It's been exactly a week since the 10k, meaning exactly a week since my last run. If I don't go for a run soon, I seriously am going to lose my mind. I've been taking it easy for the past week because of some aches & pains that I didn't want to take too lightly. Of course, by "taking it easy" I mean "spending two hours hiking a mountain that was so steep and precariously covered in loose rocks that I had to climb up parts of it on all fours and slide down other parts on my bum."
But still, it's no substitute for a good run, and I missed my scheduled 9-miler because I was stuck in the middle of a Mexico-truck extravaganza for five hours coming home from New York. Also missed my two scheduled 5-milers and scheduled 3-miler. This is not a good way to prepare for my first half-marathon.
RAR.
Monday, October 20, 2008
Thursday, October 16, 2008
I signed up for this.
Note to self : Stretch. Seriously.
Saturday I ran an easy 9 miles, much to my surprise. On Monday, I ran the Tufts 10k for Women in 1:00:16 (a 9:42 pace, whoo!).
Neither of those times did I stretch, and now my right hip is out of joint or something and I am limping around all over the place.
Ow.
And I just signed up for a half-marathon in two weeks. Oh boy.
Saturday I ran an easy 9 miles, much to my surprise. On Monday, I ran the Tufts 10k for Women in 1:00:16 (a 9:42 pace, whoo!).
Neither of those times did I stretch, and now my right hip is out of joint or something and I am limping around all over the place.
Ow.
And I just signed up for a half-marathon in two weeks. Oh boy.
Friday, October 10, 2008
A touch of crazy
Reading all these posts about "taper madness", I've come to realize there's a bit of constant crazy in every runner, isn't there? As I approach my first full year of hardish-core running, the longest commitment I've ever made to anything remotely unpleasant (including college and boyfriends), I'm becoming more conscious of the root of that madness - the fear of losing this strange compulsion I've come to love and honestly depend on, so much.
Training has been patchy lately. I've not been getting in my two 5-milers per week, and last week I missed my long run. I plan on making that up on Monday when I do the Tufts Health Plan 10k for Women.
I've also been a little sick, but I managed to bang out five miles on Tuesday night. By the end of it the only thing running was my nose (har har har - sorry, I had to go there) and I felt like I was going to collapse, but at least it happened.
What I noticed though, was something I'd been ragingly upset about all weekend and probably through the end of last week doesn't upset me as much any more since that run. It's starting to build up again, but since I know I'll be doing an 8 or 9 miler on Saturday, it's not such a big deal. Weird.
At the same time, there's this terror in the back of my mind any time I feel less than invincible, that something is going to stop me from running. Forever. That's the madness. Every time there's a cramp, or a twinge in my leg, or the sniffles, I freak out a little bit. It's going to stop me from running, and then my quitaholic nature is just going to take over and decide to not start back up again.
I've felt for the past 8 months that I've been carrying on a relay race of my entire life. Every day I run I carry the baton further, and I'm a different person every time.
Now that's crazy for ya. But I'll take it.
Training has been patchy lately. I've not been getting in my two 5-milers per week, and last week I missed my long run. I plan on making that up on Monday when I do the Tufts Health Plan 10k for Women.
I've also been a little sick, but I managed to bang out five miles on Tuesday night. By the end of it the only thing running was my nose (har har har - sorry, I had to go there) and I felt like I was going to collapse, but at least it happened.
What I noticed though, was something I'd been ragingly upset about all weekend and probably through the end of last week doesn't upset me as much any more since that run. It's starting to build up again, but since I know I'll be doing an 8 or 9 miler on Saturday, it's not such a big deal. Weird.
At the same time, there's this terror in the back of my mind any time I feel less than invincible, that something is going to stop me from running. Forever. That's the madness. Every time there's a cramp, or a twinge in my leg, or the sniffles, I freak out a little bit. It's going to stop me from running, and then my quitaholic nature is just going to take over and decide to not start back up again.
I've felt for the past 8 months that I've been carrying on a relay race of my entire life. Every day I run I carry the baton further, and I'm a different person every time.
