May 30, 2006

Mad City Marathon: More Than Just a Race

First of all, a big thanks to everyone who commented on the short version of Madison. I was pretty bummed out over the race - I knew that I was trained and ready to have a spectacular day out there, and things just didn't work out that way. In a perfect world, I would be superwoman, impervious to a little heat. However, in reality? Not so much. In fact, in reality I don't handle heat well at all. The kind of weather we had on Sunday is the kind of weather that usually inspires me to stay inside, in the dark, with the air conditioning turned on while I drink vat after vat of ice cold water. Preferably while sitting in a vat of ice cold water. Just being outside in the sun and heat is enough to wear me out and make me cranky.

Yet, there I was Sunday morning, running a freaking marathon. Clearly, I have lost my mind. Clearly, I am what my grandmother would call "touched in the head."

At any rate, be it insanity or stubbornness or just good old fashioned stupidity, there I was on Sunday morning, lined up at the start with hundreds of other like-minded maniacs. I had one last decision to make when I got to the start: did I want to push it and try to hang with the 4:30 pace group? Or did I want to take it easy and have fun with the 5:00 group? I'd met the 5:00 pace leader at the expo on Saturday, and she definitely seemed like someone who would be fun to hang out with for a morning. As soon as I stepped out of the hotel, the decision was made for me. I hit the wall of humidity and knew that it just wasn't a day to push it.

The race started off OK. The pace felt nice and easy, although I was absolutely dripping by the end of the first mile. We stopped at every aid station, and I was taking 2 cups of liquid from most of them. I was having a good time, though. We had a good group, and were all joking and talking, making the miles just fly by. Around mile 10, though, I noticed that I wasn't dripping anymore, but I didn't think much of it. I didn't feel overheated, so I just kept chugging right along.

By mile 11, I was starting to get chills and feel goosebumpy. Our pace leader had told us to let her know if we were feeling funky, and I was debating if this qualified as "funky." When the chills hadn't gone away by mile 12, and had in fact gotten worse, I let her know. "You're dehydrated," she told me. She asked around the group if anyone had water and Sammy, one of the other runners, let me have some of his Gatorade. It was, to be honest, the nastiest tasting Gatorade I have ever had in my life, but I sucked a bunch of it down. Around mile 12.5, the leader checked in with me again. I wasn't feeling any better, so she told me to take a gel. I did, and immediately regretted it. The sweetness of the gel totally did my stomach in, and I was officially Feeling Like Crap. I was starting to feel like I needed a break, but I knew that if I slowed down and broke away from the pace group, I'd never catch up to them.

At mile 13, I admitted defeat and started walking. I was nauseous. I wasn't sweating anymore. I had goosebumps and despite the fact that it was close to 90 degrees out, I was chilly. I was in bad shape. To confirm that, the volunteer at the mile 13 aid station took one look at me and said, "Take two," handing me two full cups of water. I drank them both down, and decided that I'd had enough. As I've mentioned before, I don't handle heat well, and I've also learned that when I get dehydrated, it takes me a long, long time to bounce back. I've spent entire afternoons with dehydration headaches after hot morning runs, because no matter how much liquid I drink, I can only soak up so much at a time. I knew that there was no way for me to have any kind of decent race after this. It just wasn't going to happen. I cried a little, frustrated at how things had worked out, and made the decision to stop at the next medical tent and tell them I was dehydrated and done.

Little did I know, though, that the next medical tent wasn't right around the corner as I'd expected, but 4 miles away. I kept on walking. I kept on taking my gels every hour like I'd planned. And at every aid station I passed, I stopped and took three cups: one full of Gatorade, one of water, and one of ice. I drank the Gatorade, washed it down with water, and then drank the ice as it melted. When I finally did reach the medical tent at mile 17, I felt better. My feet and hips were sore from all the walking, but I wasn't chilly, nauseous or goosebumpy anymore. While I certainly didn't want to walk the next 9 miles, I didn't feel bad enough to pack it in, either. I figured I'd keep going. See how things went. If I got really dehydrated again, I'd stop at mile 20.

Yet, when mile 20 rolled around? I felt OK. I was actually sweating again, which thrilled me to pieces. There was a medical tent there, but instead of asking for a rescue, I asked for sunblock and vaseline. Although I was still mostly walking, I'd started to jog here and there. It was at that point that I decided I was going to finish the race. I only had 10K left. I could do it. I was going to do it. The only question left in my mind was how much I was going to walk, and how much I was going to run. Would I run it in from mile 21? Or maybe mile 22? I certainly had the energy, it was just a matter at that point of getting my head back in the game and avoiding serious dehydration. I wasn't going to pick it up again only to crash at mile 25.

However, when I got to mile 21, I discovered that despite my newfound commitment to finishing the thing, the universe had other plans. There was a medic waiting at the mile marker with a couple of guys, and he told me that the medical director was starting to shut down the course. I could wait there for a ride, or I could keep going to the next aid station, less than a mile up the course. I opted to keep going - I felt fine, and figured if I got to the aid station I could at least have some water and Gatorade while I waited for my ride.

To be honest, I wasn't too disappointed. I probably wasn't going to PR, and this took that pressure off. Plus, it was nice to be out of the sun. However, when the van dropped us off around the corner from the finish line, my heart sunk. "There's your finish line," they said, clearly expecting us to run through it.

I almost couldn't do it. I took the chip off my shoe and ran through the chute. All my friends were waiting, and they went crazy when I passed by. The clock read 5:15, which would have been a huge PR for me. They were thrilled that I'd manage to not only finish but PR under those horrendous conditions, and I just wanted to cry. I dropped my chip in one of the buckets, grabbed a bottle of water, and turned down the medal from the volunteer.

Then I met up with my friends. They asked where my medal was, and I burst into tears. I told them I hadn't really finished. They'd shut the course down, and I'd gotten a ride from mile 21.5. I hadn't really made it. There was a moment of silence as their hearts all broke with mine, and then someone said, "You need to get a medal. You were out there for 5 hours. You earned it. Go back and get one."

I was, at that point, too emotionally exhausted to argue. One of my friends said, "Let's go. We're getting your medal," and I followed her back over to the finish area. She walked right up to the volunteer and said, "You missed someone." The volunteer apologized and handed me my finisher medal.

I spent Sunday evening and most of yesterday pretty conflicted about it. I kept telling myself that it was OK. I'd done what I could, and I'd made a damn good showing on a ridiculously bad day. I'd run a good, solid 2:30 half-marathon. The training wasn't a waste, because I'd built up a ton of strength and speed and I was going to have an awesome summer racing season. I kept telling myself to focus on the bright side, because that's just what I do. It's OK. No, really, it is.

Then, last night, I decided that it wasn't OK. I worked my ass off, dammit. Despite whatever doubts I might have had before the race, I was ready for that thing. I was robbed! Robbed!

Then I got a number of supportive messages from the friends I'd spent the weekend with. Messages that reminded me how far I've come over the past year. Messages that reminded me that while we may have all gone to Madison to run a marathon, that wasn't why we all went to Madison.

