Trackwork and Shoe Questions

July 27, 2011 by 7 Comments

It was pouring rain when I woke up yesterday so I decided to switch up my workouts and do an easy 3 and strength training yesterday and save the track work for this morning. (It’s funny I don’t mind running on the road in the rain, but I find the track gets a little too slick).

Well it was absolutely beautiful this morning and I couldn’t wait to get to the track. I was surprised at just how many people were already there when I pulled into the parking lot! I’m very lucky that our local high school has a high quality track, and people were definitely taking advantage of it this morning. This was my first run in the Saucony Kinvaras I won from SUAR‘s giveaway a couple of weeks ago – I wasn’t sure how my legs were going to hold up so I also brought along the Mirages I’ve been running in regularly, just in case.

On tap today, 3 x 1600s with 800 jogs with a target pace of 10:15.  After warming up, I hit the first interval right on target at 10:14. I felt really good so I decided to see if I could do each of the next two a little faster. I did the 2nd interval in 10:04 and the 3rd in 9:54 – mission accomplished!

I liked running in the Kinvara, though I think for now I will use them only for speedwork. My calves and feet still need to get stronger before I start putting more miles in them – perhaps sometime in the fall I’ll try them on some easy, recovery runs. For now I’m happy to continue to use the Mirage for most of my runs. I had been alternating between the Brooks Adrenalines and the Mirages, using the Adrenalines for my longer runs. But of late I was feeling a little discomfort in my left knee towards in the latter half of my runs, so just out of curiosity I started using the Mirage for all my runs and have had no problems. I’m now running exclusively in the Mirage and plan on using them for the race.

So I’m wondering if the difference in the heal-to-toe ratio between the two shoes was causing the discomfort? What do you think? Do you use different shoes depending on the workout?

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Filed Under: Brooks Adrenaline, Kinvara, rotating shoes, Saucony, track work

Me and Mother Nature on a long run

July 24, 2011 by 8 Comments

After seeing the forecast for Friday, with temps in the 90s in the early morning and climbing to 100+, I decided to do a tempo run and shift my long run to Sunday. I’m all for training in it if you’re gonna race in it…but there are limits!

While the oppressive heat had subsided, Mother Nature was still clearly in a mood this morning. It was in the mid-70s with matching humidity by 6. Fine…bring it on! Slow and steady was pretty much the approach – today’s run was just about getting the miles and focusing on form.

Around mile 7, the rain started – a good steady shower. Fine…bring it on! I’ll take running in the rain over the heat any day. Well…Mother Nature must have known was I was thinking because just as I got to around 9.5 miles, the sun came out in full force. I thought – I’ve got a mile and a half to go…Fine…bring it on!

In the end 11.27 done and all in all it was a good steady run. I was surprised how quiet it was on the roads today – for most of the run, I saw no one else except for the occasional cyclist. There finally a few runners towards the end….unusual.

While obviously not ideal conditions, I’m so glad out I got out there today. Only 2 weeks to go until R’n’R Providence – hopefully this past week of heat-running will serve me well on race day!

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Filed Under: Half marathon, long runs, RnR, weather

Heat-induced Randomness

July 20, 2011 by 8 Comments

I think this heat & humidity is turning my brain to mush. I can’t put a coherent thought together…but then, this is why then invented bullet points (isn’t it?)

  • I blew my streak of early morning runs today – slept through my alarm and then it was too late to get out before the heat and getting the kids off to camp. So it looks like I’m moving my tempo run to Sunday.

 

  • This is what the forecast looks like for the next few days. Friday’s 11-miler should be interesting…I may be looking to set a new PR for how early I can get out on the road. Tell me again why I registered for a half marathon in August?! 
  • I’ve been trying to plan a family vacation for the fall — the kids have a couple of long weekends so we thought we’d try to take advantage of the airline fares being lower then. Also wondering if I can loop in a race into these plans if the timing/location works. 
  • I’m still all over the place on fall races – the only one I’ve registered for is the Tufts 10k for Women. I ran this race last year with my friend Kathy and had a great time. As soon as it was over I knew I wanted to run it again!

