Dopey Training Week 1 Recap

HI! How are you guys?  I just wrapped up week 1 of Marathon/Dopey training.  I also wrapped up my first (official) week back at school.  The students start Wednesday so I still have a few things to do around the classroom.  I received a fun package from Uncommon goods so I was able to geek out for a few minutes and sanitize my phone.  I will have a review about their site later this week.  

Such a nerd!!

This weeks training went surprisingly well.  3x before work I was able to run and I am hoping to continue that even with the earlier start time once the students come back.  Instead of having to be home by 7am to shower and be out of the house by 7:30, next Wednesday I will have to be out of the house by 6:30.  One the weather starts cooling down and the feels like is not more than 108 degrees I can start running in the evening.

Dopey Training Week 1:

Monday: Easy day consisted of a 2.5 mile slow hot walk :) then 21 day fix pilates. I thought it was necessary to not set an alarm for my last official day off.  Totally worth it

Tuesday: 6.5 mile 12:16 pace. Tuesdays are normally tempo, but I thought it was more important to note trip over my feet at 0’dark thirty.  

Wednesday: 3 mile recovery run- 11:50 pace- I was super happy that I negative split that run

Thursday: Speed Work 7 miles 2x400, 2x800, 2x1200 with same revery in-between ( except for the 1200 because I was beat!  overall pace 11:42

Friday: Rest day!- how glorious

Saturday: Long Run with Team.  8 miles 11:55ish pace and negative split

does the view get any better?

Sunday: 3 mile recovery 12:33 pace.  I was surprised how sore my legs were.

total (running) miles: 27.5 

1 strength training day.

How did your week go?

I had to come home on Thursday and take a nap.  I also wish I would have gotten a true tempo run it but I am till very happy with how this week went.

Why I hired a Run Coach

Hi there!  How was everyones weekend, mine was too short of course and it was depressing knowing it was time to go back to work :(

On Saturday I posted how I was accepted and and mow training for the NYC half Marathon and hired a run coach.

At first I wasn’t sure if I wanted to apply for this, if I was chosen that would mean an added expense this year of flying up, possibly getting a hotel room (I love love love staying with my family but this time I would be with a friend), the endless shopping and eating in New York.  It also meant training again for a half marathon.  

Ever since February I really haven’t enjoyed running.  It began to be a task, the weather was getting warm, and I was burnt out.  Instead I joined orange theory fitness because I liked the way it made me feel, it pushed me outside my comfort zone and I wanted to tone up for the wedding and the cruise.  I lived for going to classes, seeing if I can get my heart rate into the orange zone, how high can I get my calories?.  

I decided to give it a go and once my friend Diana and I were notified we had gotten into the race she contacted our old team in training coach for a plan, she sent that to me and we were ready to go because she is also training for New Orleans half marathon (GO DIANA!)  I know myself and I know I am not accountable. If someone isn’t checking up on me, if I don’t have specific workouts, and paces to hit; it isn’t going to get done and I slack of.  I need specifics, its just me and it's how I work.

I have been reading Abby’s blog for a long time now and followed her running journey, her ups and her downs and it resonated with me.  Abby is very relatable, at least from reading her blog.  I knew she was getting certified to be a run coach and knew she would be the perfect fit for me.  

I was also too scared to ask Coach Steve to make me a plan and coach me again, I feel like I have let him down by not following a plan he made for me when I was supposed to run a race in October.  I didn’t have to heart to run it, I wasn’t prepared, and I knew it wouldn’t make me happy.  I also need some coddling right now.  And, I didn’t want to disappoint him. I also didn’t want to feel obligated to run with a specific group for long runs or speed work.

Abby and I spoke, I sent her my info and the next day she had a plan for me!  I am super excited to start and in my opinion, I rocked the first week!  I love how quickly everything went.  

This is me "stretching" at Disney

Side note, this is why I can't play those games on your phone that need another partner, I can't wait!  

I can’t remember the last time I trained for a stand alone half marathon so running less than 20 miles a week is so weird!  I don’t plan to PR this half marathon because I am not in PR shape, but if I do, hey!!! I definitely plan to use this race to see where I am physically. I want to do Dopey in 2017 (It has been a goal since it was announced)  and after Dopey I hope I can PR having all those extra miles on my legs. - I guess I should start saving.

Here’s to 2016!!!

One Joey picture for good measure!

