NYCM 2013 - Quick Update

Hi All!

I had a great time yesterday running NYC and today suffered with an extremely foggy brain in the AM and very sore legs during the afternoon. 

A full recap will come later. The quick stats are below:

Official Time: 3:13:42 - A new PR!

140th Female

42nd in Age Group

1859th overall

We had a GREAT weekend and got to meet up with old friends! It's really too bad it only lasted three days :(

A BIG thanks goes to my personal photographer and biggest cheerleader - Tom. He put up with my five months of training and ran/biked/taxi-ed throughout the city to cheer me on yesterday. 

NYCM 2013: Week 17 Training

I had a dream last night that I was running the last mile of a half marathon and was stopped. I could barely make my legs move. I was on target to run a 1:19 and I was trying my hardest to get my legs to step forward.

It's a sign that one of two things may happen next week:

1. I'll hit the wall big time
2. I'll get a PR  (I would prefer this one)

Total weekly mileage: 46 miles

Monday: 7 miles at 7:37 pace
The two week "taper" began on this day. The Hanson's method doesn't call for as big of a taper as other training plans do, so this run felt like a typical Monday run for me. The only difference is that the cooler weather arrived in DC.

Strength Tuesday: 8 miles at 7:11 pace
This was supposed to be a 6 x 1 mile workout but I was not in the mood for speed, nor did I have the time. I turned it into a tempo run because I also did not think I would be able to get a tempo run in on Thursday.

Wednesday: Day off - Half mile of running at our cross country meet 

Thursday: 8 miles at 7:24 pace
I did a mini tempo after all, going only about 6 miles. I didn't get out until it was pretty dark so I had to bust out the gloves AND the reflective gear. I always dread this day of the year because I know that a few cold, dark months of running lie ahead :(

Friday: 7 miles at 7:40 pace
This taper is working wonders. This was the first Friday in weeks that I had energy to run and was not struggling to keep my eyes open. It was also the first time all week that I was able to run with some sunlight.

Saturday: 8 miles at 8:01 pace
Somehow Tom ended up running with me for 85% of this run. Normally we don't run together, especially since he's been training for Philly on his own and is a much faster runner than me. However it was nice to have the company. We even stopped at a mill along the creek and watched them grind grains into flour using the water. We also saw tons of dogs dressed in human clothes including onesies and overalls. You never know what adventure a run might take you on!

Sunday: 8 miles at 8:17 pace

It was chilly this morning and the roads were pretty empty. Many people were down at the Marine Corps Marathon and a few roads were blocked off to cars. I took it super slow, knowing that what I do now doesn't benefit me for next Sunday. I have to stay low key and healthy to make sure I arrive ready for race day.

_____________________

This is the last week of training and I have decided that I won't follow the Hansons plan 100%. Last year I went for a run on the morning of the would-be NYC marathon and my legs were super tired and toast. There was no way they would have been able to run the actual marathon if it had gone on as planned. My legs are already doing better this year. I will do some easy runs this week, but haven't quite decided which days I'll take off and how many miles I'll do each day. 

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This week is also the last week of the cross country season. Their Championship is on Saturday. While I look forward to a few extra hours to my day, there is going to be a huge chunk of awesomeness that will be missing. I look forward to practice every day and those kids bring some great laughs and motivation into my life. 

___________________

After the last 17 weeks of training I have come to accept that my hamstring injury from last year is most likely going to be a lifelong issue. I don't talk about it anymore on here or on daily mile, but I have pain while running on almost a daily basis. It's not a lot, but it always reminds me that it's there. I foam roll and some days its better than others. Maybe someday, when I eventually have a kid and have to take weeks/months off of running, the muscle will finally have a chance to heal. 

Because of this, the one thing I'll be sure to pack on Friday (besides my running shoes) will be my foam roller. I've come to rely on that baby far too long. Other than that, I don't even want to think about packing or what I'll race in......

NYCM 2013: Week 16 Training Recap

After the last two weeks I only have two words: I'm tired.

Total weekly mileage: 52 miles

Monday: 4 miles at 8:02 pace. Arm workout.
Thanks to the holiday I was able to sleep in and run in the morning. The sun made its first appearance in days which meant that I could bust out my new Sauconys and not worry about mud.

Strength Tuesday: 8 miles at 7:23 pace
0.5 Mile warm up, then 2 x 3 mile repeats at race pace with 1 mile recovery in between, followed by a 0.5 mile cool down. I felt good on this run. Not as great as my last strength workout from last month, but I was happy to be getting in some speed. Many of my runs have been in the dark so it's hard to watch my footing and to still run fast. I also tend to slow up near intersections to make sure all cars can see me so I don't get hit. The 3 mile intervals were definitely speedy, and I ran about 8:00 pace for the recovery.

Wednesday: Day off 

Thursday XC run: 1.7 miles at 7:32 pace 
Ran a few hills to push some of our fastest girls.

Tempo Thursday: 10 miles at 7:36 pace
I was too ambitious in the beginning of the run, especially after a day of teaching and coaching. The first three miles were at 7:00 but I drifted off after. By mile 6 my legs felt like they had run two 5ks. I was tired and my legs were becoming sore. It was also dark and I wanted dinner and to be in bed. But I kept pushing, and thinking about my XC kids. They push themselves each day in practice, even if they don't want to (that's why they have coaches!) so I had to muster up the energy and do as the kids. It was a warm, 70 degree night with a full moon, and I was very thankful to be running in such splendid weather.

Friday: 6.7 miles at 8:13
I woke up more tired than when I went to bed. My body is not recovering the same way it did this summer (thank you school) and I needed more sleep. I ran after school and took it very slow.

Saturday: XC Practice: 5.8 miles at 8:05 pace
We ran to a nearby park and then I did a tempo with a few of the girls. I had visions of practices from college, where I was tailing the girls in front of me, struggling to hold their pace. That's how I felt today. My legs were still recovering from Thursday.

Second run: 4 miles at 8:04 pace
I ran when I got home to get my daily mileage up to 10 miles. My legs started to feel better on the second half of my run, but perhaps that was because I was going down hill for a good portion of it.

Sunday: 10 miles at 8:08 pace

The leaves are finally changing colors down here so I headed toward trails rather than one of my regular street-filled routes. The start was chilly but ended up being perfect. 

Around mile 7 a man turned around 50 feet in front of me. When I caught up to him he wouldn't let me pass. I was not in the mood to race anyone, but I was also not in the mood to "pretend" to stop and let him go, because I knew that I'd just catch up to him again. He stayed with me for almost a mile. I kept my pace and he would slow down. I'd pass him at my same pace and he'd sprint forward, then slow down, and then I'd catch him. It was a horrible, horrible cycle for 7 minutes. At one point he literally tried to run me off the path but he then decided to stop running. Seriously dude, you look stupid trying to be macho. Advice for any men out there - just let a woman pass you. We won't judge. We'll only judge if you act dumb out there and then we take you. Run your own run. Please. And let me run mine.

______________________

Only two weeks separate me and the NYC Marathon. My first goal these next two weeks are to absolutely get 7-8 hours of sleep a night. Confidence level? A 7 out of 10. It has to be done and I have to force myself to follow through on this. I think I'll have to set an alarm for 9 pm. When the alarm goes off I'll just have to stop what I'm doing and go to bed.  

