I’m so excited that Fall weather has arrived, and I spent my week mapping out what races I wanted to do over the next couple months (including staying up late again last night to register for one that frequently sells out). I also spent a considerable amount of time pinning pumpkin recipes. I’m pretty excited about my schedule — varied distances, trail races, another half marathon, AND a fun “adventure” run.
If you missed my news on twitter, I committed to running the Vermont City Marathon in 2017! Online registration opens up on rOctober 10 — save $5 with discount code BibRaveDsct17.
weekend:
I’m off on a little adventure to Omaha. BYE!
seven things, seven days:
1. Kinda bummed out about the membership fee increase for LifeTime (unsure if it’s a global pricing change). I’m reconsidering the ROI — particularly because I utilize the facility for a lot of special events, which cost me even MORE on top of my monthly charge. Ehhhhh, I hate making these kind of decisions.
2. Small win this week: I wore my hair down for an ENTIRE day of work!
3. Now that I’m officially on the payroll, adjusting to not getting paid every week is HARD.
4. 3 Reasons to own your career in 2017 — love this article, particularly the section on “martyrdom” {via INC}
5. The death of the phone call. Also BYE. {via Slate}
6. I had no idea that The Secret of NIMH was based on a real-life research project — how did I spend the bulk of my childhood and adult life not realizing that the NIMH of the movie was the acronym for National Institute of Mental Health?! {via Atlas Obscura}
7. Practice matters… but it doesn’t make perfect. {via New Yorker}
I can’t believe that I’m 3 weeks away from race day of the Des Moines Half Marathon. I still have one (really long) long run before it’s Taper Time. Now is a great time to reflect on what has been going really, REALLY right this training (consistency, for starters) and really, REALLY wrong (ugh, the weather). I had a great conversation tonight with my coach, and I definitely feel stronger as a runner. I also love the accountability and growth that a partnership with a coach has brought me.
One area that I haven’t quite figured out this training cycle is my nutrition — I am literally all over the place in terms of eating habits and what fuels me on runs; some days things seem to click, and other days I feel like complete crap. I ran my 10-mile race on my usual breakfast and felt amazing — but that definitely was not my same experience doing my 12-miler run this week (though, I did run later in the afternoon). It’s all part of the practice, though (not perfect, but better).
My workouts got flipped around a little bit this week, since I needed to take my rest day on Thursday — date night! — my runs felt really good midweek, but I was TIRED for my strength workout by Friday, pumped up again by Saturday morning (I was up SUPER early) and then all motivation was lost again by Sunday.
WEEK AT A GLANCE:
2 easy runs
1 long run
1 tempo run
1 (marathon) yoga session
1 strength workout + 1 core workout
MONDAY
Rest Day and a good amount of foam rolling before bed.
TUESDAY
5 miles at an easy pace + core workout
54:47, 10:57 average pace
WEDNESDAY
Tempo run — 1 mile at slower-than-easy pace, then 3 miles at a 10k pace, followed by 1 mile at my easy pace. For my training this cycle, I’m learning all about finding my different effort levels — rather than running solely on pace. And this run was a lesson in finding some of those different gears. It was interesting to see how much effort I had left while I was running those 3 middle miles. I know that effort won’t always feel the same from day-to-day, but it aids in boosting my confidence when I get caught up in breathing heavy and sweating and feeling like I can’t maintain a pace… or feel like I’m doing to die.
Splits: 11:24 / 10:25 / 9:06 / 8:35 / 11:26
THURSDAY
Rest day
FRIDAY
Strength day – definitely felt weird to do strength on a Friday night, but I didn’t have any plans after work, so I just jumped right into it when I got home. I added jump rope as a warm-up to my regular strength workout a couple weeks ago to work on some flexibility, stability, and single-leg strength and balance. And I felt TIRED before the workout even started. It felt like I was doing the movements for the first time in weeks. This 30-something was in bed by 9pm ON A FRIDAY. #nowine
Something other than a treadmill pic. ?
SATURDAY
Woke up super early, so I could participate in the Namasday celebration at LifeTime in Des Moines: 108 sun salutations at sunrise, poolside, and in celebration of the fall equinox. It was a beautiful morning — they even had a ukulele player! — and the practice really helped me focus and find balance in a hectic week. For the first time ever, I found yoga to be meditative, and I did majority of the sets with my eyes closed.
