Training for a Belt Buckle

Good run to start the week with.

My speed work on Saturday started me thinking and I realized that I probably do too many of my training runs as easy runs.  Today I decided to start 'pushing' myself out of the comfort zone a couple of runs each week.

After a 1 mile warmup (including a swing back to my house for a bathroom stop) I started throwing in some speed striders at the start of each mile (for 5 miles) and was trying to keep my pace under 11:00 per mile.   Somewhere around mile 4 I decided to see how closed I could come to a sub 60 10K. My previous 10K PR was 1:17:21 back in 2006.  It probably would have been smarter to decide to run this pace a little earlier - because I wasn't watching where my mile splits were.  Even as I write this, I haven't figured out my time - but considering at 7.2 miles I was at 1:15:05 - I think I can safely say I PR'd. :)

13:05 - mile 1 warmup

11:38/10:17/9:59/9:49/9:35/9:26/9:16(.2) - I'll call it a 1:02:00 10K - Blew the first couple of miles - but I think I did negative splits.

I spent last night organizing my paperwork and office and cleaning up my house.  I then slept 10 hours to make up for not sleeping a lot the night before. So - woke up to the dog barking just in time to shower and go to work.

I'm just wondering about how I can adjust my life to still have a life and get all my workouts in.  If I go to the gym tonight - I will be doing cardio for 1-1.5 hours and lifting weights for an hour. I still have to eat, walk the dog, play with the dog and try to get some scripture and computer studying in.  I look at some of your training out there and am just going wow - how do I keep on handling all of this.

PM - ran .8 miles with Twilight

Tried a new route tonight. Ran nice and slow - which was good - because there were a lot of uphills. I went up 7th East to 90th South. East on 90th past where it become 9400 South and up to Highland Drive. North on Highland to Creek Dr. Back west on Creek Drive until the little road going up, up, up to 1300 East. Over to Gold's Gym. 6.4 miles at this point in time. 

Worked legs hard for an hour. Ran home drinking a protein shake for dinner.  Finished at 8.2 miles. 

Did 35 pushups in 5 sets with Twilight running up and down my back. Had to do a lot of them as girls pushups because I had a groin muscle that didn't like men's pushups.  Did the ab workout  from Runner's World.

Going to bed. Les is coming by early tomorrow morning.

Leslie came down and joined me for a morning run. Since we left a little later (5:30) - I had some time to play with the puppy and sit over a heat vent to get warm.

6.2 miles total - 1:12:46

2 miles warmup

3 miles speedwork - 10:07 / 10:04 / 10:08

1.2 miles slow/cooldown

Leslie at first only wanted to do under 11 minute miles, then she decided on 10:30 pace.  I told her to tuck in behind me, but she was doing pretty good and actually running faster, so I just stayed next to her and called out the pace every 25-50 steps.  About halfway through she started getting tired, so I had her tuck in behind me because we had a slight headwind. She thinks that helped a little.  She wanted to do the last mile at 10:30 pace, but her pacer had other ideas and I actually was keeping her between 10:00 and 10:15 - with a final sprint at the end.

Great job, Leslie!  I am proud of you.

3/4 of a mile with Twilight.  Off day - so day off.

5.4 miles in 1:02:39.  I hit the snooze button one time too many and have to be in at work early to take the puppy to the vet for her shots tonight.  Left Achilles Tendon took about 3 miles to warm up.  I'll put in more mileage after work.

PM - had a lot of energy tonight, so went out for a 2-3 mile run that ended up being 3.4 miles. As I walked in the door, one of the ladies from church called with an extra ticket to the Draper Temple Open House tomorrow for my sister, so I ran to her house and back.  She lives about 100 feet from me - but it was almost a mile and a half there and back because we are separated by an 8 foot tall fence.

Race day today.

I got up early and headed down to Provo and watched Sarah and Sasha's children while they went on a running date.

At 10 a.m. I met Marion at the park and we got our numbers and did about 1.8 miles warmup on the trail and then did some strides before the race started.  I was feeling pretty warm, so stripped down to shorts and a short sleeved shirt. I regretted that during the race - wish I had kept on gloves at least because out of the sun it was cooler.

