ok, let's play catch up. went out wednesday the 3rd for a 3.5 mile walk, then did 2 miles on thursday. the thursday one was actually pretty eventful, I was on the track and I decided after the 1/2 mile warm up on the walk to the track that I wanted to work on speed. so when I got to the track, which is broken up into 100, 200, 300, and 400 yard sections, I decided to try jogging from 0 to 100. well, about 2 paces into it I was not feeling it, but instead of stopping and walking, I decided to try something new. I felt like I was spending so much energy trying to get the next foot in front of the last that I wasn't really moving very well, so instead I focused on "pushing" the ground out from underneath me with each step. I actually was picturing when Shelby takes a poo in the yard and then does the kick kick thing, that was my model for moving my legs (which, had I been able to breathe would probably have really made me laugh!). All of a sudden I took off like a flash! I was really trucking! when I got to the 100 yard line, I slowed to a quick walk which I took around the rest of the track until I got back to the start line and I kicked it in to a run again. I repeated this all 4 laps around the track to make a mile, in total running 1/4 of the mile!!! and the coolest part was that my time for that mile was 13:56, I actually broke 14 minutes!!!
Sunday was my next outing as I was in California so my schedule was a little thrown off. Frank, Lisa, Miranda and I went up to Mt. Tam and did the "plank walk" which sounds easy but wasn't (actually in hindsight it sounds pirate-y) but was REALLY fun! we went 1.5 miles up to the top of the peak of Mt. Tam to the ranger's station. At the top part, it was really rocky and rough, but we all made it to the top. The next day, Lisa and I went out for a 3 mile walk around her neighborhood and those El Cerrito hills made for some cute butts!
When I got home on tuesday night it was WAY too late to walk so I put myself to bed. Yesterday I got in 3 miles and tonight was 2.5. Tomorrow is a rest day and then on to bigger and better numbers on saturday (6 miles I think). Will update when I see what the legs feel like after the distance day!
happy training to all and to all a good night!
Thursday, October 11, 2007
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
3.5 miles, good time, happy feet
today was a fun walk, i needed to get in 5 miles between today and tomorrow, either 2 today and 3 tomorrow or vice versa. i headed out for a nice walk and actually really got my speed up to a comfortable but rapid pace. i was on one of the hill laden areas, so i am considering today a hill training day. my coach Sarah says that when you are going up a hill, especially the long, slow grades, you should think about what a cute butt it's going to give you, so that was my mantra for today. "cute butt, cute butt, cute butt" all the way up the hill, good thing there was no on nearby to hear me, might have been accused of harassment! i went around a loop today instead of heading out and back which is what i normally do, but i was planning on ending up at ed and denise's for dinner, so i built that into my route and ended up, sweaty and hungry at their table. what a great way to end the walk! the only bummer was that i actually felt that i could have gone more because i took it a little easy last week and feel renewed this week (plus, i started wearing better shoes to work so my feet aren't dying by walk time!) but since i had plans and didn't want to hold them up for dinner, i headed over without adding any additional distance. none the less, i ended up with 3.5 miles, so technically tomorrow only needs to be 1.5, but i'm pretty sure i will do at least 2 (maybe more if i feel this good tomorrow!)
happy trails and GO TEAM!
happy trails and GO TEAM!
Friday, September 28, 2007
beautiful fall weather
what a great evening for a walk. it was crisp and cool outside, the leaves are just beginning to think about turning, the kids were in the field playing soccer, and i got out for another step toward my goal. i decided to make that same 5 mile loop this time out with another few blocks for good measure, it was much easier this time than last, probably a mixture of good sleep, and easy & non-school day, and adequate nutrition before heading out, as well as just the overall build up of strength and stamina.
i also got my first contribution today! a client gave me $20.00 toward my total. that's my plan, get 200 people to donate $20. so, 1 down, 199 to go!
also learned an important lesson today that is especially applicable now that the mileage is getting longer....there is a fine line between proper hydration and an embarrassing incontinence issue. damn, the foliage isn't going to hide me much longer :)
i also got my first contribution today! a client gave me $20.00 toward my total. that's my plan, get 200 people to donate $20. so, 1 down, 199 to go!
