Category: Training

Taking Directions

Disclaimer: I received a session with Ekiden Coaching to review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews!

I’ve said numerous times that I tend to have knee jerk reactions to training plans. I turn into a 5 year old and say ” I don’t wanna”. Or a rebellious teenager- “you can’t make me!’. I’ve posted pictures of my training plans before and they are usually full of color and corrections and look like a 5 year old used them as a coloring book.

That said I’ve always wondered how I would respond to a coach. Would reporting to an actual person hold me accountable? Would I get out of my own way and actually commit to a program that could make me a better runner? I was curious but I figured the odds of me finding out were slim to none as most options I saw could break the bank. And my bank is pretty broken as it is. 😛

Enter Ekiden Coaching.

ekiden

When I was given the opportunity to try their coaching services, I jumped at it. What better chance to see how I would do? Ekiden is fairly new to the scene and founded by Peter Duyan with Head Coach Mario Fraioli. I checked out the website, looked at their backgrounds and read some articles in Competitor by Mario. I was excited to get started.

The process started with a very in depth questionnaire that asked about your running habits, preferences and quirks. It also asked about your nutrition level and if you had any injuries. Once it was submitted, I waited to be matched with my coach. Once I learned that I had Coach Jenny, we set up a time for a phone conversation to go more in depth about my running level and upcoming race plans. This was also when I had the realization that I had a lot of races in the coming weeks. Oops. Jenny also let me know I may have bit off a bigger bite than I should have. Yes, Coach. This was also proved true when I had to bail on the Run The Runways 5K. 😢

From there the coaching plan is uploaded to the Ekiden site on a weekly basis. The site links to Strava and for every completed workout, you get a blue dot. Missed workouts show a red dot. You are sent a weekly text on Sundays with a link to the week’s workouts. A daily text at 5PM told you the next days workout. You can communicate with your coach via text message or on the Ekiden site. Text messages are my jam, sweet!

So how did training go? I really liked it! Every workout was something that I could or should be able to physically do and it was very easy to understand. I didn’t have to do any math or fancy equations to know what I was supposed to do. I’ve had a good mix of easy running and speed work. The speed work was great (remember Float?). It pushed me out of my comfort zone just enough. I never would have planned a long run with a fast finish end of 6 miles but I came close to pulling it off! My left leg has been giving me fits but being honest, it hasn’t been happy since halfway through marathon training. That said, Coach Jenny has been a great resource with that- I can text her when it hurts and we can adjust the plan. It helps to talk it out with someone so I don’t just panic on my own. The accountability portion of having a coach is kind of awesome. I call myself Slacker for a reason so having someone check in with you is a great way to stay on track. Even a day when I was feeling super crappy and knew I couldn’t handle a run, I went home and did a few miles on the bike. I can say without a doubt that I would not have done that had I not had a coach and a training plan.

So would I do it all over again? I actually have a week or 2 left on my plan right now but I think I would do it again. Personal plans can be as low $49 a month and I think a 3 month plan would be a great fit for me next year- I may finally buckle down to train for a sub 2 half… or maybe a second marathon. 😛

I also have a discount for you- use code BibRave16 and get 1 month of free training when you purchase 3 months. Dang it, I could use that next year!

Looking for more information? Check out the Ekiden website or read these Pro’s reviews-

Christine
Angie

Have you ever worked with a coach?

Do you like training plans?

Week 42 Training Recap

Training for-

Paso Harvest Marathon 13.1
Golden Gate Half

I am not sure what happened last week. I am not sure if it was the lack of sleep catching up with me and I kind of felt like I was fighting some bug. I was feeling down but whatever it was, I fell off the motivation train. I kind of just wanted to hide in a dark hole and sleep. But life goes on right?

Monday- Rest Rest day!! And a day off, man that was nice. I was feeling a little sore form Sunday’s race so taking it easy was fine be me. Plus I had to take my dad to an appointment so I killed time in the best way-

Tuesday- 7 miles bike. I felt crappy all day, just sluggish and worn down. Sleep was rough which didn’t help. I had packed my running gear as my coach had me scheduled for 30-45 minute recovery run. By the end of work, I knew it wasn’t happening. I headed home and did a slow 7 miles on the bike instead.

Wednesday- 6 miles Rest Yeah, I can’t really pinpoint what happened here. I felt better but not 100%; I was tired but what else is new? My family invited me to dinner and the tri tip was calling? Whatever it was, it won and I did not run.

