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Chronicles of a fish: the days of surf and turf
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Besides being thankful for all of you Boardsies who I think of as mythological gods and goddesses, I am thankful for my 9 year old niece who announced at the Thanksgiving Day dinner table that she wanted her Auntie Dory to be her own personal running trainer. Whah?? Me??? Her trainer?? Really??
Well, we immediately excused ourselves from the pumpkin pie and fake whipped cream to get started on some proper intervals. I just so happened to have my Garmin (was secretly hoping to get a 6 mile run in), and you should have seen the excitement in her eyes when I strapped it to her tiny wrist and showed her how to use it. We went over a little strategy, then off she went from the basketball hoop to the second volleyball net - 13 seconds. I cleared the screen for her, and this time she went from the second volleyball net back to the basketball hoop - 12 seconds. By this time, her very quiet 7 year old sister joined in and was running with her. Cleared the screen, and off from the hoop to the net they went - 11 seconds. She was now focused on getting to 10 seconds, but no matter how hard she tried, and no matter how hard she pumped her arms, the next several intervals stayed at 11 and 12 seconds. But she was not getting frustrated, no. She saw another way around this hurdle. As any clever 9 year old might do, she decided to start a little closer to the finish line to get that elusive 10 seconds she so knew was in her. And guess what? She hit the stop button as she reached the second volleyball net in a record breaking 10 seconds!! And then she announced she was ready for pie. 
Turkey Day Treadmill Trot
Plan: 6 miles easy
I had hoped to slip away from the family festivities to get 6 easy miles done today, but it just never happened. So when we finally arrived back home from our journey I went for Plan B, which was hopping on the treadmill and knocking out my 6 easy miles that way. It's been ages since I've been on the treadmill and I'd forgotten how it feels to run on it. Thank god for them, but I do much prefer the road.
Actual: 6 easy miles on the treadmill while I watched NFL football.0 -
Blustery, Breezy, Chilly Run About Town
Plan: 6 miles steady
Woo-wee did the nasty wind blow in some nasty cold air last night!!! Jiminy Cricket did the temp drop from a lovely 60 degrees to a frigid 30 degrees!!! Brrrr!!!!! But, I reminded myself this morning how miserable I was this summer running in the heat and humidity to ease the temptation of psyching myself out of this run - and this run was no bother to me in the end. Thank god for good cold weather gear - we really are so lucky to have high quality clothing and accessories to keep us nice and toasty warm.
I was a bit apprehensive about this run pace-wise mainly because of the wind, so I told myself that an 8 to 8:15 min/mile pace would be acceptable. Normally I would want to target closer to 8 min/mile, but no need in feeling defeated due to things I can't control. The first mile into town felt really good and really easy, 7:54, but I knew I wanted to slow it down a little. One thing I am trying to do this training cycle is learn to pace smart. I have taken to studying the Clown's Garmin posts and I am struck by his pace control, even on hills he is pretty steady. The second mile was equally as nice as the first, 7:59. The third and fourth miles were mainly in a local park and on mulch, and I was a little surprised at my pace for those miles (where did that pace discipline go to I am trying to learn!!??
), especially on the third mile because there was a short but awful hill I climbed - 7:42, 7:46. I did have to stop very briefly to remove some mulch that had made its way into one of my shoes, but without delay I hopped up and treated myself to one very flat mile on asphalt by running around the park's parking lot 5 times - 7:34. This flat, asphalt mile was very good for me mentally since I had not timed myself under those conditions in quite some time. The sixth mile was a small disappointment pace-wise, but this was the one mile that wind really did play a factor. As I exit the park there is a nice downhill that I eased up on, but then there is an uphill that turns a corner and keeps going and eventually turns into a wonderful downhill....but the kicker was, as soon as I turned that corner while going uphill and while anticipating a wonderful downhill, BOOM, the wind hit me like a ton of bricks. There was no lovely downhill today - the wind pushed me like a freight train. Oh well. Last steady mile was 8:06.
With the steady miles done and dusted, I stopped for a few seconds to stretch the legs before heading it back home. The last 1.42 miles were easy cool down miles that were a joy to run. I didn't exactly master the Clown's art of pace today, but this session had some quality to it, so for that I am pleased.
Actual: 7.42 miles in 59:24.8 for an average pace of 8 min/mile.
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/2462626050 -
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BeepBeep67 wrote: »Nice training of late, when's your next race?
Thanks!! And I had a very good 10 mile run today as well. I'm hoping the hills I've been doing are serving me well and will pay some dividends when it's time to cash in on the work.
The goal race is (obviously) Boston in April, 20 weeks away......but I am going down to Disney World in January to do The Goofy - a half marathon on Saturday and a full marathon on Sunday. My plan is to try and get a good time in the half marathon and then just have some fun with the full. I have been warned, however, that due to the number of runners and crazy Disney characters who will be littering the course, it can be difficult to get a super fast time. We'll see. I'm guessing the course is pretty flat, and if I am anywhere near a PB during the half marathon, Mickey and Minnie better not get in my way 'cause they're going down if they do!
