Recovery Week and Training for Something New

Ahhh...recovery week. Next to OCD race day preparation, this is definitely my favorite part of running. I didn't do much of anything. In fact, the only physical thing I did this week was take my dog for a 1 mile walk. It was nice to have a break.

I've noticed how much more quickly I recover from these things now. I was a bit sore from the race, but nothing too bad. I didn't feel like I needed a massage like after my first. And have I mentioned that for the first time since I started running in April, I finished a race and did not have horrific blisters? Hurray! This was always the worst part of post race recovery for me. My feet looked (and felt) like they'd been in a blender after each race!

Even though I was looking forward to my "last half marathon for awhile" and even though I am so relieved it is over, I do find myself a little anxious that if I stop training for them and running them, I'll lose a lot of my endurance. The last one was so enjoyable, and I felt so good during it. The thought of doing another, and it feeling like that wretched first one is absolutely horrifying! I am however tired of the "long slow run" training, a little bored with it you might say. So I'm going to work on training for the Cowtown 10k. I didn't much enjoy the last (and only) 10k I ran, but to be fair, I didn't enjoy much about running then. I'm hoping I'll enjoy mixing the training up and trying a different distance. Here's what my training program looks like. It's from SmartCoach on Runner's World.

Week 1:
2m easy
5m tempo
2m easy
7m long run

Week 2:
3m easy
5m speedwork
2m easy
7m long run

Week 3:
3m easy
5m tempo
2m easy
8m long run (but I'm going to run in a 5k instead)

Week 4:

3m easy
6m tempo
2m easy
8m long run

Week 5:
3m easy
3m easy
Race Day

Houston Half Race Report (and other weekend fun)

I was really looking forward to getting this thing over with! I was feeling kind of negative (not a surprise to those who know me well). I actually skipped a long run this training period, and I got sick on Wednesday before the race. Not good. I had really been looking forward to breaking 2:30:00, seeing Christine, and spending the weekend in Houston with Jonathan. But getting sick zapped the enthusiasm for the weekend.

Friday: Arrive in Houston

Luckily Thursday was the worst I felt. The flight was pretty painful (had a sinus and ear infection), but by mid-afternoon, I was starting to feel better. We went to Jonathan's sister's house and played with her kids, had dinner with the whole family, and stayed the evening.

Saturday: Pre Race

After breakfast and more playtime with the kids, we were off to check into our hotel. We got rooms at one of the race hotels, the Four Seasons. It was so nice! We met the Strouds at the expo, got settled into our room (and did all my favorite race day prep!), then went to dinner with the Strouds and some of their friends, Josh, Jen, and Shane. The expo was so organized that I just had a great feeling about the whole race.



Sunday: The Main Event

I didn't sleep all that great, and it was a 7am race so we got up earlier than usual. I didn't really feel nervous. I was just excited to get the thing out of the way! The hotel was just blocks from the convention center which was so great. We checked our bags and went to our respective starting corrals. Again, everything was first rate. It was incredibly organized! There were 25,000 people running so I thought it would be mass chaos. Fortunately, I was wrong!

The weather was incredible--low 60's, no wind. Earlier in the week, it was projected to be cold, and there was talk of rain. Houston is notoriously muggy so I had low expectations for the weather. However, after the heat at the Dallas Half, and the wind at White Rock, I was sure I could deal with anything. So to actually have great weather---what a blessing!

Miles 1-2: It took forever to get to the actual start. I learned my lesson weaving around people at White Rock so I just walked along until I got there. I could not get my music to work, but I was determined not to panic (I finally got it working). I really tried to look around and take it all in. I was completely inspired by a young couple nearby. The husband was blind, and his wife was leading him through the race. The start was tricky for a sighted person so I cannot imagine how difficult this was for them! I never saw the first mile marker, and I was getting pretty tired. I was thinking what a long 13.1 this was going to be when I saw the second mile marker! No wonder! I kept thinking I was on mile 1! I was relieved to know that I was further along than I thought. Water stations were consistently at every 1.5 miles starting at mile 2. I took water at mile 2, walked 1 minute, then calculated where I needed to be for a 2:30:00 finish. I knew I needed to keep my miles at around 11:30. I was behind at mile 2 so I tried to pick it up the next mile.

