Category Archives: Half Marathon

Week 12: Half-marathon/marathon training update

Posted on by

8

Sadly there’s not much to report from this past week. My training plan called for an easy 2-mile run to start off the week last week and because of my work schedule I didn’t get to do it until Wednesday. Two miles is nothing to me at this point but about 1.6 miles into the run my right knee locked up and it felt like someone stuck a knife into the side of my knee. The pain was so sharp I had to slow to a walk immediately. Weird thing was, it instantly felt fine. So I decided to start back up again when the pain came back with a vengeance and I decided to slow to a walk completely.

I was so disappointed and angry. I thought to myself, “I have not come this far to get injured a month before my half-marathon.” So I decided to do the right thing and rest all week. No running at all. I worked out though pretty much every day and did a ton of yoga.

After much research and consult with other runners on Twitter, I realized I have developed an IT band irritation and the cause is most likely my form. According to Ryan Knapp, an endurance running coach and triathlete, the IT band flare up was probably the result of poor form. I first noticed the pain while running a 5k a few weeks ago but it went away shortly after. I was able to run 12-miles no problem a few weeks ago and 9 miles two weeks ago but 2 miles killed me.

Ryan is helping me fix my form and according to him I should be back running stronger and better well before my half-marathon on Sept. 30.

If anything, not being able to run during the past week has made me realize what a gift running is and how much I have fallen in love with the sport. At this point I’m just trying to stay positive and put one foot in front of the other. I’ll be sure to do a post too about my form and keep everyone updated on my training!

Monday- power yoga and 3:04 min. plank a day and an ab workout

Tuesday- 2-mile run. Injured.

Wednesday- runner recovery yoga and variation of planks

Thursday- 3-miles on the elliptical and strengthening for legs, arms and abs. 4:00 min plank.

Friday- Power flow yoga and planks/ab workout

Saturday- Rest day, swimming in the ocean

Sunday- Rest day (I was at a graduation all day)

Monday Motivation: I’ve got to run

Posted on by

3

After having some serious IT band flare ups on a run last Tuesday I decided to make the smart decision to rest my knee to avoid hurting myself even more. Besides getting off of my marathon training plan, the whole not running thing was killing me! Especially when the weekend came and I had to spend it with someone I hadn’t seen in a long time and we didn’t exactly end on great terms. For me, running is my outlet, my stress reliever, my therapy, and after this weekend all I could think about was getting out on the road, clearing my head and finding peace again. Then this morning happened and I had a fantastic, easy 3-mile run, my knee felt pretty great and my mind was cleared of all negative thoughts. I’m still taking it easy on my knee but it felt so amazing to get back out there. I hope everyone’s training is going well and I wish you the best of luck this week!

Twitter talk: Getting injured while training for a race

Posted on by

5

Getting injured while training for a big race is not easy. It’s hard to figure out if you should keep training, seek advice from a doctor, or just rest. I’m training for a half marathon and marathon now and an IT band issue cropped up. I decided to ask my Twitter followers for advice.

