Thursday Thoughts (aka 3 Things)

April 21, 2011 by 7 Comments
  • So far the shift to early morning workouts is working. The alarm’s been going off at 5:20 and I’m usually moving 15 mins later. Despite not being what I would ever consider a morning person, I’ve been reminded this week of how much I enjoy starting my day with a run. It’s like a morning meditation in motion.
  • Speaking of meditation, I signed for another 21-day Meditation Challenge sponsored by the Chopra Center. I did a similar challenge during the winter and stuck with meditating for weeks afterwards. But of late I’ve let it slip so this challenge came at a good time. I find I’m definitely more focused and even-keeled when I’m meditating.
  •  My love affair with my Saucony Mirage continues – I’ve been doing all of my short runs in them while using my Brooks for the long runs. I’ve got another 10 on the plan for tomorrow and I’m tempted to try the Sauconys instead. My calves are really tight after yesterday’s tempo run so I’ll have to see how I feel in the morning.

Do you rotate shoes or stick to a one pair at a time?

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Filed Under: 3 things, Brooks Adrenaline, Chopra Center, meditation, Saucony

Feeling inspired

April 19, 2011 by 2 Comments
  • My hubs J and I took the boys to watch part of the Boston Marathon yesterday. While I try to catch the marathon every year on TV, I haven’t been to see it live in a few years. There is nothing like being there as the runners give it their all. 
  • As I stood out there cheering them on, I thought of all the hours of training, the dreams being realized, the causes being supported, the individual stories being played out. How could you not walk away feeling inspired?!
  • It’s April vacation week for my kiddos, which means getting up extra early to get my runs in before J leaves for work. During the winter I had let my runs slip to late morning to ensure running in daylight — and truthfully because the thought of running in both the dark and bitter cold was really unappealing! But since the clocks turned back I have been meaning to get back to early morning runs…and now with this week I have no excuses.
  • So an easy 3 miles was done before 7 and on deck for tomorrow is a 5 mile tempo run and then another long run of 10 on Friday. I’m hoping to get back on the yoga bandwagon that I fell off of last week and some much needed ab work and strength training. Hopefully the kids will cooperate 🙂

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Filed Under: Boston Marathon, kids, motivation, training

Double digits

April 15, 2011 by 12 Comments

When I first put my training plan into Smart Coach weeks ago, today was a day I circled. Today would be the first time I’d hit double digits!

While I was out running this morning, I kept thinking about where I was almost a year ago – working my way through the Couch-to-5k plan, finding it hard to believe I’d ever get to 3 miles….and anything beyond that was just crazy talk. But there I was this morning, cruising along to my new playlist my youngest son helped me together last night, watching the miles tick off on my Garmin and feeling pretty good, (by the way, music planning with a five year old is always interesting!). Today there were no walk breaks, even the traffic lights cooperated. And, while definitely windy, it was a beautiful day for a run and hitting a new distance. Great feeling to look down at my Garmin and see that 10 miles!

Now I’m ready for another jam-packed weekend! I’m really looking forward to heading out to see part of the Marathon on Monday. Gotta send a huge Friday Shout Out to all the runners heading to Boston this weekend – congrats on all of your hard work to get to this point…now enjoy the final ride!

Enjoy Your Weekend!
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Filed Under: firsts, long runs, Shout-outs, Smart Coach

Treadmill hills

April 13, 2011 by 3 Comments

Driving rain combined with a little thunder and lightening meant I was heading to the treadmill this morning. To keep it interesting I decided to do a hills workout. I picked the “foothills” workout from Running Planet that I’ve mentioned here before – I like it because it stairsteps up and down through a couple of inclines for a total of five miles, which was the perfect distance for my training plan today.

