Week 11/17 HM Training - Run #4 LSD 16 km

COULD THEY MAKE THE BANANAS ANY BIGGER ?!?!?!

You will have to wait until the end of my post to understand the context of this very funny comment! :)

Today's run was my strongest 16 km to date! :) And the last 2 km were the fastest splits! Woo hoo!

There will be three posts today; this is #2. I have already posted my weekly mileage and I have already written a review on how the Strength Work phase went for me, which will automatically publish this evening while I am in Stratford. :)

This really is a wrap-up day. Week #11 is ending, the Strength Work phase of my training program is ending, and in a sense, I am going on hiatus for a week, as of tomorrow. My training program is focused on my Niagara Falls Half Marathon as my goal race. However, because I am running in the Springbank Road Race Half Marathon a week from today, I inserted an extra week into my program as a spare/race taper week. My official Week #12 of training, the first of five weeks focused on Phase III: Track Work, does not begin until a week from tomorrow. Depending on how I feel after this half marathon, I will likely need to make a few edits to Week #12, but I am hoping it won't be too many. :)

But all this is distracting from my 16 km today, which was a good one. I was looking forward to today's run. I needed it as a confidence-booster for my upcoming HM. Last weekend's race proved to me that I could hold my pace very steady, and today's run proved to me that I have the endurance. After an upcoming, restful, taper week, my challenge will be to put both pace and endurance together for my first half marathon of the fall. :)

Highlights of today's run:

1. Seeing so many runners and running groups out in full force. It is clearly the running/race season. :) Although multiple runners ran by without responding to my wave or smile of acknowledgement, there were that many more who initiated hellos, good mornings, smiles and waves. It was a very social runner day. :)

2. The awesome weather! After yesterday's brutal heat and humidity, today's cooler and cloudier weather made it a great day for a long run.

3. Seeing fellow DailyMiler @Shawna on the path again. :) She was running in the opposite direction as me with some running partners, and it great to see her and exchange some words. :)

4. Smiling like a nutbar when a certain song played in my ear. The song made me grin from ear to ear because I was thinking about Ben, and then I realized how many people were smiling and grinning back at me in response - LOL!

5. I tried out a draft playlist for my upcoming half marathon. Thank you, Suzana, for the suggestion of jog.fm on the DailyMile. I used certain "pace lists" as suggestions and then went through all my music to find the matching songs that I already had. There were some odd choices (Elton John's "Daniel" is a 6:30/km pace song? It nearly put me to sleep while running up a hill!), but overall, it's a good resource to help me "re"discover some music in my files.

6. The runner who made me laugh heartily when I was running my 15th km. She was running toward me in the opposite path when she started waving and called my attention to the fact that we were wearing the same Grand Bend/No Frills tech shirt from last year's Pinery Provincial Park 10K. As I was smiling at her, she whipped off her earbuds, and called out to me very loudly while grabbing at her shirt, "COULD THEY MAKES THE BANANAS ANY BIGGER!?!?!" She was very, very funny. :) And she proved to me that yes, I still have enough energy and lung capacity to have a good laugh near the end of a 16K run. :)

Benny and I are now off to Stratford for the day and evening. We are heading to friends' to enjoy some red wine with them before heading out for dinner to a new favourite place down the street from the Avon Theatre. I have been looking forward to returning to this restaurant aaaaall summer so I am a very happy camper. :) A great way to bid the summer farewell and welcoming in Autumn. :)

Week 5/17 HM Training - Run #4 16K (Not 19.5K)

16 km @ 1:59:16

Avg. Pace 7:27/km

Avg. Moving Pace 7:22/km

I failed to run my intended 19.5K / 12 miles today, and I am surprisingly okay with it. :) My zen stones photo proves to you that I am, right? :)

