Saturday January 31st 2009 You Can Eat Candy While Running?

This morning was time for another team run. We were all at Forever Fit early so that we could hear the Sports Nutritionist Nancy Clark speak. I have been lucky enough to hear Nancy speak several times but as always it was great to hear her and you take away something different each time. Nancy talked about how we need to fuel our bodies all day long, how to fuel leading up to the marathon and of course how to fuel during the marathon. And yes you can eat candy, in fact it works just as well as the Gu's or Power Gels. Hmmm...I knew I had a sweet tooth for a reason.

This week was a down week for my training. I only had to run 6 miles which felt good to my body, it was ready for a break. I ran to Betty (who was wonderful enough to do water stops for us again) and helped her finish handing out Gatorade and then got a ride back to Forever Fit.

Run Info:
Distance: 6.0 mi
Location: We ran out to the marathon course and then headed backwards on the marathon course - resulting in having to run up Grossman's Hill (normally we get to run down it which is much more fun!)
Time: 58:03
Average Pace: 9:40 min/mi
splits to come...

On Another Note....
This afternoon after my run I raced home to get showered and changed and then headed over to Harvard to watch an indoor track meet. Sarah Hall, who I helped coach when she ran in high school, was running for UNH today. It is her senior year of running track for them and I want to make as many meets in Boston as I can. Sarah came and found me before her race and managed to let me know she was not happy about running the 400 M and that she was even less pleased about being in the fast heat. (You would have thought I was coaching her again!). I reminded her that this is good for her, she is good at it, no matter how much she hates it. While Sarah went to warm up and check in I got to watch some of the other track events. I love running Marathons, but I often forget how much fun track meets are. There were some great races watching those who knew how to go out, work efficiently and win to those who just went out with all their guts and heart and left it all out there.
Sarah had a great race, it was a very fast heat which made it difficult for her. In good tradition Sarah had to throw up after her 400m (she has done this after every 400m since I met her). I wandered over with gum for her, made sure we found her some powerade and enjoyed spending time with her. I have always loved watching Sarah race, and will be enjoying it as much as I can during her senior year.

Thursday January 29th 2009

Ok yesterday I skipped my first strength training workout since the 1st of the year. Hmm...this did not make me happy. Not only that but I still had to get new running shoes (this mission was accomplished this afternoon) so I needed to hold off on my run until I got the new running shoes. I met Emily instead to do a yesterday's strength training workout and rested my feet for a day. Oh yes and bought new running sneakers!

• Chest Press x 3 sets 10 lbs
  
• Pull Backs x 3 sets 20lbs
  
• Skull Crushers x 3 sets 5 lbs
  
• Bench Crunches x 3 sets (last 2 sets with 5lb dumbbell held between feet)
• Butterflies on ball x 3 sets
• Knee to Chest on Ball x 3 sets
• Butterflies seated x 3 sets
• Scissor Kicks x 3 sets
• Overhead press x 3 sets
• 1 Hand deadlift x 3 sets
• Pendulums

Wednesday January 28th So Much For That

Well New England has taken a beating this winter with storms and today was to be no exception. Between up late studying, up early to get ready for my commute to classes, coordinating everything at work, commuting back and forth to class, and working the workout just did not happen today! There is always tomorrow......

Tuesday January 27th: The Treadmill is Evil!!!

This morning I was meeting Bob for our Tuesday morning run. Emily had to be at a work meeting so she was unable to join us, which meant we were able to push our run back to 8AM vs 7AM, which was nice for me since it meant almost 6 hours of sleep for me!
When I got to the club Bob asked if we could run on treadmills instead since he was starting to fight a cold. I was fine with this even though I truly hate the treadmill! I survived my treadmill run and my feet were letting me know each step of the way I needed new running shoes ASAP - project of the week.

Run Info:
Location: treadmill
Time: 29:19
Distance: 3.0 MI
Average Pace: 9:41

Monday January 26th: Start of the week

I spent yesterday taking another rest day and recovered from the 10 mile run on Saturday. I was up early this morning to be at the gym for 6:20AM to get my strength training workout in before heading over to classes for the morning.
My sleep has become limited since starting classes between class, work, studying and of course fitting in my workouts. But so far I am balancing things - at least with a lot of help from caffeine.

