SUMMER!

SOO, it's been a while since I've posted - which means a couple of things.
1. I'm super busy with my new job, getting used to the new commute and hours (much longer than 40 hours/week).
2. I haven't been working out as much because it's SUMMER!!

I promised some of my followers a blog post about the "Let's Be Fit and Have Fun" summer run series race I participated in on June 16th .... 10 days ago I KNOW! It was a 4.2 mile course in Cambridge and I finished in 37:32. This is right on my 9 minute mile pace (actually a little bit under :)). Shortly, I'll be pushing for an 8:45 min mile pace during training runs and ultimately races. For the Tri in October I want to be running 8 minute miles. The course was great, and there was a BBQ, kegs of Harpoon AND a live reggae band waiting for me at the finish (hint hint to all you supporters out there - I will run faster for rewards!). I felt great on the run, even considering the heat. Brian blew me out of the water with his 28:00 time -- 7 minute miles on a FUN RUN???

This morning I went on a 3.5 mile run with Stash for his birthday. Since it's light out so early now, it was surprisingly easy to get up and moving. I think I REALLY like working out in the morning - which is shocking. Tomorrow I want to go to the 6AM spin class at the YMCA. I can run there, and back - which basically doubles my workout. 2.8 mile run (round trip) plus a 60 minute spin class. I also get to work on the bike to run transition, which is the hardest part of the tri for me.

OOO, and the most exciting part... I got my pre-race packet today! An OCRF tri top, teal swim cap, black sports bag, swim goggles, one of those waist bands with a water bottle (OMG!!) -- it's all so nice and I'm so excited to be doing this. My first tri of the season is on July 17th - just three weeks away! It's a sprint distance - 1/3 mile swim, 12.5 mile bike and a 3.1 mile run.

My sweet gear

Your Body Does What Your Mind Tells It To

"Your body does what your mind tells it to!!!" That's what Ed (my spin instructor) was yelling at us today during minute 10 of our 12 minute interval. I seriously think Ed might be a sadist; EVERY single time I go to his class it's a hill interval workout. His motto is that resistance makes us stronger, which is technically correct. Every time you push yourself beyond the limit of what you thought was possible, you get stronger.
I've been on a workout high since the half marathon, because it really IS true, that your body will do whatever you tell it to (obviously, there is a threshold but it's significantly higher than you could ever imagine). Everyone who competes at endurance sports knows that it's 90% mental and 10% physical. Since the half marathon, every time I feel like I'm getting tired I just tell myself to suck it up, and that a week ago I was significantly worse off. For example on my 5.5 mile run on Saturday, at mile 4 I was starting to feel uncomfortable and it was almost laughable to me that I would consider slowing my pace. I slapped myself in the face (figuratively, of course) and realized that less than a week prior I had run THREE TIMES that far, in 90% humidity no less.
I did some abs today prior to my spin class, and was definitely regretting 20 minutes in. It's amazing how time flies though. I get into the zone, my legs are burning and all I want is for class to be over, and then it is.  It's unreal how much I LOVE that feeling, that feeling of being close to total exhaustion and then taking a huge breath in and using all of my energy to push myself just a LITTLE bit harder. And then it suddenly gets easier. Maybe I'm just as crazy as Ed, or maybe the chemistry of a runner's brain is a bit different :)

Official race photo courtesy of bright room. Bad Ass!!

Recovery 201

Since the half marathon last week I've been on two short runs, and then a 5.5 mile run this morning. On Monday (one day post race) I didn't run because I was in enough pain just trying to walk. I spent a lot of time stretching, probably 90 minutes broken up throughout the day. If you feel like you can, you're supposed to run a short run the day after the race, but I wasn't feeling up to it.

Tuesday AM I woke up bright and early and went on a nice 2 mile run. My left hip and foot were still bothering me a little, but I was able to complete the run. I took time to stretch my left hip flexor. Some really great stretches for your hips are:

• the warrior pose (basically a deep lunge), where your back foot is turned out perpendicular to the line of your body. you can modify warrior based on where you put your arms. for the deepest stretch, you can lift your arms straight up over your head, and while looking up sit into the lunge as much as possible. it really helps to take some deep breaths to get the most out of this stretch.

• pigeon pose where your front leg is bent at the knee and perpendicular to the body. you want your shin to be parallel with the front of the mat. if you're really tight, or not experienced in yoga, make sure you place a pillow, blanket or yoga block under your bumm to support you.

• down dog (no picture necessary), we all learned this one in gym class. to stretch the outside of your hip, you can modify down dog by lifting one leg at a time as high as possible without rounding your back.

• the butterfly stretch. trusted for so long because it works.

• another stretch that I like to use is a pilates move. face down on the mat, laterally rotate your legs out. then, lift opposite leg, opposite arms slowly, and do not crunch the lower back. you don't have to lift very high to feel the stretch, especially if you're SUPER sore from running a half marathon!

This morning I ran 5.5 in about 50 minutes. I felt great cardio wise, but was struggling a little bit with pain in my foot and hip AGAIN. Sometimes your body just needs more recovery time than you would like. Another reason things can start to hurt consistently is because of your shoes. It's really important you buy new running shoes fairly regularly, every 4 months or so if you're a serious runner (running more than 20 miles/week). SO, I guess it's time to start looking into new shoes. THAT will be a whole separate blog post!!

Starting on Monday, I have a revamped workout schedule! It's time to start working swimming into the mix on a regular basis, AND cycling at least twice. It will also be important as summer progresses, to start stacking my workouts (remember, stacking means doing two different cardio exercises in a row).  Lots of exciting new stuff to come as I switch my focus from running the half, to prepping for my sprint triathlon in July!!