Marshmallow Training - 20 Weeks to go

Sunday Planned: 10 Miles Long Run
Sunday actual: 10.16 Miles in the sunshine.
From today, I learned: I am loving this weather.  This run didn't feel nearly as bad as I'd worried it would

Monday Planned: Tempo run, weights, abs
Monday actual:
Monday abs before the run.
Wednesday weights on Monday after the run, becuase you know, why not right?
Tempo run was
0.5 miles warm up
4 sets of 0.5 miles at 5.6mph (10:42/mile), 0.25 miles at 4.1mph (14:38/mile)
0.5 miles cool down
From today, I learned: I was intimidated by this workout when I first read about it.  Then I was all "ok just try it" and then I had to do it at the crack of dawn on the treadmill which actually made me know I could get the pacing correct.  My Garmin crapped the bed this morning.  Heart rate didn't work at all and my workout I built for this wouldn't sync to the watch.  And it thinks I was doing like a 12:30/mile during the 'fast' part.  So I had to write my coach and reassure her I did this thing as written.

Tuesday Planned: 5 miles easy, weights
Tuesday actual:
Bonus abs as an indoor warm up for this run while I was waiting for the sun to come up a bit more. 
5.27 Miles, early in the morning, easy, but faster than I expected. Avg pace 12:57/mile
From today, I learned: This run felt really good.  Turn the legs over!

Wednesday Planned: 1 Mile
Wednesday actual: 1 Mile before flying home.
From today, I learned: Get up and get it done.  Also, I have lost an important pair of shoes.

Thursday Planned: 4 miles easy, weights
Thursday actual: 3.30 miles in Ault Park.  No weights.
From today, I learned: I went fast on the down hill.  That was super fun.  In the rain, focus on 'pounding the ground' to get good footing.

Friday Planned: 1 Miles
Friday actual: 2.04 miles, easy.
From today, I learned: This is definitely a 'get up and get it done' kind of day.  I had a wicked busy day after this.

Saturday Planned: 3 miles - this has to be in Ault Park, right?
Saturday actual: 3.31 miles.  In Ault Park.
From today, I learned: This was a fun run, focus on cadence down the hills.

Long Run Sunday: It is so warm!

Plan: Run easy, 10 miles.
Actual Mileage:  10.16 miles.

Route: This is the Creek River Greenway Loop.  I've had good times and bad times here in the past.
Weather: I am mostly in heaven.  Temps were over 30 when I started, around 40* when I ended.  Winds were out of the west, so the Greenway was a little chilly.

Wardrobe: Compression socks, light weight pants, my neon 10 mile shirt, 1/4 zip, buff on my head, Merrel shoes on my feet.

Execution: I kept an eye on my heart rate for roughly the first 8 miles, and kept those miles 'easy'  The last two miles, I covered up my watch so I couldn't see it and just ran by what made me feel good. The only mile split I know is my last mile.
Nutrition: LOL.  No.  I ran fasted.  I was a bit nervous about the decision not to carry good or water around mile 5, but I calmed down and felt fine.

From today, I learned:
1. I wished I'd brought my sunglasses.  I knew there would be sun, but it was kind of cloudy when I left.  The sun came out in full force and there was some wind too.
2. I was okay fasted and no water, even though I got nervous about it.
3. Nice and easy is so much easier when it's above freezing and there's oxygen in the air.

Bonus: The Dungeon Master is at the Viking Ship today.  She is part of a half time presentation.  So I took a picture of her from far away on my run.