Workout: (not really sure how many reps I did per set so I just put the number of sets per exercise)
Deadlift x 3
Bench Crunch x 3
Bent over row x 3
Leg Raises x 3
Overhead press x 3
Side Crunch with Dumb bell x 3
Upright Row x 3
Side Step Ups x 3
1 Hand Snatch x 3
Triangles x 3
Bench Press x 3
Leg Kicks x 3
Resistance Bicep Curls x 3

Saturday January 24th "The Infamous Hopkinton Run"

Well I used yesterday as a day of rest, although I spent a great deal of time in class and studying so I think that should count for something. This morning was the morning of the "infamous Hopkinton run". We all carpool out to the start line of the Boston Marathon to run 5 miles out on the course and then turn around and run 5 miles back.
For those of you who are not familiar the first half (or more) of the marathon course is mostly down hill which take a great toll on your quads because you are consistently "breaking" along the way. So when we run the out and back at the start line, not only do we run 5 miles downhill but then we must turn around and run 5 miles up hill (and that hill is much bigger than you realize while running downhill!).
In the past this run has not only been brutal because of the course, but it also is a bit mentally defeating as we are not used to running back into Hopkinton and it has been horrendously cold for the last few years.
Saturday morning many of us met at Forever Fit at 6:45AM to carpool out to the start line. Once we arrived Vic dragged us out of our cars so we could fill out our BAA application, it's time for things to start becoming official. I am running the Boston Marathon!
Thankfully the weather wasn't nearly as cold today as it hsa been in past years or past weeks. I got started with Emily and in all of our excitement we started out at a very fast pace. We slowed down and found Christie and the 3 of us worked on settling into a comfortable pace. Just over a mile into the run, we all really had to pee!! The only problem with this is there were huge snowbanks in the way of getting to any tree's....hmm. Well thankfully the snowbanks are huge and work just as well if you have friends that are willing to look out for you. It reminds me of an advertisement Nike used to run of a runner peeing behind a tree with her friend watching out and it said was "Runners yea we're different".
We continued to settle into a comfortable pace, ran along enjoying the morning and eachother's company, and of course the grumpy drivers on the road who felt we should not be on the road running.
Overall I am very happy with my run.
Run Info:
Distance: 10.0 mi
Time: 1:36:56
Average Pace: 9:41
Weather: really cold!

Thursday January 22nd

Today's run took a great deal of effort to get me out the door. I realize I seem to be writing that everyday this week but my body is adjusting to adding classes into my schedule, studying, along with work and of course getting in my workouts. I was yawning when I headed out the door to fit in a short run but as always I feel so much better once I was done.

Run Info:
Distance 3.0miles
Time: 31:14
Location: Out towards Comm Ave and back

Next run in Hopkinton on Saturday!

Wednesday January 21st.

Today was a very long day which meant for a struggle to fit the workout in. I have been lifting consistently every Monday and Wednesday for the past 2 weeks, this was going to make week #3 so I really didn't want to miss it. My alarm went off at 0500 and I hit snooze once, when the alarm went off again I realized I was not getting up....I need more than 4 hours of sleep...I really wanted 5 hours. I went to 3 hours of classes and then straight to work until 9pm that night when I finally got my workout in. I pushed through it in 45 minutes but I felt great about getting this lift in.

• Chest Press x 3 sets 10 lbs
  
• Pull Backs x 3 sets 20lbs
  
• Skull Crushers x 3 sets 5 lbs
  
• Bench Crunches x 3 sets (last 2 sets with 5lb dumbbell held between feet)
• Butterflies on ball x 3 sets
• Knee to Chest on Ball x 3 sets
• Butterflies seated x 3 sets
• Scissor Kicks x 3 sets
• Overhead press x 3 sets
• 1 Hand deadlift x 3 sets
• Pendulums
• 
  

Tuesday January 21st

Well last night I got about 5 hours of sleep which my body will be quicly adjusting to because it is about to become a regular pattern. I am starting classes this semester and needed to get my readings done for Anatomy & Physiology II which I am taking via hybrid (for those not familiar these means I am taking the lecture portion of my class online and then go to lab once a week).

I got up early to meet Emily for a run on the treadmill, unfortunetly I apparently just sucked at this run and the worse part was I couldn't even blame it on a lack of sleep. I was simply not running well on the treadmill this morning and was not in the mood to remain running on the treadmill. I cut the run short on that note and will be doing my run outside on Thursday!

Run Info:
Distance: 2.5mi
Location: treadmill
Time: 24:21

Monday January 20th Happy Martin Luther King Day

Today was a cross-training day for me, and I was ready after taken yesterday off to recover from a very strong 8 mile run on Saturday. I met Emily at the club at 7AM (yes it was early) to do a half hour of cardio and then I did cable training on my own.

I did a 1/2 hour on the eliptical - hill setting.

