Counting down the days til Blue Ridge!

...and I realized at some point during this week that while endurance training has been going spectacularly well, I've been completely failing at keeping my lungs in shape/strengthening my lungs.  Oops.  I now have less than 4 weeks to try and get my lungs ready for a strong finish at Blue Ridge.

I plan to use the pace function on my watch a lot in the next few weeks, to help myself build up speed without overdoing it.  And I am going to have to be really disciplined and stick to the paces I plan, unlike this Thursday when I went faster than my planned pace and then completely died.

This week: 

M :  TRX 45 minute class @ GVF

horseback ride 3 hours

Pub Run 3.1 / 9:11 / 0 ft

T : hill run 11/ 8:21 / 699 ft

W : hike 2.6 miles / 285 ft

horseback ride 75 minutes

R : group run 7 / 7:34 / 174 ft

F : bike w/Chuck 20.4 / 15.8 mph / 1316 ft

Sa : group run 17.7 / 9:20 / 2054 ft

shakeout jog/walk 1 / 13:47 / 43 ft

Su : 20 minutes yoga

shakeout 3.4 / 8:05 / 131 ft

total miles run 43.1

I did yoga several times throughout the week, for 10-20 minutes at a time.  It has definitely been helping, I have had little to no hip pain since I started doing it!  Now I guess I just have to embrace the fact that I need yoga in my life and learn to like it.  

It was nice to be back in Lewisburg this past week.  My friend Sue teaches TRX classes at the gym, so I made sure I got to go to one of them this time.  It was nice to have someone else make the workout for me, and to be back in a class environment, not to mention having all the space I needed!  My hallway is cramped and really limits the variety of exercises that I can do.  

On Tuesday, I was definitely sore, though it's hard to say if it was more from the TRX or from the extra-long trail ride.  I guess it was probably from both.  I was determined to run my long hill loop though, as I have meant to run it on all of my previous visits and never seemed to get around to it.  

A gray day, but warmer than I thought it was...I was way overdressed!

Wednesday I enjoyed a hike/photo adventure at Roaring Run, and then was happy to get to ride my horse again.  This winter seems to have taken its toll on her -- she has lost a lot of weight, but she is still in good spirits, happy to see me, and with plenty of energy for the ride, so I'm trying not to worry too much.  She is 30+ years old, she was going to start losing weight eventually...but for now I will hope that springtime will put the weight back on her!

Thursday I wanted to do some speed and push my lungs harder than I had been, so I decided I would do a mile warm up, 4 miles around 7:20 pace, and then a mile cool down.  I even decided that I could run on the Creeper Trail so that I could hold a pace without hills messing it up.  Unfortunately, I was not smart enough to stick to the plan.  Our warmup was good, right around 8:00 minutes.  But then we sped up, and my watch said we were going around 6:45.  It felt good, so I figured I may as well try to stick to it.  It might have worked if we hadn't been talking at all, but despite my asking that no one talk to me because I needed all my air for running, it never works...and I can't keep myself from answering when questions are asked!  I did ok for the first 2 miles, and decided to try for 5 hard miles instead of 4.  However, when we turned around after 2.5 hard, I was starting to feel it, and we were now on a slight incline going up, instead of down.  The trail looks flat, and I never want to believe that an incline so slight it looks flat can effect my pace so much...but it does.  I started struggling hard and really losing the pace.  It was getting so rough, I ended up jogging after 4 hard miles, and having a 2 mile cooldown instead of pushing for 5 hard.  I didn't see the point in continuing to push when I was falling so far off the pace.  My fast-mile splits ended up being 6:37, 6:45, 7:07, 7:26.  The GAP paces (pace adjusted for incline) were at least slightly more consistent at 6:55, 7:05, 7:08, 6:53.  Either way, I failed at sticking to my plan, and I failed at keeping a consistent pace.  But my lungs got a workout either way, so I guess it's all good.  

