KristenRuns

A slow start . . . My strategy was to run at 6:55 and see how I felt at the 10K split. And hopefully feel great and speed up after that. Mile 1 was according to plan. I was up pretty close to the front of Wave 1, so I didn’t have to waste much time weaving (6:56). Mile 2 had one of the few sustained hills, and I pressed my effort a little here. Only to be delayed by a crossing fire truck! (7:03). Mile 3 was perfectly flat, and I was in the groove (6:52). Mile 4 had a 47 foot climb – which shouldn’t have slowed me down as much as it did. I became aware of my legs this mile. They were not feeling fresh (7:06). (I noted to myself that I need to taper for longer than 7 days when running the faster paces I am training for now.)

The Meb miles . . . Then the plan went out the window. Meb Keflezighi was the 1:30 pacer, and the Meb group caught up with me in mile 5. I got swept into the Meb pack, and it was a blast. The crowds were cheering for Meb, and when there weren’t crowds around runners were asking Meb about his training and life. I felt inspired and decided I could hang with Meb. Mile 6 I was still in Meb-party mode (6:42). When I saw 6:42 display on my watch, I panicked and decided not to look at my watch any more. I was still determined to hang with the Meb pack. I felt good in mile 7 (6:48), but by mile 8, I had fallen behind into the Meb-chaser pack (6:49).

Losing focus . . . Then there was mile 9. I lost sight of the Meb pack, fell out of the Meb-chaser pack at a water station, and momentarily lost my inspiration. The mile was a net 50 feet downhill but I clocked my worst mile of the race. I had started looking at my watch again and did not like what I saw (7:07).

And regaining focus, briefly . . . Mile 10 was more downhill, which allowed me to pick myself back up (6:53). I took focus off of the letdown of losing the Meb pack (later, I found out they finished at 1:29) and focused on getting the 1:30:XX. I did some quick math, and it was going to be close. I honestly don’t know what happened in mile 11, another starting in '7' (7:03).

A big push for the 1:30:XX . . . Mile 12 was my fastest mile of the race and also the biggest downhill. I was making up time for those 7:XX miles (6:37). The last mile was slightly downhill, but felt like I was running uphill. I was trying to will myself into another 6:40 mile . . . but I didn’t have anything left (6:57).

The elusive 1:30:XX . . . I crossed the finish in 1:31:24. Off by just 25 seconds! But still a 2 minute PR, and I’m really happy with my race. I would have loved crossing the finish line with the Meb pack. Or with a 1:30:XX. I’m just not quite there yet.

But I have came a long way since in a pretty short time. My first race back after a 6 month break from spraining my ankle was a 3 mile Turkey Trot in November 2013 where my average pace was 6:50. By design, I didn’t run very many miles this training cycle (averaged 26.5 miles a week), as I needed to build a base and some durability. But now, it’s on. Next time the 1:30:XX is mine!

Flew to NYC for work. Enjoyed a great pizza on a beautiful night.
 

Easy run in Central Park (the Reservoir) turned into a faster effort when I heard thunder and rain started falling!

Back in San Diego. An easy 5 through the Prescidio - the first European settlement in California. Now a hilltop park with views of the Pacific, San Diego River, and Mission Valley.

5 easy on treadmill after work. Couldn't deal with rush hour traffic... +yoga.
 

Legs/core workout with Brandon. Legs/joints feeling a lot better after some weights. Gets the blood to the rusty places.

I joined San Diego Track Club and am running with a training group for the America's Finest City Half Marathon in mid-August. This was our first run. In case you didn't know San Diego = America's Finest City.

Tennis today, in lieu of running. Feet are not accustomed to lateral movement, resulting in two blood blisters - one on each big toe! But my backhand was on! Must be because I didn't run 10+ miles before the match this time.

AM - Easy run to Sea World and back (8:15 pace). Joints (ankles, feet) still feeling the race a bit.

PM - power yoga.

6 p.m. work out with San Diego Track Club in Balboa Park. 20 minute "tempo" run at half marathon pace (7:00). This was a loop in a grassy area of the park. Running half marathon pace through the grass is way harder than on the roads.

Followed by 10 strides of about 200 meters. Legs are feeling those strides.

Then some core workout.

Easy on treadmill after work. Didn't leave the office until neary dark. Finishing up a law review article. Why do I volunteer for these things???

+yoga/foam rolling.

Gym workout - legs/core/plyo/agility with Brandon. It's crazy how at the end of workouts with agility and plyo components, I lose body control and become an uncoordinated mess.

Still sore from the 10 strides on Tuesday. Hip flexors! Don't remember being this sore from a regular workout in ages.

