Yes, I have been training and no, I obviously haven't been writing much. My emotional focus has been elsewhere and I seem to struggle with my writing flow. After completing the January Challenge, I have continued to focus on my running with the assistance of Jack Daniels revised addition of the Running Formula. The first book was excellent, but this book really takes the guesswork out of training. I have exact training paces that I have used with my GPS. On easy days I run 9:30 min/mile. On mile repeats I run 8:00-8:15 min/mile (depending on hills) and during long runs I use 3x12 minute intervals at the fastest pace I can manage and hopefully near my Half Marathon Pace.
Last year, I was unable to run the IU Mini in the fall because it was the same day as IM Wisconsin. This year they moved the race to the spring to try and avoid the heat and humidity. They chose however to not change their sick little "course from hell." On one hand, the course is great because it runs through the Indiana University campus. On the other hand, they manage to hit every difficult hill in Bloomington south of campus including the dreaded "goat hill" that may actually require a climbing harness and rope for safety reasons. You think your running up the hill until someone walking passes you. The hills on this course will be the undoing of the race. In it's third year it is seeing a serious decline in entries.
I decided for training purposes to not taper for the race. I showed up on race morning to meet the Greek Goddess. The weather was perfectly cool. I started my morning early with oatmeal and espresso. I brought some Gatorade to the race and two of the Cliff gel espresso. See a trend? Two minutes before the race started I drank 8 ounces of Gatorade.
At the start of the race I realized this race was going to be work. Training has made me very sensitive to my body and I can zero in almost immediately on my physical situation. I was tired. Deep tired. I was also coming off a cold earlier in the week and I was producing "snot rockets" the size of a small dog.
The more my running has improved, the more work is involved. It was much easier to jog around at 10 minute miles for two hours. Running fast requires focus and discipline. One thing that has really helped in that department was my Garmin 305. I set very specific goals for myself. Run fast. Under 8:30 min/mile and keep the heart rate at 170 or lower for the first 10 miles. After that, all bets are off and it is time to race.
Within the first two miles unpleasant things began to happen to my body. First, the mucous started. A hazardous waste team should have been following me! These "snot rockets" were huge and appeared to be almost solid plastic as they left my body. The inability to breathe was not helping my running. Second, my bladder decided to get really small. I don't know if other women experience this, but right before my period, my bladder becomes the size of a shot glass. I soon started "leaking" during hard efforts up or down hills. I thought about trying to find a bathroom but they were few and far between. I soon realized that I have become one of those runners that no longer care. I decided the running shoes would be burned after the race.
Despite all of it, I followed the plan and dreamed of chasing the Greek Goddess. Towards the end of the race, Coach found me as usual and told me to, "Get my ass in gear." There is one point in the race where we run to the fountain and you can see your friends ahead of you in the other direction. I saw the Greek Goddess running hard and well which rallied me to keep going. What About Bob picked me up a the last mile and ran in with me. I looked at my watch and knew I had a real shot to break 1:50 and set a new PR. I ran so hard that I felt a twinge in my right quad. For a split second, I felt a cramp coming on and then it was gone. I sprinted to the end and a PR.
The profile: Red heart rate...notice gradual incline with increased effort. blue is speed. Orange is elevation.
Race Result:
Assessment:
2006 I ran the race in a time of 1:55:59.7. I am very happy with the PR despite feeling less than stellar! I was even happier with my 3rd place finish in my age group!!!!! The Greek Goddess finished first. It was pretty thrilling to have BARC clean up the awards!
Run, Bike, Swim, Live, Laugh, Love
