Funny story and a run

I work in an office in midtown in NYC... conservative finance... blah blah...all I've been thinking of is marathon.


Today I got in the elevator after lunch and held the door for some older guy. He said 'thank you' and asked 'how my day was going'. When I said 'fine', he asked me if our office was quiet today'. I said, 'yeah it is' and he said 'yea its just that time of year' and I said 'oh yeah marathon week' and at the same time he says......................'elections'. Awesome. I felt like such a tool. I have been talking marathon all day to anyone who will listen. I'm less nervous now. Feeling pretty confident. Not sure where that came from.

Tonight was a TNT run. We ran 3.8m in 39:16. Works for me but was too fast again. Was supposed to be 11 min marathon pace. I think that's my largest concern being able to run 11 min miles. Because really that's all I want and I will be happy. So I need to think SLOW JEN SLOW and not RUN JEN RUN :)

Was nice to get some nervous energy out though. Next concern- how in the hell to get downtown and what time I should go at with all the talk that theyre going to be strict this year!!!

If this is taper madness, no thank you please

I feel like I lost my head. All of the sudden I can't concentrate. About 2 minutes passes after each concentrated task before I need to flip to the next one.

Caffeine cutback begins asap. Obviously is not helping.

I made a list of what needs to get done and its hardly anything. I'm just anxious and no workouts are not helping me.

UGH

Poland Sping 5m Kick Off Run

I had been told that the race course is notoriously crowded and that it was for the first mile at least. I had in the back of my head that I wanted to PR and that it wouldnt be too difiicult given that I've only run 2 5m races previously as follows:
-Fathers Day 5m- 52:48 and I pushed a bit
-Hope and Possibility 5m- 55:48 that's more of my normal pace

Both races were this summer, 6/20/10 and 6/27/10 so the weather was much much different than today which was sunny and 54 degrees.

Regardless, I was psyched with my final time. 49:01. YAAAAHOOOOOO!!!! A PR by 3 min 47 seconds unofficially.  The course was a clockwise loops starting right before the NYCM finish line.

Spilits:
10:30
9:57
9:53
9:29
9:11

When I started and saw 10:30 given the west side hills I figured 'Hey! Maybe I'll break the 52:48 I set in the summer, that would be nice'... When I hit the second split right by the 102 transverse I was like, Huh sounds great. I did mess up the splits a bit so m1 and m2 were more like 10:23 and 10:04 but whatever. I decided then I wanted to pick it up a bit and saw the 9:53 for m3 and decided that I wanted to break 50 min. 49:01 is a dream!!! I think my ultimate 5m goal is going to be 45min but we'll get there with training etc. 2011 is the year of training runs. I am going to set 4m, 5m 10k goals and we'll hopefully get to 9 min pace for the 10k, 8:45 pace for the 5m and 8:30 pace for the 4m.

YAY SUNDAY! Here I come NYCM!

So much for a 6m slow run paced run

I didnt feel like getting out of bed this am. I had wine and cuban last night and was up until 1 am with friends. I slept to 9 am which felt so incredulously late and skipped the TNT last Saturday run. Instead I lounged all day, did laundry, made my pile for next Sunday and finally, an hour before sunset decided to drag my butt out of bed to run. I ran 3.83m which was 1 lap of the reservoir and to and from the park. The perfect weekday am or early pm run to be honest. I like living so close to the park.

Without realizing it I ran a 9:44 pace. Uhm OK. I dont think its possible, honest. But the watch and runningahead dont lie, right? Even if I was off witht he mileage it would have to be quite a bit to move it to an 11 min pace.

Oh well.

Tomorrow I am running the Poland Spring 5-mile kick off. I will not run too fast!!!

The luck of the orange

I lurk in the Runners World forums. I post as well, but more lurking than posting (although I have been posting over the last week a ton I must admit). Apparently there is a myth of sorts associated with running in Orange at the ING marathon (imagine who couldve planted that?!!?)

Anyway. I might pick up some orange laces at the expo AND I might run in the bib I ran in last year which was orange (see side pic). Even if I didnt have my best race ever- it was pretty good for coming down with Bronchitis exactly 30 days before the race. AAAAAAAAAAAND I had the best time (I really did!!!) so maybe there is luck to the orange. Now I want to iron over my letters and recreate last years look. I just have a good feeling about that.

