Shot Blok

Saturday vs. Sunday

February 4, 2011 by Kristy 5 Comments

2/4/11

8 easy peasy miles

1:17

9:37 avg pace

Mother Nature is being quite the bitch lately. I normally do my long runs on Saturday but tomorrow’s forecast looks like this:

A “wintry mix”. All day long. Since I don’t want a repeat of last week’s slippery run I’m moving my long run to Sunday. Bleh. I know I should just go with the flow and not complain since Sunday will be a nice day but I LOVE my Saturday morning long runs. Why?

1. I’m a creature of habit and routine. I’ve always done long runs on Saturday.
2. It fits my schedule. In rarely have plans on Friday night (and if I do they are low-key) so I can get a good night’s sleep and still get up early for my run. Pushing the run to a Sunday means I have to watch my Saturday night shenanigans (going to bed early, not drinking too much, etc.). I’m a real party pooper.
3. I like to get it over with. If I wait until Sunday I think about it and dwell on it.

Sorry that I complain so much about the weather. This winter has been brutal though. I have never used the treadmill so much.

Let’s switch topics a little and talk about long run prep. That’s right, preparation. I’m never able to just get up and go, even in the summer. Aron at Runner’s Rambles wrote about this last week. It’s nice to see that other people also plan, plan, plan their long runs.

I begin stalking weather.com on the Tuesday prior to my long run. Not sure why since I can’t change the weather. I continue to stalk until I can see the hourly forecast (usually on Friday morning). Then I plan what I’m going to wear and lay everything out.

Then I gather all the stuff that I need to take with me. I used to carry all this stuff to the car by hand. Then I got smart and started throwing it in a bag.

Obvious items: iPod, Garmin, hand-held water bottle, towel
2 pair of gloves: when it’s really cold I’ll change my gloves halfway through the run.
Shot Bloks in Black Cherry: love ’em. On runs over 15 miles, I eat 3 (half the pack) every 4-5 miles.
Blue water bottle: chocolate milk for post-run fuel! I only fill it about halfway. And you better believe I think about that ice cold chocolate milk waiting for me in my car during the final miles.
Gum: can’t run without it.
Aquaphor: I smother my lips in this stuff during the winter. If I don’t they get terribly chapped. I even use it around my eyes. My eye area tends to be dry and the sweat just aggravates it.

You should see my marathon checklist..one day I’ll post about it. Shockingly, it’s pretty thorough 🙂 Laugh if you want but I’ve never forgotten anything. Prepared is my middle name!

Baby It's Cold Outside

January 22, 2011 by Kristy 8 Comments

1/22/11

17 miles

2:37:59

9:17 avg pace

The good old training plan called for 17 miles at 9:30 pace. I try and do my long runs a little faster and run based on how I feel. It wasn’t as fast as last week’s long run but it was almost 20 degrees colder. Yup, the “feels like” temp was about 3 degrees when I started running this morning. Brrrr. It took me almost 10 minutes to get dressed. I had on 2 pairs of socks, running tights with running pants over top, a tank, the wonderful Lululemon Run: Alpine Pullover, and a mid-weight windbreaker over that. On my head I wore a Dri-FIT baseball hat with a fleece headband. I felt like Randy (little brother) from A Christmas Story. But I was so comfortable the entire time – not too hot and not too cold. All in all, it wasn’t as bad as I thought it was going to be.

I even had a running buddy for the first 10.5 miles! My neighbor, Maximus, joined me. His name isn’t really Maximus. I asked him to come up with an alias for the blog and that’s what he said. Maximus is a triathlete (he does Half Ironmans) who can run circles around me. He started tagging along on my long runs last summer to get his mileage up. He’s a great running buddy because (1) he does most of the talking and tells entertaining stories and (2) he let’s me set the pace and just comes along for the ride. Thanks “Maximus” for braving the elements today!

Splits:

M1 – 9:32
M2 – 9:40
M3 – 9:10
M4 – 9:19
M5 – 9:15 –> Shot Blok #1 (frozen solid, very interesting to eat)!
M6 – 9:23
M7 – 9:14
M8 – 9:27
M9 – 9:12
M10 – 9:12 –> Shot Blok #2
M11 – 9:18
M12 – 9:23
M13 – 9:13
M14 – 9:09 –> Shot Blok #3
M15 – 9:11
M16 – 9:16
M17 – 8:56

After the run, I did a little of this to thaw out. Hawk was more than happy to join me by the heater. Please ignore my red, chapped face. The wind was a little brutal today.

We are in the midst of painting…that orange stripe in the background is not permanent.

I’ll leave you with one of my favorite moments from Glee. This is one of my favorite Christmas songs…and it’s very fitting for today!

Redemption Run

January 15, 2011 by Kristy 6 Comments

1/15/11

15 miles

2:15

9:00 avg pace

I’m calling this run the Redemption Run after last week’s disastrous 13-miler. It’s amazing what a change in perception can do. Running is very much mind over matter. If you think and believe you can do it, you can. If you let doubt and negative thoughts take over, you won’t achieve your goal no matter how hard you trained. A few years ago during a run I overheard another runner say “if you don’t mind, it doesn’t matter”. So very true. If only it were that easy. Another great line (from Elizabeth’s blog): it takes years of practice to solidify your head. I’m definitely still working on that one.

My training plan called for 15 miles at 9:31 pace. I felt great so I went with it. I had miles and miles of plowed trails…I was downright giddy 🙂 I was out running a little before 8:00 and it was cold! But there was very little wind so it was bearable. There were also a bunch of like-minded (i.e., crazy) runners out too. Misery loves company.

Splits:

M1 – 9:22

M2 – 9:17

M3 – 9:05

M4 – 9:07

M5 – 9:08 (Shot Blok #1)

M6 – 9:10

M7 – 9:05

M8 – 9:11

M9 – 8:55

M10 – 8:53 (Shot Blok #2…swapped my wet, cold gloves for dry ones – I was a happy camper after that)

M11 – 8:54

M12 – 8:52

M13 – 8:51

M14 – 8:50

M15 – 8:53

I like to see that I sped up during the last 5 miles (must have been the warm, dry gloves at Mile 10).

It was a really pretty run. It’s funny how nice the Schuylkill River looks frozen.

IMG00050-20110115-0930 — I couldn't resist...GO HAWKS!

Next up – a recovery nap followed by some Saturday night shenanigans (partially kidding…I’m old and fast asleep before any shenanigans occur). It’s my friend Steve’s 30th birthday and we are going out to celebrate. It’s nice to know I still have 1 friend that’s turning 30…it makes me feel young!