Today Jim gave me another optional day, since it's an easier week. I chose to bike Calvin to school and bike to work for some lighter cross-training. It felt good, except for that hill on 900S. Whew...that one is tough! I usually go up another way, but with taking Calvin to school this made more sense.
I enjoyed the relative rest today, though, after yesterday's really hard workout.
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
15K fartlek
I was scared of this workout, with good reason. It's probably the hardest workout I've ever done. The intensity is not maximal, but it's a good solid moderately hard-hard effort for an hour and 30 minutes. Yep. That's a long time to be working so hard. It was almost like doing a race; a bit easier of course, but still very, very tiring.
The weather didn't particularly help. It was 70F (21C) when I started and 74F when I finished, with 52% humidity. Definitely on the warm side, at least for me (and for Salt Lake). I had to stop to drink at 6K, 10K, and just shy of 13K (when I messed up my watch...pressed stop and then didn't press start again for too long - oops).
Jim said to start off conservatively. I did, doing 5:50 for the first km. The first 5K felt conservative, and I got there in 29:41. The second 5K felt moderately hard; my legs started to tire around 8K, but not too much yet. I got to 10K in exactly 60:00 (30:19 for the second 5K). Finally, the last 5K felt hard, of course. My legs were quite tired by 12K or so, and I really wished I could stop, but I only had 3 more to do. I managed to do the last ones fairly fast, considering how I felt. Like I said earlier, I messed up my watch on one of the medium 500s, and so the time is off by about 1:00-1:05. So I got to 15K in about 1:30:21-1:30:26 or so, for 30:21-30:26 for the last 5K. That's good considering how I felt! I managed to keep it almost as fast as the 2nd 5K.
My fast segments were very consistent, ranging from 2:53-2:56, with the last four at 2:53 (I worked those hard!). My medium segments were more varied, starting at 3:01, 3:01, 3:04 with the rest ranging from 3:06-3:10, with one 3:12 (and one unknown due to watch error, probably about 3:12?).
Total time for 15K = 1:30:25 (more or less), ave HR 155, ave pace 6:02/km.
I've been pretty tired all day. This was a hard one, for sure.
Garmin connect data here.
The weather didn't particularly help. It was 70F (21C) when I started and 74F when I finished, with 52% humidity. Definitely on the warm side, at least for me (and for Salt Lake). I had to stop to drink at 6K, 10K, and just shy of 13K (when I messed up my watch...pressed stop and then didn't press start again for too long - oops).
Jim said to start off conservatively. I did, doing 5:50 for the first km. The first 5K felt conservative, and I got there in 29:41. The second 5K felt moderately hard; my legs started to tire around 8K, but not too much yet. I got to 10K in exactly 60:00 (30:19 for the second 5K). Finally, the last 5K felt hard, of course. My legs were quite tired by 12K or so, and I really wished I could stop, but I only had 3 more to do. I managed to do the last ones fairly fast, considering how I felt. Like I said earlier, I messed up my watch on one of the medium 500s, and so the time is off by about 1:00-1:05. So I got to 15K in about 1:30:21-1:30:26 or so, for 30:21-30:26 for the last 5K. That's good considering how I felt! I managed to keep it almost as fast as the 2nd 5K.
My fast segments were very consistent, ranging from 2:53-2:56, with the last four at 2:53 (I worked those hard!). My medium segments were more varied, starting at 3:01, 3:01, 3:04 with the rest ranging from 3:06-3:10, with one 3:12 (and one unknown due to watch error, probably about 3:12?).
Total time for 15K = 1:30:25 (more or less), ave HR 155, ave pace 6:02/km.
I've been pretty tired all day. This was a hard one, for sure.
Garmin connect data here.
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
cross-training
Today I cross-trained. I did the elliptical for 30 min, went home, got ready for work, and then I biked up the hill to work. Total time about 25 min for the bike ride.
I'm feeling less sore today, which is good. Mostly recovered and ready for a hard workout tomorrow.
I'm feeling less sore today, which is good. Mostly recovered and ready for a hard workout tomorrow.
Monday, August 22, 2011
Rest day
Today was an optional day. I rested, and I needed it. Everything is sore, and with all that is happening at work I'm pretty much out of commission. I'm supposed to cross-train tomorrow. I think I'll ride my bike to work.
Ogden Woman dies in Pineview Reservoir
My co-worker was killed swimming in the reservoir last night. In this video, they interview another co-worker (Brooke) and there's a shot of my boss (in the white lab coat) and the department chair. All of my co-workers and I attended the press conference, and it was very difficult.
Ogden Woman dies in Pineview Reservoir
Here's another news station - they interview my boss in the video, as well as Brooke.
I hope they find out who did this. It won't bring her back, but if it can make boaters more aware, that would be something anyway.
Ogden Woman dies in Pineview Reservoir
Here's another news station - they interview my boss in the video, as well as Brooke.
I hope they find out who did this. It won't bring her back, but if it can make boaters more aware, that would be something anyway.
Sunday, August 21, 2011
32K (19.89 miles)
Today the workout was my long day: 32K (19.89 miles). I was still a bit sore from Friday's 15K kickdown, plus some new muscles were sore from yesterday's trail run. Oh well! I figured it might be OK anyway. After 5K I knew it would be way better than last week's 30K.
The weather was very nice. It started out in low 60s (probably about 16C) and ended up at 70F (21C). Of course, since I'm in Seattle, it was humid. However, I don't think the temperature bothered me much; I was a bit warm at the end, but not too awful.
The trail was lovely. My high school friend Glen (actually, he pointed out we've known each other since elementary school) told me that the Sammamish River Trail was perfect for what I wanted, and it was. Flat, paved, scenic, with water and bathrooms. Lots of bikers & runners using the trail, but it wasn't crowded. In fact, when I first started out just before 6 am, it was deserted and very quiet. I got a few interesting comments, as usual. From a cyclist, "That looks like so much fun!". By the time I thought to yell back "It is!", he had passed of course. A runner yelled out "speed walker" as he passed me. Some other runners said, "Wow, you're fast!". I saw lots of wildlife, too - rabbits mostly (cute!), but also lots of birds.
I started off feeling strong, and pretty much felt strong throughout, though my legs did get quite tired by the end. I think about 20K they were pretty tired, but I was able to push them and they responded, tired or not. Training is a good thing :). I'm very proud of my nice even splits. My heart rate increased throughout, correspondingly, but I didn't go harder than I knew I could handle all the way to the finish. Yes, I was pushing at the end, but it felt good and I wanted to be done. I'm very pleased with this. I am pretty sure it's my fastest 20-miler ever.
Edited to add a few details: stopped at 10K and 20K to refill my water bottles, and brief pit stop at 10K. Ate sports beans at 10K, gummy peach candies at 17.5K, and more sports beans at 25K. I had no GI problems. Yay!!!
Splits:
5K 31:14
10K 1:03:02 (31:48)
15K 1:34:46 (31:44)
20K 2:06:36 (31:50)
25K 2:38:13 (31:37)
27K 2:51:01
30K 3:10:02 (31:49)
32K 3:22:22 (12:20 last 2K; 31:21 last 5K!)
Totals: 3:22:22, 6:19/km, 10:10/mile, ave HR 147. (This pace would get me 4:27:15 for the marathon, if I could hold it).
Garmin connect data here.
The weather was very nice. It started out in low 60s (probably about 16C) and ended up at 70F (21C). Of course, since I'm in Seattle, it was humid. However, I don't think the temperature bothered me much; I was a bit warm at the end, but not too awful.
The trail was lovely. My high school friend Glen (actually, he pointed out we've known each other since elementary school) told me that the Sammamish River Trail was perfect for what I wanted, and it was. Flat, paved, scenic, with water and bathrooms. Lots of bikers & runners using the trail, but it wasn't crowded. In fact, when I first started out just before 6 am, it was deserted and very quiet. I got a few interesting comments, as usual. From a cyclist, "That looks like so much fun!". By the time I thought to yell back "It is!", he had passed of course. A runner yelled out "speed walker" as he passed me. Some other runners said, "Wow, you're fast!". I saw lots of wildlife, too - rabbits mostly (cute!), but also lots of birds.
I started off feeling strong, and pretty much felt strong throughout, though my legs did get quite tired by the end. I think about 20K they were pretty tired, but I was able to push them and they responded, tired or not. Training is a good thing :). I'm very proud of my nice even splits. My heart rate increased throughout, correspondingly, but I didn't go harder than I knew I could handle all the way to the finish. Yes, I was pushing at the end, but it felt good and I wanted to be done. I'm very pleased with this. I am pretty sure it's my fastest 20-miler ever.
Edited to add a few details: stopped at 10K and 20K to refill my water bottles, and brief pit stop at 10K. Ate sports beans at 10K, gummy peach candies at 17.5K, and more sports beans at 25K. I had no GI problems. Yay!!!
Splits:
5K 31:14
10K 1:03:02 (31:48)
15K 1:34:46 (31:44)
20K 2:06:36 (31:50)
25K 2:38:13 (31:37)
27K 2:51:01
30K 3:10:02 (31:49)
32K 3:22:22 (12:20 last 2K; 31:21 last 5K!)
Totals: 3:22:22, 6:19/km, 10:10/mile, ave HR 147. (This pace would get me 4:27:15 for the marathon, if I could hold it).
Garmin connect data here.
Saturday, August 20, 2011
trail run
Photos later...this was so fun! I went on a trail run with my high school friend, Glen (who is a Team in Training coach and 2:45 marathoner, and is doing an Ironman next weekend!), and my son Calvin, and some of Glen's TNT buddies. They did 8 miles, but Calvin and I did 6km (just under 4 miles). Awesome! We saw slugs of all kinds, ate amazingly incredible blackberries, and enjoyed our run/power hike/walk. Afterward we all ate lunch at Panera Bread in the Factoria mall near our hotel.
The rest of the day we spent eating lunch on the grass near Alki Beach, wading in the ocean, and going up the Space Needle. Calvin loved all of it! Finally, we had dinner at my aunt & uncle's home in Issaquah. An excellent day.
My butt is still a bit sore but not too bad, so hopefully I'm good to go from 20 miles tomorrow. I have a nice route planned thanks to Glen's help. It's flat, paved, and has lots of restrooms and water if I need them.
Garmin connect data here. Short by 450m because my watch got wonky at the end - it froze up, but seems fine now.
The rest of the day we spent eating lunch on the grass near Alki Beach, wading in the ocean, and going up the Space Needle. Calvin loved all of it! Finally, we had dinner at my aunt & uncle's home in Issaquah. An excellent day.
My butt is still a bit sore but not too bad, so hopefully I'm good to go from 20 miles tomorrow. I have a nice route planned thanks to Glen's help. It's flat, paved, and has lots of restrooms and water if I need them.
Garmin connect data here. Short by 450m because my watch got wonky at the end - it froze up, but seems fine now.
Friday, August 19, 2011
15K kickdown
In brief - family obligations calling!
Great workout, nice weather. 55F (12.8C) and overcast. Super nice for a workout.
I was to do a 15K kickdown with splits of 4K, 4K, 3.5K, 3.5K. The route was good in that 99% of it was paved (1% was a gravel path) and no stoplights. There was a good amount of traffic in some areas, but I wasn't on the road so that was good (paved path next to the road). Still, despite the road the scenery was nice around the Mercer Slough - wooded and pretty. I saw a cute rabbit and also some slugs and a good number of runners and cyclists. The part under I-90 was cool - very very pretty, but the highway was above and it was an interesting juxtaposition.
The route was gently rolling hills, so my splits are weird. I ended up mostly going by effort and not time on the watch so much. The last split, for example, was 3:13 - but it was a 2:50-2:55 effort. There was a very steep 30-40m long hill that I actually ran up because it was too steep to racewalk. That was the only hill like that on the route, but of course it was right at the end.
Anyway...splits and I've got to split (hahaha).
4K 25:00
4K 24:48
3.5K 21:04
3.5K 20:45
Total time 1:31:37 for the 15K, for 6:07/km with ave HR 149.
I felt great, and even at the end it was a comfortably hard effort. My foot gave a few small twinges but I really focused on keeping the technique sorted out and I think it's much better today than yesterday. I felt smooth and fast.
Tomorrow is x-training, and then 32K beckons on Sunday!
Garmin connect data here.
Great workout, nice weather. 55F (12.8C) and overcast. Super nice for a workout.
I was to do a 15K kickdown with splits of 4K, 4K, 3.5K, 3.5K. The route was good in that 99% of it was paved (1% was a gravel path) and no stoplights. There was a good amount of traffic in some areas, but I wasn't on the road so that was good (paved path next to the road). Still, despite the road the scenery was nice around the Mercer Slough - wooded and pretty. I saw a cute rabbit and also some slugs and a good number of runners and cyclists. The part under I-90 was cool - very very pretty, but the highway was above and it was an interesting juxtaposition.
The route was gently rolling hills, so my splits are weird. I ended up mostly going by effort and not time on the watch so much. The last split, for example, was 3:13 - but it was a 2:50-2:55 effort. There was a very steep 30-40m long hill that I actually ran up because it was too steep to racewalk. That was the only hill like that on the route, but of course it was right at the end.
Anyway...splits and I've got to split (hahaha).
4K 25:00
4K 24:48
3.5K 21:04
3.5K 20:45
Total time 1:31:37 for the 15K, for 6:07/km with ave HR 149.
I felt great, and even at the end it was a comfortably hard effort. My foot gave a few small twinges but I really focused on keeping the technique sorted out and I think it's much better today than yesterday. I felt smooth and fast.
Tomorrow is x-training, and then 32K beckons on Sunday!
Garmin connect data here.
Thursday, August 18, 2011
10K with 2x10' @20K pace
I got up early this morning. REALLY early. 4:00, to be precise.
I was out the door by 4:15 am so that I could do 10K before going to the airport for our flight to Seattle. Calvin and I are here for the weekend to visit with the extended family (my mom's family). Tomorrow will be the internment of my grandpa's ashes at the cemetery here, complete with 21-gun salute, etc. He died in April, but this was the best time for everyone to be here for the ceremony. My grandpa was a WWII veteran and will be laid to rest in the Tahoma National Cemetery, alongside my grandma (who passed away in 2003).
Anyway, back to my walk. It was nice outside (I actually didn't look at the temps but guessing mid-60s) and though it was dark, the moonlight was pretty nice to walk by. I wore my reflective vest for only the second time since May; the other time was earlier this week as it's getting light later and later.
I felt pretty good today but am definitely sore from the past two days of walking. My hamstrings and glutes are all complaining. Still, I had no problem completing the two 10-minute sections at 20K pace. The only thing bothering me is my left foot. Yup. It's starting to niggle at me just a little bit. I am being very careful about my technique, but I guess this is just one of those injuries that is going to bother me on and off when I do more miles. It's not actually hurting, but I'm noticing that something is not 100%.
The first 10-min fast section I had 500m splits of 2:55, 2:57, and 2:56. The second one was a bit tougher, as usual for this workout, but still not hard persay. My splits were 2:54, 3:01, and 2:56.
Total time: 1:02:13, ave pace 6:13/km, ave HR 144.
Garmin connect data here.
I was out the door by 4:15 am so that I could do 10K before going to the airport for our flight to Seattle. Calvin and I are here for the weekend to visit with the extended family (my mom's family). Tomorrow will be the internment of my grandpa's ashes at the cemetery here, complete with 21-gun salute, etc. He died in April, but this was the best time for everyone to be here for the ceremony. My grandpa was a WWII veteran and will be laid to rest in the Tahoma National Cemetery, alongside my grandma (who passed away in 2003).
Anyway, back to my walk. It was nice outside (I actually didn't look at the temps but guessing mid-60s) and though it was dark, the moonlight was pretty nice to walk by. I wore my reflective vest for only the second time since May; the other time was earlier this week as it's getting light later and later.
