Certainty of death. Small chance of success. What are we waiting for? (comments welcome)

[GollyGadget]

Looks like you had a blast!

 

[nancipants]

Your costumes are great! I love my son at his current age, but I secretly can't wait until he's old enough to be more independent and even do races with me. It looked like you had a great time. Sorry you got sick. Also, I love your Jeffing shirt!

 

[azrivest]

We passed our time in line with a RunDisney pro who told us how she used to run the 5ks twice if she missed some characters the first time.

I have so many questions...

Great costumes

 

[superchime]

Your costumes are great!

Thanks!

I love my son at his current age, but I secretly can't wait until he's old enough to be more independent and even do races with me.

Having teenagers has been way better than I was led to believe it would be.

 

[superchime]

I have so many questions...

I did too! She said she had a proof of time, so she'd start with her corral and finish before the last wave started, so she'd go again! She did say she never took two medals/snack boxes. I guess with no chip they'd have no way to know if you went twice, but it's something that had never occurred to me.

Great costumes

Thanks!

 

[superchime]

Looks like you had a blast!

It was great... until it wasn't. I was so glad I got in a couple of good park days before the illness hit me. And the race was fantastic.

 

[GollyGadget]

I did too! She said she had a proof of time, so she'd start with her corral and finish before the last wave started, so she'd go again! She did say she never took two medals/snack boxes. I guess with no chip they'd have no way to know if you went twice, but it's something that had never occurred to me.

Thanks!

I have not done this, but it did cross my mind last time I ran a 10K at WDW. I was in Corral A and when I finished there were still folks starting. Other than carrying around a medal, there's no way for the staff to know that you've already run vs running late. (I'm sure they would figure something out if people started abusing this).

My first question was why would someone do this, but then I remembered that there are lots of occasions that I run past a character meet before they're out, at least once or twice a race. Then if you add in any characters that are on break and I can sort of understand why might do this if they were really into the character ops.

 

[superchime]

Weekly Summary
May 6 - 12

Mon - plan: 2 miles @ 120/30 sec @ 16:20/20:00 paces
2.01 miles in 35:48
T+D 78 + 68 = 146

The first run of my summer speed plan! Had a little trouble getting my paces correct, plus adjusting for the warmer temps that are settling in here.

Tues - plan: rest

Wed - plan: 2 miles @ 120/30 sec @ 16:20/20:00 paces
upper body weights
2 miles in 35:34
T + D was 128 when I started, 138 when I finished

Still feeling out my new paces. Heading into summer and being bad at math, I have been dreading trying to figure out the T+D adjustments I need to make for each run. Luckily I married a computer geek who loves this sort of thing, so he made me a spreadsheet that will calculate the day’s paces for me. It even has a button to pull in the weather data for me, so I don’t have to look it up.

Skipped weights because I had an annoying cough that wouldn't quit. Probably allergies? But I don't want to be the guy coughing my head off in the gym.

Thurs - no notes for this day, I didn't have a run on the schedule... not sure what I did. Probably more coughing.

Fri - plan: leg day!
Headache. I was feeling so crummy I even missed the auroras. But my husband and son got up to see them!

Sat - plan: 2 miles @ 120/30 sec @ 16:20/20:00 paces
2 miles in 41:39
Still had a headache but I was not about to start skipping workouts during the first week of a new plan, so I slogged it out at a walk.

Sun - plan: 3 miles @ 120/30 sec @ 16:20/20:00 paces
3 miles in 59:40
Still headachy (these three day headaches can take a hike!)

Feels good to have a training plan back on the fridge! I am definitely more motivated to exercise when I have a solid plan in place and when I am going to be disappointing someone if I don’t follow it.

In related news: my Kung Fu teacher has been gone for a month. Lots of people have been meeting to work out and practice together but I haven’t managed to make it to a session yet.

Reading more about how exercise can affect cortisol levels for women as we head into menopause definitely has me rethinking how much I need to be doing each week. I think my running and weightlifting plans are solid, but I’m starting to feel like Kung Fu might be a bit too much. They’re great hard classes and I love the stretching and exercises we do, but it may be too much for me overall during the week. For now I’m giving myself permission to skip whenever I’m feeling like it. It’s tough because my entire family participates and I don’t want to miss out on that.

Wait… what if that’s why I get sick so often?! I shared an article over in the Next Level discussion about this topic, and it would explain why the rest of my family isn't catching every little thing that comes by, like I am lately.




