Redemption

27. November 2013 · Write a comment · Categories: cross training · Tags: , , , , ,

I did it! I got to the gym today for 30 solid minutes of cross-training on my lunch break. 20 minutes on the rower and 10 minutes on the elliptical. “Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery and today is a gift.” (that’s a quote I happen to love). I am so grateful to have had those 30 precious minutes to sweat out the small stuff. It’s been building. =)

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gym selfies and such

Traffic lately has been brutal. It’s part of what comes along with living in a city that has more than 8 million people I suppose. As I was sitting in traffic yesterday morning I started to think about how I could make it seem more appealing. So from now on I’m going to call it Traffique. It just sounds better.

I signed up for one more race this year. I caved! My friends are all running the Ted Corbitt 15K in Central Park on December 14th, and since it was only $23 to register I pulled the trigger. YAY! I’m actually looking forward to it and sorta hope it snows. Central Park is so beautiful with snow.

In other news, say goodbye to my little umbrella friend. She was sparkly silver when I got her and I loved her for being so compact and reliable. But today she broke. And she cut my hand twice! Apparently she likes to remain open and when I try to close her she pops back open again. She almost impaled me! I actually think that if there were a comedian watching me getting on the bus this morning they’d have enough material for an entire show. (I had a travel mug of hot coffee spilling at the same time as I tried to get lil’ silver umbrella to behave all while my bus driver insisted on driving mach 1 through a construction area that was bumpy as sh-t…It wasn’t pretty).

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Just got this email from our office manager. YIPPEE!!!

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Happy Thanksgiving’s EVE! And enjoy your festivities tomorrow. Remember to savor each and every bite. Then come back and tell me what your favorite part of the meal was. And I hope nobody has to get stuck in traffique!

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The best cross-training ever

21. October 2013 · Write a comment · Categories: cross training, recreational fun · Tags: , , ,

As a runner, I find very few truly enjoyable ways to cross-train. Sometimes it’s the elliptical but mostly I just walk when I’m not running. I hate the gym, I’m not a bike person, don’t like to swim or do yoga. But yesterday, I found the best cross training workout..APPLE PICKING!!!

full body workout: apple picking

full body workout: apple picking

My niece and I spent about an hour and a half from beginning to end. We started with the walk from the parking lot all the way to the orchards. I’m guessing it was a good 1/2 mile warmup. We got our buckets and headed through the orchards to find the Granny Smith trees. Probably another 1/2 mile.

Then came the fun part. We climbed up and down through a dozen or so trees. I felt my core engage as I lifted myself up onto the branches and my arms were working hard to keep me steady.

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We made a quick pit stop to the pumpkin patch for a few pumpkins and after settling our bill we walked back to the car with a combined total of almost 35 pounds of apples and pumpkins!!!! I carried both buckets for some of the time and then my niece and I split the task for the remaining time.

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I suppose I’m on to something. A new cross-fit trend? There was a bonus WOD (workout of the day) too…

We went to Six Flags Great Adventure to ride some roller coasters AND get spooked during Fright Fest. Walking the length of the park, screaming and laughing….OH YEA! Another great workout indeed!

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Next to the runner’s high, I have to say, riding roller coasters are the next best high to have. It was a great day! And I got us season passes for 2014. I’m ditching my gym membership!

And now it’s Monday and nothing seems to be working, not my brain, not my computer, not my phone….

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Question: Do you enjoy rollercoasters? What’s your favorite? I really loved El Toro. 

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Fatigue, overtraining, then signing up for another one

07. October 2013 · Write a comment · Categories: helpful tips, running, Uncategorized · Tags: , , ,

Happy Monday!

As I was winding down last night and preparing myself for the work week, I made a big decision. I was feeling really tired and have been for quite some time. I’m sure it’s a combination of post Center of the Nation and just jumping right back into my NYC Marathon training when I returned home.

65.5 miles plus a whole lotta jumping = FATIGUE

65.5 miles plus a whole lotta jumping = FATIGUE

After reviewing my training log, it looks like I have been overtraining. Shocker! It’s not that I have been running that many more miles per week than I’m scheduled to. But I have had many extra long runs, and I’ve been bailing on plenty of short, recovery runs. Not to mention my cross training has been non-existent (unless you consider walking the dog cross training). In other words, don’t ever take my advice on this blog =) There was a 16 miler back in June when I didn’t even officially kick off my training until July. And then of course five 13.1s in a row doesn’t make for smart training. But I knew that going into it. So this week I’ve decided to replace my 2 weekday runs with easier 30 min cross training sessions at the gym. That will allow me to catch up a a few extra winks of sleep (I can squeeze the gym in at lunch) and give my running leg muscles a little mini-taper. I have the Rock ‘n’ Roll Brooklyn 10k on Saturday and the Staten Island half marathon (with 7 extra miles before) on Sunday, totaling 26 miles for the weekend!

This decision comes with the comfort knowing I’m not a newbie anymore.

3rdI’ve got 3 marathons under my belt and I know that I won’t sacrifice my entire training by replacing 2 workouts. Also, I’ve thought long and hard about my expectations and goals for the NYC Marathon. While I wish I could say I’m shooting for a PR, that is just totally unrealistic. The course isn’t an easy one. There are 5 bridges and lots of elevation.

allbridgesMy first NYC Marathon was 5:28. It was my first marathon and I walked A LOT of the second half. I was SOOO happy just to finish.

Thumbs up! I didn't die!

Thumbs up! I didn’t die!

My PR is a 4:48 on a very flat course (with perfect weather). That’s a HUGE finish time range. I think I will just keep my expectations set to try and come in under the 5:28 time. While I’d love to break 5 hours again, I just don’t feel confident I have it in me. So my “A” goal would be 5:15 and “B” goal would be 5:25. But regardless of my finish time I am looking forward to enjoying the afternoon with close to 50,000 others.

I hadn’t planned on participating in any other races for the year but at the last minute I  just signed up for one more half marathon just 6 days after the NYC Marathon. It’s probably not a smart idea, but i’ll chalk 2013 up to the year of running too many races and make a promise that next year I’ll scale back a bit. My wallet and my non-running friends will be happy. So, I’ll be running the Trenton Half Marathon on 11/9.

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I love bridges and this course has 2! photo courtesy of trentonhalf.com

I learned about this race from a girl I met while training for the NJ Marathon at the very beginning of this year. Her name is Jane and she is an ambassador for this event. We had such great training runs together I just knew I needed to run with her one more time this year (although I’ll probably only see her the first half a mile as I’m sure she’ll be blazing ahead while my tired legs will probably just chug along). And the swag/bling looks pretty awesome too:

photo courtesy of trentonhalf.com

photo courtesy of trentonhalf.com

So there you have it! My plan to fight the training fatigue and complete 2 really strong runs next weekend, my goals verbalized for the NYC Marathon, and my “lapse-in-judgement-just-for-the-bling” registration in what will be my 11th half marathon of the year and 17th event overall!

WOW: Listen to your body! You’ll know when to scale back and when to go for the gusto! You are your own best training tool. 

Question: Tell me all about your fall race calendar.

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