Well, it was a little bit of a come-to-Jesus week for me.
We've been basing our workouts off paces that reflect our goal marathon times, which were picked by our group coach. But mine is too fast for me right now. I'm struggling with the paces, and I think I'm actually getting slower! So I emailed our coach to request an adjusted time. I haven't gotten one yet, but the marathon pace I was using for workouts - 6:52 - is too hard for me, and I have had to scale back.
Monday: Off due to stomach bug.
Tuesday: 7x1000m on the track with a nice 400m jog rest. These mostly felt good, although I was the ONLY person left on the track for my final rep and was clearly demotivated! I started in a group of four, but no one else was having a good night, and I ended up running alone. 3:52, 3:53, 3:52, 3:52, 3:55, 3:55, 3:57. Over nine for the night.
Wednesday: 5 easy on the dirt path around the park.
Thursday: One hour easy on the levee, plus 8 100m strides for 8.64 miles.
Friday: Here's the workout that made me wake up to my pace: 3x2 miles at tempo with 90 seconds jog. Not easy for me, and I TOTALLY TOTALLY crumbled on the last one. Keep in mind that my "tempo" should be around 6:30 - 6:35...Instead I ran 6:37, 6:32/6:32,6:38/6:39/6:50, and it felt more like 10k pace than tempo pace. After I finished I asked myself if 6:32 was really my tempo pace - could I hold that for about an hour? No, no way. Time to re-evaluate! And yeah, it's still super hot and humid (highs in the 90s this week, lows in the high 70s) but by now I should be used to that, enough that the paces don't surprise me.
Saturday: Race day! For some reason, I thought that a two mile noon race would be a good idea. Got in 5.4 for the day. I wore my Saucony type a flats, which were fine - this was their first foray onto the roads. They're way too tight and actually MELTED on the broiling tarmac, so maybe not my favorite shoe.
Sunday: 16 mile long run progression: five at conversational pace, eight at aerobic pace, three at marathon pace. Going by feel, I definitely didn't hit any 6:52 pace! 6:55, 7:02, 6:53. My marathon pace is most probably closest to that middle mile.
55.9 miles this week.
Sunday, October 7, 2018
Saturday, October 6, 2018
When Oktoberfest is 100F...
I signed up for the Oktoberfest 2 mile race months ago, and I expected it to be its usual Saturday night lederhosened affair: you run the race, then you get free entry and a beer or two at the fest.
Ha. At some point, the New Orleans Track Club changed the race time to TWELVE NOON. In October. In New Orleans. An unusually warm October, at that.
It seems that the Deutsches haus, who hosts the fest, decided that runners were crowding out regular fest-goers, so requested the time change. And for some reason, NOTC went with that...I would definitely have worked out an alternative way to have the event at a reasonable time, like drop the fest altogether, or have the event elsewhere at night but with free fest entry with a bib for another day. There's just no reason to have a noon race just about ever, especially since the fest didn't even open until 1 pm, so most runners were long finished and gone before they had a chance to spend any money with the vendors.
In a nutshell, it was terrible. The day was hot, humid, and sunny. As we were heading over, it was 90F with a 102 real-feel, and that was at 11 am. The race course was even worse. It's a totally exposed, shadeless course, and the asphalt had been baking all day. Someone had a thermometer at the start, and it was 100F on the course! I was basically overheated by the time I picked my packet up. As I jogged to the start (short warm up, no strides, just too hot for anything extra), another runner told me that the way back would be a headwind most of the way. Sure enough, a miserable summer storm was brewing, and annoyingly, it was manifesting as a very hot, very humid headwind accompanied by zero clouds, rain, or temperature drop (the clouds rolled in around 1:30, but we never actually got any rain, just oppressive humidity). I decided that I'd go out at race pace, but if the conditions were killing me, I'd do at least a mile at 2mile pace, and then the second at 5k pace. I didn't want to skip the race totally, nor did I want to start slow in case I actually ended up feeling ok, so I thought this would give me the option to semi-bail without completely giving up.
