We're officially plan A for childcare for a few more hours. My cousin and his wife live several hours away in Oklahoma City. She is very pregnant -- 37 weeks and some days -- and the baby is okay in utero, but will need medical attention when he's born and there aren't sufficient resources to treat him in OKC. So they were left with the options of having the baby there and then being life-flighted to Dallas, or coming here early to have the baby. They opted for the latter and yesterday she started feeling badly and is ready to go according to her doc, so they came down last night. Her mom is flying into Dallas today, but if she has the baby before her mom gets here, we are responsible for the three other children. Scary for us! Our house is anything but kid-friendly, especially since the oldest of the 3 is in first grade and we live in a 3-story house with stairs, glass tables, outlets, etc. everywhere.
I'm sure we could handle the responsibility for a day, especially if we could borrow their car with carseats, because then maybe we could take them to a park or something. But it will be a big sigh of relief when their grandmother gets here so we're moved to plan B.
I'm volunteering tonight at the running store to help with packet pick-up for the half this weekend, then we have our Italian conversation group, then I'm hoping we can go visit my cousin and his wife at their hotel (or the hospital).
I'm excited about getting to spend more time with them in the next few weeks. My husband has never met them -- he was supposed to come to their wedding in Oregon with me in August 2006, but his grandmother in Pittsburgh died a few days before the wedding and her funeral was on the day of their wedding, so there was just no way he could be on both coasts for both events, so we parted ways. And then with all their kids, they weren't able to come to Italy for our wedding, so he's actually never met them. So assuming she can hold off on going into labor for a couple more weeks, it will be great to get to spend time with them (and even if she doesn't, as much as we hate hospitals, it will be fun to see them there too).
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Fort Worth Running?
I'm getting ahead of myself, but I'm trying to figure out what I'll be doing a week from now.
I promised myself I wouldn't make a decision about whether or not to run our local full (White Rock) on Dec. 5 until after this weekend's race. And I'm not committing. But part of me is trying to figure out how I'll train for it if I decide to do it.
Basically, the plan will be 13.1 hard this weekend, then a long run of about 20 miles, then about 15, then about 10. Hmmm. The easy option is to roll into a Rock training group with the program I currently run with. But it's not as much fun to join a group already in progress. But it's what I did last year and is likely what I'll do again.
But there's a Fort Worth racing option. I could do the half this weekend, do a 20 mile race in FTW next weekend (guaranteed PR), then a half in FTW the following wknd (and I could add on a couple for 15 if I wanted), then the Dallas Turkey Trot for 8 miles, and then an optional 10 a couple days later.
Typically, I do a race in FTW about once or twice a year. Their big marathon is in Feb. I've never done it, but I've done the half and the 10k there, and maybe the 5k, I can't remember off the top of my head. And then I've done the half there that is coming up in a couple weeks. That's an odd race. Very small, but a very fast field. The time I did it, I ran with a friend as a recovery run from the San Antonio marathon the weekend before. We ran easy, but it was still a decent finish time, one that would have been a PR for me a couple years earlier. Yet we were among the last 30 runners to finish. It was crazy!
So now I might run in FTW two of the four wknds in November. Hmm... could be fun! May have to see if I can convince a running buddy to do both with me. Just a thought milling about in my head today.
Not much to report from this morning, it was raining so I didn't run home from camp. Did lots of exercises with the ankle bands, so I'm bracing myself for sore glutes and legs tomorrow...
I promised myself I wouldn't make a decision about whether or not to run our local full (White Rock) on Dec. 5 until after this weekend's race. And I'm not committing. But part of me is trying to figure out how I'll train for it if I decide to do it.
Basically, the plan will be 13.1 hard this weekend, then a long run of about 20 miles, then about 15, then about 10. Hmmm. The easy option is to roll into a Rock training group with the program I currently run with. But it's not as much fun to join a group already in progress. But it's what I did last year and is likely what I'll do again.
But there's a Fort Worth racing option. I could do the half this weekend, do a 20 mile race in FTW next weekend (guaranteed PR), then a half in FTW the following wknd (and I could add on a couple for 15 if I wanted), then the Dallas Turkey Trot for 8 miles, and then an optional 10 a couple days later.
Typically, I do a race in FTW about once or twice a year. Their big marathon is in Feb. I've never done it, but I've done the half and the 10k there, and maybe the 5k, I can't remember off the top of my head. And then I've done the half there that is coming up in a couple weeks. That's an odd race. Very small, but a very fast field. The time I did it, I ran with a friend as a recovery run from the San Antonio marathon the weekend before. We ran easy, but it was still a decent finish time, one that would have been a PR for me a couple years earlier. Yet we were among the last 30 runners to finish. It was crazy!
So now I might run in FTW two of the four wknds in November. Hmm... could be fun! May have to see if I can convince a running buddy to do both with me. Just a thought milling about in my head today.
Not much to report from this morning, it was raining so I didn't run home from camp. Did lots of exercises with the ankle bands, so I'm bracing myself for sore glutes and legs tomorrow...
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
All around steady, the beauty of the negative split
I had a lovely 6 mile run today. Kind of speedy, but felt pretty good. Still slower than what I'll ideally run on Sunday during the half, so bottom line is that I'm probably going to have to adjust my goals -- a PR should be possible, but maybe I won't be smashing it quite as I hoped. Adam also hasn't been running much lately, so maybe we'll be able to hang together for a while. He's also been taking it easy since the marathon. He's logged fewer miles than I have, but he's naturally significantly faster, so it might balance out.
The other nice thing about today was that my husband had a good run. We always share our splits after we run, and he's come to realize that I much prefer to hear about his steady splits (or a negative split) to something all over the board or to be slowing down. Sometimes on a normal run (no fartleks or hills or anything), he'll have mile times that are more than a minute apart!
