70 Percent

Today marks the end of the first three months of training.  Only 37 days until the Flying Pig Marathon.  Only 9 days until the Go St. Louis half marathon.  I finished March with 130 miles of training which was short of the plan but I took a week vacation.  I don't think the week off hurt me.  I have felt strong on my runs.  Some of the little things that were bothering me (sore feet, hamstrings) feel much better.  April is a high mileage month but I am ready to attack it.  It includes more mileage than I have every run in my life.  I feel that every run is an accomplishment.

We are also 70% of the way through the training schedule.  I also have 70% of my toenails in good condition.  The other 30% have some purple bruising.  No pain - just pretty colors.

I have been watching the weather.  Cincinnati weather is pretty close to what we have in St. Louis.  They may be degree or two cooler but overall pretty much the same.  The Go St Louis weather should be nice - 50s early when the race starts and 70s later in the day.  We should be done with the race before it gets too warm.

I changed up the schedule so today was a rest day.

Changing up the route

Today I went to run the trails in Wildwood along Manchester and Hwy 109.  I started at the Home Depot parking lot and headed west.  After a couple of miles I needed to use a restroom.  At that point I was not near a restroom.  I ran to Wildwood's Park hoping there would be a bathroom.  I had not been to this park before.  They  had a nice bathroom but I worried about whether it was open this time of year.  Many parks do not open their bathrooms until April.  I put my hand on the door handle hoping it would be unlocked (I really had to go).  It was open!  It was a nice clean restroom with flush toilets, soap and hand dryer.  I did a loop back to hwy 109.  As I was heading up 109 I passed Babler Elementary School.  I looked at the school and in big letters it had the address 1955 Shepard Road.  When I run sometimes I get in a zone and don't pay attention to everything.  I was pretty sure I did not turn onto Shepard Road.  I had a short moment of panic thinking I was lost since I was running a route I usually don't follow.  How the heck did I end up on Shepard Road?  Yikes!  The school is at the corner of 109 and Shepard Road.  I was not lost after all.  I was on 109 the whole time.  I don't know why they put the address on the side of the school facing 109 when the school is on Shepard Road.  This course had many rolling hills.  It was very windy and there is little shelter from the wind.  There are a number of places I had to stop to cross the street and since it was rush hour there was a lot of traffic.  Overall, I really enjoyed the route.  Today's run was 8 miles at a 10:23 pace.

Changing Plans

Kathy made some changes to the training plan to make sure we go into the Go St. Louis half marathon healthy and ready.  I also changed the days around to accommodate my schedule.  I did not run the optional recovery run on Monday.  I ran the strength building run yesterday.  I moved the easy run scheduled for Friday up to today then I plan to run the Med-Long run tomorrow.  I ran through the subdivision at my lunch break.  It is pretty hilly so I fulfilled my need for elevation.  Jim joined me for the run.  He is training for his Appalachian trail hike next month.  I know the Appalachian Trail has lots of hills.  He really attacks the hills.

I have been auditioning sports bras for my marathon.  I had a favorite but sometimes with wear and washing the favorites lose their stretch and start chafing.  Therefore, my previous favorite was demoted to a hiking bra.  Of course the bra manufactures keep changing their models and you can't find the exact same one again.  I have two finalist in the running for the marathon bra - one is a Moving Comfort and the other is a North Face.

Reaching for a perfect ten

I have done long runs at a 4 minute run and 1 minute walk.  The long runs have come in around 11:00 to 11:15 pace.  I have run workouts that call for 5K pace.  I have done hills and easy and aerobic runs.  I have not attempted to do a walk/run at goal pace until today.  For the marathon our goal is somewhere from 10:00 to 10:30 pace.  Today's workout was a warm up then five miles at goal pace then a cool down.  I tried to hit this goal pace doing the walk/run.  I was shooting for a perfect 10 minute mile pace.  My five miles were between 9:28 pace and 9:52 pace.  I need to work on hitting the goal pace.  I did include most of the Rock Hollow Trail because hills make me stronger and this run was for strength.

