My ab muscles hurt from laughing so hard!
Happy Friday!
Friday, February 3, 2012
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Consistency
January is wrapped!
I know a lot of us go stir crazy when we aren't in our normal routine, me especially. If I don't do at least something once a day, I feel gluttonous, flat, suddenly out of shape, unmotivated. I did at least something once a day, every day over the last 31 days. It feels so good!
January is my month that sets up the rest of the year.
Call me a creature of habit, but if I don't get the momentum going in January, it only gets harder to get that snowball rolling, especially into February. I find my routine in January. Which days do I do which workout? What will my diet look like? How will I schedule cooking food ahead of time? When will I have time to go the grocery store? CLEAN?!?
My knee continues to heal
Over the last two weeks, things changed, for the better! Especially on the run. I injured my keft knee pretty badly 6 months ago, and it really did more damage to my confidence than it did physically, I am now learning. My 10K PR right after the New Year was a complete surprise but I was still not satisfied that my knee was fully healed. After long run after long run and running almost 140 miles for the month, I think my knee is "mostly" healed. It acts up every now and then at the beginning of some runs, but I continue to do an hour of PT on it 2X a week to keep those supporting muscles strong.
I have found my efficiency, finally.
Again over the last two weeks, things changed, for the EVEN better! My overall HR on the run has dropped, signaling that change that I am using less energy to go faster and further. That 14.42 miler on Sunday really qualified this statement. Two years ago I couldn't get below a 155 HR for a 9 min mile. Now I am getting down to low 8's @ 145. My coach agrees and in his weekly email wrote this:
My motivation is back, baby!
Now that my knee injury is mostly behind me and a lingering foot issue is resolving itself, its smooth sailing from here onwards! I have a 4 mile race in Central Park this Sunday and I am aiming for a sub 28 min time and keeping all mile splits under 7 mins for the first time. I went 28 flat at the 4 mile mark in the 10K in early January, so I am confident I can achieve this goal.
I know a lot of us go stir crazy when we aren't in our normal routine, me especially. If I don't do at least something once a day, I feel gluttonous, flat, suddenly out of shape, unmotivated. I did at least something once a day, every day over the last 31 days. It feels so good!
January is my month that sets up the rest of the year.
Call me a creature of habit, but if I don't get the momentum going in January, it only gets harder to get that snowball rolling, especially into February. I find my routine in January. Which days do I do which workout? What will my diet look like? How will I schedule cooking food ahead of time? When will I have time to go the grocery store? CLEAN?!?
My knee continues to heal
Over the last two weeks, things changed, for the better! Especially on the run. I injured my keft knee pretty badly 6 months ago, and it really did more damage to my confidence than it did physically, I am now learning. My 10K PR right after the New Year was a complete surprise but I was still not satisfied that my knee was fully healed. After long run after long run and running almost 140 miles for the month, I think my knee is "mostly" healed. It acts up every now and then at the beginning of some runs, but I continue to do an hour of PT on it 2X a week to keep those supporting muscles strong.
I have found my efficiency, finally.
Again over the last two weeks, things changed, for the EVEN better! My overall HR on the run has dropped, signaling that change that I am using less energy to go faster and further. That 14.42 miler on Sunday really qualified this statement. Two years ago I couldn't get below a 155 HR for a 9 min mile. Now I am getting down to low 8's @ 145. My coach agrees and in his weekly email wrote this:
"The great news is that, as I said, you have become extremely efficient for going long. This also suggests that we need to continue to work on your intensity."A) Gulp! B) Yay! C) This morning I woke up with some very sore and unmotivated legs, and still hammered out my 12 min WU, 12 x (45 sec fast, 75 sec easy), 12 min CD interval run. Hurt so good!
My motivation is back, baby!
Now that my knee injury is mostly behind me and a lingering foot issue is resolving itself, its smooth sailing from here onwards! I have a 4 mile race in Central Park this Sunday and I am aiming for a sub 28 min time and keeping all mile splits under 7 mins for the first time. I went 28 flat at the 4 mile mark in the 10K in early January, so I am confident I can achieve this goal.
