I forgot!

Oops, I forgot to point out that my pace on my last run averaged a whole minute faster than usual. Which doesn't really mean much because I wasn't running at a steady pace, but still. I guess there may be hope for me yet!

"Fartlek" is NOT a dirty word!

Time - 5:30am
Distance - 4 miles with 2 miles fartleks
Avg. pace - 10:48

The training schedule I downloaded from Runner's World SmartCoach had me doing actual speedwork (on a track) this week, but given the fact that a) I don't really have access to a track and b) I'm not ready for it, I changed my run to include fartleks instead. For all you non-runner's, fartlek is Swedish for "speed play". Essentially it's picking a point in the distance (eg. the next street, lampost, 5 mailboxes) and running at a faster pace until you reach that point, recovering with a slow jog, and then repeating the process. It's very similar to the speedwork I was prescribed by SmartCoach, except it's much less formal in nature - instead of running 800m at a set pace and then recovering for 400m, I can set my own pace and distance (very nice for a beginner!).

Mile 1 was at my usual 11-something pace. Mile's 2 and 3 were fartlek's, which went pretty well. I think I was pushing my pace a little too hard because, towards the end, I found myself slowing to a walk for the recovery periods instead of a jog. Next week I really have to work on getting my pacing right - I don't want to overdo it, and I want to make sure I'm maximizing my training by not walking. Mile 4 was at a decent clip as well, slightly faster than mile 1. This tends to be the way my runs are going - miles 1 and 3 are the hardest, and mile 4 is a breeze. On these "speed" days, picking up the pace through mile 2 has also been pretty cruisy. I think that as I increase my mileage my runs will gradually become easier throughout, especially in the last half. Everyone says that it takes them at least 2 miles to get in the "zone", and with my runs only being 4 miles long (well, 6 on the weekends) it takes me pretty much my whole run to get to the point where it's easier. So hopefully, as my runs get longer and longer, things will get easier and my pacing in the middle will be better.

Next up is 6 miles on the weekend. I haven't gotten in a long run yet because I've actually had someone to go out with me on weekends, which means I've been too tired to run. (That's a terrible excuse, I know, but I'm working on it!) This weekend I am DEFINITELY getting in my 6-miler. Yep, definitely.

Ugh

Time: 5:15am
Distance: 3.11 miles
Pace: 11:10

Ugh. Why oh why can't I break 34 minutes for a 3 mile run?! Even if it feels like I'm keeping a pretty good pace, I can never seem to get my time down below 34 minutes. Back in March/April we were running it in about 33 & some change, but I just can't seem to get back to that. Although, I do think that back then we were taking more walk breaks because we were running at a pace that I couldn't sustain for very long. Oh well. I guess I'll just keep up with my schedule and see what happens. I still haven't done any "long" runs yet - I missed out on Sunday's 6-miler because I went out on Saturday night. Oops! I've decided that I need to switch my long run days to Saturday, because the chances of me going out on a Friday are much slimmer than the chances that I'll go out on a Saturday. But I think (I hope!) that once I start logging runs that are 6+ miles, my times for the shorter distances will improve. I would LOVE to get under 30 for the 9/11 5k I'm running in September, and I'm fairly confident I can do that. I'll just really have to start pushing my pace, and pay special attention to my "speed" workouts on Thursdays. This Thursday I'm scheduled to do 4 miles with 2 miles of fartleks. We'll see how it goes.

Here's my stupid running story for the day - when I run early in the morning I usually end up dodging a bunch of sprinklers. This morning I successfully either ran around or jumped over a half dozen in a row, and when I got to the last one I figured I would just run through it (heck, I could use a cool-down). Little did I realize that the sprinkler wasn't just "misting" out the water, it was a full jet stream! So I ended up being pelted on the side of my head with a stream of water. I spent the next 10th of a mile trying to get water out of my ear. Fun times.

Going faster is hard!