Today I realized that if I hit a pace of 10:10 in the race the final will be 4:24:20 which is a Boston Qualifying time for my age group.  This is not the purpose of the marathon but it would be a pleasant side effect.  I will be happy if I beat my last marathon time of 4:39.  I will be happy to cross the finish line on two feet. I will be happy to be a flying pig finisher.

I was wondering what a group of pigs was called.  I had to looks this up.  It depends on the pig's age.  A group of young pigs is a litter, a drift or a drove.  A group of older pigs is called a sounder of swine or a passel of hogs or a parcel of pigs or a team of hogs.  I think I would like to be considered a team of pigs.

Rest Day

Today was a rest day or optional recovery run.  I had a busy work day then Jim wanted to go out to eat and to the grocery store.  By the time we got home I decided that stretching would do me  more good than a short run in the dark.

I signed up for the Senior Olympics today.  Each year I do all the running events and I pick something new.  The first year I did shot put.  Last year I did triple jump.  This year I picked long jump.  Now I need to watch some Youtube videos and figure out how to do it.  The Senior Olympics is three weeks after the marathon.  It will be interesting if I will be recovered and ready to run fast.  The running events are between 50 meters and 1500 meters in length.

Embrace the Hills

When we were in Utah on the San Juan River I was reading our river map.  There was an introduction that talked about the beauty of the river and gave advice, "embrace the sand."  As our week on the river proceeded I understood this wisdom.  There is sand everywhere.  Eventually the sand makes its way between you toes, in your ears, and no matter how careful you are in your sleeping bag.  Embrace the sand, it is part of the river trip.  The sand was part of the overall experience and it was fabulous.

I am transferring this knowledge to the hills.  I will embrace the hills.  The hills are good.  You use different muscles running up the hills than running down the hills.  Hills will give me a chance to use different muscles.  An all flat marathon is hard on the muscles because the same muscles are used for the whole thing.  The good thing about running up a hill is that you get to run down a hill.

I have looked at the Cincinnati course which is supposed to be hilly.  There is one "big" hill but it doesn't look that  bad.  Here is the Flying Pig elevation:

When I compare this with the Go St. Louis elevation, it doesn't look that bad.  Here is the Go St. Louis elevation:

The overall elevation gain of the Flying Pig is 1016 ft.  The overall elevation gain of the Go St Louis is 785 feet.  So the Flying Pig has 231 more feet gain but also that much more downhill.  I am going to embrace the hills and crush them.  We have trained for hills.  We will be ready.

For comparison here is the elevation chart for the Pikes Peak Marathon.  This is serious elevation.  (Note to self:  Never, ever, ever sign up for this one):

Today's workout was 18 miles.  Jim joined Kathy and I for the first ten miles and he did great.  He drove home then picked us up when we were done.  We ran the trail to Rockwood Reservation and added the last hill up to Manchester Road.  Then toward the end of the work out we ran up most of the Rock Hollow Trail.  It was tough on tired legs but we did it.  

When I got home I noticed that Jim had a mug with some hot beverage.  I asked him what he was drinking.  He said , "coffee".  Jim is not usually a coffee drinker.  I asked him why he was drinking coffee.  He replied, "So I can stay awake to watch basketball."

Training schedule 12 weeks down 6 to go.  Two-thirds of the way there.

Open Day

Last weekend my son-in-law, Pat, entered a marathon in North Carolina where they live.  He had been having ongoing issues with his IT band.  He was only able to complete half the distance.  I am proud of him for trying.  He did the best that he could do on that day.  Any day we can do our best is a good day.

Today was an open day.  We had a coupon for a free chicken biscuit at Chick-Fil-A.  I do not really like fast food but a free coupon is a free coupon.  Of course we had to buy one because there were two of us.  I can't say that a chicken biscuit is very high on my list of favorite breakfasts.  I don't understand why there is always a long line at the drive thru at Chick-Fil-A.  We got some shopping done and chores around the house.  Back to running tomorrow.