Character stop from a run during this week. Also the cicadas are SO LOUD. I wish I could post a video.

 

[superchime]

May 13 - 26
Whew, time to play catch-up!

Things that happened since my last update:
- We got a puppy!
- My oldest son turned 18
- My oldest son had his wisdom teeth taken out
- Lightning struck a tree in our backyard, 20 feet from our house. Everything is fine but it did take out some chicken coop infrastructure and probably took 5 years off my life.
- It seems like everyone in my house had to go to the doctor/dentist/vet over the past 2 weeks

It's been a busy month but I didn't miss a run. I did, however, miss a lot of other things. I only went to one Kung Fu class and made it to the gym for upper body weights only one day. But that's the plan. If I want to be able to survive Dopey I told myself running had to be my exercise priority. I do hope to get more weightlifting in because I definitely think that will help my running, but Kung Fu is on the back burner for now and I'm ok with that.

Mon May 13- plan: 2.5 miles @ 120/30 sec @ 16:20/20:00 paces
2.52 miles in 49:44
Headache finally gone but I’ve got a “headache hangover” now so I’m still feeling sluggish.

Today is the first day back to Kung Fu class after my teacher's month long break, but I skipped because I just wasn’t feeling great.

Tues May 14 - plan: rest
Didn’t rest. Went to Kung Fu. It was ok.

Wed May 15- plan: 2.5 miles @ 120/30 sec @ 16:20/20:00 paces, upper body weights
2.5 miles in 46:19
T+D = no adjustment needed

Thurs May 16- rest day

Fri May 17- Puppy Day!

Sat May 18- plan: 2 miles @ 120/30 sec @ 16:20/20:00 paces
2 miles in 37:40
T+D = no adjustment needed

Sun May 19- plan: 4 miles @ 120/30 sec @ 16:20/20:00 paces
3.93 miles in 1:10:41
T+D 73 + 60

Monday May 20- plan 2.5 miles @ 120/30 sec @ 16:20/20:00 paces
2.5 miles in 44:51
T+D 78 + 56

So tired. The puppy is doing really well, but she does wake up every 3 hours to potty and I have trouble going back to sleep each time. Totally not her fault. She’s adorable.

Tues - May 21 - Rest

Wed - May 22 - plan: 1mi@WU+10setsof(100mR+100mWU)+0.5mi@CD
T=D 74 +61
12:01 Daniels R

1 -10:17
2 - 12:51
3 - data missing - I misclicked the segment
4 - 11:22
5 - 11:21
6 - 11:06
7 -10:56
8 - 11:38
9 -11:13
10 - 12:47

So today I was supposed to run 10 x 100 meters at my Daniels R pace which is 11:40. With puppy care and kid things I didn't make it outside until almost noon, so the T+D by that point in the day had my pace at 12:01. As you can see, I was all over the place. I am horrible at knowing how fast I am running, so I was trying to use a metronome to help me find the correct pace, but even with the metronome I was still having trouble.

But, I survived my first speed work. Hopefully the next one will go better. Suggestions for how to get better at this would be most welcome!

Thurs - May 23 - more rest

Fri May 24 - plan- leg day
Skipped because my son had his wisdom teeth taken out

Sat May 26 - plan: 2 miles @ 120/30 sec @ 16:20/20:00 paces
1.98 miles in 41:01
T+D 81 + 63. Oof.
Got started way too late. So glad this was only 2 miles. I dragged myself through them.

Sun May 27 - plan: 4 miles @ 120/30 sec @ 16:20/20:00 paces
Got out earlier today and it made a huge difference! First mile was a bit rough but things went ok after that.
4 miles in 1:12:48
T + D was 68 + 64 when I started and 74 + 67 when I finished.


From the right angle, the puppy has a hidden Mickey on her back!



Miles for the:
Month - 26.77
Year - 293.43

 

[WillRunForPizza]

Such a cutie! I love when puppies have giant paws

But, I survived my first speed work. Hopefully the next one will go better. Suggestions for how to get better at this would be most welcome!

Your watch isn't going to be great at calculating your pace over a short distance. For super-short intervals like 100m, you're probably better off measuring your time than your pace. My brain is too tired for math right now, but if you work out how long it should take you to run 100m at your R pace, you can find a 100m section of road/trail and just run that over and over, and gradually you'll get more consistent.