My second goal is to stop eating the crap I'm eating. When our bodies are put through stress (thank you training and teaching) we crave sugary foods. If we cave and eat those sugary foods then we put our body through more stress. This might cause us to sleep poorly, wake up tired, then crave caffeine and sugary foods. It becomes an endless cycle that is hard to break. I've been giving into those cravings too much over the last month and need to stop. I felt ten times better on my runs earlier this school year because I was still eating as healthy as during the summer. I want to, no, NEED to feel that good for NYC. 

NYCM 2013 Training: Weeks 14 and 15 Recap

Rain: It separates the warriors from the weaklings.

That's what I told my XC kids this week when they tried to convince me why they shouldn't have to go running out in the rain for practice. Then I had to remind that to myself when I had to do each of my runs in the rain over the last four days. Right now I'm ready for some sunshine and some dry shoes.

Week 14 (9/30 to 10/6) Total Weekly Mileage: 0

Week 15 total weekly mileage: 54

Monday: 4 miles at 8:02 pace. Arm workout.
After the bruised bone diagnosis from the orthopedic and his OK to return to training I hit the roads for a longer-than planned run. My knee felt great and I was happy to be out there once again.

Tuesday: 1.8 miles at XC practice (8:32 pace)
Second run: 6 miles at 7:19 pace. Core Workout
Knowing that I couldn't do a 9 mile speed workout on my second day back I decided to reduce the distance but still keep up the speed. I knew I was taking a risk and that I could have hurt my knee more, but it felt good on the run and after it. I Ran a half mile warm up before a 5 mile tempo run, followed by a half mile cool down. Foam rolling helped to loosen some minor knee pain before and after. I owe a lot to the person that invented the concept of foam rolling.

Wednesday: Day off. 1 mile of start and stop running at practice to time the kids. 

Thursday:  1.7 miles at practice (8:09 pace)
Second run: 8 miles at 7:25 pace. 
The plan called for a 10 mile tempo run, but I knew I wasn't up to that level after taking last week off. I still did a tempo run but shortened it by 2 miles and left out the warm up and cool down. This was the first day of our rainy-day streak that was to come, so I didn't mind the mist that lasted throughout the run.

Friday: 7 miles at 7:50 pace. 
Another rainy day. Got quite wet out there and a little chilly with the colder weather that moved into DC this week.

Saturday: 8 miles at 8:04 pace. Core workout.
Woke up early to get in my own workout before I had to go with the kids to a cross country meet. The rain didn't start until half way through so it was actually a nice and relaxing run. The creek was roaring the whole time with the additional water. The fallen leaves on the wet roads made me think of Vermont.

Few people were out on the normally busy running trails because of the yucky weather and because the park was technically "closed" with the shutdown. Fortunately, I was able to get where I wanted and there was only a half-mile portion of my route that was closed.

Sunday: 16 miles at 8:17 pace

I should have waited 20 minutes before heading out this morning because those first 20 minuets were spent running in wind and cold rain. After 25 minutes the rain held off and I slowly dried off throughout the rest of my run.

I was a tad worried about my legs on this run since I jumped right back into training this week, but I had strength and energy throughout. Hopefully this will be enough to get me to the finish in three weeks at NYC.

_________________

Last Sunday I ordered my second pair of Sauconys. I've been converted from Asics to these fabulous shoes. They came on Wednesday but there was no way they were going to make their debut in the rain. Hopefully the sun comes out tomorrow so I can start to break them in before NYC.

My first race check also came in this week. I'm used to getting medals or gift cards for placing at a race, but I've never actually received money! It was nice to get a $35 check for placing third in the Parks Half. 

Somehow this cycle of training is quickly winding down. Only three more weeks of training and only one week of actual training before the taper. NYC will be here in no time and my only goal now is to stay healthy, focus on nutrition, and to get more sleep during the school week.

Looking Forward: NYC Marathon 2013 and Summer Running Goals

People keep asking me what I am going to do this summer now that the last week of school has arrived. My plans include cleaning and organizing for the next year of teaching, hitting up the library every other day to get a new book, cooking lots of dinner for Tom to make up for this whole year of dinners he cooked, and to train again for the NYC Marathon.

I am going to go with the Hanson plan once again this summer. I also have a few goals to go along with it.

1. Wake up when Tom gets up so I can get out the door by 7am each morning and do my runs. No waiting until 9 or 9:30. Last summer was too hot and I was stupid for not completing early morning runs before the heat hit.
2. Race this summer. I want to get in some 5ks. And with that.....
3. Get a PR in the 5k.

Yeah, that's a big one. I have been OK with my 5K PR since I got it during my junior year of college. Then this spring I realized that I am so capable of a better one. I'll need to get in speed. And I'll need to make sure I'm over with the hamstring injury.

Three weeks ago I had an intensive Graston treatment that left my leg QUITE bruised, but made it feel 10x better than before.

I haven't run since last Sunday, and don't plan on running until Saturday. I've already noticed a lot of the little veins that popped up this winter (after the treatment) are gone, and so I hope that means that the area is finally healing itself. Tomorrow I go back to PT for my two week check-in, and hopefully one of the last treatments.

I'm trying to be smart now so I can get the results I want. I hope it'll be a good summer of training and that I can continue to see my times go down. But for now, I'm staying busy with final exams and end of the year packing!

My Thoughts on Training: The Hanson's Plan

I shook things up in July when I started using the Hanson's Marathon plan. If you've been reading this blog for a while then you've heard me talk about it a few times in the last few months. Gone are the 20 mile runs. This plan called for no more than 16 miles at once. It was designed to incorporate more consistent running and a higher weekly mileage than I have ever done during marathon training.

I didn't follow the plan exactly. And I didn't hire any coaches. I did what I could with my teaching and coaching schedule, sacrificing half of the track workouts and sacrificing miles some weeks. The month of September was brutal - I was exhausted by Friday and barely able to stand on some Saturday nights. But I loved the plan. I loved the training. I loved how in shape I felt on each run.

Now that actual race is over I can give you more complete thoughts about the training.

I didn't die at mile 20. 

In fact, I felt great. The plan trained me to run on fatigue, and at mile 20 I was barely tired. The higher weekly mileage gave me the endurance to keep going, but more importantly, the mental confidence that I could keep going.

Mind Tricks - Going back to training

When I got to the 10 mile mark in the marathon, I reminded myself of all of my weekend training runs. Saturday might be a 10 miler followed by a 16 miler on Sunday. During the race, I told myself to forget the 10 miles I had just run, and to think of the remaining distance as a new Sunday run. Splitting up the race into different chunks helped me focus on the moment, not the entirety of the race. I "chunked" the race multiple times over the 3+ hours. Some of the combinations were.....

