From Fat to Triathlete

Tag: fartlek

Watch out Speedy Gonzales

February 7, 2012

speedyAlthough I must admit, I’m not ready to make any land speed records, I have been able to increase my speed over the last few workouts. During both Sunday’s run and today’s I threw in a few fartleks – running all out for a sort distance, then dropping my pace to recover. I also tried to keep my recovery pace a bit faster than the norm.

I was very pleased with the outcome both days. On Sunday I shaved over three minutes off my average time for the two mile distance. That’s more than a 1.5 minute decrease in my pace. Today I was able to shave another 10 seconds from Sunday’s pace (which granted is only 20 seconds off my total time for the two miles, but still…..it’s faster!)

I keep telling myself not to get too excited, because there will be days where I am slower for whatever reason. But I am still going to take a few minutes to be proud of my efforts.

On a somewhat related note – yesterday I was able to wear a pair of jeans that were a size smaller than my usual size. They had been in the bottom of my drawer for about 2 years, and I decided “What the heck, I’ll give them a try!” and they fit! A big tighter than I usually wear my pants, but definitely wearable.

So, those are my two brags of the day.  If you are worried that you are too slow or too fat to do anything, just get out there and start.  Do a little something everyday and I think you will be surprised at how you progress without even realizing it.

Share

Pick Up The Pace

February 3, 2012

I am very proud of myself for keeping up my training through my cold.  Now it’s time to pick up the pace.

I did some research on how to get faster, and here are a few tips I’ve learned:

  1. One of the best ways to gain speed is with fartleks.  A fartlek is a workout where you run faster for a certain length of time, and then go at a slower pace to recover and then pick up the pace again.  The most common method is to pick a landmark in the distance, race to that landmark, and then run at recovery pace for a while, then pick another landmark and repeat.  It’s a fun training method because it can be varied throughout the workout which reduces the risk of boredom.
  2. Stay hydrated.  An easy way to get cramps is to work your muscles while dehydrated.  This will sidetrack any workout.
  3. Stretch.  Not much to be said about this one, it’s vital to keep muscles loose.
  4. Hill workouts.  This is a difficult one here at the beach where there aren’t many hills, but a good hill workout can increase your speed.
  5. Beach workout.  Now this one would be easier for me.  Running in soft sand will increase muscle strength and speed.

I definitely want to start with the fartleks first, because that can be incorporated into my daily workout right away. I know I need to start drinking more water and stretching. I would love to get to the beach to run, and might have to try and plan something for the near future. And to round it out, maybe I should start planning a vacation to a hilly destination……

Share

I made it out in the cold today for a short 2 mile run.  I was able to practice some speed work, getting my heart rate up and even sweating some.  The other day, during Wilmington’s welcoming of Tropical Storm Ida, I stayed bundled up in the house.  I just couldn’t bring myself to run in the downpour. 

I’ve enjoyed reading everyone’s race reports following the Beach2Battleship.  It seems like you all had a great time, even if you were participating in a iron distance triathlon.  It just adds to my excitement to participate myself in 2 years.

Hope you enjoy my new podcast.  Thanks to Gayle, it is now available on iTunes.  Head over and subscribe so you won’t miss an episode.  In this episode I talk about the Beach2Battleship triathlon, my marathon plans, and a new calf stretch I discovered after Thursday’s run with achilles pain.

[podcast]http://fat2triathlete.com/podcast/VA030_016KBPS_091112_091356.MP3[/podcast]

Have a great day!

Still tri-in’

Jenn

Share

In this podcast I talk about using fartlek training to increase my speed, and also mention the benefits of training using perceived exertion instead of a heart rate monitor.  Both things are great additions to your training without having to spend money or drive somewhere to get it done.

In my 3 miles this morning I was very please with the addition of the speed training.  First, it showed me that I can run faster. I’m not really stuck at the same slow pace even though sometimes it feels like I am.  Here are my times for today.

Distance: 3 miles

Total Time: 55:25

Mile 1: 18:48

Mile 2: 18:40 minutes

Mile 3: 17:56 minutes

Average Pace: 18:28

My average is almost a minute faster than a few days ago.  I think I have the speed in me, at least some of it, but for whatever reason have just been plodding along.  Now I know I can bring it up a notch and be successful!

[podcast]http://www.fat2triathlete.com/podcast/VA024_016KBPS_060101_083849.MP3[/podcast]

Hope you enjoy the podcast, it will be the first of many along my journey

Still tri-ing

Share
Easy AdSense by Unreal