we now return to our regularly scheduled program

you've got to get up every morning with determination if you're going to go to bed with satisfaction.

- george horace lorimer

i've had an easy transition to actually-working five days a week (though i'm sure i will miss my off-fridays dearly) for about 11 hours/day, and still having energy to run. making myself go to bed at 10pm helps - i've even started to wake up naturally at 5:30 so i get to work on time. i know, how exciting. i'm definitely not complaining. the hours are longer, lunch is almost non-existent, but the work is plentiful so i don't have to sit and twiddle my thumbs like i did back in the office. obviously i'm still digging the jeans/t-shirt attire; i totally wore one of my marathon shirts in earlier this week.

i forced myself to re-hitch a ride on the running wagon and am now going on 8 days straight. (last week was so crappy, i logged more mileage on monday and tuesday alone this week.) i'm not aiming to have some incredibly long streak, i just need to get myself safely away from the hole i dug. however, i am still desperately slacking nutritionally. hopefully i'll clean it up (for the most part) this weekend and crack the whip monday. i've had a few not-so-lovely stomach aches lately and i know it's from all the crap i keep plowing down.

wednesday (4/1) pm run: 6.26 miles, 53:42 (avg pace 8:34), avg hr (162)

nothing exciting - just an easy run on the hotel 'mill followed by 10 minutes on the bike.

thursday (4/2) pm run: 3.52 miles, 30:00 (avg pace 8:31), avg hr (157)

this was an 'optional' workout day but i figured i'd go for a few easy miles and continue my little streak. there was a dude on the tm when i went down to run, but he said he only had about 9 minutes left so i pedaled away on the bike (10 min) while he finished up. the bike is positioned so that you can see the tm's dashboard, and when i sat down he cranked up the speed a little. swoon.

just kidding, at least he was running. a few minutes into my run and a super bad rain storm rolled in. i could hear the thunder and rain over all the noise of the treadmill and tv. i had briefly considered running over at the high school a few miles away, so i was glad my confinement to the tm paid off for once.

friday (4/3) pm run: 9.2 miles, 1:11:58 (avg pace 7:49), avg hr (164)

like i mentioned, my diet has been less-than-spectacular all week, and extra worse today. i had a delicious, warm, gooey cinnamon roll at 6:30am, moist homemade chocolate cake at 9, cheesecake for lunch, and chips/dip and donuts sprinkled globbed in between for my afternoon snack. (and yet i wonder why i can't seem to get rid of my buddha belly. it's a mystery.) i felt 20 pounds heavier with each bite, but i deserve it for being such a sucker for sweets and chocolatey goodness. yes, i still have my food allergies, but i know they won't kill me so sometimes i suck at being good. :(

anyway friday was interval day. as i shoveled junk food in all day, i was a little worried about how i'd hold up. since i had cake for breakfast and lunch, i had a slice of (pepperoni) pizza around 3pm to ensure i at least had some nutrients. ...riiiiight. so i fueled terribly, but i survived. definitely won't be fueling like this again though.

the plan: 20 minutes easy, 2x(10x200 repetition "r" pace with 1 min easy), 10 minutes easy after each set. (my r-pace for 200m is 0:44)

i was quite intimidated by the "2x10" part, but figured i'd get through the first set and try to do as many of the 2nd set as i could hang on for. i got competitive with myself and completed the workout as prescribed, what a good feeling!

1st set - 0:45, 0:44, 0:45, 0:42, 0:45, 0:43, 0:45, 0:41, 0:45, 0:42
(avg 0:43; mile pace 5:49)
2nd set - 0:41, 0:45, 0:42, 0:44, 0:42, 0:45, 0:42, 0:45, 0:42, 0:45
(avg 0:43; mile pace 5:46)

all-in-all, it feels good to be back in a routine and logging normal mileage. i wish i could run outside more (/ever) but i'll have to savor that on the weekends when i have the time to drive somewhere populated and runner-friendly (sidewalks/shoulders).

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i didn't even break a sweat

well that was pathetic.

after all my waiting and debating over the weather, it started raining and i finally peeled myself off the couch and onto the treadmill.

