stats

It's the end of the month, so I was looking at my stats for the year so far. I've logged 611 miles in 2005. I've run between 15 - 21 days per month (15 in April since I took time off after Boston) and my average distance per run has steadily increased.

Jan: 18 days - avg 4.07
Feb: 19 days - avg. 4.13
Mar: 21 days - avg. 4.87
Apr: 15 days - avg 5.77 (nearly a week off after boston)
May: 20 days - avg. 6.29

Today was supposed to be my 'marathon dress rehearsal' - one mile warm-up, then 4 at MP, then a cool down. I thought a 7.7 mph pace on the treadmill was about 8:08, but it turns out it was sub-8. So my 4 miles were closer to half-marathon pace than full. But it felt ok, so that's a good thing!

excited!!

I read the RunnersWorld forums alot, and it seems over and over people who run two marathons in quick succession (6-8 weeks) do really well the 2nd time. I guess it's true that you've got very strong training behind you. I'm getting pretty excited about SunBurst next weekend - I've been telling myself I want to run 3:35, but maybe -- just maybe -- I can kick it up a bit more than that? Last year a 3:40 would have placed me in the top 10 for females, and b/c there is a turn-around at mile 16.5, I'll be able to see how I'm faring. Should be good!

knee pain...

I played softball with Lisa Miller yesterday, and she asked how running was going. I was planning to run the SunBurst marathon on the 4th. She declared "you're getting as bad as me!" To which I adamantly said "no I'm not!"

But the thing is, maybe I am. Not just in terms of striving to run another marathon on the heels of my last one, but because I'm pushing myself. My knee started really bothering me after the 18 miler. I actually think it could be a result of that 18 miler, and then my sprinting in softball (in new cleats!) a few hours later. Whatever the reason, I ran 18 miles last Sunday, and then 20 miles in total over the whole next week. (4 Tues, 6 Friday, 10 Saturday). I'm trying not to psych myself out - after all, I was pretty darned sore leading into Columbus, with a sore hip, creky toes and ankles, and some intermittent shin splints, and I did just fine. I just do NOT want to compromise my long term health or ability to run.

I went out today on a slooooow run with my heart rte monitor, and near the end of it my knee started to feel a little stiff. Not too bad, however. I just know I will monitor it, because I would rather lower my mileage now and feel fresh for the race, than continue to strain. I'm already eyeing the calendar and thinknig that it is only 18 weeks from Sunburst to Towpath or Chicago, so I can't afford to be injured after SunBurst either. I just need to stay healthy and strong, and let things look after themselves.

Heart Rate Training for the Compleat Idiot

Today was my first day at 'heart rate training'. I've been reading "heart rate training for the compleate idiot" so today I set out on an 'easy run' to try this stuff out. The book states that there are two 'magic numbers', your recovery ceiling (basically 70% of your max), and your threshold floor (close to 85% of your max).
The formula I used (Which they state right off is likely inaccurate) was
205 - 14 (half my age) + 5 (for being female). 196 is therefore my estimated max.
My estimated max - 53 (my resting heart rate, although this may not be accurate itself) gives me my range of 143. To get my recovery ceiling, I take that *.7 and +53 (to get my resting heart rate back in) to get 153.

So I set out around my apartment complex with my FitSense set to beep when I surpassed this Recovery ceiling of 153. Let me tell you, it was pretty easy to hit it! Luckily however I was able to get my heart rate back down quite easily, generally by stopping for one step, or sometimes just jogging slower. The little incline was the toughest, however, and I often had to walk.

What's really interesting is the graph of my heart rate versus speed. It will be interesting to see how things progress - right now the two lines are VERY close, I can only expect the deviation with them will open up as I'm able to go faster with a lower heart rate?

Today I set out for my first decent 'long run' since Boston. I set out on my own, which I'm not really used to after running with the group for close to a year now. It was going to be hot (and I didn't get out til almost 9) so I packed some water and gatorade, and brought along a gel. It was a gorgeous day, and I felt pretty good. I was calibrating my Fitsense so its splits weren't right, but I kept a pretty good eye on my watch for the mile splits. I went to Antrim, and ran south like we normally do. I remember my splits were right on 8:15 til the turn-around point (5.5 miles out - I took my gel). After that the math was getting harder to do in my head, but I still seemed pretty even in my miles. It was pretty hot out (the high today was 78) and I was glad I had my water and gatorade with me. My stomach was a bit upset (the joys of late-night pizza) but it didn't really hinder my running. I felt myself slowing down once I was over Henderson and there were a few miles back to Antrim, but I kept pushing, checking myself every half mile to make sure I was doing ok. To my surprise, it seemed like I was hitting the mile splits close to every 4 minutes, although I felt I was working harder. Back at Antrim (1:29:xx) I went to my car and got some more water and splashed some on my face. I was feeling really hot and sweaty - for today at least, summer is here. Oh! And I should mention I ran the exact miles, I didn't start at the platform but the closest mile marker. It's a small detail, but what the heck :)
After my little break, I set out for another 4. I hadn't really cared if I ran 15 or 16 today, but it seemed like 15 would be easier as the mile markers were laid out. Actually I was feeling pretty tired the last 4 miles, but somehow I managed to hit the turn-around point (13 miles) at 1.45.xx. I was pretty surprised to think about how that was a better time than any of the half-marathons I ran in 2004, and that gave me an added boost. I thought I'd worked out in my head that coming in at 2:02:30 would be 8:15 min/ miles, so I was pushing for that as I came in. And I just made it too, at 2:02:01. However, when I put that into my training log, it came out to an 8:08 pace.
I was a bit apprehensive going into the run today, just b/c it's the longest I've done in awhile, and I was on my own. But it went well, and I'm feeling pretty good about Sunburst in a month! Watch out PR...!