Category Archives: Running

Week of Workouts: 10.14 – 10.20

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I wouldn’t say that I was lazy this week, despite the fact that I only had one “real” workout.  Quite the opposite, actually.  On Sunday, Hubby & I played 9 holes of golf… though we took a cart instead of walking.  That totally still counts as exercise.  And, on Thursday I could have worked out, but instead I chose to get some of the million things done at home that I have been neglecting: cleaning the furniture, dusting every nook & cranny, finally hanging up the pictures and shelving in my bedroom that I have had sitting on my dresser for close to 6 months.

My one actual workout this week:

Friday 10.19 – Running

3.3 miles in 30:03 for an average pace of 9:06.  Not bad, considering that I did a good amount of walking.  Let’s just say that even though October is technically supposed to be in autumn, it still felt like summer on Friday.  I ran at 9:30am and the temperature when I got back to my car was 90.  Yay.  Here are my RunKeeper notes: Goal was 30 minutes. Started too fast. Walked around 18 minutes. Ran off and on. Walked fast, ran faster than usual pace. Still hot as crap outside.

As we speak, I am sitting on my couch on this beautiful Monday.  It’s my day off, Bug is at school and it’s 72 degrees outside at 10am.  Wanna take bets on if I can motivate myself to a) work out b) get some yard work done c) get some more house work done or d) none of the above?

You’ll have to wait until next week to find out!

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Week of Workouts: 10.7 – 10.13

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Wednesday 10.10 – Pilates

Sleek & Sexy Arms for Beginners - this hurt a bit

The 100 Workout - wasn’t super excited about this one, though it was quick & effective

Gangnam Style Call Me Maybe Squat Challenge – ok, that was fun

Flatter My Abs Workout – Loved this one

My arms were sore for days after this workout!
Saturday 10.13 – Running

My first 7k!  The Phillippi Shores 7k to be exact.  I went into this race not having run farther than a 5k since February.  Because of that, I decided not to push it.  I just wanted to finish in under 44 minutes, which would be right around a 10 minute mile.  I took it easy and I felt great.  Results: 4.35 miles in 40:32 for an average pace of 9:19/mile.  Awesome sauce.  There were 20 women in my age category and I placed 11th.  I’ll take it, considering the woman with the fastest time overall was TWO age categories ahead of me.  Wowza.  I hope that I am competitive even a little bit when I am 40.

What I Wear When I Run

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Alrighty, this post is going to seem like one huge advertisement.  I assure you, it is not.  None of these brands knows that I a) am talking about them and b) exist.  These are just things that I love.  Let it be known, however, that I am not above selling out.  If Under Armour would like me to try out some new products and review them, I’d be MORE THAN HAPPY to do so.  Hear that running brands?

I am not necessarily a brand junkie, but I like quality products.  And, once I find a product or brand that I like, I tend to stick with that product or brand.  So, here we go.  Starting from the top down.

I really like to run in just a sports bra and shorts.  It is, therefore, imperative that I have a sports bra that is not only comfortable, but also one that doesn’t look like I am wearing a bra.  I have had two Adidas sports bras since high school (that’s TWELVE years, folks) that are finally starting to wear out (way to go, Adidas!).  So, I went shopping a few weeks ago and was so disappointed in the selection.  Mostly due to the fact that I wanted something that I could wear without a shirt over it.  Pops, Great Nana… you might want to skip a few sentences here.  See, I have this issue called I-breastfed-a-baby.  That issue has led to nipples that are constantly poking out.  This is not awesome for bathing suits without pads & sports bras.  Needless to say, I never found a bra that you couldn’t see at least a little nipple through.  However, I did find one that did a pretty good cover job.  I am now obsessed with this sports bra.  I wear it as often as possible because it is that comfortable.  I can hardly feel it when it’s on and yet it still supports amazingly well.  It doesn’t even leave strap marks on my shoulders, which is surprising considering the thin, adjustable straps.  Without further ado, here’s my favorite sports bra… the Seamless Essential Sports Bra by Under Armour:

