I was good and squeezed in a run tonight.
I ran 4k in about 26 minutes. Not the fastest pace I've ever run, but pretty close. I usually tend to run slower when I run on my own, but tonight I ran close to my race pace! A bit slower, but pretty close.
And the best part is how great I felt throughout and, more importantly, afterwards. I was able to run the whole 4k quickly, at a fairly consistent pace, and I had no knee pain at all!! That's been my biggest thing lately - working on improving my running form so I don't get any pain.
Plus, I felt amazing all through the run :)
Friday, October 29, 2010
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Sometimes a training day doesn't end up happening.
I was really looking forward all day to going to my 5k clinic tonight and going for a run, but something came up that had to be dealt with right away.
That's ok, though - I'll join in the Wednesday night practice run. Since I missed the clinic tonight, I don't know what pace we're up to this week. I'm pretty sure it's still two sets of 10:1.
Also, I've said it before in person, but I wanted to repeat it here online: I'm so grateful for all the people I've met over the past three months - both instructors and fellow newbie runners.
Who knew that I'd now be at a point where I really want to run - I look forward to it, I enjoy it, I feel bad if I miss a running session.
I'd especially like to thank Islay and Stephen for being such amazing co-instructors of my Learn to Run Clinic - they helped me get off the couch and get active. Their enthusiasm, encouragement, and knowledge of the sport have helped motivate me, and have helped me get to the point where I can see myself continuing to the 10k, half-marathon, and eventually the marathon.
And Deb - my instructor for the 5k clinic - is really great too. I've only taken two clinics so far, but from my experience, the calibre of instruction is top-notch! :)
So even though I wasn't able to run tonight, at least I only have to wait till tomorrow.
I was really looking forward all day to going to my 5k clinic tonight and going for a run, but something came up that had to be dealt with right away.
That's ok, though - I'll join in the Wednesday night practice run. Since I missed the clinic tonight, I don't know what pace we're up to this week. I'm pretty sure it's still two sets of 10:1.
Also, I've said it before in person, but I wanted to repeat it here online: I'm so grateful for all the people I've met over the past three months - both instructors and fellow newbie runners.
Who knew that I'd now be at a point where I really want to run - I look forward to it, I enjoy it, I feel bad if I miss a running session.
I'd especially like to thank Islay and Stephen for being such amazing co-instructors of my Learn to Run Clinic - they helped me get off the couch and get active. Their enthusiasm, encouragement, and knowledge of the sport have helped motivate me, and have helped me get to the point where I can see myself continuing to the 10k, half-marathon, and eventually the marathon.
And Deb - my instructor for the 5k clinic - is really great too. I've only taken two clinics so far, but from my experience, the calibre of instruction is top-notch! :)
So even though I wasn't able to run tonight, at least I only have to wait till tomorrow.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Pace Groups
We're up to two sets of 10:1 this week in the 5k clinic. This isn't anything new. What is new, is the fact that I now seem to be fast. Or at least, fast for me.
It must be part of the whole build-up-and-then-taper-slightly thing, but it feels kind of like a light switch has been turned on. For the past three months or so (since I took up running), I've always been towards the back of the group.
Today, we set off on our group run, ready for a good workout. There's a long hill right outside the Running Room, and I thought for sure that many other runners would pass me right from the get-go. Instead, I found myself setting the pace - for the first time, I was at the head of the pack! How on earth did that happen?!?!
After a few minutes there were two of us way ahead of everyone else. After a while, we wondered if we'd taken a wrong turn, or if we'd missed our walk break, so we turned around and ran back a bit and caught up with the rest of the group (it's a very hilly and windy route, so it's easy to lose sight of people in a larger group). Turns out that yes, we'd missed our walk break by a bit, but Deb (our fantastic instructor) counted off the minute for us, and then we were off again.
The second half didn't go quite so well - you see, I have the bad habit of striding too wide. When I'm trying to go fast or catch up to someone, or when I'm distracted and not thinking about my form, my stride gets way too wide, my hips start to drop a bit, and my knees get sore.
I really have to work on that. I did so well on the first set of 10:1, but I went back to old habits in the second half; and, lo and behold, my knee started to get sore. Rather than keep running and have my knee get more sore, I ended up walking the last couple of minutes, but that's ok - I'm all about injury prevention wherever possible.
In fact, my personal mantra when running is "shorter stride, shorter stride, shorter stride..." I do actually tell myself this when I'm running if I've noticed that my form is getting sloppy. Pain sucks. I try to avoid it.
