Week 12 Review

This was a rest week for me with only a 12 mile long run on the weekend, and against my better judgment I decided to enter a sprint triathlon in Gulf Shores in addition to the run. More on that later.

The weekday treadmill runs were once again easy, despite my relatively high mileage. The pace I'm training at is getting easier and easier to complete, so I'm taking this as a sign that my endurance is improving. Since I no longer feel like I'm dying on the treadmill, I have plenty of time to think about the direction of my training. Of course my plan is to stay the course until the marathon is over, but I've decided that there's some opportunity for speed work in my future and I'm starting to think about time goals for the half marathon distance next season. This is a topic for a future post, but essentially what keeps those long treadmill runs interesting is planning my racing schedule and goals for next year.

On Saturday, I competed in the Coastal tri-it-on in Gulf Shores, AL. It was a super-sprint triathlon with a 300 yard swim, 10 mile bike, and 2 mile run. It was Haley's first triathlon and I wanted to be there to do it with her; plus, it's simply not that hard to convince me to sign up for a tri.

The swim leg was tough. I managed to finish in 8:46, which makes my pace a slow 2:55 per 100 yards. I can blame nature since the waves were fairly rough that morning, but the bottom line is that I'm simply not a strong swimmer. There's a ton of room for improvement here.

The bike leg was better. I finished the 10 miles in 38:42, which puts my average speed at a little over 15 mph. I don't think that's terrible considering that I've barely ridden my bike since marathon training started and I ride a heavy mountain bike. One of my goals for next season is to work on my cycling, and of course get a proper road bike so I don't get completely hosed on the bike leg of every multi-sport event I enter.

I was pleased with my run performance. I left a lot on the course since I didn't want to undermine my long run the next day, but at 20:24 I was throwing down slightly slower than 10 minute miles--after biking 10 miles! I credit that to the running base I've managed to build over the past several weeks, and I'm looking forward to carrying that strength into next season when I don't have a marathon looming over my head to hold me back.

I had a great time Saturday morning, and a short tri was a great diversion from the monotony of marathon training. I love running, and I consider it my strongest sport, but it was nice to branch out for a change. 

I ran my 12 miles in Daphne, AL on Sunday morning. This was by far my easiest 10+ mile run. I started out slow, but by mile 4 I really hit my stride and I went on to finish the final 6 miles over 10 minutes faster than the first 6 miles. That was the first time I finished a long run with negative splits! I was on pace to finish the half marathon distance in around 2:30:00, which would've been over 20 minutes faster than the best 13.1 mile split on previous long runs. I really feel like I had a breakthrough with that run; it was the best I've felt while running, actually.

It'll be back to the grind next week. My weekday mileage is going up again, and I'll have my second longest run of the training program next Saturday, so it's time to focus on the goal after this week's vacation.

Thanks for reading!

Nick

Week 11 Review

I'm surprised at how easy this week was. My weekday treadmill runs went well despite the higher mileage. I remember when 8 miles was a struggle during the early weeks of training, but I cruised through Wednesday's run. The 4 milers on Tuesday and Thursday were over before I knew it and were easier than some 3 milers from 2 months ago. It's hard to see results day to day, but when I look at where I am now compared to when I started, I'm happy with my progress.

My Saturday 16 miler was a morning run in my home town of Port St. Joe. I started out strong and finished my half marathon split a few minutes quicker than my half split from Week 10. As it heated up, I slowed down a fair bit but still managed to finish the run without stopping. For training runs longer than 16 miles I'm planning to execute my race plan of walking for a few seconds at the aid stations, so this was the longest I intend to run in a single stretch during this training cycle.

On a side note, my iPod shuffle decided to quit on me at mile 12. I've found that it's a great mp3 player for running, except that it doesn't respond well to sweat. It's working now, but I need to find a way to keep it dry during my long runs. Any ideas? I'm thinking of picking up an armband for the nano. Whatever I do, I'm not thrilled with the idea of running 26.2 miles without my tunes, so I have to figure out something in the next few weeks.