Thanks to Chuck, I actually dusted off my bike for the first time this year!  Earlier in the week, he suggested a Friday afternoon ride since it was supposed to be really warm out, and I agreed.  I was overdue for my first non-solo bike ride in Abingdon, and it was nice to go with someone who knows the local roads better than I do!  Plus I got some exercise without really hurting myself for Saturday's long run.  

Saturday's run was chosen by Ben.  Running from Damascus to Whitetop on the Creeper Trail has been on his bucket list, and I have been putting it off because I can't stand the Creeper, and because I didn't want to deal with all the extra time to run a vehicle up to the top.  Yesterday, he had it worked out so his dad would drive to the top and bike down, and we would run up, so we didn't have to do the car shuffle ourselves.  The run was 17.5 miles.  I had 16 on my schedule, and Mollie was looking for 20, so we all settled for Ben's plan.  Mollie and I started around 11:40, Ben and Corey started about 20 minutes later.  It was so warm out, I ended up ditching my shirt 1.5 miles in.  I knew that if I soaked my shirt with sweat I would freeze when I stopped to wait at the top once we were done.  Unfortunately, it was not a good day for Mollie, and we were getting slower and slower.  By mile 10 we were over 11 min/mile.  I didn't want to leave Mollie alone, but I needed to run faster than that, and she kept telling me to just go.  So at 10.5, I decided to push the last 7 miles, and sped up to 8:00 pace.  We were on a more or less invisible uphill incline for the entire run, but it did get a bit steeper as we got closer to the top, so my pace gradually got slower.  The guys caught up with me around mile 14.  They pulled ahead, then Corey dropped back, not having a great day either.  I ran with him for a bit before leaving him behind.  All 4 of us finished, though at different times.  The three of us who finished first waited a long time, and then I got worried and decided my legs would survive if I started running again to go find Mollie.  Thankfully, I only had to go 1/2 mile before I found her. 

I thought the run was hard...but the ride back to my car was the worst part!  I was in the back seat of Ben's pickup and the road was really curvy...I ended up feeling really carsick.  It got so bad I had to trade seats with Corey to sit in the front halfway.  It helped a bit, but by then I was feeling so sick it didn't wear off til sometime after I got home, even though my drive from where I had parked was mostly straight.  

I used this run as a trial for my marathon 

with the compression socks, a storage belt, and a smaller camelbak. 

I don't love feeling like I'm carrying a fanny pack, but the pouch is pretty small, and thankfully it stayed in place nicely, no bouncing or riding up.  It fit my phone and ID.  I will probably use it for car key, inhaler, and ID during my marathon.  I was worried about the compression socks because they aren't as cushioned in the foot as my normal running socks.  I like the cushioning because my orthotics are hard plastic and the cushioning is more comfortable.  They worked out pretty well though.  And I still have plenty of time to decide if I want thicker socks and compression sleeves, or just the tall compression socks.  I think I'll be fine with either.  The camelbak was perfect, it didn't chafe even on my bare skin, and held the perfect amount of water.  I drank almost all of my 50 oz during the run, with 4 scoops of Tailwind Endurance Fuel.  I didn't need to eat anything; the fuel is supposed to be all you need, and it worked for me.  

Today I did about 20 minutes of yoga to stretch out and warm up my legs, then went for a nice easy shakeout jog.  It was sunny, but there were also some dark rain clouds, and I ended up getting pretty wet with passing showers twice during my short run.  

Looking forward : 

I have 10 mile runs planned for the next 2 Saturdays, but nothing longer than that.  I have made pace goals for each of my runs over the next 4 weeks, that I hope will help me prepare for Blue Ridge.  I made conservative goals, hoping that I will stick to them for the first 2/3 or 3/4 of each run, and only speed up for the last part if I am able to.  No speeding up early!  

Inaugural Run United 1/2

My 15th half marathon so far, and my 6th this year.