I will certainly keep you all updated with my training, I am the worst at remembering to take pictures so they may be sparse and hopefully I won’t be too boring!

Racing Lately...

Racing Lately..

Since the new year I feel as if all I have been doing is running and racing. I have finally hit the dreaded “burn out”.  I have no interest in doing any physical activity even though I have goals.

Over the last few months I have done the following races:

Celebration Half Marathon: 2:20

The Clebration Half marathon was a lot of fun because of the friends that ran it that day.  This race was harder than it should have been.  I really struggled the last few miles. I never felt properly fueled or had a lot of energy.  I am not sure to why that was, maybe because it was just over a month after my full, maybe it was that I hadn’t been as well trained as I should have been because I sprained my ankle 3 weeks or so before hand?  Some races are better than other as you can see through this recap.

Chris, Kristen, Marci, Me, Beka, Patricia

Best Damn Race: 2:15:55

I have no idea how this happened but all the starts aligned for BDR! The weather was perfect and I just felt great.  I wish I didn’t start as slow as I did but was scared to bonk like the time before.  This is my fastest half this year, and fastest half since my PR in March of 2013.

Gasparilla Muchelob Ultra Challenge:

15k, 5k, Half Marathon, 8k

This was such a great weekend!  I found day one harder than day two, but also unintentionally ran faster day one and was so very sore day 2.  I walked the 8k with my friend and still finished the half under 2:30!

Sisters that run together, stay together :)

Finishing the Gasparilla Challenge!

Take Stock in the Children 10k

This race I did for fun with my mom, sister, and friend.  I did Gasparilla the weekend before so I wanted to keep it slow.  It was also the first time I put any miles of my feet since Gasparilla and felt it!  Whoops!

Sarasota Half Marathon 2:42:25

I signed up for this race right when it opened for its blitz pricing.  I scored a spot for about $45.00 and was hoping I would PR it.  That did not happen, I actually didn’t even want to run it when the time came.  I only ran it because I wanted to wear the jacket.  In the corrals before it started I almost left.  It was the first hot and humid run this season and I was not ready for that.  I thought I had more in it that I did, when I saw how “slow” (for me) I was going the first three miles I mentally beat myself up and once that happened it was all downhill.  I walked at mile 4 which normally doesn’t happen and once I started to walk, I didn’t stop..  I am happy I finished this but it was not easy.  This is the first time I almost DNF’ed.

Run Tampa Crew Before Sarasota Half

And a little Joey picture added in "fur" good measure :)

Practically every other week there was something going on running related.  This weekend I did not physical activity at all.  It was so nice to sleep in.  I really want to get back on my bike and back in the pool and hopefully I will find the motivation to do that.  I just signed up for a 5k that is in a little less than a month. That should give me some motivation.  After that, my next race is not until October and I do not plan to race a lot next season with the wedding but hey, you never know!

When was the last time you were burnt out and how did you recover from it?  How did your racing season pan out?

3k Beer Dash [Giveaway!]

*I was given a complimentary entry in exchange for this post.  All opinions are my own.*  

I cannot believe that it is almost April!  Where has the time gone?  This weekend I did my first triple brick and I did my first Open Water Swim!  I will have a whole separate post for that coming up in the future!  It was AMAZING!!!

Just over 30 days till it is time to TRI

The NYC Half Marathon I ran on March 16 was COLD!  I ran it in 2:18:52 and that being said, I get aero bars for my bike!! Since I obviously know nothing about them, any recommendations?  I will also give an update on my race also!  I was very impressed with this race, my time, and my weekend!

This upcoming weekend, March 29, I am participating in the 3k Beer Run presented by tbt*.  I am really excited it takes place downtown and benefits Girls on the run.  I have always wanted to be involved in Girls on the run.  

What:

The event is a  part of the Gasparilla Criterium + Cycling Festival presented by Cigar City Brewing  and Bright House Networks. The fun run will take place on the criterium course and  all participants will receive a complimentary Cigar City Brewing beer and a  commemorative T-shirt. Runners will also receive beer discounts at the post race Pro Criterium Watch Party!  If runners are under 21, they will receive a non-alcoholic beverage. 

I plan to run this for run as I will probably be doing another triple brick and boy was I exhausted last weekend and cranky!!

When:

Saturday, March 29, 2014

4:30 PM

Where:

Lykes Gaslight Park

410 N. Franklin Street

More Fun Stuff:

Dress up!!! Awards are given for best costume!

