The 10K redux

I do believe I have kicked my own ass.

On Saturday, I ran a 10K race in Mississauga. It’s the big race I’ve been training for since I started taking 10K clinics last fall. My first chance to run a real, timed, 10K race – not just a race done for us at the Running Room.

Originally, I had hoped to run 10K in 55 minutes. As I worked out and ran our two previous “races,” I kind of figured that was never going to happen. The last race we did, I clocked in at 59:20, working as hard as I possibly could. My instructor kept telling me that speed work would make me faster, even if I did it on a treadmill. I dutifully worked out, but even on our practice runs, it just didn’t seem possible that I could run that fast. (And, yes, I do realize that for many people, a 55 minute 10K is not fast… I’m basing this on my own running skills, not someone else’s!)

Race day came. I carpooled with a few people from our 10K clinic. Two were our clinic’s fastest runners. They were aiming for 50 to 51 minutes. Myself and another girl were aiming for under 59 minutes – we just wanted to beat our best times. We met up with the rest of our class in a parking lot close to the start line.

There was a crowd of about 1,000 people running the race. We did a small warm-up as a group, and shoved our way into the crowd at the start. (I should take a moment to comment on race “etiquette.” If you’re a slow runner, or you’re walking the race, you should MOVE TO THE BACK. Let those people who are trying to race up near the front. My clock time – when the gun went off – and my chip time – when my feet actually crossed the start line – were more than 30 seconds off, because of the crowd gathered near the start line. Others had discrepancies of more than a minute.)

The trail started with a massive hill. Okay, it didn’t seem that big at first, but by the time I got to the top of it, it seemed a lot bigger. Then we had to go up a few more good-sized hills. (“Why didn’t they tell us it would be this hilly?” another girl from my running clinic gasped on our way up one of them.) We hit the first kilometer mark in slightly over five minutes. So far, so good.

Instead of doing 10 and 1s, I decided to take a 60 sec. walk break every 2K. It’s not much of a difference, but it helped push me forward. (I also didn’t walk for the first 4K.) I know a lot of people don’t believe in 10 and 1s, but I swear it helps me run faster. By giving myself one minute of active recovery, it helps me pick my speed back up when I start running again. I know when I move to the half marathon and marathon, I’m going to continue doing 10 and 1s.

Around the 7K mark, I surged ahead of my friend. We had mutually agreed that we wouldn’t stick together if one of us felt good enough to go. I then rounded the 8K mark, and headed into a big “loop.” I saw my other clinic buddies on the loop (totally on track to make their 50 minute goals) and waved. Then I kept pumping.

Once I passed the 9km mark, there were people standing on the sidelines cheering. If you register early enough for the race, your name is on your bib. It was slightly disconcerting to hear people shouting “Go Alison! You’re almost there!” But it also helped fuel my legs toward the finish.

And cross the finish line I did… 55 minutes and 7 seconds after I crossed the start line. I had achieved my goal! I could barely breathe and I wanted to cry – I had done what I thought was impossible for me to achieve.

I grabbed the tin-foil type blanket offered and found my running clinic. It turns out, I wasn’t the only one who had a great race. Every single one of my running buddies, beat their best times. Whether it was to run it in 50 minute, 55 minutes, or 1:10, we had all achieved our goals.

It’s definitely an accomplishment to celebrate. I had set a goal, and achieved it. If I can run a 10K in 55 minutes (and seven seconds!), I can run a marathon.

I guess it also means it’s time to move on to the half. While I’d like to say I’m going to be starting that training soon, it looks more likely that I won’t start training for a half marathon until the fall. Why? Well, I think that’s a blog posting for another day. For now, I just want to enjoy my own personal victory.

Happy trails…

A question of time

If I’m supposed to start updating this blog on Sundays after my long run, I’m either doing very well or very poorly – seeing as how it’s Monday! But since it had been months since I updated, I figure being a day late isn’t too bad. Even now, though, I’m whipping this post off before heading to a doctor’s appointment, picking up Andrew from school, getting groceries, picking up Chris from daycare… and I do still have tons of work!

