Tag: track

Running, Training

Training: 200s and 5ks

Hollie

Last week was a good training week for me. I feel like that has been my opening statement for the last few training logs.  Boring, but true?

As many people know (from Instagram), I was on the road most of last week.  My husband and I took a mini trip to Upstate, NY to visit our alma maters as well as hike in the Adirondacks.  The hiking didn’t work out as much but we enjoyed our time together

Monday: Easy 60 minutes
Tuesday: Easy 65 minutes
Wednesday: 12X200s
Thursday: Easy 45 minutes
Friday: Easy 70 minutes
Saturday: 2X5k
Sunday: Rest
Total: 60 miles

Running while on the road is always fun.  You get to run in new places and explore new routes.  While most of my easy runs were boring, it was still fun to explore new places such as Lake Placid, Potsdam and Syracuse.

me running lake placid

Workout 1: 12X200s
On Wednesday, I was at my alma mater, SUNY Potsdam, so I opted to use my old track.   It was windy but I felt pretty good during the workout.  Since it was about 1.5 miles worth of workout, it seemed to go by fast.

Workout 2: 2X5k
I actually did the second 5k at a race.  This workout has a lot going on.  I should mention the day before, my husband I went flying on an extremely windy/turbulent day.  I actually ended up puking on the plane so I wasn’t feeling the best going into the workout.

First 5k: 20:48

Second 5k: 19:20 (also a race)

Honestly, I’m glad I signed up for a race because it was much easier to push myself.  I was able to run 90 seconds faster and run harder.  I’ll have a recap of the entire workout and race soon. In summary, I’m glad I ran the workout but I didn’t feel great post flight.

Thoughts:
I’m happy with the week.  Even though I was traveling, I was able to get quality runs and workouts in.  Plus, I got many of them with my husband! Next week is the Philadelphia Half Marathon.  I’m looking forward to seeing what I can do there.

Questions for you:
Have you ever done a workout in a race?
Do you workout while traveling?

Running, Training

Track Meet Mile (5:40)

Hollie

How does one recap a mile race? It took me longer to write the recap versus run the race…  

The race itself was in the evening.  I wasn’t expecting to run, in fact, I ran 11 miles that morning.  My coworker asked if I wanted to run and I thought…why not? 

The answer should have been because nothing that day set me up for success for the race.

  • I don’t run well at night.
  • I haven’t been on the track in months and the last time I raced a mile was two years ago.
  • I ran 11 miles that morning and worked all day on my feet.

None of it matters because I didn’t plan to lose any sleep over my time. I let go of a time goal.  I arrived at the race at 7, quickly warmed up and got to the track.  My coworker was ready to run hard. However, I was ready for bed.

We toed the line of the track.  I was in the open heat, which had both men and women.  Since I don’t run the mile (ever), I couldn’t justify buying a pair of spikes and used my regular racing flats.

At the start of the gun, we were off.  Being in the middle of the pack for the heat, I was positioned towards the middle of the track.  I found myself boxed in during the first lap and as the third woman behind my coworker and another lady.  There were five men in front of me.

I passed the first lap in 82 seconds, and I thought it was the longest 82 seconds of my life.  The second lap seemed to go by faster, and I moved into the second woman overall.  I felt indifferent.  I didn’t feel terrible, but I also didn’t feel like I had the actual speed to move my legs any faster.

I crossed the halfway point in 2:47.  I was happy with that but to be honest, I have no real clue whether that’s good or bad.

During the third lap, several young children were cheering.  I was all by myself on the track.  There were plenty of people in front and behind but no one in the 10-second bubble around me.

I crossed the 3rd lap in 4:15 and hoped I would be able to be under 6 minutes.  Looking back that was pretty doable, but sometimes your brain forgets how to think during a race.

I pushed the last lap and by the time I knew it, the race was over. I crossed the mile in 5:40.  It wasn’t a PR, but I was pleased with the time.  My coworker won and finished in 5:19.

road mile running

Once school is out, my plan is to get back to the track more.  I think doing speed on the track versus road will be beneficial for getting leg turnover.

Questions for you: 
Have you ever raced a mile? 
What’s your favorite track workout? 

Running, Training

Training: Track Miles, XC Races and 78 Miles

Hollie

Last week, I did a lot of unique training that I don’t normally do.  I raced on the track, ran a cross country style race and even did my long run on the trail (side note: I don’t normally even do 2 hour long runs!).  Since I’m not actively training for anything now, I’m enjoying doing other things with no major focus.

Monday: Easy Run
Tuesday: Easy Run
Wednesday: 6.5 Tempo Run
Thursday: Rest
Friday: AM: 11 Mile Easy Run
PM: 1 Mile Race (5:40)
Saturday: Cross Country 5k (19:20)
Sunday: Trail Run 13.6 mile run
 Total:  78 miles

Thoughts:

My easy runs were just that, easy.  I don’t have any complaints, and they were all uneventful.

Workout Wednesday: 6.5-mile tempo run (6:42 pace)

On Tuesday I received ART, so I knew I would be sore.  My goal was to run the tempo faster than the week after Broad Street and I did.  While it’s not my fastest tempo, I’m pleased with how it went.

Friday Mile: 5:40

Long story short, I didn’t know I would run this until later in the day. If I did, I wouldn’t have run 11 miles that morning.  After running and then working, my coworker asked if I wanted to race a mile with her.  I thought: “why not”?  5:40 isn’t my fastest time but after my week of training, plus running earlier, I’m happy with that time.

road mile running

Cross Country 5k: 19:20

The next morning, I ran a 5k with my husband.  I was operating on minimal sleep. Once again, I had no time goal for the race.  I could feel the effect of the mile, and I was both sore and tired.  There was a section of the course that was an “out and back” on a giant muddy field.   It reminded me of collegiate cross country running. I could have worn spikes and been better off.