Next up… shorts.  I used to only run in shorts with pockets, which is difficult because nobody sells running shorts with decent sized pockets.  I carry my phone with me when I run because I use Pandora for my music and RunKeeper to track my runs.  I know I could use an arm band or a waist band, but I can’t stand them.  Trust me, I’ve tried.  What I end up with are basketball-type shorts because they have pockets.  Here’s the other thing about shorts for me… I like them short.  Call it less chafing, call it more comfortable, call it keeping me cooler.  I just like ‘em short.  One day, I decided to try out a pair of New Balance short running shorts without pockets.  I heart them.  I need to buy more of them.  They have spandex-type compression-ish boy shorts underneath and are super comfortable.  The shorts underneath allow for me to tuck my phone into my waistband.  They are the New Balance Momentum Short.  **Side note – when I do run in another type for shorts, I wear Under Armour underwear underneath.  SO COMFORTABLE.**

Onto socks.  I wear Balega Hidden Comfort.  They wick, they are comfortable, and they’ve lasted me a long time.  Which, at $10 a pair, they damn well should.  Worth every penny.

Lastly, let’s talk about shoes.  I cannot stress enough that you need a good pair of shoes.  I remember when Hubby and I first started dating, he’d wear shoes from Walmart to run in.  Once he got his first good pair of running shoes, he couldn’t believe how much better not just his feet felt after a run, but also his legs, knees and back.  I used to have hip issues, but once I got fitted properly for shoes, those issues went away.  Go to a local running shoe store (or a corporate one, whatever) and have them check your gait and fit you properly.  You are welcome.  I wore New Balance for forever.  And then Brooks were recommended for me.  I am now a Brooks fan for life.  My only gripe is that my local running store doesn’t carry the super awesome colors that I have seen available online.  But, I’d rather give my money to the local guy, you know?  I over pronate, and therefore need support… so I wear Brooks Adrenaline GTS 12.

 At some point, I’d really like to try some minimalist shoes… any recommendations?

Do you have particular running/workout gear that you LOVE?

Week of Workouts x2: 9.23 – 9.29 & 9.30 – 10.6

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In light of my trying to play catch up, I am posting two weeks worth of workouts in one post.  I know, crazy shiznit here on The Baker Bee.
First week: 9.23 – 9.29

I only ran this week, because my first 5k of the season was on the 29th.  I know I’ve mentioned RunKeeper before, but I just want to add in here that one of the features that I love about it is that I can write myself a note at the end of a run about how that particular run went.  From here on out, I’ll be sharing those notes with you.  Word for word.  Totally honest.

Monday 9.24 – Running

1.91 miles in 16:03 for an average pace of 8:26 min/mile.  Notes: Intervals. Upped it to ten intervals. Felt good but last one was tough… Booked it on that one, though!

Wednesday 9.26 – Running

3.2 miles in 31:38 for an average pace of 9:53.  Notes: Ok. Not feeling great, so went slow.

Saturday 9.29 – Running

Run 2 Live 5k in Lakewood Ranch, FL.  3.12 miles in 27:36 for an average pace of 8:52.  This was amazing.  My time was not amazing and I felt like I was really heavy and slow.  The race was amazing because I placed 3rd in my age group!  One of my 5k goals is to place, and I did just that!  It was a small race and there were only 16 ladies in my age group, but hey… I’ll take it!!

Second week: 9.30 – 10.6

Wednesday 10.3 – Running

2.02 miles in 17:24 for an average pace of 8:37.  Notes: 10 intervals with James. Good. Dropped my phone on the last one, so time & distance is not correct, because I ran back to get it.

Thursday 10.4 – Random Stuff

I took Bug to Mote Marine and then he wouldn’t nap when we got home, so I did a half-assed work out in like 5 minutes in between laundry & dishes & not napping.  Here’s what I did:

2 super-fast rounds of:

  • 10 push ups
  • 25 crunches
  • 10 sit ups
  • 20 squats

Not exciting and not really effective, but better than nothing, right?

Saturday 10.5 – Running

1.77 miles in 14:32 for an average pace of 8:11.  Notes: Middle of day. 9 intervals with James. Right after lunch and hot and humid = really tough.

