Hey everyone, how was your Labor Day?

My only exciting news for the holiday was discovering that um, weighing less means it takes less alcohol to get ya feeling good! Duh, I went to college, I promise...

It's race week for me!!!! Ran the 5k route one last time on Monday... my IT Band has been acting up for the past few runs so I had to walk it out a few times...still finished in 31 minutes so here's to hoping Sunday's race goes well.

I'm having a hard time with taper week. I was originally planning on resting today, running on Wed, and then resting for the remainder of the week but I am really having a hard time NOT running. Do you think it's ok to do intervals today and Thursday, and 4-mile run on Wed, and still have Friday and Saturday to rest? Or am I pushing my luck and risk tiring myself out? I also need to keep an eye on my IT band problems. Grr. I really hate not being able to run!

Fat Pants : I have a hard time with the tapper week also especially that I don't feel 100% ready for my 10k on Sunday since I've only been "training" seriously in the last two weeks.... My plan is to run today and Thursday, rest Friday and Saturday, race Sunday... But they will be only easy runs or intervals.

I had a good weekend, but I ate too much yesterday

Thanks Ilene... I'm leaning towards doing intervals today and Thursday as well. So your 10k is on Sunday? Good luck!

Just got back from my run. I'm really excited because today will be my last day of C25k w3! (I've been doing w3 since I came back from my injury) Today I implemented running technique I learned from this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WfJVB...layer_embedded

It really worked. I feel great about moving on.

However, after my last running interval I suddenly felt really sick! I didn't want to eat but I'm glad I did because after just a few bites of breakfast I feel better. This has never happened before. I typically get up and spend an hour having some coffee with milk while I answer email. Then I head out for my run. Anyone else have this issue?

Thanks for explaning, MK! Very interesting. I'm still working on respectable distances and consistency, getting a handle on my own capabilities and how to pace myself for success...I'm sloooooooow..

Great Saturday night run for me - ran nearly 4 miles with just a couple of short walking breaks. 1.75 miles the first stretch. Walked one block, then ran another mile, then a walk, then I ran and could only last for about a quarter mile...thought my legs were done, since it had been just a day since my last run. Walked another 2 blocks, then ran again...and my legs felt totally fresh?! And I finished from that point to home without any more walking breaks (about 1.5 miles).

Anyone else have this experience? I'm used to my first stretch of running being the strongest, but the sudden change from horrible running to tiny break to strong running is new to me!

i usually run stronger the second half of most of my runs. it takes me a REALLY long time for my body to *warm up* to the run.....

per my trainers request, i ran a half marthon this morning before work......he wants me to start doing two half marathons a week before work on top of my long runs on the weekend, and my tempo run and my track workout, etc... i guess he has two reasons for this....#1) i think he wants to break me, if you know what i mean..like break me down physically, mentally, emotionally---- force my body to perform under stress----mind you i had to wake up at 2:30am this morning to get it done before i had to leave for work at 6 30... the other reason is that he wants to figure out what the *highest* mileage i can physically handle training at (per week) before my performance starts to degrade.......... this week will be 66 miles total, and to be honest i think this is going to be my upper limit, for the moment.......

Good grief, woman...you are a MACHINE!

mkroyer - ok, that just sounds scary! i am panicking for my HM in October and you're doing 2 a week?!?! i agree, you're a machine!!!

Howdy, girls! I was MIA for a bit there but am catching up on all the posts.

MK - Jeez - you are one impressive woman! I can't believe how early you get up! Do you feel safe running in the dark in the middle of the night? This week sounds awfully intense but that level of training is so far beyond my experience that all I can say is I hope nothing hurts too bad

fatpants - can't wait to hear about the race this weekend - I just know you'll do great!!!

sharon - I'm the same way - never underestimate the power of a short walking break Amazing how your body bounces back, isn't it?

cr - woohoo on finishing w3! Are you recovered enough to go on?

Ran an hour this morning at my usual snail's pace but feeling good. Hope you're all doing well...

Hey girls!

FatPants - Good luck on your race! I'm so excited for you! I know how much it sucks to taper (actually, I've failed both times I've tried!), but maybe do more cross-training this week instead, or just switch out 1 run for yoga or something. I'm sure you'll do great either way! Report back!

Sharon - That definitely happens to me sometimes. I don't take walking breaks but I'll find that 20-30 minutes into my run, sometimes I'll just randomly get a second wind that'll push me through the next 20 minutes, and then I'll sometimes even get a 3rd wind when I go 6 miles! It's crazy, but I'm not complaining!

Mk - Like I've said so many times before, you're such an inspiration! I can't believe your trainer has you running so much right before your marathon. But I'm sure you know your body well enough by now to sense when it becomes too much. You're so ready for your marathon girl!

Dancer - Way to run for an hour! Speed is so easy to work on but endurance definitely takes time to build up and means you're getting in great shape, so you should feel awesome about that!

As for me, I was sooo sore after my fast 5 miler (45 min!) on Sunday. It's the first time I've been sore after a run in months, but it felt good. I'm going out again today (making up for the lack of outdoor runs last week when it was freakishly hot!) so we'll see how my legs are feeling and how fast I can go. I'll report back later!

hey all!! thanks so much for your kinds words!!! Cant say i feel much like a "machine' or an "inspiration" right now, just alittle more like a lunatic ( a DEDICATED lunatic, but a lunatic none the less!!) i only managed 4 hours sleep last night, so i HAVE to go to bed at 7 tonight!! Im only running 6 miels tomorrow (plus personal training) so i will be able to sleep in (HA!! that means 4 am!!) Anyway, ive been too zombie like to provide any positive or helpful feedback to Ya'll today...so...heres a mass "you all rock!!! Way to go on your guys runs!! Keep up the hard work, and im looking forwad to hearing about everyones races coming up!" Details, fellow runners......details......i love to live vicariously through other peoples race experiences!!!

Taking Charge, so glad to see another slow poke here ...

Tonight I had a nice 40 min interval run at the track, it was warm though even though I went at 6:30pm...

MK you ARE an inspiration!!

Haha, yes, my goal is definitely to work on speed. Though I have to say, I was pretty proud of my 9:00min/mile pace, especially sustaining it for 5 miles! I've only been running for 5 months and I started out at about a 12:00/mile, so it's great to see that improvement can happen so quickly and I can't wait to see how much faster I can run in another 5 months!

I noticed you asking Mk about intervals. I've been doing a lot of them lately and have seen a major difference in my ability to run faster for longer bursts of time. You should give it a try!