“Perseverance: is not a long race; it is many short races one after another.” -Walter Elliott
My running club hosts at least one race every month. This month was an 11 miler called the Horseshoe Bend Canyon Spring Frolic. Basically, it was out in the middle of nowhere and we ran out of a canyon then back into it. It was a lot of fun & pretty cool to have hills on a West Texas race course. The only way we find hills out here is to find a hole in the ground and run out of it.
Mile 1 (8:15.96): I started out a little faster than I wanted to, but I felt really good.
Mile 2 (9:06.26): This was a little slower because we started running out of the canyon. This hill lasted about .75 miles.
Miles 3, 4, and 5 (8:36.57, 8:36.75, 8:37.57): These miles were just a long, flat straightaway. It was nice to be running out there by myself. During these miles I was in 3rd place for the women & I was keeping my pace pretty steady. I ran by a few farms. One of the houses had three goats tied up in the front yard.
Miles 6 & 7 (8:48.76, 8:52.79): I turned onto another straightaway, but now I was fighting the wind. One girl passed me & that was a little disheartening. I thought I might be able to catch her after we got out of the wind. I remember thinking that the view on this stretch of road was awesome. It was like I could see for miles. There were only a few houses to obscure my sight of the horizon. It was pretty cool.
Miles 8 & 9 (9:11.00, 9:30.00): I turned out of the wind, but another girl passed me. I was pretty tired from the wind & the fact that I got passed made me lose some of the motivation to speed up for the last stretch. I decided to just enjoy the last few miles.
Miles 10 & 11 (8:23.81, 8:18.21): These miles were downhill & really nice. This was the only part of the course that was shaded. The trees made a canopy over the road. It reminded me of some of the back roads around where I lived when I was growing up. No one else passed me on this portion of the course, but I didn't pass anyone either. I ended up finishing in 1:36:22 gun time (1:36:18.41 watch time), 20th out of 36, 5th for the women, and 2nd in my age group. The medal from this race is not as good as the Prairie Dog Runs medal; it's pretty plain & simple.
One of the coolest things about this race is that my husband got suckered into volunteering! Maybe he'll volunteer at all the races he goes to now. I think it was good for him to help out & it helped make the time go by faster for him. Volunteers are a huge part of the races we run. We should always make it a point to thank the volunteers & to volunteer every once in a while ourselves.
The past two weeks of training:
M: 4.7 mi (tempo), 43:14.26
T: 5 mi (supposed to be easy, but I skipped lunch [because someone stole it from the fridge]. This was a really hard run!), 48:40.66
W: 3 mi (easy), 28:12.74
Th: 4.63 mi (0.17 mi warm up, 8x400 repeats, 0.92 mi cooldown), repeat times: 87.70, 83.81, 84.31, 86.33, 87.12, 86.55, 85.88, 86.32
S: Race 11 mi, 1:36:22
We left for vacation after the race. I only skipped two of my runs one vacay, but one of them was speedwork. I'll work extra hard to make it up next week though. ;)
S: 3 mi (easy), 26:57.70
M: 3.33 mi (tempo), 30:00
T: 3 mi (easy), 25.38.60
F: 5 K (race pace), 22:18.97 (with approximately 30 s of waiting on crosswalks)
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Free shirts
“Fitness has to be fun. If it is not play, there will be no fitness. Play, you see, is the process. Fitness is merely the product.” -George Sheehan
I love things that are “free.” I love the free shirts you get at school sponsored events (i.e. – Homecoming, the opening of the SUB, Arbor Day…). I love the free shirts you get from your sorority/organization’s activities (i.e. – variety shows, pledge week, the infamous toga party…). I LOVE the free shirts you get at races. Sometimes you get two shirts (i.e. – the official race shirt then the finisher’s shirt)! I love wearing my finisher’s shirt the day after the race so everyone can see that I finished. I can run farther than they can. That is, in theory I love these things. You see, I’m pretty small and schools, club presidents, and race directors don’t usually plan on fitting someone my size. However, race directors especially should count on petite athletes showing up to their events. And they should cater to these athletes.
