« January 2005 | Main | March 2005 »

February 25, 2005

Thursday and Friday's Run

This is going to be a quick entry because I need to jump in the shower since I am so cold. Yesterday morning I met Alison in Amherst and we did a great 1 hour run. We ran right by the house that she grew up in and I got to meet her parent's dog. It was a nice distraction and adventure. The dog is huge and loveable. My day was extremely busy yesterday. I ran six-seven miles with the team at 4 p.m. The run was nice and easy. I did not stop until 6:30 and then I drove up to VT to meet my friend for the wedding weekend.

This morning I got up and ran 16 miles. My legs felt really good but I was really tired and felt like I needed more sleep. I did a great scenic course in which more than half of the run was on dirt roads. It is really beautiful here in VT. Tonight is the rehearsal dinner and tomorrow is the wedding. It should be a great weekend. I am looking forward to seeing all of my friends from college.

Posted by mary at 11:55 AM | Comments (2)

February 23, 2005

20 miler

I had an incredible night of sleep last night and was able to go to sleep at 9:30 and wake up at 9 a.m. this morning. I did wake up at 5 a.m. and then again at 7 a.m. and both times thought I'd go meet Alison because she was doing her workout at the Smith track but then I knew how good it would be for my body to sleep and rest. I felt great when I woke up. I got up and did some reading for my classes. Today was a day off from school because it was Rally Day, a day of senior celebration. After I read some articles for my thesis project I went downtown to look for a dress for this weekend's wedding. My best friend Kim is getting married in VT this weekend. I had ordered a dress on line from Banana Republic but the dress was way too big and not what I expected. I found two dresses that I liked this morning, one that was very colorful and beachy and the other that was elegant and black. I loved the coral beachy one but I knew the black one was very practical. I am always borrowing Liz's black dress and this black dress was 1/2 the price of the coral dress so I got the black dress. I also found some great little black heal shoes for $15. I was really happy about that deal.

I spent three hours in the afternoon working on my literature review. I was going to go to the library to work but it was an optional day so I decided to focus on my academics. I was procrastinating my long run for some reason. Originally I was planning to run two hours and then meet the team and run the last hour with the team. I did not have enough time to do this so instead I ran 8 miles before I met the team. I did an extended campus loop with a three mile mini loop addition. I then ran 6 miles with the team, we ran out to Florence and came back by Burts Pit Road. I dropped the team off at the gym and repeated that same loop but added a 10 minute loop to it. I felt really good in the last loop and ran the loop faster than I had run it with the team and with the team I did not add on the extra loop. I was happy that my legs felt so good. I finished in 2 hours and 41 minutes. I originally had high ambitions to run for 3 1/2 hours but I was quite happy with my run. Towards the end I was going to add on 20 minutes to make it three hours exactly but I was pretty hungry and had no food so I just called it a day. Now I have to rush home because my room mate is making me dinner.

Posted by mary at 6:22 PM | Comments (1)

February 22, 2005

Weekend Update

Saturday Evening Run

On Saturday evening after coaching at the New England Division III Championship meet that Smith College hosted I ran an easy four and a half mile run with Alison. The run went by really quickly probably because I was talking so much. I felt really good and was excited to head up to VT after the run to visit a friend. Once I finished the run I had logged 85 miles in for the week. I was happy that my legs felt fresh after that many miles.

Sunday Run in Vermont

I was in Vermont all day Sunday visiting a friend in a small town just past Stowe, VT. The area was really beautiful. It was very mountainous and hilly. There were rolling hills and mountains, lakes, and quaint towns that lined the landscape. I ran first thing in the morning on Sunday. I ran a terrific 8 mile course that began with a 2 mile uphill with the second mile being more steep than the first. The road I was running on was pretty busy but at the top of the hill I took a right and ran two miles down a very scenic dirt road. The footing had a light layering of snow and the views were incredible. I had Mt. Mansfield to my right and Mt. Elmore to my left. After two miles I took another right turn and ran about 3 miles down another dirt road. This road was almost all downhill and I felt like I was flying. I then finished by turning left and returning where I started. I ran a total of 8 miles and felt really good. I spent the day with my friend catching up and touring the town. I decided not to leave VT until Monday morning.

