The run was 8.24mi w/ 3x mile @Half pace w/ ¼ mile recoveries (which ended up being 2min each). The mile reps were a tad faster than Half pace: 6:58, 6:54, 6:53 and the whole run averaged 7:47.  What bodes well about this is that it was 74 degrees with 64 dewpoint but a cold-front is moving in and Sunday morning looks to be around 57 with no humidity.  Huge difference from any of my tempos this summer.

So now all there is to do is taper.  The next few days go 6, 5 w/strides, rest day, 4 w/strides, race.  Gulp.

Race Goals
I’m not going to go into it too much but I’m nervous as hell.  I’ve had some strong running this season but please don’t think for a second that I’m sure of myself or think this weekend is a lock for anything, I’ve had too much weirdness in my racing to ever know what to expect.  Loopy mental state aside, here’s what I’m looking at for goals…

A Goal: sub 1:32
B Goal: sub 1:33
C Goal: PR (under 1:33:51)

I’ve been training with 7:00 as my goal pace, so that’d be 1:31:42 – I would love that.  While you might think “Dang girl, you ran all those miles and all you think you can do is sub 1:32?  Hardly seems worth it.” But to me it’s much more than that.  Remember, my PR is from 2009 and last year the best I could do was 1:34:40, so this is now a 2-year catch-up game.

I want to say this about whatever happens: whether I fuck it up or run a great race, those miles were important.  Not only did they make me a much better runner (I’m not commenting on how good a racer I am, the jury’s out on that) but beyond aerobic conditioning, increased efficiency and breaking an interminable plateau, I’ve enjoyed the experience thoroughly.  Even the few runs that sucked, and there were so few, were necessary to the experience.  I’ll hark back to my 99% post because that is what this season was for me (and the percentage has even gone up due to the increased mileage, lol).

Age-Grading Update
While playing around with the Age Grade calculator, I’ve noticed that the numbers are different from what they used to be.  The percentages I mentioned a couple posts ago that apply to my goals are correct but my old AGs scattered around this blog in various old posts are now obsolete. Not a big deal since they’re only good for the year in which you run the race anyway and I’m about to get me some fresh results, but anyway…

I noticed the Half percentages in particular seemed quite a bit tougher and after some investigation, discovered that in 2010 there was an update for women’s Age-grading factors (this takes you to part of a much larger page so if you scroll, you can see info for men as well).

As a general note, be aware that when you do use an AG calculator some still use older factors so they’ll seem more generous percentage-wise.  I like the one from Runnersworld but this one is also good (it’s the source one actually, but has an uglier interface).

My Latest Goofy Purchases
What I’m about to discuss will seem ridiculous to people with houses or washers/dryers in their apartment, but I’ve a feeling my fellow city apartment dwellers will understand…

All summer I’ve come home (as most as you have) with sopping wet running clothes.  In the Blue Hovel, I’d wring them out in the sink, then hang them till dry enough to throw in the hamper the next morning.  In my new apartment however, they take longer to dry especially when it’s rainy and damp stuff can turn into smelly stuff.  Summer maybe be over but my running clothes are sweaty year-round so it’s not just a seasonal situation.

So I started checking out portable spin dryers and found a dandy little countertop spin-dryer.  My original idea was just to dry my sweaty clothes so I could put them in the hamper immediately.  According to the reviews, this mini dryer gets nylon-based clothes completely dry whereas cotton ends up mostly dry (dryer than a regular washer’s spin cycle but still slightly damp).  Btw, while you never want to put your running clothes in a dryer because heat will mess with wicking fabric and make your stretchy stuff crispy, this thing works with centrifugal force, like a big salad spinner, thus no harm to the fabric.

After I decided to purchase the thing, I started thinking about washing clothes as well because trekking down to the basement to throw a bunch of quarters in somebody else’s washer/dryer has never been my idea of fun, so if I can lessen that need, all the better.

Thus, I began to investigate mini washing machines, of which there are two popular types.  One is electric, the Wonder Washer, while the other has a hand-crank and, hilariously enough, is called Wonderwash.  I didn’t know that washing clothes could be so filled with Wonder, but apparently it is.  I can only imagine the lawsuits that went down between those two.

Anyway, I watched a bunch of YouTube videos on both, even a newscast review of the hand-cranking one, plus read a ton of reviews and comments.  Ultimately, I decided against either of them for a few little reasons but also because they don’t rinse your clothes, you have to fill the receptacles again and repeat the process to rinse. Seemed too much of a production if I’m to retain my lazy-ass status.

