Tempo runs are hard

I had an 11 mile run scheduled today, 1 mile easy and 10 miles @ marathon pace. I am using the training paces for a 3:40 marathon time, which makes the MP 8:23, even though I am planning to run at least 1/2 race no faster than 8:35 (which would put me at an 3:44:50 finish time, good enough for a BQ). I ace the speed drills and the long runs. In fact, I am ahead of the schedule with these, and always run them faster than I am supposed to, without feeling completely drained and exhausted. However, the tempo runs are much harder for me. Today in particular I struggled. My eyes were glued to the Garmin checking the mileage and the pace. Today I could not get into the groove. What's really interesting is that on Saturday I ran the last 10 miles of my 20 miler on hills @ 8:23 pace, and today I struggled to run 10 flat miles (OK, slight incline for the last 5) at 8:20. How could this be? I had 2 full days of recovery, my legs felt good, I took a gel and electrolytes during the run... I can only think of a couple of reasons: 1) I ran on snow, which, although nice for my feet and knees, potentially made running more difficult, 2) It was 12 degrees and windy (my water bottle froze), and 3) the adrenaline of running on the Boston Marathon course may have made me speedier on Saturday. Regardless, it's a bit disappointing to struggle with running 10 miles @8:20, when, even before starting my training for Boston I was running 10 miles @8:00 with no problem...I have another 11 mile tempo run scheduled in 2 weeks, same pace and I am curious how it is going to feel. Nonetheless, I think a tough run was in order as I believe during these tough runs one builds the physical and mental strength which are going to be much needed after mile 20.

Training log 2/23 - 3/1

This week was a great training week! I had the best long run so far - best pace, best weather, new course! Motivation is back on and strong! I am not sure whether I am pushing too hard - I ran all my key workouts was faster than I had planned to. Is that something new? Not reallY:)


Monday: SPEED
Goal: 1 mile easy, 1 mile @ 7:02, 2 miles @ 7:12, 2X800m @ 6:46.
Actual: 1 mile @ 6:50, 2@ 6:40, 800@ 6:46, 800@ 6:33.

Tuesday: 1.5 m SWIM

Wednesday: 20m BIKE

Thursday: TEMPO

Goal: 1 mile easy, 4 miles @ 7:40, 1 mile easy
Actual: 1 mile @ 8:15, 4 miles@ 7:30, 1 mile @ 9:00

Friday: REST

Saturday: LONG
Goal: 20 miles @ 8:53
Actual: 20 miles @ 8:35; first 10@ 8:48, last 10@ 8:23.
Course: last 10 miles of the Boston marathon course X2.


Sunday: 1.5 SWIM


Total: Run: 33 miles
Bike: 20 miles
Swim: 3 miles

This week I also managed to do core work and leg strengthening exercises two times, so I am happy about that. I have to decide whether I should keep pushing the pace during the long runs, or I should only work on maintaining the 8:35 pace, and perhaps try to go faster during the marathon. I know I could go much faster - I have 2 more 20 milers - but am I risking injury?

I also need to figure out whether my Garmin is recording pace and mileage accurately. On Saturday's run we had 3 Garmins showing different mileage and different paces. This makes me very nervous because I am going to count on my Garmin to show the correct mileage and pace during the marathon.

We have a snowstorm planned for tonight and tomorrow....and I have speedwork tomorrow. Might be the first day in a while when I may not be looking forward to a Monday:)

Heartbreak Hill, you are NOT a heartbreaker!

Today I did my long run on the last 10 miles on the Boston Marathon course. It was such a beautiful day in Boston. The course looked that a race - I must have seen at least 100 runners on it, which made my pace quicken up.

