Zenaida Arroyo

02
Aug
2015

Chicago Marathon Training Recap Week #11

categories: Chicago Marathon, Marathon Training

I will start writing a weekly recap of my training for the Chicago Marathon. The last one I posted was this one back in June. And it wasn’t really a recap but more of a summary. So I hope you stick around with me for the journey.

*Week #11, July 27-August 2

Monday: Spinning and 2 miles at easy pace
This was the third time running after my spin class. I am actually liking it. Ran 2 miles @average pace of 11:04. Felt tired at the beginning for half a mile but then felt OK. Started off @10:55 and finished off @10:32.

Tuesday: OFF
It actually felt weird not to run on Tuesday.

Wednesday: 4 +/- mile fartlek run
The plan was 1 mile warm up, 3 x 10 minutes at 9:30 with 2 minutes walk in between, and walk 3-5 minutes as a cool down. The plan was to go to the gym for this run but for some reason I was really tired. I know that many times the hardest part is getting out the door but honestly I didn’t even have the energy to do that. I thought that perhaps I was getting sick again but it must have been one of those days.

Thursday: 5 miles

I was hoping to do this run with Fleet Feet Chicks’ Night. However, I had plans to meet some friends for an early dinner and drinks and so instead I did my run in the morning. A little tired but still felt great after my run. Total 5.02 @average 11:09 pace. Splits are below:
1-11:21
2-11:36
3-10:52
4-11:13
5-10:47

Friday: OFF

Saturday: 13 miles

The plan was 5 miles warm up, 5 miles at 10:45-11:00, 3 miles super easy. I ran with a different group and ran north instead of south on the lakefront. I had forgotten how many more people run on the northside. I did not listen to my coach. I ran by feel and felt really good for half of the run then got really hot and thirsty. Then I drank too much water and my stomach began to hurt. Still need to work on this hydration thing. Total 13.02 miles @average 11:06 pace. Still it was better than last week.

Mile 1: 10:31
Mile 2-10:24
Mile 3-10:28
Mile 4-10:34
Mile 5-10:18
Mile 6-10:46
Mile 7-11:20
Mile 8-12:16
Mile 9-11:03
Mile 10-11:44
Mile 11-11:34
Mile 12-11:26
Mile 13-12:04

Sunday: Yoga
I skipped it. Don’t ask me why.

*Runs on treadmill are done on 1% incline.

Thoughts:

Around this time last year I was already feeling burnt out. I hated my runs and even cried after one of my long runs. Nope, not feeling like that at all this time. And that makes me happy.
I noticed I mentioned the word “tired” a few times. That cannot be good. But it cannot be that bad either right? I know I was tired on Monday but that’s because I had just been on a bike for 45 minutes. Then on Thursday, well, I woke up at 5:30 am and went to bed later than usual the night before. I need to make sure I go to bed early, especially when I have to wake up really early the next day. I need to sleep more like my little Lola. I swear that she sleeps about 3-4 times a day.
Cannot believe it is August and the marathon is two months away!!! Yikes, that makes me nervous but at the same time very excited.

Are you training for a marathon? How is your training coming along?

31
Jul
2015

Friday Randomness – July 31, 2015

categories: Friday Randomness, Marathon Training, Running Gear

1. Is it weird to get excited when your coach emails you dates of upcoming long runs? So far I have 18 on 8/22; 20 on 9/5; 18 on 9/12; and 20 on 9/19.

Ha, it’s been a long time since I’ve done anything longer than 13.1 miles. It must have been Spring 2014 when I was training for the Chicago Lakefront 50k. Sigh, it’s been on my mind to do another one. Maybe Spring 2016? We’ll see. Last Saturday’s run was supposed to be 14 but I managed 10. I am scheduled for 13 tomorrow and I am sort of looking forward to it. :=)

2. Yesterday was my last day of summer school. It was an interesting couple of weeks for me. Let’s just say I have a deeper respect for special education teachers. I thought my job was tough but now realize that my job is easier.