But also I'm still kind of bad at pacing, so I may not be the best source here

 

[superchime]

Such a cutie! I love when puppies have giant paws

She's my first big dog. Watching her navigate the world with those huge feet is pretty fun!

Your watch isn't going to be great at calculating your pace over a short distance. For super-short intervals like 100m, you're probably better off measuring your time than your pace.

Oof, math. I'll see if my husband can add the calculation to my spreadsheet! Thanks for the help!

 

[DopeyBadger]

Oof, math. I'll see if my husband can add the calculation to my spreadsheet! Thanks for the help!

It's already listed on the plan in a small footnote underneath the paces. It's 44 seconds for 100m at R pace. So the goal is to aim for 45.9 to 43.0 seconds as a window. If you multiply that out, then it's 11:28-12:14 pace. So your splits were mostly in that area. Ultimately you're welcome to go faster as long as it doesn't become a sprint, your form is not compromised, and you're willing to pull the plug if you see a fade in pace. If you're chugging along at 40.0, 40.0, 40.0, 41.0, 40.5, 43.0, 48.0 then it's time to end the workout regardless of the number of scheduled splits. Then the next time around, just realize that 40.0 is too fast to be sustainable for the whole schedule workout. If the workout was reversed, 48.0, 43.0, 40.5... I'm fine with that because you're finishing fast.

 

[superchime]

It's already listed on the plan in a small footnote underneath the paces. It's 44 seconds for 100m at R pace. So the goal is to aim for 45.9 to 43.0 seconds as a window. If you multiply that out, then it's 11:28-12:14 pace. So your splits were mostly in that area. Ultimately you're welcome to go faster as long as it doesn't become a sprint, your form is not compromised, and you're willing to pull the plug if you see a fade in pace. If you're chugging along at 40.0, 40.0, 40.0, 41.0, 40.5, 43.0, 48.0 then it's time to end the workout regardless of the number of scheduled splits. Then the next time around, just realize that 40.0 is too fast to be sustainable for the whole schedule workout. If the workout was reversed, 48.0, 43.0, 40.5... I'm fine with that because you're finishing fast.

Oops, I'm so embarrassed I missed that detail on the plan! I really appreciate your help. Today's splits were better!

 

[superchime]

May 27 - June 2
Didn't take great notes this week, but I did get everything done!

Monday - plan: 2.5 miles @ 120/30 sec @ 16:20/20:00 paces
- I ended up moving this run to Tuesday because it was storming all morning, then when the storms ended we had Memorial Day stuff to do.

Tuesday - plan: rest 2.5 miles @ 120/30 sec @ 16:20/20:00 paces
- 2.5 miles in 44:47

Wednesday - plan: 1mi@WU+10setsof(100mR+100mWU)+0.5mi@CD, upper body strength
- 2.67 miles total
- This went much better now that I've figured out how to do it correctly! I did have my husband go ahead and add the sprints to my spreadsheet, so I get the T+D adjustments. The adjustment was small today so I was aiming to run each 100 meter segment in 43.93 seconds.

Because I'm running in my neighborhood and my targets are a stop sign and a mailbox, I'm not super precise about when I hit my segment button. The distance I'm running varies a little bit so I've included how far I ran each segment too (aiming for 328 ft). This was also done before I knew it was ok to run later segments a bit faster, so these time variations are me playing around with my metronome app trying to find the exact bpm that would have me hitting exactly 43 seconds.

1 - 36 (319 ft)
2 - 39 (329 ft)
3 - 39 (326 ft)
4 - 42 (329 ft)
5 - 43 (326 ft)
6 - 42 (327 ft)
7 - 41 (333 ft)
8 - 44 (330 ft)
9 - 45 (325 ft)
10 - 43 (327 ft) - so close to my target!

Thursday - plan: rest

Friday - plan: lower body strength

Saturday - plan: 2 miles @ 120/30 sec @ 16:20/20:00 paces
- 2 miles in 37:02
- T+D 65 + 44

Sunday - plan: 5 miles @ 120/30 sec @ 16:20/20:00 paces
- 5 miles in 1:33:45
- T + D 59 + 55

Splits:
Mile 1: 20.31
Mile 2: 19.47
Mile 3: 18.11
Mile 4: 18.09
Mile 5: 16:59

As you can see, this one started off a bit sluggish, but perked up a bit towards the end. The T+D wasn't bad, it's actually been nice and cool here all week, but the air was very still and everything just felt kind of heavy.


