Didn't run on Thursday because just too busy. Got in a short one yesterday after I came home from the agility trial, and then did the stride interval workout that was scheduled for yesterday, today.
Okay, first up, let's talk about yesterday. Not too much to say about it. I wore my new Nike Pegasus 29s. Felt just like the 27s and the 28s, except maybe a little smaller and snugger and that is probably good. Did the EBE route, finishing up by going around the neighborhood, which put it at 3.1 miles on the GPS in 34:02 or 10:40 pace. Felt a little tired from the agility trial but not bad.
Today I needed to do the stride workout. This is described as 55-70 minutes of easy running with 10-15 strides of 25 seconds or so and recoveries of 1 minute, with the strides done either at the end of the workout or somewhere in the middle.
Hmmm. Oh, and the strides are supposed to start out around 5k race pace and build up to like mile race pace by the end of each interval, if I understand this correctly.
For a run that long outside I was going to need water, and if past experience is any guide, probably a bit of fuel half way through. The intervals were best done somewhere that I wouldn't have to cross streets or encounter a lot of traffic, either pedestrian or motorized.
So after thinking about it a bit, I decided to start out with my regular Park loop, then return home for water and a GU, then go back up into the park and do the strides around the pavillion. And when I finished that up, I could just jog back home the shortest way.
This worked out pretty well. I ran the park loop, including jogging down the trail right to the front door, in 35:02, which the GPS said was 11:04 pace for 3.1 miles. That's actually not a bad time for that route. I made it to Custer, my traditional checkpoint, in 26:49, which is a good pace for that run.
Then I had a glass of water and a GU pack, as planned, and headed back out. Instead of running up the street as I normally would at the start of a run, I went up the trail to Observatory Ave. I felt good. Better than I do at the start of a run. I guess that is the effect of the warmup!
I jogged up the hill for 9 minutes, which put me up near the left side of the pavillion. Then I walked for a minute and started the intervals, running clockwise around the pavillion and gardens. I forget what I had the GPS set to display but it worked out well for keeping track. I know I had one of the displays set up for manual laps, and I knew that I was going to need 21 manual laps to finish the workout (1 lap to jog up the hill, then 10 laps of fast running and 10 laps of recovery). Maybe the other display was total distance or something like that. Yeah, I think that was it. The main display was the manual lap time.
For the recoveries, I walked for 30 seconds and jogged for 30 seconds.
The time of each lap varied a little bit depending on how accurate I was at looking down at the watch and hitting it to stop the lap, but the important data point is probably average speed for each of the intervals:
1) 8:09 (just figuring it out)
2) 7:48 (slight downhill)
3) 6:41 (more downhill)
4) 8:34 (slight uphill)
5) 7:00 (more flat?)
I was feeling better than I remembered feeling the last time I ran short, fast intervals. I think when I tried a similar workout during my last training cycle, I was running the intervals too fast. I think I had been doing them just about all out for 30 seconds, instead of starting at 5k pace and gradually accelerating. I tried to concentrate more on my form---because that is part of the point of the exercise---and then really speeding up the last ten seconds.
After the fifth interval, which put me on the right side of the pavillion (if you are coming uphill from Observatory), I switched direction and did the other five going counterclockwise.
6) 7:17
7) 6:28 (downhill)
8) 7:44 (uphill?)
9) 7:11 (flat?)
10) 7:35 (not sure why it was slow because I think it was downhill)
Anyway, I probably could have done 5 more but this was enough.
Then I just jogged back home on Observatory and stopped my watch just before I hit the trail. This second half of the workout was another 3.1 miles, in 32:15 or an average pace of 10:37.
I'm pleased with how this workout went. Overall, I should take confidence from having done all of the important workouts so far. I don't think I've missed a single speed session or long run. Have I? And when has that ever happened before.
No matter how the race turns out, I will have done the work.
Now the only two things I'm worried about are getting sick, and the struggle to get these last few key weeks of training in. The wedding really figures into these concerns, because it is a big stressor, and also I will be exposed to a lot of germs!
I've started trying to remember to take my vitamins again, and I'm going to have to work on getting plenty of sleep.
