Last day of 2006....

It's New Year's Eve and we are happily home on the couch in our sweats...not exactly party animal central, but we have jetlag as an excuse this time (not sure what our excuse was the last 2 years when we were asleep by 10 p.m on New Year's, but this one seems slightly more credible? Maybe?). We got back from Georgia/Florida yesterday and had a great trip...in between my mom's famous Christmas cheesecake, her bottomless cookie plate, and the turkey dinner and piles of leftovers, we read tons, relaxed, and actually had a pretty decent week of training. The heat and humidity came back down by the end of the week and we got in another long run on Friday. I was supposed to do 15 miles, but had been sick on Wednesday (a stomach ache pretty well levelled me for almost 24 hours) and 13 miles felt awfully long (my avg. HR was 159 even though I was running a 10 min. mile pace), so I decided 13 miles was enough. Fortunately, we'd received Christmas gift certificates for massages at the local health club, so that was a nice reward for finishing the long run!

Today we started out the day with a short run around Greenlake and then, this afternoon, we decided to get re-aquainted with our bikes since it was sunny. I haven't done an outdoor ride in several weeks and a 26 mile ride was embarrassingly humbling. It was really fun to be out to finish 2006 with a bike ride, but it was honestly hard to believe that RAMROD actually happened in this calendar year...there were some serious cobwebs in my legs. I got a swanky new bike trainer for Christmas and it seems I need to start using it pronto.

Tomorrow we're hosting a New Year's Day brunch party and will attempt to send several of our closest friends into 2007 with full tummies.

Here's the summary of this week's training:

HO HO Hot, Humid, High Heartrate!!

Greetings from St. Simons Island, Georgia where Seujan and I are visiting my mom & stepdad...we arrived 2 days ago and have settled in well to being spoiled, eating well, and going to the beach periodically (it's less than a mile away). Yesterday, we did a spin class and lifted weights at the local health club and today was long run day. It's only about 70 degrees out, but it rained a lot last night and the humidity is over 70%...doesn't sound that bad, but our 12 mile run today was pretty painful---at least for me. SJ, at a good 20 bpm lower than me, strolled along easily while I tried to keep up, barely holding a 10 minute mile pace. Seujan said my breathing sounded pretty awful and it FELT pretty awful, especially in the last 2-3 miles. Fortunately, I survived (kept thinking this is probably a good simulation of how much I might not want to run during the Ironman) and we ended our run on the beach where we both hopped in the water up to our waist (regretted I didn't bring the wetsuit) and stood in the water for a while to cool down. THAT part and walking barefoot on the beach was blissful. I have a new heartrate monitor now and I'm afraid it's accurate...12 Mile run, 2:02, Avg. HR = 156. Both the half marathons I did this month were easier than this flat humidity fest run. Tomorrow is a REST day!

Recovered and re-loading...

We came back to Seattle this week just in time for the biggest wind storm in a decade and the most rainfall in a single day...good thing we didn't stay in Tucson or we'd have really missed out, huh? Winter sucks, winter sucks, winter sucks. Leaving Tucson and the 70 degrees + sunshine was a big bummer.

The recovery week went well...I was a bit sore for a couple of days, but was able to run Tuesday, Thursday, and did a 10 miler today...got in 2 spins, 2 swims, and 2 lifts, too. We also threw in some culture this week and Seujan took me on a last minute date to see "The Nutcracker." It was really fun---the sets were outstanding---and we noted that it was actually fun to be at an event without a start/finish line or porto-potties (although, fortunately, there was a halftime so I could visit the water stop). Later today, we're continuing the festive/cultural trend and are joining some friends to see "The Black Nativity," (http://www.intiman.org/plays/n_about.html), which should be great.

After the last few races, I'm starting to think about when and where I want---wait, I don't "want," but need---to do a marathon. The target timeline is March or April so I have enough time to recover and start biking again before the summer races. I was thinking about doing the Whidbey Island marathon in mid-April, but after watching how hard the marathon training, race, and recovery is every time for Seujan, I think I want to just get on with it and get through it. Today 10 miles felt good, but it was plenty. I ran my Lake Union + Howe St. stairs + Interlakken loop. Part of Interlakken was "closed" due to post storm damage, but I (and several other walkers and runners) went past the tape and signs anyway to continue through the obstacle course of branches and downed trees. When I ran past the hillside/overpass up Eastlake where usually there are several homeless people, their area looked abandoned and recently raked/cleaned. I wonder if they found a shelter or something when the winds and rain hit... hope so.

Long run today:
10 miles
1:34:26 (= 9:26 per mile avg. pace)
HR Monitor, continuing to be ridiculous, said HR Avg. = 165 (no way was that accurate, the stupid piece of crap)

Gravity is my friend!

Great race day for both Seujan and me today...she qualified for Boston (see her blog for her race resport)!! We were up at crazy o'clock to get to our shuttle busses and out to the start lines...of course, I was uber-early and we were both on the very first bus...I even was the first user of a porto-potty. My start line was basically in the middle of the road way out of town and the holding area was a freezing cold dusty vacant lot. Fortunately, there were propane heaters and porto-potties there for the race, although the lines for the porto's got so ridiculously long that I opted for tumbleweeds twice instead, as did several of my fellow runners...finally, after way too long of a wait in the dark, the race and daylight started at 7:00 a.m. and the mountains were in view the rest of the day. Gorgeous one way course into Tucson.