BRING IT ON FEBRUARY!!!!
RAWR!!!!
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Take THAT!, Maryland! First "big" weekend of 2012
I escaped NY for the weekend and headed down to the "warmth" of Virginia/DC/Maryland. Warmth in this case = low/mid 50's = RIDING OUTSIDE!!!
I told my coach about this and he gave me a 3 hour ride and a 2 hour run in response. Pure bliss!
I hate riding inside cities and suburbia in general. I like to ride out into the middle of nowhere with as little car traffic and lights and stop signs as possible. Basically the less civilization, the happier I am. Now, I am NOT a hermit, unless I am riding my bike.
So I was directed to head out of Northern Virginia, across Chain Bridge, onto MacArthur and wind my way out to River Road, which is the gateway to nowhere. I did 90 mins out, 90 mins back. PERFECT ride for my rigorous demands :)
My legs on the other hand? NOT what they used to be. Urf. I was mostly ok on the flats, but once I hit the first hill at the end of MacArthur they started mouthing off at me with, "What the F&^@ are you doing! We don't go UP!" They much preferred to ride DOWN.
I turned around here:
On the way back I felt stronger than the way out. YES! But...with 40 mins left, the legs started to die. Fortunately it was on MacArthur where it was pancake flat, but they still hurt. Then I got sucked up into a group of roadies and I just hung off the back and sucked wheel till I made it onto Arizona. My legs were pretty toast by the end! I'll take the 55 miles.
Sunday was a two hour run. I wasn't too sure how my legs would respond, but boy did they ever! I had a great run!
My coach gave me a some guidelines for this one: Stay capped @ 150 bpm. With that HR I was like, ok, that will prolly be a 9 min mile average, so I will plan out about 13 miles of running.
The first mile, my heart rate was spiking off the charts! Great, maybe I will be running 10:00 miles at this pace. Then suddenly my HR drops and then stayed consistent from there till the end.
In fact! I was noticing that I was speeding up and speeding up while my HR continued to drop. At times I was actually pushing it pretty hard to keep my HR up! Of course, I think on that stretch I was slightly running downhill WITH a tailwind, but regardless! I was shocked at my pacing considering how low my HR was compared to this time last year.
Wound up with 14.42 miles in 2 hours flat for an 8:19 pace. Considering I just rode 3 hours the day before and it only being the end of January, I am taking this as a success!!
Of course, using a fluffy dog as a back pillow and being attacked by three rabid dogs the night before, may have cured my achy legs!
I told my coach about this and he gave me a 3 hour ride and a 2 hour run in response. Pure bliss!
I hate riding inside cities and suburbia in general. I like to ride out into the middle of nowhere with as little car traffic and lights and stop signs as possible. Basically the less civilization, the happier I am. Now, I am NOT a hermit, unless I am riding my bike.
So I was directed to head out of Northern Virginia, across Chain Bridge, onto MacArthur and wind my way out to River Road, which is the gateway to nowhere. I did 90 mins out, 90 mins back. PERFECT ride for my rigorous demands :)
My legs on the other hand? NOT what they used to be. Urf. I was mostly ok on the flats, but once I hit the first hill at the end of MacArthur they started mouthing off at me with, "What the F&^@ are you doing! We don't go UP!" They much preferred to ride DOWN.
I turned around here:
 |
| My definition of "out there" |
On the way back I felt stronger than the way out. YES! But...with 40 mins left, the legs started to die. Fortunately it was on MacArthur where it was pancake flat, but they still hurt. Then I got sucked up into a group of roadies and I just hung off the back and sucked wheel till I made it onto Arizona. My legs were pretty toast by the end! I'll take the 55 miles.
Sunday was a two hour run. I wasn't too sure how my legs would respond, but boy did they ever! I had a great run!
My coach gave me a some guidelines for this one: Stay capped @ 150 bpm. With that HR I was like, ok, that will prolly be a 9 min mile average, so I will plan out about 13 miles of running.
