September 08, 2013

Sunday Runday

Sadly, my long run did not go so well today. I was afraid of that! The 16-miler I ran a couple of weeks ago went REALLY great, which usually means I'm due for a bad one. Jerry got my hopes up when he came in this morning by telling me that the weather was really nice outside. I think we have different ideas of "nice" running weather. To me, "nice" (in September) is 50's and overcast, low humidity. To Jerry, apparently, "nice" means 72 and humid. ;)  It was overcast, though, which made me happy!

I wasn't able to leave until after 8:30, when the kids went to church with my parents. Normally, I run much better on an empty stomach, but since I was getting a late start and wouldn't be home until after 11:00, I figured I'd better eat before the run. I had steel cut oats with brown sugar and craisins. Then I loaded up my CamelBak with water, my pepper spray, my phone, and a couple of ShotBloks.

My long run pace is supposed to be 9:38/mi, but I was just aiming for 9:30-10:00 ish. I've been giving myself a bigger range lately, because I don't want to have to look at my watch more than once a mile. The first couple of miles were okay; I was just thinking about how warm and humid the air felt, and hoped the sun would stay behind the clouds for a few more hours.

Just after mile two, I started to regret eating breakfast. I felt nauseous and really sluggish. For the next mile, I debated turning around and calling it quits. I honestly didn't think I could make it through 16 miles like that. Thankfully, just after mile four, I got a little burst of energy and started feeling better.

When I got to the state park, I was just focused on getting to mile eight, so that I'd be halfway done, and all I'd have to do was run home. Mile nine was my fastest, and that wasn't because I was feeling good; it was because I wanted to pass a boy! ;)  I came up behind a guy who was doing run/walk intervals. During his run intervals, he was about the same pace as me. I didn't consciously speed up, but I noticed my pace was getting faster and faster, because I wanted to pass him. When he stopped to walk, I caught up and went past, then I noticed my pace was 8:50-ish, and it about killed me.

I wanted to stop SO badly to take a breather, but that would have been embarrassing to pass him and then stop, so I kept going. The rest of the mile was really hard, because I was trying to recover from that. At mile 10, I would have gladly accepted a ride from a stranger, creepy or not, because I just felt like my legs were toast. I ate one of the ShotBloks, and hoped it would give me a little boost soon.

My pace didn't really slow down, but my body really felt sluggish. It was hard to keep running! At mile 13, I ate another ShotBlok. Just before mile 14, I heard a car pull up next to me, and saw that it was my parents with the kids in the car, returning from church. I was so so so tempted to hop in and get a ride home, but I knew I just had two miles to go.

I started thinking about the marathon, and how this training is supposed to simulate the LAST 16 miles of a marathon, not the first 16 miles. So I was supposed to feel tired. It was a very tough couple of miles to go, but I managed to finish!



When I uploaded my run, I noticed that the time was VERY close to the last 16-miler I did. Two weeks ago, I finished in 2:32:49 and today, I finished in 2:32:21. I didn't plan that, but thought it was interesting!


I was SO relieved to get that over with. Two down, and just one more to go. Next week is 10 miles, and then the third 16-miler is a week after that.

I was surprised to see that my average heart rate was 153 today; on my last 16-miler, it was 146. That's a big difference! But it goes to show that my rough run today wasn't all in my head. Probably the fatigue (I just ran 31 miles in 3 days!) combined with the higher temp outside caused the extra stress.

After I showered and changed into some comfy clothes, I just wanted to sit on my ass all.day.long. But first, I wanted to go to Monica's bakery to get a cookie before they closed. I got a big chocolate chunk cookie (16 PointsPlus). The chocolate chunk cookies never look very appealing there, which is why I don't get them often, but they taste SO good. So I'm glad that's what I ended up getting for a long run treat!


Once I got home, I plopped myself on the recliner, curled up with a blanket, and watched a Lifetime movie. That's kind of become my routine after my long runs lately. Lifetime movies are the best for lazy, relaxing afternoons!


Don't forget, tomorrow is Motivational Monday! If you have a health/fitness accomplishment that you want to brag about, please send a photo and description to my e-mail: SlimKatie (at) runsforcookies (dot) com, and I may include it on the blog tomorrow.

