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Friday, April 29, 2011

20 miles ~ and now I'll taper. ☺

Today is officially bipolar weather day.  When I woke up at 5 am, it was white-out, blizzard like conditions.  Determined to get in my 20 today, after I ate 1/2 a banana and had a few sips of Diet Coke, I did 20 minutes of Yoga.  As soon as it was light enough, (around 6) I headed out.  The snow was still falling, the wind was blowing, and I thought I was in for a very long and difficult 20 miles.  Around 4 miles, the clouds parted, the sun came out, the wind died down, and it was actually quite nice. 
By mile 10, the sun was making me pretty warm, but my route had taken me up into the mountains a bit, so it was still cold with a decent breeze.  My legs were starting to feel a little fatigued, but between miles 9-12 there were lots of smaller hills, so I tried to make use of them for keeping up my momentum.  At around mile 14, I had hit an open stretch of road, the sun was just beating down on me and I decided to take off my jacket and let my fluffy, white arms get some much needed sunlight.  And even with my cap on, I could feel the sun burning my face a little.  Then, with just about 2 miles to go, the clouds returned, the wind picked up, and temperature seemed to drop about 20 degrees.  At that point I didn't care though.  I had made it through what is notoriously the hardest part of my longer runs - getting through miles 15-20 without too much walking - and I still felt pretty decent.  When I got home, I quickly drank a small glass of chocolate milk, then I did 30 minutes of Pilates to help stretch out, not just my legs, but my whole body.  Now, I officially begin my taper.  3 weeks until marathon time!!
(You can't see it in this picture I took because I didn't want to stop to take the picture, it was a run-by, but there is a street sign there that says "Winning Way", I love it!)

Thursday, April 28, 2011

5 mile run.

Yeah...a little sun on today's run!  I warmed up this morning with 15 minutes of Yoga before going out for my 5 mile run.  It was very, very windy, but the sun shining helped make it bearable.  After my run I did 30 minutes of Pilates and also used the foam roller on my hamstrings and IT bands.

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Cross-training.

Today on my non-running day it is, of course, bluer than blue skies and the sun is shining brightly...it's only 25 degrees, but still...
I started my cross-training workout with 45 minutes of Pilates/Yoga blend, then I did 45 minutes on the elliptical.  I'm probably jinxing myself by saying this, but my legs feel really good.  No hamstring tightness, no pain in my hip.  Now if I can just get the weather to cooperate with me for the runs I have the rest of this week, I'll be in good shape!

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

10 miles.

Well, of course, it is only April 26th!  I was all geared up and ready to head out for my run when I decided I wasn't in the mood to contend with the cold, wind and blowing snow.  After I did 30 minutes of Pilates, I did 10 miles on the treadmill.  It took me a couple of hours, because I just wasn't in the mood for anything.  I couldn't find anything I felt like watching on Netflix, and I felt distracted by my lack of motivation due to the drab and blah weather.  So, I just stuck it out, running mostly, but also doing a little walking just to get it done.  You know that feeling when you finish a run or a workout and you just feel so great, like you really accomplished something?  Yeah, today that feeling slipped away from me.  I might have to do a re-do workout later just so I can lift my spirits...

Monday, April 25, 2011

5 miles.

This morning I woke up a little early, so I did 25 minutes of Pilates before taking the kids to school then heading out for my 5 mile run.  When I first started out, my hamstrings felt excruciatingly tight and I wondered if I was even going to be able to run the whole five miles.  But after about 1/2 mile, they had loosened up considerably, and I even finished my run with a pretty good time - 55 minutes, so I feel better now.  When I got home, I did another 20 minutes of Pilates, then I used the foam roller on my IT bands and hamstrings.

Saturday, April 23, 2011

14.25 mile long run.

(Apparently I've been in a picture kind of mood lately...)
Today's run was fun, though my legs are hurting, and I think I know why.  Words to the wise...new shoes + long run = using muscles in different ways = new pains and aches!  I ran in them for 3 miles earlier in the week, no problem, 5 miles, still no problem, but by mile 10 today when I even had sore muscles in my butt, I realized what was going on.  Oh, well.  Better to get it all worked out now so that I will be good to go on marathon day, which is in exactly 4 weeks!
I warmed up this morning with a few Yoga stretches, then headed out around 6:45am.  Of course it was cold, but the sun was already coming up over the mountains and I could tell it was going to be a beautiful day.
Please don't be too jealous, this is where I get to run.  ;)  As I said, up until mile 10 I felt pretty good, but then I did have to take a few walking/stretching breaks throughout the rest of the run.  In the end I did 14.25 miles in 2 hours and 45 minutes, and when I got home I did 15 minutes of Yoga.  Now I know I should go take an ice bath, but I literally cannot bring myself to do it - oh, the torture!  I know it would pay off, but I just can't...so instead, I'll stretch a little more and then go take a warm shower! Happy Easter, everyone! ☺

Friday, April 22, 2011

3 miles.

