A couple of long runs

For all of you who were holding your breath wondering if I was going to do the long run on Saturday or Sunday. The long run ended up being on Sunday! That's right, pay up.

The long run on Sunday was at Waterdog park in Belmont CA. Here is a lovely picture of the view of it...

It basically looks like the peninsula hills, but it's just a nice trail run. It's known for abundant mountain lions and apparently a ghost that steals people away never to return. I've been running there since high school and as of yet have not had an issue, but I might just be lucky. It's a tough run, once I get to the trail head it's basically 1.5 miles uphill and usually it's brutal. I felt pretty good on it though, usually I'm huffing and puffing by the end but I felt great at the end.

As I am writing this blog currently from outside of Park City, Utah. Utah is gorgeous and currently we are about 5,000 - 6,000 feet up. Literally Mount Timpanogos is right outside the window and is stunningly beautiful. Here is another picture:

It's a little less green, since it's winter but the overall point is that we are high up, like mountain level :P. Therefore, running should be interesting this week. While I will not be able to do speed workouts or even the temple run, I'm definitely going to take advantage of training in the altitude. In fact, despite waking up super early tonight (4:05am) my BF and I went for a quick 2.5 mile run, about 1/3 of which was uphill and sheesh my lungs were bleeding. That was quite tough, definitely did a number on me. It was a really beautiful run though, even though painful.

We'll probably run a little bit everyday and then by the end of the week, i'll hopefully be in better shape even though I won't be on my schedule. Will resume the specific speed and tempo workouts next week and let you know how I feel. This week is going to be pretty painful though I can already tell :) That's ok, at least it's beautiful here and not as cold as I would have thought.

Will keep you updated as the week goes on! I'm going to try downhill skiing one day so hopefully I won't be too sore after that to go on a run, or I just might push through.

Till next time!

Failure & Success

Not all attempts at workouts are going to be successful.

For some reason I was more ok with this than I thought I would be. On Thursday night I was very excited for my tempo run. Hopped onto one treadmill did a great warm up and felt fantastic then hopped off to get some water (yes, when I run I spontaneously turn into a rabbit). Then I got back on my treadmill, but it had decided it wanted to sleep and would not wake up. I got onto another (old) treadmill just as I guy was switching to a new one.

Me: "Is this treadmill working?"
Dude: "uhh..."
Me: "more or less?"
Dude: "more or less"

Alright then, jump on and turn to my 8:57 mile pace and it immediately felt weird. My legs felt like you had attached lead weights to them. OH EM GEE. I was only able to run for 1.5 miles (much less than the 4), and I got off the treadmill thinking that maybe I was tired and today wasn't my day. OR maybe it was the treadmill that the other guy didn't like. Who knows? It was a failed work out. But these things happen you know? I went out to dinner with a few girlfriends to Coconuts, which has never failed to be fantastic (the friends and the restaurant).

Last night I attempted again. Although it messes up my schedule I think getting the runs into the schedule is more important than the schedule itself. I tried a new treadmill, and it was a new day, and I completed the 4 mile tempo run! With a 10 minute warm up and a 8 minute cool down (I was too hungry to finish the cool down), I ran for 55 minutes! That was great.

It was easier than last week, but it didn't feel like anything special. Less of a sense of accomplishment than  a sense of "good, you finished what you had left unfinished". Odd satisfaction. Anyways, I'll most likely do the long run tomorrow, my calves are feeling a bit sore (yay!)

I'm going to start researching what to eat before and after runs....

NOM NOM NOM. Just a word of advice if you start training for anything: you will be thinking about food just about as much as you think about the training. Just a heads up. And now for the Dim Sum...

Overview of week 1/diving into week 2

Helllooooo ...

Warning: some might construe the language in the Kei$ha section of this blog post to be inappropriate (surprise?)

So in the theme of being honest, I'm going to reflect on last weeks workouts:

Monday - Speedwork - Felt great, but it was too slow because I can't subtract (YAY MATH)
Tuesday - weightlifting, wonderful class, I think my mom is going to join me
Wednesday - nada
Thursday - Tempo run - Felt great, but was drained by the end and not feeling well
Friday-Sunday - nada- Feeling sick so no running or cross training

So not the most successful week, but I blame it on that silly cold that I had, plus like I said in an earlier post, it was an eventful week.

