That incessant forward motion is what this race's founder repeated over and over in the pre-race slide show/orientation. Incessant forward motion is what will get you to the summit, so never stop moving-and they were important words to live by on this course, not just something clever he thought he'd say!
I got down to Ouray a little after 5 on Friday, and Ilana, whom I met on my marathon rac training forum and was sharing a room with that night, had gotten to the hotel just before me. We grabbed dinner with one of her friends, hit the orientation (alternately laughed and cringed at slides of people doubled over, huffing and puffing up to the summit), scored some chocolate at the chocolate shop and went back to the hotel where we were able to soak in the hot tub outside under the stars before laying out gear and getting some shuteye before the race.
The hotel wound up being literally two minutes from the start (elevation of 7810 ft), so it was a great setup to just hang out in the room until about ten minutes before the start. It was a cloudy at the start but the forecast was still for great weather on the course. A few minutes later, we were off.
My strategy for the day was just to take an easy pace on segments where I could run, and be really careful on the parts where I would be hiking and walking. The first bit of hiking came a few tenths of a mile into the race, and for the first few miles I was able to alternate walking and jogging. The first time checkpoint, Upper Camp Bird (11,235 ft) was roughly 7.5 miles in to the race, and you have to make that in 2.5 hours so my main objective was just to come in ahead of that mark. The sections of uphill hiking and walking were really slippery with lots of scrabbly rock underfoot so I just tried to watch a little bit in front of me and go cautiously. I made it to the UCB checkpoint in a little over two hours, and spent about five minutes there having some food, taking in some electrolytes, and snapping a few pictures before moving on.
The next roughly 2 1/2 miles is probably THE hardest thing physically that I've ever done. This is where the "death march" nickname that one of my Team Tiara coaches/mentors gave to this run came from. If you look ahead it's just a stream of ants marching up switchbacks to the summit, and the closer you get, the slower you're moving. Because it's really steep in most spots, and it's all slippery rocks, I also had to pay very close attention to where my feet were going. Other than my planned stop/photo op at the Upper Camp Bird checkpoint at 7.5 miles, though, I never stopped on the way up, so I was really proud of myself for that. I just kept following the sound of the ringing cowbells, and a woman whooping it up, hooting and hollering at the point on the course when the climb finally stops. I reached the summit (13,120 feet) in a little bit over three hours, I believe (I don't think they have those splits up on the website yet).
It was cold, but sunny and about as nice as you could possibly expect the summit. Again, I took my time to look around, take a few photos, snack on some cookies at the aid station (they had chicken noodle soup up there too!), stretch a little bit and get ready for the downhill. I think I spent close to ten minutes in total at the summit. Not a typical thing for me to do at a race but then again, this wasn't a typical race, and since I was proceeding with caution anyway with my hip, I figured I might as well enjoy it. It was really cool to turn around and look down and say "I got up here on my own two legs".....not in an ATV, not as part of some luxury adventure sightseeing tour group in jeeps or whatever.
My legs REALLY felt like Jell-O by now, and the aspect of my running that needs the most work is definitely downhill trail running, so I decided that my game plan going down was NOT going to be push for a fast finish, but go the other way and turn it down a notch or two to get down safely on tired legs. I had mountain goats flying past me left and right, but the three times I kind of gently skidded and landed on my butt and hands on the downhill, I knew I was doing the right thing because those harmless slides could've been nasty injuries if I'd allowed myself to get too concerned with what others were doing, and tried to take it the way some of the better trail runners did.
The weather was gorgeous coming down into Telluride, and I was surprised to see that wherever I was in the pack (which was somewhere at the back of the midpackers) had really thinned out. I guess most of the front-to-mid-packers were well ahead on the course, and the back-of-the-packers well behind. I wound up getting a good half mile stretch in what I think was the 15th mile where I was TOTALLY alone, just coming down the trail along the tops of aspen trees on the downslope, and it was awesome.
I finally could see Telluride approaching, and then I was finally on pavement for the two blocks downhill to the finish line. DH and kids didn't see me and I didn't see them until just before the finish but they'd managed to plant themselves just before the finish. I didn't hear the announcer, but I guess they were announcing each runner and their hometown as they came in to the finish, and DH was impressed that the guy got my name totally right, haha. I finished in 4:41:xx, which was 64/95 AG, 765/1071 overall finishers (there were I think about 50 more who started but either didn't make the time cutoffs or stopped on their own).
That's WAY WAY off my goal marathon time (which the training plan on the website said should be pretty comparable to your marathon time), but I am happy with my performance and not going to split hairs too much about it since I went into this wanting to start and finish healthy, and basically just keep moving at the most consistent but conservative pace possible since I knew there would be many ways to get hurt or sick out there.