My laundry

Last week we were in Utah.  I did not run one step.  I rafted, camped and hiked.  My laundry consisted of camping clothes and river clothes stained with red sand.  This week is back to normal with a laundry filled with running shorts and capris, sports bras, and tech shirts.  My socks do double duty.  My favorite socks are Smartwool.  They go with me on runs, hikes and camping.  Since I work from home I don't have one dress or skirt in my laundry.

Today was a five mile recovery run.  Jim went with me and we ran the five miles at an easy pace.  The wildflowers have bloomed in the last couple of weeks.

The mental side of running

Today I did not feel I had a run in me.  It started when my alarm went off and I didn't want to get out of bed.  All day as I worked at my desk, I thought about how tired I was.  It was an effort to get up from my chair and walk to the bathroom.  I didn't feel sick, just tired.  I considered moving today's workout to tomorrow but I have learned that once I start running I usually feel better.  It's a mental thing.

Today's workout was warm up followed by 4 miles at 5k pace then a cool down.  I started with an easy 3 miles.  As I was running I passed a young women with a t-shirt that read,  "Believe in Yourself".  That was just what I needed to run the tempo miles.  I had to stop briefly after each mile to take a drink of water but I did the 4 miles at a pace of around 8:36.  Sometimes when I don't feel I have a run in me I really do.  It's a mental thing.

As I was running the cool down I saw people and dogs ahead on the trail.  The first thing I saw was a basset hound.  It was my favorite 3 dogs and their people.  I had to stop to get some puppy love. Seeing my favorite dogs lifted my spirits and the rest of the cool down was a breeze.  It's a mental thing.

Jim had me call him when I got back to the parking lot so he could start dinner.  He is very supportive of my running schedule.  He made spaghetti, garlic bread and wine!  I was happy with my run today because I overcame the voices in my head that kept saying I was too tired.  It's a mental thing.

Today I surpassed the 300 mile mark in my training.

Famous

The registration form for the Senior Olympics came in the mail.  I glanced at it and decided to look at it later.  Jim came in the room saying, "You are famous!"  My photo was on the cover.  I am in the red shirt on the top left photo.  I actually look like I am running.  Some of my running photos look like I am barely moving or taking a casual stroll.

Today was a rest day.  Back to running tomorrow.

Easy Run Hills/Trails

Today was an easy run with hills/trails.  Easy and hills should not be used in the same sentence.  There is nothing easy about hills.  I drove to the top of the Rock Hollow Trail.  Just as I arrived it started to rain.  It wasn't raining hard and there was no lightening so I went ahead and ran.  It quit raining within the first mile.  I ran parts of the new trails on both sides of the Rock Hollow for a total of 4.6 miles.

A friend of mine stopped by this afternoon.  She mentioned that she had gone to central Ohio to visit family last week.  I told her that I was going to Cincinnati to run the Flying Pig Marathon.  She laughed uncontrollably and asked, "Did you know that Cincinnati is hilly?"  I said said with confidence,"we have been training for hills."  She looked at me like I was nuts.

I'm not sure that the recovery run yesterday did anything to promote recovery.  I need the rest day tomorrow.

To run or not to run - that is the question

Yesterday was a 20 mile run.  Today the plan said "Rest or 3-4 Mile Recovery Run".  I had to decide if I should run or not run.  No - my legs were tired.  Yes - the weather was beautiful. No - I ran 20 miles yesterday.  Yes - I didn't run last week at all.  No - I was really tired.  Yes - I sat at my desk all day.  Of course, I decided to run.  Jim went with me and we did a slow three mile run on the trail.

Today is the first day of spring.  Last week we turned our clocks for daylight savings time.  It is a good time of year to run.  Given the choice to run or not to run, I usually run.

Twenty

This weekend I spent over 20 hours sitting in a van travelling from Utah back to St. Louis.  I had a wonderful week rafting and camping on the San Juan River with Jim, Jen and John.  It is great to be away from televisions, computers and telephone and connect with nature.  Up until this time I was pretty good and sticking to the marathon training plan.  I missed four work outs while I was away.  Today the schedule had a 20 miler.  After not running and sitting so long I wasn't sure how I would do.  When I trained for my last marathon in 2011 the 20 mile training runs seemed endless.  With Kathy by my side they are fun.  Bonus - I got lots of puppy love when I picked up Kathy.  I love her dogs.  At the end of the run Kathy had Gatorade for us.  It was exactly what I needed. Only 7 weeks until race day.  It will be here before we know it.

