post[/URL]. The 10K was both totally awesome, and totally totally horrible! I've never had such a rough time running so far.
Sharon, thanks so much for your race report! I'm amazed you did that well with so little training, 6.2 miles is nothing to sneeze at! And I think your time is awesome; my first 10K was around that time, 1:12:something. I was ecstatic with that. Nicely done!
There's something incredibly empowering about digging down inside yourself and persisting through difficulty to accomplish something that is beyond hard; pushing yourself beyond your perceived limits. As an "adult-onset" athlete, I had never pushed myself in that way until I got into running. It would be so easy to quit in those circumstances, but if somehow we find that inner strength to keep going, to NOT give up no matter what, and then to finish ... it's a feeling unlike any other. It's hard to describe unless you've experienced it.
Wow, it sounds like everyone's doing great. Congrats on the 10Ks Sharon and TakingCharge I have so much admiration for you.
MK good luck with your taper and enjoy your pancake feast... mmmm pancakes.
My big report is that I went away this weekend but managed to get in a 4 km run. My incredibly fit husband came with me and I left him in the dust ...which was, perhaps, a little more enjoyable than it ought to have been since we weren't racing or anything... but I've not really been measuring my speed against anything tangible so it was nice to know that I'm not really crawling along although I sometimes feel like I am.
I also got up this morning and ran 5.4 km which is the longest I've ever run without stopping...hopefully I'm on a roll.
Sylvied--Congrats on the the 5.4km!! That is a big accompolishment...i believ you just MIGHT be on a roll!! Keep it up!!! And thank you for the well wishes..i will try my very VERY hardest to choke down the horrible pancakes and enjoy them!!
Sharon-- Sharon, Sharon Sharon...... SIGH. I read your bolg (you crack me up as usual!!!) You worked SO HARD to complete Operation 10K by the 10th, and in my opinion, it was 100% successful!!!! A smashing success!! YOU DID IT!!! with less than 3 weeks to prepare!!! You asked SO MUCH of your body, and it came thru when it mattered, and so did you!!
Mentally, i think you are so much farther along than i was back then....you were able to push your body thru when your mind was telling you NO NONO!! That takes so much practice and dedication to work through! I think that is one of the big accompolishments of the day. you KNEW your body could physically handle running 6.2 miles.......and now your mind does too! That took serious guts to impose such a huge goal on yourself to achieve in such a short period of time. Im sorry it sucked. Im sorry you had a bad race experience (hey they happen--but PLESE DONT let it discourage you). I think that 5 lap race course is the biggest CRAP-OUT race organizers can do, and it must have sucked something FIERCE. The ability to push through THAT mental roadbloack deserves applause too, in my opinion. Nothing like being tired and just physically done during a race, seeing the finish line, and then having to REPEAT the course!!!
I dont know how to make the "HUGS" emoticon show up, but i am giving you a big one right now! We are all so SO PROUD of you!!!
TakingCharge----You can TOTALLY rock another 10K in 2 weeks! GO FOR IT!!
The way i see, youre already planning on starting to train for a half marathon, so you NEED to be able to keep your base mileage AND long-run Mileage up to at least 10K distance before you delve into the new training regime!! Of course, as long as you dont think your body needs more time to recover (honestly though, you trained very smartly for this race, so Id be willing to bet you arent even sore/stiff anymore, if you were at all after the race)
Before you know it, youll be running 10Ks a couple times a week as your *normal* daily mileage!!
Sharon--just one more quick thought on your race experiece....Maybe the reason your legs and mind didnt want to cooperate is because you were overtrained? YOu stepped up your mileage big time, too fast (as far as common sense and the old addage of no more than a 10% increase each week) to prepare for the race. Your body needed some time to recover between these runs of ever increasing distance, but you didnt HAVE time to let your body recover (eyes on the prize, and all). Lesson learned though, right? You are strong, and you have a better idea now of how hard your body can be pushed! Alot further than you probably thought, huh?