The race was pretty small, and I figured my fast friend Megan would win for the women. She took off into the lead right away, and I followed. It didn't take long for me to realize that this race was going to be more of a workout. What a slog! Mile one was fairly easy (5:54), but after the turn around, we headed back the way we came, into:
I could barely "cool down" a mile, and when we got home I had heat exhaustion. I collapsed as soon as I got into the house. I asked David for water, but I actually passed out before he brought it! So now I have a massive headache and a sunburn. And that's why you don't run a race at noon.
Ha. At some point, the New Orleans Track Club changed the race time to TWELVE NOON. In October. In New Orleans. An unusually warm October, at that.
It seems that the Deutsches haus, who hosts the fest, decided that runners were crowding out regular fest-goers, so requested the time change. And for some reason, NOTC went with that...I would definitely have worked out an alternative way to have the event at a reasonable time, like drop the fest altogether, or have the event elsewhere at night but with free fest entry with a bib for another day. There's just no reason to have a noon race just about ever, especially since the fest didn't even open until 1 pm, so most runners were long finished and gone before they had a chance to spend any money with the vendors.
In a nutshell, it was terrible. The day was hot, humid, and sunny. As we were heading over, it was 90F with a 102 real-feel, and that was at 11 am. The race course was even worse. It's a totally exposed, shadeless course, and the asphalt had been baking all day. Someone had a thermometer at the start, and it was 100F on the course! I was basically overheated by the time I picked my packet up. As I jogged to the start (short warm up, no strides, just too hot for anything extra), another runner told me that the way back would be a headwind most of the way. Sure enough, a miserable summer storm was brewing, and annoyingly, it was manifesting as a very hot, very humid headwind accompanied by zero clouds, rain, or temperature drop (the clouds rolled in around 1:30, but we never actually got any rain, just oppressive humidity). I decided that I'd go out at race pace, but if the conditions were killing me, I'd do at least a mile at 2mile pace, and then the second at 5k pace. I didn't want to skip the race totally, nor did I want to start slow in case I actually ended up feeling ok, so I thought this would give me the option to semi-bail without completely giving up.
The race was pretty small, and I figured my fast friend Megan would win for the women. She took off into the lead right away, and I followed. It didn't take long for me to realize that this race was going to be more of a workout. What a slog! Mile one was fairly easy (5:54), but after the turn around, we headed back the way we came, into:
- A headwind
- Crowds of race walkers, all of whom made the smart choice not to run at noon on a day like this
- A million confused fest-goers, who, thanks to all the walkers, couldn't really tell there was a race going on, and milled about ALL UP IN OUR WAY. The crowds and confusion were because, unbelievably, the city allowed three concurrent fests all within and around City Park at the same time: Japan Fest, Oktoberfest, and Beignet Fest (the question of the day: will Japan Fest and Oktoberfest invade Beignet fest?). Traffic, of both the car and people variety, was heavy and largely confused and lost and in my way.
 |
| Burned. |
Mile two SUCKED and I would have run 5k pace even if it hadn't been a vague plan...I couldn't pick it up even a smidgen at the finish, and ran a 6:17 second mile for second place. I think I ran faster than that in a casual summer race this year.
I could barely "cool down" a mile, and when we got home I had heat exhaustion. I collapsed as soon as I got into the house. I asked David for water, but I actually passed out before he brought it! So now I have a massive headache and a sunburn. And that's why you don't run a race at noon.
Sunday, September 30, 2018
Marathon training, week 9
I realized after my post for week 7 that actually I DID run week 7, it was week 8 I missed. The only thing worth mentioning for week 7 is that I capped it with an 18-mile long run including 3x2 mile at marathon pace with 1 mile aerobic pace "rest" - right before hopping on an international flight. Gotta do whatcha gotta do to get the long run in!
Monday: Easy five plus 8x100m strides
Tuesday: We changed things up by taking the Moneghetti fartlek to the bridges to stimulate rolling hills. The weather was nice - I think just 80F or maybe 82F - and we all had a great workout. If you don't know the workout, here it is:
2 x 90 sec ~5k effort
(equal rests around MP)
2 x 60 sec ~5k effort
(equal rests around MP)
2 x 30 sec ~5k effort
(equal rests around MP)
4 x 15 sec sprint
(equal rests around MP)
I ended up with 2.22 miles in 14:26, which is 6:20 pace overall, and with warm up and cool down had close to 8 miles.
