Getting Fit

The Runner's Circuit

2011-12-16T23:28:00.001+09:00

I hate to admit it but my running hasn't been that consistent lately. Part of that is because Mike left for 2 weeks for training in Texas so I was left to come up with an alternative exercise program while he was away. I decided to finally put Abby in the hourly care on base just so I could go and exercise. For the past couple of weeks I have been going to the gym 3 days a week. I have been running outside, running on the treadmill, and swimming. I forgot how much I really love to swim and I discovered how cool it is that I can watch movies from my iPhone while I am running on the treadmill. Our treadmills have a hook up for that!!! Knowing that it is going to take more than running this winter to stay fit I am determined to go back to strengthening my core. My friend who also happens to be a personal trainer gave me a great Circuit Training Workout designed for runners. I tried it for the first time this week and I LOVED IT! I am still sore 2 days after but I can tell it is going to be a great program for me. Each circuit session includes interval running and resistance exercises. It is recommended to do this circuit twice a week to start out with and then increase to three days a week after a month if desired. This program is taken from Womens Running Magazine. Here it is:

THE RUNNERS CIRCUIT:

Do the following runs and strength exercise in order. Move quickly from one to the other but don't rush the actual moves, making sure to maintain good form. There is no recovery tiem between the exercise, other than moving from one to the next. Remember to stay well hydrated throughout the workout. The entire circuit should take you about 50-55 minutes. Performing an additional circuit adds another 25-30 minutes.

1. Warm up: Run 10 minutes easy on the treadmil, then run 30 sec. fast (90-95% effort); jog 30 sec to recover; and repeat the fast/slow sequence 4 more times.

2. Peform 15 squats with dumbbell overhead press.

3. Do 20 bicycles on each leg.

4. Peform 20 step-ups with bicep curls (I customize my height using an aerobics step bench).

5. Run 400 meters (1/4 mile) at 5K pace (90-95% effort) on the treadmill.

6. Do 12 single-leg squats on each leg.

7. Perform 20 dips off a bench.

8. Do 20 Supermen.

9. Run 800 meters (1/2 mile) at 5K pace.

10. Perform 25 stability ball push-ups.

11. Do 10 lunges with rotation on each leg, using dumbbells or a medicine ball.

12. Hold plank position for 30 seconds.

13. Run 400 meters at 5K pace; recover with 1 1/2 min easy jogging; repeat fast/slow running sequence one more time. For the more advanced, repeat steps 2 through 13 of circuit.

14. Cool down: After a two-minute walk/rest, jog and stretch for 10 minutes.

THE MOVES:

Squats with dumbbell overhead press:
Stand with feet spaced about shoulder width apart. Hold one dumbbell in each hand in front of your shoulders, palm facing each other. Squat down until your thighs are about parallel with the floor; keep torso in a fairly upright position and the dumbbells in front of your shoulders. As you rise from the squat, press the dumbbells overhead simultaneously. Arms and legs should reach full extension at the same time.

Bicycle:
Lie on your back with your hands lightly supporting your head. Keeping your legs straight, raise both legs off the ground. Keep your left leg straight and pull your right leg toward your chest by bending at knee. Lift your shoulders and twist your head so your left elbow touches your right knee. Return to starting position and repeat on other side.

Step-ups with bicep curl:
Stand on top of a sturdy bench about knee high. Hold one dumbbell in each hand at your sides, palms in. Place your body weight on your left foot and lower your right foot in a controlled manner until it touches the ground. Continue to keep most of the weight on your left foot. Return to starting position with both feet on the bench and do a bicep curl. Repeat sequence 10 times and then switch to the right leg.

Single leg squats:
Stand with your left foot flat on the floor and your right foot elevated on a bench or chair two feet behind you. Most of your weight should rest on the heel of your left foot. Bend your left knee and lower your body until your thigh is about parallel with the floor. Push yourself back to teh starting position by straightening your left leg and maintaining an upright position. Repeat 12 times and switch to the right leg and repeat.

Dips off a bench:
Most of us know what this is.

Supermen:
If you have done P90X then you are really familiar with this one. Lie on your stomach, legs straight behind you and arms extended straight in front of you with palms on the floor. Slowly raise your chest, shoulders, and arms up, keeping your toes on the floor. Look forward and upward as you lift your trunk off the ground. Hold for 3 seconds and lower back to the floor. Repeat 20 times. For a challenge, raise your feet off the ground when you raise your arms. I prefer this one although it is a bit tougher.

Stability ball push-ups:
Ease yourself forward over a stability ball so only your shins and feet are resting on top of the ball, with your hands on the floor in front of you about shoulder width apart. Your torso and legs should be fully extended with your arms straight. Bend your elbows as you lower your chest to the floor. Then push your body up as you straighten your arms. Repeat 25 times.

Lunges with rotations:
Stand with feet shoulder width apart. Hold a medicine ball or dumbbell with both hands at chest level. Take a fairly large step forward with the right foot and lower yourself until you left knee is just above the floor and your right thigh is almost parallel with the ground. Rotate your torso right (rotate it left when left foot is forward) and then twist back to center. Alternate right and left foot for a total of 10 lunges per leg.

Plank:
Lie on your stomach and place your arms in a push up position. Push up off the ground and balance your weight on your forearms and toes. Keeping your legs, hips, and torso straight and abdominal tight, hold for 30 seconds. Be prepared for the body shake if you are not used to doing these...it's totally normal!

10 K Run for the Cure

2011-11-26T13:19:00.000+09:00

After a kind of disappointing marathon I knew that I needed something to help me stay focused on my running. My friend Bob told me about a 10K at the Imperial Palace and since it was a charity run it was on Saturday. So after spending Thanksgiving up in Tokyo at the New Sanno we headed up to Tokyo once again for the 10K race. We decided to all take the train which turned out to be a good idea. It was so nice to have the family come cheer me on at this race. I met up with Bob and other runners from the Nanban running group in Tokyo. I saw a few ASIJ HS runners and many other Americans there. I wasn't really sure how fast I was going to be able to run this race but I was aiming somewhere around 42 minutes. I told Bob if he felt like running slow he could run with me and pace me. Bob is fast and if it hadn't been for the fact that a few other fast male runners showed up he would have tried to race it and place to get one of the prizes. Luck was on my side because after mile 1 I could see that I was catching up to Bob...or wait, he was slowing down to run with me. I was so grateful he ran with me. It was the first time in a long time that I had run with someone faster than me to pace me. It was a nice feeling. We were fortunate enough to run with Ueda who is a Japanese Olympic Triathlete. She can run the 10K in 34 minutes and that is in a triathlon....WOW! It was the coolest feeling rounding the last corner and seeing that I was going to place. They even had a pink ribbon out for me as I crossed the finish line. I was able to place 3rd for women with a time of 42:21 and an average pace of 6:53 min/mile. I actually got some pretty fabulous prizes including two new pairs of shoes. This race was just the thing I needed to push me into the winter running months!

Shonan International Marathon

2011-11-03T13:16:00.000+09:00

Crazy people run marathons. Insane people try to run them fast. Being married to such an insane person is both fun and draining. Sara has been training for this race for a while now. Through the blazing, boiling heat of the summer, into the cool days of the fall. Running at 5:00 in the morning in the dark, running in the rain, running all day saturday, running, running, running. Her dedication and love of running is impressive, her determination is inspiring. With race day upon us, Sara got dropped off at the train station before the kids went to school. Abby and I jumped on the train soon after the kids got dropped off and we went to see Sara at the half marathon mark. We would see her at other points along the way as Abby and I jumped on and off different trains, monorails, and trolley cars. One thing that has to be said for the Japanese is that they can organize a race. I have never seen so much support, such organized water stations, and attention to detail. The race went along Sagami Bay to Enoshima Island and back. It was a good day: temperature was just right, minimal wind, and a flat course. All I can say about the race is that Sara is amazing. How she runs these things at all is beyond me, how she runs them so fast goes way beyond me. Training by herself for months with nobody to run with, running the race as one of only a few foreigners among the 18,000 runners, and taking a train across Japan just to get there takes true grit. Though she says its her last one, I'll believe it when I see it. Keep running girl!