For my cable workout I do every exercise for 1 minute (if it is an one sided exercise I do it bi-laterally for a minute each):

• Bicep Kiss
• Bicep Punch
• Canoe Row
• Lat pulldown on Ball
• Pull-Twist-Punch
• Shoulder Fly on Ball
• Standing Low Row
• Torso Twist

Sat Jan 17th.....Can I Skip Straight To The Half Hour Hot Shower???

Well I didn't think I could "bitch" anymore about the cold than I had done on Tuesday morning but apparently it is possible. Yesterday as I rolled out of bed I checked the weather to discover my run would be start in a frigid temperature of -2 degrees. YIKES!!!!
Despite knowing the temperature I began to pile on some layers, packing more in my bag to add when I got to the club right before my run. I knew I had teammates (especially Emily - who if she didn't show I was going to kick), Coach Duncan and Vic all waiting for me to go running with them. I got the club and there was a huge group there! Good! I was glad to see I was not the only one braving the frigid temperatures to go for my run. After layering on running tights, with windpants over them, a long sleeve running shirt, a heavier long sleeve running shirt, windbreaker, hat and gloves I was finally ready to head out for my 8 mile run.
Although I think Emily and I whined for the first 2 miles of our run, Shifter (who runs for Dana Farber and I think everyone in the running community knows) agreed it was cold but it could certainly be colder. By mile 2 we were warming up and when we got to the water stop of seeing Jamie at mile 3 we were feeling pretty good. The 8 miles went well today, it helps to pass the time with friends. Although we were missing Elan - because apparently he is becoming a wuss as he is now old, and Bob - who has a good excuse...Bob finished his MBA program at Babson on Friday. Congrats Bob!
It took some time for each of us to warm up after the run...I believe many of us tried to set a new record of the longest hot shower we could take. :)



Run Info:
Course: Starting at Forever Fit running out to the marathon course, up heartbreak, back down and back to Forever Fit
Distance: 8 Miles
Time: 1:17:11
Average Pace: 9:37 min/mile

Please help me reach my fundraising goal by making a tax deductible donation at http://jimboston.kintera.org/kristina

Friday January 16th

Today I missed Group Centergy but I did get some gentle stretching in, used the foam roller and had a nice pasta dinner to get ready for tomorrow morning's early, cold run.

Thursday Jan 15th...busy day but lack of a workout

Yes that title is right unfortunately there was no workout today. I spent my morning running around at MassBay Community College getting myself into the classes Anatomy & Physiology I and Anatomy & Physiology II for the semester. The good news is after today I have my class schedule set and that I have my runs set into my schedule!


I did get an ab workout in:
3 sets x 15 reps Supermans
3 sets x 15 reps Bridge
3 sets x 15 reps Metronome
3 sets x 50 reps Bicycle crunches

Wed Jan 14th

Today was a strength training day for me. I have spent last Wednesday and this past Monday with Brian (a personal trainer at work) doing strength training routines and was ready to do it on my own. This morning my running partner/partner in crime Emily was joining me for our strength training workout.


Workout: (not really sure how many reps I did per set so I just put the number of sets per exercise)
Deadlift x 3
Bench Crunch x 3
Bent over row x 3
Leg Raises x 3
Overhead press x 3
Side Crunch with Dumb bell x 3
Upright Row x 3
Side Step Ups x 3
1 Hand Snatch x 3
Triangles x 3
Bench Press x 3
Leg Kicks x 3
Resistance Bicep Curls x 3
Decline bench with resistance x 3
Decline crunch with resistance x 3

Tues January 13th

I, along with others apparently, heard my alarm go off this morning and did not want to get out of my bed. In fact I was about to hit the snooze button for the 2nd time when I received a text message from Emily saying good morning. I had to no choice but to get out of bed and start putting layers on because I had both Bob and Emily waiting to meet me for a run together.

I got to the club to meet them and as Emily and I were standing there waiting to start our run we realize Bob never wrote back to either of our text messages and was late...was he coming? A quick phone call to find out Bob was in the parking lot, a great deal of harassment to Bob (he claims he got yelled at) for being late and we were off to get in a 4 mile run.

Once we got going and played dodge the snowbanks Emily and I commented on how really cold out it was. There were threats of a snowbank tossing (from Bob), the decision to tell Bob that we were running at 6:30AM from now on so he is actually on time was discussed and of course a great 4 mile run.

