Chelkie Gets Ready to Take on Sammamish

[Chelkie]

 

The Lake Sammamish Half Marathon that is! Race date is March 5^th, so one week after this challenge ends I’ll be on a jet plane and headed to Seattle. In other exciting news, I have two extra days in Seattle to hang out with my sister and we decided to turn them into wedding dress shopping days. My mother is going to fly up and meet us and everything. It may be a tad early as we aren’t getting married until 2017, but living in Alaska the opportunities to actually get out of the state and into civilization with wedding dress shops is rare.

 

My race goal is anything under 2hrs 13min, as that is my current PR but my ultimate goal for 2016 is to get a sub 2hr time.

 

Alright so onto the Challenge goals:

 

Goal One: Stick to Training Schedule

 

This month’s training schedule is as follows: 1 tempo run, 1 intervals day, 1 long run, 2 easy runs. So five days a week of running but I can do them in any order. Pretty much what I was doing last challenge but I’ve added in some speed work in and attempt to get faster.

 

Goal Two: Count Calories

 

I’d like to keep slowly losing a little weight but mostly getting my measurements back to somewhere acceptable. This means eating 1300 calories and running my butt off.

 

Goal Three: Study for CSOP

 

In May of this year I need to take my American Bankers Association exam call the Certified Securities Operations Professional (CSOP). It’ll be the feather in my cap for my job, and look great on my resume. Mostly it means spending hours with my head in a book reading about stocks, bonds and banking regulations. Woo… Anyways, I’d like to focus right now on spending an hour a day taking notes and organizing a detailed outline.

 

Goal Four: Save $

 

This is kind of a spin off from my previous challenge goal of eating out less. I’d like to continue to only eat out twice a week or less but also put some money into savings for my wedding. This means putting in more hours at work and cutting down on the little expenses in life that add up. 

 

Starting Stats:

Weigh: 125.9 

V02 max (estimate): 29.3

Body Fat (estimate) 26%

Waist: 28.75 

Hips: 35.5 

Arm: 11 

Thigh: 22 

Calf: 14

Butt: 38.5

[SaltyDragon]

Those sound like challenging but achievable goals for you, and it's so exciting that you'll be building up to the half marathon! I'll be following, for sure!

[tinkerer]

Hi Chelkie!

 

Looks like you have good goals, again! It must be exciting to be getting into the final weeks before your race (and visiting family of course).

 

Also, posting here because that's where the fun is, but great job on your last challenge! It is really impressive that you were able to make all of your running goals despite darkness, snow, ice, bears, etc. Nice to see the results of your running and eating reflected in your measurements too, I would assume?

[bgvanbur]

Sounds like a great month and great goals to go with it!

[Polgara19]

Yay half-marathon!

[Chelkie]

tinkerer - Thanks! Yeah i'm both excited and nervous, like I am before any race really. Not sure how running on dry pavement will feel after 5 months of snow and ice, haven't raced for 4 months, and it's seattle so it'll probably be raining the whole time. Should be fun though! I was super pleased about hitting all my running goals too, I think that was my first near perfect running challenge, and losing a few inches wasn't bad either.

 

Thanks everyone for the encouragement, half marathon coming soon, wheee!

 

This week i've been battling a bit of a head cold, but i'm starting to feel better so I hope it won't affect my training too much. I've done a threshold run and an easy run so far, and I plan on doing my interval training today.

[german]

Half under 2 hours is awesome! (My PR is 2:50   )

[SaltyDragon]

I just spent a week in Seattle, and yes, it rained every day. It wasn't a hard rain though, and I was running in it every day without much trouble. Everything could be different by March anyway, you never know. I don't think you'll find it harder than what you're doing now.

 

It will be quite a bit warmer than what you are training in, probably, and will feel more humid. That might be something to consider preparing for.

[tinkerer]

Hope you are feeling better. I'm fighting off a cold this weekend as well, so I can sympathize. Don't try to do too much too soon and make it worse though!

[Chelkie]

german - haha it would be awesome, my last race was 2:25 though, so I still have quite a bit to go. Though really, i'm always happy just finishing a half  

 

saltydragon - Yeah I imagine it'll be much warmer and more humid, unfortunately I don't have much practice picking out race day attire. I also can't really test out my warm weather running gear here without freezing to death. Maybe i'll try it on an intervals day where i'm not outside for over an hour. Not looking forward to that at all though, brrrrrrr. I'm always the one wearing 6 layers and a face muff and run by someone in shorts and a tshirt. 

 

tinkerer - Feeling much better! Must be another round of the nerdfitness cold, I missed it the first time but didn't manage to dodge it this time around. I took off an extra day to recover though, and I ran a bit shorter of a long run just to be sure. Didn't want it to get into my lungs again so close to race day.