I am crazy to have trained for this marathon in probably the worst time of year in Japan. I spent most of my training running in the humdity and even at 5am it was still pretty nasty outside. I don't really know why I like to torture myself. Running is something that is so ingrained in who I am that I would truly be lost without the challenge of it. I have to admit that my training wasn't as smooth as I would have liked. I got sick twice which put me out for entire weeks and a previously planned family vacation really hurt some of my last long runs. That coupled with the heat and humidity I should have realized that time should not have been a goal for this race. I did manage to get in one 20 miler as well as an 18, 16, 14, and a bunch of 12 mile runs. Once the humidity died down I was able to put in some speed where I was running at my goal race pace and even faster during some of my longer runs. I was feeling pretty good but my confidence wasn't as strong and to be honest my heart wasn't 100% in running the race. That being said, I went ahead with my plans to try and run a 7:40 min/mile pace so that I could attempt to beat my previous PR of 3:24:00 and possibly try to break 3:20:00. I left for the venue around 6:30am and finally made it by 8:10am. I took two trains and a city bus to get to the venue at the Oiso Prince Hotel. I saw a few male foreigners but no female foreingers. After dropping off my gear and going to the bathroom one more time I headed to my corral where I tried to make my way to the front. It only took me 5 minutes to get to the starting line and only 4 miles to break free of the crowds. The first few miles were challenging as I was trying to keep my pace and dodge in and out of lots of people. I hugged the outside so that I could jump on the curb and pass if I needed to. I was able to hold between a 7:15-7:50 pace for the first 12 miles of the race. I was feeling great but I kept looking for Mike. I felt quite alone in a sea of Japanese people who I couldn't really talk to. I finally saw Mike and Abby at mile 12 which was lucky for me because they had just gotten there. I thought after seeing them and making the turn around point that I would get a burst of energy but actually I felt depleted of energy. Instead of taking my gu here which in retrospect I should have, I waited until mile 14. Because the race started at 9am and the fact that it is hard to eat before race I should have realized that I would need extra energy during the race. My pace slowed to the low 8 min range for the next 5 miles and then I was even struggling to maintain a 8:30 min/mile pace. I don't know what happened and slowly my confidence started to tumble. My body just felt tired and it was then that I realized that it didn't really matter what my time would be but that I needed to focus on just finishing the race. I made it to mile 20 where I started to have some chest pains. The last couple of weeks before the race I discovered that my blood pressure was higher than I am used to. It was a bit unnerving so when I felt something at mile 20 I decided to slow it up even more. I ran 9:30 min miles for the rest of the race and finished in 3:36:00. It wasn't my best time and it wasn't my worst time. It was a very challenging race for me because my body didn't feel great and because mentally I really struggled to stay focused. As I rounded the last corner before the finish line I saw Mike and Abby again and I immediately smiled even though I felt like my legs were barely moving. It was all I could do to run up the last little hill to the finish line (thanks a lot for that race planning people). I am pretty positive that this will be my last full marathon. I plan on training for half marathons and 10K races. I know that is where my true strengths are!

Week 16

2011-11-03T13:15:00.000+09:00

November 1-2, 2011

RACE WEEK!!! I am so excited to just get this race over with. It has been a huge hassle to train for this marathon especially through the hot and humid days of the summer which carried over into September.

MONDAY

HALLOWEEN!!! DNR

TUESDAY

5.06 miles

Time: 40:54
Moving Time: 40:27

Avg. Pace: 8:05 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 8:00 min/mile

WEDNESDAY

1.69 miles - just to stretch out my legs

THURSDAY

RACE DAY

26.33 miles

Time: 3:36:54
Moving Time: 3:35:43

Avg. Pace: 8:14 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 8:12 min/mile

SPLITS
7:40
7:43
7:47
7:31
7:31
7:26
7:35
7:39
7:40
7:34
7:47
7:46
8:11
8:05
8:33
8:22
8:17
8:24
8:23
8:34
8:28
9:16
9:20
9:31
9:35
9:17
8:52
8:14 (last .33)

FRIDAY

DNR - recovery

SATURDAY

DNR - recovery

TOTAL WEEKLY MILEAGE: 33.08 miles

Week 15

2011-10-29T13:06:00.000+09:00

October 24-29, 2011

Since I forgot my Garmin on this trip Mike downloaded an App onto my iPhone and I used that to help me on my runs away from home. Unfortunately none of the information was saved so I don't have any stats for this week but I know that I ran at least 4 days this week all between 4-5 miles each day which an average pace between 7:30-8:00 min/mile!

Week 14

2011-10-22T13:04:00.000+09:00

October 17-22, 2011

I was busy this week getting ready for our 10 day road trip to southern Japan...the running totally suffered this week...oh well.

MONDAY

DNR

TUESDAY

4 miles

Time: 33:40
Moving Time: 33:30

Avg. Pace: 8:25 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 8:22 min/mile

WEDNESDAY

DNR

THURSDAY

DNR

FRIDAY

DNR

SATURDAY

8 miles

Forgot my Garmin so I used an App on my iPhone...don't have any times though.

TOTAL WEEKLY MILEAGE: 12 miles (yikes)

Week 13

2011-10-15T12:59:00.000+09:00

October 10-14, 2011

In a perfect world I would be able to fit in 5 days of running but my life is so chaotic it was a miracle I was able to run three days this week. I just have to keep telling myself to keep pushing forward!

MONDAY

7 miles

Time: 56:57
Moving Time: 55:33

Avg. Pace: 8:08 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 7:56 min/mile

TUESDAY

DNR

WEDNESDAY

DNR

THURSDAY

6.04 miles

Time: 51:51
Moving Time: 50:58

Avg. Pace: 8:35 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 8:26 min/mile

FRIDAY

DNR

SATURDAY

20 miles

Time: 2:40:18
Moving Time: 2:34:45

Avg. Pace: 8:01 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 7:44 min/mile

Elevation Gain: 1177 ft.
Elevation Loss: 1341 ft.

It was extremely windy on my long run today but I did it. I ran along the water which is the same kind of thing I will be running along on marathon day. I just hope it is not as windy on race day as it was today. My hat actually blew right off my head one point and I had to chase it down the street. Luckily I caught it and didn't get hit by a car!

TOTAL WEEKLY MILEAGE: 33.04 miles

Week 12

2011-10-08T12:36:00.000+09:00

October 3-8. 2011

On track with my long runs and trying to keep plugging along with my speed.

MONDAY

7.33 miles

Time: 1:00:29
Moving Time: 59:36

Avg. Pace: 8:15 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 8:08 min/mile

TUESDAY

4.86 miles

Time: 41:07
Moving Time: 40:08

Avg. Pace: 8:28 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 8:16 min/mile

WEDNESDAY

DNR

THURSDAY

6.01 miles

Time: 45:20
Moving Time: 44:48

Avg. Pace: 7:33 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 7:27 min/mile

FRIDAY

DNR-rest

SATURDAY

18 miles

Time: 2:28:07
Moving Time: 2:21:22

Avg. Pace: 8:14 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 7:51 min/mile

Elevation Gain: 1201 ft.
Elevation Loss: 1275 ft.

Another great long run!

TOTAL WEEKLY MILEAGE: 36.2 miles

Week 11

2011-10-01T12:24:00.000+09:00

September 26-October 1, 2011

A much better week and a great way to finish off September. The weather is significantly cooler which has allowed me to run faster without overheating. It is a good sign that I have been able to run both of the long runs in the 7 minute range.