The puppy is sleeping better, but she still gets up super early, which means I'm up super early and can run before the sun is out! I'm taking a break from Kung Fu but I do want to continue weightlifting. But my nutrition has been crap lately so I definitely need to clean up what I'm eating before I start trying to add muscle.

Miles for the
Week - 12.17
month of May (total) - 31.94
month of June - 7
Year - 305.6

Puppy photo! The chilly mornings mean the baby gets to learn how to wear sweaters! And please ignore the orange splot of hot sauce in the background. Apparently windowsills are great for teething.

 

[superchime]

Weekly Summary
June 3 - 9

Going to try harder to hit my plan paces/times this week!

Mon - plan: 2.5 miles @ 120/30 sec @ 16:20/20:00 paces - total time 42:23
- T+D 66 + 66 = 132 (adjusted paces should have been 16:49/20:36, 17:27 overall)
- 2.5 miles in 43:59, overall pace 17:35

Tuesday - plan: rest

Wednesday - plan: 0.5mi@WU+3sets of(100mR+100mWU+100mR +200mWU+ 200mR+100mWU)+0.5mi@CD - total time 44:47
R pace 11:40 (100 m in 44 sec, 200 m in 1:27) - 44.37 sec 100m with T+D adjustment
T+D 65 + 65
2.68 miles
1st set
100 m - 48 sec (322 ft - 98.14 meters)
100 m - 44 sec (312 ft - 95 meters)
200 m - 1:32 (.12 miles)
2nd set
100 m - 46 sec (337 ft - 102 meters)
100 m - 47 sec (332 ft - 101 meters)
200 m (location change) - 1:29 (.12 mi)
3rd set
100 m 42 sec (317 ft - 96.6 meters)
100 m 44 sec (319 ft - 97.2 meters
200 m 1:29 (.12 mi)

This was a rough one, just logistically. I got started nice and early, but this meant there were a lot of people out. Kids were riding their bikes in my usual 100m spot, so I started in my alternate location. Then two mowing companies pulled in there, blocking half of the road and kicking up lots of dust. By this point the bike riding kids had gone to school, so I moved back to my usual spot. Glad I measured out a couple of spots, so I had an alternate.

I am pleased with my 200m paces, though, especially because I was running 100m then turning to run back, and I was taking that turn around very carefully so as not to upset my knee, so I expected those times to be slower.


Thursday - plan: rest

Friday - plan: leg day
Looking ahead, my Monday schedule isn’t going allow time for a run, so I moved
Monday’s run to today and skipped leg day.
T + D 76 + 62 = 138
2.5 miles in 43:40
17:25 avg pace

Saturday - plan 2 miles @ 120/30 sec @ 16:20/20:00 paces - total time 33:55
2 miles in 34:08
T + D 66 +54 = 120
17:03 avg pace

Sunday - plan 4 miles @ 120/30 sec @ 16:20/20:00 paces - total time 1:07:49
T+D 76 + 57 = 133, 17:27 adjusted overall pace
3.92 miles in 1:09:06
17:37 avg pace

Total miles for the
week 13.6
month 20.6
year 319.2

Shoe update: I just realized I never wrote about my new shoes! After trying and returning several pairs, I've settled on the Altra Via Olympus as my new easy/long run shoe. The Via Olympus is a high cushion shoe with a rocker shape, which took some getting used to, but they feel great! They have the "original" Altra footshape, which means the widest toebox, a bit bigger than my Torin's "standard" footshape. I'm sticking with my Torin 5s for speedwork.

Pic for the week: During my run this morning I saw two pileated woodpeckers chasing each other around a tree. I think these are both males so maybe this was a fight for territory?

 

[superchime]

Weekly summary
June 10 - 16

Mon - off due to scheduling chaos

Tues - rest

Wed - plan: speed work! Yay!
0.5 mi @ WU + (3 x 100m @ R w/ 100m RI) + (3 x 200m @ R w/ 200mRI)+(3x100m@Rw/100mRI)+0.5mi@CD

I didn't get this one done in the morning like I wanted to, so I had to wait and run in the evening. It wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be, but I still prefer mornings.

T+D was 83 + 61 which put my 100m goal pace at 45.45 seconds

3x 100m
1. 46 sec (333 ft)
2. 43 sec (323 ft)
3. 45 sec (334 ft)

3x 200m
1. 1:34 (.12mi)
2. 1:35 (.12mi)
3. 1:33 (.12mi)

Those turnarounds add a couple of seconds. For the upcoming week I've mapped out a decent 200m stretch that's a straight shot so I expect those times to improve.