We all went up there to run a marathon together. This weekend wasn't about a single race, it was about spending a couple of days with a great group of people that I feel lucky to be able to call my friends. When I look back on Memorial Day 2006 years from now, the first thing I think of won't be the race I ran on Sunday morning. It'll be the fun I had with my friends all weekend long. It'll be the giant group of 15 people waiting for me at the finish, holding their collective breath and hoping I'd be OK, worrying about whether or not I'd put on enough sunscreen that morning.

Today, I'm glad they made me go back and get that medal. From now on, when ever I look at that medal, I'll remember the amazing group of friends I've made in pursuit of this crazy hobby. The group of friends that has, over the past year, watched me go from this girl who got the crazy idea to run a marathon to someone who ran as much of that race as she could before they made her stop, and been with me every step of the way.

The Mad City Marathon itself pretty much sucked, but the marathon weekend? Is something I wouldn't trade for the world.

Posted by Dawn at 12:46 PM | Comments (6)

May 29, 2006

Madison: The Quick Version

I'm back from Madison - a little dehydrated and sunburned, but otherwise alive and well.

It was not a good day for a marathon - sunny, humid, and temperatures that got over 90 degrees. I wasn't handling the heat well at all, and was on pace for a finish time somewhere around 6 hours.

Unfortunately, I'll never know how long it would have taken me to finish the race. When I got to mile 21, I was told the medical director was shutting the course down. I could wait at the mile marker for my ride, or I could keep going to the next aid station, about a half-mile away. I decided to wait at the aid station, since I could at least have some water and Gatorade there while I waited.

My very first DNF.

I'll have a full report later, once I organize my thoughts a bit more. For now, I'm just disappointed and glad to be home.

Posted by Dawn at 12:13 PM | Comments (9)

May 27, 2006

Off to Madison

Today was the first day I've run all week. Nothing major - just a few miles to make sure I remembered how, and it felt good.

I'm ready for Sunday. The weather forecast isn't ideal, and I would have preferred to be healthy this past week, but that's all beside the point. I'm still ready to go out and have a great race tomorrow. I've put some good work in these past few months, so now it's just a matter of having faith in my training, having faith in myself, and running the best race I can.

Full report once I get back. It's time to rock and roll.

Posted by Dawn at 08:02 AM | Comments (3)

May 24, 2006

YOU Can Control Your Toast

As I was hoping for, today I sound like I'm dying. My voice is raspy and about 2 octaves below where it normally is. The cold that was all in my head yesterday (heh) is now firmly settled in my chest.

The downside of this is that I feel like crap. I'm exhausted - I was up from midnight until 2 a.m. because it felt like there was an elephant sitting on my chest. I sound awful, too, what with the hacking up a lung and whatnot. People are looking at me and going, "You're running a race on Sunday?" with this look of doubt in their eyes. I am not what you would call the picture of health. In fact, I gave some serious thought to calling off work today. The only thing that stopped me was the knowledge that I had some major things to wrap up today before taking the rest of the week off. If I can make it through today, I can sleep through tomorrow.

However, the upside of this is that this is when it stops getting worse. The cold has worked its way as far into my system as it's going to go, and now I just have to kick it out. And I will by Sunday. I've got two days with ahead of me with very little else to do but rest. I've got zinc tablets, and I'm drinking water by the gallon. This is not going to keep me down, by any means.

In non-disease related news, I've made an important decision: my toaster, bread, peanut butter, and honey are all coming to Madison with me. When someone on the TM board first suggested it, I thought they were just messing with me - sitting back, watching the new girl get her first bad case of taper madness, throwing out crazy ideas just to see how far over the edge she's gone. Because, really, bringing a toaster? That's... well, it's certainly non-standard. But then more people started chiming in, and when my hotel roommate voiced her support of the plan, I figured they must be serious. As one woman put it, "YOU can control your toast," and she's right.

The strange thing is, taking control of my toast has actually made me feel much more relaxed about the whole thing. Sure, it could be 90 and humid on Sunday. Sure, trying to hang with the 4:30 pace group could damn near kill me.

Any number of things could go horribly wrong this weekend, but no matter what happens, my toast is taken care of.

Posted by Dawn at 11:20 AM | Comments (3)

May 23, 2006

Finally, It Starts

The obsessing, that is. I'm totally useless at work this week. Partially because I'm feeling a little zoned out from this stupid wee little cold I picked up over the weekend. It's not a severe cold, so I don't think it'll affect me too much even if it hasn't cleared up by Sunday. On the plus side, though, I'm doing lots of sleeping, drinking lots of water, taking my zinc, and it does feel like it's moving through my system pretty quickly. I expect that by tonight or tomorrow I'll sound like I've had a pack-a-day smoking habit for the past 40 years, which means that I'll have almost kicked this thing. I'll be fine by Sunday. Just fine.

I've got my packing list in my head. I did my 20-miler in the clothing I'm planning to wear for race day, and that was all A-OK. I'm still torn on the shoes - do I wear the older pair with 100 miles on them or the newer pair with 20 miles on them? Both rank equally on the blister-causing scale. I'll probably end up taking both and making my final decision on race day, although I'm 95% certain that I'll go with the new shoes because they'll give me a psychological edge (or at least I think they will). Let's face it: I'm a girl. New shoes will do a ridiculous amount for my mental state. With new shoes, I'll be able to take over the world! Plus, they're still all clean and purty.

Then there's the Bodyglide (don't. forget. the Bodyglide), the socks, and my lucky pink hat to remember. There's also the hairstyle question: do I go with the standard ponytail? Or should I bust out the pigtails of power? I'm thinking pigtails. If I'm serious about kicking some ass on Sunday, then it's really the only way to go.

Snacks. Don't forget my on-the-run snacks of Clif Bloks and Gu. What about breakfast? I'm giving some serious thought to packing a peanut butter and honey sandwich to take with me. It's pretty close to the peanut butter and honey toast I've been having for breakfast before my long runs, and it'll travel/keep well for a day. Or do I wing it? I'm sure that the hotel will have some sort of continental breakfast with a suitable alternative, but I'm not sure I trust it. I like my peanut butter and honey toast. I'm totally going to end up just packing the sandwich. Crazy? Perhaps, but at least I'm not taking a full cooler full of food for the weekend. It's just a sandwich.

Lastly, there's the pace group situation. There's no 4:45 group, but there is a 4:30 group. Do I go for it and start with the 4:30 group, falling back if I need to? I think I just might. I'll run it by the coach, but I'm pretty sure she'll tell me to go for it and just pay attention to how I feel. She's far more confident in my abilities than I am, but so far she's been right. Apparently she knows more than I do about these things. 4:30 is certainly an ambitious time goal, but it's not out of the question, and if the pace leader is a good one? I might just surprise myself. I think I'm a little scared of it, but I think I'll do it and fall back if I need to. No guts no glory, right? Plus, a pace group means company! People to run with! That could make a huge difference for me. Still, 4:30. Eeek. I'm sure I can do it, in a very abstract sort of theoretical way. I've even been thinking of my goal for this race as 4:30 - 4:45. Still, when it comes down to the matter of actually getting out there and running a 4:30? Um, yeah. Eeeek.

Five days out. Two days of work left. I hope no one actually needs me to do anything useful.

