YMCA Spring Festival 10k Race Recap

I had never run a 10k race before, so I was a little nervous before the start of this morning's race. I went in with three goals of varying degrees:  Not to be the very last finisher, Run the whole way, and Be under 1:15. I got up at 7:30, did some laundry, and got ready for the race. I was worried about it being really warm today, which was not at all the case: it was 48, windy, and misting rain when I was getting ready to leave. I ended up wearing capris and a long sleeve Nike shirt. After two glasses of chocolate milk (my swear-by-it pre race breakfast), I left my house and drove about 5 minutes to the Y.
There was a 5k that started an hour before the 10k, and there were still lots of people coming in at 8:45 when I arrived. I did a quick warm up jog, and heading to the start area. 10ks seems to attract lots of super fit looking people, who were somehow tolerating the cold in shorts and singlets even though they had no body fat. Amazing.
My goal was to run close to even splits, knowing that the 4th mile was all up hill. I hit the first mile at 10:34, and the second went by super quickly, around 21:00. The course was very well marked, with 5(!) water stops (I dranl at 2 of them), and I found myself running almost all the race in between a group of older women and a mom with two teenage daughters. By the time I got to the climb at mile 4, I was still feeling strong, though the downhills and up-and-downs of mile 5 left me with screaming legs. By the time I got to mile 6, I couldn't believe my time: 1:07:00. I turned on Empire State of Mind on my Ipod, ran as fast as I could for the last, uphill, 0.2 and crossed the finsih line in 1:09:10. Much better than I thought I could, with an 11:09 pace.

What went right today? I'll do a full breakdown of my thoughts tomorrow.

I then went home to warm up and shower, got pizza and froyo with my Mom, and headed to work.

How did your Saturday run go?

Guilty?

Yesterday I did something I haven't done in a long time: I blew off a cross training workout. And felt really guilty about it. I chose to use the good weather to clean out my flowerbeds, helped the husband change out a broken outdoor water faucet, and went to dinner with a couple work friends (and may or may not have left hubby downtown with his buddies and stopped by Red Mango by myself. For the second time in two days. Don't judge. )

And I felt really down on myself, and then thought "No." Healthy means mental and physical, and sometime doing things around the house and with friends are just as healthy as the elliptical, right? Right.

Do you ever feel guilty for skipping workouts?

This could be dangerous!

Last night, the husband and I ran the first 4 miles of Saturday’s 10k course – and it is rough: super hilly, curvy, and un-shaded. After about 20 minutes of trying to run the hub’s 11:00 “easy” pace,  I had a small mental meltdown, but was able to keep running intervals until the end.

After the run, we went to try out our area’s first fro-yo place, a Red Mango that opened last week. I have had major yogurt and topping envy from everyone else’s blogs, and was super excited to try the goodness for myself. Let me tell you, this could get addicting very quickly – there are so many options!  I had a medium bowl of half plain/half raspberry cheesecake yogurt with strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and fruity pebbles. Amazing – so much better than ice cream! When I was in college, there was a fro-yo place we went to all the time, and I have it missed it terribly (it was before the idea of adding one’s own toppings existed, but it was still awesome).

What is your favorite yogurt combination?

Long running

Hopefully you have dry weather where you are - it is pouring here! Yesterday, I went for my first run longer that 5 miles since Princess (um, so over a month ago. Not sure how that happened!) It was 83 by the time I got home from work, and the heat made it seem impossible to run! I ended up doing 4:1 intervals most of the way, and finished 6.65 miles in 1:25, with a mile pace of 12:47. Not too fast, but not as bad as I thought it would be. I purposely chose a hilly route to try to get over my mental "hills are evil" issue, and though I walked up some of them, I'm starting to feel stronger.

I also did measurements last night: I lost .5 inches in my chest, and .25 around my thigh! Not huge losses (and not really in the areas I'd lose from the most) but a loss is still a good thing.

I also registered for my first 10k, coming up next Saturday! It's not a common distance around here, and I'm anxious to try a steady-fast pace for something longer than a 5k.

What's your favorite distance to race?

I've been bad . . .

I broke down and bought a new pair of these:

which are way expensive and way something I don't need. But are fabulous - and my old pair are more like . .  disgusting. I also got a few things online at the Old Navy sale going on today.

What do you splurge on?