Monday's Accident and Run

I left VT at 5:30 in the morning. When I left it was snowing and there was already about three inches on the ground. I had to drive really slowly. Traffic on the highway was slow, we were moving about 40 miles per hour. I was a little stressed that I would miss my first class but I decided I had to be careful. Right before I hit the MA border I lost control of my car. I was trying to get around a vehicle in front of me and had moved into the left lane. As soon as I did this my car wheel was spinning and the car literally spun around 2 or 3 times. I can not even remember. I was really scared. I don't even think I touched the steering wheel. Before I knew it I was off the road and headed towards the median of the highway. I had no idea if the car would be totally smashed or if I would get hurt. I do remember just thinking to myself to be ready for anything and no matter what I have had an incredibly blessed life. The next thing I remember the car hit the landscape and my glasses flew off my face. The car landed in the ditch that separates the two different directions of traffic. It was a blessing. There was no damage to my car whatsoever. I felt a little jerked around but all in all I was ok. I had no idea how to deal with the tow truck since I had triple A and ended up paying them $100 out of my pocket to get my car out. I guess the tow company is supposed to bill Triple A. I called Triple A and will hopefully get reimbursed. I then got a speeding ticket for $177 from the VT police which I have already denied. I will have to go to court to fight that one but I don't know how I can get a speeding violation when there were no witnesses and I had no damage to my car. That was a bad start to the day.

In the afternoon I just ran an easy fifty minutes with the women on the team. My back and neck were sore but I was able to run. I went to bed really early and was able to get about 10 hours of sleep.

Tuesday Running

Today I got up at 7 to meet two atheltes for an easy 6 mile run. We did the extended campus loop. It was really nice to have company on an early morning run. My neck is pretty sore today but my back is fine. This afternoon I ran an easy five miles on the treadmill and did some light lifting. I have tomorrow off from classes so I want to try to do a long 20-25 mile run. I will probably sleep in and then get my run in for the day.

Posted by mary at 7:19 PM | Comments (4)

February 18, 2005

A.M. Track Run... a bit easier later in the day

Yesterday I was running around all day, going to class, teaching a class,and preparing for our team dinner. I only had time for an easy five mile run but I was so thankful to be able to do that and really enjoyed myself. It was a bright blue day and running for just 40 minutes felt so short and relaxing. I ran easy and did my extended campus loop.

This morning I woke up at 6:20 to meet Alison at 6:30 at the track. I was a little late but she had only run one lap by the time I got there. I ran about a mile warm up on the track with Alison and then jumped in and out of her workout. Alison's workout was to do 3 miles at 6.40 pace and 3 miles at 6.20 pace. I ran 1 mile at 6.40 pace took a half mile off and then ran another mile at 6.40 pace. I then ran an easy mile with Alison and then ran an 800 at 6.20 pace, took an 800 off, then I ran a 1000 at 6.20 pace, took 600 meters off, then I ran the last mile with Alison and we ran it in 6.14. I was really happy with my effort. We finished with about a two mile cool down. I was really tired from not getting enough sleep but I was so happy that my quad did not bother me too much. Seeing Alison do her workouts definitely inspires me to at least think about being more specific with my training. The workout went by really fast. I did not actually talk that much during the intervals because I was so tired and I was nervous I would not keep up. As it turned out Alison was right on in her workout and I felt pretty good.

After the workout I had class and then I went downtown to finally get my haircut. Originally I planned to just get about 2 inches off but they convinced me that 2 inches was nothing.. so I actually got about 7 inches! Yikes! I am not sure I love it. The good thing is that I can wear it down and it is not out of control but I can also put it up in a little pony tail which is good for running. I really needed to get a hair cut as my hair was out of control. I just wish I had kept a little more of my hair. As it turned out if I had waited just a month or so I could have had 8 inches of hair which I then could have donated. Alas... I finally had some free time so I felt I should take advantage of it.

