Week 6 Recap

Week 6 of 12 on the road to the Windward Half Marathon:

Training Log

Sunday: Stretch and Strength - Rest and relaxation!

Monday: 4 mile run -  Ran an average time for this day, not the fastest I've done, but not the slowest either.

 

Tuesday: Speed work - 40 minute Tempo Run - Treadmill work today.  The weather was extremely muggy.  Good, sweaty workout.

Wednesday: 3 mile run and strength - I decided to run the hills on Mokulele Drive.  It's a three mile out-and-back from my house to a golf course.  The route is up and down but the main hill is a good 45 degrees for a quarter mile.  Killer.   I had to walk most of it.  It amazes me that I can run 8 miles one day and then a short run on the hills reduces me to walking.  I've committed to run this every Wednesday until race week.  I will not be denied!

Thursday: Rest or easy run day -  My schedule demanded that I make this a rest day.  Only thing is, I didn't really rest.  I spend most of the day either on my feet or sitting on the ground.  It was a very tiring rest day.

Friday:  Rest day - With a 10K race scheduled for Saturday, the plan called for another rest day.  Originally I thought I'd do an easy run, but after my long day Thursday, I gladly took the rest.

Saturday:  10K Race -  Just like in week 3, I didn't have an actual race to run.  So I did the 6 mile out-and-back that will make up the first half of the Windward Half Marathon route.  Since this route is mostly flat, I cut 5 minutes off my last 6 mile run just three weeks ago.  Felt great!  The rest really did me good!

The best thing about this week:   Running the first 6 miles of the race route felt really good.  Now I know what to expect on that leg of the race.

The biggest challenge of this week:  When training for the last half marathon, I ran the Mokulele hills all the time.  I can see that hill training builds the strength I need for the longer distances.  Making myself do it is not easy.  It's like eating your veggies...the ones you don't like.  I know it's good for me, so I've got to do it. 


I can't believe I'm half way through the training.   Six weeks down, and six more to go. 

Why do you run?

Great video that tries to answer the question all runners are asked...

Week 5 Recap



What's not to love about this running view?  It keeps me coming back!

Week 5 of 12 on the road to the Windward Half Marathon:

Training Log

Sunday: Stretch and Strength - Rest and relaxation! 

Monday: 4 mile run -  Ran a good pace today.  Was a bit faster than last week!  Yay!

Tuesday: Speed work - 7 x 400 5K pace - Treadmill work today.  Short, fast, and to the point.

Wednesday: 3 mile run and strength - Just like Monday, this run was faster than last week.  I can see improvement!  That's encouraging.

Thursday: Rest day -  For the first time in 2 weeks, I actually took the assigned rest day.  Felt great.

Friday: 3 mile run - This run seems to be a bit slower for me consistently.  Don't know if it's because of the rest day, or just because it's the end of a long week.  Plowed through.

Saturday:  8 mile run -  Just like the 7 miler from last week, this was a hard run.  Felt my legs burning by mile 5.  My time wasn't too bad though.  These runs are training my mind as well as my body.  Mental toughness is key.

The best thing about this week:   Now that I've completed 5 weeks, this running routine is really turned into a habit.  I feel odd on the rest days, like I really should be running...

The biggest challenge of this week:  The long runs on Saturday mornings are starting to make weekend plans more challenging.  I can't just schedule an impromptu camping trip or morning surf session with the kids.  It will be worth it.  Don't think, just move...



I have to keep reminding myself it's only week 5. I still have time to improve my speed. I'm trying to focus on the fact that I'm sticking with this plan and not worry too much about beating my last half marathon time. It's been a few years. I'm learning to be nice to myself.

Running comes in handy...

I found some great motivational videos on YouTube.  Here's one to brighten your day.

You never know when you'll need to run!  Be ready...

Week 4 Recap

Week 4 of 12 on the road to the Windward Half Marathon:

Training Log

Sunday: Stretch and Strength - I think I'd better just call this a rest day. 

Monday: 3.5 mile run -  Had a nice morning run in Kailua.  Actually ran 4 miles... oops!  :)

Tuesday: Speed work - 35 minute Tempo Run-   Just couldn't get going today.  Vowed to do this on Thursday instead. 

Wednesday: 3 mile run and strength - Did my usual route along Kailua beach.  So beautiful out there.  Enjoyed the beauty of my home town.

Thursday: Rest day -  Made up for missing on Tuesday.  Glad I got the Tempo Run done, but learned a lesson on timing of these rest days.  Paid for it Saturday....

Friday:  3 mile run - Family scheduling meant that I had to do this run on the treadmill.  Now I remember why road running is so much better - uninterrupted time!  Distracted but made it through.

