Author Archives: Jessica

09.12.13
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It’s almost time…

Next week I officially start half marathon training! Eek! Per week, that means four runs (three easy runs during the week and one long run on the weekends), one day as a walking cross-training day, and two rest days.

My plan is mostly based on the Hal Higdon Novice 1 Half Marathon Training Plan. I extended it a bit, putting in a recovery week every fourth week and by making my longest run greater than the half marathon distance (similar to Galloway’s plan). Strength training is also to be done twice a week.

I’ll be comparing this table to my actual runs in my weekly updates to keep on track.

Week 1st Run 2nd Run 3rd Run Walk Long Run
09.16-09.22 3 miles 2 miles 3 miles 30 mins 4 miles
09.23-09.29 3 miles 2 miles 3 miles 30 mins 4.5 miles
09.30-10.06 3.5 miles 2 miles 3.5 miles 30 mins 4.5 miles
10.07-10.13 3.5 miles 2 miles 3.5 miles rest 3 miles
10.14-10.20 3.5 miles 2 miles 3.5 miles 40 mins 5 miles
10.21-10.27 3.5 miles 2 miles 3.5 miles 40 mins 6 miles
10.28-11.03 4 miles 2 miles 4 miles 40 mins 7 miles
11.04-11.10 4 miles 2 miles 4 miles rest 3 miles
11.11-11.17 4 miles 2 miles 4 miles 50 mins 8 miles
11.18-11.24 4.5 miles 3 miles 4.5 miles 50 mins 9.5 miles
11.25-12.01 4.5 miles 3 miles 4.5 miles 50 mins 11 miles
12.02-12.08 4.5 miles 3 miles 4.5 miles rest 3 miles
12.09-12.15 5 miles 3 miles 5 miles 60 min 12.5 miles
12.16-12.22 5 miles 3 miles 5 miles 60 min 14 miles
12.23-12.29 5 miles 3 miles 5 miles 60 min 10 miles
12.30-01.05 5 miles 3 miles 5 miles rest 3 miles
01.06-01.12 4 miles 3 miles 2 miles 15 min 13.1 miles!
09.10.13
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Week of 9/2/13 – 9/8/13

week of 8/2/13 to 8/8/13

I did not have a good start to the week. Despite my raving last week about how awesome running is for stress, I had the hardest time motivating myself to get out there on Tuesday. I changed into my running clothes and sat on my couch for a while. When I finally realized it was warmer in my house than it was outside, I got up and walked around a bit. I finally decided I was already out, so I might as well run, but I wasn’t happy about it. As I begrudgingly jogged down the road, forcing myself to keep going, I realized I had bigger problems. With stress, I get some tummy troubles, and I was feeling like I may throw up at any given moment. I tried to sip my water and just keep putting one foot in front of the other, but I quickly realized that wasn’t going to end well. So I walked. I would occasionally try to start up again, but the nausea would come immediately back. Ugh. So I cut my run short.

On Wednesday, I had speed intervals scheduled. I knew I needed to get out there, since it was my last planned run before the relay on Saturday. I picked a hillier route than the week before, and overall I did about as well. My fastest speed interval was at an 8:37 pace (the week before my fastest was an 8:28 pace). By the time I finished, the sun had set, which reminded me that it was starting to get dark earlier and that I’ll have to be hitting the treadmill more soon. Boo!

With Thursday and Friday as rest days, I woke up bright and early for the relay. By bright and early, I mean the sun rose while I was driving there. Yawn. It was super fun, though! If you haven’t already, you can read my recap. We finished our marathon in 5:08, and I averaged around an 11:30 pace, despite the awful hill. Strava says I broke records on my 1k (5:16), half mile (4:12), and one mile (8:48) times! And, oh yeah, I was second shooting a wedding for eight hours after that. I could barely stand the next day, but it was worth it! Our team name (Aching Bad) was definitely spot on for me.

