Flying Pig Training - Week 1

Week one is over and done!



I had my first long run with the training group on Saturday. I did a much better job at keeping my speed down, thanks to my new running buddy and one of the group coaches. It was a nice, comfortable run, a good pace to maintain a conversation but still know that I was working hard. We ran over the Cincinnati bridges, through parts of downtown, and past the stadiums. I ended up running nine miles at an 11:02 pace, which also included three shoe-tying stops and a few instances of getting a little bit lost and slowing down to get directions. NINE MILES. And I probably could have kept going. It was amazing, and I'm so proud of myself. That's 2.5 miles farther than I've ever gone before. Even more amazing, it didn't hurt. I even did my 3 mile recovery run yesterday without a struggle.

Good times! New shoes this week, for sure. I forgot that my initial complaint about the shoes I'm running in now (which I originally bought for P90X) was that they seemed a little too narrow for my feet. Makes sense that the discomfort I have is in the arch of my foot. Hopefully new shoes will take care of that problem for me.

Flying Pig Training - Run 1

Last night I had my first group training run. I was nervous and excited leading up to it. It was one of the most exhilarating experiences of my life. It was so neat to be out running through the streets of the city with over a hundred other people who all share the same goal of completing a 26.2 mile run. Much more motivating and inspiring than running on my own in loops through my neighborhood.

I definitely surprised myself - I put myself in the slower of the two groups, the 9:30/mile and above pace. I honestly have no idea what kind of pace I run. I know that on a 3 mile run I'm below 10 minutes, but every time I set off for a longer run I either forget the Droid or don't remember to write down my start time, so I've never actually calculated it. Last night I ran at a 9:30 pace for the whole 4.5 miles. I was shocked to find that I could (relatively) easily keep up with the front of the pack. I guess my solo training has paid off. I don't really think that it's a sustainable pace for me over longer distances, though, so that's something I'm going to need help with. I don't really know how to slow it down. I feel awkward when I try to run slower, but I know that I need to. I'm also going to need new shoes pretty soon, especially given my knee history.

Good times! I'm super excited about the longer run on Saturday.

And Away We Go

This evening I'm doing my first run with the Flying Pig Marathon training group that I've signed up with.



I'm feeling a little intimidated by the goal that I've set for myself. Sometimes I think "no problem, I can SO do this!" Other times it's more of a "WTF am I thinking?" mentality. It seems to vary day to day and mile to mile. I feel like I'm just randomly guessing at what I should be doing, so having some sort of set schedule and people who I can go to for advice on pacing and eating will be good for me. I tend to thrive in that kind of structured environment, which is why P90X worked so well for me. I'm hoping that I'll be successful this time around, too.

I keep telling myself that it's ok if I only end up running the half marathon, but I know the overachiever in me will be disappointed. For the time being, I'm going to pretend that option doesn't exist. That could all go to hell in a handbasket next week, but we'll just take it one day at a time :)