...for 13 minutes and 30 seconds. i hopped off for no real reason other than i had been telling myself i could take a break (potentially for the bathroom) at a mile and a half. i talked to j for a few minutes and then heard the treadmill shutting off (it readjusts the incline) so i was like, oh well guess i'm done.

too hard to turn it back on, i know.

a big 1.5 miles for today. here's hoping i can stay on schedule for the rest of the week while traveling through the weekend.

in all fairness, technically i had 0 scheduled for today. but i took sunday off so i shoulda ran more...

thursday (3/19) pathetic pm run: 1.5 miles, 13:30 (9:00 avg pace)

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lil wheezy

i am struggling to get things done in my life lately. my free time, what little there is, just flies by. guess i need to quit going in to work or something... (just kidding, kind of) :) my personal life has also randomly gotten a little more exciting (/busy) and i never have time to do anything. my laundry (for one person) could probably rival joy's family of four right now. i'm really not sure how you adult people handle life. i can't even take care of myself. :-/

monday (3/16) pm run: 5.2 miles, 46:24 (avg pace 8:55), avg hr (165)
after sunday's 7 hour drive i didn't quite have the energy to get up in the morning to run so i ran after work as usual. it was cloudy and cool all day with rain in the forecast, but it appeared to be holding off. i got home, changed, and opened the door to get my run done and alas, it's raining.

ok, so it was a light rain, but i have had no troubles lately talking myself out of a rainy run. i remember one time a little over a year ago i did mile repeats in the pouring down rain, and now i can't even do a shorter, easy run in light rain. oh well. hopped on the treadmill, it was invigorating.

tuesday (3/17) lunch run: 6.2 miles, 51:48 (avg pace 8:21), avg hr (175)
it's 400m repeats day again! happy st. patick's day to me. i was not doing these on the treadmill again as i was certain last week's attempt was way off my actual abilities. i completely missed my alarm in the morning and i knew i wouldn't be able to run after work (dinner plans) so i ran during lunch. i did the repeats on the streets in a neighborhood near work that has some basically-flat stretches and my times were much more reasonable to me. i feel a little better about last week's treadmill repeats since i can officially say something (treadmill and/or nike+) was off.

5x400 - 1:32, 1:31, 1:28, 1:28, 1:29
(goal pace 1:30)

wednesday (3/18) pm run: 9.3 miles, 1:21:52 (avg pace 8:48), avg hr (162)
i love dst. i can magically run for over an hour and it's still not even 'dusky' out. 68* doesn't hurt either.

i'll be honest - i wasn't feeling this run. i had 8 on the schedule but secretly wanted to do more (11) all day. i knew after work i wasn't feeling up to much more than 8 so i filled a water bottle to take with me so i couldn't use thirst as an excuse to quit early. the pollens and allergens are out in full force (as they are all year round anyway); at some point my town was listed in the top 10 worst places to live for people with allergies. terrific! i have all kinds of allergies, let me buy a house here. brilliant. so anyway my lungs were sucking for the first 8 miles and then it was easier to breathe. not sure if they quit trying to kill me or if i just inhaled enough allergy crap to numb them and they rolled over and played dead. i struggled with motivation until about 7.5 miles and then i semi-enjoyed the rest of the run. coulda been 'cause i knew i only had 1.5 left to go and perhaps a little cooperation from the lungs helped as well.

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spoiling my shins

it only took three years of encountering minor setbacks from various injuries (thankfully never anything serious) for me to learn the proper way of handling them when they first try to set up camp.

when my shins hurt saturday from the running, walking and hiking, i iced them a little saturday night and skipped my sunday long run. i made an ice cup at work (part boredom, part necessity) and iced them during the afternoon on monday. i also ran shorter than originally planned, stretched well (*gasp*) and iced again after my run. they felt better on tuesday although still a little achey, so i iced again at work in the afternoon, ran shorter than planned again and followed it up with another solid stretch regime.

my ice cup. works wonderfully.

today (wednesday) i think they are continuing to feel better and i'm hoping my extra efforts in stretching and icing and taking it easy will help them not become full-on shin splints. the only day they really hurt-hurt was saturday, and they have just been noticeably achey since. so, i'm hoping the crisis is almost fully averted. i gave them the ol' ice cup again at work today, but ran today's run as planned (but slow).

monday (3/9) pm run: 5 miles, 45:42 (9:08 avg pace), avg hr (163)
i'm dog sitting again this week so i took ol' buddy out for 3 miles and then hit the treadmill to finish the run. i feel bad putting him back in his crate after he's been in there all day. i still can't believe how much slower he's gotten. he used to hang with me for 6-7 miles and now i practically have to drag him home on a 3 mile run. it was 81* though, maybe the heat was getting to him. (planned mileage was 8, i didn't really mind doing 5 instead.)

