Cut it short.

This week's long run was going to go one of two ways: we would either run two hours and fifteen minutes, or we would cut it back to one hour and thirty minutes. Well, we had two Moms (Cristal and Christy) away this weekend, so I made the executive decision to run a shorter run. With another two-hour run the week after next and a two-hour-fifteen-minute run the following week, I knew that this weekend would be our last chance for a grace period and I'm glad we cut it short. An enjoyable route through Oak Bay with Laura, Adrienne and Carey (with her little guy Breck) was just the ticket!


Our workout this week was four times 800m with a two-minute break between sets. We will spend the next few weeks working on finding and recognizing our half-marathon race pace (with some 10K tempo thrown in for good measure). The coming week is an official recovery week, so the workout will be four times 400m and the Sunday run will be one (measly) hour. I'm looking forward to it!


I don't have any photos from our long run (I didn't bring my camera since I was running without  my girls in the Chariot), but here are a couple pics from a Friday run with Cristal and Laura a couple weeks ago. Have a great week and keep running!

Twenty Kilometers.

Twenty kilometers. Twenty thousand meters. Ready for this one? Two million centimeters. Any way you slice it, it's a milestone for many runners. And this weekend, we killed it.

A well-deserved post-run stretch.

This was the weekend when Running Moms broke the twenty-kilometer barrier. We ran the Elk/Beaver lake loop twice (our first field trip!) and even though it's supposed to be a ten-kilometer loop, I know that we ran a little extra by looping back to regroup after pick-ups (two fifteen-minute pick-ups to be exact) and taking a slightly longer route at one point of the trail. So my guesstimate is closer to twenty-one kilometers, which is creeping ever closer to the half-marathon distance of twenty-one point one... 

"Yahoo, I'm out of the stroller! That was looooong."

Our workout this week was a repeat of the Seven Sisters (or Seven Hills of Rockland). This time around, we ran the entire hill instead of limiting ourselves to one-minute uphills. It was hot out and it was tough, but everyone came through it so well; I was extremely proud! 

Once again, thank you so much for all your hard work and dedication to this training. You inspire me on every single run.

Pick-ups.

One foot in front of the other. Put your shoes on, step out the door and just go. The beauty and the simplicity. People push the limits, sure: they get technical about their shoes, about what they wear, about speed and distance. But in the end, you just keep on running and that is what I love about the sport. Run fast, run slow, but just keep putting one foot in front of the other. 

This week's workout was a toughie. We ran timed sprints of 2x90 sec (90 sec easy in-between), 4x60 sec (60 sec easy in-between), 4x30sec (30 sec easy in-between) and 4x15 sec (15 sec easy in-bewteen). Yes, it was as exhausting as it sounds, but it's also the type of workout that leaves you feeling accomplished in your exhaustion. In other words, run this workout and you'll have bragging rights, particularly if you run it while pushing your kids in a stroller. Not for the feint of heart.

Cristal and I ran 8.75kms on Friday  morning and it was hot. We were both just dripping in sweat; it was a great run and I was glad we got out. 

On Sunday, the Running Moms Half-Marathon group completed a 17.1km run with two ten-minute pick-ups, when we sped up to approximately half-marathon race pace. Our total run time was one hour and forty-five minutes. Cristal was the only Mom who brought her kids, so we all took turns pushing her stroller, which she greatly appreciated. I was nice enough to push the stroller during the pick-ups which was... fun. ;) 

This week, we run the Seven Hills of Rockland once again, and our Sunday run will be two hours and approximately 20kms. Looking forward to it!!

Turning point.

I'm fairly sure this is going to be the best Half Marathon ever. Or at least I will have enjoyed the training more than any other Half Marathon training I have ever done. Don't get me wrong, I have trained in several different clinics with some of the finest folks you'll ever meet, but I have to say that this Running Moms group is just awesome.


Our long runs are getting longer. July 17th's run was 16.3 km and we completed it in exactly one hour and forty-five minutes in spectacular running weather. Although this hasn't been the hottest summer here on the coast, the weather has been especially conducive to long runs! This week was a recovery week, so our workout was less intense and our long run on July 24th was one hour. It was just Cristal and I (and our girls), so we ran the TC 10K course in just under the sixty minutes. Basically, we rock.


Cristal, Christy, Brenda and I also had a lovely run Friday, July 22nd. We meandered into James Bay and back and it was especially great to have Christy's daughter Elise along. We haven't seen her in so long and she's just as cute as ever. 


