Hoka 10k 2018

Hoka 10k 2018

Sunday, September 24, 2017

BTTG: Week 2

Back To The Grind
 
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Karate CHOP!

Just loving life.
 
 The humidity returned this week. The first day of fall didn't feel like the first day of fall. No complaints here, though, because I love warm weather runs (warm weather races...not so much). Overall, my runs felt great this week. I'm hoping that means I won't feel tired from the start for my next race. I'm decreasing my weekly mileage a bit in hopes that it helps prepare me for a successful race day experience.
 
  • 9/18: 9 total miles; 2.15 mile warm up outside, 8:39/mile; 6.85 on the treadmill, 7:47/mile. Workout: 3x3200 with 400 recovery progressing from about 7:55 to 7:25/mile. I chose sleep over getting up early and running solo in my hood. I had just enough time after work to get it done. Of course, you never know how these workouts will turn out, but this one was successful!
  • 9/19: 4 miles, 10:12/mile; Back, 35 minutes. I met Lisa B. in Gahanna for a short, easy run. No agenda today! We enjoyed catching up and trying to figure out our mental game.
  • 9/20: 7.01 miles, 8:31/mile. Legs/Yoga, 45 minutes. Steady state run. Elizabeth was looking for running partners for her workout, but none of us needed/wanted her particular workout. Katie and I told her we would run the same route so she wasn't totally alone, but do our workout. It ended up making all parties happy, safe, and successful. After a warm up mile, Katie and I set off with the goal of keeping the miles between 8:20-8:35. We were mostly successful!
    

  • 9/21: Bis/Tris, 30 minutes. Running rest day meant extra sleep and an afternoon trip to the gym.
  • 9/22: 20.01miles, 8:47/mile. It was a solo tour de Gahanna and New Albany for this runner. I found some ladies that were running early this morning, but it was too early for me...especially since I had the day off of work. I warned them the night before that I'd likely cancel, but I was going to set my alarm for 4 a.m. anyway. When the alarm went off, I immediately sent them a message to say I wasn't going to be there. I opted to sleep until 6-something, help the hubs get the kids ready, and set off just after 7 a.m. It was a gorgeous morning. It was cool in the beginning of the run. I had no route planned, so I just set off towards Creekside. I was able to catch this beautiful sunrise:
    Beauty.
    Since they finished the bike trail on Hamilton, I knew I could connect easily to New Albany without zig-zagging through Gahanna. As I went through some of the neighborhoods, I snapped a pic of the beautiful fall colors on this summer-like first day of fall:
    Gold dust.
    I ran my way through New Albany hoping that I'd turn around at the right moment. I had plenty of time to do the math, so I had a turn around number in mind. I couldn't leave NA without getting a picture of this flag...what a gorgeous day!!
    God Bless America.
    My only trouble this run was during miles 13-15. The sun was starting to beam down on me and I was running low on water. I knew I'd be passing by the LC, so I thought I'd look for a water fountain near the pool. Fortunately, they had a huge cooler of COLD water by the volleyball court. Thank you, LC!!! I filled up, and all was good for the rest of the run. I made my way back home via the pretty trails by Academy Park. It was such a happy, adventurous run! These are the moments I'm so thankful for. I only looked at my watch to check my distances for fueling and turn around points. I didn't look at my pace and managed to have a great run!
  • 9/23: 10.25 miles, 8:44/mile. I enjoyed a rare run with my old running crew in Powell. I'm not able to run with them very often, so it's always a treat when I do. They had there 20 miler, and I jumped in on the last half. Another great run and beautiful day. It was nice catching up with everyone. Special thanks to Jeanne who dropped off Gatorade and 1st place medals for us! So sweet and thoughtful!!
    [Dani, ME, Marion, Karen]
  • 9/24: REST. I took my kids to spectate the Big Bad Wolfe Race, went to church, drank afternoon coffee while the kids and boo napped, watched football, practiced yoga, and mowed the yard. So, yeah, rest. ;)
    Northwest Church of the Naz

    Colts actually won a game.
 


