Weekly Training Report: 7/1/12

Well, I had a full intention on walking at least 2 miles every day, but that didn't happen this week...Unless you count walking around Disney World on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday!!  hahahahaha  My hubby decided that he really wanted to take a vacation so we went off to Disney World (where else??) on Fourth of July! (which I WAS planning on running in our local 4th of July 5k race..)

4th of July at Magic Kingdom!

I'm really picky about what count towards my goal...in order for it to count, I have to have a proof (ex: Nike App, pedometer, Garmin, etc.) and because I didn't use any of it, (but I KNOW I walked at least 2 miles each day!) I'm not going to count towards my goal...so NO MILES for me this week!!  On a good note, my knee seems to be fine now and I don't feel any more pain!  Yay!

Training plan for next week:
I will be wearing my glasses again (for the last time!!) next week to prep for my Lasik surgery on Friday, so I'll be running on my treadmill next week!  That means no track workout either :-(  I don't really have any plans other than to do at least 2 miles everyday so I can meet my goal of 50 miles this month!  But I really do need to run longer miles as Disneyland Half Marathon is only 58 days away!  Ugh!  Hope I can get back to normal after my Lasik surgery!  I'm looking forward to not worrying about contact lenses or glasses anymore!!

Weekly Training Report: 6/24/12

Little late posting this....Anyway, my training week was alright this week.  I didn't get to do what I planned to do (as usual) and by Friday, my left knee started hurting so I took the weekend off from running.  The pain on my left knee was so familiar to what I felt back in January of 2011 after my very first 5k...and found out my VMO is weak so I had to do 6 weeks of physical therapy to strengthen the VMO....Well, I was supposed to continue on with the exercises and I haven't....the worst part, I bend my knee and sit on my left foot (like criss-crossing except only on my left leg)  when sitting on the couch for hours.  So that's why the pain came back...

Sunday: Leisure Walk

Buddy and I went out for a walk this morning since I promised him I would take him out for a walk this morning.  The sky was gray and looked like it was about to rain, but luckily we were able to finish our walk before the sky fell on us.  We did a one mile loop in our neighborhood and when we got to our road, I noticed our neighbor's dog (Buddy's enemy...they always bark fight in the backyard) was out loose!  So I turned around and walked the other directions before Brownie (our neighbor's dog) could see us.  I called Jeff and told him to come pick us up, and that's how we were able to come home without Buddy getting in a fight with Brownie.  It was a nice walk, and was great way for me to start the week of my training!

Walking with Buddy means forget about the pace!

Miles for the day: 1.06 miles @ 25:36 pace 

Monday: Rested (rained)

Tuesday: Treadmill Run
I got up early and decided to run on the treadmill since the weather was bad yesterday and it looked like it was about to rain again this morning.  Wow! What a great run!  I did 0.5m/0.25m intervals today and I ended up running longer than my plan! It was so nice to get a run in first thing in the morning because I feel great and energize for the rest of the day!!
Miles for the day: 4 miles @ 15:01 pace 

Wednesday: Track Workout - Week 7

Wow! What a great attitude I had going to the track workout today!  I left my friend's house an hour early so I can prepare myself for the ladder workout today....instead, I decided to do the first workout as a warm up to see if I can even do it!!  I just wanted to make sure I PACE myself while running....Well, good news and a bad news...good news is that I CAN do it!  Bad news??  I used up all of my energy so by the time the actual workout began, I ended up stopping after the 800m!!  But I was so proud of myself because I DID IT!!

Warm up....

Lap 1 (400m) - 3:09 (1:16 walk break)

Lap 2 (800m) - 6:17 (with 4:54 walk break)

Lap 3 (1200m) - 10:26
Then walked until it was time to do it again


Actual exercise:

Lap 1 (400m) - 2:56 (1:16 walk break)

Lap 2 (800m) - 6:44 (with 1:05 walk break)

Then walked the rest!!!
Miles for the day: 3.97 miles @ 15:15 pace 

Thursday: Rested

Friday: Rested

Saturday: Rested

WEEKLY TOTAL: 9.03 miles

Training plan for next week:
Since my knee is in pain, I'm going to take it easy this week and will just walk at least 2 miles everyday...and no track work out this week!!

