time I run a progression run in Cleveland mark my words I will not run East on the way out no matter how tempting it is to have company! Solo would have been better today and running with the wind at my back on the back half would have been a fun bolster whereas dieing into the wind on the way back was just a suffer fest!
Age of Adz
Another band that Runsonbeer turned me onto, I have been seriously grooving to some Sufjan Stevens the past few weeks. I am not sure what it is that draws me to this song, but I cannot get it out of my head :) Check it out. Bummed there wasn't some rad video for this, it should have a rad video for sure!
1600s!
Well this workout has become a staple of Coach Glenn's. 5*1600 at 10k effort with 90 second rests.
Tonight I wasn't really feeling it, I can't lie :) Felt really exhausted yesterday and just didn't have that extra gear tonight. Pretty amazed I managed to tackle the first 3 repeats on pace, disappointed with my lackluster 4th repeat, but managed to rally a hair and at least salvage a sub 6 the 5th by ignoring the watch and running an honest hard effort for whatever it was! Not sure but I think had coach been there he probably would have pulled me after the 4th mile, I was just feeling a bit toasted tonight.
I've nailed this workout in the past, and I have also blown up big time, so I will call tonight a wash. Would have liked to have kept that 4th repeat faster, but given just two weeks ago I barely did 8*800 at 2:52s, doing 5*1600 tonight close to that same pace is good enough for me :) Let's hope I am perkier next week though!
5:50.87 (90.76)
5:49.46 (90.86)
5:49.54 (91.25)
6:04.60 (90.86)
5:56.58
Tonight I wasn't really feeling it, I can't lie :) Felt really exhausted yesterday and just didn't have that extra gear tonight. Pretty amazed I managed to tackle the first 3 repeats on pace, disappointed with my lackluster 4th repeat, but managed to rally a hair and at least salvage a sub 6 the 5th by ignoring the watch and running an honest hard effort for whatever it was! Not sure but I think had coach been there he probably would have pulled me after the 4th mile, I was just feeling a bit toasted tonight.
I've nailed this workout in the past, and I have also blown up big time, so I will call tonight a wash. Would have liked to have kept that 4th repeat faster, but given just two weeks ago I barely did 8*800 at 2:52s, doing 5*1600 tonight close to that same pace is good enough for me :) Let's hope I am perkier next week though!
5:50.87 (90.76)
5:49.46 (90.86)
5:49.54 (91.25)
6:04.60 (90.86)
5:56.58
A Tale of Two Road Races
Blog slacker alert alert alert. Yes it has been weeks since I have posted a race report and I have indeed toed the line in three races and did indeed race two of them while training through a third.
Let's finally post about the two I raced!
It's spring, I am recovering from some injuries and some over training and some life stuff. So expectations were not very high for anything special. Hence coach told me to skip the indoor track scene and head to the roads. (Despite my expressed wishes to race on the track!)
For my first rust buster I toed the line at an old race I used to do way back when it was run on the west side! The Chili Bowl 5k* (~3.09 on the garmin)!
I went into the race knowing it would be pretty low key, so I was quite surprised (pleasantly) to find there were a few ringers there in the women's field and I would actually have to work for a win if I wanted one. I was fired up and found that once we headed out I did, indeed, want to win! Not only that but I found myself seeing a clock time not previously seen for a 5 k. Realistically I know it wasn't a real PR, but it was pretty darn close and given the previously mentioned status I was elated with the performance.
