I joined Team Z. I am all IN for Eagleman. IN!
I joined (and went to first workout!) the Montgomery County Road Runners Speed Development Clinic, which I also did last year. It's a b***-buster, but it works.
I signed up for (and went to class #1) on "Writing the Personal Essay."
So. Is this what mania feels like??
(And just for the record, I am not now, nor have I ever been, nor will I ever be, involved with the gentleman below. He's just some arm candy, people. It is entirely possible, however, that there is a crush going on in my life. I am too much of a lady to say more.)
I am also IN TRAINING to meet Runner Susan on Jan. 30 (not so much in training for the half-mary we're doing.) Training for the RS event mainly involves drinking lots of wine, which I have well under control. I am also in training for the sidetrip to Austin to see Little Miss Runnerpants. I'm not sure what I should be doing for that. Brushing up on my karaoke skills??
Blogland is a wonderful place!
I am off to New York City for the weekend.
Things are looking up.
I am in love with this song. I want to marry it.
Showing posts with label speed development program. Show all posts
Showing posts with label speed development program. Show all posts
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Thursday, April 30, 2009
The Week After the Week That Was
I know I owe you all a love-life update but I ran outta time, so it will just have to wait! (And that sentence right there could quite possibly completely substitute for the update.)
After an action-packed week of the Boston Marathon (spectating, not running, for you new people out there), a fantastic 20-mile bike ride, and the Pike's Peek 10K...I'm a lost soul.
My beloved Speed Development Program held its awards banquet on Tuesday, and I was sad. I was sad because I didn't win a damn thing! To get a certificate suitable for framing you had to have decreased your pace at the Pike's Peek 10k by one minute over (under?) the pace group you were assigned to in January 2009.
I was in the 10:30 pace group.
My Pike's Peek pace: 10:38.
Not certificate-worthy!
It sorta kinda looks like I increased my pace by :08. Which is totally a lie. Even if technically true.
Sigh.
I really thought I was going to get the Spirit Award! Or the Showing Up Award! The Bravest??
I'm not bitter.
(I'm so bitter.)
I have no other road races planned. Just Nation's Oly tri in September, another Oly in August and a sprint in June.
So tonight I started toying with the idea of marathon training. It's just a phase, I think. I don't actually want to run another marathon, silly. Do I??
Meanwhile: Here's a good story. I only managed to get one swim in while in Boston last week, and man, was I fast!!! I finished 1500 yards in 30 minutes. Holy crap! Except...um...wait...a...minute.
As I climbed out of the pool, impressed with my prowess, I took a look back, squinting through my odd prescription goggles. And then took another look at my time. And then? I decided to ask the lifeguard that fatal question: Err, how long is this pool?
Answer: 20 yards.
As in: Not 25 yards.
As in 100 ≠ 4 laps.
As in 4 laps = 80.
Sigh.
And: I seem to have lost a bra somewhere between D.C. and Boston. No kidding. Not a regular one either. A specially-fitted one that cost a chunk of change!
I should have sewn my address into the label.
After an action-packed week of the Boston Marathon (spectating, not running, for you new people out there), a fantastic 20-mile bike ride, and the Pike's Peek 10K...I'm a lost soul.
My beloved Speed Development Program held its awards banquet on Tuesday, and I was sad. I was sad because I didn't win a damn thing! To get a certificate suitable for framing you had to have decreased your pace at the Pike's Peek 10k by one minute over (under?) the pace group you were assigned to in January 2009.
I was in the 10:30 pace group.
My Pike's Peek pace: 10:38.
Not certificate-worthy!
It sorta kinda looks like I increased my pace by :08. Which is totally a lie. Even if technically true.
Sigh.
I really thought I was going to get the Spirit Award! Or the Showing Up Award! The Bravest??
I'm not bitter.
(I'm so bitter.)
I have no other road races planned. Just Nation's Oly tri in September, another Oly in August and a sprint in June.
So tonight I started toying with the idea of marathon training. It's just a phase, I think. I don't actually want to run another marathon, silly. Do I??
Meanwhile: Here's a good story. I only managed to get one swim in while in Boston last week, and man, was I fast!!! I finished 1500 yards in 30 minutes. Holy crap! Except...um...wait...a...minute.
As I climbed out of the pool, impressed with my prowess, I took a look back, squinting through my odd prescription goggles. And then took another look at my time. And then? I decided to ask the lifeguard that fatal question: Err, how long is this pool?
Answer: 20 yards.
As in: Not 25 yards.
As in 100 ≠ 4 laps.
As in 4 laps = 80.
Sigh.
And: I seem to have lost a bra somewhere between D.C. and Boston. No kidding. Not a regular one either. A specially-fitted one that cost a chunk of change!
I should have sewn my address into the label.
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Pike's Peek 10K 2009 Race Report
"Homo proponit, sed Deus disponit"
—Thomas a Kempis
"God laughs while men make plans."
&mdashsomebody
OFFICIAL RESULT:
April 26, 2009, Pike's Peek 10K:
NET: 1:06:03
PACE: 10:38
PLACE: 51/77
AGE: 52
It was hot, and I tanked. The end.
Technically, this is a 17-second PR, if you don't count the 10K PRs I set in the Cherry Blossom 10 miler, or the National Half. (Which I apparently AM counting.)
I've been training for this race, the goal race of the Montgomery County Road Runners Club Speed Development Program, since JANUARY.
We ran in cold, wind, rain, snow, and ice. We did endless repeats. When there was too much snow on the track we ran in the surrounding neighborhoods, at night, in the dark. I missed ONLY two track workout in this 15-week program.
What I'm saying is: I DESERVED to run fast! Right?? Wrong!
My goal: 60 minutes.
Some predictions:
My coach: 10:00 min miles. Coach said: "In general, I’ve noticed (over the years) about a 15 to 30 sec per mile improvement over the pace group I put you in at the beginning of the year." (He's been running this program for 7 years.) My pace group was 10:30. Sorry, big fella!
McMillan's Happy Prediction, based on my 10 mile PR of 1:47:02: 1:03:52
McMillan's Freakishly Accurate Prediction, based on my 1/2 mary PR of 2:27:36: 1:06:20
I have to admit I had a hate on for this race. I hate the course, which is 6.2 miles of a suburban asphalt jungle. No trees. No scenic nothing. Just strip malls, and cars. I don't even like driving on this road. Maybe I just couldn't deal with the heat (oh yeah, here's another race where they ran out of water cups! is there a cup shortage in D.C.??). Temps were 75F with 85 percent humidity. But quite possibly? The runner just didn't have it.
I had carefully planned to follow Coach Tom's advice, which is so good I'll just repeat it all here:
Oh the plans I had! I scripted it all on the back of my hand:
Miles 1 & 2: 10:05, Miles 3 & 4: 10:00, Miles: 5 & 6: 9:50
Cleverly dismissing Coach Tom's advice, here's what I did instead:
Mile 1: 9:25
Mile 2: 9:44
Mile 3: 10:18 (just doing brilliantly! Not!)
5K: 30:31
Mile 4: 10:21
Mile 5: 12:34 (just gave up. Why? WHY???)
Mile 6: 11:50
.2: 1:52
On a good note, they had great food at the end! And despite my poor showing, I highly recommend this program. I set significant PRs at every distance—other than the one we trained for—over the course of this program. Coach Tom is truly outstanding.
PREVIOUS 10ks:
Nov. 27, 2008: Bethesda YMCA Turkey Chase:
NET: 1:06:20
PACE: 10:41
PLACE: 59/89
AGE: 51
May 14, 2006: YMCA Mother's Day 10k:
NET: 1:07:15
PACE: 10:49
AGE: 49
Dec. 11, 2005: Jingle All the Way, D.C.:
NET: 1:08:22
PACE: 11:00/mile
AGE: 48
"What doesn't kill us, makes us stronger."
—somebody else
—Thomas a Kempis
"God laughs while men make plans."
&mdashsomebody
OFFICIAL RESULT:
April 26, 2009, Pike's Peek 10K:
NET: 1:06:03
PACE: 10:38
PLACE: 51/77
AGE: 52
It was hot, and I tanked. The end.
Technically, this is a 17-second PR, if you don't count the 10K PRs I set in the Cherry Blossom 10 miler, or the National Half. (Which I apparently AM counting.)
I've been training for this race, the goal race of the Montgomery County Road Runners Club Speed Development Program, since JANUARY.
We ran in cold, wind, rain, snow, and ice. We did endless repeats. When there was too much snow on the track we ran in the surrounding neighborhoods, at night, in the dark. I missed ONLY two track workout in this 15-week program.
What I'm saying is: I DESERVED to run fast! Right?? Wrong!
My goal: 60 minutes.
Some predictions:
My coach: 10:00 min miles. Coach said: "In general, I’ve noticed (over the years) about a 15 to 30 sec per mile improvement over the pace group I put you in at the beginning of the year." (He's been running this program for 7 years.) My pace group was 10:30. Sorry, big fella!
McMillan's Happy Prediction, based on my 10 mile PR of 1:47:02: 1:03:52
McMillan's Freakishly Accurate Prediction, based on my 1/2 mary PR of 2:27:36: 1:06:20
I have to admit I had a hate on for this race. I hate the course, which is 6.2 miles of a suburban asphalt jungle. No trees. No scenic nothing. Just strip malls, and cars. I don't even like driving on this road. Maybe I just couldn't deal with the heat (oh yeah, here's another race where they ran out of water cups! is there a cup shortage in D.C.??). Temps were 75F with 85 percent humidity. But quite possibly? The runner just didn't have it.
I had carefully planned to follow Coach Tom's advice, which is so good I'll just repeat it all here:
The most important thing I hope you take away from this program is a sense of pacing. Some of you needed to learn that you could still run harder even when you felt bad and some of you need to learn how to slow down to run a more even pace. In any case the most important aspect of becoming a better runner is to learn to listen to your body and adjust the pace accordingly. The better you become at that, the more successful you will become as a runner and racer.
...Start the race by feeling like you are holding yourself back...you want to hit those miles about 5 sec slower than your targeted pace. The middle two miles should be run at targeted pace. You will hit the up hills in this section, stay relaxed and don’t push too hard up the hills, save it for the downhills. The last 2.2 should be run about 5 sec per mile faster than pace. Remember to give yourself a little mental push around Congressional Plaza as you will start to feel bad around then and need to remind yourself to keep pushing the pace. Once you hit the 6 mile mark run as fast as you can into the finish. It’s a giant downhill so there is no excuse not to go really fast. You can make up for a lot of earlier mistakes in the race in this last downhill so take advantage of it.