I attended a wedding in Frederick that evening.  I was exhausted from racing and lack of sleep as well as driving.  We stayed the night in Chambersburg and ran at Caledonia state park.  Even though it was pouring rain, I had a beautiful run.  Plus, I beat my Fitbit “steps” high score from the elevation change.  138 flights in a single run HAHA.

me running 1 trail

Next week I don’t have a lot of plans.  This month I’m taking my training week by week.  As the summer approaches, I’ll make some training goals, but right now I don’t have a lot.  I’m jumping into races most weekends and just running for the beauty of the sport. 

Running Related Posts from Last Week: 
Quick Strength Tips for Runners
Saucony Ride 9 Review

Questions for you:
Have you ever run a mile on the track?
What was your best workout last week?

Training

4 miles of Track and Half Marathons are Hard

Hollie

 

This week was another week at the grind.  I felt good the entire week.  My training schedule has become routine but I think that’s a good thing.  I have talked a lot about staying consistent with my training.

Breakdown:

Lately both Monday and Tuesday have been easy runs. For about half the runs I don’t use Garmin or time the run. I just do what feels the best.  It’s the main reason I run similar if not the same loop.  When I run the same loop, I know how far I’ve run and don’t have to worry about time.

Workout Wednesday (this week): 

4×1 mile repeats with 2 minutes rest (6:05, 6:11, 6:16, 6:14)

I felt pretty good during the entire workout. I will say mile repeats are hard! This week I added an extra mile to my workout. Obviously that gives me a total of a 4 mile workout versus 3 total miles of hard running. I actually felt like I had more in the gas tank at the end of the workout. I will hold my workouts to 4 miles until I inch closer to the 6 mile pace.

I have been focusing on the home stretch because I know that’s where my racing lacks.  I don’t have the power or endurance to kick it home.  In each run (easy run or workout), I spend the last quarter of a mile picking it up.  My hope is that it will increase my turnover! In the last two weeks I’ve felt the benefit of that.

This week I ran easy on Thursday too.  I took Friday off since my race was today. Sunday races throw me off, however, many of my upcoming races are on Sunday so I better get used to it.

Saturday I ran easy with Tim. We’ve been getting a lot of running in together. We ran then immediately drove down to Virginia Beach. By we drove, I mean he drove.

Post track workout: adorable...
Post track workout: adorable…

Then today I raced the RnR Half Marathon. As many long time readers know, I ran this race two years ago before moving. The interesting aspect about the race two years ago was I had been hit by a cyclist who broke my arm!

Today was about as I expected. I haven’t RACED a half marathon since April 2014. I ran both Harbor Lights in November and Shamrock (1:33 in much better temperatures) but both were around injuries. I haven’t raced a half since I blew up at the New Jersey half marathon.

Today I ran the RnR half in 1:31.50. I’m very pleased with that. I haven’t been doing half marathon specific work. I’ve run several long runs between 13-15 miles. RnR Va Beach is always a hot and humid race. Today the weather was 80+ degrees with 90% humidity! When I ran 2 years ago I was in the best shape of my life and ran a 1:28 so I’m proud of this!

hollie
Via instagram

Mileage: 70
Workout miles: 17
Thoughts: I am really happy with these week.  It’s making me hungry to continue training because I know I’m slowly but surely improving and getting back to my fitness of 2 years ago.

Next week: I desperately need an easier week so that is what I’m doing!

Anyways enough rambling, I’ll have a race recap up sometime this week. Unlike 5ks, half marathons leave me laying on the couch all day and catching up on the social medias.

I hope everyone has a happy Labor Day Weekend.  

Questions for you:
What is the hottest race you’ve ever done?

RnR VA Beach (either 2013 or this year) or the Save the Alamo half in 2013

How was your week of training?

Running, Training, Training

Training: Consistency and Bad Races

Hollie

Consistency is key.

Rome was not built in a day.

Those are two quotes that have gotten me through the last week of training when things such as bad races got mentally tough.

My training this week was good. I can’t say Belmar was the race I was hoping for but I have a longer post about that.

I ran easy on Monday and Tuesday. I rested on Thursday and ran easy on Friday.

Track Workout of the week:
2X800s (3:00) with 2:30 rest
2X600 (2:15, 2:12) (2:00 rest)
2X400 (1:23, 1:25) (2:00 rest)
2X200 sprint (2:00 rest)
2X400 (1:25, 1:25) (2:00 rest)

I’ve been doing track workouts with Tim lately. To be honest if I did track workouts by myself, I would probably stick to 400s every single time. He likes to do different workouts so it keeps it interesting. I felt good during the track workout but it was the hottest day we have had. I think I began sweating the moment I thought about running.

Saturday: Belmar 5k: 19:34 (5:53, 6:06, 6:41)
Sunday: Long run easy
Total miles: 68

Thoughts:
I’m currently writing a post about my thoughts with my summer training. I am consistently training but not seeing the benefits.

Belmar 1

In cliff notes I didn’t lose my speed in a month. It took me two years of consistently not doing speed workouts to lose that fitness. I did not gain my 18:35 speed in a month the first time and I won’t do that the second time either. Hopefully it does not take 2 years though.

This week was good consistency wise and I kept to my track, race and long run plan.  Did I PR at Belmar like I had originally hoped?  No but I finished healthy and there are many more 5ks in my future.

I wanted to wait until the Belmar Chase to decide what to train for this fall.  Realistically, I think it’s smart to continue the method of doing 1-2 speed workouts weekly and see where it takes me. Personally I like my current training method a lot. I am able to race often as well as not give up speed workouts.

While I’m not 100% certain, I don’t think a fall marathon falls into this plan.

Questions for you:
What was your best workout this week?
Do you have any fall goal races?