The first mile, my heart rate was spiking off the charts! Great, maybe I will be running 10:00 miles at this pace. Then suddenly my HR drops and then stayed consistent from there till the end.
 |
| Isn't that sudden drop bizarre? Happens every time. Anyone know why? |
In fact! I was noticing that I was speeding up and speeding up while my HR continued to drop. At times I was actually pushing it pretty hard to keep my HR up! Of course, I think on that stretch I was slightly running downhill WITH a tailwind, but regardless! I was shocked at my pacing considering how low my HR was compared to this time last year.
Of course, using a fluffy dog as a back pillow and being attacked by three rabid dogs the night before, may have cured my achy legs!
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Waffles
I bought a waffle maker.
Not just "A" waffle maker. I bought "THE" waffle maker. This thing is NOT a toy. It is "THE" real deal! GET IT!?!?
It is the Kitchen Aid ProLine Series Waffle Maker and it is one of the most badass appliances I have ever bought. Basically my brother has the same one, just by another brand, but is essentially the same thing. Making two huge belgian style waffles at once will truly ruin you for life.
My brother even brought his up to Lake Placid and they were making waffles topped with whipped cream and fresh strawberries while I was doing the first loop of the bike drinking gatorade and eating clif bars and Gu! No idea where I am going with this, but it just shows that this thing is worth traveling with! Heck, I have already been invited over to friend's house for brunch because of this waffle maker.
In terms of making waffles for training? OH YEAH!!! Need some quick energy? Ever had a peanut butter and jelly waffle sandwich? Just be careful, these things can be very calorie dense, but fortunately are VERY filling.
With it making 7.5 inch by 1.25 inch waffles, it uses up a lot of batter. Last night I doubled my waffle recipe and still only wound up with 6 waffles, and the batter wasn't too thick either.
It has an electronic timer that you can set depending on how done you like the waffles and what the recipe is. For my recipe, I finally discovered 4 minutes is needed to get the right done-ness. You will notice the bottom middle one was my final product. These came out to be ~600 calories per waffle, or a pre-long ride breakfast, especially if you add toppings. Told ya they are calorie bombs!!!
These freeze and thaw very well, so I kept a few in the fridge, then froze the rest. The downside to making waffles is that it is messy and a little time consuming and getting the maker out is a pain, so that's why I will make a lot more than necessary to offset the time and hassle costs.
So if you are looking for the ultimate waffle maker where you will NEVER need to buy another one ever again, I HIGHLY recommend this one!
As for recipes, here are two that are VERY good:
Sweet Potato Waffles
Buttermilk Waffles
Not just "A" waffle maker. I bought "THE" waffle maker. This thing is NOT a toy. It is "THE" real deal! GET IT!?!?
 |
| (source) |
It is the Kitchen Aid ProLine Series Waffle Maker and it is one of the most badass appliances I have ever bought. Basically my brother has the same one, just by another brand, but is essentially the same thing. Making two huge belgian style waffles at once will truly ruin you for life.
My brother even brought his up to Lake Placid and they were making waffles topped with whipped cream and fresh strawberries while I was doing the first loop of the bike drinking gatorade and eating clif bars and Gu! No idea where I am going with this, but it just shows that this thing is worth traveling with! Heck, I have already been invited over to friend's house for brunch because of this waffle maker.
In terms of making waffles for training? OH YEAH!!! Need some quick energy? Ever had a peanut butter and jelly waffle sandwich? Just be careful, these things can be very calorie dense, but fortunately are VERY filling.
With it making 7.5 inch by 1.25 inch waffles, it uses up a lot of batter. Last night I doubled my waffle recipe and still only wound up with 6 waffles, and the batter wasn't too thick either.
It has an electronic timer that you can set depending on how done you like the waffles and what the recipe is. For my recipe, I finally discovered 4 minutes is needed to get the right done-ness. You will notice the bottom middle one was my final product. These came out to be ~600 calories per waffle, or a pre-long ride breakfast, especially if you add toppings. Told ya they are calorie bombs!!!
