Wife Mother Runner training Archives - Page 7 of 15

Philadelphia Training Run – 16 miles

July 7, 2014

This weekend I had a 16 mile training run on my schedule from Jeff Galloway. Being the holiday weekend I was looking forward to some down time and sleeping late. I figured I would do this long run on Saturday so that I could still get some sleep on Sunday and there’s no reason why I couldn’t also take a nap Saturday afternoon if needed. I am beginning to like cat naps!

I set my alarm for 6:00 just like I did two weeks ago. I got up made breakfast and was out the door before 7:00. I didn’t have a fixed finish time in my mind for how long this run would take but I knew that I wanted to get it done early before the sun got higher in the sky. It was a perfect morning. I don’t plan my runs around the weather, because when you train for a race, you have to train for any condition since there is no guarantee that race day will be the perfect day. But I’ve been getting lucky that my weekend runs have been beautiful days.

I am really enjoying getting out early like this while the family is still sleeping and putting in my miles so I have the rest of the day to do whatever we have plans for. I did the total distance in 3 hours 25 minutes. I was happy with that. My average pace was 12:49 per mile and I did intervals of 45/30. As it got warmer in the morning I felt that it was affecting me a little bit and I also had to be smart about it and not push too fast. I also thought of a new route where I wouldn’t have to climb 3 large hills on my way back home. I had one large gradual hill that wasn’t so bad. I actually ran up most of it.

How can you not enjoy such a beautiful morning?!

The next long training run isn’t until the end of the month. Since getting up early and putting in my miles has been tolerable, I am considering doing the Red Dress Run For Women 5K in Hartford this weekend. I better get my butt in gear and register for it! They are giving away cute bracelets for their finisher’s medal. How can I pass that up?!

Philadelphia Marathon Training Has Begun

June 25, 2014

Taken near the vineyard around 7:00 a.m.

Taken near the vineyard around 7:10 a.m.

Well, I’m on to my 3rd marathon of the year! I began my training towards the Philadelphia marathon, which is on November 19, 2014. When Jeff Galloway gave me my training plan for the year I began to break out in a cold sweat as I looked at it. Usually I back down on my mileage during the summer for the obvious reasons of not wanting to do long runs in the heat. Well, I am also working towards Dopey this year and just finished the Heartbreak Hill Half Marathon two weeks ago so I had some mileage under my belt already.

The schedule called for a 14 mile run over the weekend. Every weekend in June had something going on every day. This past Sunday NOTHING was on the calendar. I had the chance to sleep in YAY! But instead, I was toying with the idea of getting up early to get my run over with while it was cool out. Also allowing me to still have time left in the day to do other things rather than sleep till 9, eat, get ready and maybe hit the road by 10:00 which would mean I would be home by 12:30 or 1:00, need to shower and then start the day. I mentioned the crazy idea to my husband and he suggested I go for it. (Sure it’s not him waking up at 6:00 on his weekend). But he said if I did that then I could join everyone else for breakfast at iHop.

As much as I really didn’t want to get up early, I knew it was a smart idea for many reasons, it would be quieter on the roads that time of day, it would be much cooler and I would still have most of my day ahead of me.

Past the reservoirs around 7:15 a.m.

On my road around 7:50 a.m.

It was a beautiful morning. I jumped out of bed as my alarm went off, got ready, ate some toasted cinnamon bread and got out do the door by 6:45. I had to map out my route a different way because I was already tired of my long run routes from my Providence marathon training long runs. I did some of my usual roads past the vineyards and reservoirs, up my road, and then changed it up a little and headed towards my parents’ house and into North Haven via Route 17. Being that it was earlier, Route 17 wasn’t too busy so I was happy about that.

I used the intervals of 45/30 and was comfortable with that. I wanted to stay away from 30/30 because when running with friends, they sometimes use the longer intervals and if I only train for 30/30, changing to the longer interval is very difficult for me. I will be running Philadelphia alone I believe, but I am going there to stay with a friend for the race, so she and I will talk about what our expected finish times are and her training plan as the summer progresses. Running Providence with Perfect Goofy Gail taught me a lot about running a race with a friend and how our training plans can hurt/help each other if you discuss your intervals ahead of time to prepare for race day.

My run was successful. It was a hilly warm day and after I was done, I wanted to compare my elevation map to the one from the Heartbreak Hill Half because I felt like I was running Heartbreak Hill in my own neighborhood! Come to find out the elevations were pretty similar.

