Speed Work?

I wish today would have been the marathon!  (except for the weather, a little sun would be nice!)  I felt so good and it didn't even seem hard to run today!  I wish I knew what made some days easier than others so that I could plan my race days around that!  I did 400 meters 6 times followed by a 400 meter recovery.  It was about 4 miles and I could have kept going other than I know I'm not supposed to this week and I didn't have time anyway!  I think I might go a little stir crazy this week.  I looked at Thursday's workout...3 miles at my planned marathon pace!  That it!  I need to think of some things to keep me busy this week or I may just go crazy!  I do need to rearrange some stuff on my i pod and calculate my calorie needs for this weekends carbo loading, maybe clean out some closets, and work on Logan's quilt, clean out the storage room....so maybe I don't need to think of things!  

I watched the news Sunday night and they had a couple stories about the Salt Lake Marathon and I got REALLY nervous!  My stomach was churning like the butterflies were on a sugar high and at the same time, I was excited!  I had a really hard time going to sleep and just calming myself down.  

Yesterday I talked to my friend Sherri, (the one who got me into this mess in the first place) and she got her dates mixed up and actually could have run it with me.  AHHHHHHH!!!!!  (that doesn't even begin to describe it!)  So now I'm the one trying to talk her into signing up before the deadline.  She's driving me down there, she has to do a run anyway that day, she might as well do it there!  So after talking to her for a while about training stuff, I settled down a little and slept well last night.  

After my workout I did upper body weights and abs.  Don't know if I'll try and do them on Thursday or just lay off until next week.  It's coming!!!!!

Spring Taper

This week was quite a contrast to last week.  I didn't really feel like running even though it is my taper week and it was only 10 miles.  (Logan being up all night didn't help and that cold is not going away like I want it to!)  The upside being that it was only 10 miles and I would have a running partner for the whole run!  This would be Jodi's longest run yet and I was excited for her.  The other good thing was the weather was supposed to be nice.  I got up later than I have been and we didn't leave until after 10:30.  But by then it was pretty nice and I even got to wear short sleeves by about halfway through.  The run was nice, I had trouble breathing due to the cold, felt like I needed more drinks today than normal, and talking was once again a challenge.  We were able to do a negative split with the first lap of 5 miles in 54 minutes and the second lap in 48 minutes.  A 10 minute 11 second pace overall.  I took my ice bath again for fun.  (Logan asked if I was having a bubble bath!  If only!)  My legs weren't feeling too bad, but I don't want to risk it.  I really can't believe that in one week from today I'll be done running another marathon.  Last year I couldn't wait for the taper.  But I really think I was a tad overtrained last year.  Because it's sooner this year I think I may go nuts next week!  But the way I was feeling today...who knows...maybe I'll love it! 

I also get to carbo load the end of this week.  I didn't do it right last year (ate too much protein and not enough carbs) and hope to do better this year.  But that means recording what I eat and I hate doing that!  After next week, my training will be weird as I try to recover from the marathon and try to get in a few long runs and then taper for the next marathon.  The normal taper starts at 3 weeks and I may not even be recovered by then.  I'll guess I'll just have to see how I feel and play it by ear.  

Short Tempo Work

I always get excited for the shorter tempo days until I get on and start them, realizing that they are at a faster pace than the longer tempos, so they are still challenging even though they are shorter.  I had a 2 mile easy pace followed by 3 miles at tempo pace.  It started off rough because I had to get on and off the treadmill multiple times in the first lap.  Logan needed a snack, wanted my drink, so I had to get him a drink; not water or milk, so I made Crystal Light, needed a bathroom break, changed the channel for Logan, changed my music and was finally on my way.  It went by pretty quick today.  The last couple of laps were pretty tough though.  I did plyometrics for my lower half (I'm still a little sore from Tuesday) and did weights for upper body and core.  Good day, although I've been tired this afternoon.  Could have something to do with my cold.  Although that feels slightly better today too.

Trying to outrun the Rain!