Wednesday: 40 minutes easy
Thursday: 90 minutes plus 8x100m strides; with strides I got over 12 miles.
Friday: Tempo day. We did 2 mi @ Tempo, 90 sec jog rest; 2 x 1mi @ 10k, 90 sec jog rest; 4 x 200 @ 5k, 60 sec standing rest. I struggled to hit the 10k splits, so I wasn't happy with this workout. Over 11 miles for the day.
Saturday: Easy 6
Sunday: Our first 20 miler! We had a workout, as usual: ten miles conversational, then 4x (2mi @ MP, 1/2 mi aerobic pace). It was muggy and hot, even with an earlier-than-normal start, and again I struggled with pace a little. I hit all my splits, but it just felt harder than marathon pace should. I hope things feel smoother if the weather EVER becomes fall, but if it doesn't, I'll need to reassess my goals.
67 miles for the week. Whoa!
Monday: Easy five plus 8x100m strides
Tuesday: We changed things up by taking the Moneghetti fartlek to the bridges to stimulate rolling hills. The weather was nice - I think just 80F or maybe 82F - and we all had a great workout. If you don't know the workout, here it is:
2 x 90 sec ~5k effort
(equal rests around MP)
2 x 60 sec ~5k effort
(equal rests around MP)
2 x 30 sec ~5k effort
(equal rests around MP)
4 x 15 sec sprint
(equal rests around MP)
I ended up with 2.22 miles in 14:26, which is 6:20 pace overall, and with warm up and cool down had close to 8 miles.
Wednesday: 40 minutes easy
Thursday: 90 minutes plus 8x100m strides; with strides I got over 12 miles.
Friday: Tempo day. We did 2 mi @ Tempo, 90 sec jog rest; 2 x 1mi @ 10k, 90 sec jog rest; 4 x 200 @ 5k, 60 sec standing rest. I struggled to hit the 10k splits, so I wasn't happy with this workout. Over 11 miles for the day.
Saturday: Easy 6
Sunday: Our first 20 miler! We had a workout, as usual: ten miles conversational, then 4x (2mi @ MP, 1/2 mi aerobic pace). It was muggy and hot, even with an earlier-than-normal start, and again I struggled with pace a little. I hit all my splits, but it just felt harder than marathon pace should. I hope things feel smoother if the weather EVER becomes fall, but if it doesn't, I'll need to reassess my goals.
67 miles for the week. Whoa!
Friday, September 28, 2018
Walking the West Highland Way
To celebrate my sister's 40th birthday, I took her on a trip to Scotland. Walking the West Highland Way was a bucket list item for her, and a wonderful way for us to spend much-needed time together. I'll post our amazing photos separately, but for now, an outline of the trip and some logistics:
The walk: It's a 96-mile walk through the highlands, and you can complete it a variety of ways:
We did option #3, but in retrospect, option #2 would have been cheaper and simpler. You just don't need to pack that much, and if I'd had time to make my own B&B reservations, we could have saved a ton of money. As it was, we went with a tour company. We paid a set fee for them to transfer our luggage and provide accommodations. The upside was that we didn't need to worry about where to stay, because these tiny towns fill up very quickly. But otherwise, it was a waste of money. We used Hillwalk Tours, and they were basically useless. They provided no assistance or support other than the very basics included in the package. For example, when you book, they tell you that you can easily get from the airport in Glasgow to the starting and stopping points by train. But then when I went to buy tickets, I discovered that the train doesn't run on weekends. I contacted the tour company for suggestions, and they were like, shrug, sorry. So if your tour starts or ends on a weekend, you might end up like we did - taking a taxi the whole way (it's a two-hour drive). The only other thing the tour provided were "walk notes" which were not only full of errors, but pointless. The trail is clearly marked. I would have much preferred notes that included historical or geographical info to enhance the walk. The notes they provided had maybe one or two mentions per day, nothing really educational. So anyway, if you do a West Highland Way walk, by all means skip the tour company. Throw some waterproof layers in a backpack and just carry it around with you!