Heartbreak Hill Half Marathon elevation

My 14 mile run

My finish time was 2:52:44 with 12:20/miles. I am happy with that considering the big hill I had to tackle at the end. And it is considered a training run, but I think I was going a little faster than I should be for a training run. Next up on the schedule (I don’t want to know yet). I know it is a 17 mile run within the next 2-3 weeks. I’ll enjoy the low mileage for the next week or so and then look ahead to see what I have on schedule. But I am pretty sure I will take the same approach and do it early in the morning so I don’t have to worry about the heat. Maybe this time I”ll do it on a Saturday instead. One thing I did notice was that my legs felt really good afterwards. Not like Heartbreak Hill where they were pretty shot for a few days afterwards. I did go for a shakeout run on Tuesday and was a little slow, but no pain. So I’m pleased with that.

My stats

Running When It Is Humid

June 17, 2014

This is the time of year now when I have to be smart when I am running. I have made mistakes that were costly and ended up requiring physical therapy because I got cramped up in the heat. I also learned about dehydration when I was a beginner and was pushing too hard in the heat to the point where I was seeing tunnel vision and stars in my eyes during my run (usually uphill). I saw a doctor for it and they told me I was dehydrated when I ran and pushing too hard for the conditions. I need to invest time at home for 30 minutes a day to do the simple exercises to prevent injuries and strengthen my core muscles and my glutes and hips. This is especially important during this time of year because it doesn’t matter how much I drink, I still lose a lot of water during the hot runs. However I prefer to spend 30 minutes getting on a good sweat instead, therefore I get injured.

Running in the heat is one thing. Running when it is very humid is another. The humidity is more taxing on the body because of the higher moisture content in the air, making it feel hotter. When you are running on a very humid day, the moisture that your body produces to help cool your body off doesn’t evaporate so the heat never leaves body. This is dangerous.

I noticed that after running the Heartbreak Hill Half Marathon two weeks ago that I felt flush all throughout the afternoon and evening after the race. That is because body was heated up and couldn’t cool off with the hot and humid weather. I also had a headache that afternoon and I think that was because despite having water and Nuun with me and taking water on the race course, I was dehydrated.

So what do you do when you need to get in a run and you don’t want to use the treadmill? Find a shady course to run on. Try to run early in the morning. Run along the water where there is typically a breeze, and take walk breaks. You also shouldn’t try to get your best race pace during these conditions. Train to run in these conditions, but don’t expect to be at your peak performance. When the temps heat up, your heart beat also increases by 10 to 20 beats per minute. That’s going to cause you to work even harder.

Jeff Galloway says when it gets hot out to slow your pace down by 30 seconds/mile for every 5 degrees above 60F. That’s a lot to slow down. But he is totally right. If you don’t slow down in the beginning you are certain to be slower at the end because your body just won’t be able to cool off and you won’t be running at your best. He says:

For every second you run too fast during the first half of a race on a hot day, expect to run 10 seconds slower at the end.

How do you know if you are getting heat exhaustion? These are the signs to look out for:

Fatigue
Nausea
Dizziness
Headache
Tingly Skin
Confusion

If you feel any of these symptoms, end your run and/or walk home. It’s not worth the risk. If you do feel these symptoms coming on, get into the shade, pour cold water onto your head, and if possible put ice on your neck. Lay down and elevate your feet.

You can work towards the ability to run in this heat by taking it slow and in small increments. Being from the East Coast, I really only have these conditions to run in for about 4 months out of the year. I usually don’t do races in the summer and the last time I did it was my first injury that required PT. So I have learned what to look out for.

Why I Love Jeff Galloway (and the Lose It! App)

June 16, 2014

I am using Jeff Galloway as my training coach and he trains you for more than just running. I gave him my recap for my week and the Heartbreak Hill Half Marathon and I mentioned to him about my goals for the summer. One of my goals was not about running. Despite all of the running I have been doing and the two marathons I did this Spring, I have slowly been gaining weight. I have been getting frustrated about this and I have Jeff and Barbara’s book Fat Burning For Women. I have been meaning to read it but just haven’t gotten to it.

In my weekly recap email I just told Jeff that I had a goal to lose some of that weight. He simply stated to me the following information:

Fat Burning: It’s about having a cognitive eating plan every day. Write down everything you eat, and log it into your preferred website or app. Then analyze it each day. You will then start using your conscious brain to choose what and how much to eat. Barbara’s material has helped thousands of women get the 10-15 pounds off without starving. You can still have the glass of wine—just have put it in the “budget”.

