beer is my gatorade

yesterday, i took a proper rest day. complete with a big burger and beer lunch with dad (we're bad catholics) and a heavenly sushi dinner with mom (she's the good catholic). i resisted the urge to have sake with dinner, but couldn't resist the 2 pints of hefeweisen at lunch. besides, hef is the orange juice of beer anyway.

so i didn't get my planned 3 miles in on friday and wondered if adding them to my long run in the morning was going to be physically possible. to reach my 100/200 goal it would be necessary, but would it really be worth it? i thought about it and i planned for it anyway, packing 4 gels and 4 bottles. if by my scheduled 12 i was beat, then i would pack it in. but if i still felt good, i'd see how far i could go.

here's me before my run (about an hour and a half after the time i wanted to get started, but oh well. and my hair was going crazy)


so off i went. i extended my lagoon route to include the roads through the farms surrounding the park, the loop around the lagoon, up mountain lion hill, around another lagoon, and down some paths i'd never run before. i started up a path that was effing steep and about 8 minutes into it realized it was a forever winding uphill to the top. so i decided to save it for another day and made my way down. i had to cover some of the same paths twice, but going in the opposite direction than when i first ran it made for new scenery.

miles 1-3 sucked as usual, due to tightness in my outer left calf, but by three i was loose and the entire rest of my run was honestly freakin' awesome. at mile 11, a guy in a bright yellow shirt rode past me and when he got close i saw that his shirt said "you can do it". i took that as a sign that the 15 was gonna be mine. i was feeling really really good and really strong. my entire run, i was focusing on my posture and arm movement because it helped open up and chest and stretch it out.

not only did i get 15 miles in (my longest run EVER) check out my splits:
1: 12:15
2: 11:09
3: 11:22
4: 11:48
5: 10:59
6: 11:13
7: 11:21
8: 11:47
9: 11:23
10: 11:35
11: 11:21
12: 10:50
13: 11:18
14: 10:33 (jigga what?!)
15: 10:14
T: 2:47:10

um yeah, all under 12 minutes, besides the first. that my friends is a new record for me. could this really be a sign that i am getting better?!

needless to say, i was FREAKIN' ELATED. actually, i still am. i will probably be riding this high until tomorrow.

when i got home i changed into some dry clothes and i about fell over when i caught my reflection. three hours in the sun left me with a heinous sports bra tan and some serious chafing from my fuel belt. it's seriously ghastly. which is why i am sharing even though it is probably the most unflattering picture ever:


i'm hoping the chafing doesn't leave marks because that would be seriously ugly. my old fuel belt used to fit snugly around my hips so i didn't have this problem. but that one got too big and i gave it to a friend. i've tried wearing this fuel belt lower only to have it ride up. my options seem to be to wear a shirt and vaseline the hell out of my middle or try again to wear the fuel belt over my shorts.

looks like march ended on a very high note, with my longest run ever and meeting my 100/200 mile goals. next week the mileage is getting cut drastically, since the last four weeks have been pretty intense. but come april 22, i expect to kick some serious ass and hopefully squeak in a half marathon in 2.5 hours.

have a great weekend, peeps!

going through the motions

today's workout was sort of blah. an hour on the bike (upright this time) on the "around the world" hill interval at level 6. it was a weird sequence of random spikes and few real big hills. my mind wasn't really into it but i managed to rack up 14.75 miles anyway. i think i may have to stick to the interval settings that give me the hills at more regualr intervals. and maybe consider cutting one bike session down to 30 minutes but increase the intensity. 2 hours on the bike a week just seems to bore the crap out of me.

today's strength training started off strong, then waned to whining once my muscles started cooling down.
3 sets of 12 for the following:
split lunges on the ball
reverse flared knee hyperextensions
leg press @ 90 lbs (my favorite exercise ever)
abductor machine @ 40 lbs
adductor machine @ 40 lbs
lat pulldowns @ 60 lbs (my second favorite exercise ever)
seated row @ 60 lbs
bicep curls @ 10 lbs (i swear i have the biggest but weakest arms ever)

i was also supposed to do some tri kickbacks and some dips but my tris still hurt from the pushups yesterday and i was feeling wimpy and whiny by the time i hit my biceps.

i've just finished training for a new waitressing gig to augment my freelancing income and tonight is my first night on the floor. so i suspect all i will want to do tomorrow is bake under the sun by a body of water. i'm hoping i can still eke out an easy, easy, easy 3 miles anyway. but some serious rest is in order for tomorrow. for reals.

and the fun begins!

wednesday's speed workout: yasso 800s! wheeeeee!

