LSD Report.

Had a great run this morning --- a planned 15ish km --- around my usual route..... It was good, but I just got home and mapped it and realized I only did about 14km.... Not really sure HOW that happened (it was a premapped route, and I substituted 1 block loop for another -- but it shouldn't have been a whole KM difference) --- but I'm a little dissapointed about that - oh well.

I finished in 1:55ish today -- which is a very good time, and totally in line with my 2hr for 15km training goal. So that's good.

I ALSO tried my first gel today --- an Orange-Vanilla Carbboom. It was my first try so I don't have anything to compare it to but here's my rating:
Taste: 2/5 (it tasted good at first but was actually sort of gross, also had a nasty aftertaste)
Effectiveness: 3.5/5 --- I didn't notice anything miraculous, and I had to drink ALOT of water to get it down (about 14oz!), but I took it about an hour into my run and I never got hungry ---- I was also running right up to the end of my run, so that was good :)


Either way though --- a fantastic overall run! My stamina's improving as well, I didn't stop nearly as often today as I normally do..... which was great.

Hill Fartlek's tomorrow! It's going to suck to run hills but I like doing fartlek's because it gives me a chance to stretch my legs. I'm also thinking of just running a chunk of the 1/2 marathon route tomorrow for my fartlek's --- but we'll see, the Subway doesn't start until 9:00am and that might be a bit late....... although I suppose I could just ride my bike down......

Long Run Tomorrow!

So... after much deliberation I've decided to do my long run tomorrow morning and my Hill-Fartlek's on Sunday morning. Basically, this is because I KNOW that if I do the hills tomorrow I'm not going to be able to motivate myself to get out there and do the long run - - and in my world it's all about building the endurance and confidence for the race.


I got a message from Sonia today -- she'll be arriving the Friday before the race to hang out on my couch for the weekend so we can do the race expo and stuff on Saturday. Should be fun! I know that weekend is around midterm time, so I really hope I'm not too bogged down with school to get out and have a good time that weekend - not to mention be a good host to Sonia! (Dude -- in advance, I'm sorry if I have to be a nerd for a few hours that weekend!)


Other than that --- on my way out for a drink with a friend..... then it'll be about coming home and going to be so that I can get up at 7am and run my little heart out in the morning :P Just diet coke for me tonight!

4.6km at 6am!

I ran this morning! Got my ass out of bed at 5:30 am to realize that it was still pitch-black outside...... so I waited until about 6:15 when the sun started lighting the streets a little and headed out for my morning run.

It was FAN-FREAKING-TASTIC. Seriously. I haven't had a run that good in a long time. I felt awesome, I had a steady pace right off the bat, I was dressed properly --- all was in good form. I love it when I have good runs, it really just makes my whole day better.

So I skipped my LSD last week....... I'm ahead on my training schedule anyways so I think I'll be okay. My plan is to do another 5k tomorrow or Friday morning, and then do some hills either Friday evening or Saturday morning, and then my LONG run on Sunday ---- I'm aiming for a 15km run, but we'll see. This week I'll be experimenting with Gels for the first time, so I'm not really sure how they'll work out. First on the list are the CARB BOOMS -- mostly 'cause they seem to get the best reviews :P

All sorts of cheeziness on my ipod :)

Did 15k on Friday morning! It took FOREVER, but for my 1st attempt at a 15km distance it wasn't that bad.... AND it now means that I'm once again back on schedule for 1/2 marathon training!

Thank god for the ipod -- that's ALL I have to say about that.

I spent some time tonight customizing my playlists --- I now have Fast, Medium and Slow Running Music playlists --- I'm hoping they help to steady my pace a little and provide a bit more structure to my runs.

I also did my first Farklet run the other day -- I was short of time so I did 20 minutes alternating sprints and speedwalking ------ it went well, and was a nice break from the monotony of my half-marathon pace....

Tomorrow morning I'm going to attempt the 15km distance again --- I've got 2 more weeks of doing 15's and then I'm going to push up to 18 and 20 km routes. I'm also going to start running chunks of the marathon route as part of my training.

My goal tomorrow is to finish my 15k within 2 hours -- it's a 8 min/km pace -- which really isn't that fast at all (my goal race-pace is around 6.5 min/km) -- but it really depends on how I'm feeling.

I'm also considering breaking down and carrying water on my run tomorrow --- mostly because if I have my belt I'll also have somewhere to carry some gummies for that horrible 12km mark where I'm inevitably going to start to get hungry!

I <3 my Ipod!

So I finally invested in an ipod nano! And the thing rocks my world!

Seriously -- I went running with it this morning --- had a 12k run mapped out --- and it was awesome, such a great way to run.

I started at 7:30 and finished at about 9:00 am --- but I did grab a freezie and walked the last km to cool down.

Overall, considering the distance, it was a great run -- no major hiccups or walk-breaks. I was sweaty and tired by the end of it.... but I literally ran until I couldn't run anymore.........


Next week will be my first attempt at 15 km ---- I'm going to do 3 weeks of 15km's (on Sundays) before pushing to 17, 19, then the full 21. --- Then a long taper will begin until race day.

10 weeks to go!

I must be insane...

I woke up at 6am this morning (6am!!!) to run 5k. Little did I realize that it was THE HOTTEST FRIGGEN DAY OF THE YEAR. How silly is that?

I wish I could say I actually went the full 5k -- but not even close. I think I probably went about 3km before I walked back. The bonus was that 'cause I cut my run way short I also gained about 10 extra minutes on my morning routine ---- So I actually got to work on time today, not to mention looking pretty damn nice too.

Going to attempt this damn running thing again tomorrow morning -- will have more time so can go slower - will also try to get in a cold shower before I head out :)