MONDAY

8 miles

Time: 1:00:53
Moving Time: 59:43

Avg. Pace: 7:36 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 7:28 min/mile

TUESDAY

5.02 miles

Time: 43:23
Moving Time: 42:51

Avg. Pace: 8:39 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 8:33 min/mile

WEDNESDAY

5 miles

Time: 42:45
Moving Time: 42:30

Avg. Pace: 8:32 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 8:30 min/mile

THURSDAY

8.71 miles recovery run

Time: 1:29:40
Moving Time: 1:27:34

Avg. Pace: 10:17 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 10:03 min/mile

FRIDAY

DNR-rest

SATURDAY

16 miles

Time: 2:05:16
Moving Time: 1:59:43

Avg. Pace: 7:50 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 7:29 min/mile

Elevation Gain: 1087 ft.
Elevation Loss: 1109 ft.

I must say I kicked some butt on this long run. I think it is safe to say that I AM BACK!!!

TOTAL WEEKLY MILEAGE: 42.73 miles (YEAH!!!)

Week 10

2011-09-24T12:24:00.000+09:00

September 19-23, 2011

Making a small come back this week. The humidity is dying down and it is a little cooler so I am trying to pick up the pace now. My mileage is still not where it needs to be but with my crazy schedule this is the best I can do right now.

MONDAY

5 miles

Time: 38:54
Moving Time: 38:42

Avg. Pace: 7:46 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 7:44 min/mile

TUESDAY

4 miles

Time: 35:16
Moving Time: 34:51

Avg. Pace: 8:49 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 8:42 min/mile

WEDNESDAY

DNR

THURSDAY

DNR

FRIDAY

DNR

SATURDAY

12 LSD (long slow distance)

Time: 1:36:10
Moving Time: 1:34:55

Avg. Pace: 8:01 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 7:54 min/mile

TOTAL WEEKLY MILEAGE: 21 miles (slowly working my way back up)

Week 9

2011-09-17T12:14:00.000+09:00

September 12-17, 2011

Another not so great week but this time because I got sick. Next week will hopefully get better.

MONDAY

4 miles

Time: 36:04
Moving Time: 34:51

Avg. Pace: 9:00 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 8:42 min/mile

TUESDAY

DNR

WEDNESDAY

6 miles
Time: 48:00
Moving Time: 47:37

Avg. Pace: 8:00min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 7:56 min/mile

THURSDAY

SICK

FRIDAY

SICK

SATURDAY

SICK

TOTAL WEEKLY MILEAGE: 10 miles

Week 8

2011-09-10T11:48:00.000+09:00

September 5-10, 2011

Labor Day weekend and Mike's trip with Helping Hands up to Northern Japan...I knew this week was going to be a short one for running. Oh well. It is still hot and humid so the pace is still slow.

MONDAY

2.5 miles easy

Ran with Mike along the Beach down in Shimoda on our getaway weekend!

TUESDAY

4.5 miles

Time: 38:09
Moving Time: 37:31
Avg. Pace: 8:33 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 8:24 min/mile

WEDNESDAY

DNR

THURSDAY

10.12 long run

Time: 1:35:43
Moving Time: 1:34:21
Avg. Pace: 9:28 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 9:20 min/mile

FRIDAY

DNR

SATURDAY

DNR

TOTAL WEEKLY MILEAGE: 17.12 miles

Week 7

2011-09-03T00:41:00.000+09:00

August 29 - September 3

The kids started school this week and all of their after school activities so this was a very busy week for me. I was still able to get in a tempo run, hill workout, and long run. I even pushed Abby in the jogger on Wednesday which gave me a different type of workout. I will be pushing her in the jogger every Wednesday for part of our mom and me time. After we are finished running we stop at the store to get a little treat. She just loves it.

My long run this week was hard because the typhoon brought some nasty humidity. I was able to stay cool with lots of fluid and drowning my head to keep cool. The wicked breeze did help some too. So glad this week of training is over.

MONDAY

5 miles easy

Projected: 5.00 miles
Actual: 3.24 miles

First day of school and I drove the kids to school and I woke up a little too late to get in all 5 miles. I opted to run 3 today instead of not running at all.
Time: 27:14
Moving Time: 26:33

Avg. Pace: 8:24 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 8:11 min/mile

TUESDAY

6 miles HILLS

Projected: 6.00 miles
Actual: 6.00 miles

Time: 51:03
Moving Time: 50:47
Avg. Pace: 8:30 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 8:27 min/mile

Elevation Gain: 725 ft
Elevation Loss: 722 ft

This was definitely the hardest hill workout I have had so far. 5 uphills and 5 downhills.

WEDNESDAY

3 miles easy - Jogger run

Projected: 3.00 miles
Actual: 3.06 miles

Time: 26:55
Moving Time: 26:25

Avg. Pace: 8:48 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 8:38 min/mile

THURSDAY

5 miles TEMPO (1 mile warm up, 3 miles between 7:30-7:40 min/mile pace, 1 mile cooldown)

Projected: 5.00 miles
Actual: 5.00 miles

Time: 39:53
Moving Time: 39:47
Avg. Pace: 7:58 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 7:57 min/mile

Splits (8:12, 7:39, 7:37, 7:25, 8:55 up hill most of the way)

I was so happy that I was able to do reverse splits today on my tempo portion. It was a really humid morning. I wonder how fast I will be when this humidity ceases...

FRIDAY

rest

SATURDAY

14 LSD (long slow distance)

Projected: 14.00 miles
Actual: 14.00 miles

Time: 2:02:00
Moving Time: 1:59:22
Avg. Pace: 8:42 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 8:31 min/mile

The weather made this run hard but I made it. Legs feeling pretty good but my lower back is a little sore and I am just overall tired, especially after having to drive both boys to their soccer games, hit the grocery store, and come back home all after doing my run. What a day!

TOTAL WEEKLY MILEAGE: 31.24 miles (was hoping for 35 miles but that did not happen)

Week 6

2011-08-26T10:51:00.000+09:00

August 22- August 27

This was a great week. I am finally back on track and running a bit faster now. Up until this point I have not really done a whole lot of speed just because the heat and humidity is such a killer and I am so worried of over heating. Since I have some mileage in now I decided it was time to pick up the pace. It is still really humid and hot but I am hoping that it will start to break in the next couple of weeks.

MONDAY

6 miles easy

Projected: 6.00 miles
Actual: 6.00 miles

Time: 50:14
Moving Time: 49:54

Avg. Pace: 8:22 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 8:18 min/mile

TUESDAY

6 miles TEMPO (1 mile warm up, 4 miles of TEMPO, 1 mile cooldown)

Projected: 6.00 miles
Actual: 6.10 miles

Time: 47:35
Moving Time: 45:16

Avg. Pace: 7:47 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 7:25 min/mile

First and last mile were warm up and cooldown
Splits (8:12, 7:23, 6:56, 7:20, 7:23, 8:32)   YEAH BABY!!!

WEDNESDAY

Rest

THURSDAY

5 miles hills

Projected: 5.00 miles
Actual: 5.00 miles

Time: 42:53
Moving Time: 42:13

Avg. Pace: 8:34 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace:  8:25 min/mile

Elevation Gain:649 ft
Elevation Loss: 675 ft

FRIDAY

4 miles easy

Projected: 4.00 miles
Actual:  REST
Decided I needed the day off! Good thing I listened to my body.

