In The Long Run

Ran on the JRP with Stacy.  Legs felt great after a much-needed day off yesterday. February was my most consistent training in months and I'm looking forward to ramping it up some more.

Met Bruce and Stacy at Highland High for a nice 5.3 loop around the neighborhoods (9:20 pace).  Then drove to Sandy for the SLCTC Breakfast Run.  Ran a hilly 6.5 there (9:04 pace).  The break in between was just enough to make my legs tighten up and feel like lead. I was surprised at my pace given how bad I felt.  Then we had a yummy breakfast of pumpkin pancakes, cheesy hash brown casserole, bacon, eggs, coffee, oj, and other goodies before heading home. I love breakfast runs!   

Easy run to Liberty Park with the pup this afternoon.  Such a beautiful day, so many people and dogs out enjoying it.  My hamstrings were very tight today.  They seemed to loosen up a bit mid-run, but I had to put a small surge in at the end to avoid a guy who was creeping me out and that tightened them up again.  Spent the morning tracking my Louisiana friends at the Rock and Roll New Orleans Marathon/Half.  It was very motivating to see them reach their goals.  

AM: 10 minutes on elliptical to warm up.  Tried to do my usual lifting (squats, straight legged dead lifts,  pulldowns, rows), but my left hamstring was so tight that I had to use much  less weights on the squats, and couldn't do the dead lifts at all.  Planned on a short PM run, but decided against it because of hamstring soreness. 

Usual Liberty Park Run.  I was seriously under dressed for this one in shorts and a t shirt with arm warmers.  It started snowing on me less than 5 minutes in, but I was too stubborn to turn around and put more clothes on.  For most of the run, I felt pretty good (if not a little cold).  I was almost home when my hamstring seized up enough to alter my stride. I'm sure it didn't help that my legs were freezing.  I need to figure out how to fix this hamstring problem.  

SLCTC Group Run.  I've been running with my dog for almost 3 years now and it's mostly been incident free (despite her somewhat inconsistent leash skills) until recently.   Last week she managed to clothes line me at Sugarhouse Park and tonight she managed to further aggravate my already aggravated left hamstring.  She stopped for a potty break and then pulled to get back up with my husband.  She was pulling with such force that I couldn't hold back and as I moved faster, I could feel my hamstring seize up. I gave the dog to my husband and slowed down, but I was aware of my hamstring with every step.  Andrea shared some tips that helped her when her hamstring was acting up, so I will incorporate these into my routine to see if they help me, too. Now onto icing and "the stick".   

Ran 3 easy loops of Sugarhouse with Stacy.  The hamstring felt decent at a slow pace (9:40ish).  

Easy Liberty Park run with the husband and hound.  Felt stiff, but no hamstring pain. Yay! I'm going to a YogaTherapy workshop tomorrow afternoon at the Yoga Center.  I'm looking forward to some yoga and relaxation.   

AM: 8 miles on the Bonneville Shoreline Trail with the SLCTC.  Gorgeous morning.  First time on trails since Bandera in early January and it felt good.  Hamstring was pain free. Hopefully that was just a fluke thing from adding a little more intensity the previous week.  

PM: 2 hours of Restorative Yoga at The Yoga Center. This was great, lots of easy gentle yoga (seated or lying poses) focused on the hips, spine, and shoulders. I felt so relaxed when it was over. I'd like to do this more often.  

Ran to Sugarhouse, did a few loops, ran home.  Very slow, but I need to get my mileage up and I hear that slow, easy running is the way to go.  

Super slow run Liberty Park Run with Nate.  Even with a day off the legs felt dead. I had intended to do a 3 mile tempo on the dirt path, but the legs weren't having it. Felt like I was barely moving on the ~2 mile stretch home directly into the wind. Foam rolled the legs and did hamstring swiss ball curls when I got home.  

It finally hit me that Ogden is in 9 weeks and I really haven't done much to get ready for a marathon. I put together a schedule (modified Pfitzinger) last night that gets my mileage into the 40-50 range for that stretch and will get me two twenty milers before the race. That will be enough to finish and possibly even PR depending on conditions (given how slow my PR is). The plan has one faster workout each week (either a tempo run or 5k paced intervals), a midweek longer run (10 miles) and a long run on the weekend (starting with 14, building to 20). With the exception of the workout days, I intend to run as slowly as necessary to get the miles in and not worry about the pace and to cross train as needed. I also need to pay attention to the little things like foam rolling, stretching, and core work.    

Medium long run.  This was hard for me today.  I ran up to Highland High, met up the SLCTC group, and then ran home.  The run there was frustrating.  I took the dog and she had three potty breaks plus we had to stop at every light.  It was hard to get into a rhythm and I felt sluggish, although it was mostly uphill.  I then ran with the group for 5 miles.  This part went well, although I ran a little faster than I intended (sub 9s which is fast for me).  For the run home, I backed off a bit.  I again managed to get stuck at every light!  Overall, I'd say it was a good run.  Foam rolled when I got home.  I will take it very easy tomorrow.  

I was so excited to run today because I got new shoes (and because it is absolutely gorgeous out). I so wanted to love these shoes (Brooks Pure Flow) but within a mile of running my feet were on fire. I was tempted to go home, but I continued on to Liberty Park. Once I hit the dirt, my feet felt fine again. Maybe I just need to break these shoes in? Weird. Did a loop then ran home. I felt progressively better throughout the run after a blah start,  although my stomach has been sour all day. Myrtl and foam roller after run.

Took the pup for a couple easy loops around Sugarhouse. Felt pretty dang good tonight, hope it carries over to my long run tomorrow!