• A 10 mile chunk and a 16 mile chunk
• Three 8 mile chunks
• A 16 mile race, then a 10 mile one
• A 10 mile, 10 mile, and a 6 mile run
• Four 6 mile chunks (for fueling purposes)

Rest Days

In my other training cycles I took Mondays off. They usually fell on the day after my long runs (20 miles) and my body needed the recovery day. Wednesdays were my off days in this plan. I wasn't killing myself on super-long runs, which meant that my legs were capable and ready to run on Mondays. I may have had to start out slow on Monday runs, but the legs would eventually loosen up and be ready for speed by Tuesday.

Use the plan. But only if you have already run a marathon.

I would definitely recommend this plan to others, but only if you have run a marathon before, and only if you are willing to run 6 days a week.  It was a huge time commitment. But when followed, I really believe that you will be very prepared for the marathon.

In the past I thought that I benefited from more rest days in the week, which is why I followed the Hal Higdon plans. Not so much any more. Give me more running days! 

What about strength training?

For the first month I was good about getting in strength training. But the weather was so hot down here that I couldn't deal with how sweaty I was after runs, and eventually, I got lazy. Once school started there was no chance of me keeping up with any training, except when we had the kids do it in practice and we joined along (we being the head coach and I).

Ideally, I would have loved to get more strength training in. My arms are pathetic. They need some strength. During Vermont winters I would turn on workout videos when the weather got too cold or messy to run. That probably won't be happening this winter. And I am afraid to admit that I am not motivated enough to do it on my own. Maybe someday I'll get to it.

Future plans?

For the first time in a while I am not signed up for a future race, nor do I have any idea of what races I would want to run next. I'll register for for the Vermont City Marathon 2-person relay lottery again, but there's no guarantee that I'll get in. I also registered for the Nike Women's half marathon lottery that will be in DC, but again, no guarantee that I'll get in.

I'm planning to focus on half marathons and perhaps try a 10k finally. I'm not positive that I'll do a marathon, and I'm not sure how I feel about that. It would be the first year in 5 years that I wouldn't do one. If NYC truly lets the 2012 NYC marathoners run in the 2013 race then I'll be there. If they don't, then I won't enter the lottery. That then brings me to Boston 2014. My time at Philadelphia qualified me for Boston, but I'm not so sure I want to run it again. It was a great experience my first year, but I like to run on a new course.

If any of you have any suggestions for great marathon courses, please let me know!

NYCM Training: Week 18 Recap -The Race that Wasn't

Although I didn't get to run the race, I'll finish the week with my traditional recap.

Total Weekly Mileage: 32 miles

Monday: Rest day. Hurricane Sandy made an appearance in DC

Tuesday: 5 miles at 7:47 pace
Sandy had left, but it was still raining a little when I went out. Yet, I loooved the run. It felt like November days in Vermont. Cold, rainy, wet, and cloudy. Ha! Never thought I would miss that. I actually didn't see much damage, just a few branches down and a bunch of leaves everywhere.

Wednesday: 4.4 miles at 7:57 pace
I ran a little at practice, then a few more miles when I got home. I ran through neighborhoods, forgetting that I would see all the trick-o-treaters and instantly become jealous of them. Every year I kick myself for not renting someone's kids for Halloween. I miss the days of free candy! Oh wait, you wanted to hear about my run? Not my candy addiction? Run went OK but my right quad/hamstring was bothering me a lot. I decided that taking the rest of the week off may be necessary in order to run the marathon and stay in one piece.

Thursday: rest day

Friday: rest day and day I'd like to forget.... still not happy that the cancellation came this late.

Saturday: 10.1 miles at 8:19 pace
I ran almost 6 miles with the team then came home to run a few more. It was a chilly morning and my body was exhausted. There was no way it was ready to run a marathon. Perhaps the cancellation was good for me. I definitely ran too many miles last week and my legs would have been in rough shape for 26 miles.

Sunday: 12 miles at 7:47 pace.
This should have been race morning, but it turned into a longish-run morning. It was weird to go out for a regular run. I am not quite sure how to taper again after already doing a taper, so I may make up the next two weeks on my own. Because of this, I decided to do more than what my training program called for, but didn't want to do too much because of my quad/hamstring. It was a chilly 50 degrees, but thankfully the sun was out. I was a little cold the whole time, but managed to still run at a quick pace. I really hope I can run this pace during the real deal.

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This would have been the time in which I shared my thoughts on the training program I used. I loved following this plan, but still have no clue how it will feel when I'm actually in a marathon. I also don't know how a 2 week delay will affect me since I haven't run a really long run in a few weeks. I can tell you one thing though, I have never felt in such better shape. I feel like I put in more effort over the last few months than I did during college-training, although I was definitely missing the weight lifting aspect that could have boosted my endurance and strength. 

We'll have to wait two more weeks to find out how well the plan worked out for me!

A Change of Plans and a New Marathon

One of the first things I did last night (after cancelling all of my reservations) was look up all of the races in the DC area that fall between now and Thanksgiving. I wasn't sure that I still wanted a marathon but kept my options open. Running a half sounded more reasonable, yet part of me didn't want to "waste my training" on just a half. Oh gosh, how that must sound to someone who doesn't run..... Anyway...

A marathon takes so much out of me and I wanted it to be special. I can't remember if I said this on here, but NYC was going to be my last marathon for a while. A long while. Like, long, long, long. And I wanted to go out with a bang. But if we truly get guaranteed entry into the 2013 race, then I have at least another year of marathon-training/focus ahead of me. You bet I want to experience that race! 

In my search I found that the Richmond marathon is next weekend, but that it falls on the same day as our team's State Meet. That one was out. Then I spotted this one: The 9 1/2 Annual Potomac River Run. Only open to 350 people and an out and back on trails. 

source

Let me tell you, initially I was like - oh. no. way. Me and trail running don't work out. I can barely run on regular sidewalks. And 350 people? That seems really small. 

But I couldn't stop thinking about it all day. And I couldn't help but think back to last year's Leaf Peeper's and how much I love their out-and-back course. 

Then the race director of the Potomac race posted on the NYRR Facebook page, offering a discount to NYC Refugees. I'm a sucker for bargains and I like to believe in signs. So I registered.

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Speaking of signs, the cancellation of NY is actually a good thing for me.  I've been exhausted and with a headache all week. Beyond exhausted. And my legs? They were also tired. They didn't have that "OK I am so ready to run a marathon" feeling that I normally have during a taper. And then there was my right quad, which was still giving me issues from last week. So this is a sign: it wasn't my time. I need to accept this and move on. Look ahead, rest a little right now, and get ready for November 18th.

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Finally, I wanted to leave with a link to a blog post that I read on runtothefinish.com. I loved her video, and I loved how she perfectly summed up why we run.

I've been going on the NYRR FB page a lot today and it is so great to see that runners already in NYC are going to help in the recovery effort tomorrow. Some are meeting at the marathon start time to help out Staten Island. Awesome! It is also cool to see people running their own marathons around Central Park in an effort to collect donations and still accomplish what they had set out to do. 

Since I'm not up there to help out in the recovery effort, I made sure to donate to the Red Cross today. If you haven't donated yet, you can do so here: http://rdcrss.org/UrYGjw

Reality Check

So maybe I should have stopped for a moment before posting that last post. Yes. I am sad to not get the chance to run....

But.....