I felt pretty good today but am definitely sore from the past two days of walking. My hamstrings and glutes are all complaining. Still, I had no problem completing the two 10-minute sections at 20K pace. The only thing bothering me is my left foot. Yup. It's starting to niggle at me just a little bit. I am being very careful about my technique, but I guess this is just one of those injuries that is going to bother me on and off when I do more miles. It's not actually hurting, but I'm noticing that something is not 100%.
The first 10-min fast section I had 500m splits of 2:55, 2:57, and 2:56. The second one was a bit tougher, as usual for this workout, but still not hard persay. My splits were 2:54, 3:01, and 2:56.
Total time: 1:02:13, ave pace 6:13/km, ave HR 144.
Garmin connect data here.
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
15K and feeling good
Woke up very, very tired despite 7.5 hours of sleep, but the weather was nice (64F, 18C, though 65% humidity) and the workout beckoned to me. I was still a bit sore from yesterday but ready to give the workout a go.
I felt great for the whole workout today. The first 5K was good, as it usually has been, and I was feeling fast and strong, finishing the gentle downhill in 30:49. The part from 6-10K has been trouble for me lately for some reason, and so I was ready to feel crappy at any point, but in fact I didn't. I continued to feel strong and good on this mostly flat part of the route, and got to 10K in 1:02:19 (31:30). The last 5K was a little harder, but not too bad. I did feel a bit tired at around 12K or so, but pushed through it and had a nice finish, getting to 15K (slight uphill) in approximately 1:33:43 (31:24). I say approximately, because Jim called when I was at the stoplight at 700E and 1300S, and I forgot to push stop on my watch. Then I pushed the button when I started up again, but I was actually stopping the watch, not starting it. Oops. I didn't notice for what I guesstimate to be about 0.2km. So, when I got to 14.8K I called it good.
I did this one a bit harder than I've been doing my easy days, because I felt really good. I still kept it relatively easy, but I was definitely working a little bit, which I think was OK given how I felt. I just have 10km tomorrow with 2x10' fast sections, so I think I'll be fine. I'm relieved this workout went so well and am hoping for a good finish to this hard week. Friday I have a 15K kickdown, and on Sunday 32K.
Total time 1:33:43, 6:15/km, ave HR 147.
I felt great for the whole workout today. The first 5K was good, as it usually has been, and I was feeling fast and strong, finishing the gentle downhill in 30:49. The part from 6-10K has been trouble for me lately for some reason, and so I was ready to feel crappy at any point, but in fact I didn't. I continued to feel strong and good on this mostly flat part of the route, and got to 10K in 1:02:19 (31:30). The last 5K was a little harder, but not too bad. I did feel a bit tired at around 12K or so, but pushed through it and had a nice finish, getting to 15K (slight uphill) in approximately 1:33:43 (31:24). I say approximately, because Jim called when I was at the stoplight at 700E and 1300S, and I forgot to push stop on my watch. Then I pushed the button when I started up again, but I was actually stopping the watch, not starting it. Oops. I didn't notice for what I guesstimate to be about 0.2km. So, when I got to 14.8K I called it good.
I did this one a bit harder than I've been doing my easy days, because I felt really good. I still kept it relatively easy, but I was definitely working a little bit, which I think was OK given how I felt. I just have 10km tomorrow with 2x10' fast sections, so I think I'll be fine. I'm relieved this workout went so well and am hoping for a good finish to this hard week. Friday I have a 15K kickdown, and on Sunday 32K.
Total time 1:33:43, 6:15/km, ave HR 147.
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
10K fartlek - another new PR for the workout
You never know what is going to come out on any given day. This morning I was very tired and my legs were still a bit sore from the 30K on Sunday. I did not want to do a 10K fartlek, that's for sure. But I knew I'd feel better after it was done, so off to the track I went.
The track was not crowded today. Just a few people there, no football players, and no running club. Yay! The weather was pretty nice, too, at 63F (17C); it was quite humid at 65% but it felt OK. I got hot at the end when the sun came out, but other than that it was fine.
I warmed up, starting at 6:30/km pace and accelerating to about 5:50/km at the end, doing 1600m in 10:11. I felt stiff to start, but after the 1600 my legs felt better and I was as ready as I was going to be.
I tried to take it pretty easy to start, and after that I just tried to stay consistent and keep my HR from getting too high. I wanted to be sure that I wasn't exerting too much effort, since I am racewalking Wednesday-Friday as well (this week my cross-training day is Saturday). That strategy seemed to work, as this was one of the most consistent 10K fartleks I've ever done. I will admit that on the last two hard 500s I did push a little bit but still was comfortably hard and not all-out. It seemed good at the moment, and hopefully it wasn't too fast. My average HR for the workout was 157, which is 2 beats less than last week, so I think I was successful at not pushing too hard (though I did have to stop for 30 sec at 6km to take a drink - was sweating and very thirsty - which surely impacted the average a little).
Total time was 59:13, a new PR for the workout by 10 seconds. The first km was 5:41 and the medium 500s were 3:00-3:08. The fast 500s were all 2:49-2:52 - so consistent!
All the endorphins helped my mood a lot, happily. I felt much better once I was done. Now that it's lunch time, I'm still feeling pretty good, though I'm very sleepy and could really use a nap. Not going to get one, but maybe I can get to bed early. Haha...wishful thinking. And my legs are definitely sore; not horribly so, but it seems like a perpetual state these days as we ramp things up. However, I'm happy that's the only thing I have to complain about. I'm healthy and training and it's good.
Garmin connect data here.
The track was not crowded today. Just a few people there, no football players, and no running club. Yay! The weather was pretty nice, too, at 63F (17C); it was quite humid at 65% but it felt OK. I got hot at the end when the sun came out, but other than that it was fine.
I warmed up, starting at 6:30/km pace and accelerating to about 5:50/km at the end, doing 1600m in 10:11. I felt stiff to start, but after the 1600 my legs felt better and I was as ready as I was going to be.
I tried to take it pretty easy to start, and after that I just tried to stay consistent and keep my HR from getting too high. I wanted to be sure that I wasn't exerting too much effort, since I am racewalking Wednesday-Friday as well (this week my cross-training day is Saturday). That strategy seemed to work, as this was one of the most consistent 10K fartleks I've ever done. I will admit that on the last two hard 500s I did push a little bit but still was comfortably hard and not all-out. It seemed good at the moment, and hopefully it wasn't too fast. My average HR for the workout was 157, which is 2 beats less than last week, so I think I was successful at not pushing too hard (though I did have to stop for 30 sec at 6km to take a drink - was sweating and very thirsty - which surely impacted the average a little).
Total time was 59:13, a new PR for the workout by 10 seconds. The first km was 5:41 and the medium 500s were 3:00-3:08. The fast 500s were all 2:49-2:52 - so consistent!
All the endorphins helped my mood a lot, happily. I felt much better once I was done. Now that it's lunch time, I'm still feeling pretty good, though I'm very sleepy and could really use a nap. Not going to get one, but maybe I can get to bed early. Haha...wishful thinking. And my legs are definitely sore; not horribly so, but it seems like a perpetual state these days as we ramp things up. However, I'm happy that's the only thing I have to complain about. I'm healthy and training and it's good.
Garmin connect data here.
Monday, August 15, 2011
optional day
Today was my optional day; I chose to do some weights, core, and a bit of stretching.
My legs (esp. my left leg) are quite sore from yesterday. I believe it's my hamstrings, but it's all the way at the top where they attach. I did some one-legged squats and some step-ups and walking lunges, and only the walking lunges used the muscles that are hurting. Sigh. Still not using my glutes correctly, I'm sure.
Hopefully I'll be recovered enough for tomorrow's 10K fartlek. This week is a tough one!
My legs (esp. my left leg) are quite sore from yesterday. I believe it's my hamstrings, but it's all the way at the top where they attach. I did some one-legged squats and some step-ups and walking lunges, and only the walking lunges used the muscles that are hurting. Sigh. Still not using my glutes correctly, I'm sure.
Hopefully I'll be recovered enough for tomorrow's 10K fartlek. This week is a tough one!
Sunday, August 14, 2011
30K in Park City
This workout didn't start well. First, it was pouring rain when I awoke at 5:20 am to go out. Um, not good. It does that sometimes in the mountains in the summer. Fortunately, after I waited around for a while it stopped raining and during the 30K it was mostly overcast, with an occasional shower. No biggie. The temperature was OK, ranging from 60-64F (15.6-17.8C). It was really humid, but at least the temperature was cool enough that I didn't feel too terribly hot. The unknown factor was the altitude, ranging from 6460ft (1940m) to 6549ft (1996m) along my route. That's considerably higher than my usual workouts in Salt Lake, which are about 4300ft (1310m).
The first 5K was fine. I took it really, really easy because I knew I had a long way to go. I finished it in 32:36, and it included some gently rolling hills. However, as has been usual lately, km 6-10 were not easy for some reason. I had a bunch of stomach cramps nothing came of them at all, thankfully, but they did HURT) and even stopped at 7.3km for a few minutes to try and let my stomach settle. It didn't. I kept going anyway. But by 10k, it got better, and I was able to go a little faster to 15K. I did a giant loop for the first 15K and stopped at my car to refill my water bottles. I had planned to do the loop twice, but I was worried about being that far out from my car if things went really bad. It seemed like I was doing better, but I wasn't sure how my system would hold up. So, I started doing short loops around the shopping center and Newpark condos/townhomes in Kimball Junction. There was a very nice paved loop around the shopping center and homes, which was about 2.75km. I ended up doing that loop 5 times plus a little for the last 15K.
Interestingly, though my legs were quite tired and heavy (especially from 20k onwards), I felt much better for the last 15K. Maybe part of it was that I was interested in watching them set up for the Tour of Utah bicycle race, which started at the shopping center about an hour after I finished my workout. Each time I went around there were new things to look at. On the back side of the route, by the condos and townhomes, I was right next to a nature preserve, which was really beautiful. After I got to 20K, I thought I could pick up the pace a bit. I felt pretty decent and I wanted to just get done and get my legs some rest. I went just a little faster, and then when I had 5K left I figured I could go a little harder still. I didn't push hard (my HR was about 150 for the last 5K - not very high at all, and I felt comfortable), and my last 5K was the fastest at 31:53. Not bad! I was glad to be done, though, as my legs were very sore. While this was still a pretty slow 30K, the coach did say to take it easy, and so I'm not worried about the time. For the altitude and for how fast we've been increasing my mileage, it seemed about right.
Splits: 5K 32:36, 10K 34:25 (1:07:01), 15K 33:19 (1:40:20), 20K 32:48 (2:13:08), 25K 32:34 (2:45:42), 30K 31:53 (3:17:35).
Totals: 3:17:35 for the 30K (6:35/km) with average HR 139.
Garmin connect data here.
The first 5K was fine. I took it really, really easy because I knew I had a long way to go. I finished it in 32:36, and it included some gently rolling hills. However, as has been usual lately, km 6-10 were not easy for some reason. I had a bunch of stomach cramps nothing came of them at all, thankfully, but they did HURT) and even stopped at 7.3km for a few minutes to try and let my stomach settle. It didn't. I kept going anyway. But by 10k, it got better, and I was able to go a little faster to 15K. I did a giant loop for the first 15K and stopped at my car to refill my water bottles. I had planned to do the loop twice, but I was worried about being that far out from my car if things went really bad. It seemed like I was doing better, but I wasn't sure how my system would hold up. So, I started doing short loops around the shopping center and Newpark condos/townhomes in Kimball Junction. There was a very nice paved loop around the shopping center and homes, which was about 2.75km. I ended up doing that loop 5 times plus a little for the last 15K.
Interestingly, though my legs were quite tired and heavy (especially from 20k onwards), I felt much better for the last 15K. Maybe part of it was that I was interested in watching them set up for the Tour of Utah bicycle race, which started at the shopping center about an hour after I finished my workout. Each time I went around there were new things to look at. On the back side of the route, by the condos and townhomes, I was right next to a nature preserve, which was really beautiful. After I got to 20K, I thought I could pick up the pace a bit. I felt pretty decent and I wanted to just get done and get my legs some rest. I went just a little faster, and then when I had 5K left I figured I could go a little harder still. I didn't push hard (my HR was about 150 for the last 5K - not very high at all, and I felt comfortable), and my last 5K was the fastest at 31:53. Not bad! I was glad to be done, though, as my legs were very sore. While this was still a pretty slow 30K, the coach did say to take it easy, and so I'm not worried about the time. For the altitude and for how fast we've been increasing my mileage, it seemed about right.
Splits: 5K 32:36, 10K 34:25 (1:07:01), 15K 33:19 (1:40:20), 20K 32:48 (2:13:08), 25K 32:34 (2:45:42), 30K 31:53 (3:17:35).
Totals: 3:17:35 for the 30K (6:35/km) with average HR 139.
Garmin connect data here.
Saturday, August 13, 2011
10K with 2x8' @20K pace
This morning the workout was 10K with two 8-min segments at 20K race pace. Not a hard workout, but in between a 12K kickdown and a long 30K it becomes harder. Actually, today was fine, but the 30K tomorrow will be interesting!
I chose a relatively hilly route here in Park City, about 30 minutes away from home. Loren and I are here while my parents watch the kids back at home. Ahhhh...kid-free weekend...ahhhhh. Our hotel is near Main Street, and I went down the hill and into an exclusive neighborhood (think BIG homes with gorgeous wood details befitting the mountain setting) and around a golf course. The first and last mile were very downhill and very uphill; the rest was rolling hills or flat or slight uphill. It was not a fast course, but I didn't care for the purpose of today's workout.
I started off very easy down the hill. About 2K I decided to do my first faster segment; it was still on a downhill but just a gradual one and so I could pick up the pace effectively. I did the first 500 in 2:55, then 500 in 2:51 (it was a bit downhill - really this was not a hard effort - just moderately hard) and then 2 more minutes fast to make 8 minutes. Then I eased up, and there was a pretty big hill not long after where my 500m was 3:35, but coming down it was 2:54, taking it easy! Just before 5K, at 29:30 on my watch, I picked it up again, and went moderately hard until 37:30. This part was flat, and my full 500s were 2:56 and 3:00.
Then I just cruised back to the hotel. Slowly. It was a good hard uphill, so I took it really easy, not wanting to push this at all with 30K tomorrow. I let my HR ease back into the low 140s (it was upper 150s on the last 8 min segment). I had some really slow 500s - 3:36, 3:50 - and then my GPS lost the signal again :(. Ugh. I may have to replace the watch :(. Anyway, it said 4:00 for the next 500 but it wasn't accurate on the distance, as it cut out a corner I went around because it lost the signal.
Total for the 10K was 1:04:39 with ave HR 145. With the hills and altitude and fast segments, that seems good enough.
My legs were slightly sore when I started out today (from the 12K kickdown I'm sure...), and they were definitely more sore by the end. The last 3-4km they were a bit tired. I hope that they will recover enough for a good 30K tomorrow. It will probably be a slow one. Hopefully it won't hurt too much!
Garmin connect data here.
I chose a relatively hilly route here in Park City, about 30 minutes away from home. Loren and I are here while my parents watch the kids back at home. Ahhhh...kid-free weekend...ahhhhh. Our hotel is near Main Street, and I went down the hill and into an exclusive neighborhood (think BIG homes with gorgeous wood details befitting the mountain setting) and around a golf course. The first and last mile were very downhill and very uphill; the rest was rolling hills or flat or slight uphill. It was not a fast course, but I didn't care for the purpose of today's workout.
I started off very easy down the hill. About 2K I decided to do my first faster segment; it was still on a downhill but just a gradual one and so I could pick up the pace effectively. I did the first 500 in 2:55, then 500 in 2:51 (it was a bit downhill - really this was not a hard effort - just moderately hard) and then 2 more minutes fast to make 8 minutes. Then I eased up, and there was a pretty big hill not long after where my 500m was 3:35, but coming down it was 2:54, taking it easy! Just before 5K, at 29:30 on my watch, I picked it up again, and went moderately hard until 37:30. This part was flat, and my full 500s were 2:56 and 3:00.
