Tuesday, August 31, 2010

8/31

Last run of the month!  I've run about 93 miles in August.  Not a whole lot if you're training for an ultra-marathon, but it's cool to me, since when I very first started running again after Juliet was born--I hadn't run much since middle school--I was running about 9 miles a week, or under 40 miles a month.    (Of course, the flip side of this is that my shoes wear out a lot faster...)

Today was a 40-minute tempo run (on the treadmill while Jules and Isaac were asleep).  I started out running an 8:50 mile, worked up to an 8-minute mile, and back down again.  I always feel like I'm running much more slowly when I do tempo runs than when I do interval training--it's so much easier for me to do those 400-meter repeats at a faster pace than it is to do a steady build.  Which is why I train with both, I suppose.

STATS:  4.7 miles, 8:28/mile

Monday, August 30, 2010

8/30















Another day, another run.  It was very dark.  There were lots of bugs.  Like every day.

On another note, I really like this image.  What do you think?  Inspiring, or disheartening? 

STATS:  Four miles, 8:36/mile

Saturday, August 28, 2010

8/28

Normally this would be a long run today, but as I mentioned on Tuesday, we're watching another couple's three children today while the wife does a triathalon (they're watching ours when we run the half-marathon).  We have two families that we regularly trade long workouts with, which is really nice. 

So today, since I was up at 4:45 am to go over there while their kids were sleeping, we opted to swap the long weekend run with the shorter midweek run. I was hoping I'd still have time to squeeze in an extra few miles, but I don't think it will happen, so...I'll have to be content with my three.

Today I ran a trail that I haven't run in about four years (to a nearby lake)--and while I was running it I remembered why!  Part of it is just a deer trail, barely room to put one foot in front of the other, and I'm pretty sure it was completely lined with poison ivy.  And then when it opened up, I was running over mud flats and sinking in.  Awesome.  I'll stick to my regular trails from now on, since that definitely slowed me down.

STATS:  3 miles, 8:33/mile, hilly, muddy

As a sidenote, I spent an hour yesterday afternoon (while the kids were napping, when I should have been doing something productive) reading running blogs.  Then I moped around the rest of the day feeling like a loser because I'm not training for a marathon.  I really, really want to run a marathon.  I just keep having to remind myself that I'm barely finding time to run 20 or 25 miles a week; I don't know how I would double that.  Sigh. 

Friday, August 27, 2010

8/27

Easy run today over the bog trail.  My running partner had been up literally all night with kids--she told me that when six am rolled around, she figured she'd just go anyway, despite the fatigue, since she was already up (and had been up since 1 am, after going to bed at 12:30 am due to completely disassembling then reassembling her toilet.  Which she didn't get to start until about 10 pm, because before that she was at my house learning to make mozzarella).  So anyway--I was amazed that she was still there running. Because I probably would have wimped out. 

Anyway, we took it easy for her sake so I didn't bother clocking it, since we walked twice for about a minute, but we were probably running about an 8:45 mile the rest of the time.  I felt great--much more energy than Tuesday's run.  I thought about running another couple of miles after we wrapped up, but since Neil isn't feeling too hot and two of the kids are sick, I figured I better skedaddle on home. 

It was actually cold this morning, and the moon was enormous--it didn't get light until the very end.  Beautiful running conditions, but it's reminding me that not-so-lovely ones are on their way.

STATS:  3 miles, bog loop trail

Thursday, August 26, 2010

8/26

Speedtraining today; 7 x 400-meter repeats.

Alternating between 8 mph for the 400 meters, then 7 mph for the 400 back.

It was doable, but barely.  I don't think I could have gone much past the 400 at 8 mph (7:30 mile).  This is definitely a 5K pace right now rather than a half-marathon pace.

STATS:  3.5 miles; average page 8:00/mile

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

8/24

We're watching our friends' kids on Saturday while the wife does a triathalon, so we did our long run tonight (not ideal, but that's just how it worked out).

We ran mostly the same course that we ran on Saturday, but we were both definitely more tired with more aches and pains--it was a pretty grueling day for both of us today, especially since it's one of the two days a week that Neil goes to the lab at 6:30 am so he can get in lots of quiet worktime before anybody else gets there.  And it was a pretty hectic day here too (doctors' visits in both morning and afternoon, fun fun).

When we first started running I felt terrible.  At the first quarter-mile, I honestly didn't know if I'd be able to finish.  Around a mile and a half, I was focusing on not throwing up (partially because the bog at 8 pm REEKS).  So we detoured for water, and walked for a minute around the drinking fountain, and then I felt a lot better.  We ran steadily for another couple of miles, then down through the glacial ravine and back up again, and when we reached the top of that hill--which honestly, I have never in my life come across a steeper hill on a trail; it's like a total scramble (Happy Hollow to the Indian Trails trailhead, if you're local)--when we got to the top of that, Neil wanted to walk for a minute.  Which is the first time that's ever happened since we've been running together, so that tells you something about how tired we both were.  At this point we were about five miles in.