Coming down from that peacefulness, I did my 30-minute easy run on the treadmill at LifeTime, ending with a few sets of strides. It was difficult to do my strides at the gym, as it was slow to increase speed; my treadmill at home is a lot more responsive.
32:40, 11:07 average pace
SUNDAY
The 12-mile run that I did NOT want to do. I woke up at 7am with a splitting headache (which is still lingering today), and a run just wasn’t how I wanted to start my day. So I pushed it to do later, after I felt like I finished laundry and some housekeeping. I battled myself at every mile — trying to talk myself out of doing the entire run. But I did the entire run. I feel tired and sore – I guess exactly how I should feel having run a 25-mile week! (I don’t often feel sore, so I’m chalking this one up to doing yoga on Saturday).
The second of my back-to-back 10-mile weekends of this training plan included the Capital Pursuit race. This race is held annually, and is the right distance and timing leading up to the IMT Des Moines Half Marathon. No ifs, ands, buts about it: This race felt AWESOME for me. Though it also made the reality of a 2-hour time for this upcoming half seem pretty unrealistic (but so in reach!!!). I won’t focus my thoughts there quite yet.
Race day prep!
Registration and Cost: The Capital Pursuit was super inexpensive for a 10-mile race, AND I saved $5 being a Capital Striders member — $40 in advance, $45 day of race. I registered online through GetMeRegistered.com for a total $38.69 charge (which obviously included some fees). There was also a 5K run as part of the Pursuit.
Expo and Packet Pick-Up: No expo, but packet pick-up was the day before at Fitness Sports in the Swanson Depot in Clive, or you could pick up your bib on race day. Note: No bag check or transportation at this race.
Free Swag: A nice blue long-sleeve tech shirt with the Capital Pursuit logo.
Charity: A portion of the race proceeds assist Iowa Kidstrong, Inc. — promoting healthy, active lifestyles among children. There were about 40 See Us Run students and their running mentors racing the 10-Miler.
Start Line: Plenty of Kybos (that’s Iowan for port-o-potty) and a DJ to entertain the runners at the start. We lined up at the Locust & 15th Street intersection at Western Gateway Park, heading straight into the city.
Weather: Well… it was sunny and mid-50s when I woke up. But 90% humidity. So while it didn’t feel oppressively hot, I was sweating profusely throughout the race (in a tank and shorts in 50 degrees, wtf Iowa). I’m glad that I opted not to wear a hat, to be honest. Official race weather states: 60s and partly cloudy. -_-
Course: I guess the course changed this year (I have no reference, but a couple people said this to me), supposedly skipping one of the hills going towards the capital building. But this year’s route was a nice out-and-back, running into the city, then out into the neighborhoods near Drake University where it was so peaceful. I was impressed by the elevation changes running back into town on Ingersoll — though the skinny lane with regular traffic outside our set of orange cones made me nervous at times.. And then there was that nice “sweet spot” of a downhill at the end of the race. A few weird turns near the end of the course, but I enjoyed sprinting in on that straight-away down Locust towards the finish line.
Fans and Experience: A few fans along the course (though not many), and water/Gatorade stations with volunteers at about every 2 miles. I made a new running friend, naturally, and we ran together and chatted for nearly the entirety of the race — even getting him to sprint with me to the finish.
The boyfriend caught this great movement shot of me sprinting into the finish line — look at them legs!
Finish Line: I love, love, LOVE when the runners’ names are announced at the finish line. And we got medals! There was also a tent set up with a BUNCH of post-race snacks — the usual bananas, but an additional spread of bagels and orange slices and more.
After Party: There was an after party with, supposedly, a bunch of food and free drinks for participants at Exile Brewing… but it didn’t start until 10:30am. I walked down to the brewery and realized this when NOBODY was there. Kind of dumb, considering the start time of the race and anticipated finish times. Eh, great idea in theory, but I didn’t feel like waiting around another half hour.
Bonus: Chocolate milk at the finish line, YAY!
Random Bullshit: A TRAIN. Yep, a set of train tracks runs through downtown Des Moines and right on schedule during the first couple miles of the race. I heard its horn, and saw the light creeping around the corner — and I booked it over that set of tracks. I didn’t look back to see if anyone got caught up, but MAN… that’s not something you plan for AT ALL for race day.