Posted by Dawn at 08:31 AM | Comments (6)

May 22, 2006

T-Minus 6 Days

Yesterday's run was just plain awesome. It was only 12 miles and, amazingly, it actually felt like "only" 12 miles. The plan was to do the first half easy, and the 2nd half at MP (which has mysteriously crept down to 10:19 - 10:30, from the 10:53 it was the last time I did one of these fast-finish runs. I'm trying very hard to Not Think About That), and it was no problem at all. It took me a couple miles to get settled into a good 11:40 pace on the front half, and then I took it down to 10:30s with no problem. OK, a couple of miles in there were more like 10:10 - 10:15, but they were still no problem.

I'm ready to rock this thing hard-core.

The only "problem" with the run was when I hit downtown and ran smack into the "walk" portion of the American Cancer Society's Walk & Roll. The path was full of walkers, and it was... interesting to navigate. I wound up running on the grass next to the path, which was OK. After a mile of that, I hit my turnaround point, and the crowds were a bit thinner going the other way. By the time I got back down to the museum campus area, the walkers had all turned off the path and I had it to myself again. Ahhhh. Free open road!

Lesson #1 for the weekend: Be aware not only of what events are using the lakefront path on the weekends, but what time the events are. If I'd gotten my ass out of bed before 10:00 Sunday morning, I probably could have been done with my run by the time the walk started. Oops.

Lesson #2 for the weekend: No sleeping with the windows open. I opened a bunch of windows in my apartment on Saturday afternoon, as it was sunny and 70+ here in Chicago. Absolutely beautiful. However, it was far cooler on Sunday, and the temperature dropped enough overnight that I woke up with the beginnings of a cold on Sunday morning. Oops. (Cool evening air + open windows overnight = cold for Dawnie is not new information. I just didn't think it would be an issue, since it was so warm on Saturday.)

The good news there is that it didn't affect my run at all, and I took some decongestants before a very early bedtime last night. This morning I'm still feeling a little loopy from the drugs, but overall much better. As long as I rest and keep it up with the fluids (which I should be doing anyway), I'll be fine for this weekend. Just fine.

Like I said, I'm ready to rock this thing hard-core.

Posted by Dawn at 06:49 AM | Comments (3)

May 16, 2006

Fan-freaking-tastic

On the schedule today was an easy 4-miler. Now, recently I've sort of come to hate these short easy runs. They haven't been feeling good, I can't get settled into a pace, I don't feel like I'm warmed up until I'm done, etc, etc. As a result, I wasn't too excited about this run initially.

Then I had an idea. Forget the "easy" pace. Let's just go out and run the darn thing at whatever pace I feel like. Sure, I'll take the Garmin, but only so it can tell me when it's time to turn around and head home. No pressure, no goals, no expectations. Just go out there and run 4 miles like I used to - before I knew about things like race pace and training pace and long run pace and all that crap. Just me, a new pair of shoes, and getting off my butt and outside in the spring weather for 40-45 minutes.

It. Was. Awesome. Sure, it was harder and faster than it was "supposed" to be, but it wasn't all out. It was just the pace that felt good at the time. And it wound up being surprisingly fast. After an first mile at 10:30, the rest clocked in at 9:30 - 9:40. I almost couldn't believe it. That makes it my fastest non-speedwork non-race run ever. It was just what I needed.

Posted by Dawn at 07:40 PM | Comments (3)

Good Advice

I got an e-mail from a friend this morning that contained the following gem:
I think you need more rock climbing. Stop thinking about running. You have done the training and are READY!

I'm totally going to put that on a pillow, because it is spot-on.

Posted by Dawn at 12:55 PM | Comments (2)

May 15, 2006

At Least It Was Educational

I don't really want to talk about yesterday's 15 mile run. So I won't. Instead, I'm going to talk about the few, yet very important things, I learned from it:

While the last 5 miles of yesterday's run pretty much sucked - I got to a point where I just didn't want to be running anymore and instead wanted to be at home, in bed, taking a nap... immediately - the first 10 miles were great. I was shooting for a 11:30 pace, but had a hard time hitting it - I'd alternately hit splits that were either too fast (closer to 11:00) or too slow (closer to 12:00), but it felt pretty good. I was in a groove, the sun was shining, it was all good.

Then I just got tired. Not so much physically tired as completely mentally unfocused. The only thing I can think of is my week of being busy at work and home and flat out not getting enough sleep (I slept in until 11 on both Saturday and Sunday, which never happens) just caught up with me. At least it was yesterday, and not last weekend during my 20-miler.

Here's hoping this week is better.

Posted by Dawn at 12:07 PM | Comments (2)

May 11, 2006

Track Night

For the past few weeks, I've been hitting the track on Wednesday nights. No, I haven't been playing the ponies. Instead, I've been going to speedwork sessions. A track coach from one of the local universities runs these over the summer, and they're at a nearby high school. Every Wednesday at 6, about 10 of us gather, pay the coach, and then he takes us through our workout. The specifics are a little different every week, but we usually end up running about 5000m total, at or under 5K pace.

It is, without a doubt, a total ass-kicker... but I love it. The cost is minimal, and it's so completely worth it. For starters, I get to run with other people. Since I do nearly all my training solo, this is huge for me. Now, most of the people there run much faster than I do, so it's not so much running with people as having other people out on the track running while I am, but it's still far far better than doing it all on my own. Plus, there's someone to call out the splits every lap, which is awesome. I don't have to worry about what to do or keeping track of it on my own. The coach takes care of all of that for us.

The first couple of weeks were tough mostly because I was still figuring out what I was doing and how hard I should be running. However, by last week, I felt like I had the hang of it. I went out there, kicked out my five 1000m repeats and got a little faster with each one. It was good.

This week was 2000m repeats, which sort of scared me. There were only two of them, but 2000m? That's... kind of a lot. All at once. However, just two of them? I could totally handle it. I figured I'd shoot for 11:15 or so for the first one, and then take it from there. I went out, I ran hard, but I didn't kill myself, and finished the first 2000 in 10:48. All righty then. Not so much 11:15, but, whatever. Better faster than slower, right? I pushed the second one a little harder, and finished in 10:39, which... rock on. I'm not quite sure how I managed that, but I'll take it.

We had a few minutes to recover, and then we ended the workout with 4x400. The 2000s were tough, but these were another beast all together. I figured I'd be happy with keeping all 4 of them right around 2:00. I finished the first one in 1:57, and, man, that was just rough. I thought there was no freaking way I was going to be able to keep the next 3 at that pace, never mind get faster. I went out at what felt like a similar effort for the 2nd one, and came in at 1:52. Awesome, although I wasn't sure about finishing two more. I started the third one a little easy, but picked it up at the end for a 1:53.

Then I got a wild idea - could I finish my last one in 1:45? I was tired, it was horribly humid out, but, hey, no guts no glory, right? Besides, it was the last one, so it didn't matter if I left it all out there. I took off like a shot, intent on catching one of the guys that was running just ahead of me. I was tired. I was feeling the effort, and, around the 300m mark "feeling the effort" turned into "feeling like I was about to toss my cookies." I backed off a bit, but still finished strong. I didn't hit 1:45 like I'd wanted to, but I came close with a 1:47.

It wasn't until I was jogging my cool-down laps that I did the math. A 1:45 quarter works out to a 7:00 pace.