Tonight I ran in CP, just about 4m at a 10:00 pace (ish). I ran with a partner here at our firm who is also running the marathon. It was a nice change and I was able to air some issues out which was nice. Plus, honestly the company was nice. We ran from the East drive at 65th street up to 85th cut into the bridle path then reservoir at engineers gate and then looped the reservoir continuing on the bridle path at 86th/85th street and ran back down the west drive to 6th ave. It really was a nice change up from what I do (which has been sporadic but a lot of lower loops for safety and laziness. I remember how much I used to like running on the bridle path so perhaps I will do a loop of it this weekend and ditch the TNT people. I suppose my only concern would be uneven ground and tripping. I am paranoid after my trip last weekend!

My foot is a mess still. It's comical. My plantars wart was cut out deeply and feels a tad infected. There are still 9 days so I am not worried. I am more worried that I'll walk/run weird and put strains on my calves etc. All in all I need to worry a little less.

So I sit here with my bagel, fall weather in the air (and on the menu today is pizza and more pizza with salad) so marathon season is in full bloom. I know I'll be sad when it's over so I really need to give it my all. Stick to my race plan (to be divulged next week) and just feel good about it. Mental prep people!!

Happy weekend! I am running 6 tomorrow, recovring through 4 on Sunday (still debating whether or not to do Poland Spring which I did sign up for) and then did weights (Arms and Abs!!) this am. I am really happy with my arms. I am looking forward to post marathon where I can try new moves and not worry so much about hurting my back (which I'm concerned with now bc it has been soooo good, too good almost).

On the sickness front I am definitely getting much better. I'm still on Xyzal and Nasonex and rinsging my sinueses 2x a day but the ears are better and I'm hardly stuffy in the am anymore. I am still coughing a few times to clear out my throat but nothing like before where the coughs would last until lunch, in fact I dont even cough after 9 am anymore.

The monster that lurks within

Yesterday I ate something in the ballpark of 3,000 calories. I am not quite sure how this happened, except to say that I had eaten 1,000 calories before lunch. I was just insatiable. And that's not to say I didn't try to stop it, oh my friends, I did. I drank 10 bottles of either Pelligrino or Vitamin Water Zero and a few cups of tea in between to try and stop the hunger. Literally, I ate every hour. Popped chips, cereal, yogurt, dried fruit, egg whites on a wrap, banana, mango. For lunch I had olives, cheese, tomatos, I tried to kick up the fat factor wondering if that's why I was so hungry. NOTHING worked!!! I was giggling at myself by mid-pm because I was for real hungry. Not made up, not comforting myself, I was just plain hungry.

And so I ate. What the hell, right?Mostly healthy things but really, when you eat that much, some is unhealthy. Yes, I had cookies... and a roll... and some hersheys. Grand scheme it didnt make a dent.

Yesterdays workout perhaps took more out of me? I am not sore today but I did have issues dragging myself out of bed this am. I was late, as per usual.

I am starting to check out the accuweather forecast- It's obviously way too early. It incites no emotion when I see the day surronded by rain- perhaps I am getting wiser. I will not waste energy panicking about something I can not change.

Tonight is an easy 3m run. I feel as if I will participate even though I had another podiatrist treatment and the bottom of my foot is burned (literally) raw. I will be fine. Tomorrow yoga in the am. I must get in bed early.

Recovery Run and Monday am gym workout

I woke up this am with a clear head and a full breath. Wow, it's been a while, hello air! I am feeling better but still have icky post nasal drip. Apparently that can just hang around for well, forever. Let's hope thats not the case.

Saturday I rested long and hard before a few errands post run. Sunday was a day of rest too. Brunch, facial, rest rest rest. I did manage a 3.25m recovery walk with the bf. We walked all the way up Riverside. It's freaking gorgeous. I wouldve moved to be close to that park alone!

This am I woke up early and went to the gym. 35 min of arms, some squats and lunges for added strength and abs. Last night the bf told me I looked thinner. Hey, I'll take it.

We're now officially into taper. I'm not quite sure what that means as my mileage was never oh so high.

What do you do to taper?