OVERALL The Great: Can’t beat a PR race! That’s two PR races in one month for me!!! The Good: Putting a plan in place and getting in a GOOD training practice for race day. The Bad: A MOVING TRAIN, YOU GUYS! Not ugly for me, but… holy crap. The Ugly: (Men-folk, look away your sensitive eyes on this one) My freaking period started the night before the race (3 days early). It looks like I’ll be on my cycle for the half now, too, and that is NEVER fun to practice. >:-(
Chocolate Milk!
Splits: 9:19 — WHOOOPS, started a bit too fast here! Blame it on the train 😉 (1) / 10:07 (2) / 10:35 (3) / 10:55 (4) / 10:50 (5) / 10:48 (6) / 10:45 (7) / 10:24 (8) / 9:45 (9) / 9:21 (10) — Check out the second half of that race! ?
OFFICIAL RESULTS
1:43:16 (no chip time)
#279 overall
45th in my age group
the week:
This week went by WAY too quickly and my nerves kind of got the better of me. I had many intentions that fell flat to feeling overwhelmed, and I’ll be using my evening to reset (and using some overtime to catch up with work tomorrow). We’re back up into the 80s again for temperatures (alongside its best friend 90% Humidity), so looks like summer is sticking around to make the rest of my long runs sticky and miserable.
Summer: please see the door, I would like to wear my scarves and coats and boots, kthxbai. And I’m kind of tired of the treadmill.
weekend:
I’m doing 108 sun salutations at LifeTime tomorrow morning, followed by my second short run of the week, working some overtime, and then resting for a LONG, LONELY 12-miler on Sunday.
Among all THAT, I’ll be watching MOAR ROLLER DERBY — Team United from Des Moines is playing in this weekend’s WFTDA playoff tournament in Madison.
WHEW, what a week! There was a lot of tough work, but my spirits are super high. There are several small places where I can see opportunities to improve — and totally achievable, at that! — that it’s given me the gumption to keep working at this Big Goal. I even had a PR on my 10-mile race this week, which is always an enjoyable element in fueling motivation.
But here we go: Less than a month to race day!
WEEK AT A GLANCE:
Two easy runs
One speed workout (SPRINTS!)
One long run — coinciding with RACE DAY!
One core + one strength workout
Week in the life of half marathon training!
MONDAY
Rest day, and my biweekly call with my coach. I really needed a confidence boost, after too much negative self-talk. Receiving feedback and mental tips is one of the many amazing reasons to have a coach. She really helps me reign in and release this future-focused, all-or-nothing thinking. My old carry-over mantra from derby — “I can do anything for two minutes!” — has been revised to “I can do this right now.”
TUESDAY
Jump rope x 100 + strength workout (this workout always kicks my butt!)
WEDNESDAY
On the backside of my housing development, there’s a nice stretch of sidewalk to do some speedy sprints (is that redundant?). This week’s workout was HARD! But, fun hard. There were a couple walkers on the opposite side of the street trying to figure out my crazy, which just made me laugh more at myself.
That said, I found myself pooping out 40 seconds into every interval. My warm-up was 10 minutes (9:25 pace), followed by 1:1 sprints/recovery jog (spoiler alert: couldn’t even jog!) x 10. That madness ended with another 10-min cool down run (12:23 pace, whomp).
Zero energy to do my core workout after that, so I bumped it to after my Thursday easy run.
THURSDAY
Treadmill Thursday: 4.20 miles, 45:34
Splits: 10:36 / 10:56 / 11:12 / 10:49
Ended with Wednesday’s core workout. 😉
Treadmill Life (you need a good book!)
FRIDAY
REST Day (and Date Night). We went to members’ preview opening of the Vivian Maier exhibit at the Arts Center, followed by dinner at Eatery A.
SATURDAY
Back on my treadmill (the humidity is back, you guys) for an easy, SLOW 3-miler.
Splits: 12:09 / 11:56 / 11:41
SUNDAY
RACE DAY! And It. Was. AWESOME. Despite the humidity (OMG SERIOUSLY, WHERE IS FALL?!) making a comfortable 55 degrees feel 20 degrees warmer, I felt great for this 10-mile run.