Showing posts with label easy run. Show all posts
Showing posts with label easy run. Show all posts
Saturday, September 22, 2012
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
Week 10 (Already?) Days 1 & 2
Just a couple of easy runs on the schedule at the start of this week. Yesterday I went for the 45-60 minute easy run. After the dog walk, I headed out around 11 am around the park/Kilgour route plus a little bit up Observatory and back on Pape. The GPS watch said it was 4.83 miles in 54 minutes, 11:09 pace but it is hard to run around the park.
Today I didn't go out until later in the afternoon because it was raining this morning. Decided to do my trail loop because it was a bit windy and cooler than I'm used to, and I was looking forward to the shelter from the wind that you get in the woods. Also, I wanted the freedom to just go nice and slow in a pretty place without having to worry about crossing any streets.
Trail route was 2.97 miles in 45:45, which is the ridiculously slow pace of 15:23, but it's on the trails. That is actually not any slower than usual for the trail route.
Tomorrow I am supposed to do the long run of 16-18 miles. Not sure if I will do it outside or on the treadmill.
Today I didn't go out until later in the afternoon because it was raining this morning. Decided to do my trail loop because it was a bit windy and cooler than I'm used to, and I was looking forward to the shelter from the wind that you get in the woods. Also, I wanted the freedom to just go nice and slow in a pretty place without having to worry about crossing any streets.
Trail route was 2.97 miles in 45:45, which is the ridiculously slow pace of 15:23, but it's on the trails. That is actually not any slower than usual for the trail route.
Tomorrow I am supposed to do the long run of 16-18 miles. Not sure if I will do it outside or on the treadmill.
Saturday, September 15, 2012
Week 9, Day 5
Yesterday the schedule called for another easy run, this time just 30-40 minutes. After walking around the neighborhood with Tommy & the dogs, I headed out for my regular old loop of the park.
Did not get out until 11 am but no worries, because it was another pleasant day. Hit my "checkpoint" at Custer in 27:03---historically, anything under 27 is pretty fast on this course, so to be right at 27 on an "easy" day is pretty cool.
Finished the run of 3.01 miles in 33:16 or an 11:02 pace. While that sounds slow, for this course that is relatively fast. So, I am getting faster. It is happening!
Tonight is the Glenwood Gardens night trail run. Last year I finished in just a smidge over 30 minutes, so this year I hope to at least break 30.
Did not get out until 11 am but no worries, because it was another pleasant day. Hit my "checkpoint" at Custer in 27:03---historically, anything under 27 is pretty fast on this course, so to be right at 27 on an "easy" day is pretty cool.
Finished the run of 3.01 miles in 33:16 or an 11:02 pace. While that sounds slow, for this course that is relatively fast. So, I am getting faster. It is happening!
Tonight is the Glenwood Gardens night trail run. Last year I finished in just a smidge over 30 minutes, so this year I hope to at least break 30.
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
Week 9, Day 3
Today the schedule calls for an easy run of 50-60 minutes. Slept in this morning, then walked to dogs around the park, the long way because the weather is so nice for a change. Got out for the run around 11 am. Felt a little tired and it was getting warmer by then and quite sunny. But still not bad.
Did the Madison route. Tried to keep the pace easy and mostly, felt pretty good. Was thinking about the upcoming trail race this weekend during the first mile. Thinking about my goals---breaking 30 minutes (was just a few seconds over last year), trying to get into the top 10 women and possibly the top ten age-graded runners, beat Cyndi K. by more than three placements (this is what I need to do in order to place ahead of her in the Dirty Dozen standings). I can't control some of these things so I am trying to focus on the breaking 30 minutes. Last year I think I was recovering from a cold so I really should be able to run a bunch faster this year. And then, when it comes down to the end of the race, I just have to try to pass all the women that I can.
Anyway, I was thinking about all this when all of a sudden I think I actually see Cyndi K. running towards me. I am pretty sure it was her. She was running with some guy, and they were coming down Erie as I was going up it. She was wearing the pink technical top from the Lady Distance Classic and she has the longish, wavy blond hair like Cyndi K., and she gave me a big hello. Had to be her. So that was kind of random. Huh.
