Making A New Ending

I don't think I've given a weekly training recap since I was training for the Chicago Marathon way back when.  And now that I'm training for another, I suppose I should be recapping my weeks.  As of now, I'm pretty sure my goal race is the Cincinnati Flying Pig Marathon in May.  I haven't registered yet though, so that could change...but either way, a spring marathon.  So we'll call this past week my official first week of training.

Monday - 4 miles

Tuesday - 4.25 miles

Wednesday - 2 miles

Thursday - OFF

Friday - 4 miles

Saturday - 10 miles

Sunday - OFF

Total - 24 miles

I also did a decent amount of weight training and core work, but I'm gonna stick to just recapping the running and cross training.

As for this week, I'm not going to make a specific plan again.  I will still be using the week as a rebuilding/getting back into running regularly week.  And hopefully no more polar vortex so that I can run outside more than on the treadmill.

AND I'll be in Phoenix next Friday - Tuesday!!  So I'm not exactly sure what our agenda will be like and how much running I'll get in.  But hopefully some, considering I'll be there with a bunch of former UDXC girls :)

I'd say my goals for this week are:

30 miles, with another 10 mile run

some cross training, like a spinning class or 2

continue weight training and core work

I want to make more of a set schedule week by week, but for now it is nice to just run as I feel.  Although I am kinda stressed out that I feel so out of shape.  It will come back eventually though, and I had a good 10 mile run on Saturday.

And for a little motivation to start the week:

I can't change what has been done over the last week, but can always keep improving to make a better ending.

What are your goals for the week?

My Current Half Marathon "Plan"

I can't really do a running recap of last week because I only ran one day - 6.2 miles on Tuesday.  There are 8 weeks until the Phoenix Half Marathon so I'm not overly concerned, but I know that now is the time to get going.

I made up a plan for myself, but we all know how I am terrible at actually following plans, so I came up with a new idea.  It won't matter what day I get these workouts in, as long as I get them in.  Actually, it's not that new of an idea because I kind of did that during Chicago Marathon training too, doing long runs during the week after work and doing two 20 miles runs within 6 days of each other, and doing more speed workouts whenever Mac was available.

For the next 8 weeks I want to make sure I get in 5 runs a week, broken out like this:

1 normal (~8 minute pace) run of 5-7 miles

1 normal (~8 minute pace) run of 7-9 miles

1 long run of 10-15 miles

1 tempo (~7:15 pace) run of 5-8 miles

1 speed workout or tempo run

This would give me at least 30 miles a week, hopefully closer to 40.  I have a few good speed/tempo workout options I found that are geared more specifically to training for a half marathon.  I'll plan to share those with you this week.

I think this plan will work for me for a few reasons:

• I never really know how I'll be feeling each day on the treadmill so if one day I'm feeling awesome, I'll just go with it and do a tempo run or higher mileage.  And on another day if I feel like crap/am super unmotivated, I will first try to put on my very best pump-up songs, but if that doesn't work, I'll just have it be a normal day.  I'll just need to hope that I'm feeling great 2 days a week...or that we have a really mild winter so I can go outside.
• The holidays are a busy time with lots of parties and events on weekends and other nights during the week, so I'll just fit in runs when I can.

(photo from Pinterest)

This weekend I had the opportunity to meet a new blog friend in person!  Katie from Peace, Love, & Oats is a healthy living blogger who lives in Chicago.  My cousin Erin reads Katie's blog regularly, recognized her out at lunch one day and told me I should get in contact with her.  I emailed Katie and we set up a meeting at Starbucks yesterday where we chatted and enjoyed hot drinks on such a cold day!  Katie and I have a ton in common and she is running the Phoenix Rock 'N Roll Half Marathon also!  I'm looking forward to joining the Chicago Healthy Living Bloggers group for their next book club meeting in a few weeks  :)

And that means I need to get started on reading the book!  And it's perfect timing since I finished Caught this weekend.  The book for this month is Me Before You by Jojo Moyes.