Here's to this week! Tonight I did the speed workout, which was honestly very intimidating when I looked at it at first. It was a warm up,  4 x 800m at an 8 minute mile pace, and a warm down. So a total of 5 miles for the whole workout. It actually wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. The 800s go by pretty fast, except the last one I had a side cramp, for the last like .2 of the .5 mile, that was painful... like to the point where I was grimacing. Now I understand the grimace that you sometimes see runners do in those really intense photographs, but the pain quickly subsided when I slowed down. I definitely could not have done a whole 800m with that type/intensity of cramp.

Today was the first day I listened to music during my workout. I generally like to listen to pop music for running because of the beat and the electronic music is just plain fun, so today me and Kei$ha were hanging out. For those of you who thought Kei$ha was trashy but have only listened to the singles on the radio, phew you have a WHOLE nother thing coming to you. Her songs are ridiculously shitty, as in--- who knew you could objectify both men and women at the same time?----shitty. I mean, I'm regularly appalled by the awful messages about women in pop music (yet, they're so catchy... and if I was a better person maybe I would stop listening to it all together for this reason) but if there was ever a line to cross she crossed it by singing about how she wanted to dump a guy because he talked to much and so she didn't want to date a "vag" ---as in vagina. I mean seriously? Since when was having a vagina and all of the qualities that it represents used as a derogatory insult against a guy? I mean, I think it's in the same vein as stripping men of their masculinity by calling them other unmentionables that are feminine related. But still, the blatancy of it all was really appalling and...to be honest, just disgusting. Then again, that is her image... overall,  I'm just struck at how silly I was to give Kei$ha the benefit of the doubt. Maybe I'll switch to pure electronica music.

 I wonder if you're allowed to listen to music while running/ if it's like a "thing" during races. Are we supposed to be listening to our internal fights about whether or not our legs are supposed to give out? Or in my case calculating in as many freaking ways as possible how much time is left, how many miles I have run and how many more I have to go.... haha you would be surprised what a desperate mind can come up with. Or maybe you wouldn't, maybe you're not a naive Kei$ha giver of the benefit of the doubt as I am. :)

Looking forward to this week:

Tuesday - Weight training
Wednesday - 4 mile tempo run (ooops, apparently last week was supposed to be 3! at least I know I can do 4 now, haha)
Thursday - nada
Friday - cross
Saturday - endurance - 8 miles (this is what it says, I might do 7)
Sunday - nada (might switch the endurance run to this day because big game is on saturday!) --- WOOO GO STANNY - ahm, had to get that out of my system.

Until next time!

First Tempo Run

Wow so last night I did my four mile tempo run.

The tempo run is a long-ish run that is fast than the normal pace. So since my goal is to run the half marathon in under 2 hours, then my goal time per mile is 9:12. The tempo runs are 15 seconds off the per mile so I ran 4 miles last night at a pace of 8:57 per mile. So all in all with warm up and cool down I ran for 55 minutes, which is longer than I've ever run for possibly. By the end I was exhausted.

Note to self:  do not do a long work out if you're hungry in the beginning. I ate a banana because I was hungry, figuring it would hold me off until dinner, but after the run I was just so exhausted that I was just sitting there in a trance until my boyfriend dragged me off my feet and we went to dinner. It also might have been because I have a slight cold. You know the usual sneezing, sore throat, congestion, exhaustion. All that fun stuff. I figure it's ok to run with a cold as long as you feel ok, but as soon as it becomes a chest cold running is probably not the best idea. You don't want to aggravate your lungs even more so, that would just be awful.

So I'm thinking that the tempo runs are going to be hardest for me, because the speed work outs have variety and the endurance work outs I can do outside where it's pretty, but the tempo runs are on the treadmill, and they're long and hard... yiiikkkeeessss!

So here is how I was feeling -

Mile 1: FANTASTIC
Mile 2: "                    "
Mile 3: ouch, k i'm done
MIle 4: one... more... it's going to kill me but keep running

And yea, I think i'm going to need an ipod/upbeat (read: pop music) lineup so that I can survive the last few miles of all the runs. It's a mental thing that makes me tired at the end (well, and I guess my legs hurt too) but I even tried to trick myself last night and tell myself I had to run 5 miles instead so I could keep going. Funny how difficult it is to trick yourself...

Anyways, I'm looking forward to this endurance run on Saturday. I might skip the cross train today because I'm feeling this illness and do something on Sunday. That would still be sufficient.

Thanks for reading! Until next time...

Contemplating mortality

A lot happened yesterday. November 8, 2011 was significant for my family because we lost someone that we loved, my step-grandmother died yesterday afternoon from terminal brain cancer.