I have nothing to be sad about when I compare this cancellation to what the people in NYC are facing.  Their whole lives are on cancellation or post-pone-mode and at the moment of hearing the news I somehow neglected to speak of this or remind myself this. There's no doubt that once running, I would have felt awful being out there, seeing people who are trying to recover and get their lives going while I am trying to ....what.... run fast?

Not holding the race is a smart decision. My emotions were fueled by the timing of the cancelling. Please do not think for a moment that the race was more important than the cleanup efforts or the lives of those who live there. I felt that I needed to clarify that. My heart goes out to the city and the people.

It's Off

It actually feels like someone close to me died today. I totally understand why NYC was cancelled, but I just wish it had been done sooner. Like right after the hurricane, when I had mentally prepared myself for the news after the disaster.

I just cancelled the hotel. And cancelled my train tickets. Fortunately I was able to get my money back. But I won't get this opportunity back. All of those months of training. The almost 800 miles I put in. 

When I started training, the marathon was so far away. It didn't mean anything. Over the last four months the marathon has become almost like a child in my head. I was always thinking about it. Waiting for the day that I would meet it. Not knowing what to expect, but expecting something great. Waiting. Anticipating. Looking-forward to it each day that I woke up, every day I left school, and every night when I went to bed. Seriously. I could not wait.

Never before had I put so much passion and effort into my training. I was on. I was ready. Now it goes away.

I felt let down with Boston after the heat. I trained hard over the winter but couldn't race fast in fear of heat stroke.

So I trained even harder this summer. Determined to show the marathon what I had. 

And it slipped away, once again.

Obviously I am a little upset. I've cried a few times. Especially after my co-worker broke the news and I said it aloud to another co-worker. I kept thinking that ABC News got their facts wrong and was hoping it was a mistake. NOPE! 

Yes, even after my sadness and this talk, I knoooww and totally support the effort going toward NYC cleanup. It must happen. Yet, when I find out that other sporting events are taking place, the high school cross country runner in me gets jealous and angry again, at the "bigger" sports and their priority. I'll wake up tomorrow feeling better. Right now I am still processing. 

And I apologize for being a poop. I feel selfish for this post, but these are the thoughts going through my head. I've documented the trip up to this point and this comes along with it. 

You know what though? People are sending me kind words on Facebook and folks from work are emailing or chatting, and they really are making me feel better. 

I'll be on the search for some local races. I've "saved" my body for the last few months, not wanting to mess up training. But now I need to let it go. Tear up the road. See what I've got. 

Survived Sandy but left with Unknowns

All is well for us. We never lost power and the wind has passed. Wilson spent the entire morning sleeping. He was up ALL day yesterday and paid for it today. Poor thing.

I feel fortunate that nothing happened here. However, the folks in NJ and NYC have been on my mind all day. The photos and videos on the news are unbelievable. I know that they will be able to clean up, but it is so hard to imagine how to go about that.

Teaching Earth Science makes me more and more aware of just how powerful nature is, and we certainly saw that force yesterday.

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At some point today I found out that the hotel I was to stay in this weekend was evacuated. The Financial District received the most of the tidal surge, and my hotel was right there. I assume it was flooded and of course, without power. Now I'm left with a few unknowns. And boy, I hate unknowns.

And yes, I do realize that these are nothing in comparison to what people up north are dealing with. I feel guilty for writing them because they are dealing with so much worse. But here goes....

The biggest unknown of concern: Is the marathon going to go on? All reports up to now say yes.

Other unknowns running through my mind:

• Will Amtrak be running by Saturday?
• Will I actually make it up to NYC?
• Will I make it to the marathon expo before it closes?
• WHERE AM I GOING TO STAY?!?!??! (This is my second biggest unknown of concern)
• How will I get to the start?
• How will all of us get to the start?
• Where is the start? (this was unknown before today)
• Is there hope of the subway working on Saturday or Sunday?
• Will I get back home on Sunday night?

Of course none of you will be able to answer these questions, but it feels better to get them out. *sigh* They say that things always work out in the end, so we'll see just how it all works out.

NYCM Training: Week 17 Recap

Taper week #2... but I'm afraid I still had too much mileage

Total Weekly Mileage: 41 miles

Monday: 8 miles at 7:42 pace

We have a problem. I am supposed to be tapering but I am running at marathon pace. Aw crap. This was the day of never-ending running. I ran a little bit at practice, but my legs felt so heavy. I ran a few more miles when I got home to bring the daily total up to 7 miles. I was happy with that. What I wasn't quite so happy with was finding out that we needed mozzarella in order to finish making the chicken Parmesan we started for dinner. Out I went to get the cheese at the store, tacking on another mile for the day. It's great that I can run to the store, but not so great when I am trying hard not to run too much mileage. 

Tuesday: (Day off) 1 mile at cross country practice

Wednesday: 6 miles at 8:02 pace.

We ran to the White House at practice today! I get so excited whenever I go near the WH, but the kids are so used to it that they don't know why we even bothered to go. They don't realize that people come to DC specifically to see the WH. It is so funny what people take advantage of when they live in an area for a period of time. 

I did 3 more miles when I got home in order to bring up the daily total to 6. Afterwards, Tom and I headed to an Indian restaurant down the road for a unique mid-week date night!

Thursday: 5.3 miles at 7:32

I really did want to run slow today but I am weak when it comes to self control. A girl passed me at one point and I battled with my desire to run with her and pass her again. I hate it when people pass me, but I also know that I can't race every day of training, especially now, during a taper period! I kept reminding myself to "slow down. She's not racing in a week and a half like you are". I slowed a tiny bit, but was saved when she turned onto a street while I kept going. 

Friday: 5.1 miles at 8:15 pace

There was a moment on this run when the sunset was to my back. All around me I started to see things glow red and orange. The trees at this particular spot on my run were of magnificent fall colors, and the red glow of the sunset seemed to set everything on fire. It lasted for about 1.5 minutes, before the sun fell below the horizon and the world began to grow darker with the approaching nightfall. It was such a neat experience!

Other than nature's awesome spectacle, my right leg felt really off. I spoke a few weeks ago about my hamstring problem, which was somewhat there, but I also felt something weird in my quad. This was the same leg that was missing a chunk of knee thanks to my fall two weeks ago. Anyway, I have hit the scab on my knee so much this week that it is healing at a snail's pace. One of those hits was so painful, and just so, that my upper leg cramped up immediately. Perhaps I had hit a nerve? The quad hasn't quite been the same since then, and I could feel it on this run. I became a little worried about the final runs scheduled for this weekend, and decided to turn back home and finish the run slower. 

Saturday: 8 miles at 7:50 pace

I spent the morning at the DC AID's Walk/5k run, where most of the kids on our team got PRs! It was such a nice day that I couldn't let myself pass it by (especially knowing that we're in for rain over the next few days). I went for a run when I got home, choosing to go through Rock Creek. There were leaves EVERYWHERE! It was if fall decided to come overnight and every tree dropped their leaves at once. It was fun to be running through inches of leaves along the way!