[QUOTE=MBN;2968192]
There's something incredibly empowering about digging down inside yourself and persisting through difficulty to accomplish something that is beyond hard; pushing yourself beyond your perceived limits. As an "adult-onset" athlete, I had never pushed myself in that way until I got into running. It would be so easy to quit in those circumstances, but if somehow we find that inner strength to keep going, to NOT give up no matter what, and then to finish ... it's a feeling unlike any other. It's hard to describe unless you've experienced it.
[QUOTE]
MBN-beautifully spoken...thank you so much!! i am also an 'adult onset' athlete!! Running has given me the exact same rewards you describe!!!!
Wow everybody! I so love reading your posts and hearing how far everyone has come. There are days when I think that the 5K in under 40 minutes is unreachable for me and that this is all I'll ever be able to run so hearing everyone else's progress gives me hope.
Today I ran 4 miles without a single walk break! A new record for me!! I took me nearly an hour but I did it.
Thanks so much, guys!! Your support and advice makes all the difference
MK - I'm so overwhelmed by your encouragement! It's a huge boost to me, coming from someone who works so hard and has achieved so much! I think you are right about the overtraining. As much as it was an awesome experience and so empowering to the mental side of running, now that the race is over, I feel totally wiped out. I ran 3 yesterday and hated it, ran today, hated it more, and didn't even finish my 4 miles. I think I'm burnt out and I need to figure out how to refocus and get the passion again.
Momof5K - 4 miles!! Awesome!! You're unstoppable!
MBN - you're totally right, and that's so beautifully expressed! Success at running, something I never thought I could do, has increased my confidence in myself in other areas, too. I'm stronger than I think, and I'm learning not to give up on myself.
Sharon-- a bad race experience can leave you in a running "funk" for a little while. Dont let it discourage you! Take a couple days off from running, or however long you need. Running will be waiting for you when you are ready again!! Theres no need at the moment to force it..... Do you have any more races planned in the near future?
Momof5--Way to go on the 4 miles!!! The Sub 40 5K is totally within your reach!! Keep up the hard work!
ONe month Cigarrete free today guys!!
Marathon Taper Update:
my inner runner got the better of me today....... i did a 5 mile hill interval session on the treadmill.... (please dont tell my trainer--he'll have my head).
new game plan: ive been running alot on the treadmill the past couple weeks partly cuz its been FREEZING, and also really becuz im supposed to have been tapering, so i go to the gym instead to workout, and then i think "ill just hop on the treadmill for a quick warmup mile"...and BAM! Before i know it, im knee deep in a 6 mile interval session!
So, NOW im starting to freak out (please god, give me something else to stress about, im feeling awfully content lately) that ive completely FORGOTTEN how to run on ground that is not moving beneath me!! Ridiculous?? Its stupid to start doing my runs on a treadmill right before the marathon when a treadmill will not be available for my use on Sunday
---Back to the freak out: IM giong to run an UBER EASY SLOW EASY SLOW EASY 3 miles tomorrow am outside where the ground doesnt move, just to make sure i havent forgotten what the pavement feels like. then THURSDAY, i will SLEEP IN. As in, NO EXERCISING. NO GYM. NO RUNNING. I will see how fat and slothlike i can get in one day! Friday: SLEEP IN. Then i meet with my trainer for a session in the afternoon. Saturday, easy 2 miles outside on the pavement and stretching, etc. SUNDAY--well, you know what Sunday is.....
MK: Congrats on your one month cigarette free! What an accomplishment! And thanks for the encouragement. Can't wait to read your post marathon post
Sharon: Reading your race blog post reminded me again how much of this is mental, not physical. I notice that all the time for myself but sometimes think I am the only one My mind wants to quit long before my body does. It is just such a mind game. I keep hearing "you are not a runner" in my head and have to shut that out and listen to my body...that is RUNNING!!
momof5K - It's so great when you do push through and ignore the bad part of your mind's discouragement and do what your body can do, because that makes the good part of your mind even stronger for next time! Have you signed up for a particular event yet?