also learned an important lesson today that is especially applicable now that the mileage is getting longer....there is a fine line between proper hydration and an embarrassing incontinence issue. damn, the foliage isn't going to hide me much longer :)
Monday, September 24, 2007
back in the saddle
last week was pretty hard on lots of different fronts and i started to question my abilities in various aspects of my life. since i wasn't able to prove to myself in tangible ways at most of the other parts of my life, i decided to prove myself on the road. for the first time since beginning training, i was out for 3 days in a row, although my saturday walk was not a huge distance. the 3rd day, sunday, was my distance day this week as i hadn't made it to my TNT training on saturday. though technically not there until this coming weekend, i decided i needed, purely for my own self satisfaction, to hit the 5 mile mark. i also decided to not worry about time and just go for the distance.
i headed out and my legs instantly began to protest, sending information to my brain about what a mean human being i was for asking them to perform 3 days in a row. they painted mental pictures of flames shooting up the fronts and twisty pretzels in the back. they flipped between screaming profanities, threatening to stop working, and trying to cajole the rest of me into turning around and going home. but i just stopped, stretched, and headed out for more. my pace was unremarkable, but since i was going for the distance i chose not to care (well, most of me did. there is still the competetive 5 year old who can do the math in about a half of a second.) On the way out, i stopped multiple times to stretch, and with each distance landmark i regrouped to decide if this was really a good idea. at 1 mile, the 2 mile round trip point, i considered giving in and going back, but i knew i wanted more than 2 miles today, even if 5 turned out to be too much. at 1.5, the furthest i have traveled this way, i was really worrying that the walk back would be too much and that i would not be able to make it, but again assured myself that i could stop and sit if i wanted to, but that this was about distance not time. also, i had my phone and i knew denise was home, so worst case scenario ended with her picking me up and giving me a ride home. i popped a cliff bar energy block in my mouth for a burst of energy (much tastier than Gu and you can kind of park it in the corner of your mouth for a slow steady supply of energy. plus, it makes your spit taste all fruit roll-up-y). at the 2 mile mark, i was actually finally feeling stronger and had figured out which stretch was helping with the legs, and since this was all new walking territory anyway, i decided to go for the 2.5 mark, the 5 mile turn around. the last half mile was mostly downhill. Literally. which felt great except the whole time i was thinking, "downhill now means uphill back, with another half of a mile of fatigue added in". but i pushed on. when i finally hit the 2.5 marker, i stopped for about a minute, stretched, and immediately turned around and headed back up the hill. I never looked up, i stared at the ground and chanted "just keep moving, just keep moving"...out loud.....i must have looked like a sociopath. but once i made it, i felt so much better. i was at the top of the biggest hill of the walk and knew that there wouldn't be another one that big to do today. I remembered when Grampy St.Clair used to push me on the walk up "Huffa-Puffa Mountain" when i was a kid, how much it hurt, how much i didn't want to be there, and i remembered that i was here today because i wanted to be, there was no on making me, i was doing it because i wanted to. so i invited Grampy to walk with me for a bit, and i thought of him for some time on the hard part of the walk.
the way back was much easier. my legs had finally chilled out either from realizing that i wasn't going to listen to them or from sufficient blood flow and cliff bar blocks. i only had to stop and stretch once, and i hit up the water fountain by the playground, but otherwise it was a steady pace home. i also realized that 2 months ago, the walk to the playground which is less than a half a mile, was exhausting, and now it looked like home. Actually, the 1 mile from home marker looks like home. i hit that point and i relax, as if i am thinking, "well, i know i can make it now"
that's pretty cool
oh, and for the 5 year old in me, and posterity sake, the whole thing took exactly an hour and a half, which is an average of an 18 minute mile. the first half took 51 minutes and the way back took 39 (20 minute miles going out, 15:36 coming back)
But who's counting ;)
