November 24, 2014 by Darlene

Monday Running Update

Last Week: (Week 4 of HM training)

Monday – walk at work, 4 mile Turkey Trot training group run (@RPI) (cancelled – rain), 4 miles on the Treadmill

stuck doing laps indoors

caught up on Revenge

Tuesday – walk at work, rest, ~~tennis,~~ 4 mile Turkey Trot training group run (@RPI)

too cold & windy outside

warm up, 9 X 1 min race pace/1 min jog(on track), cool down

Wednesday – walk at work, STEM group run + (4 miles)

view from the inside

2 miles run/walk + 2 miles run

Thursday – ~~walk at work~~, ~~3 mile run at lunch~~, dinner out with tennis ladies

free hors ‘oeuvre for 10 thanks to a raffle that AJH won

Friday-walk at work, gym, mah jongg

Saturday – 5 4 mile Turkey Trot training group run (@Knickerbocker Arena) – my 1st & last Sat group run + 3 4 miles

Sunday – rest, pick up race packet, ~~gym~~, cooking ~~movie?~~

This Week: (Week 5 of HM training)

Monday – walk at work, 4 mile Turkey Trot training group run (@RPI) – last one!!
Tuesday – walk at work, rest, tennis
Wednesday – DAY OFF, ~~STEM group run~~, gym, yoga
Thursday – DAY OFF, 10K race, dinner out
Friday- DAY OFF, ~~STEM group run~~, mah jongg
Saturday – 5k race?
Sunday – 8 mile run, movie?

I’m linking this post up with Tara at Running n’ Reading for her Weekend Update!

Happy Running! How is your running going? Any races ?

November 22, 2014 by Darlene

Turkey Trotting

There’s nothing better than a race before stuffing yourself on Thanksgiving.

I just read in this article about how popular running on Thanksgiving is:

In 2009, I ran my first turkey trot & I did it in Central Park in Schenectady. In 2010 & 2011, I did one in my hometown.

2011 in Delmar

In fact, the 2010 turkey trot was my 5K PR for 4 years until very recently. In 2011, that same race, changed its course. I was injured in 2012 and then last year, my favorite local turkey trot went NON-TIMED.

2013 in Delmar – No bib, no chip

Until this year, I ran 5Ks on Thanksgiving.

But this year, I am going for the big one…in Troy and a 10K. About 10,000 runners total with about 1,500 in the 10K.

I know nothing about the course except for the map below:

I participated in the Turkey Trot Training Challenge and enjoyed it a lot. Unfortunately I could only go to the Monday training runs. Nevertheless, running with a group at least once a week, definitely improved my pace. It also was helpful to run on hills since I tend to avoid them on my own.

The best part was meeting new runners.

I doubt this race will be a PR 10k due to the crowds and the hills but I hope to have a good race.

AG award – would be nice but this race attracts the speedsters.

Here’s my 10K racing history –

2012:

Camp Chingachgook 10k – 1:09:07

2013:

Hmrrc Winter Series #3 (10k) – 1:08:18
Helper’s Fund 10K – 1:06:10
Monster Scramble <10K – 1:03:18 (short course!)

2014:

Spring Run Off 10K -1:00:51
Camp Chingachgook 10k – 1:04:54
Great Pumpkin Challenge 10K – 58:28 – PR

Proof that despite getting older, I am getting faster.

Happy Running! Do you run on Thanksgiving?

November 20, 2014 by Darlene

Holiday Traditions

It’s that time of year!! I personally love the holidays. And there are things that I do EVERY year…

On the running front:

Thanksgiving Turkey Trot – when I am healthy I like to run a 5K. This year, I am running a 10K for the first time.

MaryPat & I usually run it together

me & MaryPat at the Delmar Turkey Trot

Running through the lights in the park. The lights go on at 5 pm from Nov 20-Jan 1. Cars don’t enter until 6 pm. Perfect place to run for one hour in the evening.

The Last Run in Albany – a crowded 5k that starts with fireworks and weaves around the park above.

waiting inside before the race

Running anywhere & anytime during my TWO weeks off from work!!

