Sluggish run, gorgeous sky

Just a 3 mile recovery run last night. Wooden legs turning to cement as we dragged ourselves past the easy 2 mile turnaround point and down into the park. Some days, the body and mind settle in. On others, like last night, the only satisfaction is the task accomplished. I like to picture myself at mile 16 of a marathon, remind myself that the bad days are better training than the good sometimes. The sky was indeed beautiful - bright indigo and star filled.

Last night, I dreamed I was running the half marathon. The course was poorly marked, with jaunts into blind alleys, and even a mall. Somewhere along the way, I grew confused as to whether I was running a whole marathon or a half, and I only confirmed it was a half when someone jumped forward, holding up a stopwatch to record my time. In the dream, I finished in 2:14:55. Better than I'll do in the real thing - perhaps my mind has launched a positive visualization campaign.

Finally, I'm moving up in the blogosphere - the blog has cracked the top million on Technorati. (Insert amused smile). Thanks, everyone, for reading and linking here.

A Week Without Running

No reason in particular except a few days letting running get squeezed out by other, louder demands. We're both exhausted by the semester, work, being pulled in too many directions at once. We let the first running days pass pretending not to notice, feeling a bit sluggish and sorry for ourselves. Then a few more days. A dangerous slide but also welcome in ways. I needed a mental break. When we let Sunday, our long run day, slip by, we looked guiltily past each other and muttered about stress and tiredness. We were tired. Some old friends had been in town and we'd stayed up late talking and showing them our international collection of alcohols.

Finally last night, for the first time in a week, Andy and I went out for our 5 mile route through the eastern half of the park. The night was clear and rather cold, daylight just fading by the time we got out the door. We kept the pace fast but not too demanding and averaged about a 10:07 mile. After a week without running, we both had more energy than we normally do. I remarked that if I were running just for maintenance, I would always run 5 miles. It's far enough that it feels like something's been accomplished, but short enough that it feels easy and doesn't eat up a whole evening.

Later, our friend Donna came over to the house and we made martinis and talked late into the night about writing, then walked her home at 2am. This morning I am groggy and sore, but also, I feel better than I have for a week. Thank you running; I am now officially an addict.

Speed

I can't help it, I want to go fast. Last night, Andy and I headed out for a 40 minute tempo run around 9pm and for some reason, I really wanted to see what I could do. It was a beautiful night, with a slender new moon hanging over the western horizon, and after about 5 minutes, I began to speed up until we reached a 9:30/minute mile. At the faster pace, it was difficult to remain consistent. We fluctuated between about 8:30 and 10:00, with one spurt at about 8:00. For now, that seems to be this machine's top speed - I could only keep it up for a couple of minutes.

About 4 miles into the run, I noticed Andy sneaking looks at me. "Tired," I asked gleefully. I was a bit tired too, but I thought about the advice from my running books: slowing down is often just a lapse in concentration; if you don't feel good, try running faster; stay with your competition until you can't any longer, then overtake them(!) I had fallen to a 10:06 pace, and I consciously pushed it faster, staying there until we reached the panhandle and could jog a fast, relaxed pace home.

I came away feeling like I'd overcome a plateau, that I had begun to tap into a new level of fitness and endurance. Shaving off the next 2 minutes per mile will be a more difficult (and long) task, but I'm ready for it.

New Schedule

First of all, an update on the 12K: I came in 125th in my age group (out of about 270) with an official time of 1:14:12. Sadly there doesn't seem to be a picture of me, though I distinctly recall waving directly at the photographer and pausing as he snapped a shot. Next time maybe I can convince Andy to pull out the digital camera at the finish line and wait for me . . .

At the bottom of the page, I've included a new training guide, which I plan to follow roughly for the next 5 weeks. I haven't yet decided what my half marathon pace goal should be, but I've been having fun playing around with the McMillan Running Calculator. Based on that, it seems like it should be somewhere around a 10:30/minute mile. We also confirmed that we'll be staying with good friends in Santa Cruz, and may convince them to run the 10K that day.

I've been obsessed with things other than running for the past week. Too soon yet to spread the word.

12K Race Report

With the recent time change, it was still dark when the alarm clock went off at 6:15 am this morning. We dozed until nearly 6:45, then rushed down to the race site, where shuttles waited to take us over the Golden Gate Bridge to the starting line in Sausalito. The process was very slow, and we didn't get to the starting point until about 10 minutes before start time.

We were unsure of the course and were expecting the first half to be difficult and hilly, but after about a mile of hill climbing, the course leveled off over the bridge, then sloped gradually to dramatically down to the waterfront. The last 3.45 miles were straight and flat. We started slowly, a combination of the hill and heavy crowds keeping us near an 11:30 pace for the first mile. Once we reached the bridge, we set about making up some time, picking our way through chunks of runners until we reached the other side. By mile 3, we were at a steady 9:30 pace, and were averaging a 10 minute mile.

Andy took off around mile 4. I kept looking ahead until I could no longer see him, then settled in to hold my pace. I reached the 5 mile marker in around 48 minutes and knew I had a good chance of beating my time goal. 6 miles, still going, but already starting to wait for the 7 mile marker. This was the first race where I had enough experience to count down in tangible terms: 5k to go, 2 miles to go, 1 mile, half a mile.

At the 7 mile mark, they threw in a moderately steep hill and I had the satisfaction of seeing runners fall away as I plodded up. Over the hill, there was a down hill, and Andy waiting to run with me to the finish line (he'd come in 5 minutes ahead). I sped down and through the chute, officially coming in right around 1:14 - a full minute faster than my goal. In reality, we reached the starting line about 40 seconds after the clock started, so my time was even a little better. But had I known the women's 70 and over winner would complete the run in 1:10, I would have set that as my goal! :)

One skill I have not yet mastered is drinking on the run. Andy grabs the cup, throws it at his face, and whatever water reaches his mouth is what he drinks. I would like to feel like some water is actually reaching my stomach, but can't seem to manage this without coming to a complete stop, getting in peoples way, gulping a few gulps, then starting to run again. Any suggestions?

