LVTC Low Key 4 Mile Run and Other Running Workouts

The weekend before last my local track club was hosting a 4 mile timed run. I didn't sleep well the night before, and I felt a little sluggish but overall I had  a fun run.

My strategy was to hold back the first half and at the turn around point I would turn on my ipod. I ended up turning on my ipod sooner than later, I had hoped to run about 7:45 per mile. My split times were 7:54, 7:57, 8:06,  & 7:36 (7:53 average).  I think the heat got to me a little bit.
 


I have a few pounds to lose and they are all in my midsection...

The next day (Sunday) I went out for a nice long run with lots of hills.  My legs were a little tired but once  I got going I felt great.  I live close to Sunrise Mountain and I love running in this
neighborhood. 



It was nice and overcast so I took my time.   I ran just over 8 miles and averaged about 9:35 per mile with over 500 feet of elevation gain.

 

 

I ended up taking Monday and Tuesday off from work because I had some family come into town. 

 

Monday was a rest day for me.



Tuesday I went out for another 8 mile run.  This time I averaged 9:14 per mile with 400 feet of elevation gain.

Wednesday I ran a Tempo 5K. I like to make these progression runs where each mile gets faster. My mile splits were:

Mile 1 8:43
Mile 2 8:14
Mile 3 7:33

Thursday I did some strength training.

Friday I ran 10 miles after work on the treadmill.  I had to mentally break this run up into chunks.  I told myself that I would run just 8 miles and if I felt good I would round it up to ten miles. I only set the treadmill for 70 minutes, then I kicked it up to 80 minutes, then finally 88 minutes.

I should have set the treadmill for 89 minutes.

Saturday was a rest day.

Sunday -I wanted to run another 10 miles but, it was hard enough to get out the front door. I couldn't get the baby down for her morning nap and I just felt like I had to hurry up and come back home.  I ran 8 miles but, I threw in three tempo miles in the middle of my run. My splits were:

Mile 1 9:19
Mile 2 8:58
Mile 3 8:28
Mile 4 8:20
Mile 5 8:21
Mile 6 8:58
Mile 7 8:58
Mile 8 9:08

I expected to be sore from this last 8 miler but, my legs are getting used to running longer distances.  

No More Stroller Running for Me.

For the  past two Summers, I used to take my son with me when I went out running. I would push him in his clunky Graco stroller, because I didn't have an actual jogging stroller.

It was easier that first Summer when he was only a few months old. Last year it was hard, because I was pregnant and he was a much bigger toddler.

Last summer I was debating  about making the investment of purchasing a double jogger. In the end I decided against it. It's a tough workout for sure. I don't get to run as far and as fast as I would like.

As time has gone on my husband has gotten better at watching the kids and he understands how much running means to me.  As long as I don't abuse my privileges (No three hour runs and I don't get to drive across town to meet friends for a run),  I can head out the door on Saturday and Sunday mornings. 
   

I decided to sign up for a half marathon in October. I'm going to run the Saints and Sinners Half Marathon.


I start training for it next week.  Currently I am running about four times a week and strength training three  days a week. I'm running about 20-25 miles a week and I hope to increase my mileage to about 30-35 miles per week.   I still plan to strength train two days a week.  My plan to increase my mileage will be to add a 10 mile run on Friday afternoon, and then do another long run on Sunday morning.   I have about 14 weeks to prepare for this race and I am hoping to run a sub 1:40. 

Tomorrow I am running another low key 4 mile race.  I'm looking forward to the speed workout and to see how much I can improve from the time that I ran in May. I feel stronger and faster.

In weight loss news I am still losing about a pound a week.  Here are my current numbers.

Starting Weight: 150lbs
Current Weight:  133 lbs.

I remember when I first started losing weight, it felt so intimidating. Now I feel like I'm gaining momentum.  I am past the halfway mark and I'm finally seeing the changes.  I will post pictures soon. I feel like an idiot taking selfies in the bathroom at work so I will wait until the track club posts pictures from the 4 mile run.

Hot is an understatement

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I am truly frightened by the weather we are expected to have this weekend. Normally I would do just one long run on Sunday but, I'm going to split my long run into two short runs, one on Saturday and one on Sunday. I plan to leave as early as possible and I'm bringing water with me.   I hope this is our one and only heat wave for the summer.  I'm keeping the kids indoors all weekend long. 