Then I just cruised back to the hotel. Slowly. It was a good hard uphill, so I took it really easy, not wanting to push this at all with 30K tomorrow. I let my HR ease back into the low 140s (it was upper 150s on the last 8 min segment). I had some really slow 500s - 3:36, 3:50 - and then my GPS lost the signal again :(. Ugh. I may have to replace the watch :(. Anyway, it said 4:00 for the next 500 but it wasn't accurate on the distance, as it cut out a corner I went around because it lost the signal.
Total for the 10K was 1:04:39 with ave HR 145. With the hills and altitude and fast segments, that seems good enough.
My legs were slightly sore when I started out today (from the 12K kickdown I'm sure...), and they were definitely more sore by the end. The last 3-4km they were a bit tired. I hope that they will recover enough for a good 30K tomorrow. It will probably be a slow one. Hopefully it won't hurt too much!
Garmin connect data here.
Friday, August 12, 2011
12K kickdown - new PR!
I've only done this workout 4 times now, but despite the fact that I took this one a bit easy (i.e. watched my HR and kept it to upper 150s and low 160s on the last hard 3K), I set a new PR by 20 seconds for the workout. The other three were all last year, when I wasn't in quite as good shape as I am now.
The weather was perfect this morning. Slightly warm at 68F (20C) but just beautiful with low humidity. I'm still loving summer. I want it to stay for a nice long time. I'm savoring every bit of gorgeous racewalking weather while it lasts.
The track was uncrowded, though the football team showed up at 6:45 am to practice and I did have to nicely ask them please not to take up the entire lane 1 around the turn (some of them were sitting on the track and they had their stuff all over it). They mostly complied...sort of...it was a bit of dodge 'em around that corner, but they are nice enough to let me work out there so I can't whine too much.
Because in retrospect Tuesday's 10K fartlek was a bit fast, I planned to go slower today to save some energy for my 10K tomorrow and 30K on Sunday. I decided to do 6:30/km pace for the first 3K, then 6:20 for the next 3K, then 6:10, then 6:00. That's slower than I would do if I were training for a 5K or 10K or even 20K, but I'm not training for that and with the abrupt mileage increases I need to be careful about how fast I do my speed work or I will pay for it on the long days. It felt SO easy starting off at 6:30 pace. I didn't quite hold myself to that pace, but close enough; I did about a 6:24/km. The next 3K felt pretty easy too, at 6:17/km; again a little faster than planned, but my heart rate was low and I was feeling good.
I stopped briefly to take a drink at 6K, as I had just brought a water bottle and not my waist pack. It was warm enough that I definitely needed some water. Continuing on, it felt moderately hard for the next 3K. I was definitely pushing a little but not too much, and I completed that 3K at a 6:06/km pace, faster than planned, but well within myself. The last 3K was a moderately hard to hard effort, with 500m splits of 2:59 down to 2:53 (yup, pulled out a 2:53 for the last one). I definitely COULD have gone faster on the last 3K, but I was trying to save myself for the next few workouts. The last 3K was a 5:55/km pace on average. Hopefully that was slow enough so that my 30K on Sunday will not be too miserable!
3K splits:
3K goal 19:30, actual 19:12. Ave HR for 6 x 500m splits ranged from 122-140.
6K goal 19:00, actual 18:51. Ave HR 142-149.
9K goal 18:30, actual 18:17. Ave HR 145-154 (stopped very briefly at 6K for a drink, so HR dropped).
12K goal 18:00, actual 17:45. Ave HR 156-162.
Total time: 1:14:05. Ave HR for whole workout was 147. Garmin connect data here.
The weather was perfect this morning. Slightly warm at 68F (20C) but just beautiful with low humidity. I'm still loving summer. I want it to stay for a nice long time. I'm savoring every bit of gorgeous racewalking weather while it lasts.
The track was uncrowded, though the football team showed up at 6:45 am to practice and I did have to nicely ask them please not to take up the entire lane 1 around the turn (some of them were sitting on the track and they had their stuff all over it). They mostly complied...sort of...it was a bit of dodge 'em around that corner, but they are nice enough to let me work out there so I can't whine too much.
Because in retrospect Tuesday's 10K fartlek was a bit fast, I planned to go slower today to save some energy for my 10K tomorrow and 30K on Sunday. I decided to do 6:30/km pace for the first 3K, then 6:20 for the next 3K, then 6:10, then 6:00. That's slower than I would do if I were training for a 5K or 10K or even 20K, but I'm not training for that and with the abrupt mileage increases I need to be careful about how fast I do my speed work or I will pay for it on the long days. It felt SO easy starting off at 6:30 pace. I didn't quite hold myself to that pace, but close enough; I did about a 6:24/km. The next 3K felt pretty easy too, at 6:17/km; again a little faster than planned, but my heart rate was low and I was feeling good.
I stopped briefly to take a drink at 6K, as I had just brought a water bottle and not my waist pack. It was warm enough that I definitely needed some water. Continuing on, it felt moderately hard for the next 3K. I was definitely pushing a little but not too much, and I completed that 3K at a 6:06/km pace, faster than planned, but well within myself. The last 3K was a moderately hard to hard effort, with 500m splits of 2:59 down to 2:53 (yup, pulled out a 2:53 for the last one). I definitely COULD have gone faster on the last 3K, but I was trying to save myself for the next few workouts. The last 3K was a 5:55/km pace on average. Hopefully that was slow enough so that my 30K on Sunday will not be too miserable!
3K splits:
3K goal 19:30, actual 19:12. Ave HR for 6 x 500m splits ranged from 122-140.
6K goal 19:00, actual 18:51. Ave HR 142-149.
9K goal 18:30, actual 18:17. Ave HR 145-154 (stopped very briefly at 6K for a drink, so HR dropped).
12K goal 18:00, actual 17:45. Ave HR 156-162.
Total time: 1:14:05. Ave HR for whole workout was 147. Garmin connect data here.
Thursday, August 11, 2011
cross-training
I biked to work today for my cross-training. It's a good uphill slog, though not very long. It only took me 25 min. I should do a bit longer, but I'm still tired so I'm taking it easy. I'll bike home, though, of course, but that's all downhill :).
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
almost 20K
19.57km, to be exact. I fell asleep before setting my alarm last night (!duh!) and so I didn't wake up until 5:55am. Oops! I was supposed to be back home from my 20K by 8:00 am, and that meant I had to leave the house by about 5:45 am. Loren nicely agreed to be a bit late to work but I'd have to be home by 8:20 am at the latest. I got on the road at 6:10 am, and with stoplights, it took me until 8:20 am to do 19.57km. Close enough.
My legs were fairly sore this morning from the 10K fartlek yesterday. I guess I pushed it too hard. Oh well. Live and learn. The first 5K today felt really good, but after that it was a slog, especially from about 7-12K. About 12K it got a little better for some reason - I was still hurting and still slow, but it didn't feel as bad.
This was definitely not one of my better workouts, but it did feel better than the really awful 15K and awful 20K a week ago and 10 days ago, respectively. I just felt tired today, but not horrible or anything. My legs are definitely sore now, but after a day of cross-training I'm sure I'll be ready for the 12K kickdown on Friday. I am not going to do that one too hard, though, because I have 10K Saturday with 2x8' at 20K pace, and 30K on Sunday. I have to pace myself, and Jim has been very clear on that. I thought I went easy enough on the fartlek yesterday, but now I know I have to take the speed work even a little easier for now.
It's a bit frustrating. I am starting to worry if I'm going to adjust well enough fast enough to finish strong in the marathon. I was encouraged by Sunday's 25K and my 10K fartlek yesterday, but today has me a bit down again. It's hard to stay mentally strong. Well, the body is going to do what it's going to do, and I can't control that. I have to just get out there and do what I can and the rest is not up to me.
Total time for 19.57km = 2:07:22 for 6:30/km (I told you it was slow...). Ave HR 143. Splits 5K 31:00, 10K 1:03:33 (32:33), 15K 1:36:27 (32:54), 19.57K 2:07:22 (30:55; 6:46/km...wow...uphill, but still....ouch!).
Garmin connect data here.
My legs were fairly sore this morning from the 10K fartlek yesterday. I guess I pushed it too hard. Oh well. Live and learn. The first 5K today felt really good, but after that it was a slog, especially from about 7-12K. About 12K it got a little better for some reason - I was still hurting and still slow, but it didn't feel as bad.
This was definitely not one of my better workouts, but it did feel better than the really awful 15K and awful 20K a week ago and 10 days ago, respectively. I just felt tired today, but not horrible or anything. My legs are definitely sore now, but after a day of cross-training I'm sure I'll be ready for the 12K kickdown on Friday. I am not going to do that one too hard, though, because I have 10K Saturday with 2x8' at 20K pace, and 30K on Sunday. I have to pace myself, and Jim has been very clear on that. I thought I went easy enough on the fartlek yesterday, but now I know I have to take the speed work even a little easier for now.
It's a bit frustrating. I am starting to worry if I'm going to adjust well enough fast enough to finish strong in the marathon. I was encouraged by Sunday's 25K and my 10K fartlek yesterday, but today has me a bit down again. It's hard to stay mentally strong. Well, the body is going to do what it's going to do, and I can't control that. I have to just get out there and do what I can and the rest is not up to me.
Total time for 19.57km = 2:07:22 for 6:30/km (I told you it was slow...). Ave HR 143. Splits 5K 31:00, 10K 1:03:33 (32:33), 15K 1:36:27 (32:54), 19.57K 2:07:22 (30:55; 6:46/km...wow...uphill, but still....ouch!).
Garmin connect data here.
Tuesday, August 09, 2011
10K fartlek
When I woke up, I felt pretty recovered from my 25K on Sunday. I had just a touch of residual soreness in the left glutes/top of hamstrings, but otherwise felt good. The weather was favorable too, at 68F (20C) and about 35% humidity. Ahhhh, if only I could have weather like this in the winter too. I love summer here, and I'll be sad to see it go. Meanwhile, I'll enjoy it while it lasts.
I drove to the track and it was a bit crowded, but not too bad. The running club was there, but there were only about 6-7 of them, including my boss. That's always a bit of a shock to see him; I know he works out with them, but it's still kinda funny to see him at the track instead of at work. There were also 3 buff triathlete women there (they were there last week too) for a session with their coach. Still, it seemed we could share the track, and it worked pretty well mostly. I moved aside into lane 2 for people when warming up (I did 1600m in 9:56, with some strides) but then when I started my fartlek I stuck to lane 1 and they just had to pass me. I tried to move as far inside as I could to make it easier, and there were no rails on the track, so it worked OK. About halfway through my workout, the football team showed up for practice. A bunch of them actually sat in lane 1, and I asked nicely for them to move aside when I went by. They did, and so I was able to use lane 1 despite the runners, triathletes, and football team :).
My workout went well. I felt really good and tried hard not to push too much. I stayed comfortably hard or hard for the whole workout and did not go all-out. I did push a bit on the last two fast sections, but not too hard. My ave HR for the workout was 159, a bit lower than usual, so I know I had a bit in reserve.
The best part about this workout was that I was really consistent. My first km was 5:38, and after that my fast sections were all 2:49-2:54, with one 2:55. My medium segments were mostly 3:03-3:08, with one 2:58 (!) and one 3:01, and the last 4 mediums all the same at 3:08. I'm a bit amazed I held the pace so well on those, especially at the end of the workout when I was tired. And yeah, I did the last fast one in 2:49 :).
Total time 59:24 (only one second slower than my PR for this workout), ave HR 159, and ave pace 5:56/km. Not bad. Not bad at all. Other splits: 3K in 17:22, 5K in 29:18, 6K 35:18, 8K 47:22.
The hard part now will be doing 20K tomorrow. Yup, that's right...coach has me down for 20K. I'm a bit nervous about how it will go; I'm slightly stiff now and a little sore but hopefully with some stretching I'll be good to go tomorrow. I hope I can get up early enough to get it done before work.
Garmin connect data here.
I drove to the track and it was a bit crowded, but not too bad. The running club was there, but there were only about 6-7 of them, including my boss. That's always a bit of a shock to see him; I know he works out with them, but it's still kinda funny to see him at the track instead of at work. There were also 3 buff triathlete women there (they were there last week too) for a session with their coach. Still, it seemed we could share the track, and it worked pretty well mostly. I moved aside into lane 2 for people when warming up (I did 1600m in 9:56, with some strides) but then when I started my fartlek I stuck to lane 1 and they just had to pass me. I tried to move as far inside as I could to make it easier, and there were no rails on the track, so it worked OK. About halfway through my workout, the football team showed up for practice. A bunch of them actually sat in lane 1, and I asked nicely for them to move aside when I went by. They did, and so I was able to use lane 1 despite the runners, triathletes, and football team :).
My workout went well. I felt really good and tried hard not to push too much. I stayed comfortably hard or hard for the whole workout and did not go all-out. I did push a bit on the last two fast sections, but not too hard. My ave HR for the workout was 159, a bit lower than usual, so I know I had a bit in reserve.
The best part about this workout was that I was really consistent. My first km was 5:38, and after that my fast sections were all 2:49-2:54, with one 2:55. My medium segments were mostly 3:03-3:08, with one 2:58 (!) and one 3:01, and the last 4 mediums all the same at 3:08. I'm a bit amazed I held the pace so well on those, especially at the end of the workout when I was tired. And yeah, I did the last fast one in 2:49 :).
Total time 59:24 (only one second slower than my PR for this workout), ave HR 159, and ave pace 5:56/km. Not bad. Not bad at all. Other splits: 3K in 17:22, 5K in 29:18, 6K 35:18, 8K 47:22.
The hard part now will be doing 20K tomorrow. Yup, that's right...coach has me down for 20K. I'm a bit nervous about how it will go; I'm slightly stiff now and a little sore but hopefully with some stretching I'll be good to go tomorrow. I hope I can get up early enough to get it done before work.
Garmin connect data here.
Sunday, August 07, 2011
25K easy
I was a bit apprehensive about doing 25K (15.5 miles). It's been a while, and my 20K last weekend hurt a lot. However, my last couple workouts have been good, so I figured it might be good.
The weather was nice, at 68F (20C) and 35% humidity. It was a little warm, but there was a breeze and it didn't feel terribly hot. I got to the Jordan River trail early (about 6 am) to take advantage of the morning cool air. It's been in the low 90s (typical summer weather here) so one definitely does not want to go any later than necessary.
I was careful about what I ate yesterday, and took imodium last night and this morning, and I had no GI problems. Yay! I ate starting at 10K, taking sports beans first, then gummy peach rings at 15K, and tootsie rolls at 20K. Hey, a good excuse to eat candy :)! I drank quite a bit - I had three water bottles (8 oz each, about 240ml) and drank them and refilled them several times. I love the Jordan River trail because 1) it's flat, 2) it has numerous restrooms, and 3) it has lots of water fountains as well, and 4) most of them are open in the winter, too.
The one bad thing about today was my Garmin...it was losing the satellite reception a lot. Mostly it found it again quickly and was able to extrapolate my distance accurately, but a few times it was longer...grrr. I still think my distance was pretty close overall, for numerous reasons. But it was still quite annoying. I'm going to try a hard reset and see if that helps. It's been doing this for a while and seems to be getting worse, so perhaps it's time for a new one? It's not quite 2 yr old yet :(. However, I rely on it a LOT and would feel pretty lost w/o it at this point, so hopefully the hard reset will fix it. I don't really want to lay out $$$ for a new one right now.
