Planless Plan

So, technically, Monday night was the first night of my training for the Milwaukee Marathon on October 2nd.

I've been trying and trying to figure out a training plan but with the travel I'm doing this summer and all the races I'm doing to earn a participation award from the Chicago Area Runner's Association I'm having a difficult time figuring out when to do all my long runs.

So, I'm sort of following a plan. Kind of. I'm thrown paces for most things out the window and am just going to try and get in the miles when I can. Hey, it worked for my half marathon PR.

Which meant that Monday night I just tried to enjoy the run even though it was warm outside. My pace for the Monday night runs has dropped by almost 45 seconds to a minute per mile since March-April-May. I guess we know what time of year I like to run, huh?

Monday Night OPRC Run by snmnstrz21 at Garmin Connect - Details

Although, to be honest, I could have pushed it harder on Monday night but a part of me wonders why. I'm trying to enjoy running and right now worrying too much about my pace is not enjoyable.

But I am worried about getting in the miles. So here's my current training plan:


Or see it here

Of course, I've already blown it this week by not getting in any cross training or running on Tuesday and it looks like Thursday will be the same. Oh well.

Thoughts?

Monday, Monday

Not too much to say about Monday evening's run. Other than the fact that somehow for the last mile and a half I ended up in the group of fast guys. Of course, I was pushing it really hard while they were casually talking about football but I still think it's pretty cool.



The other notable thing about Monday night's run is that it was the official start of my half marathon training. I spent some time on Friday working on my training plan. I tried to merge the FIRST half plan and the FIRST full plan. I figured I ran my best half marathon last year when I was three-quarters done with marathon training so why not stick with what worked.

The plan below is sort of a draft in that it might change as I go along. I've tried to account for days when I'll be traveling or already know I'll be unable to run or lift but you know how plans are. Wily little bastards.



Click here to see on a separate page

As evidence of plans and their wily ways, I didn't EXACTLY run a tempo run last night. I mean, I ran faster than normal but instead of a mile and a half cool-down I ran my fastest mile and a half last. Oops. Oh well.

Tonight I'm going to see the Hood to Coast movie. Look for a review in my Weekly Workout Wround Up post next week!

And, as the kitten says, hope you have a great week!

Racing Season

Racing season has definitely started here in the Chicagoland area. The "official" start is in March so we're well into the time when there is literally at least one race every weekend.

Since I belong to two running groups and have friends in the area that run, I'm constantly being bombarded with races to sign up for. I love racing. I really do. So, although at the start of the year my race calendar was clear between May and October, I've already managed to fill it up!

Here's what I've got (tentatively) planned for the next few months:

Sunday, June 13th - North Shore Half Marathon
I know, I know, I said I was going to stick to marathon training and then shorter distances. But I am not trying for time in this race. I'm trying to run the whole thing without walk breaks. I've never done that in a half marathon before.

Saturday, July 3rd - 4 on the 3rd 4 miler
In lieu of our monthly running club meeting members run this race and then have a picnic brunch afterward. Sounds good to me!

Saturday, July 24th - Waterfall Glen Xtreme 10
Both OPRC members and my lunch time running group members are running this. Remember that super hot trail run I did a few weeks ago? Yeah, same course. I'm supposed to run 12 slow miles that day for marathon training so I wouldn't necessarily "race" this. Plus, I seem to recall that I might have some birthday parties to attend this weekend...

I was also going to run the Rock and Roll Chicago Half Marathon on August 1st but I was trying to save up the $110 (!!) entry fee. However, it's now sold out at that price and there's no way I'm paying $160 (the current price) to run the 13 miles I have on my marathon training schedule. Oh well.

So instead I'm thinking about running the Chicago Half Marathon on September 12th. I've got 10 miles at a pretty quick pace on the schedule for that day anyway. That one's only $70 but I'd need to decided quickly before it sells out!

And then, of course, there's the CARA Ready to Run 20 miler on September 19th. It's not a race, just a fully-supported 20 mile training run targeted at those of us training for the Chicago Marathon.

