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Training Last Week and Doing Something Crazy

July 9, 2018 By in Running, Training Tags: , , , , 6 Comments
Training Last Week and Doing Something Crazy

Last week was a decent week of training.  I am slowly getting back into more of a consistent grind.  While I’m not training for anything, I’m running and enjoying it.  Since I’ve either been injured or burned out, this ahead of most summers so far.  In fact, I haven’t run consistently over the summer in 3 years!

I hadn’t planned on not racing this week, but the cards fell that way. I had contemplated running a race on the Fourth of July. However, the heat and my mood didn’t want too.  I ran an easy, but humid run which was fine for me.  I have no regrets about it.

Monday: Short Walk
Tuesday: Easy 60 minutes
Wednesday: Easy 60 minutes
Thursday: Short Hike through Hike Point Park
Friday: Easy 60 minutes
Saturday: Easy 60 minutes
Sunday: 15 miles with last 7 at 7:05

Thoughts:

I said I was going to race more in July and then didn’t race at all last week!  Ha, plans change.  As I mentioned, on Wednesday I opted to sleep in, enjoy an easy run, and relax versus race.  Over the weekend, there wasn’t anything local that worked with my schedule.

Make good choices, like not wearing black on days like these.

A post shared by Hollie (@fueledbylolz) on

Sunday Long Run (15 Miles with last 7 at 7:05):

On Sunday, I did my longest run in a couple of months.  The weather was ideal, and I felt great the entire time.  I am extremely pleased with how it went. Over the Winter and Spring, I was consistently doing 14-15 miles on Sunday.  It kept my endurance sharper and made me, “half marathon ready.”  Meaning: You can finish a half marathon well.  Will you PR with that alone?  No, but you won’t feel like peeling over at mile 11.  Which leads me to my next exciting announcement.

Next Weekend I’m Going to Colorado:

Next weekend, I’m going to run the Underamour Mountain Series trail 25k at Copper Mountain.  I haven’t been “secretly hiding it and training for trails races,” but the opportunity presented itself recently and I’m going to take advantage of it.  When I was first contacted but someone, a few weeks ago I turned it down.  As most people know, I have social anxiety and have had some a relatively bad setback over the late spring.

This sort of spontaneousness (the kind I can turn down), is something I generally do.  Then I thought for another hour, and I was like, what am I thinking.  This is a once in a lifetime oppertunity, and I can’t turn it down.  It’s going to be fun.  It’s going to challenge me both physically and mentally!

It is entirely out of my comfort zone, and my only goal is to finish.  The cutoff time is 4.5 hours.  Since I’ve been getting into hiking a lot this Summer and it looks like such a fun combination of both hiking and running.  Do I have any expectations?  Absolutely not, but I’m really looking forward to challenging myself.  I’ll be the first to admit, training wise, it’s not my smartest decision but my goal this summer is to have fun and try new things.  I

There is a 20% discount code for any of the Underamour Mountain Series including Copper, Killington, and Mt. Bachelor.  I can’t believe I’m doing something so off the wall crazy, but you only live once right?  I never thought of myself as a trail runner but after enjoying hiking so much, I want to give it a shot. I think it will be the hardest running race I’ve ever done.

Posts of the Week:

Walking around Belleplain State Forest

Recovering from Workouts

June Training

Irish Festival 5k (20:25)

Questions for you:

Do you have any tips for trail racing?

How was your week of training?

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June Training

July 5, 2018 By in Uncategorized Tags: , , , , 2 Comments
June Training

I hope everyone had a good Fourth of July!

Training wise, usually June is a tough month for me.  It was an “easier” month because I did run but it was in the bottom of how months have gone.  It’s hot, humid, and I’m not adjusting to the weather well.  To be honest, I like the heat far more than the cold, I’m just not adjusting to the weather well.

Anyway, I did put down some races but none were anything to say: “the best race ever”.  I had fun at each though.  The Newport 10 miler being my favorite as I got to see my family.