 

Week One Review:

 

Running - Ran 4 times for a total of 20.79 miles this week, skipped an easy run and only ran 7 miles for a long run this week due to the cold.

 

Calories - Did really well in the beginning part of the week, but being sick and the SuperBowl kind of threw me off. I managed to come in around my goal for weekly totals though, so i'll count it as decent.

 

Study For CSOP - Definitely failed this one big time, only studied a bit a few days, definitely not for an hour a day. Need to suck it up and crack down on myself.

 

Save $ - Ate out three times this week (darn you super bowl pizza!) but I finished up my taxes and i'm getting a decent refund, so I count it as a win.

[Chelkie]

Ran a great threshold run yesterday, average a 10:30/mile pace for 6 miles, definitely the fastest one i've run. Unfortunately i've developed a niggling pain in the top of my foot. I think it's just an overuse/pulled muscle/shoe problems issue but i'm going to keep a close eye on it. Need to remember to be more diligent about stretching and wearing my compression socks. 

[Chelkie]

Bought a foam roller finally! Sweet pain. I was tempted to try one of the crazy hollow ones with the big plastic pokey bits, but after some quick googling I settled on one of the super firm and smooth black ones. Probably should watch some youtube videos on how to do it though, i've only used the ones at the gym occasionally. 

 

My legs actually feel so much better today though, and I didn't have any foot pain while doing my easy run. Not sure if its because I switched shoes or if it was the stretching but hopefully it keeps up. 

[Chelkie]

Ran intervals today, felt pretty darn good!

 

It's amusing how much of running and gearing for running is about trial and error. The icebugs kept coming untied so I bought elastic laces, was having some problems with the insole slipping so I stuck it down with some tape, the elastic laces were too good at being tightened and I managed to give myself a minor foot injury by cranking them down too hard, my shoes finally felt right and I started to get a sore knee, switched from two layers of pants to one layer and running skirt, knee problem fixed... I could go on forever. 

 

Lesson learned, my body is constantly changing, the terrain is changing, the temp is changing and how I feel is changing, so I have to be ready to roll with the punches to be a serious runner. 

[tinkerer]

Wow, seriously nice job getting the running in this week! Intervals, threshold, easy...you're hitting it all!

 

Do you feel that you are slowing accumulating knowledge for a bunch of various situations? That is kind of how I feel now - I know what to wear for cold, rain, wind, snow, heat, etc. and while I still have to make minor adjustments or learn something new (longer distance or new gear) I can add that to my toolbox instead of starting from square 1 all over again.

[SaltyDragon]

Experimenting is all part of the adventure! I like your persistence figuring out what works for each situation.

 

I'm kinda facing the opposite. In the last month, I've been running in three states, OR, WA and AK, and they've all been exactly the same – kinda cold and really rainy. I just wear the same thing all the time! (I know it's cold for you in Anchorage, but it's not on the coast where I am).

[Chelkie]

tinkerer - Yeah I definitely feel that way too! As much as life is trial and error I still know way more and feel way more comfortable with all the different situations. When I first started running this winter I would sit and worry and hem and haw and check the weather forecast like 6 times trying to decide what I should wear. Now I have a nice collection of things to choose from and I know with the general conditions outside what I can wear to be pretty comfortable. Or at least not die of heat stroke or hypothermia.  

 

SaltyDragon - It's actually been super warm here in Anchorage too, hovering around 30-35 which is darn right balmy for February. The only problem is that hovering around freezing means its been ice ice ice everywhere. I think the difference in gear is pretty small in grand scheme of things, when its 20-30 I will wear a skirt over my tights, or if i'm doing intervals or a tempo run i'll choose the icebugs vs trail shoes ect. So even if the overall temp/conditions are the same you can still have a little bit of flexibility. Though also as I girl I will acknowledge that I have some more fashion options when it comes to running gear. 

 

In other unrelated news I realized I have already put 400 miles on my current pair of shoes (i've had them since August) not much for some, but to think i've run 400 miles in the last 6 months is blowing my mind!

[theophilus]

In other unrelated news I realized I have already put 400 miles on my current pair of shoes (i've had them since August) not much for some, but to think i've run 400 miles in the last 6 months is blowing my mind!

Awesome!

[SaltyDragon]

Seeing your cumulative mileage in one big number like that can really make you feel like a hero. 400 is really impressive! I don't have 300 miles on my shoes, yet, and that's in 13 months!

[Chelkie]

Yeah I wish I'd thought to buy my Garmin sooner so I could have an even more clear record of miles this year. Before I was using a combination of Nike+, Zombiesrun and my phone so the data is all over the place, and part of it is accelerometer data from my time running the track at my gym. Now that i've got the gps watch/garmin connect app all the data is clean and organized and I have a training calendar where I can see how i'm doing and my mileage and stuff. Wayyyyy better and more motivating. 

 

Alright Week Two! 