  1. FitHappyGirl
    How do you stay positive after an injury during training? #runchat #fitfluential
    Hannah McGoldrick
    Thu, Aug 23 2012 11:55:42
  2. RunningBecause
    @FitHappyGirl I focus on what went wrong first of all. Then enjoy the downtime. Then plot out a strong comeback.
    David H.
    Thu, Aug 23 2012 11:57:57
  3. FitHappyGirl
    @RunningBecause good tip! I’m dealing with an IT band issue but have a half on Sept. 30. I’m trying to rest but I hate it haha #runchat
    Hannah McGoldrick
    Thu, Aug 23 2012 12:05:38
  4. RunningBecause
    @FitHappyGirl I had an ITB injury 2 years ago. Came back stronger and faster, but not after stupidly trying to run through it
    David H.
    Thu, Aug 23 2012 12:12:15
  5. FitHappyGirl
    @RunningBecause good to hear. I was nervous if I rested too long I’d loose everything I’ve worked for.
    Hannah McGoldrick
    Thu, Aug 23 2012 12:17:50
  6. JWLevitt
    @FitHappyGirl I’m looking for answers on this one too. Have a stress issue in one of my arms. Not fun.
    Jonathan Levitt
    Thu, Aug 23 2012 12:18:03
  7. emireerose
    @FitHappyGirl @JWLevitt my friend Lauren blogs about this often… http://poweredbyoatmeal.wordpress.com/
    emilyrosemclaughlin
    Thu, Aug 23 2012 12:30:40
  8. ryanjknapp
    @fithappygirl What sort of injury do you have? I get my clients into another activity to keep them fit and happy!
    ryan knapp
    Thu, Aug 23 2012 12:25:29
  9. ryanjknapp
    @fithappygirl IT band..let’s look at cause and not treatment. Are you a heel striker at all?
    ryan knapp
    Thu, Aug 23 2012 12:38:01
  10. FitHappyGirl
    @ryanjknapp Yup and I over-pronate.
    Hannah McGoldrick
    Thu, Aug 23 2012 12:49:03
  11. ryanjknapp
    @fithappygirl That is why you have the issue. Pronation only is an issue when you heel strike because of the roll from heel to toe.
    ryan knapp
    Thu, Aug 23 2012 12:53:27
  12. FitHappyGirl
    RT @ryanjknapp: Running injuries: If you have an injury don’t look at how to treat it. Instead, find the root cause and fix that! #runchat
    Hannah McGoldrick
    Thu, Aug 23 2012 12:58:42
  13. nathan7264
    @FitHappyGirl Mental counts a lot. If you have access to pool, consider pool running, did that with prior IT injury, not last year,&foamrllr
    Nathan H
    Thu, Aug 23 2012 13:48:20
  14. Andrea_runs
    @FitHappyGirl you have lots of time. Don’t panic yet!!
    Andrea Rice
    Thu, Aug 23 2012 12:27:06

Monday Motivation: Do what others say cannot be done

Posted on by

7

When I first started running, I was focused on just finishing a 5k. I was not a runner and just started last March but I knew if I set that goal for myself, I could accomplish it. Pretty soon, I realized I could run farther and longer than a lot of other people. I remember the day when I broke through the mysterious “wall” and was able to just keep running, it was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. I had never been really good at anything athletic but now I was able to run 4 miles and then 6 miles and pretty soon, a half marathon.

But when I told some of my family and friends about my dream to run a marathon, a few doubted me. They told me it was too ambitious, I hadn’t raced enough smaller races yet, I could hurt myself and I just wasn’t ready. It’s hard to hear this form people you love, especially when you just want them to be happy for you. But it gives you a choice. You can either listen to what they say and change your mind about your goals, or you can ignore them and go full speed ahead with confidence in your ability to reach your goal. I did the latter.

Week 11: Half-marathon/marathon training update

Posted on by

3

Setting my training plan up the old-school way.

First off, the Healthy Living Summit this weekend hosted by Healthy Living Blogs was absolutely amazing. Literally words cannot even explain the impact this past weekend had on me, but that’s for a whole other post (probably to come tomorrow). But first, I want to give my weekly update about my training runs this week.

I’ve decided to still call it half-marathon training because I’m doing the half first but this also marked the first official week of my marathon training. Overall, the week went really well and my knee is definitely getting better.

My training plan (for the first week of marathon training) called for three runs this week starting with an easy 3-mile run on Monday. My average pace during the run was 9:21/mile with faster paces of 7:22/mile. This run was great and easy. I probably could have pushed a little harder but it was early and I wanted to be cautious with my knee.

On Tuesday I did some power yoga for strengthening in the morning and cross-training at the gym after work. For cross-training I went on the elliptical and did strengthening exercises, particularly with my legs.  I also did some arm exercises, ab work and did my longest plank every for 3:49.5! I was really excited about this, I may or may not have done a little celebration dance at the gym…

Wednesday was a speedwork day so I took to the treadmill (because I still don’t have a GPS watch) and did 4 miles with 2×1600 at a pace of 9:20/mile. I did the run in 37:00 and felt pretty good. I knew I was holding back and could have gone a lot faster but I wanted to be careful again because of my knee.