Anyway, I started off nice and slow and easy just like my coach said to do, and I felt OK for the whole workout. It was fairly slow, but I got through it at a pretty consistent pace, and I didn't feel overly tired at the end. I'm sure I could have pushed the pace at the end if I had needed to, but the coach was pretty specific about taking it easy for now, which is wise and I agree with it totally. I was glad I didn't have to pick it up :). We're increasing mileage rapidly and so we have to keep it easy. Next weekend is 30K...but I digress.
Total time 2:41:03, with ave HR 141 (very easy, like I said) and ave pace 6:26/km. 5K splits (approximate due to Garmin problems - the 15K split is too fast and the 20K split too slow): 5K 32:04, 10K 32:13 (1:04:17), 15K 31:06 (1:35:23), 20K 33:12 (2:08:35), 25K 32:28 (2:41:03). Close enough anyway - you get the idea. I kept a relatively steady pace for the whole thing, and didn't slow too much.
My muscles felt just a bit sore to start, and I did notice soreness in the glutes which increased throughout the workout. It never got that bad, though. I'm a bit stiff now (several hours later) but otherwise I feel good. The workout didn't feel too hard or too terribly long, and it was pretty nice to be out this morning. It was a LOT better than last week's 20K. I wasn't fast, but I also wasn't pushing it at all, which was a welcome relief. Just the distance is enough for now.
I saw a lot of runners out there who were clearly doing some long distances as well - they had their water bottles and their iPods. Here, most people do their long day on Saturday so the trail was not as busy this morning, but there were still a lot of people out there walking dogs, running, biking, etc. One woman was pushing her "kick-me" dog in a baby stroller...yeah...I know. I saw her last week, too. It was hard not to laugh!
Ahhh, now I get to relax a bit - hopefully read the paper, nap, and do not a lot of anything until our church BBQ get-together tonight.
Garmin connect data here.
The weather was nice, at 68F (20C) and 35% humidity. It was a little warm, but there was a breeze and it didn't feel terribly hot. I got to the Jordan River trail early (about 6 am) to take advantage of the morning cool air. It's been in the low 90s (typical summer weather here) so one definitely does not want to go any later than necessary.
I was careful about what I ate yesterday, and took imodium last night and this morning, and I had no GI problems. Yay! I ate starting at 10K, taking sports beans first, then gummy peach rings at 15K, and tootsie rolls at 20K. Hey, a good excuse to eat candy :)! I drank quite a bit - I had three water bottles (8 oz each, about 240ml) and drank them and refilled them several times. I love the Jordan River trail because 1) it's flat, 2) it has numerous restrooms, and 3) it has lots of water fountains as well, and 4) most of them are open in the winter, too.
The one bad thing about today was my Garmin...it was losing the satellite reception a lot. Mostly it found it again quickly and was able to extrapolate my distance accurately, but a few times it was longer...grrr. I still think my distance was pretty close overall, for numerous reasons. But it was still quite annoying. I'm going to try a hard reset and see if that helps. It's been doing this for a while and seems to be getting worse, so perhaps it's time for a new one? It's not quite 2 yr old yet :(. However, I rely on it a LOT and would feel pretty lost w/o it at this point, so hopefully the hard reset will fix it. I don't really want to lay out $$$ for a new one right now.
Anyway, I started off nice and slow and easy just like my coach said to do, and I felt OK for the whole workout. It was fairly slow, but I got through it at a pretty consistent pace, and I didn't feel overly tired at the end. I'm sure I could have pushed the pace at the end if I had needed to, but the coach was pretty specific about taking it easy for now, which is wise and I agree with it totally. I was glad I didn't have to pick it up :). We're increasing mileage rapidly and so we have to keep it easy. Next weekend is 30K...but I digress.
Total time 2:41:03, with ave HR 141 (very easy, like I said) and ave pace 6:26/km. 5K splits (approximate due to Garmin problems - the 15K split is too fast and the 20K split too slow): 5K 32:04, 10K 32:13 (1:04:17), 15K 31:06 (1:35:23), 20K 33:12 (2:08:35), 25K 32:28 (2:41:03). Close enough anyway - you get the idea. I kept a relatively steady pace for the whole thing, and didn't slow too much.
My muscles felt just a bit sore to start, and I did notice soreness in the glutes which increased throughout the workout. It never got that bad, though. I'm a bit stiff now (several hours later) but otherwise I feel good. The workout didn't feel too hard or too terribly long, and it was pretty nice to be out this morning. It was a LOT better than last week's 20K. I wasn't fast, but I also wasn't pushing it at all, which was a welcome relief. Just the distance is enough for now.
I saw a lot of runners out there who were clearly doing some long distances as well - they had their water bottles and their iPods. Here, most people do their long day on Saturday so the trail was not as busy this morning, but there were still a lot of people out there walking dogs, running, biking, etc. One woman was pushing her "kick-me" dog in a baby stroller...yeah...I know. I saw her last week, too. It was hard not to laugh!
Ahhh, now I get to relax a bit - hopefully read the paper, nap, and do not a lot of anything until our church BBQ get-together tonight.
Garmin connect data here.
Saturday, August 06, 2011
very easy 10K
I was to do 10K today, easy. Coach Jim said to take it really easy. Like really, really easy. He reminded me I'm training for a marathon, and that right now getting the longer distance out is key. Never mind the times for now - we can increase that later. OK, cool! I like easy. Easy is good.
I obediently went very easy today, and felt pretty darn good. The glutes are sore a bit after the kickdown, mostly in the middle at the bottom, near where the hamstring inserts. Jim says that means I'm probably still not using quite the right glute muscles...grrrr...I'll keep working on it. Anyway, the first super-easy and downhillish 5K was in 31:00. The second 5K, mostly uphillish, was slower (obviously), in about 32:33 for 1:03:33 (6:21/km). That's pretty good considering my average HR was 138 for the whole workout. I seem to be continuing to get fitter :).
Tonight as I write this I'm still a touch sore in the glutes. I have 25K tomorrow, which I'm definitely nervous about given how uncomfortable the 20K was last week. But I'm hopeful this will go better. 1) The weather is better - cooler mornings and less humid, 2) I'm feeling better than I was earlier in the week, and 3) Jim emphasized that time does not matter on these - only going the distance. I ate more carbs today and less fiber, and hopefully that will help w/the GI issues. No dairy today, either.
I obediently went very easy today, and felt pretty darn good. The glutes are sore a bit after the kickdown, mostly in the middle at the bottom, near where the hamstring inserts. Jim says that means I'm probably still not using quite the right glute muscles...grrrr...I'll keep working on it. Anyway, the first super-easy and downhillish 5K was in 31:00. The second 5K, mostly uphillish, was slower (obviously), in about 32:33 for 1:03:33 (6:21/km). That's pretty good considering my average HR was 138 for the whole workout. I seem to be continuing to get fitter :).
Tonight as I write this I'm still a touch sore in the glutes. I have 25K tomorrow, which I'm definitely nervous about given how uncomfortable the 20K was last week. But I'm hopeful this will go better. 1) The weather is better - cooler mornings and less humid, 2) I'm feeling better than I was earlier in the week, and 3) Jim emphasized that time does not matter on these - only going the distance. I ate more carbs today and less fiber, and hopefully that will help w/the GI issues. No dairy today, either.
Friday, August 05, 2011
10K kickdown - PR by one second for this workout :)
Yesterday, all I did was 30 min on the elliptical. That was a good move, as I felt really good this morning. The weather echoed my general well-being, at 66F (19C) and nice LOW humidity of about 35%. It felt much cooler than earlier this week because of the lower humidity.
I was to do a 10K kickdown (acceleration workout) in 4x2.5 km splits. Jim told me that it was very important not to push too hard today. He said if I felt lousy to take it really easy, and if I felt good it was OK to go harder but not too hard. I'm so used to training for the short stuff that I have almost forgotten that when training for the marathon you have to do your speed work nice and easy. I like that!
I started off really slow on purpose to ease into it. I did my first 500m in 3:18, but then was feeling good so picked it up to about 3:05-3:10 pace for the rest of the first 2.5km, getting there in 15:45 total, just about 5 sec under my goal time of 15:50 for the first 2.5K. Good. I felt super, and it felt easy. Continuing on, I did the next 2.5K in 15:11, getting to 5K in 30:56 and still feeling really good and easy.
Then it was time for the work to begin. I pushed comfortably hard for the next 2.5K, and got there in 15:01, for 45:57. I was getting a little tired now, and my glutes were starting to complain, but I still felt well within myself. I kicked it up a notch and did the next two 500s in 2:50 and 2:51, and though I was pushing hard, it was not too hard. I did have to slow, doing about 2:55 and 3:00 for the next two in order not to push too much. I finished with a nice fast 2:54 on the downhill for 14:30 for my last 2.5K total. I'm sure if I'd have pushed and done it all-out I could have been at least 10 sec faster, but it wasn't needed, and I'm glad I didn't. My max HR was 168, and the average on the two last splits was 167 and 166, so there was a little left there.
A few hours later, I still feel pretty good. I am now relaxing in the downtown library while waiting for my car to get fixed (A/C knob got pushed into the dash by my laptop bag smacking into it, believe it or not...grrrrrrrrr not a cheap repair....). I biked over here and will have to bike back (gentle uphill) so hopefully that will keep me from stiffening up too much.
Total time: 60:28, ave HR 152, ave pace 6:03/km. And yes, it was a PR by one second. When Jim was here, on 6/28, I did 60:29 for this workout, and it hurt a LOT more than it did today. I'll take that as a good sign that things are going well :).
Garmin connect data here.
I was to do a 10K kickdown (acceleration workout) in 4x2.5 km splits. Jim told me that it was very important not to push too hard today. He said if I felt lousy to take it really easy, and if I felt good it was OK to go harder but not too hard. I'm so used to training for the short stuff that I have almost forgotten that when training for the marathon you have to do your speed work nice and easy. I like that!
I started off really slow on purpose to ease into it. I did my first 500m in 3:18, but then was feeling good so picked it up to about 3:05-3:10 pace for the rest of the first 2.5km, getting there in 15:45 total, just about 5 sec under my goal time of 15:50 for the first 2.5K. Good. I felt super, and it felt easy. Continuing on, I did the next 2.5K in 15:11, getting to 5K in 30:56 and still feeling really good and easy.
Then it was time for the work to begin. I pushed comfortably hard for the next 2.5K, and got there in 15:01, for 45:57. I was getting a little tired now, and my glutes were starting to complain, but I still felt well within myself. I kicked it up a notch and did the next two 500s in 2:50 and 2:51, and though I was pushing hard, it was not too hard. I did have to slow, doing about 2:55 and 3:00 for the next two in order not to push too much. I finished with a nice fast 2:54 on the downhill for 14:30 for my last 2.5K total. I'm sure if I'd have pushed and done it all-out I could have been at least 10 sec faster, but it wasn't needed, and I'm glad I didn't. My max HR was 168, and the average on the two last splits was 167 and 166, so there was a little left there.
A few hours later, I still feel pretty good. I am now relaxing in the downtown library while waiting for my car to get fixed (A/C knob got pushed into the dash by my laptop bag smacking into it, believe it or not...grrrrrrrrr not a cheap repair....). I biked over here and will have to bike back (gentle uphill) so hopefully that will keep me from stiffening up too much.
Total time: 60:28, ave HR 152, ave pace 6:03/km. And yes, it was a PR by one second. When Jim was here, on 6/28, I did 60:29 for this workout, and it hurt a LOT more than it did today. I'll take that as a good sign that things are going well :).
Garmin connect data here.
Wednesday, August 03, 2011
15K
Weather: 68F (19C) and 80% humidity. I could do without the humidity, but it beats snow, rain, or ice. And it's cooler here than a lot of places around the country. Still, I was hot by 10K and I'm sure that didn't help.
Workout: I was to do 15K. The first 5K felt great. 5-8K felt OK. After 8K, my legs were heavy and leaden. After 13K, everything hurt, but at least it was only for 2K. My pace slowed to 7:00/km at the very end (up hill slightly, but still...) and I didn't care. I just wanted to be done. I'm glad tomorrow is a cross-training day.
Total time: 1:37:00 for 6:28/km, with ave HR 141. Yeah, my HR was low, so theoretically I could have pushed harder, but my legs were too tired and I just had nothing. Splits: 5K 31:13, 10K 32:28 (1:03:41), 15K 33:19 (1:37:00). Pretty sad. I hope this tiredness passes quickly; best theory I have is that my body is adjusting to the longer mileage which we are piling on in a hurry to get me ready for the marathon. In addition, the weather is warmish. Jim said this might happen, so I'm not too concerned, but just keeping an eye on things.
Garmin connect data here.
Workout: I was to do 15K. The first 5K felt great. 5-8K felt OK. After 8K, my legs were heavy and leaden. After 13K, everything hurt, but at least it was only for 2K. My pace slowed to 7:00/km at the very end (up hill slightly, but still...) and I didn't care. I just wanted to be done. I'm glad tomorrow is a cross-training day.
Total time: 1:37:00 for 6:28/km, with ave HR 141. Yeah, my HR was low, so theoretically I could have pushed harder, but my legs were too tired and I just had nothing. Splits: 5K 31:13, 10K 32:28 (1:03:41), 15K 33:19 (1:37:00). Pretty sad. I hope this tiredness passes quickly; best theory I have is that my body is adjusting to the longer mileage which we are piling on in a hurry to get me ready for the marathon. In addition, the weather is warmish. Jim said this might happen, so I'm not too concerned, but just keeping an eye on things.
Garmin connect data here.
Tuesday, August 02, 2011
10K fartlek
Weather: 68F (20C) and 80% humidity. Warm, but not too awful.
Mood: Knew this would hurt so not looking forward to it. Legs still sore from 20K plus sore from the weight training I did yesterday (I didn't do any cardio but did do some weight training and some core work).
The track: wet from last night's storm, and I shared it with about 5-6 runners, 3 of whom were doing 800m repeats. I did move aside a few times for them and probably lost a few seconds here and there because of moving to lane 2.
The workout: Yup, it hurt. I started off pretty easy (was so glad I did later...), pushing just moderately hard for the first 5K. I still got to 5K in 29:35, which was decent for taking it easy (only 13 seconds slower than Friday's 5K fartlek). I thought at that point that maybe the workout wouldn't be too awful, but the last 5K was quite difficult, not suprisingly. I tried to avoid pushing too hard, but by 7K it was really hurting and I knew the wheels were falling off. I figured I'd have to push hard to keep my fast intervals under 3 min by that point. Ugh. The last 5 "fast" ones were 2:56-2:59, which is pretty darn slow. Oh well. I knew this one would be tough, and I was slow, but what matters is that I got it done. I pushed harder than I wanted at the end - I hope I have enough reserve to get through 15K tomorrow in good shape.
Total time: 60:24. Ave HR 161. Max 170.
Garmin connect data here.
Mood: Knew this would hurt so not looking forward to it. Legs still sore from 20K plus sore from the weight training I did yesterday (I didn't do any cardio but did do some weight training and some core work).
The track: wet from last night's storm, and I shared it with about 5-6 runners, 3 of whom were doing 800m repeats. I did move aside a few times for them and probably lost a few seconds here and there because of moving to lane 2.
The workout: Yup, it hurt. I started off pretty easy (was so glad I did later...), pushing just moderately hard for the first 5K. I still got to 5K in 29:35, which was decent for taking it easy (only 13 seconds slower than Friday's 5K fartlek). I thought at that point that maybe the workout wouldn't be too awful, but the last 5K was quite difficult, not suprisingly. I tried to avoid pushing too hard, but by 7K it was really hurting and I knew the wheels were falling off. I figured I'd have to push hard to keep my fast intervals under 3 min by that point. Ugh. The last 5 "fast" ones were 2:56-2:59, which is pretty darn slow. Oh well. I knew this one would be tough, and I was slow, but what matters is that I got it done. I pushed harder than I wanted at the end - I hope I have enough reserve to get through 15K tomorrow in good shape.
