Oleksak Lumber Half Marathon–Westfield, MA

 

Today was my THIRD half marathon! I can’t believe than in 10 months I’ve run three half marathons! Awesome!

My unofficial time was 2:40. This amounts to my absolute slowest half marathon time thus far. However, I find the I was much more bummed after the Empire State Half in October than I am by this slow time. Reasons include – being a mere 12 seconds off my goal time at Empire, and knowing that I was absolutely not prepared for the hills on today’s race.

I’ve barely run outside this cycle. While that has helped with my ever nagging “high-mileage ITB tightness” (that’s a diagnosis I made up, fyi), I think I did myself a disservice by only TM training, less a few long runs. I really did get in no hills. Even my 5 mile race last weekend was virtually flat.

But, I find myself meeting this bump in the road with resolve. I know now what I need to work on for Lake Placid. hills hills hills. So I’m back on the running outside train. I will not give up lifting though. There were some serious hills in the beginning of this race, and if it had been a shorter distance I’m pretty sure I would’ve killed it. I felt strong on them!

 

There is a bigger, underlying issue here. My mental game was miserable today. I didn’t go into this race with any time goals, but I also felt really unprepared. I didn’t feel particularly challenged this training training cycle (treadmill?), and I really was kind of unconvinced about my ability to do this today. It just didn’t feel right. 

Just a few miles in, the mental degradation started. Tons of self doubt. I just couldn’t shake it. By mile 7 I really, really wanted to be done running. I mean, 7 miles in and I’m ready to throw in the towel? I’m kind of disappointed in myself, not for my time, but for my attitude.

In all honesty, the mental part of running is really the part I don’t have a good handle on yet. I know that’s always the real challenge, but I’m not sure if I’ve made strides in that department anywhere like I have in the physical department. I need to spend a bit more time reflecting on this, and figuring out a better strategy. Any suggestions are appreciated!!

Overall, I’m leaving this race experience feeling resolved (and full, hello post race food catered by olive garden? this race is da bomb). I’m ready for a light week, and then to jump back in to getting ready for Lake Placid!

Race Season

Race season is upon us, runner friends!

I kicked off my race season with a 5 mile Shamrock Shuffle in Glens Falls, NY. I wasn't looking to "race race" this one, but use it as a nice last weekend-workout while tapering. However, I ran this race last year and it was bitter cold and I wasn't feeling well. So, I did want to better my time.

And better it I did! The official race time ended up being 51:54. That puts me at a 10:23 average mile, with over a minute off my time from last year. And... I was reigning it in. I was constantly reminding myself (as i continuted to buzz by people) to SLOW DOWN. I even resisted the urge to chick a couple of old guys in the final stretch. I did not want to over push it and wear myself out. This was a TAPER run. But, this time puts me at the FASTEST per mile average of any road race I've run yet! This is super confidence building to me because I was running at a comfortable pace the whole time, I really felt like the miles were clicking by. This felt so much better than last year! I LOVE seeing improvements in my running. It's really starting to feel more natural (well, the shorter distances at least).

I did have some ankle pain after the race, which concerns me a bit. But I'm feeling okay now, I'm paying close attention to it, and I am going to keep up my regimen of lower leg and foot stretching and rolling out that arch with a tennis and/or golf ball (really helps!).

This Sunday brings me to my first big race of the season! The Oleksak Half Marathon in Westfield, MA. I am so ready! I don't feel nervous or burnt out like I have in previous training cycles! I'm just excited!!!

I don't really have any time goals for this race. I've stated before that this year is about building endurance as opposed to speed. I'm using this race as a building block for the main event (MARATHON!)

I would like to finish around 2:30. I'm a bit worried about the hills as I haven't done much hill training this cycle. But, and i'll credit weight lifting with this, I have found that I feel much stronger running hills now than I have in the past. Overall, I just hoping for a solid race!

Good luck to all of you racing this weekend as well!

Registration Mania

Well folks, I went on a bit of a race registration binge the other morning!