I took Thursday as a full rest day but did some yoga for recovery which was great for my hamstrings because they were feeling pretty tight.

Due to the Healthy Living Summit, I had to fit my long run in before the weekend so I did it on Friday night. My training plan called for 9-miles and I did it no problem! I had to do it on the treadmill because it was getting late, still really hot and I don’t have good reflective gear. I don’t know why but treadmill runs always seem harder, I think it’s mostly because I get bored but I don’t know. My average pace was 9:20/mile which was decent but I know I can go faster. I’ll work on it.

Saturday was the first day of the Healthy Living Summit for me and we had a CrossFit workout in the morning. This was my very first venture into the world of CrossFit but it wasn’t as intimidating as I expected it to be and I really liked it! I think I might try to add it into my workout schedule for cross-training.

Sunday morning we had a 5k fun run at the summit and that was really fun and relaxing, especially since we ran along the Charles River in Boston and into Back Bay. In all, it was a great week in training and an amazing week overall! I will write a post tomorrow to tell you all more about what I learned this weekend and to introduce you to some of the bloggers I met!

Here’s a quick glimpse of my week in training:

  • Monday- 3-mile easy run, 9:21 average pace
  • Tuesday- Power yoga in the A.M. and cross-training/strengthening after work
  • Wednesday- Speedwork, 4 miles with 2×1600 at 9:20/mile
  • Thursday- Rest and recovery yoga
  • Friday- 9-mile long run, 9:20 average pace
  • Saturday– CrossFit
  • Sunday- Healthy Living Summit 5k Fun Run

Total mileage- 20 miles

Week 10: Half-marathon training update

Posted on by

5

Always end your run with a smile!

Training went really well this week! My knee is feeling much stronger after taking a little running break due to an IT band strain. I ran three times this week and had two cross training days and yoga almost every day.

I started off my week with an interval workout at the local high school track. I did 2 miles with 4x400m sprint intervals. My average pace was 9:20/mile and fastest pace was 6:57/mile. This wasn’t my fastest interval workout but considering I had taken almost a week off, especially from interval workouts, because of my knee, I think I did a pretty good job. It was also a blistering 90 degrees with an insane amount of humidity so breathability wasn’t great.

On Tuesday, I went to the gym after work and did some cross training and strengthening. I did a mile on the elliptical and then worked my leg muscles and abs. Then on Wednesday morning, I did detox flow yoga which was really good for my knee.

On Thursday, I decided to test my knee with an 8-mile long run. I met up with my cousin after work but we had to wait until the sun began to set to begin our run because it was 95 degrees outside with 70 percent humidity. We started our run around 6:30 p.m. and I felt really great in the beginning. We started out WAY too strong though which proved to be a little too hard for my knee. Around mile 3 I had to stop and walk a bit because it was hurting. My cousin asked if I wanted to turn around but I knew it would kill me if I did so I decided to keep going.

The run was HOT and I was so thirsty the entire time but I was able to finish strong and strangely enough (yet again!) my knee felt great during the last three miles. In total, the run took 1:10:31, which included two short walking breaks (for my knee) and some crosswalks. My average pace was 9:33/mile and my fastest pace was 6:06/mile. Overall, it was a great run and I was so happy I was able to get out there and run the distance.

Friday morning was more yoga, I did the Lululemon Yoga for Recovery on YouTube.  On Saturday, I decided on doing an easy 3-mile run at an easy pace of 9:56/mile. I felt really great on this run and my knee felt better than ever! Sunday was another cross training and strengthening day which also went really well.

