Product Review: Amphipod Xinglet with Pocket

I've done about four night runs in the Amphipod Xinglet Pocket and I have to say, I love it! It's very minimal and fits me perfectly (I'm a small). I love how easy it is to adjust and doesn't move around at all. In fact, I barely even feel that it's there whether I'm wearing a fleece-lined pull-over or a thin long-sleeve tee. The front pocket is great for a gel, debit card and key however is too small for most cell phones, especially smartphones.

When wearing the vest, I've noticed cars seem to slow down sooner and give me more room when passing then they did when I just wore my blinking red light. Now with both the vest and my blinking light, I feel like driver's can better see me sooner and that makes me feel safer, a lot safer.

Product Description

Made for the minimalist, the fully-adjustable Amphipod Xinglet Pocket Reflective Wear covers you with Hi-Viz Green and reflective silver accents for increased safety in low-light conditions. A small zipper pocket in front offers easy access to small essentials.

• Up to 50% more reflective area than most standard running vests
• Front and rear reflective booster zones and full 360° reflectivity
• Features a 4" x 3" ventilated zippered pocket for essentials
• Soft, chafe-free stretch strap construction for superior ease-of-movement
• Airy patented construction won't trap sweat
• Front access quick-clip release for fast on-and-off
• Easy size adjustment for height/waist-wear over a t-shirt or parka

I found the best price to be at RunningWarehouse.

 

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Have a product you would like me to try and give an unbiased review of? Email me at running@ericamelton.com and let me know.

Week 2: Indoor Tri & Half Marathon Training

Monday - Christmas Eve

Rest day. It's Christmas Eve and my ankle still hurts a little so playing it smart and trying to stay off of it as much as I can.

 

Tuesday - Christmas

Easy Run - 2 miles. I decided to test the ankle with an easy 2 miles. On the flat sections it felt find but the hills reminded me it's still not 100%. So one more rest day and I should be good to go on Thursday.

 

Wednesday

Indoor Brick - Bike 20 mins, run 8 minutes. Rest day.

 

Thursday

Group Run - 4 miles. Indoor Brick - Bike 20 mins, run 8 minutes. Felt really good on the bike and had the resistance level between 6-8 and kept RPMs between 90 -110 and went a tenth of a mile further than last week. Felt really good on the treadmill although still much slower than I would of liked. I'm  not a big fan of the treadmill and definitely can't run as fast on it as I can outside. I like to be in full control and on a treadmill, I'm just scared of falling off the thing.

 

Friday

Lunch Swim - 30 mins. They  did repairs on the lap pool last week and the water was a chilly 72° so I decided not to swim (I hate cold water).

Saturday

Long Run - 7 miles. Impromptu indoor triathlon. This week I went so far off from my training plan mostly due to my ankle injury from last week. It's back to 100% but I just didn't feel like running 7 miles plus I knew I had to make up yesterday's swim session today. So I hit the pool for my first swim workout in nearly 4 months:

Warm Up 4 x 50 on 15" rest warm up
Set 1: 10 min TT, rest 2 mins
Set 2: 4-6 x 75 on 50 yd pace+5 sec
Cool Down: 100-300 easy

And was quite surprise to see that my 10 minute time trial was 462.2 yards. I really didn't expect to go further than 425 yards with all the time off from swimming,  but I felt great. So great that once I rinsed off in the shower and changed into my running clothes, I ended up jumping on the stationary bike for 20 minutes then the treadmill for 15 minutes. I felt great the entire time and once I came home and consumed a gel, I went out and ran another 2 miles. Best 90 minute workout ever and it went by so quickly. I'm so excited for the indoor triathlon now.

Sunday

Rest Day. Arms and shoulders are so sore today from yesterday's swim workout. Officially registered for the Race for the Grasshopper 5K on January 12th and the InYou Indoor Triathlon on January 26. Plus my new workout backpack arrived from Kiefer Swim Shop yesterday so I can't wait to try it out. I've been using the same backpack I had in high school and college and is well over a decade old so it was time for a change and since most gyms have vertical lockers, backpacks over standard gym duffle bags make better sense. I will do a full product review in late January after my indoor triathlon.

 

Week 1: Indoor Tri & Half Marathon Training

Monday - Treadmill Intervals

After last week's successful treadmill run, decided to incorporate intervals once again into my treadmill run. This time I did 2 x 4 minutes and 2 x 2 minutes with 2 minute recovery in between.

TIME	INTERVAL	SPEED (MPH)
0:00 - 5:00	Warm up	3.5 - 4.0
5:01 - 9:00	Run 4 mins	5.9
9:01 - 11:00	Walk 2 mins	3.5
11:01 - 15:00	Run 4 mins	6.0
15:01 - 17:00	Walk 2 mins	3.5
17:01 - 19:00	Run 2 mins	6.2 - 6.3
19:01 - 21:00	Walk 2 mins	3.5
21:01 - 23:00	Run 2 mins	6.3 - 6.4
23:01 - 28:00	Cool Down	5.5 - 2.5

 

Tuesday - Indoor Brick

Stationary bike for 20 minutes followed with a 5 min treadmill run. Felt extremely well on the bike, kept the RPM above 90 most of the time and kept it on level 4-5. Then ran on a treadmill for 5 minutes and manage to go just shy of 1/2 mile.

 

Wednesday - Easy Run

Scheduled rest day. Yoga and stretching. 4 mile easy run. With Thursday evening's forecast calling for an 80% chance of rain and breezy conditions, I decided to just run in my neighborhood tonight instead. I started out way too fast as I usually do when I run alone and with it being dark, it was a bit scary so I'm sure my heart rate was higher than normal. I'm just not a fan of solo night runs but with an 8 am - 5 pm job, evenings are my only option if I want to run longer than 25 minutes. Or hit the treadmill which I may have to do next Thursday since my running buddy won't be there.

 

Thursday - Rest Day (Yoga)

4 mile group run. Rainy, cold and windy = Rest day. Yoga and stretching. Glad I ran yesterday instead!

 

Friday - Strength & Core

Strength and core exercises. 5 sets of 10 pushups and 25 crunches.