SATURDAY

12 miles LSD

Project: 12.00 miles
Actual:  12.00 miles

Time: 1:39:21
Moving Time: 1:37:59

Avg. Pace:   8:16 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace:  8:09 min/mile

TOTAL WEEKLY MILEAGE: 29 miles (getting better)

Week 5

2011-08-19T10:40:00.000+09:00

August 15- August 20

Well, I have been on a low mileage roll so why not continue the trend for just one more week. I am totally better now but we went on vacation this week so I only got to run on Saturday. At least I went out and ran somewhat long just to get my legs used to running again after not having run in an entire week. It was a good run. I went the same way I went with my 12 mile in Week 2 but I cut it a bit short to only get 10 miles in. I was running at a good pace but then I had to stop and check my iPhone map to see how to get back to route 16 so I slowed up a bit. All in all it was a great way to finish my week of fun with my family on the Western side of Japan. We did some hiking and lots of walking so I did get some exercise in.

MONDAY-WEDNESDAY

Hiking and lots of walking

THURSDAY-FRIDAY

unpacking and cleaning

SATURDAY

Projected: Anything over 8 miles
Actual: 10.00 miles

Time: 1:26:55
Moving Time: 1:24:54

Avg. Pace: 8:41 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 8:29 min/mile

Splits (8:26, 8:23, 8:27, 8:31, 8:52, 9:41 slowed down to check map, 8:30, 8:11, 8:43, 9:06)

TOTAL WEEKLY MILEAGE: A whopping 10 miles!!!

Week 4

2011-08-12T10:31:00.000+09:00

August 8- August 13

Well if you thought last week was pathetic, hold on to your hats because this week was even worse. After 3 nights and 3 days of 9 kids in the house including twin baby boys (who had runny noses) I was a WRECK. By the time we dropped them off on Monday we were so exhausted. I spent Tuesday recovering and then I thought I was going to start running again but I got sick Wednesday through Saturday. I finally decided to try and get out on Saturday just to move my legs but only went a short distance before turning around. Keep in mind that I live in a really hilly area so all my runs are up and down whether I like it or not.

MONDAY

5 miles easy

Projected: 5.00 miles
Actual: 5.00 miles

Time: 42:36
Moving Time: 41:55

Avg. Pace: 8:31 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 8:22 min/mile

Splits (8:46, 8:11, 8:26, 8:26, 8:44)

TUESDAY

rest

WEDNESDAY-FRIDAY

sick

SATURDAY

Projected: whatever I could manage
Actual: 2.20 miles

Time: 19:36

TOTAL WEEKLY MILEAGE: 7.20 miles (yikes)

Week 3

2011-08-05T10:20:00.000+09:00

August 1- August 6

I knew that I would not be logging in as many miles this week. Over the weekend we watched 5 additional kids for 3 days - 2 teenagers, 1 toddler, and twin 9 month old babies. It was exhausting. I tried to run when I could and I had to skip my long run this weekend.

MONDAY

4 miles easy

Projected: 4.00 miles
Actual: 4.01 miles

Time: 34:58
Moving Time: 34:46

Avg. Pace: 8:43 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 8:40 min/mile

TUESDAY

4 miles hills

Projected: 4.00 miles
Actual: 4.00 miles

Time: 34:03
Moving Time: 33:38

Avg. Pace: 8:30 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 8:24 min/mile

Elevation Gain: 430 ft
Elevation Loss: 439 ft

WEDNESDAY

Rest

THURSDAY

Rest

FRIDAY

Rest

SATURDAY

8 miles

Projected: 8.00 miles
Actual: 7.30 miles

Time: 1:01:01
Moving Time: 1:00:43

Avg. Pace: 8:21 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 8:19 min/mile

TOTAL WEEKLY MILEAGE: 16.01 miles (totally pathetic)

Week 2

2011-07-29T10:04:00.000+09:00

July 25-July 30

I didn't log in as many miles this week as I had planned but I have to remember that it is good that I am running at all in this dreadful humid heat. I took an additional day off this week because I was exhausted. I try to listen to my body at all times even if it means missing one of my planned workouts. I know that I have saved myself on a few occasions from injury just because I listened to my body. It's still early in my training so I will be ok.

MONDAY

5 miles easy

Projected: 5.00 miles
Actual: 5.00 miles

Time: 45:09
Moving Time: 44:04

Avg. Pace: 9:01 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 8:48 min/mile

TUESDAY

5 miles Hills

Projected: 5.00 miles
Actual: 4.60 miles

Time: 40:54
Moving Time: 39:52

Avg. Pace: 8:53 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 8:40 min/mile

Elevation Gain: 585 ft
Elevation Loss: 590 ft

WEDNESDAY

Rest

THURSDAY

4 miles easy

Projected: 4.00 miles
Actual: 4.00 miles

Lost my data for this day. Oh well.

FRIDAY

Rest

SATURDAY

12 miles LSD (long slow distance)

Projected: 12.00 miles
Actual: 12.00 miles

Time: 1:44:15
Moving Time: 1:42:16

Avg. Time: 8:41 min/mile
Avg. Moving Pace: 8:31 min/mile

TOTAL WEEKLY MILEAGE: 25.60 miles

Week 1

2011-07-23T21:37:00.000+09:00

July 18-July 23

The first week of training is always exciting because I am super motivated. I still have to get up rather early to run (5am) and that doesn't even guarantee that it won't be overly sunny.  The sun rises here at 4:30am in the summer time.  It is a good thing that I have been running since May because now it is a matter of training my body to adjust to humidity.  For now I will take 2 days of rest and then slowly work towards only 1 day off. At this point I am aiming to run the marathon somewhere between 3:20 and 3:30 so my marathon goal pace will be between 7:40-8:00 min/mile. My easy runs should be somewhere between 8:30-8:40 min/mile. After I get through the humid summer and more into my training I will bump that closer to the 8:15-8:25 min/mile range. All of my runs end in a half mile hill to get back to my house. At least my legs will get strong fast!

MONDAY

4 miles easy

Projected: 4.00 miles
Actual: 4.09 miles

Time: 33:58
Moving Time: 33:24

Avg. Pace: 8:18 min/mile
Avg Moving Pace: 8:00 min/mile

Splits (9:03, 8:15, 8:34, 7:26)

TUESDAY

4 miles easy

Projected: 4.00 miles
Actual: 4.00 miles

Time: 34:17
Moving Time: 32:54

Avg. Pace: 8:34 min/mile
Avg Moving Pace: 8:13 min/mile

Splits (8:19, 8:28, 8:23, 9:05)

WEDNESDAY

Rest

THURSDAY

6 miles hills

Projected: 6.00 miles
Actual:  6.15 miles

Time: 53:56
Moving Time: 53:18
Avg Moving Pace: 8:39 min/mile

Elevation Gain: 592 ft
Elevation Loss: 603 ft

FRIDAY

5 miles easy

Projected: 5.00 miles
Actual:  5.10 miles

Time: 44:24
Moving Time: 43:28
Avg Moving Pace: 8:31 min/mile

Splits (8:49, 8:30, 8:40, 8:31, 8:56)

SATURDAY

10 miles easy

Projected: 10 miles
Actual: 9.12 miles

Time: 1:26:01
Moving Time: 1:23:50
Avg Moving Pace: 9:11 min/mile

TOTAL WEEKLY MILEAGE: 28.44 miles

Marathon Training

2011-07-11T19:07:00.000+09:00

I can't believe the last time I wrote on here was way back in January. I have been running on and off since then but nothing too spectacular to write about I guess. When the earthquake hit I left for the US and my running took a nose dive. I started back up again in May after realizing I had gained almost 10 pounds since the last time I had weighed myself which is not a good thing for a short lady like me. So, I started eating better and started building up a good foundation of 20-25 miles a week. I knew that running without some goal in mind would not be enough for me so I started to think about a race. Seeing as most of the races in Japan are on Sundays (and I have already made the decision to not run on Sundays) I was a little worried that I would ever find a good long race to run. Well, it must have been fate or just the fact that I have a wonderful husband who is always looking out for me because no sooner than I started running again Mike found a marathon that is on a Thursday (Culture Day in Japan) in November. Not only is it not on a Sunday but it is real close to our house and right along the water which means it will be more flat than hilly. I signed both Mike and myself up for the Shonan International Marathon. This will be Mike's first marathon and my fifth. The last marathon I did was the Phoenix, AZ marathon back in January 2007. It was my fastest marathon clocking in at 3:24. Being the competitive person that I am I will try and break this record. Who knows how it will all shake out. I am training through hot and humid weather which is not ideal and very difficult for me to do. Hopefully our September and October will be more mild so that I can really work on my speed. Now the next question is what marathon training program do I follow? As an experienced runner you would think this wouldn't be such a hard thing for me to figure out, but it is. I guess what it all boils down to is increasing mileage over the course of my training, doing consistent tempo runs every week, hill workouts to strengthen my legs, and a long run on the weekends. After a little more looking around at different programs I am sure to come up with something suitable for my schedule. I will be tracking my training every week for anyone who would like to follow what I am doing. Wish me luck!

