A look back at March

When Febrary ended, I was glad to put it (and the snow, and the injury) behind me. With March over, and the backyard still covered in snow, I'm hoping spring is finally here in April! 

I was so unhappy with February, that I didn't even do a recap.  March was a busy month at work, and I also had a few days off to go to Vancouver with the BF.  I ran a total of 99.6 miles, which I'm pretty happy with since I've been coming back from injury and took it pretty easy at the beginning of the month.

Here's a review of my goals I have for the year and how I measured up this month:

Running and Exercise:

• Finish the Vancouver Marathon faster than I finished the Victoria Marathon. Since my injury, I no longer hold this goal.  My goal is now to finish the Vancouver Marathon smarter than I finished the Victoria Marathon. 
• Run my third marathon in the fall. TBA!
• Run at least 1100 miles in 2011. 862 miles to go!
• Cross train at least 30 minutes once per week. Hrm.  One hike this month.  Two days of a lot of walking in Vancouver.  Not a lot of cross training.  I could should need to do better on this.
• Do at least 30 minutes of yoga once per week. I had this great idea to do 300 minutes of yoga in March, but that didn't exactly pan out.  I know that I feel better when I do yoga, and I'm quite sure that I recover from runs better when I'm doing yoga regularly.  300 minutes of yoga in April?!

Diet and Nutrition:

• Eat fruit every day. I was doing well until the last week of this month.  This last week, my diet has been atrocious!
• Try at least 2 new recipes every month. If I can't remember, it can't have been that good.  On the bright side, I already tried something new with salmon in April!
• Eat at least 3 meals a day. Done!  I've been really good about eating breakfast and lunch everyday.  (Dinner was never a problem).
• Don't drink coffee after noon. (I used to be good at this, but it's sneaking back in to my day!)  Yes.  Aside from the day with only 2 hours sleep, I didn't have any coffee in the afternoons this month.

Mind:

• Read two books every month. I am plodding through The Catcher in the Rye.  I know a lot of people love this book, and it's been on my "to-read" list for ages, but I just can't get into it. 
• Apply for school by March 1st.  Postponed, but with purpose.  I am 90% decided on what I will apply to go back to school for, but have decided to do one more contract with my current job and will focus on that for the next year.  That way, when I do go back to school, I will be able to fully focus on that.
• Etudie le francais pour 90 minutes par semaine.  Probably not 90 minutes a week, but I spoke and read a fair amount in French this month, so I think it averaged out.  My French is better than this:

The Earth:

• Find a fulfilling, ongoing volunteer project (a few hours a month would be manageable). Still looking, but admittedly not that actively.
• Continue to eat as locally and sustainably as possible (cut out prawns!) Yep!  Thank goodness for spring!  I can't wait for the Farmer's Market to open next month!
• Start a small veggie garden in the spring. Well, if the snow would ever melt...

 

I still have lots of work to do on these goals, but it's only April!  If I'd achieved them all by now, I would have set the bar too low!  In April, I really want to focus on cross training and yoga and staying healthy for the Vancouver Marathon on May 1st.  Less than a month to go!

 

4 weeks to go!

This week was a doozy, work-wise.  I had one night with only 2 hours sleep.  I managed 3 out of 4 runs and will go out for a 10K recovery run tomorrow to make up for the one I missed.  My runs this week were welcome breaks to the madness, and I really enjoyed my long run today!

I am "on call" this weekend and had to carry my cell phone on my run.  This is something I don't normally do as I get work calls on my cell and as mentioned above - running is a way to take a break from work.  This weekend I had no choice, so I finally strapped the Belkin Arm Band I received for Christmas to my arm and shoved my iPhone in it.  Because I was carrying the phone anyway, I decided to have some fun with it and took photos along the way.  Ready for a tour of Quesnel?

I set out from the Rec Centre and snapped my first photo on the bridge across the Quesnel River:

The water level is really low right now, but often when the snow melts it goes right up over the bank on the far side.  They close the road and create a detour, but there's always some moron who tries to drive their truck through it and gets stuck.  They put it on the front page of the paper.  If it happens later this spring, I'll post a photo.

I did a lap around the River Walk and then crossed the bridge to West Quesnel.

We have another bridge for cars, but until 1972, this little bridge was the only way to get across the Fraser River in town!

I continued along around the west part of the loop.  Here's the map:

I extended the loop by running through a residential neighbourhood before I went back across the bridge for one more loop around downtown.  This time I stopped to take a photo of one of Quesnel's famous "Little People":

All of the fire hydrants in town are painted!

As I made my way back to the Rec Centre to finish my run, I noticed the caboose was in the trainyard!

My grandfather worked for CN, and my favourite part of touring the trains as a kid was getting to go in the caboose!

When I made it back to the car, I was feeling good.  I still had energy, and felt like I could keep running, but my planned miles for the day were done! 

It was a very windy run today.  I look like I sprouted wings out of the side of my head! 

22 km

2 hours 21 minutes

6:25 min/km (Goal Pace:  6:30)

Less than 5 weeks to go!

Time is flying!  Last week I had a good running week with a bit of travelling thrown in.