Thanks for reading!

Nick

Week 10 Review

This week was much better than last. I took my weekday runs a bit easier and wasn't quite as sore as last time. I had the last of my 3 mile runs on Tuesday for awhile, so I definitely enjoyed a bit of a rest before pushing into September.

I also took an extra rest day on Saturday and did my 15 miles on Sunday morning. That run was largely uneventful. I ended up running around the Spanish Fort shopping center since Haley needed to study and Starbucks was open at 6:30 when I started. It was a nice run that didn't get too hot as the sun came up, so I was pleased. I probably won't repeat this run since there aren't many safe running roads once you get away from the shopping center, but it wasn't too bad for a single run.

Next week will have me pushing into September, the hardest month of training. I won't get much of a break until it's time to taper in early October before the race.

Thanks for reading!

Nick

Week 9 Review

This was a rest week fail. I was feeling good about running on Wednesday, so I slightly increased my pace over what I usually run. I finished the 7 miles in 1:17:49, which was one of my quicker paces at that distance. I felt fine after the run, but when coupled with my first Thursday 4 miler the next day I was more sore than usual.

On Saturday, I finished my most intense run yet in training. It was only a 10 mile run, but I did it on a hilly road; I'm accustomed to running on level ground. It was much harder than my longer runs the past two weekends. I remained sore until Tuesday, so just when I finally recovered I had to start running again.

I learned a lot from that run, though, and I'm glad I ran hills on a relatively short 10 miler. I found out that running up a steep hill for only a mile or so can take some time to recover from; it really seems to undermine the next few miles. Since the marathon will include two bridges, my race strategy will be to walk to the top and resume running on the downhill side. I think I can make up the time spent walking with fresher legs. 

I'm past the halfway point in training now with only 9 weeks to go! I'm planning to back off the pace a little on my weekday runs this week so as to recover a little more in preparation for 15 miles this coming weekend. I'm starting to flirt with hitting my wall, so it'll be interesting to see what it's like and what I should do to prepare for the race.

Thanks for reading!

Nick

Week 8 Review

My weekday runs were typical treadmill runs. It occurs to me that it's a good sign that I don't have much to say one way or the other about these runs. That tells me that it's now a routine to run during the week. It's just what I do now; I don't sit around thinking up excuses not to run, nor do I need to find new ways to motivate me to put in the miles.

Of course all this running comes at the expense of TV time. By the time I get done with running, dinner, and playing with the dogs, I don't have any time for watching the tube. I'd say it's a worthy tradeoff though. I don't miss it one bit. Of course football season will be different, but if I get my run in before noon I can have it all!

I ran my 13.1 mile long run in PSJ with my sister and her husband. It was our first half marathon, so we were all excited about it. We hit the road on Saturday afternoon, which made for a tough start. The heat was tough on everyone and we all ran slower than usual, finishing in a tick over 3 hours. Despite the difficult running conditions, though, I enjoyed running with them very much and am looking forward to our next long run together.

I'm looking forward to a rest week ahead and the halfway point of marathon training. Only 10 more weeks to go until the big day!

Thanks for reading!

Nick

Week 7 Review

Things started to settle down a little this week. My weekday runs were once again on the treadmill and once again uneventful. The mileage is starting to inch up, though; Wednesday's run was 6 miles. So far I'm having no issues with working these runs into my lifestyle. A 30-60 minute run after work just isn't a big deal anymore.

Saturday's run was my first long run on pavement since I injured myself back in Week 2, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I left the house bright and early to drive to Fairhope, AL, and was laced up and on the road by a little after 6:30. The run took around 2:27:00, so I was slower than I usually run but at least I wasn't too far off my usual pace.

It was nice to see some changing scenery and be around other people working out. There were tons of runners out that morning, and pretty much everyone waved at me. Fairhope has to be one of the friendliest towns I've been to.