13 comments:

  1. Great job keeping at it and not giving up!! That's so funny about wanting to pass someone and then not wanting to get passed. I do the same thing!
    I too am finding that post long run, I just want to relax. I am exhausted! It's nice to know that I am not the only one that feels that way.

    Take care and good luck with your training!
    Kim

    ReplyDelete
  2. Wow, awesome job on your run. I've definitely had crappy long runs like that and great job just powering through it. I'm always devising escape plans when I run and it ends up distracting me enough that I finish the run. :) I had the same experience with my time on a long run too. I had a really "crappy" long run that ended up being slightly faster than one where I felt awesome. Running can be funny like that!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Great job Katie :) I have to say that you are my inspiration to keep me going with running. I have Narcolepsy and Fibromyalgia so the day after a hard run I am pretty much unable to do anything. Next sunday is our first 10k as a family - one of my daughters has been training with my husband and myself, we roped the hubby in because he's superfit and keeps me going at a decent pace despite him having COPD and being a smoker!
    I'm usually pretty ok straight after a run (though I'm not running the kind of miles you are) but once I sit down I find it nigh on impossible to get back up lol - everything seems to seize up within 3 minutes lol.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I don't run nearly the distance you do, but I'm glad that we have the same conversations in our head. Running is just so mental for me!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I love how close to home your runs hit with how I feel sometimes. You just know that after a really good couple of runs there is going to be a horrid one that sneaks in there and you'll get done and wonder "How in the world did I get through that." Haha. :)

    Your nice running weather describes mine perfectly as well! I love the cooler, overcast weather. The next two days for me are going to be up in the 100's and I am not doing it. Even after the sun goes down it is STILL almost 90.

    Also, I have totally sped up over my comfort zone to pass someone and regretted it. LOL!

    ReplyDelete
  6. You did awesome!! You deserve a half-marathon medal for doing that run!! :)

    ReplyDelete
  7. Great job! So hard to pass up those rides, good thing it came when you were almost done ;)

    ReplyDelete
  8. How do you run that far and still look so cute?! :) I also love to curl up and watch Lifetime movies when I want to relax. I usually watch them the nights my hubs works. I feel like every run I have lately sucks. I am so slow, something is always aching, or I feel sick. I am hoping once the weather cools off it'll help.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Very inspiring! It can be so tempting to give up on days when a run just isn't going well, impressed that you stuck it out. Also that cookie looks delicious.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Katie, I am running the Milwaukee Marathon 10/6 and have been following a pretty standard marathon training plan with my last long run being 22 miles. I am curious as to how the Hansons method has been going for you? What do you love/hate about it so far?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's been going REALLY well. I hesitate to write about how great it is, because I haven't done the marathon yet, but so far I really like it. It's MUCH harder than I anticipated, and I'm running a lot more miles than I did with a traditional training plan (I ran 200 miles in August!). I'm injury-free this time around, and I'm not sure if that's because of the training, but I'd injured my knees for the past two training cycles, so I'm happy that I'm healthy :) I didn't think I'd like running 6x/week, but I really do! The only thing I really dislike about the plan is that you can't swap days around or miss any days, because it throws off the whole plan. I would HIGHLY recommend reading the book if you are thinking of trying it, because it explains everything so well. It explains why you only run 16 on your long runs, and why running so many miles prepares you for the marathon.

      But I really can't say any of this "officially" until after I run the race! ;)

      Delete
    2. Thank you for the review so far :) I do look forward to your official review after your marathon.
      On a side note, when are we getting fall weather? This heat is killing me! I live in MN and it should not be in the 90's still. I ran my 20 miler last Monday and it was 55 degrees and overcast. It was perfect. I want weather (maybe even cooler) like that ALL the time.

      Delete

I used to publish ALL comments (even the mean ones) but I recently chose not to publish those. I always welcome constructive comments/criticism, but there is no need for unnecessary rudeness/hate. But please--I love reading what you have to say! (This comment form is super finicky, so I apologize if you're unable to comment)

Featured Posts

Blog Archive