i headed out and my legs instantly began to protest, sending information to my brain about what a mean human being i was for asking them to perform 3 days in a row. they painted mental pictures of flames shooting up the fronts and twisty pretzels in the back. they flipped between screaming profanities, threatening to stop working, and trying to cajole the rest of me into turning around and going home. but i just stopped, stretched, and headed out for more. my pace was unremarkable, but since i was going for the distance i chose not to care (well, most of me did. there is still the competetive 5 year old who can do the math in about a half of a second.) On the way out, i stopped multiple times to stretch, and with each distance landmark i regrouped to decide if this was really a good idea. at 1 mile, the 2 mile round trip point, i considered giving in and going back, but i knew i wanted more than 2 miles today, even if 5 turned out to be too much. at 1.5, the furthest i have traveled this way, i was really worrying that the walk back would be too much and that i would not be able to make it, but again assured myself that i could stop and sit if i wanted to, but that this was about distance not time. also, i had my phone and i knew denise was home, so worst case scenario ended with her picking me up and giving me a ride home. i popped a cliff bar energy block in my mouth for a burst of energy (much tastier than Gu and you can kind of park it in the corner of your mouth for a slow steady supply of energy. plus, it makes your spit taste all fruit roll-up-y). at the 2 mile mark, i was actually finally feeling stronger and had figured out which stretch was helping with the legs, and since this was all new walking territory anyway, i decided to go for the 2.5 mark, the 5 mile turn around. the last half mile was mostly downhill. Literally. which felt great except the whole time i was thinking, "downhill now means uphill back, with another half of a mile of fatigue added in". but i pushed on. when i finally hit the 2.5 marker, i stopped for about a minute, stretched, and immediately turned around and headed back up the hill. I never looked up, i stared at the ground and chanted "just keep moving, just keep moving"...out loud.....i must have looked like a sociopath. but once i made it, i felt so much better. i was at the top of the biggest hill of the walk and knew that there wouldn't be another one that big to do today. I remembered when Grampy St.Clair used to push me on the walk up "Huffa-Puffa Mountain" when i was a kid, how much it hurt, how much i didn't want to be there, and i remembered that i was here today because i wanted to be, there was no on making me, i was doing it because i wanted to. so i invited Grampy to walk with me for a bit, and i thought of him for some time on the hard part of the walk.
the way back was much easier. my legs had finally chilled out either from realizing that i wasn't going to listen to them or from sufficient blood flow and cliff bar blocks. i only had to stop and stretch once, and i hit up the water fountain by the playground, but otherwise it was a steady pace home. i also realized that 2 months ago, the walk to the playground which is less than a half a mile, was exhausting, and now it looked like home. Actually, the 1 mile from home marker looks like home. i hit that point and i relax, as if i am thinking, "well, i know i can make it now"
that's pretty cool
oh, and for the 5 year old in me, and posterity sake, the whole thing took exactly an hour and a half, which is an average of an 18 minute mile. the first half took 51 minutes and the way back took 39 (20 minute miles going out, 15:36 coming back)
But who's counting ;)
Friday, September 21, 2007
feeling a little :P
i went out for my walk tonight and managed 2.5 miles in 44 minutes. my time seems to have peaked and slowed down ever since i got sick and i can't seem to get it fast again. i'm not sure what's going on, i do know that work has gotten a LOT harder mentally and physically & i am often left feeling pretty drained. tonight was the first time i have really been concerned that this is more than i can do. i know that i am making progress, i really can see that, but i'm not sure i will be able to progress enough by race time. anyway, at least i am out there and working at it. i train tomorrow with the group, so i will talk to my coach about it. sorry for the bummer posting, but i figured it was better to be real than pretty....
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Learning curve
according to my training schedule, i was up for a 2 mile walk tonight (no, i didn't go out after all last night, so tonight was a training day) and i am getting a little bored with the track, so i decided to map out a new route for tonight's outing. well, i went on google maps to map out the route and headed out the opposite direction that i usually go. i had planned what i thought was a relatively simple route until i actually got on it and there were roads in places that the map didn't think there were so i got a little lost. i feel a little silly getting lost in my own neighborhood, but in my defense, this place is a bit like a rat maze where only a few of the roads actually interact with other roads. there are LOTS of dead ends not to mention a golf course and a big lake in the middle of it all. at any rate, i got turned around and went the wrong direction at one point and didn't actually know where i was until i found one of the main beaches (remember that big lake thing i mentioned?) fortunately, there are potties at the beaches and i really had to pee! well, once i got my bearings and figured out where the beach was in relation to the house, i set out to go home.