I took it out pretty casual and sat behind my friend Payton who kicked my butt at last years Ohio City Bar Crawl 5k (also short). He is pretty steady and I knew I couldn't be trusted to behave the first mile so I used him as my rabbit. My boyfriend was right there with Payton and I chided him at the mile "What are you doing up here boyfriend?" He did indeed back off a hair and I pushed ahead of both the guys during a flat out and back second mile. The third mile has a nice climb and some wind as you head back into the city. I definitely lost some ground on the uphill and with about a half mile to go thought to myself that I may have tapped the well too early. But something clicked and I just decided that no, there was more in there, and I was going to find it. I knew I had a good chance to run a decent time and that if I hammered I would win so I hauled ass to the finish. It felt great to have a small mental breakthrough and to run such a solid 5km so early in the season. (Garmin splits show the downhill, flat, uphill trend of the course 5:24, 5:50, 6:08, 26)
I was pretty much bouncing off the walls at the awards ceremony where I traded in my first place winnings of $10 to Fleet Feet for a coveted age group chili bowl with the race association after they ensured all the age groupers got their bowls. Funnily enough 2nd place female did the same as she is not a Fleet Feet runner it would be a little odd using that gift certificate. Hermes kindly let us trade our winning's for the fun chili bowls. I still stick to my stance that if a race is going to give awards, they should be awards you can use. As the winner of the Chili Bowl 5k, I most certainly wanted to take home a Chili Bowl not a rock that says first place, thankfully my boyfriend didn't have to sacrifice his age group award to appease my desire for the bowl. (Now I reserve the right to totally go against this statement when it comes to those Punxsutawney 50k rocks, that rock is one of my favorite awards and sits proudly in my garden!)
Next up was the St. Malachi 5 mile* (~4.84 on the Garmin)
For some reason I wasn't quite as fired up for this one despite similar perfect weather. It was a more competitive field and CED was out in force which made it fun, but I just didn't have that extra bit of fire on the back half of the course. Note this may have been mostly because it was uphill and I was alone, but no excuses, I probably could have eeked out 20-30 seconds had I just fired myself up a bit more those last 2 miles!
I may have taken it out a little hard. I sort of tested the waters hanging with the first 3 females for a half mile or so. 1 and 2 pulled away quickly and I stuck as close to 3rd as I felt was reasonable. All three women have kicked my butt in 5 mile races before, but the hope is always that you will get closer every time! Somehow I managed to get myself into no mans land after the hairpin turn around 2.5 miles. It wasn't too bad as I ran around the stadium because there were plenty of cheers from friends making their way to the turn, but once I headed up the dreaded hill behind the Browns stadium things started to get tough. I finally lost sight of 3rd as she rounded the corner and from there I honestly wasn't even sure if I was going the right way. We headed under the highway ramp and down into the flats and 3rd had a major gap on me despite trying to force myself to rally on the downhill.
I never saw the 4 mile mark and glanced at the garmin to see a depressing average pace and even without doing the math I knew a PR was out of the question at that point. We made our way up the west 10th hill and then a sharp right onto the bridge, I was losing steam fast but finally two guys caught me and I rallied and paced with them over the crest of the hill and started to hammer past them on the downhill as hard as I could. Made the final turn thinking there had to be a good ways to go but saw the clock and sprinted in and was caught completely off guard as three guys blew by me at the finish. The clock time made absolutely no sense and sure enough my garmin had 4.84 miles (Splits: 5:37, 5:37, 5:50, 6:37 ouch!, 5:09). I was pretty peeved as my time would have been slower than I wanted and being a new course I really didn't have anything to compare the effort with. I was a bit consoled when most of my friends admitted to that 4th mile being abysmally slow. But I would have loved to have had a bit of extra juice to either cling to 3rd for longer or to have had the mental wherewithal to push a little harder on my own that 4th and 5th mile!
Though the course was short and tough the after party was tons of fun! (To be quite honest I usually just come to this race to cheer and party!) SERC and CED all did very nicely for the first real road racers race of the season!
*These races are not certified and both were short. The 5k was close according to the semi trusted Garmin, the 5 mile was not even in the ball park. I am looking forward to finding either a track 5k or a certified 5 mile road race to run this year and really test out the legs :) I am so ready for some legit PRs!
Let's finally post about the two I raced!
It's spring, I am recovering from some injuries and some over training and some life stuff. So expectations were not very high for anything special. Hence coach told me to skip the indoor track scene and head to the roads. (Despite my expressed wishes to race on the track!)