Oh the plans I had! I scripted it all on the back of my hand:
Miles 1 & 2: 10:05, Miles 3 & 4: 10:00, Miles: 5 & 6: 9:50
Cleverly dismissing Coach Tom's advice, here's what I did instead:
Mile 1: 9:25
Mile 2: 9:44
Mile 3: 10:18 (just doing brilliantly! Not!)
5K: 30:31
Mile 4: 10:21
Mile 5: 12:34 (just gave up. Why? WHY???)
Mile 6: 11:50
.2: 1:52
On a good note, they had great food at the end! And despite my poor showing, I highly recommend this program. I set significant PRs at every distance—other than the one we trained for—over the course of this program. Coach Tom is truly outstanding.
PREVIOUS 10ks:
Nov. 27, 2008: Bethesda YMCA Turkey Chase:
NET: 1:06:20
PACE: 10:41
PLACE: 59/89
AGE: 51
May 14, 2006: YMCA Mother's Day 10k:
NET: 1:07:15
PACE: 10:49
AGE: 49
Dec. 11, 2005: Jingle All the Way, D.C.:
NET: 1:08:22
PACE: 11:00/mile
AGE: 48
"What doesn't kill us, makes us stronger."
—somebody else
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Headed for Boston
Yes, I'm heading for the Boston Marathon.
Did I forget to mention that?
I've been saying this all week at work, and some people actually thought I'd be running it. Oh, I crack myself up.
No, I'm going to watch D.C. Rainmaker and, from across the pond, Thomas from Diary of a Rubbish Marathoner, break the sound barriers. I hope to actually meet Thomas, cuz I have a few sweet presents for him from D.C. (sorry, Ray, don't be sad), and at least get good photos of both.
I'm staying with my college roommate and meeting a former work colleague, both of whom happen to be professional photographers. I will try to cajole them into taking photos for me, because mine will probably suck.
In other news, I failed to set any PRs this weekend. (I know, hard to believe, right?) Instead, I did a 6-mile preview run of next Sunday's Pike's Peek 10k, the target race for my speed development program. We met at 6:30 a.m. and ran down Rockville Pike, which has been described as "an asphalt jumble of car dealerships, strip shopping centers and fast-food restaurants," which is putting it kindly. It was gross.
I drove home, showered, changed, and raced up to Centennial Park, Columbia, MD, for D.C. Tri's annual brick-nic, which you may remember from last year.
I remember being on a hybrid bike last year and not being able to ride the full 17.5 miles. I remember walking up one hill. It was brutal.
This year I hung out with some New New triathletes and the memories came flooding back! All those worries about clipless pedals and flying downhill, riding in traffic, and falling over. Wait...that was just last week.
I could definitely see the difference in my fitness level. This year I did the full distance, managed all the uphills, and felt fine, even on not-so-fresh legs. Everything was perfect. Well, it would have been perfect if Henry Ford had never been born. I felt quite homicidal by the end of the ride because of the $#!@ cars that sped by every few seconds. I especially appreciated the pickups that drove close to me on purpose and then leaned on the horn. Helps to get the old heart rate up.
Since I had already run, I got to skip the Brick part of the Brick-nic, which is just as well, because I couldn't really stand up straight afterwards. All I can say is: Four months of spinning does not equal four months of cycling. Ah well.
The gang.
Modeling the latest in headbands.
Next: How Runner Susan singlehandedly changed my love life.
Did I forget to mention that?
I've been saying this all week at work, and some people actually thought I'd be running it. Oh, I crack myself up.
No, I'm going to watch D.C. Rainmaker and, from across the pond, Thomas from Diary of a Rubbish Marathoner, break the sound barriers. I hope to actually meet Thomas, cuz I have a few sweet presents for him from D.C. (sorry, Ray, don't be sad), and at least get good photos of both.
I'm staying with my college roommate and meeting a former work colleague, both of whom happen to be professional photographers. I will try to cajole them into taking photos for me, because mine will probably suck.
In other news, I failed to set any PRs this weekend. (I know, hard to believe, right?) Instead, I did a 6-mile preview run of next Sunday's Pike's Peek 10k, the target race for my speed development program. We met at 6:30 a.m. and ran down Rockville Pike, which has been described as "an asphalt jumble of car dealerships, strip shopping centers and fast-food restaurants," which is putting it kindly. It was gross.
I drove home, showered, changed, and raced up to Centennial Park, Columbia, MD, for D.C. Tri's annual brick-nic, which you may remember from last year.
I remember being on a hybrid bike last year and not being able to ride the full 17.5 miles. I remember walking up one hill. It was brutal.
This year I hung out with some New New triathletes and the memories came flooding back! All those worries about clipless pedals and flying downhill, riding in traffic, and falling over. Wait...that was just last week.
I could definitely see the difference in my fitness level. This year I did the full distance, managed all the uphills, and felt fine, even on not-so-fresh legs. Everything was perfect. Well, it would have been perfect if Henry Ford had never been born. I felt quite homicidal by the end of the ride because of the $#!@ cars that sped by every few seconds. I especially appreciated the pickups that drove close to me on purpose and then leaned on the horn. Helps to get the old heart rate up.
Since I had already run, I got to skip the Brick part of the Brick-nic, which is just as well, because I couldn't really stand up straight afterwards. All I can say is: Four months of spinning does not equal four months of cycling. Ah well.
The gang.
Modeling the latest in headbands.Next: How Runner Susan singlehandedly changed my love life.
Monday, April 13, 2009
Even Stupid People Know to Come In Out of the Rain
Another chapter in the long-playing saga of Not Born to Run.
A 12-mile run was scheduled on Saturday...unless there was a New Triathlete Program bike ride, which I had volunteered to help out on, but which was going to be canceled if the weather turned yucky...
So I figured the bike ride was canceled on Saturday morning, since it was raining and 30F AND windy. A trifecta of crap! A crapecta! Bike ride off, 12 mile run on! I pulled on my running duds, got in the elevator, went down to the front door, opened it, stepped outside...and no. No way. Back in the elevator, back upstairs, right to my door. Stop. "C'mon! You can DO this! You've done it a million times before!" Back to the elevator, back downstairs, out the front door, this time down the steps, where I stood there...and No. Way. Not Happening.
Back upstairs and into a toasty warm bed.
Too bad the bike ride was actually ON. I had now effectively skipped two workouts. This? Made me cranky.
It's possible that I was tired. (Have I mentioned before that I'm TIRED?? Thanks for all your fine, fine advice!) It didn't help that my neighbors have all decided to go beserk at the same time. Friday night, my downstairs neighbors decided to stand on the balcony--JUST BELOW the window that my bed is against—and SMOKE, and talk and yell at the top of their lungs. We called the cops not once, but three times. It's possible that someone in my apartment leaned over my balcony and yelled at them. Just to make sure they knew exactly who called the cops.
Sigh.
Sunday dawned bright and clear and chilly, after another night of different neighbors going beserk on their balcony, so I had to sweet-talk myself into getting at least 10 miles done. I brought Phedippidations along with me—I've been running iPod-less for the past year at least, so this was a big treat—and I got 'er done. Number One Daugher and I had a lovely Easter, and I ate about 10 lbs of chocolate.
My fifth swim lesson was this morning. My instructor had me swimming on my back with fins, working on my kick, and? I was drowning. I mentioned this to her, and she said, "I'm not really concerned with that right now, I'm concentrating on your kick." She cracks me up. She's been timing my 50s, which is freaking nerve-wracking, and in one week I went from 1:04s to :53s. Of course I'm tossing up a lung at the end.
Tuesday night is my last track workout in the Speed Dev Program! My how time ... sort of flies. Not really. I both look forward to and loathe the end of track. But tomorrow night we have the choice of doing a track workout, or doing the Firebird mile race. Which sounds pretty horrifying. I need some solid advice from the masses. Crowdsource me. Take my handy dandy poll:
A 12-mile run was scheduled on Saturday...unless there was a New Triathlete Program bike ride, which I had volunteered to help out on, but which was going to be canceled if the weather turned yucky...
So I figured the bike ride was canceled on Saturday morning, since it was raining and 30F AND windy. A trifecta of crap! A crapecta! Bike ride off, 12 mile run on! I pulled on my running duds, got in the elevator, went down to the front door, opened it, stepped outside...and no. No way. Back in the elevator, back upstairs, right to my door. Stop. "C'mon! You can DO this! You've done it a million times before!" Back to the elevator, back downstairs, out the front door, this time down the steps, where I stood there...and No. Way. Not Happening.
Back upstairs and into a toasty warm bed.
Too bad the bike ride was actually ON. I had now effectively skipped two workouts. This? Made me cranky.
It's possible that I was tired. (Have I mentioned before that I'm TIRED?? Thanks for all your fine, fine advice!) It didn't help that my neighbors have all decided to go beserk at the same time. Friday night, my downstairs neighbors decided to stand on the balcony--JUST BELOW the window that my bed is against—and SMOKE, and talk and yell at the top of their lungs. We called the cops not once, but three times. It's possible that someone in my apartment leaned over my balcony and yelled at them. Just to make sure they knew exactly who called the cops.
Sigh.
Sunday dawned bright and clear and chilly, after another night of different neighbors going beserk on their balcony, so I had to sweet-talk myself into getting at least 10 miles done. I brought Phedippidations along with me—I've been running iPod-less for the past year at least, so this was a big treat—and I got 'er done. Number One Daugher and I had a lovely Easter, and I ate about 10 lbs of chocolate.
My fifth swim lesson was this morning. My instructor had me swimming on my back with fins, working on my kick, and? I was drowning. I mentioned this to her, and she said, "I'm not really concerned with that right now, I'm concentrating on your kick." She cracks me up. She's been timing my 50s, which is freaking nerve-wracking, and in one week I went from 1:04s to :53s. Of course I'm tossing up a lung at the end.
Tuesday night is my last track workout in the Speed Dev Program! My how time ... sort of flies. Not really. I both look forward to and loathe the end of track. But tomorrow night we have the choice of doing a track workout, or doing the Firebird mile race. Which sounds pretty horrifying. I need some solid advice from the masses. Crowdsource me. Take my handy dandy poll:
Wednesday, April 08, 2009
On Track and Asleep
Only two weeks left in the Montgomery County Road Runners Speed Development program—a 15-looooooooooooooong week program.