Basically, after a little warm-up, you pick an incline to start, run 1 mile then increase the incline by 1 and run 3/4 of a mile, increase the incline again by 1 and run a 1/2 mile then increase the incline one more time by 1 and run another 1/2 mile. You then decrease the incline in increments of 1 to return to your starting incline, while running another 1/2 mile, then 3/4 mile and then final mile. For me, this workout really makes the time on the ‘mill fly by! If you’re looking to mix it up a little on the treadmill, I say give hills a try!

Short easy run on the decks tomorrow before my first double digit run on Friday! I hope the weather cooperates, ’cause there’s no way I’m doing my first 10 miler on the lovely ‘mill.

Do you have a favorite treadmill workout?

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Filed Under: hill work, treadmill run

More new kicks – Vibrams!

April 11, 2011 by 8 Comments

So look what was delivered to my door the other day….

Yep, a pair of Vibram Bikila LS! Back in February my hubs and I won a pair from a charity auction at my son’s school. We had our choice of Vibrams and both selected the Bikila LS.  In case you don’t know, the Bikila is Vibram’s first model specifically designed for running. I choose the Bikila LS because it has a quick lace system designed to accommodate a wider foot. Well, they arrived the other day and I walked around in them every chance I got all weekend.  I was surprised at how comfortable they are, and they felt especially good wearing them post-run yesterday.

Since I’m taking baby steps towards minimalism, I’ll just be using them for walks for now. I may take them with me for my next track session in another week or so. I’ve been enjoying rotating in my new Saucony Mirages into my weekly runs, and with no knee pain over the past couple of weeks, I don’t want to do anything to jinx it. Patience is not my strong suit, but in the end I think it will pay off and help me to be a stronger runner.

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Filed Under: Minimalism, Saucony, Vibrams

Friday 9!

April 8, 2011 by 7 Comments

Well Hello Friday – so glad you showed up! It has been a long week…nothing dramatic, just one of those weeks where you feel like you’re running around like a chicken with it’s head cut off! I was very happy to wake up this morning and know it was Friday and the weekend is coming!

This morning was also my first 9 mile run! I will admit that I was a little nervous about trying this distance. I tweeted before I left that I was going to take on a new distance, and almost instantly I got tweets from so many other runners encouraging me, wishing me a good run and telling me to have fun! It was the nice little boost I needed before heading out the door. I’ve said it before, but I have to say it again – I love how supportive the running community is!

It was a beautiful morning for a run – in the mid-40s and bright sunshine. As I set out, I decided to not focus on the distance, but just run and enjoy the first signs of spring finally creeping into New England. I’m happy to say that it was a fairly uneventful run – took two quick walk breaks first to stretch out my left leg a little and then when I discovered that I cannot run and chew Chomps at the same time 🙂

So now it’s time to enjoy the great weather on deck for the weekend!

Have a Great Weekend!
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Filed Under: firsts, long runs, running community

8 weeks and counting

April 4, 2011 by 8 Comments

So forgive the randomness this morning….I’m trying to cut back on how much coffee I’ve been drinking lately. But Monday morning plus lack of caffeine = bullet points

  • It was great to have a step-back week last week – my body really needed the rest!
  •  the pair of Saucony Mirage I ordered showed up on my doorstep and I took them out for the first test run yesterday.  

I only went 3 miles in them but so far I’m in love! I had to resist the urge to go farther. There is definitely a different feel with the lower heel so I know my calves will need to adjust. I’m going to run in them at least once, maybe twice, a week to ease the transition. A full review to come!

    • Only 8 weeks to go until race day! The next few weeks of my training plan are really going to be critical for me both physically and psychologically cause I’ll be crossing into double digit long runs for the first time.
    •  This week I continue my quest to find my inner yogi, while the plan calls for intervals at the track, a couple of shorter runs and a 9 mile LSD. I’d like to get in 2 days of strength training and, as I mentioned last week, more core work.
    Happy Monday!