I really focused on my coach’s prescribed “easy 7-mile run” mentality, which seemed to help! And I felt like I had the right amount of energy to increase my pace for the latter part of the race.
You know what was weird about this run? How good I felt on zero fuel. No GU or gluten-free figgies (though I had them both on me); no Gatorade on the course. I even packed a salt tab, too, JUST IN CASE. When I lined up for the start, that’s when I realized that I forgot to eat my pre-race GU. I just shrugged it off, thinking “I have two!” in case things went bad (read: I got SUPER hungry). I had my usual race morning breakfast (egg sandwich, holla!). And I only sipped water at the fuel stops (this race had stations at about every 2 miles). Totally, completely perplexing.
10 miles, 10:16 pace overall.
Anyways, I’ll have a race recap up soon!
WEEKLY RUNS: 4 WEEKLY MILEAGE: 21.2 miles TOTAL TRAINING MILES: 131.76 total miles!
Disclaimer: I received a pair of AMPLAsport AmplaFLY shoes to review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review, find and write race reviews!
I’m willing to try anything to gain some speed in my training. Working on getting to a 2-hour half marathon goal is TOUGH (and slow, whomp) — but I’m adding in the speed workouts every week and figured a pair of speedy shoes could probably help. As part of the BibRave Pro ambassador program, I got the opportunity to find out about an awesome brand – AMPLAsport — who designed a speed shoe called the AMPLA FLY.
These are going to be fun!
First impression: LOVE THE COLOR (duh)! I’ve never seen a split sole shoe (besides those tiny ballet flats that you roll up and keep in your purse when you’re partying). They’re really light (hello, carbon fiber foot plate!), despite looking a little bulky (perhaps because of the split sole?).
Watch more first impressions:
Fit: Size 9.5 (side note: am I the only one whose running shoes are WILDLY larger than regular shoes? I am nearly consistently across brands a 9.5 in running shoes, and almost always in a size 8 regular shoe.) Toe box room is excellent. I found them comfortable and the fit comparable to my “everyday” running shoes. I tied them using my usual heel-lock lacing, as most shoes with a roomy toe box tend to have heel slippage for me.
First try-on: Comfortable yet weird; obviously, this is a WAY different shoe. They feel like you want to bounce around in them. I definitely felt intentionally forward propelled — but not in a way that feels unnatural or off-balance — and I felt like my stance changed quite a bit. They actually reminded me a lot of what it felt like standing in my short-forward-mounted roller skates (although, without all of the squatting).
I’ve been trying this “science shoe” out for the the last month on some of my speed-focused runs, and while it hasn’t made an immediate impact on my time goals, it has really helped me focus on my running stride (I’m one of those infamous heel strikers). They worked well for my training days where I could break them in a bit by doing a mile or two and note the differences between the AMPLA FLY and my other running shoes. I certainly would have liked to get some more mileage on them, but… THE COMMITMENT TO CHANGE IS HARD! I’m impressed so far as to how they aid in pushing forward in my sprint work. The most impactful run was when I decided to change into when I noticed my running form breaking down when I was feeling tired. I noticed immediately the chain-reaction effect of being more upright, thereby relaxing my tensed muscles all the way up to my shoulders.
Lasting impressions: That said, these aren’t really meant for me for long-and-slow easy runs; to be honest, I didn’t find them the most comfortable when doing my cool downs or walks home after my workouts. I MUST also note: these are NOT meant for trails — do not take these on gravel or other types of rough terrain, as the side-to-side stability is not there. So, these have a very distinct purpose and will fit into a shoe collection as a great 2nd pair (or 3rd or 4th, if you’re like me and legit have a shoe for every sport and occasion).
Most of my running friends know that I am not a fan of change when it comes to my athletic gear — once I find something that I like and FITS, I stick with it and buy up all the new-old back stock all over the Internet. In July, I finally broke my pattern by purchasing a new shoe model (AND a new brand!). It’s helped me step out of my own way in trying new, better things. This was exactly what I was hoping to experience with the AMPLA FLY.
How it works: The AMPLA FLY encourages the efficient use of force — by way of a full-length carbon fiber plate guiding your foot-strike, and maximizing big toe push-off. The AMPLA FLY is more than being about speed — it’s about giving you the right FORM to make your running better.