This afternoon I plan to run an easy 50 minutes with the women on the team. Tomorrow morning I had an hour run planned at 7 a.m. before our all day track meet that we are hosting, the Division III New England Championships. By the time I finish my run tomorrow I should have finished at least 85 miles for the week. I am pretty happy about that mileage and plan to take it easy on Sunday. Oh.. one more thing.. I am hoping with less hair.. I am lighter.. and faster! :)

Posted by mary at 11:52 AM | Comments (3)

February 17, 2005

Great Social Run

On Wednesday I was not sure if I was going to run. Again I woke up and had a sore throat and felt like I had mild flu symptoms. However, as the day progressed and I took a few vitamin C and some advil, and did about 4 hours of relaxing work at the library (just sitting there sewing books) I felt much better by the time practice with the team rolled around. I did not run with the team on Wednesday because I had planned to run with Alison and Caitlin at 6:15. I decided if I did not feel 100% all day it did not make sense to run twice during the day. I also wanted to catch up with Ellen, the head coach, and go over some steeplechase drills with her. It was really fun to learn the new drills but I felt challenged by my own lack of coordination. The hurdlers on our team helped us a lot.

By the time 6:15 rolled around I was ready to get outside and enjoy some of the mild weather we have been having. I was so happy because around 4 p.m. it had been raining pretty hard. The distance runners on the team came back soaked. When I met Alison and Caitlin the rain had stopped. We all had our reflective gear on and Alison and Caitlin were doubly prepared with lights and reflective gear. We decided to do the same course we did last week - my "10 mile" course which I am beginning to think is probably about 9.5 miles. It is a nice course to run at night because there is not a ton of traffic to battle with and of course we have about three miles on the bike path where there are no traffic concerns. I had a great time catching up with Alison about her recent trip to Oregon for the National Cross Country Championships and I had fun catching up with Caitlin about her marathon training.

We spent a lot of time towards the end of the run talking about the effects of training and motivation specifically for a marathon that you are racing. While I will be the first to admit that I have not truly raced a lot of marathons I do feel that I have raced a lot of ultras and put my effort on the line. I realize that it is not common for me to discuss the pain/anguish that I experience during my long runs or even during my ultras. I definitely get to points in the race or long run where I feel the effort is much harder than it should be and it would be easier to back off but then I feel so compelled to just see how long I can last before I really fall off pace. I definitely have come no where near learning to push myself to the maximum effort and that is what is appealing to me. I want to push myself to the maximum effort possible in a marathon, 50k, 50 mile, and some day a 100-mile race. The main limitation I have in the marathon is my quad injury, which prevents me from training to my highest capacity. However, by the time May comes around and I enter the VT City marathon I intend to put my body to the test and see how long I can hold onto a 2.59 pace and I intend to be prepared to deal with all of the ramifications that will entail. I do feel that in training I tend to emphasize primarily the positive aspects of training because that is what I take away from the day. I think it would benefit me if I made an effort to remember the points of my workout/training/racing when I was distressed so that in the future I could address those aspects of my training more specifically. No matter what training for any race is challenging to keep all aspect of one's life in check. However, the marathon, it seems has got to be one of the hardest races to train for because of the amount of time you sacrifice training for the event, the variability of the conditions on race day, the high risk of injury during training, and the huge amount of motivation and momentum you need no a daily basis to carry on with your training even when you are tired, sore, and overwhelmed. I really enjoy my runs with other people because I feel that it is only through dialogue that you can recognize and acknowledge the universal nature of our sport of running.

Posted by mary at 11:47 AM | Comments (1)

February 15, 2005

Feeling Better and Pysched about some Warm Weather!

This morning I woke up and felt pretty horrible. I got up at 7:00 and even though I had gotten about 8 hours of sleep I felt like I had barely slept all night even though I did not wake up once during the entire night. I had to finish up a lab with one of my colleagues and felt pretty beat doing that task. I then attended two classes. We had a lunch time presentation that I was going to skip so that I could sleep but at the last minute I decided to go and at least have some free lunch. As it turned out once I ate something and had a little bit of cola I felt much better. I was alert and not so tired. I had another class after the presentation and then had to meet an athlete to do a workout.

