Week Seven: Disney Princess Half Marathon Training

Week Seven

Monday – yoga

I sweat more in this hour & 30 minutes that I have in my entire life. I swear. I hadn’t done yoga the previous 2 weeks due to being sick. I think my sweat decided to band together and compile 3 weeks worth. I probably lost 10 lbs. in that class alone. In past classes, I’ve wanted to do the half pigeon pose to stretch out my hips, but I felt awkward just hopping into my own pose in the middle of the class.

source: womansday.com

The instructor is really cool and says, “This is your yoga class, you do what you need to do, I’m just here to guide you. If you sit in child’s pose the entire class, you are doing yoga”, so I probably could have busted out the half pigeon and it wouldn’t have been a big deal, but I never did. I did it a few times at home, but figured I’d get a better stretch after an hour of yoga and stretching with a very warm room.  And I did! We finally did the half pigeon pose! My left hip is really tight, so I had to use a block to support myself, but overall, it’s a very nice hip stretch!

Tuesday – rest

Wednesday – run

I didn't want to do this one. Spent 10 minutes sitting on my couch whining about doing this. Then finally got up and did it. Intervals of run 3 mins, walk 2 mins.

Entire workout 40 mins – 2.32 miles (17:15/mi)

30 mins – 1.88 miles  (15:55/mi)

Thursday – rest

Got out of work early to head up to New Hampshire to catch Straight No Chaser in concert in Manchester. We decided to make a weekend out of it and go up to my house near Lake Winnipesaukee after the show for a long weekend. I was hoping for their Christmas concert since everything seems to be all about Christmas lately

This was taken Sept 10. The day before my triathlon!

But they started out with a few of the same songs from their show I saw in July in Atlantic City. I was disappointed until they started mixing it up and I realized it was going to be a different show. For the second half of the show, they busted out some of their best Christmas songs and I was happy!

I love a cappella. Especially Christmas a cappella. But they didn’t do my all time favorite Christmas song: O Holy Night. I later heard that they sang it at their show the next night in Boston. Booo. Hisss.

Friday – run

Beginning of the trail

I didn’t want to do the track, and I was in NH without a treadmill, so I headed out onto the Cotton Valley Rail Trail. It was so cold & windy. I hated being outside in this. I tried doing speed work, but to me, it's impossible to figure out speed unless I'm on a treadmill. What struck me as odd was that I went out 20 mins, and then came back. On the way out, I ran 1:30, walked 2:30. On the way back I ran 2, walked 2. I ran more on the way back, yet it took me longer to get back than it did to cover the same distance on the way out. I can only hope that this cold & wind are not foreshadowing for the upcoming winter, because I could not stand it. I hated every second of it. If it’s too cold for me out there, I’ll spend the rest of my training inside on a treadmill and just hope for the best.

41 mins – 2.4 miles (17:06/mi)

Saturday – rest

Got lost on the way to a store and ended up in Maine. Twice. Almost got killed on the way home by an ax murder (maybe) and watched movies and drank wine by the fire. Successful rest day.

Sunday – long run - 6 miles

I did NOT want to do this today. I whined about it for a good hour and even complained on twitter. But after some advice and support from Amanda, Sharon, and Stephanie on the Twitter, I got dressed. That was half the battle. I pouted the entire time I drove to the trail. And pouted during my .5 mile warm up. Then I started my usual run 2, walk 2 routine and pouted through the first interval. Then I got mad at myself. It wasn’t windy, it wasn’t cold, and I had no reason to be a complete sourpuss about everything. So I changed my tactic. I told myself to just run. Even if it was slower that someone else’s walking pace, just run. And don’t stop until I couldn’t take it anymore. Push past 2 minutes, after all I’ve run 20 before. I knew I could do it; I just needed to kick myself in the butt and make it happen. I ended up running for .5 mile, then walking for .25. I continued that pattern the entire 6 miles. Never before have I run that long continually throughout a workout. So, even though I might have been slow as heck, I still consider that progress. Now I know what I need to do on all my runs. Maybe I’ll see progress that way. The downfall of this run was, I ran out of fluids (Crystal Light Pure, of course) at mile 4 (I need better planning) and I could feel it. My legs started to hurt at mile 4.5 but I kept going. By the time I was done, I was dead. But I completed it.

6 miles – 1:48:59 (18:08/mi pace) Average run speed = 4.4 mi/hr

Apparently this was the week of “I don’t wanna”. I had a tough time committing and getting it done. I mean I got it all done. But I complained the whole time and I didn’t want to do any of the runs. I think my problem is, I’m getting so bored with just running and I’m not seeing overall improvement. In fact I feel like my endurance/fitness level is deteriorating. I’ve decided it’s because I’ve been doing nothing as far as cross training. When I was training for my triathlon, I was biking, swimming, doing the elliptical and a little core as well as running. Now with just running, I’m falling into a rut, and fast. So now that I know my downfall, I just have to up the ante and get in some other activities so I don’t get completely bored with this and give up!

11/14-11/20 

So weird to see 6 miles up there as a RUN, and not a bike ride. God, I hope I can do this!

97 days until the Disney Princess Half Marathon!

We are in the double digits now!!