Non-running activities:

Thanksgiving – my hubby & I usually go out to a restaurant and then stop by his mother’s after to visit with her & his sons.

outside our favorite restaurant in Lake George

a trip to NYC – to see the decorations, etc. with friends

fun in the city

Decorating – since the kids are grown & we don’t entertain much, I have scaled it down – just a small tree and lots of snowmen (love them!)

December Birthdays – my mentee Amanda’s is Dec 9 and her son is December 14. I have friends with birthdays Dec 10, Dec 12 & Dec 17. There will be a lot of dinners out to celebrate.

Lights in the park for Richard’s

Amanda, me & Hannah enjoying our chocolate fondue desset

dinner & a movie for Amanda’s

many birthday desserts

Cookie Swap at work – it’s the only time during the year that I bake cookies.

I try not to eat all of them & give some to my hubby

annual work party – we used to have a big fancy one with spouses. Now we have a luncheon at work.

holidayparty2013 003

annual dinner with my tennis friends – Chinese auction and sing a-long

tennis party

Christmas Day – first with my mentee & her sons and then to my hubby’s mother to see her & my stepsons.

a trip to the NYC Boat Show – my hubby loves to look at boats & I love the city.

New Year’s – we usually do something with our Lake George friends.

Happy Running! What are some of your holiday traditions?

November 13, 2014 by Darlene

A Defining Moment

As I train for my TENTH half marathon, I started to think about how my running has changed and when?

For several years, I ran 1-1 1/2 miles several times a week and then ran a 5K on the weekend. I didn’t own a Garmin but instead used a chip attached to my shoe that tracked my mileage to a Nike+ app on my iPod. It wasn’t accurate but I didn’t know it at the time and it didn’t matter. My goal in running was to break 30 minutes in a 5K and I was happy when I did. Being in my late 50s, I was faster than most in my age group so I was content. I didn’t like the cold weather so I didn’t run during the winter months and started back up in the spring each year. I wore shorts, cotton tops and never heard of compression socks.

100_0235

jailhouserock5k

Then came my Defining Moment on October 24, 2010. I was scheduled to run my FIRST 10K. I was nervous and almost changed my mind to run the 5K.

But I got a migraine and couldn’t run it. In fact, I wound up in the ER with blood pressure of 197/109. They & I feared that it would lead to a stroke. They did all kinds of tests and all were negative but it was very scary. At the time, I still played tennis a lot but as I lay in the hospital, I worried that I would be an invalid and that I could no longer run.

The next day, I signed up for my FIRST HALF MARATHON! I decided to stop being a wimp and go for it. Life is short and no one knows what the future will bring. So I decided to go from running 3.1 miles to 13.1 miles. Just like that.

I didn’t tell anyone. My friends would have thought I was nuts and I also thought that I may not be successful.

So I bought compression socks, a running skirt and a Garmin watch. And I did long runs on the weekends to train.

my first Half in Naples, Florida (1/16/11 – my wedding anniversary)

My First Half Marathon was great — the best day ever. And I haven’t looked back since.

10k

15K

10 miles

I have run 4 milers, 5 milers, 10 milers, 10Ks, 15Ks and 8 more half marathons.

I’m not sure if October 24, 2010 didn’t happen, I would have signed up for that first Half marathon????

I continue to run 5Ks and I love them but because of adding longer runs, I think my 5K times are faster. (I recently had a PR.)

Happy Running! Has your running changed? Have you had a “defining moment”?

November 12, 2014 by Darlene

Stockadeathon 15K race recap

stockadeathon

This is my third time running this 15k race. In 2011, my first time, I finished in 1:36:08. I was injured in 2012 and then I ran it last year and finished with a disappointing 142:22.

This year, I was hoping for a rebound.

But since this was a brand new course…who knew??

My legs should have been fresh since I hadn’t run on Thurs, Friday or Saturday. (Yes I skipped my Friday run out of laziness.)

With over 2000 runners in this race, they were forced to make some changes to the course.

