Today was an interval day, and I’d been worried about how I was going to complete my intervals down here in MA where there’s so much traffic and so many hills. How could I guarantee I wouldn’t stop at a light during my 800 meter repeat? Or hit a huge incline and have to alter my workout?
Oh wait… I know… pick me. I COULD RUN ON THE TRACK.
I guess that’s why they call them TRACK REPEATS.
I get it.
We live about a mile from a track that’s open to residents of our town, so I headed over after camp drop off and did 6 repeats of 800 meters each, aiming for 8:47 pace. It was great to have a visual mark for how much further I had to go, because once I settled into my pace, I knew I just had to make it two laps around the track and I’d get 90 seconds off. I also liked being able to leave water on the bench rather than carrying it with me while I ran.
I won’t say it was a breeze to complete each interval, but they felt like the right combination of difficult yet do-able.
I ran my first successful tempo run this morning! Tempo runs are mentally challenging for me because unlike interval runs, where I push hard then stop, or long runs, where I run a long time but at an easy pace, I have to combine the hardest parts of both and maintain a slightly uncomfortable effort without any break.
My training plan had me running a mile easy, 3 miles at 9:34 pace, and another mile easy. I got some exciting family news this morning that caused me to head out a little fast, and my warm up mile was under 10 minute pace… but I still managed to keep every mile under my target pace, by about 10 seconds. (I just kept settling in around 9:25 pace.)
I’m feeling relieved – I knew if I had trouble completing my third tempo run, it’d mean I would have to start thinking seriously about adjusting my training plan. I didn’t really want to do that since I’m enjoying my intervals and long runs, and wouldn’t really know where to start to make it more manageable without sacrificing training. I don’t know how to make a training plan that hits that sweet spot where it’s challenging enough for maximum improvement without injury or failure. That’s why I picked up the book in the first place!
Looks like I am still in this.
Now, I just have to make it through 10 miles easy on Friday!
I’m less worried about that than I am about getting my runs completed once I return home from Maine. Here I have two amazing grandmothers helping with my boys so I can go run. Once I’m home, I’ll need to run and get back in time for Greg to get ready for work. That means up early, and it means I’ll need to go to bed early and sacrifice time with Greg after the boys go to sleep, and subject him to my 5 a.m. alarms… neither of which seems really fair to him. On Wednesdays for two weeks they’re in camp from 9-12 so I could treadmill it then… or run outside if it’s not hot… but that’s only one day out of three running days.
I hope we can make it work in a way that WORKS… rather than feeling like we’re both exhausted or sacrificing way too much time.
I’ve put a lot of heart into the pavement up here in Maine… I want to build on it and make it through this training for a fantastic race in October!
In the meantime, I’ve got some more beautiful Maine runs left!
Wednesday mornings are Mimi mornings!I stole Will’s headphones to distract me from my effort during the tempo miles.Loving Maine!
Being up in Maine near family is fantastic, because my mother and mother-in-law have been watching the boys in the breakfast hours so I can go for my runs. They’re not short runs, either. The Run Less, Run Faster half marathon plan has me running about an hour and fifteen minutes for each of my two short runs this week, and longer for my long run. Add in a stretch, a shower, and the time it takes before leaving to disengage myself from my gorgeously captivating coffee children, and it’s like a two hour commitment. I will miss having help from family when I’m back in Massachusetts trying to squeeze a run in before Greg leaves for work, or running in the heat because no babysitter is coming at 7 a.m. for me!
In just over a week, I’ve already gotten 4 runs in up in Maine, totaling over 25 miles. Here’s what I’ve learned about running in Maine.
Scenic, small roads: They’re windy, they’re gorgeous, there are trees on either side and cute little antique cars parked out front, and you almost never see another car or pedestrian. Perfect… except….
Deer Flies: The more scenic, remote, and wooded an area is… the more deer flies. Do not take that adorable, recently paved for lake-goers road that meanders through wood and vale unless you are COVERED IN BUG REPELLANT. That said, grab the bug repellant and go for it. You’re going to go home and shower anyway, so lay on the sunscreen while you’re at it.
