SHMT, Days 11, 12, and 13

OK, enough with the not-posting!

Saturday and Sunday were shorter runs around Green Lake.

Saturday's run - 3.2 miles - was a lap around plus a little. Sunday's run - 4.5 miles - took us back to the bathhouse and back after a complete lap. It was a gorgeous weekend, so lots of people and dogs out on the path, including a Corgi convention on Sunday, with over a dozen representatives of that breed.

Kristina and the kids also ran on Saturday and Sunday, albeit at a slower pace. Good for them! Their new running gear seems to have helped.

We are in week four of our training schedule, and it's getting tougher (but so are we!). This morning's run, another 5:00am special starting time, featured a 3-mile run, six intervals (3 @ 2:00, 3 @ 2:30), and then two miles to finish things up.

It was chilly but clear as we started, and foggy down in the valley at the track. I was glad I wore my hat, and Shar kept her jacket on until we were nearly done with the first three miles. The run was a good one, though, and we're both really pleased with how far we've come to this point.

Another couple arrived as we were doing our last few laps and started running. Their pace was a little faster than ours, though not by much, and I noticed that we both picked up our pace a bit to try and stay with them. We chuckled over that and reminded ourselves that this was what led to our tiredness during the Dawg Dash. We need to ignore faster runners and run our own race. The funny thing was that we both did it, and that neither of us said anything... we just sped up a little bit.

The first half-mile or so are the toughest, at least for me, as the body's getting used to the exertion. After we're warmed up, though, we can carry on a conversation, which means we're at about the right level. Can't talk much during the interval work, but that is as it should be; we're exerting more.

SHMT, Days 9 and 10

Sorry for not being more timely with the posts.

Tuesday we ran at 5:00am rather than 5:30am - an early-morning appointment needed to be kept. No rain, and we did our AIs during the four mile run rather than in addition to the miles. The weekday mileage starts increasing this coming week; I fear we'll see 5:00am more often.

Had a police officer give us the drive-by spotlight as we warmed up; guess he was wondering who'd be on the track at 5:00am.

Thursday we ran solo - Shar was out of town - with a mix of AIs and GPs during the four miles. I found that it worked pretty well to warm up with a mile run, then alternate the AIs and GPs, one a lap, running at a normal pace to recover before starting the next lap... and then finishing off with enough normal laps to make the distance. My calves were a little sore yesterday after the run, but it was more of a workout.

Two three+ mile runs this weekend, and the weather should be beautiful!

SHMT, Days 7 and 8

No time to post yesterday, and precious little time to post today, but it's been a busy and productive running weekend.

Saturday was gorgeous. Chilly, but sunny and calm. Met Sharlyn and her daughter at Green Lake for a lap plus a little – 3.2 miles in all – and felt really good about it. Picked up my "Dawg Dash" packet after the run.

Sunday was equally nice, and about ten degrees warmer. Our training schedule calls for 6 to 7 miles today and, fortuitously, the Dawg Dash has a 10K race.

We signed up for the 10K and Kristina and the kids did the 5K. Nathan ran ahead and finished at a 9:25 minute pace - we were pretty impressed. (note to self: see if the junior high school he'll attend next year has a track team)

Sharlyn and I started out too quick, averaging a low-9 minute pace for the first mile or mile and a half. She was smarter and dropped back a little. I forged on and ran a couple of the miles by myself, but she caught me somewhere in the fifth mile. We agreed that this is something we need to watch closely; it's easy to get caught up in the excitement of the race and not run our race at our pace. We'll know better next time. My neighbor Robin ran with us for a couple hundred yards early on - he'd lined up behind us - but being a faster runner, he motored on ahead.

The course wound through the UW campus, from the stadium to the law school, and it was a lot of uphill for the first half of the course. What goes up, however, must come down, and we had gradual downhills and flat to finish it off. I didn't feel bad, so much as I felt more tired than I should have felt. We've done this distance before, just at a more measured pace. We finished in 1:01:33, at a 9:56 pace.

Morning-after update: I'm tired but not really sore anywhere, except for one little area on the front of my right lower leg, of all places.

SHMT, Day 6

I had a running partner this morning, hooray!

I rolled out of bed at 5:13am, boo! (The alarm did not sound at 5:00 as it was supposed to, I swear.)

