Week 1 of Brooklyn Half Marathon 2019 Training

Posted on March 12, 2019 by East Coast Appetite

I used my guaranteed entry for the Brooklyn Half (from deferring last year’s due to peroneal tendon injury) and am setting it as my goal race for the spring season. I’m also doing the Broad Street 10 Miler again since I had to defer last year’s entry. I’m using a 12 week half marathon training plan from Pete Pfitzinger’s Faster Road Racing with some adaptations. He’s big on mid-to-long midweek mileage (8 miles for a Wednesday run) and keeping the long runs double digits until taper.

Monday 2/25: Day 1 was a rest day and the weather was awful, so I was glad to take it.

Tuesday 2/26: The plan called for 6 general aerobic miles, but I did 2 easy, 3 tempo, and 1 easy.

Wednesday 2/27: Rest Day and my club’s annual Awards Night.

Thursday 2/28: My plan called for 8 miles, but I was so done after only 5.

Friday 3/1: I ended up doing my long run this night, with a loop of the park, then running to and around Williamsburg with my club and ending with snacks and beer before eventually getting pizza. 10.2 miles total

Macaroni and Cheese Pizza from Vinnie’s Pizzeria

Saturday: Rest day, and I really mean rest. Went to a Korean spa and got a massage.

Sunday: 8.3 miles with friends in the afternoon before more snow.

Total: 29.5 out of a prescribed 31. Not bad for my first real week back at it.

Other Running and Food in Between Halfs

Posted on March 5, 2019 by East Coast Appetite

Halves? I’m already kicking off my next half marathon training plan (this one being 12 weeks and very aggressive with the workouts and mileage) for the Brooklyn Half on May 19th. I have a couple tuneup races in April and May but am trying to just build the mileage in March. But I got back from New Orleans February 12th and the rest of the month flew by. Below are some eats and such from the tail end of New Orleans and back in New York.

Jackson Square

Cochon: rabbit and dumplings, gumbo, fried gator, brussels sprouts, catfish and rice

Strawberry Cream Cheese King Cake (we did not find the baby)

Muffaletta from Central Grocery

(Fried) Seafood Eggs Benedict at Stanley

Back in NYC; prime rib and mutton chop and sides at Keen’s for Valentine’s Day

Some of the Galentine’s Spread

Mochi cake, ooey gooey butter cake, chocolate chip mashmallow cookies, and my favorite salsas

Ravioli Pizza. It’s a thing.

I did a little recovery run around the Marigny and French Quarter the day after the race, then had to skip a run the day we left New Orleans because it was downpouring and I needed to do laundry and pack. I barely ran the week I got back from New Orleans because I got a cold on Friday the 15th and took 3 days off on what was supposed to be a busy running-filled weekend. I did manage to host a small Galentine’s party and volunteer at one of my club’s races.

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I had to test that the finish line tape would break away

I started running again on President’s Day, then showed up to the start line of the Al Gordon 4 Miler Saturday the 23rd feeling pretty unprepared speedwise and still pretty snotty. I was able to do it as a progressive run and not blow up in the back half like last year, so that was nice. I’m hoping my next 4 mile race in April will go a little better. I’m not racing at all in March, but doing lots of easy/recovery miles, going long with double digits pretty much every week, and trying out some speedwork. I’m planning to post training recaps in the hopes that this is my fastest dedicated Half Marathon training cycle ever. My PR of 1:57:04 is from this past October but that was during the height of marathon training. My A Goal at this point is under 1:55, but I’ll see how the tuneup races go.

Week 10 of New Orleans Rock and Roll Half Training & Mini Race Report

Posted on February 26, 2019 by East Coast Appetite

And the briefest race report. I’m going to just frontload this by saying that I don’t think late winter or early spring half marathons are for me. This is the third year in a row where I arrive at the start line very undertrained and crabby with myself for paying over $100 to race without having a real shot ay my goal time. So the previous two years, I was a little closer to said goal times but now I’m older and wiser and didn’t want to have a big blowup in the back of the race. This is good in a way because it makes me really examine my intrinsic and extrinsic motivations for running. And also think about how much I, as a Southerner living in the Northeast for the past decade (!!), still don’t really like winter. We’ll see if anything changes on that front.

