Back on the Train Gang.

So, last time we chatted I'd just run my first half-marathon in for-evah. It was one of those positive experiences that makes you want more of the same. More half-marathons, please!

But then baseball and end-of-school activities and more baseball and summer break (and all the goodness that goes along with that) took over. Running took a little bit of a back seat and with it, my thoughts of a fall half.

Sure, I'd bandied a few ideas of race weekends with friends but nothing came together.

Until my run in Sacandaga last weekend. Here's a peek at the scenes from that run:

I wanted to run 6. I ran almost 7.5. And I felt terrific, even after sub-par sleep the night before. I mean, super sub-par. The run buoyed me and made me think that, yeah, I can pull out a half-marathon this fall.

And so I decided to go for it. Bridget messaged me that she registered for the Fall Foliage Half Marathon in Rhinebeck on October 15th. Well, me too.

I'm registered. I'm in. I have a plan in place and I'm going for it. Sure, it is a hilly race but I'm a hill runner! I've got this.

My first long run of this training cycle was 9 miles on Saturday. I made sure they were hilly miles :-) and ran them in 1:25 (9:31 pace).

Bring. It. On.

Anyone else training for a half marathon this fall? Or another distance? Let me know!

September recap.

September was quite the month with some really solid runs and then, well, then it petered out.

Overall, the month was a win. But I had to scrap a planned 14-miler at the end of the month and take three full days off of running because my wonky hip decided to flare up.

Grrrr . . . 

So, the month ended a bit down, but not completely. After the rest and loading up with my favorite Deep Blue Rub, I bounced right back. I started October with two joyful runs! Pain free!!

Phew.

The month in numbers:

Running (miles): 123.1
Races: 0
Cross-training: some rehab on the hip and a realization that I have not been doing enough pre-hab!

This week, I am NOT going to let my mind obsess about missing my last long run last week.

Instead, I will obsess about the race day weather. Seems appropriate!

Oh . . . yeah! Looking good!! Fingers crossed that it stays that way.

Have a great week, everyone!

From worst to best.

Two weeks ago I ran that horrible 20-miler. It was tough -- for many reasons. The two biggest reasons were the humidity and my stomach cramping issues. After that run, I wondered (several times) if I was meant for the marathon at all, let alone a marathon with a time goal.

I wondered and every time I did, I told myself that, yes, I'm meant for it. Now is the time to go for it. Go for that marathon PR. I mean, why not? Right? Right.

So I forged ahead and have had some rocking runs since.

Sunday's 22 mile run was the best yet.

I ran with people I've never run with before: Catherine, Rachel and Jen. Catherine was with us for about 5 miles and then looped back to finish with 14. Rachel, Jen and I continued on. We started in one county, crossed the bridge over the river, and ran on into another county. High adventure for this happy runner!

Mile 1: 10:03
Mile 2: 9:58
Mile 3: 9:28
Mile 4: 9:16
Mile 5: 9:51
Mile 6: 10:20
Mile 7: 9:53
Mile 8: 9:46
Mile 9: 9:41
Mile 10: 9:38

After 10 miles, we popped into a 5K in Washington Park. It was such an odd thing to do, but it worked. It got us to pick up our pace on tiring legs. It also forced us to hold back, because we knew we'd have 9 miles left to run after the 5K.

The 5K:
Mile 11: 8:39
Mile 12: 7:52
Mile 13: 8:01

After the race: Me, Jen, Rachel. Yes, I was wearing gloves. My hands were freezing on Sunday!

We ran together for the race, finished, and ran back to where we'd started. We went a different route back to the start, which happened to be super-duper hilly. But, no matter. We conquered those hills!


Mile 14: 10:40
Mile 15: 11:25
Mile 16: 10:43
Mile 17: 10:24
Mile 18: 11:31
Mile 19: 10:16

With 3 miles to go, something happened to me. My body just needed to go. I felt myself pick up the pace a little and I went with it. I worried for about half a second that I would not be able to hold on to the pace, but deep-down I knew I could.

Mile 20: 9:48
Mile 21: 8:47
Mile 22: 9:18

And I did. I ran such a solid last few miles. It felt awesome!!!

Hooray!

Actually, the whole run felt awesome. I loved the company and our pacing and I really enjoyed the mid-run race break.

Solid Sunday 22-miler = total confidence. 

Now, my taper is right around the corner. I'm ready!

Enjoy the rest of the week, everyone!

Clove Run 10 Mile Race Report.