Now that's crazy for ya. But I'll take it.
Monday, September 29, 2008
Oops
Yesterday I accidentally ran almost 9 miles. Having a destination in mind makes it all the more fun for me. My friend S who is getting married next weekend needed some help putting together placetags and programs, and like all brides-to-be, I'm sure she relished the thought of some hands-on help from a sweaty, stinky running pal. Soooo, off I went to Davis Square with my carefully mapped 7.1 mile route.
My schedule said 7, and I was nervous because that would be the longest distance I'd run in training (not counting the Falmouth Road Race). My legs felt like lead and it was pouring rain, but I slogged along through Southie, through downtown, through the North End, through Beacon Hill, over the bridge into Cambridge, up over the ever-sketch McGrath Hwy bridge, and when I got under said bridge and felt too much like I was going to end up in the opening scene of an episode of CSI, I hightailed it down Somerville Ave and got lost. I just kept pathetically chugging down Mass Ave until I started to feel like maybe I was about to end up in Medford, and that was Not Good. It was a tough run, but I was not expecting to see 9.2 miles when I looked at my iPod. Luckily, I called S and she directed me down a side street and I only had to backtrack a bit. I stopped by the corner store to get a delicious Gatorade G2, only to find they had a debit card minumum and I had no cash. I must have looked so crushed, drowned-ratty, and bedraggled, because the cashier gave it to me for free and said I should just get him "next time". Of course I'll be taking the T out to Davis again to give him his 1.25, because that kind of awesomeness is rare these days. And it was a DELICIOUS beverage.
Tonight I WILL do my Stretch & Strengthen, even if that's just a couple downward dogs and some pushups.
My schedule said 7, and I was nervous because that would be the longest distance I'd run in training (not counting the Falmouth Road Race). My legs felt like lead and it was pouring rain, but I slogged along through Southie, through downtown, through the North End, through Beacon Hill, over the bridge into Cambridge, up over the ever-sketch McGrath Hwy bridge, and when I got under said bridge and felt too much like I was going to end up in the opening scene of an episode of CSI, I hightailed it down Somerville Ave and got lost. I just kept pathetically chugging down Mass Ave until I started to feel like maybe I was about to end up in Medford, and that was Not Good. It was a tough run, but I was not expecting to see 9.2 miles when I looked at my iPod. Luckily, I called S and she directed me down a side street and I only had to backtrack a bit. I stopped by the corner store to get a delicious Gatorade G2, only to find they had a debit card minumum and I had no cash. I must have looked so crushed, drowned-ratty, and bedraggled, because the cashier gave it to me for free and said I should just get him "next time". Of course I'll be taking the T out to Davis again to give him his 1.25, because that kind of awesomeness is rare these days. And it was a DELICIOUS beverage.
Tonight I WILL do my Stretch & Strengthen, even if that's just a couple downward dogs and some pushups.
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Iron unpumped
At my weekend gym, someone colorformed a pumpkin face onto a big orange kettlebell. There is no way I would ever be able to lift that kettlebell, but part of me feels like I am neglecting it anyway, because of that cheerful pumpkin face. I've been running regularly, and apparently it's paying off, but I haven't done any cross-training in weeks and I should really remedy that.
One of my major problems with weightlifting is that I go all out, and that results in serious pain in a couple days. If I continued to workout regularly, I would get used to it and wouldn't be in agony for five days after I did squats, but doing aforementioned squats makes my lower body hurt so badly that I can't do squats for five days. It's a vicious cycle. Here's a tip that is SO EASY and works SO WELL and yet for some reason I don't do it - Do squats while brushing your teeth, and counter pushups while swishing mouthwash (if you use it). If I do this regularly, it seriously helps me keep my legs and arms used to these movements without adding extra weight, when I do add the weight for a real workout my resulting pain level a much more manageable "Badass" rather than a crippling "Geriatric".