The half marathon is 5 weeks away - just far enough to get in a few long runs and maybe throw in a little speed work of some kind.

This week in running . . .

My 9 miles last Sunday were so much easier than the week before. I took the same route and ran all the hills without much trouble. Then an easy 2 miles Tuesday, and a fast 5 miles today.

I'm a bit nervous about the 12k on Sunday. I reduced my mid-week miles in preparation, and as a result I feel like I've hardly run this week. It's also a distance I'm less comfortable with, and thought I'm not entirely sure of the course, I think there will be a few good hills. Regardless, I've set my sights on a 1:15 time, which is a bit faster than I ran the recent 10k.

The weather just keeps getting clearer and warmer here, and with the extra hour of light in the evenings, it's really beginning to feel like summer.

Next Up?

Another recovery run today, and it feels good to be out running an extra day per week. I can definitely do four days a week. Five might start testing my commitment, but who knows. So far my commitment has been like that of an addict to a new drug - almost limitless. In fact, such a comparison isn't far off - after all, endorphins are more properly called endomorphines.

This Sunday, another 9 miler, then a lighter running week before the 12k. After that? Very likely, the Santa Cruz Half Marathon on April 22. Talk about milestones. The idea seems sudden to me, but here's what I'm thinking: lighter mileage leading up to the 12k and light mileage that week, so plenty of rest before upping mileage again. Then two 10 mile long run weeks, followed by two 12 mile long run weeks, tapering the rest of my week's mileage during the last week. Then the half marathon. We don't plan to run it for time, just as a 13 mile training run, but I'm not entirely confident about this one so advice is welcome!

My 50th Post

When I started running seriously a few months ago, I was almost morbidly attached to my training schedule. I refused to deviate from the prescribed mileage by even a block, and stuck as doggedly as I could to the required pace. I'm not usually like that, but back in December, I would never have thrown caution to the wind as I did last night, when I went out for a 6 mile tempo run - a day early. This might not seem like much, but for me it points to an important milestone. I've grown confident enough as a runner that I can begin to apply another important attribute - flexibility. I can run on a day when I'm not scheduled to run and no longer fear that something will break, that my shin splints will rear their head, that I won't possibly, for some reason, be able to do it. In fact, it was a great run. A comfortably fast 6 miles at an average 10:19 pace (including the slow first and last miles) and feeling fantastic the whole way. I need to add some serious hill work though. They just kill me.

This is my 50th post. Wasn't sure I'd be able to keep the blog (or running!) going this long. Another minor milestone.

New Shoes

An easy and fast 2 mile morning run in the new Asics 2120s. The extra room in the toes felt good, but I'm not sure if I prefer them to the 2110s. The shoe felt a bit stiffer, and the cushioning was, well, less cushy. They were noticeably lighter though, and since my feet felt sore even before stepping into them, I'm not sure it was a fair test.

I noticed today that my footstrike seemed to be somewhere between the heel and the midfoot area, rather than fully on the heel like I thought it was. Would that change over time, or was this was my natural strike all along and I just didn't notice or couldn't tell?

Slow 9 Miles

I knew as soon as I started that it wouldn't be an easy run today, which almost made it easier to begin the slow process of settling in. My legs were still tired from Friday, and my mind hadn't fully wrapped itself around the distance. The first half, which is a gradual descent to the ocean, was OK, though the mild downhill definitely helped. I checked my heart rate a few times the old fashioned way (finger on pulse) and it hovered in the 130-140 range. I passed the turnoff for the 8 mile loop and plunged on. It was another beautiful day, almost too warm. After mile 5, I began the gradual climb back through the park. My pace slowed and my heart rate began to climb. Between miles 6 and 7, I probably walked for nearly 3 minutes, trying to run the hills and then rest when they leveled out. Finally, I hit the turn around spot for my 5 mile runs and was able to dig in for the last 2.5. The final two miles where great - steady and easy, and I ended up with an 11:29 average pace for the run.

It hasn't been a problem so far, but with the longer distances recently I realized that I do need to go with a larger shoe size. One black toenail is quite enough, and I noticed some other blisters threatening near the front of my toes. I probably have about 200 miles on my current shoes, and have been thinking that it's time to get another pair to break in and rotate with anyway, so this evening we went down to Sports Basement and tried out the Asics 2120s. I've been running in 2110s, which work well for me, but Andy and I both preferred the feel of the 2120s. The cushioning is firmer and the shoe itself is slimmer and lighter. I'm looking forward to testing them out on my recovery run Tuesday.

The Long Haul

Fridays have become my favorite running days. I love going out mid afternoon, rested, calm, feeling almost lazy, feeling myself adjust to a higher level of exertion, then really pushing my speed for as long as I can. Yesterday, we ran a little over 7 miles, with 4 miles around a 9:30 pace and another mile around a 10:00 pace. I actually beat my 10k race time by almost a minute. The weather was perfect - warm and still. The best part is that I didn't feel at all exhausted, as I have after other hard runs, and I'm not nearly as sore today either. It's good to begin adjusting to the longer runs, both mentally and physically, and to look forward to a routine of 10+ mile runs. I'll be up around 20 mile weeks now, a good base from which to start real marathon training, and perhaps changing my running schedule as I adopt a new training plan. Tomorrow, my first 9 mile run and then, if I decide to follow the plan, a mini-taper before the 12k two weeks from now.

Also, my running books came today. I am settling down to browse through them both.