The 5K and 10K both started at the same time.  It think there were 3 people running the 10K and Marion's main goal was to beat Sasha getting done (he was planning a 33 minute run).

The race starts out in a parking lot and then you take the sidewalk for a block or two and have to loop around under the road.  That loop slows you down both going out and on the way back in. Once you were on that loop - the rest of the run was on the Provo River Parkway. That is good and bad - good because there aren't a lot of cars - bad because we had to dodge casual runners.

Marion and I started off well and finally settled into our pace.  We might have gone out a little quick, but it is hard to tell. She kept in contact with me until the end of the first mile and then I started surging ahead. As usual - the first 1/2 to 3/4 mile is awful because the body has to come to the conclusion that you are not going to let it stop running that fast.  That trail there is also quite undulating, so you don't get any great places to get comfortable in an uphill, downhill or flat section.  I passed the one mile mark at 9:04 with Marion right behind me. 

Going into mile 2 I could hear Marion drop back and then couldn't hear her breathing anymore.  I swear all the uphill sections on the way out were also uphill on the way back.  Shortly after the turnaround point I high fived Marion and pointed out to her that she was not in last place - she didn't want to finish last and there were several people behind her. Mile 2 was also in 9:04.  I felt at this point in time like I was out of gas and regretting the extra miles I put in last night.  I did keep trying to put on some speed anytime I noticed myself slacking off.

The last mile was a struggle.  I could feel my breathing getting raspy and was almost wondering if I was having an asthma attack. I seriously wanted to give up and slow down a little and run with Marion, but I kept going on. It was nice to pass the 1/2 mile left marker. The loop back to the sidewalk was a pain, but I was actually starting to get a tiny bit optimistic that I might PR.  My 3rd mile was 9:17 - so I can tell I was struggling. 

I swear as I got back into the parking lot that my body was in slow motion.  And I was trying to hard to PR, but heard that previous mark just before I crossed the line - I was 2 seconds slower.  However, I felt that this was a tougher race than the one I pr'd in and Sasha seemed to agree on that one.

Grabbed a quick glass of water and ran back to the end of the parking lot to cheer Marion in and motivate her for that last sprint.  I was very proud of her.

No age group awards were given out, even though MaryAnne advertised them.  I won my age group solely on the basis of being the only person in it.  I think Marion did pretty good in her age group - we will have to see when the times are posted.

After talking with Sasha a bit, we ran down the Provo River Parkway towards BYU and then I showed Marion where the Pachev gang lived and we visited for a little bit.  I was pretty tired and Benjamin was thoroughly trouncing me in chess when Marion finally pried herself off the couch.

Hot chocolate with Marion. Then I raced home, took a quick shower, we headed off to the Draper Temple Open House and dinner (dad, sis and me) and just got home.

Earlier I was going to do more mileage tonight, but I am tired.

5K's - good on speedwork, but tough on the body.  My lungs are almost as tired after a measly 5K as after a marathon because I have to breathe so hard.

I think my mileage is off on these shoes.  They will only last a couple more runs before I relegate them to house shoes only.

Didn't sleep well last night, so did not get up and run today. Instead I went in to work a little early.

I was going to do 8 miles tonight, but Leslie called me this morning rubbing it in that she was out running while I was sitting behind a desk.  She wanted to go register for the Grand Slam tonight, so I adjusted my plans a little bit.

The new plan was to get out the door as soon as I got home, but my sister needed someone to talk to, so after talking with her, I went to the gym and got on the treadmill until Les called. 5 miles starting at 5.0 and increasing .1 each half mile (last half at 5.9 mph). 1/2 mile cool down.

Pushups:  (Day 1/Week 1) 10/12/7/7/10

Situps: (Day 1/Week 1)  15/18/10/10/15    www.twohundredsitups.com

10.25 miles in 120 minutes. Ran down to the trax trail and out on in to the one hour mark and then back.  It was cold out.

Walked Twilight for 1/4 mile as a cooldown.

Did some stretching with a puppy jumping on top of me to help.

Now to make a tuna fish sandwich and watch Biggest Loser and work a few chores in.

1/4 mile warmup with Twilight.

Les came down to run with me. Neither of us had enough energy to do speedwork.  Luckily we headed out into the wind - cuz it was cold out there! One of the signs said 33 degrees - but I think that was wrong. (I just went to weather.com and it says it is 28 out and feels like 18 and that sounds more like it). 

