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General

When Doubt Creeps In…

  • Kerrie

…kick its ass.

So I started my sub-2-hour-half training plan on Monday with a 4-mile run at a comfy, but not too easy, pace. I ran through my neighborhood and town. Blah, blah, blah. My usual route. That route’s getting boring.

Then Tuesday was a rest day. But I also had PT, and we worked on glute strength for an hour, so I got in a mini workout. Then I worked on glute strength in the evening, too. Before bed, I checked my plan for Wednesday. Five miles, with three of them being mile repeats at an 8:15-8:30 pace.

Gulp. An 8:15-8:30 pace for three miles? Me?

I’m confident in my physical abilities. I usually know what I can and can’t do, or at least I know that I can try. But this pace had me a little nervous. Could I do it? Also, when would I do it?

Usually I run at lunch, but five miles is cutting it close during my 60-minutes lunchtime. Plus, I had plans for pho with Mel and Chels.

Me with Chelsea in her Boo Huskies shorts.

We made Mel take the pics since she has the longest arms.
Hmm. Didn’t seem to matter. 😉

Wednesday, I rose at my normal time: 5 a.m. (with sore glutes!). But I didn’t get dressed for work. I got dressed to run. I stuffed my work clothes in my bag, let the dog out, and headed for the Cedar River Trail. It’s on the way to work, and since it’s light out so early…why not take advantage?

Of course, when I got there the gate to the parking lot was closed. Luckily, there’s sort of a turn-out area along the highway, so I just parked there, then hopped over the drainage ditch to the trail. To save time, I set my Garmin fields, and fixed my headphones and music on my warm-up walk.

On my Garmin:
Time
Distance
Pace
Average lap pace

On my playlist:
Crocodile Rock – Gnomeo and Juliet version
Funky Monkey – from the film Rio
Take You to Rio – from the film Rio
Check It Out – Will.i.am and Nicki Minaj
Till the World Ends – Britney Spears
Run Run Run – Natasha Beddingfield
Party All the Time – Black Eyed Peas
Bust A Move – Glee Cast Version
You’re Only Human – Billy Joel
Dare – Gorillaz
Forget You – Cee-Lo Green
We R Who We R – Ke$ha

On me:
Capris and my “It’s All About Attitude” shirt I wore for the marathon.

I was a little late to the trail. I’d wanted to be out of the car by 5:30. Actual time: 5:40. Still enough time since I planned on changing my clothes in the bathroom at work and I was only about 15 minutes away.

I warmed up around a 9:30 pace. I felt tired. Also, I noticed (when I was talking to myself in the car) that my voice had gone missing. As I ran, my throat felt scratchy. Since it’s been so warm here, I’m thinking it’s allergies. Anyway, I felt a little sluggish, but by a half-mile I remembered I’m supposed to be focusing on my glutes.

This is what I am working on at physical therapy. Strengthening my glutes and then learning to use them. It’s not as easy as you might think. As my PT says, “We are a quad-dominated society.” (When she said that on Tuesday, I totally cracked up. I imagined quads with military caps on, walking in formation and running the world. Yeah, I’m weird.) She’s right, though, you know. We need to use our glutes more, people!

Okay, back to the run: What a difference my glutes made! All of a sudden, the run felt easy. I was cautiously optimistic about the three mile repeats I was approaching. As soon as my watch beeped at Mile 1, I turned my legs over faster imagining my glutes pushing them (this helps me use them, okay?).

Um, yeah. I had to SLOW down. Many times. Sub-8’s were not on the plan. Not that this was easy, but it was not nearly as tough as I thought it would be. In fact, since I was worried about getting to work and because I couldn’t slow down anymore, Mile 5 was at an 8:43 pace. Oops.

Mile 2: 8:22
Mile 3: 8:20
Mile 4: 8:19

Also, I did stop my watch between miles 2 and 3 to walk about 15-20 feet, and again between miles 3 and 4. These were supposed to be repeats. I only stopped my watch to help me with the math, though.

If you would’ve asked me Tuesday: Can you run five miles in 43 minutes? (Hey, it could happen. People ask me weird stuff all the time.) Well, I would’ve said, “No.”

But, hey. Guess what? I CAN! So, ask me today. Go on, ask me!

(Guess I could’ve pulled it off during my lunch hour, too. Heh.)

The lesson, boys and girls, is this: Doubt is normal, but make sure you give yourself the opportunity to kick its ass.

How do you overcome that nagging little doubtful voice in your head?

