Monday Mileage Report

My first 40+ mile week!

Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday	Total
23 Rest	24 5 mi @11:21	25 7 mi @11:31	26 5.4 mi @10:00	27 Rest	28 6 mi @9:51	29 18 mi @11:52	41.7 mi

Training this week was amazing.  Maybe Stressed Jess is just a better runner than Happy Jess?  Or maybe strawberry frosted Pop Tarts really are my perfect pre-run breakfast?  Tuesday  and Wednesday weren't anything special, but the weather was great and the runs just felt good.  Thursday and Saturday I ran much faster than I had planned.  My legs wanted to go fast (fast for me, not for actual fast people) and I went with it.  Sunday's long run went much better than I expected, too.  I ignored my pace and focused on keeping my heart rate down, and the pace ended up being just fine, actually on the fast side of my long run pace range.  I thought I was feeling pretty good at the end, all things considered, but apparently I looked like a zombie.  I ended the run at chipotle, since I'd run through dining hall brunch, and the cashier told me to take care of myself and pretty much insisted that I take a cup for water in addition to my veggie burrito bowl.

Not exactly negative splits, but I didn't blow up, either

Today, I'm feeling much, much better than I was after my 18 miler in the last training cycle.  I'm a little sore, including my shoulders and my back, but nothing hurts too much.  The only downside is that my appetite is finally catching up to my training.

Leftover Domino's makes an excellent second dinner

I know this is a little risky, but I've got another ambitious training week lined up next.

Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday	Total
30 Cross	31 GA: 5 mi	1 MSD: 8 mi	2 GA: 5 mi	3 Rest	4 Pace: 5 mi	5 LSD: 20 mi	43 mi

That's all for now.  It's getting late, and I have to teach my first classes of the semester tomorrow!

Running is My Boyfriend

The other day when I was working on my dissertation thinking about my love life, I realized something.  For the past 6-9 months, I've been in a pretty serious relationship.  With running.  I remembered reading Emily Faherty's "Running is My Boyfriend" and Jill Barville's "What's Your Relationship with Running", so I decided to do my own analysis.

Here's a little rundown of me and running:

I plan my weekends around it

Saturday	Sunday
28 Pace: 8 mi	29 LSD: 18 mi

I talk about it so much I'm pretty sure half my friends want to duct tape my mouth shut

It takes me on vacation

NYC!

It gets me bling

Shiny!

I really look forward to our dates most days, but I also enjoy getting a break one day a week

There are pictures of the two of us all over my room

Fun fact: race pictures are super flattering

Since we met, I've stopped watching what I eat

Mmm, Domino's

Some weeks it's the last thing I think about before I fall asleep and the first thing I think about when I wake up

Most of the time it makes me really happy, but every once in a while it hurts me

Brrrrr

Sound familiar?

"Favorite Things Friday" Moving to Pinterest

I decided to be all trendy and join Pinterest, so from now on you can keep up with all my favorite running gear, audio books, recipes, and more by following jblankshain here.  If you need an invite to the site, let me know!

Not-Monday Mileage Report

Last week's training made me feel like I actually have a chance of finishing the D.C. marathon in March.

Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday	Total
16 Rest	17 4 mi @11:14 PT exercises	18 4 mi @11:52	19 8 mi @11:37	20 Rest	21 5.4 mi @12:19	22 15.2 mi @11:35	36.6 mi

A few notes from the week:

• Tues and Wed runs were on the treadmill, which I do NOT enjoy.  Turns out 4 miles is my limit for indoor running, so I switched my Wed 8 miler and my Thu 4 miler.
• Thursday I realized I didn't have many clean running clothes, so I dressed up as ninja runner (see below).
• Saturday's run was supposed to be 8 miles at marathon pace, but waking up to a few inches of snow on the ground with plenty more coming down quickly changed that plan.  I couldn't stand the thought of another treadmill run, so I settled for a slow slog through the snow for 5 miles.
• Sunday's long run was AWESOME.  Diane was kind enough to accompany me for the first 11 miles as part of her training for Disney's Princess half marathon in Feb.  After last week's run-in with hypothermia, I decided to make this long run 4x4 mile laps around the house.  Not having to carry water and gu with me was pretty nice, but the added time for stops meant that I cut the run a little short so that I wouldn't miss brunch in the dining hall.

Ninja runner!

Now I'm into the first week of the semester, so my non-running life is quickly getting more demanding -- suddenly there are appointments on my calendar instead of a long string of blank days.  Hopefully I'll still be able to fit in this week's training runs and break 40 miles for the first time ever!

Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday	Total
23 Cross	24 GA: 5 Mi	25 MSD: 7 mi	26 GA: 5 mi	27 Rest	28 Pace: 6 mi	29 LSD: 18 mi	41 mi

Monday Mileage Report (Wednesday Edition)

I really am going to get back into my normal running/blogging routine eventually.  But for now, here's a  Wednesday edition of my usual Monday Mileage Report.

Last week I finally returned to something resembling a normal training week:
Monday - Got dressed to go to the pool, then realized it was closed.  Oops.
Tuesday - 4 mi @11:14
Wednesday - 7.5 mi @12:43
Thursday - 3.25 mi @11:22, 15 min strength workout
Friday - rest
Saturday - 5.25 mi @11:01
Sunday - 13.25 mi @12:30
Total: 33 miles

The most interesting run of the week was definitely Sunday, when I decided to try my first long run in three weeks despite the fact that temperatures were in the low teens with decently strong winds.  Turns out this was a HORRIBLE IDEA.

Tights, two shirts, jacket, glove/mittens, hat, scarf tube thingie = still not enough

My plan was to start with my usual 12 mile loop between the Arsenal St and Longfellow brides, and then add my three-to-four mile loop through Harvard Square.  I felt great for the first half of the run, but then my camelbak hose froze solid so I had no water and couldn't take my second gu.  As I was starting the second loop around mile 12.5, I realized that I absolutely couldn't take another 30 minutes outside, so I bailed and cut through the Square to pick up Chipotle for lunch (I still have my priorities, people).  By the time I got home I was exhausted, nauseated, and had really bad pain in my fingers.  I stumbled up to my apartment and spent the next hour sitting on the couch shivering uncontrollably while I tried to drink tea and eat my lunch.  Eventually I pulled it together and took a hot shower, which finally warmed me up enough to function like a normal person (as normal as I ever am, anyway).  So I got my long-run miles in, but I don't think I'll be trying to run in those conditions again anytime soon.

Yesterday I met with my new physical therapist to figure out what's going on with my left leg.  She confirmed that it's probably patellar tendonitis and said that since resting isn't an option right now in the middle of marathon training (best PT ever!) I should ice after every run and try not to aggravate it too much outside of training.  She also did McConnell taping on my knee, which apparently realigns the patella and feels really, really weird.  But after the appointment I did four miles on the treadmill without too much pain, so I'm not complaining.

Today I finally pulled up my marathon training calendar to see how much damage I've done and try to get back on track.  I think I'm going to be able to salvage the training cycle and even get in my two 20 milers, but I'll scale back if the leg starts to give me too much trouble again.  Here's the plan for this week:

Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday	Total
16 Rest	17 GA: 4 mi PT exercises	18 MSD: 8 mi	19 GA: 4 mi PT exercises	20 Rest	21 Pace: 8 mi	22 LSD: 16 mi	40 mi

Overdue Injury Update

As I mentioned in my year-end recap, I am, once again, injured.  In an attempt to salvage this marathon training cycle, I took two weeks off to let my leg recover a bit before the training intensity really increases.  I was lucky that this two week break coincided with a trip home for the holidays, and another trip to visit one of my best friends.  The travel would have thrown off my schedule anyway, and hanging out with family and friends kept the lack of running from driving me totally crazy (although I think any of them will tell you that I'm a pain in the ass when I'm not running).  I already wrote a bit about what my running-related activities at home, so I'll skip to my East Coast adventures.

Last weekend I went to the Lower Hudson Valley area of New York to hang out with two of my very favorite runner girls, one of whom is now an instructor at USMA.  On Saturday morning we decided to get in a little workout by hiking up Bear Mountain.  Clearly a wonderful idea when just going up and down stairs too much makes your leg hurt like crazy.  Heidi asked if we minded taking the "slightly strenuous" route, since she's training for a 50 mile trail race through the same area.  Not wanting to sound like wimps, Diane and I quickly agreed.  About halfway up we realized that this "trail" actually involved several segments of steep rocks that required us to channel our inner spider monkeys.

Heidi and Diane contemplating part of the "trail" on the way up

But we eventually made it to the top, and getting this view of the Hudson Valley on a beautiful 50-degree January morning was totally worth it.

The view from the top

Then we hightailed it back down the mountain, going down a much easier trail that mostly involved stone steps cut into the side of the mountain.  We felt like total badasses as we passed all the tourists taking the easy way up.

Appalachian Trail on the way down

We rounded out the day with a tour of USMA, lunch at McDonalds, mani-pedis, a trip to the most amazing  bakery I've ever seen (there's wholesale area at the back of the bakery where you can wander around with a plastic glove and paper bag picking fresh-baked bread, rolls, and bagels off the racks), and a pasta dinner with plenty of wine.