I feel a little awkward about posting this to be honest because she was such a private person. Indeed, she had lung cancer a couple of years ago and only a few in our family knew. Furthermore, she was diagnosed with brain cancer in June and told no one. It was only about a month ago when the cancer spread to her spine that our family became completely aware of it all. Anyways, the point is that she was a private person but devoted, loving and tender to our family and to my grandfather of course. It's difficult to see her pass.

Are there a more significant days in your life besides your birth and your death? They seem to be the be all end all, what everything is shaped around and from where everyone fundamentally derives their actions...whether consciously or not.

What seems to be important to us is that people are there to witness our lives. Whether bolstering us with our achievements or creating a net upon which we can rely when we happen to stumble. The key piece of information to me last night was to make sure that my step-grandmother did not die alone, that she had someone there to witness (not just watch, but witness) and take in the full significance, the end of her journey. Someone was -- her caregiver --which is good. But I find myself wishing I was there to at least hold her hand as I did on the Saturday and Sunday before. Of course her passing makes me sad and will change our lives forever, but it was a significant moment for her. It was the end of her life.

Eventually that moment will be mine. Hopefully not anytime soon, but I think it's useful to keep in mind. This all reminds me of a piece of art that I stumbled across a couple of days ago that I just can't get out of my mind. It's called confetti-death and it's by Miami based artist Typoe. Here is more information if you're interested: http://hypebeast.com/2011/04/typoe-confetti-death/

Now I know nothing about art, but I do know that this affected me viscerally. And the image has remained in my head. From our own contemplation of mortality comes color, passion, life. And, inspiration.

So with that in mind, I've decided that my running, my training isn't only for me. It's for my step-grandmother and all of those in my life who have been affected by cancer. As a reminder of the power of the human body despite the natural process of it's weakening. I'm certainly not the first to do this, just look at all the "run for this cause" or "walk for that cause" events around the world everyday, but to me it feels really personal. Especially right now.

This training is more than just for me. Hopefully in some way I can witness my step-grandmothers life through this, I haven't quite figured out how or why it feels right yet. I feel like I'm falling into dangerous territory looking for the point of inspiration. But that will be saved for a later day.

Today is a 4 mile tempo run, but it might have to hold off for tomorrow since me and my cousins are taking my grandfather out to dinner.

Until next time...

Day 1

I am training for a half-marathon, my first half-marathon. I will document my progress on this blog as a bright, shining, public way to stay honest. This is important because I don't think this training is going to be easy for me, often times I let life get in the way of exercise and training, but with an endurance feat such as this every step you take is built up of all the steps that have come before it. What I'm trying to say is that without training, I will fail. Failing is not an option, because as you will come to learn I'm very competitive when it comes to things like this. Especially competitive with myself. But then again, I think all runners are.

I've thought a lot about the reasons for why I want to do this and have come up with a few:

1) My friend also wanted to do it and that push was a good impetus for starting all of this

2) One of my life goals is to run a marathon, so this is a good place to start

3) Life after undergrad is somewhat...unfulfilling in ways that I was not expecting, so to inject some inspiration/purpose into my life I'm going to challenge myself physically

4) I'll be healthier, it's always been a goal of mine to be physically fit. After losing some of the weight I gained from living in the German Haus last year (and eating all of those desserts), I will be able to lose the rest and gain muscle mass ! When I feel healthy and look good I'm more confident. Statement of the human condition?

So I'm following a plan that allows for 3 days of running a week over 10 weeks (although I have longer than that since I'm aiming for February 2012). The workouts consist of a speed workout with short intervals, a tempo run and an endurance run.

Here is this week:

Speed: 20 min warm up, 4 x 400, 10 minute warm down (Mon)

Tempo: 4 mile run (Wed)

Endurance: 5 mile (Sat)

Yesterday I did the speed run and it was great! I felt wonderful afterward, but then I realized that I had miscalculated the timing for the 400s by running an 8:34 mile pace instead of a 7:58 mile pace.... whoopsies. No wonder it was so easy...haha. It's ok I still have time! And if anything the 4.5 miles was just good for the legs. And if I keep feeling great after workouts I'll be even more inspired.

Tonight is weight training, which left me practically unable to walk last week, hopefully I'll be a little stronger this week since we only did like 500 billion squats. bring it on weight training class, bring it on.

Yesterdays run was topped off by a lovely piece of strawberry rhubarb pie and pumpkin ice cream... all sans guilt :)

Next update coming soon...