MK - one month smoke-free?! Ahhhh!! Incredible!! You're amazing! I can't believe how soon your race is. So pumped. Detroit's big marathon is this weekend and my company does the marketing for the athletic store that's a sponsor, so whenever an ad crosses my desk, I think of your marathon being the same day and send out a little cheer Ironically, my boss flies to Denver for the second half of every week, so maybe he'll be plane mates with your competition! Good luck with your next few days of lazy bliss - and will you be eating pancakes on Saturday?!
As far as what's next - my running buddy is out of town the rest of this week, plus I have a gift card for some yoga classes, so it's almost perfect. I'm going to relax, enjoy trying yoga for the first time and see how I feel about running on Friday or Saturday.
AND, I am moving from Detroit to New York City in 3 weeks! Ack! There's a 15K in NYC in December I'd love to sign up and train for, but I'm going to wait until the move happens and I get settled in and find out what running will be like in my new city before I commit to it. On the one hand, having a race coming up will help me stay disciplined and not use the move as an excuse; on the other hand, I don't want to overload myself. So we'll see.
MBN - Beautiful words! I just started running in April after several attempts over the past 5 or so years to get into it. All the other times, I would just give up when it got too hard or my shin splints started acting up, but I've finally kept up this time and am a real runner! It's one of the best things I've ever done for myself and it's great to have you girls here because you totally understand and go through the same highs and lows that running brings.
Sylvied - Great job on the 5.4K! That's a really good distance to get to and you'll just keep going farther and farther from there!
Mom - 4 miles!! That's so awesome! I'm impressed with how much you're pushing yourself. Keep it up!
Mk - Wow girl, 1 month!! I'm so happy for you! Is there a better way to celebrate 1 month cigarette free than running a marathon??? I don't think so! And your freak out is totally understandable, but seriously, you could NOT be more ready for this race! You've done absolutely everything possible to prepare. You're strong (physically AND mentally) and you're an amazing athlete so I have no doubt in my mind that you're gonna have an incredible race day!
So I decided to sign up for that 10K next Sunday! This time, I plan on getting more than 4 hours of sleep! I was actually a little sore after this one but mostly because I didn't stretch at all after and I went on a 3 mile walk with my mom that day! Lesson learned! You're right Mk, I need to incorporate 6 miles as part of my normal weekly runs so this is a good way to keep up with that.
On a sucky note, I'm up 3 pounds Maybe a small part of that is water weight from sore muscles, but I know I ate like a crazy person this weekend. I have to remind myself that a 10K is NOT a marathon so there's no excuse to eat more than I normally would (aka stuff my face with dried fruit and clif bars). I HATE struggling with my weight. Ugh. I hope one day I can just eat normally and not have to think about every little thing that I put in my mouth...maybe when I'm pregnant?
Sharon - I meant to reply to you in my last post but I submitted my reply too soon! I wanted to say that I totally hear ya on the burnout and I've been there. I had a good 2 weeks where every run felt like a chore and I just didn't want to run at all! If I remember correctly, I just did a few easy runs each of those weeks, didn't push too hard, and then by the end I was ready to get back into my normal routine and to push myself. Also, do you do any intervals or tempo runs? Starting those made things interesting for me because I knew I could challenge myself and I wouldn't just have to run straight through at the same pace indefinitely. Also, doing yoga is a fantastic idea! It's sooo good for your mind and body and has really helped my running. Good luck with the move! I love NYC. So fun!!
...which was, perhaps, a little more enjoyable than it ought to have been since we weren't racing or anything... but I've not really been measuring my speed against anything tangible so it was nice to know that I'm not really crawling along although I sometimes feel like I am.
(please dont tell my trainer--he'll have my head).
Maybe a small part of that is water weight from sore muscles, but I know I ate like a crazy person this weekend. I have to remind myself that a 10K is NOT a marathon so there's no excuse to eat more than I normally would (aka stuff my face with dried fruit and clif bars). I HATE struggling with my weight. Ugh. I hope one day I can just eat normally and not have to think about every little thing that I put in my mouth...maybe when I'm pregnant? 