Looking back at our times, we rocked those intervals.  We walked from my In-law’s house to a friend’s house to walk their dog and then we ran intervals from that house to another friend’s house to walk their dog.  It was a dog walking kind of weekend.  And THEN, we walked the 2 miles back to my In-law’s house, stopping for ice cream halfway.  In the end, it was a great workout and we had a great time doing it.  We didn’t think that we’d be outside for close to 1 1/2 hours and didn’t think to wear sunscreen, so I now have an awesome sports bra tan line.

Hubby is running the bed races in a couple of weeks, so he’s really into using the intervals as training for that.  I realize now that I didn’t write about the bed races last year, but they are an event that starts off Sun Fiesta here in Venice.  Different area clubs, businesses and organizations race beds down Venice Avenue (our main street downtown).  Four runners push a bed on wheels a quarter mile down the road.  At the end, the bed rider jumps off and does an activity… hula hooping, paddle ball, the chicken dance, etc… and the jumps back on the bed, which is raced the quarter mile back to the start line.  Hubby & I have been involved as either runners or bed riders for going on 4 years with either Sertoma or Venice Area Young Professionals… and every year, our bed wins.  Just saying.  Last year, I run in Hubby’s place because he couldn’t be there.  I was the only female running on our team.  I wanted to die.  It’s an elimination style race, so you run two teams at a time until somebody wins.  The winning team usually ends up running three times.  That’s a mile and a half of sprinting.  Ouch.

That’s me on the left.  I apparently had that face on the whole time, because every picture looks just like that.  Nice, Casey.  Like our shirts?

Anyways, two weeks of workouts written out.  Almost done catching up!

Instawhat: Week of 9/23

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This is baby Emma.  She’s almost 5 months old.  At some point, I may write about her.  Bug and I watch her once a week so that both of her parents can go to work.  Bug loves her and calls her his girlfriend.  Way to rob the cradle, buddy.

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Hairdos at the request of the toddler.  He brought me a hair tie and said, “Pony, Mommy!”  I’m not sure exactly where he learned about ponytails (probably preschool… thanks, Miss Yayle) because my hair is too short for them.  So, he got a pony.  And then, he said, “Mommy pony, Mommy!”  So, I got one, too.

Sideways picture, I know.  Hubby & I ran a 5k last Saturday.  James talked the New Balance guy into actually wearing the show costume that was lying on the floor.  And then, Hubby grabbed what would be the shoe’s boob.  Because that’s what the men in that family do.

I got third in my age group!  At first, I was thinking that there were probably only 3 in my age group, but turns out there were 16!!!  I was super excited.  This is me celebrating with a beer. At 9am.

Loosey Goosey

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Did you know that it isn’t a good idea to stretch before you run?  True story.  Stretching cold muscles can lead to muscle strains and tears.  That is exactly the last thing you want if you are a runner.  Or, really, anybody.  A lot of people are unaware that stretching un-warmed up muscles is dangerous, because we’ve always been told that stretching is a good thing.  Stretching is a good thing, as long as it is done properly and at the right time.  I warm up and stretch in a way that has been recommended to me time and time again… by serious runners, track coaches and physical therapists.  So, here’s my routine:
I walk for about 5 minutes before I run.  Some days, I just walk at a good clip.  Most days, though, I do a little series of warm up exercises while I walk… and I usually start these after I’ve walked for about 3 minutes.  I do about 20 steps each of the following:

  • High steps/knee ups/whatever you want to call them
  • Straight leg kicks to the front
  • Butt kicks
  • Walk on my tip toes
  • Walk on my heels
  • Skips… jumping as high as I can with each step

And then, I run.

After running is when I do my stretching.  I get myself a big glass of chocolate milk (with Hershey’s Special Dark Syrup, obvi) and do some yoga stretches.  There is a sequence that I found on FitSugar years ago.  Of course I can no longer find that video.  I don’t know enough about yoga to tell you the names of the poses… but I know there’s some downward dog, some warrior & some pigeon involved.  I also do some calf stretches and some quad stretches.  And then, I call it a day.