Excuse me? 7:00 pace? I believe that falls under the category of "faster than I have any business running." If I'd done the math before that last 400, I never would have gone for it like I did, because, seriously, that's ridiculous. 7:00? That's for, like, fast people. Not me.

Except... well... a few months ago, I thought an 8:40 pace was faster than I had any business running, and that was pretty much the pace I ran the 2000s at, with enough left in the tank to kick out those 400s. Maybe someday, a 7:00 pace won't seem quite so ridiculous. At any rate, after a full summer of this? I should be able to run one hell of a 5K.

Posted by Dawn at 10:51 AM | Comments (2)

May 08, 2006

Taper Time

Yesterday was my 20-miler for Mad City. I am now officially tapering, and all I can say is FINALLY.

Work has pretty much exploded in my face the past few weeks, and it's just been crazy and stressful and with no end in sight. Lately, just making it through a week without having to kill anyone has been an accomplishment. So, even though running isn't contributing to the stress in any way (and, in fact, is probably what's keeping me from killing people, now that I think about it), it's nice to have something in my life easing up for a bit. It'd be much better if my job, which is the problem, had a scheduled taper, but I'll take what I can get.

As for the run itself... it was pretty good. It hurt a lot more than I was hoping for (my legs, apparently, were not so much down with the idea, and started feeling achy around the 11-mile point, which, well, could have been better), but after I stopped and took an actual stretch break at the 17-mile mark (not just a "stop and stretch the quads" but a "stop, stretch the quads, sit down, stretch everything out" kind of break), they felt totally fresh for the last few miles of the run. Unlike the 20-miler I did for Detroit back in October, I didn't feel totally and completely exhausted when I got done. I definitely felt like I could have run a few more miles, and I was actually functional for the rest of the afternoon, even if I did spend it sitting on my butt watching TV.

The best part, though, was that I think I finally got my pre- and during run fueling right. I never got hungry during the run, which was a first, and I didn't have to make any pit stops, either. I couldn't believe it - I'll try and follow the same pattern I did this past weekend for next weekend's 16-miler and see if it works again. I really hope so, because it would be a huge thing to have that one thing set.

So, now it's all downhill until the 28th. It feels totally strange to be able to say, "I'm running a marathon in 3 weeks." Is it that close already?

Posted by Dawn at 12:23 PM | Comments (2)

April 11, 2006

Superfast

Stride workout today!

I absolutely love love love this workout - of all the different things the coach has introduced into my routine, this is easily the favorite. It's a 2 mile warm-up, followed by 10-12 intervals of 30 seconds at/below 5K pace with 1 minute of recovery, then a 1-2 mile cool-down. I like it because 30 seconds isn't all that long, so I can really push the pace, and it's fun to go flying super-fast like that. I love it.

Since I'd done my 60-second intervals last week at an 8:34 average pace while running outside, I figured I'd start these bad boys today at an 8:00 pace on the treadmill, and see how far I got. I figured I'd go until my legs were wiped out, and then I'd bring the speed down to 8:15 - 8:30 for however many intervals I had left.

I never brought the pace down. I did all 12 and the 8:00 pace, and while my legs felt a little tired, they didn't feel totally tapped out. I could have done more. I could have run at that pace for longer than 30 seconds, easily. In short, I kicked serious ass.

I've always said that when it comes to running, I have absolutely no natural talent or speed - I'm just stubborn enough to keep on going. I'm starting to think, though, that I can learn how to run fast, as long as I stay stubborn enough to keep pushing myself.

Posted by Dawn at 08:07 AM

April 09, 2006

The "Magic Number"

In both of my marathon training cycles, I've had a "magic number" - the number that makes me freak out when I see runs bigger than it on my calendar. Last time, it was 10 miles, and I wound up running the Chicago Distance Classic instead of the scheduled 12 miles to help me get over it. From that point on, nothing else - not even the 20 miler - freaked me out as much, because I knew if I could run 10+, I could do anything. This time, the magic number was 15 miles. I was OK with the 10-12 mile runs. I was OK with the half. But today's 16-mile fast-finish long run has been weighing heavily on my mind and stressing me out all week long. There were two reasons for this: a) 16 miles, the longest I've run in a long while and over my "magic number" of 15; b) the fast-finish - not only was I going to have to run 16 miles, I was going to have to run the last 5 at race pace.

I realize that these fears were totally unfounded and also totally illogical. Why was 16 miles freaking me out when I'm going to be running 26.2 next month? And why would 5 miles at race pace be a problem when I'm hoping to be able to run all 26.2 miles at that pace next month? Silly Dawnie.

This morning, as I was getting ready, I was still trying to find a good way to approach it mentally, when it hit me: it's like an 11-mile warm-up followed by a 5-mile pace run. Bingo! 11 miles? No problem! 5 miles at race pace? No problem! I got my gear together and headed out.

I've been doing my long runs at a 12:00 pace lately, but that pace is getting harder and harder to settle into - it takes me 2-3 miles to get into it, because for those first few miles, my legs want to run closer to 11:30. I would go with it, except today I was afraid of not having enough energy for the big finish, so I made myself slow down. I hit the turnaround feeling great - it was a beautiful day on the lake. Sunny, a little windy, 50 degrees, and just fabulous. I stopped for a gel and some water, and to stretch out a bit. When I started heading home, I felt like I was just getting started. Awesome.

I was running into the wind a bit for the second half of the run, but it wasn't horrible. Just a little extra work. Nothing I couldn't handle. I hit the 11 mile mark and picked up the pace and realized that while I felt aerobically OK, my legs were pretty damn tired. Ugh. I stopped at mile 12 for some more gel and water and to mentally regroup. I stopped again at 14 for my last gel and told myself that I only had two miles left. Two miles! I can do it! It was turning out that "marathon pace" wasn't really all that fast - not holding myself back and keeping it relaxed was enough to get me down to the 10:53 target. I felt myself going faster the last two miles, and it was totally because I knew I was almost home, and I wanted to be done. Horse heading back to the barn and whatnot.

My splits for the last 5 miles of the run were: 10:54, 10:46, 10:58, 10:17, 10:14

Right on target, with those last two coming out of who knows where. I was tired when I got home, and figured I'd spend the afternoon sleeping. I've been chilliing on the couch watching TV for the past two hours, and I'm feeling surprisingly good. If I were to lie down in bed, I could probably fall asleep, but outside of the achy tiredness in my legs, I'm feeling pretty darn good. Maybe I'm getting the hang of this whole thing after all.

Posted by Dawn at 01:18 PM | Comments (2)

March 20, 2006

The Down Side...

...to running over 13 miles of hills is that you will be sore the next day. It's not so much the intensity of the soreness as it is the location. There are muscles deep within my butt that I never even knew I had that are protesting today.

Posted by Dawn at 09:22 PM

March 15, 2006

Spring Preview

This past weekend, we got a nice little preview of the spring weather. For one glorious day (Saturday), it was 60 and sunny and absolutely beautiful. Sunday wasn't too bad, either - it was closer to 50 and cloudy, but it was still warmer than it has been. Of course, it's far too early in the year for that sort of weather to be sticking around for long, but for those two days? It was nice. This was the weekend that gives you hope that spring will indeed come and it won't always be cold forever.