So that's my novel. It was one hard "run" but the event is VERY well organized, the volunteers and search/rescue personnel on the course were GREAT and I don't think this will be the last time I do IPR. I'm thinking that next year I'll train specifically for IPR and run it for time, and use it as a tuneup for my first running in '09 of our local 22.6 mile race across the CO National Monument.
A footnote-I took photos but on a disposable camera so I wouldn't smash our "good" camera, and I haven't filled it up so if I have any good shots once I've taken all the pictures, I'll share them in a week or two. Ilana had a real camera and posted some great photos on her flicker account and blog so I'll check with her to see if she doesn't mind me linking in to them.
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Saturday, August 23, 2008
The Pfitz Marathon Pace Run
Wow. I am tired. Somebody fix a girl a margarita!
That was the single hardest run I have completed on the Pfitzinger 18/55 plan. Forget the 17, 18, or 20 mile runs at normal long run pace-the 15 miles today with 12 at goal marathon pace just kicked my butt up one side and down the other.
I did get an early start today, waking up around 5:45, making some coffee, leisurely sucking that down and getting dressed, and finally heading out the door around 6:30. My first plan was to do three full miles before beginning the marathon pace miles, so then I could be bad/lazy and call it quits as soon as the fast miles were over.
When I got going, that left hip that scared the crap out of me earlier last week was VERY tight and I wondered if that meant trouble, or it would work itself out. After a few minutes, it was loosened up a bit and I felt myself antsy and full of nervous energy. I decided that I might as well get the marathon pace miles underway, and put myself out of my misery earlier. This was probably the smarter way to go anyway, since it would allow two full miles to come down from that pace gently, and cool down.
Of course, as a first time marathoner, I've been kind of confused as to what my goal pace should be. I have been thinking that shooting for 8:25-8:30 miles on race day is about where I should be, but somehow on this run today I got into the mindset that I ought to build a bit of a cushion and run it a little faster than that. Then I got into the habit of really speeding up going downhill.
This was great for about the first six or seven miles at this pace, which seemed to be averaging somewhere in the 8:00-8:15 range. After that, though, I realized it was probably dumb to take it at such a brisk clip. It was getting hot. I'd only brought my two handhelds, and didn't have any more water at the car or the family refilling anything for me. At 10.5 miles into the MP miles, I was ready to be done but had to keep telling myself you made your bed, now you have to lie in it. I slowed to about the 8:20-8:25 range in the last half mile, but I suppose it's all good because I kept it at, or faster than my goal pace. Still, there's NO way (right now) that I could have maintained that for 26.2, so it was a good lesson on what NOT to do on race day.
I really fought the urge to just be done and walk out the last two miles because I had a slightly crampy left calf from not bringing that third bottle of water for the car to refill my other bottles, and getting mildly dehydrated near the end of the run. I just felt like being done altogether. I took the end of the run as easy as I could, reminding myself that the gentle running would help work out the crampiness and leave me less sore as the weekend went on. Not too long after that, I was all done. WOW. I've heard it before but now I have really experienced what it means to respect the marathon while training.
Tomorrow's a rest day. Wahoo! Back on schedule, after mixing things up for last weekend's race, and a recovery week ahead. Then it's on to the Imogene Pass Run and the last mesocycle before the marathon-I can't believe it's sneaking up on me like this.
On another note-I'm very excited to watch all the men race the Olympic marathon in a little bit. I know I'll never run remotely close to the speed as the Olympians or put in as many miles, but I really appreciate the work they put in from my little taste of running hard, and long. It would be great to see Ryan Hall have a strong race after Deena Kastor's injury and withdrawal from the women's race, and it'll be bittersweet to think that this should have been the late great Ryan Shay's day too. Hopefully, we'll see some great competition that really honors his memory, and ability as an athlete.
That was the single hardest run I have completed on the Pfitzinger 18/55 plan. Forget the 17, 18, or 20 mile runs at normal long run pace-the 15 miles today with 12 at goal marathon pace just kicked my butt up one side and down the other.
I did get an early start today, waking up around 5:45, making some coffee, leisurely sucking that down and getting dressed, and finally heading out the door around 6:30. My first plan was to do three full miles before beginning the marathon pace miles, so then I could be bad/lazy and call it quits as soon as the fast miles were over.
When I got going, that left hip that scared the crap out of me earlier last week was VERY tight and I wondered if that meant trouble, or it would work itself out. After a few minutes, it was loosened up a bit and I felt myself antsy and full of nervous energy. I decided that I might as well get the marathon pace miles underway, and put myself out of my misery earlier. This was probably the smarter way to go anyway, since it would allow two full miles to come down from that pace gently, and cool down.
Of course, as a first time marathoner, I've been kind of confused as to what my goal pace should be. I have been thinking that shooting for 8:25-8:30 miles on race day is about where I should be, but somehow on this run today I got into the mindset that I ought to build a bit of a cushion and run it a little faster than that. Then I got into the habit of really speeding up going downhill.