Meeting Tony Horton

2011-01-31T20:55:00.000+09:00

You can imagine my surprise when Mike came home from work one day and told me that Tony Horton from P90X would be coming to Yokosuka at the end of January. We were all excited and planned on going to the afternoon work out session to work out with him and meet him in person. Poor Mike ended up getting really sick so he couldn't go but watched all the kids so that I could go and jump in on a crazy 90 minute workout and then get a photo with Tony. It was wild to be around tons of people who were also P90X and Insanity fans. I was glad that I had aleady been doing the program for 2 months because I probably wouldn't have been able to complete the entire workout. It was perfect timing to get re-motivated to finish the program.

Week 5 . Legs and Back

2011-01-14T16:11:00.001+09:00

I have to admit I wasn't looking forward to doing today's workout. Everything on my body was already sore so the idea of squats, lunges, and pull-ups was enough to make me feel nauseous. I did manage to get through the workout but not without feeling totally overwhelmed at the end. Almost in tears even. Then after feeling relieved to have completed Legs and Back I realized I still had to do Ab Ripper X. I hate doing Ab exercises but I have noticed how much they have helped my mid section---so I did them. The only bright part about finishing was my berry smoothie. This simple little smoothie is the highlight of my mornings. It is light and oh so good. So I guess I will just have to keep on going since I want my sweet reward at the end!

Berry Smoothy:

1 vanilla flavored yogurt (Yoplait Fat Free)
small scoop of frozen blueberries, blackberries, and strawberries
about 1 cup of milk (I just add more if it is too thick)
small dolop of whipping cream (only 15 calories)

This makes enough for 1 adult and a little bit leftover for a child. For 2 adults we double the yogurt and add more berries and more milk. It is not an exact science how many berries we put in but it is probably between 1/8-1/4 of a cup per berry for an individual serving!

P90X Phase 1 Complete

2011-01-08T19:01:00.007+09:00

It started with a thought and then that thought quickly turned into reality as we set off on this crazy adventure to complete the P90X series. What is P90X? You can visit beachbody.com to find out. Basically, it is an intense exercise program designed to work every part of your body for 90 days. The whole point of the program is designed around muscle confusion. We have days where we work with weights doing arms, back, chest, or shoulders and pull ups with our pull up bar. There are days where we do 90 minutes of Yoga or Plymetrics (balance and cardio) or Kempo X (martial arts). Oh and 3 days a week after lifting for an entire hour we have an incredibly hard Ab Ripper video to complete. To say this program is hard is a complete understatement. I thought running was hard but this is way harder. My muscles are sore all the time. I am using muscles I didn't even think I had. Taking one video and doing it isn't necessarily hard but doing a different video everyday with only Sundays to rest is difficult both physically and mentally. The biggest eye opener was with Yoga. I never realized how difficult Yoga really is BUT I now love it.

We have finally completed Phase 1 (1st month) of our P90X program. Is it worth it so far? You bet. I am already starting to see results. My no pac turned into a 2 pac and now is slowly progressing to a 4 pac. My sides have thinned out and even my legs have thinned. My gluts are tighter and I feel lighter. My core is stronger and my arms are starting to show signs of definition. I can do a few pull ups without the help of the chair and I can whip out 20 real pushups without too much difficulty. Overall, I feel better. But the exercise portion of this program is only half of the program. Eating properly is the other half and now that the Holidays are over we are committed to this part. As Tony Horton (founder of P90X) says, "I love it and I hate it." That is exactly how I feel about P90X. It will be interesting to see him in person when he comes to Yokosuka this month.

November Surprise

2010-12-01T18:56:00.000+09:00

My mom surprised me with a visit at the beginning of this month. We got to run a couple of times together. This month I sort of got out of my routine but managed to run a couple of long runs.

November 3
4.5 miles with mom

November 6
4.5 miles with mom

November 10
5.13 miles in 41:00 (7:59 pace)

November 15
8 miles in 1:06 (8:16 pace)

November 22
7 miles in 57:06 (8:09 pace)

November 24
4.72 miles in 40:19 (8:32 pace)

November 29
6 miles in 49:04 (8:10 pace)

Getting Back to Routine

2010-10-29T18:45:00.000+09:00

Week of October 25-29

Monday

6 miles at 48:24 (8:04 pace)

Lifted weights at the gym

Tuesday

1 mile warm up

5x400 meter pick ups
2:02 (8:11 pace), 1:43 (7:02 pace), 1:42 (6:57 pace), 1:42 (6:57 pace), 1:38 (6:37 pace)

1 mile cool down

Wednesday

Lifted weights at the gym

Recovery Week

2010-10-22T16:14:00.002+09:00

Week of October 18-22

Monday

Ran 5 miles in 43:39. Good run to the water and back.

Upper body workout at the gym

Wednesday

2 mile warm up

2x600 meter hills
2:53 (7:53 pace), 2:52 (7:56 pace),

1x400 meter hill
2:26

Upper body workout at the gym

Started Good...

2010-10-10T12:05:00.000+09:00

Week of October 4-8

Monday

6 1/2 miles in 51:24 averaging a 7:55/mile pace.

8:04
8:01
8:03
7:44
7:39
7:37
last half mile in 4:09 to cool down

Upper Body Workout at the gym with Mike

Tuesday

Rest

Wednesday

Hill workout today. 15 minute warm up. 5 x 600m steep hills.

2:46
2:38
2:36
2:34
2:35

5 minute cool down

Upper body workout at the gym with Mike

Thursday

sick

Friday

really sick

Running with the HS girls

2010-10-03T11:39:00.000+09:00

This week I geared up to go and run with the ASIJ HS cross country team. It was so much fun being able to run with ny old team even though I didn't know any of the runners except for my long time friend and coach Bob Poulson. It has been 14 years since I ran for ASIJ. My name is still on the board for Cross Country (13:03 which is the 2nd fastest time on the course EVER and the #1 spot for ASIJ) and the 1600 m for Track and Field (11:54 which will stay there forever now that they have switched the 2 mile to be the 1500 m). That was fun to see that.

Week of September 27-October 1

Monday

3.3 miles in 26:08 averaging 7:50/mile.

mile 1 - 7:53
mile 2 - 8:05
mile 3 - 7:41
.3 mile - 2:29 (7:22/mile pace)

Upper body workout with Mike at the gym

Tuesday

Rest

Wednesday

6.12 miles in 51:24 averaging 8:24/mile.

Ran to Uminokoen today which was gorgeous and I stopped to take lots of pictures with my iPhone. Speed was of no concern today. It was just a fun long run.

Upper body workout with Mike at the gym

Thursday

10 min warmup followed by 8X800m and a 10 min cool down. Ran with the ASIJ HS cross country girls today. I was proud of myself for hanging with the top girls.