 



ETA: The picture above is a live link to Channel 8 new weather in Las Vegas. When I originally posted this link the temps were over 112 degrees for over a week, with the high temp peaking at 117 degrees over the weekend.

I can't believe how fast time is flying by.

So much has been happening lately, and before you know it a few weeks pass before I write a blog post.  My son had an ear infection and my daughter just had her four month vaccinations, so both kids are more cranky and fussy than usual. I've had to miss a few days of work and my sleep schedule has been a bit wacky. It's been nice to be home to spend extra time with the kiddos but, coming back to a ton of emails and missed calls in no fun.

They were watching Yo Gabba Gabba together and I was distracting them.

Last weekend I decided to run a timed 10k.  Our local track club was hosting a low key race in my neighborhood. My original goal was to break 50 minutes or around 8:01 pace.  I left the house at 6:45am and the temps were in the high 70's. My strategy for this race was to hold back and negative split for the second half of the race.  The course is a 3.1 mile out and back with an overpass to run over twice. 

start of the race

I used my Garmin to keep track of my pace during the run and it really helped me keep my pace in check. Here are my mile splits
Mile 1- 8:13 
Mile 2- 8:01
Mile 3- 8:18 (I'm happy because we had to run over a bridge twice)
Mile 4- 8:00
Mile 5- 8:03
Mile 6- 8:07
.24-       1:46  (7:18 pace)

Official Time: 50:31

I held back the first three miles and when I got to the turn around point I noticed that I was 4th woman overall. I turned on my Ipod and picked up the pace a little bit. Between miles 4 and 5 I got a side stitch and I had to ease off a bit.  I was frustrated because my legs felt like they wanted to go faster but, my upper body still has some room for improvement.  I was able to catch the 3rd woman during the last mile of the race.

crossing the finish line

I'm happy with my progress. Sometimes it feels like the weight loss is moving at a glacial pace. But, when I put things in perspective it is going by quickly. Speaking of weight... I'm down another two pounds.

Start weight 150
Current weight 137

Things are moving in the right direction.

4 months postpartum update, good bye 140's hello 130's.

Today I weighed in at 139lbs. So far I am down 11lbs! I am really happy about getting down below 140. About two weeks ago I hit a plateau and I didn't loose any weight that week. This motivated me to step up my workouts and to see where I could tweak my diet a little bit. The following week I lost two pounds. My first goal is to reach 130lbs and then 125lbs. My goal weight is 120lbs. I don't think I will be able to go below 120 until I am done breastfeeding. At times my progression feels slow but, I am noticing the changes too. I'm finally able to wear pants that don't have an elastic waistband. Also I am seeing more definition in my arms and legs.

My running is improving ever so slightly as well. I purchased a Garmin Forerunner 10 and it's pretty easy to use. But, I wasn't using it to it's full potential. I thought the watch only kept track of my time and distance.

But with the push of a button it keeps track of my pace! Imagine that!

In the past I was always pretty anti-Garmin.  I didn't understand all the hype and excitement over a watch that cost so much money. I can honestly say I am hooked.  It's a nice tool to keep me on pace when I feel like running a tempo run. I'm also more inclined to head outdoors for a run.




This has been a really busy work week for me. But, I still managed to workout each morning. I am really looking forward to tomorrow's  planned rest day. This week I ran outside twice, once on the treadmill, and two days of circuit training.  On Tuesday I went out for a 4 mile run in some wicked heat. At 7:30 in the morning it is already 82 degrees when I got back a little after 8am it was closer to 85 degrees. Today was even hotter! I only ran 3 miles this morning but, it was 90 degrees at 7:30 am. It was a really stupid idea.  I'm trying to eek out a few more outside runs before it gets too hot. We are in for some brutal weather in Las Vegas this weekend. The daytime high is expected to hit 111 degrees on Saturday! I'm hoping to run on Sunday, I'm going to have to get on the road before 6am if I want this to happen.

My little munchkin turns 4 months tomorrow.  I can't believe how fast the cuddly baby stage is going by.

I finally got her to smile for the camera.

Rebuilding My Fitness One Workout at a Time

When I first went back to work three weeks ago I decided to only workout twice a week in the morning before work, since then I have decided to increase the number of workouts to four days a week.  I enjoy working out and also there is a big difference between leaving the house at 7:00am and 7:20am.



