Posted on Sep 30, 2009 under running, Trail |
I’m going to try and make this a quick update since I’m already late on this post. So Tuesday’s intervals were supposed to be 7×800 meters at 6:30 pace. Even though 7 was the most I’ve done for intervals, I wasn’ taht worried. The pace wasn’t too intense and I had been knocking these workouts out pretty easily. And the fact that they’re only 800 meters helped too. The first lap is a little easier because it’s the beginning, so I always try and focus on that 2nd lap. I’ve been trying to focus on my posture during these hard workouts. I’m hoping that this will help create some efficiencies when running. Here are the splits for the 800 meter intervals: 3:05, 3:01, 2:57, 3:00, 2:56, 2:52, 2:44. I’m really happy with the overall times, and was able to hit progressives. I broke 20 for the last 100 meters of last week’s intervals so I wanted to see if I could run faster this time and was able to hit a 17.19!
My tempo run was a lot better paced and I was able to hit around the goal pace or below for all 5 miles. Splits: 6:55, 7:05, 6:39, 6:46, 6:20. My Sunday long run I ran on the trail at home in LA again (need to post pictures of the trail soon!) I took a Clif bar with me to eat around halfway through the run with some water. I can’t really tell if the Clif bar helped since I stopped for water and rested too. But when I started running after eating the Clif bar, I felt really rested, not sure how energized. I really want to try some Gu things though, maybe I’ll use it during the half marathon. I heard that it’s important to eat them with water and actually heard of some people that had a negative reaction to them. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted on Sep 20, 2009 under running |
This is the 2nd week of half marathon training and it feels like it’s working. Last week, I did a pretty good job on the intervals and tempo run and ran a pretty good distance in the long run. This week, the interval distance increased, the pace for the tempo run increased, but was shorter and the distance for the long run only went up by one mile. None of the workouts really seemed impossible and should have been pretty manageable.
Intervals
This week’s intervals was supposed to be 5×1000 at 6:40 pace which was supposed to be 4:10 and to get even more specific, :25 per 100 meters. The main reason why I’m keeping track of every 100 meters is because I am terrible at pacing myself. When I ran in high school, I always ran with a teammate who was able to run at the correct pace. And whenever I had to do intervals on my own, I would always be off pace. What would happen is that I would run the beginning of the interval a little slower so I would pick it up (faster than the actual pace) to even up the pace. That just isn’t very consistent. I was able to run each 100 meters at around 21 to 22 seconds feeling pretty comfortable. The last interval or two, I was able to increase some of those to 20-21, and wanted to break 20 for the last 100 m and did it at 19.01! Great run overall, next week’s intervals will be tough too, 7×800 m.
Tempo Run
My Thursday tempo run didn’t really seem that hard, only 20 minutes at the hard tempo pace: 6:45. Last week was supposed to be at moderate pace 7:00 but for 4 miles, which I did and actually hit at the hard tempo pace. But the splits were all over the place, including the first mile which was way too fast, 6:19! So today, I made a conscious effort to not go too fast and run the warmup at an actual warmup pace, not 7:00 which I hit last week. So I did the warmup and the first mile and actually was right on pace, which was very surprising. Second mile was a little slower, but still on pace. Because I actually ran what I was supposed to run, I had a lot more energy throughout the run and had a lot more at the end to finish strong. My last mile today was a 6:19, the same time as the first mile of my tempo run last week, which killed me for the rest of the run. Overall good tempo run.
Long Run
Saturday’s long run did not turn out like I had hoped. The plan was 6 miles easy and then 3 miles at goal race pace plus 20-30 seconds. I woke up a little later than I had hoped that morning, but still got out and actually hit those first 6 miles at a reasonable 8:15-8:20 easy pace. However, by the time I got to the 7th mile (1st mile of the goal race pace), it had gotten super hot and I didn’t get any water or fuel to run any faster. The first mile was pretty much the same pace as the easy 6 I had just ran and the 2nd mile slowed to a jog. I too out of energy and just decided to just call it a day after that. I’m still happy with the miles, but I missed out on the most important part of the workout. This was the first of this type of workout and will be more like it in the next couple of weeks. But I have definitely learned how much the heat can affect someone who runs 5 days out of the week at night, which kind of freaks me out since the half marathon will not be at night. But thinking about it, it will probably start in the early morning so the sun shouldn’t be a big factor. I will just have to get up a little bit earlier next time I have to run this workout.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Intervals: 5×1000 meters
Was very eager to run intervals again. Last week’s was pretty successful and I was able to run faster than my goal pace. Today’s intervals were a little bit harder: 5×1000 meters at 6:40 pace = 4:10. I was able to run faster again today, although I was more tired than last week, which is understandable. I still felt comfortable for most of the intervals, I’m very happy about that. 5x1000m: 3:50, 3:53, 3:44, 3:39, 3:31.