Finding clothes that fit me has always been a problem. It seems like all the medium people out there think they’re small and they always get the last t-shirt before small people, like me. My first marathon ran out of smalls by the time I finished the race, so I was stuck with a medium long sleeved shirt that I can only use to sleep in. My second marathon thought that all of the runner’s were men, so they gave me a men’s small finisher’s shirt. Again, much too large to wear in public. The worst part about this was that in the registration process, they offered x-small as an option but then didn’t have any x-small shirts to give.
There is also the infinite number of free t-shirts you get from other road races. What is the expiration date on one of these shirts? (I have a shirt that’s over 8 years old and has probably seen enough miles to go from here to China and back). Why do we keep these shirts? What should we do with these shirts? Here’s my answer to all these questions. A free race shirt that turned workout shirt should be thrown out when you think the shirt is yellow or grey, but was originally white (especially in the armpit area). The oldest race shirt can also be thrown out when a new shirt is added to the collection.
These shirts act as a reminder of what we accomplished. If you can’t remember all the races you ran in, write it down. Keep your bib number. Take a picture. Don’t make your spouse/significant other/roommate smell your nasty shirt or look at a three foot tall pile of free shirts in the corner. It’s a fire hazard.
A noble thing to do with these shirts is donate them to charity (as long as it's not the 'yellow' shirt). Who cares if the person receiving the shirt didn’t actually run in the proverbial half-fast 5K? They’ll have a shirt on their back. Or, you can use these shirts as cleaning rags. They really provide a streak free clean.
Training:
I'm on vacation, so I'll put two weeks' worth of runs in my next blog. I'll also be reporting back to you my Horseshoe Bend Canyon Spring Frolic race report!
PS - Happy Mother's Day!
Saturday, May 3, 2008
Speedwork, Part Deux
“The will to win is not nearly as important as the will to prepare to win.” -Bobby Knight
Tempo runs/race pace runs & hills.
Many runners have different definitions for tempo runs. On my training plan from halhigdon.com it says, "A tempo run is a continuous run with a buildup in the middle to near 10-K race pace." (This specifies 10K race pace because that's the race I'm training for right now). "The pace buildup should be gradual, not sudden, with peak speed coming about two-thirds into the workout."
Jack Daniels, Ph.D. popularized tempo runs and he defines them as, "nothing more than 20 minutes of steady running at threshold pace" [Daniels’ Running Formula (Human Kinetics)]. Dr. Daniels says threshold pace is about 25-30 seconds slower than your 5K pace.
In high school, my coach said tempo runs were just race pace runs. The girls would run two miles as fast as we could and the guys would run a 5K as fast as they could. These were our race distances and we were just trying to mimic race day.
So, basically, a tempo run is a fairly short run (about 20 minutes) run at a pretty fast pace.
Hills provide a good way to get strength training. Basically, you run up a hill fast and then run down it at a pretty slow, recovery pace. You can gradually increase the amount of repeats as you do these workouts consistently. The best way to run up hills is to lift your knees to get a strong pushoff. To go downhill, your best bet is to lean into the hill to where you feel like you're going to fall on your face. This will decrease the pounding and help save your quads. You also want to shorten your strides on the downhills.
That's about all I have for speedwork. The best way to incorporate speedwork into your normal training is to have recovery days after your fast days. Your muscles need time to recover and rebuild. Depending on how advanced of a runner you are you can recover in one of several ways. You can either take the day off complete, do some sort of cross training, or go on easy runs of varying distances. Experiment (starting with the easiest option) and see what works best for you.
Training:
S: 3 mi (easy), 25:00.24
M: 4 mi (easy), 33:13.04
T: 3.87 mi (supposed to be a tempo run), 34:20.81 - My shins were really hurting so I walked a little bit and ran really slowly for parts of this workout.
W: rested b/c of my shins. :(
Th: Speedwork, 2 mi warmup, 7x400 (82 s, 84 s, 87 s, 88 s, 89 s, 89 s, 87 s), 1 mi cooldown
F: rested
S: rested again - for my shins & my allergies are acting up.
Tempo runs/race pace runs & hills.
