Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Prepared

There are four weeks left until I hit the half-marathon at Surf City for the 3rd year in a row! The NF Endurance Team does not participate in this event officially, but we will still have several mavericks running strong in their yellow singlets, including me of course! I have spent the last 2 weeks lounging with my kids, eating with my family, and running 5K distances on the treadmill. After finishing the Las Vegas half marathon in 2:05 in early December I assumed this all would be adequate to keep my fitness level strong enough to hit the ground running this week in preparation for Surf City.

I set out this morning on a 10 miler with a goal of finishing in exactly 1:30 at a 9mn a mile pace. I stepped outside the door and the cold air smacked me right in the face. I shrugged it off, assuming that I would warm up as I acclimated but by the time I dropped both kids off at their respective schools the chill had settled deep into my bones. There was no friggin' way I was going to run 10 miles with my breath frozen in my lungs! I headed straight for the gym, resigned to my fate of slogging out a tedious 10 miles on the dreaded treadmill. I cheered up when I realized I would be able to manage my pace more efficiently and even had lofty ideas of running an entire 13.1 miles as I watched Regis and Kelly on the big screen. I calculated in my head that if I want to run 13.1 miles in 2 hours, I need to run 6.55 miles in 1 hour, and cranked the treadmill up to a 6.6 mph pace. By the end of the first mile I was sweating, and at the end of the second I was already focusing on breathing correctly instead of hyperventilating. I took a water break at 30 minutes and accepted that I would have to scale back if I did not want to risk an injury. I ran another 30 minute increment, varying the pace in an attempt to squeeze in a bit more distance, and finally finished in exactly 1 hour at the 6.55 mark. I gasped for air and almost lost the bit of pineapple bread I had eaten just 90 minutes earlier. That seemed like a lifetime away as I held onto the bar of the machine and waited for my head to stop swimming. I finally cooled down, then trotted upstairs for some punishment. Not completing my goal mileage at race pace was a smart decision, I remember my knee injury all too well and do not want to repeat history. I still hate the fact that I fell short of a goal. I went over all of this in my mind as I went through my entire weight routine and cranked out extra leg-lifts. I did my best for today and left it all on the treadmill, all I can do is respect the distance and keep on running. If I add 15mn each week of January to the run I completed today, I still have a chance of breaking 2 hours in Surf City. No excuses, no whining, no tears.

5 comments:

Rebecca said...

You and Paul are such an awesome looking couple! :D

The Tish! said...

You will do fine!!! Just do what you always do, and do NOT injure yourself! You only have to compete with yourself and whatever your time will be, will be great. You are an inspiration to all of us!!

Amy said...

Love you, Olivia!!! You're NOT ONLY Fabulous, YOU ENTIRELY ROCK!!! xoxo

Olivia Hernandez said...

@Beck, thank you! I think we compliment each other well.
@Tish, I know! I am trying to beat my own time! To me running is all about constant incremental improvement. I will break 2 hours !
@Amy you are freaking awesome and I miss you!!

Unknown said...

You rock! I have no doubt that you will do awesome at Surf City!

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