There’s something good, waitin’ down this road!
Just returned from a lovely 4 days up in the mountains in Heber, Arizona. The weather was perfect, cloudy and cool (for us Arizonans, cool is 80 degrees.) with some rain and thunder. Matt and I had such a wonderful time! I had a 20 miler on Sunday and it went so awesome. One of the better 20 milers I have ever had. I practiced my race day nutrition, AND negative split the run. (Second half faster than the first half) I just felt AWESOME. Matt was so wonderful and rode a bike with me everyday while I ran. It is so nice to run and not have to carry a waterbottle!
I have been having some great workouts lately and have been nailing my splits during track work. Everything is going so well! My mileage is heading upwards, I have 75 miles this week and 80 next. I have been feeling great! On Monday, I will start going back to school to start setting up my classroom. This is always such an exciting time, but I need to make sure I am still hydrating, fueling, and resting. I tend to get so caught up in school stuff that I forget to do these things.
Happy running everyone! The summer heat is *almost* over!
Runningly Yours,
Arizona RoadRacers Summer Series #4
Last Saturday was the 4th out of 5 summer series races. It was SO hot and humid at this race. It was 95 degrees at 6:30am with the clouds keeping the humidity in. Oh well, at least the sun wasn't out! My goal was a 17:45 which would be a 5:43 pace. I ran a 17:50, a 5:45 pace for the 3.1 miles. A new PR and my first time breaking 18 minutes! I am super happy with that considering the crappy weather! My splits were pretty even, with my last mile being faster than the middle mile. And each time I race these shorter distances, I am feeling better and better during the race. (i.e. not feeling like I have to stop!)
Sally Meyerhoff came in first female with a 17:11! She is an amazing runner and is going for the Olympic team in the marathon. Now, not just the trials, the TEAM. I really believe she is going to do it, she is SO fast! Check out her blog here! She is also just the nicest, most inspiring gal!
Sally and I
In other news, I had the dreaded 3 x 2 mile track workout yesterday. This workout has been my enemy. I mentally, have such a hard time with this workout and have not had a lot of success with it. However, yesterday I NAILED IT!!! YAY!! I had 3 x 2miles at a 6:00 pace with 4 minutes rest in between. Each set was under my goal time! YAY!!! Confidence in this workout is restored!
**NEW DRINK ALERT** I was getting a tad sick of having chocolate protein shakes, So I came up with this gem- 12 oz skim milk, 4 oz black cherry juice ( the pure stuff is proven to decrease tissue and muscle inflammation), a banana, 3 ice cubes just to chill it, protein powder. So good!
Happy running!
Runningly Yours,
Poor Some Sugar On Me!! (Or shook up ramen!)
Remember that commercial? So goofy. 
So, now that I am in training for Chicago, I am watching what I eat and writing it all down like a crazy person. I made (well, scooped) a yummy dessert last night. I had some chocolate sorbet with a spoonful of lemon curd on top. So perfect for the hot temps and a really low-fat, simple dessert. Why have I never thought of this before? Highly recommend!
On another note, I have to share about a personal issue. *ahem* So, I used to have a sensitive stomach and would center all of my running routes around restrooms. I have been using probiotics for the last few months and have had NO *issues* at all. So, if you have been having a lot of runner's gut, check it out. They have literally saved me! Ahh runners, nothing is sacred.
Most things I worry about, never happen, anyways…
At the Hotel Del with my ice cream! I haven't had ice cream since Boston in April! Yum!
Scripps Old Pros 10k Race Report
So, I ran my first 10k on the Fourth of July. Honestly, I was terrified. I was trying to play it cool and stay relaxed but I was pretty nervous. I knew that this race would wrap up my 5k and 10k summer training and I wanted to run really well so that my confidence would be up as I began training for the Chicago Marathon. MWC wanted me to run this race as there is usually a good showing of super fast females. It would be good practice for me to race with them. My goal was a 36:30ish. I predicted a 36:33 (see post below) I would have been super happy with that.
