January 7. The one I cut short.

I knew this 7 mile tempo run was going to be a problem in less than a quarter mile.  #1.  I'd run 11 miles the day prior, and had no recovery day.  #2. The veggie pizza I'd eaten the night before was NOT sitting well, if you know what I mean. 

My tempo runs are supposed to be at a 9:20 or faster pace.  I felt tight and tense even after my warmup, so I was doubtful I'd hit that goal pace.  Interestingly, the first two miles were a 9:00 and 9:11, even though they were hilly.  Then the tummy rumbling started.  By miles 5 & 6, I was running 10 minute miles.  It's hard to relax and run when your butt cheeks are squeezed so tight a slip of paper couldn't slip between them. 

At mile 6.6 I was done.  Like really, really done.  I was only a half mile from my house, but I knew if I ran another step I was going to do something that would cause me to have to throw away a pair of Lululemon crops.  And I am very attached to my Lululemon crops.  Let's just say I walked.  I made it, and let's leave it at that, shall we?

January 6. The one where I reveal my torrid love affair with my running coach.

Okay, maybe not an actual love affair, but she is pretty awesome.  Let me tell you why I am a better, stronger, faster runner...

On April 1st 2011 I started the Couch to 5K program, worked through Bridge to 10K and by early 2012 I was training for my first half marathon in May and had registered for my first full marathon (the Marine Corps Marathon) in October.  I'd done this all on my own, logging the miles recommended by the apps and later Hal Higdon for the half marathon training.  I slimmed down from a 14 to a size 6 and was proud of my progress. 

Then that whole Half incident happened.  It was hot, it was hilly, it was a longer run than I'd ever attempted.  I'd registered to have my splits posted on Facebook automatically, and my friends watched my splits get longer and looonger.  I do not even remember miles 7-12, I must've been walking and running after the crowd like a skirted zombie runner.  It was awful and my finish time was 2:42:55.

I was at a low point, intimidated by the marathon distance I had in front of me, and had lost all forward momentum.  I hired Katie at Off Da Couch Training the next week.  She asked me a gazillion questions about my running history & goals.  She formulated a plan made just for me, taking into consideration my current capabilities.  But most of all she believed I could do it.  No question was stupid to her, and she answered every single one of them.  I'm pretty crazy and OCD about running, so it couldn't have been easy either. 

I did complete my marathon, and yes, it was hard.  Yes, it was a long way to run.  But I never once doubted that I'd finish, because Katie had given me all the training, confidence and support I needed to succeed.  And I came out of it eager to sign up for my next marathon.  Richmond Marathon 2013, woo-hoo!

Oh, and I also came out of it a LOT faster.  In December I completed a half marathon on a course in the same city as my first and encompassing many of the same major hills (if not a few more).  I completed it in 2:11:31, over thirty minutes faster than the one 7 months prior.  To me, that's huge. 

If you've been considering a coach to help you with your running goals, whether it's to just finish a certain distance from 5K-Ultra or to improve your PR, you should really look farther into it.  And I'd be remiss if I didn't plug my own personal coach, because she's totally killer.  Katie at www.offdacouchtraining.com, thank you for all you've done to help me achieve my goals.  Oh, and do you think you could coach me all the way to Boston?  Kthxbye.

For the Janathon challenge:  this morning I logged a happy, sunny, fun 11 miles.

January 5. The one where I make something up.

Today was technically a rest day.  In the interest of doing some sort of exercise everyday I enjoyed a brisk shopping trip, including at least a mile between Kohls and Best Buy.  Plus, I did go to the gym today.  It was to cancel my membership, but... whatever.

January 4. The one where I learn I can't add.

Today's run was one mile pick-ups.  Basically, I started at a 10:15 + pace, then picked up the pace by 15 seconds each mile.  Looking at my training plan, I realized I had to run 6 miles plus a 1 mile cool-down.  Perfect!  My community has a 7 mile loop around a lake.  I even wrote a list of the goal pace for each mile on the palm of my hand.  It was around mile 3 when I realized that there were actually only paces for FIVE miles written on my hand, somehow or another I counted the cool-down as a training mile.  *sigh*  So much for a loop.  I turned around and headed back to my truck. 

I really struggled with the early miles of this run, as I tend to be the type of runner who runs the first coupe of miles WAY too fast.  Negative splits are going to be a hard lesson for me to learn.  6.25 miles, 9:52 min/mi.

January 3

Today was just a hard day. My husband's friend and employee lost his battle with mesothelioma on Christmas Eve and today he was laid to rest. This time last year he thought he had a bad cough. He was 36 years old. Watching parents bury a child, even an adult child, is one of the saddest things I've ever witnessed.

 It was not a run day for me, and even if it had been, I'm sure I would've skipped it. I did manage 30 minutes on my spin bike. While spinning I watched the move Vegucated. Very eye-opening, and a topic for a whole different post.

Safe journey Greg. You will be missed.

January 2.

You know what? It's really freakin' cold out there. I must be a very dedicated runner because I was NOT feeling the love today. Today's workout was simple. 5 minute warm-up, then a 35 minute speed workout with one minute speed bursts 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30 minutes. It was over really fast. 9:48 average pace, but I had to walk for 30 secs to a minute after the sprints. The sprint pace hit between 7:30 and 8:00, so... lots of work to do. There was one small incident where a man I know pulled alongside me in his truck to chat. It happened at around 29 minutes in, when I was really working hard. Okay, hi! Nice to see you! I'm...ummm... kinda busy? Sheesh.

January 1

I woke with a sense of purpose this morning. Last year I ran a whopping 1,110 miles and I'm absolutely determined to beat that this year. I am currently working with a running coach (she trained me for the Marine Corps Marathon last year). My goals this year are definitely speed related. I'd like to run a sub-2 half marathon and a sub 4:30 full marathon. She sends me my weekly workouts and I do them. Today was a 6.75 mile tempo on the road that goes around the lake in my neighborhood. It's a hilly beast of a road and the fastest I've ever run it is a 9:10 pace. I'd made up my mind to go for a sub-9 pace, though I knew it would be really pushing myself. I TOTALLY DID IT THOUGH! 8:59 pace! Close, but still sub-9. I'll take it!