Miles 3-7: Most of these miles I read the signs in the crowd and the backs of people's shirts. The crowd support was incredible. There was an adorable little boy (probably 4 years old) on his dad's shoulders screaming at the top of his lungs, "Go Mommy! You're so fast!" He was so cute (especially since I knew that if his mom was anywhere near me, she wasn't fast). My favorite shirt was a grandpa running in between his 2 granddaughters. The front of his shirt said "Amy and Kim's Paw-Paw". The front of the girls' shirts said "I'm Kim." "I'm Amy." The back of his shirt said "I Had to Make Them Do This." The back of the girls' shirts said "He Made Me Do This" with arrows pointing toward the grandpa. They got loud cheers from the crowd!

Making sure I was on pace really passed the time. I only checked my pace at every mile marker, and I kept being surprised that I was on track for a 2:30:00 finish. Since the water stops were consistent, I decided to walk 1 minute at each water stop instead of each mile.

Miles 8-10: These miles were tough. It was a long stretch where you ran to the end then turned around and ran back (I didn't like this part of the White Rock course either). It was discouraging to see the mile 10 marker on the other side of the road and know I wasn't even at mile 8 yet. I had a fear that I would fall apart at mile 10 (like the other 2 half marathons) so I really tried to work hard and stay on pace these miles. Amazingly, I did.

Mile 11-13.1: At White Rock, I had to extend my walk breaks to 2 and 3 minutes the last couple of miles. I was so surprised to be a little ahead of pace when I got to mile 10 that this gave me a big rush. I knew if I kept it up, I'd meet my goal. The last water stop was at mile 11.5. I decided this would be my last walk break, and it would only be a minute. Right after the walk break, there was a bridge with a sign that said "You only have 1.5 miles to go". This was also the part of the course where you could see mile 25 of the marathon. Some of the elites were on that part of the course (yes, the elites were finishing 25 miles at the same time I was finishing 11.5 miles). It was amazing to see how fast they were running and hear the crowds yelling for them. Most of the half marathoners were yelling for them, too. I decided that if they could stomach another 1 after 25 miles, surely I could stomach another 1.5 after only 11.5 miles. I couldn't believe how strong I felt the last 1.5 miles. I knew I had to book it to finish in 2:30:00 so I didn't let up. My music was stuck on 3 songs, and one of them was a Christian song called "You are a Child of Mine". I blared it then I turned off my music the last .5 miles so I could hear the crowd. It felt so good to cross the finish line!

Jonathan was waiting at the finish line, and we got our finisher shirts (so cute) then met up with the Strouds and Josh, Jen, and Shane (David, Josh, and Christine all ran the 5k). Jonathan finished in 2:07:27 (a new PR!), and I finished in 2:28:47! It was a great race--wonderful weather, a well organized event, good finish times, and shared with friends!

Sunday P.M.: We shared a post race meal with the Strouds, Josh, Jen, and Shane then headed over to see more of Jonathan's family. We shared dinner with his sweet Aunt Dorothy and sweet grandmother, Mary, before turning in at his grandmother's house.

Monday: Another One Down, None to Go (at least not anytime soon)

We shared breakfast with his grandmother before meeting his family for lunch then it was off to the airport to come home. We had a few minutes to kill after lunch so we stopped by an AT&T store and got my belated birthday gift..an iPhone! Hurray! All in all, a great weekend, and a great "last half marathon for awhile." I'm looking forward to taking the week off and enjoying my sub-2:30 finish.

Here I Go Again

It's game time again! And lucky for me, I have a sinus infection and ear infection. This should be fun. Pray I feel better by Sunday! As always, a race report will follow...

What Should I Wear To Run When It's Cold (or hot, or windy, or...)?

I always struggle with what to wear on a run when it's cold out. I can't stand to be hot so I usually err on the side of under dressing. This weekend, the low is 44, the high is 64, and there's a slight chance of rain. As in all things I have questions about, I did a google search and found this "What Should I Wear" tool. I thought it was interesting so I'm sharing it.

Happy Birthday To Me

Yep---I'm a year older on January 12th. This means I've had to update my narrative on my blog description--a "31 year old" instead of a "30 year old". I'm taking a rest day on my birthday and will get back at it on Tuesday.