I knew it was going to be cold on Saturday.  I was thinking it would be in the low thirties, but that it would probably be at least high thirties by the end of the race.  However, when I woke up on Saturday morning, it was nineteen degrees!  That solved the problem of whether or not to race in shorts.  If it had been in the 30s, I probably would have worn shorts and just hoped my knees would deal with it.  But 19 degrees?  No way.  19 degrees still isn't cold enough for long pants though, (I'm not sure I could ever race in long pants no matter how cold it is...) so I opted for cut-off tights under my shorts.  Just long enough to keep my knees semi-warm. As for the shirt, I quickly ditched the idea of the thin long sleeve under my short-sleeve "It's a Hill, get over it" shirt, and dug through my box of shirts until I found my fleece-lined moisture-wicking running shirt.  I can't believe I had to pull it out in October, and for a race at that.  Oh well.  I don't have any pictures of my running outfit, but it was pretty bright.  Lime green long sleeve, turquoise short sleeve, bright blue shorts, gray tights, and black and white striped gloves.  The gloves were another thing I debated, but in the end I was glad I wore them.

I walked downtown to the race area and hung out inside the community college for awhile getting ready, then changed into my bright blue racing shoes, stripped off the sweats, and went out for a warm-up jog.  It hurt to breathe.  At least I had that fleece-lined shirt keeping my lungs a little bit warm.  I was able to break a sweat though, so I figured that was a good thing.  Other than the fact that I did not want to be wet with sweat while standing on the start line.

The race started promptly at 9, and we were off.  2 guys jumped into the lead pretty quickly, and I let them go.  My right foot fell asleep in the first half mile.  It woke up again at some point... I kept a pretty steady pace, working hard, but not hard enough to really hurt my lungs.  I was worried about how they would handle the strain in the cold, and I didn't want to overdo it too soon.  The miles rolled by, and no one passed me.  I loved seeing the signs my student's had made posted out on the course, they were great!  The turn-around was somewhere around 7.5 miles.  The hills getting there were pretty tough, but thankfully they are a bit easier coming back.

I don't like out and backs, but the one nice thing about them is that they let you know how far behind the competition is. My friend and former running-buddy Jim wasn't too far behind me at the turn around, probably less than a minute.  I'd never been ahead of him before, but he hasn't been able to run as much as me lately, and he sprained an ankle about a week ago.  The next guy was probably another minute or so behind him.  I was running along, surprised at how spread out everyone was, and surprised that I was barely seeing anyone coming towards me.  I knew the race was small, but I figured there'd be a few more people within 5 minutes of me.  I was at mile 8 before I saw the 2nd place girl, roughly a mile behind me.  Any motivation I had to push for a PR died at that point.  I already suspected that due to the tough course and the cold air, I wouldn't be able to pull it off.  And it was pretty obvious that I didn't need to pull it off in order to win.  With a marathon in 3 weeks, I figured staying healthy was more important than a PR.  So I kept on chugging along, trying not to really slow down, but not trying to push the pace either.  Miles rolled by.  I noticed that there was still heavy frost on the grass along the side of the road.  I passed by mile marker 10.  Shortly after that, it occurred to me that I normally start my kick at mile 10.  I started to pick up the pace a little bit, but it was more of a struggle than usual, and I didn't feel like trying that hard, so I settled back into my previous pace.  I never saw mile marker 11.  I know it was there, because I saw it on the way out, but somehow I missed it on the way back.  As I was thinking that surely I had passed it (right?!) I saw mile marker 12.  That was a relief.  I still didn't really feel like I could comfortably pick up the pace, so I just kept on keeping on.  As I rounded the 2nd to last turn (from that point, it was one block up a hill, then turn right and run about 3/4 of a block to the finish) the 2nd place runner came up behind me saying "they sent me the wrong way!"  I still hadn't really kicked, and I wasn't about to kick just to beat someone who rightfully should have beaten me by a minute or more.  So I just stuck to his heels.  Beating him wasn't important anyway.  I just wanted to beat all the other girls.