The Sue(s) and I started our run at the finish line and turned back after 10miles, for a total of 20 miles. We basically wanted to get hill-intoxicated. We assumed we are going to hate hills after this run. Well, that did not happen. This may be useful information for those running Boston who don't have the luxury to train on the course. The hills are NOT that bad. Heartbreak Hill has .7 length, and it has a slight incline, so slight that it does not feel like you are running on a hill. The last .2 are steeper, but not too bad. There are about 3-4 other hills (2 before and 2 after, I think) that are steeper but very short (.2, .3). I would lose about 1 second average pace on the inclines, which I would immediately regain on the downhill. Given that we ran the hills both ways, I assumed that my legs would be very upset, no, angry with me during the run and after. Not really. I was sore, but not too bad. And my pace? 8:35 for the 20 miler, with negative splits (after first 10 miles average pace was 8:48).

I'll have more info in 2 weeks, when we are going to run 20 miles on the course, starting at mile 6.

Addicted to speed(work)

Recently I have started to look forward to Mondays. How could this happen? Mondays are super busy to the point where I have to eat my lunch in less than 5 minutes (so that I can see a very sick patient who can't do the 10 minute walk from the main hospital to my office), type notes while talking on the phone, and fight with myself so that I don't go and grab another cup of coffee and/or a sugar+fat fix! I manage and love Mondays because, after all the craziness of the workday is done, I get to do speed work! I leave work, eat a protein/carb combo that gets to digest by the time I get home, change clothes, and head out. After the first couple of intervals I feel energized, after a couple more I feel clearheaded, and by the time I start to cool down, I get overwhelmed by an out of this world sense of happiness, clarity and purpose. It's like I am walking on clouds.

Speed work has made me stronger and faster. It's such a mental game, particularly for the longer intervals where toward the end breathing becomes rapid, legs starts to hurt and mind starts to protest and throw down arguments as to why you should slow down or stop. Pretty persuasive, the mind! I think speed work is such a great exercise in living - you don't give up during a speed interval, you don't give up fulfilling a dream, you don't back out of something difficult that life throws your way! Speed work reinforces toughness, stubbornness, and confidence that anything is attainable with hard work, dedication and determination.


The problem is that I am addicted to speed work. I want to go faster and faster. What satisfied my craving one month ago does not seem enough any more, and I have to work on proving that it is enough, stick with the paces suggested by my training program, and don't go faster than 1-2 seconds per interval. This past Monday I gave in and ran my 1 miler @ 6:50 instead of 7:02, my 2 miler @ 6:46/mile instead of 7:12, my 2 800 meters @ 6:40 and 6:33 instead of 6:46. Thanks to the ice bath my legs felt only a bit stiff the next day, and they are fine now. Still, I may need an intervention here. I need to get a grip on my addiction to speed work, as April is almost here and I need to be healthy and fresh legged in order to run a good race!

Anyone has this problem?

training log 02/15-02/23

Thsi week Chris and I were away in North Carolina visiting family, hiking and enjoying somewhat warmer weather. This was the first vacation away from Petru, our 3 y old, who stayed with mom in Boston. We had a great time enjoying the mild temperatures, jogging in shorts, hiking in Tshirts. I am a bit jealous of all of you living in the warm weather climate. I'd move to California in a minute if it weren't for the extended family living in Massachusetts.

Back to running. All runs felt great. I loved the fast and short speed drills (12X400s). My tempo was on rolling hills, and I LOVED it. We ventured on a different route for the long run, and it turned out great!

Monday 02/16 - SPEED


Goal: 1 mile easy, (6X400m @ 6:36 pace (0r 1:39 each) with 1:30 RI) X2 with 2:30 RI in between the 2 sets, 1 mile easy.
Actual: 400m in 1:37, 1:38, 1:38, 1:39, 1:39, 1:39, 1:38, 1:38, 1:38, 1:39, 1:39, 1:33.

I confess I never take the rest intervals. I just walk or jog slowly for max 30 seconds and then move on to another interval. I find that if I wait longer I have a harder time getting my legs to speed up.

Tuesday 02/17 - 7 mile hike in Asheville, NC, 1 mile swim

The hike was beautiful, lots of switchbacks, great views at the top. Going back down Chris and I (OK, I not Chris) had the brilliant idea to cut through the switchbacks and go straight down. Yup, we got lost, but that only added to the fun of the hike. "Trails are for wimps" became our motto. There is no way one can truly get lost in there, but it took us about 45 minutes to get back on track.