Registration is $20.00 in advance

$25.00 onsite

Go Register here!

Just for you, I have a giveaway and this is what you need to do!  Check back thursday!! Winners will be be announced!

Just leave a separate comment below if you do one, or all, of the following:

-tell me you want to run this race!

-follow me on Twitter @risforrunning

-tweet the giveaway: leave the link in the comments

-follow me on Facebook

-LIke Cigar City Brewing on Facebook

Goals for the NYC Half 2014

I can't believe I head to New York tomorrow and my last half marathon of the season in Sunday, just 4 days away!

The Weather

The weather forcast is something I am not used to: A low of 25 and a high of 43.. I am not sure if this is something I am supposed to be happy about or not.  My last race was 70 degrees and 100% humidity at the start.  I am looking forward to not sweating before I cross the start line.  I am nervous for how to dress.

I just packed mot of my stuff and I have pants, capris, short, Procompression socks, tank top, tshirt, long sleeve shirt, sweatshirt, gloves and a tiny hat.  I will be walking from my aunts Apartment on W 75th to W 59 to the entrance.  That is actually what I am most nervous about.  I am hoping the weather helps with making me a little faster.

I am excited about this run to be here and I am also excited for it to be done with.  I entered the lottery so long ago and wasn't accepted.  NYRR changed the route to allow for more runners and I accidently pressed the button to allow me to re-apply.  I got it.  I am using it to go up and visit family.  I am excited to see family and hopefully friends but I also would love to lay in bed and relax the rest of spring break.

While training for the NYC Marathon my speed did not increase, it may have stayed the same or decreased actually.  A few weeks ago I started working on speed but nothing major.  After the Gasparilla 15k which I ran with Behn, I set a time goal for this race.  I really surprised myself at Gasparilla.  I hardly give myself enough credit.  Then I got a cold.  I am still battling with the aftermath of a cold; the cough, headache, sinus..No fun.

My Goals

But here are some of my goals for you *Knowing this may be a challenging course with hills* My current PR is 2:12:11 and when I signed up for this race, I wanted sub 2.  I also plan to have my camera out because after all, I will be running through my favorite part of the world, Times Square!

A Sub 2:16  Not sure this is possible, but I will try!!!

B:( This was my original A goal but I think I can do a little better if I really push it )Sub 2:20:  This allows be right over 10:30 miles.  This is a hilly course and I have not been training on coursed.  This is very doable as long as my snottiness goes away and I am not too effected by the cold.  (last time that happened I peed 9x during a marathon)

C: Sub 2:30  I went 2:26:XX at the Best Damn Race and I was hurting for days afterwards.  Maybe it was due to the humidity, lack of training, but anything really.  Getting to that pace was damn hard!


I really am looking forward to seeing how far or how close to my PR I can make it.  I want to see where I stand in terms of last year.  My PR is exactly a years difference in time.

Questions for you:

How do you determine your goal time?

Are you running the New York City Half?

Have you tried the new Ben & Jerry's Core flavors?  I tried the Karamel Sutra Core and I am obsessed!

Have you donated to my fundraising page for my first triathlon?  It's quickly approaching!

Goofy Thoughts and Goals

The BIG DAY is less than 48 hours away!  I am headed to Disney on Friday to get settled in, check out the expo and be a social TNT butterfly.

I cannot believe how quick time flies.  I remember signing up for this race with Team in Training back when I was at my old school, which means, May 2012! Seriosly, what was I thinking?  I am really excited, nervous, anxious about these races.  I am a mixed bag of emotions.  If this is your first time stopping by, the Goofy and a half challenge is a half marathon on Saturday followed by the full marathon on Sunday.  That is 39.3 miles of fun throught the happiest place on earth.  That is also countless hours on my feet. 

I am not sure if I have ever done a pre-race post before actually. 

This training cycle was all types of screwed up.  I wasn't able to train for my back to back runs because I was focused on the NY Marathon and was told not to do them yet and would start after NY.  I figured, after NY I would be in great shape, but I wasn't.  I started fighting overuse pains..ALL OVER.. Places I didn't know can hurt, or would hurt from running.  My training plan wasn't that feasable with my work schedue.  I simply could not get in two hour runs after school, two days a week.  I know how to make a plan for myself, or modify it to best meet the needs to me and my schedule now.  After NY, I was able to train with Team in Training again.  I love those people.  I am very lucky I had peole to meet, people to eat with, and discuss the stuff only runners talk about.  I got sick run after run and the long runs suffered.  Don't get me wrong, I did have some great runs!  I am finally seeing my speed improve on shorter distances.  (I can't wait to tackle the half marathon distance again).  I got burnt out, I am tired, and I am ready for a break.

