Monday – my Fun workout consisted of playing frisbee and jump rope for about 30 minutes.
Tuesday – easy 4 mikes with bestie in our neighborhood. It was hot and humid.
Wednesday – I was excited to get back to yoga but was disappointed when I learned our instructor was not present and someone else was subbing.
thursday – this temp run proved to be challenging as I could not get to my tempo pace.
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WARMED UP AND READY TO GO
WEEK 2 AT A GLANCE
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I was so lucky to be able to spend this week in Acadia National Park where I ran mostly on the Park Loop Road. I did run on Rt. 3 as well as the Carriage Roads, but less so. The challenge was balancing a family vacation with my training as well as my husband’s triathlon training. We made it work and had a great week.
Monday – 3 miles – [5:43pm and sunny 61*] I went for an evening run after initially setting up camp. I set out to go do 3 easy miles on Park Loop Rd. My Garmin did not pick up signal until I was out of the campground, so I actually ran almost 1/2 mile extra. I went Right on the road and was immediately struck by the beauty. What a great way to start the week.
Tuesday – 4 miles – [9:24am and cloudy 64*] I went left on Park Loop rd. Once again, I encountered long gradual hills, a well paved road, and few cars. I focused on running miles 2 and 3 at race pace, but wasn’t too clear on what that should be. I saw a fox cross the road and stare at me at 3.4 miles. That freaked me out!
Wednesday – a rest day – not really since we did a lot of walking while we were out exploring the island and then in Bar Harbor in the evening. I didn’t track my miles, but I should have!
Thursday – 4 miles – [8:19am and sunny 63*] – I swapped Friday and Thursday’s training runs after starting out with Brenna on her bike on the carriage roads at Jordan Pond and only making it 1.3 miles before turning back. The hills were a lot more than what I remembered. I proceeded to get some mileage once Brenna was back at the car and I could keep an eye on her.
Friday – 6 miles – This morning [7:35am and sunny 63*]I set off down Rt. 3 towards Seal Harbor and again found many long hills. There were few cars, no runners and no bikers. I focused on keeping my pace slow for the first 3 miles since the workout had me doing the last 3 miles faster than the first 3 [negative split]. I knew this would be a challenge given the hills, but I did it!
Saturday – 10 miles – I woke up at 5:45 [sunny 55*] and was off and running at 6:17, because Brian had to do a crazy workout [3:50 bike and then run]. I had no breakfast, but took fruit snacks and Power Gels with me. I fueled at 35 min. and 65 min. and had no GI issues. Thank goodness I ran by Thunder Hole where they had much needed bathrooms. It was a perfect morning. I had another animal encounter – this time a deer. I felt her eyes on my as I running by her and turned to my left and there she was about 10 feet from me. She startled me, but did not scare me like the fox did.
Sunday – Rest Day – We packed up and left Blackwoods Campground by 10:00 am and set off towards home.
| WEEK 1 | M | TU | WED | TH | FRI | SAT | SUN |
| June 22 | E: 3 miles + 2-4 strides |
E: 4 miles | Rest or XT | 1-2 mile WU; Tempo: 1.5 miles; 1-2 mile CD (not optional) |
Rest or XT |
LR: 8 miles
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OFF |
I am happy to report that week 1 is done. Besides some left hip pain at the beginning of the week (which resolved itself quickly), I have no complaints. I completed each of my workouts including cross-training (yoga) on Wednesday and Friday and felt great getting back to yoga. On Thursday, I had a run gait analysis done. This is something I have wanted to do for a while and I was excited to have won a gift certificate to have this done. I went prepared to run and brought both pairs of sneakers. I ran on the treadmill and was videotaped from 2 different angles.
I was happy to hear that a lot of what I am doing is good. Some issues found were that I am collapsing on my left side and I am driving my right shoulder forward more than I should. She gave me some tips – pretend like I am holding a potato chip between my pointer and thumb and drive my elbows straight back. She also told me to remember my alignment and use my core to remain upright because as I tire I will lose my good form. She also had me run to a metronome although my natural cadence is already averaging around 173 and they say 180 is ideal – so she said I was pretty close already. No change in sneakers. She gave me some exercises for injury prevention (hip raises, single leg bridges, side steps with resistance band, planks). This was a great experience and one I would recommend to anyone interested in seeing how they run.
