Back on Track

Well these past two weeks have been fun...

Fourth of July weekend I went up to Steamboat, CO with some friends, which was awesome, but not so awesome for my workouts.  I did get in my Saturday long run in before we left (see last post), but the rest of the week was basically shot to shit, missing 3 of my 5 weekly runs (+ missing Body Pump--my favorite workout of the week)...I did however end on a good note with my SECOND 10K last weekend!  It was super-hot and my first experience running with my hydration belt--which was different.  My pace was a lot higher than I would have liked (12:35/mile), but I finished and that's all that matters!  My lack of running basically all week + running in the heat + running on the road (rather than trails, which are softer) all probably had some contribution to the higher pace...at least that's what I'm hoping...

Anyway, this past week was pretty fabulous!  I did four workouts with a weekly mileage of 18mi!  I experimented with a few different and new trails...James A. Bible park (which I have run a short loop on only once before), a bigger loop around my apartment, a portion of the Cherry Creek trail, and then the south portion of the Highland Canal trail (I love this trail).

I experienced running in a monsoon for the first time...and it was as you might expect...wet with squishy shoes.  We have been having unusual amounts of rain for Colorado the past couple of weeks (unusual so I am told).  On Wednesday at about 2:30, I decided I would go for a run and try out a new trail--Cherry Creek.  When I arrived at the trailhead it was bright and sunny outside...and it remained that way until about 1.5 miles into my run, at which point the sky decided to fall out and I was caught in a torrential downpour.  There was no shelter to take cover under. anywhere.  There was thunder, there was lightening, and there was RAIN...lots and lots and lots of rain.  I was soaking wet, my shoes were soaking wet, and I was not a happy camper.  By the time I got back to my car, I looked like a wet rat...so that was that...I guess I should check the rain before every run from now on...

Saturday I ran 8.04 miles!  The FARTHEST and LONGEST I have ever run in my life!  I felt pretty accomplished!  It took me 1:34hr with a pace of 11:49/mile...I was okay with that because I just ran 8 miles...and I remembered the following little ounce of inspiration:

This coming week will be a good one!  I have Body Pump in the AM with Lauren (an instructor I particularly like)...and then on Thursday AM I am going to try and go to our team Red Rocks workout with Coach Rick...it's @5:45am, which means I need to leave my casa at 5:10, which means I need to be up at 4:40 to eat some breakfast and get awake...it may be a stretch but I am going to try and make it!

Getting back on track this week with eating healthy + completing ALL 5 workouts!

I survived my first 10K today!

So getting up for team runs has been really hard for my lately...don't know why...I always really enjoy them once I'm there, and sometimes I even run my best pace of the week during our Saturday runs!  Well, I missed our team run for the second week in a row today :[ but it's definitely not because I'm a slacker!

I have come to find I CANNOT run during the heat of the day.  I will die [or at least it feels like it], so after it cooled off a bit, I decided to go run--around 6PM.  Saturday's are LONG RUN days, so I wanted to go somewhere with some nice scenery, not too hard of a surface (like concrete or asphalt), etc.  I decided to run the Highland canal trail.  To be honest I don't know how long the whole trail is...I know it's at least 10 miles because it has these cute little mile markers along the way and the 10 mile one is about half way through my run...anyway, it's a long trail, good for long runs!

I have been using the Galloway method for the most part.  Sometimes I run the first mile then start my 3:1 ratio, but Coach Mike says on long runs you need to start out slow so you can finish strong, so I started my 3:1 ratio from the beginning.  It was a pretty good run, but my pace was a little higher (11:09/mile) than I would like it to be, but that's okay because...I COMPLETED MY VERY FIRST 10K (like in my whole life)!  I did an "out-and-back" run, so when I was feeling a little tired toward the end, I realized there wasn't much I could do being 2 miles away from my car...I had to finish.

One thing I definitely should have done this week before today was get a hydration belt!  Coach Mike has told us that once our runs get longer (over an hour) we need to be using a hydration belt, and start experimenting with different nutrition supplements like gels so that we know what works for us by the big day!  I definitely could have used a little hydration along my run, so to say the least I will be getting my belt this week and be ready for next Saturday's long run!