I had no idea how I'd feel running. It turned out that it was a beautiful warm day. I could have almost worn shorts as it felt like it was about 50 degrees out. We warmed up for 20 minutes around the campus and on the gravel path around the fields. Most of the gravel path was free from snow and ice. A few parts of the path still had snow and ice on it but it was definitely runable. We decided to do the workout of 6 x 2 minutes hard with 2 minutes easy on the gravel path. We probably ran about 6.40 pace for the intervals. I felt much better than I expected and enjoyed getting splashed with mud and wet snow during the run. Afterwards we did a twenty minute cool down around campus.

I was not sure what I would do after the run. I thought I would lift and then go home and take a shower to have an early dinner. As it turned out another athlete came to practice late and wanted to run. I decided to run six miles with her since I felt so good on my first run. We did an extended campus loop and just talked the entire time. I felt really good and was happy I was able to run twice.
For the remainder of the night I have felt fine except just now I am feeling my sore throat again and I just sneezed. Fortunately I know I can sleep until 8 a.m. tomorrow so I think another 8 hours of sleep will do me a world of good. I am counting on sleep to kick this bug. It is fighting but I am fighting too. Tomorrow I am planning to meet Caitlin for a run and maybe Alison too.

Posted by mary at 11:08 PM | Comments (1)

February 14, 2005

Sore Throat Looming... argh..

Well I was restless last night because I knew I was getting up early to meet Kelli in Amherst at 7:00 a.m. I am always afraid I will over sleep and leave someone waiting for me on the street. As I woke up to check my alarm clock during the night I realized my throat was sore. I was hoping I was just thirsty but as the day has gone by I realize that my lack of sleep and busy schedule have finally caught up with me and I am getting a bit of a cold. I am not indestructable. Alas.. I was hoping I could just work as long as I wanted without getting run down. It is actually good because I need to slow down and concentrate on my rest now that I am getting more serious about my training. Right now I have a sore throat and am just starting to get achy. Soup and going to bed early tonight are my main priorities and finishing up my lab! :)

This morning I was on time to meet Kelli at 7 a.m. in Amherst. We ran for exactly an hour and ran on the Robert Frost Trail and on many different side roads throughout Amherst. My quad was sore for the first half of the run from yesterday's long run but as we continued it loosened up. Kelli went easy on me and the pace was nice and manageable. I unfortunately was not my usual talkative self because I was worried about my sore throat but I still had a nice time and when we finished did not feel too worn out by the run. On my way back to campus I stopped and got a hot chocolate and some mini donuts for my room mates to celebrate the consumer holiday that we call Valentine's Day.

This afternoon I met the team to run and realized only one of the athletes was going to be running today. Initially I thought I would skip the run to rest but I did not want the athlete to run alone and it had just started to snow so I thought it would be nice to get out in the fresh air. We ran the Amherst Bike Path loop which took exactly an hour. We ran nice and easy and had a nice conversation. I felt fine the entire time we were running. However, by the time I was cooled down from the run my body was definitely fatigued and ready to shut down. My forearms are sore and my head is a bit fuzzy. I am going to go make some soup and work on my lab so I can get lots of sleep tonight. I had wanted to lift today but I am definitely ok with skipping the workout today.

Posted by mary at 6:44 PM | Comments (0)

February 13, 2005

Finally Some Hills for My Sunday Long Run!

I took advantage of the chance to sleep in this morning which it seems that I never get to do anymore. I slept for at least 11 hours last night and it felt really good. When I woke up I had some breakfast, did a little bit of school work, and decided to leave for my run around 1:00. At that time I figured the sun would be out and it would be a little warmer.

I had no idea where I was going to run but I wanted to run some place different because my usual routes are becoming a little dull to me. I decided to head out towards West Hampstead and ended up running on Chesterfield Road for about an hour or so. It was so pretty and to my great surprise and happiness there were hills. I loved it. They were not big hills, I think the longest hill was three minutes long but the entire road was nice and rolling. There were nice evergreen trees on either side of the road. I felt like I was running in the forest except that I was on a road. There were houses through some sections but the parts in which there were no houses and just trees and landscapes up ahead were my favorite. I saw two bikers and about three walkers on the route. The afternoon was bright and sunny. When I ran through the shade I got pretty cold and had to put my sleeves over my hands but once I was in the sun I was nice and warm. I ran out and back along this section and finished by running along Spring Street and heading back on the Northampton bike path.