The good news is, I didn't break the bank! haha.

More good news - I will be racing each of the first three weekends of spring! I'm so excited.

I'll start off on the 25th with a 5-mile Shamrock Shuffle about an hour north of here. One of my best friends is running it as well, it will be her last race in her 20s! (can't believe we're at that age) but it will also be a first for us. First race together as bride-to-be and MOH (I'm the MOH, calm your hormones). yayayay!

On April 1- half number one of the year in Westfield, MA. I'm not sure about my goals for this race yet - to be honest, I'm not entirely sure what kind of shape I'm in? This training cycle has gone well, a bit too well. I'll discuss plans for this race more fully in another post. However, it is half 1 of 3 for the year.

On April 7 I'll be doing my first 4 mile race, and my first HMRRC race as a member! wooo! I'm pretty excited!

I also registered for one other race......

The Mohawk Hudson River Marathon!!!!!!!!!!!!

That's right folks. These aren't just champagne dreams any more. I'm really going to do this. I've spent my money, and posted it on facebook. So now I've got to! Too many haters on facebook to not follow through now! hehe just kidding....

Cheers to kicking off spring race season!

Running is my religion

And apparently, our number 1 hymn is the theme song from reading rainbow – as that was on repeat in my head for two hours.

This run was some sort of magical, and boy did I need it. This is the second time I’ve run this particular 11 mile loop, and both times have been amazing runs. Aside from being quite hungry at the moment, I do not feel like I just ran for 2 hours. I’m not tired, but cleansed. I’m not sore, but strong. When I checked my watch an noticed I had only 3.5 miles left to go on this run, I was sad. I am still kind of sad it’s over. All of life is so much simpler when it’s just you and the road (and the occasional jack ass rolling through stop signs.)

My life outside of running (yes, there is one, unfortunately) has been… interesting this weekend. I like running because it’s simple. You either ran or you didn’t. Black and white. There’s no “grey area” in running. You can’t “sorta” run. I am a black and white person. I don’t enjoy the grey. I like things simple, straight forward, drama-free. But alas, life is messy and we can’t always have what we want.

11 miles with no music (except the aforementioned reading rainbow theme song) gives you a lot of time to sort through the mess. And it doesn’t take long. By mile two, things were looking up. By mile 3 I knew everything would be all right. In the words of a wise friend “Everything will be okay in the end. If it’s not okay, it’s not the end.” The hardest part of accepting that statement, of course, is that you don’t have control over where the end is all the time. But you know what, that’s okay too.

On my run today I reminded myself of how far I’ve come in the last 18 months. Of how settled in to myself, grew with confidence – mentally and physically. No one can take that away from me. I have stopped trying to dispel people’s misconceptions of me, and instead just stopped caring. The most important thing is to do right by yourself. YOU are the one you have to live with day in and day out. YOU are the one you have to sleep next to every night. YOU are the one you have to trust with your own emotions. YOU are the one inside your head when you’re running. And as long as YOU are okay with who YOU are, then nothing else really matters.

None of these revelations would’ve happened without the run. The perfectly wonderful super strong amazing run that I just had. These were the fastest, and perhaps best 2 hours of the weekend. And they are mine, all mine.

When it hits.

I’d like to start by saying, That overall, this has been a pretty decent training cycle. I’ve hit most of my runs, I’ve yet to feel any significant ITB pain (knock on wood) and overall I’ve been feeling good. (I haven’t blogged as consistently as possible – but that has less to do with my desire to talk about and reflect on my training than it does with this damn masters thesis I’ve been writing.)

As with any training cycle, as you start to hit those higher mileage weeks, you definitely begin to notice. And for me, that happened last week,

It was a cutback week anyway but I added in an extra day of xtraining, instead of taking it easier like I should. I also made my weightlifting day, uh, pretty hard. And put it off a day, making it that much closer to my weekend running. poor choices.