 

Saturday - Long Run

6.2 miles. Used run 4 minutes / walk 90 seconds intervals. Felt good until about 5 miles in and then I started noticing a pain in my ankle that would come and go. By the time I was 1/2 mile from home, it got really bad to the point it hurt to run.

 

Sunday - Rest Day

Woke up and my ankle was really sore but after soaked in epsom salt, it helped a lot. I can at least walk without a limp but  going up and down stairs still hurts.

Week of December 10, 2012

Monday

25 minute treadmill run. I find running on the treadmill very boring so I'm always looking for different ways to mix up my workout and make it more interesting. Today I decided to do an inverted pyarmid interval workout and to my surprise I really enjoyed it so I may be doing a variation of this for all my treadmill runs.

TIME	INTERVAL	SPEED (MPH)
0:00 - 5:00	Warm up	3.5 - 4.0
5:01 - 9:00	Run	5.5
9:01 - 10:00	Walk	3.5
10:01 - 13:00	Run	5.6
13:01 - 14:00	Walk	3.5
15:01 - 17:00	Run	5.7
17:01 - 18:00	Walk	3.5
18:01 - 19:00	Run	5.8
19:01 - 20:00	Run	5.9
20:01 - 25:00	Cool Down	3.5 - 2.0

 

Tuesday

25 minute stationary bike. My legs were very sore (achy) so I decided to make it a rest day and stretch and use the foam roller instead.

 

Wednesday

Scheduled rest day. Yoga and stretching.

 

Thursday

4 mile group run. The smaller hills are definetly getting a lot easier but Hollywood hill is still a tough one to get up without having to walk up some of it. I felt really good on this run and I'm pretty sure it had to do with taking Tuesday and Wednesday off and stretching. I also purchased an Amphipod Xinglet Pocket vest which I tried out for the first time tonight, so far I love it and will write a product review in January.

 

Friday

Scheduled rest day. Yoga and stretching.

 

Saturday

6 mile long run. Wow, words can describe this run. I was quite surprised with my pace for this distance especially since I haven't ran 6 miles since April and back then it was over a 12 min/mile pace. I felt great up until halfway through mile 5 and then fatigue settled in big time but I still managed to finish strong even with the last tenth mile being up hill. I used run 3 minute / walk 1 minute intervals. Mile splits = 12:10, 11:51, 11:05, 11:18, 11:13, 10:54.

 

Sunday

Rest day. Much needed.

Product Review: Garmin Forerunner 10

After about two months of running with my Garmin Forerunner 10, I think I can finally post my thoughts about it.

Appearance

First the watch is much smaller than most GPS watches which is the primary reason why I bought it. I was getting annoyed by the size of my FR 305 and wanted something smaller that I could wear as an everyday watch as well. I'm not really a fan of the colors though. I wish they offered black in the smaller women's version or maybe a white or light blue but I ended up going with the sporty green which isn't too bad.

 

Features

Since it's a GPS watch it's going to take some time finding satellites. On avarage about 3 minutes but on cloudy/overcast days it can take much longer. However if you start at the same spot as your last run, it can take less than 1 minute. I do like the auto pause feature and really comes in handy at intersections. The run/walk feature is nice too but I wish the beep was a bit louder. If I'm running on the sidewalk along side a busy road or listening to music, I can barely hear it. I have yet to really use the virtual pacer feature so I can't really comment on that.

You can customize two screens with two data fields each (time, distance, pace and calories). I usually have screen 1 set to time and distance and screen 2 set to pace and distance. It's water resistent up to 50 meter which is great to know that you can wear it in a heavy down pour, in the shower or even in the pool. Some will say it doesn't give you your overall average pace and well it does, sort of. If you pause in the middle of a run and let it scroll through the screens, it will show you your current average pace. Obviously you wouldn't want to do this in a race but can come in handy in training. When you save a run, it will give you your time, distance, average pace and mile splits which I really like. If you achieve a new PR, it will tell you that as well.

 

Website Sync

If you use DailyMile, you will be sadden that DailyMile does not support this watch so you will have to enter your runs manually. It does however sync nicely with Garmin Connect, MapMyRun and RunningAhead.com. I haven't tested it on any other websites.

 

Battery Life

I'm finding the battery life to be between 4-5 hours of GPS use. I find that when I use the run/walk feature, battery life is closer to 4 hours. If you run more than 2 hours, just make sure the watch is fully charged or you may find yourself with a dead watch in the later part of your run. I usually charge after every run since it charges the sametime it syncs so I haven't really had an issue with the battery life.

 

Overall Thoughts

If you're looking for a basic GPS watch then this is a great watch! It's the smallest GPS watch I've found and feels just like a regular wrist watch. I would recommend it to those who prefer shorter distances due to the 5 hour battery life.

 

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Have a product you would like me to try and give an unbiased review of? Email me at running@ericamelton.com and let me know.

Week of December 3

Monday

Intervals - 1 mile warm up then 3 x 1/4 miles at a comfortably hard pace (right now that is right around a 10 min pace). These felt tough and I really need to start working in more speed work into my routine. 2.2 miles.

Tuesday

Mini Brick - It was such a gorgeous day outside so I decided to do a mini brick workout to remind myself what it feels like to run after a bike ride. I'm seriously considering the InYou Indoor Triathlon at the YMCA on January 26 which is another reason I need to start doing these "mini" bricks. 20 min bike ride then 5 min run.

Wednesday

Rest Day

Thursday

Group Run - We tried another route in a failed attempt to avoid Hollywood hill but let's face it, if you go down on the way "out", you will be going "up" on the way back no matter which way you choose. 4.4 miles.

Friday

Rest Day

Saturday

Long Run - Goal was 5 miles in under 1 hour (so 12 min pace or faster) and I finished in 58:49! I used run 3 minute / walk 1 minute intervals for the first 4 miles than ran the last mile without any walk breaks for a very strong and fast 10:24 last mile!

Sunday

Optional Swim - Rest Day - Was too busy and just couldn't find time to get to the pool and didn't really do much "resting".

Week of October 29, 2012

Monday

25 min indoor run - 15 mins on the treadmill then 10 mins of speed work on the indoor track. Felt pretty good although I don't think I'll ever be a fan of the treadmill, it's just too boring and too hot with no moving air. I've decided I'm going to try the Indoor Triathlon in January which will have a 15 minute treadmill run so from now until then, I'm going to try to make an effort to get in at least one 15 minute treadmill run per week.