Week 3 of 4: Houston Half Training Report

M: 5m (split into 2 runs over M and T because I ran out of time on M)
T: Finished Monday's runs and strength
R: 4m tempo (turned into 3m tempo)
Su: 10m

This was a pretty good running week. Maybe it was made better knowing it was my last week of intense runs (or at least this much mileage) for awhile. I'm done with these half marathons until at least fall. Need a break.

I'm experimenting with working out in the mornings. I didn't get to the gym early enough Monday for a 5 mile run so I split that run into 2 runs. My tempo run Thursday was tough. I could only keep up the faster pace for 1 mile (not the 2 the workout suggested). It was nice to push a little faster pace, but it was really, really tough. Today's long run went pretty well. The first 3 miles my legs felt like lead, but then they loosened up. The wind was bad the first 5 miles, but the last 5 were really great. It was a gorgeous day to be outside. I hope that's my last 10 mile run for awhile.

I really have enjoyed working out in the mornings. I don't like to get up super early, and I really like breakfast time with Jonathan so we adjusted our schedule a bit. We're now getting up a tad earlier, having breakfast together, then I head to the gym while Jonathan gets ready for work. I get ready for work at the gym (both downtown) and show up for work at 8:30am. This is quite a bit later than I usually go to work, but it's working out nicely. I was trying to workout at lunch for most of last year. While it works great for strength training days, it's pretty difficult on running days because I seriously overheat--sweat a ton and have a tomato red face. It's hard to cool down and get looking normal in time for afternoon appointments. I hope it goes just as well this week.

I'm looking forward to a taper week and knocking out this last half marathon.

Follow Me in Houston

If you'd like to follow Jonathan or me at the Houston Half, go here and register. I will say that this didn't work so well at White Rock when I tried it, but maybe Houston has a different system.

Treadmill Pace Calculator

Now that it's cold out, I've been doing my mid-week runs on the treadmill. I'm not too keen on treadmills. On the one hand, they seem easier, because I'm inside away from the elements with the TV on in front of me with no wind resistance or natural up and down slope of the road to deal with. On the other hand, I have to run at an even pace which I don't naturally do, and I can just hop off when I'm tired. I'm not that self-disciplined. I need to run "out and back" courses so that when I want to stop, I know that the only way to get to my destination is to run there (or walk, but that will take longer).

I did a treadmill class at the gym a couple of times (literally I think about 2 times), and the instructor said that you should always put the incline on at least .5% because leaving it at 0% is like running/walking at a decline and harder on your knees. She said that a .5% incline on the treadmill is really the equivalent to flat terrain outside.

I've been trying to incorporate some speedwork and tempo runs into this round of training so I wanted to see what the equivalent paces were on the treadmill at different inclines vs. the road. I have heard that what the treadmill readout says the pace is is a little off. I found a chart on hillrunner.com , but it didn't have all of the settings from 5.0-6.0, and it didn't have equivalent paces for a .5% incline so I expanded the chart to include these. Feel free to use it:

