Well, there is no time to waste. I got back from Mexico last night after a great trip and it is time to get back on the running schedule. Last week didn't start out as I had planned. Knowing that I would be away for most of the week, I was hoping to get in at least my long run of 12-13 miles before I went on vacation, and hopefully one other run of 5 or 6 miles, but unfortunately neither of those things happened. About a week before I left for Mexico, I started getting a horrible pain in my cheek and then my tooth. I figured that maybe I had a cavity or I flossed too hard and inflamed my gum. I was hoping it would go away on its own but it kept on getting worse as the week progressed. It prevented me from sleeping and I was worried about leaving the country with this lingering over my head. Since it was President's Day weekend, I was not able to see my dentist until last Tuesday - only 2 days before leaving. I felt like crap from lack of sleep all weekend so I wasn't able to run on Monday (but I got a day of strength training in), and I spent all day Tuesday in the dentist's office and then finding out that I needed a route canal before I left, which I got later in the day. It was a pain in the butt, however I was happy to get everything settled before heading out of the country. Needless to say, there was no running on Tuesday either. Wednesday was not to be because I still felt very sluggish and I felt it wasn't worth the risk of getting sick before going away. Therefore, I was resigned to the fact that I would have to skip my long run for the week. I wasn't happy with it, but I was OK with it because my training has been going well so far, and it was still early on in the process. I had over two and a half months to go before the marathon to make up for any drop in mileage.
I was looking forward to the warm weather in Mexico. This would be a good way to recharge my batteries a bit and maybe even give my body a rest before the increased mileage begins this week. I knew that I wouldn't get in a lot of mileage on the trip, if at all, but I was hoping to get in a couple runs of any distance or pace just to keep my legs and body moving and to avoid being dormant for an entire week in the middle of training. If I got in at least two runs, that would be good with me and I figured I would be able to start up again with training when I got back to the States without losing much at all. I was pleasantly surprised to have gotten in 3 runs while in Mexico - 6 miles on Friday, 6 miles on Saturday, and 4 miles on Sunday. It was a bit of a shock to my body to run in 75 degree weather and humidity when I've been running in 30-40 degree weather and snow for the past couple of months. I was happy to see that it was a total loss for the week, runningwise. The trip was great and I had a really nice time.
Now it is back to the schedule. I looked and saw that 18 miles is on tap as my long run for this weekend. This will be my longest run in more than a year and a half. I am a bit nervous about it but I am excited to be moving forward with my training. Due to the rain, I got in a 4.5 mile run on the treadmill tonight.
Well, onward and upward.
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Monday, February 15, 2010
30 Mile Week in the Books...
Week 7 of training is now complete and I was able to get in my first 30 mile week since training for the Philadelphia Marathon in 2008. I consider this my first "real" week of this training cycle since the previous ones were only marginally different than my usual running workload throughout the year.
The weather gods treated all of us a little better this week with plenty of sunshine and relatively milder temperatures (but still cold).
I was happy to see that I felt really good and strong for the week. The Garmin is definitely helping me out. I haven't used the heart rate monitor yet, but being able to get a real time view of my pace throughout the run is a big plus. It allows me to adjust my pace on the fly and lets me know that I am usually going a little faster than I think I am. I started off the week with a 6.4 mile run as part of the downtown Flyer group. I like getting this run in since it gives my running week a jump start and allows for great flexibility later in the week. As usual, the first half of the run was a bit slower than the second half. Negative splits usually happen on this run which I am totally fine with. The straightaway along the Westside Highway gives me a chance to lengthen my stride and get in some tempo runs for a couple of miles. My pace drops considerably on this backstretch and it feels great.
I got in a 5 mile run on Tuesday and a spinning class on Thursday before preparing for my 15 mile run during the weekend. I was a little anxious for this run since it was going to be my longest one in almost a year and a half. I wanted to see how my body held up and I was happy to see that it felt great. It feels kind of weird to say that but the run seemed to go by pretty quickly with very few rough patches. I was watching the Opening Ceremonies late the night before, so I knew the only way that I was going to get in my long run in the morning was to meet the Flyer group at 9AM. Although it would be tough to wake up, I knew that it posed my best chance to get out of my apartment. I ran with the Flyer group for the first 6 mile loop, mostly with JB, and then did a 5 mile loop and 4 mile loop on my own. I even did most of the run (11 miles) without any music - that's a first. I did the run in about 2:12 (total mileage of 15.3 miles for a pace of about 8:40) and felt pretty comfortable throughout the entire thing. Again, the Garmin was a great companion to have and let me know when to speed up and slow down. Sunday was just a 4 mile recovery run at about 8:50 pace.
This week will be a little bit harder to get in all of my runs since I am heading down to Mexico for a friend's wedding on Thursday. The plan is to get a weights day, 5-6 mile run, and my 13 mile long run out of the way before I leave. Therefore, if I am not able to do any runs at all during my trip, my long run will not have suffered. The training schedule calls for 30 miles this week, so if I do what I planned before I leave, and get in at least one 5 or 6 mile run while I am away, my training will not have suffered much at all.