5.15 miles with Leslie. 13:20/12:49/13:02/12:39/12:49.  Les overdid it on Monday and I overdid it last night - and I can tell it by our times.

PM - ran another mile with Twilight after work.  That was fun in hiking boots. :)

Pushups:  (Week 1/Day 2) 10/12/8/8/12

Situps: (Week 1/Day 2) 15/18/15/15/20

This just in on the Ogden marathon and half marathon - hope you all got signed up already:

OGDEN MARATHON

We've just gotten word that the Ogden Marathon and Half Marathon has completely sold out.  Accommodations for runners who haven't registered yet are out of our hands.  I haven't registered, so I won't be running, but I will be volunteering (all volunteers get into Heaven remember).  If you have questions regarding the Ogden Marathon and the status of a waiting list and such, please call the GOAL Foundation at 399-1773. SORRYL

Left knee is a bit sore today.

Signed up for the Utah Valley Marathon. I wanted to make sure I got in it before it filled up.

Bought a pullup bar at lunch time and will humiliate myself with it tonight.

1.5 miles with Twilight in 2 different walks.

Couldn't do any pullups, so used a stool and did 6 reps of each of the handholds lowering myself down as slowly as I could (which isn't much).

Gonna run later but I was finally able to announce that my daughter "Jen*Jen*" just called to tell me her husband's plane is in Rome and within 4 or so hours he will be home.  She hasn't seen him since he deployed to Afghanistan in late September and is super hyper.

PM - 5.5 miles on the elliptical. Set the level high enough that my heart rate and speed were comparable to running.

12.5 miles on the treadmill. My plan was 20, but even with my left knee wrapped, it started bothering me. I also pulled an abdominal muscle a week and a half ago and the pushups and situps and running are aggravating it and it is getting worse.

Eleven miles walking down to the trax trail and along it.  I got in about 5 of those miles on the equestrian trail portion.  I was glad when the weather finally warmed up, but that was only the last mile.  Enjoyed listening to the Nutrition Diva podcasts.  

.6 miles jogging with Twilight.

I did not push the pace on anything today.  My entire goal for at least the first half of the week is to get in mileage, but not push.  I will try and roll out my pelvic region and ice it and the knees tonight.

Might be a good week to improve my stretching habits.

I will workout tonight.

Just signed up for Park City Marathon.  Only have one more to register for this year - and St. George does not open up until April 1.

PM - finally worked on fixing my treadmill belt tonight.  It has been slipping for a while and I was too frustrated to work on it.

5.25 miles on the treadmill alternating fast walking with jogging between 12 and 13 minute miles. No pain in the knee or abdomen (except when I cough). Looks like taking pressure off the knee is helping it heal.

7.18 miles in 1:33:33. Avg 13:02/Max 9:26

I went and ran in Draper tonight. I did the Porter Rockwell Trail and Draper Canal Trail loop. Did almost all my running on the equestrian trail.  It was good to get some trail miles in and they really work your legs without the pounding of the road.  A lot more up and down and lots of soggy, sandy, muddy soil from snow melt.

Had to stop and pull stickers out of my socks. I guess it is time to clean up my shoes and put more velcro on them for my dirty girl gaiters.

It was a good test run.  I needed to get back on trails for my trail ultra. I may start running this trail several times each week.

Miles are definitely slower on the trail - but I didn't feel like I had any energy or much endurance tonight.  Probably food related issues.

12:52/12:43/12:49/13:52 (STICKERS)/13:19/13:24/12:23

The knee ached a little the first few miles - but that was just Marion's hypochondria kicking in.  Other than that, both the knee and stomach felt fine.  I did a lot of rolling and massaging last night on most of my body.

Bought a Biggest Loser cookbook the other day and it had a recipe in it for Frozen Hot Chocolate.   That gave me an idea during my run tonight, so I just made up a batch of Frozen Protein Shake with soy milk, chocolate meal replacement powder, banana, and some peanut butter. Mixed it up in the blender good and then filled some freezer cups with it and will take some to work to eat like ice cream for snacks.  The unfrozen remains tasted pretty good, so I think it will be a nice treat (and not junky).