The nice weather meant that this weekend was also an awesome weekend to run. When I heard the forecast mid-week, I began to look forward to Saturday's run like it was an oasis in a desert. I'd be able to run outside! In shorts! Without having to worry about layering up or being cold or anything like that! In shorts! I was so freaking excited, it wasn't even funny. Whenever work felt like it was dragging and the weekend was never going to arrive, I thought about running in the warm sunny weather on the lake.

While I was determined to wear shorts for my run on Saturday, I figured I'd have to go with long sleeves on top, since it probably wouldn't be much warmer than 50 first thing in the morning. Imagine my surprise when I checked the weather before heading out Saturday morning and saw that the temperature was already 60. 60! At 9:30 in the morning! Forget the long sleeves - shorts and short short sleeves all the way! I practically bounced out the door and proceeded to fly through my 5 mile run. I didn't just feel like I flew through it - I actually did. Normally, an "easy" 5 mile run will take me something around 55 - 60 minutes. Saturdays run? Was over in 51. Now, I knew I was going a bit too fast, since my HRM wasn't displaying the sort of numbers I usually see during 'easy' runs. I tried telling myself to slow down. I tried thinking really hard about relaxing and slowing down. I swear I did, but it just didn't take. I kept flying. When I finished, I definitely didn't feel like I'd just run an "easy" 5 miles. However, on the flip side, I didn't feel like I'd run a particularly hard 5 miles, either.

While it was lovely and warm Saturday morning there was, however, a cool breeze blowing. Since it was 60 (60!) degrees outside, I didn't bother covering my ears before I headed out. I didn't realize how big of a mistake this was until I got back into my apartment. Once my ears were no longer being bombarded with a cold wind, they were throbbing. Not a good time, but greatly preferable to the massive sunburn I used to get every year in college on the First Warm Day Of Pre-Spring.

Sunday's long run was just as good. It was a little cooler (45-50), so long sleeves were a necessity, but I was still fine in shorts. Most of my long runs until now have been at a 12:30 pace or so, but this one I flew through at a 12:00 pace, and didn't really notice much of a difference. All that ass-busting speedwork I'm doing must be paying off! I was supposed to run 12-13 miles, but due to a scheduling error, I only had time for 11.5. Still, it was an awesome 11.5, and if I'd had time, I could have easily finished the 13 miles out at the same pace. I love this feeling of finishing long runs with gas left in the tank. When I was doing all this last year, I finished most of my long runs tired and spent. I may be doing the long runs at a slightly slower pace now, but they feel so much better. This weekend's run, while not quite as long as it was supposed to be, made me feel confident about the half-marathon I'm running next weekend. (Which, since the weather was so nice last weekend, we will probably have snow for.) I don't think I'm in quite enough shape to set a PR or anything (especially since my PR is on a flat course and next weekend's race will be hilly), but I do think I'll be able to go out, have fun, and run a good solid race.

And, who knows? Maybe I'll surprise myself. We shall see.

Posted by Dawn at 04:48 PM

March 08, 2006

Best Week Ever

This week has just been simply awesome, as far as running has been concerned. After last week, when all my workouts just felt hard and long and, generally speaking, not good, I really needed a breakthrough. I was starting to worry that I just wasn't where I should be fitness-wise for where I was in my training schedule, and that, coupled with some work and personal stress was just bringing me down. However, the work stress ended on Friday when we finally figured out the problem we'd been fighting all week, and the personal stress ended Friday evening when I tied up some loose ends from an old relationship. All that had to happen was for the running to fall back into place.

And it did. Saturday's run was OK (especially when you consider that I was kind of hung-over), but Sunday's run... Sunday's run was the turning point. I set the alarm for 6, and got up and ate breakfast. Then? I reset the alarm for 8 and went back to bed, so I could give my breakfast time to digest. (A quick shout-out here to the other Dawn, who left a comment letting me know that she waited an hour and a half after eating to go run. I've been making myself wait at least 2 hours after breakfast to go running the past couple of weeks, and you know what? The digestive rebellion appears to have come to an end!) By the time I actually got out of bed and hit the road, it was almost 9. It wasn't too cold, it wasn't raining or snowing, and it wasn't too windy. I set out with no plans other than to keep a nice, even relaxed pace for the next 11 miles. Last week, my long run was only 9 miles, but I was toast at the end. Why? Because I got all worried about pace - my coach revised the pace guidelines for my long runs upwards a bit, and I got all worried about trying to hit the upper end of it. However, I don't yet really know what 11:30 miles feel like, so I started out too fast and wound up exhausted by the end. Not fun. This time, I said, "hey, my pace range is a) just a guideline and b) goes down to 12:30. I know what 12:00 - 12:30 miles feel like, so I'll just try for that."

And, what do you know? By keeping it relaxed? I hit pretty consistent splits right around 12:30 for the first 9 miles. It's amazing how smart your body can be when you actually listen to it, instead of trying to stay in control of it. Silly girl. Even better than that, I had enough gas in the tank to kick up the pace a bit for the last 2 miles - mile 10 was done in 11:53, and I kicked out mile 11 in a blazing 10:11.

Yes, I had enough gas in the tank to kick out a 10-minute mile after running for over 2 hours. Sure, I was pretty much sprinting by the last quarter mile, but it felt good, not like I was about to die. When I finished, I felt like I could go back out for a few more miles, and was sort of sad to be done. Which, now that I think about it, is how a long run should be.

Tuesday's workout was equally fantastic. I had a 2 mile warm-up and cool-down on the schedule, and in between those were 10-12 strides of 30 seconds at 5K pace or less, with 1 minute recovery. Last week, I did 10 of these at a 9:13 pace, and it damn near killed me. This week? I did the first 3 at 9:13, and they felt too easy. So I kicked it up to 9:05 for the next 3. Still too easy. Up to 8:57 for the next 3. Starting to feel not-so-easy, but not really hard yet. The last three were at 8:49, 8:42, and 8:34 - by the end, it was starting to get challenging, but the 30 second intervals still felt really short, and the recovery time in between still felt really long. I felt like I could have done more of them, and faster, too.

Normally, with these workouts, I sort of hate the cool-down. I run them on the treadmill, which is great for hitting the right paces on my intervals, but it really sucks when cool-down time comes. I've finished the "workout" itself, so I'm not quite as focuses, and the 2 miles just drags on for. ev. er. For some reason though, I got into a groove yesterday. The sound on the TVs wasn't working, but the closed captioning was, so I could read the news. Plus, I was listening to these two guys talk on the next treadmills over - it was a younger guy, who clearly just started working for the older guy. Listening to the kid (well, "kid" compared to the guy he was with - he was probably right around my age) trying to make conversation with and impress the other guy was pretty amusing, and, I don't know. I just got into some sort of zone. The pace was easy, I was trucking along, and when the treadmill decided to automatically go into "cool-down" mode before I was done, I was shocked and annoyed. I restarted it for the last mile I had to do, and, to be honest? I was again sort of sad when the workout was all done. I felt like I could have kept going all day long, if it weren't for that whole "work" thing.