After yesterday’s 10K group run, I’ve figured out one very important thing. I am becoming obsessed with time, and not in a good way. I know that, when running, you’re really only running to beat yourself. But I’m starting to really panic about my 10K time (much like I did with the 5K), and I’m worried it’s taking the enjoyment out of running for me.

I originally planned to train hard enough to take my 10K time down to 55 minutes. But the more I run, the more unlikely it seems that I will meet that goal. That’s a whole four minutes I have to shave off my time (four minutes and 20 seconds, to be precise), and I think I might be putting too much pressure on myself.

Part of the problem is the running clinic I’m in. Before, we had very few people in our clinic, and I was one of the fastest runners. Now, we have 37 people – and while I’m not the slowest, I’m also nowhere near the fastest! But who cares, right? I do, only not for the reasons you’d think.

See, the problem is that I’d made some running buddies in the “fast” crowd – and now my buddies are outpacing me. I want to keep up with them because we’ve had some great conversations on our runs, and they make the runs a lot more fun for me. But I can’t. I simply can’t run that fast. Some will end up breaking 50 minutes on the 10K, and it’s never going to happen for me.

I guess the point would be to make new running buddies. But I really LIKE the people I run with now. So I either get faster – or let it kill me.

To try and get a little faster, I’ve been upping my speed workouts. Will it pay off on race day? I think it’s unlikely. I think I’m running about as fast as I can go. So what should I do?

I don’t have the answer, but I do know I plan to take a bit of the pressure off myself. Next Sunday, when I run with the group, if I can’t keep up, well, I guess I’ll talk to my buddies after. And if I run the 10K race in an hour, then I do. It’s not the Olympics, after all. Running is supposed to be FUN. If I keep worrying about my time, I’ll drive myself crazy. So fun it is.

Less than two weeks until race day… we’ll see what happens then.

Happy trails…

Ouch!

My new Mizuno running shoes are great. I started using them on Friday, and have not had one problem with shin splints. (Considering I was in agony on Wednesday night after running in my Nikes, that’s a big deal.) There’s just one little problem… ouch!

See, the new Mizunos aren’t broken in, and they’ve given me two rather massive blisters on my heels. We’re talking big-time blisters, and are they painful! I ran an easy 5K on Friday, which is when the blisters first started. On Saturday, I did some speed work on the treadmill (four minute, intense speed intervals – yuck!) and didn’t even bother doing weights because my feet hurt so much. Somehow I got through today’s easy 10K run, but I have to admit, my feet are in pretty bad shape now. I’m going to soak them in Epsom salts tonight, but I’m afraid of what tomorrow will bring. I have to be at a trade show all day, and I think the blisters might kill me!

Ultimately, I think I’ll be very happy with the shoe choices. The aches and pains/shin splints are already gone, proving to me that it was indeed my shoes that caused the problem. These shoes have great support, and if I can get the blisters under control, it will be great.

Until then, though, I think I’m in for some painful times ahead!

Today also marked another milestone for me with my running. Today I started my experiment with different types of energy drinks and gels. I know they’re not to important for me right now, considering I’m only running distances of up to 13K right now, but as I move to half marathon training in the fall, it will become much more important. Any time you’re out running for longer than 90 minutes, you need to put both carbohydrates and electrolytes back in your body. And while you could try munching on an apple while running, energy drinks and gels are really the best way to get those nutrients back into your body. (We had a sports nutritionist come in and talk to our clinic… can you tell?)

So today I tried a gel before my run. Disgusting! I didn’t notice it gave me more energy (although the run was easier – I think that’s because we slowed down our pace a bit), but it certainly didn’t upset my stomach either. Next week, I’m going to try an energy drink instead of water on my run. We’ll see if that makes any difference.

Happy trails…

Run versus write

I was at a birthday party last weekend, when someone asked me about updating my running blog. Was I not running anymore? Why hadn’t I updated it in a while?