And I only missed two track workouts—once due to calf crampage and once due to my teeth.
Our coach told us Tuesday night that he had received more than 50 e-mails from people who ran Cherry Blossom and who PR'dd—the most PRs this group has ever set. If you live in/near Montgomery County and want to get faster, this program is the way to do it. He wrote me and said, "So you have a 1/2 marathon, 10m and 10k PR in the span of two weeks, that's awesome!"
Blush.
So by Tuesday night, my right calf was a little tight from Sunday's Cherry Blossom, and Monday morning's ass-kicking swim instruction, where despite my protestations that I was fatigued, my swimming instructor made no allowances. By Tuesday night, the temp had dropped from 70F on Sunday to 30F. In fact, when I got to the track, it was actually snowing.
4x800 was on the sked. An easy night! My Interval goal time: 5:00.
1st 800: 4:31
R 3:10
2nd 800: 4:40
R 3:10
3rd 800: 4:34
R 3:01
4th 800: 4:46
R 3:46
No question, I'm getting faster. I wish this program continued throughout the summer, cuz you know there's no way I'm doing track work on my own. You've met me, right?
Our goal race, the culmination of ALL this effort, is the Pike's Peek 10k, which is a net downhill course, where people set mad crazy PRs. My insane goal is to do it in 1 hour. I have some other goals as back ups (2 hours, upright, etc.). I have no idea why we're running 12 miles in anticipation of a 10k race tomorrow. Which is why I might just skip tomorrow and instead get on that neglected thing called a B-I-K-E.
Thursday I did 1500 yards in the pool, with all kinds of crazy swim things. Swimming is kicking my ass. Friday (today) I slept in.
So my total HalfIronmanProgram workouts this week? I ran 5 miles on Tuesday (well plus 10 on Sunday) and swam 1500 on Thursday. This does not a HIPster make.
I'm sure it's just mental, but I've been going to bed at 8:30 and getting decent sleep and waking up exhausted. I coulda/shoulda taken the bike out today, after attending Good Friday service. Instead I came home and went directly to bed.
What the hell is happening? Am I finally feeling my age? Am I getting sick? Why can't I workout like I did last year?? It's making me depressed.
And I only missed two track workouts—once due to calf crampage and once due to my teeth.
Our coach told us Tuesday night that he had received more than 50 e-mails from people who ran Cherry Blossom and who PR'dd—the most PRs this group has ever set. If you live in/near Montgomery County and want to get faster, this program is the way to do it. He wrote me and said, "So you have a 1/2 marathon, 10m and 10k PR in the span of two weeks, that's awesome!"
Blush.
So by Tuesday night, my right calf was a little tight from Sunday's Cherry Blossom, and Monday morning's ass-kicking swim instruction, where despite my protestations that I was fatigued, my swimming instructor made no allowances. By Tuesday night, the temp had dropped from 70F on Sunday to 30F. In fact, when I got to the track, it was actually snowing.
4x800 was on the sked. An easy night! My Interval goal time: 5:00.
1st 800: 4:31
R 3:10
2nd 800: 4:40
R 3:10
3rd 800: 4:34
R 3:01
4th 800: 4:46
R 3:46
No question, I'm getting faster. I wish this program continued throughout the summer, cuz you know there's no way I'm doing track work on my own. You've met me, right?
Our goal race, the culmination of ALL this effort, is the Pike's Peek 10k, which is a net downhill course, where people set mad crazy PRs. My insane goal is to do it in 1 hour. I have some other goals as back ups (2 hours, upright, etc.). I have no idea why we're running 12 miles in anticipation of a 10k race tomorrow. Which is why I might just skip tomorrow and instead get on that neglected thing called a B-I-K-E.
Thursday I did 1500 yards in the pool, with all kinds of crazy swim things. Swimming is kicking my ass. Friday (today) I slept in.
So my total HalfIronmanProgram workouts this week? I ran 5 miles on Tuesday (well plus 10 on Sunday) and swam 1500 on Thursday. This does not a HIPster make.
So Tired
I'm sure it's just mental, but I've been going to bed at 8:30 and getting decent sleep and waking up exhausted. I coulda/shoulda taken the bike out today, after attending Good Friday service. Instead I came home and went directly to bed.
What the hell is happening? Am I finally feeling my age? Am I getting sick? Why can't I workout like I did last year?? It's making me depressed.
Wednesday, April 01, 2009
Swim, Bike, Run
Life gets busy fast.
Saturday I did 8 miles with the Speed Development Group, and it was very good, if not very fast. I felt great at the end.
Sunday: It was 74F!!! Gorgeous day. Number One Daughter and I started by looking at a lovely house on Capitol Hill—for her and her friends to live in (sans Mom. A big mistake if you ask me but no one is asking me.). It was a beautifully renovated old rowhouse with a front porch swing, directly across from a Safeway and within walking distance of two Metro stops. We fell in love! I asked the owners how they would decide amongst the applicants, and was told, "First come, first served." We were first! This thing was In. The. Bag.!! NOD gave him all her deets and then waited for the confirmation e-mail.
Which never came.
Instead she got a "We regret to inform you" letter. Like it was a job interview! We wracked our brains for what we could have/should have done differently. I can only surmise that the owners decided to rent to a nice professional couple instead of three nice girls one year out of college.
I honestly don't know how anyone on a budget finds housing. It's insane.
Sunday afternoon: Bike ride in Rock Creek Park. Got a flat before I left the parking lot. Sigh. Still, I remembered how to change it, and I remembered how to ride. All good.
Monday: Swim lesson #3! I love my instructor, sort of the way you fall in love with your captors (see: Stockholm syndrome). My arms are still sore two days later. She said, "You wouldn't like it if I went easy on you." I could have argued the point.
Monday night: Handbell practice! Handbells, swimming, running. Many many parallels. Hold your breath, breathe, focus, tempo! Don't stop 'til the end.
Tuesday: 4 miles on treadmill at 5:30 cuz I had to miss track Tuesday night cuz I had to go to the dentist. To find out that I need another crown, AND? An implant. $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$. Apparently the implant process takes about a year to complete, and in the meantime, you get to wear a denture. Fun times. I honestly don't know where I'm going to get the money. Time to emigrate. I hear Botswana is nice.
Tuesday night: After the dentist, what could be better than a trip toHell Home Depot? Our kitchen guy came with us and we picked everything out. We're getting the cheapest in-stock cabinets, the cheapest vinyl flooring, and trying to figure out what the best/cheapest thing is to do for counters. (I have 25 square feet of countertop.)
Tuesday late night: All I can say is that Kelly is insane. Go Bethenny.
Wednesday morning: Slept in! Swimming on tap for tonight.
Update on Germany: I got turned down for an entry-level copy-editing job where speaking German was not a requirement. No explanation. Mad Fast Thomas makes the compelling argument that he's surrounded by ex-pats in Ireland who have no particular skills, so I could definitely move there! Thanks, I think!
Things can only look up, right?
Saturday I did 8 miles with the Speed Development Group, and it was very good, if not very fast. I felt great at the end.
Sunday: It was 74F!!! Gorgeous day. Number One Daughter and I started by looking at a lovely house on Capitol Hill—for her and her friends to live in (sans Mom. A big mistake if you ask me but no one is asking me.). It was a beautifully renovated old rowhouse with a front porch swing, directly across from a Safeway and within walking distance of two Metro stops. We fell in love! I asked the owners how they would decide amongst the applicants, and was told, "First come, first served." We were first! This thing was In. The. Bag.!! NOD gave him all her deets and then waited for the confirmation e-mail.
Which never came.
Instead she got a "We regret to inform you" letter. Like it was a job interview! We wracked our brains for what we could have/should have done differently. I can only surmise that the owners decided to rent to a nice professional couple instead of three nice girls one year out of college.
I honestly don't know how anyone on a budget finds housing. It's insane.
Sunday afternoon: Bike ride in Rock Creek Park. Got a flat before I left the parking lot. Sigh. Still, I remembered how to change it, and I remembered how to ride. All good.
Monday: Swim lesson #3! I love my instructor, sort of the way you fall in love with your captors (see: Stockholm syndrome). My arms are still sore two days later. She said, "You wouldn't like it if I went easy on you." I could have argued the point.
Monday night: Handbell practice! Handbells, swimming, running. Many many parallels. Hold your breath, breathe, focus, tempo! Don't stop 'til the end.
Tuesday: 4 miles on treadmill at 5:30 cuz I had to miss track Tuesday night cuz I had to go to the dentist. To find out that I need another crown, AND? An implant. $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$. Apparently the implant process takes about a year to complete, and in the meantime, you get to wear a denture. Fun times. I honestly don't know where I'm going to get the money. Time to emigrate. I hear Botswana is nice.
Tuesday night: After the dentist, what could be better than a trip to
Tuesday late night: All I can say is that Kelly is insane. Go Bethenny.
Wednesday morning: Slept in! Swimming on tap for tonight.
Update on Germany: I got turned down for an entry-level copy-editing job where speaking German was not a requirement. No explanation. Mad Fast Thomas makes the compelling argument that he's surrounded by ex-pats in Ireland who have no particular skills, so I could definitely move there! Thanks, I think!
Things can only look up, right?
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Anyone Seen My Triathlon Training Around Here?
So, I went and hired myself a swim coach, and she's awesome. We meet at 6:00 a.m. Monday mornings, and for 45 minutes she tells me stuff like: press your "T", rotate from your hips, watch your breathing, don't cross the midline, TRY KICKING EVERY NOW AND THEN, and? Move the water! "Can you FEEEEL the water??," she asks. "You need to FEEEEEL the water!" It takes every bit of control to resist saying, "I'm in a POOL."
I crack myself up.
My second swim lesson was yesterday morning, and I don't know what I was doing all last year, but I'm pretty sure I was not swimming because holy mother of god, I'm getting introduced to muscles I have never met before.
Apparently I've never kicked before in my life. Apparently all those books that say triathletes should not worry about kicking? I took them a leetle too seriously.
And? I don't pull. At all.
So yesterday I learned to kick. And pull.
I was sore afterwards but in a good way.
I could NOT wait to get in the pool today to try my first HIPster*TM pool workout using my newly acquired skills. Not only had I learned new skills, I had also learned how to read a workout. It's like a foreign language:
Workout 2B, 1400 yds
Warm up: 500 choice
50 swim
100 negative split
150 swim/drill/swim by 50
100 negative split
150 swim/drill/swim by 50
100 negative split
50 swim
Rest :30
100 pull, DPS
100 kick, build each 50
Cool down
The best part is I know what everything means!