We ended up doing most of the walk - we started at Drymen, so a bit after the traditional starting point - in five days. It's not a strenuous walk: there are ups, down, and rocks, and you are walking in water most of the time, but I think anyone could do it. I wouldn't call it hiking - it's definitely just walking. Our days varied from as few as 14 miles to as many as 22.
As far as packing goes, we way overpacked! All the B&Bs have drying rooms, and since you're going to get wet anyway, you might as well just rinse your clothes, toss them in the drying room, and re-wear the next day. I bought some merino-wool blend base layers that were awesome - they washed clean in seconds and dried completely in about an hour. Then I would wear leggings and a long-sleeved tech race T over that, plus a ball cap and a raincoat. On warmer days, I'd shed some layers, and when it was cold, I put a winter hat over my ball cap. I wore the same pair of hiking shoes the whole time. We went to dinner every night, so I brought one pair of non-hiking shoes, a pair of jeans, and some tops. That plus the scarf/shawl I brought on the plane was plenty.
I did get rained on almost constantly, so if I did it again, I'd get a waterproof backpack and even a backpack cover. But in general, it's an easy and low-stress trip and such a fun bonding experience for family!
The walk: It's a 96-mile walk through the highlands, and you can complete it a variety of ways:
- Backpack and camp the whole way
- Backpack, but arrange to stay in B&Bs or "wigwams" or other shelter
- Arrange for luggage transfer, and simply walk to and from each B&B with a day pack.
 |
| Ready for a cold day |
We ended up doing most of the walk - we started at Drymen, so a bit after the traditional starting point - in five days. It's not a strenuous walk: there are ups, down, and rocks, and you are walking in water most of the time, but I think anyone could do it. I wouldn't call it hiking - it's definitely just walking. Our days varied from as few as 14 miles to as many as 22.
 |
| On a warm day: just my base layers, all rolled up! |
I did get rained on almost constantly, so if I did it again, I'd get a waterproof backpack and even a backpack cover. But in general, it's an easy and low-stress trip and such a fun bonding experience for family!
Monday, September 24, 2018
Sunday, September 9, 2018
Marathon training: week 6
I think this week is our last base-building week, as the long run workouts start next week. Ooh, it was a rough week, too. Work was terrible - holidays just aren't even worth it in the pharmacy world. You're so slammed before and after that it would be easier just to work.
Monday: I honestly don't remember Monday. I think it was an easy six or something. I don't wear a watch for most easy days, so I don't have any kind of record.
Tuesday: This was a bad workout for me. Work was very stressful after the holiday break, and my workout showed it. The workout was 5-8x1k at 10k pace with a 400 jog, and I stopped at five. I struggled from the get-go, with "10k pace" edging close to tempo pace at 6:28! I got progressively slower with each rep, and couldn't wait to quit. I normally try to do, if not the max recommended reps, more than the minimum, but there was no point on Tuesday. I wasn't getting the benefit I was supposed to from the workout, and actually, even the cool down felt hard.
Wednesday: Easy 5.5
Thursday: Seventy-five minute run on the levee. I got about 9.7 in on a really muggy morning.
Friday: Five x 1 mile tempo with 1:30 jog. This is more rest than we've been getting for our tempo intervals, and it felt just fabulous! I think I averaged around 6:32 pace.
Saturday: 7.2 easy.
Sunday: Sixteen mile long run at 7:36. Again, fast finish. I think we took too many water stops on this run - three - but I was DYING for a drink by the time we hit St. Charles. I definitely have to get back to carrying water: we zipped into the ever-accommodating Avenue Pub for cold water, and I drank two full cups in a matter of seconds. After that revival, I picked it up for the last few miles home. But for future runs, I really want to limit the stops and pauses - our group is so large that water stops can take five minutes!