I only had 15k on the schedule for a long run. we have a good 5k route around the state college campus here, that makes for safe running. It also is NOT flat, so it helps with some of that hill training I’ve been very obviously neglecting this cycle. It was kinda cold, but not terrible on Sunday, but man, that wind was a beast. I started out, ok, then… well then it was like I wasn’t even moving forward.

I thought I was running a decent and comfortable 10:40 pace, based on my effort. When I snuck a peek at my Garmin, it turned out I was running closer to a 12:00 mile. WHAT?!? I can’t remember the last time I worked SO hard to run SO slow. It was miserable. I really really felt like I was running much faster than that.

It was a huge disappointment. Between the general struggle to connect my mind and my legs, continue moving forward, and the huffing and puffing, I called it after the second loop and stopped for the day at 10k.

I gave up.

It sucks. I was super bummed and annoyed with myself. Cutting a run short because you’re seeing stars is one thing. But this felt different. I felt like a quitter. and maybe I was.

You read a lot of blogs entries from runners about powering through. And that’s what you do in training – most of the time. But every runner, even those 3:20 marathoners have bad days/weeks. Everyone has runs that just get the best of them once in a while.

I resolved to brush of that run, and make this week the best I could in terms of training. And so far I have – going into the weekend mileage I’m feeling much more confident than last week. I’ve been trying to frame what happened last week as a mid-cycle taper, which should just help to make my next two long runs stronger, right?

Don’t believe the hype folks, even the super happy, super peppy, super dedicated runners have bad days. Not blogging about running that’s not going well, doesn’t help anybody. Least of all, the blogger.

Horrible Blogger

ugh, I’ve def sucked lately. I forgot last week’s wrap up, then figured I’d just do it with the February wrap up, and now it’s march 3 and I’ve done neither! sorry folks!

The big news right now is – less than a month until the first half of the year! woo! Where DOES the time go?!

February was a pretty good month for training. I had a mini head cold for a few days, and then a blood donation proved a bit harder to bounce back from than anticipated. I don’t know why I was surprised, but I should’ve done more reading on training and donating blood… and eaten breakfast before attempting a 5 mile run two days later. whoops.

wrapping up February:

Monday Feb 20: stretch and strength/ rest

Tuesday Feb 21: 4.5 Miles/ Chest, shoulders abs (35 mins); 4.5 @ 10:27; Plank 1:15

Wednesday Feb 22: 40 min tempo/ 4.08 @ 9:48 – 25 mins at 9:26; plank 1:25

Thursday Feb 23: 3 miles + strength / legs 25 mins; 3 @10:12

Friday Feb 24: rest/ elliptical 35 mins; Plank 1:10

Saturday Feb 25: 5 miles / 5 @ 10:30

Sunday Feb 26: 10 miles / 10 @ 11:06

Weekly Mileage: 26.58

Monday Feb 27: stretch and strength/ walk 2.1 miles (SUPER TIRED)

Tuesday Feb 28: 5 miles / rest (post blood donation)

Wednesday Feb 29: Moved the 5 miler to this day – stopped after 3 – seeing stars. yikes!

Total Monthly Mileage: 85.89 HOLLA!

February was a great training month! I only missed 2 workouts, so not too shabby.

March is off to a good start, though I’m feeling a bit tired these days. sleep helps ' 

 

One march goal – more core. I really, really need to up the ante there.

Once again, sorry for being a sucky blogger! I’ll be better, promise!

Train hard, run long!

Weight Loss and Distance Running

If you've been around the running blogosphere for a bit, you've undoubtedly come across posts from various awesome runners on weight gain during long distance running training. It's common to gain a few pounds during peak time as you're fueling your body more to keep it going etc etc. However, there are also some great weight loss stories. See: Vanessa or Erin or Marlene.

Long distance running isn't exactly the best or fastest way to lose weight. Last year, while training for my first two halves, I maintained weight, or gained a few pounds here or there. But, let's get real. 1. I could stand to lose a few or twenty pounds. 2. Eating well is NOT my forte.