Just for kicks I timed my 100s and they were all in the 2:30 range which is quite thrilling (if still sucky) since just 2 weeks ago they were in the 3:30+ range.
Afterwards I went to work and ate a bunch of crap because I was so proud of myself. (Way to reward yourself, Jeanne.)
But today is Tuesday and that stands for track with a capital T and that stands for Trouble.
After my awesome swim in the a.m. and my awesome (if screwy) race on Saturday, I had completely convinced myself that I deserved to take tonight off. But the fear factor kicked in just in time. I came home and before I could think about it changed into running duds and off I went.
6x800 at interval pace = 5:00; plus 2x200 at race pace = 1:05.
WE DID NOT FEEL LIKE DOING THIS. WE DECIDED WE WOULD JUST DO 4x800 and go home.
I ran with two girls who slipped away from me because their recovery and threshold paces were the same. I was honestly going to throw in the towel, if not throw up, just because I deserved to, when another chick, Jenn, came alongside me and said she was doing 6 repeats and well, that was that. It takes so little to talk me into things. Don't ever offer me drugs, k?
GOAL: 800 @ 5:00
1) 4:46
2) 4:56
3) 5:00
4) 4:57
5) 5:13
6) 4:47
200: 1:05
200: 1:05
Tomorrow is spin class. Too cold to ride outside at 6 a.m. Although eventually I will have to actually get on a bike again. I'm guessing.
P.S. D.C. Spinster (aka Peter) was just elected president of the DCRR club! Read his speech here, and leave him some comment love.
*D.C. Tri Half Ironman Program (HIP)
I crack myself up.
My second swim lesson was yesterday morning, and I don't know what I was doing all last year, but I'm pretty sure I was not swimming because holy mother of god, I'm getting introduced to muscles I have never met before.
Apparently I've never kicked before in my life. Apparently all those books that say triathletes should not worry about kicking? I took them a leetle too seriously.
And? I don't pull. At all.
So yesterday I learned to kick. And pull.
I was sore afterwards but in a good way.
I could NOT wait to get in the pool today to try my first HIPster*TM pool workout using my newly acquired skills. Not only had I learned new skills, I had also learned how to read a workout. It's like a foreign language:
Workout 2B, 1400 yds
Warm up: 500 choice
50 swim
100 negative split
150 swim/drill/swim by 50
100 negative split
150 swim/drill/swim by 50
100 negative split
50 swim
Rest :30
100 pull, DPS
100 kick, build each 50
Cool down
The best part is I know what everything means!
Just for kicks I timed my 100s and they were all in the 2:30 range which is quite thrilling (if still sucky) since just 2 weeks ago they were in the 3:30+ range.
Afterwards I went to work and ate a bunch of crap because I was so proud of myself. (Way to reward yourself, Jeanne.)
But today is Tuesday and that stands for track with a capital T and that stands for Trouble.
After my awesome swim in the a.m. and my awesome (if screwy) race on Saturday, I had completely convinced myself that I deserved to take tonight off. But the fear factor kicked in just in time. I came home and before I could think about it changed into running duds and off I went.
6x800 at interval pace = 5:00; plus 2x200 at race pace = 1:05.
WE DID NOT FEEL LIKE DOING THIS. WE DECIDED WE WOULD JUST DO 4x800 and go home.
I ran with two girls who slipped away from me because their recovery and threshold paces were the same. I was honestly going to throw in the towel, if not throw up, just because I deserved to, when another chick, Jenn, came alongside me and said she was doing 6 repeats and well, that was that. It takes so little to talk me into things. Don't ever offer me drugs, k?
GOAL: 800 @ 5:00
1) 4:46
2) 4:56
3) 5:00
4) 4:57
5) 5:13
6) 4:47
200: 1:05
200: 1:05
Tomorrow is spin class. Too cold to ride outside at 6 a.m. Although eventually I will have to actually get on a bike again. I'm guessing.
P.S. D.C. Spinster (aka Peter) was just elected president of the DCRR club! Read his speech here, and leave him some comment love.
*D.C. Tri Half Ironman Program (HIP)
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
The Many Benefits of Ignorance
Running: Track again tonight. If you recall, your heroine skipped last week's track session because of a pulled calf muscle, putting her seriously behind the eight ball.
And if you recall, the National Half Marathon is this coming Saturday (I think I've mentioned this in every post since January, so I don't know how you could not recall), so I wasn't sure if I should run track tonight or not.
But then I read D.C. Rainmaker. And he said HE was doing a track workout tonight, so of course that meant I had to. (Ray, you should really be more careful with your posts!) Because I have to keep up with a 28-year-old.
On tonight's menu was 4 x 1600 @ Interval pace with 400 recovery. For those keeping track at home, 1600=1 mile. With 1 mile warmup and 1 mile cooldown.
And away we go...
Except I had no idea what my interval pace was because I forgot to check. And as usual, there was no one there from my pace group, so I hung with B. who is in a faster pace group and said she was aiming for 9:10s. I figured I'd aim for 9:40s. I checked when I got home and it turns out...I should have been aiming for 10:15s. Ah, ignorance.
1st 1600: 9:25
2nd 1600: 9:45
3rd 1600: 9:55
4th 1600: 9:58
You might notice, as I did, that these times are going in the wrong direction. I'm pretty sure the goal is to get faster with each repeat. Sigh. This is week 10,000 of the Speed Development Program, and I would like to register an official complaint: I do not feel any faster. The other thing I don't feel are my legs. They had turned into jello by mile 4.
Who doesn't like jello??
I told my coach tonight if I didn't PR on Saturday I was gonna demand a refund. He laughed.
I'm hilarious.
The good news is 1) I went faster than I should have (I think that is good?), and b) I said at the start that I would only do 3 repeats because I could not possibly do 4 and yet? I did 4 anyway. I totally rule.
Swimming, the forgotten sport: In other news: I hired myself a swim coach. We didn't meet Sunday night, because of massive communication fail, so I got all dolled up in my speedo and ambled over to the pool for nothing, but then we DID meet Monday morning at the ass crack of dawn, and it was great!! I'd become so discouraged after all my swim clinic-ing last fall, which added 1 solid minute to my 100s, that I pretty much quit swimming. So she took a look, and guess what? It turns out that when I'm swimming? I'm not actually USING MY ARMS TO MOVE THE WATER. (I'm sure that part of the swim has a name—I just don't know what it is.) So when I swim, my form is terrific (she said), I just have no power.
Who knew? So she had me work on a bunch of stuff until my head was about to explode. You work on one thing and the other 75 parts of swimming fall to pieces. Sigh.
I told her my goal is to join the masters class/team/whatever at my YMCA. She said most masters programs want you to be able to "do 100 on the 2:00" (why must swimmers speak this way?? Why not just say "Swim 100 meters in 2 minutes"?? WHY?)
So I went swimming again this morning, by myself, and I did a gazillion drills and then swam a few 100s and I was at least under 3 minutes. Which totally sucks, but sucks a lot less than the last time I timed myself.
Germany: So...You might remember, that way back in January, our heroine hired a life coach who coached her to set some ambitious goals. And one of them was to live overseas. And Number One Daughter's BF finally got sick of hearing me say this (yes I'm writing in several voices, sue me) so he challenged me to SET A DATE and develop a plan and EXECUTE. And reminded me that I have ONE skill that many Europeans lack, that I might possibly use to earn a living: I speak English. AND, he suggested that this skill might possibly come in very handy in a country in which the main language is NOT English. Well, this led to that, and he sent me a bunch of links about living/working overseas and blah blah yada, the next thing I knew I was applying for a job as a copy editor in Germany.
P.S. I fired my life coach cuz I have NOD's BF for free.
And if you recall, the National Half Marathon is this coming Saturday (I think I've mentioned this in every post since January, so I don't know how you could not recall), so I wasn't sure if I should run track tonight or not.
But then I read D.C. Rainmaker. And he said HE was doing a track workout tonight, so of course that meant I had to. (Ray, you should really be more careful with your posts!) Because I have to keep up with a 28-year-old.
On tonight's menu was 4 x 1600 @ Interval pace with 400 recovery. For those keeping track at home, 1600=1 mile. With 1 mile warmup and 1 mile cooldown.
And away we go...
Except I had no idea what my interval pace was because I forgot to check. And as usual, there was no one there from my pace group, so I hung with B. who is in a faster pace group and said she was aiming for 9:10s. I figured I'd aim for 9:40s. I checked when I got home and it turns out...I should have been aiming for 10:15s. Ah, ignorance.
1st 1600: 9:25
2nd 1600: 9:45
3rd 1600: 9:55
4th 1600: 9:58
You might notice, as I did, that these times are going in the wrong direction. I'm pretty sure the goal is to get faster with each repeat. Sigh. This is week 10,000 of the Speed Development Program, and I would like to register an official complaint: I do not feel any faster. The other thing I don't feel are my legs. They had turned into jello by mile 4.
Who doesn't like jello?? I told my coach tonight if I didn't PR on Saturday I was gonna demand a refund. He laughed.
I'm hilarious.
The good news is 1) I went faster than I should have (I think that is good?), and b) I said at the start that I would only do 3 repeats because I could not possibly do 4 and yet? I did 4 anyway. I totally rule.
Swimming, the forgotten sport: In other news: I hired myself a swim coach. We didn't meet Sunday night, because of massive communication fail, so I got all dolled up in my speedo and ambled over to the pool for nothing, but then we DID meet Monday morning at the ass crack of dawn, and it was great!! I'd become so discouraged after all my swim clinic-ing last fall, which added 1 solid minute to my 100s, that I pretty much quit swimming. So she took a look, and guess what? It turns out that when I'm swimming? I'm not actually USING MY ARMS TO MOVE THE WATER. (I'm sure that part of the swim has a name—I just don't know what it is.) So when I swim, my form is terrific (she said), I just have no power.
Who knew? So she had me work on a bunch of stuff until my head was about to explode. You work on one thing and the other 75 parts of swimming fall to pieces. Sigh.
I told her my goal is to join the masters class/team/whatever at my YMCA. She said most masters programs want you to be able to "do 100 on the 2:00" (why must swimmers speak this way?? Why not just say "Swim 100 meters in 2 minutes"?? WHY?)
So I went swimming again this morning, by myself, and I did a gazillion drills and then swam a few 100s and I was at least under 3 minutes. Which totally sucks, but sucks a lot less than the last time I timed myself.
