Adrienne Langelier Racing

Today I came out early to help out if needed and watch the Bill Crews Remission Run. The race itself was near-perfect from my observation: good turnout, management, plenty of food and coffee for both volunteers and runners alike. Bill and the Crews family are such a blessing to our great running community here in The Woods. Everyone did a great job. My favorite moment was watching above-the-knee amputee Chris Arthey cross the finish line at his first event since receiving his running leg. Once again, I struggled considerably with the temps and had to warm myself in my boyfriend's car. I did, however, have to get back out there to watch, with a slight lump in my throat.

Today I was reminded of the challenges we all face, big and small, and how we all have the spirit to overcome them; all it takes is courage and determination. Hopefully my mom and sister, who were supposed to debut in the racing scene today got lost and missed the start, will be able to have a good experience in the near future.

After a large lunch, thanks to Micah, who was perhaps a little concerned with my reaction to the temps, I took on my scheduled long run at 3pm and it turned out to be one of my better ones here recently. I was rested once again, fueled and hydrated, and averaged a 7:28 pace with a decent to goal marathon pace for the last mile. No temp. issues on this one!

Congrats and thank you to everyone who put on such a nice event this morning.

Run Happy!

I couldn't help but smile as I saw "Mile Repeats" on my TrainingPeaks the other day for my weekly track workout. This is my favorite workout on the track, as I always feel challenged, yet strong when I go through these. After tonight, the Half Marathon effort from a week and a half ago (but not the weekend and race) was a distant memory.

I put in a total of 12 miles in today, 2 early this morning as my little ritual to get the legs ready for the hard stuff later on. The other 10 came on the track via 6 x 1600 with 400 recovery and a 1.5 mile warmup, 1 mile cooldown. As my other blog often discusses, my goal was to stay focused and positive and let the running come to me. I usually like to finish at the low end or faster than my predicted paces, this time I was comfortable staying within the middle of my 5:55 to 6:05 range.

Splits: Warmup in 13:30/7:48 avg., 6 x 1600 in 6:01, 6:01, 6:03, 6:06, 6:05, 6:01. Cooldown in 8:10. Recovery run tomorrow morning through the neighborhoods-likely to be slow!

Run Happy!

This week was like coming off a sort of a high: I again enjoyed the invite privileges, ran a PR race, and enjoyed the company of my boyfriend, training and clubmates, family, and some new faces in between. I am proud of my effort but still see room for tweakage before the big one in April.

After some relatively intense training and racing over the past couple months, this was a true recovery week for me. Usually I am chomping at the bit to ramp up the miles, but this time around I was a little more conservative ( I only threw in like, 2 extra this week instead of 4 or 5!). Tired? Sure. Satisfied? Enough for the time being. Maybe I am just beginning to learn to appreciate rest. I know it will pay off big dividends in the end, and I am constantly having to remind myself of that fact.

Of course it was no rest for the weary professionally, as I returned to a busy office on Monday afternoon. The work-training/everything else balance is something I find stressful at times and am working to perfect as I diversify my services.

The breakdown of the week training is pretty uneventful, as it should be. Monday I put in a 30-minute recovery run on the treadmill, Tuesday a quick 2 miles on the roads without even a watch, followed by an ice bath and registration for the ConocoPhillips Rodeo Run. Wednesday night at track I managed, though still somewhat tired, a sub-6 minute mile and some strides with Juliee in a workout totaling about 6 miles all together. More easy running followed and today was an absolute rest day, with the exception of some crunches I did on my Swiss ball. I did get a little creative while typing a report and sat on it instead of the chair-what can I say, I'm a fitness nut!

I can't remember the time I put in so few miles, but my legs are thanking me; as they should be as I put in 12ish tomorrow morning with the "usual suspects". I am looking forward to some long and easy miles, breaking in my new Brooks Launches-cushy and speedy feeling!

Run Happy.

Pictured: that is yours truly at the start behind Shalane Flanagan and Saucony's Michelle Lillenthal. Courtesy of John Laskowski.

For so many reasons, this race weekend was a memorable one. I spent Friday through Sunday with basically VIP access to dinners, unlimited food and drinks from a near-penthouse suite, conversations with both great runners and top USATF officials, and starting the 13.1 mile distance with the best of the best.

Friday I headed down to the expo to pick up my packet, attend the expo and elite luncheon as well as sit in at the athlete's press conference. I was able to hear the perspectives of Shalane Flanagan, Paige Higgins, and Brett Gotcher first hand as they discussed their first half and full marathons, respectively. At lunch, I caught up with teammate (and top area marathoner) Gerardo Mora, "newbie" Ryan Smith, Richard Peoples, the always-entertaining Ben Harvie, and NYAC half-marathoner, Fred Joslin. Quite the mix at the lunch table!