tuesday (3/10) pm run: 6 miles, 50:59 (8:29 avg pace), avg hr (172)
my first non-strictly-easy run since the goofy challenge. it was tough on my tortoise legs. again, i felt bad for the dog, so we did a 2 mile warm up outside and then i hit the treadmill for my intervals. yes, intervals. because we wouldn't want an gentle transition from 6 weeks of easy running now would we.

the plan was: 20 min easy, 10x400 "repetition (r) pace" (1:30) with 3 min easy, 10 min easy. unfortunately for me, i knew i should take it easy on the shins so i only did 5x400. at least it's a start in the speed department. i didn't really know what setting to put the treadmill on since the calibration is off a little, so i picked 9.0. my nike+ is also 'off' whenever i run faster than easy pace since my stride changes i guess, but i figured i'd at least get close enough.

having the treadmill rotate at 9.0 is quite the motivation to pick up your feet. i felt like i was going to be thrown off the back end it was spinning so fast. i'm pretty sure i'm never running intervals on the treadmill again. when i finished a 400, i had to hang on for dear life while trying to turn the speed back down for my recovery.

so obviously, my times weren't exact to the starting/stopping points. i wish they had been better, but i'm not going to adjust them. gotta start somewhere. hopefully the next time i do these (on a track) i'll see better and more accurate results.

5x400 - 1:51, 1:50, 1:50, 1:48, 1:48

see, i'd imagine if you were running on a treadmill at the same speed then your time should be the same... i did improve a little and hopefully my theory as to why my times are so much slower than goal pace (1:30) will be proven soon on the track.

wednesday (3/11) pm run: 7.1 miles, 1:04:50 (9:07 avg pace), avg hr (159)
i headed out later than usual (7pm) with jess. we ran an easy 5 together that was a lot slower than normal but didn't feel so easy to me. when we got back to the house i leashed up the dog and took him out for another 2 miles to complete the run. those two miles were faster and felt better, so i think i just needed to work some kinks and lead out of my legs.

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a case of the doms

the world is coming to an end.

for the second time this week i got up and ran in the morning and on the treadmill again no less. check me into the insane asylum please. (i am, however, mostly glad to be slowly getting back to my morning-run routine.)

i woke up a bit stiffer/sorer from tuesday's 300 so i took it easy and started out at a much slower pace than normal. my legs just did not want to move. eventually (30 minutes later) they loosened up and i moved to my regular treadmill-pace (and beyond, for a bit). i set the timer on the tm so that it counted down the minutes instead of the usual counting-up which seemed to help throw in some 'variety' and keep my brain preoccupied. i didn't spend as much time admiring the bedroom across the hallway or the pile of shoes in the corner. ahh the view from the treadmill, breathtaking.

thursday (3/5) am run: 6.5 miles, 59:59 (9:13 avg pace)

i'm hoping to be able to pull myself out of bed again tomorrow morning to run, and theoretically get in some ab work, but hopefully at least a run. i won't really have time to otherwise and i can't afford another 0 mile day (mentally or according to the scale). so here's hoping i can motivate myself out of my nice, big warm bed tomorrow at o'dark am.

this is my last week of straight-easy running, and after 8 weeks of it i'm ready to start feeling like i might have some sort of speed in me. i planned a long (boring) training/recovery period after the goofy challenge to not only give my legs/body a break, but also to (theoretically) lessen the pressure on myself of sticking to a training schedule. kind of like an off-season but without really taking time off. i didn't do so well being laidback about my miles, but i did take a few liberties with extra rest-days and managed to not feel too guilty.

the schedule isn't going to get too intense next week, but brian has instigated a fight by pointing out that his 5k/10k pr's are now better than mine. we can't be having that! i'm not sure if i'll switch up my plan to focus exclusively on those distances because a) i don't really enjoy trying to kill myself with speedwork that much and b) i need a weekend long run to burn some serious calories. (it's true.) i am, however, definitely going to have to modify it and jump in some races so i can beat his times shut him up. :o)

i'll be mia this weekend, hoping i can somehow squeeze a run in on saturday, but i'll be sure to enjoy a lazy sunday afternoon catching up with everyone('s blogs)! have a great weekend all!