 (photo from Goodreads)

Katie said she just finished it and really liked it.  Then, as I was doing some blog reading this morning, I saw that Meghann from Meals and Miles and her book club read it this past month and she also liked it a lot.  I suppose this will be the perfect week to start a new book while I have a few days off work!  I just started actively using the Goodreads website and app because I want to start reading a lot more.  It's a lot of fun to see what books my friends have read and what they want to read and to keep track of my own books.

This week shouldn't be too hard to get my runs in.  I'll be running with my friend Dave tomorrow evening after work, the Edison Park Turkey Trot 5k with Catherine on Thanksgiving, and the Schaumburg Half Marathon Turkey Trot on Saturday.  Then I'll just have to fill in a few other runs and I'll be good to go!  Easier said than done of course though.  I hope to come back to you tomorrow with a great run to talk about...or any run to talk about at this point, doesn't even have to be great.

Do you have a turkey trot on the schedule this week?

What is your favorite Starbucks drink?  I go with the white chocolate mocha usually, but right now it's all about the Gingerbread Lattes.  I know I said in my "No Spend November" post that I was going to try to cut out the Starbucks, but really that is just for during the workweek when I can easily get free coffee at work.

bRUNch + Weekly Training Recap

Catherine and I put a long run + brunch on our calendars a long time ago.  We each had fall marathons and then wanted to plan this to keep us running and for an excuse to go to brunch, because breakfast food is easily the best kind of food.

I decided to call it a bRUNch.  Get it?  I really crack myself up, like a lot.  I hope you find me as funny as I find myself, but if not, that's ok.

The first part of the bRUNch was the RUN.  We started at my apartment and ran to the lakefront trail and then north until we got to Montrose Harbor - to a park where we actually had a cross country meet in high school.  We turned around and headed the same way back, a little faster since we were with the wind now.  Our run ended up at 9.3 miles - not sure what time we were at because I didn't bring a watch.

Catherine and I had a whole list of things to talk about/catch up on during our run, so I'm glad we finally had a chance to do that.  Another thing that was awesome was the weather.  It seemed like it was that awkward in-between temperature when you don't really know if you should wear long sleeves or not or wear shorts or capris.  We each wore long sleeves, but ended up shedding that layer - short sleeves in November!

And the second half of the bRUNch was of course, the brunch.  Our plan was to go to either Toast or Ann Sather's, but we ended up at Nookies due to a long wait at Toast and the fact that Nookies was right down the street.  However, bRUNch will be a once a month occurrence from now on, so all of the best Chicago brunch places will be visited at some point soon I'm sure.

We each ordered the same thing - scrambled eggs with hash browns, bacon, cheese, and peppers.  Catherine's was without bacon though, something I'll never understand.  I can understand if people don't get bacon on something because they are being more health-conscious and bacon is very fatty, but to not like the taste of bacon is just wild to me.

My workouts last week:

Monday -6.65 mile run

Tuesday - 6 mile progression run

Wednesday - weights

Thursday - rest

Friday - weights

Saturday - 9.3 mile run

Sunday -  rest

Total Mileage =22 miles

I did weights twice last week, so that was good.  BUT I need to be running more than 3 days a week.  So my goal for this week is to do weights on Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday. (I'll be visiting Anne in Denver on Friday/ this weekend!)  And then to hit at least 30 miles for the week, which shouldn't be too difficult, it's just making myself do all my runs!

Do you like bacon?

What was your training like last week?

Half Marathon Training & A Birthday!

It has started.  Colleen's PR half marathon training.  My current half marathon PR is 1:37:10.  I set that in October of 2008 at the Columbus Half Marathon.  I actually have no idea how I ran that fast (I even just went back to my running2win training log and looked and it was pretty weak compared to what I know I could do), but I had good company to run it with and just wanted to stay with them, so I imagine that was how.

Anyways, that's the past.  And now I'm going to beat that time at the Rock 'N Roll Phoenix Half Marathon.  That is the goal at least.  I know some races just don't go well, but my goal is to train hard for the next 11 weeks and then run super fast there with Liz (while Molly runs the full and Emma and Brigitte cheer us on!)