 

Tuesday

30 mins of strength & flexibility. I have this 5 round circuit I do which is pretty much mostly an upper body and core workout then I spend the last 10 mins stretching.

 

Wednesday

Rest day

 

Thursday

4 mile easy run - An amazing run with only 3 very short walk breaks (at the intersections). The best part is I could of kept running beyond 4 miles. Perfect fall weather too. I love when 60° actually feels cool instead of warm and sticky!

 

Friday

Rest day

 

Saturday

5K + 2 hour hike. Impromptu charity run after seeing the story in the local newspaper yesterday. The course was a little short of a 5K but not a bad time of 32:24.  Then Jeff & I went on a hike at Pisgah National Forest at Graveyard Fields where some sections were really strenuous. The trails were not marked very well and we ended up on another trail and went 45 mins before realizing something wasn't right. Back tracked, found the right trail and finally made it to the waterfall which was extremely disappointing as it wasn't much of a waterfall.

 

Sunday

Rest day - much need after yesterday's 5K and 2 hour hike!

Race Report: iRecycle 5K

[caption id="attachment_1314" align="alignright" width="300"] Photo courtesy of PACE Magazine[/caption]

Race prep begin the moment I started Thursday's run. I wanted a run that wasn't easy (easy runs before a race have never worked) but wasn't going to leave me too fatigued for the race either so I decided to do three 5 minute intervals at 9:30 pace with 2 minute recovery walk. That's only 15 minutes of moderately hard running plus 17 minutes of easy running/walking for my warm up, recoveries and cool down. It worked perfectly as I was tired afterwards but feeling like I could do more, much more. I then spent a good 30 minutes afterwards, stretching and using the foam roller. Friday, I made a goal to stay clear from all soft drinks, fried foods and junk food and to make sure I drank plenty of water. Pre-race dinner was pizza, yes, pizza. I went to bed at 10 pm, pretty much my regular time and woke up at 6:15 am. Got up and did some light stretching, drank a Boost High Protein and was out the door by 7 am.

I arrived at the race site around 7:30 am which was a good thing because the nearby parking spots were filling up fast! I pretty much sit in my car until 7:50 am just to keep warm. I spent the next 15 minutes doing a short warm up jog and more light stretching as a means to keep my body warm instead of standing around and shivering like everyone else. At 8:10 am, I lined up somewhere in the middle of the pack knowing the fast down hill start would cause many to go out way too fast and there was no point getting caught up in that. At 8:14 am we were off which sort of caught me by surprise since we started a minute early.

And to give you a comparison of how accurately and well executed my race plan went, here it is. I came up with this plan the evening prior and visualized every section.

SECTION	MY RACE PLAN	WHAT REALLY HAPPENED
Downhill Start (0.0 - 0.6)	Everyone is probably going to start out too fast with the down hill start so stick to an 8:30 - 9:00 pace and not any faster! You're legs will thank you by the time you hit the trail.	I stayed relaxed, let my body warm up and resisted the temptation to run faster than an 8:30 pace.
Cottonwood Trail (0.6 - 1.4)	I've ran this trail a dozen times so use it to my advantage! Stay under a 10 min pace and don't walk until I reach the water stop.	Once I entered the trail, everyone seemed to slow down to above a 10 min pace so I knew I had to do some passing which isn't easy on a narrow trail but after about 1-2 mins and passing 2-3 runners, I found myself right in my desired 9:30 - 9:55 pace and kept it there.
Trail Exit & Water Stop (1.4)	Target time: 13 mins. Get water and walk 60" even if I don't need to. Prepare my mind for the hills. Say positive mantras.	Actual time: 12:57. Right on target! Perfect so far. I actually didn't feel the need to walk but I was like, "stick to the plan, stick to the plan" and forced myself to walk 60" through the water stop.
Hills (1.5 - 2.2)	These two hills will be pure torture. If it becomes too much, switch to 45 strides, 30" walking. Target time at the top: 22 minutes.	About 30" into the first hill, it already started to suck so I immediately switched to 45 strides, 30" walking. There was a short downhill between the two hills that I used to recover and make up some time. The second hill was much longer and harder but I stuck to the game plan of 45 strides, 30" walking to get up it. At the top, I checked my watch...23:16. Okay so I'm only 1:16 off but I'm still in this!
Downhill (2.2 - 2.6)	Recover for 60" then fly down the hill at whatever pace feels comfortably hard.	Ran down this hill averaging around a 9 min pace which felt pretty darn good knowing the hardest part of the course was over! Passed several runners who were walking after running non-stop up the hill which is always a confident booster that I played it smart.
Short up hill (2.6 - 2.8)	It's short and short hills are easy!	Okay, it was far from easy and I went back to using 45 strides, 30" walking where everyone else was walking at this point. Again, passing more runners...awesome!
Turn onto Dupree (2.8)	Target time: 30 mins	Actual time: 30:30...wow, did I just make up that much time on that downhill! Feeling great! I can do this, I can and will meet my goal of under 34 mins!
Final stretch (2.8 - 3.1)	It's down then up. On the down hill, take it easy, resist the temptation to go faster too early, save that energy for the up hill, you will need it!	Just as predicted. The down hill felt great, I wanted to go faster as another runner got right next to me and we were stride for stride but as we started up the final hill towards the finish, I was glad I held back as I barely had enough to stay under an 11 min pace and had nothing left for a kick at the end.
FINISH	Target time: 33:59 or faster! It's only a 'B' race, the goal is not to PR but run a smart race and not my fastest!	Actual time: 33:16. It can't get any more perfect than that! I finished strong and with confident which is exactly what I need going into the next 2 weeks of training and into my 'A' race, the Spinx 5K.

This may be a bit overkill and probably way too much planning for most but I have to say one thing, it works! Two 'C' races with absolutely no planning and I struggled through each race and ended up with slow and frustrating times and felt like I would never find my speed again. Then I planned out 2 weeks of smart training and this race plan and suddenly end up going from a 36:00 to 33:16 5K in just 2 weeks time. Now you tell me if I'm crazy or if this is overkill?