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start spreading the news

these vagabond shoes are longing to stray right thru the very heart of it - new york, new york.

i (sort of) have an official goal race to train for now! i got my official acceptance email to the ing nyc marathon over the weekend (i know, how could i withhold this information for so many days!) so i can officially put that on the schedule, although i basically already had it on there. that race is not until november though so it's not something i can really get motivated to train for yet. i am still considering a spring/summer marathon to "just do" but nothing has struck my fancy (and schedule) yet. i'm excited to be in, but i could've done without the $180 or so charge to my amex... running is a cheap sport, right?

monday - i was gonna run since i slacked off three days last week, (and illegitimately took the day off from work) but i didn't. it sure didn't help that coach jay's tip of the week was "blow off your training plan"! luckily it was my scheduled day off for the week anyway. another excuse of mine was that i didn't want to run in the icy conditions - of the intense snow "storm" we had, this is all that remained in my yard monday afternoon:


tuesday - solid 3.5 hours of sleep. i rose way before the sun to get my run in on the tm before work. i knew i would not be able to convince myself to run in the 30* or so at lunch or after work, and i'd probably make more excuses for the treadmill as the day went on, so i went ahead and got it over with. once again i had to play mind games with myself to get to 2 miles, 3 miles, etc. what is it about the tm that is so torturous?

tuesday (3/3) am run: 6.2 miles, 56:14 (9:04 avg pace), avg hr (165)

after work i did a "300" workout. i made up 3 different 'workouts', each with 10 different exercises (30 reps each) that i can hopefully do 3x/week. the exercises are basically various pushups, squats, lunges, etc, that require no equipment (except a ball) and can be done at home. i didn't renew my gym membership and i don't want to re-join, but i do want to try to get back to doing weight-like exercises regularly.

wednesday - i tried waking up early again to run before work but i was exhausted. i didn't actually feel awake until mid-afternoon. i wasn't sore when i woke up but as the day passed i could feel the doms setting in. i actually enjoy being sore for some reason. i was able to get out for a lunch time run, and i originally wanted to go a little longer (9-12 miles) than the planned 8, but ultimately i settled for the plan because i figured i probably shouldn't take a two-hour lunch break. i'm hoping the mid-day run helped flush the lactic-acid out quicker and the soreness doesn't increase tomorrow.

wednesday (3/4) lunch run: 8 miles, 1:10:05 (8:45 avg pace), avg hr (162)

after work i went out to dinner with my pal jess. we decided to reminisce on our own lovely table-waiting memories and ate at a brand new cracker barrel. glamorous. our server girl was cool and the rest of the staff was actually friendly. jess and i were wondering if we were just grumpy when we did it? i'm thinking since they are all new they might still enjoy the newness of the job and the people they work with... let's be real, waiting tables can be a pain! especially at a cracker barrel (in the south no less) where you often get some redneck clientele who want some "chow chow" with their meal. it took me awhile to figure out what they were asking for. (relish, in case you didn't know either.)

since i served my sentence, it bugs me when people seriously only leave 10 or 15% of the bill as their tip at places like cb where your meal is a lot cheaper to begin with. i mean your meal is half the cost of what it would've been elsewhere, would it hurt to throw down an extra buck? (provided the service was good of course). anyway i hooked our girl up, but i had to do it at the register since i never have cash. i hope she saw the tip on the computer and didn't think we stiffed her!

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the human garbage disposal

it's been kind of a blah week on the running front. i didn't want to slip and give any additional free screen time to a certain chocolate manufacturer so i had to refrain from my regular running talk.

monday was my scheduled rest day and rest i did. i also fell off the nutritional wagon some more, if that's even possible since i've been eating garbage for awhile anyway. i didn't even track my calories in/burned for the first half of the week so i wouldn't have to know how bad i was doing. garbage in, garbage out they say, and i spent the latter half of the week dragging my derailed train back on the tracks. hopefully i'll be full steam ahead next monday with protein and veggies.
monday (2/23), day of rest

tuesday was a lovely day and j and i were able to run during lunch. we ran an easy 6 near work which is much nicer than the extra-hilly route near my house. we even got to inhale some of the toxic fumes from part of the road being repaved, what more could you want.
tuesday (2/24) lunch run: 6 miles, 52:32 (8:45 avg pace), avg hr (152)

on wednesday i was moody. i wanted to run but i didn't want to run. i ended up not running of course, because i suck. that made me more moody. i tried to think of something to do for lent (even though i'm not catholic, i just like to do it anyway) but i knew giving up chocolate was out of the question. i guess i didn't try too hard 'cause i never came up with anything. forgive me, baby Jesus.
wednesday (2/25), day of laziness

