update

Thursday run - only 4 of 7 miles completed.

Saturday run - 6 very hard, slow miles.

10 miles!

Ten great miles on Sunday night! I was a little nervous about the run because my foot was really hurting from the 5k the night before. To my surprise, it ended up being a better run than I expected. Christy and Dana were fun running partners and very good company. We had two water breaks at miles 3.75 and 8. The last 2 miles were a bit of a mental battle so they were a little slower but our average pace for the 10 miles was much faster than I anticipated especially considering the traffic we had to dodge.

10 miles - 10:19 pace

1 - 10:06

2 - 9:52

3 - 10:06

4 - 10:22

5 - 10:08

6 - 10:24

7 - 10:39

8 - 10:31

9 - 10:46

10 - 10:33

Disney's Tower of Terror 5k

Team AthLeeT

Signing the guest registry

Since this was the last year Disney will be hosting the Tower of Terror race, I'm happy we did it but I understand why it's being replaced next year. It was organized and fun but I didn't feel like Disney really drove home the theme. I was expecting a spooky run through the park but the only special thing about the run was that it started at 10:30 p.m. - which wasn't a perk for me. The after party and zero waiting time for the rides was the real highlight.

The real mystery of the night was my run. How is it possible that my runs are faster and easier after I swim and bike? If I ran an 8:48 pace at the Longleaf Tri, wouldn't it be safe to assume that I would be a little bit faster when I just had to run? Not so much. This was a tough run for me and I ended up with another 8:48 average pace. I'm pleased with my time considering it was waaaaay past my bedtime and my first run since the tri but I guess I was expecting it to be easier. Overall it was a good night though.

Longleaf Triathlon

One word sums up this race... REDEMPTION! I went into this race with zero expectations. I had come to the realization that I was not ready and no matter what, I was going to be disappointed. I decided there was no point in killing myself - I would just race easy, be there to support Christy in her first tri and enjoy a great course with lots of local athletes to cheer on. Anything short of another meltdown like at Sand Key would be a success.

SWIM:

The weather was a freezing 51 degrees as anticipated but I was much more prepared than last year. I wore warm clothes, socks and shoes to the lake to keep me warm while we waited. Christy and I "trotted" around to keep the blood pumping which really seemed to help. We only had about 15 - 20 minutes of standing around barefoot in our tri suits before we hit the water. I was thrilled to get in the water because it was so warm! I had a little trouble sighting because I was looking into the sun but that was my only issue. I felt great out of the water and transition was smooth. My feet were freezing though and I struggled a bit getting my feet into my shoes once I was on the bike.

BIKE:

The out had a headwind and my bike computer isn't working so I had no idea what my speed was. I'm guessing I was somewhere in the 16 mph range. The back was fast and easy with a push from the wind which was a welcome break with the impending run. By the end of the bike, my feet were frozen to the point of pain. It was excruciating to run to my rack and even more painful to try and put my running shoes on. My T2 time suffered quite a bit. I felt like I was in transition forever trying to put those damn shoes on.

RUN:

The run was a total enigma. My fancy new watch is a little too sophisticated for me and I managed to screw up the multi sport function early into the race. I have no idea what my time was but I know I had negative splits. Every time I looked at my watch, I was shocked by my pace - 8:17 and 8:09 at times. I kept waiting for the proverbial wall but it never came. I felt stronger and stronger with each step. It was almost as if my body was functioning separately from my brain. I kept trying to slow down thinking that at some point I was going to run out of energy before the finish but would speed up again. I just ran and it felt so amazing to finally have THAT run. I'm sure the cooler weather helped but there was much more to it - the Run Less, Run Faster program! I haven't had an effortless run in a very long time and I enjoyed every step.

Christy killed her first tri (which I absolutely expected) with an amazing 1:09:56 earning her 2nd place in her age group.

My splits:

Swim - 6:33 (clearly, the course was a little short)

5th place which I was a little disappointed with actually.

T1 - 2:45 (my money maker, this is where I make up for being a slow runner LOL)

Bike w/ T2 - 32:31

shockingly, 1st place

Run - 27:22

8:48 pace (!)