Saturday was the day of two runs. My main goal was my 18 mile marathon training run. But it also happened to be the day of the Clove Run, a local 10-mile race that I've run for the past few years. I really enjoy the race and was even the top female finisher back in 2011.

This year, I decided to sandwich the race in the middle of my 18-miler. I figured it would be a good opportunity to test out my marathon goal pace over an extended run. Plus, I'd get to run 18 miles in a race atmosphere.

I started out by running 2 miles by myself and then hooked up with Elisa and Bridget for a mile. Bridget had already run 4 miles by herself (she was sandwiching the race in the middle of her 16-miler) so she left us and Elisa and I ran one more mile before the race started. I quickly changed out of my super-sweaty shirt and headed to the start line.

I had a plan. I wanted to run at a steady pace, but walk the two major hills. My marathon goal pace is 8:51 so I was hoping to stick close to that for the entire race. I know myself, however, so I know that I don't always start out slow enough in my races. I tend to bolt out of the gate. On Saturday, though, I kept it in check.

Mile 1: 8:40
Mile 2: 8:33
Mile 3: 8:29

I kept telling myself to slow down but I also tried really hard to only look at my watch at the mile markers. I wanted to run by feel as much as possible.

Those first 6 miles flew by -- surprisingly.

Mile 4: 8:36
Mile 5: 8:15
Mile 6: 8:31

There's no marker for Mile 6, but there is one for the 10K, which comes right before the first big hill. Because I had been feeling so good, I almost decided to run up the whole hill. But my plan was to walk at a certain point, so walk I did! My hip thanked me for it.

At the top of the hill, there is a family that has a water stop for the runners and they were so incredibly nice! I stopped, took my gel (honey stinger) and some water, chatted with the kind family, and then ran on.

As nice as that stop was, though, it might not have been worth it. That gel did me wrong. Or maybe it was the stopping? Or combination? Something was not right because a few minutes after taking the gel I got a cramp and it stuck with me for pretty much the rest of the race. Boo!

Mile 7: 9:24
Mile 8: 8:05
Mile 9: 8:29

And then there was the last mile. Ah, yes. The last mile with that hill. I walked it all. See, the hill comes at a point in the race when you've already run 9+ miles. Who wants to run up a steep hill at that point? Not me, that's for sure.

So, I walked and then tried my best to pull out a strong finish.

Mile 10: 10:14

I ended up finishing is 1:27:19 -- an 8:45 pace overall and good enough for 3rd place in my age group!

Not too shabby!

After finishing, I continued running for 4 more (slow) miles. The cool part of running those miles was that I also got to listen to my aunt's band that was providing post-race entertainment! Pretty awesome!

In the end, I ran 18 miles with 10 of them just under marathon goal pace. I learned that I do well with nuun in my water, but still need to figure out mid-race fuel. The gels really don't work for me. I re-confirmed that my Injinji toe socks rock for long runs. Same goes for my awesome favorite running skirt.

I wish I had some race day pictures but, alas, that didn't happen!

All-in-all, a good day of running! I'm glad I ran the Clove Run -- one of my favorite races -- as part of my 18-miler. Breaking the miles up like I did (4/10/4) made them relatively easy!

Sunday was a nice little recovery run and now, today, I will rest! Hope you had a great weekend -- thanks for stopping by!

Celebrations!

We've been doing a bit of celebrating here in Happy Runner-ville.

First, Owen and I celebrated our 15th wedding anniversary on Thursday. We had a great day together. We went to Adirondack Extreme Adventure Course during the day and then out for a delicious dinner that evening. Lots of fun!

Check out that wobbly bridge behind us! It was way up high -- and way wobbly!

Then, on Saturday, we had a surprise 60th birthday party for my aunt at my house. It was a huge success -- she was surprised and so, so happy. Just perfect. Another day of fun!!

We took a break from the party to get a group shot of the family.

To top it all off, on Sunday I ran 10 solo miles and they went way better than I expected. I call that something to celebrate!

Felt great!

 
All good stuff, for sure. This week is shaping up to be a good one, too. Just not full of celebrations, but still full of fun. I'm going to be disappointed when this summer ends!

Have a great week, everyone!

Going early, going long.

Some days, I don't even know who I am.

Some days, it seems, I'm an early morning runner. That is not me. Not at all.

Except for when I am training for a marathon. In the middle of the summer. Then, apparently, I turn into that strange being that is the early morning runner.