The weather gods treated all of us a little better this week with plenty of sunshine and relatively milder temperatures (but still cold).
I was happy to see that I felt really good and strong for the week. The Garmin is definitely helping me out. I haven't used the heart rate monitor yet, but being able to get a real time view of my pace throughout the run is a big plus. It allows me to adjust my pace on the fly and lets me know that I am usually going a little faster than I think I am. I started off the week with a 6.4 mile run as part of the downtown Flyer group. I like getting this run in since it gives my running week a jump start and allows for great flexibility later in the week. As usual, the first half of the run was a bit slower than the second half. Negative splits usually happen on this run which I am totally fine with. The straightaway along the Westside Highway gives me a chance to lengthen my stride and get in some tempo runs for a couple of miles. My pace drops considerably on this backstretch and it feels great.
I got in a 5 mile run on Tuesday and a spinning class on Thursday before preparing for my 15 mile run during the weekend. I was a little anxious for this run since it was going to be my longest one in almost a year and a half. I wanted to see how my body held up and I was happy to see that it felt great. It feels kind of weird to say that but the run seemed to go by pretty quickly with very few rough patches. I was watching the Opening Ceremonies late the night before, so I knew the only way that I was going to get in my long run in the morning was to meet the Flyer group at 9AM. Although it would be tough to wake up, I knew that it posed my best chance to get out of my apartment. I ran with the Flyer group for the first 6 mile loop, mostly with JB, and then did a 5 mile loop and 4 mile loop on my own. I even did most of the run (11 miles) without any music - that's a first. I did the run in about 2:12 (total mileage of 15.3 miles for a pace of about 8:40) and felt pretty comfortable throughout the entire thing. Again, the Garmin was a great companion to have and let me know when to speed up and slow down. Sunday was just a 4 mile recovery run at about 8:50 pace.
This week will be a little bit harder to get in all of my runs since I am heading down to Mexico for a friend's wedding on Thursday. The plan is to get a weights day, 5-6 mile run, and my 13 mile long run out of the way before I leave. Therefore, if I am not able to do any runs at all during my trip, my long run will not have suffered. The training schedule calls for 30 miles this week, so if I do what I planned before I leave, and get in at least one 5 or 6 mile run while I am away, my training will not have suffered much at all.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Year End 2009 and Back on the Marathon Trail
I am keenly aware that my blog entries have been sincerely lacking over the last couple of months. This is due to a combination of blog fatigue, lack of notable things to write about, and lack of a marathon or important race to train for and document. Things have changed now that I am training for the New Jersey Marathon on May 2, 2010. This has given me focus and direction and a race to look forward to.
Looking back on 2009, it was a great running year for me. I was able to stay healthy for nearly the entire year, my race times came down considerably, my pacing was starting to get under control, and I was able to PR in every distance that I normally run, except for the marathon, including my first venture into running the mile (6:00 - Fifth Ave Mile, although this doesn't count as a PR), 4 mile (26:56 - Run as One), 5 mile (34:48 - Club Team Championships), 10K (44:23 - Healthy Kidney 10K), 15K (1:07:37 - Colon Cancer 15K), 10 mile (1:15:09 - Cherry Tree 10 Miler) and half marathon (1:38:20 - Long Branch Half Marathon). Everything seemed to be clicking at the right time and I was feeling really good. The bar is now set pretty high for future years. It might be a while until I approach a lot of these accomplishments. For the first time, I felt that I had a chance at a PR for every race that I entered. My "off season" regime had a big role in that (running three days, spinning/weights, long run of at least 10 miles every week), as well as my increased confidence, and importance that I placed on improving my pacing as a big priority. While my pacing ability still isn't great, it has gotten a lot better and it is something that needs to continue to improve if I am going to reach my goals in New Jersey (which will remain under wraps). I am probably most proud of my half marathon times from this year. I made a huge jump in this distance and was able to bring down my time on a consistent basis, and not just as a one time event. Prior to this year, my best time was around 1:42, and I had to make a concerted effort if I wanted to even approach that time. In 2009, I ran 5 half marathons, all of which would have beaten (or come within a few seconds) of my previous PR and I feel that I can now call myself a sub 1:39 half marathoner with confidence and feel good using that time as a basis to come up with a marathon goal for this year.
Philadelphia -1:38:23
Staten Island - 1:38:44
Queens - 1:40:14
Brooklyn - 1:42:29 (only 3 weeks after Long Branch)
Long Branch - 1:38:20
I continued the half marathon trend by running the Manhattan Half a couple weeks ago as my first race of 2010, and as a gauge to see how my body is doing at the beginning stages of marathon training. It was a pretty frigid day, but it was not too bad for running. I knew that I was not in a position to go for or even approach a PR due to the hills of Central Park, the cold weather, and also no desire to, but I was hoping to run around a 1:42-1:44, which is exactly what I ended up getting. I felt good and I was hoping that this was a sign of good things to come. I was able to run a 1:42:14, for an overall pace of 7:48. This would have tied my PR prior to 2009.