Running by Feel vs Pace

I'm doing two things different that I haven't done since I started running and that is running every other day instead of 3 or 4 days a week on certain days and wow, I can already tell a huge difference. Since I don't go more than 2 days without a run, I don't loose motivation since on non-running days I'm doing cross training such as cycling, swimming, yoga or strength training while still getting proper rest from running.

The second thing I'm doing different is running by feel and not trying to maintain a certain pace. I tried the "run for x pace" for 3 years and it worked for a little while then I would hit a plateau or get injured, then would get frustrated and loose motivation and my pace would then get slower, not faster. With this new approach of running, I actually enjoy running.

It took me a while to figure this out, but my easy, moderate and hard pace changes depending on a variety of different things. Weather, the course, nutrition, hydration, sleep, stress and even the time of the month for us women can all play a huge factor on what pace feels easy for a run so by learning to run by feel instead of worrying about pace has made running a lot more enjoyable. I also learned to stop comparing runs, it's like comparing apples to oranges as each one is different and unique in its own way.

Take for example, January's Race for the Grasshopper 5K. In 2011, it was cold and windy with temps in the 30s but in 2012, the weather was mild and in the 50s. Same race, same course, same week out of the year, yet different factors and therefor different results.

Race Report: Plaque Busters 5K

[caption id="attachment_1254" align="alignright" width="224"] 3rd Place in Age Group[/caption]

This was my first running race since March and I really wasn't expecting much. It was more of a "fun run" to determine where I'm currently at in my running. This race was in John's Creek, GA so I knew there would be hills and yes there were plenty of hills. The short ones didn't really seem that big of a deal but it was the long ones that proved to be too much for me to handle. First 2 miles, I ran the best I ever had but that third mile with the 1/2 mile steep up hill that got the best of me.

Still, with this being a 1st annual race and not knowing if my slow time would stand, I decided to stick around for awards anyway because as I've learned these smaller, low key races, you just never know who will show up and who won't. I got lucky and the fast runners didn't show up and I ended up surprisingly placing 3rd in my age group. It may not of been my best race by a long shot but a top 3 age group finish is still a top 3 age group finish, right? Well, I at least think so!

Fall Racing Schedule

Vacation is over, Labor Day has came and gone and now it's time to plan out my fall/winter racing schedule and come up with new goals. This summer was not a pleasant summer. The heat and humidity along with my idiopathic hypersomnia just got the best of me and training ended up being a second thought more than a priority and I ended up only participating in 1 out of the 4 triathlons I had planned to do. Now with temps hopefully getting cooler, it's time to get out there and moving again.

Goals:

Sub 30 min 5K - I'm finding this goal so difficult to achieve but I've came close so many times. This is my ultimate goal and I have plenty of chances with a 5K pretty much every other weekend.

Workout every day - My goal is to run 3-4 times per week and do at least 30 mins of cross-training on my off days such as swimming, cycling or yoga. I'm hoping by working out everyday, I can create some sort of consistency and if I miss a day, no big deal as long as I can get back on schedule the very next day.

Racing Schedule:

September 15 - Plaque Busters 5K - This is a race near where my parent's live in Georiga. I decided to start with a fun run/walk just to get an idea of where I'm at. It's my base race to determine what my training paces need to be.

September 29 - Wadsworth Trail 5K - It's on a paved trail but this race is only 1-1/2 miles from my house so I'll be jogging to the race as my warm up and jogging/walking back home as my cool down.

October 13 - iRecycle 5K - One of my favorite 5Ks in Spartanburg although they moved the course from the YMCA to the high school where there is now a huge hill so I doubt it will remain in my favorite races list. It's partly on the Cottonwood trail and partly on neighborhood roads so I really don't know what to expect.

October 27  - Spinx 5K - My "A" race of the fall! Hoping to smash my 5K PR and finally break that sub 30 min barrier. Going to have to start closer to the start line this year so I don't waste precious energy weaving myself through slower runners like I have in year's past.

November 22 - Spartanburg Turkey Day 8K - A fun run that I use as a training run. It's free and allows me to enjoy Thanksgiving dinner guilt free.

December 15 - Jingle Bell 5K Trail Race - It's a trail race and it's a lot of fun and usually my last race of the year.

Race Report: 2012 Middle Tyger Y Triathlon

Pre-Race

I slept surprisingly well once I fell asleep and probably got a full 6.5 hours of sleep. I left the house right at 5:45 am and arrived at the race site shortly after 6 am. Once I got out of my car, I quickly realized it was a bit chilly (in the upper 50s)  but I figured once the sun came up, it would warm up quickly so I never really gave it a second thought.

Swim (400 meters)

I have been swimming 30 minutes on my lunch break twice a week fairly regularly at the new Thomas Hannah YMCA. Their 25 yard pool is around 78-79 degrees which is about the same as Middle Tyger. That is a good thing because I usually have an issue with "cold shock" when jumping in chilly water. This time, it wasn't bad at all and the water actually felt pretty good. I ended up swimming the entire 400 meters non-stop in about 9:40. Add in a 20 sec run to transition timing map and my swim split ended up being 10 mins even.

Transition 1

As as soon as I exited the pool area, I realized it hadn't warmed up much at all. Probably only in the low 60s and being soaking wet, it was downright chilly. Of course my adrenaline was going so I didn't really have time to dwell on it for very long. Managed to get on my socks, cycling shoes, sunglasses, helmet, and number belt, grabbed my bike off the rack and off I went.

Bike (14 miles)



Now I started thinking about how cold it was. I was downright freezing cold the first 3 miles or so as the bike course starts downhill. Once I hit the first uphill, I started generating body heat which helped me warm up some. While I love cycling, I'm not a fast cyclist. I absolutely hate the bike leg in a triathlon because I feel so slow compared to everyone else. Even averaging around 14 mph, riders were passing me like I was sitting still. I definitely need to ride more than twice a week and really work on getting faster on the bike before Furman. The final 2 miles were brutal as it's mostly uphill and I really had a hard time getting up it even though I train on much longer and steeper hills.

 

Transition 2

Went extremely well. It  had to be super fast as all I had to do was rack my bike, swap my cycling shoes for my running shoes and remove my helmet and grab my hat.