     

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    Filed Under: Half marathon, Saucony, training

    March Rewind

    April 1, 2011 by 3 Comments
    Good things for the month:
    • Logged 69 miles and for the most part my left leg cooperated.
    • Started my training plan for my first half marathon!
    • Participated in Detroit Runner’s “I Just Felt Like Running” virtual 5k
    • ChiRunning one-on-one workshop — so many good things, (if you missed it, you can check out my post about it here)
    • Continued to add more yoga to my plan.
    • 81 of you now follow this little journey of mine — welcome to the new followers — and to all, thanks for the support!
    Things I could do without:
    • Quite simply…this weather! Seriously…where is Spring? Snow is falling as I type this. If I ever track down that groundhog, he should be very afraid!
    On the decks for April:
    • Continue to build on my ChiRunning practice
    • Start rotating a minimalist shoe into my runs — starting with my shorter runs and then build from there.
    • More strength training and core work.
    • My first double-digit runs!

    What have you got planned for April?

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    Filed Under: ChiRunning, month in review, training, weather

    Enjoying a step-back week

    March 30, 2011 by 4 Comments

    This week is a step back week for me and I’m feeling like it’s come at a good time.

    After logging 22 miles last week (the most for me in a long time), plus cross-training, I was feeling a little beat by the end of the weekend. The good news is that the left leg continues to cooperate, and so short easy runs this week are a welcome change of pace. It’s also giving me a chance to really focus and put into practice some of things I learned in Sunday’s workshop.

    Another Aha for me from Sunday, is that I need to put more effort into strengthening my core. So in addition to my weekly Pilates class I’ve been trying to add more core work with planks, side lateral raises and the “hundreds.”

    What do you do to work your core?

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    Filed Under: core work, Pilates, step-back, training

    ChiRunning – the Aha Workshop!

    March 28, 2011 by 8 Comments

    This morning I had my one-on-one workshop with Certified ChiRunning Instructor Ryan Miller. It was a morning of Aha moments!

    We started with a quick warm up run which gave us a chance to talk about some of my concerns:

    • making sure I’m actually doing a mid-foot strike
    • leaning from my ankles, and using the lean to control my pace, and
    • managing hills (both the up and the down)

    Ryan video-taped me running and then we worked through some exercises to help give me a better feel for the lean and wheel-like motion your lower leg should be making. It was clear that I’ve been running much more on my forefoot than my mid-foot. Ryan suggested that I think more about landing “whole foot.” He also suggested that I try running barefoot on a track so I can develop a better feel for my foot contact with the ground. He also agreed with my plan to shift to a more minimalist shoe with a lower toe-to-heel ratio.

    We covered so much it’s really impossible to do it all justice in just one post. Some of my big take-aways included:

    • learning to relax my lower legs
    • when I hit mid-foot or “whole foot” I don’t hear the scuffing sound that I do when I hit forefoot, and my strike feels lighter
    • using my upper body more to propel myself uphill and rotating from my hips to flow downhill
    • finding comfort in the first gear and using the lean to both increase and decrease my speed

    Ryan was great to work with – so patient and easy-going, and clearly passionate about his running. He had a great way of distilling a lot of information into manageable pieces. As we’d run, he could suggest just the smallest of adjustments and I could quickly feel a difference – and I was always surprised by how effortless it felt. He kept reminding me the goal is to “maximize momentum while lowering resistance.” We concluded our session with another video taping – I can’t wait to compare the “before” and “after” when he sends me the videos!

    I left feeling like I now know what to be aware of, of how the run should feel. In fact, I was so psyched by what I had learned that as soon as I drove home, I went out for a quick 3-mile run. I went sans iPod, which is big for me, but I wanted to really tune in and listen to my footstrike and my breathing.

    While watching the ChiRunning DVD is definitely worthwhile, having the opportunity to work with Ryan has really taken my understanding to a whole new level. If you are interested in learning more about ChiRunning, I highly encourage you connect with a certified instructor in your area or find a ChiRunning workshop nearby and make the trip!

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    Filed Under: ChiRunning