thursday i had planned to get up in the morning and run a few miles on the treadmill before work, and get in my regular run after work. of course i slept through my "run" alarm and didn't wake up until my "yay time for work" alarm. i did manage to get in a quick 3-miler during lunch though. i was mad at myself for being lazy on wednesday so i ran hard as punishment. let me tell you, trying to sprint for 3-miles after 6+ weeks of nothing but easy runs is hard. about half a mile into the run i remembered how not-awesome it feels to run hard. running easy is so less likely to bring about death and well, easy. i ended up running the first two miles hard and then pulled back and ran the last mile easy. yes, a three miler kicked my butt. whatever. i haven't done any speedwork since a tempo run on january 4th. cut me some slack (but not too much).
thursday (2/26) lunch run: 3.1 miles, 23:40 (7:38 avg pace), avg hr (182)

i also got in my "regular" run after work with j. once again, not really in the mood to run, but i made myself get out there. having company certainly helped, i probably would've talked myself into a seat on the couch otherwise. it was a hilly run, but much more enjoyable without the impending feeling of death.
thursday (2/26) pm run: 6.3 miles, 56:51 (9:01 avg pace), avg hr (161)

the rain came on friday, but at least it was an off-friday! we saw the forecast had a 45-minute window of "no rain" so j and i headed out to get in a few miles. of course, it started raining after about 5 minutes. it was a mostly-light rain so we stuck it out for 3 miles, and then i came back and finished my run on the lovely treadmill. not exactly a girl's best friend when i'm already struggling to make myself go run period.
friday (2/27) am run: 8 miles, 1:12:30 (9:03 avg pace), avg hr (172)

saturday i woke up to more rain... and it didn't quite look like it'd be over any time soon.

so... i got to hop back on the treadmill! yaay, two days in a row. thanks rain. i was planning on running 14 or so today but i really didn't think i'd last that long on the tm. from the beginning, i had to talk myself into running at least 20 minutes. luckily once i got there i was able talk myself into a few more minutes, a few more minutes after that, and before i knew it i was at 8 miles. talked myself into another mile, and i knew i needed my mileage to end in a .x3 to even out my 'lifetime' mileage, so i ran a few more steps to get .33 before i hopped off. over an hour on the tm = success in my book. my mileage will be lower than i'd like for the week with my extra day off and the rain but i think i can still live with it. (and it's still raining 8 hours later...)
saturday (2/28) am run: 9.33 miles, 1:22:07 (8:48 avg pace)

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february 2009 - more easy running. feel slow. no racing. losing motivation. ate too much chocolate, need to quit.

total mileage: 159.58
time spent running: 23:36:28
days off: 7 (6 scheduled rest/xt days; 1 day of laziness)
abs/yoga: 9 ab workouts/4 yoga sessions
avg resting hr: 50.76
avg max hr: 180.73

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coming up short

i'm a slacker.

figures that my follow up post to my first, crappy marathon would be one about slacking off. i think i jinxed myself.

today, sunday, was supposed to be my 'long' run. i had 13 planned, but was hating every step i took. it was 44* when i started out so i had on a light windbreaker. that got too warm about 2 miles in so i took it off and tied it around my waist, and instantly hated having the thing tied around my waist. it was flapping behind me and hitting my legs, and not helping my already-irritated mood. the weather was nice - sunny and not too cold, and i tried to tell myself "look how nice the weather is, lets just enjoy a nice run" but no, not a single part of me would listen.

so i turned around somewhere around 3.5 miles. slacker. i got back to the house with 7 miles in, added it in to my spreadsheet (yes i am a dork and proud of it) and noticed if i ran another 1/2 mile i could at least get 35 miles for the week (instead of the planned 40). so i hopped on the treadmill to round out my miles. i called my friend looking for her to tell me that it was ok to slack off this week but got her voicemail... was that a sign? it's not ok?

it's easy for me to tell myself that it's ok because this is week 4 of running since goofy and it fits into the "cutback every 4th week" rule. or maybe i just made that rule up. of course my mileage hasn't been anything spectacular lately (22, 30, 37) so do i even deserve a "cutback" week? i'm hard on myself, i know. (who isn't?) i've been getting lectured about that for years.

maybe i'll head out for a couple more miles this afternoon if i'm really feeling guilty but knowing me, i'll be too lazy and end up being grouchy for letting myself slack off.

sunday (1/15) am run: 7.5 miles easy, 1:07:55 (9:03 avg pace), avg hr (157)


i didn't spend the whole week completely sucking --

wednesday (1/11) lunch run: 6 miles easy, 50:32 (8:25 avg pace), avg hr (159)
since this run was 4 days ago i don't remember too much about it. 62* and sunny, i still couldn't slow down enough to my daniels' easy pace, but closer than tuesday.

