Fuel SMART,Train HARD, Run FAST.

Progressive race pace workout

2mi wu

Progressive-ish 10k @ 6:49, 6:30, 6:15, 5:49, 6:49, 6:30, 5:00 (.2)

 1 mile cd

I wanted to touch on each race pace today and work my way down every mile (mp, hmp, 10k, 5k). I added on .10 (5:00min/mi) to calculate the last 5k  @  19:04.

I stepped off for about 1 min to peel off a layer and take a sip of drink. I decided to keep going because I felt good. I also wanted to see how easy returning to mp would feel . After a mile I felt relaxed, so I decided to drop down again to hmp for another mile. I was tempted to just do the whole workout another time around since I was half way through, but decided not to over do it since I'm racing a 10k on Thursday.  Decided to make it a 10k by adding another .10 (5:00) for 40:00.

I've been monitoring my sleep and HR lately. My resting HR has hung around 43 in the mornings. I caught up on some major sleep yesterday after not feeling too well, so that made a big difference today. 

As I showered I started to think of a new mantra. I always try to have one going into each season. I came up with ..."Sleep well, fuel strong, run fast®" New blog title, right there. I'm going to register it before someone steals it;) I even have a screen printer. Shirts are coming, maybe my own singlet... someone's proud of herself.

I started to incorporate daily running as a part of my kids chores when school got out. Yes, I make them do it. So far no serious griping. They don't have to be runners, but they need to have healthy habits. Why not start with running? Seems natural to me. I notice they walk more if I'm not outside, but if I join them they try to show off their skills. We make it fun and interesting by turning on the sprinklers. Up and down the street they go, sprinting through the sprinklers each time they pass. Usually the dog likes to join in, too.

Early run around town. Thinking through race strategies for race. Locked keys in car. Oh well, no where to go. Planning to stay inside and eat a lot of Otter Pups today. Otter Pops? Otterpops, Otterpups. Frozen sugar.

Great event today despite the teasing weather conditions. Lots of wind and rain. Ran out the door and ran to the starting line for a warm up. The rain stopped and the temps were around 70. Very humid, but not too bothersome. It was fun to see Kam and Angie at the start!

Angie pointed out Rosy Lee, we knew she would take it. I misplaced my Garmin yesterday so I decided to bag pace and go by feel. I hoped to get in the 18's today, but after reviewing the course and years past female winners, I knew 19's would be great today (Jasmine won it last year in 19:11). 

I started out pretty quick, almost a sprint but it didn't compare to some of the kids and a few women. I immediately had to go to the bathroom pretty bad, but reframed how grateful I am to not have that issue in longer distance races, so 20 mins to hold was fine and didn't hold me back.

The course runs up a significant hill in the first mile, second mile is rolling and some down, and third has some down and mostly flat with a short uphill near the finish. The net gain/loss was 0%, so the course was legit. I'm not sure of my splits but feel like my first was my slowest. I feel like my second and third miles were probably pretty even, but I certainly worked harder in the last mile especially with some headwind. I passed a girl around half way and was in 5th. I could see 3 ladies about 20 seconds ahead. Kam effortlessly passed by me here.

With 3/4 mi to go, I could see Angie and the others were closer. I counted about 15 seconds and knew I needed to make some ground at this point. I put my focus on Rosy in the (far) distance and ran hard. When I focused back on the pack, I realized I made some ground. At the second to last turn, I wondered if I was in range to catch up but ran out of time, even with a concerted kick. They kicked hard too and we finished 2nd-5th, within 8 seconds! Kam was even in that mix. Hats off to Angie, she outkicked us all!

The timing system was struggling from the start. I had to collaborate a little to figure out my time. I saw the timer at 19:24-26 when I crossed. The girl before me was about a second ahead, so that made it easy.  They never got the timing figured out  for the top 6 female runners, but it wasn't hard to figure out together. 1. Rosy Lee (?) 2. Angie Beebe 19:18 3. Kristen Barrus 19:22 4. High school girl 19:25 5. Tara 19:26.