Upcoming races: Sadly, I am out of town for Blue Doo next week, home of my 2-mile PR and an all-around super fun race. So next up is probably the Jazz half marathon in October. I would really like to run a PR at that race, although I have no idea if I'm in shape to do so. And we'll probably not do any sort of taper. So who knows how that will go!
 |
| Running that streetcar track... |
Monday: I honestly don't remember Monday. I think it was an easy six or something. I don't wear a watch for most easy days, so I don't have any kind of record.
Tuesday: This was a bad workout for me. Work was very stressful after the holiday break, and my workout showed it. The workout was 5-8x1k at 10k pace with a 400 jog, and I stopped at five. I struggled from the get-go, with "10k pace" edging close to tempo pace at 6:28! I got progressively slower with each rep, and couldn't wait to quit. I normally try to do, if not the max recommended reps, more than the minimum, but there was no point on Tuesday. I wasn't getting the benefit I was supposed to from the workout, and actually, even the cool down felt hard.
Wednesday: Easy 5.5
Thursday: Seventy-five minute run on the levee. I got about 9.7 in on a really muggy morning.
Friday: Five x 1 mile tempo with 1:30 jog. This is more rest than we've been getting for our tempo intervals, and it felt just fabulous! I think I averaged around 6:32 pace.
Saturday: 7.2 easy.
Sunday: Sixteen mile long run at 7:36. Again, fast finish. I think we took too many water stops on this run - three - but I was DYING for a drink by the time we hit St. Charles. I definitely have to get back to carrying water: we zipped into the ever-accommodating Avenue Pub for cold water, and I drank two full cups in a matter of seconds. After that revival, I picked it up for the last few miles home. But for future runs, I really want to limit the stops and pauses - our group is so large that water stops can take five minutes!
Upcoming races: Sadly, I am out of town for Blue Doo next week, home of my 2-mile PR and an all-around super fun race. So next up is probably the Jazz half marathon in October. I would really like to run a PR at that race, although I have no idea if I'm in shape to do so. And we'll probably not do any sort of taper. So who knows how that will go!
Sunday, September 2, 2018
Marathon training: week five
I think this was a purposeful down week from our coach - which was kind of bad timing for me, since I took a down week last week! But it seemed like we had some more flexible mileage options that allowed us to run shorter distances, and some easier workouts.
The way our coach writes our workouts is really just for the whole group - it's not individualized. We're lumped into "marathon" and "non-marathon" right now, and our coach writes a track workout for Tuesdays, a tempo for Friday, and a Sunday long run. At this time, he's also writing some guidance for the rest of the week, and that's where I noticed this week had some easier options. Where last week he prescribed "75 minutes conversational pace", this week we had "60 - 75 minutes", etc. Our workouts were about a mile shorter apiece, too. I hope he continued to build in some cut-back weeks to keep us fresh and healthy.
Monday: 6.5 easy, plus a very fun karate class at night in which we got to do partner sparring! I got to whack my husband in the face and it was totally ok!
Tuesday: Track combo: one mile warm up, 3 miles aerobic, then 3x1 mile at tempo pace with 1 minute standing rest. One mile cool down. Myself and another girl in the group, Daniella, are the slowest, and we're running our marathon workouts together (for now. She'll probably get a lot faster and leave me in the dust). Since she lives kind of far away, I rarely have a workout partner, so that's been nice. My tempo miles were 6:32, 6:30, and 6:34, and I felt pretty good considering how hot and humid it was.
Wednesday: 5.5 easy
Thursday: 75 minute medium-long run. I love this run that's been popping up on our schedule. I think 75 minutes is the perfect amount of time to run, and lately I've been taking this run to one of my favorite routes: out and back on the levee. It can be tricky running on the levee in the summer, because there's no shade and no water. But if it's early in the morning, and I just accept that I'm going to be thirsty, it's doable (or I could bring water, but since I only get 9.5ish miles in, it seems unnecessary to carry water). The levee runs along River Road, and I love the peacefulness of the wide Mississippi to one side and the bustle of morning commutes far below me on River Road on the other side.