This was great for about the first six or seven miles at this pace, which seemed to be averaging somewhere in the 8:00-8:15 range. After that, though, I realized it was probably dumb to take it at such a brisk clip. It was getting hot. I'd only brought my two handhelds, and didn't have any more water at the car or the family refilling anything for me. At 10.5 miles into the MP miles, I was ready to be done but had to keep telling myself you made your bed, now you have to lie in it. I slowed to about the 8:20-8:25 range in the last half mile, but I suppose it's all good because I kept it at, or faster than my goal pace. Still, there's NO way (right now) that I could have maintained that for 26.2, so it was a good lesson on what NOT to do on race day.
I really fought the urge to just be done and walk out the last two miles because I had a slightly crampy left calf from not bringing that third bottle of water for the car to refill my other bottles, and getting mildly dehydrated near the end of the run. I just felt like being done altogether. I took the end of the run as easy as I could, reminding myself that the gentle running would help work out the crampiness and leave me less sore as the weekend went on. Not too long after that, I was all done. WOW. I've heard it before but now I have really experienced what it means to respect the marathon while training.
Tomorrow's a rest day. Wahoo! Back on schedule, after mixing things up for last weekend's race, and a recovery week ahead. Then it's on to the Imogene Pass Run and the last mesocycle before the marathon-I can't believe it's sneaking up on me like this.
On another note-I'm very excited to watch all the men race the Olympic marathon in a little bit. I know I'll never run remotely close to the speed as the Olympians or put in as many miles, but I really appreciate the work they put in from my little taste of running hard, and long. It would be great to see Ryan Hall have a strong race after Deena Kastor's injury and withdrawal from the women's race, and it'll be bittersweet to think that this should have been the late great Ryan Shay's day too. Hopefully, we'll see some great competition that really honors his memory, and ability as an athlete.
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
A Good Weekend!
So, this was a weekend of highs for me. I am very tired and coming down from the high now, but am pleased with how things panned out.
Saturday was my re-match with the course that thumped me last year-the 5-miler at the local peach festival. Let's just say that even by last year's standards, when I hadn't raced much and was at a lower weekly mileage, I still sucked wind and got mopped all over the place by that course. This year I wanted to run it strong and fast but not melt down on the course by trying to run well beyond my capabilities (which is part of why I ran a crapola race last year). This year, I am running more miles since that's just what is required in marathon training, and have more experience racing. I was able, after that rotten half I ran in Georgetown, to run well within my abilities this time and even ramp up my speed a little bit when others were starting to fade from attacking too hard. I took a full 7 minutes 30 seconds off last year's time, which made me very, very happy.
I was told when I finished that I was the 8th woman overall. I was pleased with this but crunching numbers and figuring that wasn't going to garner any age group awards because my age group is probably one of the toughest. Well, I got lucky and squeaked into third place AG (I think because the overall winners came from 30-39 yr old women, thus bumping me into the bottom of the AG). I got a basket of peaches that the kids promptly devoured when we got home.
The next day was my scheduled 20-miler. Well, not really scheduled-it should have been Saturday but I had been bent on running the 5-mile race since right after last year's race concluded. So, no choice but bumping it to Sunday.
I got a massage Saturday afternoon with some birthday money I'd received, hoping that would work out any tightness from racing instead of doing the easy recovery run I was scheduled for the day before the 20-miler. I have only had a few massages in my life, but I swear this is the best one I'd EVER had....and well worth any guilt I had over not being 100% responsible and paying bills/putting every last penny into the kids' savings.
I got lucky on Sunday too that the weather was unseasonably cool, and in the sixties instead of the 80's like it normally would be here in August. I plotted out several loops on our river trail, tossing out and exchanging my handheld bottles at the car after loops. After the first 8 miles, I saw a Team Tiara teammate who shouted out wooohooo as I swapped out the first bottle at my car and got going again. This was nice because I can easily get into the "meh....ANOTHER loop" mindset when running out again, so she sort of distracted me there.
As I finished my second, shorter loop, I saw my husband and kids who were out for a bike ride, and they all waved and said howdy mom-another great pick-me-up. I knew they were also there to refill my empty handheld in the car (can I just say it's AWESOME to have a supportive family who will come out and crew for me?).
I set out in reverse direction on the big outer loop of our river trail, and built up to the slow, gradual uphill around mile 17. That was the toughest part as my legs felt pretty tired, but it was not misery. Once I was over that section it was like this total surreal last few miles, knowing I was going to make it the full twenty. It's a big deal when you used to be overweight and couldn't run for more than 30 seconds to finish your first 20-miler in marathon training! I was thrilled with my pace which was dead center of my recommended pace range for long runs, considering I'd raced the day before. I was granting myself full permission to run it as slow as needed to complete it but the massage and cool weather worked in tandem to keep me feeling like I had fresh legs and body.