Many runners have different definitions for tempo runs. On my training plan from halhigdon.com it says, "A tempo run is a continuous run with a buildup in the middle to near 10-K race pace." (This specifies 10K race pace because that's the race I'm training for right now). "The pace buildup should be gradual, not sudden, with peak speed coming about two-thirds into the workout."
Jack Daniels, Ph.D. popularized tempo runs and he defines them as, "nothing more than 20 minutes of steady running at threshold pace" [Daniels’ Running Formula (Human Kinetics)]. Dr. Daniels says threshold pace is about 25-30 seconds slower than your 5K pace.
In high school, my coach said tempo runs were just race pace runs. The girls would run two miles as fast as we could and the guys would run a 5K as fast as they could. These were our race distances and we were just trying to mimic race day.
So, basically, a tempo run is a fairly short run (about 20 minutes) run at a pretty fast pace.
Hills provide a good way to get strength training. Basically, you run up a hill fast and then run down it at a pretty slow, recovery pace. You can gradually increase the amount of repeats as you do these workouts consistently. The best way to run up hills is to lift your knees to get a strong pushoff. To go downhill, your best bet is to lean into the hill to where you feel like you're going to fall on your face. This will decrease the pounding and help save your quads. You also want to shorten your strides on the downhills.
That's about all I have for speedwork. The best way to incorporate speedwork into your normal training is to have recovery days after your fast days. Your muscles need time to recover and rebuild. Depending on how advanced of a runner you are you can recover in one of several ways. You can either take the day off complete, do some sort of cross training, or go on easy runs of varying distances. Experiment (starting with the easiest option) and see what works best for you.
Training:
S: 3 mi (easy), 25:00.24
M: 4 mi (easy), 33:13.04
T: 3.87 mi (supposed to be a tempo run), 34:20.81 - My shins were really hurting so I walked a little bit and ran really slowly for parts of this workout.
W: rested b/c of my shins. :(
Th: Speedwork, 2 mi warmup, 7x400 (82 s, 84 s, 87 s, 88 s, 89 s, 89 s, 87 s), 1 mi cooldown
F: rested
S: rested again - for my shins & my allergies are acting up.
Saturday, April 26, 2008
Speedwork
“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.” -I Cor. 9:24
As I mentioned last week, I'm training for a 10 K race in June. I'm using one of Hal Higdon's plans for advanced runners. I want to run this in less than 45 min (7:15 pace). To accomplish this goal I have to incorporate speedwork into my training program. There are definitions for all the different types of runs I am supposed to follow on the training webpage above. However, I want to give a more general overview of different types of speedwork that I have been exposed to over the years.
These are a few main types of speedwork: intervals, fartleks, tempo runs, race pace runs, and even hill workouts. Some people may consider hill workout strictly a strength workout, not speedwork. But this is my blog, so I'm grouping it into speedwork.
Intervals and fartleks
These are all variations on a similar theme. You go fast, then slow, then fast, then slow, etc... In my mind, intervals (aka - repeats) are based on distance and fartleks are based on time.
In a typical interval workout, you'll have a set amount of a certain distance (ie - 4x400) and you'll go out to the track and run a fast 400, then walk or jog for about 200-400 m, run another fast 400 and so on until you've completed four fast 400s. Usually you are aiming to get these quarters done in a certain amount of time. I aim for 90 seconds. Some people go by there fastest mile pace. I'm not sure if I could run a 6 min mile right now, but after doing these repeats for a few weeks, I probably will be able to.
You'll probabaly only want to do one (maybe two) interval workout(s) a week and increase the amount of intervals weekly. So, in week one, you'll do 4x400, then week two you'll do 5x400, etc...
In a fartlek workout, you'll do basically the same thing as above, but using an amount of time as the goal, not a distance. If you're training for a 10K run, you might run at your 5K pace for 1 min then jog for 30 sec. You could then run at the fast pace for 2 min then jog for 30 s. Another variation to really make this be speedplay is to have a friend/coach hold a whistle and you just start running fast when they first blow the whistle then slow down upon their second whistle blow. This was one of my favorite workouts during high school cross country. Not knowing what was coming next really made it go by quickly for me.