Now that I'm back in Cambridge, I'm trying to get back into training while keeping this new injury under control.  I went to see my nurse practitioner yesterday, and she said there doesn't seem to be any structural damage to my knee, so all signs point to tendonitis.  She told me not to run if the pain gets too bad (which I heard as "run as much as you want as long as you can tolerate the pain") and referred me back to physical therapy.  I got an appointment for early next week, so until then I'm trying not to make things worse.

I've run for the past three days in a row with only a little pain, but after two weeks off I already feel pathetically out of shape.  I've been running with the new heart rate monitor I got for Christmas, and seeing how high my heart rate is at rather slow paces is pretty depressing.

Splits from Tuesday's run

Today the weather was disgusting, so I planned to give my leg a break by riding the stationary bike in the gym.  But around 3:30 the rain let up, and after two weeks off I couldn't pass up an opportunity to get outside for a run.  So I quickly strapped on all my reflective and/or light up running gear so that I wouldn't get hit by a car and headed outside.

Safety is much more fun with bright pink vizi-pro

Blinking red light on my back so I look like an airplane

Trusty headlamp from the Kilimanjaro expedition

Stylish reflective leg bands

Next up: revising my training plan.  I have nine weeks left until the race, but want to ease back into training instead of just picking up where I would have been without injury time off.

Any suggestions for making sure I get to D.C. in marathon shape?

2012 Goals

As promised, I'm back with my goals for 2012.  Most of them are running-related, but some of them are not.  Running goals are just so much more fun!

2011 Facebook status word cloud -- note the relative sizes of "run" vs "prospectus"

Run a sub-4:45 marathon
My time for my first marathon was 5:28:01, so 4:45 might seem like a big jump.  But training for Chicago did not go as planned, thanks to some killer ITBS in the final weeks, and with the exception of my one 15K, every time I've raced a new distance, I've performed miserably.  If I can stay healthy through an entire training cycle (admittedly, a big if) I'm confident I can blow 5 hours out of the water.

Already walking around mile 15.  I will have my revenge!

Run a sub-2:00 half marathon
Last year I ran my first, second, third, and fourth half marathons, dropping my PR from 2:21:00 to 2:06:50.  I've still got a ways to go to get under 2 hours, but go big or go home, right?

I treated myself to pink sparkling wine after my half marathon PR.  Breaking 2 hrs deserves 2 bottles, right?

Compete in a long-distance relay
The plan for this one is already in motion.  I'm putting together a team for Reach the Beach MA in May, and I'm really, really excited.  Running + hanging out with my runner girls + hanging out in a van eating carby snacks?  I'm in!

Mmmmm,. carbs

Compete in a sprint triathlon
After reading so many awesome recaps on blogs, I'm starting to get Ironman ambitions.  Except that I haven't ridden a bike regularly since 5th grade, and I can't do two laps of front crawl without inhaling half the pool.  So I'm going to start small.  Summer triathlon season isn't ideal, since I'm planning to run Chicago again next fall, but I'm hoping that mixing in some cycling and swimming might help me get through a training cycle injury free (see: run a sub-4:45 marathon).

They probably won't let me swim with a flotation device ...

Strength train at least two times a week
I always say I'm going to do this, and then as soon as I start marathon training the mileage cranks up and strength training goes out the window.  I'm not going for anything crazy, just some light upper body and core work (again, hoping this will help with the whole injury prevention thing).

Cardio cross train at least once a week
I'm super strict about sticking to my running schedule, no matter what else is going on in my life, but for some reason I'm always "too busy" for cross training.  Hopefully a sprint triathlon on the calendar will get my butt in gear for this one.

Does reading Runner's World count as cross training?

Listen to my body
Like a lot of other runners, I tend to think of "making progress" as "pushing my body to the breaking point and then some."  I'm injury-prone and I HATE getting off schedule, so I run through pain until I'm limping around the house and unable to go up/down stairs without grimacing and swearing under my breath.  This year, in addition to taking some preventative measures to avoid getting injured in the first place, I'm going to try to listen to my body and rest when I need to.  I'm also going to try to listen to my body about food -- eating when I'm hungry, and stopping when I'm not -- instead of worrying about the number on the scale.  I'm off to a good start, having finally stopped running on my probable patellar tendonitis, but I'm already getting cranky and its only been a week.  Wish me luck on this one.


