Week 17 - 20 Miles

This week was a much, much better run.  I didn't have any stomach problems since I didn't use the same stuff that upset my stomach the past two weekends.  I still have to walk some after the 13 mile mark as I very much have the endurance to run a half marathon.  Past that and the distance becomes a lot more cumbersome and taxing.  It might be good for me in training runs to run past 13 miles so that I can stretch my endurance to longer distances.  That might help make marathon training be less of a beat down, both mentally and physically.

My marathon is just a little more than 4 weeks away.  I'm both excited yet terrified.  I am very certain I will be able to finish it but I still get freaked out by the distance.

We're at the point in the training runs where we start tapering.  Next week we are scheduled to run 10 miles!  I am running in a 5k and so while I want to try to be my previous best of 27:15, I really think it might be best to just run at a pace that is comfortable for me that doesn't put too much stress on my body.  If I were to run a 9:30/mile pace I'd be very happy.  After the race I think we will be finishing the route with a 7 mile run in the area.

Well, I am starving after burning 1,800 calories this morning and so I am going to sign off to raid the fridge.

Week 14 - Big D Half Marathon

Today I ran for the second time the Big D Half Marathon.  I did better by about four or five minutes better compared to last year's run, despite last year having better weather conditions.  I didn't mind the cool temps as I love running in temps between 50 and 65 degrees but it either threatened to rain throughout the race or it was a light drizzle.  The last 5 minutes of running were perhaps the worst in that it poured rain and made for a very cold finish.

It's a fairly hilly course (in my opinion) but it can be a very pretty run through a couple nice neighborhoods.  I think it lead to part of my running struggles later in the race as it caused me to expend more energy than I wanted.  I also didn't eat or drink anything before the race and so I bonked right around the 9 or 10 mile marker.  This just further reinforces that I must eat or drink something before each training run or race if I want to perform my best.

I really don't mind this race and would run it again.  They offer a full marathon course and if I ever decide to run a full marathon I would consider it.

Course

Elevation Chart

Up next - and 18 mile training run on Saturday!

Week 13 - 16 Miles

I had a really good run today.  I ran with a new pair of Brooks Ghosts and I did not have any trouble with my Achilles tendon, so I think I found what was causing the problem.  Glad I seem to have that behind me but I will stay play it safe in the mean time.  As soon as I post this I'm going to ice my ankle and roll my legs.

I ran my longest distance ever - 15.83 miles.  I also ran my fastest 13.1 at 2:14.  Very good day indeed.  If I could run with that kind of effort next weekend at the Big D Half Marathon I'll PR for sure however the weather isn't looking good (rain).

I really couldn't ask for better conditions for running.  It was a nice, brisk 48 degrees this morning with a relatively light wind.  It's a little cold starting out and so long as the wind isn't blowing too hard, I felt great temperature wise.  It was nice watching the world wake up while I was running through the neighborhoods of Plano.

It's runs like this that makes me think running this marathon in May is doable.  I hurt and am tired but I feel like I can do it.

Fueling

I tried some new fuel sources and they seemed to work out well for me.  Before I left the house, I had a bottle of the chocolate Generation UCAN protein drink.  It didn't give me any stomach issues and I felt like I had good energy throughout my run.  I'm going to go back to my local Luke's Locker and pick up some more packets for future runs.  If this works out I'll get the canister.

I mixed the packet with about 16 oz of water the night before and put it in the fridge so that it would be nice and cold.  I guess I need to do a better job of mixing it right before drinking as it was a little grainy as I finished it off.  I struggle sometimes even eating early, early in the morning so it was nice being able to drink this and not experience a gag reflex.

I also brought several Larabars in my fuel belt that I snacked on while I ran to help keep my energy reserves up.  So far my favorite flavor is Apple.  190 calories with some really good ingredients -- nuts (almonds & walnuts), apples, cinnamon, dates, & raisins.

Week 11 - 10 Miles

Today I feel like I had a really good run.  Ran with an average 9:44/mile pace and felt strong throughout the run.  It was humid but the temps were in the 50s.  The first three miles were pretty hilly as we were running in the Plano Arbor Hills Nature Preserve.  After that we went out and ran a pretty normal route for the remaining seven miles.

During the run I talked with my trainer how I keep flipping back and fourth mentally on the upcoming marathon where I wonder about what I've gotten myself into and then knowing I can do it.  Of course having a good run this morning only helps me build more confidence in my ability.

I have been eating a granola bar before each of my long runs and it seems to really help with giving me the energy I need for a solid run.  My trainer suggested a product called UCAN, which is an energy solution that you can take before or after a strenuous workout or run.  I am going to see about picking up some of the powder from her before our next run next weekend.  If it works I'll need to drink about 8 to 12 ounces before leaving my house for a run.

Anxious to see what distance we'll be running next week.  Perhaps 15 miles?