about 5 more minutes after this, i made another realization. the cool socks that i bought from the running store (which i was a little hesitant about since they were $12 and i have never spent that much on a pair of socks before) had been in the laundry, so i just wore some plain old cotton socks. Can i tell you that i am going to the running store tomorrow to buy like 5 more pairs of good socks? they claim to reduce friction and prevent blistering, and i was a little skeptical until i went out tonight for the first time in the new shoes without them. about a mile and a half from home, my heels really started to burn and i realized that i am very sad without my good socks. i tried tying my shoes a little tighter to prevent slipping and got to hoofing the last distance of the walk. with a little over a mile left, i felt like someone was scraping my heels with a vegetable peeler each time i took a step and i realized i was going to have to pull out some deep resources to get through this walk. i started to focus on the scenery, to check out what the neighbors were doing with their landscaping, and i even came about 5 feet from a little doe that was munching on someone's lawn (might have actually missed that if not paying attention, she was pretty still. i actually thought she was a lawn ornament when i first saw her!). when i finally turned the corner on the road that leads to my road, i was so excited that i actually picked my pace up a little and started to jog. As soon as i made it to my street, i broke into a decent sprint and sprinted the final distance, all the while fantasizing about getting my shoes off!
so, in all, 3 lessons learned:
1) when you go somewhere new, don't just look at the map, print the map and take it with.
2) good socks are worth the expense
3) i can keep going even when it hurts like hell!
and though my time wasn't great (3.5 miles in an hour, so 17:06 minute mile average with blister stops) my muscles and heart and lungs weren't really complaining at all, though i may just not have been able to hear them over the din of the heels. i guess my other lesson is i will be investing in some moleskin!
about 5 more minutes after this, i made another realization. the cool socks that i bought from the running store (which i was a little hesitant about since they were $12 and i have never spent that much on a pair of socks before) had been in the laundry, so i just wore some plain old cotton socks. Can i tell you that i am going to the running store tomorrow to buy like 5 more pairs of good socks? they claim to reduce friction and prevent blistering, and i was a little skeptical until i went out tonight for the first time in the new shoes without them. about a mile and a half from home, my heels really started to burn and i realized that i am very sad without my good socks. i tried tying my shoes a little tighter to prevent slipping and got to hoofing the last distance of the walk. with a little over a mile left, i felt like someone was scraping my heels with a vegetable peeler each time i took a step and i realized i was going to have to pull out some deep resources to get through this walk. i started to focus on the scenery, to check out what the neighbors were doing with their landscaping, and i even came about 5 feet from a little doe that was munching on someone's lawn (might have actually missed that if not paying attention, she was pretty still. i actually thought she was a lawn ornament when i first saw her!). when i finally turned the corner on the road that leads to my road, i was so excited that i actually picked my pace up a little and started to jog. As soon as i made it to my street, i broke into a decent sprint and sprinted the final distance, all the while fantasizing about getting my shoes off!
so, in all, 3 lessons learned:
1) when you go somewhere new, don't just look at the map, print the map and take it with.
2) good socks are worth the expense
3) i can keep going even when it hurts like hell!
and though my time wasn't great (3.5 miles in an hour, so 17:06 minute mile average with blister stops) my muscles and heart and lungs weren't really complaining at all, though i may just not have been able to hear them over the din of the heels. i guess my other lesson is i will be investing in some moleskin!
Monday, September 17, 2007
uh oh, getting behind in my blogging!
so saturday was the 4 miler, i did the whole thing in just about an hour, so around a 15 minute mile average. the day was beautiful, i was a few hours short on sleep, so i think i didn't have quite as much oomph as i would have liked, but once i got going, i was a-ok. it was the 2nd training session i have done with TNT, last time i had the company of Brent, but today we were short on trainers so Sarah went ahead with the other 3 that showed up to run (small group here in the 'ville it seems). as i am the only walker of the group, i bid them farewell and watched them go up ahead (though they didn't get away as fast this week as last). about halfway through the course, my coach doubled back to find me and walked with me the rest of the route. I am definitely getting stronger, and am having less shin pain, especially due to the helpful hint that Lisa gave me to do ROM exercises whenever i think of it. also, i am taking the time to stretch mid-course now which seems to be helping.
at any rate, i got my training schedule in my email today and, as Sarah had assured me, I am right on schedule. tonight is supposed to be a rest night, but i am thinking about maybe just lacing up my shoes and heading out for a fall evening walk. what the hell has happened to me?!?!
at any rate, i got my training schedule in my email today and, as Sarah had assured me, I am right on schedule. tonight is supposed to be a rest night, but i am thinking about maybe just lacing up my shoes and heading out for a fall evening walk. what the hell has happened to me?!?!
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