 

 

 

 

 

Run (5K)

At first I felt pretty good but then about a quarter mile in, my legs were screaming and I feared my calves were going to cramp up so I started walking and taking longer strides to help stretch them but it only made it worse so I started running again. At times I felt great and other times I felt like my calves were going to seize up at anytime so I had to stop and walk a lot more times than I would of liked. At the 2 mile mark I was at 24 mins so I was averaging a 12 min pace. The 3rd mile was tough but I used the 45 strides / 30 sec walk break technique to get me through it. The run was a slow 37:31 mins but it was a huge improvement over last year and I have only been running twice a week for the past 6 weeks so I can't really complain that much . I wanted to finish the run in under 35 mins but that didn't happen with the uphill finish. That's one thing about Middle Tyger...it's hilly and you have an uphill finish on both the bike and run course.

 

 

Overall Time and Final Thoughts


My official time was 1:50:52 and a new PR. I beat last year's time by 5 minutes which coming into this race, I really doubted that I would do better than last year considering my training has been a little "off".

The past 6 weeks haven't been easy as I've been dealing with my dog's declining  health. Kelsey scared us when her auto-immune disorder came back and she needed a blood transfusion to survive and it wasn't 2 weeks later, Kato's heart got worse. Both are doing okay for now but we know it's only a matter of time.

And just like last year, the volunteer's and spectators were great. Lots of encouragement at every intersection and turn.

Swim Time (400 meters) - 10:00
Transition #1 - 1:18
Bike (14 miles) - 1:01:18
Transition #2 - 0:47
Run (5K) - 37:31
Total Time - 1:50:52

Compared to last year, the swim was a 31 sec improvement, T1 exactly the same, bike was 4 secs slower, T2 was 2 secs faster, and the run was nearly 5 mins faster.

1 Week to Go Until 1st Tri of 2012

I have 8 days until my first triathlon of 2012 and training has been going as well as it could be considering everything that's been going on in my life right now.

First, there was the ordeal with my dog, Kelsey, who back in 2010 was diagnosed with AIHA (an auto-immune disorder where the body attacks the red blood cells). She was in remission until about 3 weeks ago when she relasped. It came on all of a sudden and her red blood cell count dropped from 41 to 17% in just a few days. After a blood transfusion and 4 days in the pet hospital, I am happy to report she is doing great and is a happy dog again.

But then a few days ago, we learn that our other dog, Kato isn't doing so well. His congestive heart disease is getting worse. He is on medication which seems to be helping for now but we know it's only a matter of time before it will take his life. We're talking months here, not years so it's heartbreaking.

So where is my training right now? Some people may give up and just say forget it and I've wanted to, but I realize that isn't going to change a darn thing. The stress, frustration and anger will still be there so the real question becomes, what am I going to do with it? So I've been using short fast runs (mile repeats) to release anger and low intensity swims and bike rides to release stress.

The results...my running pace has dropped drastically. Last Monday (May 14), I went out and did a fast mile. To my surprise I ran it in 8:42. I didn't wear my Garmin Forerunner 305 so I was certain I had mapped the route out a bit short but after rechecking, that wasn't the case. Thinking it was a fluke, I decided to try 2 x 1 mile repeats on Thursday with a 2 minute recovery walk in-between. This time I ran an 8:40 and 9:05 mile. Then again yesterday (May 23) but increased the recovery to 3 minutes and ran an 8:36 and 8:25 mile. I'm normally a 10:00-10:30 min/mile pace runner and suddenly I'm running sub 9s. Yea, I don't get it and I'm not going to try to understand it, just going to go with it.

On the flip side, my swims and rides have been much slower compared to last year but I've also doubled the distance in both activities so I can't really go based on average speed. Group rides (22-28 miles) have been about the same and averaging right around 13 mph but I've added in an 30 min indoor bike workout and an 1 hour easy ride throughout the week. Swims are probably slower because I'm swimming in colder water (78 compared to 85 degrees) but I swimming 30 mins twice a week rather than 1 hour once a week.

With 8 days left until my first triathlon, I'm going to keep doing what I've been doing but throw in a few transition practices. I'll find out on June 2 on how this all works out for me but honestly I'm not expecting a fast time and like last year, I will be happy if I simply break 2 hours.

Ride for Silence

Today was the international Ride of Silence and for the first time I decided to participate this year. If you don't know the Ride of Silence is, it's a short, slow-pace ride to honor and remember those who have been killed or injured while cycling. It's also to raise awareness that we are here and sharing the same roads that you drive on.

Read the article in the Spartanburg Herald Journal.

PHOTOS: JOHN BYRUM / Spartanburg Herald Journal

Tempo Run - Out & Backs

Today's Workout: 4 x 2 min Out & Back

Warm up  - .60 mi - 7:03 (11:41 pace)

Out #1 - 0.2 (9:46 pace)
Back in 1:54 (8:54 pace)

Out #2 - 0.2 (10:07 pace)
Back in 1:59 (9:52 pace)

Out #3 - Didn't even make it 30 secs before experiencing the worst cramp in my calf.

Cool down - .7 mi - walked or should I say limped home.

I knew this evening's workout was going to be very hot so I prepared by drinking lots of water throughout the day and eating a banana at 4:30 pm. When I got home, I drank another 10-12 ounces of water while sitting out on the back porch and then a couple of swigs of gatorade. I waited about 10 mins then headed out the door. I walked for 5 mins before I even hit start on my garmin to begin my warmup jog with seat kicks and high knees to get loosened up.

I felt okay, a little slow going at first but once I got up the first hill, I was fine. I then proceeded to start with my out & backs. I took them a little more slower than usual and felt pretty good on the first two despite being really tired and soaked in sweat. I then proceeded on with the 3rd out and that's when it hit just out of the blue, the worst calf cramp I have ever experienced while running. No warning whatsoever. My legs felt great one second and then a charlie horse cramp the next. I fell to the ground and tried to massage my calf but it seemed like forever until the pain finally subsided. I did my best to stretch it out and then begun the slow walk home knowing I was done for the day.

It's so frustrating when you do everything you can to prepare your body for a workout and it still fails you! I guess I'm going to have to go back to drinking vitamin water revive or gatorade in addition to water during the day. Just like past summers, plain water alone doesn't do much for me when it starts getting hot and humid.

