9 miles!

After my happy 4.7 miles yesterday I did my first long run in... um... 2 weeks? What can I say I had a wedding! Today I ran 9 miles from my dad's place on Coronado. Hands down, Coronado is pretty damn perfect conditions. Beautiful weather, beautiful scenery, a gentle breeze... hard to get better than that.

The run went very well. I averaged  9:50 mile pace. I took a friend's advice and tried doing 1 min walking breaks every 10 min of running. For the most part (until the last mile) I was averaging 9:20-30 min miles during the running, and about 13 min miles in the walking segments. Breaking up the repetition of the running really helped my body.

I took a Hammer Gel chocolate after 6.5 miles or so. My body has no negative reaction and the fuel definitely gave my body a little kick. I'm actually thinking of trying to find a way to split the gel over two segments (spacing out the nutrition), during the race. I also need to find a way to add a bit of sodium and/or sugar to my water so that my body will recognize that it needs to move the fluid through my system. Esp in the colder temps, I had some stomach sloshing in the beginning of my run. But on the whole, I'm really pleased with how my attempts to eat and run are going. No negative effects yet. I also finished with a nuun tablet in my water once I got home. I like nuun and I think I'm going to keep using it after my long runs.

Today I had NPRs Pop culture Happy Hour in my ears with a few ending songs from Nicki Minaj.

Catch me if you can

Whew! Lots of travel and more in store. This past weekend I was in Tahoe for a wedding, then the CA coast, and now San Diego. I managed to sneak in a Tahoe run (4.3 miles at about a 10 min/mi pace), 2 hikes (4 and 6 miles respectively), and just accomplished a 4.71 mi run with an 8:50 min/mi pace! Woohoo!  Apparently running at sea level, on a foggy day, at 68 or so degrees IS faster than 98 degrees in the desert. Who knew ?  This also tells me that I am not doing my intervals fast enough.

Fortunately for me, one of the wedding guests is a tri/running coach. He hooked me up with a treadmill work out that I'll post once i find it at the bottom of my suitcase... Since I started HM training I feel like I've become a "real" runner. I have a better sense of pace, time, nutrition, stretching, all that stuff, now that I'm actually training for something.

Oh, and I signed up for a 2nd 1/2 marathon in December. You know, because I can :)

Skirt Sports Gym Girl Ultra

 I have a new favorite skirt. It's unseated my previous favorite, a nike tennis/running skirt. The fit is perfect - flatter length, flattering and not too tight. The best part about this skirt is what's underneath. The semi-mesh compression, no chafe shorts are the best I've ever worn. They're supportive, super wicking, and just the right length not to ride up. The also have two perfect pockets on either thigh and a special little headphones port on the right hip. They hold a gel, my ID and my iphone perfectly, and w/o pulling the skirt down. (Especially in comparison to my runningskirts.com skirt, which is great for walking, but when I start running either creeps up above my waist, or if I have my phone in the pocket, rides down).

I got this one on special. The color is "mojito". It's a nice fresh green.

front

side view with leg slits for speed

side pocket

What do you wear on top?

What do you wear on top when you run?

When i lived in Northern California I loved running in tank tops. The weather never got too hot that you even sweated that much, and tanks felt nice and light. I can't stand tanks w/ built in shelf bras b/c it is too much compression with the brumhilde bust-controlling sports bras I have to wear, but I love a light singlet or tank when heading out.

My tanks were just fine through the AZ winter, but once summer hit I started getting allsorts of problems. Warmer weather meant more sweat meant chafing at the arm scythes (yes, I got runner's glide, no it didn't really help). And my cotton had to go. I found myself reaching for my Central Coast running tee and my new Cinco de Mayo 10K tech tee more than anything else in my running stash. I still bust out my cute and coordinated Nike Dry Fit tank and skirt for races, but not for every day. (Although I can't stand their shoes, I really like Nike Dry Fit gear. It's light, has the right level of compression, wicks, and doesn't get stinky).

Then the other day on a TM I discovered shirtless running. A legacy of body insecurities has left me really hesitant to take off my clothes when I run. I shouldn't be, but I'm very aware of what I look like when I'm shuffling along. But the gym was steamy and my tech tee wasn't cutting it (it was doing that thing where you just get hot and itchy rather than wicking appropriately. I think things wick better when used out of doors), and I finally caved to my friend Koldito's advice and ditched the top. Freedom! I felt much cooler, more comfortable and didn't get any of the arm chafing I expected. I can't run shirtless outside b/c the sun is too strong, too hot, and I hate wearing that much sunscreen. It's actually cooler to have white reflective gear on than to bear your skin to the sun. And I think I'm "supposed" to wear t-shirts at all times at the gym, but I've scoped out a corner TM, far from the prying eyes of the undergrads grunting over the free weights, and I may be able to slip into something a little more comfortable from time to time.

this week was an off week

I managed to get in a 4 mile walk in 103 temps, and my first really good interval training on Friday, but since Monday those have been my only "real" runs. And one was a walk! Today I did a 2 hour trail ride in the am and I think will sneak in some rock climbing this evening.

