7 miles: 3 at Lactate Threshold

Tonight I ran 7 miles. The first 2 I warmed up, the next 3 were at my lactate threshold pace (7:47), and the last 2 I cooled down. Last week I tried doing my LT pace for 2 miles and while I succeeded, I felt like I was going to die. Tonight I hit that pace for 3 miles and felt great. I wish I could account for the difference. I need to be better at accounting for every little thing like Jess or Lindsay...Maybe one day, when I'm all grown up and not a novice.

31 miles done + long run today

I was scheduled to run 30 miles this week but ran 31. Booyahh!! It felt good to finish my week running 10 miles today. (Sunday is my rest day so my week ends on Saturdays.) I ran at about a 9:30 pace and just took it easy. I came home and drank my Vanilla Whey Protein smoothie and felt awesome. I need to be better at stretching after my runs though. I'm not terrific at it...Actually I suck. Maybe stretching before I get home would resolve this problem because once I walk through the door Baby J wants all my attention. I also wasn't very good at getting my arm workouts in. I only did one.

Anyways, next week is my last week before I start my marathon schedule. Hurray. I'm gonna shoot for 30 miles again. Here's what my week looks like:

Monday: 3 miles + arms
Tuesday: 7 miles (3 at lactate threshold pace 7:47)
Wednesday: 3 miles + arms
Thursday: 6 miles
Friday: Rest
Saturday: 11 miles (Between 9 and 9:46 pace)
Sunday: Rest

Vanilla Gu Makes Me Want to Vomit

Friday I went to my local running store to find a replacement for the Vanilla Powerbar Gel and GU I've been using. Recently, I've barely been able to get down even a little bit of it without wanting to hurl. So, with the recommendation of the store owner, I bought GuRoctane, Accel Gel, and E-Gel. I'm gonna give them all a try and see if my gag reflexes subside. I'll use them on my next long runs and write a review when I get a chance. The Jelly Bellys looked better than anything but I've heard the sport version are just glorified jelly beans with added salt. What looks too good to be true, probably is.

Lactate Threshold Test

Last night during my 6 mile run, I decided to try out my Lactate Threshold Pace since I'll have to run it for 4 miles on the first week of my marathon schedule. According to Advanced Marathoning, your Lactate Threshold pace should be similar to your half marathon pace, so I shot for a 7:50 pace for two miles. I accomplished this, but I didn't think it would be so hard. Granted, I ran that pace for my last half marathon in August, and I'm not in as good of shape, but I was a little bummed that I looked like I had just gone through labor when I got off the treadmill. (Actually, I might have looked a little better on the hospital bed.) I'm going to shoot for a 3 mile 7:47 lactate threshold pace next week and see how I feel. Hopefully I was just having a bad day, but I kind of regret just logging miles instead of doing speed work during this time that I've been building a base again. I opted for just logging miles because I've wanted to save my energy for my 18 week schedule and I haven't wanted to get hurt. Maybe I'll have to readjust my goals.

A remake of Mark Bittman's Spinach, Bacon, and Sweet Potatoe Salad

I've decided to care about my blog more. Consequently, I've made the goal to post 3 times a week. One of those days, I'll devote to a nutrient dense recipe I've recently made.

After coming across Mark Bittman in the October 2009 issue of Runner's World, I decided he's definitely my new culinary crush. I first tried his Cassoulet with Lots of Vegetables with great success, and then I made his Spinach, Bacon, and Sweet Potato Salad. I LOVED both of these recipes and have now added them to my food rotation.

Bittman's Culinary philosophy is a lot like Michael Pollan's, in that he believes in eating less meat, more plants, and in keeping food as close to it's natural state as possible. That mindset sounds logical to me. I don't always eat this way, but I'm constantly on the look out for tasty recipes that at least loosely follow this culinary viewpoint.

I decided to try Bittman's Sweet Potato Salad because a)I loved his Cassoulet and b) I heard the fastest man in the world, Hussein Bolt, grew up on sweet potatoes.



I think it's very logical to deduct that Bolt's amazing speed and muscular physique have almost everything to do with his consumption of sweet potatoes and only a small part to do with genetics and training. In fact, in preparation for LA I may stop running all together and just start eating sweet potatoes in large quantities.

Anyways, today I made Bittman's Sweet Potato Salad for the 2nd time, but instead of adding cumin to the potatoes I drizzled them with honey and used my own salad dressing. (Two parts balsamic to every one part olive oil + oregano to taste.) Sometimes I add sugar to my dressing, but I didn't today because I had already added honey to the recipe. Bittman's citrus dressing is also great; just don't feel like you need the exact ingredients in order to try this salad because it's very versatile. My results were DIVINE!



PS: If you're interested in trying more Mark Bittman recipes, How to Cook Everything and Mark Bittman's Kitchen Express are on my wish list. I'm currently reading Food Matters, which is a great book, but there aren't a ton of recipes.

27 miles and Sarah Palin

This week I was suppose to run 30 miles but I ran 27. I missed my 3 mile run on Friday because I had an appointment to get new glasses and went to a Halloween party...Just didn't fit it in. I don't really feel that bad though. All my runs went well this week and I'm excited to have 2 more weeks before I officially start my marathon schedule.

This week I'm going to follow a schedule similar to last week, but just run a 10 mile long run instead of 9. I read in Advanced Marathoning that one of the best things you can do for your leg muscles as a runner is hills. Consequently, I'm gonna make sure I get in one hill workout this week. I'm also gonna drop my lower body workout and add another upperbody workout.

Here's the run down:

Monday: 3 miles + upper body workout
Tuesday: 6 miles (hills or progression run)
Wednesday: 3 miles + upper body workout
Thursday: 6 miles (hills or progression run)
Friday: 2 miles + upper body workout
Saturday: 10 mile long run

Total Miles: 30 miles

For kicks and giggles, here's a Halloween pic of me as Sarah Palin:



I was going for sort of the Tina Fey version. Palin is kind of irritating to me, but I've gotta give the woman some props for being a runner!

Recap of Week and Look at Next Week: 10/26-10/31

This week I ran 29 miles, ending with an 8 mile run on Saturday. I'm just trying to build a base before my marathon program begins. I asked, Aron, from Runner's Rambles what schedule she uses and she introduced me to Pfitzinger plans. I've decided I'm going to do his plan that peaks at a 55 mile week and is 18 weeks long. I was originally going to use the FIRST training plan because I really enjoyed using the FIRST half marathon plan on my last half marathon. However, I decided to go with the Pfitz plan because I felt like I would rather put in more miles and run a little slower than the FIRST plan recommends. We'll see how this decision plays out.

This week I'm going to try and run 30 miles, ending with a 9 mile long run. I'm going to increase my long run by a mile every week until the first week of my training, which includes a 12 mile long run.

Here's my plan this week:
Monday: 3 miles + upperbody workout
Tuesday: 6 mile progression run
Wednesday: 3 miles + lower workout
Thursday: 6 mile progression run
Friday: 3 miles + upperbody workout
Saturday: 9 mile long run between an 8:46 and 9:46 pace

I've decided to do a lot of progression runs while building my base so I can still reach faster paces, but avoid injury. Ending at a faster pace than I start also helps me end my workout on a positive note. I can tell I've gotten a lot stronger because I've finally been consistent lifting weights. I plan on continuing this routine until my schedule starts, and will then reevaluate.