2 mile warmup @ 13:00 each
6 x 800 with 5 minute recoverys:

3 x 800 @ 6.0 mph
2 x 800 @ 6.2 mph
1 x 800 @ 6.5 mph

then a 5 minute cooldown to round out a total 7 miles. total time 1:24:57

the surprising thing was how fun this workout was. by the end i was definitely feeling it, but not so much that i thought i was gonna die. obviously i had enough to crank it up at the end, and i think maybe i had enough in me for another interval. so maybe the next time i run these i'll do 8 intervals. and once i can get up to 10 start increasing my pace?

once off the treadmill, i made my way to the free weight area. normally i would have felt blech about it, but i was so pumped from my run that i didn't care that i was the only chick in the weight room, in a skirt no less. i blocked out the dudes grunting and did the following:

incline pushups on the Smith machine: 2 sets of 10 at three different heights
standing V pull: 3 sets of 12 @ 40 lbs
incline pullups: 3 sets of 10

ballet squats: 3 sets of 10
curtsey lunges: 3 sets of 10
grasshopper beats: 2 sets of 30

bicycle crunch: 2 sets of 20
double jackknifes@ 2 sets of 20
circle crunch: 2 sets of 20

it all felt pretty good, not too hard, but who knows how i'll really feel tomorrow. i'm hoping to get in the bike workout i missed yesterday and do some lower body.

quarterly report

as i went to bed last night, i thought of where i wanted to do my 7 mile easy run. treadmill? nah. through my neighborhood? nah. my 5 mile loop to the golf course? meh. it seems for someone who was perfectly content to run all her miles on a treadmill just a year ago, i've already become bored with my options. i finally settled on running at the lagoon even though i would have to drive there and it might be kind of deserted.

i ganked my brother's long sleeve underarmour shirt and tucked a plain powergel into my pack and headed out. the first three miles sucked and i seriously considered just bagging it at 5k. but i am only 29 miles away from making 100 miles this month and 200 for the year. so i knew i just had to suck it up and get all 7 done. and if i'm ever gonna make 900 miles by the end of the year, my 100 plus mile months have to start soon.

but after the three mile mark, the tightness in my calves loosened and i settled into a groove. enough that i decided to charge up a hill i had never seen the other side of. part of me pictured a family of hungry mountain lions waiting to devour my lil fleshy body, but instead i was surprised by a cute little grove of trees and picnic tables. i meandered through there for awhile when i saw another trail lead out to somewhere else i've never been. this trail led to another, and then another, and soon i was winding my way through the hills and brush. and even though it was a cloudy day, it was still really beautiful and peaceful (thanks to allergy meds) i'm no hardcore crunchy granola nature guru, but even i am amazed at how calming and energizing being outside can be.

my splits:
1: 12:13
2: 12:xx (i think i accidentally paused my watch)
3: 11:59
4: 12:18
5: 12:49
6: 12:23
7: 12:26
T: 1:26:48

as for the "plain" powergel, it still had a sweet flavor, but not really as intense as the others. i was first attracted to the powergels over the gus because the powergels boasted having up to 4x the sodium and being the sweaty hog i am, i liked gobbling as much sodium as possible. so maybe i will still mix them up.

and speaking of sweaty hog, the under armour compression shirt was FREAKING AWESOME! felt even better than not wearing a shirt or singlet at all. perfect moisture management. UA items are a bit pricey and rarely on sale from what i've seen, but i think there is an under armour outlet 'round here that i might have to make a trek to.

