Aaaand one more for Thursday

I got in another quick run earlier today @ the gym, 10:16 pace for a 1 mile run. I was shooting for under 9 minutes but realized at about 9:50 that I wasn't going to make it, but thats not for lack of trying, I ran hard after that. I did have to walk once for about 30 seconds but thats better than norm! And I'll have to find time to get in my 5 miles tomorrow...meaning I should probs get to bed. American Dad on hulu here I come

6mi @ 13:52

So yesterday time got away from me and I failed to do my planned run, which was 6 miles, 1 mi warmup, 4 mi @ 11:30 and 1 mi cooldown. Instead today I went to Keystone Trail and ran 3 miles out and then the 3 back. The way out I ran about 2 miles of it (with some little walk breaks) and then the heat hit me and I walked mile 3. (Fail.) Then on the way back I decided to quit screwin around and put some standards into my run, so I walked .1 mi, jogged .1 mi, then ran .1 mi and repeated. The trail is well marked so it was pretty easy and I passed some guy who was run/walking too.

I didn't do much/any pacing so I don't know if I ever hit that 11:30 pace. Obviously I didn't run 4 miles at that pace but I knew off the bat I wasn't going to be able to. Im going to hit the treadmill tonight and see what I can't crank out for an extra workout/backup plan in case tomorrow also gets away from me (its Hollys birthday and we are going to the CWS early!)

FAIL!

4.8 miles at a 15:00 pace! FAIL! Well, I guess that at least I got it done, and thankfully before the rain (although I do love a good trot in the rain, just not the ones where I'm already hurting...) So yesterday I pounded some hills out during my run and consequentially I was much sorer than I had anticipated while sitting on my couch typing out my earlier entry. MAN was I in pain! It felt like I had just gotten done running a 10K and was trying to run another 5 miles.....which I guess feels about like running a half marathon...anyway. Another problem - I thought I was running out my route that was 5.6 miles so about 3/4 of the way into it I looked at my iPod and saw I has been running for 45 minutes. I thought I was just making surprisingly good time. Not so. I forgot to take an extra turn which took a sizeable chunk of mileage out of my route and thinking I had that under my belt I let myself slack on the last leg. Usually I'm pretty good at knowing about how far I've gone too! Excuses, excuses :) Either way I'm just happy I've put in the mileage so far. Before I started training for my first half, my dad (a longtime runner who has completed multiple races including the marathon) told me that as long as you get the miles in, it really doesn't matter how fast you go - the mileage is the critical aspect. In which case, Im good as gold. (Is that the right saying? I dont care, it stays.)

Didn't make 5am

I woke up, but couldn't drag myself out of bed. It probably didn't help that I couldn't get to sleep last night either (probs from the late run). This is why they say don't workout 2 hours before bed! Tomorrow is another try though, I will get it one of these days.

Workin up the strength to head out now, waiting for breakfast to settle. Im SORE so I mapped a pretty flat easy route, but I don't know if I can keep the pace. We will see...

5.3 @ 12:40 Pace

I got my first run of training in! It took awhile to get the confidence to get out the door, but I made it. Its funny, because any other day that I want to go for a 5 mile run it doesn't take much for me to hit the pavement - an iced coffee, some runners world motivation, some music - but today (and really any day that I am in training) - its a bigger committment. It's intimidating. But I got home from work around 4:30, listened to some NPR Science Friday (love that Ira Flatow), had a home-made banana muffin (for energy) and promptly fell asleep. Woke up at 7:30pm debating whether or not I should get out - Im going to get up at 5am tomorrow and do it all over again - but I got my ass in gear and just did it. It all got easier once I got out the door. And its best, for me, to not think about it until I'm actually doing it because I tend to psych myself out, but to date there has NEVER been a run I have regretted getting myself out the door for. And I've been running (by some definition of the word) for 10 years now. So 90% of it truly is just showing up.

Shooting for a 5 miler at the 12:27 pace tomorrow at 5am!

Day 1: "It Staaahts"

Day 1! I haven't run yet! We will see how this goes the second time around, but heres the background:

• Ran the Lincoln Half marathon on 05.03.2009.
• Finished in 2:39 (Goal: 2:45)
• (Im slow :) )
  
• Used Higdon and Galloway half marathon training plans - Galloways long runs, Higdons weekly runs
• I did NOT stick to the plan religiously - the last week of training I kind of burned out
• I modified it to be a 16 week training plan instead of 12
• Nutrition-wise I overcompensated and actually gained weight but oddly enough wasn't too worried about it (endorphins??)

So I'm back, and I feel completely pretentious and self-serving to have a blog but I'm doing it anyway, as I am assuming that one day I will be out of shape and who better than myself to look back at and see how I got thangs done back in the day, no? And I am going to run-on sentence all I want. This ain't no journal article submission.

This time around my plan is from RunnersWorld.com:

• 16 weeks long, starting TODAY!
• Long runs on Saturday
• Run 31-35 miles/wk
• Run 5x a week, 2 days for Rest/Xtrain
• Going to pay more attention to Xtraining and nutrition this time around.
• Try to improve my time to 2:30 (~11:30 min/mile compared to 12:09)
• My friend Katie is running it with me!
  

Cross your fingers, today I've got to get 5 miles at 13:27 pace. Walk in the park, thank you very much.