:D 0 -
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BeepBeep67 wrote: »You going in fancy dress
Funny you should ask - I might. Mulling over ideas....;)0 -
I just typed up an award winning post about my 10 mile run today, but the cruel Internet gods saw fit to cast a spell on my computer and wiped my Grammy caliber post away.
:mad:
So, in summary:
Main Street Madness
Plan: 10 miles easy
Gorgeous but cold....wanted to treat myself to hot cocoa and a confection post-run so decided to run the entire length of Main Street plus a few side street....east end of town has long slow uphill drags....west end of town has shorter, steeper climbs.....did the shorter, steeper climbs last on tired legs....broke all sorts of my own personal rules by street running with an iPod, but Imelda needed a workout....mile 5 was my favorite mile due to how I felt and what was playing....hurdled two dead birds, both on mile 6....mile 7 was where the hard hills began.....miles 8 and 9 were the hardest and slowest....mile 10 had the most downhill but my tired legs would not allow me to free fall it like I so enjoy because the muscles felt fatigued and frozen....rewarded myself with a medium hot cocoa with whipped cream on top and a chocolate chip cookie while sitting at a bar table by the window at a local fave, The Gathering Grounds.....decided I liked these runs on tired legs (from the run the day before) because it forces me to slow down and gives me more time on my feet.... and decided I'm enjoying my training at the moment.
Actual: 10.1 miles in 1:29.02 for an average pace of 8:48 min/mile
Will post Garmin link in a bit as an edit....
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/2468033790 -
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Trainer
Plan: cross train
Have you heard the song "Aqualung" recently?? Have you had the pleasure of humming to the lyrics of this fine song in the last, um, 15 years?? No wonder my mom would yell upstairs to me and my brother to turn our noise down when we would crank our music at all hours of the day and night. Yikes!! A parent's nightmare, that rock and roll was.
Actual: 20 miles while humming along to all sorts of questionable lyrics. 0 -
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Field Intervals
Plan: 2 miles easy, 10*1 min on/off, 2 miles easy
I should've known when I strapped on my watch and realized that the custom workout did not download from my computer to my watch (even though it said it did!!! :mad:) that this would not be my most sparkling day. Ugh!! I decided that it would be ridiculous of me to have to keep an eye on my watch waiting for one minute to pass doing these intervals, so instead I improvised by timing my first interval and then did each subsequent one as a point to point. I know this also meant that my recovery was a wee bit longer than it should have been, but it was the best bad choice for me.
And speaking of bad....either my Garmin was acting up or I was pushing buttons when I shouldn't have been pushing buttons because some of data is a little perplexing and missing.
Of course, I wonder if it's because when I started this session I thought my workout had been downloaded when in fact I had started last Wednesday's custom workout and just let it keep going thinking I could override the intervals with my lap button. Bottom line, two of my "on" intervals are missing.
And more bad news....the paces that were recorded are not very uniform. The field is perhaps not the best place to do spiffy intervals due to the nature of the surface, plus the wind was quite gusty and hitting me head on, and I also think my head just wasn't in this today. I need to work on my mental toughness with intervals, especially when I am faced with 10 of them.
Interval paces:
6:33, 6:57, 6:40, ???, 7:02, 6:54, ???, 6:43, 7:00, 6:41
Actual: 5.55 miles in 50:30.56 for an average pace of 9:06 min/mile*
*These numbers are off some due to technical difficulties.0 -
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shotgunmcos wrote: »Twas a lot like a fartlek session
Well hush my puppy, it twas!!
Yoga
The heading says it all - yoga. I'm starting to feel a bit like Gumby, getting all stretchy and flexible like that lovable green bendable character.
Then followed the yoga up with Oryx's nasty core workout. Still can't do the handstand very well.0 -
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Question: What training plan are you following ... all the short/fast stuff has me curious.
After having done the FIRST plan for my first two marathons (it served me very well for my first marathon, got bored with it for my second) I went looking at other plans - all the ones you folks are familiar with - but none of them really blew my skirt up (I'm sure in part due to my lack of running knowledge and experience). But the one plan I had been looking in on periodically and thought was interesting and well explained (and with a totally different approach than the FIRST plan) was the one Ecoli had written for the DCM group....so I asked Ecoli a few questions and told him my goals, then he offered to write one for me. I snatched that up like a plate of chocolate covered Oreo cookies!!! It's a 24 week plan...and so far I am loving it for many reasons....and I dig his (logical/thoughtful) approach to training. Will it translate into a 3:30 for me in Boston?? I have no idea, but all I can do is try.....and as I said, I am loving the training so far, and that is SO important when you've committed so much time to doing something. 0 -
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Moonlight Meander
Plan: 6 miles easy
Gorgeous, crisp evening!! A simply perfect night to go for a run about town...but I shook it up a bit. I have a few basic routes I like to do in town at night (I tend to do these basic routes due to safety reasons and to satisfy my need to run uphill), but tonight I opted to run some of the hardest hills in the first few miles instead of running them in last few miles - and boy does it does it feel so much easier running hills on fresh legs!! Woo hoo - these thighs were muscling their way uphill like they had been tapering for two weeks. In fact, the legs felt fresh-as-daisies until about 5 miles into the run when they started to feel a bit tired, but I just kept them ticking over at the very steady pace they had been ticking over at....and to my delight, this run ended up being very steady in pace and a solid easy run overall.
