on running, races, and the pursuit of getting faster

Hello! I decided to dust off the cobwebs and do a blog post. One in which I actually talk about running. What a concept, I know.

Let's do a mini recap of the turkey trot, shall we? We got up at the crack of dawn and met up with the running entourage (minus RunnerDad).

the turkey tutu gals

Ry and I before the race, please note my awesome orange 'turkey leg' leg warmers.

The group pic was blurry (bummer), so here's a recent picture of RunnerBro with RunnerBaby (who can no longer be called that).

It was chaos down there, as per usual, but somehow I busted out a decent time. My goal time was 23 something and I was on target for it, but missed it by a hair. I was still ecstatic with my overall results:

It's very very rare I'll ever see stats this good.  That top 1.26%? Yeah, I was 3rd out of 927! I know most people take it as a fun run and that's why, but I still felt "fast". And by that, more importantly I felt fast for me, like I could have gotten that 23 something I was aiming for and like a new PR is right around the corner.  I felt good and strong (always more important than where you rank, though placing - even without an age group award is still pretty darn cool).

Anyway, it was a great race. That left me feeling good. So did my a few of my runs this past week. Like this one:

I'd like to get this 2 mile time to 14 even or below and I know it's within reach. It's been pretty nice this past week, so I've been splitting my time between the mill and outdoors. I think it's helped mix things up and when I do the mill, I try to challenge myself in different ways. One run last week was 2 miles at 6% incline the whole time. 

I feel like it's definitely translated to the pavement. I did 7.5 miles yesterday in 1:05.26 or an 8:43 pace.

sweaty red faces = running success

It was my longest run in a bit, so I was glad to still have a sub 9 pace in me and not feel like death at the end. All in earnest hope that maybe, maybe I'll get faster.  

I've said it before and I'll say it again, fast is a relative term. Some people may look at my times and think I'm slow as molasses, while others may think I'm a speed demon. It really matters what feels fast for me (and same goes for yourself when thinking in terms of 'being fast'). The reason I want to get faster is purely selfish. Just to push myself. To prove to myself I can do more, go faster. Regardless of what others consider in terms of my fastness, or lack thereof. 

This past weekend, at the 8 o'clock hour, Ryan, RunnerSis, RunnerSis^2 , Ryan, and I all signed up for the bayshore half (it sold out in about an hour and a half - it will be RunnerSis^2's first!). RunnerBro? He signed up for the FULL!! I am so excited for him. I wish I could join him, but my school schedule will be so crazy next semester that I know I would be spreading myself too thin and fear I couldn't log the really important runs - like the 20 milers.  With that said, I want to make the most of the runs I do run. Training for another half is much more manageable. I feel like I can bust out a faster time. My current PR is 1:57. I was on pace for 1:54 until the last few miles for that one. I know I have 1:54 in me. I would like to do 1:50. That's an 8:24 pace and 7 whole minutes off. That's a big chunk of time off. Overly ambitious? Probably. But, I think it's good to have a really ambitious 'A' goal, a truly attainable 'B' goal, and a "I can probably do that in my sleep" 'C' goal. 

If I'm being honest, here are my A goals for 2013 (never too early to start, right?) 

1/2 marathon: 1:50

10k: sub 50

5k: 23:00

I'll get to B goals on a later post. Right now, I'm taking each run as it comes. I'm trying to be smart and do a mix of running hard, easy, moderate and mixing it up with speedplay or inclines on the treadmill. I'm hoping this good mix will continue to help me get faster (I feel like it has already!) Speaking of races, Ryan and I entered the lottery for the cherry blossom ten miler in DC april 7. You have until Dec 14 to enter. If you want to enter as a group with us, it's under 'watch mego run'.  Here's the registration link: http://www.cherryblossom.org/generalinfo/entryinfo.php.  

And I shall leave you with a picture of the cheeseball crew:

Let's chat:

-Is anyone else already figuring out their plan of attack for 2013? Anyone else planning to sign up for the cherry blossom race?

-Do you use pace calculators to figure out race time goals? I always like to check it out to see how lofty my goals truly are.

-Anyone else take cheeseball pics with their significant other/fam?

-What's been going on with you? I have FOUR classes left this semester. *cue happy dance*

Megan