Thursday- 5 miles The plan was to run 3 miles a little faster than goal half marathon pace plus warm up and cool down. I was still in a funk and had a feeling that wasn’t going to happen. I did try though. I worked a partial day and headed to the river path to attempt it. Yeah, it went about as well as I expected. I could not get my legs into gear. My splits for the speed work were 9:43, 10:35, 9:32. Ha! Not even close to a sub 9. But I ran though, right?

Friday- Rest Pretty typical Friday. Work was work and I admit I caved and picked up a pizza on the way home. Well, I ordered one but Domino’s messed it up so they gave me 2. 2?! That doesn’t help the waistline. 🍕😛

Saturday- Rest I worked in the morning and enjoyed a white knuckle drive home as everyone in CA forgot how to drive in the rain. It didn’t help that the fog was so dense, you could barely see a car length in front of you. Throw in the steep drop on both sides of the highway and that was fun. I meant to be productive in the afternoon but beyond laundry and posting my Bibrave review of City to the Sea, I really wasn’t.

Sunday- 8.1 miles– I wanted 10. I could not make myself get out bed any sooner. The day called for rain and I wanted to run in the only dry part of the morning. I love the rain but figured if I was still fighting something, running in the rain wasn’t going to help. I also had to run in the morning as my family had plans in the afternoon- my little brother turned 30!!! Man, I feel old.

Anyways, back to the run. It was kind of all over the place. Kind of like the weather. First it was cold, then it was super windy, then it turned unbelievably muggy and hot before starting all over again. Every half mile was a new adventure. Kind of like my pace. Mile 4 was a 9:30- oops! There were times when I felt like I was running tall, had awesome form and could go forever. Then there times when I felt hunched over and tired, panting like a dog. Can I blame the weather changes? Whatever it was, I was glad to be done.

So to recap- 13 miles run and 7 biked. I did get a long-ish run in so that’s a plus. I’ve done some thinking about how how my next races will be run but I will save that for another post. My hope is get in a solid week of training going forward. And to sleep more. Oh- I did receive my essential oils- after a battle, the post office lost them- so I have been trying those and will share thoughts soon. It’s only been a few days so I am still on the fence. 😛

How was your week?

Would the lure of food keep your from running?

How’s your weather? Has fall really arrived?

Week 41 Training Recap

Training for:

City to the Sea 13.1 ✅
Harvest Marathon 13.1
Golden Gate Half

I wish I could I could be all sunshine and daisy’s about last week but I can’t. I am looking really hard for the shiny because I know it’s there somewhere. It has to be.

Work has been stressful, we are still down an employee and haven’t been able to replace them yet. Also, the shift back to being an hourly employee is affecting me more than I thought it would but I’ll keep trucking along.

My sleep is still crap. I used to be the type person who while being a night owl, once asleep I was dead to the world. Seriously, you could throw things at me and I would sleep through it. I would fall asleep in one position and stay that way all night. Lately I can’t fall asleep and when I do I wake up repeatedly and I toss and turn. Toss and turn to the point that my quilt and top sheet are usually on the floor in the morning. 😞 This weekend I went shopping for new pillows and I’ve ordered some essential oils to see if they help. Fingers crossed!

Loss. I was somehow lucky enough to get this far in life without having to deal with loss often. This year has been different and last week was more bad news. I really need to work on being less of stress eater.

Monday- 2 miles This was supposed to be a rest day but with all weekend off due to my stupid leg, I wanted get in a few test miles. We got out of work late so by the time I made to home town I was racing the dying daylight. 2 miles is what I was able to fit in. I was a little achy but nothing hurt more than that.

Tuesday- Rest. Something came up and I didn’t get off work until almost 7. I didn’t even attempt to run that day.

Wednesday- Rest 2 days off in a row seemed like a good idea. Plus it fit perfectly in my training plan from Ekiden Coaching. 😛

Thursday- 3.5 miles Another chance to test the leg and see if I would be racing this weekend. The plan called for 5 x400 but I knew I wasn’t getting up to 5k pace. I stuck to the 400’s but kept them around a 9:30 pace and walked the recoveries. My calves were super tight per usual and I stopped at one point to completely re-lace both Hoka’s but other than that it was ok. I realized that I will be on the treadmill much sooner than I would like though. It is getting dark so fast!

seawinner

Friday- Rough day. But I did win my entry in City to Sea from a Facebook contest so there’s that right?! Thank you to everyone I badgered into voting for me! I registered for Sunday’s race on Friday morning.

Saturday- Rest day. Went to SLO for packet pickup and wandered around doing some shopping. Shopping and food make great distractions from life right? The race shirt was tiny, like Stitch size tiny.

Sunday- City to the Sea 13.1 To be continued…😛
How was your week?

Have any sleeping tips for me?