One last hurrah before my brother, Matt, goes back overseas for a while. 🇺🇸⚓️

A post shared by Hollie (@fueledbylolz) on

Miles Run:
Range of Paces: 6:07-12:03-untimed.
Rest Days:
Races:
Newport 10 Miler (1:03.57)
Fathers Day 5k (20:06)
Bungalow Beach 5 Miler (32:12)

Irish Festival 5k (20:25)

Thoughts:

Looking back I ran nearly all of these races at the same pace.  Running a 5k and 10 miler at the same pace is probably not the indicative of fitness but the weather, course, and training all played into account.  There isn’t a whole heck of a lot to say right now.  June was a busy month and I think July will be as busy.  While yes, running is fun and I enjoy it, it’s not the only thing I like.

The summer, for me, isn’t about grinding away at PRs, it’s about having fun.  I don’t want to train hard because I would rather do that when I’m less busy.  I like to be outdoors hiking or just relaxing as much as I like to be outdoors running.  

Making the most of the longest day of the year. 😎🌞

A post shared by Hollie (@fueledbylolz) on

Plans for the Rest of July:

We are already 5 days into July! Anyway, my plans are the same as June.  I will run when I can and enjoy the process along the way.

Posts from the Month:
Hiking Bear Mountain in a Downpour

Running:
Rest is Best
Blah Blah Blah: Run Easy
Benefits of Racing Frequently
Saucony Triumph ISO 4 Shoe Review

Other:
Vital Proteins Recovery Smoothie
Hair and Nail Benefits of Collagen
Why You Don’t See Many Negative Sponsored Posts

Questions for you:
How was your fourth of July?
How was the month of June?

Blah Blah Blah: Run Easy

June 20, 2018 By in Running, Running Reads Tags: , , , , , 7 Comments
Blah Blah Blah: Run Easy

It seems every year, I post about running easy.  I’ve been blogging for 8 years, so it’s about 8 posts saying about the same thing.

Never the less, it’s still an important and relevant topic.

Racing your easy runs won’t get you a PR.

It won’t make you an Instagram hero either.

It will, however, get you burned out, or injured.

Don’t think I haven’t been subjected to this and learned the lesson of injury the hard way.  Long term readers know my first tibial stress fracture (7 years ago now) was caused by overtraining.  In short, I ran my easy runs too fast.  My last burn out wasn’t necessarily caused by running too fast, but more life stress, trying to run high mileage, and just doing too much.

Every week I post a running log and mileage recap.  Every month I do something similar.  Every week on Instagram, I get a few messages about “how fast do you run your easy runs,” and I will always respond the same way: honestly I don’t know or care.  Typically I use my Garmin Vivosport.  It’s not fancy, and that’s why I like it.  It will tell me mile splits if I want but for the most part, I just do timer mode.

I have a few ways I do an easy run

  • I run a route I know to be X amount of miles and don’t time it. I could finish 5 miles in 45 minutes or an hour…I will only have a good idea by the kitchen clock.
  • I just run for an hour and if it’s 6 miles or 10…that’s how it goes.  JK, it would never be anything close to 10.

Both work for me and keep me healthy both mentally and physically.

For training, I usually have a rough outline of the runs and workouts I want to do for the week, but I never have an exact plan.  For instance, last week I planned to take a rest day on Thursday, but my body was hurting on Tuesday…so I rested then too.  Some days I have more time in the morning, and some days I have less.  I ask myself: will I miss this mile next week.  No…I won’t remember.

Does Not Caring about Pace Really Help Me?

I have actually found that it does and it does a lot.  First of all, I’m not obsessed with pace.  I don’t care. I could run 10 miles at 10-minute pace or 10 miles at 8-minute pace.  It’s still 10 base miles.  I’ll run with anyone that wants to run, whether you run a 10 minute or 8-minute mile.  That’s why I rarely post paces online, Instagram, or anywhere.  Because I don’t know and honestly, for training runs…I don’t really care.

As I mentioned earlier, it hasn’t always been that way for me. I used to be obsessed with pace and numbers.  Seven years ago as a new runner, I would run in the same 10-second pace range for every run of the week.  That pace was between 7-7:10.  Do you know what I gave myself?  The glorious gift of a tibial stress fracture on my 21st birthday.