Loony Challenge 3 Weeks To Go

Weekly Miles Planned: 36 Miles.  Peak week!
Actual:31+ miles run, 4+ elliptical 'miles' and a little walking for 37+ miles total

Long Run Miles Planned: 10-12 Miles
Actual: 10.22 Miles on Tuesday morning

Sunday Planned: 6-10 Miles at MAF, Sunday Kettlebell Workout, Sunday Abs
Actual: 8 Miles on the track.  (8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1 workout).  This was a rough workout.  Even after a significant cooldown from the run, my HR was still way too high for weights so I abandoned that in favor of not passing out.  No abs yet.
There's a heat advisory in Minneapolis, so running outside in the late morning is no fun.
From today, I learned: This running workout started out rough.  After the 'warm up' I focused on running smoothly, and running hard but 'leaving something in the tank'.  So, this workout turned out to be about listening to my body.

Monday Planned: 6-10 Miles at MAF, Plyos
Actual:
Abs: Sunday abs done
Weights: Sunday weights, done in full this time.
Run: 1.5 miles on the track
Elliptical for 60 minutes
Bonus Yoga video in the evening. 
From today, I learned: Yesterday's shit workout was completely my own fault.  I was dehydrated, like over a few days just hadn't had enough water, lazy dehydrated.  So I spent the afternoon on Sunday sucking down water, and I drink a lot of water while I was on the elliptical today as well.

Tuesday Planned: 4-6 Miles at MAF, Lift Weights
Actual:
Run: 10.22 Miles in the morning.  This is a swap for either Monday or Sunday when I was feeling like crap.
Weights: Tuesday weights done, except all the bench press benches were full so I did overhead press today.
Bonus yoga video in the evening again. And then I went to bed at like 8pm.
From today, I learned: Get up early and get it done?
Listen to my body: I didn't look at my watch until the final mile of the run.  I just went off how I was feeling.  I was feeling like I was working harder than a normal MAF run, but like I had gas left in the tank as well.
I'm actually more surprised with myself for getting weights done this afternoon. I knew what my work schedule looked like, plus I got stuck in traffic, but done and done!

Wednesday Planned: 1 Mile Run
Actual: 1.16 miles on the track, plus 2 laps walking for a total mileage of 1.5 miles. (Wahoo)
From today, I learned: They aren't all going to be high mileage days.  But my heart rate is back where I think it should be so I think I'm feeling better.

Thursday Planned: 4-6 Miles at MAF, Lift Weights
Actual: 1.25 Miles on the Treadmill.
Thursday weights done.  Including 1 set of 5 assisted pull ups with only 50lbs of help.  I did bench press today, swapped with Tuesday.
From today, I learned: I changed the mileage today because of an all day rain storm and much better predicted weather tomorrow.  I have done a run or two in the rain this cycle, and I just wasn't feeling it today.

Friday Planned: 1 Mile Run
Actual: Run 5.48 miles in the morning, easy.  Bonus abs.  (I'm now realizing I didn't do a 'finisher' for this run, so I'm glad I did the abs.)  Btw, I was running in like 20mph winds at one point.  It was really awesome.
From today, I learned: This was a great run.  I think I'm feeling better than the crap fest that was earlier this week.

Saturday Planned: 4-6 Miles at MAF, Plyos
Actual: 4.18 Miles, easy, in the morning.  3 Minutes finisher.
From today, I learned: I am captain grumpy pants on the weekends.  No, seriously, sometimes an easy effort is just the right thing. I focused on running my own pace and not getting distracted when other runners passed by.

Tuesday Long Run: Too Early in the Morning

Plan: Step 1: Get out of bed when the alarm goes off.
Step 2: Run and don't look at  your watch.  Aim for 'working but have gas left in the tank' effort level.

Route: I used my Creek/River/Greenway Loop.  I've had some bad experiences on this route, but some good days as well.
Weather: Sort of raining as I walked out the door.  Foggy as anything I've ever run in at the low spots on the creek and near the river. There was a touch of rain during the run, but nothing too bad.
  

Wardrobe: Illuminite shirt and shorts (they are reflective), wool socks, a hat, runner head lamp because I left at 4:40am to get this done before work.
Execution: I mean, I wish my paces were faster for the heart rate, but I got the effort gauged perfectly I think.

