Hot intervals

I woke up yesterday and realized I was in a circle of hell not yet discovered. It was strangely hot for early June. Just the night before, a small tornado missed my neighborhood by about 10 miles. Today, Richmond is under a heat advisory, with temperatures expected to hit 94. The 10-day forecast is for temperatures to hit 97 tomorrow, then 100 for the few days after that, then cooling off to 91 by June 14. The normal high for this time of the year is the low 80s, so with temperatures almost 20 degrees above average, it's not exactly comfortable out there. Just last week, it was so cool in the morning that I ran in a long-sleeve shirt.

I'm not really complaining - I like running when it's hot vs. running in the middle of winter. It's just that it's been kind of cool all spring and we went from April to mid-July temperatures in a few days. Fortunately I'll be headed to the Outer Banks in a few days where temperatures are forecast to be about 10 degrees cooler.

So all this leads me to one of the sweatiest runs I've had in quite some time. Today I had the simple goal of four quarter-mile intervals with quarter-mile breaks in between. My goal was similar to the other day -- probably about 80 percent of the effort that I would put into a race with a goal time of less than 2 minutes per interval. I've realized that it's good to start simple with my goals, then beat them and then set the bar higher.

I was very happy when I hit my first quarter mile in 1:49. I didn't wear myself out and I was feeling great. My next quarter mile was also in 1:49. Consistency ... it's what all runners want. The next quarter mile was a bit slower in 1:55. I'm not really sure what happened, but it just felt sluggish. I think my recovery quarter was probably a bit too fast. I was a little worried about my last quarter, but I hit it in ... wait for it ... 1:49.

I'm very happy that be that consistent. I'm also happy to be under 1:50 at my first attempt at quarter mile intervals. My interval distances will vary all summer, but this is a good first test. I'll certainly revisit the same workout at some point in the next couple of months.


Workout since last post
June 5: Walk - 1; Run - 3 total (explanation above); Plank - 1:00; 50 set ups with Bosu ball

It's not a clothes hanger

David, this is the weight machine. Weight machine, this is David. For the past year-plus I've been one of "those" people. I bought a home gym in early 2007 -- I just HAD to have one. "I'll use it. I need it for cross training," is what I always said.

Well, using it once every couple of weeks doesn't really count. At least I've never hung any clothes on it. But I'm determined more than ever to finally make this home gym part of me. I want to become one with this thing ... or least use it two to three times a week.

This week is the beginning of breaking into a routine. I made a spreadsheet with each of the exercises and squares to include the number of reps I do, as well as which weight I use. Day one yesterday was a reintroduction to this beast. I did at least two sets with each exercise to get a feel for what was comfortable so I'm not going into it blindly next time. By "next time" I mean Wednesday, not two weeks from now.

Lifting weights has always been my weakness, but once it becomes routine I know I'll like it. In 2004 when I first lost weight, I lifted about once a week, but about mid-way through that year I got into it twice a week. Then toward the end of the year I just kind of stopped and have never gotten into anything regular -- generally lifting about once or twice a month.

Speaking of losing weight, I also am getting back into the regular routine of having a "weigh in" day on Fridays. I'll detail this more later, but am posting now to hold me accountable.

Lastly, I haven't ran since the 10k. (Well, OK, I did do 0.2 miles yesterday with my dog and felt fine.) Last week was awful with everything since I was sick, but I'm feeling 200 percent better this week. I'm really feeling motivated to just rethink everything when it comes to fitness over the next couple of months. Running will still be my big thing, but lifting weights and biking are already nice change of paces for a short time. My eye will be on the big prize soon enough, but for now I'm content doing other things.

Things just keep getting better

In the past few weeks I've had a lot happen to put my mind at ease when it comes to running -- a good race, a good mile time by myself, hitting double digits, etc. But I can't just be content with what I've done. Running is a never-ending process, and don't ask me why it's taken me five years to really realize that.

Today was one of those days that I could have easily turned my alarm clock off and slept until noon. But I got up on the first alarm and didn't sleep an extra 9 minutes like I usually do. I got up ... and went running. As usual, I didn't have much of a plan, but I knew I wanted to do some sort of speed work. So after a little more than a mile, I did some intervals -- two quarter miles and two half miles, with a quarter mile break in between everything. My first quarter mile was 2:06, and it felt like I was dragging through mud. The second quarter mile was 1:57. Better, but I wasn't fully satisfied. I still felt tired, but no worn out. It was just an odd feeling really. The first half mile went better with a time of 3:46; my last half mile was a bit slower at 3:55.