In a race where I'm planning to run steady, my goal is that each mile be +/- 5 seconds from my goal time. Of course I'll widen that gap to about +/- 10 seconds if there are notable hills or something. And of course I'm always thrilled to be picking it up faster and faster toward the end of the race. But I've had a few amazing running coaches and have been taught to be a very steady runner. AND I have found much more success with it, so I'm trying to get my hubby there as well.
It's crazy to hear or read about others' races and see that they'll start out with miles a minute faster than their goal pace, and then the final miles will be a minute slower than their goal or average pace. Even if they don't feel like they're crashing and burning, I wonder if they know how good it feels to start conservatively and either hold that pace the whole time or, even better, to feel like they can pick it up toward the end.
Instead, to use my favorite running analogy these days, they're going out like shirtless drunks on Cops (not my analogy, read online).
A negative split in a long race is tough. I've done it in many shorter races (and I've attempted it tons of times and failed), but I've only successfully done it in two marathons -- NY (through some kind of miracle), and St. George (where it's almost impossible NOT to negative split). But I think MTCM was maybe the first marathon ever where a negative split was not my goal (and mostly b/c of the course, I knew it would be particularly tough there; when I added in the pace group options, I decided the best bet was to plan on a big positive split).
But in a shorter race, there's really no excuse for me not to have a negative split. It will be my goal for sure on Sunday. We'll see how it goes...
If it goes well, I'm contemplating running long the following weekend, then another half, then the 8 mile Turkey Trot and maybe another run that weekend, then the local marathon here (White Rock) on Dec. 5. But no decisions until Sunday at the earliest!
The other nice thing about today was that my husband had a good run. We always share our splits after we run, and he's come to realize that I much prefer to hear about his steady splits (or a negative split) to something all over the board or to be slowing down. Sometimes on a normal run (no fartleks or hills or anything), he'll have mile times that are more than a minute apart!
In a race where I'm planning to run steady, my goal is that each mile be +/- 5 seconds from my goal time. Of course I'll widen that gap to about +/- 10 seconds if there are notable hills or something. And of course I'm always thrilled to be picking it up faster and faster toward the end of the race. But I've had a few amazing running coaches and have been taught to be a very steady runner. AND I have found much more success with it, so I'm trying to get my hubby there as well.
It's crazy to hear or read about others' races and see that they'll start out with miles a minute faster than their goal pace, and then the final miles will be a minute slower than their goal or average pace. Even if they don't feel like they're crashing and burning, I wonder if they know how good it feels to start conservatively and either hold that pace the whole time or, even better, to feel like they can pick it up toward the end.
Instead, to use my favorite running analogy these days, they're going out like shirtless drunks on Cops (not my analogy, read online).
A negative split in a long race is tough. I've done it in many shorter races (and I've attempted it tons of times and failed), but I've only successfully done it in two marathons -- NY (through some kind of miracle), and St. George (where it's almost impossible NOT to negative split). But I think MTCM was maybe the first marathon ever where a negative split was not my goal (and mostly b/c of the course, I knew it would be particularly tough there; when I added in the pace group options, I decided the best bet was to plan on a big positive split).
But in a shorter race, there's really no excuse for me not to have a negative split. It will be my goal for sure on Sunday. We'll see how it goes...
If it goes well, I'm contemplating running long the following weekend, then another half, then the 8 mile Turkey Trot and maybe another run that weekend, then the local marathon here (White Rock) on Dec. 5. But no decisions until Sunday at the earliest!
Monday, November 1, 2010
Arms
We didn't do much running at camp today, which was fine with me. I'm not exactly sure what my running schedule is this week to be ready for the half on Sunday, but fewer miles are probably better.
Lots of women use 5 pound weights at camp, but officially women are supposed to use 8s (which I do). Joy uses 10s and I'm in awe. And sometimes I think maybe I should make the leap as well. But then we have a day like today, where we actually use the weights a lot and work our arms. And these women with the 5s are kicking my butt all over! It was a beating, but I survived. I just wish I could bring 5 or 6 pound weights with me as well, but then I'm lugging more than 25 pounds of weights with me, which just seems like more trouble than it's worth.
We had a really good weekend. Fun wedding and then had a great time last night trick-or-treating with my godson and his sister and their mom. Our hubbies stayed at their house and watched the baseball game (Rangers lost again, looking like there's not much chance, but good they made it this far) and passed out candy.
We got home and the kids tore into their candy. I got hooked on those Now&Later soft taffy pieces. I probably ate about 15 pieces -- enough that my jaw and teeth actually hurt this morning! I also had some chocolate, and cosmos, but I was more into the fruity candy (and drinks).
Lots of women use 5 pound weights at camp, but officially women are supposed to use 8s (which I do). Joy uses 10s and I'm in awe. And sometimes I think maybe I should make the leap as well. But then we have a day like today, where we actually use the weights a lot and work our arms. And these women with the 5s are kicking my butt all over! It was a beating, but I survived. I just wish I could bring 5 or 6 pound weights with me as well, but then I'm lugging more than 25 pounds of weights with me, which just seems like more trouble than it's worth.
We had a really good weekend. Fun wedding and then had a great time last night trick-or-treating with my godson and his sister and their mom. Our hubbies stayed at their house and watched the baseball game (Rangers lost again, looking like there's not much chance, but good they made it this far) and passed out candy.
We got home and the kids tore into their candy. I got hooked on those Now&Later soft taffy pieces. I probably ate about 15 pieces -- enough that my jaw and teeth actually hurt this morning! I also had some chocolate, and cosmos, but I was more into the fruity candy (and drinks).
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