It looked pretty nice out today so I decided to try out the jogging stroller and just go for a nice easy run.  Logan was pretty excited.  There's always a high chance we'll see some trucks along the way.  Especially garbage trucks since it's Wed.  As soon as we started going the sky started to turn dark and it looked like it might rain.  We were pretty far away from home when the wind started and it began to rain a little.  I started booking it for home and by the time we got back, it had started to snow.  But I think we made it back before the worst of it because while we were eating lunch it was really coming down.  Good little run.  Ended up being about a 4 mile run.  The cold that I've been fighting off pretty well, was pretty bad this morning.  Hopefully it goes away completely.  It hasn't been all that bad, it's just still there.  

Speed Work

I didn't do anything yesterday because I was, well...lazy.  Yep, just plain lazy.  Everything else in the house needed attention and I didn't feel too guilty because of the 19 mile run Saturday.  I thought that one more day of rest couldn't hurt.  

Speed workout today was a 15 minute warm up followed by 5 repeats of 1 k.  I've done this work out once before and remembered it being one I didn't think was going to be too bad but was.  This one was not different.  It was hard and fast, but felt good.  Especially when it was over.  

I followed it up with some plyometrics for lower body and lifted weights for my core and upper body.  I don't think I'll do any lifting next week to let my body heal as much as possible before the marathon.  

When will I learn to pace myself?

I have a problem.  O.k., so I have many problems.  One of which is that I just can't seem to pace myself.  If I feel good early on in a run, I have a hard time not going for it and just letting go and running fast even though I know that it may cost me later on.  Which begs the question, would I just end up being tired at the end of a run anyway or will the energy I conserve at the beginning really pay off in the end?  I may never know, because I CAN'T seem to not go fast when I'm feeling like it!  Today I woke up excited to run!  I knew I'd be going 18 miles and I was actually excited to do it.  I dreamed about it all last night.  And sure enough, about a mile in, I felt great and just wanted to GO!  So I did.  It was great being awake and outside in the predawn air.  There's something about being present at the beginning of the day.  It's invigorating!  I finished earlier than I thought and so I ran a little over a mile until I was supposed to meet Jodi.  But then I stopped and when we started we did a pretty fast first mile and even though the next four miles were o.k., the next 4 miles were kind of rough.  I had to stop and walk a couple of times to catch my breath.  The laps with Jodi were so nice though because they went by so fast.  The weather was warmer at the beginning than the end and we had some icy wind going on.  And I'm sure all my talking made it seem harder too.  I'm not used to talking on my runs and maybe that means I'm going too fast because it's pretty difficult for me to talk and run at the same time.  After I dropped Jodi off (she did 9 miles again this week!) I only had 3 left to go.  But after I got going again (Janz refilled my water) I felt pretty good and ended up going a mile extra, which put me at 19 miles today!  I have felt great today too and I'm pretty excited about that.  I also took another ice bath after I stretched and I really think it helps.  Although I think I used too much ice today and my toes were seriously frozen.  I read where someone wears neoprene booties in their ice baths and I definitely need to think of something.  I don't know how anyone could deal with frostbitten toesies!  Now if I can just deal with the pacing issue, I'll be feeling more confident.  So much for negative splits today!  Guess I have the S.L. Marathon to practice again in 2 weeks.

Used the gel again today with water.  Went well.  Used 2 1/2 gels in all.

10:15 pace overall.

No Escalators Available

I was thinking, as I was on the treadmill, how nice it would be to have downhills on the treadmill.  It gets pretty monotonous, as anyone who has been on one knows.  Sure you can crank up the hills, but you never get a downhill.  I started to long for the outdoors where there is variety and so many things to look at, where there are dirt trails, uphills and downhills, familiar roads and homes, and endless possible paths.  I thought about hills and how I can look at one and dread it or look at it and think that when I get to the top of it I'll feel a lot of accomplishment and there will be a downhill to coast down.  But in life, like on the treadmill, there are no downhills.  We are on a constant uphill battle to reach a higher plane that we can't even conceive how great it will be.  We were meant to have challenges and hardships.  They are what make us stronger and better capable to handle the next hill.  If life isn't hard or isn't a challenge, we aren't growing or moving upward, which is where we need to be.  If life isn't uphill, who fault is it?  Sure we are given challenges in life, but ultimately we choose our own path and if we don't challenge ourselves, set goals, and reach for them with all we've got, who do we have to blame?  And where will we end up?  We were put here to work and grow and help each other.  In life there is no escalator to the top!