I am debating with myself about possible running/walking to Provo on Saturday.  The weather looks like it will be pretty good.  If my dad is willing to drive me home afterwards, I just might give it a try.  If I decide to go ahead and do that, then I will take today and tomorrow off to allow my legs a bit of a reprieve.  I figure the mileage will be between 35-40 miles.

Short run this morning with Twilight.

I have used www.mapmyrun.com to try and map my route for tomorrow.  If it is correct, it will be about 35 miles to my father's house.

http://www.mapmyrun.com/run/united-states/ut/sandy/126047236059

Tomorrow may be a lot of walking if my knee bothers me.  I plan to be 'on the road' about 6 a.m.

PM me if you want my cell phone number to cheer me on during my adventure.

Twilight wanted to enjoy the sun this afternoon, so we did another mile and a half.

I'm too tired right now to post much.  Please check my Adventures In Running blog in a couple of hours for more details.

Started a little before 5:30 a.m.  I was in Utah County before 3 hours and right after half marathon distance.  Passed a marathon about 5:45.  Passed 50K about 6:55.  Finished at 7:40.  I am totally spent right now - but nothing hurt except my abdomen occasionally when I coughed - so I quit coughing.

Tarzan is officially nuts and off to take a shower.

Later - finally picked up some dinner and ate a can of chili and 3 glasses of milk. Helped get rid of the 'I feel like puking feeling.'  Now I know why I had that feeling - I just calculated that I ate only about 1700 calories before, during and in the hour after my run.

Just finished 13 minutes in an ice bath and am ready to crash.

Rest day today (and maybe for the next few days).  I will probably keep my mileage under 25 this week and not run at all until Wednesday or later.

Took a muscle relaxant last night to let me sleep.  I can't fall asleep after marathon and longer runs without any help.  I think my mind and body stay hyped even when exhausted.

I woke up this morning and as I got out of bed I realized my entire torso is super sore.  Tomorrow is going to be a real joy.  I think it was the weight of the Camelback on my back all day and that has really stiffened it up.  The legs were only bad the first trip downstairs - but they react like after a marathon.

Went and visited my old ward in Layton today and mentioned to a couple of people that I ran down to Provo yesterday and they responded like, "....and what did you do there?" I laughed and said, "No - I really ran to Provo yesterday."

I'm feeling pretty good today, except for some stiffness if I sit too long or a little bit of soreness in the left knee when I go down stairs.

Just walked/jogged 1.75 miles with Twilight on a new route for her to sniff out.

After dinner I am going to run 2 more miles on the treadmill and then do an upper body workout.

2.5 miles running with Twilight.  Now I brought her back to work with me for a couple of hours since the office is closed.

After work I jogged 1 mile with Twilight. 

Leslie was running late, so I ran down to the Trax trail (aka Queen Penguins Trail) to meet her for a run. 2 miles there. I was wearing a 12 pound weight vest and that slowed me down.

Leslie and Odee showed up and I left the vest in her car. The first mile or so with Odee was like trying to hold back the tide - he wanted to run and I wanted to keep my face intact.  We ran 5.5 miles together.  I tried to outsprint Les at the finish - but she had instructed Odee to refuse to go above a job - so she won the sprint.

OK - so the donut I ate an hour before the run was probably not the best fuel.

7.5 miles in 1:25.  I picked a very hilly course - I would think less than a mile was actually flat and it was net uphills ( I still don't know how there can be more uphills than down on a round about course).

Pushed the first five miles. Somewhere between marathon and tempo pace.  I took a 3 minute break at Gold's  Gym at 4.1 miles and was still struggling to get my breathing under control when I started up.  Knees started hurting around mile 6.  Took some walk breaks the last mile.

By mile 6 my ab area was really tired from the pushing section

Avg 11:22   Max 7:15

Miles 1-6: 12:19/11:00/11:04/9:31/9:33/11:49

Had a touch of the flu yesterday and slept for four hours to help my body heal.

Couldn't fall asleep as a result during the night.

This afternoon I ran 12.5 wonderful miles.  Stopped at 8 to talk with another marathon runner. I ran .5 more with Twilight as a cool down. It sure has been nice to run in shorts this week.