Running update

I have some good news. I haven't had any knee pain in a while. Yes, my friends. That is fantabulous news. No knee pain = one happy girl. It also means that I can actually train effectively for my half marathon in October.

My big goal for the October half is that I am going to try for a sub-two time frame. Yup. I am aiming to run 13.1 miles in under two hours. I think it's a manageable goal. First of all, I ran the same half last year in 2:05. I can easily cut five minutes off my time. Right? Yes.

Second of all, I have incorporated speed work into my training.

Since I started running, I have never done any sort of speed work. It is a new concept for me. But, I have come to realize that the only way I am going to get faster, is to do the nasty speed work. And, oh boy. Is it nasty. I hate it.

Once a week, I run five miles, and two of those five miles are fast. Last week when I did it, I had a 7:44 mile! Wowsers. That is speedy for me! The goal is to eventually go from from doing 2 miles fast, to doing 3 miles fast. It's hard work. And, it's tiring. And the trick is to only give about half a mile in between the slow and the fast. So - basically I run one mile fast. Then I run 1/2 mile slow. Then I run 1 mile fast. Ughhh. You see why it's so lovely. Right? Yup. Pure torture. But I am willing to do what it takes to get me to cross that finish line in at 1:59:59.

I also have incorporated sprints into my workout. Once a week I do a tenth of a mile sprints - 5 or 6  times. It sounds easy. But, it's not. And it is harder in this heat. I either have to run at the crack of the crack. Or at 8 PM when the sun is setting. This week might be a gym running week in the cool AC, since the temps are not going to cool down.

Anyway, I have to say that I do feel stronger and faster. I think the speed work is working. And I think the no-grains diet is helping.

I do believe that I might have a sub-two half marathon in me. For sure.