I don't have a super specific time goal, but I know I want to PR.  It's been over 5 years since I ran that half marathon time; I think it's overdue.  I came really close in the North Shore Half Marathon this past June - only 29 seconds off - and that course had a monstrous hill right in the middle of it.  I think I should be able to run under a 1:35.  I really have no idea what the course in Phoenix is like, but hopefully it's favorable!  Since I like to show tweets, here's one I liked from my UD friend Lauren who rocked the NYC Marathon this weekend:

It's so true that the course can really impact how you run - the terrain, the scenery, the spectators, the elevation change, etc.  A lot can happen over 26.2 miles.

But back to focusing on the half marathon for now.  I made up a training plan.  And I'm going to follow it as best as I can.  Realistically who knows what will happen with it getting cold and the holidays, but I guess that's where my friend the treadmill comes in.  We are not actually friends.

Here's what I did last week:

Monday - 5.75 mile run

Tuesday - 1 mile warm-up; free weights

Wednesday -  5.3 mile run in the rain

And then I didn't work out Thursday through Sunday...
Total Mileage = ~12 miles

So...the week started off strong, but then I fell off the horse.  But that's OK since it was just my first week really coming back to running since the Chicago Marathon.

Here's my plan for this week:

Monday -6 miles + core work + arm work
(I haven't done this yet, so I have a busy night ahead...plus the Bears/Packers game)

Tuesday -8 miles - 1 mile easy; 6 miles cut-down 10 seconds per mile starting at marathon pace; 1 mile easy

Wednesday -  6 miles + core work + arm work

Thursday - REST
(Maybe I'll do a short workout at lunch, but I'm having margaritas and sushi with Stephanie - we are very cultural - Wednesday night, so a Thursday morning workout is highly unlikely.  And then Thursday night is the Old St. Pat's Crossroads Runners post-marathon party!)

Friday - 5 miles - 1 mile easy; 3 miles race pace; 1 mile easy + core work

Saturday - 10 miles + core work

Sunday -  REST
(Christina's birthday party is Saturday night.  And then Bears game tailgating/watching on Sunday, so a workout is unlikely.  So obviously I'm scheduling my rest days around my social calendar.)

Here's what I'm gonna try to go with for my training paces:

Normal run: 8:00 pace

Marathon pace: 7:30 - My actual Chicago Marathon pace averaged to 7:45, but I held right around 7:30-7:35 for 18 miles, so I'm gonna try to aim for 7:30 as my marathon pace for training purposes

Race pace: 7:10

Easy: anywhere from 8:00 - 8:45 - I usually don't like to go slower than that, but I am also learning the value of pace variety in training instead of running 8 minute pace all the time.

And speaking of Christina's birthday, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to one of my most loyal readers (and friends)!!!!!!!!!

Since I was so busy writing about Chicago Marathon stuff recently, I don't think I wrote about the fact that about 2 weeks ago, Christina, Jim, Emily, and I went to the Bon Jovi concert as Jim's birthday present to Christina!  The concert was a lot of fun and I knew way more songs than I thought I would.  Basically I thought I'd only know Livin' on a Prayer.  I really do love birthdays, especially mine, but also other peoples' so I can't wait to celebrate with Christina!

What is your longest-standing PR?

If you could go to any concert right now, what would it be? 

Week 4 Recap and Week 5 Plan

I'm not even going to do a real week 4 recap because (a) I don't have access to my Excel file with my plan (and won't for about 2 weeks - but I'll probably make a new make-shift one for now) and (b) there were extenuating circumstances throughout most of last week that caused me to not run at all Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday.  I had a decent run on Monday which I wrote a bit about right after the run but never got around to posting it.  Maybe I will add to it after tomorrow's normal run and then post about both.  Thursday and Sunday I did races, which went as expected and Saturday I did the 10.5 mile long run.  So all the runs I did were good, but I also took 3 days off which was more than I would've liked and felt very exhausted all week.  I finished the week with 29 miles, so for 4 days I'd say that's decent.  If I would've gotten in the extra 1-2 days of running I definitely would've hit 35-40.  So it really was a true step back week and now I need to step it up.

