July 28, 2013

What's Up in Training

What a busy week! We wrapped up WINGS this week with a mini-meet. That was a lot of fun, especially since I surprised the kids with water balloons and candy afterwards. (Um, do you know how hard it is to fill up water balloons for 50 kids???!!! My fingers will never be the same.) We also held the 2nd of 3 summer fundraisers for my XC team. We've planned 3 track relay nights, complete with glow sticks! It's been a lot of fun, and we've earned some pretty good money so far.

And the classroom... where do I begin. Well, I moved my stuff outside this week, only to find that the art teacher has not gotten her things out. And I think the last time she cleaned the room was the day before Never. So that was fun. And, I'm not sure how many of you follow education news, but most states have told the federal government to "kiss it", stating they will NOT be following No Child Left Behind, and that they don't care if they don't get federal funding. I could write an entire blog post on education politics, but I will save it. Likely most of you just want to read about running. LOL. Where does this impact me? Well, my special education children will be put back into their "own" classroom, with only other special education students, and only taught by a specialized special education teacher. Therefore, I am being transitioned from a "special education" teacher to "regular" teacher. And, I'm a little bummed. More on that in another post. I need more time to process what's going on here.

And the running... Coach and I have added a few races to the mix this month, all short stuff- 2 5Ks and a 2 miler. I'm excited. I feel like I'm ready to race fast again finally. My track workouts have gone very well the past few weeks. I've liked the design of the workouts- different distances mixed into the workout, some tempo-ish work, some mid-distance track work, all the way down to 200s. I even surprised myself last week on my 12th 400, hitting a time I haven't run since college (or maybe never). And then there's the tempos. I have started to refer to these weekly workouts as Death by Tempo. I've been able to hit the paces coach has given me to target, but not without a price. I can't really explain it except to say that they feel SOOOOOO hard.

I think I'm in a good mental place right now with my running. I'm gaining my confidence back and enjoying my training. Coach is helping me set short term goals with my racing, but nothing in the too far future. I like it this way. It's keeping the pressure off. I have a feeling he has a plan for me somewhere down the road, but for right now, we're keeping things in the two month range.

I'm back and forth with these tempos...
My Angel Brain says: Take it easy on yourself. It's one bazillion degrees with one bazillion percent humidity. Everyone in the south struggles this time of year. As soon as the weather cools, the pace will feel so much easier, and I will even be able to hit even faster paces.
My Devil Brain says: Suck it up, buttercup. Weather is NO excuse. Your tempo pace is not even that fast. Your coach is only telling you that you're doing well to make you feel good.

I also got onto the trail this week. I met a small group with intentions to run with one of the fast guys (17ish 5K) that assured me we would run "easy" pace; perfect for me, being that I had a recovery run on schedule. I was kind of stuck in No Man's Land. The three ladies that were there would be running significantly slower than I ever run my easy runs; so I figured I could run with this guy. I was Garmin-less, as I am for all my easy runs, but I swear, we were flying. I only tripped twice, but saved both before hitting the ground. That in itself is a huge accomplishment for me. I think it might be the only time I've run on trails and not fallen down. Back to the run. Towards the beginning, I was pretty mad at myself. Why was it so hard for me to keep up with him? I felt like it should be easy, being that he was running his "easy" pace. I kept right behind him, trying to talk and ACT like I was running easy, too. It did feel great to be on the trails, and the morning was pretty cloudy, keeping the temps down some. We saw 3 turtles; one we moved to the side of the trail so it wouldn't get hit by a mountain biker. (This is also a mountain bike trail.) By the time we were an hour into the "easy" run, I really felt like I was about to bonk, but I would NOT admit it. LOL. I began getting a little careless with my feet, and that is when the two near-busts happened. When we FINALLY got back to the car, I made comment that Mike nearly killed me out there, and his wife started laughing. She said, "I should've warned you. Mike's easy pace is usually 7:00-7:20." Dear lawd, well, that explains a lot! My easy/recovery runs are never below 8:00 pace this time of year (heat and humidity). I sort of wanted to ask him our pace, but I decided not to, being that I was already a little embarrassed that I had sweated more than the 4 other people put together, and all I could think about was my cold water and dry towel in the car.

I'm  going to Seattle in two weeks for the Brooks Coaching Clinic, and I am SUPER excited! We have a full schedule of events, complete with an Amazing Race and a semiformal dinner! We also have daily runs scheduled. One of the things I am most excited about is the weather. Oh, to feel something below 90% humidity. I can't even remember what it feels like. I looked at the forecast and some days have lows in the 50s!!! Will I need long sleeves? What does that feel like again????

Run Happy, friends!

5 comments:

  1. This is exactly why I avoid long runs with others! I envision that day when I'm out of breath and my head is pounding and my partner is chatting non-stop!

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  2. I wish it was hot here I'm tired of the cold and the rain, summer is calling me. I want to warm up. some of Saturday's race was run in the hail...

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  3. Only falling once? So proud:) I like Coach's plan on the short-term goals.

    And, take if from me, stay outta "no man's land"!!

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  4. Sounds like things are going well! A few short races sound like fun. I'm trying to find a couple to run as tune-up races before my fall marathon.

    OMG, 7min/mi on TRAILS?! I am super impressed...I would have tripped and just decided to die out there instead of finishing. ;)

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  5. It's a pet peeve of mine when I think I am going to do an easy run and my partners go way faster! I think you should have spoken up, but I understand not wanting to. Regarding education politics, I agree that NCLB isn't realistic so it's good that your state is getting a waiver.

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