Rest of the run went along pretty well but another odd thing was that I noticed the GPS seemed to be saying that I was running farther for this route than it did when I last ran it a couple of weeks ago. That's weird. I would have thought that the GPS would be at least as consistent as the shoe pod was.
Had a bit of knee twingey stuff going on in the last mile and a half or so, coming up Observatory. Also had noticed that my left and right feet are landing differently, and I'm not sure what to think about that. And my right shoulder/neck area is a little sore, like I pinched or pulled something or slept on it funny, and that was bothering me yesterday also.
When crossing Observatory at Delta, had a near miss with an inattentive car driver. I hate crossing that intersection. The woman driver (I am sad to say that it is always a woman who almost hits me) was coming down Observatory and turning right on to Delta. She looked to her left but not straight ahead where I was. I had the signal, the all-too-brief signal that you get at that intersection. I could tell she didn't see me so I hung back a bit and she cut me off. As she cut me off, she finally noticed me and gave me a little friendly wave.
Right. So I gave her the finger in response. Idiot. If I were a guy I probably would have pounded on the hood of her car as well. So she is lucky she just got the finger. Probably didn't understand what I was upset about. The fact that you could have run me over, moron, that is why I gave you the finger. Pay attention, and when you screw up, please recognize it and appear sorry for your mistake.
I noticed that she had a bike rack on back of her car, and I thought that she was probably one of those idiots who drives their car to the trails in the park and then rides their mountain bikes in there on the narrow little trails that are supposed to be pedestrian only. I hate those people.
Speaking of bikes, I forgot to mention on Monday that when I was out at Lunken I ran by the "ghost bike" that somebody put up in memory of Andrew Gast. I hadn't been sure before exactly where the accident occured. I thought it was closer to the intersection and that was why the driver didn't see the bike. But it was pretty much in the middle of Wilmer Ave., so based on that I assume the driver just wasn't paying attention when he hit Andrew Gast from behind.
If I'd had my phone with me I would have taken a picture of it myself.
Anyway, back to today's run. I was going to extend it a bit by doing a loop around the block to get it up over five miles, but the knee twinge scared me and I was going to be over 50 minutes anyway so I decided to play it safe and just stop when I normally would for this route.
Final time was 51:08 for what the GPS says was 4.92 miles. And here's the weird thing. When I ran this same route on Aug. 27, the GPS said it was just 4.74 miles. On that day, I actually ran a little bit faster that I did today, but the pace is getting recorded differently because of this mileage discrepancy. Whatever. Maybe I should just go back to the shoe pod, because at least it was consistent for the same course from one day to the next.
Anyway, according to the GPS, today my pace was 10:23. The good news is that this is right in the target range for an easy run. And whatever we want to say the distance was, 51:08 is a decent time for this route, assuming I was taking it easy. Which I mostly was. So this means I really am getting a little faster after all.
Did the Madison route. Tried to keep the pace easy and mostly, felt pretty good. Was thinking about the upcoming trail race this weekend during the first mile. Thinking about my goals---breaking 30 minutes (was just a few seconds over last year), trying to get into the top 10 women and possibly the top ten age-graded runners, beat Cyndi K. by more than three placements (this is what I need to do in order to place ahead of her in the Dirty Dozen standings). I can't control some of these things so I am trying to focus on the breaking 30 minutes. Last year I think I was recovering from a cold so I really should be able to run a bunch faster this year. And then, when it comes down to the end of the race, I just have to try to pass all the women that I can.
Anyway, I was thinking about all this when all of a sudden I think I actually see Cyndi K. running towards me. I am pretty sure it was her. She was running with some guy, and they were coming down Erie as I was going up it. She was wearing the pink technical top from the Lady Distance Classic and she has the longish, wavy blond hair like Cyndi K., and she gave me a big hello. Had to be her. So that was kind of random. Huh.
Rest of the run went along pretty well but another odd thing was that I noticed the GPS seemed to be saying that I was running farther for this route than it did when I last ran it a couple of weeks ago. That's weird. I would have thought that the GPS would be at least as consistent as the shoe pod was.