I asked myself, has it really been that long? And the answer is yes! Three months is way too long to go without updating my running blog!

It’s no secret that I bit off a bit more than I can chew in terms of work this year, and lately I don’t seem to have much time for any “leisurely” writing pursuits. The good news is, I HAVE found time to run.

I completed my second 10K clinic and, once again, there was no official 10K race happening in the area to match the end of the clinic. But the Running Room put on another race for us from the store, where I clocked in at 59:20. I had a bit of a rough run, running out of steam toward the end. I hadn’t been feeling great leading up to the race, which may explain my lack of energy.

I then signed up for a third 10K clinic. I am determined to run one “real” 10K race before moving on to the half marathon distance. I’ve signed up with the Mississauga 10K in May, and the past few weeks I have been working toward training for that race.

My training has been a bit off, though. I’ve only done one 10K run since March, and that was on a treadmill. I’ve been having some shin splints and foot pain, but I just bought a new pair of shoes which should help. I was beginning to wonder if the Nikes I was using weren’t the best shoes for me. This time around, I’ve chosen a pair of Mizunos, and I took them out for a spin this morning. They seem to be a lot more comfortable (minus the fresh blisters on my heels, mind you!)

The other big change I’ve made is skipping the Tuesday run. Instead, Mike and I have been going to “Boot Camp” at the YMCA. We get a babysitter and head to the gym every Tuesday night for a combined strength/cardio workout. It’s fun – and it’s been especially nice to share my newfound love of fitness with Mike. (Unfortunately, we have to wrap it up in May, because Mike starts ball hockey again on Tuesday nights. And I KNOW I won’t drag myself out of the house Tuesday nights when I can go for a run Tuesday mornings.)

So that, in a nutshell, is the past three months of training. I’ve decided I want to make it a point to blog a bit more. Every Sunday, after my long run, I’m going to try to write about the week’s training. I know that’s an ambitious goal, but so is running a marathon, right? There’s a lot of ground to cover, so to speak, and I’m going to try to cover it all.

Happy trails…

Cleanin’ out my closet

On Wednesday, I started my second 10K clinic. Unlike the first time I started the 10K clinic, this time, I know I can physically run 10 kilometers, which is great. Unfortunately, the clinic instructors – one of whom ran my 10K race with me – know I can run 10K!

Basically, they’ve given me (and two other women who are repeating the clinic) a much more aggressive training schedule. Instead of taking it easy with the rest of the class, we’re going to be logging more kilometers and doing more speed work and hills – at least once a week.

To be honest, I wouldn’t even want to go back to the old training schedule. It was great, but most of the first few weeks are taken up with 3K runs. I’m a little past that by now! So I’m off this morning for an 8K run, and by next week, it’s back to 10K on Sundays. (Or more, in a few weeks!)

The other thing we’ve been working on in my house is getting better control of nutrition. I’d say that when it comes to breakfast and lunch, we all eat very well. I’ve written about nutrition enough and read about nutrition enough to know what we should be eating. (Lots of veggies, lots of fruit, whole grains, lean proteins…)

And, during the week, I really try to make healthy dinners. It’s hit or miss some weeks, depending on how busy we are, but I have some great cookbooks I rely on and we try to have good meals.

Friday and Saturday are more of a challenge, because Mike and I tend to feed the kids early and cook special dinners for ourselves. Sometimes they’re great, but sometimes… sometimes it’s things like nachos. (Baked in the oven with cheese and beef, and eaten with guacamole, salsa and sour cream. Mmm!)

So last week, I decided we needed to “cleanse” our systems. Last spring, I did a cleanse recommended in a book. Basically, you cut out red meat, grains, processed sugar and dairy for five days. It’s meant to cleanse your body, improve your skin, and, yes, you should lose about five pounds.

I put both Mike and I on the cleanse last week, and it went fairly well. At the end of it, Mike lost five pounds! Me? I lost… zilch.