Last interval 100 meter splits:
20.8, 22, 22, 21.6, 21.6, 21.4, 20.9, 21.1, 20.4, 19.01 (broke 20!)
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
The Loop 3 mi
Slow, felt weak. Should have eaten a snack before the run. Glad I didn’t run hard today since today was post-interval day and tomorrow will be tempo run.
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Short Tempo Run 3 mi 19:56, 6:38 pace
I sort of ran on pace today, what a surprise! I felt a lot more comfortable than I did last week and didn’t start off too fast, which made the rest of the run a lot easier. Bc of the smarter running, I was able to run the same last mile (6:19) that I ran on the first mile of last week’s tempo run, which got me too tired. Splits: 6:43, 6:52, 6:19
Friday, September 18, 2009
Easy Bike Ride 56:00
Another calf cramp while sleeping last night, wth! Easy bike ride today, didn’t even feel like an hour, it was nice. Biking downhill: exhilarating..not wearing a helmet: dangerous! Long run tomorrow morning, 6 easy, 3 race pace. Should be an interesting run.
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Long Run 8 mi
This long run was supposed to be 6 easy and then 3 at goal half marathon pace (+ 20-30 seconds). However, the forecast said it was going to be 90 degrees this weekend! I was able to run the first 6 miles and a very reasonable easy pace (8:15-8:20ish), but once I started those last three miles, I was all out of gas. No water or fuel to help and the sun was just scorching! First mile of the 3 was around the same pace as the easy pace and just jogged out the 2nd mile and called it a day. This is what happens when you run at night 5 days a week and then try and run in the heat..
This is the 2nd week of half marathon training and it feels like it’s working. Last week, I did a pretty good job on the intervals and tempo run and ran a pretty good distance in the long run. This week, the interval distance increased, the pace for the tempo run increased, but was shorter and the distance for the long run only went up by one mile. None of the workouts really seemed impossible and should have been pretty manageable. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted on Sep 16, 2009 under running |
This past Saturday, I had an off/XT/easy run day so I decided to change things up and go on a little adventure to the beach rather than run on the campus where I was already going to anyways. I initially wanted to go on this route that I took with a couple of runner friends when I was in school that took you to this cliff area that overlooked the beach. But I guess I made a wrong turn somewhere and ended up running down the hill that brought you to the actual beach. As I was running down that road, I kept thinking to myself, “this is not going to be a fun run running back up this hill, especially the day before your long run..” I ended up taking the uphill back pretty slow as to not be sore for my long run the next day. But the run to the beach was pretty fun and I stopped on the way to take a few pictures. I think they look pretty good considering they came from my cellphone camera!
Secret entrance to the path that was supposed to take me to these cliffs that overlooks the beach. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted on Sep 14, 2009 under running |
After all of that waiting and anticipation, I finally got my half marathon training started. Even though it was just the first week, I wanted to make sure I got it started on the right track. What is pretty cool about this half marathon training program is that there are only 3 real workouts that I need to focus on each week: Tuesday speed intervals, Thursday/Friday tempo runs, and Saturday/Sunday long runs. Every other day is either off, cross training or an easy run. I’ve ran recent workouts at or faster than the paces that I plan to run these workouts, so I should be able to do each workout. I just have to tell myself before each hard workout that I can do it because I HAVE done it before. The weekend long run seems like a pretty important workout since that is the day where I’ll be running more and more miles until that peak weekend when I run just a little more than a half marathon, which if completed, will guarantee that I COULD finish a half marathon. However, pacing will definitely be an issue come race day since I have a tendency to start off too fast within that first mile and if that happens in a half marathon race, it is going to be a long 12.1 miles. I’m hoping the interval workouts, tempo runs as well as long runs will help me learn the correct pace to start at and keep during the half marathon. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted on Sep 10, 2009 under running, Trail |
Here are a few pictures taken from the University of San Diego (UCSD) trails that I ran on a couple of weeks ago testing out my new Saucony ProGrid Xodus Trail Running Shoes. This is also the trail where I ran my first 5K race back in May.