Saturday:  7 mile run - Wow.  I haven't gone 7 miles in a long time.  It was hard.  I think switching my rest day really worked against me.  Had to walk a lot, but finished with a pretty good time.  I need to work on pacing these long runs.

Can't believe that 4 weeks have gone by already.  It's fun to be running the longer distances now.  

The best thing about this week:  Even as hard as the 7 miler was, I felt great to have it done and my time wasn't as bad as I had feared during the run.

The biggest challenge of this week:  I learned that running 4 days in a row with my longest run on the 4th day was not a good idea.  My body felt about a hundred years old on Saturday evening....

Found a much better playlist to accompany my run - David Crowder Band.  Here's a song that really kept me going.  It's not the pace of the song, but the message that moved me down the road.

 "...Heal my limbs and joyfully I'll run to You!"

Week 3 Recap

Week 3 of 12 on the road to the Windward Half Marathon:

Training Log

Sunday: Stretch and Strength - Well, I haven't improved in this area.  By Sunday, I just want to lay around...

Monday: 3.5 mile run -  Because I missed my long run on Saturday, I made up for it today.  It was a beautiful 4th of July morning.  Ran past the folks setting up their umbrellas and chairs to watch our local parade.  Ran 6 miles.  Felt great.

Tuesday: Speed work - 6 x 400 at 5K pace -   Here's where I had to rearrange my training plan.  Since I ran 6 miles on Monday, I used this day to rest.  Normally, this week's training calls for two days of rest before a 5K race.  I'm not signed up for a race this week, so I used one of the rest days here.

Wednesday: 3 mile run and strength - Kept to the schedule on this day.  Nice Kailua morning run.  Made good time.  Not walking as much.

Thursday: Rest day -  Didn't rest but ran Tuesday's speed work on the treadmill.  It seems so easy.  Six laps is just 1.5 miles.  But ol' Hal really knows what he's talking about.  I can already see improvement in my endurance and speed.

Friday:  Rest -  I did stick to the schedule and rest on this day.

Saturday:  5K Race -  Like I mentioned, I didn't have a 5K race to enter, so my husband and I went on a 4.5 mile trail run on the beautiful Aiea Loop Trail.  You can read about my adventure here.

This week took a bit of juggling the schedule, but I think I kept true to the training direction.  I kept up with the speed work, got a good long run in, and learned a bit about how to improvise when I need to.

The best thing about this week:  Definitely the trail run.  So much fun to engage your mind on the trail.  It was fun to run with my husband.  Usually I can't keep up with him, but he slowed down a bit and I pushed myself a bit and we had fun together.

The biggest challenge of this week:  I seem to have Monday's run solved, but still need a better plan for Sunday.

Just knowing that I have to be accountable to write up my training log is great motivation for me.  I don't ever want to have to tell you that I blew off a run.  You're helping me more than you know!

Thanks!  And don't let me have all the fun, get out there and Enjoy the Run!

The Unexpected - The One Thing You Can Count On

Last Saturday morning, I woke up to a beautiful summer day.  Got out of bed, ate my banana, and picked up my keys to head out the door for my long run.  As I picked up my phone, I saw that I had missed a call from my step mom.  She's not a morning person, so I immediately returned the call.  Although not an emergency, it was very clear that I was needed at her house and my long run for the week was suddenly derailed.

The unexpected.  For a planner like me, it always throws me a bit.   So, how do I recover?  I found that the best way to bounce back is to stop, take a step back and keep the event in perspective.  Yes, my long run was interrupted, but that didn't mean that I couldn't run at all.  Later in the day, I was able to get in a few miles on the treadmill and rescheduled the long run for Monday.  Not a big deal.

But the unexpected doesn't have to be something negative.  According to my training schedule, I was to run a 5K race today.  Well, I didn't have a 5K race to enter, so my husband suggested that we run the Aiea Loop Trail.  Great.  But as we drove up to the park, it started to rain.   I don't mean sprinkle, I mean RAIN.  I was not up for this unexpected turn of events.  But my husband is not one to be deterred.  And really, I did want to run this trail.  So after we let it slow down a bit, we headed out.  And do you know what the most unexpected thing was about this run?  I loved it.  We slogged through mud up to our laces.  The rain was cool and felt great.  I ended up running not much slower than the pace I would have on the road.  The beauty of the trail, the sound of the birds, the challenge of dodging roots and puddles and the fun of running with my best friend was exhilarating.  And I almost missed it because of the unexpected rain.

Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy.  For you know that when your faith is tested, 

your endurance has a chance to grow.

James 1:2-3 (NLT)

There's no way to avoid it.  The unexpected is going to happen.  So when it does, I wont panic, I wont quit.  I'll just look for the opportunity to be pleasantly surprised.