My body felt good the entire time. Towards the end of the run my hips and calves were getting a little sore. I ran for 2 hours and fifty three minutes. I think that is at least 20 miles, maybe even 21 miles. I don't think I was running slow but I definitely was not running seven minute pace.

I officially signed up for the American River 50 mile race last night and bought my plane ticket so I felt some urgency in completing a 20+ mile run today. Half of American River is on a bike path and half is on trails. I want to do at least one more long run on the roads and then start running half of my long runs on the roads and half on the trails. I have a morning run scheduled for tomorrow at 7 a.m. so I have to be sure to get to bed early tonight. This week I am going to be much better about getting sleep.

Posted by mary at 5:21 PM | Comments (1)

Thursday, Friday, and Saturday Runs..

My fatigue finally caught up with me by the time Thursday rolled around. I had plenty of time to run on Thursday because I have no afternoon classes and minimal coaching duties on Thursday. However, I just could not motivate myself to get out and run. I took that as a sign to allow my body to rest and take advantage of some downtime. I did not run and I did not exercise at all. I was feeling guilty about it because I had the time to do something but I knew my body was overtired and it would do nothing productive for me. Instead I went to a campus movie with my house mates. We saw Alfie, a movie I would never recommend that anyone watches. There was nothing redeeming about the movie. The one plus was that one of my house mates snuck out of the movie and got some ice cream for us all to share during the movie. We also had a good time making fun of the movie.

On Friday my day was booked solid. I was supposed to do a morning run in Amherst but due to some snow we received on Thursday night we canceled the run. It was just as well because I really needed to sleep in for the morning. I did not get to run until around 7 p.m. on Friday night. I was supervising a high school track meet and was able to sneak out to do a treadmill run. I ran a mile warm up at 7.30 pace and then ran 9 miles at 6.53 to 6.47 pace. I was really happy that the pace felt relaxed and manageable especially since I have been so tired lately. After the run I stretched while I finished monitoring the high school meet.

On Saturday morning I met one of the athletes on the team to do a workout with her at 7 a.m. before our team left for a meet at MIT. We ran a 30 minute warm up out to the Northampton bike path. We than ran a 20 minute tempo run on the bike path and ran around 6.40 to 7.00 minute pace. We then ran a mile cool down. I spent the entire day at the meet and in the evening watched Sleepless in Settle. It was a relaxing evening.

Posted by mary at 5:15 PM | Comments (1)

February 10, 2005

Running on Empty

The past two days I have been running on empty in terms of my sleep requirements. I procrastinated on two assignments and stayed up very late the past two nights getting the projects done in time. I think I got about 5 hours of sleep each of the past two nights leaving my body feeling pretty tired and making me feel like I am in a daze. Fortunately, I have had people to run with the past two days to motivate me to get out the door otherwise I think it would have been pretty hard to run instead of napping. Today could be a different story, we'll see how I feel around 4 p.m.

On Tuesday I got up at 7 a.m. and met a graduate student from Switzerland to do an easy 8 mile morning run. We did my usual phoney 10 mile course but I stopped early and walked back because my running partner finished about 8 minutes before my course was over and I just felt like relaxing for the last stretch and walking through campus. My left quad was very very sore when I ran on Tuesday morning. I think due to the fact that I ran pretty hard with Andy on Monday night and I had run twice on Monday. I took it very easy with Kevin the graduate student that I ran but I was so tired I felt like I could not even maintain a conversation. I mostly asked a lot of questions. I spent the entire night Tuesday writing a sport autobiography. It took me a lot longer than I expected.

Yesterday I ran an easy 6 or 7 miles with the team. We ran out to the corn fields by the Northampton airfield. Some of the dirt roads were clear so we were able to run through the fields. The corn fields felt so nice because they were nice and soft. It was quite muddy but we weren't running very fast so I was not splattering myself with mud. Following the run with the team I met Caitlin and Alison to do my 10 mile course with them. Initially I was very tired but the time flew by on the run and before I knew it we were finished. I felt pretty good on both of the runs I ran yesterday. Today I am quite tired because I was up late last night studying for an exam. I'd love to get out and run for about an hour today but I'll just have to wait and see how I feel. In the meantime, I have to get ready for class and try to look alert.