    Have you figured out your fall race plans yet or will you just wing it?

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      Filed Under: general musings, Half marathon, Tufts 10k, weather

      Monday Motivation & Compression Sleeve Winner!

      July 18, 2011 by 2 Comments
      “Don’t bother to just be better than your contemporaries or predecessors.
      Try to be better than yourself.”
      — William Faulkner
      Love this quote – it’s a great reminder that we’re really only in competition with ourselves!
      And, the winner of the McDavid Compression Sleeves is DEM from Happy, Healthy and Strong. Congrats! Shoot me an email at runningwithattitude (at) yahoo (dot) com and I will put you in touch with the folks at McDavid.

      To everyone else – thanks for entering and don’t forget the great folks at McDavid are offering Running with Attitude readers a special promotion of 15% off any of their products! Just use the code RWA11 – it’s good thru 7/31/11.

      Happy Running!
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      Filed Under: giveaways, McDavid USA, Monday Motivation, Quotes

      A Good Morning

      July 15, 2011 by 3 Comments

      Ran 10.25 miles this morning.

      It was a perfect summer morning – still cool, a slight breeze, the sun bright but not intense yet. There were lots of runners out taking advantage of the break in the humidity — everyone I passed seemed to be enjoying the morning, enjoying being a runner…there were a lot more “Morning” ‘s today and the runner’s wave…even some smiles…better than the grunts and pained looks I’ve seen on recent runs. Saw a couple of friends out running too and chatted briefly – always a pick me up to see friendly faces!

      I love that I still get a little giddy when I see that double-digit on my Garmin. I remember where I was last summer, when getting to 6 was a huge deal. I love that sense of accomplishment (both then and now)…hope that feeling never goes away!

      Hubs took on getting the kids ready and off to camp – I actually had the luxury of stretching and foam rolling post-run instead of the usual mad dash! So now it’s me, the dog, a cup of coffee and a quiet house – perfect way to start a Friday 🙂

      ————————————

      Don’t forget my McDavid compression sleeve giveaway ends Sunday!

      Have a Great Weekend!
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      Filed Under: early morning runs, giveaways, long runs, McDavid USA

      Comfortably hard

      July 14, 2011 by 5 Comments

      “Comfortably hard” – if you look up the definition of a tempo run, you will inevitably find these words to help define the effort to put forward for these steady pace runs.

      Well, the truth is comfortably hard is a moving target…depending on the day; what body parts are cooperating…or not; whether Mother Nature is cooperating…or not.
      Some days, comfortably hard can feel like  you’re flying…working at it, but flying – firing on all cylinders. And, other days, comfortably hard is any movement after you drag yourself out of bed for your run.

      Like so many aspects of running, what constitutes comfortably hard is relative. It varies from runner to runner, and for each runner it can vary from run to run. Sure you set out with a target pace in mind, but that pace is yours alone. And, sometimes you hit it consistently…enjoy it and take note of what worked. Other times you won’t – don’t beat yourself up over it…also take note of what didn’t work and accept that this was today’s definition of “comfortably hard.”

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      Filed Under: observations, tempo runs, tough runs

      Week 7 – Half Training

      July 11, 2011 by 3 Comments

      Week 7 already! I feel like the weeks of this training plan are just flying by!

      I got some good feedback on my question about step-back weeks – and for the most part I ran the suggested distances on the plan. I did bump Friday’s “long” run up to 6 miles just because I was feeling really good. I even took an extra rest day yesterday cause my legs were just feeling dead – so I decided to sleep in and then head to the beach with my hubs J and the boys. We had a great day!

      This week begins the final push to Providence:

      Monday — Yoga
      Tuesday — Tempo run (5)
      Wednesday — Easy run (2 or 3) plus strength training
      Thursday — Rest day
      Friday — Long run (10)
      Saturday — Strength training
      Sunday — Easy (4)

      I’m also recommitting to doing ab work daily, cause that’s been sliding lately. I’m also gonna tighten up on what I’ve been eating – I’ve been really good during the week and then letting everything slide on the weekend…not exactly an effective strategy to shake these last 5 lbs, right?!

