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, some cake for Valentine’s or Galentine’s, and

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.

The Off-Season; Month 1

Posted on November 28, 2018 by East Coast Appetite

I read a quote on instagram that “the off-season is key for a good on-season” and have been thinking about it a lot. I’ve been focusing on recovery from the marathon first and foremost in the past 3+ weeks, but am slowly picking up the mileage again. I signed up for a race (NYRR’s Ted Corbitt 15K on December 8th) because I think I can nab a PR (last year I got off to a slow start) and might use it to see how I feel about an early spring half marathon. Otherwise, I have no races on the docket until Broad Street Run and Brooklyn Half in May. I toyed with the thought of a spring full marathon, but am already less into that idea and would like to have a solid half training cycle injury-free.

Central Park on my way to pacing a friend at the NYRR 60K

I took my Classpass off of hold and now will try to do a mix of indoor cardio, lifting, and yoga classes. So far, post-marathon, I took tantra yoga, treadmill intervals and a strength for runners class at Mile High Run Club, and a Barry’s Bootcamp Arms & Abs class for my friend’s birthday.

Post-Barry’s Flexin’

Other than the occasional running, I’ve been cooking and baking and eating a lot! I went to an All You Can eat Korean BBQ spot with my boyfriend, then we hit up an AYCE seafood and sushi buffet only a few days later. I made a lot of dishes for Thanksgiving and Friendsgiving: sweet potato casserole, miso butter kale, ciabatta stuffing, cornbread stuffing, Brie en croute and have been eating the leftovers ever since. I made some ooey gooey butter cake for a work potluck but haven’t been baking that much otherwise.

Poutine and deviled eggs at Jacob’s Pickles

Plate #2 of many at Port of Call Seafood Buffet in Hackensack

Friday’s Friendsgiving with two ducks and many sides

Thursday’s Thanksgiving with goose

Mileage: 4 miles, 15 miles, 16.3 miles.

2018 NYC Marathon Race Recap

Posted on November 20, 2018 by East Coast Appetite

Ouch. No, I’m just kidding. It’s been 2 weeks and I’ve had a lost of rest and recovery (and a massage), so I’m going to try and write this up so I can reflect on it later.

The Nights Before: I stayed out way too late on Halloween night (the 31st) but went to bed early on the 1st and 2nd, then by 10pm on the 3rd.

Night Before Flatlay

Start Village: Back in 2016, I took the Staten Island ferry to the buses and barely made it into my wave and corral in time. This time around, I wisely wore enough throwaway clothes and packed some snacks and handwarmers for the 3+ hour wait in the start village after taking a direct bus from Brooklyn with my teammates. It was a lot of fun to catch up with people and compare our training and race plans.

Cheesin’ at Fort Wadworth

PPTC’s Magic Tree

I used the portapotties 3 times, pet a therapy dog, and got a photo in the corral with a teammate.

Lining up and getting psyched

Splits:

Screen Shot 2018-11-11 at 10.02.54 PM

Screen Shot 2018-11-07 at 11.00.14 AM

Thoughts and feelings recap:

Miles 1-4: I was smart for exactly one mile and took it easy on the Verrazzano (formerly the Verrazano but they finally changed the name to actually be spelled correctly). Us green corral folks had a slightly different loop through Bay Ridge than the orange & blue runners, then messily converged with them. I didn’t realize it, but I was flying here.

Miles 5-9: My brain’s main thought was “THIS IS SO MUCH FUN!” I saw a lot of people here on 4th Avenue, beginning in the 20’s, through the PPTC cheer spot at 3rd, and some friends at Union St. and then on Lafayette Ave. I was having such a good time, as you can tell from this succession of photos.

Carly ran back to get a shot of me

Miles 10-14: Oh hmm, it sure got quiet. I slowed the pace a tiny bit in efforts to conserve energy, but felt good after doing a systems check. I hit the half in 2:07, which was on pace for a PR.

Miles 15-19: This segment finally presented me with thoughts of “Oh no, this isn’t going the way I wanted it to at all”. I felt fine approaching the Queensboro Bridge but slowed considerably running up 1st Avenue in Manhattan. I started walking through fluid stations then running again.

Surprised to see Mike on the bridge

My friend Eric caught me fighting for it around Mile 18

Miles 20-23: The Bronx sucked for me and I knew it was going to be a struggle until I got back into Central Park. I saw a very well-placed friend at 129th St and my boyfriend at 116th who gave me the best “I can tell you’re hurting” grimace.

Miles 24-26: I got to finally enter Central Park and vowed to not walk again, then promptly broke that vow. I ran into a teammate who was also having a rough race, so we tried to stick together for the final mile. She sent me on ahead for a while. I checked my heart rate during this portion and 20-23 and it was really high. Like 85-90% of max. I used the walking breaks to lower it, but was definitely concerned.

Embarrassed that Eric caught me walking around Mile 24

The final 0.2: I got a side stitch right at the 26 mile marker! While frustrating, I was relieved that it didn’t happen sooner. My teammate caught up to me so our finish photos are together, which is pretty cool. It was so nice to have a sounding board for the long walk to get our ponchos and exit the park. I headed to my team’s meetup spot where my boyfriend was waiting with a cold brew coffee. We then went to Sushi of Gari for a pretty nice post-race feast.

Medals and Ponchos on Central Park West

Sushi of Gari

Phew. While only 10 minutes slower than my marathon PR, it was a poorly executed race. I have since compared training data and realized that despite the mileage PR, it wasn’t as far and away a monster training cycle as I had wanted. I keep vacillating between wanting to do another marathon in 2019 with more mileage under my belt and just waiting until I exact my revenge on the NYCM course in 2020. More to come!

Week 16 of 2018 NYC Marathon Training

Posted on November 8, 2018 by East Coast Appetite

10/29: Rest Day. Went to Patavini and tried all the gnocchi. The blue one has spirulina and was really good! The truffle, saffron, and squid ink were my favorites.

10/30: 4.3 mile shakeout run @ 11 minute mile pace. I’d been running faster than my usual pace during the taper in part because of cooler temperatures and of course due to excitement.

10/31: Rest day and Halloween. Had street meat combo over rice for dinner near the Village Halloween Parade, 2.5 beers, then late-night pepperoni pizza. I went as a bat again.

11/1: Unintentional rest day. I was going to do a Saucony shakeout run (with Molly Huddle) but work was long and it was raining, so I bailed. I really should have done some treadmill miles at least.

11/2: Tracksmith popup in the morning, work, then Marathon Expo at night. I tried to get in and out quickly and spend less time on my feet. I picked up my official jacket then went to a friend’s birthday dinner at a Korean-Brazilian spot and turned down a lot of good wine. I went home right at 9 and got a solid 8 hours of sleep.

11/3: I thought about doing a shakeout but figured less time on my feet was a better idea after such a loose taper the last two weeks. I got Shanghainese for dinner: scallion pancake, soup dumplings, fried dumplings, rice cakes, noodles, and eggplant. I decided to skip a dessert with dairy just in case.

11/4: NYC Marathon Day. Race recap to come (hmm, I never wrote up one for the Bay Ridge Half). It was not my best marathon, but not my worst (it was my third). 4:31:40 and a huge positive split but I had a good time doing it.

Total: 30.4 miles out of a prescribed 37.