I can't explain it - maybe the planets have aligned just so for me this week, or maybe all the hard work I'm putting in is starting to produce noticeable results. Either way, it's been a great week for running around here so far, and I'm getting excited about my training all over again.

Posted by Dawn at 12:08 PM | Comments (3)

March 02, 2006

Notes From the Coach

In regards to this morning's workout (5 mile progression run - 4 miles 'easy', last mile at half-marathon pace. I admittedly, totally did the first 4 miles a little too fast and the last mile way too fast):
Wow, you have some heart!! 204 max. I am glad you are pushing your workouts and finding them challenging

Really, I'm just glad she didn't say something along the lines of, "Good God, woman! Are you trying to kill yourself?" Because that's totally what I was thinking.

Posted by Dawn at 04:57 PM | Comments (1)

February 21, 2006

Speed!

Well, it's been kind of a crappy week around here in Dawnie land. Crap at work, crap at home, and, on top of it all, crappy runs. My runs on Thursday and Saturday felt awful and dragged on forever, and I totally missed my long run on Sunday due to the aforementioned crap at home. (Well, it was actually due to a meltdown inspired by the crap at home, but whatever.) Yesterday was a step in the right direction as far as crap reduction went, but this morning's run? Was not only totally awesome, it convinced me that the crap is behind me, and it is time to move on to bigger and better things.

I got the next phase of my training from my coach, and, according to my spreadsheet, we've moved from "base" to "speed". This morning's workout? Was not just a plain old 4 or 5 slow and easy miles. No, it was a speed workout! The plan was this: 2 mile warm-up, then 30 seconds at 5k pace (or faster!) followed by a one-minute recovery. After 8 of those, 2 miles to cool down. Happily, my Forerunner does interval timing, so I took that and set it on the console of the treadmill so I wouldn't have to keep track of time and when to change my speeds and whatnot. (It also tells you when you're all done with your repeats! I love gadgets that let me run without thinking, since, in my book, running with thinking partially defeats the purpose.)

I was a little concerned - I've been running slow for kind of a while now, so I was sort of worried that I wouldn't be able to run fast anymore. 5k pace for me is right around 9:30, and, for comparison, all of my runs for the past month have been at 12:00 or slower. However, I figured I'd just go for it. Worst-case scenario? I have to slow the speedy intervals down a little until I get my footing, and work up to 5k pace.

However, when it came time for that first burst of speed? I was pleasantly surprised. I dialed the treadmill up to 6.4 (9:22), and it was like nothing! The 30 seconds was over before I knew it. Not only was I not struggling to keep up, I felt relaxed and loose. I was also sort of expecting my heart rate to shoot through the roof, but it didn't. Instead, it worked up to 180 or so and then just... stayed there.

I did the next 3 repeats at the same pace, but then decided to crank it up a bit. After all, it wasn't feeling especially hard, and it was only 30 seconds, right? I did the next two at 6.5 (9:14). Then the next one at 6.6 (9:05). For the last one, I was still feeling pretty good, so I went for it. I set the treadmill at 6.7 (8:57). It felt great, although it was hard enough that I was glad I didn't try to do all 8 intervals at that pace. Still, it was an awesome feeling to just be able to let the legs fly after running so controlled for the past month.

By the end of the cool down, my legs were feeling a little tired, but not to the point where I was totally wiped when I finished. I expected to finish the workout feeling like it had kicked my ass - instead, I felt great. It woke me up and got my day off to a great start.

The best part? This is my new Tuesday morning routine for the next few weeks.

Posted by Dawn at 04:56 PM | Comments (1)

February 20, 2006

Week in Review: 2/13 - 2/19

A stressful week, so I took it easy.

Monday: rest
Tuesday: 5 easy miles
Wednesday: rest
Thursday: 4 easy miles
Friday: rest
Saturday: 1 hour swimming technique review, followed by 3 easy miles
Sunday: unplanned rest day - this was supposed to be a 9-mile long run, but a minor meltdown kept me from getting it done

Total for the week: 12 miles

Posted by Dawn at 02:49 PM

February 13, 2006

Sunday's Run

Yesterday was the longest run I've done since the marathon, and it was great to get out and just run for a couple of hours (even if it was very, very slow). In fact, it was almost perfect... except for one thing: the digestive rebellion.

Last year, I started out eating a Clif bar, and maybe a banana or some Gatorade before my long runs. That was great, but I eventually got sick of the Clif bars. I keep them on hand, because they're convenient, but I can't use them as the "pre-run meal" anymore. So I started experimenting: bagels and peanut butter; toast and peanut butter; oatmeal with milk and raisins. While these options all tasted a heck of a lot better, they all had one major problem: about an hour or two into the run, the digestive rebellion would start, and it was only a matter of time before a potty stop was needed.

Yesterday was no different - I had some peanut butter toast and Gatorade for breakfast. I waited an hour. I ran. And, sure enough, after about an hour, the digestive rebellion started. I was able to keep it under control with walk breaks until I was able to make a potty stop, but it still wasn't my idea of a good time.

So, now begins the task of keeping a detailed food log of what I'm eating and when, as well as how I feel when I run. Hopefully, I'll be able to find some sort of pattern and figure out what, exactly, my system is finding so objectionable. Perhaps, someday, I'll be able to realize my dream of a long run untainted by intenstinal discomfort.

Posted by Dawn at 04:02 PM | Comments (1)

Week in Review: 2/6 - 2/12

Mon: swim 1300m
Tues: 4 easy miles
Wed: rest
Thurs: 4 easy miles
Fri: 3 easy miles
Sat: swim 1500m
Sun: 8 LSD

Totals for the week:
2800m swimming; 19 miles running

Posted by Dawn at 01:44 PM

February 07, 2006

Week in Review: 1/30 - 2/5

Monday: swim 1400m
Tuesday: unplanned rest
Wednesday: 4 miles, easy
Thursday: 4 miles, easy
Friday: rest
Saturday: swim 1100m
Sunday: unplanned rest

Total for the week: 8 miles running; 2500m swimming

Posted by Dawn at 03:22 PM

The Surprise Run

So here's the thing about working with a coach: you're accountable to someone else. You're paying someone to work with you, to build a schedule and a plan for you. In return, you follow the plan and report back with how things are going. The reporting back is all good and wonderful... until you miss a workout. On Sunday, I missed my long run for, well, for no good reason. I didn't get to it first thing in the morning, and then just ran out of time. By the time I was ready to head out, I only had an hour of daylight left to complete a 90-minute run. I headed to the gym, only to find out that they closed in half an hour. Crap. I put in a half-hearted 20 minutes on the treadmill, but it wasn't good at all. I was annoyed that I'd put off my run all day and missed it, and I was dreading reporting back to the coach and telling her that. It wasn't like I was stuck working all day, or had an appointment, or was kidnapped by aliens. I just didn't do it.

Thankfully, she was perfectly nice and understanding about it. Which, you know, I knew she would be. I was just too wrapped up in my self-flaggelation and feeling like I'd somehow gravely disappointed her to actually register that. Perhaps I need to relax a wee bit? (But, also, I need to make sure I get my long runs in first thing in the AM - the weather may not be forcing me to get up at 6 and run, but if I don't? It just doesn't happen. Am morning runner person. Must embrace this.)