To sum it up: don’t stretch before running.  Walking for a few minutes is enough.  Stretch after.

The end.

Ready to Race!

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I am super excited that it is race season here in Florida.  It is so hot & humid here in the summers that the last known 5k in the area is at the end of May.  That means from May – September = no competing for me.  Which sucks for me because I am a competitive person.  At least, with myself.  I don’t care if you beat me, but I do care if I don’t beat myself.

I consider myself fairly new to the sport of running.  Last season was my first full racing season.  I ran my first 5k in May of 2011 and then last season ran three 5ks, a relay race (7.75 miles in one day, split into two legs) and a half marathon.  I PR’d two of the three 5ks and was so excited to have done so.  My goal this year is to run a sub 24:30 5k.  My best time thus far is 26:52.  I got this ya’ll.

This year, I plan on running one race a month… mostly 5ks with a couple of longer ones and one half marathon thrown in for good measure.  I have a lot of running friends that decide to run races kind of last minute, but unfortunately my work schedule doesn’t really allow for that.  I have to pick my races ahead of time and make sure that I can get that shift off of work.  Here are the races I am planning on so far:

I’ll keep you updated as I sign up for more and I’ll try to do recaps on each race.

Do you plan races ahead of time?  Or do you just wing it?

Running Strategy

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I was going to title this post: Running/Race/Pace Strategies and Why I Like Running in the Evening, but I thought it was a little wordy.  Plus, I already broke my Longest Title Ever record last month, and we can’t have me breaking that record twice in such a short time span now, can we?  Because, come on, that’d just be ridiculous.

Anywho, this is here post is mostly about my pace strategy.  I’m not sure if that is actually a thing, but that’s what we’re calling it, k?  There is this thing (an actual thing) in Runner’s Land called negative splits.  This is where you run the second half of a run/race faster than the first half.  Apparently, most runners tend to start out quickly and then slow down as their run progresses.  I am not programmed that way.  Negative splits require you to start slowly and then speed up.  That, my friends, is how I am programmed.  Every once in awhile, I will have a whole lot of energy at the beginning and start a run too fast, but for the most part I like to ease into my runs.  Even when I race.  Actually, especially when I race.  I like to start at a comfortable pace until my body feels good and warm and then I like to speed up just a little bit every half mile or so.  This has always felt very natural to me.  I like to know that I will have enough energy left to really kill it the last quarter to half mile.

Something that helps me determine my pace is RunKeeper.  RunKeeper is one of many running apps available for your phone that uses GPS to map your run and is also connected to a website where you can track your goals and whatnot.  (You can use it for walking, cycling, etc as well.)  I have had people tell me that they like other apps better, but I LOVE my RunKeeper.  I have it set to tell me every 5 minutes how far I have gone and my overall pace.  Which means that very 5 minutes I can readjust my pace.  You see, I know that if the first half mile of any given run is fast that an 8:30 min/mile pace or faster that I will likely pass out and die before my run is over.  However, if my starting pace is between 8:30 and 9:00, I will make it… and not only will I make it, but I’ll be able to finish strong.  I willingly admit here that I rely on technology to know what may body can and can’t do.  And, I’ve mentioned this before, I am extremely goal oriented.  RunKeeper allows me to know if I am reaching my goal for that particular run.  Sometimes I set out with no goal in mind, but 9 times out of 10 I’ve got a goal and gosh darnit, I will reach said goal.  Something else I love about RunKeeper is that I can set an interval program.  The app tells me when each it is time for the next interval, so I can focus on speed & form rather than constantly looking at my watch.

The other point of this post is why I like to run in the evenings… at least in the summers.  From June through September it is hot as Hades in southwest Florida.  It is 95 degrees with 100% humidity by like 8:30 in the morning.  I physically and mentally have a very difficult time getting it together to run before 8am.  With me not getting home form work until midnight, Hubby leaving for work by 7:30, Bug waking up around 7:30 and trying to get him fed and to school by 9:00, running in the early morning is pretty much a no go.  So, this time of year, if I’m not working at night, I run in the evening.  Bug goes to bed at around 7:30, so I slip out and run just after bedtime.  It’s still hot out, but at least the sun isn’t beating down on me and the humidity has lightened up a little bit.  Also, for some reason, on most evenings, I have a good amount of energy at about that time.  I am super excited, though, that it is starting to cool off a bit.  And by cool off, of course, I mean that the high is only 90 today.  This means that I’ll able to run again after I drop Bug off at school in the morning.