This may sound like a “DUH” type of response, but it was an A-HA moment for me. I had been “trying”, but I was never really trying to be conscious about my eating. My friend Jindy has just lost 14+ pounds using the 21 Day Fix. I was talking to her and she recommended the Lose It! App. So I took Jeff’s advice and I downloaded the App and I have successfully lost 2.5 pounds so far in less than a week just because I started to keep track of what I put in my mouth and then I can plan my meals and snacks and treats/drinks accordingly so they are within my budget for the day and I don’t feel deprived!

The Lose It! App is great! You can scan the bar code of your foods you have and specify the serving size you are eating. You can also search for foods in the program and add them to the daily log. You also keep track of your weight and can connect with friends if they are also using the app.

You can also insert your exercise from the day in there and while you carry your phone around with you, it keeps track of how many steps you take during the day.

Sometimes you need someone to state the obvious to you in order for a light bulb to go off. Jeff did that for me and I am so glad that I am moving in a direction that I feel like I have been swimming against for months now. Thanks Jeff! And thanks Jindy for recommending this app! I was going to use myfitnesspal.com but when she told me about this, I downloaded it, tried it and loved it from the start.

How Do You Know When It Is Time To Replace Your Sneakers?

June 11, 2014

Typically for me, I need to replace my sneakers anywhere between 250 – 350 miles. I try to keep a date in my sports software like Endomondo or Gamin. But sometimes my sneakers tell me it is time to replace them. When they are getting old, I sometimes feel it in my knees, shins or calves. Lately I was having calf cramps and then realized I think it was time to replace my sneakers Taking a look at the bottom of my sneakers also tells me when/if it is time for a new pair. When you get a new pair of sneakers, Nike in my case, they have little knobs on the bottom tread. Those begin to wear down with use. As you can see, the pair on the left have some good wear on them. They have about 275 miles on them. It’s never a good idea to try something new on race day, but I knew that breaking in a new pair of shoes isn’t an issue for me, especially when I am wearing the same brand, so I used my new pair for the Heartbreak Hill Half Marathon on Sunday and got a PR (for a hilly half marathon – a category of my own I made up!) I won’t say it was because of the shoes, but they do help! How do you know when it is time to get a new pair of sneakers?

Triathlon Swim Testing

May 30, 2014

I finally made some purchases towards my triathlon goal. I purchased goggles and a swimming cap to use on my vacation. When I was in the store and looking at all of the selections to choose from, I messaged a few of my friends to find out what to select from. The advice I got was to try them on before you buy to see what fits comfortably. I had a limited time to shop for these items, so I didn’t try anything on. I selected Speedo because I was familiar with that brand.

My intention was to hopefully get in a few laps at the quiet pool in the mornings before everyone gets up. That didn’t happen, but I did get a chance to try out my new gear at one of the pools at night while it wasn’t crowded.

To be honest, I didn’t feel stupid when I put them on and got into the pool. The goggles fit very comfortably. The cap was ok as well. Maybe I will get a black one for when I swim in public so I don’t look as dorky! I did a few practice swims across the pool and back and felt good. Then I kept doing a few more and realized how tiring swimming is! I felt a little concerned that I will need to step up my game over the summer to figure out this whole swimming thing. I had no idea how far we had to swim for the Sprint Tri in September and in my mind I was wondering how long it took the longest swimmer to finish the swim portion of the race. That is the time I am going to have to beat at least so I won’t be the last one out of the water.

I like swimming with my face under water most of the time, but I am going to have to learn to take breaths at every other stroke or else I will get behind in my breathing and will be more tired.

I also have to figure out the kicking. Do you kick a little or a lot? How far is a lap? How far do we have to swim for the race? We have a circular 24 foot pool in our yard, I will spend as much time in it as I can this summer going back and forth, but I think I’ll need to research into the YMCA or the North Haven Rec Center to learn about their lap pool and to invest in a cheap Timex watch to help keep track of my laps.

I had my husband video me while I did a lap so I could review it and see how bad I looked and so I could put it out there for critiquing. So please any feedback would be great!

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANchiMys2Kw&w=560&h=315]

Dopey Challenge Reality Check

May 17, 2014

As I recently arrived at the Disney Boardwalk Hotel I had a brief moment of panic. The thought of catching a bus at 3:30 a.m. To run the marathon blew through my mind. Then I remembered I was on vacation with my family. I wasn’t on a race trip to Disney. It was weird. I have been traveling more for races than I have been traveling with my family for vacations. There’s nothing wrong with that in my mind. Sure, I’d love to take them any chance I can but they have school and I have my friends and races.

