Posts Tagged ‘race week’

Things are going pretty well, I did 11 on Sunday, 7 on Monday and 8 yesterday.   I still needed to stop and stretch on Sunday and Monday but yesterday was quiet and considering both Monday and yesterday were slower paced runs (which makes IT pain hurt more) it’s a good sign.  Today I’ll go for 9 or 10.

I’m in good spirits because I’ve been keeping busy.  After I got Gifted Runner redone, I redid another one of my t-shirt sites (x-rated shirts and no, I won’t provide a link ).  After all this re-making of old crap, and to wipe the nasty off, I was inspired to do a brand new t-shirt site based on sweet, innocent kiddy designs.   I’m still working on adding stuff, but here it is, AdorableShirts.com.  Forgive the stupid name, that’s me whoring for Google’s attention.

I also sold my first ad space on Websitebeginner.com last week which was a giggle-worthy event.  Sometimes I get emails from people inquiring about advertising and because I really don’t know how to deal with pricing for it, I just toss the emails away.  This time, because I need the moolah, I replied and the guy was very easy to deal with, so it worked out great.

While we’re on the subject of cash, yesterday morning I had a voiceover for a funny commercial, one where I start speaking at a normal rate, then speed up till I’m talking super fast – was great fun.  But it’s been slow for VO work the past month.  I’m up for another funny one, though, where I play a Language Instructor teaching Swedish – I had to learn the pronunciation off an mp3 for the audition.  I got a call yesterday that it’s between me and one other person, so crossing fingers I’ve got it.

I’m still planning on racing that 5K this Sunday, though it’ll be a hot one and I’ve not done anything fast since the last race, so no PRs for sure.  I might even ensure a particularly sucky time by getting drunk the night before since my friend’s having a party.   But then I’ll have to leave my magic shoes at home because that would be embarrassing to suck in magic shoes.  Then again, the race is “Run For Cover” to fight melanoma and I don’t wear sunscreen half the time, so I’m a total poser anyway.

No, I’m not talking about Memorial Day or any of those Hallmark constructed celebratory excuses.  I’m talking Happy Menarch Day!

What?  You never heard of it?   Can’t remember what Menarch even is?  Let me jog your memory…Menarch is the day a girl begins her period.  For someone like me, who didn’t even get a Sweet Sixteen party, I now feel doubly gypped.  Luckily, I can relive that special day by visiting Menarch Parties R Us. They offer all the accouterments you need for such a wondrous event, including everybody’s favorite party game, Pin The Ovaries On The Uterus.  Sounds painful but I guess that’s part of the fun.

Back to the cake, it’s quite lovely as far as cakes go, but I do think the white blobs in the corners would be more complete with a string coming out of each blob.  And poor Levonna, forever memorialized as the girl who got her period and had a mom who thought it was worth celebrating over.  But enough holiday talk.

As far as this party-deprived runner goes, I’ve been enjoying easy runs these last couple days.  Yesterday was the closest I’ve come to a recovery run in weeks, a 12-miler at 8:53.  It was 82 degrees at the end, but my goal was to keep the HR low throughout – mission accomplished with a 65% average.  Today was a 9-miler at 8:16/mi, 71% HRR.

Tomorrow I’ll be doing 7, then 4w/strides on Sat, then race.  I like these little mini-tapers on race weeks, it’s a nice change and creates a cutback week, which I wouldn’t pay attention to otherwise.

I went a little race-crazy yesterday and committed to 3 races in June.  I’d had them on the calendar anyway, but thought I’d wait closer to the actual race days to evaluate weather conditions before signing up.   Changed my mind and paid for all three when I realized that even if the weather’s hot as hell, at least everyone will suck evenly, plus it’s good practice racing in adverse conditions.  But the best part is that it’ll be a vacation from speedwork, while giving me the benefit of Super-Speedwork, since you never run as fast as when you’re racing.  It’s win-win.

And with that, I’ll wish you all a wonderful holiday weekend, whether it be Memorial or Menstrual.  Either way, have a beer on me.

First off, thank you so much for all the Good Lucks in the previous post. You guys and gals are the best.

I had a lovely day off yesterday, went to Marshall’s and scored a pair of Brooks Epiphany shorts for $7.99! Took them out on my last pre-race run today (4 w/4 strides) and decided they are my favorite shorts, ever. Just ordered another pair at Runningwarehouse (because that’s what a girl does when she’s waiting for a big race…spends money).

The clock is ticking down and I’m excited as all get-out. The weather looks great except for a growing chance of rain (which might easily change). Temps and wind are absolutely perfect: 48 degrees at the start, 50 when I finish and no wind to speak of. I can deal with the rain just as long as my feet don’t get soaked beforehand. I’ll be taking some extra shoes and socks, just in case, to stand around in before checking my bag.

I’m rooming with one of my BQ Women buddies, Kat, so that’s going to be a blast. We’re staying at the hotel where all the action is (Expo and Pasta dinner) so once we park our cars, we’re done for the weekend. I love this, as it’s the traveling logistics that freak me out more than anything.

It’s also a huge racing weekend for many of my online running pals so I want to give a shout out to all my Women’s BQ thread marathon gals, BQs for everybody! And a special one to my Steamtown marathon buddy, sometimes running partner and constant email exchanger, Doggie Girl. The BQ is yours, my dear – it is written. Also, for all the BQ Babe Halfers and Julie, good luck!