Week 40 Training Recap/ September Wrap

3/4 of the year is done! Woah. Already my Facebook feed is full of countdowns to Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas. Knock it off people!!

Anyways, last week’s training started out great, maintained for most of the week then hit a big roadblock by the weekend. One I am still trying to figure out. Combine that with a truly craptacular week in sleeping and this one was a little rough. Seriously, each night averaged around 6 hours. 😕

Monday- Rest– I somehow got used to running on Monday’s and now resting on those days feels odd. However I was so abnormally sore to the point of painful after Sunday’s races that I embraced it. Plus the temps were in the triple digits everywhere so why put myself through that?

Tuesday- 4.2 miles– I was still sore so I opted for the lower end of what coach suggested. I kept the pace nice and easy and walked whenever my leg felt odd. To avoid most of the heat, I ran in work town. I really wish there was more trail through the eucalyptus grove. That said, it was a decent run and I managed to negative split, which considering it’s an out and back with the first 2 miles down hill is pretty sweet.

Wednesday- 3.75 miles. Float like a butterfly, pant like a dog. Speed work!

Thursday- 3.5 miles. Recovery run. In retrospect, maybe I should have just gotten on the bike and moved my legs that way. I was really trying to stick to the plan though. I crawled. My legs were not happy even attempting to run. I iced and rolled and stretched that night but I had a feeling it wasn’t enough.

Friday- Rest- Ouch. My left leg was pissed. I felt twinges anytime I moved. Which brought me to a very cranky conclusion-

Saturday- ~~5K race~~– Yeah, nope. I had planned on running the inaugural Run the Runways out at the airport but I realized there was no way my leg was up to it. I knew I would get out there and likely do something stupid. I did 15 minutes on the bike though. Work is attempting the Tone It Up challenge for October, I looked at the daily exercises but they all required more leg work then I was willing to do, so fail day 1.😢

Sunday-~~9-10 mile long run~~– 30 minutes bike Another one bites the dust. I woke up with a headache, tried getting up to run but no. Figured I would go out for a few in the afternoon and slept some more. Afternoon rolled around and my leg was not happy. I was trying to determine if it really hurt or if I was trying to be lazy and not feel guilty about it. I hopped on the bike for a very slow ride for 30 minutes. Judging but how my leg felt while riding, I made the right choice not running. Boo.

So now, I am in limbo. I have a half marathon on Sunday and I am hesitant about it. Plus side is that I haven’t registered for it yet. Downside- it’s one of my favorites. So this coming week will be interesting.

Since last week saw the end of September, I added up my mileage- 75.85. Not too bad. Not where I had hoped I would be but it is what it is and now it is time to focus on October. Which hopefully means that the high 90’s and triple digit weather is gone. Fingers crossed!

How was your week? September?

Any plans for October?

1/4 Mile At a Time

Image result for 1/4 mile at a time memes

Or in my case I die 1/4 mile at a time. 😛

In my phone call with Coach Jenny with Ekiden last week we discussed the partial training schedule she had for me. She had intervals scheduled for this Wednesday. Sweet! I love intervals even though I know I do them wrong. Run like hell than slow jog (walk) for a bit? I’m all over that. Except I noticed the plan doesn’t say recovery. It said float.

Wait a second- what the hell is FLOAT?!

So I asked. Float is less of a recovery and more of a push. Instead of a recovery pace, you run closer to tempo pace. The logic behind it is two fold. One is that you get used to running the intervals on tired legs without a full recovery. Second is that your tempo pace should feel a little more comfortable post speedy interval. Ok, makes sense. Sounds intense but makes sense.

But could I do it?

Well, kind of. I headed to the lake path on Wednesday since I knew I would need flat and easy for this. My legs have been achy so I even had compression socks on for a shorter run. I had programmed 5 intervals into my phone but had a feeling I would only be completing 4. Yep. 😛

After a 1.25 mile warmup, I hit the first 400. 8:03 pace, yes! First float? 9:08 pace. Sweet! But I felt like was going to lose my cookies. Could I keep doing this?

Pace
Set 2- 7:50     9:16
Set 3- 7:48     10:49
Set 4- 7:50     10:37

So my speed intervals sped up but my float intervals slowed down. That crap was hard! There were a few times I came to a complete stop just panting. Granted those times were also to avoid being hit by a car or a kid on a motorized mini motorcycle thing but I milked them for all they were worth!

I cooled down with another mile but man I was toast. I felt pretty good but out of shape at the same time. It’s frustrating but it is what it is right now. It gives me something to work on, right? Or whine about. 😛

Do you like speed work?

Ever heard of a float interval?

Happy Friday!!!! What are you doing this weekend?