1/2 Marathon Training Update: Week 5

As I enter my second month of training, I thought an update on how things were going was in order. I would be onto week six at this point, but I got sick about week two, so I restarted the week that I only made it partially through. That's okay though, as the Space Coast 1/2 Marathon isn't until the end of November, so more than enough time to repeat weeks when necessary.

I hit my longest and hardest long mile day to date this past weekend. Saturday called for 7 miles and up until that point, I hadn't done anything longer than 10k distance wise. I was both excited and a bit nervous heading out the door at just after 7am that morning. The first 5k went easily, as my body is so used to that distance now. By the time I hit mile four, I was feeling a bit lower on energy, but I downed a Gu energy gel and figured I'd be good to go. The fifth mile is when the real mental push began. I not only started to have tired legs, but my bladder was less than thrilled about continuing on. Really took a lot of pushing to make it those last two miles. The last mile had me imagining how great it was going to be to complete the 7 miles and get off my feet. My music always helps me along, but hitting that pavement for long periods of time really does take some mental stamina. I made it through the full 7 miles and couldn't have been happier about it. It really was an accomplishment, the start of many more to come as well. 

I picked up my first foam roller a little over a week ago and have slowly begun to incorporate it into my after workout training routine. I will admit though, I'm not completely comfortable with it as of yet, and I already know I don't stretch nearly enough before or after my training sessions. That of course isn't good, so I'm making sure to remind myself that my time stretching is just as important as the workout itself. Hopefully, I'll get it better ingrained into my brain in the coming weeks so that it will come more as a second nature thing to me.

Over the weekend, I ended up talking with a fellow walker at Track Shack about race walking. He is a race walker and told me that I would get much better results from my walking if I used the race walking technique. The biggest thing that got me is that he said that I would be much faster race walking. So, I'm going to try to start using the technique during this week's walking days. I'd love to see a faster pace for sure. I may never win anything in the races that I do, but while finishing is the most important thing of all, challenging myself to do each mile quicker is always something on my mind.

1/2 Marathon Training: Week One

Last week, I started my training for my first 1/2 marathon. My goal race in mind is the Space Coast 1/2 Marathon in November here in Florida. After looking around a bit online for a good walking training program, I ended up settling with one from the www.marathonwalking.com website. The training plan is 14 weeks long and incorporates cross-training into the mix. Since the Space Coast 1/2 is 20 weeks out, I figured that I would repeat some of the weeks so my training would be longer. That works out fine for me considering it would take into account any issues that might crop up along the way. So, each week would consist of walking on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Saturday being the long mileage day. My cross-training days would be on Sunday & Wednesday. Friday will always be a rest day, and Monday I figured I would play with between it being a rest day or a cross-training day.

Sunday started off well, with a nice bike ride in the morning. I love cycling, so that is more than likely going to be my primary cross-training workout. Since I felt so good after that workout, I decided that I didn't need Monday off, so I would again do a cycling session. Tuesday was my first power walk workout on the plan and called for 3 miles which went pretty well. I didn't hit the pacing I wanted, but I was around the 15 minute per mile mark which is still good. Wednesday was another cycling workout. This is when I started to feel some exhaustion coming on. Alas, I thought I'd be okay and didn't hesitate to head out the door and onto my bike. By Thursday's 3-mile walk, I knew my energy was lacking. I really felt it the moment I woke up that morning. And, this showed in my 15:51 per mile pacing. My body was telling me that it needed to rest. Thankfully, I did just that on Friday.

I have come to the conclusion that I really might need those two rest days during my marathon training. So, despite the fact that I'd like to be working out six days a week, I'm going to more in tune with what my body is telling me. Friends told me that marathon training takes a lot more out of you than just standard workouts, but of course, I had to learn that for myself. Guess that's the way things are sometimes.

This week, I'm taking Monday and Friday off per the training schedule. If there are weeks down the line where I have the energy and can workout on Monday, that's great and I'll do it, but if not, that is okay. Our bodies need rest to succeed just as much as the actual training miles we put in.

Also, I have a goal set for before my first 1/2 in November. I'm going to be doing the Miracle Miles 15k on September 24th in Orlando. This is a great in between race as recommended by some dailymile/facebook running friends. I am already looking forward to it as it’s going to be my next race event.

Increasing Workouts

In preparation for my vacation in a couple of weeks, I've decided to increase my workouts a bit. Hopefully, I can keep up with this longer than just this month. I have gotten so into just my power walking that I need to change things up a bit. It will also help in case of boredom as well as toning up which is what I'd like to do.