Anyhow, I wound up staying up way too late last night. Which, really, is what I get for a) not doing my laundry over the weekend like I was supposed to and b) going to swimming last night instead of coming straight home and doing laundry. When I finally hit the hay at 11, I was not at all enthused about waking up at 5 to run this morning. As I was setting my alarm, I did a quick reality check and realized there was no way on earth I was going to get up at that hour, and reset the alarm for 5:30, figuring the extra half-hour of sleep would be a lot more beneficial if I wasn't getting up every 9 minutes to hit the snooze. As I went to bed, I don't think I was actually expecting myself to get up and go to the gym when the alarm went off. I think I really just set it so I could say I tried.

Sure enough, when the alarm went off this morning, I was less than excited. I dragged myself out of bed and into the bathroom, and as I stood there contemplating going back to bed and figuring out where in the day I could fit my run if I didn't do it now, I realized I was actually pretty awake. Definitely awake enough to pack up my gym bag and head to the gym. So I did.

Of course, when I got to the gym, I discovered what happens when you're rotating two pairs of the same shoe and you pack your gym bag before you've fully woken up: I had two right shoes. Oops. (Mental note: store pairs of shoes on opposite ends of room from now on.) This... was not a good sign. I didn't have time to go home and get the right shoes, and I wouldn't have time to do so after work. If I didn't run now, I wasn't going to get it in today. I took a look at the mismatched shoes in my hand. I took a look at the cross-training shoes I'd worn to the gym. Heavy, not very flexible... but supportive, and mostly appropriate for running. I was only running 4 miles...

I put my cross-training shoes back on, grabbed my walkman and HRM and headed up to the treadmill. I scoped out the TVs, picked a 'mill in a good location to watch the news, and turned my walkman on to get the sound. Then I turned it on again. And again. And then I realized the batteries were dead. No sound for me, apparently.

At this point, I pretty much expected the run to suck, as not much else had gone right this morning (I didn't even tell you about the pile of cat barf I found this morning... with my socked feet. At least I had socks on?). I didn't have the right shoes, I probably could have used another couple hours of sleep, and now I wasn't even going to get sound with my news - I'd have to read the closed captioning. I took a deep breath, pushed all these thoughts out of my mind, and started up the treadmill.

And you know what? Before I knew it, I'd cranked out the first mile. Then the second. And the third. And then the fourth. And then I was done. I couldn't believe it. The run that by all accounts should have sucked flew by and felt great. My HR was a little higher than normal, so I turned down the pace and incline gradually through the run, but that didn't bother me. I just kept running. (Also - would the fact that I wasn't as well-rested as usual be why my HR was a bit higher? It recovered just as fast as usual after the run - it was just a little high during.) Despite the hot spot I could feel forming on my right instep and the fact that running in those cross-training shoes is not an experience I'd like to repeat, I was glad I'd gotten up and gotten the run in. After stretching, showering and changing, I left the gym feeling absolutely fantastic.

Sadly, the post-exercise rush wore off right around noon, so this afternoon has been a little rough between that and the post-lunch slump, but that's OK. Because today, despite the setbacks, I got up, got out, and showed that treadmill who's in charge.

Yee. Haw.

Posted by Dawn at 03:19 PM | Comments (1)

February 03, 2006

Interesting Factiods from the HRM

Training with the heart rate monitor has been, if nothing else, interesting. Sure, it was really depressing the first time I strapped it on and watched my HR jump up to 180 after running 12:30 miles for a half hour or so. Because, man. I mean, I know I'm not the best runner out there, and I knew I wasn't in the best shape going into this training cycle, but damn. I didn't think it was that bad, either.

However, with each workout I do, my heart rate gets a little more stable. It takes longer to get up into the "aerobic zone" I'm supposed to be training at. It stays in that zone longer. And, most interestingly, when it starts to move up during the end of my workout? It just doesn't get as high. Yesterday, I ran 4 miles on the treadmill, which took me 50 minutes. I spent 37 of those minutes in my "zone" (70% - 80% of max heart rate reserve). Compared to my first run with the HRM when I only spent 10 minutes "in the zone." (And, no, it wasn't because I took a long time to warm up.) Plus, my max heart rate for the entire workout yesterday? 174. Only 6 bpm over the 80% mark! (Compared to last week when I know I saw it get up to at least 185.)

It's one thing to feel like the runs are getting easier, but it's something else entirely to be able to see them getting easier. It's actually pretty darn cool.

Plus, for a number dork like me? The more data I can take and play with and ponder? The better.

Posted by Dawn at 05:26 PM

February 01, 2006

The Week of Mondays

Yesterday was... not a good day. It started off bad, feeling like a Monday even though it was a Tuesday. I couldn't get up and out of bed to go to the gym, so I decided to sleep in and run after work. Even after resetting the alarm for 7 (which is hugely late for me), I still felt sluggish and tired and cranky. Once I got to work, I was just dragging. I couldn't get it together, and the situation was not improved by the fact that I had customers being pushy and demanding and desperately wanted to tell them to go jump in the lake. If there was ever a day when I desperately needed a run, it was yesterday. Instead of gearing myself up to go home and take a nap when 5:00 finally rolled around, I worked on getting myself excited about being able to go to the gym and just run all that crap out of my system.

However, yesterday was also a lesson in why I shouldn't put these things off until the end of the day. First, I found out I had to work late, to monitor some things that were running. However, I could still run! I only had to check in once an hour, so I could check it at 5, head up to the gym, get my 4 miles in, and be back in the office in time to check it again shortly after 6. Perfect. I grabbed my gym bag and jumped in the elevator. As I was heading towards the gym, a thought popped in my head: did I remember to pack shorts? I know I had set them on my desk to pack, but did they actually make it in my bag? I stopped, got out of the way of the other rush hour pedestrians, and opened my bag right there on the street.

Sure enough... no shorts. CRAAAAAAP. I did some mental juggling in my head - clearly, I didn't have enough time to go home and get the shorts and then go to the gym and run before I had to check back in with work. Maybe I could do my worky stuff, then go home, and then go to the gym? Nope... that wouldn't work either. I could do it in theory, but I wouldn't get home until 9 or so, which wouldn't give me any time to do the two loads of laundry I desperately needed to get done. Craaaaaaap. I whined to myself, maybe stomped around on the sidewalk a bit, then added this to the already long list of Things That Have Annoyed Me Today.

Was there a secret 3rd option? Maybe, but I was tired, frustrated, and in no mood to deal with it. So I didn't. I went back to work, finished my stuff, then went home and did my laundry, and then went to bed early. Was I happy about it? Not even a little bit. Except for the going to bed early part - that was nice.

This morning, I was determined to go to the gym before work, so I could get my run in before anything messed with it. When the alarm went off at 5, I wanted no part of it. But I also didn't want to have another repeat of yesterday. I dragged myself out of bed, got to the gym, and figured I'd slog through the 4 miles.

Wouldn't you know it - I actually had a really great run! Well, as great as a run can be on the treadmill. I'm finally used to jogging the slower pace on the 'mill, so that's not a problem anymore. Plus, I had my handy dandy little armband radio so I could have sound with my TV, and that was just as awesome as I'd been hoping. Because I had sound, I could let my eyes wander, and not miss anything (a big problem when I was relying on the closed-captioning). I won't say the run flew by, but it wasn't horrifically long and boring, either. Plus, my heart rate spent most of the run right where it was supposed to be, at 75%. Last week, I was fighting to keep it under 80%, which was just frustrating. Sure, it's not much, but it's something.