I have a three 3 mile-ish runs planned this week, and then next week half marathon training starts! *cue nail biting*

09.09.13
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Race Report: Rockin’ Marathon Relay – September 7, 2013

This was an interesting but very fun race! The course was a 1.88 mile loop around Edwin Warner Park that we had to go around 14 times (the first time being slightly shorter) to complete the 26.2 marathon distance. That meant, with our four person team, two people had to run it three times and two people had to run it four.

Team Aching Bad (ah, my love of punny team names!) consisted of Amanda, my friend Jessica, and my coworker Jeff. Amanda and Jessica are about on the same level running-wise. I’m a little speedier than them, and Jeff is a little speedier than me.

Being one of the two fastest (lol), that means I was one of the lucky four time runners! I did get to do the (only slightly) shorter first lap, so my total official mileage for the day was 7.4 miles. The most I’ve ever run in one day!

Amanda and Jeff

Amanda and Jeff hanging out during Jessica’s first lap

For the first lap, we started about what looked to be a hundred feet in front of the start line, but “officially” was about a tenth of a mile ahead. (I will note that my Garmin did not detect that much of a difference so my watch average pace for the first lap is noticeably different from my official average pace.) The horn sounded and we were off!

The first half of the course is pretty much entirely uphill. The second half is downhill with some flats. The first half is awful. Thankfully, they positioned a water station at the top of the hill, which I took advantage of every single lap.

I felt pretty speedy on the first lap. I ran up much of the hill. (I did walk a few times…that thing was steep!) Then I flew downhill. I had a quick pause on the flat to catch my breath and ran to pass the baton to Jeff, who was running after me. Below is my pace graph for the first lap, where you can see elevation too. The slowdown at the very end was due to me forgetting to turn off my watch!

first lap pacing

I think everyone on our team had about a similar first lap experience: horror at the gigantic hill and a joyous downhill run. It seemed like my second lap came before I knew it! It was a lot tougher. I walked up more of the hill and more on the flats. The third was even harder. By then, it was getting closer to mid-day and the sun was bearing down on us. The temperature had risen nearly twenty degrees since we started.

http://instagram.com/p/d9qhVdklDY/
I was trying to psych myself up for the final lap. Amanda promised me three Fig Newtons from the food station if I did it in 20 minutes. For every minute slower, I would lose a cookie. I pushed as hard as I could and did it in 21 minutes. I got two Fig Newtons (and some crackers and a banana).

http://instagram.com/p/d97jmMklI_/
All in all, we finished our marathon in a little over five hours. So we’re not going to qualify for Boston anytime soon, but it was a blast (except for that hill).

Team Aching Bad

Team Aching Bad!

Here’s our official results with my laps highlighted:
20130908-111040.jpg

Garmin says the average pace for my first lap was around 10:18, and Strava reports my fastest mile was 8:48! I would say all that speed training has helped, but I’m sure a lot of that has to do with gravity. I know downhill running can destroy your quads, but my hamstrings were what was mostly sore the next day, so my downhill form must not be too terrible. But super good news: no hip pain at all!

I’m not quite ready for Ragnar yet, but relays are FUN!

Shoes: Pearl Izumi Road N2

09.04.13
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Winter Gear

I stopped by Fleet Feet on Monday to check out some cold-weather gear. (I know. Wishful thinking with the 90 degree heat we’ve been having lately!) I wasn’t planning on buying anything (unless I found a good deal), but I just mainly wanted to know what was out there. While I started running in the winter last year, I did almost all of my runs on a treadmill, so I lack anything to really keep me warm on my runs, except for one pair of running tights.

While I was browsing through the women’s section, the owner, Christi Beth, came over, and I told her what I was looking at. She was so helpful! She said that since I already had a pair of running tights, the top things I would need are a pair of capris, a long-sleeved shirt, and a half-zip pullover. I asked her if I needed a jacket, and she said that she didn’t think it was necessary if I had the pullover and the shirt, since I could layer them as the weather dictated. I told her of my love of thumbholes and pockets, so she showed me a few options that she thought I would like from Brooks and Nike. I asked about headbands/ear-warmers, and she said they didn’t have any in yet, but to check back in a couple weeks.

I haven’t bought anything yet, but thought I would ask you all what cold weather gear and brands you guys liked.