Nutrition: I had a 'fat bomb' before the run.  That was not the right way to wake up.  If i have enough good avocados on race day, that is for sure the direction I'm going. I carried water on the run and drank about 6oz while I was out. No food.  Besides aggravating my stomach, the fat bomb did fill me up.
From today, I learned: I had a lot of thoughts last night about runner safety.  It's so interesting the messages we give ourselves about where and when women can run, when we should be alone or in a group.  The amount of space this occupies in my head is impressive.  I actually felt better about things with the rain.  I was all 'no one wants to be out in this crap' and just went for it.
Bonus: I actually did Tuesday weights this afternoon.  If I can stay awake tonight, I'm going to do an 'evening yoga' video as well.

Long Run Monday - Miracles can happen

Plan: I had almost no plan.  It's a miracle I got out the door today.  Once I'd started, I decided to see how well I could manage my heart rate.

Route: I did the Creek/River/Greenway loop.  I'm learning to love it.  I guess.

Weather: It was about 28*, winds supposedly out of the east, but I think ESE or SE maybe?  The winds were in my face at the beginning and then again at the end, but not much in between which was nice. I tried to take some of these pictures to remind myself how little snow I'm actually dealing with this winter.

Wardrobe: Fleece lined tights, wool socks with sock liners, a long sleeve shirt and sweatshirt, and a ear band and gloves.  Gloves were sometimes on and sometimes not. It got really cold the last block or two when I was walking straight into the wind.

Execution: I was slightly more aggressive with the heart rate than the last time I ran this route. I let it be around 142 vs the 138 I'd done last week.  And after mile 7, I just let the heart rate creep up.  I'm trying to be okay with these splits.

Nutrition: Before the run, I had yogurt and a banana.  I carried water and chews with me on the run, but I didn't have any.  Whatever, I'm sure I'd have been miserable without them.

Bonus: There's construction going on, on a bridge over the trail.  The road is closed to cars but for the moment, the trail is open to runners.  Apparently this lasts like all summer so we'll have to keep an eye on that.

Long Run Sunday: This loop needs a name

Plan: Run 10 miles. Keep the heart rate low.

Route: I need to name this route so I can tag it on my blog.  Head out along the creek.  Go north along the river.  Come back in on the Greenway.  And then back through the neighborhood.  I did it the first time here, and then made peace with the route here and one last time last summer. 

Weather: It was about 35* with 95% humidity.  I wish I was joking. Not really rain, but there was some fog.  Wind was out of the north, 7mph.  I was a bit cold along the river, but otherwise good.  I wore unlined tights, a shirt and windbreaker, and long socks.  I also tested out my new hydration belt.

Execution: I kept my heart rate really low, like Z2 low, until I hit the Greenway.  While I was running, I was so proud of myself.  And then I got home and saw how freaking slow I was.  And I felt really bad.  I'm so confused. I ran with a program on my watch that alerts me if my heart rate goes too low (less than 130) or too high (over 152) and it was beeping a lot once I got on in the last couple miles.  Apparently, we know where my endurance ends.

Nutrition: I carried water and had a few sips every time I ate.  I had Energy Chews and ate some at miles 3 and 7.  I did not eat before I left the house.

Bonus: Ice and snow were melting all over the place.  I'm surprised my feet stayed as dry as they did.  And we're naming this the CreekRiverGreenwayLoop for the blog.  I'll go back and tag the old posts so I can find them.  While this route goes along the river, there aren't a lot of river views, and the course itself isn't terribly photographic.

10 miles on the (maybe not) cursed route

Plan: Get up and 5am and get out of the house.  10 miles, try to keep the heart rate low.

Route: Pretty sure this route is cursed.  I keep trying to run it anyway, to put a better spin on the situation.  I went out along the creek, up the river, back along the Greenway and then found my way home through the neighborhood.

Weather: When I started it was 73* and 90% humidity.  When I ended, it was 74* and 80% humidity.  Some clouds in the sky.  I got up at 5am to do this run because I was trying to find the coolest part of the day.  Sadly, the coolest part of the day is also the most humid.