It no longer started and ended in Central Park. It also started earlier – 8:30 am

This is a description of the new course:

The Stockade-athon 15K course was modified in 2014 and now starts near Veterans Park in downtown Schenectady. The course travels west on State Street for 1K before entering the historic Stockade District and proceeding on a scenic bike path in Riverside Park along the Mohawk River. The course exits the Stockade District via Front Street after crossing Erie Blvd. The course then proceeds east on Nott Street past Union College before entering the historic GE Plot residential neighborhood via Lenox Ave, Douglas Rd and Rugby Rd. The course exits Rugby Road and proceeds north on Waverly Place near the 5K mark. The course turns east off Waverly and follows Grand Blvd to the city boundary with Niskayuna, then proceeds south on Dean Street to Central Parkway past 8k. After a 1K residential loop on Central Parkway, the course enters beautiful Central Park and follows a bike path around Iroquois Lake and Duck Pond before reaching its highest elevation near 12K. The final 3k is mostly downhill or flat as the course exits Central Park and proceeds west through historic Vale Cemetery and Vale Park before a final downhill section on Franklin Street to the finish at City Hall.

stockade-athon

To save time, I picked up my race packet on Saturday at Fleet Feet in Albany.

nice long sleeve tech shirt

As usual, I didn’t sleep much the night before the race. I woke up with a bloody nose (sinuses not used to cold weather, I guess.) I had decided what to wear but still wasn’t sure about how cold it would be. It was in the 30s when I got up and it was forecasted to warm up to the high 40s.

I left extra early not knowing where exactly to park. I got there around 7:15am and found a spot in a convenient lot a few blocks from the start of the race.

I walked to the YMCA to use the restroom and check my extra clothes. There I bumped into a few familiar faces.

with Bev, a former mah jongg player whom I have’t seen in a while

I used the restroom right away and was glad that I did since the line got very very long later on. I also decided to take off my extra layer (the shirt under my purple shirt) but keep my gloves. It was so nice to have some place to stay warm before the race. They even had water, coffee, donuts, fruit, etc. I didn’t eat anything since I ate breakfast before I left but did take a GU. (For some reason. it gave me an instant stomachache which never let up the whole race. Strange? I’ve never had a problem with GU.)

Soon, it was time to walk a few blocks and head to the starting line, Bev and I started together towards the front.

photo from Daily Gazette

As with any big race, it was very slow going at first. As the description above stated, we headed west along the Mohawk River into the Stockade section of town. (One criticism that I have read about the race is that you didn’t run as much through this area as in the past.)

photo by David Giacalone

I really liked this course. It was so varied that it also took your mind off the hills. With the large number of runners, I felt like I was always running with others and it kept me going.

Yes, it was hilly. The first half had a lot more hills but they were manageable. (Even I ran up them.) The second half had fewer hills but they were steeper.

During the first half of the race, the sun peaked out and there was no wind so I was warm (so glad I took off that shirt and regretted holding those gloves.) But during the second half, it clouded up and got breezy and I was a little chilled by the end.

After the bike path and the Stockade area, we ran past Union College and around various residential neighborhoods.

It was fun to spot many volunteers that I knew. The crowd support was great, as well.

This photo was taken by Elisa at the 5K point

We actually ran past my friend. Bev’s house. Her family was out front with a big sign that said: “You’re not old. You’re not slow. You’re Bev Skoll. Now Go, Go Go!!”

That made me smile. I yelled hello and tried to run “faster.”

I was trying to keep my pace around 10 but at this point I was starting to slow down. I had a stomachache and the hills were relentless. How could I not? I still felt strong and stronger than I had during the 10 miler 2 weeks ago.

Around mile 6, we entered Central Park with its rolling hills and pretty foliage.

10479095_10204157647595890_3881613154386506276_o

still leaves on the trees

I had at this point walked through both water stops and a few other times (including once to take a GU). My pace was still strong but my stomach cramps lingered on and I walked again.

I always smile for the camera.

Between mile 7 and 8 is where the BIG hills came. I walked up the first one. And it was the first hill that I walked up (those Troy hill runs must be helping.) Then I decided to run up the second because I heard it was the last one. It was so steep that when I got to the top, my legs were jelly and I could hardly run.

