It's All Downhill From Here....

It's official!!  Times are in for the Blue Heron 10k in Creston....and I was officially in under an hour!

Yup!  58:35.  So what if I almost threw-up once I crossed the finish line...  I got in under an hour...and only 4 people in my age group beat me...(and lets face it...I am at the TOP of my age group).

It seems that this milestone happened in the nick of time.  In a recent edition of a running magazine, there was an article about how times begin increasing once runners turn 40.  As you'll see in the image above....I'm the magical age of 39 right now.  And, as you may recall, we are going to Vegas in December....to run a half-marathon...and to celebrate me turning 40!  In fact there's only about 53 days from this race day to the big 4-0!  Talk about getting in under the wire...

But it's done now.  I have an "OFFICIAL" under 60-minute 10k on record...and my times are EXPECTED to get longer now that I'm getting so old...  What a relief!  I can just coast from now on!  Ahhhhh  :)

Anal AND Annoying

Sooo, if you read the comments on my blog you will have seen that one friend recently requested a blog post about how anal and annoying I am!  Now, SOME people might consider a comment like that rude...or at very least a little judgmental...  But you have to KNOW this friend...then it is just FUNNY.  What makes it even funnier is how monumentally true it is!

I AM anal....and it IS annoying!  But I'm ok with that.  It hasn't always served me well in ALL areas of my life.  I have control issues (my son can attest to that) and my need to control things did neither him nor I any favours when I was raising him.  My control issues also make me a bit of a psycho because I have irrational fears of pretty much anything out of my control (which includes most of the world!).  So, what was I saying about being ok with it?  hmmmm...

Oh yah!  I am ok with it because in some cases it works well for me.  And since this is a running blog...it has served me especially well with running.  I started running with the Couch to 5K program.  I listened to a podcast which told me when to run and when to walk and when to stop.  It was perfect for me.  I knew what to expect each and every time I ran and stopping wasn't a question... I had to do what I was being told to do (which drove this same friend insane when I got to the point that I was willing to run with her...I still remember her ready to kill me because we were on a downhill and she wanted to take advantage of it and start running...but my podcast hadn't given me the go-ahead yet.  Still surprised she didn't shove me under the next passing car). 

When I finished the Couch to 5K I then went on to the Gateway to 10k, training for the Bloomsday 12K and then began a routine of running every second day.  It is not an option for me.  Weather doesn't matter.  The "rule" is I run on running days.  I don't see it as an option...and while people think I am insane - I am training for a half marathon... If I had given myself the option to quit - if I didn't follow the plan in a hugely anal, annoying way....I would have quit...long ago.... I know it.

I have gotten slightly more relaxed about my routine.  Recently, I cut back my lunch-time workouts to only 2 days/week instead of 5 (though I still go to the gym for core work and stretching those other 3 days) and though I am following a new training plan I have given myself a little bit of leeway with it.  Today was to be my long run day (though only 8k) and tomorrow an easy 4k... But I had signed up for a 10k which is tomorrow so I did my short run today and will do the 10k tomorrow.  Just like that...I changed things up!  Like a crazy woman!! 

But after that...it's back to my schedule, back to my routine, back to being anal and annoying....because anal and annoying keeps me running!

First Week....DONE!

Done my first official week of half-marathon training.  Made one mistake - thinking Friday was a cross-training day, not a rest day...so did a 8.5k walk that I didn't need to do...  But oh well...

Struggled through both the Thursday and the Saturday run, though.... Began to suspect that perhaps working out hard in the gym 5x/week in addition to the running and cross-training required by our program might be a bit much.... So, I consulted the experts....on Twitter...I mean, where else would you find experts when you live in a small town with no real obvious experts to consult?  One of them is author and Runners World contributor, Bart Yasso - so, really....he knows his stuff.