Germany: So...You might remember, that way back in January, our heroine hired a life coach who coached her to set some ambitious goals. And one of them was to live overseas. And Number One Daughter's BF finally got sick of hearing me say this (yes I'm writing in several voices, sue me) so he challenged me to SET A DATE and develop a plan and EXECUTE. And reminded me that I have ONE skill that many Europeans lack, that I might possibly use to earn a living: I speak English. AND, he suggested that this skill might possibly come in very handy in a country in which the main language is NOT English. Well, this led to that, and he sent me a bunch of links about living/working overseas and blah blah yada, the next thing I knew I was applying for a job as a copy editor in Germany.
P.S. I fired my life coach cuz I have NOD's BF for free.
Friday, March 13, 2009
It's All Good
I skipped track for the first time this week. And immediately felt like I had just tossed the previous 8 weeks of SOLID track workouts into the can.
But I went to spin on Tuesday (with wimpy spin instructor) and again on Wednesday (with kick-ass spin instructor), AND my calf slowly felt better. I took all your advice and marched back to the shoe store where I bought the evil Saucony Triumphs, prepared for a fight. Showed the guy behind the counter my old NB 1023s, told him my tale, and he said, "Oh no problem. We don't want you to keep something that's not working."
Exsqueeze me??
Come again???
He went to the back of the store and pulled out:
NikeNew BALANCE 1023s, Women's, size 11
Say what????
Yep, he had two pairs of 1023s, size 5 and size 11.
I took 'em and ran.
Shout out to Gotta Run, Pentagon Row in Arlington!
In fact, I ran 5 (ish) miles on the treadmill the next morning, and all was well.
I really like running at the Y on Thursday mornings, cuz the treadmills have televisions, you don't get kicked off after 30 minutes, and I get to flip back and forth between Joe and Mika on MSNBC and American Morning on CNN, which is thrilling cuz I never ever watch TV news other than the great NewsHour. So it's quite a treat, for instance, to see the entire American media industry all camped out in front of Bernie Madoff's apartment, waiting with bated breath, to film a CAR MOVING SLOWLY OUT OF A DRIVEWAY.
I miss a lot, I know, because of my crazy addiction to public television.
Thursdays are usually threshold runs, so the schedule says "6 miles, 2 x 15 at threshold," and I like those because I like talking like a runner. OK, I never actually get up to six miles because I run too slow to get it in AND get to work at a reasonable hour, but still.
Thursdays I always also run into fellow D.C. Tri-club-er, L, who is training for Ceour d'Alene Ironman on June 21, and is already running when I get there at 6 and still there after I leave. Plus, she runs at the speed of light. You go girl.
Thursdays are good.
So the calf is good. Maybe one day it will grow up to be a cow.
Meanwhile, 14 miles is on the schedule, YET AGAIN. I'm sick of seeing that number. Plus, the National Half is apparently next SATURDAY. Who knew?? So I'm thinking I should be tapering.
If you're running the National Half and want to meet the great and very scientific Danielle, gimme a shout. (I don't really answer the phone. E-mail.) We're setting up dinner.
Finally, in other news, I'm thinking of moving to Germany. Hi Jack! And in the great tradition of cliffhangers, I'll save details for another post.
Night!
But I went to spin on Tuesday (with wimpy spin instructor) and again on Wednesday (with kick-ass spin instructor), AND my calf slowly felt better. I took all your advice and marched back to the shoe store where I bought the evil Saucony Triumphs, prepared for a fight. Showed the guy behind the counter my old NB 1023s, told him my tale, and he said, "Oh no problem. We don't want you to keep something that's not working."
Exsqueeze me??
Come again???
He went to the back of the store and pulled out:
Say what????
Yep, he had two pairs of 1023s, size 5 and size 11.
I took 'em and ran.
Shout out to Gotta Run, Pentagon Row in Arlington!
In fact, I ran 5 (ish) miles on the treadmill the next morning, and all was well.
I really like running at the Y on Thursday mornings, cuz the treadmills have televisions, you don't get kicked off after 30 minutes, and I get to flip back and forth between Joe and Mika on MSNBC and American Morning on CNN, which is thrilling cuz I never ever watch TV news other than the great NewsHour. So it's quite a treat, for instance, to see the entire American media industry all camped out in front of Bernie Madoff's apartment, waiting with bated breath, to film a CAR MOVING SLOWLY OUT OF A DRIVEWAY.
I miss a lot, I know, because of my crazy addiction to public television.
Thursdays are usually threshold runs, so the schedule says "6 miles, 2 x 15 at threshold," and I like those because I like talking like a runner. OK, I never actually get up to six miles because I run too slow to get it in AND get to work at a reasonable hour, but still.
Thursdays I always also run into fellow D.C. Tri-club-er, L, who is training for Ceour d'Alene Ironman on June 21, and is already running when I get there at 6 and still there after I leave. Plus, she runs at the speed of light. You go girl.
Thursdays are good.
So the calf is good. Maybe one day it will grow up to be a cow.
Meanwhile, 14 miles is on the schedule, YET AGAIN. I'm sick of seeing that number. Plus, the National Half is apparently next SATURDAY. Who knew?? So I'm thinking I should be tapering.
CALL ME!
If you're running the National Half and want to meet the great and very scientific Danielle, gimme a shout. (I don't really answer the phone. E-mail.) We're setting up dinner.
Finally, in other news, I'm thinking of moving to Germany. Hi Jack! And in the great tradition of cliffhangers, I'll save details for another post.
Night!
Monday, March 09, 2009
14 Miles, Sore Calf, & H.I.P.
Saturday's 14 miles was not fun. It wasn't even hard, because hard doesn't come close to describing it. It was gruesome. Have I ever run 14 miles before? Really? You lie.
I've been breaking in some new shoes. Saucony's Triumph 5 (the same kind of car I want!) because the kid at the running store told me they don't make my beloved New Balance 1023s anymore, so to try these, 2-week money-back guarantee if I only wore them on the treadmill. Which I did, for two 5-mile sessions.
So I thought I was good to go.
Although I have noticed my achilles has been sort of sore.
And yeah, my calves have been kind of tight.
But who pays attention to that crap? C'mon. If I paid attention everytime something hurt, I'd never get out of bed! HTFU already.
So off I went in my pretty new Sauc's. Our coach decided at the last minute to send us 7 miles north, into the wilds of Maryland, instead of South, into the civilization of D.C.
We were running along the Rock Creek Hiker-Biker Trail, a part of Rock Creek Park I had never seen before. A beautiful paved trail that runs right through the middle of a woods, alongside a stream. Birds were singing, the skies were blue, there was an ululating symphony of frogs (no really, there was). Temps were in the 60s, and would be 70F before we stopped.
All was right with the world.
So my calf hurt. And I ignored it. What, was I gonna go home without even trying??? Not likely. I started running with two other girls. And we went up hills and down hills. Past woodland creatures and human creatures. It was all good. Until mile 5 when I stopped. Because ouch. It hurt. Like for reals. Like an am-I-gonna-make-it? kinda hurt.
My running buddies were great, stopping with me. I cursed myself for not bringing my customary $10 for a cab...until I realized—no cabs in the woods. I have never (knock wood) not finished a training run. Ever. So I wasn't too eager for today to be my first.
I stopped, stretched, massaged, gritted my teeth, examined my options— a loooooooong 5-mile-walk-or-run back, or run onward 2 miles to the turnaround. Of course, it was ONWARD!
By now my will (which was weak to begin with) was pretty much shot. I was hanging on, helped by healthy doses of stretching, massaging, and lots of moaning. (Always a pleasure to run with me!) I made it to 7 miles and then? I had to run back.
Time to HTFU, again.
It took 3:06. A blistering 13-minute-mile pace.
Take that Miss Fancypants Speed Development!!
My poor running mates. They were such good sports. I can only hope that I'd be as kind confronted with a gimpy running mate.
So here it is Monday.
My calf is still sore, but I'm pretty sure (after much consultation with Dr. Google) that I didn't tear anything. I've been massaging it like mad. But what to do with Tuesday night's speed session (that would be TOMORROW night), Internet People?! Do I go? Or no go? And what to do with Saturday's 14-miler??
And more importantly, what to do about those $@!$ shoes?
Back to the shoe store? Run/no run?
(You really have to wonder how I get dressed by myself in the morning. Well, the answer is: I don't. Number One Daughter consults. Daily. It's frightening.)
I've got the National half coming on March 21. I really really wanted to kick Danielle's ass! Or Ray's. (Hi Danielle & Ray! Just kidding! Ha ha!)
Sigh.
In other news:
1. Call has been made to upstairs landlord about possibly DRAINING THE LAKE that's inside his apartment; and
b) I SIGNED UP FOR D.C. TRI'S HALF-IRONMAN PROGRAM (henceforth known as HIP) WHEEEEEEEEEE!
(Thanks Neal, and the rest of you. You know who you are.)
Although I have no desire, and I will not, under any circumstances, actually enter, or even pretend to enter, or remotely consider entering, a half-ironman.
Ta-da.
I've been breaking in some new shoes. Saucony's Triumph 5 (the same kind of car I want!) because the kid at the running store told me they don't make my beloved New Balance 1023s anymore, so to try these, 2-week money-back guarantee if I only wore them on the treadmill. Which I did, for two 5-mile sessions.
So I thought I was good to go.
Although I have noticed my achilles has been sort of sore.
And yeah, my calves have been kind of tight.
But who pays attention to that crap? C'mon. If I paid attention everytime something hurt, I'd never get out of bed! HTFU already.
So off I went in my pretty new Sauc's. Our coach decided at the last minute to send us 7 miles north, into the wilds of Maryland, instead of South, into the civilization of D.C.
We were running along the Rock Creek Hiker-Biker Trail, a part of Rock Creek Park I had never seen before. A beautiful paved trail that runs right through the middle of a woods, alongside a stream. Birds were singing, the skies were blue, there was an ululating symphony of frogs (no really, there was). Temps were in the 60s, and would be 70F before we stopped.
All was right with the world.
So my calf hurt. And I ignored it. What, was I gonna go home without even trying??? Not likely. I started running with two other girls. And we went up hills and down hills. Past woodland creatures and human creatures. It was all good. Until mile 5 when I stopped. Because ouch. It hurt. Like for reals. Like an am-I-gonna-make-it? kinda hurt.
My running buddies were great, stopping with me. I cursed myself for not bringing my customary $10 for a cab...until I realized—no cabs in the woods. I have never (knock wood) not finished a training run. Ever. So I wasn't too eager for today to be my first.