For my first rust buster I toed the line at an old race I used to do way back when it was run on the west side! The Chili Bowl 5k* (~3.09 on the garmin)!
I went into the race knowing it would be pretty low key, so I was quite surprised (pleasantly) to find there were a few ringers there in the women's field and I would actually have to work for a win if I wanted one. I was fired up and found that once we headed out I did, indeed, want to win! Not only that but I found myself seeing a clock time not previously seen for a 5 k. Realistically I know it wasn't a real PR, but it was pretty darn close and given the previously mentioned status I was elated with the performance.
I took it out pretty casual and sat behind my friend Payton who kicked my butt at last years Ohio City Bar Crawl 5k (also short). He is pretty steady and I knew I couldn't be trusted to behave the first mile so I used him as my rabbit. My boyfriend was right there with Payton and I chided him at the mile "What are you doing up here boyfriend?" He did indeed back off a hair and I pushed ahead of both the guys during a flat out and back second mile. The third mile has a nice climb and some wind as you head back into the city. I definitely lost some ground on the uphill and with about a half mile to go thought to myself that I may have tapped the well too early. But something clicked and I just decided that no, there was more in there, and I was going to find it. I knew I had a good chance to run a decent time and that if I hammered I would win so I hauled ass to the finish. It felt great to have a small mental breakthrough and to run such a solid 5km so early in the season. (Garmin splits show the downhill, flat, uphill trend of the course 5:24, 5:50, 6:08, 26)
I was pretty much bouncing off the walls at the awards ceremony where I traded in my first place winnings of $10 to Fleet Feet for a coveted age group chili bowl with the race association after they ensured all the age groupers got their bowls. Funnily enough 2nd place female did the same as she is not a Fleet Feet runner it would be a little odd using that gift certificate. Hermes kindly let us trade our winning's for the fun chili bowls. I still stick to my stance that if a race is going to give awards, they should be awards you can use. As the winner of the Chili Bowl 5k, I most certainly wanted to take home a Chili Bowl not a rock that says first place, thankfully my boyfriend didn't have to sacrifice his age group award to appease my desire for the bowl. (Now I reserve the right to totally go against this statement when it comes to those Punxsutawney 50k rocks, that rock is one of my favorite awards and sits proudly in my garden!)
Next up was the St. Malachi 5 mile* (~4.84 on the Garmin)
For some reason I wasn't quite as fired up for this one despite similar perfect weather. It was a more competitive field and CED was out in force which made it fun, but I just didn't have that extra bit of fire on the back half of the course. Note this may have been mostly because it was uphill and I was alone, but no excuses, I probably could have eeked out 20-30 seconds had I just fired myself up a bit more those last 2 miles!
I may have taken it out a little hard. I sort of tested the waters hanging with the first 3 females for a half mile or so. 1 and 2 pulled away quickly and I stuck as close to 3rd as I felt was reasonable. All three women have kicked my butt in 5 mile races before, but the hope is always that you will get closer every time! Somehow I managed to get myself into no mans land after the hairpin turn around 2.5 miles. It wasn't too bad as I ran around the stadium because there were plenty of cheers from friends making their way to the turn, but once I headed up the dreaded hill behind the Browns stadium things started to get tough. I finally lost sight of 3rd as she rounded the corner and from there I honestly wasn't even sure if I was going the right way. We headed under the highway ramp and down into the flats and 3rd had a major gap on me despite trying to force myself to rally on the downhill.
I never saw the 4 mile mark and glanced at the garmin to see a depressing average pace and even without doing the math I knew a PR was out of the question at that point. We made our way up the west 10th hill and then a sharp right onto the bridge, I was losing steam fast but finally two guys caught me and I rallied and paced with them over the crest of the hill and started to hammer past them on the downhill as hard as I could. Made the final turn thinking there had to be a good ways to go but saw the clock and sprinted in and was caught completely off guard as three guys blew by me at the finish. The clock time made absolutely no sense and sure enough my garmin had 4.84 miles (Splits: 5:37, 5:37, 5:50, 6:37 ouch!, 5:09). I was pretty peeved as my time would have been slower than I wanted and being a new course I really didn't have anything to compare the effort with. I was a bit consoled when most of my friends admitted to that 4th mile being abysmally slow. But I would have loved to have had a bit of extra juice to either cling to 3rd for longer or to have had the mental wherewithal to push a little harder on my own that 4th and 5th mile!
