Sunday, July 22, 2007

Blueberry Muffins with a Twist of Lemon


That's kind of how my weekend training went. Starts off sweet, but with a lingering sour aftertaste.

Yesterday I rode 26.6 miles on my bike. Ten solo, the rest with my husband. I really enjoyed riding with him. At the end, I asked how he was feeling and he said he felt pretty good. He asked if that was my normal speed, which it was.

Well, apparently it seemed like a bit of a slow pace for him. Yes, folks, I'm THAT pathetic on the bike. Even newbies on the bike are dumbfounded. Ouch.

This morning I went for a run. Let's start with what went well. I got up and out the door. That's a big win for me lately. I didn't leave anything important at home. Huge improvement over last week. I maintained fairly even paces between the first and second half of my run. That's something I have been working on.

However, I only managed about 6.3 miles total with an average pace of something like 13.8 min/mi. There is nothing particularly wrong with that except that I usually maintain 11.5-12.5 min/mi pace on my Sunday runs and have been going 8+ miles. This is totally going in the wrong direction! I am getting slower *and* my total run distance is decreasing! This is not exactly how half-marathon training is supposed to work. Sigh.

As for the muffins, I'm thinking of making a batch this afternoon. Here's a
recipe. Let me know what you think if you try them out.

16 comments:

  1. You'd still kick my butt on a bike. I haven't been on one in . . . .geez almost 10 years now :-X :-X

    Awwwhhh don't worry about the run. Just a bad day :-) Easy enough to sweep it under the rug and begin anew tomorrow.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Awww don't be disheartened - hang in there. You know you're doing the right things to get where you want

    ReplyDelete
  3. I have that recipe and it's awesome. My kids love it.

    Speed seems to come and go. The feeling of accomplishment of actually getting out there when others don't-priceless.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Some days you got it, somedays you don't. Important thing is getting the most out of each one. Hubby should join you for the full ride then! I've learned on my long rides that I think I would rather go slower and feel stronger while going farther, myself...

    ReplyDelete
  5. Keep at it VTB - sometimes you gotta go slow to go faster.... and hey you managed to stay the distance which in my book is GREAT!... and don't let your hubby psyche you out ;o)

    ReplyDelete
  6. Some days getting out the door is accomplishment enough.

    On your dog post, I believe in the pack mentality theory. You made me laugh with the "my dog" designation. Our current adoptee is "my dog" too. Thanks for sharing the pictures!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Well you already know my dilemma on the bike, which I am hoping to improve on. I would say just to keep trying. What else can you do, right? As for the run, I'm with you there too, up and down it seems. Just about the time I seem to gain some consistency, something else happens. At least you are making continual progress, regardless of the inconsistency of the pace. I think that will straighten itself out once you do a few more long runs and mix it up with some shorter faster runs.

    ReplyDelete
  8. The next one will be that much better! I hate days like that but I think we all have them now and then! :>)

    ReplyDelete
  9. The muffins sounds good. I always find that a bad run day is cured with sweets. That could be the reason why I have a tough time losing weight as well. You're out there making things happen. The good days will return.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Hey you got out....that is great, don't let the times always have to be your best....just get the mileage base...maybe it's a good thing to do a slow easy run like this every so often.....the other paces that you mentioned are around my race speed....so some of us are even slower...feel good that you know you can improve....

    ReplyDelete
  11. I agree with what almost everyone else has said. Don't let the little things get to you. You got in a solid bike ride and a solid run and that's what's important.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Hey, I think you are starting to like cycling, way to go on the mileage. A little at a time will do ya good.

    Well, we all do have some slow run days, but there is always another day to get a little faster.. But sometimes the turtle does catch up to the haire.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Did you take your Accelerade on the run? How has it been working out for you?

    ReplyDelete
  14. The bike work is probably leaving your legs a little flat without you even realizing it. Also, have you been doing any speed work at all? It doesn't have to be anything formal like track intervals. If you just get out one on run a week and push the pace of a short run for a mile or two, you will find that your legs learn to turn over better on all of your runs and you will run even your "slow" runs faster. Give it a try, and good job with your training.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Well, I am impressed!

    I am going to try those muffins!

    Take Care!

    ReplyDelete
  16. For the record, those muffins are pretty tasty, low fat, and low sugar. They are tart from the blueberries and lemon, not sweet (because low sugar). I like them.

    ReplyDelete