I also saw some cyclists leaving about the same time I did, and they returned a few minutes after I finished my run. I figure they must've gone at least 40-50 miles in that time. My goal for next season is to get a road bike and work up to that level of fitness. Cycling just looks plain fun, plus you can see a lot more scenery than runners do.

Thanks for reading!

Nick

Week 6 Review

This was another busy week chock full of treadmill runs, but at least it was a rest week. The weekday runs were largely uneventful again, and at 7 miles my weekend long run isn't much to talk about either.

This was my last week with a sub-10 mile long run and sub-20 mile week for awhile, so I made the most of the down time. I've got a big push ahead with a 12 mile long run this weekend, and a half marathon the following weekend, so I don't want to burn out too early. Play time is over, though; training will have to be a lot more serious going forward.

Thanks for reading.

Nick

Week 5 Review

This was a busy week for me personally, so the only time I could fit runs in was on the treadmill. I also took them slow and easy so as not to risk injury. Training is starting to get intense, so now's not a good time to combine high mileage with high intensity. This is the first time I've had a double-digit long run, and the first 20+ mile week, so easy does it this time.

My weekday runs were straightforward once again. I'm getting comfortable at the 3 to 5 mile distance, so there's truly not much to say about it. If I wasn't training for a marathon I'd start doing some speedwork and interval training to improve my times, but that's a project for another day. Right now I'm just churning out miles.

That said, for the first time I ran before work on Wednesday and Thursday. It was tough to wake up so early and hit the treadmill, but I felt better for the rest of the day afterwards. I'll definitely have to start doing that more often; a morning run is really energizing to me.

I skipped the cross training on Saturday. My family was in town to visit and we went to see Haley perform in a musical, so I just didn't make training a priority. I ran my 10 miles on Sunday morning once everyone left. I ended up taking a brief walking break at around mile 7.5, but I finished my miles which is what counts. I won't always be able to finish the long runs without taking a walking break, so I'm not losing sleep over it.

The week ahead is a rest week, so I'm looking forward to the lower running volume.

Thanks for reading!

Nick

Week 4 Review

Sorry for the late post. Last week was busy around here.

At any rate, my weekday runs were fairly uneventful. Tuesday and Wednesday were treadmill run nights. I took it fairly easy since I'm still coming off an injury and didn't want to put myself even further behind.

I had some errands to do in Mobile on Thursday after work, so I decided to run my 3 miles at a local park. This was the first time I started to push the pace a little. I took the first mile at an easy pace, then kicked it up a little for the second mile and hit it hard the last mile. At 31:59 it's nothing to brag about, but I'm starting to feel better about my Achilles.

Saturday was an easy cross training day for me since I wanted to spend as much time with Haley as I could; I walked for 30 minutes on the treadmill. My long run was on Sunday; I ran my 9 miles in 1:42:14. I hit a groove and just cruised for 8.5 miles.

The last half mile was rough, though. It felt like my legs gained 20 pounds in a matter of seconds. I pushed through and kept my pace, but I can tell this is going to be a tough wall to break through in the future.

Thanks for reading!

Nick

Week 3 Review

Week 3 was a recovery week and it couldn't have come at a better time. I spent much of the week sidelined due to an injury; my Achilles Tendon flared up again after my long run last Sunday.

I ended up skipping Tuesday's workout entirely. I popped in a movie and spent the evening with my feet propped up on the the couch. I replaced Wednesday's 4 mile run with cross training; I rode a stationary bike for 45 minutes which is about how long it would take me to run that far. I also worked on my swimming in a lap pool, but since I was working on form it wasn't sustained aerobic exercise so I'm not counting it towards marathon training.

My ankle felt much better on Thursday, so I decided to try to run again. I walked a full 10 minutes to warm up, then started out very slow--like under 5 mph slow. I started speeding up slowly throughout the run and finished the 3 miles in 34:30. That's pretty far off my best time, but the last thing I wanted was to reinjure myself.