In other news, Deb put us into pace groups today, and it turns out I'm in group A!! This is very exciting. I'm not used to being a fast runner. When I heard that, I felt like doing a little happy dance. I'm such a keener, lol.
Of course, the practice runs aren't about competition (unless it's with yourself); it's about becoming a better runner, and meeting and running with a great group of people. But I've got to say that if I'm competing with myself, I'm doing pretty well - it feels so great to not only be able to keep up with the group, but to be able to be at the front of the pack. At least for part of the run, anyway.
And here are a few things I've learned so far:
Hills are fun. No, really. It's a challenge to get up them, but it's so satisfying when you make it to the top successfully. And when you run downhill, it almost feels like you're flying. This has been fun so far, but I imagine it will be a little scary when there's snow and ice. And yes, I fully plan to be one of those crazy runners who goes out for a run in all seasons, regardless of weather.
Reflective bands are good. I bought a pair this weekend, and was so excited to be use them for the first time tonight. And then I forgot them at home. I'll revise this point that I've learned: reflective bands are good, and useful if you actually bring them with you.
Water is important. I always try to drink enough water before and after a run, but I should probably think about bringing water with me when I head out - especially if I'm starting to run faster, and eventually further. I got myself one of those fancy four-mini-water-bottles-on-a-belt-type-things. It's high time I started bring it with me. Plus, the water bottle belt has tons of reflectivity on it, which is a bonus.
Sleep is important. If I want to be successful as a runner, and if I want to be productive during the day when I'm working, I need to start getting enough sleep.
And on that note, I'll sign off. It's way past time for bed.
Happy Running,
Sarah :)
It must be part of the whole build-up-and-then-taper-slightly thing, but it feels kind of like a light switch has been turned on. For the past three months or so (since I took up running), I've always been towards the back of the group.
Today, we set off on our group run, ready for a good workout. There's a long hill right outside the Running Room, and I thought for sure that many other runners would pass me right from the get-go. Instead, I found myself setting the pace - for the first time, I was at the head of the pack! How on earth did that happen?!?!
After a few minutes there were two of us way ahead of everyone else. After a while, we wondered if we'd taken a wrong turn, or if we'd missed our walk break, so we turned around and ran back a bit and caught up with the rest of the group (it's a very hilly and windy route, so it's easy to lose sight of people in a larger group). Turns out that yes, we'd missed our walk break by a bit, but Deb (our fantastic instructor) counted off the minute for us, and then we were off again.
The second half didn't go quite so well - you see, I have the bad habit of striding too wide. When I'm trying to go fast or catch up to someone, or when I'm distracted and not thinking about my form, my stride gets way too wide, my hips start to drop a bit, and my knees get sore.
I really have to work on that. I did so well on the first set of 10:1, but I went back to old habits in the second half; and, lo and behold, my knee started to get sore. Rather than keep running and have my knee get more sore, I ended up walking the last couple of minutes, but that's ok - I'm all about injury prevention wherever possible.
In fact, my personal mantra when running is "shorter stride, shorter stride, shorter stride..." I do actually tell myself this when I'm running if I've noticed that my form is getting sloppy. Pain sucks. I try to avoid it.
In other news, Deb put us into pace groups today, and it turns out I'm in group A!! This is very exciting. I'm not used to being a fast runner. When I heard that, I felt like doing a little happy dance. I'm such a keener, lol.
Of course, the practice runs aren't about competition (unless it's with yourself); it's about becoming a better runner, and meeting and running with a great group of people. But I've got to say that if I'm competing with myself, I'm doing pretty well - it feels so great to not only be able to keep up with the group, but to be able to be at the front of the pack. At least for part of the run, anyway.
And here are a few things I've learned so far:
Hills are fun. No, really. It's a challenge to get up them, but it's so satisfying when you make it to the top successfully. And when you run downhill, it almost feels like you're flying. This has been fun so far, but I imagine it will be a little scary when there's snow and ice. And yes, I fully plan to be one of those crazy runners who goes out for a run in all seasons, regardless of weather.
Reflective bands are good. I bought a pair this weekend, and was so excited to be use them for the first time tonight. And then I forgot them at home. I'll revise this point that I've learned: reflective bands are good, and useful if you actually bring them with you.
Water is important. I always try to drink enough water before and after a run, but I should probably think about bringing water with me when I head out - especially if I'm starting to run faster, and eventually further. I got myself one of those fancy four-mini-water-bottles-on-a-belt-type-things. It's high time I started bring it with me. Plus, the water bottle belt has tons of reflectivity on it, which is a bonus.
Sleep is important. If I want to be successful as a runner, and if I want to be productive during the day when I'm working, I need to start getting enough sleep.