I stopped, stretched, massaged, gritted my teeth, examined my options— a loooooooong 5-mile-walk-or-run back, or run onward 2 miles to the turnaround. Of course, it was ONWARD!
By now my will (which was weak to begin with) was pretty much shot. I was hanging on, helped by healthy doses of stretching, massaging, and lots of moaning. (Always a pleasure to run with me!) I made it to 7 miles and then? I had to run back.
Time to HTFU, again.
It took 3:06. A blistering 13-minute-mile pace.
Take that Miss Fancypants Speed Development!!
My poor running mates. They were such good sports. I can only hope that I'd be as kind confronted with a gimpy running mate.
So here it is Monday.
My calf is still sore, but I'm pretty sure (after much consultation with Dr. Google) that I didn't tear anything. I've been massaging it like mad. But what to do with Tuesday night's speed session (that would be TOMORROW night), Internet People?! Do I go? Or no go? And what to do with Saturday's 14-miler??
And more importantly, what to do about those $@!$ shoes?
Back to the shoe store? Run/no run?
(You really have to wonder how I get dressed by myself in the morning. Well, the answer is: I don't. Number One Daughter consults. Daily. It's frightening.)
I've got the National half coming on March 21. I really really wanted to kick Danielle's ass! Or Ray's. (Hi Danielle & Ray! Just kidding! Ha ha!)
Sigh.
In other news:
1. Call has been made to upstairs landlord about possibly DRAINING THE LAKE that's inside his apartment; and
b) I SIGNED UP FOR D.C. TRI'S HALF-IRONMAN PROGRAM (henceforth known as HIP) WHEEEEEEEEEE!
(Thanks Neal, and the rest of you. You know who you are.)
Although I have no desire, and I will not, under any circumstances, actually enter, or even pretend to enter, or remotely consider entering, a half-ironman.
Ta-da.
Friday, March 06, 2009
14 Miles in the A.M.
We are really ramping up the miles over here at NBTR headquarters, with 14 miles on the schedule tomorrow. I am NOT looking forward to it (really? no kidding?) as last week's 12 miles was horrifying. Luckily I ran with two women who would NOT allow me to stop. Of course I was bleeding to death last week (TMI? Sorry!) so it's possible things will go better, but if I didn't expect the worst, then, well, I dunno what might happen! The world might stop spinning.
Meanwhile, let's drop in on what I've charmingly dubbed:
When we last visited, our heroine was avoiding numerous mundane and stultifyingly boring or exciting, but scary, tasks. Let's see how much progress she's made:
Kitchen: None.
Taxes: Um, nada.
Match.com: Wrote to a few people, no reply.
Pick a tri, ANY TRI: Uh, try try again. (heh)
Submit bills to insurance: Nope! Although I did put them in a pile.
Write upstairs landlord about falling-in bathroom ceiling: Did. Nothing.
Start writing short story for contest, deadline of March 16: I did actually open Word. I wrote one sentence tonight, then decided I needed to blog.
Swim coach: Posted query on D.C. Tri forum, contacted one coach. YAY!!! I ACTUALLY DID SOMETHING! WHEEE!!!
Let's add another item to Team Inaction!: All my New (old) Tri Program peeps have signed up for DC Tri's Half-Ironman Training program. It's only $50. I have no desire to do a half-ironman, and I think the training would be too much for me. So what's the problem, you ask? I have no plan, and I think it would be fun training with these people. SO, you ask, WHAT IS THE PROBLEM?
The problem is I seem utterly unable to make any decisions.
Sigh.
In other exciting news, I saw the President today. His motorcade went right by my office. His daughter goes to school just up the street from where I work, and he and Mrs. O. attended a parent-teacher conference. (Seriously, can you imagine? "So, your daughter is having a tough time fitting in. Anything going on at home we should know about?") So they closed the street (not an easy feat), there were about 200 cops, motorcycles, PLUS a helicopter, and everyone came out and watched and waved. It was exciting.
Meanwhile, let's drop in on what I've charmingly dubbed:
PROJECT INACTION 2009!
When we last visited, our heroine was avoiding numerous mundane and stultifyingly boring or exciting, but scary, tasks. Let's see how much progress she's made:
Kitchen: None.
Taxes: Um, nada.
Match.com: Wrote to a few people, no reply.
Pick a tri, ANY TRI: Uh, try try again. (heh)
Submit bills to insurance: Nope! Although I did put them in a pile.
Write upstairs landlord about falling-in bathroom ceiling: Did. Nothing.
Start writing short story for contest, deadline of March 16: I did actually open Word. I wrote one sentence tonight, then decided I needed to blog.
Swim coach: Posted query on D.C. Tri forum, contacted one coach. YAY!!! I ACTUALLY DID SOMETHING! WHEEE!!!
Let's add another item to Team Inaction!: All my New (old) Tri Program peeps have signed up for DC Tri's Half-Ironman Training program. It's only $50. I have no desire to do a half-ironman, and I think the training would be too much for me. So what's the problem, you ask? I have no plan, and I think it would be fun training with these people. SO, you ask, WHAT IS THE PROBLEM?
The problem is I seem utterly unable to make any decisions.
Sigh.
In other exciting news, I saw the President today. His motorcade went right by my office. His daughter goes to school just up the street from where I work, and he and Mrs. O. attended a parent-teacher conference. (Seriously, can you imagine? "So, your daughter is having a tough time fitting in. Anything going on at home we should know about?") So they closed the street (not an easy feat), there were about 200 cops, motorcycles, PLUS a helicopter, and everyone came out and watched and waved. It was exciting.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
I Speak Track
Tonight's track workout made my head spin the first time I read it:
6x800 @I=Interval pace
4x100 @R=Race pace
400/100 recovery
I mean seriously. That's almost as bad as swim workouts!
With my handy magnifying glass, a sturdy cup of tea, and a thesaurus, I uncovered the hidden meaning:
Run around the track twice (=800), six times, at your interval pace (according to the chart our coach had previously given to us based on our 10k pace—calculate your own track paces with McMillan's race calculator—it's endless good fun!)
Wait, where was I?
Right: run around the track twice (=800) six times at your interval pace: 5:00 minutes.
After each 800, run once around the track (=400) to recover.
After you finish all of that, THEN run 100 meters (the straightaways) at your Race pace: :34 seconds, with 100 meters recovery, and do THAT four times.
Oh yes and don't forget to warm up for 1 mile and cooldown for one mile.
As usual, I was in No Mood. My pace group has dwindled from 10 or so women to me and one other chick (the one I lied to last week, heh). We are well matched. She was in No Mood either.
Here's how it all Went Down:
1 mile warmup: 12:14
6x800 @ 5:00 minute pace/400 recovery
1st 800: 4:47
2nd 800: 4:57
3rd 800: 4:56
4th 800: 4:59
5th 800: 4:59
6th 800: 4:54
Next: 4x100 @ :34minutes/100 recovery
1st 100: :29
2nd 100: :27
3rd 100: :29
4th 100: :26
1 mile cooldown: 12:15
We totally could have done the 800s faster, but I kept slowing us down so we would hit our pace. The 100s we did faster than we were supposed to because we both just wanted to get it the hell over with. When I play with McMillan, I get an 800 time of 4:41.1 to 4:54.1, so no comprende where the coach is getting 5:00 minutes from, not that I'm complaining.
I just do what the man at the front of the room tells me to do.
6x800 @I=Interval pace
4x100 @R=Race pace
400/100 recovery
I mean seriously. That's almost as bad as swim workouts!
With my handy magnifying glass, a sturdy cup of tea, and a thesaurus, I uncovered the hidden meaning:
Run around the track twice (=800), six times, at your interval pace (according to the chart our coach had previously given to us based on our 10k pace—calculate your own track paces with McMillan's race calculator—it's endless good fun!)
Wait, where was I?
Right: run around the track twice (=800) six times at your interval pace: 5:00 minutes.
After each 800, run once around the track (=400) to recover.
After you finish all of that, THEN run 100 meters (the straightaways) at your Race pace: :34 seconds, with 100 meters recovery, and do THAT four times.
Oh yes and don't forget to warm up for 1 mile and cooldown for one mile.
As usual, I was in No Mood. My pace group has dwindled from 10 or so women to me and one other chick (the one I lied to last week, heh). We are well matched. She was in No Mood either.
Here's how it all Went Down:
1 mile warmup: 12:14
6x800 @ 5:00 minute pace/400 recovery
1st 800: 4:47
2nd 800: 4:57
3rd 800: 4:56
4th 800: 4:59
5th 800: 4:59
6th 800: 4:54
Next: 4x100 @ :34minutes/100 recovery
1st 100: :29
2nd 100: :27
3rd 100: :29
4th 100: :26
1 mile cooldown: 12:15
We totally could have done the 800s faster, but I kept slowing us down so we would hit our pace. The 100s we did faster than we were supposed to because we both just wanted to get it the hell over with. When I play with McMillan, I get an 800 time of 4:41.1 to 4:54.1, so no comprende where the coach is getting 5:00 minutes from, not that I'm complaining.
I just do what the man at the front of the room tells me to do.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Birthday Blowout
First of all, there's the loot:
1 new pair of running tights (thanks, E.!)
1 box of fancy schmancy chocolates (thanks, L.!)
1 cool funny birthday date book (thanks, J.!)
1 10-mile run (thanks to NO ONE for that fun adventure)
1 4-hour-nap (thanks, NOD!)
1 dinner party with NOD, J, L., and J!
1 CakeLove birthday cake!
1 lecture at the National Cathedral
1 birthday lunch
1 yoga class (thanks, D!)
1 passion-fruit Starbucks tea (thanks, D!)
1 writing session
1 princess balloon and matching card (thanks NOD!)
1 new outfit (NOD again, although there is some discussion about the fact that my jeans have bling on them. So 1987. So Dallas.)
Not one, but TWO birthday phone calls, and a card, from my favorite Australian triathlete
whew. I'm exhausted.
(Apparently, somewhere on the Internets is a photo of my butt in the jeans, but I'm too much of a lady to reproduce it here. I have standards, people.)
Yoga kicked that bejeweled butt Sunday night. By the time Monday rolled around, I was ready for work, so I could stop with the partying already. I wisely took Monday off from working out.