Dogs: Those nice scenic roads out in the middle of nowhere probably don’t get very many pedestrians or non-local traffic. So it’s pretty safe… for dogs. At least that’s what some dog owners seem to think, because I’ve had two encounters with dogs so far in Maine who weren’t on leashes or the invisible fence. Friendly? Luckily. Disconcerting? YES. I did some reading after my first scare, and the most common advice I saw was to stop and stand still if a dog comes after you. Don’t give them anything interesting to chase! If you’re actually attacked, lie in the fetal position face down to protect your face and torso. Don’t stare or act aggressive, that could make a threatened dog MORE likely to attack. I never worried about dogs in Massachusetts, where population density makes it more necessary for everyone to have their dogs safely confined to their yards. (Greg has had some issues with unleashed dogs and ambivalent owners on trails, but that’s another story.)
A truck coming at me during my cool down.
Major Roadways:
Some benefits of running on major routes: I never thought I’d be the type to run in the breakdown lane of a major route with a 50 mile per hour speed limit, but it has some benefits. The road is long, without many street lights or intersections that require stopping or watching for turning traffic. There are many fewer bugs than you find on side streets. Out and back runs are easy ways to run for miles without getting lost in a new destination. I’m more likely to have cell phone reception than on a back road in Maine. If I did get in trouble and didn’t have cell phone reception, there are a lot of people driving by that I could hopefully flag down.
Hazards: There are some BIG trucks going by, and they go FAST. The breakdown lanes are pretty large, and I tend to hop off the tarmac onto the grassy area when a large truck is coming, but it’s still disconcerting. Twice I’ve had my hat blown off my head from the draft following a large truck. (The draft comes about 5 seconds after the truck has actually passed you, that’s when you want to tilt your head down or grab your hat with one hand.) I sometimes worry that someone will try to pass a left-turning car by going into the breakdown lane, and I won’t see them coming in time. I also worry when there’s a guard rail, which would make it harder for me to jump out of a cars way. These fears have been reduced by wearing bright colors, and by watching traffic carefully. The cars are going fast, but I have great visibility running opposite traffic, and I can easily get over if someone is turning or a large truck is coming. Break down lanes are wide. People turning out of driveways or off side streets are extremely rare (which is how I’ve come closest to being hit by a car in Massachusetts). So I’m going to keep holding onto my hat with one hand, and running Route 25 West until I hit the Limington Rapids. Ahhh, gorgeous.
Went for a gorgeous Saturday morning run with six other moms in the local mother’s forum running group – it’s amazing how much I love it every time I go.
We split into two pace groups and when my pace group turned back at 1.5 miles to do 3 total, I followed the other group to do the 4 mile loop, running 2.5 miles alone but getting to talk before and after the run and running at both a comfortable and a challenging pace. What could be better?
Greg and I have done only a few of the T25 workouts because I went all in on the first one and injured my calves – couldn’t run for three days. The modifications are there for a reason – if you’re hurting, use them, especially on the first week!
What I LOVE is the feeling I get when I am out of bed, exercised, and showered before dealing with small children who want breakfast. I also love the “my body worked” feeling all day. More than how this might increase my strength long term, I love how I feel short term the days that we get up and do it.
This week should be our first full week starting Monday, and I will be careful to do modifications when my muscles start to burn, so that I work as hard as I can without jeopardizing my ability to work hard again the next day.
It’s in the forties today and some of the snow and ice is melting… Time to start planning for spring races and looking forward to playground weather!!!
Some of our sidewalks are literally sheer ice… no wonder workout videos have been so appealing.
We spent last week in Grand Cayman, soaking up the bright sun and gorgeous turquoise waters of the Caribbean. Besides being an amazingly gorgeous island with great weather, amazing beaches and good snorkeling, it’s a great island for running, too. I braved the heat and humidity for a (slow!) seven mile run, with a nice long break in the middle to send post-cards from Hell!
One main road follows the coast for much of the island, and running parallel to seven mile beach there were sidewalks for miles and plenty of grocery and convenience stores where you could find a restroom and fill your water bottle.
I ran to “Hell”, a natural rock formation that’s become a Grand Cayman tourist attraction, and back to our hotel. Greg continued on and looped around Barker’s National Park, which was gorgeous, but didn’t have great access to water.
Beyond that run, most of the running I did was up and down the beach to the place that rented paddle-boards 🙂 Not such a bad thing…
3 generations, seriously loving the paddle board 🙂
Where’s the coolest place you’ve run?
I mailed myself a congratulatory post-card from Hell. I’m such a dork 🙂