Weekly Training Report: 6/17/12

This week was awful....I lost my motivation and couldn't get any of my run in this week....Hopefully, next week will be better.

Sunday: Rested

Monday: Rested

Tuesday: Rested

Wednesday: Track Workout - Week 6
We had the same workout as last week, but unfortunately, I couldn't keep up at all!  I did 2 x 400m and 800m and quit...I ended up doing the "walk of shame" towards my car while others were working hard on their last 800m....
Lap 1 (400m) - 2:41 (1:22 walk break)
Lap 2 (400m) - 2:47 (with 1:34 walk break)
Lap 3 (800m) - 6:19
Lap 4 (400m) - walked the entire lap (6:54)
Lap 5 (400m) - walked the entire lap (5:37)
Lap 6 (800m) - walked out of the track workout :(
Miles for the day: 2.26 miles @ 16:22 pace 

Thursday: Rested

Friday: Rested

Saturday: Treadmill run
By today, I felt like CRAP!  I didn't want to go out and run and just wanted to stay home all day so I did...but after dinner, I felt really bad about not running enough this week, so I decided to run on my treadmill and did HALF of what I was supposed to do today.  Even though I only did 3 miles, I felt much better afterwards!
Miles for the day: 3.47 miles @ 13:33 pace

WEEKLY TOTAL: 5.8 miles

Training plan for next week:
I sure do hope I can keep up with my workout next week instead of becoming a slacker again like I did this week.  I also looked at the weather and supposed to be raining next week (higher chance on Monday) so I also need to keep that into consideration...If it rains, then I guess, I'll either run on treadmill or do cross training at the gym!

Sunday - Rest
Monday - Track Workout (6x400m with 2:15 break)
Tuesday -  Leisure walk (2 miles)
Wednesday - track workout (Ladder workout: 400m, 800m, 1200m, 800m, 400m)
Thursday - 45min 1/1 interval run
Friday - Leisure walk (2 miles)
Saturday - Long run (4 miles)

Weekly Training Report: 6/11/12

I totally forgot to factor in the fact that I had to wear my glasses on Friday (and the next 5 days) so it was hard trying to run with my glasses this week as I was  not used to it.  (I only wear glasses at night).  However, I tried my very best and did what I needed to do even if I had to walk my miles in!!

Sunday: Rest

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: 40min 1/1 Interval Run
I waited til right around almost noon to go for a run today.  It was cloudy so I thought I would be ok...but as soon as I stepped outside, the sun decided to shine BRIGHTLY on me the whole time!  I tried my best to do 1/1 combo but ended up walking the last mile again...and once I got home, the sun went away and the rain started coming down!  I guess the sun wanted to play with me today!!
Miles for the day: 2.40 miles @ 15:57 pace


Wednesday: Track Workout - Week 5
Oh BOY!  This week was TOUGH! We did 2x400m, 800m, 2x400m, and then 800m!!  He gave us our average pace, and mine should be 2:54 for 400m and 6:00 for 800m....I went to the track workout with my head in the game...but the heat and humidity got the best of me (as you can see my results).  I hope to do better next week!

Lap 1 (400m) - 2:49 (2:00 walk break)
Lap 2 (400m) - 2:51 (with 1:48 walk break)
Lap 3 (800m) - 6:18
Lap 4 (400m) - walked the entire lap
Lap 5 (400m) - 3:06
Lap 6 (800m) - 10:23 (walked)
Miles for the day: 3.28 miles @ 17:20 pace 

Thursday: Rest
I decided to rest today since I woke up feeling like a truck ran over me this morning...Used BioFreeze for the first time since Princess Half in Feb!