I wish I could end this on some sort of profound note, saying that because I got up and ran this morning my day has been all sunshine and roses. It hasn't - I'm still tired and feeling like I got up way too early. I still have a ton of laundry to do once I get home. But, no matter what happens, at least I know that I started off the day by doing something good for myself. And that feels pretty darn great.

Posted by Dawn at 12:44 PM | Comments (3)

January 30, 2006

Dawnie Fall Down Go Boom... Again

First, before you do anything, go add yourself to my Frappr map. It's quick, easy, and you don't even need to sign up with Frappr if you don't want to. (Especially if you're a guy! It's a little girly over there right now.)

Well, on Friday, I decided that it had just been too darn long since I fell down, so I fixed that. I was walking from the train to the gym after work, and tripped on an unusual sidewalk formation. I felt my foot catch, and the next thing I knew, I was in the air and landing squarely on my kneecaps. Ouch. Of course I was carrying my gym bag, and of course there were witnesses. I picked myself back up, and the first thing I checked was my left knee. Not because I was concerned about my knee, though - because I was worried about my pants. You see, I was going to the gym for a pilates class, and was already in my yoga pants. I wasn't sure what I was going to do if I'd ripped a big hole in my knee. Luckily, the pants were in once piece, so I assumed I was as well, and hobbled down the block, yelling, "I'm OK! Thanks!" over my shoulder to the couple who'd asked.

It wasn't until I got home that I actually took a look at my knee. I did a good job - it's not as impressive as the time I scraped up my knee after falling down on the trail, but it's big enough that I'm glad I won't have to wear a short skirt in public for a while.

Despite the injury, the pilates class was good. It was listed as "steel pilates", and described as "pilates using a BOSU, body bar, and weights to tone and strengthen your core." However, I think a better description would have been "a class to kick your ass and make you cry for your momma." Seriously. I couldn't believe how hard some of the exercises were, and I couldn't believe how sore I was the next morning. Furthermore, I couldn't believe how much I felt it while running on Saturday. If you ever doubt how much you use your core muscles while running? Go for a run when they're sore and tired, and you'll be amazed.

However, despite the sore abs and the sore knee, the run on Saturday was good. It was my first run I'd be doing outside at my new super-slow pace, so I was interested to see how it would go. Surprisingly, it was a lot easier to keep my pace down where it needed to be than I expected, but I think all the credit for that goes to my shiny new HRM. Without it beeping at me when my heart rate got too high (over 80% of max), I don't think I would have done as good of a job with my pace. Score one for technology.

After Saturday's 3 glorious miles outside, I opted to do my long run of 6 miles on the treadmill Sunday morning. It was 40 and overcast and raining, and I just wasn't feeling it. However, the run went much better than I expected it to - I don't know if it was because I got a chance to work out the kinks in my stride while running outside or what, but it wasn't anywhere near the death march that last week's indoor runs were. I still would have much preferred to run outside if the weather had cooperated, but it really wasn't bad at all. I had my iPod with me, but I never even took it out. Instead, I watched professional bowling (until they changed the channel and put the basketball game on) and CNN. I also came to the realization that it might be worthwhile to get one of those little armband radios - if I could hear the sound for the TV, I could get totally wrapped up in it. So, after tonight's swim, that's the plan. We'll see how it works out tomorrow morning during my 4-mile run.

Posted by Dawn at 04:46 PM | Comments (2)

Week in Review: 1/23 - 1/29

Monday, 1/23: Planned rest day
Tuesday, 1/24: Easy 3 miles
Wednesday, 1/25: Planned rest day
Thursday, 1/26: Easy 4 miles
Friday, 1/27: 45 minutes pilates
Saturday, 1/28: Easy 3 miles
Sunday, 1/29: Long run 6 miles

Total for the week: 16 miles; 100% of planned miles completed

Posted by Dawn at 02:05 PM

January 26, 2006

Heading to Madison.... Slowly

Work has been crazy this week. Not only are they actually making me work, but they're making me do thinking work. Which means that not only do I not have time during the day to blog (not that I would do that, naturally), I don't have the mental energy to do it when I get home. Instead, I've been drooling on the couch while attempting to get caught up on the 4700 hours of TV I have on TiVo. (Which, as much as I love TiVo, leave it to technology to make me feel like I haven't been using my free time wisely enough when I start falling behind on my shows.)

Anyhow, my training period for Mad City officially started on Monday. This time around, I'm doing a few things differently. Thing one: I hired a coach. I tossed it over and around a few times - I mean, I'm not what you would call a "performance" runner. However, I feel like I need to adjust and change some things in my training this time around. When I ran Detroit, it was enough to finish the thing. This time, though, I want to finish it well. I want to finish and feel like I ran the best marathon I could - a feeling I didn't exactly take away from Detroit. I thought about trying to figure it out myself - after all, I'm a smart girl, there's a lot of information out there, I should be able to figure it out, right?

Except, the problem is there is so much information out there, and it finally got to a point where I realized I could spend the next 4 months trying to work it out on my own and possibly never get anywhere, or I could pay someone to filter the information for me and help me figure out what would work. After selling my car, fitting it into my budget was no longer a problem, so I went for it. I'm doing online coaching, so we'll see how it goes. So far, I'm happy with it - we've sent some e-mails back and forth, and I've got a schedule that'll hold me until the end of February. I'm really excited about working with her going forward, and I'm really excited about not having to think too hard about my training (especially given how hard they're making me think at work these days!).

However, the big change? Has been slowing down. Like, a lot. Normally, when I head out for a run, I'll settle into a natural pace. Lately, since I lost some fitness over the holidays, it's been around 11:00/mile. The pace I'm supposed to be doing most of my runs at? 12:00 - 12:30/mile.

Now, I've heard from all sorts of people that slowing down to speed up really works. It does. I believe this. But there is still something a little depressing about knowing that your 4 mile run is going to take almost 50 minutes. Especially when said 4 mile run is on a treadmill. This week, my life has been saved by my iPod and podcasts, because it gives me something to concentrate on the whole time. Even so, I almost didn't make it through the 4 miles on Tuesday. It was killer. But I did it. I'm going to use this as a lesson in mental strength.

And here's the weird thing: on my own, would I ever slow down to a 12:30 pace, even though I know I should and it'll be good for me in the long run (it's like my running vegetables!)? Heck no. But if someone tells me, "Dawn, you need to slow your runs down. Yes, that much. Yes, really. Yes, I know it will make a 4 mile jaunt on the treadmill soul-crushingly long... do it anyways. It'll be good for you. Builds character and all that." then, well, I'll do it. Especially if I'm paying them to tell me that. (Also, for the record, my coach did not use the words "builds character" or "soul-crushing". She just told me to make sure I followed her pace guidelines.)

So, will all of these soul-crushingly slow treadmill runs make me a better runner? I hope so! I guess we'll find out in May.

Posted by Dawn at 05:47 PM | Comments (2)