I am fried! But happy.
This morning was COLD and WINDY. Yes, that requires shouting. But I was out there at 7:30 a.m. to meet M and the Smofit crew, plus MK, the Team Mermaid folks, and the other 900-odd women who were planning to run, walk, wog, or otherwise make their way through the 5k, 10k, and half-marathon courses. We prayed it would not rain during the race, and for me that was mercifully true. The half-marathoners were not so lucky.
So MK and I set out to hit 80 minutes or fewer, since we managed the practice run at 85. I thought going in that it would either be a breeze, because I'd be running so fast to keep my toes from falling off, or it would be miserable and slow. It ended up somewhere in the middle--my toes finally defrosted as we passed the 2-mile marker, but I can't say it was a fun race as these things go. What was fun was all the company we had out there! Most of them are people I've met through M, but have now become my friends. It was great to cheer as Heather, Molly, Chris, and Justine blew by me on their way in, as I was nearing the turnaround. Once MK and I hit the turnaround, we got to cheer for M--she was right on our heels!
MK is really hitting her groove these days and honestly is much faster than I am, but she insisted on keeping our 8 min/2 min interval and waiting for me to catch up on the walking intervals. Once we got to the 5k turnaround--3/4 through our race--I insisted she should go as fast as was comfortable and finish strong. She had a great last mile and a half and finished at 74:32. I came in not too long after, at 78:07, which means we both hit our time goal! M also blew hers out of the water, by quite a large margin. Yay all of us!
I thought I was going to Sonoma for a much-deserved wine tasting adventure, but last night my friend E, an old buddy from my camp counselor days, called and said he was in town for one day only. A graciously offered to postpone the drinking trip, and so C and I met E and his girlfriend to wander around North Beach and catch up. Hopefully all the walking (from Washington park to St. Mary's Park in Chinatown and back) stretched out my legs well enough that I won't be hurting tomorrow.
Want pictures? Go see Molly's race report and Facebook.
You may notice that I updated my list of races--it's an ambitious schedule, but it should keep me on-track all summer. I haven't signed up for anything past UVAS, just because circumstances can change so quickly, but I hope to complete them all.
Happy Sunday! I'm going to collapse now. :P
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Happy Day!
This morning I was up bright and early and headed to Shoreline for my long run so I could see the course we're going to run next weekend. M, MK, and some awesome Smofit buddies all did the course, though we all went different speeds since we're at different stages in training and have different goals. MK and I left the parking lot with my watch set for 8 min run/2 min walk intervals and the goal to run for 80 minutes and hopefully cover at least the 5.5 miles that we were scheduled to run today.
Here's Shoreline (it was cloudy today):
We started out strong and when my watch beeped for 40 minutes, MK pointed out that we were just short of the turnaround for the 10k! So we kept going, and made it all the way back at 84:30!!
Our friends were waiting for us in the parking lot so we stretched and then went to Tied House Brewery for lunch. I had the steak taco salad, which is MUCH better than most taco salads because it has tri tip, avocado, and lovely fried flour tortilla triangles instead of that soggy bowl that most places have. Yum!
Another minor miracle: my new bike is ready! I'll pick it up tomorrow and blog about it then!
Here's Shoreline (it was cloudy today):
We started out strong and when my watch beeped for 40 minutes, MK pointed out that we were just short of the turnaround for the 10k! So we kept going, and made it all the way back at 84:30!!
Our friends were waiting for us in the parking lot so we stretched and then went to Tied House Brewery for lunch. I had the steak taco salad, which is MUCH better than most taco salads because it has tri tip, avocado, and lovely fried flour tortilla triangles instead of that soggy bowl that most places have. Yum!
Another minor miracle: my new bike is ready! I'll pick it up tomorrow and blog about it then!
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
This is not a swimming blog
But this is another swimming post! (If you want to read a swimming blog, go read I'd Rather Be Swimming.)