And I don't mind it -- mostly. So odd, right?

Now, I usually do all of my long runs in the morning and some other runs as well. But when I've done those long runs, they've been at fairly civilized times. 7:30, perhaps. Or 8:00. Times that allow me to sleep until at least 7. Nothing crazy.

On Friday, though, I had 16 miles on the schedule and one of my running pals had to get in to work after the run. So we needed to get out early. Which meant I woke up in the 5s!

Nuttiness.

But I did it. 16 hilly, early-morning miles. Done. The first 10 miles were with Bridget and Elisa and they were full of conversation. The last 6 miles were done alone. Miles 11-14 were run right around marathon goal pace (8:51).

The last two miles were run right around barely running pace. I was dragging. With a mile and a half to go, I wanted to scrap the whole thing. Not just the run but the whole marathon training.

I gave myself a virtual slap upside the head, got back in the game and ran on. I finished the whole 16  miles. And the benefit of starting so early? I still had the whole day ahead of me.

Then, on Tuesday, I got up in the 5s again! This time, to meet a neighbor for an easy run.

We ran a little less than 4 miles together and I ran a mile on my own. I hadn't run with my neighbor since before my half marathon in May so it was good to catch up. Even if it did mean seeing these numbers on the clock when I woke up:

Who am I?

Still the same happy runner, for sure. Just with the renewed ability to bust out some miles early in the morning!

That's what marathon training does, I guess!

Enjoy the rest of your week, everyone!

Marathon training progress.

This is how we train for a marathon around here.

Old school training plans. Pen-and-paper style. (Graph paper, no less.)

Long runs. Slow-and-easy style. (With friends! The best way.)

Marathon pace runs. Solo style. (Overall pace of 8:38 -- right on target.)

This weekend I've got 14 miles on the schedule and they will be solo miles. I'm a wee bit nervous because 14 is the longest I've run in, well, in probably about a year. I didn't run anything over 13.2 in my half-marathon training this spring. I know I ran 14 once for my half-marathon training last fall, but that's it.

We'll see how this goes. If I take it slow and easy, I should be fine. Fingers crossed -- wish me luck!!!

Enjoy the rest of the week, everyone. And have a good weekend!

Ready . . . set . . . train!

After a low-mileage June, July has brought a big change: Marathon training!

I'm registered for the Mohawk-Hudson Marathon in October and training started in full-force yesterday with a solo 10-mile run.

It was a hilly, humid run but I managed to finish strong, with a 9:30 pace overall.

It was a little weird to be running alone, but also just what I needed. I recently started a doTerra essential oils business and my mind has been racing. I love the oils and love the opportunity -- but there is still so much to learn and I have all these plans and sometimes my head spins from it all. Out on the run, I was able to really clear my thoughts.

Runs like that are good for the ol' confidence. I feel like I am prepared to start marathon training now that I have 10 miles run and done.

As far as my schedule goes . . . it is a work-in-progress. I have all of my long runs mapped out but I still need to plan my speed work and fill-in the days for my easy runs and cross-training. I'll work that out over the next few days. No worries there.

Now, I'm off to enjoy the rest of the holiday weekend. I hope you're having a great one!

Helloooooo, taper!

Saturday was my last long run before the Run to Remember half marathon in Boston later this month.

It was an odd run. Not my greatest run but, believe me, not my worst. It was, however, a run that made me feel like I am ready for the race.

I got up ridiculously early in order to meet Janis and Bridget and start our run at 6:30. It was warm and humid. Then it started to rain a little. We ran 3 miles, complained about the crummy weather, then circled back to Janis' car and changed some of our gear.

Then we met up with Elisa for 9-10 more miles.

It continued to be warm. And humid. And to start-and-stop with the rain.

At mile 8, I had to run off by myself. It was just one of those runs. My feet were hurting and I felt like I needed to run faster to give them a bit of a break. Weird, I know. But that's just the way it is.

I ran the next 4 miles by myself and felt so strong! After running the 12 miles, I turned and met up with Elisa and Janis and then ran on to finish up with Bridget. In all, I ran 13 miles:

13 miles at a 9:30 pace. I'll take it.

Now, I am relishing my taper! On Sunday I ran and easy 4.5 miles with a new running friend (who lives right in my neighborhood -- lucky me!!) and today I ran another easy 4.5 miles by myself. This weekend I'll run a short long run (6 miles? 8 miles?) and take it easy. At some point, I'll figure out exactly what my race plan is (I have some thoughts but I'm not there yet).

