End of Week 5

Well, I thought about blogging everyday, but I felt like it was kind of pointless because I haven't been able to train.

Scheduled week 5 miles total: 39

Actual week 5 miles total: 00

Over and out

Lo

End of Week 4

I still haven't been able to get training because of my injury. Hopefully that will change in the next couple weeks.

Scheduled run: Rest/XT

Actual run: Rest!

Scheduled total week 3 miles: 29

Actual total week 3 miles: 00

Over and out!

Lo

Day 26

Lots of running around...but that wasn't done so much on my feet...but in my car.

Scheduled run: Easy run; 5 miles @ 10:54 pace.

Actual run: Rest!

Over and out!

Lo!

Day 24 & 25

Well, still not back to training...and it seems like this will be a trend for at least the next couple days.

Day 24 Scheuled run: Easy run; 6 miles @ 10:54 pace.

Acutal run: Rest!

Day 25 Scheuled run: Rest/XT

Actual run: Rest!

Over and out!

Lo!

Day 23

Well....I was in a bit more pain than I would really like, or have been in a while. So I opted to stay off it, therefore, no weights or anything today.

Scheduled run: Easy run; 6 miles @ 10:54 pace.

Actual run: Rest...dang pain!

Over and out!

Lo!

Day 22

Still not training how I would really like...but hopefully that will change in the near future!

Scheduled run: Easy run; 6 miles @ 10:54 pace.

Actual run: XT; upper body weight training! Definitely getting stronger, and noticing a difference!

Over and out!

Lo!

Day 21

Well as you can guess...still no running...not quite yet, but I'll get there....just not soon enough for me!

Scheduled run: Easy run; 6 miles @ 10:54 pace.

Actualy run: XT; lower body weight training!

Over and out!

Lo!

End of Week 3

Well most of this week was spent resting and trying to rehab my body, mainly my ankle/achilles tendon. It hasn't been enjoyable at all, but I know that in order to race in June, I have to rest in now.

Scheduled run: Rest/XT

Actual run: Rest!

Scheduled Week 2 total miles: 36

Actual Week 2 total miles: 1...although I did get in some XT miles, but I'm not going to count that!

Over and out!

Lo!

Day 19

Well, I ran today with the advise of my doctor. I was only supposed to run one mile and see how my ankle feels. So I ran to about a pain level of about a three, but I was being very cautious not to go beyond that and if it was to stop right away.

Scheduled run: Long run; 11 miles @ 10:54 pace.

Actual run: Test run; 1 mile @ 10:59 pace. Plus 15 minutes on the bike to warm up!

Over and out!

Lo!

Day 18

Back to the gym, and doing what is scheduled!

Scheduled run: Rest/XT

Actual run: XT; upper body weight training!

Over and out!

Lo!

Day 17

Still in a bit of pain, so cooling it for a little bit longer...

Scheduled run: Easy run; 6 miles @ 10:54 pace.

Actual run: XT; 3 miles on the bike, then a bunch of leg extension/curls - starting with 100 pounds and working my way to 10 pounds doing 10 reps each 10 pound decrease!

Over and out!

Lo!

Day 16

Well, I finally made it back to the gym! However, I didn't start back running yet...probably not until next week.

Scheduled run: Tempo run; 4 miles @ 9:23 pace, plus 2 miles w/c.

Actual run: Tempo elliptical; 4 miles @ 9:23 pace, plus 3 miles warm up on bike.

Over and out!

Lo!

Day 15

So, I thought I'd be back to the gym today....instead...I went to the chiropractors office to have some adjustments done to hopefully help with my pain around my achilles! I have another appointment this Friday, but am able to at least go and work out and see how things feel until then.

Scheduled run: Easy run; 6 miles @ 10:54 pace.

Actual run: Rest...poo!

Over and out!

Lo!

Day 14

Almost there...

Where you're wondering...back to the gym, and training.

Scheduled run: Easy run, 7 miles @ 10:54 pace.

Actual run: Rest...hopefully the last day of an unscheduled rest day.

Over and out!

Lo!

End of Week 2

Well this week was not my best week as far as training goes. Only in the gym one day, so as you can guess mileage will be low, very low!

Scheduled run: Rest/XT

Actual run: Rest!

Scheduled Week 2 total miles: 34

Actual Week 2 total miles: 3

Over and out!

Lo!

Day 12

More icing...

Scheduled run: Long run, 10 miles @ 10:54 pace.

Actual run: Rest! Icing like it's my job!

Over and out!

Lo!

Day 11

Feeling better, but still no running...not for a few more days.

Scheduled run: Rest/XT

Actual run: Rest! Icing is my new hobby!