Side note: I’ve had to do a lot of treadmill runs this cycle because of the humidity (UGH!), and admittedly, I was terrified to wear these on the treadmill.
About AMPLA: Founded by a sports scientist and athletic industry innovators committed to engineering footwear that amplifies athletic ability (SCIENCE!). Harvard-trained Dr. Marcus Elliott has tested and trained elite athletes through his P3 Sports Science Institute in Santa Barbara, California — and has utilized advanced technologies to capture more than 30,000 hours of athlete data over the last eight years. This knowledge, combined with experience in the athletic footwear industry, is an opportunity to create breakthrough one-of-a-kind products. The AMPLA FLY is AMPLAsport’s first product.
This Tuesday, September 20 at 8pm CST: Join AMPLAsport and BibRave for #BibChat on on twitter. It’s a great chance to ask AMPLA your questions about the shoe AND hear more from the BibRave Pros who have been training on them for the last month! (Also, I hear there will be giveaways!)
I’ve been completely inspired by podcasts these last few weeks. Today’s title quote comes from Episode 7 of the BibRave Podcast — an incredible interview with Race Director of THE Boston Marathon, Dave McGillivray.
the week:
I’ve felt very harried and scattered all week, despite getting plenty of good sleep and not changing anything in my schedule. My to-do list feels a mile long, and I’m really anxious at getting a lot done this weekend. I don’t know… it’s like nesting or something but without the pregnancy. Maybe because of the changing seasons?
weekend:
Tonight is the members’ preview of the Vivian Maier photography exhibit at the Des Moines Art Center. YOU MUST ATTEND THIS EXHIBIT! It’s open through January 22. We’re also having dinner at Eatery A for the first time. So, I guess we’re having a date night.
seven things, seven days:
1. Today is National Run at Work Day — kinda bummed that I found out about it too late to plan something. I participated last year and had a blast!
2. I’m so proud of LifeTime in taking steps to implement a social media policy, restricting use of photos in locker rooms, saunas, and other private areas — and adding: No member may capture another member’s likeness without their consent. YES.
3. That time I went to BibChat and wasn’t wearing pants. ? ? ?
4. Are you recovering properly? {via Appetite for Health}
5. How do you feel about getting older? Well… it’s complicated. {via Pacific Standard}
6. The appeal of Botox — the savior of Resting Bitch Face {via Pacific Standard}
7. Couldn’t miss this article all week — Hint: it’s about SUGAR (Ugh!) {via NYT}
I had another week that I cut out my second easy run. While I at least fit in a short circuit workout, the weekend was just too busy. All things considered, I only took one rest day from being active — AND I did something new! — so I am still happy with this training week. My chat with my coach this week really helped me think a little bit about my mental game and my ability to push a little harder. It’s there, but I can’t let self-doubt win.
My goal for the week: Stay in the moment.
WEEK AT A GLANCE:
One strength workout
One circuit workout
One easy run
One speed workout
One long run
And one fun hour of trail-skating!
Skating the trails!
MONDAY
My scheduled rest day in my training plan, but I went down to Gray’s Lake and skated the trail to downtown. A nice 5-ish mile loop on a very sweaty day! Having not been on my skates in six months, it felt really good. Though I forgot how much I had to carry with me when I skate alone!
TUESDAY
My weekly strength workout.
WEDNESDAY
Pick-ups scheduled, and I was in that headspace where I wanted to flip my speed and easy days. But once I got my 10-minute warm-up done, I wanted to do the speed work. Because I didn’t have my watch set up for that, I forgot to hit the lap button on each interval AND they weren’t exactly on the minute mark – but I got it done!
And then when filling in my training plan spreadsheet, I realized that I forgot to do my core workout. Whoops!
All said and done, I completed just shy of 4 miles (3.93) in 43:00 minutes.
THURSDAY
Four miles easy run on the treadmill at 10:23 pace
Splits: 10:04 / 10:18 / 10:29 / 10:41
FRIDAY
Attended the Go Blog Social networking and happy hour events, as part of the fun conference weekend here in Des Moines. I’ll have a blog post up about the event this week! It was a very fun rest day. 😉
SATURDAY Krave Fitness Gym, a fitness center in West Des Moines and one of the partners of the Go Blog Social conference, held a workout in the morning before breakfast. It was circuit-based, with a focus on body strength workouts and core. I was really happy – as a fitness blogger and active person – to have the organizers schedule a workout as part of the conference.