This is a really fun trail to run on with many different paths to choose from. There aren’t too many hills, but a few here and there.. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted on Aug 30, 2009 under running |
This was my first 7-day running week, if I’m counting this past Sunday as the end of the week (which I am). I probably won’t be doing that from now on though according to my new half-marathon training plan. Monday’s are off days, which is a change from Sunday’s, but there are also two other days in the week that are either off, cross training or a 30-45 min easy run. It just sounds weird to me that it’s possible to train for a half marathon with only 4 days of running. I probably won’t be taking those other two days off, but just go for an easy run instead. I contacted Caleb, a fellow Twitterer & DailyMiler who initially suggested this training plan and he actually planned out how fast I should run all my workouts, from my 5K to 10K pace as well as moderate to hard tempo pace. How great is the running community? Read the rest of this entry »
Posted on Aug 23, 2009 under running |
I was surprised to find out that I was sore from last Sunday’s 5K race. I don’t recall getting this sore after any of my other races and I didn’t run that much faster this time. However, I didn’t have time to really stretch before this race though, so that may be the reason why I was this sore. I didn’t run on Tuesday because of some work stuff that I had and I guess because I was still sore. Maybe I should have taken Monday off instead Tuesday.
I think the visuals in Nike+ are cool, but not sure what else. DailyMile FTW!
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted on Aug 15, 2009 under running |
This is the week before the America’s Finest City Half Marathon and 5K, so I didn’t want to do anything too crazy to get myself tired or injured before the race. I’m only doing the 5K and am starting to feel bad just racing such a short distance. I can back myself by saying that I have only been running 3-5 mile workouts since I started running again in March and have hit 6-7 about 3 times. When I ran in high school cross country, the most we ever ran was 10-11 miles, so racing 13.1 miles just seems so impossible for me right now. But constantly reading other people’s running blogs about how many marathons and half’s they’ve ran has really motivated me to finally get one under my belt. After the AFC 5K, I will start looking for longer distance races and also register for a couple of half marathons and probably one full so that I will have no choice but to get started on a training program for those races. It’s probably going to be a really hard workout schedule with many more miles than I have ever ran before, but I know I can do it. I hope I can.. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted on Aug 09, 2009 under running |
I didn’t get to run on Thursday because we were having dinner with a co-worker of mine who is leaving us to go to medical school at Harvard. I don’t think there is any better reason to skip running. I was able to get in some pretty good workouts in this week if you look at the times. However, from my perspective, a lot of the runs didn’t really feel that fast. Meaning, after many of the runs this week, I would think to myself that I didn’t run that fast, but looking at the overall time and splits, it looks like I ran really well. After Saturday’s run, I have come to the conclusion that I have simply moved up a level in my training program. I am going to attribute this level up by switching to running at night. Since that switch, I have been able to get some quality runs in, at very fast times and paces. And from those workouts, my body has gotten a lot more comfortable running that fast. So now when I am running, even though I feel like it’s slower, the time and pace is significantly faster than a month or two before. So on those rare occasions that I have a really good workout, my time and pace will be that much faster. Now is probably a good time to start increasing the mileage, although the reason why I haven’t done it yet (other than the fact that I wasn’t physically capable) is the time factor. Running in the mornings was hard because I was waking up so early just to get in a short run, waking up any earlier would have been very hard for me, especially since I’m not really a morning person. Now that I’m runnning after work (which I come home fairly late), running for too long is not something that I really want to do, since I still have to shower, eat dinner, do a little more work, relax and then go to bed. I’m hoping increasing the mileage on Saturdays will be good enough, maybe throwing in a slightly longer run once or twice a week.
Nike+ graph of my pace during the Brick ride and run. Notice the sluggish start where my legs felt like 'bricks'!
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Posted on Jul 30, 2009 under running |
No new running events for a while now. There is a race on Saturday that I heard about through the local newspaper, which I’m considering. If not, the next race I have signed up for is in mid-August, which feels like forever. I’m trying to start posting a recap of my runs for the past week, which can also be viewed on my account at DailyMile. There are weeks however, where nothing incredible happens during my runs. But I’m sure I will be able to think of something to say about 4-5 days worth of runs. This past week, I had some great runs. Last week was the first week I started running after work at night. I am fairly convinced that running at night makes me run a lot faster. My pace for the past two weeks have been the best ever and even the easy runs feel a lot more comfortable. Last Monday, my first day running at night, I had run my fastest on that route. This past Monday, I improved on that same route and only two days later I had run the fastest 4 miles ever! All of that happened within a two week period! I don’t know if I’ll ever get close enough to break that time for quite a while. Once I start using my Nike+ and I find new routes to run, I may consider running a lot more miles. But for now, I will enjoy this running high that I have had since yesterday.
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