Over and out!

Lo!

Day 10

Thought I might be able to at least do some light training today, but that was a no go. More icing today!

Scheduled run: Easy run 5 miles @ 10:54 pace.

Actual run: Rest. Lots of icing!

Over and out!

Lo!

Day 9

More pain...but this time I know what it is now. I have achilles tendinitis, plus bursitis in the same area. This means that both the inflamed tendon and bursae are fighting for the little space that I have in that area, which is why I'm in so much pain. As you can probably guess, no running today....or for the next couple days for that matter.

Scheduled run: Speed work 3 x 1600 @ 8:46 pace with .5 mile jogs in between each mile. Total mileage: 7

Actual run: Rest & LOTS of icing!

Over and out!

Lo!

Day 8

OUCH!!! So my achilles tendon (picture to the left) is in so much pain right now! Even just sitting around, I'm in pain! So because I was in so much pain, I didn't finish the mileage that I should have today. I've been icing, stretching, and massaging it out, but still nothing so far. Hopefully tomorrow will be a different story!

Scheduled run: Easy run 6 miles @ 10:54 pace.

Actual run: Easy (painful) 3 miles @ 10:54 pace; plus ab stuff, and stretching.

Over and out!

Lo!

Day 7...

Soreness...

running through my legs...

but that didn't keep me from running!

Scheduled run: Easy run 6 miles @ 10:54 pace.

Actual run: Easy run 6 miles @ 10:54 pace, 65:30. Plus ab stuff, and stretches!

Over and out!

Lo!

End of week 1

Today was a great day! I was able to get some energy gels/bloks/bars so I can try them out throughout the weeks when I'm training. I think that at least a couple of them should be pretty good, but we'll see!

Scheduled run: Rest/XT

Actual run: Rest!

WEEK 1 TOTAL MILES: 26

Over and out!

Lo!

Day 5

Wow I'm exhausted! Today was a really hard day, good, but hard. I can't believe that I actually finished the whole thing, but I'm so excited that I did!

Scheduled run: Long run; 10 miles @ 10:54 pace.

Actual run: Long run; 10 miles @ 10:54 pace; in 109 minutes! Plus ab stuff, and stretches (before and after the run).

Over and out!

Lo!

Day 4

Today went really well. No running, as scheduled, so I did some major weight training. I'm a little sore right now, so we'll see if I manage my long run tomorrow.

Scheduled run: rest/xt (cross training)

Actual run: xt. Leg press, curls, extensions, thigh abductor & adductor, and squats. Arm curls, seated vertical chest press, push ups (on a ball type thing) and a couple other that I can't think of the names. Plus abdominal isolation stuff too! And stretching as always!

Over and out!

Lo!

Day 3

Today running went well, and seemed to go by pretty fast too, which was kind of unexpected.

Scheduled run: Easy run 5 miles @ 10:54 pace.

Actual run: Easy run 5 miles @ 10:54 pace. Plus ab isolation and arm stuff, and stretches.

Over and out.

Lo

Pretty nice...

Today went pretty well. I was in a little bit of pain, in my right knee, and left hip, but nothing too bad.

Scheduled run: Tempo 4 miles @ 9:23 pace, plus warm up and cool down, 1 mile each.

Actual run: Tempo 4 miles @ 9:22 pace, plus warm up and cool down 1 mile each. Plus ab isolation stuff, and some arm stuff too!

Over and out!

Lo!

Back on track again...

Today I ventured out in the snow filled streets to get in my first work out of many for my half marathon! I'm still a little under the weather but feel SO much better!

Scheduled run: Easy Run 5 miles @ 10:54 pace.

Actual run: Easy Run 5 miles @ 10:54 pace, plus .5 mile cool down walk and ab stuff.

Over and out!

Lo!

Sick day...

Well today was spent on the couch trying to get over this terrible cold. I've been sneezing, sniffling and coughing like it's my new hobby! So this means that my training will have to start tomorrow, instead of today. I really wanted to go to the gym today and start my training but I wanted thought that it would be best if I would stay home and rest up.

Scheduled Run: Easy Run 5 miles @ 10:54 pace.

Actual Run: None today.

**Also, I posted a countdown to race day at the bottom of this blog!**

Over and out!

Lo!

Feeling sick...

Well today was spent gargling salt water, taking Alka Seltzer, and drinking lots of orange juice. So no running today, just relaxing and trying to kick this cold out of here! I've been reading a few articles on runnersworld.com to see if they have any insight on what to do, but I think I'll just stick to the basics. Back to resting up! Over and out!

Lo!

A little closer...