Mile 1 - 8:06
Mile 2 - 7:57
Mile 3 - 7:41
Mile 4 - 8:03
Mile 5 - 7:55
Mile 6 - 7:43
Mile 7 - 7:48
Mile 8 - 7:51
Mile 9 - 7:36
Mile 10 - 8:12
Mile 11 - 7:32
Mile 12 - 7:38
Last 1.1 miles - 8:08 (7:24 pace)
The other significance of this race was the fact that it was my last one without a Garmin. I finally took the plunge and bought one. Many fellow bloggers and friends have had great things to say about the Forerunner 305, so now I have one as well. My main reason for getting one was to be able to accurately see how my pace fluctuates during races, adjust accordingly, and also to not have to map out my long runs to the tee in order to run a certain amount of mileage. Now I can allow my Garmin to lead the way. I have been using the last couple of weeks to get used to the Garmin and learn all of the basic features. So far - mission accomplished. The heart rate monitor is still in the plastic and will come out at a later time.
I am now in the seventh week of marathon training and this will be my first week of having a long run with significant mileage (15). The first six weeks didn't feel too much like training since they weren't that much different from what I've been doing over the last year. The longest run has been 10-13 miles and has felt good. The 15 miler coming up this weekend will be my longest run since I was training for the Philadelphia Marathon in 2008. The schedule I am using has a max week of 40 miles and three 20's. I am excited for the upcoming marathon and am looking forward to it.
Looking back on 2009, it was a great running year for me. I was able to stay healthy for nearly the entire year, my race times came down considerably, my pacing was starting to get under control, and I was able to PR in every distance that I normally run, except for the marathon, including my first venture into running the mile (6:00 - Fifth Ave Mile, although this doesn't count as a PR), 4 mile (26:56 - Run as One), 5 mile (34:48 - Club Team Championships), 10K (44:23 - Healthy Kidney 10K), 15K (1:07:37 - Colon Cancer 15K), 10 mile (1:15:09 - Cherry Tree 10 Miler) and half marathon (1:38:20 - Long Branch Half Marathon). Everything seemed to be clicking at the right time and I was feeling really good. The bar is now set pretty high for future years. It might be a while until I approach a lot of these accomplishments. For the first time, I felt that I had a chance at a PR for every race that I entered. My "off season" regime had a big role in that (running three days, spinning/weights, long run of at least 10 miles every week), as well as my increased confidence, and importance that I placed on improving my pacing as a big priority. While my pacing ability still isn't great, it has gotten a lot better and it is something that needs to continue to improve if I am going to reach my goals in New Jersey (which will remain under wraps). I am probably most proud of my half marathon times from this year. I made a huge jump in this distance and was able to bring down my time on a consistent basis, and not just as a one time event. Prior to this year, my best time was around 1:42, and I had to make a concerted effort if I wanted to even approach that time. In 2009, I ran 5 half marathons, all of which would have beaten (or come within a few seconds) of my previous PR and I feel that I can now call myself a sub 1:39 half marathoner with confidence and feel good using that time as a basis to come up with a marathon goal for this year.
Philadelphia -1:38:23
Staten Island - 1:38:44
Queens - 1:40:14
Brooklyn - 1:42:29 (only 3 weeks after Long Branch)
Long Branch - 1:38:20
I continued the half marathon trend by running the Manhattan Half a couple weeks ago as my first race of 2010, and as a gauge to see how my body is doing at the beginning stages of marathon training. It was a pretty frigid day, but it was not too bad for running. I knew that I was not in a position to go for or even approach a PR due to the hills of Central Park, the cold weather, and also no desire to, but I was hoping to run around a 1:42-1:44, which is exactly what I ended up getting. I felt good and I was hoping that this was a sign of good things to come. I was able to run a 1:42:14, for an overall pace of 7:48. This would have tied my PR prior to 2009.
Mile 1 - 8:06
Mile 2 - 7:57
Mile 3 - 7:41
Mile 4 - 8:03
Mile 5 - 7:55
Mile 6 - 7:43
Mile 7 - 7:48
Mile 8 - 7:51
Mile 9 - 7:36
Mile 10 - 8:12
Mile 11 - 7:32
Mile 12 - 7:38
Last 1.1 miles - 8:08 (7:24 pace)
The other significance of this race was the fact that it was my last one without a Garmin. I finally took the plunge and bought one. Many fellow bloggers and friends have had great things to say about the Forerunner 305, so now I have one as well. My main reason for getting one was to be able to accurately see how my pace fluctuates during races, adjust accordingly, and also to not have to map out my long runs to the tee in order to run a certain amount of mileage. Now I can allow my Garmin to lead the way. I have been using the last couple of weeks to get used to the Garmin and learn all of the basic features. So far - mission accomplished. The heart rate monitor is still in the plastic and will come out at a later time.
I am now in the seventh week of marathon training and this will be my first week of having a long run with significant mileage (15). The first six weeks didn't feel too much like training since they weren't that much different from what I've been doing over the last year. The longest run has been 10-13 miles and has felt good. The 15 miler coming up this weekend will be my longest run since I was training for the Philadelphia Marathon in 2008. The schedule I am using has a max week of 40 miles and three 20's. I am excited for the upcoming marathon and am looking forward to it.
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