I crossed the line in 1:32:49.  4 minutes slower than Beckley, but the course was a lot harder, and the air was a lot colder.  Normally, I would be upset with a time that slow, but this one really doesn't bother me.  I made the decision not to push the pace, and I know it was the right decision.  Besides, there's always next year to get a faster time.  I beat the 2nd place girl by about 18 minutes, so there really wasn't a "race" involved.  I came in 3rd out of 54 total runners.  Not a bad turnout for our first half marathon, and 20 degree weather.  (It was still in the 20s when I finished the race shortly after 10:30!) We had 36 runners pre-registered, so it's nice to see that we got quite a few more on the day of, despite the weather!

Some of my friends and students were cheering for me at the finish line, which was also really nice.  One of my students ended up hanging out with me for the rest of the morning, as I waited for the awards ceremony.  I got some great pictures of her playing in the fallen leaves.

I let her use my camera during the awards ceremony and she took these.

Here's another picture of my gigantic, heavy, trophy. 

A local welder made all our trophies for us, they were really unique, which is awesome.  

Generic medals and trophies are so boring.

I got several compliments on the finisher medal which I had a hand in designing. 

All in all, it was a great race experience.  I think that overall the day was a success, and I'm looking forward to the 2nd annual Run United next fall.  Hopefully I will get to be a part of the planning committee again, it was a great experience.

Picking up the Pace...for an Upcoming Race!

Since I decided that I needed to work my lungs harder, I started really pushing the pace on my runs instead of going out for leisurely jogs.  It was awesome to see my average paces go from over 8 min/mile to below 7:20 min/mile.  And it felt great, too.  My legs are strong, and it just feels really good to go out and run hard and fast.

This week:

M: 4.7 / 33:57 / 7:13

T: 3.85 / 27:24 / 7:07

W: 6.75 / 48:45 / 7:13 

R: off

F: 8.36 / 1:06:07 / 7:54 (the last 6+ w/Birch)

Sa: off

Su: 3.76 / 29:12 / 7:45 (middle 3.1 w/2 local race buddies)

week total : 27.42

Birch wanted to run on Friday, but I had a lot of adrenaline built up after a busy day of classes, so instead of driving back to school to meet him after I changed, I sprinted back to school, and then we jogged a 6+ mile loop. Saturday I ran to the start line of this coming weekend's 5k, and then ran the course with 2 guys who I often see at races.  They wanted to see the course before the race, and I had no problem running it with them.  If they lived in Lewisburg and schedules coordinated better, we'd be good training buddies.  

I'm not so sure that 2 weeks of running hard will be enough to prepare my lungs for the half marathon on Saturday.  Especially not since I found out it's supposed to be in the 30s that morning.  Brrrrr.  We had our first frost yesterday, and the second today.  I'm going to have to remember to get out the door 5 minutes earlier now that I have to deal with thickly iced car windows.  Yuck.  But hopefully these two weeks of running hard will at least get my lungs a little bit stronger than they were at Beckley!

In other news, my middle school students have been hard at work making inspirational posters and mile marker quotes for the half marathon this Saturday.  Here's a few of them:

and the best : these are both small parts of a bigger poster

I love this depiction of someone getting stuck in my dust

Also, the finisher medals arrived at my door in the middle of last week and they are awesome!

I like finisher medals that show something special about the race or race location, so I had ours designed with our "Coolest Small Town" logo. 

Our final committee meeting for this race is tomorrow!  I drove the course with Jim today to see approximately where the mile markers will go so he can paint markers on the road.  I originally didn't want to be on the planning committee because when it started up about a year ago I was ridiculously busy and stressed beyond belief.  But I wanted to help design the course, so I said I would come to a meeting or two to help with that.  Then it turned out that we were meeting for less than an hour a month, and I ended up going to every meeting and helping with all sorts of little details.  It's been fun, and I was happy to give advice and ideas based on my various race experiences in various places.  We weren't able to use my preferred course options due to law enforcement not wanting to close certain roads, but maybe if this year is successful enough they will let us have a better course next year.  This year's course is an out and back on a hilly road.  It will be a nice challenging course, but out and backs are rarely enjoyable.