Tuesday was spin class in the a.m., and then six hill repeats with my Speed Development Program. You know, when you say "six hill repeats" like that, it sure doesn't sound like much. It doesn't sound like, say, "I just ran up Mt. Kilimanjaro, gave birth, and then flew." But it should sound like that because that's how it felt, for pete's sake.
The hill was .3 of a mile long (I know, I checked with the car odometer). We split into very large groups again and about 30 of us went with one coach, who had us run around a parking lot for a very long time to get "warmed up" (it was an unseasonably 55F), and then jog down to the bottom of a bottomless pit. She then sent us back up the hill according to our 10K paces, slowest to fastest.
It was dark, there was no place to put our stuff, we were on a "sidewalk" in Gaithersburg, Md., where no people have ever actually been SEEN walking. So the sidewalk was full of muck and cracks and bumps and did I mention it was DARK? And that I was going to fall?? And where would we all be then, I ask you. I was in full-on bitch mode, and warned everyone around me. Plus? I had overdressed. And it was starting to rain.
Oy. Vey.
After repeat #1, I was ready to call it quits.
But! I soldiered on, as one does when one doesn't want to embarrass oneself in front of one's peers.
At the top of the hill, everyone waited until everyone was up, and that was a great strategy because a) you got to stuff your lungs down in your body again, and 2) we all cheered for everyone else as they came up.
I have NO IDEA how I made it back up that hill five more times, I just know that I would never have done it by myself. No how, no way.
Oh, and each time we made it down to the bottom, our coach gave us another little tip for running hills, so we had something to look forward to!
Oh well! Joke's on her! HA! (She wasn't laughing.)
Here's how I did, your moment of zen:
#1: 3:10
#2: 3:17
#3: 3:01
#4: 3:11
#5: 3:11
#6: 3:16
Good? Bad? I'm calling good because the feeling I had afterwards was the feeling I imagine I would have if I ran up Mt. Kilimanjaro, gave birth, and then flew.
Top that, I dare you.
1 new pair of running tights (thanks, E.!)
1 box of fancy schmancy chocolates (thanks, L.!)
1 cool funny birthday date book (thanks, J.!)
1 10-mile run (thanks to NO ONE for that fun adventure)
1 4-hour-nap (thanks, NOD!)
1 dinner party with NOD, J, L., and J!
1 CakeLove birthday cake!
1 lecture at the National Cathedral
1 birthday lunch
1 yoga class (thanks, D!)
1 passion-fruit Starbucks tea (thanks, D!)
1 writing session
1 princess balloon and matching card (thanks NOD!)
1 new outfit (NOD again, although there is some discussion about the fact that my jeans have bling on them. So 1987. So Dallas.)
Not one, but TWO birthday phone calls, and a card, from my favorite Australian triathlete
whew. I'm exhausted.
(Apparently, somewhere on the Internets is a photo of my butt in the jeans, but I'm too much of a lady to reproduce it here. I have standards, people.)
Yoga kicked that bejeweled butt Sunday night. By the time Monday rolled around, I was ready for work, so I could stop with the partying already. I wisely took Monday off from working out.
Tuesday was spin class in the a.m., and then six hill repeats with my Speed Development Program. You know, when you say "six hill repeats" like that, it sure doesn't sound like much. It doesn't sound like, say, "I just ran up Mt. Kilimanjaro, gave birth, and then flew." But it should sound like that because that's how it felt, for pete's sake.
The hill was .3 of a mile long (I know, I checked with the car odometer). We split into very large groups again and about 30 of us went with one coach, who had us run around a parking lot for a very long time to get "warmed up" (it was an unseasonably 55F), and then jog down to the bottom of a bottomless pit. She then sent us back up the hill according to our 10K paces, slowest to fastest.
It was dark, there was no place to put our stuff, we were on a "sidewalk" in Gaithersburg, Md., where no people have ever actually been SEEN walking. So the sidewalk was full of muck and cracks and bumps and did I mention it was DARK? And that I was going to fall?? And where would we all be then, I ask you. I was in full-on bitch mode, and warned everyone around me. Plus? I had overdressed. And it was starting to rain.
Oy. Vey.
After repeat #1, I was ready to call it quits.
But! I soldiered on, as one does when one doesn't want to embarrass oneself in front of one's peers.
At the top of the hill, everyone waited until everyone was up, and that was a great strategy because a) you got to stuff your lungs down in your body again, and 2) we all cheered for everyone else as they came up.
I have NO IDEA how I made it back up that hill five more times, I just know that I would never have done it by myself. No how, no way.
Oh, and each time we made it down to the bottom, our coach gave us another little tip for running hills, so we had something to look forward to!
Short stride, feet close to ground.And I had my own little tip: Pretend each trip up was my last! Sadly, I believe I said out loud to my running friend: "Last time up!" and she, sadly, believed me.
Lean into the hill, from the hips.
Use your arms.
Exhale all the way if you feel you're hyperventilating.
Oh well! Joke's on her! HA! (She wasn't laughing.)
Here's how I did, your moment of zen:
#1: 3:10
#2: 3:17
#3: 3:01
#4: 3:11
#5: 3:11
#6: 3:16
Good? Bad? I'm calling good because the feeling I had afterwards was the feeling I imagine I would have if I ran up Mt. Kilimanjaro, gave birth, and then flew.
Top that, I dare you.
Tuesday, February 03, 2009
Oh Yes She Does
I am so loving these track workouts that I figure you are all as fascinated by the details as I am. (However, on the off chance that I'm, err, wrong about that presumption, you know how to let me know. Just be kind.)
Tonight's track workout:
4 x 1000 (that's 2 1/2 times around the track, 4 times) with 200 recovery
Target pace = 6:40 (threshold pace--whatever that means)
1 mile warmup: 11:43
1st 1000: 6:11 (too fast)
200: 1:33
2nd 1000: 6:22 (closer)
200: 1:30
3rd 1000: 6:37 (better)
200: 1:30
4th 1000: 6:42 (bingo)
200: 1:31
1 mile cooldown: 12:09
I will say that our recovery was amazingly consistent.
Now David, I know that intervals are not supposed to go from fast to slow, but I'm just using my old Timex ironman watch so it's tough to get it right.
I ran with a little group of three tonight (within the larger group of about 100), and they anointed me timekeeper, cuz I was the only one with a watch. I had to keep slowing us down to nail 6:40, which we finally did during our last 1000. I may eat these words later, but this workout seemed a little too easy. I could definitely have run it faster, but I am trying to listen to our coach into who's hands I have placed my running career, and who swears that he knows what he's doing.
Afterwards, a nice bowl of soup at Panera with S. (my first time there, I know, don't mock me), and some...hot chocolate!
Aren't I supposed to hate track workouts? So far, they are like a happy drug for me. It's a hill workout next Tuesday. We'll see how happy I am about that.
Tonight's track workout:
4 x 1000 (that's 2 1/2 times around the track, 4 times) with 200 recovery
Target pace = 6:40 (threshold pace--whatever that means)
1 mile warmup: 11:43
1st 1000: 6:11 (too fast)
200: 1:33
2nd 1000: 6:22 (closer)
200: 1:30
3rd 1000: 6:37 (better)
200: 1:30
4th 1000: 6:42 (bingo)
200: 1:31
1 mile cooldown: 12:09
I will say that our recovery was amazingly consistent.
Now David, I know that intervals are not supposed to go from fast to slow, but I'm just using my old Timex ironman watch so it's tough to get it right.
I ran with a little group of three tonight (within the larger group of about 100), and they anointed me timekeeper, cuz I was the only one with a watch. I had to keep slowing us down to nail 6:40, which we finally did during our last 1000. I may eat these words later, but this workout seemed a little too easy. I could definitely have run it faster, but I am trying to listen to our coach into who's hands I have placed my running career, and who swears that he knows what he's doing.
Afterwards, a nice bowl of soup at Panera with S. (my first time there, I know, don't mock me), and some...hot chocolate!
Aren't I supposed to hate track workouts? So far, they are like a happy drug for me. It's a hill workout next Tuesday. We'll see how happy I am about that.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Candy Canes and Kona
Enough with inauguration and my shoes. It's back to business.
Back to business meant Black Monday, a day when more than 75,000 people were laid off in the U.S. My small company was not untouched, I am sad to say, although by the grace of God I still have a job. It was a hard hard week.
On today's schedule was a 10 miler. I had to decide whether to run with my official group, the Montgomery County Road Runners Speed Development Program, or with the good ol' Snail Trails. The Snails run on a path that's about 5-minutes from my house, but it's a always a crap shoot whether there will be anyone there who is going the distance you need. I knew with the SDP (enrollment=300) I'd have plenty of company.
The SPD-ers met at 7 a.m. (RealFeel=6F) this morning at a site charmingly called Candy Cane City. Doesn't that just evoke Charlie and the Chocolate Factory? I am quite vexed and sad to report that, though scenic, there was no candy to be found.
Our pace groups are based on our most recent 10k race, which for me, was my glorious PR at the Thanksgiving Day Turkey Trot: 1:06. Our coach then calculated our paces for various runs (you know you love all the details):
So I started this morning with my group of four, and we were running 12 minute miles—on purpose!! YES!
Except, it soon started feeling...too slow.
And that's coming from someone who last week tried to run 8 miles in Charleston, South Carolina, (where I was attending a writing workshop run by Natalie Goldberg--if you've heard of her tell me what you think) and managed only SIX, in a blazing 1:20, which included the part where I fell and ripped my spiffy new New Balance running tights to shreds (size L). (Along with my knee. And hands. But the tights! Marked down to $30!!!)
This is why I will never understand running. EVER. One day your legs are encased in cement, the next day you're...only slogging through mud.
Sigh.
About three miles in, two runners joined our small group, and after a bit one of them asked, "Who here is a triathlete?"
Ah, the magic words. I wormed my way beside this tall fellow, P., and we started chit-chatting about triathlon, me bragging about my 4-hour Olympic finishes. Finally I realized that it would be polite to maybe ask what races he had done (ya think??) so I did, adding, jokingly "However, if you say 'Kona,' this conversation is over."
Well, you can guess the rest. He said oh Eagleman this, and Battleship that, and blah blah, ending with: "Kona Ironman Triathlon World Championships, 2004."
No you did NOT just say Kona.
I ran my 10 miles this morning with not just any old Ironman, but a KONA Ironman, with a 15-hour finish and no crawling and this guy said it was the best experience of his life. So I grilled him about it for the next eight miles or so, trying to wring out of him the part where he gave up, where his spirit wilted, where he questioned his sanity, where it all fell apart.