Time: 5:15am
Distance: 4 miles (tempo)
Average pace: 11:49

HA! Of course going faster is hard. That's why not everyone is a speed demon, and slowpokes like me just plod along. But us slowpokes have to gradually get faster somehow, and all the cool kids say that tempo runs and speedwork really do the trick! So this morning was my first "tempo" (and I use that term very loosely) run, which was ok, but definitely no walk in the park!
I was supposed to do this run yesterday, but after a late day at work (I have no idea how people stay there until 6pm every night) I was exhausted yesterday morning and so I pushed the run to today. Here's how this morning went:

- 4:45am - alarm goes off, I get up, push the snooze button and get back into bed
- 4:55am - alarm goes off again, I get up, push the snooze button and get back into bed
- 4:56am - say to myself "This is ridiculous. You're awake, you may as well get up and go run!"
- 4:57am - say to myself "Oh, but it's so comfy in bed...I don't have to run today..."
- 4:58am - say to myself "You're supposed to be following a schedule. Quit being soft and GET OUT OF BED!"
- 4:59am - roll out of bed and get butt into gear

It was quite the ordeal. But, hey, at least I actually stood up to myself and got out of bed. Anywho, onto the run...

Mile 1 was my warm up, and I ran it in about 11:30 which is a fine pace for me. I walked across the street at the start of mile 2, knowing that I would have to kick it in for the "tempo" part of my run. I was pretty determined to run the tempo part at the required pace of 9:48, but imagine my surprise when I got to the end of mile 2 and my time was 8:41! Holy cow! That's the fastest mile I had ever run, and it actually felt pretty good. I wasn't absolutely exhausted at the end, nor did I feel like I had to really force the pace. I was so proud of myself! Then came mile 3 and, after my speedy second mile, I struggled. Mile 3 was supposed to be run at the same pace as mile 2, but it ended up being about 12 minutes instead. My legs felt like dead weights and it was just hard, really hard. I got to the end of mile 3 and, similarly to my last 4-miler, I was so disappointed in myself that I just said, "Ok. Only a mile to go, so make it a good one!". And for some reason my little pep talk worked. I ran the last stretch in about 9 minutes. So really it wasn't a tempo run at all because, according to Runner's World, "Typically, 20 minutes is sufficient, or two to three miles if your goal is general fitness or a 5-K. Runners tackling longer distances should do longer tempo runs during their peak training weeks: four to six miles for the 10-K, six to eight for the half-marathon, and eight to 10 for 26.2." Boo to that! That sounds miserable! And indeed, "It's what I call 'comfortably hard,'" says Pierce. "You know you're working, but you're not racing. At the same time, you'd be happy if you could slow down." Hmmmph! Maybe next time....

Oh, and I should add that something weird happened to me on my run this morning. It's happened a couple of times before, and I'm not 100% sure what to chalk it up to. Along mile 3 I suddenly became chilled and goosebumpy, and I felt a little lightheaded. Symptoms such as those are often signs of dehydration but, really, c'mon! I had only been running for 3 miles, it was cool out and I had guzzled water the night before - I don't know how I could be dehydrated. Maybe I should try drinking a glass of water before running. But I've noticed that, when I do drink or eat before a run, I get cramps. What's a girl to do??! I guess I'll try having a drink before heading out next time and see what the results are like. Sheesh - dehydration on a 4 mile run is ridiculous! It can't be that...can it?

Next up is a 6 miler on Sunday at my easy pace of 11:26. I very much doubt I'll come in at that pace as I've only done 6 miles twice - once before the Capitol Hill Classic and once on race day. But I'll sure as heck try!! Depending on how I feel tomorrow morning, I may also do another 3 - the dogs get me up at 5:30am anyways, so I may as well make the most of it. We'll see...don't hold your breath on that one!

Finally! A decent run

Time: 5:15am
Distance: 3.06 miles
Pace: 11:25

This morning's run was the first scheduled on my training plan for the MCM 10k. After my terrible performance on my last few runs, I was a little dubious as to whether I would be able to put in some quality miles this morning. I really want to stick to this training program in hopes that I will be able to run a sub-60 minute 10k come October. So I went to bed early last night (under the covers by 8:45pm!) and set the alarm for 4:45am. I've been finding it really hard to get out of bed in the mornings lately, so before I fell asleep last night I was really trying to get it in my mind that I would get up with the alarm and get ready. And, amazingly, I did! Hopefully the same thing will happen on Thursday morning when I have to get up to run.