Im scared.  I am scared I didn't put in all the training. 
Im confident.  I am confident that I will make it to that finishing line, somehow.
Im panicking.  I am panicking about the weather.  Have you seein it yet?  I am no speedy gonzalez, so I will me still out there when the sun is up and it beating down on me.  You are told to dress like it is 20 degrees warmer when running, I should be in just my swuimsuit then.  Hydration? Stomach?  All issues running through my head.
Im happy.  I am so happy I get to share the accomplishments of so many individuals who will be crossing the finish line to their first half or full marathon
Im stuffy.  I am starting to feel human again, I can almost breathe.  I was sick for three days.  I was breathless walking up 1 flight of stairs.
Im ready.  I am ready to toe those start lines!  As much as there have been problems, I am ready, and maybe as ready as I ever will be.  JUST GET HERE ALREADY!!


After 13.1, how will 26.2 feel? HELP!


My goals:
Apparently this is what peole want to read.  Who would have thought.  I am still thinking about these and tweeking it honestly.  There has been so much to happen and things to consider.  The weather, being sick, corral placement, back to back runs; that I am scared to really set goals.  I know that as long as I finish, I will be happy



13.1 Saturday:

A: Have fun, enjoy, walk some, run some, take pictures.  Not go in with the intention to set any records
B. 2:30-2:45  That means I probably stopped once and the heat is getting to me
C: Sub 2:26 I feel amazing and I am going to PR because I think I could if I tried :)

26.2:

A:Sub 5:25
B:Sub 5:35
C:Sub 6

I am being very broud on the marathon goals becasue of the back to backs.  If I feel amazing, my goal is to fun it :) Sub 5:30 here I go.  As long as I go under 6, Iwill be a happy little camper after my last marathon experience

Have you ever ran a back to bakc race?  What did you do to prepare or recover?
Will you be at Disney?  I would probably love to meet you!

If you would like to track me, let me know.  I will be happy to give you my last name! Just ask
 

Weekly Workout Recap & Goofy Training Week 9 & Taper

I cannot believe that 9 weeks have passed with Training for this insane event Called the Disney Goofy and a Half challenge.  What was I thinking when I signed up for this with Team in Training?

Oh that is right, I will be in great shape after the New York City Marathon and this will be a breeze.  Well, I was wrong!

According to my DailyMile acount, this week was a great week!  I will have to agree with it.

I am secretly loving taper week.  Some runs were more difficult than other but that 5 miles on Monday was amazing.  I had off this week so it was a lot more convenient to get my miles in.  For the last week of training I have to go back to work sadly.  I only have 8 miles on the schedule during the week.  I will probably do 4 of them :)

Here is a rundown of my runs:

*Monday: 5 miles @ 9:48 pace.  I am not sure where that came from but it really helped with my mind in terms of getting faster.  Something I have been struggling with for a while now.

*Tuesday: New years Day, that was rough.  It hurt and was hard to maintain the 10:53 pace

*Thursday: 6 miles at 11:19.  It was hot and 100% humidity.  It was hard, my legs felt it.  

*Saturday: 8 lovely miles with my favorite TEAM! 10:34 pace.  I was ecstatic about that.  I cannot wait to be done with Disney so I can truly begin working on getting faster!!

I am hoping I have the time to blog this week and share my goals for Disney.  As I have to back to back races, I intent to go in to it for "FUN" but I may have a goal up my sleeve for the Marathon portion considering how terrible my first marathon was.

How do you set your goals for marathons?

How do you pace yourself?

Have you run with a pace group and what what your thoughts?

Grab a button and link up!

2012 Goals Recap

I can't believe it is almost 2013?  Where has this year gone?  I have to say, this one one hell of a year!  The beginning of the year was a rough year for me!  I don't know if it is even possible to recap it?