Overall, this week was great for training! I felt strong and ready to be back on the road. This week I have my runs planned out including an easy run, speedwork and a 9-mile long run. This week is also the beginning of my training for the 2012 Philadelphia Marathon so finger-crossed, I’m excited! I hope your training runs went well this week. Happy running!

Week 9: Half-marathon training update

Posted on by

0

I’ve never appreciated these beauties more than after my runs!

First off I want to apologize for the tardiness of this post! I was on a mini vacation this weekend and work has been crazy busy since I’ve been back so I didn’t get to post about last week’s training. If you read any of my posts last week you know I tweaked my knee during a race on July 28 so last week was kind of a dud training-wise.

I knew I had hurt my knee the minute I started feeling the pain. While I’m still not completely sure what I hurt, it felt like an IT band syndrome flare up. So, in an effort to avoid hurting myself even more I decided to take a break from training for a few days and focus on strengthening and cross training.

Most of my week consisted of cross-training, yoga and strengthening exercises. However, after resting for a few days I decided to try an easy run with my knee on Tuesday. Bad, BAD idea. I wasn’t two minutes into the run when I felt the sharp pain in the outer side of my right knee. I stopped after only a mile, feeling defeated, upset and  kind of concerned. I abandoned the run and turned to some strengthening exercises instead.

I took another few days off, making sure to ice my knee every day and stretch a lot. I focused on doing yoga for runners from Lululemon and other strengthening exercises. On Friday, I decided to try running again because I thought my knee was feeling a little better. I was on vacation in Maine and decided to take a 3-mile run along the beach, staying on the sidewalk. My knee was still sore but I was able to make it through the run, stopping halfway to stretch. I knew this was a good sign and that my knee was starting to heal.

After my run I did some yoga outside which was really good because I was able to stretch out my IT band. Saturday, after watching the women’s Olympic marathon, I was motivated to get out on the road again. I decided to do a longer, easy run that circled a 5.5-mile loop on the road, a gravel trail and a natural trail. This was really great on my knee because incorporating the trails lessoned the impact on my knee.

I felt really great on this run, especially towards the end when I really got my stride back and felt like I was just coasting. I wrote about it in another post but I think this injury has helped me to appreciate the gift of running. Having to take a few days off killed me but once I got back on the road I was able to cherish every stride. I also am lucky to be able to go running in beautiful places and I was able to enjoy my surroundings and really take it all in. I think sometimes us runners take our gift for granted. But having to be out of running commission for a little bit I was able to really appreciate every step I took. And I’m sooo happy to be back on the road! Happy running!

Week 8: Half-marathon update

Posted on by

0

via Pinterest

This was quite a crazy training week. It involved only three days of running unfortunately, one race and a whole bunch of yoga and strength training.

Monday was technically a rest day so I decided to do my typical rest day routine of recovery yoga and core exercises. It was uneventful but a good workout. Tuesday I planned to run a tempo run after work but I ended up having to stay at work much later than usual and consequentially got stuck in traffic so I decided to nix the run because I was exhausted. Instead, I came home and did some core exercises and rest up for the next day.

Wednesday was my day and to be honest I went hard with my training. I went to the gym after work with my sister and did my first ever pick-up run which was pretty intense. I wrote a post about it earlier in the week that you can check out if you’re interested in trying out a pick-up run, but basically this is what I did:

3-mile run with one interval each of 60s, 120s, 120s, 60s, 45s, 30s and 15s

I really enjoyed the pick-up run because it pushed me to test myself and my speed. I was able to keep up an intensity level of ‘8’ during each interval. After running, I did a whole bunch of strengthening exercises with my sister, including some lifting. As a runner, it’s just as important to build muscle as it is to work on speed and mileage. Muscles will help your body respond to runs and support your joints.

Thursday I woke up early and did a 3-mile run that included some hill workouts. It went really well but after the run, my right knee was bothering me a little. I did some post-run stretches which seemed to ease the pain.

I took a break on Friday with some power strength yoga and core exercises, which was perfect because it was a long week at work so it felt great to relax and sweat it out at the same time. I also had to gear up for the opening ceremonies of the Olympics!