Cross Training

Yesterday we stopped in Glenwood Springs Colorado for the night.  We went to a hot spring water swimming pool.  We spent 90 minutes swimming, treading water, hanging out.  Hot spring water is supposed to have healing properties.  It sure felt good.  I guess swimming can be counted as cross training.  Today is a long, long day in the car.  Wherever I go I imagine running there.  I would not want to run across Kansas.

Utah

I spent a week in Utah rafting the San Juan River.  I did not run but I hiked from one to three hours each day including a 4 mile hike with an elevation gain of 1350 feet.  I also did some squats and lunges plus I paddled a boat.  The trail were rocky with some steep drop offs.  For safety's sake I did not run.  There were too many opportunities to break an ankle or something bad.  I am anxious to get back to the training plan.

A long car ride.

A long car ride is like a marathon.  If you think of the whole distance it seems too long.  If you break it into pieces it is manageable.  In a marathon just make it to the next aid station or mile marker.  In a car make it to the next town or state.  No running for me today.  Drove through a lot of beautiful places to run.

Hills in the morning

Today was supposed to be an 8 mile hills/trails medium long run.  There was no room in my schedule for this so I did the best I could.  At 7 a.m. before work I did a warm up in the subdivision then ran up and down the hill several times.  The hill up to the subdivision is pretty tough.  Total was 5.5 miles.

Note to self:  When you cut the tags off a new sports bra make sure to get all the little plastic things that hold the tags on.  Ouch.

Recovery Run

Today's schedule said "Rest or Recovery Run".  I decided to do the recovery run.  I ran at my lunch break.  I ran 4.5 miles at an easy pace in the subdivision.  My legs were tired but they carried me through the run.  Then after work I went for a walk with Kathy and her three amazing dogs.  It always brightens my spirits to get some dog kisses.

This evening Jim and I went to an exhibition basketball  game.  The Rolling Rams Wheelchair Basketball Team played the Parkway Central teachers.  It was an inspiration to see the athleticism, spirit and team work of the players.  I am very thankful that I am able to use my legs to walk and run.

5K pace is hard!

Today's workout went like this:  30 minute warm up then 3 miles at 5K pace followed by 30 minute cool down.  When I started my warm up my legs felt heavy.  I met Kathy on the trail.  She looked like she was flying while I felt like a slug.  If I did not have a training plan I would have run the entire workout  slow.  I just wasn't feeling 5K speed.  I did my warm up then kicked it into gear.  5K pace is hard when you are running a race.  It is really hard when you are all by yourself on the trail with no people to motivate you and no free t-shirt and no refreshments at the finish.  I ran the three miles at 5K pace without stopping.  It was hard.  The voices in my head kept telling me, "this is too hard, this is crazy, stop and rest", then the other voices took over and said, "you can do this, just make it to the next tree, this will make you stronger."  In the end I listened to the voices in Kathy's head that said, "run 3 miles at 5K pace, you can do it."  I finished with an easy cool down.  I am always happy when I am done.  Having a plan is a great motivator.

Today is national cereal day.  I did not find this out until after I had breakfast of fruit and yogurt.  I am not very good at this national day thing.  I might have some cereal for a snack because I ran 9 miles today.

Stretching my feet

Today was a rest day for stretching and strength.  I usually stretch out all the muscles in my legs ignoring my feet.  However, my feet have felt achy so I decided I need to add foot stretches to my routine.  Here are my favorite foot exercises:
Roll the foot on a golf ball.
Stand on a step on toes and raise and lower heels down.
Pick up a towel will the toes.
After my foot stretching I feel great.  I'm looking forward to running tomorrow.