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17 comments
  1. Lisa J says:
    July 7, 2011 at 1:48 pm

    absolutely awesome. I completely understand about the glutes- I got injured bc my glutes were so weak causing my hip flexors to do all the work….thus pulling on my IT band (what a long healing process)Aside from doing glute exercises, mainly clams, I wish I would have known to consciously think about using the glutes while running- I will try that tonight!

    Reply
  2. Marlene says:
    July 7, 2011 at 2:56 pm

    HECK YEAH! You must be oozing confidence right now. I have ZERO doubts of a sub-2 for you. AND I totally ran my first sub-2 a couple months after my first marathon, which was exactly the same time as yours. GO GIRL!

    Reply
  3. (Just) Trying is for Little Girls says:
    July 7, 2011 at 3:16 pm

    Awesome, awesome, awesome. Way to go and kick some ass.

    Reply
  4. Mel -Tall Mom on the Run says:
    July 7, 2011 at 3:36 pm

    Yeah baby!! You rock!

    Reply
  5. Marie says:
    July 7, 2011 at 3:44 pm

    First time commenter here, although I've been reading for awhile. First off — congratulations on your AWESOME marathon!!!! (And what a great recap, too!) Second — this post resonated so much for me. I'm a running newbie and that thing — the kicking the ass of doubt thing — is what has me hooked. I'm thinking of running my first half in September. Part of my brain is still arguing with me that its a stupid idea and I can't possibly train for it in time. The other part of my brain is saying, “You got this, girl….” THAT part of my brain LOVES this post!!!!

    Reply
  6. [email protected](running)In the Right Direction says:
    July 7, 2011 at 4:32 pm

    Love the post…and hey i think that's my sil above me!!! Glad someone followed ya through my blog! I'm having a lot of doubt lately so this will help. Also..can you share some of the glute excercises??

    Reply
  7. Michelle says:
    July 7, 2011 at 7:39 pm

    Awesome job and great post! I seriously need to figure out how to better activate my glutes when I'm running. Might have to borrow your visualization idea.

    Reply
  8. Penny says:
    July 7, 2011 at 8:00 pm

    Great post. Congrats on that 5 mile pace. It's amazing what we can do when we make up our minds and push that self doubt out. Way to go girl.

    Reply
  9. [email protected](running)In the Right Direction says:
    July 7, 2011 at 8:40 pm

    Did you mention what program you are using to train for the sub 2?

    Reply
  10. Chris @ Heavy Steps says:
    July 7, 2011 at 2:29 pm

    It is amazing what we can do when we are pushed. I didn't think I could run 30 minutes strate or a 5k without stopping but I was pushed and I did it!Very cool!

    Reply
  11. Marathon Lar says:
    July 7, 2011 at 2:40 pm

    GREAT JOB Kerrie! I've been dreaming about a sub 2-hour half for a while now…I will live vicariously through you for now since I don't have any half marathons coming up!

    Reply
  12. Gaspegirl says:
    July 7, 2011 at 5:53 pm

    Awesome, awesome… AWESOME! Love the post and the accomplishment. Don't mind if I follow your blog do ya? Good! Cause I am Make it a great day!

    Reply
  13. Alma says:
    July 8, 2011 at 6:01 am

    I KNEW IT! I KNEW IT! You can totally be the speed demon you want to be. You got it! And you just STARTED your training! Imagine where you'll be in a month, two months…

    Reply
  14. Amy says:
    July 7, 2011 at 11:14 pm

    This is appropriate for me today. I ran for the first time in 5 weeks after surgery, and I was slow (10:40ish), but I felt wonderful once I was moving. Before? Neeeeeervous. My next half plan (hoping to break 2:10, my PR is 2:12) involves speedwork for the first time ever. It scares me, but now I'm gonna use my glutes, dude!Hooray for you on the 8s…my over-the-moon-happy goal is 8s 🙂

    Reply
  15. Kristi says:
    July 8, 2011 at 11:04 pm

    Wow. You go, girl. I predict that sub 2 on your half will not be a problem. The times I've seen on my sub 2 plan have me so worried I haven't even tried. Boo! Thanks for the great post. The time to start the plan is now and I'm hoping that I surprise myself the way you did. 🙂

    Reply
  16. The Jesse says:
    July 13, 2011 at 9:14 pm

    GREAT job and awesome post. LOVE THIS — “Doubt is normal, but make sure you give yourself the opportunity to kick its ass.” I think I might need to remind myself of this more often 🙂

    Reply
  17. Marel says:
    July 27, 2011 at 10:49 pm

    May have missed it, but would love to know what sub-2 program you're following. And way to go! You're an inspiration for many.

    Reply

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