Anyways, onto the run. I decided that, instead of aiming for a finishing time, I was going to take it one mile at a time and try to get my pace right. Which was not the easiest thing to do, seeing as I was making educated guesses as to where each mile marker was (boy, a Garmin 205 sure would come in handy right about now!), but it worked out ok. I hit mile 1 at about 11 minutes, which was just a little quicker than my pace should have been. During mile 2 I felt myself slow down a bit, and I did take a short walk break at about 1.5. I continued mile 2 at a slightly slower pace. I hit mile two at about a minute slower than I was aiming for. I knew then that I would have to pick up the pace if I was going to be on target, so mile 3 was quite a bit quicker. The route we run for our 3 mile distance has become so familiar to me, and I always love getting just past the 2 mile mark and onto the home stretch. The last mile is always so easy, and this morning was no exception. I really pushed for the last mile, which is what helped me to achieve my overall pace of 11:25. I'm fairly sure mile 2 was closer to 12 minutes, and mile 3 was closer to 10.

I'm really thinking about splurging and buying the Garmin 205, especially since I'm trying to train properly and without a buddy. $150 isn't that much, is it?

Thursday's scheduled run is a tempo run of 4 miles, with 2 miles at 9:48. Sheesh! That one will be tough.

Time: 7:00am
Distance: 3.93 miles
Pace: 12:13

Ugh. I should have been working harder these last couple of weeks. My last two runs have been terrible. Saturday morning I ran the slowest I've run in a looong time, which I'm attributing to two things - 1) I don't have Jeremy here to run with me and keep me motivated, and 2) I ate before I ran, which meant I ended up with a side stitch.

The first mile was about average pace and actually felt pretty good. With mile 2 came the beginnings of a side stitch, and I stopped to walk a couple of times. It also began to rain lightly, which was nice and refreshing, but I think I started to speed up a little and I ended up walking again. Not wanting to look like a goof who was walking in the rain, I tried to force myself to run. At mile 3 I said to myself, "This is ridiculous - you can do much better than this" and I told myself that I was going to run the rest of the way home. I ran at a decent pace until I got to the main street and then, on the home stretch, I tried to kick it in as hard as I could. The fact that I was able to do this meant that I had clearly not run to the best of my ability because I still had so much left in the tank. I know that on training runs you're not supposed to run at your race pace, but I know I can do much better than I did.

My next run is the first on my training schedule in preparation for the MCM 10k. It's only 3 miles at an 11:26 pace. Back in June Jeremy and I had run the 3 mile route at a 10:52 & 10:42 pace, so I'm absolutely certain I can do 11:26. I hope that having that goal time in mind will help to give me the push I need. We'll see how it goes.

A running partner, Adelaide is not!

Time: 5:15am
Distance: 3.06 miles
Pace: 11:49

Sheesh! Here I was, thinking I would be the nice pet owner that I am (ha!) and take Adelaide along with me for my morning run. Oh my goodness, what a terrible idea! When we started, she took off, dragging me along behind her. I usually like to start out slowly and pace myself, but this morning I felt like we were flying! I managed to rein her in after a little while, but we were still running faster than I usually run which meant that I found myself struggling after about a mile. Add to that her incessant sniffing which, in turn, led to her constantly running in front of me and tripping me up, and my run was a right old mess! Don't even get me started on the potty breaks! All-in-all, it was an incredibly frustrating run. Oh well, these things happen. Now I'm trying to decide whether I want to take her out with me next time and try to get her used to running with me (and hopefully behave), or if I want to go it alone. There were times this morning when she was trotting along quite nicely beside me and, although those times were few and far between, that was kind of nice. Maybe I'll give it another shot and see how she does. Maybe it will all "click" with her and she'll be a perfect angel! Ha! Not likely.

On another note, I had read a couple of stories last week about female runners who had been attacked while out on trails (not near here!), and I was a little apprehensive about running before dawn by myself. Last week I ordered pepper spray and a personal alarm to carry with me, but those hadn't arrived in time for my run this morning. But, after braving the pre-dawn world alone, I actually felt really safe. I was out at a time when it was still dark enough for cars to need headlights, but the sun was just beginning to rise which made it light enough for me to see. I felt extremely comfortable running by myself and not once did I feel that I was in an unsafe position. Hopefully that will be the same for all my runs, and I pray that I won't have to use my pepper spray, but I will carry it anyway - just in case.