Monday, September 18, 2017

BTTG: Week 1

Back to the Grind
 
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How many times have I run at or around 12.31 miles at MP?! Enough to know I shouldn't be as sore as I was following my DNF on Sunday. Crazy pants.
Dani snapped this pic sometime after 10 miles.
 
 Since all I did was a glorified tempo run at Erie, I decided that (after several conversations with my best/coach friend) I would mostly copy my Erie program, but tweak it as needed. Here's what I am sure of: My legs have been tired from the start for all of my marathons this year. Little Rock was due to running a 5k that was too fast the day before. I have no idea why I was tired for Carmel. For Erie, I'm not sure why, either...but it was a different tired than I felt at Carmel.
 
There are several things I'm not sure of right now:
 
1) Am I running too many miles? A couple of years ago, I peaked at 59-60 miles per week...felt fine and ran well. My goal this time around was to get close to that, so I peaked at 58 miles. In the winter/early spring, I peaked at 50. Should I return back to 50 being my max?
2) Are my speedier workouts appropriate? Are they the ones I need to be doing to focus on my weaknesses? Am I doing too much speed and not enough race pace?
3) What does an appropriate taper week look like for me? For Erie, I followed the taper I did for Pig (my PR race). Am I resting too much...not enough? Do I need to not take off two days in a row?
 
That's a lot to ponder, but here's what I decided. For the next few weeks, I will decrease my overall weekly mileage...peaking at 50, I will continue to focus on putting race pace miles in my long runs, I will do a steady state run every week, and I will have just one important speed workout rather than the occasional two.
 
  • 9/11: 6 miles, 8:56/mile. I was so freaking sore when I woke up. I wanted to get some recovery miles to see how I really felt. The run felt fine, but I could feel the soreness in my quads, abs, and pelvis. I couldn't believe how sore I felt after how little I did the day before.
  • 9/12: 7.05 miles, 9:31/mile. The plan was 12 x 1 minute fartleks and a total of 9-10 miles. I was not feeling awesome. I woke up at 3:50 a.m. to meet some friends at 4:30. I got there early so did a mile solo before doing another 3.3 with Ellen and Melissa. As I started my fartleks on the track, I knew it would be a rough workout. I ended up stopping at 8 fartleks and just finishing up the mile for my cool down. I'm looking forward to my rest day!
  • 9/13: Chest/Back/Legs, 30 minutes. Running rest day. Almost sinful not to run birthday miles! I needed the rest, though.
    A rainbow for my birthday.
  • 9/14: 8.35 miles, I have no idea per mile; Bis/Tris, 30 minutes. Today's run was a combo of three runs! Yay! I planned to run 5 miles with Sarah at 5:20 with the intention of getting the other three beforehand...didn't happen. I got a total of 5.17 miles with Sarah (9:16/mile), 1 mile with my dog, Sophie (9:24/mile), when I got home from Sarah's, and another 2.18 after work (8:40/mile). Now let's see if my butt can get up early in the morning.
    Post run selfie with Sophie.
  • 9/15: 17.01 miles, 8:50/mile. Today's workout called for 17 miles with the last 6-7 at marathon pace. Since we are spending the weekend at Lake Erie, I wanted to get my long run out of the way. Even though I had the day off work, I needed to get finished early. I wasn't very fond of that 3:45 a.m. wake up call. I met up with Tamara, Marcie, and Brandi. We did a short loop and picked up Katie. I did a total of 10 miles with these ladies before setting off on my own. As we were finishing the first 10, I felt like I needed to poop. I was hoping the park bathrooms would be open even though it was still dark out. Unfortunately, they weren't! UGH. It seemed to hit me like a ton of bricks all of a sudden. I knew I couldn't hold it any longer!! I ran to the van to get some napkins then set off for the nearest bush. This was a running first for me! I cannot believe I freaking pooped in the bushes. I mean, my friends do it all the time, but I've never been that desperate. Despite my embarrassment, it was worth it because I felt so much better. I finished my run with 7 progressive miles from 8:16/mile to 7:53/mile!