I started the year out with a running injury..Damn IT Band, and was not running until end of April.  That was 4 months of no running, and to make things better, I wasn't doing much else in the sense of cardio.  My work life stressed me out beyond belief, and if you know me, you know what happened there. (or would like to hear more about that, feel free to send me an email. )  I managed to pack on almost 20 pounds with the stress!  Once I started at my new school, things defiantly got better, well until Sandy hit New York and the New York City Marathon was cancelled.  That was a really hard, and what was even harder, going straight into Goofy training.  I thought I would have a nice recovery period where I would get to sleep in, nope, that didn't happen.  I burnt out, and I burnt out quickly.  You can see all that here.

I am not going to go into much details of what happened this year, I am going to leave that for another post.  I did want to go back and look at my running goals from last year.  You can find that post here.


As I read them, I am not sure how attainable they were.  I am not sure how often I even looked at them.
                                         ---------------------------------------------------
I would love to be 123 pounds...which isn't too far off :) Finally!! When I wrote this, I was maybe 7 pounds away, which I could have done, if I chose to watch what I ate.  Instead, stress and emotions got the best of me!

I want to run a 5k in 28 minutes What was I thinking when I made this goal?  I wonder if this was achievable if I wasn't out of commission for 4 months?

I want to run a Half Marathon in 2:17.  This was a far off goal, and I knew that going into it.  My real goal was a 2:28, because I will never forget what my now X, and X, for many a reason said. "I ran my first half, without training, faster than my girlfriend".  I did, I did accomplish that.  You can read all about that amazing race here!

I want to run a Full in 4:30  (I will happily settle for a 5 hours marathon though)  Again, what far off planet was I on when I made these goals?  My 2013 goal is 5 hours or NYC :)

Overachieving and harsh realizations

I have these big dreams and goals of completing and accomplishing certain races.

I tend to take on more than I can handle, especially when it comes to training for events.  I have race after race, run after run until March.  I didn't really realize how much I have planned until someone mention, are you racing every weekend?  Well, sort of...

I had these BIG dreams of doing the Croom 50k and Augusta HIM 70.3

I have been toying with these ideas for about 6 months now, and I have no doubt I can physically complete them.  I then realized how much more training would need to go into a HIM.  I would need to do two a days.  When did I ever think I would have time for that?  I can't even complete my scheduled runs now.  

Right now, my marathon training plan was given to me through team in training and I believe was a little too ambitious for my schedule.  I have two medium long runs during the weeks, which now, are 9 miles.  I think to myself, this takes me almost two hours.. so coming up at 7, impossible.  Next training cycle, more realistic plan will be made and will incorporate speed because one day, I would love to qualify for Boston!

Back to Croom and Augusta, I think I am officially burnt out.  I want a social life!  I want to run because I want to, not because I have a training run.  I think I am saying goodbye to running Croom and doing Augusta in 2013, but there is always 2014.  Not to mention, a tri is very expensive and I certainly do not have the money at this time to invest in the proper training and equipment.  I am so thankful for the friends along the way to help me out this far.  

I want to be proud of my race and know I have done all that I could do :)

Will I have a change of heart in the next few weeks once Goofy is over?  It is possible, but I am staying away from the "Register Now" button for a while, until I am 100% sure I have the time and the energy.  

So what is up next?

Dec. 15 The color run

December 21- 10 miles

December 22- 20-22 Miles

January 12 DIsney Half Marathon

January 13 Disney Full Marathon

January 27 ING Miami Full or Half Marathon

February 9- Mud Run

February 17 Donna 26.2 or Half?- Possible with Meghan

February 24 Disney Princess  Half Marathon with Meghan, Tori, Caitlyn

March 9- Gate River run with my best friend Jamie

March 17- Sarasota Half Marathon (Hoping for a PR)

What runs are you planning?  How do you get motivated again?

Weekly workout + Goofy Training week 5

How can you tell like if a little crazy, when you cannot remember what week of training you just completed.

The last two weeks were a little crazy and I got sick so that didn't help too much with the whole training for a 39.3 mile race.  With that, I also made a few race decisions about to upcoming year.

Grab a button and link up your workouts anytime this week! Leave a comment and I will stop by and say hello :)

I am going to roll the last two weeks workouts into one short and sweet post, why?  Because it won't take too long.

