Three Mile Tempo

Goal: 3 miles in 18:30 (6:10 pace - slightly slower than goal half marathon pace)

Actual:
2 mi w/u

3 miles in 17:40 (Avg - 5:53)
         mile splits - 5:55, 5:55, 5:50

2 mi c/d


We ended up driving to the park on Roe and starting this tempo near the pond in Leawood park on the Indian Creek Trail. While the trail has a fair amount of loop-de-loo's, I still like doing workouts on the trail because you don't have to worry about stoping for cars or stop lights. This trail isn't overly populated with runners/bikers either.

This was our first workout back since the Bass Pro Half, so we decided to set up a goal that we thought would be a challenge, but attainable. Little did we know, that the goal pace was way to easy, smashing the goal time by 50 seconds. As most tempo runs start, we used the first mile to feel out how the workout was going to go. Surprisingly, we ticked off a brisk 5:55 for the first mile, and knew it was going to be a solid tempo. I didn't feel half bad running that pace. The workout was anti-climatic: the weather was nice, the body felt good, and there was no doubt in my mind that I wouldn't be able to keep that pace up for the next two miles. Anthony and I live by the motto of "last one, fast one", so we picked up the pace for the last half mile and barely missed dipping into the 5:40's. No worries though :) This is the first workout in a long time that I am pleased with.

First Week Back

39 miles
10 mile long run
1 run with Jamie
Need to start weights!!!

Anthony and I put in a solid first week back. I threw around the idea of doing some sort of speed work this weekend, but decided to do pure mileage. I'm usually pretty motivated after some time off, but the cold weather is making it really hard for me, and I've been, should we say, cutting corners. I only did strides once this week, and never did make it to the weight room. . . oops. Oh yeah, and I didn't do my abs and push-ups either. I usually do push-ups on the days I don't lift weights. Really I have no excuse other than I just didn't go, so the goal for next week is strides at LEAST 3 times and weights twice. Usually I can find a way to blame not doing the little things on school work, but I didn't have to go to school this week :)

Saturday Anthony and I got to run with my coach from MOSO,  Jamie Burnham! He graciously volunteered to drive to Miller and meet us at the vet's office (where we start several of our runs). I haven't seen him in a long time and miss running with him, so this was extra motivation to go outside and run in the rain. Actually when we started the out-n-back run it was a mere drizzle with the winds at our back. Sure enough (and this seems to always happen) when we got to the turn around, aka the furthest piont from our start/finish, it starts to pour. Probably within 30 seconds my socks were soaked and my shoes started to make that annoying squishing sound. There is a bright side though, the wind suddenly switched directions. This means that we had the wind at our backs again! I love when the wind is at my back because you stay warmer, run faster, and it feels easier pushing you up the hills. I will have to make plans to run with Jamie agian over Christmas break, seeing as how I will be in Joplin for a full week. I'm looking forward to some of my old running routes :)

I have high expectations for next week. . . well really I just want to start doing all the little things again (mentioned above). I'm going to try my best to make it happen, there is just one large change in my life that is going to take some adjusting to. For the next 3 weeks, I am going to have to start getting up at 4:00 a.m (maybe 3:45 a.m. depending on how fast I can get ready in the morning). Why so early? Well, I'm starting my VERY FIRST clinical at Blue Valley PT and my hours are from 5:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m, YIKES! Again though, there is always a bright side. This will allow me to run in the afternoons while there is still daylight, yes! If I were working normal hours, it would be dark when I wake up and when I return home because it is dark by 5:30. The only bad thing is that Anthony has to run by himself (most likely in the dark/dusk) most days.

Week in Review

19 miles
no weights
Volunteers at Gobbler Grind


My second recovery week is over! It sure did fly by. It is difficult to start training again in the winter, but I am looking forward to start building towards next year. I'm not sure what my "big" races next year are going to be. I'm looking at the Dallas Rock-n-Roll (March),  possibly Boomtown (May), and I need to find a fall race. Hospital Hill (June) is up in the air also. It has a huge cash prize ($2500) and brings in the elite runners. I'm pretty sure I could take top 3. I think I NEED to do Hospital Hill and experience the infamous half marathon.

We are running a 10 mile (there is a 5k also) race over Christmas break on December 17th. One of our friends is putting on the race, and it is only the second annual. I'll be surprised if there are over 100 runners. We will probably just tempo it.