Tonight the heater in the pool was out, which means the water was a somewhat chilly 71 degrees when I hopped in and started. I did 2100 yards in under an hour, including a set of 6 x 200 free on the 6:30, which I'll have to tell Swimplan was too easy--I kept coming in at 4:15 and having another 2:15 to wait around, which normally would be lovely but was mostly just cold.
The lifeguard was amused by my jumping up and down while waiting for my watch to beep for 6:30, so I started talking to him and found out he does sprint triathlons. I'll have to remember him and talk more, because by the time I got out the guards had changed places and, anyway, I was focused on taking the shortest way to the hot showers.
Tomorrow I run 3 miles--we did 2 this morning because we missed Tuesday. This weekend is the last long run before the race!
Tonight the heater in the pool was out, which means the water was a somewhat chilly 71 degrees when I hopped in and started. I did 2100 yards in under an hour, including a set of 6 x 200 free on the 6:30, which I'll have to tell Swimplan was too easy--I kept coming in at 4:15 and having another 2:15 to wait around, which normally would be lovely but was mostly just cold.
The lifeguard was amused by my jumping up and down while waiting for my watch to beep for 6:30, so I started talking to him and found out he does sprint triathlons. I'll have to remember him and talk more, because by the time I got out the guards had changed places and, anyway, I was focused on taking the shortest way to the hot showers.
Tomorrow I run 3 miles--we did 2 this morning because we missed Tuesday. This weekend is the last long run before the race!
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
I bought a bike!
This weekend ended up great, though the ride was a little bumpy.
Saturday I did my loop around Lake Merced with practically no problems--one running interval in the middle was interrupted because my foot was falling asleep, but after a little bit of walking and a pep talk to myself, I ran the rest of the intervals and finished the 4.5 miles in just barely under an hour.
Sunday I went to ride bikes with M and my father-in-law (her dad). He just got a bike for the first time in many years, but he loves riding so we were excited to get him back into it. Unfortunately, I'm not very coordinated with my clipless pedals (still) and I tipped over. Normally, no biggie, right? Wait though--I managed to break my seat! Far beyond repair, in fact. So my mother-in-law (M's mom) very graciously played SAG wagon and picked me up, taking me to the bike shop where I wanted to buy a new bike anyway.
Once I was there, I learned that the bike I've been drooling over was sold--sad, but to be expected when it's a closeout at a great price. Instead, I got this year's base model Specialized Roubaix--a full-carbon frame with Shimano 105 derailleurs and a Gossamer crankset. In short, a really nice bike. I had to order it in my size, so I won't actually have it for another week or two. I can't wait!
Saturday I did my loop around Lake Merced with practically no problems--one running interval in the middle was interrupted because my foot was falling asleep, but after a little bit of walking and a pep talk to myself, I ran the rest of the intervals and finished the 4.5 miles in just barely under an hour.
Sunday I went to ride bikes with M and my father-in-law (her dad). He just got a bike for the first time in many years, but he loves riding so we were excited to get him back into it. Unfortunately, I'm not very coordinated with my clipless pedals (still) and I tipped over. Normally, no biggie, right? Wait though--I managed to break my seat! Far beyond repair, in fact. So my mother-in-law (M's mom) very graciously played SAG wagon and picked me up, taking me to the bike shop where I wanted to buy a new bike anyway.
Once I was there, I learned that the bike I've been drooling over was sold--sad, but to be expected when it's a closeout at a great price. Instead, I got this year's base model Specialized Roubaix--a full-carbon frame with Shimano 105 derailleurs and a Gossamer crankset. In short, a really nice bike. I had to order it in my size, so I won't actually have it for another week or two. I can't wait!
Saturday, March 7, 2009
Running Scared
Today I am supposed to run 5 miles, and I'm scared. I've never run that far before, ever. I think I'm going to head out to Lake Merced--it's a 4.5 mile loop, and I'm familiar with the course form biking it (to think a year ago, that was a tough bike workout!) and walking with M. If I do a little extra at the end I'm going to call that 5 miles because the last two weekends I've missed my long runs--it was so rainy, and I hate driving to work to use the treadmill there on the weekends. So I'll go out with my watch set to beep at 5 minutes and 2 minutes, run my intervals, and hope for the best. It's a beautiful day out, so even if I end up walking a lot it should be enjoyable at least.