Run Info:
Distance: 4.23mi
Time: 40:57
Average Pace: 9:38/mi

Jan 12th....Way Too Early

This mornings workout was very early for me at 6:45AM knowing I have to work until 10pm tonight. I met with Brian again to do another strength training workout. Yet again I have no idea how many reps per set but here are the sets and exercises:

• Chest Press x 3 sets 10 lbs
  
• Pull Backs x 3 sets 20lbs
  
• Skull Crushers x 3 sets 5 lbs
  
• Bench Crunches x 3 sets (last 2 sets with 5lb dumbbell held between feet)
• Butterflies on ball x 3 sets
• Knee to Chest on Ball x 3 sets
• Butterflies seated x 3 sets
• Scissor Kicks x 3 sets
• Overhead press x 3 sets
• 1 Hand deadlift x 3 sets
• Incline Press x 3 sets 7lbs
• Behind Head Extensions x 3 set

Jan 11th Core Strengthening

Recovering from yesterday's run I did some light stretching and core strengthening exercises.

3 sets x 10 reps Supermans
3 sets x 10 reps Bridge
3 sets x 10 reps Metronome
3 sets x 50 reps Bicycle crunches

The Theory Of Running Faster Will Make You Warmer Jan 10th

This morning run was a cold one, and I knew it was going to be a cold one before I even rolled out of bed. My morning originally started at 5:30AM when I woke up with a start thinking I had overslept for my run, and to say the least I was ecstatic that I had at least another 90 minutes of sleep before rolling out of bed for my run! I got up and convinced myself that putting on several layers of running clothes to hopefully be warm enough for my run seemed like lots of fun and then headed off to Forever Fit to meet everybody.

We had a large group joining us this morning, welcoming back old friends from other teams, teammates and new comers to our group. We met with our new Arthritis Foundation representative, someone who is very familiar to many of us, Vic Acosta who was my first marathon coach.

It was very deceiving outside with the sun coming out and that the run may not be nearly as cold as planned. Deceiving is the key word as it was frigid out there and despite how many layers I had on I was cold to begin with and thought running faster might help me warm up. To say the least my legs never really warmed up but I still kept up a great pace.

After this mornings run a group of 9 of us headed out for a post-run meal at Cabot's where we worked on our re-fueling by seeing how much food we could eat! Below are the stats from today's run and soon I will add in pictures.

The Run Info:
Distance: 8.0mi
Time: 1:16:11
Mile 1: 9:28
Mile 2: 9:26
Mile 3: 9:28
Mile 4: 10:02
Mile 5: 9:13
Mile 6: 9:13
Mile 7: 9:49
Mile 8: 9:27
The Course: Watertown St., to Walnut St. to Comm Ave running towards Boston on the Marathon course and back.

P.S.
starting temperature 7 degrees!!

Fighting with my trainer January 7th

Today I did Cross-Training with my personal trainer at work. I am waiting for him to write down what we did so I can record it on here however this much I can tell you....I believe I told him we were fighting after the workout! He made me work hard with weights and core strengthening. I will get the workout and record it on here as soon as he gives it to me :)

Warm Up
run on the treadmill
time: 9:30
Distance: 1.0mi

Workout: (not really sure how many reps I did per set so I just put the number of sets per exercise)
Deadlift x 3
Bench Crunch x 3
Bent over row x 3
Leg Raises x 3
Overhead press x 3
Side Crunch with Dumb bell x 3
Upright Row x 3
Side Step Ups x 3
1 Hand Snatch x 3
Triangles x 3
Bench Press x 3
Leg Kicks x 3
Resistance Bicep Curls x 3
Decline bench with resistance x 3
Decline crunch with resistance x 3

These are done 2 exercises at a time, alternating between the two for 3 sets and then onto the next pair of exercises

Getting On The Right Path January 3rd

This morning was the first time in several weeks I joined my teammates for our long run at Forever Fit. Since I last saw them we have had 2 major snow storms, Christmas, Chanukah, New Years and of course I have had bronchitis.
Now due to being sick I have not run more than 1 mile in about 2 weeks. This morning would have been an easy morning for me to stay in bed as I took migraine med's last night before heading to bed. However I knew a run must happen no matter the length and being forced to bundle up for it with others is so much better than doing it alone.
I ran my 5 miles with Elan who is not doing a spring marathon but somehow is convinced to come out with us anyways. After our run 5 of us went out to breakfast together to re-fuel and enjoy good time together.

The Run Info:
Distance: 5.0mi
Location: Out to the marathon course and then backwards on the course heading towards Wellesley
Time: 50:33

January 2, 2009

After taking time off this week to try and rid myself of bronchitis I went to Group Centergy tomorrow. Check out below for a description of what this class entails. I felt great doing it and hopefully working on my flexibility will help me with my running.

Group Centergy: Redefine yourself with Group Centergy. Grow longer and stronger as you explore this 60 minute journey of yoga and Pilates movements. Positive uplifiting music, group dynamics and supportive instructors will enable you to center your energy, reduce stress and even smile!