A chilly and damp morning at the track, and the dampness, combined with the valley in which the high school and its track are located, meant that we both noticed and noted the lingering vehicle-exhaust in the air we were trying to breathe. Ick.

New shoes today - the ones I have been using to this point have a bit more support on the inside of the foot, which is fine for a lot of runners, and doesn't bother my right foot, but since I tend to strike on the outside of my left foot, that additional support on the inside of my left foot doesn't do me any good, and in fact could be doing some harm. (My left calf's been more sore, post-run, than the right throughout this training.)

While the jury should still be out on whether the new shoes make a difference (sample size = 1), I will say that my left calf muscle is not sore this morning. That's encouraging.

Four miles plus four "run at the same pace but turn the legs over faster" intervals - our "cartoon" running, as Shar likes to put it. It felt good. I was worried that it would be a horrible run; I was really tired last night, and went to bed early.

A day off, then three miles on Saturday and the 10K Dawg Dash run on Sunday.

SHMT, Day 5

Week two of our half-marathon training starts... today!

Unfortunately, our schedules aren't quite as in sync as either of us would like; for the next couple of weeks, we're not going to be able to run together as often as we'd like.

It's more difficult to get motivated to drag myself out of bed at 5:00am, knowing that I'll be running, solo, around the track. But drag myself out I did.

My other concern about this morning's run was that, last night, the forecast was for wind and rain. Fortunately, only the wind was in evidence. What few clouds there were in the sky were being pushed around rather rapidly, and some of the laps around the track were tougher than others, running into a stiff breeze.

The training schedule is a repeat of last week: today was two miles, then five to seven one-minute faster-paced intervals, then two more miles. I did six intervals, and my mile times were all around the ten-minute mark. Not bad for wind and no running partner to keep me focused and motivated.

I'm thinking about carving out some time to see about different shoes; my right leg feels great, my knees feel great, but my left calf muscle is usually sore after a run, and I'm wondering if I'm coming down on the outside of my left foot more than I should be.

Rest tomorrow, then another early morning at the track.

SHMT, Day 4

Our first long run of the training schedule: six to seven miles.

I chose my friend's AR-Campus Loop run; it was a little over six miles, over very familiar terrain, and wasn't too far from home.

We started at a fast (for us) pace - 9.5 minutes/mile - and it was, evidently, me who was pushing that pace. Who knows where I was getting that but I didn't mind.

We finished strong and enjoyed the scenery; Sharlyn hadn't been through the Ravenna / Cowen Park trail and really liked that path, even though it was uphill part of the way. (My friend Robin advised me to run hills and more hills, as the Seattle Half has some good hills in it. Good advice.)

A day off tomorrow, and then back to the track. This coming week, training-wise, looks just like last week, but our long run next Sunday coincides with the 10K Dawg Dash run - how fortuitous!

SHMT, Day 3

Ick, it's raining.

I think that was my waking thought this morning. Fortunately the rain tapered off, a few sprinkles as I left the house, and then it stopped.

Three and a half miles this morning, RD's "Neighborhood Three" . The last mile or mile and a half is shallow downhill, followed by a couple of blocks up that gain most of that altitude back. RD tells me that the Seattle Half ends with hills, so get used to them now.

Longest run so far in the morning - we are supposed to go six to seven miles, and I've got a 6.5-miler picked out. Starting from Green Lake, down through UW, back through Ravenna and Cowen Parks and back to Green Lake.

SHMT Day 2

Day two of our half-marathon training: four miles and four "GP," meaning we increase our leg speed (take shorter steps) over about 100 yards, until we're breathing hard, and hold that pace for 10 to 20 yards, and walk to recover.

Still dark at 5:30am, and there were clear skies over the scattered clouds, but more clouds moved in as we ran. No rain yet, but it's not far off. I think our nice weather's at an end.

The run was fine; a hair over 10-minute miles. That'll improve some with more training, but we are working on endurance here, primarily, and not speed. (Do I want to get a little faster? Yes, please. I'd love to shave a minute or so off my average time for a mile.)

We felt a little silly quick-stepping down the track, but it does get you working harder! By the last iteration, I could feel a difference in the way my legs felt. And yes, as the training guide pointed out, it is a change of pace (so to speak).