And THEN there's one of my favorite races of the year, the PAWS 8K on September 26th. I may or may not do this one as it doesn't really fit into my training plan.

The biggie of the rest of the season, though, is, of course, the Chicago Marathon on October 10th (speaking of which, if you're one of those people who likes training plans, here's mine). After that I may be so burnt out on racing that I take the rest of the year off. Or maybe I'll run a 10K or two. Believe it or not I don't have my schedule planned out that far :-)

Mind Over Matter

So, my shin. Seems to be better. I get an occasional twinge now and then but it's no longer limp inducing and I was able to run on it on Thursday. I can't tell if the twinges are all in my head or if there's really still something going on.

On Wednesday night I went to the gym, did some ab work, foam rolled my shin and my calf and then took my aerobics class. I iced my leg when I got home and all was good.

Yesterday I debated whether or not to run. I really wanted to and my shin seemed okay, so I did. Strangely, I had some heel pain on that same leg. Not enough to alter my speed, though. Once again, I hit my pace almost exactly on the nose. Too bad I can't get the lunch time running group to run my half marathon with me :-)

I'm always a little apprehensive when I show up to the lunch time group and I'm the only woman there. Sometimes the guys leave me in the dust. Sometimes they're nice enough to stick with me. It just depends. Yesterday they stuck with me. Well, one of them did. One ended up way ahead of us and the other way behind us. Also, the pace we were running at almost felt easy. This whole getting faster thing is weirding me out.

Also, I've decided to rework my training schedule a little bit. I've decided to run a 5K race on Sunday. Next week was supposed to be a cut-back week mileage-wise, but I decided that this week will be an early cut-back and next week I'll switch out the 5 miles on Saturday for 8 miles I'm supposed to do tomorrow. Look! I'm learning to be flexible!!

Oh, one more thing: Erica over at I Run Because...I Can is doing another giveaway! That girl is always waving awesome stuff in front of us. Anyway, this time it's an assortment of GU products. I've never tried any of them because I'm terrified of what ingesting caffeine would do to me while running. So, while I wouldn't spend money to find out, I'd be okay trying it in the comfort of my own basement on my own treadmill. Check it out if you're a GU fan!

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Note: The Garmin didn't pick up a signal right away so it only measured 4.2 miles. We probably did closer to 4.5 since we ran the same route we always do on Thursdays.

Activity Route: -- Elev. Avg: 589 ft Location: Chicago, IL Elev. Gain: -6 ft Date: 02/25/10 Up/Downhill: [+154/-160] Time: 12:19 PM Difficulty: 2.5 / 5.0   Weather: A Few Clouds   29 F temp; 55% humidity   29 F heat index; winds NW 9 G 20 Performance Distance: 4.21 miles Time: 0:38:30 Speed: 6.6 mph Pace: 9' 09 /mi Calories: 497 Map   Elevation (ft)   Pace (min/mile)   Splits Mile Pace (min/mile) Speed (mph) Elevation Gain actual +/- avg actual +/- avg 1 9' 12 +0' 03 6.5 -0.0 +3 ft 2 9' 08 -0' 01 6.6 +0.0 -20 ft 3 9' 19 +0' 10 6.4 -0.1 +13 ft 4 9' 02 -0' 07 6.6 +0.1 -9 ft end 8' 46 -0' 23 6.8 +0.3 +3 ft Versus average of 9' 09 min/mile

Posted from bimactive.com

Planning the Plan

Registering for races is funny. For many of them to have to register months in advance just to make sure you get a spot. For others, you feel the pressure to register ASAP just in case they sell out. And sometimes you register just because you need something to motivate you. Especially for those of us that spend half the year in a winter "wonderland." There needs to be a light at the end of the tunnel. That light? Race season!

So, with that in mind, here are the races I already know I'm planning to run:

Race That's Good for Life - April 11, 2010

Wisconsin Half Marathon - May 1, 2010

Cleveland Marathon's 10K - May 16, 2010

Solider Field 10 Mile - May 29, 2010

And I'm still debating the Shamrock Shuffle 8K which is the official start of race season here in Chicago. Run or volunteer?