Friday: 45min 1/1 Interval Run
I totally forgot I needed to wear my glasses today!!  I first took Buddy for a nice walk (a nice long warm up for me!) then did 2 miles of 1/1 interval run.  I decided to take off my glasses since it bothered me while I was running.  I did good the first mile, but my shins started hurting while running...but didn't give up...I slowed down, and took many walk breaks, but on the last run, I ran down Northlake drive (about 0.3 miles) all the way back to my road!  Then I walked as I cool down for 10 minutes.  I'm so glad I went for an early run this morning rather than waiting til in the late afternoon!
Miles for the day: 3.00 miles @ 17:34 pace


Saturday: Long Run (6 miles)
I got up SUPER EARLY (not intentional) and went for a run around 7:30 this morning.  I knew it was going to be a rough run because my shins started hurting the first mile and my glasses kept slipping off my face.  Every time I do a long run (longer than 3 miles), I usually go to the neighbor, more richer, subdivision, so I don't get bored doing loops around my neighborhood.  I did a lot more walking than running, but when I started running, I noticed that I don't huff and puff any more like I used to...I do feel like my body is trying to pace so that I don't get tired...I did several runs that were longer than 2 minutes and I was very proud of myself for that! If it wasn't for the pain, I think I would have kept running!  I enjoyed running in this neighborhood because most of them are shaded areas and the view is wonderful! (especially when I get to the lake!).  By 4.5 miles, I was back to my neighborhood, and thought about cutting my run short...but then I decided against that!  "I can walk 1.5 miles to reach my goal," my mind spoke...so I did....instead of taking a right to go back home, I took a left and finished miles for the day, and I'm so glad I did!

This view of the lake is worth going to this subdivision!

Miles for the day: 6.4 miles @ 15:39 pace

WEEKLY TOTAL: 15.08 miles

Training plan for next week:
I decided to add additional track workout to my training so I can keep up with my Wednesday track workout group!

Sunday - Rest
Monday - *Track Workout (6x400m with 2:15 break) - IF my legs won't hurt!
Tuesday -  Leisure walk (2 miles)
Wednesday - track workout (4x400m and 2x800m)
Thursday - 45min 1/1 interval run
Friday - Leisure walk (2 miles)
Saturday - Long run (6 miles)

Weekly Training Report: 6/3/12

Here's the recap of my training this week!  Wow! I was very motivated (somewhat) this week, thanks to my new gadget and this blog!!  I ended up resting on Friday because my body wasn't quite used to this daily activity that I had plan for this week, and also realized that I NEEDED to rest my body!!


Sunday: Leisure Walk
I decided to go ahead and get my walk out of the way this morning, and Jeff and Buddy decided to tag along with me on my walk (They ended up doing only 1 mile since it was getting hot for Buddy).  We took the same route that I did yesterday to see if my Garmin will track the same miles as yesterday...and you know what?  It did!  So my new Garmin is pretty accurate.  On mapmyrun.com, it calculates the distance by measuring the middle of the road, but I walk on the edge of the road...so I'm thinking that's why my Garmin was 0.07 mile off than mapmyrun.com's measurement.  I'm also glad I had my Garmin with me today!!  Around 1.8 miles, I realized that my Nike+GPS didn't give me the audio feedback (I had it set for every 1/4 mile) and realized that the app PAUSED!!  Thank goodness for Garmin.  Luckily, I was able to calibrate the run (which the app doesn't usually give me that option after every run...) on Nike+GPS so I was able to log my miles for the day.
Miles for the day: 2.21 miles @ 18:29 pace (Garmin)


Monday: Leisure Walk
Walked 1/2 mile with Buddy this morning despite less sleep last night.  I took him back home and walked (and ran a little) the rest.  I thought getting out at 8:30 in the morning will be still nice and cool but the sun was beaming already! I guess I need to get up earlier IF I wanted a nice cool run in the summer!  Overall, I'm proud of myself that I went out there and walked!!
Miles for the day: 2.25 miles @ 18:17 pace (Garmin)


Tuesday: 40min run/walk
I wanted to run in the late afternoon to get used to the heat, but my plan was ruined by south Georgia's weather. So instead, I did my run on the treadmill.  I was able to run 5 min at 4.5 mph and walked 3 min at 3mph.
Miles for the day: 3.07 miles @ 13.09 pace