When I ran about a mile to cool down, I was thinking about what I just did. A year ago I didn't have enough confidence to attempt speed work by myself. It had to be with a group. And a year ago I would've never attempted this in a neighborhood -- I would've wanted complete flatness on a track. I was also very happy at keeping my pace under 8-minute miles while feeling like I could run even harder.

I keep getting mad at myself for a few pounds I can't seem to lose, but I am feeling great heading into the last two weeks of getting ready for the Shamrock Half Marathon. I have to keep reminding myself, too, that it's still February and most people are still in "off season" not thinking about running hard. And I'm doing much of this own my own. Yes, I'm running with a group on Saturdays, but it doesn't focus on speed or longer distances that I'm at now. I've been lacking some confidence for a while, and it's nice to be back.

Pre-race excitement

Tomorrow morning I'm running in my first race since the marathon. I'm pretty excited about it too. Having dealt with being sick, being injured and slowly getting back into shape, this will be a good test for me before the half marathon next month. It's an 8k, and I've only done one other 8k before (plus two 5 milers - close enough, right? Except I can have totally different PRs).

I'm not really setting up any specific goals -- I just want to be able to run a nice steady pace the whole time. Not having run a race for three months is a pretty big gap considering what I did last year, so I'm eager to test it all out. If I set a PR, that'll be nice, but I'm not really worried about that.

I weighed myself today and am mad at myself for letting a few pounds creep back. It's kind of odd with increasing my mileage and seeing the weight go up, too. I know that it's actually common for that to happen, but it's frustrating all the same. I've been doing great with getting focused on running, but no so good when it comes to food I guess. Plus I'm at this age where I can tell things are starting to change too. I know, I know, you're saying that I'm only 29, but I can really tell that my metabolism is changing and that I can't just eat what I used to. I'm mad at myself because I was so determined after the marathon not to gain weight back, but it's just like last year all over again. I guess I have to lay off the goodies at work and get back to eating apples instead. :)

Abs ... or lack thereof

Since I first lost weight four years ago, I have done very little ab workout. Like most people, I'll do it for a couple of weeks and then it'll slack off. Perhaps its the lack of immediate reward that our society is used to. I could care less for that 6 pack of abs, but I'd certainly like to be closer than I've always been.

So I've been inspired by Non-running Nancy to time myself on the plank -- the simple act of getting on my elbows and holding my body up. It's far and away the best ab workout I've come across. I've been doing the plank every once in a while, but not enough. Before I moved to Richmond, I was doing it pretty regularly, but slacked off quickly. Now it's time to hold myself accountable to doing some ab workouts and timing myself on the plank. So ... today I was able to hold it for a measly 46 seconds. I guess that's not too bad, but I thought I could hold it for at least a minute. I guess I have my work cut out for me!

It's the final countdown

One month from today is the marathon -- ONE MONTH!! Instead of reflecting on where I've been over the past few months, today is a day about looking ahead, staying focused on the big goal. I'll have plenty of time to reflect in another month. I emphasize again that there is no "freaking out" or getting nervous going on right now -- I'm focused and determined.

In honor of the one month to go mark, I went out and ran a solid 7.5 miles this morning, including 4 of it in a slightly more than 8-minute mile pace, at least according to my Garmin. I swear it seemed like I was running faster, and maybe I was. Much of that run was on the flat trails of nearby Huguenot Park, where the tree cover in mid-October is still very heavy. Either way, I was very happy with my run as my warmup and final 1.5 miles were under a 9-minute pace.

Last week, I brought up weight for the first time in a while, as well as 40 foods I won't touch in the 40 days leading up to the marathon. It's amazing what writing about it will do. This morning my weight was at 178.8, down 2 pounds from last week and actually slightly less than my weight for the Shamrock Half Marathon in March.

So, what's left this month? I hope to have a couple of more long runs in nice weather before the tapering begins. While I'm not overly concerned about my time for the marathon, I will continue to work on speed and tempo runs. There may be a 5K or two included solely for that reason. When my taper begins, I will take advantage of the fewer miles by continuing to run hard. (I think too many people think taper means cutting back mileage, as well as slowing down - I disagree.) And I'll continue to try losing a few more pounds.

French fries anyone?

I’m a little past the 40 days to go mark, but October and the first 10 days of November are crucial weeks for me to get in tip-top shape for the marathon. So I thought I’d make a list of 40 things I don’t plan on eating until after Nov. 10 … or really ever again. Many of these things are things I don’t eat or drink anyway, but it makes me feel better to write it down. Like my blog’s subtitle says, it’ll help keep me held accountable.