For both of these types of workouts, you can do "ladders." This is where you gradually increase the distance/time at each interval, then gradually decrease it. And example of a ladder interval workout would be to run intervals of 200, 300, 400, 600, 800, 600, 400, 300, 200. You peak in the middle at the longest distance of 800 m. To make this workout more intense, don't increase your rest time as the intervals get longer.
CLIFFHANGER!!
In an effort to keep my blogs not too long, I'll write about tempo runs/race pace runs and hill workouts next week.
Training:
M: 3.75 mi (tempo), 30:59.12
T: 2.57 mi (easy), 21:34.03
W: Speedwork, 1 mi warmup, 6x400 (97 s, 95 s, 93 s, 92 s, 96 s, 90 s), 1 mi cooldown
My shins were really hurting my Wed morning, so I took Thurs off (I was supposed to run an easy 3 mi
F: 5 mi (2 mi at race pace), 39:58.21; I ran the fast 2 mi in 13:28.56. This is the fastest I have EVER run 2 mi! I was so excited that I beat my high school PR (13:42).
S: 3.46 mi (stroll through the neighborhood), 56:43.15
As I mentioned last week, I'm training for a 10 K race in June. I'm using one of Hal Higdon's plans for advanced runners. I want to run this in less than 45 min (7:15 pace). To accomplish this goal I have to incorporate speedwork into my training program. There are definitions for all the different types of runs I am supposed to follow on the training webpage above. However, I want to give a more general overview of different types of speedwork that I have been exposed to over the years.
These are a few main types of speedwork: intervals, fartleks, tempo runs, race pace runs, and even hill workouts. Some people may consider hill workout strictly a strength workout, not speedwork. But this is my blog, so I'm grouping it into speedwork.
Intervals and fartleks
These are all variations on a similar theme. You go fast, then slow, then fast, then slow, etc... In my mind, intervals (aka - repeats) are based on distance and fartleks are based on time.
In a typical interval workout, you'll have a set amount of a certain distance (ie - 4x400) and you'll go out to the track and run a fast 400, then walk or jog for about 200-400 m, run another fast 400 and so on until you've completed four fast 400s. Usually you are aiming to get these quarters done in a certain amount of time. I aim for 90 seconds. Some people go by there fastest mile pace. I'm not sure if I could run a 6 min mile right now, but after doing these repeats for a few weeks, I probably will be able to.
You'll probabaly only want to do one (maybe two) interval workout(s) a week and increase the amount of intervals weekly. So, in week one, you'll do 4x400, then week two you'll do 5x400, etc...
In a fartlek workout, you'll do basically the same thing as above, but using an amount of time as the goal, not a distance. If you're training for a 10K run, you might run at your 5K pace for 1 min then jog for 30 sec. You could then run at the fast pace for 2 min then jog for 30 s. Another variation to really make this be speedplay is to have a friend/coach hold a whistle and you just start running fast when they first blow the whistle then slow down upon their second whistle blow. This was one of my favorite workouts during high school cross country. Not knowing what was coming next really made it go by quickly for me.
For both of these types of workouts, you can do "ladders." This is where you gradually increase the distance/time at each interval, then gradually decrease it. And example of a ladder interval workout would be to run intervals of 200, 300, 400, 600, 800, 600, 400, 300, 200. You peak in the middle at the longest distance of 800 m. To make this workout more intense, don't increase your rest time as the intervals get longer.
CLIFFHANGER!!
In an effort to keep my blogs not too long, I'll write about tempo runs/race pace runs and hill workouts next week.
Training:
M: 3.75 mi (tempo), 30:59.12
T: 2.57 mi (easy), 21:34.03
W: Speedwork, 1 mi warmup, 6x400 (97 s, 95 s, 93 s, 92 s, 96 s, 90 s), 1 mi cooldown
My shins were really hurting my Wed morning, so I took Thurs off (I was supposed to run an easy 3 mi
F: 5 mi (2 mi at race pace), 39:58.21; I ran the fast 2 mi in 13:28.56. This is the fastest I have EVER run 2 mi! I was so excited that I beat my high school PR (13:42).