I wish I knew how to make running a priority with a new job, new classes, and new responsibilities.  I can't wait until next semester when it is time to redo many lessons, but not start from the beginning for three classes.  I can't wait until my lease is up so I can move closer to work.  (Sorry for my vent session and thank you for listening)

Last week, training week 4, I was extremely busy with being back from break and getting everything in order, and just when the week was calming down, I got sick.  I was so ready to do 2 back to back runs and neither happened.  I was supposed to run the Brandon Half Marathon on December 2nd, but was smart and pushed it to the 5k.  The day before, I was supposed to do another long run of 14 miles but when all I wanted to do was leave work, I knew that wasn't going to happen.  I actually slept over 11 hours and night and believe that is what my body needed.  I was sad I couldn't do the Brandon Half, but was hurting during the 5k, it was hard to breathe, I stopped twice to blow my nose, and just wasn't feeling right.  I did PR though for my 5k, so I wonder how much better I could have done without a rotten cold.  

The following week, I started to feel better and was still very busy (I have to spend many afternoons after school practicing for a secret Pep Rally Thing a ma jig)- It will be over This week.

Tuesday was track practice where I was able to get a mile done in 9:20.  Yay for getting faster :)

I had a few unanticipated rest days due to work.  Friday I went home right after work to get my runs in, I did it, but body wouldn't go so I turned around early :(

Saturday was a long run of 19 miles.  I had a good friend push me along for 14 of those miles until I felt bad that she was taking it slow with me!  I told her to take off and I was my slow self and powered till the end.

I hope that my body learns to move again, and I see improvements in my run.  At this point I am starting to get down about Disney :( I have to remember that I am not doing this one for time because it's two back to back runs. I want to have fun, even though I would love a time goal!  

How did your workouts go this week?

How do you get over the mental hump?

Halloween Halfathon Race Recap

On Sunday, October 28, 2012 I participated in another half marathon as part of my taper for the NYC Marathon.  Guess what, I PR'd but will get to that later.  I registered for the Halloween Half when it first opened and it was really cheap!  I knew for me, it would guarantee getting the miles in.  So, instead of doing 8 miles, I did 13.1.  Woops!

Saturday evening I was asleep before 10pm, but was up at 11:45 with a stomach ache, a throat that felt like there were shards of glass in it, a headache and my ears were killing me.  On top of that, my sister was in Hawaii with tsunami warnings.  She was texting frantically and freaking out.  It is safe to say this was going on till about 2:30.  The alarm was set for 4:10.  Guess who was not happy when that went off, guess who felt like death and didn't know if I was going to make it to run in the morning.  Luckily, I was meeting Meghan at 5:20!  I figured, if I still felt like crap, I would spectate or run the 5k. We met and headed straight to the race where we had to pickup our packet.  There I met up with Sarah and Brandi, used the restroom 2x (only #1), glided up, and was ready to GO!  It was so organized and we started right on time!  It was such a pleasure!  I loved the size of the race.  There were about 1000 participants!  We corralled by pace on our own.

Kitty Cat minus my ears post race

I went into this race with no expectations except two, to run slow and use this as a taper run, and make sure my first mile is not the fastest.  I definitely succeeded at the second goal.   The course was pancake flat.  The first has I was "flying", and it did not feel like it.  I didn't realize what I had in me.  I figured I had slowed down while training for this marathon as i did NO speed work.  I use the word flying loosely because for me, a 12 minute mile is good :)  By mile 8 I started to feel a little tired but kept on trekking along.  At mile 10, holy headwind.  This was the hardest I had worked all training season.  Because this was a taper, I took it easy, resistance training.  I haven't updated my Garmin yet so I do not have the race splits.  I do know I have as low at 11:04, very unlikely for me.  I do owe some of it to the cool, cloudy weather.  I am NOT complaining what so ever!  I stopped at every water stop for some gatorade and water.  I took a powergel at mile 6ish and probably should have taken one at mile 10.  By mile 12, I was ready to be done and stopped for water just so I can have a nice little walk break.

The coarse was beautiful and the spectators were great.  There were not much because this is a closed course along the beach so they were there cheering on their families.

I managed to pull off a PR during a taper run. WOOHOO.  I couldn't tell you my exact time becasue online it was about 2:36:XX which is the gun time, and being towards the back, I know it took at least a minute to get through.  My watch stopped 2x and at 12.87 is said 2:32:23 so I am going with about 2:35 leaving me a pace at 11:50!  That is a 4 minute PR.

This was a great race which I would do again next year.  There are many races at this park which I would look into as long as they go along with my training schedules.