I have been trying over the past year or so to make healthier choices. Some times it works, some times not so much. Eggs for breakfast have become a regular staple - as opposed to no breakfast, or an over-sized delicious bagel from the spot next to work. Almond milk has also made an increased appearance. I jumped on that apple with PB train for a snack and am loving the shit out of it. However, things that haven't worn out their welcome as much as they need to: Pizza, Beer. I try to make healthy choices about 3 weeks of the month. Yes, that's a PMS reference, sorry boys. But I am, very admittedly, a sucky eater. I often eat like crap, and I don't often feel bad about it. I guess it's because with running, I eat this shit and don't gain weight - but I don't loose it either.

I also try not to obsess about the number on the scale. Every time I do that, my mental game devolves and I end up eating a chocolate cake or a pizza or a bottle of wine. So, realizing that focusing on weight was self-destructive, I changed my game to focus on fitness. Let's analyze the number of plates on the bar, or the miles I've run instead of the number on the scale.

I still weigh myself once, sometimes twice a week. Sometimes I forget all together. Also, I cheat. How does one cheat the scale? I weigh myself after my long run each week. DON'T JUDGE ME. I know, I'm likely dehydrated etc etc, but it's just sort of general measure of how much it changed from one week to the next. And it's not like I come home from a brutal 10miler and immediately jump on the scale. There's usually a liter of water and a large glass of chocolate almond milk in there first! Remember, the scale isn't the top priority.

There are other ways to measure weight loss than just the scale, too. For example, how your clothes fit. A few weeks ago, post menstrual cycle (again, sorry guys) I randomly lost 4 pounds. I wrote it off as no longer being a huge bloated miserable bitch and went about my day. However, the next week, the scale was the same. WHAAAAT? and then it was lower. oh shit. Yesterday, without realizing it I had cinched my belt in one notch further. Today, all my usual jeans were dirty so I dug through my drawers on a quest to do an experiement regarding jean size that I hoped would work or "dress-down Friday" would be totally lost on me this week. IT'S MY FAVORITE DAY! Anyway, I'm down a jean size. BOOM.

This weightloss is totally unexpected. I'm not "trying" to loose weight, I'm training for a half marathon. I know the two can go hand in hand, and I'd love them to, but they didn't last year, so what gives?

Have I been eating better? Maybe marginally, some days. Certainly not this week. I devoured a 10 oz bag of pretzel m&ms in two days. I shared.... 3 with my coworker, and I dropped one in my car, somewhere. I ate a buncha pizza this week. I don't think I've prepared myself a green vegetable since Sunday. (the blog is about honesty, right? At least I was a bit embarrased by that last one.)
 
I have been increasing the intensity - I am working out more like 6 days a week, as compared to last year's 4 days, maaayyybe 5.

I'm running faster, I'm doing yoga, I'm being more consistent.

But, I think the real clincher is - weight lifting. I know it's one of those things most runners don't care for, and I let it slide a lot last year when I started training for longer distances. But, admittedly, I like doing it. Even if I'm super self-conscious doing it at the gym. I love the burn. I love that sore feeling. I love feeling strong. Most running plans encourage strength training, but in a way that I think is kind of wussy. I'm not going to go to the gym and pick up some five pound dumbbells and swing them around for 20-30 reps. Lame. I'm going heavy. Now, not as heavy as I would've gone when I wasn't running - especially when I'm doing legs. But, I want it to hurt. I want my arms/legs/body to shake as I try to get a 10th or 12th rep in on my third set. I want to be pushing myself. 

This might be contrary to what most runners are told. And you should really be patient with it, consistent with it and don't be a frigging idiot and over do it (guilty, on the regular). (You should also probably get advice from more places that this lowely amature's blog, don't be a moron.) The prize here is still a half/full marathon finish. But, this is working folks. It's working well, and it's working fast.

Try it or don't. But, I'm wearing pants right now that I haven't worn in two years, and my beloved weightlifting is going to get some of the credit.