After I realized I am on vacation then the thought of the Dopey challenge crossed my mind. The next time I check into the Boardwalk alone I will be preparing to do the 4 day race challenge in January. I am discovering a few things that happen when I travel. I seem to arrive to my destination with a pretty decent headache. It lasts into the next day and goes away if I take a nap on the second day. I am going to have to prepare for this in January if I arrive the day before the 5k race. Something to consider for January is weather. If I travel down the day before I have no buffer if there is bad weather. That could foil the plan for the entire challenge. I also have to be there to pick up my own bibs so I have to allow for this.

I also miss having a car. I got spoiled in the past with a car. Waiting for the magical express just adds hours to the day that I would prefer to do without. I also like the ability to go shopping for whatever I need in the room at a local grocery store rather than paying all the prices for essential items at the hotel. I didn’t have dinner when we landed because we had to catch our bus and got to the hotel very late. By the time we arrived to the hotel all the stores were closed. So planning for meals is important. We did pack sandwiches and snacks.

I very much enjoy family vacations. I also enjoy my racecations. They are two different experiences, each with their own special touches. As summer comes around and training begins for the Dopey challenge I will use Jeff Galloway to coach me through the training. But I am also going to have to train mentally for this experience. It will be interesting getting up 4 days in a row at 2 a.m. If I am here alone for the beginning go the trip I plan to rest and do a lot of nothing.

Providence Post Marathon Slump

May 12, 2014

Why does it seems like after I finish a marathon I start to fall apart? After I finished the WDW marathon this past January my hip flexor gave me trouble for months. I figured it was because I walked 20 miles of it to help my friend cross the finish line during her Dopey challenge while finishing chemo. Now I am experiencing random issues here and there after the Providence marathon. I had a very good race, it was a great race actually! I don’t know if I could have done that race as fast as I did if I didn’t have my friend there to get me to that finish line goal I set.

After my last easy 4 mile run my left calf started cramping up on me towards the end of my run. It was a warm day out but I had been hydrating all day. I am suspicious that it happened because I started wearing flip-flops the day before. I iced it up and then used a heating pad on it last night and it’s feeling better, but I am cautious now.

I feel like once the big accomplishment is over, my body tells me to take it easy for a bit. Maybe the release of relief in my brain that my goal was met lets the rest of my body know it will be on a break for a while. Who knows! But I just want to stay healthy. I don’t have any big races planned until June 8th when I run the Heartbreak Hill Half Marathon. I would like to get my 3rd PR in a row with this race, but given the name of Heartbreak Hill half, I am going to assume that it will be a challenging race in the hills of Massachusetts.

With a vacation coming up, I plan on taking it easy for a little bit to let my body recover, but I am going to still get in my 2 runs per week or more if I have the time and then I have to get in a 14 mile run Memorial Day weekend.

Mentally, I was having a little trouble getting out for a run the other day. I had a lot of stuff to get done around the house and was toying with the idea of skipping my run, but I knew it was better that I get out there and do it. I actually just put on my running clothes and my Garmin 220 and hit the road, I forgot my headphones and didn’t realize it until I was a mile into the run. It was just me and the road and I enjoyed that. I was going to do 3 miles, but decided to do 4. My pace was slow though. Since my coach told me to do easy runs post marathon for the next 2 weeks I didn’t do any speed work or hills. I just ran for the sake of running and I enjoyed it. It was nice to run “naked”.

I think sometimes after a big goal is met, it’s ok to have a little downtime in your running routine. I need this time now to regroup and focus on what my goals are for the summer and leading up to training for Dopey in January. This is also a good time for me to give my legs a little break and do some bike riding as well to prepare for my fall Sprint Tri.

Do you ever have a running slump after a big race?

My Garmin Debacle

May 12, 2014

So I was running the Simsbury River Race a few weeks ago and prior to the race I was sitting in Kim’s car with her discussing my race strategy. She asked me what my current running pace was. I pulled out my phone and starting to look at my stats and she told me, “Girl, you need to get a Garmin! It’s time to get away from all that phone crap.” (Well maybe not word for word, but that’s what she was trying to say). So I decided to use the birthday money my mom gave me towards a Garmin watch.

As soon as the race was over, I came home and pulled up the Garmin site and amazon.com and did some research. There were two specific things that I had to consider when purchasing a watch, battery life and interval training.

Well, I should have done more research because the first watch I ordered, The Garmin Forerunner 210 could only do interval training in increments of 10 seconds. It’s a nice watch, but I wasn’t really sure if it was going to suit my training needs.