Today is theoretically a rest day, at least according to my training schedule.  But when I woke up around 5 this morning with a pounding headache, I decided to see if some exercise would help me feel better.  I started out with Crunch: Yoga Pilates Blend (42 minutes), then I went outside and did a 3 mile run.  It is COLD out there this morning!  Thankfully, it worked and I actually do feel a little better.  Now I have to go get ready for Cub Scouts; today we're doing a service project that involves yard work/landscaping stuff, so I'm really hoping it warms up!

Thursday, April 21, 2011

April Showers...


Here we are,  my little guy and me having a little 'toast' to ourselves after a rainy 5 mile run.  He has his Bug Juice and I have my Diet Coke, of course. ☺
After my 5 mile run, I did 40 minutes of Crunch: Pilates/Yoga blend - I love that DVD.
P.S.  LOVE my new shoes!!

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

They came...

Aahhh...look at these beauties:


Of course, I gotta have some pink; that's my thing. ♥ I can't wait to give them a test run tomorrow.  Hopefully it won't be raining, like it is right now...

Cross-training day.

This morning I began my mid-week cross-training with 15 minutes of Yoga, then I did 30 minutes on the elliptical, followed by 30 minutes of walking on the treadmill using 5 pound hand weights.  Less than 5 weeks to go until the marathon, but I have time to do one more (long) long run before officially beginning a taper period, so this week my long run on Saturday will be 14 miles, but next week I will do a 20 one more time before starting to taper.

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

9 mile run.

I took this photo with my phone about 7 miles into my run this morning.  Yes, that is actually the sun you see shining there!  It was cold and windy - 32 degrees, but the sun felt SO good that I was even smiling at the wind.  :)
I warmed up this morning with a few minutes on the elliptical before hitting the road.  I had a very strong headwind the first 4-5 miles, but I was feeling so good physically and mentally, that I just kept saying: "Power through, power through..." over and over in my head.  I think part of my good mood is that I heard from my mentor/friend yesterday and he had a good time at the Boston Marathon, after battling multiple injuries and not fitting in (what he considered) adequate training, he finished the marathon, feeling good, with an awesome time of 4:28.  The fact that he finished feeling good makes me the most happy, and he says he feels good about running the Ogden Marathon with me in less than 5 weeks, so I am stoked!

After my run this morning, I did a Pilates/Yoga Crunch DVD (42 minutes) and now - yep, you guessed it - I am headed into my lovely ice bath.

Monday, April 18, 2011

Happy Patriot's Day!

This morning there are hoards of runners working their way from Hopkinton to Boston, and one them is my mentor and friend...so to him and all the other Boston Marathoners I say, good luck!

As for me on this very rainy Monday morning, I opted to do my 5 mile run on the treadmill.  I warmed up with 10 minutes on the elliptical, then did my 5 miles and followed that with 30 minutes of Yoga Meltdown.

Saturday, April 16, 2011

5 miles.

This morning I warmed up with about 10 minutes of Yoga before heading out for my 5 mile run.  My run was pretty uneventful - I felt good, after the first half mile or so when my legs loosened up.  When I finished my run, I came home and did the 30 minute Yoga Meltdown DVD.  I haven't done that one for a few weeks, so my arms were a little shaky.  Made me realize I haven't been very consistent with my upper body strength workouts...probably should improve on that.

Friday, April 15, 2011

Rest day.

This morning I did 30 minutes of Pilates, but that's all.  I feel a little sore and stiff from yesterday's run, but getting better as the day goes on.  Yesterday it occurred to me at some point that I have been using the same running shoes for a lot of miles, so I did some calculating: 921 miles from my faithful Asics.  Theoretically, though, that means I'm about 400+ miles past due for a new pair of trainers!  So after some (fun) research and online shopping, I found a great pair at an even better price.  They're  New Balance 1224ST:
Normally these shoes run $140-150, but I found them on Buy.com for only $54.99 and free shipping!  (Probably because they are an uncommon size and width, the only pair...but YAY for me!)