Tempo run

Thank you Salt Lake Marathon!  If I wouldn't be switching my schedule around I would have had to do a 9 mile tempo run today.  Instead I just had to do a 5 mile.  Sounds much more doable.  I've been waking up the past few mornings with a sore throat and a stuffy nose, but have been telling myself that I'm NOT getting what Janz had.  He seriously was sick for about 2 months and it's been through all the kids.  But this morning I knew that it was hitting me.  Hopefully it will GO AWAY fast!  The run was pretty hard and the first 2 miles were excruciating.  I kind of loosened up after that and the last 3 were hard but better than the first 2.  I did weight training afterwards. 

Easy Run

I love late start days at the Junior High for a very selfish reason.  I get to run outside for a short little run because Justin's home for an extra two hours!  I dropped the girls off at school and took off.  Because of time, I just ate 1/2 a banana and a cup of water about 1/2 hour before heading out the door.  I ran pretty slow and then was gradually able to pick up the pace a little but didn't push it at all.  It was a good temperature and just a nice relaxing run.  I finished up on a few choice hills and then made it home in time to take Justin to school!  Ran about 4 miles and then gobbled up the leftover french toast made with Janzen's homemade bread!  YUM!

Mind Games

 I took yesterday completely off so that I could completely recover from all my soreness.  I can't believe what I can get done around the house when I don't have to run!  Seriously, I didn't think it took that much time, but I sure got a ton done yesterday!  It feels kinda good to be caught up on a few things that have been weighing on my mind so maybe that's why I had a good run today.  Cause when I looked at the schedule I was definitely NOT excited. 

 This is the week that I start shifting things around because of the craziness that I decided to do.  I had a friend talk me into running a marathon with her as my 20 mile training run.  Now, I really am going to run it as a training run and not a race, but it did require some shifting in my schedule so that I could do it, taper slightly for it, and recover for the next marathon four weeks from the first one.  When I say it out loud or see it on paper it makes me think I'm an idiot!  I know some people run a marathon a week all year long or even crazier things, but they're not me and for me, this is crazy!  I've decided that it is going to be the best training run ever.  I won't have to carry water with me, there will be thousands of other runners, there will be cheering crowds, and at the end, I'll get a t-shirt and a medal for my training run.  Can it get much better than that? 

 So it required me to do mile speed workouts again this week instead of getting a break in between.  DREAD!  It's always amazing how if I play mind games how much faster it goes.  So here was the game today.  First lap: turn down music and concentrate on form, don't swing my arms too much, be smooth, don't pound on the treadmill, stay tall and look forward.  Second lap, turn up music and try to keep good form.  Third, turn down music and concentrate on form again.  Fourth, turn it back up and make it through the last bit.  I did 3 repeats with a 400 meter recovery in between.  Ended up being a little over 5 miles.  It really went by fast today and wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be.  Mile repeats used to be the worst thing, besides tempo workouts, and who am I to lie, they still are, but I'm learning ways to get through them.  Now if I can just apply it in a race situation!

Afterwards I did weight training for my upper body and some more plyometrics for the lower half.  Hope my body gets used to those!

Since I'm eating pretty much the same thing before and after my workouts, I decided I'll only record if it's different.  

Got Crazy?

Thought you might enjoy this!  Saw this on Michael's training blog and thought it was pretty cool.  Sometimes I start to believe everyone that tells me I'm crazy, but then you see something like this and you know there's always someone out there with a little more crazy than me!  

LONDON (Reuters) - Already Britain's oldest employee, 101-year-old Buster Martin now aims to become the world's oldest marathon runner by completing the London Marathon and celebrating with a pint of beer and a cigarette.
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Sprightly and bearded, he completed a half marathon at the weekend in five hours 13 minutes. The former Army physical training instructor works three days a week for a London plumbing firm and says he has trained for the April 13th race in his spare time.