Tempo Run - Out & Backs

Today's Workout: 4 x 2 min Out & Back

Warm up  - .63 mi - 6:32 (10:28 pace)

Out #1 - 0.2 (10:02 pace)
Back in 1:48 (8:59 pace)

Out #2 - 0.19 (10:24 pace)
Back in 1:54 (9:45 pace)

Out #3 - 0.18 (11:23 pace) - ended up walking for about 20" due to cough attack
Back in 1:49 (10:08 pace)

Out #4 - 0.18 (11:02 pace) - another cough attack, walked about 12-15"
Back in 1:55 (10:21 pace)

Cool down - .69 mi - 9:03 (13:04 pace) - walked for 3 mins, jogged rest of the way

This workout kicked my butt this evening. There is definitely a huge difference in doing these on fresh legs verse tired legs!  My legs felt "heavy" after yesterday's indoor bike workout and I just couldn't keep the coughing under control. I guess the cooler temps (64°), very dry air (34% humidity) and windy (15 mph) conditions was just making it worse. I was going against the wind on the way out and with the wind coming back which of course made it a little easier to run faster on the way back, but I was still finding it tough to run a sub 10 min pace on fatigued legs.

With that said, I will try this same workout again on Thursday after my rest day tomorrow and see if it goes any better than it did today.

Run total = 3.0 miles in 35 mins, 11:41 average pace

Today's Trifecta

I'm not sure how this happened, but it did. I guess I was just feeling good today.

Lunch time swim - Warmed up with 4 x 50s which were slow going because the water was cold today, I'm guessing it was 78° or colder than that. I got cold shock when I jumped in so the first 25 yards, I swam without putting my face in the water. Then my 400 TT which was 8:30, not bad and already significant improvement since January when it was above 10 minutes. Then 4 x 75 on TT pace with 20" rest. 200 steady and 100 cool down. Overall it was a great swim but with the water really cold, I felt a little sluggish at times.

Evening brick - 10 miles on the indoor bike at the YMCA which is way harder than riding outdoors. First you're always pedaling and there is no downhills to coast/recover on. I did set it on level 5 and on random mode to simulate hills. I was soaked with sweat by the time I finished in 43:50.

Then I decided to try out the 1/16th mile indoor track in the gym. OMG, it was so hot in there, it had to be close to 90°. It felt like a sauna but I still ran anyways. I could only manage a mile with it being so hot in there and finished in 10:40. I walked lap 4, 8 and 12 and ran the rest.

Race Report: Greer Earth Day 10K

First, let me explain that I have been sick, okay not really sick but suffering from severe allergy symptoms for about a week now nor did I train for this race. My longest run in the past 3 months was only 4 miles and yet for some crazy reason, I still decided to do this race. Why? Because sometimes I need a tough race to remind me that even when I feel like crap and feel like there is no way I can accomplish something because (fill in the blank), I can still push through it and succeed! In fact, I will dub this race as my "No Excuses 10K"

I went into today's race not expecting a great time but really just to finish. I did have a race plan though. Take it easy for the first 10 minutes and let the field spread out some before I started with my run 2 minutes / walk 1 minute intervals and for 4 miles that actually worked out quite well.

During the first mile, I already knew I was in for a long battle of not being able to breath properly. By mile 3, I was already struggling with lightheadedness and really needing water badly as the mucus in my throat kept getting thicker and thicker. I kept pressing on knowing that there had to be a water station coming up soon. Finally about 1/2 mile later I came to the water station but to my surprise there was no water left! Ugh! I tried to push on, but from that point on, it pretty much became a sufferfest and there were a few times where I felt like I was either going to pass out or be sick. The miles just seemed to get longer and longer and every step it just got harder and harder to breath.

The last 2 miles felt like an eternity and I cursed up every hill. I wanted this race to be over with and now! I seriously considered giving up at one point but at that very moment, a half marathoner passes me and gives me some much needed words of encouragement, then another and another. I finally made the second to last turn and saw there was one last hill to conquer. I tried to jog up it but I was gasping for air and was forced to walk. I made the final turn, saw the finish line just ahead and jogged through it, finishing in a very slow time of 1:18:20.

After my race,  my legs felt really good and not a single blister which was a surprise since I haven't done any long runs leading up to this race. Of course I will always wonder how well I would of ran this race if it wasn't for my allergies and I guess I'll have to wait until next year to find out.

Mile Splits = 10:11, 10:59, 12;29, 12:58, 13;55, 13:16

 

Tempo Run - Out & Backs

Today's Workout: 3 x 2 min Out & Back

Warm up - 7 mins - jog

Out #1 - 0.21 (9:32 pace)
Back in 1:58 (9:14 pace)

Out #2 - 0.21 (9:41 pace)
Back in 1:54 (9:02 pace)

Out #3 - 0.20 (9:57 pace)
Back in 1:53 (9:12 pace)

Cool down - 8 mins - walked for 90 secs, jogged for 5 mins, walked for 90 secs.

I felt great on the first out & back but I could feel myself slowing down significantly with about a minute still to go. The second out & back I thought I was going to be sick by the time I finished it. I pushed it a little too hard at the start which forced me to slow it down before I even got to the turn around point. The third interval was down right painful...but in a good way. I probably did these a bit too fast since by the time I got done with the third one, I was done and couldn't of done another one, at least not at a sub 10 min pace.

Also these past 5 days I have been suffering from severe allergy symptoms. Lightheadedness, sneezing, runny nose, itchy throat and a very annoying barking cough. Everything but the cough is gone. I went to the doctor on Monday and was given a cortisone shot and just started taking hydrocodone for this annoying barking cough today. Ironcially though, I didn't cough much during my run, just when I was walking which gave me a little extra motivation to run more and walk less.

Run total = 2.67 miles in 30 mins, 11:15 average pace

Lunch Swim

Today was my first visit to the new Thomas E. Hannah YMCA! The facility is nice but being that it just opened up 3 days ago, it was a bit crowded. The pool is 6 lanes, 25 yards and felt somewhat small after swimming in a 50 meter pool the last few times.