So I ordered another Garmin, the Forerunner 310XT and when it arrive it was the size of a laptop on my arm! I wasn’t too happy about the size of that watch, but it had a lot of features I was interested in like the lap pace and other data on the larger screen while doing the interval training. So I figured worst case, I can wear it on my fitness belt and look at the data as I am running.

The other mistake I made was testing out the watch very little prior to my marathon. I had an epic fail on race morning because I charged the Garmin Forerunner 310, but didn’t put it in power save mode overnight. So when Gail and I got to the lobby on race morning it was dead! So we ran upstairs, she grabbed her watch, I grabbed my Forerunner 210 and we went back downstairs. I used it during the race with the 20/20 intervals, but when we hit 99 reps of intervals it stopped and I didn’t know what to do! I thought I lost all of my data. Come to find out, the data is still in the watch, but I have no idea how to restart the intervals. I did restart the timer but I assumed I was starting at mile 0 again and starting all new stats. We used Gail’s watch at this point in the race, but I was trying to capture as much data as I could because I like to review the numbers after my races.

My most recent purchase is the Garmin Forerunner 220 and so far I love it so much that I wore it as my every day watch.

It is simple to use, the battery life is great and I like the screen and information it provides me during my run. I like that I can select intervals for my own specific times for run and rest, and I came across a walk/run timer built into it today. I am still learning the watch, but it is very easy to use and some time on YouTube will really teach me a lot about it.

The watch is very light weight and is comfortable on my arm. When I first started running with a watch I hated the feeling on my arm. It really irritated me. Ironically, when I was running the Providence marathon with it on, it didn’t even bother me. I charged it when I received it last week and used it twice for running, and as a watch for time and it hasn’t required a charge yet.

The Garmin 220 is a keeper for sure. I already returned the other two watches and have no regrets. The Garmin Forerunner 210 is a nice watch, but when comparing the 210 to the 220 I’m all about the 220. Easy to read screen, cute colors and very light weight.

What I Don’t Know About Triathlons

April 24, 2014

This year with my one word resolution, my word was to GROW. Well I think I am going to take the plunge this year and do a Women’s Triathlon. I was considering doing the one in Norwalk in August, but it may conflict with my schedule. So today Kim posted about the Hartford Marathon Foundation’s Women’s Triathlon that is good for beginners. I am way more than a beginner!! I know NOTHING about triathlons. The good thing is, it is a sprint triathlon and a women’s only triathlon.

Like I just said, I know nothing, what I do know is, I can run and I can ride my bike pretty well. Last night when we went to Sports Authority to get a pink batting helmet for my daughter I ventured over to the swimming section to see what they had for goggles, swim caps and bathing suits. I just stood there at the wall and saw ALL the different goggles and shook my head.

What do I wear for the swimming part? A one piece bathing suit? Is there something special I should buy?

Do I wear a swimming cap?

What goggles do I wear?

How the hell do I swim??

Then there were the bathing suits. I figure I can’t wear the cute mix and match bathing suit pieces from Target for the actual swim part. So I’ll have to invest in a one piece bathing suit. That’s going to be a scary site squeezing my body into a non-flattering one piece bathing suit that doesn’t have a skirt to cover up my booty! These suits are around $75.00. I am going to check out Kohls.com and see if they have one piece suits that I can use my coupons for. My husband already complained that this sport is getting to be expensive!

I listen to a podcast called Two Gomers and they have shared their experiences learning how to train for a half marathon, then a marathon and now they are actually participating in their first triathlon on April 28th. I have listened to their training and how much they have grown and learned about doing a triathlon. They have good swimming tips and also recommended a book called “Triathlon Swimming Made Easy” by Terry Laughlin (total immersion swimming)

What do I bring to the race?

How do I set up for transitions?

Do I need a license for USAT?

What is USAT?

This is going to be an interesting summer as I prepare for this race. I haven’t registered for it yet, but I am planning on doing it. I already ride my bike at least twice a week. I have to begin doing a ride, then running to prepare for that transition from bike to run. Oh yea, transitions…. that’s another thing I am clueless about!

How do I transition from the water to my bike?

Do I get naked and change into riding clothes?

What do I do about my hair?

Will I have goggle marks on my eyes? LOL

In all honesty it does sound like a lot of fun as long as I don’t drown in the water first! I’m sure I’ll be last in the race, but as long as I have fun doing it, that’s all that matters. I will research into the results from last year to see how the other women did. That will help me have a goal to shoot towards. I also need to invest in a bike computer so I can keep track of my mileage and pace besides using my iPhone. I think I need a waterproof watch or garmin type watch to also help me with my splits.

Stay tuned as I invest in this new challenge this summer! It should be VERY interesting!

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