Week 9 - 10 Miles

This post isn't going to be anything spectacular this week.  Just a quick recap of how the run went.  I was too focused on just trying to get through the run given how my body felt.

Today was an interesting run.  I started off really struggling as my legs still felt like they were very tired.  Perhaps much of it was in my mind as looking over the stats I really didn't do all that bad.  I ran with a 10:23/mi pace and while I did walk for a little bit, I think I did fine overall.  I feel pretty good next week will be better.

Week 8 - Cowtown Half Marathon

So I am late getting to this post due to various other things in life but here it is.

I ran the Cowtown Half Marathon today.  The course is mostly flat but there are several hills to note.

I started off doing pretty good running a 10:00/mile pace.  I wanted to start off slower in order to save myself for the end.  It was right around the 6 mile marker that I started to have problems where I started walking.  Just after the 8 mile marker I started to walk almost exclusively.  When I got towards the finish line I started running again even though my legs were completely dead and I was hurting pretty bad.

Right around the 4 mile mark there is a small hill with an elevation gain of about 45 feet or so. The largest and most challenging hill was just after the 9 mile marker and it is a pretty big hill.  You go from an elevation of about 515 feet to about 620 feet in about a tenth of a mile.  There was a another small hill right before the 11 mile mark with an elevation gain of about 25 feet.  You wouldn't know it but as you run across the Lancaster bridge you are running a gentle downhill and after you come across you start another gentle uphill.

This wasn't my best race as I finished with a time of 2:41:20.  I ran the day before the race and with the way I run, which is towards the top of my capabilities and it killed my legs.  I just couldn't keep them moving later on in the race.  I also fault the fact that I didn't have any time to eat something to give me that extra boost of energy that I have started to depend on.  Another thing I wasn't ready for was the warmer temps.  I had been training with temps in the 30s to 40s and it was something like 55 at 7 AM.

After looking at my time, it is actually only four minutes slower than my first ever half marathon which really speaks to how having a bad race only puts me four minutes behind my first ever race.

It's always discouraging to have a race like this but I wasn't going to drop out. Even if I feel somewhat defeated when I have to walk it is way better than quitting.  Maybe it's a good thing to have a bad race which helps make you appreciate the good races you do have.

Week 7 - 11.1 Miles

I had a very good run this morning.  I had restarted cross training this past week since I was able to breathe again and that went well so I had plenty of motivation coming into the weekend.  I had been sick the last two weeks with a cold and have tried very hard to not let that get me down.  Everyone gets sick and it always seems to be at the worst time.

It was cool but not cold this morning so I didn't get decked out in all of my colder winter running gear.  I ate a granola bar before leaving the house and that always seems to give me that extra little kick I need to have a solid run.  After seeing the benefits of fueling before a training run or a race, I just need to get used to forcing my body to eat a little something even though I am generally not hungry at that time.

I did have any issues with heaves while running but I did get a huge cramp in my side near 9 mile marker, which was right before a water stop thankfully.  I drank some water and it seemed to help.  I felt pretty good throughout the run.  My average pace was somewhere around 9:30/mi, which is what my comfortable running pace is right now.

I'm running the Fort Worth Cowtown Half Marathon next weekend and with today's run I feel like I could easily set a new PR.  If I run a 9:30 average pace I could finish the race around 2:04, which is well under my goal of finishing my next half marathon under 2:10.

I'm still learning my way around my Garmin FR 620.  At the 6.5 mile marker I reset my watch and so I have two different entries saved.  Oh well.  While I was stopped I wanted to scroll through my stats to see how I was doing but instead saved my run.  Next time I'll try pressing the three horizontal lines on the watch face and see what that does.  I'm working on a blog entry for my new watch and plan to post my review by the end of the month.

11.1 miles Pt. 1
11.1 miles Pt. 2

I have a little more below on running form if you want to read my thoughts on that.  It's by no means the absolute right way to run but it might help you in case you don't have the best form.

Week 6 - Hot Chocolate 5k/15k

Today I ran in the Dallas Hot Chocolate 15k.  It was a cool 30 something with an overcast and a little wind.  Overall it is a nice course with one or two hills.  The largest hill is in the middle of the course between the 5 and 6 mile markers that has a elevation gain of about 80 feet in 0.2 miles.  Something to be aware of is that the first 3.1 miles or 5k is a gradual uphill.  I have run parts of this route going the other direction (Dallas RnR and Big D (Half) Marathon) so it was something a little different.

The only criticism I really had was that the first Gatorade stop (not the first water stop) before you got to the 4 mile marker had run out of Gatorade when I got to there.  There was plenty of water but I prefer to drink some type of sport drink for this type of race or longer.