Saturday, as nerves slowly began to build, I attended the usual logistics meeting for race morning and attended a quite tasty prerace dinner. The Hilton Americas does some decent bowtie pasta! Luckily, I was able to get a few hours sleep in upon returning home from downtown.

Race morning we headed in dark and early at 4:30, I gathered my thoughts, visualized the race in a quiet spot, and then took Bill up to the Elite Warm-up area with me as I made my final preparations. It was cold out, but not unbearable, however, I wanted to walk out with the second wave of half-marathoners to stay warmer longer.

One of the cooler moments before starting (besides seeing my mom and boyfriend at the side of the warm-up area), was looking to my left during the walk to La Branch St.: I was being escorted to the start line right next to Shalane Flanagan herself! She looked focused and ready to set a new course record in her debut half (she did in 1:09). I have come a long way since I first toed the line as a grad student in my first half wearing running shoes I purchased at the local Academy.

As I did my strides and jogged the rest of my 2-mile warmup, I fought a wave of different emotions, excitement, fear, reverence; a whole combination of things. I had set a pretty tough goal time and wanted to go out and stay at about a 6:10 pace. The whole race seemed to start and end fast....

Cannon goes off: I get off to a fast, but not ridiculous start at 5:40 pace. I settle quickly on the Elysian Viaduct in 6:06 and then was dead on 6:10 for the first 4 miles or so. That was when I hit a midrace funk: perhaps it was a sleep or fueling issue, but the inclines gave me more trouble than I anticipated as I got off pace for a while. I battled mentally during that time, there was a 3-mile conversation with myself about limits and doubts; but somehow maintained to keep it all together. The crowd and my clubmates helped keep me going out there when it got unpleasant.

Mile 8 rolls around and I began to find a rhythm. I take the turnaround with a renewed vigor. I ran onto Allen Pkwy., my decision point in the race to keep cruising or began to drop the hammer, and felt that I could press. My average pace dropped to about a 6:07, then to my fastest mile of 5:50. Mile 12 was windy as we entered the final turns downtown, and I narrowed my focus to the course signage and then the finish line at Rusk St. The long .6 mile stretch came to an end as I saw the clock and knew that my goal time of 1:19 was not happening this day, but I was within 90 seconds of setting a new PR-I picked up the pace and gave one last hard effort across the finish in 1:22:02. The crazy thing was, just as I was feeling ready to keep on truckin', the race was over!

I was able to do a special cooldown with my boyfriend as he embarked on his first run coming off a stress fracture. It was a fun moment to have to run him down at Discovery Green with still- uncooperative legs!

Given where I am in my training during this time of the year, after some ambivalence, I am proud of my effort. I was not as rested as I typically am for big races, but that was part of the plan. The results are still pending, though I finished 18th in a VERY deep age group, 31st overall female, and possibly in the mix for Top Local winner or placement.

Today I completed a 30-minute recovery run followed by a nice ice bath. I experienced a little soreness today but nothing major. A little rest, then it will soon be time to get back to work!

Whatever the result, I was humbled by the company I was in as I prepared and raced this weekend and everyone's incredible support in my efforts.

Congrats to all on your achievements this weekend!

-Recovering and still Running Happy!

Four more days until the Aramco Houston Half Marathon. The typical "race week" mentality was a little delayed this time around, likely due to a busy week at work (which is not really negative). Arriving to the track tonight, however, I was ready for my setup workout. There is something about this short yet just challenging enough workout that always flips the switch before races. I cruised through warmup easily and hit my mile time in 5:53, a fairly hard effort but not flat out.

Following the 1600 interval, I put in a quick 4 x 400 in 1:21, 1:22, 1:22, 1:22. While my leg turnover is slowed somewhat due to my high long run volume, I am encouraged with the consistency of my pacing. If all goes to plan, this should serve me well on my trip through The Heights to Allen Parkway.

The total workout including about 2.5 miles of warmup and cooldown lasted about 40 minutes. Prescribed was 1600 in 6:15-6:20, 400s in 1:25-1:35. Temps were just cold enough to feel good and not cause problems.

Now it is time to focus on rest, visualization, and enjoying the upcoming events surrounding the race. The mantra for this one is positivity. I'm prepared to enjoy the local elite privilege and run a solid time.

Best to all of you preparing for the Houston events this weekend.

Run Happy.