The swim was in one of those small and hot hotel pools. I had to do 80 laps (160 lengths) to get a mile in.

Wednesday 02/18 - 1.5 mile swim


Back in a real pool at a YMCA in Asheville. What a treat. I loved the swim.

Thursday 02/19 -TEMPO


Goal: 2 miles easy, 3 miles @ 7:35, 1 mile easy

Actual: 2 miles @ 8:45, 3 miles @ 7:24, 1 mile @ 8:29.

This was on rolling hills, and I felt great. It's funny how I have such a hard time slowing down for the last easy mile. Ihad to literally walk a bit in order to get my pace down.

Friday 02/20 - REST

We did go kayaking for a bit and it was beautiful.

Saturday 02/21 - LONG 18 miles, back in Boston
Goal: 18 miles @ 8:53

Actual: 19 miles; 18 miles @ 8:43, with last 2 miles @ 8:11; .5 warm uo, .5 walk/lunges cool down.

A sunny beautiful yet cold morning greeted me as I headed out to meet Sue C for our scheduled 18 miler. I was so excited for the long run, plus we had lots to talk about including the upcoming benefit concert. We decided to go try a different route, go into Winchester, run around Mystic Lake, and figure out our route as we go. The first 4 miles were hard - I don't like not knowing the route as, for me, miles go slower that way (this is why I am going to have the Boston course memorized by April). However, around mile 5, after a vanila GU, I started to really enjoy the run. Our pace was strong, started at 8:50, and we ended up finishing 16 miles @ 8:47. I was pushing the pace perhaps a bit too much - I really did not feel challenged - and I think Sue C wanted to get rid of me and started telling me to go on without her. But I wanted to stick together because I knew she could keep up the pace and the strong pace would help her in April. After 3 miles of rolling hills, we stopped at a Dunkin' Donuts so Sue C could use the bathroom and she told me to go on. She really insisted and so I went. I felt great and ended up pushing the pace, and lowered the average pace to 8:43. I walked another .5 mile home doing lunges and streches. Although cardiovasculary I was not challenged, my ankles, hampstrings and piriformis were screaming. After a chicken sandwhich (yumm!) and some OJ, I made a cup of hot tea, grabbed a bucket of icecubes, put a bathing suite on, grabed my book and spent about 7 minutes in the icebath. My legs feel so fresh now!

Sunday 02/22 - SWIM 1.25 miles; 10 miles BIKE

The YMCA was crazy busy this morning. Sue C happened to come in when I was about 1/2 way done with my laps. We started chatting, and, 10 min later, I got to watch her fast and strong crawl! I am so jealous:) She gave me some good pointers, though, and it made a great difference. I still have a poor form and have no idea how to swim the crawl, but learning it will become my goal after the marathon, something to keep me going during the 1-2 weeks with no running. I did not have time to finish my typical 1.5 mile swim, and did not want my boys to keep waiting, so I ended up adding a few miles on the bike at home while watching "Flight of the Conchords".

Total:

Run: 30 miles

Swim: 3.75 miles

Bike: 10 miles

Hike: 7 miles

I am so happy with the way things are going with my training. I think the tempo runs are the most challenging for me, mostly because I get nervous if my Garmin pace gets to close to the target pace, and prefer to stay into the 5-10 seconds faster pace range. The speed drills are not easy, but they are short and I think having songs prepared for each one really helps. I prefer to do them on the road, rather than track, because I like to be able to go up and down on a slight incline which, I think, is easier on the legs and provides better overall training. The long runs rock! I love to get into a groove where my body and mind are connected fully and it feels like I am flying. It's not always like this, there are patches of hard work (steep hills or when I need a GU) but mostly the long runs are those that I look forward to the most.