Wednesday: Track Workout - Week 4
Today's goal was 6 x 800m with 2:15min walk breaks in between.  This is my 4th week with track workout and last week was horrible and ended up only doing 3 laps and walked the rest.  Every time I come to the track, I get nervous because I'm surrounded by runners and always felt like I was out of place because I'm always the last one in the group 2.  So I got there early and walked 3 laps (0.76 miles) before we started the workout.  I tried my very best and ended up only doing 6 x 400m but that was the BEST track workout EVER!  I FINALLY saw the progress in this workout! I was able to average 2:40 every time I ran 400m, which is what I was supposed to do! I still need a little longer walk breaks, but at least I was able to do what Mike Beeman wanted us to do in the past 4 weeks!  Yes, I was still the last of the pack, but that's my pace and I'm sticking to it!  I was a bit discourage last week because my time seemed to slip away at every lap (and the last lap being 15 seconds slower than the one before it) so I almost gave up on the training, but glad I stuck to it!  And here is the result of my workout today:

Lap 1 - 2:41 (with 1:05 walk break...realized I was a minute short of my walking break!)
Lap 2 - 2:40 (with 1:46 walk break)
Lap 3 - 2:42
Lap 4 - walk the entire lap
Lap 5 - 2:41 (with 2:18 walk break)
Lap 6 - 2:42
Lap 7 - walk the entire lap
Lap 8 - 2:38 (the best ever!!)

Miles for the day: 3.29 miles @ 16:08 pace 

Thursday: Leisure Walk (and little bit of running)
My new shoes (Asics Kayano 18 in blue) and the inserts came in last night so I decided take them for a walk.
Miles for the day: 3.5 miles @ 17:26 pace


Friday: Rest


Saturday: Long Run (4 miles)
I totally missed the opportunity to run this morning while it was nice and cool because I wasn't feeling well. Then decided to go for my long run 1 1/2 hrs after I ate a big lunch, which turned out to be a BAD IDEA!  My plan was to do 1/1 intervals, and by 2 miles in, it turned out to be "run whenever you feel like it" intervals...lol  By the end, I pretty much walked the rest.  Not a good result, but at least I went out there and did what I needed to do!!
Miles for the day: 4.39 miles @ 16:05 pace

WEEKLY TOTAL: 18.71 miles

Training plan for next week:
After thinking about my 2 training plans by Jeff Galloway, I decided to stick with "Finish in the Upright Position" training guide for both races rather than to improve my time training guide for half marathon since I'm already doing a speed workout on Wednesday nights.  So here is my plan for next week....

Monday - Leisure walk (2 miles)
Tuesday -  45 min run with 1/1 intervals
Wednesday - track workout
Thursday - leisure walk (2 miles) OR rest
Friday - 45min run with 2/1 intervals OR leisure walk (it depends on my body)
Saturday - Long run (8 miles for half and 3 miles for ToT according to the training guides...average them up and came up with 6 miles!  So I'm going to do 6 miles this week with 1/1 intervals...If I'm up for it, I'll do 2/1 intervals...)

Weekly Training Report: 5/24/12

I realized I needed something to make me accountable for my training since I have been slacking with my training and I only have 92 days until my next half marathon! Well, I came across a running blog and the blogger posted her training recap on the blog and I thought... "HEY! I need to do that!!" I have not been blogging about my running and felt that this will be a great way to kill two birds with one stone! (post new blog and making myself accountable for my training). So here it goes!
(Oh, by the way, my week starts on Sunday!)

Sunday: Rest

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: Rest (yup! I rested, and rested, and rested!! hahahaha!)

Wednesday: Track Workout
Today's track workout was AWFUL! It was awful because of the heat and my body...my body was NOT in the mood for a speed workout at all! We were supposed to do 8 x 800m with 2:30 rest, but I was only able to do 4 and....let me just say....was horrible! (Lap 1 - 2:40, Lap 2 - 2:42, Lap 3 - 3:01, Lap 4 - took a walking break, Lap 5 - 3:14, then walked the rest) I did much better last week than this week...