So, I'm tired now....and NOT particularly excited about the 14 mile medium long run scheduled tonight. Oh well...as one of my marathon training acquaintances' running shirt line says, "they can't all be PR's and Sunshine!" Speaking of which...check them out here. Her shirts are very cool.
http://www.giftedrunner.com/designs.shtml
Okay, as long as I am talking shirts....check these out as well if you have kiddos or a groovy niece or nephew that you might buy clothing for on occasion. I thought these guys were the coolest when I first saw the AB/CD For Those About To Read, We Salute You shirt and got one for my son. I just got one or two more from there including the "Koi" (because we say Ava always does the coy face and hands whenever she's busted for being a little naughty), and "Hug It Out" for Carter (from the show Entourage on HBO) for the first day of preschool. They do have neat stuff there so check 'em out if you're looking for stuff that's a little different than your standard kiddie fare.
http://www.thetrendytadpole.com/category.php?category_id=49
Yeah, it's a stream of consciousness blog today. Probably time to go refresh the coffee!
Saturday was my re-match with the course that thumped me last year-the 5-miler at the local peach festival. Let's just say that even by last year's standards, when I hadn't raced much and was at a lower weekly mileage, I still sucked wind and got mopped all over the place by that course. This year I wanted to run it strong and fast but not melt down on the course by trying to run well beyond my capabilities (which is part of why I ran a crapola race last year). This year, I am running more miles since that's just what is required in marathon training, and have more experience racing. I was able, after that rotten half I ran in Georgetown, to run well within my abilities this time and even ramp up my speed a little bit when others were starting to fade from attacking too hard. I took a full 7 minutes 30 seconds off last year's time, which made me very, very happy.
I was told when I finished that I was the 8th woman overall. I was pleased with this but crunching numbers and figuring that wasn't going to garner any age group awards because my age group is probably one of the toughest. Well, I got lucky and squeaked into third place AG (I think because the overall winners came from 30-39 yr old women, thus bumping me into the bottom of the AG). I got a basket of peaches that the kids promptly devoured when we got home.
The next day was my scheduled 20-miler. Well, not really scheduled-it should have been Saturday but I had been bent on running the 5-mile race since right after last year's race concluded. So, no choice but bumping it to Sunday.
I got a massage Saturday afternoon with some birthday money I'd received, hoping that would work out any tightness from racing instead of doing the easy recovery run I was scheduled for the day before the 20-miler. I have only had a few massages in my life, but I swear this is the best one I'd EVER had....and well worth any guilt I had over not being 100% responsible and paying bills/putting every last penny into the kids' savings.
I got lucky on Sunday too that the weather was unseasonably cool, and in the sixties instead of the 80's like it normally would be here in August. I plotted out several loops on our river trail, tossing out and exchanging my handheld bottles at the car after loops. After the first 8 miles, I saw a Team Tiara teammate who shouted out wooohooo as I swapped out the first bottle at my car and got going again. This was nice because I can easily get into the "meh....ANOTHER loop" mindset when running out again, so she sort of distracted me there.
As I finished my second, shorter loop, I saw my husband and kids who were out for a bike ride, and they all waved and said howdy mom-another great pick-me-up. I knew they were also there to refill my empty handheld in the car (can I just say it's AWESOME to have a supportive family who will come out and crew for me?).
I set out in reverse direction on the big outer loop of our river trail, and built up to the slow, gradual uphill around mile 17. That was the toughest part as my legs felt pretty tired, but it was not misery. Once I was over that section it was like this total surreal last few miles, knowing I was going to make it the full twenty. It's a big deal when you used to be overweight and couldn't run for more than 30 seconds to finish your first 20-miler in marathon training! I was thrilled with my pace which was dead center of my recommended pace range for long runs, considering I'd raced the day before. I was granting myself full permission to run it as slow as needed to complete it but the massage and cool weather worked in tandem to keep me feeling like I had fresh legs and body.
So, I'm tired now....and NOT particularly excited about the 14 mile medium long run scheduled tonight. Oh well...as one of my marathon training acquaintances' running shirt line says, "they can't all be PR's and Sunshine!" Speaking of which...check them out here. Her shirts are very cool.
http://www.giftedrunner.com/designs.shtml
Okay, as long as I am talking shirts....check these out as well if you have kiddos or a groovy niece or nephew that you might buy clothing for on occasion. I thought these guys were the coolest when I first saw the AB/CD For Those About To Read, We Salute You shirt and got one for my son. I just got one or two more from there including the "Koi" (because we say Ava always does the coy face and hands whenever she's busted for being a little naughty), and "Hug It Out" for Carter (from the show Entourage on HBO) for the first day of preschool. They do have neat stuff there so check 'em out if you're looking for stuff that's a little different than your standard kiddie fare.
http://www.thetrendytadpole.com/category.php?category_id=49
Yeah, it's a stream of consciousness blog today. Probably time to go refresh the coffee!