So we walked for a minute, and then we started running back home again.  We passed a lot of people with grocery sacks in their hands (like seriously a million) and I made some comment about root-beer floats that practically killed Neil for the rest of the run...I think he was dreaming of fizzy happiness for the next three miles.  Poor guy.  I kept saying, "Just remember!  Carbonation is bad for distance running!"  and he would say things like, "But I'm not going to drink it...just eat it."  Then he asked if we could make samosas when we got home.  I guess having Chicago restaurants as our main topic of conversation was kind of a tricky choice...

We detoured for water again, then we started running back through the woods for the final leg, and oh my goodness--it was practically pitch black.  Neil suggested we turn around, but I get really fixated on running a mapped course rather than freestyling...so we just kept going, albeit quite a bit more slowly  I could barely see the ground under my feet, and we kept warning each other about roots and dead branches and exciting things like that.  So that made the end of the run quite exciting, and when we were out of the woods, I was totally in my zone.  Too bad we only had a mile left, right?  By the time we were back in our neighborhood I seriously felt like I could have run forever.  I kept picking up the pace and by the time we hit our driveway, I was running faster than I had the rest of the night.  Go figure.  It only takes 8 miles for me to start feeling good.  Plus it probably helped that it was MUCH cooler by that point.

STATS:  8+ miles, very hilly, trail run, not sure on time (somewhere around 85 minutes with  2 drink and stretching breaks, 1 walking break,  and woods-trail slowdowns)

Monday, August 23, 2010

8/23

Another cool day--such a nice change.  We ran the more boring trail today just to avoid all the bugs (I had one fly into my eye on Saturday which was awful with contacts!) 

STATS:  4 miles, 8:45ish/mile (didn't time, as I still have to re-calibrate, so I was going off the console clock in my car)

Saturday, August 21, 2010

8/21

Best run EVER this morning.  We ran a new route that we haven't done before, and we talked about parenting and goals and creating a more purposeful family the entire time.  At one point when we'd run about four miles, Neil said, "I can't believe we've gone so far--the time has flown by!" and that was pretty much how it was the entire time.  It was great--this is one of the main reasons why I like training, since it's just awesome to have my husband all to myself and do something that energizes us so much (hurray, endorphins!) and talk the entire time and work things out and feel so positive afterwards, both mentally and physically.

Of course, all the talking means we're not running super hard, since we were still talking comfortably, but it was worth it.  And we ran a pretty challenging course today--we parked near the beginning of the bog loop trail, so we ran up the hills to the bog, through the woods, which has some pretty steep hills, up the mogul-type hills by the golf course where the bog has made the sidewalk swell (in moguls), and then we ran downhill for a mile through a glacial ravine, and then back UP that glacial ravine trail, which is steep enough that it's quite difficult to do just on a bike.  There's a bit at the very end where I always feel like my nose is going to bang into my knees.  And then back again over the whole course.

And my shoes were great--my feet didn't hurt at all, and because I was so wrapped up in talking with Neil, I didn't notice the heaviness one bit.  It was seriously a fantastic way to start out the weekend--I LOVE running with my husband.  Love, love, love it.  It's nice to look forward to the long runs so fervently.  :-)

STATS:  8.12 miles, around 9:50ish a mile (definitely under 80 minutes, but we weren't really worrying about time), very hilly

Friday, August 20, 2010

8/20

This morning was one of the days that you just make yourself put one foot in front of another, because you're so tired that all you want to do is curl up on the side of the trail and let the mosquitoes feast.  Or something like that.

I was spitting out gnats the entire way.  I don't know if it's because it's so much darker these days, but man, it's like swirling clouds of bugs.  Crazy stuff.

We were both tired this morning, so I didn't even bother timing us.  Running just felt like a victory (I was up late helping a friend pack up her house; she's moving today to Oregon with four kids in tow, and her husband left for Oregon two months ago.  Talk about a superwoman; I don't know how she's done it).  Anyway.  On with the day.

STATS:  3 miles

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

8/18

Much better this morning!  I was really worried yesterday about the heaviness of the shoes thing, but today was better.  I'll give it another couple of weeks before I decide.  It was also nice to run in the morning again--I have been so utterly exhausted the last two days that the morning runs just haven't happened, and I HATE running later in the day.

