Saturday 8:00am and it was 16 degrees outside! I met up with John at Fitcorp for what would a cold and windy run. We set out together and spent the first couple miles complaining about how cold it was, how we wished we were in bed, and how much we despised our other marathon friends, Steph and Jeff, who were on vacation in Puerto Rico and Mexico! Although I do think that Steph was sending us good running vibes because a Feist song came on the radio as I drove into Boston....thanks Steph!
Overall the run went really well despite the cold. John and I chatted about what got us into distance running, birthdays (HAPPY BIRTHDAY JOHN!!), and other random thoughts.....its funny how we can always find things to talk about no matter how many miles we run. We stayed together for the first 7.2 miles and then split up as he was doing 14.5 and I was doing 16.5 miles. My legs were tired from my 10 miler on the Newton Hills that I ran on Thursday, but I was able to push my pace in the last 7 miles and finished the run with an average pace of 8:42.....not bad!!
48 hours later.....Monday 1:00pm and its 55 degrees out!! What the heck is going on?? Two days ago my gatorade was frozen in my water bottles and today I was running in shorts......weird! I had the day off so I could run during the afternoon around the river. It was really windy because of the warm front that came through, but I managed my 9.4 mile tempo run with 4 miles at LT pace. My splits for the LT miles were 8:15 (a little slow, but into the wind), 7:55, 8:03, and 7:58. I felt really strong even with the wind.
Hoping to make it to yoga tonight.....must.....stay......motivated!!
Total weekly miles = 42.8
Monday, February 18, 2008
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
So Ashamed!
Like many runners, I use music to motivate me when I'm running or to just tune out the outside world. I have become less reliant on my ipod recently and only wear it on the treadmill and sometimes on long runs, but I am always looking for new music to download and often buy a couple new songs a week to add some spice to my running mix. This was the case last week as I needed some new tunes. I will start by saying that my taste in running music is very different than my every day music. For running I like songs with a beat, songs I can sing along to....anything from Bon Jovi to Kanye West to Good Charlotte to Irene Cara (remember "What a Feeling" from the 80's?).
So last week I had heard this song on the radio a couple times that was kind of catchy. It had a good beat and I picked up the words quickly and started singing it...perfect for running. I go to itunes to buy it and imagine my surprise -- no utter shock when I find out who sings it. I don't know if I can even admit to it in public.......it was none other than Miley Cyrus....that's right HANNAH MONTANA!!!!!!
I was torn.....either keep my pride and not download the song or admit to being a 27 year old who likes music meant for 12 year olds! $0.99 later I was rocking out to Miss Montana....I am so ashamed! But she did help me through my 7 miles on the treadmill last night which included six 0.5 mile repeats all done between 3:39 and 3:42 :)
So last week I had heard this song on the radio a couple times that was kind of catchy. It had a good beat and I picked up the words quickly and started singing it...perfect for running. I go to itunes to buy it and imagine my surprise -- no utter shock when I find out who sings it. I don't know if I can even admit to it in public.......it was none other than Miley Cyrus....that's right HANNAH MONTANA!!!!!!
I was torn.....either keep my pride and not download the song or admit to being a 27 year old who likes music meant for 12 year olds! $0.99 later I was rocking out to Miss Montana....I am so ashamed! But she did help me through my 7 miles on the treadmill last night which included six 0.5 mile repeats all done between 3:39 and 3:42 :)
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Update on last week
Its been a little while since I updated you on my week. Besides dealing with some craptastic weather.....think rain, wind, and snow all week....I actually had a great week of runs.
Monday: 8 mile tempo run...2 mile warm up, 4 miles at lactate threashold pace (8:06, 8:13, 8:13, and 8:06), 2 mile cool down. I ran on the treadmill because I was feeling a little tired and didn't want to have to worry about setting my pace so I let the mill do it for me.
Tuesday: 4.1 mile recovery run.....I ran with a coworker and was a little faster than I would have liked for recovery, but felt good. Also did 60 minutes of yoga.
Wednesday: 10.1 mile general aerobic run....I had planned to push this run to Thursday because it was monsooning all day, but it cleared up so I ran after work. I felt pretty good even though I hadn't eaten enough during the day. Averaged an 8:45 pace.
Thursday: REST!!! Did nothing...and it was nice :)
Friday: 4 mile recovery run and core strength exercises including 40 minutes of pilates.
Saturday: Long run of 14.7 miles. I met up with John and ran the first 7 miles with him, which was nice. I averaged an 8:55 pace with the last 6.7 miles at 8:35, 8:41, 8:38, 8:35, 8:38, 8:28, and 8:53....not too bad since those miles included Heartbreak Hill and Beacon Hill.
Sunday: 45 minutes of crosstraining and 75 minutes of yoga
I am proud of myself for getting in 2 yoga sessions, pilates, and core work. I found these great free yoga podcasts on itunes that I downloaded. Its a little tricky since I don't have an instructor to watch, but for the most part I knew the poses from taking classes....Janette, what is boat pose?? I'll have to look that up online! It was a Baptist style vinyasa class which means it focuses on the flow into each pose (the asanas)....it moves fast which I like a lot. Now I have to keep up with my practice....especially as the miles keep adding up!