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Big Wheels Keep On Turning...
Well, I'm now doing what I never thought I would be doing, and that is running on my own personal treadmill at home. (Not literally RIGHT NOW....anyway...you know what I mean).
I'm very excited. We made an eight-hour round trip to get it but I really wasn't interested in the one overpriced model the sales guy showed me at the one and only, shoebox-sized local gym equipment store. Because I made such a long trip, and asked, the store manager at the place in Utah even took a few hundred dollars off for me. Just goes to show that you should always ask...the worst they can say is no, and it made the gas expense and time getting there (almost) worth it.
The first run started out comically enough...somehow just turning it on was enough to randomly short out that circuit in our bedroom. It was apparently, however, a one time fluke. Once we flipped the circuit breaker, no more problems, and I've already gotten in three runs on the thing. Last night was rather comical. I had eleven miles scheduled, and apparently Tired Daddy sent the middle two kids upstairs to get undressed for a bath...then got distracted by shiny objects. Soon I had two naked kids in my bedroom, waiting for a bath, watching me on the treadmill. Then, two naked kids running back and forth on the other side of the room, shouting out "look! We're running on treadmills!" It was amusing, but after awhile I said "go find your Dad and ask him to give you that bath he was promising."
I also started this run around 6:45 or 7pm, due to family and time constraints. There was plenty of natural light coming in the windows and I really wasn't thinking ahead when I started. When I was about halfway through the run, the sun was starting to set. When I was about a mile from the end, I was running in total darkness. On a treadmill. Which backs up to a wall. I thought-how am I going to explain a home treadmill accident to the doctor?!? Thankfully, my oldest kiddo popped her head in the door around this time and I was able to ask her to flip the switch. Note to self-leave on a light when starting runs in the evening.
I can't say I'm converted and will never run on a road or trail again, and to the contrary, it's boring as hell on the treadmill. Still, I just can't put a price on the reduced stress and no longer having to battle it out with the transients and mountain lions outdoors in the wee morning hours, or battling it out with walkers on treadmills at the gym at night. Nothing like being able to run when I want, wearing whatever I want, and walking ten feet to the shower afterwards. And the free show from the nekkid children was pretty priceless as well.
I'm very excited. We made an eight-hour round trip to get it but I really wasn't interested in the one overpriced model the sales guy showed me at the one and only, shoebox-sized local gym equipment store. Because I made such a long trip, and asked, the store manager at the place in Utah even took a few hundred dollars off for me. Just goes to show that you should always ask...the worst they can say is no, and it made the gas expense and time getting there (almost) worth it.
The first run started out comically enough...somehow just turning it on was enough to randomly short out that circuit in our bedroom. It was apparently, however, a one time fluke. Once we flipped the circuit breaker, no more problems, and I've already gotten in three runs on the thing. Last night was rather comical. I had eleven miles scheduled, and apparently Tired Daddy sent the middle two kids upstairs to get undressed for a bath...then got distracted by shiny objects. Soon I had two naked kids in my bedroom, waiting for a bath, watching me on the treadmill. Then, two naked kids running back and forth on the other side of the room, shouting out "look! We're running on treadmills!" It was amusing, but after awhile I said "go find your Dad and ask him to give you that bath he was promising."
I also started this run around 6:45 or 7pm, due to family and time constraints. There was plenty of natural light coming in the windows and I really wasn't thinking ahead when I started. When I was about halfway through the run, the sun was starting to set. When I was about a mile from the end, I was running in total darkness. On a treadmill. Which backs up to a wall. I thought-how am I going to explain a home treadmill accident to the doctor?!? Thankfully, my oldest kiddo popped her head in the door around this time and I was able to ask her to flip the switch. Note to self-leave on a light when starting runs in the evening.
I can't say I'm converted and will never run on a road or trail again, and to the contrary, it's boring as hell on the treadmill. Still, I just can't put a price on the reduced stress and no longer having to battle it out with the transients and mountain lions outdoors in the wee morning hours, or battling it out with walkers on treadmills at the gym at night. Nothing like being able to run when I want, wearing whatever I want, and walking ten feet to the shower afterwards. And the free show from the nekkid children was pretty priceless as well.
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Better Late Than Never! Pteranodon Ptrot Race Report, and My Distance PR run.
This was an annual race put on by the local dinosaur museum, the Pteranodon Ptrot (Ptwenty-first Annual this year ;) ). It's taken many different forms over the years but was a 5K this year. I was not racing for myself but pacing Alexis at her request. She wanted to pace herself in her two most recent races, but asked that I pace her this time. I was happy to do this, and it worked out perfectly because I was scheduled for a 17-mile long run the next day, a distance PR. Probably not the world's greatest idea to race all-out before a long run at a new distance, so I was treating this as a much more enjoyable than usual recovery run.