    We had a fun morning at the park!

  • 9/16: 8.01 miles, 8:16/mile. I was initially planning to rest today and run this workout tomorrow...BUT, when your kids are driving you nuts on your weekend away to "rest," you go run to get away. I thought for sure this workout would have been tough simply because of my mileage the past couple of days. The goal was to run 8 miles with 6 at steady state pace (8:20-8:35). I was planning a 2 mile warm up followed by the faster miles. When mile 1 was 8:19, I let out a little "oops" and decided to do the first 6 as my faster miles followed by a cool down. I guess I was feeling good and comfortable, so I went a little fast. My average for the first 6 was 8:11/mile.
    Morning exploration with James.

    Afternoon run to shake off the crazy.
  • 9/17: REST. Enjoyed a beautiful morning at Lake Erie, drove home (major car sickness), went to small group, and tried to survive the evening.
    Sunday morning sunrise.

    Finally home!
 
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I felt so much better as the week progressed. By the time I got to my long run on Friday, my body felt good. My outlook has turned to positive again, and I'm ready for the next challenge. 
 


Sunday, September 10, 2017

CSWS: Week 16 (RACE WEEK)

Can't Stop, Won't Stop
 
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What a week! I slept so much more than I have in a very long time. My legs felt so good during all of my runs. Finally feeling good mentally.
 
BUT...
 
As most of you know, I didn't finish my marathon! DNF. I haven't shed one tear which is nice. I'd be lying if I wasn't annoyed. So much time and effort is put into training for these races. When things don't work out the way you envision, it's slightly annoying. When I had my first DNF 2 years ago, I balled like a baby. That one hurt and took a while to get over. This time, I'm good! LOL. It's weird. I just don't feel bad about it. I'll talk more about this in a moment.
 
  • 9/4: 5 miles, 8:50/mile. This included a 5k memorial run for the son of our church friends who tragically passed away at the age of 3-ish. I was happy to share some miles with my church family.
    Post 5k with Lindsey.

    The 5k crew!
  • 9/5: 4.01 miles, 9:01/mile. I had some extra time after work and took it to the streets of Hilliard. This was after a failed attempt to run with Jackie and Marion that morning. We had to cancel due to crazy lightning.
    Annoyed that this was solo and not with my buddies.
  • 9/6: 4 miles, 8:54/mile. I set out from my house in the afternoon and followed that up with mowing the yard.
    My sweet, precious lady love.
  • 9/7: REST.
  • 9/8: REST.
    Apple picking with my littles.
  • 9/9: 2 miles, 9:05/mile. Just a quick shakeout before heading to Erie!
    Making a "7" with my feet. Too bad I didn't finish #7...yet!
  • 9/10: 12.31 miles, 8:12/mile. I felt completely fine all week. I felt great the night before. I felt great when I woke up. I felt great waiting at the start line.
    Still optimistic because I feel GOOD!

    On the upside, I got a weekend away with my boo.

    My usual marathon eve meal...burger, fries, beer.
    So what the hell happened?! LOL! I'll just tell you how I felt and not worry about the diagnosis. The temp was around 48; I was wearing shorts and a crop top. You think I would have been cold. I wasn't! I thought that was odd, but I was surrounded by a ton of people. I assumed they were keeping me warm.
    The hubs took this gorgeous picture after we started.
    Mile one was fine...totally normal. I started sweating more than/earlier than usual the next mile. Again, weird, but I ignored it. Mile 4, I took a gel. Soon after, I threw it up in my mouth and re-swallowed (disgusting, I know). Side note: they had water every mile and I drank some sips at each one. Mile 5, my legs started feeling very tired. Crazy, but I ignored it thinking I was still trying to warm up. I threw up again (in my mouth) soon after. Mile 8, despite all of my mental efforts to get through this stuff, I told myself I would see how I felt at the half and potentially stop then. I wanted to get through my next gel before making a decision. I took another gel at mile 9. I threw it up twice over the next mile. WTF. What is going on?! This NEVER happens. I knew at 10 miles that there was no way I could continue this pace for the next 16 miles. I officially decided I would not go past the halfway point if I made it that far. My reasoning was pretty basic: the sole purpose of running Erie was to BQ for 2018. If that wasn't going to happen, I wasn't going to torture myself. I had absolutely no shame in quitting this one. I didn't know when to expect to see my husband. I wanted to tell him what was going on. I saw him at about 12.3 and told him I was going to quit at the half. As I was standing there talking to him, I thought "Why go to the half when I can just quit now?!" LOL. Ugh. All the eye rolls right now. Y'all, I'm secure enough in my ability to know that I will BQ. I had two really good (for me) marathons in the spring...I must fail sometime, right?! Let's get the failure out of the way and try to kick butt the next one!!
    The DNF stamp!
 