-------------------------
so as i mentioned earlier, i'm very close to making march my first 100 mile month. and if i get that done, i'll have 200 in the bag for the year so far. on target for making 2007 a 900 mile year. i'm planning to run a 7 mile speed workout on wednesday, an easy 3 on friday, and 12 on saturday. and that will put me 3 weeks away from my first half marathon of the year. a race that i feel very prepared for. i probably just jinxed it but i do feel ready. the only point of anxiety is that my family will be there so if anything does go wrong i feel like it might be amplified by the 10th degree. only because part of me feels like i have to prove to them that this running thing isn't totally crazy.

but besides that, i feel like i'm back in the shape i was before i moved and finally have a handle on a lot of the things in my life that were causing me angst. i didn't come to some grand epiphany, but slowly and surely march became the month where everything just started to make sense again :) i'm happy and thankful for that because i was starting to fear that i was going to roam aimlessly, endlessly.

so now, i'm ready for more. and i have to say i am constantly inspired by reading how all of you kick serious ass: 2 workouts a day, 3 sports at a time, juggling a job, and school, and kids, and families, running on little sleep, running in snow and ice, or heat and humidity, running distances i get tired just DRIVING, running faster than i even dream of, and still having great humor and spirits about everything. you guys really keep me going and help me believe that i too can kick some serious running ass.

in that vein, i'm adding another component to my regimen that i've been dreading for, oh forever. because the reality is that even though my mileage is back up to where it was before i started slacking off, the pounds have still accumulated. i am up 12 pounds since my move and i am seriously not happy. mainly because i dumped all my bigger clothes during the move and my clothes now just do not fit. not well, anyway.

so in the weeks leading to my half, i am determined to add 2 days of weight training in on mondays (easy run day) and thursday (easy bike day). in my very distant past, my weight training regimen consisted of 4 one hour lifting sessions throughout the week, alternating between upper and lower body, but that just seems like too much to do right now. i think for now i've got to put together a total body circuit that i can do in about an hour just twice a week. by may, i hope i'll have wrapped my head around the whole weight training thing and want to add at least another day. but we'll see. me and pain don't get along too well....

crunch, crunch, crunch

that was me for 11 miles, as i ran on the gravel path along the canal. the run itself was pretty uneventful, which makes it one of the best runs i guess. the light was perfectly golden, the morning air felt heavenly on my skin, and it was much easier to breathe compared to my mid-day run yesterday. there really is nothing like running in the morning while the rest of the neighborhood sleeps. it's like the whole world is yours. only yours.

my watch was acting funky so i don't have any accurate splits to report. only that i finished in 2 hours and 10 minutes.

i also did a gel taste test. i've used sport beans and powergel in the past and have found that while the beans are tasty, they don't give me enough energy. and they're hard to eat while running. the powergels are okay but i feel like they're too big and sometimes too sweet. so this week, i brought along a tangerine powergel (with caffeine) and a vanilla gu. the gu comes in a smaller package, but the sales lady warned me that it would be thicker than the powergel. how could it possibly be thicker?!?!?! blech!

turns out though, the gu won out. and not just on flavor. (tangerine was way too sweet). the gu's thicker formula actually made it less messy and surprisingly faster and easier to choke down. or maybe that was the vanilla flavor that made it easy to eat.

i've got 9 more powergels to finish and a couple sports beans too. but after that i think i might be a strict gu only girl. hopefully the other flavors aren't too sweet, because i don't know if can stick with just vanilla my whole life. plus the vanilla doesn't have caffeine.

not today

the week has been busy, but i've been a good girl and have been getting my workouts in anyway.
i had to push my normal early am workout to late am, and i paid the price. it was 20 degrees hotter and they were cutting the grass. double poops! in the beginning, i tried to get my 5k done in 30 minutes, but not today. i had to settle for 33.

tomorrow 11 miles WILL get done. i'm going up to sac for a portfolio review this afternoon and staying with my brother and sister in law tonight. i'm hoping i can find a really great route to run along the river tomorrow morning.