Nope. Nada. All he could report is how he felt: "I'm in the Kona Ironman and you're going to have to surgically remove the smile from my face."
Me: "But...didn't it hurt? Didn't your BUTT get sore?" (I'm detail-oriented like that.)
Him: "Well yes! Duh! But I'm in the Kona Ironman and you're going to have to surgically remove the smile from my face."
Well then what about after, I bet you needed an IV, almost collapsed, legs fell off?? "I went back to the condo, went to sleep, woke up thirsty after 4 hours so had a drink of water, hung around the pool the next day, and then went horseback riding."
!!!!!
Plus, this fellow is starting a new tri club: Montgomery County Multisport Club. (P., just put the check in the mail. Heh.)
Back to this morning's run. Me, P. and J. kind of left my pace group behind (which is a big no-no and I don't know quite what to do about that) and ran somewhere between 10 and 11 miles in 1:50, which puts my pace somewhere between 10:30 and 11 minute miles.
The fastest 10 (or 11) miles I've ever run--ever!
Someone has to explain how running 12:15 minute miles on my long runs is going to make me faster. Cuz I'm not buying it.
Back to business meant Black Monday, a day when more than 75,000 people were laid off in the U.S. My small company was not untouched, I am sad to say, although by the grace of God I still have a job. It was a hard hard week.
On today's schedule was a 10 miler. I had to decide whether to run with my official group, the Montgomery County Road Runners Speed Development Program, or with the good ol' Snail Trails. The Snails run on a path that's about 5-minutes from my house, but it's a always a crap shoot whether there will be anyone there who is going the distance you need. I knew with the SDP (enrollment=300) I'd have plenty of company.
The SPD-ers met at 7 a.m. (RealFeel=6F) this morning at a site charmingly called Candy Cane City. Doesn't that just evoke Charlie and the Chocolate Factory? I am quite vexed and sad to report that, though scenic, there was no candy to be found.
Our pace groups are based on our most recent 10k race, which for me, was my glorious PR at the Thanksgiving Day Turkey Trot: 1:06. Our coach then calculated our paces for various runs (you know you love all the details):
| Distance | Easy | Threshold | Interval | |
| 200 | 1:17 | 1:10 | 1:08 | |
| 400 | 3:04 | 2:35 | 2:20 | 2:16 |
| 800 | 6:07 | 5:20 | 5:00 | |
| 1000 | 6:40 | 6:10 | | |
| 1200 | 9:11 | 8:05 | 7:40 | |
| 1600/Mile | 12:15 | 10:45 | 10:15 | |
So I started this morning with my group of four, and we were running 12 minute miles—on purpose!! YES!
Except, it soon started feeling...too slow.
And that's coming from someone who last week tried to run 8 miles in Charleston, South Carolina, (where I was attending a writing workshop run by Natalie Goldberg--if you've heard of her tell me what you think) and managed only SIX, in a blazing 1:20, which included the part where I fell and ripped my spiffy new New Balance running tights to shreds (size L). (Along with my knee. And hands. But the tights! Marked down to $30!!!)
This is why I will never understand running. EVER. One day your legs are encased in cement, the next day you're...only slogging through mud.
Sigh.
About three miles in, two runners joined our small group, and after a bit one of them asked, "Who here is a triathlete?"
Ah, the magic words. I wormed my way beside this tall fellow, P., and we started chit-chatting about triathlon, me bragging about my 4-hour Olympic finishes. Finally I realized that it would be polite to maybe ask what races he had done (ya think??) so I did, adding, jokingly "However, if you say 'Kona,' this conversation is over."
Well, you can guess the rest. He said oh Eagleman this, and Battleship that, and blah blah, ending with: "Kona Ironman Triathlon World Championships, 2004."
No you did NOT just say Kona.
I ran my 10 miles this morning with not just any old Ironman, but a KONA Ironman, with a 15-hour finish and no crawling and this guy said it was the best experience of his life. So I grilled him about it for the next eight miles or so, trying to wring out of him the part where he gave up, where his spirit wilted, where he questioned his sanity, where it all fell apart.
Nope. Nada. All he could report is how he felt: "I'm in the Kona Ironman and you're going to have to surgically remove the smile from my face."
Me: "But...didn't it hurt? Didn't your BUTT get sore?" (I'm detail-oriented like that.)
Him: "Well yes! Duh! But I'm in the Kona Ironman and you're going to have to surgically remove the smile from my face."
Well then what about after, I bet you needed an IV, almost collapsed, legs fell off?? "I went back to the condo, went to sleep, woke up thirsty after 4 hours so had a drink of water, hung around the pool the next day, and then went horseback riding."
!!!!!
Plus, this fellow is starting a new tri club: Montgomery County Multisport Club. (P., just put the check in the mail. Heh.)
Back to this morning's run. Me, P. and J. kind of left my pace group behind (which is a big no-no and I don't know quite what to do about that) and ran somewhere between 10 and 11 miles in 1:50, which puts my pace somewhere between 10:30 and 11 minute miles.
The fastest 10 (or 11) miles I've ever run--ever!
Someone has to explain how running 12:15 minute miles on my long runs is going to make me faster. Cuz I'm not buying it.
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Speed Development Program and Get Me to the Ball on Time
In between my finagling invitations to an inaugural ball, and running around trying to find a gown, I managed to attend the first and second sessions of the Montgomery Country Road Runners speed development program.
Based on my weekly mileage and recent race times, I was assigned to the Red program and placed in the 10:30 pace group. But the Red group will be spending the first six weeks basically learning how to run so I took the liberty of upgrading myself to White. White's first workout: 1 mile warmup, 3 miles striding on the straights and jogging on the curves, and 1 mile cooldown.
What's a stride you ask? I asked too. You just run like you're on fire on the straights, in lanes 1 and 2 (the inside ones), and then move to the outside when you're jogging.
Easy-peasy!
All 300 of us got sent out in groups, and amazingly, no one got hurt.
Mile one went by in 10:42, and then the work started. The hardest part? Counting. I don't know how people keep track of ladder workouts. I have enough trouble counting to four.
My "jogs" got progressively slower, though I tried hard to continue running all out on the strides.
mile 2: 7:41 +2:38 (counting)
mile 3: 10:55
mile 4: 11:13
mile 5 cooldown: a blistering 12:03
I was sooooooooooo excited at the end of this workout, I can't even tell you. Maybe I finally experienced the runner's high. I dunno, but I was thrilled, I felt great, I was so happy, I had no desire to ever eat anything again and I could barely sleep that night. May all my workouts leave me so exhilarated.
Assignment number two was to run the club's 4 mile "Shooting Star" race on Saturday morning at 8 a.m.
It was a little chilly Saturday morning.
Thermometer at the start of the race
I wore three layers, plus the ubiquitous blue running vest, plus a neck gaiter that I could pull up over my face, plus my heavy duty running pants, and two hats. I pulled the neck gaiter over my nose and the warm air made my glasses fog up. Pulled it down and my nose froze. Pulled it up and glasses fogged. Pulled it down and glasses stayed fogged...because the fog had frozen on the glasses. Now I had to take off my gloves and wipe off my glasses...Rinse, repeat. At mile 2 I finally stopped to take the neck gaiter off, which meant I had to take off my glasses and my hats, hold them, while pulling the neck gaiter off. The neck gaiter which I will soon be ripping into shreds. I'm calling one minute just for all the wiping of the glasses and pulling the gaiter up and down, and arghhhhhhhhhhh!
The route itself was fun, a mile through the woods on a paved path and then a mile through a neighborhood, two loops, with a few hills thrown in. Around mile 2 someone pulled up nearby and said, "Are you blogger Jeanne? I'm blogger *Jeanne*, with asterisks!" So that was fun. The blue vest has its uses.
I honestly thought I was running about 12 minutes miles. Turns out I wasn't:
Shooting Star 4 miler:
4/8 Jeanne McCann 51 Bethesda MD MCRRC 42:58 10:45
Based on my weekly mileage and recent race times, I was assigned to the Red program and placed in the 10:30 pace group. But the Red group will be spending the first six weeks basically learning how to run so I took the liberty of upgrading myself to White. White's first workout: 1 mile warmup, 3 miles striding on the straights and jogging on the curves, and 1 mile cooldown.
What's a stride you ask? I asked too. You just run like you're on fire on the straights, in lanes 1 and 2 (the inside ones), and then move to the outside when you're jogging.
Easy-peasy!
All 300 of us got sent out in groups, and amazingly, no one got hurt.
Mile one went by in 10:42, and then the work started. The hardest part? Counting. I don't know how people keep track of ladder workouts. I have enough trouble counting to four.
My "jogs" got progressively slower, though I tried hard to continue running all out on the strides.
mile 2: 7:41 +2:38 (counting)
mile 3: 10:55
mile 4: 11:13
mile 5 cooldown: a blistering 12:03
I was sooooooooooo excited at the end of this workout, I can't even tell you. Maybe I finally experienced the runner's high. I dunno, but I was thrilled, I felt great, I was so happy, I had no desire to ever eat anything again and I could barely sleep that night. May all my workouts leave me so exhilarated.
Assignment number two was to run the club's 4 mile "Shooting Star" race on Saturday morning at 8 a.m.
It was a little chilly Saturday morning.
Thermometer at the start of the raceI wore three layers, plus the ubiquitous blue running vest, plus a neck gaiter that I could pull up over my face, plus my heavy duty running pants, and two hats. I pulled the neck gaiter over my nose and the warm air made my glasses fog up. Pulled it down and my nose froze. Pulled it up and glasses fogged. Pulled it down and glasses stayed fogged...because the fog had frozen on the glasses. Now I had to take off my gloves and wipe off my glasses...Rinse, repeat. At mile 2 I finally stopped to take the neck gaiter off, which meant I had to take off my glasses and my hats, hold them, while pulling the neck gaiter off. The neck gaiter which I will soon be ripping into shreds. I'm calling one minute just for all the wiping of the glasses and pulling the gaiter up and down, and arghhhhhhhhhhh!
The route itself was fun, a mile through the woods on a paved path and then a mile through a neighborhood, two loops, with a few hills thrown in. Around mile 2 someone pulled up nearby and said, "Are you blogger Jeanne? I'm blogger *Jeanne*, with asterisks!" So that was fun. The blue vest has its uses.
I honestly thought I was running about 12 minutes miles. Turns out I wasn't:
Shooting Star 4 miler:
4/8 Jeanne McCann 51 Bethesda MD MCRRC 42:58 10:45
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