Not to mention, during that period of trying to PR every run, I never got faster for races and was miserable the entire time.   I was so antsy in training if my overall pace was 7:11+ and thought I had lost my all endurance.  It sounds silly now, but that is what the newer runner in me thought.

I Thought: Train fast to go fast.  Race myself and try and get faster every day.

Here are Some Interesting Stats from that Time in My Training:

During that time of my running career, my 5k PR was 20:10.  I ran about 50 miles a week between 7-7:15 pace.

Now it’s 18:13 (and I had to look LOL).  During that time in training, I was running 60 miles a week with about 50 above 8:30 or even 10-minute pace.

Then my half marathon PR was 1:36.56…now it’s 1:22.03

Now, I’m able to do workouts more efficiently and better.  Running an 88 second 400 doesn’t feel as challenging. My body couldn’t handle that when I was sprinting every training run.  I was also exhausted all of the time.  Even though I was running fewer miles, I was more tired.

But the most crucial piece is I enjoy going out to run without worrying about it.

For me, running is a hobby, and it’s something I want to do lifelong without stress. Not caring about pace has turned into continuing to improve on running.

My point is to relax during your easy runs.  Make your easy runs easy, and work hard during your workouts and races.  Honestly, without being injured or burnout, I don’t think I would have gotten to this phase in my life.  No one wants to be hurt but from injury, I quickly learned my body doesn’t respond well to fast runs every day.

I think I should have renamed my blog CasualLOLZ or something.

Questions for you:

What are your thoughts?

Do you schedule workouts every day or fly by the seat of your pants?

Training: Rest and a 5k

June 18, 2018 By in Running, Training Tags: , , , , , 3 Comments
Training: Rest and a 5k

Last week I took Saturday through Thursday off.  It was the best thing I did for myself.  My body needed a longer break.  As I get back to building into running, I’ll slowly build mileage.  Last weeks rest was important, but not jumping back into higher mileage is just as important.

Not much to say about not running right?  You don’t run, and life goes on.   The rest was great, and it allowed me to recharge both mentally and physically.

Monday: Rest
Tuesday: Rest
Wednesday: Easy 30 minute walk at Maurice River
Thursday: Rest
Friday: Easy 30 minutes
Saturday: Easy 30 minutes
Sunday: Fathers Day 5k (20:06)

Friday and Saturday were just easy runs.  There wasn’t anything too exciting about it.

Fathers Day 5k:

On Sunday, my husband asked if I wanted to run a 5k.  I said not really, but we still went.  He hasn’t been running a lot either but wants to get back into shape. The race benefited a charity associated with prostate cancer.  Unfortunately, we’ve known a few people with this.

I knew it wouldn’t be a fast time for me, but I decided to run and see where I’m at.  The last time I raced a 5k was nearly 2 months ago and the last time I considered myself actively training was around Broad Street.  It was definitely hot, but I’m happy with my race.

Posts of the Week:

Why You Don’t See Many Negative Sponsored Posts

Rest is Best

Saving Time Shopping for Essentials

Next week, I’ll continue easing back into running.  I would like to race most weekends, with minimal expectations to get some speed back.

Questions for you:

How was your week?

Do you like taking breaks from running?

Training: Real Talk, Anxiety, and Taking a Step Back

June 11, 2018 By in Running Tags: , , , , 18 Comments
Training: Real Talk, Anxiety, and Taking a Step Back

It’s important to be honest, so here we are.

Recently, I have found myself once again burning the candle at far too many ends. So I’m taking a few days off from running.  I started my self-imposed break on Saturday and will continue until I feel like running again.  My guess is around next weekend, but I’m not putting any pressure on myself.

Since my Half Marathon PR in February, I haven’t had a lot of quality training weeks. I’ve run and have had several good weeks, but I haven’t had the consistency that led to my PR.  You can’t always be in PR shape and can’t train hard all of the time.  I should have taken a more extended break a few weeks ago, but I took a few days off and still think I jumped too quickly back.

But running isn’t even the most important thing I’m suffering through.

Over the last few weeks, my anxiety has been at an all-time high since college. In my own personal life, I have a lot going on.  Unfortunately, it’s not something I can talk about in the blogging world, and I am talking with my therapist about events going on.  No, it’s nothing life-threatening, and I’m not injured in any way (knock on wood).