I was disappointed. I mean, who couldn’t stand to lose five pounds? (Okay, there are a few people, but most of us would probably like to lose five pounds. Some would like to lose 10, and some even more!) It’s hard not to get disappointed when you put in that kind of effort for no reward. (Which is why I like running… I feel like there is a reward, when you beat a time, or run a distance you’ve never run before.)

But I’m determined to stick with healthy eating. We’re not perfect, but I’m trying to make sure that we eat very well 80 percent of the time, and have treats in moderation. I’m even trying out baked goods from a new cookbook, and made brownies with spinach and carrots last night! I swear you couldn’t taste the veggies at all! (Andrew ate the brownie, naturally. And, just as naturally, Chris – my picky, picky eater – took one bite and said, “No thank you!”)

Time for an 8K run this morning. Here’s hoping this week’s training goes well.

Happy trails…

The Resolution Run

On New Year’s Eve, the Running Room holds an annual run known as the “Resolution Run.” It’s a 5K fun run (i.e. not really a timed race) which is a great chance for people to start the New Year off right, with a bit of exercise. With your entry fee, you also get a jacket, so it’s pretty worthwhile.

I decided in November that I would sign up for this year’s run. What better way to kick off a whole new year of running goals than with a 5K fun run? So off I went to the run, clocking it in at 27:10, my best 5K time yet. (Although it wasn’t timed, the girl behind me was timing it, so I asked her after we crossed the finish line.)

But, more importantly, the run gave me some time to reflect on the purpose of New Year’s resolutions. Yes, I realize the majority of us make resolutions and don’t keep them, but the new year does bring a fresh start – a perfect time for resolutions.

Just before I headed off to my race, I read a great note written by one of my Facebook friends. It was a list of her top 10 resolutions for the New Year – and they were inspiring. Not the usual “I want to lose weight” or “I want to stop biting my fingernails” kinds of resolutions, but real, honest ways in which she wanted to change her life.

So while I ran my “Resolution Run,” I decided to come up with a few resolutions of my own. It’s no secret to those close to me that the fall of 2007 was a rough one for both me and my family. I found I was working too much, stressed out too much, yelling too much and far, far too snappish with everyone. I piled on the work (and stress), and found myself far, far worse off than before.

And while there’s not much I can do about a lot of it, I’ve come up with 10 of my own resolutions to try and make sure I don’t go through this again. Some of it is just changing my own attitude – and some is just putting my mind to making some changes. So here goes…

1. Worry and stress less
Yes, my biggest problem isn’t really even the amount of work I have or the never-ending “to-do” lists. It’s the fact that I worry and stress myself sick over those items. Deadlines are a part of my business – and I’ve never missed one in my life. Worrying about things that are out of my control is just a useless waste of time. The kids are sick and can’t go to daycare? I’ll deal with it. The washing machine breaks after a night when everyone pukes six times? I’ll deal with it. The idea here is to roll with the punches and not sweat the small stuff anymore. It’s going to take a lot of work to get to that point, but with a positive outlook, I believe I can do it.

2. Get organized
I know a number of people will kill themselves laughing at that statement, because most of my friends tell me I’m the most organized person they know. And it’s true… I’m pretty organized, particularly when it comes to work. (You cannot work from home with two kids and not be organized.)

But I’m not really talking about that kind of organization. I’m talking about clutter. The clutter in drawers, and cupboards, the papers piling up and the kids’ artwork… all the crap that seems to take over your life. I plan to organize my house, room by room, and find ways to realistically deal with all the clutter. (By realistically, I mean not setting myself up for failure. For example, I KNOW I will never scrapbook – so why tell myself I’m going to put the kids’ artwork and pictures in a scrapbook? Instead, I’m going to get more labeled Rubbermaid containers and stuff their artwork in there.) In fact, I’ve already started. This morning, I painted the boys’ rooms, and when they come home from the grandparents’ house on Saturday, their rooms will be freshly redecorated and organized.