Though the course was short and tough the after party was tons of fun! (To be quite honest I usually just come to this race to cheer and party!) SERC and CED all did very nicely for the first real road racers race of the season!
*These races are not certified and both were short. The 5k was close according to the semi trusted Garmin, the 5 mile was not even in the ball park. I am looking forward to finding either a track 5k or a certified 5 mile road race to run this year and really test out the legs :) I am so ready for some legit PRs!
Week 5 Rundown
Goals from the coach!
Total Mileage 70 - 75.
Monday: Easy.
Tuesday: Track. 2 sets of 8 x 400m @ 83 With 75 sec recovery, rest between sets 2 mins.
Wednesday and Friday: Easy miles @ 7:40 or slower, 6 x 30 sec strides on Friday.
Thursday: warmup, 8 miles @ 6:50, warmdown.
Weekend:
Saturday: St. Malachi 5 miler (10 miles total with warmup and warmdown)
16 miles @ 7:20
How it played out!
I ended up with 70 miles and I think one day of doubles. The long run was closer to 7:50 but we did the majority of it on trails which was a much needed reprieve from the roads!
A very brief swim and a hectic work week. I got in for ART and we really loosened up my lower back/hip/psoas junk. The left heel (knock on wood) seems to be getting better each day.
I ended up exhausted on Monday so I started off week 6 with a rest day and am hopeful that will be enough to bounce back into things here soon for another 70-75 mile week!
Total Mileage 70 - 75.
Monday: Easy.
Tuesday: Track. 2 sets of 8 x 400m @ 83 With 75 sec recovery, rest between sets 2 mins.
Wednesday and Friday: Easy miles @ 7:40 or slower, 6 x 30 sec strides on Friday.
Thursday: warmup, 8 miles @ 6:50, warmdown.
Weekend:
Saturday: St. Malachi 5 miler (10 miles total with warmup and warmdown)
16 miles @ 7:20
How it played out!
I ended up with 70 miles and I think one day of doubles. The long run was closer to 7:50 but we did the majority of it on trails which was a much needed reprieve from the roads!
A very brief swim and a hectic work week. I got in for ART and we really loosened up my lower back/hip/psoas junk. The left heel (knock on wood) seems to be getting better each day.
I ended up exhausted on Monday so I started off week 6 with a rest day and am hopeful that will be enough to bounce back into things here soon for another 70-75 mile week!
Tempo Recipe
How to ensure your easy tempo (due to a race this weekend) is as tough as possible!
1) Schedule it for 6:30 AM after a late night trail run
2) Eat burgers, fries and wings after that late night trail run
3) Top those off with two beers!
4) Decide an appetizer with goat cheese and raw veggies is just the thing to top all that off at around 10 pm
5) Choose a running locale with no bathrooms
Despite all that the run went pretty well. Got in 10 miles with my buddy MR who is up from Virginia and managed not to peel off into the woods.
Goal was 8 miles at 6:50 and all miles were between 6:20 and 6:53 likely averaging somewhere around 6:45ish.
Went it to see Tim post run and man was my left core out of whack! He loosened all those muscles up and I now longer feel crooked, now I have to follow that up with PT and fingers crossed I will remain that way!
1) Schedule it for 6:30 AM after a late night trail run
2) Eat burgers, fries and wings after that late night trail run
3) Top those off with two beers!
4) Decide an appetizer with goat cheese and raw veggies is just the thing to top all that off at around 10 pm
5) Choose a running locale with no bathrooms
Despite all that the run went pretty well. Got in 10 miles with my buddy MR who is up from Virginia and managed not to peel off into the woods.