Today was another good day of running....10 k (6.2 miles) in 61 minutes. Then I did some abdominal isolation stuff, as well as the vertical seated bench press. My arms are actually really starting to get used to the weight that I had been pumping, so I'm upping the weight which is so awesome! I looked at my training schedule, and this coming Monday is day 1! I'll continue to update the post on how training is going, as well as what I've done for the day too. It's a 16 week schedule and goes right to race day! It will be great to get into the habit of training with a schedule like this, and watch the progression that I make from week to week! Over and out!

Lo!

Feelin' the burn...

Well today I ran another 10k (6.2 miles) in 61 minutes, and felt pretty good while doing it. I still have some pain in my right knee, but nothing I can't push through. Within the next couple weeks I'll start doing my training for the half, which will mean every other day running, and the off days will be spent doing weight training. I'm excited to get to that portion, but I also need to really start to pay much closer attention to my diet as well. I need to up the protein, and really stay away from caffeine, which is much easier said than done! I'll see how that goes, and if I come across any great recipes I'll be sure to post them on here too! Over and out!

Lo!

Training again...

Well I guess I should update this from the past week and a half or so. Today I ran a 10k (6.2 miles) in 61 minutes. I'm working back to a faster pace, but I'm still being cautious for now. Yesterday I only ran 5k (3.1 miles) in about 30 minutes. Over the weekend I didn't run, but I did do 101 push ups on Sunday...push ups for points during the Superbowl! So my arms are still pretty tired from that. I also ran 5.5 miles on Friday in a little under an hour. Next week it will be time to seriously get training for the half marathon. Over and out!

Lo!

A day off..

Well today I had to take off from training because I had a migraine, so no miles today, but yesterday I did run 5 miles. I would have run further, but my knee was giving me some pain, so I thought I would ease up. Tomorrow will be a day off as well, but I'll be back to it Friday. Over and out!

Lo!

Don't WALK, RUN!

That's right! No more walking...at least not for my workouts anymore! Today was the first day that I got the "okay" to run again! Not at a pace that I would normally run (6.5 on a treadmill), but still running again!

I ended up running 5.5 miles in an hour with about an 11 minute pace. The great thing was that I wasn't in any pain, or discomfort! So I believe that I'll be able to continue running the rest of the week, and on throughout my training!

Over and out!

Lo!

Walking...

Well, more walking...

Today I walked 6.5 miles in 111 minutes.

I'd still love to be running, but I'm really trying to keep to this, and walk until Monday at the earliest.

I did a little bit of abdominal stuff, but my arms were still pretty tired from the past couple days, so I decided to give them some rest. Over and out!

Lo!

Frustration!!!

Today I was planning on using the elliptical machine but when I was in class having some work done on my leg again, my instructor said to take a day off from running. I told her that I haven't in a few days, but that I've been using the elliptical instead! She said that I shouldn't do that either! UGH! So she told me no faster than 3.0 on the speed, but I begged and she said that I could go no faster than 3.5. Which is a pretty good pace for walking but I could have still gone faster, and still only been walking. Anyway, so I walked for 3.1 miles today in 51 minutes, and then did some upper body strength conditioning. As you can guess this doesn't make me happy at all! I know that if I don't watch what I'm doing now and take it easy that I could seriously injure myself and then the half marathon might only be a dream. That means that the rest of the week, probably anyway, that I'll only be walking and doing upper body strength training. Ugh! Over and out.

Lo

Elliptical for a while...

Well today I didn't work out too much because I had a deep tissue massage just before going to the gym, so I wanted to ease up some to try and let the massage really do its thing. That meant that I used the elliptical machine, and only for 3.6 miles, and 35 minutes. I did an abdominal work out as well, and did a little bit of arm stuff too. Hopefully I can get this figured out with my legs and not be in as much pain....well okay, pain isn't really it, it's just annoying. For whatever reason, my right thigh wont relax. I'm going to have it worked on some more with massage and stretching so hopefully something will give soon! Over and out!

Lo!

Getting stronger!

I had a GREAT workout today! I used the elliptical machine again, hoping that I can get my knee back into working order soon! I went 4.6 miles in 45 minutes on the cross country course! Then I did some really good seated leg presses, 120 pounds and then I even did 5 reps of 140 pounds! I was very excited when I did that! Next I did some bicep curls, and then some ab isolator stuff. I really feel like I'm getting in great shape! I love this feeling! Over and out!

Lo!

Good work out!

Today I worked out on the elliptical machine for 45 minutes, 4.15 miles! I also did some ab & oblique isolator work outs, and a little bit with my arms. I didn't want to push anything too much considering that I really did a lot yesterday. Now it's time for some stretching, and hopefully some much needed rest as well! Over and out!

