MTP Week 8 and 9 Overview...

So I had two amazing revelations at the end of each of my past two training weeks.

Revelation at the end of Week 8: In the course of the next 6 months (starting with the St. Paddy's Day 10K I ran at the end of this week), I will run 100 miles worth of races!

Revelation at the end of Week 9: I only have three more long run weekends, followed by two weekends of taper runs, until my marathon!

Week 8 Recap...

Monday: 3.0 miles in 28:42...nice easy run to work out my muscles after the extremely hilly 16.0 mile run I ran the previous Saturday.

Tuesday: Stretch/Rest

Wednesday: 5.5 miles in 51:09 with a 3.0 mile tempo run in the middle at 25:42...ran 1.0 mile to warm up, then did 3.0 miles at 8:34 pace (and felt great by the way), then finished the run with a 1.5 mile cool down.

Thursday: Stretch/Rest...ok, so I was supposed to run 4.0 miles at an easy pace, but Gonzaga was playing West Virginia in the 2nd round of the NCAA Tournament and, well, a girl has her priorities!!!  And seeing as how Gonzaga blew WV out of the water, it's clear to me I made the right decision.

Friday: Stretch/Rest

Saturday: St. Paddy's Day 10K Run in 54:20...got to downtown Tacoma to be greeted by a blast in the face of freezing cold rain (it was actually snowing in certain areas that morning) and all the wonderfully bright orange shirts of my fellow Fleet Feet HFMT (Half/Full Marathon Training) members...

...We lined up at the starting line, the gun went off, and away we went.  It was extremely cold, and we were soaking wet almost immediately, but it was so wonderful to be racing along and see other members in orange shirts working hard just like I was.  We cheered each other on when we saw each other along the course, which was just the motivation I needed to cross the finish line with a significant PR (personal record).  I got a second wonderful surprise when I went to the computer monitors by the finish line to look up my stats from the race...

...and realized I had placed 11th in my age group (females 25-29)!!!  Overall, it was a fantastic morning, and not a bad way to start my 6 months/100 miles of races!!!

Sunday: Stretch/Rest

Week 9 Recap:

Monday: 3.0 miles in 29:10...felt fantastic after the success at my race on Saturday!

Tuesday: Stretch/Rest

Wednesday: 6.5 miles total in 62:47 with 2 x 2.0 tempo miles in 17:08 and 17:22 respectively...felt ok during the first 2.0 miles, but I was pretty tired for the second 2.0 miles, and had to run it a couple seconds per mile slower.

Thursday: Stretch/Rest...was supposed to have an easy 3.0 mile run, but we had our first track meet of the season and it went extremely late, so I wasn't able to get my run in.

Friday: Stretch/Rest

Saturday: 17.0 miles in 2:49:28...this long run was a great one for me.  I was able to run with one of the other members from the training group, and not only did she and I keep each other motivated, but we kept each other going at an appropriate pace, averaging 9:58 per mile.  I started to get pretty stiff at around mile 15.0, but was still able to finish without walking at all.

Sunday: Stretch/Rest: A little sore today and my knees are in a bit of pain, but with the help of my friend, ibuprofin, I'll power through!

My training is starting to wind down, but never fear, I still have a couple weeks to go, and after my marathon, I'll still have 70ish miles of races to train for, so I'll still have lots of stories to share!

Are you training for any special races?

MTP Week 6 and 7 Overview

The last two weeks of training have been intense to say the very least.  This is due in small part to the fact that we started tempo runs in week 6, and probably in larger part because the last two long runs have been held at Point Defiance Park...

...which is riddled with more hills in one loop than I really care to run once, let alone 3 times in a row!  And yet 3 loops was the required allotment for the past two Saturday mornings.  Here's how the last two weeks have gone:

Week 6 Overview:

Monday: 3 miles in 30:42...easy run day to recover from the long run the week before.  It's kind of difficult, but I have to keep reminding myself that easy runs aren't supposed to be run for time, but for recovery and mileage.

Tuesday: 4.5 miles in 43:40 with a 2.0 mile tempo run completed in 16:48...tempo runs start out with a 1.0 mile warm-up, then this week we had a 2.0 mile run at the pace we hope to run the marathon in, which for me was 8:24 pace, followed at the end by a 1.5 mile cool down.  For the first tempo run I'd ever completed for my training, I have to admit it felt pretty good.

Wednesday: Stretching/Rest

Thursday: 4.0 miles in 38:09...workout seemed a little bit harder, but I was still sick with my sinus infection, so hopefully that was all it was.

Friday: Stretching/Rest

Saturday: 15 miles in 2:37:44...SO MANY HILLS!!!! The 5 Mile Road throughout Point Defiance Park is part of the course for the Tacoma City Marathon, so as part of our training program, the coaches thought it would be a good idea to have us do some of our mileage there...

...which would have been a great idea, had it not been for ALL THE HILLS!!!  In order to complete the 15.0 miles, we had to do 3 loops throughout the park, including three times up an incredibly brutal hill, appropriately nicknamed the "Green Monster".  Had to walk several times on the last loop because my legs were feeling like rubber due to the 1600 feet of elevation gain, and I was sore for the next week, but at least I finished.

Sunday: Stretching/Rest...so sore I could barely move, so stretching was kind of out of the question.

The next week's workouts were exponentially harder to complete for two reasons: 1) I was incredibly sore from Sunday's run, which had caused soreness in my legs, along with a gigantic knot in my right shoulder that was pressing down on a nerve in my neck, causing a significant amount of pain and 2) I still had my sinus infection, and to top it off, the cold that had started it all seemed to be coming back for round 2.

Week 7 Overview:

Monday: 3 miles in 30:08...the soreness in my legs made it all but impossible to keep putting one leg in front of the other, not to mention the fact that every step sent a jolt of pain shooting up my neck.  Aah, the joys of training for a marathon!

Tuesday: 4.5 miles in 43:35 with 2 tempo miles in 8:20 a piece...1.0 mile warm up, then 1.0 mile at tempo pace, then a 3 minute break, followed by another 1.0 mile at tempo pace, and finally a 1.5 mile cool down.

Wednesday: Stretching/Rest

Thursday: 4.0 miles in 36:25...this run actually felt pretty good, but then later that evening I started coming down with my cold...AGAIN!!!! Grrr...

Friday: Stretching/Rest

Saturday: 16.0 miles in 3:03:02...yesterday morning, I was feeling extremely sick (congestion, fever, nausea) and I still had a very good memory of what I had felt like after last weekend's long run.  I decided that I needed to take this week's long run easy, the way I was actually supposed to take all the long runs (again, I need to keep reminding myself that long runs are supposed to be run for mileage, not for time).  The nice part about sticking with people who run at a little bit slower pace than you...you actually have company along the run!  I got to spend the run with some nice people, was able to run the entire course, and don't feel nearly as sore after this week's long run as I did after last week's.  So I guess there is something to be said for running your training runs the way your coaches tell you to.  And not only that, but I got to enjoy the beautiful scenery throughout Point Defiance Park along the way.

Don't get me wrong, the 3 loops still kicked my a$$, but at least not quite as badly as before.

Sunday: Stretching/Rest...today I can actually stretch, whereas last Sunday I couldn't.  So there's progress at any rate!

Well, now that my recap for the past two weeks is done, it's time to turn my attention to Selection Sunday...

...to see which teams are going to "The Big Dance".  Hopefully my Gonzaga Bulldogs get a good seed!!!!

What team are you hoping makes it to the tournament?