Talk about some crappy weather this week. We had some unseasonably warm weather for November. I think Saturday we may have hit 70 degrees. However, the only bad thing about it being this warm, is that it brought with it crazy winds. Friday had winds at 25 mph, with gusts up to 40 mph which means our runs were slow, but felt hard. Saturday was just as bad. I'm pretty sure we turned a coner to head directly into the wind, and I literally came to a standstill. I should have jumped to see if I would have floated backwards :)

Anthony pre-race. Semi-warm and still smiling.

Anthony binging home the first 5k runner. Just barely getting started;
he rode the whole marathon!

Sunday Anthony and I volunteered to help out at the Gobbler Grind (since I would not be running in it this year). It's hard to be on the sidelines and watch someone else win, especially when I'm pretty sure I could have won by a couple minutes. Results Poor Anthony volunteered to be the lead bicyclist. The day before it was 70 degrees, but Sunday morning it was a brisk 32 degrees with a wind chill of 23 degrees. He did, however, get a new bike out of the deal. He has been wanting a triathlon bike ever since his friend started competing in tri's/iron's. We searched craigslist and a mere 12 hours later were the proud owners of a Quintana Roo made if carbon and aluminum, so it is very light weight. For some reason he won't let me try it out ;) I've never been on a racing bike.

Early Christmas present

Other good news, we decided to buy an altitude tent. Anthony was more excited about it than I am. It was very expensive, and I HATE being poor. We totaled up my earnings from races this year and came up just a little short of paying for the tent, so we didn't have to pay much out of pocket. But if I can drop just a minute or two on my half's the tent will pay for itself very quickly. Hopefully I can drop more; I'm still fairly young for being a half marathoner. I'm confident that without the tent I could go sub 1:19 this next year, so who knows what will happen with the tent!

We have only slept in it for a couple nights, so I can't really tell a difference. The only thing I have noticed is that my hair is poofy when I wake up, so it must be humid inside. We have it set on 3000 ft and will work up to 9000 ft over the next couple months. Altitude tech suggests that 9000 ft is the optimal level for most athletes. There are two philosophies with altitude training, "live high, train high" and "live high, train low". We are hopefully going to achieve the second. Here is some research I found that explains physiologically the benefits of Altitude Training; it supports the "live high, train low" philosophy. Yay!

Our tent for the next few years.

Week in Review

13 miles
3 runs
no weights

Well, there isn't much to report this week. This was the first of my 2 week recovery. My body is starting to feel rested and rejuvinated! I can only imagine how fresh I will be after next week. I decided to scrap the Gobbler Grind this year because of my foot. I think it got bruised from Bass Pro last weekend. I got a monster blister on the side of my big toe, and that caused me to pronate to avoid putting pressure on it (I usually supinate just a little) for the last 6 miles of the race. So 6 miles of pounding on that one spot had me feeling a little sore. Another reason I opted out was because the course got re-routed from last year. Now it goes to the part of the Indian Creek Trail that I don't like. You know. . . big hills and through the woods. Plus it is an out/back so it is going to be croweded because the trail isn't very wide, you MIGHT be able to run 3 wide. Anthony and I will however be at the race on Sunday to cheer for anyone we might see that we know. There is a chance you might see Anthony riding as the lead bicyclist ;) After next week the posts should get more interesting because I will actually be running. . . maybe even some workouts to report!

Winter is in the Air

After a glorious three days of no running. . . yes, a full three days. . .  I decided to start back with an easy three miles. While the legs felt fine, I'm pretty sure the cold air made my throat bleed. Boy am I looking forward to winter (sarcasm); the only thing I'm looking forward to is a change in wardrobe! I need to get my winter accessories out. The plan is to take this week easy,and probably most of next week. I might sign up for a half marathon next weekend, but just tempo it and run to get first place. Usually the winner runs somewhere around 1:25. I think the winner gets money AND a pair of shoes, so it might be worth it!

On another note, the professional pictures from last weekend are up. I for some reason only have two photos (only one action shot), but Anthony has a bunch. Check them out. . . Photos

Bass Pro Half Marathon

Bass Pro Half Marathon
1.5 mile w/u
13.1 miles @ 1:20:37 (PR)
2nd place female; 6th place overall - Results
$250
*two monster blisters

Our shoes! Made the KY3 homepage

This big day has finally arrived! As always on race day, we were up way to early for a weekend, getting out of bed by 4:50 am. I should look at this as great practice for me, since after Thanksgiving I will be working at my clinical by 5:00 am. We had daylight savings last night, so it didn't actually feel THAT early.