Alexis and I showed up a little after 7am, got our numbers, and met up with friends Carl and his wife Jo Ann, and their neighbor. We chatted for a bit and then Alexis and I got in a little bit of a warmup with Carl. DD and I noticed that one of the other boys from her youth track program was there (he wound up winning the 12 and under boys).
We lined up shortly thereafter and were off. It starts out gently enough but then we cross the river, and go up a pretty big hill. Then down another and up another big hill...then down to the turnaround and on back.
Alexis needed to stop and walk a few times for side stitches. She seemed to be doing well, though, and managing those walk breaks and taking them when she needed and picking it up again as soon as she was able. Not a banner, A+ day if you went by time alone but she really stuck it out through the tough spots and definitely an A for effort with the heat, mosquitoes and hills.
I didn't catch her exact time-it was 33 or low 34:xx I believe. After waiting around for quite awhile while they "tabulated scores" as one of the race volunteers announced (I thought, uh-oh...were we graded on our form too?), they finally came out and did awards. A got 1st AG in 12 and under, and Carl and JA also took their AG's.
I was sort of curious how I'd have done running this for myself..the winning time in my AG was about 25:XX and it seemed like the hills really do make it a "Personal Worst Worthy" course. It was a fun little race, though, and certainly a very challenging course. I think that next year I'm going to twist Frank's arm to run with A so I can see what kind of world of hurt I could put myself into on the hills. :)
So, the next day, I got out at around 6 a.m. for my 17 miler. I had yet another wild feline sighting (bobcat this time), and also passed some guy four times out there on our riverfront trail loops. I talked to him after the run (he was cooling down and stretching at the same time), and it turns out that he'll be running the Chicago marathon this fall. This isn't a big area so it was nice to meet a runner I'd never met before at local races, and give each other the "nice run" salute. I wound up taking a completely different route than planned, switching things up on the fly (didn't feel like running past the bobcat ahead on the trail when I saw it, so I turned around and headed in another direction). That probably kept things from becoming quite boring-in hindsight it was a total same ol' same ol' route on the schedule originally and it was invigorating to switch things up. I averaged 9:25 miles but followed the Pfitz guideline to start around 20% slower than marathon pace and finish at 10% slower than MP.
It's a cutback week now-woohoo! If things go well, I'll be on my way to Utah on Saturday for a treadmill for home use, and then we'll cancel our gym membership when it expires next month. It will be SUCH a great thing to be able to run at home. I'll have more flexibility to run at different times, and then Frank can go mountain bike at the same time because I will be home. If anyone's reading this-cross your fingers that my van in the shop for a strange air conditioning problem is fixed tomorrow so we can drive to Utah to make the purchase. Ah, the fun of living four hours from any major city!
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Pfitz Week Four is History!
I think I'm FINALLY starting to settle down with this plan. I felt sort of backed into a corner for the first couple of weeks, but I'm working it out. I know it's just going to get tougher once the first six week period on the plan draws to a close, but it's supposed to be that way-I don't feel like I'm falling hopelessly behind on the first part of the plan anymore.
One thing I finally got right all this week-recovery runs at the proper pace. I was taking them WAAAAAAAAAAAY too fast during the first two weeks. I think that's only natural-I mean, really, who wants to slow from their moderately hard pace all the way down to a jog/easy run? That's what I thought when I started the plan. After a couple of rough mid-week medium long runs, though, I realized that there WAS a method to the madness and that the recovery runs SHOULD be done at a very easy pace. I did both recovery runs slowly this week, and I definitely felt the difference. There was no fatigue when I started the next hard run because I didn't wear myself out on the recovery run. Of course, this isn't rocket science-but I think that slowing down is one of the toughest things mentally for a runner to master. I'll keep working on this, and fight that urge to go faster on easy days.
Another note on the Pfitz plan, and the midweek run. I have a love/hate relationship with that medium long run. There's not enough time in the early morning for me to do it outdoors safely, and get home before kids start waking up. It's pushing 100 by early evening as well. So-off to the gym to run on the treadmill.
Ten miles is a LONG way to go on a gym treadmill. It's monotonous. It reeks in that place. I mentioned in another blog post that they NEVER pop open that door downstairs to pump the air out from the swamp cooler. And I'm dog tired before I even set foot in the gym at 7pm or so. This run is paying dividends, though, with my weekend long runs. I really can't believe it! While I will stop short of calling a 15 long run in the heat "easy," I felt strong out there yesterday. I was pretty tired by mile 13, but I knew I could finish strong, and wasn't ticking off the miles wishing to be done for the first 13. I don't know that the long runs would feel this good without the midweek run.
