Tower of Terror Training

Can you believe it's June already!? When did that happen?! I am excited that it's finally starting to feel like summer here in New Jersey. Thanks warm weather for finally deciding to show up!

Now that June's here it also means that training for the Tower of Terror 10 Miler starts today. I have to admit that I haven't really done much running since the Nike Women's Half Marathon. During training and the half I developed a HUGE blister on my left foot from my orthotics. So I had to send my orthotics out to be adjusted which gave my blister some time to heal and not look so scary. My orthotics came back at the end of last week, just in time to start up this next round of training-yay!

My goal for this training cycle is to complete the whole thing! In my 2 prior training cycles I haven't stuck to the schedule as well as I should have for various reasons. I know I'm capable of running a better race but I just need to stick to the plan! Since I have been running for more than a year but not so consistently I've decided to follow Jeff Galloway's finish in the upright position plan. Originally I was going to select the time improvement plan, but right now I need to focus on completing a training schedule and feeling strong at the end of a race. My past 2 races I've always lost steam towards the end and want to avoid that this time around. 

The other areas I want to focus on are weight lifting and nutrition. I'd like to work in Body Pump classes as cross training twice a week. I also really need to start eating better to keep my body fueled properly. I'm starting off slowly by tracking meals into MyFitnessPal again but would like to slowly transition over to clean eating. I've been browsing blogs for recipes and meal plans to get some ideas. If anyone has any resources that helped them transition to clean eating, please, let me know! 

QOTD: Are you starting training for Tower of Terror or another fall race? 

Don't forget DVC and Passholder signups for the Star Wars Half-Marathon weekend are tomorrow at noon!

Training Update-Nike Women's Half DC

Since my last post about my training (or lack-thereof) for the Nike DC Women's Half Marathon, I have to say I'm feeling much more confident about race day. I completed a 7-miler yesterday where I tried out some new things for race day. Some went well, others not so much. First, the bad of yesterday's run.

• I tried Cliff Shot Gel, I do NOT like Cliff Shot Gel. I'm a texture person when it comes to food so it kinda threw me off. The texture didn't throw me off as much as the taste. I couldn't decide if it was trying to be sweet or salty. I'll just stick to shot blocks in the future.

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• I didn't bring back up fuel so I was feeling slightly sluggish the last mile. Rookie mistake! I'll make sure to have more than enough fuel on future runs
• My orthotics starting rubbing the last 2 miles :(. I'll need to make sure I bandage up that area to help prevent rubbing and blisters on my next long runs.

And guess what, that's it for the bad! The good list (which is longer-woo hoo!) is as follows.

• I've been doing exercises for my shin splints and I can tell they've been working because NO SHIN SPLINTS during or after my run!
• I also tried those ribbon elastic hair ties. They stayed in my baby, fine hair like a charm. I didn't adjust my ponytail once. Ladies, you'll understand it's the little things.

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• I also listened to a new music app called FitRadio and I didn't hit next the entire run! That's big for me as I'll probably shuffle through half my iPod on a 30 min run. You can choose all different genres of music and it lists the BPM for each station.
• My splits were all within 20 seconds of each other throughout my entire run, yay for good pacing!

Overall, I still don't think I'm quite ready for race day, but I'm feeling much more confident. Only 3 more weeks until I'll be taking on DC!

Lauren 

QOTD: What are your "must haves" for long runs?

Training Update-Nike Women's Half DC

Time to come clean, I have been doing some serious slacking in training for my 2nd half. I know what factors have been affecting my training or lack thereof. I also know that I'm only hurting myself and no one else can run this race but me. GAHHH I know better but why do I keep doing this to myself?! Here's the culprits of why my performance has been so lack-luster.