The distance is a guess as my Garmin ran out of juice on this run.  Original plan was a 14 mile road run, but I decided I wanted to hit the trails since I have the Buffalo Run 25k next weekend.  Ran Pipeline starting from Rattlesnake Gulch. My hubby and dog ran with me, too. The trail was mostly clear and dry, but eventually we reached a point that was too slushy, snowy, muddy, icy to run safely so we turned around. Beautiful day, but the wind was really picking up by the end.  

Short Liberty Park run.  

Mid week longer run.  Parks loop including Sugarhouse and Liberty.  I struggled to get into a rhythm because of having to stop at every light. 10 miles doesn't feel far anymore, so that is good.  My left hamstring is acting up again, though, so I plan on 5-6 easy miles a day until Antelope Island on Saturday.  If I feel good, I will try to beat my time from last year.  If not, I will use it as a scenic, supported long run and just enjoy being out there.  

SLCTC group run.  We had a pretty big group tonight now that it is warm and still light out at 6pm.  I ran pretty easy because my legs felt really tight after yesterday's run. Pace was around 9:20.  In early January, this pace was hard for me.  Now it feels easy enough that I can carry on a conversation while running it.  I love progress!  

Easy loops on the grass at Sugarhouse with Nate.  I didn't wear a watch, but felt like I was dragging. In non-running related news,  I received a job offer today and am so excited to start work at the U of U this summer! I guess I'll have no excuse not to hit the BST after work each day!

Easy, boring 3 miles looping though the neighborhood.  Felt really blah again.  Hope I feel better at the race tomorrow.  

This was my third year running the Buffalo Run 25k, but my first as a SLC resident.  This is the race that made me fall in love with Utah.  There was something about the mountains reflecting off the water that made me want to move here.

I didn't know what to expect for this race.  I've increased my milage a bit the last few weeks and my hamstrings and left plantar have been chronic problems.  I started off in the middle/back of the pack and tried to stay controlled going up the climbs.  As soon as we hit the downhill, people started flying by me.  As we approached the switchbacks, I realized that I felt pretty good and that I was passing a lot of people back.  After we hit the aid station on the return,  I saw a SLCTC running buddy up ahead, and gradually worked to catch him. I caught him on the last real uphill and then focused on trying to finish strong.  I tried to dip down below 9s, but my hamstrings wouldn't have it.

I really thought I was going to beat my time from last year (2:45 something) by several minutes, but I hadn't even reached the fence and my time was already slower.  This year the start/finish was moved over near the parking, and I wasn't happy about the running up the gradual incline to the finish.  I pushed a little so that I didn't get out kicked by a guy with his dog and finished in 2:48:49. After the race, I got a massage where I was informed that basically every part of my body was tight (calves, hamstrings, itb, hip flexors, adductors)  That probably explains many of my problems.

The altered start/finish added some extra distance to the course, so it's likely that my pace was slightly faster than last year even with the slower time.  My Garmin read 16.6 for an average pace of 10:11 (I stopped it 20 seconds or so after I crossed the finish line).  The stats from my Garmin can be viewed here.  It's clear that I really need to work on my downhill running if I hope to take any large chunks of time off next year.  I feel like my uphill running was better than in previous years and I walked very little this year.  I'm starting to regret signing up for Ogden, I'd rather run trails right now.  

Took today off because my left foot hurt to the point that I couldn't walk normally.  Went to the Yoga Center for an hour and a half of Restorative Yoga. 

Ran the usual Liberty Park run.  The day off and yoga yesterday did wonders for my legs. Muscularly, I felt better than I have in weeks. My hamstrings felt almost normal.   I purchased a pass at the Yoga Center and intend to incorporate the Sunday night Restorative Yoga into the routine.  I may also look into the "Yoga for Stiffer Bodies" on Saturdays.  

Liberty Park. Gloomy day, gloomy run.

Ran a loop of Sugarhouse for a warmup.  Then used the first 3 miles of the SLCTC group run as a tempo run (8:47, 8:33, 8:44).  The goal was 8:45 pace, but I got a little too ambitious on the second mile. It's so much easier to run faster when you have company! Slowed to low 9s for the remainder of the run as a cool down.  

Ran to Sugarhouse, did 3 loops on the grass, ran home.  Overall, this was a pretty nice run and felt much better than last week's 10 miler.  It wasn't the fastest, but I felt pretty good.

I was once again stopped on my run by some random person and asked if I was training for a triathlon.  This is kind of a sore spot for me because it is code for "your legs are huge." Last spring, I was running on the Blue Sky Trail in Fort Collins and a mountain biker asked me what triathlon I was training for.  When I said I was training for the Big Horn 50k, she stared at my legs and said, "oh, I thought you were a cyclist."  This has happened numerous other times over the years. I find it odd because I don't go up to strangers and comment about their body type!   

Easy 4 on the BST with the dog.  Didn't feel that great, actually took a few walking breaks, but it was a beautiful day.  

Ran from home to Sugarhouse.  After a couple loops I meandered up to Skyline High to meet the SLCTC group.  Ran another 6 out and back on Wasatch to hit 17 for the day.  This was pretty hard. It probably didn't help that a big chunk of it was either uphill or into the wind.  But I got it done and I'm happy about that! The first 11 by myself was more enjoyable than I anticipated, and it was nice to have other people to pull me through the last 6.  

I set a goal to run 160 miles this month, and I hit 192.  I'm pleased with that and I think it was my highest mileage month in several years! I hope that by summer I can easily and consistently run 50 mpw and gradually add in more faster running.