5th place

1:09:10 (10 seconds faster than last year thanks to the short swim)

2nd place age group.

81 of 305 overall

I love everything about this event and it was a perfect ending to a very frustrating tri season.

Christy and I finished this fabulous day by taking the kids to Sweetfields Farm for some fall fun!

Hot and dark

The Saturday long run got bumped to Sunday morning for Julia's Run for a Reason and bumped again to Sunday night because of scheduling conflicts. Christy and I decided to head to Starkey Park around 6:30 but opted to run the path in Longleaf instead since we were losing daylight so quickly. Which by the way, is a true indication of fall but Mother Nature has clearly missed the memo because it was hot and muggy even in the dark. I had hoped for 10 miles but we hit 4 miles right as we reached the park entrance - it was pitch black (no street lights at all), there was lightning in the distance and my foot was making its' discomfort known - so 8 miles it was. I was still very pleased with this run. It was my best long run so far. I walked briefly for water and fuel and one more time just before mile 7 to stretch out my foot a bit. I wouldn't say it was a fun run just because of the darkness, the lightning and all the creepy woodland sounds but I had good company and I feel like the run gave me the boost I've been looking for.

With Longleaf this weekend, I will not be following my HM schedule. I will be using the concept of the scheduled runs, however, with a short 4 mile speedwork tomorrow and a slower 5/6 miles on Thursday.

Mentally, I'm still a mess from the Sand Key debocle so I'm very nervous about Longleaf.

Seriously?!

My foot has been hurting since Tuesday's run. I woke this morning and it's swollen. This can't be good :(

Advil and ice last night. Woke up feeling much better which leads me to believe that it's not a stress fracture. I believe is the peroneus brevis tendon illustrated below. That is the exact spot of tenderness and swelling - just under the ankle and along the bottom of my foot. I couldn't really stay off my feet today but I iced twice and kept up with the Advil. Heading out for a run (don't give me that look) and I'll continue with my self-diagnosed treatment. If the problem persists, I'll be heading to the doctor Wednesday.

This book is trying to kill me

Tuesday

Run: 6 miles

2 mile warm up
6 x 800 @ 9:13 : 90 second RI
1 mile cool down

Whew, these are tough and I'll be damned if the rest intervals aren't the shortest 9o seconds of my life! I admit though, that I do prefer these track repeats to the tempo runs. Tempo runs are a completely different beast.

Thursday

Run: 5 mile tempo @ 10:09

The title of this post really isn't fair. The book is great, the program is ideal , the problem is me. These are not hard runs! In fact, this time last year I would have considered them too easy. Where is the disconnect? I am frustrated on so many levels - I shouldn't feel like I'm starting over going into my 3rd year of running, there's no explanation for struggling like this and frankly, it's not fun anymore. I know that I've been making progress, slowly but surely, but when I envisioned my fitness level this year, I expected to be running in the low 8's not struggling to maintain a 10+ pace. I just keep thinking each new run is going to be the one that is my breakthrough but they continue to be very hard and I continue to be very disappointed. I'm concerned about the Longleaf Triathlon and petrified of the Women's Half Marathon. I guess I need to continue to consistently follow the program and one of these days I'll have find that "easy" run.

Not so great

Thursday - Program called for 6 @ 10:07 but I ended up going later in the day and it was very warm, too warm. Only managed 4.5. Dammit.

Run:
4.50 @ 10:07

I actually wasn't feeling great on Thursday which may or may not have played a part in my poor performance. Friday and Saturday were rest days as well.


Sunday - First official long run on the program. My pace was supposed to be 10:57 but that's a tough pace to stick to. I took quite a few walk breaks which are not incorporated into my mileage - I ran 9 miles, just not consecutively. I'm not going to lie, it was hard. By mile 6 my feet were killing me and it was a painful reminder that I HAVE to get new shoes right away. I also had on ill-fitting clothing which made for a few unwelcome suprises once I hit the shower. Ouch.

Run
9 miles @ 10:15