Boo!

I am SO happy it's Friday!! After this week, I only have one full week of work left between now and the new year. I love short work weeks!!

This was my last big week of mileage before my taper starts next week and things went pretty well. I ended up taking off Tuesday for my birthday but I'll make up that 5 miler on Sunday. Last night I ran 8 miles with the middle six around marathon pace (8:20). I ran the first 4 miles at 8:15 and the last 2 miles at 8:10. This run wasn't as easy as the previous weeks and I actually thought the mid 6 miles felt down right hard at times. I kept reminding myself that I held around a 7:50 for the Philly Distance Run (half marathon) and that felt easy. I'm really hoping the excitement of race day, and being well rested from the taper, will make this 8:20 pace feel easy. But even though I was feeling a little beat up and tired last night, I still found myself speeding up. When I struggle to keep pace, it's never that I slow down. Instead I speed up!! This has me a little worried that I'll get caught up on race day and go out too fast. But knowing I do it, I'll have to make sure I keep it in check.

After the 8 miler last night, I was up and at it less than 12 hours later with a 5 miler this morning. I did it on my new treadmill and let me tell you...staring at a cement wall for 5 miles is not very exciting. And to make matters worse, it didn't help that I was still tired from the effort last night. But I got through it and now I have the whole day to rest up before my last 20 miler of the training season. I might be meeting up with Natalie tomorrow for the run. My first blogger meet up!!What should I wear? Will she like me? Oh, the pressure!! :-)

Hope everyone has a HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

Another Year in the Books (and Final Results)

I turned 33 yesterday. Another year in the books. Dare I say that each year is better than the one before it? I hope I didn't just jinx myself, but it's true. Looking back over the past 10 years, it just keeps getting better. I'm excited to see what this year brings me especially since a lot of the stressful things we've been dealing with for a few years are behind us. My running really took off last year...I ran my first marathon and my first Ultra. And I'm hoping to have a repeat of last year, with some significant improvements!! Anyway, as I blew out my candle last night, I decided that I'm going to spend this year focusing on me and my health. Spiritually, mentally, physically. From here on out, as I get older, I'm also going to get healthier. Here's to another good year...and thankfully, I'm not in my "mid" thirties yet. I still round down to 30!!

The competition ended yesterday. We lost a lot of people along the way but from the emails I got from the last few people still in it, it seemed to keep a lot of you on track. Congrats to everyone for sticking with it.

27-Oct
Ace - 2 %
Amanda - 3.4 %
Denise - 0.32 %
Hoodie - 3.3 %
Janice - 9 %
Jeanette - 0.95 %
Katelyn - 2.2 %
Laura - 2.8 %
Lisa - 1.6 %
Marci - 5.8 %
Natalie - 1.3 %

Janice, since you won, you get first pick of prizes. Up for grabs is a gift certificate (1) to Mix My Granola or a gift package (2) from Dr. Kracker. Winners, email me at dclaffey76@yahoo.com so I can get your address to give to the gracious hosts of the competition.

I'm heading into my last week before the taper starts. I can't believe it's that time already. Last year I felt like I was ready for it and I physically felt like needed it. This year, though, I feel great. I think it definitely goes to show there is a way to train smart, balancing out the hard and easy workouts. Last year I know I did way more hard workouts because I thought I constantly had to run hard and fast. While I'll be cutting back on total mileage starting next week, my sharpening runs will continue. I gotta get that 8:20 pace nailed down!!

In other news, I made a little purchase today. My sister wasn't using her treadmill since she belongs to a gym so she sold it to me. This is the treadmill I used 2 weeks ago for my 20 miler and I was really happy with it. One nice thing was that it doesn't stop after 60 minutes like the ones at the gym and when you stop and restart your mileage is never lost. I've been strictly running outside since last April and plan to continue doing so. But this is a nice little back up for those early morning runs when I just don't want to head out into the pitch black. And it will definitely come in handy when the ice storms come this winter.

Here she is, begging for some attention. Our little gym in the basement isn't the most welcoming space, but at least I have a tv, dvd player and a radio. Oooh, I just heard Andy tell his Dad he might have to check it out...I'll make a runner out of him one of these days!




Here's my schedule for the week:
Mon - 5 mi
Tues - 8 mi, with middle 6 at 8:20
Wed - 5 mi
Thurs - 8 mi, with last mile at 8:20
Fri - 5 mi
Sat - 20 mi
Sun - off

Relationships and Running

Do any of you ever get comments about how running must affect your relationship? I've gotten quite a few, actually and they all blow my mind.

The other day I was talking someone about my running goals for 2010 and they said, "poor Andy." I've heard similar comments before and it got me thinking…"poor Andy, what???" Why would anyone feel bad for Andy because I run?? I'm not a drug addict. I'm not an alcoholic. I'm a runner. Being a little bothered by it, I wanted to make sure Andy wasn't sitting at home sulking that he lost the most wonderful person in the world to running. So, I asked him how he felt about it. He looked at me confused, assured me there's no issue at all, and told me that he supports anything that makes me happy. And for the record, that goes both ways with us. Because after all, isn't that what a partnership is about?