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I told one friend, "Marathoning is a bitch." I said to another, "Marathoning is just crazy. So much work for one moment. But, when those goals are met, those moments are sweet."
 
I'm not sure why I choose marathoning as my "thing." I just know that I'm incredibly drawn to it. It makes me push harder than I would otherwise. Sure, I quit today...but I'm ok with it. Only we know our bodies best. I've only done 6 marathons, but I know enough to know that I had no chance to continue at that pace and BQ. Guess I'll start trying for 2019!!! Happy running, friends!

Sunday, September 3, 2017

CSWS: Week 15

Can't Stop, Won't Stop
 
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Roop.
ONE MORE WEEK!! Finally! I'm SO looking forward to this week. All easy miles, more sleep (hopefully), and mental imagery of me running a successful race. EEK!
 
  • 8/28: 4 miles, 9:42/mile. I met up with Jessie and Lisa B. in Gahanna for a short, easy run. A nice recovery run after Emerald City Half.
  • 8/29: 6.01 miles, 8:41/mile; Chest/Back, 30 minutes. Steady State Run (I got to enjoy an afternoon run!). Today called for 6 miles total with 3-4 in steady state pace range. I decided I would stick to 3 faster miles since I'm entering taper mode. I knocked out a couple of warm up miles, and my third mile ended up being in my pace range [8:33]. I didn't realized I was running that fast. Since I did, I just finished the run in steady state range [8:15, 8:25, 8:22]. The 8:15 mile was a little too fast, but I made myself slow down so all was good.
  • 8/30: 6 total miles, 8:44/mile. Track Day. Two mile warm up [9:32/mi], 6 x 2 minute fartleks with 2 minute recovery [2.93 miles averaging 8:12 with recoveries], 1.07 mile cool down [8:41/mi]. It was a crazy foggy morning! I was thinking about all of my friends who might be running on the road today. As a driver, it was hard to see anything!
    
  • 8/31: Bis/Tris/Legs, 40 minutes. It was a running rest day and a short work day, so I hit up the gym to pump some iron.
    End of the month means mileage count...212 miles for the month of August.
  • 9/1: 5.02 miles, 10:52/mile. I met up with Meg for the first time in FOREVER! It was a much needed catch up run for both of us. It was a chilly morning!!
    [Meg, ME]
  • 9/2: 10.42 miles, 8:55/mile. Last long run before Erie! The plan called for 10 miles with the last at race  pace (it ended up being 8:04). It was a wet, chilly morning. The night before, I was not thrilled about running in the rain. Not sure why because it typically doesn't bother me too much. I met up with a group of lovely ladies doing various distances. I made a route for those of us running shorter distances. Unknowingly, it took us through a muddy mess to get to the trail at Inniswood. Fortunately, there were plenty of puddles to clean our shoes. After that mess, I decided Katie could be in charge of the rest of our route! We ended up laughing off my muddy mess up and having a fun, wet run.
    So wet.

    Rainy Saturday crew! [Lisa B, ME, Katie, Jessica?, Beth, Kelly, Noemi, Amy, Bethany]
  • 9/3: Shoulders/Legs, 45 minutes. Another running rest day! My boo and I put the kiddos in child watch at The Y and had a workout together! So fun...just like old times.
FYI: It's birthday month!