I went out for a short recovery run on Monday, about 38 minutes.  It was supposed to be a nice, slow run, but I ended up speeding up quite a bit after the turn around.  It felt good, so I went with it.  I didn't have time for a longer run, so part way through I opted for speed rather than distance.

Wednesday, I ran in Vancouver.  I had hills on the schedule, but there weren't any near where I was staying.  I went out for a long, steady, slight downhill on the way out and a long, steady, slight uphill on the way back, mostly on residential streets away from traffic.  It was so nice to run in a new neighbourhood and without long pants and a jacket on!  1 hour and 15 minutes later, I was starving!  It's hard to do a long(ish) run before brekkie!

Friday, I ran in Kamloops.  Again, it was nice to be in a new, different area!  I tried for a tempo run, but couldn't maintain my tempo pace and had to take a mini break part way through the tempo portion.  Still, it felt good to know that I can still run a bit speedier, even if I can't hold onto that pace for long.  Decided to not worry about pace at all until after the marathon.

Sunday, I headed out for my 20 miler.  It wasn't an easy run, but on reflection, I realized it wasn't tired legs or muscles that knocked me out.  It was all mostly mental.  I had done a big downhill at the beginning of the run and had a big uphill to climb at the end.  As soon as I got to the bottom of the downhill, I was dreading the climb back up, and that's when things started to fall apart.  What is with me and hills? 

In between all of the running last week, I also did a lot of walking.  I wish I'd been wearing my Garmin, just to know how much we walked!

This week is a busy one workwise, but after missing half of February and March for running, I'm not letting any excuse get in the way of a run, even if it has to be a bit shorter.  I squeezed my run in this morning in Prince George - another change of scenery!

20 miler.

The first of two twenty milers before the marathon on May 1st.  I was a bit nervous about this run because I have been building mileage for 2 weeks in a row after a bit of a hiatus.  Last week, I planned a route that looped around my car 5 times.  This week, I wanted something a bit more interesting, but also knew I would need to stop somewhere to re-fill my water bottle around the half way point.  I loaded up with 4 gels and headed out on a route that would take me downhill to the rec centre where I could refill and before heading back up hill towards the end of the run.

The first 5K were great.  They just ticked by and I felt good.  I'd taken a complete rest day on Saturday.  And when I say rest day - I mean it.  The BF was sick so I spent the day lounging on the couch with him after a night of not much sleep with all the vomiting going on.  I was hoping to be between 6:10 and 6:30/km pace.  The first 5K was a route from the house I do often and it felt very comfortable.

6:13
6:18
6:07
6:44
6:10

The second 5K continued on a route I know well and was comfortable on.  The sun was shining, the sky was blue, the breeze was light.  I felt good.

6:23
6:21
5:55
7:11 (Gu)
6:03

The next 5 K were a route I only ran once before, in reverse.  It was nice to be on "new" territory, and the road was quiet with not much traffic.  Rolling hills helped to keep things interesting.  One was a little steeper than I thought it was and really slowed me down to a walk near the top as I took it too fast at the bottom. 

5:46
6:20
5:54
7:38 (big uphill)
6:06

Up until this point, I was feeling great.  It was a beautiful day for a run, and I was feeling great as I went down a big downhill approaching the halfway point of this run.  At 17K, I walked to have a Gu, then paused my Garmin to stretch out my muscles after running a full km on a steep downhill.  The stretching felt good, but after I stopped, I had a hard time getting back into the run.  When I got to the Rec Centre, I walked in to use the washroom and refill my bottle.  I lost satellite, so paused the Garmin.  When I went back outside, I just didn't want to run anymore.  I wanted to sit on the bench, so I did.  And then I didn't want to get up.  I debated about calling it quits early, and heading home from there.  I thought about calling the BF and having him pick me up from there.  After a couple of minutes, I managed to talk myself into finishing the run I had set out for, turned the Garmin back on, and started running (away from home).

5:47
6:32 (Gu)
6:12
8:56 (rec centre)
6:01

Part of the bargain I made with myself after leaving the Rec Centre was that I could take as many walk breaks as needed whenever I needed, for as long as I needed for the rest of the run, so when I stopped to take the Gu, I actually stopped for a couple of minutes and chatted with my hairdresser who was using the same trail to walk her dogs.  A kilometer later, I took another walk break.  The rest of the run was all UPHILL, literally and figuratively.

6:14
6:44
5:56
9:10 (Gu)
7:38

I was starting to feel a bit light headed and wished I'd added a banana to my breakfast.  I passed by the rec centre again at km 27 and really wanted to stop to call home, but kept going.  I walked for 2.5kms.  There was a big 1K uphill in there, but mostly I was just walking because I couldn't didn't want to run.  With 3K to go, I knew I could run 3K, and started running again.

7:40
8:14
9:27
9:29
6:03

The final 2K were nice and flat.  I took a little walk break to take one more Gu because I started to feel lightheaded again.  I was glad when it was over!

7:21
6:17

I walked the final 500m home, then spent about 30 minutes stretching before dipping into an ice bath with a cup of hot chocolate.