Now that the recovery week is over, we start full-tilt into another three-week building phase. This week's workout is going to be fairly intense, incorporating several rounds of timed sprints and Sunday's long run is back up to one hour and forty-five minutes. I will also be adding pick-ups (tempo portions) to all of our long runs from here on out. This Sunday will be two ten-minute pick-ups with a five-minute jog between sets. Yes, this is the point in the clinic when you look back to the first week and think, "Wow, I can't believe how far we've come!" 


Just wait, it gets better. :)

Catch up.

I bet you've wondered where I've been these last couple of weeks... I believe the proper term is slacking off, but only when it comes to writing the blog; I've been a pretty busy Running Mom!


We have run some tough workouts and some great long runs in the last two weeks and I must say, I've been so impressed with the hard work and enthusiasm from the great Moms in this group. It bodes so well for the rest of this Half Marathon clinic and I'm really excited for the coming weeks.

I had grand plans for our long run on July 3rd, but the wind had its own ideas. We modified the route to avoid the windiest parts of Dallas road and did a bit of meandering, but it turned out to be a very nice route and a great run. As happens when kids are involved, Cristal's daughters weren't keen on being in the stroller that day, so she ended up turning back early. All would have been fine if only Laura and I, running without our kids that day, had remembered that we had left some things stowed in Cristal's Chariot. I felt terrible when we returned to the store to find that Cristal had waited around for us to get back so she could give us our stuff, but in true Cristal fashion, she was amazing and assured us not to worry about it. Not only is she a strong and inspired runner, she is a true friend.


Our long run on July 10th was just awesome. Great weather, nice route and our longest ever run together at just a hair over one hour and thirty minutes. I so enjoy when the runs get longer and you feel like you are entering uncharted territory. I've run the half marathon distance many, many times in races and in training, but when you are with a group this tight, every long run feels like it's own little victory. It's unlike any training I've ever done with any other group and I'm just loving every minute.


Our mid-week workouts have been tough but fun (in the strange, masochistic way that workouts are fun). Six times twenty seconds hard uphill with a minute-and-a-half rest in between. One minute hard up each of the Seven Sisters. Neither is an easy workout and it's just so much tougher pushing a stroller, but the gain in strength is worth every moment of agony. ...at least that is what I chant in my head when my legs and lungs are screaming at me to stop. :)


Our drop-in runs have been a lot of fun, mostly because they are easy going and short. Just a great opportunity to work some kinks out of the legs and have a nice chat. No pressure, no expectations.


Summertime, good friends, great runs, tonnes of fun. Yay!

Sun, run, fun.

Reasons I love the long run:

1. There's no pressure; the pace is nice and easy.

2. It's all about the chat.

3. I'm actually happy to get up early knowing that soon I'll be running with friends.

4. I get the run done early and the rest of the day is ahead of me.

5. As the runs get longer, the feeling of accomplishment gets larger and more satisfying.

Bring on the long runs!!

L-R: Tegan, Madison, Cristal, Haven, Sonja, Laura and Carey.

Another beautiful day in Victoria! Today was a fun run and I was so pleased we all got to get out together. We ran the same route as last week (view here) and we completed it in one hour and two minutes. Today was the first time in a while that we've run without taking timed walk breaks and it was awesome to just get out and run.


Can't wait to do it all again next week, when we'll increase our run time by fifteen minutes. Until then, see you for the workout Wednesday/Thursday!

Double the workout, double the fun..?

My oh my, I forgot how hard workouts can be! I mean, I run hills all the time with the girls in the stroller, but once I get to the top of a hill, I don't usually turn around and run them multiple times. It's tough!


This week's workout was the same as last week's: run uphill (hard effort) and back down (easy) as many times as you can in five minutes. We did this three times, with a one-minute break between reps.


Yesterday, Cristal, Christy, Laura, Brenda and I ran this workout on a slightly tougher hill than we ran last week. It was a good, hard workout in lovely weather. I could tell we all put in a solid effort; this is a very positive omen for the remainder of the clinic! It's so encouraging to be part of a group who isn't afraid to put in the work.


This evening, Carey and I ran the same (steep!) hill we ran last week, except this time I was running with my girls in the Chariot. What a difference a loaded double stroller makes! Halfway up the last climb, I asked myself why I was feeling so darned awful and in a flash of clarity I thought, "Because you ran this same workout yesterday, Einstein!" Yeah... From now on, I give myself permission to take it easy on one or both of these workouts; I believe that's called self-preservation. :)


So excited about our second long run this weekend. We'll be running one hour leaving from Frontrunners at 8am. Thinking of joining us? Come on out! You can register at anytime at Frontrunners (1200 Vancouver St.) or over the phone (250 382 8181).