Sunday: 7.6 miles at 7:50 pace

Sandy's rain hasn't reached us yet, so I was able to run down to watch the Marine Corps Marathon on the Mall. I went down to cheer on the woman I coach with and was hoping to spot Kayla as well, but didn't get to see her. My first viewing spot was around mile 17. After waiting and waiting I figured I missed both of the women. So I went a little ways over to mile 19 and waited some more to spot them. Once again, I feared that I had missed them, and turned around to head to the metro. For some reason, I looked back at the route, and with some crazy luck, spotted M, the coach, immediately!!! It was so awesome to be able to cheer her on!! She looked terrific out there!

On a side note, I thought it was hilarious that a duck-boat was leading the race. Why???? Below are some photos of the leaders around mile 17.

By that point, I had been shivering for a good hour and needed warmth. Instead of running home I took the metro. I made it home, drank some coffee to warm up, ate some left-over Chipotle burrito to fuel my tummy, then went out for another 4 miles to get my daily mileage total up!

Alright. I did it. I ran too many miles for the week. I mean, I followed the plan, and actually ran less than it called for, but I still ran more miles than I ever have at this point in my marathon-taper period. Part of me really wanted to follow the plan exactly, but part of me was afraid to. I anticipate having to take tomorrow and possibly Tuesday off due to the storm, but am OK with that! My legs need the break, and I have a lot of end-of-the-quarter comments to write on my students.

Here's to the last week of training!

NYCM Training: Week 16 Recap

Only two more weeks until the big day. How did this training pass by so quickly!?!?

Total Weekly Mileage: 40 miles - slightly below goal mileage

Monday: 5 miles - 2.5 miles at practice, 2.5 at home.
The team had a workout that ended up giving me a workout. I got about 2.5 miles in with the warmup, cooldown, and back-and-forth running to give the kids their time. As for the rest of the run, you can hear about my lovely spill here.

Tuesday: 7.4 miles at 7:14 pace.
The training plan called for a strength workout - which consisted of at least two mile intervals at 10k pace. My legs felt awesome and I was able to get in some really speedy miles. I passed a guy with only 3/4 of a mile left. He caught up to me after I finished and walked for a bit, and exclaimed "You are too fast!"  I am totally Ok with that!! It was dark by the time I finished, which is too bad. I don't know how I feel about running in the dark around here.

Wednesday: Off
Thursday: Off - Field trip!

Friday: 2.5 miles in the morning, 2 miles in the evening.
I was on an overnight field trip with our team last week, and another teacher and I decided to offer a 6:30 am run for anyone that was interested. Six girls joined us, which was exciting to see, and we set out for the run.

By the time I got home from the field trip I was ex-hau-sted. Totally pooped. I knew that I needed to get in 6 miles, but it was pouring. I just could not make myself go out there. Once Tom and I realized that we were out of spaghetti sauce (to make dinner) we headed out for a two mile run before stopping back at our local supermarket. I had never had such a weird run - my breathing was way off, my chest felt heavy, and I was dizzy. I was over-tired from only getting 5 hours of sleep and for being in "teacher mode" for two full days.

Saturday: 10 miles at 7:39 pace
A full night's sleep made a HUGE difference in how I felt this day. My 10 miles flew by and I loved being out there. The fall weather (60 degrees) feels so much better than the 98 degrees I was running in during July. I'm loving it!

Workout #2: 3 miles
I forgot that I would be getting in more mileage Saturday at the team's cross country meet. Another three miles were added on to the day's total between warm-up runs with kids and running back and forth to the 2 mile marker to give them their splits. It was fun! But I ended up doing way more than was required for the day.

The highlight of this meet (besides some great performances by our kiddos) was that Julie Culley was speaking at the event. For those who didn't watch the Olympics this summer, she ran the 5K event and finished with a time of 15:05. Ca-Razy Fast!!!! One of our girls got a photo with her but I was too shy to ask for one myself! That's how I am when it comes to meeting someone famous.

Sunday: 10 miles at 8:13 pace
The amazing feeling I had yesterday was gone by Sunday afternoon. My legs felt SO heavy and my entire body felt discombobulated. My running form was way off and every muscle in my body seemed to be tense. I tried to slow it down, but the slower I went, the worse it felt. I can't tell you how relieved I was to make it back home.

The two week countdown has commenced, and the plan calls for over 45 miles this week. I may have to adjust the plan since last week was cut short (thanks to the field trip). It would not make sense to add mileage from one week to the next during the taper-period.

Hope you all are having a Happy Monday! (My kids hate it when I say that - Happy Monday? Is there such a thing?)

I Was Long Overdue

Warning! Graphic Images to Follow

I take a spill almost every year. Two weeks ago, someone I was running with took a spill. I commented on how I hadn't done it for a while, but that I had probably jinxed myself for saying it. I mean, a move to a new area would not be complete without me taking out a knee on a sidewalk somewhere. Burlington - check! Montpelier - Check! DC - now a check!

It was probably a bad sign that Tom bought a new box of band-aids yesterday. We fly through band-aids when we get a new box, but use them less and less as the supply runs low. His purchase was another sign.

The spill was eminent.

All I needed to do tonight after practice was run 3 miles. Three. Easy. Miles. I felt great, especially after yesterday's run. It was starting to sprinkle around 9 minutes into my run. Rain was coming. I was excited. We never get rain. It's warm! Who doesn't love running in warm rain.

Then BANG!

I was on the sidewalk. Right outside the metro. Fortunately only one guy was there to see me. I sat there for a bit. What happened?! Why are my hands and knee in such pain? What am I going to do?! Run? Turn back? I'm so close to the turn-around point.

I turned around. I can deal with a bleeding knee, but with a marathon 3 weeks away, I do not want to run on injured bone. And the exposed nerves were more painful than anything else, so I couldn't actually tell if my bone hurt.

Tom helped me out when I got back. Turns out my elbow also took a hit, but my jacket protected it from the bare concrete. Thank goodness. Honestly, this isn't a big deal. It's just a minor annoyance to have to run with a scab or to deal with the pain on my hands. I'll heal and in a few weeks forget it all happened.

Guess it all goes with the territory! Another running battle-wound to display and another story to add to my NYCM training.

NYCM Training: Week 15 Recap

The hard part is over. Now it's time to taper.

Total Weekly Mileage: 58 miles

Monday: 10.2 mile tempo run at 7:23/mile pace
After a 6am flight to DC and grocery shopping, I hit the roads to get in 10 miles. I had missed both of my runs over the weekend and my legs were feeling terrific. There were a few notable things about this run.

1. I was almost mistaken as a tree by a squirrel that was running so fast that it couldn't process where it was going. A guy passing me on a bike thought it was hilarious. So did I.
2. I was cruising along when I passed a guy going up a giant hill around mile 6. He ended up staying with me, but since I couldn't let him pass me, I kicked up the pace. We ran fast, really fast, for two miles, before I headed down a road to go back home. He was breathing heavily and coughing by the end, I was feeling awesome, and my breathing was very regulated. I can't help but enjoy running faster than a guy. 
3. The headache that I had had for 3 days finally went away by the time I finished this run. It is amazing how horrible my body begins to feel when I am less active. I am so thankful to be able to run every day. 

