Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Hampton Half in 5 days!

  • I'm still sick. Blah! My sniffles turned into another cough, but not as bad as the previous cough. My heart rate is higher than usual, but not crazy high. Just before I start running it's about 70 (20 beats higher than usual, but still lower than it was with my last cold). The half marathon should be interesting...my goal is to run 1:40 or better. I honestly have no idea how realistic my goal is.
  • The real goal for the half is to figure what kind of shape I'm in. I'm running a marathon on May 1 and need to determine what pace is realistic for that race. I'd like to qualify for Boston. Boston will be on my birthday next year. What better way to spend your birthday, right? (Nick says statements like that only prove that I'm off my rocker.)
  • Despite my poor training and lack of dieting, I have reached my pre-pregnancy weight. It took 5 months. I'm a little surprised. Emily is exclusively breastfed and hasn't started solids yet. With Kaylee, I didn't take off the last few pounds until she was eating solids for a number of months.
  • I'm glad that I'm back to my normal weight, but I still don't look great. My belly looks deflated, but I wasn't happy with my belly until about 1.5 years after Kaylee was born. It just takes times (at least for me).
  • I find the heart rate discussion interesting. I had no idea that during races your heart rate is 5-10 beats higher than usual. It's interesting though, the last two years I've started running with music during races, but not to help me run faster. I find that listening to music at the start (of a 5K especially) I am more relaxed and less likely to run the first mile too fast. In fact, a lot of the music I listen to when I run is slower. I know this contrary to what most people find helpful. Not running too fast at the beginning of a race is a real challenge for me though. It stems from my cross-country days. My coach trained us to run the first 400-800 meters of a race as a sprint. In cross-country, the start is like a funnel. If you don't get out fast, you'll be stuck. Road races are just different (and most of the races I run now are longer than a 5K)...Anyway, I wonder if the music helps keep my heart rate down?
  • 144 is my body's favorite training heart rate. I've run several runs from 6 miles - 13 miles at many different paces from 7:45 pace to 9:15 pace that all had an average heart rate of 144. The pace is faster or slower depending on how I feel, but my body seems to settle right at 144.
  • For the half, I think I'll aim for a heart rate in the 150-160 range for the first half of the race. Then ignore the monitor and just run by feel for the rest of the race.
  • My mom is running the half too, but as a training run. She'll be running the Hyannis Marathon the next week. Her training has been phenomenal. She did a 22 mile run last week, and she's still feeling strong. She's a little nervous though. Her long runs have been on the treadmill because of all the snow. She's thinks that might be bad. I say if she can stand running a bunch of 20-22 milers on the treadmill, then she's ready for anything. What do you guys think? Do you think long runs on the treadmill are a detriment to marathon training? Have any of you had to do a training cycle on the treadmill? I'm sure she'd love to read about others' experiences (and so would I)!
  • Here's a random photo of my little ladies taken with my new favorite iPhone app (Hipstamatic).


9 comments:

Running and living said...

Katie, you are going to do great. I wonder if you've noticed a difference in HR when you run outside vs the treadmill? ON the mill my HR is about 10 beats lower for the same pace...
Sub 40, oh, yes, no doubt about that. BQ will be yours, no problem.
My belly has never gone back to its prepregnancy size. I used to have a smaller waist, now I have extra skin; you can't really see it, but I get a little roll when I lean down. I don't really care, though, totally worth it!
Oh, and as an fyi, I don't plan on running 6:45 miles. My HR is 180 for 4 of those, no way I am ready for 13. I am not even sure of a PR, but I have another half in March so I will see where I am.
See you Sunday!

Katie said...

Ana-Maria: Outside my heart rate is the same as on the treadmill (unless there are obstacles like snow and ice and then it's about 5-10 beats per minute greater). Of course, I only have about a month and half worth of data to go on...

Unknown said...

Beautiful picture of the girls! I will have to get that app and give it a try.

Good luck on the half! I am sure you will do great.

Michelle said...

Oops! That last comment was from me. Peter is my husband. I am sure he would also want to wish you good luck though!

Lindsay said...

umm. i like AM's complaining about her "fold" when she bends over. some of us have one when we are standing up straight and sucking in ;)

hope you feel totally better! no more of this lingering-junk for either of us. blah. even if you end up short of your 1:40 goal, you'll hav e a good baseline and better idea of where you are now so you can train with a little more focus for may 1 and beyond.

Unknown said...

You little ones are just so sweet.

I hope you're feeling better and I love your goal for your birthday next year...I can think of nothing else I'd rather be doing on my birthday(just kidding)!

Thanks for(always)insightful comment you left. I think I do take my training seriously and it's good to take a step back once in a while and take stock. Thank you!

Jill said...

You and I must have similar birthdates, I ran Boston on my birthday last year - it was totally fun when the bus to the start all sang Happy Birthday.

LOVE the picture of your wee-ones, so precious!

You're running so great, I know you can do it. Feel better, rest up, and run great!! :)

Anonymous said...

Hope your cough (and illy-ness) have been banished!

I don't run with a HRM, but I do know that being sick can mess with the numbers just like being over-trained can.

Your mom does 20 milers on the treadmill? And doesn't go insane? I'd say she's ready!!! I can't stand treadmills, so again, I have no info to share. Hmmm, I'm quite worthless in the knowledge department today.

Good luck to you (and your mom) this weekend!

kristen said...

Good luck this weekend! I hope you have a great race.

And what a great picture of your kids...adorable.