three things thursday
1. On Monday, I ran outside in a tee-shirt and booty shorts. It was about 65º and windy. Yesterday I ran outside in CW-X tights, a base layer, a technical tee, and a Nike half-zip, with ear warmers and gloves. It was about 31º and windy. My body is not happy about this change, and I coughed like an addict for the next 6 hours. However, I did unofficially - and unconsciously - PR my 5K time. Probably because I was in such an all-fired hurry to get back inside. This is also the first post-surgery run without any walking in it.
2. I've forgotten how stressful a new puppy is. We are on constant squat-watch, as well as chew-watch, lick-watch, and "where are you and what trouble are you getting into" watch. Yesterday afternoon I ran out to the car to grab something, and in the 6 seconds I was outside, she tried to climb the Christmas tree. She also steals Graham's toys from him, likes to tightrope walk on the back of the couch, and loves to run and jump up on me with a million kisses. This one is going to be trouble!
3. I officially registered for the JATW10K last week before leaving for Key West. My original goal was to simply get under 1:05 while continuing to walk/run my little heart out so I have a qualifier for the National Half in March. Sad but true, the only 10K I've run under my own name in recent years was over that mark, and my 10K PR (the only other 10K I've run - I truly hate the 10K distance) belongs to a borrowed bib. I can't remember the name I ran under either (Matthew something? Are you out there?), so I can't look up my PR, but I know it's in the high 57 minute range - I think 57:53.
As far as recovery goes, I still have been treating running with careful delicate gloves. I've been very careful about running every other day, doing my PT, not increasing the overall time or overall mileage quickly (I'm closer to a 5% increase per week than 10%), and except for yesterday's run, I've been alternating 2 minutes of walking with chunks of running. Both IT bands and my hip flexors have calmed down, my twiggy knee thing is improving, and most of my returning-to-running soreness and fatigue is gone. That said, my A goal for Sunday is to PR. And by PR, I mean 56:xx. I don't think it's too much too soon, I don't think it's unreasonable based on my last few training runs, and I don't think I'll have to push myself very far into the vomit-range to get there. I'm going to do what I know works for me: start slow, gradually get faster, walk when I need to, and when I hit the 5-mile mark I'm going to lay the rubber down. Who wants to run with me?
2. I've forgotten how stressful a new puppy is. We are on constant squat-watch, as well as chew-watch, lick-watch, and "where are you and what trouble are you getting into" watch. Yesterday afternoon I ran out to the car to grab something, and in the 6 seconds I was outside, she tried to climb the Christmas tree. She also steals Graham's toys from him, likes to tightrope walk on the back of the couch, and loves to run and jump up on me with a million kisses. This one is going to be trouble!
3. I officially registered for the JATW10K last week before leaving for Key West. My original goal was to simply get under 1:05 while continuing to walk/run my little heart out so I have a qualifier for the National Half in March. Sad but true, the only 10K I've run under my own name in recent years was over that mark, and my 10K PR (the only other 10K I've run - I truly hate the 10K distance) belongs to a borrowed bib. I can't remember the name I ran under either (Matthew something? Are you out there?), so I can't look up my PR, but I know it's in the high 57 minute range - I think 57:53.
As far as recovery goes, I still have been treating running with careful delicate gloves. I've been very careful about running every other day, doing my PT, not increasing the overall time or overall mileage quickly (I'm closer to a 5% increase per week than 10%), and except for yesterday's run, I've been alternating 2 minutes of walking with chunks of running. Both IT bands and my hip flexors have calmed down, my twiggy knee thing is improving, and most of my returning-to-running soreness and fatigue is gone. That said, my A goal for Sunday is to PR. And by PR, I mean 56:xx. I don't think it's too much too soon, I don't think it's unreasonable based on my last few training runs, and I don't think I'll have to push myself very far into the vomit-range to get there. I'm going to do what I know works for me: start slow, gradually get faster, walk when I need to, and when I hit the 5-mile mark I'm going to lay the rubber down. Who wants to run with me?