Actual: 6.15 miles in 52:26.08 for an average pace of 8:31 mim/mile
9:03, 8:23, 8:27, 8:25, 8:32, 8:22, 1:12 (8:19)
Garmin link -
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/2479821520 -
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If you can't handstand do the wall walk as repeats. I did that on Monday with pull ups, alternating.
Doesn't seem fair that I didn't do yours...
I'll keep your wall walk repeats in mind....and yes, it doesn't seem fair that you didn't do mine.
Very strange....I've noticed that I never get a notification when you post anything anywhere any more. 0 -
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Sunday Morning Group Run
Plan: 12 miles easy
Not totally sure what prompted me to do this, but last Monday I posted on Facebook an inquiry to local friends to see if there was an interest in doing any group runs....and to my pleasant surprise there were many positive responses. It didn't hurt that I suggested we all get a hot cup of cocoa and a bite to eat afterwards at a local fave, but it was immediately decided that we'd hit the streets of town this morning in various stages to accommodate as many interested runners as we could (translation: to accommodate all abilities by offering a 12 mile, 6 mile, and 3 mile run option). I knew paces would be a bit tricky, but I figured that would work itself out, and it did. The basic plan was, at 9:45 the 12 mile group would hit the pavement for the first 6 miles.....then we'd pick up the next group (the 6 milers) at 10:45 for the next 3 miles.....then we'd pick up the final group (the 3 milers) at 11:15 for the final leg of the run. Other than the actual distances being a little longer than I estimated, this was a blast.
We had 6 people in our initial group, and there had been some concern by a few of the of the runners in this group that doing 9 min/miles might be a little too hot for them, but I told them we'd keep it easy and target 9:30 for a few miles and take it from there. Everyone seemed pretty jazzed to be a part of this run, spirits and conversations were high, and the pace naturally picked up for everyone as our bodies warmed up and we all settled in. I did have to slow it down a little after someone complained gently commented on mile 4 that we were no longer at 9:30 pace. Oopsie!9:19, 9:18, 9:03, 8:38, 8:52, 9:09
Our 12 mile train pulled into the station with 3 minutes to spare and the 6 mile runners were waiting on our arrival....so without too much fuss, we all headed off together to run to a local park with a mulched trail. We hit one pretty solid hill on our way that I know took its toll on a few in our group, but to their credit, they kept chugging forward, one foot in front of the other, faces red and breathing a bit labored...but they kept at it. I tried to remind them that what goes up must come down, and that on our return we'd be greeted with this lovely downhill we all could coast on. This section turned out to be 3.55 miles, so we were a few minutes late picking up our final group. 8:43, 8:54, 8:59, 8:55
The last group seemed a bit antsy when we arrived 2 minutes later than anticipated, but we quickly decided on a route (we went flat and easy for this last section as this final group had the most challenged of runners and some of my 12 mile peeps were starting to fade on me) and off we went - as one unified group. It wasn't long, however, that our one big group became several smaller groups, and that was fine - everyone seemed to be having fun. There were just 3 of us in my lead group - one of the 12 milers, and one of the 6 milers, but my 12 miler was beginning to die on me with less than 2 miles to go - I could hear him huffing and puffing and he had stopped talking (and he's quite the jabber box!!)....so I tried a few tricks to help him out of his funk and struggles, but it wasn't really until I told him we'd stop at Ruffner Plaza (which, at this point, was less than a mile away), do some stretches, then walk the rest of the way to grab a bite to eat did I seem to rescue him from his downward spiral. Whew! Worked like a charm though....and I was even able to up the pace on that last mile without him complaining or fading.8:55, 8:58, 8:43
Actual: 13.1 miles in 1:57:17 for an average pace of 8:57 min/mile
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/2487960310 -
Trainer
20 miles on tired legs, but the legs felt better with each passing, spinning, increasing-in-speed mile. I kept the resistance low for an assortment of reasons, and the legs are thanking me now for that. It's magic, what a spin like this can do. 0 -
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Trainer
20 miles on tired legs, but the legs felt better with each passing, spinning, increasing-in-speed mile. I kept the resistance low for an assortment of reasons, and the legs are thanking me now for that. It's magic, what a spin like this can do.
Sure is. I must bring the bike back into my programme once the body has adapted to the run volume. Great how a short easy leg spinner can set up the next day's run. Are you missing your pool as much as Im missing the bike?0
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