These freeze and thaw very well, so I kept a few in the fridge, then froze the rest. The downside to making waffles is that it is messy and a little time consuming and getting the maker out is a pain, so that's why I will make a lot more than necessary to offset the time and hassle costs.
So if you are looking for the ultimate waffle maker where you will NEVER need to buy another one ever again, I HIGHLY recommend this one!
As for recipes, here are two that are VERY good:
Sweet Potato Waffles
Buttermilk Waffles
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Bacon
Thanks to my Dad for sending me this. Clearly #3 is my favorite.
This blog will only go downhill from here.
This blog will only go downhill from here.
Monday, January 23, 2012
NYRR Manhattan Half Marathon (Non) Race Report
Saturday's race didn't happen. I mean, I ran the 13.1 and a little more, but the officials @ NYRR did the right thing and canceled the race turning it into an unscored "fun" run. And fun it was!!! I mean, where else will you get a (mostly) fully supported Half Marathon in a snow storm with gatorade slushies at the end?
We knew that there was going to be some form of rain, sleet, freezing rain, and or snow, we just didn't know what NYRR would do about it. The weather report the night before reported a possible 4-7 inches of snow. At 6 AM they announced that the race was canceled and that it would be only an unscored "fun run." Depending on the road conditions inside the Park, I was going to determine if I was going to attempt a "fast" run to get more of a workout in or just run it. When we entered the park, there was already an inch or two of packed snow and with 1,000+ runners, it was going to get messy enough that trying to run fast in it would NOT be a good idea.
No big deal. I needed to run for 2 hours anyways. Amy needed to run 14-16 miles, and Beth just needed to run long. We made it work and just ran together at an easy pace to get our distances and times in. It was one of the most fun and beautiful races ever! All of the dogs were going crazy with the snow and we saw lots of Weimereiners out there. Amy was wearing a Giants jersey and everyone was yelling "Go GMEN!" so we started a bet on how many times Amy would get a comment. Due to a technicality, Beth won. Otherwise Amy was going to get the win.
So after a 2 mile warmup, 13.1 mile run, and a cooldown, we wound up with just over 16 miles for the day. We held an average pace of 9:36/mile. That pace coupled with the snow saved my legs and after finishing I felt like I could have kept going another 4! We were cold and soaked by that point so we hit up an awesome bagel joint and called it a day. A hot shower never felt better!!
I am NOT disapointed that the race was turned into a fun run. Running for 2.5 hours with friends in a snowstorm was so much fun and great motivation to keep going in those conditions. Overall the race atmosphere was this warm and friendly comraderie feeling. I think everyone thought of everyone else as a winner just for showing up and running. Big thanks to the volunteers for braving the elements! I think staying still is worse. We had it easy because we were at least moving and generating body heat.
Also, there will be more opportunities to set a new Half Marathon PR. This run was a nice surprise in that I can run for 2.5 hours and my legs aren't shelled AND! I don't have to play the recovery game this week. On Sunday I even hopped onto the trainer for 1:45 of intervals followed by sweet potato waffles, bacon, and freshly squeezed OJ. Oh yeah!
It was a good weekend :)
We knew that there was going to be some form of rain, sleet, freezing rain, and or snow, we just didn't know what NYRR would do about it. The weather report the night before reported a possible 4-7 inches of snow. At 6 AM they announced that the race was canceled and that it would be only an unscored "fun run." Depending on the road conditions inside the Park, I was going to determine if I was going to attempt a "fast" run to get more of a workout in or just run it. When we entered the park, there was already an inch or two of packed snow and with 1,000+ runners, it was going to get messy enough that trying to run fast in it would NOT be a good idea.
No big deal. I needed to run for 2 hours anyways. Amy needed to run 14-16 miles, and Beth just needed to run long. We made it work and just ran together at an easy pace to get our distances and times in. It was one of the most fun and beautiful races ever! All of the dogs were going crazy with the snow and we saw lots of Weimereiners out there. Amy was wearing a Giants jersey and everyone was yelling "Go GMEN!" so we started a bet on how many times Amy would get a comment. Due to a technicality, Beth won. Otherwise Amy was going to get the win.