Yes, running is great, but for me, it’s not therapy and not interchangeable and of course blogging on the internet does not take the place of talking to a professional.
Monday: Easy 5
Tuesday: Easy 45 minutes
Wednesday: 5k Speed Workout (20:01)
Thursday: Rest
Friday: Easy 60 minutes
Saturday: Rest
Sunday: Rest

Why do I talk Openly about Anxiety and Depression?

I’m not ashamed of it.  With the recent news of Kate Spade and Anthony Bourdain, it’s important to know you aren’t alone.

It’s easy for anyone to say “I’m here for you, if you ever need to chat” but believe me if you aren’t in your normal frame of mind, you won’t ask for help.  In my darkest moments through college, I didn’t ask a single soul for help.  Many people, including best friends and family, said they were there, but I had no interest to ask for help.  Most people who have dealt with any mental health disease don’t.

For me, I need to talk to a professional.  Having anxiety or depression isn’t embarrassing.  Like any crippling disease, it’s essential to take actions to deal with it, so it doesn’t continue to hinder or affect your quality of life.  Right now, my anxiety is far higher on the scale than depression.  I’m not in that mindset but I also know I have several issues to work through.

I’m not fine, but I’m taking steps so I will be.  I have family, friends, and professionals that are helping me dig into the hole I fell down.

I do plan to be active the next week.  Right now is a good time for me to take a break from running.  It makes sense from a mental health standpoint as well as a fitness standpoint.  I’ve been running healthy for almost a year now with no real hiccups.  Like last June, I’ll be busy with various things that June is a good month for me to take off.  I can squeeze running here and there, but I would prefer to have downtime and focusing on more important things.

Posts from the Week:

Newport 10 Miler Recap (1:03.57)

Hair and Nail Benefits of Collagen

Hiking Bear Mountain in a Downpour

Questions for you:

Do you ever take running breaks?

Are you getting ready for any races soon?

Newport 10 Miler (1:03.57)

June 8, 2018 By in Running, Running Reads Tags: , , , , , 3 Comments
Newport 10 Miler (1:03.57)

Last weekend I decided to run the Newport 10 Miler.  As many people know, my brother is in the Navy.  Over the last year, he’s gone to various schools around the country.  It’s been awesome because I’ve been able to see him several times including for the Christmas last year and in Phoenix. He leaves to go back to Spain soon, so as one last hurrah my parents drove up to see me, and we drove up to see him.

I heard the Newport 10 miler was a beautiful course, so I decided to run.  I wasn’t all that concerned about pace or my finishing time.  May and June are always dicey months for me where I seem to get niggles I ignore which ultimately turn into an injury.  This May I bebopped around with my training and workouts.  It wasn’t as if I didn’t run, but running wasn’t my priority.  I have no regrets about that.

The race officials sent several emails saying parking was difficult and to get there as early as possible.  Even though the race started at 7:30, they recommended getting there at 5 am.  Dad and I met them halfway and got there at about 6.  Honestly, I’m glad we didn’t get there any later because parking is challenging and there is one 1 lane going in and out, so there is a lot of traffic

The race started at 7:30.  After chatting for a while with a few people who I didn’t know, it was time to go.  I planned to run my own race. I knew I wasn’t in the same shape as Broad Street, so I wasn’t going to be dumb and run it like I was. The over 1-mile walk to/from my car was warm up for me, and I didn’t do anything extra.

The first mile, I ran with a bunch of men.  There were several women in front, but I was tucked into a pack of dudes.  We went up and around and honestly, there were several rolling hills that I wasn’t expecting. I ran the first mile in 6:35 and I thought, eh; I would be happy with the race being at that pace but never judge a race by the first mile…

The next two miles went by quickly.  We turned and ran near the water. It was beautiful.  Both miles I ran at 6:33 and I felt good about it.  By mile 3, I found myself as the 3rd woman.  I could see the first two women running side by side about 30 seconds ahead.

