Boston Marathon

Five for Friday

February 9, 2012 by Kristy 15 Comments

Terrific Tempo
On Tuesday I had 9 mile run planned with 5 miles at 7:50 pace. I was all in my head about this run and was seriously doubting my abilities to maintain 7:50 pace. I’m not quite sure where my confidence has gone this training cycle but I wish it would come back. My neighbor joined me for the run (i.e., Maximus, his blog alias) and that made me even more nervous. I generally run alone and, therefore, can wimp out when the going gets tough. The result? 7:55, 7:53, 8:03, 7:56, 7:51. The 3^rd tempo mile was rough but I got my groove back. The best part? This pace was comfortably hard, the way a tempo should feel.

Green Monsters
So they are very popular in blog land but can you really not taste the spinach? I’ve been drinking (eating?) them for a few weeks now and I promise you that if I tasted spinach they would be a no-go. I generally toss frozen strawberries, a frozen banana (1/2 of one), a ton of spinach, a splash of milk, and some OJ (to add some sugar) into a mixer. It’s delicious. Trust me. This is coming from the world’s pickiest eater.

Birthday Celebration
I can’t wait to celebrate my birthday this weekend with Matt. I just need to knock out a 20-miler on Saturday before the celebration can begin Smile

Mindful Eating
My friend Ruth sent me this article in the NY Times. It’s about mindful eating and really taking your time and enjoying and savoring each and every bite. Nearly impossible in today’s world. How many of you plow through lunch at your desk while reading email? Yesterday I tested it out and ate my lunch super slowly. It was difficult and I had to remain conscious of it at all times (I was also checking email, etc…I can’t just sit and stare at my cube wall). It definitely helped with digestion. Sometimes I feel like crap later in the afternoon because I gulp down my food in a few bites. Hmm, I think the Buddhists on are to something…

Heel Strike vs. Forefoot Strike
Another interesting article in the NY Times. Naturally, my favorite part of the article is something I said in a post a few months ago – does this mean that those of us who habitually heel-strike…change our form? “If you’re not getting hurt,” Dr. Lieberman says, “then absolutely not. If it’s not broke, don’t fix it.”

Ever had a green monster? If not, you are missing out! I’m officially a convert. Although don’t expect me to start eating chia seeds anytime soon

Ever tried mindful eating or is it just not feasible? I would imagine that for parents of small children this is impossible!

The Boston Marathon Jacket and Week 5 Recap

February 6, 2012 by Kristy 21 Comments

This post will probably come across as trite and insignificant. If you have been reading my blog for any amount of time you know how much the Boston Marathon means to me. Well, the marathon and the jacket. I have wanted that damn jacket for the past 10 years. Sounds silly but it means a lot to me.

After stalking the Adidas website for what seemed like an eternity, the 2012 Boston Marathon jacket was finally unveiled. Honestly, it’s a bit of a letdown. Specifically, the fit and color are disappointing.

Color
Why can’t they just stick with the old blue and yellow jackets? Ya know, the Boston Marathon jacket that everyone recognizes? This year’s color is an awful red-orange and black.

Fit
I read on the Runner’s World discussion boards that the jacket runs small. Crap, they weren’t kidding. I normally wear a small but ordered a small and medium to be on the safe side. I took pictures so you can see how ridiculous this is.

Womens Small – It’s way too short and too tight in the neck. I look like I’m wearing doll clothes. And why is it too tight in the neck? My neck is definitely a normal size.

Womens Medium – too wide

So I ordered a mens small to try out. What the hell, right?

Mens Small – perfect length, not too wide, fits in the neck area. But…wait…it’s different than the womens jacket.

I actually like the mens jacket better. Will I look like a jackass wearing the mens version? What would you do?

Side note: I have NO intention of wearing this jacket until after I cross the finish line. That would just be bad luck.

Boston Week 5 Recap
MON: 3 miles easy
TUE: 6 miles speed with 3 x 1-mile repeats
WED: barre class
THU: 7 miles with 5 long hill repeats
FRI: rest
SAT: 17.5 miles progression run
SUN: 6.5 miles easy

40 miles total for the week. This was a drop back week. I hope to hit 48 this week and then head into the 50s next week!

Progression Run Love

February 5, 2012 by Kristy 18 Comments

After a rough 20-miler last weekend I wanted to try a different approach for this weekend’s long run. I wanted to avoid going out too fast in the beginning but also wanted to include some marathon-paced miles towards the end. Since it always takes me forever to warm up in the winter, starting out slower gives me a chance to warm up naturally (not forcing it) all while saving energy for the later miles. I love progression runs so I decided on the following…

3 miles at 9:00 pace
4 miles at 8:50 pace
4 miles at 8:40 pace
the remaining miles at 8:30 or faster pace…this would give me about 7 miles near MP.

I didn’t do so bad…

It’s funny, my legs went on autopilot and resorted to old marathon paces – 9:00, 8:45, and 8:30. I had a hard time keeping myself at 8:50 or 8:40.

Overall, I was pretty pleased. I felt great; it didn’t feel too taxing and I had energy at the end of the run.

Are you a fan of progression runs?

Do you have a pace that your legs automatically gravitate towards? I was stuck at 9:00 minute/miles for awhile before I started doing speedwork. My legs always gravitate towards this pace.

Small Improvements

January 31, 2012 by Kristy 13 Comments

I have to focus on the small improvement here or else I would cry. This morning was another set of 3 x 1-mile repeats. Oy. This was the same exact speed workout I did 4 weeks ago.

Week 1: 7:10, 7:08, 7:11
Week 5 (today): 7:04, 7:10, 7:10

OK, so the 7:04 was a small improvement. All of these were effort based (Week 1 and Week 5) and I was sucking wind hard today. Unfortunately, I can’t say this is my 5K pace. Unless I want to die during the 5K.

