Monday, January 17, 2011

Half marathon training: Check-in #2 and Help a Reader.

Welcome to check-in #2!

(Have you signed up for the challenge? Read about it HERE.)


The first week of training for the 13.1 NYC  -- run and done!


Here's what I had planned to run / what I ran

Mon: 4 miles easy / Done! 4.25 in 40:25
Tues: cross-train / Nope, didn't happen. I, um, ran instead. Oops! Just 2.75 miles. I couldn't resist . . . 
Wed: 5 miles w/3 @ tempo / Done!  Total of 5 with 3.1 @ 8:50 pace
Thurs: rest / Done!
Fri: 4 miles easy / Done! With lots and lots of interruptions but I got the mileage in
Sat: 8 miles @ long run pace / Moved it to Sunday 
Sun: rest / Long run done! 8.04 miles @ 9:03 pace


Total mileage: 21 / 24




Overall, I'm happy with my first week of training. I couldn't resist the extra run on Tuesday -- sometimes that happens, you know. Your legs just itch to run and you have to give in. You just have to. Or at least I have to!


My tempo run was a bit disappointing in that I wanted to run outside but the weather forced me in. My pace was slower than the 8:45 I had hoped to run but I'm more or less OK with that because I find it harder to run on the treadmill.


On the other hand, my long run was faster than I would have liked. I ran yesterday and I tried hard to keep my pace slow (my goal for the long runs is 10 min miles) but I kept speeding up at finished at a 9:03 pace. That's just a little bit slower than my goal pace for the half marathon so I need to work on containing myself as my runs get longer. Sure, part of me was happy that I finished the 8 feeling as great as I did -- I felt like I could have kept running but wisely stuck to the plan instead -- but I also know that running long runs too fast can backfire. And I don't want anything to do with that.


Which brings me to this week's plan:


Mon: 4 easy
Tues: cross-train 
Wed: 5 easy
Thurs: rest
Fri: 4 easy
Sat: rest
Sun: 10.3 -- 15k race + warmup/cooldown
Total: 23.3


I may change things up. I'm considering ditching the race in favor of working on slowing down my long run, 10 miles @ 10min/mi. If I do that, I may toss in an extra run -- maybe 3 miles or so -- with pick-ups of 30 seconds of every 2 minutes for 2 of those miles. Nothing taxing, just something to keep things fresh.


How is your training going?


Challenge housekeeping

The week got away from me. I had promised the list of participants and prizes for you all last week but it didn't happen. I could make all kinds of excuses -- I had a deadline! And my sister-in-law had her baby! -- but the truth is I just didn't get to it. So, getting those things going is on the agenda for this week.


What I do have for you though, is a chance to Help a Reader!



marsfire98 asks:


Hey there! I ran my first half at the end of 2009. I started running in early 2009, about 9 months after my first child was born. I had to stop running when pregnant with my second last year. My second child is now 2 months old, and I started running again last week. Any suggestions on how to ease back into running? I would love to do another half again and marathon.

Who has some advice? Please leave a comment with suggestions/tips/advice for how marsfire98 can ease back into running.


In the meantime, I'll share my words of wisdom (har, har . . . ).


I started running 2 weeks after my second son was born, but that worked because I had run through most of my pregnancy. It took me almost 4 weeks to start running after my first son was born because I didn't run through that pregnancy.


When I eased back after both boys, the thing that I found helpful was to sign up for a 5K. With my first son that 5K was 4 months after he was born. This time, it was 2. The timing is personal and doesn't matter all that much. The key is signing up, committing, and using that commitment to motivate you to get out the door and run.


Another tip: Take walk breaks during those early runs. Be flexible -- if you can't run one day, don't get down on yourself. If you hadn't planned to run but your schedule opens up, take advantage of the opportunity. With kids, especially those early weeks and months, you have to be flexible with your running routine. 


What other tips do you have for marsfire98? 

Hope you all had a good weekend -- thanks for stopping by!

~ Felice



Hatred paralyzes life; love releases it. Hatred confuses life; love harmonizes it. Hatred darkens life; love illuminates it.
-- Martin Luther King Jr.

10 comments:

Diana said...

Great job! I'm really impressed with how fast you've been able to bounce back.
You'll get the pace down.

Tina @GottaRunNow said...

When you want to run more than you've planned, that's good!

If someone were starting back into running, I'd say they should work on gradually adding more miles (or half miles)and not worry about speed yet.

Tina @GottaRunNow said...

My comment about speed was meant for the Help a Reader question. I hope their start back into running goes well and I that your training continues to go well, Felice!

Ammie @ domesticallyobsessed.com said...

Hi! i'm new here--my sister lives in Albany and we live downstate in Westchester county. I am 4.5 months pregnant with my 3rd baby, and my husband JUST BOUGHT ME A NEW TREADMILL so I can train for a 5K in March. I started running after my second baby was born and I got totally hooked. I like your blog a ton so I had to stop over and say hi, especially to a fellow NY mama!


Question for you--do you run with the kids? If so, what stroller are you using? It's too cold down here with the snow, hence the treadmill purchase!

Another question for ya--any advice on pregnant running? the doc said it's fine as long as I was already running 5Ks, which I was, but I'd love to shoot for a 10K in april. But I will be 7mos pregnant--how is it running when you are that big?

misszippy said...

Great work this week Felice! You're going to have a strong season ahead of you.

I think you offered your pal great advice. Not much more to add to that!

J said...

Great job for the week! Slowly down is the hardest thing to do! Some days the legs just want to go fast!

Marci said...

Great work with your training this week! I am training for a full right now, otherwise I would sign up for your challenge!

Oz Runner said...

here is a link to a great podcast about rebuilding your running base, from marathontrainingacademy

http://marathontrainingacademy.com/rebuilding-your-running-base

Marathon Training Schedule said...

Reasonable start but key to most programs is not to get carried away with fast long runs, they are meant to be easy....Also if it recommends rest or CT do it, it's all in the plan to avoid injury...best of luck

Trang @ Treadmill Runs said...

Awesome! I have gradually added about .25 miles per week. I started running back on 1/3 and have been doing it consistently a few days per week. Some days I feel like I can run more, but I know I shouldn't. I loooove being able to run again. I missed it so much when I had to take a running a sabbatical while pregnant with my second child. Thanks for the guidance all!

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