 Afterwards I watched my daughter run the mile in 7:40. Carter ran the 800 in ~4 mins. Warmed down with Angie.

My placement isn't too exciting, but I am actually pretty happy with my time and effort today. I never checked out mentally and charged the last mile. This was my 3rd timed 5k in the past 5 days and I felt stronger today on a tougher course (although my TM was pretty nice:). I feel 5k's are my weak point, but I'm loving how short they are as well as recovery! 

Walked away with some good certificates totaling around $150.00. After awards ($10 certificate), nearly everyone had left.  I knew there were prizes in a drawing so I decided to send my family home and wait around. It was worth it. They started just handing out certificates from Big O Tire, Debores Running Store, food chains, etc.  Nice to get your money back and more for a 5k.

Happy 4th everyone! I'm off to watch Kelly Clarkson tonight at the Stadium of Fiarh-arh-arh!

6:00am- Tons of runners out on Davis this morning, even a BYU female runner- decked out in her uniform. I was tempted to turn around and run with her, but then remembered that would be weird.

4 miles easy on Davis followed by 2x2miles @ 6:56, 7:11, 6:38, 6:01. The first 2 miles were mostly rollers, aimed at mp effort. Jogged .5 inbetween. No plan for the second set, just wanted to go faster and take advantage of the downhill on the last mile. At one point I looked down and saw 4:54 pace. That made me feel EXTRA cool. 

Nice evening walk with family.

 2 mile warm-up

9x 1mile @ 6:22 each with <1/4mi jog in between

.5 cool down

Total 13.1 @ 1:29:07

* I actually lost count and thought I did 8 intervals by the end, but discovered otherwise from my Jawbone Up that I really did 9:) Even better! 

This was actually fun for me today. I had no expectations and figured I would stop either when I got tired or bored. I wasn't intending to run a half, but went into the workout thinking I would run a few cruise intervals from the pace calculator. I was supposed to hit between 6:13-6:22. I figured I would run as many as I felt like at the slower pace. I ended at 9 and realized with my warm-up included, I was hitting half marathon distance.

The 1st interval was the most uncomfortable. I played with the pace from 1:13 to 1:22 to see where I felt comfortable, so I guess the first was a little faster, but after settling on a pace, the rest felt nearly effortless for some reason. Maybe it was the Walmart energy brand drink? Lots of sweat. I was also happy to see that after finishing my last interval, my HR was only at 80% max:) I even felt I could do several more.

I don't know what was up with today. The only thing I can contribute is better sleep. The last two nights I have had 7.5 hrs/night. I can't remember the last time that has happened consecutively. I certainly felt the difference. I wonder what would happen if I ate good too:)

Several hours after the workout, I am pretty tired.

I really wanted to race in the Farmington Days half marathon today. I went back and fourth between the 10k and half all week. When it came down to it, I realized it would have been more stress trying to find a sitter that early in the morning, and I could just run on my own. I also knew I needed to get some downhill miles in.

I headed over to Gold's Gym after stopping down the street to watch a bike parade put on by the Primary in our ward.. Landon enjoyed running in the streets gathering candy. Then it started to rain really hard, so we packed up and continued our journey to the gym.

The daycare was only open for a limited time so I tried to make the time count. My 15 miler was out the window. I had no plan other than to run as much as I could for the time allowed @ -3%. My ipod was dead and only infomercials were on. After 3.5 miles I was extremely bored. I thought about quitting and doing weights instead, but decided to throw a tempo in the mix to make the time go by.

5miles @6:40, 6:10, 6:10, 600, 6:30=31:30

I wanted to start and end at goal mp and the middle miles around goal hmp (aided). I turned up the speed at the end of those middle miles to get 18:50 for a 5k, (.1@12mph) then returned to mp for the remaining .90.

I can tell I am making progress, the -3% grade really made this very doable without excessive effort. I hope I'm a little sore tomorrow, that means I worked some of those muscles for downhill prep:) I'm getting excited for Des News Half!