Since I forgot my workout card, I decided to just keep it simple. Started out with 4 x 50 warm up focusing on form and body position. Then I did 8 x 100 yard at 2 min pace with 30" rest. I didn't really need the 30" rest but it was just easier to keep time and track of my laps this way. I felt really good and was dead on consistent for all eight 100s! Then did 6 x 50 as a cool down with bilateral breathing every other lap.

It felt great to be back in the water again and I got in a solid 1,300 yard swim in 35 mins. My goal is to swim at lunch (30-35 mins) 2-3 days a week and that way I won't have to worry about trying to fit it in on my super busy weekends!

But one thing I love about this new YMCA is they have everything you need. Towels, shampoo, conditioner, body wash, lotion and plenty of hair dryers so all I need to bring is my swimsuit, swim cap, googles and flip flops! Starting May 1st they will have food delivery service where you can place your order when you arrive and it will be waiting for you when you leave. Lunch time workouts can't get any easier than that!

Race Report: Palmetto Hearts 5K

With severe allergy symptoms (sneezing, running nose, itchy throat), I almost decided not to do this race but it was for a great cause. It benefited Palmetto Hearts who serves and supports South Carolinian’s touched by Congenital Heart Defects and Diseases. Believing individuals’ and families’ needs vary as greatly as the CHDs affecting them, we offer several types of support—emotional, informational, social, and financial. Through such efforts, we hope to share the trials and celebrate the joys of loving someone with a CHD.

So I went with no real goal or race plan in place, just finish. I arrived at the race site about 45 mins before the start of the race and there was already a single line for pre-registrations. The line took forever! I don't know why they didn't split the line by last name but it took nearly 20 mins for me finally get my number and packet pickup. I don't think they expected the high turnout, over 250 runners and walkers for an inaugural race is pretty darn great and I love that so I didn't really mind that the start was delayed because of that.

The race started around 9:15 and the first mile which is all downhill was pretty easy. I kept it at a nice relaxed pace knowing about the hill in the second mile but I still ended up having to walk partially up that hill. Did good going down it through and to the start of the last mile. At that point I was having a hard time breathing and really struggling to maintain my pace so I reverted back to what my coach told me and did 45 strides with 30 rest. Of course going up hill that even prooved to be tough. At one point I felt like I was going to throw up but luckily I didn't. I finally made it to the finish line but much slower than I would liked. Oh well, like I said, I didn't really have a goal knowing that my allergies would be slowing me down.

Mile 1 - 9:34
Mile 2 - 10:52
Mile 3 - 12:53

Official time = 34:48 (11:04 average pace)

Overall: 95th out of 258

Age Group: 8th out of 30

Running Intervals

Started out with a 6 min warm up walk with seat kicks and high knees to get loose. Everything was tight...calves, hips, quads, ankles, etc. so I wanted to spend a little extra time making sure my body was ready to run.

Then I started running and felt pretty good so I ran 4 mins averaging a 9:04 pace. Recovered with a 2 min walk to the bottom of the steep hill then ran up it (9:04 pace in 37 secs). By the top I got to the top, I could barely breathe so I took another 2 min recovery walk. Decided from that point on to just alternate 60 secs fast running with 60 secs of walking.

My average pace for the 1 min run intervals were 9:05, 10:00, 9:11, 8:20, 8:26, 8:18, 8:15, 7:40 and 7:50 although the last 6 were slightly downhill which is why for the sudden drop in pace between the 3rd and 4th interval but still it was a nice progression to get my legs used to running fast again.

Then I wanted to simulate Saturday's race course which has a long gradual uphill finish so I did an easy jog down a gradual hill then a fast uphill finish at 9:18 pace the last quarter mile.

Overall: 3.32 miles in 41:40 (12:24 average pace)

Run intervals only: 2.12 miles in 18:55 (8:55 average pace)

So I think my game plan for Saturday's 5K will be to start out with a 5 min moderate jog to let the field spread out a bit before I start my 2 min run / 1 min walk intervals trying to stay under a 9 min pace for the run intervals and just see what happens.

Horseshoe Loop

Monday's group ride and only 3 of us in the C group so for the most part we were able to ride our own pace. But boy was it windy! And why does it always feel like you either have a headwind or a cross wind but never a tailwind? Still even with the wind, it was a great ride!

Heart Rate Zone Distribution

Z1 - Endurance	0-105	0:41	1%
Z2 - Moderate	105-138	53:53	55%
Z3 - Tempo	138-155	40:42	41%
Z4 - Threshold	155-172	3:34	4%
Z5 - Anaerobic	172+	0:00	0%

Total = 20.81 miles / 1:38:23 / 12.7 mph avg

Swim at Westside Aquatic

Today's Workout

• 4 x 100m warm up (2:30, 2:28, 2:20, 2:18)


• 300m of 50m 3-stroke breathing / 50m catch up / 50m swim


• 200m of 25m corkscrew kick drills / 25m swim


• 100m at moderate pace (2:19)


• 4 x 100 at last pace in warm up with 10-20" rest (2:14, 2:16, 2:20, 2:20)


• 300m bilateral breathing cool down

The water temp was around 80 degrees and to help deal with cold shock during my triathlon (the Middle Tyger YMCA pool is between 76-78 degrees), I decided to just jump in instead of slowly ease into the water as I normally do. It worked, it didn't take nearly as long to get used to the water as it normally takes so progress there.

I felt sluggish during the warm up being I haven't been in the pool in nearly 2 months but after about 200m, it all started coming back to me again.

The 3-stroke breathing was interesting. It felt so awkward to breathe on my left side and I notice I lift my head up further out of the water when breathing to my left so that's definitively something I need to work on more.

Then the corkscrew kicking drill which was extremely awkward at first. You start on your back kicking and then rotate 1/4th turn to kick for a few minutes. It was the breathing that was hardest.

Then 100m at moderate pace which was a slow 2:19 so I must of been getting tired at that point although I didn't feel tired. I think it was more from not getting much pool time in the last 2 months.

Then the 4 x 100s which were swam at a 2:14, 20" rest, 2:16, 15" rest, 2:20, 10" rest, 2:20. I felt stronger/faster the last 200 meters but my watch said differently. I guess I slowed down without realizing it but it had to be my arms getting tired because I felt like I could of swam another 400m at that pace from a stamina standpoint.