Posted by mary at 9:52 AM | Comments (3)

February 7, 2005

Making Progress

I took Sunday off from running to give my quad a break. I also was not that motivated to run because I was so discouraged from my race and the soreness I felt in my quad from what turned out to be an easy overall cardiovascular effort in the race.

Today I took action. I went to the trainers at school and told them I wanted to get more answers. They were able to refer me to two doctors. Tomorrow I have an appointment to see one doctor on campus who will be able to refer me to an orthopedic who will be able to refer me to get an MRI. It is really crazy to think I have had this injury for two years and not had an MRI. I think it is because I have had an MRI in the past while having a bad insurance plan. The current plan I am on will cover the cost of the MRI which is great. I was so happy to have a plan in action and feel so much better. Yesterday I was not in an overall great mood because of my quad. Today I feel much better.

I ran an easy 6.5 to 7 miles with the women on the team. We ran out to the Amherst bike path for about 28 minutes and then turned around. I then ran my fake "10 mile" course with Andy, one of the assistant coaches here at Smith. The course is definitely NOT 10 miles because today I got a new pr on a bum leg with Andy while talking the entire time. We ran the course in 1:06. and some change. My quad did not hurt at all on the first run because we ran so easy. On the second run my quad hurt on the first two hills but then it was ok. It felt fatigued but I could run without it being a distraction at all. After the run Andy and I did some core body work and then I called it a day. I was really happy with my runs today but more pleased with being able to schedule some doctor appointments.

Tomorrow morning I am meeting another graduate student to run at 7 a.m. I have never run with him before. He is from Europe and used to run on some club teams there. I am excited to have some new companay and glad to have the morning motivation to get up and get my workout over with early. Tuesday's are a hard day for me to run in the afternoon because we do speed workouts with the team that day. I have to get my school work done now and stop procrastinating because my goal is to get to bed by 12!

Posted by mary at 10:45 PM | Comments (1)

February 6, 2005

Snowshoe Race Report (4.5 miles) - Northfield Mountain

On Saturday morning I drove to Northfield Mountain to try my first ever snowshoe race. I was nervous going into it because my quad was already sore and fatigued but I figured I would just have fun with the race. I was really suprised to see so many people at the event. There were lots of runners there who looked really fast and who were warming up a lot. I ran about 10 minutes for warmup with a friend. My quad hurt in the warm up and I hoped once the race started I would forget about it. The race began at 9 a.m. The first mile of the race was flat and circled a field. As soon as the race started I realized I had not properly bound the straps to my snowshoes. They were flying all over the place and really distracted me. I wanted to stop and fix them but in general I was not that impressed with my performance and I figured that stopping would not help my overall results in any way. I continued with the flapping straps and figured they would not be so bad on the uphill portions. After the first mile we climbed uphill on a fire trail covered in snow for about a mile and then we entered a single track that was windy in which we had to cross a few small streams and step over logs (which is really difficult in snowshoes!). This climb completely wiped out my quad muscle in my left leg. By the time we began the climb my left quad was dead, my hip was tight, and as the climb continued the pain traveled to my calf muscle and foot. The way the entire leg gets involved it behaves like a nerve issue, however I think it is actually scar tissue in my quad muscle from a fall I experienced almost two years ago now. The way the entire leg felt yesterday it makes me wonder if the nerves have been affected. It was somewhat depressing because people were passing me left and right on a climb that I know I could usually handle. As we continued upward the climb became steeper. Around the 35 minute mark I reached the top of the mountain and the last 12 minutes of the race for me were all downhill on big fire roads. My quad started to loosen up but by that point in the race I was unable to catch up to anyone and had lost some of my competitive spirit. I finished 6th for women, I am not sure what my overall place was in the field. I definitely enjoyed the experience because it was beautiful running through the snowy trails. Yet, I was frustrated that my quad behaved so negatively and I was frustrated that I really did not feel very comfortable in the snowshoes. I fell during the race three times on the uphill because I tripped over my own shoes. It was quite embarassing. However, despite all of these negative things I still had a fun time and met some great people at the event. I hope I can one day run a race like this and have no injuries and be prepared to race it.