When do you like to run?  What is your pace strategy?

Week of Workouts: 9/9 – 9/15

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Ya’ll.  I did it.  I completed the elusive 3 workouts in one week phenomenon.  And that’s not using mowing the lawn or unpacking 20 cases of wine at work as a workout.  Not that I mowed the lawn this week… and I only unpacked like 12 cases of wine.  Anywho, here’s the actual workouts that I completed:

 

Tuesday – Pilates

Wednesday – Running

3.12 miles in 27:28 for a pace of 8:48.  Ran with Hubby.  Also, ran before dinner.  I didn’t want to puke at the end.  Yay!

Friday – Running/Gym

I ran to the gym, which is less than a mile away, worked out and then ran home.  Here’s the breakdown:

Run to the gym = .67 miles in 5:24 for a pace of 8:03

Workout:

  • Chest press – 25 lbs – 3 sets of 12 reps
  • Overhead press – 25 lbs – 3 sets of 12 reps
  • Seated Leg Curl – 50 lbs – 3 sets of 12 reps
  • Lat pulldown – 37.5 lbs – 3 sets of 12 reps
  • Leg extension – 50 lbs – 1 set of 12; 37.5 lbs – 2 sets of 12
  • Row – 37.5 lbs – 3 sets of 12
  • Seated leg press – 100 lbs – 3 sets of 12
  • Hanging tuck ups – 3 sets of 12
  • Calf Raises using the leg press machine – 100 lbs – 3 sets of 15 feet parallel; 3 sets of 15 feet in first position (heels together and toes facing out)

Run home = .9 miles in 7:14 for a pace of 8:02

A couple of things about this workout.  First, I don’t love the gym, but it is nice to get in there and do something different every now and again.  I don’t love using machines, but again with the whole doing something different thing.  Plus, I was having a hard time motivating myself at home this particular day and I knew that if I was in the gym, I would actually work out.  Second, the run home was tough because my legs felt like lead and jelly all at once.  And the fact that it was at like 1:00 in the afternoon and 93 degrees outside.  I surprised myself by how quickly I was actually running.  That’s always a fantastic feeling.
So, there you have it.  3 workouts.  1 week.  Done.  Let’s do it again next week, shell we?

Week of Workouts: 9/2 – 9/8

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I continued with my twice a week workout dealy-o this week.  Seems like that’s about all I have the time/energy for these days.  Some days, I totally have time to work out, but I choose to nap instead.  Why?  Because it’s too hot to exercise outside, which is what I prefer, and, well, naps are awesome.

Sunday

  • The Ab Lab by Strong Like My Coffee – First off, big fan of this blog.  The girl that writes seems like she’d be super fun in real life.  Second, this short but sweet plank workout was killer.  I hate planks, mostly because I have a shoulder issue that stems from pole vaulting back in high school, but this little Ab Lab was a totally worth it kind of challenge.  My core felt so strong after!
  • Crazy 6 Pack Ab Workout – Okay, so they used weights in this video.  I didn’t have weights available.  Still a great workout without weighs… and would definitely be a challenge with weights.  I WILL do this one again and again.
  • Never Ever Getting Back Together Workout – This sucked.  I mean, it was hardcore & worthwhile, but I hated it.  Mostly because I did this session on the cool deck pool patio floor at my In-laws’ and only had a towel under my arms.  Apparently, the elbow pushups rubbed some skin raw on my forearms.  I still have the scabs a week later to prove it.

Overall, this combo of videos was awesome… my core was that awesome kind of sore for a few days!

Thursday – Running

1.69 miles in 14:52 for a pace of 8:46/mile.  Intervals with the Hubby.  I’ve got to start running before dinner.
The end.