Then cool down which felt super easy.

Overall, I'm pretty surprised that I don't loose much time from not hitting the pool during the off-season and know that in just 4-6 weeks, I can get back down to a 2:00 / 100m pace fairly easy if I can get to the pool twice a week.

Race Report: Reedy River 5K

I ran this race with my brother, his 2nd 5K but first "real" race. We decided to start near the middle because I thought it would be a good place to start but boy I was so wrong. Even though it's in big bold letters in the email that is sent out that walkers should start in the back, they still started way up front. There were so many walkers and slower runners it took me nearly 1/2 mile to finally get into my race pace, but by then I was already way off my goal pace and had a lot of making up to do.

Shortly after we hit the first hill and was steeper and longer than any of the hills I train on, but surprising I flew up it  without breaking pace, passing others that already gave into walking. Mentally it was a huge confidence boost considering I'm normally the one getting past on hills. Once I got to the top of the hill, I saw my brother up ahead who got out to a faster start. I resisted the urge to run faster to catch up to him and instead stuck to my comfortably hard pace. I ended up catching and passing him on the second hill. By then, I realized this course is much tougher than I anticipated it would be but I was determined to give it everything I had no matter what. Every hill I would make it up about half way and then give into walking, my brother would catch up to me but there was no way I was going to let him pass me so I would start running again.

There was a nice downhill section and I took full advantage of it. I didn't slow down to recover as I normally do and instead sped up to keep the same comfortably hard pace. There were two more hills to get up and over but that last one, I thought my lungs were going to explode but there was no way I was giving up now. I glanced at my watch which read 29:29 with about a quarter mile to go. I knew I wasn't going to make it under 30 minutes but it didn't keep me from continuing the effort I had held all race long. Once I made the final turn and could see the finish line, I tried to go into a sprint but there was just nothing left in my legs. It felt like the longest stretch of road ever, what felt like 10 minutes was really only 90 seconds. I crossed the finish line 31:57, my brother right behind me 9 seconds later. I'm pretty happy with my time given I never previewed the course and had no idea how bad the hills would be and a significant improvement over January's 5K which was a much easier course.

Overall Results: 734 / 1,592

Women: 312 / 900

Age Group (30-34): 44 / 112

Race Report: Race for the Grasshopper 5K

This was my third year running in the Race for the Grasshopper 5K and my worst. Over the past few months, I've slowly lost my motivation for running. And now with a full-time job and limited daylight hours, it's just been way too easy to say "I'll run later" but later never happens.

I went into this race with very little training and honestly wasn't expecting much. The weather was great for January, low 50s. Much better than the last 2 years. I can remember standing at the start line waiting for the gun to go off and feeling nothing. No adrenaline, no nervousness, nothing. It was just one big group run where I didn't know a single person. To me, it felt like another solo run, another 5K without my husband supporting me or friends cheering me on. Why am I even here, running this race? I just didn't want to be there and sure as heck didn't feel like running.

The gun went off and I started running at an easy pace to get warmed up but it wasn't even a half mile in until I got a really bad side stitch. I tried to slow down but it just wouldn't go away. I pushed through the last mile which felt like it was twice as long as the first two miles just wanting to finish and get this race over and done with. I crossed the finish line in 33:37, pretty slow for that course.

Once I finished, I learn one important thing, I absolutely hate continuous running and prefer longer distances using run/walk method. Ironically my 9 miler last week felt easier than today's 5K and am probably not going to do that many 5Ks this year and instead focus solely on triathlons.

2011 Year in Review

Happy New Year!

This is the day where I look back at my log for last year and take a minute to reflect my accomplishments...

• I swam 14.5 miles


• I biked 493.3 miles with the Tour de Paws 28 miles being my longest ride of the year.


• I ran 356.1 miles with my longest runs being a 10 miler in February and a 9 miler on New Year's Eve morning.


• I completed two triathlons; The Middle Tyger YMCA Triathlon and the You Go Girl Triathlon.


• I completed my first charity ride; The Tour de Paws in September.


• I achieved a new 5K PR of 30:44 and new 8K PR of 50:58 and a 10K PR of 1:04:25.

My goals for 2012...

• Sub 30 minute 5K


• Sub 63 minute 10K


• Finish at least 1 half marathon


• Finish at least 3 triathlons


• Open water swimming


• Metric century (62 miles) bike ride

Run Report: Run with the Stoix

[caption id="attachment_967" align="alignleft" width="170" caption="© 2011 TRIATHLONARMY"][/caption]

I went into this run with my longest run being a 7.5 miler three weeks prior and then a 5K and 6 mile run leading up to this 9 mile run and this was my longest run since March. I wasn't really expecting for much but to just finish. I knew I was going to be slow and decided I was going to use run 2 mins, walk 1 min intervals.

The course was a 3 mile loop that we could do 1, 2 or 3 times and obviously I decided to go for the full 9 miles.I arrived somewhat late (hey, I hate mornings so yea, it was hard getting going) and arrived with just 10 mins to spare. I barely had enough time to sign in and pick up my beanie. The weather was foggy and in the low 40s. We quickly lined up and were off 5 secs later. The first 2 miles felt really easy and I even had to force myself to slow down at times.

[caption id="attachment_968" align="alignright" width="199" caption="© 2011 TRIATHLONARMY"][/caption]

Then 2.25 miles in, there was a monster hill on Washington Street. I tried my best to jog up it but 30 secs in, it proved to be too steep and too long for that to happen. Once I got up and over that hill, the rest was relatively easy. In fact, I felt really good for miles 4 and 5 but here came that Washington St hill again! Then all was good again for miles 7 and most of 8 but half way through 8 my hips were starting to hurt but I kept moving knowing it wasn't that much further and I was done! By the third time around, Washington St hill was painful.

That hill felt like a mountain and kept feeling like it was getting longer and steeper with every step. I could think about was just getting to the finish line and wanting this run to be done with as quickly as possible. So finally I crested the top of the hill and finished my 9 miler. It was slow but I got it done.

Mile splits =10:37, 11:16, 12:57, 11:39, 10:49, 12:54, 11:34, 11:52, 13:12.

Loop splits = 34:50, 35:22, 36:38