Weekend Update + Half-Marathon Training

This weekend, I hit two personal running milestones that were extremely exciting and are leaving me pumped for this week's training.

A Saturday Morning Race and Personal Record!
Saturday, I rolled out of bed at 7:00 AM, ate some egg white oatmeal, then jogged/power walked to the 72nd Street Transverse and picked up my registration for the Fitness Magazine's Mind Body Spirit Games 4 Mile Race.

since dogs are allowed off-leash before 9AM in the park, I saw a bunch of adorable mutts running around, and it looked like a dog party on this hill

I haven't raced since July when I participated in the Central Park Conservancy race. I had barely made 40:00 for the 4 mile race, and although I was happy at the time, I really wanted to make a faster, sub-10 minute mile pace this time.

at the start line, ready to go!

Well, mission accomplished! I ran the 4 mile race in 37 minutes and 11 seconds, meaning I had a 9:17 pace. SO happy with that! I did not stop to power walk once which was also a personal record for me. Yay!

I have to attribute some of that success to my awesome new "racing" playlist that kept me going. In particular, I went back to "Funksoul Brother" right near the end to get me pumped up (for some reason it's listed as "The Rockafeller Skank," but it's "Funksoul Brother" by Fatboy Slim and it's an awesome running song).

Can't wait to run another fall race after having such a great time Saturday. It was also really fun to walk around the festival and see Hilaria Thomas Baldwin (Alec Baldwin's wife) teaching a yoga class or Surfset Fitness demonstrating their surfboard workouts (I'll definitely be trying that out this fall!).

Post-race, I met up with a friend for brunch and then saw For a good time, call...  It was actually a really sweet ode to female friendship that I enjoyed, but definitely don't see it with a friend who's uncomfortable with raunchy humor!

Today's 10 Miler
After being unable to do my long run last weekend following some unidentified abdominal pain (doctor had no clue what it might be. That's always what you want to hear...), I was nervous about doing 10 miles today. It had been two weeks since my last long run and Wednesday's 5 mile run felt miserable.

Two miles in to the run, I felt ok but was intimidated by the thought that I still had 8 miles to go. I wished I had someone running with me to keep me company, and that's when I realized that I could call my parents while I ran. I plugged my headphones into my phone and dialed them up as I rounded the 2.5 mile point.

Since my parents live in Washington State, I don't see them very often, so I like to keep them in the loop with phone calls. Often, though, those calls are during a short walk back from the subway or while I'm grocery shopping so I'm distracted. Since I was running in Riverside Park, I wasn't too winded because there were no real hills. I was able to have a conversation, with pauses for deep breaths, and ended up chatting with them for a full hour! It was so nice to have a distraction and by the time we hung up and I plugged back in to my iPod, I only had 2 miles left and felt a renewed sense of purpose.

sweaty and happy post-10 miler!

I definitely walked a bit more than I normally would have (I was also a bit tired from yesterday's 4 mile race), so my pace was 11:00 instead of the normal 10:00 pace, but I finished it and that's what counts. I feel confident that I'll be able to finish the 13.1 miles of my half-marathon on October 14. Such a great weekend of running!

Last Week's Goals:

Monday - Boxing Yoga (check!)
Tuesday - 3 mi run +  core work (check!)
Wednesday - 6-7 mi run (sort of check -- ended up doing 5 miles)
Thursday - training with Amanda, including speed work and core (check!)
Friday - Physique 57 class + Power Yoga at Uplift (check! my first two-a-day ever!)
Saturday - FITNESS Magazine 4 mile race + 6 miles for long run (check on the race, moved long run to Sunday)
Sunday - rest (oops, did my long run today -- I need a rest day this week!)

This Week's Goals:
Monday - rest day with some yoga at home
Tuesday - Yoga w/ Kristin McGee + Spinning @ Pedal NYC
Wednesday - Central Park loop (6 miles)
Thursday - Vinyasa Yoga @ Exhale Spa + interval run
Friday - easy run (4-5 miles)
Saturday - Physique 57 class
Sunday - 11 mile run