Execution: This went from good to not so much, and I think that was mainly due to the weather.  I kept a low heart rate until about mile 6.  After that I got sick for a moment, and then I just wanted to be done.  I switched my watch so it was tracking but I couldn't see the screen and just ran for a bit.  After mile 9, I did intervals (1 block on, 1 block off) for the last mile and I felt much better then.

Nutrition: I had not quite a full package of chews.  I carried two 8oz water bottles with me.  I had just over 1 bottle while I was out, and then finished them off as I walked the last block or two.

Bonus: I was comparing my heart rate graph of this run to the last time I came this way.  (That run was the best one I've had on this route.)  Maybe I was so freaking slow today because I spent the first half of the run trying to keep my HR in zones 1 and 2.  (May is on the top or left, today is on the bottom or right depending on screen settings.)

Long Run - Revenge

Remember this winter when I had this horrendous long run that included my watch running out of batteries (my fault) and my heart rate being too high for no good reason (apparently also my bodies fault).  I was finally ready to tackle this route again.

Plan: Do nothing stupid.  You have to race in 10 days.  Keep my heart rate low.

Route: My new-ish 10 mile route.  The end is more up hill than I'd realized.   But I like it.

Weather: 60s and crazy humid.  I actually woke up around 4:30am to the sound of rain.  My brain was all WTF?!?  It wasn't supposed to rain.  I could tell from the radar that it would be mostly through by the time I headed out the door.  I got about 10 drops on me as I started the run.  The humidity took a long time to bake off.

Execution: I stayed in my target heart rate almost the whole time.  Towards the end, my heart rate was getting a bit out of control.  I was all "what is wrong with me?" until I saw the elevation profile had significantly more up hill than I'd realized before.

Nutrition: I had a small bottle of water and a pack of gummies.

Bonus: The best thing about this run is that it gave me a lot of time to think about the Half Marthon I signed up for on impulse.  That's a whole other post.
I'd read all these articles about planning your race in your mind, and planning how you're going to handle bad things that happen, like feeling tired early or dropping all your food.  Like I wished I'd had a mental plan for what would I do if the pacer just doesn't show up?.  
Lola's has a 2:30:00 pacer and I'd been thinking I'd try to keep up with her.  But for a June race, Lola's starts kind of late.  And running fast in the heat is a dumb idea.  And there's other challenging goals I could make for myself.  Plus I want to have fun because this is my 10 year runnerversary.  I made what I'm calling my "cool weather plan" and my "warm or humid weather plan".  I don't want to call them Plans A and B, because they are both plan A. It was a helpful way to spend my time.

Bonus 2: After the run, I did a finisher involving standing bicycles, standing leg raises, squats and some other things.  Then I tried to take a selfie for my friend Deb who says I need to smile when I selfie.  I believe this is called a smirk.

10 Miles of Suck

Sometimes runs are excellent. Sometimes, they suck rocks.  Today was one of those days.  My heart rate went up to 140 walking up the hill in my warm up, and I pretty much knew I was screwed.

Goals for the run: 10 miles.  This was a particularly weird workout because I did not eat.  I had food with me, I just wasn't hungry.  I have no explanation.

Route: This is a new one.  I'd run the first 8 miles of this route, when I'd do a long run and wind up at the gym.  The last two miles wind through the neighborhood and are somewhat downhill.  I'm surprised I liked this route as much as I did.  Possibly the only thing I didn't hate about today. 

Execution: So full of suck.  My heart rate was all over the place.  It was high warming up which always spells trouble.  And then my watch wasn't charged so it started giving me a low battery signal around mile two (still worked for 6 more miles).  Around mile 3 I stopped looking at the watch and just ran.  It was mildly less frustrating but it still sucked.  As seen by the heart rate graphs below.

Bonus: I think I found a new running route.