As mile 4 approached, I could tell I was catching one of the females.  I consider myself a somewhat strong “wind runner.”  I don’t get upset when the wind is blasting in your face, I just put my head down and go.  It’s probably because most of my half marathons were in the wind last year.  We hit some headwind, and I just propelled myself forward as best as I could.me running newport 10k

On the downhill around mile 5, I caught one of the women and found myself as second.  I felt good.

My primary goal of this race was to run faster per mile than last month when I ran a 41 minute 10k.  That 10k race left me feeling demotivated and wondering if I was even in good running shape anymore.  Silly but since then I’ve just been in a funk.

I hit the 10k of this 10 miler around 40:30 which was almost 40 seconds faster on a harder course.  I also knew with the headwind we had going out, we would have a tailwind for part of the second half, and we did.

After that, I told myself to just focus on the finish.  I wasn’t tapered, or even really ready for the rolling hills on the course.  Would I say the course was a hard, hilly, course?  No, but I will say the elevation changes a lot, and you aren’t ever really on a flat surface.  My body was not ready for that.

The next 2 miles without any note.  A woman told me I was “so close to catching the first place woman,” but I knew the first woman was gapping.

me running newport 10k

Around mile 9, we entered the Fort and headed to the finish.  When you pass the Fort, you still have about half of a mile to go.  Those finishes are mentally tough because you never feel like the half-mile will end.

Finally, I ran through the Fort gates and saw the finish.  I crossed in 1:03.57 and as second woman overall.  I was pleasantly surprised with my time as well as placing.  Over the last month, I haven’t put as much time and effort into running (which yes, would mean it’s not a priority in my life right now).me running newport 10k

It’s not a PR, but Newport was definitely a fun and challenging course.  I was surprised with the rolling hills.  It’s not a “hilly” course, but there aren’t many sections you are running on a flat surface.  It’s either up or down.  I’m happy with my effort and I’m hoping to get back to running more routinely soon.

Questions for you:

What is the most scenic race you’ve done?

Have you ever been to Newport?

May Training Recap

June 1, 2018 By in Training Tags: , , , , , , , 8 Comments
May Training Recap

May was a good month.  Not so much a gritty training month, but it was a good month in general.  I mentioned this in my training log last week, while I didn’t “train hard” through May, I did run.  I didn’t stop training, and it wasn’t as if I wasn’t logging miles.

Running just wasn’t a priority.  I’m still in great fitness, but I’m definitely not in peak fitness.  A few months ago, running an 18:30 5k wasn’t too big of a deal, but right now I think I’m probably around 19 minutes.  That’s what happens when you stop doing the little things and honestly, mentally and physically your body needs it.

Through the summer, I plan to actively train.  In June I definitely would like to sign up for more races.  That will probably help fine-tune speed work again. Do I think I’ll PR…No, but I will get closer? Yes.  Eventually, I would like to run under 18 minutes in a 5k, a goal I’ve been chasing over the past few years.

Anyway, back to May Training:

Miles Run: Around 250
Rest Days: 5
Range of Paces: 6:11-11:30-untimed
Races:
Broad Street 10 Miler (1:02.51)
Cape May 10k (41:07)
First Trail Race 10k 

I think my demotivation came from having a rough 10k after the Broad Street.  The day itself was hot, windy, and down the sore. The race was well put together, but I just felt like garbage.  The rest of the month I chose a lot of other things like hiking versus running.  Then life got busy outside of the running and blogging world, so I felt like I was on the go and living out of my car with running around the state of NJ.  Honestly, it was a great month but running just wasn’t a priority.  As a running blogger with no kids, it’s weird saying: I just didn’t GAF about training hard.  That’s what happened.

Posts from the Month:

Running Related:
How do You Know When It’s Summer Running?
Saucony ISO Shoe Review
Recovering with Collagen Protein
Skin Benefits from Collagen

Hiking:
Hiking to the Cape May Lighthouse
Exploring Hartshorne Park in the Highlands

Flying:
Flying to Bridgeport, CT

So another month of the year down.  It feels like the year is flying by.  I’m looking forward to enjoying the summer and hopefully taking some time down the shore and at new parks.

Questions for you:

How was your May Training and workouts? Anyone have a goal race in June?

 

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