So, on to week five. My first schedule juggling occurs this weekend, but it's not much of a stretch. I'll be pacing the oldest kiddo in a local 5K on Saturday, and will treat that as my recovery run. My long run will shift ahead one day to Sunday. Those switches shouldn't be bad, in and of themselves...it'll probably be the Monday evening run that becomes a bit challenging. Oh well, that which doesn't kill me makes me stronger (I hope)!
One thing I finally got right all this week-recovery runs at the proper pace. I was taking them WAAAAAAAAAAAY too fast during the first two weeks. I think that's only natural-I mean, really, who wants to slow from their moderately hard pace all the way down to a jog/easy run? That's what I thought when I started the plan. After a couple of rough mid-week medium long runs, though, I realized that there WAS a method to the madness and that the recovery runs SHOULD be done at a very easy pace. I did both recovery runs slowly this week, and I definitely felt the difference. There was no fatigue when I started the next hard run because I didn't wear myself out on the recovery run. Of course, this isn't rocket science-but I think that slowing down is one of the toughest things mentally for a runner to master. I'll keep working on this, and fight that urge to go faster on easy days.
Another note on the Pfitz plan, and the midweek run. I have a love/hate relationship with that medium long run. There's not enough time in the early morning for me to do it outdoors safely, and get home before kids start waking up. It's pushing 100 by early evening as well. So-off to the gym to run on the treadmill.
Ten miles is a LONG way to go on a gym treadmill. It's monotonous. It reeks in that place. I mentioned in another blog post that they NEVER pop open that door downstairs to pump the air out from the swamp cooler. And I'm dog tired before I even set foot in the gym at 7pm or so. This run is paying dividends, though, with my weekend long runs. I really can't believe it! While I will stop short of calling a 15 long run in the heat "easy," I felt strong out there yesterday. I was pretty tired by mile 13, but I knew I could finish strong, and wasn't ticking off the miles wishing to be done for the first 13. I don't know that the long runs would feel this good without the midweek run.
So, on to week five. My first schedule juggling occurs this weekend, but it's not much of a stretch. I'll be pacing the oldest kiddo in a local 5K on Saturday, and will treat that as my recovery run. My long run will shift ahead one day to Sunday. Those switches shouldn't be bad, in and of themselves...it'll probably be the Monday evening run that becomes a bit challenging. Oh well, that which doesn't kill me makes me stronger (I hope)!
Friday, July 11, 2008
Allrighty...it is now shameless plug time.
The couple of you who read my inconsistent blog posts from time to time probably know that Alexis's initial participation in a Girls on the Run event started my slippery descent into race training. I was a member of Team Tiara last year, which fundraises for Girls on the Run. The website describes the program best so I will briefly copy and paste that here:
Alexis was officially old enough to go through the program this year, and it was awesome. The exercise they would do was essentially disguised as fun and games, and by the end of the 10-week program all the girls are unbelievably proud of themselves for finishing a 5K event. Although there are some kids like Alexis who discover they love running, it's the girls who started out thinking they HATED running who I really love to watch as they finish the races. It's just so cool to see them with that self-confident, proud, "I can try anything now" demeanor as they cross the finish. That's SO important for girls as they approach the teenage jungle, and very important to me as a mom with three daughters. In subsequent races since Alexis's first, I have seen women and girls of all ages and abilities in the races, including visually and hearing impaired girls, and another who appeared to have mild cerebral palsy who just grinned from ear to ear as she was approaching the finish. It's moving stuff even for the most jaded and cynical.
Seriously, it was just awesome the first time we were involved in a GOTR race that I just HAD to get involved. So, I joined Team Tiara last year, which is a group of local female runners (well, it's open to the dudes but they mostly stick to support/cheerleader roles) who train for a distance event of their choosing, and agree to fundraise a minimum of $262 for the program. I was absolutely scared out of my mind because I'd run exactly one 5K then, and a half marathon seemed SO impossible. There are some kick butt women runners in this area-I feared I'd be out of my league or laughed at or whatever. I was no speedster.
My fears were unwarranted, though. The coaches, speed demons though they were, were also very approachable and encouraging. I met other mid-back-pack runners, and we'd get out there together for runs. We also were able to raise quite a bit of money for the program, which is a true grassroots non-profit, and stays strong locally from the individuals and small businesses who helped us out with fundraising. I ran that target race last year, The Other Half, no longer thinking "just finish." Girls on the Run had changed ME as well, and I had a newfound confidence and pride in training. I ran that day to do my personal best (which, hey, it was going to be anyway with it being my first half....but you know what I mean).
So, I am back again on Team Tiara this year, and want to bring it home big for them. If you're reading this and can/would like to help out, that would be awesome. Like I said, GOTR is grassroots in every sense-they're trying to improve the lives and futures of these girls at the local level, and other than a small amount of money that goes to the national headquarters (who provide great support for us locally), almost all the money comes back here. It means that the 10-week program registration is $30 for all girls even though actual program cost per girl is closer to $80-100. Scholarships are also offered so no girl is ever turned away....something that is a VERY big deal to me personally because it means the most at-risk girls are able to participate, not just those whose families make enough for extracurriculars for their kids. The coaches are unpaid volunteers-many are runners but others are women/parents who simply believe in the program and want to pitch in however they can.