My runs since the analysis have been great. I feel like I can run at a steady pace without much effort, while focusing on my fingers and elbows. There were also a few times where I felt like I was sitting back and was able to correct this by paying attention to my core.
All in all, this week was a great one.
Date: Thursday, June 11th
Start Time: 6:30pm
This was my 3rd time running the Hollis Fast 5K. The 2 previous years, it was cloudy and drizzly, but this year, it was sunny and 82*. I decided to run it with my bestie, Sarah. I was not racing because I had just completed the Newport 10 miler and I wanted to help her achieve a PR (which she did). My daughter and Sarah’s two children also ran along with some friends. We all split up at the start with Sarah and I running together, the 3 older kids together, and the 2 younger kids with “the dad.” My husband and Sarah’s husband went directly to the finish lie to wait for us.
We decided to wear matching outfits [kind of] – again another part of the tradition, which started last year with the black/pink tutus. I didn’t see photographers along the course or else I would have smiled for the camera. We ran until almost 2.5 miles and then walked for a bit until we stopped to walk again around mile 3.
We finished strong and ran across the finish line together, although Sarah did beat me. She saw the photographer and ran towards him, while I was running on her right side and got blocked by other runners.
Once we finished, we waited for the rest of the crew. Here is my daughter crossing the finish line.
Here we are outside Alpine Grove where they had the after party – cookies, fruit, and yogurt. We headed to Bertucci’s for dinner [another tradition].
I hope we can continue to run this race together. It is always a good time.
1019 59/118 F4044 SANDRA MULDOWNEY 44 F 95 30:13.3 9:45 30:50.49 10:23
6/7/15 – Newport, RI
Travel: We spent the night in Somerset, MA at my parents house where we left our sleeping daughter at 5:05am and headed out. We stopped to pick up breakfast at Dunkin Donuts in Newport before making our way to Fort Adams.
Logistics: We arrived at 6am and there were very few cars parked along the fields. There were volunteers directing us. Parking was free. Bib pick-up was inside the fort and was quick. No ID required. We received a small bag [KIND bar, small can of Polar seltzer, Bondiband], t-shirt [cotton], and bib. Very little was set up inside the fort at this early hour.
Pre-race: There was very little fan-fare. There were some port-a-potties outside the fort as well as real bathrooms in the guest center. We just milled around and I met up with Barbara, a fellow runner who is doing the AMR #findyourstrong marathon challenge with me.
Start: We lined up in the parking lot near the Guest Center and there were no corrals. There was a small timing mat – no arch -that the large group had to maneuver through and over. There was no national anthem [that I can remember] and then there was a gun start.
Course: The first 3/4 mile was within Fort Adams State Park and was very slow with 2110 runners all packed into the narrow road. We ran on Ocean Drive from mile two through six, which I loved before turning onto Bellevue Avenue for one mile. We ran past many of Newport’s world famous mansions, before taking a left turn and heading back through more residential neighborhoods towards the park.
Finish: We finished inside the walls of the fort. The finish line was deceiving because I thought it was just inside the fort once we went through the tunnel/wall. Once inside, I realized that I still had to run around part of the inside of the fort. Unfortunately, I started to pick up my pace too early and was not prepared to have to continue running.
Post-race: There was fruit, bagels, candy, water, and KIND bars. I was surprised that you only got water as you crossed the finish line and did not find anything else to drink, except some samples and the beer tent. We did not stick around for the beer since the line was huge and Brian would not be able to get in.
results: Time: 1:33:52 | Pace: undefined | Overall Place: 824/2110
highlights: This was probably the most beautiful course I have ever run. It was all very familiar and I enjoyed all the memories I recalled of fun family times. This was a very cheap race – only costing $40.
lowlights: I wish they had more options for drinks at the finish line. I wish the finish line was where I thought it was going to be. I wish the t-shirts were tech shirts.