"I've said I'll attempt it," he told Reuters by telephone from his workplace at Pimlico Plumbers. "I haven't said I'll complete it. If I do make it, all the better. I hadn't thought of doing it before but someone asked me and the money goes to charity so why not?"

His sponsorship money will go to the Rhys Daniels Trust, which provides temporary accommodation for families of patients in specialist children's hospitals.

Martin, who had 17 children and returned to work at the age of 99 saying he was bored after two years of retirement, would beat the previous record for world's oldest marathon runner by eight years.

These are a few of my favorite things!

Sometimes even though it's snowing and 30 something degrees outside you can still have a great time.  Today was one of those days.  When I woke up and looked outside and saw that it was raining, I thought, "I can still go.  It's just a little rain.  Besides 16 miles on the treadmill?  I'd rather run in a blizzard!"  Then when it started to hail and then snow, I knew we were in for it.  Jodi and I left and though my lungs were struggling as usual and my bum and legs were still extremely sore from Thursday, it was just a fun run.  We got to experience snow, sleet, hail, wind, rain, and even the sun.  As the snowflakes were hitting my face, some were staying there and I couldn't help but think of the Julie Andrews song My Favorite Things and the line "snowflakes that stay on my nose and eyelashes."  I love that kind of snow.  Before I knew it we had already done the first lap and were almost halfway through the second.  Jodi turned off later than we had planned on and she ended up doing almost 9 miles!  Awesome job!  I could tell she was feeling good today and almost suggested she just go the 10 with me, but didn't want her to pay for it later.  Next week, though!  Time just flew by with Jodi and I can't say how nice it is to have a running buddy!  I finished up the 16 miles and felt pretty good for most of it.  I could really feel my sore body.  There were a few times during the run that my legs just felt like they were on autopilot and they didn't want to stop even though my lungs were telling me to.  Good run, all in all.  Ran it in 2 hours and 43 minutes: an average of 10 minutes 10 seconds per mile.  The last half was slightly faster but not by much.  So because of the song...I started thinking about some of my favorite things about running today.  So here they are...in no particular order!

Legs...would be kinda hard to run without those!

Snow that's not too cold.

Hail...fun to try and catch in your hand.

Jodi...makes the run seem shorter and I love the conversation...I pretty much just love this woman.

Music...nice to have when Jodi leaves.

Mountains...we have the most beautiful scenery to look at!

Sun...I swear that I got a burst of energy every time the sun peeked out!

Water....ohhhhh, so good!

Shoes...I'd have much thicker callouses if I didn't have comfy shoes.

Husband...takes care of everything while I'm gone and takes good care of me when I get back.

Downhills...such a good break for the lungs.

Uphills...makes me stronger.

Home...boy doesn't that look good!

Since there's just 3 weeks left until the Salt Lake Marathon, I decided to try and use the gels today and see if I couldn't get them to work better than last year.  I used 1/2 the gel and tried to drink 4 oz. of water.  Of course it's pretty hard to judge what 4 oz. is.  I tried my best and think I may have gotten it figured out towards the end.  It's more water than what I thought it was.  Good thing I'm just doing half the packet instead of the whole thing like last year.  I think that was a good thing.  I wore the shirt I'm going to wear in the marathon today to see if there were any chaffing issues I needed to be aware of.  I think it will work good.  Wonder what the weather will be like in 3 weeks!

Drank 3/4 Ultra Fuel this morning.  Waited 1 1/2 hours to run.  That seemed to be good as far as potty breaks were not necessary this week.  

Used 2 gels during the run.

Drank Endurox R4 for recovery.

Also tried something new after my run today.  Kind of crazy, but I was so sore I thought I'd try it.  The ice bath.

Punishment for the quads!