1. Weather

When I moved from Florida back home to New Jersey this past April, I distinctly remember telling my boyfriend, Bryan (who was born in Florida and raised in Minnesota) "Winters in New Jersey are nowhere near as bad as Minnesota winters." Insert foot into mouth. Thank you universe for rewarding us with the worst winter New Jersey has seen in YEARS. When I started running last February, I could just hop outside in my shorts in the 70 + degree weather and take a loop around the neighborhood whenever I pleased. Now I have to bundle up, drive to the gym, fight through the after work crowd to secure a treadmill etc. I'm really missing the convenience factor the warm weather affords you of being able to run outside whenever you please. Considering the bulk of my training is during these frigid winter months I really need to dig extra deep for that motivation.

2.  Lack of Training Partner

Part of the reason I felt so prepared for Wine & Dine was because I had Kayla as a training buddy. There was always someone to talk and share the experience with. I was always researching and looking for any tips that would help us along our new endeavor. Part of this second half still doesn't feel like it's happening because I'm not constantly talking about it or obsessing over it with someone else. Reality check-It's happening whether I'm prepared or not!

3. I'm a HUGE procrastinator

Plain and simple. I have perfected the art of procrastinating. One of my interior design professors at school called interior designers "Professional Procrastinators," and I couldn't find it to be more true. I'm used to being able to pull an all nighter and come out with a decent product. Half marathon training is one place in my life where I know that pushing everything off to the last minutes will NOT help. It will probably just leave me injured and unhappy. 

When I signed up for this race I thought I'd be able to go out and crush my last half time. I had figured out all my problem areas the last round of training; this time I just needed to go out and put in the work. I haven't been putting in as much work as I should and I'm at the point now where I'm telling myself, "Enough! Put on your big girl panties and do the work!" 

From here on out I've written every workout on my calendar so I have to look at it every day. I can tell Bryan on any given day to make sure I go do my run and he is more than happy to remind me and give me the push I need. Since I don't have a training partner to hold me accountable, he is great at making sure I do what I've set out to do for the day. I can tell you this past week I've gotten in all my training runs and I already feel better. Why don't I do this all the time?! It's been the push I need to keep me going in the right direction. 

Lauren

QOTD: What do you do to keep your motivation up during training when you're just not feeling it?

Picking the Right Training Plan

The next big race on my horizon is the Nike Women's Half Marathon DC. I was so excited to be one of the luck ones chosen for the second installment of this race. As of this past Monday I am officially 3 months out from race day which means I need to get my butt back into a training schedule. After Wine and Dine I took it easy; first my orthotics had to be sent out to be refit (there goes 2 weeks) then Christmas, New Years, and my birthday all came in quick succession. Oops, maybe I haven't kept the post-half momentum going quite as strong as I would've hoped. Oh well, you live and learn.

Nike offers a training app exclusive to the DC half marathoners featuring that beautiful Tiffany blue. I'm already a Nike+ user so I was excited to see what their training plan held. Once, I had the chance to check it out I was honestly disappointed in their developed plans. You can choose from Beginner, Intermediate, or Advanced. All 3 version have you running 5-6 days a week. Personally, I felt like that was too much running and not enough cross-training/rest days. 

                   
I had encountered a few injuries during Wine and Dine training and didn't want the same thing to happen again. For my first race my main concern was to cross that finish line in one piece and not feel too much like death. This time around I know I can finish all 13.1 miles, so I'd like to add in strength training and maybe some speed work. 

I looked into Hal Higdon's plans as well as the Runner's World Smart Coach. Hal Higdon's plans again were like the Nike's plan with too many days in a row of running.

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For the Runner's World plan I loved that you could customize the length of your plan. It really broke down what you should be doing during each training day, what your pace should be while running, etc.

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I've decided to give the Runner's World plan a shot. I liked that it's structure is similar to Galloway's but I can adjust the length & intensity to fit my needs. Looking back at the Galloway plans I feel like I'm somewhere in between a "beginner" and "time improvement" plan and this new plan appears to fall into that area. I'll keep everyone updated on how this new plan works for me!

Lauren

QOTD: What do you look for in a training plan?