20 miles

Weekend Musings and Running Pet Peeves

March 5, 2012 by Kristy 21 Comments

Saturday
I had 20 miles on dock and it was nice and warm. It actually rained most of the run but it was that warm that the rain felt nice. I love runs like that. I finished 20 miles in 2:52 (8:36 average pace). I was shooting for closer to 8:30 average pace but I’ll take it.

I encountered 2 of my running pet peeves on Saturday. #1 – running so close (i.e., up my ass) that I can hear your breathing and your footfalls and #2 – guys that like to “race” when a girl passes them or may pass them (also need to add that when you pass them, it’s not without comment – “didn’t know we were racing” – yes, this was said to me a few weeks ago when I passed a group of guys).

Let’s call offender #1 Mr. A. Mr. A and I converge on the trail at the bottom of a hill. Mr. A is ahead of me and I am keeping a respectable distance as to not commit pet peeve #1. My pace is steady at 8:30 and Mr. A was probably pushing 8:15ish. There was no need for me to pass him. Mr. A turns around and sees me and then takes off. Takes off as in 7:30 pace, which is pretty impressive considering he appeared to be in his 50s. Apparently, I was a threat.

Offender #2, or Mr. B, is older – maybe 60s? As I get closer I realize I’m going to pass him and I do it quickly and mutter “good morning”. Well Mr. B wasn’t having that. He picks up the pace and I can hear him right behind me. Mr. B is now committing pet peeves #1 and #2 so I’m pissed. I speed up to make it hard for him to keep up.

As I speed up I gain some momentum on Mr. A. He turns around (again) and takes off (again). Now all 3 of us are running down a steep hill at 7:40 pace. Thankfully I had to cross the street at the bottom of the hill and left Mr. A and Mr. B to duke it out themselves.

All I can say is, WHY? Matt said I was just as bad for speeding up but there was no way I was letting some old dude pass me.

Sunday
Since this week was a drop back week, I was supposed to run 3 easy miles, bringing me to 43 for the week. I ditched the run and watched a movie with Matt instead. I love Sunday morning movie watching! I realized that 43 miles wasn’t much of a drop back and 40 sounded better.

After the movie I hit up lululemon (I had a gift card from my birthday). I got another Racerback Tank (love them) and something different for barre class – the No Limit Tank.

front view

back view

Experience any running pet peeves of your own this weekend?

Do I have any male readers? Can you please explain why this bothers guys so much? Other runners (male, female, old, young) pass me all the time and it doesn’t bother me one bit!

Weekend Recap: Celebration

February 12, 2012 by Kristy 15 Comments

Missed the first recap of the weekend? Read it here.

On Saturday night, Matt and I got our Groupon on at Spamps to celebrate my birthday. Yes, that is the name of the restaurant. It’s short for Spampinato, the owner’s last name. Dinner was good but dessert…oh my, one of my favorites. Chocolate lava cake with vanilla ice cream.

Initially it didn’t come with ice cream (can you imagine?). I requested it. You can’t eat a lava cake without melted ice cream drizzling down. I turned my flash off to take the picture. I didn’t want strange glances.

Matt and I went to the bar afterwards for a drink but were home by 9. You need to make a beeline out of Spamps before 10pm before it turns into a meat market.

Proof that it always snows around my birthday. Excuse my demonic eyes.

Matt, hating life because I’m taking his picture. Do it for the blog, Matt.

I woke up Sunday morning and I was feeling the 20-miler from Saturday and 48 miles in general for the week. I knew I was in for a treat at barre class.

My legs shaked non-stop in class. My quads were screaming and I could no longer tuck and squeeze. No one else’s legs were shaking, I appeared to be so out of shape. So barre class the day after a 20-miler is not ideal. Lesson learned.

What’s your favorite dessert? The lava cake is pretty high up there but I do love myself a DQ Blizzard.

Ever feel completely inadequate and out of shape during strength training or yoga because of running (even though you are clearly in shape)?

What I Think Thursday

August 3, 2011 by Kristy 14 Comments

When I run, my mind tends to calm down and just be at peace. All day long my mind thinks, analyzes, debates, goes crazy (!) but as soon as I begin running all that noise is gone. This is probably (besides the endorphin addiction) my favorite thing about running. Of course, if something is bothering me I will think about it during a run but for the most part my mind is free to roam.

So what do I think about when I run? Well, there’s the peace and quiet I described above and also lots of random thoughts. These random thoughts pop in quickly and leave just as quickly. Susan did a post a few weeks ago about what she thinks about on a run. I thought the post was genius and decided to steal the idea!