Had a bit of knee twingey stuff going on in the last mile and a half or so, coming up Observatory. Also had noticed that my left and right feet are landing differently, and I'm not sure what to think about that. And my right shoulder/neck area is a little sore, like I pinched or pulled something or slept on it funny, and that was bothering me yesterday also.
When crossing Observatory at Delta, had a near miss with an inattentive car driver. I hate crossing that intersection. The woman driver (I am sad to say that it is always a woman who almost hits me) was coming down Observatory and turning right on to Delta. She looked to her left but not straight ahead where I was. I had the signal, the all-too-brief signal that you get at that intersection. I could tell she didn't see me so I hung back a bit and she cut me off. As she cut me off, she finally noticed me and gave me a little friendly wave.
Right. So I gave her the finger in response. Idiot. If I were a guy I probably would have pounded on the hood of her car as well. So she is lucky she just got the finger. Probably didn't understand what I was upset about. The fact that you could have run me over, moron, that is why I gave you the finger. Pay attention, and when you screw up, please recognize it and appear sorry for your mistake.
I noticed that she had a bike rack on back of her car, and I thought that she was probably one of those idiots who drives their car to the trails in the park and then rides their mountain bikes in there on the narrow little trails that are supposed to be pedestrian only. I hate those people.
Speaking of bikes, I forgot to mention on Monday that when I was out at Lunken I ran by the "ghost bike" that somebody put up in memory of Andrew Gast. I hadn't been sure before exactly where the accident occured. I thought it was closer to the intersection and that was why the driver didn't see the bike. But it was pretty much in the middle of Wilmer Ave., so based on that I assume the driver just wasn't paying attention when he hit Andrew Gast from behind.
If I'd had my phone with me I would have taken a picture of it myself.
Anyway, back to today's run. I was going to extend it a bit by doing a loop around the block to get it up over five miles, but the knee twinge scared me and I was going to be over 50 minutes anyway so I decided to play it safe and just stop when I normally would for this route.
Final time was 51:08 for what the GPS says was 4.92 miles. And here's the weird thing. When I ran this same route on Aug. 27, the GPS said it was just 4.74 miles. On that day, I actually ran a little bit faster that I did today, but the pace is getting recorded differently because of this mileage discrepancy. Whatever. Maybe I should just go back to the shoe pod, because at least it was consistent for the same course from one day to the next.
Anyway, according to the GPS, today my pace was 10:23. The good news is that this is right in the target range for an easy run. And whatever we want to say the distance was, 51:08 is a decent time for this route, assuming I was taking it easy. Which I mostly was. So this means I really am getting a little faster after all.
Sunday, September 09, 2012
Week 8, Day 7
I got a short one in today after I got home from the dog show. According to the schedule, I was supposed to do a couple of easy runs Friday and Saturday, then very easy today or take an off day. Well, I didn't run Friday (mostly out shopping and driving around) or Saturday (at the dog show), but at least I got one in today.
Wanted to do 5 miles but ended up with just 4.2. Did a combo of the park & Kilgour race routes. Was slower than the supposed "easy" run pace, but this was around the park and it is hard. Actually, my pace was probably a little faster than I would usually cover this route in, I'm just recording it slower because of the stupid GPS.
Ran 4.2 miles in 46 something, or a 10:55 pace. The second and fourth miles (downhill from the pavillion & Principio, and some downhill on Ault View and Observatory Place) were the fastest.
Wanted to do 5 miles but ended up with just 4.2. Did a combo of the park & Kilgour race routes. Was slower than the supposed "easy" run pace, but this was around the park and it is hard. Actually, my pace was probably a little faster than I would usually cover this route in, I'm just recording it slower because of the stupid GPS.
Ran 4.2 miles in 46 something, or a 10:55 pace. The second and fourth miles (downhill from the pavillion & Principio, and some downhill on Ault View and Observatory Place) were the fastest.
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
Week 7, Day3
Today I was supposed to do cruise intervals. 4-6 x 1000 meters with 200 meter recoveries, followed by 3 x 200 or something like that.