1st 800 - 3:23 (6:46/mile pace)
2nd 800 - 3:13 (6:26/mile pace)
3rd 800 - 3:08 (6:27/mile pace)
4th 800 - 3:13 (6:26/mile pace)
5th 800 - 3:05 (6:10/mile pace)
6th 800 - 3:03 (6:06/mile pace)
7th 800 - 3:00 (6:00/mile pace)
8th 800 - 3:08 (6:16/mile pace)

This workout was definitely the most difficult workout I have had in a long time. It was nice to be able to run with fast runners again who I can push myself with. It made me realize how much I miss being in a running club.

Friday

Much needed rest from the day before.

A Fresh Start

2010-09-25T16:05:00.000+09:00

As I find myself in a new place I am determined to start fresh with a whole new look on running. Since most of the big races are on Sundays here in Japan and I have already vowed to not run on Sunday, I will be primarily doing smaller races as they occur on Saturdays. With that in mind it is somewhat hard to train as I don't know exactly what to train for. However, with a consistent weekly running routine coupled with weekly weight and core training I am ready to take on whatever comes my way. I will be tracking my weekly progress in hopes that I will stay motivated to keep excelling. As I get motivated by reading other running blogs I hope that my training may be of use to someone else who is also looking for new ideas with their training. Enjoy!

Week of September 20-24

Monday (long)
7 miles with 7:40/mile avg pace.

Tuesday (moderate)
3 1/2 miles moderate pace

Wednesday (hills)
15 min warm up and 3X600m hills. I almost died it was so hard...like
running up gut hill from my HS cross country course. 2:49, 2:48. 2:49. I need to work on getting that faster. It's been years since I've done this kind of hill workout.

Upper body workout with Mike

Thursday (easy)
I only had time to run 25 minutes.

Friday
Upper body workout with Mike

Winded

2010-07-04T14:34:00.000+09:00

The last couple of months have been so busy and so crazy that I have found myself not following a very good running schedule. With our house finally packed up and almost on our way to our new destination I have finally found time to breathe and to run. Today I ran up the Provo Canyon. Going from sea level with little to no heat to 5000 ft and warm weather really did a number on my body. It felt good, though, to finally have some time to get out and run. I started with a little Pilates and then after lounging around in the morning I finally got on my running clothes. I thought I was a little crazy to be running at 11:00am but with the trees that lined the trail and the slight breeze coming off the Provo River I didn't get too overheated. I was smart to bring my fuel belt so that I could have easy access to water. I ran 4 miles and ran 3 of the 4 miles in under 8 min miles. My mile splits were 8:26, 7:55, 7:58, and 7:56.

I guess I am in better shape than I give myself credit for but I would like to be running in the low 7's and for a much longer period of time. After having some physical struggles back in April I am feeling stronger all the time. The body is quite amazing. This year I am trying to focus on strengthing my core and mind through Pilates as well as putting a good running schedule together to get ready to start racing again. Mike and I are already excited to start preparing to run the Tokyo Marathon. Although we probably won't be signing up this year for next year's race (due primarily to medical boards in March 2011) it will be nice to get a jump start on our fitness routine. I hope to be able to acheive the level of fitness and health I have always wanted with both a good exercise routine and better eating habits. Living in the land of fish just might give me the perfect excuse to learn to eat more fish and to eat a little bit healthier. So here's to eating healthier, exercising smarter, and strengthening both my body and my mind!

That's Life

2010-03-21T13:34:00.000+09:00

Today was suppossed to be my big day...the 20 K I had been training for for almost three months. I have been feeling so strong and motivated since my 15K last month. Halfway through this week I started feeling sick and it just kept getting worse. I was forced to stop running and figured the rest would help me recover faster. By Friday evening I knew that I was still not well enough to run. I was so upset and disappointed because I had trained so hard for this race. I will never know how fast I could have run this 20K. The upside is there will be more races in my future so I just need to keep a positive attitude and push forward. That is what life is all about I guess--pushing forward even when it is hard knowing that in the end everything will work itself out. At least that is what I have to tell myself these days!!!

Race Simulation

2010-03-07T15:40:00.000+09:00

Today's long run was different than most of my long runs. Last year when I was training for the Seattle Half Marathon I found a great half marathon training program by Ryan Hall. Some of the long runs on the training program included these race simulation runs. Basically, you run 3/4 of the run at a good medium pace and then run the last 1/4 of the run at 20-30 seconds slower than your half marathon race pace. Today's run was 12 miles---9 miles at 8:20 pace and 3 miles at 7:20 pace. I felt really good during the 9 miles. I was able to pick it up to 7:17 and 7:14 for miles 10 and 11. By the last mile I realized I would be going uphill for the last mile and my legs were feeling really tired so I decided to slow it back down to a slower pace. I was so glad that I listened to my body. Overall it was a great run. Now on to another week of intense training before I taper for the 20 K.

Fort Steilacoom 15K

2010-02-28T12:47:00.000+09:00

You know you are getting into better shape when you can run a longer race at a pace faster than your previously shorter race. That was exactly what I was able to accomplish during this race. I would have never thought that 4 weeks would really help me to run sub 7 minute miles more comfortably...but it did. I guess it pays to train smart and to train keeping speed in mind. I was able to run this 15K in 1:04:19 with an average pace of 6:51 (two seconds per mile average faster than my 10K time). The most amazing thing about this race was how good I felt. I must admit that at the beginning I was a little distraught to see so many woman ahead of me. There were about 8-9 women running ahead but I decided right from the beginning to just run the race I was prepared for and not worry about what was ahead of me. I stuck to my plan of running 6:50 miles. For the most part I was able to maintain that pace. There were more hills this time around and so some of my miles spiked above 7 minutes but I was able to make it up with some faster miles. I think my first mile was 6:26. My first mile is always fast. It turns out that a couple of the girls ahead of me were running the 15 mile race. They must have been running 6 minute miles...WOW!!! I heard they were training for some championship. Oh to be that fast. After the turn around point I realized I was number 2 woman and that really made me happy. Then I became number 3 woman after this older lady passed me before the hills. She must have been in her late 40's. Good for her!! I was able to maintain my pace and ended up finishing 3rd woman overall. Still not sure what my age group place is....but it is either first or second. These small races are definitely good for my confidence. With only 8 weeks of solid training I am happy where I am at. I know that I have lots of time to keeping improving. Now on to more training before my 20 K in 3 weeks. My goal for the next race is to continue to run a 6:50 pace comfortably!!!

Sub 8's

2010-02-20T08:32:00.000+09:00

This week I tried my Sub 8 stradegy out and I am happy to say that it felt good both on Monday and Wednesday. On Monday I ran 6 miles averaging 7:32 per mile. My fastest mile was actually mile 6 with a time of 7:18. I was feeling so good this day even though I ended my run running uphill for a little under a mile. On Wednesday I was feeling good again so I decided to try another quick run. I tried to slow down a bit from Monday knowing that my race is this Saturday. My cardio and legs were both feeling strong and fresh. I was able to maintain an average pace of 7:39 minute miles. My fastest mile was the 3rd mile at 7:22. The greatest thing about these two runs was how strong my cardio felt. I didn't feel like I was out of breath. Hopefully as I continue to push myself even faster I will be able to strengthen my cardio that much more. This will greatly help me in my future races. Good luck to me tomorrow for my 15K race!!!

Long Runs

2010-02-14T07:05:00.000+09:00

Today I ran 11.5 miles by myself. I missed running with my friend Kim today. These long runs can be quite boring when I don't have my running buddy. Luckily I still had my tunes to keep me going. I wasn't planning on running so long today as I am trying to taper a bit for my 15K next Saturday. However, a little adrenaline got to me and I just wanted to keep on running. I averaged 8:08 pace today with my last mile being my fastest at 7:26. My new goal with my easier running days is to try and run sub 8 min miles so that my faster runs are low 7's to sub 7 minute miles. Hopefully I can kick it up a notch and get my racing times a little better with this new strategy. I guess in every runner's life one must decide when to start pushing the limits. It's time for me to stop being lazy and really work hard at my speed. As for now, I hear a nap calling my name!!!

