Training Smaining

So I signed up for all my races through March yesterday. That left a little dent in the wallet to say the least, but here they are:

January 10 (as in this weekend) - Kaiser Permanente 1/2 in Irvine, CA
February 1 - Huntington Beach 1/2, CA
February 7 - Chili Trail Run 4 miler in Irvine, CA
February 21 - Race on the Base 10k in Los Alamitos, CA
March 8 - Malibu Creek 9k, Malibu, CA
March 29, Wine Country 1/2, Paso Robles, CA

So as you can see, this weekend I'll be running a 1/2. I figured I needed to put in miles and just getting out there will be good for me. I have no insane goals because I know I'm not completely ready to push myself to the limit just quite yet, but it will be fun to race and I know the mileage will be really good.

I feel like these races are all very different from one another and most of my previous races and I'm really excited to try out the few trail runs I have signed up for. I think I will really enjoy the trail running aspect and I'm excited to try out my new shoes!

As for training, I talked about it with Mr. R, and he told me, "Look, you know how to run already, you should really think about strength training more." I agree with him because strength equals speed. So therefore I am going to put in decent longer runs, but also work mostly on getting stronger, at least for right now. I know having a strong body for running is important and I know I could possibly have the weakest upper body around. My legs are good and strong from my miles, but my arms are about as useless as a T-rex's arms.

So therefore in order to get stronger I'm going to do weight training twice a week, and then possibly take a class or do a video Pilate's or yoga once a week, and cut back my running to three or four days a week, and just run more miles during these runs. I know if I get my core strong and upper body and my back to be strong I will be a much better running in the long term. I was also working really hard at sit ups, but during the holidays I kind of let that fall to the wayside. I know that the sit ups were really helping me so I want to get back to that and also I want to work hard at doing more push ups to make my back stronger.

This weekend, my goal is to finish in between 1:50 and 2:10. I know it's a broad range, and I won't be disappointed if I don't hit that, but I'm also going to enjoy the race and just view it as a long training run with supporters all around me and free water and snacks! Another one of my goals this race is to practice running and drinking. The last half I did I had a big problem with the handling, sipping, the throwing, then the dodging of others cups. It was all just a little overwhelming so I'm really going to work on drinking during the race and I'm going to even try to eat a gu while running, which I've also never done before, and see if I can see a major difference. Of course I'll be downing some delicious shot blox before the race like candy as well.

As for the other races, as they come near I'll be posting their specific goals, and they will be much more precise and better than this weekend's goals. 2009 is going to be a year of training and excitement! Even though I signed up for a lot of races, I would encourage you guys to sign up for races and get a race calendar going. Whether it's a run/walk, a 5k, a 10k, or a marathon, just having a goal to complete that race is so motivational. It's fun to count down until the day, and working out with an upcoming race also gives you a purpose to work out.

Having a workout plan is the best way to tackle exercise. Today since I'm talking about training, I wanted to share a great site with you guys.

Iglisten

It's a great site that was started by Wes and Allyson Felix. Yes, the Allison Felix that just won the gold medal in Beijing for the Olympics. Oddly enough, Mr. R even knows Wes and he's also a super legit runner. The website is full of great training tips and tricks that you can do on your own that really help tone and promote an overall healthy lifestyle. The best part about the website is that there is a free email newsletter that is created specifically for women. Once you sign up, you receive workouts in your email three times a week that were created by a personal trainer. It's a lot of different ideas and stuff to target special areas, which is really great. They also have a fashion section on their website, with SUPER cute gym clothes and where to buy them, and also a health and then of course the fitness section. They also have great food, music and fashion sections, and a fun and upbeat blog that motivates and has great articles about everything in life.

I signed up for the site, and have been nothing but blow away by their ideas and getting the emails with the workouts is nice because it gives me the ability to mix things up. At the least I would encourage you to go over and check out what they have, it's FREE after all. What more can a FREE workout in your email hurt?

Hope you enjoy them as much as I do, and have a great day! Tonight I'm going to be putting in a five miler at the park by Mr. R's house before we watch the BL! If you haven't watched Biggest Loser before, tonight's the night, get hooked!

xoxo