As with most of the country right about now, Houston has been experiencing a hard freeze for the past two days or so. According to the local news, the temps were only above freezing for one hour yesterday afternoon. Could it be worse, sure. My father is currently working a project in Northern Russia, where it averages sub-zero temps daily.

Unfortunately, I do not possess right now the hardiness to run in temperatures below 30. I attempted to do so last month, and ended up losing almost total function of my hands and fingers, numb feet (for most of the 14 miles we ran), slurred speech, and a general sense of spaciness (I may be going in for a body comp test here soon to troubleshoot). It was kind of humorous, albeit not very good for me!

This morning it again was in the 20's at my usual long run time. I have a preference to run long on Saturday, freeing up Sunday for church, friends, and family, etc. When planning this one out yesterday, the notion of the 'dreadmill' popped into my head. I ran 20k on that thing in Mexico last year, and in this case, I may just appreciate it. After consulting with my Bill about it, I committed myself (insert therapist joke here! :)) to taking on 90 minutes, or 12ish miles. Small price to pay to avoid the stresses of the elements, especially so close to race time.

The pro's of today's belt-fest? Low impact? Check. Steady pacing? Got that too. Formwork? Yup. Music, time to think, and, most importantly: heat? Definitely.

Of course, I missed the usual conversation and everything that goes with my runs with my buddies. At least I got in the miles, saving my legs for Houston next weekend while testing the limits of my attention span.

Total Distance: 12.25, 1:36/7:45 avg./ 3%incline. Ice bath afterward, because I was hot. It's been a nice, solid training week. Taper is on.

Run Happy, Y'all.

Last night's track workout consisted of 16 x 300 with 100 recovery jog in between. I had never done this workout before, so I was not really sure what to expect. Upon actually doing it, I find it to be one of the more challenging ones I've done to date. Most of it was done in oxygen debt.

I ended up cursing a bit more than usual on this one, tore my gloves and top layers off in frustration (don't worry in an inexplicit manner-lol) at one point, felt a bit like crying (ok a bit of an exaggeration), but came out alright in the end. I was definitely stretched in the middle of the workout and had to battle through wavering emotions and difficulty breathing the cold air. So this is true sub threshold running!

The Workout: 2 mile warmup, 16 x 300 in :55-1:02 (predicted "sandbag" from coach :54-59;)). 1 mile cooldown. I also did an easy 3 in the morning; totalling close to 11 for the day. I hope my VO2 Max increases from this one! I learned that I may be limited in top speed, something dissappointing, but something I have to live with. The trick is working with what I got, and I love the longer races anyway.

In hindsight, I should have switched from my trainers into flats, but this should enhance the feel of my Brooks T6's on Race Day next Sunday. This marks the last hard workout before I begin my taper, in pursuit of a considerable Half Marathon PR.

Tomorrow it is an easy 6ish, Saturday an easy 12-14, with the supportive BF cycling along.

After Wednesday's track session, I have increased my focus not merely on hitting times but hitting the times using better technique and form. If I was to make any kind of "resolution" for the upcoming year, it is to fine-tune how I carry myself through the miles. The goal is improved running economy; increasing the efficiency of my stride, movement, and form. Soon enough, hopefully I will no longer run like a slouch!

To recap my training for the past week, I put in 12 x 800 Wednesday night and some easy miles Thursday and Friday (total of 5 and 7, respectively). Besides a change of scenery in Kingwood on Friday,I witnessed Melissa's special day, winning her first marathon in 3:24-wow! It is inspiring watching others' hard work come to fruition. I am proud of my training partner.

Saturday morning's long run was slated to be challenging, but controlled. Bill endearingly reminded me to hold back on the first 12 before descending the pace for the last 3 to 4. I am glad I heeded the advice, the weather again was rough on me, making my muscles more stiff than usual and we hit a fair amount of the area's hills.

Form again came to mind, as I descended the pace on Lake Woodlands, I would purposely catch my shoulders rolling forward. It's amazing what happens when you are aware of where you are in space, I noticed a little lift as I arched my shoulders back and lifted my torso more, freeing my elbows. Awareness is the first step in making adjustments.

The long workout ended up being 17.2 miles with Kim and Bill, 7:34 average pace with the first 12 in 7:58, then dropping to 6:28, 6:24, and 6:17 for miles 12-15, with a 2 mile cool down.

Yesterday was restful, and this morning was my "hardish" day, running 7 miles with the middle 2 in 6:13 and 6:08. These paces were a little faster than prescribed, but I made sure to try and dial it back. To stretch the miles in my trainers a tad, I rotated in my Racer ST-4's. This was a helpful change, allowing the stride a little more snap.

Run Happy,

A