6:30 AM- Beautiful morning with good temps. I ran down to 400 E then changed my mind and decided to run up to BST. Took the trail North, then meandered back through the upper neighborhoods home. No music, just contemplation.

Afterwards I ran through a cycle of PT hip exercises with ankle weights and 300 crunches. 

 I have been inspired by Kam's blog to set a numerical goal in this training cycle. Since there are 10 training weeks left, it's only natural to go along with the 10 theme (or the such). 

10 marathon pace+ miles per week= 100 miles

1000 ab exercises per week=10,000

I'll keep count as I go for these, but I also have goals to do my PT hip exercises 2x week and include upperbody/ arms exercises. I need to tweak my gym a little downstairs to make it more ergonomic.

 300/10,000

Cross trained with my sister today who is visiting. We drove to the gym and visited for 45 mins while we went through the motions on the elliptical. Afterwards we spent the rest of the day eating homemade snocones while we watched our kids swim in the pool. Relaxing day:)

Great company this morning! Met up with Kam, Andy and Shantell on one of the trailheads to Legacy Trail. Everyone was warmed up already, I should have done the same. We decided to go into a progressive tempo with two out and back. Paces were 7:09, 7:00, 6:39 and 6:19. The first two were against a stronger headwind. The third was the easist and the last felt suprisingly comfortable, considering the pace. The pack mentality was so helpful. Looking back, I should have stayed within a tempo pace in the last mile. Next time. Maybe.

I need to get some more miles later tonight.

4/100

6:30am- Slow miles on Main.

I spent the day rearranging and moving out four rooms today from the moment I woke up till dinner, that I forgot to eat. I had all the time in the world it seemed since my run wasn't until later since I was pacing the Legacy Midnight Half.

 I drove up to Farmington to meet up with the pacing group and pick up my packet. We decorated ourselves in flashy glowsticks and took pictures. I was hoping to get a few miles in before the race started, but it ended up not working out that way.

The mosquitoes were out with a vengeance tonight! My legs and arms have the proof. We toed the line and off we went at 10:00. My pacing buddy was Kam. Matt joined last minute and we did well leapfrogging on pace as others lagged behind to encourage other runners. I can't remember the last time I ran that late. It felt like we were running in pace the entire night. We stopped at each aid station and soaked in as much fluid as we would. The temps were warm with occasional cool breezes. The smells were atrocious and the cow pie was plenty. Where were all these cows coming from?! At one point we turned off our lamps to appreciate the moonlight. That didn't last long since we seemed to be stepping in mountains of cow dung. Is that okay to say on here?

We creeped up to the finish line a little early with 1:30 to spare since the course was measuring short. I turned around and drug in another 4 runners while the other men were pulling runners in as well. I then crossed the line in 1:50:09. All runners received flashing metals and a tech T. Along with fruit and Fat Boy ice cream, they had cotton candy with flashing sticks. 

This was a fun race to pace, but It was actually more taxing than I anticipated. The late run combined with nearly a clean stomach left me lifeless towards the later half. I thought a GU would make up for it, but it only gave me a serious case of gu gut by mile 2. That eventually dissipated by mile 5-6. The miles seemed to drag and so did my body. Tired. Drove home and showered then crashed in bed with a continuation of gu gut and exhaustion till I passed out. I can't imagine running a race today. Walter was likely the last one to leave and still had to drive back to West Jordan for the night before waking up to run a 5k Saturday morning for the circuit. Crazy.

Good luck to all those racing! 

17/100

Easy miles with some 400's at hmp.

The Deseret News Classic was stacked in all fields today. I knew that would be the case coming in. There was no way I was going to be challenging the podium today. I also knew with this sort of competition, the pace would be pushed and that's what I needed.

Woke up at 3:05am and found my Garmin dead on the charger. Oh the Garmin issues! Strapped on a cheap chrono watch and made my way to Eccles Stadium by 3:50. The start was colder than I anticipated for the 90+ minute wait, so I found a bare spot to tuck my entire body into my shirt and waited it out.  I ran a quick mile to warm up. I wanted to make sure I got my breathing a bit challenged before the race since it was going to be fast for the first two miles.