The next 4 weeks will have more challenging workouts, including 2 weeks with 11 miles tempo runs and 7 miles speed work. I am not sure how I am going to find the time for these long workouts during the week, as I have a very short window of time in the afternoon between when I get home and when I have to pick Petru up from daycare. Morning are just too crazy and I would be to stressed out to try to squeeze runs in. I'll have to put my thinking head on and figure something out. This is another reason why I love the FIRST program - most runs during the week are 5-6 miles, and that is so doable with my schedule.

Have a great week everyone!

training log 2/09-2/15

This week my motivation was a bit off. My legs and mind were tired after the 23 mile run last week. I think I won't run more than 20 miles in my future marathon trainings, and certainly not before April. I am signed up to do a 24 miler on March 21st, 3 loops of the Skyline Trail, with crazy elevation, up and down huge rocks, and I decided I will drop out. The race is closed out and I bet others would love to take my spot. I think the key to racing well in April (for me) is to have fresh legs. Back to the training. MY speed and tempo were tough. I have done these workouts before, and have never had the leg soreness I had this week. The cold and wind and slippery conditions during my tempo run added to the difficulty. I used the roller a lot this week, stretched and did 2 core workouts. Nothing helped. I was nervous about the long run because I wanted to run it at a nice fast - ish pace. That ended up being a great run, though my legs are still getting a beating from the up and down repetitions. After the long run I had the brilliant idea to use one of my summer post running techniques (why did I not think about it sooner?) - filled the bath tub with water, dumped in a bag of ice, put a sweater on,picked up a book and in I went. After a couple of minutes my legs felt fine, though my feet still suffer (figures, no fat protection on the feet). I am happy to report that post ice bath my legs feel fresher than ever. I have a feeling the ice bath is going to become a post run ritual.


Monday 2/09 - SPEED
Goal: 1 mile easy, 6X 800m @ 3:23, 1 mile easy
Actual: 1 mile easy, 6X800m @ 3:20 (up), 3:21(down), 3:22(up), 3:20(down), 3:23 (up), 3:20(down), 1 mile easy.

Tuesday 2?10 - SWIM
1.5 miles with .25 kicks

Wednesday 2/11 - BIKE
20 miles @ 1:-03 (indoor)

Thursday 2/12 - TEMPO
Goal: 1 mile easy, 6 miles @ 8:05, 1 mile easy
Actual: 1 mile easy, 6 miles @ 7:57 (3 down, 3 up), 1 mile easy.

Friday 2/13 - REST

Saturday 2/14 - LONG
Goal: 13 @ 8:38
Actual: 14.1, 13.1@ 8:28, 1 mile warm up/cool down

Sunday: 2/15 - BIKE
16 miles hilly outdoor bike

T: 27.6 miles (run); 1.5 miles (swim), 36 miles (bike)

What one year can do...

Last year on Valentines Day I ran Half at the Hamptons 1/2 marathon along with a group of friends. It was a tough race, with frigid temperatures, snow and wind. It was my second 1/2 half marathon and I PRed with 1:54:change (after a 2:06 for my first 1/2). I remember feeling so nervous at the start line, thinking that I am going to start slowly and maybe run a 9min/mile pace. But I felt good, I felt great, and ran 8:00 miles for the last 6 miles or so. This race was a turning point for me in that it made me much more confident in my running abilities.

Today I wanted to run the same race again, but Chris and I had to catch a flight later in the day and so the timing was not right. My schedule called for a 13 miles @ 8:38. Sue C and I met up per usual and ran together 10 miles, including about 4 miles of hills. Sue C had a cold and she asked me to run the last 3 miles without her. Pace for the first 10 miles was 8:33. I did not have my Ipod with me, so my mind started wondering about the 1/2 marathon last year and about how I really wanted to run it this year as well. And then it downed on me. I am running a 1/2 marathon. And then I decided I have to run in faster than 1:54. So I picked up the pace, and ran 3.1 more miles of hills, for a total time of 1:48:change and pace 8:28. This is not a PR (1:44:06) but that was not the point. Most importantly I felt strong after the race and could have kept going.