However, in those reviews I read about an alternative low-tech item, the Breathing Mobile Washer.  It’s incorrectly named Rapid Washer at Amazon.com(the Rapid Washer is metal and rusts but I’m linking to it so you can read the reviews if you’re a review reader like me).  It’s basically a souped-up plunger that seems easier to deal with than the two mini washing machines and supposedly gets clothes cleaner, too.  Also, you can use it in the bathtub, sink or bucket…whatever size vessel you want for the job.

Together, it should totally lessen my need for the basement washer/dryer downstairs, appealing to my lazy self while saving money and keeping damp duds from laying about as well.  I’ll post a review on them next week after I’ve used them a couple times.  Supposed to get them tomorrow…I’m so excited!

There really is something to be said about this casual increasing of distances and efforts.  I like it so much that I plan to continue this model long-term (knocking on wood for continued health):
1. Summer base-building, completely low-key, emphasis on volume
2. firm it up for Fall racing, try to keep the mileage up through the season (racing will naturally interfere some, but it’s ok)
3. take 1-2 weeks off completely as Winter sets in, then
4. spend Winter running mid-60s to 70s (no way I’m doing 90mpw in wintry suck) – again keeping it casual
5. returning to 90mpw and race prep in the Spring.

The trouble with higher mileage in singles
As you know, I prefer doing all my runs in singles and so far, it’s been just fine.  However, now that I’m adding in quality work, scheduling becomes more complicated. I only have one short day, Monday, which I consider to be a recovery day or “my little reward for having completed another chunky week” so it’s a putter day if I choose.  That leaves me 6 days of double-digit runs in which to place speed and tempo workouts.  This is why extending the Long Run to 18 and beyond is helpful, as it lets me shorten a workout day.

Not that it’s horrible to do a speed or tempo in the midst of a longer run, it’s just a pain in the ass.  Because if I do it towards the front of the run, energy levels are good but that leaves a lot of miles afterwards.  Alternately, if I wait towards the end of a run as I would for speedwork (because 1-2 miles is the most I want to deal with after that type of effort) then that’s an 8-9 mile warmup…a tad excessive.

Additionally, the day preceding a quality day will probably always be 14 or more, which means my legs aren’t exactly bouncy when it’s time to do the workout.  And with my preference for 2 days between quality sessions…you see how it can be limiting.

On the other hand, quality days within longer runs aren’t the worst thing ever, it’s certainly good for endurance, but you have to accept that there will be some performance tradeoff.  So if I find I’m too tired to do the workouts properly or that my progress is being held back because of it, I will either have to drop some mileage (even 5mi would help) or incorporate a couple doubles.

The good thing is that I’m satisfied with any progress at the moment and am in no hurry to get from A to Z.  So I won’t be making any changes just yet, but this is an ongoing experiment and it’s interesting to see how these components will unfold as the workouts go from baby steps to Real.

My Goals and Revisiting Marathons
I wrote a post on the 3:20 thread the other day in response to the usual teasing from my forum pals about my “Great marathon training, Flo!” or asking me when my next Full is.  It always makes me laugh and I haven’t said anything about goals in a long time because I stopped having any.  Well, that’s not exactly true, I’ve had a sub-20 5K goal for almost 2 frickin’ years, lol, and if I don’t get it this Fall, there’s something seriously wrong with me (meaning, I’m confident it’ll happen).

But anyway, I finally said something goal-ish to my 3:20 pals because I wanted to admit I have one, even if it’s a while down the line.  This is a goal I’ve secretly coveted for ages but dismissed for being impossible, but here it is back on the table… a 1:30 Half.  NOTE: I have to make this super clear before anyone gives me a “you can do it!” before I’m ready; it ain’t gonna happen this year!   It’s a 2012 goal but the fact that I even have it (and think it’s acquirable) is beautiful.  So that’s my #1, long-term goal.

Now about those pesky marathons…
While on a run the other day, I got to thinking about the things I disliked about marathons and marathon training: those interminable long runs, the way improper nutrition or hydration can kill a race, that bad weather can crush months of hard training in an instant, not to mention my feet always get beat up and hurt like hell during a marathon.  Then it hit me that two of those things are no longer applicable.

Long Runs are obviously not heinous anymore and 6 purple toenails later my feet are acclimated to constant pounding (crazy how bad my feet got the moment I raised my mileage, but all is well now).  As for the other things, I still hate them.  I haven’t had a gel on a training run since March 2010 and love not having to worry about it, and the thought of racing hard for 3+ hours in crappy weather turns my stomach.  I’m not ever going to be someone who finds the challenge of those things exciting or something to rise above, it’ll always be irritating shit in my book.

Now here’s a thing:  about a year and a half ago when I announced “no more marathons”, I told my friend Lara that there was one lone circumstance in which I’d reconsider the decision and that was if I could confidently go after a sub 3:10.  It was a “when pigs fly” type of remark because I knew it was never gonna happen.  But now I’m not so sure what I know or don’t know anymore – there’s really no telling where this new phase will lead.