3. Go organic
This one is going to be my toughest challenge, because I’m inherently cheap. But I’ve been doing a great deal of reading and research on the subject, and I’m really starting to see the health (and environmental) benefits of going organic. This means both food and cleaning products. Mike and I both complain of being tired, and I'm wondering if it's not related to all these chemicals in our homes and food. Not only that, but I’d love to think I could feed my family the healthiest foods possible. I know I can’t do it all at once, but I’ve resolved to start. I’ve already started switching cleaning products, which is a good first step. (Although, I have yet to find a cleaner for my bathtub that works as well as Vim, I must admit…)

4. Make new friends, and keep the old
Our busy lives mean sometimes friendships get a little bit shoved aside. But being on Facebook has put me in touch with so many old friends, and I've gotten to know a few new ones better as well. I know I don’t spend enough time with my closest friends, and I resolve to change that. There are also some newer friends in my life that I would really like to get to know better. I want to do that this year.

5. Improve my finances
Always an area of struggle for the family, for a few reasons. One is that both Mike and I just like to buy stuff! It was also a rough fall financially, because although I was working a lot, a few late-paying clients and a time lag between starting work and getting paid for it meant we had a number of big expenses with no money coming in. So this year, I resolve to finally get on top of the finances for good. And the best way to that, of course, is to do number six on my list…

6. Get tougher with late-payers
It keeps happening to me time and time again. I do work for a client, invoice them and then… nothing. Months pass, and no cheque. I e-mail saying, “Can you check on this invoice for me?” and I hear nothing. By then, I’ve had to borrow that money from credit – and am now paying interest so it actually COSTS me money to have done that job. (And this happens to me far more than I’d like to admit.)

It’s partly because I’m wishy-washy and hate confrontation. My accountant yells at me every year for letting it happen. “Charge them interest!” he says. At least five percent for every 30 days the account is in arrears. (But, of course, they have no legal obligation to pay it…) But this is the year I’m finally going to take that advice and start threatening people who don’t pay with small claims court. And, the other biggie, is that I will no longer work for those clients any more.

7. Stop comparing myself to other people
This is something that’s plagued me all my life. And I always thought that if I was fitter, or thinner, or something, that I would stop doing it. But today, I’m probably in the best shape I’ve ever been in my life. I work out, I eat (mostly!) okay, and I’m still unhappy with myself. I constantly compare myself to other people, and find myself lacking.

But the truth is, I am 5’11” tall – in my bare feet. I am never going to be tiny. I don’t have a great deal of excess fat anymore thanks to running (which is great for health reasons), but I’m far too tall to be a size zero. It’s just not me. I’ll never look like a few of my super-tiny friends (some of whom are 5’2”). I look like me. My husband, my sons, my family and my friends really don’t love me any less because I’m not a 5’4” size zero. So this year, I will stop comparing myself to others and learn to accept myself for being a healthy, fit, 5’11” woman. Which leads me to number eight…

8. Improve my running times
Okay, that’s a shallow goal, but, hey, this blog is supposed to be all about running! And I do want to improve my times this year. According to my 10K clinic instructor, the best way to do that is to run! Run more often, run longer distances and just generally run faster. So I will ensure I add both speed work and hills to my workouts and continue with weight training to improve my muscle strength. I aim to run 10K in 55 minutes, and bring my 5K time down to less than 27 minutes. (25 would be awesome!)

9. Be charitable
The last few years have seen me give more to charity, and that’s a resolution I want to strengthen in 2008. We will ask for donations to charity for the kids’ birthdays, I will run several charitable races, and just help out whenever I can. It’s tough to find the right causes out of so many good ones, but I will continue to support pediatric brain tumour research at Sick Kids, breast cancer research, MS and perhaps choose an international aid charity to help those less fortunate in the rest of the world.