S: 3.46 mi (stroll through the neighborhood), 56:43.15
Sunday, April 20, 2008
You crazy runner
“Why dost thou run so many miles about?” -Shakespeare, Richard III
One of my coworkers tried to tell me that everything that is fun is in some form bad. While the version we enjoy might not be wrong, it is derived from something wrong. So I asked him, how is running bad. He responded by saying, “that’s what I don’t get about you.”
Not many people “get” why we run. I think you have to enjoy running to understand why someone sacrifices hours on end to just run. Most of us don’t have a chance to win a major race. We can’t make any money from running, so why do we do it?
I run for many reasons. I first got the running bug in my 5th grade field day. This year they had a new race, the quarter mile. I thought I had a chance to win this because I could play forever in my backyard without getting tired. I practiced the day before the race by riding my bike up and down the big hill on our street. Apparently there was something in the air because I had a horrible asthma attack that afternoon. I went back home to take my medicine so I could breathe again and rested up for the next day. I didn’t win the race, but I did get second. I have been a runner ever since that day.
I loved being able to run that far and have people be so impressed that that “tiny little girl” could go so far. I love the feeling I get when I finish a long run and I love the look on people’s faces when I tell them I ran a marathon. “How far is that?” they’ll (stupidly) ask, “26.2 miles.” Then they’re speechless. They can’t imagine going that far. One of my friend’s calls me “Wonder Woman” because I can run that far without stopping.
Let’s face it, non-runners are impressed if you can run one mile without stopping.
I love that my sport is everyone else’s sport’s punishment. And I love the time I have to myself while I run. I can listen to music, I can listen to a podcast, or I can just listen to my own thoughts. It’s great seeing the world from a different perspective. Runners see things the drivers that zip by us never see.
I just love to run.
Training:
M: 2 mi, 14:54
W: Speedwork, 1 mi warmup, 4x400 (89 s, 91 s, 91 s, 89 s), 1 mi cooldown
F: 2 mi, 19:04 (ran this with my husband)
S: 15 K, 1:22:54 (I had a 5 K route planned out and ran three laps. This was a lot of fun because we were visiting my in-laws this weekend and I got to run with my sister & brother-in-law for the first lap, just my sister-in-law for the second lap, then my hubbie for the third lap.)
One of my coworkers tried to tell me that everything that is fun is in some form bad. While the version we enjoy might not be wrong, it is derived from something wrong. So I asked him, how is running bad. He responded by saying, “that’s what I don’t get about you.”
Not many people “get” why we run. I think you have to enjoy running to understand why someone sacrifices hours on end to just run. Most of us don’t have a chance to win a major race. We can’t make any money from running, so why do we do it?
I run for many reasons. I first got the running bug in my 5th grade field day. This year they had a new race, the quarter mile. I thought I had a chance to win this because I could play forever in my backyard without getting tired. I practiced the day before the race by riding my bike up and down the big hill on our street. Apparently there was something in the air because I had a horrible asthma attack that afternoon. I went back home to take my medicine so I could breathe again and rested up for the next day. I didn’t win the race, but I did get second. I have been a runner ever since that day.
I loved being able to run that far and have people be so impressed that that “tiny little girl” could go so far. I love the feeling I get when I finish a long run and I love the look on people’s faces when I tell them I ran a marathon. “How far is that?” they’ll (stupidly) ask, “26.2 miles.” Then they’re speechless. They can’t imagine going that far. One of my friend’s calls me “Wonder Woman” because I can run that far without stopping.
Let’s face it, non-runners are impressed if you can run one mile without stopping.
I love that my sport is everyone else’s sport’s punishment. And I love the time I have to myself while I run. I can listen to music, I can listen to a podcast, or I can just listen to my own thoughts. It’s great seeing the world from a different perspective. Runners see things the drivers that zip by us never see.
I just love to run.