Lo!

Training Hard!

Great work out today! I ran 2.5 miles in 23 minutes on a cross country course to start out. Granted it wasn't a great time, but I was planning on getting in quite a bit of weight training as well. And I did a bunch of weight training...for about 45 minutes! Ab & oblique stuff, then it was on to work the legs and arms. Leg - press, extensions, curls, adductor, & abductor! Arm - rowing, vertical bench press, and push ups! Oh, I feel GREAT! Over and out!

Lo!

Running again!

Today I ran for the first time in three days! Now that might not seem like a big deal, but I've missed it, both emotionally and physically. I ran a 5k, 3.1 miles, faster than I have in a while, at a 8:34 pace! I felt pretty good after running too which was nice. I did some weights to work out my arms some which I haven't done in a while either. Overall, training is going well! Over and out!

Lo!

Ellipitcal Trainer...

Today I worked out on the ellipitcal trainer because I wanted to give my knee and hip an extended rest. I'm not the biggest fan of elliptical trainers because being that I've run for so many years it's hard to transition to more of a gliding then running motion. Plus usually when I use them about every mile or so my left hip (the one that is giving me problems) "pops out", so I don't feel like I get much of a work out in because I'm having to "re-start" so often. This time was different though, I actually was able to glide on it! I did a pretty good work out too! I ended up going almost 5 miles, in 45 minutes on the cross country course. Part of it I was "pedaling" backwards too! Hopefully I can get in a good run tomorrow! Over and out!

Lo!

A quick dish...

Today was a cross training day for me...tomorrow might be as well if my hip, and knee aren't feeling up to par. I road a 10k in about a half hour, and learned how to make this amazing dinner from the Food Network! Yes, my gym has 12 inch flat screen TVs for all of the cardiovascular equipment, with cable! After I was finished riding the bike, I was still waiting to see the final product on the show, so I stood there and stretched while waiting. I then was cleaning up my machine, and the sweetest little elderly lady says to me, "Well that looks pretty good!" So I stood there and talked with her for a little bit, mainly telling her what was in the dish. I see her and her husband in there every day that I am there. They are always walking on the treadmills, and lifting weights, keeping in shape in to their old age. It's really great to see that because I don't feel like many people, especially older people work out much. They are the sweetest couple though, and I'm hoping that in the next couple days that I will learn their names. When they were leaving she had asked me if I just stay at the gym all day long...I usually get there before they do, and almost always leave after they have already left. They're like my grandparents in the area! It's great! Oh, and another great thing...I weighed myself just to see where I'm at and to track my progress. I am now under 130 pounds! It's been a while, but it's great to be there again! Although, I need to get a measuring tape and use that more so than the scale. Still, I was happy about that though! Over and out!

Lo!

Little less than expected...

Well today I planned on running a 10k, but after getting through the 5k, I wasn't feeling all that great, and didn't want to push myself too far. So instead I only ran 4.75 miles, in 42:03, which still was a good work out, but nothing to what I was planning on. I did wear my new knee brace, which really helped out, so we'll see how well it goes with the next couple times I run. After the run, I did some abdominal strengthening, but that was it for the day. Over and out!

Lo!

Day of physical rest...

I was thinking that I would go and work out today, that changed shortly after getting out of bed though. My knee was still bothering me some, and I didn't want to push it too hard...I'll save that for the big race! So today will be spent resting my legs, and refocusing my mental side of all of this training. In high school when I was on our cross country team our coach used to tell us all the time that running was, "80% mental, and only 20% physical." Being that I grew up with that mentality, and really learning what that meant, I am a huge supporter of that idea. Therefore, I am going to pay attention to the mental side of running today. Set aside some time to "run the race in my head, so when comes time to actually run it, I'm mentally prepared for it." This time it will be slightly different though because I don't know the course.

Back in high school every week we had a race we would mentally prepare for it the day before by laying down and going from toe to head relaxing every part of our body. Then we would imagine that we are at the start line, the gun goes off and we start the race, and are running with a pack of our teammates, or with a person who we plan to beat in the actual race. We would know the course already so we would be able to picture the turns in our head, or the hill that we are coming up to, etc. This time though, I only know the start and the finish line, and really that's about it. Yes, there is a map online, (check it out here or here!) but I really don't know the terrain very well, so it doesn't help all that much. Anyway, my next planned day to train will be Monday, so until next time...

Over and out!

Lo!

Closer to my goal....