I was feeling pretty good at this point so I decided to push the last three intervals a bit.

3x 100m
1. 40 sec (338 ft)
2. 40 sec (326 ft)
3. 39 sec (331 ft)

Thurs - rest

Fri - leg day

Sat - plan: 2 miles @ 120/30 sec @ 16:20/20:00 paces in 33:55
T+D 71 + 62 (adjusted pace 17:27)
2.0 miles 34:51, average pace 17:25

Sun -plan: 5 miles @ 120/30 sec @ 16:20/20:00 paces in 1:24:47
T+D was 73 + 62 when I started and 75 + 62 when I finished. (adjusted pace 17:27)
5.0 miles 1:27:16, average pace 17:27 -



I did a better job hitting my paces this week. Goals for next week include actually going to the gym to lift weights and doing some stretching. Now that I'm not doing Kung Fu, I'm missing out on all the stretching we do in class and my left hamstring was a little touchy this week. I suck at sticking with any sort of home program but I'm going to try again anyway.

Total miles for the
Week - 9.42 (because Monday's miles were done on Friday of last week)
Month - 30.02
Year - 328.62



Character stop from this morning's run, except I didn't stop because he had little antler buds and he looked a little too interested in fighting me, so I gave him a lot of space as I went by.

 

[Herding_Cats]

Over here cackling that your first dog/puppy is a GSP.

They are super fun…our neighbors had one growing up…but holy energy.

 

[superchime]

Over here cackling that your first dog/puppy is a GSP.

They are super fun…our neighbors had one growing up…but holy energy.

Haha! No kidding! She's not my first dog, just my first "big" dog.

I've mostly had miniature pinschers which are high intelligence + low obedience dogs. This time around I wanted 1) a bigger dog 2) who cared what I thought. The pinschers will consider whether or not your suggestion suits them before deciding whether or not to comply. Having a dog that is actually willing and eager to train is a whole new world for me. But, yeah, she's definitely going to keep me on my toes.

 

[superchime]

Weekly Summary
June 17 - 23

Mon - easy 2.5. Birthday run!
T + D 74 + 64, adjusted pace 17:27
2.52 in 44:27
avg pace 17:38

Zoned out and ended up hitting 2.5 half a mile from home, so I had a nice long cool down walk home.

Tues - Plan: upper body home gym
I actually did strength! The little machine I got for our garage is pretty versatile. I was able to do almost all of the upper body exercises I usually do at the gym. The only one I couldn’t do was assisted pull-ups.
The puppy was 11 lbs when I got her and now she’s nearly 20. Carrying her up and down the stairs has really increased my upper body strength, on the right side more than left but I’ll take it. I have a set of 20 lb dumbbells that I really couldn’t lift before, and now I kind of can!

Wed - plan: 1mi@WU+6 sets of(200mR+200mWU)+0.5mi@CD
goal is 200 meters in 1:27
2.57 miles in 50:02
And, according to Strava, I set a new best time for my mile! 11:52. Although I'm not sure how it got this number.

Well that was a cluster. I didn’t manage to make it out before mower guys invaded my area. I tried running around them, then a second truck moved in and I just gave up and took about a 10 minute break until they were done. I did two intervals before the break and 4 after but I wondered if I should have just started over.

1 - 1:33 - was dodging mowing equipment and couldn’t hear my metronome
2 - 1:23
3 - 1:26
4 - 1:25
5- 1:25
6 - 1:24

Afternoon - Injury prevention workout

Thurs - plan: rest

Fri - plan: Lower body strength
One day I'll make it back to the gym. And start stretching again.

Sat - plan: 2 miles easy
2.0 miles in 35:48
T + D 78 + 69

Sun - plan: 4 miles easy
3.77 miles in 1:08
Went for time instead of distance due to the T+D being 80 + 73

My note taking fell of during the end of the week, so I don't have notes for my weekend runs, but.. it is hot. Just brutal. And humid. And no breeze. And it's hasn't rained in forever. 6am is the sweet spot for the best T+D of the day, so I'm getting out there early but it's still rough.

Miles for the:
Week - 10.86
Month - 40.88
Year - 339.48

 

[GollyGadget]

Happy belated birthday! It's also been very warm here and I am not a fan.