Treadmill MPH Setting	Flat road pace per mile	Actual equivalent paces by incline
		0%	0.5%	1%	2%	3%
5.0	12:00	12:31	12:08	11:44	11:05	10:32
5.1	11:46	12:17	11:54	11:31	10:54	10:22
5.2	11:32	12:02	11:40	11:18	10:42	10:11
5.3	11:20	11:49	11:28	11:07	10:31	10:01
5.4	11:07	11:35	11:15	10:55	10:20	9:51
5.5	10:55	11:23	11:03	10:44	10:10	9:42
5.6	10:43	11:10	10:51	10:32	10:00	9:33
5.7	10:32	10:59	10:41	10:22	9:51	9:25
5.8	10:21	10:47	10:30	10:12	9:42	9:16
5.9	10:11	10:37	10:20	10:02	9:33	9:08
6.0	10:00	10:26	10:09	9:52	9:24	9:00
6.1	9:50	10:15	9:59	9:43	9:16	8:52
6.2	9:41	10:05	9:50	9:34	9:08	8:44
6.3	9:31	9:56	9:41	9:26	9:00	8:37
6.4	9:23	9:46	9:32	9:17	8:52	8:30
6.5	9:14	9:37	9:23	9:09	8:45	8:23
6.6	9:05	9:29	9:15	9:01	8:37	8:16
6.7	8:57	9:20	9:07	8:53	8:30	8:10
6.8	8:49	9:12	8:59	8:45	8:23	8:03
6.9	8:42	9:04	8:52	8:39	8:17	7:57
7.0	8:34	8:56	8:44	8:32	8:10	7:51
7.1	8:27	8:49	8:37	8:25	8:04	7:45
7.2	8:20	8:41	8:30	8:18	7:58	7:40
7.3	8:13	8:34	8:23	8:12	7:52	7:34
7.4	8:06	8:27	8:16	8:05	7:46	7:28
7.5	8:00	8:20	8:10	7:59	7:40	7:23
7.6	7:54	8:14	8:04	7:53	7:34	7:18
7.7	7:48	8:07	7:57	7:47	7:29	7:13
7.8	7:42	8:01	7:51	7:41	7:24	7:08
7.9	7:36	7:55	7:46	7:36	7:18	7:03
8.0	7:30	7:49	7:40	7:30	7:13	6:58

Oh, My. Stop What You're Doing.

Stop what you're doing right now and read this.

Okay, good. Now let me tell you my very favorite part:

We might begin the year with big ideas and big plans but it is in the translation between intent and action where excellence resides...

You know how I love words, but even at their finest they are insufficient without the heart behind them, giving them substance and meaning, breathing life into our intentions and making our actions sing.

Abstract sentiment is not enough. Let's run strong, work hard, live free, speak truth, and love well.

I have been a "word lover", well, forever. I have been fascinated with words ever since my mom read me my first book (I would memorize them when I couldn't read yet), read everything I could get my hands on as soon as I learned to read myself (Boxcar Children, Nancy Drew, Judy Blume, Babysitters Club, Sweet Valley Twins, Sweet Valley High, you get the picture), loved stories ever since that first UIL story telling competition in the second grade, and writing? Oh, man. I have written letters (still have an entire box of letters my Mammaw and I exchanged over the course of 21 years), poetry, short stories, long stories, journal entries, you name it--since the very beginning.

And when you love words, when you love to read them, say them, write them, listen to them, reflect on them, when you love thinking of all the unique ways you can put them together to say something powerful....you can fall into the trap of becoming "all talk". That's why that post really hits home. Abstract sentiment really isn't enough. I needed to hear that. Beautiful, touching, inspirational, sentiment is still just sentiment when you strip down the "beautiful, touching, and inspirational" from it. Words (even beautiful words) are meaningless if there is no action to back them up. I'm going to remember that as I read through my journal entry on Who I Want to Be At This Time Next Year. I am going to focus on being intentional with my action items.

Week 2 of 4: Houston Half Training Report

T: 4m
W: Strength training
R: Speedwork-New Year's Resolution 5k
F: Strength training
Sa: 10m

I actually did all my runs this week! Go me! Tuesday it was absolutely gorgeous here (albeit windy) so Jonathan and I went home at lunch and ran 4 miles outside instead of going to the gym and running on the treadmill. It went great. Thursday there was a local New Year's Resolution 5k so we decided to get up and run that. I was slated to do speedwork anyway so I thought it would be good to do the race. Smart Coach said my speedwork should be done at a 10:30 pace, and I ran the 5k at a 10:36 pace so I was pretty much on target. It was cold and windy on race day. Lots of people were out for the race though so that made it fun. I had no expectations time-wise, I just wanted to run it faster than I have been running my easy runs. I was a little surprised that my time was so slow though. It was even slower than my first 5k time. I guess my body has adjusted to the long slow runs in training for these half marathons.

This morning we got up and did our long run. We decided to run aimlessly and call every 11:00 a mile so we ran for an hour and fifty minutes total. I continued my walk run method, and it went well, despite the fact that the wind was blowing 25mph. We ran to some new places and found some new routes we'd like to explore. This is my first long run since White Rock (way back on Dec. 14) so I was a little nervous about it. Next week is my last real training week before the taper week before Houston so I'm determined to get all my runs in.