I got my bike back out yesterday and I enjoyed riding it. On Saturday after my workout, I installed the Cateye bike computer I had gotten from my job for my Christmas gift back in December. I had been procrastinating in getting it on the bike and with the weather being the way it is, it's a great time to be out there cycling. Unfortunately, I must have set the magnetic sensor wrong on the front wheel because it's not reading anything. I messed with it a bit, but ended up giving up until later in the week when I had more time. Meanwhile, I utilized an app called Cardio Trainer on my phone which tracks my workouts via GPS. That worked out okay despite it not providing info on my speed of course.

Today, I got up at a quarter to six planning to head out for a power walk. I knew it would be dark out at 6am, but I wasn't prepared for how truly dark it is with daylight savings time and all. Seeing as how I wasn't so sure that going out in the dark was the best idea safety-wise, I opted to do a workout DVD instead. Since my back injury last March, I hadn't really done much in the fitness DVD area. I used to do them all the time, the DVDs were a big part of my fitness regime when I was losing weight. So, I was both excited and a bit nervous about the workout. I hoped for the best and put in a Jillian Micheals workout recalling that I could most likely do most of the Banish Fat, Boost Metabolism DVD without too much of a problem. I did pretty well, only skipping two of the circuits that didn't seem to be the best moves for my injury. I also modified a few of the other sets to ease into the workouts.

During my lunch break today, I was feeling good so I decided to use part of that time to take a power walk since I hadn't this morning. I ended up doing about 1.7 miles in 26 minutes. I do enjoy walking on my break, but it's a bit more challenging not only due to the terrain around work, but due to the fact that I do my walks in whatever I'm wearing to work that day (running shoes of course though). It was pretty warm out and my legs were a bit sore from yesterday's bike ride, so I didn't do a full two miles which I normally would shoot for mileage-wise. Otherwise, it was a nice walk.

Race Report: 2011 Winter Park Road Race 10k

I was excited about this race, as it was my first-ever 10k and longest race beyond a 5k. Unfortunately, I had been battling a bad cold with congestion all week, so I knew that it might make race day a bit more of a challenge. I was thankful though to have gotten somewhat better by the end of the week. The coughing and congestion still lingered though, the former of the two kept me from getting as much sleep as I would have liked the night before the race (of course the excitement of the race prevents some of that as well). 

Race morning, I awoke at a quarter to 5am, revving to go. My stomach was a flutter with a mixture of nervousness and joy at what the morning might bring. I ate my oatmeal breakfast and got showered and ready to go. After a struggle the evening before as to what to wear, I was glad that I settled on the capris as the weather was a bit cool out that early in the day. I would have preferred a better top, but a previous race shirt is always a comfort for me during training, so I went with the one from my last 5k.

My dad came along to this race as my photographer and support and I was more than glad to have him along. He had never been to one of my race events before, so I was looking forward to sharing this big accomplishment with him. Mom would have come along too, but since she had to work later in the day, I didn't want to ask her to lose sleep. Anyway, dad would get pictures that she could see later.

At about 6:15am, dad and I were off in the car enroute to Winter Park. It's about a 45-minute drive from my parents house, so I wanted to ensure that I arrived at the race location with enough time to find parking and to of course make a pre-race port-o-let stop. I cut down on my water intake a bit before leaving home so as to ensure that I wouldn't have to worry about mid-race urgings. 

 

I got to the starting line area about 10 or so minutes before the horn went off which was good. I ended up striking up a conversation with a guy who had just completed the 2-miler and was doing the Distance Dare challenge. I told him that was something I'll definitely be aiming for in the future as I continue to increase my mileage. One step at a time though.

Before I knew it, the horn blared and we were off. As I hit the starting line, I started my iPod with my 10k playlist. While I love music podcasts like Motion Traxx and Podrunner, I wanted some actual songs for the race. I ended up with a variety of upbeat rock and pop tunes that spanned from the 1980s up until current stuff.

The first couple of miles of the route were pretty easy, less for the brick surface that adorned some of the streets of Winter Park. That's the one thing I wasn't looking forward to, the brick road portions. I'm definitely not a fan of brick roads. They are harder on your legs and back. My preference is simple black asphalt like most roads which is primarily what I train and workout upon. When possible during the race, I opted for the sidewalk as it was a bit more comfortable and consistent.

I ended up downing most of my Gu gel around mile two. This was a bit earlier than planned, but I wasn't sure if there was a water stop at the halfway point (forgot to check). I'm still not a big fan of the gels, but I'm getting more used to them. They do seem to help out enough to make them worth carrying along.

The route for the Road Race passed along a lot of nice, upscale houses in the city. I found myself thinking that these folks must be professionals like doctors and lawyers to afford such large homes. A bit more to look at than my usual fairly mundane neighborhood back at my parents home. There were a few spectators and supporters along the way which always makes you feel good when you are out there pounding the pavement. 

