Hampered Training

After nine years I've finally decided to sell my place and move to another part of the city - closer to friends and work. So for the past two weeks I've spent most of my extra time either cleaning or de-cluttering my house to get it ready for sale. This of course means that I have had very little time or energy left after working full-time at the hospital, part-time in my practice, and taking care of the house to run much. However, even after another busy weekend filled with Mr. Clean and Glad Hefty Bags I was itching for a run this afternoon. It wasn't much - managed just under 3 miles - but I've found that sometimes, no matter how busy and tired I've been, my body just CRAVES a run. That, and hearing about a lot of my running friends finishing the Run The Bluegrass half-marathon yesterday just got me psyched up. The Derby Mini is in 3 short weeks, and with the race season I've had so far, I have no worries about being able to keep up with the mileage I'll be running and the pace I'm hoping to keep (10:15 average). My hope is that after this next week is over with (have some last-minute cleaning, touch-ups, and minor landscaping to do) and the house actually goes live on the market, I'll get back into a routine and keep up the 1-2 short runs per week plus the long run on the weekends leading up to race day. After that, I'll have to find another race or two to keep my summer running up leading up to the Bourbon Chase as well as the Sports Commission Half and Big Hit Half in the fall. My finishing time and splits for today's short run: 2.8 miles in 28:37 with a 10:14 average pace and 10:07, 10:11 and 10:27 splits.

Papa John's 10-miler

What a great day for a race. Sunny and 47 at the start, and feeling thankful by mile 2.5 that I went with the shorts and t-shirt this morning. I must admit, part of me lay in bed this morning when the alarm went off at 6:00 and thought, "Ugh. I really don't have it in me this morning." But since this is the third and final leg of the triple crown, and I will be accumulating yet another shirt for finishing all three, I pulled my lazy butt up and headed out. I sat in the car for a long while before heading to the start, and when I crossed the line I had a few more thoughts that this was not going to be one of my better races. Until mile 3 I just really wasn't feeling it, and thought that I may end up walking a lot of it. I've written before that the thought of running the entire race was kind of daunting, and while I had known going into it this morning that I wouldn't run the whole thing, I didn't really have a plan either - so I tried something new. Instead of taking my walk breaks and set-time intervals, I took one-minute walk breaks at each mile marker. This actually worked out quite well, and I think I ended up catching some time when the mile markers ended up being near, or during, a down-hill and I just took advantage of the descending pavement and kept right on running. I felt amazingly great throughout the park and was so proud of myself for running the hills. Historically, the thought of running hills is daunting to me, and my lack of confidence takes over and I end up walking them - at least the majority of them. But, since I had run the park during last weeks training run I knew what to expect when, and I think that helped. Coming out of the park I ran into a friend from my tri group, Terry, who actually started her tri career the same year I did. We`ve done a number of tris together and she's come such a long way - even completing an Ironman a few years ago. Seeing a friendly face put a little spring in my step as I continued to truck along. I was actually feeling so good, and because of a downhill, ended up skipping the 6-mile walk break. At around 7.5 miles I got a side stitch and ended up having to take an unexpected break. Normally I can run through side-stitches, but this one was especially uncomfortable - painful even, so I opted to walk a bit and do some deep breathing. Not long after I started picking up the pace again the stich returned so, again, another unscheduled walk break. After another running attempt however, it seemed to work itself out and I didn't walk again until I was near the crest of a major hill just past the 9 mile marker. I've run many races, and I've completed this particular race a number of times over the past 9 years, and I will always maintain that the last mile of this race always feels like the longest mile ever. I made my way into the football stadium (the race ends INSIDE Papa John's Cardinal Stadium and you actually get to run up one side of the field, across the end zone, then back up the other side for the finish) and remember feeling a bit of relief for my sore legs and feet from the cushiony astroturf. I had been trying to keep a 10-minute pace throughout the race, but the hills, along with that silly side-stitch slowed me down a bit, and I ended up finishing with an average of 10:17/min pace and an un-official 1:44:29 finish. Splits were: 10:08, 10:09, 10:13, 10:29(park)10:22(park), 10:19(park), 9:52(saw my tri buddy), 10:58(side stitch), 10:19, 10:17. This race ended up being a 6-minute PR for me on this course - which I am EXTREMELY happy with considering my lack of motivation this morning. With as well as I've done so far this year, I don't think it's too far fetched to expect another PR during the Derby Mini in four weeks. Now that I think about it..... I`m wondering if I should attempt another marathon this year since I`m in the zone. Hmmmmmmmm........