Plus, there's the marathon I want to run this year. I'm pretty sure I've decided on Chicago. Registration opens February 1st. Rather crazy for a race that isn't being run until October 10th! On the plus side, my parents can kill two birds with one stone: they can visit my brother on his birthday AND see me run my first marathon :-)

As you can see, my calendar is busy busy busy in May. 3 races in one month? How will I ever manage it all?

The plan is this:

1. Train hard for the half marathon and run for a PR.

2. Get my friend Rae in under an hour in the 10K

3. Enjoy the 10 Miler with my friend Holly. I've never run a 10 mile race before so regardless of the time it will be a PR!

4. Have the BEST May ever!

I don't think this is too ambitious at all. But I'm sure you can see why I haven't scheduled anything else out until October :-)

Anyway, I spent part of yesterday working on my training plan for the half-marathon. I've decided to incorporate both the Hal Higdon Intermediate Plan and the Runner's World Smart Coach plan and use the group runs I already do as part of my tempo, pace and speedwork runs. Check it out! And, as you can see if you click on the Runner's World plan, the Smart Coach seems to think I can run this race in under 2 hours. As that's my ultimate goal, I'm sticking with the speeds they suggest. Although, as Kristen commented on my last post, sometimes the speedwork is too fast the long runs too slow. So, I won't be upset with myself if I don't hit those times exactly.

This plan starts February 1st. I think the hardest part will actually be sticking to the slower speeds during some of the group runs. I'm just going to have to be upfront with people and tell them I don't mind being at the back and that I HAVE TO run slow to stave off burn-out and injury. I'll let you know how it goes :-)

How to break in a 13.1 Virgin

Image courtesy of Runners' Lounge


Welcome to my little part of the Interwebs! This blog is for all of you who want to follow me as I start to tackle distance running.

Quick, let's do a crash course in distances for those who don't know (for those who do, you can skip this part):

Typical race distances
5K = 3.1 miles
8K = 5 miles
10K = 6.2 miles
Half-marathon (or 21K) = 13.1 miles
Marathon = 26.2 miles

(there are other race distances, but we'll stick with these for now)

Since I started running in June of 2007, I've raced five 5Ks, one 8K, and three 10Ks. And countless training miles (well, okay, I could have counted them but I didn't).

But, as you can see, I've never run a race longer than 6.2 miles. In fact, my longest training run to date has been just over 9 miles. So, I'm definitely a virgin when it comes to anything longer than that.

Most veteran runners will suggest that you use a training plan when attempting a new distance. Why do you want a training plan? It helps keep you on track, accountable and, most of all, it helps prevent injury. Training plans allow you to increase your weekly mileage in a nice, controlled manner. There are few things worse than running too much too soon and injuring yourself.

The hardest part (for me at least) comes when trying to choose a plan. Hal Higdon, Cool Runnings and Runner's World are some of the most well-known training plans. But, as you can see, there are difference among them. Nine week or twelve week? Beginner or intermediate? Speedwork (also known as intervals) or not? And this doesn't even get into the training plans that various running clubs use with their members or the question of whether or not you should run with a training group!

How to decide? I'm definitely a runner who needs a plan to follow. I've used Hal Higdon's 10K Novice plan in the past. My original thought was to use his Novice Half-Marathon plan for my first half-marathon in April. This will give me time to figure out how to do the speedwork/intervals required for most of the other plans. And then when I start training for my second half-marathon I can use an intermediate plan.

So why tell you all this about training plans? Because this blog will be a record of what I do during and between the runs laid out in whatever plan I choose. You'll see photos of things I encounter while running, charts and graphs of speed and distance, race reports of any lead-up races I might run, and general information about my fitness regime.

I welcome any and all readers who wish to join me on my journey whether in mind, body or spirit.

Stay tuned! Whatever training plan I choose most likely starts in the next week or two!