Friday: Another easier workout: one mile warm-up, three miles aerobic, 5x30 seconds on/30 seconds off, two miles aerobic, one mile cool down. A group of us meet in Audubon park for these Friday workouts, and for some reason we were feeling less than peppy as a whole, so this workout was on the slow side. Or, our slower pace could be due to an earlier start: we met at 5:30 instead of the 5:45-that-turns-to-6 that we usually do, and it was dark. I'm just not a strong and confident runner in the dark, especially on the imperfect surface up on the Fly (the part of the park that extends up along the levee).
Saturday: I slept in, then ran 6.4 easy at 10 am - which was hot, but no big deal, until I came home to no water at all. Apparently the sewage and water board forgot to notify our block that we would have no water from 9 am to 5 pm! They posted notices on another block, just not ours. Nice. We ended up driving all the way downtown to the gym to shower.
Sunday: 18 mile long run. It was "only" 80F for most of the run, but humidity was in the 90's, so it still felt hot (especially once the sun came out). We aren't doing specific workouts yet, but I've been doing a sort-of progression or fast finish for most runs, including this one, and I finished with 7:36 average pace. I can pull these off only because my easy days have been QUITE easy!
65 miles this week.
The way our coach writes our workouts is really just for the whole group - it's not individualized. We're lumped into "marathon" and "non-marathon" right now, and our coach writes a track workout for Tuesdays, a tempo for Friday, and a Sunday long run. At this time, he's also writing some guidance for the rest of the week, and that's where I noticed this week had some easier options. Where last week he prescribed "75 minutes conversational pace", this week we had "60 - 75 minutes", etc. Our workouts were about a mile shorter apiece, too. I hope he continued to build in some cut-back weeks to keep us fresh and healthy.
Monday: 6.5 easy, plus a very fun karate class at night in which we got to do partner sparring! I got to whack my husband in the face and it was totally ok!
Tuesday: Track combo: one mile warm up, 3 miles aerobic, then 3x1 mile at tempo pace with 1 minute standing rest. One mile cool down. Myself and another girl in the group, Daniella, are the slowest, and we're running our marathon workouts together (for now. She'll probably get a lot faster and leave me in the dust). Since she lives kind of far away, I rarely have a workout partner, so that's been nice. My tempo miles were 6:32, 6:30, and 6:34, and I felt pretty good considering how hot and humid it was.
Wednesday: 5.5 easy
Thursday: 75 minute medium-long run. I love this run that's been popping up on our schedule. I think 75 minutes is the perfect amount of time to run, and lately I've been taking this run to one of my favorite routes: out and back on the levee. It can be tricky running on the levee in the summer, because there's no shade and no water. But if it's early in the morning, and I just accept that I'm going to be thirsty, it's doable (or I could bring water, but since I only get 9.5ish miles in, it seems unnecessary to carry water). The levee runs along River Road, and I love the peacefulness of the wide Mississippi to one side and the bustle of morning commutes far below me on River Road on the other side.
Friday: Another easier workout: one mile warm-up, three miles aerobic, 5x30 seconds on/30 seconds off, two miles aerobic, one mile cool down. A group of us meet in Audubon park for these Friday workouts, and for some reason we were feeling less than peppy as a whole, so this workout was on the slow side. Or, our slower pace could be due to an earlier start: we met at 5:30 instead of the 5:45-that-turns-to-6 that we usually do, and it was dark. I'm just not a strong and confident runner in the dark, especially on the imperfect surface up on the Fly (the part of the park that extends up along the levee).
Saturday: I slept in, then ran 6.4 easy at 10 am - which was hot, but no big deal, until I came home to no water at all. Apparently the sewage and water board forgot to notify our block that we would have no water from 9 am to 5 pm! They posted notices on another block, just not ours. Nice. We ended up driving all the way downtown to the gym to shower.
Sunday: 18 mile long run. It was "only" 80F for most of the run, but humidity was in the 90's, so it still felt hot (especially once the sun came out). We aren't doing specific workouts yet, but I've been doing a sort-of progression or fast finish for most runs, including this one, and I finished with 7:36 average pace. I can pull these off only because my easy days have been QUITE easy!
65 miles this week.
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