This was definitely not my best long run, but not my worst either.  I've slowed down considerably since I was at the 20miler point of my last marathon training plan, but I feel better and more confident on hills (I never would have done this route the last time around).  I was hoping to be around 6:30 pace overall on this run, and considering all of the walking at the end, 6:50 (11:00/mile) doesn't seem too bad for a long, slow run.  Next week, I'll drop back my mileage for a week before tackling one more 20 miler before taper and the marathon.

6 weeks to go!

6 weeks until marathon #2.

With all the ups and downs I had early in training for this marathon, all I can hope for is to have 6 more weeks of training like this past week.

Monday, I went out for a slow recovery run.  My legs were feeling tired from Saturday's long run, my first real long run in over a month.  Tired legs, but no pain.  I made it through a 5 mile run feeling pretty good.

Wednesday, I met up with the group for the first time since early February for a killer uphill run.  It wasn't easy, but definitely boosted my confidence. 

Friday, my original schedule called for a tempo run, but I chose to play it safe and stuck with my slow and steady pace for an hour long run.

Saturday was my make it or break it run.  I figured my injury would either catch up with me and I would have to put an end to this marathon dream, or I'd make it through my run feeling better than last week.  I'm happy to say that I made it without breaking it!  Woot! 

All I wanted was to go farther than last week and run for longer than last week, with hopefully fewer walking breaks.  At just over 27K (~17 miles), in 2 hours, 50 minutes, mission accomplished!  The best part is yet to come...While last week's run left me with legs so sore I could hardly walk up and down the stairs, and was completely exhausted the next day, today my legs feel fine and my energy level is normal.  All good signs, I think!

The down side of this run was that I never really felt in a "groove" while running.  I didn't wear my Garmin so that I wouldn't worry about my pace, but on the run, I couldn't find or stay at a comfortable pace.  AND  I locked my keys in my car!  I'd looped back to my car to grab one last Gu before my final 5 miles, and put the key on the seat while I refilled my water bottle.  I got out of the car, saw the BF drive by, locked the door, closed it, then saw my key sitting on my seat!  Of course, the BF was long gone, and my cell phone and wallet were also locked inside the car.  I finished my final loop and then stopped in at a store where I know the owner.  She was kind enough to let my stinky, sweaty self in to use the phone to call BCAA.

Now all I need is six more weeks like this one and I'll be ready for Vancouver! 

Pinnacles

After a month long hiatus, I rejoined the marathon clinic for tonight's run. Of course, I picked a doozy to come back to!

We ran to Pinnacles Provincial Park. As the name suggests, you have to go up hill to get there. 4.5 km up hill. All up hill. Even the flat bits were really just less steep bits. Phew.

I took it really slow and stayed at the back the whole way up and the whole way down, but I made it with only a couple of short walk breaks around the mid way point "from this pole to that pole."

After the turn around, I felt a little sick/burpy on the way down. This was probably a good thing as it kept me at a slow pace so I wasn't jarring my joints.

Looking forward to yoga tomorrow!

Catching up

I'm still alive!

I have a lot of catching up to do around bloggy land, so here's a quick update on where I've been:

January 29th - Last 2 hour + long run.

February 5th - Ouch!  Hip pain!  Had to cut the long run short after an hour and a half and call for a ride.

Feb 12th and 13th - Tried a long run over two days.  No new pain, but not feeling great either.

Feb 14th - First physio appointment.  Told not to run until the pain is gone.  Despair.

Feb 15th-28th - Cross training.  Biking, elliptical, x-country skiing.  Wallow.

March 1st - Vancouver Marathon is in 2 months!  Eek!  I decided to try running.  My hip wasn't feeling normal, but I wouldn't necessarily call the discomfort "pain."  20 minutes slow and steady and pain free.

March 2nd - 30 minutes slow and steady.  No change to the way my hip was feeling.

March 3rd - Back to physio.  Told not to run for more than 30 minutes at a time.  I felt completely defeated.  During my two runs that week, I'd convinced myself I was back on track.  How was I supposed to run a marathon in two months if I couldn't run more than 5K at a time?  I was pretty well ready to give up.

March 7-11th - Busy week at work.  No time for cross training or running.  Lots of time to think.  What I'm about to say might be considered downright blasphemous to some, so cover your eyes or skip ahead if you're uncomfortable with words that go against your physiotherapist.  I decided to ignore mine.  Yes, he is a physiotherapist and has years of training and schooling behind him, but he specializes in orthotics, not running and didn't seem to understand the need to actually train for a marathon.

I decided that if I run longer than 30 minutes, I might hurt myself again and not be able to run on May 1st.  But if I don't run longer than 30 minutes, I'm definitely not going to be ready to run on May 1st.  And I want to run.

March 12th - 2 hours and 22 minutes of slow and steady running.  I felt pretty good for the first two hours, but my legs were screaming for the last 20 minutes.  Sunday was definitely a rest day, but I was out again today for another 50 minutes.  No pain.  In fact, that discomfort I had been feeling, is gone!  I know that this could still prove to be a disaster, but I'm feeling optimistic for the time being.  The sun has been shining and we're expecting temperatures above 0*C all week for the first time since October!  It's like the universe is telling me to go out and run!