thursday (1/12) non run: 25 minutes of jillian michael's kickboxing
i think i'm gonna get her shred dvd to have for my non-running days since everyone seems to have good things to say about it.

friday (1/13) am run: 8.5 miles easy, 1:12:07 (8:29 avg pace), avg hr (172)
friday the 13th can't be that bad if it's an off-day from work. it was a lovely 60* and sunny although i was a little dehydrated from not drinking anything before heading out on my run. (which i think contributed to my higher than normal hr) hmm, maybe i was a slacker all week...

saturday (1/14) am run: 7 miles easy, 1:01:45 (8:49 avg pace)
i got dressed to head out on this run after seeing 53* on weather.com. i opened to door and heard the faintest of "rain". (you couldn't even see it.) it also felt a lot colder than 53 (today's 44 was quite nice in comparison) and i just wasn't in the mood to get "rained" on. so i shut the door, debated with myself for a few minutes about just going because i wouldn't have time later in the day, and decided to just suck it up and go. i opened the door again and now you could actually see the rain. so i wimped out and ran on the treadmill, but at least i ran i guess.

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week in review (2/9 - 2/15):
total miles: 35.00 (all easy)
time spent running: ~5 hours
avg hr: 165.20
abs & yoga: 2 ab days, 1 yoga
off days: 2, both scheduled (1 xt)

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my legs don't hate me afterall

yesterday and today i woke up at 5:00am with all the intentions of running before work. i really need to get back in that groove soon, because in a few months i will have no choice! i haven't ran in the morning in months (not counting races of course), and i love running in the morning. it makes me more awake and alert throughout the day, and i love the extra peacefulness since very few people are up at that hour. well, i love the quiet, dark, solitude for the most part... when i'm not running a million "what if" thoughts through my head. it's a little easier to not trust people these days after what happened to my dad, so i've been a big chicken about running in the dark.

needless to say, i have yet to make my return to morning running. on sunday and monday i caught up on season 4 of lost, so when i was contemplating yesterday morning's run i started thinking i'd be out running and hear those voices (along with all my other standard scaredy-cat thoughts). i wimped out and went back to bed, knowing i wouldn't be able to get my run in until about 8pm.

today i just wimped out. it was raining drizzling misting and foggy, and hard to tell myself to go do it since i knew i'd have time later today. i actually went out for a run on my lunch break (there are showers at work, don't worry) since j got sent out of town for work and we always eat lunch together. without my lunch date, i laced up and went for a run. it was rainy and really really windy, but a pretty good run for my slow and boring easy pace. i didn't eat much for breakfast/all morning so i got weak, light-headed, and shaky after about 2.5 miles, but i finished it out. my legs are starting to come back to life. thank you legs, welcome back!

monday (1/26): day of rest
tuesday (1/27) late pm run: 5 miles, 46:49 (9:21 avg pace), treadmill
wednesday (1/28) lunch time run: 6 miles, 54:39 (9:06 avg pace), avg/max hr (158/171)

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this is quite delayed, but my pal denise over at rundmt is having (has been having) a fabulous giveaway that ends on saturday! so hurry up and go check out her blog/enter the giveaway so there are even less chances that i will win!! ;-)

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fueling up

my healthy taper diet

not only did i put away this single-serving sized 21 oz bag of m&m's in three days, but also a "small" sized-bag as well. they were both part of my belated-christmas present from jess. i think she was purposely giving them to me to slow me down for this weekend as she will be running the goofy too. technically i polished them off in less than three days because i was able to restrain myself from bringing the bag to work where i would have been forced to mindlessly consume them non-stop until they were gone. i have no self control when it comes to m&m's (and jess is well aware of that). i do not eat the blue m&m's though, those are gross, so j eats those.

the good news is my enlarged ba-donk-a-donk is good for me.

got in my last two slow, easy 'n short runs before the weekend races and festivities begin. wednesday i ran without checking either my nike+ or hrm the whole time. just took it easy, ran by feel, and ran right in my easy hr target zone. thursday was boring and hardly felt like a run at all. 2 miles is hardly long enough to even break a sweat. nonetheless, they were both right on target for my hr and i can't argue with that.

wednesday (1/7) pm run: 3.4 miles, 30:52 (9:04 avg pace), avg/max hr (146/168)
thursday (1/8) am run: 2 miles, 19:12 (9:36 avg pace), avg/max hr (148/160)

