Benchmark Run #2

On Tuesday we ran 2 miles at the Diablo Valley College track to see if we've improved from our last 2 mile benchmark run 8 weeks ago. Last time I ran the 2 miles in a little over 18 minutes - so a nice and steady 9 minute+ pace. And this time I ran the 2 miles in 16 minutes, which means that I took off over 2 minutes! It doesn't break any records, but it would qualify me for the Presidential Fitness award for the mile if I were still in grade school :).

I've noticed that even as I add more miles to my long Saturday runs, I've still been able to stay around a 9 mile pace. But our longest run has only been 11 miles so far, so we'll see if I can keep it up as we continue to add mileage.

We have to meet at 6 am this Saturday morning (so waking up at 5 am) to drive out to Livermore for our long run. It's brutal getting up that early on a Saturday morning, but it's supposed to be a pretty run through orchards and vineyards. I still don't think that it will make it any less painful when the alarm goes off on Saturday morning!

A vineyard in Livermore, CA:

ON THIS DAY

According to my fabulous Runners World calendar, on this day in 2007, Alan Webb shattered Steve Scott’s 25-year-old American record for the mile. He ran it in 3:46.91. That is crazy. We are repeating our 2 mile benchmarks next Tuesday to see how much we’ve (hopefully) improved in the last 6 weeks. I don’t think that I’ll be breaking any records, but a little improvement would be nice.

Bikram Yoga

As part of my cross-training for the marathon, I've started going to a 90 minute Bikram Yoga class every Wednesday evening. I've never been one of those girls you see running around with a yoga mat tucked into their bag, which is probably why I can't even touch my toes without bending my knees. I never feel like I'm getting a good workout in yoga because I'm not able to do 1/10 of the things that they want me to do. So I just sit there in downward dog for an hour. But with Bikram Yoga, the room is 105 degrees, so even if you just sit there you end up sweating off a couple of pounds. Plus the 26 moves are basic enough that anyone can at least attempt to do them. And they are the same every class, no matter who teaches it or where you go. So you can see little improvements week by week.

The 26 moves are listed in the chart below. They look easy enough, but doing them in extreme heat adds a little something "special" to it. Last week a girl in our class fainted and fell head first to the floor while doing #7.

Pink slip = PR

Despite the California state budget crisis, I haven’t (yet) been handed a pink slip. But if I do, I’ll have one thing to look forward to: a faster marathon time. I don’t think that having more time to train would be worth the stress of finding a new job or reduced cash flow (newsflash: California is expensive). My husband definitely wouldn’t think so. But chances are, I’ll be passed by more than a few unemployed runners during the Nike Women’s Marathon in October. According to this article in the Wall Street Journal, there has been a 39% increase this year in the number of runners whose run times have made them eligible for the grand daddy of all races – The Boston Marathon. People are finding that training for a race while unemployed is a great way to add structure and discipline to an otherwise hectic time. Plus, training for a marathon is time consuming. And now that they aren’t stuck behind a desk for 40+ hours a week, they have the time to properly train.

For now, I’ll just have to stick with squeezing in workouts before and after work. And as always, I need to remember to run my own race. It’s my first marathon, so no matter how fast (or slow) I run, it will be a PR.

My new running toy!

I have decided that it's finally time to retire my $10 timex ironman watch that I bought from Target 3 years ago and buy one of those fancy running watches with gps.  Most people in my Team in Training group own a Garmin Forerunner 305 and love it, so I've been on the lookout for a good sale on those.  I found one on costco.com for $149 (normally retail for $299), so I ordered it and it should be here in 7 - 10 days!  I'm so excited to finally be able to accurately track mileage, pace and calories.  I'll post a review once it comes and I have a chance to play with it a bit. 

 

4th of July in L.A.!

We just got back from a GREAT holiday weekend in Los Angeles. We stayed with a family friend (my west-coast mom) in Manhattan Beach. So on Saturday and Sunday morning I went for runs on the beach. On Saturday, I ran on pedestrian path on the Strand. There is a pedestrian path that was packed with runners and walkers. The bikers have their own separate path so you don't have to worry about getting run over. Because it was the 4th, there were tons of people setting up for parties on the beach so it was great people watching (even at 7 am). I ran about 6 and 1/2 miles before I had to get back home and shower for our beach party.

On Sunday morning, I somehow dragged myself out of bed early because I didn't want to waste an opportunity to run on the beach. I was exhausted from such a busy Saturday, and my legs were a little sore from Saturday's run on the concrete pedestrian path. So I decided to run on the sand, which always adds a little extra challenge. There were tons of surfers, volleyball players and triathlon teams out. But much less crowded than on Saturday. Most people were probably still passed out from the festivities.

Great weekend. Beautiful beaches and people. Perfect running conditions.

Here are some pics that I took during the weekend....

Manhattan beach and the running/biking path:

Surfers and volleyball players at Manhattan Beach:

View from the deck of our 4th of July party in Hermosa Beach:

The beautiful beach home where we stayed - I could only get a bit of it in the picture because it goes for an entire block!:

Hello Summer.

On Saturday morning, we met at 8 am in Concord to do a 4-8 mile run on the Iron Horse Trail. By 8 am it was already 80 degrees, and there is no shade on this section of the trail. So by the time we finished around 9 am, it felt like it was around 90 degrees in the sun. I decided to do 7 miles and was able to keep up a 8:51 pace despite the incredible heat. I guess summer has officially arrived.