Monday 2/4: It was a smidge warmer than usual but I missed a morning run and already had dinner plans at the amazing Krok for some spicy Isan Thai. I had the perfect view of the route to Brooklyn Bridge Park to watch all the runners go by as my mouth slowly burned.

Tuesday 2/5: 3.4 miles on the Hudson River Park before taking a class on the erg at RowHouse.

Wednesday 2/6: Lunar New Year dinner at Golden Unicorn.

Thursday 2/7: Halal combo for lunch and dinner aka the best $6 ever spent.

Friday 2/8: Flight to New Orleans with my friend Jay. We immediately started eating everything in sight, from chargrilled oysters at Felix’s to beignets at Cafe du Monde. There was gumbo, jambalaya, and baked ham at Mother’s. Everyone else arrived later that night while I caught an all-female brass band and saw my first (unofficial) Mardi Gras parade.

Chargrilled Oysters

The Yat Pack?

HAM!

Saturday 2/9: No shakeout, just more good food. Brunch at Ruby Slippers, more beignets from Cafe du Monde, carb loading with great pasta from Little Gem Saloon, then cheering on a Mardi Gras parade.

Eggs Benedict and Pancake Sampler at Ruby Slippers

The second most delicious blackened chicken and alfredo pasta of my life (the first also from New Orleans circa 2005)

Sunday 2/10: Race Day (oh, did you think I just came to eat? Pretty much). I showed up to the starting line downtown unsure of what to shoot for. I thought about going out at 9:00 minute miles then trying for a negative split for the last 5K, which would have been my 3rd fastest half marathon (maybe even 2nd). But honestly I didn’t really feel trained for that. So I decided to run the first mile however I felt, then evaluate from there. I hit it in 9:30 and didn’t feel like it was sustainable as the sun came out a bit (then slunk back into the clouds) and the humidity worked its magic, so I slowed to a 10:00 minute mile pace for the rest of the race. I had some King Cake from spectators around mile 6 and a Jell-o shot at mile 12, determined to have a little fun with it.

St. Charles Avenue

Moose Ears for the Finish

We hung around the finish area as a group, enjoying the snacks and some free Michelob Ultra.

After showering and a nap for me, we went back to Felix’s for more poboys and chargrilled oysters, drinks at Carousel Bar and Pat O’Brien’s, then several pounds of seafood at the well-named Cajun Seafood.

2 pounds of crawfish; shrimp, snow crab legs, corn, and potatoes

Hurricanes

Huge Ass Beers on Bourbon Street

All in all, not my best half marathon or even close, but definitely one of the most fun! I think it rivals and bests the Nike Womens San Francisco Half since the spectators wanted to get us drunk.

Week 9 of New Orleans Rock and Roll Half Training

Posted on February 6, 2019 by East Coast Appetite

Off to the races! I had originally planned for a 2 week taper but after not getting in the miles on vacation, I moved my long run to a Monday. Friday February 1 also kicked off a low-sugar month for me. I get one dessert a week and cut down on added sugar (and try to incorporate more fruit into my diet). No more almond croissants with my coffee and no baking batches of cookies that I then eat half of. I’m saving up my desserts for beignets in New Orleans and some cake for Valentine’s or Galentine’s.

Monday 1/28: 11.7 mile long run around Manhattan after work.

Lit-up rock art installation along Hudson River Park

Close-Up of light strips in the rocks

Tuesday 1/29: Quick rowing workout at the gym

Wednesday 1/30: 3 easy treadmill miles at home on the coldest day of the year.

Thursday 1/31: 4.2 Woodway treadmill miles at the new Mile High Run Club on the Upper East Side during the High 45 class. I had to jump off and foam roll my left hamstring; I initially freaked out for a quick second and thought “high hamstring tendinopathy” but am pretty sure it was just sore from long run and not rolling.