But I felt like shit today, and could barely drag myself out for a run after our dog walk around the park.
Went out about 10:45 for an "easy" run (what is on the schedule for Friday) of 45-60 minutes. I did the EBE-Settle route. Felt miserable. Can't remember the last time I enjoyed a run less. Didn't start to feel okay until the last mile.
Time was 53:32 or 11:02 pace for what we now know to be (thanks to the damn GPS) as just 4.85 miles.
I might try to do the intervals on the treadmill tomorrow, or Friday before I leave for Boston. Maybe I should try tomorrow after we get back from agility class.
But I felt like shit today, and could barely drag myself out for a run after our dog walk around the park.
Went out about 10:45 for an "easy" run (what is on the schedule for Friday) of 45-60 minutes. I did the EBE-Settle route. Felt miserable. Can't remember the last time I enjoyed a run less. Didn't start to feel okay until the last mile.
Time was 53:32 or 11:02 pace for what we now know to be (thanks to the damn GPS) as just 4.85 miles.
I might try to do the intervals on the treadmill tomorrow, or Friday before I leave for Boston. Maybe I should try tomorrow after we get back from agility class.
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Week 6, Day 2
Today would normally be a recovery day, but since I did that yesterday, today I did an "easy" day. The distinction is slight---"recovery" means I did something hard the day before (like a race or a speed workout or a long run) so I am just jogging, whereas "easy" means I am taking it easy and enjoying the run and not pushing, but I still should be going faster than on a "recovery" day. I guess
One little problem I am having now that I need to increase my paces (based on my race performance and, let's face it, what is beginning to seem like an overly ambitious goal) is that I am now using that GPS to tell me how far I've gone. And of course, it turns out that none of my runs is as long as I have previously considered them to be. I knew that, but I didn't realize how far off pace I would be for even these slower workouts.
So, yesterday I was just a tiny bit slower than I am supposed to be for a jog, and today I was a tiny bit slower than I should be for my "easy" pace. Today's pace would have been fine for a recovery jog, though.
Well, maybe it would have helped me to have some coffee first.
Got up just a tiny bit earlier and went out the door at 6:07. Did my "Mooney" loop, which is up Erie, turn at Mooney, back on Observatory to Erie. Since I was out a little earlier this morning, I missed seeing my "regulars." Saw a lot more people than usual, however. Is the cooler weather bringing more people out or does 15 minutes one way or the other really make a difference in how many people you see running on a weekday?
Did see Alison Delgado again. This time she was coming down Observatory when I was on my way back home. She just floats along, not like the rest of us plodders. Wonder what her form looked like before the accident. She stands up very straight.
Anyway, the GPS watch said it was just 4.1 miles (versus the 4.4 I have been considering it to be) and my time was 43:39, or 10:38 pace. Easy pace range is supposed to be 9:30 to 10:26, so I am a bit outside of that. But if I had considered it to be 4.4 miles, then it would have been 9:55 pace, right in there.
I don't think pushing myself harder on these recovery runs and easy runs is the way to go. I can only do what I can do. These are supposed to be easy efforts. So I am going to try not to stress about it too much. I know from past experience that my easy pace is generally a lot slower than other people who race at the same speed I do. So I am going to focus on trying to hit the right paces during the speed sessions, and get the mileage in on the long runs (maybe with a little more emphasis on a slightly faster speed than I'm used to), and I hope that will get the job done.
Oh, and I have to lose some weight.
One little problem I am having now that I need to increase my paces (based on my race performance and, let's face it, what is beginning to seem like an overly ambitious goal) is that I am now using that GPS to tell me how far I've gone. And of course, it turns out that none of my runs is as long as I have previously considered them to be. I knew that, but I didn't realize how far off pace I would be for even these slower workouts.
So, yesterday I was just a tiny bit slower than I am supposed to be for a jog, and today I was a tiny bit slower than I should be for my "easy" pace. Today's pace would have been fine for a recovery jog, though.
Well, maybe it would have helped me to have some coffee first.