These are the upgraded version of my New Balance 769's, which I loved to pieces, literally, so I'm hoping to feel the same for these.  I can't wait until they get here!  I'm actually hoping that new shoes with strength, stability and all that, I'll get my bounce back and my legs won't feel the strain quite so much.

Thursday, April 14, 2011

15 miles, treadmill style!

I'm pretty sure this is the longest run I've done on the treadmill, at least where I've done the entire long run on the treadmill.  I had every intention of doing my run outside when I woke up at 5:30 this morning, then I heard the wind howling, got online and looked up the weather for our area - yeah, 30-40 mph wind gusts, severe weather advisory.  I just wasn't in the mood to even try it, so I traded my long pants and jacket for shorts and a tank, and got moving.  While I ran I watched a movie on Netflix about some crazy people climbing Mt. Everest, then since I still had a lot of time to fill, I also watched 'The Spirit of the Marathon', which I've already seen a couple of times, but it's a great one to watch while running on a treadmill, training for a marathon!  You just can't NOT run while you watch that movie, at least I can't.  I have to say, this was one of my best treadmill runs.  I ran 15.3 miles in just over 3 hours (well, more like 3 and 1/4), and I was able to run at a steady, albeit moderately slow pace for almost 3 hours without stopping or walking at all.  I did have to stop at one point to get a drink refill - running indoors the sweat just drips pours off the body!

(The only accurate number here is the distance.  On my treadmill, every thing resets at "normal" maxes, like it only goes to 100 minutes, and 999 calories burned, then resets.)
Well, I've already done a bit of stretching, but I think I'll do a little more before I slip into the ice bath I have waiting for me...

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

"Rest Day."

I just love how I can call these "rest" days, even though I still find myself working out!  This morning is a "non-running" day, (there, how's that?), so I did 30 minutes on the elliptical, 20 minutes walking on the treadmill, then 25 minutes of hand weight reps, crunches, and leg mat-work Pilates.  (I was watching last night's Biggest Loser.)  I also had a workout partner today:

The little cutie did 1 mile in 32 minutes on the treadmill, while I did my time on the elliptical.  Then we switched and while I was using the treadmill, he did 15 minutes on the elliptical.  He was having so much fun.  Only problem was, apparently he likes to talk (A LOT) while he exercises, while I on the other hand, like to enjoy my show...I think I missed most of it because he was asking me so many questions! :)

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

9 glorious miles. ☺

This morning I warmed up with 10 minutes of Yoga stretches, then headed out for my run a little earlier than normal.  Today is my husband's day off, so he was up and could take the kids to school, so I was able to get a bit of a head start on my run.  The temps have been gradually increasing, which is quite nice.  40 degrees is great running weather.  I did my whole, hilly 9 miles without incident, no walking, and even had a decent time (1:45), so I am a happy runner today!  While I filled the tub with ice water, I did 10 more minutes of Yoga stretches, then I sat in the ice bath for 12 minutes.  Now I'm going to warm up with a shower!

Monday, April 11, 2011

4 mile Monday.

I'm feeling a bit of renewed energy this morning, possibly having something to do with the sunshine melting my troubles away while I was on my 4 mile run.  I warmed up with 10 minutes on the elliptical before heading over to the park.  My hamstrings are still a bit sore, but once I got going I felt okay.  After my run I did another 10 minutes on the elliptical, since I find it really helps loosen up those hammies!  Then I did 30 minutes of Pilates.

Saturday, April 9, 2011

Long run recovery workout.

So far I can already tell that my recovery from yesterday's long run is going better than it did after my 20 miler, and I think I can attribute that to doing the ice bath (thank you, Becca)! :)  Don't get me wrong, I am sore, but it's tolerable.  When I woke up this morning, after getting a good 8 hours sleep, I felt stiff, especially my hamstrings and quads.  I knew that I would feel better if I got moving, so I did 30 minutes on the elliptical, followed by 45 minutes of walking on the treadmill.  Tomorrow is a full rest day, for which my muscles will surely be thanking me.  ;)

Friday, April 8, 2011

22 miler!