This weekend I was helping my sister move, so I skipped Saturday's workout entirely. It just wasn't a priority with everything going on. I ran my 5 mile long run on the treadmill when I got back tonight, and it was a very pleasant run! I had the AC going, some fans on, and Pandora blaring. I'm not the biggest fan of indoor running, but this was one of my favorite treadmill runs. I took it easy again, but I hit my groove and enjoyed just running without worrying about collapsing from heat stroke. I followed it up with a chocolate milk recovery drink to cap off a perfect run!

Thanks for reading!

Nick

Week 2 Review

Week 2 was a good week for me. My weekday 3 mile runs were all under 30 minutes, and Wednesday's run was one of my fastest ever. I placed respectably in a Duathlon on Saturday; I held my own during the run legs, but the biking held me back.

Sunday's long run was brutal, though. I started at 9:00 in Biloxi, but by then it was way too hot to be running. I had to stop twice for walk breaks, which is unusual for me since I've finished a few 6 and 7 milers without stopping before. The silver lining is that my 6 mile time was under 1:20:00, so even with the heat and walk breaks I beat my 6 mile time from last week. However, at around 15 minutes the last mile was one of my worst mile times, so I'm not celebrating yet.

My plan is to start these long runs at night; I'll either stay up late or wake up very early to get them done. The thought of 10+ miles on the treadmill doesn't excite me, but I don't want to risk heat stroke either.

Thanks for reading!

Nick

Woolmarket Duathlon

I'm switching my cross/long run days again. This morning I did the Woolmarket Duathlon north of Biloxi. It was a sprint duathlon: 3 mile run, 11 mile bike, 1 mile run. I probably shouldn't be running so much on cross days, but I figured I'd be fine since this is the exception.

My 3 mile run time was among my fastest at 27:45. I'm starting to feel very comfortable at that distance. I think I could push faster still, but I don't want to push too hard and risk injury.

I got hosed on the bike leg, though. It didn't take long to get passed by a slew of people of road bikes. I did manage to pass a few slower road bike riders and two mountain bike riders, but on balance I was very uncompetitive. Tri/duathlons aren't my priority this season, but for next season and beyond I'll need to consider upgrading my equipment.

The final 1 mile run leg surprised me. I had to stop several times and walk during the first mile after my April triathlon, but this time I threw down a respectable 9:30 and only stopped once at the aid station to drink my water.

For me, the take away is that I'm becoming a stronger runner, which is my goal for this season. My cycling needs some work beyond just the equipment, but I can work on that more seriously next year.

The race itself was well-organized for a smaller event. The directors were efficient and on-the-ball, and everything went very smoothly. The course was moderately hilly for the gulf coast, but traffic was very light so it made up for it. I definitely recommend the Woolmarket Duathlon series if you're in the area and are interested in a relatively easy race.

Thanks for reading!

Nick

Weekday 3 Miler

Ordinarily there's not much to be said about a 3 mile treadmill run. To me it's boring and repetitive, and the only redeeming features are that it's over soon and I feel good about having done it. Sometimes I'm just feeling good going into the run, though. I'll turn up some volume on my high-energy playlist and have at it. Tonight was one of those nights.

You can see the details of my run on Garmin Connect. I always run with a GPS watch with the heart rate monitor and footpod accessories since I love having data about my runs. The footpod measures running cadence at all times and speed and distance when there is no GPS signal. It uses built-in accelerometers to calculate how far you move with each step, and it's surprisingly accurate. The heart rate monitor does what you think it does.

What's interesting to me about the data is that there is only a slight correlation between my cadence and my speed. On treadmill runs this is largely because I run to the beat of the music, but I leave the speed setting alone. I end up taking faster, shorter steps or slower, longer steps. This tends to hold true for me when running outdoors as well, though. One of my minor goals is actually to find a comfortable cadence and try to maintain it for longer distances without much variance. I'm thinking the consistency may lead to faster times, but that's a long term project for me.

At any rate, I'm pleased with my run tonight and I wanted to share it with y'all.

Thanks for reading!