Do people think I run fast or slow?
Do I look funny when I run?
Damn, I need to pick it up.
Slow down, this supposed to be an easy run.
I can’t wait for chocolate milk.
I can’t wait for a Miller Lite.
Shot Blok time!
I don’t feel like going to work.
Can’t I just coach full-time?
Eww, I run into cobwebs all the time.
I hate bikers.
I know they are supposed to be called cyclists. Whatever.
Damn, it’s hot.
I wonder if people think I sweat too much for a girl.
This hill sucks.
Where should Matt and I travel to next?
We need milk.
Is it OK to walk into the grocery store to buy milk all gross and sweaty?
Fatigue is your friend.
Wow, that person is running fast.
Should I get highlights?
I think I can qualify for Boston.**
I need to qualify for Boston.**
Boston, Boston, Boston!!**

**These thoughts occupy a lot of miles 🙂

Are you a deep thinker when you run? Or are you more of a random thinker like me? What do you think about?

How To Run 20 Miles And Survive A Bachelorette Party

June 21, 2011 by Kristy 20 Comments

6/24/11
20 miles / 2:57 / 8:51 avg pace
*This was a tough one. It was so humid you could cut the air with a knife. My average pace felt hard and there wasn’t an inch of me that was dry. Check out my shorts post-run (I can’t believe I’m posting this awful close-up). I wore my Lululemon Willpower shorts and they are absolutely fantastic. Nike tempo what?!

This weekend is my friend Amanda’s bachelorette party so I’m heading down the shore today for some drinking and dancing with the Mains. So what am I doing to ensure I can still dance (and stay awake) after 20 miles?

1. Drink chocolate milk immediately post-run. I literally put the chocolate milk in a thermos and wrap it in an ice pack so I can drink it right away. I don’t mess around!

2. Foam roll. I spent a good 10 minutes foam rolling when I got home.

3. Ice bath. I generally don’t ice bath but I’ll take all the help I can get today.

4. Coffee/carbs/water. After a 5:00AM wake-up call, I desperately need coffee in order to hang tonight. And then I’ll need lots of water to counteract the dehydration from the 20-miler, coffee, and (eventually) beer. I’ll also be eating a mini-meal of carbs every 3-4 hours. Empty stomach + beer = bad news.

5. If all else fails, drink beer. It’ll numb the soreness in your legs! Yes, that is asparagus on the side there. You need to balance out the beer with some healthy eats.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Week 10 Recap

March 13, 2011 by Kristy 2 Comments

3/13/11

5 miles easy

I ran without my Garmin today (on purpose). It was liberating! Can’t wait to do that more after the NJ Marathon. It was tough to get out the door today. I haven’t been sleeping well the past few nights so a nap ranked way above a run but then the guilt would eat away at me. So instead of the 7 miles I had planned, 5 did the job today. And I do feel better. I never regret a run.

Week 10 recap of NJ Marathon training (really, week 10 already)?!
MON: rest
TUE: 7 miles speed + 75 min yoga
WED: rest
THU: 7 miles tempo
FRI: rest (supposed to go to yoga but slept right through it)
SAT: 20 miles
SUN: 5 miles easy

Total of 39 miles and too many rest days! I’m liking this schedule…speed on Tues/tempo on Thurs/easy on Sun. I also like having Monday as a rest day. I feel like it’s well earned after running Saturday and Sunday.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend! I’m off to watch Selection Sunday. Sadly my SJU Hawks didn’t advance to the finals of the A-10 tournament. Boo.

20 Miles – Take 3

March 12, 2011 by Kristy 5 Comments

3/12/11

20 miles

3:00

9:00 avg pace

The FIRST plan called for 20 miles at 9:16 pace today. My plan was to slow down and follow the 9:16 pace for 15 miles and, if I did, I could run the last 5 miles at GMP. I felt good, the weather was beautiful (windy but nice), and I’m glad I held back and was able to speed up during the last few miles.

Splits, shall we?
M1: 9:16
M2: 9:07
M3: 9:24
M4: 9:21 –> Shot Blok #1
M5: 9:10
M6: 9:08
M7: 8:58
M8: 9:02 –> Shot Blok #2
M9: 9:05
M10: 8:52
M11: 9:00
M12: 9:14 –> Shot Blok #3
M13: 9:11
M14: 8:57
M15: 8:54
M16: 8:47 –> Shot Blok #4
M17: 8:42
M18: 8:37
M19: 8:51
M20: 9:14 (suddenly got tired)

I saw a sea of green and beads while running past the train station; lots of 20somethings waiting to the train to Philly for the Erin Express. The EE is an Irish bar crawl in Philly that takes place on the first 2 Saturdays in March. I used to frequent the EE for many years and it was a blast, as long as you don’t mind super crowded bars, beer being spilled on you constantly, and long lines for the bathroom (with no toilet paper). I didn’t mind those things in my 20s but you couldn’t pay me to do it now! Funny how things change without you even realizing it. Today I plan on watching St. Joe’s (hopefully) beat Dayton and advance to the finals of the A-10 tournament (all from the comfort of my couch). Then I’ll take Hawk for a walk and check out our St. Patty’s Day parade (sans solo cup of beer). Very different from past St. Patty’s Day celebrations.

027 — I did love those beads. Wore them for many years.

These pictures were not even taken on St. Patty’s Day, they were taken at Irish Weekend in Wildwood, NJ (every September). Yeah, I used to celebrate my Irish-ness twice each year – in March and September. Ah, the good old days 🙂