I spent the rest of the day at a home track meet coaching. I then went to dinner with a friend and had a great time. After dinner I drove to my friend's bachelerette party in CT. It was a very late night but I was able to sleep in on Sunday so I am feeling pretty rested today. However, my quad muscles are still pretty sore. I'll probably take today off or just bike and lift. We'll see.

Posted by mary at 10:54 AM | Comments (0)

February 4, 2005

Corn Field Run and Campus Loop Run

This morning I met Alison for an hour run. We met at 7:30 which is a little later than we have typically been meeting. It felt really nice to sleep a little bit longer in the morning. I picked a course that had some tricky footing in the beginning but I think it worked out just fine because I wanted to make sure the pace was nice and easy. We ran out to the cornfields that are near the Northampton boat house. The dirt roads by the corn fields are not all plowed so for about a mile we had to run on tire tracks. The footing was more difficult than when I ran the course on Monday. I think it was due to the small amount of snow fall we had last night and some of the warmer weather we have had which has caused the snow to be more slushy. Alison and I had a nice easy run, we finished up with a mini loop around campus. The run flew by. My quad got pretty sore while I was running through the snow so I am worried about tomorrow's snow shoe race. I am using the stick a lot tonight to try to massage the quad muscles.

Around 11:00 a.m. I met one of the track athletes and ran an easy four miles with her. The pace was nice and comfortable and conversational. I had a nice time but again my quad was acting up. I think it is just over tired from all of the running I have been doing. I may have to take a day off on Sunday and do my longer run on Monday, we'll see. I just hope I can make it in a half way decent effort at tomorrow's snowshoe event. I will warm up a lot and then use the roller before the race. I will also try not to go out too hard. If I sprint at the beginning (I actually do not know how to sprint in snowshoes) my quad will kill me. I will try to be in the middle of the pack and see what happens. I am excited for the new experience.

Posted by mary at 7:57 PM | Comments (0)

February 3, 2005

Comfortable Day for Running!

Well I was pretty exhausted when my alarm went off at 6 a.m. and unfortunately it was one of those short nights when you keep getting up to look at the alarm clock to see how much more time you have to sleep. I was worried that I would oversleep and miss meeting my friend to snowshoe and then when the time did arrive to go snowshoeing 6 a.m. ish I was so beat that I knew my entire day would be shot if I got up this early. I sheepishly called up my friend and canceled. He was a good sport about it but I felt badly for canceling. I hope he'll give me a second chance in the future. It would have been so nice to climb a mini mountain first thing in the morning. We were going to climb Mt. Tom. After I made the call I was able to sleep until 8:30 and I actually think it was a good decision. I did not get home from Hartford until midnight last night and I have gotten very little sleep all week. During the day today I felt alert and a little more rested than usual.

Thursdays are a busy day for me because I have about 5 hours of class in a row. It is not horrible; it is actually interesting but sometimes it tires me out because I don't have any time to myself. I was planning to run right after class but I realized I needed some down time because I was tired. I had a quick snack and then did some errands around campus. I then set out for my run around 4 p.m. The students cross train on Thursday so it is my day to explore on my own or do something different. I really enjoy it if I can do something new but today I was not really inspired to explore. I thought it would be a grand effort just to finish my run. A piece of me thought a day off was in order but then I knew it was such a beautiful winter day I really needed to capitalize on it. I decided that if I told myself I was just going to run really slow it would be easier to get out the door. The trick worked. I decided to run my usual 10 mile Northampton bike path loop, however, the more I run it and the faster I run it, the more I think it is actually 9 miles. Yet the first time I ran it in 1:15 or maybe it was 1:17 and today I was down to 1:08.30. I am not sure. I'll record it as 9 miles for now. The weather was a mild 35 degrees (estimated), the sun was out and it was a little bit cloudy. The roads are very clear for the most part and the sidewalks are about 85% clear, there are some parts of the sidewalk that are covered in black ice so I usually jump off and run in the snow for a bit. The main Northampton bike path is perfectly clear and I think that is where I usually start to pick up the pace. It is just an incredibly flat section of bike path that is paved that last for about 2-3 miles. It is actually pretty, because there are woods on either side and it feels like I am running through the snow, which in some ways I am but I am not landing on snow. My quads and legs were very sore the first 3 miles or so and then I remembered they should be since I did the circuit yesterday which consisted of one leg jumps and bounds. I was relieved to realize they actually work the proper muscles. On a theoretical level I knew it but I just wasn't sure if results could always be measured. Sometimes I think if you are not trying 100% you won't gain much benefit. I was only giving about a 50% effort yesterday because I was tired from my two runs and I still felt a difference today so I think you still achieve some benefit. The second half of the run I was definitely picking it up and felt really good. I was so glad that I made it out the door. Tonight I have to work on goal sheets for our team's weekend meet and I need to shop for the team's meet. I then plan to go to bed early so I can meet Alison for an easy morning run.