      So, what are you up to this week?

      Happy Running!

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      Filed Under: RnR, step-back, training

      McDavid USA Compression Sleeves Review & Giveaway

      July 6, 2011 by 56 Comments

      Since I started training for my first half marathon back in March, I have quickly become a big fan of all things compression. So when the folks at McDavid USA contacted me and asked if I was interested in trying a pair of their new True Compression Leg Sleeves, I was quick to say yes!

      For those of you who don’t know, McDavid USA began as the first widely used lateral knee brace in football and expanded into a leader in sports medical products and technical performance athletic wear.

      The first time I tried the sleeves on, I was surprised by how light they were. They were snug and supportive without that intense compressive feel. Within a couple of minutes I forgot I was wearing them.

      Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve used them mostly for recovery after long runs and track work. I even used them after a long day of gardening. The McDavid Sleeves definitely did the job to help reduce any soreness in my calves. While I was reluctant to wear them during a run ’cause I just didn’t want any additional layers in this crazy heat & humidity, I did take a run in them and enjoyed how supported my legs felt (and how fresh, post-run). I will probably take advantage of these sleeves during my runs even more as the weather cools.

      Overall, these leg sleeves are keepers. Now if McDavid would only consider making them in additional colors beyond black and white 🙂

      Interested in trying the True Compression Sleeves for yourself? The folks at McDavid are offering a pair to one lucky winner.

      Here’s how to enter — please leave a separate comment for each entry:

      Mandatory:
      1. Be a follower of my blog; and,
      2. “like” McDavid USA page on Facebook
      Additional entries:
      • Post a comment on McDavid’s FB page telling why you want to try the sleeves and let them know Running with Attitude sent you.
      • Follow @McDavidUSA on Twitter
      • Share about this giveaway on your blog, Facebook or Twitter (be sure to include include @McDavidUSA in your tweet) — or do all three, one comment for each, please!

      You can enter from now until 11:59 EST on July 17th. A winner will be selected randomly on July 18th. If you just can’t wait to try McDavid for yourself, McDavid is offering Running with Attitude readers a special promotion of 15% off any of their products! Just use the promotion code RWA11 (now thru 7/31).

      Disclaimer: The product was provided by McDavid USA for the purpose of a product review. The opinions provided here are solely my own.

      Good Luck!
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      Filed Under: compression sleeves, giveaways, McDavid USA, product reviews

      Do you want cheese with that whine?

      July 5, 2011 by 6 Comments

      This morning was one of those runs where I was seriously questioning the sanity of planning to run a half marathon in August!

      Despite getting out by 6, the lovely bank display showed the temp was already 70 degrees. Mercifully, it doesn’t give the humidity reading — sometimes ignorance is bliss!

      4 1/2 weeks to go until 13 miles of heat-inflicted torture…er, I mean, race day. My training plan has this as a step-back week, but I’m not sure I want to cut back on my mileage too much. I think I’m just going to go by feel and see how far each run takes me – except I probably will cut back my long run to less than double digits. For today, 4 sticky thick miles felt like more than enough – ok I’ll stop whining now 😉

      Do you include step-back weeks in your training?

      Stay tuned for my McDavid USA compression review and giveaway coming tomorrow!

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      Filed Under: step-back, training, weather

      Happy 4th!

      July 4, 2011 by 3 Comments

      Just hanging here on my back deck with an iced coffee in hand enjoying a very lazy morning.

      After going almost non-stop since Friday, including a double-digit run, lots of much needed weeding and mulching my very neglected garden, cooking and grilling, running around with the kids and dog, Pilates and more running on my own….(you’re starting to get the picture)… I woke up this morning and every fiber in me yelled “Stop!” So I’ve decided to fully embrace the rest day on the training plan today, hang with family and maybe take the kids on in a no-holds-bar game of mini – golf, and then probably eat too much! How are you spending the day?

      Happy 4th!!
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      Filed Under: 4th of July, Rest day