So here goes: french fries, cupcakes, (most) ice cream, candy corn, McDonald’s quarter pounders, Burger King’s Whoppers, Wendy’s double cheeseburgers, fried shrimp, Papa John’s pizza (although I’m not ruling out pizza), Coke, Pepsi, Miller Lite, Bud Light (although I may have a dark beer or two), hot dogs, fudge, potato chips, doughnuts, chicken from Kentucky Fried Chicken, twinkies (ahh, it’s been years), M&Ms, egg rolls, Snickers bars, hash browns from any fast-food place, milkshakes, fried chicken fingers, fried fish, Arby’s roast beef, chocolate pie, birthday cake, gravy, pepperoni, Long John Silver’s fish, IHOP’s stuffed french toast, gum with sugar, brownies, Combos, Cracker Jacks, Miller High Life, pork rinds (never actually had them), elephant ears.

When I first started this blog, I had hoped to discuss things about my weight, but never really have. Honestly, I haven’t worried about it too much this summer. However, this month I am focusing on my weight as I’d like to get to 175 or less by the time the marathon gets here. My 5-foot, 10-inch medium-build frame was at 180.8 this morning – 5 pounds lighter than when this training first began, and 5 away from where I want to be. When I first lost weight in 2004, 175 was my lowest ever, but that didn't last. I've basically maintained 180-185 since then. It seems for these big races I can get to 180 or slightly less, but then gain back a few pounds very quickly. It’s actually very tough losing weight when training for a marathon when you have to eat a lot to be able to maintain the energy. What I’ve lost has basically been from extra miles, but with less than six weeks to go, focusing on my diet is one of my top priorities.

A post setting up other posts

I often get asked how training is going for the Richmond Marathon. Well, honestly, ever since I signed up for it in March, I don't feel like I've done much for it. Basically, I've maintained decent mileage for a couple of months (16-22 miles a week) and just waited until this month to get here to really focus on it. My long runs will steadily increase between now and November, but I think I'll be comfortable upping my mileage until I get to a distance I've never done. Last year when I trained for the 10 miler, each long run always felt good mentally because, simply, I had never gone that far before. At the same time they were a bit uncomfortable physically because I had never logged that distance before. My longest runs since I started running again have been my half marathons. Including warming up for those events, I've never gone more than 14 miles in a day. When I hit that distance sometime in August, I know that mentally it'll be great. Physically? We'll see ...

I'd like to take a chance to layout some things I'd like to write about (it's sort of like what happens at work -- having a meeting to discuss other meetings). Next week will mark 16 weeks to the marathon. I plan to write about long runs specifically. My goal is to write about how I felt on the long runs and provide a link on mapmyrun.com or using google maps to show where I went. I believe that the key thing with the marathon training will be the long runs. Through September, I'll be in the speed and endurance training group. I plan to write about each of those workouts. Lastly, I plan to write about weight and nutrition. I've written about the journey from 220 pounds ago (click here for that post), but I'd like to detail a little more about my goals and look back in a little more detail of where I've been since the initial weight loss. If I somehow don't touch on these subjects in the next couple of minds, please kindly remind me to.

To end us this no-point post, I'd like to thank those who have become regular readers. I've enjoyed reading other blogs and I look forward to reading more - I hope that this blog has become somewhat helpful and/or entertaining. For those running the Richmond Marathon or the 8K that same day, maybe we can actually meet the night before or the day of the race.

Looking back helps me look ahead

A year (and two years) ago at this time, my longest run since I started running again in 2004 had been 4 miles. I was among those people who ran, but never did more than 3 miles at a time and only ran 5K races. I thought anything beyond that was just crazy. Three years ago at this time I was really just starting off and enjoying getting ready for my wedding. Four years ago, running was something I used to do, as I weighed nearly 220 pounds.

I have to look back at where I've been over the years to help me put the rest of this year into perspective. As a teen, I was just in shape by default. I played football on the street in the neighborhood; I road my bike miles and miles without thinking; I played basketball nearly every day from November through March; I "ran" track a few different times. Simply put, like I say now that I "just do it," I did it back then. Then came college in which every year I gained weight here and there. I can blame in on the pizza and beer all I want, but honestly, it was more about what I didn't do. I gradually stopped doing the things that kept me in shape without thinking about it. It's as simple as that. After college, that trend continued. It took getting married for me to take a hard look at myself and have that urge to change my ways that led to 200-plus pounds.

So 2004 was the year of change for me, and for two and a half years I kept that same routine of running a few times a week. I've now come to think of 2006 of being even a bigger year of change when it comes to running. Like I said earlier, a year ago at this time my "long run" really wasn't that long. In the past year, 4 miles has become more of the norm, I've ran a 5 miler, three 10Ks, a 10 miler and two half marathons. Each time out I feel better and my race pace has gradually improved. But now comes that true test of preparing for the November marathon. Now that I have taken a look back at my running days (or lack thereof), it's time to look ahead and get focused.