Then the other day, while talking about marathons, I overheard someone say they wouldn't run a marathon because they wouldn't want their marriage to end in divorce (or something along those lines). Seriously? My first thought is that if a marriage falls apart because someone takes a few hours a week to go for a run that there is something FAR worse wrong with the marriage. Personally, I think it's good to take some time for ourselves. Not every waking second has to be spent with our partners, does it? And I bet there are a lot of people out there that wish their partners would go for a run and give them some alone time!!

I'm wondering if I missed something. When did marriage/relationships mean you lose your individuality and goals and dreams? Shouldn't you still be living these out? Only difference is now you have the love and support of your partner which makes every achievement more special because you have someone to share it with. I know that I love seeing Andy accomplish his goals. And apparently he feels the same way about me. I went to the dentist the other day and all she told me was how Andy bragged about me running the Ultra when he was in a few weeks ago. :-)

Yes, training is a time commitment, but that doesn't mean you can't have a healthy, loving relationship. I wake up at the crack of dawn on Saturday to do my long run so we can spend the whole day together. I plan my runs around Michigan football so we can watch the games together. I come into work early so I can get home and run so we can eat dinner together. It's called compromising. And there is no "poor" Andy or falling apart marriage. But there is an incredibly strong bond between two people who support each other's goals and love the heck out of each other.

I love every second I spend with Andy…and I'll spend those seconds with him just as soon as I get back from my run!

One Week Left

My 20 miler on the treadmill is such a blur, feels like it didn't happen. Oh wait, what's that piece of skin stuck to my shirt...riiiight, the chafing on my back that I keep ripping open each day when I run. Never mind, I remember the sweaty treadmill fun now. I think the next time I decide to do a long run on a treadmill I might just run naked. I've been feeling great since the run though and all my runs since have been fabulous!! This is my schedule for the week:

Mon - 7 mi, w/ last mile at 8:20
Tues - 5 mi
Wed - 7 mi, w/ mid 5 miles at 8:15
Thurs - 5 mi
Fri - 17 mi, ladder
Sat - 5 mi
Sun - off

Only one more weigh in left, people. Remember, there are prizes for the top 3 losers, so don't give up yet!! And I'm happy to say that I finally decided to join the competition...Janice better watch out!! ;-)

20-Oct
Ace - 1.1 %
Amanda - 2.96 %
Denise - 0.32 %
Hoodie - 2.63 %
Janice - 8.3 %
Jeanette - 0.95 %
Katelyn - 2.2 %
Laura - 2.8 %
Lisa - 1.6 %
Marci - 6.1 %
Natalie - +.12 %

20 on the Treadmill

I just ran my first 20 miler since the Ultra. Since it's pretty miserable out, raining and cold, I decided to go to my sisters house and run on her treadmill. I'm usually not such a sissy about the weather but we're leaving town in an hour for the weekend and I didn't want to feel icky. Sometimes it takes me a day or two to warm up after a really chilly run! Anyway, I haven't run on a treadmill since last April and it took a little bit of getting used to. First off, my pace felt quicker than it actually was but I quickly settled in to where I needed to be. I decided to break it up by getting off the treadmill every 5 miles which worked out well because it turned out I had to use the bathroom right about then anyway. One nice thing about running on a treadmill, I didn't have to worry about pooping in the woods. Since I was running inside, I was sweating so much more than normal. I was literally drenched, down to my undies! Running in soaking wet clothes really sucks and leads to some insane chafing. I just got out of THE MOST PAINFUL shower I've ever taken. I rarely, if ever, chafe but today was terrible. From the band of my shorts, my back, under my ta-tas, under my arms, my chest and my collar bone nubbins...ugh. All the red marks should look pretty in the dresses I'll be wearing this weekend. So despite all this complaining...first 20 miler of the training season in the books. I'm sporting my recovery socks and feeling great. Not tired or sore and ready for a great weekend!!

Pumpkin got married today so we're heading down to Cape May to celebrate. We'll be going to dinner tonight with her family and then the reception is tomorrow. I'll catch up on blogs when we get back to town. Hope everyone has a great weekend!!

Dropping Like Flies

What happened to all my contestants?? We started with so many and now we're down to only a few. I think Janice has everyone scared...

There's only 2 more weeks left. If you want to win one of the 3 prizes, I gotta hear from you for both the last weigh ins.

13-Oct
Ace -
Amanda - 2.6 %
Dana - 1.4 %
Denise - 0 %
Erin C -
Hoodie - 1.98 %
Janice - 8.3 %
Jeanette - 0.95 %
Katelyn -
Laura - 2.5 %
Lisa - 1.5 %
Marci - 4.5 %
Marlene -
Natalie - 0 %