I woke up race morning and had my coffee, ultrafuel, and a banana cut up with honey on top. We drove to Lake Miramar, picked up our bibs and timing chips, (ok, don't know why they have these. The only timing mat was at the finish, so it was basically a gun-timed event.) I did 3 miles to warm up with some strides. I lined up and was about 3 rows back. A bunch of fast looking fellas came up and I was not about to be in their way.
The gun went off and by mile 1 I was the 7th female. I was feeling good and hit my first mile at 5:51 per Garmin. The guy calling splits at mile 1 said 5:54- Yikes! Stupid gun-time! I knew I had to make up a few seconds. Mile 2 I hit at 5:45. The hardest part of the race for me was between mile 2-4. I didn't feel horrible, it was just hard. Mile 3 was 5:50, Mile 4 was 5:54. Mile 5 turned up to be a 5:52, Mile 6 a 5:38 (awesome downhill finish!) .2 at a 5:28 pace. My official time was 35:52!! A 5:48 avg pace!
My results on video- they originally had me at 35:50- a 5:47 pace, I don't know what happened to add 2 seconds...hmmm... Oh well, I will for sure take it!
During the last 2 miles, I passed 2 gals and ended up being 5th female, 4th in my age group. I really wanted to make top 5 and I did. I am so happy with how I ran at this race. It shows me that I could probably pick it up a bit in my 5ks! A little investigating and I found that the girls that finished in front of me have stellar marathon times i.e. 2:40-2:48. So I felt honored to be in such good company!
Finishing video- OK, I look real gnarly here, but its the humidity, I swear!!
The weather was perfect, the course was gorgeous, the Old Pros run a fantastic race, and next year I am staying for the beer garden! I HIGHLY recommend this race. It was just wonderful!
Line for the beer garden..they had to start kicking the Old Pros out! lol!!
My sis also ran with Matt! She did SO awesome, a 7:12 average pace!!
The rest of the trip we hung out at the dog beach, hiked Point Loma, and I enjoyed my last few days of eating unhealthy food (Mazara Pizza, Fish tacos!! yum!) and drinking good California beer and wine!
At Tent City with my Coronado Orange Ale
Now we are back in the heat. BOOOOO!!!! Here is what I have coming up!
July 17th- ARR Summer Series #4 5k-- Always a SCORCHER!!
August 8th- ARR Summer Series #5 5k- South Mountain
August 15th- America's Finest City Half Marathon
In closing, anyone want to take a gander at the song choice for this post? 
Care to place a bet? LOL!! I love my friends.
I posted my workout yesterday as usual on Daily mile. The post I made is below. People can then comment on your workout, it is such a great site and I have met some great people through it. Apparently there are bets going down for my 10k this weekend. Love it! Your guess?
-
Ariana RUNgreatTrack practice 8 miFeels so great to be feeling good again! Did race-prep workout of 8 x 400 in 82-85 with 400 jogs in between, then 1 mile @ 5:37. Stayed relaxed, felt great, legs didn't feel heavy. Soooooo much better than last week! I am so happy!
You said: OMG!! HAHAHAHAAHAHA!!! I didn't realize this was going on until now!! ahem- Don, I think I ran an 18:06 at the last 5k.
Donovan- you have high hopes for me my friend. I predict 36:33. I want to join in the bet too. — edit
Learning to fly, but I ain’t got wings
coming down, is the hardest thing. (I think this may be my favorite song of all time, I say that a lot though, especially with Tom songs. That's right, we are on a first name basis.)
Track at 5:15am
Wow, what a strange 2 weeks it has been. Ever since my last 5k on 6/13, (which was AWESOME!) I have been having some rough runs. I was having a really hard time completing my speedwork on, and off the track. My legs just felt heavy. I don't know what was going on. I was still eating super healthy, but I was indulging in some wine on the weekends, which I believe caused me to gain a few lbs. So maybe that is where the heavy feeling was coming from.