A nice long run

Today there was a 15 mile long run on the schedule.  Since I don't think I will get a run in next weekend I decided to bump it up to 18 miles.  My Flying Pig Slug Sister Kathy joined me for the run.  I offered to run the 15 miles on the schedule with her then run the last 3 on my own.  She is a distance queen and ran the full 18 (with me with a sore knee).  It was a nice day for running with temperatures in the 50s.  However, it seemed that any direction we turned we were running into the wind.  We rocked this run finishing the 18 miles in 3 hours 16 minutes which was a 10:54 pace.

When I got home from the run Jim made me an egg sandwich which is a great source of protein after a run.  Then I talked to my sister  on the phone for an hour while I stretched.  Jim and I were going to go to a lake and try out our new inflatable kayak but Jim decided it was too cold and windy.  Instead we went shopping.  I felt fine walking around the stores.

Today's run put my training total over 250 miles.  We are 9 weeks into the 18 week training plan - half way there time wise.  Not quite halfway distance wise.

Today was my first long run in my new Brooks Glycerin shoes.  I absolutely love them.  After running 18 miles my feet, legs and joints feel great.

Today's run reconfirmed the thought that running with a friend makes the run fly by.

Tired

I did not run a step today and I am tired.  I spent the day on my feet cooking.  I would rather be running.   Cooking is much more tiring than running.

A long drink of water

We all know that hydration is important whether you are exercising or not.  I have a motion activated camera that I have pointed at my little pond behind my house.  I get a lot of pictures of squirrels getting a drink of water.  It amazes me how long the squirrel will get a drink of water.  It will drink for 20 seconds straight.  The raccoons likewise take long drinks of water.  When I was thirsty I filled a big glass with water and drank.  It only took me 10 seconds for what I felt was a long drink of water.  This filled my head with a whole host of questions I have no answer to.  Is the squirrel's water intake low so they need to drink longer?  Is the water in my pond delicious making them want more.  Do they get drinks less frequently because they get long drinks?  Do squirrels burp?

Today was a rest day - no running.  I feel I need it.  I am resting and hydrating.

Keeping up with Jim

I have a very busy day tomorrow so I pulled the easy run up to today.  Since I ran 8.5 miles of trails yesterday, my intent was for very easy.  Jim went with me.  I was running on tired legs.  Jim was running on fresh legs.  He led the way.  I spent the whole time keeping up with him.  We finished 5.1 miles at an average pace of 9:23.  

The weather for yesterday's run and today's run was similar.  It was about 48 degrees, cloudy and windy.  Yesterday I didn't wear gloves.  When I was done, I could barely put the key in the ignition with my frozen hands.  Today I wore gloves and my hands felt great.  What a difference a light pair of gloves makes.

Yesterday was national pig day.  I can't believe I let the day go by without realizing it was a day to celebrate the Flying Pig Marathon.  I'm not sure how your are supposed to celebrate national pig day - by eating bacon?  We had salmon and vegetables.  The pigs were safe from us.

Excuses for running slow

Today I had a med-long run on the schedule.  I decided to run some trails.  The trails included some hills so I knew it would not be a speedy run.  The first mile was 10:41.  My excuse was that it was a warm up.  Then I ran a 10:10 which was okay.  Then 11:11 followed by 12:57 and 13:05.  At that point I quit looking at my watch and came up with excuses for running slow:
1)  My legs are still tired from the race Saturday
2)  The wind blew leaves on the trail and I had to go slow because I didn't know what was under them
3)  I don't want to trip and hurt myself.
4)  There were hills and roots and rocks.
5)  My water bottle was heavy.
Then I realized I didn't need an excuse for running slow.  This is a training run, not a race.  I should pat myself on the back for getting out there are running.  Today's run 8.5 miles at an average pace of 11:06 which was not slow at all for trails.  At one point I tripped and felt like I was falling in slow motion, the whole time thinking "oh, no".  But somehow I got my legs underneath me and didn't go down.

When I got back to the parking lot today there was a mountain biker who was changing his pants in the parking lot.  He just smiled and said "Hi."

When watching the news today they were showing the tornado damage in Perryville from last night.  I thought about what it would be like to lose everything.  The first thing that pops into my head is, "I would have to buy new running shoes first thing."  Then I thought about priorities and how silly that was.  I think I should buy a toothbrush first then running shoes.