have a great weekend, peeps!

intervals x2

my legs were like lead during yesterday's bike workout. i found a new hill interval workout that made the hilly parts longer and it was damn near impossible for me to keep my rpms above 100 for the entire interval time. the thing about biking, unlike running, is that there is a point where my muscles just want to stop. while i can always at least put one front in front of the other when i'm pounding the pavement, there's an interval in nearly every bike workout where my legs just can't push the pedal and once i pass that they are moving so slow and with such effort that it's seriously laughable. the logical solution would be to decrease the resistance, but seriously people, i was on level 6, not 10. i'm just hoping that with time i'll pass the wimp stage and be able to go longer, faster, and harder.

thankfully, today's running interval workout went much better. on the docket: 20 x 400 @ 10:53 with 30 seconds recovery. i won't go through every interval, but including a 1 mile warmup, i ended up running 7 miles in total in 1:22:40. at the 60 minute mark, i had to reset the treadmill. apparently, the guy next to me was impressed because he gave me a big smile and a high five. i guess all the people at my gym aren't morons.

69 things about me

ok joe, this is for you:

1. i really am petite. 5'3" tall. 28" inseam.
2. but i'm way taller than my mom. i think she's barely 5', if that.
3. i started running about a year ago.
4. before that, i dabbled in tae kwon do, kickboxing, a summer of tennis lessons, and random step aerobics classes.
5. but for the most part, i did absolutely nothing athletic or sporty.
6. in high school, i took phys ed in the summer at the community college because i wanted to take electives like yearbook and photography during the school year.
7. worked out better that way, since i'm a better graphic designer than i am a runner.
8. i chose my college based on the brochure. i'd never visited the school, much less the state, much less the coast it was on.
9. it's the only school i applied to and i sent in the application the night before.
10. i thought i'd come right back to california once i was done. i ended up staying for 6 more years.
11. now i'm back to "settle down".
12. ha! yeah, right.
13. it's march and i still have my tan lines from the summer.
14. i heart the summer.
15. i heart the beach.
16. i really am afraid of getting skin cancer but honestly, i'm more afraid of wrinkles.
17. but i can't help it, i love the sun.
18. sometimes my own driving gets me car sick.
19. i have a bad habit of making up weird nicknames for people. so far, no one has seemed to mind. but it isn't until much later that i think about how rude it is.
20. i am too honest. words stumble out of my mouth without me thinking sometimes.
21. now that i am 28, i'm beginning to regret getting my belly button pierced.
22. i do sometimes wish i could have my tongue ring back. but not enough to get it repierced.
23. my nose ring? cutest. thing. ever.
24. i have no tattoos. and don't ever want one.
25. i am a leo.
26. i don't believe too much in astrology, but everything they say about leos is very true for me.
27. if i won the lottery, i would never work again. i know people say they would or would work for charity or whatever. but not me.
28. i'd run in exotic locations, soak up the sun on every coast, perfect recipes for the lavish meals i'd cook for my family and friends, make jewelry, learn to sew, read more, explore, and best of all, take lots of naps.
29. i'm a food network whore.
30. even rachael ray's 30 minute meals.
31. she really annoys me, but i've learned a lot from watching her.
32. who i REALLY don't like is that giada delaurentis chick. barf!
33. never trust a skinny cook.
34. i've worked in restaurants, off and on, for over 10 years. even when i had a full-time office job.
35. when i was a kid, i went door to door to sell my drawings. and people actually bought them.
36. i like shopping at vintage and secondhand stores.
37. i drive a vw.
38. that's where my blog name came from.
39. i get really crabby when i'm hungry. or tired.
40. i have a pretty crass sense of humor. but i try to keep in check on my blog because i don't think it translates the same way on paper (er, on screen?)
41. i don't order dessert, unless it's creme brulee.
42. then i eat only the carmelized sugar.
43. lance armstrong really annoyed me until he ran the marathon.
44. then he became kinda cute.
45. i take 5 minute showers. actually, they're probably shorter.
46. i have this thing against wasting water.
47. i 've been to 23 states in the U.S.
48. i've gone to mardi gras, but never had a wild spring break.
49. easter is my favorite holiday.
50. fourth of july is a close second.
51. i know the greek alphabet, but not because i was in a sorority.
52. i know the sign language alphabet, but very few words.
53. i studied spanish for 7 1/2 years and speak it pretty poorly. what i have retained can only be attributed to my restaurant career.
54. making this list is harder than it seems. and sadly, it's pretty boring.
55. i'm surprised it doesn't have more to do with food.
56. i don't like when people call me "cute".
57. or when people call me "exotic".
58. i do like it when people call me funny.
59. i don't know if i'll ever be the type to have a running partner.
60. i think finding the right person to run with is the same science as finding a partner in life.
61. and i'm flying solo on both accounts so far.
62. i always somehow end up dating jocks, even though i was and am far from one.
63. i won the 2nd grade spelling bee. it's been downhill since then.
64. i have a voo doo doll.
65. my favorite color is red.
66. my favorite drink is beer. honestly and embarrassingly, i'll drink most any of it.
67. my favorite non-beer drink is a mojito.
68. my favorite time of the day is dawn.
69. my first race number was 69.