Tuesday: 5.8 miles at 7:42 pace
I ran a little bit with the kids while they did a hill workout at practice, then finished up my daily mileage with another quick run at home. It was dark by the time I got home, and it was also another cool running day (64 degrees compared to the 54 degrees on Monday).

Wednesday: Day off!

Thursday: 1 mile with kiddos and 6.4 miles at 7:33 pace
The kids had a workout at a nearby park, so I didn't run much at practice. By the time I got home it was dark and cool. I wanted to run somewhere where I knew there was plenty of light, and just ended up doing an out and back along my street. My training program calls for a 10 mile tempo run on Thursdays, but since I had already done it on Monday, I decided to do a 6.4 mile tempo run instead. My body felt amazing and had a lot of energy in it. It is really too bad that my race hadn't been this week considering how well I felt each time I went running.

Friday: 10.2 miles with Tom at 7:37 pace.
I got home around 6 from practice and still needed to get in my long run. Tom decided to join me, even though he had already ran 5 miles in the morning! It was really nice to have someone to talk to the whole time, and also to have someone to run with in the dark. We did the same loop I did on Monday, and I was relieved to see that we ran it about 2 minutes slower, even if the pace was faster than what it should have been.

Poor Tom, who had not been planning to run again, was starving the entire run. I was a horrible girlfriend and kept talking about food, making it all that much worse for him. He devoured half of our kitchen when we got home, and we decided to grab a bite to eat at Noodles & Co, instead of cooking dinner ourselves.

Saturday: 8 miles at 7:49 pace.
Uh oh. Have you noticed how fast my runs were this week? This is a bad sign. The body feels wonderful, but I know I should be holding back. I have another three weeks until the race and should not be wasting everything right now.

This morning was chilly - at 46 degrees. Everyone outside had on warmer clothing. Fortunately, it was sunny, making it a beautiful, crisp fall morning to be running in. In the middle of the run I stopped at Office Depot to get a red grading pen (somehow mine disappeared at school - go figure......). It's fun to get errands done in the middle of workouts!

Sunday: 16 miles at 8:12 pace.
Finally, a slower run. But still not slow enough. The quick running this week finally caught up with me and my right hamstring was bothering me a lot during the first half of the run. I slowed my pace slightly and shortened my stride. It helped a bit.

Refueling happened around 50 minutes into the run (Honey Stinger Waffle) and 1 hr and 27 minutes into the run (a GU pack). I have left my water bottle at home during my last two 16 mile runs. Apparently carrying it makes me think negative thoughts. Fortunately, there is a water fountain around mile 13 that I am able to stop at so I don't have to worry about dehydration.

Now that the third 16 mile run is in the books, it is time to "taper". The program I am following doesn't have a huge taper like others, and I am only given three days off between now and the race. Normally I take two days off the week before the race, so I'm not sure what I am going to do.

Hope you all have a pleasant Sunday!

NYCM: Week 14 Recap

I apologize to anyone that may have been waiting on my Sunday-night weekly recap post this week. I was in Vermont over the weekend for a funeral, and blogging just wasn't a possibility.

Last Week's Total Weekly Mileage: 30 Miles

Monday: 6 miles at 8:30 pace

Many of my weekday runs are run at a slower pace than I would like, however, this also means that I am less likely to get injured. On this day, I ran about 3.5 miles with the kiddos at practice, then another 2.5 at home. I was still feeling good, both mentally and physically, thanks in part to the relaxing weekend. This night was the first night that I actually felt cold in DC since moving down earlier this summer. It was a whopping 67 degrees and I had goosebumps by the end of my run!

Tuesday: 6.8 miles at 7:34 pace
Monday's chill was gone and we were left with humidity and rain. Practice was cancelled, and even though I started my run at home, I ended up back at the school because I forgot something in my desk. Oops! It made for a really great tempo run, and also allowed me to kill one of the biggest hills in DC. Ok, maybe not one of the biggest, but it was pretty large. "Coach Dani", aka the voice in my head,  kept yelling at me to attack the hill, run fast, shorten my stride, make sure I was running on my toes. And as that "coach" in me kept yelling, I realized how lucky I am to be a coach. Not only am I helping younger runners, but I can benefit from it as well. I am constantly thinking about my form while running, and even pushing myself to do actual workouts this year.

There was a point in this workout, however, where I felt a twinge of pain in my right hamstring. It wasn't at the end of the workout, but rather in the beginning. It was one of those twinges that make you question whether or not it is smart to be running on it. However, after a few strides it was gone, so I kept running. Another 5 miles. I forgot about the pain as soon as I made it back home.

Wednesday: 3.6 miles at 7:48 pace
This was supposed to be a day off, but the kids had a "longer" run scheduled for the day, which meant that I could get some running in as well! We ran on some back trails, which were super fun. It's so nice to have Rock Creek nearby: it's a mini escape from the city life!

Thursday: 7 miles at 8:08 pace
This was a two part run.
Part 1: Practice. The kiddos ran on the trails as they did a hill workout. It soooo reminded me of high school when we did hills every week! It was during this workout that the entire team learned the importance of making sure you are properly hydrated before a workout. Water water water! Make sure all of you out there are getting enough water in your day!

Part 2: I got home and Tom wanted to join me on a run! We haven't run together in SO LONG! We did a short but quick 20 minute run and ended at a pizza place down the road. For $10 they give you a crispy-crust pizza with your choice of toppings. Can't beat that! The other awesome thing about this particular pizza place is that they sell homemade pasta, pasta sauce, cheese, and a variety of imported items from Italy. I am in love.

Friday: 6.5 miles: tempo turned into slow run.
I was cruising during the first half of this run, hitting nice splits as I made it around the city. My goal was to get in an 8 mile tempo run, but that didn't happen. Around mile 3 I started to feel that twinge in my hamstring from Tuesday. Uh oh.

I had to slow down immediately, and continue to run slower the rest of the run. Every time I landed, I felt the pain in my hamstring. Not horrible, but definitely not just a sore muscle. It was a muscle that was damaged, overworked. The run was cut short, but that was only after I had a chance to make it to  the running store to get some more waffles and ...

NEW SHOES!!!

I could not wait to get the new Asics. I have run in the 2100 series for about 7 years, and they just modified the series to now be the GT 2000s. The current, 25 year old version of myself was a little hesitant about the black, but the 6-year old version of myself would have been super excited for these shoes. There was actually a time in my life when I thought it would be cool to have a black house painted with neon pink polka dots. Don't ask me what I was thinking......

I tried the shoes out yesterday (Monday) and loved them. I honestly can't feel the difference between these and the older shoes, but that is a good thing. That means I won't get hurt like I did when I tried to switch to Mizunos.

Random fact: I have bought a new pair of running shoes each time I've gone to VT since we moved down here. I'm thinking that there needs to be more trips so there can be more shoes!!

Saturday: off
Sunday: off 

As I mentioned earlier, I spent the weekend in Vermont, and had little time for running. In fact, no time for running. I also left my capris at home in DC so I thought I'd freeze my butt off if I ran in shorts. Apparently I am becoming even more of a temperature wimp than before.

This week

This is my last week of high mileage, and also my last "long" run. I am really loving this training program, especially since I can walk and run the day after the long runs. I can continue to get in good quality workouts throughout the week, and haven't felt running pains like I do in the past. 