Until then, I'll enjoy my taper.

Have a great week, everyone!

Random rock star.

When you run 12 solo miles on a random Thursday morning, you feel like a rock star.

True story.

See, it happened to me so I write from experience. Here's what happened: I had 12 miles on the schedule for this weekend. But, as it happens, I have a party to go to Saturday night so I wasn't thrilled about running long that morning -- and I definitely didn't want to run long on Sunday morning!

My Thursday morning was open. My little guy is in school for 2.5 hours and I had no plans. Run, Happy Runner, run! 12 miles would only take 2 hours so the 2.5 hour time slot would be plenty.  Just do it, Happy Runner, just do it!

I listened to that prodding internal voice and decided to go for it. I dropped my son off at school and headed right out -- with a little flair!

http://instagram.com/felicepd

Still love those socks!

Anyway . . . I wanted to run a nice easy pace for the 12 miles. No pressure. I ran over mail roads and hilly country roads. I passed a dead bird, two dead squirrels and -- this was extra gross -- a dead deer.

I also passed by a woman out for a walk. She was older, maybe 70, 75, and was pushing one of those walker things that was, in turn, carrying her oxygen tank. Run, Happy Runner, run! I have NO desire (does anyone?) to end up like that. None whatsoever. Running past her, I felt a little weird. There I was, running free while she was tethered to her oxygen.

Clearly, I will keep running. If it does nothing else for me, I'm sure it is doing good for my lungs!

I also tried out a new gel on this run:

http://instagram.com/felicepd

A few weeks ago, Janis let me try a Honey Stinger when we were out for a run. It was good. I've had problems with gels during my half marathons so I'm looking for something new. When Janis bought a larger supply of them last week, she offered some up to me and I gladly took them. Yesterday, I tried taking them at miles 5 and 10.

I like the taste. They taste like what they are -- vanilla and honey. Yum! And, fortunately, they didn't bother my stomach. Granted, I wasn't running fast but it was a good trial. I plan to try them out again on my next long run, or maybe a faster run so I can see how they'll work on half marathon day!

Now, let's get back to the random Thursday run. I finished with 12 miles in 1:54, or about 9:30 per mile.

http://instagram.com/felicepd

I walked back to my son's school and waited to pick him up, and then we sped home so I could shower, we could eat a little lunch, and we could head over to volunteer in my first-grader's classroom.

As I helped the kids make butter and squeeze orange juice for 2.5 hours, I seriously felt like a rock star. Random Thursday. 12 miles. Still standing to work with a bunch of crazy 6 and 7 year olds.

Yup, rock star.

And now, my weekend is much freer. I like it. I really do.

Have a great weekend, everyone!!

A week of running.

Finally. A week of good running for this happy runner!

Following the Runnin' of the Green on Saturday, I took Sunday and Monday off to rest my legs. On Tuesday, I was fortunate to get a quick 4.25 mile run in, before my little guy got sick that evening. I am no kind of fan of the stomach bug, that's for sure. But, I am happy that the rest of us avoided getting sick. Phew!

Wednesday was all about taking care of my patient, and he was such a good one, even though he felt lousy.

Smiling through the stomach bug -- but look at those sad eyes!!

Thursday was back to normal and I went to my physical therapy appointment and then for another quick 4.25 mile run. At my appointment, my PT taped my injured area with KT tape so I'm giving that a try. So far, so good!

On Saturday, the boys started swimming lessons -- which they loved -- and I sneaked in a sunny-but-windy run later in the afternoon.

And that brings me to today.

It was cold. It was windy. The route was hilly. We started early.

Yes, this morning I ran 10 enjoyable miles with Bridget and Janis, plus a bonus of 4+ with our friend, Elisa. They were tough miles, but we covered them at a 9:44 pace. Go, us!

Overall, I ran 22.5 miles for the week. That's my highest weekly mileage since the first week of January. January! Sheesh. Yeah, I'm happy to be getting back on track.

My hope now is that I stay on track. I could use a long stretch of good, solid training.

And, with that, I'm off. Have a great week, everyone!

  

YOUth Make a Difference 5K race report.

No suspense here: I had an awesome race on Saturday and set a new PR!

It was great. The race took place in my town, just 5 minutes from my house. We headed over early so Conal could run the 1 mile run and then I'd run the 5K afterward. 

Conal and me before the race, Conal running strong through the finish line and then sporting his medal.