One of my major problems with weightlifting is that I go all out, and that results in serious pain in a couple days. If I continued to workout regularly, I would get used to it and wouldn't be in agony for five days after I did squats, but doing aforementioned squats makes my lower body hurt so badly that I can't do squats for five days. It's a vicious cycle. Here's a tip that is SO EASY and works SO WELL and yet for some reason I don't do it - Do squats while brushing your teeth, and counter pushups while swishing mouthwash (if you use it). If I do this regularly, it seriously helps me keep my legs and arms used to these movements without adding extra weight, when I do add the weight for a real workout my resulting pain level a much more manageable "Badass" rather than a crippling "Geriatric".
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Monday, September 15, 2008
Are you ready for some FOOTBALL?
Yesterday marked the first of my fall running adventure expeditions. I'm always pretty excited for football season, not because I'm a huge football fan, but because I always go to my brother's house and watch the Patriots while drinking craft brews and eating pizza. It's always a good time, and even though we're have now entered the Matt Cassel Zone, there's still beer and pizza and my brother & friends.
When I started training for this half thing, I devised the brilliant plan to take the T out to a certain pre-decided stop and run the rest of the way to his house, and then watch the game. It's the perfect Sunday plan!
I have to say, I was in absolutely no mood to run yesterday. But I threw on all my "fancy running gear" (which is what my brother calls spandex) and set off. I'd mapped out a 6-mile route that started at Coolidge Corner in Brookline and ended up at Pat's house in Newton Upper Falls. Since I'd only really been running the same Southie loop, this was a nice change of scenery. The weather wasn't great, it was disgustingly humid but also really windy and occasionally rainy. I'd worn a light jacket, which made things even stickier, but I didn't want to get caught in the rain or a sudden change in temperature. I struggled up Beacon Street and past the Chestnut Hill Reservoir, but once I got around the Reservoir and started getting into new territory, things started looking up. Especially after the big hill right after the Reservoir. It was mostly flat or downhill after that, and I got into my groove, listening to the latest podcast of "This American Life". By the time I got past the 4 mile mark, I was breezing along and enjoying the unique scenery of Newton. By the time I got to 6, it turns out I'd overrun my destination and ended up trying to crawl through some overgrown vines and muddy puddles near the route 9 bridge. I had to backtrack and treated myself to a tasty grape gatorade G2 and a couple of bananas.
And Lance Armstrong came on my iPod and congratulated me on my longest workout yet :)
6.04 miles
56:28
9:20/mile
(though it was probably inflated by that liar Nike+, I'm pretty proud of myself.)
When I started training for this half thing, I devised the brilliant plan to take the T out to a certain pre-decided stop and run the rest of the way to his house, and then watch the game. It's the perfect Sunday plan!
I have to say, I was in absolutely no mood to run yesterday. But I threw on all my "fancy running gear" (which is what my brother calls spandex) and set off. I'd mapped out a 6-mile route that started at Coolidge Corner in Brookline and ended up at Pat's house in Newton Upper Falls. Since I'd only really been running the same Southie loop, this was a nice change of scenery. The weather wasn't great, it was disgustingly humid but also really windy and occasionally rainy. I'd worn a light jacket, which made things even stickier, but I didn't want to get caught in the rain or a sudden change in temperature. I struggled up Beacon Street and past the Chestnut Hill Reservoir, but once I got around the Reservoir and started getting into new territory, things started looking up. Especially after the big hill right after the Reservoir. It was mostly flat or downhill after that, and I got into my groove, listening to the latest podcast of "This American Life". By the time I got past the 4 mile mark, I was breezing along and enjoying the unique scenery of Newton. By the time I got to 6, it turns out I'd overrun my destination and ended up trying to crawl through some overgrown vines and muddy puddles near the route 9 bridge. I had to backtrack and treated myself to a tasty grape gatorade G2 and a couple of bananas.
And Lance Armstrong came on my iPod and congratulated me on my longest workout yet :)
6.04 miles
56:28
9:20/mile
(though it was probably inflated by that liar Nike+, I'm pretty proud of myself.)
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