Nick

Week 1 Review

Hey all,

Sorry for the late post. This past weekend was a busy one and I wasn’t around my computer much.

The first week of training went very well. I ran my 3 miles on the treadmill for Tuesday and Wednesday. These runs were largely uneventful; there’s really not much to be said about a treadmill training run.

I went to Langan Park in Mobile, AL for Thursday’s 3 miler, and at just under 31 minutes it was my fastest run of the week. This is one of my favorite places to run in Mobile. There are always lots of people exercising or relaxing at the park, and the loop around the pond offers a scenic view. It’s definitely a welcome change from treadmill running.

Since I went to Birmingham to watch motorcycle racing with my dad on Saturday, I switched my long run and cross training days. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to bike or swim like I wanted to, but I did walk over 2 miles according to Map My Run. It’s not ideal, but it’s acceptable and I don’t feel guilty about not doing more.

My plan was to swing by Fairhope, AL on the way home for my 6 mile long run, which is by far my favorite place to run in the area. Unfortunately, Tropical Storm Debby had other plans so I went home for a treadmill run instead.

Since there’s nothing more boring than long treadmill runs, I set up a small TV in front of the treadmill and popped in a movie. Big mistake! My time was a full 10 minutes slower than my 10K time of 1:11:30—from back in March! I’m disappointed at not running faster, but I did finish the required miles and that’s what matters.

This week I’ve got 3 milers again for my weekday runs and a 7 mile long run. I’m also planning to introduce product reviews and talk more in depth about what I learn over the course of training.

Thanks for reading!

Nick

Weekday Runs

I completed the first series of weekday runs last night: 3 miles each on Tuesday through Thursday. I can already tell that the big challenge for running during the week will be commitment and consistency, especially on treadmill run nights. It's very easy to find excuses not to run: I'm exhausted after a long day at work, the treadmill is boring, a movie or show I love is playing on TV. It's certainly OK to skip the occasional weekday run, but it's important not to let one or two missed days turn into one or two missed weeks or months.

Today is a rest day, with my first long run of 6 miles coming up tomorrow and a cross training day on Sunday. I'll write back with a recap and give my thoughts. Until then I hope everyone has a good weekend, and thanks for reading!

Gear I Use

Here's a short list of the gear I use. I intend to review many of these as I spend more time running with them, and of course I'll offer my thoughts on how useful they are to a novice runner. I'm not paid to write reviews for these products; I simply got them to help my training and am sharing my experiences.

• Sole F63 Treadmill
• Asics Gel Evolution 6 Running Shoes
• Garmin Forerunner 210
• Garmin Heart Rate Monitor
• Garmin Footpod
• iPod Shuffle
• Spibelt
• Amphipod Hydraform Handheld Water Bottle
• Proform Water Belt
• Camelbak

Training Plan

So as to give my training some focus and direction, I'll be following the 18 week Hal Higdon Novice 1 training plan. This plan is geared towards newer runners with a relatively light running base. The program consists of three shorter-distance mid-week runs with a long run and cross training on the weekends and two rest days. The weekly mileage is designed such that you take two steps forward and one back; this gives your body time to recover before the next push forward.

There is no pace goal or speedwork with this plan as it is simply designed to get you to the finish line. Since I'll be going from couch to marathon in less than one year, I feel like it is appropriate to my goals. I'll be providing my thoughts on this training plan over the next 18 weeks and let you know how it goes!

Welcome to Run Comfortably

Hello all,

Welcome to my corner of the interwebs. I'm a former couch potato currently in training for my first marathon: Running for the Bay in Apalachicola, FL. I intend to document my training progress and share my experiences as I go.

I first started running consistently in February 2012. Prior to that I lived a fairly sedentary lifestyle, and I've never been the athletic type. I've run a handful of 5Ks with a PR of 31:28, and a sprint triathlon in 2:05:42. My marathon goal is simply to finish and enjoy the race.

I hope you find my posts enjoyable and motivating. If there's anything you'd like to see me write about, please share in the comments.

Thanks,
Nick