Immediately upon stepping outside, I realized that it was about 10 degrees warmer than expected, which, unfortunately, brought winds ~ 20 mph. On the bright side (literally and figuratively), I was able to wear my uniform with no problem. Before our warm-up, Anthony and I bypassed the ports and stepped into McDonald's to use the restroom. Just to put me in a bad mood before the race, I ripped my jacket coming out of the stall. How does someone rip their jacket? Well the pockets sorta face backwards, and it got caught on the lock. Putting that out of mind, we started our warm-up, and with about 15 minutes until race time went in search of the gear check. Who would have thought the gear check would be hard to find? Courtney had problems finding it too, and ended up not even getting to check in her gear. We finally found a volunteer to ask and ended up with 5 minutes to get to the start line on the other side of the building. Really though, we shouldn't have worried because these races hardly ever start on time.

I got lined up and scoped out the other runners. I made eye contact and smiled at this man, and there was a hint of recognition reflected in his eyes. I didn't find out who it was until after the race, but he looked so familiar. Turns out it was Rick from Kansas City. Matt Wegenka, Anthony's arch-nemesis, was also there. You'll be glad to hear that Anthony beat him this week, after getting out kicked last weekend at the Persimmon Days 5k. From Anthony's recap, there was a bit of pushing during the race. I also found Mark Pluninski's (from Joplin) wife, so I'm sure he was somewhere in the crowd. Katie Hauser was also up front, but I wasn't too worried about her. Then my eyes settled on an Ethiopian girl. I couldn't help but feel a twinge of disappointment, but still went in positive and see if she was within my reach.

Around mile 2 - still feeling great. This was my fastest mile split.

Off we ran. Anthony was first to make a move, and the Ethiopian girl went with him. It was this point, a mere three-quarter mile into the race that I knew she was legit. I decided to trail for just a little while, thinking that if she got broken off by the pack of three that she would come back to me. Well, she didn't get broken off, and ended up finishing right behind Anthony. I felt really good through the first half, and averaged about 6 minute miles.

Then we had to turn and come back into the wind. This is the devastating part of the race. I thought for sure that I would be in the low 1:19's. I was running so well. I'm not sure if it was the wind, or just being by myself, or that I was sick earlier in the week, but something happened. The second half of my race was a consistent 6:20 average. I got passed at mile 7, and tucked in for about a mile, but couldn't hang. This is the first race that I have ever had to walk in. I got a debilitating side cramp at mile 8, and knew my chances of sub 1:20 were over. There is still a bright side to this race (besides my uniform - haha), and that is that I still ran a PR. Out of all the bad things that happened, I somehow ran my fastest half marathon. I'm baffled by this, but I will take it! This gives me confidence that if I can get into a race where I'm not all by myself (it felt like just a long tempo) I have no doubt that I will go under 1:20.

We both got second palce overall

Time to Fish - At Bass Pro



Little Mermaid themed pumpkins



The big day is finally here. The Bass Pro half marathon is tomorrow morning. Anthony and I have been training for this all year. We started in the summer and had about 10 weeks straight of about 70 miles. We just had the unfortunate luck of getting sick last weekend, and our goals of running PR's has become a bit more challenging. There was no doubt in my mind that I would have run sub 1:20 at this race. The positive is that I feel just a smidgeon better each morning I wake up, but I was still unable to have a good work out this week. We are fairly lucky for the weather we will have in the morning. It is going to be 48 degrees, but winds at 16mph. It could have been a lot worse in November in Missouri. We are trying to be as optimistic as possible, but is hard to not be disappointed.

On a different note, I am proud to say that Anthony and I won the patio decorating contest! We get $75 dollars of Novembers rent. When we went in to pay, all the ladies there new exactly which patio we were, and told us we got a unanimous vote for first place :) When we told them who we were they said, "Oh, you're 'Full Moon' ", then we had good chuckle about the patio. The design was inspired from my days at Missouri Southern. My roommate, Meigan, and I used this design to decorate our dormroom door.

The final product had streamer and our pumpkins