10. Have more fun
I think this fall really took the fun out of my life. I feel like my family suffered because mommy just wasn’t any fun anymore. So this year, I plan to have fun. We started off with a trip to Niagara Falls after Christmas, and I want that to continue this year. I want to get bikes and go for bike rides with the family this summer. Take day trips to Niagara Falls, African Lion Safari, Canada’s Wonderland. Go swimming in our pool. Have a picnic. Just generally find some time in our lives for fun. (I also promised Andrew we would do a 1K fun run this summer.) Life is short, and before I know it, the boys will be all grown up and gone. This year, I’m going to enjoy my babies while I still can.

Will I keep these resolutions? I sure hope so. I hope to revisit them all during next year’s Resolution Run – and show that I’ve come a long way.

Happy trails…

The 10K

Naturally, I meant to update my blog several times before running my big 10K race – and, naturally, I never got much of a chance to do it.

December has been a very hectic month, with both a magazine and a 12-page newsletter due, not to mention Christmas and a 10K race booked on December 15th. Not much “me” time left for writing!

Up until December 9th, I trained diligently for the 10K race. I skipped only two 5K runs in my entire training schedule (from October 10th until December 9th), determined that I was going to do a good job. On our long runs, I was averaging about 1hour and 11 minutes for a 10K, at an easy pace. My goal? Run the 10K race in 1:05. (Unfortunately, it wasn’t a “real” race with lots of participants, but because there are no 10K races in Burlington in December, our clinic instructor organized a real, timed race from the Running room for the 15th.)

December 9th began well. Since it was Sunday, I headed to the Running Room for the Sunday morning run. We were supposed to run 13K – the longest run of our entire clinic. In less than a week, the race would be over.

I had a great run that morning. Took it at a nice, easy pace, and did the 13K easily. Not too tired, lots of stamina – I was ready for this race.

Then came Monday. It started fine, and we had a good day. But Chris had been sick with a bit of a flu since Friday, although he seemed to be on the mend. Monday night, we found out no one was okay. Andrew was sick three times, Chris was sick twice, and to top it all off, I got hit hard by the stomach flu myself.

I spent all of Tuesday in bed, praying for a speedy death. For someone who is rarely sick, this illness quite literally knocked me on my ass. I couldn’t get out of bed, couldn’t move, couldn’t eat and couldn’t drink. (Keep in mind that work is also insanely busy at this point, and I can ill afford to take a day off.)

By Wednesday I was mobile (and working), but still not good. I couldn’t eat, and couldn’t walk up the stairs without getting winded and feeling nauseous. I guess I wasn’t exactly going to be going for a run.

By the time Friday rolled around, I was feeling better – but I hadn’t run all week. The training schedule went out the window. Could I run the race on Saturday morning? How would I do? Would I even be able to break the 1:05 time barrier?

Saturday morning dawned, snowy and cold. The sidewalks (and we had to run on sidewalks) were incredibly icy. Only one other person showed up for the race, a woman from my clinic who I knew was a very fast runner. Our clinic assistant offered to run with us as a pace bunny. The die was cast…

It was icy in patches, particularly on the sidewalk. And we ran as fast as we could. We looped around the streets of Burlington, avoiding ice, snow, cars and snow plows. I felt fantastic. If there was no ice, I could have flown. I hadn’t worked out since Sunday, and it was great to get back out there again.

As we headed toward the finish line, I caught sight of the race clock. One hour – and one minute. I crossed the 10K mark at 1:01:15. My clinic instructor cheered me over the line. I was in first place! (Of course, there were only three of us… I simply sprinted at the end because I still had gas in the tank.)

I had done it. Both the clinic instructor and our “pace bunny” were sure that, had the weather been good, we would have come in under an hour. Not bad for my first 10K race!

So what’s next on the training agenda? The next few weeks will be maintenance. I will add some spinning and boost my weight training, and try to get out for some more runs. (Assuming, of course, they ever clear the sidewalks after yesterday’s two feet of snow.) Then, in January, I’m re-enrolling in the 10K clinic, with a more advanced training schedule. I’ve already told my instructor I’d like to run the next 10K in 55 minutes!

Happy trails…