So, the consensus of my Twitter experts was a resounding YES....I am doing too much :(  Both said circuit training 1x/week is the most I should be doing (that was before I fessed up to the spin class starting this week).  Soooo....I am not willing to give up my workouts entirely....but I am going to give in a little.  Monday and Friday's are official rest days...I am going to only do some stretching and core work those days and Wednesdays.  Running will be Tuesday/Wednesday, Saturday/Sunday.  On Tuesday and Thursday (likely??) I will workout in the gym....but primarily on upper body.  Thursday I will also do spin class (which is my official cross-training day, anyway).  Hopefully taking it easy 3x/week at lunch will help my body to better deal with the training to come....and perhaps will let my groin issues improve somewhat as well.

Next weekend is supposed to be an 8k run on Saturday and a 4k easy run Sunday...However, we're signed up for a 10k in Creston on Sunday...so the 4k will be Saturday, the 10k Sunday....and then after that...I should be able to stay on schedule...hopefully!

Hurry up December!  I'm ready for this to be done already!  The half-marathon is taking over my life!

Training commences....

We'll it's official...I am midway through the first week of half-marathon training.  Have to say...pretty anti-climatic so far.  Only one run completed at this point...and it was a 5k...much like every other early morning 5k we've been doing all along.  Won't be long before we're amp-ing up, however....so I should be grateful for the familiar while it exists...

Not doing so well with the whole 'rest' concept, however.  Monday was actually a rest day.  No running, no cross training... Yet, I spent my lunch hour doing squat jumps, plie squats, walking lunges, rowing machine, a bunch of core stability exercises and sprints on the treadmill.  Hmmm...perhaps not what was intended by the word "rest".  Oh well...will likely do the same next week.  And though I will be spending my lunch hour doing a different circuit training workout today...I'll also try to figure out 30-40 minutes of cardio to do...Because today is cross-training day :)

Running 6.5k after work tomorrow then another 6.5k on Saturday (sooo relaxed after a summer of 10k's) and an easy 4k Sunday...  Ahhh....  relaxing almost :)  In just a few weeks I'll be wishing for these days back, I'm sure :)

I Did It!!

Yup...I did it!  Actually, I did it twice!!  Before you start thinking that something positive actually happened in my social life...let me remind you - this is a RUNNING blog.  And what I did is RAN....10K.....in less than an hour!  The first time was a week ago...but sadly, I didn't have my laptop (getting repaired) and could not download my Garmin info..and it made blogging tricky too (could have still done it....but - obviously - I didn't).  So, that run a week ago...I finished 10K in 59:39!  But could not download my Garmin info as proof...and ran alone....so, really...you'll have  to take my word for it (or not - if you choose to be that way).

Having accomplished my goal, I planned to make yesterday's 10K a more relaxed run.  Was going to stick by Colleen the entire time and let her set the pace.  However, it turns out Colleen was going camping...and I was running alone again....  And as it would turn out...I can be very competitive with myself.  I got a late start...so considered doing just 8k instead.  Made a deal with myself that I would have to complete the first 4K in 24 minutes or less in order to get under an hour again...so if my time at the 4k mark was 25 minutes or more...I would turn around and just complete the 8.  However, at the 4k mark I was just over 24 minutes...and my second half tends to be faster than my first....so I continued on with hope that I could again get under an hour.  I kept track each km to make sure I was staying on track...and then got to km 9.  As always, the last km is the hardest.  My pace had begun to slow a little but I was determined to finish strong.  Something must have shown in my face (pain? determination? exhaustion) because all of a sudden people passing me at various places along that last km were cheering me on. "Way to go" "Good job" "Almost there" It was like I was in an "official" race.  I've had the occasional person make a comment along Rails to Trails before...but never before several people - in different groups...just when I needed it most.  What a great little community of people use the Rails to Trails!  And it worked!

Yup!  Even beat my time from the previous week!

Now the next run I do will be my first "official" training run for the half marathon.  Only 5k....but the start of something new.  Hopefully this will be something good for me to focus on - rather than using SO much energy focusing on what is missing from my life.

Of course, the best news of all this weekend....Kienan Hebert - the 3 year old abducted from his home was returned, unharmed.  Now, lets hope for his abductor's arrest so everyone in the East Kootenay can rest easy.