Total time: 60:24. Ave HR 161. Max 170.
Garmin connect data here.
Sunday, July 31, 2011
kitchen faucet...again...
I put this on FB but forgot to blog about it. Yeah, I'm not terribly handy so I gotta brag about the few things I actually CAN do around the house :).
I've done this before, twice...apparently I'm better at installing faucets than picking a good model. The new one was fairly pricey and so maybe it's better? Maybe. Probably not. But one can hope. At least I'm getting good at installing the darn things.
slow, but I finished
Today I was to do 20K. Haven't done that since the race a couple weeks ago, and knew it would be a toughie. It was.
First, it was hot by our standards, and humid. It was overcast, and here that means humid in the summer; humid here is a mere 60%, but believe me, it's enough to make one miserable. It was a very warm morning, too - 74F (23.3C) at the start of my walk and 77F (25.0C) at the finish. That's about as warm as mornings ever get here. I drove over to the Jordan River trail because it's flat and pretty, and I haven't been out there in a while (the river was the highest I'd ever seen it, BTW, and looked like it had been higher in the past few weeks!).
Secondly, I foolishly ate a rather large frozen yogurt treat last night. I thought that will all the probiotics I'd be OK. NOT. I had horrible GI trouble this morning, cramping and having to stop twice for the bathroom.
By 6.5km, I was pretty worried. I was so tired already! I wondered if I'd be able to finish. Good thing I did an out-and-back route or I would have been tempted to throw in the towel. Fortunately, I perked up a bit when I turned around at 10K, and then at 16K got a bit of a second wind after seeing another racewalker (of course I knew her!) and stopping to talk with her.
I took jelly beans (sports beans) at 10K and 15K, and that helped, and I drank a LOT of water. Needed it in the heat. When I finished my face was crusted with salt. Good thing I had the sports beans.
Regardless, my legs were tired today, I generally felt fairly tired and crummy, and I was just glad to be done. I had to stop a lot for restrooms, water, etc. :(. My time is quite slow compared to other 20Ks this year, but it's one of the faster ones I did last year, so that shows my improvement that a slow time now is my former fast time.
My coach said it would be tough building back up again and I knew he was right. He always is! I'm glad he told me to take it a bit easy and not worry too much about the time. For now, what matters is getting my mileage base back up there for the marathon, which isn't too far off.
Pet peeve of the day: slower walkers taking up the entire 2m-wide pathway. One guy with his two dogs on retractable leashes was hogging the whole thing and of course didn't hear me approach. Another couple and their dog managed to block the whole thing as well. Grrrr. At least the bicyclists were polite and pretty careful this morning.
Summary: total time 2:09:36, ave HR 146, 6:29/km pace. Splits: 5K 31:35, 10K 32:48, (1:04:23), 15K 32:50, (1:37:13), 20K 32:23 (2:09:36). Could be worse, I guess. At least the splits were fairly even.
I am SO tired now. Nap time!!!!!
Garmin connect data here.
First, it was hot by our standards, and humid. It was overcast, and here that means humid in the summer; humid here is a mere 60%, but believe me, it's enough to make one miserable. It was a very warm morning, too - 74F (23.3C) at the start of my walk and 77F (25.0C) at the finish. That's about as warm as mornings ever get here. I drove over to the Jordan River trail because it's flat and pretty, and I haven't been out there in a while (the river was the highest I'd ever seen it, BTW, and looked like it had been higher in the past few weeks!).
Secondly, I foolishly ate a rather large frozen yogurt treat last night. I thought that will all the probiotics I'd be OK. NOT. I had horrible GI trouble this morning, cramping and having to stop twice for the bathroom.
By 6.5km, I was pretty worried. I was so tired already! I wondered if I'd be able to finish. Good thing I did an out-and-back route or I would have been tempted to throw in the towel. Fortunately, I perked up a bit when I turned around at 10K, and then at 16K got a bit of a second wind after seeing another racewalker (of course I knew her!) and stopping to talk with her.
I took jelly beans (sports beans) at 10K and 15K, and that helped, and I drank a LOT of water. Needed it in the heat. When I finished my face was crusted with salt. Good thing I had the sports beans.
Regardless, my legs were tired today, I generally felt fairly tired and crummy, and I was just glad to be done. I had to stop a lot for restrooms, water, etc. :(. My time is quite slow compared to other 20Ks this year, but it's one of the faster ones I did last year, so that shows my improvement that a slow time now is my former fast time.
My coach said it would be tough building back up again and I knew he was right. He always is! I'm glad he told me to take it a bit easy and not worry too much about the time. For now, what matters is getting my mileage base back up there for the marathon, which isn't too far off.
Pet peeve of the day: slower walkers taking up the entire 2m-wide pathway. One guy with his two dogs on retractable leashes was hogging the whole thing and of course didn't hear me approach. Another couple and their dog managed to block the whole thing as well. Grrrr. At least the bicyclists were polite and pretty careful this morning.
Summary: total time 2:09:36, ave HR 146, 6:29/km pace. Splits: 5K 31:35, 10K 32:48, (1:04:23), 15K 32:50, (1:37:13), 20K 32:23 (2:09:36). Could be worse, I guess. At least the splits were fairly even.
I am SO tired now. Nap time!!!!!
Garmin connect data here.
Friday, July 29, 2011
5K fartlek
I took a rest day yesterday because I had surgery on an ingrown toenail on Wednesday afternoon. It was still very sore and a bit numb yesterday morning, so there was no way the planned 15K was going to happen. That's OK. One missed workout is not a big deal.
Oddly, despite yesterday's rest, my glutes/top of hammies were still fairly sore. I'm not sure what from - probably from Monday's 10K race, but could also be from the elliptical since I haven't done it in a while and I did it on Tuesday & Wednesday. I was grateful for the warm-up to work out some kinks in the legs. I felt SO stiff on the first 400m! I did 1600m in 10:04, with strides, and then did some dynamic flexibility drills, focusing on the ones that stretch out the glutes & hammies.
Oh, before I continue, on my first time around the track I saw this, occupying lanes 1-2.
Um, yeah, right. Whatever...some high school girls (and guys? not sure?) were sleeping on the track. Yup, in lanes 1 & 2. Morons! Fortunately, the rails had been removed from the track and so I was able to cut just inside them in between the inner white line on lane 1 and the steeplechase pit. Very annoying! I should also note that the sprinklers were on at the track, watering the football field, and also watering select parts of lanes 1 & 2. Extra showers! Oh boy! Actually it didn't feel too bad as it was warmish (67F, 19.4C) and I was sweating quite a bit.
I felt looser after the warm-up and stretching, and immediately got started on my workout. The first km felt pretty good and fast, but it was only 5:34. The next 2k felt pretty good, but I wasn't very fast on the fast segments: 500m medium 3:01, 500m fast 2:50, 500m medium 3:04, 500m fast 2:52, to 3K in 17:22. Yeah, I was not fast today. And I was starting to feel it. My legs felt really trashed on the last 2K: 500m medium 3:07, 500m fast 2:52, 500m medium 3:08, 500m fast (really working it here) 2:51. Total 29:22. Not bad for the first speed work in a few weeks, but the first speed workout after a rest is always painful, and this one was no exception. I'd be really nervous about the 10K fartlek I'm to do on Tuesday, except that experience tells me the 2nd one is usually lots better, and I'm still really fit so it should be no problem...I hope.
Garmin connect data here.
Oddly, despite yesterday's rest, my glutes/top of hammies were still fairly sore. I'm not sure what from - probably from Monday's 10K race, but could also be from the elliptical since I haven't done it in a while and I did it on Tuesday & Wednesday. I was grateful for the warm-up to work out some kinks in the legs. I felt SO stiff on the first 400m! I did 1600m in 10:04, with strides, and then did some dynamic flexibility drills, focusing on the ones that stretch out the glutes & hammies.
Oh, before I continue, on my first time around the track I saw this, occupying lanes 1-2.
Um, yeah, right. Whatever...some high school girls (and guys? not sure?) were sleeping on the track. Yup, in lanes 1 & 2. Morons! Fortunately, the rails had been removed from the track and so I was able to cut just inside them in between the inner white line on lane 1 and the steeplechase pit. Very annoying! I should also note that the sprinklers were on at the track, watering the football field, and also watering select parts of lanes 1 & 2. Extra showers! Oh boy! Actually it didn't feel too bad as it was warmish (67F, 19.4C) and I was sweating quite a bit.
I felt looser after the warm-up and stretching, and immediately got started on my workout. The first km felt pretty good and fast, but it was only 5:34. The next 2k felt pretty good, but I wasn't very fast on the fast segments: 500m medium 3:01, 500m fast 2:50, 500m medium 3:04, 500m fast 2:52, to 3K in 17:22. Yeah, I was not fast today. And I was starting to feel it. My legs felt really trashed on the last 2K: 500m medium 3:07, 500m fast 2:52, 500m medium 3:08, 500m fast (really working it here) 2:51. Total 29:22. Not bad for the first speed work in a few weeks, but the first speed workout after a rest is always painful, and this one was no exception. I'd be really nervous about the 10K fartlek I'm to do on Tuesday, except that experience tells me the 2nd one is usually lots better, and I'm still really fit so it should be no problem...I hope.
Garmin connect data here.
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
today's workout
More cross-training = 45 min elliptical plus some weights and core - very light since I haven't done any in a while. Felt good, though.
***
This afternoon I had ingrown toenail surgery...again. The one last May didn't take - the nail grew back in and I noticed it just before I was to go to Sacramento. I went in to the podiatrist, who trimmed it so that it wouldn't bother me, and made an appointment to have it removed today. Oh yay! So far all is well, as the toe is still blissfully numb from the local anesthetic. I am supposed to walk 15K in the morning, but might have to change that, depending on how it feels. We'll see.
***
This afternoon I had ingrown toenail surgery...again. The one last May didn't take - the nail grew back in and I noticed it just before I was to go to Sacramento. I went in to the podiatrist, who trimmed it so that it wouldn't bother me, and made an appointment to have it removed today. Oh yay! So far all is well, as the toe is still blissfully numb from the local anesthetic. I am supposed to walk 15K in the morning, but might have to change that, depending on how it feels. We'll see.
official race results
...are in from the Deseret News 10K here.
I entered in the Athena category (women >140 lb) and placed 8th out of 42. Not bad! Better yet, I was 2nd Athena in ages 40-44, so I might have a medal getting mailed to me :). And this is against RUNNERS, so I'm particularly pleased.
I entered in the Athena category (women >140 lb) and placed 8th out of 42. Not bad! Better yet, I was 2nd Athena in ages 40-44, so I might have a medal getting mailed to me :). And this is against RUNNERS, so I'm particularly pleased.
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Goodbye, Copper
Our dog Copper made it much longer than the pathology report predicted; 18 months ago the diagnosis was malignant fibrosarcoma, median life expectancy 4 months. We got a lot more time than that. Still, it was really hard to let her go.
We picked her up from the kennel yesterday after our vacation, and the staff noticed that in the last day or so her abdomen had swollen up. Sure enough, she didn't look good - sunken eyes, dry mouth and nose, general signs of dehydration plus the swollen abdomen. Uh-oh. I called Loren right away...our vet was closed for the Pioneer Day holiday. He said she'd be OK until he got home in a couple hours, and when he looked at her he agreed it wasn't good. However, he thought she'd be fine overnight, and we really wanted to take her in to our own vet who knew her history, etc.
He called first thing this morning to get her in to the vet. Meanwhile, the kids and I said our goodbyes, knowing this might be the last time we'd see her. I took the kids to day care & summer camp, and Loren took Copper to the vet. The vet took one look at her and knew it wasn't good. He tapped her abdomen and it didn't look good, and he felt a large mass on her liver. He discussed it with Loren and they agreed that euthanasia was best at this point.
It's been hard on all of us. I couldn't focus much at work, and Loren didn't even go in (maybe he was the smart one there...). We'll be OK, but we miss her.
cross-training
This morning: 45 min on the elliptical. I enjoyed reading V.S. Ramachandran's book "The Tell-Tale Brain" while working out. It's a great book on the latest in neuroscience research, for the layperson, but it's written in such a way to appeal to the scientist too.
Jim sent me my new training schedule today. Next big race: Top of Utah Marathon on Sept 17th. Yup, just 8 weeks to whip my butt into marathon shape. However, I've got a good base and Jim has written a hard schedule for me. Gulp! I'm shooting for a 4:25-4:30 or less on this nice downhill course.
Jim sent me my new training schedule today. Next big race: Top of Utah Marathon on Sept 17th. Yup, just 8 weeks to whip my butt into marathon shape. However, I've got a good base and Jim has written a hard schedule for me. Gulp! I'm shooting for a 4:25-4:30 or less on this nice downhill course.
Monday, July 25, 2011
Deseret News 10K - WOW!
I'm officially nuts. I did the Deseret News 10K race this morning. Yeah, I know, I got home from my trip at 10:00 pm last night and turned off the lights at 11 pm. My alarm went off at 4:45 am so that I could meet Sarah at 5:15 am, drop off one car at the finish, and drive the other car to the start, which was at 6:05 am. The weather was warm (71F, 22C) and humid for Utah, at about 45%. Not ideal race weather, but not too bad either.
I wasn't sure how hard I would race it. I decided I'd start fast and see how I felt, and if I was doing lousy and/or feeling bad, I'd slow down and just finish easy. It's such a nice downhill course, and therefore really fast and just right for a PR. It's downhill about 222m, according to my Garmin, which is a lot in just 10K.
I did the usual warm-up of about 10 min easy walking with some strides. I was still a little sore in the glutes/hammies from racing and walking in Disneyland last week, plus probably a bit from being in the car all day yesterday, but other than that I felt good. I was as ready as I was going to be.
It was fun to be there with my friend Sarah! She was hoping to better her 10K PR and hopefully get under 1 hr. Her last 5K was 28-something and I told her she'd be under an hour for sure on this nice downhill course.
After the national anthem, the wheelchair/handcycle people went, and then we were off! It was pretty crowded for the first 500m but I still made good time. I had to dodge in and out of people quite a lot and even ran over a grassy median :). The first mile is nice and downhill and as usual I was fast for it, getting there in 8:43. Why the markers for splits are in MILES in a 10K, I have NO idea...pretty dumb, but they are, so I went with it, pressing lap at each mile. That first mile felt really easy, so I figured I was good to go. The second mile I held the pace - another 8:43! Nice! Maybe I'd be able to race the whole thing? I kept pushing and it did feel harder by this time. The aid station just before 3 miles was the usual disaster that the aid stations are in this race - I really needed just a sip of water (dry mouth) and probably lost 10-15 sec going around the table to grab it myself. Still, I was fast, getting to 3 miles in 9:09 and to 5K in 27:25! Wow, that's a 5K PR! The nice downhill helped a lot though.
I was still feeling pretty good, so I though I'd make a race of it, especially since I was doing so well. The crowds lining the parade route (the race is for the unique Utah holiday called Pioneer Day) were cheering a lot and that helped me keep going. This race is a lot of fun for that reason. I pushed through to mile 4 and got there in 9:06. About this time the heat started catching up with me. I felt quite hot and wondered if I'd be able to push hard enough the last 2 miles. I told myself that was less than 20 min and that I could do anything for 20 min, and kept going. I got to mile 5 in 9:12, and that's the end of the downhill on this course. Miles 5-6.2 are pretty much a slight uphill (ugh!!!). I was worried about that as I was REALLY HOT. Seriously hot. Like wondering if I was overheated hot. Thankfully, there was an aid station at mile 5, and though it was a bit disorganized too, I drank a cup of water and dumped 2 over my head, probably losing 15 seconds, but I had to in order to keep going. The water and the cooling helped me pick it up a bit and I felt fresher though quite tired. I gave it a good hard effort, and got to mile 6 in 9:34, which is good considering the slight uphill and tired legs. The last 0.2 were in 2:01 (slow! ugh!) but I was working it as hard as I could and got to the finish in 56:31!!!! WOW! That's a huge PR of over a minute! Of course, it was downhill so not surprising, but it was awesome to go under 57 min, especially just 8 days after a hard 20K, and with sore legs, and in less than ideal weather.
