Faster Than I Thought

Friday I ran 4 miles with a friend from work.  I told myself I was going to treat this run like a race and every time I saw him creeping up on me, I sped up a little.  I ended up finishing with an 8:40/mi average pace. 3-4 miles is considered at “Short Tempo Run” in the FIRST Program which should also be my 10K pace so when I got home I readjusted my training speeds accordingly.

Thinking I was all set with a challenging yet do-able training plan I headed out for a trial interval workout.  I programmed a workout in my GPS watch to do 8- 400m (1/4 mile) intervals with a 2 min break in between each.  You can do this with a stopwatch too or with any timing device. My goal (based off the FIRST paces) was to do each 400 in 1:55-1:56.

After the first interval I had no idea how my body physically was going to run 7 more of those.  It was really, really hard.  By the half way point my quads were on fire, my breathing was heavy and I really didn’t think I was going to finish the workout.

I have a way of getting in to my own head and last night I was trying to make excuses not to finish the workout:  I cross-trained this morning.  I don’t want to hurt myself before training even starts.  Maybe I will just jog the last 4 intervals.  And it went on and on and on for 2 minutes.  Then my watch started beeping and my legs were moving and I was off. 

There really is something amazing about pushing your body beyond its limits.  As my feet pounded the track perfectly timed to my breathing I found myself not focusing on how much it hurt or how far away the finishing point is or about how good the 2 minute rest will feel in a matter of seconds.  Instead I was amazed by how powerful my legs felt, surprised at how natural the movement in my body felt, and disappointed that just a few seconds ago I didn’t think I could finish the workout.

Don’t get me wrong, I struggled through this workout.  It was hard but finishing it felt great and seeing that my paces were 11-14 seconds faster than they should have been was empowering.

This pace thing is going to be harder to figure out than I thought because I am faster than I thought.  So far the short tempo run and my last 3 long runs fit perfectly in the 10k- 8:40 pace breakdown so I am going to stick to that for now but I am going to run as fast as I can on speed days and hopefully the other paces will naturally improve…we shall see.

FIRST Things First

Picking a training plan was harder than I thought.  I didn’t exactly “train” for either of the ½ marathons I ran last year.  I just tried to run as many miles as I could in the weeks before the races.  Sometimes this was 5 miles/week, sometimes 25.  I did manage at least one 10 mile run the weekends before both races but nonetheless I was terrified and felt unprepared at the starting line in Seattle, WA last June and in Folsom, CA last October.  I ran those races in 2:08 and 2:04 respectively.

I know better than to think I can wing it and finish 26.2 miles safely so I (ironically) picked the FIRST Program that I read about in an article in Runner’s World.  This program only has you running 3 days/week so from a commitment standpoint this one fit in my schedule the best.  I would 40+ hours a week and some of these programs have you running 5-6 days each week and that just isn’t in the cards for me right now.

All of my training runs are all based off of my 10k pace with 1day of speed work, 1 tempo run and 1 long run.  The idea is that you run fewer days, but train harder when you do.  They also recommend cross training 2 other days a week.

What I needed to do was figure out what my 10k pace is and since I haven’t run one of those recently I used my 7 mile race time from the CIM Relay in early December- 9:00/mi.  and from there, I was able to figure out all my training paces based on the chart below:

Long Run	10-K pace + 60 to 75 seconds/mile
Long Tempo	10-K + 30 to 35 seconds
Mid Tempo	10-K + 15 to 20 seconds
Short Tempo	10-K pace
1600m Repeats	10-K - 35 to 40 seconds
1200m Repeats	10-K - 40 to 45 seconds
800m Repeats	10-K - 45 to 50 seconds
400m Repeats	10-K - 55 to 60 seconds

My 16 week training starts Next Tuesday Feb. 14^th so for the last and next few days I am going to try my best to simulate a training week to introduce my body to these types of runs and away from my usual long distance, easy pace runs.

NOT Born to Run

I was NOT born to run.  In fact, at 5’9” & 160lbs I am probably STILL not meant to run but I do it anyway because running has become a part of who I am. After 6 long years, running found its way into my heart and try as I may to evict it, running has made a home there- right next to hot dogs and ice cream.

Let’s get 1 thing straight- I was not an athlete growing up.  I did “participate” in a few no-cut sports but was never what you would call a “value add.”  I started running at 21 to lose weight and slowly but surely built my distance up 1 painful  mile at a time.  Within a year I had lost all my weight & then some  and was running 5-7 miles almost every day. 

6 years later I have run who knows how many 5 and 10k races.  I have done mud runs including the daunting Tough Mudder.  I even ran two 1/2 marathons in 2011 but I have set my sights higher and am about to start raining for my first marathon- The San Diego Rock & Roll Marathon on June 3, 2012.  I am not a running expert, coach, or any kind of fitness professional but I am passionate about fitness AND food and like most women I am constantly struggling to find a balance between the two and this is my story…