Friday 2/1: (Hot) Vinyasa Flow at Y7 Yoga. This was a total sweatfest but also a great stretch. I had an acai bowl after for dinner (which is basically dessert) but at least I ate some real fruit.

Saturday 2/2: Unplanned rest day.

Katsu Sampler at Tonkatsu Matsunoya

Sunday 2/3: 3.5 miles with a friend and Bandit, Elle’s rat terrier. Super Bowl pizza and wings as I slowly watched the life force drain from myself (and the Rams).

Total: 22 miles. At one point when my hamstring was tight Thursday night, I thought about dropping down to the 10K in New Orleans. But at this point, I’m going to run the half and take it easy. I might be able to do it at my future Brooklyn Half goal pace + 10-15 seconds and have pretty even splits since it’s a very flat course. The weather is looking a bit warm and sticky, so that’s also a factor. I don’t want to have another humidity blowup like at 3M last year. TBD! Week 10 and race report to come, then I’ll have a few weeks before the official start of a 12-week training plan for the Brooklyn Half.

Week 6 – 8 of New Orleans Rock and Roll Half Training

Posted on January 30, 2019 by East Coast Appetite

Week 6 should have been the second meatiest week in mileage but I was definitely still feeling the effects of the cold I caught the first few days of 2019. So then I tried and failed to pass the buck t o Weeks 7 and 8 but was somewhat thwarted by freezing temps and a vacation to Walt Disney World. It’s official: winter running is not my jam, even when properly attired. I’m very hesitant to sign up for an April/May marathon or even another January/February/March half in 2020.

Week 6:

Monday 1/7: 6 miles, split running to and from the monthly PPTC meeting. I mainly went to grab a slice of ravioli pizza, which is exactly what it sounds like. I’m planning to make my own soon but you really need a crispy crust to contrast with the pasta. TBD.

Tuesday 1/8: Rest Day

Wednesday 1/9: 5 mile outdoor run during sunset.

Thursday 1/10: 3 treadmill miles and a strength workout. Kettlebell deadlifts

Friday 1/11: Yoga class at a new-to-me studio (Sacred Sounds Yoga), focusing on stretching. My hamstrings were so tight to the point that it was comical.

Saturday 1/12: 3 treadmill miles after not being able to drag myself outside into the 20-degree weather. Somehow managed to make it to Ktown for soju and karaoke with the girls later.

Sunday 1/13: 5 frigid but sunny miles with a friend aka I didn’t do my long run. We ended at the bakery Ovenly, which semi-recently opened a new location near us in Park Slope. I had an everything croissant (a croissant with some everything bagel seasoning on it) and a hot chocolate. Brooklyn Museum and Asian fusion at Hunger Pang for dinner.

Total: 21 miles

Week 7: I took a lot of days off, so I’m going to just focus on the few days of running and the long weekend food highlights.

Monday 1/14: Somewhere between 5.2-5.7 miles at Mile High Run Club’s The Distance treadmill class. My treadmill said 5.7 and my Apple Watch’s Strava app said 5.3, so I’m inclined to go with upwards of 5.5 or so.

Friday 1/18: 5 miles along the East River in the dark and cold after work. It was so quiet and sort of beautiful. It was amazing to feel like I had the city to myself.

Emmy Squared pizza and fries for dinner.

Saturday 1/19: No pictures but I had Petee’s pie for breakfast, all you can eat Korean BBQ for lunch, and Taco Bell for dinner before a Planetarium show in Long Island.

Sunday 1/20: 10 mile late morning long run in Central Park. Later we went to Mitsuwa Marketplace in New Jersey for ramen and Japanese snacks (I bought so many Hi Chews) strolling the fancy mall in Short Hills, then Benihana for dinner.

Total: 20.5 miles

Week 8: My backup week for ‘most mileage’. Except I skipped Monday, traveled Tuesday, then walked 8 miles a day around the parks until flying back Saturday night. I did an easy 5 miles Sunday before getting groceries and trying to get out of vacation mode.