And on that note, I'll sign off. It's way past time for bed.
Happy Running,
Sarah :)
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Run for the Cure 2010
I made it to the goal race for the Learn to Run Clinic - woohoo!!
This was my second 5k race, and also the largest - this year, there were around 30,000 participants at the CIBC Run for the Cure.
Myself and a bunch of other people from the Learn to Run Clinic were there, freezing cold but excited and ready to get going.
 |
| Learn to Run clinic, pre-race (please note, we are freezing) |
I'm amazed we were all able to find each other and meet up that morning - with 30,000 people milling around, this was pretty impressive.
The weather was absolutely perfect for running - it was cold, so it wasn't great beforehand, but it was perfect once we got going. There was no wind, and no rain.
Myself and others from the Learn to Run Clinic went right to the front of the line. It was pretty cool to be waiting for the race to start, with 30,000 people right behind us!
 |
| people milling around before the race |
 |
| right at the starting line |
 |
| right at the starting line - please note the 30,000 people behind us |
When the air horn signals the start, and everyone takes off, it's normal to run really quickly, and that's exactly what I did. Other people had the same idea, too, and within a few seconds there was already a large crowd ahead of me.
But that's ok - I had two goals for this race: to beat my personal best (of 33:33), and to see if I could run the whole 5k with no walk breaks.
 |
| and we're off! (was running while taking this photo) |
I had to stop once for a few seconds to tie my shoelace. It was kind of like being on a highway, except with thousands of fast runners instead of cars - I had to look over to make sure I wasn't cutting anyone off, and had to make my way over to the side before I could stop to lace up.
Apart from that brief moment, and walking for about 10 seconds while drinking water at the 3k mark, I met both of my goals for the race.
I started to slow down a bit by the end, but I ran the whole way, with no walk breaks!
And I ran the 5k in less than 30 minutes, beating my personal best by nearly 4 minutes!!!! :D
 |
| outside Convocation Hall, where we met up post-race |
 |
| crowd milling around, post-race |
 |
| tree-lined walkway, U of T campus (in the background, you can see thousands of people walking south on St. George) |
 |
| Learn to Run Clinic, post-race (please note, we are tired and happy, but no longer freezing) |
 |
| U of T campus crowd milling around, post-race |
 |
| crowds milling around, post-race |
 |
| me, post-race :) |
To truly get a sense of how many people participated in Sunday's race: I had finished the race, a bunch of us had stuck around for about half an hour or more, and when I left the site, there were still thousands of people walking along the route.
 |
| walkers, westbound on Bloor Street |
 |
| walkers, southbound on St. George |
 |
| walkers, southbound on St. George |
 |
| more walkers |
 |
| more walkers, plus dog |
 |
| my pretty running shoes |
Saturday, October 2, 2010
I must really be liking this whole running thing.
Last week was one of the first cooler-weather runs that I did.
On Monday, it was cold, rainy, and dark by the time the group headed out. We went a slightly different, longer route than normal. There were about two ridiculously long hills thrown in there, too.
And you know what?
I had a really great time! :)
Islay and I even sprinted the last little bit, which was a fun way to end the run.
I'll be starting the 5k clinic this upcoming week, and I'm feeling really good about it. I think it's the best decision for me right now, and I'll work up to 10k and beyond after I've finished up the 5k clinic. I also plan to get back into swimming laps; I'd been doing that when I first started running, and it made a big difference.
On another note, I'm running my second 5k race tomorrow - I'll be at the Run for the Cure, along with several thousands of other runners. It isn't officially timed, so it won't be like the Yorkville Run, which was chip timed, but I'm looking forward to experiencing the energy of running with so many other people.
Can't wait!
Last week was one of the first cooler-weather runs that I did.
On Monday, it was cold, rainy, and dark by the time the group headed out. We went a slightly different, longer route than normal. There were about two ridiculously long hills thrown in there, too.
And you know what?
I had a really great time! :)
Islay and I even sprinted the last little bit, which was a fun way to end the run.
I'll be starting the 5k clinic this upcoming week, and I'm feeling really good about it. I think it's the best decision for me right now, and I'll work up to 10k and beyond after I've finished up the 5k clinic. I also plan to get back into swimming laps; I'd been doing that when I first started running, and it made a big difference.
On another note, I'm running my second 5k race tomorrow - I'll be at the Run for the Cure, along with several thousands of other runners. It isn't officially timed, so it won't be like the Yorkville Run, which was chip timed, but I'm looking forward to experiencing the energy of running with so many other people.
Can't wait!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)