Here's the plan I came up with for this week.  Once again, I don't even know what my original plan had, but I think it might even be better if I just make my plans week by week anyways.  I do already have my long run mileage figured out for each weekend leading up to the marathon, but the other days maybe I'll just go by how I feel each week as it comes.

If I do all these runs, that would put me at 45-50 miles which would be pretty high for what I have been doing the last couple weeks.  I put the long run on Thursday because as of now I am planning to visit Kristin and Tim in Cincinnati this weekend.  I am sure we would go out on Friday night and not be in long-run condition Saturday morning and I also don't want to do a long run there by myself (on hills) or risk not doing it at all.  I think I can convince Kristin to at least do a normal run with me ;)  So, goal is to do the long run Thursday evening.  I think I'll go to the Elk Grove Forest Preserve where there is an 8.3 mile loop and just go for it twice.  My plan for tomorrow actually is to go there and do 1 loop.  I just hope it isn't TOO hot in the evening.  I do imagine I'll ending making Friday a rest day so I can sleep in before driving to Cincy and being active all weekend, but maybe I'll have more energy this week and really want to get in another run.

Mac was talking about meeting up to do the Yasso 800s on a track this week and I said Tuesday would be the perfect night for me to do them.  Not sure yet if he'll be able to, otherwise I will plan to go and try to do them myself.  I've never done the Yasso 800s before and am a little nervous for them, but especially after today's 5K race I know that some speed training would really help me right now.  In case you were wondering what the Yasso 800s even are, I will post about them after I actually do the workout but in the meantime you can Google if you are super curious.

And now since this has been all boring running talk, I did at least do a few fun things besides run this weekend.  My favorite was after Saturday morning's long run, I met Steph and Catherine for brunch at Honey n' Jam in Lincoln Park.  I hadn't been there before but I would definitely recommend it.  I love all breakfast food though so I'd really recommend going for brunch anywhere, anytime.  Catherine and I had both done long runs that morning so after brunch we decided to go for a little walk to stretch out and talk.  Then I walked home...so much walking...but I stopped and treated myself to ice cream on the way.

So I leave you with a nice picture of my omelet (with bacon, cheese, and onion), potatoes, and toast.  What a great post-long run meal.

Do you like to plan out your days/weeks way ahead of time or just do what you feel?

Week 3 Recap and Week 4 Plan

Here is my recap of Week 3:



I think I need to figure out how to make my recap/plan show up a little bigger.  Or just stick to it exactly so that I can just say that it was perfect and not show all the variance.  I'm going to consider last week an exception to my normal routine though so I'm OK with it.  I didn't do any core or strength training either.  I actually did feel like I was "stronger" on my run yesterday during The Joe.  Maybe that's because I had just done the long run and could feel every muscle.  Luckily, it wasn't a feeling of soreness, but just a definite feeling that my muscles are working hard.

This week is also going to be a little varied because of the holiday and some 4th of July races.  So here is the plan I came up with for Week 4:



I was talked into registering for the 4 on the 4th race this week, so I think that will at least be a good way to get in a solid 4 mile fast run.  Catherine and Matt will probably register as well, and of course we will dress festively in Red, White, and Blue.  Holiday races are the best kind.  I was already planning to do the Arlington Heights Stampede Run 5K on Sunday so I guess that means racing twice this week.  It's a great course and a lot of family members do it or come out to cheer each year.  Here's a picture from 2 summers ago...the Smith family just loves running.

So I guess some general goals for the week will be:

• 40 running miles.  I haven't hit this yet in the past few weeks because I've pretty much only been running 5 days a week.  I'd really like to make sure I get in 6 days this week.  The race days will be lower mileage, and the long run is only 12 miles, but I this plan for the week would put me at 42 miles.


• Get in core and arm weight workouts.


• Run each of the races under 7 minute pace.  I think I can do closer to 6:45, but we'll see.  As long as I'm under 7 I think I'll be happy.


• Celebrate America.  Besides Christmas, this is my favorite holiday.  I imagine after the race, I will go to the parade and then to the pool all day.  Luckily, it looks like we will have good weather finally.

What is your favorite thing to do for 4th of July?