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treadmill math

here in the midst of taper week there isn't much going on as far as actually running. i've spent some time browsing the runner's world recently-renovated-and-still-full-of-bugs forums, and i'm reading both pfitz's "advanced marathoning" and daniels' "running formula" to figure out what training regime is up next. i need something hardcore that will help me get way faster. so far, they've both been good reads and i know either route will be beneficial. i'm kind leaning towards daniels' a little more, but the laziness in me likes that pfitz provides clear-cut schedules. luckily, i have a few days to read more, mull over it and decide.

i put j's engineering degree to good use with a scientific experiment on my treadmill so we could figure out what the 'real' speeds are. i know i'm not that fast, but i know what my easy pace is on average and it was not matching up to what the treadmill was reporting.

first, he measured the length of the, um, running strip thing in inches (52.5") and then multiplied it by 2 since you can only measure half of it, unless you want to flip your treadmill over and measure the underside of course but multiplying is easier (105"). he also marked a spot on the running strip to help track each rotation. then he set the speed on the treadmill, to seven different speeds ranging from 5.5 to 8.5, and timed 20 rotations (using the spot) at each speed. he did this 3 times at each speed to ensure the most accurate data of course.

now for the boring equation part:

# of rotations * length of running strip = distance (in)
20 * 105 = 2100 in

distance / time it took to reach 20 rotations = speed (in/s)
2100 / 16.36 = 128.36 in/s
(for "7.0" setting)

(speed (in/s) / 12 / 5280) * 3600 = speed (mph)
(128.36 / 12 / 5280) * 3600 = 7.29 mph

7.29 mph translates to an 8:13.9 min/mile
which is kind of like the treadmill telling you your speed is 7.0 mph (8:34.2 min/mile)

of course you do this for each of the rotation-timings and then figure out the average at each treadmill setting. on my treadmill, the actual speed was about .20-.30 mph faster than what the treadmill says. i'm just glad the results came back in my favor! i'm not as slow as the treadmill tells me i am. :o)

belated congrats to all you other lottery winners and african trust-fund inheritors out there. who knew we were all a bunch of millionaires spending our days blogging about running...

monday (1/5) pm run: 4.4 miles, 41:29 (9:25 avg pace), avg/max hr (143/164)
tuesday (1/6) pm run: 4 miles (2xmile@7:16), 33:01 (8:15 avg pace), avg/max hr (172/197)

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breaking in 2009

aren't people usually more motivated at the start of a new year, especially when it comes to working out?

i slept in this morning til 10something and from the moment i groggily woke up, i was not in the mood to run. go figure. luckily i have no plans today, so i had time to relax, procrastinate and talk myself into it. so as not to be the worst clemson alum, i watched the first half of the clemson v. nebraska gator bowl (which they are now losing as i watch the final minutes of the 4th quarter... this is why i cannot be a dedicated fan).

at half-time i voluntarily hopped on the treadmill for an 8-mile run. today was supposed to be 10x800 but i didn't feel like going to the track or running in the 36-ish degree weather (i know, i have nothing to complain about) so i settled for a few tempo-ish miles on the 'mill. i also figured i could officially figure out what a few of the treadmill speeds really are (since my treadmill definitely seems to be 'off' the normal calibration). for the record, "6.0mph" on my treadmill translates to a 9:09 mile, which is kind of like a 10:00 mile i'm sure.

i took the first two miles easy ("6.0"), then picked it up for the middle 4 miles (7.0, 7.2, and 7.5) testing to see what each translates to in real life/figure out what i need to set it on for my regular tempo pace, and then slowed back down for the last two miles.

just before christmas i received a sweet motherload of gu roctane courtesy of outside pr and gu to do a product review on (thanks devon!). i've used a few of the yummy "regular" gu's before, and i'm excited to experience the extra 'oomph' the roctane's are advertised to bring. i was planning on first testing the gu roctane's out on my last pre-goofy long training run, but due to some unforeseen circumstances i had to skip that run. i was only running 8 miles today, but i thought it'd be a good idea to 'practice' and make sure my stomach could handle the roctane so as not to cause any unpleasant surprises next weekend. (i normally don't take any type of fuel/water with me unless i'm going 12+ miles, mostly because i'm lazy.)

i received a bunch of the vanilla orange and blueberry pomegranate flavored gu roctanes. at first i was a little leary about the blueberry pomegranate because i've never had a pomegranate and didn't know what to expect. i chose to squeeze down one of those today and was surprised with fruity-sweet-deliciousness. i'm still not sure what a pomegranate is, but it tastes pretty good in gooey-form and mixed with blueberries. after two tempo miles, i was starting to feel tired, so i tore the packet open (a simple feat while in motion) and easily squeezed the gu in. chased it with a few swigs of water to get the slightly sticky feeling out of my mouth and i was good as new. my upper body felt instantly refreshed, and after a few minutes it hit my legs and revitalized them for another 2 quick miles. that's my theory anyway.