A 1-mile race is a big deal for a little kid but Conal ran strong! Yes, he took walk breaks but then he started back up and he ended up finishing in 12:17. I was so proud of my little runner!

After that race, I lined up for mine. My plan was to try to run hard and see what kind of speed I have going into the last month of half marathon training. I've run only two fast workouts since coming back from my injury (my fast mile and a recent tempo run when I ran 2 miles in 15:15) so I didn't know exactly what to expect.

I started out faster than I probably should have, going through the first mile in 6:53.

Yikes! I have to admit I was cursing myself a little (OK, a lot) after that fast start. I had to hold on. So I kept pushing through the second mile and I went through it in 7:04.

A drop-off for sure, but not too bad.

The third mile, though, was tough. I was ready to be done and my internal conversation was not all that positive. I kept telling myself I'd blown it. That I had 2-mile speed and that was about it. That I just needed to stop.

But, thankfully, I didn't stop. I kept running and I went through the third mile in 7:14. I picked it up at the end to finish as strong as I could, running the last tenth of a mile at 6:20 pace and finishing the race in 21:37!

A new PR!!!

I never in a million years thought I would have been able to run that fast right now. I've been so worried about re-injuring my hip that I've been very, very conservative with my training. I believe that has been a good plan because, now, here I am running and racing strong!


Race stats:

Overall time: 21:37
Pace: 6:58/mile
Age group place (female, 40-49): 2 out of 30
Gender place: 8 out of 151
Overall place: 18 out of 241  

I followed up the race with a nice and easy (and very hilly!) 10 mile run with Bridget and Elisa at the crack of dawn on Sunday. My legs felt heavy but it was a good run with friends and it felt good to get the miles in.

Nice weekend of running for this happy runner!

Have a great week, everyone!

When bad math equals a good run.

Late last week, Bridget and I agreed to meet up for a 12-mile run on Saturday morning. Around the same time, Elisa and Gail were making plans to run 12 as well. At one point, their plan was to run on the bike path in Niskayuna -- too far for Bridget and I to meet them on this particular Saturday.

So, there was talk of meeting in Poestenkill -- closer, yes, but also hillier. Given how my running had gone last week, I needed to avoid hills. My hip was acting up (no big surprise since I was coming off an aggressive 10-mile race) so I told Bridget I needed to run somewhere flat.

There was a lot of back and forth about the plan and, while I was out enjoying a kid-free evening with my husband, Bridget and Elisa ended up finalizing it. Bridget and I would meet at 8:00. Elisa and Gail would meet at 7:00. They'd run 6 miles by themselves during that time, meet us, and we'd all run 6 together.

The only problem is, their plan called for us to meet at a spot that was 6 miles from where Bridget and I were planning to start.

The plan was victim of a little bit of bad math.

Fortunately, Elisa re-checked the calculations and caught the bad math before we started out on Saturday. Even more fortunately, she and Gail scrapped their plans to start in Niskayuna and decided the run the entire 12 miles with Bridget and me.

Bonus!

With a new plan, we took off all together and tackled 12 enjoyable miles! We banged out 8 strong miles in just under 10-minute pace. Then, we dropped the pace and ran the last 4 miles in 9:10, 9:01, 8:56 and 8:59. Go, negative splits!

Gail, Elisa, Bridget and me after the run.

Thanks to some bad math, Bridget and I got to run with Gail and Elisa for the full 12 miles. And it was a great run!

Long runs with friends truly rock.

Have a great week, everyone. Thanks for stopping by!

Really running.

No fake stuff here. Last week I was really running -- stretching my mileage to include a 6-miler with friends.

It was terrific.

Check out the post-run smiles:

Karyn, Bridget and me after my 6 mile run -- my longest run since April!

It was so good to be back out running along the Hudson River. And 6 miles? Hey, that's no joke when you've been nursing an injury since the spring. The best part is that those 6 miles were pain free. Brilliant!

I only managed three runs for the week but they were quality runs. (Quality runs! Man, it feels good to write that . . .)

So far, this return-to-running thing is going well. I'm still icing and taking extra rest. I'm also seeing a chiropractor twice a week and I've been researching and talking to this chiropractor about having the Graston Technique done on my hip/thigh/hamstring. I think it could be very beneficial to me. I'll keep you posted.

In the meantime, I'm still grappling with my marathon/no marathon decision. I looked into the deferment policy a little more and I can fairly easily defer my registration to next year. I can also try to switch to the half marathon. With that additional option that I didn't know I had, I'm feeling more undecided than ever!