 

Despite my excitement making this month seem to drag, we are slowly slogging through it. 

 

Running - Stuck to my training schedule to a T! Hit my 5 days a week of running, did intervals, tempo, 2 easy and a long run and all of them were just like I had planned (how often does that happen) and I got a total of 30 miles this week. Hoping to keep the record going this upcoming week, though I just got a double root canal and am hopped up on pain meds, so we'll see how well the running turns out today. Also my wireless headphones randomly stopped working on Friday, i'd forgotten how much I hate corded headphones, so i'm in the market for a replacement if anyone has any suggestions. 

 

Calories - I fell off the wagon a bit Sat/Sun with Valentines day, had some champagne and chocolate...and cupcakes. Lost count a bit, so i'm not entirely sure how much I ate, but I did come in very close the rest of the days of the week and I burned around 3000 calories running this week. 

 

Study - I did pretty good with this one this week, much better than last week. I wouldn't say I spent an hour a day doing notes but I did quite a few long study sessions and am feeling pretty good about the pace. 

 

Save $ - Oh nelly. I stashed away my tax refund and was pleased as punch, and then I made the mistake of going to the dentist. Have about 5,000 worth of dental work I need done and dental insurance is retarded and was used up in my first visit. I'm hoping I can spread it out a bit, but we'll see, the dentist always acts like everything is hair on fire important. Also, Alaska is like the most expensive place to get anything health care related done, its crazy. 

 

Overall I think I did alright, definitely some room for improvement and I hit a few roadblocks, but what can you do but just keep pushing through. 

[Chelkie]

Ran a great tempo run yesterday. I'm not sure if its the rise in temperature, or the subsequent drop in layers or the addition of speedwork, but i've been running all of my runs much faster the past two weeks. Yesterday I was running at a 10:03 min/mile pace and managed to cover 6.5 miles including my warmup. 

[tinkerer]

With all of the solid training you are putting in, it seems pretty likely that you are going to crush that race!

 

With the improved weather, has your running surface improved from the previously reported ice?

[Chelkie]

Fingers crossed, i'm feeling pretty good, but anything can happen race day. >.>

 

It really hasn't actually, it's been about 35 during the days and then drops to around 15 at night, so it goes from slightly melty ice to frozen ice and back again every day. Seeing some grass and its feeling a bit like spring time, but still mostly sheer ice. Ah well, someday i'll see dry pavement again, someday.

[tinkerer]

I suppose dry pavement, in March, in Seattle isn't really something you're likely to see either. In a weird sort of way, I would be happy about sheer ice if I had purchased icebugs earlier in the year. On a purchase like that, the more that I am able to use it the more justified the expense feels.

[Chelkie]

I do feel good about getting as much use out of them as I have, I mean I pretty much wouldn't have been able to do any speed work if I hadn't gotten the icebugs because the ice has been so treacherous. 

 

Alright Week 3:

 

Running - Ran 4 days for a total of 20 miles last week, I completely missed my long run. >.> I admit its part my fault part the worlds fault. I had made plans for Saturday and I really didn't want to change them so I pushed my run to Sunday. Of course Sunday morning I woke up and there was fresh snow on the ground and I was like nooooo, and the weather was like, what, you didn't want snow? Okay. It then proceeded to rain hard for most of the day making the snow a slippery slush. Right as I was working up the nerve to go anyways, it turned into a blizzard. I had considered making it up today, but that would push this weeks mileage to 38 which I think is a bit too high for what is supposed to be my first taper week. I decided fuck it, i'll just go on with my regularly scheduled program and hope the missed long run doesn't ruin my race. 

 

Calories - Counted every day and was under, though with the missed long run I didn't burn quite as many calories. Overall quite good though. 

 

CSOP - Studied moderately well last week, almost finished with notes on 1/4 of the outline. Doesn't sound like much but its a seriously intense small typed outline. I also got my final approval for the class so I get to arrange travel details, which has been an excellent motivator! 

 

Save Money - Ate out twice last week, and worked overtime every day, so i'm in a good place. We've started to make plans for touring the venue and getting engagement photos done, so expenses have been up, but they are all planned ones. 

 

In other news I got new regular running shoes on Saturday, and i'm super excited to try them out. Think i'll rearrange my schedule so I have an easy run this afternoon to try them out on. It's still crazy icy so we'll see how they hold up, but my feet long for the cushiness of new insoles. 

 

Looking forward to ending this week and this challenge strong, had a few bumps but i'm still feeling pretty good!

[SaltyDragon]

I think you'll be fine missing one long run – you certainly won't lose anything. If you've got more that one week of tapering, though, I think you'd also be safe to do another long-ish run. But, do what feels right to you. It's your race, and you certainly seem to know what you're doing :-)

 

Good work towards all your goals (and new shoes, too)! Nice to see you're still going so strong. I'm sure you'll have a great finish.