On an utterly tragic note, a RW forumite who was set to run the Pittsburgh marathon this weekend, a 22-year old girl whose smiling avatar would break your heart, got hit by a truck a few days ago while out running and was killed. I’ll be thinking of her this Sunday, as I have every day since hearing this horrible news.

And that’s about it. Thanks again everyone for following my running adventures, you truly are a great support team and you can bet I’ll be thinking of you as I cross those mats.

I know, it’s goofy that I’m all “last tempo” and “last speed” but I can’t help but be sentimental. This cycle’s been a journey of discovery so I’m sad to see it conclude.

We’re still in this annoying heat wave so I got up at 7am to run at 8. It’s been a long time since I did speedwork in the morning but by the time I got out it was already 76 degrees (Heat Index 78) so I was prepared to dial it back.

The workout was 10 w/3xmile@10kpace w/3min recoveries. I ended up with 9.5 miles total, couldn’t be bothered to make up the extra 1/2 mile – avg pace for the run 8:04.

The intervals went 6:56, 6:50, 6:49, avg. 6:51. I was actually aiming for a tad faster but considering the temps, I’m happy with the outcome. On my usual comparison note (now that I’ve amassed all this lovely HR data) my HRR on the speed portion today averaged 83% – 2% lower than when I did this workout 3 weeks ago in cool weather, and today was faster, to boot.

Looking at the HR, I guess I could’ve pushed it harder but honestly, I’m tired and ready for some rest. Tomorrow I have an easy 6, then a day off, then 4 w/strides, another day off, then the race! At this point, I don’t give a crap that my two month streak will end with two rest days…I want them! Seriously, I visualize my legs filling up with strength and power while I sit on my ass eating bonbons. Well, ok, no bonbons, but hopefully this’ll all play out well on Sunday.

Things have gone so smoothly that I’d be lying to say I’m not scared. I’m used to disappointment and things getting fucked up, so Please, Please Running Gods, just let me have this one great race, let me put a cherry on the sundae, a cymbal crash on the finale, just please let it go right.

Wednesday was a mid-long 11-miler, yesterday was 6 easy and today is 5 with strides, these last two runs composing my mini-taper for tomorrow’s Adrenaline 5K.

I’m all a-tingle wondering how it’ll go.  It’ll be my third race in 3 weeks and the first time I’ve raced consecutive weekends, so there’s some novelty included already.

The Adrenaline is a cool race because it attracts a super speedy crowd.  Last year there were nine 14:xx finishers, fifteen 15:xx finishers and twenty-seven 16:xx finishers.  That’s some crazy fast running.  No chips though, so hopefully I won’t be shoved at the start by some jerk, as I was last year.

What am I hoping for?  I’d really love a 21:15.  Plugging last week’s race into McMillan, he predicts 21:24, so with that in mind, anything under 21:30 will be a good day.  The other thing is, I would really like to place – they gave out jackets last year which I thought was pretty cool.  Looking at last year’s results, I could do it, but as I’ve come to realize, it’s all about who doesn’t show up.  At least this one is split into 5-year age groups, which helps.

Weather for tomorrow looks ok though I wish it would be warmer; sunny and 33-36 windchill (just 3-5mph winds, so that’s a relief).  Looks like I have to wait for my next race on April 19th to wear shorts.

Before I sign off, here’s a shout-out to Lara who ran this race with me last year but is in a boot at the moment – you’ll be missed, girl!

Have a good Friday and I’ll see you all here tomorrow with some hopefully happy race reporting.

Yesterday: an easy 8-miler at 9:01. Because I had a scary speed session planned for today, it was my pleasure to stay at a sensible pace.

Today: my last set of intervals before Sunday’s race. My usual pre-race speed session is always a light one, around 2 miles worth of 600s or 800s @ 5k pace. Hudson’s concoction, however, was a different beast entirely: 2 miles easy, 1mi at 5K pace, 4min easy, 8×400 at 3k pace w/1min recoveries, 2 miles easy.

Here’s the damage:
The 5K-paced mile: 6:48. My splits for the 400s were sadly all over the place. It was only my second time going for 3k pace in a workout so I just ran as fast as I could and hoped it came out alright. It came out fine, as far as average pace, but the first two didn’t help the rest. Paces for the 400s were 6:21,6:22,6:35,6:20,6:43,6:30,6:36,6:42. Average pace, 6:31. Now on to the subject of weight…

I started at 126.5 lbs. at the end of December. While the first couple weeks in January gave a rapid drop, my goal of 114 has been taking it’s own sweet time. While the scale continues to fluctuate, my calorie intake has stayed pretty consistent throughout, between 2000-2100/day (though I suspect I should increase it again).

Two weeks ago, I hit 117 for a couple days, which would have made a 9.5 lbs. loss, but then last week was my “lady time” and aside from Monday morning at 117.5, I’m currently holding steady at 119.

Meanwhile, my little mOron bodyfat analyzer, yet another fluctuating marvel, has continued a steady trend downward, showing a bodyfat loss of 1.7% since I started. But nothing tells the story as well as a tape measure. So far, this is what’s missing:
waist: 1.25″
navel: 1.5″
butt: 3/4″
thigh: 1/2″ each
calves: 1/4″ each
arm: 1/2″ each
boobs: a distant memory

Let this remind you guys that the scale is not to be trusted. If you’re on a mission to lose a few pounds, take your measurements! You’ll still freak out at the slow moving scale but not half as badly.

And now, if you’ll excuse me, I have some pushups to do. Will the fun never end?