So…even though I said I wouldn’t do this anymore…I took a peek at my training cycle for the Lehigh Valley Marathon (same week, same workout) — 7:11, 7:08, 7:05. Hmmm. I’m starting to think of my last training cycle (my BQ cycle) as the one where I constantly improved and this training cycle as the one where I constantly remain stagnant. Maybe I’m not meant to get any faster? Maybe I maxed out my speed? Maybe I should forget mile repeats (or any track work for that matter) and just run hill repeats? They are more fun anyway.

Moving on…

My favorite part of Runner’s World is the “I’m a Runner” feature on the back page. It’s like US Weekly for runners. I’m highly disappointed with the March issue. Kate Gosselin?!?! Jeez, were they desperate? I would like to knock her off the kitchen counter she’s sitting on. Her interview was obnoxious. Thanks RW…I’ll stick to Running Times.

Did you watch Jon & Kate Plus 8? I did, during its height…before she went crazy.

The First 20 and Boston Week 4 Recap

January 30, 2012 by Kristy 10 Comments

Saturday was the first of 5 20-milers that I’ll be doing to prep for Boston. Why so many? Well, practice makes perfect and (generally) I handle 20 miles pretty well in terms of recovery, so I can do a lot of them without compromising my other runs.

So the weather was perfect on Saturday. Seriously, it felt like Spring. Night and day compared to a week ago. I did 2 hilly loops totaling 11 miles before heading for some flat, paved trail for the remaining 9 miles. My breathing felt off the entire time. I slowed down, I sped up, and yet it was still off. I started getting hot and I guess I was sweating more than I thought. I tried drinking more but it was too late, I was already dehydrated. Boo. The last 3 miles were HARD. I wanted to stop and quit, especially at mile 19. 19 miles? 20 miles? What’s the difference? I thought about Boston and, knowing I would never quit at mile 25, I trudged onward. 2 hours and 55 minutes later (8:45 average pace), I was done.

I quickly got into my car (all I wanted to do was sit down) and chugged my chocolate milk. Then the aching and throbbing began. My legs were hurting big time. I transitioned into sitting too quickly. I usually walk around, drink my chocolate milk, and stretch a bit before driving home. Thank god it’s a short drive because I was in pain. Some stretching, a nice hot shower, lots of food, and a long walk with Hawk and my legs felt completely fine.

Boston Week 4 Recap
MON: 6 miles easy
TUE: 8 miles tempo with 4 miles @ 7:50 pace (7:44, 7:48, 7:54, 7:57). During the last interval there was a creepy raccoon wandering around and I had to stop and wait for it to move away. Ewwww.
WED: ~~barre~~ My body was screaming for a rest day so I slept in instead.
THU: 5 miles with 10 hill repeats. I did a mix of short and long hill repeats.
FRI: yoga. I left the class feeling wonderful!
SAT: 20 miles
SUN: 5 miles super easy

44 miles for the week. I was aiming for 47 but oh well, I needed rest. This week is a drop back week….all the way to 40 miles. Living on the edge!

Ever get that achy, throbbing feeling in your legs? The last time I got it was after the Pocono Marathon in May 2010 (it was so memorable because it was so painful).

The Snow Shuffle and Boston Week 3 Recap

January 23, 2012 by Kristy 9 Comments

An alternate title: Separating the Crazy from the Sane.

I woke up Saturday morning determined to get 17 miles in – snow, blizzard, ice storm, what have you. I woke up at 6:50AM, checked Twitter, and was surprised by all the “I’m treadmilling it today and getting my 20 miles done” tweets. Crap, is it that bad out? I checked outside and was surprised we got so much snow – about 3 inches. Usually the weather people are way off.

I couldn’t imagine running for 17 miles on the TM, so I bundled up, and prepared myself mentally for the challenge. I got myself out the door at 7:30 into the freezing rain. It wasn’t terribly cold but it was tough to run – even with my YakTrax on. The snow was deep. The paved trail that I usually run on clearly states “no winter trail maintenance” and they mean it. It pisses me off since they mow the lawn once a week in the summer but they can’t drop a plow and remove the snow in the winter. Running on an unplowed trail wasn’t working. I was shuffling along and my stride was all messed up. There was no way I could maintain this for 17 miles.

So I found a 1-mile stretch that was plowed and managed to run around it 7 times, looking like a complete ass in the process. By now my Garmin, my tights, my jacket, my hat, and my (right) eyelid were getting icy. My eyelid was really starting to sting too. I waved the white flag, ran the 1/2 mile back to my house, and decided to prepare myself mentally for another challenge – 9.5 miles on the TM.

I watched Leap Year while on the TM and tried to transport myself back to Ireland. It helped for the first 3 miles. After that I was just antsy and miserable. I have no idea how people run 20 miles on the TM. I’m in complete awe of them.

7.5 miles in the snow at 9:40 pace and 9.5 miles on the TM at 8:53 pace. Done and done!

Boston Week 3 Recap
MON: 8mi speed
TUE: 8mi tempo with 5 miles at MP (8:28, 8:11, 8:12, 8:16, 8:07). I experimented with doing 2 hard days back-to-back and it wasn’t too bad. Those MP miles felt easier then they did last week.
WED: barre class
THU: rest!
FRI: 6mi easy with 5 short hill repeats at the end
SAT: 17 loooooong miles
SUN: 6mi easy

45 miles total for the week.

How did you deal with the snow and running this weekend? If you live in the South or San Francisco and had perfect weather, I don’t want to hear it 😉

Does your favorite running route get plowed or do you have to get creative?