3. On Monday I start my last class for my math endorsement. It is Geometry and I am kind of worried because I HATE Geometry. Plus, it will be intense since the class is for 10 days from 9am-12pm. Oh well, I’d rather do this than go for 10 weeks on Wednesday from 5pm-8pm.

4. I told myself no more ProCompression socks but how cute are these?

Do you like wearing long compression socks? Have you ever run a 50k?

26
Jul
2015

Shipyard Old Port Half Marathon

categories: Race all 50 states, Race Recap, Running

Another really late post. I am usually really good about posting race recaps right away but somehow I slacked with this one. It won’t happen again.

I ran the Shipyard Old Port Half Marathon on Saturday, July 11. So that was state #34 for me. You can read about what I did the day before here.

The race began at 7:15am so I was up at 6, got ready, ate, and headed out with Sonya and Kim. The start line was about a mile away from our apartment. On the way there I saw a Residence Inn so I took advantage of it to use a real bathroom. I said goodbye to the girls and went to do my business. I walked to the start line and waited for the runners in the first wave to start. Then about 5 minutes later it was my turn to run. It was so crowded. I am not a fast runner but I still had to weave around a few runners. Plus, it did not help that it was a narrow path.

Honestly, I don’t remember too much about the race except that it was HOT. Plus, I was miserable and couldn’t wait to finish the race. Earlier I told Kim that my goal was to finish under 2:30. I was still at mile 12 when I saw those numbers on my watch. Honestly, I did not care because all I wanted to do was cross the finish line. We ran around a lake that seemed to go on forever. It reminded me of the one in the IMS Des Moines Half Marathon. There was absolutely no shade and I mostly walked (but in Des Moines it wasn’t as hot).

I remember the 2:30 group caught up with me before mile 6 and I decided to run with them. I ran with them for a few minutes but there was a hill and I simply had no energy to keep up with them. I was very impressed with this 10 year girl that was running with her mom. There was also a cop in uniform gear. That shut me up and I did not complain anymore.

At mile 12 there was this group doing yoga.

ShipyardOldPortHalfMarathon27 — Photo credit: Kim Reed

ShipyardOldPortHalfMarathon23 — L to R: Kim, me, Sonya

ShipyardOldPortHalfMarathon31 — Lunch at Bayside American Cafe. I had the Bayside BLT with lobster.

Overall, I did like the course. There were many wonderful volunteers and thanks to them I had plenty of water to drink and to dump on my head to cool down. The medal is pretty neat too. After the race I told the girls that I did not like it. Obviously I was not in the right state of mind when I made that comment. One cool thing that the race offers is free race photos to the runners. Here is one that I cropped because, well, I do not like the rest of it.

Portland is a fun place to visit so make sure to stay a day or two to enjoy everything it has to offer.

Next race: Chicago Half Marathon, September 27 as part of the CARA Marathon Incentive Program.

22
Jul
2015

Trip to Portland, Maine

categories: Running, Travel

A little late with this post but better late than never right?

Two weeks ago I flew into Boston to meet up with Kim, Elizabeth, and Sonya. We were all running the Old Shipyard Port Half Marathon on Saturday morning. Elizabeth flew in from Atlanta and both Kim and Sonya flew from Portland, Oregon. I was the last one getting in so I was hoping that my flight would not be delayed. I must have jinxed it because even though it was not late (we did arrive at 5pm) there was trouble at the gate and we did not get off the plane till a little after 5:30pm. Thankfully they were patient and kind enough to wait for me in the rental car. Finally, I was outside the terminal, they picked me up and on our way to Portland, ME.

ShipyardOldPortHalfMarathon1

First thing was dinner. We made it to Portsmouth, NH and found an amazing place for dinner. We all wanted lobster and that’s what we ate. It was delicious. And I did forget to take a picture of what we ate. Once we were all satisfied, we continued on to Portland.