Well, that's not true. I've decided I am not running the marathon this October. I'll either defer completely to 2014 or try to switch to the half.

Decisions, decisions . . .

Since I've taken the marathon out of the equation, I do have a little more time to make my decision. So, I figure I'll procrastinate on that one for a little while!

I have four runs in mind for this week, including another 6 or maybe even 7 miles on Saturday. Woo hoo!

Have a great week, everyone. Thanks for stopping by!

12 miles. Treadmill style.

I had a great plan for yesterday's long run. I was going to meet Bridget for 3 miles at 7:30. Then Elisa would join us for 5 miles. I'd finish with 4 miles by myself. 

Only, that didn't happen. 

See, it was cold this weekend and my body has been rebelling against the cold. Not in a "Oh, I don't like the cold and would rather not go out in it" kind of way. That I could handle. No, it has been rebelling in a "I'm going to kick all of your nerve pain into high gear and I'm going to keep it like that for hours and hours and hours" kind of way.

Not pleasant.

I've learned that if I'm feeling a certain way and it is too cold and windy, my body can't handle it. The pain while I run is one thing -- and, believe me, I can handle pain while I run -- but the lingering pain is another thing entirely. After a cold run, my feet can hurt for a full day. Same with my hands. And my face? It is bad. My face gets a feeling like I've just been shot-up with Novocaine. And it doesn't go away. The worst is my nose. In addition to the pain from exposure, it is red and raw -- some combination of sunburn (the antibiotics make me more susceptible to sunburn) and response to the cold.

Lovely, right? Right.

So, I've more or less learned my lesson and stick to indoor runs when the conditions aren't right. Like this weekend.

Saturday was 5.75 miles on the treadmill. Sunday was 12.3.

So much for a long run with friends!

It didn't bother me too much. After all, I got to run in shorts:

Never a bad thing.

But, you know, treadmill miles can be boring and there's not a lot of fun stuff on TV on Sunday morning. How many episodes of "Say Yes to the Dress" can a runner really watch? 

So, long run on the treadmill: Done. 12.3 miles. Sure, I wanted to stop at 9. And at 10. And, I really, really, really wanted to stop at 11. But I kept going and even finished strong.

Now, can we just get some warm weather sometime soon? 

Please?

Have a great week, everyone!

 

Quality miles.

Last week, I continued to bounce back. I ran six times, easing into the week with two very short, easy runs that were meant simply to keep my blood flowing and my muscles moving.

On Wednesday, I ran my speedwork and felt like I was flying. This run rocked for two reasons: First, I actually got it together to run in the morning and, second, I ran my fast repeats at just under 5K pace, 6:48/mi. Sure, they were short repeats but there were 14 of them and I ran strong. Quality miles.

After a rest day on Thursday, I came back on Friday (morning, again!) with a 5.6 mile that included two miles at goal half-marathon pace. Saturday was my long run. It was windy and my route was hilly but I banged out 9.12 miles at a 9:13 pace. Yesterday was straight-up recovery with a quick, easy 3.6 miles.

In total, 28 miles for the week. Quality miles.

Ah, yes. Quality miles. I'm following this good advice:

And I'm finally starting to get excited for April's half marathon! It's about time.

I hope you all had a great weekend ~ and a good week ahead!

Mileage creep.

My mileage is slowly creeping up to where I'd like it to be. What a relief. Although, at this point in my half marathon training, I would like my long runs to be in double digits. But, they are not. Not yet, anyway, and I'm OK with that.

I'm running the runs I can run.

And this past week was a week where I had to give up on a few of those runs. You see, I was knocked out by a nasty bout of food poisoning. It was truly, truly awful. What's worse is that my whole family -- Owen, the boys, my parents, my brother and his (very-pregnant-ready-to-give-birth-any-day-now) wife, and my other brother and his girlfriend -- all had it. Yeah. And guess who made the dinner that got them all sick? Yup, yours truly.

Ugh.

So, Monday and Tuesday were spent dealing with a terribly unpleasant little illness and running was the last thing I wanted to do. But Wednesday, when Owen was still home from work because he hadn't recovered, I was back and I had a super-duper outdoor run.

Man, was that a good run! I'm sure a big part of why it was so good was that I was finally feeling like I was back among the living. Still, I can appreciate a good run for what it is. And that was one.