NYCM Training: Week 13 Recap

This week was smokin! It's amazing what sleep can do for you! It was also a new PR Mileage week - the most mileage that I have ever done in one week.

Total Weekly Mileage: 58 miles
Total September Mileage: 201 miles

Monday: 3.4 miles at 10:06 pace (with XC kiddos) and 5.4 miles at 7:29 pace. 
The kids had some easy miles for the day which turned out to be a great warm up to my own run. I know I am supposed to be doing two speed workouts a week (tempo runs) but I never really plan on when they will happen. On this day I felt super good (I didn't run over the weekend), and my body was ready for some speed! It felt wonderful to be zooming through the streets as the sun was going down.

Tuesday: 7 miles at 8:09 pace and 20 minutes of core/fitness training
We had the kids do some core/fitness work at practice and of course we joined along with them! But my legs were like Jello afterward. It was quite hilarious to try to run on them.

Wednesday: 1 mile, day off.
Started running at practice and realized that the run today was going to be a killer. Each leg felt like it weighed 50lbs heavier and I could not move faster than "snail pace." After a half mile I realized what day it was. WEDNESDAY! My day OFF! I was so relieved to find out that I could go home and relax, rather than struggle through a run.

Thursday: 8.7 miles at 7:49 pace
It was a warm day and my hamstrings were not liking me from the beginning. It is very possible that the core/fitness workout we did on Tuesday had finally caught up to me. I went a little slower than I wanted to so that I wouldn't hurt myself.

Friday: 7.3 Miles at 7:54 pace
Today was parent-teacher conference day at school which mean I had many hours of sitting rather than standing! I could get used to sitting on Fridays. The hamstrings were a little tight when I began my run but were OK by the time I was half done.

Saturday: 8.8 miles at 7:49 pace.
Talk about gorgeous fall weather. I could have sworn I was in Vermont again! I had a very exciting morning as I watched every runner on our cross country team get a PR, and one of our ladies even won the JV race! In fact, it was so exciting, that I think I expended far too much energy cheering for them. I forced myself to go on my run, and even though it started out slow, I felt wonderful by the end. Just as expected!

Once I finished I realized that I had no fuel for Sunday's long run. Fortunately, there is a running store that is 3 running-minutes away from our place and I was able to easily solve my problem before they closed. They also told me that they had just gotten in their new Asics GT-2000 series and I was SO VERY close to buying them. I told them I would be back this week. It is so hard to stay away from new running gear!

Sunday: 16 miles at 8:07 pace. 
The first 11 miles were awesome. I hadn't felt so amazing at the start of a long run in months. Seriously! I was a brand new person, all thanks to a few extra hours of sleep this week.

I also tried some new running fuel, Honey Stingers Waffles, and LOVED them. They were delicious, they did not get all over my face like GU does, and I could pretend that I was eating dessert for a portion of my run. I only had one during the run and opted not to open my GU for a second refueling, which meant that my legs started to feel fatigued during the last 3 miles of the run. That was OK, because I knew that I would be able to make it home and eat lunch.

Has anyone else tried the "Stinger Waffle"? They're made with organic ingredients, and ingredients that I can actually pronounce. I sometimes worry about what actually goes into GU and question my reason for choosing to fuel with it. The waffle is more natural, and much tastier. In fact, I would love to figure out how to make them myself someday.

It's time to shower, time to lesson plan, time to get the Patriots into gear so they stop losing, and time to figure out what my dessert treat will be for today. Do I make the box of brownies in my cupboard and then have brownies for lunch this week? Or do I go next door to the Fro-Yo place that I have only been to 3 times since I moved here so I can get some frozen gummy bears and marshmallows? Oh our first world problems!

I hope you are all having a relaxing weekend!

NYCM Training: Week 12 Recap

Just a quick note about my week of "training"

Total RUNNING Weekly Miles: 20
Total hiking miles: 14

Monday: 6 miles at 8:00 pace
The legs felt tired, but a good tired today. They felt like they had worked super hard - a feeling I love. What they did not feel like was 10,000 lbs (which was the case for a few days prior to Monday). It was that feeling of "yeah! I ran 16 miles yesterday! And I am that much stronger today!". I had to be super cautious of my form since my legs were still recovering a bit from the long run, but I enjoyed it!

Tuesday: Tornado warnings = no run for me = sad Dani.
Wednesday: Parent night until 8:30pm = no run again = sad Dani again.

Thursday: 8 miles at 8:07 pace. 
By this point in the week I am suffering. Teaching has definitely been the hardest thing I have ever done. I have no time to sleep, and barely any time to run. My legs drag on runs now because I am standing up so long during the day and because I know I am not getting the rest I need at night (sleeping). This was a slow run and my body was tired throughout. I am constantly telling myself to just get to the next mile and then I'll worry about the rest from there. One step in front of the other. Slowly but surely I get to the finish and I feel thankful that I pushed through.

Friday: 6.35 miles at 7:49 pace.
Finally! I felt good today. We had a half day of inservice which allowed me to sit for THREE hours! Hallelujah! You just would not believe the difference that three hours of sitting would make on tired legs. I felt like I could finally enjoy a run and I did. It was a gorgeous afternoon and I was so thankful to be out there.

Saturday: 14 miles of hiking. 
I found out that I do not like hiking, especially for 14 miles. I woke up exhausted (that is what 6 hrs of sleep a night will do to me) and could not get out of the funk the entire time. I will spare you the details and internal monologue I had with myself throughout the hike, but let's just say that I was more than happy to get back home when we were done.

I can't be so negative, because the view was great, and the people I was with were even better. Just next time, I'll know to be better rested.

Sunday: Forced day off. 
My body needed a day off. My mind needed a day off. It drives me crazy to see that I only ran 20 miles in what is the peak time of my training. But I cannot push my body. Runner's World tweeted a post about overtraining this week and I took it as a sign. I know I can run a marathon. I know I have the endurance and the mental power. However, I don't know if I'll have the energy if I continue on as I am.

My goal for this week is to get 7 hours of sleep on at least three school nights. Do I feel confident in the goal? Sadly, no. But to stay sane, I must try my best to accomplish it.

I would love to hear how others are doing! How was your weekend? How is your running going? Since I didn't get in a long run this weekend, how did yours go? 

NYCM 2012: Week 11 Recap

Just. Hang. On. That was this week's motto. Hang on for one more mile. Now another mile. And another. I had to keep repeating this to myself each day as I attempted to get in my highest week of mileage ever.

Total Weekly Mileage: 56 mile

Monday: 1.5 miles at XC practice. 
I was planning on doing 6-8 miles today but had to visit the CVS walk-in clinic to get a TB test for work. Two hours later I walked out and it was 8:00. Time for dinner and time to plan for Tuesday's lesson, so running was out of the question.

Tuesday: 1 mile at XC meet, and 6 mile tempo run at 7:16 pace.
The kids had their 2nd meet of the season and since we got home before the sun was down I was able to get in a tempo run. The plan called for "strength" running, which is anything longer than 2 miles at faster than marathon pace. I accomplished that and then some! I was on fire and I was feeling good. I zoomed through the streets of DC, really letting myself go. Perhaps it helped to see the kids push themselves at the race before hand that really inspired me to run.