whew! i hope to bob i'm more interesting than this list. and i still owe you 31 more...

a new proverb

today it's: a rolling stone gathers no moss. wa-hoo.

i took phil's advice and just got my ass outta bed. no snooze. no thinking. no excuses. i was a little wary about starting at 6:20 with no sun but figured the streetlights would be enough to not get me killed. i didn't really have a plan either. i knew there was no way i could get in the 11 miles i had missed, but figured i had about an hour and 40 minutes until i had to really start my day. at first i thought i'd do just 5. then it turned to 6. and at 6, with half an hour still left to kill, i figured i may as well eke out the last 2 and make it an even 8.

no time records were broken but it sure feels good to have that one big item checked off my list in the morning.

how's that saying go again?

the early bird gets the worm?

a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush?

each day over the last three days, i woke up feeling not 100%. either i was a little dehydrated, or a little bloated, felt i had too much to do, or felt a little too preoccupied. so i skipped my morning workouts, promising myself i'd squeeze it in later on in the day and that i'd do it better, harder, faster.

i never did. on any of the past three days.

a workout, any workout, even at 80% is better than no workout at all. and my 11 mile long run has been hanging over my head for three whole days and counting...

shutterbug

IDES OF MARCH RUN 2007

my easy 3 mile run consisted of more photography than actual running. but it's not a bad way to spend an hour in the morning :) click on the photo above to see a few snapshots of the neighborhood i call home.

makes me want to table dance

did you know the song "hyponotize" is perfect for keeping an 11 minute mile pace? i put it on repeat once i figured out that my footsteps aligned perfectly with the beat. and i couldn't help but recall julia stile's table dance in 10 things i hate about you. love that movie!

today's "speed" intervals called for 3 x 1600 @ 10:57 with 800 recovery.
1600 warm up: 13:47
1600: 10:54
800 rec: 6:30
1600:10:54
800 rec: 7:03
1600: 10:50
800 rec: 6:52
1600 cool down: 13:51
6.5 miles: 1:20:45

i'm beginning to think the treadmill and i aren't friends anymore. i've gotten used to running outside and found it hard to keep my mental game from ruining me. plus my sweat does not evaporate like it does when i'm outside. sometimes i think running outside, even with the hills, is easier based on the sheer evaporation factor. but i think mostly though, my hips and glutes were still a little worn out from my workout yesterday because when i finished my last interval and stopped to walk, i could feel they were tight and tired.

although, the gym DOES supply a good amount of people watching. this chick got on an elliptical in front of me wearing: sunglasses, a punk rock t shirt, jeans, and flip flops! and was talking on her cell the ENTIRE 20 minutes she was on it. wtf?