Disney food post to come.

Weeks 1-5 of New Orleans R&R Half 2019 Training

Posted on January 7, 2019 by East Coast Appetite

Surprise! I decided on an early spring half as I alluded to in a previous post. I don’t have a definite plan picked out but am currently reading Jack Daniels’ Running Formula and recently finished Pfitzinger’s Faster Road Racing and still have the Kara Goucher 10 Week Plan I was kind of trying for January’s Austin 3M Half. Mainly I’m hoping to just up the mileage into the 30’s and do some half marathon pace-specific work and see what happens as I attempt a slight PR. I’ve been using my (optical wrist) heart rate monitor and trying to keep my easy runs to Levels 2 and 3.

Week 1; 12/3/18 – 12/9/18: 26 miles over 4 runs, including the Ted Corbitt 15K. (9.3 miles plus warmup and cool down).

PPTC Pajama Run

Week 2; 12/10/18 – 12/16/18: Only 9 miles (2 runs) because of work and hosting a friend. But time-consuming work project ended, so hopefully it’s back to some AM runs again. I won’t be up by Central Park as often on weekdays, but it’s worth it for the extra sleep and flexibility.

Uni at Sushi Nakazawa

Week 3; 12/17/18 – 12/23/18: 23.9 miles over 5 runs; long run of 8.3 miles.

Gingerbread Christmas cocktails at the Miracle in Brooklyn popup

Long run squad

Cheese Party

Week 4; 12/24/18 – 12/30/18: Ended up with 2 unplanned rest days on top of my actual planned days. There was travel and Christmas too. 12.4 over 3 runs.

Thai spread at Fish Cheeks

Local oysters for 4 at Rappahannock

Week 5; 12/31/18 – 01/06/19: This was supposed to be a higher mileage week. I pushed my long run from the week before to Monday the 31st and went for 9 miles. On New Year’s Day, I did 3 on the treadmill after being tired all day. Then I woke up in the middle of the night with a sore throat that kept getting worse. I took off Wednesday – Friday as a cold took over. Other then some seasonal allergies, I haven’t been sick-sick in some time. Boo. I managed to get another long run in on Saturday for 9 miles in the rain then took off completely Sunday. Total: 21 miles. Pushed off the Super Week until the next week.

Sukhothai Pork Noodle Soup at Pure Thai Cookhouse

Ted Corbitt 15K Race Recap

Posted on December 12, 2018 by East Coast Appetite

Post-marathon, I signed up for the Ted Corbitt 15K as an attempt to get some race redemption under my belt in what remained of 2018. I hadn’t raced much this year and got PRs at the half marathon and 10K, but not any other distances (well, just the 5K and marathon that I actually tried).

I came in to this pretty well-rested and had peanut butter toast and cold brew before. I didn’t pack any nutrition but figured I’d be fine.

Last year, my first mile was super slow (9:44) due to getting into the corrals after they collapsed, so I made sure to get in there early this year. I accidentally started my watch early then couldn’t delete it in time. So I went in with an extra bit of seconds on the clock and was very confused with my splits the whole race.

I managed to hold back a bit on the first mile then went way too hard on the 2nd mile. I finally got into a groove for the last two miles of the first loop and was feeling good (PPTC cheerers and volunteers really helped).

Then I slowed down again for most of the second loop. The last mile felt tough but with the added endorphins from smiling and knowing that I was going to get a PR, then I was able to drop the hammer on the last 0.3 and sprint to the finish.

The pace was a little faster than my 8:57 pace from the Bay Ridge Half 9 weeks ago, which was my A goal. However, it’s a little slower than it should be if you plug that half time into a calculator. My goal for my next half is closer to 8:48, so I’m hoping to bring it down as my volume and speed work comes up in the next 8(?) weeks or so.

I’ve started some heart rate training since I have a HR monitor on my new watch. I’m surprised to find I kept it steady on this run (part of me is wondering if I had any cadence lock). To be discussed in future posts.