Garmin connect data here.
I wasn't sure how hard I would race it. I decided I'd start fast and see how I felt, and if I was doing lousy and/or feeling bad, I'd slow down and just finish easy. It's such a nice downhill course, and therefore really fast and just right for a PR. It's downhill about 222m, according to my Garmin, which is a lot in just 10K.
I did the usual warm-up of about 10 min easy walking with some strides. I was still a little sore in the glutes/hammies from racing and walking in Disneyland last week, plus probably a bit from being in the car all day yesterday, but other than that I felt good. I was as ready as I was going to be.
It was fun to be there with my friend Sarah! She was hoping to better her 10K PR and hopefully get under 1 hr. Her last 5K was 28-something and I told her she'd be under an hour for sure on this nice downhill course.
After the national anthem, the wheelchair/handcycle people went, and then we were off! It was pretty crowded for the first 500m but I still made good time. I had to dodge in and out of people quite a lot and even ran over a grassy median :). The first mile is nice and downhill and as usual I was fast for it, getting there in 8:43. Why the markers for splits are in MILES in a 10K, I have NO idea...pretty dumb, but they are, so I went with it, pressing lap at each mile. That first mile felt really easy, so I figured I was good to go. The second mile I held the pace - another 8:43! Nice! Maybe I'd be able to race the whole thing? I kept pushing and it did feel harder by this time. The aid station just before 3 miles was the usual disaster that the aid stations are in this race - I really needed just a sip of water (dry mouth) and probably lost 10-15 sec going around the table to grab it myself. Still, I was fast, getting to 3 miles in 9:09 and to 5K in 27:25! Wow, that's a 5K PR! The nice downhill helped a lot though.
I was still feeling pretty good, so I though I'd make a race of it, especially since I was doing so well. The crowds lining the parade route (the race is for the unique Utah holiday called Pioneer Day) were cheering a lot and that helped me keep going. This race is a lot of fun for that reason. I pushed through to mile 4 and got there in 9:06. About this time the heat started catching up with me. I felt quite hot and wondered if I'd be able to push hard enough the last 2 miles. I told myself that was less than 20 min and that I could do anything for 20 min, and kept going. I got to mile 5 in 9:12, and that's the end of the downhill on this course. Miles 5-6.2 are pretty much a slight uphill (ugh!!!). I was worried about that as I was REALLY HOT. Seriously hot. Like wondering if I was overheated hot. Thankfully, there was an aid station at mile 5, and though it was a bit disorganized too, I drank a cup of water and dumped 2 over my head, probably losing 15 seconds, but I had to in order to keep going. The water and the cooling helped me pick it up a bit and I felt fresher though quite tired. I gave it a good hard effort, and got to mile 6 in 9:34, which is good considering the slight uphill and tired legs. The last 0.2 were in 2:01 (slow! ugh!) but I was working it as hard as I could and got to the finish in 56:31!!!! WOW! That's a huge PR of over a minute! Of course, it was downhill so not surprising, but it was awesome to go under 57 min, especially just 8 days after a hard 20K, and with sore legs, and in less than ideal weather.
Garmin connect data here.
the week in workouts in Southern California
I took it really easy this last week while we were in Disneyland. We walked A LOT every day in the park, and I had some blisters (hahaha) despite wearing RW shoes! I'm sure it was because walking sloooowly and standing a lot is quite different from racewalking.
I ate a lot, didn't racewalk much, and yeah, gained some weight. But it was fun, and the weight will come off.
I did an easy 5.27K on Monday, in 32:46, ave HR 130, ave pace 6:13/km.
On Tuesday I rested, and then on Wednesday did 9.9K in 1:03:00 for 6:22/km, ave HR 140.
On Thursday I managed an easy 5.25K in 32:31, ave HR 137, ave pace 6:12/km.
Friday and Saturday were more rest days! Yeah, I took it REAL easy.
Sunday morning I met Lauri Berger in the park in Huntington Beach for a nice easy 5.34km. Lauri is a fellow RWer from Arizona, and she was at the 15K in Riverside (she did the 5K) in May. I got to the park a bit earlier than she did, and so I did 1.07km (one park loop) before she got there. This is the course that they use for the USATF Masters 20K championships in March each year. I was glad to check out the course, since I'd love to do that race. I was going to do it this year, but that didn't work out. Maybe next year. Anyway, Lauri and I first took pictures of our matching license plates, and then did a nice slow walk at about 7:30/km (she usually does 5K races in 33-34 min) and really enjoyed socializing. She told me all about how she accidentally met Deena Kastor in Mammoth Lakes a week or so ago - she was camping there and went for a short training walk up and down a residential street, and ran into Deena walking her very large dog. Quite a story.
After the walk, I drove back to the hotel, packed up the car, and we drove the 10.5 hrs back to Salt Lake, arriving at 10 pm (with the hour lost to time change...sigh...).
I ate a lot, didn't racewalk much, and yeah, gained some weight. But it was fun, and the weight will come off.
I did an easy 5.27K on Monday, in 32:46, ave HR 130, ave pace 6:13/km.
On Tuesday I rested, and then on Wednesday did 9.9K in 1:03:00 for 6:22/km, ave HR 140.
On Thursday I managed an easy 5.25K in 32:31, ave HR 137, ave pace 6:12/km.
Friday and Saturday were more rest days! Yeah, I took it REAL easy.
Sunday morning I met Lauri Berger in the park in Huntington Beach for a nice easy 5.34km. Lauri is a fellow RWer from Arizona, and she was at the 15K in Riverside (she did the 5K) in May. I got to the park a bit earlier than she did, and so I did 1.07km (one park loop) before she got there. This is the course that they use for the USATF Masters 20K championships in March each year. I was glad to check out the course, since I'd love to do that race. I was going to do it this year, but that didn't work out. Maybe next year. Anyway, Lauri and I first took pictures of our matching license plates, and then did a nice slow walk at about 7:30/km (she usually does 5K races in 33-34 min) and really enjoyed socializing. She told me all about how she accidentally met Deena Kastor in Mammoth Lakes a week or so ago - she was camping there and went for a short training walk up and down a residential street, and ran into Deena walking her very large dog. Quite a story.
After the walk, I drove back to the hotel, packed up the car, and we drove the 10.5 hrs back to Salt Lake, arriving at 10 pm (with the hour lost to time change...sigh...).
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
WMA 20K - finally!
It's been 3 days since the race, and I'm just now getting a chance to blog about it. After the race, we ate lunch (ravenously hungry!), got our medals (sloooowly - disorganized!), and then just had time to go home and shower before heading out to dinner at the Buckhorn steak house in Winters, CA. Mmmmm, nothing like a nice steak after a long race! Then on Sunday it was off to watch the marathon early with David (Lis and Nyle cleaned the house - thanks guys!), home to pack, then on the road to southern California. We arrived at our hotel about 8 pm, got dinner, then crashed. Monday was spent at Disneyland and then I was waaaaay too tired at 9 pm to blog. So now it's Tuesday pm and I'm finally getting around to it!
***
Race day dawned overcast and cool in Sacramento, but by the time our race started at 10:15 am it was sunny and warmish. It got up to about 75F (24C) by the end of the race, which isn't THAT hot, but it was certainly warm enough to affect walkers in a longer distance like the 20K.
I felt stiff but not too bad on the warm-up. I thought I was recovered enough and ready to roll. Yeah, my legs were still sore from the 10K, but I've done hard workouts like that and been fast, so I figured it was no problem. Well, it was a problem. The lack of harder longer training due to my shin injury reared its ugly head pretty early in the race, and by 8K I knew (and told David who was walking next to me) that it was gonna be a tough race. The splits pretty much tell the tale of how I felt: 29:25 (5K), 30:03 (59:28, 10K), 30:10 (1:29:38, 15K), 30:59 (2:00:37, 20K). Ouch. The first 5K was fine (I enjoyed walking with Franz from Austria and David from Australia!), the next 5K was so-so, and the last 10K hurt. A lot. I did get pretty warm as the race went on, and dumped water over my head and used the sponge station every lap. I drank at least a liter of water during the race (from my personal water bottles - easier to drink from than cups!), but even so I ended up a bit dehydrated. Not as much as my friend Nyle, who walked a very fast 1:56:54 for a huge PR...and then ended up in the medical tent with crazy blood pressure and overheated, etc. She was fine about 15 min later, though, thankfully.
I was shooting for 9:14 per lap for a 1:58 20K, but knew after a couple laps that would not happen. I did a fast 7:08 for the first 1.24K (5:46/km) but then settled in to a good rhythm of 9:20-9:22 per 1563m lap. My first 4 full laps were 9:22, 9:22, 9:20, 9:22. Not bad! Then I got tired...like I said, between 7-8 km I couldn't hold that pace any more. I did 9:30, 9:35, 9:31, 9:30, 9:30, 9:30, 9:33, and then kicked it up for a 9:19 for the final and fastest lap. I was able to do that partly because I chased Maite Moscoso for the last half of that lap - she's a 1:48 20K walker from the USA and I was amazed that I was so close to her (she must have had a bad day? I didn't ask after the race - didn't see her) so I tried to catch her. I failed, but was only 2 sec behind her at the finish. I also passed Pam Tindal from Australia in the last couple laps - she is a very fast walker in F50-54 who can normally do much faster than me, but she hadn't trained the long stuff much so I actually beat her by a minute or so. I passed Katie Grimes (a 1:53 walker), too, but that was because she raced to get the gold and strategically stayed slow behind her competition until a couple laps from the end (she's in the 45-49 age group, not mine, thankfully!).
walking with Franz early in the 20K
trying to stay cool
right at the finish - great shot from Lauri :)
When I got to the last lap I could see that I'd be over 2 hr, and I was a bit disappointed, but I raced it hard anyway and I figured that given the previous two hard races and all that it was still a good time. 2:00:37 was my official time, and it was good for my third silver medal in W40-44, and is also a PR since I have never raced 20K before (lots of 1/2 marathons, which are 21.1K, but no 20Ks). Not bad considering all I've been through this past year. I wanted to train harder, and couldn't, and that has been frustrating. However, my coach is awesome and somehow managed to whip me into pretty good shape despite it all.
3 races - 3 silver medals - 3 PRs - gold medal in team 10K. 5K 28:04, 10K 57:35, 20K 2:00:37. I need to sit back and savor the accomplishments for a bit, and then get back out there and train! There are more races ahead, more World Masters (2016 is in Perth, AUS!), and lots of reasons to stay in shape.
Next goal race: Top of Utah marathon on Sept 17, 2011. I'd like to do a sub-4:30 or sub-4:25 marathon :).
Garmin connect data here.
***
Race day dawned overcast and cool in Sacramento, but by the time our race started at 10:15 am it was sunny and warmish. It got up to about 75F (24C) by the end of the race, which isn't THAT hot, but it was certainly warm enough to affect walkers in a longer distance like the 20K.
I felt stiff but not too bad on the warm-up. I thought I was recovered enough and ready to roll. Yeah, my legs were still sore from the 10K, but I've done hard workouts like that and been fast, so I figured it was no problem. Well, it was a problem. The lack of harder longer training due to my shin injury reared its ugly head pretty early in the race, and by 8K I knew (and told David who was walking next to me) that it was gonna be a tough race. The splits pretty much tell the tale of how I felt: 29:25 (5K), 30:03 (59:28, 10K), 30:10 (1:29:38, 15K), 30:59 (2:00:37, 20K). Ouch. The first 5K was fine (I enjoyed walking with Franz from Austria and David from Australia!), the next 5K was so-so, and the last 10K hurt. A lot. I did get pretty warm as the race went on, and dumped water over my head and used the sponge station every lap. I drank at least a liter of water during the race (from my personal water bottles - easier to drink from than cups!), but even so I ended up a bit dehydrated. Not as much as my friend Nyle, who walked a very fast 1:56:54 for a huge PR...and then ended up in the medical tent with crazy blood pressure and overheated, etc. She was fine about 15 min later, though, thankfully.
I was shooting for 9:14 per lap for a 1:58 20K, but knew after a couple laps that would not happen. I did a fast 7:08 for the first 1.24K (5:46/km) but then settled in to a good rhythm of 9:20-9:22 per 1563m lap. My first 4 full laps were 9:22, 9:22, 9:20, 9:22. Not bad! Then I got tired...like I said, between 7-8 km I couldn't hold that pace any more. I did 9:30, 9:35, 9:31, 9:30, 9:30, 9:30, 9:33, and then kicked it up for a 9:19 for the final and fastest lap. I was able to do that partly because I chased Maite Moscoso for the last half of that lap - she's a 1:48 20K walker from the USA and I was amazed that I was so close to her (she must have had a bad day? I didn't ask after the race - didn't see her) so I tried to catch her. I failed, but was only 2 sec behind her at the finish. I also passed Pam Tindal from Australia in the last couple laps - she is a very fast walker in F50-54 who can normally do much faster than me, but she hadn't trained the long stuff much so I actually beat her by a minute or so. I passed Katie Grimes (a 1:53 walker), too, but that was because she raced to get the gold and strategically stayed slow behind her competition until a couple laps from the end (she's in the 45-49 age group, not mine, thankfully!).
walking with Franz early in the 20K
trying to stay cool
right at the finish - great shot from Lauri :)
When I got to the last lap I could see that I'd be over 2 hr, and I was a bit disappointed, but I raced it hard anyway and I figured that given the previous two hard races and all that it was still a good time. 2:00:37 was my official time, and it was good for my third silver medal in W40-44, and is also a PR since I have never raced 20K before (lots of 1/2 marathons, which are 21.1K, but no 20Ks). Not bad considering all I've been through this past year. I wanted to train harder, and couldn't, and that has been frustrating. However, my coach is awesome and somehow managed to whip me into pretty good shape despite it all.
3 races - 3 silver medals - 3 PRs - gold medal in team 10K. 5K 28:04, 10K 57:35, 20K 2:00:37. I need to sit back and savor the accomplishments for a bit, and then get back out there and train! There are more races ahead, more World Masters (2016 is in Perth, AUS!), and lots of reasons to stay in shape.
Next goal race: Top of Utah marathon on Sept 17, 2011. I'd like to do a sub-4:30 or sub-4:25 marathon :).
Garmin connect data here.
Friday, July 15, 2011
10K race report; other stuff
Finally I'm going to put up my 10K race report! We've been busy since then, having fun, so no time to blog properly. Now the details are fading a bit but hopefully I can still come up with a good report.
The weather was about as perfect as it gets in Sacramento in the summer. That's not to say it was perfect for racing; it was in the upper 60s to start, and maybe mid-70s at the finish. I dumped water over my head and used the sponges for the last 3-4 laps, and I was definitely hot, but I don't think it affected my time very much.
The race started a bit late, but I just relaxed and listened to some music (U2) to calm myself after I warmed up. I felt good on the warm-up, which was about 1.5km with some strides. The 10km is my least favorite distance - it's not all-out like a 3k or 5k, but you still have to race very hard for quite a long time. The 5km is faster and harder, but it's over in less than 30 min. The 10K? Yeah, it hurts for a long time! The 20K is better because you have to start out conservatively, and you don't go as hard. Yeah, it's longer, but I think I'm a bit better at endurance races. Actually, I have never done a 20K before - but it's essentially the same as a half marathon, which is 21.1K, and I've done a lot of those, so I know what to expect. Anyway, because I don't like the 10K much, I really had to steel myself for what was to come.