and on the other spectrum, i watched this chick do pullups. PULLUPS people!! i almost think i'd rather be able to do ONE pullup than win a million dollars.

go legs go!

i got in 14.75 miles in an hour on the bike today! when i got up off up off the bike to towel it off, i swear to bob i thought my legs were going to buckle under me. and if these damn bike sessions do not give me the ass i want by summer, i don't know what will! my glutes have never felt like this before.

the hill interval setting on the bike does a one minute hill and a one minute rest. at some point in the beginning it does a longer moderate hill. i keep my rpms above 100 for the hills and between 60 and 80 for the rest. but i'd like to try to do longer hill intervals. i'll have to see if this can be accomplished by increasing the level or just doing in manually. though i can see my lazy ass coasting more than climbing if left to my own devices.

in any case, i'm pretty excited to have embraced the dreaded bike. it's great to have another outlet that i can track and improve on in and of itself AND help my running at the same time! at some point i'll pick up swimming again, because lord knows my upperbody needs some work.

race report: petite pigtails and the sexy dance

maybe it was the gorgeous weather, or my somewhat busy week, but i just really didn't feel like racing today. the weekend weather was promising to be picture perfect and by friday, the temps were climbing into the high 70s. instead of celebrating spring with healthy, outdoor activities, i chose to dine alfresco with some ice, cold brews. when given the option between beer and racing, it appears my loyalties lie with beer :)

but even without the pressure of racing, i STILL couldn't sleep the night before. and as usual, i had some funky dreams, none of which i can remember right now. something about getting lost, or forgetting my id or something. anyway, we were up before the sun and on the way to the race we caught some great views of the sunrise.








the half marathoners took off first and the swarm of bobbing heads snaked around the stadium. Once they had a 10 minute head start, they unleashed us 5kers. as always, i positioned myself in the back because i'm slow and i didn't want to get in anyone's way. turns out that was a ba d idea. nothing against walkers, but they always travel in packs and it's a pain to swerve around them. why weren't THEY in the back?

but it probably did me some good, in terms of not starting me out too fast. earlier in the week i had planned on frontloading the run, considering my weekend extra curricular activities, i decided it best to save my energy.

the three miles went pretty fast actually. for most of the race, i tailed this really tall guy with a long red pony tail. he was easy to spot and kept me at a good pace. towards the end though, i just up and passed him. i wish i had more to report, but 31 minutes goes by pretty quickly. YES I SAID 31 MINUTES!!! which if you've been following along, is more than a minute faster than my 5k last month! i always knew corona was good for you!

here are my amazing splits: (well amazing for ME anyway)
1: 11:05
2: 10:21
3: 9:43

i wasn't even looking at my watch really until after i passed pony tail guy. and i was shocked! i kicked it up in the last leg, but the finish line was so crowded narrow it was hard to really zoom in. i think i'm really starting to get the hang of this 5k thing...

here's me after the finish, with my petite pony tails:



after the race, my parents and i met up with my brothers, sister in law, and nephew. we napped, took the lil one to the park, ate the biggest lunch known to man, then sat like logs while my nephew provided the entertainment, doing his little sexy dance. who knows where he picked this up!

mmmmm beer....

that's all i have to say about that.

wonder if my cycling workout will really happen tomroow morning.

green light!

i bumped my long run to today since i have a race on sunday and i didn't want to do them back to back. the 10 i ran today wasn't nearly as easy as my 9 on sunday, but i finished, if just barely. instead of running 2 loops around the golf course i ran on sunday, i decided to run TO the golf course, do the loop then run back home. though it still put a hill in the beginning and end of my run! i can't escape the damn things. i guess that's the price you pay for wanting have a great view of the little people below you ;)

one cool thing was that i caught every green light along the way, never having to stop at one intersection! all went smoothly til around mile 7. autopilot turned off; my body was just tired. i popped some sport beans at that point thinking that it might give me a boost. and it did for about a mile. (the jelly belly factory is in my hometown and they sell the "belly flops" (huge bags of mixed mess ups) for practically nothing...i wonder if they sell belly flops of the sport ones too...i'll have to investigate) though i'm thinking that the powergel works better for me because of the caffeine (which i never have since i don't drink coffee or soda) and the power gels claim to have 2-4x the sodium!