everything went ok for the last 4 miles of my run so i'm assuming i'll be fine to use them next weekend in the half and full races. i figure i'll be able to feel the effects more and fully appreciate the benefits of gu roctane in those longer, more intense runs than i did in today's shorter 8-miler. a more complete review of my gu roctane experience will certainly follow the goofy challenge next weekend. (especially since i'll have all that extra free time from not-running.) i'm imagining myself flying past all the competition on my way to a huge pr thanks to the added boost of gu roctane.

mid-day run: 8 miles, 1:08:50 (8:36 avg pace), avg/max hr (173/197)

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consistency is key

...especially when it comes to ab work. i've been extra lazy about doing abs for the past 10 days and tonight when i attempted some planks after my run i wanted to collapse after 10 seconds. sad, sad. i moaned and groaned my way through 2x1minute regular planks and 2x1min side planks (1 per side). i made up a song (to the tune of rihanna's "live your life") about all my flabbiness to try to not stare at my watch slowly ticking the seconds away. i'm sure my non-exercised shoulders, arms and back didn't help much either. so people, do your crunches and do them regularly. i keep saying i will get back on track...

i spent another hour on the treadmill tonight after work. it wasn't too bad i guess but i have to make up games to play so i don't quit in the first two minutes. tonight, i tapped the speed up a little every 5 minutes, and since i was going for an hour i threw in some "hills" as well so i wouldn't end up at like 9.0mph. i'd consider getting a tv for the treadmill's room but then again, i don't have cable and it would just be even more painful to run for an hour+ on the treadmill and flip through all 7 channels i get via antenna (...for now anyway).

i'm getting a little antsy for next weekend (the goofy). i want it to be here and yet i don't. i have been training for 20 something long weeks and while it'll be nice to have a week off afterwards, i don't really want to take a week off. i'm also having a hard time with self-confidence - after training so long, working hard, and dreaming about a sweet half-marathon pr, i'm afraid of letting myself down. i'm just gonna keep reviewing my training log, reminiscing the good runs and reminding myself i've put in all the work.

pm run: 7 miles, 1:02:16 (8:53 avg pace), avg/max hr (159/176)

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hamster, day 1

i must first give a huge thank you to all you wonderful folks for your kind messages, (virtual) hugs, and thoughts over the past week. it's been tough mentally and emotionally, but i am so thankful that i don't have more to be upset about. it was a very special Christmas for us, and i hope my greatfulness doesn't wear off as life returns to "normal". i hope you were all able to enjoy the holidays and time with your friends/family as much as i did.

today's run
i hopped on my new (to me) treadmill this afternoon after work for a run. i assumed i had my regularly-scheduled monday 5, and since i missed my last long run of the training period yesterday i figured i'd do more than 5. turns out i only had to do 4 miles today, although i only "overdid it" with 6.8 miles.

well, i'm recording 6.8 miles for the day anyway. that's rounded down from what my nike+ said i did, which is usually off a little itself. i figure i usually get in about 7 miles/hour on an easy day, so i got on the treadmill and started cranking the speed up. when i got to 6.7 "mph" i decided to leave it there to warmup a bit, plus it kinda felt hard already. anyone else have this problem? my hr was creeping into tempo-run zone, and it felt kind of quick to me. i dropped the speed down to 6.5 after about 12 minutes, and when it still felt too fast/hard at 20 minutes (for an easy run) i dropped down to 6.0.

what a mental beating. the treadmill was telling me i was running 10 min miles and i felt like i was sprinting. ok, not quite sprinting, but it certainly wasn't easy-feeling and my hr was skyrocketing (for an easy run). i hamstered for an hour and hopped off. the treadmill said i had done 6.5, nike+ said 6.86... so i pick that one. my average and max hr's were comparable to my last 20-miler (avg pace 8:26) and an 8-mile tempo run earlier in the month (avg pace 8:06).

anyway, so i'm a little beat up about the treadmill telling me i'm slower than i thought i was. my dad and j told me it's probably just not calibrated right and to use my own measuring system. a little annoying, but easy enough to fix i guess. lets just hope i wasn't really sprinting to maintain 10min/miles.

pm run: 6.8 miles, 1:00:45 (avg pace 8:56), avg/max hr (166/183)

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