And the training continues...

So far this training/racing season I've been pretty lucky with my running. I've had, for the most part, some pretty great training runs and, of course, some outstanding races with multiple PR's. It's training runs like today, however, that keep me humble. Since I've pretty much blown off the Fleet Feet training group I signed up with, I've been going it alone most runs, but amazingly, have been doing pretty well with keeping up my training schedule. I'm still going by the FF training schedule though, and was set to do 6 miles today. Since the time change this past weekend, I took it upon myself to sleep in this morning since I've been nearly exhausted almost every day. With a forecast of mid-60's, I figured it would still be cool enough at 11:30 (and 50 degrees) to wear pants and a t-shirt to run. This, coupled with the fact that my nutrition of the past 24 hours consisted of a small bowl of rice and chicken for lunch, pb&j with barbecue chips for dinner (at 6:00 p.m. mind you) and a bowl of Raisin Bran this morning immediately prior to going out did not make for a good run. I felt heavy during the entire run, and the hills of Iroquois giving me the business certainly didn't help - although I must admit that pushing myself to run most of the hills felt good, and the fact that they were at the beginning of my run definitely helped. Upon leaving the hilly three-mile section of the park, I hooked a left to run another mile or so up Southern Parkway so I could get in the full 6. Not long after crossing New Cut Road however, I was arguing with myself about how far I REALLY wanted to go and, could I just pull off 5 and still be okay with it? The answer ended up being no, as I went just far enough to have to turn back around and head towards the car, having no choice but to get in the full distance. The pants were definitely a bad idea, but at least they were loose and I did take my fuel belt with me so that helped. I honestly think the biggest issue was my nutrition though. Four miles in I was thinking back to what I had eaten and felt ridiculous to think that I could have a decent run with very little fueling my body. Well, you live and you learn - although after 9 years of running you think I'd have the routine down by now. Nonetheless, the splits for the run today were: 10:17, 10:29, 10:49, 11:01, 11:49 and 11:25 with an overall average pace of 10:59. Funny though, even with this horrible training run, my splits and average end up being faster than a lot of the races I've completed in years past. That has to count for something I think! As a side note, my 3.1 mile, 40 degree run from 2 nights ago ended up looking like this: 9:58, 10:30, 11:11 for an average of 10:31. I think this actually ended up being one of my fastest 5k's.

Rodes City Run - 10k

I'm not too modest to say that I've basically been kicking ass when it comes to my races and training runs lately (at least, kicking ass for me). Still, I went into this race with a goal in mind that I wasn't sure I could achieve. My four miler last week went really well, but as I get into longer distances I have a tendency to convince myself that I cannot run non-stop the entire distance, and these possible walk breaks were what I was concerned about when I set my goal this morning. As has been the case with the majority of the races this year, the weather was 100% awesome - a cool 35-40 degrees and sunny. Couldn't have asked for better. I made my way to the start line with only a few things in mind: I would run or walk based on how I felt, I would place more emphasis on the pace I was keeping rather than the time, and I was determined to run any hills. As I made my way through mile 1 I was feeling excellent, and made it up the first incline without a problem. First water stop about 1.5 miles in meant a quick 5 second walk break, but I was back at it in no time, and found myself running down the hill on Grinstead just after mile 2, picking up some speed. I wanted to try and keep a 10-minute pace, but found that that fluctuated just slightly depending on whether or not I was ascending or descending. When I found myself going a little slower than I would like, I would speed it up, and vice versa if I found myself going too fast. My main concern was a continuous run (somewhere between miles 2 and 3 I decided I wanted to try to run non-stop), and to make sure that I had something left for the finish and wouldn't bonk. The gloves and double-layer I wore started to get a little warm about 4 miles in, but I decided to keep it all on regardless, not wanting anything to slow down the groove I was now in. I had been trying to check the Garmin at each mile, and seeing that my 3 and 4 miles were both sub 10-minute paces, I didn't want to change anything that may create a slower 5 or 6 mile. Coming up to the 6 mile mark I saw that I was just at a 10-minute pace as I passed the mile marker right at one hour. I was feeling super-stoked at this point because my goal was to come in at under 1:03. With the finish line up ahead, I checked the Garmin again to see that I was at 1:00:31 and attempted as much of a sprint as I could muster at that point to attempt sub 1:01. When I hit the STOP button right at the finish, my unofficial time was 1:01:12 - a 4 minute PR! I was so excited! And even more excited to see that my average pace was 9:47. I only had a 10+ minute pace during mile 2, and even that was only 10:09. Coming from someone who has never (until this year anyway) run much better than an 11-12 minute pace, this is something I am super proud of. I think I've finally found what works for me. Going by feel rather than time, and keeping an eye on my pace. With the 10-miler in two weeks it will be interesting to see how this plan pans out, especially on those killer hills through Iroquois. BTW - my splits for this race were: 9:56, 10:09, 9:43, 9:43, 9:33, 9:48 and 9:13 for the last .2 miles. Sweet!