Well, there it is!  Okay, please don't focus too much on the time...but look at that distance!  ;)  That time means I averaged about 12:30 minutes per mile, which is a fine marathon pace for me, especially considering I did a run/walk thing for the last 10 miles or so.  For those of you that are interested, a decent (and normally consistent) pace for me for any run under about 10-12 miles is averaging around 11 minutes per mile, and any longer runs and the average pace goes up a bit due to the need for more walking breaks.  According to my Garmin, during today's run I had a few miles that I did in just over 8 minutes, and several more that were around 9 minutes, but most of the miles I maintained around 10:30 min/mile.  The walking breaks bring my average up quite a bit, but all in all, I felt pretty good.  I really believe in just going with how my body feels - sometimes I feel "fast", and other times I'm slogging, but I just keep putting one foot in front of the other.

I started out at the top of Buckskin (in Pocatello), made my way down the mountain and into Inkom, then back up the old highway into Pocatello again, where my husband came and picked me up.  The weather was typically Idaho-Spring, 35 degrees, foggy, snowing off and on mixed with a little mist, but by the time I finished my run it was just cloudy and 40 degrees.  I ran smoothly the first 8 or so miles, then I took a walking break to fuel and rest a bit.  From there on out I took fairly regular walking breaks, every couple of miles.  My legs were oh-so-tired and sore, but I worked very hard at staying focused on finishing the run.  Sometimes I find it hard to believe I've already done the 26.2 distance, but I guess with each round of training, it's almost like starting over.  I chugged some chocolate milk as my husband drove me home, then sat in an ice bath for almost 15 minutes while I read the latest issue of Runner's World, which I just got in the mail yesterday. :)  Here's to a decent recovery and a productive taper - the Ogden Marathon is in 6 weeks, I actually think I might have time to fit in another 20 miler if I wanted, because I had an extra week in my schedule...we'll see.

Thursday, April 7, 2011

Post-vacation blues...

We're home from our short trip.  This evening I need to spend preparing for my longest run, pre-marathon.  I can't say I did much of a structured workout or running during the two days we were gone, but we did do quite a bit of walking and swimming, so that has to count for something, right?  We weren't able to soak in much vitamin D, either.  In fact, we went to Jackson, WY, which is even colder and snowier than where we live.  But unfortunately a trip to sunny California just wasn't in the cards for this Spring break, so we take the good with the bad.  It was fun to get away and have a break in the monotony, anyway and my legs should be good and rested for tomorrow's run.

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

4 miles, and away we go!!

This morning I did an early 4 mile run, and now our family is going on a little trip for the next couple of days.  I will try to keep posting on my workouts, if possible.  Otherwise, you'll hear from me again after my 22 miler on Friday!  :)

Monday, April 4, 2011

4.5 miles.

Today is (officially) the first day of spring break for my kids, so I took them with me to the park so they could ride their bikes while I ran.  Of course, they got too cold and wanted to go home before I was finished with my run, but I was able to get 3 miles in before coming home and doing the rest on the treadmill.  When I finished with my run, I did 15 minutes on the elliptical and 30 minutes of Pilates.

Saturday, April 2, 2011

4 miles.

This morning my husband is working, so I loaded all four kids up in the car, with balls, mitts, bats, scooters, skates and bikes and headed to the park to do my run.  It was actually just warm enough that I could finally wear my running shorts, although it would have been much nicer if the sun would have been out.  In fact, I think I felt a few raindrops just as I was finishing up my run.

I felt great on my run today.  I finished just over 4 miles in 42 minutes, which is averaging about 10:30 -ish min/mile, a very good time for me.  I didn't even have any pain - yay!  So, a good way to kick start what should hopefully be an enlightening weekend...well, except for the part where my kids somehow set off the panic alarm on the truck just as I was doing my walking cool-down and I had to sprint from across the field to turn it off before it woke up everyone in the neighborhood.

Friday, April 1, 2011

Rest day...

Or, at least it's supposed to be.  It's now 8:35pm and I've been up since about 4am, when I got annoyed with laying in bed, uncomfortably tossing and turning and feeling miserable from this stupid cold and just decided to get up for the day.  The coughing, the sneezing, the runny nose, the headache, the body ache, the sore throat - yep, it's all here.  After guzzling what we had left in the fridge of my freshly extracted fruit/vegetable juice, which was probably about 16 or more ounces, and using some nasal decongestant spray, I decided to try and relax with some Pilates, which I did for about 30 minutes.  Then the rest of the day is sort of a blur, from running to and from Cub Scout and Achievement Days girls activities, doing some closet/spring cleaning, walking into town with the kids so they could play at the park, then making dinner and after dinner, another family walk to the walking park where my husband and I walked some more while the kids rode their bikes...now while I'm waiting for the kids to settle down for the night, I've been researching Chi-Running online (very interesting, by the way), and feeling ready for bed myself.