Today it was time to run the 10k, and see how things are moving for me. I wasn't sure how well I would do considering I was still pretty sore from the previous workouts, but I figured if I was really in that much pain, I would stop. I stepped up today though, and ran a 10k, in 62 minutes! I was pretty happy with that being that I was thinking that I might not even finish the whole thing! I figure I better start running longer more often considering that the half marathon is a little more than double what I ran today! After the run, I did my normal ab, oblique, and back routine, and then did some vertical seated bench press for a little arm action.

After the workout I headed over to a near by pharmacy to pick up a gel pack, an ace bandage, and a knee brace. The knee brace isn't really much of a brace though, its just a little strap that is placed right below my knee to help alleviate pain in my knee. I think it should work out well.

Over and out!

Lo!

Biking hard!

Today was a cross training day for me, so no running, which I was okay with because my legs were tired from the hard work out yesterday. I made sure to bring a good movie, Pirates of the Caribbean! (I'm able to pop in a DVD and watch it while I'm working out on the cardio machines at my gym.) I ended up riding a half marathon, 13.1 miles, in 64 minutes! So I was biking along with a pretty good clip! I decided to not do much in the way of weights, so mainly focused on my abs and obliques. I'm exhausted from the work out, which is a good thing because I really pushed it! Over and out!

Lo!

Half goal time???

As of right now my half marathon mile pace (HMP) is 9:30:00, which puts my goal at just over 2 hours; 2:04:58. I'm hoping by the next month that I am able to drop that time down under two hours, with a much more reasonable pace time as well. If I can drop my HMP to 9:00:00, I can get finish in under two hours! That makes me very happy! So until then I need to continue training, and work on speed interval work outs more. Today I ran a 5k at a reasonable pace, but want to get it going faster in the next month. I then moved on to doing quite a bit of weight training; leg extensions, press, and curls - all done together and separately with each leg. I don't want to neglect my arms, so I made sure to do bicep curls, tricep extensions, vertical bench press, rowing machine, and seated bench press. Yes, you could say that my arms are tired right now. One other thing that I make sure to work on every time I work out is both my back (especially lower back) muscles, and abdominal & oblique muscles. Every runner must keep these muscles toned as well to help keep their posture while out on long runs. Off to go make some dinner!

Over and out!

Lo!

Training for the Half!

So I figured that I would dedicate a blog to my training for the half marathon. I'll mainly be posting either things that pertain to my workouts (to keep myself accountable), or things that might help anyone else out there training for a half marathon, or any other race. Most of my insight will come from Runners World.

This was in an article on how to train for your best half marathon, so here are a few things to help you out!

As with the original marathon plan, this program includes eight essential principles. They are:

One. You can follow it without a lot of hassle. Thanks to the relatively low mileage the plan requires, your risk of overtraining and burnout is lower. It's also a program that will teach you a solid, positive, life-long approach to running.
Two. You run just three days a week. And each run--speed, tempo, long--has a specific purpose. The speedwork makes you faster; the tempo run raises your lactate threshold, enabling you to hold a faster pace during the half; and the long run increases your endurance.
Three. You run a variety of speedwork: 400s, 800s, and 1600-meter repeats. And make no mistake about it: There is real speed in these speed sessions, so run them with a fast friend.
Four. You do your tempo run--from two miles to eight miles--at faster than normal training pace, or 15 seconds slower than your targeted half-marathon pace.
Five. You gradually build up your long run to 12 miles, not the 20 needed for the marathon. And you do those long runs at a slightly faster pace than you would do on a normal long run.
Six. You cross-train twice a week. Easily at first, but as you get more fit, you raise the intensity, which will make you fitter.
Seven. You're asked not to train or race through pain or a slew of missed workouts due to sickness or busy times at work. Pierce believes if outside forces keep you from training consistently, you should reschedule your race when you have time to train.
Eight. You taper for two weeks (not the three needed for the marathon). This will ensure that you step up to the starting line rested, injury-free, and ready to reach your goal time.

Picking Your Goal Time
Use your current race results to determine your half-marathon race pace, then check out the chart below to find your corresponding goal time. To find your half-marathon mile pace (HMP) and goal time, take either your…
1) Current 5-K mile pace and add 35 seconds per mile for your HMP and goal time
2) Current 10-K mile pace and add 20 seconds per mile for your HMP.
3) Current marathon mile pace and subtract 20 seconds per mile for your HMP.
Note: If you don't have a current PR for any of the above, simply go to the track or a well-marked flat trail or road and run three miles as fast as you can. Then use the corresponding formula from number 1 above to find your half-marathon per mile pace and goal time.

Well, I hope this helps you out! Over and out!

Lo!