Maintain a social life
My first marathon training cycle took over my life.  Friday nights I didn't go out because I was resting up for a long run, and Saturday nights I didn't go out because I was exhausted from my long run.  And during the week I was too busy/exhausted to do much outside of school, running, and tv.  I've never exactly been a party animal, but now that I'm single and don't have the built-in social network that came with having a boyfriend in non-phd grad school (the fun kind where you "network" a lot), I'm realizing that I'm going to have to make more of an effort to get myself out there, even if sometimes that just means meeting up with friends for post-run brunch.  Who knows, maybe I'll even go on a date or two?

See, I do wear non-running clothes occasionally

Mmm,. alcoholic carbs

Get my masters degree
I've passed my general exam, and the only things standing between me and a masters degree are two "incomplete" grades for courses where I haven't yet written a final paper (apparently in phd school you can basically take as long as you want to do that).  Time to get 'er done!

Taking funny pictures at museums = research

Make consistent progress on my dissertation
I tend to get wrapped up on teaching, running, advising and whatever other short-term plans I have and completely neglect my own research until it's time to panic (i.e., one week before my prospectus is due).  In 2012, I'd like to devote some time to my dissertation every week, even if it's only 2 or 3 hours, so that I don't get totally overwhelmed.  And to convince my mother that I will graduate and get a job eventually.

Here's the part where you get to motivate me by leaving a comment with a) your 2012 goals, b) threats to kick my ass if I don't meet my 2012 goals, c) a haiku about carbs.

2011 Racing Recap

I ended 2011 on a frustrating note.  I've now taken a full week off running for the first time in I can't even remember how long, and I'm not sure when I'll be able to start up again.  This also means that I missed my goal of 1000 miles in 2011 by about 15.  I've had pretty bad pain in my left shin/knee since right after the Winter Classic 5K on December 11.  It hurts when I straighten my leg, run, walk quickly, go up/down stairs, or touch/kneel on the sore area.  I'm afraid I partially tore my patellar tendon during that 5K, or somehow rapidly developed patellar tendonitis.  I'm sort of in a holding pattern for the moment, until I get back to school where I can see an orthopedist to get a real diagnosis (not that I don't trust family/friends/acquaintances/dr internet).  I don't have access to a lot of cross-training equipment at home, and I'm not really sure what I can do without aggravating the injury.

To cheer myself up, and avoid thinking about whether I'll be able to continue training for the Rock 'n' Roll D.C. marathon in March, I've decided to look back at what a big year 2011 was for me as a runner.

February: Disney's Princess Half Marathon (2:21:00)

Source 

My first half marathon!  My goal was to finish under 2:24 (11 minute pace) and I did.  I also had a super fun weekend in Disney World with two of my favorite runner girls.

March: NYC Half Marathon (2:17:35)

I loved running through the empty streets of Manhattan, and was really happy to run the entire race, only walking through water stations, and finish under 2:20

June: North Shore Half Marathon (2:27:16)

Mom's first half marathon!  The course was beautiful and I had a great time pacing my mom through the race.  She only almost disowned me once, but then I let her beat me by one second so all was forgiven.

August: Rock 'n' Roll Chicago Half Marathon (2:06:50)

Thanks, Katie, for realizing that this was a great photo op

This was the best race I've ever run.  I was halfway through marathon training and feeling confident about how much my running had improved, but still wasn't sure what to expect from this race since I didn't taper much.  I really surprised myself and I ran my first sub-60 10K on my way to crushing March's half PR by over ten minutes.

September: Tavern to Tavern 5K (27:40 unofficial net time)

This was a last minute addition to the schedule.  I set a 5K PR two days after my first ever 18 mile training run, and possibly derailed the rest of my marathon training in the process.

October: Chicago Marathon (5:28:01)

My first marathon!  By far my biggest accomplishment of the year, even if it wasn't anywhere near the time I'd hoped for.

Memphis Soul 5K (32:05)

No, I did not intentionally sign up for a 5K one week after my first marathon.  The race was supposed to be in early September, but was rescheduled due to a Hurricane Irene induced state of emergency.  I wasn't going to miss out on free post-race bbq!  Although I did have to swear to several people that my time would be over thirty minutes.

December: Winter Classic 5K (28:54 unofficial net time)

Another late addition to the schedule.  I started the morning with a 9 mile long run and then tacked on the 5K at the end.  My goal was to sub-30 on dead legs, and I did.  And possibly screwed up my leg in the process.  Anyone noticing a theme here?

Somerville Jingle Bell Run 5K (28:52)

This is the one race I actually wrote up a full race recap for.  You can find it here.  Short version of the story is that my plan was to go out hard and see how long I could hang on.  The answer was approximately 1.6 miles.

So, that's my 2011 racing recap.  All in all, not a bad year, if I do say so myself.  I'll be back tomorrow with my goals for an even more awesome 2012.  Happy New Year!