On Thursday I hit the treadmill for an interval workout. I warmed up for about 10 or so minutes and then ran 14 x 30 seconds @ 5K pace / 90 seconds slow. Then I cooled down. I pushed myself to finish the last 4 under 5K pace and I'm glad I did! Speeding up on tired legs is always good preparation for race day.

Today was my long run. My solo long run.

8 chilly and hilly miles on slick roads. I took it easy and ran around 9:30 miles for the first 6 miles then I dropped down to 9:00 pace for mile 7 and 8:05 for mile 8.

Quality miles. 

So what if I'm not up over 10 yet? I will be, soon enough. I still have two months before the half marathon. I'll be ready!

Enjoy the rest of the weekend, everyone!

Good fortune.

Saturday morning, I rolled out of bed at 6:00 so I could meet some friends for a 14 mile run at 6:45. Super early for me, but I did it. And I'm glad I did.

First, we met at the bike path, which is flat, so my legs were ever so grateful for the break. Second, I got to run with Melissa and I'm always happy to do that! And, third, I met a very inspirational runner who proves that a) you're never too old to run fast and b) limitations are only limitations if you let them be.

The runner in question is a 64-year old woman named Sue.

Sue started running when she was 58 -- after she'd had breast cancer and a mastectomy. She ran a 5K and was hooked. She's since run several marathons -- under 4 hours -- and some 31-mile ultras. She's super nice and she shared tips with Melissa and me.

And she's fast. Not just fast for a woman. Not just fast for a 64-year old. Not just fast for someone who's overcome cancer.

Just plain fast.

It was a pleasure running with Sue. The run reminded me that I'm fortunate to have found an activity -- running -- that I love. I'm just as fortunate to have the ability to do it and to have the support system -- family and friends -- to make it possible and more enjoyable. You never know what can happen in life, so why not make the most of it?

Which is what I did on Saturday.

I already told you that I ran 14 miles with friends. But when I originally made the plan, I wanted to run 10. Melissa told me she and another running friend, Jenny, were planning on 14.

Well, why not run 14? I thought. I ran 12.5 last weekend so 14 would be fine. Go for it, Happy Runner.

So I went for it and told the group I was in for 14. And here's what the run looked like:

Mile 1: 9:41
Mile 2: 9:44
Mile 3: 9:28
Mile 4: 9:27
Mile 5: 9:29
Mile 6: 9:31
Mile 7: 9:38
Mile 8: 9:44
Mile 9: 9:47
Mile 10: 9:35

Just before mile 10, Jenny met up with us and then we hit the turnaround. Jenny needed some water, and the others needed a walk break (don't blame them -- Melissa and Jenny had run 9 miles the day before!). I needed to keep going and did. Since I was no longer talking, I picked up the pace and made the most of the last 4 miles:

Mile 11: 8:23
Mile 12: 8:13
Mile 13: 8:24
Mile 14: 8:38

Total negative splits, right there.

What a great run! A perfect start to the weekend that included a super fun 40th birthday party with good friends:

Allison, Monique, Stacey, me, Janis at Bridget's house for her husband's 40th birthday party!

Making the most of it. On the run and off!

Did you make the most of it this weekend?

Hope you all had a great weekend!


~ Felice

Un-fueling for the fat-burning long run.

When it comes to running, I read pretty much anything I can lay my eyes on. Books, magazines, web sites. I'm drawn to new research and studies, intrigued by elite training plans. I take it all in and hope to digest it, work it over, and use it to improve my running.

Recently, I've been making an effort to improve my body's ability to burn fat as fuel and to run well in a low-glycogen state. I've read about ways to do this, and the benefits of training your body this way, in several books and articles including this article on the McMillan web site and this article from Running Times. (I've also read about it in Advanced Marathoning and Brain Training for Runners -- two excellent books for runners.)

Here's some interesting information from the Running Times article:

At the Centre of Inflammation and Metabolism in Denmark, Bente Klarlund Pedersen, M.D., DMSc, had subjects exercise one leg once daily, and the other leg twice every other day, but in a glycogen-depleted state. The total amount of training was equal for both legs, but after 10 weeks, the glycogen-denied leg increased its endurance by 90 percent.

I could certainly go for some of that increased endurance!

So, yesterday, I applied what I've learned. Instead of eating an English muffin with peanut butter an hour before my run and then a handful jelly beans right before, I had an English muffin with just a little regular butter. No peanut butter, no jelly beans. And, instead of taking a gel during the run, I carried watered-down Gatorade.