It was a very tough day for running. Although it was cooler temperature-wise than in previous days, the air felt extra 'thick' with humidity. It had rained in the night (wonderful and needed!) and this ended up creating a heavier air. I knew before I left home that I would be running in challenging conditions. However, I felt alert (Starbucks Cafe Verona coffee helped with that) and lighter (that sensation as if five pounds magically disappeared overnight ... not bloated!). I was feeling enthusiastic about today's distance as well, rather than overwhelmed by it. I still hoped for the best! :)

This morning I also downloaded my 20K music playlist from last year onto my iShuffle. This is the one I created with a particular 'one minute song' to signal walk breaks every 10 minutes (I run to regular music for 10 minutes and then I stop to walk when this short, one minute lullaby plays). I didn't expect to be able to run the full 19.5K in this humidity without needing walk breaks. My game plan? Run without stopping for 16K, because this is what I have been able to do for the last few LSDs, and if possible, run 17K so I could have a sense of 'improvement'. Then, if I felt tired and sluggish after this point, try the run/walk (10:1) method for the remainder of the run to achieve my designated mileage.

For the most part, William Wallace and I did extremely well. I analyzed my splits after the fact at home, and I'm actually quite pleased with them. A significant number of splits are faster than in previous runs (striders really work for me!). There are several slower splits, but these reflect my hill climbs. I ran very slowly up most inclines, which proved to be my "pace killers," but otherwise, I did quite well on the flat ground. I could feel how steady my pace was, too. I felt good for most of it. I was quite hopeful that I could run my intended distance in its entirety after all, as long as I remained on this slower, cruise control pace. I also thought about how important that treadmill run earlier this week had been for me. I am not sure I would have been feeling so positive about yesterday's or today's runs if I hadn't accomplished that particular 10K with striders when I was feeling so low.

There were quite a few runners out on the running paths. I didn't see any organized running groups, but I did see quite a few 'foursomes' and 'couples.' I spent a lot of my time smiling, waving, and saying hello. Most runners were very good about being supportive to one another today. :)

I noticed today how many runners were running at a slower pace. Some extremely fit people were not running that fast; in fact, they looked quite sluggish. :( Witnessing this helped me to keep it in perspective. I may not be running very fast, but neither is anyone else. It's about getting the longer distance done slowly rather than focusing on one's race pace. We all suffer slowness together!

In previous weeks when running 16K, I usually started feeling tired in the 14th km. Today, I was good until just before the 16K mark (so an improvement). By this point, we were running by the sewage treatment plant in Greenway Park when Wallace needed to do his business. I'm assuming that maybe it was the combination of the smell from the plant in the thick humid air, and stopping for several minutes for Wallace, but when I started to run again, I could feel that it was over for me. I was done. Finis. I just couldn't get going again. I walked for a bit before deciding to reset my watch, thinking that I might still run/walk the rest of the way home, but I never got my oomph back. I was out of water after emptying all four bottles and I didn't have the heart or drive to continue.

The truth is, if you look at my posted schedule on my blog, I have been one week ahead on my LSDs for two weeks. Back on July 10th, I was supposed to run 14.5K / 9 miles, but I upped it to 16K / 10 miles. I was running my second LSD 16K last weekend when it was supposed to be my first. Clear as mud? LOL! I have been anticipating this 19.5K for weeks now, knowing that it would be a big challenge, so I worked in a little wiggle room in case I didn't achieve it the first time (today). I was quite sure that I would need a second crack at it (next Sunday) and this is how I worked it in without disrupting my schedule too much. If at first you don't succeed, try try again! :)

On a final note, I decided to look back in my blog to see where I was at one year ago. Wow! I commented on missing multiple runs due to the humidity, I was running 45 seconds slower per km than I am now, and I hadn't even started half marathon training yet! I recall feeling overwhelmed by the thought of running 13K, too. I skipped my scheduled 13K three times before finally tackling it! I feel jazzed about where I am at now with my running, and enthusiastic about the level I could be at this time next year if I keep working at improvement. :)

Week 4/17 HM Training - Run #4 16K

I officially have another 16K under my belt - 16K steady and consistent without needing to take walk breaks. I ran it from beginning to end. :)