There were tons, and I do mean tons, of volunteers at the event and I found all of them to be very helpful.  There were also quite a few at the finish line and we giving me words of encouragement and congratulations.  I really wish more of the larger events were run this well.  I really liked the fact that there records splits at the 5k and 10k marks plus they had race clocks at every mile.

I ran just slightly slower than my desired training pace which is anything under 10:00 per mile but I will gladly take 10:09/mile since I am still recovering from a cold.  I also think part of the reason I struggled with this race is that I didn't eat something before hand and so I started out the race with a half full tank.  I guess this further proves I Must eat something before a training run or a race even if I don't feel hungry.

Official Time: 1:34:30
5k Split: 29:33
10k Split: 1:01:53

Garmin GPS Stats

This was the second run I have done with my new Garmin Forerunner 620.  I still love this watch but since I downloaded the 2.5 update the watch didn't record mile splits.  It was cycling through the different screens which was cool to look at while running.  If Garmin were to see this post, I'd hope that in the future they make sure the watch gets defaulted to factory settings

Week 4 - 10.7 Miles

Had another good training run this morning.  Ran just under 10.7 and kept my average pace under 10:00/mi which is a training goal of mine.  I have a race next weekend and I feel pretty good about it right now.  If I run at my training pace, which is between 9:15 and 9:45 per mile, I will finish with a time between 2:01 and 2:07, which would be mega-awesome!

I did better on my fueling this time around but still struggled with my hill repeat at the end of the course.  Perhaps it is since I am running near my hardest that I really have very little strength/endurance left to just power through.  This is a hill we run on a fairly regular basis and I know I can conquer it will relative ease but when I am at the end of a run it is just killer.

I still have the dry heave issue and I just think it is my body not liking the cold water hitting the stomach while my body is a little stressed due to the start of the run.  Lately I haven't had trouble with heaves as the run progressed.

So right now the weather forecast for the race has low in the 40s with a high in the 60s.  This could pose a challenge as my cold gear starts getting too hot in the mid-40s range so I'll be keeping a close eye on the forecast.  I'm excited about this race because it will mark the end of a four race challenge I started last year in the spring.  I am signed up for two more races in this series of races so that I can be a Streaker and then race any half marathon with this production company for $50.

Week 3 - 10 miles

Today was a great day to run.  Temps started out in the high 30s/low 40s with low humidity.  It's always cold to start out but once I get going I warm up pretty quick.

The first couple miles always feel like my worst because it takes two to three miles for my legs to really warm up.  Once I got past the first water stop, I was feeling really good and put the hammer down and really cranked up my pace.  I believe my best pace was sub 9:00/mi!  A good goal would be to be able to maintain this type of pace for longer periods of time and I should be able to easily finish a half marathon in under 2 hours.

My battery died mid run so I don't have the complete route with all the useful stats (mainly time per mile) so I drew the map out using MapMyRun, which is what the trainers use to create the routes we run each week.

I ate a Clif Bar before leaving my house to go run, which gave my a nice little boost of energy.  I did start running out of gas past the 7 mile marker, so I need to continue to work on my fueling strategy.  The good thing is that I didn't have nearly as many of the problems of dry heaves (only at the first water stop) so that's good.

I did hit the wall at the 9 mile marker.  We have a monster hill near the start point that the trainers have us run from time to time.  Going up that beast is a real chore, especially at the end of a long run.  I paused a couple times in order to reset my mind in order to make it up but I got through it.

For my next run I am going to try to eat some Sports Beans that I have which are made by Jelly Belly at each of the water stops to try to maintain my energy levels throughout my run.  I like the beans because I can pop one or two in my mouth and suck on them while run.

I feel pretty good after 10 miles.  A little sore but feeling pretty energized.  These are the types of runs that I enjoy the most, where even if I don't have my absolute best run I am not the least bit discouraged.

Week 2 - 8.5 Miles

Today's training run went much better than last week.  I ran an average pace of 9:35/mile which is pretty awesome for me (better than my last race which I PR'd at 10:35/mi!).  I ran slightly behind the group as I was pushing my upper limit.  The real question will be whether I can run that kind of pace in a race or not for the full 13.1 miles.  Guess I'll find out on Feb. 2nd!

I still had trouble with dry heaves after drinking water.  I tried just drinking a couple sips but it still gave me problems.  What did seem to help was not starting with such a fast pace as it allowed my body to process the water a little before going back into full throttle.

One thing that was suggested to me was to eat something small before running.  I like Clif bars and so maybe I'll try eat half a bar before leaving the house to run with the group.  It was also suggested that I follow the mean plan that was sent out to all the people that participate in Boot Camp, so maybe that will help me with fueling as well?  My biggest problem is that I am a fairly lazy cook and so it might be more energy I might be willing to put in.

My legs feel pretty good.  I promised myself I would get better at rolling my legs after my long runs and so once I fix myself some breakfast I'll bust out the foam roller and then get cleaned up.