Week 2 Recap and Week 3 Plan

Here is an overview of how Week 2 of training went:



Even though the mileage was a little less again that I want to try to run, I was OK with how the week went.  I keep looking back to compare each of these weeks to how many miles and what type of runs I was doing before the Columbus Marathon in 2010 and I'm running considerably more than I was then.  I only had 5 runs over 10 miles the entire time I was training for that marathon (2 of which were the 19 and 20 mile runs), so as long as I get a long run in each week, I think I'll be happy that I'm in a better place than I was then.  I do still want to really try to get the rest of the weekly mileage up though and get that speed workout in each week because that should hopefully help improve my time.

I was frustrated the tempo run didn't go quite according to plan, but it was still a hard workout and better for me than just doing a normal run I guess.  I did a decent amount of core work last week and I could tell that is helping already.  I'll give a recap of Friday's long run and the rest of the wedding weekend in another post later  :)

And here is the plan for Week 3:



I already missed Monday...I was so tired from the weekend that I couldn't get up early Monday morning, and it just didn't happen after work.  I also didn't run this morning (Tuesday), but I definitely plan to after work - just hoping the rain holds off or maybe I'll suck it up and use the treadmill.

I'd like to hit 40 miles this week.  I will have to run on Sunday (at The 2nd Annual Joe Marathon!!) to make up for not running Monday, so that will hopefully work out nicely.  I'm also thinking Wednesday's workout will be better than last week's since I will take a short break between each mile at tempo pace.

Week 1 Recap and Week 2 Plan

Week 1 Recap:



Week 1 ended up being a little less mileage than planned, mainly due to the triathlon.  It's still early though, and I'm still running more than I was at this time of year while training for the Columbus Marathon.  And even though the triathlon wasn't all running, it was still about 1 hour and 38 minutes of physical activity, with 3 good miles of running after I was already worn out, so that should be good for endurance.  I'll write about the triathlon in a separate post later...with pictures too.

Here is the plan for Week 2:



My goal for this week is going to be to do more of the core and weight training.  I didn't make it past Monday and Tuesday with it last week.  I'm going to have to do my long run after work on Friday so I had to change the schedule around slightly.  Michael said he would run with me Saturday morning, but not a long run...and not quite sure I'll actually be able to convince him to do any run, but I'll try.  It would be nice to get a good run in before all the
cake eating and champagne/cocktail drinkingwedding festivities of the day!  :)

Official Training Days 1 and 2

Plan for the week:



This was taken from the plan that I made based off some plans I looked at online and the plan from Coach Brendan, who will be coaching the Crossroads Runners.  I plan to meet up with that group on some Saturdays for long runs.  I made a plan for the entire 18 weeks, but I am pretty sure I will alter it depending on how each week goes (I already haven't stuck it to exactly).  My main focus will be making sure I get the long run in on the weekend and doing enough mileage the other 4-5 days of running to get 40 miles a week at the very least.

Angela also sent me a plan she will follow that includes a lot of core work (M,W,F) and weight training (T,Th) in addition to running and cross training.  She said she'll focus on core and weight training a lot in these first couple weeks and then cut back on that when mileage gets a bit higher.  I think that's a good idea so I'm going to try to get those workouts in also.

So here's the runs I did yesterday and today.  I just use www.mapmyrun.com and I never know quite how accurate they are, etc. but I try to be somewhat conservative with it.  Maybe I'll get a Garmin eventually.

Monday - 6.8 miles in 52:10 (~7:40 pace).  I went after work because I was so tired from the weekend to get up early.  There was crazy fog by the lake.  I thought I was going to get hit by a biker because you could not see far distances in it.  I ended my run at Xsport to do my first core workout.  I definitely could not do all of the exercises.  And I had no idea what some that were listed were, so I just did a plank or other type of sit-up/crunch as a replacement for those.

Tuesday - 7 miles in 55:25 (~7:55 pace).  Did this run in the morning...nothing too exciting.  I was sore.  Then after work I went to the fitness center in my work building for first time.  Here there are on a post-it I took to the gym with me:

The fitness center has very nice equipment!  All of the arm exercises I did used free weights so that was easy, but there was a ton of other nice equipment I will try to use too!