If you're inspired and would like to help, visit my fundraising page here:
http://www.active.com/donate/teamtiara2008/KLevely
I fixed the link so you can click above without cutting and pasting. :)
It's a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, so you get a nice little tax receipt to help you out later at tax time, and I honestly can't think of many other nonprofits who put SO much directly back into the local programs. It takes about three minutes to donate via the above link and you'll instantly get your email receipt. It's a VeriSign secured website, but if you're not wild about transactions on the Googles on the Internets, feel free to drop me a line. GOTR is also happy to take donations the old fashioned way by paper check or money order.
And yes...this was quite a long shameless plug and I'm well aware how many people are out there fundraising and collecting for groups these days. I just am very passionate about their program, and see how they have improved the lives of girls in our community, as well as the girls/women in this family. :)
And now, off to wash my clothes so I have something to wear for my long run tomorrow morning. :)
Girls on the Run© is a non-profit prevention program that encourages preteen girls to develop self-respect and healthy lifestyles through running. Our curricula address all aspects of girls' development - their physical, emotional, mental, social and spiritual well-being.
Alexis was officially old enough to go through the program this year, and it was awesome. The exercise they would do was essentially disguised as fun and games, and by the end of the 10-week program all the girls are unbelievably proud of themselves for finishing a 5K event. Although there are some kids like Alexis who discover they love running, it's the girls who started out thinking they HATED running who I really love to watch as they finish the races. It's just so cool to see them with that self-confident, proud, "I can try anything now" demeanor as they cross the finish. That's SO important for girls as they approach the teenage jungle, and very important to me as a mom with three daughters. In subsequent races since Alexis's first, I have seen women and girls of all ages and abilities in the races, including visually and hearing impaired girls, and another who appeared to have mild cerebral palsy who just grinned from ear to ear as she was approaching the finish. It's moving stuff even for the most jaded and cynical.
Seriously, it was just awesome the first time we were involved in a GOTR race that I just HAD to get involved. So, I joined Team Tiara last year, which is a group of local female runners (well, it's open to the dudes but they mostly stick to support/cheerleader roles) who train for a distance event of their choosing, and agree to fundraise a minimum of $262 for the program. I was absolutely scared out of my mind because I'd run exactly one 5K then, and a half marathon seemed SO impossible. There are some kick butt women runners in this area-I feared I'd be out of my league or laughed at or whatever. I was no speedster.
My fears were unwarranted, though. The coaches, speed demons though they were, were also very approachable and encouraging. I met other mid-back-pack runners, and we'd get out there together for runs. We also were able to raise quite a bit of money for the program, which is a true grassroots non-profit, and stays strong locally from the individuals and small businesses who helped us out with fundraising. I ran that target race last year, The Other Half, no longer thinking "just finish." Girls on the Run had changed ME as well, and I had a newfound confidence and pride in training. I ran that day to do my personal best (which, hey, it was going to be anyway with it being my first half....but you know what I mean).
So, I am back again on Team Tiara this year, and want to bring it home big for them. If you're reading this and can/would like to help out, that would be awesome. Like I said, GOTR is grassroots in every sense-they're trying to improve the lives and futures of these girls at the local level, and other than a small amount of money that goes to the national headquarters (who provide great support for us locally), almost all the money comes back here. It means that the 10-week program registration is $30 for all girls even though actual program cost per girl is closer to $80-100. Scholarships are also offered so no girl is ever turned away....something that is a VERY big deal to me personally because it means the most at-risk girls are able to participate, not just those whose families make enough for extracurriculars for their kids. The coaches are unpaid volunteers-many are runners but others are women/parents who simply believe in the program and want to pitch in however they can.
If you're inspired and would like to help, visit my fundraising page here:
http://www.active.com/donate/teamtiara2008/KLevely
I fixed the link so you can click above without cutting and pasting. :)
It's a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, so you get a nice little tax receipt to help you out later at tax time, and I honestly can't think of many other nonprofits who put SO much directly back into the local programs. It takes about three minutes to donate via the above link and you'll instantly get your email receipt. It's a VeriSign secured website, but if you're not wild about transactions on the Googles on the Internets, feel free to drop me a line. GOTR is also happy to take donations the old fashioned way by paper check or money order.
And yes...this was quite a long shameless plug and I'm well aware how many people are out there fundraising and collecting for groups these days. I just am very passionate about their program, and see how they have improved the lives of girls in our community, as well as the girls/women in this family. :)
And now, off to wash my clothes so I have something to wear for my long run tomorrow morning. :)
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