Training:
M: 2 mi, 14:54
W: Speedwork, 1 mi warmup, 4x400 (89 s, 91 s, 91 s, 89 s), 1 mi cooldown
F: 2 mi, 19:04 (ran this with my husband)
S: 15 K, 1:22:54 (I had a 5 K route planned out and ran three laps. This was a lot of fun because we were visiting my in-laws this weekend and I got to run with my sister & brother-in-law for the first lap, just my sister-in-law for the second lap, then my hubbie for the third lap.)
Saturday, April 12, 2008
Aging gracefully
“Twenty-three is old. It's almost twenty-five, which is, like, almost mid-twenties.” -Jessica Simpson
So, Jessica, what does that make 24? Yes, this week I turned 24. I’m just a year away from the next age group and I’ll have to start competing against that really fast girl in my running club. I better enjoy this year while I can.
Everyone has birthdays, and as we get older, we tend to think about what we want to do with our lives. Not that I’m having a mid-life crisis or anything, but there are specific things I want to do before I kick the bucket. Even before that movie came out, I had a list of goals that I want to accomplish before leaving this world.
I’ve always been taught that it’s important to set goals, and it’s even more important to write them down (this could be to aid your memory as you get older so you don’t forget your goals). I think it’s also important to tell others your goals. Once you put a goal out there, you can’t take it back. Your friends and family that know about the goals can hold you accountable to these expectations.
Goals can be split into two categories, long term and short term. The time frame you choose to categorize goals is up to you. I think it’s relative to the total amount of time you are spending on that type of goal. A short term goal that has to do with your whole life could take as long as a year, whereas a short term goal for a semester long school course could be accomplished in a week. These are my short and long term goals for my running:
Short term (by the end of the year):
Run a 10K in June in under 45 m
Run a half marathon in November in under 1:45
Run all the local races held by my running club (that I am not already scheduled to be out of town for)
Long term:
Run all the major (& a few minor) marathons in Texas – 2 down
Qualify for Boston before I turn 30
Continue running well into my senior years
Training:
M: 5 mi, 48:56 - This was a run w/my hubby. He doesn't like running, so we did the Jeff Galloway run/walk method... we ran 9 min then walked 1 min. Around mile 3.5 we walked a little more. He did a very good job!
W: I skipped my 3 mi run to study for yet another test
F: 8 mi, 1:06:39
S: 6-8 mi, about 1h of hilly trail running with a new running buddy of mine. I like running with someone. It's a lot more fun that running by myself!
So, Jessica, what does that make 24? Yes, this week I turned 24. I’m just a year away from the next age group and I’ll have to start competing against that really fast girl in my running club. I better enjoy this year while I can.
Everyone has birthdays, and as we get older, we tend to think about what we want to do with our lives. Not that I’m having a mid-life crisis or anything, but there are specific things I want to do before I kick the bucket. Even before that movie came out, I had a list of goals that I want to accomplish before leaving this world.
I’ve always been taught that it’s important to set goals, and it’s even more important to write them down (this could be to aid your memory as you get older so you don’t forget your goals). I think it’s also important to tell others your goals. Once you put a goal out there, you can’t take it back. Your friends and family that know about the goals can hold you accountable to these expectations.
Goals can be split into two categories, long term and short term. The time frame you choose to categorize goals is up to you. I think it’s relative to the total amount of time you are spending on that type of goal. A short term goal that has to do with your whole life could take as long as a year, whereas a short term goal for a semester long school course could be accomplished in a week. These are my short and long term goals for my running:
Short term (by the end of the year):
Run a 10K in June in under 45 m
Run a half marathon in November in under 1:45
Run all the local races held by my running club (that I am not already scheduled to be out of town for)
Long term:
Run all the major (& a few minor) marathons in Texas – 2 down
Qualify for Boston before I turn 30
Continue running well into my senior years
Training:
M: 5 mi, 48:56 - This was a run w/my hubby. He doesn't like running, so we did the Jeff Galloway run/walk method... we ran 9 min then walked 1 min. Around mile 3.5 we walked a little more. He did a very good job!
W: I skipped my 3 mi run to study for yet another test
F: 8 mi, 1:06:39
S: 6-8 mi, about 1h of hilly trail running with a new running buddy of mine. I like running with someone. It's a lot more fun that running by myself!