Reverse Splits

2010-02-10T14:39:00.000+09:00

I always thought that the more consistant I was with my running and the more sleep I got the more energized and better I would feel. This hasn't been the case over the last couple of weeks. I have been feeling and looking extremely tired. Isn't all this exercise supposed to make me feel like a million bucks and isn't my skin supposed to look healthier? I realized that although I had cut out many of my "unhealthy" eating habits I still was not giving my body enough of the good stuff. I was eating less bad but not enough of the good. I was drinking my staples of milk and water but was falling short of drinking enough water/propel to replenish what I lost during my workouts. I woke up yesterday and said to myself that I was tired of feeling bad. I vowed to make this week different. I have started by monitoring my drinking habits and eating more fruits and vegetables. Just those two things alone have already helped me and it is only day 2. With all this feeling bad I figured I would just go easy and run a simple 5 miles. I warmed up and then felt the urge to run intervals. I don't know how or where I got the motivation to put speed into my workout. After running 1 1/4 miles for warm up I did 4 quarter mile repeats with a quarter mile recovery in between. I cooled down the rest of the way home to give me a total of 5 miles. The goal was to make each quarter mile interval a little faster than the one before. This is called reverse splits. My intervals were 1:37 (6:28/mile), 1:36 (6:24/mile), 1:30 (6:00/mile) and 1:26 (5:44/mile). The last one really surprised me. Needless to say I was thrilled to finally push the 6:00/mile barrier. Now if only I could run a sub 6:00 mile for a complete mile like I did back in High School. Maybe someday I will do that again but not now! Today I am just happy that I was able to see my watch go below 6:00/mile pace. What a motivational day this was!!

Pilates and Core Strength

2010-02-04T02:03:00.000+09:00

I have never been very good at doing push ups or ab exercises. I find them annoying and most times I just forgot to do them. After having Abby I noticed a little more love on those love handles and that extra skin that just hangs from having four babies is starting to look really unappealing. It's time to start strengthing that core of mine. Not only will it help me in my running but it will help me feel better about my body after all the damage from having babies. This week I started with an excellent core workout I got from RUNNER'S WORLD. Using a small medicine ball, an inflatable ball and some light weights I was able to do some fun exercises to help strengthen my core muscles. It didn't seem that hard while I was doing it so I added additional sets to my workout. Let's just say the next day I was feeling it hard. I will definitely be adding this routine to my weekly workout.

Yesterday I was feeling a bit unmotivated as I drove to the gym. I didn't want to swim and I didn't want to run very far on the treadmill. Today I opted to try my very first Pilates class. I warmed up on the treadmill first. I was shocked to find that Pilates is really challenging. I had always heard it was a great class but I am totally sold now. The room was calm and inviting. The lights were out with only a little light coming in from the back glass doors and the music was relaxing. I was totally in my own zone and while I was doing these hard exercises I was able to meditate somewhat. I can see why pilates has become so popular among athletes. I will also be adding this to my weekly workout. I am so excited to become more flexible and stronger with a little extra time working on my core strength. Cute little tankini of mine--I promise to look better in you this summer!!!

Two Remedies

2010-01-29T09:01:00.000+09:00

With most every race I walk away feeling pretty decent only to find myself extremely exhausted and sore the next day. My last race was a real kicker to the body. I ran a little harder than I was truly prepared for. I can handle being sore and tired but I just can't stand aches and pains that shouldn't be there. Last month it was my right quad from my spinning class. This time it was the area around my left knee. I started to feel it after going up and down the stairs in my house after finishing the race. I am pretty sure my legs were a little angry at me for running so hard on a hilly course with little to no hill training. I live in a pretty flat area and so it is really hard to get a good hill workout. Oh wait, there is one really big hill in my area and I do run it sometimes...Hoffman Hill Rd...yikes! I guess I will just need to buck up and do hill repeats to strengthen my legs.

With this small but crucial pain around my knee I became a little frustrated to think that I might have to take the week off of running. With any small injury there are always things that can be done to help work through it. I have discovered for myself 2 remedies that have helped me when I have little aches and pains. They are Stretching and Swimming. The best stretch that I could recommend to anyone but especially to runners is the IT band stretch. You basically stand straight up and cross one foot over the other. While poking the opposite hip of the leg you crossed over reach down to the ankle opposite the hip side and stretch. This one stretch has been my saving grace. For most of my runs now I do a mile warm up and then stretch. This is one stretch I do not forget. I can really feel a difference in my legs as I run after having stretched first. I try and end my runs with some more stretching.

The second remedy I have for aches and pains is getting in the pool and swimming laps. I don't mean doing fast repeats but just a good 1000m to 1500m freestyle enduranche swim. Today I swam 1200m and it really felt good. I finished the 1200m in 23:31. It didn't take that long but it was definitely therapeutic. Swimming laps really helped me to get over my December injury and I know that it will continue to help me as I get over my small aches and pains this month. Eventually I will get the motivation to swim fast repeats in the pool but for now I enjoy the long continuous workouts. Everyone has their own remedies for small aches and pains but these two have proven to be effective for me. I just hope I can keep up the stretching. It really requires diligence and patience!!!

Fort Steilacoom 10K

2010-01-24T15:15:00.000+09:00

Today's 10K was the first of three races I signed up to run in the Steilacoom Resolution Series. As with any race my nerves were high the night before. Even though I have been running for years the nerves never go away. I always tell myself that it is good to be nervous because it means I am serious about my race. I usually spend the night before getting some new tunes put together and finding the perfect running outfit. I do all of this just to lay in bed thinking about my race. This mental preparation is so important to me and it is something I have been doing since I was 15 years old. Eventually I fall asleep only to dream of missing the race. I woke up feeling a bit light headed, extremely nervous, and not very hungry. I took a warm shower to warm up and forced myself to eat a little of my homemade granola. I puttered around the house waiting for Mike to get back from rounding at the hospital only to realize when he walked in the door that I didn't have much time to get to the race before it started. I got there with 15 minutes to spare, grabbed my number and pinned it on, met up with some of my friends, and headed out to the track to warm up. I put on my music and was so excited to listen to my new mix when I noticed my ipod stalled. The exact same thing happened to me when I started the Seattle Half Marathon...only I didn't know how to reset it back then. It's a good thing I learned how to reset my ipod so I wouldn't be without my prescious music. I was starting to get a little nervous after it stalled a second time. WHAT LUCK! I only had two minutes before the race and I was panicking a little. I decided to just hold my ipod in my hands until a couple of minutes after the race started I realized I did not like that. I opted to leave my arm band in the car and use my back zip pocket in my shirt for my ipod. That was probably a mistake but it was too late. I quickly shoved it in my back pocket and prayed it would not stall again. I ended up running my first mile in 6:44. It was my fastest mile of the day. After trailing right behind another girl for the next mile the road split and all the kilometer runners went one way and the mile runners went another. Today's race was either a 10K or 10 mile run. I was glad I was not running 10 miles. That girl left to run with the mile group so I was left to pick someone new to latch onto. I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to keep up the pace but somehow I managed to stay under 7 minute miles. My second mile was 6:52. I was happy it wasn't that much slower but realized I would not be running my original plan of 6:40 splits. I was a little distraught when I clocked my third mile at 7:03. After turning around at the half way point I realized that I had been running uphill. I knew the third mile was obviously uphill but it wasn't until the fourth mile that I realized most of the first half was a gradual uphill. I ended up running my fourth mile in 6:52. It was about this time I realized that I was indeed the first female runner as people I was passing cheered me on. I do love runners and how they are so supportive even when they are still running. I got a little adrenaline rush and picked it up a bit until all of a sudden I started to feel tired and my mental state became a little lazy. I turned around to see how far behind the next female was and she wasn't that far behind. I had a good enough lead and all I needed to do was maintain my pace. For a tiny moment I felt like I just wanted to slow down but I didn't let that get the best of me and I just tried to stay close to those two men in red shirts that passed me. It is usually at this point in the race that it becomes more of a mental game than a physical game. I gave all I had to complete the fifth mile in 6:53. I was moving as fast as I could but my sixth mile was still only 6:58. The last little bit to the finish line was my fastest. I was running a 6:26 per mile pace. I usually push it hard when I can see the finish line. I clocked in at 43:07 for 6.27 miles. I couldn't believe I was the first female to finish. It was such a rush. I had many people I didn't know come up and congratulate me. I really do love runners. They are truly happy for those that do well and they support those that come in last. Everyone wins because everyone is respected. It is not only my love for running itself but the people I meet through running that makes this sport so special to me. It was a great day and I even got a cool little placque for my first place finish!!!