I think I figured out the intervals I should be running and the entire premise of the workout makes a lot more sense. I'm now doing 1 mile warm up, .35 miles at 9 min/mi pace, recovery jog for 90 sec. Repeat 4 times total. 1 mile warm down.

Anyway, summer has broken in Tuscon! The high today is 92 and we have the a/c off. We slept with all the windows open last night. It could not be more beautiful. It's nice to have the house open again and I can't wait to run in the low, comfortable, mid- 80s temperatures :)

So far, I really enjoy 1/2 marathon training. I'm thinking of looking for another race in February just so that I can start a training course again. I like running just for the hell of it - and can't wait to be able to get back into running trails this winter - but I really appreciate having a running plan and schedule.  I am getting some knee wonkiness, esp after long treadmill runs. Hopefully this week's light mileage will give my body some recovery time.

Walk Day

After a long run on Sunday and a short run on Monday, I'm tired and sore. So today was a walk day. Plus it was 103 and because my dissertation and job applications are eating away at my life, I didn't get to the gym.

Learning on the Long Runs

Sunday was my long run day of the week. I did 7 miles (with 5 min walking warm ups), and my goal was not to stop for rest breaks. I ran the first mile at a 10:56 pace, and then picked it up to a 10:30 pace for the miles 2 and 3. At the 3.5 mile (2.5 at that pace) I was getting really hot, overheated (despite the water), and my breathing and heart rate were really pushing hard - 2:2 breathing pattern and my HR was pushing the mid 160s (sad, I know). Normally I would have walked, but this time i just slowed back down to the 10:56 pace. After about 1/4-1/3 of a mile my heart rate had recovered to 140bpm, my breathing was in a comfortable 3:3 pattern and I felt much cooler. After only .5 miles, I was able to pick up the speed again to the 10:30 pace. Now, after about the same distance I started feeling really fatigued, overheated, and my breathing was getting labored again. I didn't slow down because I was nearly done with the run, but I learned something important:

My body tends to overheat after 2-3 miles at a medium to hard pace (which 10:30 is for me on the TM in the high 70s w/ no fan or air blowing on me). Once I start to overheat and my HR is up in the 160s I start to get breathing problems, cramping, feeing like shit. If I just bring my HR down to 140 for a few  minutes of recovery i can start pushing the speed again before too long. But if I just "push through the pain" at that pace, I became a shuffling flesh bag of misery. What's surprising is that the recovery jogs really do allow me to recover if I use them in the right way - namely that my heart rate comes down to about 140 bpm and I feel myself cooling off. The second surprise is that I really need to listen to my body when it says to slow down and let my HR recover and let my body cool down (esp in the heat).

What's extra interesting about all this (for me) is the difference between HR while running and while on an elliptical. I can maintain a 160 bpm with bursts at 170 bpm on an elliptical w/ no cramping, breathing, or over heating for 45 pretty easily. I'm betting a lot of it has to do with the impact of running and the toll it takes on your body. But I find it interesting that take out the jostling and jarring  and I can push my hear fitness much further than I can when I'm running.

How I'm going to use this info:
1- work jog breaks into my long runs w/ closer monitoring of heart rate and perceived body temp. Remind myself that an 11:00 pace WILL cool me down as much as walking, I just have to trust it.

2- I need to rethink my interval speeds or lengths. I'm currently doing 400s , but I can do a lot of them (I can alternate between 400m at 9:15 pace followed by 1 min recovery jog for 30 min). I don't think I'm doing them right. I need to either run longer 800s or faster (sub-9 min miles for sure). If I have readers I'm happy for input :) I'm thinking longer is probably the answer b/c I want to improve my endurance pace... right?

Sabino Hike

Mon mari is an engineer who works on astronomy projects and builds telescopes. Te work he does is incredibly cool but it means he gets stuck in remote locations sometimes. This past week he's been at his satellite location in NM on an observing run. His program failed to record the first 3 days of data, then it got cloudy. Long story short, he's stuck at 9K ft for the Labour Day weekend.

Hangin' on my own, I wanted to try to meet some folks. I had the options of my interval workout at the gym followed by a local wine shop's wine tasting, or trying a Tuscon Meet Up Friday night hiking group. Treadmill... 7.3 miles in a beautiful canyon.... treadmill.... 7.3 miles in a beautiful canyon....

Guess which won :)

The hike was 7.3 miles out and back in Sabino Canyon. The road is paved and there's a fairly steep climb at the end. I ran this as a 12K race earlier in the year (kicked. my. ass.), and I run up to the mile 3 marker during the winter. The company was really nice and the weather was perfect. Warm (95), but the sun was down, we had a showing of Nature's fireworks, and it rained a gentle rain for at least 2 miles. On the way back we saw toads, a 6 month old baby king snake, a diamond back rattler, and a tarantula. As much as I love my npr podcasts, this was so much better than even Wait, Wait, Dont' Tell me.

Since I started HM training I haven't been walking as much as I normally do. It was nice to do a long brisk walk instead of a run. My legs opened up nicely and hopefully it will help my right ham loosen up.

In other news, I received my HM tech tee tis week. I ordered a M (per the size chart) and you culd have fit two of me inside of it. I'm exchanging it for a small, but am excited to be able to start wearing it during workouts.