Photo Credit Meghan

Thank you Sarah and Brandi for running with me for the first three miles!  It was great to have you as company!!  Thank you Tori for cheering me in :)

Weekly Workout Recap

Yes, this post is late, and yes, I am sorry!
My computer and internet are a little moody.  Sometimes it likes to work and other times, not so much.  This is what I have been dealing with lately as my computer is hardly working now.

Let's just say, the weeks leading up to a marathon are crazy, especially if you are missing work and have to have lessons prepared!  Man do I wish I had a job that wasn't harder to not be at work, and by that I mean, I have to work even harder when I am not at work because my students still need something to do.
Please do not take that as a complaint, I love my job, but sometimes, very often, I am very jealous of those who get to leave their work at work at the end of the day.

Let me just get started with this weeks workouts.


Monday I was so excited to get out there are run!  I had all this energy I wanted to release.  Well, this run was less than stellar as it was supposed to be a 4 miler on Tuesday but I moved it to Monday because I was bored.  This turned into 2 painful miles... As, I ran there and ran/walked back.

Tuesday I had a sports massage and I think she did wonders to my leg!  I wasn't taking any chances running my heart out

Wednesday I had a dentist appointment and thought I would go swimming or biking afterwards.  That changed once I got there and had to get work done and couldn't eat or drink after.  There goes my cardio to stay hydrated :(

Thursday I had a busy day and was headed to Meghan's for a jewlery party.  I normally would NOT run on a busy day, and just get ready.  Guess who was a big girl and ran?! Yup, this one here!  I cut it a mile short because of time, but I did 3 hard miles!  By hard I mean, wow, keeping that 12 min mile pace was tough.  My body just didn't want to move, at all.  But I powered through

Friday and Saturday were much needed rest days!

Sunday, I completed in my who knows what number half marathon!  That race was a great race for me.  I didn't have stomach issues till I got home and I PR'd by a few minutes.  I will hopefully do a race recap on that as soon as my computer wants to work.  I met Meghan and we carpizzled there.

This upcoming week! NYC MARATHON :)  Just sayin'


Oh, and link up :)

Becoming a runner

I have been getting a bunch of people recently asking how I started running because they want to increase their distance or want to start running.

I should probably start by saying I have not always been athletic.  I was nominated "laziest" staff member when I worked as a counselor at a sleep away camp, and will never forget that.  Yes, it was funny, but also very hurtful.  It is funny how something like that will resinate with you, especially on those long runs, trying to prove everyone wrong.

Running has never been easy for me. One mile is sometimes still hard on the treadmill.  ( I will never forget when I ran one mile non stop on the treadmill). One New Years I made a resolution to complete a 5k, I wanted to be active and didn't know how.  I started with the couch to 5k program but it didn't really work for me as I was on the treadmill and it felt funny.  I had no idea what speed I was supposed to be running because I never ran before.  As I started with that for a few weeks I needed to figure something else out. I needed more intervals and what better than songs since I would listen to my ipod on the treadmill.  I started one song run, one song walk, etc.  I then progressed to  two songs run, one song walk, etc.  It was time to do the first 5k and for me, I rocked it!  I wanted to do it in under 45 minutes, because all I cared about was finishing it.  I managed to run it in under 35 minutes I believe with some walking stops of course.  That is how I began running.  

After a 5k or two or three, I wanted to increase my distance as I never really cared about speed.  To me, that was important.  I tried longer distances, but again I didn't really know how.  That is when I joined team in training just to see about it without any real intention to join.  I left that meeting registered!!  They provided me with a coach and all I had to do was fundraise.  I had a schedule to follow.  It got easier and easier because I was being accountable.  I slowly increased my milage, they recommend about 10% a week.  I incorporated a lot of run walks to get my body used to the feeling of being on my feet for so long.  

I remember, while training for my first Half, I said I would never do a Full marathon and on that last day of training for my half, I wanted to do a full.  

The way to get the miles increased is to do it slowly and safely.  Do not push your body past its limits.  Listen to it, if it says slow...SLOW..if it says rest..REST

Yes..simple as that!!

I hope everyone finds their grove in running like I have, I may not be the fastest, but I can guarantee I am the happiest one out there :)

HAPPY RUNNING!!

and please remember, I am not a certified coach, or a coach at all..Just a girl on the running trying to help out a fellow runner 

You can also check out my Team in Training webpage (and make a donation) here:

pages.teamintraining.org/sun/wdw13/ghimelfarb