Miles three and four came pretty easy for the most part. I did have some slight numbness starting up in my left leg when I was in the fourth mile, but I did a few stretches as I walked and thankfully, it eased up. By the time I hit the five and a half mark, I admit I was anxious to see the finish line. Also, my Nike+ was telling me that I was almost done when I truly wasn't. It ended up being a full 1k off from the actual race route for some reason. Talk about deceptive motivation. The Nike+ voice was telling me I was 400 feet from the finish line when I was not.

As I hit mile six, I started to do a few running sprints. I did two or three of them before my final sprint at about 300 or so feet from the finish line. It's not advisable for me to run, but I do run across the street during my workouts and I find myself inspired to push a bit to do some sprints at the races like this. It makes me feel good to finish strong like that. My dad and friends, Kitzzy and Jason were at the finish line and both dad and Jason got a few great shots of my victory which is appreciated. I love being able to have photos documenting my accomplishment. I did it, I conquered the 10k! My final d-chip time was 93 minutes, which is a bit slower than I wanted (I had wanted to finish in 90 minutes or less), but I'm still happy with that. Now, I've got a time to beat when I take on my next 10k race. 

As an added note, I injured my back almost exactly a year before this race. The last race I ran before getting hurt was the Winter Park Road Race 2-Miler which took place a couple of weeks earlier in March 2010. I was hurt on March 31st. So, this accomplishment, being about to stay strong and get back out there even power walking is something I am thankful for. Being active is a part of my life now. I can't imagine life without walks, bike rides, hiking and other fun outdoor activities.

Fitness Goals

 

I've been meaning to make a blog post about my goals for 2011, but due to being sick, I hadn't had a chance to write anything up until now. Receiving my 2010 Year-End Report from Daily Mile this morning in my inbox was definitely motivation not only to get this blog written today, but for the coming weeks and months of 2011.

 

According to my Daily Mile report, I ran/walked/biked 189 miles in 2010. That's over 3 miles a week when you do the math. Obviously, I want to do a lot better than that in 2011, and I know that I can and will do so. I think my back injury pulled me down a lot last year, but that injury isn't going to run my life in 2011. It may have been a rocky start with being sick in the first days of the new year, but that is not a roadblock that cannot be overcome. That said, I am giving myself a goal of walking at least 400 miles in 2011. Something I see as easily doable if I walk about 8 miles each week. Considering that on a good week, I like to walk 8 to 12 miles, I'm confident that I will accomplish my goal.

 

Other fitness-related goals for 2011 include increasing my mileage so that I can do my first 10k race. This is proving to be a bit more of a challenge than I originally thought, with my sciatica taking over when I attempt to do more than 3.1 miles in a single walking session. However, I am not going to give up on achieving this goal. It may take me a lot longer to hit 6 miles, but I can and will do it. This is my first distance goal for the year which I hope will lead to later training to do a 1/2 marathon within a year.

 

Last year, I participated in eight local races (registered for 9, as I ended up not being able to run or walk the Corporate 5k). As far as 2011 goes, since I plan on moving out of Florida in a few months, I am not planning too far ahead with races at this time, but my tentative schedule is:

 

**Lady Track Shack 5k on February 5th

**Run Around the Pines 5k on February 19th

**Winter Park Road Race on March 26th

 

The February races are pretty much a lock, as I'm definitely doing the Lady Track Shack 5k. I had an awesome time doing that race last year, as it was my first actual race that got me hooked. It's a great ladies-only race that I recommend to all Central Florida ladies, runner or walker.

Sciatica/Workout Update

Here's an update on what has been going on since I last blogged regarding my workouts and my back injury.

Last Friday, I did go back out in the morning pre-work for a power walk. I slowed my pace down some (probably not enough though, it's hard to do when you are used to pushing yourself) and did okay. Was very happy that I felt good for the most part and was looking forward to my Saturday workout.

On Saturday, I usually do 3 miles or a full 5k distance-wise. I felt a bit weak during the walk, so not wanting to push myself too hard too soon, I cut the workout short by a mile. I also decided to pick up another knee support for my left knee thinking that some extra support might help.

I had plans to go to EPCOT with my best friend on Sunday and woke up feeling good. I already planned upon doing a walk prior to the day at the park, so I headed out. I ended up doing just over 5k distance-wise which I was pleased with. I felt pretty good coming home post-workout. I then got myself ready and met my friend for our day trip to the theme park.

The day continued to go well until after dinner time. While in Captain EO, my left foot and leg began to feel numb and fall asleep. This didn't please me at all, as I was trying to have a good time. After that, the feeling would subside a bit, but never really went away. I found myself massaging my foot and leg the rest of the night once I got home. Definitely not my idea of fun. And, no matter what I did to try and calm my foot, nothing seemed to work.