Goal was 8 miles at 6:50 and all miles were between 6:20 and 6:53 likely averaging somewhere around 6:45ish.
Went it to see Tim post run and man was my left core out of whack! He loosened all those muscles up and I now longer feel crooked, now I have to follow that up with PT and fingers crossed I will remain that way!
We Will Become Silhouettes
I actually wanted to post up Sleeping In today and it would have been ironic seeing as I was up at 5:30 am and running after a late night track workout last night, but this is an equally good song by Postal Service (my fave is Such Great Heights as previously mentioned many times) and it has an official video whereas Sleeping In does not appear to!
Quarters
Last night I ended up indoors though the goal was to get outside for these. Trying to workout on a track after working all day in downtown Cleveland just leads to stress most Tuesdays for me. Last night was a combination of stress from being a female, leaving work during rush hour (which is never a good idea) and feeling rushed to get the workout done. But somehow as always it did indeed get done.
Literally went to the outdoor track and got out of the car and decided it was too windy and cold and that combo plus it getting dark wasn't going to fly. So we warmed up outside then headed inside to do the workout. Despite getting locked out of the track and being "this close" to tears at that point my awesome boyfriend did manage to get in and let me into the track. I got started on the strides right away while he (yes for real) "played in the sandbox." Apparently I was not in a jovial mood as I did not even notice. Kudos for trying to calm me down though.
I had 2 sets of 8 quarters at 83 with 75 second rests and 2:00 between the sets. Everything went pretty smoothly. BF jumped in on a few for the whole thing, paced my first 200 for a few, and timed me for the rest of them. It was good to have someone to be accountable to after having done these solo for the past few weeks. I'm looking forward to getting outside though, the tight turns combined with the lunar racers had my toes/feet a little cranky by the end despite changing direction every 4 quarters.
Literally went to the outdoor track and got out of the car and decided it was too windy and cold and that combo plus it getting dark wasn't going to fly. So we warmed up outside then headed inside to do the workout. Despite getting locked out of the track and being "this close" to tears at that point my awesome boyfriend did manage to get in and let me into the track. I got started on the strides right away while he (yes for real) "played in the sandbox." Apparently I was not in a jovial mood as I did not even notice. Kudos for trying to calm me down though.
I had 2 sets of 8 quarters at 83 with 75 second rests and 2:00 between the sets. Everything went pretty smoothly. BF jumped in on a few for the whole thing, paced my first 200 for a few, and timed me for the rest of them. It was good to have someone to be accountable to after having done these solo for the past few weeks. I'm looking forward to getting outside though, the tight turns combined with the lunar racers had my toes/feet a little cranky by the end despite changing direction every 4 quarters.
| Set | Distance/Time | Goal | Actual | Rep rest |
| 1 | 400 Meters | 83 | 79.8 | 75 |
| 2 | 400 Meters | 83 | 80.88 | 75 |
| 3 | 400 Meters | 83 | 80.83 | 75 |
| 4 | 400 Meters | 83 | 83.93 | 75 |
| 5 | 400 Meters | 83 | 81.96 | 75 |
| 6 | 400 Meters | 83 | 84.70 | 75 |
| 7 | 400 Meters | 83 | 82.41 | 75 |
| 8 | 400 Meters | 83 | 80.33 | 2:00 |
| 9 | 400 Meters | 83 | 81.99 | 75 |
| 10 | 400 Meters | 83 | 81.85 | 75 |
| 11 | 400 Meters | 83 | 81.35 | 75 |
| 12 | 400 Meters | 83 | 82.82 | 75 |
| 13 | 400 Meters | 83 | 81.52 | 75 |
| 14 | 400 Meters | 83 | 80.83 | 75 |
| 15 | 400 Meters | 83 | 81.04 | 75 |
| 16 | 400 Meters | 83 | 78.72 | 75 |
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