The idea of a "fast downhill and flat course," was something we had worried a little about (i.e. the potential for quads becoming hamburger), but actually, the course format saved my bacon. My goal time today was 10 minutes faster than 2 weeks ago on the hilly Seattle course and I definitely worked harder to hit it, but the course certainly helped. The first 4 - 5 miles were downhill (contrary to SJ's perceptions of her miles 13-17, they really were downhill) and I decided in that first chunk to simply accept the gifts of the course as much as possible today...I let gravity push me along and I worked a little harder to maintain a good pace on the flats. I had my own water and Clif Shots and ate 2 shots, starting at mile 8, and that was fine. My stomach was a little "off" here and there, and at the mile 10 marker, I got a freaking sideache...I was ahead of schedule, so I backed off a little (but refused to walk) and fought it off in less than a mile. By the end, I was definitely ready to be done and found myself wondering how the hell I'm going to do a full marathon in a few months, but I re-focused on what I had in front of me today and stayed pretty strong to the end. I worked hard today and it took a few hours to recover, especially my upset stomach...but I feel great now! We went to Canyon Ranch for spa and massage treatments, had a great dinner with Jill & May and life is GOOD!! Seujan thinks we should come back next year for me to do the full marathon and try to qualify for Boston '08, but I think she's a nutcase. We'll see...for now, I'm quite happy with this!

My splits from today's race:

Mile 1: 9:26
Mile 2: 8:38
Mile 3: 8:44
Mile 4: 8:30
Mile 5: 8:35
Mile 6: 8:44
Mile 7: 7:51
Mile 8: 8:20
Mile 9: 9:00
Mile 10: 8:22 (big downhill in this mile)
Mile 11: 9:03 (Side ache mile)
Mile 12: 8:35
Mile 13: 8:56 (the only uphill of the course, thanks for saving it till the end)
Last .1 mile: :50

Total time: 1:53:38
Goal was 1:55...NAILED IT! :) Whoo-Hoo!!

Race tomorrow...

We are in Tucson with the marathon (Seujan) and the half marathon (me) in the morning. It's been a hell of a week, but I managed to follow the workout part of my taper plan well (with the exception of one weight training workout that got scrapped). Sleep was reduced and stress was dramatically increased due to the dog...who, unfortunately, we have decided to return to the shelter. The separation anxiety resulted in a destroyed metal crate from which she escaped and trashed the house, multiple prescription drugs (unfortunately, the vet didn't give US any, and they didn't seem to work for the dog), 2 kinds of doggie phermones, a citronella collar, a lot of petsitting/training time, toys, and various other failed strategies...which fortunately, did not include the other residents of our condo kicking us out, but we were afraid we were pushing it. We are sad about taking her back, but it just wasn't the right fit...

Anyway, we have a race tomorrow and have, in the last 2 days, been able to focus on that again. I swam outdoors yesterday and today which I LOVE and am as ready as I can be-- after a week like we had-- for a good run. I'm following the same nutrition plan for tomorrow as I did 2 weeks ago, I will carry my water, and I will enjoy the scenery and sunshine. My race plan isn't as detailed as it was 2 weeks ago, but I think I'll try to follow a similar strategy: go out slow, especially since the first few miles are downhill...then maintain pace in the middle 5-6 miles, and let it go at the end, trying to hit the faster time goal. There is one hill in particular that is supposed to be steep and in the second half of the race, and I know I need to take small steps there and try to conserve the quads a bit...on the flats, I'll try to push it a bit more.

Race reports will be posted in the next day or 2!

Separation axiety woes

So Mocha, the sweetest cutest dog ever has definitely bonded with us, especially with Seujan. She also has proven that she really IS housetrained and the initial indications to the contrary were probably just the result of first day stress. This is all great...but now we're seeing that she's SO well bonded to us that there are some separation anxiety issues (those issues being loud whining and some freaking out which is not exactly "neighbor of the year" behavior in a condo). So...we're riding the learning curve...she in her new crate and we reading and googling "crate training" in between brief departure intervals to test the waters. Seujan is the top trainer of the household and had a way more difficult morning with the dog than I did on my long run...

Today's long run was really good and technologically enhanced. I went 8.5 miles and borrowed a friend's Garmin 201 GPS to test drive it, so I was gadgeted out...GPS on one wrist, regular watch on the other. I ditched the HR monitor again, as well as the water bottle. Loved the GPS (especially to verify the last mile for time) and am thinking about asking Santa for the Garmin 305 that has HR, GPS, stopwatch, etc. Nice cool sunny (!) morning and I had a nice run around Lake Union + Portage Bay.

Long Run:
8.5 Miles
1:17:41
Power burst at tempo pace for .6 miles from 4.67-5.27 miles
Last mile, fast mile: 7:44!!
No water, no nutrition

Dog Blog!!

Seujan and I became doggie parents yesterday...we met this cute chocolate lab mix, Mocha, on Sunday at a shelter and Seujan went back to spring her yesterday. She's about 3 years old, we think, and has a bit of an unknown past, although we know she's been around the block a bit. Fortunately, her maternal possiblilites were stopped at the shelter... Mocha has a few special needs including a fear of doorways and linoleum and she isn't exactly as housetrained as we anticipated, but she's sweet, sweet, sweet and we have high hopes for crate training which will commmence today.

Mocha and the snow were the big news this week...I observed several kids sledding on grass earlier this week (ok, there was some snow, but the hills were more green than white)...snow hype in Seattle is great.

Workouts have been good this week and I'm mostly recovered from the Half Marathon and thinking about the next one, although my quads got sore again the last couple of days. Did a few aerobic runs, 2 swims, 2x weight training, and a good interval workout yesterday on the treadmill. Haven't seen my bike or a spin class in over a week, though. And now, lots of dog walking is being added to the schedule!

Yesterday's interval workout:
10 min warmup at 10 min. mile pace
2 x .75 mile at 7:35 pace
2 x 1 mile at 7:35 pace
HR up to 158-162 on intervals...basically tempo pace
10 min cool down on the elliptical machine