Post Color Run color madness!

Saturday I had to wake up super early to get ready to run the New England Color Run in Amesbury, MA (post to follow). In short, the race was tons of fun! I ran it with a group of friends and we were doused in color. We came away with some great photos and memories. Unfortunately, I also came away with a pretty significant knee strain on my right knee. I’m hoping it’s just a strain and nothing serious but it’s pretty painful right now.

Due to the knee strain I decided to make the smart decision to skip my 12-mile run I was supposed to do today. I still have two months until the Smuttynose Half Marathon and risking injuring myself even more is not worth it right now. I was bummed though because I’ve been looking forward to this run all week. After icing my knee all morning I went to the gym and did some cross training (3 miles on the elliptical in 25 minutes) and then a ton of strengthening exercises for my arms and core.

In this week of training what I’ve come away with is, it’s so important to listen to your body and if you have a strain or pain it’s better to take it easy rather than pushing your limits and your luck. Fingers crossed my knee will be better by tomorrow and I can get back on track! (No pun intended!)

Happy running!

Pick Up Runs: Increase speed over long distances

Posted on by

5

Throughout my training for the Smuttynose Rockfest Half Marathon in September, I’ve been doing various interval workouts and tempo runs to increase my the speed of my mile times. I’ve written about tempo runs in previous posts and explained some of my interval training but the one speedwork run I didn’t mention was the pick up run.

Admittedly, my training has been calling for me to work in pick-up runs throughout the last seven weeks but instead of doing them I did longer runs or other kinds of speedwork. I didn’t do them because I wasn’t really sure what they were and I was already doing two kinds of speedwork training so I thought, why add another? Turns out, they are the best way to increase speed over longer distances. Last night however I did my first pick-up run on the treadmill and it was pretty hard but it felt great after!

Similar to an interval run, a pick up run helps to increase your body’s tolerance to lactic acid buildup without cooling down completely in between intervals. Through this practice, your body will become better able to run at higher speeds without getting tired. The difference between a pick up run and a regular interval run is the total distance of the run and the amount of time spent at the interval speed.

How do you tackle a pick up run you may ask? Well, to begin, start with an easy warm-up running at a comfortable jog. Once you’re warmed up, pick up your speed to a “controlled sprint.” This is another difference between an interval or tempo run and a pick up run. With a tempo run you want to run the intervals at a “comfortably hard” pace, not a sprint. With a pick up run you want to run at a “controlled sprint” during the intervals. What’s a controlled sprint, you’re now asking? A controlled sprint means you’re running at a very hard pace, an “8” or “9” intensity level, but not dying basically.

After you run the interval for the designated amount of time you want to slow your pace down to a comfortable jog, but do not stop running. With an interval run you can get away with walking in between intervals but with a pick up run you want to keep running. Another great thing about pick up runs is you can take as much time as you need in between intervals. This is important because during each interval you have to stay at the “controlled sprint” pace, so resting in between is crucial.

Here’s are some examples of pick up runs to test out:

  • A 4-mile run with 1 set of 60s, 120s, 120s, 60s, 45s, 30s, 15s sprints. (Translation: A 4-mile run with 1 set of 60 second sprints, then slow to a jog to rest for however long you need, then 1 set of 120 second sprints, then slow to a jog, etc.)
  • 10 sets of 60s sprints with 90s jog in between sets, 2-mile cool down run
  • 1-mile warm-up with 6 sets of 90s sprints and 120s of jogging in between sets, 1-mile cool down

As always, stretch after! If you have any questions or comments, write them in the comment section below!

Monday Motivation: run the day

Posted on by

0

I love this for the beginning of the week because it’s so true! Either you run the day or the day will run you. Have a positive outlook for each day and you’ll be able to conquer it no problem :) What will you choose? Happy running!

Run the day or the day will run you. (via Pinterest)

P.S. I found this on Pinterest. Follow my boards so you can find even more motivation!