If, for some crazy reason, I’m able to drop my times to where 3:09:59 seams feasible, then I actually would probably go for it.  But I still don’t love the marathon distance, so please nobody expect me to be perusing Rock N Steal Your Money Roll’s website for the latest fab race any time soon, it’ll be a while, if ever.

So that’s what’s been going through my head lately.  Since what I’m doing is pretty much marathon training.  How ever the hell that happened.

I had a good workout on Friday, 12x200s as planned.  No drama or head trips, I had fun with it.  Saturday was a beautiful slow recovery run thanks to the snow.  Then yesterday sucked.

It was only a 13-miler but I was so tired, it felt like a 20 when all was said and done.  I was tired because the girl upstairs (who spent the whole of December out of town so I was able to sleep straight through the night for 4 blessed weeks) is now back and waking up between 4:30 and 6am, so that means I do, too.  I go back to sleep, but it’s fitful and I have to use that stupid white-noise machine.  Part of it is my fault as well, since my bedtime has climbed to 1:30am lately – a habit I need to get under control.

Anyway, I was sluggish as hell, it was super cold and windy and they did a weird job of clearing the bike path, leaving large swaths of slippery snow.  After the first few miles, I almost changed it to be a run for time instead of distance but it eventually cleared out for the bulk of the run.

One thing is for sure, I cannot wait for California.  On yesterday’s run, I was doing a checklist of all the stuff I won’t need to bring, as in jacket, gloves, tights, hat, etc.  Just 2 weeks now!  Not feeling much for the race, but I’m super excited to see my friends and go somewhere I’ve never been, even for a few short days.

As for the race, my workouts have been inconsistent these last weeks that to expect to magically hit this one hard seems naive.  I’m fine with it though, especially since the whole subject of taking a real break is on the forefront and probably 2 years overdue.  That said, I hope this is the last race for a very long while that needs the preface “It won’t be my best, but I’m cool with that”.

So here’s to an excess of teeth-gnashing, PR-grabbing, competitive energy building within the next few months, for me and any of you who could also use a shot.  Say it with me now: “Grrrrrrrr”<—-practice daily for future race kill.

That’s it for this thrill-a-rama.  Have a happy Monday, folks!

Splits were 3:16, 3:17, 3:15, 3:17, 3:13, 3:16, avg pace 6:30.  The fastest set of those I’ve ever done.  Total for the run with wu/cd was 7.5 mi @ 7:48.

So, what does this mean? It means I am officially back on the PR prowl again.  Finally.

My Goal For Carlsbad
I’m going to go ahead and say it now, because it’s the magic number for the next few weeks…7:05 pace, which comes out to 1:32:47.  Now, I need to also say that if it’s a warm day (because it is California and it could happen) then I’ll have to dumb it down on race day, but all my quality for the next couple months will have that race pace in mind.

I actually picked the goal a couple days after the Philly Half, thanks those final 7:05s feeling like they did.  But I still need to grow more – the course is supposedly more rolling than Philly and I want to keep the effort dial on 9.5, not go anywhere near 11, so I think that with 8 weeks of steady work, I’ll be in a good position to do it.

Owning New Paces
OK, I find the whole “owning” terminology a little psychobabbely, New Agey, but it’s really the best way I can think of to describe accepting new paces as mine and that I deserve to run them.

I’ve talked about this before, that I envision paces and pace ranges as hands on a clock face, which is pretty funny considering I haven’t owned anything but digital clocks for years. But anyway, I can “understand” the paces I personally come in contact with but anything faster, it’s like that great New Yorker cover, only instead of empty geography, time is the blank.  Anything faster than 6:30, I could not, or would not bother to comprehend.  Why would I?  My clock’s been stuck for so long.

That’s not to say I haven’t touched the 5:xx’s a few times, I have, but that was in strides and Billats.  And I’m not talking about 30 seconds of fast, I’m talking about intervals with some meat on them and 5K race paces that land in the 2nd quadrant of 6 o’clock.  I’ve held off on going there in my mind because what if I never got to have it?  That would suck.

But now I can see some movement ahead.  Like the excitement I felt when I was in the 7:xx’s peering at 6:xx’s till they became real and normal, it’s not ridiculous for me to start envisioning paces between 6:15 and 6:30 – a new area of the clock I can call home, that I can possibly get to own.  It blows my mind.