It was dark this morning until we were almost done.  Fall is coming--while I'm excited for the cooler temperatures, I'm dreading the inside-all-winter-long runs. 

STATS:  3 miles, didn't time but we were going pretty fast

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

8/17

Today was supposed to be a tempo run, but I ended up running late enough in the day that I had no energy for tempo-ing (about 2:30 pm, after I'd been mowing the lawn).  So I just ran for the specified time while my sister Elise biked along beside me (my mom was home while the kids were napping).

My shoes felt really heavy (probably because of the lawn-mowing and late-in-the-dayness), and I was pretty fixated on that the whole time.  And I definitely need to recalibrate my iPod sensor for the new pouch, because most of the run it was telling me I was running a 9:50 mile, and that I had run much less than I'd actually run.  So that was really depressing and non-motivating, because I felt like I was already running pretty fast.

When I got home, I mapped it out and I'd actually run about 4.06 miles, which gave me an 8:36 mile.  Not great, but not bad either.

STATS:  4.06 miles, 8:36/mile

Monday, August 16, 2010

8/16

On Saturday I went to a technical running store and had my gait analyzed.  Apparently I roll back on my heel, then roll forward onto my toe.  The verdict was that I needed a shoe with a straighter last, a larger toe box, and a half-size larger to give more room for my feet to swell as I ran--which apparently is the most common problem (shoes are too small, then as you run your feet swell and start to hurt from being jammed in).  I ran with my new shoes this morning and didn't have any of the foot pain that I've been having with my old ones, but let me tell you this--all that new support made them feel really heavy.  My feet felt great, but my calves did not (I ended up with Asics Gel Fortitudes, if you're interested.  When I looked them up online later it said they were best for large-framed runners or severe over-pronators; I'm just going to tell myself that my problem is the latter!  :-)  I also got a iPod strap for my arm and a pouch for the Nike + on my laces (I looked at the Nike + shoes, but apparently they're not a good shape for my gait). 

My run today didn't feel so lovely...I was really tired from the weekend and the drive back (we got in about 10 last night and guess what?  all the kids were still awake, which meant it was a loooong drive, since we were stuck in traffic by Chicago).  So I slept in, and then I was just tired as I ran, and when I coughed I had bile come up my throat--all that lovely stuff.

STATS:  3.5 miles, 8:45/mile

Saturday, August 14, 2010

8/14

I did my three-miler today (switched the long run).  As I said yesterday, we were planning to go to the beach today, but the forecast was for rain, so we ended up going last night.  It was utterly perfect, but today when I was running I could feel the fatigue from yesterday.

Since we are at my parents' house, I was running trails that I ran in high school.  Which was kind of cool.  I'm not sure that my iPod mapped me correctly; it was right on for time, but when I was comparing it to mapmyrun later, it seemed like it may have been off, but I couldn't tell for sure because I was running through the woods.  Oh well. 

STATS:  3 miles, 8:36/mile

Friday, August 13, 2010

8/13

I woke up at 5:45 today to go running.  I was out by six, it was so dark I could see about ten feet of sidewalk in front of me.  Fog swirled across the path, and I watched the sun rise.

I ran a mile and a half to the trailhead where I was meeting my running buddy (who ended up being a little late this morning, so I had time to eat the banana I'd carried over, get a drink from the fountain, and run around the trailhead loop).  When she got there, we ran four miles (down to the end of the road and back).  Then we said goodbye and I ran the mile and a half home.  I did the long run today since we're planning to go to the beach tomorrow, and I don't want to fall asleep in the sand. 

Running felt good today, but I did not necessarily feel so good.  This isn't the sort of thing I normally go around talking about, but since it affects my training, we'll just say that it's that time of month, so I am really proud of myself for running at all.  Slow though I was, at least I didn't have to stop and throw up.  My goal today was simple:  just keep running.  Slow is just fine today.

STATS:  7 miles, 9:04/mile

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

8/11

Hills course on the treadmill today (it was thundering this morning); I ran the 5K course with what I think of as "death hills."  Ergh.  I started out at 7.3 mph, then realized after awhile that wasn't going to work the whole time over the hills and dropped down to 7 mph. 

STATS:  3 miles, hills course, 8:34/mile

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

8/10

Speedwork this morning on the treadmill (with a pajama-clad Juliet lying on my bed watching me through sleepy eyes and tousled curls). 

6 x 400 meter repeats (as close as I could tell on the treadmill; basically I just ran for 2 minutes somewhere between 7.5 and 7.7 mph, then ran at 7.1 mph for another 2 minutes and a bit, or until I saw the mileage click over to the half-mile mark, since my treadmill only marks to one decimal place, rather than showing me the .25 interval for 400 meters.  Was that convoluted enough?)