She smiles a lot, just not when I pull the camera out.





On the days I plan to workout I am much more organized. I have all of my bags packed (work clothes, lunch bag, diaper bag, & breast pump). I am focused and in the zone. I get the children ready for their day and get them in the car on time.  

If I stay at home  for that extra twenty minutes  and get ready at home, I don't feel like I"m spending any extra quality time with my children in the morning.  Instead I feel like a chicken with my head cut off trying to figure out what to wear.  Also the traffic is much busier at the later time.  If I leave the house at 7:00am I can drop off the kids and get a 30 minute workout in and be at my desk by 8:00am.  If I leave the house at 7:20am  I'm barley getting to my desk by 8:00 am.

Since I only have 30 minutes to workout I am making it count. My four workouts consist of  two days of running and two days of strength training. I'm really lucky to have a gym at my workplace.  This morning was a strength training day.  Today I did circuit training with 8 exercises for three circuits.

The exercises in today's workout were:
squats on a bosu trainer
dumbbell shoulder raises
bicep curls
roman chair leg lifts
lat pull downs
sit ups 
dumbbell bench press
cable press downs

I like circuit training because it keeps my heart rate up and you can get a great workout in a short amount of time. 

Today was also a weigh in day for me. I started tracking my food points four weeks ago. My starting weight was 150lbs. Today I am down to 144lbs.  I'm an impatient person and I wish the weight was coming off faster. But, I am happy with my progress. My run times are starting to improve as well. Over the weekend our local track club was hosting a low key 4 mile timed run.  I was hoping to hit 8:15 per mile and that was pretty good estimate. My split times were 8:15, 8:17, 8:27, and 7:57.

Photo courtesy of LVTC

I can't believe that my little girl is three months old today. The days are long but, the weeks and months go by fast.

Back at work -10 weeks postpartum

 I went back to work last week and I'm still adjusting to my work schedule. In my last post I discussed that I was still in the honeymoon stage with my running. Some of that warm fuzzy feeling has worn off but, overall things are going well. I did my first long run last Friday afternoon. It was 6 miles and it was really hard. It wasn't so bad while I was running but the next day my legs were dead. I'm carrying extra baby weight, so hauling around an extra 25lbs isn't easy.

Speaking of weight... When I gave birth to my son two years ago I assumed that because I was breastfeeding  that the pregnancy weight would fall right off. I made plenty of excuses for eating poorly. When my son turned a year old we threw a birthday party to celebrate. When I saw the pictures from the party I was horrified by how I looked.  It motivated me to join Weight Watchers. I lost most but, not all of the baby weight. Then I became pregnant with my next child. I didn't gain as much pregnancy weight this time around but, I still gained about 35lbs.

36 weeks pregnant

Last weekend with the kids

 I'm done having children and I really want my old runner body back.

I didn't want to wait until my daughter turned a year old before I did something about it. However, I did decide to hold off on dieting until I was at least 8 weeks postpartum to make sure my milk supply was well established. I couldn't afford to join Weight Watchers this time around but, I found an app on my tablet that tracks food points. I also have a friend at work that will weigh me in once a week to keep me accountable. My starting weight was 150lbs!! (That's a lot when you are only 5 feet even). The first week I think I was a little too extreme with my calorie cutting. I lost three pounds right away. It felt great to lose that much, but my milk supply decreased. I've had to add in  some extra carbohydrates to keep up my milk supply. I also have to be happy with only losing a pound or two a week. At first I was embarrassed to admit how much I weigh on this blog. But, I want to be held accountable and seeing it written makes it real.

My running has been a great outlet for me,  even though it's harder than it used to be  I really look forward to the physical and emotional release that it gives me. I'm only able to run about 4 times a week.  I have a pretty rigid schedule between dropping my kids off at daycare, work, visiting my daughter on my lunch break, work, commute home, eat dinner, family time, sleep, rinse and repeat.  About twice a week I get both kids in the car 30 minutes early so I can get a quick run in before work. It's not ideal but, it's better than nothing. On Friday afternoons I get off of work early so I plan on making that a long run day. Sunday will be my other long run day.

Last but, not least I finally bought myself a Garmin!! I got the basic Forerunner 10 model. It doesn't have too many bells and whistles. It just keeps track of your distance and time. I like the fact that it is pretty easy to use.