So after a 2 mile warmup, 13.1 mile run, and a cooldown, we wound up with just over 16 miles for the day. We held an average pace of 9:36/mile. That pace coupled with the snow saved my legs and after finishing I felt like I could have kept going another 4! We were cold and soaked by that point so we hit up an awesome bagel joint and called it a day. A hot shower never felt better!!
I am NOT disapointed that the race was turned into a fun run. Running for 2.5 hours with friends in a snowstorm was so much fun and great motivation to keep going in those conditions. Overall the race atmosphere was this warm and friendly comraderie feeling. I think everyone thought of everyone else as a winner just for showing up and running. Big thanks to the volunteers for braving the elements! I think staying still is worse. We had it easy because we were at least moving and generating body heat.
Also, there will be more opportunities to set a new Half Marathon PR. This run was a nice surprise in that I can run for 2.5 hours and my legs aren't shelled AND! I don't have to play the recovery game this week. On Sunday I even hopped onto the trainer for 1:45 of intervals followed by sweet potato waffles, bacon, and freshly squeezed OJ. Oh yeah!
It was a good weekend :)
Friday, January 20, 2012
Oh! Forgot to mention, I'm racing a Half Marathon tomorrow.
Surprise!!!
Well, not that this really warrants a surprise. I'm running two loops plus a little extra in Central Park tomorrow with these two invaders from DC. But! This will actually be my first stand alone half marathon in almost 2 years. The last being the NYC Half Marathon in March of 2010, which holds my PR for the distance at 1:45:19. Since then I have ran 5 Half Marathons, but all as part of a 70.3. Something about a 1.2 mile swim and then a 56 mile bike that wears me out a tad before hitting the 13.1....
Anyways, this particular race, the NYRR Manhattan Half, was the first half that I ran where I broke 2 hours (boy was I a different runner back then!). Considering this course is basically two times what I just did two weeks ago at the NYRR Joe Kleinerman 10K plus a little extra, and I did that holding a 7:00 flat pace, I think the 1:45:19 (8:03 pace) is gonna go down.
However! Mother nature is not planning on being friendly tomorrow. Right now it could be anything from rain to sleet to snow or a mix of all three. Maybe the roads will be just wet or maybe they will be slippery. They are calling for 4-7 inches throughout tomrrow. If it becomes so slick that running to my current pull potential could risk breaking my neck and I don't PR this thing, no biggie. I have LOT of season left (*cough* an Ironman *cough*). But if it is just wet and rainy, this sucker is GOING DOWN! No idea to what time though.....I'm just gonna use the plan I used two weeks ago: Go out and see what my body does and there is my result.
Have a good weekend!
Well, not that this really warrants a surprise. I'm running two loops plus a little extra in Central Park tomorrow with these two invaders from DC. But! This will actually be my first stand alone half marathon in almost 2 years. The last being the NYC Half Marathon in March of 2010, which holds my PR for the distance at 1:45:19. Since then I have ran 5 Half Marathons, but all as part of a 70.3. Something about a 1.2 mile swim and then a 56 mile bike that wears me out a tad before hitting the 13.1....
Anyways, this particular race, the NYRR Manhattan Half, was the first half that I ran where I broke 2 hours (boy was I a different runner back then!). Considering this course is basically two times what I just did two weeks ago at the NYRR Joe Kleinerman 10K plus a little extra, and I did that holding a 7:00 flat pace, I think the 1:45:19 (8:03 pace) is gonna go down.
However! Mother nature is not planning on being friendly tomorrow. Right now it could be anything from rain to sleet to snow or a mix of all three. Maybe the roads will be just wet or maybe they will be slippery. They are calling for 4-7 inches throughout tomrrow. If it becomes so slick that running to my current pull potential could risk breaking my neck and I don't PR this thing, no biggie. I have LOT of season left (*cough* an Ironman *cough*). But if it is just wet and rainy, this sucker is GOING DOWN! No idea to what time though.....I'm just gonna use the plan I used two weeks ago: Go out and see what my body does and there is my result.
Have a good weekend!
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