heading to grandma's, week 5

I can't believe I'm done with week 5 already.  Grandma's will be here before I know it!  Here's the recap for you.

Week 5:  March 12-18

Monday

Easy Run As Follows:

Warm up walking 5-10 min at brisk pace

Easy run of 3 miles at 11:34 min

Cool down with brisk walk of 5-10 min

Workout note: 3.1 miles, 11:11 pace.  Easy peasy. (Clearly that's my new favorite saying. Time to find another one.)  I also walked 2.42 miles.

Tuesday

Interval Run as Follows:

Warm up with 1 mile at 11:34 min 11:32 pace

Run 4 x 400 m (1/4 mile) at 8:40 min pace, recover ¼ mile at 11:00 8:42 with 11:06 recovery

Cool down with an 11:30 min mile

Workout note: Millie has rules about pacing and won't stray from what she chooses. This run was surprisingly easy for me!  Much more so than the hill interval run in week 3 that kicked my ass. Yay for that!

Wednesday - Workout note: walked 2.8 miles with Jane.

Thursday

3 Miles Easy Run as Follows
WU w/5-10 mins of brisk walking

Run 3 miles at 11:34-12:34 pace

Cool down with 5-10 min brisk walk.

Workout note: I ran 3.2 miles with the running club (the one that I ran with last fall) in Minneapolis. This time I made sure to introduce myself - funny how if you reach out, folks are pretty likely to be friendly and welcoming in return. I got to meet some nice people and had a good run. I'll definitely run with them again. Oh, and I picked up the sweet jacket that I won! I'll have to tell you about that later.

Friday - Workout note: walked 1.58 miles.  And carb-loaded for the race.  You know how much I hate having to do that. 

Saturday

Get Lucky Half Marathon!!!!

Goal:  2:10:00!!!!!  Let’s aim for this and see what happens.  I think you have it in you and it will certainly give us a feel for how realistic our Grandma’s Goals are for you!!! Pace: 9:56.  Print a paceband at Marathonguide.com – under calculators section.  EVEN SPLITS!!! 

Workout note: Yeah, this one was a complete fail, although I did still get a PR. Read about it HERE.

Some learnings:
1. Wear a hat when it's warm.
2. Look at the number of water stops in the race, and if it doesn't look like enough, carry your own damn water!
3. Maybe, just maybe, when your coach tells you to stick with a SLOW pace on your long run the week before your race, you should do it. Even if you're feeling fine and like you're not pushing at all. Because maybe (again, just maybe) she knows what the hell she's talking about and you should frickin' listen. Did last week's pace wreck this week's race? I don't know, but next time I'll listen to my coach just in case. Oooo, a little rhyme for you! Bonus!

Sunday - Workout note: walked 2.64 miles at William O'Brien State Park with Jane and the husband. It's so beautiful today! There is still a lot of ice on the lake at the State Park and it's very close to the shore. Jane went swimming and then walked on the ice. She was a happy dog.

Jane walking on water.  She's amazing.

23.49 miles running.

9.44 miles walking.

Another week in the bank!  

hothouse flower

Who complains about heat and humidity in March in Minnesota AND getting a PR? That would be me. 

I ran the Get Lucky 21k today and got my most unsatisfying PR ever. Definitely not my lucky day. TenacityChris gave me a goal of 2:10 which seemed doable. And it would have been achieved if I hadn't totally bonked in the middle of the race.  

I made sure I got enough sleep this week.  I hydrated like crazy because I knew it was going to be warm, and though it's a real chore for a carb whore like me to have to load up on carbs, I was a good soldier and did it.  I had my yummy Honey Stinger jots before the race and was ready to go!  The race started well and I felt GREAT for the first seven miles. During mile eight I started to feel a little dicey so I slowed down a little bit, but the crappy feeling continued so I slowed down even more in mile nine.  

And then the wheels fell completely off.  I was dying out there for a while. I ended up walking a fair amount and swearing at myself for being such a delicate flower when there's a little humidity.  And it was was SOOOOO humid! 72 degrees and 91% humidity. In Minnesota. In March. No shit. And I was completely unprepared for that. I know 72 isn't hot but it sure felt like it today. I don't remember the last time I generated this much sweat. I was a salty crusty mess.  It sucked because it wasn't the pace that was killing me, it was how my stooopid body reacts to the heat.  

Looking salty and celebrating my PR

There were only 4 water stops on the course (not enough in my oh so humble opinion) and they ran out of cups for the last one. I almost cried when the volunteers said they didn't have any more cups so they couldn't give us water. WTF??  A fellow runner (savior) shouted, "Does anyone want to share my cup?  I only drank out of one side!" I was all over that and said I'd share.  No cooties worries here!  I think she saved my life! Ok, maybe I'm being a tad dramatic (moi??), but this was one of my toughest runs ever and I needed some water in a big, big way.  Bless you, woman in green.  You are wonderful.