anyway, the last two miles consisted of a tired, tired petite chick shuffling along the street . but i made it. even up the last damned hill. and now i can shower, eat, nap and watch soaps...

my slow @ss splits:
1: 12:31
2: 12:05
3: 12:03
4: 12:25
5: 12:45
6: 12:32
7: 13:01
8: 12:21
9: 12:35
10: 13:31

more bike questions

3 easy miles on the treadmill and 6 on the bike. and i have a question.

is there a difference between the upright bike and the recumbent bike? (i had to look it up online to know what to call them, instead of the upright one and the not upright one) i used the recumbent one today because there was a smelly looking man in the middle of the uprights so i grabbed a bike as far away from him and it happen to be a recumbent one. i felt it more in my hamstrings and glutes, which for me is a good thing. i would assume the recumbent one puts less strain on your back as well. but other than that are there benefits and/or drawbacks to either?

i have another race on sunday, and to be honest i'm kind of over races right now. i'd like to focus on my big one next month which is the half-marathon, so i might just scoot my long run up to friday and front-load 2 miles onto the 5k on sunday and use it as my speed workout.

and this week. the weather calls for clear skies. FINALLY a race with no rain!

when i was even more petite

i was doing some cleaning and found a whole bunch of old photos. they are too embarrassing not to share.


now you can say you've seen me naked.


and in my nightie.


bowl haircut.


mullet. (god this picture SLAYS me!)


yes, i'm wearing a new kids on the block shirt. yes, my guess jeans are skin tight. yes, my bangs are 5 inches tall.


buddha belly!


how i got that belly.


first grade.

a glorious nine

after my great run yesterday, i decided i would keep the momentum going and go for 9 today. and a glorious 9 it was. the temperature ranged in the 50s, the sun was shining, and the humidity i so often trudged through back east was non-existent. this day was a gift from the running gods, and i took it.

the first 2 miles of my 5 mile loop were uphill, consisting of 2 hard inclines and a handful of easier inclines. it made starting my run kind of grueling, but ending it oh so sweet. and in-between, the time somehow vanished away. it took nearly 2 hours to finish but not once didi hear the clock ticking, not once did i ask myself, am i almost done? i can't remember anything i thought about to occupy my mind, the minutes and the miles just seemed to add up, without me counting. it just felt good. today's run was like a little gift i gave myself.

my splits:
1: 13:41
2: 12:00
3: 11:40
4: 11:36
5: 12:43 (this is where i looped back to my car to take off my vest)
6: 11:54
7: 11:49
8: 11:45
9: 12:24
T: 1:49:35

breakin' in my new kicks

the last 2 runs i've had were plain sucky. my easy run didn't feel easy at all and my 6 mile tempo run turned into a 3 mile suck-fest. it's like someone had poured cement into my shoes and veins.

today i realized i was just mentally pushing myself too hard. after a month of training for 2 races where i totally surprised myself, i had switched into type-a mode and my running turned into numbers and performance. my running had become work.

so i took the pressure off and told myself to just have FUN. my plan was to log in an hour on the treadmill but not worry about speed or time. i didn't bring my watch and covered up the display panel. and i ran to my heart's content. when my hour was up, i felt i could go for more, but i considered myself victorious for the day and decided to take an extra long time stretching.

i like this kind of running much better.

on another note, i finally decided i was about due for new shoes. one pair was already a year old and the one i trained in the most was about 9 months old. to my excitement, my custom orthotics meant i could ditch the heavy frankenstein motion control shoes for a lighter stability shoe. the difference is only a few ounces, but i could feel the difference instantly. my new brooks adrenalines feel super great: supportive yet cushiony. they honestly feel like i'm not wearing shoes at all. we'll see how they perform in the next 7 weeks leading up to santa cruz!