I had plans for today and company arriving this afternoon for a few nights; therefore, I needed to wake up at 4:30 a.m. so I could get this workout done before my social commitments began. It was a little disconcerting at first because it was so dark, but by the time I was dressed, had my morning coffee and was out the door, it was light enough outside so that I didn't need to be too concerned. I was actually feeling a little excited about getting out so early - I was curious as to who else would be out at this time, and I was proud to be so "hardcore" early! :) :)

Only Wallace came with me - 16K is too long for Angus. :(

It was very humid as it has been all week, but at least it still felt a little cooler. I kept my pace purposely slow and steady because I was more interested in running the full 16K rather than pushing myself. This worked for me. I had a few short stops - one for doggie reasons and one for a quick water fill-up at the fountain.

The last few km were tough, but when I look at my pace for them, they were consistent with the negative splits I ran so I was pleased that my pace did not match how I was feeling! I had to walk up a short hill at the end because I was too spent to run it after my initial attempt, but my finishing speed at the tail end of the run was good. :)

I was soaked with sweat when I arrived home, and my own mother made a comment about me 'needing' a shower. I have to admit, I was stinking after this run! I am not sure what brought on my body odour that day, but it was unusual for me.

I have a 19.5K scheduled for next week as my LSD. I am not very confident about it. :( I was hoping to squeeze in an additional 1K today to see if I could have bragging rights about my first 17K without walking. but the last 2K of this run pretty much sapped that out of me!

No run tomorrow - it's a rest day Monday. I have 12K on Tuesday and it looks like a brutally hot and humid week ahead. :(

Week 3/17 HM Training - Run #4 16K

This is Evil-Lyn, an evil witch from Masters of the Universe.

She might be evil, but she looks quite victorious in this pic so I'm still using her image ...

I have absolutely no time to post ... I have a wedding I am scrambling to get ready for but I won't have time to post again until Sunday night so here's the quick, happy details ...

a.k.a. The Cruise Control Run

16K @1:59:02

Pace 7:26/km

I did it! I ran 16K from start to finish without stopping. I had a "swoop the poop" slow down moment for Wallace and I had a large group of seniors walking along the path stall me at one point, but other than these incidents, I was literally on 'cruise control' and this was my mantra for the run, too - "stay on cruise control!"

Must run ..... Have a great running weekend. The odds that I will be skipping my run tomorrow are very high ....

16K !!!! I DID IT !!!!

2:06:47

Pace 7:56 min/km

I am ECSTATIC! After a tough and lousy week of running, it ended with a bang. :) I completed my first ever 16K run and it went swimmingly well! I used my music again to denote when it was 10 minutes of running and when it was 1 minute of walking - this worked VERY well. I am lucky to have figured this out for myself. Having the Garmin "free" to watch my pace and time makes me a better runner.

By the 4K mark, I was having to hold myself back - I felt like running at top speed and it took discipline to slow myself right down, knowing that as good as it felt at that moment, I would regret it later. Looking at my splits, I can see where I started to slowing down, feeling a little tired (over 8 min pace), and when I was feeling a surge of energy. I did find the last 2K more challenging but I was not "whipped" by this point. If anything, I felt like I could have pushed myself more.

I am definitely a fan of the 10:1 method now. This the second successful long distance I have been able to run and feel confident at the end that I can complete a half marathon. It makes all the difference to me to concentrate on ~2 songs and then to have my minute-long slow song act as a reminder to walk. Even though the minute walks feel like mere seconds, they seem to do the trick for giving me enough rest for the next 10 minute interval. And, darn it, I feel good for the rest of the afternoon instead of ravaged!

It does help that today the temperature had dropped significantly and that there was no humidity. In fact, I contemplated wearing a long sleeve shirt and pants because I felt chilled when standing outside in my shorts and new favourite running shirt (thank you, Harvest Run!). I am glad that I didn't, and I think wearing my baseball cap for the first time in awhile kept enough body warmth that I needed.

I HAVE to remember a run like this during the runs I have similar to earlier this week. Perseverance!