A Lesson from Bryan

2010-01-08T05:55:00.001+09:00

I had a terrific run yesterday...the best I have had in a long time. With the holidays finally behind me and a recovered leg injury I figured it was time to crank it up a notch. I ran 6 miles in 46:00 which gave me an average mile pace of 7:40. It is always nice to have runs like this to remind myself that being fast again can be done. That being said, I decided to swim today to loosen up my legs. I am not a natural swimmer but over the years I have finally found my swimming grove. I did 2X800m in the pool today. I remember when swimming 100m at a time was overwhelming. Since I was curious to see where my time was I stopped after the first 800 to check my watch, get some water, and catch my breath. I clocked the first half mile at 15:49 and knowing that I wanted to beat that time for the second half mile I swam strong. I ended up finishing that last 800m in 15:47. It was a good swim even though I didn't think much about anything while I was swimming except for how far I had gone.

One of the nice things about my gym is the hot tub that is only five feet away from the lap pool. I usually reward myself with 5-10 minutes of relaxtion in the hot tub. It is always interesting the kind of people you meet in the hot tub. Today I was greated by a man who seemed to think my strokes looked fluid. Seeing as I don't see myself swim so I don't know how crazy I look I took that as a compliment. We started talking about our exercise routines and such. Then a rather awkard and slightly overweight man entered the tub. His name is Bryan. He greeted both of us with a handshake. At first glance I knew that there was something wrong with his physical appearance. Then without staring too much I realized that half of his face was paralyzed. He proceeded to talk to us in the best way he could. After listening to him I found out that he has had 3 strokes and a brain aneurysm. He couldn't have been over 45 years old. All of that has left half his face paralyzed and his speech rather slow. I could tell it was hard for him to convey what his brain was thinking. He talked about how Lance Armstrong was one of his heros. He was so inspired by how Lance overcame his trials. Bryan was obviously no Lance Armstrong but to him he could accomplish anything. Here I was sitting in the tub thinking how sometimes it is hard to motivate myself to get the most out of my workouts. Sometimes it is easy to just do the minimum requirement to say it is done. I can only imagine what Bryan must say to himself to get the motivation to keep moving and pushing himself to greater heights. There is a saying I heard somewhere but don't know where I heard it or who said it. I love it though. It says that you can either spend your life living or spend your life dying. When I have been faced with trials whether physical, emotional, or spiritual, I have often thought about this quote. Sometimes we find ourselves so stuck in that dark hole that we can't see a way out. It is people like Bryan that inspire me to keep moving despite the odds, to crawl out of that hole never to be found there again, and to be grateful for every moment of my life. My life truly is a gift from God.

My Running History

2010-01-07T13:42:00.000+09:00

I am an avid runner who likes to run and has run in most weather conditions. I grew up in Tokyo, Japan where it seemed to rain quite frequently during the fall and spring. I ran all of my best cross country races in the rain and still love to go out on a misty cool morning for a run. This blog is intended to be a record of my thoughts both running and non running related as I experience them on my runs. Sometimes I think the clearest when I run and although it is sometimes hard to put into words the things I feel on my runs, I need a place to store those thoughts so I can refer back to them for motivation and guidance. I am not a professional runner but a very experienced one at that. My method and style of running may not be the best for every runner but it works for me. I don't claim to know everything about running but I do know a few things. Those few things have helped me for over 20 years of my life. This is a record of a very important part of my life---My Life as a Runner!

A little history of my running career:

I have been running competitvely for 20 years. My first real competitive race was a 3K cross country course when I was 12 years old. It was then that I realized I had a talent for running. It was also at this point that I was introduced to the man who would eventually be my coach and who would change my views of running forever. Coach Vig (Chris Vigeland) as I called him was a runner himself who ran competitively as a young boy. He grew up near Eugene, OR and even met the famous Prefontaine (the movie based off of this famous runner was partially filmed at my coaches's lake home in Eugene). Coach Vig's motto for runnning was based around the 3D's: Dedication, Determination, and Discipline. That motto has greatly helped me in my running and in every other aspect of my life. He always expected greatness from me and because of that I always gave 100%. During my later cross country years I was introduced to another great man who became my second coach--Bob Poulson. He was also an avid runner and continues to run today. Bob accompanied me on many of my long cross country runs. It seemed I was a little slower than the fastest guys but faster than all the girls so I ran by myself most of the time. He not only kept me company but pushed me hard so that I could get the best workout possible. I am grateful to these two men and for all they did to help me be the runner I am today.

Over the course of my schooling I competed in many cross country and track meets. I was able to secure the Kanto Plains (Tokyo, Japan American Region) league record for the cross country course (13:04 3K extremely hilly course) when I was a Freshman in High school (1992), the mile league record (5:30) when I was a Sophmore (1994), and the 2 mile league record (11:54) when I was a Junior (1995).

I also competed in the Far East Cross Country Tournament in Seoul, Korea as a Freshman (1992) and Junior (1994) in high school. I was able to finally break 20 minutes in the 5K and helped my team to come away with a first place team finish. I was able to get second place for the girls 5K race my Freshman year and 3rd place for the girls 5K race my Junior year.

Since then all of my league records have been broken. I ended up holding the league record for cross country for over 14 years which was longer than any other record was held. It was only broken two years ago by 5 seconds. Luckily the girl who broke my record went to a different school so I still hold my school record for cross country.

When I left for collage I was a little burned out and took most of my Freshman year in college off of running. At the request of my older brother who could see through my laziness, I started running with an excellent running club. It was from there that I became a real long distance runner and started training for my first marathon. I have run four marathons:

Nashville, TN in April 2000(3:38:00)
Richmond, VA in November 2004 (3:29:47)
Boston, MA in April 2005 (3:34:59)
Phoenix, AZ in January 2007 (3:24:10)

I have run around 6 (maybe more) half marathons but don't seem to have recorded those times as well. I ran the Provo River Half Marthon twice and in August 2000 got a time of around 1:30:00 (not sure on the specifics of the seconds). I also ran the Moab River Half Marathon twice. I ran another half marathon in Pennsylvania with Mike in March 2005 in preparation for the Boston Marathon but only managed to get around 1:34:00. My last half marathon was run in Seattle, WA in June 2009 with a time of 1:32:19.

This year I am training to run a cross country series in a neighboring town called Steilacoom. I will be running a 10K the end of January, 15 K in February, and 20 K in March. I will also be running the Wenatchee Half Marathon in April hoping to finally break 1:30:00. I love running because of the challenge. It also keeps me extremely fit which is good on those days I just can't stay away from sweets. Running to me is more than staying in good shape though. It is about a time that is all mine where I can feel at peace with myself and the world around me!