Miles for the day: 2.13 miles @ 17:28 pace

Thursday: Rest

Friday: Rest

Saturday: A late afternoon run
I purchase Garmin Forerunner 210 so I decided to take it for a run today to see if the GPS was accurate. The run wasn't easy and my legs and ankles started hurting, but I think it's because I gained 5lbs in the last month and haven't really run like I'm supposed to...Anyway, after my run, I went to mapmyrun.com and mapped out my run and compared the three to see if they were accurate (I had Nike+GPS running as well...can't give that up since I like to hear people "cheering" for me).

Here are the results:
Mapmyrun.com 2.27 miles
Nike+GPS 2.28 miles
Garmin 2.20 miles

Well, as you can see Nike+GPS was much more closer to mapmyrun.com but I really liked Garmin Forerunner because I was also able to keep up with my heart rate.

Miles for the day: 2.28 miles @ 14:12 pace

WEEKLY TOTAL: 4.41 miles
(I'm gonna go with the Nike since I'm keeping up all of my miles on Nike+GPS)


Training plan for next week: Technically, I am training for 2 races (Disneyland half marathon on Sept 2 and Tower of Terror 10-miler on Sept 29) so I'm going to have to combine the 2 together. Luckily, I'm already committed to track workout on Wednesdays, so I am not going to do the speed workout for Jeff Galloway training plan (or should I??) on the days that it require me to do it, which is usually on the weekends. In addition to my training plan, I'm also going to walk at least 2 miles everyday next week!

Tuesday - 30 to 45 min run
Wednesday - Track workout (8 x 800m and 2:15 break)
Thursday - 30 to 45 min run
Saturday - 4 miles

ABAC Fitness 5K (1/21/11)

I signed up for this race a week before the event and was very nervous...now you might think, "what in the world you were nervous about running the 5k? You just ran a half marathon!!". Yes, you were right, I just ran a half marathon and I was calm...I was nervous because of the hills and running on the dirt road...and running in front of the elite runners!!

On the morning of the race, I got up and ate my usual breakfast before I headed to Tifton (45min from my house). Once I got there, people were already warming up for the race...wow, I'm about to run with a bunch of elite runners!!!  I saw several of my sole sisters and we all lined up at the starting line. My legs started hurting and my heart started beating even faster.  I positioned myself in the middle of the pack, hoping to stay with the pack.  The guy yelled loudly "READY, SET, GO!" and off we ran!

Dawn and I stayed together.  We tried to run as long as we could and took our first walking break after 1/4 mile of running.  We started out in the middle but ended up in the back of the pack, but that didn't matter any more.  I wanted to finish what I started.  So now we started our 1/1 intervals.

Not even a mile into the race, I saw the dirt road.  I saw that it was a bit moist and muddy a bit and got scared again...You see, I have this fear of slipping and dislocating my knee cap as it happened to me so many times in the past.  Running on the dirt road wouldn't be a big of a problem if it was dry, but it wasn't.  But I kept my composure and kept on running.  Soon, we saw the first runner passing us by but we kept going!  We kept our intervals all the way.  At some point, I felt like my right leg was giving up on me and I almost fell to the ground.  I told Dawn to go, but luckily I was able to get back up and kept on running.

After what felt like hours on the dirt road, we finally got back on the road and got my groove back on again.  My legs were fine, didn't feel any pains any more.  At last, I finally saw the finish line!  I saw my friends' kids running beside us cheering us on.  I did it!  Finished the race!  Everyone was cheering us on!  Felt really good knowing that I finished!  My time was 39:27...That was MUCH better time than my first 2 5k race!!

After the 5k race, we all decided to support the kids' first race so we all (sole sisters) ran 1 mile together with the kids.  My time on 1 mile fun run was 12:09...by far, the fasted 1 mile I have ever ran!!

5k race route

1 Mile Fun Run route