STATS:  3 miles, 8:13/mile

Monday, August 9, 2010

8/9

Another run with the iPod today--the calibration was a little off, but I finally figured out how to reset it using a pre-measured distance (assuming I have a decently accurate reading from mapmyrun.com).

I think Stacie and I swallowed about ten mosquitoes today between us. 

STATS:  3.5 miles, 8:37/mile

Saturday, August 7, 2010

8/7

Three years ago today, I was in labor with Juliet.  Today I ran six miles (hot, long, and boring); I almost think I'd prefer labor if I'd asked for the epidural earlier.

Neil and I were up laaaate last night canning and freezing (yesterday I processed 30 lbs of beans and a case of dilly beans, then Neil and I canned salsa last night when the kids were in bed).  So we didn't really want to get up at 6 am this morning to run, nor did we want to switch off running earlier in the morning, since it was Juliet's birthday and we were doing all the presents and hoopla there.

So I left about 10:30 to start running, and it may have actually been 77 degrees, but man, it felt so hot! When I ran through the woods it was pure bliss to be in the shade.  By the end, I had cold chills, which is never a good sign in the heat...

I finally got my Nike + calibrated and the sensor taped underneath my laces--I ran a mile this morning and it actually measured it as a mile (8:23).  Then I ran another five miles, and it kept turning off on me when I accidentally bumped it or something.  I can see now why everyone straps it to their arm; holding it in your hand or tucking it in your clothes seems to not work with the sensitive sensor.

So I'm not exactly sure how long my 6 miles took me, since I had to restart the workout 4 times, but the first mile was 8:23 and the last mile was 9:09, so if I just average that, it comes out to 8:40/mile.  Not too bad. Now I have to go mow the lawn, since I'm already sweaty.  Need more water!!

STATS:  6 miles, hills, 8:40/mile

Friday, August 6, 2010

8/6

It actually felt a little like fall today!  Sixty degrees--bliss.

My running partner turned back early today, since they wanted to leave for Nauvoo by seven AM.  So I ran the last couple of miles by myself.  I saw tons of wildlife today--everything from a killdeer that flew along in front of me for half a mile to a coyote trotting silently across the trail.  It was a beautiful morning.

STATS:  3 miles; under 27 minutes but not quite sure...

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

8/4

Today I tried to calibrate my Nike + foot pod.  I say "try" because it told me I'd run 1.25 miles when I'd really run 1.5. 

So I tried it all over again, using the instructions' suggestion to calibrate using a workout I'd already completed.  I ran another 1.5 miles and guess what?  This time I'd only run 1.12 miles, according to the sensor.  The cool female voice berated me for running a 12:30 mile.

I got online and typed in "can't calibrate Nike +" and I got about a billion hits.  Apparently these things are very temperamental.  Among my mistakes:
  • taping the sensor to my shoe rather than shelling out $70 for a pair of Nike+ shoes
  • running on a treadmill
  • aligning the sensor vertically rather than horizontally
  • running hills

    So looks like I'll be trying this all over again, which means I have to go to a track.  And decide if I want to buy new shoes (mine are about 3 years old, so they're getting a little battered, but I love them), or jimmy the sensor in my laces somehow.   

    STATS:  3 miles, 8:30/mile or 12:30, take your pick, Steve Jobs. 

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

8/3

Tempo run today, inside on the treadmill.  Neil and I are switching on treadmill days and outside days, although last night when both of us finished work at 11 pm (he was at the lab and I was working at home on my course websites) we decided we'd sleep in instead of getting up at 6 to run, since we weren't in bed until midnight.  So he went running around 7:30 while I got the kids up and breakfast going, then I ran later (while Isaac was napping and after I'd canned tomatoes--busy morning).

Today was the first time I ran with my iPod and I LOVED it!!  It was so awesome.  Can you believe I've been running for 3 years without some music?  It was a lovely change.  :-)

STATS:  3.5 miles, 8:25/mile.  Felt great!

Monday, August 2, 2010

8/2

Another three miles this morning, running through the fog.  It was really gorgeous with the sun rising and the fields of wildflowers (which are now about four feet tall), but then you smelled it and realized it was stinky fog from the celery bog.  So pretty to look at, but not exactly lovely to run through (plus, as my running buddy said, it was like breathing through soup).

I didn't check the time, but we ran at a pretty fast clip this morning, fast enough so that it was difficult to talk.

On another note, if anyone is reading this, and if you're training for anything right now, would you be interested in creating some kind of online forum where we could post about training?  It's always so motivating to me to know what other people are doing; I would love to read about people I actually know rather than the runnersworld.com bloggers.  :-)

STATS:  3 miles