The gun went off and I started out pretty fast, but felt well within myself. The first 0.62km were at a 5:31/km pace, according to my Garmin. Oops! Too fast! I settled in quickly, though, and felt quite good for the first 2 laps of the course. Becky Klein, who is in charge of the course, judges, etc. told me that each lap was 0.96 miles (1.544km). I did the first full lap in 8:59 and followed that up with a consistent 8:59. Good. The only thing that was worrisome to me was that my heart rate was a bit high (ave 167 and 169 for the first 2 full laps). However, I FELT good, so I went with how I was feeling and kept pushing. I knew it might be hard at the finish, but I though I would have what it took.
The next two laps were just in cruising mode, working hard but trying not to push too hard so that I'd have something left. Nyle was quite a bit ahead of me (150m?) and she looked strong. I put that out of my mind and just tried to walk my own race. The middle of a race is tough - you know you have to stay strong and not lose ground, yet you also want to save something for the end. I did a good job of pacing myself, doing laps 3 and 4 in 9:03 and 9:00. My ave HR was creeping up, though, at 170 and 173 for laps 3 and 4. Whoa...that was high...but I felt OK. I think maybe race day adrenaline was contributing to the high HR.
With 2 laps to go, I figured this was where the race really kicked in. I tried to pick up the pace a bit, but wanted to stay within myself. I ended up doing my slowest lap, at 9:07, with ave HR 174. I was really starting to struggle but knew I had 1 lap left, and it looked like I'd be sub-58:00 for sure, as the clock said 51:35 when I heard the bell for the last lap. I also saw that I was catching up with Nyle - she was only maybe 100m in front of me now. I pushed as hard as I could, and managed 8:59 for the last lap (average HR was a whopping 176! Whoa!), finishing in 57:35, a new 10K PR! My previous PR was 57:57 on a downhill course (which this was NOT - it was flat with very slight rises - maybe 2m?), and 58:43 on a flat road course in Spokane in 2008 (judged). So, I beat my judged 10K PR by over a minute :)! Awesome!!!
Nyle had finished in 57:03, and so she got the gold medal. I was pleased that I had come as close as I did to catching her, given the fact that I haven't been able to train as hard as I wanted to this spring. It gave me hope that maybe we could have a close race in the 20K; however, she had GI issues during the 10K and so if she feels good it might be a different story.
Team USA had 3 women in my age group, and we finished the fastest (Team Russia also fielded 3 people, bringing some down from an older age group) getting the team gold. It was fantastic to hear the national anthem played for us :).
Garmin connect data here.
***
This morning Nyle, David, and I all did 20 min easy with some strides. It was lovely weather, and SO very very nice to be racewalking with 2 friends the same speed. We all agreed that we SO wish we could train together all the time. I'll really miss Nyle and David when they leave.
We did a 6:02/km pace, and it felt nice and easy. We were all a bit stiff to start off, and began at a 6:30/km pace, but picked it up and we just cruised for 10 min. We threw in 4 nice hard strides in the last 10 min, for 3.31km total in the 20 min.
Garmin connect data here.
***
The rest of the day we have done nothing but relax. We did go to the Fleet Feet running store here in Davis, and I picked up a pair of New Balance 1400 racing flats. I love them! I wish I could have trained in them so I could race in them...but I will wear my trusty NB 205s tomorrow. Never do anything new for a race! I got a good nap this afternoon and soon I'll hit the sack for some good zzzzzs before the race :). I feel relaxed and as ready as I'm going to be. As much as I love racing, I'll be glad when these races are over - it's a lot of racing in a short time. However, I'm going to be really sad to say goodbye to my racewalking friends. It's such a great, supportive community.
***
I have posted lots more pictures of things on Facebook, so go check them out there. I will post more on my blog, but I need my rest now for the 20K.
Thursday, July 14, 2011
3x800 @ 85%
We're off to the SF Zoo, so quick post first. I warmed up with 1600m in 10 min flat (Calvin ran with me the whole way - and he could have gone faster!!! He's got some talent for a 6 year old!). Then Nyle and I did our 800s. We were thinking to do 4:30s, but I took off kind of fast and we did 4:20 for the first one, though it did feel easy. We did 4:25 and 4:27 for the last two, and again it felt pretty easy. We are both feeling a bit stiff from the hard 10K race, but not bad. I am a bit sore in glutes and a little in the hammies, and also in the trapezoids, oddly. Felt good to loosen up and do a bit of speed work.
Plus 3 data here - garmin connect is acting up
Plus 3 data here - garmin connect is acting up
videos from the 10K
Yeah, I know, I haven't written my race report yet, but I'll get to it soon I promise :).
Here are a couple videos you can watch in the meantime, from the 10K:
Here are a couple videos you can watch in the meantime, from the 10K:
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
cross-training
I did an easy 35-min bike ride this morning, while David walked the course in Land Park. It was 62F (about 16C) and overcast and windy - unusual July weather for Sacramento.
I feel good today - recovering well from the race. Nothing hurts, believe it or not. Just some minor soreness in glutes (good! I'm working them!) and adductors. No hamstring soreness at all, which is great. I think my technique changes are kicking in!
***
We toured the Jelly Belly factory in Fairfield, CA this morning, introduced David to chili dogs at Nation's burgers, and then rested this afternoon. Tonight we enjoyed the athlete's party in Old Sacramento. Tired. Going to bed soon; tomorrow we plan to go to the SF zoo with Loren and the kids, who arrived last night, as well as Loren's mom, who arrived today. Full house here now!
I feel good today - recovering well from the race. Nothing hurts, believe it or not. Just some minor soreness in glutes (good! I'm working them!) and adductors. No hamstring soreness at all, which is great. I think my technique changes are kicking in!
***
We toured the Jelly Belly factory in Fairfield, CA this morning, introduced David to chili dogs at Nation's burgers, and then rested this afternoon. Tonight we enjoyed the athlete's party in Old Sacramento. Tired. Going to bed soon; tomorrow we plan to go to the SF zoo with Loren and the kids, who arrived last night, as well as Loren's mom, who arrived today. Full house here now!
WMA 10K - silver medal, team gold, new PR!
Too tired to write a race report --- busy day after the race, because it took us 4 hr to get our medals (yeah, standing in the sun, hot, irritating to wait so long).
So, quick summary and more later:
57:35 - new PR for judged 10K by over a minute (previous PR 58:43!).
Silver medalist; Nyle won the gold in 57:03. I was getting closer to her each lap but mostly because she had serious GI trouble; nevertheless, she was able to hold me off for the gold.
Team gold - Team USA had 3 walkers in our group; Team Russia got the silver.
Garmin connect data here.
***
My kids & husband arrived tonight and I was so happy to see them :)!
So, quick summary and more later:
57:35 - new PR for judged 10K by over a minute (previous PR 58:43!).
Silver medalist; Nyle won the gold in 57:03. I was getting closer to her each lap but mostly because she had serious GI trouble; nevertheless, she was able to hold me off for the gold.
Team gold - Team USA had 3 walkers in our group; Team Russia got the silver.
Garmin connect data here.
***
My kids & husband arrived tonight and I was so happy to see them :)!
Monday, July 11, 2011
strong and ready
I'm feeling strong and ready for tomrrow's 10K race. I watched a bit of a video from last year's USATF Masters Nationals --- and was reminded just how much stronger I am this year. I am ready to rock n roll!
who says racewalkers don't have any fun?
Nyle told us waitstaff in NZ would never EVER sing happy birthday to customers - and so we had the staff at Chevy's sing happy birthday to HER even though it wasn't her birthday!!! :) hahahahahahaha!!!! LOL!
20' easy with strides
This morning I did 20 min easy with strides at the track (because David was working out at the track). I felt GREAT and fast and strong, and I had no problems at all with my shin or adductors. Whew.
The weather is NICE and cool for Sacramento in the summer. It's supposed to be about 64-69F (18-20C) from 10-11am tomorrow morning. That's about as good as it gets here. Of course I'd love it to be 10F cooler, but this is pretty darn good and I'm NOT complaining!
Garmin connect data here.
The weather is NICE and cool for Sacramento in the summer. It's supposed to be about 64-69F (18-20C) from 10-11am tomorrow morning. That's about as good as it gets here. Of course I'd love it to be 10F cooler, but this is pretty darn good and I'm NOT complaining!
Garmin connect data here.
Sunday, July 10, 2011
cross-training
Biking 12.48 km in 31:14; 24 km/hr average, ave HR 140. This was on my brother's heavy mountain bike. It was gorgeous out - 12C, 54F, sunny, not much wind.
We're off to San Francisco for the day!
Garmin connect data here.
We're off to San Francisco for the day!
Garmin connect data here.
Saturday, July 09, 2011
4x500 @ 85%
This morning I warmed-up for about 10 min w/strides (1.67km) and then did 4x500m @ 85% effort. I really did take it easy on these, except for the last one, which I did at about 90%. The second one was 0.01km short; I was not on the track and I was measuring by looking at the Garmin. My 500s were 2:44, 2:35 (short --- so probably 2:40ish), 2:40, and 2:38. Nice! The 2:38 was the fastest 500 this year, and I know I could have gone a bit faster, so I'm quite happy with this.
OK, got to go --- off to Lake Tahoe!
Garmin connect data here.
OK, got to go --- off to Lake Tahoe!
Garmin connect data here.
Friday, July 08, 2011
World Masters 5K race
I was nervous. It was warm (25-26C; about 77-79F). But I was also strangely calm, after warming up with Katie Grimes and Nyle. When they stood us on the track to line us up, I closed my eyes, focused, and had a U2 song ("Magnificent") going through my head. I remembered the quote from Chariots of Fire, "When I run, I feel God's pleasure" and thought about the real reasons for racewalking. I was seriously in my zone.
Nyle and I were a little intimidated by the Russian woman. She was statuesque, gorgeous, and amazingly fit. She did have a taped left hamstring though. I told Nyle that appearance means nothing and that we are to walk our own race, and I promptly stopped worrying about her.
The start gun went off and I told myself to go easy. I was probably in about 10th place coming around the first 200, but not too much jostling. I got to the first 200 in 1:04, which was just about right where I wanted to be (1:07/200m would be 27:55, which I figured in this heat was about right?). I settled in and then never really paid attention to my 200m splits again, which is unusual for me. I got in the zone and just kept clicking away the laps. My lap counter was SO nice and was yelling them out for me and I just felt like I was cruising. I was a bit disappointed that my first km was 5:36 but then realized that was perfect for the conditions. I just kept going, and cruised the first 3km. My splits were 5:36, 5:38, and 5:39 - slower than I'd wanted, but in hindsight I think it was perfect for the conditions. I was focused and in my zone.
At the 4th km I sped it up, because my coach said the race begins at 3km. Not long after that I lapped the Russian woman (whew!). I pushed hard from there to the finish, and with 2 laps to go felt so relieved it was almost over. It hurt, but felt good too. I did 5:34 for the 4th km - pushed my watch a few sec early so it says 5:31 on Garmin connect, but it was 5:34. I was about 100m behind Nyle for the whole race, and tried to catch her, but I was in my zone and just had no more. I didn't mind though - I was racewalking my own race and it felt good. The last 2km I just floored it is hard as I could and gave it my all; I pushed super hard for the last 400m and was so very, very relieved to finish. My last km was also a 5:34! Nice pacing!
I hugged Nyle and Katie right away and congratulated them. Whew...it's over...we chatted a while and then we went over to hug David, who was waiting on the other side of the track. Awesome race. Nyle and I are celebrating with wine, crackers & cheese, and chocolate. We are the world champion and silver medalist, after all!
Photo below: 1st-3rd in WMA 5K W40-44
Garmin connect data here.
Wednesday, July 06, 2011
rest day; 20' w/strides
Yesterday: rest day. I took photos and video of Nyle and David at the track, which I will post later. I have a lot of photos etc. to post but I am working on WORK stuff so no time at all. Between being a tour guide (loving that!) and my work work, there is not much time for uploading the fun photos. I put them on Facebook but not here yet...I promise I will...
We went wine tasting in Napa yesterday - great fun!
***
Today: easy 20' with strides. Nyle talked me into wearing my new sports bra for the workout. I was a bit self-conscious as I never go out in just a sports bra, but she told me it was OK :). Here's a photo!
We did 3.34 (Nyle's watch) or 3.42 km (my watch) for an average of 6:10/km (hers) or 6:01/km (mine) with 3 strides thrown in. Fun! So so so very very very very nice to walk with someone my pace. Excellent! David had cross-training so he jogged alongside of us. We chatted it up and had a great time :). Garmin connect data here.
***
I'm getting mentally ready for the race. Yesterday I was not confident, but today I'm feeling better. I feel that I'm ready and I feel strong. I can do this! Positive self-talk today and tomorrow is the plan.
We went wine tasting in Napa yesterday - great fun!
***
Today: easy 20' with strides. Nyle talked me into wearing my new sports bra for the workout. I was a bit self-conscious as I never go out in just a sports bra, but she told me it was OK :). Here's a photo!
We did 3.34 (Nyle's watch) or 3.42 km (my watch) for an average of 6:10/km (hers) or 6:01/km (mine) with 3 strides thrown in. Fun! So so so very very very very nice to walk with someone my pace. Excellent! David had cross-training so he jogged alongside of us. We chatted it up and had a great time :). Garmin connect data here.
***
I'm getting mentally ready for the race. Yesterday I was not confident, but today I'm feeling better. I feel that I'm ready and I feel strong. I can do this! Positive self-talk today and tomorrow is the plan.
Monday, July 04, 2011
3x2K/1K/2x500
Last hard workout before the races! I was very apprehensive about this one. 8K of intervals is a toughie, and it was pretty warm. When we got back from our workout, it was 77F (25C) and 54% humidity. The humidity was quite high by my desert standards!
Nyle and David came to the track with me - what a pleasure to have someone to work out with! They had an easy 8K, as they have been able to train more than I have. Jim had me not tapering at all before the 5K because I am not quite up to speed yet due to the shin injury. Anyway, they warmed up with me. I did an easy 1600m in 10:04 with strides. My left adductor felt tight for 200m or so and then it was totally fine the rest of the workout. Whew.
Then it was time to get going. Ugh. I actually started to get a bit emotional, because I guess I'm more keyed up about this than I thought. Nyle and David gave me hugs, calmed me down, and helped me think positively. Thank God for friends!!!
I started off surprisingly well. I felt very, very strong on the first 2K. I wonder if it's the altitude difference? Usually I don't notice it, but maybe that was it? Or maybe I'm just finally getting fit? I did a 5:28 and 5:29 for the first 2km! WOW! I have never done a 2K under 11:00! This one was 10:57! I was starting to get pretty darn warm...gee, it was hot. But I was excited to do the next one. It was also really good - 5:31 and 5:32. However, I had pushed that one really hard to get those times, and it was hot. I felt spent. Uh-oh. I wondered how I'd do now. My legs felt like Jell-O and I still had 4K left. And it was HOT. Really HOT. (Nyle and David thought it was hot too, and they were just doing an easy 8K). The next 2K really, really hurt. Bad. I started off with a 5:39 for the first 1K, and then I caught up to Nyle, and I told her I didn't think I could make it, that I was really hurting. She sped up and walked that whole next 1K with me! It was so helpful! We did a 5:37 for that km and I was totally spent then, but glad I'd been able to do a bit faster than the first km. My ave HR for that km was 174! Yikes! I was so glad for the 3 minutes of rest. But I was seriously HOT. I hoped I had something left. I surprised myself with a 5:33 1K, then 2 min rest, a 2:44 500m, 2 min rest, and finally a 2:42 on the last 500m! Amazing! I didn't think I had anything left, but I guess I did - Nyle sprinted the last 100m with me, which really helped.