Saturday, April 5, 2008
Low Fidelity
“Every day is a question of your commitment that running is not afraid to ask.” New Balance LOVE/hate commercial
This past week has been very busy and something had to give. Unfortunately, that something was running. Yes, I admit it, I cheated on running this week. But the good thing about our relationship is that running understands. Running always lets me come back and sometimes I’m better for taking the break.
I had a test on Saturday morning, so I didn’t run Friday because I was studying. The same reason is my excuse for missing my Monday run. I have found that when you miss a run and try to make up for it, you never catch up to where you should be. You’re stuck in a cycle of trying to catch back up with the run you missed. I think it’s easier to forgive yourself for missing the run and just start back where you should have been.
That sounds easy enough, right? So, why is it so hard to forgive yourself and move on? I have trouble with this because I am a perfectionist. If I miss a workout I feel like I messed up my training and lied to my friends who thought I might be running that day – basically that I cheated myself by cheating on running. Right now it’s not that big of a deal for me to miss a run because I’m still in my recovery mode after the marathon in February. I can afford to miss a run to study for a test.
Which leads me to my next point: prioritizing. There are some times where you have to miss a run because an emergency came up or a big project is due that you have to finish. You have to realize when it’s okay to postpone or cancel a run. Some examples include: the birth of your child, the TPS reports your boss gave you to be finished by Monday, helping your best friend move, or if an injury sidelines you. Whatever you think is more important than running really is.
If you’re consistently missing runs, it might be a time-management problem. Make sure you’re scheduling time to run and not procrastinating on other projects that you have to do. Wake up early to make sure you get your run in. This could help your mindset for the rest of the day. You could also write your runs in on your schedule. Whatever you have to do, make sure you’re getting out there to do what you love. But don’t ever let running keep you away from the ones you love.
Training:
M: I was studying for my test on Tuesday.
W: 5 mi, 38:40.04
F: 7 mi, 58:04.80
S: Speak Up for Kids CASA 5K (am), 24:08.37 (gun time: 24:12.7)
I got 28th overall, 6th for the women, and 1st in my age group
As promised: The Get-Strong 2006 plan
This past week has been very busy and something had to give. Unfortunately, that something was running. Yes, I admit it, I cheated on running this week. But the good thing about our relationship is that running understands. Running always lets me come back and sometimes I’m better for taking the break.
I had a test on Saturday morning, so I didn’t run Friday because I was studying. The same reason is my excuse for missing my Monday run. I have found that when you miss a run and try to make up for it, you never catch up to where you should be. You’re stuck in a cycle of trying to catch back up with the run you missed. I think it’s easier to forgive yourself for missing the run and just start back where you should have been.
That sounds easy enough, right? So, why is it so hard to forgive yourself and move on? I have trouble with this because I am a perfectionist. If I miss a workout I feel like I messed up my training and lied to my friends who thought I might be running that day – basically that I cheated myself by cheating on running. Right now it’s not that big of a deal for me to miss a run because I’m still in my recovery mode after the marathon in February. I can afford to miss a run to study for a test.
Which leads me to my next point: prioritizing. There are some times where you have to miss a run because an emergency came up or a big project is due that you have to finish. You have to realize when it’s okay to postpone or cancel a run. Some examples include: the birth of your child, the TPS reports your boss gave you to be finished by Monday, helping your best friend move, or if an injury sidelines you. Whatever you think is more important than running really is.
If you’re consistently missing runs, it might be a time-management problem. Make sure you’re scheduling time to run and not procrastinating on other projects that you have to do. Wake up early to make sure you get your run in. This could help your mindset for the rest of the day. You could also write your runs in on your schedule. Whatever you have to do, make sure you’re getting out there to do what you love. But don’t ever let running keep you away from the ones you love.
Training:
M: I was studying for my test on Tuesday.
W: 5 mi, 38:40.04
F: 7 mi, 58:04.80
S: Speak Up for Kids CASA 5K (am), 24:08.37 (gun time: 24:12.7)
I got 28th overall, 6th for the women, and 1st in my age group
As promised: The Get-Strong 2006 plan
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