Wednesday: 8 miles at 8:07 pace. 
I took the kiddos over to a soccer game for practice, getting in almost 4 miles. When I got home it was time to make up the rest of the mileage to bring my to 8. I was surprised at how much the tempo run had taken out of me. My legs felt incredibly heavy, which forced me to be a little slower than I wanted.

Thursday: 8 miles at 7:47 pace.
Practice with the kiddos gave be a few miles, but I got in a good 6 miler afterward. I had my TB shot checked out before the run (all clear) and got my flu shot. The last thing I need is to get the flu this year during teaching or right before the marathon. Gosh, I hope I didn't jinx myself. Anyway, the legs were still feeling heavy from Tuesday. I can't believe how long it takes me to recover, but I have a feeling that if I could get more sleep and sit down more through the day then I would be better recovered than I was.

Friday: 6.35 miles at 7:59 pace.
I got in a run right after school, and the legs still did not feel much better. Perhaps I pushed too hard on Tuesday. Perhaps I stand too much during the day while teaching. And perhaps I don't drink enough water throughout the day. Actually, I know that the third perhaps is definitely true. I NEED more water than I am able to get.

Saturday: 1.5 miles at XC meet, 7.5 miles at 7:56 pace.

Wake-up time was at 5:00 am again this morning - no time to sleep in on the weekend. It was a meet day for the kids and we needed to travel a good two hours to get to the school. The school had a beautiful campus, but it required a lot of running around if you wanted to see the runners.

By the time I got home I was suuuuuper tired. I talked myself into doing 7.5 miles. By the time I was done the run, done dinner, showered, and on my way to see The Campaign, my legs were shaking. They were toast. And I was fearful for Sunday's long run.


Sunday: 16 miles at 8:22 pace
I woke up this morning feeling like I had already ran my 16 miles. My legs were sore and were definitely tired. But I got out there anyway, deciding to leave my water bottle at home and to bring along two GU packs. It wasn't until I got to 1:15 hours into my run that I started to feel better. Prior to that I convinced myself to take it one mile at a time.

Although I was tired, I wanted to get the run in. I have no clue how I will feel on November 4th, so it is important that I am able to train through fatigue and train my brain to cope with it. I also wanted to be sure that I was able to break my weekly-mileage record, which I did! The last time I had ran over 51 miles in one week was either 2008 or 2009 while training for cross country. So I am back! I hate being tired, yet I love the feeling of being in shape.

Hydration: Yesterday at the meet I found myself helping an athlete that passed out at the 2.25 mile mark because of dehydration. I saw him fall during the race and watched as he just stayed there. He didn't move, and everyone just ran by him (including a few adults). I ran over to him, found out that could barely talk and he certainly could not move on his own. When I asked him how much water he had had that morning he said "A third of my water bottle". It was 12:30 pm. He should have had 3 water bottles by that point.

This week I have been feeling horrible; very sluggish and very tired. I know that part of my problem is that I am not getting enough water during the day. I am trying to get used to my new role as a teacher. I am on my feet all the time and cannot take a bathroom break every hour like I was used to this summer when I was home all the time and properly hydrating. I know that going into the next 6 weeks of training I MUST make it a priority to get in enough water. So as I enter week 12, that will be my focus. Get. More. Water.

NYCM 2012: Week 10 Recap

I finding myself double checking what week of training I am on all the time because it doesn't seem like week 10. For some reason I keep thinking that I should be on week 14 already.

Total Weekly Mileage: 41 miles

Monday: 6 miles at 8:31 pace
Labor day meant a day off of school and a day off from XC practice. I ran in the afternoon to take a break from grading papers. It was a humid day and in the 80s, so I let my body go the pace it wanted to.

Tuesday: Unexpected day off. I got about 4 hours of sleep the night before. Don't ask me why, but my mind would not shut off. I got up around 2am to do lesson planning for an hour and a half, then woke up again at 4:30. That was bad news, because I set myself up for a week of waking up at 4:30 am and crashing by 9:30 pm. I was not going to put my body through any more stress for the day and decided to take the day off.

Wednesday: 9 miles at 7:44 pace
The head coach and I went for a mini run while the team was out getting some miles in. It was a gorgeous day, although a tad too hot. We hit up a new trail through the woods and I was instantly reminded of high school cross country meets at Catamount.

I went home to get in another 5.2 miles of my own. I was really pleased with how well my legs felt and was happy I had taken yesterday off.

Thursday: Workout of Death. No Running
We had a core/fitness workout planned for the XC kids, that turned out to kick my butt as well: 5 minutes of planks, 10 minutes of wall sits,  and 40 pushups (I think I skipped the first 10 the kids did) for me. The kids had a few more exercises thrown in, but fortunately, I was able to take a break to "time" or "supervise". I was afraid of what the consequences would be for my running if I threw in so much at once. This summer I did pretty well at keeping up with core and strengthening work, but I haven't had much over the last few weeks.

I came home to do the 8 miles that my plan called for but I could not make myself do it. I ran two minutes before turning around to go home. Then I talked myself out of quitting. How could I quit? I have been following my plan perfectly for two months. I have only taken 1 day off a week. I traveled to VT for a week and managed to get in all of my mileage. What made me think I could be a quitter now?

So I turned around to run again. And made it 20 seconds before I turned back home. I knew it was hopeless. I was tired. I needed food. I was thirsty. I wanted to go to bed and not have to be up late lesson planning. At that point, sleep was more important than running. Four months ago I would not have thought twice about taking a day off. If I didn't want to run, I wouldn't have. But it has now become such a part of my daily life that I began to feel disappointed in myself. Why? I can't tell you. I had to convince myself that it was OK. People get sick and take days off. It is normal. Cross Country coaches give their athletes days off so they don't get burned out. I know that one day off will not make me loose any of my fitness. I think I just wanted to prove to myself that I could make it through an entire training program.

Friday: 6 miles at 8:16 pace.
Ran the same route as Monday, so it was nice to see that it was faster this time. The legs were feeling heavy (thank you wall sits) so I could not make myself move much faster.

Saturday: 1 mile with the team, 9 miles on my own at 7:50 pace.
The kiddos had a workout planned instead of LSD, so I did most of my miles after practice. It was the first sunny Saturday in a while which made the run more enjoyable, especially since my legs felt 50 lbs heavier than Friday.

Sunday: 10 miles at 8:00 pace
So far this has been the best day of DC running since we moved here. Storms rolled in yesterday and not only drenched us within 5 seconds of getting out of our car to bring in the groceries, but knocked off about 20 degrees. When I came back from my run this morning it was 68 degrees!!!!! For a few moments I could trick my mind into thinking that I was back in VT. And then I looked around and saw more concrete in one block than what exists in the entire VT state and came back to reality. The run was much better than I had thought it would be, especially considering the last two days of running.

Tom and I are heading out for a 9 mile bike ride to Mount Vernon, where we'll spend the afternoon before taking a boat ride back. Hope you all have a relaxing Sunday!