I spent all day at the conference, and then went to my first Iowa-Iowa State party. I had another easy run on the calendar for Saturday, but just couldn’t fit it in.
A girl and her treadmill — 10 miles done!
SUNDAY
On Sundays, we do long runs!
Because I had exhausted all of my mental energy from socializing for two days straight and I was experiencing some digestive distress in the morning, I kept this one on the treadmill (sad cakes, as it was BEAUTIFUL weather). I was moving SLOOOOOWWWWW for an “easy” pace. My splits were pretty consistently in the 11:15-11:25 range (with one outlier at 11:45, woof).
The first of my back-to-back 10-miler weekends is complete, and I look forward to this weekend’s Capital Pursuit 10-miler Race!
WEEKLY RUNS: 3 WEEKLY MILES: 17.9 miles TOTAL TRAINING MILES: 110.56 miles — I hit the century mark!
I heard this quote on a podcast this week… HOLY SHIT.
the week:
The biggest news of the week — I got the job! The offer officially came over this week and was announced to our department. The congratulations notes from various coworkers really meant so much, and I’m incredibly happy to have been placed on such an amazing team.
weekend:
Tonight is the kick-off party to Go Blog Social conference here in Des Moines. I decided to make a little staycation out of it, and booked myself a one night-stay at Hotel Renovo.
Then after the conference ends on Saturday, I will be attending my first Iowa-Iowa State party (wearing neither of those colors). Somehow I’ll muster enough energy to run 10 miles on Sunday.
Woahhhhhh, we’re half way there… halfway through half marathon training. The humidity finally broke this week, and I’m feeling recharged. I still have a LOT of work to do in order to meet my goal for the half, but I’m slowly (POOR WORD CHOICE, MEL!) meeting some of my paces.
Running in my new xx2i sunglasses that I won during #BibChat a couple weeks ago!
MONDAY
Rest Day — foam rolling routine before bed (and no, I still haven’t developed into a nightly habit).
TUESDAY
Strength Day! I focused on being really intentional with the workout, rather than rushing to complete it. I felt good and it was almost meditative (and I got to catch up on Bachelor in Paradise). I also worked on rolling my feet and calves before bed, since this is where I’ve been feeling some soreness lately.
WEDNESDAY
Took to the treadmill after work for my Easy Run — which seems like the first in a long while of getting negative splits. Each mile felt better than the last, and this is exactly the kind of confidence that I’ve been trying to build with these easy run days.
THURSDAY
This was one of those days where I needed to push myself out the door to run something. My plan called for 45 minutes, but I was going to try for at least 30 minutes. My leg foot, left shin and left knee all felt ugly tight and sore for the start (and loosened up after the first mile). I went in a new direction outside and kept hitting trail sidewalks that went nowhere. But, SURPRISE: I started getting into my run — eventually going right past my house and completed another 15 minutes around my development. Total highlight of this run (besides Doing the Work!): That dang humidity is GONE. Finally.
SUNDAY
Sooooo, taking this whole non-labor Labor Day stuff to heart, I took an extra rest day. I was considerably lazy for most of the day, but I’m not guilty of it one bit. I’m planning on trail skating today, which replaces my early week rest day on the training plan — I haven’t had my skates on for almost 6 months, though. This should be fun.
Looking ahead: trying not to freak out about the two weekends of 10-milers in a row (10-mile long run scheduled this weekend, and a 10-mile race next weekend). I’ve been here before; I can do this! This current cut-back week was much-needed for recharging my mental space, and I feel like it fulfilled its purpose of re-motivating me, while also allowing for some actual physical rest.
WEEKLY RUNS: 3 WEEKLY MILES: 14.1 miles TOTAL TRAINING MILES: 92.66 miles
TOTAL MILES FOR AUGUST: 69.88 miles
Real talk: The month that I ran my marathon last year, I ran a total of 73.89 miles, which included the marathon itself AND my 20-miler training run (which, HOW?!). August of 2015, I ran a total of 60.66 miles while training for a full marathon (there were a couple weeks where I only ran once a week!). My commitment to my training mileage has increased exponentially from over a year ago. But I’m still a little dumbfounded over how little training I did to run a full!