Got up just a tiny bit earlier and went out the door at 6:07. Did my "Mooney" loop, which is up Erie, turn at Mooney, back on Observatory to Erie. Since I was out a little earlier this morning, I missed seeing my "regulars." Saw a lot more people than usual, however. Is the cooler weather bringing more people out or does 15 minutes one way or the other really make a difference in how many people you see running on a weekday?
Did see Alison Delgado again. This time she was coming down Observatory when I was on my way back home. She just floats along, not like the rest of us plodders. Wonder what her form looked like before the accident. She stands up very straight.
Anyway, the GPS watch said it was just 4.1 miles (versus the 4.4 I have been considering it to be) and my time was 43:39, or 10:38 pace. Easy pace range is supposed to be 9:30 to 10:26, so I am a bit outside of that. But if I had considered it to be 4.4 miles, then it would have been 9:55 pace, right in there.
I don't think pushing myself harder on these recovery runs and easy runs is the way to go. I can only do what I can do. These are supposed to be easy efforts. So I am going to try not to stress about it too much. I know from past experience that my easy pace is generally a lot slower than other people who race at the same speed I do. So I am going to focus on trying to hit the right paces during the speed sessions, and get the mileage in on the long runs (maybe with a little more emphasis on a slightly faster speed than I'm used to), and I hope that will get the job done.
Oh, and I have to lose some weight.
Sunday, August 19, 2012
Week 5, Day 5
Yesterday was an off day, and I needed it more than I did last week, after the 14 on Wednesday. Today was easy run day, 45-60 minutes.
It was a cool day and rainy this morning, so we did not go out for the dog walk until 10. Left for the run at 11:20 Did the Madison route, and finished the 5.21 in 53:13 or about 10:20 pace.
Felt pretty easy but did have a little something weird going on with my left foot. Felt better after the first mile or so, and was fine after that, but bothered me some later today when I was walking around the supermarket in my sandals. Feels okay now. Who knows?
My new Nike GPS watch arrived today. Not as excited about it as you might think.
It was a cool day and rainy this morning, so we did not go out for the dog walk until 10. Left for the run at 11:20 Did the Madison route, and finished the 5.21 in 53:13 or about 10:20 pace.
Felt pretty easy but did have a little something weird going on with my left foot. Felt better after the first mile or so, and was fine after that, but bothered me some later today when I was walking around the supermarket in my sandals. Feels okay now. Who knows?
My new Nike GPS watch arrived today. Not as excited about it as you might think.
Friday, August 03, 2012
Week 3, Day 5
Scheduled workout: Easy run of 45-60 minutes at 9:39-10:33 pace.
I went out about 10:30 am after the dog walk. It was overcast and not too hot, but humid. Not impossible to run outside and I know that I'll go faster outside than on the treadmill. The treadmill is okay for intervals but it is miserable for the slow, easy runs that are supposed to be pleasant.
After three weeks, I've really figured out that the way to approach this is not to spend a lot of time staring at my watch trying to maintain a particular pace. If it's supposed to be an "easy" run, then the way to do it is just go out and run. Just enjoy the run. Don't try to go slow, don't try to go fast. Easy = fun. And the pace will take care of itself.
I did my "Settle" route which is basically down Erie Ave., out and back on Murray Ave. to Settle, and back up Erie. Covered 4.64 miles in 47:08, which is a 10:09 pace, just about right. I felt great the whole way. It was easy!
I went out about 10:30 am after the dog walk. It was overcast and not too hot, but humid. Not impossible to run outside and I know that I'll go faster outside than on the treadmill. The treadmill is okay for intervals but it is miserable for the slow, easy runs that are supposed to be pleasant.
After three weeks, I've really figured out that the way to approach this is not to spend a lot of time staring at my watch trying to maintain a particular pace. If it's supposed to be an "easy" run, then the way to do it is just go out and run. Just enjoy the run. Don't try to go slow, don't try to go fast. Easy = fun. And the pace will take care of itself.
I did my "Settle" route which is basically down Erie Ave., out and back on Murray Ave. to Settle, and back up Erie. Covered 4.64 miles in 47:08, which is a 10:09 pace, just about right. I felt great the whole way. It was easy!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)