Last time I went to the doctor she was concerned about my weight. To wit, it has not really changed from the all-time high I hit a few months ago. In October I lost about 10 lbs, but they reappeared over the holidays. So she suggested that rather than count Weight Watchers points, which I have been doing, I should try calorie counting instead. I signed up for the Daily Plate and tracked this week, and it's okay so far. Amazingly (to me), I've actually been undereating on my "good" days. Obviously on days when I binge on bagels, doughnuts, or (and?) cookies, that's a different story. I now have to weigh myself and recalculate my calorie allotment every day. At any rate, I lost a pound over the last three days. One down, 27 to go till my doctor is happy. I am pretty much happy now, but I'd be even happier if more of my clothes fit.
I want my California tax refund to come so I can buy this:
That is all.
Last time I went to the doctor she was concerned about my weight. To wit, it has not really changed from the all-time high I hit a few months ago. In October I lost about 10 lbs, but they reappeared over the holidays. So she suggested that rather than count Weight Watchers points, which I have been doing, I should try calorie counting instead. I signed up for the Daily Plate and tracked this week, and it's okay so far. Amazingly (to me), I've actually been undereating on my "good" days. Obviously on days when I binge on bagels, doughnuts, or (and?) cookies, that's a different story. I now have to weigh myself and recalculate my calorie allotment every day. At any rate, I lost a pound over the last three days. One down, 27 to go till my doctor is happy. I am pretty much happy now, but I'd be even happier if more of my clothes fit.
I want my California tax refund to come so I can buy this:
That is all.
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
swim success!
I have a bit of catching up to do, as I had a blog-worthy weekend and it's a new month, but let's start with the swimming!
This was the workout for today:
I finished in 50 minutes--not too bad, I guess. I did all the 50 frees on 1 minute (plus 15 seconds rest) instead of 1:30! I have never timed my swimming before except to note the total time, so it's neat to find out that I go faster than the plan required. That means I have to get a tougher workout for next week, right?
No rude swimmers this week--had the lane to myself for a long time, then had 2 different people split the lane with me for short periods. I may be spoiled from when I was a lifeguard and could have the whole olympic pool to myself, but I can certainly handle splitting. As long as there aren't 3+ swimmers--I despise swimming circles. I know, I have to get over that. I will.
This was the workout for today:
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| • | 8 x 25yd Any Stroke (even pace), rest 0:10 / 25yd | ||
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| • | 1 x 50yd Front Scull and Kick, rest 0:15 / 50yd | ||
| • | 1 x 50yd Freestyle Push & Glide, rest 0:15 / 50yd | ||
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| • | 12 x 50yd Freestyle Swim, target time 01:30 / 50yd, rest 0:15 / 50yd | ||
| • | 4 x 50yd Freestyle Kick with kickboard, rest 0:15 / 50yd | ||
| • | 6 x 50yd Freestyle Swim, target time 01:30 / 50yd, rest 0:15 / 50yd | ||
| • | 2 x 50yd Freestyle Kick with kickboard, rest 0:15 / 50yd | ||
| |||
| • | 2 x 100yd Easy Any Stroke, rest 0:20 / 100yd | ||
I finished in 50 minutes--not too bad, I guess. I did all the 50 frees on 1 minute (plus 15 seconds rest) instead of 1:30! I have never timed my swimming before except to note the total time, so it's neat to find out that I go faster than the plan required. That means I have to get a tougher workout for next week, right?
No rude swimmers this week--had the lane to myself for a long time, then had 2 different people split the lane with me for short periods. I may be spoiled from when I was a lifeguard and could have the whole olympic pool to myself, but I can certainly handle splitting. As long as there aren't 3+ swimmers--I despise swimming circles. I know, I have to get over that. I will.
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