At this point, I was excited that the hills were over and I got a second wind. We proceeded to run through the cemetery and then through a park before heading DOWNHILL to the finish line at city hall.

gunning for a PR

When I saw the clock, I ran as fast as I could.

Yay! Got it!

As soon as I was done, I saw a bunch of SRMs and then I waited for my friend Bev, to cross.

I looked at the results and saw that I finished at 1:33:23 — 9 minutes faster than last year and a new PR by almost 3 minutes!! I was thrilled. I was 11th out of 29 in my age group. (No award for me…and they gave out nice pottery too)

I walked to the YMCA to change into warmer clothes and then went to Proctors to get something to eat. There was vegetable soup, pizza, bagels, cider donuts, fruit, chocolate milk, yogurt, and lots more.

I bumped into Bev again and we hung out and ate. Then we wandered over to the indoors Farmers Market — 2 floors of local baked goods, fruits, vegetables. Unfortunately I didn’t have any money on me so we just sampled the food and walked around.

stockeade

So this race was everything I hoped and more. The race was well organized and though my pace was slower than 2 weeks ago, I felt better. The hills slowed me down but I ran up almost all of them.

Good news! I did not get blisters!! I wore different shoes and put waterproof bandaids over the old blisters. (However, I’m not sure they helped because they felt off.)

Bad news! Upset stomach and lower back pain. (Dinner?? Shoes?)

Splits:

mile 1 – 8:49
mile 2 – 9:29
mile 3 – 10:03
mile 4 – 10:04
mile 5 – 9:49
mile 6 – 10:30
mile 7 – 10:35
mile 8 – 10:58
mile 9 – 10:02
.4 – 8:26

As you can see below, my pace for the 10K portion was 9:55 and then the final 5K, it was 10:20.

15k

Race Goals:

A: PR (under 1:36:08) YES!
B: Faster than last year (under 1:42:22) YES!
C: Finish happy and healthy (hopefully without any blisters!) YES!

Ibuprofen and a hot shower cured my back ache. The day ended with a Chinese dinner with my Mah Jongg group to celebrate 6 years of playing together.

Happy Running! Did you run or race this past weekend? If so, how did it go?

November 11, 2014 by Darlene

Tuesdays on the Run: Race Recovery

Erika @ MCM Mama Runs hosts Tuesdays on the Run with April @ Run the great wide somewhere and Patty @ My no-guilt life!

This week’s topic is: Race Recovery

I don’t run marathons so I can only speak about recovering from a 10 mile race or a half marathon.

Rehydrate – I prefer just plain water.

Refuel – Chocolate milk is the best…then a carb like a bagel or a pastry.

Compression – If you don’t run in them, put them on after. (I always wear them to run.)

Ice – I don’t do ice baths but if cold water is nearby…

aaaahhh

Stretch – I’m not good about this…. but I like to walk around after so my legs don’t stiffen up. When you get home, use a foam roller, if necessary or even better, get a massage.

Rest – Don’t run for several days. Then ease back into it slowly.

Happy Running! How do you recover after a race?

November 10, 2014 by Darlene

Monday Running Update

Last Week: (Week 2 of HM training)

Monday – walk at work, 4 mile Turkey Trot training group run (@RPI)

AM walk

week 7

Tuesday – walk at work, rest, tennis, dinner out after

AM walk – still leaves on the trees

Wednesday – walk at work, STEM group run + (4 6 miles)

AM walk

2 miles run/walk + 4 more after

Thursday – walk at work, rest, gym, mall walk with BFF

Friday-walk at work, ~~4 mile run~~, gym, mah jongg

Saturday – rest, ~~gym,~~ packet picket up

Sunday – 15K race, mah jongg dinner

PR!!

6th anniversary dinner

This Week: (Week 3 of HM training)

Monday – walk at work, 4 mile Turkey Trot training group run (@RPI)
Tuesday – walk at work, rest, tennis
Wednesday – walk at work, STEM group run + (4 miles)
Thursday – walk at work, 4 mile run
Friday-walk at work, gym, mah jongg
Saturday – 5 mile Turkey Trot training group run (@Knickerbocker Arena) – my 1st Sat group run + 3 miles
Sunday – rest, gym, movie?