Now, about those brisk runs – I had a hell of a good time this week.  It’s been the fastest month of training I’ve ever done.  Fastest week, too.  The week went like this (with Heart Rate Reserve % so you can see I’m not being irresponsible):

Monday: off
Tuesday: 10 @ 8:16 (71%)
Wednesday: 7 @ 8:11 (69%)
Thursday:  15.5 @ 7:45 (79%…was the workout mentioned in the previous post)
Friday:  7 @ 8:53 (63%)
Saturday:9 @ 7:59 (75%)
Sunday: 12 progression @ 7:57 (75%)
60 miles total

The Good
What I liked about the week, besides the fact that my heart rates are better than they have been in a long time (along with the corresponding paces) was that my legs felt tired after Thursday and a little tired yesterday.  I know it sounds weird that I’d like that, but I don’t often feel tired legs, though I’ve run many recoveries because it was expected, rather than needed.  Friday was a recovery because I needed it.  That’s good.

There is something to be said about doing things because you feel them or have instincts about them, not just because you read about it.  I’m not defying standard training practices outright by making moderate pace the norm – I have 3.5 years of data in my logs that lead me to believe it’s truly worth testing – though it does require trusting myself which can be a scary thing.

The Could Be Better
As far as mistakes, Saturday should have been slower, 8:15 – 8:25s would have been fab.  Friday’s recovery was so effective, coupled with my continuing delight at how certain paces feel, that I got greedy.  If I’d parceled it out properly, I’d have held back for fresher legs yesterday.

No biggie, lesson learned.  All I have to do this week is taper for Sunday’s Half so aside from 3 x .75mi tomorrow, not much else is happening.

Patience Ahead

Yes, I’m training faster than ever but this is not going to be a miracle of running faster for 3 weeks and “Boom, I’m PR queen!”  I still have some relearning to do when it comes to pushing in a race.  I’ve done 3 races since September’s collapsing Half: the first one was slow to start on purpose then the next two were slow to start but not on purpose.

Obviously, I still have some anxiety about getting into race effort and what I can handle, so bear with me a little while longer – patience is required while I get the mind and the body all working on the same page.  So while I guarantee there will be no surprises this weekend (I’m thinking 1:34:xx is a reasonable goal that won’t have me working my last nerve), keep a lookout for the future.  Faster times are coming.

I’m a little anxious about how much you dial it back so as not to expend all your energy.  How do you tell?  Any words of wisdom will be appreciated.  I guess the key will be sliding behind some dudes to draft, which’ll be another first.  I’ve never drafted off anyone before.  Look at me, getting all racery! ;-)

The course is just a few blocks from my apartment, but for once, not by the water.  It starts at the Eastern State Penitentiary (now a tourist destination and supposedly the best Haunted House around) then goes up into Girard College, where I’ll get to finally see a track us non-students will never be allowed to use (such a tease) and then returns to the prison.

Goal-wise, I don’t have a time in mind for this one, it’s a “beat as many chicks as I can” goal.  That’s about it.   I’ll report here afterwards with the story.  So have a good Friday, folks!  See you here tomorrow.

For the past few days, I’ve been mulling over doing a 5K this weekend.  I had planned to race this weekend anyway, but the Half debacle complicated my plans.  While part of me was dreading the idea of racing again (the memory of discomfort is very bright still), another part is anxious to get back on the horse; these months-long stretches between races is not good for the psyche, much less when the last race memory is pure suckage.

What clinched the deal is that the weather is finally going to drop tonight, race start will be low 50′s, temps I haven’t experienced since April.  How wonderful it will be to remove the heat & humidity factor entirely from the picture.

Conferring with Coach A muse/Adam, we agreed that goal time is inconsequential.  Instead, my primary goal is to finish without a bizarre ending with an ancillary goal to feel good and run strong.  With this in mind, he gave me a great pace to target, 6:50s.

I know it will be slightly annoying to see my age group cohorts speed ahead of me, plus this race has real prizes which is a rarity around here (at least it did in 2007), but finishing upright would be worth its weight in gold.

I wasn’t going to mention that I’m doing it, btw, just say so afterwards, but I’m such an ass that if I’m going to run 6:50s, I want you to know ahead of time so it doesn’t look like I ran a shitty race and pretended after the fact “Oh yeah, I was planning on crap pacing from the get-go”.  Now you know I really am.  And because I went to the trouble to explain this, I’ll probably finish with 7:00′s.

In other news, my first medical test is this Monday, the breathing one, so that should be interesting.  And, to get to the appointment, I’ll be using a Zipcar for the first time.  It’s a Honda Civic and it has a name, “Calrissian”…I don’t know what its momma was thinking.

I’ll leave you with a couple shoutouts.  First, to my marathoning girlfriends who are running St. George and Wineglass this weekend.  Have a GREAT race and run like the wind, baby dolls.  To my sweet friends tapering for Chicago, I’m sending buckets of calming vibes your way.  As for the rest of youse guys, have a great weekend, whatever you have planned.  Love to all!