Snowman Shuffle

The Snowman Shuffle is a 4-mile race that is the third leg of the Polar Bear Grand Prix. The other two races consist of a 4k and a 5k. Today's race just happened to fall on the same day that I was to do a 9 mile training run with the Fleet Feet group, so I got out to Cherokee Park about an hour early to go ahead and get my 5 extra out of the way before the race. (That, and parking can be a bit of a nightmare if you get there too late, so it was a win-win for me). I hit the course and was keeping a pretty good pace throughout, even with the 6:1 intervals that I decided to do to ensure that I would have something left for the race. On the way back I looked down at the Garmin at what should have been the 3.8 mile mark to discover that it had somehow magically stopped working and was now back to the "real time" screen. Since I had wanted to make sure I got in the full five, and wanted to also couple this training run pace/mileage with the Snowman Shuffle, I was a bit pissed. I think I ended up doing a total of about 4.7 for the training run in 45:32 with splits of 9:56, 10:36, 10:31, 9:27 and 12:51 (this last bit of mileage ended with a recovery walk before the race). I was feeling pretty decent after the training run, and wasn't too worried about being able to complete the 4-miler, although I did expect that I may have to walk - especially with the few big hills. I downed a Gu and some water at the car as I grabbed my bib, met up with my running partner to walk to the start, and off we went. Lisa, the gal I had run the two previous races with, is a slow pace like me, but she tends to run throughout rather than do intervals - something that pushes me to continue to run on these shorter races. Because of the previous training run that morning, however, I was concerned that I wouldn't be able to keep up and fully expected to have to walk a few times. The conversation helped keep my mind off the fatigue in my legs, and at about 1.5 miles in my left knee started to tweak a little bit, but I ran through it and was able to keep up without having to walk. I just KNEW I was going to have to walk Dog Hill, especially when Lisa mentioned that she had walked the hills during a 10k she completed the weekend prior, but alas, we took baby strides all the way up, and my heart-rate thanked me when we reached the top and were on flat ground again - after having ran the whole thing. Whew. We had a bit of a break going downhill, but another long hill was up ahead as we headed back towards Hogan's Fountain for the finish. Again, I thought I may have to walk a bit on this hill, but the baby steps as well as the knowledge that the finish was just around the corner kept my motivation up, even though my quads were really feeling the burn by this point. With the finish line in sight, I actually got a bit of extra gumption in me and half-sprinted to the end for a finishing time of 42:03 and splits of 10:09, 10:21, 10:43 and 10:59 - pretty darn good for me considering a) a near-5 mile run just prior to the race b) the hills, and c) I'm a fairly slow runner to begin with. Overall, this was probably an A- race for me, and probably could've been an A+ had my knee not been bothering me. Mentally I was in it the whole time - even during the training run. I don't always enjoy every run I go on - but for some reason this morning just happened to be one of those times that I enjoyed it immensely and feel so blessed that I have the ability to run. It felt great!