This is me weaning myself off the carbs.

I did, however, carry a gel with me -- just in case I started to feel off or if we made a wrong turn (it happens!) and had to add some unexpected miles to our run. I didn't need it.

I felt absolutely fine and full of (enough) energy. That run was a good test for lower carb consumption because it was a) hot b) super-humid and c) a really hilly course. If I can handle a hot, humid, hilly run with lower carbs, I can continue to reduce my consumption and reap the benefits come race day!

At least, that's the plan.

Source: icandodukan.tumblr.com via Felice on Pinterest

I'll keep you posted on Operation Un-fueling over the course of my half-marathon training!

Hope everyone had a good weekend!

~ Felice

Mental running lessons.

This weekend, I re-learned a running lesson.

I had a long run set up with my friend, Rebecca. Because of timing, we had to meet at 8:30 and needed to be done 10. My schedule called for 10 miles on Saturday but, as we were figuring out the plan to meet for the run, I decided to scratch that. Sure, I wanted to run 10 but that meant we'd have to hit the path right at 8:30 and run 9 minute miles the whole 10 miles.

I didn't think that would happen.

And then Rebecca wrote that she wanted to run 10 -- or maybe even 11 -- miles at an 8:30/9:00 min/mile pace.

Oh.

Stop sand-bagging, Happy Runner. You can so easily run at that pace. Didn't you run a half marathon at 8:15 pace and an entire marathon at 9:00 pace? So, 10 miles at 9 min/mile? You can totally do that.


Yes, I could.

So I agreed to meet Rebecca and we'd bang out 10 miles at an 8:45-ish pace.

And that's almost what we did.

Rebecca was delayed getting to our meeting spot (darn one way streets!) so we didn't get to start right at 8:30. Since we got off a little late, we decided to run 9 miles. We settled immediately into an 8:45 pace and kept it going as we chatted and chatted for the first 4+ miles. We turned around at 4.5 miles and continued to run strong. About 7 or so miles into our run, Rebecca needed to make a pit stop. She told me to keep going (because she knew I needed to be back at my car by 10) so I did.

Here's the thing: I started our run feeling cruddy. My breathing was crap and I couldn't get into a good rhythm for the longest time. The whole first 4 miles, I wanted to stop. If I hadn't been running with Rebecca, I would've slowed down or maybe even cut the run short.

And then, after 7 miles at a good clip, I had to finish the run alone.

Photo from my friend, Amanda. Lonely stretch of road --
that's what the last two miles of Saturday's run felt like in my mind.

For a second, I felt my body slow. Just take it easy. Slow down. Why do you want to run so fast, anyway? 


For a second, I entertained those thoughts. And then I silenced them.

So what if I was now running alone? I can push myself. I am a strong runner. This run would make me an even stronger runner.

I reminded myself that I have run much faster than this for much longer. Then I reminded myself that discomfort in training runs leads to better races. I focused on my breathing  -- in, in, out, out, in, in, out, out -- and on how strong I was truly feeling (brain fatigue aside). I did a posture check.


I picked the pace back up and told myself there was no way I was finishing this strong run with two weak miles.

I finished with 9.05 miles at 8:43 pace.

And felt great!

Now, what of that running lesson that I re-learned?

Source: fuckyeahfitspo.tumblr.com via Felice on Pinterest

Source: erica-sara.blogspot.com via Felice on Pinterest

The lesson I re-learned is that running is one heck of a mental activity. Your legs might be propelling you forward but if your brain isn't thinking the right thoughts, you aren't going to go as far or as fast as you'd like.

Your brain is in control. And, sometimes, it is going to want to stop.


I am working on getting my brain in the game.


Saturday was a success. I overruled the part of my brain that didn't want to run at the 8:45 pace and then I overruled the part that wanted to slow down 7 miles in to the run. I ended up with a great run. I've done it before, I will do it again. It is a running lesson to learn over and over and over.  


To make this easier, I've put together a short list of awesome training runs and races that I can look back on when I'm hitting a rough patch in a run and my brain wants me to slow down or stop. It may seem like a dorky thing to do, but just writing those performances down gives them more life and -- I hope -- will make them a more powerful tool against the "slow-down" brain.

So there you have it. My running lesson re-learned and my tip for overriding your brain.

Now, please tell me I'm not the only one who has to repeatedly learn this lesson! 

Do you have any good tips for convincing your brain that you can do it?

Thanks for stopping by!

~ Felice