I was actually looking forward to this weeks tempo run.  It was 2 miles easy with 3 miles at tempo pace and then 2 miles easy to cool down.  Much better than the 8 miles last week.  So why was it such a hard day?  The 2 easy miles even started out hard and then it seemed bearable until I had to crank it up for the 3 miles.  They seemed unbearable, my legs were like lead again and I might as well have been running in quicksand.  So during the last 2 laps I finally just turned down the speed.  I was starting to get a side ache and had just had enough.  The last 2 miles were o.k., but they were pretty slow.  Maybe it's all the Easter candy I've been horking down during the day and my legs are still sore from Monday's plyometrics.  I really debated whether to do them again today or not in light of my run on Saturday.  I had to do weights today so I was trying to decide if I should just keep punishing my body until it gets used to it, or to back off and give it some rest.  After much deliberation, I decided that doing something different for weights will be good for my body in the long run (not the one on Saturday ha! ha!) and so I did a watered down version of plyometrics and then lifted for my upper body.  I just hope my body can adjust quickly as the weeks are counting down until the fist marathon.  I'm starting to get a little nervous!  

And it's always hard when I can't meet with exactness the specifications of the program.  It's easy to get down.  I just need to remember that I'm doing the best I can and really, that's all I can expect.  It's hard not to compare myself with others, but I'm learning and teaching myself that it's my pride that makes me feel bad.  C. S. Lewis said it well when he said, "Pride gets no pleasure out of having something, only out of having more of it than the next man...It is the comparison that makes you proud; the pleasure of being above the rest.  Once the element of competition has gone, pride has gone."  I read the talk on pride by President Benson last week and have been pondering on it since then.  I love where he says "The proud depend upon the world to tell them whether they have value or not.  Their self esteem is determined by where they are judged to be on the ladders of worldly success.  They feel worthwhile as individuals if the numbers beneath them in achievement, talent, beauty, or intellect are large enough.  Pride is ugly.  It says, "If you succeed, I am a failure."  If we love God, do His will, and fear His judgment more than men's, we will have self esteem."  I need to remember why I run in the first place.  It's not to be faster than anyone else, or even beat my previous times.  It's because I love to run and the way it makes me feel.  It's shown and taught me so many lessons that I don't know if I would have learned any other way.  Pride is truly something I need to work on everyday of my life.  I'm so grateful for modern prophets to give me instruction on how to overcome myself.

7:30 Kashi cereal with blueberries and milk and vitamins

9:00 run with 12 oz. accelerade

10:30 1/2 serving Endurox R4

11:15 starving so drank 4 oz. juice mixed with 1/2 scoop protein powder

Sometimes you're the windshield, sometimes you're the bug!

Today I was the bug!  (listen to the new theme song for today!)  My speed workout today was miserable.  Not even the kind of misery that you think might be good for you, that might make you stronger.  No, today I just wanted to stop because nothing felt good.  The top of my foot has been hurting for some reason after my run on Saturday.  Then wearing sandals on top of it all weekend long didn't help.  I tried to loosen my laces yesterday, but it didn't seem to help much.  I think I must have a bruise there or something.  My marathon shoes got here yesterday so I put those on to run in today and just kept the laces on that one foot really loose.  Maybe it just needs to heal.  I'm sure my other shoes aren't done yet.  My quads were feeling the effects of the weight training yesterday and felt like they were stuck in mud or quicksand or something.  My knee has been o.k.  I wear my Pat Strap every time I run and that seems to be keeping it from getting any worse.  I'm still icing it and stretching, so I'm sure that is helping.  My lungs were miserable today too.  Then I still had to do upper body weights!  My run today was 6 1/4 miles in all.  I did speed for 1 mile, then 2 miles, then 2 x 800 meters.  Yuck!  

I think I have spring fever and really want to be running outside!  It feels so good out there, but still not good enough for me to push that stroller with a 2 1/2 year old in it for my speed work out!  I'll do it for easy days but I guess I'm stuck on that treadmill!  I know the years will be soon be here when my Logan will be in school and I don't want to wish those years away.  I know that time will come when I can go anytime, anywhere.  So until then the treadmill and I will be good buddies!  

8:30  ate Kashi blueberry cereal with milk.  Forgot vitamins again!

10:30 ran drinking 12 oz accelerade.

12:15 drank Endurox R4 for recovery.

Easy Run

Just took it easy today and ran 3 miles followed by plyometric training for my lower half.  I'll still have to do upper body tomorrow, just ran out of time today.