Anywhoo, I was seriously wondering if I was going to be able to finish.  It was that bad.  But you know how I am about the bling.  It would take more than THIS to keep me from getting that damn medal. After two incredibly slow miles, I decided I was going to frickin' RUN the last couple of miles. NO walking.  Time to put the big girl pants back on.  

Racing side note: The Minneapolis and St. Paul Police officers who work all these races are usually very stoic and silent.  I always toss out something along the lines of "Thanks for being here!" because I do appreciate them keeping us runners safe during these races. Usually I get a head nod in return, or the more extraverted ones might go so far as to give a little wave.  I must have looked pretty rough today, because the cop at mile 12 looked at me and said, "You can do this! Stay strong!" That made me laugh out loud, and it did give me a little extra boost.  A little later a volunteer yelled to me, "This is STILL a good idea!"  Another laugh to keep me going.  

Here are my splits.  See if you can tell where the wheels fell off.

Split	Time	Distance	Avg Pace
Summary	2:15:01.7	13.19	10:14
1	9:48.4	1.00	9:48
2	9:44.0	1.00	9:44
3	9:42.8	1.00	9:43
4	9:39.6	1.00	9:40
5	9:55.4	1.00	9:55
6	9:47.8	1.00	9:48
7	9:45.7	1.00	9:46
8	10:27.8	1.00	10:28
9	10:32.3	1.00	10:32
10	11:41.8	1.00	11:42
11	11:44.6	1.00	11:45
12	10:07.0	1.00	10:07
13	10:19.1	1.00	10:19
14	1:45.3	0.19	9:20

So though it was a swing and a miss for my 2:10 goal, I still managed to finish with a pretty decent PR (exactly 8 minutes!), and I got my f-ing medal. That makes it all worth it! 

heading to grandma's - week 4

Ready for my recap of training for Grandma's?  Good!  Here's what week 4 looked like:

Week 4:  March 5-11

Monday

Easy Run As Follows:

Warm up walking 5-10 min at brisk pace

Easy run of 4 miles at 11:34 min

C/D w/brisk walk of 5-10 min

I was sick on Monday. Stayed home from work and slept all day long.  Monday evening Jane really needed a walk so I figured I may as well try to run.  We did 4.35 very slow miles and I felt like crap the entire time.  But I got 'er done!

Tuesday 

Tempo Run as Follows:

Warm up with 2 miles at 11:34 min - Millie sets the pace at 11:32 

Run 3 miles at  9:45 min pace - again, Millie has control - 9:40 pace

C/D walking briskly for 10 mins

I did this one on the treadmill EARLY Wednesday morning because I just couldn't seem to find the energy Tuesday evening.  But I did walk 2.15 miles with Jane.

Wednesday - In addition to Tuesday's run I walked 2.65 miles with Jane.

Thursday

5 Miles Easy Run as Follows
WU w/5-10 minutes of brisk walking

Run 5 miles at 11:34-12:34 pace

C/D with 5-10 min brisk walk.

This run SUCKED.  My shins hurt, I couldn't seem to catch my breath, I had to walk a ton. It was awful and I hated every minute of it.  I only managed 3.5 miles before I just had to stop.  Brutal.

Friday - walked 2.35 miles with Jane

Saturday - 100% Irish for a Day TC 10 Mile Race

Long Run as Follows: 

DO NOT GET SUCKED INTO RACING MENTALITY!!!

Warm up first mile at 11:30 min

Miles 2-6: 10:13 pace (GMP) – see I’m letting you have a ‘little’ speed during this race!

Miles 7-10: 11:30 min pace (If you would feel better about doing a fast finish and have your tempo miles at the end of the race, that’s ok too – BUT NO FASTER!!! Remember, you are racing next weekend!!)

I failed at listening to my coach. You can read all about this one right HERE. 

Happy dog at the State Park. Notice the closed eyes.
Clearly, she takes after me. And if you look closely, you
can see the shadow of the poop bag I'm holding.
I'm such a responsible dog owner.  It shows.

Sunday - 65 degrees today!! Hiked 2.42 miles with the husband and Jane at William O'Brien State Park. There was a surprising amount of ice and snow on the trails so it was a messy but very fun hike.

Totals: 

22.92 miles running

11.83 miles walking

Other goals:

Moving 30 minutes a day - haven't missed a day yet!

Run at least one mile per day - I gave up on this goal.  You wouldn't think running a mile a day would be difficult, but I have to dress for it (read: sports bra, shoes) and it just didn't seem to be in my best interest to run every day while training for Grandma's.  Does that make me a quitter?

Eating clean - we've been doing much better at that and have made some fantastic meals from my Carb Lover's cookbook! I keep forgetting to take pictures of the tasty meals.  I'll work on that.  

Have a great week, people!

i'm irish and i know it

I ran the 100% Irish for a Day TC 10 mile yesterday.  After an absolutely miserable run on Thursday,  I wasn't too excited for yesterday's race.  Plus, the husband had his own miles to run (because he's training for Grandma's!!!!!) so I knew that I'd be all by my lonesome and that's just not as much fun. <cue the sad music> 

Due to the wind and lack of headband, I dealt with this
mess in my face the entire race.  Good times!