It is also a gazillion, (yep, that's right, a gazillion) degrees outside, so that did not help matters. It is funny, in Wisconsin, where I am from, we spend all summer outdoors and we hibernate in winter. It is the opposite here in Arizona. If it is between the hours of 7am and 7pm, you just don't go outside. The car door handle is hot, patio furniture is hot, the pool water is hot. Ick. I think next summer I will need to beg and plead for my sister to let me live at her place in SAN DIEGO for 3 months. Think she'll go for it??
Back to running. Butterfly! As I was feeling pretty down about how my last 2 weeks of workouts were going, coach wanted to give me a confidence boosting workout before my first ever 10k next weekend. It should be hard but doable, anything too easy would not help!
So for today's run I had 4 miles warm-up, then 3 sets of 1 mile at 6:00 followed by one mile recovery at 7:00. After the sets, I had a 2 mile cool down. Here is how it went:
4 miles warm-up 7:55 average
Finishing my warm-up
Workout-
Mile 1- 5:43
Mile 2- 7:01
Mile 3- 5:47
Done with the second fast mile- getting some lemon-lime GU-Brew
Mile 4- 6:56
Reocvery mile
Mile 5- 5:30
That guy in the distance encouraged me each time I passed with a "Go!, Run!"
Mile 6- 6:36
Coming in after the last fastie.
2 mile cool down at 7:20 pace.
Matt must have been getting bored.
Felt really good throughout the mile repeats and my confidence is *mostly* restored. I really needed this as I tried a 5 mile temp0 run at 6:07 last Thursday and couldn't get through it. Bomb. At track last week I had 3 x 2 mile @ 5:50 pace and I couldn't get through that. Bomb #2. SO needless to say, I am happy with how today went. I think any over-training/under-resting I had been doing is being remedied. Now it is time to ease up, let my legs rest. re: I am NOT killing my legs with hills or gym workouts this week!
Here is some video Matt shot at the track this morning. I was finished with my 12 miles at 6:30 am, that shows how early you have to start running here!
Runningly Yours,
All around the people lookin’ half-dead walkin’ down the sidewalk hotter than a match head…
Ugh..It.Is.Here. Summer.
It is unreal how hot it can be even early in the morning. I usually take the dog with me for 2 miles every morning. We have had to leave at 4:30 am, which means about a 3:45 wake-up call for me. Yikes. Even then, when we get home the poor pup is so warm!
Summer running means slower miles which gives me more time to think. I have some goals that I want to work on both personally and in terms of running. I bet you want to know what they are, don't you?
1. I need to relax about going to the gym. I have 1 big goal and that is to qualify for the Olympic trials. I need to stay focused and not wear myself out by spending 90 minutes every afternoon lifting weights. (Yes, I was.) I believe the excessive weight training was affecting the quality of my runs, which I really need to focus on. SO... I am trying a new program that is geared toward runners and does not take more than 30 minutes a day. *LOVE*
2. I need to rest more. My goal this summer was to take a short nap every day to assist in recovery. Getting up so early, coupled with the heat, is pretty draining. I have been coming home from work, going to the gym, cleaning, worrying about stuff (???) for no reason. I need to relax and prioritize! Yes, it is nice to have a squeaky-clean home, but let's get real. Sometimes the sweeping and window-washing will have to wait.
3. I need to worry about myself. I get so caught up in how others are training, what others are doing, and then I get down on myself if I cannot accomplish the same. Even if it is just due to an off day. So this girl is focusing on herself and her own training. No more comparing.
4. Last but not least, coach told me to let him do the worrying for me. Done and done. I need to not be such a worry-wort about my running. I need to just do the workouts and not over-think them.
So that is where my focus is going to try to lie this summer. Basically, I just need to calm down!
Here are some little vids from our time at my inlaws' cabin last weekend. We love going up there and are so thankful that we are able to use the cabin!!!
Runningly Yours,
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