Since I was having so much trouble on Sunday night, I opted to take Monday as a rest day from my walk. I figured that maybe doing the 5k and then walking in the park was overwhelming on my back/sciatic nerve. That being so, I hoped and prayed that it would calm down with a rest day.

At work on Monday, nothing seemed to calm my numb and uncomfortable foot. I merely had to grin and bear it it seemed. When I got home after work, I opted to take half of a muscle spasm pill that I had gotten from my doctor for my back injury. I was really hoping it would help calm that nerve. Since Monday had been so uncomfortable, I planned to again rest on Tuesday from my walk.

Here it is Wednesday and I'm still dealing on and off (more on) with the sciatica discomfort. I am not having any back pain per say, it's all in my left leg and mostly foot. Not a fun experience to say the least. I've rested since Sunday's walk and theme park outting, so I'm debating on whether I should continue the rest through Saturday's Reindeer Run 5k or attempt to do a slower walk tomorrow morning. At this point, tomorrow would be my only workout prior to the race since I rarely workout the day before just to allow my body to relax going in. So, I'll have to see how I feel in the morning I suppose.

Rest is important, but sometimes too much rest is going overboard as well as crazy as that sounds. I have read online that resting for a couple of days for sciatica and then slowly resuming walks and low intensity workouts is a good thing. I've also learned that my sciatica discomfort may not subside for awhile, it's hard to say how long it might stick around. I recall last winter when I rarely ran due to my wussiness in the cold temperatures. I was hoping to conquer that a bit more this year and get out there more often.

Bump in the road

It seems that I have hit a bump in the road in regards to my 10k training. In the last couple of days, I've begun to experience sciatica pain in my lower back and a bit in my upper legs. The more I thought about this soreness, the more I realized that my leg problems with the "jelly leg" from Sunday's 4 mile walk was most likely a part of this same problem. In fact, this may go back to Thanksgiving Day.

On Thanksgiving, I took part in a Turkey Trot 5k here in Orlando. For the first time, my mom decided to sign up, so it became a bit of a family affair. Thousands of area runners and walkers joined in on the trot fun. By the end of the race, I was feeling good, a bit tired, but good. I felt so good later that day in fact, that I walked another 2 miles in the evening with my father. It was quite a slower paced walk, but I went out and did the extra mileage. My body isn't really used to doing anything further workout wise post-race. I tend to take it easy and not do anymore workouts on those days. I suppose adding those extra couple of miles may have been too much for my body to take.

The next day, my quads were extremely sore. I hadn't recalled being that sore since I was doing my weight loss workouts, or maybe since I began running in 2009. Either way, it had been awhile since I had experienced that level of soreness. I didn't workout that day, but I did go back out for a 3 mile walk on Saturday. My legs were still a bit sore, but they seemed to be a lot better. Then came Sunday, the Hal Higdon training calls for a 45-90 minute walk for this particular time of training. Heading out the door, I felt good so I had it in my mind that I was going to push to do 4 miles if I continued to do well. The first 3 miles went well, my body is used to doing that kind of mileage, so it's a piece of cake. Trouble didn't occur until I hit the last 500 or so meters of my 4 miles. At that point, my left leg became weakened and felt like "jelly." I made it home okay, after pushing myself to get there and then I felt alright. My leg seemed to calm and the weakening went away.

Monday's walk went alright, didn't feel as energized as usual, but that has happened some mornings, so I didn't think much of it. Tuesday's 2 mile walk did have a problem though. My left leg again experienced some weakness during the workout. It didn't have the "jelly" sensation that I had on Sunday, but it did feel pretty weak. Wednesday is a rest day for me, I tend to keep this day as a definite non-workout day, so I didn't workout at all. Today, I would have normally gone out for my usual 2 miles or more, but due to my sciatica/back soreness, I opted to take an additional rest day so as not to push my back too much.

Today, I have iced my back some and also used the heating pad when I can. The soreness is still here, it fades a bit but has yet to go away completely. At this point, I'm conflicted on whether or not to go out for tomorrow's power walk. On one side of the coin, exercise is good for my back injury, just not overdoing it. If I do go out, it would definitely not be at the intensity that I normally do my walks in, I'd have to not worry about my pacing. On the other hand, I'm wondering if another rest day is in order. I could take tomorrow off and then resume my workouts on Saturday, allowing my soreness one more day to relax and rest. I'll most likely see how I feel in the morning, play it by ear. If I feel okay and stretch well, I should be okay to walk at a slower pace. Either way, I'm listening to my body and my gut feeling on it.