Tuesday, March 29, 2011

8 miles

Completed the planned 8 miles, and thought since it was kind of a milestone, it deserved its own update. I mean, its certainly not the first time I've done this distance, but it surely has been a very long time. The stats:

Distance: 8.07
Time: 1:23:05
Pace: 10:21
Weather (at start): 45 degF, sunny and breezy

Thats actually better than the 10:30 I was shooting for. This also included 2 walk breaks of about 1-2 min each. To think if I didnt have to walk?? I think what was most killer was doing the upper portion (from 102nd to 110th) of the loop, twice. Ironically though, one of my better splits included the second time around that loop. Perhaps it was a result of the uber generous couple who were handing out bottles of water! I re-fueled with Jelly Belly's Sport Beans around mile 4, near Lasker Pool. I went against my better judgment getting a fuel source that wasnt liquid (or at least a gel), and I paid for it. I should also mention that my quest to find some Gu energy packs was unsuccessful, which is why I ended up with the jelly beans.  The note on the package even said to take it with water, which is what made that couple handing out water even more of a Godsend. But asides from the slight cramping and other gastric issues from the beans, it did help me push through the final 2 miles of the run, which were basically unchartered territory.

I felt myself struggling just shy of mile 6. Heck, I want to even say in the beginning of mile 5, and I thought to myself, "whats going on?! I do 5 miles all the time, and I did 6 last week at a sub 10 pace!" Thats when I realized it was doing the upper loop twice that took a toll. I also thought I took a wrong turn, and ended up doing less than 8 miles, and was a bit dismayed when I finished in the time that I did. But a quick recalculation in my head, and I realized I DID do the full 8 I had planned, and my night was much better.

All I can say was, I was TIRED. Tired and sore. My legs are incredibly sore, especially in the lower calf on both legs. Hip flexors, hammies are both sore as well, but tolerable.

Looking to do a hill or interval run on Thur, maybe a bike/run combo over the weekend, and then tackle 9 miles next week. 'Till next time!

Monday, March 28, 2011

Where did the warmth go?

As quickly as it came, the nice warmer weather has disappeared. So, back in the brisk 40s (10 or so degrees lower than normal) we are, for the remainder of this week at least. Only got in one run this past week, but did get in another Yoga X session in lieu of a run.

Last Tue (3/22) was a quick 5 miler going in the clockwise direction. I think its was my best pace for that distance, clocking in at a 9:42 mile. It was tough going from the start, probably from Yoga two days prior, but was pleasantly surprised when I realized what my pace was at the end. The plan was to hit 7 miles on friday, but that was put on hold due to extenuating circumstances. I did Yoga X in its place, and thankfully can say it was a touch easier than the previous session. Hope I can keep Yoga in the rotation.

The plan tonight is 8, since I missed out on the 7 last week, and my previous long run was 6 miles, I figure its not too crazy of a jump. Hoping I'm not upping it too quickly, lest I injure myself again, or, further injure myself.  I'm going to take it easy, maybe look to do around 10:30 miles. I did 7 miles back in January, at a 10:51 pace. And lets hope I'm in better shape than I was back then! The planned route: Enter CP at 59th, heading north on the east side. Cross over to go west at 72nd, continue north on the west side, all the way up and wrap around on 110th, repeat that upper loop (from 102 to 110th), then come down the east side to 72nd, cross over again to the west side, then head south on the west side, and complete the loop at the 59th street entrance. I think the exact distance is around 8.04 miles. Wish me luck.

Monday, March 21, 2011

T-Shirt Time!

First, another quick events update: Registered for the American Heart Association's Wall Street Run (3M) on 5/17 as well as the annual JP Morgan Corporate Challenge (not a NYRR race) on 6/15. This will be my third year doing the JPM CC. Very disappointed with last year's time, even given the crowds. So, hoping it'll be better this year (time that is, it'll be crowded regardless).

So the last 3 weeks have been very consistent. Since the beginning of March, I've been able to get out twice/week, and have now re-established my base at 5 miles. So this past Tue I upped it to 6 (outer park loop). Finished in just under an hour, for an average pace of 9:53, which would be the first time I've done a sub-10 min/mile for that distance. Felt good doing it too. Funny thing now is, I used to prefer doing the loop clockwise (the "wrong" direction), but now, I think I actually prefer going counter clockwise, or the "right" direction. And my stats do show that I'm faster going counter clockwise. I should mention the Scotland Run (10k), will be in the clockwise direction. Hmmm...

My second run of last week was on Friday, when the temps soared into the upper 70s! It was such a welcome surprise, but the biggest thing was actually going out for the run in just shorts and a t-shirt. On my way out of the building, I almost felt underdressed without the under armour, running tights/pants, gloves, hat, hand warmers, etc. So on this fine day I tackled hills, doing 6x the hill by the Boathouse. I think it went pretty well, as the 6 repeats went by pretty quickly. I think the most challenging part of the run was trying to dodge all the people in my way, as the warmer temps drew out everyone and anyone. On the last repeat, I continued up to 90th street, took a quick breather there, and then head back down to where I usually enter on 59th. Overall, good run.

Was going to go out for another run yesterday, though not as warm, was still a very nice and sunny day. Laziness got the better of me, so I ended up staying in, but, I did do Yoga X in place of it. And it was a good thing I did.  It was TOUGH. I even had a hard time doing all the push ups in the routine. My hip flexors and groin were super tight, and it felt really good stretching them out through yoga. Moderately sore in my legs, chest and shoulders today. I wonder if it'll be worse tomorrow.

Thats pretty much it for now. Hope to keep the rhythm going, and to hit 7 miles this week. If I can do that, and then up it to 9 next week, I'm going to sign up for the LI Half. If not, then the focus turns to the DC Tri (aka- find a pool to train in!!). 'Til next time....

Thursday, March 10, 2011

DC, Vegas and Maybe LI

I'll start with another events update. On top of the races I registered for in the previous post, including the DC Triathlon, I am now also registered for the Las Vegas Rock 'n Roll Half Marathon on Dec 4, 2011! I'm still deciding on the LI Half (I should probably check if there is still availability), and will probably make my decision by April 1, dependent on how my training goes. I'm leaning towards not doing it, so I can kind of focus my current training on the Tri. I dont want to take this too lightly, which I feel like at the moment, I am. Task #1: find a pool to train in. Will probably also sign up for the Wall Street run (3M), on May 17.

I attended a Tri clinic last night, sponsored by NYRR's Team for Kids. Provided some very basic information, so it was good in that sense. But they did gear it more towards the NYC Tri in August, which of course is not the one I'm doing. That one is also Olympic distance, as opposed to my Sprint distance. But got a lot of my questions out of the way. So I think I came out of it better informed. And knowing is half the battle, right?

Onto a little training recap, which I've been super lazy with, the recaps, not the training. Well, maybe the training too. Training has been sporadic, to say the least. Since the start of the new year, I would be good for about a week or 2, then drop off for a week or 2. Rinse, and repeat.  So now that we just started March, I'm trying to get back into some kind of rhythm. Goal for the past week or so was to just re-establish  my base at 5 miles. Went twice last week, and twice this week. Currently hovering around a 9:50 mile, which I'm satisfied with, at the moment. I think my plan now is to have one more 5-miler at about a 9:50 pace, then start cranking out the hills and tempo runs, along with the long runs. Then theres the more difficult part of trying to mix in the cross training for bike and swim. As I said all along, I'm not very concerned about the bike. But what I must concern myself with is the bike to run transition. Many say that is most difficult. I may give it a shot Sunday if the weather cooperates.

So thats where we stand as of now. Many things ahead. Should be fun!