Overall it was a good week. Total weekly miles = 41
Monday: 8 mile tempo run...2 mile warm up, 4 miles at lactate threashold pace (8:06, 8:13, 8:13, and 8:06), 2 mile cool down. I ran on the treadmill because I was feeling a little tired and didn't want to have to worry about setting my pace so I let the mill do it for me.
Tuesday: 4.1 mile recovery run.....I ran with a coworker and was a little faster than I would have liked for recovery, but felt good. Also did 60 minutes of yoga.
Wednesday: 10.1 mile general aerobic run....I had planned to push this run to Thursday because it was monsooning all day, but it cleared up so I ran after work. I felt pretty good even though I hadn't eaten enough during the day. Averaged an 8:45 pace.
Thursday: REST!!! Did nothing...and it was nice :)
Friday: 4 mile recovery run and core strength exercises including 40 minutes of pilates.
Saturday: Long run of 14.7 miles. I met up with John and ran the first 7 miles with him, which was nice. I averaged an 8:55 pace with the last 6.7 miles at 8:35, 8:41, 8:38, 8:35, 8:38, 8:28, and 8:53....not too bad since those miles included Heartbreak Hill and Beacon Hill.
Sunday: 45 minutes of crosstraining and 75 minutes of yoga
I am proud of myself for getting in 2 yoga sessions, pilates, and core work. I found these great free yoga podcasts on itunes that I downloaded. Its a little tricky since I don't have an instructor to watch, but for the most part I knew the poses from taking classes....Janette, what is boat pose?? I'll have to look that up online! It was a Baptist style vinyasa class which means it focuses on the flow into each pose (the asanas)....it moves fast which I like a lot. Now I have to keep up with my practice....especially as the miles keep adding up!
Overall it was a good week. Total weekly miles = 41
Monday, February 4, 2008
Is there such a thing as perfection?
The past two weeks there has been a lot of talk in New England about perfection. Like many other football fans, last night I watched, cheered, and anxiously waited as the seconds ticked down in the Superbowl....would the Patriots end their season perfect? We all know the outcome of that and I'm not going to gloat or rub it in because that's not what this blog is about (but remember...I may live in Boston now, but I grew up in northern New Jersey...Go Giants!!)
It got me thinking......can anyone truly be perfect? And is there truth to the old saying "Don't count your chickens before they hatch?" Watching the Patriots and their fans preparing for last night's game was interesting. Plans were already in the works for a celebratory parade on Tuesday and fans were more concerned about how much the Pats would win by rather than if they would win.
I think we can all learn from this major upset last night. Never assume anything will be easy, because it often isn't. Never rest easy on your previous accomplishments because someone will always be there to swoop in and beat you. And never stop pushing for perfection and assume someone will hand it to you....there will always be someone stronger, faster, or smarter than you just waiting to end your perfect season.
18-1....that's gotta sting! The only way this victory would be any sweeter is if the Eagles were the ones that brought them down....next year :)
It got me thinking......can anyone truly be perfect? And is there truth to the old saying "Don't count your chickens before they hatch?" Watching the Patriots and their fans preparing for last night's game was interesting. Plans were already in the works for a celebratory parade on Tuesday and fans were more concerned about how much the Pats would win by rather than if they would win.
I think we can all learn from this major upset last night. Never assume anything will be easy, because it often isn't. Never rest easy on your previous accomplishments because someone will always be there to swoop in and beat you. And never stop pushing for perfection and assume someone will hand it to you....there will always be someone stronger, faster, or smarter than you just waiting to end your perfect season.
18-1....that's gotta sting! The only way this victory would be any sweeter is if the Eagles were the ones that brought them down....next year :)
Reunions
On Saturday I met up with John and Jeff, two of my teammates from Boston last year, for a hilly and windy 13 miles. It was great to see them and run with them again. They are both training for Boston again and had a recovery week in their milage. The morning was warm and the sun was out.....of course none of that mattered because the wind was practically pushing us backwards. It was so strong that I actually saw white caps forming on the Charles River when I was driving home! John took us on a hilly route through BU and BC and back up Beacon Street into Boston. Jeff and I wanted to punch him every time we saw another hill and they wanted to punch me for making them do 13 miles when their schedule said 12! Overall we kept a great pace at about 8:55 min/mile.
After my run, I headed to lunch with another team BMC friend, Janette. We had a great time catching up about work, running, yoga (she's getting certified as an instructor), and life in general. Bryan and I rounded out the weekend with a trip up to New Hampshire for some skiing on Sunday. The conditions weren't great, but we made the most of it. Overall, it was a good but busy weekend!
Total weekly miles = 39.1
After my run, I headed to lunch with another team BMC friend, Janette. We had a great time catching up about work, running, yoga (she's getting certified as an instructor), and life in general. Bryan and I rounded out the weekend with a trip up to New Hampshire for some skiing on Sunday. The conditions weren't great, but we made the most of it. Overall, it was a good but busy weekend!
Total weekly miles = 39.1
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