Happy Running! How is your running going? Any races ?

November 6, 2014 by Darlene

15K this weekend!

stockadeathon

This is my third time running this 15k race. It is said to be the oldest “major” 15K road race in the USA.

I was the most prepared the first time (after 3 half marathons that fall) and got a PR.

2011 – 1:36:08

Last year, I ran it also and wasn’t as successful…not sure why.

2013 – 1:42:22

This year, I am hoping for a rebound… faster than last year!!

But since this is a brand new course…who knows??

With over 2000 runners in this race, they were forced to make some changes.

It no longer starts and ends in Central Park (I will miss those fire places!!) It also starts earlier – 8:30 am

The Stockade-athon 15K course was modified in 2014 and now starts near Veterans Park in downtown Schenectady. The course travels west on State Street for 1K before entering the historic Stockade District and proceeding on a scenic bike path in Riverside Park along the Mohawk River. The course exits the Stockade District via Front Street after crossing Erie Blvd. The course then proceeds east on Nott Street past Union College before entering the historic GE Plot residential neighborhood via Lenox Ave, Douglas Rd and Rugby Rd. The course exits Rugby Road and proceeds north on Waverly Place near the 5K mark. The course turns east off Waverly and follows Grand Blvd to the city boundary with Niskayuna, then proceeds south on Dean Street to Central Parkway past 8k. After a 1K residential loop on Central Parkway, the course enters beautiful Central Park and follows a bike path around Iroquois Lake and Duck Pond before reaching its highest elevation near 12K. The final 3k is mostly downhill or flat as the course exits Central Park and proceeds west through historic Vale Cemetery and Vale Park before a final downhill section on Franklin Street to the finish at City Hall.

stockade-athon

Someone on FB posted this commentary of the NEW course:

In the 1st mile, after you run down State Street and turn right onto Washington Avenue, you have to make sure you’re tight to the right curb on Washington as you get to the end so you can get into the path correctly.The short road up to front Street will be tight if you’re in a crowd and then it evens out till you cross over Erie Boulevard onto Nott Street. The @1.5 mile section going up Nott Street to Lennox and then up through the GE plot crossing Wendell and up Rugby to Waverley where you hit 5k is also challenging in that it goes up and it flattens out and goes up and flattens out 3X. At the end of Waverly, the right turn onto Grand Boulevard starts another @ 1000 m climb to mile 4 at the very top. At the top of the hill The course kind’ve flattens out and it’s @400 m to a right turn to Dean Street and then another 800 m to cross Union St. From there the section where you approach Central Park then go around Central Park and into Central Park again, through 7 miles is fairly flat, with what seems like an incline going up Dean Street. After mile seven going around the duckpond, maybe in about 400 m, you start to climb over two short bumps and then a general incline to the Central Park middle school.From that point down Bradley down Brandywine through the cemetery and down through Bellpark onto Franklin is about 1.8 miles of SAST course.

I can’t tell if the course is harder or easier. It still seems challenging.

To save time, I will pick up my bib on Saturday. It is more convenient than in the past since Fleet Feet in Albany is hosting early packet pick up.

Before the race, there will be a bag check at the YMCA in downtown Schenectady (2 blocks from the start/finish).

The Awards Ceremony will be held indoors at the GE Theater (Proctors) one block south of the race finish area. I don’t think I’ll have to worry about an age group award. Last year I was 24 out 29 – the speedy ladies will be there. Raffle prizes will be awarded at random to those in attendance at the award ceremony. Maybe I’ll be lucky.

Key Hall (Proctors) will be the location for refreshments, and just across the arcade hallway, runners will have access to an indoors Farmers Market.

There is also supposed to be more parking than before.

So I am pretty excited to run this race. It is local. There should be many familiar faces and I know that it will be well organized.

stockeade

Race Goals:

A: PR (under 1:36:08)
B: Faster than last year (under 1:42:22)
C: Finish happy and healthy (hopefully without any blisters!)

15k weather