ShipyardOldPortHalfMarathon2 — Photo credit: Kim. “Flew to Massachusetts, dinner in New Hampshire, will sleep in Maine”.

Thanks to Sonya who found a nice 2 bedroom apartment via Airbnb. I was so tired and was asleep by 11pm.

The next morning I was up at 6 and wanted some coffee. Sonya and Kim were still sleeping (it was 3am their time) so Elizabeth and I found a cute coffee shop not too far from our apartment. Elizabeth wanted something different so we kept walking to look for another place and ended up at Portland Pottery Store & Cafe. I did not order anything because I had my bagel but E had a delicious breakfast. We ended up going back with Kim and Sonya for brunch.

Afterwards we visited several shops in downtown Portland until it was time for our Maine Lobstering Tour with Lucky Catch Cruises. One of my favorite stores was the Stonewall Kitchen. Pretty much everything looked delicious! There were a few samples for us to try out and I took advantage of it. I did not buy anything but for sure will order something online.

A piece of The Berlin Wall on our way to the boat.

Ready for our Maine lobstering experience with my 3 lovely roommates.

We caught a few lobsters but had to throw them back into the sea because we were on a demonstration boat.

Finally time to eat!

Bon Appétit!!

I had a great time at the tour and highly recommend it.

The next day was the race but I will write another post about it. Another fun place we went to after the race is The Holy Donut. It is seriously the MOST AMAZING donut place!!! We wanted to try all flavors but it would have been a little too much. Plus we were kind of full from brunch but yet had some room to try a few of them. We bought half a dozen donuts so we could each sample 6 different flavors.

Dark chocolate and sea salt
Fresh Lemon
Maple Bacon <===== MY FAVORITE
Maple Blueberry
Old Fashioned Coconut
Sweet Potato Ginger

I had a blast in Portland. As for the race itself, well, it was very hot on Saturday and I did finish the race and that makes me happy.

I hope these girls invite me again to go on another trip.

06
Jul
2015

Community Bank of Elmhurst 4 on the 4th

categories: Race Recap, Running

Saturday morning I was up for a race. Normally I have a long run with the CES group but due to the holiday my group did not meet. Instead, all of the groups from the various locations met on Sunday in one location.

Back to the race. It is one of my favorites. Very cheap-$25-and with a $5 discount if you are a CARA member. It is 30 minutes from my house, plenty of parking, and fun/semi-challenging course. This was my 3rd time running it. You can read my other recaps here: 2014 and 2013.

I will admit that I was hoping to get a PR. Below are my times from last year and the year before.

I was not feeling good on Friday evening. I was bloated and felt very uncomfortable. I went to bed hoping that I would feel better in the morning.

Race day I was up before my alarm went off. I got dressed, drank coffee and ate a Hammer Bar. I did go to the bathroom 3 times before leaving the house.

I arrived in Elmhurst around 6:45. On my way to pick up my bib I ran into Pete who was running this race for the first time this year. We chatted for a little bit and said our goodbyes. Packet pickup was a breeze. I did not want my shirt so I quickly tied my bib to my race belt and got in line to use the bathroom one more time.

I was feeling a bit better but overall I felt tired. Not so much tired like from lack of sleep but more like body tired.

Start line. There weren’t too many people at the race so I was not too far from it.

Here are my mile splits:
1-9:15
2-9:58
3-10:49
4-10:15

I have NO idea how I ran that fast the first mile. I felt tired but still kept going. I remember stopping for water and walking up a small incline. As you can see mile 3 was my slowest and I just felt very tired and HOT (I was probably dehydrated). I walked a lot and kept checking my pace on my watch. I also did some walking in the last mile and even up the incline to get to the finish line but it must not have affected it that much because I still finished it in 10:15. <==== Very impressed with it!

Even though I did not PR, I still enjoyed this race. Unless I am out of town or injured, this is a race I plan to do every year.

My next race is Shipyard Old Port Half Marathon on Saturday in Maine. It will be state #34.

Did you run a race on Saturday? How was your 4th of July?