St George Training- Week 2

I am pretty happy with how last week went. I lost a couple more pounds, so that is helping my speed. :-)
Monday- Did not end up working out. I was considering doing a crosstraining workout, but it did not happen.
Tuesday- Pace Run- I was a little nervous for this one since I have only done 1 pace run and I didn't think it went that well. Heather met up with me and also our friend, Mindy. We did a 1 mile warmup and then I took off. They stayed a little behind me and I could hear them chatting- perfect distraction! I felt fantastic!
1- 8:20
2-8:13
3-8:14
4-8:22
5-8:06

My heart rate stayed in the 170's for the first 3 miles and then crept up into the 180's at the end. I thought I would have to slow down up the hill at the end, but it was just fine. This is the best I have felt in a long time! Woo hoo!
Tuesday night- went to hot yoga again- even sweatier than before!

Wednesday- Went for a 15 mile bike ride by myself. Definitely felt out of shape. First time on a real bike ride in a couple of years. Needed to cross train.

Thursday- 800's. I was nervous for these. We did a 1.4 mile warmup and then
Goal is 3:23
1-3:22
2-3:23
3-3:22
4-3:24
I was very happy with these times. I had a cooldown and I was able to run the whole thing.

Friday- I was tired because I stayed up until 1am. So, I just went for a 30 minute swim. I have so much to learn in swimming.

It is Friday night and I have a 5k in the morning with my Couch to 5K group. I am trying to decide if I am going to race it or not. I am supposed to run 15 miles tomorrow so I was going to run in the morning and then run 11 with Jeff Saturday night.

Here are my goals if I race it:

1. Finish strong, even if my speed isn't there. Don't give up and be happy with where I am.
2. Finish under 24 if possible. I ran last years in 24:40 and I think I am in better condition.
3. Get close to 22:30.

Last week I did a tempo run that had 2 miles at 7:35. I was able to do 7:28 and 7:32. I don't know if I could have done 1 more at that pace. I don't want to start too fast. Part of me just wants to join my couch to 5kers and run it with them. We will see... :-) I can come back and run with them or cheer them on! I am nervous. I want to do well. Wish me luck! I am heading to bed. I just want to feel good about my race. I have been working hard and I want my time to show it.

So, the final result is 24:06. So, I beat my time from last year, but I did not beat 24. If I had looked at my total time, I probably would have pushed it even more. However, I did my best. I will keep working hard!

Still have 11 miles to go tonight with Jeff.

St George 2012- Week 1

I think normally I will have an easy run on Mondays and then do my speedwork on Tuesday and Thursday. But, since we are considering a 5k on Saturday I want to be more rested. So, here we go.

Monday- Day 1 of my training. The goal was 3 mile repeats at a 7:02 pace. I knew this was going to be tough for me, but I went for it anyway. I did a little warmup and my shins were already bugging me. I turned on my music and away I went. I kept my Garmin on and just tried to stay right around 7 minutes. By the end, I was starting to struggle and I ended with a 7:08. Not too bad considering I used to do these at 7:20. Mile 2, I struggled even more and ran a 7:28. I was a little disappointed with this one but hoped that I could pick it up for the last mile. I started off strong, but still faded in the end. I ran a 7:29. So, I am a little frustrated, but it is what it is. I have to take what my body can do right now. I am hoping to see progress next time I do mile repeats. Also, I am still trying to lose weight.

Weight- 140.1 (Yesterday it was 139.6- really trying to stay under 140!)

Tuesday- Ran with my Couch to 5k group. They are doing awesome!

Wednesday- Tempo run- 2 mile warmup, 2 miles at 7:35 and then 2 mile cooldown. I went with Heather. I was able to keep the pace up, but it was tougher than I wanted it to be.

Thursday- Ran with friends 5 miles at 9:20 pace.

Friday- Hot Yoga for the first time. Not like anything I have ever done. 90 minutes. Whew!

Saturday- Goal- 13 miles at 8:53 pace. I knew this would be a little tough for me, but I wanted to try it anyway. I ran by myself at first and got 3 1/2 miles in. Then I joined the rest of the group, including Jeff- yeah! I did alright but never felt like I got in a good groove. Ended up averaging 9:07 for the whole run. Very happy with my week! 37 miles overall. I decided not to run the 5k. I think I will be running one next week.

Pre-Training for St George

Last week was my marathon recovery week, and boy did I stick to it. :-) I ran twice with my couch to 5k group and I went for a bike ride with Bryce. That's it! Jeff and I were planning on 8 miles together on Saturday, but it never happened so we decided to save it for Monday. So, here is my last week before my training "officially" starts. I hope I have picked the right plan and I hope I can do it!

Monday- 8 miler with Jeff, started out a little quicker than usual, but I just tried to go with it, since that is my focus this time around. I have the base and endurance, now I need to get comfortable with speed. We did the first mile at 9:09. Then we went up Sunset Hill for 9:56 second mile. Then I decided to enjoy the downhill and I did an 8:23. After that, I was a little tired, so we ran 9:43, 9:44, 9:38, 9:32. Our average was 9:25. Tougher long run for me, but a good way to start. Jeff pushed it the last mile and I was proud of him. He definitely has more speed than me. I just have more endurance for now.

Tuesday- I asked Heather Smith to meet me for 800's. I was really nervous because in the past the fastest I tried to run these was a 3:40. My training plan says 3:23. So, here are our splits

1 mile warmup- 8:58
.2- 9:37

800- 3:18 (What?!!) A little too fast
800- 3:21
800-3:24
800- 3:24
800-3:30
800- 3:35

So, I definitely had to slow down, but I am proud of myself for even being able to do 1 and for not giving up.

These will get better and easier, I hope. I also still have weight to lose so I am working on that. We will see how this all goes!

Week 18 and the Marathon!

Wow, the date is actually June 12th, so I am a little behind! This week was the final week of training so I just
ran a couple of times and tried to feel rested. Here is my race reporthttp://marathonmommies.blogspot.com/2012/06/full-circle.html

I truly am happy that I was able to make it through this training. I feel like I have a strong base to get me to St George. My ultimate dream would be for Jeff and I to run side by side at St George to get my 3:40 and qualify for Boston. I would love for Sarah to be with us too, but I am guessing she will be faster. :-) We will see...