Now for the down side...on the last 500m, I felt a pull in my RIGHT adductor. Yeah, not the left one that's been hurting, but the RIGHT one. Ugh. It still hurts. I'm icing it now and will baby it; it's probably just a spasm that will be better in a few days. I think the technique changes Jim made are very, very good, but they are using muscles a bit differently, especially my adductors as I get my toes farther back. It's making me a lot faster, but the muscles are not used to it yet. I am a bit nervous that I will not be recovered by Thursday, but hoping that tomorrow's optional day and the 20 min w/strides on Wednesday will be just the recovery I need.
Garmin connect data here.
Nyle and David came to the track with me - what a pleasure to have someone to work out with! They had an easy 8K, as they have been able to train more than I have. Jim had me not tapering at all before the 5K because I am not quite up to speed yet due to the shin injury. Anyway, they warmed up with me. I did an easy 1600m in 10:04 with strides. My left adductor felt tight for 200m or so and then it was totally fine the rest of the workout. Whew.
Then it was time to get going. Ugh. I actually started to get a bit emotional, because I guess I'm more keyed up about this than I thought. Nyle and David gave me hugs, calmed me down, and helped me think positively. Thank God for friends!!!
I started off surprisingly well. I felt very, very strong on the first 2K. I wonder if it's the altitude difference? Usually I don't notice it, but maybe that was it? Or maybe I'm just finally getting fit? I did a 5:28 and 5:29 for the first 2km! WOW! I have never done a 2K under 11:00! This one was 10:57! I was starting to get pretty darn warm...gee, it was hot. But I was excited to do the next one. It was also really good - 5:31 and 5:32. However, I had pushed that one really hard to get those times, and it was hot. I felt spent. Uh-oh. I wondered how I'd do now. My legs felt like Jell-O and I still had 4K left. And it was HOT. Really HOT. (Nyle and David thought it was hot too, and they were just doing an easy 8K). The next 2K really, really hurt. Bad. I started off with a 5:39 for the first 1K, and then I caught up to Nyle, and I told her I didn't think I could make it, that I was really hurting. She sped up and walked that whole next 1K with me! It was so helpful! We did a 5:37 for that km and I was totally spent then, but glad I'd been able to do a bit faster than the first km. My ave HR for that km was 174! Yikes! I was so glad for the 3 minutes of rest. But I was seriously HOT. I hoped I had something left. I surprised myself with a 5:33 1K, then 2 min rest, a 2:44 500m, 2 min rest, and finally a 2:42 on the last 500m! Amazing! I didn't think I had anything left, but I guess I did - Nyle sprinted the last 100m with me, which really helped.
Now for the down side...on the last 500m, I felt a pull in my RIGHT adductor. Yeah, not the left one that's been hurting, but the RIGHT one. Ugh. It still hurts. I'm icing it now and will baby it; it's probably just a spasm that will be better in a few days. I think the technique changes Jim made are very, very good, but they are using muscles a bit differently, especially my adductors as I get my toes farther back. It's making me a lot faster, but the muscles are not used to it yet. I am a bit nervous that I will not be recovered by Thursday, but hoping that tomorrow's optional day and the 20 min w/strides on Wednesday will be just the recovery I need.
Garmin connect data here.
Sunday, July 03, 2011
15K in Davis, CA
Weather: 68F to start and 77F when I finished; it was humid (for me...remember I'm from Utah!) at 62%. Actually, that's pretty humid for the Sacramento area too. I was definitely hot, and drank 32 oz of water. I only brought 16 oz but refilled at Noah's Bagels on Sycamore & Covell.
Adductor injury: When I started out I thought I was going to have to stop. It was really quite tender, but I figured I'd go 1km and if it didn't improve I'd quit. By 1km it felt much better, so I kept going, focusing on my right hip (which Jim and I think is the problem). It was mostly pretty good, just niggling a bit here and there until the end. The last km it tightened up a bit again, but if I'd had to I'm sure I could have made 20K. I think it's improving gradually so if I don't do anything stupid (um, yeah, like a hard 5K race on Thursday?) it should be OK. I stretched a lot when I got back.
Route: All around Davis...I got lost at one point (I used to live here so this is funny!) but it was in a neighborhood that I didn't usually go to, and so it was understandable. Fortunately, I asked someone directions and got back on track...sort of. I ended up going a bit far, so I had 1km to walk easy home after the 15K. That was a good thing, though, because it was a great cool-down for my adductor. I made sure I walked through the university, and past Russell Park Apartments, where we lived when we were newlyweds, 18 years ago. It still looks pretty much the same at the apartments, though the university has tons of new buildings of course.
I felt really pretty good today, other than being hot and drinking a lot. Obviously I could do with a bit more heat training, but the weather in SLC just did not cooperate! Oh well...I can get some while I'm here - there is still 2 wk until the 20K and I'll be more acclimatized then.
My first 5K was the slowest, probably because I was being a bit cautious of my adductor. Still, it was pretty good, in 31:35. My 2nd 5K split was a nice fast 30:53 (1:02:28), and the third one was 31:01 for 1:33:29 total and 6:13/km. Average HR was 151, which was pretty good considering the heat and all. I'm pleased with this workout and just keeping my fingers crossed that the adductor holds up OK.
Garmin connect data here.
Adductor injury: When I started out I thought I was going to have to stop. It was really quite tender, but I figured I'd go 1km and if it didn't improve I'd quit. By 1km it felt much better, so I kept going, focusing on my right hip (which Jim and I think is the problem). It was mostly pretty good, just niggling a bit here and there until the end. The last km it tightened up a bit again, but if I'd had to I'm sure I could have made 20K. I think it's improving gradually so if I don't do anything stupid (um, yeah, like a hard 5K race on Thursday?) it should be OK. I stretched a lot when I got back.
Route: All around Davis...I got lost at one point (I used to live here so this is funny!) but it was in a neighborhood that I didn't usually go to, and so it was understandable. Fortunately, I asked someone directions and got back on track...sort of. I ended up going a bit far, so I had 1km to walk easy home after the 15K. That was a good thing, though, because it was a great cool-down for my adductor. I made sure I walked through the university, and past Russell Park Apartments, where we lived when we were newlyweds, 18 years ago. It still looks pretty much the same at the apartments, though the university has tons of new buildings of course.
I felt really pretty good today, other than being hot and drinking a lot. Obviously I could do with a bit more heat training, but the weather in SLC just did not cooperate! Oh well...I can get some while I'm here - there is still 2 wk until the 20K and I'll be more acclimatized then.
My first 5K was the slowest, probably because I was being a bit cautious of my adductor. Still, it was pretty good, in 31:35. My 2nd 5K split was a nice fast 30:53 (1:02:28), and the third one was 31:01 for 1:33:29 total and 6:13/km. Average HR was 151, which was pretty good considering the heat and all. I'm pleased with this workout and just keeping my fingers crossed that the adductor holds up OK.
Garmin connect data here.
Saturday workout; toe update
Saturday morning I hit the gym and did the elliptical for an hour. I pushed it a bit harder than usual, perhaps because I was a bit irritated about my toe, my adductor, and general lack of rest/sleep for the last month or so. I managed 8.33 miles in the 60 minutes I was on it, with ave HR 144. That's the best I've done on that thing in a while. I'll take it.
***
Toe update - I visited the podiatrist on Friday. He said I'd have to have a repeat surgery. Apparently this happens sometimes. I told him I had very important races the next few weeks and asked if there was a quick fix, since the surgery does put you out of commission for a couple days. He proceeded to very nicely trim back the toenail, and he said it would last about 4-6 wk. Cool! I made an appointment for after I return from WMA. The toe is feeling much, much better now.
***
Adductor update - it's better since just doing the elliptical on Saturday. Still hurts a bit when I stretch it. I have 15K this morning so hopefully it will be OK if I watch my technique. If not, I'll quit and give it some more rest.
***
Travel update - I traveled to Davis, CA, yesterday, where my brother lives. Loren is stuck home with the kids, but my parents are helping and I think he'll live! I took Southwest, which was cheap, but there are no direct flights, so I had to fly to L.A. first. Wheeeee! Fortunately, all the flights were on time or even a bit early, and when I arrived my bag came promptly on the carousel. I was able to catch the bus to Davis easily enough (it only comes once an hour, so I was concerned about timing) and only had to wait about 15 min for it. It did take an hour to get here, but I read a book and relaxed, and then it was a short 1 block walk to my brother's house once I arrived. I let myself in with the garage code. Whew. Everything seemed to be going well! Then I grocery shopped for a few necessities for myself, David, and Nyle, worked for a while (I also worked on data analysis on the airplane and in the airport), and hit the sack about 10:30pm. I was hoping for a good night's sleep, but I woke up at 4:30 am. I've been getting up at 5:30 am in Salt Lake, so that was the same time...sigh...maybe I can get a nap?
***
On the agenda for today: 15K, clean house a bit for my guests, attend church, do some more data analysis, get more food at Costco, and pick up David and Nyle at 1:30 pm. We'll have a wine and cheese snack and hopefully a nap before we prepare dinner. They'll be jet lagged and tired, so no big plans tonight.
***
Toe update - I visited the podiatrist on Friday. He said I'd have to have a repeat surgery. Apparently this happens sometimes. I told him I had very important races the next few weeks and asked if there was a quick fix, since the surgery does put you out of commission for a couple days. He proceeded to very nicely trim back the toenail, and he said it would last about 4-6 wk. Cool! I made an appointment for after I return from WMA. The toe is feeling much, much better now.
***
Adductor update - it's better since just doing the elliptical on Saturday. Still hurts a bit when I stretch it. I have 15K this morning so hopefully it will be OK if I watch my technique. If not, I'll quit and give it some more rest.
***
Travel update - I traveled to Davis, CA, yesterday, where my brother lives. Loren is stuck home with the kids, but my parents are helping and I think he'll live! I took Southwest, which was cheap, but there are no direct flights, so I had to fly to L.A. first. Wheeeee! Fortunately, all the flights were on time or even a bit early, and when I arrived my bag came promptly on the carousel. I was able to catch the bus to Davis easily enough (it only comes once an hour, so I was concerned about timing) and only had to wait about 15 min for it. It did take an hour to get here, but I read a book and relaxed, and then it was a short 1 block walk to my brother's house once I arrived. I let myself in with the garage code. Whew. Everything seemed to be going well! Then I grocery shopped for a few necessities for myself, David, and Nyle, worked for a while (I also worked on data analysis on the airplane and in the airport), and hit the sack about 10:30pm. I was hoping for a good night's sleep, but I woke up at 4:30 am. I've been getting up at 5:30 am in Salt Lake, so that was the same time...sigh...maybe I can get a nap?
***
On the agenda for today: 15K, clean house a bit for my guests, attend church, do some more data analysis, get more food at Costco, and pick up David and Nyle at 1:30 pm. We'll have a wine and cheese snack and hopefully a nap before we prepare dinner. They'll be jet lagged and tired, so no big plans tonight.
Friday, July 01, 2011
it's just one thing after another...
So yesterday I noticed that the toe I'd had the surgery on last year (for ingrown toenail) was a bit sore. I was so busy that I didn't really think about it again until nighttime. When I looked at it I was appalled. The toenail had grown back where they had treated it to prevent regrowth! I guess it doesn't always take...ugh. Anyway, now it is ingrown again and the toenail is in two parts. I called the podiatrist this morning and begged to get in today, since I'm leaving tomorrow. I told them I'm an athlete and going to do races out of town and could they please find a way to squeeze me in. My podiatrist has been on vacation it turns out, and today is his first day back since then, so he's really booked. Thankfully, they fit me in anyway and I can see him at 1:45 pm.
It seems like there is a conspiracy afoot to keep me down for the count. I am NOT giving up. WMA, here I come - ready or not - and I'm not sure I feel ready, but I'm still coming!!!
3K fartlek, 3x800/200
Weather: 63F and clear and calm. Nice.
Workout: 3K fartlek + 3 x (800, 30 sec rest, then 200).
Injury update: Shin is totally fine. Adductor spasm is better but still marginal. I was nervous about it.
Track: East High was locked because of the equipment out there from the football camp. Grrrrr. I drove to Highland High and the cheerleaders were there, but they graciously let me use lane 1.
I warmed up for 2K, doing some strides during the last 400m so as to ease into them and not cause my adductor to spasm. It worked. The 3K fartlek went very well; my HR was a bit high today and I think that's because of all the stress (work, getting ready for trip...). I bet my resting HR was high this morning. I was up until midnight doing data analysis for work, and then got up at 5:45 to get to the track. I'm pretty stressed out. Anyway, the 3K fartlek still went well. I forgot to bring my Garmin cradle so will upload later, but here are my splits (ave HR in parentheses): 1K fast 5:33 (159), 500m medium 2:57 (166), 500m hard 2:48 (174), 500m medium 3:03 (170), 500m hard 2:47 (175) for a total of 17:07, a 3K fartlek PR by 2 seconds. The adductor was a bit tight but felt OK.
I had 4 min rest and then the 800/200s. I knew I'd have to be a bit conservative starting out because of my adductor and accelerate gradually. I figured I'd be a bit slow, and I was. My first 800m was 4:30 (163), then 30s rest, and then I actually did a 57s 200m! Wow! That was fast! I had 2 min rest and could feel the adductor tightening a bit. I was really focused on technique to try and avoid problems, but when I started the next 800m I definitely felt it spasm/tweak. I finished the 800m in 4:31 (slow...bummer....) and my adductor was OK but not great. I decided then that this was my last one; it was not worth it to try and do all three and injure myself. So I rested 30s and did the 200 all-out in 58s (hey, that was pretty good!) and called it quits. Better safe than sorry. I figured I could do another one, but I just didn't want to chance it after the spasm in the 2nd 800.
I get to rest it a bit tomorrow with some cross-training, and then hopefully I'll be good to go for 15K in on Sunday morning.
No Garmin data online yet, sorry.
Workout: 3K fartlek + 3 x (800, 30 sec rest, then 200).
Injury update: Shin is totally fine. Adductor spasm is better but still marginal. I was nervous about it.
Track: East High was locked because of the equipment out there from the football camp. Grrrrr. I drove to Highland High and the cheerleaders were there, but they graciously let me use lane 1.
I warmed up for 2K, doing some strides during the last 400m so as to ease into them and not cause my adductor to spasm. It worked. The 3K fartlek went very well; my HR was a bit high today and I think that's because of all the stress (work, getting ready for trip...). I bet my resting HR was high this morning. I was up until midnight doing data analysis for work, and then got up at 5:45 to get to the track. I'm pretty stressed out. Anyway, the 3K fartlek still went well. I forgot to bring my Garmin cradle so will upload later, but here are my splits (ave HR in parentheses): 1K fast 5:33 (159), 500m medium 2:57 (166), 500m hard 2:48 (174), 500m medium 3:03 (170), 500m hard 2:47 (175) for a total of 17:07, a 3K fartlek PR by 2 seconds. The adductor was a bit tight but felt OK.
I had 4 min rest and then the 800/200s. I knew I'd have to be a bit conservative starting out because of my adductor and accelerate gradually. I figured I'd be a bit slow, and I was. My first 800m was 4:30 (163), then 30s rest, and then I actually did a 57s 200m! Wow! That was fast! I had 2 min rest and could feel the adductor tightening a bit. I was really focused on technique to try and avoid problems, but when I started the next 800m I definitely felt it spasm/tweak. I finished the 800m in 4:31 (slow...bummer....) and my adductor was OK but not great. I decided then that this was my last one; it was not worth it to try and do all three and injure myself. So I rested 30s and did the 200 all-out in 58s (hey, that was pretty good!) and called it quits. Better safe than sorry. I figured I could do another one, but I just didn't want to chance it after the spasm in the 2nd 800.
I get to rest it a bit tomorrow with some cross-training, and then hopefully I'll be good to go for 15K in on Sunday morning.
No Garmin data online yet, sorry.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)