Other than the crazy-ass wind, it turned out to be a pretty good day.  Did I mention that I at my last haircut, my hair dude gave me bangs?  I haven't had bangs in probably 15 years. I have no idea how to manage them and am typically at their mercy. Yesterday was no exception.  Those damn bangs were in my eyes the whole run.  But I digress......

I got out the door really late and drove over to Lake Harriet....by the time I got there the streets were blocked off for the race and I had to park pretty far away. (I mapped it out after I got home - it was just over a mile.)  Voila!  Instant warm-up mile!  I jogged to the start line, mostly because I was afraid I was going to be late, and ate my honey stinger jot-like things on the way. They are so yummy.

TenacityChris told me that I wasn't allowed to race this one - she wants me to race next weekend's half marathon to see if I'm dreamin' when it comes to my goal marathon pace.  I must say, the woman knows me well.  Here's the excerpt from my training plan:

Saturday
Long Run as Follows:
DO NOT GET SUCKED INTO RACING MENTALITY!!!
Warm up first mile at 11:30 min
Miles 2-6: 10:13 pace (GMP) – see I’m letting you have a ‘little’ speed during this race!
Miles 7-10: 11:30 min pace (If you would feel better about doing a fast finish and have your tempo miles at the end of the race, that’s ok too – BUT NO FASTER!!! Remember, you are racing next weekend!!)

So that's like 11:11 miles on average, right? No problem! I figured I'd start nice and slow, pick it up a bit in the second half and just try to enjoy the run.

I ran the first few miles along side a 56 year old guy named Rich (I think!).  He had an interesting story: he's making a comeback after dealing with an injury for a year and a half.  He ran seven marathons before his injury but now feels like a newbie.  He was a master at discreet snot rockets - you hardly even noticed he was doing it.  Impressive!  And God bless him, when I told him I was pushing 50, he said he thought I was in my 30's.  Liar.  (But I'm going with "He meant it." You know I'm shallow like that.)  He'll be running Grandma's too and is shooting for 4:30 so maybe I'll see him there.  

After I lost Rich in the crowd, I chatted up some other folks, most notably another couple who were running their longest race to date and questioned their wisdom in running attire (they were too warm) and another woman who digs hills as much as I do. Although I love to talk to other runners, this time I was doing it more out of selfishness to keep me slow.  I figured if I could talk easily, then I wasn't running too fast. That way I wouldn't have to try to read GarminElectra with my annoyingly aging eyes.  

So there was a time clock around mile 8, and when I looked at it I thought, "Holy crap, am I on pace to finish close to my PR?  How the hell did THAT happen??"  I got a little excited about that, and then remembered TenacityChris' comment (in caps!) and like a good runner student put the finish time out of my mind.  I want to kick ASS next weekend so didn't want to waste any effort on this one.  

The last mile was the toughest because we were running into a headwind.  The hill-loving chick and I bitched back and forth about the wind and how it was slowing us down and didn't that suck, and then we crossed the finish line.  I saw the time clock and realized I was close to, if not faster than my PR.  My first thought?  "Uh oh, what am I gonna tell TenacityChris?" 

Turns out I did PR.  By about a minute and half!  When I saw that I was all, "Shut UP!! No, YOU shut up!!" to myself.  (I talk to myself. A lot. Have I mentioned that before?  Well, I do.)

I'll have to come clean with TenacityChris.  

Here are my splits:

Split	Time	Distance	Avg Pace
Summary	1:38:32.7	10.03	9:49
1	10:22.3	1.00	10:22
2	9:54.3	1.00	9:54
3	10:09.2	1.00	10:09
4	10:01.9	1.00	10:02
5	9:39.8	1.00	9:40
6	9:54.0	1.00	9:54
7	9:56.6	1.00	9:57
8	9:38.8	1.00	9:39
9	9:32.5	1.00	9:33
10	9:09.1	1.00	9:09
11	:14.1	0.03	7:48

I didn't race this one, honest.  Frankly, I don't know that I've ever actually RACED a race. I've had goals but haven't ever really pushed myself super hard.  I don't like to feel all out of breath and like I'm going to puke - I prefer to enjoy the run.  My inexperience with racing a race makes me nervous about next weekend.  I hope I don't do anything stupid. 

Oh, and get this - GarminElectra and my official results are EXACTLY the same, right down to the second!! How crazy is that???  That has never happened before.  Kinda cool.

GarminElectra was not a beyoch.
That was a nice change.

I'm liking my numbers.

And get this too! After the race, I went to get my packet for next weekend's half marathon.  Check out my bib numbers from yesterday's race and for next weekend's half marathon. Also cool, no? A friend on dailymile.com said I should get some lottery tickets.  I think she's right.  I'm feeling lucky!