10K Team in Training – week 1

20. January 2007 · Write a comment · Categories: Monument Avenue 10K, running, YMCA

Well, I have joined the local YMCA’s Team in Training program to prep for the 10K on March 31st. During the first weekly workout session, it was almost all talk and a very short run. However, that changes quickly.

30 minutes of discussion about what works and what doesn’t, what to wear (high level), and what not to wear (headphones during the weekly runs). After all, it’s about teamwork, and you cannot get that if you have music blaring in your ears. Also, it’s harder to hear people in the back or front of the group yelling about a car coming. However, during the indoor mid-week runs, my music will be blasting away on the treadmill. So, after the discussion, we did a 1-mile run. I finished the entire mile running and not walking at all. I actually think it was less than a mile, meant to motivate you in the first week. There are over a hundred people in the novice group, including several that I know well outside of the Y or know to say hello to in the Y. I don’t think that all of the people will complete the program, but I will!

On to the mid-week workouts!

Self-inflicted pain

15. October 2006 · Write a comment · Categories: Monument Avenue 10K, running

On Saturday, I ran another 10K. I put this specific 10K out there as a goal for myself to push myself on the treadmill daily at the gym. It has been more difficult lately to keep myself running so I find myself walking seemingly more each day and running less. However, in January of last year I came to the conclusion that I was getting old and fat. Only one of them is in my control while still alive. So, Sue and I joined the gym and I started on the quest of bettering my 10K times with each entry.

Two years ago, my Monument Avenue 10K time was about 1:21. This April, I was down to 1:14 with a seven minute improvement. If you are a runner, please don’t laugh at these times.

The race on Saturday was very different. It was not the Monument Ave. 10K, lined with people along the entire route. It was not the Monument Ave. 10K where there were timers set up every mile so you could determine how fast you were going (or how slow). This was not the Monument Avenue 10K where you saw people you knew every few yards since there were almost 25,000 people participating (that’s 2.5 people per meter). This was a very different race.

In April, the 10K was run at 80+ degrees (it hit 90 by the end). Saturday, the temperature started in the upper 30s, and was in the lower 50s by race end. I was there by myself, having driven myself there and with no expectations of seeing anyone I knew. There were less than 500 registered runners, and a handful of walkers. There was no crowd lining every inch of the course. There were no clocks showing your time every mile. It was very different.

So, while I did see a handful of people I knew (Richmond is a very small city), this was a race for me. Could I do better than I did in April? How much would I need to walk? Until the end, I had absolutely no idea how I did, since the only clock was at the end. As with most races, I also had a timer chip on my shoe so could get an official time from start to finish. As I made the final turn (mostly walking by then), I was very surprised to find that I was indeed doing better than I did in April. I bettered by time by over six full minutes, taking a new personal best of just under 1:08. While this is ridiculously slow for a runner, it’s not bad for a 45-year old who did nothing athletic for about 20 years. The work at the gym is worth it and I’m looking forward to hitting a new personal best time in the next Monument Ave. 10K.

10K recovery complete

15. April 2006 · Write a comment · Categories: Monument Avenue 10K, running, YMCA

While I am almost 100% recovered from the 10K on April 1st, my left knee just refuses to cooperate. Running on the soft, cushy treadmill was apparently not sufficient training for said knee. With a good bit of pain after running each day, I have started to ice it down. The rest of my body is doing well after the daily workouts, pain perhaps masked by the left knee. It’s like the old headache fix. If you hit your fingers with a hammer, you forget all about your headache – at least for a while!

My workouts are going well. I’ve been at the gym 5 – 6 days a week for over 2 months now, grinding through 3+ miles daily on the treadmill and lifting weights 2 – 3 times each week. My weight loss has leveled off, so I need to change my weight lifting routine. Gwynne is going to help us today get a better plan programmed on our “smartkeys.” Those keys have the routine on them, so we don’t need to remember seat positions, weights, ROM or PAD settings for the various machines. Instead of working a bit on everything each 2 – 3 days, we will work on upper body one day, legs the next, and so on. More sets of 12 reps each. Supposedly it allows for a much better workout.

I’m all into a better workout – since I’m already in pain daily…

Monument Avenue 10K

04. April 2006 · Write a comment · Categories: Monument Avenue 10K, running

The Monument Avenue 10K was held on Saturday. The weather was far warmer than it has been, so there were lots of people with hydration issues. For me, the training at the YMCA paid off. I cut 6 1/2 minutes off from last year’s time (and I trained for last year), so was pleased. My time was 1:14:13 and last year was 1:20:49 (that’s 6:36 faster). It was, however, punishment of my body.

As of Monday, the only thing that still bothered me was my knees. I think it was the uneven streets. They are a bit different from the nice, cushy treadmill!

Note to self: Next year train outside for a while!

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