AM - Upper body weights and a little bit of yoga

AM Long run with San Diego Track Club - Harbor Island and Shelter Island. Ran at about a 7:45 average pace, which is faster than normal on long runs. I was still conversational though so I think it was the right pace. Enjoyed running with the group and connecting with some locals.

PM About 90 minutes of tennis. First 60 minutes was pathetic. Last 30 minutes I was on fire!
 

No run today. Didn't set my alarm and slept until 10. Haven't slept that late since the 12th grade. Took it as a sign to take it easy today. So did just a little core and upper body at the gym.
 

AM - Easy (medium?) run on Ocean Beach Bike Path (7:30 av) - which I noticed today has been renamed the San Diego River Path. "River" is a bit of an overstatement in these three year drought conditions. It would be more accurately to name it "the Interstate 8 Shoulder Path." Or "The Path Where Litter Accumulates." It is not scenic, but it's fairly flat, always empty, and an uninterrupted stretch of about 5 miles in each direction.

PM - Power Yoga

SD track club workout in Balboa Park. People were still talking about how "hot" it was at the SD RnR - in high 60s with 85% humidity. I don't know...maybe I'll addd weather to my list of reasons why I didn't run 1:30. ;)

Workout was 3 x 1200 at half marathon pace minus 30 seconds (aka 10K pace for me) plus 8 strides. The 1200s were in a big loop in the grass again. 1200s were at 6:23 pace according to my watch. 4:51, 4:49, 4:50. The coach said strides will take "seconds to a minute off your race, depending on the distance."

AM - Easy run on embarcadero (8:00s). Ran by the Tony Gwynn sculpure at Petco Park. Fans have been paying tribute by leaving flowers and memorbelia. Don't have enough history here to understand exactly what Mr. Padre means to San Diego. But he was very well liked. 

Leg/plyo/weights workout at the gym with Brandon. Beginning a series of heavier weight training for next 3 or 4 weeks. Felt more grumpy than normal this morning (not a morning person, as much as I'd like to be). I'm not going to attribute it to over running or over training yet. Think it's from unpleasant tasks at work and a looming trip to NYC next week. Going to take it easy for a few days though.

Long run after work on Ocean Beach bike path to the Mission Bay jetty which has trail on it.
Then took the hilly route home. The AFC Half finishes with a long hill, sigh, so hill training is very important this summer!

AM - 6 miles with SD track club in Balboa Park, hilly route.

Noon - got certified to climb / belay on the rock climbing wall at the gym. Did NOT like climbing. Unlikely to use this certification again!

PM - 3 miles commuting to the tire store to pick up car.

7 miles, mostly trail, on a hilly route through Balboa Park (w/ Liz). That's three runs this week with company!

AM - Easy run to Balboa Park and down museum row. This is a hilly route with all different types of hills - from short and steep to long and steady. At times, I found myself lazily bouncing up hills using only my quads. Trying to correct myself, even on easy runs, to use the glutes, arms, and have proper form/posture. Good habits! If I keep running this route weekly, I'll be ready for any hill the AFC Half course throws at me.

PM - power yoga. This is a free class offered at my gym for all levels. I wish there was an advanced class, but at least the basic class is . . . amusing.

Track club workout at Balboa Park. 5 x 800s at 5K pace + 10 strides.

Interval times were 3:08, 3:03, 3:05, 3:06, and 3:04. But these are in a makeshift loop in the grass, ranging from 0.5 - 0.52 miles on my Garmin. But I guess this is more or less accurate. Rest intervals of 2:00 or less.

I'm very excited to have met another potential running partner. She ran in college and is probably a little bit faster than me even!

First day off of exercising since June 2, the day after half marathon. Can't say it was planned. Got busy and work and just plain ran out of time. But I was overdue for a complete reset day.

After work run - 3 laps on Harbor Island. After a long warmup where I tried to let go of all the work stress I am experienceing this week, I decided to do a moderate-effort run. 5 miles at about 7:15. Having a tough time at work this week, so wanted to balance getting in a threshold-type workout with not overdoing it because I am under a lot of extra stress.  
 

legs/core/plyo workout w/ brandon

Easy run with SD Track club in Mission Trails Regional Park. This is the largest municiple park in California. San Diego's highest peak is there - Cowels mountain at 1600 feet. But we didn't run that trail. The park has a rugged, rocky landscape with lots of canyons and hills. You can feel like you are in the middle of nowhere, but you are actually in the middle of suburbia.

After a day trip up to San Juan Capistrano to see the old mission there, a couple hours of tennis. Inspired by Wimbledon, I was practicing approach shots and volleys today. Still wish I had a seve...
 

Easy run (8:30) around the sights of Old Town after work. Old Town State Historic Park is the most visited California state park, and, coincidentally, the Old Town zip code has the highest tequila sales in the United States.