My motivation for this run was this little picture that I found that has really stuck in my mind!

"Unless you Puke, Faint, or Die...Keep Going!"

Love It!

Training Tools
Anyone who knows me well, knows that EVERYTHING I do that can go into an excel spreadsheet, will!  So...since I started training in May, I have been tracking everything--workouts, miles, time, calories, strength training workouts, etc.  Well gotta love technology, but somehow my training file got corrupted! Nooooooo!  Well luckily I also track everything on Runner's World Training Log, and calorie count.  I decided that my excel spreadsheet, while I LOVED it, was redundant of my other tools, so I didn't attempt to rebuild it, I will just use these other tools.

Recap of May & June Runs/Workouts
(I know they are small, but still...)

Chalk it up to another week on the trails!

Oh....What a Week!

So this week was crazyyyyy!  And unfortunately, not so good for my training...

Last Saturday after our team run I packed up my things and my two pups and headed up to Brighton, CO to house-sit for my friend, Ken.  Ken and his late wife, Dawn, owned the rescue where I got Reg, my goof-ball of a Great Pyrenees.  If you received my fundraising letter, you know that part of the reason that I am training is because of Dawn.  She is the one who made me realize life isn't about material things, it's about making a difference in someone's life--so that's what I am trying to do as I train and fundraise for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.  Anyway...long story, short...from last Saturday until this past Thursday I was watching nine dogs and two cats.  Yes, that's right, I said nine dogs--for six days!  It really wasn't as bad as you may think, everyone was very well-behaved and got along, but my schedule was COMPLETELY different than normal, which threw my training off a bit!

I was able to get in a couple of good runs around the neighborhood...well, I say neighborhood, but its not really a neighborhood...it's a bunch of farms/land with houses.  I really loved running out there--such different scenery than my normal runs and really peaceful.  But that said, I was only able to run three times this week, which Coach Mike would NOT be too happy about since we were suppose to up our running to 5 days/week starting this past week!  Oh well, such is life...

I didn't go to the team workout this morning, but I did complete my long run.  This was the first time I have run around my apartment complex--a little more hilly than I realized...and it was HOT, like really hot!  I won't be running during the heat of the day anymore.  Period.  I was pouring sweat when I got back to my apartment.  I was literally soaking wet!  Which made for a good excuse to go jump in the pool!

In other news...I have reached my fundraising goal of $2,000!!  This means after race day I will be chopping my hair off for Locks of Love!  I am a little nervous because today I measured 10 inches on my hair...let's just say I hope it grows quickly over the next couple of months, otherwise I may have some VERY short hair!

I just want to give a BIG thank you to everyone who has helped me reach my goal so far--we are $2,000 closer to finding a cure for blood cancers!

• Matthew Cotter [brother]
• Debbie Verderaime [moma]
• Lonnie Strickland [former professor & mentor]
• Diane & Dayn Beam [aunt & uncle]
• Steva Gay [pet-sitter]
• Michelle Parvinrouh [friend]
• Loys Nunez [cousin]
• Allison & Rance Block [cousins]
• Claylia (Teets) LeBlanc [cousin]
• Donation in honor of Sam LeBlanc
• Rich & Clay Heilman [cousins]
• Laurie LeBlanc [cousin]
• John & Missy Gartner [AL neighbors]
• Donna & Andy Rucks [aunt & uncle]
• Clement & Colleen Cotter [dad & step-mom]
• Nadene & Sid Hilton [beloved family friend]
• Valerie & Shawn Hunton [aunt & uncle]
• Mary David [family friend]

...But I am not done fundraising!!  I am setting a new goal to see if I can reach $2,500!  If you haven't yet, please consider donating to this wonderful organization, who has helped so many people and relentlessly searches for a cure for blood cancers!


Here's to another, better week of training!

Loving the Galloway Method!

Well as you know I missed our team run last week, which also included a clinic on the Galloway Method...but not to worry because Coach Mike sent us a copy of the clinic info.  If you aren't familiar with the Galloway method it is basically a run/walk method that thousands of people use (especially first timers) for marathons...clearly not the best clinic for me to miss!