Posted by mary at 6:17 PM | Comments (1)

February 2, 2005

Lots of Working Out Today!

This morning I was supposed to meet Alison at 6:30 at the indoor track. I had set my alarm for 5:50 so I could run a few miles to warm up before meeting Alison for a track workout. However, I could not get myself to wake up at that time and decided to sleep until 6:30. I then quickly got up, got dressed, and sprinted over to the track to meet Alison. She had already finished her warm up and was about to start her 6 mile tempo run which consisted of alternating miles of 6:40 and 7:10. I decided to warm up for a mile and then run her 7:10 miles with her and run half of her 6:40 miles with her. I was worried that I might not be able to keep up with Alison for the 6.40 1/2 miles especially since I did not get a chance to run a proper warm up. Yet, once I started to run with Alison the pace felt really good and my quad felt fine. Towards the end my quad started to act up for the 3.20 half but I was able to finish. Alison and I talked for the entire intervals. I really enjoy being able to run some of these tempo runs with Alison because it motivates me to pick up the pace a little bit. I also get inspired by Alison's dedication to her written schedule. I often write schedules but have a hard time following them because I really enjoy being spontaneous with my runs. After the run Alison let me borrow her racing snowshoes which I will use this Saturday in a snowshoe race at Northfield Mountain which is about 40 minutes away.

I had one class this morning and then worked for four hours at the library. I then met the team for their workout. We ran an easy 7-8 miles out to the Northampton bike path and back. The pace was nice and easy and I was able to talk about my ideas about youth and sport and education reform with some of the education majors who are on the team. When we returned from the run we did a 15 minute circuit which consisted of one legged jumps, abs, and push ups. We then lifted in the gym - bench press, squats, and step ups. I am pretty beat now and ready for a really easy day tomorrow.

I am planning to meet a friend at 7:00 a.m. tomorrow morning to climb Mt. Tom with my snowshoes. It will be a great morning hike. I wish it could be at 9 a.m. but I have class at 9:00 so the earlier time will have to do. In the afternoon I may do a short run or I may take a day off because I am feeling like I am doing a lot this week. I will just play it by ear.

Tonight I am driving to Hartford to meet my brother in law for dinner. He will be flying in from CA for a job interview and he arrives at 8:30 p.m. so I should actually get going. I am looking forward to dinner but also looking forward to getting some sleep tonight because I am suddenly feeling very tired today. One of the athletes on the team today told me I should have been named Kathy. I asked why? and she replied because I was so chatty! Well, she's right! Most of the time I am quite chatty.

Posted by mary at 7:01 PM | Comments (16)

February 1, 2005

Pool Running and Easy 7 miler

This morning I woke up at 6:45 and met two athletes to run in the pool for a little over an hour. It was so nice to get in the pool and run. It was a great way to start the day. My day was packed again with classes and teaching. I only had an hour for a run so I jumped on the treadmill for an easy 7 mile run. I did not want to do too much because I am really tired from not getting enough sleep and I am meeting Alison tomorrow morning at 6:30 for a run/workout. I felt fine running except for being tired. Tonight I had dinner with some of the women on the team. It is so nice not to have to cook for myself. This is short because I have to go work on a lab and then get to sleep. Hopefully a more complete update tomorrow.

Posted by mary at 9:14 PM | Comments (0)