Thursday, July 17, 2008

7/12 - 7 miler in CP

Day of the long run. I am usually apprehensive of whether I will be able to do this much distance. I have never run 7 miles before.

I was hanging out with Bia the previous night and we got quite drunk on a mix of Sangria and champagne. The champagne was courtesy a generous patron at the neighboring table of the restaurant where we were having dinner. We managed to strike up a conversation with him and the guy asked the waiter to bring us dessert and wine when he left. Maybe he was glad to have some company while he was dining alone, maybe he was too tipsy. We were quite surprised and overwhelmed at his welcome-to-the-neighborhood gesture.

Bia promised that she would join me for the long run. I am glad she did because I slept right through the alarm and woke up when she called. We started earlier than usual to beat the heat. The course was the 6 mile loop in CP and a 1.5 mile loop of the reservoir on the way. Bia did the first mile and the reservoir loop with me. She ran surprisingly well inspite of being away from running for a few months. It was good fun to pace with her. After the loop I asked her to return to the Asha tree and I proceeded for to complete the 6 mile loop. I was running on my own (which is boring) and made frequent stops for water. I completed the run at a leisurely 12-13 mpm pace.

Tentative route flicked from mapmyrun.com

7/10 - RP

So I have gotten lazy about updating the blog. 7/10, thats last Thursday I set off to do the regular 3 miles in Riverside Park. The run was much easier than the earlier 2 days except that my capris threatened to slide off every few strides. In an effort to minimize my frustration and embarrassment, I must have run faster and it was over in no time. Made a mental note to wear comfortable running clothes.

Tuesday, July 8, 2008

MapMyRun

I got hooked on to mapmyrun.com and created a few routes that I commonly use. Here's my regular 5.5 mile round trip route in Riverside Park



Here's a less frequently used 3.5 mile route along the Hudson river

Location of the Asha tree

We convene at the Asha tree on Saturday mornings before we set out on our long runs. Post-run we re-convene to do the stretches. Here's the location on the map


View Larger Map

Monday, July 7, 2008

7/7 and 7/8 - RP

I could barely run today. The humidity was 77% and I was gasping for air :( I ran/walked 3.5 miles along the Hudson river and was glad when it was over.

I spoke with Coach on Saturday that I am running 4-5 miles during weekdays (my schedule says 3 miles). Coach suggested that I should do time and not run more than 40-45 minutes. I should avoid burnout and injuries caused by over-training.

Sunday, July 6, 2008

7/3 RP, 7/5 CP

4.5 miles on the same old route in RP. I am boring!

6 miles with the Asha group today in CP. We were grouped by pace and I had company most of the way. Finished the run in about 75 minutes. I found a map of the route on mapmyrun.com Here it is

Tuesday, July 1, 2008

Update on marathon registration

I signed up for the DC Marine Corps Full Marathon, Oct 26. I am running 5 miles right now. It is an effort but there aren't too many aches and pains. I am feeling slightly more confident about doing the full marathon. Besides, most people in the Asha training group are targeting the full, and I didn't want to be left out :) On second thoughts, am I suicidal?

I also signed up for the Disneyland half in LA on the Labor Day weekend. It is called the Happiest Race on Earth. I am planning to get some funky head gear and run amock among the cartoons. I hope I get the finisher medal from Mickey Mouse Check out the course map. YAAYYYYYY!!! I am so excited. I will be running with Sheela. Shilpa, Amit and Laukik will buddy run with us. Introductions: These are my friends from undergrad; we know each other for so long, they are family! :)

6/30 7/1 - RP

Did the 4-4.5 mile round trip in Riverside Park. I have taken a liking for this route. You start running from one end of the park (W119) and hit the other end at the jetty (W66). Its a 5.5 mile round trip but there is a lot of scope to cut it down to 2, 3, 4 miles.

I did 4 miles in <47 minutes today, walk breaks, water breaks included. Temp 81F, no breeze.
It is a significant improvement from when I started training 6 weeks ago but I want to be able to run faster. My legs don't feel tired but I easily go out of breath if I try to run any faster. Wondering how to improve lung capacity? Should I do interval training?

June 28 - Asha group run in CP

Did the 5 mile loop with Padma. We took 3 walk breaks. Ran pretty much continuously throughout. Padma and I run at the same pace (or did she slow down for me?) I should latch on to her next time. Pacing with someone is definitely more fun than running alone.

June 25, 26 - RP, CP

4 miles RP

3 miles CP

Ate out at Hampton Chutney and then saw the first day first show of Wanted at midnight 12:01 am. Bad choice, Wall-E would have been much more enjoyable.

June 22, 23 - Lexington, MA

4 miles on Sunday morning

3.5 miles on Monday evening. I ran on a treadmill as it was raining heavily outside. Running on a treadmill is so different. I have lost habit of the treadmill and felt quit unstable. Maybe I ran too fast on a hill setting, my knees hurt a bit.

I am doing some basic stretches to relax my leg muscles and abs to build the core. It doesn't feel enough, need to join a yoga class soon.