Anyway...last night I read the clinic info Coach Mike sent as well as some info on the web, and decided I needed a watch that had an interval timer on it!  Sooo... I did a little research, found the cheapest one at Target (not Wal-mart surprisingly), and off I went to get my new watch!  I got home, figured out all the settings, and this morning I was ready to run!

[Side Note:] I am just not quite in shape enough to run for my entire workout, whatever time that may be, (unless it is just a single mile), which means I have already been doing some type of run/walk combination--just not the "official" Galloway method.

My current pace is about 11min/mile (give or take).  According to Galloway, this means I should be doing a run/walk combination of 3:1.  So today I gave the official Galloway Method my first shot!  I normally run the entire first mile, which I also did today, but then I switched my nifty new watch into interval mode!  I ran 5.56 miles in 62 minutes with an average pace of 11:10/mile!!!  The best part? I didn't feel like I was dying at the end!  I have a feeling me and Galloway are going to be pretty close here for the next 16 weeks! :]

$90 away from my GOAL of $2,000

I am SO EXCITED to report that I am only $90 away from reaching my goal of raising $2,000 for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society!!

Training is still going well, I am up to roughly 15 miles per week!  I was thinking about upping my runs to 5x/wk this week, but I decided to stick with 4; however, next week the schedule calls for 5 so Wednesdays I am going to start running the Wash Park Pub Run!  This is a 5K from Pub on Pearl around Wash Park and back!  Afterwards you get FREE dinner from Whole Foods and your first beer is free!  Beer and I haven't been too good of friends since I started training, but I think I might have just ONE this Wednesday! :]  So far I have lost 4.52% of my starting weight! So excited, and I really do feel so much better!  Love the endorphins!

Only $540 away from donating my hair to LOCKS of LOVE!!

So tomorrow wraps up the end of Week 5 and I am only $540 away from my goal of $2,000, which means I will be donating my hair to Locks of Love after my race (if I get this last $540 before raceday)!

Well, this week was full of firsts...Yoga...Body Pump...a new best pace...and a new longest distance!

My week looked a little something like this:

• Monday = 30 min run + 60 min Yoga
• Tuesday = 40 min run
• Wednesday = 60 min Body Pump
• Thursday = 30 min run
• Friday = REST
• Saturday = 50 min run
• Sunday = hopefully 30 min elliptical

Let me just say...I had NO idea I would sweat that much during Yoga...seriously...it was intense!  But I liked it and I believe I will be returning again this week!  Wednesdays are reserved for cross-training so I decided I would try Body Pump, which if you don't know what this is go ahead and check out their website!  It was fun, but I also felt like I was going to die, well, my legs did after about a billion lungs with a barbell!

I didn't sleep well last night, so I didn't make it to training this morning, but I did run my 50 minutes.  I ended up running 4.26 miles, which is about a quarter of a mile farther than last Saturday's 50 minute run!

Total milage for this week = 13.1 miles

...funny to think in 18 weeks I will be running all of that in one day instead of four!

Best Pace = 11:09/mile

% weight loss = 3.17% of starting weight

Ready to take on another week!

4 weeks and $1,350 completed!!

So today marks my completion of 4 weeks of training!  I have raised $1,350 so far through the support of my wonderful friends and family (if you have sent me a donation and you're name isn't showing up on my fundraising page yet it's because they haven't processed your check yet, but it will show up soon)!!

Yesterday I ran for the longest distance and farthest time yet!  Coach Mike made us run for 50 minutes around Wash Park (we were only scheduled for 40)!  I ended up running 4.00 miles with an average pace of 12:35/mile.  My pace increased a little, but I think it is mostly due to the fact that I have been running inside on a treadmill instead of outside.  I need to start running outside more to get acclimated to the weather and terrain.

Since I have started running/training I have really tried to sustain an all around healthier lifestyle.  I have given up Starbucks and Fastfood until my training is over, and I am eating almost every meal at home...chicken, fresh fruit and veggies, salads, and lots and lots of water!  I have lost 2.49% of my starting body weight...an added bonus of healthy diet and exercise!!

18 more weeks and $650 to go!! :]