Thai Food

We successfully made it one whole week with only one lunch-out and no week night dinners out! This may be the first time in the four years we've been together that I can say that about! We had:
Monday- Crockpot tacos
Tuesday - Leftovers
Wednesday - Barbeque Chicken Mac and Cheese
Thursday - Grilled salmon and veggies

Last night, we went out for a new cuisine for both of us: Thai food! Everyone I know, blog-world and real-world, eats it all the time, and the Thai food scene locally is huge. I ordered Pad Thai, and the husband ordered a steak and veggie dish. It was really, really, good! I ordered a medium level of heat, which bordered on too spicy, but the flavors were really nice.

Tonight, we're going to the grocery, then to my parents to celebrate my Dad's birthday. It's been pouring the rain today, but I'm hoping it will dry enough for a few miles tonight.

A joke and an update

If Muhammed Ali had a son, and gave him the same first name as the president, what would his name be?

Last night, I got my hair cut and then went to the Y for much needed cross training. After a 4 mile trail run on Wednesday, my shins were not at all happy with me. I spent 30 minutes on the elliptical, then 30 minutes lifting arms and doing squats and lunges.

I just realized today that I have a half marathon in 6 weeks! It heas really crept on me! I feel pretty good about my overall fitness, but need to get back to regular long runs.
I'm working this weekend, but am planning on doing a 7miler Saturday. What are your weekend plans?

*Feel free to answer the joke in the comments!

Chilly Hilly Runs!

The sun has been shining in my part of the country, but it has been super cold and windy! After Saturday's 5k, I realized a major issue of mine during races is struggling on hills. Every where I run has some up-and-down to it, but I tend to plan my runs to avoid major "ups". Not anymore! The husband and I had a little time before I went to school last night to get a run in, so we headed to a hilly loop and did 1.76 miles in 18:10, 10:22 mile pace. Even after a run that short, my hamstrings are sore today!
How do you train for hills?

Measurements

There are certains I know help me lose weight, and one of them is taking measurements. So I'm going to try to get back into the habit of doing them weekly, starting now.

Upper Arm: 12
Chest: 39
Waist: 33
Hips: 40.3
Upper thigh:  23.5

When I started training for my first half in June of 2010, my measurements were this (the last time I took them):
Upper Arm:14
Chest: 40
Waist: 35
Hips: 41

Not a whole lot of change. I think because I am still two size smaller and more fit than I have been, I give myself permission to slack way more often than I should, but that needs to stop if I want to get any more of these pounds off. I mentioned a revamp eating plan for this week. It includes:
 - Less eating out - trying for 1 lunch a week and eating dinner out only on weekends
 - More veggies
 - A bigger breakfast
 - Fewer sweets
 - No regular Cokes

What are your weight loss motivators? I get more encouraged my inches than pounds.

IU Alumni Association 5k

Another weekend, another spur of the moment 5k. I decided yesterday to run this race, held in conjunction with a half marathon (that was way to hilly for me to consider), and went to a very crowded packet pick up last night. The race changed organizer's this year, from a student group to the alumni association, who nixed the idea of an expo, and decided instead to do a simple packet pickup. I got my tshirt and a "goody bag" with safety pins, a coupon for a local bookstore, and a city visitors guide.
   This morning, I parked about 10 minutes away from the start to give myself a warm up distance. After a jog and a quick use of a (remarkable gross!) porta potty, I joined 385 runners at the start line. It was super cold  - 38 and windy.
   The first 1/2 mile was downhill, following by a super steep uphill and a few rolling inclines. I hit the one mile mark at 10:10. By the next steep climb, I knew a PR was not possible, but set a goal for myself: even knowing the crazy inclines to come, I was determined not to walk a single step. To date, I had only continously ran 4 other 5ks, including the one last weekend. All of those had been flat, fast courses. I hit the water stop at Mile 2 at 21:30. (I don't typically drink during 5ks).
      Mile 3 had a few flat stretches on brick pathways around the IU campus, but it opened up onto a steep climb. Everyone around me was walking, but I powered through, and made it to the finish feeling burning quads and a burning sense of accomplishment. My watch showed 34:19. My official results:
228    1427   Savannah Crane Alley   00:34:26   11:06   F       24    53 F-19 to 24    

I spent the rest of my morning grocery shopping and working on the hour before heading to work at 2:00. I did some serious revamping of my grocery cart based on the food journaling I've been doing the past two weeks!

Question: Do you have a garmin? What model? What do you like, and what don't you like about the one you have?     

HuffPost Link: Obesity in America

Interesting opinion piece on American weight issues: HuffPost