Fitness Friday: hills scare me

I haven't talked very much about my running here lately.  Fact is, I haven't been around here much period.  Sorry.  If you've stuck around, thank you for that.

I do have some races on the schedule.  I'm running the Gazelle Girl Half Marathon and 5/3 River Bank Run 25k this spring.  This year they've created a really cool double-down medal for women who complete both.  You know me, all about the bling.

My training has been less than stellar though.  I feel like I've lost any and all speed I gained last year because of marathon training.  Too many long slow runs where the only goal was to finish XX distance.  That and running too many of those runs with intervals has really fraked up my mental game as well.

In an effort to shake things up, I signed up for a 15k race tomorrow.  The Kent City Ridge Run, or "Jill's Hills" as it's affectionately know around these parts.

For shits and giggles I mapped the route yesterday and I have to admit - those hills scare the shit out of me.  I've been struggling to run on flat terrain so now I'm wondering why I set myself up for this "special kind of torture" as my friend Tami put it.  This is a super small race (only about 350 people between the 15k and 5k) so the hills combined with my slowness means I'll probably be way at the bottom of my age group again.  Sucks after working so hard to at least be in the middle.

On the plus side? At least I'll get a good workout and it's my first official 15k so no matter what happens, it's an automatic PR.

What about you?  Do you love or hate the hills?

Training Tuesday: #runDonna race week!

I'm calling this "Training Tuesday" because when I was blogging regularly that's what I post on Tuesdays.  I've been training to not completely lose my running base but haven't really been training, if that makes any sense.  My longest run was a 12 miler a few weeks ago.  I did 8 last week and bagged my 10 the week before that.  13.1 might be painful on Sunday.

This weekend I'm running the 26.2 with Donna Breast Cancer (half) Marathon in Jacksonville.  I'm super excited to see my Floridian friends, but not super excited that it isn't going to be a whole lot warmer than Michigan down there.  Temp at race time on Sunday is only supposed to be in the 30s.  Maybe low 40s if I'm lucky.

I'm packing layers but also trying something new for this race since I don't really care about my finish time.  My fuel belt has been driving me nuts, so I'm bringing a handheld with the thought that I might toss it mid-race if it's bugging me or at the last minute, not carry it at all and just go with on-course hydration.  With temps that cool I should be fine not carrying my own water.  The problem is having no place to stash the rental car key.

I haven't decided if I'll write a race report, but knowing myself, I'm sure you'll see one sometime next week.

Now, where did I put that handy packing list I created for my last out-of-town race?

Fitness Friday: and so it begins??

To run the Fifth Third River Bank Run 25k in 2015 wasn't in question when they unveiled the new medal.  Isn't she pretty!?!  Finally, a re-design after using the same medals year after year after year after year....you get the idea.

What's in question is whether I'm ready to start training for another big race.  I got a little burned out training for Detroit but the payback of a nearly 35 minute marathon PR was worth it.  I'm wondering what I could pull off for the 25k in May.  How hard do I want to work?  My PR is a 2:41:33 (10:25 pace) and that was pretty tough.  Think I could go sub 2:30?  That would be around a 9:30 pace.  I think that's probably a big of a stretch carrying the extra weight I have and seriously lacking in speedwork, but May is a long ways off.

I haven't registered yet because there's rumor that they are partnering with another race and that could mean special bling to sign up at the same time, so I'm going to hold off for now.

In any case, the first official "long" run is tomorrow morning.  It's a whopping 5 miles but since I'm still toying with the idea of a winter half, I'm planning to run an extra 3.  Anyone want to join me in 8 frigid miles tomorrow morning?  At least it's not supposed to snow.

Motivation Monday: Race Planning

In 7 days I'm participating in my first marathon relay - so excited - and even though it isn't even the end of October, I'm starting to look ahead at 2013 to plan out some races.

I'd set a goal to run 12 races in 2012 and due to events outside of my control, I won't be meeting that goal.  I don't want to set a 13 in 2013 goal because I don't think it would be realistic.  Or I'd just end up doing a bunch of local 5ks to get my races in and they don't have bling. We all know I love my bling. I also did a triathlon this year and want to do more.  There's so much to think about!

The thing is...racing can get expensive. Especially if you travel for races (and this year, with races at Disneyland and Disney World, I've probably tapped out my travel funds for awhile).  So what's a bling whore to do?  Stay local? Limit how many races I run? I've discovered I need a training plan and to not be injured or I slack of HUGE in my training and then gain 15 pounds.

Here's what I have so far.

January 5, 2013 - Yankee Springs Trail Run 10k - Probably a bit insane since a) I've never done a trail race before and b) it's in January in Michigan, but it's close to home and sounds like fun. I'd have no time goals for this, just a fun run through the snowy wilderness.

February 2, 2013 Groundhog Day Half Marathon 13.1 miles. In the snow. I've clearly lost my mind, but this race sounds like an absolute blast.  Seriously - go check out the website, I'll wait. There will also be a 1/6th Marathon the night before and I'd probably do that one too.

March 16, 2013 Irish Jig 5k - This is a local race and I've never run it. Could be fun.

April 13, 2013 Martian Half Marathon (or 10k) - The bling is an alien head. What more do I need to say?

April ??, 2013 Striders Saturday Classic 10 mile - I missed this one this year too, but at least I hadn't paid for it yet.  It's local and cheap, so it's on the schedule. It's also hilly as hell so it might get booted off :)

May 11, 2013 5/3 River Bank Run 25k or 10k - The 25k was my DNS this year due to my injury and missing out on the 35th anniversary bling really hurt.  I'm not sure if I want to try and redeem myself or not. We'll see how the spring goes.

This is as far as I've gotten on the schedule.  Triathlon season starts up here in June and I'd love to complete at least 3 sprints and maybe an Olympic distance this summer but the dates for those won't be up for awhile. The Grand Rapids Triathlon is June 9th, but I don't know if I'd be ready for the first one that early in the season. It will depend on how much I get in the pool and whether Santa brings me a trainer for my bike for Christmas.

I'd love to travel for at least one race this year.  Maybe Chicago, Indianapolis, Cleveland. Those are all easily drive-able.  The Detroit Marathon goes into Canada, which would be very cool, and is also a short drive for me.

Feel free to weigh in - pick some races you think I could get to next year (keeping in mind the school year is out for travel).