The gun went off and we all took off like bandits! For the first two miles I was planning around 5:50, according to the course tool. I was glad to have some sort of a watch to keep track. Too bad the mile markers weren't all marked and too bad my watch also died! Curse words. This is definitely the first distance race I have raced without consistent mile markers and a watch combined. I ran completely by feel and it was somewhat unnerving, if I'm being honest. The good news is that although I felt challenged from the get go, I felt comfortably challenged. I was in 5th place from the start, it lasted for most of the race but didn't last to the end. Kassi, Emily, and Tee were way ahead. I worked with a couple BYU girls, but eventually passed them until later.

Around mile 6 a girl passed me and Angie caught up somewhere in here. I felt like I was slipping on pace so I turned it up and got back into place. It started to get warm and I found myself really wanting more than 1/2 cup of water. I felt so dumb as I reached for one as another guy was. The cup tipped over and he went without a drink. He was not happy about it and had some words for me. I profusely apologized and gave him the rest of my water. That meant gu gut was a guarantee since I had just taken my first GU with a small sip of water to last for the  next 3-4 miles.  It came and went as soon as I approached mile 9ish. I kept my focus elsewhere and it seemed to help.

The long stretches of hills were bigger than I thought they would be, but I covered them well, I thought. I found a sprinkler and drenched myself.  It was getting pretty warm and my mouth was so dry. Despite the regular discomforts, I was feeling pretty good up until mile 10. This was partly because I thought we were on mile 11. I had mentally prepared myself to push for ~13 more mins. Adding another 6+ seemed to directly hit me.

The last mile to the finish was just brutal.The two BYU girls passed me and then Angie in the last 1/4 mile. That was bound to happen since my VO2max was on borrowed time at that point. My form and breathing were embarrassing around this time. Then my vision became blurred out of no where. It was just so strange. I ran into a kid, but I think he was in the way. Kids reached out for high fives but I missed them all. I could hear them all moan, "awe." 

After the finish, my vision became worse. It felt like my eyes were rolling around in my head. When I tried to focus, everything went in and out of view. It was like I was in some sort of dream or had taken some sort of hallucinogen. So I slid into some shade near the medical tent and crouched down on the grass and get my head  on the ground. I guess I looked like a piece of work. I began vomiting and was placed on a stretcher in the medical tent. Next thing I knew I had an IV in my arm. I thought that was a bit much but it actually was very helpful. Anyway, an hour of drama in the tent, I was out. Apparently I was the only wuss today. The tent was empty.

I am so glad I felt crappy after the race and not during, because I really felt well for the majority of the race and feel like I did the very best I could. I'm not sure why I felt so sick afterwards, but I am so grateful to the kind volunteers who took time out of their holiday to pop my blisters:) and give aid.

Such an exhausting and exciting day today. I loved seeing so many friends and fellow FRB'ers. I am so thrilled for today's winners and those who placed, and even PR'd. Such great examples and inspirations! 

I slept in till 9 today and it felt so nice! Then I took a 2 hour nap later in the day with my toddler. So lazy, but feeling so good now. I have a small toy soldier walk when I first get up, but overall my legs are not bad at all. Tomorrow will be the real test since that's usually when it's the worst. I really expected not to walk for the next several days. The last two downhill halfs really ripped up my legs, so I'm surprised. Makes me wonder if I didn't push the hills enough or something. Who knows, maybe my hilly routes have paid off. Cross training tomorrow and a small run on Saturday. I think I might be ready to go by Monday.

 Easy three around town as I ran errands with the stroller. Tight hammys.

5:00AM- TEMPO TUESDAY!  Ran a couple miles on the TM, including one at mp. Drove down to Pages Lane to meet up with Jasamine, Shantell, Kam and Andy. We ran 3.1 miles out and back on the trail for some mp miles. Some watch issues, ~6:50 AP. Feeling beat.

24/100

Cross train... aka clean out the storage room and 40 push ups:)